It wasn't until I saw Arthur's armour spread out across the table in his chambers that I remembered I had left it in the armoury, I looked to him in question, wondering who had brought it here. He had been with me the whole time, after all.
"I didn't want you to have to go back in there," He explained, shrugging as though it was nothing, but it wasn't nothing, not to me. He had actually thought about me, about how I might be feeling, about what I needed. That wasn't something I had come to expect of the Prince, not until today anyway. I smiled up at him, grateful for all he had done for me. It took a moment before he smiled back, as uncertain how to proceed in our new truce as I was but when he did, it was full of kindness and compassion, not the humoured smirk I was used to. He turned toward the table holding his armour, beginning to reach for the chainmail, before pausing and turning back to face me.
"You did all this on your own?" It took me a minute to realize what he was referring to, the memory of using my magick to complete the long list of chores he'd given me resurfacing. I just shrugged, not letting the fact he'd known how impossible it had been when he'd given me the list, ruin the trust and respect that had slowly begun to build between us.
"Yes, Sire." My voice was clearer than before, whatever Gaius had given me beginning to kick in. Arthur looked taken aback as I addressed him properly, something rarer than the current peace between us, especially considering there had been no mockery behind it.
"Well, let's see if you can get me into it without forgetting anything." Arthur's smile and raised brow took the sting out of his words and I couldn't help the half smirk that appeared on my own face, rolling my eyes as I released a huff of laughter, not trusting my throat enough to laugh properly. I began by placing his chainmail over his head, standing on the tips of my toes to reach him, and pretending not to notice the way his eyes followed my every movement before beginning to place and fasten the rest of the armour to his upper body, focusing on my tasks and not the way his arms felt beneath my hands. As I fastened the cloak around his shoulders I made the mistake of looking up at his face, getting caught in his gaze as he watched me just as intently. "That was much better," He murmured, breaking me out of my stupor and I felt myself blush as I went to collect his helmet and sword. "Not that it could have got any worse," he finished. I couldn't help my surprised laugh, wincing from the pain, and passed him his sword so he could sheath it before handing him the helmet.
"I'm a fast learner."
"I hope for your sake that's true." His voice made it clear he meant more than just with my chores, I nodded, taking his warning seriously.
The audience immediately began to applaud as Arthur walked to the centre of the arena and I stayed by the entrance, unable to see Sir Leon close by today and not wishing to be caught alone by Arthur's tent. I couldn't help the small smile that appeared on my face as I watched Arthur approaching his first competitor of the day, feeling Gaius come to stand beside me; the knowledge that I wasn't alone, comforting me.
"Is it my imagination or are you beginning to enjoy yourself?" He was right, I supposed. Even before today I had found myself not minding Arthur's insults and teasing as much, in fact, I'd actually begun to enjoy the banter between us. And with my newfound knowledge that he did care about me, I had begun to see him in a new light, a light where he was a better man than I had given him credit for.
"It isn't… totally horrible, all the time." Although it hadn't come time for me to clean his stables yet... I turned back towards the arena, Gaius doing the same. The fight between Arthur and Sir Adrian had only just begun and I watched in rapt attention as Arthur dodged and struck with incredible speed and precision. He was... magnificent. A true Knight. A Prince. A future King. And he had never seemed more handsome than when he faced danger with that unfailing courage and strength.
Someone jolted my arm and I felt the smile drop from my face as Sir Valiant stalked past, having taken the opportunity to barge me with his shoulder.
"See you later," he threatened and I felt my split lip throb in memory. I dropped my gaze to the ground, no longer interested in watching the tournament. I just wished it was over so Valiant would go back to the Western Isles and I could go about my days without having to look over my shoulder.
"Arthur just saw what happened. I'm sure the only person Valiant will be seeing later, is him." I nodded, not really listening to what Gaius said. I kept my eyes on my feet for the rest of the fight, only sparing a glance to see that Arthur had won when the cheering picked up before retreating my line of sight back to the bottom of my dress. I noticed Gaius' feet beginning to edge away and Arthur's helmet being placed in my line of sight instead. His hand came closer to my face and he used one finger to gently lift my chin, tilting my head so that I would look him in the eye.
"Don't listen to him, Merlin. He won't touch you. I promise." Arthur's words were so sincere, his eyes too gentle for someone who had just been in a battle. He was a contradiction in himself. A complete paradox that I had no way of even attempting to understand and yet I believed him. I trusted him. Trust was something I had never found easy to come by, not unusual considering I had to keep who I was a secret, and yet... somehow, I had begun to trust this impossible man. "Why are you looking at me like that?" He didn't say it as an insult or looking for a compliment, he was genuinely curious.
"I don't know why... or when it happened, but... I've just realised that I trust you." I admitted, undecided if I was more surprised at the fact it was true or that I'd admitted it to him.
