chapter forty-six!
046. far longer than forever

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    THEY HAVE been riding all night and well into the morning without stopping. No matter Merlin and Ronyn's objections, and urgency to persuade Arthur to let them▬and the horses▬to have a rest, he did not oblige. He had dived into the waters and they had no means to reel him back in. They switched between ongoing canters and gallops down the roads towards the Mercian border, braving the chill in the air and the dangers known to dwell within these woods. Even when Merlin was sure Arthur was just as tired as they were, he did not even slow down once. They often had to race in order to catch up, sharing questing looks at Arthur's rigid, stern and silent determination. 

    Merlin was growing tired and frustrated. He wanted to save Odette more than anything, but there was no way any of them would be able to complete this journey and get out of it alive if they could barely keep their eyes open. Merlin knew his dear friend was on borrowed time. He knew that they had to make it to her as soon as possible. He knew how much Odette meant to him, to Ronyn and to Arthur▬

    And yet, perhaps he did not. Because Merlin was growing incredibly curious at Arthur's unrelenting stubbornness. He seemed even more desperate to reach Odette than Merlin was, and it took him by surprise. Merlin has never seen him act like this over anyone before. 

    Arthur was going against direct orders from his father. He was threatening war, his life and his future kingdom. He is threatening so much not because someone else asked him to▬not because Morgana begged. This was Arthur's quest, and he was leading it. He was going into the fire to save the life of a serving girl. Risking his life for a servant. Because while to many others Odette meant very little; was lost and forgotten, to Arthur, she seemed to be the only thing on his mind. It was making him reckless and desperate. 

    No, Merlin has never seen him like this before.

    They continued riding without stopping until the sun rose above the trees▬leaving away from dawn and into mid-morning. The only reason they briefly stopped was because Merlin became so exhausted, he drifted asleep on his horse and fell right off his saddle.

    He didn't realise until he hit the ground and heard the distressed cry of his gelding. Merlin frowned, glancing at the ferns near his cheeks and felt the rough forest bed under his shoulders. It took him a moment to comprehend, yawning and rubbing at his eyes▬his back was starting to ache. His eyes wandered upwards and saw Ronyn hovering over him, pulling his horse to a stop to stare, taken aback. 

    Merlin stared up at him. "What happened?" he asked groggily. 

    His horse threw his head to the side, furious at being startled.   

    Arthur was still riding and nearly left them there until he realised they were no longer behind him. He pulled his horse around and stared, furious at the sight of Merlin lying in the ferns. "What are you doing, Merlin?" he let out and trotted back over. 

    Merlin frowned, trying to figure that out as well.

    "He fell off his saddle, Arthur," Ronyn spoke for him, veering his horse forwards. "Because he fell asleep▬we have been riding all night and all morning. Merlin's exhausted▬I am exhausted."

    Arthur slowed his horse to a stop and soon Merlin was shadowed by both him and Ronyn. The Prince stared down at his manservant, not impressed. Merlin slumped, "I am exhausted," he murmured and as soon as his head hit the forest bed again ... Merlin closed his eyes ... "I can barely keep my eyes open..." He is exhausted. Rest sounded good. Even just for a few minutes▬

    He jolted awake when he felt ice-cold water hit his cheeks. Merlin gasped and his eyes snapped open. Quickly realising what happened, he scowled flatly up at Arthur who screwed back on the cap of his waterskin. "Thank you," he grumbled sarcastically. "I feel so much better."

    Arthur stuffed his waterskin back into his saddle bag. He glowered at both of them. "Odette's life is at stake," he said angrily. "We cannot afford to waste even a second." He spun his horse back around and started off down the track once more. 

    Ronyn sighed. "Arthur," he muttered. He pushed his horse to a trot in order to catch up as Merlin struggled to get back onto his feet again. When the Prince did not slow down, he set his jaw. "Arthur▬stop."

    His friend slowed down, annoyed. Ronyn ignored his temper and terrible mood and veered his gelding in close beside him. As Merlin attempted to climb back up onto his saddle and failed, landing in a heap on the bed of fallen leaves, Ronyn murmured to the Prince: "Arthur, we want to reach Odette as much as you do."

    Arthur set his jaw and looked away, scowling at the path ahead. Ronyn's shoulders slumped. He sighed again. "Look, you are my dear friend. I would follow you to exhaustion if you asked me, and you know that. But ... But we have a better chance at bringing Odette home if we are well-rested. She has a better chance if you are well-rested. We cannot get to her if we do not have our horses or our right minds."

    He could tell the Prince knew he was right but did not want to admit it. He clenched his reins tightly. Ronyn pursed his lips. "We are going to bring her home, Arthur," he promised his childhood friend. "But we need to rest."

    Ronyn watched Arthur frown to himself. Then, he glanced up at the morning sun through the treetops. He took a deep breath and clenched his jaw. "We stop for an hour," he decided before leading his horse off the road. "No more. I will keep watch."

    The Lord Vecentia's gaze followed him, concerned, but he did not say another word. 

    They set up a quick camp a few ways away from the main road, tethering their horses to the trees and setting their backs up against thick trunks. Merlin and Ronyn were fast asleep in seconds, pressed up against the same tree. It didn't start like that, but Arthur▬who could not sleep even if he tried▬watched as Ronyn slowly slid down and leant up against Merlin's arm without even realising. They looked ridiculously similar to how they had fallen asleep in the grain resources underneath Camelot during the famine and drought. Ronyn couldn't sleep without being near someone else▬he always was trying to protect somebody, even when he was not awake. 

