[ Hey! Please tell me all what you think of this first chapter! I have a good plot for story and I will be continuing to write it. Of course, if you have ANY ideas at all or ANY tips, then please tell me- I write the story for you guys, so if you want anything to happen please let me know and I'll try and squeeze it in somewhere. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story! x ]

Chapter 1

"The First Lady of Camelot."

The desolate journey to Camelot had been a silent one, as one small child was curled up in the back seat of a carriage, that was very small- the leg room that she had against her tall maid- Helena was very little. Morgana had been silent for the entire journey, but the pale and slender maid that was Helena did not awaken the delicate child from her daydream, or ask why she had not a word to say at present, instead the maid allowed the small child to be alone, with her thoughts.

The small child, with long wavy dark hair that hung the whole way down to her waist, with dazzling emerald eyes and a pale completion stared out at the raging wind, not caring that the violent breeze was caressing her curls, or that her cheeks had turned numb from the sudden cold, because she was not at all with herself, there in the physical form, but that was about it- her mind was sailing along with the wind, thinking of things- but mostly- her father.

Gorlious was a wonderful man, he strong and bold- had a balding head with a slight beard- he cared deeply about his beliefs and stood up for whatever he believed right, whatever the consequences, but it was one man now left to a memory. Morgana knew she would treasure his memory until the moment she too died, when she would be reunited with him. The sudden death of her father had caused her great grief, that even the mere mention of the man's name sent her into hysterics, and it was one Helena who often had to deal with her in such states. Gorlious had been sent up to Camelot a little over a week ago, he was called urgently to go into battle for his best friend and companion, that was Uther Pendragon- but sadly when she wished her father goodbye, when he lifted his daughter up in bold arms and kissed her swiftly on the cheek, that it would be for the last time. Morgana only wished for another moment with him, and she knew that if she could re-live her farewell, she would appreciate it a lot more. However, he had broken his promise- Gorlious had promised her he would return in a few days to embark on a horse trek with his daughter, but alas that pleasurable activity could not be shared with her father, and it grieved her terribly.

"It's alright Morgana, I'm here- everything's going to be alright." The soft, sweet soothing voice of her delicate father travelled through her ears. "But- it's not, you promised you'd return! You promised father!" The pained moan of the small child urged. "I'm here now!" Replied the sweet voice of her cold, chivalrous father. The mental image of him was so strong now, he was wearing his chain-mail, with a dampened black cloth over it, bearing his crest- as the rain soaked the little hair he had left, pinning it to his forehead, as his swirling grey eyes met hers; a sob escaped her lips as she reached out for him- to embrace him, and for him to cradle his daughter and tell her everything was going to be alright.

"Morgana!" Came the delicate voice of her maid, Helena. "Morgana!" She persisted again, shaking her upper arm, before the small child's eyes shot open, and she glared at Helena for a moment, as though she was curious at her new surroundings, but then she realized that she was still in the carriage, and the painful swirl in her stomach that it was all a dream ached her heavy heart. "You were dreaming Milady- I thought it best I wake you... You were..." Helena broke off. "You were crying in your sleep again Milady." Helena spat out, before she took her eyes to the window of the cart. Morgana still drowsy and distraught nodded, shaking it off- not speaking a single word before she too took her eyes to the window. "I expect we'll be here in the next few minutes, Milady." Helena told her, with a soft smile. Morgana smiled back, but her smile was more forced, as she took her thoughts elsewhere- gazing out at the grey, overcast sky. Of flowers, of trees; of the weather or even of foreign lands- but the once vivid image of her father kept returning to her mind, causing her face to turn somewhat twisted in fear, as though she were about to burst out crying- she shook her head, but this only made Helena worried of her sudden change of mood. "Milady!" Helena asked in an anxious tone. "Milady, are you alright?" Helena began, suddenly sounding extremely worried. "Yes..." Morgana prompted after a long pause. "Yes, yes- I'm fine. The after effects of the nightmare I presume." She told her maid, trying to calm herself. "I expect King Uther will have his Physician fix you up a sleeping draught Milady, he has already been informed of your... condition." Helena told her, a warming smile brought to her lips as she said this, she supposed this would help ease the small child's mind, but now the carriage had stopped.

