chapter fifty-nine
059. freya

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    "WHAT ARE we doing here?"

    Odette slowly turned to glance over her shoulder, shocked that Adelynn would ask such a thing as they crouched in the shrubs just outside the city walls. She held a freshly threaded straw basket she spent nearly all night working on the moment she had noticed the weather start to thaw away from the cold winter to the first breaths of spring sunshine. She tilted her head, her lips parting in soft disbelief before she set an accusing stare onto Merlin beside her. 

    "You did not tell her?" she said, disappointed. 

    Merlin was halfway through reaching his hand into the depths of the brush when he noticed her accusing tone and locked her gaze. Realising she was blaming him for Adelynn's confusion, he gaped. "What? When▬When was I supposed to tell her? I thought Gwen was supposed to▬"

    "Oh, no, no, no," Guinevere held up her hands in immediate surrender and defence. "I never agreed to this. I remember▬specifically▬we all agreeing collectively▬"

    "▬Collectively▬" added Odette, nodding at Guinevere on her other side. 

    "▬that considering Adelynn is now working with you as Gaius's apprentice, you would be the one to explain to her."

    "Explain what?" let out the young Vecentia, both frustrated about the servants' vague bickering and a little concerned as to why they were searching through the wet brush the morning after heavy rain overnight near the creek. 

    "Why is it always up to me to do everything?" grumbled Merlin, making a disgusted face as his fingers squelched with mud instead of what he was searching for. "Oh▬gross."

    He reached over and decided the best way to get rid of his predicament was to wipe the mud on Odette's dress. She squealed in alarm and scurried away from him. "Merlin!" she cried out, chucking some fallen leaves at him. "I just washed this dress!"

    The group of four friends found themselves in the shadow of the city walls, huddled together so early in the morning that the sun had only just peaked past dawn over the tree tops. There was a small creek that ran along the east side of the city and into the Darkling Woods surrounded by low shrubs and fallen logs▬it was the perfect place for pesky water animals to appear after a night of heavy rainfall. Now that winter had passed them at last, and slowly the days were getting warmer and warmer, Odette, Merlin, Guinevere and whoever they might bring along for their adventures could easily brave the weather and explore past the castle walls without fear of getting a chill. Spring was always Odette's favourite time of the year▬where the flowers bloomed, birds sang in the trees, baby rabbits darted between shrubs and wild berries filling dinner plates. And, of course, early Spring was when she celebrated the day her mother had found her▬in a few weeks, Odette would be a year wiser (and able to finally tease Merlin again that she was a few months older than him). 

    As Merlin and Odette continued to scuffle▬throwing leaves and twigs and trying to dirty one another with mud on the creek shoreline▬the beautiful, quaint Guinevere sighed and turned to face Adelynn. 

    "After heavy rainfall is the perfect time to try and catch frogs," she explained to Ronyn's younger sister.

    "Yes!" Odette stopped her assault on Merlin to spin back to Adelynn with an excited grin. "And the perfect time to catch them and let them loose in Arthur's and Ronyn's chambers before they wake up."

    It all suddenly made sense to Adelynn now. "Ah," she let out. A mischievous glint brightened in her dark eyes, and her exasperated confusion lifted to a flutter of mirthful excitement in her chest at the thought of pranking her brother. "I see why you needed the extra hands in your petty crimes," she said to Odette and Merlin.

    The young warlock made a face, pretending to be offended by the lady's comment. "Only the ignorant would call the act of brilliant minds petty."

    "More like childish."

    "Oh, ha ha▬" Merlin let out, mocking and unserious, to which Adelynn matched his sarcasm with her own dry, mocking chuckles. 

    Odette suddenly gasped when she felt something slimy slip past her fingers, and she launched herself forward, wrapping her hands around the body of something that squirmed in her grip. "Aha!" she exclaimed in triumph. "I caught one! I caught it!"

    She held it up to her friends with a happy grin as the spotted frog wriggled in her tight grip. Merlin gasped and held out his basket, to which she slipped the frog underneath the cloth. "Ew, ew, ew▬" she said as she did, not particularly liking the feel of frogs despite her excitement to find one. "Gross, gross, gross▬!"

     As soon as the frog was inside, Merlin snatched the cloth over the top to stop it from squirming free. 

    Adelynn watched, her nose turned up. She had never gone out to the creek to catch frogs before▬or had done anything like this before. Dirtying her cloak and tunic skirts with mud, getting her fingernails grubby with dirt, and twigs in her hair were not exactly the acts of a noble lady like herself. Her idea of fun involved activities that could be done inside. Though, as disgusting as it was, as they continued to try and catch frogs in the early morning, Adelynn started to very much enjoy it▬her love for adventure and experiencing the world outside her tower made her eagerly reach into the brush every time she thought she saw something hop from one leaf to another.

    "So, do tell," said Adelynn after another failed frog capture, "why frogs and why my brother and the Prince?"

    Guinevere and Odette shared a knowing look. "It is an old grudge," answered the blacksmith's daughter simply, not explaining the days when they were younger, and the two boys would scare her and Morgana with frogs they caught and then let loose in her chambers.

    "But ... are we sure this is the best way to uplift Arthur's spirits after everything?"

    "No," shrugged Merlin. Then, he gave Adelynn his best, crooked grin▬and she soon realised that was exactly why he was doing this: to terrorise Arthur. She chuckled, unsure whether she found him brave or an absolute idiot. 

    After they finally managed to capture one more frog to let loose in Ronyn's chambers, the four friends split up. While Merlin and Odette paired off to terrorise Arthur together▬as per usual▬Adelynn and Guinevere locked arms to go up against Ronyn. They went opposite directions once they returned to the citadel, hiding their frogs in their respective baskets and hiding their mischievous chuckles under their breaths. Even Guinevere, who always seemed to be the most mature out of them all, was incredibly eager to bully Ronyn from having a good night's sleep.

    Odette and Merlin snuck their way back into the castle using the servants' corridors. As many times before, they followed the pathway to Arthur's chambers they knew, like the back of their hands▬slipping around narrow twists and turns, hiking up steep stairwells and ducking under low-hanging ceilings. 

