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Chapter 21: Child's Play

"Do I have to play with Arthur while you're visiting with King Uther?" Morgana frowned across the carriage at her father, "Can't I just stay with you?"

Gorlois chuckled, "I'm sure you'll have more fun with Arthur than you would spending the day with a bunch of boring grown-ups."

Morgana made a face, "He's annoying. He thinks he's the best at everything."

Her father's eyes twinkled, "Well, then you'll just have to prove him wrong, won't you?"

Morgana allowed herself a small grin, "Well, I suppose putting him in his place could be fun."

"Morgana," her father gave her a warning look, though his stern tone was dampened by the amusement she could see in his eyes, "That wasn't exactly what I meant. Be kind to Arthur."

"I'll be as kind to him as he is to me," Morgana replied sweetly.

Her father shook his head in exasperation, but she could still see the amusement in his eyes, "Well, be kind to Merlin at least, he's quite young still, and he isn't used to your teasing like Arthur is."

"I only tease Arthur because he deserves it," Morgana pointed out, "I'm not going to tease a little kid." She felt a spark of curiosity at the mention of Arthur's new step-brother. She had met him briefly when his mother had married King Uther, but there hadn't been much time to talk with the wedding and the feast going on.

"What are Queen Hunith and Prince Merlin like?" she asked her father, "Have you talked to them much?" Her father had gone with Uther to Essetir several months ago, and he had visited the castle a few times since the wedding, though this was Morgana's first time accompanying him since then.

"I like Hunith very much," Gorlois said, "She's a sensible woman, with a kind heart and a good head on her shoulders. You'd like her too, I think; she's not afraid to tell anyone exactly what she thinks. I think she'll be good for Uther, if he'll let her." Morgana got the feeling that the last part hadn't really been intended for her, but her father simply thinking aloud. She wondered what exactly he meant about Hunith being "good for" King Uther.

"As for Merlin, he's a very sweet little boy," Gorlois smiled, "I think that you will like him too." He thought for a moment, "You know the litter of puppies that Artemis just had?"

Morgana nodded. Artemis was her father's favorite hunting hound, though she wasn't doing much hunting at the moment; she was too busy nursing her pups.

Gorlois chuckled, "Well, Merlin is a lot like those puppies."

Morgana giggled, thinking of the puppies tumbling over one another as they played. "Drooly and yappy?" she asked jokingly.

Gorlois laughed too, "Energetic and a little clumsy. And… yes, I suppose you could say yappy. He is certainly talkative. But don't call him yappy when you meet him," he added quickly, "That would not be kind."

Morgana grinned, "I won't," she promised. Maybe this trip wouldn't be so bad after all. Those puppies were a lot of fun to play with.

Soon enough, the carriage was rolling through the gates into the castle courtyard. Gorlois stepped from the carriage first, then turned to help Morgana down. She took her father's hand, though she jumped from the carriage, rather than stepping down gracefully like a lady. She had never found behaving like a lady very fun.

King Uther and his new queen had come out to greet them, and Morgana saw that Arthur and the little boy she remembered from the wedding were standing with their parents.

Uther and her father greeted each other as they always did, with a clasp of each other's forearms accompanied by pats on the shoulder. Morgana thought it seemed to be a manly version of hugging. Her father didn't mind regular hugs either, especially when it came to her, but she didn't think she'd ever seen Uther hug anyone, not even Arthur. Did he hug his new wife? She wondered.

While her father and Queen Hunith greeted each other warmly, Morgana turned her attention to Arthur and Merlin, who were standing together a few paces back from the king and queen.

"Hi," she said.

"Hello, Morgana," Arthur said politely, and Morgana wondered if he had gotten the same speech about behaving from his father that she had gotten from hers.

"Hi, I'm Merlin!" the smaller boy chirped, holding out his hand to Morgana.

Morgana felt herself grin as she shook his small hand, "I'm Morgana. We met at the wedding, remember?"

Merlin nodded brightly, "Oh, yeah! I do remember that! Mama says you're going to play with me and Arthur today while she and your father and King Uther do… whatever grown-ups do."

"Talk, mostly, I think," Morgana said, glancing back at her father and the two monarchs. The three had finished greeting each other and seemed ready to go inside. As they walked up the steps into the castle, Morgana's father greeted the two boys, and King Uther and Hunith both turned to Morgana.

