Chapter 7
Sunlight streamed through Aria's windows as Isabel whisked open the curtains. "Rise and shine, my lady! You're getting married today!"
Aria blinked a few times and pulled out of her sleepy state, rubbing her eyes. Last night's sleep had been dreamless and deep and she had loved it. She hadn't dreamed of her mother at all and her last thoughts before slumbering off were of Merlin.
Isabel was scampering around the room, abnormally energetic at such an early time. "So much to do, so much to prepare! We must run you and bath and get your dress ready and decide on how to wear your hair"- the maid turned and looked at Aria who had sat up and was now yawning and stretching. She cocked her head to one side. "Lady Aria, did you sleep in your day dress last night?"
Confused, Aria looked down and gasped. She had carelessly neglected to change out of her dress last night and into her nightgown and instead, just slept in it. There were a few faint patches of dirt on it from when had laid down on the grass with- oh dear God.
"I must have been so tired last night," Aria forced a chuckle. "Forgot to change into my nightgown!" It all came back- waking up from a dream, running into Merlin in the hallway, going out into the forest with him… Not one of my greatest ideas. Especially not the night before I get married.
"It appears so. Oh dear, is that dirt on your dress, my lady?" Isabel stepped forward to inspect it Quickly, Aria covered herself with the blanket. "Um, could you run my bath, Isabel? I want to be ready as soon as possible."
"Of course!" Isabel hurried off. Aria rose out of bed and stretched. This was the day she had been thinking about ever since she was fifteen- the day she would be married off to Prince Arthur from Camelot. The day she would be his future queen. Aria waited for her stomach to commence the butterflies as she pictured saying "I do" standing in front of Arthur, her hands in his. As Isabel prepared her bath, she walked to where her dress was slung over the screen. Her fingers touched it- it was a pale silver color and sleeveless. An obvious choice for celebration.
Aria stripped of her wrinkled, dirt-patched dress and reached for a towel to wrap around her bare body. Isabel appeared a few minutes later. "It's all ready, Lady Aria! Goodness, your dress is worse than I thought! I shall tend to it straight away"-
"Isabel," Aria stopped her suddenly. The maid looked up. "Yes, my lady?"
The lady willed herself not to let go of any of her true emotions as she took her friend's hands in hers. "This may be the last time I will see you, for quite a long time. But I will tell my father, I will tell him that I want you to stay with me."
Isabel's expression took on one of surprise. Then, the corners of her mouth tilted up into a sweet yet saddened smile. "You need not stress yourself, my lady. After today, you will be a wife and your place will be in Camelot. You won't be needing me here, not when there will be so many others at your disposal."
"They won't be like you," Aria practically whispered, "They may be my serving girls… but I could never consider them my good friends. That is what you are to me, Isabel."
Isabel bit her lip, her eyes welling up with tears. Aria swallowed back the lump that was rising in her throat. Seeing Isabel cry made her want to do the same. "I'm not giving up. I want you to stay here with me."
"I want nothing more than to continue my duty as your serving girl, Lady Aria. But even if I don't get to, believe me when I say that I will never stop being a friend to you. And I shall never forget you." Aria closed her eyes and looked down, shaking her head. It was becoming near impossible to stay calm. It only just occurred to her that her serving girl and her good friend for basically her whole life was leaving.
Isabel gave her hands a reassuring squeeze. "Come on now, my lady. Be happy! Today is your wedding day! There are more important things to think about. When I get back, we need to finish getting you ready!"
Smiling, she dropped Aria's hands and went back to picking up the dress and set about to cleaning it. Aria exhaled sharply as she lowered herself into the bath, the water warm against her skin. Now is not the time to cry, she thought. I've been strong this whole time. I will not break today. It is for the best.
Merlin had stayed up almost all night last night, unable to sleep. Tossing and turning, all he could think about was the short amount of time he got to spend with the Lady Aria outside in the forest. It brought a smile to his face and he felt so stupid, thinking of her this way. But then Merlin remembered what tomorrow would bring and his smile faded. What was he thinking, running off into the forest with Arthur's soon-to-be wife? God forbid Arthur find out. He'd have Merlin's head served to him on a silver platter if he did.
