Gawant

September, 507 AD

"Dear Astra – this is Prince Cynebald, my husband-to-be," Elena said while sporting a proud, wide smile as she led me up to a very tall guy with straight dark brown hair that was combed backwards, striking jade-green eyes, and a goatee. "My love – this is Astraea, Lady-Knight of Camelot and my best friend!"

I was slightly taken aback by the last bit, but I quickly embraced it with a grin and offered Cynebald a hand for a shake. I was surprised (and grateful) that he didn't kiss the back of it like people often tend to do. Instead, he gave me a gentle handshake. "I have heard a lot about you, Astra. I feel like I already know you!" he said. His voice was deep with a little hint of goofiness.

"Ah, well, it's nice to meet you," I replied with a grin, not sure of what else to say. I've heard nearly nothing about him.

Cynebald was about to say something else, but Elena's excited voice – directed at me – cut him off as she exclaimed, "Oh, you must greet my father! He has been dying to see you!" before linking our arms and dragging me away towards another corner of the large banquet hall (in which a small lunch party is being held for the handful of guests that have arrived for the wedding thus far). I chuckled as I stumbled after her and sent her future husband a wave so that I wouldn't seem rude.

"Father! Look who has arrived!" the Princess said when we reached King Godwyn, who stood beside a guy with wavy dark blond hair and curious hazel eyes. They'd been making conversation until both their heads snapped our way.

"Ah! The Lady-Knight Astraea!" the King greeted me with a smile. I curtsied awkwardly; not really used to doing it (Gwen spent twenty minutes trying to teach me in the morning and I'm sure that it isn't good enough). "It is great to have you in Gawant!"

"I'm glad to be here, sir," I replied with a smile. "Sire," I corrected quickly.

King Godwyn's smile widened and he gestured towards the guy standing beside him, "This is my son, Benjamin."

Benjamin bowed his head for a moment.

"Hi," I said while waving timidly, remembering that the King once suggestively told me that he has an unmarried son.

Benjamin reached for my hand and he kissed the back of it. I gritted my teeth, trying not to show the immense displeasure that the action caused in me, and I gave him a forced grin, then I discreetly wiped my hand against my leggings. "It is lovely to finally meet you, Lady-Knight Astraea. My father and sister both hold you in high regard. Now I can see why," the Prince stated.

I felt my face get warm. "Uh. Thanks," I mumbled before looking to Elena for help. Her eyes were wide as she stared at her brother.

"Tell me, my Lady-Knight, does your heart belong to any man?" Benjamin asked, his eyes boring holes into mine.

What the hell?! He didn't even hesitate!

I blinked rapidly for a few moments. I know that Arthur doesn't want the news to get out until we've set a date, afraid that we'll get pressured into having everything ready soon... but I can't lie to the royal family of Gawant! And I certainly don't want Benjamin to try anything.

"Yeah, actually," I revealed before starting to nibble on my bottom lip.

"Well, I am disappointed to hear that," King Godwyn stated with a sigh. Oh, no, did I make him angry?! Benjamin turned to him with a look I couldn't decipher. "Who might the lucky man be?"

I looked up at Elena for reassurance and she gave it in the form of a smile and a gentle squeeze to my shoulder.

"Uh... Arthur," I responded shyly as an involuntary smile grew on my lips.

Something tugged at the strings of my heart. What is that? Oh, yeah – I miss him!

King Godwyn chuckled, to my huge surprise. "I should have known. He could not keep his eyes off you during our entire visit to Camelot," he claimed, then he turned to Elena. "Did I not tell you that Arthur was absolutely enamoured with this young lady?"

My heart-rate picked up and I felt my face get warm again. The Princess and I shared an amused glance, the recollection of our secret 'divine move' seemingly flashing between us.

"Yes, father. It appears you were right," she replied.

"Oh, I would not do that, my Lord," Gwaine warned Prince Cynebald with a lopsided smirk before taking a sip from his tar of ale while sending me a wink.

Elena invited Gwaine, Leon, Gwen and I to join a small party of young people – seeing as the elder wedding invitees retired to their rooms at about 21:00 and there isn't any more 'official' entertainment for the night – and, for about half-an-hour, the groom-to-be had been playing darts in the drawing room of his apartments along with some of his buddies and Prince Benjamin, while I and a bunch of other people watched from the sidelines.

