The trees of the forest flashed by in a greenish-brown blur. Penelope gave the horse more rein and let him gallop with all that he had, trusting his natural instincts to navigate through the dense forest. He veered off to the right, and within seconds Penelope saw that they were headed for a gurgling stream. She leaned forward and felt the horse’s muscles bunch together- then they were flying, above the river and out of danger. Penelope could feel the horse tiring so she pulled back on the reins and slowed him to a bouncy trot.

“Home free,” Penelope said to herself and the horse in between gasps. Her heart was thumping wildly in her chest. A sudden sound behind her made it escalate.

“Really?” a condescending male voice leered at her. Two men, also mounted, appeared from the trees. Penelope urged her horse forward, but the men cut her path off and grabbed the reins. Penelope was dragged off the horse, and then the men started to punch her.

“Don’t try to run away from us, or you’ll end up like your parents,” one of the men grunted as he shoved his fist into her stomach. Penelope fell to the ground and spat up blood. When she began to scream, the men kicked at her. Penelope curled into a ball, trying to roll away from their studded boots, but it was no use.

***

“Did you hear that?” a raven-haired boy asked as he struggled after a taller, blond boy with a bow and quiver clutched in his arms. The blond boy turned around and looked at his companion disdainfully.

“It was probably the deer running away from you, Merlin. You need to be quieter or I won’t be able to catch anything.”

Merlin ignored his master and strained his ears. Then he heard it again, high pitched and penetrating. “It almost sounds like a scream,” he told Arthur. Arthur stopped his hunt and listened carefully. When he heard the scream again, he took off running in the direction.

“Come on, Merlin!” he yelled over his shoulder as he drew his sword. Merlin dropped the bow and quiver and ran after his master. They weaved through the trees, changing direction every few minutes when they heard the scream again. Soon they reached a stream and up ahead they could see the source of the screaming.

“Stay here, Merlin,” Arthur said quietly. He was focused on the scene in front of him, in which two men were viciously attacking a girl. He thought quickly and decided that the best plan was to just join in the fight and catch the men by surprise. Neither of them was armed, and Arthur counted on fighting one before scaring the other away. “Leave her alone!” he shouted as he ran towards the men and hit one of them with the butt of the sword. He didn’t want to kill anyone if he could avoid it. The other man took one glance at Arthur before jumping onto his horse and galloping off. Arthur punched the other man several times before lifting him off the ground and throwing him towards his horse, which shied away. “Get out of here,” he threatened with both his voice and sword. The man didn’t need to be told twice- he mounted his horse and followed his companion away from Camelot.

Merlin was already by the girl’s side when Arthur had sheathed his sword and walked over. “She’s hurt pretty badly,” he told Arthur. “We should get her to Gaius as quickly as possible.” Arthur nodded and picked up the unconscious girl, holding her tenderly. Merlin walked by his side and occasionally glanced at the girl, who moaned with pain.

It took them several minutes, but Arthur and Merlin carried the girl to Gaius’ chambers. Arthur laid her on the cot next to the workbench, where Gaius had quickly laid out some herbal remedies for bruises and cuts. Merlin and Arthur stood off to the side, watching Gaius check the girl’s body and glance back at his herbs.

“Will she be alright?” Arthur asked after a moment’s silence. Merlin looked at him, surprised that he was still there. It wasn’t as if Arthur had taken any interest in a servant's problems before.

Gaius looked up at Arthur, stared meaningfully at Merlin, and then looked back at the young prince. “I wish the answer was so simple,” he stated heavily. Merlin watched Gaius carefully, realizing that there was only a magical cure. Arthur, however, did not know that Merlin was a sorcerer and exhaled loudly. Gaius looked back at the girl.

“It’s a pity that you hadn’t reached her earlier. The abuse she’s suffered has resulted in both surface cuts and bruises, but also in something much worse. She’s bleeding internally, and she’s so far gone that her only hope is magic.” Gaius turned his eyes back to Arthur, gauging his reaction. Arthur’s expression hardened, but he looked back at the girl and it seemed his resolve softened.

“There are no more sorcerers in Camelot, and my father would know immediately if we brought one in. Isn’t there some other way we can save her?” Arthur replied carefully. Merlin’s expression brightened with Arthur's reaction to the idea of magic, but Arthur was looking at Gaius and didn’t notice.

Gaius sighed. “There is no other way to save her.” Arthur nodded and started to turn away and walk toward the door. “But,” Gaius called out, stopping Arthur. “I happen to know someone in Camelot who practices good magic.”

Arthur turned around slowly, measuring Gaius with his eyes. “You take such a risk in telling the crown prince that you know a man who practices magic?”

“I do, because I know you want to save this girl. I also know that you are not like your father. Will you be sworn to silence if we use magic?”

There was a tense silence in the room. Arthur looked at Merlin, who shrugged, and then back to the girl, who whimpered in pain. He studied the girl for a while before looking back at Gaius, his decision made.

“You’re right. I am not like my father, and I can’t let this girl die when there is a chance to save her. I will keep the sorcerer’s name a secret,” Arthur said. Both Gaius and Merlin smiled broadly.

“Alright, Merlin, go get that book of yours,” Gaius said brusquely. Merlin darted into his room and reappeared quickly with the book that Gaius had given him as a gift. Arthur’s mouth gaped open.

“Merlin? Mer-lin is a sorcerer? I don’t believe it- he’s too dumb to do anything! How can Merlin be a sorcerer?” he exclaimed. Merlin looked up from his page-flipping to smirk at Arthur.

“I was just born that way,” he replied. Then he returned to flipping pages before he found the spell he was looking for. “Ah, here it is.” He mumbled the spell to himself several times before pointing his hand at the girl. Arthur watched with shock as he pronounced the spell and his hand began to glow a bright blue. The girl’s stomach also glowed, but the color faded as quickly as it had appeared.

“You really are a sorcerer,” Arthur said amazedly to Merlin. Merlin laughed and closed his book with a snap.

“Took you long enough,” he replied. Arthur raised his eyebrows, reminding Merlin that he was talking to a superior. “Sorry, Sire,” he amended. “Anyway, you have no idea how many times I’ve saved you with magic.”

Arthur scowled at Merlin, insulted. “You saved me?” he scoffed. Merlin was about to reply when Gaius cut him off.

“You can talk later, but right now you’re close to waking the girl up. She needs to rest. Come back in the morning, perhaps she’ll be ready to talk then.” Merlin nodded and disappeared with his book into his room, but Arthur strode to the girl’s side.

“I’m going to stay with her,” he said, pulling up a chair. Gaius nodded with a slightly skeptical look on his face. Arthur pretended not to notice, but he was just as surprised with himself. Usually he didn’t get sentimental, but suddenly it seemed to him as though he had to remain by the girl. He had saved her, after all.

“Very well, Sire. Call my name if she gets feverish or anything of that sort,” Gaius told Arthur before collecting his brews and leaving the room to distribute them among his patients. Arthur watched him go before looking back at the girl. He was surprised to notice how beautiful she was- long brown hair that was smooth and straight on top but curled at the bottom. Her skin was pale and smooth, almost like cream. Arthur found himself holding her hand in his own and stroking the back with his thumb.

“You’re safe now,” he said to her softly. “Merlin, Gaius, and I will take care of you. You’re safe.”