AN: Clearly, this isn't mine. Also, it is AU, seeing as Arthur is alive and knows and accepts magic.
Chapter One
"There's Camelot. We've made it, Anna! And now Lot will never bother you again. Merlin will make sure of it," Hunith said decisively, which roughly translated to "I will make sure that Merlin makes sure of it."
I grinned wearily, clutching the strap of my small bag. "Are you sure it's alright? I know Merlin invited you, but he never said anything about me..."
"Anna," she said sternly, stopping to face me. "Your brother was his closest childhood friend. He'll take care of this. And even if you weren't Will's sister, he would still do something about it. You're safe now, love," she finished, cupping my face gently. "Or at least you will be once we make it to the castle. Come along. I've gone long enough without seeing my son. And it's always fun to surprise my brother, as well."
I laughed, following along behind her. It seemed as if seeing the white city up ahead had lent her more energy, as she walked faster than she had most of our journey.
Walking through the city markets was a bit of a chore, seeing as there were more people there than lived in our entire village. I clung to Hunith's arm desperately, rather afraid I would lose her in the crowd. And I couldn't get rid of the nagging feeling in the back of my mind that Lot's men were still following us, even though we'd not seen any evidence of such for more than a week.
"Hunith, is that you?" A clear voice called out over the crowd, catching our attention. "It is you!" she called again, and we saw a beautiful young woman head our way. The crowd parted, letting her and the four knights with her through. "So you've finally accepted Merlin's offer, then?"
"Your Majesty," Hunith said, dipping into a respectful curtsey. After a brief, shocked moment, I did so, as well. I remembered her as Gwen, the Lady Morgana's maid. When did she become Queen? Apparently, I'd missed quite a bit since they'd all come to Ealdor.
"Oh, there's no need for that, Hunith," the queen said, laughing as she wrapped her arms around the closest thing I had to a mother. She didn't seem to worry about the danger she was putting her fine gown in from the dust coating Hunith's clothes. "But Merlin and Gaius will be thrilled you've come! And who's this you've brought with you?" She turned to me with an open, inviting smile.
"I'm Anna, Your Majesty," I replied, dipping into another curtsey.
"Anna, not Will's sister, Anna? Oh my, you've grown up so beautifully! I remember you as the tiny little thing following on Merlin's every word," she grinned, then wrapped me in a hug, as well. "Merlin will be happy to see you, too. Now, you must come up to the castle. How long will you be staying with us?"
I didn't realize we'd started moving until the men with her surrounded us with ease, guarding us as we moved through the market. "Well, we were hoping we could stay here, permanently," Hunith said cautiously. I was glad she'd spoken, since the sudden dread that we might not be allowed to stay had caused my throat to nearly swell shut.
"Oh, that's wonderful news!" the queen gushed. "Merlin and Gaius will be delighted, and heaven knows I could use a few ladies around who have something in their heads besides clothes and knights. I get enough of the knights without the ladies of the court twittering on about them."
"You know you love us, Gwen." The knight in the front right spoke, throwing the queen a grin.
"You, only because you're my brother. The rest of them, only because they keep my husband safe," she shot back.
"Hey! I thought you loved me for my charm and sparkling wit," the front left said, pouting dramatically.
"You're the only one who thinks you have charm or wit, sparkling or otherwise," the huge one behind me said.
"I'm wounded, truly. Cut to the quick," the dramatic one said, throwing his hand over his heart, but not before he sent me a quick wink.
"Ignore the boys. It's the only way I've managed to stay sane this long," the queen said, sliding an arm through mine. "Especially Gwaine. Maybe if you ignore him, his overly large head will deflate enough to fit inside a helmet." She went on, talking over his offended cry and the others' laughter. "Now, since you ladies haven't met any of the knights, I'll introduce you. The one whose only saving grace is that he's my brother is Elyan. The one who thinks he's charming is Gwaine. Never believe anything he says. Percival is behind you, Anna, and Leon is behind you, Hunith. And you will soon learn that they are never up to any good, except in times of battle."
"Which is where we are at our finest, My Queen," Sir Gwaine said, apparently over his pout.
