Chapter Seven

Danu was catching up on some gardening in her massive yard when she felt the first ominous jolt run through the town. Heart thumping, Danu stood up slowly, abandoning her tools, gloves and sun hat. With a sense of deep foreboding, she went into her house to quickly grab a few items that she dare not leave behind and stuffed them into a satchel-purse before looping the strap across her chest and rushing back outside.

While her home was isolated, there was still a community around her. Danu couldn't allow her neighbors to be destroyed if she could help it. She ran to the nearest house and pounded on the door. The couple that answered were weary but seemed just as rattled at the erupt jarring of their world. "You need to get to the center of the town right away! The magic is failing and you need to get there before the forest takes this part back." she told them in a rush. She didn't know how she knew, but she knew that the air was suddenly becoming lighter, and she could even feel the magic fading even with her ring on her finger. "Try to get as many people to go with you as you can." she instructed. After a moment of hesitation, her neighbors decided that she wasn't overreacting and rushed to get the others living in their house before taking to the streets and going door to door as well.

Danu rushed the opposite way to get to the next neighbor where she repeated her instructions. There were only a few who thought she was crazy, but she figured they would realize what was going on soon enough; the question was would it be too late for them when they did?

Soon enough, Danu herself was fast approaching the center of town with many others. That was when she spotted Gold and Lacey, heading for his shop. Gold had a look of depressed inevitability on his face as they neared the door. Danu suspected that his state of mind was a bit more pessimistic that usual; explaining his calm acceptance of the end of their world.

Danu hesitated before sprinting to them; reaching them just as Gold reached for the doorknob. For a moment all three of them just stood there, looking at each other. Danu didn't know how to say what she wanted to say; there was too much in a short span of time. So, without a word, Danu kissed both Lacey then Gold on the cheeks. Gold had unconsciously found her hand in one of his, also at a loss at the abruptness of their world making everything else irrelevant. Giving them a smile, Danu silently wished them luck before continuing her way towards the center of the town. She couldn't stay with them; Danu knew that, not until she had helped as much as she could.

A block or so from Grannies, Danu saw Ruby with a few of the dwarfs' in tow; they were directing other residents on while chaos continued to erupt. She headed for them when they saw her. "Is there a plan to keep everyone from becoming very much dead?" Danu asked Red with the abruptness of the doomed.

Red caught her breath. "I was told that David took Hook to get the beans back and Emma and Regina went to where the failsafe was activated." she blurted out, though Grumpy looked at her with slight disbelief. She could tell Danu was only slightly surprised at the mention of beans, but took the information in stride. "A bunch of us are meeting up with them at Grannies." Red hesitated. "Care to join us?"

Danu hesitated. "Uh... sure." she said. Hopefully, she could get a summary of what had been going on, as she had chosen to focus inward the last while.

Then another, much more potent, jolt swept through the town, nearly knocking everyone to their feet. Danu looked behind her to see that the buildings were starting to get covered with leaves and tree like vines were growing rapidly through the town.

"Come on." Red barked and led the way towards Grannies.

They had only taken a few steps when another quake moved the ground; and just as it did, a root sprouted across Danu's feet as she tried to run. She couldn't avoid it and tripped and fell to the ground, hitting her head hard on the concrete. The impact made her ears ring and every noise around her seemed to get turned down until she couldn't hear a thing. Everything is eerily quiet. Danu braced herself up with one arm as the other hand went to her head. It didn't feel like she had a gash, but she would have to be careful.

She stood up slowly and looked around; surprised to find that Storybrooke had vanished.

In its place, spanning miles in a valley below was a vast labyrinth. With no mere amount of confusion and trepidation, she looked about her and turned around to try to find the familiar town. Instead, there stood a man in refined leather and silk in a style that she could only describe as regal-punk. He was tall and wiry; holding himself with regal yet lazy grace. His dark brown hair was spiked up and framed solid cheekbones, a strong jaw and eyes of blue; sharp as steel which had a natural and unconscious allure. It was those eyes that told Danu exactly who this was. She would recognize them anywhere, anytime. This was Jereth. One of the Goblin Kings of this Faery Realm. Her old childhood friend.

Before either said a word, Danu spotted what looked like a shrinking portal-like hole floating in midair behind Jereth's imposing figure. It showed Storybrooke, still on the verge of destruction. Without thinking, she bolted for the portal, but Jereth caught her as she came up alongside him and held her tightly away from it.

