In the early morning Gaius was sitting at the desk and studying one of his books, from time to time giving Merlin instructions for the potion his apprentice was preparing.
"Add some nightshade, but just a little," said Gaius, glancing up from the book at Merlin.
"Right, it's done," said the warlock after a moment, shaking the vial slightly to mix the tincture. He handed it to Gaius and waited for his opinion.
"Well, the colour is right," the physician stated and sniffed the substance. "Almost perfect, you're learning."
"Thank you, Gaius," he smiled.
There was a knock on the door chambers and Gaius didn't even have time to say 'come in' when it opened and Arthur peered inside.
"Am I disturbing you?" he asked.
"Not at all, my lord," the physician replied and the king came in.
"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?" Arthur smiled and walked over to his friend. "Sun is shining and it's warm, there's no way there's gonna be a storm. Could you prepare the horses, Merlin?"
Gaius and Merlin exchanged confused glances.
"Are you all right?" the warlock asked.
"I'm perfectly fine, but I'm afraid it won't be like that soon."
"Why is that? Where're we going?"
"To the tavern," the king replied and turned to leave.
Merlin shrugged his shoulders. "Seems I gotta go."
"Did I get it right that Arthur is taking you to the tavern?" Gaius looked at him in surprise.
"I think it's about a bet with Gwaine," he said.
"Then you will have some entertainment," the physician stated.
"Yeah, for sure. See you later," said Merlin and headed to the stables.
There Gwaine was waiting for him, who helped him prepare his horse, and then the king's chestnut horse, and as soon as Arthur joined them, they went on their way. They were riding through the fields and, like the king said, it was a nice and warm day of the late summer. They wore normal, casual clothes with nothing that could indicate that they were from Camelot; and Merlin of course, as usual, was in his recognisable outfit with a blue neckerchief. They rode like this for less than half a day, with breaks, until they finally stopped their stallions on the moorland hill from where there was a view on the village called Howden to which led a path through the forest.
"There's an inn on the way," said Gwaine.
"Indeed," Arthur chuckled. "We're nearly there, come on," he clicked his tongue and rushed down the slope with Merlin and Gwaine following him.
At the bottom of the hill they already found themselves on the road to Howden and behind the turn, halfway to the village, they saw a small wooden building. Arthur dismounted his horse first and tied him to the fence. He looked around and saw that next to the inn there were few dark brown palfreys bound to the trees.
"Ah, hopefully there will be somewhere to sit," the king said.
"And if not, we'll make it for ourselves," stated Gwaine and jumped off his horse.
"No brawls," Arthur held out his finger in warning, looking from Gwaine to Merlin.
"That also applies to you, sire," the warlock said and made his way to the door.
They walked in and took the table near the bar. There was a scent of alcohol in the air, and a few of the men had already measured them with hostile stares. The bartender didn't seem very nice either. He didn't even bother to go to their table, because Arthur, Merlin and Gwaine were sitting close enough that he just leaned over the counter and looked at them almost from above.
"What can I get you?" his gravelly voice sounded over their heads.
They looked up to see the tired face of a middle-aged man and they could tell that his voice completely didn't match his appearance.
"Er…, three tankards of mead, please," said Arthur. The man nodded and returned to his work.
"Nice place," Merlin murmured.
"Yeah," Gwaine agreed and his eyes drifted to the group of men who sat on the other side of the room, accompanied by a beautiful woman.
Gwaine was so attracted to her unique beauty that he couldn't take his eyes off her. He studied the woman's freckled face and from her expression it seemed to him that she was uncomfortable among these men, which made him wonder what such a beautiful woman could do with blokes like them. Suddenly she turned her head towards the three at the bar and her eyes met Gwaine's. He saw fear in the woman's emerald irises, and then he had no doubts that she was not sitting there willingly.
"What are you gaping at?" said the man with grey hair who tugged at the sleeve of her white dress.
"Don't touch me, you filthy bastard!" the ginger haired woman shot him a murderous look.
Their strange behaviour got the attention of Merlin and Arthur as well. The two of them stared at the group with narrowed eyes.
"Your mead," they heard the voice of the bartender, who set the tankards in front of them with a thud that their table shook.
"Thank… you," Arthur followed him with his eyes behind the bar.
