Chapter VII Of doubting and daring and jam filled donuts

AN: Hi guys! Okay, first things first, sorry I didn't update earlier, I have been super busy with my fencing championship and work and classes and also, I've gotten some AMAZING replies to this fic that honestly make me so so happy, so thank you! Now, I know that Shakespeare was a lot after the original Arthurian legend, but it fits great in my fic, so I broke history a little bit. The drinks that Michael makes are quite healthy though and the donuts were just a bonus, I was breaking history either way so why not do it good at least? All the probable mistakes are mine, especially if I have misspelled something (tend to happen when I write fast) and I hope you enjoy this chapter, the next one is going to have more actual content in it. Have fun reading!

There was something hypnotic about watching Morgana glide through the air the sword in her hands, the sword that Arthur had given her for her birthday. There was something strangely calming and rhythmic about her motions. She was coordinated, hands and legs and blade perfectly in sync. When the blade moved up her hands supported it, when it came down, her hands pushed harder, when she prepared for attack her feet were positioned firmly on the ground. Kara could have watched Morgana practice with her sword all day and she wouldn't complain. A single drop of sweat made its way from the brunette's temple, down to her left side, over her cheek, down her neck and disappeared under the shirt of the lady. Morgana moved effortlessly and Kara found herself being jealous of a sword! She remembered how Morgana's hands touched her earlier in the day, the brunette was gentle, but also sometimes possessive in her touches and Kara loved every second of it. Morgana could be sweet and soft one moment and fast and passionate the next, just like with the sword training, she alternated between the two modes, always maintaining the perfect balanced rhythm.

Kara was enchanted by the graceful beauty that was in front of her and her feet moved on their own accord, the blonde became conscious again just when she stopped a couple of feet near Morgana, which had stopped moving the moment she sensed the blonde coming closer. She didn't want to accidentally cut her. Kara was still mesmerized by Morgana though and her strong grip on her sword, her eyes were darker and filled with desire and Kara couldn't help but look at her from head to toes and move even closer, tracing her hands from the tip of her fingers to the nape of her neck, touching every inch of muscle and skin along the way.

"Teach me." – said Kara leaning closer to Morgana. In a heartbeat she noticed how her plea sounded more like an order and quickly added an awkward "please" at the end of the phrase.

"Come again?" – asked Morgana, wanting to hear that demanding voice once again, it made a shiver ran through her entire body.

"I want you to teach me how to fight with a sword. Like you." – Calmly stated Kara, she could feel her own hear pick up its beating rhythm.

"Okay. Come here… closer." – Said Morgana and gestured to the blonde to stand in front of her.

The brunette gently placed her sword in Kara's hands and put hers on top of the reporter's to secure her student's grip. Her fingers held Kara's tightly while she gently adjusted properly the grip on the sword's handle.

"You should hold your weapon firmly, it shouldn't fly out after the first attack, but you should also be careful. Don't suffocate it. Hold it as if it were a bird. Firm, but gentle… just like last night." – Morgana reminded her with a grin on her lips. Kara in return was already blushing hard because of that seductive purr near her ear and Morgana´s body so close to hers and the especially teasing comment, but she desperately wanted her to continue with this obvious flirting game they had begun.

"Adjust your stance now, you wouldn't want falling on the ground before your first attack." – Again, Morgana moved behind her and tapped on her shoulders to make her straighten her back and flex her knees, the brunette put her hands on the other woman's waist and softly guided her hips to the right, making her body adopt the proper fighting stance and not that awkward position from before. From the waist up the blonde was in the correct position, but Kara had her feet in one line and under other circumstance, Morgana would just kick her and let her fall on her butt, and then explain why her legs should never be in line. Had it been anyone else, like Arthur she wouldn't have hesitate to drop them on the ground, but she wanted to tease Kara a bit more.

The blonde felt Morgana's body press firmly behind her and then her hands guiding her hips and she felt hot all of a sudden, but that was nothing compared to Morgana's next move. The lady moved carefully in front of her and stopped when she was positioned between her legs. Kara tried very hard to maintain her focus on the sword in her hands, but when she felt Morgana's hands sliding down her tight, she shivered slightly and gasped in surprise still trying with all her will power to ignore the distraction that proved to be the brunette. Morgana decided to stop Kara's torture and gently pushed her thigh back.

"You should never align your legs, the center of your weight makes you unstable in that position, keep them diagonally, it's easier to stay on two feet that way." – instructed Morgana, all the while talking in a low voice and keeping her hands on Kara's body.

