Camelot
April, 509 AD
About a week and a half went by after the assassination attempt and Arthur gradually began to ease up his ultra-paranoid hold on my metaphorical reins as the days went by without any signs of other conspiracies against my life – to the point where I was kindly allowed to work with the horses (as long as I had a fellow knight with me at all times).
It's annoying and I totally miss having a few moments of solitude throughout the days; but I don't really feel like being used to psychologically torture the love of my life (especially since I kinda did give Morgana that idea), so I complied without protests.
I patted Mordred on the back when he jumped off Castiel following a fun session in which we practiced jousting using pool noodles. "Great job, buddy. I can see ya' kickin' Artie's butt sometime soon."
He chuckled shyly. "I am not so sure about that."
"You're the most humble knight I've ever met," I responded with a snort.
"It's refreshing," Merlin stated as he suddenly appeared on the scene.
Mordred simply blushed and averted his gaze, focusing on Castiel's tack as he undid the girth.
"What brings ya' here, brother dearest?" I asked Merlin and I gave him a quick hug before starting to lead Dallas back towards the paddock. My brother walked with us.
"Arthur sent me to make sure you go straight to your chambers as soon as you are done," he responded with a playful eye-roll.
I scoffed. "I kinda hate 'em sometimes."
Merlin nudged my side and said, "He's your husband. It is his job to watch out for you. Especially with how crazy you are." I pouted. "Seriously, Astra – you're the only person ever who is crazy enough to give someone like Morgana instructions on how to bring down a kingdom."
"She had a dagger at my throat and my ability to stall her was the only thing standing between Arthur's life or death," I reminded him in a grumble.
"I know," my brother sighed. "You were very brave."
"Nah, just crazy," I shot back while grinning up at him.
He helped me to gather Dallas's equipment off the fence and then he helped me carry it to Gaius's apartment – where I've been graciously allowed to keep it for now, since I'm still paranoid that something else might be tampered with. I'd faint if Morgana dared to mess with my $2,000 saddle!
"So..." my brother began while I started to clean my equipment with a lightly dampened cloth, "something came up and I need your opinion."
"Fire away," I responded, shooting him a quick smile.
He sighed before explaining, "A teenage boy snuck in here earlier. He said that his sister is very sick and he wants me to help her."
"Why can't he bring 'er to Pops?" I wondered with a frown.
"That's the thing – they are druids. They are still afraid to come so close to the castle."
I let out a puff. I had been very close to convincing Arthur to formally allow druids to live in Camelot's territory again (under the condition that they don't practice magic, but it's a start) when the assassination attempts occurred, setting everything backwards as the fear of sorcery became renewed in his brain.
"How far away is the sister?" I asked.
"He said that she is hidden in the Valley of the Fallen Kings," Merlin responded.
I nodded in understanding. The Valley of the Fallen Kings hasn't always brought us good fortune, but I guess that he can use his superpowers to deal with anything that may come his way.
I bit down on my lip for a moment before finally telling him, "You should go. I'll deal with Arthur."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I mean... obviously and most importantly, we can't let this girl die," I responded. "But also, I want the druids to know that they've got people on their side here in Camelot. They have to know that we're fighting for them and others like 'em."
Merlin smiled widely and he enveloped me in a hug.
"You're amazing, did you know that?" he said gently.
I scoffed. "It's really just the decent thing to do."
He kissed the side of my head before separating and letting out a sigh. He seems nervous.
"Will you be fine on your own?" I asked. "Art would never let me join, but maybe Gwainester could go with ya'."
"No, it is best if he stays here to protect you. I will be fine," he assured me.
"Merlin!" I heard an unhappy Arthur scream from our room as I was making my way back to it after a quick bath, and I picked up my pace. I entered to find a bit of a mess inside, and a distraught King with very messy hair going carelessly through a drawer.
Maybe I should've told him that my brother went out sooner...
He turned to me when I entered and frowned. "Where is Merlin?"
"Nice to see you, too, sunshine," I responded with a sarcastic smile. "Did a tornado blaze through?"
"I cannot find my comb," he said and pouted as he plopped down to sit on the bed, his shoulders slumping in defeat.