The boy was yawning uncontrollably as he helped Arthur get ready. The prince noticed his tired state and in a fit of annoyance, said, "Merlin, if helping me get ready for today is such a boring activity for you, might I suggest something more stimulating? Such as, cleaning out my stalls?"
"No, no sire! I'm fine with this," Merlin replied hastily. "Your bath is ready." He made sure it wasn't too hot or too cold- he didn't want Arthur criticizing him for stumbling around half-asleep on today of all days.
As Arthur approached the tub, he stopped and cursed, "Damn it!"
"What? What is it?" Merlin eyed his master, nervous for what was coming next.
"I forgot to buy Aria a gift!" Arthur cupped his face with his palm. "How in the hell could that have escaped my mind…"
"Ooh, that's not good," Merlin whistled, suppressing another a yawn. "Of all things to slip your mind…"
Arthur lifted his head and shot his friend a glare. "Which is exactly why YOUR going to go down to the market and buy her something!"
"Wha- me?" Merlin exclaimed.
"Yes, Merlin, you. Now I'm doing an unthinkable thing in making you do it, considering you can barely do your duties well, let alone shop for a gift for a girl. But I'm counting on you to buy her something at least half-decent." Arthur stepped into the tub, dropping his towel and lowering himself in. "Finally, the right temperature. For once, you got it right."
"Arthur," Merlin started, ignoring the prince's insult, "I really don't think I should"-
"What's so difficult about it? Just go get her a piece of jewelry or something elegant!" Arthur interrupted as if every servant in the world should know what to get a woman on her wedding day. "The girl's going to get plenty of nice things while she's my wife, just this once you'll buy it for her."
"I… fine," Merlin sighed, giving up. It wasn't like Arthur would let him out of this anyway.
"Good. I trust you, Merlin. Don't screw this up for me."
You put far too much faith in me, Merlin thought to himself but he nodded. "Anything else I can do for you, sire?"
"None that I can think of. Go on then. I can take care of myself, I'm not an idiot."
Merlin rolled his eyes and left Arthur's chambers. How the hell do I know what to get for the Lady Aria? Does he honestly think he can count on me to get her something nice as a wedding gift? He's the one marrying her, HE should be buying her a gift, NOT me!
As he walked down to the market, Merlin realized that he didn't know much about the House of Ricci. The only thing that he had noticed was that King Alec's knights bore the crest of the house- a dragon. Merlin was no stranger to dragons. After all, the Great Dragon had been captured and imprisoned deep within Camelot's underground. Him and Kilgarrah went way back, although he wasn't particularly fond of him. He recalled the day he had first spoken with the dragon and learned of his destiny- to stand alongside Arthur when he became King and reunite the land of Albion.
Merlin wasn't too happy to hear that a huge responsibility was being placed on his shoulders. Being Arthur's manservant and hiding the fact that he was a warlock was no easy task. Meanwhile, he had to keep Arthur out of trouble and had saved his life more times than he could count- without revealing his secret. Only Gaius knew of Merlin's secret and advised him never to reveal it to anyone.
Back to the point, it was a wonder to the young warlock about the dragon. He wished he could go up to the Lady Aria's chambers and ask her himself. She had read plenty of history, she would know very much about it. But the door for foolish decisions was officially closed and would remain that way.
An idea came to him and he stopped. Gaius would surely know a thing or two about their history. Maybe if Merlin knew a few things, he'd be able to find a gift for Aria. It would give off the impression that he- well, Arthur- was deeply interested in her and took the time to understand her background. Of course the clotpole can't do it himself, he sends his servant to do it, Merlin thought bitterly, going to Gaius's chambers. He walked in to find his guardian sitting and reading a book.
Gaius looked up and addressed his ward. "Merlin! Shouldn't you be helping Arthur get ready? It is a big day for him."
