Guinevere banged a wooden spoon against the cauldron she'd just swung over the fire."Enough of all this depressing talk.Time enough for that later.For now, you get some rest—" she pointed her cooking spoon at Lance, then swung it over to Gawain, "and you help me with these mushrooms."
Obediently standing, hefting up the two enormous baskets of mushrooms, Gawain groused, "How is it that even in this advanced age I am still foregoing sleep to help my sister turn mushrooms into dubious substances?"
"Less whining, more working."
"Ugh.Lancelot, save me."
Lancelot finished his tea and lay back down, pulling his blankets up against the growing chill."No."
"So mean."
"Wake me when the others returns," Lancelot said around a yawn and was asleep before he heard their replies.
A Brief Respite
Arthur and Dred returned shortly after sunrise, them and their horses loaded down with goods, more than enough to keep them going for however long they were in this pocket universe.
Lancelot helped them unload everything."Why are you carrying all of this like you don't have veritable bags of holding?"
"We filled those too, that's why," Dred said."Plus, a lot of this can't be stowed in inventory because shit would get way,waytoo easy."
"It's already way too easy with Merlin hacking everything.Surprised he hasn't been banned yet."
Merlin scoffed."As if I would ever get caught.Maleagant can keep trying all he likes, but we're not going anywhere."
Arthur sat down and took the soup Gwen gave him with a warm thanks."I've missed your cooking, dear wife."
"Shush with you," Gwen said dismissively, but smiled as she bustled off.
Arthur and Gwen's marriage had been political, convenient, but they'd always been good friends and back in those days, that was a perfect marriage.Arthur handled the military, the fighting, the traveling.Gwen had kept the castle, handled the nobles at court, managed the day to day matters of running a kingdom.They'd made a good team, all the stronger with their respective lovers alongside them.Arthur, Merlin, and Morgan, as tempestuous a triad as could be; Gwen and Elaine, who'd never wanted to be amorously touched by anyone, but were as hopelessly romantic together as any other couple at court.
Not that Lancelot could talk about hopelessly romantic when the story of how he and Galehaut had come to be together had been one of the most popular tales at court.The court bard had wasted no time composingthatballad, and Lancelot had always made certain to be far, far away whenever it was performed.
An ache twisted through him, sharp and deep, but he pushed it away.His reckoning with Galehaut was coming, and until then, dwelling on it would only hurt him and everyone relying on him.
Lancelot thanked Gwen as she brought him food, and dug into it with relish.Dred sat down next to him with a bowl of their own and a great deal of the freshly baked bread."You have to share the bread, asshole."
"Make me," Dred said cheerfully.
On the other side of the cookfire, Morgan rolled her eyes."We made extra with them in mind."
Smirking, Dred dug into their soup with zeal, using bread more often than spoon.
By the time they were all finished eating, Lancelot felt mostly human again.More sleep wouldn't hurt, but there was simply too much to do."So what's the plan?Do we have one yet?"
"We're going to try for the Kingdom of the Lost again," Merlin replied, sitting down next to Morgan on the log to Lancelot's right."I want to reach it, secure it, and make it our permanent spawn location."
Lancelot made a face."The last time we tried to go there, we had to find our way out of a temple, fight a dragon, and got stuck with them."He jerked a thumb at Dred beside him, then jerked away with a laugh when he was jabbed in the ribs.
"Nevertheless," Arthur continued, amusement in his voice, "we make for the Kingdom of the Lost.I feel once we banish the fog, it will look familiar."
"Merlin posed that before," Lancelot said."It's purposely obscured though, and a late game location, so we have to be prepared to put up one hell of a fight."
"We will be," Arthur said."The plan is to travel to that location today, rest up, and then tackle it overmorrow."
"Overmorrow," Dred replied with a snort."Artie, we're not in ye old centuries anymore."
"Fuck off."
