"How are you feeling?" Gaius asked Gwen as he checked her temperature and offered her some water to drink. Elyan, noting Gwen's reluctance to drink, took a mouthful of the water before offering it to Gwen. Gwen slowly sipped at the water and rested back against the pillows and looked at Elyan and Gaius. The last thing she could remember was being in the council room before everything had gone dark.
"What happened?" Gwen asked and Elyan took her hand tightly.
"You were poisoned." Elyan explained and Gwen sat up, looking at Gaius and Elyan.
"How?" Gwen asked.
"Morgana, somehow she managed to get poison into your water." Gaius explained and Gwen frowned at his explanation. There were so many questions that needed answered. How had Morgana been able to poison her? How had she even survived? What was her motive? Was it merely another attempt to steal the throne? Or was it something more than that? Even as she thought that, a chilling thought came to Gwen's mind; it wasn't a question, it was a fact.
Morgana knew she was pregnant.
"She knows." Gwen stated, causing Elyan and Gaius to look at her.
"How can you be sure?" Elyan asked. Gwen looked at her brother and rested her hand over her stomach to look at Gaius.
"Gaius, the baby?" Gwen asked and Gaius reassuringly rested his hand on her shoulder.
"The baby is fine; the antidote was specially brewed to heal any damage to the child. As long as you yourself remain healthy, then the baby will be fine." Gaius confirmed, it was one aspect of the healing enchantment that Merlin used that would reverse any damage that was done to both Gwen and the baby by the poison. Both Gwen and the baby were in perfect condition.
Gwen sighed and leant back against the pillow. "Thank you Gaius."
Gaius looked at Elyan and at Merlin who had just emerged from his bedroom. "It's not me you should be thanking."
"What do you mean? You made the antidote." Gwen reasoned. Why shouldn't she thank the person who had saved both her and her baby's lives?
"I made the antidote but that was only one part of the healing process. The antidote itself was useless without the incantation that fully removed the poison from your body." Gaius explained, causing Gwen to frown at what she had been told. Incantation. That meant that…
"Are you saying magic was used to cure me?" Gwen asked.
"We had no other option. It was either break the law or lose both of you. We couldn't do that. If we hadn't helped you then you would have died and Morgana would have taken power." Elyan explained. Gwen frowned and looked at her lap. Magic was evil yet magic was used to heal her. when you spend your life being raised with the belief that all magic is evil and has no benefit to anyone aside from a life of darkness or early death, being told that magic was used to save both your life and the life of your child; the one person you would do anything for; was a lot to take in. this changed everything she had ever thought about magic and there was a lot she needed to think about. Not at this moment in time however.
"How did she do it? I doubt even Morgana would be able to sneak into the castle kitchens, pour poison into a pitcher of water and leave without being caught." Gwen asked and Merlin looked at Gaius and Elyan before explaining.
"She managed to enchant Gwaine into poisoning your water. He had no idea what was happening and couldn't control it. We were able to remove the source of the enchantment, it was a necklace like the ones he usually wears. Gwaine's beating himself up about it." Merlin explained and Gwen shook her head.
"It wasn't his fault. People have succumbed to such enchantments before; I'm just glad you were able to save me. Who was it? Who used magic?" Gwen asked, that was what she really wanted to know. Who was the person who used magic to save her? It most certainly wasn't Morgana but who else did they know with magic?
"It was an old man. He didn't accept payment or anything. All he wanted was for you to be told that magic healed you." Elyan replied, it had been a strange request but it also made sense. If Dragoon knew Gwen was to be Queen, then he knew she would have the power someday to revoke the law on magic. That kind of reward wasn't one that came in the form of gold.
"What was his name?" Gwen asked curiously.
"Dragoon." Gaius replied and Gwen frowned. She had heard that name before and as Gwen thought about it, a memory came to mind of when she and Arthur had been caught by Uther.
Gwen hugged her knees and rested her forehead on them. Surely she had imagined that look on Morgana's face; a look of triumph as she was dragged away to her death. Yet she hadn't, Morgana had changed since she came back and she had seen her speaking to Morgause in the market. This was too much too disregard as coincidence. Morgana was not what she seemed, but what could Gwen do about it? She was going to be killed tomorrow for a crime she didn't commit. The only 'crime' she had committed was to fall in love and be loved in return. That wasn't a crime but supposedly enchanting the prince was. Gwen honestly didn't know how she was getting out of this one; it wasn't the first time she had been locked up, accused or sentenced to death. She had always gotten out of it somehow but it seemed that this time, her luck was all run out.
"Guards, release the woman."
No, it couldn't be.
"Sire, she has been sentenced to death. We cannot release her on the king's orders." One of the guards replied.
"The woman is innocent and the true culprit has been found. Release her." Arthur's voice said and the guards moved forward to unlock her cell door. Arthur stepped in, helping her to her feet. Gwen looked at Arthur confused and unable to speak but desperate for an explanation. The 'true culprit'? What did that mean?
