"Have you ever met king Torin?" asked Merlin as he and Arthur watched from the battlements an approaching army carrying a banner with a coat of arms showing a white boar on a green background.
"No," said Arthur. "And I can't say there was a friendly or hostile relationship between us, we just didn't get in each other's way."
"Hmm," the warlock glanced at the king's face. "So you have in mind to make an alliance between Camelot and Airgialla?"
"We'll see. Tomorrow we are hosting the tournament and king Torin and his knights will be our guests. We all are going to have a good time."
"Let's hope so," said Merlin.
Soon representatives of the two kingdoms met in the throne room. King Torin, a tall man with sharp facial features and short hair of the same colour as his daughter's, walked into the room. Princess Ragnell was standing next to queen Guinevere and when she saw her father she hurried towards him and threw herself into his arms. It was a pure joy radiating from them as they finally reunited.
"You're safe," tears of happiness and relief flowed from king Torin's eyes.
"I thought I would never see you again," she said as her eyes welled up as well. "I was so scared, but then Gwaine, Arthur and Merlin rescued me."
"Words cannot say how grateful I am to have you back safe and sound," he looked at Ragnell. "Shall we?" he asked, taking her arm and they both walked towards Arthur and Guinevere.
"King Arthur," he said and shook hands with a smile. "Please accept my deepest thanks for saving my daughter. I am forever indebted to you."
"There is nothing to worry about," Arthur replied. "We never pass by if someone is hurt."
"But surely, there must be something we could repay you with."
"It would be a great pleasure, Torin, that you, princess Ragnell and your men could be our guests at the feast tonight and tomorrow's tournament. Your knights are most welcomed to take part in it."
"We will be honoured," said Torin.
Ragnell's eyes wandered to Gwaine who stood next to Arthur and Merlin. He smiled slightly at her which made her blush and she quickly looked at king Torin.
"Father," said princess Ragnell and pulled him gently towards the knight. "I would like you to meet sir Gwaine, he helped king Arthur save me," she smiled.
Torin nodded at him. "I'm really grateful, sir Gwaine," he said. "Indeed, Knights of Camelot are as bold and selfless as they are described."
"The best in five kingdoms," Ragnell said smiling and looking at Gwaine who smiled back.
"It is my duty to protect ladies, Your Highness," Gwaine bowed.
After some formal talks they all were feasting to the late hours of night and after having fun and making new acquaintances, most of them went to their chambers, and only a few remained, drinking up the leftover wine. Gwaine, who always kept his friends company at the table until the very end, this time spent practically all breaks for dancing and fun during the feast with Princess Ragnell, who was infatuated with the dark brown-haired knight.
"I really enjoyed your company, sir Gwaine," she said with a grin while the knight was escorting her to her room.
"So I take it it wasn't the last time we're seeing each other, my lady," he smiled.
"Your lady?" Ragnell asked coquettishly, more emboldened and confident in the presence of Gwaine.
"If you just want to be, I will give you all my heart," he replied.
"That's a beautiful promise, but for now we have to leave it like this."
"Of course, I will wait," Gwaine stated and princess Ragnell smiled.
"I heard you'll be jousting. I wish you good luck," she said when they found themselves at the door chamber.
"Thank you," the knight smiled. "Goodnight, princess."
"Goodnight," she replied and Gwaine cupped her face gently in his hands and placed a kiss on her lips. Before Ragnell disappeared behind the door, they looked in each other's eyes for a moment, and Gwaine was lost to their green depths for good.
On the way to his chamber he met Arthur and Merlin discussing some details about the tournament. He grinned as he passed them.
"Gwaine," spoke Arthur when the knight didn't say anything.
"Yes?" he turned around to face them.
"I hope you are not showing your feelings too openly," said Arthur smirking. "We do not want our peace talks to end before they even begin."
"Oh, please, Arthur, you know I'm a gentleman," Gwaine chuckled.
"Of course," the king laughed softly. "See you at the tournament tomorrow," he nodded.
"See ya, goodnight," he said, disappearing around the corner.
The next morning Merlin began his work from the early hours. He started at the armoury, where he checked the sharpness of all swords, and, using magic, sharpened the ones that seemed too dull. Then, without wasting any time, he could take care of the rest. Bringing all the armour and lances to the jousting ground was also faster and easier when he used his abilities to do so, so he gave up the earlier thought of asking Vortimer to help with the preparations. Nevertheless, when he finished, he decided to visit him and offer to watch the show from a safe distance.
"How are you doing, Vortimer?" he asked when the blonde man opened the door.
"Good."
"Do you have work today?"
"Day off apparently, everyone is going to this tournament," Vortimer replied. "I guess Arthur got you a seat in the royal box for you to watch the whole show."
"Well…," Merlin chuckled. "I'm still doing my usual work to make sure that everything is going smoothly. No one could do better than me."
"Indeed," Vortimer laughed.
"You know, I think you should go and have some fun," said the warlock.
"Really?" the blonde man's mood immediately improved. "What of Arthur?"
"He will be too preoccupied by the tournament and his guests, so it will be easy to get you in there."
