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A Valiant Victory

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Gaius helped Nerissa back to the physician's quarters, holding her steady as they slowly walked back. She couldn't help but think about her interaction with Prince Prat. Why hadn't he ratted her out to Gaius? For a brief moment, she wondered if maybe he wasn't as pompous, arrogant, and pretentious as he came off - but the thought was very fleeting. Perhaps knowing that he could very well die tomorrow was a cause for some peace between them. Whatever the reason, Nerissa knew that it would nag at her through the night.

Nerissa was no more than a few steps back into the physician's quarter when Merlin took hold of her hands and dragged her to his room. Despite her pleas for him to let go and looks over her shoulder at Gaius, Merlin managed to get his way. He carefully shut the door behind him and moved a piece of furniture in front of it, just in case. Nerissa was about to yell at her brother when she caught sight of a statue she was certain had been outside earlier. She stared at it for a moment with her mouth agape, before looking at her brother in disbelief.

"Did you steal that?" Nerissa asked, staring once more at the dog statue. "Is that your way of sticking it to Prince Prat for sacking you?"

Merlin rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his chest defensively. "I need your help," he said before he uncovered the book of magic Gaius had given him from beneath his sheets. "There's a spell in here but I can't. . ."

Nerissa shook her head and held her hands out in front of her. "You've always been the better one at magic. The simple things that I can do took me far longer to master than it ever took you. You're the one who taught them to me!"

"But maybe I only managed them first because I didn't want my little sister showing me up. You know us men and our pride," Merlin offered with a small smile. "So, maybe if you try doing this with me, it'll be just like old times and I'll get it just because I don't want you to get it first."

Nerissa stared at her brother dumbfounded. "You want me to do this with you, just so you can beat me?"

"Please, Nerissa? I've already tried to get this and it's just not coming. I'm close to my wit's end here. Please?"

After a long sigh, Nerissa sat down on the floor and motioned for Merlin to hand her the book of magic. While her heart wasn't truly into practising magic, especially given the circumstances, doing this would keep her from sleeping which would keep her from having plaguing dreams of Sir Ewan. Not that she would ever admit to such a thing to anyone. It seemed such a silly thing, being scared of falling asleep.

"So what exactly is it that we're trying to do?" Nerissa asked, running her fingers across the page.

Merlin pointed to the spell he was trying to master. "If one of us can get this, we can show everyone the snakes for themselves," Merlin told his sister.

"And the dog statue?" Nerissa asked, arching an eyebrow at her brother.

"We've got to practise on something, haven't we?"

"So it has a purpose then?"

Merlin looked at his sister pointedly before he rolled his eyes. "Of course. I'm not that petty."

Nerissa arched her eyebrow again, this time questioningly at her brother. Merlin could be precisely that petty if he wished to be. But Merlin just brushed aside her look and began to explain the spell to her - what they were trying to accomplish, how to pronounce the words, and such. Normally, Merlin acting like a know-it-all would annoy her, but for now, it proved a welcome distraction and delay to sleep.

According to her brother, the spell should bring the dog statue to life, just like they wanted to do to Valiant's shield. While Nerissa thought trying to make a dog statue come to life was far more difficult than it would be to reveal the snakes in Valiant's shield, she didn't have a better solution to practise the spell - so she simply joined her brother's antics rather than question them...much.

Bebay odothay arisan quickum.

Bebay odothay arisan quickum.

Bebay odothay arisan quickum.

Bebay odothay arisan quickum. Those words would forever be etched into Nerissa's mind as the night wore on. When she could feel her eyelids beginning to droop, she would focus even more intently on the spell. Anything to keep from falling asleep and dreaming of things that were beyond her control. At the moment, Nerissa didn't mind if she was never able to sleep again.

It was quite late when a faint knock came at the door, startling both Merlin and Nerissa. Merlin quickly hid the book beneath his sheets and both siblings sat up straight when Gaius's voice came from the other side of the door. "I don't mean to interrupt, but I have something for Nerissa."

Nerissa looked at her brother in confusion. He shrugged his shoulders. It seemed like he had no more idea what Gaius had for her than she did. Slowly, Nerissa stretched and got to her feet. She had been sitting on the wooden floor for so long that her back and bum both ached. She pushed the piece of furniture Merlin had moved earlier out of the way and opened the door only a crack.

