DISCLAIMER: NOT MINE ....SADLY
NOTES: Thanks again for the flattering reviews!!! They mean so much to me!
I Know, I know...I said the wedding was up ....next chapter! I PROMISE!!!!
SUMMONS
In the early hours of the morning of his wedding day Arthur found his sister in the small, windowless room she still occupied. Morgianna was sitting in front of the fire, combing her long, moist hair. The air was still filled with the sweet aroma of whatever she had used to wash it, her head tilted to one side she let the raven strands fall over one shoulder.
She looked up when Arthur entered the room, greeting him with a small smile that made her eyes sparkle in good humour. Arthur could not help but notice the change in her demeanour.
"I see this day finds you in high spirits...." He laughed in astonishment."Good tidings?"
"The best ....." Morgianna smiled, but she could not help the sadness creeping into her thoughts again when she met his eyes. There were things she had seen that could not .....would not be changed, no matter what station she held. There were things that would not be influenced by her decision, her resigning.......things she wished to be able to spare him with all her heart......
Running her comb through her hair once more, she tried to chase those thoughts from her mind. Not now ....not today......
"This is not a day for worry, Arthur...." She said softly to him, but the words were just as much directed at herself. Grasping her hair with one hand she moved it out of the way, back over her shoulders, so she could look at him fully. She knew he had come with a reason so early on the day of his wedding
For a moment his face was serious as they looked at each other in silence, then his expression softened and whatever had weighed on him seemed to melt away.......but Morgianna knew better. Just like her, Arthur could never completely forget.....some of what concerned him always stayed in his eyes.
"I could not find Merlin this morn.....there were things I still need to discuss...."
"He has ridden ahead." Morgianna explained evenly. "There are preparations to be made.....they will take some time." She left it at that. The wedding party would follow Merlin around midday to the site that had been chosen for the ceremony. It was an hour by horseback, so that even the ones, who came to witness the event by foot, would be back at the fort in time for the feast in the evening.
She could tell that he saw the importance, the meaning of marrying in a place that was sacred to the Britons. The symbolism of the king marrying a woad in a place of power and consecration was not lost on him; doubtless Merlin had impressed it on her brother in great detail too. Still, Morgianna also knew her brother was not just a Christian, but a man of strong beliefs.....and at least some part of wedding Guinevere without the blessing of the church and in a pagan ceremony performed by a druid priest no less, bothered him. But Morgianna knew it had to be done this way, otherwise Arthur could never be king of all Britain. Once it was done, he would be king in truth .....married between the pillars of the earth; a union blessed by the Taliesin and the Lady of the lake. No other man would ever be able to boast such....
"You do not just pledge yourself to her, the king gives himself to the land this day..." Morgianna said softly, answering the question she knew he had been hesitant to ask.
Arthur stared at her perplexed for a moment, then shook his head in silent wonderment. They had been apart for years and yet ...somehow his sister seemed to know his mind.
"I have your blessing then?"
Morgianna arched an eyebrow when he went down on one knee before her.
His eyes changed with his moods.....in anger and grief they were the clear, startling blue of a winter sky, now .....when he smiled in the light of the fire his eyes seemed more green, a pale green specked with gold and hazel.
She rose to her feet in a fluent graceful motion, laying her hands on his curly, black hair for a moment, like a mother would do with a child.
"You will have my blessing in all you do." Morgianna whispered into his hair as she leaned down to kiss first his right temple, then the left.
Arthur closed his eyes and let the soothing warmth of her touch wash over him like a comforting, quieting wave. The scent of the bath she had taken still clung to her, enveloping him with the aroma of wild flowers and herbs he could not name .....and for a moment, when he had felt her hands on top of his head, it reminded him of home and the gentleness of his mother's embrace. There were other feelings still, other feelings Morgianna stirred in him ....a sense of connection he shared with few people, a fierce, tender warmth that spread through him when she looked at him at times. There were moments when his sister was a mystery to him, in her distance, the unknown power she wielded......and there were moments such as these, when he thought her as close to him as few others.
