1)
Thankfully, the Queen fell asleep. I decided to continue reading the journal. I hoped it would give me some insight into how I could send Queen Boudicca home. The next installment in the journal was about King Arthur. This should be interesting. I wondered what my great-grandfather had to say about him. I began reading his story and when I looked up Boudicca was gone. There were no traces of her left in my small room. It appeared that by reading a different story I was able to send her back to her war. At the exact moment that I had this thought, I heard another crash from my closet. The poor clothes in my closet were really taking a beating. It looked like it was going to be a very long night.
I was finally able to calm King Arthur down. It was astonishing that he became interested in his surroundings once he had stopped muttering. He was far more interested in the material objects around him than Queen Boudicca had been. Perhaps I had caught King Arthur at a more opportune time. I can imagine that it was difficult for Queen Boudicca to concentrate on anything; she was about to lead her people into a war after all. King Arthur, however, noticed the subtleties in the clothes that I wore, the furniture in my bedroom, and most of all the pictures hanging on my wall. He didn't appear to be scared, or even intimidated by his new location. If anything, he seemed more intrigued.
After about ten minutes of his silent inquisition, you could say I had had enough. I couldn't stand it any more. I had so many questions I wanted to ask! I finally worked up the courage to ask, "Aren't you afraid at all? You probably have no clue where you are, and yet you are so calm."
He replied, "The time that I left had far more intrigues than you can possibly imagine." I could tell it was going to be a long and trying night. I was kind of sad that King Arthur appeared to be a snob.
He had no intention of carrying on our conversation, so I had to prompt him for more details. I asked, "And what, may I ask, was it that I so rudely took you away from in your time?" He glanced at me like I had a hundred eyeballs scattered across my forehead.
"Well, if you must know, I had just been introduced to the Lady of the Lake." I guess the puzzled look I gave him did not sit well. He rolled his eyes - yes, he actually rolled his eyes - and looked bewildered. He asked me, "Do you know nothing?"
I looked at him and said, "I guess I don't."
He flopped himself onto my futon - and he looked mighty happy about how comfortable it was - and informed me, "I don't know how it is that you do not know of her. But, I will tell you of my acquaintance. Merlin, you do know who he is don't you?" I nodded my head and he continued. "Merlin and I were on our way home from a minor skirmish that I found myself involved in. Unfortunately, I lost my sword while fighting a giant..."
I stopped him mid-sentence. "Giant. You're kidding...right? By giant, you mean someone abnormally tall?" He just stared at me. I took the hint. I stopped interrupting him.
"Before you so rudely interrupted my tale, I was informing you of how I came to be without my sword. I lost it in battle and I had no way to protect myself. On our journey home, Merlin suggested that we rest at a nearby lake. He believed the Lady in residence had magical powers and he wanted to investigate."
"When we arrived there, a woman emerged from the middle of the lake. She was dressed as a queen and she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Upon reaching us, the lady introduced herself as Viviane, the Lady of the Lake. Much to my surprise, she had been waiting for me. It was destined that her charge, the Sword Excalibur, was to be mine. Viviane explained that Excalibur would keep me safe, so long as I always wore it at my side. I asked her where it might be, as she had greeted us barehanded. She pointed to an island in the middle of her lake and I saw the gleam of a sword hilt. She informed me that I had to obtain it on my own... without assistance through the use of magic or another person."
"I was about to begin my swim when I was brought to this time." I couldn't believe it. I had brought this man forward in time during one of the most critical moments of his life and he was so calm. He must be this cool and collected all of the time. It was easy for me to understand how this man was never forgotten and why his stories continued to live on. He glared at me as if he expected something from me. "Oh, right, sorry. I got a bit caught up in my thoughts for a moment. Well, I am terribly sorry that I interrupted your quest. I think I have figured out how to send you back. Sit back and relax. I'll have you home in no time!" Alright, so maybe I sounded a bit more sure of myself than I actually was.
I picked up the journal and began to read about my great-grandfather's adventures with Guy Fawkes. When I looked up, King Arthur had disappeared.
Author's Note:
I decided to re-write the story of how King Arthur finally found Excalibur. The source that I found was short, sweet, and to the point. I had a difficult time deciding how I wanted to portray King Arthur. I love that he is portrayed as a bit of a geek in Shrek, but found that particular image unsatisfactory for my story. It seemed to me, and still does, that there are probably personality requirements to be included among the ranks of royalty. The person in question should be aloof and a bit of a snob. This story was a great deal of fun to write and I enjoyed finding the images to accompany it even more. The story of the Lady of the Lake has always been one of my favorite King Arthur legends. A lot of authors do not elaborate on her character as much as some of the other King Arthur characters, like Lancelot and Guinevere. To me, there is an element of mysticism and enchantment surrounding the story of King Arthur and Excalibur. I like Merlin's character in the King Arthur legends. However, he isn't one of my favorites. In the case of this story, it felt as though the sole focus should be on a man and his sword. I hope you all enjoyed the story.
