[2] WEEPING MONK║you're not what I was looking for

54| Survive This Winter - 𝐈𝐈𝐈

[TW// Blood, major injury, implied drug use.]

Lancelot's life is put into the hands of others, and Ari finally comes face to face with her adversary.

Interest was high for what the queen had so say about her meeting. As soon as boots had hit the ground in a small, sheltered area within another forest, about a league away from Uther's camp — questions had flown. They were hidden here, secluded well enough within the woodlands between rolling hills so that only someone who was purposefully looking for them might find them.

Lancelot had spent the majority of the duration of the meeting listening to what was going on inside of the tent rather than out. So when Ari began to recant what had been spoken, he didn't pay too much attention, forced by her to sit on a rock at the edge of their little camp while it was being prepared. The full moon up above, peeking between the softly rustling tree tops, being the only thing to divide his focus away from the dull throbbing beneath his ribs.

"If Uther accepts, then what do we do about Cumber?" Gawain asked the air, tossing the other end of his rope to Arthur. "He's a threat to Uther. A threat to us." He put his boot to the tree next to him, pushing and pulling on his end of the rope looped around to ensure the knot would hold.

Ari, with Kaze's help, flung the sheet of their tent over the rope taut in mid air as she replied, "He is the rightful blood heir to Camelot." And hungry to retrieve his crown from what she had heard.

"But he is volatile." Arthur huffed as he played with his end of rope instead of securing it, earning an exasperated look from the nearby knight. "Any peace that he makes with our kind would not last long."

Gawain cleared his throat, hands on hips like a scolding father and snapped the human's attention. Arthur sprung himself back into the task which he were supposed to be doing and turned to the tree behind him.

"So we remove him," Kaze announced.

"Gwen would become Camelot's heir," Arthur said over his shoulder, too distracted to notice the looks he received.

The whole of the camp turned their eyes to Arthur and halted their motions. Who is Gwen? Each of them wondering.

In the silence, Arthur seemed to realise his mistake. "The Red Spear," he corrected himself sheepishly.

Ari tried not to laugh at the human's embarrassment, but still cracked a smile, passing a glance to the faraway Lancelot before returning to battening down the pegs of her tent corners with Kaze. He seemed focussed up at the sky, or maybe just lost in thought. She didn't believe him to be superstitious, but there were many Fey who believed in nights like this - where the whole white moon beamed - to be a bad omen. Thankfully, she was not quite one of them.

Fresh smoke from the young campfires thickened the cooling air as Elyan and the Tusk set about lighting their kindling in the centre of the clearing. The raiders were busy pitching their tents and the two Sky folk were returning from the nearby freshwater stream.