"Tough luck," I replied as I leaped onto the bed. I jumped for a few moments, just 'cause it seemed fun, and then I knelt down next to him and started to run my fingers through his soft hair. If I'm meticulous enough, maybe there will be no need for a comb! "Y'know, you look hot with the front combed sideways like this," I commented as I diverted from his usual 2010s boy-band member hairstyle.
He gave me a little grin and I gave him a quick kiss on the lips before continuing to fix his hair, thoroughly enjoying the relaxing feeling of his golden locks sliding between my fingers.
I leaned backwards to admire my job and sighed while biting down on my bottom lip, feeling a buzzing sensation settle in my stomach at the sight of him. The angels certainly took their time carving out this man, because he's a masterpiece.
"What is wrong?" Arthur asked.
I made a 'tsk' sound before responding, "You look way too hot. I don't want any courtier girls tryin' their luck."
He grabbed me by the waist and pulled me closer again, pressing his forehead against mine. "Well, they can try, but they will soon find that everything I am belongs to you," he stated.
I felt my cheeks get warm and I kissed him while I tried to think of a response.
I smirked as an idea came and I separated from him to ask, "Have you been gettin' into my Austen novels, you cheez whiz?"
"I will be getting into something else, if I have my way," he shot back with a wink.
My face heated up, a tingle ran down my spine, and I slapped his arm – not hard enough to actually hurt him – as I scolded, "Arthur!"
He fell backwards laughing and I shook my head in disbelief before moving to sit on the desk, waiting for him to get a grip on his brain so that I could finally inform him of my brother's whereabouts.
I watched warily as he stood up from the bed and moved towards me with slow strides. He stood between my legs as he drew me in for a hug while kissing the side of my head. I gave in and returned the embrace, dropping my head to his shoulder as I sighed and released some tension.
"I love it when you get all flustered," he stated in a tender whisper.
"Shut up," I grumbled.
"I also love you," he continued sweetly.
"Well, it's hard not to," I responded, now smirking. He let out a breathy chuckle and tightened his grip on me. "I love you, too, Artie," I added in a whisper.
We remained in place for a minute or two, until I once again remembered that I have something relevant to tell him, so I called his name gently. He hummed, not easing his hold on me.
"Regarding Merls..." I started. That got his attention and he leaned backwards so that he could look me in the eyes. "He's gonna be gone for a couple of days... Three, four at most."
"What?! Why?!"
I let out a shaky sigh and averted my gaze before explaining, "A boy came askin' for help 'cause his sister's sick and he was afraid of bringing her here because..." I trailed off and bit down on my bottom lip.
"What?" Arthur pressed.
"They're druids," I spilled. His eyes widened. I gulped before continuing, "So, seeing as it wouldn't be too wise to have Gaius leave his post here for that long and travel practically alone at his age, I arranged for Merls to go in his place..." I looked up at Arthur, holding my breath as I awaited a response.
He stared at me for a few moments, then he let out a heavy exhale before saying, "That is very noble of you, Astra. I just wish you had told me before doing it."
"I know," I replied while moving my gaze towards my fiddling hands on my lap, my voice barely a whisper. "But we were worried you'd say 'no'..." I felt a pang of remorse in my chest when he suddenly appeared hurt. "I'm sorry, Artie. I don't know what I was thinkin'."
Arthur took a step forwards and kissed my forehead before hugging me again. I sighed in relief. I guess he's not mad, then. Or he's not too mad.
"You really care about the druids, do you not?" he asked gently.
I nodded. "Well, yeah, they're paying for crimes they didn't commit... Most of them, anyway."
He stepped back again and placed a hand on the side of my face, the other one covering my still fiddling hands and stopping their movement. "We will renew our talks to change the way we deal with them once the Sarrum is gone, yeah?" he proposed.
'The Sarrum' is a king from I don't remember where that's supposed to be arriving today in hopes of signing an alliance treaty with Camelot.
"Thanks, Artie," I told him with a grin and I reached up to give him a little kiss. "I'll leave you to get changed... I'm sure that a big boy like you can handle that without any help from Merlin, right?"
