A/N: I am really sorry for the long wait for this. i just haven't been able to get my head into this to write it. But I managed to finish this chapter. I apologise now for any spelling and grammar. I will check it again and update any errors.


Lillian was pacing in the throne room, waiting for her brother and Arthur to return. King Irwin had been called to some urgent matter in the town, and he requested that Arthur go with him. Of course, Lillian demanded to go as well, but ended up being locked in the throne room with Merlin to keep an eye on her.

"Lillian, just calm down." Merlin said to her, trying to get her to stop pacing.

But she simply carried on. "Something has happened, I know it has. And those two idiots don't want me to get involved." She mumbled. "Can't you feel it, Merlin? Something is coming, like a storm. It's getting closer and soon…"

"I know, Lillian. I can feel it. Is this why you are so worried all the time?" Lillian just looked at him and nodded. "Whatever it is, we can get through it." He said, before taking a hold of her hand, just trying to reassure her some more and stop her pacing.

Lillian turned and smiled at him. "You're magic is getting stronger, Merlin. Who knows, maybe one day you will be the greatest warlock to walk this earth." She teased.

Merlin just frowned at her. "How do you know my magic is stronger?" He asked her curiously.

"Because I can feel it, you have an important destiny, Merlin. One day, you're going to be more than just a warlock." She told him, smiling at the knowledge that he really was going to be someone great.

Their attention was grabbed when the huge wooden doors were thrown open and King Irwin stomped in, followed by Arthur. "What's happened? What's going on?" Lillian asked, rushing up to her brother.

He sent a glare her way. "Nothing for you to concern yourself with Lillian." Irwin growled at her, before walking past her and sitting down and rubbing his head.

"Yes, it is my concern. You may well be the King, but I am still the Princess. Until you marry and produce an heir, I am first in line to take care of Rolana if anything happens to you. So tell me what is going on!" Lillian shouted, really not in the mood for being messed around. She knew something was going on, she was just so on edge.

Irwin quickly stood up and stepped towards his sister. "And as King, I can revoke your title and disinherit you. This does not concern you. Do you understand, Lillian?" It seemed that he was in a shouting mood as well.

Lillian was fuming, and so without another word, she disappeared from the room. Leaving the three men to just stare at the spot where she once stood. Irwin let out a sigh. "Arthur, she must not be told. The moment she finds out she will take it upon herself to investigate."

"I understand. I do not wish for her to get involved with this either. She told me a few things that she has done in the past for me, and I was less than happy to know what she had been doing." Arthur told him, thinking back to the conversation about how many times she had saved his life and when she had traded her own for his.

Irwin nodded at him, trusting the prince to take care of his sister. "Knowing Lillian, she is at the top of the east tower right now. That's where she usually goes when she is angry with me."

Arthur nodded at him before turning and walking towards the door, Merlin following behind him. "Arthur, what happened?" The warlock asked, trying to keep up with the prince.

The Prince let out a sigh as they made their way to where they hoped Lillian would be. "Yesterday people were being killed, today people are disappearing." He told his servant, a grim expression on his face.

"Missing?" Merlin questioned, not actually wanting to believe it. He knew that Lillian was already worrying, and if she knew about this, she would just get herself even more worked up.

"Yes, Merlin, missing." Arthur snapped at him.

The pair of them walked the rest of the way in silence. Arthur was clearly troubled by what had happened, and Merlin was just worrying about Lillian. They both knew something terrible was coming, but neither of them knew what. He was wondering if this was it, what they could feel coming. But so far, it didn't feel like too much was happening, not compared to what they had been through in Camelot.

They found Lillian up in the tower, standing by the window and just gazing out of it. She didn't even turn when they approached her. "Lily, are you all right?" Arthur asked her, going and standing next to her.

"No, I'm not all right. My brother doesn't want to tell me what is going on, and I know he has told you not to tell me either." Lillian said, keeping her eyes firmly focused on the view before her. "This is my kingdom as well. I have a right to know what is happening."

"He is only trying to protect you, Lily. You managed to get yourself involved with the problems in Camelot, and now I know just how much you were involved. He is trying to keep you safe, and so am I." Arthur told her, hoping that she was listening to him.

Lillian turned to face him, letting out a sigh as she did. "I know you are, and I'm grateful. But it doesn't stop me from wanting to do something to help."

"I know, Lily, I know. Now come with me, I have a surprise for you." Arthur told her, gently taking a hold of her hand. "Merlin, go and enjoy yourself."

"Go to the tavern, take some of the knights with you." Lillian said, a smirk on her face. She did enjoy winding him up, and annoying him at times. It just made her feel better because she knew that he was not going to take much notice of it, he knew her now.

Merlin just glared at her slightly. "I'll think I'll pass on that. But I have things to do, so I'll see you later." He said, before walking off.

