The next few days passed and Arthur worked in the castle's kitchen by cleaning dishes to his great displeasure. Since Annalisa had been called for immediately after bringing him down, he was left to the cook. He told him that he was a commoner moving in from a lower town and was looking for a job. Washing dishes was the only one available.
The greatest problem the prince had with it was that cleaning dishes in the kitchen wouldn't get him closer to Merlin's room, not that he was even sure he should try anymore. Merlin seemed perfectly content, rather happy with how he was treated here. That much was understandable but what confused Arthur was Merlin's connection to Prince Garrick.
Did Merlin know about Garrick's feelings? Did he share them? Had he already turned the prince down but agreed to stay as a friend? The possibilities turned through Arthur's mind even as he scrubed pots in the bleak castle kitchen, practically alone between meals and desperately needing a shower and comfy bed.
He'd noticed Prince Garrick's manservant when he'd come down to the kitchen for the prince's meals. He didn't speak, ever. The cook seemed to be used to it as well as the rest of the normal staff but Arthur found it a bit irritating. Just because he served a royal didn't mean he was so much better than everyone else. Merlin didn't act like that. Merlin had the opposite problem which was thinking that everyone was on the same level as him.
Arthur eventually finished his work just in time to watch Merlin and Garrick leave the castle together to walk around Sythian for the third day in a row. It was almost like Garrick knew Arthur was there and was trying to keep Merlin away from him.
Instead of following them and risking getting caught, he went out back to discreetly watch Sythian knights duel. It was more Arthur's territory but that only lasted for a few minutes before one of the knights used magic. Arthur was the only one shocked out of all of the other spectators and from there, more knights used magic until only four on the field remained with natural swordsmanship. Arthur felt conflicted as they fought, unsure of who should win.
Between the pairs or occasional triplet battles, victory went to mostly magic but Arthur found it unfair as the unaided knights were outnumbered. In the end, the only thing he could be pleased by was how well the normal knights held their own against magic. That much was honorable.
Arthur watched cautiously as the field was cleared of the heavier objects. Servants of all people used their magic to lift them into the air and set them outside the field line. With something like that, someone could be killed. Arthur wondered if the same people had the ability to mend such damage.
The infiltrating prince turned back toward the kitchen but saw Eldon, Prince Garrick's manservant, carrying a highly decorative silver and ruby bow along with a fine leather arrow carrier. Beside him walked the witch he saw on his first day who conjured an unfortunately heavy rain over herself. He sort of smiled at the memory but quickly dropped it, realizing he shouldn't be amused by magic.
"Isn't it a bit windy today?" the beautiful young witch asked Eldon.
The servant nodded but showed a slight smile and the girl let out a preparing sigh as they passed Arthur.
Who are these two? The girl looks familiar, he thought to himself.
Arthur turned and watched as the girl took the field. Tired knights gathered at the field line like the last time and Arthur found himself being joined by other servants to watch this single girl practice archery on such an exquisite bow. Surely she was of high status, despite having magic.
"Esmeralda," the girl told a middle-aged maid. "Be creative today."
The maid nodded and passed the field line by a few steps while Eldon helped the girl prepare by handing her the silver bow and a fine arrow. The girl smiled as she pulled the arrow back with the bowstring. She showed experience in her posture and confidence in her eyes. Arthur was more than a bit curious to see the outcome of her practice so he stayed.
"Whenever you're ready, Esmeralda." The girl said with her bow poised.
The maid nodded and lifted her hands, wrists toward the sky, and glowing black circles formed in all sorts of places around the field at once. The girl took two seconds of thought before letting the first arrow go. It flew perfectly through one of the farthest rings. Arthur was impressed at the great distance but was stunned when he looked back to find the girl already down six more arrows without him even noticing.
She moves like lightning…
She passed an arrow through every ring while Eldon watched, appearing to be counting the time and rings since they disappeared after being shot. In a matter of seconds, the dozens of dark rings in the air had all disappeared. Everyone clapped, aside from Arthur. He stood there, staring, stunned, amazed, and perhaps a bit intimidated. He tensed his jaw at the thought. This girl must have been at least four years younger than him and even if he wasn't an expert with traditional bows, his skill with a crossbow or sword was near unbeatable.
"I can't conjure a proper bird but I can shoot a man in the heart." The girl sighed and several maids laughed with her while the knights smile rather admiringly.
Eldon went around collecting the arrows by hand. Arthur had become fairly certain he was one of the servants here who didn't have magic. It made sense that he would be a royal's servant but why was he servicing a young girl during her archery practice?
"Where are Merlin and Garrick?" the witch asked the maid, Esmeralda, which caught Arthur's attention.
"I believe they left the castle to visit the lower towns." Esmeralda answered as she walked over. "You would have to ask Eldon which one since Garrick didn't say."
"…well it's alright." The girl said. "I was thinking of going out to collect flowers."
"Would you like me to prepare the horses?" the maid asked.
"Mine and Eldon's." the girl nodded.