He took both of her hands in his, standing up and looked around the room.
"We should have found you different accommodations days ago...."
Morgianna smiled mildly. " It suits my needs....but there are a few comforts I would appreciate...."
Arthur's eyes stopped surveying the room and fixed on his sister again.
"So you will stay?"
The astonishment in his voice and eyes almost served to make her laugh and filled her heart with joy.
"If it please my lord...." Morgianna answered, slightly bowing her head I his direction.
" Don't ...." Arthur whispered in a very grave tone, shaking his head. It made Morgianna weary to see it and as fast as it had come, the elation she had felt due to the prospect of being released from her duties, was dampened.
"Don't call me that, Morgianna." Arthur repeated uncomfortably. "You ....and them...of all people." He made an incomplete gesture with his hand, pointing towards the door. Morgianna took it the way he must have intended it .....meaning his knights.
Morgianna squeezed his hands gently, willing him to understand that being king, he would have to come to terms with a few things .....
"No matter how much you will change this land, this world, Arthur.....you will be king. No matter what you do, part of that entails that you will always be the first...even among equals."
For a moment he returned her intent gaze, seeing the truth in her words. Then Arthur stepped back, slowly pulling his hands out of hers with a sigh. It was as though for a moment he had forgotten that she was not just his sister, but her words had reminded him that often this sister spoke truths that no other could know....
"There are many things I have to do before we leave ...." He said quietly " I ´am glad you will stay...."
Morgianna nodded to him, her face once again the definition of unreadable serenity. There were things to do indeed.....things for her to do. She watched his retreating back as he walked out the door until he was out of sight
"All hail king..." she whispered, looking at the place where he had just stood before her.
On the day of her wedding, Guinevere sat on the bed she had shared with Arthur every night, since the one before the battle against the Saxon horde. This day Arthur had left it and would not be allowed entrance again until after the feast. This day this room had been turned into her bridal chamber. It was the first moment of quiet and reflection Guinevere had had in quite some time. The women who had helped her bathe, washed and combed her hair, massaged different parts of her body with a variety of scented oils had finally left her to let get dressed in peace and only because she had insisted. Venora had also left with the cheese and bread she had brought for Guinevere to eat.
Now she sat on the bed looking at the dress that was laid out next to her, but her thoughts were with her intended. She loved him, there would be was question about that ......not a doubt in her mind. Theirs was a meeting of minds just as it was a meeting of fervour....there was no lack of tenderness or passion in their unions.
And yet ....there were some things that she could not deny feeling, could not deny knowing.....
When she remembered looking at Arthur over Lancelot's lifeless body, seeing him cradle his best friend's head in his arms, his face a mask of pain and sorrow .....
When she pictured the look on his face when she had brought him the news that his friend had survived and awakened, a part of her had known that no matter how much she loved, how much she gave of herself .....No matter what she did, she would never come between these two men. Arthur had known and loved Lancelot long before she had known him and no matter how Lancelot might reproach Arthur for his idealism and kindness.....just by looking at him she knew he only raged and taunted because in his heart he feared that these faults might be his friend's downfall. All these faults only made him love Arthur more for the upstanding, generous and idealistic man he was.
Their friendship was the one thing these two men held above all .....and it confused her how much she felt for both of them.
Arthur...the righteous, fierce, honourable leader and the challenging, unpredictable, irascible Lancelot ...who had taunted and goaded her on the ice and had still come to her aid across the raging battle .....both men fearless, courageous fighters......
The rapping on the door made her head turn and she sighed.
"Enter...."
" You should be dressed, the wedding party will be leaving soon." There was no reproach in Morgianna´s voice, no hint of reprove as she crossed the room. She was dressed in the light grey and dark cloak of the lady once more, the way she would witness the wedding of her brother.
Guinevere gave Arthur's sister an apprehensive look, far to aware of the fact that the older woman's level gaze would miss nothing, that her eyes saw things that other couldn't and that right this moment Morgianna´s dark eyes could just as well look into her heart and soul....She was after all the lady of the lake and to some her word was still law.