"I am," Merlin said, sitting across from Gaius, "Arthur's sending me to go buy a wedding gift for the Lady Aria but I have no clue what to get her."
"I certainly hope you aren't asking me to help you," Gaius responded, "I would not know as much as you in that field."
"Arthur wants me to get her something that's at least half-decent but I don't think that's enough," Merlin rambled off. "The Lady Aria deserves more than half-decent and Arthur getting her a gift that shows he cares."
Gaius raised his eyebrow and looked at Merlin quizzically. Merlin sighed. Did Gaius have to question everything? "I just want Arthur to be pleased so that he could please Aria."
"And how can I be of assistance?"
Merlin leaned in. "I was hoping you could tell me some history about the Riccis. If I know a thing or two, it might help when I go to the market to find her a gift."
His guardian leaned back, the expression on his face one Merlin was all-too familiar year- it was Gaius deep in thought. "Not very many people know of their history, Merlin. I doubt even Uther knows much about them, and he and Alec are friends. They had established themselves as a kingdom quite a long time ago but no one knew of them up until Alec came to power. Only when Uther and Alec decided to forge an alliance between their kingdoms through the marriage of their only children did anyone in Camelot have any clue of the House of Ricci."
"Do you know anything else about them? Their customs, anything like that?"
Gaius thought to himself. "They are very proud of their crest. The mark of Ricci is a dragon, specifically the dragon of light- you've seen it on the Knights. It was no unusual thing to gift a dragon egg to a Ricci. It was home to dragonlords. Of course, after the Great Purge, most of the dragons were gone, their masters with them."
"Until Uther killed them all," Merlin remarked bitterly.
The old man simply nodded. "He had made sure of it. Before Alec became king, his brother had taken over. He died around the time of the Great Purge and his brother took the throne, already married. Rumor has it that Alec's wife practiced magic herself. But that is a story all on its own. It seems that Alec has adopted Uther's attitude towards magic. But the mark is something no king can change. Their House, after all, is known just by the dragons."
"Is that why Aria's mother left them?" Merlin brought up. Gaius eyed his ward. "You've been speaking to her?"
Merlin looked the other way. "I just… happened to run into her." A few times as a matter of fact.
"It really is not a wise thing to be running into her so much, Merlin. Arthur might get the wrong idea." His guardian looked at him knowingly.
"It's not like that!" the boy replied hastily even though he himself didn't know what it was like. It was hard to say whether what he felt with Aria was just a platonic feeling or… something else.
Gaius paused for a moment before he spoke. "I'm not sure how much help that was, Merlin. I doubt you'd be able to find a dragon egg lying around here somewhere. Even if you did, the King would have your head for it."
Merlin laughed. "Never underestimate me, Gaius. I may surprise you." He stood up. "I better go now. Arthur's gonna kill me if I show up late." His guardian nodded, returning to his work. "Off you go, then. Be back before tonight. You'll need to wash up."
Shaking his head, Merlin left Gaius's chambers and off to the market. It satisfied him- knowing something about Aria's family that Arthur didn't. Maybe then Arthur would stop taunting him about not knowing much about royalty. It was intriguing to know, he had to admit. But what made Merlin curious was why Alec suddenly had a change of heart and disliked magic now. Did it have something to do with Aria's mother leaving?
But the real question was, what in the world would Merlin get as a wedding present? It perplexed Merlin how much thought he was putting into this. He could just get something mediocre- it would look bad on Arthur's part, not his. But he didn't want it to be mediocre. When he thought of Aria… he just wanted it to be a special.
As he scanned the market, Merlin suddenly got an idea and made his way down the market. Just because Camelot banned magic didn't mean some of its trusted sellers didn't have a hand at sorcery themselves… and quite possibly something relating to dragons. But first, he needed to get his hands on something that bore the crest of Ricci…
It was officially late afternoon. Aria studied herself in the mirror. The dress sat nicely on her and Isabel had helped with her hair, pulling it up to show off her neck. The maid had left to go get ready and head downstairs for the ceremony. But Aria stayed in her room, her hands on her stomach as if that would stop the butterflies. Turning away from her mirror, she went and looked outside her window. This is it, she told herself, It will be the start of a new life for me, here in Camelot.
