I am back, and with a new update. Sorry it took so long. This has been the weirdest 2 weeks of my life. I want to thank you guys so much for much for all the support. They made me smile and laugh (something I really needed to do with all the craziness in my life). You guys are amazing, truly. You don't have to worry, it was actually a really nice break-up. We're still best friend, and I'm more than hopeful that we'll make it through this tough patch and get back together eventually. The long distance thing just wasn't working out for him. But I'm graduating soon and will be moving back home right after graduation so only a couple more months. Ok, enough rambling. Enjoy!

Chapter 21: The Secret Revealed

Gwen sat in that field until the sky had gotten so black, it was impossible to see her hand in front of her. She had filled her hair with flowers, and took her time taking them out. She was trying to stay positive, but she had lost faith in Arthur returning when the sky turned from a light blue to a dark purple. She could not understand what was taking him so long. She finally stood up and started making her way to the castle when her mind got the best of her, and she thought that maybe Arthur had been placed in the dungeons for breaking off his engagement to Morgana, and she became very worried. She walked slowly as she felt her way through the forest. She finally spotted the fiery lights of the town and picked up her pace.

As she entered into the town, she came across one of the cooks from the castle making their way home. The cook spotted her and waved for her to come towards her. Gwen smiled and did as was requested. She was in a rush to find out what had happened to Arthur, but that did not mean she had to be rude and ignore her friend. She would talk for no more than a minute and then be on her way.

"Hello Celia, how was your day?" Gwen asked starting small conversation.

"I am well my lady. By the way, Prince Arthur's servant, Merlin, was looking for you today."

"He was? I wonder why?" Gwen said curiously.

"He is probably bored is all. He has been doing nothing but bothering everyone ever since Prince Arthur left on his journey with the lady Morgana this afternoon."

At first, Gwen did not believe that she had heard right. She started at the cook for a good minute before asking her to repeat herself.

"I'm sorry Celia, I was distracted for just a moment. What were you saying about the prince and my sister?"

Celia smiled and patted Gwen on the back lightly. "Someone caught your fancy?" she asked jokingly. "I was just saying that prince Arthur and the lady Morgana have gone off on a journey; a romantic one too. They requested no servants or guards. They intend to get to know each other better."

Gwen stopped listening after that. Her mind raced as she tried to make sense of everything, but she couldn't. The one thing she knew for sure was that Arthur left her. Her mind raced as she tried to understand why. Had he decided that she was not worth the trouble of going against his king? Or maybe the whole thing had been a trick to get back at her for all the lies and trouble her and her father had caused. Her heart ached as the thought made her want to find a bathroom and empty the contents of her breakfast. She needed to get away from the cook, from the entire town. She could not face the happy smiles of everyone as they walked along happy for her sister and Arthur. She looked at cook, who was still talking, and put on the best smile she could attempt.

"I'm happy to see they are getting along," cook said as she finally finished rambling.

"Me too," Gwen lied, "but if you will excuse me Celia, I must be going. It was wonderful talking to you again."

"You too dear."

They parted ways after that. Gwen walked aimlessly until she heard the door close behind Celia, then she ran as fast as her feet could take her back into the woods.

Merlin could not understand why he could not find anyone when he needed too. He had been searching for Gwen for hours and still could not find her. He had searched the entire town, and the entire castle, but still saw no sign of her. Time was running very thin, he could feel it, and he was more than desperate. It had gotten very dark, and the only place he could think of her to be would be her room. He checked there one more time and still there was no one. With nothing left to lose, Merlin decided to head down to the clearing. He needed to talk to the great dragon, but he was not looking forward to facing him.

Uther met up with queen Vivienne just as she was entering the lake. She heard him approaching, and smiled when she recognized him.

"King Uther, what on earth are you doing out here so late?" She asked. She was putting on a show, just in case anyone was around.

