If I Could Tell It

Cadbury Castle, Britain, 647

Lancelot and I walked to supper together that night.

We walked through the castle corridors to the dining hall silently, each of us knowing the exact reason that we were going. The imminent fate that we were faced with.

We met Kay and Bedivere at the doors, their faces just as grim and melancholy as ours. Perceval was inside already, always the pleaser of our masters. I wondered if he knew yet what the meeting was for. Probably. We all knew that this day would come.

“Where did you get that sword?” Bedivere asked curiously as we stood outside the room, prolonging the time in which the war became a part of our reality.

I just looked at him for a second. Then my gaze shifted from face to face around the small circle the four of us had made. I trusted them. They were my brothers.

“Viviane gave it to me.”

Each of them nodded respectfully. They no longer made fun of my love for Viviane. In fact, none of them really even made fun of me anymore. They held me in a higher respect than they did when we were younger. Maybe it was because of my incredible swordsmanship and skill in fighting. Maybe it was because of my future kingship. Maybe, as Viviane had once said, it was because of the aura about me.

“We should probably go in.” I said authoritatively. I opened my mouth to say more, maybe words of encouragement, but there was nothing more to be said.

I lead them, single file, into the large dining hall. The ornate vaulted ceiling seemed to glare at us with disapproving eyes, as if it thought we deserved to be forced off to war.

Perceval was sitting to the left of my father, as expected. That was where my mother used to sit. I swallowed, thinking about it.

I sat down to the right of my father and Lancelot sat down next to me. Kay and Bedivere sat down next to Perceval.

My father cleared his throat loudly and we all looked in his direction, neatly folding our hands in our laps. I rested my palm on top of Excalibur’s pommel.

“You know why you all are here.” He began. “Arthur must have at least managed to tell you that much like I told him too.”

I breathed deeply and counted to ten in my head, desperately trying to keep my temper under some sort of control. I knew that the anger he was putting on my shoulders was really only the anger from the death of my mother.

“He did not need to tell us that you were going to force us o-” Bedivere started somewhat angrily. I heard Kay stomp on his foot and he lowered his chin in submission. “I am sorry your majesty. I have spoken out of turn.”

My father ignored him. “You are here so that we may discuss your placements in the war against the Saxons.”

A male servant came and filled our goblets with wine and I drank thirstily in a desperate attempt to lose a part of my consciousness. I knew it would not help though, it was much too watered down. The king wanted us to stay alert. I noticed however, that his cup was being filled from a different pitcher.

“I think that all of you will be our leadership on the front lines.” He said casually, as if he was discussing flower placement in the palace gardens. “My old master of patrols...Lionel, is there. I believe that you are all acquainted with him, yes?”

The five of us looked at each other, it had been so long since we had last seen Lionel and we all missed his comforting smile and mentoring. At least the war meant that we were going to see him again.

“The morning after tomorrow you shall depart from the palace with thirty men from the city. You will go straight to Lionel who will get you accustomed to the living situation and the tasks at hand. The next battle will be fought one week from tonight.”

Servants brought platters of mutton pies, rosemary bread, and sugared carrots. All foods that I loved, I suppose that the kitchen staff had thought of me. The smell was tempting, but I could not bring myself to eat and I saw that the others could not either. The pits that had formed in our stomachs were too heavy already.

My father shrugged at our lack of appetite and began to eat. With his mouth full he spoke. “Arthur will be leading this battle.”

I looked up from the untouched plate of food that had been served to me. I felt the boys’ gazes on me.

“I will be?”

“As much as it frightens me, you are going to be king someday, stop sounding so surprised.” He commanded me. He muttered. “Unless you get yourself killed on the first day.”

I felt my eyes widen. I was going to be leading hundreds of men into battle. This was the most responsibility I had ever been given and it was an immense amount of responsibility at that.

“Yes sir.” I said without emotion.

“You had better not cost me the war.” He said harshly. His fierce glare met my own and our eyes locked.

“I shall not.”

He looked away first.

Colorado Springs, America, 2010

“Arthur!” Ty yelled at me as I accidentally tripped over his foot and brought him down to the weight room floor with me. “What the heck is wrong with you?! You’ve been even more of a klutz than normal today.”

“Sorry.” I muttered. “I’m not really sure what’s going on with me.”

Of course I knew what was going on with me. I was going off to war. And I was the one leading the war.