"I thought you promised that maid at the tavern last night that you were never better than when you have mead in your belly and a pretty girl in your arms," Sir Leon said quizzically, but I saw the amused gleam in his eye.
Playful banter continued as we made our way up to the castle. Once within the walls, the queen grinned. "It's nearly lunchtime, so I say we interrupt Arthur and Merlin. It'll be fun. I can't wait to see Merlin's face when he sees you. They're in Arthur's study, supposedly working on new laws about magic, which really means that Merlin is lecturing Arthur about how magic really works, and Arthur is provoking him." She laughed, then all but dragged us up the steps and through several corridors, seemingly unaware of the servants dropping bows and curtsies all around her.
We arrived in front of a pair of rather ordinary doors just as a pair of young boys did, as well, laden with a rather crumptious looking luncheon. "Thank you, boys. We'll take those, if you can go back to the kitchens and get us enough for all of us, please."
Both boys happily handed over their loads to the knights before scampering off to do their queen's bidding. She then grinned and opened the doors rather quickly, catching the inhabitants inside off guard. "It's time to eat, boys, and I've brought a surprise with me," she declared, pulling Hunith and me into the room with her.
"Mother?" Merlin cried, then looked to me in shock. "Anna?"
"Hello, my son," Hunith said happily, reaching for her boy. He didn't hesitate, but ran straight for her.
"I'm so glad you're here!" he said, holding his mother tightly. "But I thought you didn't want to leave Ealdor."
"Lot changed our minds," she explained, then curtsied to the king once she was free.
Who grinned at us, and grinned even more when Hunith captured him in a hug, as well. "Welcome to Camelot. Both of you. But what do you mean Lot changed your minds? What does he have to do with anything?"
I was rather intimidated quite suddenly. After all, I was in a room with the most important people in Camelot. What was I compared to them?
But Merlin seemed to guess. "It's because of your father's lands, isn't it?"
I nodded, looking down at the ground in a mixture of embarrassment, shame, and fear. The queen gently took my arm and led me to a chair in front of the table. "Why don't we eat, and then Hunith and Anna can tell us their story, alright? After all, you poor things must have been travelling for quite a long time to have made it from Ealdor." Then, she once again wrapped an arm around me. "You've got nothing to worry about here. No one in this room will judge you for things that happened outside of your control. And there will be no pity, only compassion," she whispered.
Hope starting warring with the dread inside of me. But I could only nod in response. She smiled kindly once more before a knock at the door had all of us looking to it. "Oh, there you are, boys! Perfect timing, as usual," she praised them. They, quite adorably, blushed. "Please put the food on the table, and then, Eric, will you please have the chamberlain prepare the two rooms near Merlin's. Our guests will be staying there. Have Eseld prepare baths for both of them, with my special oil. She'll know which one. And James, please have Gaius come join us. Tell him there's a surprise waiting for him in the King's study."
"You might want to emphasize it's from the Queen," Merlin added, a twinkle in his eye as he escorted his mother to the table. "He's bound to come a bit quicker that way."
"Why would he come more quickly if it's from Gwen than me?" the king asked, perplexed.
"Because he likes her better." The answer came from every man in the room other than the king, who looked a bit offended at first, but then he shrugged it off.
"I like her better, too," he stated, pushing his queen's chair in for her.
The meal went quickly, though I could hardly eat anything for the worry and shame swirling through me. The others teased each other relentlessly; however, it was obvious that none of it was meant in earnest. Even Hunith, who had only met about half of them before, joined in, telling enough humorous stories of Merlin as a child to leave him red in the face.
But it couldn't last forever. After everyone had finished eating, the king looked to me. "Anna, will you tell us what this mess with Lot is all about?"
I closed my eyes, but nodded. I began, still with eyes shut firmly against the world. "My father was a lord under Cenred, well, his father, really. Father didn't like Cenred, thought he was nothing more than a bully, but unfortunately, his oath to Jory also included loyalty to his offspring, so he had to fight for Cenred, even if he didn't agree with him. He was killed in battle, which I'm sure was no coincidence, since we received word of his death scarcely an hour before Cenred arrived and escorted us all out of our ancestral home, at sword point. He said something about the right of conquest of traitors. Mother tried to fight it, but there was nothing she could do, no one to help her, so we eventually found our way to Ealdor. Will was so angry about all of it that he swore he would never have anything to do with kings or lords ever again."