"Yes?" Nerissa asked, innocently looking up at her uncle through the small opening and blinking away any sleep that threatened her. But a yawn managed to escape anyway.

"I've been up, making you a dreamless sleeping draught," Gaius said, holding a small bottle out toward Nerissa.

Nerissa's brow furrowed. "Thanks," she said, accepting the bottle and cradling it in her hands. Gaius was about to turn away, when she asked, "How did you know?" She yawned once more.

Gaius chuckled softly. "You are your mother's daughter, remember?." A warm smile spread across his face. "I made these for her too when we were younger after some of the sights we had seen. She'd have the same look on her face, acting quite brave on the outside but raging with the turmoil inside. I've grown accustomed to recognising it, even if it has been some time."

Nerissa sighed.

"She outgrew them if that's something you're worried about," Gaius said, offering his niece a reassuring smile. "Not that you ever need to be ashamed of needing help."

Nerissa slowly nodded her head. "Thank you," she whispered - both for the draught and for the information that it was possible to outgrow such a strong reaction.

Gaius nodded his head once more and went back downstairs to his sleeping area. Nerissa clutched the small bottle and turned back toward her brother, who was sitting on the floor in front of the dog statue. "Are you going to take that?" he asked.

"Dunno," Nerissa responded with a shrug.

After a long sigh, Merlin closed the book of magic and stood up. He walked over to his bed and began to make it. He pulled the blankets up and fluffed his pillow. He then offered his sister a small smile as he gently patted the pillow. "You should rest," he said. "You've had a long day."

"But don't you need me?"

"That's why you can sleep in here, in case I need you." He then grinned. "You didn't think I was trying to be nice to you, did you?"

Nerissa's brow furrowed as she pursed her lips together. "What if I start dreaming about. . . it?"

"I'll wake you," Merlin responded with a shrug. "I'm not likely to get any sleep until I get this or. . ."

"Or after the tournament?" The tournament in which they were trying to prevent the death of Prince Prat from Knight Valiant from his magical shield of snakes. A death that might not be as preventable as they hoped.

Merlin slowly nodded his head. "And I doubt Lady Morgana will be so understanding of a guest declining her invitation for a second time. So you'll need your sleep so you can go to the tournament."

Nerissa wasn't sure she wanted to go to the tournament tomorrow. Especially if it meant witnessing the death of someone else by those snakes. Even if that person was Prince Prat. But Merlin had a point. If she got on Lady Morgana's bad side that would likely put her on Uther's bad side and she already had one silent strike against her. She didn't wish to be on the king's bad side.

"You promise you'll wake me if. . ."

Merlin arched an eyebrow. "When have I ever had trouble waking you for any reason I wished? Now go on. Rest. Before I change my mind and crawl in there myself. I'll sleep like a rock and you know it."

Reluctantly, Nerissa nodded her head. She managed to take the garments she still had over her nightdress off before she crawled into bed. She lifted the draught to her lips and swallowed it. It tasted bitter, but if it would help her from dreaming of Sir Ewan then the taste would be well worth it. Nerissa then rested her head against the pillow and closed her eyes.

When she was almost asleep she heard, "I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."

But she was too drowsy to respond to her brother's oath before she drifted off into a dreamless sleep. Thankfully no nightmares of Sir Ewan disturbed her slumber.

In the morning, Nerissa awoke slightly confused as to why she was in her brother's room. She expected all the emotions to crash over her like a wave breaking upon the rocks. But they weren't as powerful as she had expected. They were there. They weren't gone. But the feelings weren't crippling as they had been yesterday. They just were.

Slowly, she sat up in bed and stretched her arms. Merlin's bed wasn't nearly as comfortable as the one she slept in. Merlin. Had he mastered the spell yet? She looked at the end of the bed to find him slouched over and muttering the words to himself. Nerissa crawled to the end of the bed and shook his shoulder.

"Merlin, wake up. Merlin. Merlin!"

He awoke with a snort. For a moment he was also confused as to where he had slept, but it came back to him.

"Did you manage it?" Nerissa asked her brother.

