Gwen cooed at her new born son. Born four months ago, his dark, silky hair and brilliant blue eyes stared up at her. He was a beautiful child, even tempered and playful. All were drawn to him. Gaius called him an old soul. She'd never know such joy, except her time with Arthur. As for her husband, he was besotted with the child. Many days, she would find them together. Arthur would show off his handy work to his knights as if it were a feat he'd accomplished on his own. It made her smile at the thought of it. She would like to believe these were the best times of her life, but they weren't. Morgana had seen to that.
Since the birth of her son, Morgana had allied herself with a criminal called Bolas from the east whose only goal was to plunder Camelot's riches, sell her people in to slavery and torch the ground black. At first, they were small marauding parties on the borders. Morgana's magic has given them boldness and now they venture deeper into the kingdom. Often, Arthur returned after a skirmish, bloodied and exhausted.
"They do not indeed to fight us out right. They plan to pick at us to death," Arthur complained as Gwen tended to his wounds. They only thing that soothed his worried brow was holding his son. Once nestled into his father's strong embrace, the baby would light up with attention, as if communing with Arthur on another level. Arthur would speak back him, not as a child, but as one of his captains of the guard. Serious talk for serious men, Gwen mused. The only thing that could pull the child away was Gwen need to feed him. Even then, Arthur would sit with them and watch his son being nursed.
In the privacy of their quarters, Gwen could speak openly, without the ear of the council and the court hearing. She did not want to be seen as an overbearing Queen with too much influence over her husband. She would nurse and talk about the events of their day and especially Morgana.
"Her magic has driven her mad," Arthur complained. Gwen could not disagree.
"She is up to something Arthur," Gwen said. She'd wrapped the baby tightly in a soft cloth and waited until he begun to feed before she continued. "They raid the border, and you go out to engage them, and they run away before you can put an end to them."
"It's like they don't want to fight," Arthur lamented.
"It's more than that I think," she said, gently swaying to a rhythm that soothed the suckling child.
"All I know, it's draining." Arthur sat back in the high back chair and closed his eyes. They sat in silence for a while, Arthur communing in some far off place. "Last night I dreamt of my father as he was in his last days."
Gwen said nothing. Uther was a difficult subject for her to speak of with her husband. Arthur saw his father a certain way. His love blinded him to Uther's chief faults. Gwen had no such delusions. If Uther had remained alive they would not be together, and her son would not have been born.
"I dreamt him in a meadow, beyond the forest, where the mountain meets the land to the west. I call out to him, but he walks away. I run to catch up and ask why he does not speak to me. All he says is that he is done here, and no more can be asked of him. Then I let him go."
Gwen saw the faraway look in her husband's eyes. His father and mother were dead, his uncle had betrayed him, and his sister has gone mad while trying to usurp his throne. He reminded her of a small boy as he sat wearing a pale tunic and plain trousers. His gaze caught in some memory or twisted dream.
"What are you thinking," she asked softly trying to break him from it. Arthur turned to her and the haunted look melted away. His smile returned with a wicked gleam in his eyes.
"I think I'm jealous of my son," he teased as he watched his son nurse.
"Well if you're a good boy," she said smiling back at him. Arthur came over to her and planted a gentle kiss on her lips. Gwen loved the heat it brought and pushes the kiss deeper. They got lost in the moment, when a gurgling sound of protest interrupted them. Arthur stared down at his son.
"You have gotten yours Gwydre. It is time for mine," Arthur complained jovially.
"In time," she said, pushing Arthur away, so she might finish nursing. Arthur retook his seat and stared at his wife.
"Gwaine said you almost hurt yourself today." Gwen caught the concern in her husband voice but tried to ignore it.
"No more than usual." Gwen kept her eyes on her son, refusing to make eye contact with Arthur. She knew where he was leading.
"Merlin is no help," Arthur said, and this time he's tone turned annoyed.
"Merlin is fantastic, and he supports me. I have asked for little Arthur, but I insist on this. You can't always protect me."
"It is my duty to protect you," his voice tense with anger.
"I will master the sword and the bow, Arthur." She said firmly, matching his gazes. Her raised voice surprised him.
She'd asked Gwaine to teach her the sword. In the palace forge, her brother fashioned a strong, light weight one for her that she could wield without tiring. At the beginning, they practiced with wooden ones, often Gwen left the sessions bruised. She did with better with the bow and her lessons from Leon. She loved the natural grace of the weapon and became proficient at it. She grew in confident and ignored the complaints of her husband and his council about the rightful duties of a Queen of Camelot. They hadn't had nightmares of Morgana harming her child.
