Author's note

I have added a few lines of dialogue to the last chapter because I forgot to put them in! I missed out the very obvious (new) dialogue I was going to add, where Eldon realises that it was Merlin who conjured the butterfly. Apologies for the delay in posting this. The last week has been busy…

Chapter 16

The journey back to Camelot took almost twice as long as it would have done without Arthur. Each day of the five day journey back, however, he grew stronger. He began to regain the colour in his cheeks, and the drawn and pained expression on his face was replaced in the main by one of elation. After over two months in gloom or utter darkness, in bleak and dank surroundings below ground, the simple pleasures of feeling the sun on his face and the wind as they rode made his heart soar. Once, when Merlin caught the expression on his face, he called over to him, "What?"

And Arthur replied, "Nothing… and everything." And as if his joy was not great enough already, he began to feel tingling in the fingers of his right hand, and then – to his utter amazement – found he was beginning to be able to move them small amounts.

The closer they got to Camelot, the more Arthur urged them on, despite their cautioning him not to push himself too hard. More than once, Arthur simply put his head back and laughed, joking, "I'm the king, and I say we go on!" And when Merlin suggested, as they neared Camelot, that they could stop at a nearby village for him to have a shave before meeting Gwen, he was having none of it. All he wanted was to be back in the city that had, for the whole of his life, been his home, and with the woman who meant more to him than any other. As they finally rode over the crest of the last hill, Arthur reined his horse to a halt with his left arm and sat silently revelling in the sight of the towers and turrets of Camelot. As Merlin drew alongside him, he said quietly, "I thought I might never see it again," and for a few moments the whole party remained silent, each of the knights profoundly grateful that they were bringing their king back, and Eldon and Darian marvelling at the sight of their new home.

It had not, of course, been possible to hide from the people of Camelot for very long the truth that King Arthur was missing. All felt his absence keenly and most prayed for his safe return, but as the weeks went by, few believed that they would actually see him again, and many secretly mourned for their king. The fact that the knights' rescue mission had been kept secret and that they rode without Camelot's livery meant that the lookout on the outer gate did not realise, until they were upon him, the identity of those who were approaching. The news of Arthur's return did not, however, stay the preserve of a few for long. It spread through the lower town like wild-fire, and soon the streets were thronged with town-folk, waving and cheering. Merlin, by Arthur's side as ever, quipped at one point, "I'm surprised they even recognise you with that beard!"

Arthur tried to look as if he was ignoring his servant, and without taking his eyes off his subjects or ceasing to acknowledge them and their cheering, said quietly under his breath, "Shut up, Merlin," but it was said with a little smile on his face. However, as they finally rode across the drawbridge into the citadel - only marginally behind those who were running ahead with the news – a memory stirred in both men's minds, of a time when Arthur had similarly been hailed by the city on his return and when his servant had called him Cabbage-head. The glanced at each other knowingly.

"So, Merlin – are you about to come up with another ridiculous name for me?"

Merlin didn't answer immediately, but rather cocked his head as if considering his options: "How about Turnip-head?" Before Arthur had a chance to respond, however, a mental image of the king dressed as the village idiot popped into Merlin's head. "No, done that one already."

Arthur looked puzzled, "When?"

"Probably best you don't remember it!" said Merlin, with a grin.

"So are you just going to work your way through each and every vegetable?" asked Arthur drily, as they finally rode into the familiar large, cobbled square.

"Seems like a good place to start."

But any further discussion on the subject was silenced as the bells above the citadel started to ring.

~~~ O ~~~

Guinevere looked up, as did the others in the council chambers, as the sound of a peal of bells interrupted the meeting. The queen put down the piece of parchment that was in her hand and looked over to Gaius, who was smiling.

Geoffrey of Monmouth, seeing his smile, asked enquiringly, "Gaius?"

But as the physician opened his mouth to speak, the doors were flung open and a servant—red-faced from the exertion of running—burst in and with no etiquette whatsoever, exclaimed loudly: "The king has returned!""

