The Once and Future Heir

Chapter 4

"Merlin?" asked the stunned king, making his way over to the door.

The young man standing at the door smiled widely. "That would be me, yes."

Arthur laughed. "Merlin! You little bum, where have you been for the past seventeen years?"

Merlin shrugged. "Oh, you know, places. Ealdor, the woods..." he trailed off.

"Ealdor, you say? Well, would you happen to know this young girl? She says that she is from there," Arthur said, motioning towards Alex.

Merlin studied her for a minute. Slowly, he nodded. "Yes, I've seen her. She just happens to be my little sister, though I didn't recognize her in this new attire," he said slowly, pointing to her castle clothes.

A look in Merlin's eyes told Alex to just go with it and not argue. She gave him the slightest nod before turning to the king, who was now looking at her with surprise. Queen Guinevere stood and made her way to the group of old friends. "You may go," she said, dismissing the knights who were still sitting at the round table. Once they were gone, Gwen looked at Merlin, then Alex, then back to Merlin.

"You don't look like siblings," she noted.

Alex panicked but was saved by Merlin's quick thinking. "She's not my sister by blood. Her parents abandoned her and my mom raised her as my sister."

Arthur nodded in understanding. "Well. Good to know. Anyways we have bigger matters, unfortunately, than welcoming home our old friend."

He beckoned them to follow. Gaius stopped Merlin and pulled him into a tight hug. "I've missed you, my boy. There is so much we need to discuss," he whispered. Merlin nodded in understanding.

After each of them took a chair on the table, Arthur swept his arm over the map. "This is Camelot. This map shows all of the outer cities and towns. It also shows neighboring kingdoms and the easiest route from here to there."

"Arthur. I have important news," Merlin interrupted. "Last night, some of your men came to my home under the direction of an outsider. He had a northern accent, and was dressed in lots of furs. They were looking for the princess."

Arthur nodded. "It seems that the same man you saw is declaring war on Camelot this very moment."

Merlin sat back in his chair, defeated. Gaius, who decided to sit next to him, put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Alex looked anxious, earning the attention of Queen Guinevere. "Is something wrong, Alexandria?"

Alex looked up. "Those are the same men that came to my camp a few weeks back when I first started out on the journey here."

An audible sigh chorused throughout the room. "They really won't stop at anything to find the heir. Lucky for us, we have another one coming," Arthur said.

Gwen smiled as everyone gasped. Alex beamed. The only one who didn't look surprised was Gaius, who must have known all along. "Gwen! Your pregnant?" Merlin asked excitedly.

She nodded, smiling even more when Merlin started cheering, along with Alex and Gaius. "This might help our situation out until we find the missing princess. As long as Camelot has an heir, the neighboring kingdoms can't attack us," Alex reasoned.

Arthur was about to say something when someone burst through the doors. "Your Majesty, people are flooding the square. Should we continue to let them through?"

Arthur sighed. "I'll come and have a look. Gwen, would you like to come with me?"

The beautiful queen nodded and stood up slowly. She looked around and grinned. "Thank you all for your help. It's late. You should get some rest."

With that, Gwen and Arthur left the room, hand in hand, to go to supervise the steady flow of people that was coming into the gates of Camelot.

About an hour later, Alex found herself snuggled deep into the familiar covers from the night before. She could hear the two men talking in the room next to her, but she couldn't hear what they were saying.

She tried to listen, but it was too tiring. Against her will, her bright blue eyes drooped, eventually closing and started the night with a dream of magic and storms.

"Are we going to tell them that Alex really is the heir to Camelot?" Merlin whispered.

Gaius shook his head. "Not now. I fear that if they find out that she has magic AND is the lost princess, they will execute her and pretend they never found her."

Merlin frowned. "But why? Why would they kill their own daughter? That doesn't sound like them."

Gaius shrugged. "It's possible. Arthur tried for so long to kill Morgana and is likely to kill Alex of he finds out. Its best to wait until the right time."

Merlin peered through the small window, making sure nobody was listening.

"Can she know?"

This question made the older man think. After a few minutes, he shook his head. "Not the wisest choice. We will tell her when she is ready. Knowing that you are destined for greatness is a little overwhelming."

He looked at Merlin meaningfully. The young warlock seemed to understand. With a yawn, he made his way over to his cot set up in the corner by Alex's door.
Gaius watched as he curled up on the hard rock floor. He heard his tired voice rise from the bundle of blankets.

"G'night, Gaius. Thank you for taking care of Alex for me. It means a lot."

A few minutes later, Merlin's soft snores echoed throughout the room, making the old physician smile. Gaius shuffled over to Merlin and ran his fingers through his soft black hair and smiled in a fatherly way.

"Goodnight nephew."

Sorry it's a little shorter than the others. I need more ideas for more chapters and book ideas. All comments appreciated! Thanks!
-Hammie