She's taking the prince's manservant?
"My lady, do you think that is wise?" Esmeralda asked.
"Taking Eldon?" the girl asked. "Don't let my brother's concern for him fool you. Eldon is as fierce a fighter as any man. Isn't that right, Eldon?"
The girl glanced back at the servant as he jogged up beside her, offering a smile and short nod before accepting the silver bow from the witch and in one swift moment releasing an arrow to soar from the field line all the way to the dead center of a target painted on a tree. Again, Arthur was shocked by the expert skill of these people, even a common servant.
"He is my teacher, after all." The witch smiled to the maid. "We shall be back before dusk and will remain safe. I'm only collecting flowers, after all."
"…yes, My Lady." The maid nodded. "I'll let your father know of your plans."
"And if Garrick should come back before us, please inform him that his little sister has momentarily stolen his manservant and he isn't simply mucking about in the kitchens." The girl smiled.
Little sister?! That's the princess?! Arthur internally exclaimed.
The princess was a witch! The royals had magic?! But Prince Garrick hadn't seemed like he had magic. It could have just been his sister. Perhaps it was a trait of their mother and that was why Arthur's father hadn't known. They'd kept the princess's magic from them and the queen had already passed.
The princess and her brother's manservant turned and began to walk back toward the castle with a suspicious proximity to each other, Arthur decided. He became intrigued by their relationship and almost followed but decided against it. He should respect the princess's privacy, being a royal himself. Besides, he needed to wait at the castle so that he could watch Merlin and Garrick when they returned. Hopefully, they wouldn't be in as blissful a mood as he expected them to be.
The very thought of Merlin being happy like that with someone else made Arthur's chest ache uncomfortably these days, but he couldn't do anything to show kindness for the servant like Garrick did. It would have been out of character and raised questions that the prince himself was starting to doubt he knew the answer to. These days, all he knew was that no matter if Merlin was sad or happy or irritable, if he wasn't with Arthur, it hurt.
Two hours later and several miles beyond the castle, Princess Aster and her secret love, Eldon, were searching alone in a damp cave. The princess was careful not to get unexplainable stains on her garments while Eldon resorted to crawling where he needed to. Both were in search of only one small thing.
"I've found nothing." Aster sighed in exasperation and hopelessness.
Eldon almost rested a hand on her shoulder for comfort but there was algae on his palm. He discreetly found a dryer rock to scrape it off on before returning to the princess's side and hugging her shoulders gently.
"With our luck, it's in Cenred's kingdom or even Camelot, but I'm not allowed to go either place." Aster said. "I don't want you to go, either. They might mistake you for being rude by not speaking and hurt you."
Eldon himself felt frustrated but even when he tried to find his voice, the only thing that would come out was a breathy noise. When he first laid eyes on Aster, he immediately fell in love with the princess, despite the five-year age difference. It was an entire year after he arrived in Sythian that he finally met her. When he first came, he'd been able to explain to her older brother through writing that he'd been captured from his hometown in Camelot and passed among slave traders, eventually ending up working at a book store with no wage but a roof, bed, enough food to live, and endless books to read.
Just after his sixteenth birthday, the town he'd been moved to was raided and he was captured again, but this time by another kingdom's army. He, along with many other youths, was taken to a place underground in the woods where they were forced to work by mining for a single, small, purple stone.
The stone was said to permit the wearer the ability to read minds, limited to one person, that is. The stone, once met with a mortal's blood, would forever be bound to that person's mind. That little stone was the last one in existence and young Eldon was the one to find it. Despite the threats from the kingdom's ruler and the witches who demanded it, Eldon had kept the little pebble to himself, hiding it in his mouth after finding it wedged between two rocks, deep in a cave.
That night, he'd planned to escape and hide the rock where nobody would ever find it, perhaps under the guard of a dangerous magical creature. The stone could not be destroyed and the best he could do was keep it from those who could only bring endless harm to innocent lives. He went forth with his plan and eluded the two guards outside of the tunnels.
He took off in the night, pebble still held firm under his tongue as he ran. Only an hour or so into his escape, he was chased by men on horses. He kept running, trying to reach Camelot's boarder where they could not follow him but in his desperate sprint, he didn't notice the sudden decline in the forest floor. There he tumbled down, breaking a leg and biting his tongue. He immediately spit the stone out in fear that the blood would reach it but it already had.
After realizing it was too late, he scrambled to find the stone again and hide it but the horsemen finally reached him and the stone, taking both and bringing them back to the tunnels where he was introduced to one very beautiful witch and one very hideous. Both seemed mild-tempered but were malicious in a way that betrayed their smiles.
They'd tortured Eldon for days on end, never once letting him sleep or eat or drink. The witches had brought him to the brink of death more times than he could count but nothing they did would change the fact that their precious stone was now useless. By the time they released Eldon back into the woods at night with the ruined stone to be consumed by magical beasts, he'd long lost his voice. He couldn't even scream when being approached by a vicious griffin. The only thing to save him was a group of druids.
