One thing Krysia was never short on these days was entertainment.
She was sitting outside the castle ramparts, watching Merlin as he helped Arthur prepare for the tournament.
"Ready?" Arthur asked.
"Would it make any difference if I said no?" Merlin countered.
"Not really," Arthur admitted, and they drew swords and Arthur attacked.
Krysia sat back, watching Merlin get severely pummeled, including several blows to his helmeted head.
"You're braver than you look," Arthur eventually said. "Most servants collapse after the first blow."
"Oi!" Krysia responded indignantly.
Arthur sighed.
"Father said I wasn't allowed to hit you anymore, Krysia," Arthur said slowly. "I think I ought to take you out of my reckonings if-"
"Merlin," Krysia barked, "sword, shield, and helmet please."
Merlin scrambled to let anyone else take the hits but himself, and Krysia just grinned at Arthur as she dropped the helmet.
"Don't worry," she said with a grin. "If you manage to hit me, I'll convince Morgana to say she used me as a sparring partner. She owes me."
Of course, Arthur didn't manage to hit her, nor did she actually manage to hit him, but he was getting far better practice with her than he could have possibly received with Merlin and she was free of boredom, so neither really minded.
When they finally tired, they agreed to drop their swords together, so as not to break their personal code of honor.
"That was fantastic," Merlin said earnestly when Krysia took off her helmet, her sweaty hair shaking out into the light breeze.
"Great," Krysia said with a groan. "You're doing all my washing for a month."
"B-but I-"
"Gaius will back me up," she said sharply. "Don't bother arguing."
/-/
Krysia and Merlin arrived back at the physician's chambers not long after, Merlin dropping pieces of armor as they walked in.
Gaius grinned, frowning slightly at the state of Krysia's hair before turning back to Merlin.
"So," Gaius asked with a small laugh, "how was your first day as Arthur's servant?"
Krysia snorted, but Merlin tapped his head.
"Do you hear clanging?" he asked, confused.
Merlin dropped down at the table, Krysia dropping into the spot across from him. Gaius moved to massage Merlin's shoulders.
"Ah! It was horrible. Ah, and I've still got to learn all about tournament etiquette by the morning. OnhrÃne achtung bregdan."
A book slid across the table and opened up in front of Merlin.
"Oi!" Krysia cried, and Gaius smacked the back of Merlin's head.
"What've I told you about using magic like this?" Gaius demanded.
"If I could feel my arms, I'd pick up the book myself," Merlin protested.
"Forget about your arms," Krysia snapped. "What about our necks if you go and get caught?"
Merlin frowned slightly.
"What would actually happen to you if I do get caught?" he asked.
"Don't do it," Krysia said in a low, dangerous voice. "You'd better make sure you don't get caught, for all our sakes. That's all you really need know."
Merlin raised his eyebrows, but he would get no more out of her. She still didn't feel comfortable enough with this stranger to trust him with her deepest secrets. Gaius went back to massaging Merlin's shoulders, and the discussion was dropped.
"Ah! I save Arthur's life and I end up as a servant. How's that fair?"
"I'm not really sure fairness enters into it," Gaius said reasonably. "You never know, it might be fun. Krysia seems to enjoy her work."
Merlin scoffed and said, "You think mucking out Arthur's horses is going to be fun? You should hear my list of duties."
"We know your list of duties," Krysia said with a roll of her eyes. "I know it by heart, seeing as I oversee it. We all have tasks and duties, Merlin. Even Arthur."
Sarcastically, Merlin said, "It must be so tough for him with all the girls and the glory."
Krysia shook her head and clicked her tongue, but Gaius answered.
"He is a future king. People expect so much of him. He's under a lot of pressure."
"Ah, that makes three of us," Merlin said with a dark look over at Krysia, who just frowned back.
/-/
Krysia decided if Merlin was going to have a prayer of being a suitable manservant by the time the tournament started, he would need intensive and particular tutoring.
