Betrayed and Broken

Stolen

Arthur sighed again, aggravated, and smashed his fist against the walls. Where was she? Gwen was normally brought back to the cell earlier than this! She's never been this late in the past six months that they'd been here. The former king paced, wearing a circular dent into the ground. Lancelot looked up at him and frowned, "Pacing isn't going to help her get to you faster. She'll be here. Don't worry."

For a moment he was tempted to snap something at the knight, but found that he couldn't when Lance continued to stare at him unblinkingly, unafraid. Arthur sighed for a third time and slid down the wall, leaning his head against it. Just moments later, the door to the dungeons opened and Arthur scrambled up, anxious to see his wife. The other members of the cell smiled weakly at his antics.

When the person came to the cell, however, it wasn't Gwen. Arthur's shoulders slumped when he realized that it was Mordred. The young druid smiled just as weakly as the knights and asked hesitantly, "Waiting for someone?"

Again, Arthur was tempted to snap at him, at anyone for that matter, but the look on the boy's face stopped him. Mordred looked so small and so lonely and so very conflicted. So instead, Arthur did what he'd been doing for the past month or so when Mordred came down. He talked to him like a friend, "Yes, actually. I'm waiting for Gweneviere. She doesn't normally take this long to come back and I'm worried for her. I'm worried about what Morgana might have done to her. But, that doesn't matter. How are you? Why are you done here?"

Mordred had flinched at the venom in the older prisoner's voice when he mentioned the druid's employer, but he continued on anyway, "I am well, thank you. I have come to give you your food. The usual guard is... ah, indisposed currently. The Queen is looking into a new one." If he noticed that Arthur clenched his jaw when the boy called Morgana a queen, he didn't comment.

Gwaine stood quickly, coming to the bars. He asked in barely concealed anticipation, "So where's the food? Did you bring it already, or are you going to bring it soon?" The rogue knight craned his neck around as if he would be able to see any further down the corridor.

Mordred smiled at him and said, "Its right here." His eyes flared gold for a brief second and the food floated to slide under the slit in the wall. The door was only opened to allow prisoners to enter or exit. Nothing else.

Arthur's gaze went flat. Leon offered him some food, but Arthur snarled, "I won't have food that was touched by magic." He ignored Mordred's obvious flinch at his tone, choosing instead to stalk back to his designated sleep area. He sat down and pointedly didn't look at Mordred's heartbroken face. It reminded him too much of his former manservant's face when he had called him a sorcerer.

With a final whispered phrase that everyone heard, Mordred swirled around and stalked out of the room. He had said, "Do not fear that which you do not understand."

After another thirty minutes which were spent in silence, Gwen was bustled into the cell by two large guards. She huffed at them once they had left, but then immediately turned into her husband's embrace, hugging him furiously. Arthur smiled a genuine smile at her and then said, "Why were you so late today? Are you alright? Did they hurt you because if they did-,"

He was cut off by Gwen laughing and putting her finger on his lips, effectively silencing him. After she greeted everyone and the two sat in their area, she started talking, "Well, you know I can't very well just go and walk to the cell by myself. The men who walked me here were late coming to the throne room to pick me up. Then there was this commotion and a messenger ran into the room, quaking in his boots. Poor thing was about to fall over. He said that some people had started rioting in the lower town and you all know that there are never riots because the people are too scared of Morgana. She was furious! She stormed all the way to the lower town, half of the court, me included, following her. When we got to the lower town, there was indeed a riot and people were throwing things and generally being a nuisance to the guards.