"Not yet," Merlin groaned, rubbing his eyes in an attempt to wake up fully. "But I still have some time before the final."

"Well, you'd better hurry."

"Since when do you care about Arthur?" Merlin scoffed. His eyes widened in horror. "You don't like him, do you?"

Nerissa scoffed derisively and rolled her eyes. "There's a rather big difference between liking someone and not wanting to see them die." She then playfully smacked her brother on the back of the head before she stood up. She was almost to the door when she stopped and turned to look at her brother. "What on earth would make you think I currently like or would ever like Prince Prat?"

Merlin's eyes widened and his lips grew thin for a moment. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing. No reason whatsoever."

"What aren't you telling me?" Nerissa asked, resting her hands on her hips.

As if on cue, Gaius called for Nerissa, announcing that Morgana had sent Lukas to escort her to the tournament final. Merlin breathed a sigh of relief as if having been saved from an untimely death. Nerissa shook her head and then hobbled back to her room to change into something a bit more suitable than her nightdress. Knowing she didn't have enough time to do anything with her hair, she ran a brush through it, leaving it cascading down her back.

She wanted to check in once more on Merlin, but Gaius called for her again. So, she headed downstairs and found Gaius and Lukas waiting for her. Lukas was sitting on a stool chatting poor Gaius's ear off. Gaius looked thankful at Nerissa's arrival.

"How did you sleep?" Gaius asked, walking over to his niece.

"Good," Nerissa offered, unsure of how much to say in front of Lukas. She wasn't sure how much he'd been told about what had happened. "It helped. Thank you."

Gaius nodded his head in approval.

"I have a surprise for you," Lukas said rather excitedly before he leapt off the stool.

"For me?" Nerissa asked.

Lukas nodded his head, his whole body bouncing with enthusiasm. "I made it myself. Well, it was Mother's idea and she helped. But I still did it." He then pulled a crown of daisies out from behind his back and thrust it toward Nerissa. "I had to get up real early to pick them for you. Do you like it?"

Nerissa took the flower crown and placed it on her head. "It's perfect. I love it." She forced a smile on her face. While she wasn't truly feeling as happy as she was letting on, she didn't want Lukas to think she didn't appreciate his thoughtful gift. Because she did. She just . . . wasn't having the easiest time processing her emotions. It was still better than yesterday, but nowhere near the level, she had been before the whole Sir Ewan situation took place.

With a smile still plastered to her face, Nerissa looped her arm through Lukas's arm as they exited the physician's quarters. Slowly, they made their way to the tournament grounds. A sense of dread loomed over them. She didn't wish for Prince Prat's death. She didn't. She didn't like the immature clotpole one bit, but she didn't wish him dead.

Nerissa gripped Lukas's arm tighter and held her head higher as they walked past Valiant who was sharpening his sword. He attempted to offer them a wave, but Nerissa kept her gaze focused straight ahead. The man was vile and evil filth. Why did it always seem that the ones who acted nice ended up being scum? Perhaps she was too harsh on men as a sex, but men like Valiant were precisely the reason she didn't wish to marry. The only way she might be tempted was if one fell into her lap who was the opposite of Valiant. Might.

Her heart then seemed to pang when she caught sight of Prince Prat standing in front of the arena, staring at the place with looming dread. Last night during spell practice, Merlin had occasionally ranted about Prince Prat being stubborn - that he wouldn't back down because it was his duty. He was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. Likely both.

Nerissa didn't realise that she had been staring at him until he looked over his shoulder at her and made eye contact. She felt her cheeks flush as she nodded her head in recognition at him. He nodded back. Prince Prat then turned back around.

Lukas and Nerissa walked a few more steps when she sighed and stopped them. "You know, Lukas, I can probably make it to my seat from here. Since Prince Pr-Arthur sacked Merlin, he's probably having a bit of a rough go at it. He might need your help."

"You think?" Lukas asked, his eyes bright with excitement.

"Go on," Nerissa said with a nod.

Lukas grinned and then took off toward Prince Prat. If anyone could distract someone from their impending death, it would be Lukas and his prattling. It wasn't that she wanted to be nice to Prince Prat. She just didn't want to feel guilty if he died. Or at least that was what she managed to convince herself of.