Soon a tall, blonde Knight opened the carriage door, before he allowed the maid Helena to get out, he then turned to assist the child out. Morgana bowed to him accordingly, before she left the carriage, her hair then battled with the wind as it drowned her pallid face- she managed to tuck a few strands behind her ear, before she proceeded up the tall steps to the entrance of this grand castle. The tall, rounded man, with a balding head where a magnificent golden crown was placed, rushed down the steps to greet the petite child, with a wide, glorious smile that was an insult to the grey, overcast sky. "Morgana!" He beamed, before his muscular arms embraced her in a sudden hug, that if dare said- even shocked his very son. "Welcome to Camelot!" Uther told her, extremely delighted at her arrival. "This is my son- Arthur." Uther said, pulling her up the stone steps, before the small blonde haired boy, with a forced smile planted on his lips gave a small bow to her, Morgana returned the greeting by curtsying before the crowned heir of Camelot. "Come, come!" Uther grinned, gesturing the two children inside. "We must get out of the dreadful wind. I have a feast prepared for the three of us." The King happily explained as he walked, gazing up at the sky- he ensured that there was an awful storm brewing in the discolored clouds. "Guards!" He shouted, his voice turning suddenly serious, with an edge of wickedness. "I want you to take all the luggage from the carriage and upstairs to where the Lady Morgana will be staying." Uther said, before the remaining Guards nodded and bowed, and then rushed down to the carriage to begin untying the bags, whilst the King, the Prince and the Lady all retreated to the throne room for this magnificent feast in which Uther promised.

"Now Morgana." Came the soothing voice of the high King as a Guard pulled out the small child's seat, before a tall manservant with scruffy brown hair poured her a drink in a magnificent silver goblet. "I do hope you'll enjoy your stay here in Camelot, as much we will both enjoy having you here." Uther said with a smile, tugging a leg of turkey off the big breasted bird in the middle of the table, before elbowing his son, for the short blonde haired boy to give a nod, before he too dug into his meal. "I'm assured you two will get along greatly!" Uther boomed, a chuckle escaping his lips. "You are around the same age afterall, you Morgana being slightly older if I'm correct?" The King asked the peaky child. "Yes... By just over a year if I'm right." Morgana said, trying to make her voice as audible as possible. "Haha!" Uther cackled, elbowing his son again. "Some competition for you old boy!" Uther laughed. "We'll have to see if you're handy on a sword Morgana!" Uther laughed once again, obviously in high spirits- of course the same couldn't be said for his son who was unusually quiet. "Well, my father used to have sword fights with me, to train me." Morgana smiled, thinking back to the sweet memories. "Of course, he believed that a woman should be handy with a sword, if not more than a man." Morgana explained to Uther, who was intrigued by her sudden appetite for conversation. "Really?" Uther questioned, yearning to hear what the girl had to say, as he placed his elbow on the table and chewed his meat slowly. "And why is that?" He prompted. "Well, because women are often perceived as the more vulnerable- therefore the enemy is obviously going to strike to them first- so it is wise to have a woman handy with her sword, therefore fooling the enemy and having the unexpected!" Morgana explained to Uther, as though she were on par with the King. Uther examined her facial expressions greatly, seeing her wide smile and pleasure in telling him this, as she stroked her lips with her napkin delicately- it was clear to see to any eye that she was wise beyond her years, much maturer in mind than in body. "Yes..." Uther said, taking his eyes away from her and looking down to his food, surprised by this young girls knowledge. "Well, your father was a very wise man, am I glad to see he has taught you well." Uther nodded, before silence fell for the three to enjoy their food. Meanwhile, Arthur, the small boy who felt as though he had been cast aside since the young girl's presence, read the girl's face with pure hatred.

