Author Note: Hey guys, just a short chapter to keep you all going. I'm so glad you're all loving it (at least I assume from the fab reviews I've read so far that you are), and I'm actually having loads of fun writing with Dante - she's become quite a fun character to write with, though I'm not sure if that will be a good thing or not, if you know what I know about her, lol. (Though I'm going to be quite mean and NOT tell you everything about her...at least not yet. Just the odd slip of information here or there should bbe enough to keep you coming back for more...how mean am I? Mwahahaha)

But anyways, here you go...Dante's true colours are finally revealed. And for all those who are suspicious of her...you're right to be...double mwahahaha!

...

For the rest of that day, Dante spent her time trying to memorise the layout of the Citadel. Arthur was right about it being a confusing maze, but once she'd learned where the key areas were - Gaius' tower, the throne room, dining hall, armoury, Arthur and Guinevere's chambers and so on - she began to find little signs and symbols that told her what part of the Citadel she was currently in.

For example, Arthur had kept to his word and found her new and bigger chambers than the ones she'd spent the previous night in, and he'd had the trunk of clothes delivered there, also as promised. Now, when she needed to find her rooms, she knew that you had to ascend a staircase towards a huge griffin statue in front of a window. Then you had to walk a few paces along the corridor, turn left before an archway and ascend another winding staircase. This led to her new chambers, which consisted of a bed, a table and chairs, large decorative drapes, a wardrobe and a dressing table. The colours were all pastel, and the furniture was elegant, yet dusty. Clearly these rooms hadn't been used for a very long time.

To combat the dust and dirt of the room, Arthur had also gone one step further and allowed her the privilege of sharing the Queen's handmaiden until a more permanent one could be recruited for her personal use. The ironic thing was that the Queen's handmaiden happened to be the same girl who had woken Dante earlier that morning.

When she'd been introduced by Merlin, the poor girl, whose name happened to be Tamina, couldn't stop apologising. In the end Dante had jokingly threatened to fire her if she didn't stop, and the poor girl had taken this as a literal threat rather than a joke. But she was good at her job, and really very nice once you got to know her, so Dante didn't mind, and actually decided that she and the girl might get on quite well...as long as she didn't hinder her plans, that was.

And speaking of plans, by now it was early evening, and Dante still had not heard word from a certain 'friend' about where and when to meet. She'd promised that as soon as Dante had found her way into the Citadel, she would make contact. So where was she? Where was her sign, or her signal?

"Something wrong, Milady?" Tamina asked as Dante stood in front of the window, looking down at the square below, cup of wine clasped lightly in both hands.

Startled, Dante turned to the maid. "No. No, I'm fine," she said eventually. "Just thinking, really."

"Anything I can help with, Milady?" Tamina asked as she pulled the covers back on the bed and lit the candles around the room.

Dante smiled, but shook her head. "It's nothing. Really." And then another thought crossed her mind as Tamina began to stoke the fire. "I can do that if you need to get going. Don't want to keep her majesty waiting."

"It's fine, Milady. Honestly. The Queen will still be dining with the King right now, so I have time."

"Do they always keep such regular timing?" Dante asked curiously, before taking a sip of her wine, thoughtfully.

"Most days," Tamina nodded.

"Interesting," Dante muttered quietly, storing this useful bit of information for later use. Then, a little louder, she said, "Perhaps someday you can talk me through their typical routine?"

Seeing Tamina's confused look, she quickly added, "Well, I wouldn't want to disturb it in any way. If I know what they usually do and when, I can make sure that never happens."

"Ah, of course, Milady. Perhaps you would like me to talk you through it now?"

"If you have time, that would be perfect," Dante smiled as she took a seat beside the freshly stoked fire. So, whilst she continued to work about the room, removing the last traces of dust, Tamina told her both Arthur and Guinevere's usual routines, and Dante listened intently, memorising it all as much as she could. At least this would now make slipping out of the Citadel that little bit easier when it was required.

"Will that be all Milady?" Tamina asked at last, and Dante nodded, breaking out of the reverie she'd been in without even realising.

"Yes, thank you Tamina. You've been most helpful. I could have done this all myself, you know. There really was no need."

"With all due respect, Milady, you've done more than your fair share of work," Tamina said as she headed for the door. This caught Dante's attention and she turned in the chair to face the maid.

"What do you mean?"

"I've seen the marks on your wrists, Milady. I'm sorry if it's not my place, but..." She paused, appearing to consider for a long moment. And then she rolled up her sleeve to reveal scarring round her own wrists. "I was a slave once, too. I know the marks when I see them, Your Ladyship..."

Dante sat stunned for several long seconds, unsure of what to say. Tamina rolled her sleeve down again, afraid she'd just offended her mistress, and bowed low with a mumbled apology, aiming to remove herself from the situation before she could make it any worse. As she got to the door, however, Dante finally snapped back to her senses.

"Tamina!" She called, standing quickly from the chair.

The maid froze in the door, suddenly afraid. But when she glanced back at Dante, all she saw was a relieved smile on the young Lady's face.

"Thank you," Dante nodded.

"For what, Milady?"

"For understanding."

Tamina allowed herself to smile then, as well, and left the room much happier than she'd been a few moments before.

Dante sank back down into the chair, poured herself another cup of wine and sat watching the flames in the roaring fire dance about and cast flickers of light and shadow throughout the steadily darkening room.

She had no idea how much time had passed as she sat and watched the flames dance, almost in a trancelike state. Likewise, she did not hear someone approaching from behind until a hand dropped lightly onto her shoulder.

She shrieked in alarm, darting out of the chair so quickly that the cup of wine spilt everywhere.

As she clutched a hand to her chest, as if trying to still her racing heart, she turned to squint into the darkness. A soft, amused laugh replied from the shadows, and Dante visibly sighed with relief, recognizing the laugh, even though it was not something she heard often.

"Someone's a little jumpy this evening."

"Milady, I was not expecting you," Dante spoke, still trying to overcome the sudden shock, even as she dropped to one knee on the cold stone floor, head bowed.

"I told you I'd be in contact when you managed to find your way into the Citadel, did I not?"

"You did, Milady. Forgive me for doubting you."

Glancing up, she watched as Morgana Pendragon emerged from the shadows, lowering the hood of her dark cloak and smirking in amusement as she looked down upon the young woman bowed before her.