A Morgana Pendragon Story

The Announcement

King Arthur planned a feast to celebrate Morgana’s return. By this time, everyone knew she had come back, leaving few who believed he had accepted this straight away. In fact, a few people wondered if maybe Morgana had enchanted him, though no one said this within earshot of Arthur.

    Merlin had hardly been able to believe his eyes when he’d seen Morgana. He had arrived at Arthur’s chambers, only to be told by the King himself. Gwen saw Merlin’s apprehension and took him aside.

    “This isn’t something we’ve decided lightly.” She said, when Merlin had voiced his fears to her. “But we’ve both talked to Morgana and she seems genuine this time.”

    “But she seemed genuine when we found her a few years ago and instead she was planning against Camelot! This is Morgana we’re talking about here. What if she went ahead and killed us all?”

    “Merlin!” Arthur half snapped, though his eyes showed the same doubts as his servant. “That’s not going to happen this time. I trust that Morgana’s changed, or changing, into the person we once knew. She’s staying here, and I know many others won’t like it, but we’re all going to have to get used to the idea.”

    “I know, Sire. I’m sorry. It’s just-”

    “Don’t be. You’re only saying what a lot of us are thinking. Hopefully what happens tomorrow will help us to believe in Morgana again.”

At the feast that night, Arthur and Gwen arrived last with the Knights. Percival and Leon were on their right; Gwaine and Elyan on their left. As they entered the room, all talking stopped and everyone stood up. It was soon clear to see why there had been so many raised voices.

    Morgana had already arrived at the feast. Everyone was looking at her in fear and anger. Arthur and Gwen sat in their places and Arthur nodded at the seat next to him for Morgana.

    “Citizens of Camelot, by now all of you know that Morgana has returned because she wants to stay here again. We have granted that request.” Arthur’s voice rang out strong and he glanced around the room. “It goes without saying that this hasn’t been easy for anyone, but I hope that we can all try to forget the past- and all that has happened in it.”

    “Camelot has gone through many changes in the last year and things are going to change again. I’m holding a meeting tomorrow to tell you all something important. But for now, let’s enjoy the feast and a toast- to the Lady Morgana being back with us again.”

    There was a brief pause and then a chorus of people mumbling a greeting to Morgana. She looked uncomfortable and glanced at the table.

    “Are you alright?” Gwen asked her. Morgana looked up and managed something like a smile.

    “I will be. Thank you both for having me back here. All of this is more than I could have expected.”

    “Enjoy it then.” Arthur replied with a smile. The two reached over and hugged for a moment, before turning and beginning the feast.

The next morning, everyone gathered in the council chambers again to hear what Arthur had to say. He and Gwen arrived, both looking slightly nervous. Stood near to them was Geoffrey, the Keeper of the Royal Library in Camelot. The King and Queen stood in the centre of the room. They glanced at each other and smiled quickly before Arthur stepped forward.

    “As I mentioned last night, Camelot is again entering a new age. The declaration that I and Guinevere are going to sign is regarding a situation that has given us a lot to consider.” He paused at looked at several people, including Morgana. “Over the past few months, I’ve had reason to...dispute...what my father taught me about magic. I realise I’ve acted just like him in some cases and I don’t want to carry on that any longer. So today, we sign this declaration as a promise. We hereby announce that Camelot will once again be a Kingdom where magic is allowed. Allowed to be practiced and used without the fear of death hanging over anyone.”

    There was a pause after this, while everyone took in Arthur’s words. The room was silent as Arthur and Gwen signed the document that Geoffrey had given them. He folded it and sealed it up. That was the moment it hit everyone what had actually just happened.

    The room erupted into applause and cheers. Merlin and Gaius looked at each other in happiness and Gaius put a hand on his shoulder. The first thing Morgana did was to catch her brother and sister-in-law in a hug. When she pulled away, she felt tears on her face and wiped them away. Gwen took her hand and smiled.

    “Thank you both so much. You don’t know much this means to me, to everyone I suppose.”

    “But we can guess.” Gwen grinned. “We wanted to tell you sooner, but figured it would be better as a surprise.”

    Morgana laughed. “Well, you’ve certainly done that all right! Thank you.”