I sat in my chamber, alone and waiting. Merlin had gone to get on with his chores, and I was nervous. I didn't understand anything of what was going on, I was confused and could only hope that my brother could give me some of the answers that I needed.
I took a deep breath when I heard someone knocking on my door. "Who is it?" I called, knowing that I needed to be careful, even if there were two guards posted outside of my room at all times.
"Mitch. You going to let me in?" He asked.
I jumped up from my chair and quickly unlocked the door. Sure enough, my brother was standing there. "You took long enough." I moaned as he closed the door behind himself and locked it again.
"I know, I'm sorry. There was a lot to discuss. Uther told me about everything that happened, and Arthur told me about how he found you." Mitch said, sitting opposite me at the table. "I have a feeling there is a lot you want to know?"
I nodded at him. Of course there was, but I had no idea where to start. "How the hell you can be alive? You died, all of you. Mum, dad, Dominic and you. I should know because I was bloody there. You all died in that stupid car crash." I growled at him, not realising I was letting my emotions get the better of me.
"I know, Bell, it's… hard to explain. We died in that world, yes, but we were reborn here. We were giving a second chance, all of us and that includes you."
I looked at him, not sure if I could believe him. "If I'm here, does that mean that I'm dead? In the future, I mean." I asked him.
He hesitated and bit his lip. "Not exactly. It really is hard to explain, Bell. There was a version you, in this time, but she was just a ghost. She wasn't real, she was just an image of you, holding your place until you arrived. One day, it just vanished, right before our eyes."
"O…kay. That makes no sense what so ever." I told him, giving him a look that told him I thought he was crazy.
"Okay, think of her as a hologram. People could see her, but she wasn't real." He told me, trying to make me understand it better.
"And is that why I have no memories of ever being here? Because I never really have been here?" He nodded at me. "Okay, but what about those dreams I had? I had dreams and in them I saw Donald kill our parents, and you send me away."
He let out a sigh and rubbed his forehead. "That did actually happen, but you weren't really there. Those were implanted into your memory the moment you arrived, to try and help you find your way." Mitch told me.
"I can accept that. But why here? Why Camelot and this time period? That's what I don't understand." And it was true. I remembered King Arthur and Camelot being a myth, a legend. I never thought it could be real, not even for a second.
"Because this is where we are needed. Or, more importantly, where you are needed." There was something in his eyes that made me feel like he was telling me the truth.
"Why me? Why am I so special?" I wondered. No, none of it made any sense to me still.
"The legends of our time are wrong. You have a destiny here, alongside Arthur and Merlin." It was pretty clear from his expression that he understood I didn't believe him one little bit. "You have magic, Isabella. Controlled by your emotions. Have you never noticed?"
I had noticed, but I didn't want to ever believe it. "One time, I got a little angry and annoyed, I mean really annoyed, and the torch I was holding just burned more fiercely and rocks started falling." I told him, failing to mention I was with a dragon at the time.
Mitch just nodded at me. "That's your magic. That is why you have to be even more careful with your emotions."
"It still doesn't explain what I'm meant to be doing here, Mitch. So I have magic, big deal. Merlin is the one who is going to help Arthur become a great king, not me." I pointed out to him.
He let out a sigh. "Arthur needs you as well, Bell. Do you know what part of the legend is the most incorrect?" I shook my head at him, I had no idea it was wrong until Kilgharrah told me. "Who Arthur loves, the Once and Future Queen. It's not Gwen, she is meant to be with Lancelot."
I shook my head at him. "No, no way in hell, Mitch. Don't even think that, that is just so wrong." I told him, not wanting to believe it.
"Isabella, it's the truth. Arthur has already told me how well the pair of you have been getting on. I can see that he likes you already." I just kept shaking my head at him. "And I have heard that the two of you have shared a kiss, or two, in recent days."
"I'm going to bloody kill that big mouthed, no good, untrustworthy, little jackass of a warlock the next time I see him." I growled, not noticing all the candles in the room flare up.
"Bell, calm down." Mitch hissed at me, before his eyes flashed gold and the candles returned to normal. "Control your emotions." He warned me.
"Did… did I do that?" I asked him nervously, looking at the now calm and flickering candles around the room. He simply nodded at me and I placed my head in my hands. "I don't want to be here, Mitch. I want to go home."
