Savior of Avalon

Chapter Three

"NO!" I shouted, running to the spot where they had just been. "Where did they go? Why didn't you save her?" I whirled around to face Merlin, glaring at him with a rage so intense, it did not feel like my own.

"This world is weakening me," he spoke up, reaching up and removing the cloak's hood from his head. "I did not have enough magic to save your mother."

His face was as perfect as I'd thought. It was symmetrical. I remember going to a store with my mother once and seeing a GQ magazine for the first time, it was filled with men so attractive, I wondered if they were even real. Merlin's face was like that, but a thousand times better. His amber eyes met mine emotionlessly. This was my first time seeing his face full on, but I wasn't really seeing it. All I could really see was my mother's unconscious body.

Tears filled my eyes and a sob built up in my throat as I fell to my knees. Mom had said the prophecies foretold of me being powerful enough to aid Arthur and Merlin and rule Avalon. But how could I do any of that when I stood by, watching helplessly, while they carried my mother off to God knows where.

"Lucy," a familiar voice called to me.

With tear stained eyes I looked up and saw Thom looming over me. He was out of breath, like he had been running, his eyes looking at me like he knew exactly what happened, his hand on the hilt of a sword I'd never seen before.

"Thom," I cried out, hurling myself into his arms. "She's gone. They took her. She's gone. I couldn't save..." My breath hitched.

"Shhh, Lucy. It's okay." He looked over my head at Merlin. "Where did they take Nicole?"

"Back to Camelot. Back to Morgana."

"We have to go after her," I spoke up, breaking away from Thom and wiping angrily at my tears. "We have to save her."

I didn't know much about Morgana, but from the looks on her goons' faces when Merlin taunted them about how angry she would be if they came back empty handed, it was clear to see she wasn't the nicest woman in the world.

Merlin looked at me for a scornfully.

"We?" His voice was hard, mocking. "You don't have any special skills. For the past seventeen years, you haven't used one ounce of your power. You're inexperienced, weak, a liability. How do you expect to save your mother when you can't even protect yourself."

He was right. I was a liability right now, but my mother's words rang in my ears.

"You were born of human blood and pure blood, Lucinda. You're far more powerful than you realize."

All this time she had been protecting me and I'd never even known it. She could have abandoned me and lived a quiet, peaceful life somewhere, but she didn't. She had protected me, even in the final moments before they took her back to Camelot. I hadn't been able to protect her this time, but I wanted to grow stronger. I wanted to be worthy of her protection.

"Merlin, that's a little harsh..." Thom trailed off.

"But, it's true," Merlin said, expressionless. "She might have strong magic, but what good is that magic if you don't even know how to use it."

"Teach me, then." I looked him in the eye with a fierce determination. "You're supposed to be the greatest sorcerer in all of Camelot, right? Teach me how to use my magic. Teach me how to not be a liability."

There was a long pause as Merlin and I stared each other down, he seemed to be testing how far I was willing to go and I was not backing down. I had been a liability to everyone my entire life without even knowing it. Now it was my time to be strong.

Whatever Merlin saw on my face made him nod his head, a strange expression crossing over his handsome face.

"Alright," he said slowly. "But don't expect me to go easy on you, little girl. Your destiny is to save Arthur, Camelot, and Avalon. I'm going to push you. Hard. Do you understand?"

I wanted to punch him in the face for calling me a little girl, but resisted and nodded once instead. It was strange because typically, I was a very nonviolent person, yet five minutes with Merlin made me want to hit something.

"Since I do not have enough energy to create a portal and you are not strong enough yet, we'll have to enter Camelot through a doorway hidden in California."

"There's a doorway to Camelot in California?" My mouth was agape.

Merlin nodded once, grimacing like he was in pain before sucking in a deep breath.

"Since I do not know how to operate the means of transportation in this world and you have been here longer. Could you get us there?" His gaze was on Thom who was nodding his head before Merlin had even finished his sentence.

