Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OC
Twenty years later…
I will not say what happened during those years except that my hair grew longer, I can no longer wear clothing that shows off too much skin and for some reason I never got any older than eighteen despite being thirty-eight. The reason why I won't be talking about what happened is because for me those years seemed to blend together as my old life hazily faded away until they felt nothing more than the reminiscent fragments of old dreams.
The anniversary that would mark when I first became a part of this world – and the day when Kilgharrah was imprisoned – was vastly approaching and since Uther was planning on doing something special I decided to give the Great Dragon a sympathy gift. I knew what I was going to give him and it was waiting for me in the castle kitchens.
A few days prior to the anniversary I was skulking around the castle on my way to the Lady Morgana's room. There was an execution going on in the courtyard and I knew that while that was going on she would be looking out the window. That was perfect for me to go in there and do the job that I had decided that I would take on.
The door to her room was open slightly, I opened it a little further and slipped inside. Lady Morgana had her back turned to me. I glanced at the table in the middle of the room. A bowl of fruit sat in the centre and a plate with a few slices of bread, sausages and bacon were on one side of the table. I looked over at her wardrobe that was open ajar to show off the wonderful clothes that she owned.
I could hear the sounds of horns being blown and a slow drum beat being played. The noise drowned out my quiet footsteps as I approached the table. I placed the breakfast and some fruit inside a bag I always carried with me. Once I had enough, I tied the bag shut, pinched a dark blue dress from her wardrobe and hurried out. I folded the bag into the dress and made my way to a window down the corridor all without being caught by that woman.
I watched a man being led by two soldiers, secured by his arms, to a platform in the middle of the courtyard with a block of wood and a black hooded man holding an axe waiting for him. I could just remember this scene from my old life. I tried to hold back tears at the thought of what my life could have been.
Turning away, I looked over at the crowd seeing the faces of those despicable enough to want to witness a man being killed. It helped me realise just how little people have changed over centuries. Even to the modern world people still enjoy watching and hearing about others getting killed. I sighed as I watched them to see their reactions as the executioner brought down the axe at the corner of my eye. They all let out shrieked gasps.
That was when I saw him. A young boy wearing a red scarf, brown jacket, a traveller's pack and black hair. A peasant who had been walking for a while. I kept my eyes on him as an old woman teleported out of the courtyard and the crowd shrugged off as normal before departing. He looked around before walking towards the castle and allowing me to get a closer look of him. I pressed against the glass to make sure that my eyes were not deceiving me.
The fangirl in me that lay dormant for twenty years suddenly snapped awake. She was like shock treatment, giving me a burst of energy. Like an excitable child I was unable to stand in one spot. The grin in my face spread across my cheeks and to my eyes before I turned around and ran as fast as I was able to. Down staircases, jumping every second step, through doors and hallways until I reached the doorway to Kilgharrah's prison.
"Kilgharrah! Kilgharrah! Kilgharrah!" I cried, leaping down the steps until I was in the cave's mouth. I ran down the passage leading to the bottom of the cave where I found the dragon drinking from the river that ran through the cave. He stopped when he saw me dropping my items like discarded toys.
"I have never seen you this excited," he told me. "What is it, Jack?"
With too much energy to spare, I began to jump up and down on the spot. "Oh my stars, I can't believe it! He's really here!" I exclaimed with a wide smile on my face as I jumped about in a circle with my hands pressed against my head. "Merlin has finally arrived! I just saw him in the courtyard!'
"Are you sure?" he asked with a hint of hope in his voice.
"I'm positive," I said, calming down enough to finally sit down and sigh. "Why do you ask?"
"How do you know what he looks like?"
I wasn't prepared for that one. Out of all of the years that I had known him I still did not know how to tell him that he was a fictional CGI character being played by a brilliantly famous actor. I mean, how is one meant to tell someone that and not be deemed as being crazy?
"I don't know," I lied. I knew he didn't believe me. A small child wouldn't have been convinced.
"Then how could you be say that you were so sure?" he demanded.
"I saw him walking towards Gaius' chambers with a traveller's bag," I stated. "I heard that he was having a boy named Merlin come to live with him."
"I do not enjoy being lied to," he warned.
"And I'm not lying," I insisted. "He is here."
The dragon didn't say anything for a moment. "If the young warlock is here than my chance for freedom has arrived," he told me.
I nodded. "Yes," I agreed with a smile. "I'm so happy that you've got your chance. Although," the smile shrunk back, "I do feel a little bad that you plan on using him."
"Do not tell him…"
"I won't," I assured. "I'm not going to take part in your use and abuse scheme. I don't like hurting people for any reason whatsoever and in any manner. I'll only help but it's because I care about him."
"How can you already care about someone that you have never met?" he asked.
"Random kindness," I replied.
We didn't say anything as I approached the edge of the water and lay on my stomach close to him. "How do you drink water without it stopping you from breathing fire?" I asked. "Is there something in your throat that prevents that or is it too strong to put out?"
"I do not know," he said.
I nodded before giggling. "Do you think it would be a little awkward if you breathed fire whenever you sighed?"
Kilgharrah chuckled a little. "I should think so," he agreed.
