The day of the first Council meeting that Arthur would attend to after his return arrived and the Prince wanted to give a good impression right away. Therefore, he ordered his servant George to dress him with his best clothes: chain mail, red cloak, leather boots and his golden circlet around the forehead. It was not as impressive as a crown, but for now Arthur would have to settle for it.

He walked briskly along the long corridor leading to the Council Chamber, his cloak was swirling around him and the sunlight was penetrating through the windows on one side of the corridor, making him shine like the god Apollo. Such a sight shocked the guards placed out of the Room, who stood stunned for a few seconds at the sight of their prince…And when Arthur reached the door, he raised an eyebrow at the guards, that awoke from their stupor and moved immediately and sheepishly to open the door for him.

Once inside, he noticed that all the members and Morgana were already there, except for his father, who by tradition had to arrive lastly... a king never waists for anyone!

He moved towards the group of noblemen standing at one side of the room, chatting before the meeting. As soon as they saw him, they bowed and greeted him with the respect due to his status.

"Good Morning, Your Highness"

Instead of turning up his nose like he used to do in the past or how his father had taught him, Arthur grinned.

"Good Day, My lords ... what a beautiful day lies ahead today"

They were clearly surprised by the polite manners of the Prince, famous for his rudeness, but nonetheless, being considered by their future king with such kindness was a very welcome news for the elderly advisers.

"It is, My Lord ... We haven't seen such a beautiful sun for many months now... your return must have also brought back the good weather" Said Lord Geoffrey ... the oldest of them all.

Arthur smiled again, remembering Merlin's teachings: 'Charm the Council members, my love. Their support, riches and soldiers will be useful to our cause. Be gentle, but firm... compliment them every now and then. Knowing that their ruler knows about them will fulfil their high self-esteem'

"Thank you, Lord Geoffrey. That's very kind of you…By the way, I would be interest to learn more about Camelot history, especially that of the ancient kings…Your library may be able to help me gain such a knowledge?"

The older man's face lighted up at that, "Of course, My Lord…my library is the most supplied of the five kingdoms…I have been taking care myself of every single book for more than fifty years"

'That's because you have never seen Merlin's library' thought Arthur, but said, "Then if it's not too much trouble, later I'll stop by to borrow the books I need ... I leave to you the choice to select the best ones... I trust your great knowledge..."

The Lord pushed out his chest with pride and bowed again – deeper than before, Arthur could notice with satisfaction - "It will be done with honour, my lord"

Arthur smiled, "Good…" Then, he turned toward another Lord, "…Lord Fraser, I've heard that thanks to your great intellect you have had an extraordinary harvest this year... your lands are richer than ever now... well done and congratulation for this and for the birth of your sixth grandchild..."

And he went on and on with this with every nobleman present, spending some friendly word or phrase for each of them, depending on the personality and interests of each adviser, that Merlin had made him learn by heart for months, not just of those from Camelot, but also of the nobility of all the kingdoms. It had been hard, but seeing the pride in Merlin's eyes and his reward at the end of the day had been worth it.

When he finished, he had all those old men eating out of his hand. Only a couple of them were still hostile towards him, but Arthur did not care... it would be easy to get rid of them once King... or sooner if necessary.

Then, Merlin's magic in the crystal around his neck warned him that his father was about to leave his room and come there, so he took his leave from the councillors and headed toward the meeting table. There, on the King's right hand seat, sat Morgana, alone, to distance herself from the other noblemen, as Uther had taught her, since she was a princess, therefore superior. She was wearing her precious white dress and a heavy make-up, with bloody red lips and black eyeliner. At that sigh, Arthur felt a pang in the heart, because it was a clear proof of how much his sister had changed in the past year (like him). Once, only her strong personality and gentle heart was necessary to infuse respect in other people…she didn't need all that make-up or cut dresses…she had changed…and now he only had to find out how much…

He reached her and stopped next to her, looking at her from above.

"Good Morning, sister…"

She moved her cold eyes toward him, unimpressed, "Arthur…I see that you've finally learn to arrive on time…what a miracle!"

She was obviously trying to provoke him, but Arthur didn't let her and instead smiled, "And on the other hand I see that you still haven't learned not to meddle in others' business or to understand where your place is... What are you doing sitting in my seat, Morgana?"

