set in stone, page 11
part #15 of Twisted Tales (Disney) Series
Arthur winced as he thought back to the moment he was sure he was about to die. The point of the blade scraping at his skin. The fear pounding in his heart. Everything inside of him had wanted to beg for his life. But he also hadn't
wanted to shame himself in his last moments, especially not in front of the Saxons.
Now he was thankful he hadn't. After the fight ended the Saxons were so impressed by Arthur's performance - and show of mercy — they were more eager than ever to join forces and support the new king. And the crowd was thrilled - a boy taking on a giant and winning! A feat that would surely be sung about in the taverns for years to come.
But no one was as happy as Arthur himself. He had gambled it all and come out on top. He had shown everyone he was worthy of being their king. And it would be a while, he hoped, before anyone dared challenge his rule again.
Well, except for Mim, of course. She would never give up. And Arthur knew he'd have to keep a close eye out for anything suspiciously purple in the near future.
But for now? He'd take the win.
To say he was exhausted by the day's events would have been a drastic understatement. The fight had taken both a physical and mental toll on him, and all he wanted to do was crawl into bed and rest. So while Camelot celebrated with their new Saxon friends, he decided to retreat to his chambers early and ask that supper be brought to his sollar so he could eat alone.
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Though not before checking on Archimedes. Fortunately, the owl seemed much better, if in a bit of a foul mood, probably due to his broken wing - the doctor had told him he couldn't fly for a month. A grounded owl, it seemed, was a grumpy one.
Arthur was just settling in when there was a knock on the door. He assumed it was the steward, bringing him his dinner. But instead, he was surprised to find none other than Guinevere standing outside his door, carrying a tray with a bowl of piping hot soup and a small loaf of crusty bread.
Arthur smiled, delighted to see her. "Guin!" he cried, ushering her happily into his sollar and gesturing for her to put down the soup on the table. "I was looking for you after the fight! I was getting worried when I couldn't find you."
Guinevere set down the soup. "You were worried about me? Why?"
Arthur grimaced. Right. She didn't know. He led her over to the chair by the fire, then knelt down beside her, meeting her eyes with his own. "Look," he said, "I don't want to alarm you. But the old woman sitting next to you at the fight? The one in purple?"
"Purple?" Guinevere tapped her finger to her forehead. "Ah yes. I do seem to recall a woman in purple. She was quite lovely."
"Was she?" Arthur scratched his head. Lovely was not exactly the descriptor he would use when describing Mim "Well, she can be quite clever in hiding her true self I suppose. But in reality, she's a very powerful wizard. She's been snooping..."
Arthur scratched his head. Well, beauty was in the eye of the beholder, he supposed. "In any case, the woman in purple is a very powerful wizard named Madam Mim. She's been snooping around the castle ever since I became king, and I think she means to take me down." He gave her a helpless look. "I was worried she might try to hurt you to get at me."
To his shock, Guinevere giggled.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"Sorry," she said, shaking her head. "Sometimes I laugh when I'm scared. It helps... relieve the tension." She smiled at Arthur. "Thank you for warning me. I will, of course, be on guard against this powerful purple wizard."
Arthur let out a breath of relief. He was glad Guin was taking him seriously. "I'm just happy you're all right," he said. Then he grinned. "And look! So am I! I told you I'd find a way to win."
Guinevere raised an eyebrow. Arthur felt his face heat.
"All right, fine. I didn't know for sure myself. Especially when Mim started tripping me up with her magic. But it all
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worked out in the end! And now the peace treaty is signed, and Kay is in prison. And all is well in the kingdom."
"I am very pleased to hear that, Your Majesty," Guinevere said, bowing her head.
He laughed. "Oh please! Don't start with that whole 'Your Majesty' thing. We know each other better than that now, don't we, evil knight?" He nudged her playfully with his shoulder.
"Oh, yes," she said. "We know each other quite well." She giggled again.