The next day I wandered around the castle with a sandwich with mashed strawberry smeared across the insides to make homemade jam. It tasted okay. Nothing like the modern world jam. It was sunny that day and I wished that it would snow. I was hoping that when Kilgharrah would see snow before he died.
I saw Merlin emerge from a door leading to Gaius' chambers and start looking around. He held two bottle in one hand and a sandwich of his own in the other. Unable to resist, I approached him with a welcoming smile on my face.
When I approached him I realised that I had forgotten just how blue his eyes were. I suppose he had a nice, young face with raven black hair and ears that stuck out a little which I myself didn't mind. His clothes were plain peasant clothes with a red scarf, brown leather jacket and boots.
"Hello," I said pleasantly.
"Oh hello," he said, giving me a smile. I nearly flinched as the fangirl in me squealed at how adorable I found his smile to be.
"You look lost."
"I am," he confessed. "Do you know where Lady Percival and Sir Orwill are?"
"Would you like me to show you?"
"That would be great," he told me. "Thank you. I'm Merlin, by the way."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Jaqueline," I said, shaking his hand. "You can call me Jackie if you want. Most people do. Do you mind if I take you to Lady Percival's room first?"
"No," he shook his head. "Not at all."
"Come on then, let's go."
I walked in front of him as I led the young boy through the castle towards His shoes echoed through the hallways. I would keep my head down low as we passed maids, servants and residents and made sure nobody saw me eating that sandwich. At first Merlin and I didn't say anything but I had the feeling that he didn't want to walk around the castle in silence.
"So what's on your sandwich?" Merlin asked.
"Strawberry jam," I replied.
"What's that like?"
"Tasty. Although it would taste awful with whatever's on your sandwich."
"You really think so?"
"I know so," I told him. "I also know that stewed apple and pork taste great together." I turned to a door in the middle of the hallway. "You knock. It's Lady Percival's chambers." After saying that I ran to the end of the hallway and waited.
When he approached the door, I immediately ran to the other end of the hallway. He watched me before knocking on the door. I heard him talking to her for a brief moment before handing her the medicine. I was very grateful that throughout the years that I had been living in Camelot I never once needed to see a Middle Ages doctor. I most likely would have gotten worse or even be dead.
"Are you afraid of Lady Percival?" Merlin asked as we walked, now beside one another, to Sir Orwill's chambers.
"I don't like people that live here seeing me," I explained. "I guess I'm just really shy." I paused.
"No it isn't you liar," said a voice inside my head.
We entered the courtyard and continued on towards a door leading to Sir Orwill's chambers.
"Here we are," I said, going round a corner and stopping at a door. "I won't run away this time. But I'm not going to say anything."
Merlin knocked on the door and we waited for a moment. Soon, the door creaked open revealing an old blind man. "Um," he said holding it out to him. "I've brought you your medicine."
"He's blind, don't forget," I muttered in his ear as Sir Orwill extended out his hand to nothing. Merlin took his wrist with his free hand and passed it towards the medicine. The old man took it and began to step back.
"Oh, Gaius said don't drink it all…" Merlin's voice trailed off as Sir Orwill tilted back his head and began to make disgusting gulping noises as he took the medicine all at once. As soon as he was finished, the man turned back to the boy. "Sure it's fine," he assured him, nodding his head.
A laugh escaped from my lips as we rounded the corner and began to walk away. "Do you think he does that he every time he's given the medicine?" I asked. "I reckon he does."
"He didn't hesitate," he pointed out.
"So what would you like to do now?"
"I think I'll go for a look around town."
"Do you mind if I go with you? I don't have any other jobs to do."
"I wouldn't mind. Would you be able to show me around?"
"Of course," I gave him a smile. "I'll be sure not to miss a thing. By the time I'm done you'll definitely know your way around Camelot."
We left the castle's walls and began to make our way into town when we found Arthur ordering around a servant while his knight friends watched. Some things really don't change no matter what time zone you come from.
An old memory from the show formed in my mind. It was rusted and hardtop focus on making it hard for me to remember the entire scenario.
Fortunately – more unfortunately when I think about it – my memory was jogged as the scene was played out. Merlin stopping to watch. The servant hiding behind the shield as knives were thrown at him. It rolling and landing in front of Merlin's feet prompting him to stand up to Arthur, be challenged by him before getting arrested.
"That isn't very fair," Merlin told me in a low voice.
I knew he wanted me to say something but I didn't know whether to tell him to say something or not. I knew that that was Arthur and I really wanted to tell him but I also realised that I was ruining the plot of the first episode of Merlin if I did. Tell him or keep my mouth shut?
"Maybe you should do something," I suggested in the same softness.
"I will," he promised me. "It isn't right for knights to pick on peasants."
"It definitely isn't," I agreed.
I really wanted to run my fingers through my hair but my hair was pulled back into a bun and it would have made a mess so I held my dress tightly on both sides. I really, really did not want to see him get arrested but I also didn't want to know what would happen if he walked away.
