Future In-laws; in this together? (Lucan)

[Caitrin de Archer]

The guard had hold of both of her arms as he threw her into the open cell. She was trying to pull against him, even though she knew it wouldn’t matter; she was here now and that was her fate. As the guard pushed her into the cell, in one swift movement he let go of her arms and closed the cell door behind her. It was only then that it hit her; she was in the dungeons. Caitrin was very still for a few moments; the whole thing was still ticking over in her mind. The adrenaline of standing up to Morgana was starting to fade, and she felt breathless for a few moments; Jesu what had she done?

Caitrin sunk to her knees in the middle of the cell, and put her hand to her mouth, feeling as if she was going to cry and be sick all in one go. Fortunately the only reaction was that her eyes started to well up. At least the cell was private, which was lucky she supposed. No one would be able to see her cry; she had always been quite a private person anyway. She hugged herself and bowed her head as her tears ran smoothly down her pale cheeks. Here she was, the high and mighty Caitrin de Archer, now reduced to kneeling in the straw, in the castle dungeons. It wasn’t that she regretted what she said to Morgana, because she didn’t, she didn’t regret a syllable of it. However, the panic which was now set in her mind was sure to drive her insane.

She could have handled any torture to herself, or at least she would have tried to. But Morgana had vowed to hunt down Griff and have his neck on the chopping block. Just thinking about it made Caitrin ill and she coughed, trying not to retch. Her heart was racing, she needed Griff to be safe. She didn’t care he’d run off, she didn’t care he hadn’t come back, she just wanted him to be safe and to be alive. Griff had always been so full of life, and the thought of that life being snatched away made Caitrin feel pale.

Drying her tears with her sleeve, she shifted herself and just listened for a few moments to the silence. But there wasn’t silence, there was some shuffling, and to her it sounded like it was coming from the cell next to her. It probably wasn’t anything, but she was desperate, and even a familiar voice now would at least ease her mind. “He-hello?” She croaked, and sat herself next to the cell door, trying to listen if there was someone friendly there, “Is someone there?”

Tags: Sir Lucan Aubert
Timeline: During 'The Coming of Arthur'
Setting: The Castle Dungeon's[/size]

[lucan]

“He-hello?”

He was currently laying on the floor staring up at the ceiling. He'd given up actually trying to think of ways out. He and Leon had tried to think earlier, but with the guards around it was hard to plot against the enemy. Lucan felt useless, he just hoped that Arthur was out there somewhere thinking of ways to bring Morgana down. Everyone in the dungeon wanted her dead so should they happen to break out, then he knew they all had the same thing in mind as to what to do first.

That voice ... It jolted him from his thoughts, sounding very familar. He wasn't sure where he was just in some kind of hazy state from lack of water or whether it was actually real. In all honesty, it sounded a lot like Caitrin. Trust her to be giving him nightmares at a time like this...

“Is someone there?”

Oh no...

Lucan rolled onto his side and pushed himself up so he was now sitting, groaning as the pain shot through him. The bruises on his chest had started to form and were not looking nice. A couple of broken ribs seemed to be all it took for Morgana's men to make their deadly mark - then again, his head could be on the executioners block outside. He was beginning to realise that this was indeed real and Caitrin's voice was not a nightmare in his mind. She was in the dungeons. With them. Morgana had got to her too and that wasn't good.

"Lady Caitrin!" he called back low enough for her to hear and the guards to not. The cell opposite him looked like the one she was in, and now he could see her clearly against the bars. "Lady Caitrin are you alright?" She didn't look her best, but then again after seeing Morgana, nobody did. Now was the time to forget about stupid little arguments. They were in the same situation and it wasn't pretty.

Muse Song: The Iron Lady OST - Eyelash

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin looked around her cell, it was probably as basic as you got. She shifted so she was sat to the side, and began to brush down the front of her dress. It was already becoming covered in straw, and Caitrin tried to wipe it off. Just because she had been reduced to the dungeons in Camelot didn’t mean she had to lower her own standards. It wasn’t how she’d been brought up after all. She rubbed her sleeve over her eyes, trying to dry her eyes. She could feel herself shaking, Jesu this was ridiculous. She couldn’t control her emotions, and it was a new sensation for Caitrin. She was usually so cool, and calm and in control. This however had just turned everything upside down, and she didn’t feel like herself at all.

