KIT AWOKE BENEATH MORGANA, with Chalice's back to his arm. Giselle had her head on his thigh, and Selene had her face buried in the princess's stomach, sound asleep. Eurion had the most personal space of all of them, draped over Chalice's side, head resting on her crossed arms. Kit didn't want to leave this position. It felt nice, to lay at peace with those closest to him.
He couldn't stay there forever, though. His stomach grumbled loudly, making Morgana stir, and Chalice turned to look at him, already awake, apparently.
"I bet they've got food out there already," they told him in a quiet voice so as not to wake the others.
Kit ran his hands over his face, then gestured vaguely to Morgana and Giselle preventing him from getting up. Chalice gave him a knowing grin, then brought their fingers to Eurion's inky black hair, stroking it away from her face. The thief murmured to herself before her eyes fluttered open, looking sleeping at Chalice.
Kit hated to wake the others up, but his stomach was aching in hunger. He brought a hand to Morgana's back, tracing shape up his spine, caressing his hair with his other hand. The faery twitched, but didn't yet wake up. "Morgana," he whispered. "I need to get up."
Morgana groaned, but he didn't move. Kit rolled his eyes and pushed himself up into a sitting position, turning Giselle's head and dumping Morgana off of his lap and properly waking him up this time. The princess didn't budge.
"Sorry," Kit said, pushing Morgana's messy hair out of his face.
Morgana gave him a sleepy smile and leaned forward, laying his head on his shoulder.
"Oh, come on," he muttered. "Morgana, I can't get up when you lay on me."
Morgana laced his arms around Kit's middle. "Don't get up, then," he said.
So he didn't. Kit sat there for several minutes, stomach turning in its emptiness, until Morgana finally sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
"Morning," Kit told him.
Morgana yawned, revealing his lightly pointed canines. "Morning. Has he come yet?"
Kit shook his head. "I don't think so. We should eat, though, in case he does."
Chalice and Eurion were already out by the time Kit and Morgana got to their feet, and they left Selene and Giselle to hold each other until they woke up. Kit closed the door quietly behind him, then took Morgana's arm, leading him to the center of the village, where the smell of delicious pie filled his senses. Kit inhaled his own in a matter of minutes, while Morgana took his time.
"Heavens, Kit," Morgana said as Kit finished. "Take a moment to breathe."
"What? I was hungry."
"So am I, and I still have manners."
Kit rolled his eyes. "Whatever." He brought his fingers up to his long hair then, raking through the strands of black and white as Morgana ate. "Can I braid it for you?"
Morgana gave him a sidelong glance. "Do you know how to braid?"
"Of course I do, I'm not an animal." His mother taught him young, and when they would stay up until the late hours of the night talking, he would put her hair into intricate, decorative braids. He liked his hair shorter, though, so when she passed, he fell out of the habit.
Morgana moved so he was sitting on the ground in front of Kit, resting between his knees. "Nothing too fancy."
Kit chuckled. "Of course not."
Morgana's hair was impossibly long, it reached past his waist, giving him a lot to work with. He focused first on pulling the hair out of his face, save for a rebellious strand of white that refused to behave. Two braids turned into one long, simple braid twisting down Morgana's back. It took him long enough that the faery had finally finished his food by the time he was done.
He reached back to feel the braid, pulling it over his shoulder to examine Kit's work. "You didn't mess it up, nice," he said.
Kit frowned.
"I'm saying you did a good job, idiot." Morgana kissed his cheek as he stood, then gathered their plates, returning them to where they got them. He still walked with a limp, but he managed to stay standing, so Kit didn't bother to help him this time. He knew Morgana well enough to know that he liked to do things for himself when he could.
"What now?" Kit asked when Morgana returned.
The faery shrugged, but he got distracted by something over Kit's shoulder. He turned to find Selene and Giselle emerging from the cottage, dressed in their armor. It made Kit feel naked, he hadn't yet put his own on, and neither had Morgana. There was no sign of Mordred, though, so he didn't stress himself so much. The sky was overcast, but it was a gentle gray, not the dark, heavy clouds that always brought with them something terrible.
"Good morning," Giselle said gently as she passed the two of them. She looked at Morgana as she always did, as if she hadn't been mad at him the day before. Maybe she was trying to be good to him, in case this all went wrong. Kit hated it, the perpetual feeling that today might be their last, and the need to make it worth it.
He saw Sera next, following Lionel out of another house. Kit met her eyes, but she looked away from him.
Morgana nudged his side. "Hey, we should probably--"
Something slammed against the ground, cutting the faery off mid-sentence, sending dirt and rocks into Kit's face. He threw up an arm to shield himself as another came, closer this time. He looked around, but he found nothing there. The small craters in the ground told him they were not alone, though, that something was coming for them.
Another one hit, but Morgana pulled him away just before it could knock him back. "Come on," the faery said. "We've got to arm ourselves."
They were followed with more strikes as they rushed into the cottage. It wasn't a very sturdy building, but it would hold long enough for them to wrestle into their armor and fill their belts with weapons. The house shook as it was attacked, sand and rock falling from the ceiling and onto the two of them. They moved as quickly as they could, but the foundation was weak, and the walls cracked as Kit was working on a boot.
Morgana took his hand, pulling him out right before half of the cottage caved in where they were standing moments ago, blowing dust and rocks and splinters of wood towards them. The faery stood in front of Kit as he finished strapping up his boot, shielding him from the hits. As soon as he was ready, Kit stood, pulling Excalibur from his belt.
He stepped towards the direction of the hits, squinting, trying his best to see who was there. He thought he might've seen someone in the distance, but he was caught off guard by something shooting towards him. Morgana caught it midair before it could hit him, panting as he looked up at Kit. It was an arrow, alight with blue sparks. Mordred.
