Hey everybody, this is Libros, back from the dead! This is my first Merlin fanfic ever, and it's set right after season three. Those of you who have seen parts of season four will realize I'm not following canon, so no spoilers here unless you haven't seen up to season three! The basic story line is going to be matching an OC with each of the knights. And don't worry, it will be a different OC for each knight, no polyandry here!
I'll leave that first paragraph up, just in case some of you chose to skip the first chapter! Thank you guys so much for your reviews and views. Unfortunately this week, it's been mostly views and not so many reviews. I'm hoping that's just because Lucinda's not a compelling character to you. So please, if you have anything to say about the story, good or bad, please review!
Disclaimer: Sorry all you sue happy lawyers, I'll bow to copyright laws and say that I do indeed not own Merlin.
Chapter Two: Lady Marise
Marise knew where to find the knights she was looking for. They'd commandeered a room near their practice field so that they could 'freshen' up before heading back into the main part of the castle. Only delivering a message from Lucinda could make her go anywhere near the place. It was one thing to watch them practice, it was another thing entirely to invade their domain.
Knocking sharply on the door, she waited for someone to answer. There was laughter and rustling in the room, and so she was surprised when the door was briskly opened by the same dark haired man who'd accosted Marise just a few weeks ago. He was shirtless, as were half of the men inside the room.
"Leon's expecting you," he said, and before she could ask why he'd be expecting her he called out, "Leon, your girl is here!"
"That's Sir Leon to you Gwaine!" He called back jovially.
"And he has the wrong girl," Marise said, boldly stepping into the room. All the shirtless men quickly found shirts to put on, other than Gwaine, who remained where he stood by the door. "I'm just here to deliver a message from Lucinda. She wants you to know that she'll be meeting you at the Dancing Boar tonight, not here."
"Going to the Dancing Boar huh," Gwaine commented. "I like that place."
"I'm sure you do, just like you enjoy every other bar in Camelot" Marise said, moving to leave the room. Gwaine's arm shot out to stop her. "Excuse me, Sir Gwaine, but I have places to be."
"Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?"
"Did it hurt when they kicked you out of he–" Marise cut herself off. "Just let me pass Gwaine."
"Only if you tell me your name."
"For heaven's sake Gwaine, let the girl pass!" Elyon exclaimed.
"My name is Marise," she hissed, and he bowed and let her pass him.
Marise was about to turn the corner when Gwaine caught up with her, complete with a dark blue shirt covering his very muscled chest.
"And how are you doing today Lady Marise?"
"Well, I was doing better before a stuck up knight decided to irritate me."
"I am not stuck up," Gwaine protested.
"And why in Camelot would you think I was Lucinda?"
"It's not my fault!" He exclaimed, his voice climbing to meet hers. "I just knew Leon was dating one of you two! It's not my fault I assumed it would be the more attractive girl!"
"Did you just call my best friend unattractive?"
"I was just trying to give you a compliment!"
"Well maybe you should try a little harder next time!"
"If there is a next time!"
"Oh, I hope there isn't!" Marise cried, finally reaching her room so that she could slam her door in his face.
"I'll see you at the Dancing Boar tonight!" Gwaine yelled loud enough that it would reach her through the door.
"In your dreams!" She yelled back, turning to plop onto her bed, finding instead two girls already sitting there. "Oh, hello Moira, Helana."
Their eyes were wide and they both looked a tad bit frightened.
"Um, were you and Sir Gwaine having a fight Marise?" Helana asked.
"And here I was thinking you liked the guy," Moira commented with a snort.
"I think I do," Marise admitted, collapsing gracefully onto her bed next to the two servant girls, who both looked at her with comic confusion. "Not that I'd ever let Gwaine know. It would swell his head. It would be better for both of us if I stuck to the insults."
"So you're going to let his ego get in the way of a possibly humbling relationship? Look at Gwen and Arthur's relationship. It sure humbled him."