"I will never let that Morgana get that close," Arthur swore.
"You will try I know," Gwen said her eyes pleading for her husband's understanding.
"Let's speak no more of Morgana. She makes my head hurt," Arthur said. "Give me my son. It is time for our evening walk."
Gwen finished nursing and handed Gwydre to his father. Arthur gently rested the child against his shoulder and patted his back. Gwen fixed her garment as she watched them walked out the door, a few moments later, Merlin bounded into the room with a shiny pair of boots.
"Merlin," Gwen said in surprise. "I was coming to see you."
Merlin looked around the room. "Where are they?"
"Right about now, I'm sure they are walking sentry duty along the wall. Gwydre has turned into Camelot's youngest knight," she mused.
"If you're not careful, Arthur will have him fitted for a suit of armor soon," Merlin teased. Gwen laughed at the idea because she wouldn't put it past her husband to try. Her mood quickly turned somber when she turned to Merlin.
"You both ride out tomorrow. How long this time?" she asked.
"Don't know. Maybe a week or two. I know Arthur doesn't want to stay and leave Camelot defenseless to long. He especially doesn't want to leave you and his son," Merlin said.
"Each time he goes hunting for her, he is further and further away. Sometimes I fear he will never come back."She'd clasped her hands over her heart. There was a growing ache that Gwen fought against it.
"He will come back," Merlin reassured. Gwen smiled, but her heart wasn't in it.
"Just remember before you leave to give me the amulet. I would feel safer knowing it is close."
Merlin reluctantly agreed. Gwen knew Merlin didn't want her to use the amulet. He feared Arthur finding out and become angry. She feared it as well, but what was she to do against Morgana's magic. When Merlin insisted that he remained behind, Gwen refused. Oddly, she felt better knowing that Merlin was by Arthur's side. She could never explain why she felt this way.
"I will be fine; Arthur decided that Gwaine shall remain behind. I told him, it was unnecessary," she said.
"Well, just keep him out of the tavern," Merlin joked.
"Keep who out of the tavern," Arthur's voice boomed as he walked through the door, the child in the crook of his arm asleep surprisingly undisturbed by his father's loud voice.
"Gwaine," Gwen complained as she went to them to take her child. The baby would be up all night if he woke. Gwen gave Arthur a critical look.
"Nothing can wake that child," Arthur huffed. "He sleeps like…"
"His father," Merlin interrupted as watched Gwen place the child in its crib.
"Get our Merlin," Arthur barked.
Merlin gave Gwen an exasperated smile before leaving them.
"Remember in the morning Merlin," Gwen whispered to him and the servants smile disappeared. He nodded and closed the door behind him.
"What was that about the morning," Arthur said as he stretched and yawned. Gwen swore her husband had the ears of a fox.
"Nothing," she said, checking on her son one last time before coming to Arthur side. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.
"Remember I will be gone for several days," he said in a pitiful voice, he only reserved for her. Gwen's brow rose in mocked curiosity.
"I've packed your woolen socks, you should be fine," she teased. Arthur feigned hurt.
"Have you nothing for your husband before he goes," Arthur demanded, sounding like a petulant child. Gwen laughed and kissed Arthur deeply, reminding him how much she truly loved him.
Sometimes, when he held her in his arms, Gwen thought it was a dream. Some fanciful hallucination thought up in her overheated imagination. She'd been the blacksmith's daughter and a child of a maid. Now she had the heart of the King of Camelot, and she was his Queen with maids of her own. She had a child, a strong boy who would in time reign. It felt like a dream as Arthur plied her with kisses, and they lay skin to skin.
They lay beneath the bedding of the large be as the reality of his mission the coming day hit them both. There was something that nagged at Gwen as if she foresaw a coming storm. Arthur must have sensed it, because he seemed extremely tender with her. Maybe, each not wanting to let the moment go, both were unable to sleep. He held her tightly in his arms as she shivered.
"I will be back," he reassured her. For her own sake, Gwen needed to believe him as she finally fell in a fitful sleep.
In the days that followed Arthur's absence, Gwen kept herself on a schedule. Since Arthur was gone, she attended to the council meeting in the morning, spend as much time as she with her son before heading off to practice with Gwaine. She was happy the knight had remained behind, because she needed to work on her skills. His humor and skill as a teacher made the training go easier. She loved Gwaine like a brother. He was unconventional in his technique. He emphasized her natural grace and understood she would never have the strength to fight traditionally.
