A Test Of Loyalty (Caitrin)

[morg]

Tagged: Caitrin
Timeline: Season 3, Episode 13 (The Coming of Arthur, Part 2)
Location: Great Hall/Throne Room
Notes: Time for eeevil! Morgana


It was good to be queen, Morgana thought to herself. No wonder men fought wars and tried to conquer kingdoms. The power of ruling a kingdom was intoxicating and once one acquired a taste for it, it would be impossible to give up. This was especially true for Morgana, who was greatly enjoying the opportunity to use her power to exact revenge against her enemies. Uther may have been her original enemy, but as far as Morgana was concerned, everyone in Camelot was now her enemy.

There was poor, old, pitiful Gaius, who had tried for years to suppress her magic with sleeping draughts. There was Merlin and his infernal meddling. There was Gwen, once her best friend, but now, if her nightmares were true, destined to become Arthur's queen. And there was Arthur, her brother, who would try to take the throne away from her once again. Well, he couldn't have it. Not this time.

While Arthur was hiding in the woods like the coward he was, Morgana would just have to take it out on those who were loyal to him. She particularly enjoyed torturing Sir Leon, the ever-loyal and noble knight.

The Lady Caitrin was also imprisoned in her dungeon. She was far too loyal to Arthur, and Morgana hoped to break her of this. So she sent her guards to summon the girl to the throne room, and made her kneel before her.

"Hello, Lady Caitrin. I hope you're enjoying your new accomodations," she said with a smirk.






(Altered to better fit Caitrin's timeline)

[Caitrin de Archer]

After what could only be described as an uncomfortable night’s sleep, Caitrin found herself just hugging her knees to her chest as she stared up at the small window in her cell. Well, she said window, it was just a small slit in the wall with two iron bars preventing her exit. Caitrin pressed her lips together, and winced as her chains clanked together. Throughout her time in Camelot she had been petrified of ending up in the dungeon but she had never been expected to be here for any other reason than for being unmasked as a sorceress. It was a secret held tightly to her chest, but nevertheless, the fear had been there. However, she was here now for simply being too loyal to Arthur. It was something she had never even considered happening before now, but still, she was here. She still had some fight left in her, though it was wrong to assume that she was handling this all as well as she looked to be. She would have given anything to be back home with her Uncle, and to be safe. Anything, it would seem, aside from her loyalty to the false Queen. Caitrin would never recognise Morgana as Queen, it would have to go a long way before she acknowledged her as anything but a traitor.

It was sometime much later than those thoughts when Caitrin heard the doors to her cell open. Her heard starting thudding against her chest, and her eyes were alight with fear. Jesu, they couldn’t be taking her to the pyre could they? Caitrin began to feel a little sick, but the chains were removed from her at least, and she was dragged out of the cell roughly. She shouted at the guards, and reminded them of her rank. That didn’t really seem to make any difference though, as they ignored her and continued to drag her from the dungeons; one guard on each arm. She struggled against them a bit, more to prove to herself that she had tried rather than believing it would actually work. The men were incredibly strong, and dragged her along as though she was offering no resistance.

Caitrin felt herself relax as she was taken to the throne room, though she wasn’t sure why. Though it was inevitable that she would have to speak to Morgana at some point, she had hoped that it wouldn’t be this soon. She didn’t want to kneel, and as she did not voluntarily do so, the guards pushed her down to her knees, with little regard for how much discomfort it caused her. Caitrin winced, but hid her pain for the most part. She looked up at Morgana with nothing but hatred as she spoke, “I’ve been in better accommodation. Is this how you treat fellow nobility, my Lady?” That was all she was to Caitrin, just another noblewoman at court, and she would never be anything more. Caitrin had no interest in pleasing the false Queen either, so her expression remained smug and yet fiery at the same time. She would not bend easily.

[morg]

Morgana's smile was icy. Until now, Morgana hadn't really had a problem with Caitrin, but now, this "fellow noblewoman" exemplified all of the reasons she was so angry, and had turned against her former friends. The fact was, Caitrin was loyal to Arthur. Not to her. She'd never even really made an effort to be friends with Morgana, and although the same could be said of Morgana to Caitrin, at the moment, Morgana really only saw her own side of things. After all, Camelot was her home, and Caitrin was merely a guest here. Why wouldn't she attempt to reach out to the Lady of Camelot? Instead, she chose Arthur. Everyone always chose Arthur.


"I could arrange to give you better accomodations, more befiting your status... you need only to swear your allegiance to me."

