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The Banquet

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Nerissa.

Nerissa.

"Nerissa!"

The auburn-haired beauty groaned from her bed with a pillow tightly wrapped over her head. The last voice belonged to Gaius as he called for her from outside her room. But another voice, an unfamiliar voice, had called out to her nearly all night. Hence the pillow over her head. But even that did nothing to drown out the voice. It had been the third night in a row that it had happened and Nerissa was beginning to wonder if she might be losing her mind.

Gaius called for her again and Nerissa mumbled something unintelligible before falling back against her bed once more. She was exhausted, not having gotten very much sleep the night before. She wouldn't mind if Gaius relegated her to another day in bed because at least then she might be able to sleep.

A few moments later, Gaius walked through the door holding new linens to wrap her ankle. "How'd you sleep?" he asked as he approached her.

"Terrible," she mumbled.

"Was it your ankle?" Gaius asked, the concern on his face genuine

Nerissa hesitantly nodded her head. She knew she wasn't being truthful with him, but she didn't want to talk to Gaius about the voice until after she had the conversation with Merlin first. It wasn't that she didn't trust her uncle, but she didn't know him very well. If he thought her insane, he might send her away from Camelot or worse. No, she needed to talk to Merlin about this first.

She had wanted to talk to him about it yesterday, but he had another row with Prince Prat. Given the way Merlin had talked about it, she was sorry to have missed it. So, she had forgotten to mention the voice wanting to know more about everything Merlin had done to Prince Prat. It was a decision she didn't regret, especially hearing everything Prince Prat had been through because he thoroughly deserved everything that came to him.

Gaius then took a peek at her ankle. It was still rather swollen and very tender to the touch, but he didn't think anything was broken. Tenderly, he wrapped Nerissa's ankle and propped it up on a pillow. "I'll have Merlin bring you up a tonic for the pain with your breakfast," he said.

Nerissa nodded and Gaius left.

A few minutes later, Merlin came in carrying a plate of food and a tonic in his hand, but he refused to meet his sister's gaze nor did he even speak to her. Even when he handed her the plate, he didn't look at her or greet her. Nerissa knew something was up.

"You're acting very odd," Nerissa told her brother, arching an eyebrow at him.

"No, I'm not," Merlin told her, who had found something very interesting on the ceiling to stare at. "I'm acting perfectly normal."

Nerissa scoffed. "No, you're not."

"Yes, I am!" Merlin countered, folding his arms across his chest defensively and changing his glance to the cupboard.

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am."

"Then why won't you look at me?" Nerissa arched an eyebrow at her brother, not that he could see her.

Merlin pondered that one for a minute before responding. "Because I'm your brother and I already know what you look like. No other reason. You're just a terrible judge of character, that's all."

"Uh-huh," Nerissa wasn't convinced. And what did he mean by her being a terrible judge of character? If anything, she was usually right about people before Merlin was. He certainly was acting very strange. "You do know that I've known you long enough to know when you're lying, right?"

"Fine, if you must know, there's... a spider." Merlin pointed to the corner of her room. "I know you can't stand the harmless little creatures but I was going to be nice just this once and hunt it down for you seeing as you're rather..." He paused for a moment and gestured to her without looking. "like this."

Nerissa folded her arms across her chest. "Still lying."

Merlin closed his eyes and groaned, rubbing his face with his hands "Don't make me say it, Nerissa. Please don't make me say it. You'll kill me if I tell you what I know."

"Well, now that makes me want to know. What do you know?" It was true when someone told her they couldn't tell her something, it made her want to know all the more. She was good at keeping their confidence too, which her brother knew. So it must be something big if he didn't want to tell her.

"Nerissa! What did I just tell you?" Merlin's tone sounded like he was about ready to rip out his hair. He rarely withheld anything from her when he was this desperate. But she also knew that in this case, prodding him wasn't likely to get her what she wanted. Besides, she didn't want to forget to tell him. Again.

But she wouldn't let him think she was giving up that easily. Nerissa harrumphed and folded her arms across her chest. "Fine! I'll drop it...for now. Mostly because I have something I need to tell you."

