The banquet was full of lots of different kinds of food Merlin had never seen before. Gaius said he could go as long as he behaved himself. And that was how Merlin found himself sitting Next to Gwaine and Leon. Arthur was up at the big table with Uther and Morgana. Gwen and George were standing behind them. The nobles were all mingling and talking, no one was paying attention to the food. Merlin let out a sigh and stared longingly at the ham that was in front of him.
"Leon, when are we gonna eat?" he asked.
"In a little bit, Merlin. Be patient. It takes time to greet everyone and congratulate all the finalists," he explained. So far, Arthur, Lancelot, Kay, and the man who had hurt Gwaine were the finalists. They were all up at the front as well. Merlin felt a poke to his side and turned towards Gwaine. Gwaine winked at him and slipped a roll into Merlin's hand.
"Don't tell Leon," he whispered into Merlin's ear. Merlin giggled and began pulling little bites off the roll and popping them into his mouth whenever Leon wasn't looking.
"Sir Gwaine," a voice said. Gwaine and Merlin looked up to see the man standing there. Gwaine stiffened next to Merlin.
"Sorry I can't stand to greet you. You kind of broke my ankle," he said. His voice didn't sound as happy as Merlin was used to. The man bowed his head.
"I am terribly sorry. You were very skilled and I fear I may have panicked in an effort to win. My name is Valiant, by the way," he said.
"Well, thank you for the apology. Have a good evening," Gwaine said. Valiant looked a little taken aback by Gwaine's harshness and walked away.
"Well you handled that much better than when I had first met you," Leon said.
"Well I couldn't let on that I had convinced Lester to put worms in his boots," Gwaine said, his face breaking into a wide smile. Leon's eyes widened and he whipped his head around to see if anyone heard. Merlin began to protest the use of harmless animals in a prank. The worms could get hurt if they were in Valiant's boots. "I'm kidding. I haven't done anything like that. Besides, he probably won't win against Kay tomorrow anyways. That man doesn't fight so much as beat you into the ground."
"That doesn't sound very nice," Merlin said, finishing off his roll and relaxing a little. As long as Gwaine wasn't going to hurt any worms he didn't care. Leon patted his shoulder.
"I'm sure it will be fine, Merlin. Just try and enjoy yourself tonight."
"I would enjoy myself a lot better if I could eat. Leon, I'm starving," Merlin whined. Leon was about to answer then he spotted Uther coming towards them. Leon quickly stood, as did Merlin.
"Sir Leon, I am happy how smoothly this tournament is going. I trust the theater festival will be just as successful?" he said. Leon gave a small bow. Merlin quickly mimicked him.
"Of course, sire. I have been working night and day to ensure nothing goes awry," Leon responded.
"Good. I would like to ask your opinions on this Valiant fellow," Uther said. Leon raised an eyebrow.
"What about him?" he asked.
"Well, he is a talented fighter, no doubt. I do believe he has some of the best endurance I've seen in awhile. How do you think he would fair as a knight?" Uther asked. Gwaine choked on his wine and began coughing violently. Merlin sat down and started rubbing his back.
"Well, he's a bit rough around the edges. I haven't really talked with him all that much. But you are right about his endurance and skill. Perhaps he can stay here and start training. If it doesn't work out, then no harm done," Leon answered. Uther nodded.
"Good. I do believe I will offer that position to them. Have a good evening," he said before walking back to the table. Leon sat down with a thump. He always hated talking to Uther. It was always a mystery whether what he said would be received well or not.
"Leon, how could you suggest that?" Gwaine said.
"Gwaine, he's a good fighter. He beat you and several other knights. We could use him in our army," Leon explained.
"There is something off about him. He beat me with moves I had invented. How could he have known about some of those tricks?" Gwaine snapped.
"Believe it or not, Gwaine, it is rather hard to come up with anything original. If he had a similar upbringing to yours that could be why he fought so much like you. I know he broke your ankle and some of your ribs. But he didn't mean to. A few months of training to teach him better control and it will be fine," Leon hissed. Gwaine scowled and whipped back to his plate. The servants had started serving the banquet and filling the plates with food. Merlin patted him on the back.
"Don't worry, Gwaine. Everything will work out," Merlin said. Gwaine ruffled his hair.
"I sure hope so, kid."
oOoOoOo
Arthur wasn't a big fan of Valiant. He was kind of a braggart soldier, to be honest. And what the hell kind of a name was Valiant anyways? Then again, Gwaine was a braggart soldier and Lancelot was an equally ridiculous name. But there was something about him that rubbed Arthur the wrong way. It was probably because the man seemed awfully insistent of chatting up Morgana.
