Thanks for the continued support and reviews. This chapter is set after the wedding, but also after episode 12 of series one. Hope you enjoy and please review.
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They woke early the morning after the wedding in each others arms, with the sweat drenched sheets wrapped around their tangled bodies. The Princess Alethea was draped over Prince Arthur, her head resting on the his chest. Both wore contented smiles on their faces and woke at around the same time, just seconds apart.
''Good morning husband'' Alethea said with great joy and a grin on her lips. She still couldn't believe just how lucky she was to be married to such a handsome man and Prince Arthur of Camelot of all men. So many people would kill to be in her position, but Alethea had somehow managed to become his wife, even though she hadn't had this intention when she had first arrived in Camelot so long ago.
''Good morning Princess.'' Arthur smiled before leaning over and brushing his lips against hers. "Sleep well?"
"I think you know the answer to that." she smirked making Arthur chuckle.
''By the way, do you have honeymoons here?'' she asked after a moment or two.
''Honeymoons?'' The Prince asked, somewhat confused, and Alethea couldn't help but notice just how cute he looked with a puzzled expression, his eyebrows furrowed and a cute little frown on his lips.
''When a couple get married they usually go on a holiday, a trip for a few days after the ceremony '' she explained. "Or at least they do where I'm from."
''I'm afraid I've never heard of them'' he told her ''but there's nothing stopping us from going on one.'' he added, sensing her disappointment.
'' Then in which case, where shall we go? And when will we leave?'' she asked eagerly.
'' Today if my father will let us, or we get Merlin and Ceridwen to cover for us if not, and around the kingdom?'' He suggested.
''Show me what we'll be looking after?'' The Prince nodded. ''Then it's perfect.''
''Good. Now I suppose we'd best get a move on if that's the plan.'' Arthur told his wife.
''I suppose.'' Alethea smiled before disentangling herself from the sheets and finding a new dress draped over Arthur's chair. The Prince just smiled and watched as his wife put it on before she picked up her wedding dress from where it had been dropped the previous night. Carefully she smoothed out the creases and folded it neatly, making the Prince smile.
''What?'' Alethea asked as she noticed that the Prince was watching her. ''My dress?''
''Wedding dress.'' he nodded
''Well, I want to keep it nice. We have a tradition where I'm from where you keep your wedding dress and besides, a daughter of ours may want to get married in it.'' Alethea suggested, a smile tugging on her lips.
''Daughter of ours?'' he asked, a bemused smile on his face. "Don't forget sons too."
''And sons then. Just lads don't tend to want to get married wearing dresses.'' she joked
''We can always start that tradition.'' he suggested with a dead serious look on his face.
''No Arthur.'' she smiled ''Now get some clothes on.'' she told him before chucking some at him. The Prince just looked at her with a completely innocent expression before smirking and getting dressed in front of her. Alethea simply smiled and gave him a hand before the two of them went to find the King and get an audience with him.
''Arthur...'' she began as they walked down the corridor to the Great Hall.
''Yes?''
''Now that I'm the Prince's wife, will my ideas be taken seriously in Court?''
'' As the Princess of Camelot very few people will dare to oppose you.'' he told her as they reached the oak doors. Only yesterday they had been getting married in this self same hall and the two of them smiled as they realised this.
Coming before the King and finding him sat talking to Morgana, they wished him a good day.
''And the same to you.''
''Father, we come to ask if Camelot can spare us for a few days.'' Arthur told him.
''And why may that be?'' Uther asked, interested
''I wish to take Princess Alethea on a tour of the Kingdom.'' The Prince answered.
''In which case you'll be needing more than a few days. It'll take at least three weeks if you're lucky...'' Uther paused as he seemed to be considering something. ''But I'm sure we'll cope without you and your servants. When do you intend to leave?''
''The moment we have everything that we need.'' Alethea told them.
''Then I wish you a safe journey.'' The King said as he got to his feet and embraced his son and daughter in law. Arthur and Alethea glanced at each other in disbelief but Uther noticed. ''Don't worry. I'm sure that Camelot will cope without you.''
''Alright then. See you in a few weeks.'' Alethea smiled as they turned to leave, but paused at the door and added ''We'll be back before you know it.''