And since her patience for teaching him only stretched so far, they were sitting in Gwen's house, practicing putting armor on him.
"So, you've got the voiders on the arms," Krysia said, pointing at the voiders.
"Mm-hmm," Merlin said, taking note of the voiders.
"The hauberk goes over your chest," Gwen said, touching the hauberk.
"The chest," Merlin muttered. "The arms. The chest."
"You already know where the helmet goes," Krysia said, tapping the metal hard.
"Erm, yeah," Merlin said, putting on the helmet. "Yeah, that was the only bit I'd figured out."
Gwen giggled and Krysia shook her head with a smile.
"How come you two are so much better at this than me?" Merlin asked.
"Well, I've spent my whole life serving the royal family," Krysia said with a shrug. "That includes suiting up Arthur and Morgana, even Uther when necessary, and sparring when it was required of me."
"And I'm a blacksmith's daughter," Gwen explained. "I know pretty much everything there is to know about armor, even things Krysia doesn't, which is actually kind of sad."
"No, it's brilliant!" Merlin assured her, and Krysia and Gwen laughed again.
/-/
The morning of the tournament, Krysia and Gwen were sitting on either side of the Lady Morgana, all three of them very excited about the event. Krysia and Morgana happened to appreciate the intricacies of swordplay, and Gwen was always entertained by strong men displaying their strength, like any other red-blooded female.
Uther stood in the arena and began to address the line of competitors.
"Knights of the realm," he said in his strong, authoritative voice, "it is a great honor to welcome you to a tournament at Camelot. Over the next three days, you will come to put your bravery to the test, your skills as warriors, and of course, to challenge the reigning champion, my son, Prince Arthur. Only one can have the honor of being crowned champion, and he will receive a prize of 1,000 gold pieces." The box containing the gold was opened. "It is in combat that we learn a knight's true nature, whether he is indeed a warrior or a coward. The tournament begins!"
Krysia and her companions began to cheer with the roar of the crowd as the combatants left the arena, leaving only those first to fight out in the line of view. Uther clapped Arthur on the back as the king exited the arena to watch. The capes were taken by guards and the battle began.
Arthur won his battle easily, and then another knight came on, also winning his fight with ease.
"What is his name, Krysia?" Morgana asked, leaning over.
Krysia's keen eyes glanced over at the scoreboard.
"Valiant, m'lady," Krysia muttered.
Other knights battled, but Krysia couldn't help but notice that she saw no other truly uneven matches.
Valiant and Arthur were the ones to beat.
/-/
Krysia had been working on the second day of the tournament, but the moment she'd heard of Sir Ewan's injury, she had asked King Uther if she might redistribute her duties in order to care for her friend.
Uther knew Krysia well enough to know that she hated healing, that it made her feel sick, but the fact that she already had tears in her eyes and looked as though she might keel over at any moment certainly were elements in favor of his allowing her request. After all, she wouldn't be much use if she wasn't at her best.
Krysia spent the rest of the evening running errand for Gaius, helping him at every available moment, and when Merlin came back to the physician's chambers that night, she was holding Sir Ewan's cold, sweaty hand, terrified that someone she had liked so much would be dying.
Of course, dying was a part of being a knight, but knights of Camelot seemed to be such a regular target that Krysia couldn't bring herself to accept it as well as others seemed to.
"How is he?" Merlin asked, and Krysia just shook her head, biting back tears.
"It's most odd," Gaius said, pointing out the wound he'd already showed to Krysia. "See these two small wounds. Looks like a snake bite."
"How could he have been bitten by a snake?" Merlin asked incredulously. "He was injured in the sword fight."
"He's still exhibiting signs of snake poison," Krysia said with a forced swallow. "Slow pulse, fever, paralysis."
Merlin looked over at her and she knew from the pity on his face that she looked a mess. It was silly, really. She'd known Sir Ewan, of course, but it wasn't like this was Leon or Arthur. She'd been about fourteen when she'd met Ewan, though, and she counted him as a good friend. She wiped her eyes with her free hand and let her hair fall in her face to hide her tears from Merlin's view.
