Those Who Waited (BBC Merlin)

Chapter 21: Modern

The university Gwen attended was in Cumbria, so far north in England that the state bordered Scotland, but the grounds were still a bit south of the city Carlisle and the Burgh-by-Sands settlement. Gwen had always loved the more rural areas, enjoyed being able to walk into a field of grass and wildflowers, or be just on the edge of lost surrounded by trees thirteen times her age and ten times her height.

The Burgh-by-Sands area was one of many areas in Europe believed to have been Camelot, but Gwen doubted it. It was impossible to determine where the old kingdom lay --if it ever existed at all -- every tale pointed a hundred miles away from the next one. But Gwen had more confidence in northern England, at the very least, though she could never quite explain why.

The university looked much like a castle itself, the front entrance and sides bordered by tall, stone walls, rough and chipped with age but mostly maintained. The buildings were mostly similar stone, with wood and metal doors and tall, narrow windows. Gwen and Lillian sat on top of the front stone wall, comfortably wedged in and with the surface wide enough to hold both cross-legged figures side by side. They looked out onto the hills and thin gatherings of trees, interrupted only by one two-lane concrete road that connected the campus to the town five miles away.

Lillian and Gwen had been meeting daily for the last few weeks, studying material and talking -- they had actually reached topics other than their dreams, and found each other's company to be quite enjoyable.

"You know," Lillian spoke up, interrupting the quiet. "I'm not entirely sure I'm happy finals are over."

Gwen looked over at her friend, a concerned expression on her face. She felt she already understood, and felt similarly. The end of finals meant the end of the semester, and holiday for nearly a month. Gwen's home wasn't horrible, or even remotely nasty, so she didn't have a reason to be reluctant. But it was still the end of her time here, at least for a little while. Still, she asked, "Why?"

Lillian shrugged. "Well, I guess it means..."

It took Gwen a few seconds to realize she'd trailed off, but it startled her when she did. Looking round at the other girl, Gwen frowned at her. Lillian's head was tilted and she didn't move, as if dazed, but her eyes were narrowed in focus. "Lillian? Are you alright?"

"What's that?" Lillian murmured, not moving her gaze, but pointing far out. Gwen followed her finger, finally spotting the tiny sliver interrupting the landscape. Too small to be the bus that traveled back and forth between campus and town, but too far away to make out if it was a biker or horserider. She couldn't even be sure if it was moving, or her just eyes playing tricks on her.

"So? A bike, or horseback rider? They aren't exactly uncommon," Gwen made to laugh, but no change in Lillian's demeanor made her uneasy and shook her voice.

"No," Lillian breathed. Gwen leaned closer, refocusing on the figure. The two sat in silence for another half hour, the sun setting and washing the wall in gold. It made the figure harder to see, but it had also grown closer in that time.

The figure was no more than several hundred feet before the wall when the sun completely dropped, the sky turning purple. Gwen's blood froze.

Her lips parted, but no sound escaped her stuck throat and her lips formed nothing. The dusk distorted her vision, but it was as if her very soul was burning and forced itself into her eyes. The figure seemed to sharpen suddenly. Messy black hair, darker than coal, and a tall but thin frame despite loose clothing and the small bag over one shoulder. His face was down, but right then Gwen would have bet her college education.