I can't actually think of anything to write here, but basically thank you for reading, hope you enjoy!

Thoryne needed to clear his head. He'd been working non-stop in his forge all night and then all day with barely a break. He was exhausted, ready to collapse into his bed and forget everything that was happening. By now word had spread all through the village of the second attempt on the king's life in just over a week. The people were scared, Thoryne knew from the shuttered windows and locked doors lining every street he passed, and business was dropping all over the village. Half the tables in Ye Olde Pheasant were empty at its busiest, the stalls usually clustered in the square were few and far between, and most returned home with the majority of their stock still in their carts.

Thoryne himself had not been as hard hit as the rest of them, since most of his customers were highborn lords and knights, and new swords and mail were constantly needed to replace those damaged in training or the regular encounters with bandits common on patrols. Indeed, only a few nights ago one young knight had deposited a sackful of dented armour at his forge with instructions to 'fix it' before tomorrow. The arrogant teenager clearly didn't realise how bloody hard it was to repair so much mail in so short a time. The blacksmith ground his teeth in frustration. His life was full of self-centred, condescending nobles with no respect for the blood, sweat and tears of the peasants which kept them alive. He pushed his long hair back from his face; he didn't want to think about that right now. He wanted to sleep.

The cool air washed over him as he stepped onto the street and he turned his face towards the setting sun, finally allowing himself to relax after a hard day's work. He was about to turn his feet towards home when he saw a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye. He froze, his brain already rationalising it - a bird, a stray cat, a guard. It was nothing.

There it was again. Too large to be a cat, too fast to be a guard. Intrigue pulled at him and suddenly sleep didn't seem half so appealing as this. He stood still, waiting for a glimpse of the shadow.

There. Thoryne followed.

His boots made little sound in the soft mud as he padded down the street. Uther had not yet imposed a curfew, but Thoryne knew how it would look to be caught sneaking down the streets for no apparent reason after the king's attempted murder. A noble would just stride down the road. How idiotic they are. The blacksmith had lived in the city for long enough to be used to the unstable mud paths of the village, and had no trouble keeping his balance despite the precarious footing. His quarry, however, clearly had less expertise in the matter and Thoryne couldn't help but smile to himself as the stranger slipped and fell onto his hands and knees for the third time in as many minutes, cursing. Then the boy - for that is what he was - glanced over his shoulder and Thoryne saw a glimpse of his face for the first time.

He was younger than expected, still a teenager, with short brown hair neatly cut to keep it out of his face and pale skin which shone in the moonlight where he had neglected to pull up his hood. His simple clothes were dirty from so many tumbles into the mud, but his hair and face were clean. From the castle, then. His curiosity was heightened. Why would a high-born boy be sneaking out of the city in the dead of night?

—

The sun had long set and still the boy was running, stumbling, through the forest, blacksmith in pursuit. He thought it odd that not once had the boy stopped to get his bearings or to change direction; instead he ran like a deer from a wolf, panicked and desperate to escape. It had taken all of Thoryne's skill to keep up undetected, but finally the boy was slowing, chest heaving, hands and face scratched and bruised from his mad dash through the undergrowth, until eventually he stopped altogether, leaning heavily on a tree for support.

Thoryne watched as the lad lowered himself to the ground, wrapped himself in his cloak, and settled down to rest. He waited until the stranger's eyes closed and his breathing evened out.

Then he drew his sword and stepped out of the shadows.

———

By the time he made it back to his chambers, Cedric felt ready to collapse. The king had hosted a celebration of, well, himself, from what Cedric could tell, and for the entire day he had had to deal with the pressure of performing before the entire court. River had accompanied him of course, but Cedric had dismissed him a few hours earlier, lest he fall asleep on his feet. Indeed, the court jester had noticed a significant drop in the energy of his usually irritatingly energetic apprentice, and it worried him. He ran a hand through his hair, which only served to dishevel it further, and let out a steadying breath. He'd had just about enough of being laughed at by everyone he ever met before they even had a chance to get to know the man beneath the damn hat he had to wear.