    Arthur sat not far from them, keeping himself awake with a splash of his water to his cheeks. He took a deep breath and sighed, running his hands down his face afterwards. 

    He could not sleep. He could not even consider the thought. Not when Odette was out there, alone and afraid▬in danger and captured by ruthless bandits. He could not sleep when he imagined all the terrible things she could be facing▬all the terrible things they could be doing to her; could have already done.

    Arthur could not sleep with the thought that she was most likely dead. That he was chasing after a ghost. 

    He could not even bear it. 

    He made a promise to her that he would declare war against the setting sun for her. Arthur had made it in the heat of his emotions after the tournament, but he meant it true. Whether it be dress-ups, childish quests inside the castle walls or playing cards, he would do anything for Odette. He would do anything to see her smile, to see her happy, to see her safe. If she had always been the Princess in their games and he was the Knight, it had been his duty to protect her. Arthur always felt the need to protect Odette. 

    And now he was at war against the setting sun. Against every setting sun from now on until Arthur found her again▬and he knew she would be watching each sunrise, hoping that her freedom would follow with it. 

    Odette and her damned sunrise. Arthur cursed it and he wished for it. He searched for it in times of trouble▬he searched for that hope, now; for some sign that she was still alive. 

    When all the sun gave him was an inch towards the next hour, Arthur stood up angrily and went to refill his skin at the nearby stream. When he returned, he happily poured half it right down onto Merlin and Ronyn snoring against the tree. 

    They woke up with a start. Ronyn jumped and fell sideways, spluttering and wiping water out of his eyes. Merlin wasn't so lucky, he coughed and waved his hands as if trying to swim for a second until he woke up. "Ah▬oh! What's happening? What▬?"

    Arthur capped his waterskin and stepped away, letting the two of them wake up as he prepared his horse for another long ride. As he did, Merlin slowly sat up, wiping water out of his eyes. "Oh, how long was I asleep for?"

    "Not long enough," grumbled Ronyn, groaning to himself as he rolled over and pushed himself onto his knees. 

    "Yes, long enough," corrected Arthur, tying his waterskin to his saddle once more. 

    Merlin frowned at him as he sat up. He watched him run his hand along his horse's neck. "Did you get some rest?"

    Arthur set his jaw. He didn't meet Merlin's gaze. He tugged his gloves with a curt: "I could not sleep."

    His manservant sighed and he knew he was eyeing him with that annoying breath of suspicion. Ronyn, too. They both watched him in silence and Arthur gritted his teeth, wanting to throw something at the both of them. He didn't know why he dragged them along. He knew this would happen. Merlin and Ronyn had the tendency to make him furious and exasperated all at the same time. He should have gone alone. If he had gone alone, maybe he would have made it halfway there by now. 

     Merlin pulled his blanket off and started to roll it back up. He eyed Arthur for a moment longer. "I have never seen you like this..." he decided to say. Arthur gave an annoyed tug to his saddle as he prepared it for the long trip ahead. Merlin wasn't deterred. He just leaned forward from where he sat and added: "About anyone."

    The Prince checked his saddle bag was secure. "What are you talking about?" he grumbled, not in the mood for this. 

    "Odette," said Merlin. He arched a brow. 

    Arthur froze. He hated that he did because he knew Merlin took that as his reason for whatever he was thinking. The Prince set his jaw and locked stares with Ronyn who▬after he finished shaking the water out of his hair like he was some hound▬made his way over to his horse as well. His friend just gave him a knowing look he did not appreciate. Arthur fixed his scowl on Merlin. "What about Odette?"

    Smug that he figured out Arthur's secret, Merlin tilted his head with a slight smirk. "You ... you really care about her, don't you?"

    The Prince took a sharp breath through his nose and stepped away from his saddle bag to move onto his bedroll. He double-checked how he had strapped it to the saddle. "I knew her when we were children. She was incredibly annoying," he stated in a matter-of-fact tone. "That is all. She is Morgana's handmaiden, Merlin. What you are insinuating is inappropriate."

    "Is fretting over making her dinner just that? Is not being able to sleep because she is in danger just that?"

    Arthur's glower was something ferocious. It made Merlin purse his lips. "What I care about, Merlin," he sneered as he untethered his horse and pulled himself up onto the saddle, "is not wasting any more time talking. Let's get moving."

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    THE CELL was freezing cold. It was cold, it was damp and it was dark. Odette shivered as she huddled in the corner of the bleak dungeon, her knees to her chest at the edge of the bed and Morgana's cloak wrapped tightly around her. Odette could barely sleep. She was starving; she felt her stomach roll and twist in on itself. She did not even close her eyes once during the night, afraid that Hengist or someone would enter her cell and kill her while she slept. She nibbled on the bread they gave her in the end▬but it was like she was eating something that was made out of rocks. But then again, stale and burnt bread was one thing she was familiar with. 

    She stifled her cries, not wanting anyone to hear her. Odette sniffled, remembering the sight of that man being eaten alive by the Wilddeoren and she felt sick all over again. She didn't think she could ever sleep again after she witnessed that▬for all she would see was the way the creature mauled him; hear his screams and the sounds of his bones crunching and snapping. All she could think about was when that was going to be her▬how long will Hengist wait for a ransom that will never come?

    Odette hugged her legs closer to her, holding Morgana's cloak tight around her body. She wiped her tears away with the fabric, her eyes sore and heavy. 