There was nothing but silence for a few moments following her words, and Caitrin just looked down at the floor. She was stupid really to think that she had friends here, no one was here, and no one was coming for her. No one even knew that she was here, so how could anyone come to help her? Griff for one hadn’t shown an interest in her life for months, and she doubted he would again. She had been stupidly naive to think that he loved her, and just her. He’d just loved the thought of her dowry, and that was it. Everything was coming to the forefront of her mind at once, and it just ached. She wrapped an arm around her belly, and her head flew up as someone was whispering her name. No, it couldn’t be him?

Caitrin blinked a few times to check that she wasn’t seeing things. She had assumed that Lucan had got away when Morgana had taken over Camelot, she wasn’t sure why, but she couldn’t believe that Morgana’s men had got him as well. Then again, however much Lucan irritated her in the past, she couldn’t deny that he was loyal to the Pendragons, so it made sense that he was here as well. “Sir Lucan?” She whispered back, and shifted so that she was at the front of her cell, though she was still sat down opposite him. His question struck her as an odd one, she was in the dungeons, she was anything but alright. However, she wasn’t about to start an argument with him. If she was in her normal state of mind then it would have been done without hesitation, however this was different, she just wanted to know that she wasn’t alone, and it was as simple as that. “I’ve been better.” She sniffed back some of her tears, and wiped a hand over her already red eyes. They were still glossy, but she was still getting over the shock that she was in here, and it scared her. “What about you?” She whispered back, he looked bruised but she couldn’t see anything too seriously wrong with him. The only injuries Caitrin really had was a bruise on her arm where Morgana’s guard had gripped her arm, but apart from that she was fine; physically at least. “What are you doing here?” She now asked, why hadn’t he got away with Arthur when he’d had the chance?

[lucan]

Her eyes looked as though she had been crying, Lucan could see that with the very little light that was in the dungeon. Caitrin's answer to his question was very much one that he expected. Then again he didn't think that he would see her here - why on earth was she in the dungeons anyway? He would have to ask her the same as she'd already equired after him.

"Could be worse, you might have not seen my head again" he chuckled darkly, "but apart from being used as a tackle dummy I'm perfectly fine...much to the disgust of Morgana" Even though she stated that she didn't to kill him, it was clear enough that she did secretly.

“What are you doing here?”

"I could ask you the same thing" He replied, "I don't run from the enemy Cait, I stand against them" that summed up her question really, "Of course Morgana's already tried to break me and failed. She's going through us all one by one, but no one will accept her of course..." He paused, "Ok, now your turn - How did you manage to get caught up in all of this?" He wondered where Griff was - hopefully as far from Camelot as possible right now.

He shuffled closer to the bars now, so he could see Caitrin more clearly than before. He wondered what he looked like to her. Luc was sure that had this been a different situation, she would have gladly gloated about it. The Knight of Camelot who now had been resorted to looking like a beggar. If only Camila could see him now. He worried for her safety and would give anything to see her smile at him again. Everytime he closed his eyes he saw her. She was the first thing he thought about before waking up and going to sleep, and if Morgana got to her and hurt her, then he wouldn't be able to live.

"Look at me" he scoffed in disgust at himself, "Knight of Camelot" he felt like no Knight. He felt like a weak man who had been fighting for something that seemed so far out of his and anyones reach.

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin managed a small smile at Lucan’s words, but even with her smile she felt slightly queasy, as it had been a reality that she might never have seen Lucan again. Caitrin quickly wondered how many more Knights there were down here alongside Lucan, she had no idea how many were with Arthur after all. All she knew was that Arthur had got away before Morgana could get her hands on him, she had just assumed that most of the Knights had gone with him. She nodded though as he assured her that he was mostly fine. That was something at least. That was the best one could hope for in the dungeons after all; to be mostly fine. At least Caitrin hadn’t been used as a ‘tackle dummy’ just yet, but there was time, and the young woman knew that. She also knew that Morgana wouldn’t hesitate to punish her alongside the Knight’s because she was a woman. It wasn’t in her nature.

Caitrin almost felt stupid as Lucan replied to her question. She should have guessed as much; after all, the Knights were supposed to protect those in Camelot weren’t they? She knew that Lucan was a noble knight, but she hadn’t really appreciated how much until now. “Will she try again?” She asked, slightly concerned, but the sound of Morgana trying to break Lucan didn’t sound like it would go well for anyone, at all. Well, Lucan had done her the decency of telling her how he had wound up in the dungeons, so it was right that she should oblige him in the same way. Caitrin sniffed back again, and wiped her glossy eyes, trying not to cry again. She didn’t want to weep in front of Lucan. “Morgana wanted me to recognise her as Queen.” She trailed off, shaking her head as she put a hand to her mouth. A tear slipped from her eye but she quickly wiped it again, and found her voice once more, “But I refused.” That much was obvious, because she was here. Caitrin could never betray her friend in such a way, and Arthur was a close friend, and she would never swear her allegiance to anyone else.