"So, what is this surprise that is more important than telling me what is going on in my own kingdom?" Lillian asked him, as they reach Prince Arthur's chamber.

The prince stopped and turned to face her, a serious look on his face. "Lily, your brother can handle it. Neither of us want you to get involved because we do not wish to see you get hurt. So please, Lily, I am asking you, please just leave it alone." He begged her.

Lillian knew that he was serious, and that he would do pretty much anything to stop her from getting herself tied up with what is going on. "Fine, I will stop asking about it. Happy now?" She said, making sure to let him know that she wasn't happy about not being told what was going on still.

"Yes." Arthur replied, reaching down and kissing her softly. "Now, your surprise." He opened the door to his chamber and led Lillian over to the table. Once she was sitting down, Lillian watched him walk over to the cupboard beside the bed.

She just sat there waiting, not having any idea what Arthur was going to do. There was a nervous look on his face as he walked back over to her. "I… I have something for you." He told her, handing her a red velvet box.

Lillian frowned at him, wondering why he was even bothering to get her things. She was a princess, she could afford to get things for herself if she wanted them. "Arthur, you don't need to give me things. I'm not the type of person who needs to be showered with gifts." She told him, still holding onto the box.

"I know, Lily. But I wanted to do this for you, I am allows to do things for you." He told her, looking rather nervous still. Lillian couldn't help but notice that, so whatever it was in the box, must have meant a lot to him.

"Okay. But just remember that, Arthur. I do not need gifts." She said to him, getting a nod in response.

"Open it."

Lillian took a deep breath as she put her hand on the top of the box, preparing herself to open it. She lifted the lid up, and her eyes widened at what she saw, lying in the box. "Arthur… how did you…" She didn't really know what to say. Inside the box lay a golden chain, with a deep blue heart shaped stone firmly hanging on the end. The light reflected off it, and cast different shades of blue around the room.

Arthur just reached out for the necklace. "I know your mother used to have one similar." He said, as Lillian held her hair up and out of the way so that the prince could secure the bright stone around her neck.

"I have no idea what happened to it. My father gave it to her when they started courting. She used to wear it all the time." Lillian said sadly, thinking back to her mother and father. She had tried so hard not to think of them, to keep herself together, but the gift from Arthur just reminded her of who was gone.

"Your brother doesn't know either. So I thought that you might like this." He told her. "I know things haven't been easy for you, Lillian. You lost both of your parents, you ended up in Camelot where you had to hide who you were."

"I love it, Arthur. Thank you so much." She said, getting up from the chair and wrapping her arms around the prince.

"Good." He replied, wrapping his arms around her tightly as well. "Now, I have something of great importance to check up on." Arthur told her, letting her go.

Lillian rolled her eyes at him. "Something to do with my brother and what is going on?" She asked, sounding less than enthusiastic.

"No, actually. Something to do with you." He told her, kissing her quickly. "Behave, Lily. Do not go looking for trouble." Arthur warned her.

"I don't go looking for it." She protested. "It just happens to find me. Or usually, you."

Arthur just chuckled at her a little. He knew she was right, wherever they went, trouble seemed to follow. "I'll come to your chamber later for dinner." He whispered to her.

"Okay, I'll be here." Lillian replied, a small smile on her face. "Now, go away and do whatever you need to do."

He smiled at her and left her standing in his chamber on her own. "Merlin?" She called, knowing that she was going to do some digging, to find out what was really going on.

"Everything okay, Lillian?" The warlock replied, not at all sounding concerned.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on in my kingdom? Or am I going to have to find out by myself?" She asked him, walking out of Arthur's room and walking along the corridor.

"Lillian, don't do this. Your brother is dealing with it, and Arthur is helping him. Please, just don't get involved." He pleaded, but he knew it was probably going to be in vain. Time had shown him that Lillian had a mind and a will of her own, and she would follow her own orders and no one else's.

"Okay, I'll find out by myself then. I'm going for a walk around the castle, in case anyone asks." She told him, making her way through the castle. Lillian knew she wasn't meant to be going out on her own, but right now, she really didn't care. She just wanted to know what was going on, and since no one was willing to tell her, she was going to have to work it out for herself.

She actually managed to creep out of the castle without any problems, which surprised her considering the way her brother and Arthur were acting. If things were as serious as they were making out, then where were the guards? Why wasn't she stopped?

"So, where is everyone then?" She mumbled to herself, noticing that the streets seemed a little more empty than they should have been. Lillian was now starting to feel a little more than just frightened.

She tried to shake the feeling off, simply putting it down to that fact that she had no idea what was going on and so was making up ridicules plots in her own mind. Something just didn't seem right, and although she knew there was something going on, she didn't think it was seriously enough for everyone to retreat inside and lock the rest of the world out.

For some reason, it was just putting her on edge. "Merlin, are you busy?" Lillian called to him wondering if he would tell her anything about what was going on yet.

