Chapter 33: The King's Ball

By the time the carriage had arrived, Arthur's opinion of the king had changed quite a bit. The king was extremely affable. Arthur greeted his fathers and his children, then he walked through the gardens of Buckingham Palace while holding hands with his little kids. Aoífe was wearing a sapphire blue dress and sapphire blue buckle shoes to match her eyes, and Arthur Junior was in a little tuxedo with a white bow tie and cummerbund. His shoes were a shiny jet black. Arthur was amazed at how much Junior looked just like him. Aoífe had her hair dolled up into curls while Arthur Jr had gotten his hair cut and slicked back with pomade. Dutch and Hosea were in their own tuxedos that were fairly similar. The Queen consort, Alexandra of Denmark, had joined in on her husband's tour throughout the palace in a stunning red satin gown.

"I know the subject of your wife is a sore one at the moment, Mr. Morgan, but I was curious as to how you two met?" the king asked.

The queen smacked the king on the arm lightly. "Bertie!"

The king laughed. "What?

Arthur smiled. "Oh, it's fine, ma'am. I met Lilly when she was very young. She was an orphan, all out on her own, and she was bein' chased by some men. I saw her run into the street and she almost got hit by a carriage but I got her to safety. She ran away from me and hid in a building, then she threatened me, and at one point during all this she had pickpocketed me."

The king and queen laughed. Suddenly a man came running up to the king with a note. The king read it and his face went from being happy to discouraged. "What is it, my love?" the queen asked.

The king pocketed the note and sighed. "Hmm? Oh, nothing, dear. Gentlemen, I'm afraid I have to take my leave of you."

The king turned and walked away. Alexandra huffed with a frown. "I swear, that man..."

Dutch chuckled deeply. "Men can be rather difficult, Your Royal Highness."

"Yes, they can be." She giggled and looked down at the children with a smile. "Are you two coming to the ball tonight?"

The twins looked up at her. Junior gave a bashful smile but Aoífe pouted. "Where's Mummy?"

Alexandra frowned and looked up at Arthur, who also had a frown. Arthur bent down at the knee and placed his hands on Aoífe's shoulders. "Come here, sweetheart. Mommy is...well, she had to go away for a while. She'll be back though, okay?"

Arthur didn't want to lie to his daughter and son but he couldn't tell them the truth, either. The truth was their mom might never come home. The thought devastated Arthur but he smiled at his children and stood. Dutch, Hosea, Patrick and Alexandra gave him sad expressions. Arthur ignored them and held out his hands. "Come on, let's go."


It was evening when the ball festivities began and Arthur spent a portion of his time conversing with Dutch, Hosea and Patrick, but mostly he kept an eye on his daughter and son. While it was highly irregular to have young children at a ball, the king and queen made an exception and Arthur was grateful for it. They'd even had one of the palace nannies watch over them but Arthur kept checking on them anyway. He didn't know the nanny and therefore did not trust her even when the king and queen spoke of her in the highest regard. Brian and James were also in attendance and people awed and cooed over them in their little black bow ties. They seemed to like the attention and occasionally got scraps of food. Violinists and cellists played various songs during the evening and while people danced, Arthur drank champagne on occasion and merely watched. If Lilly was there, he'd dance with her the entire time. The thought made him sad. He missed her. He wondered if The Morrigan's plan would even work. Not that he doubted The Morrigan, of course, but it was the information that he had a problem with. It seemed too good to be true and way too easy. The only thing he could truly rely on was that Adair hadn't been corrupted by the magic as well. Hosea approached Arthur with a broad smile.

"You know, you could at least pretend to enjoy yourself," he said to Arthur with a plain voice.

Arthur let out a raspy chuckle. "True, but my mind is elsewhere right now."

Hosea put a hand on Arthur's shoulder. "We're goin' to find her, Arthur. We're goin' to find her and make her come home."

"I hope so." It was then that the ballroom windows crashed and Dothur came barging in. Chaos ensued and screams erupted throughout the room. Soldiers came and protected the king and queen. Arthur looked around for Aoife and Arthur. He spotted them and ran over to them. Dutch, Patrick and Hosea ran over as well. The babies were terrified and crying. "You guys get them to safety. I'll deal with this asshole."

