We quickly arrived back at the courtyard and Arthur was there in a flash to help me off my horse again. "Thank you, Prince of Arrogance." I said with a smirk when my feet were back on solid ground again.

He rolled his eyes at me. "You're welcome, Princess of Strangeness."

I couldn't help but laugh at what he had called me. "Have we just given each other nicknames or something?"

He seemed to think about it for a moment. "Yes, I do believe we have." We shared a smile. "Merlin will take you to see Gaius. I have to speak with my father."

"But of course. I bid you farewell, my Prince." I said, curtseying a bit dramatically.

"Until next time, my Princess." He said, taking hold of my hand and kissing the back of it. I swear I could feel myself turning bright red, but I was also trying to hold in the laughter. When our eyes met, neither of us could break the gaze.

It was only broken when Merlin interrupted us. "I need to get you to Gaius, Lady Isabella." Arthur released my hand, and I felt a sudden rush of disappointment and sadness.

"Of course, Merlin. Lead the way." I said, giving one last look at Arthur. It seemed he was getting one last look at me as well before finding the king.

"What's going on with you and Arthur?" Merlin asked me once we were away from the courtyard.

I looked at him, puzzled. "Nothing as far as I know. Why?"

"Well, it's just, one minute you can't stand each other, the next your flirting. It's weird." He said, leading me down a stone staircase.

I just shrugged. "We were having a bit of fun, that's all. He annoys me, I annoy him, it's a mutual thing."

He looked at me sceptically. "Right. Earlier it looked like the pair of you was about to kiss. Just before we were attacked by those bandits."

I let out a loud laugh. "Merlin, I was discretely telling him about the bandits. I had to make sure they couldn't tell that I had spotted them." Then I started thinking about what if we had kissed. Maybe that wouldn't have been such a bad thing, but no, there was Gwen. She was the Once and Future Queen. I still had to work out where I fitted in all of this. Although, judging by the unexplainable urge to protect Arthur back with the bandits, I was already starting to form an idea.

"Well I think you done a good job. It really did look like you were making up after a lovers quarrel." I rolled my eyes at him again. "And you did fight pretty well too." He added.

"To be honest with you, I don't really know what came over me. I just knew that I had to protect Arthur." I told him as we approached the chamber he shared with the physician.

"Maybe that's what the dragon meant. Maybe you're here to protect Arthur as well." He suggested.

"I thought about it, and I've got another theory." Merlin looked at me with one eyebrow raised and a hand on the door, ready to open it. "Maybe I'm here to protect the one who protects Arthur."

"Why would I need protecting?"

I looked at him as if he was completely stupid. "Oh, please. How many times have you almost been caught? You know what would happen if you were, maybe I'm here to make sure that doesn't happen and that you fulfil your destiny along with Arthur."

"How can you know so much?" He asked, finally opening the door.

"Oh, I'm just brilliant." I called, walking through the door.

"Yeah, and modest." He said, shutting the door after he stepped through as well.

"Yup. I'm brilliant, modest, stubborn, annoying, strange and of course, a complete mystery." I told him, a twinkle in my eye. The ride out had really done me the world of good. As did the fight with the bandits. Arthur and I seemed to have found some common ground and I didn't feel as awkward around him anymore.

"Ah, Lady Isabella, are you feeling well?" Gaius asked, lifting his head from the book he was reading.

"I am feeling perfectly fine. However, we did encounter some rotten bandits who just so happened to damage this lovely dress that Lady Morgana gave me." I pointed to where my arm was bandaged up. "They also cut my arm in the process."

Gaius gave Merlin a strange look, as if to ask if I was alright in the head. "Apparently this is what she is like when she is in a good mood." He said, shrugging his shoulders.

Gaius took the bandage off my arm and inspected the cut better. "You've done a good job, Merlin."

"Actually, it wasn't me." He told the old man, getting his attention. "It was Arthur."

Gaius raised an eyebrow at him before turning back to me. "Well it isn't deep, I will need to put a clean bandage on it. You're going to have to…"

He was hinting that I needed to remove my dress so that he could get to it properly. "Nonsense. Merlin, hand me a knife or something." He looked at me wearily before finding a sharp knife. "Thank you." I said, before using it to pick at the stitching that attached the sleeve to the bodice. A few minutes later I pulled the sleeve off and both men were giving me a strange look. "What? It needed a new sleeve anyway." I told them, handing the knife back to Merlin.