I sat back and spectated a game or two. Then I grew bored and challenged Cynebald to a duel, figuring that it is similar to archery. Apparently, Elena did indeed tell him a lot about me because he didn't even hesitate before turning it into a bigger deal by proposing a gamble: the loser has to buy the winner a custom full set of armour from Gawant's royal forgery.

"Let the man make his own choices, Gwainester," I scolded my great friend while quirking an eyebrow. Then I turned to Cynebald and smirked in a daring manner, "You're on, Baldy."

Chuckles filled the room with several people echoing 'Baldy' while the Prince's jaw dropped for a moment before he collected himself and mirrored my smirk. "Ladies first," he stated and gestured towards the line that was drawn on the floor to mark the firing spot.

I eagerly grabbed the darts and skipped over to stand in front of the target.

"Hold on!" a halfway-drunk Leon called out as he stood up from where he'd been sitting on a sofa's armrest next to a Lady Ardith, with whom he's been getting a little too cosy over the evening. I turned towards him, feeling amused at his state. "Let us sweeten this gamble," he proposed as he sauntered over to the centre of the room. He dug something out of his pocket and slapped it on top of a small circular table that held some drinks as he claimed, "Three gold coins on the Lady-Knight Astraea to win!"

I shared a wide-eyed look with Gwen before bursting out laughing. Who would've thought that a funner version of Leon can be unearthed with a few layers of alcohol?

"Four!" Gwaine seconded the motion as he also put some coins on the table.

"All right," one of Cynebald's friends spoke up, "five gold coins on Cynebald."

"I believe it is Baldy, now," Prince Benjamin noted and he sent me a wink before placing seven coins on the table. "I am betting on the Lady-Knight." I gave him a mock salute while Cynebald threw his arms up in (pretend, I think) offence.

"Four coins on Baldy!" another one of the groom-to-be's friends joined.

"Six!" yet another threw in.

Everyone in the room was encouraged to join in, the money pool hilariously growing to a hundred-or-so gold coins, until Gwen and Elena were the only ones who hadn't placed a bet.

I figured that the former was likely holding back because she can't afford to waste money on ridiculous bets; so I pulled Gwaine to the side. "Hey, could you lend Gwennie a coin or two so she doesn't feel left out, and I'll pay you back later?"

He gave me a small grin. "Anything for you, sweetheart," he replied with a wink before pulling three! more coins out of his pocket and handing them to Gwen. I watched her refuse the offer, but he promptly convinced her to take them. Her eyes travelled to me and I gave her a thumbs-up.

"What about you, my love?" Cynebald asked as he turned to his bride-to-be with a raised eyebrow.

"I would rather not, lest I offend anyone," she replied as she bit down on her bottom lip, her eyes darting between her future husband and I.

"Trae will not mind as long as she gets to rub her win in your face later," Gwaine teased, causing me to giggle and nod in agreement.

"I was not talking about her," Elena stated, causing Cynebald's face to fall.

Laughter broke out in the room once more.

"Very well," the Princess said with a nonchalant shrug and she placed six coins atop the pile, "six on Astra."

I smirked triumphantly as I turned to Cynebald, "Wanna back out, Baldy?"

"Never!" he responded as he crossed his arms over his chest.

I chuckled and moved back towards the firing line, then I raised a dart and squinted my eyes as I focused on the target. I aligned my elbow with my line of sight and, in a swift motion, I threw the pointy item, letting out a huff when it landed right on the line that divides the bullseye from the second circle. I'll have to do better than that if I wanna win.

So do better I did.

And I won.

By one point.

Still a victory.

A loud "Wake up!" pulled me out of an interesting dream in which I was hunting clown zombies with some of the characters from 'Z Nation' and 'The Walking Dead'; and the creepy circus setting vanished. I found myself lying on a soft surface, with my friend Elena's figure hovering above me, sporting a playful grin. My eyes widened and I pushed her back. I sat up and looked around the room. The stone walls are a lighter colour than those in Camelot, and wooden furniture tapestried in buttermilk-yellow silk adorn the space, inspiring happiness and liveliness.