    With their squirming amphibian, the two servants crept through the servants' door and into the Prince's chamber, exceptionally quiet as they tip-toed past his strewn clothes and stinky boots before making it to the foot of his bed. Underneath many blankets and smothered by so many pillows, Odette wondered how he even breathed, was the sleeping Prince▬face-down on his bed, his arms and legs sprawled out and his blonde hair looking as though a bird had decided to nest in it. 

    Merlin whispered a charm under his breath to keep the frog still until the moment Arthur would pull back the cloth, expecting breakfast. Then, he picked it out of the basket and set the sleeping creature on a plate on the table. Quietly, the two dear, close friends clasped their hands together in celebration over their sneaky trick▬only to turn their noses up and wipe their hands on their tunics when they felt how slimy their palms felt. 

    Odette was doing her best to hide her chuckles, excited to see the Prince's reaction as Merlin quickly shushed her and pulled her to hide behind Arthur's screen when he noticed him start to stir. 

    The two servants peered through the small gaps in Arthur's screen, hitching their breaths with anticipation as they watched the Prince groan as he slowly woke up▬feeling the morning sun creep through the blinds and coax him awake. 

    He sat up in his bed, looking disorientated as he searched around for his manservant who was usually here to wake him up. "Merlin?" he grumbled, not looking happy. Arthur yawned, rubbing his eyes▬and Odette tilted her head, a curious hitch of her breath escaping her lips to see him shirtless. Merlin smacked her lightly. 

    The Prince noticed the cloth on the plate at the foot of his bed. Both servants waited for him to reach for it, but▬as if he had a feeling something was not quite right about the whole set up▬Arthur tensed and hesitated. He narrowed his eyes and glanced around his chambers. "Merlin?" he called again, sounding a little more suspicious this time. 

    Merlin had an eager grin on his face, on the balls of his feet with bated excitement, waiting for the Prince to pull back the cloth.

    But then, he noticed something move out of the corner of his eye. 

    Odette noticed too. Her fixed stare on the Prince's shirtless figure switched almost immediately, and her heart skipped a fearful beat. Slowly, she glanced down at the screen between them, and her eyes widened. Her breath hitched again▬though this time, she was fighting back a scream.

    When Merlin saw the long, hairly legs of the spider▬as big as his hand▬crawling up the middle of the Prince's screen, he knew that their plan was ruined. "Odette," he whispered, trying to prevent the inevitable disaster.

    "No," murmured Odette, shaking her head and stepping away. Merlin quickly grabbed her arm in a desperate attempt to keep their hiding place secure. "No, no, no▬"

    "No▬" Merlin frantically did his best to calm her down, rushing out hurried whispers, "▬it is okay, it is okay, do not▬"

    "▬No▬" she squirmed against his hold. They both crashed backwards into Arthur's dresser and it made the Prince jump in his bed and look over, startled. "No, no▬"

    Merlin yelped when Odette's hands grabbed his jacket to shove him in front of her, "▬Hey, don't push me at it▬!"

    "▬I hate spiders▬!"

    "Don't▬don't▬you're going to make it▬"

    The thing moved rapidly towards them and Odette squealed in terror. 

    She scurried out from behind the screen, stumbling and Merlin yelped again when the spider went to crawl up his leg. He, too, fell in his desperation to get away, knocking the screen over and scrambling backwards on the stone floor. Odette squealed again▬running straight to Arthur, who stood there at the foot of his bed, deadpan.

    Odette grabbed his arm and hid behind him. "Kill it, kill it▬Arthur, you must kill it!"

    Instead, Arthur sighed and chucked the sword he had grabbed the moment he heard voices back on his bed. He stared at Merlin who awkwardly stood back up again, shaking off his jacket just in case the spider had managed to crawl on him▬before turning around and seeing the wreckage of Arthur's screen he had caused.

    The Prince watched the spider scuttle along the stone for safety in the shadows underneath his closet. "Of course," he muttered, not moving an inch. "Lord, give me strength..." he sighed, already regretting getting up this morning. 

    The spell wore off on the frog, and it wriggled underneath the cloth. With a low croak, it hopped from its prison and onto Merlin who flailed to get it off, stumbling and tripping all over again. 

    Arthur's face fell flat once more, understanding what had happened immediately. He slowly turned his unimpressed stare onto the maid clutching his arm. The moment she saw it, she chuckled anxiously and put on her best innocent smile. 

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    "SHE RUINED IT," Merlin huffed as he stood there, arms crossed around his torso to keep himself warm in the chill of the night. The small home stood with four stone walls wrapping around them. There was a simple fire in the centre, but as the family prepared themselves to sleep for the night, the flames had been let to die to embers▬and the cool evening draught whistled through the cracks in the wooden door and the roof, making Merlin shiver in his boots and jacket. He stood beside the young Adelynn Vecentia who watched Gaius with an eagerness to learn▬eyeing the way he checked the man's temperature and breath as he lay back on his bed. His wife sat at his side, attentive and worried. There had been a new bout of the sweating sickness in Camelot over the winter months. Most of it had passed now, but there were still a few incidents popping up in the villages and here and there in the Lower Town. 

    "We almost had him," continued the young warlock to his noble friend and fellow magic user. She glanced up at him briefly, her attention taken more by Gaius's work than Merlin's venting beside her. Adelynn wrapped her cloak around her tightly as well, her eyes sharp and keen▬taking in everything she could at the distance she was allowed to participate in Gaius's work. "But then there was a spider, and Odette ruined everything. And now I have to polish all of Arthur's armour▬again. You know what punishment she got for it? Nothing."

    Adelynn simply hummed, not really listening▬but Merlin didn't notice as he bristled over his and Odette's failed attempt to scare the Prince earlier in the day. "She always gets away with everything we do▬and half of it is her idea, and she drags me into it and then I am the one who has to face the consequences of her actions. Every time. It is ridiculous and..." he realised she her focus was elsewhere. Merlin's shoulders dropped, exasperated. "You are not listening to me, are you?"

    "Hmm?" she glanced up at him again and he rolled his eyes. Adelynn shrugged, defensive. "Well, forgive me for wishing to learn."

    "How did it go with Ronyn this morning?"

    "Oh, he almost leapt out of his chair in fright," grinned Adelynn.

    Merlin groaned softly and slumped in dismay. "Unfair▬I would have given my life to see that. Instead, I have so many chores I will not be sleeping at all tonight."