At least from where she was standing, Prince Prat seemed not so dour with Lukas at his side. Nerissa was beginning to grow worried that Merlin might not manage the spell. Should she try to perform it from where she sat almost beside the king? She had a feeling that even if she managed to save his son using magic, Uther wouldn't be most receptive. And that was if she somehow managed the spell. Was it worth the risk?

"C'mon, Merlin," Nerissa muttered to herself before she waved to Morgana and headed to the stands.

While Morgana welcomed her, her reception wasn't quite as warm as it had been before. But before Nerissa could even say a word, Morgana took Nerissa's hands and looked at her with worry across her face. "Arthur told me what happened to you yesterday. Tell me it isn't true."

Nerissa looked over her shoulder at the spot where Uther would sit any moment.

"I promise I won't speak ill of you to him," Morgana pleaded. "Uther's too stubborn for his own good. I just want to know how worried I ought to be about this final. Arthur's like a brother to me. An annoying one, but like a brother nonetheless."

"What exactly did he tell you?" Nerissa whispered, wondering if he had told Lady Morgana everything. She had been quite bold last night in her grief and anger.

Morgana squeezed Nerissa's hands. "He said that you were nearly attacked by the snake that killed Ewan. That the snake was only common in the Western Isles and that Valiant is hiding them in his shield."

Nerissa tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before she whispered. "To the best of my knowledge, everything he's told you is true. And we suspect that Valiant likely aims to kill to win today."

Morgana paled.

"Would you like some water?" Gwen asked, who had been seated on the other side of Morgana listening just as intently.

Morgana closed her eyes and shook her head. "For Arthur's sake, I hope this is all some big misunderstanding."

"And if it isn't?" Nerissa whispered, surprised by her boldness.

For a moment, Morgana pursed her lips. "Then I hope Arthur manages to kill Valiant before Valiant kills him." Morgana sighed.

"Do you think he can?" Nerissa asked.

"If there's anyone capable of defeating Valiant, it's Arthur," Gwen responded first. Morgana nodded her head in agreement.

Nerissa sighed and tucked a tendril of hair behind her ear. "Then for Camelot's sake, I hope your faith in him is securely founded."

The women turned to face the arena, but Morgana didn't release Nerissa's hand. Morgana gripped her new friend's hand tightly rather than show the worry on her face. She was putting on a brave face for Arthur's sake and both Gwen and Nerissa knew it.

As Arthur and Valiant took to the arena, Lukas made his way into the stands beside Nerissa. The boy looked rather happy. "Arthur says if he wins he'll let me train with him every now and then so I can get out of kitchen duty."

The only words Nerissa seemed to hear were if he wins. If he wins. And what if he didn't? Poor Lukas would be heartbroken. He shouldn't have made such a promise to the boy, especially on the chance he wasn't able to keep his promise. Part of her wanted to yell at him, but now certainly wasn't the time for such things.

As Uther began to announce the final between his son and Knight Valiant, Nerissa looked behind the competitors to see if she could spot her brother. She ground her lips together when she didn't see him before she looked at Uther with a sinking feeling in her stomach. Was saving Prince Prat from Valiant worth risking her own life? She hoped Merlin miraculously mastered the spell and swooped in at the last moment so that she wouldn't have to find out.

The final fight began.

Morgana squeezed Nerissa's hand tighter with every blow from Valiant's sword directed at Prince Prat But Prince Prat was good. He managed to match Valiant blow for blow. . . at first. Things seemed to be in Prince Prat's favour until he knocked Valiant's helmet from his head. Prince Prat then removed his helmet, which Nerissa found utterly stupid. She assumed it was some sort of honour or pride thing, but she didn't think it unfair to keep one's helmet on knowing their opponent had magic snakes in their shield.

Valiant stepped on Prince Prat's foot and then rammed his shield into Prince Prat's face, knocking him to the ground. Prince Prat tried to get up, but Valiant stepped on his shield. Valiant then plunged his sword down. This made Morgana's hand tighten to the point that Nerissa wondered if she might lose feeling in her hand.

Without even thinking, Nerissa began to raise her shaking free hand and the spell was ready on her lips. Thankfully, Prince Prat managed to roll out of the way of Valiant's sword. It was then she spotted Merlin. He gave a slight grin and nodded his head, which flooded Nerissa with relief.

