MORDRED

                                    

                                          


                          
PRINCE ARTHUR
                          
I stormed into the council chambers ignoring the startled looks that were thrown my way. 
                          
"OUT" I yelled glaring at them and they all scrambled to their feet practically sprinting out of the room. I looked at my father as the door to the council chambers boomed shut with a finality that felt appropriate considering the situation. My father stood up looking furious anger burning in his gaze as he growled. 
                          
"How dare you disrupt this meeting" I snarled back matching his tone of voice perfectly.     
                          
"How dare you!" I said and he had the audacity to frown at me confusion clouding his features and I resisted the urge to unsheathe my sword and level it at his throat. 
                          
"What are talking about?" he asked and I could feel my fists clench. Seriously? This was how he was going to play it. 
                          
"How dare you arrest Merlin" I growled and the tension seemed to drop from the kings shoulders his confusion replaced by that of indifference as he sat back in his sit making my blood boil even more. 
                          
The king raised an eyebrow at me "who" he said and I gaped at him. I knew he knew who Merlin was it was he who had appointed him in the first place, I took a deep breath closing my eyes and trying to calm my racing emotions knowing that he was just trying to get under my skin. 
                          
"My manservant" I said voice shaking despite my best efforts and the king rolled his eyes. 
                          
"I see" Uther said his tone making it clear that he would rather be discussing anything else other than the fate of my friend. The king grabbed a piece of paper and started reading it and I resisted the urge to throttle him "I have good reasons" he said signing the sheet and waving over on of the attending servants and I growled at him. 
                          
"What are they?" I asked again trying to shove my anger down knowing that it would get me nowhere. Uther glanced at the door and called for one of his guards, Edward walked through the door and it took everything I had not to lunge for the man and from the way he tensed he knew it. 
                          
"My lord" Edward said bowing and I gritted my teeth. 
                          
"Bring me the boy" Uther said and I blinked, wait? What? Did he mean Merlin? I looked between the two frowning but Edward just nodded his head and walked out. My father gestured to one of the seats at the table indicating that I should sit down and glared but sat down, a few minutes of simmering silence pass before the doors to the chambers opened again and in walked Edward a young man walking alongside him and a shiver ran down my back. I took the time to study him as he bowed to my father, he had short black curly hair a lot like Merlins though his looked a little more well kept, he was tall and lean but I knew from his stance that he knew how to handle himself. Uther inclined his head and I frowned it wasn't often that my father showed any kind of respect to the people, that's when I noticed that the lad was in armour and I sighed he must be some sort of knight though he bore no cloak or insignia so I didn't know where he was from. He looked young, about the same age as some of Arthur's newest recruit's but his blue eyes had a fathomless look to them as if they had seen more than they should have. 
                          
"Mordred is it?" The king asked and a shock shot down my spine as I recognised the name. No it couldn't be? How could Merlin have known about this guy? Arthur had never met him before and he knew the same people as Merlin did or most of them anyway. Thankfully neither man was looking at me so they both missed my reaction and I managed to school my expression in time for Mordred to turn to me and he bowed, before he turned back to the king and nodded. 
                          
"Yes your majesty" he said and Uther nodded waving at him to continue. 
                          
"Tell him what you told me" the king said pointing at me and I rolled my eyes grumbling, I turned to Mordred who looked a little uncomfortable at the glare I sent him but didn't back down and I had to give the guy credit. Even the most seasoned warrior trembled when I gave them that look, let alone someone who looked no older than fourteen summers.
                          
Mordred cleared his throat standing straighter "I saw Merlin kissing Princess Morgana yesterday, they seemed to be having a picnic and had a ba..." 
                          
"Have you ever met Merlin before" I said quickly cutting of the end of his sentence and he glared at me an odd look shooting across his face before he too managed to hide his expression beneath a blank mask. Mordred shook his head and I gave my father a triumphant look. 
                          
"Then who is to say that it was Merlin you saw if you have never met him" I said trying to keep the smugness out of my voice though from the glare Mordred sent me I hadn't done a very good job. I turned to my father and continued "I request that you release him at once and return him to his post" my father raised an eyebrow at me clearly irritated with the fact that I had just given him an order but I refused to back down. However my happiness was short lived as the next words out of Mordred's mouth sealed Merlins fate. 
                          
The king turned back to Mordred a look of displeasure on his face as he said "my son raises a good point do you have any proof that it was my sons manservant" I held my breath praying that he didn't.  
                          
"I may not have met this...Merlin" Mordred said stumbling over the name as if he was thinking of another, "but I did hear the name that the Princess yelled on their way back to the Camelot" now it was Mordred's turn to sound smug and I wanted too knock him out. My father gave him a questioning look waiting for him to continue and I closed my eyes knowing the axe was about to fall, missing the satisfied smile that appeared on Mordred's face. 
                          
"It was Merlin your majesty" Mordred said and I felt tears building in my eyes but I quickly forced them back. Uther nodded dismissing him and Mordred bowed giving me a smirk before he left and I waited as my father turned to me a triumphant look on his face. 
                          
"Well there you have it" the king said and I gripped the edge of the table so tight I wouldn't have been surprised if I left a hand print embedded in the wood. Uther sighed and gave me a sympathetic look. I knew that I had lost, there was no way Uther would let Merlin go, he would not have her loyalties divided.  
                          
"I know this must be hard for you founding out that your manservant betrayed your trust and used you to get to your sister but sometimes these things happen" Uther said placing what he believed to be a comforting hand on my shoulder but I quickly stood up knocking the chair back and stormed out of the room wondering what Mordred had against Merlin if they had never met. 
                          
I slammed the door to my chambers causing George to yelp and spin around in surprise, he was cleaning the fireplace and my rage exploded. How dare he! that was Merlins job; no one else's. George quickly got to his feet bowing looking as stiff and proper as always "my lord" he said the title grating against my skin. I had never felt less like a prince than I did right now. 
                          
"Get out" I snarled dismissing him voice deadly, George blanched his eyes going fearful as the blood drained from his face. 
                          
"NOW" I yelled and he gulped running out the room tears in his eyes and I growled throwing my sword on the table before grabbing a pillow and screaming into it. There was a knock on the door and I stopped screaming as it opened and Gwen poked her head around the corner. I straightened and walked over concern instantly replacing my anger as I saw the tear tracks running down her face, I sighed shaking my head. This was just as hard for Gwen as if was for the rest of us maybe harder as she had been Merlin's first true friend in Camelot. I pulled her into my arms not caring if someone saw us though considering the situation Merlin and Morgana found themselves in I probably shouldn't have been so careless, but I needed her comfort just as much as she needed mine. 
                          
We stayed like that for hours watching as the sun rose knowing that the coming dawn was going to be hell.