Alethea couldn't believe it. She had had a perfect day with Arthur, just enjoying his company and taking in new sights as they rode along. It had all been going well, even when they'd had a small disagreement over the Prince coming home with her. She could not deny that she hadn't thought about it. She had been a bit nervous at first considering she had never sat on a horse before, let alone ridden on one, but as time progressed she had gotten quite used to it. She had enjoyed sitting by the lake all afternoon, watching the dragonflies and listening to the croaks of green frogs and then being led through the forest as the sun began to set. She had admired the scenery, even if most of the trees didn't have leaves and smiled slightly as they came to a stop in a small clearing. She didn't know what Arthur was up to, otherwise she would have stopped him before he had even started. Letting the horse graze, she looked to the sky where there was the most gorgeous sunset that Alethea had ever laid eyes on. It was beautiful, and the perfect way to end a brilliant day. However this was soon to change. Before she could even ask what he was doing, the prince had took her hand in his and was down on one knee. Knowing what he was about to do next, she was filled with the overwhelming urge to run and not look back, but her feet stayed firmly planted on the ground. It was when he presented the ring that she felt like screaming.

"Alethea, my Lady Alethea, I love you and I ask you, will you do me the greatest honour of becoming my wife? You are already Queen of my heart, but will you be my Princess?" he asked, waiting for an answer. Alethea could not bring herself to meet his eyes for she knew what she would see and she didn't want to have to do this. She didn't want to break his heart, but he had just presented her with the biggest and worst decision of her life so far.

"Arthur, I would love to marry you but…" she answered, still refusing to meet his gaze.

"But what?" The Prince was confused and Alethea had to close her eyes, already feeling the lump form in her throat.

"I love you so much that it hurts my heart, but Arthur, I cannot marry you."

"Cannot? Or will not?"

"Both." she answered, biting her lip and opening her eyes to see a crestfallen Prince still kneeling at her feet.

"But why?"

"The story doesn't go this way. I'm not meant to be here."

"To hell with the story. I love you Alethea."

"And I love you but…but I don't belong here. You and I both know that I can't stay forever."

"That doesn't matter. Alethea, please, be my wife."

"Arthur, you have to understand, I might be pulled home at any time in the future. I have a family and friends who will no doubt be missing me by now and I am very much missing them. You have to know that I love you, and I would willingly marry you, but we both know it isn't meant to be." she told him, tears falling from her eyes.

"It doesn't matter. I love you."

"Arthur, please, don't make me choose between you and my family." she begged him.

"But…" he objected. Unable to take much more of this, Alethea tore her hand from his grasp and ran, not daring to look back.

Letting her feet carry her through the woods, tears continued to fall down Alethea's face as brambles tore at her clothes and her flesh. She ignored the pain and ran. She ran as far away as possible from that clearing where her Prince, her beloved Arthur, was kneeling. She couldn't face him now. She wouldn't be able to cope with the look of disappointment in his eyes. She had just turned him down. She had just turned down the offer of a lifetime, and had broken her own heart in the process. If it had been a different situation, if she had actually no reason to go home or she had been born in this time then yes, of course she would have married him, but she was a girl from a different time. She knew the legends and knew that she was not meant to be In them. She knew that it was Guinevere who was to be Arthur's Queen, not Alethea and if she changed the legends then perhaps she would change the future. Cursing as she stumbled, she picked herself back up and continued to run until she was out of breath. Her clothes snagged at the branches and were nothing more than rags by the time she came to a stop.

Catching her breath, Alethea sank to her knees and sobbed uncontrollably. She couldn't stop the tears from coming and she didn't want to either. It had been such a nice day up until that moment. If it had been any other way then she would have accepted but it hadn't. She knew that she couldn't stay and live out the rest of her life here in Camelot. No matter how much she wished to, she just couldn't. It was too different from her home and although she had no problem in getting used to these, she knew she would never truly be happy, even with Arthur by her side. She already missed her family and her friends. To know that she would never see them again… Well, she would either become ill or feel guilty for the rest of her life for abandoning them. Yes this was a once in a lifetime experience, but no matter how much she wanted Arthur as a husband, her family came first. She knew this, and had sworn never to let a boy get in between them, but now it had happened and there was nothing she could do. Her heart was torn between family loyalty and love for her Prince. She knew that she could turn around now, find Arthur and apologise, tell him that she wasn't thinking straight but yes she would be his wife, but she didn't move. Then she realised, she was lost in the forest.

With the sun setting fast, Alethea knew that to move now would be madness. She had an idea that the forest at night would be filled with bandits and cutthroats who wouldn't hesitate to attack an unarmed Lady travelling on her own. She also knew that she would probably only get herself more lost in the dark and that wasn't a good thing either. Hearing the cry of a wolf in the distance, she shivered and wrapped her cloak tight around her before fiddling with her pendant. Oh home felt like a long way away now, and it felt like years since she was last in college, but she knew that no matter how much she missed them at the moment, she hadn't got the will to leave Camelot just yet. Even if she did want to leave, she knew that only Merlin could help her and if Arthur spoke to him then… Then chances were, she wouldn't be going home any time soon. Sighing and drying her eyes, she thought back on home. She'd argued over the silliest of things with her parents, but now all she wanted to do was give them massive hugs. She could have done with her mum at that moment. She would know what to do. Then again, had her mum been there then Alethea wouldn't be in this situation. Smiling slightly, she leant against a tree and knew that by now, Arthur was probably frantic with worry.