He hated her already- she was clearly entertaining his father, who had forgotten he was even in the room. No, Uther Pendragon was simply delighted to have this new girl join their family, from now on Uther would cast him aside, and this was just the beginning of it, he loathed her, his eyes sharp slits in his face as he eyed the girl up who gleefully sipped her water, giving the slight laugh and smile to the King's words- how dare she! Uther Pendragon was his father! Not hers! A sharp pang of jealousy hit Arthur right in the stomach, he hadn't expected the two to get on so well, and now, suddenly he had lost his appetite for the glorious meal before him. He stood up quickly, and looked to his father. "If I may be excused, father." Arthur said, not asking- but telling. "Nonsense, we have a guest! You will stay for the remainder of the meal." Uther told his son, giving him a look that said 'I'll deal with you later.'

But Arthur wasn't one for giving up easily. "But father- my hunger is not yearning me at present, if I may be excu-" Arthur said, but was cut off by the aggressive tone of his father. "Arthur!" Uther said with a deep glare of anger. "If you do not wish to eat your meal, so be it- but you will stay and make the Lady Morgana feel welcome!" Uther explained, before turning back to his conversation with the raven-haired child.

Morgana's eyes had suddenly lost their happiness, as she stared up at Arthur, his mouth ajar- she knew by the look on his face, of anger, that he didn't feel comfortable in her presence, if anything he disliked her greatly- she wondered why, but supposed that if a new member was so sharply being pushed into his family and ruining his routine, that she would be equally as angry, she understood. Arthur remained silent until the end of the meal. It was then that Morgana realized that Uther had referred to her as 'Lady Morgana', a title she had never been familiar with. "Lady?" She questioned, not thinking- before soon she realized she was being rude, and just as she opened her mouth to apologize- Uther stopped her. "Well, its been just Arthur and I for all these years, you are the first female presence we've had to share out home with in a while- I expect its only right that you become the first Lady of Camelot." Uther explained, with great enjoyment, as he say the beautiful child's face light up with pride. "What an honor!" She beamed. "It would be my pleasure, my Lord." She grinned, before Arthur rolled his eyes, and she caught him- for him to begin coughing to hide his sudden embarrassment. "Brilliant!" Uther grinned, before they began another conversation.

Hours seemed to have passed, and Arthur had only but picked over his food, regretting telling his father he didn't wish to eat, but now he was too proud to begin eating, as though he were proving a point. The rain battered off the windows, as the wind shook the glass in its pane, the once grey clouds growing a midnight blue. "I'll be heading to my chambers now, My Lord." Morgana smiled, before she stood up and bid both him and Arthur goodnight- Arthur simply forced a half smile, as he lay back in his chair with his arms folded.

The bold wooden doors clanged shut when Arthur heard the unpleasant yell of his father's voice in his ear, as drowsy as he was. "How dare you!" Uther shouted, his face swelling up in nothing more but rage. "You barely spoke a word to the Lady Morgana!" Uther raged. "Well, you barely spoke a word to me!" Arthur snapped back slyly. "Oh Arthur!" Uther scoffed, his face twisted in a sardonic expression of anger. "Is that why you've been silent all night? Huffing?" Uther half-laughed, almost pitying his son. "Funny how you didn't say all this when she was in the room!" Arthur retaliated, almost shaking with anger. "Why does she have to live with us anyway!" Arthur moaned, admitting defeat in his words- but still with the hint of aggression as he spoke to his father. "The girl has no family left Arthur!" Uther went on indefinitely. "I promised her father I would take care of her!" Uther tried reasoning with his son, but it was going in one ear and out the other. "Well don't expect me to be happy about it!" Arthur sighed, "She is my ward, and you will treat her with respect!" Uther shouted, his face once again reforming the rage that was there moments before. "Just because she's lost her father doesn't mean I have to tip-toe around her!" Arthur shouted, almost standing up with the anger, shouting down upon his father. "You will NOT be cruel to her Arthur Pendragon!" Uther shouted back at his son, showing him authority. "Or what!" Arthur snapped, walking towards the door, before the sharp fingers of his father curled around his fragile shoulders and twisted him around to face him. "Or I'll have you thrown in the stocks, and I'll give the Lady Morgana the pleasure of throwing rotten vegetables at your head!" Uther said in a slow, calm voice. This might not have seemed like much of a threat, but to a young boy who had just turned nine, it was a great shock, and scared him greatly. However, Arthur simply threw his eyes in the air, hiding his fear, before he walked proudly from the hall and to his bedchambers.