Calm Before the Storm

Chapter Seventeen

17. Serious Talk

The two walk in silence for a few moments before they were faraway enough from the chambers that Magdelena and Arthur were both certain Merlin wouldn't overhear their conversation. She turned to him with a curious look, "What is it you wish to talk about Sire?" he doesn't say anything for a few moments, "My King you are worrying me." 

"After you left the campsite Leon and Merlin explained something to me," he says making her brows furrow curious what the two of them could have done, "Leon says that you would be the reason someone went to war, but you would be by the side of the man that you wanted to be with not at home waiting for the victor to return."

She smiles at the words of Leon Arthur continues talking before she can reply to the words of the Knight, "Merlin then stated that you see everyone else as equals where as you see me only as the Prince and now King," he says sound distressed, "I want you to be my equal Mags, no matter what it takes. So please tell me what would it take for you to see me as Arthur and not King Arthur?"

She smiles brightly at him cupping his cheek with her hand, "I should see you as my equal you are right Arthur," she says smiling at him, "I promise from now on you will just be Arthur, not King Arthur, just Arthur the man I love more then life itself." 

Arthur wraps his arms around her lifting her off the ground spinning her around pausing only for a moment to kiss her deeply like his life depended on it. She smiled into his kiss her arms wrapping around his neck holding him in their place, even as they pulled away and rested their foreheads against each other. 

The two lovers continued to walk, talking about nothing yet they hung onto each others words like it was gold. Magdelena was leading them to the King's chambers he smiled as he realized where they were, "Now go to sleep Arthur, you will be no use on your trip tomorrow tried as the dead," she says pushing him toward the door making him smile, pausing as he grabs her hand before she can walk away.

"Join us on the trip tomorrow will you?" he asks staring at her, making her smile grow soft, "Please, you were right, you have a right to protect those you love the same as everyone else does."

"I will join you," she says smiling before slowly pulling her hand from his and heading back to the chambers. Her smile seemed glued to her face, while her mind was stuck in daydreams of the future. Her smile falls and her mind comes back to the present as Agravaine appears from around the corner a sneer on his face, "Lord Agravaine, what are you doing lurking around at this time at night?"

"Making sure you do not pull the King too far from the path his father wanted him to be on," he states trying to sound like the noble he was, but her narrowed her eyes at him. 

"You sure you aren't the one leading him astray so Morgana can take over the throne?" though it came out as a question he simply sneered at her, "Please Agravaine we both know who really killed Uther, I doubt you have the mental capacity to perform a simple spell let alone the one that-"

His black gloved hand was around her throat as he pushed her back against the wall his smirk was smug as he glared down at her, "You can think whatever it is you want to," he snaps his hand squeezing enough to stop airflow to her lungs, "Who would believe a servant - even one who has ensnared the King - over the Uncle of the King and Lord?" 

This time it was her turn to smirk, "I am too smart to try to tell anyone Agravaine," she says her voice was strained against his hand, "one day you will mess up and everyone will know the truth and when that happens I hope I get to kill you."

His eyes flash in anger as he backhands her still holding her throat, forcing her to take the full blow of his hand before he releases her throwing her to the ground, "Perhaps you are smarter then your average servant," he says sneering down at her, "but that is all you will ever be, a servant. You will die a servant if I have any say about it." 

Magdelena watches as he walks away waiting until he was gone from her sight to stand and walk back to the chambers of Gaius. He stared at the red mark that would bruise by the time tomorrow came around, "Did someone slap you?"

"Agravaine did not enjoy hearing me tell him that I knew who he really sides with," she admits as Gaius begins searching for something to put on her darkening cheek, "I should have known better then to speak out like that but it was so hard to keep my tongue behind my lips. I just hope nothing bad happens before Arthur sees the truth behind him." 

"For now I think it best if you avoided him all together," Gaius says rubbing the cool goo on her cheek worry clear in his eyes, "Maybe also watch what you say all together. You may be courting the King but only a select few know about that." 

She nods slowly before furrowing her brows as she thought, "I don't know what happened to my usual self-restraint," she says Gaius raises an eyebrow at her. 

"Really?"

"I know, I am hanging out with you too much Gaius," she says smiling nudging the man who walked to his cot, having been about to crawl into bed when she had entered the chambers, "Seriously Gaius, I will do my best not to aggravate anyone." 

"Good, now I shall be off to bed," she smiles at Gaius who falls asleep almost as soon as he head hit the pillow making her smile. She walked to her bed, sitting leaning against the wall to look out the window, wondering what the future would hold.