He smirked and sneaked an arm around my waist, pressing me closer to his body and causing my eyes to widen. "And I am sure that a big girl like you would love to help me undress," he shot back.
"Arthur!" I scolded once again and ripped myself out of his hold before leaping off the table and dashing towards the door. "I'm sleeping in my own room tonight!" I said as I exited the room, ignoring his protests for me to get back.
About an hour-and-a-half later, I sheepishly made a bee-line back towards Arthur's room after finding that, one, I forgot to put my solar charger under the sun yesterday, which means that it's out of energy and, therefore, can't power up my dead electronic devices; and, two, that Gwaine is out on patrol and thus can't entertain me.
The sight that greeted me when I entered was both amusing and slightly upsetting, as I found dear Gaius helping the freaking King of freaking Camelot to dress up.
"Y'know, where I'm from, you'd get mercilessly made fun of for not being able to do this by yourself," I informed my hot himbo as I watched the physician fasten his cape.
"You could not stay away from me after all, my love?" he asked in a teasing tone as he sent me a wink.
I gave him a cautionary glance, feeling slightly terrified that Gaius would find out why I left in the first place, and then I let myself smirk as I responded, "Well, my two favourite people are out, so I guess I'll have to make do with your company."
Gaius snickered and he shot me a look of amusement while Arthur glared at me.
The elderly man moved to retrieve some arm thingies that go over the sleeves of the chainmail. I sighed and gently took them from him as I whispered, "Lemme do it, Pops. He's my Ken-doll, after all."
The physician snorted. "I do wonder how you have kept your head this long, my child."
"Same," I responded with a grin before moving over to Arthur. "You think you can manage slipping your hand inside?" I questioned as I held up one of the arm-thingies, feeling too lazy to fully undo the leather buckles on it.
"I am not a child, Astraea," he grumbled while complying with my request.
I huffed and moved to secure the buckles as I mumbled under my breath, "Could've fooled me."
"Cheeky woman," he said under his breath, making me smirk.
"All done, Peaches," I stated once he was ready and I reached up to kiss his cheek.
He sighed shakily and nodded. He threw an arm around my shoulders and drew me closer to his side. I tilted my head when I noticed the troubled look on his gorgeous features.
"You seem nervous, Sire," Gaius noted.
Arthur huffed. "Can you blame me?"
"The Sarrum does have a reputation," the physician stated.
"Even my father feared him," my King mumbled.
I frowned as I inquired, "Why?"
Arthur shook his head. "I do not want you to be scared, Astra."
"Too late," I said as my intestines began to twist. "What's so bad about this guy?"
He shared a wary look with Gaius before sighing and replying, "They say he takes joy in impaling men..."
My eyes widened in shock.
"Not just men, Sire," the physician interjected in a grave tone. "Women and children, too." My stomach churned. "He also has a fondness for assassinating his friends."
"We're not gonna be his friends, though, right Artie?" I asked while looking up at my King, a deathly coolness spreading through my chest and threatening to freeze my lung function.
"Of course not, my love," he responded and paused to kiss the top of my head. "This visit is merely diplomatic."
"Good," I breathed out.
"Although, we do share one thing –" Arthur spoke up again, "a hatred for Morgana."
I frowned again. I wouldn't call it 'hatred'... It's an awful word and I wouldn't say that I hate her. I pity her... and she scares the crap out of me... But I can't find it within myself to hate her or even to wish her dead. Not when I still have memories of the person she once was. I didn't say anything, though.
"Given the Sarrum's reputation, are you certain it is wise to seek an alliance?" Gaius gently questioned the King.
"If we are to achieve peace in the five kingdoms, we have got little choice," Arthur responded. "I do not agree with his regime, Gaius, but dealing with him may be the only way of achieving our aims."
I reluctantly nodded in agreement.
"You are right, of course," the physician said. "You are becoming a true statesman, Arthur. I hope you realise that."
A small grin showed itself upon Arthur's lips and I smiled a little at the sight of it, giving him a gentle nudge in a silent way to communicate how proud I am of him.
My King thanked Gaius before turning to me and offering a hand. "Come on, darling, we are going to be late."