    Adelynn simply shushed him, her stern look very similar to her mother's as she urged him to be quiet and sensitive to the man's wife who glanced back at them, upset over her husband's ailment. Merlin's soft badgering and compaints about Arthur and Odette was hardly appropiate. Both of them set their gazes onto Gaius who placed a damp cloth on the man's forehead. He did not look as terrible as some of the other patients Gaius had seen recently, and who unfortunately did not make it. It gave Adelynn and Merlin hope that this man will see tomorrow through. 

    Gaius sighed and stood up. He wandered back to the two young magic users who watched on. As he got close, Merlin helped him with his winter robe▬sliding it back onto his arms as Gaius spoke with the man's wife. "If he is not better in the morning, let me know. Monitor his fever, but, he seems to be on the mend."

    The stone mason's wife sighed with relief, wiping away her tears. "Thank you, Gaius▬bless you." The Court Physician squeezed her hands and denied the coin she offered. Adelynn smiled at the kindness.

    As she passed the woman, she squeezed her shoulder as well, and the stone mason's wife looked both amazed and delighted to see Lord Vecentia's younger sister show such kindness and attention to a lowborn. "I will return in the morning with my maid with some fresh food and blankets," she promised the stone mason's wife, eager to help in any way she possibly could.

    "Bless you, my dear," the woman sobbed her prayers of gratitude, and Adelynn smiled.

    She wished them all goodnight as they left the stone mason's home, stepping back out into the cool evening. The Lower Town was for once quiet▬and even at this hour, the lingering chill of the past winter months kept many hearty souls from filling the tavern. Usually, boisterous laughter could be heard from inside the closed door of The Rising Sun, and drunken men were seen stumbling home in the dark or falling asleep in animal pens. But as they passed the tavern on the walk back towards the citadel, Adelynn could hear chatter, but it was much more quiet and muffled. 

    The night was otherwise silent. Adelynn held up the hem of her skirts to stop them from getting dirty as they stepped over mud. She followed Merlin in walking across the sludge of the road by shuffling her feet along wooden planks. 

    However, the sound of a growl made her freeze. Her skin on the back of her neck stood on end and Adelynn's eyes widened▬her brows furrowed and her heart jolted, wondering if she had simply heard things. 

    But then, the low vicious snarl echoed in her ears once again and she gasped, spinning around in her alarm. She searched the shadows of the empty shops and quiet homes for whatever beast might emit such a horrific growl, but saw nothing. Instead, her eyes landed on a gruesome-looking cage outside The Rising Sun tavern. 

    Merlin and Gaius quickly noticed their high-born companion was not following them, and they stopped to turn around. Merlin frowned and walked back up to where she stood on the centre of the small wooden plank bridge. "What is it?" he whispered, until he too, set his eyes upon the cage in the darkness.

    The young warlock tilted his head, feeling a strange twist in his chest and a shift in the cold air▬something drew him closer to the cage until he was standing almost right in front of it. He could barely see through the iron bars to figure out what poor animal had been trapped inside, not even the moon above giving him much light in the pitch-black of the night. 

    But he noticed a figure shift in the corner▬something moved and curled up further away from prying eyes. Whatever it was, shivered and he heard a sound▬like breathless, terrified whimpers that were so quiet, they were barely audible. 

    The door of The Rising Sun creaked open, and dim candlelight streamed out into the dark, velvet streets of Camelot's Lower Town. It glowed through the iron bars of the cage, and Merlin's eyes widened▬his gasp was lost in his throat.

    There, curled up in the corner amongst a mess of straw, was a girl.

    She was frail, underfed and petite▬there looked to be barely any meat on her slim bones. She couldn't be any older than sixteen or seventeen, wrapped in a woollen red garment almost ripped to shreds. It barely covered her in the cold night, and she shivered, clutching onto it to grasp as much warmth as she could with trembling, pale hands. She wore no shoes, there were scratches and bruises on her ghostly skin. Dark hair fell around her sharp, slim face and the girl's eyes seemed to glow in the moonlight, pulling Merlin in and taking his breath away. 

    Because despite it all, she was absolutely beautiful. 

    "Gaius," whispered Merlin, his stunned silence breaking at last. Adelynn and Gaius appeared on either side of him, peering at the poor girl trapped and chained to the cage floor. 

    Gaius's face fell and a grave look weighed him down. He sighed and bowed his head briefly, filled with a heavy sadness. "She has fallen prey to a bounty hunter," he told Merlin, gently taking the servant's arm and attempting to urge him along▬but he did not move.

    "But▬" Merlin's heart dropped and it twisted painfully. He felt sick, not able to look away from her. She was silent, her breath hitched and as still as a statue from where she was curled up in her corner, but she did not look away from him, either. "She▬she is only a girl..."

    Gaius pursed his lips. "She will still fetch a good price, though."

    Adelynn's eyes widened and she spun on the physician, horrified. "Someone is going to pay for her?" she exclaimed. 

    The physician nodded sadly. "Yes," he murmured, troubled but made no move to do anything about it▬and what could they do? There was no way they could help the girl, no matter how innocent she may be, without placing themselves in grave danger. "Uther offers a handsome reward for anyone with magic."

    He turned to leave, but Merlin couldn't. He was rooted where he stood, and the thought of simply walking away and leaving this poor girl to the cruel hands of Uther made his skin crawl. "There ..." she was still watching him, and it burned into his soul▬her desperate plea for help. "There must be something we can do."

    Gaius sighed and spun back to the young warlock. Adelynn stood by his side, looking torn and upset. "Merlin, bounty hunters are dangerous men. They are not to be meddled with. You of all people should understand that."

    Merlin hesitated, and in the end, his uncle had to grab him by the elbow and pull him to walk beside him back to the castle. Adelynn followed, troubled. But even then, Merlin glanced back at the girl over his shoulder, and that feeling in his chest returned ten-fold. 

    Later that night, the young warlock tried to get some sleep after finishing the last of Arthur's armour he needed to polish. But he couldn't get the girl out of his mind. She haunted him▬as if she truly were a ghost▬making his gut churn and his heart twist in guilt. He knew what it was like▬to feel like he was hunted with every step he took, having to glance over his shoulder at every turn, knowing that if anyone else knew about his magic, he would be imprisoned and executed. It could easily have been him inside that cage, facing the same fate.