Upon leaving the Great Hall, Arthur called for Merlin whilst Alethea went to find Ceridwen and gather all that she would need for the journey. Sorting through her dresses and noticing that there were quite a few more than there had been yesterday, she chose a few and put them on the bed along with two cloaks, leggings and boots in among other items. Ceridwen then appeared with a bag and quite a bit of food. Leaving her to pack, Alethea noted that having a maid was very useful as she headed to Gaius' chamber to get some supplies, just in case any of them, God forbid, fell ill or got injured. She also wanted some paper and ink so that she could record her travels. Finding the physician huddled over a book, she smiled as she remembered the first time she was in this chamber. She had been sixteen then, younger and more innocent than she was now, the Princess of Camelot who was seventeen. She had realised yesterday that at some point her seventeenth birthday had passed by but it had been unnoticed due to the events of the past few months. Alethea didn't mind though. Her arrival seemed like ages ago even though it was less than a year now. God how time flies, Alethea thought. Home and college seemed like a lifetime ago or even a dream. Whichever, those memories seemed to belong to another person as for Alethea it felt like she had lived in Camelot for all of her life. She knew now that she had found her home.
''My lady, what can I do for you?'' he asked, looking up and noticing her stood watching him in the doorway.
''Gaius, to you I am simply Alethea.'' she smiled. ''And I could do with some supplies for a long journey just in case anything should happen.''
''Long journey?'' he asked.
''Arthur is taking me on a tour of the Kingdom.'' she explained.
''Which I suppose means you'll be taking Merlin with you as well?''
''Well, someone has to keep the Prince out of trouble and we both know that Merlin is perfectly suitable for the job.'' she told him. "Besides, he can keep Ceridwen company whilst I'm with Arthur."
''That's true. Alright then, I'll get everything sorted out for you.'' The physician smiled as he pulled out a bag and started to put some things in it.
''It's weird you know.'' Alethea commented as she watched him.
''Care to explain?''
''Well you're the first person who believed me and have looked after me since I first arrived here. It's just strange that less than twelve months later I'm married to the man who was the person to first accuse me of witchcraft.''
''That's just life Alethea.'' Gaius smiled. ''Besides, stranger things have happened.''
''That's true.'' she agreed
Before long, the Prince, Princess, Merlin and Ceridwen were meeting in the Courtyard waiting for their horses to be made ready but they had everything packed that they would need for their journey. They knew that they could quite easily pick up food on the way anyway, and the people of the Kingdom should be more than willing to help them out where they could. Horses soon made ready and loaded, they mounted before riding out of the castle with Arthur taking the lead, the two women following behind him and Merlin at the rear. Looking ahead of her, Alethea smiled. It would seem that the adventure was about to begin...
They camped in the forest that evening, sleeping under the stars with a small fire steadily burning out. Alethea had a blanket wrapped tight around her to keep out the cold but Arthur was also by her side to provide comfort and extra warmth should she need it. Snuggling up close to her husband, she smiled as she closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the leaves rustling in the slight breeze. Thankful that it wasn't raining, she wondered if it would have been best to have brought a tent just on the off chance that it should rain on them. Even though it was Spring, Alethea knew that they could not trust the weather and that it could rain at any given moment. Reluctant to actually be soaked through during the middle of the night, she decided that she would see what she could do at the next town they went through before she drifted off to sleep.
They journeyed through the rest of the forest the following day once they had eaten breakfast. Alethea had been somewhat relieved when she woke that morning to find that it hadn't rained during the night but found that her joints were sore. She hadn't slept beneath the stars before then and she knew that she would suffer for it. She didn't mind though, knowing that it was an experience, and not a bad one either. Laughing at Arthur who had leaves stuck in his hair, she had picked them out before being rewarded with a kiss. She hadn't been able to help but notice Ceridwen and Merlin look the other way at this point but they had all then packed up and left. The forest was beginning to resemble a mystical woods like those that Alethea had read in fairytales, with the trees beginning to blossom and flowers about to bud. The leaves were back on the tree branches and the sun shone through them at intervals, giving a magical feeling to it. In fact, any mystical creatures would not look out of place here. Eventually they reached open fields, with a well worn track cutting through them. Riding along on Snowdrop and by Arthur's side, Alethea looked at the crops that were growing and wondered just exactly what they were as she was no botanist. The Prince seemed to notice her curiosity and smiled as he enlightened her.
"Wheat and corn in those fields. Come Autumn they'll be harvested."
"For making bread and such?" Alethea asked. Her husband nodded in reply. "Hang on, what about vegetables? Do they eat them at Court?"
"They are the food of the people, not of the nobility." Arthur told her. "Why?"
"So the people grow them in their own plots of land and the Court does not have them."
"Exactly."
