A/N: Not gonna bore you!
but 't aint mine! And dedicated to Van, my hostdad, because he was as excited by me when he saw the TARDIS cookie jar he got for father's day. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY everyone! Give your daddy a hug today!

Chapter 7: Sweet Dreams – part 1

On the morning that the Kings of all the five kingdoms arrived, everyone was swamped. Well, the servants were, anyway; the nobles only had to be dressed nicely – by their servants – and put on their best behaviour. Arthur was no exception.

It was awkward, to say the least, to help Arthur dress and generally to be near him after that kiss. Every time I thought of it, a silly smile would find its way onto my face, though it was bittersweet. We might have kissed, and that might have proved that Arthur felt some affection towards me, but the fact remained that I was a servant, and he a prince. We could never be together.

I accompanied the prince and his father as they greeted Kings Alined and Olaf. The latter had brought his daughter, the Lady Vivian, and she was absolutely beautiful. Morgana may have been a dark beauty, but Vivian was bright like the sun. Unfortunately, her personality didn't match her appearance. She was the most arrogant, annoying person I had ever met. She was worse than Arthur when I'd first met him!

As Arthur was showing her to her room, I stood behind him, trying my best not to laugh. Gwen walked in, a little late. "May I present Guinevere – she'll be looking after you for the duration of your stay. You'll want for nothing. She is truly one of Camelot's finest."

Vivian looked Gwen up and down. She giggled. "Then I fear for Camelot."

Arthur and I stepped out, leaving Gwen with the annoying noblewoman. As I closed the door, Arthur leaned against the door, shooting me a disbelieving look. I finally let my laughter out, and he quickly joined me. It was just so ridiculous!

The prince soon grew more serious and stared at me. I blushed. He raised his hand, as if to touch my shoulder or cheek, but eventually dropped it. I tried not to feel too disappointed.

"I need to prepare for the feast," he said lamely, but didn't move.

"Right. I need to get your jacket from the laundry…"

We each went our own way, hoping the other would forget the awkwardness of the situation soon.

/*/

The feast was enjoyable, for once, as King Alined's servant, Trickler, played the fool and did tricks. As I watched him 'conjure' butterflies, I couldn't help but think that it must be real magic. I wouldn't detect something so small, so I couldn't be sure, but still…

Later that night, when the minstrels had taken the fool's place in entertaining the crowd, I still stood behind Arthur. He motioned for me to refill his cup.

As I did so, I brushed his hand and caught his eye. I blushed again, and I could've sworn I saw the prince's cheeks darken.

From across the room, both Gwen and Morgana smirked at me. I ignored them.

/*/

"Please, Merlynn? I don't think I can stand her for another minute!" Gwen pleaded. She had cornered me after the feast, begging me to take care of Vivian in the morning.

"And you think I'm going to be able to keep my mouth shut?" I asked, incredulously.

"All she does is insult you, and Arthur does that to you all the time, doesn't he? I begging, Merlynn, just for tomorrow."

I sighed. "Fine, but you have to get Arthur ready in the morning. You'll need to shake him to wake him up, and he'll be rude. He's had too many goblets of wine. And make sure he wears the clothes I lay out for him."

Gwen hugged me tight. "Thank you, Merlynn! I owe you!"

"Yes, you do!" I laughed, then turned down the hallway to Arthur's chambers as Gwen returned to Morgana's.

When I turned in to the hallway outside Arthur's chambers, I was met with a surprising sight. King Olaf stood there, looking a little lost. He caught sight of me and came over. "My lady, could you assist me, please?" he asked politely. I almost dropped my jaw. This was the man who had raised Lady Vivian?

"I'm no lady, sire, I'm just a servant," I corrected, curtsying neatly.

He smiled. "All the same, I seem to have taken a wrong turn somewhere. Could you lead me to my chambers?"