I hummed as I rubbed my eyes, trying to chase away the sleepiness in them.

Elena frowned as she sat down by my legs. "Did you have a bad dream?"

"Not necessarily," I replied with a shake of my head. "I mean, the plot was interesting. But I was the dumb character who was probably gonna get killed, and I'm much smarter than that."

She snorted out a laugh. "You are a strange one, Astraea Aphelion."

"And don't ya' dare forget it," I shot back with a wink.

Then I remembered why I am in the yellow room in Gawant and not in my blue room in Camelot. My friend is getting married today!

"Shouldn't ya' be gettin' all dolled-up?" I asked with a confused tilt of my head, noticing how she was wearing trousers, a tunic, and riding boots.

Elena shook her head. "Not until midday. It is only seven."

I raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you wakin' me up?"

We went to bed pretty late yesterday thanks to the chaos that enveloped the late hours when bets were placed for the second night in a row, this time thanks to Gwaine challenging Prince Benjamin to a drinking contest. Another victory for Team Camelot.

"Well, we have not had our horse race yet and I thought that now would be the perfect time," my friend responded.

I smirked. "Team Gawant isn't tired of losing yet, aye?"

Elena let out an incredulous laugh as she slapped my arm – not hard enough to hurt me. "You are too confident, dear sister. You have not met Aegirine, yet."

Aegirine is her recently-acquired Arabian stallion.

"And you wanna break 'em in by havin' Dal kick his butt," I stated in a mocking tone. She narrowed her eyes at me. "Fair enough, lemme get dressed."

"You are brazen!"

I simply winked at her before going into the closet.

Twenty minutes later found us mounted on our horses right outside the castle walls. The morning was chilly and windy as autumn fully claimed the moorlands; light grey clouds amassed in the sky with the promise of rain later in the day; and a lone brown bird of prey soared in the distance as it hunted for food.

Elena and I brought our horses to stand shoulder-to-shoulder as a small crowd looked on from atop the battlements. Wagers were placed once more, graciously collected by the Prince of Gawant. Chants broke out as we got ready to run.

The race will be taking place around the castle's lengthy sandstone wall perimeter. One lap to determine, once and for all, who the superior horse and rider team is.

I was certainly impressed by Aegirine's physique. His shiny black coat dazzled even in the absence of direct sunlight and his muscles jumped out of his thin skin with authority. He was an Arabian, all right. And not the kind of crappy, dish-faced Arabians that people foolishly breed in modern times, but a perfect example of what the breed is supposed to look like, imported straight from the desert.

However, he is at least ten centimetres shorter than Dallas, and his hindquarters aren't yet as developed as the cremello's, who's had many years of meticulous training aided by modern knowledge of anatomy and exercise science. Aegirine is impressive – certainly a step up from the Iberian-style Pearl. But, at least in my eyes, my Thoroughbred is still the superior specimen.

"Are you ready?" Elena asked me with a smirk.

"I was born ready," I responded while mirroring her expression.

We both nodded at Benjamin, who will be arbitrating the race, and he called the start. "Three..." I tightened my grip on Dallas's neck-rope, "two..." I pushed down on my stirrups and ensured that my footing was steady, "one..." I took a deep breath, "go!"

I try to remain humble in the face of most things. My training of my horse isn't one of them.

I mentally patted myself in the back when Dallas blasted forwards with a powerful display of what well-developed hindquarter muscles can do as he kicked off a cloud of dust in his wake. My lengthy work in drilling the word 'Go!' in association with breaking at full speed in his brain is still proving to have been a brilliant move. I originally taught it to him so that we could start quickly when participating in cross-country competitions back in the twenty-first century. It aided us in many victories then, and it will do the same today.

The mighty Thoroughbred only accelerated from there, soon reaching a high cruising speed that swiftly took us some eight metres in front of Elena and Aegirine. Keratin made contact with dirt as hooves thundered below me. The wind seemed to chant our names as we galloped against it, the cool feeling moulding my lips into a smile. Dallas's electrifying strides kept carrying us further away from the competition.

