Chapter 7
On the next morning, when Isabel woke up, she didn't first realize where she was, or why her bed was moving. She watched sleepy the top of the wagon and then it hit her, what had happened just yesterday. She wasn't in her own bed and she certainly wasn't in Vancouver. She lied for a moment on the blankets thinking that they must have continued their way already, and King Arthur had said that they would have early wake today. She wondered that why no one hadn't waken her, when they had left the campsite, but realized that she wouldn't been so much a help, on the contrary, she wasn't a morning person and maybe she would just annoyed the knights.
Isabel managed to change the brown dress on despite the wagons were moving and rocking, though it took longer than when she had first time put the dress on. When she had done that, she peeked her head between the wagon cover and was almost blinded by the bright sunshine. It was a midwinter, but the sun shone from the bright sky and Isabel felt that it was very cold. She also saw the breathing of the knights was steaming in cold weather.
"Ah, you have finally waken." Sir Galahad rode beside the wagon, when he saw the blonde head peeking out.
"Yes. I guess I slept quite long."
"You needed the sleep. Yesterday was… Extraordinary." Galahad smiled a little.
Well, that's an understatement, Isabel thought dryly, but also she took a small smile to her lips.
"It was indeed." She agreed. "Have we been on the move for long?"
"Yes. We left the campsite when the sun was only getting up and now it is already in mid sky."
Isabel thought that she had been sleeping really long and wanted to know what time was, but she knew that by asking that, she would just get more weird glances. She was looking around, because she wanted to see even glance of Tristan, and Galahad noticed this.
"If it's Tristan you are looking for, he isn't here. He is scouting with Gawain."
"Ah." Was only what Isabel said, she had blushed a little, when she realized how obvious she was.
"I'll tell him that you were asking him, when he comes back." Galahad grinned.
"It's... It is no need to." Isabel stammered and decided to retreat back to the wagon companied by the loud laugh of Galahad.
Tristan and Gawain were going back to the group of knights, when Gawain slowered his horse to walk and Tristan did the same watching the other knight a little amazed.
"I wanted to ask you... Do you think that she is a sorceress?" Gawain asked after a little hesitation.
"Isabel?" Tristan asked and when Gawain had nodded he continued. "No, I don't think that she is a sorceress. There is deffenetly something strange in her, but she is not sorceress. I'm sure."
"Maybe you are right. Merlin would have told about it, if she was. He can sense this kind of things. I think he would have warned Arthur if that is the case. Some of us just think that she might be sorceress or witch."
"I know. But I'm sure there is no reason to be worried. She will not betray us." Tristan was so confident about it, that it made himself to wonder his words. He was usually very sceptical about things and was always alert when there was strange people around him.
"I just hope that everyone would be as sure about her like you are." Gawain stated thoughtfully. "You should watch after her, anyway. I know that you can't when you are scouting, but Galahad and Gareth will when you are not near." Gawain grinned slightly, because he had already seen how the blonde knight looked at Isabel and he knew also already, that Tristan didn't like it at all. Tristan didn't answer to his remark, instead he ushered his horse in gallop again and Gawain came soon after him. When they reached their group, they saw that the whole group was taking a eating break and Isabel was sitting together with King Arthur, Lancelot and Bors.
"Tristan told me that you would like to have own horse to ride." Arthur stated turning to Isabel.
"That is true. I'm a skilled rider and time feels so long, when I'm just sitting in the wagon doing nothing." Isabel said.
"I have lot of horses in stable in Camelot. You can choose one of them when we get back. Meanwhile you can ride with Bors' mare when you feel like you want to ride." Arthur said glancing to Bors.
"That is right. She is a well behaving and sure of her feets. She is a very nice horse to ride." Bors agreed.
"I don't want to take your horse..."
"I can sit with my wagon driver, when you want to ride. There is no problem at all." Bors interrupted her.
