♔ | 5 We Meet Again...

[not_a_clotpole]

[It's been a while since Arthur's dreams have been invaded by the strange people from different times and places. No doubt it was for the best since he'd just been crowned king and the last thing he needed was interrupted sleep!

But now the fates have decided to be cruel, so...as he dreams of hunting game things may become very strange indeed...]

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[not_a_clotpole]

[Arthur blinks in surprise as the lake appears before him and he looks around wondering exactly where he is and how exactly he got lost. It doesn't seem possible he knows these woods like the back of his hand.

Cautiously, he moves towards the lake something about it is intriguing to him']

[waterfell]

[There's a reflection in the water of a face Arthur knows from old dreams: Mercury, the strange blue-haired girl he's seen as companion and as antagonist. She is holding a sword, translucent as ice.]

[not_a_clotpole]

[Arthur does know that face and.he takes a quick look over his shoulder expecting to see her behind him. But no, she seems to be in the lake.]

"Hello? Can you hear me?"

[waterfell]

[Her hair, though short, flows with the current of the lake like strands of seaweed waving in its depths. Despite the prolonged submersion, she seems to be in no distress. Her eyes, piercing and dark, flash open, but instead of speech, only bubbles make it to the surface. The sword is not relinquished as it should be, but neither is it held threateningly. Rather, she clutches it in both hands.

Slowly, she seems to rise, like a diver finally making her ascent; but she does not break through to the fresh air.]

[not_a_clotpole]

[Under normal circumstances Arthur would be more than a little freaked out at the sight of a woman laying undernrath the surface of the water and apparently not breathing. But at the moment it seems to make sense.

All the same he reaches tentatively into the water, hoping to get her attention.]

[waterfell]

[Though she gives no other sign of noticing Arthur's presence, the lady's lips curve in a smile. The heavy skirts of her dark blue gown flow around her, but she gives no impression of struggling against their weight. Yet when she finally emerges from the water, the gown is as dry as if she'd stayed on land. She steps towards Arthur atop the lake's surface.]

[not_a_clotpole]

[OK, that's creepy, Arthur backs away a bit and suppresses a shiver. This definitely looks like magic, but then this is also a dream so...]

"Hello again."

[waterfell]

[Oh, it's magic, Arthur. The waters of your land have always had magic and legend - and she, another water goddess, knows it. She stretches out a hand in what might be a formal gesture of greeting.]

Will you take my hand, Arthur Pendragon?

[not_a_clotpole]

[That is very true, although Arthur would rather not think of such things, magic and he are not on the best of terms right now.

Still...he stares at the offered hand and hesitantly reaches out.]

[waterfell]

[It's only time that saves him. Even weeks ago, she'd have pulled him into the water with her, into her silent and distant existence, without a thought for the fact he'd be unable to breathe.

As it is, now - as she is, now - she turns her head away before the gesture is even completed.]

It's been awhile since I've seen you. Have you done what I asked, when you owed me your life those months ago?

[not_a_clotpole]

"It has?" [Remembering one's dreams is not an easy business, but Arthur does vaguely recall her brow beating him in an earlier dream about a promise.]

"I...what was this promise?"

[waterfell]

See it for yourself. [A ball of water, clear as crystal, forms in the air above her hand. Watching it closely, like a dream within a dream, an old scene starts to play, of Mercury and her demands that Arthur relent towards magic once he came to the throne.]

[not_a_clotpole]

[Arthur gapes in surprise a bitat the images that appear in the ballof water, but also remembers the dream. It had felt so real, he had been sure that he would die.

And he had made a promise...]

"I...do not seek out magic users as my father did, but should they attack Camelot...they must be defeated."

[waterfell]

[It's enough, apparently; the woman seems to relent, and the globe of water vanishes.]

No one will blame you for defending yourself. Not me, either.

[not_a_clotpole]

[Arthur heaves a sigh of relief. He wasn't sure how he'd defend himself if Mecury attacked him.

He looks around uncertain.]

"Erm..it has been a while... How have you been?"

[waterfell]

[She ignores the question to herself and falls into thinking of the one that, to her, is more interesting.]

I wonder what causes it, when people fall away from these dreams.

[not_a_clotpole]

"Does that happen often?" [Arthur asks.

He wonders again why Mercury is always so reticent about herself.]

[waterfell]

[She frowns, as though with the effort of recalling a memory. There are so many people she hasn't dreamed of in a long time.

What happens to them? Are they living out their waking lives? Has something changed? Is it simply fickle fate?]

Often. [It's agreement, and the most simple

[not_a_clotpole]

[Arthur pauses and wonders about this...finally he asks.]

"Has anyone from Camelot ever been here?"

[waterfell]

You. [This is not particularly helpful, as of course he already knows it. She specifies.] You, and no one else yet.