Chapter 33- Lost and Found
*Normal POV*
"Ness! Are you out here?" Gwaine asked as he pulled his shirt over his head and walked out to the garden.
The sun had just risen and the air was warm with a slight breeze over Argen. Gwaine walked through the garden worried when he couldn't find Nessa anywhere. Looking around, he found she was nowhere to be seen in the garden. Hurriedly, he ran back in the hut and pulled on his boots and ran through the town looking for her.
"Where is she?" He asked himself aloud
Since he had found Nessa that frigid night, he had grown to love her. Not the love a man would share to his wife , but the love a brother would share with his sister. Gwaine had lost a sister when he was younger, and when he found Nessa memories flooded through his mind. He had become protective of her as an older brother would his little sister. Every night Gwaine prayed. Every night he prayed for Nessa, he prayed she would get her memories back, but he also prayed she would never leave them.
"Ness!" He shouted as he ran through the orchard.
"Over here Gwaine!" Nessa called out to him
As Gwaine rounded the corner, he couldn't believe the sight before him. Nessa, their Ness was a sorceress. He stood in awe chuckling as Nessa made the apples from the tree dance into the satchel she held in her hands.
"Well how about that," he said aloud smiling
Nessa finished filling her satchel before turning and holding an Apple out to Gwaine, " I know.. I woke up this morning wanting apples so I came to the orchard. When I got here I couldn't quite reach most of the apples, so I imagined the apples floating off the trees and into my bag for me. As you can see it worked, " she said smiling at him.
"You have talent that's for sure and a love for apples," Gwaine chuckled as he took the Apple from Nessa
" I suppose I do, " she replied chuckling herself as she struggled to carry the bag
Gwaine noticed and quickly took the satchel from her, throwing it over his shoulder. He held his arm out for her and she smiled as she wrapped her arm around his. As the two of them walked back to the village, they stopped frequently to allow Nessa to gather herbs for her collection. Gwaine being a gentleman, would help to pick the herbs for her as she instructed him on which he should pick.
"Thank you Gwaine," Nessa said aloud Gwaine finished picking the last of the herbs and stood up .
"You are most welcome, it's the least I can do since you cure my hangovers with them," he replied and held his arm out once more.
Nessa smiled as she took his arm, " You know, I think I remember something from before I went bonkers. "
"That's one way to put it," Gwaine laughed
" Hey!' She replied playfully smacking him upon his arm, " I'm serious Gwaine, I think I remember growing up in a village similar to this. I feel so at home and happy in the country. "
"That would make since seeing as you can grown a garden better than anyone I know," Gwaine quipped and smirked at her.
" That's not all though Gwaine, I think I have had a baby, " she muttered causing Gwaine to stop and look at her.
" A baby? " he questioned
" Yes.. Last night I dreamt I was with child, I kept talking to my stomach. I was very happy in the dream and seemed eager to have the child be born already, " Nessa replied sniffling slightly
"Hey now," Gwaine soothed as he wrapped an arm around her , " Its going to be ok? "
" How can you be so sure? " she asked as she buried her face into his chest
" Because you have Percival and me, Ness. The two of us will protect you no matter what happens my dear, " he explained as he ran his fingers through her curled locks.
"What if I abandoned the child? Why would I have ran away? "Nessa questioned as she pulled away from him.
"I don't believe you would have my dear. I believe what ever happened to you, happened against your will. A sweet person like you never would abandon her family, " he stated with a smile to make her feel better.
"I know, it just bothers me to know I have a completely different life away from here. I hardly remember anything, and what I do remember, I see in my dreams ," She said to him as together they walked back to the hut.
Gwaine couldn't help but feel bad for her, he loved her so and to see her upset hurt him deeply. As the two of them walked back into the hut, he sat the heavy bag of apples upon the table. He watched as Nessa braided her curly red locks and then proceeded to tie her apron around her waist. Walking to the cupboard, he placed the herbs he had gathered for her in the little box and then walked to the counter where Nessa was preparing breakfast.