~~~ O ~~~

Arthur's feet had scarcely touched the solid ground of his city when Guinevere came flying down the main stone steps of the citadel. The king barely had time to turn to face her before she threw her arms around him and held him tightly. He extricated his left arm and wrapped it around her, pulling her as close as the arm in the sling would allow, and resting his head for a moment on hers before kissing it – and then letting out a tiny stifled cry of pain as her embrace grew tighter and began to crush his injured arm.

She immediately began to release her grip, "Oh Arthur! I'm so sorry!"

"No, please, don't stop!" he said with a smile, and as soon as she looked up at him, he planted his lips on hers.

When they (some moments later) eventually pulled apart, they stood silently for several moments, just drinking in the sight of each other's faces, until Arthur said, "I don't think I'm looking my best…"

"Do you think I care?!"

"Not even about the beard?"

Guinevere put on an expression of mock seriousness: "Well, it clearly has to go…"

They both laughed, but the queen soon fell silent again, as a sense of relief washed over her. "I feared I had lost you, Arthur."

"But you haven't." He smiled and kissed her again.

"Your injury – how is it?"

His smiled broadened into a grin. "It's amazing what food and a few nights of decent sleep can do – it's feeling so much better already." And as if to prove it, he gave his fingers a little wiggle, but neither the king nor the queen saw the knowing looks that passed between Merlin and Eldon.

"You must get Gaius to have a look at it straight away," continued Guinevere.

"But I've had a very good physician with me—" responded Arthur, and his wife followed his gaze towards Eldon.

"You majesty," said Eldon, bowing his head as he did so, which the queen acknowledged with the sweetest of smiles. "I have heard so much about you," continued Eldon. "I now see that Arthur has not exaggerated in his praise of his queen!"

Guinevere glanced back at Arthur who had a look of pride on his face, before turning back to Eldon: "Thank you for your kind words, but thank you even more for your care of my husband, and for the risk you took in helping him. I will be forever in your debt."

Eldon bowed again to the queen, whose attention then returned to the king: "Let's get you inside."

As Arthur began limping up the main steps, with his left arm around Merlin's shoulder to support him, and with Guinevere on his right, he whispered to his wife, "I hear that you told the court off?"

Guinevere smiled coyly, as Arthur raised his eyebrows, and continued, "And Merlin said you were fiercely loyal!"

"Arthur, I am your wife and your queen – how could I ever be anything other than that?"

And Merlin had to pause whilst Arthur stopped so that he could turn and face his wife again: "I'm so proud of you! I had no doubt that you would be able to rule in my absence."