"Arthur's right, you are strange." He said, placing it back where he had found it.

"How far were you when you encountered these bandits?" Gaius asked, looking at Merlin.

"Not that far, actually. It had only just gone noon and we had stopped for a rest when Isabella heard them. I don't think we would have survived if she hadn't been there. She isn't too bad with a sword." Merlin informed the physician.

"Is that so, Lady Isabella?" He said, turning to face me.

I let out a sigh. "I only did what I could to protect Arthur and Merlin. I wasn't going to run a leave them to deal with 7 brutes on their own."

"Gaius, I think we should probably tell you something." Merlin said, making me glare at him. What did we need to tell him? "She knows about my gift. And the prophecy, she's part of it too."

"But I don't know which part yet." I pointed out. "I have two theories I am currently working on."

Gaius looked at Merlin in horror. "You told her? Do you know how dangerous and foolish that was?" He yelled at the young warlock.

"No, Gaius, you misunderstood. Merlin didn't tell me, and he didn't do anything stupid either. I already knew about the prophecy before coming here. I even know the name given to him by the druids. So please, don't be angry at him." I pleaded, giving him my best puppy dog eyes.

I saw him relax a little. It was clear he cared for Merlin, and maybe him knowing that I was there to help keep the warlock out of trouble would ease his mind a little.

"Right, I should probably head to my chamber now." I let out a sigh. "I don't think Gwen is going to be to impressed with the extra work I've created for her." I stood up and smiled at both of them. "Thank you, Gaius. And thank you as well, Merlin." I said, before turning away and heading out of the door.

I was just reaching the corridor my chamber was down when I heard someone calling my name. I turned around and saw Arthur running towards me. "You bellowed, My Lord?" I said, curtseying to him.

I saw huge grin on his face. "What happened to your dress?" I asked, pointing to the missing sleeve.

"Oh, I decided I liked this look better. Two sleeves are just so overrated." He clearly had no idea what I was going on about. "I cut it off so Gaius could tend to the wound better."

"How is your arm?" He asked, that little hint of concern showing even more now.

"Still not about to drop off. I think I may actually live through this one. Sorry to disappoint you." I saw him roll his eyes at me. "Have you spoken with your father?"

He nodded. "He is sending out some more patrols. He was shocked that they had managed to get so close to the city." I nodded in agreement. Coming across a bandit was bad at anytime, but so close to the city would mean a lot worse would happen. "I also told my father that we shall not being joining him for dinner tonight."

I frowned at him. "And why would you do that?"

"Because I was hoping that you would join me in my chamber for dinner. Since we never had the chance to sit and talk properly earlier. I'm sorry the day did not go as planned."

"Oh, nonsense. I thought it was brilliant." He raised an eyebrow at my enthusiasm. "What? I did. Most fun I've had in ages."

"You call that fun? Fighting off bandits and getting hurt?" He pointed to my arm.

All I could do was smile at him. "Absolutely. For once, I feel like I'm actually alive and not just living."

He shook his head at me. "So, dinner?"

"My Lord, it would be an honour dining with you tonight." I said, faking a very dramatic swoon.

"Is this how you usually are?"

I thought about it for a moment. Back home on the farm, no, this was definitely not me. But if I was home, with my family, then yes, this was more like how I used to be. "I'm not sure yet. Maybe. I'll let you know when I've decided. I'm trying out a few new personalities until my memory returns."

"I should have you locked up for being insane." Arthur pointed out, trying not to laugh.

My face turned serious. "Go on then." I held out my hands. "Toss me in the dungeons and throw away the key."

"I'm starting to wonder if that hit to the head hasn't done some more serious damage." Arthur told me seriously. I could tell he was serious from the look in his eyes.

I let my hands drop to me side and sighed. "Would you prefer it if I went back to gazing at the floor all day and calling you sire? Because I can." I said, letting my eyes slowly drift towards the floor.

I felt a hand under my chin and my gaze was brought back up to Arthur's eyes. "No, I think it's more interesting having the Princess of Strangeness around. But as long as you are sure you're alright." I had a strange feeling in my stomach, something that I just couldn't explain.

