Domus inter, p.17
Domus Inter, page 17
“Well, well,” I murmured. “Whatever next? Well, I’m sure it makes you feel very proud and special, knowing a lump of rock believes in you.” Arthur’s uncertain laugh was scandalized, so I quickly added, “It made a very good choice.”
I ended up regretting this, too, when it made Arthur blush slightly and beam like a little boy who’d scored his first goal. Good grief, I couldn’t say anything to the man.
Three weeks passed quickly. I spent most mornings with Rachel, exploring the city of Camelot from inside a sedan chair where I was propped up on pillows like an invalid while four strapping young men carried my sister and I around. Afternoons I spent in my room, getting educated by Merlin. He taught me more about the Hearts and the Bearers who had come before me. He taught me about Phailiana and its history and about Domus Inter. In the evenings, I dined with Arthur, Merlin, Sir Bedivere, his wife, Galahad and Rachel, and occasionally other nobles would join us, or there would be grand feasts in the huge hall with perhaps a hundred guests. Bedivere would occasionally mention my mother, his late wife, to me, but I never asked about her. Rachel thought this strange, but to me Lynette Lawson would always be Mum.
After dinner, I would sit with Arthur while he dealt with important matters of state and advise him in my role as True Bearer. Rachel found it ridiculous that he listened the advice of a teenage girl, and I was daunted at first, giving my advice hesitantly and uncertainly. But I started to feel a little more confident when Arthur told me that he had been just fifteen when he inherited the throne, so youth was no issue for him.
My arm slowly healed and, as my education with Merlin became less intensive, I decided that I wanted to learn the basics of defending myself. Both Galahad and Arthur had thought that I was joking at first. When I insisted that I was serious, Galahad was incredulous and started throwing a strop over it, but Arthur found the idea of a woman learning to fight amusing so he promised that both he and a reluctant Galahad would give me lessons. So from then on I started spending part of my afternoons with Arthur or Galahad in the castle courtyard, learning the basics of self defense. If I couldn’t do something because of my arm, then I still demanded that they demonstrate it until I could remember. It was during one such afternoon that I saved Arthur’s life.
I was standing in the middle of the courtyard with a practice sword. Arthur was circling me with a long wooden pole. His task was to attack me while all I had to do was stand there and block his attacks. If I’d had full use of both arms, I would’ve been pretty good. I was naturally pretty fast and flexible, after all. As it was, I got lightly smacked or poked by the pole often enough to make my limbs ache and put me in a foul mood.
“You are not at your best today,” said Arthur with a grin.
“I’m in pain,” I whined pitifully, raising my fake sword to knock away a blow. “I think I’ve had enough for now.” I lowered my sword before waiting for him to acknowledge my decision, and ended up paying for it.
Arthur’s wooden pole whistled through the air to smack into my bad arm. I cried out and dropped the sword, doubling over with pain and cursing under my breath. Arthur tossed his pole away and pulled me up straight, drawing me into his arms and holding me tightly. I gasped in a breath, my eyes rolling up to stare at the sky. I froze. There was man standing on a castle wall high above us, dressed like one of the castle guards. But he was holding a drawn bow, the arrow pointing straight at Arthur.
“Guinevere, I am so so-”
Without thinking, I threw my good arm around Arthur’s neck and spun us both around so that I was between him and the archer. I screamed again as pain exploded in my right shoulder. My vision started to swim and my legs were suddenly weak, but I barely noticed. I whirled around to the face the would-be assassin again, bringing my hands together in front of me. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. I suppose I was reacting on instinct, and that‘s why what I did next worked. My mind was blank yet completely focused as I moved my hands apart again slightly. A dark orange glow blossomed between my hands.
I shut my eyes. For a split second I had the disturbing sensation that every particle in my body was exploding. A split second later, it felt like ever particle in my body was imploding. When I opened my eyes, I felt relatively normal and I was standing on the castle wall, right in front of the man with the bow and arrow.