Merlin finally managed to make eye contact with his sister. His eyes were wide and he didn't even blink. He looked nearly ready to pass out like those were the last words he wanted to hear from her.

She threw her head back and groaned. "Seriously! What's wrong with you!"

"Nothing I can tell you! I've told you that!" Merlin shouted, throwing his hands up in the air in a state of desperation. It took him a few moments to recover, but he inhaled slowly and then asked in a calmer tone, "Now, what is it you needed to tell me.?"

Nerissa was still awfully curious as to what her brother could possibly be hiding from her. But she knew her brother to be terrible at keeping secrets from her and figured he'd come clean later to her. Besides, her concern was a little more pressing.

Nerissa motioned him closer with her finger. Merlin groaned, but he acquiesced his sister's request. "Have you been hearing strange voices?" she whispered before biting her lip nervously.

Merlin pulled back from her, blinking strangely once more. He had paled considerably. If Nerissa hadn't known him better, she would have thought he thought she was crazy. But that wasn't what Merlin's look meant. She was hitting closer to home than he would have liked.

"You've heard it too, haven't you?" Nerissa gasped.

He slowly nodded his head, careful not to reveal any precious details he wished to protect.

So, Nerissa knew that in this case, she needed to keep prodding a bit to get what she wanted. "It's rather annoying, isn't it? It called my name all night and I could hardly get a wink of sleep. What do you think it is?"

Merlin gulped, once again refusing to make eye contact. Nerissa knew her brother well enough to put the pieces together. Her eyes widened. "You know what it is, don't you?"

Nerissa reached out and touched her brother's arm, causing him to look at her. The nod of his head was so slight, Nerissa almost wasn't sure she had seen it. "Is that what's got you all hot and bothered?"

Merlin nodded.

Nerissa frowned to herself before she told her brother, "Well go on, tell me."

He looked rather hesitant.

"C'mon, I need to know that there isn't anything wrong with me." She pleaded to her brother in desperation.

"Oh, there is definitely something wrong with you," Merlin muttered to himself.

"Mer-lin," Nerissa groaned, narrowing her eyes at her older brother.

Merlin sighed. It wasn't easy for him to keep things from his sister, especially something of this calibre. He looked just about ready to give in when Gaius called from the other room. "Merlin! Have you seen the state of this room?"

That seemed to have knocked something into him. Merlin stepped backwards toward the door with his arms shrugged. "Looks like that's my cue."

"No! Don't you even think about leaving!" Nerissa shot back.

Gaius called Merlin's name once more. Merlin gave her a shrug of his shoulders before he quickly turned on his heel and ran from her room.

"This conversation isn't over Merlin! Far from it!" Nerissa shouted as she threw one of her pillows at her brother. She managed to hit him in the back of the head with it.

Merlin quickly whirled back toward her. For a moment, Nerissa thought he might continue their conversation. But when his eyes flashed gold, she knew otherwise. Her pillow flew from the floor near Merlin and smacked Nerissa in the face. She squealed as Merlin's eyes flashed gold once more and the door shut.

"Clotpole," Nerissa mumbled to herself as she hugged her pillow. Maybe another day in bed wouldn't be as easy as she had hoped it would be; but she found that once she tried, sleep easily overtook her. Thankfully, this time, no one called out her name.

Nerissa managed to get in a few hours of sleep and awoke feeling much more refreshed than she had earlier. Apparently, Gaius had sent Merlin out on some errands, after making him clean his room. Or at least that was what Lukas told her when he came up with a game of draughts to play.

"My gran wove this," Lukas said proudly as he put the cloth playing board on Nerissa's bed. "And I found all the stones myself and Tom the blacksmith showed me how to get 'em like this." He tossed a smooth stone in the air and caught it.

"Are you related to Tom the blacksmith?" Nerissa asked as she gathered the stones Lukas had placed near her.

Lukas giggled. "No! He's Gwen's dad."

"Hey now!" Nerissa chuckled, wagging her finger at Lukas. "I've been in this room most of my time in Camelot. Not exactly the best way to get out and meet people, now is it?"

He arched an eyebrow. "Do you know who Gwen is or do I need to explain about her too?"