"I remember that anger quite vividly," the king said, smiling a bit wryly.
I grinned for a moment. "I do, too," I replied, then sighed. "But then Cenred was killed, and his younger brother, Lot, took the throne. Lot has gone through five wives in the past four years, each with a rather large dowry or holding of lands. And then he found me in Ealdor, and now wants to marry me to have a legitimate claim on my father's lands, since I'm his last heir."
"Don't sell yourself short, Anna," Gwaine said, a smile on his face contradicting the darkness in his eyes. "I'm sure the fact that you're a beautiful young woman with presumably no family connections to protect you also made you an attractive choice for the coward."
I smiled grimly. "I'm just glad I have Hunith. I've stayed with her ever since Mother died, so she was there when Lot's men came with his 'offer'. She sent them packing, tails tucked firmly between their legs."
"Mother?" Merlin looked a bit shocked. "What did you- How did you send them off?"
She patted his shoulder. "You weren't Gaius's only student, dear. I just learned to use magic in small, unnoticable ways usually, to keep others' suspicion at bay. But when they tried to take my girl, they quickly learned not to touch her."
"Unfortunately, that didn't seem to stop Lot from trying. He sent more men, several times, and with jewels and gold, to try to sway me. When that failed to convince me, he sent men to kidnap me one night. But Hunith sent them off again. After that, I knew I couldn't stay in Ealdor, so Hunith suggested we make our way here," I continued. "We decided to leave at night, so no one would see us leave, but Lot had the same idea. We had just barely made it to the forest when we saw their torches."
"Thankfully, Lot isn't the brightest, else he would have sent his men in without those and we might have been caught," Hunith added.
"As it was, they managed to find our trail rather easily. It was only Hunith's magic and the few tricks she's taught me that kept us in front of them, even though they were on horses. Even here, I can't help but feel that they'll find me and take me back to him."
"I assure you, Anna, we will not allow that to happen," the king told me, looking me directly in the eye.
"They would have to get through the best knights in all the land to get to you," Sir Leon assured with a kind smile.
"And I happen to have a few magic tricks to keep you safe," Merlin added to make me laugh. "But, in all seriousness, you're safe here, Anna. We won't let anyone get you."
Hunith squeezed my hand as tears slipped down my face. "Thank you," I whispered, in awe of the way they were so willing to protect an insignificant girl.
A knock sounded at the door, dragging everyone's attention from me. "My Queen, you needed- Hunith?" An old man stood just in the door, looking at Hunith like she was a very welcome ghost.
"Hello, brother," she beamed, before rushing out of her seat to tackle him with yet another hug.
The old man, apparently Gaius, seemed nearly in tears as he embraced her. "I never thought I would see you again," he whispered.
The moment seemed incredibly personal, so I quickly averted my eyes, and I saw everyone else do the same. "Well, Anna, I'm sure you're tired from your journey, so Merlin and I will show you to your room," the queen said.
The way she said it left no room for argument, whether or not we had planned to, so Merlin and I followed as she swept out of the room, pausing only to kiss her husband on the cheek. "I'll send Merlin back when I'm done with him," she promised.
"No, please keep him!" the king protested in jest. "I don't want him back!"
"Well, maybe I don't want to come back," Merlin shot back, and there was a flash of gold in his eyes, just before the king yelped.
"Why did I bring back magic?" was barely heard over the knight's laughter as we walked further down the hallway.
Merlin was grinning when he turned to me and swung an arm around my shoulders. "So, Anna, other than mad kings chasing you for your hand in marriage, how have you been?"
"Clearly not as well as you, My Lord Sorcerer," I mocked, bobbing a tiny curtsey.
His fingers found the incredibly ticklish spot on my side, digging in mercilessly. "It's My Lord Grand Sorcerer to you, urchin," he teased, trapping me against a wall to use both hands for tickling.