    She always thought she was brave and daring. That she'd run head-first into a closed door in hopes of breaking it down. Now, she realised the truth. She was terrified. Odette has never been more terrified in her life. And it made her feel like she was a coward. She was not brave at all. 

    Here she was, locked in a cell, forced to impersonate her mistress because she was terrified of dying▬only to know she will end up dead anyway. Odette has never felt lower and more pathetic than she does now. 

    She was so lost in her thoughts that she did not hear the footsteps echo from the corridor right above her cell. She did not comprehend the shadow or the scuffed boots as someone crouched down to glance through the small vent. She didn't see him until she heard the sound of his voice. He whispered: "Odette."

    She glanced upwards and her breath hitched slightly to see Lancelot. When she met his gorgeous brown gaze, he managed a small smile▬almost relieved to see that she was still here. Odette let the cloak drop from her shoulders and she stood up on the bed in the cell, rising on her toes to reach the vent where Lancelot crouched waiting. Her fingers grasped onto the small gaps in the iron and at first, she did not say a word. She just stared at him, still shocked that he was here.   

    At last, Odette managed to whisper his name with the same delicacy she used to. "Lancelot..."

    And he smiled to hear it. He shuffled closer, his fingers resting near her own. "I could not believe my eyes when I saw it was you," he murmured, his eyes taking in every feature of her face and her hair▬as if he wanted to memorise every little thing about her, just in case this was not real. 

    "I thought my mind was deceiving me," she admitted, gazing at him in very much the same way. Except, Odette seemed to focus on all that was different about him and desperately searched for what was the same. 

    Lancelot glanced behind him briefly before dropping his voice even lower. "Why does Hengist think you are Lady Morgana?" he asked her.

    She pursed her lips. She checked over her shoulder as well. She shuffled closer to the stone and the iron vent. "He believes he is holding Morgana to ransom," she explained in a very soft voice. Odette pursed her lips. "When no ransom is paid he will realise the truth and ..." her voice caught with fear. She swallowed it down. "And then he will throw me to those beasts."

    Lancelot shook his head. His fingers reached up and held onto the iron vent right on top of hers. Her eyes widened and she stared at where their touch met; his fingers were rough and dirty with grime, but they were warm. "I will not allow that to happen," he told her. 

    Odette's met his gaze again. She held her breath for a moment, trying to not let herself get lost in the warmth his eyes held▬that has not changed, she realised. "What are you doing here?" she couldn't help but ask, slightly confused. The Lancelot she knew ... She could never imagine him in a place like this. A man who was so honourable, noble and selfless. A true Knight. "Are ..." she feared the answer, "... are you one of Hengist's men?"

    He pursed his lips. He hesitated in his answer. "No."

    "Then...?" she tilted her head, watching him carefully.

    Lancelot sighed. His thumb gently brushed over her fingers and she found herself blushing. "After I left Camelot ... I realised there are few opportunities for men like me. So, I have been earning a living the only way that I know▬With a sword in my hand. It seems it is my destiny to entertain men like Hengist."

    "No," Odette refused to agree with that. "No, I do not believe that of you. It is your destiny to become a Knight▬the noblest Knight of them all."

    Lancelot breathed a little smile when he heard her say that▬as if he was glad that there was something about her, as well, that had not changed since. "You and I both know that only men of nobility can become Knights. My pathway led me to be banished. That is not my destiny."

    Her brows lifted, taken aback by the defeat in his tone. That was not the Lancelot she knew, either. It took her by surprise▬and it sent an ache in her heart to see him so lost and alone. Lancelot▬dear, noble and honourable Lancelot. Her Lancelot who did not make her search for hope and faith, but for the first time gave it to her. He had been her faith without a sunrise. She had never met someone so like herself until she met Lancelot. And now she was hearing him so void of it ... it was not right. "Why would you say that?" she asked him, her voice tender. "You were so full of hope."

    He sighed once more. He glanced down before admitting sadly: "I was wrong. The world is not like that."

    Odette shook her head again. She found herself threading her fingers through the iron grate to rest on top of his and the movement made his eyes dart upwards to hers. "There is hope. I still see it in you. I refuse to accept it is gone."

    He stayed locked within her gaze as his own became something very soft and gentle. He glanced at their fingers and once more began to brush his thumb, delicate, across her skin. He looked at her. "I have thought of you often," he murmured and then he smiled. "Have you thought of me at all?"

    A lot of things went through Odette's mind at this moment. The memories of old feelings resurfacing and sending her cheeks a pretty rose colour▬but also the thought of someone else. Her Prince with his golden hair and bright blue eyes. Of the kisses they shared since Lancelot had left, and whom she believed would never return. Arthur, Odette heard his name in her mind▬speaking in a different way than Lancelot's. Arthur, who would fight the setting sun for her, even if she was just a servant. But she was just a servant. He gave her a lot of hope for the future he will bring, but she could never have a future to experience such things with him. She could not hope for that. Even for her, that was impossible. 

    And yet it still made her hesitate. It still made her words hold back on the edge of her tongue as she tried to find how she wanted to answer Lancelot's question. Because maybe Odette has not thought of him as often as she once had been determined to do. In the end, she replied: "I thought our farewell was forever▬and that pained me in ways I never could describe."

     "But here I am," smiled Lancelot.

      Odette managed a soft smile of her own. She nodded. "Here you are."

