HERE WITHOUT YOU
This was it, a moment she had feared and wanted to postpone more than anything. But it was time that Arthur knew the truth, he had a right to know. Their love was merely a lie if he didn't know the entire truth about her, who she really was.
Taking in deep breaths, Rosalie left Merlin's chambers, slowly walking down the hallway and stopping in front of Arthur's chambers. Was she really going to do this? She wondered. Things would have been so much easier had she and Arthur not fallen in love. It would've made things less complicated; she would never have felt obligated to tell him.
As her hand started to near the wooden door, she closed her eyes with her hand balled into a fist and knocked three times.
It didn't take more than a moment or two before Arthur appeared into the doorway, a broad smile coming to his face when he perceived Lady Rosalie's presence.
"Rosalie, to what do I owe this pleasure?" He asked, his grin turning out to be more teasing than simply "friendly".
Rosalie couldn't help but chuckle, bitterly however. She was going to miss this – there wasn't a bone in her body that believed that when Lady Rosalie would leave these chambers, she and Arthur would still be on good terms with each other.
Arthur was perceptive enough to notice the slight bitterness in Lady Rosalie's laughter, and he became concerned. His eyes searching hers he spoke: "What is it Rosalie? You seem uneasy."
Lady Rosalie fumbled with the edge of her long, silky, emerald green sleeves. How was she going to put this? She'd only thought it over hundreds of times. Her mind had gone completely blank.
"You're going to hate me when I tell you." She whispered in the smallest voice, looking away.
Arthur let out a disbelieving chuckle. "How could I ever, possibly phantom any hatred for you?" He asked, raising her chin up so he could look her in the eye.
"You don't know me, Arthur. Because if you did, you would not utter those very words." Rosalie claimed, shaking her head and by doing so, removing Arthur's hand from her face.
"I don't know you?" Arthur retorted confused. "What are you talking about, Rosalie?"
Her eyes fell down upon the crystal blue pendant that hung around her neck, she caressed it with the palm of her hand, very gently. Then, she took it off, turning the pendant around, revealing a silver surface with some strange markings engraved.
"These are symbols, Arthur. They're the crest of the druid tribe I was born in. This necklace has belonged to me since birth." Rosalie knew that Arthur would not yet have drawn the correct conclusion out of her cryptic words, but he would soon enough.
"King Edmund is not my true father nor was Queen Alianor my true father." Lady Rosalie stated. "I was found crying in one of the burnt down tents when my father was scouring the wreckage of the village. He kept me, but he knew that keeping me came with a price for I was born with … magic."
Lady Rosalie's deep brown eyes flickered to Arthur's. At first his gaze was merely confusion but slowly an icy glare was creeping over. The prince did not want to believe her, he wanted to think that someone had put her up to this to mess around with him, but for some reason he knew this was true. Why would anyone claim to have magic, knowing who his father was and how his father had raised him? Uther had raised Arthur to despise magic and everything about it.
But how could he loathe Lady Rosalie? He couldn't even begin to think how he could turn the love he harboured for her into hatred. Even if she did have magic, what did it change? But then he realized: she had lied to him all along, and that is what drove him into madness.
"Why are you telling me this?" He asked coldly.
Lady Rosalie knew that all hope was already lost. She could feel the revulsion; taste his abhorrence in the air. "I thought you deserved the truth." She replied quietly.
Walls had flown up around Arthur instinctively; he had closed his heart and chased all the feelings he had for Lady Rosalie away – for the moment at least. With one last dreading look at her, he turned around and started to pack.
"Arthur.." Lady Rosalie spoke softly, knowing that she could not stop him from what he had planned in his head, and she should not feel inclined to.
"Merlin and I are leaving." Arthur curtly replied, stuffing his bag full and heading towards the door.
"Arthur, I'm so-." She tried to say before Arthur jabbed back at her.
"You should have told me before you let me fall madly in love with you." He snapped. "You would've saved me a lot of," Arthur knew the word he was going for was heartache but to save himself the hurt he substituted it with: "travel. I came all this way here for you. You betrayed me. I don't ever want to see you again."
The door slammed shut. Lady Rosalie's lips were trembling, her hands shaking and tears began to well up in her eyes. She fell down to her knees beside the fire place, her hands poorly trying to catch the tears that began to fall. If only Arthur knew that she would've gladly saved herself from the 'travel' as well.
Fury had overtaken Arthur's heart and mind as he and Merlin rode off into the night, heading back for Camelot. Arthur had stormed into Merlin's room, said they were leaving and with that stomped off to the stables. Merlin could hardly defy him and he knew that his talk with Lady Rosalie most likely hadn't gone very well.
Whilst they rode in silence, Merlin looked over at Arthur who had a face of stone. Merlin knew that deep down inside Arthur was breaking. He was trying to put on a brave face and mask it with his angriness, but as his friend and trusty servant, Merlin knew better.
"We'll set up camp here, and ride on at dawn." Arthur said shortly, hopping down from his horse.
Merlin nodded quietly, also lowering down from his horse. Then he disappeared in the darkness of the forest to gather some wood for a fire. It didn't take him too long to find any, and soon a warm fire was blazing in front of them.
"I'll hold guard first." Arthur offered, aimlessly gazing into the fire.
Merlin bit down on his bottom lip. "What happened, Arthur? You can talk about it you know."
"You're my servant. We don't discuss personal matters." Arthur snapped at him.
"It's not a bad thing to discuss how you feel. You seem pretty upset." Merlin pushed carefully, not wanting to make Arthur angrier than he already was.
Arthur went silent for a moment. "Lady Rosalie told me she is a sorcerer." He then muttered, flinging a rock into the fire.
"A sorcerer, really?" Merlin replied, trying to sound as shocked as he possibly could. "I never would have thought." He then added.
"I wouldn't have either." Arthur murmured. "I can't believe it."
Merlin let out a quiet sigh, the warmth of the fire radiating against his pale cheeks. "Even though she is a sorcerer, it does not change your feelings. Despite her being, she did not choose to practice magic, most are born with it. It doesn't make Lady Rosalie a different person, and it certainly does not mean that you have to force yourself to hate her let alone leave her."
"That's enough, Merlin." Arthur declined, standing up, his walls going up again. "Get some rest." He ordered, and Merlin did not dare to disobey. He feebly lay down on the ground, closing one eye, the other looking out for Arthur. It only made him wonder what he would do if and when he found out about Merlin's secret.
Once Arthur believed Merlin had dozed off, he strolled over to his horse, stroking its fur gently. He felt tears well up in his eyes as he gazed up towards the clear night sky. He was thinking of Lady Rosalie, she was the only one who had been on his mind since she arrived at Camelot. He could not imagine her leaving his thoughts. People claimed that time healed all wounds, but this wound just seemed too big. He would have already bled to death before the wound would even have had a chance to heal.
His heart longed for her, he wanted to scoop her up in his arms and hold her close for as long as he possibly could. He'd said they just put everything behind them and that he would take her for who she was. But how could he? With his beliefs and his father? Magic was a threat, but if Lady Rosalie truly had dishonourable intentions, why hadn't she done anything? Opportunities had come and gone in which Lady Rosalie could've easily taken Arthur down, but she hadn't.
Arthur knew why. Their love was not perfect but it was true. And he was not quite sure if he was willing to leave that behind.
