A/N: Hey guys. Sorry for how longs it's been, I'm currently in hospital and updating is hard, just like typing anything up.
I woke up early the next morning to find Merlin already setting breakfast down for me. "Morning, Merlin." I said a little sleepy still.
"Good morning, Isabella. First night back in your own room, did you sleep alright?" He asked me as I disappeared behind the changing screen.
"Not really. For some reason I missed hearing the pig." I told him, not really thinking about what I was saying.
"You missed Arthur?" He wondered.
I reappeared, fully dressed and ready to start the day. "No, I missed the pig. Not the prince." I told him, a little smirk on my face. I was going to get out of it, somehow.
Merlin just shook his head at me, when I swear I saw a light bulb come on inside his head. "So, have you finally stopped thinking about that kiss?" He asked me, making it his turn to smirk.
I looked up and glared at him. "Merlin, shut up." I said, before going back to eating my apple.
"I take that as a no then." He said, before I threw my apple at his head. It only just missed him. "Your aim is just as bad as Arthur's." I picked up another apple and threw it at him, this time hitting him right on the head. He cried in pain, rubbing the sore spot on his head.
Yes, I was rather proud of myself for actually hitting him. I knew Arthur was always throwing things at him, but Merlin usually managed to duck out of the way just in time. With my second attempt, he failed to avoid it.
There was a knock on my door and Merlin went to answer it, still rubbing his head. The grin on my face faded when I saw that it was Arthur. Last night I had been too tired to fight with him, or even mention anything about the kiss. I was more concerned about Morgana to worry about anything like that.
"Merlin, what are you moaning about?" Arthur asked him, noticing him wincing and mumbling under his breath.
"She threw things at my head." Merlin told him, not daring to look at me.
Arthur looked at me with a raise eyebrow, as if asking me why I had done such a thing to his servant. "He was annoying me and wouldn't shut up. I thought he'd be used to having things thrown at him by now."
"Is what Isabella saying true?" He asked the warlock. He couldn't answer, because he knew it was. He had been teasing me, so he really should have expected me to do something like that. "Well then, if you're quite done trying to damage my servant, I have come to escort you to Morgana."
I grabbed another apple and Merlin automatically flinched, thinking I was going to throw it at him like I had the other two. When I crunched into it, he relaxed. "Come on then." I said, after swallowing the apple in my mouth. "I need to have a serious conversation with my lovely Morgana." I knew I really did need to talk to her about those nightmares of hers. As I saw last night, they were getting worse.
"How did you sleep last night?" Arthur asked me as we walked along the stone corridor. There seemed to be a little bit of tension in the air for some reason.
"Fine, I guess." I mumbled.
After that we fell into an uncomfortable silence. Now that I had rested, and spoken to Kilgharrah, my mind was in turmoil over that kiss. I know I should never have let it happen, but I couldn't stop myself from giving in to him. Everything just seemed to be such a mess, and I didn't know who I could talk to about it.
"Umm… Isabella?" Arthur said, just before we reached Morgana's chamber.
"Yes, Arthur?" I asked, turning to look at him. That was a big mistake, I just made me think about the stupid kiss even more and how much I enjoyed it.
"About what happened last night…"
"What happened last night? Apart from telling me I'm to be kept locked in the castle and escorted everywhere." I said, hoping that he wasn't planning on talking about that other thing that happened.
He let out a sigh. "It doesn't matter. I expect you to only leave Morgana's chamber if you are being accompanied by a guard or a knight." He informed me.
'Yes, sire." I said, knocking on Morgana's door.
The woman who I came to see pulled the door open. "Isabella, you came." She seemed a little surprised. "And you brought Arthur with you." The confusion was filling her face now.
"Don't worry, he isn't staying." I told her, pushing her back into her room. "We need to talk." My voice was firm and serious. "See you later, Arthur." I said, before closing the door behind me with my foot.
Morgana just looked at me, more confused than ever now. "What was that all about?" She asked.
"What was what?" I said, pretending not to know what she was talking about as we sat down by the window.
"Arthur bringing you here, the way you just sent him away. Us needing to talk? Isabella, what's going on?" There was fear and panic in her voice.
