Chapter 6

Jasmina couldn't sleep. No matter how much she tossed and turned, sleep would not come. The events of the last few days had taken their toll, and every memory screamed to be reexamined. Finally, Jasmina sat up.

She had debated with herself for hours about what was the right thing to do. Now, she had made a decision. She needed to see Gwen.

Jasmina quickly dressed herself and softly stole from her room. As she quietly made her way through the hall, a shadow slipped out one of the doors and followed her. If she had turned around, she would have seen Merlin following close behind. As it was, she left the castle behind and soon came to Gwen's house.

Merlin frowned. What was Jasmina doing here? Did Jasmina mean to hurt Gwen? Should he go for help? Yet something told him to stay, and he obeyed that impulse.

Jasmina was uncertain. What if this was no longer where Gwen lived? Even though she hadn't been in Camelot for many years, she knew her way to this house from every possible direction and could have arrived here blindfolded.

She hesitated for a minute or two. She raised her hand to knock on the door. "Lovely evening, isn't it?" Jasmina jumped, startled and Merlin in surprise quickly hid behind a nearby stall. There was a man leaning against the wall of Gwen's house. The moon was shining and Merlin could see his face. He felt a lump rise up in his throat. Alvarr.

"What are you doing you here?" asked Jasmina angrily. Alvarr chuckled.

"Really, Naomi. Is that anyway to greet an old friend?" Naomi? Merlin wondered why Alvarr had called her that. Was that her really name?

From where he was hiding Merlin could see Jasmina's eyes narrow and a fire seemed to spring forth in them. "Friend?" there was no mistaking the rage in her voice. "You're the one who killed my master and then threatened to kill me if I told anyone about you!"

"I did you a favor!" Alvarr snarled. "Your master was the one who snatched you away from your family, Naomi, and then made you his slave. You should be grateful. If it weren't for me you'd still me serving him."

"Oh, I was grateful." replied Naomi/Jasmina, suddenly calm, but still very angry, "I was grateful, but that was before you started doing your weird experiments on me. You treated me worse than he ever did. All I wanted was to go back to my family, but no, you wouldn't have that! You wouldn't let me go. But, I'll tell you something. I have my family back."

"Oh, I know all about your daughter, Naomi, your precious Guinevere." Merlin suddenly felt light headed. Naomi was Gwen's mother? But...how?

I should have seen it! It made perfect sense, he could see that now. That's why she had looked so familiar. Gwen was the exact image of her mother.

"And," added Alvarr, "if you don't do as I asked you to, you will never see her again. She'll have breathed her last."

"You wouldn't." said Naomi, fear now mixed with her rage.

"Oh, I would. See you tomorrow." Without another word, he slipped into the darkness and disappeared. Naomi watched him go. With a heart full of grief and dread, she turned and went to the castle.

Merlin lingered where he was, unsure of what to do. From all he had heard he gathered that Naomi was not a sorceress as Gaius had thought, but instead a woman fleeing from unhappy circumstances.

Naomi was Gwen's mother. Should he tell Gwen? From his friendship with her, he had learned that Gwen thought her mother had died when she was a small child. How would she feel about the truth? It wasn't her mother's fault that Gwen had grown up without her, but still...that wouldn't make it any easier.

Merlin finally got up and headed home. Never before had he felt so bewildered.