Love, Faith and Family

Chapter 125

Miriam was exactly the kind of mother that didn't like to be parted from her son, and as such, she'd essentially spat on tradition to mostly have nursemaids care for her newborn.

It was not uncommon for her to be holding her sleeping son in the middle of a council meeting, and on the rare occasions that he cried or fussed, he'd taken quite the liking to the giant that was Percival, Arthur perfectly safe in the knight's massive arms as he took him for a small walk before returning him to his mother.

All three knights, Leon, Gwaine and Percival, had taken an instant liking to the boy and god help them all for when he was old enough to get into mischief with the three of them. Miriam would end up with four children rather than one, then again, all of the knights had acted like children at one time or another. They were good practice, she supposed.

His grandmother was also darling with him, Hunith looking after Arthur so that Miriam could bathe and eat before feeding her son.

And for the first few years of his life, Miriam's bed wasn't as empty for her son slept soundly by his mother's side until he was old enough to be moved into the room across from his mother.

He even often accompanied Miriam on her expeditions to the other parts of Albion that used to be the five kingdoms, Annis and Mithian adoring the boy when he visited. Even Odin didn't mind him, giving him a sword of the finest craftsmanship for his fifth birthday.

However, Miriam wanted Arthur to have a happier childhood, a simpler one, and as such, he didn't start training until he was 14 years old.

At the age of 14, his mother, along with her most trusted knights and her best friends, began instructing him on how to fight with a sword, with a mace, a quarterstaff, a crossbow, daggers.

She had to admit though, she was a little glad that she didn't have to deal with a temperamental teenager with magical powers. But Arthur had demonstrated to have a similar heart to his mother, seeming able to tell good situations from bad by what he felt, not to the same degree as his mother but close enough. Aithusa was also his favourite friend.

The dragon had unfortunately grown a bit too big to stay in the castle anymore, so instead, he had built a keep for himself on the roof of the citadel for when he came to visit, basking in his freedom otherwise.

He'd also recently learned to speak. A bounty of treats had been presented to the dragon when he'd been able to say Miriam and Arthur's names, the boy exceedingly excited that the dragon knew who he was.

And Miriam couldn't help but press her forehead to the dragon's as he recited a 14-year-old message from her brother, silent tears leaking from her eyes.

And for 14 years, it was a good life.

But for 14 years, there had still been no sight of Merlin. It was almost as if he'd vanished into thin air.

He didn't even turn up when Gaius passed 7 years ago, then again, it probably just made his pain worse.

She also suspected that her brother would've only added to the trouble that Arthur, Gwaine, Percival and Leon got up to. When it came to them, Gwen was tasked with chasing them down, given the same power as the queen to punish them depending on the gravity of their escapades, including accidentally flooding the kitchen.

Though the 14 years Miriam ruled so far, were nothing but peaceful and tranquil. Every once in a while, though, perhaps every few years, there was a rogue sorcerer or renegade who would try to take her throne and they were easily defeated with the number of sorcerers Miriam now had serving as knights in her army.

For over a decade, Albion was a kingdom that accepted sorcery so long as it was not used for the wrong reasons, then you would have to answer to the queen. It was a place where sorcerers and commoners could become knights, could even become noblemen on rare occasions.