     When she heard a door open down the dungeon hallway, her breath hitched. She glanced over her shoulder and her eyes widened▬she could hear the heavy footsteps that belonged to one person she was sure of.

    "Quick, you must go," Odette urged Lancelot to leave. "He is coming."

    But before he left her, Lancelot made a promise: "No matter what it takes, I will find a way to get you out of here." He nodded, determined. "I will."

    With that said, he made sure to leave her alone quickly before anyone would see. Odette took a deep breath and stepped off the bed, clenching her hands behind her back and setting her jaw as she stood in the centre of the cell. She watched the dungeon door unlock and slowly open. Odette forced herself to lift her chin and square her shoulders when Hengist stepped inside. 

    He came to a stop just inside the threshold of the dungeon door. The Bandit King eyed her in silence and she clenched her hands harder, refusing to let herself show how terrified she was. 

    Hengist hummed, musing for a brief second before finally speaking. "I have not yet received word from Uther that he intends to pay your ransom." He took a few steps forward. Odette forced herself to stay where she was. She clenched her jaw. "I was informed that the King was ... extremely fond of his ward." He narrowed his eyes at her. "Are you not surprised he is content to leave you here to die?"

    Odette swallowed the bile in her throat. She took a sharp breath through her nose. "How can I know the King's mind when I am locked in your stinking cell?" she seethed. "Perhaps he is sending the Knights of Camelot instead." 

    "And risk a war with the King of Mercia?"

    "As you said, he is extremely fond."

    Hengist set his jaw. He did not appreciate the way she was talking back to him. He took another threatening step forward. "If I do not hear from Uther by dawn tomorrow, this stinking cell will be the last place you ever see."

    He then marched out of the dungeon, laughing as he did. As soon as the door slammed closed, Odette let out a trembling breath. Her knees quivered and she fell back down to sit on the bed, sick with fear.

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    THEY CONTINUED riding for another hour and a half. The sun was nearly reaching the centre of the sky when Arthur stopped. He scowled at something in the distance, and Ronyn noticed the white-tipped mountains over the tips of the trees and across the valley. Across those mountains, would be the border between Camelot and Mercia. Either they would have to go over them and risk their lives, or wrap around them and waste more than a day's riding▬time which Odette did not have. However, the Prince of Camelot did not let this hinder him. In fact, he dismounted and had them tether their horses once more▬as if preparing them to take the rest of the journey on foot. 

    There was a plan in Arthur's mind. Ronyn could see it dwell in the depths of his gaze as he frowned at the valley down below. As Merlin tethered his horse, the Prince pulled his map out from his saddle bag. He frowned at the parchment as he made his way over to his companions. 

    "The ransom was supposed to be delivered to the Veil of Denaria," said the Prince. Together, they wandered past the edge of the dense woodland to the very edge of the slope that would take them down into the valley. "If they are holding Odette anywhere, it has to be there▬" he pointed at the location on his map. "Which means, we could save a day's riding if we cut through the ..." Arthur set his jaw and looked upwards as they stopped at the very edge of the slope. "The Tunnels of Andor."

    Ronyn realised where he had taken them. His eyes widened and he stared down into the steep valley where at the foot of the rocky upward slope were the gaping entrances to three, ominous caverns. Almost immediately, he grabbed his dear friend's shoulder and whispered. "No▬No!" He stepped backwards slightly, a desperate fear crawling up through Lord Vecentia's chest. "No, you are not taking me through that. Are you insane?"

    "We do not have any other choice," grumbled Arthur, though even he stiffened at the shoulders. He stared down the Tunnels of Andor with a hitched breath▬even the Prince was frightened of what lied within them.

    Merlin was blissfully ignorant. However, he recognised the looks and reactions the two of them held. He groaned. "Oh, no. Oh, no▬" he shook his head, glancing between the Prince and the Lord Vecentia. "I know those faces▬I am not going to like this, am I? What is in the tunnels?"

    Arthur took a deep breath and rolled up his map. Not looking at his servant, he quickly muttered: "They are infested with Wilddeoren."

    Merlin stared at him, horrified. "What▬what are Wilddeoren?"

    Ronyn held up his hands. "They are like giant▬" he stopped at the terrified look on the manservant's face. He pursed his lips and brought his hands in closer, "▬baby rats."

    Merlin frowned, incredulous. He scoffed out a light chuckle. "Baby rats?" His face broke out into a grin, delighted at the thought of his two friends being terrified of something so ridiculous. "They do not sound so bad▬"

    "They feast on human flesh," Arthur cut him off.

    Merlin paused. Then he nodded and gazed upwards. "Maybe we should go over the mountains."

    Ronyn nodded. "Yes, I think going over the mountains is a fantastic idea. Arthur?" He glanced around for the Prince, only to find him pushing past them towards the bushes at the edge of the forest. Ronyn frowned. "Arthur?" He grew curious.

    Arthur crouched down in front of the leaves and marvelled at what he had found. He quickly picked the fruit off from the branches and immediately smeared the berries onto his cheeks. They stained his skin a ruby red. 

    Merlin shared an estranged glance with Ronyn. "Er▬What are you doing?"

    "Wilddeoren are completely blind," explained Arthur as he smeared more wild berries onto his cheeks and nose. "They hunt by sense of smell. Gaia berries will put them off the scent."

     Ronyn and Merlin exchanged another look. In the end, Ronyn found himself walking over to one of the bushes and picking off some of the berries for himself. He held them up against the light as Arthur continued: "So, if we smear ourselves with them, perhaps we can pass through the tunnels undetected."