She felt genuinely sorry for Lucan, a sensation which was completely new to her. Lucan had never done anything but irk and irritate her, but right now none of that seemed to matter. She jsut wanted to get back some normality in this hopeless situation. She shook her head at him, her tears threatening to spill again, “No, please, don’t say that.” She sniffed back, and pressed herself up against the bars of her cell, “You have nothing to be ashamed of Lucan.” He had fought for what he had believed in, Caitrin hadn’t fought at all, what good was the rebellious streak of one young noblewoman anyway at the end of the day? She had sat back while Morgana’s men had taken over the citadel, because she’d been too frightened to do anything else. She wasn’t a fighter after all, she was just incredibly stubborn and that was it.

[lucan]

“Will she try again?”

"She has every opportunity to try again" he told her honestly, "and she is welcome to carry on trying for as long as she likes, but I would rather fall on my own sword...well...if I had it with me" His weapons had been taken by Morgana's men, obviously. "She won't get to me, and even if it means taking a hit for anyone in here - i'll always do it" He sighed, seeing a look on her face as to what she was making of all of this. "Im not scared of death Cait...I have no reason to be - it's part of life and unfortuantly in this job it comes up against you far too often. There are times that you can avoid it, but eventually it will catch up to you...whatever the circumstances."

Lucan listened as she explained that she'd been through the same. It wasn't good at all. "Well im glad you're here" he sat back against the wall and turned his head to the side, looking at her, "As much as I hate to be the bearer of bad news, at the moment it seems as though we're all dead men."

He could feel the mixture of anger and guilt building up inside him. He would never cry. Lucan had never shed a tear in his life. “You have nothing to be ashamed of Lucan.” His head was turned away from Cait, but turned back towards her as she said this. "Im not...i'm angry..." he simply said. "Im angry at myself, I'm angry at Morgana, I'm angry that this couldn't be avoided, I'm angry that i'll never see Camila again" Lucan didn't know if Caitrin knew who Camila was. It was the first time he'd mentioned her name around her anyway. "I'm even angry that you're down here with us instead of being somewhere where Morgana cannot get to you".

She looked as though she was about to cry, "I know...I mean that much to you that you have to cry for me" he smirked, "But seriously, If they threaten to do anything to you or anyone here, I'll go instead..." After all, who would there be to look after his brother when he was gone?

Lucan ran a hand through his hair, going into a world of his own. His thoughts of Camila and only her. He needed to know she was ok, that she wasn't being put through hell because of him. More importatly, he just needed her. Without her he wasn't who he was and Lucan had no idea as to how he had managed before.

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin wished that she could be so calm about the prospect of death as Lucan was, but she really wasn’t. She wasn’t ready to die, she knew she would never be able to confidently face death whenever it came, but right now she wasn’t ready. She still had so much to get out of life. Caitrin could feel herself start to shake again, Jesu, what had she done? She stiffly nodded back at Lucan, and ran a hand over her face, she wasn’t ready for any of this. She’d never tried to be a martyr, to her, she had just been standing up for what she believed in. All of this was wrong, then again nothing in Caitrin’s life had been normal for a while now. She was engaged to a man she hadn’t seen for months, she had taken on Morgana and come off worse, and now she was conversing quite civilly with the man who should one day become her brother in law. Caitrin sighed inwardly, there was little chance of that happening now. Griff didn’t care, and even if he did, she was in the dungeons now, and nothing would change that.

Although Caitrin had assumed that she wouldn’t be getting out of here in any decent state, to hear it confirmed by Lucan caused all her emotions to come to a head again. She put her back against the cell wall, and put her hand to her mouth. She didn’t cry though, there was a raw pain there, but she didn’t weep. Instead she just turned her head to Lucan and nodded her pale face at him, “I figured that.” She said in a hollow voice, and drew her knees up so she could hug them, placing her cheek on the top of her knees, so she was still looking on at Lucan.