Arthur knew that his sister was one of the toughest people in the world. Hell, if Valiant did anything Morgana didn't like there was a very likely chance he would be walking out of here with a broken wrist. But Morgana didn't seem to be her normal, cold self. She was laughing and flipping her hair worse than when they were twelve and she had wanted to impress Leon. She managed to get her hair stuck in a bush and no one could get it untangled, leading to Morgana just cutting off her hair.
Arthur looked to where Leon was sitting, hoping he would see what Morgana was doing and invite her to dance or something. But no, he was trying to keep track of where Merlin was and how much Gwaine was drinking. Lancelot nudged his side.
"Don't worry, I'm sure Kay will win tomorrow. Though that means one of us will have to go against him," he said. Arthur shook his head.
"My father is thinking of inviting him to become a knight. Could you imagine?" Arthur said.
"Can't be any worse than Gwaine," Lancelot replied, chuckling.
"I would be very afraid if he was actually worse than Gwaine. How would that even be possible?" Arthur gasped. Valiant leaned over and caught Arthur's attention.
"My lord, your father has offered me the opportunity to train under you for a few months to decide if I am suited for knighthood. Is this pleasing to you, my lord?" Valiant asked.
~Oh great,~ Arthur thought to himself. ~Another bootlicker.~
"No need to be so formal, Valiant. The night is young and there is plenty of wine to drink," Arthur said. Valiant let out a laugh and tipped up his goblet.
"Some nobles are not so open. They are rather stiff," he said. Lancelot nodded.
"We're not like other nobles," he said.
"I think that a few months training would be good. There is more to being a knight than just swinging a sword," Kay laughed.
"He's right. There's a whole code you have to memorize," Arthur said.
"It's really not that hard. There's only like twelve things on it," Lancelot said.
"Yes, but Lance, you're the perfect knight. Seriously, Valiant, if you're looking to be perfect and make all the women swoon, this is your competition. And maybe Gwaine, at least with the women, not so much with the knighthood," Kay said. Valiant tilted his head back and laughed.
"Then I will accept the position. I can't wait to learn more under your leadership," he said.
~Still sounding like a bootlicker,~ Arthur scowled. Morgana tugged Valiant back towards her where she talked more about what Camelot had to offer. Arthur rolled is eyes and downed another cup. He couldn't drink too much tonight. He still had to go against Lancelot in the afternoon and did not want to lose in front of his father, even if it was against one of the best knights Camelot had ever seen.
oOoOoOo
As expected, Arthur won against Lancelot. Though, to be fair it was neck and neck for most of the fight. In the end, it seemed as though Lancelot just wanted the fight to end so he just allowed Arthur to get the winning point. Arthur couldn't blame him. He was pretty close to just throwing down his sword and letting Lancelot win.
Merlin was chattering away about the feast last night and how much he enjoyed all of the deserts. Arthur nodded and tried to be patient, he just really wanted his armor off. Once again, though, Merlin couldn't reach the top parts, leaving Arthur only half dressed.
Morgana strolled in right as Merlin toppled to the ground, unable to detach the breast plate from the shoulder pad. Morgana laughed and pulled Merlin up.
"Careful there. Why don't you go see if Gwen needs any help and I'll finish up here," she said. Merlin's face split into a smile.
"Okay, I can't wait to tell her about the cake I had last night," Merlin said, skipping out of the tent.
"Thank you for getting rid of my manservant. I might actually need him," Arthur snapped.
"Please, he barely does any work. You spoil him," Morgana replied.
"I think you spoil him more. I know you slip him oranges and strawberries from your dinner plate when we're eating with father," Arthur said.
"Yes well, you can't really say no to that face. Besides, Gaius says fruits are good for him. Now, lets get you out of this so we can see if Valiant wins or not," Morgana said, successfully managing to pull off some of the remaining pieces of armor.
"Someone's a little smitten," Arthur scoffed. Morgana punched his chest, hard.
"I am not. I just happen to think that Valiant is more down to earth than some selfish prats I know," she snapped.
"So we've moved on from Leon?" Arthur asked. Morgana punched him again.
"The winner accompanies me to the feast."
"And you would rather go with Valiant than me? I had no idea your standards were so low," Arthur said.
"Watch it or I'll turn you into a frog." Morgana snapped.
"You wouldn't dare. How would you explain that to father?" Arthur said. Morgana smirked.
"Maybe I'll turn him into a frog and take over Camelot. Lord knows I would be a better ruler than you," she said. Arthur shook his head.
"I have a feeling I should be watching my back around you. Sometimes it's like you don't even like me," Arthur said, grinning. Morgana tossed her hair back.