Arthur, Merlin and Gwaine returned to observing the group of men. There were five of them and they were drinking their mead trying to entertain the woman at the same time, but she wasn't responding to their coarse jokes, and only looked at them hatefully every time they spoke to her. One of them, a man with greasy hair sitting on her left, couldn't stand it and, nervous, grabbed her wrists and shook her.
"Not so brave now, eh?" he said, looking her straight into scared eyes. "It looks like the lady suddenly lost her tongue," he let go of her and the rest of the men laughed.
Gwaine sprang up abruptly and walked over to their table. Arthur and Merlin, unable to stop him, did the same and stood behind their friend in front of the group. The king narrowed his eyes and as he glanced at them he was sure that he knew that man with grey hair.
"Is everything all right, my lady?" Gwaine asked, turning to her. "Did they do something to you?"
The woman looked at him with eyes full of fear and hope but didn't have the courage to say anything, so she just shook her head slightly from side to side and then up and down as answers to his questions.
"That's none of your business," growled the man with greasy hair.
"I wasn't asking you, I was speaking to the lady," Gwaine stated calmly, which angered even more an aggressive man who pounced on the knight and grabbed him by the collar.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Arthur said, seizing the man's arm.
Merlin kept his distance from them and watched the whole scene carefully. He and Arthur exchanged knowing glances and then looked at the ginger haired woman who was staring once at the warlock and once at the king. Her gaze didn't pass Gwaine either.
"Calm down, Michael, we don't need any trouble," said the grey haired man, also with a calm tone.
"It's him who's asking for trouble," said Michael and reluctantly loosened his grip on Gwaine's shirt. "Do you know who you're messing with?" he asked, almost spitting at the knight.
"Oh, I've seen enough to think that you are a mere cad," Gwaine chuckled.
That insult was the final straw that broke the camel's back, and then everything happened in a flash. Michael unexpectedly shoved Arthur and Merlin with one arm on the ground and then pushed Gwaine against the wall, choking him. The knight managed to kick him in the stomach and the man stumbled and fell onto the table knocking over all the mugs of liquor. The rest of the guys jumped aside and, dragging the lady behind them, they ran to the exit. As they were escaping Arthur managed to trip one of them with a leg. Gwaine rushed after them, but suddenly slipped on the mead which covered the entire floor; and Merlin, who was already on his feet stretching out his hand, stumbled over him. The warlock cursed under his breath, and when he looked back to the exit, the group of thugs and the woman were gone.
"Quick, we can't let them get away!" Arthur exclaimed, running out of the tavern.
Merlin and Gwaine rushed outside after him and mounted their stallions. The dark brown horses that were tied to a tree just moments ago, now rushed through the forest in the distance with riders on their backs. The king and his friends hurried after them to not lose these men from sight. The chase was hard enough because of dense trees, so they had to focus more on avoiding obstacles than catching the runaways. Merlin's eyes flashed gold and suddenly their horses started to ride faster and more aware of their surroundings. After a few seconds they were catching up with them and as they were close enough, the warlock could finally cast a spell.
"Forbeodan," he said and his eyes glistened with gold again.
The dark brown horses stopped dead and the riders were thrown out of the saddles a few feet ahead of them, except one with grey hair who rode on his palfrey with the lady. He brought his horse to a halt as he saw his accomplices lying unconscious on the ground. He laughed and turned to Arthur, Merlin and Gwaine who just stopped before him.
"Arthur Pendragon and magic, hard to believe that," the man said, still laughing.
"Maleagant," the king spoke to him grimly; "I hoped I would never see you again in my kingdom."
"You know me, I don't care about the borders of your kingdom or anyone else's. I go wherever I want and I always get whatever I want."
"Not this time, hand the lady over," requested Arthur.
Maleagant burst out laughing again and pulled the terrified woman closer to him. "You always have to meddle when you don't need to. Better return to your castle and let me do my business."
"We're not asking again," said Gwaine. "Surrender if you value your life."
The man glanced at them cautiously and his gaze lingered at Merlin. "It was your magic, wasn't it?" he chuckled. "Well, I guess I've no choice. But you won't risk the life of a lady," he stated and turned his horse abruptly.
"Then you're a fool," said the warlock.
