I didn't think I'd get another chapter up so soon, since I'm currently on vacation, but I was on a roll, I suppose. Enjoy~

They didn't speak about the horse-ride, the extremely awkward moment in which their faces had been mere inches apart, nor the chaste kiss Morgana had placed on Rose's cheek, because why would they? Morgana didn't act any different around Rose- the woman was all smiles and kind words, friendly nods and fleeting glances. All of which Rose would over-analyze because, apparently, that's what she did best. There were four possible conclusions that Rose came to- either Morgana loved her, hated her, wanted to be her friend, or wanted to kill her in her sleep. One of those four, most likely.

So, yes, perhaps Rose's mental investigation on the true nature of Morgana Pendragon's feelings towards her had been going not very well, however- oh, who was she kidding? The King's ward was a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, and Rose hardly had the will or brainpower to figure the woman out. Thus, in typical Rose fashion, the servant elected to ignore the problem altogether. It was the easier option, and besides, she didn't want to get herself worked up only mere speculation. It was difficult enough seeing Morgana's shining, beautiful, perfect face every day, Rose didn't need to convince herself that she had even the slimmest of chances with her. That'd be masochism at it's worst, wouldn't it?

Xxx

One particular task that Rose was often assigned to was attending to Morgana's goblet during the noble's dinners with the prince and king. That girl certainly loved her wine- as Morgana had explained to Rose once with a roll of her eyes, "There's no way I would be able to get through a dinner with Uther completely sober." So Rose would obediently hover over the woman's shoulder, filling her cup when Morgana gestured for her to do so.

That night was no different. Every time King Uther (or even Prince Arthur) made a comment that displeased her, Morgana would clench her jaw and force a smile, taking a deep sip from her goblet. Once the cup was empty, Morgana would turn slightly in her seat, offering the goblet to Rose with a genuine smile. When the noble's cheeks started to get flushed, Rose considered not giving her any more, but she quickly dismissed the idea. Not your place, not your place, she reminded herself, like a mantra.

Morgana was beginning to show the signs of slight drunkenness in how she was starting to speak her mind more than she had been. King Uther had made some off-hand remark about how the guards had caught a man suspected of using sorcery, and how the man was going to be executed the following morning. Rose watched Morgana, waiting for the woman to clench her jaw and gesture for more wine, but the next thing she knew, Morgana was slamming her goblet onto the table with a loud clang! Rose, Uther, and Arthur all stared at the noble as she spat out, "Why?"

"Why what, child?" the King asked, his hard eyes burrowing into his ward's- an obvious warning for her to hold her tongue, to not defy him. Rose swallowed nervously, knowing that this wasn't going to be very pretty.

"You said it yourself, this man was suspected of using magic. You have no proof, and yet you're condemning this man- who is most likely innocent- to death! Think about this man's family, how they'll feel. Do you see nothing wrong with that?!" Morgana fumed, glaring right back at the king. Rose glanced between the two nobles, feeling the tension in the air. She's going to get herself in trouble! Rose looked over at the Prince Arthur and stared at him, silently pleading for him to step in despite the fact that he wasn't aware of her gaze. The prince stayed infuriatingly silent as the king spoke again, the man's voice growing sharper.

"I have on very good word that this man practiced using enchantments. I needn't remind you that sorcery is illegal in my kingdom, punishable by death! Everyone knows that, and this man brought it on himself. My conscience is clear."

Morgana released a growl of frustration, her face grower redder in her anger. "Then you obviously haven't even a semblance of a conscience, Uther Pendragon! This act of violence, of-"

"You watch your tongue!" Uther hissed, his voice furious. "I am the King, and you are my ward. I will not take this nonsense from you, Morgana, do you hear me?"

I have to do something, I have to do something! Rose wracked her brain desperately for some way she could get Morgana out of the situation, or at the very least, calm the woman's fiery temper. But what can I do? She tried to think of some excuse, some lie- her eyes dropped to the pitcher of wine still firmly clutched it her hands, and she had an idea. Swallowing nervously (praying that she wouldn't A, get fired or B, have Morgana turn her anger on Rose) the servant moved closer to her lady. "More wine?" she offered quietly. Morgana glanced over her shoulder and nodded briefly before her glare returned to Uther, her mouth parting to shoot out a retort.

Before the King's ward could do so, Rose deliberately spilled wine all over the front of Morgana's beautiful- probably ridiculously expensive- cream-colored dress. Whatever the woman was about to say was silenced as she gasped in surprise, looking up at her servant with a mixture of shock and confusion. "I am so, so sorry, milady, I'm so clumsy, I tripped, ugh, I'm so sorry," Rose stammered out, grabbing a napkin and trying to dab at Morgana's dress. Her face was bright red, if only because of their close proximity and the fact that all three nobles were staring at her.

"Foolish girl! Is that not the second time you spilled wine? Are you incapable of such a simple task?" Uther spat out. Wow, he sounds exactly like Lady Percival... "Morgana, Lady Percival must've been lying when she spoke of her- this, this servant, she's incompetent, clearly!"