"They have Nicole. Of course I'm coming." Thom put his hand on my shoulder, his eyes serious. "We'll get her back, Lucy."

"I know we will."

With those words, the three of us started out the door. It was raining as we climbed into Thom's sleek Volvo. Merlin sat in the back seat, his eyes were closed and he was fast asleep not too long after Thom had pulled away from the curb.

"Is he gonna be okay?" I wondered, eyeing his pallid reflection in the review mirror. I had been so caught up in worry over my mother, I had failed to notice how sick he looked.

Thom nodded. "All he needs is rest. He's used up a lot of magic searching for you and since this isn't a world of magic, it takes a lot out of him to use it. But while he's sleeping, his magic will regenerate himself and he'll be good as new."

I was quiet for a little bit before saying in a small voice, "He hates me."

Thom's eyes widened in surprise and he shook his head vehemently.

"Not at all. Merlin's like that with everybody. He's just a little intense because he left the woman he loved back in Camelot to find you."

Now I understood why he was so cranky. So, even someone as cold as Merlin could love someone.

"I had no idea," I murmured. "I feel crappy. That he had to leave her behind and come here for me."

"Don't be. Nimue is strong. Besides, you're the only one who can save Camelot and Avalon."

My eyes widened at the name, my jaw dropped. "Wait. He's dating Nimue. Nimue as in the Lady of the Lake. Nimue as in the ruler of Avalon and the woman who trapped him in a tree."

Thom's lips twitched like he wanted to smile. "Nimue is the Lady of the Lake and the ruler of Avalon, but she never trapped Merlin in a tree. That's a myth. She's the one who gave Arthur Caliburn so that he could rule Camelot and merge it with Avalon. She's been a great friend to Arthur, Guinevere and Merlin. It only made sense that they get together."

"But in the prophecies..." I said, slowly, eyebrows drawing together in confusion. "Mom said the prophecies say I'm supposed to become the ruler of Avalon."

Thom nodded, seeming familiar with the prophecy. "The future is a funny thing," he said, eyes forward as he concentrated deep in thought. "You never know how it's going to turn out."

It was silent for a while after that as I pondered what he said. I only hoped that I wouldn't have to do something crazy like killing Nimue for the throne. If I had a choice between taking a life and gaining a throne and letting her live and being penniless I'd choose the latter. I wasn't a killer.

"Thom..."

"Mmm?"

"What is the prophecy? I mean, the whole thing, not the edited version."

"The prophecy goes that a child of human blood and pure blood will be born with powers far beyond anything Camelot or Avalon have ever seen. She would be born in a world far from ours. She would return through the great willow tree in seventeen years time to save Camelot from eternal winter and the Evil One, Ayleth and her accomplice, Millicent. Once the evildoers have been slain, she will be given the crown of Avalon and the kingdom of Camelot will be restored to its former glory. Summer will return to the land and the Chosen One, Sibyl, will be married to her true love underneath a starry summer sky with both kingdoms bearing witness."

I blinked a couple of times as I let my mind process everything Thom had just said.

"Mom didn't tell me a lot of that," I breathed.

Thom lips twitched and this time, he smiled.

"I think she wanted the you finding your true love part to be a surprise. She's going to kill me when she finds out I've told you."

"She does hate when someone spoils a surprise." I laughed softly, going quiet as I let my mind wander back to my Mom, then back to the prophecy. "Wait, I know Ayleth is Morgana and I'm supposed to be Sibyl, but who the Hell is Millicent?"

"No one knows," Thom murmured, clenching his jaw in a way that said he had a guess.

I leaned back against the seat, studying his profile. He looked tired and sad. I knew I wasn't the only one missing my mother right now.

"And my true love? I don't suppose you'd know who he is."

Thom glanced over at me with a secretive smile—he looked a lot like his old self in this moment—and said, "There are some part of our futures, Lucy, that are better left unknown. There are some moments that are better left as surprises." 

