A/N: Here begins my latest multi-parter: A Purge Fic set about six months after Arthur's birth. I hope you will enjoy it, despite our youngest characters not playing major roles here, for obvious reasons. :P

Rating may increase to M.

We Loyal Traitors

Chapter One: Arriving in Camelot

The young woman's heart leapt unexpectedly as she crested the hill and saw Camelot laid out below her in all its glory. Such a beautiful castle, such a beautiful city.

Walking through the bustling, noisy lower town felt like a homecoming in so many ways and she experienced a sudden, powerful sense of belonging even though she didn't understand that feeling at all. She loved to visit the city, it was true - loved the excitement of it – but she could never imagine living here. She was a country girl through and through, always had been and always would be. So, why did she always feel so at home here? It made no sense. Camelot was just a place she came to visit, a place she came to work.

Although the exact nature of that work had to be kept secret at all costs.

The pyre was being built in the centre of the square again - Uther's preferred form of 'justice' at the moment. Although Camelot's king would sometimes install a block to remove the sorcerers' heads, or a scaffold and noose to hang them instead - Gods forbid that he should ever get bored. The young lady did her best not to react too negatively to the sight, simply tucking a stray piece of brown hair back under her kerchief and continuing on towards the great castle of Camelot.

"Your business here?" a guard asked her as she approached the main building.

"I'm here to see the court physician," she replied meekly.

The guard nodded. "Oh yes, of course. Go on up." She was becoming well know here now which was good.

Or maybe not.

Again that same strange feeling of contradiction hit her as she walked up the various narrow staircases: Worry and concern about her deception, married with the incredibly confident idea that she was quite safe here – perfectly at home.

She had always had a strong sense when something was right or wrong, safe or dangerous, but she only ever felt both emotions simultaneously when in Camelot – as if she were two completely different people whilst she was here. She shook her head at the strange thought and confidently pushed opened the door to the physician's chambers.

"Gaius? Hello?"

The old man jumped up from his position, hunched over a book on the table. "Ah, you're back," he said, only a flicker of emotion showing on his face.

"Yes." She bit her lip as she took note of the closed expression on his face. "How are you holding up?"

The physician looked around nervously, and she noticed two patients in cots within the main room – at least one of them conscious. He shook his head, a silent warning.

"Never mind me. How are you? How are … things?"

She nodded, understanding the need to be vague around others here. "Everything is fine. All our... mutual friends are well and..." She paused. "I've returned with a note for you."

Gaius' shoulders lifted and raised in a subtle sigh as he took the letter from her and read it although, yet again, little emotion showed on his face as he did so. "Thank you for this. I'm glad that 'everyone' is well." They were becoming adept at exchanging more than words during these conversations.

"I'm pleased to be back. Can I help you with anything?"

"Not right now." He gave her another pointed look. "Why don't you go and visit your friends whilst I finish up here? Come back for some lunch in an hour. There are 'things' we need to discuss."

She nodded, understanding the subtle dismissal as well as the promise of a new job. "I'll see you later," she replied as she headed back towards the door.

"Yes." His smile was suddenly very much more genuine. "It really is very good to see you again, Hunith."

~o~0~o~

Seeing that her uncle was so obviously busy with his patients, she left the physician's chambers and headed downstairs as he had suggested. Her first port of call was the kitchens and here was enthusiastically greeted by two ladies she'd befriended on her previous visits just as soon as she entered the large, noisy space.

"You're back already, Hunith," Carrie the young kitchen girl called out excitedly. "How are you?"

"I'm very well, thank you," she replied with a smile. "How are things?"

Carrie winced. "Oh ... you know." The girl's dark curls kept escaping her scarf even more than Hunith's it seemed, and she had rather more flour on her hair and face than she did on her hands.

"Yes. I saw the pyre in the square," Hunith replied with a nod, knowing exactly where the girl's allegiances lie.

"Hush," Audrey said, hurrying over and ushered the three of them into the pantry, looking over her shoulder nervously. "Careless words."

The assistant cook was in her late twenties; large and apparently intimidating. However, Hunith had never been one to judge by first appearances and had quickly discovered a surprisingly determined and kind soul underneath the formidable presence.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, Audrey," Carrie complained. "We were just saying."