Nerissa smiled. "Gwen would be one of the few people I've actually managed to meet."

"Good. I wasn't sure how I was going to explain that."

Nerissa threw her head back in laughter. Lukas joined in and then they began the first of several games of draughts. She lost the first game, not having played draughts in quite some time. But she was very competitive and managed to win the next two games they played. She was just about to suggest another game when a knock came at the door.

"Come in!" Nerissa called, hoping it was her brother coming to finish their conversation. She was quite surprised to find Gwen open the door.

"That's Gwen," Lukas whispered to Nerissa after he had looked over his shoulder at Gwen.

"You don't say," Nerissa teased back to him.

"Come now, secrets don't make friends, Lukas," Gwen said as she approached the boy before she reached out and enveloped him in a hug of tickles. Lukas squealed for mercy and Gwen stopped. "Your mother says you're to go to the kitchen. She needs your help with last-minute chores for tonight's banquet."

Lukas frowned and folded his arms across his chest. "I hate chores," he pouted.

"I'll let you in on a secret," Nerissa whispered to him, motioning for him to come closer. He did. She cupped her hands over his ears. "No one really likes chores. That's why they're called chores."

Lukas groaned.

"Tell you what, you go get whatever it is done and I'll see if Gaius can't convince your mother I need your help getting better and maybe we can play a few more games yet tonight."

"Those games will have to wait until tomorrow," Gwen stated matter-of-factly.

"Why?" Nerissa and Lukas asked simultaneously, with nearly identical expressions on their faces.

Gwen chuckled. "I wondered when one of you would ask why I've come. Gaius has asked Uther to let you be his guest tonight for the banquet and he asked that I help you get ready. Although, we do have to hurry because I still need to help Lady Morgana too."

"Well, if you're going to be there, maybe this banquet won't be so bad," Lukas confessed with a sigh.

"That's the spirit," Gwen said as she pulled Lukas by the shoulders toward the door. She gave him a little swat on the back and the boy took off in a sprint. Gwen shook her head and chuckled to herself. "I see you've met Lukas," she said, poking her head out into the corridor, making sure he wasn't listening before she continued. "He's quite a spirited one. A lot for his mother to handle on her own at times."

Nerissa frowned. "What of his father?"

Gwen shrugged. "Dunno. I've known him since he was a babe. Never once have I heard mention of his father."

"I can relate to that," Nerissa sighed.

Gwen offered Nerissa a soft smile and gently patted her on the shoulder. "Well, let's think of happier things then, hm? Like getting you ready for a banquet." Gwen then held out her hands for Nerissa to take. Rather reluctantly, Nerissa placed her hands into her new friend's hands.

For the first time in a few days, Nerissa stood up. She leaned heavily against Gwen and kept her weight off her injured foot. She then glanced down at the white shift she wore and looked over to the corner of her room where her clothes had been. Merlin had taken them out to be washed yesterday and they hadn't been returned. Nerissa chewed her bottom lip. What was she going to wear to the feast?

But it appeared Gwen had already thought of that. "Lady Kenna is heavy with child and you looked to be about her size. I asked if you could borrow something for tonight. She then sent these along. Gwen made sure Nerissa had something to lean against before she brought in a basket of clothes. Nerissa was so shocked at the kindness being shown to her, tears welled in her eyes.

The clothes in the basket weren't ornate, but they were finer than what she currently owned. Nerissa ran a finger against the cloth and shook her head. "I can't accept these," she whispered.

"Lady Kenna thought you might say that," Gwen smiled. "So she said she has no use for these anymore, given her station upon her marriage to Sir Daniel. She was just a citizen of Camelot before that, you know. Wealthier than most, but still just a citizen. One of the few to make a knight in shining armour hers." Gwen paused for a moment, looking rather wistful. She then looked at Nerissa. "Kenna also mentioned that this should square things away with Gaius."

Nerissa sighed. "I suppose," she said hesitantly. "Only if Gaius is alright with it."

"He's the one who sent me to Kenna in the first place." Gwen set the basket on Nerissa's bed. "So, which of these would you like to wear tonight?"