"Those people can handle it without you." He whispered in her ear. His voice was neither malicious nor was it beguiling.

Danu struggled in his arms. "How do you know that?" Her mind brought up images of the people still there in Storybrooke who she wished to help; many surprised her.

Jereth tightened his grip and pulled her away. "Because even here, I know their stories... and they always find a way." As they both watched, the portal shrank smaller and smaller until it completely vanished, as if it never was.

Letting out a long breath she hadn't been aware that she was holding, Danu was disconcerted to find that she was of two minds about being taken and cut off from Storybrooke. Part of her was crushed; the other half was elated.

Unexpectedly, Jereth thrust her away from him and looked her over as she was gaining back her balance against a tree beginning its spring bloom. "You've seen more years than I expected." He told her, quickly adding, "It's all in your eyes." He walked ominously up to her, still looking at her with eyes that seemed to pierce her very soul. "Nonetheless... You've forgotten about me."

Stunned, Danu realized that she had indeed forgotten. She had thought about him, but not enough to wish to be with him. The revelation made her feel slightly guilty. Though part of her wondered if that was the point of her mother's curse. "Sorry... Jereth. But things changed. I wasn't able to come back..." she would have said more, but he held up his hand. His expression ever stoic.

"I don't want to hear your excuses. I have searched many years for you. I have tracked you though the land of Avalon and to the Enchanted Realm. Only to find the place a shadow of what it should have been and told there was a curse. A curse that took you to a place our kin could no longer go." He explained as he paced in front of her, gesturing at her every now and then. He stopped abruptly in front of her, inches away; fortunately Danu was used to this tactic -Rumple used it often, so she didn't back away. "Then, several days ago, a fairy comes to me."

Danu could feel herself pale slightly; realizing what was coming.

"Thank you for finally making it easy for me to find you." He said with a sardonic smile, his arms crossing behind him and a fake smile crossed his lips before it vanished.

Steeling herself, Danu narrowed her eyebrows. "Why have you been looking for me?" she asked quietly.

Jereth studied her a moment before he answered her. "The Circle of Queens and Ladies would like to see you."

Automatically Danu's mouth popped open in surprise. She remembered her father talking about them; they were powerful beings of the Faery forest. There was one in particular; a matriarch of sorts and often was the one who would call those with potential to this place to be tested and trained. "Why do they… why does she want to see me?"

With an unconcerned shrug, Jereth took a few steps back. "She did not tell me."

"Okay..." Flustered, Danu looked around her; her eyes lingering at the maze with a sense of foreboding. "How do I find her?"

"You have to get through the labyrinth first." Jereth answered, watching her with a look that implied she should have known. One of his hands made a sweeping gesture in the direction of his realms pride and joy.

A jaw muscle twitched before she nodded. "Of course." she said to herself.

Jereth smirked. "I wouldn't tarry, Danu. She doesn't like to wait, and you have made her wait a very long time." He advised as he backed away, giving her an over elaborate bow and faded into nothingness.

For a moment Danu simply stood there, looking in the direction that Jereth disappeared. Seeing him brought on mixed feelings; none of which were as intense as she thought they should be. It reminded her of the emptiness she felt after her mother cursed her. She hadn't even been able to bring herself to feel happy at seeing her father. And since that day, Danu had not once thought, seriously, about Jereth or coming here to learn her magic. That had been a day where everything had changed.

Shaking herself, Danu started down the hill towards the valley where the maze lay.

~. ~. ~.

It wasn't a very long walk to get to the foreboding walls of the labyrinth, but it had been a bit treacherous. On her way down to the valley, she couldn't seem to see any sort of entrance to the inside. How was she supposed to even get in? But as she made it down and crossed the last few meters between her and those high walls, Danu did noticed that there seemed to be a spot cleared of bushes and weeds. She went up to it and felt around the walls to see if the door was somehow hidden. She felt the hairs on her forearms stand on end as goose bumps formed. There was definitely magic here.

Danu looked down at her hand and the amethyst gem twinkled back at her. She wanted to take it off, but wasn't sure if the magic here would mix well with the addition of her mother's darker magic. Danu never remembered her mother using magic while they had been here on their visits; which she'd only noticed because it had been strange seeing her mother use other means to do and get things she wanted. Then she had an idea. Danu took off the ring and the small box containing the others appeared in her hands. She placed the amethyst ring in its place and took the ruby ring: the one that would, hopefully, only block the Morrigan's magic, not her fairy magic. She slipped it on and made the box vanish.