"It is good to see you, Morgana, as always," Uther smiled at her. As ill-tempered as Uther could be, he'd always seemed to have a soft spot for her. Morgana wasn't sure why, but she supposed it was simply because he was her father's best friend and had known her pretty much since she was born.

"I'm glad to see you as well," she responded politely, giving a small bow of her head, as she had been taught.

Hunith spoke to her next, offering the girl a warm smile of her own, "Hello, Morgana, it's nice to see you again."

Morgana bowed her head to the queen as well, repeating the same polite greeting she had given Uther. As they walked inside, Morgana's father and Uther were conversing with each other, but somewhat to Morgana's surprise, rather than joining their conversation, Hunith kept her attention on Morgana.

"Did you have a pleasant trip here?" she asked.

Morgana nodded, "it's not far, and the roads are easy." She grinned, "Father let me ride in the front of the carriage with the driver for a bit, and that was fun. Our driver even let me take the reins for a while."

Hunith smiled warmly, "That does sound like fun." Her tone wasn't patronizing, the way adults could sometimes be, she sounded like she meant it.

Morgana heard Uther inviting her father to join him and the queen for a drink. Hunith smiled at Morgana again, "Perhaps we can talk more later at supper."

"I'd like that, my lady," Morgana replied. She meant it too, remembering what her father had said about Hunith not being afraid to speak her mind. She seemed a lot less boring than most of the noblewomen Morgana was used to.

Hunith joined Uther and Gorlois, and the three adults moved away, leaving the children to their own devices.

Morgana looked at the two boys, "So what shall we do now?"

"We could play hide-and-seek!" Merlin said eagerly, at the same time as Arthur suggested, "Why don't we see if anything interesting is going on in the training arena?"

I think you should pick," Merlin piped up sweetly, "Since you're the guest."

"Morgana doesn't count as a guest," Arthur argued, "She's just Morgana."

Morgana rolled her eyes at him. "Well I think hide-and-seek sounds like a good idea," she said, mostly just to spite Arthur, "So it's two against one, anyway."

Merlin clapped his hands in excitement, "Yay! Hide-and-seek is a lot more fun with three people than two!"

Arthur heaved a sigh, as if he was making a great sacrifice, "All right, I guess we can play hide-and-seek. But I get to be the seeker first," he added bossily.

"Okay!" Merlin agreed enthusiastically, "I think hiding is more fun anyway."

Morgana thought about arguing, just to make a point, but she didn't think her father would be too happy if she started fighting with Arthur this early.

"Fine," she agreed, "But no peeking before it's time. That's cheating."

Arthur looked insulted, "I do not cheat, and even if I did, I wouldn't need to to find you."

Morgana rolled her eyes again, "Whatever. Are we playing inside or outside?"

"Outside!" Merlin said quickly.

"There's loads more hiding places in here than out in the courtyard," Arthur pointed out.

Merlin thought about it for a moment. "Okay, let's play inside then," he agreed.

Arthur turned to face the wall, closed his eyes and began counting. Merlin instantly took off down the hall, and Morgana turned and hurried in the opposite direction. She could hear Merlin's giggling fading as he grew farther away, as well as Arthur's counting.

She tried the first door she came to, and found it unlocked. It turned out to be a mostly empty room. She glanced inside briefly, but decided it was too easy. There were a couple pieces of furniture she might hide behind, but If Arthur came this way, it would be the first place he looked, and it wouldn't take him long to find her.

A little farther along the hall, she found a small room that seemed to be being used as a storage space. It was much smaller than the first room she had looked in, but it was also a lot less bare. Plus there weren't any windows, leaving the space only dimly illuminated by the torches in the hallway. She knew Arthur would be done counting soon, and decided this would be her hiding place. She stepped inside and shut the door behind her, then maneuvered carefully around neatly folded linens and stacks of pillows. She wedged herself into a corner, then shifted the nearest stack of pillows so it was in front of her.

Then there was nothing to do but wait. Just when Morgana was beginning to grow bored with the waiting, she heard voices coming her way. Arthur must have found Merlin first, because she could hear the little boy's excited tone quite clearly.