The second part of the lesson consisted mainly of Morgana showing Kara basic sword attacks and defenses and the latter trying to mimic her movements, but failing miserably, so Morgana would always stand behind her and guide her body through the movements. They only stopped when they couldn't see their surroundings anymore, when the sun was just about to set over the horizon.

"Oh my god. I am super hungry. How are you not hungry, we didn't even had lunch?" – Asked Kara while holding Morgana's hand and walking together back to the castle.

"We did used a lot of our energy on the training today. Who'd know that you were so hopeless with a sword in your hands?" – laughed Morgana and felt the blonde gently nudge her.

"Hey! You don't make it exactly easy for me to concentrate on my stance and sword grip you know." –And of course Morgana knew that, but she loved teasing Kara. Truth be told, today was more about being close to one another than actually preparing the blonde to fight with a sword, but still a kiss between the attacks didn't hurt.

"Okay, let's go to the kitchens and see if Michael has something left for us." – Said Morgana.

"Michael? Who is Michael?" – asked Kara wondering. She had never heard that name before, but she was happy to see that Morgana smiled at the mention of him.

"He's the best chef in the whole kingdom, and an old friend." – Said Morgana with a coy grin on her face.

The two girls made their way back to the castle quickly, they were covered in dust and dried sweat and they both desperately wanted a bath, so they agreed that eating could wait a few more minutes. So, after Kara brought enough water for both of them, they sat in the bathtub, Kara holding tightly Morgana from behind and whispering sweet nothings into her ear while stroking softly her hair.

"I can hear you thinking. You know, the whole point of hot bath with a beautiful woman behind you is to not think at all." – teased Kara, but in reality, she was curious to find out what was going through Morgana' s mind.

"Every year, Arthur and I go on a trip around the kingdom, dressed like normal people and we talk with the villagers along the way. It's something we've been doing since little, that way we can see what truly goes on around the grounds. See how people are treated and if the orders he gives are carried out properly even in the outskirt regions." – Morgana spoke softly, but when she sensed Kara tense she stopped and turned around, needing to see those breathtaking blue eyes.

"I know I behave like a child, I know it is your duty and I know we already talked about the legend from my time, but I still hate it when you have to spend time with Arthur. He loves you Morgana and I know you see him as a brother and you'd never do something to hurt me, but each time he looks at you, I know he sees you just as I do. And you being alone with him for a week, doesn't help at all with that situation." – said Kara trying to look everywhere but at Morgana's eyes.

"Kara, hey…" – Morgana tried with gentle voice, but that wouldn't be enough this time. Kara felt insecure and the brunette hated seeing that.

"Love, look at me, please." – Said Morgana this time lifting her chin with her fingers, until she saw how dark Kara's azure eyes have turned.

"We still have some weeks before that happens and we'll talk more about it if you want, but I want you to listen to me carefully. One time I read something and it stuck with me "Doubt thou the stars are fire, doubt that the sun doth move, doubt truth to be a liar, never doubt I love". Never doubt I love you Kara." – The last sentence made Kara tremble visibly. Of course, she loved Morgana, she'd trade her life for the brunette's any day, but saying it out loud made everything much more real.

Admitting openly that she loved the Lady had consequence she desperately tried avoiding until now, she didn't know her future in this world, she didn't want to hurt Morgana when she left, she knew she'd have to leave eventually, but maybe she could take Morgana with her? Rao, that would completely and irrevocably screw up the world she lived in. How could she say it back to Morgana when she'd inevitably have to leave and break that tender heart of hers?

Kara didn't get to say anything though, because Morgana placed a careful kiss on her lips, it was a statement, a promise sealed with a kiss. The future was unknown and quite probably dark, but they had this moment right now and right here and not even the old gods could tear them apart from each other. The first few kisses started softly, but quickly changed with urgency and want, letting their hands roam free and explore the bodies of the person in front of them. Nothing was off limits, nothing was hidden or forbidden, nothing mattered apart from the moans that escaped each of them.

It was a bliss for both of them, but too soon for their liking the water turned cold and it was time to get dressed again and finally go to get some food in their bellies. With each step they'd take, they could smell the delicious smell of freshly baked bread and sugar in the air, it filled their lungs and made them take several deep breaths.

"Good evening my lady!" – Morgana was greeted by the warm smile of a tall man with white locks in his hair. He wasn't exactly slim, rather the opposite actually, but he seemed very happy to see Morgana.

"Michael, you know our deal." – Morgana reminded him.

"But we are not alone my lady." – He insisted.

