More to Chapter 19! Enjoy!

Chapter 20

"Wow, look at this place! It's amazing!"

"Sure, amazing. Let's go with that. Forget that it's packed with thousands of people, that giant machines carry people into the air from this place. Did you know that aeroplanes crash? Yes, apparently, every so often, a plane just stops working up in the sky and crash-lands in an open field, or the ocean, maybe a lake..." The Prince-Regent had developed an obvious nervous tick, visibly cringing at the very thought of any one of those options.

"Oh, come on! You're just being negative, now!" Merlin clapped a hand on his master's shoulder and gestured to the Future Queen of Camelot. She had gone up to the ticket counter with her father, asking about procedures with regard to strollers and baby bags. "Kelly's flown many times, and she's still here."

"Yep, and it will likely be my flight in which something goes wrong, and I'm going to wind up in pieces." Arthur visibly paled, clutching the handle of his suitcase for dear life. "All right, I'm seriously considering your Ativan offer. How does this stuff work?"

"Just settles your nerves, that's all. You're so keyed up that it would be a good idea to take something." Merlin handed Arthur the small bottle of pills that Kelly had slipped him earlier. If she had suggested such a thing, Arthur would have staunchly refused, allowing his pride to alter his decisions. But if Merlin were to bring it up, it might not be so easily dismissed...That and, Kelly had warned Merlin that if Arthur went off the rails on board a flight, they could all be very easily kicked off in the middle of some obscure little town.. And that, Merlin determined, would not happen.

Arthur paused in the corridor, took the bottle of water his manservant offered, and popped an Ativan tablet. "This had better work," he groaned.

They got through Security and finally got to the boarding gate where families, the elderly and the infirm were offered the chance to board first. The small group took this offer, soon walking the tunnel leading to the aircraft entrance.

It wasn't until they've set foot on the plane that Arthur stopped, grabbing the door frame with outstretched arms. A sharp nudge from his father-in-law propelled him clumsily forward, and he forced several deep breaths as he took in the small, confined space, heard the whine of the plane's massive engines, felt the vibration beneath his feet...

Merlin nodded at Kelly, assuring her that he had this situation under control—as he handed the tablets back to the doctor. She smiled when she realized that Merlin had gotten the Prat to take the medication. He forced a straight face, moving ahead of his master. "Arthur, let's just get to our seats, now..."

Brigadier General Anderson leaned forward and asked softly, "Did you manage to sedate your man, sweetheart?" He knew the Prince could be stubborn as hell, and he was relieved to see that someone had managed to do something. He'd never encountered anyone quite so afraid of flying, but he supposed the strangeness of this technology played a huge role in Arthur's fears. The man was, after all, accustomed to riding horses and wearing armour, fighting with swords and not guns...All right, there was a bit of a gap between the two worlds...

~.~.~

Once in the air, with the medication having taken effect, Arthur sat watching his eldest child draw with one of her portable art studios. Alexandra seemed perfectly content, smiling brightly when the flight stewardess offered her a juice box. The woman was just as kind when asked if she could heat a bottle for Marissa. The baby was content to sit and stare at Arthur while seated on his lap.

"I feel like an idiot for the way I behaved in the airport," he confessed, turning his gaze to where his wife sat listening to her Iphone. Realizing she hadn't even heard his admission, he settled back and continued to make funny faces that made Marissa giggle.

David stepped over and held his arms out toward the father-daughter duo. "Here, son, hand me my grand-baby. Marissa and Grampa have some bonding to do," he said with a grin. Truly, he thought the Prince could use some quiet time to adapt to his surroundings, maybe watch the movie...He still seemed tense, though the Ativan did wonders to cap his panic response.

Alexandra turned her head and pouted slightly. "Grandpa, what about me?"

"Hey, now, you get your ol' Grampa all the time, half-pint," David admonished gently, taking the baby up over Kelly's head and into his arms. "Marissa needs her turn, too. I'll change over in a bit, and you and I can watch Mulan when it starts. How 'bout that?"

Alexandra squealed and grinned. "They're showing Mulan? That's so cool!" She considered this and nodded her agreement. "Okay, you're on. Movie date!"

David linked pinkies with his eldest granddaughter and laughed, nodding. "That's right. See you in half an hour. Don't be late," he teased.

Alexandra spread her arms in illustration, glancing all about. "Grampa, where am I gonna go?"

David grinned and walked away with a gurgling Marissa in his arms. "You folks enjoy your down-time. I'll just be entertaining this one, now, right peanut?" The baby suddenly shrieked and swiped at her grandfather out of sheer joy. Passengers looked on with, some with irritation, and some with obvious amusement over the older man's cheerful antics.

Hands now empty, Arthur sat back and looked around his small, assigned space. There were buttons for lighting overhead, there was a 'call' button to summon the airline steward/stewardess, buttons to change radio stations and television stations...Buttons controlled this world. It was the strangest thing. He narrowed his eyes and studied the topside of the crowded aircraft. Satisfied that nothing was out of place, he finally closed his eyes and-

-THUMP! The entire plane shook, making more than a few of the passengers nervous.

"Whatwasthat?" The words flew out of the Regent's mouth, and his hand shot out to grab his wife's hand. His eyes were wide with alarm, and he kept glancing around, expecting to see the source of trouble.

A crackle sounded over the speakers, and a calm male voice spoke. "Good afternoon, folks. This is your Captain speaking. We...apologize for that little bit of turbulence," he said smoothly, his voice completely devoid of stress. "We are travelling at an altitude of thirty-five thousand feet, we got ourselves a nice, clear sky, and it looks like fairly smooth sailing from here on in. Thank you for flying American Airlines."

When the announcement ended, Arthur muttered, "Smooth sailing my ass..." Kelly shot him a reprimanding, albeit amused, glance, shaking her head. "What? The plane shakes around, and I'm supposed to be all right with that?" Arthur hissed, visibly rattled.

Kelly removed one earphone and levelled a gaze on her husband. "Air turbulence is completely normal, Arthur. It's just crossing jet streams, sometimes a shift in weather pattern—but we've got clear skies. We're fine," she assured him, setting a calming hand on his tensed arm. "Relax. We'll live through this, we'll land at JFK, and we'll have a week to take in a new and exciting place. It's all good."

Meeting his wife's placating gaze, Arthur nodded shakily and shut his eyes again, not before staring at the ceiling and praying to the Gods for his very survival on board this death trap. He heard a chuckle off to his left, in the window seat. Arthur glared at Merlin. "What are you cackling at, you idiot?"

Merlin forced a straight face, then, shaking his head. "N-nothing." He paused and gestured with his hand. "Arthur, you've fought the Questing Beast," he began quietly. "You've fought Cenred's entire army...and yet a little shaking of a flight craft sends you screaming for the hills. Try to take perspective," he urged.

Arthur shifted uneasily in his seat, trying to get a little more room to stretch out under these cramped conditions. "Easy for you to say," he muttered. "You have only to wave your hand and flash gold eyes, and you'll be wherever you want to be. If this plane goes down, I go with it, as does my family. Hardly seems fair."

Merlin chuckled again, patting his friend's arm. "You know I'd never let that happen," he said with entirely too much amusement, still shaking his head. "Prat."

"Clotpole."

"Hey, that's my line!"

"Yeah, well-"

-"Guys, enough!"

Uncomfortable under Kelly's exasperated gaze, both the men slunk lower in their seats and pretended to find something interesting to stare at on the seats in front of them.