    And so, after lying in his bed and staring up at the ceiling for at least an hour, Merlin made a decision. He got up and threw his leather coat over his shoulders. He slipped on his boots and tied up the laces, peering through the crack of his ajar door to check on Gaius. He heard his uncle's snores as loud as ever, his gaze fixed on his figure swaddled in woollen blankets in his bed▬fast asleep with every candle out or burnt to the wick. 

    Merlin took a deep breath and carefully opened his door wider. He crept down the stairs into the main chamber, holding his breath even to ensure he did not make a sound as he passed Gaius. 

    He heard his uncle suddenly cough and he froze. Merlin hitched his breath, staring with his heart in his throat as he waited for him to wake up, but Gaius simply rolled over, and after a few seconds, his snores echoed in the chamber once more. 

    Merlin sighed softly, relieved and quickly slipped out of the physician's chambers and into the castle corridors. 

    He retraced his steps back towards The Rising Sun tavern. He snuck past the guards that were doing their best not to fall asleep on their posts in the citadel square, darted through sneaky passageways through the citadel walls and escaped out into the Lower Town underneath the shadows of Vecentia Manor. He noticed a dim candle still flickering in the window of Adelynn's bedroom, and wondered what she was still doing up, but moved on. Merlin rushed for the shadows of the old city walls and shuffled along, staying hidden from the sentries above before he finally made it to the streets of the Lower Town. 

    He made it to the tavern and the tight fist that squeezed around his heart seemed to loosen to see the cage and the girl still there. Merlin pressed his back against the stone walls of the tavern and pushed the door open ever-so-slightly. There were still a few people inside, drinking the night away even in the early hours of the morning. He searched the tables▬some people he recognised, some guards who had just finished their shifts, until at last, his gaze narrowed onto a lonely man sitting in the corner. 

    He was a large, brute of a man with a heavy belly and huge muscles▬a man that could easily squash Merlin like a bug if he wanted to. He was feasting of a meal of chicken, tearing into the cooked flesh of a hen's leg with a wooden cup of mead in front of him. There were scars on his face and hands, a thick, dark leather-hide jacket kept him warm, and a tall broadsword sat leaning against his table. Merlin easily guessed that he was the bounty hunter. 

    With him distracted by his meal, Merlin closed the door and rushed over to the cage door. The mysterious girl glanced up from where she had been trying to seep when his hands wrapped around the bars of her enclosure. She looked as though she had been crying. 

    "Do not worry," Merlin quickly reassured her when he saw her breath hitch in soft terror. He gave her a little smile, hoping to soothe her. "I will not hurt you."

    He held out his hand towards the lock. "Tospringe," the chains snapped and the door swung wide open. The girl gasped and shuffled away, eyes wide in shock at Merlin's magic.

    He paid no mind, climbing up into the filthy cage and focused on the manacles keeping her chained to the floor. "Unspene þás mægþ!" They broke apart and Merlin quickly took the girl's hand in his. Her skin was ice-cold. "Come on," he whispered to her and pulled her to stand. Together, they shuffled to the edge of the cage and Merlin gently took her waist to help her down. 

    She grasped his hand tightly again, following him silently▬maybe she was too scared to speak, or maybe she did not speak at all, Merlin had no time to consider. He pulled her along as the door to the tavern creaked open, and the both of them crouched behind the wheels of a visiting farmer's wagon. 

    The girl was trembling. Merlin glanced at her, feeling his heart ache at the frightened look in her eyes. She held on with an iron-tight grip▬he felt his fingers go numb, but he did not let go. 

    Both of them held their breaths as the bounty hunter stepped out into the night. He fixed his belt and belched softly, clearing his throat and pounding a fist against his heart to ease the burn from the mead. He yawned and approached his cage. Picking with a chicken bone at the food still in his teeth, it took him a moment to realise his prisoner was gone. 

    His face dropped, and his cheeks grew red with rage. Merlin desperately searched for an escape route▬his eyes found the hanging wooden sign above the tavern, the painted spirals of the sun giving him an idea. Under his breath, he muttered a swift charm. 

    The Rising Tavern sign snapped off its chain and fell. It struck the bounty hunter on the head and he collapsed, crumpling to an unconscious heap on the cobblestone road. 

    Merlin pulled the girl along and together, they sprinted through the Lower Town in the shadows of the night▬running for their lives before the bounty hunter would wake. Heart racing, Merlin tried to think of where he could take the girl▬a place he could hide her safely until he figured out how to get her out of Camelot. The castle was too far away▬they would be caught by patrolling guards, and if he had learnt anything from harbouring the Druid boy, that the castle was the last place he wanted to take her. 

    As they ran, he glanced up at the city walls between the Lower and Upper Towns and saw the tops of Ronyn's manor in the distance. He remembered the light still flickering in Adelynn's window, and so he closed his eyes. Adelynn! he called through his subconsious, praying to God that she was still awake. As he did, he continued to pull the girl through twists and turns, avoiding the light of the guards torches and the sentries above in the direction of Lord Vecentia's home. Adelynn!

    Merlin shouldered open the wooden door of the old escape routes through the Upper Town city walls. He pulled the girl inside in the pitch-black and closed the door behind them. Merlin reached blindly for the torch and lit a bright flame with a gasp, "Byrne."

    Without taking a breath, he continued to lead the girl through the old, narrow, low-ceiling corridors squeezed inside the city walls▬passing rats and spiders spinning their webs. He felt the girl's clammy palm grasp in his▬the only way he knew she was still behind him, she was so quiet. 

    Adelynn, I need your help, he continued to call for Ronyn's younger sister as he drew nearer. Servants entrance, your gardens. 

    He glanced over his shoulder and saw the pale, trembling frightened state of the girl, and was a little scared, himself, at how protective of her he had become so suddenly.

    They made it out of the narrow corridors inside the city walls and rushed out onto grass. At night, the garden in the shadows of the Vecentia Manor was still and quiet▬there was not a single flower open in bloom. He continued on, avoiding the light of the servants' rooms and headed straight for the secluded entrance between two white rose bushes. Just as they skidded to a stop, the door opened. Adelynn stood there, a little breathless in her nightgown from running all the way from her chambers down to here. She frowned, startled and confused▬about to demand what Merlin's problem was, until she noticed the girl from the bounty hunter's cage, and immediately understood. 

