Cavall set his head on the ground and sighed.
Britt patted him once more and raised her gaze to her courts. It was mid afternoon on a cool spring day. As most of her knights had little to do since they were, surprisingly, at peace with not even a hint of war on the horizon, most of them chose to sit in Britt’s throne room and chatter as Merlin’s Minions ran the kingdom.
Britt considered her knights. “We need to make things more efficient. We have all these knights with no work to do. Talk about a waste of man power,” Britt said, sitting taller when Sir Kay approached her throne.
“There is a foreign knight that wishes to speak to you, My Lord,” Sir Kay said.
Britt scratched the back of her neck. “What for?”
“He claims he recently spoke with you, and you instructed him to seek you out in Camelot should he need anything,” Sir Kay said. Although he spoke no chiding words, his displeasure of Britt’s generosity was made obvious by the slant of his mustache and the rebuke in his eyes.
Britt waved Sir Kay’s unspoken concern off. “Oh! Him! Don’t worry, Kay. He’s not a nut or a covert killer. He’s the fancy pants knight that gave me the shaving idea.”
“Still, one should be cautious when extending hospitality to an unknown knight,” Sir Kay grumbled.
“Yes, yes. I’m sorry. I should have let you look him over before I made any invitations. Send him in, please?” Britt said.
Sir Kay bowed and swept out of the room.
Moments later the handsome, dark haired, clean shaven knight entered the hall.
His entrance raised some notice from Britt’s knights. Several of the men clustered closest to Britt’s throne fell silent as they watched the young knight approach Britt.
“Welcome to Camelot,” Britt said as she stood and glided down the stairs of the dais her throne was perched upon.
“Thank you, My Lord,” the knight said, bending over in a perfectly executed bow.
“What brings you here today?” Britt asked.
“I approach you to ask for living quarters for myself and my two cousins. We grow weary of making our beds under the stars and would like to rest for a time before setting off in search of more adventures.”
“There are just three of you? I don’t think that will be a problem,” Britt said, glancing to Merlin, who was crouched over an abacus and parchment.
The wizard flapped his hand without looking up. “Go ahead. Adopt any number of vagabond knights. We have enough room,” Merlin said.
Britt nodded in satisfaction. “There you have it. You and your cousins may seek refuge in Camelot as long as you like. We can speak to Sir Kay, who will make the proper arrangements.”
The young knight smiled. “I thank you for your generosity, My Lord.”
“Name,” Merlin said.
Britt winced. “I must beg you to forgive my poor manners, for I do not know your name,”
“It is I who must beg your pardon, My Lord, for I never thought to introduce myself. My cousins are Lionel and Bors, the sons of King Bors. I am Lancelot du Lac, the son of King Ban.”
All of Britt’s good cheer left her. She forced her lips into the shape of a smile that held no warmth. “Lancelot?”
Merlin looked up in alarm, hearing the frigid edge to Britt’s inquiry.
“Yes, My Lord,” Lancelot said, bowing again.
“If your name is indeed Lancelot you can go—,” Britt was cut off when Merlin hustled to her side.
“Lancelot, welcome to Camelot. You know who Kay is, yes? He’s the man with the unfortunate face and the intimidating mustache who showed you in. Talk to him and he will show you and your cousins to your rooms. If you will excuse us,” Merlin said, yanking Britt out of the throne room.
They stumbled past Sir Kay and a squad of guards and nearly ran into a gaggle of servants before Merlin hauled Britt into an unused bedroom.
“I want him OUT of Camelot, right now,” Britt snarled.
Merlin folded his arms across his chest and stood in front of the door, barring the way. “Why?”
“Because he’s a back-stabbing, spineless worm who destroys Camelot and ruins Arthur.”
“Is that in the Arthur legends from the future?” Merlin asked.
“Yes.”
“What happens?”
“He worms his way into the position of Arthur’s best friend and has an affair with Arthur’s wife, Guinevere,” Britt spat. “The two rip Arthur’s kingdom to shreds.”
Merlin didn’t even blink. “I see. You fail to realize one thing.”
“What?”
“That is a legend from the future, Britt, but right now you are the legend,” Merlin said.
“What do you mean?”
“It is your decision to marry. You decide who your closest knight is. You are in control. It is your decision whether or not you wish to put Lancelot in a position of power.”
“Exactly, which is why I’m kicking him out of Camelot,” Britt said.
“You can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Did you hear anything he said after he gave his name?”
“No.”
Merlin sighed. “I thought as much. He said his father is King Ban.”