"Guinevere," Arthur muttered as he guided her out of the dungeons and into an empty passageway.
"Arthur, what's happening?" Gwen asked, still confused at the change of events.
"Someone took the blame, for the poultice under my pillow. A sorcerer, he's being brought to the dungeons as we speak." Arthur replied and Gwen frowned at him.
"What? Who?" Gwen asked; who was this sorcerer who was claiming to have enchanted them both even though they clearly hadn't been under a spell.
"His name is Dragoon. I wonder why he did this." Arthur said and Gwen shrugged her shoulders, goodness only knew why that man risked his life for them. As Arthur escorted her home, Gwen knew one thing. If she ever met this Dragoon, she owed him a huge 'Thank You'.
"Who are you Dragoon?" Gwen muttered to herself as she gently rubbed her stomach, grateful beyond belief for whoever the mysterious Dragoon was.
"Gwen?" Merlin asked, fighting to keep the nerves out his voice. He needed to know if this changed whatever preconceptions Gwen had about magic; if saving her life had been enough for her to hopefully reconsider those with magic. Gwen looked up at Merlin who was standing beside her bed.
"What is it?" Gwen asked Merlin, there was something off about Merlin but she couldn't say what it was.
"I- I was just wondering if you wanted anything to eat. You've been unconscious for over a day." Merlin replied casually.
"Um, I don't want anything but the little one's asking for apples." Gwen replied and Merlin left the room quickly. As he left, Gaius glanced after Merlin and Elyan turned to Gwen.
"We could move you up to your chambers, let you rest properly." Elyan suggested and Gwen nodded. However as she attempted to stand; Gwen became light-headed and Elyan and Gaius quickly rushed to her side. Elyan slung Gwen's arm over his shoulder and picked her up. Slowly and carefully, Elyan carried Gwen out of Gaius' chambers with the physician following behind them just in case and they headed up two flights of stairs and down a passageway to Gwen's private chambers. As they walked, a few of the guards and servants that they came across, expressed their relief that Gwen had recovered.
When they reached Gwen's chambers, Elyan set Gwen onto the bed and a few minutes later Merlin entered the room with some apples in his hands and offered one to Gwen who bit into the skin and slowly chewed on the fruit. She still felt a bit tired and weak however her child was insisting on having apples.
"How are you feeling?" Merlin asked.
"A little bit better. I probably just need a bit more sleep." Gwen replied as she gave another bite of her apple before resting it on the small cabinet beside her bed and lying back on the soft mattress. Merlin, Gaius and Elyan took that as their cue to leave the room and they did so, gently shutting the door behind them.
Gwen rested her head on her pillow and thought about what had happened over the past day. Not just the fact that she had been poisoned but also the method and reasons behind it. Was Morgana really so determined to take the throne that she was willing to kill an unborn child? Her own nephew or niece? How much further would Morgana go to achieve her ends? How many more times would she have to risk her life or have her baby put in danger because of Morgana? Would they always be so lucky to survive?
Except it wasn't luck. It had been Dragoon, whoever that man was. Gwen thought about the man who had saved her and her baby's life. Who was this man? He hadn't just helped save her life and her baby's life but he had also saved Gwaine's life as well. If she had died, then Gwaine would be blamed and executed for Morgana's crime. Where was the justice in that? A good man possibly being wrongfully executed for something he could not control. Even if they hadn't discovered that Gwaine was under a spell before she had survived, he still could have faced the gallows or the block. Attempting to kill the heir of the throne was treason after all. Where was it all going to end?
Gwen lay back on her pillow, tired as she was, thanks to her thoughts, sleep was now eluding her completely.
Mithian and Rodor had been sitting in the room assigned to the Nemeth king when Sir Leon knocked on the door and they bid him enter. Sir Leon bowed at the royal visitors who looked at him with concern, unsure of what had happened since Lady Guinevere had collapsed in the council room the day before.
"How is Lady Guinevere?" Rodor asked, everyone was aware of the story of the woman who had been named as Arthur's heir in his will. The poor girl was probably out of her depth even before this attack on her.
"She has been given an antidote prepared by our physician and she should be expected to make a full recovery. We're all very sorry the meeting's been disrupted like this. Obviously none of us expected this to happen." Leon explained and Rodor shook his hand dismissively.
"As long as Lady Guinevere is recovering, that is what matters. Not the treaty." Rodor replied, he couldn't imagine anything like that happening to Mithian; his precious daughter.
"Would it be possible to see Lady Guinevere," Mithian asked and Leon looked unsure as he looked at the princess.
"I believe she's resting now but if she is up to seeing visitors then I'll see what I can do." Leon replied and Mithian nodded.
"I understand." Mithian said with a small smile.
"What of the child?" Rodor asked and Leon looked confused as the king gave him a knowing smile. "I am a father of three, I know when a woman is expecting."