She narrowed her green eyes, annoyed, and lifted her chin even higher if possible, "The King himself has given me permission to sit here, while you were away…I don't see why I should move when for the last months everyone has become accustomed to this arrangement. Don't be the usual child, Arthur! Just sit over there!" She said, indicating the chair opposite hers, at the left of the king's bigger one.

Arthur shrugged, "I know that father has given you my duties, when I wasn't here, and I won't thank you enough for leaving your surely important princess duties to look after mine... but it has always been until my return, I'd like to remind you... So, yes, I could sit somewhere else, but you see, Morgana, this seat is reserved to the heir of the throne..." He raised an eyebrow "... and that's me... unless our father has appointed you as heir without my knowledge. In that case, I would like to see the documents establishing that and to inform you that, as the king's child too, I could challenge you to a duel to the death for the title. But if it were not the case, I would like to remind you that sitting on the seat / throne of the Crown Prince and/or of the King is considered treason and entails flogging for the noblemen and death for the common people, am I correct, my dear Lord Geoffrey?" Arthur finished, turning to the old man.

"Y-Yes, my Lord..."

Arthur turned to Morgana again, "So, my dear sister, what are you? A future queen or a traitor?"

Morgana tightened her lips and hardened her eyes, ready to yell that yes, she was the future Queen of Camelot, she deserved it, that was her throne! She wanted to anchor herself to that chair with her nails and teeth, but she also knew that Arthur was right ... she was seriously risking to be flogged for this ... and not even Uther would be able to stop it, because that was one of his laws that he was most proud of. Moreover, she had noticed the hostile faces of the councillors towards her during this discussion... it had taken her months to earn their loyalty and Arthur had stolen it away from her in about five minutes! How could it have happened? Her brother had never been good at charming people!

Seeing the disadvantageous situation, however, she decided not to protest ... there was still hope for her: after all, she still had the love of the people on her side. Therefore, for now, she smiled, a smile that barely reached her cheeks, and stood up royally.

"You're right, dear brother... I was not aware of this law" She sat down on the left, while Arthur sat on the right, grinning.

"Do not worry, Morgana, it's normal ... you haven't been raised to be Queen, after all..."

The fury in her eyes was clear like a summer sky, but before she could retort, a footman entered the room.

"Arise for King Uther Pendragon" He bowed and stepped back.

The councillors stood in front of their chairs, while the Pendragon siblings got up.

Then, Uther Pendragon made his entrance, serious and cold as usual. He immediately noticed the change of place between Arthur and Morgana and felt a sense of pride towards his son, who finally showed authority and strength. He had feared to be forced to be the one to remind Arthur of the Law about others sitting on the chair of the prince or the king... but evidently his fears were unfounded…Arthur had taken care of that himself…

The advisers bowed their head to their king, "Good Day, Your Majesty!"

Uther didn't even give them the time of day and dismissed them with a wave of the hand, sitting in his bigger chair.

Arthur noticed with joy that his father's fast dismissing of his advisors had clearly upset most of them, who were already longing for the respect showed them by Arthur just a few minutes before.

Uther opened his mouth, "Come on, let's start... I do not have all day to waste here like you lot..."

And for the next three hours, they discussed the problems, real ones and also the ones only in Uther's mad mind, of the kingdom. Arthur interjected many times with intelligent and wise observations or advice, surprising everyone present. In a few seconds, he was able to solve a problem that his father and the advisers was trying to find a solution to for hours. In an occasion, he had also avoided a war between Camelot and Caerleon, the reign of Queen Annis. In fact, his father was about to declare war, when he was informed that Annis had taken hostage for ransom Lord Chapman of Camelot. However, Arthur told him not to be fooled: first, because Annis was an honourable woman, who would never do something so cowardly, and second, because Chapman was actually a distant relative of the King Alined of Deotham. Therefore, the Lord was most likely in league with Alined to trigger a war, which Alined loved more than anything else. He also bet that their spies in Deotham would find the Lord safe and sound there, as a guest of the King. After a few minutes, in which Geoffrey consulted his archives to check the existence of the relationship between Lord Chapman and King Alined (it existed!), Uther decided to postpone the issue until his spies would have confirmed or not Arthur's theory. (Three days later, the spies confirmed the subterfuge and war was averted. Better not to know how Uther had punished the traitor).