I hesitated as I stared at his outstretched limb, wondering, "Is it smart for me to go? I don't wanna get impaled 'cause I said something outta pocket."
"You are my queen, Astra," he responded softly. "I want – I need you by my side."
"Fine, but I'm blaming ya' if I get turned into a human kushiage," I grumbled under my breath as I finally took his hand, allowing him to lead me out of the room and downstairs.
My heart got caught in my throat as soon as I saw the Sarrum and his people enter the courtyard, a frightening sight that had me clutching Arthur's hand tightly as I moved to hide partly behind him – though I tried to be discreet about that.
The foreign king was vulgar-looking, with a smug smirk spread over his lips as he looked over Camelot's knights with an almost derisive eye. His chubby figure was slightly hunched, and his bald head had marks of battle in the form of scars. His people carried armour and weapons that seemed far more primitive than what one can find in Camelot or Gawant; and they had the look of a Iron-Agers, rather than the look of a great British kingdom that is on par with its peers.
The man stopped his dapple grey horse some metres in front of the base of the staircase to the main entrance – atop which stood Camelot's welcome party.
"We are most grateful to the Sarrum for accepting our invitation and gracing our palace with his presence," Arthur spoke loudly, making me flinch a little as I hadn't been expecting it while being stuck analysing the intruders. I mean, the visitors. "We welcome him and his warriors with friendship."
"The last time I met you, you were ten years old," the Sarrum responded in a nasal voice that is worthy of a Pixar villain. He regarded Arthur with an air of superiority, as if he thought him nothing more than a kid playing King. And it made acid pool in my stomach. "Uther held a tournament in your honour."
"I fight my own tournaments now," my King answered stoically.
The man snorted and smirked. "Well, we shall enjoy putting you to the test."
I was unable to help the way in which my body tensed up further. Arthur gently ran his thumb over my knuckles.
After getting my hand slobbered all over by the Sarrum and his sleazy version of knights in 'greeting', I found myself in need of another bath and I managed to slip away from the crowded corridors while Arthur was busy showing the party to their assigned portion of the castle.
I changed into a crimson red dress, figuring that I should wear Camelot's colours, and slipped on my pair of black Converse before quickly brushing my hair – not bothering to do much with it, since I don't have Gwen's stylist skills and I still can't look her in the eye. Then I left my room and reluctantly went to seek out my King once more.
"Where have you been?!" I started at the sound of Gwaine's voice. "You disappeared! Arthur has been worried!"
I gave him a sheepish smile and responded in a whisper, "I just needed to bathe. Those fleabags left me feeling all icky."
"I pity you, Trae. They are not pleasant in the slightest," my best friend replied in the same manner.
"You can say that again," I mumbled.
He gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Come on, then, sweetheart. They have gathered in the grand hall and Arthur is only waiting for you to begin the feast," he stated with an apologetic look.
I groaned and linked my arm with his, allowing him to escort me to the aforementioned room.
"Would you sit next to me, please?" I asked. "I don't wanna end up next to one of the other men."
"That has already been arranged. Arthur had the same concerns," he informed me, causing me to sigh in relief.
Chatter filled the atmosphere and the grand hall reeked of humanity and greasy food as I stepped inside beside my best friend, a wave of nausea instantly hitting me as I recoiled at the scent. Gwaine scrunched up his nose, which informed me that the dislike I felt towards the Sarrum wasn't making me exaggerate what my senses perceived.
"I miss Ygor's pit," I whispered to my friend as he walked me towards our places at the table, earning a snort.
Not unexpectedly, Arthur sat at the head of the table with the Sarrum to his right and an empty seat to his left, beside which was another empty seat. I was glad to find confirmation to Gwaine's assurance that he was to be seated beside me and I thanked George as he opened my chair for me; only this once not protesting the action since I don't want to tick off Walmart!Vlad The Impaler.
"There you are, my love!" Arthur chirped and he slipped his hand into mine, giving it a gentle squeeze. I forced a little grin in reply and then gave the Sarrum what I hope looked like a courteous nod before dropping my gaze to my plate, not wanting to gaze at his ugly face for longer than necessary.