Realising her hand was still raised, Nerissa slowly lowered it. She looked over her shoulder at Uther, who was too preoccupied with watching his son to notice what she had attempted. Morgana seemed to look at her oddly, but her attention was returned to the fight when an unarmed Prince Prat was pinned against the wall by Valiant.

"Anytime, Merlin," Nerissa muttered to herself, wondering what was taking him so long to reveal the snakes.

When Valiant was going in for a swing with his sword, Prince Prat managed to push him away. Nerissa heard Morgana breathe a sigh of relief beside her. She then looked at Merlin who had his hand raised and his lips were moving.

Seconds later, the snakes sprang to life from Valiant's shield. While this act made the rest of the crowd gasp and jump to their feet, it made Nerissa sigh in relief because she didn't have to attempt to perform magic right in front of Uther. Her life was safe. . . for now. But was Prince Prat's?

Valiant commanded his snakes to kill Prince Prat. While Valiant might have been revealed, he still wanted to destroy Prince Prat. If Valiant was going down, he was going to take Prince Prat with him.

Still unarmed, Prince Prat slowly began to back away toward the stands. But Nerissa's eyes were on the snakes that were slithering toward him. For reasons beyond her control, Nerissa's mind flashed back to the snake from yesterday. She felt herself slide off the bench and cover her face with her hands, but beyond that, her mind was frozen on the snake that had taken Sir Ewan. All the blood. She began to hum.

Nerissa was so lost in her thoughts that she missed Morgana throwing Arthur a sword and Arthur defeating Valiant. Her humming drowned out the raucous cheer of the crowd at Arthur's victory.

The next thing Nerissa knew, she felt a strong pair of arms lifting her. While her head told her to fight against the arms wrapped around her, she felt safe within them. The only problem was that the arms belonged to Prince Prat. Her head told her to yell at him to put her down and release her, but her need to feel safe won out. Reluctantly, she rested her head against his chest as her mind seemed to function once more. If Prince Prat was carrying her, he must have defeated Valiant.

For reasons unknown to her, instead of basking in the glory of his victory, Prince Prat was carrying her bridal style across the arena toward the castle. What was even more confusing was that she felt safe. And being safe seemed to bring clarity back to her addled mind.

"Where are you taking her?" Merlin called out, chasing behind them.

"Gaius," Prince Prat responded.

Nerissa's mind began to fill with a million questions. Why was Prince Prat carrying her to Gaius? Had he noticed what had happened to her? Why wasn't he basking in the glory of his victory? Why was he taking pity on her?

The door to the physician's quarters opened a crack. Prince Prat kicked the door the rest of the way open so he could carry Nerissa through it. Gaius was quite bewildered upon seeing them. Whether it was because Nerissa was being carried in or because Prince Prat was alive, he wasn't quite sure. Likely both.

"Put her here," Gaius said, directing Arthur toward a cot.

Nerissa finally seemed to come to her senses and attempted to push herself away from Prince Prat. "I'm fine. No need for all the fuss," she groaned.

"I'll be the judge of that," Gaius said rather sternly as Prince Prat gently set Nerissa down.

Childishly, Nerissa folded her arms across her chest with a pout on her face.

"Now, will someone please tell me what happened?" Gaius asked.

"I defeated Valiant," Prince Prat offered.

"With Nerissa," Gaius groaned.

Prince Prat looked at Merlin. Both boys just shrugged their shoulders at each other. Prince Prat opened his mouth to speak, but Nerissa beat him to the punch. With her gaze at the floor in shame, she muttered. "The snakes. I saw them and I-I thought of. . . " her words trailed off.

"Merlin, get your sister some water," Gaius said.

Merlin did as he was told. He handed Nerissa a cup of water which she slowly sipped.

"Arthur, thank you for bringing her to me, but I can take it from here."

Prince Prat furrowed his brow in confusion and folded his arms across his chest. After all, he had done to defeat Valiant and then heroically rescued the damsel in distress - only to be dismissed as he was, didn't sit quite well with him.

"Will she be alright?" he asked.

"She should make a full recovery," Gaius assured him.

