Arthurs Court Ch. 02 - Tattoo

Please feel free to leave comments and try to guess who the characters are (the non obvious ones). I ' m definitely happy for any constructive criticism, too. It's how we all get better.

No sex in this chapter. It just didn't happen, no matter how hard I tried. Sometimes there's just gotta be more story first folks. But there'll be some next chapter!

A note on this chapter. The setting in a certain part of this chapter is ambiguous (you'll know when you read it). Both here and in the Arthurian Legends. So I'll keep it ambiguous. Who knows when and where it is. One very important change though. All characters are over 18. I'm also going to - probably awkwardly - call it out in the chapters themselves in those parts because in these tales through history... yeah not so great on that front. So I want to be very explicitly clear.

Content warning; none

Lance woke up with a groan, his head pounding and the pungent smell of sweat, sex and alcohol filling his nostrils. He kept his eyes closed, fighting against the rhythmic thumping in the back of his eyelids. He felt the warm body in bed next to him and the memories of the amazing Gwen filled his mind. It didn't remove the hangover, but he could tolerate it if it meant more of that. Eyes still closed, Lance rolled over and spooned up against her. His morning growth slotted into the crease of her panties, she must have put them on after returning to bed. He reached up with a hand and grasped a breast over the top of a shirt. He felt a nipple harden and a gasp.

"You'd better back the fuck up before I cut off all of those bits that are touching me."

Lance jerked backward, falling out of the bed in his haste and crashing against the floor. He groaned as he felt pain shoot up his shoulder, and opened his eyes to look into the glare of his sister, Morgan.

"Wha-" He paused to hack up a cough, mostly tasting like vodka. "What the hell?"

Morgan stood up out of the bed, an oversized old shirt of some ex-boyfriend clinging desperately to her curves. Lance shook his head and tried to stare her in the eyes. It was immensely difficult. Her nipples still stood out proudly underneath the shirt.

"You're fucking heavy, loser. Plus, I had to smuggle you in without waking mum and dad up. What the hell did you take last night?"

Lance rubbed at his eyes, trying to recall anything more from the party, but came up blank.

"I didn't take anything. You know I wouldn't do that." Lance reached up and rubbed at his shoulder, only to cry out as he felt fiery pain. Looking down, he saw two things. First, he was naked. He quickly reached down with a hand to cover up his manhood, which had thankfully deflated by this point. Morgan just rolled her eyes at him. Worse than the nudity though, was the snaking tattoo that made its way around his shoulder and from the pain probably went some way down his back.

Morgan stared at him with a judgemental look. One he hadn't seen in a long time. "You're telling me that you had a piece of that size done in one night and you weren't on anything? You?"

Lance had real fear in his eyes now while staring down at his shoulder. The head of a serpent was biting into his neck, just around the collarbone. Its large, twisting body worked its way over the corner of his shoulder and wrapped twice around his arm, but didn't emerge. It seemed to shimmer, and staring at it made his hangover a lot worse. He swayed on the spot. Morgan jumped forwards off the bed and caught him before he fell.

"Honestly, Mags I can't remember anything. I went to bed with-" Lance stopped suddenly, blushing. Morgan let him go and he unceremoniously fell to the floor, just managing to hold his own head up so it didn't bang against the ground. When he looked up, she was scowling.

"Yeah I could tell, idiot. You stink. Maybe go upstairs, have a shower and put some clothes on. Then come back down, I'll put some cream on that piece so you don't get infected from whatever dodgy tool you got it from last night." Grinning, Lance jumped up and saluted, forgetting that his hand was covering his junk. Morgan turned her head away and closed her eyes with a disgusted noise. "I wouldn't be too happy, you've got to dodge the parentals or explain why and how you got a tattoo at a party."

Lance's eyes widened, and he covered back up and bolted out of the room. Listening out for their parents, he dodged from doorway to doorway. In some ridiculous nudist version of splinter cell, Lance made it back to his room and immediately winced at the sight of the clothes still scattered around after Morgan's 'reorganising'. Rifling through them at what felt like a rapid pace for the hungover man, he searched for some comfy clothes, looked both ways out of the door and bolted to the bathroom. Once inside, he locked the door and spun to put his back to the mirror, turning his head to try to see what was behind him. The tail of the snake worked its way up across his shoulder blades and looped in a strange infinity symbol before spiking down his spine and becoming a huge sword. As it did so, the infinity symbol formed the cross guard. If it hadn't appeared in a drunken haze after a party, Lance would think it was cool as shit. As it was, it was slightly terrifying. With that fear rattling him the whole time, Lance had his shower.