"Of course, sire. Follow me," I replied readily, still a little surprised at his good manners. "You're in the wrong wing of the castle. The nobles' wing is in the east wing."

He nodded, still smiling. "Are you sure you're not a lady?" he asked playfully. Who would have thought that one of Uther's closest friends, and the father of a woman like Vivian, would be so kind?

"Positive, my lord. I was born in Ealdor, a small farming village in Cenred's kingdom. I'm only Arthur's servant," I explained.

"Ealdor? That sounds familiar… You remind me of an old friend of mine…" he remarked absently. "You wouldn't know a fellow called Balinor, would you?"

I frowned. "No, my lord, I've never heard of him. Who is he?"

Olaf waved a hand, as if to dispel a thought. "Oh, no one, just an old friend."

We walked in companionable silence for a little while longer, until we reached the King's quarters. "Here we are. Thank you, my dear, for helping an old man."

"You're welcome, sire. And I do not think you are that old," I replied easily. It was surprisingly comfortable to talk to him, even though he was a king.

"You flatter me. But ah, Merlynn? Could you not mention this to the other Kings? We wouldn't want them to think I'm getting senile…"

I grinned. "My lips are sealed. Good night, sire."

/*/

When I woke the Lady Vivian the next morning, she was sitting primly on the edge of her bed. "Where have you been? I've been waiting," she said irritably. I marvelled again at the differences between father and daughter.

"I'm sorry, my lady, I was picking up your breakfast," I said, putting the tray on her table. I helped her get dressed and suffered through insult after insult, to myself, to Camelot, to its people and the castle staff, even to Uther!

"Who are you anyways – where's that girl from yesterday?"

"Guinevere wasn't feeling well, and she didn't want to get you sick, my lady. She asked me to take over for her."

Vivian grimaced at the thought. "You're not very pretty, are you," she commented eventually.

I had to swallow an angry retort. "If you say so, my lady."

"I don't know why Morgana keeps you around."

"I'm not Lady Morgana's maid, I'm Arthur's," I said, as calmly as I possibly could.

Again, Vivian looked almost disgusted. "Arthur has a maid? Whatever for?"

I took a deep breath. 'Do not shout at the rich, powerful person in front of you. She can have you fired and probably even beheaded…' I thought to myself, before answering. "The King awarded me the position when I–" I started, but was soon interrupted.

"I don't care. Prepare my horse! I want to go for a ride!" she commanded imperiously. I was seriously beginning to dislike this girl.

/*/

After the lady returned from her ride – which didn't put her in a better mood, as I'd hoped – I walked with her as she kept complaining about everything. I had probably ruined my teeth from all the jaw-clenching I'd been doing all day. I walked her to her room, and left her there to take a break in my own.

When I got there, a bouquet of purple and pink flowers lay on my bed, accompanied by a note, reading:

The barriers that keep us apart are nothing compared to the power of true love.
Arthur

I smiled softly – so he did care. As I picked up the bouquet to smell it, Gwen burst into my room.

"Gwen!" I said, smiling. If there was anyone I could share this with, it would be her. "Look what Arthur gave me. And to think I'd almost given up hope…"

Gwen didn't respond, but shot me a smile that was only a little forced. I didn't question her; if she had something to tell me, she would.

"They weren't meant for you," Gwen burst out. She looked so sorry, I almost believed her.

"How can they not be? They were on my bed."

Gwen sat down, looking dejected. "Arthur asked me to deliver them to his 'true love', and I assumed he meant you… and then I found out he wanted me to send them to the Lady Vivian."

My face fell as my heart broke. "Lady Vivian?"

"I'm so sorry, Merlynn, I don't know what happened…" Gwen said.

I sank onto my bed. Arthur loved Vivian? Since when? Why…?

"Merlynn?" Gaius's voice brought me back to the present. "Have you seen my–" He trailed off when he saw me and Gwen, both looking rather less than happy. "What happened?"