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Thom pulled into a hotel after driving for six hours straight. He finally decided that he needed rest if we were going to continue. Merlin, just as Thom had said, was looking a lot better after a good rest. I had thought he was handsome while he was sick, but even though I hated to admit it, now that he was better, he was otherworldly.

"Sibyl," he called out. "Come."

He turned and began walking before I could even respond. I grumbled a little and, looking back at the hotel once, trotted behind him.

"My name's not Sibyl, by the way," I grumbled. "It's Lucinda."

"In the prophecies you are known as Sibyl, therefore I will call you Sibyl."

He said this without any emotion, like always, not even turning around to look at me. I glared at his back, sticking my tongue out at it.

We had been walking for a good minute, when Merlin suddenly stopped and turned abruptly to face me. Like always, his eyes were two bottomless pools of nothing as he stared at me. I wondered how someone could be so cold. Was he like this with Nimue, too?

He held out his hand, his eyes silently beckoning me to take it. When I did, the world around us faded away. Where there was once a busy street and hotels and shops, there was now only trees, grass and flowers.

"Where are we?" I asked in wonder, taking in my surroundings with wide eyes.

"It's a forest somewhere deep in this world," was his answer.

"If you're well enough to portal us here, could you portal us to Camelot?"

Merlin's lips tightened in a thin line. "I'm well enough to transport us in this world, but Camelot is a lot further away, I'd need a lot of magic to do that. Sadly, this world you grew up in doesn't have a lot of magic, Sibyl."

I nodded once. What he was saying was true. There was magic in this world—magic in the small things, things no one paid attention to—but finding that magic was rare. Finding that kind of magic was almost impossible. Perhaps, that's why I've always felt out of place. Because I had so much magic in a world that had so little.

"Are you ready for your first lesson?"

I met Merlin's eyes fiercely and nodded vehemently. Today was the first day of training and I wasn't planning on disappointing. I would become stronger. I would save my mother and show her that her protecting me hadn't been in vain.

"The very first thing I want you to do is manifest your power," Merlin began, holding his hand out in front of him and closing his eyes. In no time at all a great ball of blue light shone in his hands, from that blue light a bolt of lightning struck up and into the sky.

All I could do was watch in wonder. He had once performed a greater feat of magic in front of me when he saved me from the men who took my mother, but I was in so much shock I hadn't been able to appreciate it.

The blue light dispersed from his hands. "Now it's your turn. Hold out your hands."

I did as I was told, cupping my hands together and holding them out, wondering if I could really do what he just did.

"Magic," Merlin was saying, "is controlled by our emotions. What we feel determines what our magic will produce. For instance, anger will turn our magic into something powerfully destructive. Happiness will turn our magic into something light, something that can make others smile. I want you to try to think of something that makes you happy. Close your eyes and think of anything—a memory or a dream—that made you happy."

I closed my eyes and the first memory that came to mind was my fifth birthday. We were in France, staying in a villa. Mom and Thom had taken me to a beautiful hillside filled with flowers and I remember Mom saying that hillside reminded her a lot of Avalon. Thom had pulled out a pouch of some golden dust and tossed it into the sky, golden butterflies had fluttered around us. I remember feeling so happy, then as I stood between my mother and Thom, watching the butterflies flit around.

My hands grew warm and I opened my eyes to see a soft, golden light pulsating in my cupped hands. From the light, hundreds of golden butterflies flitted into the air around us, flapping their little wings gracefully.

I smiled and then my smile turned into a laugh as I watched them fly. It was just like when I was a child. I only wished Mom could see it, too.

My smile fell and the butterflies and the golden light from my hand faded. I shook of my sadness and turned my attention to Merlin who was staring at me with this really weird expression on his face.

"What?" I asked, c*****g my head to the side.

He shook his head. "Nothing. You just did better than I expected. Pulling off that kind of magic in a world like this is no easy task, Sibyl. You are as powerful as the prophecies say."

"Yeah, but not powerful enough to save Mom." I sighed in defeat, meeting Merlin's eyes again. "Teach me more. I want to learn as much as I can as soon as I can. We'll be in California in four days, maybe less with the way Thom drives. In that time, I want to be as strong as I can."