The door to her chambers opened and Aria whipped around. Her father walked in, dressed for the occasion, smiling widely at his daughter. "You look beautiful, Aria," he said, walking over to her. "Fit for a prince."
"Really?" Aria smiled. Then she remembered something. "Father," she started, "Before we go, there's one thing I must ask."
"What's that?" Alec listened intently.
"When you leave… can Isabel stay with me?" It was worth a try.
Alec looked confused. "Er, your maidservant?"
"My friend," Aria pressed. "Please, Father, please let her stay with me. I can't"-
"My daughter, you will have other maidservants here in Camelot. Isabel must return to her kingdom for her duties."
"But"- Aria was ready to protest but Alec held up a hand. "I will not argue this with you, Aria. She is to return to Ricci and you will stay here." It was no use fighting. The lady bit her lip to hold back what she wanted to say. Her father then held out his arm. "It's getting late. They are waiting for you, my dear."
Aria took a deep breath and gripped Alec's arm. "I'm ready… I suppose."
They entered the throne room. Aria gasped. It was crowded with people anticipating her arrival. A line had been cleared for her to walk down to Arthur who was waiting at the end, wearing his crown and chainmail. As she walked down with her father, the people waiting bowed to her. Aria swallowed, her eyes fixed on what was ahead. Arthur turned to look at her and she hoped he thought the same thing her father did. At least that she looked presentable.
Once they reached Arthur, Aria let go of her father and stood in front of the Prince. He offered up a small smile and reached out for her hands. She took them. "You look lovely," he whispered in a barely audible voice. Aria mouthed "Thank you" in return and worked up a half-smile.
Geoffrey stood there behind them and cleared his throat. "My lords," he began, "Ladies and gentlemen of Camelot. We are gathered here today to celebrate the ancient rite of passage, the union between Prince Arthur Pendragon and Princess Aria Ricci." He turned his head to Arthur who didn't even flinch. "Is it your wish, Arthur Pendragon, to become one with this woman?"
"It is," he replied smoothly. Aria's heart was beating so rapidly, it felt like it was about to beat right out of her chest. She looked at her father quickly who smiled encouragingly. She turned back to Arthur. "Is it your wish, Aria Ricci, to become one with this man?" Aria did the same thing she had done yesterday at the announcement. She quickly surveyed the crowd. King Uther, her father, the Lady Morgana, her serving Guinevere…it was then she spotted Merlin standing with Gaius. Merlin looked back at her. He didn't say anything but his expression told her what he told her all the time… it's going to be alright. I promise. Remember, you still have me.
Arthur rubbed the ring on her finger and Aria averted her eyes back to him. "It is," she replied, with a bit more confidence than she thought she had. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see her father and Arthur's father whisper to each other approvingly.
"Any say nay?" Geoffrey addressed the crowd. No one spoke a word. Like anyone would have the gall to do so. "We are gathered here today as witnesses to this union." Satisfied, Geoffrey finished it off. "Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride."
Kiss? Of course the husband kissed his new wife! How could Aria not have remembered that? Not like she had anything to prepare for. Arthur bent his head down and pulled Aria close. His lips brushed softly against hers. Aria was taken by surprise for a moment but quickly kissed back, knowing eyes were on her. The two broke apart after a quick moment and turned to the crowd which had erupted into cheers. Arthur held his hand in hers and smiled at the crowd. Despite the flutter in her stomach, Aria smiled too.
She was no longer just Lady Aria of Ricci. She was now Princess Aria Pendragon, the wife and future queen to Arthur Pendragon, the next king of Camelot.
This was her place now.
A/N: Hey readers! I know, I know, a bit of wait for this next one. Things have been getting busy for me but I haven't forgotten the story! I hope you enjoyed this chapter (and the Arthur/Aria action!) Please continue reading and let me know if you're liking it. Cheers!