Nerissa was almost overwhelmed by the fine pieces in the basket. She chewed her bottom lip, unable to decide. "What do you think?" Nerissa asked Gwen.

Gwen looked at Nerissa thoughtfully before she began rummaging through the basket. She pulled out a light blue piece. "I think this one would look beautiful, especially with your eyes," Gwen offered.

Nerissa smiled. "Then that one it is!"

After what seemed like an eternity, Gwen had Nerissa primped and prepped for the banquet. Some of her auburn hair had been pulled back in several intricate braids before cascading in natural curls down her back. Gwen had even thought to place a few flowers in her hair. The blue dress Nerissa wore was simple, but she had never worn anything quite that nice before. While she knew her outfit was quite plain, she felt dressed up almost like a princess. Nerissa couldn't help but smile. Gwen told her that she would see her at the feast and then left to help Lady Morgana.

With Merlin, Gaius, and Lukas helping her, Nerissa managed to make it to the banquet hall only a little worse for wear. Nerissa would swear that it was Merlin's fault every time her ankle banged against something. He was certainly going to get an earful from her later.

As Nerissa hobbled into the banquet hall, holding onto Gaius and her brother, it felt like everyone in the room turned to look at her and she blushed. She was making quite a sight. Not only was she practically being carried into the room, but she now felt severely underdressed compared to the other ladies in the room. To make matters even worse, Prince Prat seemed to be looking in her direction. Nerissa met his glance with a scowl before Gaius and Merlin led her to the spot at the table she would be occupying for the evening.

Nerissa managed to get on the bench, thanks to Lukas who kept her from falling backwards. Crisis averted there. Lukas commented that he would be back soon and that Merlin should really get moving. Nerissa couldn't help but smile as Merlin grumbled to himself. Merlin was being made to work the banquet. It appeared that not only was being sent to the stocks part of his punishment for the first row with Prince Prat, but Uther was making him serve tonight as well.

"It could be worse," Nerissa teased her brother. "You could be in the dungeons right now."

Merlin glanced around, catching Prince Prat glancing in their direction. This time it was Merlin who scowled. "I'm beginning to think that might have been preferable," he said.

Nerissa scoffed at her brother. She was excited to see what all the fuss was about, having never attended something like this in Ealdor. Even if Prince Prat kept looking their way over his shoulder. He was probably telling his mates all about their encounter, even if most of them had already been there. What a prat.

A few moments later, Gwen sidled up beside them as the attention of the room seemed to turn toward a beautiful woman in a red dress. "That's Lady Morgana," Gwen whispered for Nerissa's sake. "She looks great, doesn't she?"

"Yeah," Merlin sighed.

Nerissa looked over her shoulder at her brother, who couldn't seem to keep his eyes off Lady Morgana. Sure, she was very beautiful, but she was most certainly out of her brother's league. Nerissa cleared her throat, which made him scowl. In retaliation, he reached down and grabbed her wine goblet. She tried to swat his hand away, but it was no use. He still managed to take a sip from it.

Gwen smiled softly. "Some people are just born to be queen."

Merlin's eyes widened. "No!" he countered.

"I hope so," Gwen said. "One day. Not that I want to be her. Who'd want to marry Arthur?"

"Not me," Nerissa scoffed.

Merlin must have taken a sip of Nerissa's wine at the wrong moment because, at Nerissa's words, he spewed his wine from his mouth. Thankfully he was tall enough that the wine shot over the table. But it was still disgusting. What had prompted such a reaction from him? He was never normally this bad.

"What was that about?" Nerissa hissed at her brother before she took the goblet from his hands. "There is something seriously wrong with you today. Did something happen to you last night?"

"You don't know half of it," Merlin muttered to himself. "Oh look! I think Gaius needs some help."

"No, he doesn't."

"Yes, he does. You just missed it. Gotta go!"

Nerissa grabbed her brother's arm and shot him a look letting him know that they would be finishing this conversation later. He raised his eyebrows and headed toward where Gaius stood chatting with some men.

"Brothers?" Gwen chuckled glancing knowingly at Nerissa.