The food was brought in shortly after and I really didn't feel like eating as my intestines continued to twist in disgust at the smell in the room, which had only intensified since I entered it. However, I have to keep up appearances and ensure I don't give the Sarrum any reasons to think lowly of Arthur, so I swallowed the nauseated feeling and allowed George to serve me a bowl of vegetable soup.
I kept to myself as the chatter continued, mostly ignoring a casual and aimless conversation that was going on beside me between Arthur and the Sarrum. That is until I heard myself being mentioned.
"I heard rumours that your queen is quite the spitfire," the Sarrum told Arthur, causing me to glance his way as I frowned. "She seems very tame now. I am pleased to find that you have managed to educate her."
My eyes widened in shock and I choked on my food, instantly covering my mouth with my hand.
I heard a low growl coming from Gwaine and I watched as Arthur clenched his jaw.
"Astraea is a wonderful queen," my King asserted, giving the Sarrum a cautionary look while he squeezed my hand under the table. "I am incredibly lucky to have her."
"Of course," the foreign king replied, almost condescendingly, before returning his attention to his food.
I accepted an extra napkin from George and cleaned my face before going back to trying to dissociate from the world, attempting to focus my thoughts on anything but the present – like a short mental movie in which the Kanima from 'Teen Wolf' gives the Sarrum an express ticket to hell.
Some minutes later, something perked my interest again as Arthur spoke to the foreign man, "There is a rumour that you are pouring hard work into tracking down Morgana. Is that true?"
The man nodded. "She stole something from me. Something that I think your father, and you, would have appreciated."
"What was that?" Arthur inquired.
"A dragon."
My breath hitched as my eyes widened again and I quickly brought my glass of grape juice to my lips as a way to muffle an exclamation while I shared an alarmed side-glance with Gwaine, who was now suddenly also very interested in the conversation between Arthur and the Sarrum.
"I had thought they were extinct," my King noted.
"I thought so, as well, but my men managed to capture it and drag it to Amata," the foreign man responded and he broke out in chuckles. I kept taking continuous sips from my glass, wanting to repress a bubbling outburst. "As the dragon grew, the pit became too small," the man continued telling his tale in the midst of his laughter, causing my intestines to twist and turn in unnatural ways as burning acid filled my stomach. "Gradually the creature was crippled and twisted. At night you could hear its cries." My breathing grew laboured and my vision became blurry. "They were so pathetic."
I must've clutched my glass a little too hard, for it suddenly shattered in my hand and I let out a yelp as I jolted backwards, a faint ringing sound filling my ears as I stared at the blood that was pouring out of my palm.
"Astra!" "Trae!" Arthur and Gwaine exclaimed at the same time. The latter was quick to stand up and he smartly wrapped a napkin around my hand, pressing it to contain the bleeding while his other arm was thrown over my shoulders in a comforting manner.
"What happened?!" my King asked in bewilderment as he stood up as well.
"A-accident," I responded, not trusting myself to give a full sentence as my body trembled as if I were going into a hypothermic shock, and black dots accompanied my vision.
"I will take her to Gaius, Sire," Gwaine told him. "You should stay with our guests."
"Are you sure?" Arthur asked, his eyes searching mine while I avoided his gaze, not wanting him to see how deeply disturbed I felt by the revelations about Aithusa; and I simply nodded in response.
With that, my best friend led me towards the door and out of that stinky room for good.
Gwaine hugged me to his chest while Gaius carefully pricked the small shards of glass out of my hand with a pair of tweezers, sending me apologetic looks every time I flinched – which was basically once every five seconds.
"It was horrible, Pops," I said, my voice barely a whisper thanks to the thick lump in my throat. "The way he spoke about 'er... like he enjoyed watching her suffer... like she was nothing but a source of amusement."
"She is safe now, Trae," Gwaine said softly.
"I don't care, I wanna make 'em pay," I shot back, feeling my heart clench. "For what he did to her, and for everything that he put us through... I want to kill him."
"Do not say that, Astra," Gaius scolded with a cautionary look.
"I'm serious. I want him dead."
"Me, too," Gwaine whispered. Gaius seemed bewildered at that.
"Imagine if he gets her again... Or to Finn..." I continued.