My laughs turned into shrieks as he dug his fingers into my neck, causing me to instantly drop to the floor. And for a moment, it seemed as if I was taken back years to my childhood, when Will and Merlin would torment me, before spoiling me senseless.
Rushing footsteps brought our attention back in the direction we'd come from to see those we'd left rushing toward us, and those with swords had them drawn. "What happened, Anna?" Hunith asked, worried eyes raking over me, assessing for any possible damage.
"Your son is a brute," I told her, tugging on his hand to pull myself up. Well, he ended up doing most of the work, but I let him, seeing as he was the reason I'd ended up on the floor in the first place. I brushed off my skirt, not that it did much good, then looked up to see the four knights glaring at Merlin.
"It would appear that Anna is ticklish, and Merlin knew that," the queen explained with a smile.
"And he used it to an unfair advantage," I added, smacking him lightly in the stomach.
"But you screamed," Sir Percival said, looking confused.
"I'm incredibly ticklish," I said, shrugging my shoulders.
"Merlin's quite sensitive about his ears, just for future reference," the king told me casually.
"Thank you, Your Majesty," I grinned, as Merlin spluttered senselessly.
"So you're alright?" Sir Leon asked me, finally sheathing his sword.
"Other than my pride being slightly bruised, and possibly my backside from meeting the floor so suddenly, yes," I assured him. "But thank you all for being so concerned."
"Of course, Lady Anna. It's our duty and our pleasure," Sir Gwaine told me, sweeping a grand bow toward me, before sending another wink.
"Ignore him," Merlin scowled, tugging on my arm a bit. "He's a prat."
"But I'm your favorite prat," Sir Gwaine countered.
"Come along, Anna," the queen told me. "If we don't leave now, the boys could be brawling on the floor soon. Would you like to come with now, Hunith?"
Hunith nodded, and she and her brother joined us. "Gaius, this is Anna, the girl I was telling you about," she told him, clinging to his arm in happiness.
"So you're who I have to thank for bringing my sister back to Camelot," he said. He seemed to scowl at me, but I caught the glimpse of the twinkle in his eye.
"Yes, sir."
"Oh, there's no need for sir for me," he said, waving my words aside. "I'm only a simple physician."
"There's nothing simple about you, Gaius. And the only reason why you don't have a title is because you keep refusing one whenever Arthur tries to give you one," the queen scolded.
Gaius looked a bit sheepish. "And I will continue to do so for as long as he tries. I'm perfectly happy as I am."
"A grumpy old man who likes his books more than most people," Merlin teased.
"That's because most books don't talk back."
"Do any books talk back?" I asked, suddenly very curious.
"If you know the right books," Gaius answered, eyes twinkling even more.
It seemed that whoever had designed the castle had decided to put the king's study and the living chambers on opposite sides. At least there would be no worry of getting fat or lazy while here, I thought to myself with a smile. But we did finally come to a stop in a short hallway with four doors. "These are my chambers," Merlin told us, gesturing to the first door.
"And this one will be yours, Hunith," the queen said, opening the second. "And the next one is for you, Anna. There should be a warm bath waiting for both of you, and if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask me."
Hunith smiled gently. "Thank you, Your Majesty. You've been far too kind."
"Nonsense. And I told you already, there's no need for Your Majesty. At least not when it's just us. And that goes for you, too, Anna. I'm just Gwen to you. Now, go relax, and remember, you're safe here," she said, looking me in the eye as she said the last bit.
I nodded, then slipped into the most beautiful room I'd seen since my earliest childhood. The bed was huge, taking up one entire wall, and across from it, a couch and chairs were situated around a fireplace. The wall across from the door had several windows, and in front of one was my bath. It waited, slightly hidden by a dressing screen that I could pull out more fully. Steam was still rising from the water as I hurried toward it. I stripped, dropping my bag and clothes as I went.
The hot water was a blessed change from the frigid waters I'd hastily bathed in over the last week and a half. I unbraided my hair, then sank up to my chin in the water. And soon enough, I was asleep.
AN: I know I really shouldn't be posting yet another story, but here it is. I couldn't resist. Gwaine is far too much fun to ignore. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I will have the next chapter up soon!