Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin, the BBC does.

15 years ago…

Leon was currently sat in the armoury polishing his shield; he had finished the daily training early because some of the knights had wanted to attend the funeral for the Lady Ygraine. The queen had died after giving birth to the lady Morgana, she had been ill before hand for quite some time with a illness that Gaius couldn't identify but the birth had taken too much out of her. The young prince Arthur, at only nine, wasn't really sure what was happening but knew enough to understand that his mother wasn't coming back and Leon silently cursed the king for not comforting his son in his grief.

The king had palmed the baby girl off on a wet-nurse within five minutes of her being born and had refused to see her since. Arthur, being nine and perfectly capable of understanding that the little baby was his sister had visited her frequently and spent every moment of his free time holding her or talking to her about his tutoring or his day or just his life in general; explaining why their mother hadn't come to see her yet or that the colour of the sky was blue. It was strange to see the disinterested little boy suddenly take such avid interest in something and Leon was suddenly glad to see him find a person to share things with even if they never offered a response.

The door to the armoury opened with a loud bang pulling the knight out of his thoughts and suddenly the young prince was thrown to the floor in front of the knight. Arthur looked up at Leon with tears streaming down his cheeks and Morgana clutched tightly in his small arms.

Leon quickly went to reach for the boy and pulled him up before checking him over, his anger didn't diminish as he noticed that no harm had befallen the boy.

"What do you think you are doing," Leon began as he checked over Morgana, equally pleased that no harm had come to her either. "That is the prince you just threw to-" Leon stopped short in his lecture as he noticed who he was addressing.

"Sire?" he questioned as he looked at the king in disgust; there was nothing Leon hated more than a man who found it entertaining to push around his kids.

"My son's behaviour at the funeral was deplorable, men don't cry. As prince, Arthur should be training not coddling that little brat. Sort him out Leon or I will." He king growled before leaving, his Camelot red cape with the gold Pendragon insignia on the shoulder flowing out dramatically behind him. Men don't cry, that was stupid, men did cry and it wasn't a shameful thing, however Arthur wasn't a man, he was a boy whose mother had just died and he should be allowed to cry.

Leon sighed as he sat down on the bench and pulled the young prince onto his lap. He pulled the blonde and his sister to his chest and rocked them slowly back and forth, trying to comfort them.

"I miss mother." The little boy sniffed and Leon had to push back his own tears at the distress on the young prince's face.

"I know Arthur, I'm so sorry." He said as he placed the boy on his feet. "Now, shall we go and put little Morgana to bed? I think it's been a long day and that she might be tired." Arthur nodded and sniffed, agreeing that his sister needed her rest. Leon was glad his ploy had worked; he thought that Arthur could do with the rest more than the baby and knew that the only way to get him to sleep would be to get her to sleep.

The knight tried to reach for the baby girl so that the prince didn't have to carry her any longer but her brother wouldn't let go. Knowing that Arthur's precarious emotional state wouldn't be helped by forcing him to give up his sister, he picked up the boy and carried them both on his hip all the way to the prince's chambers.

He had managed to settle the baby in the crib at the foot of Arthur's bed by the time that the prince's bath had been filled. He helped the boy undress and get into the tub before he sat down next to him and tried to get some answers.

"Does your dad often treat you like that?" he probed gently not wanting to upset the boy any more.

"Sometimes." Arthur answered vaguely. It was clear that Arthur wasn't going to share anything voluntarily with the knight.

"He hurt's you before?" Leon asked, already knowing the answer.

"Only when he's angry, but now that mothers gone and I have to look after Morgana he always seems to be angry. I thought that he would be proud of me, for looking after her, am I not doing a good job?" Arthur asked, tears once again welling up in his wide blue eyes.

Leon sighed as he swore his heart broke, "No Arthur, you are doing perfectly."

Pleased with the knight's response Arthur went back to playing with the bubbles in his bath. Gaius had come up with a solution that made the water fizz and froth for the little princesses birth but the physician had sneakily given some to the prince, hoping to cheer him up.