    "This way," she whispered and urged them inside. She closed the door behind them and took them deeper through Ronyn's manor that was as old as Camelot itself. They passed the kitchens and servants' quarters, shuffling down a winding staircase lit only by the flame on Merlin's torch▬deeper underneath the Upper Town and the citadel. 

    Adelynn unlocked another door with a soft charm she recently learned and it opened immediately. They hurried down a long corridor, and Merlin realised they were in the same underground maze of tunnels beneath the castle that linked to the vaults and dungeons. Adelynn rounded a corner and stopped before an old alcove that had once been an old armoury▬hidden away in case of an attack. There were still some brittle, old swords piled in the corner, having fallen off the walls. 

    "Here," she said, catching her breath. She watched Merlin lead the girl to the corner where she immediately let go, scurrying as far away as she could into the crevices of the alcove▬staring up at them like a cornered, frightened animal. "No one should find her here."

    "Thank you," Merlin said to Adelynn, breathless himself. She nodded, pursing her lips▬the look in her eyes told Merlin she wanted to talk to him after this and he nodded as well, promising her that he would.

    Miss Adelyn Vecentia hovered for a moment longer, unsure and curious of the girl, before leaving Merlin alone with her. 

    The young warlock glanced over at the girl who was still trembling▬having not uttered a single word this entire time. He shrugged off his jacket and held it out to her▬she immediately flinched and scrambled back even further, trying to make herself as small as she possibly could.

    Merlin faltered and he realised how terrifying this truly must be for her▬she didn't know him. He had just shown up, helped her escape, and was now her only company in a place she did not know, with guards and a bounty hunter on the look for her. 

    "Sorry," he murmured, soft and gentle. He crouched down to her level, trying to make him seem as approachable and harmless as possibl. "I am sorry," Merlin said again as she watched him intently. "I▬I did not mean to frighten you, I just ..." he carefully held out his jacket again. "I thought you might be cold."

    The girl didn't take his jacket. She hugged the ripped fabric of her dress close to her body. Finally, did she speak▬and her voice was as small and as fragile as she looked, barely croaking out from her throat. "Why did you do that?"

    Merlin was so mesmerised by the melodic sway of her voice that he almost forgot to answer. He blinked. "What?"

    She swallowed harshly. She must be begging for water, her lips were so dry and chapped. "Help me."

    The young warlock hesitated, considering her question. Now in the light of his flame, he could see that her eyes were a warm brown▬he could see everything about her more clearly, and his heart fluttered. "I ..." Merlin's mouth was suddenly dry, as well. "Well, I▬I saw you," he began softly, "and ... well," he shrugged, offering her a sheepish smile, "it could have been me in that cage."

    The girl tucked her bare feet in close, hugging her knees to her chest. She didn't say anything more, still eyeing him warily▬but some tension in her shoulders seemed to lift. She wasn't shaking as much as she was before. Merlin set his jacket down between them▬a peace offering in hopes she might trust him. "You will be safe down here," he told her. "I will come back in the morning with some food and candles..." Merlin tilted his head, watching her gently. "Will you be all right until then?"

    She nodded.

    "I am Merlin, by the way," he smiled at her. 

    The girl chewed her bottom lip nervously, glancing between him and the jacket he set down between them. Slowly, she reached out and picked up his jacket. She held it close, and in her soft voice, she whispered, "I'm Freya."

    Freya, her name filled him with a warm, fuzzy feeling▬like the caress of a gentle summer breeze. Freya, a name so pretty, it should belong to a woodland fairy▬so enchanting and beautiful. Merlin's smile brightened. He nodded, his gaze softening. "Freya," he tested her name in a soft murmur▬the way the way it felt on his tongue, the way the sound left his lips, and that warm feeling in his chest swelled. 

    He watched how she wrapped his jacket around her shoulders and clung on, and Merlin's breath hitched softly▬his stomach was alive, like butterflies were fluttering around. 

    He smiled again. "I will see you in the morning, Freya."

    He stood up and went to leave, but her small voice called him back. He glanced at her, and his heart leapt to see the slightest smile grace her features, too. "Thank you, Merlin."

    Merlin felt like there were frogs leaping in his chest when he stepped out of the alcove and back into the narrow, dimly lit corridor. He was grinning to himself▬a skip in his step▬when he met back up with Adelynn who hovered around the corner. Seeing the look on her face, his smile dropped.

    "What?" he murmured. He soon realised and he winced. "Sorry▬I know it is not ideal▬"

    "Ideal?" whispered Adelynn, her voice taking a slightly harsher tone than she had intended. She quickly backtracked and softened it. "Merlin, if my brother finds out▬or worse, if the King finds her here, and my brother is not aware, he will still be the one that will be accused of harbouring a druid in his home▬"

    "I know, I know," Merlin held up his hands, trying to calm her down▬mostly because that scowl she had was a little scary. "I am sorry, but, Adelynn▬" he gestured back down the corridor where poor Freya was probably still shaking in her terror, "▬what was I supposed to do? Leave her there? She was being sold to the King for execution. She▬she is just a girl..."

    Adelynn's frown faltered and she pursed her lips, some of her anger relenting when she, too, felt a pang of empathy for the druid girl's situation. It wasn't hard when she, too, knew very well it could have easily been her in the exact same position, no matter her title. She sighed softly and the next look she gave Merlin wasn't harsh, but instead something more tender and endearing. "You are too kind, Merlin," she murmured. 

    He frowned at that, not sure how to take her words▬because to him, it almost sounded as though she were reprimanding him. "I do not see that as a fault."

    "No, of course not," Ronyn's younger sister reassured him quickly. Then, she hesitated. "However ... one of these days, I am afraid it is going to get you into a situation you will not be able to walk out of the same way as you walked into it."

    He pursed his lips, watching her with a troubling curiosity he had been doing for a while now. "Did the ghost in your mirror tell you that?"

    At the mention of Taryn, Adelynn's eyes went a shade darker▬she did not appreciate the curt sleight in his tone; the suppressed anger and hurt there for her not telling him about Taryn sooner (that she was sure not even Merlin fully recognised) made her grit her teeth. "No," she told him, curt. "She did not."