"Something like that," Nerissa chuckled in response.

Gwen sighed. "I should probably get that wine cleaned up."

"Wait!" Nerissa said, gently taking hold of Gwen's arm. "Would you mind making an introduction with Lady Morgana for me? I'd like to thank her for the flowers myself."

Gwen gently patted Nerissa's shoulder before she went to find Morgana. Nerissa went to take a sip from her wine goblet, only to find that Merlin had already drunk all of it. She grumbled against him quietly before she looked over her shoulder to make sure no one was watching. She then switched goblets with the person across from her before taking a small sip.

Several moments, Gwen returned with Lady Morgana's arm looped through hers. Gwen smiled brightly. "Morgana, I'd like to introduce you to Nerissa, Gaius's niece. Nerissa, this is Lady Morgana, the king's ward."

Nerissa smiled and was about to stand when Morgana quickly enveloped her in a hug. This shocked Nerissa. Not at all what she had been expecting. Especially not from a lady. "This way you don't have to stand with that injured ankle," Morgana whispered in her ear.

"Thank you," Nerissa said, feeling the words inadequate. She hadn't expected Lady Morgana to be quite so nice. Especially to her - a nobody.

Morgana released Nerissa from the hug. "It's nice to finally meet you," Morgana said with a smile. "I've already heard quite a bit about you."

Nerissa blushed, unsure of how to respond to that. Gwen managed to make eye contact with her and motioned with her head toward Morgana. Oh! The whole reason for the introduction! Nerissa cleared her throat. "Lady Morgana," Nerissa said. "I wanted to thank you for the flowers you had Gwen bring by. It was very thoughtful of you and it brightened my day."

Lady Morgana's brow furrowed. "Flowers? I didn't..."

This time Gwen caught Morgana's glance. Even the kind-hearted Gwen looked confused. "Yes, you did. I was told by..." Gwen paused and her eyes suddenly widened. She gave Morgana a look.

Morgana took a second to ponder Gwen's look before she chuckled. "I'm glad you liked the flowers. I thought it was terrible what Arthur did to you."

Horns signalled Uther's entrance and everyone headed to their places at the table. Morgana then told Nerissa that she hoped to see more of her later. But Nerissa couldn't help but think of what had just happened. It appeared Lady Morgana had no knowledge of the flowers. It was strange. Either she had already forgotten or...Nerissa's brow furrowed in confusion. There was no logical explanation.

Thankfully, Gaius took his spot across from her so she didn't have to ponder the strange situation too long. She forced herself into a standing position, wincing slightly as her foot hit the bench. "How are you feeling?" Gaius asked, referring to her ankle.

"I'm fine," Nerissa told her uncle. She glanced over her shoulder at Merlin, who stood with his arms folded across his chest leaning against the stone wall. Lukas stood beside him and waved at her. Nerissa waved back at him.

As she turned to face Gaius once more, she made eye contact with Prince Prat. She rolled her eyes and sent a scowl in his direction and he quickly averted his gaze when he noticed that she noticed. She had always heard princes were annoying, but she hadn't thought they were this bad.

King Uther then commanded the attention of all gathered. "We have enjoyed twenty years of peace and prosperity. It has brought the kingdom and myself many pleasures, but few can compare with the honour of introducing Lady Helen of Mora!"

A hearty round of applause rippled through the room. Nerissa softly clapped her hands so as to not draw attention to herself for not clapping, but she knew the banishment of magic was what he meant by peace and prosperity. It meant peace and prosperity from people like her, the very thought which made her feel slightly uncomfortable. She hoped with time, she'd get used to things here in Camelot. As long as she didn't use her magic, she ought to be fine...at least she hoped. And she hadn't used her magic since the porridge incident.

The music started and everyone took their seats. Nerissa slowly managed to get herself into a sitting position without hurting herself. She would have been more pleased with the accomplishment had her view of Lady Helen not been blocked by a giant knight. Nerissa crinkled her nose and sighed. It was the first time in her life she was able to see such a prestigious singer and she couldn't even see. Granted, it shouldn't matter because she shouldn't need to see to be able to hear. But the situation still caused Nerissa some slight distress.