"Can you heal him?" he asked Gaius.
"Well," Gaius sighed, "if it is a snake bite, I'll have to extract venom from the snake that bit him to make an antidote."
"What happens if he doesn't get the antidote?" Merlin asked softly.
"Then I'm afraid there's nothing more I can do for him," Gaius whispered, probably hoping Krysia wouldn't hear what she already knew. "He's going to die."
She tried to bite back the fresh wave of tears, but there was no hiding the very audible sob. Both of them turned and looked at her, but she trained her eyes on Ewan's sweat-covered hand in her hands, squeezing it a bit tighter.
"He was fighting Knight Valiant," Merlin muttered.
"What's that?" Gaius asked, wetting another cloth for Ewan's forehead.
"Nothing," Merlin said quickly, and Krysia lifted her head to give him a quizzical look.
What was he thinking?
But Merlin simply left them alone to care for Ewan, a determined look on his face. Krysia thought for a moment to follow him, but if Ewan passed, she wanted to be at his side. There was no one else to be there for him, not since his parents had died.
/-/
Merlin returned not too long after, all in a huff, clearly excited about something.
"I've just seen one of the snakes on Valiant's shield come alive," he said quickly. "He's using magic."
"What?" Krysia yelped, nearly dropping Ewan's hand. "Are you sure, Merlin?"
"The snake ate a mouse," Merlin said, eyebrows raised. "One swallow, straight down. Sir Ewan was fighting Valiant when he collapsed. It must have been one of the snakes from the shield. I have to tell Arthur."
Krysia and Gaius exchanged a quick, nervous look.
"Is there any chance you might have been mistaken?" Gaius pressed.
"I know magic when I see it," Merlin insisted.
"Right, but," Krysia sighed. "You need to have absolute proof, Merlin. Before you take this to anyone, you need to know you can prove it to even the most doubting mind."
"Don't you believe me?" Merlin asked, frowning.
"She only fears, as I do, that you will land yourself in trouble," Gaius said gently. "And possibly Krysia as well, as she is responsible for you. How will you explain why you were in Valiant's chambers?"
"What does that matter?" Merlin growled, frustrated. "He's using magic to cheat in the tournament!"
"But Merlin," Krysia sighed, "he's a knight. You're a servant. You can't accuse a knight without absolute proof. Uther would not trust even my word over the word of a knight, and he's known me all my life. He certainly won't take yours."
"What?" Merlin asked indignantly. "So what I say doesn't count for anything?"
"I'm afraid it counts for very little as far as the king is concerned," Gaius said gently. "That's the way it is."
/-/
The next day, Krysia stayed and tended to Ewan while Merlin and Gaius went about their duties for the tournament. It was a time-consuming job, but not particularly difficult, and it afforded her plenty of time to think about what to do for his funeral, as Arthur and Uther would expect her input on the matter, since his family had all passed.
Merlin came in later that night and sat with her, watching Sir Ewan for changes, and neither of them spoke until Gaius returned from dealing with more minor wounds and issues.
"Merlin, about what I said yesterday," Gaius said slowly. "Look, Uther wouldn't really listen to any of us, but you are right. We can't let Valiant get away with this."
"There's no proof, Gaius," Krysia sighed, daubing Ewan's forehead with a damp cloth.
"Well, if we could cure Ewan, he could tell the king that Valiant was using magic," Gaius reasoned. "The King would believe another knight. But how we get the antidote... Well, that's another matter."
Merlin gave Krysia a hard look, paused for a moment, and then he headed out the door at a brisk pace.
Krysia frowned at Gaius, then handed the cloth to him and headed off after Merlin.
"Merlin?" she called, and he paused, turned, looked at her, and she hurried up to catch up with him before he set off at his quick pace again.