"Are you sure?" Isabel asked, she was a little overwhelmed about the friendliness these men showed her.
"Yes, I'm sure."
Isabel realized then, how dependent she was of these men, she had nothing there, no money, no place to go. She would been totally lost, if Gawain and Tristan hadn't found her. She didn't like this feeling, because she had been independent for many years, but she knew that she would have to get used to it, at least for now, she had no other choises.
Then Tristan joined them and sat next to Isabel. She just nodded to him as a greeting and hoped that Galahad hadn't said anything about the thing that she had been looking for him earlier that day. It seemed like he hadn't and Isabel relaxed a little. After they had eaten the group continued on its way and Isabel sat next to Tristan's wagon driver. She had noticed that other drivers and other men, which were part of the group, and even few of the knights, mainly Sirs Kay and Geraint avoided her, but she didn't blame them. She thought that she might have acted just same, if she was one of them and some strange person would join their group in the way she had joined them.
Next day went quite the same ways, except Isabel rode a while with Bors' mare, who was called Careidh. She noticed that she really enjoyed riding, altough it was a little more difficult with the dress she was wearing, but she got used to it quite fast, despite first her feet were freezing in the cold weather. The knights seemed impressed of her riding skills and she felt a little pride of it, at least there was something what knights seemed to respect in her. Tristan was still mainly scouting the whole day and Galahad and Gareth were keeping her company when she rode with Careidh. Just before they camped for the night, Tristan came back to the group and informed that it would only take less than two days, when they would reach their destination. Isabel had heard that the destination was a village near by Hadrians Wall and she knew that it meant same as the border of Scotland. She estimated that they were about the same attitude, as Newcastle was, but she didn't ask about it, because she wasn't sure if the town of Newcastle existed yet, or maybe it was known by a different name. Isabel went to sleep again to Tristan's wagon, when Tristan got to Gawain's.
Isabel was fast on the sleep and she dreamt again, after few nights without any dreams.
Isabel was in the wagon, when she heard yelling and then she heard swords clashing together. She watched out of the wagon and saw the knights battle against heavily painted and tattooed men. She could hear the yells and she smelled the blood, what was shread. Suddently she saw Sir Gareth fighting against two tattooed men. She watched the blonde knight defending himself for awhile, but suddently the sword of the other attacker pearced the knight and he fell down blood coming out of his mouth. Isabel started to scream and tried to get others attention, but failed in it.
Gawain, who was taking his guard turn heard loud screaming from Tristan's wagon and knowing that Isabel was sleeping there, he ran to the wagon. When he peeked in, he saw the young woman sitting her back straight and her eyes wide open.
"Did you have a bad dream?" Gawain asked watching Isabel in a little worry.
"Yes." Was all what Isabel could say, she was still a little horrified by the dream. She thought that she wouldn't see dreams like that anymore, now when she was in the time of King Arthur. This dream was different than those dreams, which she had seen earlier. Now she saw herself in the dream and it felt different than before. She could hear and above all smell and feel, everything more clearly that earlier. And before she had been thrown to the time of King Arthur, her dreams were about the things, which happened just in that moment, or at least so she suspected. She had been so sure that she wouldn't have those dreams again, but apparently she had been wrong.
Gawain stood still watching Isabel, who forced a small smile to her lips.
"I'm fine. Don't worry. I'll go back to sleep."
Gawain just nodded and let her alone to the wagon. Isabel lied back, but she knew that she couldn't sleep anymore. There was too many question in her mind, like why she had that dream? Was the reason of her being there these dreams, which she saw? And was that battle going to happen which she saw? And if it was, when? She suspected that is was something what was going to happen in the future, because Gareth was still alive and kicking. One thing she knew for sure, she couldn't tell anyone about this dream, because she wasn't sure if it was something what would happen, or if it was just her imagination. If she would tell about it to knights, they would just avoid her more, maybe even leave her to manage on her own. She knew how superstitious people were on that time.