Arthur's Sons (Book 2)

The Once and Future Queen (Part 2)

Exhausted from the many chores Gaius had piled on her once she returned to the castle and polishing two sets of armour, Merlyn stumbled along a little light-headed as she and Arthur snuck through the crowd into the tournament tent. The twins were already there just finishing putting the armour on the clearly nervous William when they entered, Merlyn exchanged quick pleasantries before moving to the tent entrance to look out and see what was going on.

"Now, remember the plan. I'm competing in the tournament, but no one will know that it's me. All you have to do is acknowledge the crowd at the end of the match. Act like you belong there and people will believe that you do." Arthur told William with a clap on the shoulder before handing him the helmet. William accepted it and took a deep breath before standing straight, head held high and stalking from the tent while Arthur began changing into his armour with the help of the twins.

"Knights of the realm, welcome to Camelot. You've trained for this day for many years." Uther's voice boomed across the grounds and Merlyn watched as William's horse kept shifting nervously as he struggled to stay on.

"Well, he hasn't fallen off his horse." Merlyn commented with a sigh.

"...our bravery, strength..." Uther continued in the background.

"I suppose that's something." Arthur chuckled lightly.

"...and your skill to the test. Today you will fight for glory and for the honour. For this is the ultimate test of courage. And it will be the measure of you as men. For only the most skilful, the most fearless among you will emerge as a worthy champion." Uther finished and the knights rode from the grounds to do their final preparations.

William entered and held the helmet toward Arthur who was now fully dressed. "They're ready for you, Sire." Arthur smiled and took the helmet.

"Good luck Da." The twins said in unison from where they had stood to put his armour on. Arthur smiled kindly and stepped forward to pull them both into a bear hug and kiss their temples.

"Cheer for me, yeah?" Arthur asked with a smile.

The twins rolled their eyes playfully. "Always." Arthur chuckled and ruffled their hair before turning and walking towards the tent flap. Arthur paused to look Merlyn up and down before suddenly wrapping an arm around her middle, pulling her into a dip and kissing her senseless. Merlyn's arms circled his neck and she buried her fingers in his golden locks pulling him closer, they pulled away breathless and Arthur pulled them back to stand flush.

"Love you." He murmured in her ear.

"Love you too, Prat. Don't get killed." She huffed back before kissing his cheek and stepping back. Arthur laughed heartily while shaking his head before putting on the helmet and striding out to mount his steed and ready himself for his match.

---

The tournament begins so Merlyn takes the twins and sits them on the railing and holds them to her chest so they have an unobscured view of the match. Arthur readies his lance before charging toward his opponent, the crowd roars as they collide and Arthur comes out victorious. The twins and Merlyn cheer and clap enthusiastically for Arthur and he nods to them while readying to ride against his next opponent. Merlyn can almost see his smug smirk under the helmet and rolls her eyes fondly as Arthur defeats his next opponent.

When the events finished, Merlyn and the twins hurried back to the tent and waited for Arthur to enter.

When he came back he quickly removed his helmet and handed it to William. "You must go and acknowledge the crowd."

"How do you do that?" William asked slightly panicked.

"You wave, they cheer. It's not difficult." Arthur grinned and slapped him on the back pushing him toward the tent flap.