Leon had put the prince to bed that night and stayed to look after Morgana so that the boy could rest. The first time the baby stirred Leon froze, suddenly very annoyed that he had no idea what to do. He had picked the little girl up, mimicking how Arthur held her earlier; arms cradled in front of his body with her head resting on his arms. Her very green eyes looked up curiously at the man who wasn't her brother as she gurgled in appreciation of the newcomer.

Leon was certain that the king had never looked at the little girl after it was announced that his wife had died and he was pretty sure that he would never really interact with her again. Leon suddenly knew what was required of him, and he was happy to comply, not out of obligation but out of a fierce loyalty and love for the two children. He would love them unconditionally and support them in all of their endeavours, protecting them with his life, as he wasn't entirely sure that it would be worth living without them.

11 years ago…

Leon watched from the sidelines as Arthur fought with his opponent, the thirteen year old was already shaping up to be one of the best swordsmen that the night had ever seen. He watched Arthur dance around his opponent laughing as he finally pushed the boy to the floor and requested his surrender. The boy yielded and Arthur put away his Sword and offered the boy a hand up. Leon was just about to praise Arthur for not only his skill but his exemplary behaviour when Uther pushed his teenage son onto his back and lifted his sword high above his head, ready to stab the prince.

Arthur rolled out of the way, causing Uther's sword to get stuck in the dry earth. The blonde re-drew his sword and took his position opposite his father ready to defend himself.

"Wait here Morgana, do you hear me? Don't move!" Leon whispered urgently at the four year old and turned away only when he had seen her black curls nodding in agreement. Leon rushed over to the weapons shelf as he hears their swords begin to clash. He quickly withdrew his own weapon and ran back to the training field. He was terrified, he had begun to love both of Uther's children like an older brother and he couldn't quite understand why the king couldn't see how amazing they were. He watched as Uther knocked the tired boy to the ground and spat at him.

"Is that all you've got boy?" the king taunted hoping to get a response, when he got none he raised his sword ready to end his son. Arthur closed his eyes, not wanting to see the blade coming swiftly towards his head, and in those last seconds he couldn't quite fathom what he had ever done to make his father hate him so.

Leon ran quickly, quicker than he ever had before as he watched Uther prepare to bring his sword down on the blonde's neck. Just as Uther brought the sword down Leon's shot out and stopped the king, their swords clashed with a resounding sound that echoed in the unnatural silence. Knowing that his only chance against the king was to act on his shock, Leon quickly pushed his sword upwards and sent the older man's weapon flying through the air away from them.

When the king regained his senses, he was on the dusty floor, weapon less and with a knight's sword to his neck. Uther was pretty sure the knight's name was Leon or Luke or something along those lines, but he only recognised the man as the one who he'd thrown his son at on the day of his wife's funeral.

Leon's chest was heaving as he pointed the sword at the king's heart, completely aware that he could be killed for treason if Uther wanted it. He had to be diplomatic; he needed to make Uther if not all of the spectators think that it had just been training, it was his only chance. He had to survive for Arthur and Morgana; he couldn't leave them to the mercy of this tyrant.

Leon withdrew his sword and extended his hand to the king offering him a hand up. Please, he prayed, let this work. The king laughed and accepted the knight's hand. Once he was up he dusted himself off and wrapped an arm around the knight's shoulder, smirking in satisfaction as the man recoiled.

"Good choice Leon." He sneered in the knight's ear before skulking back off to his chambers to nurse his wounded pride. The crowd began to disperse, their king had lost and it was not the outcome they had wanted. Leon waited for a second and then, appearances damned, ran over to the prince and embraced him tightly, crushing the boy to his chest as he sobbed.

"I… don't understand… what did I… what did I do wrong?" the boy spluttered into the knight's chest in between his sobs.

"It's not your fault Arthur, none of it's your fault; it never has been and it never will." He muttered before kissing the boy's forehead as he settled on the floor and pulled the prince into his lap.