Camila? Caitrin furrowed her eye brows, Lucan had once told her that his heart belonged to another, but she had never really asked after him. Mainly because before this point neither of them had managed little more than irritated snaps at each other. Most of those had been caused by her, but still. Her stomach turned in jealousy. At least Lucan knew that if he ever got out of here then there would be someone on the outside who would be there for him. She didn’t have that luxury anymore. “Don’t be angry for me, I chose to defy Morgana.” Caitrin pointed out quietly, and then felt herself fall quiet. She didn’t know if Lucan knew the circumstances that Griff had left under. It wouldn’t surprise her if he didn’t, after all he had gone in a rush. Caitrin had, in her stupidity, looked around Camelot for him, asking in the taverns after him for days after, but no one had seen him.

The small engagement ring was still on her finger and she began to fiddle with it, every time she thought of Griff it hurt, but the memories of their time together had been some of the happiest in her life. “Is Camila the woman you once told me about?” She finally asked, forcing her eyes from her engagement ring back up to Lucan. She couldn’t think about Griff anymore, at least not at the moment; Jesu it just hurt so much.

Caitrin granted Lucan a small smile at his comment, and wiped her glossy eyes once more. His words meant something to her though truly, because it showed that she really wasn’t down her on her own. “You don’t have to put yourself in danger for my sake.” She wasn’t saying that because she was stubborn, and wasn’t accepting his help. No, she just didn’t want to put him in harms way because of her stupidity. “I’ll just cry even more if you do.” She mimicked his earlier smirk and wiped her eyes with her sleeve again, trying not to show just how scared she truly was.

[lucan]

Lucan closed his eyes as he leant his head back against the wall. Immediatly the image of Camila was there - smiling at him, just how he'd last seen her. Cait seemed to have lost hope already, judging by the nature of her voice. Usually she was one to stand up for herself and make remarks, but to see what Morgana had inflicted on her in such a subtle way, had seemed to hit her hard. It was as though she was giving up. Lucan didn't like to see or hear that. He too was losing faith, but he had enough left in him to willingly die for everyone down there.

“Don’t be angry for me, I chose to defy Morgana.”

"So did we all" he replied, a small smile to his voice, "We're down here because we all chose the same fight. Im just angry that it was you who ended up down here. That she turned on you". Lucan looked over to her. He could see her toying with the engagement ring on her finger. Dare he ask where his brother was in all of this? It would most likely upset Cait even more, so he chose to avoid the subject for now - he just hoped Griff was as far from Camelot as possible.

“Is Camila the woman you once told me about?”

"Yeah" he replied, not looking at her, "Im worried sick about her. About what Morgana would do to her - and it would be because of me and my big mouth" he told her bitterly. "If they hurt her, i'll never forgive myself".

“You don’t have to put yourself in danger for my sake.”

"Of course I do" this came out sounded a little angered, "I'd put myself in that position for anyone here - rather it be me than you or them" he said honestly. If it would stop the madness, then it would be worth dying for. “I’ll just cry even more if you do.” He couldn't help but chuckle at this. "You wouldn't cry for me" he said blankly and with honesty. Why would she? He didn't exactly mean anything to her. "After all, we're not exactly the best of friends are we?"

He saw her wipe her eyes with her sleeve. "Come on, stop that - otherwise you'll set me off, and believe me, for one...it wouldn't be a pretty sight, and two..." he lowered his voice, "I have a reputation to uphold" he gave her a weak smile and a wink.

[Caitrin de Archer]

They had all sought to defy Morgana, yes, but Caitrin was starting to wonder how wise that decision had been. She wasn’t as strong as Lucan, and if subjected to torture she knew she would break. Lucan would probably have the strength to hold out, but she knew that she never would. As soon as someone she cared about was threatened, she knew she would bend at the knees. She just looked on at Lucan with a small nod, “She turned on everyone.”

Seeing the look of concern that swept across Lucan’s face when he spoke of Camila made Caitrin’s stomach turn in jealousy. She wondered if Griff would think the same thing if he was in this situation. He probably wouldn’t care, and she wouldn’t blame him. Caitrin bit her lip and shook her head, “She’ll be fine Lucan, Camila’s a strong woman.” She had tamed Lucan after all, something which wasn’t for the faint hearted, “You’re lucky to have each other.” Her words were hollow, and full of jealousy, as at the moment Caitrin had very little to speak of.