"Were you ever in any doubt?" I smirked, raising an eyebrow at him. He had managed to make me forget the pain and fear that had been hounding me since this morning, something else that I couldn't understand. "Okay, fair enough. I suppose... I trust you too." My split lip throbbed when I smiled, accidentally breaking the skin again. Before I could reach up to wipe away the blood, his hand was there, his thumb brushing my lower lip as he cradled my jaw in the rest of his hand, before freezing entirely. We both just stopped there, staring into each other's eyes, my body going taut and loose all at once and I burned, even as chills shuddered along my limbs.
The crowd's frenzied cheers had us both breaking away from each other, turning to see what had them so worked up. Valiant was fighting Sir Yuwin and Yuwin seemed to be winning. The smile that had eased with my surprise came back in full force, my split lip, forgotten. Until Yuwin fell under one of Valiant's blows, his sword flying from his hand as he hit the dirt. Valiant didn't give him time to recover, pouncing straight on him and pinning him beneath his shield. Yuwin didn't go down easily, though. He pushed back, Valiant struggling to keep him down, but his strength must have been failing because the second he succumbed to Valiant he was struck in the head with the hilt of his sword. My stomach dropped.
I watched as Valiant strutted about the arena, the crowd cheering wildly for him. Even Gwen and Morgana seemed quite taken with him, the King too. No one was paying any attention to the man who still lay on the arena floor. No one except Gaius, anyway, who had begun to make his way over to the fallen Knight.
"I think he's badly hurt," I mumbled to Arthur, watching as Gaius began to work on him. I found myself growing worried, I didn't know the man but he appeared to be in a bad way, barely able to move after coming back around. Arthur could see my concern, touching my arm as he motioned toward them.
"Don't worry about the rest of your duties for tonight, I'll get someone else to do them, you go and help Gaius." I smiled at him, nodding, grateful that he seemed to know exactly what I wanted to do. Even if I didn't have any healing skills, I could at least help to make tonics and such, with clear instructions. I began making my way towards the arena, pausing when Arthur didn't release my arm. "Merlin? Don't do anything stupid and go after Valiant, okay?" I would have thought he was joking if not for the worry in his eyes. I would have loved nothing more than to pay Valiant back for what he had tried to do to me but I wasn't a fool. Without using my magick, I was completely helpless against him.
"I'm not that stupid," I reassured him, making my way over to Gaius when he finally released me. I made sure to keep a wide berth from Valiant, the arrogant git still lapping up the crowd's attention, instead of getting out the way or even pretending to be concerned for his opponent. I knelt beside Gaius in the dirt, pulling the chainmail away from Yuwin's throat so it would be easier for him to breathe whilst he groaned in pain. As Valiant unknowingly made his way closer to me, my eyes sought out Arthur, only to find him already making large strides towards us, Sir Leon beside him and two other Knight's carrying a gurney. I stepped aside as they got Yuwin on to it, Arthur choosing to remain at my side, keeping a steady eye on Valiant as he continued his preening. Uncaring of what was happening behind him.
As soon as the guards had manoeuvred Yuwin from the gurney to the cot, Gaius was beside him, his hands fluttering over the unconscious man as he took his pulse and checked his head. I let Arthur and the Knight's out, being sure to thank them, before closing the door and turning back to Gaius to see if there was anything I could do. He was still bent over Yuwin, his brow creased in concentration.
"How is he?" I asked, bending down to kneel beside the cot.
"It's most odd. Look at this –" He pointed to Yuwin's neck and I took a closer look, noticing two puncture wounds with skin that was already beginning to purple around it. "–You see these two small wounds? It looks like a snake bite." How was that possible? There weren't any snakes in the arena. They would have been spotted straight away with everyone watching.
"How could he have been bitten by a snake? He was injured in the sword fight." I pointed out, unsure where Gaius was going with this. Perhaps he had been bitten before the fight? Although, the bite looked fresh... the skin still angry and beginning to swell, the bruising still coming out. I was no expert in medicine, in fact, I had very little knowledge at all but it didn't look old to me.
"Well the symptoms are consistent with poisoning: slow pulse, fever, paralyses…" I had no idea if anything else could have caused the same symptoms, any other animal that could have gotten to him with such a lethal amount of venom that it would take someone out this quickly. There were always mosquitoes but it didn't look like any mosquito bite I had ever seen, and they weren't venomous. Maybe it had been a small snake or maybe... there had been a snake in the armoury. Perhaps it had gotten into his armour? Although, that didn't explain why it would have waited so long to bite him. My head was beginning to hurt as I debated the possibilities.
"Can you heal him?" I didn't know a lot about snake bites, in the Village we all knew how to dispose of snakes without getting bitten and when they were, they went to Mrs Cove, an old woman who had kept to herself but was always there to heal anyone who knocked her door. She had always been kind to me, had taken the time to explain that when someone was bitten by a venomous creature you only had a short period of time before the venom would make its way to the heart. I had been quite sad when she had died, it had been a peaceful death, at least. She had just gone to sleep and never woke up. I had lit her pyre for her at only twelve years old, the only person she had seemed to take any interest in and therefore the closest person to her.