That advice, however, made the prince earn the respect of the Council and Morgana's fury, who for the first time wasn't able to speak in a meeting.

"Arthur, how did you know that Lord Chapman and King Alined are relatives?" His father asked curiously.

"Well, I thought that a future king shouldn't only know his own subjects, but also his enemies... so I studied the relationships of the kings and Lords of all the kingdoms, hoping that it would come in handy one day"

Uther gave him a pat on the back, proud, and continued the meeting, talking about wanting to raise taxes. At that, Arthur clenched his fists under the table, promising himself to change the laws as soon as he was King.

00000

That same afternoon, Arthur went to the first training session of the Knights since his return. He was bringing with him Lancelot and Gwaine.

At the training field, he was welcomed with open arms by Leon, who had momentary replaced him as Head of the Knights during his absence.

Immediately, three Knights approached the Prince, who recognized them as the knights who used to follow him everywhere, bootlickers. Now that his mind was finally free, he couldn't understand how he had been able to endure their dishonest and constant presence by his side.

He ignored them, as if they didn't exist, and walked to the other knights, curious about this new prince.

After a few short but warm greetings, Arthur started the training, introducing into the usual routine also the new techniques learned during his year with Merlin, Lancelot and Gwaine. He was pleased to notice that hour after hour, the knights were looking at him with increasing admiration, despite the fatigue, due to his firm but at the same time friendly way he was leading them. Now he was no longer having fun by humiliating them during training; the Prince was creating camaraderie with his men and they were appreciating it.

The second part of the plan was well established: "Bond with your knights, my darling. They will soon become your brothers in all but blood, the people with whom you will ride to victory in battle and at court ... you will have no better allies, when you are king"

This was what Merlin had told him to do, and this was what Arthur would do in the coming days and weeks.

00000

Later that evening, the Prince returned to his chambers and ordered a bath to relax his tired muscles. After that, he sat at his table and started to enjoy his dinner, when someone knocked on his door. George went to see who it was, then he turned to the Prince.

"My Lord, it's Princess Morgana. She asks if she can dine with you, sire"

Arthur sighed. He really didn't want to see her, but supposed that if she was here, she may wish to talk with him and he was too curious to deny her request.

"Let her in, then. Then, leave us alone, George, thank you…you can go home"

The servant obeyed and soon Morgana was sat in front of Arthur and was leaning graciously against the back of the chair.

"Good Evening, sister…to what do I owe this pleasure?"

She showed her best fake smile, "I felt that we got off on the wrong foot and wanted to clear everything out..." And discover what you did this past year and what your plans are, so that I can stop you, she added in her mind, "... I'm sorry for what happened this morning. I acted out of habit, without thinking ... I hope you can forgive me, brother" She finished with her best puppy eyes.

He knew perfectly well she was lying, but decided to humor her nevertheless. His smiled was even faker than hers, even if it seemed more genuine. "There's nothing to forgive…I'm happy we have cleaned things up... I missed you…"

Thinking to have succeed in deceiving him, she smiled happily, "I missed you too..."

They talked of trivial things for a while, as they ate. Then Morgana spoke.

"Arthur, I could not help but notice how you have become more mature and wiser - even a blind man would notice it. Can I know what Emrys has done to you?"

'Here is the true Morgana attacking' thought Arthur, "Nothing in particular, really ... he just saw something in me that nobody had ever seen before, and then he taught me to see it as well"

She narrowed her eyes, "What did he see?"

This time, he smiled happily for real. "That I am special…that I can be so much more… that I can become whoever I want…I just have to believe in myself, in my heart, that already knows what the right thing to do is…No one has ever told me this…that I can be just myself and that it's fine! He taught me to be free, Morgana…and for that, he will have my eternal gratitude…" and my eternal love and devotion, he added in silence.

Morgana was stunned. She had not expected such an answer, which she perceived as sincere, even if it was clear that Arthur had not told her everything. She swallowed, "He has changed you"

The blond tilted his head to one side, "And it's such a bad thing, in your opinion?"

She shook her head, "No... it means you grew up ..."

He nodded, "Yeah... change happens when you discover who you really are and what you want out of life, when you stop living in a fairy tale... And something tells me that you, dear sister, you understand the need to change better than anyone else..." He said, looking at her straight in the eyes.

