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The Tournament Begins

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Seeing Prince Prat battle his opponents was the only way Nerissa could tolerate him. Mostly because he wasn't paying her any heed nor was he talking to her. While she would probably deny it, seeing him fight was exciting. He was good...at fighting. Not that she would ever tell him such a thing. The prat's head was already too big. No need to make it any larger.

Nerissa could hardly keep her eyes off him as she waited with bated breath for every blow. Not in the romantic sense, of course; but because she didn't want to miss anything - especially this being her first tournament and all. Gwen cheered loudly every time Prince Prat managed a strike or dodged his opponents. Morgana kept her eyes on the fight as well, but she managed to keep her emotions in check. But if she had lived as the king's ward for some time now, Morgana was probably used to such sights, Nerissa mused.

From his spot beside her, Lukas was already on his feet cheering for Prince Prat. Lukas was shouting directions, much like Prince Prat had done to Merlin in their practice. When Prince Prat didn't listen to him, he'd shout something along the lines that he should have listened to him. Lukas was just as entertaining as the fight going on before them. Even King Uther couldn't help but occasionally glance Lukas's way with a very small smile of amusement.

The opposing knight nearly gave a blow that surely could've decapitated Prince Prat. Nerissa's eyes widened and a hand covered her mouth. The crowd gasped. Even Lukas froze for a moment. But the prince was able to block it, which made the crowd erupt in wild applause and cheers.

Both knights backed away from each other and composed themselves before continuing the fight. Lukas smirked before he elbowed Nerissa. "Watch this," he told her. "This'll be the last of it. Arthur'll win."

Nerissa's brow furrowed. 'How do you know?"

"Just do," Lukas said with another smirk. "Now watch."

She turned back toward the match just in time. Prince Prat went at it with everything he had, moving first. He swung toward his opponent who blocked him. He then blocked his opponent's attack with his shield. His opponent swung once more and Prince Prat's sword stopped the attack, pushing it away.

Prince Prat did some fancy footwork, spinning around before attacking with his sword and then his shield in quick succession. Nerissa was impressed he had thought to use his shield as an offensive weapon, not just a defensive one. If only he wasn't such a prat, she might ask him to train her. But that would never happen.

The opposing knight went in for a strike with his sword and Prince Prat delivered a blow to the face with his elbow. The opponent crumpled to the ground and the crowd began to cheer wildly. Prince Prath removed his helmet. The match was over.

"Told you!" Lukas shouted as he jumped up and down, screaming at the top of his lungs. "I told you he'd win!"

"You did," Nerissa told him with a small chuckle and she clapped heartily. Lukas's enthusiasm was contagious. As was Gwen's. Her actions had nothing to do with Prince Prat. Well, maybe a little, but just a mite.

Lukas then turned to the crowd and began to chant, "Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!" The crowd quickly joined in. Prince Prat offered a small smile and a nod in Lukas's direction before he left the arena.

Nerissa pursed her lips as she looked up at Lukas. She must've missed the fact that he didn't hate Prince Prat as she did. Then again, Prince Prat was to be his future king. She then looked around at the cheering crowd. Despite however bully-ish Prince Prat was, his people seemed to like him well enough. She couldn't help but wonder what they saw in him. Sure, he could fight well, which would be useful one day as king; but that didn't necessarily mean he would be a good king.

The crowd and Lukas quieted down and the boy sat beside Nerissa once more. "I never realised what a fan you were of his," she whispered.

Lukas shrugged. "I wouldn't say I'm a fan. I just think he fights real good. Besides Arthur already has plenty of fan clubs and they're annoying. I should know, my cousin Romilda loves him."

Nerissa chuckled. "It's okay to like him, you know. Just because I hate him doesn't mean you have to or that we can't be friends."

"Really?"

"Really. Although..."

"What?"

Nerissa chewed her bottom lip. "It's more of a curiosity, really. Not a judgement. But why?"

"He used to play with me when I was little," Lukas told her.

She blinked in surprise. Prince Prat taking the time to play with a servant's child? That was quite surprising. "Did he? What did you play?"

"Hide 'n seek mostly," Lukas said with a shrug. "Arthur's a terrible hider. I always found him."