Marise nodded thoughtfully, considering Helana's comment. She took the moment to let out a stretch and a yawn before asking,
"So why are you guys staking out my room?"
"We intend to spy on Lucinda and Sir Leon tonight," Moira informed Marise.
"Maybe spy isn't the right word," Helana corrected. "We're just going to observe them, that's all. Just to make sure he's acting the gentleman."
"Luce will kill us if she finds out," Marise mused. A Morgana like grin crept upon her face. "Let's do it."
It wasn't long until Marise, Helana, and Moira were sitting at a table in the Dancing Boar. Anna was serving that night, so she was weaving in and out of the tables to deliver both food and alcohol to the customers.
"They're going to get here soon, right?" Marise complained. "If Gwaine comes and I'm still here he might actually think I came for him."
"Are you telling me that he didn't influence your decision at all?" Helana challenged, arching a delicate eyebrow.
"I am here to spy on Luce and that is-"
"Hush, here they come," Moira interrupted, her sharp eyes trained on the door.
Marise turned slightly so that she could watch Leon escort Lucinda to a table in the tavern closest to the musician who was plucking away at an old ballad. Anna crept over to them to take their orders, her shoulder's hunched as if to protect herself from the lecherous stares of the men in the room. Marise would never understand why such a shy girl as Anna would agree to work as a barmaid in her parent's tavern instead of a cook.
Her thoughts were interrupted when Anna wandered over to the table she was sharing with her friends.
"He seems to be treating her as a gentleman should," she whispered. "Do you guys really think you need to spy on them anymore?"
"Of course we do," Marise answered, before Anna could influence the opinions of her companions. "This is their first official time courting and so it is our job as her closest friends to make sure it goes well. Think of us like chaperones."
"Some chaperones we'd make," Moira muttered as Anna walked away, shaking her head. "Look at what's going on over there."
Marise turned her attention to their table to find a blushing Lucinda leaning over the table to brush a kiss against Leon's cheek.
"So?" She asked, thinking of all the times she and Morgana had played kissing games with the other young people of the court. "What's the big deal?"
"You know how shy Lucinda is. She may not be as bad as Anna, but a kiss on the cheek would mean a lot more to her than it would to you Marise."
"Lady Marise! You're actually here!"
Marise groaned as Gwaine sauntered over to her table, a slight redhead tucked under his arm. Leon and Lucinda both turned to his voice, and Lucinda frowned when she saw her friends.
"There goes our cover," Helana complained. "Guess it's time to retreat."
They stood and went to leave, but Gwaine put his arm, the one that wasn't holding the girl, out to stop them.
"Leaving so soon?" He asked his eyes sparkling with mischief. "It's late, and you should probably have an escort. I willingly offer my services. I'm sure that Marisa here won't mind waiting for me."
"Mary," the girl corrected. "My name is Mary."
"No thanks," Marise answered, glowering at his bearded face. "This isn't the first time we've walked back late at night. And we wouldn't want your protection anyway. You're just a drunk with delusions of grandeur."
A look of pain flickered across Gwaine's face before he covered it with a smile so quickly that Marise wondered if she'd been imagining things.
"Be careful then. You never know what's out there."
Marise rolled her eyes at his melodramatics and stepped outside, Helana and Moira in her wake.
"I can't believe you told him that Mari," Moira scolded, shortening Marise's name in the way she only did when she was upset. "It was awfully rude of you. He was just trying to be chivalrous."
"He was being stupid, that's what he was doing. He has to know that we've done this before. And with that Mary girl right there. It's insulting to think that-"
"Marise, couldn't you tell that he was serious? He looked honestly concerned about us."
"And just because you're scared of him breaking your heart does not give you the right to break his!"
