63So welcome to my story, I'll admit I'm putting various levels of work into different chapters. I'm going to be focusing on the relationship between Merlin and Morgana more often than not.
That being said there will be changes not only to the story line itself but how the characters interact as it goes. Season one will be ran through in different levels of detail.
I'm a huge believer in less is more in some cases. I will purposely leave things out so they can be used later in the story as a plot development item. You won't get to see all the action cause only one character knows about it.
Anyways thanks for deciding to read the Author's Note and be warned my style of storytelling is a bit asymmetrical.
Without further ado I give you,
Linked From The Start
A black haired boy, with ridiculous large ears for one so small; ran playfully through the edge of the forest outside the village. An equally spirited boy wielding a stick ran behind him laughing as he waved his makeshift weapon at his friend.
"You'll pay for stealing my treasure thief!" He shouts in glee.
"Only if you can catch me!" Replies his friend as he shows off his prize, a rock the size of his fist from the bottom of the nearby stream. The rock was perfectly smooth and was an array of colors when wet, their treasure as it was. Laughing as he ducked a swipe from his friend only to trip on an exposed root. Down he tumbled, his breath leaving him from the unexpected meeting with the earth.
His friend approaches him in good spirits as he presses his stick to the downed boy's back.
"I got you now!" He exclaims grinning wolfishly.
Winded the younger of the two could only lay there groaning in defeat and embarrassment.
"Done in by a tree" he mummers. His friend laughs more at his words.
"Are you ok Merlin?" His friend checks as he stoops next to him.
"Yes, Will, thank you" Merlin responses as he pushes himself up reaching for Will's hand when it's offered.
"Want to switch off now?" Will offers. Merlin pauses to dust himself off then looks around. The forest is thin where they are, to Merlin's left lies their home of Ealdor. Nothing more than a few thatch work houses and their fields, it was a quaint sight for visitors. Not that they really got any being a border village in Essetir to the kingdom of Camelot. To his right lay the increasing dense forest of Ascetir. The sun lay low in the sky casting the woods in an orange glow.
"No it looks like it's getting late, we should be getting back soon" Merlin finally responds patting the last of the leaves sticking to his blue tunic off himself.
As if by magic they both hear Will's name being shouted from the village causing them both to grin at each other. His mother sure could shout. Taking off at a light jog they both made their way out of the woods and across the fields to where Will's mother was shouting at one of the village entrances. It wasn't anything special just an opening in the short wood fences that kept the livestock in around the village border. Will's mom was an average lookin woman with brown hair and a grey dress. She always looked tired or upset but they knew not to ask why.
"There you two are, I've been calling for ages. Will go get washed for supper. Merlin your mother is looking for you" she said as they approached.
"Ok, bye Will!" Merlin exclaims as they part ways.
Merlin ran home dodging various villagers as they went about their late afternoon chores. Some waved in greeting to the cheerful child, others glowered and cursed as he nearly caused them to drop what they were carrying. Soon Merlin approached his home, like the rest of Ealdor it was a simple house of wood walls and thatch roof. Small and covered in dirt, it was home. Outside, to the side was Merlin's mother Hunith, gathering some vegetables from their garden patch, the smell of food wafted through the air.
"Mom!" Merlin happily exclaims running up to her, the grey and red garbed woman barely has time to brace herself as the flying missile known as her son barrels straight into her in a hug.
"Merlin" she chuckles "where have you been?"
"Off in the woods with Will, we were playing knights and bandits after we found this stone in the stream" he explains, eager to share every exciting detail with his beloved mother. Pulling back from his hug he shows his right hand, holding up the river stone for his mother to see. Faded colors of red and green danced across fields of grey. Hunith smiles as she listens to Merlin explain how they were getting a drink when they stumbled upon it, leading them to declare it a jewel encrusted stone and the subsequent game of knights and bandits. Leading the boy, gently as he recounted his day, inside they washed and she finished supper by the time Merlin ended his story with the unexpected intervention of the tree root.
"It came out of nowhere mum, and I could swear it wasn't there before" he grumbled. Hunith laughs at her excitable son.
"Who know Merlin, maybe it was an Ent wanting to join in? Now eat your supper, you'll need your strength to go check on it tomorrow" she says giving him a conspiratorial wink and smiling warmly. Merlin's eyes grow wide in wonder as he attacks his porridge with gusto. Hunith smiles as he asks for seconds and gives him some more.
Before long they both finish and wash again for bed. Settling into Hunith's bed Merlin looks up at his mother and asks the same question he does every night.
"Mum, can you tell me another story?" Hunith smiles and lays back, letting her hand run through her son's unruly black hair.
"Let's see," she utters "how about I tell you of dragons tonight?"
At Merlin's excited nod she begins her tale of the majesty of dragons, how they shone brilliantly in the sunlight and of their wisdom and pride.
"And above all else," she enforced "never trust a dragon without first getting it's word, else you might end up with less of what you want and more of what they want."
"Why is that?" A sleepy Merlin asks.
"Dragons can see the future, or parts of it at least, and seek the best outcome for themselves. They want what's best for them and their kind just as people do." Hunith stops and looks down at the now sleeping child in her arms.
"You will do great things one day my little Merlin. I hope you'll be ready." She mummers as she hugs him close and drifts off to sleep.
"But daddy, I don't want to go to bed yet!" Whines a young girl, with long raven hair and piercing green eyes, to her father. The man chuckles down at his darling little girl with a gentle smile on his bearded face.
Sitting on her plush four poster bed with six feather pillows and silk curtains on all sides. The repentant little girl was dressed in a modest sleeping shift while tucked under the covers glaring up at her laughing father.
"Morgana," he chides "how will you stand up right during sword practice tomorrow if you don't go to sleep?"
"I don't want to, I keep having nightmares" she grouches looking off to the side. Her father sighs wishing her mother was here to help him but she had disappeared years ago after Morgana was old enough to not need her milk. He sat down next to her as he reached out.
"I know darling but they are just bad dreams, they can't hurt you." He cooed softly as he stroked her hair. She leaned into his touch but looked unconvinced.
"How about this," he tried "you remember how we played all day today and you even beat Sir Timothy's squire in practice right?"
She nodded unsure but the smile of satisfaction couldn't be kept from her face.
"Then think of those good things and if the nightmares try to come fight them off with those memories, just like how you fought with the sword today." He was smiling warmly. Morgana knew her dad was trying so she put on a brave face and fought hard against her fears with the good memories they had created today. She gives him a smile and lies back.
"Tell me about the dragons daddy, please" she begs.
Goloris smiles warmly and begins the tale of the magical wonders dragons preformed and their kin the dragonlords. Morgana closes her eyes and lets her Father's rich voice sooth her off to sleep where she dreams of running with dragons and a boy with blue eyes and obnoxiously large ears.
The next morning she woke with a smile on her face for the first time in years.
Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed.
Please review!