His eyes flashed gold and Maleagant's horse reared up on its hind legs neighing. The woman screamed and she and the grey haired man fell off when the animal shied and ran away. Arthur and Gwaine rushed to them. The knight gently took the lady off the ground while the king pulled Maleagant up sharply and looked him in the eyes.
"You better go if I offer you a chance to do it," he said and pushed him back.
"Oh, you underestimate me," he growled and unsheathed his sword.
Merlin's reply for this was faster than Arthur's and, before the king managed to take his blade, Maleagant's sword flew from his hand.
"You play unfair, Your Highness," the man stated. "Are you such a lame warrior that a sorcerer has to defend you?"
Arthur looked down. "Merlin, stay out of it."
"But…," the warlock tried to protest but the king cut him off.
"You heard me," he took a step back and lifted his head, pointing at the Maleagant's sword for him to pick it up. Meanwhile Gwaine readied his sword, first making sure the lady was safe, and told her to stand by Merlin.
Arthur's and Maleagant's blades clushed, but the latter was not going to play soldiers. The thug, taking advantage of the king's moment of inattention, tripped him up and was about to deliver a punch right in the chest, when he suddenly gasped and froze, and then fell on Arthur as Gwaine pulled the blade from his body. The king pushed Maleagant's body off and stood up with a little help from his friend.
"Merlin, you can't do something like that," said Arthur as he walked over to him.
"What?" the warlock was indignant. "I was trying to protect you, why can't you just appreciate it and say thanks."
The king sighed. "I appreciate it, I am truly grateful. But sometimes you're trying too hard. I'm a knight, a king, and with some things I have to deal with on my own."
Merlin didn't show it, but deep down he felt offended. "Well, Gwaine helped you…"
"Merlin, but it was different. You just disarmed my opponent before he even started to fight."
"Yeah, you're right," the warlock nodded slightly. "Maybe I was too rushed. It's easier since you know about my magic."
"I know you made it a point of honour to guard me at every turn, and believe me, I have the same thing about you…," Arthur lowered his gaze and the corners of his lips rose a little. "…but you're a bit oversensitive."
"Too much happened," said Merlin and then smiled. "I've never heard such words coming out from your mouth."
The king shrugged his shoulders. "Just in case you would say I don't appreciate what you do for me," he passed him and walked towards Gwaine and the woman. Merlin followed him.
The lady was standing next to Gwaine's horse with her hands covering her face, and the knight kept his hand on her shoulder. Now, as she stood there, they could see how bad she was. Her long white dress was dirty with mud, bell sleeves were ripped and her long, slightly tousled hair cascaded down her shoulders. She was sobbing softly and shivering so Gwaine covered her with a blanket.
"My lady," said Arthur and she looked up at him with her teary almond shaped eyes. "Could you tell us your name?"
"I'm Ragnell," she said quietly, trying to control her shaky breath.
"It's all right, you're safe now. What happened to you?"
"I was travelling with my maid and knights and then these men ambushed us… I tried to run away but there were too many of them, and they were stronger," she paused. "I thought they wanted gold but they said that they were not interested and it was me they were after. Next thing I remember is that they killed all the knights and my maid," she caught her breath convulsively and the tears ran down her cheeks.
"Shh…," Gwaine put his arm around her, she didn't protest, so he pulled her into a hug.
"She was no use for them," Ragnell continued with a muffled voice because her face was buried in Gwaine's shirt. "And then they took me to demand a ransom from my father."
"Maleagant was a brute who obtained money in the most shameful ways," Arthur stated.
"But he's no more and no harm will come to you," said Gwaine.
She managed a slight smile. "I caught your name, Arthur, but could I also know the names of the rest of my saviours?"
"Of course," Arthur smiled. "These are my friends. Gwaine, one of my finest knights," he pointed at him; "and Merlin, the man with a special gift," he said, patting the warlock on the shoulder.
"I guess I'm really lucky that you and your friends were in that tavern, thank you."
Arthur nodded. "And your father, my lady? We need to send him a note that you are safe and sound in Camelot."
"He's the king of Airgialla, the kingdom on The Western Isle."
"Good, we'll send a word," said Arthur. "And now we're taking you to Camelot, you probably need to see a physician."
As he said that, Gwaine helped Ragnell to mount the horse and then he himself jumped on the palfrey as well. Arthur and Merlin did the same and the four of them returned to Camelot just before the nightfall.