A/N: Just so you know, as I wrote this chapter and rewatched the episode, I cried a bucket or two... Mordred... *sobs*

20. The drawing of the dark

"I am so going to kill you!"

Gwaine's hand squeezed Lily's tighter, looking over at Gaius, standing by her legs. The physician shook his head.

"A little longer."

Lily screamed in anguish, feeling as if she was torn apart from inside.

Her eyes opened, red with a rage she couldn't contain, and she met her husband's worried gaze. "I am going to kill you, Gwaine! You, because you did this to me," she looked over at her brother, standing beside the bed, "and you for not doing anything about it!" She screamed again, and looked at Gaius while the contraction passed. "How much longer?"

"Not long now. You'll soon be able to push."

Gwaine squeezed her hand in his. "It'll be over soon, my love."

"Don't you dare talking to me! Traitor!" Another scream.

Gaius looked under the sheet covering Lily's lower half, and nodded. "You can push. Push, Lily!"

She screamed in anguish and gave a long deafening yell as she tried to push her child out of her. Gwaine joined his voice to hers, and both screamed until their lungs ached.

"Again! I can see the head. One more push, and it'll be over."

Lily took a deep breath and crushed Gwaine's knuckles white as she pushed one last time.

Her pants were cut short when the room was filled with a baby's cry.

"It's a girl."

Lily and Gwaine's baby was a beautiful combination of the two. A tuff of dark brown hair covered her little round head, with round cheeks and lips as red as her mother's.

But what had striken her parents as she opened her eyes for the first time, was how green her irises were.

Greener than Mordred's even.

"So, how are you going to call her?"

Arthur and Guinevere were standing by the bed, the Queen cooing at the baby with a look of envy on her face; Lancelot and Percival were sitting on the far end of the room, grinning like idiots as Gwaine served them a glass of wine.

Mordred had sat down next to his sister on the covers, a hand ghosting over his niece's head.

Lily smiled up at him. "Seren."

He smiled back. "Star in our language." She nodded. "Is is fitting. Her eyes look like a fallen star has graced her." He leaned down and kissed the baby's head. "Welcome in this world, little Seren."

Lily smiled widely, then yawned.

Gwaine walked back to her and waved his hands in the air. "Alright you lot, let my wife rest now. She could sleep for days after the work she's done here. You can visit again later. Off you pop!" He shooed everyone out of the door, and when he closed it again, Lily was already asleep, little Seren cooing in her arms.

Days passed, then stretched into a week.

Lily had quickly regained the flat belly she adorned before her pregnancy, and was swift to unsheathe Fang for the first time in months.

Little Seren was the most spoiled child Camelot had ever seen. She was passing from arms to arms whenever Lily would go visit Arthur or someone else with her daughter.

Mordred and Lancelot had been given the difficult task of being her godfathers, along with Gwen as godmother, so they more than the others could be seen a baby in their arms at all time in the day.

It was a little after she had reached her two weeks that Seren started to become the powerful child Kilgharrah had said she would be.

When Lily entered Gwen's chambers and the withered flowers on her bedstand retrieved their former freshened beauty, she knew for certain she wasn't the one to cast the spell.

As from then on, Seren seemed to be at the origin of a few incidents inside the castle that Lily was quick to take responsibility for: Lancelot's cloak being turned blue – Lily had said the colour suited him more – Percival's armour shrinking a few inches above the waist – Lily had told him it was a message that he needed to be easy on the food – Gaius's potions being turned to water – Lily said that she had suspected them to be overdated – and so on.

But to be honest, it was nothing Lily was worried about.

If her daughter was to be magical, she would have started early.

Even if it was that early.

One morning, Mordred came into Lily's chambers as she was finished getting dressed. Seren was still fast asleep in her cot, and it's to her that the druid went first.

He hung a flower above her head. Jasmine.

"What is it for?" Lily had come to her brother's side, her brow furrowed as she saw how tensed he was.

"Do I need a reason to give my niece a present?" He smiled at her, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

Lily took his hand and pulled him with her until they both sat on the bed. "What is it? You are not well, tell me."

He didn't answer right away, instead staring at his hands until he took a deep breath and met Lily's eyes. "I met someone in the woods. Someone I hadn't seen in a long time." She urged him to continue. "Her name is Kara, and we used to live among the same group of druids."

Lily nodded. "I see. She was a friend."

"She still is."

She smirked at the far off gaze he was giving. "Oh... A little more than a friend, then."

Mordred made a face. "I never said that."

"But the way you speak about her gives you away. What's troubling you?"

He sighed. "She is not a friend of Camelot. I fear she might have been on the Saxons' side during that little fight in the woods."

Lily's brow furrowed again. "What can we do about it?"

"Nothing. I just hope she won't do anything more reckless. She was, and still is apparently, very impulsive."

Lily put a hand on her brother's on his thigh, and smiled softly at him. "Don't worry. We'll keep an eye on her if she ever pushes here."

But that evening, Arthur and Merlin came back from a hunting trip near the place the Saxons had attacked, and came back with a companion.

A girl, merely eighteen, who had attempted murder on Arthur's person.

Lily met them in the corridor leading to the cells.

"Who is it, Sire?"

The girl met her eyes, hatred written inside their blue depths. And it struck Lily at that moment. She was a druid.