"Right." Making a mental note to remedy this and introduce vegetables to the Court, Alethea sighed and spurred her horse on. Riding with the sun on their backs, they rode until sunset where they found themselves not too far from a village. Heading towards it, they quickly found shelter with the people being only more than happy to help out the Prince and Princess of Camelot. Provided with food and a room for the night, Alethea couldn't help but marvel at the hospitality. In her own time complete strangers did not invite people to stay the night, nor were people as friendly. It seemed that so much had changed over the years and so this was a completely new experience for her. Settling down for the night, she thought of everything that was different here compared to her home and realised that she had somehow gotten used to this time without realising it. Somehow she was managing to live without the things that she had thought she wouldn't be able to but that was no bad thing. Smiling, she wondered if she would ever want to leave and prayed that she wouldn't be forced to.
A week passed by and steadily Alethea was being shown the Kingdom of Camelot. It seemed that word had spread quickly about the Prince's tour with his new wife as at every village or town they passed through, they were greeted by a mass of people and welcomed with open arms. On more than one occasion the people had presented them with gifts and had been waiting for them to arrive for quite some time. It seemed that Alethea was a popular choice for the future Queen among the people as she was accepted wherever she went. Talking with the people and getting to know them, Alethea found that she was treating them as equals but no one seemed to mind. Alethea was learning much about Camelot and her people on this journey and knew that she definitely had their support, which was always a good thing. They travelled for most of the days and rested in the evenings in towns and villages but Alethea was thoroughly enjoying it. It was certainly different to any other holiday or journey she had been on but definitely not worse than any of them.
So far they hadn't had any problems, but when they were half way around the kingdom, Arthur's horse decided to throw a shoe. Very much in need of a blacksmith, the group decided that they would stay at the next village for as long as was needed. Walking with their horses, Alethea noticed the sky turn an ominous shade of grey before the first drops of rain fell. Pulling the hood of her cloak up, the heavens opened but there was a town about half a mile away. Hurrying towards it, they reached shelter about ten minutes later but they were already soaked through. Finding an inn, they stabled the horses and managed to procure a room for the night before getting changed into dry clothes. Alethea smiled as she did this, thinking that there was no better feeling than warm and dry clothes on wet skin. Leaving their wet things to dry, they were sat in front of a crackling fire and given hot bowls of soup that Alethea had a particular liking of, unlike her husband who grimaced as he tasted it.
"How can you eat that stuff?" Arthur asked her.
"I'm not picky, that's why." she answered him. "Besides, the least we can do is eat what they give us after all their kindness." Her point taken, Arthur ate his soup even though he didn't like the taste. Alethea just watched him as he did so before collecting the bowls and spoons and taking them through to the kitchen, surprising the innkeeper's wife.
"My lady, you should not trouble yourself."
"It is no trouble at all." Alethea told her as she started to wash them. The woman just looked at her and wondered what was going on. "Besides, I am used to washing up where I am from."
"But you are a Princess. They do not trouble themselves with chores."
"Well, you should know that I am no ordinary Princess." Alethea laughed.
Two days passed before they could continue with their journey. With all of the horses deemed worthy for the journey, they rode out of the town and reached another forest at noon. With the sun's rays shining through the gaps in the canopy and the birds singing merrily, it felt like nothing bad could happen. They could not have been more wrong though. Happily chatting and laughing among themselves, they did not notice themselves being watched until it was too late. Merlin seemed to be the only one to sense something wrong as he clutched his head. Concerned, Alethea found that he only had a headache but as they rode on, the magician suddenly sped on ahead, with arrows flying everywhere. It seemed that there was a trap ahead of them but there was no way back as a tree trunk fell behind them. Trying to calm the horses, the three of them noticed that Merlin had fallen and was lying face down on the ground at the other end of the clearing. Alethea and Ceridwen went to go to him whilst their attackers showed themselves. Arthur drew his sword and fought them off whilst the two girls went to Merlin. Ceridwen managed to get there first but as Alethea followed, she was suddenly grabbed from behind by two men. Screaming for help, she was silenced by a hand over her mouth. Reluctant to give up without a fight, she bit him.
"Shush now girly. Be nice and we won't have to kill you." one of them whispered in her ear as he stroked her cheek. She shuddered in disgust at his touch and kicked down, missing him completely. However, she then had two dagger blades pressed to her throat, ready to kill her and Alethea immediately went still. Refusing to let fear take over her but knowing that it was evident in her eyes, she prayed that Arthur would be able to do something to save her.
"Drop your weapon boy, or the girl dies." The leader said. The Prince caught Alethea's eyes and she noticed that they seemed to promise her that she would be alright. Arthur dropped the sword, knowing that he was powerless to do anything to stop them.
