A Second Chance

[cherryblossom131]

He slipped in and out of consciousness irregularly, never fully taking in his surroundings or the people around him. He barely knew who he was let alone where he was. The only thing that registered in his head was the burning liquid that regularly burned down his throat. It was painful and it took time but after a while things started to become clearer. His name was Elyan, that he was sure of. He had a father; no, he remembered, his father died. He definitely had a sister, Gwen. Everytime he thought of her a painful rush of worry shot through his body, but he couldn't remember why.

Everything was a haze in Elyan's mind when he finally remembered how to open his eyes. Memories started to flood his mind and it took a while before he could make sense of the complicated muddle. He remembered his friends and brothers; the knights and Arthur, his brother in law. He began to remember his final days. The last thing he remembered was the dark tower and trying to find his sister. Gwen. Everything started to become clearer as he thought back; there had been an obstacle, an enchanted sword. He remembered he'd had to battle it to get to his sister, but...he hadn't succeeded. Then how was he alive? Elyan remembered the sword piercing his armour into his chest as clear as day. He remembered saying goodbye to his sister and how painful it was to leave her. If he really tried, he could even remember his last thoughts. It was about seeing his mother and father again; a happy thought.

Was he dead? When he tried to move and instantly felt an aching sensation all over his body, he knew that wasn't the case. He realised he must have made a sound when he moved because he heard a shuffling of feet and felt the burning liquid again before slipping back into blissful unconciousness. It took another few months for him to recover completely with all his memories intact and a new purpose. It became apparent that the druids found his body on the brink of death and used powerful magic to heal him. He'd been conflicted about that at first but later learned to feel grateful. They knew him as a friend who helped them create peace with Camelot and so they fixed him up in order to help the king in the biggest challenge he'd ever faced. Elyan had willingly agreed to help.

He'd said his goodbyes to the kind druids and waited in the spot they'd left him at. He'd been told he'd meet Arthur there. So he waited; the druids had not been wrong as far as he knew. As time went on he began to feel nervous, it had been so long but he couldn't deny the giddy excitement that continiued to rise inside him. He was finally going home.

Tag: King Arthur
Setting: In a forest somewhere outside Camelot in the morning
Timeline: Sometime after 'With All My Heart'