Percy gritted his teeth, biting back the cries that were aching to escape his mouth. Each blow of the whip burned like fire, marking his broad back with thin white stripes that soon glowed red. A few of these lines crossed each other - those points where were the pain flared most.

Catigern had a firm grip on the whip; smooth arcs caused the air to make that infamous sound, the lash meeting the skin caused a crack that echoed through the cave. Catigern snickered when Percy started to bleed - moving faster and faster.

Percy felt the floodgates open. His skin split and the blood poured from him, wetting the whip. His jaw unclenched and he let out a small whimper - the pain was consuming him alive.

It was only minutes later that Percy fell forwards, his chains rattling as his chest heaved. Blood ran in small rivers down his back, mixing with the sweat and dirt that coated him. His shirt was in tatters, it hung loosely around his neck and waist. He let out a low moan, letting his lips barely part, while gently clenching his muscles in an effort to feel something other than pain.

"Do you understand now, Percival?" Catigern whispered, his face was inches from Percy's. His fingers scraped along Percy's unshaven jaw, gently tilting his head up. His startlingly blue eyes looked full of pain and pity, he looked genuinely sorry for what he was doing. "They don't need you."

...

Gwaine landed on his feet with a soft thud, pressing his toes into the rock he bounced on the balls of his feet for a second. He decided the quickest way to the lake was via the kitchens. And it was probably the least obvious way too, no one else would find him running it.

He set off, his sprinting caused his chest to heave and his head to spin. Gwaine ran through the streets barefoot, feeling the rough stone under his feet. He launched himself down the passages meant for horses and riders, pushing air out of his lungs as fast as he could.

He sped through the military district and reached the mess hall. He slowed down, not wanting to draw too much attention to himself. He ran around the back of the kitchens and passed into the narrow passage. There was only width for one person in this tunnel and Gwaine's luck seemed to be holding.

A soft click alerted him to the door opening. A young girl stepped out, her hair was dark brown, her face was soft yet angular, and she had a half-eaten strawberry in her hands that was dripping juice down her wrist. She lapped it up and finished the strawberry before turning around and noticing Gwaine.

She froze like a rabbit in lantern light. Her body was frozen and she started shaking. "I... No."

Gwaine suddenly knew why. She was the woman from last night. In two strides he'd crossed the gap between them and was peering down at her. He was a good head taller than her and his muscle made him a lot more intimidating. How could he have forgotten her?

She half turned, ready to bolt. But Gwaine's hand shot out and caught her wrist, still sticky from the strawberry. She was trapped in his grip. "Please," he began, "help m-"

The girl wasn't there any longer. Instead there stood a woman with flowing dark green hair, so green it could well be black. She was gently scaled, dark green, light green, all shades of blue and black. They sparkled almost in the early morning sun. Her neck had gently moving gills cut into it, as delicate as she was. Her eyes were luminescent, glowing pools; as though someone had bottled the moonlight and poured it into her.

If this was any other creature, it may have been disgusting. Yet she retained her shape and her beauty; a young woman covered in soft scales.

"What do you want from me?" She asked, her voice nearly breaking as she tried not to cry.

Gwaine ran his fingers over her wrist. Feeling the scales under his hand made it seem less surreal. He shook his head and dropped his hand to his side.

The girl with the brown hair stood before him again. A pink flush covered her cheeks and she couldn't meet his eye. "You shouldn't have seen that."

"I've seen it before." He said as calmly as he could, "Last night, in fact. When you tried to drown me."

The girl burst into tears, her shoulders shaking. She brought her hands to cover her face and sobbed. Gwaine's instincts took over and he pulled her close. She was scaled once more, but he held her to his chest and let her cry.

"I didn't want to." She muttered into his shoulder. "I didn't want to hurt you."

"Then..." Gwaine paused, not quite sure what to say, "Why?"

...

Gwen rushed to Morgana's room, knocked on the door and waited for the usual "come in". It didn't come. She gently knocked again, "Morgana?"

Nothing. Gwen gently pushed the wooden door open. The room was an absolute mess; the bed clothes were all ruffled, the clothes that Gwen had laid out only half an hour ago were on the floor, the curtains looked like they'd been pulled down.

Gwen's stomach dropped. If Percy hadn't gone missing, she might have been able to look over this and come back later. But he had. And she was definitely worried.

"Morgana?" She called softly, letting herself into the room. There was a soft moan from the en suite. Gwen never let herself into that room, it was Morgana's private space. She tiptoed to the door and listened. Soft, repetitive mewling sounds reached through the thick wooden door. Gwen blushed furiously and stumbled back from the door, she knocked into the table as she did so.

The sounds stopped, sharply. There was a slight hint of panic about how quickly they stopped, and Gwen felt terrible. She gathered herself and began picking up the bed sheets as though she had no idea of what was going on.

Morgana opened the door, peering out. "Oh, it's you Gwen!" She sighed, extremely relieved. "I thought... Never mind."

Gwen smiled at Morgana and put the sheets down. "Should I come back later?"

"Yes, that would be good. Thank you Gwen." Morgana smiled, showing off her brilliantly white teeth. Gwen half curtsied and left the room as fast as she physically could.

Elyan should have told her Leon was back.

...

The girl had stopped crying, her eyes were wiped clean and she sniffed. "S- sorry."

Gwaine shook his head, "Don't be. I just, don't understand... I guess?"

She grabbed his hand - her grip was surprisingly strong - and started walking at a quick pace in the direction he had wanted to go in, pulling him along behind her. "I can't tell you here, but I can show you if you want."

Gwaine kept up with her, even untangling his wrist from her fingers. He kept pace with her quite easily and they passed through the city unnoticed. "We're going to the lake?"

She shook her head, "To my house."