Morgana rose from the throne and walked over to the noblewoman. Her stride was so calm and casual that it almost seemed like she was walking up to a friend.

"And of course, if you don't... Well, I need hardly remind you that a stay in the dungeon is far from the worst thing you need to worry about."

[Caitrin de Archer]

It was hard to look at Morgana sat upon the throne in a way. The throne was meant for Arthur, but the fact she was upon it at all showed the deception, and the betrayal she had brought to Camelot. She was already a tarnished woman. There was nothing that anyone in Camelot wouldn’t have done for her that long ago, but now her name drilled fear into the people for all the wrong reasons. Caitrin wasn’t scared of Morgana, and neither would she ever be. The young noblewoman looked up at Morgana with hatred in her eyes; it burned within her as bright as her hair. She stood up, once the guard relaxed his grip a little, as she refused to stay kneeling to the false queen for longer than she had to. Her wrists were a raw colour of red, and she snatched a glance at them, before returning her gaze to the woman who had caused all of this.

Caitrin wasn’t naive enough to think this was just some kind of social call, but she had no intention of swearing her allegiance to anyone but Arthur. Of course she didn’t feel as strongly about Uther, given he wanted her kind dead, but Arthur was her friend and she owed him that loyalty. No doubt he would scold her over her stubbornness if any of them escaped this with their lives. Caitrin held her head high, but shook it all the same. Caitrin did not want to spend any longer in the dungeon, but if the alternative was this, then she would take her cell any day of the week. “I will not swear allegiance to you my Lady.” Her voice was calm, and cool, her Mercian streak finally being brought into the conversation. She would not back down unless she was forced to back down, of course everyone had their breaking point, and Caitrin knew that. She had no idea how she would cope of course, if Morgana tried to force her hand, but there was no one to threaten other than herself. Griff was no longer in Camelot, and her Uncle had already pledged his loyalty to the false Queen. She knew he had only done it to protect his own interests, but still, she would never forgive him.

Perhaps Morgana hadn’t reckoned with a noblewoman making a stand against her, but Caitrin was not some feeble minded woman. She had been raised to be so much more than that. Magic ran through her veins, and she knew with that she was always defended, and she would never be alone. It didn’t make this meeting any easier of course, and though she wasn’t afraid of Morgana, she was certainly concerned about how much the woman was capable of. “Nothing you can do will make me betray Arthur’s trust.” It was a solid statement, and Caitrin’s defiance flashed across her features; she would not break easily.

[morg]

It was the look in the young noblewoman's eyes that fueled Morgana's wrath even further. She knew the look, for she often worse a similar expression on her own face. It was a look of pure hatred, and Morgana couldn't deny that it hurt. Yes, she was consumed by hatred all ready. But somehow it bothered her, deep in her very core, to see others hating her right back.

When she was a little girl, she had once asked Gorlois why he always went off to war. She couldn't understand then when people wanted to hurt other people. Why did some people hate other people? And Gorlois had explained to her that hate was simply love, turned on its back. Morgana still believed that in a way. She was filled with hate now because the love she so desperately craved had been denied to her--or so she thought. Gorlois was taken from her when she was so very young, and it was Uther's fault. Uther had never listened to her opinions or cared what she wanted. He didn't respect her and couldn't even bring himself to admit that she was truly his daughter. He loved only Arthur... that was obvious. Arthur clearly cared more for Gwen than he did for her... and the same was true of Gwen. And then there was Merlin. Merlin, the man who had tried to poison her. She had thought he was a friend; she had trusted him. She had cared for him and believed he cared for her. But he betrayed that trust. And she didn't want to admit to herself how much that memory hurt.

She had no real connection with Caitrin, and that hurt her, too. She was so close with Arthur, and with Merlin... but she was left out of that particular bond. Always she was left out. It was like she was persecuted for having magic, for not really belonging in Camelot at all. Well, she'd show them. She'd show them all.

"I highly doubt that you have any information about Arthur that would be of any use to me," she said coldly. "But your uncle has already sworn his allegiance to me, and I rather hoped we could have been friends. But I suppose you prefer the dungeon to a nice, warm bed."

