Once & Forever

Katrina was able to stall Uther until Arthur's arm was significantly healed, though it were no easy task.

"I hope you know, I made myself a fool in front of your father," she said, with her arms folded tightly across her chest. She was waiting for Arthur to properly suit up. Merlin was doing a fine job, thought he was pausing every now and again to listen in.

Arthur chuckled. "I'm sure it's not something you can easily remedy?"

"It's no joke, Sire!" she snapped. "He almost thinks I'm unfit to lead this damned exhibition!"

"So prove him wrong," Arthur simply stated. He stretched his arm and slowly rotated it, feeling out his limitations. Katrina eyed him carefully. He didn't wince, or grimace.

"Are you sure I can't take another look, to make sure you're okay to be going into potential battle?" Her brows were pinched together.

A smirk played over Arthur's lips, as he turned to stare at the other blonde in the room. "If I didn't know better, Katrina, I would say that you just like looking at my chest."

"Well, then it's a good thing you know better," she said, with a snort. "You'd also be delusional, and clearly unfit to enter into battle." She raised a brow. "Ready?"

"I was ready a week ago," Arthur said, sounding sour.

"A week ago, you were dying in a forest." Katrina headed for the chamber doors, to go down to the court and make sure her horse was ready.

"Merlin, go with her and ready my horse, will you?"

As the two made their way down through the castle, to the court, Merlin glanced at the mercenary out of the corner of his eyes. "So how long have you known Gaius?" he finally asked.

A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "That man and I go way back. He taught he a lot, when I was younger."

"So you used to live in Camelot, then?"

Katrina gave a short laugh. "A long time ago, it seems." They stopped in the court as the horses were brought out. "This is just a loan from Uther," she said, after she spotted Merlin eyeing the dark beauty. "I don't have my own proper horse," she further explained, as she began to saddle the animal up.

"Why's that?" Merlin asked, nearly mirroring her actions, as he readied Arthur's horse.

"It's too cruel to keep an animal bound to me," she said, simply.

Merlin seemed to mull that over in silence. Soon, Arthur joined them, eyeing the two horses. "Well, Merlin, seems you've double the work with a lady around," he said, with a laugh. "Not bad, though."

"I readied my own horse, Your Highness," Katrina said, as she mounted it.

Arthur raised a brow but said nothing, before turning to Merlin. "Go on and get your horse, then. We're not going to be waiting around all day for you."

After Merlin left, with a roll of his eyes, Katrina narrowed hers at Arthur. "Respectfully, you could treat him with more respect."

"As for you-" Arthur had started to say at nearly the same time as Katrina spoke. He stopped and stared at her. "Respectfully," he scowled, "you should mind your own business."

"I could just let you die out there," she half-joked, looking away from him. She ran her fingers through her horse's dark mane. "No skin off of my back, and it may just free the poor boy up."

The prince narrowed his own blue hues at her. "I could have you hanged for that."

"No, you couldn't," she said lightly. "'Cause you'd be dead." She laughed, and began to ride out of the courtyard.

"Wait!" Arthur called. "You can't ride out without us!"

She kept going, only to wait at the entrance of the castle. It took a good ten minutes for the patrol to gather and meet up with her. She was just sitting there, talking to her horse, out of all things! It irked Arthur on so many levels, he wasn't even sure where to begin with her.

"You know, I was going to tell you that to keep addressing me as 'Sire' and 'Your Highness' was unnecessary, but I'm beginning to rethink that."

"I really don't have to call you anything. I'm offering my help, with your problem, in exchange for nothing." She began to trot off, but Arthur pushed his horse forward, to catch up with her.

"My father-"

"You don't remember me, do you?" she asked, catching him unawares.

"Excuse me?"

"We've met before, Arthur. Granted, we may have only been fourteen or so, but I still remember meeting you. You were a little shit." She laughed.

"We have most assuredly not met. I would remember if we had." He was scowling.

"I was with Gaius at the time, just helping him bring some herbal medicines to your father. You were sick. I didn't see much of you, because I waited out in the hall until Gaius was done checking up on you. But you knew I was out there, and you kept asking your father about me. I quickly said goodbye before leaving with Gaius."

Arthur was dumbstruck. For once, he didn't seem to have anything to say. Which was most unusual of his character. She glanced at the prince out of the corner of her eye, with a quirked brow.

"You really don't remember, do you?"

"Why were you with Gaius?" Arthur asked, ignoring her question.

"He was looking after me for a time."

"Where were your parents?"

Katrina pulled her horse up short, and Arthur almost passed her. "We should head toward Cenred's kingdom. I don't want to enter, but just stop shy of there. That's the direction the bandits have been moving in." She cast a glance at Arthur, to make sure he approved of her plan.

"You heard her," he called out to his men. "Towards Cenred, but not a foot inside!"

They traveled a long distance, mostly in silence, sometimes with Merlin striking up conversation, or asking questions. As the sun began to lower, Katrina had pulled on her hooded robe, looking much like the mercenary Arthur and Merlin had met in the woods. "It would be a good time to make camp," she suggested. "We're in a fairly secure, secluded spot, and should be safe throughout the night."

Arthur nodded, and everyone dismounted. It seemed it was up to Merlin to make dinner, as always. Arthur was going to go over the next day's plans with the men. "I'm going to walk a perimeter around camp, make sure everything is as it should be."

"Don't go alone," Arthur snorted, turning away from the patrol.

"I won't be in an danger."

"She says, even though we're riding toward some of the most vicious band of men that I have seen in my time."

"Are you talking to me, or to yourself?" she called over her shoulder, already disappearing between the trees. Arthur caught up to her, without having to exert himself. Though, she turned to glare up at him when he finally did. "You do realize," she hissed, "that your armor makes you very apparent?"

Arthur thought about quipping back at her, but instead thought it was kind of funny that she was angrily looking up at him.

"Sorry, I'll try not to blow your not-so-discreet cover," he hissed back, though he was smirking all the while.

"You're an ass, Arthur Pendragon." She rolled her eyes, and kept patrolling, using all of her senses to detect if there was danger nearby.

"I've been called worse," he mumbled through stifled laughter.

"Remind me to do so on a later date," she scowled.

Suddenly, the mercenary froze, her hand flying to the hilt of her sword. Her dark eyes narrowed through the foliage, on some unforeseen danger. Arthur's instincts as a knight kicked it and he stiffened not even a second after her. He peered into the greenery to see what she saw, but was finding it rather difficult.

And just as she had stilled, she uncoiled from her stance, and casually began walking again.

"Wha... What the hell was that?" Arthur spat, in a half-whisper.

"Nothing, I was just checking to see if you were as keen as you pride yourself on being." She chuckled to herself, and continued on. This time, alone. Arthur was tired, seemingly more so after having to deal with Katrina's rebellion all day. He headed back to camp, cursing her under his breath.