"Good. Now, off you trot. We're keeping the girl. She's a very pretty thing and my men do get very lonely at night." Alethea's eyes widened as she realised what they meant to do and she looked to her husband, praying that he could save her but she knew that he couldn't without getting himself killed.
However, as the leader was gloating to the Prince, Alethea's two captors suddenly dropped to the floor dead, with knives in their backs. Shaken, Alethea stayed where she was and took a deep breath, turning around to see a man on horseback riding at full speed towards them. The cut throat leader turned around and upon seeing this man, fled. Alethea immediately ran to the Prince and wrapped her arms around him, shaking with fear and tears falling from her eyes. It seemed that someone had wanted her dead but only by chance had she been rescued. Arthur held her close and soothed her, telling her that everything would be alright. Eventually the Princess stopped shaking before turning around to see her rescuer knelt before them.
"My lady, are you harmed?" he asked, not daring to meet her gaze
"No…Just shaken." Alethea answered, taking a few deep breaths before noticing the look of disbelief and recognition on her husband's face.
"Lancelot? Is that you?" Arthur asked.
"Sire, forgive me. I…" the newcomer began
"There is nothing to forgive. Thank you for coming to our rescue."
"It is no problem sire. I just could not let them carry the Lady away."
"Ah, Lancelot meet Princess Alethea, my wife."
"It is a pleasure indeed to meet such a beauty my lady." Lancelot said as he kissed her hand. Alethea just stared at the young man with a bemused smile on her lips. Stood before her was the greatest knight in Camelot, and he had saved her. Noticing that he was rather handsome, she couldn't help but wonder if she had married the right man. Then again, the legends did say that Gwen loved Lancelot and Arthur, having relations with them both. Mind, those legends were now completely skewed due to her presence, but she knew that she had to stay away from him. Otherwise, things could get very difficult and she didn't want that.
"Sir Lancelot." she said curtly before turning and going over to where Merlin lay, finding him just to be coming around. Finding that he was alright to ride, she mounted her horse before heading off, Arthur following quickly behind her.
"Alethea? What's the matter?" he called, but Alethea didn't stop.
"Nothing. Just… there was a wasp." she lied, and both of them knew it.
"What's wrong with Lancelot? And why did you call him sir?" her husband asked as he caught up with her and pulled on the reins.
"I really should not tell you Arthur." she sighed, noticing that Ceridwen was riding close behind them with Merlin and Lancelot riding behind her.
"Alethea, please." he pleaded.
"The Queen of Camelot has an affair with Lancelot and it very nearly completely destroys you Arthur. That's how the legends go."
"But who is the Queen of Camelot in the legends that you know?"
"Guinevere." she told him, and Arthur just laughed.
"Then we have nothing to worry about, do we?" he asked, but Alethea didn't answer. "But why Sir?"
"Is he not a Knight of Camelot?" she asked, confused.
"No. Not yet. You see, whilst you were away with Nimueh and being trained up as her servant, the kingdom was being attacked by a griffin. In came Lancelot and rescued us from it, saved my life even, but he broke the Code of Camelot. He is not a noble and lied about it."
"Did he prove himself worthy as a knight though?"
"Yes. Very much so."
"He has just saved both of us Arthur. You should knight him. Take him back to Camelot and see what happens." she suggested.
"On one condition…"
"Hmm?"
"You promise you'll keep your mitts off him."
"I promise." she said, meaning it with all her heart.
So that evening, as they sat in the forest with a fire burning, Alethea, Merlin and Ceridwen were to witness Arthur knighting Lancelot. Lancelot found this to be a great honour and accepted their invitation of joining them on their journey but seemed a bit reluctant to join them in Camelot. As time progressed though, he eventually made up his mind and so, as their tour of the Kingdom came to a close, Lancelot announced that he would stay in Camelot with them. Arthur and Merlin seemed very happy at this, as did Ceridwen who had taken quite a liking to him, whilst Alethea just accepted it, praying that she wouldn't find her heart stolen by him. She belonged to the Prince and she hadn't gone through everything that she had done just for Lancelot to come along and wreck it all. Finding that they were only a day's ride from Camelot, Alethea couldn't wait to get back and see just what had happened whilst they had been gone. Leaving Lancelot in deep conversation with the others, she retired early and closed her eyes, wishing that just for once the legends would not be true. She didn't want to fall in love with the greatest knight in Camelot, but it could quite easily happen...
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So, I bet you're wondering what happens next. Will Alethea fall in love with Lancelot? Or will she stay true to Arthur? And how will Camelot have managed to cope without their magician, Prince and Princess whilst they have been away? Well, I'm afraid you'll just have to wait and see. Keep an eye out for the third in the trilogy, The Old Religion