Morgana shot the king a fierce glare before she took the napkin from Rose's hands, murmuring, "It's fine, Rose. A simple mistake. Not that big of a deal."

"No!" Rose yelped. Morgana's emerald eyes turned up to her again, her dark eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "It's, um, a very big deal. A big mistake- your dress, it's ruined. Absolutely ruined. You must, um, you should definitely, change. Out of the dress. Because it's ruined." Making sure that Prince Arthur or King Uther didn't see her, Rose mouthed, "Follow my lead!"

Morgana's eyebrows lifted slightly in response, and although she still looked confused, she gave a very slight nod. Standing abruptly, she told the king, "I'm sorry, my lord, but my servant is right. I should get changed- I'm exhausted, anyhow, I believe it time for me to retire." Thank God, Rose thought, breathing in a sigh of relief.

The King huffed slightly, leaning back in his chair. "Fine," he agreed, eyeing Rose critically before his sharp, eagle's gaze fell on his ward. "The next time I see you, Morgana, I expect an apology for your behavior. Perhaps it's just the wine going to your head, but I do warn you, I won't tolerate that. I am the king- I know what is best for this kingdom, not you." Morgana visibly bristled at this. She turned to say something, but Rose brushed her fingers against the woman's elbow instinctively, and Morgana looked back at her. The dark-haired woman stared for a heartbeat before realization passed over her face.

Her jaw clenched, Morgana dipped her head, saying stiffly, "Yes, my lord. Good night to the both of you." Whipping around, she stalked out of the room, straight to her chambers.

Rose closed the door behind them and rushed to get a new dress for Morgana, busily sorting through the assortment of dresses to find something comfortable for her to wear. She was so relieved that Morgana was out of there- she couldn't bear seeing the king yell at his ward like that. Maybe it was silly of her, to do something as drastic as pouring wine all over Morgana, but that was the only plan her mind could formulate. At least it worked, she told herself.

"Rose."

The servant in question glanced around, spotting Morgana in her wine-stained dress. A small frown on her face, Rose apologized again, "I'm very sorry, milady, it was a stupid mistake. I tripped, and-"

"No, you didn't." Morgana sounded sure of herself, and Rose felt her cheeks grow pink. Uh-oh. "I saw you- you didn't trip, you just poured the wine right on me. Why did you do that?" Rose came up with an excuse- "I was just distracted, that's all, not paying attention!"- but with the way Morgana's eyes were seemingly piercing into her soul, she found the truth slipping right from her lips.

"I'm sorry, I thought I was helping, that's all." Damn it, Rose. You can't keep a secret for the life of you, can you? Not with her staring at you, like that. At Morgana's prompting look, Rose explained quietly, "You were going to get yourself in trouble. I couldn't- well, I just- I don't know, I just didn't want you to get yourself in trouble, I suppose. I know that, you know, it's not my place and all, but you've had so much wine, I figured that you were just going to regret it, and I shouldn't have gotten involved. You can do as you please, of course you can, fight your own battles and such, but- I couldn't- and I- ugh. Ugh, I'm sorry, I'm so stupid." She shook her head and sighed, pulling a comfortable-looking blue dress from the wardrobe and walking it over to Morgana.

The fair-haired woman was stunned to see a small smile itching at Morgana's lips. The noble took the dress from Rose's hands and turned, walking in front of her mirror. Turning her shoulder slightly, Morgana frowned at the wine stains on the dress. "I appreciate the gesture, Rose, but did you have to ruin my favorite dress?" she teased, smirking at her through the mirror.

Rose froze in horror, her mouth opening and closing pathetically. "I ruined your favorite dress," Rose said stupidly. "Oh, goodness, I'm sorry, it was such a stupid plan, I didn't even think it through really, I was so intent on helping I just messed everything up. I can, um, pay for another one, one that's like that, I can, I'm sorry-"

Morgana laughed and rolled her eyes. "I'm just kidding," she said, clearly amused as she walked behind her dressing screen. "I didn't like the dress that much. Mind you, I got quite a few stares thanks to it-" Who wouldn't stare at you? Rose wanted to say, "-but I think it's best it be formally retired. It had a good run as a dress to the Lady Morgana, King's ward. Don't you think?"

"Yes," Rose sputtered stupidly, her back turned away from the screen with her cheeks bright red. Gwen usually handled this area, helping Morgana get changed- if Morgana asked for assistance, Rose didn't know what she'd do. Explode, most likely. Faint. Die. Something dramatic along those lines. "It was, um, a very nice dress. On you. I mean, it was an okay dress, but it looked very nice- on, you know, you. My mum always says that it's the woman who makes the dress, not the other way around, and I think that that's a very wise thing to say. Very true, you know, quite accurate, especially now. All the time, actually, I mean, you own very nice dresses, very nice, but that's not what makes you beau- um, that's not what makes you you, you know? Personality. Wit. Beliefs, you know, stuff like that, I think that's what makes a person truly lovely, you know, and I think that you're very- well, um-"

"Not that I don't love hearing you compliment me in your own way, Rose," Morgana chuckled from behind the screen, "But would you mind helping me a bit here? This dress's laces are particularly tough to undo by myself."