"You must be like the bee, sting and sting until you inflict enough pain they either leave you alone or incapacitate them. There are places on a man's body that are vulnerable to a quick sword. You must be quick. Make their arms and legs useless," he said and she'd followed his advice to heart. She would never overwhelm a man, but she would be able to protect herself. So, every day she practiced under his watchful eyes. When he smiled at her successful completion of moves, it made her confident.
Gwen had taken on a young girl, named Miriam to watch over Gwydre while she was doing the King's work and practicing with Gwaine. Only fourteen, she'd worked in the kitchen, the baker's daughter. She had quick smile, wide green eyes, a thatch of wheat color hair and pleasant disposition. Strong from helping her father bake bread and lifting heavy flour sacks, she didn't shy away from work. Nor did she shy away from confrontation. Raised in a household of four brothers, Miriam wasn't easily intimidated by the likes of knights whose roughhousing often sent many a lady- in-waiting running.
Another reason why Gwen had chosen Miriam, because she knew the girl would obey without question and protect her son at any cost. Miriam knew that if anything should happen to Gwen, she was to take the child, hid, and await his father's return. Miriam swore. Often in the late afternoon, the two of them could be found along the castle wall. While Gwen stood waiting for her Arthur's return, she spoke to the young Miriam of what she must do if the castle were attack and overrun. Gwen prayed that her plan would never come to fruition.
A week after Arthur left the first inkling of trouble came when two guards were found murdered by on patrol close to the castle. They bodies stripped of their uniforms. It was only by chance that a farmer had found them. Gwaine doubled the guard on Gwen and Gwydre until the culprits were found. They were never found. Gwen began wearing the amulet beneath her clothing. She sensed Morgana was near. Had this been Morgana's plan all along. To lure Arthur away from the castle and leave her and their child vulnerable. She tried not to panic but her fears got the best of her.
Gwaine had awakened her from a dead sleep. A small band of assassins had made their way inside the castle. She seemed half caught in a nightmare when he's strong arm shook her. Without thinking, she called out to Miriam who had a cot near the baby crib. She rushed the girl to dress.
Gwen hurried as best she could to dress Gwydre quickly. Plain homespun clothes, gotten from a friend of Miriam. She was to hid the child in the planned spot. Not to return until she was sure it was safe. Either, Gwen would find her if all went. If not, she was to search for Arthur or Merlin.
"I will protect him with my life my lady," Miriam said in her small voice. Gwen gave her a kiss on the cheek to reassure her.
"I know," Gwen said.
The baby fussed a bit, but once Gwen nursed him he finally settled down into a deep much needed sleep. The excitement of the day had kept him up and Gwen's nerves didn't help. When she placed the sleeping baby in Miriam's strong arms, she said a pray. She prayed Arthur would return in time. She prayed she had the strength she needed to get things done. She kissed Gwydre gently on the his head and inhale his sweet aroma and wondered if this would be the last she would see of him. Giving Miriam the last bit of instruction, she sent the girl off, alone, with the heir to Camelot wrapped in a plan unadorned blanket.
"We must go Gwen," Gwaine insisted as he pulled her toward the throne room. She'd dressed for battle, her bow strapped her back and her sword in sheathed at her side. A stepped behind Gwaine when the first intruders charged. Frozen for a heartbeat as one guard fell dead beside her with a knife in his chest, Gwen unsheathed her sword. Two men were on Gwaine and another attacked two of the guards protecting her. Without thinking, she ran toward Gwaine's aide, fell onto one knee and slice the tendons of one of his attackers. The man twisted and howling pain. He turned on her, raising his sword for a death strike, when she swiped at the unguarded area of his armpit. The attacker instantly dropped his sword as her sword struck it's mark. Gwaine quickly finished him off piercing his side after dealing with his own attacker.
When she stood, sword in hand an amazed Gwaine stared at her, as if seeing her for the first time. The blood of her attacker smeared her cheek and she wiped it with the back of her hand. Her heart pounded, her fear pushed deep down by the rage she felt. These men were here to kill her and her child. These men sent by Morgana. For the first time in her life, she never hated someone as she hated the witch. She had once called her friend and loved her like a sister. Now all she wanted was the woman's heart.