Uther smiled, happy to play along. "I was just out for a stroll is all." He pulled out a blanket and laid it out on the floor. "Since it seems that you are doing the same, won't you sit with me?"

Queen Vivienne smiled from ear to ear as she took a seat on the blanket. Once they were both seated, they both began to laugh at their silliness.

"You need not worry my dear, the coast is clear. I have made sure that none of my knights have followed, or will look for me," he told her.

"Good, as did I with my servants."

They inched closer and closer to each other until their arms touched. Queen Vivienne rested her head on Uther's shoulder and they stared up into the night sky. The stars shinned brightly above them, and everything felt so magical. Uther's heart pounded as old memories of the two of them when they were younger played inside his head.

"Do you remember when we use to do this every week? Just sit out by the lake that connected our two kingdoms and stare at the stars?" He asked her. She nodded happily.

"And we use to talk all night about doing that for the rest of our lives," she said recalling a memory of her own. "We were so sure that our parents would have us marry. How wrong we were."

"We should have known that since they were already allies, they would want us to marry others to strengthen our kingdoms."

"We should have, but we were young and so very in love. Blinded by everything but our own heart's desire," Queen Vivienne explained.

They were silent for a moment, enjoying everything around them. Uther leaned his head on top of Vivienne's and sighed.

"I miss this, you, me, and nothing else but the stars," he told her. She nodded. "Do you know what else I miss?"

Vivienne lifted her head from his shoulder and looked up at him. "What?" she asked.

"This," Uther said as he leaned down and kissed her.

Old feelings resurfaced as the kiss sparked a fire within both of them and a happy bliss took over their bodies. They would have remained in such a state if they did not hear rustling from a bush nearby. They broke apart quickly, and Uther stood up and readied his sword. He walked over to the bush cautiously. As he approached, he saw the shadow of someone running away.

"We were spotted, he yelled to Vivienne as his mind raced and ran after the person that was getting away. His sword was ready to strike whoever it was down.

Gwen ran as fast as her two legs could take her. She could hear king Uther not too far behind chasing after her. She made a mad dash to the left and tried to run faster. She had not meant to stumble upon them. After she had talked to Celia, she needed to get away, and the place that always calmed her mind was the lake. Its serenity made her feel at peace. Her real mother use to take her there all the time when she needed peace and quiet. It was a very happy place for Gwen. She had approached the lake and heard talking. She was going to walk away, but then she heard the voice of her mother. It was too late for her mother to be wondering outside the castle. Worried that her mother was being attacked or kidnapped, she was going to step forward and try and save her. As she got closer though, she saw her mother and king Uther. She was confused as to what they were doing out so late. She got her answer when she saw them kiss. Shocked, Gwen gasped and stepped back. She lost her balance and fell down. She saw king Uther get up and knew she had to get out of there before they spotted her, so she got up and ran.

Gwen could hear king Uther gaining on her. Her trick to try and divert him had not worked. He made a left right where she had made the left. She turned to make a quick right and instead tripped. She skidded across the dirt, dirtying her dress and scrapping her arms. She stood up and was greeted with someone grabbing her from behind and covering her mouth with their hands.

Uther ran after the person, whom he was sure was a girl. He could make out a dress, but nothing more. She made a quick left, and Uther did the same. The forest was so dark, but luckily he had been able to stay on her trail. The sounds of her footsteps were a big help. Everything was working out fine until he got to a patch of trees that covered the night sky and made it impossible to see anything. He ran through that patch quickly, but when he got through to the other side where he could see again, the footsteps had stopped moving. He stopped running then and started walking slow and cautiously. He listened out for any noise at all.

"Come out," he shouted to the night air. "I know you are out there. I will find you, so come out and face your punishment for spying on the king."

It took a moment, but he finally heard a small rustle from a bush not too far off, up ahead. Uther took off once again. He was determined to find this person, and he was not planning on giving up.

