Merlyn's Last Dream

Queen of Hearts P2

Arthur had spent his time pacing the throne room, running his hands through his hair as if his panic would somehow release Merlyn from the confines of her prison cell. She'd returned to Camelot calmly, putting up little resistance as Uther had ordered the guards to throw her in the dungeons, leaving the prince to dwell on his own stupidity. It was his fault, after all, that they'd been spotted. If only he'd chosen a point further from the city, hadn't let Morgana convince him into taking Merlyn on that bloody picnic. He should have known that things would go awry: nothing ever seemed to turn out quite the way he planned.

And then there was that smirk, the evil glint in Morgana's eyes, a look which should have been so foreign, and yet, as he thought back over the past few months, seemed like a permanent fixture upon her face. He was sure that she was the reason that his father had found them, that her talk of Merlyn's love, the implication of their rekindled friendship was some sort of manipulation. But why? What had he done, what had Merlyn done, to deserve this? Arthur didn't understand.

Perhaps he'd been wrong. Maybe he'd mistaken Morgana's intentions, but in his heart, he knew that something was terribly wrong with the ward.

Before he could process his realisations any further, the king burst through the doors to the throne rooms, his glaring eyes as dark as his blackened clothes, soulless as he stared at his son. The guards were quick to close the doors behind him, evidently in no mood to feel Uther's wrath.

"What were you thinking, Arthur?" he hissed, walking straight past him so he could lean heavily on his throne. "Did you not hear me when I said that if you continued with this... With this servant that I would have her executed?"

The prince closed his eyes for a moment, trying to reign in his anger. Merlyn was so much more than a mere servant, not only to him, but to many of the knights, the people, the entire bloody city for God's sake. For his father to speak of her in such a way, as if she were lesser, was, quite frankly, insulting.

"What does it matter that Merlyn is a servant?" Arthur asked, meeting the king's furious gaze, glad to see his father flinch at the mention of his lover's name.

"The survival of Camelot depends on forging an alliance through your marriage." his father explained, speaking as if the prince hadn't heard the same lecture a thousand times before.

Arthur barely managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes. "But I can't marry someone who I don't have feelings for."

The king had no such restraint. "Your first duty is to Camelot. You have been doing it a disservice by continuing your relationship with her."

Arthur saw red. "A disservice? Father, do you not understand what Merlyn has done for this kingdom? She's saved my life more times than I can count, and I care about-"

"I cannot allow this." Uther interrupted, speaking over his son. "I have forbidden it and you shall pay the consequences for breaking my trust."

"You can't forbid my feelings any more than I can. I love her." the prince watched as his father took a step back, acting as if Arthur had dealt him with a physical blow.

"Then you leave me no choice." the king seethed, stepping around his son. "It is only because she has saved your life that I will spare hers. She is banished. She has three days to leave the city."

Arthur just about managed not to draw his sword. He'd never thought his father a particularly fair man, but apparently some of his words had made their way through his thick skull. Still, it wasn't enough.

"You can't do this. You can't punish her for my actions." he pleaded, racing forward to grab the sleeve of the king's jacket. He let go instantly, as if burned, realising his mistake.