I let out a sigh and turned to face her. "First, I am not allowed to go anywhere without an escort, and Arthur knowing exactly where I am. Second, it's Arthur. And finally, those nightmares of yours." Instantly the woman tensed up. "Morgana, talk to me, please." I begged her softly.
"I… I can't, Isabella. It was terrible." She whispered, the tears already starting to fill her eyes.
"Morgana, you know you can trust me. I see you as my sister. I've never had one of those, I was brought up with two brothers and you've had to put up with Arthur. Please, tell me about them." I was being as gentle and forceful as I could, I didn't want to scare her.
"When you were missing, I just kept seeing your body, covered in blood." She choked, the first waves of tears falling. "And last night, it was worse than before."
"Morgana, it's okay." I assured her, trying to get her to tell me the rest.
"Arthur came into Camelot… and he was… he… he was holding your body." She said, before completely breaking down.
"Oh, Morgana." I said, wrapping my arms around her. "Everything will be fine. Look at me, I'm alive, aren't I? And Arthur is making sure that nothing will happen to me. He's keeping me locked up, again." I told her, trying to help ease her worries.
"But what if it really does happen, Isabella? I can't bear to lose you. You're right, we're like sisters." She told me, before letting more tears fall.
"Morgana, I promise you, I will do everything I can to stay safe. Please, don't worry about me. I'm not going to leave you, I swear. And you should know by now, that when I promise something, I never, ever, break that promise." My words seemed to make her relax a little and she wiped her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Isabella." She mumbled, trying to pull herself back together.
"There is nothing for you to be sorry about. I'm sorry for putting you through all this and worrying so much." There was a hint of a smile on her face. "Now, let's see who we can make fun out of today, shall we?" I asked, getting her to turn her attention to the window.
We sat there for a few hours, and Morgana had finally calmed down. I was worried about what she had seen in her dreams, but I knew I needed to let it go. I had too many other things to be worrying about.
"Who's that?" Morgana asked, as a mix of red and green cloaks entered the courtyard.
I followed her gaze and my eyes fell upon a group consisting of Camelot knights and some other kingdom. But that green looked familiar, and the crest on the cloaks. "No, it can't be." I mumbled, leaning out of the window to get a better look.
A man in green looked up at me, I knew his face, and clearly he knew mine as I saw the look of relief wash over him. "Oh my God, it is." I cried, before rushing out of the room.
"Isabella? Wait!" Morgana called after me, but I didn't stop I just carried on running.
I pulled up the bottom of my dress, allowing me to move quicker. As I raced around the corner I almost ran straight into Arthur. "Out of my way, clotpole." I said to him, pushing him away from me and running even faster.
Arthur was right behind me, calling my name. I could tell from his tone that he was worried that something had happened, that something was wrong.
My legs were starting to burn and my chest was hurting like hell, but I wasn't going to stop until I was there. I almost threw myself down the steps when I reached the courtyard, but I finally stopped running when I reached the bottom.
The man who had been looking at me had dismounted his horse and was currently making a fuss of it. He hadn't seen me yet. "Mitch…" I whispered, causing the man to turn and face me. "Oh my God, Mitch." I cried, before throwing myself at him.
He caught me in his arms and I broke down in tears. He was exactly the same as I remembered him from my dreams, and so much older than the last time I had seen him back in my time. My legs gave way and he held onto me tightly and I dragged him down with me slightly.
"I never thought I'd see you again." I whispered between my sobs.
"We promised we would find you, Bell. Everything is going to be fine, I'm here now. It alright." He assured me, stroking my hair gently. I still couldn't believe that one of my older brothers was actually there, and alive.
"Where's Dom? Is he okay? Please tell me he's okay." I pleaded, looking deep into his eyes.
"Calm down, Bell, he's fine. Someone needed to stay behind and look after the kingdom. I had to beat him in a sword fight before he would let me go." He told me, making me laugh a little. "Come on, let's get up." He said, standing up and pulling me with him.
"I was so scared, so much has happened, Mitch." I whispered to him.
"I know, it's okay. We will talk about everything later. I'm just glad that you're safe. We… we were worried that Donald had gotten to you." I froze at the mention of his name.