Nerissa snickered. She was almost certain that as a night, Prince Prat knew how to hide if he needed to. So, he must've purposely let Lukas find him, not that Lukas believed that. Nor was she going to spoil it for Lukas. It seemed to be a fond memory for him. Nerissa wouldn't make Lukas hate Prince Arthur just because she did. It wasn't fair.

Knight Valiant was up next.

Lady Morgana sat up a little straighter and ran her fingers through her soft curls, prepping herself for Valiant's entrance into the arena. Nerissa hadn't been wrong in thinking Morgana might find him handsome. A beautiful lady deserved a handsome knight. It was the stuff of legends.

Knight Valiant and his opponent took to the arena. Valiant looked rather gruff and slightly terrifying as he slowly made his way to the centre. Not at all like the knight who had happened upon her earlier. He was likely just trying to intimidate his opponent. If Nerissa had been his opponent, his tactic would have worked, especially given their height difference. But Nerissa caught Valiant staring in their direction...or rather, Lady Morgana's direction.

"I hope I'm not overstepping, milady, but methinks someone is looking," Nerissa teased Morgana, with a gentle nudge of her elbow.

Morgana grinned and waved at Knight Valiant who smiled ever so slightly back. "I hope so," she said through her smile.

"He is awfully handsome," Gwen added.

"Really? Hadn't noticed," Morgana joked, which made both Nerissa and Gwen snicker.

Valiant easily won his match. The crowd once again roared their approval. Although, not young Lukas. He didn't even clap. He just sat on the bench beside Nerissa with his arms folded across his chest glaring daggers at Knight Valiant.

The matches continued, knocking contenders out of the running for the prize. Aside from Prince Prat, sadly, Nerissa's favourite to watch was a man who wielded two swords at once. Gwen tried to explain more about dual-wielding and its origins to her, but she was too enthralled watching the man with two swords to hear most of what Gwen was saying. Nerissa made a mental note to ask Gwen more about it later. Perhaps being friends with the blacksmith's daughter might prove useful.

At the reception, Nerissa stood in the receiving line beside Morgana. Uther hadn't been too keen on the idea of Nerissa standing in the line with them, but Morgana reasoned with him and won. Although, Nerissa felt rather uncomfortable and out of place in the line. What if one of these knights mistook her for a lady? It had already happened with Knight Valiant earlier that day. She didn't want to lie her way through the evening, but she also didn't want to explain every time either.

Thankfully, Morgana seemed to have thought that through. After Uther introduced Morgana to each knight, Morgana in turn introduced them to their singer for the evening, Nerissa. It was strange being part of a receiving line. Another first for Nerissa. Nerissa was thankful Lukas had been allowed to join them. He made sure to tell Nerissa something about each of the knights she greeted. Whether it was something that happened earlier that day or a past tournament. Most of his insights were usually comical.

"Ugh, look who's next," Lukas muttered under his breath.

Nerissa turned to see King Uther greeting Knight Valiant.

"So you're a fan of you know who, but not Knight Valiant?" Nerissa asked, tilting her head a bit toward Lukas but still looking in Valiant's direction.

"Arthur's loads better than ... that. "

Remembering the promise she had made earlier to Lukas, Nerissa kept her mouth shut. Knight Valiant walked a few steps toward Morgana. As he bent down to place a kiss on Morgana's hand, Nerissa caught sight of Prince Prat standing in line. His expression was wry, but Nerissa raised her eyebrows and kept eye contact with him until he knew he had been caught. He didn't seem prepared for her to do that, so she offered him a knowing smile before Knight Valiant moved onto her.

He also took Nerissa's hand and placed a kiss on it making her blush furiously. While she knew he was interested in Morgana, the attention was still flattering. Sure, she had received plenty of attention in Ealdor, but not from anyone of status. Valiant was...a knight. And if she could catch his eye, perhaps there might be hope for her as something more than a farmer's wife.

"I look forward to hearing you sing," Valiant said smoothly. The tone of his voice seemed to make her stomach flutter.

"I look forward to singing," Nerissa offered cheerfully.