"Thank you, Merlin," he smiled. "When the king Torin leaves, I'll go to Arthur. I can't hide anymore."
"All right, if that's what you want," Merlin nodded. "I'll try to prepare him for this. For sure, it will be easier than meeting with the dragons," he laughed.
"I really like it here," said Vortimer. "It would be a shame if Arthur told me to leave."
"I can't read Arthur's mind but I'm sure he will take to you," the warlock said.
"Right, so we're going?" Vortimer asked after a moment.
"We're going," Merlin smiled.
The tournament was about to begin when Merlin and Vortimer found themselves between tents next to the jousting ground. In the morning it seemed it would be a nice day, but at midday more clouds started to appear in the sky and it could be felt a slight chill in the air. The moment the wind began to blow Merlin wished he took something warmer with him. Vortimer, as the warlock told him, put the hood on and tried not to attract attention, so he stood behind one of the tents where almost nobody was passing through there. In the meantime, Merlin fetched Arthur's horse and checked harnesses.
"Everything's fine?" asked the king as he appeared beside him.
"Yeah," Merlin replied. "You managed with your armour?"
"Quite well."
"Great," the warlock smiled. "Good luck."
"No cheating, Merlin," Arthur shot his friend a warning look.
"Of course not," he replied.
Arthur mounted his horse and put his helmet on and with the lance that Merlin handed to him he rode towards the jousting ground. All the stands carried cheer as the spectators saw him. He was starting the whole competition with one of Camelot's knights as his opponent. They stopped their horses on two opposite sides and waited for queen Guinevere to speak.
"Knights, friends and countrymen," she began standing in the royal box; "it's a great honour to welcome you at the first Tournament of the Round Table at Camelot. And thus we want to welcome our guests from the kingdom of Airgialla, king Torin, his knights, and princess Ragnell," she nodded towards them. "In this tournament you will test your skills. Only one can win, but these competitions are primarily for fun because this is how we celebrate the establishment of the Round Table. We keep you no longer waiting. Let the tournament begin!"
At the sign Arthur and the other knight rushed at each other, holding out blunt lances in front of them. The king won by throwing his opponent off his horse. Every participant of the tournament had to face everyone, there were enough rounds for the number of participating knights, and that way only two best were able to get to the final. Arthur was eliminated just before it, defeated by a knight of Airgialla, and in the last duel it was him and Gwaine who stood against each other.
"Well, Arthur, how does it feel like not to be the best?" asked Merlin, teasing his friend as he jumped off his horse and walked over to him.
"That's because you didn't help me," said Arthur. "Sometimes I wonder if each of my successes was not your merit."
The warlock quickly took a lance from him and turned to enter the tent. When Arthur didn't get the answer he frowned and followed him.
"Merlin," the king said, more clearly emphasizing the first syllable of his friend's name.
"What?" the warlock asked innocently.
"Have you something to say about me not failing at all through all these years?" he stared at him intently.
"I don't know anything," said Merlin walking to Arthur and helping him to take off the armour. "I didn't do anything."
"Yeah," said the king slowly.
"Better go and watch Gwaine, he will probably want to prove himself to princess Ragnell," Merlin smiled and left the tent not waiting for Arthur who rolled his eyes and left too.
Gwaine and the knight drew in jousting, so the last part of the tournament was the fight with the swords. Before they began Gwaine smiled and bowed towards the princess Ragnell who smiled back. The gesture did not escape King Torin's attention.
"You're not going to support Camelot knight, are you?" he chuckled.
"Father," she said, slightly abashed.
"I saw you yesterday at the feast," Torin continued. "You two have a small thing for each other."
"Is it really that obvious?" Ragnell glanced at him.
"You're happier. And I just want you to know that I won't object," he said smiling.
Princess Ragnell smiled and looked at Gwaine who was about to start the fight.
Merlin managed to find the hooded figure of Vortimer between the tents and encouraged him to come closer to the jousting ground.
"Are you sure Arthur won't see me?"
"I think he's watching the tournament from a different place," Merlin replied.
"He's not in the royal box," said Vortimer looking in that direction.
"Just enjoy the tournament."
"Yeah, but it's too hot in it," the blonde man pulled the hood off his head.
At the same time Arthur was looking for Merlin, he lost him just right after he left the tent. He passed sword stands and saw a bunch of jet black hair among the other people so he started to walk towards there, but something different got his attention. The person standing next to his friend. The king didn't see his face clearly but he knew that blonde hair from somewhere and he was sure that he had seen them quite recently. As he was getting closer Merlin saw him and immediately turned back pulling the other man with him. A suspicious behaviour of his friend concerned him, but he was the most curious about the blonde man that, he could swear, resembled Vortimer. He didn't care about the tournament anymore and who would win, he just rushed after them with fear that the enemy could be in the very heart of Camelot and be associated with his best friend. It seemed that Arthur lost them from his sight but as he found himself on the empty street in the town he noticed the closing door of the old Guinevere's house. Without a thought he hurried there and pulled the handle of the door behind which he believed Merlin and his mysterious companion disappeared.