"What is it?" Gaius mouthed to her in concern.

"I can't see," Nerissa mouthed back to him.

Gaius leaned back and chuckled as Lady Helen began to sing. Her voice was beautiful, but it would have been so much better to see her. Thankfully, Gaius motioned his head toward Merlin. Catching his meaning, Nerissa carefully excused herself from the table. Lukas must have been watching her, instead of Lady Helen, because he was quickly at her side and helped her walk over to Merlin.

When she reached her brother, Merlin had a strange expression on her face. Nerissa was mentally preparing some excuse to tell him when she realised that he wasn't looking at her. He was looking at Lady Helen. Nerissa rolled her eyes as she held tightly onto Lukas. Take a boy out of Ealdor and he suddenly can't control himself around beautiful women.

Nerissa yawned. She was beginning to feel tired. Perhaps walking took a lot out of her? But then her brother looked at her and mouthed cover your ears. Merlin himself had his hands over his ears. It was a rather odd request, but Nerissa did as her brother suggested.

She then felt Lukas fall to the floor. He was fast asleep. Nerissa's eyes widened frantically as she looked at her brother. He nodded toward the rest of the people at the banquet. She turned to see everyone sleeping, spiderwebs creeping across the table, people, and food. The only one seemingly normal was Lady Helen, who was striding toward the head of the table with her eyes focused on Prince Prat.

"What's going on?" Nerissa tried to ask her brother, but her glance became fixated on Lady Helen who pulled a knife from the sleeve of her gown.

Thankfully, Merlin seemed to be thinking quickly because his eyes glinted gold and suddenly the chandelier magically fell from the ceiling. It landed squarely on Lady Helen, who had the dagger raised, poised to throw it straight at Prince Prat.

Nerissa's brow furrowed. Why did Lady Helen try to kill Prince Prat? She supposed people each had their own tolerance level as far as prats were concerned. But she was drawn from her thoughts as people began to rouse.

"Wassat?" Lukas groaned from the floor.

"I honestly have no idea," Nerissa told him, as she bent down and helped him stand, ignoring the pain shooting up from her ankle. She turned to her side and was surprised to see King Uther looking their way with concern on his face. Nerissa mouthed, he's fine, which seemed enough to appease Uther. For a moment, Nerissa wondered if she had misjudged the king, especially if he could seem to find concern for even the lowliest of servants in his kingdom.

Although, she was a little shaken when the king's gaze didn't move from her right away. Nerissa couldn't place the expression on his face. But he didn't tear his gaze from her until people began to gasp.

Nerissa couldn't see what the commotion was because she wasn't tall enough to see beyond the folks that had already taken to their feet. But what she did see was her brother's eyes turn golden once more. Magic. He was using magic for something. What was it?

She wasn't quite sure what happened. One moment she was standing looking at her brother. The next he rushed to Prince Prat's side and pulled the prince away from his chair. Merlin sent Prince Prat hurtling directly toward her. Knowing that her brother had slowed time, Nerissa recognised she wouldn't be able to move from her current position. So, she braced for impact.

The next thing Nerissa knew, she was lying on her back on the stone floor with a rather large man-child crushing her. Prince Prat slowly raised his head, trying to make sense of the situation. He then looked down at Nerissa. He blinked several times trying, still trying to make sense of things.

"Can't breathe," Nerissa gasped to Prince Prat.

Suddenly screams and gasps began to fill the banquet hall and Prince Prat rolled off Nerissa. He seemed in a daze as he stood to his feet. What was even more surprising was he reached his hands down to help Nerissa up. It was probably just the shock of things. Nerissa wanted to refuse his request, but turning his offer down in front of all these people would probably ruin her forever. So she warily placed her hands in his.

Once Nerissa was on her feet once more, Prince Prat seemed to have gathered his wits about him. He cleared his throat. "Falling for me again?" A wobbly smirk played across his face.

Nerissa rolled her eyes as she noticed the dagger sticking out of his chair. He almost died and yet he still acted like this? She stood taller, barely reaching his shoulders. "If you hadn't almost died just now, I would probably point out to you that you are the one that fell on me."

