Shattered

The Beginning

Sorry if this one is messy, I didn't have a lot of time with thanksgiving and all to edit and revise. I'm literally posting this last minute on Sunday, but I'm still posting on Sunday, If barely😂. Thank you for getting this far if you have! I did not make the cover, it was created by candlebark on a deviant art page. This is the link to it, https://www.deviantart.com/tag/morgwen.

I eat with Morgana, and she looks at me.

"...Everything is forgotten, right?"

"Of course."

She nods, then goes back to eating. I sit there and think a little while back when Uther was still king and when Arthur hadn't even been knighted yet. 

"Remember when Uther kept on grounding Arthur, so Arthur snuck out?"

"Which time?"

"I don't know, it was one of the first times though."

"I think so, why?"

"He was caught in one of the pubs, singing a drinking song with two other guys shirtless."

Morgana laughs, nearly snorting the water out of her nose. "Yes, I remember that. I also remember when we brushed down the horses with his pillowcase."

I give a small giggle. "He had no clue."

We both laugh and then finish dinner, giving it to the guards, who clean up. Morgana leads me to one of the halls, where there are craters everywhere.

"This is where I am going to teach you magic."

"What? I don't think I can be taught magic. I won't be very good at it."

"You'll be a natural. There has always been magic in you Gwen."

"That's ridiculous."

"Your father... When he died..... He had been working with sorcerers. That sorcerer was your Uncle, on your mom's side. She was a sorceress. She used magic to give birth to you and was executed for it. Your uncle blamed your father... and you."

"But it's never manifested in any way."

"Well, it's not going to. You have to unlock it."

"How?"

"Well, mine manifested on its own, but that's because I was a seer. You aren't, you're a sorceress."

"So I have to figure mine out by myself."

"Well, not by yourself." Morgana smiles. "Okay, so I'm going to start by just teaching you spells. The magic inside you should simply unlock."

I nod as she teaches me the first spell. Time after time after time I fail, until I don't. We had been working on a spell to create illusions from memories. Mine wasn't as strong as it should be, not realistic enough, just basic outlines of shapes in glowing lines. I say the word, and out comes a strong memory, one I had kept with me every day everything looked so real like you could touch it and interact with the memory. 

Morgana was brushing her hair on her bed, while I hemmed one of her dresses on a chair. Merlin had saved Arthur from a sorceress dressed as one of the king's favorite singers a few days prior, and the castle was still abuzz about it.

"Guinevere, do you know any lullabies?"

"Only a few, some my Father used to sing to me and Elyan."

"Could you sing it?"

"Of course."

I look up, trying to remember the lyrics.

"The world crumbles, and the light goes out. But through the dark I stumble, searching for your sound. The walls crack and splinter, as I reach out for you."

I hear her voice as she sings along, and it seems to drown out mine, rich and pleasant. "And all through the winter, your hand guides me true. And as I fall deep into the ocean, your gentle voice drives me clear. A simple motion, a simple sound. And you're here, singing with me. Singing with me."

I look at her as she finished the song. She smiles shyly.

"That was amazing, Morgana. Your voice reminds me of my father's when he sang to us."

"Great to know I sound like a man."

I laugh, flustered. "That's not what I meant."

She laughs, sounding carefree and happy. "I know. Hopefully, the lullaby will help me sleep."

She tucks herself into the covers and faces me.

"Do you want me to leave? I can finish the mending in the morning."

"No, you're fine. Stay until you finish I need someone to talk to."

The memory fades as I fight a tear about to slide down my face. That was before she left. When she still cared. Morgana looks at me.

"You still remember that?" She asks. "I thought you had forgotten. Thought you would have wanted to get rid of all your good memories of me."

"Why would I want to do that? Memories were all I had left."

"Not anymore," She says and gives me a hug. I hug her back, happy for a second.

"What else can I do?"

"Well, that was a pretty difficult spell, so let's try something a little easier and see if you can master it."

I nod, and we get to work.

Eventually, we leave, and I head back to the dungeons. "Where are you going?" Morgana asks.

"To the dungeons..."

"We have guest chambers!"

"Oh."

"You didn't think you'd be staying in the dungeons did you?"

"I mean, I guess..."

Morgana laughs and grabs me by the arm.

"Come on..." She leads me to the guest wing. "This castle was built quite strangely so the guest wing is directly next to the royalty wing. I will be right down the hall if you need anything and my knights are always at your service." She gives me a quick hug. "I missed you. Night!" She calls, turning the corner into the royal wing. I stand there, dumbstruck for a second, then turn into my bedroom. I summon a ball of light, something I had learned to do earlier, and walk into the room. It was surprisingly clean, and the bed was made. I set the candles on fire and get rid of my magic light. The bed is against the wall farthest from the door, there is a counter, a bedside table, a wardrobe, and a dressing table. I walk over to the closet and am not surprised to see no clothes in it. I get into the bed and pull the sheets almost all the way up. It's surprisingly warm and comfortable. It reminded me of home when I was a kid. Dad and Elyan were running around. Now, dad was killed by Uther, and Elyan had been killed while fending off a creature in Camelot. I could still remember his funeral. Arthur had simply stared at the fire. All the knights of the round table simply stared, sad. Merlin put his arm around me, a comforting gesture of a friend who had always been there. And then Merlin had left. He had been for me when my brother died but not when Lancelot had. I press myself against the wall, the blankets suddenly no longer cold, only to hear a voice on the other side of the wall. It was Morganas. Her wing was right next to mine, and we shared a wall.

"I should have lent her some clothes, I'm an idiot......"

I giggle a little, happy Morgana was thinking about me. I close my eyes hoping sleep comes. I feel a center of peace radiating around me. My magic had always been missing, but now it was there, and I could feel it. It gave me peace and helped me drift off to sleep.