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin was not going to give in easily; she was still kneeling, and so tried her luck with standing up to defy Morgana further. Though she had no intention of screaming her point across to the false Queen, she wasn’t going to betray Arthur’s trust and sign her loyalty over to Morgana. Caitrin had nothing left to lose now, Griff had left months ago, and she hadn’t heard of him since. Her family in Mercia would not rise to her aid, and her Uncle would do what he thought was right, and if she conflicted with that then he would not help her. Caitrin just stood opposite Morgana, and stared on at the false Queen; a defiant look across her face. She didn’t like doing this, of course she would rather be back home at the estate, in her familiar surroundings, but her stubbornness had got the better of her once again. Caitrin had dug her heels in now, and it was unlikely that she would step down. In a way, she felt sick because this was the woman who was representing their kind. Of course Morgana did not know that they had their magic in common, as Caitrin would not disclose it to her if her life depended on it, which she supposed in a way, it did. It was little wonder that people in Camelot were so scared of sorcerers if Morgana was the person representing them.

It amused her that Morgana underestimated her, perhaps she didn’t know about the friendship that she and Arthur had. Caitrin knew she had no information regarding Arthur’s whereabouts, but she also thought it was naïve of the Queen to assume she knew nothing. However, perhaps it was to get her to slip up, and tell something which could aid Morgana in her quest to find Arthur. Caitrin just shrugged, not really caring much for formalities at the moment; Morgana didn’t deserve them, not after the way she was treating her people. “I would never be friends with someone like you.” And by that of course she did not mean a sorceress, as how could she discriminate against her own kind. No, instead she meant someone who had played all her closest friends false. Caitrin might be a lot of things, but she was no traitor, and she would defend her friends until the end. “Have you brought me here to mock me my Lady, if so, may I return to my cell?” She asked curtly, and with an unfazed expression, even though she was quite afraid of what Morgana was capable of. Some people were born to hold power, and she was increasingly of the opinion that Morgana was not one of those people.

[morg]

If Morgana had known about the young noblewoman's secret, their interactions might have been quite different. Perhaps they really could have been friends, back when Morgana's loyalties were still undecided. Maybe they would not be standing here this way, on opposite sides, filled with animosity and malice. Maybe if she'd had a friend who shared the same secret as herself, she might not have joined forces with people like Morgause. But there was no way of knowing that now; what had taken place could not be undone. So Morgana glared down at Caitrin, fury building up inside her.

While she might have seemed a traitor to Caitrin and other people in Camelot, Morgana did not see it that way. She did not think she was doing anything wrong; rather, they were the ones who were wrong for persecuting people just because they were born with magic or still followed the old religion.

So Caitrin's "someone like you" comment felt like a slap in the face for Morgana. She interpreted it as "someone with magic," not knowing that the woman before her also possessed magic.

"Someone like me?" she repeated. "You mean someone with magic? Tell me, Lady Caitirin. How would you like it if you were persecuted for how you were born? How would you like living in fear, having to hide who you really are, because if anyone found out, you would surely be killed? All I want is freedom for my people... for people like me. And I want everyone who ever made me feel fear or shame or pain to suffer the way I have. And you... I think I will have to make you suffer for that remark. I don't think I'll be sending you back to your cell any time soon."

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin, unlike Morgana, had the advantage of knowing they both held magic. Of course, the young Mercian would never reveal her secret to Morgana, as she did not want to associate with her in that way. Caitrin hated to think that this was what her people had been reduced to; was this not what Uther had fought against? They should have been trying to work with the kingdoms, and not against them. So, it was not so much Morgana’s magic which Caitrin had an issue with, but more the way in which she was seeking her revenge. She sighed a little, and looked up at the woman, keeping a straight stare at her. To tell Morgana that she was wrong in her interpretation would be to condemn herself, though she knew what it was like to live as an outsider. In Mercia, her tutor had made sure she kept her magic secret, as her father had often spoke of sending her to Camelot. None of her family knew she had magic, only her tutor did, and she died a long time ago, during a particularly harsh winter.

She did not wince, or flinch throughout Morgana’s speech, and instead just continued to stare up at her. Caitrin had felt the same fear all her life, she had often worried she would be hunted down and killed, and so Morgana had no business in trying to play on her sympathies in such a way. The comment Caitrin was more concerned about was the fact that Morgana was not going to be sending her back to her cell anytime soon. The young woman shuddered, “What do you mean?” She asked, a little more alert now as a sense of panic had ignited itself. Caitrin could not defend herself from Morgana if she attacked, “What are you going to do to me?” Her voice was steady, though she felt anything but. Right now she would give anything for her fiancée to come bursting through the doors, but that wasn’t Griff, and she knew it wasn’t. He was most probably back in Glouchedon, with the next woman who caught his eye. She did not take her eyes off Morgana once, and waited in anticipation for her next move.