"But only because I was taught how to by the best, most noble, most honourable king ever," replied Guinevere. And Arthur leant in to kiss his wife yet again, and as he did so, he knew without a shadow of a doubt that he had picked the best queen

~~~ O ~~~

By the time Arthur awoke the following morning, the sun was already high in the sky. He drew in a deep breath, luxuriating in the feel of a soft mattress beneath him, clean, crisp sheets over him, and a deep, heavenly pillow under his head. "Good morning," said a gentle voice from across the room.

Arthur took another deep, satisfying breath, and turned his head towards his wife, who was sitting at the desk next to the window, with pieces of parchment piled neatly on one side and a quill pen in her hand. She laid the pen down, rose and made her way over to the bed. Arthur smiled by way of greeting, his face now clean shaven after a visit from the court barber the previous evening. Guinevere climbed up onto the bed and sat beside him. "I ought to get up," said Arthur with a sigh.

"No, you don't!" said Guinevere firmly. "Gaius says you're to rest for at least two more days before even beginning to think about your duties again. I'm sure the kingdom can manage another couple of days without you."

Much as Arthur wanted to return as soon as possible to his knights, to his Round Table and to his city, after two months of sleeping on hard, unyielding stone, the lure of his bed was also incredibly strong.

"How's your arm this morning?" asked Gwen.

Arthur wiggled his fingers slightly, "Less painful." And then he raised his eyebrows playfully at his wife: "At least it seems that I don't need my right arm for everything." The memory of his first night back in his bed with his wife brought little, indulgent smiles to both of their faces. Arthur had just decided that the best way to begin to use his royal prerogative again was to playfully order his wife back into bed—not that she was likely to do anything other than comply willingly and enthusiastically, given the previous night—when the door was flung open.

"Morning, sire!"

Arthur sighed, and then said with a certain amount of exasperation in his voice, "Merlin! It took me, what, seven or eight years to teach you to knock? Please tell me you haven't forgotten how to in two months."

"Oh," said Merlin with genuine innocence, "have I interrupted something?"

"Chance would be a fine thing," muttered Arthur to himself as Gwen laughed, but then he consoled himself with the thought, later. Any sense of disappointment was, however, tempered by the sight of a tray laden with several types of meat and sweet pastries from the kitchen.

If Merlin had been in any doubt as to whether Arthur's appetite had fully returned yet or not, it was dispelled by the relish and efficiency with which he tucked into virtually everything that had arrived on the tray. Merlin pulled up a chair, and as the king began to eat, he said with a mouth that was not entirely empty, "Tell me what's been happening in Camelot whilst I was away – I want to know everything!"

And so Merlin and Gwen began to relate all that had happened: the comings and goings at court, the visitors she had received in his absence, several disputes that had needed to be resolved, and any births, deaths and marriages of those he knew. Despite it only having been two months, Merlin and the queen were nevertheless still talking by the time Arthur had finally decided that he'd really had enough, and had laid down his napkin with a satisfied sigh. After they had finished all the stories in which they thought Arthur might take an interest, there was a little pause, and then Guinevere laid her hand lightly on her husband's good arm, and said softly, "Arthur – tell us what happened to you."

He had not wanted the previous day to spoil his first evening back in Camelot by re-living any of what had taken place in the dungeon, but accepted that his wife – and Merlin – would want to know. So, after a long silence, he took a deep breath and began to tell them everything that had befallen him, beginning with the hunt. Neither Merlin nor Gwen spoke as Arthur told his tale, although there were times when the queen took his hand and squeezed it tight. He skirted lightly over the subject of how he had acquired his other injuries, but the look on his face, the quietness of his voice and the remnants of those injuries which were still visible on much of his body, told his wife and his friend all that they needed to know, and were evidence enough for them of how terrible the brutal assault had been and how much he wished to erase it from his memory.

When Arthur finally fell silent, but now with a smile on his face, Guinevere gave his hand another little squeeze. "We owe Eldon a great debt," she began, and Arthur nodded but with a yawn. "And you need some more rest!" But to Guinevere's surprise, Arthur shook his head.

"No, there's something I need to do first. Is there some spare parchment on the desk?"

Guinevere nodded, "Yes – why?"

"Merlin – could you get a sheet or two, and a pen?"

Merlin pushed himself to his feet, and made his way across the room. "Are you seriously going to try to write with your left hand?"

"No, Merlin," said Arthur in his most condescending voice, "I'm going to be dictating and you're going to be writing."

As Merlin returned with pen and parchment and took his seat again, Guinevere looked at her husband quizzically. Arthur pushed himself up in the bed slightly and said simply, "I've been thinking…"

Guinevere listened whilst Merlin began recording all that Arthur had spent his long hours of captivity pondering. And the first thing he spoke about was born of his own personal experience. "We should not be in so much ignorance of the plight of the poorest in this kingdom. I want to find out where the need is greatest and what we can do to help. Camelot fares well and its citizens have plenty of food, but I suspect that is not the case in many of the villages. No adult and certainly no child in this kingdom should ever have to go to bed hungry, and if that means easing the burden of taxes, then so be it. And if I have to overrule the members of the council to do that, then I will."

It brought to Guinevere's mind the memory of a rather arrogant young prince who had shunned the simple bowl of porridge prepared for him in Ealdor. And once again, she knew that Arthur had changed and become the man that she had always known he could be, and she gazed at him with more love and pride than ever.

Merlin continued scribbling furiously as Arthur outlined his ideas for ensuring that all had sufficient to eat, before going on to list laws that could be made fairer, ways in which better provision could be made for orphans and widows, and plans for ensuring the greater safety of the more outlying of the kingdom's towns and villages. A little smile of approval formed on Merlin's face as he bent over the parchment that was rapidly being covered with ink.

"And we should ensure that every person in this kingdom has—" Arthur broke off suddenly, and turned his head, as if he was trying to read upside down what his servant was writing. Merlin looked up, pen still poised in his hand, and found Arthur staring back at him, with a slightly withering look on his face: "Am I—or come to that, is anybody—going to be able to read a single word that you've written on that page? It looks from here as if it's going to be as unintelligible the right way up as it is upside down."

Merlin glanced down at the parchment, "I'll grant you it's not my neatest writing—"

"That's an understatement!"

"—but I'm getting every word down. It's just that there are rather a lot of them… and you're talking quite quickly." And then Merlin added, with a note of surprise in his voice that didn't go unnoticed by Arthur, "It's all very good, though."

"Well, that's alright then," responded Arthur drily, "now that I have the approval of my servant."

Guinevere laughed, "I'd almost forgotten just how good it was to hear the two of you together!"

"And I'd almost forgotten just how much I have to put up with," said Arthur in the same dry manner.

"You missed me really," responded Merlin with a cheeky look on his face.

"I missed everyone in Camelot," said Arthur, not wanting to admit just how often he had ached for Merlin's companionship.

"Of course he missed you!" said Gwen to Merlin with another laugh, and Arthur suddenly became very interested in the bandages that were still wrapped round both wrists, so that he didn't have to either confirm or deny Gwen's statement. And a knock on the door rescued him from being challenged further on the matter.

"Knocking, Merlin," said Arthur pointedly. "See, it's not that difficult… COME!"

The door swung open, and Sir Leon entered. "Please excuse the intrusion, your majesties. It's just that a small delegation has arrived from Nemeth..."

Arthur opened his mouth to speak, but before he had a chance, the queen laid her hand on his arm again: "Don't worry, I'll deal with it. You stay here - remember what Gaius said."

The queen slid gracefully off the bed but before leaving the room she turned to her husband: "I want to know everything you've said when I get back."

"Don't worry," replied Arthur, "Merlin will have written it all out again neatly by the time you return."

And she laughed at the look on Merlin's face before finally leaving them.

But the look soon disappeared as Arthur started dictating his thoughts again, for he began to speak of his ideas for drawing the neighbouring kingdoms closer together, and his thoughts on how they could collaborate. When he finally paused to yawn, Merlin looked up at his friend with something approaching awe on his face and said simply, "You're building Albion."

Arthur closed his mouth and nodded. "Most of my time has always been spent thinking about Camelot and its needs. I think we need to be looking beyond our borders more, thinking more broadly than just our own good. And maybe I've had the time to come up with some ways in which that could be achieved."

Merlin's heart soared and he stared at Arthur, and their eyes met. Merlin knew he was seeing into the soul of the king whom the lands had been waiting for, and he finally knew the reason why the hunt to find his friend had taken so long. Arthur had needed the time alone. Neither man spoke, until Arthur raised his eyebrows: "Nothing to say, Merlin? That's not like you…"

But Merlin just grinned back and decided, for once, to keep his thoughts to himself.

