Of Chores and Crowns (A Merlin Fanfiction) ✔

Chapter Twenty-one

I raced down the hall, my mind working frantically. I scanned each and every room, trying to find the best place to hide. The fighting had gotten closer and closer to the castle, and I could hear it outside the open windows.

It seemed like hours since the young knight had come to warn us all, but in reality it had barely even been five minutes.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a door I had almost run right past. I grinned with relief. It was well hidden, and easily could be dismissed as unimportant.

I tugged Faye over to it and whipped open the door to find a storage closet. It wasn't the biggest I had seen in the castle, but it would do its job. I gently pushed her towards it. Once she was in, I breathed a sigh of relief.

The relief didn't last long, however, when the shouts and fighting grew louder. They surely must be in the courtyard by now.

My heart clenched in panic and Arthur's face flashed through my mind. As much as I wanted to join Faye and hide out, I knew I just had to find out if Arthur was safe.

I had to find him for Faye, I tried to justify to myself. She will want to know the fate of her betrothed.

I groaned, and turned to look Faye straight in the eyes. She was so obviously scared, and it hurt me to leave her, but I knew she would be okay until I could return...after I found Arthur.

"You'll be safe here." I told her, gripping the door tightly.

Faye seemed to panic more once she realized I wasn't going to stay with her. She lunged forward, grabbing my hand in hers.

"Where are you going?!" She exclaimed, tightening her grip.

"I'll be back before you know it." I told her, avoiding the question, "You won't even believe I'm gone, by the time I'm back."

She seemed to know she wouldn't be able to stop me, and stepped back, her eyes flashing with concern. She wrapped her arms around her body, hugging herself.

"Be safe, okay?" She said, "I'd hate to lose such a good servent."

I gave her a weak smile, which she tried to return, before I shut the door tightly. I turned my back to it, and raced back down the hall we had just come from.

My skirts swished against my ankles as I ran, and I couldn't help but wish for some pants. In Deira, it had been frowned upon if a woman wore pants, so I've never had the chance, but I felt that it would help me move a lost faster than I was now.

I reached the side entrance of the Great Hall, but when I ran in, it was empty. Everyone had already cleared out in search of someplace to wait out the skirmish, and the only things left behind were the forgotten plates of food.

A lump grew in my throat as I whirled around and I couldn't help the onslaught of panic that grew in my chest. I raced down the halls, not daring to call out his name.

Where was he?

As time passed, I grew more frantic and it became harder and harder to convince myself that I was only looking for Arthur because he was engaged to Fayelinn.

After awhile, I had to pause to catch my breath, unused to running around and searching for lost princes. I pressed a hand to my chest, feeling my heart pound in both physical exertion and because of the strength of my emotions.

I walked over to a nearby window slowly, and looked out, mildly worried about what I would see. Knights and bandits fought down in the courtyard, but I could tell it was half-hearted. Which meant the bandits were in the castle.

I shook my head in disbelief. These were no ordinary bandits. They were too strong, too organized, and way too concerned with the castle itself. They were after something, but I had no idea what.

I started running again, ignoring my aching leg. The wound on my thigh had long been healed, but a small twinge flared up whenever I strained it, just as I was doing today.

I turned a corner, and immediately came to a halt. There he stood, in all of his glory, his blood red cape wrapped around his shoulders and a sword gleaming in his hand.

I let out a small gasp of relief, and he whirled around at the sound. As soon as our eyes met, the world seemed to melt away, leaving us to ourselves. I could see relief in his expression, and I felt taken aback. He was worried for me?

Finally, I snapped to my senses, and bowed deeply.

"My lord." I acknowledged.

"Arthur." He corrected, his voice surprisingly quiet.

"Yes, of course...Arthur." I murmured, liking the feel of his name rolling off my tongue, as I slowly straightened.

We were both caught in the trance for a couple more seconds, before I finally broke the calm.

"Princess Fayelinn is unharmed, and will stay that way until all of this is sorted out." I told him.

He cleared his throat and looked away, as if being roughly awakened. "Right, of course. Thank you, Dawn."

"Is there anymore news pertaining to the attack?" I asked, curiosity getting the best of me.

"No, I'm afraid not."

I hummed a response, thinking. Maybe my theory had been off then, and they really were just ordinary bandits. But, if that was the case, why did I feel dread pool in my stomach?

Suddenly, there were shouts that could be heard down the hall. I froze, and a bandit came running at the two of us. I prepared myself to do whatever I needed to do, even if that included fighting him myself, but before he came anywhere close to me, Arthur lashed his sword out and cut a smooth line across the man's thighs, sending him crashing to the floor.

Without another thought, he swung the knife around and pointed it at the man's throat, a clear threat in his actions.

"What do you want?" Arthur demanded, his voice steely.

The bandit only laughed and said, "You have no idea what's coming for you, prince. You'll get your due."

Before we could figure out what he meant, the man lunged forward and impaled himself on the sword. I let out a small cry at the unexpected move, blinking in disbelief.

The man had chosen to kill himself over be taken as prisoner.

I was still in shock, and Arthur himself seemed to be a little surprised, when more shouts could be heard from around the corner.

Arthur snapped out of his surprise before me, and grabbed my hand silently, dragging me away from the body.

"Arthur..." I gasped, as his grip tightened on my arm. It didn't exactly hurt, but it wasn't the most comfortable. I knew he was only trying to keep me safe, however.

"Shush," He hissed at me, his tone gentle despite his actions, "Just, come with me!"

And with that, he whirled us into a dark room.