In the time it had taken me to do all this - whatever this was - the man had managed to fit a second arrow to his bow. I blinked at the arrow head then swayed to one side just before he released. My head whipped around to follow it. I sighed with relief as it struck the cobblestones next to Arthur. I must have put the archer off when I’d appeared right in front of him.
But his first arrow was in my shoulder and the pain was suddenly raging, making up for the few seconds I’d managed to block it out. Glaring at me with fury, the man shifted his grip on the bow and swung it at me as if it was a club. I staggered back then made a grab at the bow. My fingers curved around the stave and I clung desperately to it to keep from toppling backwards off the wall.
Other men were running towards us across the top of the wall now. I hoped they were real guards, and not impostors like the man in front of me had to be. The would-be assassin twisted around and tried to kick me in the stomach, but I had just enough presence of mind left to dodge and shove back on the bow at the same time. This was enough to unbalance him and he stumbled backwards off the wall, a raw scream tearing from his throat as he fell. I had to let go of the bow quickly to save myself from being dragged after him.
A guard reached my side just as my legs gave out on me. He caught me and held me carefully to avoid touching the arrow. I leaned all my weight against him gratefully, starting to cry from the pain. Another guard came to help him, grabbing my legs so that I was hanging between the two of them. I shut my eyes and concentrated on trying to block out the pain, but it was impossible.
When I opened my eyes again, I was lying on my front on my bed in my room. I could hear Arthur’s worried voice nearby and Merlin’s calmer tones. Arthur appeared in my vision, crouching down next to my bed. He had a mug in his hand and I recognised the smell of its contents with a sick feeling. More of the wretched pain killing stuff Jack had been keeping me dosed with. I snatched it from him and gulped it down as someone started to cut the back of my dress away.
“Merlin is just about to remove the arrow,” Arthur told me. “I am afraid it will hurt. But hopefully it will not have done too much damage. Your shoulder blade stopped it from going very dee-”
My scream cut him off as Merlin yanked the arrow from the back of my shoulder. I grabbed hold of my pillow, digging my nails into it as I curled up into a ball with a whimper.
“It does not look too bad,” murmured Merlin. I could feel him dabbing at my wound with a damp cloth.
“Really?” I snarled. “Well it flaming well feels bad!”
“I am sorry, my Lady. I was as careful as possible. I will just finish cleaning it, then I will bandage you up.”
I groaned and buried my face in my pillow, grimacing as Merlin continued with his work. At one point I heard Rachel’s frantic voice, but she was quickly hushed and shown from the room, for which I was grateful. I didn’t trust myself not to use inappropriate language if I had to talk.
The low murmur of conversation between Merlin and Arthur stopped, and when I looked up from my pillow, I saw that the old man had gone and that the king and I were alone. Arthur had pulled a chair close to the bed and he was sitting with elbows on knees, chin in hands.
“You scared me,” he whispered.
I snorted, probably not a wise response to the utterance of a king, but I wasn’t in the mood to tread on egg shells. “I scared myself.”
“You saved my life.”
“Yeah. Don’t know what I was thinking. Well, I wasn’t actually. Thinking, I mean.”
“What exactly did you do…out there?”
I thought back over what had happened. “I’m not…entirely sure. The orange glow was the True Heart, I think. I sort of…drew it out of myself. Summoned it. And then I…teleported. Flaming heck, I teleported! Good grief. That is just stupid. I haven’t a blasted clue how I did it.”
“You survived it. And you’re not mad.” It might have just been me being a bit paranoid, but I could have sworn that the last sentence had had a hint of a question about it.
“I am the True Bearer,” I reminded Arthur. “I guess that makes me a bit…special.”
He finally smiled. “You are very special indeed.” He reached out to take my hand and squeeze it gently. “I was planning on waiting another week and speaking with your father before I did this, but today has convinced me not to wait.”
I blinked at him groggily. The pain-killing drink was starting to kick in. “I’m…not quite…following.”