It was tucked beneath his arm now, jingling with every step he took. He never seemed to be able to escape the irksome sound, even after he had performed his duty. Hell, couldn't he catch a moment's peace around this castle anymore? Frustrated, he kicked the door open, throwing the ridiculous thing into the far corner with a much louder crash than anticipated, enough for River to appear as if from nowhere, hair tussled and eyelids drooping.

"Uncle Cedric?"

"River! Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you-"

"I wasn't sleeping." The boy gave him a devilish grin. "I'm too old to go to sleep so early. Just cos you're getting old and slow..."

"I am certainly not." He tried to frown but somehow ended up smiling instead. Still, the annoyance must have showed on his face, as River's shoulders slumped.

"I'm sorry Uncle."

"What? River, I didn't mean it, c'mon."

Still, the boy seemed strangely dejected. "Not about that, it's just, I shouldn't tell you this, but..."

"You know you can tell me anything." He flashed his ward a smile. "Did you steal something again?"

Suddenly, River flung himself at the jester, wrapping his arms around him and clinging to him, sniffling. "No, it's worse, I don't know why I didn't tell you, I'm sorry."

Cedric felt his heart breaking as the boy shook in his arms, helpless to help him. "Shhhh, shhh River, calm down lad, it's alright. Tell me what's wrong, I'll help you. I promise."

And River did.

———

She would have liked to say she was surprised when Cedric appeared at her door, but somehow she was just happy to see him. With tension rising around the castle, a stranger such as Lady Teodora Silva became an immediate target of suspicion, and she had been missing having someone to talk to. After all, she had too much on her mind recently, and she found she could no longer trust her serving girl, Evelyn, since Cedric had told her what he had heard. She had followed his advice, but with so little evidence there was little she could do but watch and wait as the servant grew ever more miserable, ever more desperate to leave. So of course she was glad to see the jester, although the dark expression on his face foreshadowed yet more secrets. She stepped aside with a sigh. "You'd best come in."

He locked the door behind him. "We have to talk."

"Oh? What about?" She rolled her eyes, mustering up a smile. Do I want to know?

"River - that's my apprentice by the way - River just told me something and it's important that you should know. I understand if you don't want to listen to me, I know I'm just-"

"Just a jester?" She frowned.

The burden of their society was weighing on him, she saw, could see her own desperation to be recognised echoing in his eyes when he looked at her. Anger welled inside her at the thought - why should he have to fight so hard to be heard when a knight worth less than half of him had only to utter a command for it to be followed without question? What kind of world do we live in that a man's birth is more important than his heart? "Cedric, you know you're more than that. What's so important it couldn't wait until the morning?"

"Right, sorry, it can wait if-"

"Just tell me so I can sleep." She smiled reassuringly to take the sting out of the words.

He hesitated, then nodded. "It's about Evelyn."

I expected as much. "Go on."

"She asked River to do something for her. To... to follow Sir Lucan. He did." Cedric paused. "He told me Lucan went North, to the Forest of Ascetir. River assures me he wasn't seen, but he suspects the knight knew he was being followed." His blue eyes studied her face expectantly. "He turned back only a mile or so from Camelot and returned here."

"Evelyn had him followed? Why would she do that?" A thousand thoughts were whirling in her mind, all clamouring for her attention so loudly she could barely think.  It seemed so unlike the maidservant, so uncharacteristically inquisitive that it unnerved the lady.

Cedric ran a hand over his face. "I don't know, but she's hiding something. She's still here, isn't she?"

"Of course she is, but this still doesn't prove anything. Lucan, though?" She raised her eyebrows. "The forest of Ascetir - Cedric, there are druids in that forest. What if it isn't Evelyn we should be watching after all?"

"I thought the same thing, but it was Lucan who condemned Amelia - why would he help Uther, only to betray him a heartbeat later?"

Teo sat down heavily on the bed, trying to think. "I suppose... and what if River isn't the only one Evelyn's been asking favours from? We can't just sit around doing nothing Cedric, it's killing me. We have to find out what's going on here, because if we don't..."