Moira's voice was shrill after Helana's gentle one, and Marise couldn't believe they were ganging up on her. What had happened to the closeknit group they were normally a part of? What made it so personal to Moira that she'd say something like that? And he didn't seem to be breaking his heart up over her, what with the other redhead in his arms. Her cheeks burning with both embarrassment and anger, Marise sped up as if putting distance between herself and the Dancing Boar could leave the bitter emotions behind.
"You know, Marise, I am actually hungry," Helana said after a few feet of silence. "I think I might want to stop in somewhere."
"I know this nice little pub where they have the most delicious chicken," Moira offered, in what Marise could tell was meant to be a peace gesture. "We could all go."
"I think I'll just go home," Marise responded, trying and failing to hide her whirl storm of emotions.
She left them behind without a goodbye, knowing she was acting childish. So what if they had sided with Gwaine? She knew by morning they would be friends again and the girls would help her forget that she had ever had such a foolish crush on him, but for now it was almost like she wanted to stay mad.
But the farther Marise walked, the creepier the darkness began to feel. She'd walked home this way plenty of times, just like she'd told Gwaine, but never alone. Either the girls or Morgana had always been with her.
A gust of wind blew something against her legs, and Marise scuttled away from it, backing into an empty fruit stand.
"What are you doing out so late girly?" A large man asked, coming between her and her path home.
Marise took a deep breath, willing him to return to his dark hole in the alley. When he didn't move, she stepped forward, ignoring him.
"I'm talking to you Yelana!" He yelled, grabbing her arm as she tried to dart around him. He let out a deep breath right into her face, and she could smell the alcohol he's consumed. "I know you've been running around with that physician!"
"I am not Yelana, I am Lady Marise and I demand you release me."
Marise didn't allow her voice to tremble, not even a little.
"I don't believe you!"
Oh well, it was worth a try. Diplomatic reasoning failing, Marise began to struggle against his hold.
"Oh no Yelana, I'm going to take you home and make you wish you'd never run away from me."
"Let her go!"
While Marise had never had an actual conversation with the owner of that voice until that very morning, she was becoming quickly familiar with it.
"Gwaine," she gasped.
"Is this the man you've been fooling around with?" The drunk yelled, flinging her away into the wall as he made a lunge for Gwaine. Once Marise's world had stopped spinning, she saw that Gwaine was easily sidestepping the man's attacks, acting as if it was some kind of joke. Annoyed with his carelessness, Marise stuck her leg out in front of the man, watching impassively as he fell to the ground.
"Now that we're done with that, do you still care to escort me home?"
Gwaine grinned, offering her his arm, which she took willingly.
"I told you that you would need some help."
"I do believe I was the one who took him down," Marise challenged. "You just provided a distraction. If you had waited a few more minutes before showing up, you would have found I can take care of myself."
"Is this about that woman in the bar?" Gwaine asked suddenly. "Is that why you're so angry with me?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"She was just some girl," Gwaine began, but realized his mistake when Marise glared at him. "Look, I wanted to set Percival up on a blind date, but when I got her in there it turned out that she wanted to be with me, not him. I left her there and came after you."
"Why?"
"That Anna girl whispered something about you being really upset with me this time. She said I should go explain, so here I am. I didn't mean for you to think that I asked both of you out on the same day."
They walked in silence for a time before they reached the castle door that Marise used as an entrance.
"I guess I was wrong about you," Marise offered, glancing at him over her shoulder, hand already on the handle.
"Does this mean I can court you?" Gwaine asked, grabbing her hand and holding it.
"Don't press your luck," Marise warned, "but if you want to ask tomorrow . . ."
"Thank you for the second chance," Gwaine said, pressing his warm lips to her hand, keeping his eyes on her face the whole time.
Marise grinned, pleasure on her face.
"Until tomorrow."
Well, I hope you enjoyed that as much as I enjoyed writing it. This was one of my favorites to write. And if you didn't like Marise's character, don't worry, All the OCs are different and have their own personalities. Please review if you wish, it makes me happy when you choose to take the time!