~~~ O ~~~

The noonday sun was beating down when Arthur walked out across the drawbridge of the citadel and towards the lower town. It was almost exactly a week since his return, and although he was still walking with a limp and with the aid of a stick, his right arm was no longer in a sling but was, rather, being held by Guinevere as she walked at his side. They were soon joined by Eldon and Merlin who had come from the direction of the comfortable house which Arthur had given to Eldon and his son for their new home in Camelot.

"Eldon – good to see you," began the king. "How are you and Darian settling in to life here?"

"I'm beginning to see for myself why Camelot is so dear to you, my lord" said the physician, bringing a smile to Arthur's face. "I do not believe that either Darian or I would want to return to our old home, even if it were now safe."

"It is our pleasure to have you here."

"And how is your arm now, your majesty?"

"It's quite stiff, but I'm pleased to say that I think you were wrong Eldon. With some exercise, Gaius thinks it will be back to normal very soon."

The physician nodded, "I'm glad to have been mistaken, sire."

"Eldon, there's something I've been wanting to ask you," said Guinevere. "Do you think that Odin will stop pursuing revenge now?"

They walked together in silence for a few moments, as Eldon considered his response. "I would love to be able to answer yes to that, my lady. But I regret to say that nothing in the way that Odin has behaved leads me to believe that that will be the case." He turned to Arthur: "I'm afraid, my lord, that vigilance may still be needed."