Merlin was giving me that strange look again. It was like he was puzzled by me or something. It was like I was some strange mystery that needed to be solved.

He gave me a nod, though, his face regaining its expressionless mask as he went back to teaching me what he knew about magic.

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We returned to the hotel a few hours later to find Thom already awake. When we entered the room, he drew his sword and pointed it at us, his eyes narrowed.

"Lucy, Merlin," he said with wide eyes, putting his sword back into its sheath. "I was wondering where you two went. I was just about to go looking for you."

"We're fine," I assured him. "Merlin was teaching me how to use my magic."

"Oh?" He raised a brow and looked over at Merlin. "Is she any good?"

"She won't be as much of a liability now as she was before," was his only response.

For the few hours we had stayed in that forest, Merlin had taught me a wide margin of things. Despite his cold demeanor, he was a good teacher. In those few hours, I learned so much about magic. He'd even taught me how to use it to protect myself. If I had learned all this—what seemed like it probably would take years to learn on my own—in just a matter of hours, I could only imagine what else Merlin could teach me.

"Well," Thom began, breaking my train of thought. "Why don't we go for breakfast? There's an IHOP down the street."

Merlin looked confused, a shocking change of expression since normally he didn't have one.

"What is an IHOP?"

"It's a place where they sell breakfast," I explained, finding his confusion kind of adorable. "You know, pancakes, sausages and eggs."

"Like a tavern?"

"Sort of, but without all the booze. Come on, you can see for yourself when we get there."

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Merlin took in IHOP with wondrous eyes. It was the first time that—in the few hours I'd known him—he seemed genuinely fascinated by something. To me, this IHOP looked a lot like so many of the other IHOPs—tables, chairs, busy waiters and waitresses and hungry families—but to Merlin, this was all brand new.

It was kind of... refreshing to see someone who wasn't from our world really see our world for the first time. There were so many things in this world that we took for granted, that we viewed as completely normal and not amazing at all, but the look on Merlin's face reminded me that these things were special.

After ordering, I looked around IHOP to realize we were the center of attention. Well, not we in particular, but Merlin. Taking one look at him, it wasn't hard to understand why. He was dressed like it was the Middle Ages. However, the women and girls looking were mostly giggling and whispering among themselves because they thought he was cute.

"You seem to stand out a lot, Merlin," said Thom, seemingly realizing the same thing I did.

"I'm used to the attention," Merlin replied dryly. "It happens a lot in Camelot."

"Well, we are not in Camelot," I muttered. "We need to consider getting you some new clothes. I don't think I can handle being in the same crowd as a man who's the center of attention every time we go somewhere."

Merlin sighed. "If it displeases you, there are spells for this sort of thing. I can change now."

"You aren't planning on doing that in the open, are you?"

My eyes darted around the room, imagining the panic that would take place if Merlin used his magic to zap himself new clothes in front of all these people. They would either believe it was some elaborate trick or they wouldn't.

Merlin gave me a deadpan look. My breath caught. This was the first time he'd ever really looked at me. Since we met, he looked at me without really looking at me, but now, his eyes were focused solely on mine. A weird expression crossed over his face before he turned his gaze from mine sharply, nostrils flared.

"Of course I wouldn't use magic in the open, little girl. I'm well aware this isn't Camelot." Then he pushed himself up from his seat and stormed to the exit.

I didn't even have time to be offended at the fact that he'd called me little girl before he was walking back in again. He was dressed in a simple grey tee and jeans with a coat for the cold. His long sandy hair was pushed away from his face and his amber eyes were faced forward, seemingly unaware of the fact that every woman in the room was about to die from exploded ovaries.

He made his way to our table and—even though I desperately wanted to—I couldn't deny how good he looked. I mean, him in medieval clothes was good—great, even—but him in modern clothes was somehow so much better.

He sat down in the seat beside me, looking in my direction but not meeting my eyes.

