Chapter 28—Once and Future

The scream of metal rang throughout the throne room, piercing and terrible.

Because not only did Arthur slip his sword under Lara's executioner's, but Prince Foray stuck his dagger underneath his sister's.

Lara exhales and opens her eyes, not blinking once. The angry princess glares at her brother.

"You have no jurisdiction in Camelot," Arthur hisses above the steel. Merlin pushes away from the restraining knights and kneels by Lara's side. He cannot touch her until the three blades above her are moved.

"You favor a murderer?" the surprised princess Sansa hisses angrily. "She could turn on you at any moment."

"She won't," Prince Foray says. He looks at his sister. "Sansa, she has such guilt on her shoulders. Isn't that enough?"

"No," Sansa barks. "It is not enough."

"You are killing the executioner for the master's order," Prince Foray says calmly. He moves his dagger up so the heavy sword Sansa holds drops to the ground. He shakes his head as Merlin pulls Lara away from them and cradles her in his arms. "It isn't just, Sansa."

Sansa shakes her head and drops the sword with a clatter. She turns on her heel and with three men behind her she marches toward the exit. Before someone opens the door for the Princess she looks over her shoulder.

"You have made a grave mistake, Arthur Pendragon," she says darkly. "One day I will kill that woman before your very eyes and you will be helpless."

Merlin looks over Lara's shoulder and glares at her. "We'll see how helpless the rest of us are," Merlin says very darkly, sounding more like Emrys, the sorcerer of Albion, than the servant he is.

The Princess looks at Merlin incredulously and stalks angrily out of the throne room with her guard in her wake. Foray regards Arthur and, without looking at Lara again, walks out after his sister calmly.

Lara breathes heavily with her face pressed into Merlin's shoulder.

Mortis walked into the clearing where the Great Dragon stood. She swallowed awkwardly and looked up at him.

"You have made a great sacrifice, young Mortis," he said to her calmly with a smile spread across his reptilian face.

"There was no sacrifice involved," she disagreed.

The dragon's throat laughed like gravel falling down stone. "Regardless, you have chosen a side that will rise in history with your help."

"What now?" Mortis asked.

"That is up to you, child," the Dragon said. "You will be given the tools and the drive to do what is right and may do what you wish with it.

"In the depths of the ruined castle by the sea is a relic of great power," the dragon said. "You must find this relic and take it to Camelot where it will be safe."

"Why can't you protect it?" Mortis asked.

"The relic has the ability to give incredible magical power to any who wields it," the dragon said. "Except you. You will not be tempted by the Embolis' power. You will be its protector until it can be given to its child."

"It's child?" Mortis blinked.

The dragon laughed. "Yes, young warrior," he said. "Its child."

Mortis was unsure, but hoping that everything could only get better.

—Lara is smiling down as Gawain returns from his honeymoon with Lady Ragnelle. The knights and Arthur pat his back, kiss the hand of his wife, and laugh joyously at the return of their friend. She grins from ear to ear at the sight—her friends in sincere happiness.

"Why are you hiding up here?" Merlin asks.

"Why are you always sneaking up behind me?" she teases.

Merlin laughs and touches her shoulder. His smile fades and he converts to seriousness.

"I almost lost you there."
Lara nods with the smile still on her face. "That's true, you did," she agrees.

"You shouldn't condemn yourself to a homicidal princess ever again," Merlin says.

Lara laughs. "Oh, I'll think about it," she says. "All in the life of a reformed assassin."

Merlin looks at her with a smile playing on the corners of her lips. "Even an assassin who loves a sorcerer?"

Lara looks up at him, a smile still playing at her lips too but she was unsure of when she ever admitted it.

"When did I say that?" she says. Lara swallows without meaning to.

"When you were training the knights in sparring," Merlin says with a grin. "You said you can 'train men, protect kings and love sorcerers'."

Lara blinks rapidly remembering when she said that. She smiles a little.

"I know a lot of sorcerers," she says coyly.

"Do you?" Merlin says sarcastically.

Lara nods sharply. "Yes, quite a few."

She laughs and Merlin pulls her to him. She smiles as he pushes back a strip of her hair away from her face. As Merlin kisses her Lara has no intention of making her past disrupt her future.

Author's Note-Thank you so much for reading so far! Soon I'll have the sequel to Revenge in Camelot with more to do with Merlin and Arthur than Lara. I'll be taking more liberties with the story but hopefully you'll like it. Keep reading!-Evelyn Hawkins