Crossfire

"They Conceived A Child"

Merlin

They didn't wield magic. I'm not sure what I expected, though. At least a magical aura that I could sense. But...nothing. Not a single strand.
I shifted on my horse, staring ahead just to spot the knights from each kingdom have a decent, wholeheartedly conversation. I looked away, deciding to graze my eyes across the forest. My senses needed to be on full alert right now. Who knows what could be lurking in these parts?
Scanning my eyes about, I stumbled in eye contact with Arthur. I quickly blushed, looking away to hide my sudden warmth. I waited a few moments, letting out a soft sigh, the original, pale color returning to my face. I then looked back up, feeling Arthur's eyes on me. Why, I didn't know. But earlier he did question my behavior. I shivered at the thought of Arthur finding out about my magic. I wouldn't want to put that kind of pressure on him.
"Your friend or family. You must choose, Arthur. I hope you will not disappoint me," Uther's voice would say in his stern, regal voice.
I blinked, trying to rid of the vision, cracking my knuckles to focus on the current event that was taking place.
"And-and then Arthur tried to pick it-it up and fell! It was hi-hilarious!" Gwaine broke into a chain of loud chuckles along with the rest of the knights.
My eyes traveled to Arthur, who was flustered from the embarrassing story. I trudged my horse over to him. "Hello, Arthur," I greeted. I then nodded to the conversation that was taking place a couple feet away from us. "Interesting story."
"Never said I was proud of it," he mumbled in reply. I chuckled at his antics, seeing a smile break out on the prince's face, a new light being brought to the conversation.
He looks better with a smile, I decided in my mind.
Hours passed, as the sun began to set in the sky, darkness stretching across our fields of vision.
"We shall make camp here for the night," Arthur suddenly demanded, looking about to see and determine that this small site would be alright. His eyes then fell to make contact with me. "Merlin, go collect some firewood. We'll be setting up the tents here."
"Yes, sire," I replied in a sarcastic manner. I then trudged off into the forest, searching for arid wood, my fingers crossed in my mind.

Arthur

As the knights and I finished setting up the tents, I saw Merlin from a distance, a bundle of sticks in his hands. To this day I still question how the man's able to carry that much weight with his body structure. His arms are practically twigs! I quickly shook my head in denial. No, I've seen muscle on him. He's not a complete idiot. My face suddenly flushed from the thought of seeing Merlin that way.
"Arthur," a voice suddenly departed me from my thoughts. I quickly spun my head, seeing both my knights and the other kingdom's sitting in a circle, warming their hands from the fire Merlin had recently lit.
"Would you like to join us?" Joseph asked, gesturing to their current positions with curious, hazel eyes.
I gave a tight smile, before making my way to join the company of my fellow friends, promptly sitting down to hear their conversation.
"We were just talking about Aeyland and how it was like," Elyan exclaimed. I nodded to his comment, letting the group continue.
The conversation about the kingdom took off. I just looked about—daydreaming almost. My mind was on replay with the look Merlin and I shared earlier. The way he blushed. Was it embarrassment? No, it was something else. I searched for the tone, wanting to know what that gesture had meant to me. I snuck a glance to Merlin, who was currently making rabbit soup, stirring the wooden spoon inside the pot. The smell was absolutely delectable.
"So tell us more about the royal family," Gwaine pushed. I joined back to the conversation, letting my thoughts sit for the time being, hearing everyone begin to talk.
Kylan smiled at Gwaine's antics. He cleared his throat, taking the lead to speak. "Although there was no young heir to the throne after the king and queen, it is rumored that there was a conceived child along the line of their ruling."
"Where are the parents now?" Leon asked with a soft tone, careful not to pull too many strings, staring to make sure Ayeland's knights weren't somber from his question.
"Dead," I mumbled aloud for the entire group to hear. I knew the knights didn't have the heart to answer Leon's question.
"How did they... pass?" Leon continued.
"Well, more like most likely dead. We're currently searching for them," Killian commented, absentmindedly pulling a loose strand of chocolate hair from his face.
"And if they're dead?" Elyan questioned in reply.
"Well..." Killian trailed off, letting someone else answer the question, that, he, at the moment didn't want to answer.
"Although the kingdom before Morgana's outrage was prosperous, drama still occurred," Kylan took the lead. "There were rumors that the King was on a trip of some sort. In a small village in another kingdom, he met a woman. Most people believed that they conceived a child there."
"Of course the Queen would demand the child's execution," Joseph continued. "The King decided to keep the child hidden."
"What was the King's name?" Percival asked.
"Balinor," Killian answered.
I shifted in my spot upon hearing the name. I had heard that name before. Known to be extremely powerful—with magic.
"He was a dragon lord," Merlin suddenly claimed, his new take in the conversation being present. "Did you have dragons in your kingdom?"
Kylan smiled with a warm stare. "A few. Not many since the Great Purge. Balinor was known to be the last dragon lord mankind had seen. Unless he has a child, the power that belongs to his bloodline is now extinct."
My eyes traveled to Merlin, whose breaths were labored, his face pale.
"Merlin? Are you alright?" I questioned with a concerned tone.
"Yes, I'm fine." His obvious lie bled through. He quickly served us our dinner, before excusing himself. The steam licked up, as it reached my nose. It smelled delicious.
My thoughts then traced back to Merlin. "I'm going to excuse myself too." I then got up, following Merlin.

Merlin

My heartbeat was thumping loudly against my chest. I walked briskly, my eyes darting wildly, hands twitching. Reaching a small stream, I decided to stick my hands in to sooth my thoughts. I sighed, moving my hands out of the water, a small scoopful of water now present in my grasp. I splashed the liquid across my face. Rubbing the soreness from my eyes, I closed them, not wanting judgement to cloud over.
Sitting there for a few minutes, I let nature speak to my ears. The stream softly dribbled over stone and other erosion. Birds off in the distance were blowing soft whistles. I exhaled a breath, falling back to let my head rest against the soft ground, my eyes wandering across the sky. The stars were prominent now. They shone bright, each bright dot of light a slightly different shade from each color, illuminating almost as bright as the moon. I breathed a smile, suddenly finding peace with myself, not wanting to leave this isolated paradise.
A crack of twigs and leaves then took place behind me. I quickly rolled over, scanning over the area for any intruder, my viens of ready use for magic. "Who's there?" I demanded. My thoughts stumbled a bit over of how regal my tone sounded. I pushed the thoughts away, heaving myself up, cautiously walking towards the noise. "Come out. Now."
The mysterious person then escaped from their hiding spot, stepping forward.
I lowered my stance. "Arthur?"

A/N: Oi that was chapter 3! This one is a little longer compared to the other chapters, so—uh—you're welcome? ANYWAY, it would be awesome if y'all would comment and vote on this story to let me know what I can do better, change; or just put a relatable comment in general. Like, "mY BBY DIED". Yeah, I would laugh at that. But more importantly, it shows that you enjoy the story. Anyway! Bye y'all!