With that Valiant walked to greet the other knights as Lukas made a gagging sound behind her. She wished he were standing just a little closer so that she might give him a knowing nudge. But he must have purposely moved just beyond her reach. The little clot pole.

Two other knights greeted her, but none like Valiant had and then Prince Prat was before Morgana. He didn't look very happy for someone having won his round earlier and was favoured to win the tournament. But that was when she realized that Morgana was looking at Valiant, which made Prince Prat scowl.

"They all seem impressed by Knight Valiant," she told him.

"They're not the only ones," Prince Prat retorted.

Morgana arched an eyebrow. "You're not jealous, are you?"

Nerissa snickered, which caused Prince Prat to look at her.

He shook his head and scowled. "I don't see anything to be jealous of."

Nerissa had hoped that he would be too proud and skip her altogether, but much to her dismay he did not.

"Don't tell me you're enchanted by him too," Prince Prat scoffed, throwing his head back a bit before he folded his arms over his chest.

Nerissa forced a smile on her face. "Would it matter if I was?" she asked rather coyly.

He scoffed again, looking over his shoulder at Valiant. "What is it you girls see in him?" He frowned with an unpleasant look on his face as if he had just tasted something terrible. "There's nothing there."

"I've often thought the same thing concerning you. But you don't hear me complaining about it," Nerissa retorted before adding, "Sire." She even gave a slight mocking curtsy for good measure.

Prince Prat's eyes widened at her response to him. He opened his mouth to say something more to her, possibly how she wasn't allowed to speak to him like that. But instead, he closed his mouth and scowled away, muttering under his breath.

Nerissa couldn't help but grin at her victory. Even Morgana seemed impressed, trying to hide a coy smile as she looked between Prince Prat and Nerissa. "Looks like I'm not the only one who can ruffle Arthur's feathers," Morgana chuckled.

The rest of the knights made their way through the line, for which Nerissa was grateful. Her ankle was causing her some minor discomfort, from which she would be glad for a respite. As the knights mingled, Lukas helped Nerissa over to a stool on a small stage.

She hadn't been that nervous to sing last time, mostly because she had been too shocked to have been nervous. But she could feel small butterflies in her stomach now. She knew that this would be another chance to prove herself capable as a singer. Nerissa ran her fingers through her hair and then gathered it all to one side, trying to calm herself. Her mother had told her that a bit of nerves was a good thing. It meant that it was something worth fighting through.

Nerissa sat up a little straighter and straightened the bottom of her gown so it wasn't bunched up before she rested her hands in her lap. She wasn't sure if there was to be some sort of introduction or if she was just to start singing. Uther had introduced Lady Helen, but she had also been a lady, someone worthy of mentioning. She was a nobody.

She chewed her bottom lip and turned to look at Lukas, who was looking at all the knights, seeing if they'd taken note of her. They hadn't. Nerissa forced a smile on her face, so people wouldn't know how uncomfortable she was.

Young Lukas seemed annoyed and he wasn't as good as Nerissa at masking his feelings. But he was young yet. He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Oi! Listen up!" he shouted.

His call fell on deaf ears.

Then Lukas did something Nerissa hadn't expected. He marched from the stage over to Prince Prat. He tugged on the prince's arm to get his attention before he pointed over at Nerissa. Prince Prat looked in her direction with a smug expression on his face. Nerissa forced herself to keep smiling, no matter how much she wanted to scowl at the prince.

Prince Prat whispered something to Lukas before he said something to the group of knights he was speaking with. Lukas and Prince Prat then separated and went to other groups that were chatting and the room grew quieter. It was almost silent by the time Prince Prat reached the stage. He gave her a quick wink which made her roll her eyes.

"You're making quite a habit of needing me to save you," Prince Prat told Nerissa.

"I don't need anyone to save me. You just seem to always think I need saving and step in without consulting me first," Nerissa retorted.

"Would it hurt you to say thank you?"

"Most likely, yes. And I'd rather not need any more saving so I can avoid any more unnecessary conversations like this one.."