    The Lord Vecentia awkwardly squashed the berries in his fingers and with a disgusted look over at Merlin, went to wipe it onto his cheeks. Immediately, he was met with a putrid smell. "Urgh!" He stumbled backwards, pulling his hands away. "Oh, that is horrible! They stink like a dirty horse stall!" He coughed and kept his nose upwards and away▬but the smell did not leave him. "Oh, I think I am going to be sick they are so bad. Why would you make me do this?"

    Arthur scowled at his friend. He watched his dramatics with little amusement. "Perhaps you would prefer to be eaten alive, Ronyn?"

    Ronyn froze. He glanced over at Arthur and then back down at his stained fingers. In a split-second change of demeanour, he walked over to his friend. "Would you be kind enough to pass me some more?"

    He held out his hand. Arthur snatched some berries and smacked them on Ronyn's face instead. "Hey▬!"

    With their faces covered in pinkish-red and putrid-smelling Gaia berry seeds, the Prince, his manservant and the Lord Vecentia descended down into the deep, winding and dark Tunnels of Andor. Arthur led the way with a flaming torch he had made from a fallen branch and dry leaves, his heart pounding with a bravery that outmatched his fear. But there was more than his pride that fuelled his courage. Each step that the young Prince took, was consumed with the thought of the young lady waiting for him on the other end of these tunnels. He was marching through the midnight shadows to fight for the sunrise. She, with her delightful smiles, wonderful laughter, bright innocence and virtue▬Odette was more of an honourable and noble lady than any woman of the court. She was brave, and she was adventurous▬she annoyed him but he could not deny any longer how, in truth, she never annoyed him at all. 

     They continued to descend deeper into the caverns. The silence that surrounded them was perhaps worse than the screeches of Wilddereon. At every step and every whistle of the wind through the caves, Arthur hitched his breath and expected a vicious creature to wrap around the edge. 

    Merlin and Ronyn were even worse. Arthur gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw each time he heard a suppressed gasp from his manservant and a hushed: "What was that?" from his best friend. For someone who has fought mythical beasts, gone to war at Arthur's side and fought his own war against his father, Ronyn was ... well, hopeless. Put him beside Merlin who was equally▬if not even more▬hopeless, and Arthur knew they were going to die before they reached Odette in time. When they were children, Odette always called Ronyn a bumbling poet▬and she was very accurate in that description. 

    Arthur huffed a frustrated breath when Merlin stumbled behind him. He hitched back a terrified cry: "Oh! I just stood on something!"

    The Prince clenched his grip around his torch. He grumbled: "That was my foot."

    "Oh," Merlin flushed, embarrassed, "sorry."

    Ronyn did step on something in the next few paces. He grimaced to feel something crunch underfoot. When he moved his torch down to see what it was, he felt sick to find it to be a ribcage. 

    Arthur led the group of them further and further through the tunnels, hoping that they might make it through to the other end without coming face to face with a Wilddeoren once. He held his torch out in front of him, and it illuminated a dark, copper glow through jagged rock and twisted crevices. 

     Merlin hovered close behind him. "How much further is it?" he asked in a hushed tone.

    "Shh," Arthur snapped. Wilddeoren were blind, but they were far from being deaf. 

    And as if Merlin's voice shattered their good luck like he shattered anything else he got his clumsy hands on, a high-pitched screech echoed in the darkness in front of them. The three of them froze. 

     Arthur eyed where the tunnel split off into two more twisting channels▬the moment he saw a shadow flicker in the light of his torch, he reacted. He threw his torch down onto the ground and snatched Ronyn and Merlin's with it. He stamped the flames out into the damp cavern rock. As soon as they were basked in darkness, he grabbed Merlin's arm and pulled him along. Ronyn followed. 

    They ducked to hide in the shadows behind a ledge of jagged rock. Arthur carefully held up his sword, ready to move if he needed to. He kept rigid still, he did not even take a breath. To his friends, he warned in a whisper: "Whatever happens, keep completely still..."

    From the tunnel on the right, claws scraped the rock▬seconds later, one of the ugliest (if not the ugliest) beasts known to man snivelled its way into the open. A Wilddeoren was a hairless creature, with a head way too large for its skinny, wrinkled limbs▬but muscles bulged from its hind legs, allowing it to pounce with more speed and agility than any beast its size. Its large, sharp tusks could rip the flesh off a man's bones with the jaw strength to crush his bones. Because of its blindness, a Wilddeoren had the nose of a hound and a boar; large, upturned and disgusting to look at. 

     Arthur grew tense as the beast turned its hairless head in their direction. It screeched softly, catching the scent of something nearby. Arthur could not move an inch▬he could not do a thing as the Wilddeoren clawed closer. He tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword but dared not make a move. If he killed this beast, the sound would alert the others inside these caverns, and they'd be dead. 

    All he, Ronyn and Merlin could do was hold their breaths and do their best to stay as still as statues. The creature stopped right above them and lowered its snotty nose towards them. Merlin's eyes widened, and he did everything in his power to not flinch as the Wilddeoren's nose hovered right in front of his face. He clenched his eyes shut, and beside him, Ronyn couldn't help but make a face of disgust as slobber and snot dripped down from the beast onto Merlin's nose and cheeks. 

    Remarkably, Merlin stayed still. 

    After a long few seconds, the beast finally stepped back. Satisfied in finding nothing, it screeched and turned around, continuing through the dark caverns. Soon, it was out of sight. 