"I brought you these..." Morgianna said quietly, holding out her hands to show Guinevere the white blossoms. "They make for better decoration then some of the things I saw these women leave your chambers with." There was the hint of a mocking smile in her features as she said it.
Guinevere returned the smile with a chortle that spoke of the relief she felt. She had been weary of the words she had exchanged with Morgianna a while ago and reflecting on it she had understood that it was not wise to challenge neither the lady nor the future king's sister.
"Thank you....they are beautiful, will you ....?"
"Gladly..."
Morgianna wrought the blossoms into Guinevere's hair in a simple style that held the blond tresses from her delicate features before she fastened the veil. Looking down on the young woman before her, Morgianna smoothed one hand down the transparent cloth, it felt as soft as touching spider webs. She could still feel the tension in her, the thoughts that had occupied her mind.
"In a few hours time we shall be sisters, you and I....." she whispered.
Guinevere lifted her eyes to Morgianna, taking a deep, shuddering breath.
"Will you like to have a sister?" Guinevere asked her carefully, searching the other woman's face. But in contrast to herself, she found that Morgianna was still Merlin's master disciple....in truth sometimes Guinevere could not help but ask herself if the pupil had not long since surpassed the master. There was nothing in her face nor in her eyes as she returned her probing gaze. Her features frozen in a pleasant, but unreadable mask of calm.....
Morgianna felt her heart stop for an instant as the question echoed in her mind, bringing forth the memories of things she had seen, of incidents that she knew in her heart would come to pass.....and yet, she could not fault Guinevere anymore for them than she could lay the blame at her own door. Some things had been decided by others.....someone else had made the choice.......
"Yes..." she answered simply, caressing Guinevere's smooth cheek. " Very much so..."
Guinevere nodded, a sigh of relief escaping her lips. Then she leaned forward, her forehead resting against Morgianna´s hip.
"I feel I do not understand my own heart this day."
She had help coax Arthur in the right direction, she had helped bring him to the land, to accept his fate......she had fallen in love with the man he was along the way and in due course it would make her queen.
"I should rejoice.... I do, but sometimes ....at night I feel like I'm standing at the window and I can hear someone calling my name in the distance....."
Morgianna nodded, understanding what she meant to say.
"Arthur fights for something greater, a nobler cause, and a vision of justice and freedom that does not yet exist, while Lancelot fights for nothing at all, he believes in nothing ...." Guinevere said harshly. Rising to her feet she was still smaller than the willowy lady of the lake, but she lifted up her head stubbornly and met Morgianna´s eyes. "I do not understand, Morgianna!" she whispered,a hint of desperation lacing her words
Morgianna looked at her for a moment, then smiled bitterly, shaking her head ....how could she not see it ...
"The only thing Lancelot believes in and the one thing he fights for are the same.......Arthur."she explained quietly. "Whoever said you can only love one way and one person was a fool...."
She picked up the dress from its place on the bed and held it up to Guinevere.
"We need leave soon, Venora has left instructions for the cooks and prepared everything, but if we return too late the feast will be spoiled."
Guinevere nodded, realizing that there would be no solution, not even from a witch's lips, and let Morgianna help her fasten the dress on shoulders and arms. From inside her own dress Morgianna´s pale hands produced a golden necklace with a symmetric cross that held a red stone in its middle.
"This once belonged to my mother .....Arthur will want you to have it." She said upon fastening it around Guinevere's neck. The young woman turned in surprise.
"Thank you ...I ....."
" It should be yours, the gods know I'll never marry...."Morgianna said sweetly before she turned to leave the room.
" Morgianna...." Guinevere called after her, meeting her serious eyes as she paused, her hand already reaching for the door. Morgianna´s face once more set in unreadable lines that held nothing except for inscrutably quietness.
"I love your brother....."
She took the young woman in, still standing in the middle of the room, so heart wrenchingly beautiful in the wedding attire, before answering in her even, unwavering voice.
" I know...."