"Good morning," Percival said as he walked in the hut
"Morning, What have you been doing? I'm surprised you are out of bed already," Gwaine quipped as he took a bite from his apple, earning a smack from Nessa.
"Thank you Ness, " Percival laughed
Nessa nodded and continued making breakfast. Percival looked concerned at Nessa and then back to Gwaine. Gwaine held a finger up and looked to Ness:
"We are going to gather supplies in the wagon for the fences, we will be right outside," he said to Ness
"Ok, I'll call for you when breakfast is finished," she mumbled as Gwaine and Percival walked out the door.
As Percival shut the door he looked to Gwaine concerned, " What's wrong with her, Gwaine? "
"I think she's starting to remember Perce, she keeps having these vivid dreams," Gwaine replied sadly .
"That's good isn't it?" Percival questioned
"You would think, but they keep making her sad. At times she's happy, but last night her dream really got to her. .. She dreamt she was pregnant Perce, and when talking it about it earlier she began to cry. That's not all that happened too, " Gwaine explained looking to the ground and back at Percival, " Nessa has magic, strong magic. Magic stronger than I have ever seen before and I'm willing to bet it plays part in what happened to her. "
"Is it dark magic?" Percival asked worriedly
"No it is far from it, I don't believe I have ever saw magic as pure as hers Perce ," Gwaine said a smile of reassurance upon his face.
"We must protect her then. If she is as powerful as you say, it's only a matter of time before Morgana finds her and used her own magic against her. We can't allow her to meet the same fate as my beloved, Gwaine," Percival said seriously
Gwaine sighed and looked seriously back to the large brute of a man, his hand resting upon Percival's shoulder, " We will Perce, we will. "
*Arthur 's POV*
"Rise and Shine Princess!" A voice yelled to me causing me to crack open my eyes
"Merlin, do you insist on yelling at me?" I asked as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes
"Yes, it seems to be the only way to earn your attention," he retorted and smiled at me
I rolled my eyes at my brother in law and sat up slowly, my neck aching from the position I had slept in. Looking around I was surprised to see he had mostly packed up camp and readied the horses. Rarely did he pack without me telling him to do so, which then again he wasn't my servant anymore. I heard him humming and turned my head to see him smiling as he finished loading down the horses. For the first time in eight months he seemed happy and like the old Merlin I first met.
Standing up from my make shift bed, I yelled out to him, " What has you in such a good mood? "
"I don't know, " he began and walked to me helping me to fold my blankets.
" Well that's not uncommon for you now is it, " I joked
"You clotpole," he said and stopped helping me fold the blankets
"What the hell is a clotpole?"
" King Arthur, " he replied and sulked back to his horse
"Its not a real word Merlin," I stated and walked to my horse, tying on my blankets to his saddle
" It is a real word, it's my word you prat, " he explained causing me to chuckle.
I mounted my horse and looked at the Warlock, " Well someone has his britches in a twist! One minute your humming and happy, whlist the next minute your all upset and a sour puss. "
"Well you started it with your surrley remarks," he spat and looked away from me
"Fine, I'm sorry."
"For what?" He asked waiting for me to continue
Rolling my eyes I continued, much to my dismay, " I'm sorry for being a Prat and a clotpole. "
"Fine, now do you want to hear more about my good mood I was in before you ruined it?" He asked looking to me
" Yes. "
"Ok then, when I woke this morning I felt hungry for apples. Which is unusual because I normally don't eat apples," he began causing me to look at him like a nutter, " Anyways, I felt magic as I was eating the apple...I felt her magic Arthur. "
My heart skipped a beat at his words causing me to smile, " Does that mean we are close? "
He smiled wide at me, " I believe so Arthur, I'm almost positive. "
"How much longer did you say it was to Argen?"
" About an hour or so. We have several steep hills to climb so maybe more, " he replied
"Do you really think she's there Merlin?"
"I hope Arthur I really do," he smiled and began to take off on his horse.
I chuckled at him and followed in suit behind him. I prayed he was right about finding Ness, my heart could not take much more pain and after eight months, I was very eager to see her once more.