“Well fix it. Man, I can’t deal with you knockin’ me down every five seconds.” He said, irritated. “Com’n, save that for the field.”

I shrugged and reached to put away the weight clips I was using.

“That’s it for today boys!” Coach Johnson said loudly. “See you all Thursday night!”

Summer weight training for high school football began a few weeks ago and Ty and I both made the JV team. We were the only freshmen not on C team too.

I looked down at my sweaty, white T shirt and neon green basketball shorts. It said Harrison High School Panthers in big black letters across my chest. I determined that I could wait to take a shower until I got home and motioned for Ty to follow me out of the weight room.

We walked alone through the empty school to the abandoned cafeteria. Our sneakers clicked on the linoleum flooring and we walked silently to the door to the outdoor eating area.

“My foster parents are going to adopt me,” I told him as we emerged into the hot, dry Colorado air.

“That’s sweet man.” Ty said and smiled at me. “That why you’ve been so weird today?”

“Um….yeah.” I needed a cover story. “I guess.”

“Okay,” he agreed, we began to walk through the parking lot. “This must be a big deal for you”

“Kinda.” We ducked the chain that blocked the parking lot off from the normal road for the summer.

“Are you ever gonna tell me about where you came from before here?” Ty asked presumptuously.

“Well...uh…” I trailed off. I had to think of something quickly. Or maybe I did not have to. I had been close friends with Ty for almost two years now. If I could trust anyone in America with my secret it had to be him. I took a deep breath. “It’s a long story.”

“Well, it’s three miles to our neighborhood, so I got time.” Ty said and shrugged his broad, dark shoulders.

“Well, I mean…” I searched my mind for any way that I might not sound completely insane. “I’m not really from here,” I smiled to myself at my word choice.

“Yeah. I got that,” Ty said. “Come on, you can trust me, I’m your best friend. What’d you do escape from Juvy or somethin’?”

“This is going to sound really strange,” I prefaced. “In fact, it’s probably the weirdest thing you’ve ever heard.”

Ty laughed. “Oh believe me, no matter how crazy your story is or what you’ve done, I bet I’ve heard worse.”

“Okay so…” My mind told me this was a terrible idea and to make up some story about escaping from juvenile detention for Ty. “You’re totally gonna think I’m insane.”

“Look man,” Ty said, beginning to get irritated. “Just tell me. I can take it.”

He asked for it. You have to just tell him the truth. He is your friend, he will not tell you that you are insane like everyone else. Lancelot is your friend, he does not believe you but at least you can talk to him about it. Stop being afraid Arthur, that is weak, just tell him.

“So every single night when I’m going to sleep I actually don’t go to sleep I go to the year six hundred forty-seven in medieval Britain where I’m kind of a big deal, like I’m the king’s son and I’m about to go off to war and lead this huge battle against the Saxons. I have no clue how I started coming here but all I know is that I lived in Britain all my life and when I was twelve I started going to America in my sleep and came here and it’s been happening for the past two years now. I don’t know why.”

I clenched my teeth and looked at Ty. I braced myself for a look of disapproval and the words I heard all too often: Arthur you are insane.

He looked confused for a second. Then his mouth formed a grin. And then he laughed. He laughed for a good minute and a half as we walked down the side of the road. I just confessed my deepest, most inner secret and he was laughing at it as if it was the funniest thing ever.

“You’re tellin’ me that-” He tried to stifle his laughter so he could get words out. “That you’re King Arthur? Frickin’ King Arthur? Man you’re hilarious! How long did it take you to come up with that story? Musta’ been all through weights. Ha!”

He kept laughing and I smiled awkwardly. My mistake was made now, there was no taking back what I had just said now.

“Good cover story, huh?” I said, pretending that I actually had made all of it up, that was my only option now.

“Best I’ve heard,” Ty said, still laughing. “But seriously man, where are you really from?”

“Tennessee,” I said, thinking of the first state that popped into my mind. “My parents were uh...killed in a car crash.”

“Oh…” he said, his voice suddenly plagued with sympathy. If only he had been that way when I told him the actual truth. “I’m sorry man. That sucks.”

“Yeah…” I trailed off and looked at the road that was paved in pink from the Colorado rock beneath my feet.

“But King Arthur man,” he started laughing again. I gave a half of a chuckle, hiding my sadness. “What’d you pull a sword outta a stone too?”

If only he knew.