"And you should have heard what he told Arthur about Astra," Gwaine added through gritted teeth.
Gaius asked what that was, and the knight recounted the story of how, apparently, I'm in need of education.
"The man is a monster, Pops," I stated. I used my free hand to wipe at my cheeks, finding that they were ridiculously damp with tears of rage.
Gaius sighed. "Even so, you cannot kill a guest of the King."
"Unfortunately," Gwaine grumbled.
I was assured shortly after that the damage to my hand was superficial, despite the intense bleeding, and that I'd heal completely within a week as long as I didn't do anything crazy (like try to kill the Sarrum), kept a bandage on for protection, and applied a yellow ointment every few hours.
I lay on my stomach atop the bed as I watched Arthur fiddle with his armour, a puzzled look on his face as he seemingly tried to figure out how to put it on after I'd forbidden him from making Gaius help him again.
Much to my displeasure, the knights of Camelot and the wannabe-knights from Amata had agreed to hold a so-called-friendly combat tournament. For once in my life, I was glad when Arthur strictly told me that I'm not allowed to participate. I didn't want to anyway – especially not with my injured hand.
"Artie, c'mon, you've helped me put on armour before!" I exclaimed with a scoff of disbelief. "Have you hit your head recently or something?– Oh, wait, stupid question. Yes you have."
He rolled his eyes before responding, "I have helped you to clasp it up, not put the whole thing on. There is a difference."
"Fair enough," I mumbled and lazily stood up before walking up to him and grabbing the shoulder thingies off the table (being careful not to strain my injured hand much). Then I moved to slip them on him and we shared a grin when our eyes connected for a moment before I moved on to do the buckles.
I gently tugged on the leather cords and stopped a second later. "How's that?"
"A bit tighter," Arthur responded. I gave another small tug. "Tighter." One more tug. "Perfect."
I nodded and tied it before moving on to the next one and repeating the same process.
"Will you come to watch?" he asked in a soft tone. I could feel his eyes fixed on me as I continued to fasten the armour around his right arm.
"I might watch from the balcony, but I don't really wanna be near those men," I responded, clenching my jaw at the memories from last night. "I'm sorry, Artie," I added in a whisper.
"I understand," he answered and he took my good hand in his, pausing my movements as he turned to face me. His eyes were swimming in emotions. "I am truly sorry about what he said last night. Under different circumstances, I would have cut him down right there, but–"
"You don't have to explain, Artie," I cut him off and reached up to kiss him. "I also held back from tearin' 'em a new one."
He chuckled for a moment before kissing me again.
"I am surprised that Gwaine held his tongue," he added with a slight tilt of his head.
I snorted. "I think he almost died from doing so."
Some two minutes later, my King was all clad in his armour and I looked him up and down with a grin. "Yup. You're all set."
"Do I not get a little something for good luck?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around my waist and drew me flush against his body while pressing our foreheads together.
"You have the bracelet, don't ya'?" I asked, purposely leaning backwards as he tried to kiss me and giving him a teasing grin.
"Yes, but I need something extra if I am to fight without my number one cheerleader beside me," he claimed as he started to back me up towards the bed.
"But the great Arthur Pendragon doesn't need luck! He's fantastic enough on his own!" I countered, then I broke out in giggles when he knocked me down onto the mattress, being careful to catch himself before he could crush me.
He narrowed his eyes at me and grunted, "Would you just kiss me, cheeky woman?!"
I grinned and rounded his neck with my arms before gently pulling him down to bring his lips against mine. I instantly felt him smile, and a second later, he was swiping his tongue across my bottom lip. I allowed him the entrance he so gallantly asked for and savoured the taste and the feeling of him for a few moments before pushing him back.
"I believe you have a tournament to get to," I stated.
"Fine," he grumbled and placed one more gentle kiss against my lips. "This is not over, though."
"I'm counting on that," I winked at him. He smiled and kissed me again. "Good luck my champion," I kissed him this time. "I love you."
"I love you, too, my queen."
I gave up on watching the tournament after Arthur heart-wrenchingly lost against one of the Sarrum's men, and I figured that I'd get ahead and go through some of the state business – even if what I really wanted was to make a Mii of the foreign king and kick his butt to next century on 'Super Smash Bros'.