"Bell, you are home. This is home now. And even if you wanted to go back, there is no way." He told me, moving from his chair and kneeling beside me. "I know this is all a lot to take in, but it will get easier. Life here isn't so bad, Dominic and I are both alive."
"Yeah, but so is uncle Donald. How can he even be here? I'm pretty sure he was still alive in the future when I left." I asked him, a little confused as to how that can happen.
The look on his face told me that it wasn't good. "He… he lives in both worlds. We don't know how, we don't know why, but he does. And he is more dangerous here than in the future, because here, he has magic and is willing to kill all of us to get the throne."
"Yeah, he's already been here. I was living in Arthur's chamber for a week. A week! My God that man can snore." That made Mitch chuckle a little. "But I guess I did get to know him better during that time. Since he was one of only two people I could actually speak with."
"I know you don't want to admit it, but he does actually care about you. You may have only known him a short time, but he has already started to fall for you. Even his father has pointed it out."
That just sent me back into a confused state. "How could Uther know?"
Mitch just grinned at me. "He hid you in his chamber for a week. And nothing happened between the pair of you. That counts for something. Arthur Pendragon is a ladies man, and yet the only move he has made on you is to kiss you."
I let out a groan. "Will you not bring that up again? It was bad enough when Merlin started to tease me about it. When are we going home?" I asked him seriously. I didn't want to stay in Camelot any longer, I wanted to get as far away from Arthur and Camelot as I could.
"Well… that's the thing. We're going to be here for at least a week. I'm forming an alliance with Uther, Unless Donald has been found by that time, you will be staying here. It has already been arranged."
I looked at him blankly. "I'm sorry, what?"
He let out a sigh, and I knew he was being very serious. "Elbear will not be safe for you. And besides, your destiny is in Camelot, you're needed here, with Arthur."
"So you are all deciding my life for me? Telling me where I can go, who I can be friends with? How are you any different to our uncle?" I spat at him. "I worked my backside off on that farm, and in return I got nothing but some scraps of food and a bed that is older than you are now. I wasn't allowed out, I had no friends. I worked and I slept. That was my life. And now, you're going to do the same thing he did."
"Isabella, you have to understand, this is to keep you safe. You are safer here in Camelot than in Elbear while he is still at large." Mitch insisted. "He believes you have left here, and will most likely think you have made your way home, to us. You're staying here."
"Stop telling me what I'm doing, Mitch. I've lasted long enough without you and Dominic, I can last longer." I shouted at him. My temper flared, and this time, not only did the flames roar higher, but the windows shattered as well.
Mitch let out a sigh, his eyes turning gold once again. "Control, Isabella." Before the glass had even left the frames, the windows were repaired and the flames had returned to normal.
"Get out, Mitch. Just leave me alone." I whispered to him, doing my best not to cry.
"I'll see you at dinner, Bell. Just, calm down, okay? You can't let yourself get worked up like this." He told me, before getting up and leaving my room.
The moment he was gone I dragged myself over to my bed and curled up in the middle of it and let the tears fall. Everything was confusing and complicated. I had never asked for any of this, my life wasn't the greatest back in the future, but I didn't have someone out there who wanted to kill me.
It was a few hours later when there came a knocking at my door. I didn't even bother to move, I didn't want to see anyone else. I was meant to be dining with my brother, Uther and everyone else. Unfortunately, whoever was knocking on my door, had no intention of going away anytime soon.
"Isabella? Will you open this door please?" Arthur called from the other side. I let out a heavy sigh and forced myself off the bed and over to the door. I unlocked it and opened it only a crack.
The Prince was staring at me, and Merlin was standing behind him. "What do you want, Arthur?" I asked him, making sure he understood that I was in no mood to really talk to anyone.
"You're meant to be joining us for dinner." He told me, frowning away.
"Yeah? Well, I'm not going. Thanks for stopping by. Night." I said, going to slam the door in his face. Only he put his foot out to stop it from closing all the way.
"Has something happened?" He asked me, the concern starting to fill his face.
"No." I told him firmly, looking down at my feet.
"You're lying. Isabella, what happened?" I pulled up my gaze and glared at the warlock behind him, making sure he knew I was not happy with him.
"I don't want to talk about it. Shouldn't you be heading for dinner? You're already late." I reminded him.