Summer was rounding in on us and the morning heat was warm enough to have us sweating in no time. The two of us traveled for well more than an hour before stopping at the top of a hill just before midday. My mouth fell in awe at the village before me, Merlin had been right about Argen it was beautiful. I looked around at the small village to see an orchard among the farming fields and a river that ran through it. Surrounding the village was indeed mountains for its beauty remained secret to the rest of the world around it. Never had I seen anything like it before!
"Its beautiful isn't it?" Merlin said aloud as he looked upon the village
"It truly is, I don't believe I have seen a more beautiful place."
"We used to visit here as children, Lancelot had an aunt that lived here who insisted we visit in the summer, that was when he lived with his grandma Winny. It's been eight years now though since I have been here, probably the same for Lance," he explained as he reminisced about his past.
"Did Ness visit?"
"She did, we had to bribe her in order to go home after each visit. Ness was always stubborn," he chuckled
I smiled at him before looking back to the village. I prayed with every fiber of my being that we found her hear.
"What's wrong?" Merlin asked
"I'm worried.. What if she isn't here Merlin? What if we never find her?"
"We will Arthur, trust me I can sense she close," he assured me as he clapped a hand on my shoulder.
"Do you think she is ok?"
" How can she not be? " he smiled, " Come on I'll race you to the tavern. "
"You're on!" I yelled at him and took off down the steep hillside.
*Ness's POV*
" What's wrong with her, Gwaine? " I heard Percival ask "I think she's starting to remember Perce, she keeps having these vivid dreams," Gwaine replied to him
As the door shut, I took it upon my self to eavesdrop on their conversation. I knew what the two of them were going to talk about when Gwaine said "they were going to load supplies" . My dream last night shook me, I knew it to be more than just a dream but indeed a memory. I remembered being pregnant and how eager I was for the baby to get here. Being pregnant was not the only thing I remembered, I also remembered the blonde man in my dreams. The blonde man who was indeed my husband, and who also sat upon a grave holding me as I cried. My heart clenched as I thought of my past. Many things I had yet to remember, but so far the things I did,.made me wonder what type of person I really was.
Gwaine's voice brought me from my thoughts abruptly, " Nessa has magic, strong magic. Magic stronger than I have ever seen before and I'm willing to bet it plays part in what happened to her." "Is it dark magic?" Percival asked striking fear upon my bodyPercival did not care for magic, his wife was a sorceress and because of her refusal to join a wretched witch, she was killed along with their four year old daughter. Panic began to set in as I heard Gwaine speak "No it is far from it, I don't believe I have ever saw magic as pure as hers Perce ," he replied to Percival "We must protect her then. If she is as powerful as you say, it's only a matter of time before Morgause finds her and uses her own magic against her. We can't allow her to meet the same fate as my beloved, Gwaine," Percival spoke after several moments of silence causing my worry to fade.
I heard foot steps coming back to the door and hurriedly walked back to the counter. As the door opened, I quickly wiped away the tears that had fallen from my worry and continued cooking breakfast.
"Ness?" I heard Percival say aloud.
"Yes?" I replied as I turned to face him, wiping my hands upon my apron.
"Show me," he whispered and I nodded my head .
Pulling my sleeves up to my elbows, I looked to the cupboard and imagined plates setting themselves among the table. My eyes flashing and hand stretched out, I watched as plates flew from the cupboard setting themselves just as I imagined. Smiling I looked to a vase and moved my hand to picture fresh lillies filling the base to the brim. I stopped suddenly as I heard Percival laughing along with Gwaine.
"Bloody Hell! You were right when you said she had pure magic Gwaine," he quipped with a smile
" I told you Perce, she is harmless, " Gwaine said to him and then looked to me winking.
Carefully I levitated the vase to the table and then looked at both men confused, " You're not upset? "
Percival looked at me concerned and then suddenly pulled me into his arms, " No, I am shocked and I admit at first was weary, but after seeing what you just did, I can't be mad at you. "
I sobbed at his words and held him tightly. I was relieved he was not angry and at the same time frightened by the thought of this Morgause.