Arthur removed his dinner jacket as Dutch and Hosea grabbed the kids and ran. Arthur turned around and watched Brian and James attack Dothur. He ran at full speed towards them and clocked Dothur in the head, sending him into the wall. Dothur quickly recovered and charged at Arthur. Arthur faced off with Dothur, punching him repeatedly. Dothur swiped at Arthur and sent him flying across the room. Arthur crashed into a table and broke it. He looked at his chest which now had wounds on it, but the wounds quickly closed. He really loved that he could do that. He got up and raced to Dothur again. Dothur knocked Arthur on his back and stood over him, about to bite his head off, when he roared out in pain and looked behind him. Brian was gnawing on his legs and the werewolf kicked Brian in the face. Brian yelped as he was sent across the room. James came to Arthur's rescue and tackled Dothur. Arthur crawled backwards and got up, getting back into a fighting stance. He raced again, grabbed Dothur by the leg and snapped it. Dothur howled in pain as Arthur went on a punching spree to the leg. Unfortunately, the leg healed quickly and Dothur bit James in the shoulder. James cried out but that didn't stop him from biting Dothur's arm. The beast roared and knocked James away. Brian came and jumped on Dothur's back, biting into the back of his neck. Dothur shook him off and stood over him, growling. Arthur ran and knocked into Dothur. The creature smashed into the wall. He shook his head and glared at Arthur. The two faced off once more and Arthur landed a few blows before being knocked on his back once more. Dothur stood over him and as he was about to go in for the kill, he roared out and was dragged away by a giant red wolf. Arthur stared in shock as the battle turned to those two. Dothur and the wolf circled each other. Was that Lilly? It had to be. What other giant red wolves did Dothur have at his disposal? Or former disposal, it would seem.

"How is this possible?" Dothur asked in a deep voice. "How do you resist Willow's magic?"

When the wolf didn't answer, the two attacked each other and Arthur would bet all his money on Lilly winning the fight. The boys charged in and helped Lilly fight Dothur. Arthur realized there was nothing more he could do but watch with the rest of the spectators. He turned around and went to find his jacket. When he found it, he put it on and looked for Dutch and Hosea. They, along with his children, were being cornered by Willow. Shit. He went running past people to get to them. As he got near, Willow turned around and shot a ball of dark energy at him. It sent him flying along the floor and he groaned in pain. He got up as Willow turned her attention back to Dutch and Hosea. Another ball of energy formed in her hand and she laughed. Dutch and Hosea cowered with the crying babies in their arms, but by some miracle, another massive red wolf crashed through the other ballroom windows and charged Willow. She screamed as the wolf bit down on her body, then the wolf shook her body about like it was a rag doll.

Arthur blinked a few times in disbelief. Was this one Lilly instead? He ran to his family and hugged them. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah," Dutch said. "A little shaken up, but we're okay."

Arthur grabbed his children and held them tightly. He heard a growl behind him and he slowly turned around to face his wife. Her eyes flickered between pitch black and sapphire blue. Willow's bitten corpse laid on the floor, blood oozing out of her. He looked up at the wolf and smiled. He handed his sniffling and frightened children back to Dutch and Hosea, then pivoted around and slowly put his hand out towards Lilly's nose.

"Lilly, darlin'...it's okay," he said. "It's me, Arthur."

The wolf gave one sniff of Arthur's hand and closed her eyes. She inhaled deeply. Her eyes opened and the darkness was gone. Before Arthur could say anything else, Lilly turned around and ran over to the still battling wolves. Arthur deduced that the other was The Morrigan. It was hard to tell them apart. He stared in awe as Lilly joined the fight and pretty soon Dothur was overwhelmed. The two red wolves were larger than him, so Arthur wasn't surprised when Lilly tore Dothur's throat out. The black wolf instantly died and collapsed on the floor. The Morrigan and Lilly looked at one another and bowed their heads. The Morrigan left through the broken windows. Lilly turned to the Dothur's corpse and howled in victory, her head held high. She then looked at Arthur with sad eyes.

Arthur ran over to her. "Lilly. You gotta eat Dothur's heart so you can become normal again," he said.

Lilly looked at Dothur again, then back at Arthur. She eyed her children and let out a huff of air. "...Arthur," she said. "I can't do that."

Arthur blinked at her, unphased by her ability to talk, and got closer. "What do you mean you can't do that?"

"Bein' a werewolf gives me quite an advantage."

Arthur shook his head. "No no no, sweetheart, you're not making sense."

Lilly bent down and nuzzled his face. "Would you calm down? It's not like I'm stuck like this."

"...You're not?"

A small chuckle erupted from deep within Lilly. "Arthur, you're such a silly man."

Bones began crunching and shifting in Lilly's body as she shrunk down. Soon she was back in her human form...completely naked. Arthur quickly took off his jacket and wrapped it around her body. He kissed her deeply as he held her. People began gathering around at the spectacle and Arthur looked around at them.

"Um, I don't suppose any of you would have some spare clothes for my wife, would ya?" he joked. Lilly buried her face into Arthur's shoulder and started laughing.


Lilly and Arthur returned with the children to a different hotel room than the previous one. Lilly was now wearing a pair of blue pants and Arthur's tuxedo jacket. Lilly felt exhausted. Ever since she changed into a werewolf, she'd done nothing but run around all over England in a confused stupor. It wasn't until The Morrigan located her that she had came back to being somewhat self-aware of what was going on.

"I don't know about you, Lilly, but I'm so glad to be back. I don't suppose you could let me out any time soon so I can stretch my legs, so to speak?" Adair said.

