Forbidden Love (Rewritten) | Arthur Pendragon

9 • EXCALIBUR

When a royal heir comes of age, it is always a moment to be remembered. On their twenty-first birthday, they shall be crowned, a ceremony solidifying their status. It was a step closer to the throne and the status of Sovereign.

As Arthur was finally turning twenty-one, on his birthday was organized his crowning. It was a very important ceremony and all the noblest houses of the kingdom were invited. A great feast was to be held and the preparations for such a day had been triving the town for a week already. Now that the day had come, the palace's Hall of Ceremonies was decorated in the most beautiful ways, the tables were full of the most mouth-watering fares, and the nobles were dressed in the finest garments. All seemed particularly thrilled for this day.

Arthur was kneeling before Uther who recited the crowning speech. The King handed the scepter to Arthur who grabbed it while accepting the title. And when Uther rested the crown on his blond head, Arthur became the Crown Prince of Camelot. Under the applause of the crowd, Arthur stood up as the Once and Future King. Felt quite amusing, to Eowyn, how proud she felt seeing him standing with this crown on his head. The time she had once disliked him felt so far away as if it had never existed. He was still arrogant and prideful, but his qualities made up for that. He would do a great king. It was his destiny to which she couldn't agree more.

"So how does it feel to be a servant to the Crown Prince of Camelot?" She heard Gwen Merlin.

Eowyn had noticed that the two had grown even closer. Gwen's neck was now always decorated by a heart-shaped necklace, the pendant Merlin had bought for her. Eowyn was proud of her brother for having succeeded in giving it to his beloved though he refused to tell his sister how it happened, which made Eowyn believe that it must be quite an embarrassing story.

"Washing his royal socks will be even more of a privilege," Merlin jested.

"You're proud of him, really. Even though you complain about him constantly,"

"I am not," Merlin let out a scoff.

"You are," Gwen leaned closer to him. "I can see it in your face,"

"Those socks are very clean! Of course, I'm proud of them,"

Gwen heartily laughed as Eowyn only shook her head at the joke. Refocusing her attention on the ceremony, Eowyn saw the knights congratulating the prince. However, among them, she noticed someone whom she had never seen before. He was not a knight of Camelot yet was wearing a suit of armor. His hair was blond and coming to a suit right above his shoulder, the whiteness of his armor was clashing yet blending well with the royal blue cape that was held by a golden brooch on which an eagle crest was engraved. The man was clearly from another kingdom yet had been invited to this crowning. Quite intriguing.

However, the joyous atmosphere and Eowyn's contemplation were both disturbed by the sound of shattering glass elevated in the air. A black armored knight had entered the Hall of Ceremonies by the stained-glass window as courtiers and servants rapidly moved out of the way. Arthur and the knights immediately drew their swords out and aimed toward the intruder who had begun making his way toward the royals. For someone to make such an entrance, they could not be driven by good intentions. The black knight with the phoenix crest stopped before the gathering of knights and threw his gauntlet at Arthur's feet. The Crown Prince of Camelot put his sword back into its sheath. He was about to pick up the gauntlet when another knight did.

"I, Sir Owain, accept your challenge,"

Arthur, surprised, looked at him as the black knight turned to Sir Owain.