"Her name is Kara. She tried to kill me. Her trial will take place tomorrow morning."

Lily's gaze fell over her shoulder, where she knew Mordred was standing. His eyes were empty, trying to remain calm and indifferent to the scene unfolding before him.

Her eyes went back to the King. She bowed her head. "I will lead her to her cell." She took a pace forward and wrapped her hand around the girl's arm, and pulled her carefully – she was wounded to the leg – towards the staircase.

Mordred didn't follow.

"Why did you try to kill the King? He has not murdered any druid, he has not killed or executed anyone in ages... I must say I'm at a loss about your motivations."

The girl, Kara, huffed as they made their way in the dungeons. "I'm only sorry I failed to effectively kill him. The world would be a better place without Arthur Pendragon."

"Why? Apart from the fact that you are obviously an acquaintance of our favourite High Priestess..."

"Why? Because magic can't exist under his reign! Because people like me are put to the side and have to hide for all their lives because of who they are!"

Lily sighed as she pushed Kara inside her cell and locked the door behind her. "I am the Lady Knight. And I am the Last Dragonlord. How do you think I have to hide who I am here? Arthur has known of my powers for years. And I am proud of counting him my friend."

"Then you are stupid. A trait you do not share with your brother. He will come back to his senses. He will go back to his real place of belonging. To us."

Lily huffed, her face coming closer to the bars as she glared at the girl. "Over my dead body."

And she meant it.

Mordred would not betray Camelot if his sister – whom he had only recently found – and his niece were still there alive and well.

He would not leave the side of those he loved.

Because even if he stopped believing in Arthur, he would still believe in Lily.

And because he could not survive the thought of leaving her unprotected.

Over her dead body.

The following morning, Kara told the whole of Camelot how bad she thought of its King and its laws and people.

And Arthur had no other choice than to condemn her words and actions – not her being a druid, but her attempted murder – by a death sentence.

Lily had gripped Mordred's hand as tight as she could the whole way.

But she would not let the girl be hanged.

Because if Kara died, Mordred's heart would be broken, and Lily knew there would be no mending it. And she would be damned to hell if she didn't do everything she could to stop the execution.

So the first thing she did after Kara was brought back to her cell and Mordred followed, was to go to Arthur's chambers.

To ask for a gracious move.

The King was not alone when she entered his rooms, but Merlin would not be a trouble. He knew about Kara, and for once, he was on Mordred's side.

"Lily? What happened? Why are you here?"

The Lady Knight smiled kindly. "Nothing happened, Sire, I just...wished to speak with you, about the druid girl."

"Go ahead."

"Arthur, when you learnt about my powers, you did not throw me into jail. I could have been on the wrong side of magic, on Morgana's, but you never ever questioned by allegiances. Am I right?" The King nodded, pushing Merlin's attentions aside as he locked his gaze onto her. "I am asking you to trust me on this. Do not kill Kara. First, she can be of use against Morgana. If we learn what she tells people about you and how wrong you are, we have a chance of pulling them back to our side. Second, I will not see one of my people die by your hand. Not now, not ever."

Arthur's blue gaze was quizzical as it left her for a split second. Lily could almost see the cogs running in his head. "You are asking me to release her after she tried to kill me?"

"She obviously has been manipulated by Morgana. I'm not certain she would attempt on your life again if she would see things the way we do. Please, Arthur."

"I could not kill her, but what would I do with her anyway? Sent her into exile? I could not be sure she would not rally Morgana again. Keep her locked forever? It would not send your mind at peace..."

Lily nodded. "I would send her away. I know a way to insure myself she would not go back to your sister."

"What way?"

She smirked. "I have a means of transportation that can fly above seas and mountains and that could transport Kara so far away it would take her years to come back."

Merlin smirked, Arthur huffed. "Your dragon? You want to put that girl onto your dragon's back and send her away?"

"I do."

The King paused, pacing around his desk, pondering. And then his eyes met hers again. "Let's say I agree. What would you offer in exchange for this...gracious gift?"

She snorted. "I just gave you a means of distraction for when your wife's at her lowest mood! I think that was a great gift!"

Merlin chuckled, then grew silent as Arthur glared at him then at Lily.

Then he waved a hand in the air. "Very well, you win. Go ahead, send that girl away, and pray I never hear of her ever again."

"I swear you won't."

When Kara was told what was going to happen to her, she struggled against her jailer as ropes were tied around his wrists. But Mordred's presence at Lily's side as they rode out of the citadel seemed to quiet her down.

Lily was aware of the silent conversation the two were sharing, but thought it best not to intrude or interrupt. Her brother would be thankful.

Kilgharrah didn't like the idea of transporting a traitor onto his back, but after threatening him to compel him to do it, he accepted, and Kara climbed behind his head, her hands tied to one of his pikes.

The dragon took flight, and on his back, Kara became a little dot whose hair flew behind her as a curtain.

Mordred took his sister's hand. "Thank you."

She smiled. "I would do anything for you."

"I know."

It became obvious Lily's choice had not been the best only days later, after Kilgharrah reported that Kara sent a bird back to Camelot when they reached destination – somewhere south of Broceliande – and when the content of her letter was revealed.

She had known of Emrys' true identity, and although she had never used it to her advantage before, by love for Mordred, she had decided to enact vengeance on those who had sent her into exile.

Morgana knew.

Camlann was growing nearer.