Danu had never tested this ring before now and she hoped the alchemical ingredients she'd added to Merlin's original enchantments mixed well. She put her hand on the bare wall and let the wild magic inside swell up within her. Opening her eyes that she had unconsciously closed while concentrating, Danu uttered one word with a clear and commanding voice. "Open."

From where her hand rested, there looked to be lines tracing away from her finger tips over the stone wall. The lines got more numerous and bold, crawling all over the surface until a great wooden door with a grand stone archway was etched and made real in front of her.

For a moment Danu could only stare at the doors. Then she suddenly giggled; a sound of release and wonder. Part of her mind hadn't thought that would work. With her hand still on the doors surface, Danu pushed and the thick door slowly swung open, revealing a long corridor lined with stone walls; open to the sky and bear to the elements. There were some trees and bushes that grew along the path, many had new buds beginning to grow on their boughs.

As Danu walked into the labyrinth, behind her the door swung closed again, and when she spun around, the door was once more a solid wall.

Well, that was that.

She began moving forward, through the straight path ahead; taking note of landmarks she could see over the tops of the walls as well as the position of the sun. Danu also kept an eye out for hidden paths she thought may lead her to her destination: King Jereth's castle, in the middle of the labyrinth.

After she thought she had gone on this path long enough; and swallowing no amount of anxiety; Danu stretched out her hands to run them over the walls as she walked, hoping that she didn't miss a path while searching one side. Soon it became apparent that that method would not work; it may take another use of magic.

Danu paused in her travel for a moment before digging in her satchel for a large journal like book. She turned to a blank page and set it down on the ground while she knelt over it. She scooped up a handful of the dirt-like sand lining the cobblestone path and sprinkled it over the open pages; all the while focusing on what she wanted the sand to show her. Before her eyes, lines appeared on the paper and travelled to the edges in a maze of lines and passages. It was a map; crude and sometimes difficult to read. It didn't show her a complete layout of the labyrinth, but enough of it so that she could get farther on her way. Near the far edge of her new map, she noticed that it showed an incline: a hill that probably overlooked the entire labyrinth. If she got to that, perhaps she could see the labyrinth in more detail and go from there.

It was a start.

Standing back up, Danu kept the book in her hands so she could find a likely path that would allow her access to the hill. There was one not too far away from her, a bit back from where she now stood. When she stood in front of where the path should branch off, she could not see it at first, but she did notice that one of the stones was a bit off color. Not knowing what else to do, she laid her hand on top of it and pushed as hard as she could.

She heard a click and a portion of the wall slid away, disappearing into its stony counterparts; though Danu could not see how, it was more like they vanished.

Now she saw that she was in the labyrinth proper; there were paths aplenty here. And so she sauntered on.

~. ~. ~.

The view from the top of the hill was nothing short of spectacular. Looking over the ancient elegance of the labyrinth seemed to bring a profound appreciation within her; the labyrinth was alive: it breathed, changed and adapted. It was wise and young at the same time. Playful, but also stubborn. It existed since the beginning of time and would continue to do so until time stopped.

Beyond the vastness of the maze. Danu could just make out the tree tops of an even vaster forest beyond; in another direction, she spotted the peaks of distant mountains, and in another direction, diverse plains that would eventually become a beautiful desert. Finally, in the fourth direction: King Jereth's castle. There was one high tower and several smaller ones; connected by parapets, and separated by gardens and courtyards. A noble estate in the middle of a thriving town around the protection of the labyrinth.

On the hill she now stood, was a large tree that provided enough shade for her to rest in. Danu would not tarry too long, for she had hours yet of available travelling light. But getting here had taken more time then she would have liked, as the labyrinth liked to shift and change. Danu hoped that as she continued on, she could decipher a pattern to these changes -if there even was one.

With the stunning view, Danu couldn't think of a better place to have a short snack.

As she got out a small granola bar, Danu felt the wind shift and she stiffened. "Checking up on me?" she asked, apparently to the air.

There was the ruffle of fabric and Jereth came into her view. "I wouldn't say that. Though, do thine eyes deceive me? Are you dallying?" he asked with an ill concealed sneer.