"It's quite alright. This is Kara, she is… with me." – She said and gestured to the blonde with her free hand, the one that wasn't currently holding the blonde's. Kara on her part saw the man look carefully at their joined hands and for a second his expression remained emotionless, but then a broad smile graced his face and the blonde let out a silent sight in relief.

"I've heard you are the best chef in the whole kingdom." – Said Kara and extended her hand to greet the elderly man in front of her.

"Well… I know that I am the lady's favorite chef, so that's enough for me." – Answered the chef.

"My name is Michael, come please, sit. I have some sweets stashed away just for you Morgana." – Michael said with a proud smile and gestured to the big wooden table where the girls could sit until he retrieved the tray he had set aside during the day.

"These look delicious Michael, what are they?" – asked Morgana, amazed by the sweets that were brought in front of her. She always liked how the cook would invent new kinds of sweets and let her taste them first, not Arthur, not even the King, but her, Morgana.

"I made these especially for you Morgana. See these are raspberry cream cheese stars, then we have the cinnamon roll knots, those over there are lemon cream puff swans, mint – chocolate mill feuille and orange – chocolate ones, blueberry muffins and peach pop tarts, I also made some pumpkin twist puffs and a couple of apple rose tarts with ice sugar on top." – Finally said Michael, all the while pointing at all the different sweets.

"Rao, this looks like a mini feast, Michael, you've done a great job."

"Thank you, Kara, I always try to surprise Morgana, ever since she was a little girl. And I haven't forgotten your favorite, since the prince told me you skipped dinner." – Said the cook and turned around looking for a bowl that ended up being on the other side of the room, but before he made his way back to the table, he took out two forks and then made his way back to the pair.

"That's true. He spoils me a lot." – Said Morgana offhandedly and the moment she saw what her Michael had brought them, her eyes beamed.

"You made my favorite strawberry – spinach salad with poppy seeds and dressing? Oh you are such a treasure, Michael." – Morgana exclaimed and didn't hesitate to dig into the bowl.

"Hey, at least let me have a strawberry!" – whined Kara, giggling at seeing how eagerly Morgana ate the salad.

"At least now she doesn't get stains on her dresses anymore." – laughed Michael.

"Really, now? The lady Morgana with stains on her dresses? I can hardly believe it!" – feigned surprise the blonde.

"No…I…um… I was little ok?!" – tried Morgana with an embarrassed giggle.

"You should've seen her when she ate Uther's honey cake set. She was covered in powder sugar and crumbs!" – laughed Michael.

"Oh this is too good, I want to hear all about it." – said Kara looking mischievously at Michael, who smiled conspicuously and sat in front of the pair.

"Oh no, no. Michael don't you dare reveal my secrets." – Said Morgana, but her voice betrayed nothing of annoyance or anger, it was actually more of a tease to be honest and Michael only looked at her saying.

"You are in trouble little lady, there is no way am I passing on embarrassing you, Morgana, in front of your special friend here, take it as payment for ruining my best frying pan." – he added with a smug smile on his face and began his story, to which Kara listened carefully and absorbed each word he said.

"I mean, you just had to see this little lady sneaking around the kitchens at night. She had such a sweet tooth as a child and she still can't resist my honey cakes. I remember that one time that was the day just before Uther's birthday, it was during her first year in the castle, and everybody in the kitchens were preparing for the feast. We had put these little honey cakes in different trays, they were arranged to look like a big golden dragon and they had to be brought out last." – as Michael was speaking with soft voice Morgana was blushing profoundly and covering her eyes from time to time, remembering exactly what had happened that day the cook was talking about.

"So, anyway, there were many roasted meats to bring out to the feast, and so the sweets were left in the corner of the tables to be served out last and nobody payed attention to them. We were all busy serving the rest of the food to bother ourselves with "guarding" the sweets. Oh how little did we know what a grave mistake that was…?" – Michael downright laughed to that statement.

"When the time came to get the pastries though we were shocked to see that the tail, the two front legs and the wings of the dragon were missing from the set and there was a trail of crumbs left from the table to the cupboard under the sink and when I opened it… there was this little lady, sitting, covered all over in powder sugar and crumbs from the little honey cakes, looking at me and smiling as if she had just found a golden coin on the streets." – the memories flooded the cook's mind and he laughed wholeheartedly. Morgana was in a permanent blushing state now and Kara couldn't stop chuckling and looking lovingly at the lady next to her. The blonde couldn't imagine how cute Morgana must have been as a five year old, trying to steal all the honey cakes.

"I was five Michael, besides Arthur always made fun of me when I ate more than one honey cake and you make them so good!" – said Morgana offhandedly.