As we got to the first round corner of the castle walls, I wondered, for a moment, if perhaps I should concede the race to Elena. After all, it's her wedding day. Then I thought better of it. For me, at least, the only thing worse than losing is getting an unearned victory. I hope that the Princess will see it the same way.

So I loosened my grip on the faux leather strap around my horse's neck and allowed him to stretch out further as we came out of the second turn. We have a long stretch of untamed yellow, orange and green grass ahead, which welcomed us with a whoosh as Dallas kicked into another gear and accelerated down the backside of the sandstone building. For a moment, it felt as if we were flying, our souls catching fire. No one but us against the world. Or against my friend, in this case.

The next corner came and my Thoroughbred instinctively shortened his stride so that he wouldn't be thrown off-balance while turning. He stretched again down the straight side, and then contracted again at the next turn.

We entered the final stretch with plenty of distance between us and our competitors as we blazed past the final metres of the race. Some of the people atop the battlements cheered when we ran past the gates to the castle, officially claiming our sweet victory.

As hard as I had tried to remain a badass knight in the face of Prince Cynebald and Princess Elena's wedding, I was moved to tears by the time they started reciting their vows to one another. I couldn't help it. Part of it is because, obviously, I'm incredibly happy for my friend. Her new husband seems to love her to pieces and that's exactly what I wish for her. Another part of me, though, keeps picturing the moment when it will finally be Arthur and I up at the altar – and I just can't freaking wait!

"You may kiss the bride," the priest announced, and the pair promptly fell into each other's arms, eagerly sealing their fates while the whole crowd applauded.

A couple of tears dared to slide down my cheeks. Darn them.

Gwaine, who stood beside me, nudged my side gently. "Missing our dear King, Trae?" he questioned in a whisper.

"Shut up," I mumbled in reply as I wiped at my face with the sleeve of the dress I wore. He chuckled and threw an arm over my shoulders, giving me a tight side hug. I let my head fall against his chest and wrapped my arms around his torso.

Hand-in-hand, the newlyweds walked past the aisle of the chapel as people threw yellow flower petals at them, the lively cheers not ceasing. Quite the contrary, they only grew louder. The celebration is only just beginning!

I linked my arm with Gwaine's as the guests were herded towards the ceremonial hall, in the middle of which stood a huge buffet atop a table adorned with a richly embroidered yellow tablecloth. Around the room were scattered a couple of dozen circular tables, and towards the back was a rectangular table on a raised wooden platform with four chairs behind it facing the room. A series of grand crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, the candles on it illuminating the space in a yellowish hue. And a portion of the chamber was cleared out towards the centre, presumably for the dancing that will take place after the feast is over.

"Pay up," Gwaine commanded as he moved to stand in front of Prince Benjamin, cutting his path towards the raised table at the back of the room. I frowned up at my friend.

I grew even more confused when Benjamin's eyes scanned my face carefully before he turned to give the knight a sceptical look.

My friend rolled his eyes at the blond before addressing me, "Trae – did you cry during the ceremony?"

My jaw dropped. "You placed a bet on whether I would cry?!"

"Easiest ten coins ever made," Gwaine replied promptly with a smug smirk. I raised my eyebrows. "Yet another win for Team Camelot."

"Yes, and at the expense of your future queen, no less," Benjamin mumbled as he reluctantly paid the knight.

I grinned and put a hand up for a high-five, aimed at my great friend. "Noice. I'm proud of ya'."

Gwaine gently slapped my palm as he let out a chuckle while his gaze remained focused on the Prince, whose right eye was almost twitching as his narrowed muddy-green stare fixed on me. I snorted at the alarmed confusion on his face.

"A queen's gotta make sacrifices for her kingdom," I noted with a nonchalant shrug.

Ugh, 'queen'. That tastes so wrong in my mouth! But I can't back down. If this is what it takes to be with Arthur, I'll gladly surrender to it.

Benjamin was about to speak again when the loud sound of a pair of trumpets announced the entrance of the newlyweds into the hall. They came inside, and the crowd started cheering once more as they crossed the room towards the raised table.

"Oh, you guys are disgusting," I groaned as I watched Gwaine and Leon stuff their faces in an attempt to win yet another bet that was made against Prince Benjamin and one of his friends, Sir John. They are competing to see which duo can put away more slices of cake.