"Arthur has me running around. Why, is everything okay?" There was concern in his voice as he replied to her.

"Everything is fine. I was just wondering if you wanted to go for a walk or something. I know my brother doesn't want me going out on my own." She said, before realising what else he had said. "Hang on, Arthur is making you work?"

"No, I offered to help him with something." Merlin answered, a little too quickly for Lillian's liking. "Really, Lillian, I offered. He isn't making me work."

She didn't know whether to believe him or not, but she was going to give him the benefit of the doubt. "Okay, as long as you offered. Well, I'm going to go and find something to do."

Lillian kept walking the streets, finally hearing the sound of voices. The voices were in hushed tones, as if they were trying not to be heard. She carefully pushed herself forward, following the sound of these voices.

"They're getting suspicious. We need to move on to the next stage." She heard one of the voices whisper.

"No, not yet. We need to get their attention more, otherwise we aren't going to get what we want. They all need to know, they all need to be afraid." The other voice, the more malicious voice, said.

Lillian wanted so desperately to turn the corner and ask these men exactly what they were talking about, but something was telling her that it was a really stupid thing to go.

"Gather everyone for tonight. Tell them by Rob's blacksmith. There are a few still at home around there, young ones. We take them, and then see if we can move on to the next stage." That malicious voice said once more. Lillian was rooted to the spot, until she heard the footsteps coming towards where she was.

For a moment she didn't think she could breathe, let alone move. But a moment later, after filling herself with panic, she found herself to be safely in her room at the castle. "I knew it, something is going on." She grumbled to herself, going and looking out of her window. "And if no one will tell me, then I will find out for myself." She said, before heading over to her wardrobe and carefully picking through her clothes. She needed something simply, something that wouldn't give her away, and something that would keep her hidden.

It didn't take her long to plan her little outfit to creep around it and she placed it to one side of the wardrobe, ready to be grabbed when she needed it. There was a plan forming in her mind, she was going to follow the men, and see for herself exactly what they were doing. Then she could simply use her magic to stop them from the shadows and have the guards come and collect them. She would be back before anyone even realised she was gone.

No one would have to know that she got herself involved, that she left the castle, twice, unattended. Everyone would just be able to relax once more, and she could enjoy the time she had there with Arthur. She knew that if either he or her brother found out what she had done, she would be in some serious trouble.

"Best not to get caught then." She muttered under her breath, closing the wooden doors to the wardrobe and flopping down on her bed. She looked over to the window once more, wishing it was night time already so that she could get out there.

Lillian didn't know how long she had been lying there, gazing over at the window for, but she was brought back to her senses when there was a loud knocking at her door. Letting out a sigh, she pushed herself up from her bed and made her way over to the doors.

"Lillian, would you care to join me for dinner?" Arthur asked her, standing in the doorway and smiling away at her. It was clear that he was trying to not to think about something.

She forced herself to smile, she was also thinking about something else, about what she had heard in the town. "Of course I would."

She followed him to the chamber he was now staying in, neither of them saying a word. Lillian knew she had to find a way to get out of the castle later. That itself was not going to be a problem, getting away from Arthur was the problem.

"Is everything all right, Lillian? You've been very quiet." Arthur asked, halfway through their food.

She wasn't really sure how to answer him. If she brought up the fact that something was happening that no one wanted her to know about, he might get annoyed with her, or angry with her. She promised not to ask about it any, and she wasn't going to, but Lillian had her own plan now.

"I'm sorry, Arthur. I am afraid I am not feeling all to well." She told him, hating that fact that she had gone a lied to him. She thought all that was over, that she wouldn't have to lie to him anymore, but it came out so easy.

"Do you wish for me to send for the court physician?" He asked her, looking at her with the concern showing in his eyes.

Lillian shook her head at him. "No, I will be fine. I probably just need some more sleep. Things haven't exactly been, well, peaceful recently have they?"

The prince had to agree with her there, it had always been one thing after another. "Come, I will escort you back to your chamber, when I hope you will get some rest." Lillian just nodded at him and let him help her to stand.

He stayed in the room while she changed behind the screen, before watching as se slowly plodded over to the bed where he was sitting on the edge. "Are you sure there isn't anything I can do, Lily?" He asked, tucking a lock of stray hair behind her ear.

"I'm sure, Arthur. Go on, go enjoy the rest of the evening. There is no point you hanging around here with me, all I'm going to do is sleep." She told him.

"Okay, I will come and check on you later, if that is okay?" All Arthur wanted to do was make sure that she really was okay, and Lillian knew this.

"Of course it is okay, Arthur. I'll see you later." She said, leaning over and giving him a quick little peck on the lips.

It brought a smile to the prince's face. "I hope you feel better soon, Lillian." He whispered to her, giving her a quick kiss back before leaving the room.