Arthur felt his cheeks heat, though he wasn't sure why. She was certainly acting a little strange. But then, it had been a very strange day.
"Are you all right?" he asked, just in case.
But Guin only waved him off with a laugh. "Of course I am! It's been a wonderful day! Simply marvellous! And I'm so glad you were victorious against that lousy knight. In fact, I made you a very special victory soup, just for the occasion. It's my secret recipe," she added with a smile.
Arthur smiled back at her. He'd almost forgotten Guin still worked in the kitchens. He was glad they were letting her cook now instead of just sticking her with the dirty dishes. She knew so much about various herbs and plants I she would be a great addition to their staff.
"Thank you," he said, rising to his feet and walking over to the table. He leant down and made a show of smelling the soup. It smelt odd, and a little unpleasant. But then, there were a lot of foods served in the castle he was still getting used to. Back at Sir Ector's, he had only ever been allowed to eat whatever scraps were left over from his foster father and brother's feasts - only one step up from the castle hounds, really - so his palate hadn't been prepared.
"What's in it?" he asked curiously.
"Slugs," she replied with a smile. "Super slimy slugs. With some rare, delicate mushrooms found high in the hills mixed in. Very special," she added. "Fit for a king." Then she looked at him expectantly, and he realised she wanted him to take a bite.
Arthur's stomach squirmed a little as he looked down at the soup. He wasn't sure he was going to like it - he'd never been fond of mushrooms, and while admittedly he'd never tried slugs, he was pretty sure he didn't like anything slimy. But Guinevere looked so hopeful, and he knew she'd worked hard on the meal, probably spent most of the evening preparing it; lit couldn't insult her by turning it down.
And so he sat down at the table, picking up his spoon. He could feel Guinevere watching him as he dipped it in the bowl and brought it to his lips. The broth had a warm,
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spicy flavour that turned out to be actually pretty tasty, too. He smiled relieved he could tell her the truth.
"It's good!" he pronounced. "Thank you!"
She nodded, looking pleased as she rose from her chair. "Now if you'll excuse me, Your Maj— er, I mean, Arthur," she corrected. "I must get back to the kitchens. Please let me know if you need anything else."
Arthur nodded. "I should be fine. I'm planning to go to bed the second I finish this delicious soup. But maybe we could find some time to spend together tomorrow? To celebrate some more, once I've had a full night's sleep?"
"Oh, I would absolutely love that!" she cooed. "It would be absolutely marvellous."
She rose to her feet and started out of the bedroom. Arthur watched her go, feeling happy and satisfied. It had turned out to be a really good day, despite its worrying beginning. And its ending was even better - with the promise of a wonderful tomorrow. He was so glad he'd run into Guin in the forest. She'd turned out to be a truly good f riend, and he no longer felt so alone, being stuck in the castle, now that she was here.
In fact, it almost made it tolerable to be king. Guinevere was just about through the door when her dress happened to catch on a lone nail sticking out from
the wall. She grunted, annoyed, and yanked on the dress's hem to free it. Arthur frowned as he caught something flash at her exposed ankle, just for a moment, before she pulled the door closed behind her. -Something.. .purple.
. "Wait!" he cried out, alarmed. He jumped from his chair and ran to the door, yanking it open, looking down each end of the hall outside. "Guinevere? Can you, uh, come back here for a moment?"
But there was no one there. No one at all. | Arthur's heart started to stutter in. He walked back into the room in a daze, going straight to the soup and staring down at it with sudden suspicion. Could it be? But no! It had to be just a coincidence, right? That was clearly Guin. They'd had a whole conversation!
A rather strange conversation, now that he thought back to it.
Suddenly he heard a rapping at the window. At first he assumed it was Archimedes, come to congratulate him on his victory. But no, he reminded himself, the owl couldn't fly with his broken wing. Instead, it was a small yellow bird, about a quarter of the owl's size, with long thick eyelashes curtaining its brown eyes. Did birds usually have eyelashes? Arthur's head was too foggy to remember.