Arthur slid forward off of the chair so that he was on one knee beside my bed. He lifted my hand to his mouth and brushed his lips across the back of it. Despite the medicine, I was suddenly wide awake and my heart started to race. My mouth opened, but no words came out. All I could think was, NO!
“Lady Guinevere, it would honour me greatly if you would consent to become my wife and my queen.”
If I had been standing up, I probably would have fainted. As it was, I just stared at him with my mouth still open.
“Guinevere?”
“I… You…” I swallowed audibly then started again. “You have only known me a short time, and I’m only seventeen. And…y-you‘re a king and I‘m just some girl from another world.”
“And you’re also the True Bearer. What better match for a king?”
I felt my temper flare up slightly. “Is that all this is about?” I asked sharply. “Politics?”
Arthur’s eyes widened with surprise and he shook his head. “No! No, not at all,” he assured me hurriedly. “It is, of course, a good reason, but the main reason I ask for you to be mine is because I love you, Guinevere. And I believe you must feel the same way about me. You risked your own life to save mine today, after all.”
“In…the world where I grew up…seventeen would be a very young age to get married.”
Arthur stroked my cheek with one hand. “But that isn’t your world anymore. This is your world now and here it is perfectly normal for young women to take husbands at your age, or even younger.”
I had no idea what to say. “No” seemed out of the question when I stared into his hopeful, chocolaty eyes, and even more so when I remembered that this was the most powerful man in Avalon. But…I couldn’t get married! Could I? When I thought about it, the only valid reason to refuse was because of the whole stupid legend/prophecy thing, and I wasn’t about to let that dictate my actions, like Jack and his father had. Of course, there was also the fact that I did not love him in that way, but then I’d always been rather practical so this fact found itself being drowned out by several very valid reasons to accept.
Firstly, because he was the king and I was the True Bearer so it would be good politics. Secondly, he could take care of me better than any other man, and with him I would not want for anything. Thirdly, I was – like every other female who had ever set eyes on him, I dare say - attracted to him. These were all rather shallow motives, but there were other, deeper reasons. I couldn’t stand to hurt Arthur’s feelings and I…cared for him. Very deeply, even if I did not love him. As Arthur had said, I had risked my own life to save his, after all. And I had to make a life for myself here.
That would be impossible if I refused Arthur. Oh, he would never deliberately make life hard for me, of course. But things would just be impossibly awkward between us, no matter how hard we both tried. And it would get out somehow, that I had refused the king. These sorts of thing always do. Then there would be the snide comments from the nobles; the gossip of the servants; the sideways glances from the people on the streets.
“Yes,” I heard myself say hoarsely. “I…accept.”
Arthur grinned widely. He looked so overjoyed that I could feel my heart swelling just looking at him. He leaned forward to kiss my lips lightly.
“I will leave you to rest now, my love,” he told me, before bouncing upright and leaving the room.
I groaned and turned my face back into the pillow. What had I gotten myself into?
The next week flew by. Before I knew it, my sisters’ one month was up and I was standing in the castle courtyard with Rachel, Galahad and Arthur, waiting for Jack to return with Leona. I couldn’t stop fidgeting. I kept imagining how he would react to the news that Arthur and I were getting married, and it made me cringe every time. A sudden, childish urge to run away and hide made me giggle nervously at myself, drawing bemused stares from my companions.
To be honest, I was still wondering when and how I would react to it. So far it had all just been such a blur and the situation was so unreal that my mind didn’t seem to be registering it. I didn’t feel happy or nervous or anything.
I slid my arm through Arthur’s and clung to him anxiously as a group of riders clattered into the courtyard. I spotted Leona, riding a little dapple grey horse, and Jack on his sleek stallion. I didn’t recognise anyone else in the party. Slung over the backs of two of the horses in the group were a man and a woman, tied to their saddles and bound and gagged.
