AN: I hope you enjoyed the last chapter! I'm pretty sure I'm missing bits and pieces from the story line as I'm a little rusty at this, but here's another chapter! Please leave a review and let me know how I'm doing! Constructive criticism is always helpful! :)
Chapter Twelve
The woods were dark and almost silent. In the distance, Hermione could her drums as she ran deeper and deeper, not entirely sure where she was going. She briefly stopped as a particularly nasty branch grazed her cheek and soon enough, she was simply lost.
"Bullocks." She muttered to herself, looking around for any signs of help. She sat down, catching her breath; finally feeling safe – and then she heard it. The draw of a bow string. She stood hands at the ready.
"Who goes there?" A voice came from the shadows.
Hermione swallowed, turning slowly – an attempt to source the voice. "Show yourself!" She said, conjuring a light.
"Lady Hermione?" Instantly, she recognised the voice.
"Guinevere!" She sighed in relief, lowering the glare of her light. "Thank Merlin!" She said, watching as the Lady Guinevere herself emerged from the trees, a coat of war paint covering her skin.
"Why do you thank Merlin?" She asked quizzically, embracing her warmly.
Hermione smiled, "I'll explain later. What's happening, why are you dressed for war?"
Guinevere sighed. "The Roman pigs have fled. The Saxons are coming. Come, Merlin will want to see you." She said pulling Hermione along through the forest swiftly.
As they moved, more Woads became visible, and as they grew closer to the edge of the forest, and the trees thinned, there were more – armed with swords, axes and bows, looking fierce with their blue camouflage markings. She could smell burning, the smoke causing her throat to tighten. Merlin met them soon enough, a frown on his face.
"There you are," He began, his staff by his side, pulsing with magic. "I had been wondering where you had got to." He seemed to direct this at Hermione. "Come, I have a gift for you." He took her hand in his and led her through the crowd of Woads, who waited silently for their signal.
They stopped in front of a stone altar in a small clearing, lingering eyes watching on in curiosity. "This, Hermione Granger, is your path home. Should you choose to take it, no one would think ill of you."
Hermione looked at the altar, her eyes moving slowly over the strange carvings on the top, her mind racing. Home. She could go home… But did she really want to? It seemed less like home to her now. For some reason she felt as though she belonged with these people. She had grown fond of their ways – albeit strange ways, but nonetheless fond of them. And for some unknown reason, the handsome face of Galahad flickered through her mind, with his kind, concerned eyes causing something to stir within her.
She cleared her throat and looked to Merlin, who had a strange smile on his face. "I can't leave now." She said with certainty and determination. "I was sent here for a reason, right?" She said, looking once more at the altar.
"It seems you were." He said simply, handing her a bow and some arrows. She grinned and took them from him eagerly. "Now prepare yourself, this isn't going to be easy."
She found Guinevere once more and took position up next to her, looking out of place in her dirty rag of a dress. "Do we know if anything's happened yet?" She asked, peering out into the smoky fields.
Guinevere shrugged. "It's quite clever really; they've used smoke to conceal themselves… The Saxons will not see them coming, no matter where they stand."
Hermione nodded, seeing sense in such a tactic. "Arthur is a very clever man." She stated, her eyes trained on Guinevere. "And very kind, too. Not mention handsome." She grinned as Guinevere's cheeks flooded with crimson.
"Yes, I have to agree." She said, keeping her eyes trained on the fields before here.
Movement occurred in the fields – the sound of steel cutting through the air and connecting with flesh filled Hermione's ears and made her shudder. Grunts of pain echoed and the occasional protest from a horse. She suddenly felt nervous… hopefully none of the Knights were hurt. "Please be safe." She whispered, closing her eyes in a silent prayer.
The smoke cleared almost in an instant and Hermione could see all seven of the knights on their horses, weapons at the ready. Galahad stood out among them, his head held high and his eyes surveying the scene before him. Hermione felt her heart flutter as she stared at him. The Saxons marched in quickly, and seeing Arthur and his companions, charged.
With a yell from within the Woads, Guinevere took off, along with and army of others adorning the blue battle markings. Hermione ran with them, her bow at the ready with an arrow notched into place. She let it fly and it lodged itself deeply into the head of the first Saxon warrior she saw. She look at it in awe, having never really used a bow as a weapon and briefly wondered if it had something to do with her new found powers.