"No, she's right," Hunith replied. "These are strange times – fearful times. It's best not to be too vocally opposed to the king and his ideas right now."

"But … all those people..." Carrie had tears in her eyes now. "It's so unfair. And I knew the last one too; Her name was Mary and she was a good girl when we were growing up … sweet. There's no way that-"

"Carrie, I understand," Audrey said firmly but gently. "Believe me I do but, Hunith's right. If you want to continue to live and work in Camelot you have to be careful what you say."

"What, by keeping quiet?" she snapped. "By doing nothing? How is that right?"

"In some cases fighting loudly and vocally for what is right is the best thing to do," Hunith whispered. "In this case though, it's definitely best to be subtle."

"The king is not happy with these recent escapes," Audrey said quietly, nodding her agreement. "There will be consequences from that, mark my words." Then the older woman turned slowly to give Hunith a very pointed look. "We all need to be very careful."

Hunith swallowed hard, worrying that Audrey had guessed something of her reason for being here? She tried her best not to react, simply nodding in reply.

"You're both wrong," Carrie complained. "How can you fight all of this with subtly?" Then she strode out of the pantry with a swish of floury skirts whilst Hunith turned to Audrey and shrugged.

"She's young and passionate," the assistant cook replied sagely. "But, I do hope she heeds our warnings for her own sake as well as those she professes to sympathise with."

"So do I." Hunith sighed, still a bit distracted by the fact that Audrey seemed to know quite so much about everything. She wondered if she should ask Gaius to confirm if the woman could be trusted.

"Did you hear the latest rumour?" her friend asked then, a small smile playing across her usually stern features.

"Which one?" Hunith countered with a smile of her own. There were always rumours in Camelot – few of them reliable.

"The one that says Uther has a dragon chained in the dungeons."

"A … what?" If her friend wasn't such a serious person, she would have thought she was being teased. Audrey simply nodded, raising her eyes to the ceiling. "In the dungeons?" Hunith asked then, belatedly catching up on the second part of the sentence.

"That's what they're saying," the larger woman confirmed.

"Audrey, dragons are seventy feet tall. How on earth would they fit one in a cell?"

The assistant cook suddenly laughed – a rare sight and sound from her, but all the more infectious for that very reason. "True, true although … when I was a small child growing up here, I often used to go exploring within the castle."

"Really?" Hunith asked sceptically.

"Hey, I was actually small once," Audrey countered.

Hunith shook her head fondly. "That's not what I meant, Audrey and you know it. What did you find?"

She smiled. "Caves. Huge caverns below the dungeons."

Hunith's eyes widened. "Big enough for a dragon?"

Audrey nodded. "Easily."

"You've not been down there recently then?"

"Huh! When would I have the time?" she replied, just as a stern, scolding voice shouted her name from the main kitchen.

"Audrey! Where are you, child?"

"Coming, Cook." Audrey started to leave but moved closer to Hunith as she did so, smiling wickedly. "And why would I need to go all the way down there to look for a dragon when I work for one called Linda every day?" Hunith giggled as she followed her friend out of the pantry. "Her name actually means 'serpent', you know?" Audrey continued in a whisper.

"Do be serious!"

"It does, honestly."

"So this is where you've got to," Linda said – a surprisingly small, slim figure for a cook but no less formidable for that. "Wasting time gossiping again, Audrey?"

"Hunith's just arrived from the country for a visit, Cook. She won't be staying long so I wanted to say hello."

"Socialise on your own time, child – not mine."

"What time?" Audrey mouthed when the head cook wasn't looking, before grabbing her friend's arm as she started to leave. "I swear, Hunith," she mumbled. "When I'm head cook I will never, ever be that mean."

~o~0~o~

A/N: This is progressing quite well at the moment and looks as if it'll be 11 or 12 chapters long. I was going to start publishing after my holiday (19th - 24th August) but I am so nicely ahead that I thought it would be a shame not to start sharing.

So, you will have to wait a week for Chapter 2 but, after that, I expect I'll be going up to at least twice-a-week updates.

There was so much of this world that I could explore but I'm currently focusing one character's story for a very specific reason. If this goes down well, I could well come back and explore other parts of this time period. SO much potential for story ideas. I'd love to know what you think so far and what you're expecting to see.