When the shield began rolling towards us, I couldn't stand it anymore. Without another word, I turned around and ran back to the castle. I leaned against the wall before sinking to my knees. I watched Merlin being taken away by two knights. I buried my face into my hands as the word coward bounced through my mind.
"You look distressed, Jack," Kilgharrah pointed out when I saw him that evening.
"Merlin has been arrested," I revealed to him. "He tried to hit Arthur and was arrested for it."
"That boy's stupidity is not the only reason, is it?"
"I was with Merlin when we saw Arthur bullying a servant," I explained. 'I feel partially responsible for not telling him who it was."
"I see."
We didn't say anything for a minute. "Is something wrong?" I asked him.
"Why do you ask?"
"Well I thought you'd say more than just "I see"," I confessed. "You usually do."
"I am aware that you have acknowledged that what happened today was your fault," he told me. "And since you have accepted what you did I see no reason to continue the discussion."
"Shame you won't be seeing him tonight," I said. "But I know you'll see him very soon."
"How can you be so sure?" he questioned.
"I get the feeling that Gaius will do something to let him go."
"He most likely will," he agreed with a drop of bitter in his tone.
"Are you going to call for him again?"
"I will," he replied, the tone slowly dispersing.
The next day, I wandered through town to find Merlin in the stocks talking to Gwen. Tomatoes and I think were cabbages lay at his feet. A smile appeared on my face as I watched Gwen run off as small children threw food at the poor boy again. Getting an idea, I too hurried off.
"Close your eyes," I told Merlin before pouring a bucket of water over his head and hands. The children no longer had any food to throw to him. I picked seeds out of his hair and apologised when I accidently pulled on a few strands. "I'm sorry about running away yesterday. I feel really bad about it."
"Oh no it's fine," he assured me, giving me a smile. "Thanks for the water."
"Best thing to clean yourself with," I said, smiling back. "So did you have a rough night in jail?"
"The hay was a bit itchy."
"I spent a night sleeping on rocks and sand once," I reminisced. "Hay would have been much more comfortable."
"Why did you sleep there?" he asked.
"I didn't really have anywhere else to sleep," I told him.
"And Kilgharrah certainly wouldn't have let you sleep against him," said the voice.
"I'm glad there weren't any rats in there," he confessed.
"What do you think is worse, being bitten by a rat or a spider?"
"I would say a rat. You?"
"I think they're equally as bad," I replied. "With a spider they almost always have some form of poison in them. As for rats well – you never know what they've been at."
We didn't speak for a moment. That was when curiosity got the better of me and I couldn't resist but ask him.
"So did you hear someone calling for you last night?"
The question was forced out of my mouth and came out faster than a high roadrunner.
Merlin looked up in shock. "How did you know?" he asked.
"Sugar frostings and cobblestones, you really backed yourself in a corner this time," the voice said in a taunting manner. "He'll want to know everything now so how are you going to get yourself out of this?"
I started to back away as I felt sick in the stomach. I covered my mouth with my hand, hoping that nothing else would be said to screw it up even more. This time I did run my fingers through my hair, creating a big mess which helped me to calm down a little.
"If I see you tonight I'll tell you everything," I promised before turning around and running off.
Staying true to my word, I remained hidden away in the castle as I waited for nightfall. I paced constantly, running my fingers through my hair and making a tangled mess as the time passed. I did watch Merlin get into another fight with Arthur and Gaius following him back. When it was finally night time I waited on the steps to Gaius' chambers with my knees close to my chest.
If you haven't realised it yet, I was worried about what Merlin was going to say when I told him. I knew that it would ultimately lead to him asking more questions in order to learn how I knew that he was being called to.
When I heard the door open I stood up. Merlin came out in a white shirt but the same jacket. He saw me there and stopped.
"Hello," I said. "He's called for you again, hasn't he?"
I faintly made out him nodding. "You look different," he told me.
"I'm not wandering the castle doing my job," I told him. What was "different" was that my hair was out of its bun and reached my knees while my attire went from a servant girl to the dress that I pinched from the Lady Morgana's room.
"How's your back?" I asked.
"It's not so sore now," he told me.
"That's good," I gave a faint smile before sighing. "Shall I take you to him? I'll tell you everything after."
He nodded again. "Let's go," he said.
So sorry about the wait. When I first wrote this I forgot to save it and I lost all of the story. I'll be sure to not be late next time. Updates will (hopefully) be every Sunday.
Let me know what you think of Jaqueline so far. I would prefer your honest opinions. I have read stories with other OC's in them following the characters throughout the course of the story (film, book etc.) and I really hate it when they're either all powerful, all knowing, do very little or take away the focus of the story. To prevent this, I decided that she'll help out with certain plot-holes that the show dug for itself and other adventures here and there but not enough to make her the hero.
I decided that she'd tell Kilgharrah about Merlin arriving since I never really understood how he knew. Maybe he can see into the future or his prophecy knowledge was very specific to the exact date. I don't know. I also decided that she'd be the one to show Merlin around the castle to give the medicine because when you think about it, how did he know? I mean we never saw Gaius giving him a tour around did he? Unless of course it was in a deleted scene which I haven't seen.
Anyhow, please feel free to review and I'll see you next chapter.