Leona waved at Rachel and I excitedly as she slid from her saddle. Rachel ran over to give her a hug, but I stayed where I was, my stance defiant and my eyes following Jack‘s every move. His expression was dark as his feet hit the ground and he tossed his reins to a servant, but there was something…different about him. I looked past the mask of bitterness and realised that he looked awful.
His eyes were heavily shadowed, his hair was a mess and he looked like he hadn’t shaved since I’d last seen him. He actually flinched when his green eyes came to rest on me, and I saw there was pain in them, which startled me. After Leona had finished hugging Rachel, she moved close to Jack and put her arm around his waist. I felt a spark of…what? Jealousy? I quickly pushed that thought out of my head and fixed a smile on my face as Leona and Jack approached us.
“It is good to have you back in Camelot, Lancelot,” said Arthur with a grin, reaching out to clasp arms with Jack.
“It is good to be back,” said Jack wearily, avoiding my gaze. He seemed unable to summon a smile of his own. “I only wish I could have brought Morgan and the Blood Heart back with us. All I have to give you is one of their common soldiers and a young Wielder, I am afraid. I am sorry I failed you, Arthur.”
Arthur laughed this apology off. “Nonsense! And besides, we have enough good news of our own, do we not, dearest Guinevere?”
Keeping my eyes on the ground, I smiled weakly and nodded.
“Guinevere thwarted an assassination attempt by taking an arrow to save my life,” Arthur said, nearly bursting with pride. “And she managed to transfer herself using the Heart with no ill effects! But most importantly of all, she has agreed to be my wife.”
I peeked up through my eyelashes to watch Jack’s reaction. He didn’t look surprised or any angrier than he had already looked.
Leona screamed then threw her arms around my neck. “Oh, my gosh! You’re getting married! My little sister’s getting married!”
I disentangled her arms from around me before she could choke me.
“You both have my congratulations and best wishes.” Jack’s voice was dull and flat.
Arthur finally seemed to realise that something wasn’t right. Frowning, he clapped one hand to Jack’s shoulder and shook him slightly. “Is something wrong, man?”
Jack merely shook his head, then he turned his troubled gaze on me. “How is your arm, my lady? And your arrow wound?”
“My arm is nearly healed, apparently, and my arrow wound isn’t bothering me too much anymore. Thanks for asking.”
“You will be ready to leave tomorrow?”
I nodded vaguely. “Yeah, sure.”
“I’ll see you in the morning then.” Jack inclined his head to Arthur and then took Leona by the hand and led her off into the castle.
I frowned at their backs and started to take a step after them before I remembered myself. “Rach, you had better go get ready for tomorrow,” I muttered to my sister.
She nodded happily and skipped after Leona and Jack while Arthur rubbed one hand comfortingly up and down my back.
“You are already missing your sisters,” he guessed - wrongly, as it happened.
I nodded then twisted my head around to kiss his jaw lightly. “And I will miss you while I am gone.”
Arthur smiled widely. “Then I will come with you, my love.”
“What? But…surely you shouldn’t leave Camelot? You are the king.”
He chuckled and mussed my hair with one hand. “Camelot can do without me for two weeks.”
“Well, if you’re sure. I will see you in a bit. I need to catch up with Leona.”
I moved away from Arthur quickly and hurried away to Leona’s room. On my way, I bumped into Jack. He pretended to ignore me, but I stepped in front of him, placing one hand on his chest to stop him.
“What do you want with me, Harry?” There was no anger in Jack’s voice. He sounded…tired.
“Have you been ill?” I demanded, although this wasn’t what I’d intended to ask him.
Jack laughed without humour. “No. Not ill.”
“Then what’s wrong with you? You look awful.”
“What’s it to you?” he snapped, the bitter anger I was used to flaring up suddenly.
“Oh, forgive me for being concerned about a fellow human being!” I took a deep breath in an effort to regain my calm. “You going back to your world then?” I asked in a more moderate tone.