Prince Prat didn't get a chance to respond because Uther quickly came to his side and wrapped an arm around his boy. They both turned to look at Merlin, who was scrambling to pick himself up from the floor. Everyone seemed to stare at Merlin in amazement. Nerissa only hoped that Uther hadn't noticed he had used magic. She held her breath until Uther spoke.

"You saved my boy's life. A debt must be repaid."

After a bit of back and forth between Merlin and Uther, Merlin was made Prince Prat's manservant - much to both Prince Prat and Merlin's dismay. Nerissa giggled with glee. Served him right. Both of them. They would certainly annoy each other and Nerissa eagerly looked forward to it.

Uther once again commanded the attention of the room. "While it seems we no longer have entertainment for the evening..." He paused and looked at Mary Collins lying dead, crushed by the chandelier. Somehow she had managed to magically make herself become Lady Helen. The very thought made Nerissa shudder, but Uther continued. "You are all invited to remain here. The servants will see to the mess and have more food brought up from the kitchen."

People stood and began to converse as if nothing had even happened as the servants quickly rushed to clear the tables. Nerissa turned to talk to Lukas, but he snuck away. At first, she thought he must be helping clear things with the other servants, but when she caught sight of him, he was talking to King Uther.

Uther motioned for his men to sound their horns. They did and all eyes were on Uther once more. "It appears we have a newcomer in our midst who has the gift of song."

Nerissa looked around for whom Uther could be talking about, but it was then she realised that he was looking at her. Lukas waved at her from the king's side. Nerissa paled as she pointed to herself. Uther nodded.

"I-I fear my talents aren't...." Nerissa began, but Uther quickly cut her off.

"Nonsense. You will sing for us."

Nerissa gulped nervously. She wanted to refuse the king's offer; but once again, she knew it would ruin her to refuse. Nerissa gave a slight nod. Uther walked toward her and offered her his arm. Gaius nodded for her to accept, so she did.

"What is your name, my dear?" Uther asked as he escorted Nerissa up to the stage.

"Nerissa," she squeaked.

Uther seemed to momentarily tense at the name. "I once knew a Nerissa. She was the grandmother of a boyhood friend," he said rather smoothly.

"I've never heard anyone else with the name before," Nerissa stated nervously.

"Where are you from?"

"I've lived my whole life in Ealdor until only days ago when I came here to stay with my uncle, Gaius."

Uther seemed to relax at this as he helped her up onto the stage. They had walked a little too quickly for her hurt ankle, so it was throbbing once more. Thankfully, Lukas came rushing to her aid with a stool. Nerissa breathed a sigh of relief as he helped her onto the stool.

The benches had been moved away from the tables and faced the stage as the servants continued to clear the tables. Uther took his seat and nodded at her.

Nerissa cleared her throat, trying to calm her nerves. She had never sung in front of so many people before. She wasn't sure she could. But when she caught Prince Prat staring at her, something raged within her, wanting to prove to him wrong - and that managed to calm her nerves. While her repertoire might not be that of an accomplished singer, she had plenty of songs from growing up with her mother and from Ealdor that ought to suit them for a time. The room was silent and she caught her brother smiling at her. Nerissa then began to sing.

Constant as the stars above

Always know that you are loved

And my love shining in you

Will help you make your dreams come true, Will help your dreams come true

The instrumentalists that were supposed to accompany Lady Helen seemed to recognise the tune Nerissa was singing and began to play along with her.

The lamb lies down and rests its head

On its mother's downy bed

Dolphin plays in the moonlight's glow

And butterfly dreams of a violet rose

Dreams of a violet rose

I'll cradle you in my arms tonight

As sun embraces the moonlight

The clouds will carry our songs tonight!

Our dreams will run deep like the sea

Our dreams will run deep like the sea!

Constant as the stars above

Always know that you are loved!

And my love shining in you

Will help you make your dreams come true!

It was then Nerissa noticed Prince Prat watching her rather intently. Not wanting to back down, she gazed directly back at him as she finished her song.

Will help

Your dreams

Come

True

A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY LOVELY REVIEWERS!