"I promise you, Arthur, I am fine. I'm not really crazy, well, not much anyway but that's beside the point. The point is, this is the first time in such a long time that I am actually happy."

His worried face changed and there was his beautiful smile. Did I really just think he had a beautiful smile? Maybe I really was losing the plot. "I'm glad to see you happy."

"I need to hide this dress before Gwen see's it." I whispered to him.

"Too late." He said, nodding behind me. I turned around and saw her coming out of my chamber.

"Lady Isabella! What happened to your dress?" She called, rushing over.

"I will see you for dinner." Arthur said, smirking at me before darting into his own chamber.

"Oi, that's not fair!" I cried as he shut the door. I let out a sigh and turned to face Gwen. "I'm sorry about the dress, Gwen. There was a slight incident with some bandits earlier."

"Are you okay?" She said, looking at my bandaged arm.

"I'm fine, but I'm afraid the dress didn't fare as well as I." I said, holding out the sleeve that I had cut off.

0000

Arthur sat down and kicked off his boots. It had been an interesting day to say the least. He had actually managed to achieve what he set out to do, he had got her to look at him. But he ended up getting more than he bargained for, he managed to prise her out of her shell and see what she is really like.

He had seen her laugh and smile and be completely at ease with him. That moment when she was so close to him, telling him about the bandits, he had a strong urge to kiss her. He had been seriously contemplating it when they were attacked.

Isabella had been right, they never would have survived that attack without her. Her skills with a sword were like nothing he had ever seen before. She was graceful, yet brutal and he had seen the determination in her eyes. Arthur had never seen a woman fight like that before, even Lady Morgana.

Then there was the immense concern and worry that flooded him when he realised she had been hurt. She had been so calm and didn't seem to be phased by it at all, while Arthur was worrying enough for the pair of them.

The Prince just couldn't seem to explain what was so interesting about Isabella. She was starting to treat him as she had done that first day they met, acting like he was just a nobody and treating him like a person. He was glad to see her being herself, and not staring at the ground all the time.

Now he had to put his next plan into action. Arthur's first task had been accomplished, she was now looking at him and not the ground. The next would come into affect at dinner. He couldn't help but let himself smile, she was a refreshing change from the stuck up nobles who came to visit. And she was most definitely not as annoying or patronising as Morgana.

0000

Gwen hadn't been too angry about the dress, which was a relief really. I was slightly worried that she was going to moan about the extra work I had created for her and that she was going to go off on a rant like my mother used to about being more careful.

"You seem a lot happier." Gwen pointed out as she helped me get changed for dinner.

"Well, it's very astonishing what a surprise attack by bandits can do to someone." Gwen looked at me oddly, everyone seemed to be doing that. "When we were away from the castle, I felt like I could just be myself. I didn't have to be a princess, I could just be me. And it was nice to just be me for a while."

"How are you getting along with Prince Arthur?" She asked, tightening the dress at the back. That was the problem with these dresses not fitting, Gwen had to work extra hard to make them suitable.

"Fine, I guess. He calls me strange, I call him arrogant. Apparently, I also infuriate him and am the most stubborn woman he has ever met. Oh and I think he may have also called me intolerable at some point as well." Gwen finished with the back of the dress and turned me around, inspecting her work.

"Prince Arthur can sometimes find it hard to adjust to new people. He does like to think he is better than everyone else." She looked me over one more time. "There, that will be perfect."

I turned and looked at myself in the long floor standing mirror. I was wearing a light purple dress, which trailed behind me. The sleeves were hugging my arms before reaching my wrists where they dropped. It still didn't fit me properly, because of how skinny my frame was, but Gwen had done a really good job adjusting it so that it did fit better.

"Thank you, Gwen. You are amazing. And I really am sorry about the dress." Yes, I was still worrying about.

"It's fine. As long as you are okay." Gwen told me, leading me over to the vanity dresser. "Now, what shall we do with your hair tonight?"

It had been up all day, and it was starting to give me a headache. "It's been up all day, I think it's time to just let it down." I said, pulling the ribbons and pins out from my hair and letting it fall over my shoulders.

As Gwen brushed my hair, I replayed some of the day's events. It really had done me the world of good getting out for a while. Whatever I was doing, stuck in the past, it was better than my life in the future. Back on he farm, I had no friends and no real family. But here, I had already made a friend in Merlin, and maybe there was a chance that I did have a family here as well. All I could do was hope.