    Merlin let out a breath, his head slumping in relief. 

    They pushed on through the Tunnels of Andor. Soon, the light of the afternoon bore into the dark caves from the outside, where a river stream became their pathway towards the border of Mercia. Arthur took another deep breath of determination▬upstream, Odette was waiting for him. He was getting closer to her; and for the first time, he believed he had a chance at making it to the Vale of Denaria before nightfall. 

    After walking for a little while longer, Arthur stopped by the stream to refill his water skin and clean his face. He sighed and dropped down, splashing the cool stream against his skin. Now that they were free of the terrors that were the Tunnels of Andor, he couldn't help but marvel at his genius. He picked away at the seeds on his cheeks, flicking them off his fingertips and into the water. Ronyn and Merlin joined him. Ronyn looked ecstatic to be free of the horrible smell of Gaia berries at last.

    Arthur chuckled to himself as they did, wiping off the berry juice from his cheeks with a slight grin. "Gaia berries worked, huh ..." he mused, proud of himself.

     Merlin's head lifted from the river's edge where he had been thoroughly washing off any trace of Wilddeoren snot and slobber. He slowly turned to glance at Arthur beside him. "You did not know if they worked?" he let out. 

     Arthur shook his head, scrubbing his hair briefly to get any remaining seeds out of it. "Not for sure, no."

    As he stood up, both Merlin and Ronyn stared at him as though he had gone mad. The Lord Vecentia wiped the water from his face and stood up as well, if not a little bit angry. "What do you mean▬you were not sure?"

    "It was a decision I made under consideration," said Arthur, not bothered by his reaction. 

    "What consideration?" exclaimed Ronyn in a soft, but exasperated voice. "You just went for the berries▬you did not think at all."

     "I did think," the Prince argued, starting to not appreciate his friend's frown. "It does not matter, now, anyway. We made it through."

     "It does not matter?" Merlin exploded, standing up as well. He scoffed, throwing his hands up in frustration. "Now you tell us?" He gestured his hands wildly as he continued: "'Oh, what's that Wilddeoren eating? It is all right, it is just Merlin and Ronyn.'"

     Arthur couldn't help it. Somehow, Merlin's flabbergasted look and tone made amusement rise up from his chest to replace his annoyance. A chuckle escaped Arthur's lips before he could stop it▬and deep down, he appreciated Merlin's ability to make him laugh when he was so tense. 

    His manservant flung up his hands once more. "Are you trying to get us all killed?!"

    The Prince sighed. Still fighting back a smile at his servant's dramatics▬feeling a touch of endearment about his young, boyish ways like he might look upon a younger brother. "I am sorry," Arthur admitted, glancing at both his friends in turn. Ronyn sighed, but his anger slipped away. "I should not have risked your lives like that."

     Merlin nodded. He propped his hands on his hips, satisfied with this answer. He looked ridiculous. 

    Arthur tugged his gloves back on now that he had wiped his hands dry on his tunic beneath his chainmail. As he did, Merlin pursed his lips. He watched him, curious. Then, he glanced briefly at Ronyn▬all-knowing. The Lord frowned, perplexed. At last, Merlin sighed out a breath, looked down at his feet and acting as nonchalantly as he could, he murmured: "Well ... they do say love ..." he looked up and eyed Arthur knowingly, "... makes you do strange things."

    The Prince wondered whether Merlin somehow inhaled too much Gaia berry stench. He frowned at him. "What are you talking about?"

    Merlin just grinned at him, a little sly. "Why can you not just admit your feelings for Odette?"

    Arthur felt a twist in his chest. He forced a scoff from his lips and shook his head. He turned away from Merlin, not wanting to hear it. He clenched his hands, taking a sharp breath through his nose and trying his best not to react. But he could not help it▬even just Odette's name made his heart clench with worry; a terrible, aching worry. He had no idea how Merlin got the idea that anything had happened, but now that he seemed to believe it, Arthur needed to convince him otherwise. He couldn't let anyone know. Not Merlin, not Ronyn▬and most importantly, never his father. 

    Merlin didn't seem to understand the severity of this. He let out a chuckle, shaking his head as he watched Arthur turn away. "It is so obvious," he told him. "A blind man could see it!"

    Ronyn pursed his lips and glanced at the manservant. "Merlin..." he tried to say, knowing it best for him to stop as the Prince set his jaw and angrily sheathed his blade at his hip. 

    But Merlin was not giving up. He chuckled once again, shrugging at Arthur's behaviour with a breath of amusement. "Is it really that hard to admit you care for her? Just say it▬"

    "I can't!" Arthur twisted on his feet to glower at his manservant. Merlin held his breath, taken aback by his reaction. The smile on his face slowly fell. Beside him, Ronyn frowned down at his shoes. 

    Heaving an angry breath, the Prince fumed out everything he had forced down▬every feeling and every desperate ache contained deep within his chest in one exhale: "How can I admit that I think about her all the time? Or that ... I have always cared about her▬more than anyone. How can I admit that ..." Arthur's voice trailed off. He felt his chest cave in with a painful sadness▬and he hated how much it hurt, more than any battle wound. He sighed and shook his head. "How can I admit that I do not know what would become of me if any harm comes to her?"

    Merlin realised. Arthur chewed on his anger and looked away once again, hating the look of pity on his manservant's face. He will not be pitied by his manservant, of all people▬he will not be pitied by Ronyn who sighed down at his shoes. He will not be pitied, because then Arthur will pity himself, and as soon as that happens, he knows he will never be able to recover. 