Prince Prat chuckled at that at shook his head. He then turned to face the knights who had gathered nearer to the stage. Prince Prat cleared his throat. "As the reigning champion of the tournament, I also wanted to wish you welcome to Camelot. Thank you for the show of bravery you have all put on so far. You do your homes proud. Now, without further adieu, I'd like to introduce our singer for the evening..."

He paused and looked back at her, flashing her a quick smile. Nerissa wondered if he had forgotten her name. She opened her mouth to speak for herself, he turned back to the men and said, "Nerissa."

The knights began to clap. For reasons unbeknownst to Nerissa, her heart gave a slight flutter at hearing Prince Prat say her name. She reasoned that it was because he remembered her name. That had to be it, right? But Nerissa pushed any more thoughts on the matter from her mind. Instead, she forced herself to offer Prince Prat a smile, for the sake of appearances. He nodded and jumped down from the small stage.

With no need to introduce herself, Nerissa started to sing.

My mother told me

Someday I would buy

Galleys with good oars

Sail to distant shores

Stand up on the prow

Noble barque I steer

Steady course to the haven

Hew many foe-men

Hew many foe-men

Nerissa looked at Morgana, who was standing by Knight Valiant, as she repeated the song. Morgana smiled brightly, which encouraged Nerissa. Nerissa then looked around at all the knights watching her, they seemed to be enjoying her performance. Even Uther seemed pleased.

After several more songs, all of which seemed to enthral her audience, the knights were ushered to the feast Uther's staff had prepared for them. Nerissa was surprised when Morgana came up to her and looped her arm through hers. Apparently, when Morgana meant for all the tournament, she meant all the tournament and festivities, because Nerissa was allowed to attend the meal.

After a merry meal, Gwen helped Nerissa back to the physician's quarters because Lukas's mother had already made him go to bed. Nerissa was a little giggly from drinking a bit too much. She had never had the opportunity to indulge like that in Ealdor.

"Gwen. Gwen. Gwen, that's a pretty name." Nerissa babbled, which made Gwen chuckle. "Wait, Gwen, I have a question."

"Yes?" Gwen once more, tightening her arm around Nerissa...

"Did you hear that Knight Valiant might be staying in Camelot after the tournament?"

Gwen nodded her head. "I did. Morgana seemed pleased."

"She did! I'm happy for her. Not that I know her terribly well or anything, but every lady deserves her knight."

"Or her prince. Arthur seemed threatened..."

"Ugh!" Nerissa groaned and released her arm from around Gwen. "She's better off with Valiant if you ask me. Sure Prince Prat might be...a prince, but he isn't very... princely if you ask me. He's a prat. That's why I call him Prince Prat. Prince Prat. Prince Prat. Hey! That's fun to say. You should try it! Prince Prat! Prince Prat!"

Gwen chuckled and wrapped her arm back around Nerissa once more. "I think you've had a bit much to drink."

Nerissa sighed and leaned heavily against Gwen. "I think you might be right."

"Better get you to bed."

"Bed. That sounds nice." Nerissa sighed once more.

Gwen managed to get Nerissa back to Gaius in one piece. Gaius forced Nerissa to sit down and drink some water before allowing her to go to bed. Merlin, never having seen his sister in this state before wanted to take full advantage of the situation, but Gaius, seeing the mischievous look in Merlin's eye forced him to go to bed.

Merlin was quite mopey as he made his way upstairs. Nerissa, who was still thirsty after having downed the cup Gaius gave her, looked at the bucket at the end of the table. Her eyes glinted gold and the bucket slid across the table.

"Nerissa!" Gaius hissed.

"Oopsie!" Nerissa giggled as she dipped her cup into the water.

Gaius shook his head at his niece's antics. He hadn't expected this from her. She had been so cautious thus far, but when she was relaxed a bit it seemed all bets were off. Perhaps he was wrong in thinking he'd only have to keep an eye on Merlin. In the morning, Gaius knew he would have to talk with Nerissa, especially if she was to attend any more feasts.

But for now, he let her finish her water and filled another cup before he helped her up to bed. Nerissa was asleep before her head hit the pillow. Not even mysterious voices calling in the night could rouse her from her slumber No matter how desperately they tried.

Author's Note: If you have any song suggestions that Nerissa might sing in future chapters, be sure to let me know!