This is the moment of truth, Rosie. Act cool. You'll see a tiny bit of skin, that's it, don't freak out- just undo the laces and be done with it. Don't be creepy! "O-of course, milady," Rose mumbled, hesitantly moving forward. Morgana stood at the opening to the dressing screen, her back to her servant, with her long dark hair swept over a shoulder. Her fingers shaking slightly and willing herself to calm down, Rose undid the laces one at a time. While she was undoing one of the particularly tough laces, her fingers brushed the skin on Morgana's back- Rose immediately stiffened, and awkwardly apologized before quickly finishing the job. "There."

Morgana turned slightly and shot her a smile before disappearing back behind in the screen. After a few minutes, Morgana emerged in the new dress Rose had handed her. The servant took the ruined dress and folded it hastily before putting it aside, figuring she could dispose of it the following morning. Watching awkwardly as Morgana prepared to go to bed, Rose awaited her dismissal for the night.

The King's ward paused for a moment before she turned to her servant. "Rose, I hate to ask this, but would you mind staying later tonight? Gwen has been getting here very early in the mornings and going home very late at night, so I decided to give her the night off. Perhaps for a while, if you truly wouldn't mind."

Despite perhaps her better judgement, Rose found herself nodding. "Of course I will, that's- well, that's perfectly fine with me. I've plenty of things I can do, anyway, around the castle, I think I will-" Staring at Morgana, Rose remembered why exactly Gwen typically stayed late- because of the noble's nightmares. "I mean," she quickly corrected, "I might just stay here. Maybe, you know, re-arrange your dresses, maybe by color or something like that. A good project that I've been meaning to do, actually, I've wanted to do it for a while." She hadn't actually been meaning to arrange Morgana's dressed in color order, but Morgana didn't need to know that, did she?

Morgana smiled softly, clearly relieved, and nodded. "Thank you, Rose, I appreciate it," she said earnestly. Rose couldn't help but smile to herself, dipping her head in response. She walked over to Morgana's wardrobe and began to arrange the dresses when she heard the woman's slightly hesitant voice call out to her. "Can I ask you a question?"

Rose turned to face the woman, a green dress in her hand. "Of course, milady," she replied, though mentally she began to panic. Are you in love with me? How long have you been in love with me? Why are you in love with me? Something regarding the fact that Rose was in love with her, probably. "You can ask me anything."

A small smile passed over Morgana's lips before she asked carefully, "Do you think I was right? About what Uther and I were arguing about today, about that poor man sentenced to death. Even if he did have magic, do you think he deserved to be executed for it?"

The maid considered how to answer the question. She couldn't very well say yes, I agree with you, now could she? If she said yes, she would be going against the king and his laws. That'd be treason, wouldn't it? It was what she believed in, but if she expressed this belief and word got to king, she'd most likely be hung herself. Or she'd get her head chopped off. Or she'd be burned at the stake. Wow, Camelot really needs to decide on their standard execution tactic, don't they?

Instead Rose settled on replying with a simple shrug, "It doesn't very well matter what I think, milady. Those are the laws, and it is certainly not my place to question them."

Morgana huffed- this obviously wasn't the answer she was looking for. "Speak your mind, Rose, I want to hear your opinion," she said, her voice tinged with sharpness but her emerald eyes soft and pleading. "It's not as if I'm going to report you to the king if you speak against him. If you disagree with me, though, that's another problem altogether." Morgana shot her a smile, and Rose knew she was teasing.

"Well," Rose began slowly, cautiously, "I do mean what I said. I don't think it's any of my business to question the laws set in place. However... I do agree with you. My, um-" She swallowed nervously and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear as a matter of instinct. "Well, um, my father's sister- she was a Druid, actually. Was." Rose chuckled grimly. "Yeah, um, a neighbor reported her. The next morning, Camelot guards were swarming the village, and two mornings later, she was hung." Morgana's eyes widened in horror. "She was- she was a very, very gentle soul, you know, the kind of person who was always smiling and friendly. My dad and her, they were really close, he- he took it really hard, you know? We all did, and, I think my dad still harbors a lot of bitterness about it, but... I'm not really sure."

Rose shrugged her shoulders. "I kind of have conflicting feelings about it. I mean- magic, you know, it was obviously against the law, and she practiced magic. She broke the law. But... her magic, it was her life, and she never used it for evil. Never, not once. She used to, um, I remember she used to have this little spell, that would make these beautiful butterflies made of light appear. My little sister and I loved it, all of the children in the village did, and I just- I don't know, I can't see how conjuring butterflies is evil, you know?" Feeling her throat begin to close and her vision starting to swim with unshed tears, Rose shook her head. "But, um, I don't think you should antagonize the king about it. Maybe one day, you know, maybe when the prince is king, he'll bring magic back, but until then..." She shrugged her shoulders again and sighed.

Morgana was silent for a while, and Rose had assumed the woman had fallen asleep, when her voice murmured, "Thank you, Rose."