Oops, it's been a little while since I last updated this story! Sorry! It's a short chapter, but I do know where I'm going with this. It should be finished by the next few chapters. Thanks for your patience!
"Will there be anything else, m'lady?" Gwen inquired as she brought in some extra sheets for Morgana.
"No, that's all Gwen. You can go ahead to bed now—I'll be alright. Oh, and Gwen! The other night…when I snapped at you. I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to speak to you like that, especially when you were only doing your job."
"All is forgiven, Morgana. I know you were just tired and wanted to be alone…"
"No—my behavior was uncalled for. I am truly sorry." Morgana held out both hands as Gwen came closer and took hold of them.
"As I said before, I forgive you. Are you alright?"
"I…I don't know."
"I know you haven't been yourself since your fight with Uther."
"I haven't spoken to him at all since then…and that was a week ago. Oh Gwen, I did say horrible things to him. But I couldn't help it! There he was, ordering yet another man to death because of his hatred toward magic."
"But Alvaar didn't just use magic—he would have killed Arthur if he could have. And he escaped." Gwen looked warily down at Morgana, trying to gauge her reaction. To Gwen's surprise, a tear rolled down her cheek.
"I helped him escape, Gwen."
"You what?"
"I helped him escape."
"Morgana, if Uther ever finds out…"
"I know. He'll probably have me imprisoned for life…or worse. I know I can trust you not to tell anyone."
Gwen nodded. "Of course."
Morgana paused, unsure of whether she should tell Gwen about Mordred's alliance with Alvaar, but decided against it.
"Take care, Morgana." Gwen looked concerned as she rested her hand on Morgana's shoulder. "Is there anything else I can help you with tonight?"
"No…I'll be fine. Thank you." Morgana smiled weakly as Gwen left the room. She blew out the candle and pulled the linen sheets over her body. She shivered at the coldness she felt, but relaxed as the warmth of the blankets began to provide adequate warmth. Her eyes rested on the healing bracelet that Morgause had given her—she had left it on her dresser. Surprisingly, Morgana resisted the urge to get up and put it on. True, she had had no nightmares since Morgause had insisted that Morgana take it, but she still didn't trust her so-called "sister". After hearing what the woman had told Arthur about his mother, she couldn't be sure of her motives. Arthur had filled her in on the details even though Uther had forbidden both Merlin and his son from telling anyone.
Wearing the bracelet had lost some appeal to her, and the fact that Morgause claimed to be her sister only complicated matters. The bracelet had helped her fall asleep though, and she hadn't had a single nightmare since. Morgana sighed and turned away from the piece of jewelry. It was almost as if it was calling out her name, wanting her to put it back on.
Morgana's thoughts flew to Merlin. She had seen so little of him in recent days. He seemed…distracted, particularly in the past weeks. She hoped she hadn't offended him in any way, although he had most likely heard of her rather unpleasant encounter with Uther. But what would he care about her defying that arrogant man?
A few weeks ago, Merlin had seemed so happy—almost giddy—about something, or someone. Then his behavior had changed almost overnight, right around the time the Druid girl had escaped in Camelot. Morgana couldn't help but notice his sorrowful countenance in the days after the incident. She had been occupied at the time, but now she wished she had asked how he was. Merlin always took the time to help her, and it pained her that she hadn't done the same for him.
She blushed when she thought of how she had impulsively hugged Merlin—right out in the hallway! He had been so embarrassed—she hoped that wasn't the reason he hadn't been around as much lately. But hadn't she had been somewhat distant herself? What troubled her more was her growing bitterness toward Uther. The hatred she felt toward that man was spreading through her like a disease, and the time spent with Alvaar hadn't helped matters at all.
Morgana tossed and turned until she finally fell asleep. At one point she almost considered wearing the healing bracelet, but she was too exhausted and unwilling to walk across the cold floor to grab it. Would the nightmares come tonight? Possibly, but somehow she didn't care anymore.