"I do not think they are listening," Gwen mumbled beside me. I scooted my chair closer to hers, trying to get away from Gwaine's sloppy eating to my other side. "Perhaps these supposedly friendly wagers have gotten out of hand," she added when Leon stood up and rushed to get another slice. Both of us gasped as he almost ran over an elderly lady in the process.

I grimaced, then I giggled when I remembered why Arthur appointed Leon to accompany us to Gawant – 'cause he's supposed to be the responsible one. But two glasses of wine, and the curly blond was all too happy to agree to the cake-eating contest!

"What's Art gonna say when we tell him 'bout all this?" I wondered.

"I cannot imagine he is going to be happy," Gwen responded. Then she tensed up as she stared at something behind me, her dark brown eyes expanding.

I turned around and saw an angry-looking Benjamin standing by what little was left of the wedding cake, his fancy black dress shirt covered in yellow frosting. Leon stood in front of him with a taunting smirk – which promptly faded as the Prince grabbed a handful of cake off the table and smeared it all over his face. The knight returned the favour.

"I will have you thrown in the dungeons for this!" Benjamin roared.

"You cannot handle losing, my Lord?" Leon shot back as he raised a challenging eyebrow.

"Losing?! I was schooling you! Why else would you have thrown the cake at me?!"

"I told you – it was an accident!"

Lucky for them, all the other people in the room were too busy dancing and celebrating to notice the brewing quarrel as cake kept flying between the two blonds.

In a flash, Gwaine and John were pulling them apart.

"Stop wasting perfectly edible cake! What farm did you grow up in?!" Gwaine scolded before grabbing the last remaining piece with his bare hands and placing it onto a plate. John tried to take it from him, but he was quick to move it out of the way. The local knight gave one more attempt, and the brusque movements caused the cake to fall to the checkered floor.

"Damn," I mumbled under my breath.

A fierce glare passed between all four men and they scrambled to their knees so that they could fight for the last slice and claim the victory for their kingdom.

Gwen and I shared a disgusted look. "Well, it's decided then. We won't tell Arthur a thing," I stated, then I made a mental note to tell this to the two knights once they are in a better cognitive state.

Gwaine jumped to his feet and threw his arms up in victory as he exclaimed, "Team Camelot wins!"

Maybe I shouldn't have – but I couldn't help but cheer alongside him and Leon, which earned me a long disapproving look from Gwen.

I took another sip from my glass of water and leaned back on my seat with a small smile playing on my lips as I watched my friends slow-dance among the other wedding attendees. Gwaine twirled Gwen around, the girl giggling as the man rambled unintelligibly (I couldn't make out the words thanks to the orchestra that was playing, but I'm sure he was saying something hilariously dumb). Leon held Lady Ardith closely, their foreheads leaning against each other as they swayed to the gentle melody. And Elena, looking radiant as ever, took centre stage with Cynebald, both of them sporting great smiles, seemingly lost in each other's eyes as they moved in perfect graceful synchronicity.

My smile widened when I thought of how that will be Arthur and I soon enough. Well, minus the gracefulness. I am human, not dancer.

I started when a chair was suddenly pulled out beside me. My eyes strayed from the joyous scene at the centre of the room as I turned my head. I let my shoulders relax when I saw that it was only Prince Benjamin taking a seat next to me.

"'Sup," I greeted with a nod and a small grin. "Tired of dancin'?"

"Not quite. I simply thought you could use some company," he replied, mirroring my expression.

I gave him a nonchalant shrug. "I don't mind being alone, if you'd rather go back out there."

"Or," he began as he turned his body to face me fully, "you could join me and give me the honour of having a dance with you."

I felt a faint warmth invade my face and I turned my head away from the Prince, allowing my loose hair to frame the side of my face and, hopefully, cover the involuntary reaction that his words produced. Then I chuckled under my breath. "Well, here's a fun fact. I don't know how to dance."

"I find that hard to believe," Benjamin claimed.

"Well, it's true. I've got two left feet and a very sad lack of coordination."