    His manservant hesitated but then asked: "Why can't you?"

    Arthur threw out his hands. "Because nothing can ever happen between us!" he snapped. He slumped and he could not hide the defeated sigh that escaped his lips. He had promised Odette he would fight the setting sun, but he had already lost. She had been right. "To admit my feelings knowing that ..." He clenched his jaw, "... it hurts too much."

    Neither the Prince nor the servant noticed the way Lord Vecentia continued to frown at his feet; he had his own sadness weighed down in his chest and on his shoulders. He thought of a handmaiden▬the humble daughter of a blacksmith back home in Camelot ... Ronyn understood the pain the Prince felt; he understood it very much. 

    "Who is to say nothing can happen?" said Merlin. 

    "My father will not let me rescue a servant," Arthur shot him a stern look. "Do you honestly believe he would let me marry one?"

    Both Merlin and Ronyn blanched at this: "You want to marry Odette?!" they exclaimed in equal shock.

    "No!" Arthur threw up his hand, his heart suddenly racing at the confession he had made▬he was shocked at how easily it slipped out. "No▬no▬" he gritted his teeth and let out a frustrated sound, "▬I do not know!"

    In seeing how worked up Arthur was getting, Merlin sighed and took a step back. He held up his hands in surrender, allowing the Prince to sigh and take a breath to calm down. 

    A short silence settled between the three of them. Arthur swallowed the pain that climbed up his throat. At last, he muttered: "It is all talk. And that is all it can ever be."

     Merlin refused to believe this. Maybe he was hopeful. Or maybe he could see how much Arthur cared about Odette▬how deep down, he had always seen it. He has never seen Arthur like this before about anyone else before. And Merlin knew that deep down, Odette was out there, feeling exactly the same way. They had a connection▬and it was something special. He refused to believe that something like that could never come to be. 

    Determined, Merlin told Arthur: "When you are King, you can change that."

    The Prince scoffed sadly to himself. He shook his head. A bitterness expanded in his chest. "You and I both know how Odette is," he muttered. Merlin and Ronyn pursed their lips. "She would not believe anything could be changed," he sighed sadly, "... not for herself."

    Ronyn felt a new feeling settle deep within him. That weight he held lifted with something that he might almost describe as hope. If Arthur felt something for Odette▬if he one day changed the rules for her when he was King ... that meant that perhaps there could be a day (a sunrise) where Ronyn and Guinevere could be, too. 

    He took a careful breath. "Perhaps ... Perhaps she needs someone to hope for her instead? Perhaps Odette needs you to fight for her, Arthur. To show her that things could change."

    Arthur looked down at his hands. His brows were knitted together as he tried to keep himself without any vulnerability. "I cannot expect Odette to wait for me."

    But Merlin only smiled. He walked up to Arthur. "If she feels as you do, Odette will wait for you. Deep down, she will. I know it."

    The Prince glanced up. He met his servant's gaze, and the sure belief Merlin held that perhaps maybe, one day, there could be a future where Arthur could be with Odette made him want to believe it, too. He set his jaw and mumbled: "We do not even know if she is still alive..."

    "No, she is," said Merlin. He refused to believe there was any chance it could be the opposite. "We will find her."

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    "ODETTE."

    When she heard the sound of his voice, whispering her name through the small grate above her cell, Odette would admit she felt some breath of joy. She glanced upwards, huddled in this cold and damp dungeon in Morgana's cloak▬she had not moved from her spot, terrified for the moment Hengist would return. But when she heard his voice and saw his face smile down at her in relief, Odette found herself with the ability to move.

    She took a deep breath, wiped away some of her tears and stood up on the bed. The day had passed onto afternoon, and still, there was no word from Uther▬nor did she expect there to be. But as the day passed on, the hours crept closer and closer to dawn tomorrow ... and Odette realised that she might never see the sunrise one last time ever again. 

    Odette lifted herself up onto her toes, her fingers finding the iron bars of the grate to look right back into Lancelot's dear brown gaze. She knew she must look horrible. She was tired, she was hungry, and she had been crying for longer than she wished to admit▬now, she was worried she could not cry any more. Her head was heavy; she was exhausted, but she was too scared to sleep. Yet still, she managed to whisper his name, delicate from her lips. "Lancelot." She offered him a tired smile.

    The once noble Knight shuffled closer towards the vent, his calloused fingers grasping the iron. "I was terrified I might find your cell empty."

    She pursed her lips and hung her head. "Hengist has given me until dawn tomorrow," she told Lancelot. "But there has been no word from Uther▬there will be no word from him..." Odette took a shaky breath and forced herself to stay brave, but she could not. "I▬I am scared, Lancelot," she admitted. "Hengist is growing suspicious▬"

    "You must keep up the pretence," said Lancelot, his voice quiet but also urgent. Odette shook her head, pressing her lips together to stop them from trembling. "You must," he added at her reaction. "I will not allow you to die here," he promised her. 

     The young handmaiden glanced up again, meeting the once Knight's tender stare. She managed to find some strength within them▬as if Lancelot was giving her her own coat of armour. He will not allow her to die here, and the way he said it made Odette wish to believe it. In this dark and gloomy dungeon, she could understand why Lancelot was without hope▬because she, too, felt little for her future. But she managed to find a fragment of it still there, inside him, because he passed it right onto her. 