"Wow, you finally figured it out. My dastardly plans are ruined." She smiled.
"Well, lets go see if Valiant wins or loses. I need to know what I'm up against," Arthur said, trotting out of the tent. Morgana walked beside him.
"But really, it would be weird for you to take me to the banquet, since we are siblings."
"Yes, but I was more thinking of my pride. You wouldn't want me to be humiliated in front of all of Camelot, now would you?" Arthur asked.
"I don't care about your pride. I care about my sanity. That's way more important," Morgana said. The two sat beside Leon and waited for the next match to begin.
oOoOoOo
Valiant was limbering up, ready to take up this Sir Kay. He was massive, much more massive than the other knight, Sir Percival. He wondered if Nimueh's blade and shield would be able to do the trick. So far, he hadn't had to use the snakes. And look, he was already offered a position to be a knight. This plan was going much more smoothly than he had originally imagined. He wondered if he should lose this fight. No, no, he still had the Lady Morgana to impress. If he won, he would accompany her to the feast.
"Don't get too comfortable. You haven't secured your position yet," Nimueh said. Valiant spun around.
"I haven't seen you in awhile," he said.
"I've been busy with preparations for the next stage. I know you're fighting Kay today. If you win, you need to throw the match with the prince," she said. Valiant let out a snort.
"I don't think so. I need to impress the Lady Morgana," he said. Nimueh gripped his shoulder and pulled him close to her. Now she was terrifying.
"I don't think you understand. Prince Arthur is the best fighter this kingdom has seen in a long time. You have never been formally trained. It would not do to have you win against him. It would be too suspicious. Besides, if you do win, the prince's ego will be bruised and he might not trust you. Throw the match. If you don't, I will kill you and find another pawn that will listen to me," she hissed. Valiant swallowed thickly and nodded.
"Alright. I understand." He was starting to regret ever agreeing to this woman's schemes. He still wasn't entirely sure what her plan was. He knew she wanted to kill Arthur, but there was a component Valiant wasn't told about.
"Good. Have fun," she said, disappearing once again. There was a knock at the door.
"Come in," Valiant said, slicking back his hair. The door opened to reveal the physician and the little brat who was with Gwaine and Leon at the feast last night.
"Valiant, my name is Gaius. I don't think we've formally met," the physician said, extending his hand. Valiant took it and released it quickly. The boy was sulking behind Gaius.
"Do you need something?" Valiant asked. Gaius stepped further inside and began rummaging through his bag. The boy started to poke around the room.
"Yes, I have some tonics here to relieve muscle cramps." Gaius started rambling on and handing Valiant some potions.
Merlin, meanwhile, saw the shield. It looked kind of cool. The snakes were his favorite part. They reminded him of wingless dragons. He wondered if he should tell Kilgharrah about his thoughts. He squatted down to get a closer look. He wondered if the shield was smooth. It didn't look that smooth. He reached out to touch the wood when a large hand wrapped around his wrist and yanked him back. Merlin let out a yelp and realized that it was Valiant who had done it. The shield clattered to the floor, onto its front.
"Don't touch things that don't belong to you, little boy," Valiant snarled.
"Sir, please let the boy go. He meant no harm," Gaius said. Valiant released Merlin's arm and Merlin dropped to the floor. Gaius hobbled over to Merlin and helped him stand up. His eyes widened looking at the back of the shield, more specifically, at a symbol on the back of the shield.
"Where did you get this from?" he asked. Valiant began to panic. Had he been found out?
"My father gave it to me as a gift. He said it's from Mercia," Valiant lied. Gaius nodded.
"I see. Try not to react so violently towards children, sir. The prince will not tolerate this behavior," Gaius said before leading Merlin out. Once they were gone, Valiant cursed. How could he have been so stupid? Now that damn physician and brat were suspicious of him on top of the knight he had hurt earlier in the week. He had to tread carefully if he was going to keep in Uther's favor.
oOoOoOo
"Does your wrist hurt, Merlin?" Gaius asked. Merlin shook his head. "Well, that's good. He looked like he grabbed you rather hard," Gaius said.
"Gaius, is something wrong?" Merlin asked. Gaius shook his head.
"I don't know. I must do more research first."
"Does it have something to do with Valiant?" Merlin asked.
"Don't worry about it, Merlin. Just enjoy the rest of the tournament. Besides, you promised Leon you would help him set up for the actors that are coming. Are you excited to see the plays?" Gaius asked. Merlin's face split into a wide grin and he began chattering excitedly about the upcoming even. Gaius let out a sigh of relief. At least Merlin's attention span was short.