"That was hot," Kit said breathlessly, and Morgana rolled his eyes.
"Focus, Kit."
He smirked. "I am."
"On the battle."
"Right."
He was ready for the next attack. He held up his shield in time to catch three arrows. He and Morgana moved forward, the faery holding his bow at the ready, Kit clutching Excalibur tightly. They could see them then, emerging from the line of trees that shielded Fells from the rest of the world, bringing with them a trail of thick, black smoke. Kit could feel it in his chest, heavy and suffocating, as Connor and his men flooded the village. Somehow, he had come about a new army, infinitely larger than Kit had been anticipating.
Shit.
Conan was on Connor's right, a rather disappointing replacement for Lord Herwerde. Most of the original Knights were gone, but he stuck around like a stain, to the displeasure of all of them, but particularly Selene. The King did not bother to waste his time, and his men came through the trees, shooting arrows and swinging their swords.
Morgana shot three arrows at a time with terrifying precision, and Kit remembered with a jolt that he was once an assassin. Attempted assassin, really, but even before then, he'd been a soldier. He managed to keep his footing as he fought, but Kit never left his side, just in case.
He swung Excalibur at the onslaught of men, but even as he and Morgana took down several at a time, they were still severely outnumbered. The druids attempted to slow them, but they were not great at fighting otherwise, and the soldiers managed to overwhelm them.
"We're gonna need that light, Kit," Morgana called over his shoulder.
Kit was struggling, trying to conjure up the power as he was bombarded with knives and swords and arrows. One nearly got to his exposed face, but Morgana stopped the soldier with a heavy burst of energy that knocked Kit back, but he kept himself upright while the soldiers fell to the ground.
Morgana took his arm then, pulling him away from the fray as soon as they had the chance and taking cover behind a building. "What's going on?"
"What do you mean, 'what's going on'? There's a thousand soldiers in his army and there's about a hundred of us. We can't fight them all and Mordred all at once." Kit peered around the wall, checking on the scene before Morgana pulled him back.
"That's not what I'm asking about," he said. "Where is that power? You're usually glowing by now, but you're not. Something's wrong."
"Well, I didn't glow before," Kit told him. "Maybe I'm normal again."
Morgana shook his head. "No. You're not normal, and you never will be." The faery tore off his leather glove and placed his hand on Kit's cheek. "Take from me until you can get your power back."
"I can't," Kit protested, gripping his wrist. "You need your strength."
"I have enough to keep you alive. Take it, please. I'm not weak like I used to be, I'm a Queen, for heaven's sake."
Kit slumped back in compliance, then let go out Morgana. "Fine. But don't give me more than you have to."
"I won't."
Morgana leaned in then, pressing their foreheads together. Kit could feel the warmth of his magic spreading through his body, flaring up in the shoulder that Morgana once burned completely with his power. Kit hadn't felt a thing in that shoulder in a long time, but now, he could feel a familiar flame, ice cold and scorching hot all at once. As soon as Morgana was done, he pulled back and rose to his feet, offering a hand to Kit.
"You look better already," he told Kit. "Now, come on. We've got a battle to win."
Moving was easier now, and every strike he delivered hit harder, stronger, deadlier. It was hardly useful, though. The soldiers were knocking down homes, throwing people into the piles of rubble, wounding some and even killing others. There were too many, and even as Kit struggled to reach his friends in an attempt to protect them, he was caught by more men, holding him back. He was already growing tired, and his grip on Excalibur was weakening.
The world went still when he saw Sera in the distance, bending at odd angles as she shot light from her fists, knocking down the men around her and Lionel. But they were surrounding her, and a sword cut through her side. He couldn't hear her cry, but he saw the pain in her face as she fell to her knees.
Kit could feel it, then, that warm glow spreading over his body. Excalibur blazed in his hand, and he tore through the crowd until he was at Sera's side, pulling her into his lap. Lionel stood before them, deflecting every attack sent their way, but he continued to look back at his mother in fear.
Sera shook her head at the boy. "Focus, Lionel! I'll be alright!" She looked up at Kit, panting, and then said, in a quieter voice, "I hope. This hurts like a bitch."
"Morgana can help you," he said. "Or Giselle. If I can find one of them, I--"
"No," Sera panted. "No. Just take me somewhere hidden, I'll heal myself."
"Are you sure?"
She nodded, and Kit helped her up, sheathing Excalibur and using his shield to block hits as he pulled Sera around behind a wall.
"Thank you," she groaned. When Kit hesitated, she waved him away. "Go. I'll be fine, just go fight."
Kit nodded, apprehensive as he stepped away, but he did as he was told, facing the battle once again. He ran towards the fight, eager to help his friends, but a large flash of lightning struck down before him, stopping him in place. His stomach tied into knots, and his heart jumped to his throat.
Thunder erupted in the sky, hard enough to shake the ground, and the sky darkened, rain beginning to fall over the village. A bright flash behind Kit caught his attention, and he turned to find a dark figure standing before him, arms outstretched. Clouds swirled around the silhouette, and as soon as they dispersed, a man stood before him, tall, dark, and evil.
He still looked like Crane, though the gray in his hair had been replaced by a deep, raven black, and two long horns jutted out from his head. His eyes were blazing red, and what once was permanent stubble became a neatly-trimmed beard. His teeth were sharp and the tips of his fingers were as black as the night, giving way to dark veins that curled up his arms.
"At long last," Mordred bellowed, eyes falling onto Kit. His voice shook him to his core, dark, deep, hollow.
The sky crackled above their heads, and the prince was already soaked by the pouring rain, but that was not why he was trembling. Mordred's grin sent chills up his spine, and Kit's hand rested on the sword at his hip.
"Did you miss me?"