Morgana's heart pounded in her chest. She wanted to believe that he wasn't holding the book of magic, but there was no denying what was right in front of her. Uther's expression was stern as he stepped closer.
"Morgana, I received an alarming report today."
Morgana swallowed nervously, not sure how to answer. "An alarming report, my Lord?" she repeated.
Uther nodded. "Yes. So alarming I wasn't sure what to do. I denied it…thinking there must be some mistake. I still believe there is. Morgana, have you ever seen this book before?" Uther asked as he held it out to her.
Morgana flipped through the pages, hoping that nothing in her expression would give her away. "What is this?"
"You do not know?" Uther eyed her intently.
"Of course not. It looks like a load of rubbish to me. I've never seen it before," she answered as she thrust it back into his hands.
Relief flooded Uther's expression. "Can you swear to me that you've never seen this book before?"
Morgana hesitated. Of course her initial reaction had been to deny knowing anything of the book. But this wouldn't be the end to the matter. She was sure of it. Uther would search relentlessly for its owner. And just who would end up getting hurt in the end? She tried to push the disturbing thoughts out of her mind. "I swear," Morgana finally answered. "Now what is all of this about?"
Uther rubbed his forehead and set the book down. "You have no idea how relieved I am to hear your denial. A maid found this under one of the floorboards in your chambers and brought it to me. It's a book of sorcery."
Morgana dug her fingernails into the palms of her hands. Someone must have been excruciatingly thorough to have found that book. And she had a pretty good idea who that person could be.
"Under my floorboard? That's preposterous! What maid was this?" she asked, even though she already knew the answer.
"I have never seen her with you before…she called herself Lena I believe?"
"Leda," said Morgana through clenched teeth.
"Quite right. As I was saying, she came to me and told me of her findings. You can imagine my shock. The thought of you with such a book in your possession troubled me greatly. But of course…that is not the case. Now it is clear to me that someone has hidden this book in your chambers to avoid detection. And that person must be found."
"My Lord, is that really necessary? What if this book has been under that floorboard for years?"
"I seriously doubt that. It shows no evidence of neglect or damage. When this maid presented it to me there was no dust or mold covering it."
"She could have brushed it off," Morgana suggested. She was grasping at something…anything…to persuade him to change his mind.
"The maid assured me she had not done anything to tamper with the evidence, Morgana."
"And you really believe the word of a maid…a lowly servant?"
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that I don't trust her. I had never seen her before this morning, and I think she's a troublemaker."
"You think she concocted all of this?"
"I…I don't know. But I think she's a busybody who needs to mind her own business."
"I doubted her story at first as well, which is why I will have her show both of us exactly where she found the book."
"This is ridiculous," Morgana murmured.
"I have to take all the necessary precautions. Morgana, I don't know if you understand how dangerous this will look. I had that maid swear to me that she would keep her findings to herself, but if word ever got out that such a book had been found in your possession…"
"What? People would think I have magic?"
Uther nodded slowly. "Yes…yes, they might. And you realize how damaging that would be to your reputation."
"I don't care what people think."
"No, but you should!" Uther said forcefully. A vein in his forehead began to throb, a sign he was becoming agitated.
"And what if I did have magic?" Morgana asked, shocked at her own boldness. But it was too late now.
Shock replaced irritation on Uther's face. "Why would you say such a thing? Why would you even think that?"
"Would you have me killed? Burned at the stake for the horrible person that I am?" Morgana stepped closer, suddenly not so afraid.
"No…stop. Enough with these questions."
"I need to know!" Morgana exclaimed. "I need to know if you would have the backbone to send me to my death, just because I had been so unfortunate as to have been born with magic." She worried that she had said too much, but she couldn't live like this anymore.
For once, Uther was rendered speechless. Slowly, he lowered himself onto a chair.
Morgana continued. "You claim to love me as a father. Would a father send his own daughter to her death?"
"Leave me."
"Not until you answer me."
"Leave me!" Uther exclaimed with more force.
"So you have no answer for me," Morgana said softly. "Very well, I shall leave you."
"Morgana, wait."
Morgana turned, almost hopeful that he would give her the response she so desperately wanted.
"Your maid…the one you've always had…"
"You mean Gwen," she stated, annoyed at the change of topic.
"Yes. She must be questioned."
"No, you will leave Gwen out of this. You've accused her wrongly before and I won't have you treating her so again."
"She will be questioned, Morgana. And I would advise you not to fight against me. Do you understand?"
"Yes, I understand. But if you do anything to hurt Gwen I will never forgive you. And I'll never be able to look on you as a father. Never."
Morgana hastily departed the room, leaving Uther alone with his thoughts.
"No, my child," Uther murmured. "I would never let any harm come to you."
So...if any of you have read my previous stories, I explained how I wanted to keep the storyline from the show where Uther is Morgana's father. At this point, she's not aware of it yet. No one is, except Uther, obviously. I've always been interested in exploring what might have happened if Uther had found out earlier about Morgana's magic. Would he really have had her killed? I honestly don't believe he would have. He went to such great lengths to protect her during Season 3 when she almost died, and even condoned the use of magic to save her. So really, I think he would have found a way to protect her somehow. Then again, those are just my thoughts. Of course, during Season 1 there were those moments where he severely punished her, so it makes sense she would be scared and worried that he *might* have her executed if he ever found out. Curious to hear your thoughts! :)