Morgana froze, as she was about to drink a bit of wine. Had Arthur found out she wasn't the old innocent, naïve Morgana anymore? A part of her felt a connection with her brother, a connection they never had before…his speech about change hit her deeply, because it was exactly what had happened to her. She had discovered who she really was – a strong, intelligent and unbreakable woman – and what she wanted – to become Queen, to have power beyond everyone's imagination. She shook her head to remind herself of these goals. She couldn't allow herself to feel pity for her brother. He was in her way, now more than ever…somehow she had to make Uther and everyone seeing he couldn't be trusted.

Meanwhile, Arthur had never stopped staring at her and had seen her different expressions in her eyes: from fear, to relief to be understood and then a total closure, coldness…hate?

He felt a bit of sadness at that. For a moment, he had hoped to make her understand he wasn't her enemy, that they could be allies…but apparently it was not their destiny.

He sighed, "But enough about me ... how are your nightmares / visions? The last time I saw you, you were suffering a lot because of them"

Morgana quickly moved her left hand to touch the bracelet that Emrys had gifted her the day he took Arthur. She caressed it almost reverently, smiling sweetly.

"Since I have this around my wrist, I have had no strong visions anymore... I've never slept better as in the past year... Emrys will not only have your eternal gratitude, but mine as well... I will never take this bracelet off..."

Arthur smirked, knowing full well that Merlin had given Morgana Morgause's bracelet only to avoid her seeing his plans and to weaken her magic... "Yeah... and how is going with your magic?"

At that, Morgana's facial expression shifted from happy to disappointed.

"Unfortunately, I have found out my magic is not very powerful. The only things I can do are starting a little fire, moving very light objects and see the future, obviously, but nothing more…It's strange…at the beginning I could feel an unimaginable source of power in me, but now it's as if it is gone, sucked away from me..."

Arthur's lips tilted slightly up, "Maybe it's normal ... who knows? Maybe when Emrys will visit the castle again in the future, you could seek his advice"

She nodded, "I will, definitely..." That conversation about Magic had depressed her a little, so she decided not to continue her 'questioning'. "Well, it's late... Good night, Arthur"

"Good night, Morgana"

00000

A week later, Arthur was walking briskly along the streets of the lower town. He was obviously in a bad mood and the reason was because the previous night, he had received a message from Merlin telling him that unfortunately they could not meet the following week, as planned, but in a month time. The thought that he would have to wait that long to see his love had made the Prince angry and furious.

Therefore, he was going to go into the forest to release all that anger, when he heard some screams coming from the street near where he was.

He rushed toward the sounds and after turning the last corner, he saw one of his knights snatching from the hands of a woman a bag full of coins and the woman trying to take it back, resulting in the Knight slapping the woman in the face strongly. She fell on the dirty ground and it was then that Arthur noticed she was heavily pregnant…

Now even angrier that before, the blond was about to step forward to stop this horrendous crime, when all of sudden a young brown-haired boy of about 10/12 years old stepped in front of the crying woman protectively. He was wearing rags, but was armed with a stick.

"What do you want, brat?" Snarled Sir Blackwood.

The boy was obviously trembling, but nevertheless he held his position, staring at the knight straight in the eyes with determination.

"Stop hurting her! And give her back her money! She needs it, she is with child!"

The man growled, "Do you think I care? The king said everyone must pay more taxes if they want to remain in this kingdom...and that's what she will do if she knows what's good for her and her child!"

"YOU BRUTE!" The kid kicked his shin and the knight screamed, instinctively letting go of the bag, which the boy caught and gave back to the woman.

When the knight saw it, he raised his arm to punch the kid, who surprisingly blocked him with his stick. The man tried again, but failed once more because his little opponent parried all his attacks with his simple weapon. Therefore, the now frustrate knight tried to use his feet, but the boy jumped above the kick and then hit the knight in the stomach with the stick, gaining a curse from the man and laughing from the crowd that had stopped to watch.

Arthur was very impressed. That little thing had been able to stand up to one of his knights - not a particularly good one, but a trained soldier nevertheless - with only a stick and fast movements, even if imprecise. His proud expression, though, turned into an angry one, when he saw the man standing up.

The Knight now seemed murderous and drew his sword, ready to kill the boy. At that point, Arthur could no longer restrain himself and stepped forward, blocking the attack with his own sword.