As they passed the council chamber, Merlin and Krysia saw that Valiant was present, talking with Uther about the possibility of staying in Camelot after the tournament was over. They didn't linger long, hurrying off to Valiant's chambers. Krysia unlocked the door with her set of keys and picked up Valiant's sword, ready when one of the snakes began slithering toward a very nervous Merlin.
"From the shield?" she asked, a bit nervous.
"Yup," Merlin gulped. "Do something!"
She turned and chopped off the head of the snake just as the other snakes began making their way out of the shield.
"Grab it and go!" she cried, setting the sword back where she'd found it as quickly as possible and rushing out after Merlin, who carried the head of the first snake. She locked the door again behind them and they ran all the way to the physician's chambers.
Merlin handed Gaius the head of the snake, who stared at it for a brief moment before nodding. He quickly drained a bit of venom from the snake's head as Krysia and Merlin watched.
"I'll get started preparing the antidote," Gaius said.
"We'll go tell Arthur," Merlin said.
"We need the head," Krysia said, taking it from Gaius's outstretched hand.
"Oh, and by the way," Gaius said before the two of them could hurry off to find Arthur. "What you did was very brave."
/-/
Arthur looked up at them with confusion and amusement as he ate his dinner.
"You chopped its head off?" he asked Merlin.
"Erm, no," Merlin said, blushing slightly. "No, Krysia did that bit."
Krysia clicked her tongue, annoyed.
"Ewan was bitten by a snake from the shield when he was fighting Valiant. You can talk to Gaius, you can see the puncture wounds in Ewan's neck where the snake bit him. Ewan was beating him, he had to cheat. I've seen the wounds myself, Arthur."
Arthur was still remarkably calm.
"Valiant wouldn't dare use magic in Camelot," he said.
"That didn't stop the man your father executed," Krysia said with her eyebrows raised. "Forbidding something doesn't mean it won't happen."
"Ewan was pinned under Valiant's shield," Merlin said helpfully. "No one could see the snake bite him."
"I don't like the guy," Arthur said confidently, "but that doesn't mean he's cheating.
"Gaius is preparing an antidote for the snake venom," Merlin pressed. "When Ewan's conscious, he'll tell you what happened. If you fight Valiant in the final, he'll use the shield. It's the only way he can beat you. Look at it!"
Krysia picked up the snake's head and pressed it in front of Arthur, who looked at her instead, probably ready to tell her off, but she said, "I've lived in Camelot all my life, Arthur, but I've never seen a snake like this here. Have you?"
Arthur looked down at the head, considering it. He turned it over.
"I know I'm just a servant and my word doesn't count for anything," Merlin said, softer. "I wouldn't lie to you. Krysia wouldn't lie to you."
Arthur looked up at them.
"I want you to swear to me," he said, "that what you're telling me is true."
"I swear it's true," Krysia and Merlin chorused.
Arthur looked back down at the snake and said, "Then I believe you."
/-/
When Arthur called the court to challenge Valiant, Krysia stood in her usual place beside Uther in case he needed any errands run, papers signed, etc. Merlin stood with Arthur, his newly rightful place.
"Why have you summoned the court?" Uther asked.
Arthur took a deep breath and Krysia gave him a small nod.
"I believe Knight Valiant is using a magic shield to cheat in the tournament," Arthur said boldly.
Uther raised his eyebrows and said, "Valiant, what do you have to say to this?"
"My Lord," Valiant said coolly, "this is ridiculous. I've never used magic. Does your son have any evidence to support this outrageous accusation?"
"Do you have evidence?" Uther asked Arthur, clearly perturbed.
"I do," Arthur said, motioning Merlin forward.
Merlin produced the head of the snake and handed it to Uther.
"Let me see this shield," Uther said, handing the snake's head to Krysia who took it gingerly.
Merlin whispered something to Arthur and then Arthur said, "Be careful, my Lord." He drew his sword as Uther inspected the shield and Krysia's heart stopped when she saw Gaius enter the room...
Without Ewan.
Merlin moved back to speak to Gaius and Krysia could feel her heart freeze in her chest, because she already knew.
Ewan was dead.