"What? I cannot believe that… you must have been adorable little girl. Besides, my sister always teases me about the amount of food I can eat too." – mused Kara trying to imagine little Morgana with a few extra pounds of baby fat.

"I was a little puffy, love. I am glad I grew out of it though, the dresses I wear now sure wouldn't look the same on the old me."

"I am certain you'd look just as lovely even in a size bigger dresses Morgana. You are the most beautiful and enchanting person I have ever seen and I'll never get tired of telling you that." – said Kara looking at the brunette and kissed her gently on the lips.

Michael that was standing in front of them only smiled happily, looking at the couple opposite of him, gladly remembering the old times and eagerly waiting to see where the future leads the pair, for it sure would be a glorious one. Morgana was the gentlest, kindest and most loving girl anyone could imagine when she was little, while growing up in the castle made her distance herself with the years and become less talkative, her eyes always remained warm and inviting. She always paid special thanks to Michael when he'd stash some sweets away for her or every time she saw a honey cake or a strawberry turnover left on her door (which was rather often).

Talking about how Morgana loved sweet things made Kara's stomach grumble again and she remembered they had skipped lunch because of their improvised fencing lesson and now a salad could barely suffice her hunger and the pastries were nice, but she decided to make a little something on her own for Morgana. She wanted to impress the brunette and so she decided to show off her culinary skills.

"You know what my lady… I have a surprise for you." – said Kara and jumped from her seat, looking around the kitchen, searching though the different cabinets until she found what she was searching for and began taking a few jars with ingredients and setting them on the kitchen counter.

"Kara, what are you doing?" – asked Morgana laughing at the face Michael made, it was one of pure panic and horror, because the actions of the blonde gave him a direct flashback to Lady Morgana's first and only attempt at cooking. She was around 8 years old at the time and it sufficed to say that it had ended rather badly for the cook's most loved frying pan.

*** Flashback***

Michael had been working in the castle for almost thirteen years now, cooking was his passion and being able to cook for the kind was indeed a great honor. Everybody in the kitchen staff knew better than to stand on Michael's way when he was cooking or trying out new recipes, new mixes, new combinations and ingredients… He was a virtuoso with the pans and pots, his creations' tastes transcended mere eating food experience, he molded cooking into an art.

It was a full moon night and Michael's artistic mind wasn't letting him sleep, he needed to have his hands busy, they itched to try something new and he didn't even know what it was yet. The man was making his way towards the castle kitchens and suddenly just before he could open the doors that finally led to his dominion, he heard a soft rustle from the inside and the distinctive sound of splashing liquid, scraping metal against metal and a steady thud. It couldn't have been a thief, they didn't make that much noise, the homeless had more than enough food in the shelter, so Michael honestly had no idea what to make of this noise, so after a few more second he decided to just go in, and what he found made him conflicted with feeling. In front of him was this little chubby girl that was singing under her nose and dancing with her feet, while desperately scraping something that had no distinctive shape really from the frying pan. The little girl was the Lady Morgana, he had grown quite fond of her since the king had brought her to the castle, she would always visit him in the kitchens late at night when she couldn't sleep and when he'd try out his new ideas and ask him for something sugary and looking at her sweet face, Michael just couldn't say no ("Just don't tell anybody I indulge you so much or my reputation of a "merciless chef" would be lost and the staff would think that they can use my pans freely" – he used to say).

The cook stood by the door and amused himself with the scene that was developing in front of his eyes, that was until he saw his favorite frying pan in the girl's hands and all of a sudden his smile was replaced with a frown. Morgana still hadn't noticed him and she was energetically scraping with a fork the mix inside the pan.

"Please don't tell me you are using my best pan little lady?" – Finally asked the cook already knowing the answer to that question, but still he wasn't angry with the little girl, he was rather amused by her ridiculous dance movements.

"I was supposed to go to sleep, but I was just sooo hungry and I was just making some banana pancakes, because they are delicious, and you said that the secret for their amazing taste was your flat frying pan, but then the first pancakes either went flying too high and I couldn't put them back in the pan or wouldn't turn at all when I flipped the pan, so I decided to use the fork to peel them off the bottom." – said Morgana, looking guilty at her feet.

"Would you like some? I have made more than enough mix for the both of us if you help me take some of them down back to the pan?" – She offered with a hopeful smile and looked up to the ceiling.

The state of the kitchen was a disaster, there were egg shells on the table covered in flour, banana peels scattered around and a half made somethings that resembled pancakes stuck on the ceiling. Michael should've been furious at the little intruder that desecrated his working space and his utensils, but after Morgana offered him a half-cooked, half – burned pancake resembling thing with radiant smile on her face, he just laughed harder and went to help out the little lady.