Arthur nodded, "Vigilance is always needed. If it's not Odin, there's bound to be someone else."

"But Odin can't live forever," reasoned Guinevere. "He's much older than you, Arthur."

"And I suspect that not too many of his subjects would grieve his passing," said Eldon with a note of sadness in his voice, remembering the king he had once known.

"Or, to be fair, possibly that of any king," added Arthur. "I think that most people do not particularly care who sits on the throne as long as they can live their lives in peace and security with their families, and I am truly sad for those who have lived under Odin's rule where I suspect that that has not been the case. Our kingdoms should not be about kings pleasing themselves and exercising their power to serve their own ends. I think I'm coming to understand even more that it is my duty to serve the people, so that they may live their days in freedom and without fear." Arthur paused before turning to face Eldon, "I would like to ask you something – one more favour."

"My lord?"

"I would like you to join the council here in Camelot. I know I can trust you and I would like your quiet wisdom to help me now as it helped me through some very dark times."

Eldon bowed his head slightly as they continued their walk: "I would be honoured, your majesty. Then if I might be so bold…"

"Go on…"

"I would like to disagree with something you just said."

Arthur glanced in the direction of his servant, "Well, that makes a nice change from Merlin!" He then looked back at Eldon, intrigued. "Please continue."

"It is true that people may be indifferent to who is on their throne, but I don't believe that to be the case if their king—" and then he added hastily, "—or their queen, has won their respect, and not only that, but their hearts as well. I may only have been here in Camelot for one week but that is long enough for that truth to be abundantly clear."

Arthur and Guinevere smiled at each other, and the queen replied, "Thank you for your kind words, Eldon."

But that topic of conversation came to an abrupt end as the four of them turned a corner, and a look of complete mystification suddenly appeared on Eldon's face. "Arthur - it appears as if one of your knights is in the stocks…"

There were smiles rather than looks of surprise, however, on the other three faces as they caught sight of exactly what they were expecting. Arthur tried not to look too pleased with himself as he strolled nonchalantly up to Gwaine, whose head was already firmly fastened between the wooden batons of the stocks. "Ah, Sir Gwaine…" began Arthur as if he hadn't been expecting to find him there.

"Your majesty," began Gwaine, doing his best to bow his head to the king despite it being held in the stocks. He then gave up, and looked sideways up at him. "Oh come on, Arthur, you can't do this to me!"

Merlin chipped in, "Gwaine – which part of King Arthur do you not understand? He can, I believe, do whatever he wants!"

"Not quite whatever, Merlin, but I do distinctly remember warning my knights that the name 'Cabbage-head' was not a form of address that I'd accept from anyone other than my servant."

Gwaine appealed to him: "Where's your mercy?!"

"It ran out after the first two times you said it."

Gwaine turned his head to the other side, towards where Guinevere was standing: "Your majesty! Have a heart…"

But she answered him with mock surprise: "Sir Gwaine, I am surprised that you think it worth appealing to me, given that I am, apparently—what was the word?—scary. And I have to inform you that I am firmly with my husband in his decision."

At this moment, however, Gwaine's jaw dropped as he saw the other knights arriving. "What on earth are you all doing here? Have you come to watch me being humiliated?"

"Watch you?" began Elyan. "You'd be so lucky!"

Percival had a look of seriousness on his face that was entirely at odds with how he was feeling: "We're here to defend the king's honour!"

"Oh come on, this isn't fair, this isn't noble!" complained Gwaine. "This surely can't be allowed in the Knight's Code."

Arthur turned to Merlin. "Do you think he's time wasting now?"

Merlin had a look on his face similar to that of Percival: "Trying to postpone the inevitable, I'd say, sire."

"I like to think of it," said Arthur with obvious relish, "as good target practice for my knights. I just want to find out which of them is the best shot."

Percival, with a glint in his eye, tossed a cabbage up into the air, and caught it deftly. "As I said, my lord, I never miss…"

~~~ THE END ~~~

Author's note

Well, that's it! Thanks to those of you who have stuck with it and taken the time to read it. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. And if you liked it, it's always nice to hear that in a review, although I am also open to any comments about anything that might need changing!