Danu sighed with exasperation. "It's been a long day... and that was before you scooped me up out of Storybrooke." she said, taking a small bite of her bar. "I'm hungry."

Jereth scoffed. Then suddenly he had her shoulders pinned to the trunk of the tree; the abruptness of the movement caused the granola to fall. "I came because I find myself immensely curious about why." He said, looking down at her with only a few inches separating them. "What could have been so important… what were you promised that would make you agree to go to the likes of Merlin for training instead of here?" His hands squeezed her shoulders, his hurt and frustration showing through.

For a moment, Danu could only stare up at him; at those enigmatic blue eyes. "You don't know?" she asked incredulously. Surely her father would have gone back to the land of his mother and explained the situation. But looking at her childhood friend, she saw the answer.

"What should I know, my dear Danuela?" he asked, slightly put off by her question but determined to get his own answers.

Closing her eyes, Danu tried to gather her thoughts. She had not allowed herself to think back on the moment her life went to her own personal hell. A moment of weakness and anger that had put Danu on her path; influenced all the while by her mother's curse. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to remember. She looked up at Jereth and told him about that day; which had so far remained the knowledge of only herself, and her father.

~. ~. ~.

Avalon

Swishing the gown this way and that, Danu attempted to move within the confines of the new dress her mother had brought her. She had to admit, the figure in the full length mirror was a vision to behold. Skin naturally colored in dark honey peeked from the lacey neckline of the dark blue gown where young breasts filled the bodice. The dress tapered down over the slight curve of her waist to flare off again at her hips, cascading in silk and satin folds to the floor of the torch lit dressing room. Her hands went to her ribs under the full bodice. "Are you sure it must needs be so tight, mother? I can barely breathe." Danu commented while looking at her image at different angles.

"Then take smaller, lady like breaths and speak with a quiet demur voice." Her mother merely suggested, examining the details of the new dress. "Once you have caught the Prince's eye, you will be the leading trend setter for fashion in all of Avalon. This dress is sure to get you the Prince after we get to Camelot."

Danu frowned and turned from the mirror to face her mother. "But I thought I was going to the Faery lands to learn magic."

Morrigan scoffed. "Faery magic is nothing compared to the power you can gain from being Queen of Avalon by the Kings side. You will have the entire realm bow to you and fulfill your every whim. And I will be by your side, showing you much more potent powers." she reasoned, 'fixing' her daughters dress so the neck line hung on the edges of her shoulders.

Every fiber in her being screamed no to her mother's plan. She had been promised to be taught about her magical inheritance for the last few years; especially recently when she had started to exhibit much more obvious magical abilities. And she actually found herself missing the self absorbed Prince of the Faery Lands. "Mother, I do not want to be Queen of Camelot! I don't care about ruling or your dark magic! I would rather be with my father's Faery kin and learn their magic! They are a part of me as they are a part of my father, whom I cherish and love far more than anything else in this world!"

Dark purple eyes flashing, Morrigan grabbed her daughters arm in a hard grip. "Now you see here, you ungrateful wench. Lord LaFey may be your father, but he is MY husband and as far as I am concerned, you have no claims on him!" She did not like the defiant look on Danu's face and it fueled her ever present temper. She needed a way to take that from Danu and get her on the path she wanted her to be on. Her eyes lit up with an idea. With a violent push, Morrigan sent Danu onto her rump in a mess of fabric. "My dear daughter," she began in a dangerous tone, "Love is weakness, so it will be used against you. As you love, so won't it come back; always unrequited. As you are loved, my daughter, so won't it be in your heart. Forever alone, even True love can't cure this curse. Unless a child from the Kings loins come, shall this be." she intoned in an ominous voice. Dark red smoke seemed to descend on the girl, completely obscuring her for a moment before dissipating.

Danu cringed away from the smoke but looked around after the smoke disappeared. She didn't feel any different and looked up at her mother.

From the door of the dressing room, came a timid knock before Lord Wyette came into the room. "What's going on, my loves? Are we not yet ready?" then he saw the looks of the two women.

Danu turned to her father with a smile, expecting to feel the rush of daughterly love and happiness that always accompanied his presence. But it didn't come. She felt nothing; it was as if he wasn't even there, as if he didn't matter. Danu blinked with confusion. With the loss came a sudden grief; she had lost a part of herself, something that would never be whole again. She snapped her head back to her mother with an incredulous look. "What have you done, mother?" she asked, her voice rising in her sudden anger.

