Hello dear readers !
Well, I suppose this is, once more, quite late. Is watching tennis a good excuse? Because that was what I had been up too.
So, I hope you will like this chapter! I don't have much to say except to thank you all for all for reading and favoriting and reviewing and supporting me.
Do not hesitate to drop me a little message ;) You'll make my day :)
Enjoy !
Chapter 14:
Alice watched, motionless and silent as the wooden door closed after the queen left. To say she was surprised and confused would be an understatement. In fact, she didn't know want to think.
She had spent most of the previous night just aimlessly wandering the small room, picking up trinkets and books that obviously belonged to her beloved. It felt as if he just left to care for a patient and would return in a minute.
She had spent most of the time half expecting him to walk through the door, a slight smile on his face. He couldn't be dead.
She looked back down on the book still in her lap. She remembered so well the day she had given it to him. They had been so happy at the time, looking forward to a bright future under the guidance of a king and a queen that were kind and thoughtful. If only it could have stayed that way. What have we all done to deserve this much suffering?
She thought back to what the new queen of Camelot had told her. She didn't want to but the words had hit a spot in her. "If you truly loved Gaius you should, at least, respect his opinion and know he couldn't have been so wrong in his judgment."
Her brain knew that this was true but her heart didn't want to accept that. It was easier for her to simply blame Merlin and pile everything on him.
She sighed as she rubbed her tired eyes. As much as she didn't want to, she knew Gaius and she knew of his sacrificial self. She knew that he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice himself for someone he loved. He had done it for her when he decided to stay in Camelot to cover for her. And if the queen was to be believed he had loved Merlin like his own son.
Why do you have to be so damn stubborn?
For a long time, she let herself become lost in memories and thought so jumped when the door opened and a maid entered.
"I brought your lunch." She announced as she put a tray in front of Alice before leaving.
Alice was surprised, she hadn't been expected such good treatment. She was, after all, a convicted and wanted sorcerer. She had tried to kill the king. And would have succeeded, had Gaius and Merlin not stopped her.
She tucked into the food without appetite.
The next morning she was woken from a fitful sleep by another servant bring her breakfast and she slowly pushed herself up from the hard cot.
She had spent the majority of the last day in a haze before exhaustion had forced her to lie down late in the night but even after sleep she still fell drained and numb.
She managed to thank the servant before he left and got up to open the shutters. She spent a little while simply enjoying the view. She hadn't done it yesterday but today, in the morning light, she found herself fascinated by the view of the castle and lower town. Exactly as she had been back when living there.
The smell of food hit her nostrils and she reluctantly turned away from the view to go back to the table. She wished that the king would pass his sentence soon. She was tired of the waiting.
Her wish seemed to be granted a little later when a knock resounded in the room before the blond young man entered.
She got up and bowed slightly to him, knowing she had to be respectful even if she didn't feel any loyalty to him.
"Please, sit down." He instructed her.
She obeyed and watched curiously as he did the same in front of her. He looked tired with dark shadows under his eyes and lines around them.
For a long moment, he said nothing as he observed her. And then he sighed.
"I have to admit that I don't know what to do with you." He said, surprising Alice with his honesty. "The law dictates I should execute you yet… I don't think you deserve it."
She answered with silence, waiting for him to banish her again.
"Merlin thinks that you would be a good replacement for Gaius." He announced after a little while.
Alice had to fight to not let her jaw drop.
"Wh-What?"
"Merlin says that I should give you the job of Court Physician. Don't ask me why, though. God knows what goes on in his silly head." The king said, sounding annoyed with his friend.
"I… I don't understand." The woman said, feeling flabbergasted with shock and incomprehension.
How could the man at whom she had yelled such horrible things a day prior recommend her for one of the most crucial post in the royal household? It made absolutely no sense to her. He should have been the first one to ask for her execution.
"Me either." The king sighed again. "But… I am willing to trust him. He's usually a good judge of character and I've spent enough time doubting him and regretting it later… He brought the matter to the council yesterday and they wish to talk to you before authorizing it however."
Silence fell while Alice tried to make sense of what the king was telling her.
"I don't know what to say." She finally breathed after a long time.
"For the moment you don't have to say anything. Just think about it. If you don't want the job you will be free to go wherever you want. There is no obligation." Arthur explained. "The council session will be this afternoon. I'll send a guard for you if you wish to go there."
And with that, he pushed himself up and went to the door. However, he stopped in front of it and turned back.
"You know, for a long time I was sure that magic was evil and corrupted even the kindest souls. I lived in my father's beliefs and was afraid of it. Merlin, despite his flaws and his lies, showed me the truth. He suffered more than anyone should, living in the shadows with the constant threat of death and the weight of destiny on his shoulders, and yet he is still here. He is a good man. A better man that I could probably ever be. I just hope you will come to see that one day."
He nodded to himself and went out, leaving Alice once more alone with her troubled thoughts.
What should she do? Should she accept the offer to replace Gaius and stay here? Or should she go back to her previous exiled life with Martha and her others friend outside Camelot?
She never thought she would have to make this choice in her life. She had resigned herself to being exiled from her home. To live her life and work in secret. But now she has the opportunity to once more truly help people, in plain sight. To finally be truly helpful.
Her eyes looked around the room, trying to imagine herself living here. Could she do it?
So? What do you think? What will happen next ? :)