"Oh," Leon replied, caught off-guard by the information and Mithian smiled prettily at him.
"Don't worry Sir Leon, secret-keeping is a family quality." Mithian said and Leon managed to smile back at the princess; noting just how beautiful the princess looked when she smiled.
"Thank you, Gwen is keeping it secret until her fourth month I think. Just in case, you understand." Leon replied, trusting and knowing that Mithian and Rodor would keep the news from the other kingdom leaders.
"We understand," Rodor replied and Leon nodded and left the room.
Agravaine walked down the corridor to see two of Arthur's gang of servant-soldiers who were in conversation with each other. It was Sirs Lancelot and Elyan and Agravaine stepped back around the corner to eavesdrop. Hopefully they were discussing the girl's death or at least its imminence.
"So where is Gwen now?" Lancelot asked Elyan.
'So the whore lives.' Agravaine thought to himself.
"In her chambers sleeping, where's Gwaine?" Elyan asked. He knew that Gwaine was most likely still beating himself up over his forced hand in Gwen's poisoning. All of them knew that Gwaine would sooner kill himself than harm Gwen and especially the baby.
"Still beating himself up." Lancelot confirmed. "Has she seen him yet?"
"No, it'll do them both good though. Gwaine knows he's not to blame here." Elyan said as they turned and continued walking down the corridor.
Agravaine remained standing against the wall and felt rage build up in his blood. How? How had the whore survived? Agravaine turned and hurried down the corridor to his chambers. The lord grabbed his cloak and slung it over his shoulders. Morgana needed to know that her plan had failed. How was it that the whore and her illegitimate brat had survived an all but fatal dose of poison? Agravaine walked down to the stables and snapped at the stable boys to saddle his horse before taking off into the woods to find Morgana. When he arrived at her hovel, Agravaine dismounted and knocked at Morgana's door and a few moments later, Morgana opened the door and looked at him expectantly.
"Is she dead?" Morgana asked.
"No, somehow she survived. Her and her brat." Agravaine explained and Morgana punched the door in anger, feeling some of the wood splinter slightly in her hand.
"How?" Morgana shouted.
"I don't know." Agravaine replied.
Morgana ignored him. This was completely unexpected. The cure could only have worked with the use of magic. Nobody in Camelot had magic so how had they managed to survive? As Morgana tried to work out the riddle of Gwen's survival, the details about the dream she had had the night before came back with a vengeance. Morgana knew how Gwen and her brat had survived. There was only one person who must have done such a thing; had the power to do such a thing. Why must he do this? Why must he be so determined to keep her from what was rightfully hers?
"Emrys." Morgana said. Emrys had done this. "No matter. Next time we will simply make sure that when we kill her; Emrys won't be able to save her."
It was the gentle knocking at the door which roused Gwen from sleep. Gwen sat up in her bed from where she had fallen asleep on the covered and absent-mindedly ran a hand over her hair as she asked the person at the door to enter. To her surprise, Gwaine walked into the room. The knight was being uncharacteristically quiet and looked at the floor until he reached Gwen's bed and awkwardly cleared his throat.
"How are you Gwaine?" Gwen asked and Gwaine gave a small smile.
"I should be asking you that." Gwaine replied as he moved his hand from behind his back to offer Gwen a bowl of apples. "I was hoping to get you flowers but it's January and Merlin said you were craving apples."
"Thank you Gwaine, we really appreciate that." Gwen said as she took a few more bites of the apple Merlin had left her earlier before leaving the core on the table. Gwaine set the bowl onto the table and reached for Gwen's hand.
"Gwen… I cannot begin to apologise for what I did. You know I would never willingly do anything to hurt you or my nephew or niece. Believe me, if I knew what I was doing; I would never have done it. I am so sorry." Gwaine apologised profusely and Gwen squeezed his hand tightly.
"Gwaine, there's no need to apologise. All of this was Morgana's doing. It's her fault, not yours." Gwen reassured as she moved over and wrapped her arms tightly around Gwaine. "You've been like a brother to me and I know you would never willingly hurt me or the baby so don't worry."
"Thanks," Gwaine replied as he sniffed and quickly wiped his eyes. "It's a bit dusty in here."
"I know," Gwen replied knowingly as she hugged Gwaine again and rested against her pillows before reaching for one of the apples and biting into the skin. "Thanks for the apples, the little one seems to have their uncle's love of them."
"Uncle?" Gwaine asked and Gwen smiled at him and rested a hand on her stomach. At three months, she was still yet to feel the baby kick but according to Gaius that was soon to start happening.
"Like I said Gwaine, you're like a brother to me. The baby might be without a father but he or she's going to have six uncles looking after them." Gwen reassured with a smile as she hugged Gwaine again tightly.
She meant what she said to Gwaine; Arthur maybe gone and she still missed him more and more every day but Gwen knew that no matter what happened next, whatever Morgana tried, as long as she had Merlin and the knights with her; then she and the baby would get through anything.