I watched out of the corner of my eye as he straightened up and a determined look flashed past his hazel gaze, then he offered me his arm. "Well, allow me to prove to you that you can do it."

I bit down on my bottom lip as I wondered what to do. I know that he's only being nice and friendly, but I really don't want to dance with him. I've gone an entire lifetime without ever dancing with someone and I kinda want my first time to be with the man I love. Hopefully soon. I might end up breaking a couple of toes, but it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

"Thanks, Ben. But I think I'll pass on this one," I finally said.

The Prince let out a sigh and his shoulders slumped, then he nodded in what I hope is understanding. "All right, my Lady-Knight. May I remain here and keep you company nonetheless?"

"Of course," I responded with a small grin.

The cool wind gently caressed the gradually decaying grass over the moors, producing a soothing swishing sound that blended with the noise of keratin crushing fallen leaves as Dallas and Aegirine sauntered along the wilderness of Gawant.

"So... ya' glad you skipped over Arthur?" I asked Elena while shooting her a grin.

A hearty bout of laughter emerged from the Princess's throat. "Yes, Astra," she responded with a warm smile, "I truly believe that Cynebald and I were meant to be."

I tried not to wince at the mention of 'meant to be'. "That's nice," I replied, now with a smaller smile. "I'm super happy for ya'."

"Thank you, sis," she replied. Then she tilted her head and frowned slightly as she inquired, "Do you feel that way about Arthur?"

My heart skipped a beat as I thought of him. "Kinda." Her eyes widened in bewilderment. "I mean, I do. Of course I do. I love him to death," I quickly clarified. "I just don't believe in destiny."

"Why is that?"

I shrugged and explained, "It makes things too simple. Like you don't have to try because God, or the universe, or whatever ya' wanna call it, has already written it out for you, n' all you have to do is sail through life in whatever direction it decides to take." I paused to take a deep breath to recover from how quickly I spoke. "I prefer to think that I make a free choice to love him every day, and to fight to be by his side. That freedom makes everything way more meaningful, in my opinion."

The corners of Elena's eyes wrinkled as a beaming smile appeared upon her lips. "That is a beautiful way to see it, sister. Such beauty that I hope you are right."

I chuckled under my breath. "Yeah, me, too. It's scary to think that my entire future may be written out already. I'd much rather have the reins of my life in my hands. Even if that comes with a lot of uncertainty."

"You are a wise one, Astraea."

I laughed, remembering that I used that phrase on her once.

"Takes one to know one," I shot back with a wink.

She returned the wink before shortening her reins and collecting Aegirine. "I will race you back to the castle!" she exclaimed, and before I could process what was happening, the black Arabian was off galloping.

"Hey!" I called out in fake offence before urging Dallas forwards. The eager-to-please Thoroughbred didn't need to be told twice as he launched forwards like a state-of-the-art rocket, his swift strides leaving a wake of dust and rustled leaves as he stretched his body to full capacity, his agile mind seemingly aware of the target at hand – beating Aegirine and Elena.

I eased him up a little as we caught up with them and settled for matching their speed as we thundered towards the castle.

We crossed the gates evenly... All right, I might've asked Dallas to stretch out the last few strides so that he'd get past the imaginary finish line a neck ahead. In any case, the closeness of the race was enough to leave Elena with a victorious smile that mirrored my own.

In the courtyard, as we returned from leaving the horses in the paddocks, we encountered a humorous sight: a crowd consisting of Prince Benjamin, Prince Cynebald, a couple of their friends, Gwaine and Leon gathered atop the staircase; with a barrel of what appeared to be plums standing near them. I also spotted Gwen leaning against a column, a wary look clouding her features as she observed the men.

Elena and I shared a puzzled glance when one of the Prince's friends flung a plum towards the statue atop the fountain in the middle of the yard.

"What's the game now?" I asked Gwen as the Princess and I came to a stop beside her.

"Whoever hits the statue in the face wins," the girl responded almost stoically, clearly done with the men's antics.

A giggle bubbled at the back of my throat. "I'd give it a shot, but I don't think I can throw far enough."

"Neither can they, by the looks of it," Elena noted with an amused snort as her new husband's attempt didn't even reach the water reservoir.

