(Untitled)

[oliverplus]

Characters: Oliver Day (oliverplus) and OPEN
Location: Your reality!
Time: After Oliver's fairytale has ended, and during or after yours, as you prefer
Summary: Oliver goes on an involuntary reality-hopping tour of the multiverse~
Warnings: Oliver is a geek, and depending on your reality, he might just show it. Possibly a lot

Comments

[Location: Camelot]

[onperfectlips]

Although it was still early when Oliver arrived in Camelot, the summer sun had already warmed up the sand coloured stones of the castle and forced Guinevere to discard her heavy cloak. She was carrying a bucket of water - which she almost spilled in her shock - across the courtyard when he appeared.

"Oliver?"

She glanced frantically around, but it seemed that his arrival - something that would have been taken as a sure sign of sorcery - had gone unnoticed. These days, the people of Camelot were busy with their own concerns.

"It's all right, they haven't seen you," she said with breathless relief, grabbing his arm to pull him out of sight. "What are you doing in Camelot?"

[oliverplus]

Oliver had barely had a chance to take in the world around him before Gwen grabbed him and started dragging him after her. "Whoa, what's wrong?" he hissed, getting the distinct impression that shouting would be a bad idea in the current circumstances. He hurried the way she was pulling, though, as it was obviously important that he do so.

At her question, he could only shake his head. "I keep showing up on different worlds. I can't go to the Plane or home or anything! It must be some sort of experiment. Sorry, Gwen."

But then her words fully connected through his surprise, and his eyes widened. "Wait. I'm on Camelot!? Oh god, you're from Camelot!" He couldn't help the excitement in his tone, his voice growing a bit louder than he'd meant it to. He was in the legendary Camelot!

[onperfectlips]

"Magic is outlawed in Camelot," she said in an urgent whisper, "If you'd been seen, you would have been arrested for practicing sorcery."

The silence - and the fact that they weren't followed by angry shouts or the sound of running feet - confirmed that they were truly safe. In the shadows of the castle wall, Gwen allowed herself to relax and greet Oliver with a warm hug.

His excitement made her smile.

"Yes, this is Camelot," she agreed, "Perhaps I should give you a tour?"

[oliverplus]

Oliver's eyes widened. "Oh," was all he could manage. He was glad he hadn't been seen now, too--not that it would have been the first time he'd been arrested. But he had a feeling there were plenty of things in Camelot he'd rather see than a cell.

He hugged Gwen back, smiling at the greeting. It was good to see that she was as glad to have him here as he was to be here, especially as that hadn't always been the case at his previous destinations. At the offer of a tour, his eyes widened for an entirely different reason. "That would be fantastic!" he gasped.

[onperfectlips]

A lot of things had changed for the better since Arthur had taken the throne, but the laws regarding magic were as harsh as ever. (Although Guinevere was no politician, she understood that introducing new laws and repealing old laws so soon after Uther's death would make Camelot's already tentative position even more uncertain. Their position had to be solidified before they could do anything else.) Even Morgana's intervention would not have been enough to save him.

But that did not matter now. Gwen was proud of her home and more than happy to show him around.

"Tell me what you'd like to see first."

[oliverplus]

Oliver was surprised by the question. He didn't have any idea what to ask to see; he was just excited to be there! "What could we go see?"

A thought occurred to him then, though, after Gwen's initial uncertainty. He glanced down at his T-shirt and jeans. "And, uh...you think I'll be okay in this? Nobody's gonna get upset?" Nevermind getting himself accused of sorcery; the last thing he wanted to do was risk getting Gwen in trouble for being with him. This was supposed to be a fun visit, after all--and considering this was Camelot and he was with Gwen, he was sure that, as long as they stayed safe, it would be for sure.

[onperfectlips]

"I don't know," she said, truthfully, "There's the palace? Or the market place?"

Although the training grounds - the home of the famous knights of Camelot - would probably be the most interesting to a visitor from another world. Especially a visitor who knew so many of their stories already.

That was a good question. After a moment of consideration, she nodded.

"You're probably the same size as Merlin," she said, "I'm sure he won't mind if we borrow one of his tunics. Then we can go down to the training grounds and see the knights?"

[oliverplus]

"Those sound good!" Oliver replied immediately. "I mean, either one. Both. We could start with the palace? Can we go in the palace?" Thankfully, despite his excitement, he was at least pausing to breathe--but not to do much else.

