It brought warmth and broke the silence, but the fire was a poor replacement for human companionship. Agravaine's presence hardly counted for anything. Maybe it even brought Morgana less joy than sitting by the fire.
"My lady?"
Morgana beckoned for Agravaine to enter.
"What news of the mighty Camelot?"
"All is as you requested. Uther has passed, the council is skeptical of Arthur's rule, and the people are warier than ever. Until Arthur addresses everyone's concerns, the city will be open for any plans you might make to take control."
"And Arthur? How is he doing?"
Agravaine smiled. "The poor boy can't cope with the pressure and loss at once. He stormed out of a meeting earlier today and hasn't been seen since."
How tragic. She imagined Arthur throwing a tantrum, like he used to as a kid, as soon as he reached his private rooms.
"A pleasant surprise," she said.
"Surprise?"
Morgana scoffed. Had he actually believed her trust in him? She'd prepared to carry out the task she thought Agravaine would be too much of a coward to go through with.
"My Lady?" Agravaine took another two steps toward her. Morgana raised a hand to stop him.
"That's close enough."
"Might I ask what your next plans are?"
"They don't concern you just yet." No need to admit she didn't have any. Not without Morgause, not without Hans, and not when Arthur had no sign of hating magic. She had no army, and the only support she had was an unreliable and traitorous Lord who only wanted two things: to survive, and to have power.
No. She would wait things out, see what direction Arthur took his leadership, even if she relished hearing of his momentary pain. Even her repeated dreams of Guinevere becoming queen didn't motivate her as they usually did. In the meantime, she needed more allies than just Agravaine.
"I'll contact you when I have more orders," she told him. "Otherwise, continue as usual."
"Of course, my lady."
As soon as he left, the tracking began. She needed to know what Hans was up to, if anything at all.
It didn't take as long as expected. Morgana planned for days of searching for both physical and magical signatures, but she got lucky and randomly transporting herself in the direction they were headed eventually landed her only a few minutes' walk from their camp. Of course, she hadn't known that and wasted a few hours walking around, but the point is she found them.
By the time she got there, it was dark enough that she couldn't identify individuals from far away, but as she crept in closer she heard Merlin's voice.
"Hi Arthur," he said, walking away so as not to wake his friends.
His words faded the farther he got, and Morgana soon realized He'd been the only one guarding the camp. No one else was even awake.
Hans was with them, as expected. He looked unharmed — of course he was. The noble knights of Camelot would never dream of harming anyone unable to fight back, even if that person was an enemy.
And he really had no way of fighting back. His shackles prevented his magic to some extent, and the gag secured him the rest of the way. He looked peaceful. Without the ice taking over his body, he was healthier than he'd been all year, despite being a prisoner.
Morgana shook him gently, hoping he wouldn't be able to make a sound loud enough to wake the others.
His eyes flew open and once she saw recognition in his eyes, she untied the gag.
"What are you doing here?"
He may have looked better than ever, but his voice sounded rough from going unused.
"I came to see you."
"Wouldn't your time be better spent taking advantage of Arthur's lack of protection?"
"Wouldn't your time be better spent doing… literally anything else besides sitting around as a prisoner?"
Hans shrugged. "I'm done, Morgana. I'm going home, no matter the consequences."
"That doesn't sound like you."
His eyes glinted in the light of the dying fire. "I said I'm going home. Not that I'm giving up. I'm stronger now, I have a chance against my brothers, and at least there I'd have a rightful claim and could keep my sister safe. And, strangely enough, I miss the ocean. Have you ever seen it?"
Morgana ignored the question. "So you're aiming for a different throne now. I should've guessed."
"Priorities, Morgana. Right now I'm not aiming for anything but reaching the Southern Isles, preferably without being detected by Hero."
"Which is why you're not even trying to use magic on the way there."
"I think it's how she tracks us."
Morgana considered that. Would escaping Hero's eyes be worth losing her magic, even temporarily? Was Hero even interested in her now that Hans and Morgause weren't nearby?
"Well, as long as you're going, you could make sure Gwen doesn't come back to Camelot," she said. It was a joke, almost.