    "What does she tell you, then?"

    "Nothing, mostly," she grumbled. "She is frustratingly vague in her riddles. Much like you, it would seem."

    When she got her own jab into the conversation, the tension and hurt settled for the time being as the two friends reached a tit-for-tat stalemate. Adelynn hugged her arms around herself tightly, feeling suddenly quite vulnerable standing there in her night gown. "She tells me she was a Priestess of the Old Religion▬she was executed by Uther during the Great Purge, drowned in a well. I do not know why I can see her▬but I have a feeling it has something to do with how I could hear Edwin's beetles."

    At his frown, she decided to tell him more. "She ... she tells me that there is this great sorcerer," murmured Adelynn, not quite meeting Merlin's gaze. "A man named Emrys who will teach me all I need to know▬who will mentor me. I do not know who this Emrys is, and she will not tell me▬she just tells me to listen to the world around me, as if that will be my answer. I hate to say that for the most part, she has been right. If I stop, and I listen ... Nature, it▬it tells me things."

    She didn't see the shift in Merlin's eyes at the mention of the name▬or the way he watched hr with a growing interest and intrigue, a strange twist in his gut telling him to both tell her the truth and run away. He decided in the end to listen to neither, and simply change the subject. 

    "I promise you will not have to worry about Freya," he murmured and she glanced up to meet his gaze. She tilted her head, disbelieving. "I promise, Adelynn," said Merlin again, definite. "I will look after her, and no one will know that she is hiding here. It will not be long, just until I can find a way to get her out of Camelot." At her hesitation, he leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a pleading whisper. "Adelynn, please..."

    Adelynn chewed on the inside of her cheek▬a dreadful feeling resting in the pit of her stomach that told her no good would come out of this, but there was no way she could ever sit here and let someone who was like her be executed when she could do something about it. She didn't know when Merlin had influenced her so much that his reckless morals had suddenly blended so well with her own. "Fine," she muttered. "Just▬be careful, Merlin."

    "You know me," he gave her that crooked, mischievous grin that was not reassuring▬not one bit. "I am always careful."

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    THE LOWER TOWN was overrun with guards by the morning. Even the castle courtyard within the citadel was swarming with them. Odette barely made it out of the kitchens with her tray of fresh fruit, cheese, and slices of ham, and Morgana's washing was folded into a leather sack over her shoulder before she was forced into a line of peasants and servants. The guards were checking every one of them for a man whose face made Odette's stomach squirm. She didn't like the look of him▬with the menacing way his lips curled up into a sneer, or the way the scars on his face looked gaunt in the sunlight, or how he clasped the precious belongings of all those he had trapped to his belt like prizes he had won. 

    Odette has seen a few bounty hunters in her life pass through Camelot. And recently since Uther's newfound determination to purge magic once and for all, more and more were arriving at the city with their bounty caged and chained behind them. She had heard from the kitchen servants that this bounty hunter, Halig, was the worst of the worst▬a ruthless man with a ruthless spirit who didn't care for the lives he brought for the King as long as he was paid in gold. 

    She knew, of course, what this was about. Servants loved to talk▬especially because while their whispers were surely enough to have them beaten, no one cared enough about them to ever listen. Halig's bounty▬a young druid girl who he was supposed to present to the King this morning, had escaped from his cage last night in the Lower Town. It was clear she had help▬and likely from a lowborn, which was why the King had the guards aid Halig in searching every lowborn peasant worker and servant in Camelot. 

    Odette hoped they never found her. And she truly wished they'd give up sooner rather than later because these lines and additional security were making her late for her morning errands.

    But at least she had Merlin to suffer through this line alongside her.

    She leaned in close to her friend, whispering under her breath so no one else would hear. "Did you know anything about this?" she asked the young warlock. 

    Odette was right to be suspicious of him▬if she were true in thinking Merlin was responsible, this wouldn't be the first time he had gone out of his way to save a helpless, innocent druid in escaping the fortress of Uther's kingdom.

    "About what?" he answered after a beat of hesitation. Odette titled her head, narrowing her gaze ever so slightly, seeing right through her dearest friend▬she knew him too well. Seeing the look on her face, Merlin's eyes widened. "What?" he whispered, wary of the guard they passed as the line slowly moved forward. 

    Odette's voice dropped even lower. "The druid girl▬did you see her last night?"

    "Yes, I did," his words were very quick and sharp▬eager for this conversation to end. "But I did not help her escape."

    She narrowed her eyes at him again, her lips pursed in a miffed frustration. Recently, Merlin had also been lying to her more than he used to▬it seemed. Or perhaps he had always been lying about so much, and keeping her in the dark of what was happening in Camelot, and what was troubling him, and she was just naive to it until now▬even though they promised to always be there for each other as family. Odette tried not to feel hurt by it every time, she would rather not argue with Merlin▬especially when she, admittedly, had some lies of her own. But she felt hurt nonetheless. 

    So, instead, she asked her next question. Odette held up her food platter. "Also▬why is Arthur asking me to get him breakfast so late?"

    Merlin stammered. He glanced down at the food and back up at her. "Er▬" he tried to think of something off the top of his head. Odette's suspicion pierced through him. He wished he could tell her everything▬he truly did, and sometimes, he did not even know why he did not. Perhaps he was trying to protect her, or maybe he was simply so used to protecting himself. "I do not know," he scoffed in the end. "I do not understand half of what Arthur does, and does not do▬he is a dollophead, it is in his nature to be annoying and clueless and an absolute prat. Did you know what he did to me this morning?"

    "What?" asked Odette dryly, used to Merlin's frustrated vents about the Prince. 

    He pointed at his hair. "He threw cold water at me! Simply because I accidentally made his bath water too hot▬" Merlin gestured down at his clothes, frustrated. "I am still wet!"

    Their chatter grew cold when the young maid in front of them was suddenly pulled out of the line by guards▬sobbing and screaming her innocence to Halig who watched her be dragged away.

    Odette swallowed harshly and let herself be pulled in front of Halig by one of the guards. She stared up at the menacing bounty hunter. She had stared worst men in the face, but there was something about the glint in his eye that made her uncomfortable. He looked her up and down, before shaking his head and Odette was allowed to move on.