"And what do you think you're doing, Sir Blackwood?" He hissed.

Everyone present, including the knight, gasped at the sight of the prince, appeared almost out of nowhere. The peasants were particularly concerned that the prince would now join his man to mock and to be cruel to them, like he used to once.

Also Sir Blackwood must have thought so, because he smiled at the blond, knowing that he would have his support like always, "My Lord, this kid has dared to challenge a Knight and to interfere with your father's orders to collect taxes"

"I saw it... and why earlier you were mistreating that woman?"

"Sire, she didn't want to hand over her money, bitching something about not having enough for her unborn child!" Spat the knight cruelly, heartless toward the poor innocence people.

Before Arthur could say more, the boy spoke, "That's because she won't have enough for her child…you're taking all she has, monster!" Said he, crushing the soldier's foot.

The knight screamed in pain. Then, panting in anger, he raised his arm once more, ready to hit him, but Arthur stopped him again grasping his wrist.

"That's enough, Sir Blackwood!"

"B-but, my lord…he…"

"…is just a child!" Arthur interrupted him, "…and that is a pregnant woman for Christ's sake! What kind of man would be so cruel and dishonourable to hurt a child and a woman, moreover in her condition?! "

The knight was shocked. He did not know what to do. "But the king ordered ..."

"You are a KNIGHT! You swore, you gave your word, you would protect the weak and the innocent with your sword and if necessary with your life as well ... and if by doing so you have to go against the orders of your king, so be it. Your word of honour is worth more than anything else... With your actions today, you have disgraced the code of chivalry, you broke your promises ... I could not be more disappointed. From now on, you will be the last of the knights and I am sending you to patrol the northernmost and most inhospitable borders of the kingdom! I hope that this punishment will make you more humble... the knights serve and protect the people before anyone else!"

Now the knight was quite angry. How dared the prince disrespect him like this? He wasn't loyal to him, but to the King! " I'm going nowhere. I only listen to King Uther's orders, not yours…he is my King! I'll immediately tell my father Lord Blackwood what you've just threat me with, Arthur…and I'm sure the King won't be happy with your behaviour toward the son of one of his closest friends"

Silence had fallen among the crowd.

Arthur stood motionless for a few seconds, then smirked and stopped within an inch from the knight's face, who was slightly frightened by his cold eyes.

"You're right, my father wouldn't be happy ... But are you sure that you want to tell him what happened here today? Are you sure you want to stay in Camelot and not to leave?"

The man swallowed, uncomfortable with the prince's emotionless voice, "Y-Yes..."

Arthur raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Really? Therefore, you are not afraid to stay here among my knights, who I train personally, after what you just told me? You are braver than I thought..."

Sir Blackwood's eyes widened, as he understood what the prince was implying: if he stayed, Arthur would make his life a living hell, during training, during the patrols, in the castle, everywhere…and he had the power to do so, making it looked like incidents…

He was very pale now, "I- I will go telling my father I'm leaving for the north, Sire…if you'll excuse me…" The shaken knight ran toward the castle without looking back.

The people were sporting smiles of admiration toward their new prince, who for the first time had stood up to them, protecting them as they had always hoped he would…

Arthur turned toward the boy with the stick, who was helping the pregnant woman on her feet that after kissing him on the forehead and bowing to the prince entered into her house.

The boy was now looking at Arthur with a slight fear in his eyes, believing he too was in trouble. "Please, forgive me, my lord, for disrespecting your knight…I was only trying to protect her…" He said, pointing toward the house where the woman had just disappeared.

Arthur approached the boy. His movements were firm but not aggressive. "Is she your mother?"

"No, my mother is in Heaven, my lord. She is Mrs Jules, my neighbour. She takes care of me while my father works all day and is always tired. Her husband died three months ago, so now she is alone and it's my turn taking care of her"

The blond nodded, "You really are a good and brave boy... and you're also good at fighting from what I've seen. You're fast and have good reflexes, although still a little clumsy and imprecise. You know, one day you'll become a great knight..."

The boy's eyes lightened up at that, "A KNIGHT? But, I'm a peasant and only noble born can aspire to become a knight... it's the law"

Arthur kneeled in front of him and smiled kindly, "It is…but the law can be changed and I have the feeling that soon things will change here..."

"But even if it were so, I'm not noble..."