"Better?"

His snarky tone brought me back. As handsome as he was it was easy to forget he was a complete asshole.

"Much," I responded, working to keep my tone polite.

"I can't say you stand out any less, though," Thom said, breaking through the tense atmosphere. "People are still staring at you."

"Well, at least I'm changed now," he was saying as the waitress came back with our food, her eyes wide and lovesick as she looked at Merlin's face. "I wouldn't want to make the little girl uncomfortable."

Normally when he called me little girl, his tone was indifferent, but this time it was sharp, scathing almost.

I whipped my head in his direction, completely ignoring Thom's pleading eyes and the waitress who was setting our food down.

"What the hell is your problem?" I spat.

"Problem?" Merlin chuckled coolly. "Who said there was a problem?"

"Clearly there is. You've been a complete asshole to me since we met. You act like I've done something to you."

Merlin finally turned and met my eyes, fury blazing in his.

"What could an inexperience little girl like you do to me?" He snapped.

"Maybe you two should—"

"You know what, Merlin?" I was struggling to keep my tone down as the waitress left, backing away from us with eyes that said she didn't want to be involved with that. "I think I'll find my mother on my own."

"You?" He scoffed. "You're barely getting the hang of magic, you looking for your mother would be suicide."

"No, suicide is what I want to commit every time you open your mouth."

His gaze turned to me, there was a fire in them I'd never seen before. It both terrified and excited me. It terrified me because I'd never seen him look so passionate before and it excited me because at least I was seeing a different expression than the one he usually wore.

"Who do you think you're talking to?"

"I thought it would be obvious who I'm talking to. Does talking to people work differently in Camelot?"

"This is what I was sent here for?" Merlin asked some invisible force, shaking his head and laughing once without humor. "To rescue a little girl with no manners."

"You two are making a—" Thom tried to say, but I cut him off.

"Oh, I have no manners? That's rich coming from you, Mr. I-Wear-One-Expression-All-Day-Every-Day. I've been nothing but polite to you since you met me. I don't know how the women you know in Camelot do things, but I'm not about to let myself be bullied by some big-headed, narcissistic asshole. I mean, you think you're the most attractive man who ever walked the earth, well, newsflash, buddy, you're not."

Merlin's jaw was ticking and he opened his mouth to say something when Thom cut him off with a loud cough.

"What?" We snapped at the same time, glaring at him for interrupting us.

"Do I have to remind you that we're in a public place and your voices are a little louder than inside voices?"

When I looked around, I realized that a couple of eyes were on us. I let out a growl and turned my narrowed eyes at Merlin.

"Great. Thanks to you being a asshat, we've attracted attention. I hope you're happy."

"Me?" He asked, incredulously. "This entire argument was your fault. And ladies aren't supposed to use such language, but," he smirked, "I suppose it's quite clear you aren't a lady, little girl."

The palm of my hand was itching to meet his cheek, but I held that in check.

"You know, Merlin," I said, conspiratorially, leaning close to him. "I think that below the belt, you're probably a very little boy."

His ivory skin grew red with rage and he struggled to come up with a reply.

"I'm going outside. I need some air," I muttered, sliding out of my seat and storming toward the exit.

Once I was outside, I turned my gaze to the light grey sky and breathed in deeply. I smelled salt and could feel a slight chill in the air. It was going to rain. Living in London had gotten me very used to that.

I sighed, pulling my cardigan tighter around me. It was hard to believe there was someone back in Camelot who actually loved that man. I mean, I know you show different sides of yourself to the people you love, but there was no good side of that man whatsoever. How in the hell could anyone ever fall in love with him?

After a good while of being alone with my thoughts, I decided it would be a good idea to go back in there. My stomach was rumbling, after all, and with as quickly as we were trying to get to Camelot, who knows when we'd stop again.

Sighing, I turned and walked back into the lion's den.

(A/N): Don't forget to like and comment to let me know your thoughts. Happy Friday everyone!!