Guinevere moved in swiftly, her arrows hitting her targets with accuracy, and when she got close enough, drew out a crescent shaped sword and gracefully cut down the nearest Saxon with ease.
And so the battle raged on. Hermione had managed to procure a long sword herself, and as the Saxons came, she felt her body move as though she had been battling her entire life. A big burly Saxon moved to strike her down and she somehow dodged him, dropping her sword in the process. She cursed as she dodged another blow, his heavy axe coming within inches of her face. With a hand, she threw up a quick shield and scrambled for the nearest sword as the Saxon swung at her again, his blow sending him sprawling backwards with force when it hit her shield, shattering it in the process. "WITCH!" He cried in anger.
She grabbed the hilt of her sword and as she did, a large foot landed on the blade. She looked up to find the same Saxon she had used the cruciatus curse on earlier in the Saxon encampment, with a twisted smile on his face, he pulled her up by the front of her ruined dress.
"You." He said with a sickening smile on his face. "Where is your magic now?" He sneered.
Hermione panicked as his hands wrapped themselves around her neck. She couldn't think as pain seared through her chest, for the lack of air. She was struggling, her fingernails digging into his forearms in an attempt to release herself.
"HERMIONE!" She heard from afar. Her vision began to darken, she could feel her lungs screaming for air and she suddenly felt incredibly weak.
"Galahad!" She croaked, her eyes closing slowly. It all went black.
~ The Legendary ~
Galahad ran through the fighting, swinging his sword at every Saxon who engaged, his movements desperate and quick. He pushed several men out of his way as Hermione's body went limp. With a loud cry, he launched himself onto the man who held her, his grip releasing her in an instant.
They scrambled on the ground, each reaching for their weapon, and in an instant we stood, facing one another, Galahad's eyes flickering to Hermione's unmoving body. Anger filled him and he sprung at the Saxon, their swords connecting in the middle. Galahad pulled away and swung back once more, his sword met by his opponent. With a grunt he pulled back and the two circled each other for a moment, before launching at each other once more.
Their swords clashed in fury, Galahad blocking the heavy blows from the Saxon and serving some quick, yet forceful blows in return. He finally managed to nick the Saxon on the shoulder, and as he gave a cry of pain, he swung for Galahad, his sword connecting with Galahad's side armour. As he clutched at his side, the Saxon elbowed him in the mouth, which gave out a resounding crunch.
Galahad grunted and pulled himself up again, his sword swinging with full force toward the Saxon, catching him off guard. It connected with the back of his leg, bringing him down to his knees. He looked up at Galahad, and for the first time, fear flickered across his eyes, his arrogance long forgotten as Galahad sunk his sword into his neck, hacking off his head in one powerful blow.
He dropped to his knees next to Hermione, hands pushing her long hair from her face. With tears in his eyes he pulled her close to him. He had never felt this kind of pain before. In silence, he held her, only mildly aware that the battle had died down.
Hermione groaned, it was such a small sound that Galahad wasn't sure if he'd heard it, or if it had been wishful thinking. He peered down at her with hope, his heart beating faster in anticipation. Her eyes blinked open and came to focus on his face. "Galahad? Is that you?" Her voice was so hoarse, he barely understood.
"Hermione!" He exclaimed happily, a grin on his face. His chest seemed to warm up and he held her tightly. "I thought you were..." He trailed off, looking down at her.
"What happened?" She croaked, struggling to sit up.
His hands steadied her as she managed to sit up gingerly. "I saw that Saxon scum try to kill you… And I thought he had succeeded…"
The memory of the bald-headed man rushed back to Hermione. She gasped, her hands lightly touching her bruised and swollen neck. "You saved me." She stated with a small smile, her eyes connecting with him.
Galahad blushed crimson. "Well I wouldn't exactly call that a rescue… I was almost too late…" He said sadly. "I had thought the worst…" He looked down at his hands.
Hermione placed her hands gently on his face and forced him to look her in the eyes as she said her next words. "But I'm alive, Galahad. I'm alive, and it's all thanks to you."
He smiled at her and found that he very much enjoyed the smile he got in return. Galahad wasn't sure what caused him to do it, but in that moment, he leant forward and crashed his lips into hers in a passionate kiss.
A call of "Finally!" which was followed by a chorus of wolf whistling erupted from the other knights, and the both pulled apart with flushed cheeks and sheepish smiles.