Caitrin didn’t want anyone else to put themselves in danger for her. She didn’t want Lucan or anyone to get hurt, this was her battle, and she would win or lose it on her own. Lucan had enough to worry about, without adding her to the list. Anyway, as he pointed out, they weren’t exactly famed for being best friends after all, right from the off they had often been at each other’s throats. But did that really matter down here? Caitrin shrugged softly, “Well, I don’t hate you as much as I hate Morgana.” Caitrin pointed out reasonably and ran her hand over her face.

Caitrin would never have supposed that she would ever cry over Lucan, Jesu, she didn’t like him that much. However, at the moment she felt like she was going to weep at the smallest of things at the moment, her future brother in law being one of them. Well, that was if Griff came back at all, and whether he still wanted to marry her. That was a lot of ‘ifs’ and Caitrin didn’t really like those odds. Caitrin ran her hand though her hair, and bit her lip stubbornly at Lucan and shook her head, there was no way she was going to be able to stop herself from crying when she started. “Then don’t look.” She warned him, in a rather high pitched voice. She didn’t want to cry, but she felt a small tear roll down one of her cheeks. Caitrin just wanted Griff here, despite anything and everything else, she knew it would all feel better if she was wrapped up in his embrace.

[lucan]

She had turned on everyone. Yes - and the more he thought of that the more it made him angry. He stood up slowly in his cell and then with some fury, kicked the straw on the floor. With both hands pressed against the cell wall, he leant against them with his forehead pressed against the cold stone. "If we ever come out of this alive, I'll kill her - her and all of her men that she hides behind." he growled.

He turned his head slightly to look at Caitrin. "It's not luck." he stated, "It's love, just like what you hold for my brother." Oh yes, it was obvious even in a dimly lit cell that Caitrin still carried a torch for Griff, yet where he was, was a mystery to both of them. "You can tell me otherwise all you like, but I can see it." Lucan shot a weak smile at her.

A small laugh escaped him, and was replaced with the pain in his ribs, "and here was me thinking you preferred her to me...I suppose I should feel honoured." he replied turning around and now leaning back against the wall.

There was silence for a few moments before Luc decided to break it. "I know...that you don't think highly of me, even I don't think highly of me - but i'm not all bad..." he told her softly, "and no matter what you may think, I don't hate you - even though it may seem like I did, I never have." he paused, "So you can hate me all you want, but I just thought now might be the best time to run that by you - y'know...before my head ends up on that block." he said with some kind of chuckle added, as though he were having a private joke with himself.

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin was trembling, she could feel it, but she couldn’t help herself. She shouldn’t be down here in the cold, with the knights of Camelot behind bars. This was all wrong, it wasn’t supposed to be like this. They were all supposed to be fine, everything was supposed to be fine, and then Morgana had come along and ruined everything. She might think that she was bringing peace, but Caitrin couldn’t see much peace from the angle she was sitting at. She could just see growing discontent, and a rise in the displeasure of those who were left in Camelot. She flinched physically as Lucan kicked the straw of his cell, and she just stared on at him, “We will get out of this alive.” She said, rather shaken but her Mercian defiance was radiating through, she wouldn’t be defeated by this witch, at least not without a fight.

Through the darkness Caitrin de Archer blushed at Lucan’s words. She never blushed, but it had been so long since anyone had talked about her and Griff in such a way. She hadn’t seen Griff in months now, but she could use some of his confidence right now. Lucan was right of course, and that made Caitrin annoyed in some sense. “I can feel what I like, it hardly matters does it?” Caitrin asked him rather bluntly and ran both hands through her hair, “He’s not here, he’s not coming back.” She said the words she didn’t want to hear or believe. She wanted Griff to come back more than anything, but what was the chance in that happening?

She began to shift uncomfortably as Lucan spoke and she looked down at the cell floor. This was probably as good a time as any to make amendments, but she wasn’t sure just yet. Caitrin bit her lip softly and looked across at Lucan. She hadn’t liked him from day one, and she wasn’t about to lie and pretend that all that had been some sort of act and that she had actually liked him all along. She hadn’t given him any cause to be well disposed to her either, so she didn’t hold any grudges in that respect at least. Caitrin couldn’t manage a smile at him, she knew he was a good man in his own way, Jesu he was probably better than she was in many ways, at least he could hold onto the ones that he loved. Caitrin let everything slip through her fingers. “I’ve never given you any reason for you to like me.” Caitrin pointed out reasonably, she pressed herself up against the wall. Whatever differences she and Lucan had had in the past, did they really matter here? She sighed softly, “For what it’s worth, I would have been proud to call you my brother in law.”