Leon looked up as he felt a very timid tug on his sleeve, Morgana was stood there, tears running down her small cheeks. He pulled her over as well and shushed them both.

Uther had refused to publicly acknowledge Morgana, however she still lived in the castle. For some reason unknown to the middle-aged man the king detested his children and would rather see them dead. Leon had never really understood how people could hate their own children or ever hurt them; children were so innocent and gentle, they automatically brought joy to anyone just by being there.

Eventually after about half an hour, he pulled them up and steadied Arthur as he stumbled, it seems the reason that Uther had managed to get the boy on his back was a sprained ankle. He went to pick little Morgana up as she had fallen asleep during the commotion however Arthur pushed his hands aside and picked her up himself. After he had positioned her comfortably, arms wrapped around his neck and legs around his chest he began limping back to his room. Leon followed feeling dejected and decidedly useless. When they got the corridor by the prince's room the blonde faltered and fell to his knees, cradling the little girl closely to his chest to prevent her from hurting herself on impact.

Leon rushed forward and placed a hand on the prince's shoulder.

"You've been so strong Arthur, let me carry it for a while." He said referring to the metaphorical responsibility that the prince carried. Arthur nodded as he allowed himself to crumble, he could be strong all of the time for everyone. Leon was the only person who had ever let him be weak without penalising him for it. The blonde nodded, granting Leon permission and the knight quickly scooped the prince and Morgana into his arms, carrying them both to the prince's chambers.

They all fell asleep that night, the prince that had too much to deal with, the little girl without parents and the white knight, their protector, who loved them fiercely and without limitation.

Four years ago…

The twenty year old prince was lay on his bed with his head on Leon's chest, staring off into darkness and refusing to let the tears fall. His father's voice echoed in his mind; tears show weakness. Leon worried about the blonde as he ran a hand soothingly up and down the prince's back, trying to offer any kind of comfort.

They had just attended Morgana's funeral. She had been kidnapped a month ago and the body was finally returned yesterday. The funeral had only been attended by Arthur, Leon and some of Morgana's closest friends, Uther hadn't shown up and for some reason that angered the prince more than anything. The king had never shown any compassion or care for either of them before but he had thought that the man who gave them life would have cared enough to attend his own daughters funeral.

The knight had escorted the prince back to his room and as he was about to leave the prince had tugged him to the bed and snuggled into his side like he did when he was a boy.

"Thank you brother." He had muttered into the knight's chest and the man had smiled tenderly at the endearment; it wasn't the first time Arthur had referred to them as brothers but it still made his insides warm.

"You're welcome baby brother." Leon had responded before kissing the blonde's forehead.

"She loved you Leon." Arthur said a little while later, completely out of the blue.

"She was only a little girl." Leon responded, sadness creeping back to him as he was reminded that he would never see the little girl with jet black hair and emerald green eyes again.

"You were the father she never had." The prince explained simply. "You looked after her, taught her how the world worked and bandaged her knee when she fell. You did it for both of us and I'm just sorry that we weren't really your children. I have a feeling that we would have grown up so much happier if you had been our farther. I would have liked that." Arthur admitted, finally saying what he had thought for so many years. Leon smiled and let a tear fall at the prince's declaration.

"I would have liked that too Arthur." He whispered quietly before hugging the prince closer to him. They drifted off to sleep that night, each others words ringing in their ears.

Present…

Arthur was pretty certain that he wouldn't have been able to survive any of it without Leon and that is why he was sure he could trust the soldier. Leon loved him and he loved Leon; their brotherly bond was not to be broken over anything. Uther had tried to destroy them far too many times to succeed now, and that fact, was what made Arthur absolutely positive that they only needed one attempt to destroy the king, one perfectly crafted, precisely executed plan, formed out of love and joint loss and grief, not hatred and revenge.

Their attempt to take Camelot had to be successful or they would all be as good as dead.