With a sigh he turned to face Merlin. There was a worried and confused look on his face as he looked at me, clearly not understanding why I was in such a bad mood. "Merlin, inform my father that Isabella and I shall not be joining for dinner. Tell him she is feeling unwell or something." Arthur told him, taking me a little by surprise.
"Yes, sire." He mumbled, before disappearing.
"Now, are you going to let me in and tell me what's wrong now?" He asked me as I continued to stand there.
Reluctantly I moved away from the door and let him come into my chamber. I didn't even bother to turn and look at him and I just crawled back onto my bed and huddled up again.
"Isabella, what's wrong?" He asked, sitting on the other side of the bed and looking at me.
"My brother doesn't want me to go home, he is making me stay in Camelot." I told him, refusing to look at him. "But you already know that, don't you?"
"It wasn't an easy decision to make. We are only thinking of your safety. Until your uncle is found, you're not safe, you know that." He said to me softly. "Is staying in Camelot really that bad?"
"Yes. No. I mean, I don't know." I let out a sigh, my head was hurting now and I just couldn't think straight. "I don't belong here, Arthur."
All he could do was frown at me. "I thought you'd be happy about staying."
"Part of me is, but then there is a part of me that wants to go somewhere else. It's hard to explain." I told him, before burying my head into my pillow.
"Isabella, I know you want to go back to Elbear and be with your brothers. But you have to understand that your uncle will still be out looking for you. And the first place he is going to look is there." I knew he was concerned about my safety, I could hear it in his tone.
"I hate my life." I mumbled to the pillow.
"It's not always going to be like this, Isabella. We will find him and then…" He stopped and took a deep breath. "And then you can leave." Something about the way he said it, made me think that he didn't actually want to say it.
I twisted my head so that I was now looking at him. "Give me one good reason why I should stay."
"Because I want you to. I know it's not much, but I do want you to stay, Isabella." There was so much sincerity in his voice that I couldn't help but smile at him.
"I'll think about it." I told him, trying not to let a smile take over my face.
"Good. Now, how would you like to get out of the castle for a while tomorrow?" He asked, a sly grin on his face now.
I just frowned at him. "Like that is ever going to happen." I grumble. It's not that I didn't want to get outside, I really did. But I knew it wasn't safe, and I knew there was no chance that Arthur, Mitch or even Uther, would let me venture outside.
"I have spoken with my father, and your brother. We have all agreed that you need to spend a little time outside of these walls. It isn't fair having you locked up all the time. So, tomorrow, I have planned for us to take a little ride out." He told me, taking me slightly by surprise.
"And you all think that's a good idea, do you?"
He let out a sigh, knowing that I was thinking that my uncle would just be waiting for us. "You will be with me and several knights. Your brother is going to be busy with my father, talking over the alliance they wish to form."
"Arthur, I know you're just trying to be nice, but I don't think it's a good idea. Getting out for even just an hour would be amazing, but there is every chance he is lurking out there, just waiting." I told him, sitting up properly on my bed.
"Isabella, I won't let anything happen to you. I promise you."
I smiled at him a little. "I know, you keep telling me that. But he could have spies everywhere. There is every chance that someone in Camelot has told him that I am still here."
"Nothing will happen to you, I swear. And if there are spies in Camelot, they will be dealt with." He assured me.
"Never knew you cared so much. I'd watch it, you're going to damage your reputation keep talking like that." I teased.
"I do not have a reputation." He grumbled.
I couldn't help but chuckle a little. "Yes you do. The arrogant Prince swearing to protect the strange Princess, people will start talking." I told him, trying my hardest not to smile.
"I think they already are." He told me. "There seems to be some talking going around the castle that a certain Prince and Princess are forming a close relationship."
My eyes widened as what he had said processed. "Well, clearly they are all completely crazy and need to be locked up."
"I don't know. I think there may be some truth in what they say." Arthur told me. His blue eyes were just gazing at me.
"Oh please, you don't believe that gossip do you?" I scoffed, not willing to believe any of it myself. I remembered what my brother had told me, and I refused to even believe him. I could tell by the look on his face that he was hurt by what I had said. "Arthur?"
"Isabella, you know that I do actually care about you." He said, trying to keep himself together. It was clear for me to see that he was a little nervous, and I could understand why, I was nervous as well.