He nodded. "...someone's going to die."

———

All he could see was the fire. It rose twenty feet tall, screaming and crackling, so loud it almost drowned out the screaming beyond. He could feel the blistering heat on his skin and the ash burning his throat as he choked on the stifling air. Coughs racked his body so hard he could barely move, and terror gripped his heart, freezing him in place. He could feel salt on his face where his tears had vaporised just moments after he shed them, he could feel the grief stabbing at his heart as he heard his parents dying impossibly far away, feel the agony where the flames had bitten him. He could see himself cowering on the ground, hands clasped firmly over his ears to block out the sound of death all around him. He could hear himself screaming into the night, but it all felt distant, as though he were seeing it all from above. He felt his consciousness drifting away even as he fought to save himself from the destruction surrounding him.

Half a stranger to himself, he watched helplessly as the winged silhouette of death wheeled above the burning village and, with a cry that shook the earth itself, disappeared into the night.

Aithlin awoke with a start, shaking. It had been a year now since the night he had come to Camelot and started a new life here. He was happy here, he was, and yet every night he remembered what had brought him here. He twisted a lose thread of his sleeve around his thumb and watched the blood flow back into it absentmindedly. With no chance of sleeping again tonight, he rose, changed, and nearly collided headlong into a figure at his doorway.

Stumbling back in alarm, he grabbed the book beside his bed and brandished it at the intruder. "Stay back! Who is it?"

The mysterious figure burst out laughing. "A book, what a terrifying weapon." She smiled. "Calm down, Aithlin, it's just me, Evelyn."

The stable-hand lowered the makeshift weapon - if it could be called such - sheepishly. "E-Evelyn? W-what are you doing h-here?"

"I heard you shouting so I came to see what was happening. Also, I need your help with something."

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that. Bad dream." He cleared his throat nervously - he hadn't spoken much to the serving girl, and he wasn't making the best first impression. "You n-needed my help?"

She sat down on the bed. Now he looked more closely at her, she looked exhausted. Deep circles showed beneath her eyes and her shoulders slumped so heavily she was almost hunched over. Aithlin felt his heart go out to her - she looked so miserable and helpless in that moment. "Anything I can do..." he encouraged.

"Well, the thing is... oh, Aithlin, I'm sorry to burden you with my problems but my mother's ill. I think she might be dying." She rubbed her eyes. "I don't know what to do, after Amelia all servants have to stay in Camelot but I have to go to her, I have to, it's my last chance to see her before..." She let out a sob and buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking. "I know it's wrong but I'm going to see her. Teo is a good mistress, she doesn't deserve to be abandoned like this, and I thought, maybe, you would take over for me?" She looked at him like he was her last hope in the world, her eyes shining with tears.

He hadn't heard that he couldn't leave Camelot, but he supposed he might just have missed it. He could see she was desperate, and how could he live with himself if he didn't help her? He hadn't been able to help his family from that fire, but he had the choice to do some good here. It would mean extra work, it would mean risk, with all that was going on in Camelot, but he would help this girl see her mother one last time. That was worth it, wasn't it? He met her eyes.

"I'll do it." He nodded to assure himself as much as her. "And I can help you get out too. When do you leave?"

"Soon. I'll let you know." She smiled, and he could see a weight lifting off her shoulders. He couldn't help but smile back.

"There'll be a horse waiting for you. I'm Arthur's head stable boy, I'll make an excuse - he trusts me."

"Thank you." It was so soft he barely heard it, but he could see that she meant it in her eyes and her smile. "Thank you, Aithlin. I won't forget this."

So there you go, Chapter 11! Only like 6 of you have read Chapter 10 but don't worry, take your time! If you're not gonna be able to read for a while though try and let me know so I don't go off without you! Anyway, yeah, I understand if you're all very busy! russetfox12345 sorry it's taken such a long time to get Aithlin in to the plot but he's here now! Same for you monaghanboyy with Thoryne! Things are actually happening now as well so...

Anyway, thank you for reading, pls comment and vote as much as you want (spam always welcome)!

EstelElfstone