Merlyn - Arthur x Female Merlin [1]

Chapter One: Her Arrival

It had taken a couple days to reach Camelot but Merlyn was close. Just when she was about to give up, collapse to the floor and let sleep take her, she looked up and saw Camelot's castle. It was certainly a thing of beauty. She hadn't seen the beauty of the castle for many years. Merlyn had only ever seen one other castle and that was Cenred's. He was the King who ruled over Essetir – the kingdom where Ealdor, her village, unfortunately resided. King Cenred was a cruel man, who cared very little about his people. It was a horrible thing to see but at least he allowed magic. Although her bones ached, her lungs struggled and she was sweating profusely from the long walk, seeing the castle had renewed her strength and lightened her mood. But as she stood on top of the large hill, her mind wandered back to the last time she had been stood in that spot, well, sat. Merlyn had never forgotten the young boy, who was so easily excited surprisingly enough by her magic but she could only imagine what Arthur was like now. He would be nearly of age to be crowned prince of Camelot, he would have been profusely taught of the dangers of magic ... he would have changed. Sighing, Merlyn began walking again. She had no idea why she was even thinking about the prince. He was Prince Arthur Pendragon and she was a mere commoner, she probably wouldn't ever even see him.

~8~

Merlyn stood in the lower town just staring at the castle. Yep, it definitely was worth the wait. Stalls lined the lower town with busy villagers surrounding them. Merlyn had never seen a space so packed full of people and excitement. Merlyn was so used to boring old Ealdor that had raiders occasionally charging through but Camelot ... it was wonderful. As Merlyn stared in wonder at the place she just managed to dodge crashing into people with mountains of things even some with goats. Coming from Ealdor, this energy of people was completely new to her but she adored it. Walking in awe, Merlyn made her way over the drawbridge that brought her to the main square of the Citadel.

Suddenly the sound of drum beats could be heard. A substantial amount of the crowds moved to the main square as well and began surrounding a raised wooden platform that had a red stained block of wood on it. Six knights stood between the crowds and the platform whilst a man was led by two guards towards the platform, surprisingly he was not struggling.

"What's going on?" Merlyn quietly wondered to no one in particular. Merlyn wasn't stupid she could tell that the block was an executioner's block and it was stained red from the various pints of blood that would have ran down it over the years but executions didn't happen in Ealdor – Merlyn had never seen a beheading ever.

"Let this serve as a lesson to all" Merlyn jumped at the sudden loud, commanding voice coming from a balcony above her. With only one look Merlyn could tell the man was the King. The harsh, stern voice, thick golden ring around his head and luxurious clothing said it all. "This man, Thomas James Collins, is adjudged guilty of conspiring to use enchantments and magic. And pursuant to the laws of Camelot, I, Uther Pendragon, have decreed that such practices are banned on penalty of death" He spoke with such conviction Merlyn couldn't look at him. She recognised his face – it was older but she remembered the first time she had seen it ... she remembered running from it.

"I pride myself as a fair and just king" Merlyn's gaze shot up to the man at such a debatable phrase. "But for the crime of sorcery, there is but one sentence I can pass." With a nod of his head Thomas Collins was forced to his knees, his head upon the block. Oh God! Merlyn watched as Thomas didn't struggle, he had accepted his fate. She saw Uther raise his arm, the executioner following pursuit, then with a swift motion the axe fell slicing clean through Thomas' neck. The crowd gasped. Merlyn was not a stranger to death but this "show" was something that could all too easily happen to her. Taking a deep breath Merlyn took her attention back to Uther as he spoke once more