    Odette's fingers lifted up to hold onto the iron grate as well. "What about you?" she asked him. 

    Lancelot hesitated. He sighed and his fingers dropped from the iron. "I have ..." In a murmur, he admitted the truth: "I have little to live for."

    She frowned, shocked by these words. Odette's breath hitched, feeling something in her heart twist painfully to hear such a thing from Lancelot's lips. "What?" she whispered. "No," she stopped his fingers from leaving, her own brushing against them so they would stay▬Lancleot's eyes widened and he glanced back up, taken by her touch. "No, Lancelot, do not say that."

    He rested his forehead against the iron grate. "It is the truth," he lamented. "For all my words, for all that I believed, my dear lady ... I have come to nothing."

    "No, no," she refused to think that was true. Odette found herself leaning in to rest her forehead against the grate as well▬unable to meet his, barely touching ... the iron the only thing keeping them apart. She took a shaky breath full of emotion. "Lancelot, please, your words and your beliefs ..." Odette pulled away to meet his gaze once more. "They are what make you so wonderful. They make you honourable, noble, and so very selfless. Do not let the world take such beautiful things away from you. You make this world beautiful."

    Lancelot was taken aback. He did not speak for a moment, just watching Odette who let out a soft breath as if she just realised what she had said▬and how much she meant it. A soft blush dusted her pretty cheeks. She stared as Lancelot gently slipped his fingers through the iron grate to brush across hers▬and her breath hitched. 

    A little smile jugged at Lancelot's lips. "I ..." he held a sudden boyish look about him▬a delightful gleam in his eye; a little nervous, but so wonderful. "I did not know you felt that way."

    Odette felt her brows knit, confused by her own words and what she had said. Did she feel such a way about Lancelot still? Was her confession exactly that? Words she meant true to her heart? Was Lancelot▬sweet, noble Lancelot▬that Knight in her dreams that rode away from the castle window with his cloak drifting in the wind? A fantasy she never believed could ever be true to someone like her ... a life just like the poets and the fairytales. Is that what she felt? The sweet flutters in her heart the moment Lancelot smiled and made her feel like she was a princess ... is that what she felt about him? Is that what she always felt? Is that what she should feel?

    Could she feel that▬have that?

    Is Lancelot her Knight in shining armour who will give her all of that and more? Is that what her heart has decided for her?

    And yet ... Why was she confused by such things?

    She knew why, of course. Because just as she pondered the question, there he was in her mind. Arthur. And just his name took away all of those fluttery feelings and replaced them with a warmth so hot it was like a fire. But Odette knew that if she got too close to the fire, she would get burnt. 

    Arthur was her fire ... she knew better than to let herself be consumed by it, and then to be left there to ashes▬a consequence and pain she knew she would not be able to escape no matter a promise he might make. This whole time, he was her fantasy. He was a Prince. Odette could never be with a Prince, no matter what happened behind closed doors. They had their sunrise ... they will never find another one. 

    Odette had to let Arthur go. 

    And Lancelot. Oh, sweet, sweet, beautiful Lancelot with that smile and those warm brown eyes; her Lancelot who thought of her as a Lady even without a silk dress. Odette could be happy with him. She could have a future with him. A man who was so much like herself ... 

    For once in her life, Odette wanted to be given something. She wanted something for herself. Happiness. Odette wanted to be happy. 

    Her gaze softened and she matched his little smile, so soft and delicate. "I ... I never knew I could feel this way about someone," admitted Odette in a gentle whisper. 

    Lancelot's smile brightened. He brushed his fingers along hers. "Then you, My Lady, have given me a reason to live."

    Her smile brightened as well, filled with naive happiness that lifted the cold and damp air inside her cell. "Then where will we go?" she asked him, giddy. "Where will we ride off to when the sun sets?"

    Lancelot chuckled. "We will ride off to wherever you wish, sweet Odette. As long as I am with you, I know I will be happy wherever we go."

    Odette beamed, blushing with a gorgeous swell of her heart. She nodded, very happy with this agreement▬this promise. A life of happiness, wherever it will take them. 

     "Be ready," Lancelot told her, taking a serious tone when he heard footsteps down the corridor. "I will come for you before nightfall."

    He gave her one last smile before he had to leave. Odette watched him go for a few moments even after he was gone, filled with hope once more. 

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     a/n: it's super important for odette's development that she has this plot with lancelot. 

     like the reasons odette chooses lancelot in this moment aren't exactly of true intentions. she's motivated by the fear she has over her feelings for arthur, and the fact that she believes that nothing will happen. but she's almost persuading herself to think that what she feels for lancelot is better. that will make her happy and is the right thing to do. she's trying to make convince herself that. and the real naive, innocent and childish sort of reactions and exchanges between odette and lancelot really reflect how odette is really sort of projecting a fairytale onto all of this. she is creating more to something that doesn't have much foundation. it's puppy love - but not even that. 

      and then in contrast to odette and arthur, you'll find it is more grounded and it is more intense. it is more real. it burns and it leaves metaphorical marks on her skin. it consumes her thoughts, and she has to fight it to convince herself that she should instead feel something for lancelot. 

     i think you guys understand what i mean, and you'll obviously see the differences between odette and lancelot, and odette and arthur (if you haven't already) and see how while odette thinks she has chosen lancelot in this ... deep down, she really hasn't. 

     anyway, i hope you guys have enjoyed this chapter.

     arthur's outburst >>>>>

     just arthur >>>>

    (minimal editing)