Morrigan looked down at her daughter, now calm and collected. "I am making sure you become Arthurs Queen. It's what's best for you and our family."

~. ~. ~.

The Labyrinth

Jereth let Danu go and back up a few paces. He could't believe what Danu was telling him. For a mother to curse her own daughter so she would not be able to love? And for what? Jealousy? Power and gold? "That woman! I should have begged father to fetch you and your father both from that scheming malicious hag!" He turned from her, fuming. "This curse drove you to Camelot, didn't it? It is why you didn't come to me?" He went up to her once more, his demeanor much friendlier, though still angry. This time the anger was directed outwards, towards a foe unseen. "The Circle of Ladies could have helped." He told her, and then his face darkened. "And rid you of her foul darkness once and for all."

Danu shifted away from him, her face was flushed in the telling and she was trying to keep her composure. She turned towards the tree, clutching one of the branches. That part was not the hardest of the memory. No, there was something much darker that had happened. "I'm not done…" she confessed.

~. ~. ~.

Avalon

At first Danu could only look at her mother while she tried to control the growing rage inside her. Breathing heavily, Danu struggled onto her feet. Choking back a sob, she dashed out and fled into the lower levels of the castle. She kept going and in her despair, went blindly deeper and deeper into the castle's catacombs and beyond. Deeper and deeper, soon the manicured indoor plants and straight edged stone became wild and ragged.

There was an old wood door, which Danu, unthinking, pushed through all enchantments and locks instantly and opened. As she came back from the blackness of her thoughts, she found herself in a small dark room with a small green enchanted fire lighting it. It was a hidden chamber and it held many shelves filled with trinkets, potions and boxes. There were also crates, desks and chests. As she looked around, it looked like it hadn't been visited in years, for there was a thick coating of dust on everything; everything except a polished obsidian box on the desk. It looked like a cherished object and was obviously cared for. Curiosity peeked; Danu took the box and left the room for another hiding place she was sure her mother didn't know about. It was near the catacombs that over looked the cliffs; it was a place one had to crawl to and get dirty; where even her mother's faithful servants hesitated to go to fetch her. The entrance was carefully hidden with hazelnut bushes. There she broke the small lock, opened the box and looked inside.

There, in the box, was a small black polished dagger, even the blade was black and looked like it was made out of chipped black stone. It was inscribed in the same shimmery mineral as her mother's runes, and word emblazoned was her mother's real name: Dwana. Danu recognized it as she'd heard her father call her mother that a few times when they thought no one was around. Often people called her Morrigan, or The Morrigan which often confused Danu. She could feel the dark power surrounding the blade and wondered if her mother or her mother's power was attuned to the blade.

Then she thought about what her mother had just done to her and became angry again. She could feel her wild faery nature bristle and seethe. Danu decided to act; she was tired of her mother bullying her around and treating her like she was a tool to be used. Her love for her father had been held very precious, as she felt that her mother had no love for her and never spent time with her unless it was to further her own goals. And now Danu felt a dull achy hole where her love had been, and no matter how she looked, she could not find it.

Danu took the dagger and hid it in the folds of her dress.

She found her way back up from the caverns of the lower levels and searched for her mother back in the dressing room, and when she was not there Danu kept looking until she found both her mother and father have a 'discussion' in the dining room.

At her abrupt entrance, her parents looked over in her direction. "Oh, there you are." Her mother started with a dismissive air, noting and choosing to ignore the dirt and general unruly appearance of her daughter. "Now that your back we can discuss what is to be done when we get to our destination."

Danu shook her head. "No. No, I won't go. I won't let you take me to Camelot. And I demand to have this curse removed!" she raised her voice and looked her mother straight on. She crossed the large room with the long mahogany dining table towards her mother. Her heart pounded in her chest, but her resolve was set.

Morrigan blinked; then smiled widely. "No. Not until you have married King Arthur and are breeding to seal the deal." she said bluntly and ignored the strangled sound that came from her husband. Better to disillusion him right now about his silly deal with the Goblin King than let him continue thinking she had put her plans to rest.

Her ire rising once more, Danu pulled out the dagger she found and pointed it towards her mother's heart. She willed the hand holding it not to shake.