The gramophone playing 'Winds of Change' by Scorpions was the only thing keeping me from falling asleep as I read over some boring weather reports from villages all around the kingdom.
I fell off my chair out of surprise when a little brown bird suddenly flew into my room. I immediately sat up and watched with widened eyes as the animal circled the space before perching itself atop the table and letting a piece of steel-blue cloth drop. Then it flew out the window as quickly as it had come in.
Feeling befuddled, I stood up and grabbed the piece of cloth. Dread struck at my chest as soon as I realised what it was – a piece of Merlin's neckerchief! He's sending a message! He must be in trouble!
I scribbled a quick note for Arthur, letting him know that I was going out to look for my brother and, with a racing heart, I put on my riding boots and sprinted out of the room to look for Gwaine – who wasn't hard to find as he was climbing the staircase to the royal apartments. I grabbed his arms and exclaimed, "I need your help! I think Merls is in trouble!"
He didn't question my words as he turned right around and ran with me towards the horse paddocks. We hurried to saddle Dallas, Fallyn, Falcon and Shakespeare (I figured that it might be smart to bring an extra horse in case the druid kids were hurt); and then we blazed out of the castle and towards the Valley of the Fallen Kings.
Afternoon turned into night and we stopped to rest for a couple of hours, since going on in the dark would be stupid. Night turned into day and we continued the trek at a spirited pace, knowing that Merlin could be in a life-or-death situation.
"How did you know?" Gwaine finally asked as we trotted along the forest, both of us restlessly scanning our surroundings for any clues.
"A bird flew into my room, left a piece of blue cloth on my table, and left," I explained briefly.
"You think he enchanted it," my friend deduced.
"I could be wrong – but what are the chances?"
"Will Arthur not worry that you are gone?"
"Probably. I'm sure I'll get a long lecture later," I responded with a shrug.
Gwaine let out a breathy chuckle and shook his head, but didn't say anything else.
Suddenly, Falcon – who, along with Shakespeare, was freely trotting beside us – slid to a stop and perked his ears as he stared at something. I moved Dallas towards him and reached over to pet his neck. "What is it bud?" The dark bay puffed and began walking off the path. I shared a nod with Gwaine and we prompted our horses to follow him.
I started hearing faint voices in the distance and, as we got closer to them, I was able to make out one of them as Merlin's. I asked for more speed out of my horse and we cantered the rest of the way.
My brother limped beside a blond teenage boy, and he smiled a little when he saw Gwaine and I.
"Merls!" I leaped off Dallas and rushed to hug him tightly. "Are you okay?! You scared the crap out of us!"
"I'm all right now," he assured me.
"Now?!"
"We had an incident with Morgana, but Daegal saved me," Merlin explained briefly, causing my eyes to widen. I saw 'Daegal' looking away as guilt flashed through his features.
"Is the sister okay?" I asked.
Daegal's remorse seemed to increase at that as he cowered and my stomach fell.
"It's a long story, I will tell you about it later," my brother promised. "But for now, we must get to Camelot. I know who the traitor is."
I gulped as I watched his expression morph into dread.
"Who?!" Gwaine and I asked at the same time.
"It is Gwen. I think Morgana did something to her."
I could feel my face going pale as a slight ringing settled in my ears, my heart racing like a maniac as I stumbled a little. I steadied myself against Dallas's shoulder.
"Come on, kid," Gwaine moved Fallyn closer to us and he placed a hand on my shoulder. "We must get home."
I swallowed thickly and nodded. I climbed on Dallas before motioning towards Falcon and Shakespeare. Merlin helped Daegal to get on the latter, and then he swiftly climbed onto the former, and we hightailed it back to the castle.
A small sense of guilt hit me when I remembered that today was when we'd finally be signing the treaty with the Sarrum. I'm really gonna get an earful from Arthur as soon as I see him again... But now's not the time to worry about that. Daegal believes that there's a plot underway to kill my King (and me, but they can't do that if they don't know where I am).
Knowing that there was no time to be lost, we hastened to untack the horses and left them in the woods before using the secret tunnel to the armoury to get inside the castle. Gwaine borrowed a crossbow, I borrowed a bow, and Merlin borrowed a sword.