Gwen explained as I nursed my broken heart. Something was niggling at the back of my mind, but I pushed it away. I didn't want to deal with it; I didn't want to deal with anything right now.

"He said it was his job to woo his lady by the end of the day," Gwen said, wringing her hands anxiously.

"Merlynn, you must stop him!" Gaius warned.

I looked up. "Why? If he loves her so bloody much, why shouldn't he go to her?" I snapped angrily.

Gaius merely raised an eyebrow. "Because it could cause the peace talks to fail, and might bring war onto Camelot," he replied calmly.

I sighed, pushed my hurt feelings aside, and got up. I had a prince to stop.

/*/

I found Arthur outside Vivian's room, practically begging her to let him in. "My lord, I don't think your advances are welcomed," I said stiffly, still blinking my eyes frequently to fight tears.

"Go away! And take your chicken with you!" Vivian shouted from inside the room.

"Don't know what gives you that impression," Arthur muttered and shoved the platter of chicken he'd been holding into my arms as he passed.

I followed him to his room to make sure he wouldn't go back, and then brought the platter back to the kitchen while the prince got ready for bed. I was furious, and so, so hurt at the same time. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to deal with Arthur anymore.

When I got back to Arthur's chambers, he was sitting up in bed, looking decidedly dejected. "Go on, Merlynn… say it," he said.

I handed him a goblet of wine. "Say what?"

"You do not think I should pursue my love," he said glumly.

I clenched my teeth and willed myself not to cry. Why must he call her his 'love'? Two days ago he'd kissed me, and it wasn't like anyone had forced him then. Had he already forgotten about me? "Now that you mention it, I can think of a number of things standing in the way of a happy union between you and the Lady Vivian. Her bloodthirsty father, for one," I said, hoping he hadn't heard the venom in my voice. I didn't really think Olaf was all that bad, but I had a point to get across.

"Her complete lack of interest, for another," the prince added miserably, taking a sip from his cup. 'Thank the gods for that. I don't think I could handle seeing them together,' I thought.

I felt brave, however. Maybe Lady Vivian's rejection was enough to… I didn't even want to finish the thought.

"Arthur? Maybe… maybe it would be better to think about… about your old love?" I asked hesitantly. I really hoped I wouldn't make a complete fool of myself.

"What are you talking about, Merlynn? I don't have an old love," Arthur replied. He rolled over, trying to get comfortable. I frowned. He couldn't have literally forgotten about me, could he?

I turned around to leave, but Arthur's voice stopped me. "What on earth…?" The prince rolled back over, holding a lock of blonde hair between his fingers. "You really need to start paying attention to the details."

I took it from him, frowning. That was not Arthur's hair – it was too light and too well kept. I paled as I realized the only other person in the castle it could belong to: Lady Vivian.

/*/

"I knew something wasn't right," I told Gaius gleefully. It wasn't his fault! Arthur was just under a spell – he hadn't forgotten about me!

My uncle was studying the lock of hair with a magnifying glass, hoping to find a clue as to who was behind the whole scheme. "Arthur's enchanted," he said, voicing my suspicions.

An idea popped into my head then. "I should've realized… He has magic!" I whispered, almost to myself. I looked Gaius in the eye. "No one can make butterflies appear from thin air."

"Trickler." Gaius was following my thought process.

"Why would he want Arthur to fall in love with Vivian?" I asked curiously. Trickler, Alined's servant, hadn't seemed like he wanted to bring down Camelot when he performed at the feast.

Gaius looked back at the lock thoughtfully. "An advance from Arthur would be a surefire way to ruin the peace conference… Maybe Alined wants war."

"Without creating it himself," I added, catching on.

"That is the sort of cowardly behaviour you would expect from him," Gaius said. "Cowardly, but clever."

"We need to find a way to turn Arthur back to normal."

"Before it's too late," Gaius said ominously.

A/N: I know, I know, you want me to get on with it. But no worries, THE moment is drawing near now!

Review!