The Dragon Prince

Chapter 1

Arthur finished saddling his horse as he and his knights were getting ready to go on a hunting trip. They'll be going far away from the castle and close to the border of Camelot and would be gone for a couple of days. Arthur needed to let off steam and being the crown prince of Camelot, there wasn't much anyone could do to stop him.

He had just had another "talk" with his father, Uther Pendragon, about marriage. Arthur didn't want to get married, especially to some girl he never met before. Arthur honestly would've preferred if Uther had been lecturing him about knighting men of commoner blood.

"Everyone ready to go?" Arthur asked, clearly eager to get moving. All the knights nodded before mounting their horses and riding out past Camelot's gates. First went Arthur followed by Elyan, Gwaine, Percival, Leon and Lancelot. They traveled through bright green forest as it has just turned Spring, until the sky had turned a bright orange color.

Occasionally the others would engage in conversation while Arthur was contemplating on what to do about his father's demands. On one hand he didn't want to disappoint his father, but on the other he didn't want to marry someone he didn't love.

The knights had been teasing Arthur about him and Gwen, even though there were no romantic feelings between them. In truth Arthur thought of her as more of a friend than a romantic companion.

They set up camp in the afternoon light and went to bed soon after, Lancelot taking first watch while the others slept under the stars. They packed up at dawn and kept traveling until they were less then a day away from Camelot's border, and far away from Arthur's father. It was soon noon and Leon suggested that they start hunting after setting up camp. After finding the perfect spot they dismounted and set up camp.

Arthur and the knights grabbed their crossbows and swords before heading out to catch something. Even though they had enough food in their bags. The forest was unfamiliar to most of them so Arthur quickly got separated from the group.

"What in the bloody hell!" Arthur grumbled when he turned around realizing he had lost his knights. Arthur turned in every direction but was only met with green trees and underbrush, as well as the occasional small animal. Arthur began to shout the names of his knights but was annoyed when the only thing to respond was the chirping of nearby birds.

Arthur wandered aimlessly through the forest, lost in his own thoughts as he listened to the crunch of fallen leaves under his feet. There were a couple deer passing by that he could've killed, but he didn't want to have to drag it back to their camp which he didn't even know the location of.

As Arthur walked he noticed that the grass had gotten greener, the birds noisier, and the wildlife had gotten more abundant. A magnificent sent filled his nostrils and he looked down to see the most gorgeous flowers. There were tiny yellow ones and purple ones as big as his hand. Blue ones with sharp thorns and bushes full of white ones. Arthur had never seen something so beautiful. No princess's face could compare to these flowers. They smelled better too.

Arthur strolled through the shaded meadow wondering how all this could grow here, until he spotted a clearing up ahead. Vacant of trees but carefully shaded by the ones bordering it, almost as if that's what they were trying to do. The ground was dotted with gorgeous small white flowers that reminded Arthur of tiny clouds.

As Arthur inches closer he spotted a man peacefully sitting on a log in the clearing. Arthur crouched down behind a bush full of pink flowers so he wouldn't be seen. The boy wore a black robe that reminded Arthur of that of a noble. They had an unfamiliar crest of three spiraling lines radiating from the center on the shoulders. The man had short black hair and a lean figure, with eyes that reminded Arthur of the sea.

The boy smiled as he watched a small white creature run around playfully among the white flowers, causing the seeds to float up into the air to be carried away by the wind. The boy held out his hand and said something in a language that Arthur didn't understand. The creature came running up to the man and jumped into his arms. Or rather flew. That's when Arthur realized the creature was a small white dragon.

Arthur was shocked and panicked as he thought his father had exterminated all but one of the dragons. Arthur leaned closer to get a better look as he was trying to deny what was right in front of him. Arthur then lost his footing on a root and came tumbling through the bush which just so happened to be full of thorned flowers.

Word count: 828 words
Reminder: None of the art belongs to me