    She waited off to the side for Merlin, peering over the guards' shoulders as her friend was tugged into the same position she had been. Merlin grew stiff as Halig stared at him for a long time▬longer than he had any of the others. Before, at last, he shook his head and Merlin hurried over to Odette. When she turned away and led the way up the castle steps, she missed the soft sigh of relief that lifted the weight off Merlin's shoulders. 

    But when she realised he was not following her up to Arthur's chambers, Odette faltered. She spun around with a confused knit of her brows. "Wait, Merlin, where are you▬?" she fell short, noticing that her friend was already long gone. She blinked, standing there alone in the castle entrance hall▬quite stumped and perplexed. 

    The young maid stammered, jutting out her hip as she tried to figure out what had just happened and where Merlin had disappeared off to. In the end, she pursed her lips and slowly turned back towards the stairwell leading to the wing that housed the Prince's chambers. She climbed the steps slowly, troubled and hoping that whatever Merlin had gotten himself wrapped into, he would be careful.

    When Odette reached Arthur's chambers and knocked on the door, she was welcomed with a, "Thank God▬" the moment he saw her step into his room with the food. 

    "Er▬Good morning, it is nice to see you, too?" Odette murmured, perplexed and incredulous as she watched him swipe the ham straight off the tray before she even set it down on his table. "I am doing well," she continued, watching him scoff down his breakfast with an upturned nose. "Though, not so well now, I think▬are you going to even breathe between bites?"

    Arthur stopped and stared at her. He scowled at her comment and she crossed her arms. "Good morning, Odette," he said to her after he swallowed, dry and exasperated. "You look wonderful and well this fine day▬is that a new dress?"

    She huffed and went deadpan. "You are not funny."

    The Prince just hummed and went back to eating. Odette clasped her hands behind her back and rocked on the balls of her feet, watching him with a question on the edge of her tongue. She stepped closer to his table. "Why are you asking me to bring you breakfast?" she clipped each syllable with a childish curiosity. She bit back a sweet, eager smile. "Is it because you wished to see me?" her hopeful tone pulled a little smile from the corners of Arthur's lips. 

    She had not seen Arthur as much as she would have liked recently. Ever since he returned from his quest to see Morgause, he had been withdrawn and brooding▬and she did not blame him, of course. However, whenever Arthur went through something, he closed in on himself and pushed others away▬and it always made Odette worry. Usually, she had a talent at drawing him out of the cave he went through, piece by piece, but this time, she has had a harder time in successfully doing so.

    Arthur glanced up at her, and his blue stare was gentle. He leaned back in his chair and watched her refill his goblet. "You see through me so clearly, Odette," he murmured and she ducked her head to hide her smile. "But alas, that is not the only reason."

    "Is it to do with Merlin?" she prompted, setting the jar back onto the table. She then sat down on the edge of the seat diagonal from him. Arthur noticed how easily she did so, and his heart swelled with warmth▬happy to see her so comfortable with him. "I heard you threw water at him."

    The Prince's smile dropped, realising her chiding tone. He scoffed and leaned forward. "The clotpole had it coming," he told her and she just tilted her head disprovingly. "He made the water boiling▬and▬" he gestured his goblet at her before taking a sip, "▬gave me a rotten apple and half a slice of bread for breakfast!"

    Odette hid her surprise and confusion well. "I would consider myself lucky if I had that for breakfast."

    Arthur hesitated again. He pursed his lips and grew sheepish. He carefully set his goblet back down. "Well, you can have some if you wish▬" he gestured at his food, trying to remedy his slip up and Odette bit back her chuckles, having no heavy heart but simply trying to tease him.

    "Yes, but would you have offered if I did not say▬?"

    "Just take some, Odette," he cut her off, flustered. "Heavens above."

    She quietly picked up some berries, placing one in her mouth happily. Arthur saw the smile she sent him and soon realised she had been pulling his leg the entire time. He gritted his teeth. "You▬" he shook his head and rolled his eyes, but chuckled despite it. "You are impossible, Odette."

    "Or you are simply too easy!" she grinned, pleased with herself. 

    "Well, forgive me for wanting to please you," said Arthur pointedly, grabbing some cheese and bread. It was Odette's turn to be flustered and blush. 

    She fiddled with her fingers, pursing her lips and glancing at him shyly. "It is nice to see you in better spirits..." she took the courageous leap.

    Odette saw the way Arthur's shoulders tensed▬the way his mood shifted so suddenly, and how he immediately tried to hide it from her; to act as though nothing were amiss. He grew defensive. "Is that so?" she didn't pull back at his tone▬not like she used to, she knew better. He scowled at her silence. "Well▬you obviously have something you wish to say to me, Odette, so spit it out."

    The handmaiden hated how she knew the truth and Arthur didn't▬but she couldn't tell him. She couldn't tell him that everything Morgause said about his mother, about his birth and about his father was not some enchantment▬no matter how much her heart ached to do so. She knew it best that she did not, to protect him and to protect the future he was destined to bring. But it hurt her▬God, how did it hurt her to keep secrets from him. "You know what I am talking about," she murmured in the end. 

     The Prince clenched his jaw. At first, he said nothing. He frowned at the contents of his goblet. "Then there is nothing to talk about."

    "Arthur▬"

    "It is in the past," he cut her off, eyes glinting with a sharp glower. "It is done. There is nothing more to be said about what happened."

    "I can see that is not true," she pushed and he bristled, sitting up straight in his chair and clenching his hands on the table. Odette noticed and pursed her lips. "Arthur..." she tried again, more gentle. She shuffled closer to him, crouching down beside his chair and grasping his clenched hand in her fingers▬hoping to ease his tension and soften his anger. He had no choice but to meet her gaze. Odette chose her next words carefully. "I ... I heard from Merlin, when you returned, what Morgause said about your mother."

    He attempted to pull away, but her fingers squeezed his knuckles, keeping him there. Arthur took a sharp breath through his nose. "Then you know it was nothing more than an enchantment▬a trick from the evil hearts of those with magic."

    "Arthur..." she whispered again, and finally, she saw the last of his defence crumble. Arthur pursed his lips, his anger washing away when he focused on their hands. His own softened, and he overturned his palm, feeling the touch of her fingers on his skin▬and it sent a painful ache to his heart. 