Image Information:
1) "King Federer" by Annie Lebowitz, 2007, at Knowing Things Better
2) "Lady of the Lake" by Olofera, 2007, at DeviantArt
Thankfully, the Queen fell asleep. I decided to continue reading the journal. I hoped it would give me some insight into how I could send Queen Boudicca home. The next installment in the journal was about King Arthur. This should be interesting. I wondered what my great-grandfather had to say about him. I began reading his story and when I looked up Boudicca was gone. There were no traces of her left in my small room. It appeared that by reading a different story I was able to send her back to her war. At the exact moment that I had this thought, I heard another crash from my closet. The poor clothes in my closet were really taking a beating. It looked like it was going to be a very long night.
I was finally able to calm King Arthur down. It was astonishing that he became interested in his surroundings once he had stopped muttering. He was far more interested in the material objects around him than Queen Boudicca had been. Perhaps I had caught King Arthur at a more opportune time. I can imagine that it was difficult for Queen Boudicca to concentrate on anything; she was about to lead her people into a war after all. King Arthur, however, noticed the subtleties in the clothes that I wore, the furniture in my bedroom, and most of all the pictures hanging on my wall. He didn't appear to be scared, or even intimidated by his new location. If anything, he seemed more intrigued.
After about ten minutes of his silent inquisition, you could say I had had enough. I couldn't stand it any more. I had so many questions I wanted to ask! I finally worked up the courage to ask, "Aren't you afraid at all? You probably have no clue where you are, and yet you are so calm."
He replied, "The time that I left had far more intrigues than you can possibly imagine." I could tell it was going to be a long and trying night. I was kind of sad that King Arthur appeared to be a snob.
He had no intention of carrying on our conversation, so I had to prompt him for more details. I asked, "And what, may I ask, was it that I so rudely took you away from in your time?" He glanced at me like I had a hundred eyeballs scattered across my forehead.
"Well, if you must know, I had just been introduced to the Lady of the Lake." I guess the puzzled look I gave him did not sit well. He rolled his eyes - yes, he actually rolled his eyes - and looked bewildered. He asked me, "Do you know nothing?"
I looked at him and said, "I guess I don't."
He flopped himself onto my futon - and he looked mighty happy about how comfortable it was - and informed me, "I don't know how it is that you do not know of her. But, I will tell you of my acquaintance. Merlin, you do know who he is don't you?" I nodded my head and he continued. "Merlin and I were on our way home from a minor skirmish that I found myself involved in. Unfortunately, I lost my sword while fighting a giant..."
I stopped him mid-sentence. "Giant. You're kidding...right? By giant, you mean someone abnormally tall?" He just stared at me. I took the hint. I stopped interrupting him.
"Before you so rudely interrupted my tale, I was informing you of how I came to be without my sword. I lost it in battle and I had no way to protect myself. On our journey home, Merlin suggested that we rest at a nearby lake. He believed the Lady in residence had magical powers and he wanted to investigate."
2)
"When we arrived there, a woman emerged from the middle of the lake. She was dressed as a queen and she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Upon reaching us, the lady introduced herself as Viviane, the Lady of the Lake. Much to my surprise, she had been waiting for me. It was destined that her charge, the Sword Excalibur, was to be mine. Viviane explained that Excalibur would keep me safe, so long as I always wore it at my side. I asked her where it might be, as she had greeted us barehanded. She pointed to an island in the middle of her lake and I saw the gleam of a sword hilt. She informed me that I had to obtain it on my own... without assistance through the use of magic or another person."
"I was about to begin my swim when I was brought to this time." I couldn't believe it. I had brought this man forward in time during one of the most critical moments of his life and he was so calm. He must be this cool and collected all of the time. It was easy for me to understand how this man was never forgotten and why his stories continued to live on. He glared at me as if he expected something from me. "Oh, right, sorry. I got a bit caught up in my thoughts for a moment. Well, I am terribly sorry that I interrupted your quest. I think I have figured out how to send you back. Sit back and relax. I'll have you home in no time!" Alright, so maybe I sounded a bit more sure of myself than I actually was.
I picked up the journal and began to read about my great-grandfather's adventures with Guy Fawkes. When I looked up, King Arthur had disappeared.
Author's Note:
I decided to re-write the story of how King Arthur finally found Excalibur. The source that I found was short, sweet, and to the point. I had a difficult time deciding how I wanted to portray King Arthur. I love that he is portrayed as a bit of a geek in Shrek, but found that particular image unsatisfactory for my story. It seemed to me, and still does, that there are probably personality requirements to be included among the ranks of royalty. The person in question should be aloof and a bit of a snob. This story was a great deal of fun to write and I enjoyed finding the images to accompany it even more. The story of the Lady of the Lake has always been one of my favorite King Arthur legends. A lot of authors do not elaborate on her character as much as some of the other King Arthur characters, like Lancelot and Guinevere. To me, there is an element of mysticism and enchantment surrounding the story of King Arthur and Excalibur. I like Merlin's character in the King Arthur legends. However, he isn't one of my favorites. In the case of this story, it felt as though the sole focus should be on a man and his sword. I hope you all enjoyed the story.
Image Information:
1) "King Federer" by Annie Lebowitz, 2007, at Knowing Things Better
2) "Lady of the Lake" by Olofera, 2007, at DeviantArt