Merlin watched as Uther ran off ahead. He had thrown a rock hoping Uther would think it was Gwen running away. The bait had worked, and Uther was off on a wild goose chase. Merlin released Gwen, whose heart was pounding since before he had even grabbed her. Gwen turned around, and upon realizing it was Merlin that had saved her, threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"Oh Merlin, thank God it is you," she said as she hugged him tighter. Merlin hugged her and rubbed her back soothingly.

It was lucky for Merlin, that as he was walking towards the clearing he had spotted Gwen running. He made a mad dash through the trees hoping to intercept her. He spotted Uther chasing her with his sword on the defense and knew something was wrong. She tripped just as he had made it to her. Thinking on his feet, he grabbed her from behind and covered her mouth so she would not scream. She had been stiff in his arms, probably scared out of her mind. He hid them behind a tree, and soon after Uther appeared. He heard Uther yell for Gwen to reveal herself. Feeling it was safe to release Gwen's waist and arms without her trying to escape, Merlin picked up a nearby rock and threw it. Uther ran off, and Gwen was safe, for now.

Merlin released Gwen and looked her in the eyes. She looked terrified. He wanted to know what had happened, but he knew that would have to wait; right now he needed Gwen to go save Arthur.

"Gwen, we need to go. Arthur is in trouble, and we need to go and save him," Merlin explained to her.

Gwen's head raced, she could not function correctly, much less compute what Merlin was talking about. "What are you talking about Merlin?"

"Arthur is in grave danger. He needs you to save him," Merlin said once more.

"Arthur does not need me, he has Morgana. She could save him."

"Gwen, you do not understand—"

"No Merlin, you do not understand. Arthur does not want me. He has chosen my sister. He does not want me to save him, nor does he need me too. It is all for the best anyway. He chose the better of the two princesses. Morgana is the greatest person one could ever have; she can do no wrong for him," Gwen said sadly.

Merlin could tell that telling the truth to Gwen would not be easy, and she probably would not believe him either. She thought too highly of her sister, and him saying horrible things, although true, about Morgana would make Gwen not want to go even more. He needed to think quickly to get her to go. Finally, an idea came to him.

"It is not only Arthur that is in trouble, but Morgana as well. They have been kidnapped!"

Gwen's attention was suddenly peeked as he revealed this information to her. "What are you talking about Merlin?"

"A messenger came to me saying they never made it to their destination. I alerted the kingdom, but they do not believe me. They keep saying that they will be back tomorrow. When they realize they have not returned tomorrow it will be too late by then Gwen, I can feel it. They are in real danger and we must go help them."

Gwen took in everything he said and digested it in her brain. If Merlin was right, it may be too late for to save them if they waited, and she refused to lose her sister again, and as much as she thought that Arthur did not want her, she still cared about him, and could not bare it if something happened to him either.

Gwen looked and Merlin and said, "Ok Merlin, let's go"

Morgana and her followers had arrived at Cenred's castle in the dead of night. They were lead straight into the throne room, where Cenred awaited their arrival patiently.

Arthur was dragged into the room and placed on his knees in front of Cenred. Morgana and Morgause stood in a corner waiting to see what Cenred was going to do. Cenred got up from his throne and walked slowly up to Arthur. Arthur looked him square in the eyes, not intimidated by him at all.

"I have waited so long for this Prince Arthur," He said as an evil smirk revealed itself on his face.

Cenred picked up his sword, and five guards held Arthur in place. Cenred lifted his sword above his head, ready to strike his target.

As usual, I'm too lazy to check spelling and grammar. I promise one day I will do it. School has kind of thrown me off wack, but hopefully the next update will be on schedule (Saturday). Till them, enjoy yourselves my awesome readers, and please review. I love to know what you guys think. Our story is almost coming to a close (Finally!), but I have enjoyed every minute of writing it. Usually, I would have stopped writing halfway through and moved on to another story, but you guys and your reviews keep me going. I'm really excited that I am finally going to finish a story. Thanks guys! You rock!