"Shush, it's ok Ness, " Percy soothed as he hugged me.
I felt Gwaine's strong hand upon my cheek and looked up to see his eyes filled with worry. I pulled away from Percy and wrapped my arms around Gwaine hugging him.
"Ness we will protect you, I promise, " he said as he hugged me back
" I know Gwaine, thank you. "
*Normal POV*
"Of course Ness, always," Gwaine replied to Nessa as he held her tightly in his arms.
Her body shook with emotion as Gwaine held her in his arms. Looking up from Nessa, Gwaine looked at Percival who himself had tears threatening spill. Gwaine had not seen Percival cry since his beloved had died all those months ago, and to see his best mate on the brink of tears, worried him so.
Minutes past before Nessa let go of Gwaine and wiped her face. As Gwaine looked at her puffy tear streaked face, his heart ached for her. He smiled a sad smile to her but chuckled as a stray curl fell once more into her face. Her hair was unruly as ever but beautiful at the same time.
"I think I'm going to collect eggs and till the garden now," Ness mumbled to them both
"Be careful Ness," Percival said aloud looking to her smiling
She smiled a small but sad smile to him and simply nodded her head, before walking out the back door of the hut. As the door shut Gwaine looked to Percival worriedly
"I told you Perce," he said knowingly to the large brute of a man
"You did, and only once have I ever saw magic that strong Gwaine," he said seriously
" Morgause and Morgana, " Gwaine stated knowingly looking to the back door sighing, " We must not dwell on it, Ness can sense when something is wrong... We will protect her Perce, but for now we must start on that fence, it is already humid this morning. "
Percival nodded in reply before pulling on his boots for the day. Percival had grown to love Nessa, but after his beloved died never would he love another the same. As Gwaine, Percival thought of Nessa like a sister and with his life he vowed to protect her at all cost.
Midday was soon upon the village of Argen, and the warm morning air became hot quickly as the day progressed. For several hours Percival and Gwaine had worked to repair the fence outlying the farming fields stopping only to drink from their water skins. As they finished the wooden fence, Gwaine spotted a pair of men riding their horses down the hill. Both men he knew to be travelers, for never had he saw them in Argen before. He had only for the past two years lived in the village, but never during that time had saw anyone like them. Throwing down his gloves, he nudged Percival and when he looked, pointed to the men.
"I wonder what business they want in Argen," Percival said aloud as he drank from his water skin
Gwaine inspected both men closely. One of the men had sandy blonde hair and by the look of his clothes, was from a well brought up family. The other however had dark brown almost black hair, and short stubble upon his face. He looked familiar to Gwaine but no matter how hard he thought, couldn't quite put his finger on the reason. Both men looked suspicious to him and for Nessa 's sake he would watch them closely.
"I don't know, but I have a weird feeling as I look at the two of them... We must watch them closely," Gwiane stated seriously as he himself took a drink from the water skin Percival handed him.
" Should we break for the day and finish tomorrow? " Percival asked Gwaine
Gwaine smiled and wiped the sweat from his brow, " The tavern? " he questioned as he pulled on his shirt once more.
"The tavern," Percival quipped with a smile.
*Meanwhile*
"Now, remember, in here I'm just a simple peasant like everyone else," Arthur instructed Merlin once more.
"Simple part's right," Merlin muttered under his breath
"What?" Arthur questioned not hearing Merlin's banter
"I said, the sun is very bright," Merlin replied while rolling his eyes
Arthur looked at his brother in law in disbelief , but played along and looked around towards the sun, "Yeah. Yeah, it is."
Merlin chuckled as he finished tying up his horse and waited by the tavern door for Arthur. He prayed he was right about Nessa being in Argen and he knew of all places to look first it would be the tavern. Nessa had loved Argen when they were young children, the last time they visited was when the both of them were eleven. Merlin looked around and smiled at the village, not much has changed since they were kids. The only difference was the presence of dark magic that lay near the square. Even though the village seemed the same, something bad felt as though it had happened here recently.