I frowned at him and folded my arms across my chest as I sat up. "Yeah, well… I care about you as well you arrogant prat of a prince." I mumbled, not exactly happy with myself for admitting that I actually liked him.
Before Arthur had a chance to say anything else there was a light knocking on the door. He went to get up and see who it was, but a put a hand on his arm to stop him. He gave me a quizzical look, wondering why I was stopping him. "Who is it?" I called. Even though Arthur was there, I was still cautious.
"It's Merlin, Princess Isabella." The warlock called back through the door. I let go of Arthur and he strolled over to the door. "I brought you both some food, since you weren't joining the others for dinner." He said, entering the room and placing two plates down on the table.
"Thank you, Merlin." I said, giving him a slight smile. I was still annoyed at him for telling my brother what had been going on while I had been there, mainly about how Arthur and I had kissed.
"Your brother wasn't impressed that you weren't joining everyone for dinner." He whispered to me.
"Yeah? I don't give a damn if he was impressed or not. My life, my choice." I whispered back, before heading over to the table. "And you can tell him I said that as well."
"Thank you, Merlin." Arthur said, sitting down opposite me. For a moment I had actually forgotten that he was there. "I will be taking Princess Isabella out for the day tomorrow. Make sure you have the horses ready."
"Yes, sire. Will there be anything else?" He asked politely.
"No, that's all."
I gave him a brief smile as he left before turning my attention to the food that was in front of me. As always it contained some meat and vegetables, along with some bread. For some reason, I wasn't really feeling that hungry and just started picking at the food in the plate.
"You're not eating much." Arthur pointed out a little while later. I just shrugged my shoulders at him, prepared for the disappointed speech he was about to give me. "You need to start eating better, Isabella. I know things have been stressful but you need to look after yourself."
I nodded at him slightly. "I know. I'm just… not that hungry. You're right, Arthur, I am stressed. Everything that has happened, it's just difficult to deal with it all."
He smiled at me a little. "Well I am always here if you need anything. Anything at all."
I couldn't help but smile back at him. "I know, thank you."
"Are you going to eat anything else? Or are you done?" He asked me, glancing at my plate. I'd poked around at the vegetables, but not much else.
"I'm guessing I'm done. Sorry, I know this is wasting food but I just don't really have any appetite at the moment." I told him, feel a little ashamed that I was wasting so much food when I knew that there were people out there who were hungry.
"There is no need to apologise, Isabella. I just hope that you start to eat more soon. You're going to make yourself ill if you do not take care of yourself." I could see the worry and concern on his face, and I knew that he genuinely did care.
"I'll be fine, Arthur. There really is no need for you to worry so much." I couldn't help but give him a small smile.
I hadn't been in Camelot long, but I was already starting to forget about the rotten life I had led before. I was no longer missing all the technology of the future, such as computers, television, and phones. Without electricity and the pollution from the city lights it was so much more relaxing. I could see the night sky clearly, and it was an amazing sight to see.
"Isabella?" Arthur called, frowning at me.
I blinked several times, realising that I was just staring out of the window. "Yeah?" I said, before remembering who I was speaking to. "I mean, yes, Arthur?"
"You seemed in a world of your own just then. Is everything okay?" He asked me, his blue eyes just gazing at me.
"Yes, I was just thinking."
"About what?" I could see he was a little more than just curious.
I shrugged as I looked at him. "Just… maybe Camelot isn't all bad."
I could see a smile working its way onto his face as he continued to gaze at me. "And what has made you decided to say that?" He wondered.
"Well, I guess their prince isn't as arrogant as I first thought. And the views are rather amazing." I told him, watching him closely. I couldn't explain it, but I felt like I was home, like I was actually meant to be there. I had to quickly shake that feeling, I had a life in the future, that was where I was from, where I belonged. But I didn't know if I would ever make it back there, a part of me didn't want to go, but I knew that eventually I would. Everything has to end, no matter how much someone wishes against it.
A/N: Hey guys, I'm sorry for the long wait for an update, some stuff happened and life got in the way. Sorry again.
Anyway, thank you to everyone who has reviewed and those who have favourited and followed. You guys are just totally awesome.
Now, I want to know when you guys think I should start doing episodes, and IF you want me to start doing the episodes. So let me know, either in a review or PM me, I don't mind.
Pippa.