I spent the rest of the night quite amused. No one told me what was happening, but it wasn't hard to figure out. Bells tolled and men ran about in a frantic state, as if someone was chasing them with a whip. Servants whispered amongst themselves, coming up with tale tales of how the foreign prisoners escaped.

I caught only bits and pieces of the stories, but managed to to figure out the most consistent one. They seemed to think that they managed to slip the keys from the guard as he passed by their cell. It explained why there was no sign of the door being forced open. And since he was drunk, it would have been easy for them to get them without him noticing. They then proceeded to knock his unconscious with own bottle of mead. He hadn't seen his attacker. I could hardly keep from snickering whenever I heard anything about it. My involvement wasn't even in question.

The next morning, I was woken up much earlier than usual. An entire team of maids surrounded my bed, staring at me with excitement. The first thing I noticed, besides them, was all my weapons were missing. All of them, gone. A tub of steaming water sat by the fireplace. Worst of all, one of the maids had a bundle of blue fabric laid daintily across her arm. Women here didn't wear white on their wedding day. They wore blue.

My first instinct was to bolt from the room. To get away as fast as I could. I pushed past the maids and run for the door, not caring that I was only wearing a thin nightgown. Two men stood outside, stopping me. Each held a large scythe. Large, curved, lethal looking blades mounted on staffs. I'd never trained against them before, and even if I had I didn't have a weapon myself. Laughter glinted in their eyes as they pushed me back inside, shutting the doors behind me. Raul wasn't taking any chances with me today. Why was he doing this so soon? Did he figure out it was me who helped Luca and the others out?

They pull me towards the bath, stripping me of the nightgown as we went. One of the women, an older one, dumps a pitcher of warm water over my head. A few of them went to work scrubbing them down with scented soaps and lotion. Others massaged things into my hair, making it softer. None of them seemed to care that I was naked, but I was extremely uncomfortable and self conscious.

Once they had finished, I was dragged out a dried off. I was forced into the dress. The sleeves hung off my shoulders, showing off my neck, and belled out from my elbows. The skirt flowed from my waist in a long train. The bodice was so tight I had a hard time breathing. And the shoes weren't much more comfortable.

Next was my hair. I ignored their idle chit chat as they did it. They asked me questions such as "What do you find most handsome about Alec", or "Has he kissed you yet?". I about vomited at the thought. They all thought I was lucky, and seemed to have no idea I didn't want it. All I had to do was pretend to be compliant and wait until they left. They braided the top half of it into a wreath, wrapping it around my head like a crown. Lastly, they weaved flowers into the braids to finish it off.

After admiring their work for a few minutes, they left the room. I waited until the sound of their footsteps faded away before hurrying to my bed. I shoved my armed under the mattress, hoping it was still there. I grinned when my hand found the hilt of a dagger. I don't know what had possessed me to put it there, but I was glad I had. I slipped it inside my sleeve just as the door opened.

Raul was so smug he practically waltzed into the room. "Don't you look stunning", he says in a mocking tone, circling me to get a better look. I look away from him. He grabs my hand, covering it with both of his own and recites an incantation. My hand tingled. When he released it, I saw the rune was gone. Only a scar was left, and you could barely see it. I stared at him questioningly. "Your wedding will take place in a nearby city. The priest was unable to make it on such short notice. You won't be able to get there with that."

So it was sudden, and not just for me.

I followed him outside, only to find myself surrounded by men. All armed with much better and larger weapons than mine. And they weren't wearing big, uncomfortable dresses. But I had a chance once we were outside the gates, I wouldn't be sticking around.

Meliorn stood holding the reigns of two geldings. His hair was shorter than I've ever seen it. He smiled a bit when he saw me. I only glared. The fastening of my cloak had come undone, and he noticed. He reached over to tie into back into a bow before taking my waist and lifting me into the saddle on my horse. He tried to catch my eye as he slid my feet into place. I couldn't bring myself to look at him.

Sighing, he mounted his own horse. As we moved out of the gates, I thought I might feel something. A weight lifted off of my shoulders or something. But I felt just as trapped as I had before.

Our possession was a solum one. No one spoke, save a few men towards the back. I busied myself by looking at the landscape. It was mostly flat, with snow covered trees as far as you could see.

The road traveled right through a section of forest. The trees curved overhead, creating a canopy of sorts. If I wasn't so preoccupied, I might have noticed how beautiful it was. As I stared off, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. A flash of red fabric. I didn't know a single person who wore that shade of crimson in this place. There could only be one conclusion. I grinned to myself at their timing and good luck. The one time I've managed to get out of the castle, they show up.

I pretend not to have seen it, not wanting to alert their presence. My guess was they were planning a surprise, surrounding our caravan to cut off all escape routes before attacking. I kept myself from laughing. Since when had I become a battle strategist?

But by the time the city came into view, I hadn't seen another sign of them. Maybe I had imagined it. It shouldn't be a surprise if I had. I had wished for it so much I hallucinated about it. I clenched my fists. I had wasted my one chance to escape waiting for a rescue that wouldn't come.

The gates of the city were tall and grand. They would only be closed at night, thankfully. If I had another chance I needed to jump at it.

People bustled through the streets, despite it being so early in the morning. A few stopped to watch us pass by, but others hardly noticed us at all. I realized we were headed towards the center of the city. I sighed in frustration. This was going to be hard.

We entered the gates of a large stone building. It wasn't quite as large castle, but was definitely fortified. At very least, a very rich man lived here. I don't wait to be helped down. I was rushed inside. The man who owned the place was in a frenzy.