Arthur got even closer and whispered to him, "Now I'll tell you a secret: nobility is not here..." He pointed to his bag of golden coins, "...but here..." He put his big hand against the boy's chest, where the heart was beating. "... As long as you have a pure and noble heart, you will be more worthy to become a knight than all the princes or kings of this world..."

The boy's mouth was wide open, "Really?"

Arthur nodded, beaming, and took one of the two swords he had with him (not Excalibur, of course) and handed it to the boy.

"Here, take it...train with it every day and become stronger and stronger. When you are older and ready, come looking for me and tell me your name…which is?"

"Galahad, Sire…I'm Galahad…"

"Galahad…I like it…well, look for me at the train fields and if your fighting skills have improved and you still have a golden heart, I'll knight you…" Arthur made strange faces as he thought about an appropriate name and the boy giggled at the prince's ridiculous grimaces, "... oh, I know... Sir Galahad the Pure and you'll sit at my Table…Would you like it?"

He nodded enthusiastically, "I do! Thank you, my lord ... I won't let you down!"

Arthur stood up and ruffled his hair. Then, he turned to return to the castle under the eyes full of admiration and respect of his subjects. As he walked, Arthur could not help but think about how much his father's taxes were far too high for the people... He had just seen it... the situation could not go on like this...

He had to do something, especially if he wanted to fulfil the third part of Merlin's plan: 'Earn the love of the people, my darling…They are the bricks that form a kingdom and the power of a king... both are NOTHING without the subjects. Be the king they need, be your wonderful self, Arthur, and they will give you their utmost respect and support when the time comes...'

00000

Although he could not do much to help the people against his father's taxes, Arthur thought of a plan that could work temporarily, until his ascending to the throne.

He decided to secretly give the golden coins he had won in many tournaments during the years to the people, starting with the ones who would need them the most, like widows, orphans and elders who didn't have someone to provide for them anymore.

Therefore, Lancelot, Gwaine and George started to slip through the streets of the lower town at night to leave small bags of gold to the subjects, making sure not to be seen by the guards. They didn't leave enough to pay the entire amount of the taxes in order not to raise suspects, but at least to pay for half of them.

In order not to have problems with his father, Arthur never acted directly in this, but the citizens recognized the two knights who followed the prince everywhere in the men that once a week were bringing them the money. Therefore, they knew that the prince was the one who was helping them... and they would never forget it!

That was how Arthur spent the next mouth, before his so much wanted meeting with Merlin: by currying favour with the advisors; by bonding with his knight, who were becoming more and more loyal only to him, and by making the lives of his people more bearable.

And the results of his work were evident. Both the advisors and the knights looked at him when the king ordered something, as if they were asking Arthur's permission before doing as Uther commanded, always waiting for his slight nod… And the people were always overjoyed when the prince walked among them, giving him smiles and warm greetings - some of them even kneeled on the ground as he passed.

An example of this was when one day Arthur and Morgana were walking through the market on a sunny afternoon. As usual, Arthur was covered with affection by the people and Morgana was getting annoyed by it, since she was being ignored. However, it got worst for her, when a little girl of about five ran toward Arthur with a crown of blue and pink flowers in hand, shyly asking him whether she could give him the crown that she had made with her own hands.

"Of course you can, sweetheart…it's beautiful! You know what? Why don't you put it on my head instead?"

The child beamed, "Can I crown you Prince of Flowers?"

Arthur smiled, "Of course you can, for me it would be an honour..." He lowered his head and the child laid the crown on it. "...Well now, what kind of the prince would I be if I didn't give a kiss to the most beautiful princess in the world?"

He leaned down and kissed her cheek. The little girl squirted in delight and ran to his mother, yelling that she was real Princess now all the way…

Arthur giggled and got up, continuing his walk under the devoted eyes of the people, who were looking at him as if he was an angel. Next to him, Morgana was fuming. No one had even grazed at her, as if she wasn't even there, as if she was a shadow compared to her brother's shining light. She was furious, because not only she had lost the advisors' support; now she had even lost the people's admiration…What the hell has Arthur done to gain it so quickly?

Now they were climbing the stairs of the courtyard and Morgana couldn't resist anymore.

"So, Arthur, now none from the lower town is watching us... you can take that thing off of your head!"