Prince Prat nodded his head, accepting Gaius's words. He then looked at Nerissa. "I'll see you at the feast then."

"Is that an order?" Nerissa asked, her spirit already beginning to make its return.

Prince Prat scoffed to himself before he retorted, "I guess you'll have to wait and find out."

Not liking the scene playing out before him, Merlin then grabbed Prince Prat by the shoulders and steered him toward the door. "As Gaius said, we've got this covered. Besides, don't you have adoring fans that require your attention? You should probably kiss some hands and shake some babies, no?"

With that Merlin, shut the door on Prince Prat and released a strangled groan. This made Gaius give him a pointed look. Merlin only shrugged his shoulders, which made Gaius even more suspicious.

"Will it always be like that?" Nerissa asked, forcing both Gaius and Merlin to focus on her once more.

Gaius sighed as he sat down beside her. "This isn't my area of expertise. But if you stay mindful of what causes you to break down, it should get easier with time. My dear, you aren't far removed from your recent trauma. Sometimes the best healing medicine for these types of things is time."

"So you're saying it will happen again?"

"I'm saying that you will have to work at it, but with time you should be able to overcome it."

"How do I work at it?"

"That will be the tricky part. You're going to have to find what works for you."

Nerissa threw her head back and groaned. "So basically, I'm doomed."

"Well, I mean, you're related to me, so I'd say you've been doomed for a while now," Merlin added self-deprecatingly before offering his sister a grin.

"He does make an excellent point," Gaius added.

"Hey!" Merlin shot back.

The exchange made her chuckle slightly. Gaius then walked over to his work table and grabbed a small vial. "The reason I wasn't at the final was I wanted to make you some more dreamless sleeping draughts, my dear. Perhaps you should rest before the feast tonight." He held out a small vial toward her.

"I won't argue with you there," Nerissa said, accepting the vial. She then made her way to her room for a restful nap before she was required to attend the feast.

That evening, Merlin and Gaius escorted Nerissa to the feast. The room seemed jovial at Prince Prat's victory. Nerissa left her brother and uncle's sides and stood by Gwen.

"How are you feeling?" Gwen asked.

Nerissa just shrugged.

Gwen pursed her lips for a moment. She didn't want to pry, but she also didn't want Nerissa to feel alone. "If you ever need anything, please know all you have to do is ask. I mean it. In the short time, you've been in Camelot, I already think of you as my friend." Gwen tucked a tendril of hair behind her ear. "I don't have many of those and I'd hate to lose you already."

Nerissa nodded her head and reached out to grab Gwen's hand. "Thank you. I appreciate that. I do."

"I'd stay, but these wine goblets won't fill themselves. I'll be back in a bit though. And Morgana should be arriving shortly."

With Prince Prat, Nerissa thought. But she didn't voice those words to Gwen. Instead, she just nodded her head as Gwen continued to fill the wine goblets. Nerissa then went and stood against a wall to watch the festivities. It almost seemed wrong to be celebrating. But life didn't stop for the dead. It continued on whether you wanted it to or not.

A hush fell over the room before Uther announced the arrival of the tournament's champion. The room burst into cheers and applause. Nerissa watched as Prince Prat offered Morgana his arm and escorted her through the crowd. She couldn't help but wonder if that would become a familiar sight, seeing Morgana on Prince Prat's arm. Morgana had said she thought of Prince Prat as a brother, but that didn't mean anything. Royalty rarely married for matters of the heart. . . or so she had been told.

Morgana approached her with a forced smile on her face after she had left Prince Prat's arm. "Can you believe Arthur?" she groaned. "He won't admit I helped save him. What a pompous, arrogant. . ."

"Prat?" Nerissa offered.

"Exactly," Morgana scoffed. She huffed before continuing, "If I had been born a man he wouldn't have an issue with it. Women are just as capable, you know. Perhaps even better."

Nerissa smiled softly. "You don't have to convince me."

"Of course not, it's only the arrogant men who need convincing." Morgana folded her arms across her chest. She then sighed and reached down for a wine goblet and downed the entire thing. "Speaking of arrogant men, one comes this way."