She heard a nearby door open, and knew Arthur must be looking in another room. A few minutes passed with only the muffled sounds of the boys' voices outside - Morgana smiled when she heard Merlin say "Morgana's really good at hiding, isn't she?" to which Arthur's only reply was a grunt.

Then the door to Morgana's closet creaked open. She held her breath, trying not to move a muscle. Arthur's footsteps came toward her, then stopped. She resisted the urge to peek around the pillows. The footsteps retreated again and she grinned to herself. Who's better now, Arthur?

She heard the door click closed, and let out her held breath, relaxing a little, but staying vigilant, knowing Arthur was still near.

By a few minutes later, she was bored again, however. She almost wished Arthur would find her. She knew he was much too stubborn to give up, and she certainly couldn't give up either.

The closet door clicked open again, and she once more went still. Once more she heard Arthur's footsteps. This time, however, he seemed to be taking his time to search more carefully. She saw his head over the top of her pillow tower. He seemed to be peering behind one of the other stacks.

Then he moved closer, and a moment later, she saw his head poke around the corner.

"Found you!" he said triumphantly.

Morgana smirked at him, "it's about time. I nearly fell asleep."

"I didn't take that long!" Arthur protested, and Morgana grinned to herself as she followed him out of the storage cupboard. It was so easy to rile him up.

Merlin was waiting for them in the hallway. "You're really good at hiding!" he told Morgana enthusiastically.

She grinned, "Thank you, Merlin."

"I'll be the seeker next, since Arthur found me first," he announced. He turned on the spot and began to count. Morgana grinned to herself as she ran away, thinking they'd be able to hear when he finished halfway across the castle, he was counting so loudly.

After several more rounds of hide-and-seek, during which each child had taken a few turns at being the seeker, Morgana had learned that Merlin was actually quite good at the seeking part. When it was his turn to hide, however, he was always easy to find. Being smaller gave him an advantage over Arthur and Morgana; he could fit into tiny spaces they wouldn't even think of, but when he heard them pass by, he often couldn't resist letting out a giggle. Though he was so sweet that once or twice, Morgana pretended not to hear his giggles until after she had tracked down Arthur, letting him think he had her fooled.

As Gorlois walked away with Uther and Hunith, he glanced back to check on his daughter. Morgana seemed to be in discussion with the two young princes. He smiled to himself as he turned away. As much as Morgana might insist that Arthur was annoying and complain about playing with him, they always ended up spending time together when Gorlois and Morgana visited the castle.

"I hope those three won't get up to too much trouble," he remarked lightly.

Uther glanced back toward the children, "I'm sure they'll be fine."

"You say that, but don't you remember the snake incident?" Gorlois asked with some amusement.

Uther grimaced, "As if I could forget. But I'm sure they both know better now."

Hunith looked between them curiously, "The snake incident? This sounds like a story worth hearing."

By this point they had reached their destination, a private parlor in the royal wing. Wine had already been set out for them. They took a moment to settle themselves in chairs before picking up the conversation again.

"It happened a few years ago," Gorlois explained to Hunith, "Morgana must have been about eight, and Arthur seven, if I recall correctly?" he glanced at Uther for confirmation.

Uther nodded in agreement, "Yes, that sounds accurate. We had sent them outside to play, and Arthur found a small garden snake. He thought he'd scare Morgana with it by running up and dropping it in her lap."

"Oh dear," Hunith murmured with a small smile as she listened.

Gorlois picked up the thread of the story, "What he didn't count on was that Morgana wasn't one bit afraid. And to prove how not afraid she was, she draped the snake around her neck like a scarf."

"I think Arthur was rather impressed," Uther added, "he admitted as much to me later. But in the moment, he dared her to take the snake inside when they were called in for supper."

Hunith raised her eyebrows, "And I assume Morgana took the dare?"

"Of course," Gorlois chuckled, "It was a matter of honor. The snake was surprisingly docile about it all. I think it must have liked the warmth and fallen asleep on her. At any rate, somehow we got halfway through supper before anyone noticed. Though in hindsight, how quiet the children were being should have been a dead giveaway. You see, we weren't the only guests dining with Uther that night. A lord and his wife happened to be visiting from the outskirts of Camelot. As the main course was being brought in, a maid dropped a serving tray. The sound or the vibrations must have startled the snake awake, because it dropped from Morgana's shoulders and started slithering down the table, right across the visiting lady's plate."