"Are you ready?" Arthur said pulling Merlin from his thoughts .
"Yes," he replied and smiled faintly to his brother in law.
As they opened the tavern door, they were met with silence and a room full of eyes looking at them.
"Hello," Arthur said aloud smiling
Merlin rolled his eyes at him and pulled him by the arm to a nearby table.
"What the hell!" Arthur yelled at Merlin
Merlin sat down across from Arthur and leaned in towards him, " Remember I'm just a simple peasant like everyone else. "
"Shut up Merlin."
"You should be shutting up, Mr. Attention grabber," Merlin quipped at him.
As the two of them bickered, Mary the waitress came up to their table and rolled her eyes at the both of them, "Afternoon. What'll it be?"
"Er..." Arthur began as he looked at the middle aged woman only to be interrupted
"Mmm... You're an handsome fellow, " Mary said allowed looking to Merlin
" I'm married, " Arthur informed her
"Oh, no, sorry. I was talking about your friend here, " Mary replied looking at Merlin
"Thank you Mary, it's good to see you again, " Merlin replied and stood to hug her
"Well of course, I must admit I almost didn't recognize you. You were no more then eleven when I last saw you," Mary smiled hugging him back, " What brings you here? "
"We are looking for someone," Merlin said to her
"Well best be careful, and my condolences by the way about your sister," she replied
"Thank you Mary," Merlin replied and sat down seeing Arthur's face fall.
"You're welcome, I hated hearing the news from Hunith.. Your sister was always a smart girl. It's a shame with everything that has happened around here since Georgina died. There are only two families left in the village that were alive when you were last here, everyone else moved on and new families arrived, " Mary said sadly
"What happened?" Merlin questioned
"Morgana, five months ago," she replied , " I haven't left the tavern since she attacked and Derek has went batty ever since.. he claims to see ghosts. "
"I'm sorry," Arthur mumbled
"Don't be, what can I get you?" Mary questioned
"Two tankards of mead please, " Merlin replied smiling sadly
The door to the tavern opened to reveal the two men Merlin saw mending the fence earlier. The tall one was very muscular and had very short blonde hair. The other however was around his height, with long brown hair and short facial hair. To Merlin the man looked to be a drunk and be very flirtatious with women. Opening his ears with his magic, he listened closely to each word :
" They are here, " the large man said to the smaller one nodding in their direction The shorter brown haired man turned to look to them causing Merlin to turn his head quickly, " They are aren't they. " "I'm growing suspicious Gwaine, the dark haired one keeps looking this way," the blonde haired one stated causing Merlin to chuckle. "Don't worry Perce no harm will come to her," the man apparently named Gwaine replied .
"Her?" Merlin said aloud in his head , " Who is her? "
"Merlin!" Arthur yelled snapping his fingers in his face, " snap out of it will you. "
"Sorry," Merlin said listening in his head once more at the men
" What is wrong with you? " Arthur questioned as Mary plopped down the tankards of mead
"There you are," she said with a smile looking to Arthur , " No no no, on the house young king " she whispered to Arthur as he held out coins to her.
"Mary?" Merlin said to the waitress
" Yes? " she replied looking to Merlin
" Who are those men at the bar? " he questioned pointing to Gwaine and Percival
"They are Gwaine and Sir Percival, they moved here about two years ago. Percival bless his heart, is a widower. Morgana and that wretched sister of hers, killed his wife and four year old daughter five months ago, " she informed them
"What about this Gwaine fellow?" Merlin questioned once more
Mary rolled her eyes, " Gwaine is a different story, he is from a wealthy family in Cendred's kingdom. His father tried to recruit him as a knight but Gwaine refused and fled. His father was unfaithful to his mother and one night, his father murdered his mother. He moved with Percival as soon as he could here to Argen to settle down. He is a drunk no less but lately a certain woman has helped to straighten him up. It's funny quite frankly from what I hear of her, she sounds a lot like your sister used to be before. "
" Should we be worried whilst staying here? " Arthur asked
" No they are good men, don't want any trouble usually," Mary said smiling and walked to the bar once more.