She let out a sigh of relief once he was gone. She was lying to him, and she really didn't like it. Lillian had lied to him for so long, but when the truth came out, she promised herself that she wouldn't do it again, that there would be no more lies.

Lillian quickly got herself changed again, there was no way she was going out to find out what was happening in her nightgown. The outfit she had selected earlier consisted of black leather pants, tightly fitted and a black shirt. She knew she was going to look like a man, but that was the whole point, she did not want to be spotted or recognised.

She yanked on her black boots and a dark cloak, just to help her keep to the darkness. "Geanoirr mec æt isensmlþ Tom." Lillian whispered, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She knew what she was doing, and she knew that it was probably a very stupid thing to do. But if people weren't going to tell her what was going on, then she would have to find out another way.

When she opened her eyes again, she was in the blacksmiths. A quick look around told her that she had not been spotted, making her let out a sigh of relief. But that was quickly replaced with fear when she head voices talking close by.

"How many tonight?" One of the voices from earlier asked in the darkness.

"Only three. They aren't coming out any more, it's harder to snatch them when they don't come in the open." Another voice hissed back at him.

"Have we not done enough to get their attention yet? We killed and we kidnapped, is that not enough?" a third voice asked, getting his view voiced to the group.

Lillian had been creeping around, trying to get a better look at the group, but her heart almost stopped when she saw three children, bound and gagged, with tears staining their faces. She could feel a fire burning inside of her, and that was probably what caused her to be careless, and to get herself noticed.

The men's heads all snapped around at her gasping, and all eyes focused on where Lillian was standing. She knew she had been caught out now. "So, what do we have here?" One of them said, taking a step closer to Lillian. She could only assume that he was the leader of the group.

He took a step closer, as she was still rooted to the spot, her eyes not leaving those of the helpless children that were before her. She didn't even flinch when the hood of her cloak was thrown back, revealing her face.

"Oh my, if it isn't the Princess Lillian. How nice of you to stop by." The man said, a smirk on his face. "I think we just found out ticket to get what we want." The moment he said that, there came a few laughs from the other men around him.

Lillian finally managed to find her voice. "What is it you want?" She asked them, trying her best to keep her voice firm and strong. She was a princess and her best friend was the Prince of Camelot. She knew how to act.

That really tickled the men, as they all laughed some more. "What do we want, Princess?" The leader asked, taking a step towards her. "We want Arthur Pendragon. And you're going to help us get him." He snarled.

"I don't think so. You want Arthur, you're going to have to kill me first." She hissed at him, preparing herself for a fight. Only the fight never came, she was just grabbed from behind and her hands were held tightly.

"Well, you're going to help us whether you like it or not. The Prince will do what we want if he ever wants to see you alive again." He bared his rotten teeth, an evil smirk just taking over his face all the time.

"I swear, if you even try to hurt him, you are seriously going to regret it." Lillian growled, feeling that she was about to lose her temper, and therefore let her magic roam free. But she knew she couldn't let that happen. There were children there, and the last thing she wanted to do was to scare them.

A hand came into contact with Lillian's face, making a loud noise. She felt her cheek burning as she turned her head back to look at the man. It was taking all she had not to lose control now, especially after that. "You're going to shut up, and do what we tell you, got it?"

"No." She told him firmly. She was not going to be pushed around so easily.

The man just shrugged at her. "Fine, if you won't come willingly, then I'll have to do something about that then, won't I?"

She watched him as his eyes flashed gold, and she realised that they probably all had magic and that the reason they wanted Arthur was because of his father. But she couldn't think any more than that, as she knew she had to pretend to be unconscious. If she was going to help those children, she needed to be with them, and if that meant she had to let them take her, then she would.

Lillian wasn't scared, she would be able to tell Merlin exactly where she was and what was going on. She had no reason to be scared, she could take out every single one of them in the blink of an eye. But not right now, not in front of the innocent children who had been torn from their families.

"Let's move, before someone notices that the dear Princess is missing." The man said.

Lillian felt herself being thrown over someone's shoulder, and she opened her eyes just a crack as she felt the cold night air whirling around her. She reached a hand up to her neck, feeling something hanging there.

There was nothing she could do now until she knew where they were taking her and the children. But she had hope, and she had a plan. It may have looked like she was giving up and going quietly, but that was far from the truth. Lillian knew she could stop them, and she would, because she would never let anyone hurt Arthur.


A/N: Once again, sorry for the lateness, spelling and grammar. I have no excuse apart form the fact that I really haven't been able to concentrate on either of my Merlin stories, but I'm getting there.

So, thank you to everyone who has favourited/followed and a massive thank you to everyone who has reviewed. You're reviews and support means a lot to me, and I am sorry for not updating sooner.

Enough with my yabbering. Remember to review, you know, if you want to.

Pippa.