The large tribe managed to chase away the magical beast but even when Eldon was brought to their camp for treatment, food, and rest, he couldn't tell them what had happened. Thankfully, one of them was able to communicate with him through thought. After regaining most of his health, he explained to the leader what had happened to him.
At that time, he'd been told the stone was dangerous, even now that it had touched Eldon's blood. He didn't understand at the time but was told the stone belonged to a beautiful purple flower, one that was kind but strong, wise but daring, and most importantly, forgiving. After that, the druids led him to a kingdom called Sythian where magic was openly permitted.
At first, Eldon was unsure about entering the kingdom. He'd been terrified by what magic could do and what it had irreversibly done to him. He wondered how he would survive without the druids, the only people who could speak with him, but he let them have the stone to hide and entered the kingdom on his own.
On his way to the castle with writing mediums to explain to the king, he was nearly trampled by a boy only a year or two older than him riding a horse. The boy stopped his horse and promptly apologized, then noticed the boy couldn't speak. Rather than being frustrated by Eldon's silence like expected, the young boy explained his status as the king's son and offered the mute boy a ride to the castle as apology, to which Eldon nodded appreciatively.
When he arrived, Prince Garrick asked for his father's attention to be pointed to the younger guest as he wrote out his plea on parchment with rough charcoal. The king had seemed reluctant but with the queen's insistence, Eldon was given a job in the library. He knew the atmosphere well and got along with the librarian but others who came to check out books were impatient with his lack of speech and he was eventually urged to search for another duty.
While at risk of being sent to the lower towns, Eldon did something more dangerous. He went to Prince Garrick and begged for a job in the upper part of the castle. For Eldon, this meant not-so-discreetly doing the prince's manservant's job of cleaning and bringing the prince's food, even polishing his armor. In perfect honesty, the prince had already taken a liking to the mute boy, maybe even developing a slight crush, but it was established as a friendship once the prince asked his father for Eldon to be his servant.
It was a similar process as the first time Eldon met the king. The king was reluctant, the queen was encouraging it, and the king gave in to both his wife and son. Eldon gladly went to work and became close enough with Garrick that the prince began to understand him without words, as did many of the palace servants.
An entire year after first arriving at the castle, Eldon was let to serve wine to the royal family's chalices during dinner. That evening was the first time he'd ever seen the princess, a delicate purple flower only the age of eleven coming to dinner after her long hours of sheltered studying which kept her from Eldon's sight until then. He was immediately infatuated. A girl so young shouldn't carry such an elegant air, but Princess Aster did.
The young princess took note of the new servant and while still contemplating whether or not it was appropriate to ask, she asked her father who he was. He was nervous already but then the princess gave him that look. She just lightly tilted her head at hearing about him replacing her brother's manservant and her lips slightly pursed in a kind greeting, as well as a smirk at her brother who was a bit embarrassed that his little sister could be so brazen at eleven.
From that moment on, both Eldon and the princess had shared the corridors, day or night. Aster spoke while Eldon replied with gestures and expressions. The princess was getting used to his way of communicating, much like her brother, but felt herself looking forward to seeing him every day. By the princess's fourteenth birthday, she'd been convinced of her feelings and confessed to Eldon.
In a moment of surprise and happiness to hear of the shared feelings, he kissed the princess for both of their first times in a bright and empty corridor. After getting over the initial shock, Aster returned it and thus began the closeted romance of the two who couldn't bear to part even if the king found out. Not much later, Eldon also made the connection of what the druids had said to the beautiful and forgiving flower that was his love, the beautiful Princess Aster.
He told her of the stone, of the ability it would grant her to hear his thoughts while she wore it and they could communicate more comfortably. They began searching for that small little pebble with the only hint being that it was returned to its original place. When they looked it up in the library, they found that the stone was blessed in a cave, but there was no cave marked by the same name anywhere. That's why they searched them all, perhaps pointlessly, but very hopefully so that Aster might finally hear her beloved's voice.
"I'm sorry I've let you down again, Eldon." The princess told the servant.
Eldon wished he could tell her no, that she'd never let him down and that he'd always love her. He wished he could remind her that even though he couldn't speak, she'd always understood him, but he couldn't say either of those things. Instead, he knelt down in front of her. The princess stared down at him with sad eyes but she saw the meaning in his and while he couldn't speak, she knew exactly what he wanted to say.
"I love you too." she smiled tearfully.
The young man stood again to hold her close, eventually pulling her into the kisses that they couldn't share in the castle.
Back in the royal kitchen, Arthur grudgingly scrubbed pots while his negative aura filled the kitchen, keeping several other workers at a fearful distance from him. A low growl continued to roll through his mind.
If he even lays one hand on him…Merlin better come back the same as he left or…Garrick is a dead man…their rooms are even next to each other's! WHY?!
Annalisa watched anxiously from the other side of the room, regretting showing the strange and scary visitor to the kitchen.