"You told me two more weeks!", he shrieks at Raul. "I am not prepared! What will the guests say if they can't make it? It was meant to be the occasion of the year!"

"And that was before we had some... complications.", he replies, choosing his words carefully.

The other man humphs angrily. He was short and stout, as well as quite comical looking. As if all the extreme medieval fashions of the day had thrown up on him. "Well then, you had better hope we can get Father Tomas to come at all. Now if you will excuse me, I have preparations to see to." He leaves, muttering about not being able to have the flowers he had wanted for the ceremony. Too bad for him there wouldn't be a ceremony at all if I had my way.

I was sent to a room until I was to be fetched for the ceremony. I heard the lock click in place behind me. I went straight to the window, seeing if it would be possible to climb out. It wasn't. I was at least three stories up, and there wasn't anything to hold onto. And there was no way I could make it out the front gate.

Meliorn comes into the room shortly after. He just stands in the door, as if waiting for permission to enter. He wasn't getting it. He sighs and closes the door behind him. "It was you, wasn't it?", he asks. I knew he was talking about Luca, Riley, and Celso. I nod, seeing no point in hiding it. "I thought so."

"What do you want?", I snap at him.

"You look beautiful." Oh gosh, not that again. I frowned, tugging on the necklace I was wearing subconsciously. "I know you dislike me, but we can at least try to be friends? Please?"

That was just it. I didn't want to be friends with him. I opened my mouth to answer when a loud crash sounds in the hall, just outside the door. Meliorn motions for me to stay put as he goes to investigate, sword drawn. He returns a moment later, eyes blazing with something I couldn't put my finger on. He seizes my wrist and pulls me out into the hall. A man was lying on the floor, a bloody gash in his chest. You would think I'd be used to the sight by now, but it still made me squeamish. Even if it was an enemy.

I cover my mouth, gagging on the coppery smell of blood as Meliorn pulls me away. I longed for my sword, to feel it nestled on my back once again. I didn't feel safe without it.

And then I realized, someone had to have killed that man. He was one of Raul's. Maybe I hadn't imagined seeing one of Camelot's knights.

We entered a room with a better lock then the one I had been in. He lets go of me to scan the area and lock the door. I noticed something he hadn't yet. A curtain moving in a corner. A head peeped around it. I nearly jumped up and down with happiness. Merlin. He grinned at me with a finger to his lips before going back into hiding. He must have snuck in here when he heard us coming.

"What are you looking at?"

I spun around. Crap. "The drapes are lovely.", I blurt out, saying the first thing that came to mind. I sounded like an idiot.

The drapes are lovely? Geez, Sarah. You suck at excuses. And lying, I thought to myself. He gives me a strange look, moving towards Merlin's hiding spot. I had to do something. Who knew what would happen to him if he was caught.

He was about to pull them aside when I did something desperate. I grabbed his shoulders, spinning him around to face me. I climb into his arms, standing on my tip toes to reach his lips. He stumbled back in shock, hesitating a moment before eagerly wrapping his arms tightly around my waist and lifting me up so he didn't have to bend down so much. His sword drops to the floor. One of his hands wanders up my back lightly to wind his fingers into my hair.

I try not to cringe in disgust at myself as I slip my arms around his neck. I wondered why he doesn't question my motives, but I was thankful he doesn't. I slip the dagger out from my sleeve. He notices it and tenses, allowing me to slide back to the floor. But it was too late for him to stop me. I force the blade into his abdomen, in a place he wouldn't die from it if he was tended to quickly. He could still die from blood loss if he wasn't found quickly enough.

His eyes gleam with the hurt of my betrayal as he falls to the floor. "Guess I was wrong, Dove.", he coughs. "You aren't such a terrible actress after all."

Merlin comes out of his hiding place with wide eyes as Meliorn blacks out. He pulls me into a quick hug. "Please don't tell anyone about that.", I mutter.

He grins mischievously. "I happen to be very good at keeping secrets."

I laugh, knowing exactly what he meant. "Well, it isn't so much of a secret as it is embarrassing."

"Oh?", he asks, inviting me to explain further.

"That was my first kiss.", I blushed, not fully believing I had just admitted it to him. Or even said it out loud. He nods understandingly. "Who else is here?", I ask, changing the subject from my embarrassing love life.

"Arthur, Sir Percival, Sir Leon, Kayla, your uncle, and Gwaine." Henry was here? That surprised me.

I didn't have much time to ponder this as we head back outside. He leads me up to the walkways on top of the walls. Arthur was there, hacking through three men easily. He spotted me and smiled, fighting with a renewed strength. They were all dead in seconds. He raced over, taking me in his arms briefly.

"Sarah. Your gown.."

"I'll explain later.", I grimace. He nods, handing me a sword. I happily strap the sheath to my back and hold it firmly in my hand, prepared to fight my way out if I had to.

MyLadyAssassin- Aw, thank you! That is such a great compliment. My two stories are the first things I've written and let anyone but my teacher read, so I'm glad people actually seem to like them! I basically just used to write for my own enjoyment in a notebook. It was so scary posting the first few chapters, but I was pleasantly surprised with such great feedback. I do try to take any criticism into consideration to make myself improve :) I'm glad someone thought I had improved!

Dark-Tigresssssssssss- Thank you! I plan on finishing it eventually. I have no idea where I'll cut it off, though. I even have entire epilogues thought up for several characters. I know my main plot, but I end up just writing a lot of it as I go along... Maybe I'll do a sequel if it gets too long. :)

musicnlyrics- You're most welcome! I hope you found them! :)