"Check the royal chambers for Arthur, Daegal and I will look for Gwen," Merlin instructed Gwaine and I in a whisper. We nodded and took off sprinting in the direction of the royal apartments.
"Art?!" I called out as I barged into our room, but I found it empty and way messier than it'd been the last time I saw it.
No response came and Gwaine and I shared a wary look before moving to check every corner of the chamber, wishing to make sure that the King wasn't unconscious somewhere with poison in his system again, but there were no signs of him. I also noticed that his chainmail, cape, and crown were missing.
"They must be doing the treaty thing now," I concluded.
"Let us hurry, then," my best friend responded and we exchanged a quick nod before running out of the room.
Conveniently, we reunited with Daegal and Merlin at the bottom of the main staircase.
"George says that they're all in the grand hall!" my brother informed us in an alarmed whisper.
"I guess I gotta take my spot then," I said.
"Absolutely not. You are staying out of sight until we figure out what is going on," Gwaine responded. I sighed and nodded, even if I really wanted to stick to Arthur's side like a hotcake to an unbuttered pan.
The four of us shared a silent nod of agreement and we hastened towards a corridor that leads to a staircase, that leads to a discreet entrance to the balcony that overlooks the throne room; which would give us a great bird's eye-view of the scene without exposing me.
"What the heck?!" I asked when we reached the door to the staircase to find that it was ajar.
"What is wrong?" Daegal inquired.
"This should be locked," Merlin answered.
"Oh, crap! They're gonna JFK him!" I worried as I pushed the door open and hurried to start climbing.
Gwaine grabbed my arm and took the lead from me as he whispered, "You don't know who might be up there, stay behind."
In a flash, Merlin also moved in front of me. I huffed in frustration, but didn't protest and allowed them to go first.
As soon as the four of us made it to the balcony, we met eyes with a tall man that was holding a crossbow aimed at the throne room below us. He smirked wickedly and quickly changed course to shoot me, but my brother was quick to avert the arrow with magic while Gwaine pushed me behind him once again.
The man growled and flung a dagger, then another, and another, but we all managed to duck them as we dropped to the floor. A grunt escaped my lips at the impact against the hard ground.
This distraction allowed the ass-butt to return his focus to shooting his crossbow, which he aimed at the throne room again. I swiftly drew my bow, shooting at his head, at the same time as my brother used his powers once more to avert the arrow that flew out from the man's weapon.
Collective gasps came from the scene below us.
"Leon!" I heard Arthur yell. His alive and not pained-sounding voice caused my heart to relax into a normal beat. I allowed myself to grin as I sighed in relief.
Merlin, Gwaine and I crawled towards the edge of the balcony and we peeked down. My eyes widened in surprise when I noticed that the Sarrum had been the one to take the arrow, and he now lay unconscious on the round table. Or dead, I guess, judging by the grave look on Gaius's face as he inspected him.
"Hey, look at that! We got to kill him after all!" I chirped and exchanged triumphant smirks with my two best friends. "Seems like you're a hero now, buddy," I added as I turned to look at Daegal, only for my smile to fade when I noticed him clutching his stomach in pain. There was a dagger sticking out of it. My heart flipped upside down and Merlin and I darted towards him.
"Did I save the King and queen?" the boy croaked out as he stared at my brother.
"Yes," he answered while putting pressure on the wound.
"Can you save him?" I asked him, feeling the colour draining out of my face as I watched the blood pouring out.
Merlin nodded, "I can try." I gulped and gave him a nod. "I need you to pull the dagger out on three," he then instructed. I nodded again. "One... two... three!"
I yanked the dagger out and held my breath as I watched my brother speak a spell. The boy's eyes began to close and I bit down on my bottom lip. Merlin repeated the spell, this time a bit more desperately as tears began to pool in his eyes.
"You can do it, Merls," I encouraged in a shaky whisper.
He tried the spell once again just as Daegal closed his eyes completely and his head dropped to the side. My brother staggered a little before he inspected the wound once more and he checked the boy's pulse. He let out a long exhale.