"He almost did." I told him, my voice still extremely quiet.
I held onto my brother tightly as we moved forwards towards the steps. Standing at the bottom was Prince Arthur, a strange expression on his face. At the top were Morgana and Uther.
"Isabella, don't ever do that again." Arthur told me, frowning. "You had me worried. I thought something had happened." I could see that he was indeed worried.
"I'm sorry, Arthur. And I'm sorry for what I called you as well." I said, hanging my head in shame.
"Aren't you going to introduce us, Bell?" Mitch asked me, giving me a little nudge.
I obediently nodded and stepped away a little. "Prince Arthur, I would like you to meet my brother, Mitchel Lagoon of Elbear. Mitch, this is Prince Arthur of Camelot."
"Thank you for looking after my sister, Prince Arthur." Mitch said, clasping onto Arthur's wrist in greeting.
"It has been a pleasure. Thing's have definitely been more interesting with Princess Isabella around." He told him, a smile on his face. I couldn't help but smile back at him. "This is my father, King Uther." Arthur said, as the king descended the steps.
"It is a great honour to meet you, sire." Mitch said, bowing to the man. "I am King Mitchel of Elbear. And I thank you for the kindness you have shown to my sister." It was strange hearing him speak so formally.
"It has been a great pleasure to have her here. She seems to have made an impact on both my son and my ward." That was when Morgana looked over at me with a smile on her face. "The Lady Morgana, who see's Princess Isabella as a sister to her."
"Sire, it is an honour to meet you." Morgana said, curtseying to him.
Mitch reached out for her hand and kissed the back of it. "The honour is mine, My Lady." He replied, a slightly flirtatious smile on his face.
"Let us go inside. There is much we need to discuss. I shall have rooms prepared for you and your men." Uther said, signalling for us to head back into the castle.
We followed him in. I was still clutching onto Mitch, not wanting to let go from fear he would just disappear from my life again. Walking beside me was Arthur, giving me concerned glances every now and again. Morgana was on the other side of my brother, smiling away constantly.
He led us to the hall where we usually dined, clearly we all needed to sit down and talk about what had happened. Uther, Arthur and Morgana sat in their usual places, and I took mine next to Arthur. As I wouldn't let go of Mitchel, he had to sit next to me on my other side.
"I am sure we are all glad that the envoy from Camelot made it to Elbear safely. And that your journey here was a pleasant one." Uther said, after ordering some servants to bring in some drink for us all.
"The journey was a long one, but one I would do several times over." Mitch said, giving my hand a squeeze.
"I admit, I did not expect the King to leave his kingdom to come here." Uther said, one eyebrow raised. I had to admit, I was curious as to what was going on as well.
Mitchel just smiled. "I shall admit, it is unusual, but since our kingdom is ruled by both my brother and I, it was only a question of who was to come for her." So, both of them shared the ruling of the kingdom? Wasn't that a little, unheard of?
"You share the kingdom?" The king asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
"Indeed we do, sire. Since our parents…" He paused to take a deep breath. "Were lost to us, we took it upon ourselves to rule together. It has worked out very well. My brother is better at handling the military side, while I am more suited to the political side."
"You draw your strength from each other's weaknesses?" Uther wondered.
"We do. The people are pleased with our ruling. I am pleased to say that everything is now at peace in our kingdom."
"But the threat still looms?" Arthur pointed out.
Mitchel nodded. "It does. As long as Donald lives, our kingdom is at constant threat. That is why my brother, Dominic, stayed behind. If the kingdom is attacked in my absence, he is far better to lead an army than myself."
"There are many matters that we must discuss, King Mitchel." Uther announced. I knew what he wanted to talk about, our uncle, and what he had done. "While I understand you wish to catch up with your sister, I believe these matters must come first."
The rest of us instantly knew what was coming next. "If you will excuse me, I must return to my chamber. I have much to be doing today." Morgana said, rising from her chair and leaving the room.
"Arthur, why don't you take Princess Isabella for a walk around the grounds? I am sure she would be grateful for the fresh air after being stuck in the castle for over a week." Uther suggested.
Arthur just nodded at him and stood from his chair. I, however, was a little more reluctant to go anywhere. I wanted to stay with my brother.
