Doing it Over

Can You Help Him?

            "Daddy!" Arthur screamed as he saw his father fall to the ground. He jumped out from his hiding place and a  over. He dropped down next to his father and shook Uther's shoulder.

            "Daddy, get up!" he cried, his vision blurred by his tears, "Daddy, please!" This couldn't be happening, it was just like his nightmare. He looked up and noticed one of the bandits had seen him and was making his way over.

            "Daddy get up," Arthur shook his father's shoulder again, "Daddy please! He's coming!" But Uther didn't move and the man was now looming over Arthur. The bandit raised his sword and Arthur squeezed his eyes shut, putting his hands over his head as if that would protect him. But the blow never came. He looked up and saw the man seemed to be frozen in place. Arthur looked around and saw everything appeared to be frozen except for him.

            "Hello Arthur," a voice behind him said and he turned suddenly to see a man standing behind him.

            "I know you," Arthur said, "You're the man from the other night at Gaius'."

            "I am," the man walked forward, "My name is Salvatore."

            "What do you want?" Arthur asked.

            "I think the real question is: what do you want?" Salvatore said.

            "What do you mean?" Arthur questioned, confused.

            "You father is hurt," Salvatore went on as if he hadn't heard Arthur.

            "Can you help him?" Arthur asked immediately, turning to keep his eyes on Salvatore who was walking around them to stand on Uther's other side.

            "I can," Salvatore said, "If you really want me to."

            "Why wouldn't I want you to?" Arthur asked.

            "You don't know this now, but your father is not a good man," Salvatore said.

            "Yes he is," Arthur defended, "He's the bestest daddy in all of Camelot!"

            "Not in your future," Salvatore told him, "In your future he is cruel and is not the man you think he is. He hates magic and it overtakes his mind and changes him. And that is why I changed you."

            "What do you mean?" Arthur asked.

            "Not you have a choice to make," Salvatore said, once again ignoring Arthur's question, "I can heal him if you really want me to, but there is the risk that he will still turn out to be a cruel man. Or I can leave him."

            "But if you leave him he'll die," Arthur said quietly.

            "He will," Salvatore nodded, "So you have a choice to make Arthur." Arthur stared at his father for a moment before looking up at Salvatore.

            "Fix him," Arthur said.

            "Are you certain that's what you want?" Salvatore asked.

            "Fix him," Arthur repeated. Salvatore nodded, murmured a few words, and Arthur saw his father's wound start glow. He watched in amazement as his father stopped bleeding and smiled widely. But the smile soon turned to a look of confused as the magic moved from his father to himself. It swirled around Arthur and when it finally disappeared, so did Salvatore. Arthur looked around, but the strange man was nowhere to be found. He looked back at his father when he heard him groan and watched as his father's eyelids fluttered open.

            "Daddy!" Arthur cried and Uther sat up just in time for Arthur to jump into his arms.

            "Arthur, are you alright?" Uther asked, holding his son tightly.

            "I'm okay daddy," Arthur mumbled, tightening his hold on his father.

            "Sire!" someone shouted and Uther saw Sir Leon and the rest of the knights galloping towards them.

            "Sire what happened?" Sir Leon asked, getting off his horse and rushing over to them.

            "I'm not sure," Uther admitted, "I just woke up and..."

            "Salvatore made the bandits go away," Arthur said and they all looked at him.

            "Salvatore?" Sir Leon said, exchanging a look with the king, "What did he do?"

            "He said he could fix daddy if I wanted him to cause daddy was hurt so I asked him to fix him. He did his magic and made daddy better and then he did magic on me, but I don't know why. Then he disappeared and the bandits were gone!"

            "Spread out!" Sir Leon said, "See if he's still here!" The knights made to move, but Uther stopped them.

            "Wait," he said and they turned to look at him, "We need to return to Camelot. I do not want Arthur out here if those bandits come back."

            "Yes sire," Sir Leon said and then gestured for the knights to mount their horses again. They rode off for Camelot's walls, not noticing the smiling figure waiting in the shadows.