She knew that he would have probably chased after her, but she had been too quick for him, and she didn't have any swords to weigh her down. She also knew that he would probably have gone to Camelot to arrange a search party when he found that she wasn't there. She could just see them all running about, trying to work out just where she had gone. With a sad smile on her face, Alethea knew that the Prince loved her. She hadn't expected to fall in love with him. He'd tried to have her executed the moment she arrived in Camelot for God's sake, but he had also helped her to escape. She had hated him during her time with Nimueh, but not so much that she could kill him, even if it had meant suffering quite a lot of pain. It had been worth it. She hadn't known then, but it was Arthur's conversation with her after her escape that had helped her to decide her feelings, and from then on she had just grown to love him. Now, after everything that had happened between them, Alethea knew that she loved him with her whole heart, but she knew that she could not marry him. It wasn't meant to be.

As the air grew colder and the wolves cries came closer, Alethea knew that she would never survive the night here in the forest alone. Seeing the moon shine brightly in the sky, she knew that she had a better chance of living if she kept on moving. And if Arthur had gotten a search party together by now then she had a greater chance of bumping into one of them on the forest tracks. Painfully getting to her feet, she found her way onto the track and with the moon and stars to guide her, she followed the path, praying that she would reach Camelot safe and sound. At first she was alright, thinking about random things, including her time at college, particularly one lunch break where they had all been messing about and instead of saying hello to each other, they had said chin-chan-chow, but she then became distracted by the sound of a twig snapping. She then began to get paranoid of course, jumping at every movement or sound. An owl hooted not far away before flying off in search of its prey, scaring Alethea half to death. Calming her rapidly beating heart, she pretty quickly broke into a run before she came into sight of Camelot. Seeing its walls illuminated by the moonlight, she allowed herself a small smile. She was almost safe now.

Calling out to the man on the gate, she was allowed in but she didn't go to see Arthur. Instead, with a heavy heart, she crossed the town and entered the courtyard. Seeing Arthur's horse, she knew that he was back, but Alethea didn't head to her room. Letting her feet take her to the Physicians chambers, she didn't have a clue of the time but knew that she would be able to find help there. Pushing all thoughts of the day's events to the back of her mind, she climbed the stairs and knocked on the door, praying that Merlin would be there. She needed a friend to talk to, and Merlin was the closest thing she had to a best friend in Camelot. When she got no answer, she knocked again, beginning to feel quite sleepy but also hungry at the same time. She realised that she hadn't eaten since lunch and fancied something to eat. Perhaps some toast if she could get some, but any food would do. Knocking again, she wondered if she had woken Gaius.

"Alright, alright." she heard someone shout and before long the door was opened. Gaius seemed surprised but he took in Alethea's appearance and immediately let her in. "Alethea, what happened to you? The castle is going mad with worry."

"I…I…" And she promptly burst into tears once more, letting tears fall down her now dirty cheeks. She must look like a state, she thought as she was made to sit down. Hugging her knees, she watched as Gaius lit some more candles and put some more wood on the fire.

"Is it the Prince?" Alethea simply nodded, unable to find her voice. "Did he…try…anything?"

"No…He proposed." she sniffed before fiddling with one of the tears in her clothes.

"Ah. And you said?"

"I turned him down Gaius. I love him, and I turned down the one chance I had of being with him forever."

"You regret it?"

"Very much so." she explained, beginning to feel the warmth of the fire. "But it isn't my destiny nor his. I cannot stay here for the rest of my life. We're just too different. We grew up centuries apart. I am not even supposed to be here and yet… Yet I love it here."

"I understand. I take it you ran from him?" Alethea nodded. "Just scratches?"

"The brambles. I'm a bit cold as well."

"Nothing that I can't sort out. Does Arthur know that you're back?" The old physician asked as he began to make up a mixture of some sort. Alethea watched as he did so, seeing that he had some ginger on his table and smiled slightly.

"No. You're the first person I came to. I can't face him."

"Not after what you did?" he asked.

"I ran from him. I hurt him Gaius. I broke his heart and tore up all his dreams and threw them all in his face. And he wouldn't understand. He doesn't know me as much as he thinks he does. He's making me choose between my family and him."

"He will understand Alethea, believe me. If he loves you as much as he thinks he does, he will understand. Now this may sting a little bit."

Her cuts soothed and feeling a little bit better, Alethea stayed sat down with a hot drink and a blanket wrapped around her. Gaius had calmed her down and Alethea was now feeling more happier than she had been earlier. Wondering where Merlin was, she was told that he was with the Prince but not long after, the young warlock came running into the room.

"Alethea's gone. Arthur's going mad with worry and we're going to go and find her." he said without pausing for breath. Alethea smiled slightly as she felt her eyelids grow heavy.

"She's here." Gaius answered. "Has been for about half an hour. She and…"

"I know. Is she alright?"

"Just shaken. You'd best tell Arthur that she's here." And as Merlin left, Alethea stopped fighting sleep and let herself be carried off into the world of dreams. A world where nothing and no one could get to her and all her worries would be forgotten. A world where the day's events could be forgotten.