Sure enough, Prince Prat was headed in their direction. Nerissa turned to say something to Morgana, but the king's ward had momentarily deserted her. Yet still, Prince Prat was headed right toward her. He stopped a few feet in front of her.

"I see you made it to the feast," Prince Prat said.

"Didn't want to risk being jailed, sire," Nerissa responded, adding a small curtsy at the end.

He looked amused by her, but he didn't say anything on the subject.

"I do believe you have other guests that would love to fawn over you and your victory. So I'll just be going. . ." Nerissa turned to walk away, when Prince Prat's hand grabbed her elbow, spinning her to look at him once more. He then leaned toward her.

"You were right," he whispered in her ear.

"I usually am," Nerissa retorted. "But to what are you admitting it?"

"About people owning up and fixing their mistakes. I was wrong to sack your brother. I've just rehired him."

"Oh."

Prince Prat's brow furrowed. "I thought you'd be pleased."

"Pleased that my brother's stuck working for you again?" Nerissa arched an eyebrow. She pursed her lips for a moment and then continued. "On second thought, yes, I am pleased. It is quite enjoyable to see how miserable you make Merlin at times."

Prince Prat shook his head and scoffed. That wasn't the answer he had been expecting. Then again, he never knew what to expect as far as the auburn-hair beauty was concerned. "I also wanted to say that I am sorry for all you had to endure during the tournament. My words probably don't mean much to you, but truly - I am sorry. If I could go back and prevent what happened, I would."

Nerissa curtly nodded her head accepting his apology. He was right, it wasn't much. But it was a start and more than she ever expected to come from the mouth of Prince Prat.

He then nervously brushed his fingers through his hair. "I do hope to hear you sing tonight."

Once again Nerissa nodded her head. Prince Prat turned to go, but this time it was Nerissa that stopped him. "Wait!"

He looked at her in confusion as she chewed her bottom lip. What she was about to do was likely very stupid, but if he was truly sincere about his words - now was likely the only time she'd ever be able to get him to agree.

Nerissa nervously adjusted the flower crown on her head before she tucked her hair behind her ears. "You said that if you could go back and prevent what happened you would. . ."

"I did."

"Did you mean that?"

Stunned by her boldness, Prince Prat pondered her words for a moment before he nodded his head.

Nerissa inhaled deeply. "Well, what if there was another way you could help me? Would you?"

Prince Prat took a step closer toward her. "Perhaps if it was within reason."

"I'm not entirely sure how this works. But since you killed Valiant, you wouldn't happen to inherit his debts, would you?"

"His debts? I'm not following."

Nerissa threw her head back and groaned. "Valiant promised to teach me to fight and I was wondering. . . I was hoping . . ."

"That I'd teach you to fight?" Prince Prat asked with an arched eyebrow. A matter of seconds later, he dissolved into laughter - head thrown back, arms wrapped around his chest type of laughter.

Nerissa folded her arms across her chest and glowered as she could practically feel the eyes of the guests on her. She knew she never should have asked him. Just when she thought he might not be the biggest prat she'd ever met, it turned out that he was the biggest prat on the planet.

Once Prince Prat managed to contain his laughter he told her. "If you manage to think of something within reason, you may ask it and I'll ponder it over. Until then, leave the fighting to me, Nerissa."

Nerissa rolled her eyes and went off to find Morgana. Why were men so ridiculously stupid? She could be just as capable as any man with a sword if she were trained properly. The thought wasn't so out of the question. Women defended themselves all the time when their men were away, especially in outlying areas. But she wouldn't let Prince Prat's laughter deter her. In fact, it made her even more determined to learn to fight and protect herself. One way or another she'd find a way. That he could count on.

Author's Note: I'm back-ish. My school has had so much illness (COVID and not COVID) that we just shut down for the week. (Over half our staff would have needed subs) But I'm actually feeling better and accomplishing a few things - plus misshiraeth98 forced me to write. (Okay, bribed me. So I gotta keep up with my end. lol) I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Thanks for all the condolences and support about losing my brother. It means a lot to me.

Thanks for my reviewers - y'all keep me going.

 MM1776, ToughCookie15, theknightress, Blahhhsailor, BiaUSA, ValeMndez8, love_1983

Much love! Seriously, y'all are amazing and mean the world to me.