"Oh no," Hunith's tone was sympathetic, but she had covered her mouth to suppress a smile, "I can't imagine that was a pleasant surprise for her."

Gorlois shook his head, "She screamed loud enough to wake the dead and bolted from the room."

"And if that wasn't bad enough, her scream brought every guard or knight in hearing range running," Uther added, "And in all the chaos, the snake disappeared somewhere. All the knights were searching the room, but we couldn't find a trace of it anywhere. And that was when we heard another scream down the hall. Naturally, all the knights raced that way, and the rest of us followed. Lady Cecilia had stepped into a nearby guest-room to compose herself, and her husband had just managed to calm her down when the snake slithered right under the door."

"By the time Uther and I arrived on the scene, the lady was standing in the middle of the bed, still screaming, while a knight tried to nudge the snake away with his sword," Gorlois continued, "We didn't realize the children had followed us too until Morgana brushed through the crowd of knights, calm as anything, and picked the snake up. She took it outside and that was that. Aside from some very necessary explanations from the children."

"And some profuse apologies on my part to our guests," Uther added ruefully, "Lady Cecelia hasn't set foot in the castle since."

Hunith laughed, and Gorlois and even Uther joined in, though neither had found it very funny at the time.

"Well, you certainly have a brave little girl," Hunith said to Gorlois, when she had composed herself enough to speak.

"That I do," Gorlois smiled proudly, "Though I had a stern talk with her after that about not bringing snakes inside, especially not when we were guests at the castle."

Hunith laughed again, "I bet that's one lesson you never expected to have to teach."

"You could say that," Gorlois agreed ruefully, "I just felt fortunate it hadn't been dignitaries from another kingdom visiting, or we might have inadvertently started a war."

Hunith took a sip of wine, "Should I be expecting as eventful a supper tonight?" she asked teasingly, "I'll try not to scream and run from the room should another snake be set loose."

"Thankfully that's the only time we've had to contend with live animals in the dining room," Uther replied, "Aside from hunting dogs and the occasional mouse."

Hunith smiled, "Merlin has brought his fair share of strays inside, but never a snake. A couple of rabbits, a squirrel, and a kitten once. He even managed to catch a bird, somehow. That one proved quite interesting," she chuckled, "Though perhaps not as exciting as Morgana's snake. It escaped from the box he had it in and flew around the castle for days before a maid finally managed to chase it back outside. I had to explain to Merlin that we can't bring wild animals in as pets, though the kitten is now doing quite well as a mouser in Essetir's stables."

Gorlois laughed, "Well, his heart was in the right place." He remembered Hunith's story of Merlin's first and last hunting trip. It didn't surprise him that Merlin would be much more interested in catching live animals than killing them.

The talk turned eventually from the children to their own youthful exploits. Hunith was amused by tales of Uther and Gorlois sneaking tarts from the kitchen- it had been Gorlois' idea, as had most of their exploits, though they'd both taken equal blame for that bit of mischief- and in turn entertained them with a story of how she had once put on her brother's armor when he slept in, and tried to pass herself off as him at a training session, thinking that the helmet would be enough to pull it off, despite her brother being several inches taller, and the fact that she was the only one who showed up in a helmet.

"That sounds like something my Morgana would do," Gorlois told her with a chuckle, "if she had a brother to imitate, that is."

As the talk continued, Gorlois couldn't help but notice that things had changed since he had last visited his friend. It wasn't anything that had been apparent right away, but once he had noticed it, it was impossible to miss. Last time he had been here, there had been a tension still between Uther and Hunith, an uneasiness. Each had seemed more comfortable speaking to him than to each other, and when they did converse directly, it had been with a careful politeness.

Now however, Hunith teased Uther easily about his boyhood mischief, and he took her remarks in stride, smiling a little as he proclaimed that it was usually Gorlois' fault, not his. (Gorlois couldn't deny this).

Later, Gorlois noticed their hands brush together as they happened to set their wine glasses down at the same moment. A similar accidental touch a couple months ago had caused both to pull back uncomfortably, but now neither seemed to notice.