The door burst open all of a sudden and in walked a man with chains and rotted teeth. His so called friends following behind as he approached Mary.
"Afternoon, Mary. Business looks good." The bald man spoke whist brushing a stray hair from Mary's face
"We have our better days Dagr, " she replied coldly
"I don't suppose you'd begrudge me my share, then, " Dagr spat as Mary threw him a bag of coins, pressing a blade against her chest, "I'll not ask again miss Mary. "
"Take your hands off her or did your bastard of a father not teach you how to handle women, " Arthur yelled fuming with anger.
"How are you going to stop me you princess?" Dagr spat at Arthur
Arthur hauled back his fist and punched Dagr causing him to fall into the bar
"I'm gonna make you pay for that you prat, " Dagr screamed as blood poured from his face
"I'd like to see you try you clotpole! " Merlin screamed back
Dagr chuckled as Merlin and Arthur turned around to see three large men behind them. Merlin filled and Arthur looked to him irritated
"You had to open your big mouth, didn't you Merlin?" He spat at his brother
"You two have got yourselves in a bit of a pickle, haven't you?" The man called Gwaine said as he stood taking a drink of his beer.
Arthur looked to him warningly," You should get out of here while you have the chance. "
"You're probably right," Percival spoke up as he stood next to Gwaine
"Lets get this over with shall we," Gwaine spoke up taking a swig of beer from on his bottle.
In the blink of an eye, Gwaine had broke a beer bottle over one of the men's head. Percival grabbed another and threw him across the room into a table. Arthur starts punching Dagr repeatedly earning himself a blow to the face.
"Merlin! Behind you!" He shouts as he is being punched
Merlin turns and gulps as he sees two large men charging him, quickly without hesitation he chants, making a bench fly into the men. Merlin chuckles as he sees Mary throw plates at the men, but stops suddenly when I he hears Arthur cry out in pain.
"Arthur!!" Merlin screams and in a for of rage, the throws Dagr off of his bleeding brother in law.
"Merlin, how bad is it?" Arthur asks as Merlin inspected him
" Not too bad, I can heal this quickly but too I will be in pain, " Merlin replies placing a hand over Arthur's wound.
He begins to chant and once finished hears the man named Gwaine, " Wow! What do they call you, then?"
"Merlin, Merlin Emrys, " Merlin replies holding out his bloodied hand
"Gwaine. Pleasure to meet you, " Gwaine replies taking Merlins hand, "This is Percival, Perce for short. "
"Pleasure," Arthur mumbles holding his sore leg, " My name is Arthur."
" How is he? " Percival asks as he looks to Arthur
"He will be fine, just sore," Merlin informs him, " I healed him for the most part. "
" Do you have a place to stay? " Percival asks
Merlin shakes his head no and Percival sighs before picking up Arthur in his arms, " Come on then, I'm sure our girl can find room for you. "
"Thanks both of you," Arthur says to Percival and Gwaine
" Don't mention it, " Gwaine replies and leads both men to their hut.
Before entering Gwiane turns to the men and looks to them worried, "I'm going to warn you, our girl she is like a sister to us. She came to us a few months ago and doesn't have the best memory. Please be kind to her, she's been through a lot. "
"We understand," Arthur replies urging Percival to set him down the
"Very well then, " Gwaine says aloud and opens the door, "Ness we have company!"
Arthur and Merlin look to each other smiling as they walk through the door. Finally they had found her.
As the door shut, Ness peeked down the stairs from the loft above, " I'm surprised your home already dinner will be fine so-, " she began but stopped half way down the stairs when she saw Arthur.
" Hey beautiful, " Arthur spoke with tears falling from his face
Ness started to hyperventilate causing Gwaine and Merlin both to worry.
"Ness?" Merlin questioned
"Bubba? " she whispered before fainting and falling down the stairs
"Ness!" the four men screamed at once.
Finally after eight months Ness was found...
TO BE CONTINUED...