"At least they're not fightin' anymore," I responded with a nonchalant shrug. Then I moved to sit down on the stairs so that I could enjoy the show from a more comfortable position. The other two girls promptly followed suit.

A startled gasp escaped me when Benjamin threw a plum at Gwaine, who barely had time to duck and avoid it.

"I fear you may have spoken too quickly," Elena told me, her widened eyes fixed on the now arguing pair.

"Yup."

"I wish you could stay longer, Astraea. I think I can speak for my children, as well as myself, when I say that we have truly enjoyed having you and your fellow knights here," King Godwyn told me as he tenderly held one of my hands in both of his, his blue eyes glinting under the weak September morning sun.

I bowed my head. "Thank you for your hospitality, Sire. We had a lot of fun. But we gotta get back to Camelot," I responded, holding back a joke about Arthur's ability to get himself into dumb situations. At least he has Merlin watching out for him... "You can expect to get a wedding invitation soon, though," I added with a small smile, feeling my cheeks warming up.

"I look forward to it, dear Lady-Knight," the King replied with a soft grin as he let go of my hand.

I did an awkward curtsy before moving on to say goodbye to Benjamin.

The Prince surprised me with a hug. I gently patted his back, unsure of how else to respond to it. I'm glad that there don't seem to be any hard feelings between us even after all the chaos he was thrown into with Gwaine and Leon.

"You are a remarkable young lady, Astraea. I can see why my sister loves you so much," Benjamin noted with a friendly smile once he let me go.

I shifted in my spot. "Well, awesome people gravitate towards each other," I quipped with a half-smirk.

Benjamin chuckled. "You know, I will always be left wondering what would have happened if I had met you before Arthur." My eyes widened as a truck-full of freezing ocean water was metaphorically poured upon me and I gulped. "Sorry, I did not mean to make you uncomfortable."

I waved him off and gathered the strength to speak with a deep inhale. "Guess we'll never know. But it was nice meeting ya', Ben."

"Likewise, my Lady-Knight," he responded with a warm smile. Then he gave me another quick hug.

Grateful to be out of the awkward situation, I sauntered over to Elena and Cynebald. Before I could even start to (semi) playfully threaten the Saxon Prince, the Princess had wrapped me in a tight hug.

"I am going to miss you so much!" she cried.

If I didn't know any better, I'd say she was trying to kill me by forcing the air out of my lungs.

"Same," I responded in a strained voice. She must've realised she was squeezing me too hard because she eased up. "But I'll see you soon! I mean, you are coming to my wedding, right?"

"I would never forgive myself if I did not!" she replied as she dropped her arms and took a step back. Her eyes were welled up with tears.

My heart warmed at the sight. How the heck did I manage to make such a genuine friend?! My luck has really changed since I left the twenty-first century!

"Well, there ya' go. Dal n' I will beat you again soon enough," I joked in an attempt to stop her from crying.

Elena laughed as she wiped her eyes. "I can hardly wait," she stated before hugging me again.

Once I was free, I turned to Cynebald with narrowed eyes and a menacing finger pointed at his chest as I said, "Ya' better treat her right, or you'll have the wrath of Camelot's mightiest heroes raining down on ya'."

The Saxon prince chuckled. "I expect nothing less," he noted with a big grin. "But I promise you, that will never be necessary."

"Good. You're cool. I'd hate to have to get rid of you."

Cynebald laughed once more and he placed a hand on my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. I gave him a nod and a grin, and finally stepped away and went to get on Dallas, who'd been patiently waiting with the party from Camelot.

"You know, we could stay for another day or two," Leon noted as I settled onto my saddle.

"What, so that you can continue to drool all over Lady Ardith?" I shot back with a smirk. The knight's cheeks reddened as he turned his head away from me and I laughed at the sight.

I let out a sigh and let my eyes travel back to Elena, who was now engaged in a very lovey-dovey-looking conversation with her husband. The sight caused me to smile, a wave of nostalgia breezing over me.

"If you're not too bummed 'bout it, I really wanna get back home and make sure the boys haven't done anything stupid," I told Leon.

"That means she misses her man," Gwaine graciously 'translated' with a teasing grin as we began the long ride back to Camelot.

"Heck yeah, I do."