A/N: Chapter 13! I honestly can't believe I've got this far with a story, and due to their undying support I've got to thank: TheImpossiblePen, sweet-dreams-always and TheGeekyWeirdo. Thank you guys so much!
It was a few weeks before I was able to get out of bed. Arthur refused to move from my bedside, no matter how much I told him to go and get some proper sleep. Apparently he didn't want to hear it. He still sat there like a statue, a robot, not doing anything at all. It was a bit concerning really. Eventually, I just shifted along a bit and made him sleep there. When I was able to move about- as long as I wasn't out of bed for more than an hour and didn't do anything strenuous like horse riding- I decided to thank everyone who'd come to see me while I was ill- I refused to say completely out of it and in a 'semi-coma'. I couldn't believe that Aidan, Katy and Guinevere had come every day, and that Morgana had even come occasionally. Heck, even the KING had come to visit. That was unbelievable. It was hard to think that we'd been here almost a year now. Seven months. It looks to be a long time on paper. And yet the time had flown by so quickly, and to me it only seemed we'd been here a couple of weeks. Then again, I suppose I'd lost three months of my life, thanks to Morguase. People had been searching for her accomplice for months, but with no luck. I suppose it was reasonably difficult, considering we only knew she was female.
The other thing that shocked me was how much things had changed from the television series. No Nimueh had appeared (God forbid that should happen), and things seemed to be so much different, considering Nimueh was part of the main theme of Series One. The main parts still stayed the same, Lancelot for example had came and went. It was upsetting for me to have seen Gwen that way, so upset and lost. I knew she loved him, and that would never change apparently. I still didn't know what had happened in the last few months though. People seemed reluctant to tell me. That was, until Katy let it slip.
"Uther is practically planning your wedding you know?" she'd said.
"Hm?" I asked, still half asleep and slightly confused.
"You and Arthur. Uther wants you to get married. Sooner rather than later," she told me.
"What the hell? Well, tough cookies. I don't care that he's the King. I'll get married when and if Arthur wants it to. And if he proposes to me properly," I smiled at the thought. Mrs Melissa Pendragon. Not too bad, really. I kind of liked it. But I wouldn't marry on Uther's terms. I would marry on my own.
"I thought you'd say something like that. You didn't listen to your own parents half the time. Why listen to someone else's? Even if he is, oh I dunno, THE KING!" she said. I snorted, she was right. I didn't listen to anyone but myself. And sometimes other people, if it suited me.
"Oh, by the way, do you know what day tomorrow is?" she asked, bringing my breakfast over.
"It could be the start of the biggest war of medieval times for all I know. I've been out for three months, remember?" I reminded her.
"It's the 9th of March. And do you know what that means?"
"I'll be EIGHTEEN! WOO!" I laughed. I was ten months older than Katy, and had exaggerated her age on coming here deliberately. Everyone thought she was older than me and she had to keep correcting them. It was entertaining for me. I'm easily entertained.
"Yep. And you don't get to know what I'm getting you. Or what Aidan, Arthur, Merlin, Morgana, Gwen, The Knights, Uther etc. etc. are getting you," she smiled.
"You know what everyone's getting me?" I asked, more intrigued by that.
"I have my sources," she grinned.
"Merlin helped them all, didn't he?" I said.
"Yeah," she said, scrunching up her nose and nodding.
"I know you so well," I smiled.
"I will tell you that what you've got is AMAZING though," she gave me the thumbs up, before collecting my plate and cutlery and leaving the room. She came back in time to help me with those ties on the back of my dress. I hated them, too much hassle! But I loved the dresses, they were pretty. I had to admit to missing my jeans though. Lounging about on a sofa in my living room, TV marathons, reading soppy romance novels and always ending up in tears at the sad bits, all that stuff. I missed it a lot, but if I hadn't ended up here then I wouldn't have met Arthur, I wouldn't have got to see the King of Camelot do the macarena hundreds of years early. I also wouldn't've got stabbed, held hostage by bandits, and watched as one of my best friends lay in a bed dying while the love of my life was out fighting for him. And yet, it was all worth it. Because this place was amazing. My parents would miss me, and maybe some of my other friends and my teachers. But if they knew about this amazing life I was living, I'm sure they would be alright with it. I ached to know they'd be hurting, but I would do something about it. I would leave something so that they knew I was alright, when I got older. A chest with paintings, a note, I don't know. But somehow, I'd let them know I'm OK.
Getting out of bed, I began to walk down to see Gauis, so that I could get my medicine, when I heard Merlin trying to wake up Arthur.
"Rise and shine!" he said, and pulled open the curtains.
"You always say that. Every single morning, I wake up to your big grin and 'Rise and shine'. How is it Merlin, that you can be so unnaturally happy in the morning?" asked Arthur.
"Because I'm used to it, Your Royal Prattiness. Would you rather I got Melissa down here to wake you up?"
"Shut up, Merlin," Arthur instructed.
"OK. Tomorrow I'll say something different. Wakey wakey!" he grinned.
"Up and at 'em!" I grinned as Arthur turned around and regarded me with wide eyes, as I stepped into his room and shut the door behind me.
"I don't know about where you come from Melissa, but here it's generally not acceptable for a woman to walk into a man's bedroom when said man is still in his bed, unless she is his wife," he moaned.
"But it's OK for the man to watch the woman sleep for three months?"
"Point taken," Arthur agreed.
"Well, I've gotta go get my medicine. See ya later!" I said in a fake American accent. Not just fake but completely suckish. Accents, I'm not too good at. Although people say I'm good at acting. I tossed my brown hair over my shoulder and walked to Guais' chambers. But not before I walked past Aidan and Morgana kissing.
I walked back into Arthur's room, and sat on his bed.
"Back so soon Melissa?" Arthur asked, smirking.
"Arthur, please sh. And I'm just hiding out until Morgana and my brother decide to stop sucking each others' faces off. It's disgusting," I grimaced.
"They're sucking each others' faces off?" asked Merlin, alarmed.
"No. It's an expression for kissing," I smiled at how naive they were in these days.
"Well, we could make Merlin have to hide out," Arthur laughed, walking over to me.
"Fair enough," I grinned, as he captured my lips in his own.
"I'm going to find Katy," moaned Merlin, as he walked away, out of the room. I laughed against Arthur's lips, and we talked for a while, before I finally decided it was time for me to go and get my medicine. I walked away, reflecting on our relationship. I loved him, and he was the one person I trusted completely, besides Merlin and Katy. Aidan had a big mouth, so I didn't bother telling HIM much. One ginormous secret was quite enough for him. He didn't need any more.
The woman was disgusted. Melissa was still alive, and Morguase had died for nothing. But it was OK, because the woman was going to continue her cause. With a hiss, she moved away. A cape fell to the floor and a snake was all that was left. It was time for the woman to break into Camelot.
A/N: I hope you liked it! Totally fluffy, I know. But it's gonna get a bit more dramatic, I promise. Perhaps I'll even reveal who the mysterious 'woman' is. Update soon. Please review :) x