"Bell, it's okay. We just need to talk about some things, okay? I'm not going to leave without you, I promise." I slowly nodded at him and let Arthur take my hand.
Once we were outside the room, I stopped and turned to face Arthur. "I'm sorry for calling you a clotpole and running like that. I didn't mean to worry you, it's just…"
He put up a hand to stop me from saying anything else. "Isabella, it's okay. You don't have to apologise. I fully understand why you were charging through the castle like you were. But I shall be having words with Merlin." I looked at him, questioning why he would speak with him. "He has been teaching you new names to call me." He clarified.
With that I let out a little laugh. It was true, Merlin often called him a clotpole, or dollophead, and more often than not, a prat. "At least now you can stop worrying so much. Everyone has made it here safely. Both your brothers are alive and your kingdom has survived."
I nodded at him, all of what he had said was true, but there was something he had missed. "But our uncle is still out there. As long as he lives, I can't stop worrying. Things may be fine for now, but how long will that last? A week? A month? A year? I am constantly going to be worrying until he is found." I had been scared of my uncle in the future, but not as scared of him as I was now.
"I've already told you, I will protect you." The prince assured me.
"You can't protect me when I'm back in Elbear." I whispered. I knew he hadn't thought about that. He was determined to protect me for as long as I was in Camelot, it was his duty. But when I leave, I am no longer his responsibility.
"Right now you are in Camelot. Right now, I can and will protect you." He told me, very firmly.
And with that I gave in and let him drag me outside and into the chilly winter air. As we walked around, we noticed some of the knights from Elbear sparring with Camelot knights. It would seem that the knights sent to Elbear had became rather good friends with the other knights.
"You seem to have some rather good knights in your kingdom." Arthur told me as we carried on watching them.
"And I still haven't had the chance to spar with you or your knights. You haven't been able to find out just how good I am." I was starting to think that he never would. Now that my brother was here, my time in Camelot was running out.
"Well, we had best arrange for that to happen soon then, hadn't we?" Clearly Arthur had been thinking the same thing.
"Yeah, maybe my brother can give you a few pointers." I told him playfully, giving him a little nudge. The whole time, we had been holding hands and I hadn't even realised it.
"That would require me coming to Elbear, since the warrior brother of your is still there." There was a sly grin on his face. Was he suggesting come to Elbear at some point to visit?
"I guess it would. Do you think your father would let you travel that far? You'd be away from Camelot for such a long time." I remembered how long he said it would take to get to my kingdom, a week. Then it would be a week back afterwards. Would his father really allow him to be gone for so long?
"I'm sure I can find a way to persuade him."
"I'm never going to see you again when I leave." I blurted out, not even thinking about it.
"Of course you will. I have already said I will come and visit you." He assured me, not really fully understanding how I was feeling. "And you are welcome to come back to Camelot whenever you like."
"I don't think my brothers are going to let me go anywhere once I return. Not with our uncle still on the loose." I reminded him. He was the same way, keeping me locked up to keep me protected.
"Then we have to take care of him. It's as simple as that, Isabella." Obviously he could see that I was not convinced. "Come with me." He said, forcing me to go wherever he was walking.
We walked around to the other side of the castle, where no one was around. "Isabella, I know that you're scared, I can see it in your eyes. But I will never let anything happen to you. I don't care, I will do whatever it takes." He told me, gazing into my eyes, begging me to believe in him.
"Arthur, why do you even care so much?" I asked him quietly.
"I can't explain it. There is just something about you, you're just so different, Isabella. The way you treat me, the way you treat others. I mean, you found being attacked by bandits fun." He told me. "I've never met anyone like you before, and I don't want to."
"Like I told you before, I'm one of a kind, Arthur." I said, wondering where all this was leading.
"I know. Isabella, I need to ask you something." His face was completely serious, and it scared me a little.
"Okay."
"Last night, I kissed you." The moment he said that, I felt my heart racing. "I want to know, do you hate me for it?"
Well, that was the last thing I expect him to ask about it. "No, of course I don't hate you because of it. How could you even think such a thing?" I asked him, trying not to be hurt by his words.
"It's just, ever since you have been more distant. I'm sorry, I never should have done it in the first place." He said, hanging his head.