After looking at the small dagger in surprise, Morrigan gathered herself once more and steeled herself. "And what exactly are you doing with that? You think you can force me to your bidding because you hold a silly little dagger?"

"Lift the curse." Danu persisted, accentuating her words by moving closer, now barely a foot away, with the dagger still pointed at her mother.

"No." Morrigan said, surprising Danu. Morrigan smiled. Her dear daughter did not have what it took to control, or kill, her own mother, especially someone as powerful as the Morrigan. The only rival she had was that Merlin wizard who was favored by royalty because he could do some silly parlor tricks. "Now put down the blade, little girl. You don't have the courage to hurt me. You will put that down, sit your ass in the waiting carriage and do what I tell you, or so help me, I will bind you so tightly you won't be able to take a breath without me telling you to." she commanded, moving closer, now inches away from the point of the dagger.

For a moment, Danu could feel her resolve wavering as fear crept into her breast and the blade dropped infinitesimally. What did it was the victorious look that came upon her mother's face a moment later; making her mother look cruel. In one deft movement, and using all her anger and might, Danu plunged the dagger to the hilt in The Morrigan's chest. Her mother grunted in surprise, her eyes wide and black as night as she looked between the sight of the hilt and her daughters lighter purple eyes.

All at once the anger inside was gone, leaving only horror as Danu looked upon her mother's face. The hand on the hilt wouldn't let go, so she had to use her other hand to slowly ease her mother to the floor. "Oh, mother... I'm sorry." she whispered.

But as Morrigan was lowered, a soft laugh escaped her, finishing as a guttural cough. She placed a hand on her daughter's cheek. "Finally," she said, her voice faint as her life force slowly left her. "You have done something to make me proud." her hand fell back onto her chest and her eyes saw no more. Her breathing stilled and she was gone. The runes that decorated the edges of her face and along the planes of her body faded and seemed to crawl towards the dagger and then over Danu's hand and over her own skin.

With a frightened gasp, Danu yanked the dagger from her mother's body and threw it away. But the runes seemed to continue up her arm and through the rest of her body, marking her as The Morrigan. She could feel the power course into her and settle into the hollow parts of her being.

Getting over the shock first, Wyette went over to the blade and picked up. With grief in his chest, he looked it over. He knew this dagger; it was among his wife's most precious possessions. It had been inscribed with her name on it... but now it held Danu's. Morrigan always told him that his daughter would follow her orders and her footsteps. He hadn't believed her; and he had thought she spoke of advancing up the noble ladder. But now, he thought perhaps his wife had hoped that if her power must go to someone, she would want her daughter to take it -a child of faery and dark magic.

An odd calm seemed to settle over him; there was nothing else he could do for Danu. She would now have to find her own path. He cleaned the knife and went up to his daughter. When she looked up at him with tears threatening to overthrow, he held out the dagger; seeing when she noticed her name on it before taking it in her hand. "You have her power now, child. You are now The Morrigan. This power... the Faeries know nothing of it... they won't be able to prepare you for it. But I know of a wizard who can teach you your inherited powers and your dark ones. You need to go to him before either consumes you." He took her other hand and they went to Danu's room and packed her things. Through it all Danu was silent and looked at her hands in horror even when they were completely clean.

While he prepared to bury his dead wife, Lord Wyette sent his daughter to the forest at the outskirts of the city of Camelot, where the wizard Merlin lived in a cottage. He sent word ahead so that he would be expecting her. Merlin wouldn't dare turn away the opportunity to teach and mentor the new Morrigan, especially in such a fragile state.

And there he was, waiting for her on his porch as the carriage came to a stop. She didn't bring much, even had a scanty amount of clothing which consisted of work cloths, forest cloths and a few gowns for when he brought her to court, so there wasn't much for Danu to carry. Just like her mother taught her to do, Danu curtsied deeply but without much emotion.

Merlin just grunted. "come." he bade and they entered the cottage.

When she entered, she found that he already had a student there who was learning about magic as a scholarly pursuit. It was a young man several years older than Danu and currently garbed in forest suited clothing while writing on parchment. When he looked up, the hollow space inside seemed to disappear within Danu.

With another grunt, Merlin gestured to Danu. "This is Danuela, she will be staying with me as my apprentice. Danuela LaFey, this is Arthur, future King of Avalon, and of the round table."