Then Gwen mentioned Merlin, training grounds, and knights all in the same sentence, and Oliver sputtered, staring at her. "You're going to...Merlin!? And I can see the knights!?" His jaw stayed hanging open even after he'd spoken, but he didn't notice--or care. This sounded too good to be true already, and he'd only just arrived!

[onperfectlips]

Once again, Oliver's enthusiasm made Gwen's customarily warm smile bloom brighter than ever. She didn't understand it - this was her world, her home, for all that it would be a legend in the future - but she was delighted to witness it.

"Yes, he's one of my closest friends. I'm sure you'll like him."

Even Arthur liked him. Merlin had helped to guide the prince from his position as a spoiled and arrogant bully to his current place as the ruler of Camelot.

"Of course. I do work there. We'll slip in through the kitchens and no one will have to know. Not that they'd mind if you would. They're really very friendly in Camelot."

[oliverplus]

"B-but Merlin!" Oliver sputtered. "But isn't he...if..." He waved vaguely, struggling for words, but then realised that he was on the verge of sharing information that it would probably be much better not to share and snapped his mouth shut. If magic was outlawed, he shouldn't walk around pointing out Merlin as a wizard, even if he suspected a close friend like Gwen might already know. "Well, uh...if you say so. And yeah, 'course I'll like him!" He smiled sheepishly, still shaking his head in disbelief. How could he not like Merlin?

"You work on the training grounds?" Oliver echoed, hardly able to believe it. "Okay. Yeah. Let's do that!" Despite his shock and confusion over the situation, he flashed her a grin, his excitement still very much intact, even if part of his brain was continuously telling him that this had to all be a dream of some sort.

[onperfectlips]

Although she wondered what he had been about to say about Merlin, Gwen knew better than to ask. She had no desire to know the future. She was content to simply live it, discovering things in their own time.

(Unusually, Gwen had no idea about Merlin's powers. He hadn't been as careful as he should have been, but he had been careful enough to keep them hidden from his friend. Morgana ... Morgana was a different matter, even if they never spoke of the abilities that her mistress possessed.)

"Well, I work wherever I'm needed. Sometimes my duties take me to the training grounds."

[oliverplus]

Oliver was trying to a be a bit careful at least, so he let the subject drop and kept following Gwen. Thankfully, his excitement quickly overtook his concern, and his questions continued to be just as animated. "Wow, that's fantastic!" he declared. "But you're sure I'm not gonna get you in trouble for being there, too? I could like...hide...while we watched."

He knew that he should probably be offering an intelligent solution like not going if it was going to get her in trouble, but she had him too excited now to even consider not seeing the knights. He couldn't wait!

[onperfectlips]

Gwen laughed, taking his arm gently to guide him in the right direction.

"If it was dangerous, I would not have offered," she assured him. "The knights are heroes to all of Camelot. They are used to being watched."

She released his arm when they passed an unremarkable stone building that housed the laundry, returning a moment later with a cloak that Oliver could use to conceal his unusual outfit.

"Try to relax and enjoy yourself," she suggested with a smile.

[oliverplus]

"Oh, yeah. That makes sense." Oliver smiled at her sheepishly, allowing her to lead the way. While she was getting the cloak, he took the opportunity to look around at his surroundings. He'd been to the past before--you could hardly avoid it, travelling with the Doctor--but he'd never seen it quite like this. Because this wasn't exactly the past, he reminded himself. It was legend--but it was definitely real, as well.

He accepted the cloak, looking at it for a moment in some degree of awe. "Is this really Merlin's?" he asked, treating it with more care than he usually would a cloak as he pulled it on.

"Oh, I will do!" he assured her once the cloak was safely in place. He grinned widely. "Don't worry about that."

[onperfectlips]

"It is," she assured him, helping Oliver to arrange the cloak after he'd pulled it on. It was important that he looked the part and that he kept his own garments hidden from curious eyes. "There. You certainly look the part now. Shall we?"

She already knew the answer to that question. With a smile, she led the way to the training grounds on the far side of the royal citadel.

[oliverplus]

Oliver let Gwen take care of adjusting the cloak. She was better at it, after all, not to mention he was still in some degree of shock that he was wearing something that belonged to Merlin--the actual Merlin! But he contained his excitement--relatively speaking--and grinned at her, nodding. "Yeah, let's!"

As they headed to the training grounds, Oliver was hardly watching where he was going at all. He was much more interested in taking in the sights around him, his mouth hanging open in both amazement and excitement. Unfortunately, this meant that, if Gwen were to slow down or stop short at all, he would surely walk straight into her. But at that moment, that wasn't something he was worried about. Seeing the actual, real Camelot was the only thing on his mind.