"Well, if it is a snake bite, I'll have to extract venom from the snake that bit him to make an antidote." I began removing Yuwin's armour, Gaius helping me to steady him as I removed his overshirt and chainmail, leaving him in his tunic. Gaius had been right about the temperature, he was boiling, with sweat already beginning to darken his tunic.
"What happens if he doesn't get the antidote?"
"Then, I'm afraid there's nothing more I can do for him. He's going to die." I took the cold towel from Gaius' outstretched hand, beginning to mop away the sweat on Yuwin's face before leaving it resting atop his forehead. As I stared at the Knight I began to cast my mind back, debating all the possible ways he could have been bitten.
"He was fighting Knight Valiant!" It came to me so suddenly, I jumped from the ground, my head spinning from the quick motion. It was magick! The snake I'd heard in the armoury, the painting on the shield blinking... the snakes on the shield were real! That was why Valiant hadn't wanted me near it! Everything was beginning to make perfect sense.
"What was that?" Gaius looked up quickly before continuing to work on Yuwin.
"Nothing." I lied, knowing if I'd told him where I was about to go he would try to stop me. Arthur was going to be furious if he found out but that was the least of my concerns right now. If I didn't figure this out, Yuwin was going to die and so could any of Valiant's other competitor's and, if they both won tomorrow's fights, he could kill Arthur. I rushed out of the door, almost running towards the guest chambers where they were all staying.
I waited behind one of the columns, working out that the fighting should be just about finished up for the day, and wasn't disappointed to see Valiant strolling down the corridor, his shield in hand. I ducked further behind the column, not wanting to be caught, and hoped none of the other Knight's came back too quickly. Unless I got caught. In which case, I hoped they hurried the hell up!
Once Valiant had entered the room I crept out from my hiding place, relieved that he hadn't shut the door to his chambers completely, and watched through the slight crack. He placed the shield atop one of the chairs, going to pick up a round box from the cupboard before approaching it again. He placed the box atop the table, opening it and placing his hand inside before lifting a live mouse from it. The poor thing squirming as he held it by the tail, squeaking as it tried to get away. The snakes in the shield began to move, their heads leaving the shield entirely until they were flesh and blood, hovering half in and half out of their prison. I turned away before he could feed them the poor mouse, not wanting to see it's awful death, and ran.
"I just saw one of the snakes on Valiant's shield come to life. He's using magick." I gasped, bursting into Gaius' chambers. He just stared at me in shock, either from my statement or the way I'd burst in.
"Are you sure?" His voice remained calm, not showing a hint of the turmoil I was feeling. I didn't know whether to be even more afraid of Valiant than I already was or relieved that I was going to be able to get rid of him before he had the opportunity to fight Arthur.
"The snake ate a mouse. Yuwin was fighting Valiant when he collapsed; it must have been one of the snakes from the shield. I have to tell Arthur!" I began to leave again, unsure why I'd even gone to Gaius first. Of course, I wasn't looking forward to Arthur giving me an earful for going against his orders but his safety was more important than my pride.
"Is there any chance you might be mistaken?" Oh yeah, cause I see inanimate objects coming to life all the time. Said no one, ever.
"Look, I know magick when I see it." The fact that I was behind most of it didn't count.
"Perhaps. But have you any proof?" What? I thought... I thought Gaius trusted me enough to know I wouldn't lie about something like this?
"Don't you believe me?" Of course, I was still just a stranger to him, why would he believe me? I had only been living with him for a week.
"I fear you'll land yourself in trouble. How will you explain why you were in Valiant's chamber?" That was what he was bothered about? Who the Hell cares if I get into trouble for being in his chambers? Plus, like anyone would be interested in telling me off for snooping when someone had been caught using magick!
"What does that matter? He's using magick to cheat in the tournament!" The fact he was using magick, in general, wouldn't have bothered me, I was a sorcerer myself, but he was using it to hurt innocent people! That was crossing a line! As was what he'd tried to do to me. "Plus, he tried to rape me, in case you've forgotten." My voice was getting more high pitched as I wound myself up, the fear I had felt this morning resurfacing. Gods, was it really only this morning? No wonder my face and throat still hurt like a bitch.
"But you can't go accusing a knight of using magick without proof and I fear that Uther will not care about what Valiant tried to do to you. You forget; he is not Arthur. Arthur may care about you but to Uther, you are just another servant; far below the standing of a Knight. Uther will never take your word over Valiant's." I knew what he said was right but that was such horseshit!
"So what I say doesn't count for anything?"
"I'm afraid it counts for very little as far as the King's concerned; that's the way it is." Gods damn it! With nothing else to do, I stormed up to my room, slamming the door behind me and readied myself for another night of tossing and turning. Like Hell, I was going to get any rest. I had been in Camelot for a week and I had spent half of those nights without sleep. How, exactly, was I still standing?