Arthur turned to his sister, "Why should I? It's a gift, I like it..." He said, tapping one of the blue flowers of the crown.

She narrowed her eyes, "You mean you really like it? It's just a stupid little crown of flowers, brother... you no longer have to impress anyone!"

"See, sister... unlike you, I really love the people, I am pleased when they give me gifts from the heart... I really appreciated it, and they can see it, they feel I do ... But you, well, it is obvious that you don't really care about all this. Everyone has noticed your fake smiles. They know that you are kind to them only for your personal agenda, but the people don't want a fake princess who seems perfect even when she is not. They want someone who is real, who cares... and that person is me!"

He was about to enter the castle, when he added with a smile, "Besides, what child would give you flowers, when you look like this?"

"Like what?" Hissed she.

"Like you are made of wax... Look at you, your lips have too much red lipstick; on your face you have about a kilo of powder, and your eyes are covered by tons of eyeliner! I don't even remember what colour your skin is anymore! And your clothes ... I bet those children are more familiar with your breasts than with those of their mothers... You look like a witch who is melting in the sun. Moreover, all this makes you look older, sister..."

He went in, very satisfied with himself, leaving a shocked and gaping Morgana behind, who already knew how to make him pay.

00000

The next day, the Pendragons were dining together, when Uther spoke.

"What is this nonsense I've heard that you accept flowers from children and make friends with the peasants, Arthur?"

The blond lowered his fork and looked at his sister in front of him for a second, "Did someone tell you that?" He was talking to his father, but he did not stop staring at Morgana, who slightly lifted one side of her mouth in a smirk. Arthur was angry that she had ratted him out; nevertheless, he noted with satisfaction that she had put a lighter lipstick and less transparent clothes on - someone must have felt offended, after all!

"Yes. And it is unacceptable for the crown prince, the future King to stoop so low... consorting with those scums... disgusting and so humiliating for me! Have you no pride? From now on I forbid you to visit the lower town!"

Arthur saw Morgana smiling at him, then he turned to his father, looking at him straight into the eyes.

"No"

Uther's shock and irritation were obvious, "What?"

Arthur straightened up and lifted his chin, "I said no. I will continue to have contact with the people whenever I want ... besides, I'm not ashamed to be with them... they are my people, my pride..."

Uther punched the table, yelling, "You stupid boy! Don't you dare contradict me! I can disinherit you in a second... so you'd be just like those filthy friends of yours!"

Now Morgana was smiling openly. Arthur was soon to be heir no longer... her plan was working!

But her joy was short-lived, since her brother, instead of being angry or scared, was leaning comfortably against the back of his chair, completely relaxed, and was smiling to their father.

"You could try…but if you value your title of King, you should be careful ... or you may find yourself without a crown ahead of schedule, father..."

The King frowned, "What the hell are you saying? Are you threatening me? How dare…"

"I DARE, because it's the truth…"

"I'M THE KING!"

Arthur smirked, "Yes, you are… but are you sure to have the real power in your hands?"

Both Uther and Morgana were very confused, so Arthur continued.

"You have always lived in your own world, in your own mind, father... you've lost sight of reality... let me explain how things really are in your kingdom..." He took a deep breath. "You have the crown, that is true, but you have no power! That's mine... the advisers support me and cannot wait to see you on your deathbed; the knights and the army are loyal to me and the people worships me... What have you? NOTHING! Only your arrogance!"

Uther's face was red and he panting, furious, "I'll hang you for treason!"

Arthur snorted and then laughed, "You and what army? Remember, if you hurt me, the nobles will fight you, my knights will destroy you and the people will rebel ... are you willing to face all of them alone? Well, maybe not alone, there is Morgana with you, after all, although I bet she will stab you in the back at the first chance"

Now, father and daughter were pale and shaking, as they truly realised that Arthur had fooled them the whole time and that what he was saying was true…

Uther spoke at last with a trembling voice, "W-What do you want?"

The blond shrugged, "Nothing, for now... things will apparently be as before... but don't you dare tell me what I can or cannot do anymore!"

Before his father or his sister could add or ask more, Arthur stood up and left the room with a smug smile, as he went to his room to prepare himself for his meeting with Merlin that night, not knowing that Morgana was going to follow him.


I know there was no Merlin in this chapter, but I swear he will be there in the next one...Finally, Arthur and Merlin will meet again :-)