Ch. 5~Accidents Happen

Six years later

"Tia? Tia, where'd you go?" Gaius called out through the tower.

"Over here," I pulled my head up, only to smack it on the mantel above me. "OW!"

The old man chucked as I rubbed the throbbing knot on my head. "Are you alright?"

"Fine. I was trying to clean out the fireplace before I made breakfast."

"You work too hard, my dear."

"Meh. Well, what do you have for me today?"

My name is Celestia, or Tia, as everyone called me. I studied with Gaius every morning. As repayment for being my tutor, I cooked, cleaned, and acted as a general dogs body for him. Of course, that was something Uther didn't really like…

"Nothing much so far as lessons. But I do need some help organizing the tower. My friend, Hunith, is sending her son to Camelot, said that he needed to make a life for himself away from Ealdor."

"Alright, I can most certainly do that. How long to we have?"

"Aaaaabout…a week."

I raised my eyebrows and looked around the physician's tower. "We may need a bit of help with that." My eyes turned gold.

A week later, I bustled around the tower in my town clothes, trying to find my shopping basket. Gaius was concocting Morgana's sleeping draft as I found it under a pile of sacks.

"Don't forget, Hunith's boy is coming today." I called as I pulled on my cloak.

"Mmh," was all he said.

Even after living in Camelot for ten years, Gaius told me very little about his old friend Hunith. All I knew was that she lived in a border village in a neighboring kingdom. What would her son be like? I didn't even know his name, or how old he was. Well, as long as he isn't a peeping tom, I think he'll be fine.

"Excuse me?"

I turned to see a young man staring at me. My dark skin and hazel eyes were always a bit daunting.

"Can I help you?" he seemed surprised at my voice. It had changed since I came to Albion, picking up the accent of the natives, but with the lilt of my old language.

"Uhm..." he scratched his cheek, and I noticed he wore a red neckerchief over a blue shirt with a brown jacket. "Do you know the way to the physician's tower?"

"Of course," I smiled, "Just go up to the palace. When you come into the courtyard, go right across, then to your right. There'll be a door with a spiral staircase. Follow them all the way up to the door marked 'physician'."

"Thank you," he grinned at me. He was a bit thin.

"My pleasure." Then I reached into my basket and pulled out a small apple pie. I held it out to him.

He looked at it as if it were a bug, "I don't have any way to pay you."

"I don't need payment for being kind."

So he took it. "Thank you, again." The young man turned away and walked towards the castle.

But as he approached the courtyard, he turned back to look at me. I raised my hand and waved. He smiled back and put his hand up about halfway, as if he wasn't quite sure of me. Then he was gone.

Later, as I walked by the training grounds, I saw Arthur making a servant carry a shield back and forth as he threw daggers at it. I stepped forward to tell him off, when the boy from earlier did it for me. I don't know exactly what was said, but Arthur didn't like it. He put the man in an arm lock and had him taken to the dungeons just as I walked up to him.

"Care to explain?" he turned.

"Ah, Tia, how's my snaky little-"

"Hush!" I snapped. The men around him laughed like the lackeys they were. "And I would be much better if I didn't have a stinking sweaty pig hanging on me."

The man "ooh"ed all together as Arthur just looked at me.

"You know, you're the only person besides Father who can get away with something like that."

"That's because you know I could knock you on your ass."

"Is that so? Hm," Arthur moved away, his back to me. Then he spun around to throw me a sword. I caught it out of instinct. "Let's see, then."

"Sire? Do you really think this is a good idea?" one of his knight lackeys asked.

"Sir Leon, I do not need the concern of a pompous knight." I tucked up my skirts, revealing my leggings.

We circled each other for a moment, "Eager to prove yourself against a woman, aren't you, Pequeño Rey*?" I laughed.

He knew my derogatory use of the Españan phrase, and he hated it when I used it against him. He attacked. The fight lasted a few moments, since we were equally matched in skill. The only difference was that Arthur was bigger and stronger than me. But I used that against him, dodging rather than blocking. I fanally managed to slip past his guard and rapped him on the hand, causing him to drop the sword. As he bent to pick it up, I flicked mine to rest at his throat.

"Do you yield, Majestad**? Or must I teach you courtesy towards others?"

He straightened up, scowling, "I yield." Arthur bowed to me and his men gasped.

"I put my sword down, and we both broke out laughing. "You fail at trying to be upset with me," I told him.

"Oh, I know. Seriously, though," he put his arm around me again, "How've you been?"

"Wonderful. Gaius started teaching me about how to counter certain poisons. Erm, Arthur…" I nodded towards the knights who were staring at us.

"That's enough training for today, lads. Go do…whatever it is you usually do…"

When they left, we continued walking.

"Who was that boy you sent to the dungeons?"

"Just some idiot who didn't know who he was messing with. Marvin, I think he said his name was."

"Hmm." Too many coincidences…but I don't believe in coincidences.