"Still dreaming of her on 'your' throne? That's rough. Can't help you though."
"Why?"
"I think she'd make a better queen."
Morgana drew back, reeling with anger. "How dare you —"
"Careful now, wouldn't want to wake anyone."
She leaned in close, whispering. "And who would that hurt more if they saw me here? Me, or you? I can leave, Hans. You would have to stay with them believing you're up to something."
She backed away, leaving the cloth on the ground next to Hans' feet. She watched as he realized she wasn't going to tie it back on, and when everyone woke up, they would know he'd either managed to undo it himself, or he had help.
Whatever happened, it was his problem now, not Morgana's. She had her own plans to make, whether she had a partner or not.
Liesel had watched the family for months. Checking up on them became a hobby, a distraction when she needed to get away from everything. There were three of them. The mother, her son who was about eight years old, and a girl of about five. At first, she hadn't known what drew her to them, only that when she explored she kept returning to their small town even though she didn't need to. Then she recognized the magic.
The girl, Selia, never did anything obvious. If Liesel hadn't known what to look for, she would have guessed people spoiled the child simply because she was cute and polite, and people liked to see kids happy. Then she actually heard the girl speak to someone, and even with all her manners, her words were an order. The people of the town had no choice but to give her what she wanted, and they didn't even realize she was doing it.
On one occasion, Liesel had dared to speak to Selia herself. The girl's pleasant expression disappeared when she realized she couldn't make Liesel tell her anything she wanted to know, but she soon relaxed when Liesel explained she could do it too.
"You're like me!" She beamed up at Liesel's half-hidden face. "Can we be friends?"
"Of course," Liesel said.
The mother had magic too. Not the same kind. Most of the time, she used it to make their food last just a little bit longer, or grow a little bit more quickly. Most of the time, no one noticed. Until they did.
Liesel should have been sorry that a child had to watch a parent die. Neighbors chanted for her death, forgetting the two children that depended on her for food, clothes, and for love.
Selia, hadn't actually seen anything. Her brother hugged her tight to his chest, covering her eyes. The hug probably didn't hide the screams, though. Burning wasn't a quick and easy way to go. Liesel guessed the girl would forget, eventually. After all, she was only five.
"What do we do with the children?" someone finally asked. They had finally noticed the siblings standing alone in a far corner of the square.
"Don't they have some other family?" No one knew, not even Geric. He mentioned a father, a man his mother said would return someday from his heroic journey. The adults ignored him.
"Well, I can't take them," the mother of one of Geric's friends said. "I've enough mouths to feed as it is!"
"I say we leave them."
"And find our food and belongings missing a few days from now? I think not! Someone has to take them."
Geric hugged his sister tighter, tears welling in his eyes as the people he'd considered friends spoke about the children as though they were strangers. Maybe they were. Liesel scoffed, amazed at how they turned on a friendly face so quickly, how their fear of magic pushed them to kill someone for harmless spells.
Liesel stepped out from behind the trees. "I'll take them."
"And who are you?" a townsperson asked with suspicion. Several people raised their makeshift weapons: torches, knives, and beams of wood and pointed them in her direction. Their eyes scanned her body, unable to see anything but a figure cloaked in black with a large dog.
"Does it matter?"
The woman who had taken the lead of the town spoke again. "We don't want trouble."
"And I bring you none," Liesel said.
No one protested when she took Geric by the hand, scooped Selia up in her other arm, and walked into the forest. Selia buried her face into the soft fabric of Liesel's cloak, recognizing her as the friend she'd once made. Liesel relaxed when she felt her small warm arms circle around her neck.
Geric said nothing for quite some time, distracted by his own thoughts and unable to quite stop his tears.
"Where are we going?" he asked after his sniffles had died down.
"Your new home, Geric."
He didn't ask how she knew his name, only asked for hers.
Liesel let go of his hand to pull her hood down. "I'm Liesel," she said. "And I'm going to take care of you and your sister."
This is the second chapter in one day, hopefully I can keep writing at this speed :)