When they had finished their wine, Hunith suggested a walk in the courtyard before supper. The two men agreed readily enough. After the carriage ride here, Gorlois felt it would be nice to stretch his legs for a bit.

As they rose, he noticed Uther offer Hunith his arm, which she took with a smile.

Out in the courtyard, they found the children involved in a game of catch. Merlin missed the ball half the time it was thrown to him, but seemed perfectly content to scamper after it.

As the three paused to watch for a moment, Gorlois took the opportunity to address Uther quietly, "You and Hunith seem to be getting along better."

"Do we?" Uther glanced back at him, "We've always gotten along well enough."

Gorlois raised an eyebrow at his friend, "Come now, Uther, even you aren't that oblivious. Last time I was here you could barely look at each other."

Uther pursed his lips, "I suppose there was a…. period of adjustment," he admitted, "This marriage wasn't exactly something either of us entered with enthusiasm."

"So what's changed now?" Gorlois asked.

"She… suggested we try to be friends," Uther responded.

"Friends is a good start," Gorlois said, giving Uther a slightly teasing smile.

He expected Uther to roll his eyes and maybe punch his arm in return, but his friend's face was surprisingly serious as he shook his head, "I know what you're thinking, Gorlois, but it isn't a start, it's an end. Neither of us needs or wants a love story." He looked toward Hunith, who had now joined in the children's game, "She still loves her son's father you know, as I still love Ygraine. What we have now is enough."

Gorlois studied Uther's face. His friend often hid his true feelings behind a mask. Gorlois' was practiced at seeing through the facade, but there was no need now. There was a rare openness in his expression, and his words had the ring of sincerity.

"All right, I know when to drop it," Gorlois offered Uther a small smile.

"But I am glad to hear that you two are becoming friends," he added sincerely, "You seem happier. You both do." He remembered what he had said to Morgana in the carriage this morning, that Hunith could be good for Uther if he allowed her to. He could see now that his assessment had been correct. Already she seemed to be making an impact on his friend's life for the better.

Uther simply shrugged, his moment of emotional clarity gone as quickly as it had come.

"Father, come play with us!" Morgana called out, before either man could say anything more.

Gorlois chuckled, "I'll be there in a minute," he called back to his daughter.

"Are you coming?" he asked Uther and chuckled at the incredulous look his friend gave him.

"I think I'll stay here and watch," Uther said firmly.

Gorlois shrugged, "Suit yourself." He jogged over to join the children and Hunith.

However, they'd only been playing for a minute or so when Merlin left the game and scampered over to Uther.

"Come play with us!" he called out brightly, and the game paused as the others watched.

Gorlois saw Uther shake his head, but Merlin was not so easily deterred. He reached up and took Uther's hand, and his little voice carried easily across the courtyard, "You can be on my team, if you want."

Gorlois and Hunith exchanged an amused glance.

"Come on, now, you can't refuse an offer like that," Gorlois called out, and even at a distance he knew Uther was rolling his eyes.

Merlin seemed to be tugging at Uther's hand now, trying to lead him over, and Gorlois could hear him cajoling his stepfather with promises that it would be fun.

"You know, I think he might be worried he'll lose," Gorlois said to Hunith, intentionally loud enough for Uther to hear.

"Now, Sir Gorlois, I'm sure that's not true," Hunith replied, with laughter in her voice. "Is it?" she called out to Uther, a teasing challenge in her tone.

Uther looked between her and Gorlois, and then down at the child at his side, still tugging on his hand.

He threw his free hand up in exasperation and defeat, "All right, all right. For a few minutes."

Merlin cheered. Uther walked over to join them with a measured step, while Merlin bounced along beside him.

"That's the spirit," Hunith laughed, and tossed the ball to Uther, and the game began again. The children were soon shouting with excitement and running to and fro, and Gorlois and Hunith joined in their frivolity.

Uther watched with a kind of stoic bemusement, but he caught the ball when it was thrown to him, and tossed it back to whoever was nearby, with a carefully measured aim to Hunith and the children, though once he threw it quite hard toward Gorlois, and Gorlois was sure he could see a smirk on Uther's face when it sailed over his head. (Merlin scampered after it with glee.)

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