I thought back to that dream, I hadn't actually slept since then, I was too afraid to in case I had another nightmare. My brothers had been older, probably around the age they would be if they had still been alive. I could still tell it was them, with their light brown hair and hazel eyes. They had grown up, they weren't little boys anymore, they were men.

"Lady Isabella?" Gwen called.

I shook myself out of my thoughts and looked up. "Yes Gwen?"

"Are you sure your alright?" She asked, putting the brush down and studying me carefully.

"Honestly, I really am fine. I was just trying to remember my brothers." She gave me a sad smile and I knew that she wasn't going to push the matter any more. I hadn't lied to her, not really. I was thinking about my brothers.

"Well, I think you're all set." She said, as I stood up from the chair and looked at her nervously. I had no idea why I was suddenly so nervous.

"Dinner with the Prince. What could possibly go wrong?" I said sarcastically. Actually, there was a lot that could do wrong. I could eat too much and be sick all over the place or I could clam up again and start avoiding Arthur. I could make a complete fool of myself. Yes, there was a lot that could go wrong.

"Good luck. I don't know how you can put up with him." Gwen said.

"You get used to it after a while. I mean, he is a complete prat. And not to mention really rather rude at times as well." I wasn't doing very well trying to convince her how nice Arthur really was. He was her future husband after all. "But he cares, in his own, weird little way. He just needs someone to take him down a peg or two." I forgot how much they wouldn't be able to understand some of my language. "He needs to be put in his place."

"I'm sure you will have no problem doing that." I gawped at her. "You seem like just the right person to do it."

"No, no Gwen. I am most definitely not the right person. If anything, I am the completely wrong person. There is someone else out there much better suited for the job." I insisted. She was that person, it was her who was going to make him change his ways and turn into a much better man.

"I saw you both earlier. You look good together."

I thought my eyes were going to pop out of me head at her comment. "No, never. Never ever, ever. Not going to happen in a million years. Not under any circumstance. In no way. Ever." I said firmly.

Gwen frowned at me. "But I thought you liked him?"

I couldn't stop the sigh from coming out. "It's complicated." I told her, resting my head in my hands.

"How can it be complicated if you like someone?" The woman still had a lot to learn.

"It just is, it's complicated. Very complicated. One day, you will understand exactly what I mean." I told her without thinking. Great, I had slipped up, again. I could tell from the way she was standing that she wanted me to explain more. "Just say, for instance, that Merlin had feelings for Morgana, and she felt the same way back. It would never work, because of their statuses. Understand?"

Gwen nodded at me. "Yes, but you're a princess and he is a prince. What's wrong with that?"

I was just digging myself a much deeper hole to throw myself in. "My situation is more complicated than the example I gave you."

"I don't understand, how can it be more complicated?"

"You know what, it doesn't matter. He's arrogant, I never said I liked him like that in the first place." I was starting to get a little frustrated now. Didn't people in this time know what to stop asking questions and to just leave it? Clearly not.

Luckily I was saved by a knocking on my chamber door. I quickly shot up and went to the door, anything to avoid more conversation with Gwen about Arthur.

"Ah, just who I didn't want to see, Princess Strange." Arthur said, leaning against the wall.

"Is there anything I can do for you, Oh great Lord of Arrogance?" I said, lowering my head and bowing to him.

I heard him softly chuckle. "It would seem that my idiot manservant can not count and has set two places for dinner in my chamber."

I pretended to look shocked at him. "Oh my, that is terrible news. I do hope you are going to having him in the stocks for the next week."

"I was thinking a month." That was when I let a little giggle escape. I could imagine the astonished look on poor Merlin's face if he was hearing this conversation. "As everyone of importance is busy, including my servant, I wondered if you would join me?"

I pulled a disgusted face. "You want me to sit there and watch you eat like a pig? I would go to a farm if I wanted to see that." He rolled his eyes at me, but there was a smile tugging at his lips. "I have to wash my hair." I told him. His expression didn't change, but his eyes just drew me in further and further. "Fine, I will wash my hair later. Have a good evening, Gwen." I called, before following Arthur to his chamber.

"How's your arm?" He asked, opening the door and letting me walk in first.