"Go away," he muttered. "I need to think." He stared
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down at the soup again. It did smell really strange. It tasted little strange, too, now that he thought about it Not bad just... different. With this unfamiliar flavour... Tap, tap, tap.
The bird continued to peck at the window with its beak. Arthur wondered if it was hurt or something. Finally, he decided to open the window to see for himself. Maybe he could bring it down to the castle's doctor and have him
look at it.
The bird flew into the room at top speed. It was carrying something in its talons, but Arthur couldn't tell what it was. He watched as it dived straight to the soup and knocked the bowl off its tray. The contents splashed onto the floor.
"What are you—?"Arthur started. But he stopped short as he realised how thick his tongue suddenly felt. As if his mouth were filled with mud. A moment later, his stomach twisted and the room began to weave in and out of focus. He grasped at his chair as he lost his balance and started to fall.
"Oh, no!" he cried. "No, no,
His eyes fell on the spilt soup. Poison? Had Mim really poisoned him?
The bird was frantically flapping above him. It looked as distressed as he felt. His eyes were so heavy he could
barely keep them open, and soon they fluttered closed. Just for a moment, he thought. Then I'll figure out what— "Arthur! Stay with me, Arthur!" He opened his eyes with effort. To his shock, the bird had disappeared.
Instead, it was Guinevere who was leaning over him, a horrified look on her face.
chapter nineteen
GUINEVERE
Guinevere looked down at Arthur, her insides feeling as if they were being torn out bit by bit. And it wasn't just the after-effects of shapeshifting for a second time without much rest in between I though those were admittedly brutal. It was more the realisation of what her mother had done.
Turned Arthur — sweet Arthur 1 into a giant slimy slug.
He looked up at her, his eyestalks waggling. She resisted the urge to vomit. She'd never seen something so vile - with its writhing greyish flesh undulating across the floor, leaving a slime trail in its wake. Arthur clearly hadn't fully realised what was happening to him yet. She didn't know if that was good or bad.
"Arthur, you're under a spell," she told him, hoping she didn't sound too scared. Or angry. Why, Mother, why? This isn't funny! "Don't try to move."
He squinted at her with tiny black slug eyes, looking quite scared himself. Then he seemed to nod, as if remembering. He opened his mouth to speak, but only managed a soft sluglike squeal.
"Don't try to talk, either," she added. She glanced over at the spilt soup on the floor - at the slimy little slugs squirming in the broth, mixed with her mother's favourite mushrooms. Her mind flashed back to the last time she'd seen this soup. Mim had been so proud of herself. It turns people into slugs! Isn't that silly? At the time Guin had wondered about the practicality of such magic. Who would ever want to be a slug? Now she was starting to understand. Her stomach twisted.
"Look, I'm going to give you something to help you. It'll make you very sick, but it will get the poison out of you. Arc you all right with me doing that?"
He started to nod. Then he froze, staring in horror at something behind her. At first she worried it was her mother, come back to see the fruits of her labour. But then she realised he was staring into a silver mirror, seeing his reflection for the first time.
Mr began to scream - a horrible slug scream. His whole
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body undulated with fear. Guinevere dived towards him, her hand on his slimy flesh, trying to calm him. "I know, I know!" she whispered fiercely. "It's absolutely terrifying. But you have to stay with me. Be quiet. If you scream too loud, the guards will come, and they'll take me away, thinking I did this to you. And then I won't be able to help you." Her heart pounded. Would she be able to help him?
She felt him surrender, his blobby body sinking back to the floor. She let out a breath of relief and removed her hand, which she used to reach down and pick up the crystal vial she'd brought into the room as a bird. It was the largest one she could carry in bird shape, and she just hoped it'd be enough.