    "Do you ..." he frowned, hesitating▬he almost looked scared, but at the sweet touch of Odette, he realised there was no need to be. "Do you ever wish you could ... to see your parents if you had the chance?"

    "All the time," answered Odette. She frowned, too, an old wound reopening at his question. She held onto his fingers a little tighter. "But ..." she took a deep breath and told Arthur something she had never mentioned before. "Sometimes ... I do not. Because I fear that if I were to meet them, I would be disappointed." At the tilt of his head, she explained. "I was left there, Arthur, in a storm▬a newborn, alone. Whoever put me there did not want to see me again. It is more than likely I was born out▬out of wedlock, or thought to be a changeling or ..." she sighed. "Whatever hopes I have about who my parents were▬the dreams I had of my father being a brave knight or a simple baker married to my mother who loved me so dearly, they ... I know they are dreams. The truth would be much more painful."

    "How could a mother not love her daughter?" murmured Arthur, and Odette found it ironic for him to reassure her, and not the other way around.

    "How could a father not love his son?" she replied, thinking of Ronyn, and Arthur's expression turned grave. "It is best not to think of the cruelties of the world and the many what-ifs in our lives. Not when we should be grateful for the love we do have. I may have never met my parents, but I found my true mother," Odette smiled sadly. "I like to think it was destiny, instead, that placed me there that night because it led me to my mother▬and I do not wish for it to have been any different."

    "I wish I could share a similar sentiment. All I have is an enchanted memory, twisted into lies."

    Odette felt her heart break a little at those words. "That is not true, Arthur," she told him, and his shattered stare met her determined one. "Your mother is always with you▬she lives on in the best parts of you. In your kindness, your compassion, your honour and your love for your people."

    Arthur watched her for a long time▬and she could see every vulnerable part of him. Then, he let go of her hand to gently cup her cheek. Odette's breath got caught in the back of her throat, her heart squeezing painfully in her chest▬wanting to leap with joy, and yet she kept it restrained. The Prince smiled at the handmaiden. "You are the best part of me, Odette," he said instead and her eyes widened gently. "It is your kindness, your compassion and your love that inspires my own."

    She wanted to cry. She did not know whether it was how deep Arthur's words reached her heart▬through the iron bars she had placed around it to protect herself from the sad, tragic ending that would one day await them if she let herself fall blindly into his arms. Or whether it was because she wanted to love him the way she truly ached to with every part of her soul. Her whole being fought so desperately against the front lines and fortress walls of the siege of their hearts that was her own doing. Perhaps it was because Odette never realised she could ever inspire anyone, let alone Arthur, who always inspired her. Perhaps it was all three.

    Odette took a shaky breath and shook her head, managing a smile that brightened the sadness in her eyes ever-so-slightly. "You are wrong," she murmured, and he frowned. "You were always those things," she tilted her head towards the warmth of his palm. "All I ever did was see it when you did not."

    The young handmaiden placed a soft kiss on his palm▬allowing herself to feel the deep emotion that swelled in her chest in this simple moment because she knew it was the only thing she could do to go on and survive without it. "I should go," she whispered to her Prince before standing up and leaving him. 

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    a/n: are they lovers? worse.

    is this about odette and arthur? is it about merlin and freya? yes.

    some happiness at the start of this chapter before all the pain that is to come. those who haven't watched this series ... grab tissues. 

    i'm in a real merlin mood rn, which is why i'm updating it regularly again but i do need to update my other books, but idk, i've always said this book is such a comfort to me. and i just - i love writing romances like this. i love romanticising romances in a romantic arthurian genre. i love writing love confessions too. it's why i really want to write a bridgerton fanfic because i could do the same style as i do here in the romance, but i just don't have the time, and i have too many books. i need to update so many i haven't updated in ages that i really want to (some since 2023), but its hard at this point, because wrtiers not only write for ourselves, but we also write for you guys. that's why votes and comments are a writers fuel, because its not only satisfaction, but its also a shared love for something we put so much effort and love into, at least for me. i forshadow, i focus on my metaphors, my character development, these romance moments and every little paragraph filled with allusions, references to the legends, and pick apart every part of these characters (most of which aren't my own) for you guys, too. waiting for a comment to see if someone gets what i'm trying to do, laughs at a joke i write or react to a scene between the oc and main love interest, or analyse the characters, their responses and their interactions just like i did writing it. 

    ^^^ above was me showing my appreciation to you guys, always, but also saying why its hard to go back to writing a book, like my aos fic for example, that i haven't updated since 2023 because i know that when i publish a 10 000 + word chapter full of so many hours of my life, i might get only four comments. i love it, and i love writing on here without the appreciation, but its also hard to do so much without the appreciation, without knowing if anyone is actually reading. 

    that's why you'll find a lot of the books i publish the most are the books i get the most interaction with. like this one, my peter parker fic (that is now finished), my steve rogers fic etc. and it's like, i also love writing books that i want to read. i love reading, but i can rarely find the stories on here i want to delve into and analyse and pick apart - and so i write them for myself so i can stay up late at night, rereading this book and falling more and more in love with these characters. 

    idk if that even made sense but whatever. 

    this book is my love letter to myself, to merlin bbc and to you guys. always <3 i want you guys to know that. 

    every book i write on this account is a love letter to myself and you guys. 

    (i'm nearing my period guys lol its why i'm being so sentimental hahaha).

    anyway, i wrote more content than i thought i would for this episode, and this is a really long chapter. idk how much more content i'll grab for the next chapter, but i wonder whether i can take this chance to delve into some character development for adelynn, and her relationship with merlin next chapter, as well as character development for merlin. mostly because i have an odette and arthur-centred episode/group of chapters coming up like after this episode. i still need to kind of lead them up to be in the place i want them to be for 2x10, but i guess it also gives me freedom for some filler chapters/scenes while i'm writing 2x09. 

    (minimal editing)

    (ps: that spider scene was a little homage to my first arthur fic i never finished, it references a scene i wrote in 2x06 where my oc at the time, Idla was hiding behind the curtains in arthur's chambers while merlin was under the bed and saw a spider and totally exposed her hiding place to get arthur to help haha).