"If you ask me that one more time, I'm going to make your life a living hell." I told him, watching as he closed the door. I noticed Merlin standing in the room, having just finished setting down the dinner. "Good evening, Merlin. I hear you are to spend the next month in the stocks for your incompetence."

As expected, he looked at me in horror. "What?" He said, before turning to look at Arthur.

"I will spare you from the stocks if you get out of here right now." Arthur said, glaring at the warlock. Merlin just smiled and nodded before leaving the room. After a moment Arthur turned away from the door and faced me. "How did Guinevere react to the dress?" He asked, pulling a chair out for me to sit down.

"Better than I thought she would, actually. She seemed to be more worried about my arm." I told him, watching him as he sat down opposite me.

"She is a very caring person. I know her and Morgana are rather good friends." He told me as he poured me some wine and handed it to me.

"Yes, she is. Gwen is also rather beautiful." I couldn't help but smirk when I said that. There was theory number three, to get Gwen and Arthur together.

"Is she?" He asked, not really paying much attention as he poured his own drink.

"She is. Do you not think so?" He just shrugged at me. Clearly he had not noticed her properly yet. If my mission was to get them together, it was probably going to be a tough one.

"I'm glad to see that you have not gone back to staring at the floor." For a moment our eyes met, and I instantly wanted to look down at the floor because of it, but I forced myself to smile at him.

"There are only so many times you can count the number of steps from one place to another before you begin to get bored." I told him, making him chuckle.

"Is that what you claim to be doing?" I watched as he started chomping away at the food on his plate. I looked down and saw the mix of meat, vegetables and potatoes. There seemed to be relatively a lot of it, and I knew I would never be able to eat all of it without a rather unfortunate outcome.

"Yes, that was what I was doing. Now I am currently musing over the reasons as to why you have locked the door to your chamber." He almost choked on his food at that point.

"I have no idea what you are talking about Princess." Arthur said, trying to regain himself.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Please, after Merlin left, you locked the door and placed the key in the small pouch on the left hand side of your belt." I stabbed a few vegetables with my fork and raised them to my mouth. "Never take me for an idiot. You'll only ever make yourself look like one." I shoved the food in my mouth and broke eye contact with the prince.

"How on Earth did you know all that?" He asked, leaning back in his chair and staring at me.

"To start, I heard you lock the door. You weren't exactly quiet while doing it. Next time, cover up the noise by talking. Then I saw you slipping it into the pouch as you walked towards me." I took a sip of wine, rather proud of my surveillance skills.

"You're very observant, and extremely strange. You have remarkable fighting skills and are very perceptive." He told me, finally going back to his meal.

"It's how I was brought up. 'Use your eyes. Notice everything.' That's one thing that I always tend to follow." It would seem I had really impressed the Prince.

"I look forward to you teaching my knights a thing or two. How you managed to notice those bandits I will never know. Knowing how many there were and where they were was even more impressive." I blushed a little. I didn't mean to keep impressing him, it was just happening.

"Well, I look forward to putting them to shame, and then possibly their prince as well." I hinted. Yes, I wanted to fight Arthur as well.

"You really think you can take me?" He asked, one eyebrow raised.

I shrugged. "You have your flaws. Everyone does. Even I do, but no one has ever been able to identify them." We all have our weaknesses, but even I didn't know what mine was, so how could anyone else?

"I shall let you observe the knights training, then give you the opportunity to spar with them. If you can defeat all the knights I put you against, then I shall fight you." Arthur said, seeming to have thought it through carefully.

"I can accept that. But you do remember the condition for the battle?" He nodded at me. "Good. I don't want special treatment just because of who I am."

"Oh, I wouldn't dream of it." There was a smirk on his face. Things really didn't seemed to be going too badly. "How is your meal?" He asked, noticing that the only thing I had touched was the vegetables.

"Very nice, thank you." I said, stabling some more vegetables.

"You're still not eating much." And there was the concern again. Why was he so worried?

"For a start, we have been talking. I have more manners than to speak with my mouth full of food. And as I have already explained, I don't have very big appetite."

He looked at me a little sheepishly, before smiling and pouring me more wine. Something told me that I was going to be stumbling back to my chamber later if we kept drinking at the rate we were going.

A/N: Big thank you to everyone who had reviewed, keep them coming.

I'm gokeep to keep this sort, you're all amazing and fantastic.

Pippa.