She removed the stopper and held the vial over Arthur's head. "Open," she instructed. "It's going to taste vile, but whatever you do, don't spit it out. You need all of it to make it effective."
placing
Arthur obediently opened his mouth. Guin tipped the bottle, and a drop of green liquid splashed onto his slug tongue. He winced, looking as if he wanted to throw up from the taste, but forced himself to swallow the medicine down. Not wanting to waste a drop, Guinevere continued to drip the potion into his mouth until the botde was completely empty.
"I know it's horrible, but unfortunately, what happens next is going to be even worse," Guinevere apologised. She ran over and locked the door. Then she grabbed the water bucket by the hearth. She brought it over to Arthur. Just in time for him to vomit into it.
Bright purple vomit.
Oh, Mother... you promised!
But then, her mother had kept her promise, hadn't she? At least technically. Guinevere had asked her not to hurt Arthur. And she'd stuck to her word, instead doing absolutely the next worst thing. Guinevere grimaced, imagining her mother's glee as she concocted her plan. Why, she probably thought it was perfectly hilarious. In fact, she was probably on her way back to the cottage at this very moment to brag about her cleverness over dinner.
What would she think when she learnt Guinevere had interfered again? Thwarted yet another of her plans?
Guinevere shook her head, turning her attention back to slug Arthur, who was writhing on the ground. As his body twisted and turned, it began to morph new parts. First an arm. Then a leg. Then another. Until - poof! He was fully human again.
"Did it work?" Arthur's eyes shot back to the mirror. He let out a shrill laugh. "Oh, my heavens, I've never been so happy to see my scrawny little body in all my life."
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Guinevere smiled at him, relief coursing through her. She rose to her feet. "You'll probably feel a little rough for a while," she told him. "But you're going to be all right." She reached down and took the pail, then went to the window and dumped the contents out; she wanted to dispose of any evidence. Then she turned back to Arthur. "Get some rest. I'll talk to you later." She stepped towards the door.
"Wait!" Arthur called after her, his voice anxious. "You're leaving?"
She stopped in her tracks. "Well, y-yes," she stammered, turning to face him again. "I shouldn't be here at all. It's not proper for a servant girl to be in the king's chambers, unaccompanied."
"It is if she saved my life!" Arthur shot back, not missing a beat. He struggled to sit up. "Besides, you're more than a servant. You're my friend." His eyes, large and blue and earnest, locked on her face. "Please stay with me. I don't want to be alone right now."
Guinevere's heart panged at the desperation she heard in his voice. And suddenly she felt immensely guilty about all she'd done. She'd been angry at him for lying to her back in the forest, and yet now she was doing the same - though her deception was much, much worse. He trusted her. And she was betraying him with every breath.
Maybe he wasn't meant to sit on the throne of England But he didn't deserve this.
No. She needed to stop this. Now. She needed to walk out that door and never come bads. He would be sad. of course. She'd be sad, too. But it was for the best, Nothing good could eome of this dangerous game. And if he ever learned the truth - that the girl he trusted was nothing more than a liar, a part of Mim's scheme from the start... She shook her head. She couldn't bear the thought.
Better she just walk away. Even if it hurt her heart to do so.
She started towards the door again. But before she got three steps in that direction, she felt arms wrap around her, Arthur pulling her into an embrace. For a moment, she stiffened, her heart in her throat - wondering if she should pull away. But his arms were so strong. So warm. Instead, she found herself turning and melting into them, laying her head on his shoulder. She wrapped her arms around his back, embracing: him fully, and pushed all the doubts and guilt and worry deep down inside.
"Thank you," Arthur murmured against her shoulder, "I don't know what I would do without you."
The guilt raged again, almost suffocating her, and she forced herself to untangle from his arms and step
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back to put distance between them. "I'm just glad I could help," she said, hoping he couldn't hear the tremble in her
voice.
He smiled at her, such a genuine smile it broke her heart- Then his eyebrows furrowed, as if something had just occurred to him, "I think my head's still a little foggy." He closed his eyes and opened them again. "I was so out of it, I honestly thought you came in through my window as a bird."