"Okay little lady, let's see what you've done here and how we can fix it." – said Michael lifting the little girl and taking her to the sink first. She had flour all over her raven locks and the bright green of her dress looked like a frozen grass in the winter.

"My name is Morgana. I don't call you cook, so you shouldn't call me lady either." – Said the girl with too much authority in her voice for a caught-red-handed eight year old.

"I know what your name is little one, but you are royalty and I shall address you as such." – Said Michael without thinking too much about the titles.

"I don't like it. I want to be just Morgana. Like I used to be before." – There was something distinctively melancholic in her little voice, so Michael just nodded and from then on he'd never used her title when it was just the two of them.

Once Morgana was cleaned up and the kitchen was more or less put back in order, the cook looked around for more bananas, but unfortunately there were none left.

"Oh dear… it seems we've ran out of bananas." – Said Michael still looking around.

"I'm sorry. I can just grab an apple and go back to sleep now." – Answered little Morgana. She was already feeling bad for having made such a mess.

"Hold on now, I didn't say that. Lucky for you, I have an idea." – Michael said and Morgana's eyes widened, because every time Michael said he had an idea, she felt like she was in heaven. His specialty was baking and every idea of his quickly transformed into the lady's favorite.

That night they ended up baking the last batch of strawberry cheese cream turnovers around 4 am and Morgana had finally left satisfied and very content to her room.

***End of Flashback***

Laughing loudly at the image created in her head, Kara had to support herself on the wooden table, because her stomach was hurting from all the laughter. She just couldn't get enough of all those stories from Morgana's childhood. She was very intrigued to know more about the beautiful brunette and Michael had already shared more than enough embarrassing stories about the Lady.

"Don't worry Michael. I am actually a very good cook, so you can just relax with Morgana for a second and I'll make sure to show you one of my favorite sweet things from back home." – Said the blonde and eagerly rolled her sleeves up and while she was preparing all the things she'd need Michael spoke again.

"Well, in that case, I suggest to make something to drink and refresh ourselves with. As much as Morgana loves the sweet she is also always searching for water afterwards."

"Oh could you possibly make those delicious summer drinks you do? Please, Michael." – pleaded Morgana and smiled charmingly. Some things never changed… who could say no to that face and this smile, even if it was late fall outside, if the lady wanted summer drinks, she'd have summer drinks.

Not long before Kara took out the last of her stuff from the fire and started filling the little fried balls, Michael presented to Morgana five small jugs of water with different ingredients inside each one, so she could choose whichever she most felt like having. The first one was filled with pieces of peppermint, strawberry, lemon and kiwi. The second one had orange, cucumber, lemon and strawberry. The third one had apple, peppermint, lemon, strawberry and cucumber. The fourth one was made with grapefruit, lime, peppermint and cucumber. And finally the fifth and last one was with strawberry, grapefruit and orange.

Morgana stood there, with the two people she was most comfortable with in the whole castle, knowing that at these small hours of the night nobody would bother them in the kitchens. She was smitten with Kara's graceful movements around the kitchen and without knowing it, she had been smiling the whole time while maintaining light conversation with both of her friends, since she was explicitly prohibited from touching anything in the kitchens.

After a couple more minutes, Kara presented a large plate in front on Morgana and Michael.

"It certainly looks interesting. What is it Kara?" – said Morgana picking up one of the fried balls and inspecting it closely.

"Do you trust me, Morgana?" – Kara asked and out of nowhere the brunette felt a shiver ran through her body. She had used the exact same words only this morning, but now she was the one that had to answer.

"With my life." – Of course, she trusted the blonde, but saying these words never felt so good and so right like in this very moment. They had forgotten completely that Michael was there with them and was also staring curiously at Kara's creation. Morgana slowly brought one of the little friend balls to her mouth and took a bite, it was soft and sweet and suddenly something even sweeter engulfed her tongue and a low moan escaped her lips, to which Kara only looked with a smug and satisfied expression.

"It's just what we call fried-sugary-goodness back home. And I'm glad you like it, mini donuts filled with jam and cream are the best."

"They truly are, you must tell me the recipe my lady." – Agreed Michael, taking more of the fried little balls on the tray.

And so, the trio spend a few more hours, talking to each other and laughing, until Michael finally retired for the night and Kara was eager, she couldn't wait another minute to kiss Morgana and continue their previous activities back in brunette's room.

TBC