Lilly giggled softly. "Yes, Adair. I'll have Arthur treat you to the town tomorrow, but right now? I just wanna sleep."

Arthur and Lilly put their sleeping children to bed without bothering to change their clothes. Brian and James came walking into the sitting room to stand guard over the bairns as usual. Lilly slowly dragged her feet over to the bed and collapsed in it. Arthur turned off the room's light then crawled into bed next to her. "You feelin' alright?"

Lilly sighed into her pillow. "Yes, just tired. You have no idea how exhausting the last two weeks have been for me."

Arthur cackled and snuggled next to her. "I missed you so much, Lilly."

"I missed you too."

Arthur kissed her softly and Lilly put her head on his chest. She shut her eyes and it didn't take very long for her to drift off to sleep.


It was the next morning and Lilly woke up to the smell of bacon, eggs and coffee. There was a tray of food next to her side of the bed and she immediately sat up and started gorging herself on food. There was a note on the tray and Lilly opened it.

Hello, babe. Took the kids to the zoo with Dutch and Hosea. Hopefully there won't be any surprise attacks there. I went to see the king this morning and now that one of the sources of werewolves has been defeated, we can make our way to Scotland. He said it's getting pretty rough up there so we should leave today, but he wants you to go see him before we leave. Hope you enjoy your breakfast.

Arthur

P.S. Tá grá agam duit. [I love you]

Lilly smiled at the note and she held it close to her chest. "Tá grá agam duit, Arthur," she whispered.

"Does this mean I can't come out?" Adair said.

"No, you can come out. Let me finish eating first." There was a knock at the door and Lilly jumped out of bed. "Coming!" She ran to the door and opened it to see Patrick standing there with a box. He was in his regular black suit but his vest and puff tie were red. "Oh. Hi."

Patrick started blushing. "Um, yer clothes..."

Lilly looked down. She was still in the clothes from last night and she pulled the dinner jacket to close more across her chest. "Oops. Sorry." Patrick averted his gaze and cleared his throat before handing her the box. Lilly opened it and gasped. "What the hell is that?"

"Dothur's heart. In case ya change yer mind about being a werewolf."

Lilly shut the box and smiled. "I dunno. I kinda like bein' a werewolf."

Patrick sighed as he looked at her. "If ya say so."

Lilly grinned and put the box on a dresser. "Thanks for the thought, though." Patrick couldn't meet her eyes and Lilly chuckled. "Let me guess. Seein' me naked last night has you flustered."

"A bit, yeah."

"I'm sorry. I know you're still...struggling with your feelings, but..."

Suddenly Lilly had an idea. She smirked at Patrick and dragged him into the room. She shut the door and went rummaging around in her chest for clothes. "Lilly, what are ya doing?"

"Adair, I'm just wondering...what will happen when you fully ascend? Will we be separated?" Lilly asked in her head.

"Lilly?" Patrick said. "Hello?"

"Yes, we will be separated. Why do you ask?" Adair inquired.

Lilly smiled as she picked out a navy blue button down shirt, blue jeans, and brown boots. "Because I think you and Patrick should get to know each other better."

Patrick sighed as he leaned against the bed post. "Alright, I know yer up tah something."

"Hmm. Oooh, you want me to have sex with Patrick?"

Lilly rolled her eyes. "Well, not right away. I want you two to start courtin'."

"Courting?!"

Lilly looked at Patrick and smiled. "I promised Adair I'd let her out for the day. Think you could show her around London?"

Patrick smiled and crossed his arms. "Sure I can."

"Alright. Let me finish my breakfast and I'll leave a note for Arthur."

Lilly went and gobbled up the rest of her food before writing a note down for Arthur. She then shifted into Adair and Adair started taking her ankle length skirt and strapless warrior corset off, but Patrick stopped her. "Woa, woa. Wait until I leave the room, lass."

Adair blinked at him. "Why? You're going to see me naked sooner or later."

Patrick's eyes went wide. "I am?"

"Yes."

"W-why would I be doing that?"

Adair smirked and closed in on Patrick. "Oh, don't tell me it hasn't crossed your mind."

Patrick gulped. "Adair, look. Just...slow down fer a minute."

Adair closed in more and Patrick backed into a wall. "Ya don't think I'm bonnie enough for you?"

"No, yer plenty bonnie. Extraordinarily bonnie...but yer sharing a body with Lilly. I can't see ya naked in good conscience."

"Tell him to stop being a gentleman," Lilly said with a giggle.

Adair raised a brow. "Stop being a gentleman. Show me your layers, Patrick, and I'll show you mine," Adair cooed.

Patrick's breathing got heavy. "Jesus Christ, lass. Yer worse than Lilly."

"I'm over five thousand years old. I've had more practice." Adair smiled up at him before turning around and walking back to the clothes Lilly picked out. "But if it bothers you that much, go wait in the lobby for me."

Adair removed her skirt as she heard Patrick run out of the room. She and Lilly began laughing hysterically.