"Arthur, I… I could never hate you. Especially not because of something like that. I don't even know why you would think that."
"Good, because I had been wanting to do that for a long time." He told me, letting a smile form on his face.
"You… you have?" I asked him in shock. "Since when?"
He pulled me closer towards him. "Since the bandits." He whispered into my ear. I had felt the same way at the time. And then I had scolded myself for even thinking like that, yet now I was accepting it. But it was wrong, he was meant to be with Gwen. But then again, I was going to be leaving soon, so what harm was there in making the most of the time we did have?
"Arthur, I shall be returning to Elbear soon, and the chances of us seeing each other again are slim to none." I reminded him sadly.
"But you're here now." He said, before pulling me right up against him and reaching down. His lips touched mine for the second time and there wasn't a second of hesitation from me this time. I threw my arms around his neck and one of my hands ended up entangled in his hair, just as one of his was in mine.
Everything I had been worrying about just melted away, the same way it had when he kissed me the night before. The moment was perfect, and I just didn't want it to end, only we both knew it had to.
Eventually, Arthur pulled away a little. "You okay?" He asked, gazing into my eyes.
I nodded at him and gazed straight back. "Yeah, you?"
"Never better." He told me, putting one of his hands to my cheeks. They were already flushed and burning, and his touch was cool against my skin. I felt a little shiver go down my spine. "Are you cold?"
"No, I think you warmed me up." Sure, it sounded really cheesy, but it actually was the truth.
There was a gorgeous and sly grin on the prince's face. "No, you're still cold. I better warm you up some more."
Our lips were locked again, and the world around us just seemed to stop. Every time he kissed me, the world just seemed perfect.
"Arthur! Arthur, you're fa…" Merlin's voice instantly stopped when he turned the corner and spotted us.
"Merlin, I am so going to kill you if this isn't a life threatening situation." I warned him in his mind.
Arthur let out a very loud groan as he pulled his head away from mine, but he didn't let me go. "What is it, Merlin?" He bellowed, clearly just as unhappy as I was about the interruption.
"Sorry, sire, you're father and King Mitchel wish to speak with you. I am to escort Princess Isabella back to her chamber." The warlock said, looking very sheepish.
Arthur let out a sigh before looking down at me. "I will come see you as soon as we are done, I promise." He said, before kissing my head and running off to his father.
Merlin and I both stood there in silence. He was feeling just as awkward as I was really. "We should probably head inside now." I finally said, walking past the warlock and towards the castle.
We made it to my chamber in silence. "I think you better come in, Merlin. We need to have a little chat." I said, holding the door open for him. He seemed a little nervous at first, but finally walked into the room.
I sat myself down on the edge of my bed and gazed at the floor. "You can't tell anyone about what you saw, Merlin. Ever. I'm going to be leaving soon, and I'm never going to see you or Arthur ever again." I told him, trying to sort everything that I wanted to say to him out in my head. "It never would have worked anyway, he is destined to be with someone else. He deserves better."
"I can understand you not wanting me to speak of any of this. But what is all this about there being someone else? And if anyone deserves better it's you."
I let out a sigh. "When I first came to Camelot, I told you I knew about the prophecies, that I knew more than I should. It is from these prophecies that I know who Arthur is destined to be with. I am not that person." I hoped he understood what I was trying to tell him.
"But what about your destiny?" Merlin pressed, remembering the dragon saying that I had one as well.
"Merlin, neither of us knows what my destiny is. Since I have been here, we have not found out. Maybe my destiny requires me to be somewhere else. Maybe I have already done what I was sent here to do without even realising it. I don't know. All I do know, is that the answer does not lay in Camelot, and that I must leave." It was almost killing me to say everything, but I knew I had to.
"You don't really believe that, do you?" He asked me in shock.
I looked up at my magical friend. "What else is there to believe?" I asked him, letting a tear slip down my cheek.
A/N: Again, I'm sorry for the long wait for an update, but thank you all for sticking by the story.
I'm halfway through the next chapter for this now as well. I'm hoping to get that finished pretty quickly.
Let me know what you guys thinks, because I know you are all awesome.
Pippa.