The Return Of A Friend

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur was standing in the courtyard, awaiting the arrival of Princess Yassia. Word had been sent from Mercia that the prince's new wife would be returning to Camelot for a short period of time . . . and Arthur wanted to give them no excuse. While the treaty was still in place, he knew how Bayard coveted Camelot. And with Uther currently unwell, every responsibility fell upon Arthur, and he would do nothing, absolutely nothing to bring war to Camelot. But it was not only for this reason that he wished to personally greet Yassia. She was after all a friend to the kingdom, and a relative of one of the nobles here. Part of it was personal, as well as political. With the dangers in the kingdom -- considering Morgana was still out there somewhere as well as other enemies of the kingdom -- Arthur sent a few knights to the borders to ensure them safe passage. While he of course knew she would not be traveling alone, he wanted to offer extra protection . . . just as a safety precaution.

Hearing that they were approaching the city, he now stood at the bottom of the stairs of the castle in the courtyard, and it did not take long for the princess and the knights of both Mercia and Camelot to come into view. He took a couple of steps forward, his mind recalling their first meeting . . . when neither knew who the other was. Both had assumed the other was a commoner, and ironically, both ended up being royalty. It was quite ironic indeed. As Yassia neared him, Arthur lowered his head out of respect for the princess. "Princess Yassia," he greeted politely, formally, yet with a hint of slight warmth for he knew her from before. He knew her as Yassia, not only as wife of Oliver. "Welcome back to Camelot," he continued, relieved to see that she had arrived here safely.


_{Setting: Camelot castle; in the courtyard, may move around a bit
Time of Day: Afternoon
Timeline: The beginning of season 4
Tag: Yassia Dyfrène de Ailantha}

[Yassia Dyfrène de Ailantha]

It felt weird to come back to Camelot like this. Not bad, no, certainly not bad, but… a little out of place. In moments like this, it was truly hard to grasp how much her tables had turned for the better in such a short time. Oh, she remembered it perfectly, when she had first crossed under that bridge, disguised as a commoner, almost overwhelmed by the castle itself and the hustle and bustle around it after so many months in solitude, away from all these things that made her a princess. She had been full of hopes and dreams that day, but also full of apprehension, not knowing what would await her. And look at her now! The guards were saluting the foreign princess and her prince, the second son of Mercia respectfully as they passed through the first gate. Their group was accompanied by a safety guard of knights of Camelot, some of who Yassia knew by sight after staying here over a year and then of course by a number of Mercian soldiers. Sometimes Yassia couldn’t quite believe it that she now was bound in some way or another to three kingdoms, but this was apparently how things were to be now, and you couldn’t say she was complaining!

Then they entered the courtyard and Yassia saw Arthur standing on the stairs to greet her. How different that was from their first meeting as well, as they had run across each other in quite a dire situation and each had assumed of the other that they were commoners…it was a story made for legends, and subconsciously Yassia’s eyes flickered towards Oliver and she smiled. They, too, had met under similar circumstances, and look where they were now. Things had worked out certainly different from what she had hoped them to be in the first place, but what she had got now was even better! Instead of ‘only’ the help of a kingdom in her strive to win back the throne, she had found the love of her life and future king of Ailantha along with it, something Camelot might have never been able to offer her! Which was not to say of course that she wasn’t grateful for what they HAD done for her of course! In this year-long stay, she had made friends for life, and she had been more or less safe, waiting for fate to throw Oliver her way once more. Let’s face it, without Arthur’s pre-coronation ceremony, Oliver would have never come to Camelot and they had never met again! She owed Arthur as much as she owed anyone else!

After dismounting, Yassia walked up towards the stairs and returned his bow with a reverence. They might both be destined to be rulers, but even amongst equals there were more than just niceties to observe. “Prince Arthur, it’s good to see you again. I hope everything has been well in my absence?” It sounded almost as if she were returning home here, but that was by no means the case. They would make this stay as short as was still considerd polite and give them time to pay their final respects and last goodbyes… and then she would be homeward bound. It was so weird to think of it! “I am glad I get the chance to… say goodbye to Camelot and everyone here. It’s a place I will always remember fondly.”