Making his way back down the hall to the stairs, Lance was stopped suddenly by a hand on his shoulder. "Hold up a minute, Lance." Grimacing, he turned to face his fate.

His father Ben stood solemnly in the hallway, gardening clothes on and covered in dirt and grass clippings. He had clearly been up for hours already. The older man's brown hair streaked with gray was matted atop his head and his face was stony. The only thing that gave away any feelings was the slight raise in one eyebrow as he regarded his son, and maybe some bags under his eyes.

"Good night?"

Lance tried and failed to not blush. Maybe he could pass it off as after-effects of the hot shower. "Yeah... It was ok."

His father frowned and squeezed his shoulder tighter. Thankfully not the same shoulder as the mysterious tattoo. "Listen, Lance. When I was your age-"

"Oh god Dad, please no. I really don't want to talk about this if this is going where I think... Ugh. No." Lance was trying to back away, but his dad's grip was strong. Ben was built like a linebacker. Had been once, in college at least. It was where Lance got his height. A lot of that weight of Ben's was around the stomach now, but the strength never left him.

Ben rubbed his eyes with his other hand and let the grip on Lance's shoulder go. "Fine. Just promise me you're being safe. And you will at least call us if you're going to stay out all night, so your mother doesn't stay up worrying." There was a slight glare there. Lance's parents were pretty cool. They were happy hosting parties and all of Lance and Morgan's friends loved them, but that didn't mean they didn't have rules and expect them to be followed.

Lance bowed his head. His dad probably hadn't got much sleep. "Sorry, dad. Got a bit carried away. I wasn't planning on staying out... it just kind of happened."

"Yeah, well this is a first offence, so we'll let it slide. But next time you're grounded." Ben's voice got a little louder and his eyes moved up over Lance's shoulder. "And so will anyone covering for you." They both heard footsteps rapidly descending the stairs. "Now. I'll say what your Pop said to me when we had this chat."

Lance's eyes quickly moved up and he opened his mouth to speak but Ben cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"No I'm not telling you the story. As I was saying... Here's the message. If our phone rings..." He held up his hand and started raising dirt-covered fingers as he listed things. "And it is the police... the hospital... or a girl or her family surprising us with 'news'... There'll be hell to pay."

Lance gulped and tried his best to look innocent. Fucking idiot. He thought to himself. Use a condom. Use a condom. One thing to remember, dipshit.

Then his father's whole demeanor changed as he smiled. "Other than that, have fun. You're supposed to enjoy college." He put his arm around his son, still easily two or three inches taller, and started walking them both down the stairs. "Were there any cute girls there?"

Lance made a disgusted sound and ducked out from the arm as they reached the bottom step and quickly made his way around the corner to Morgan's room. His dad's mocking voice called after him, carrying through the house. "What? Don't tell me it was a sausage fest!"

When Lance finally returned to Morgan's room, she was just finishing laying fresh bedding down. Lance felt much better, the shower having washed away his hangover freshened him up and however awkward that father-son chat was, it was nice that he cared... and hadn't noticed the tattoo. That would have been something else.

"Close the door and take your shirt off, then sit on the bed." Morgan moved to her drawers as Lance did as instructed. She was still wearing the shirt, but now there were clearly shorts and a bra underneath it now. Not that lance looked. Much. She walked back over with a pot of cream.

"Why do you have tattoo cream?"

"Why do you think?" She let her answer hang and leaned in, rubbing a generous amount of the cream into the skin and picture. It warmed the skin wherever it touched, and had a slightly acrid smell. "It's really good work. If you remember, let me know who did it."

"Do you know a Gwen, Mags?"

She continued to put cream on, now around his arm.

"Nope."

"Gonna suck if I can't find a way to contact her."

"She'll be able to get your info if she wants it. We have our ways." Morgan climbed up onto the bed and around him, beginning the work on the part of the tattoo on his back. "Honestly, Lance. This tattoo is great. Such detail, and I really want to know how that got that silvery colour in there."

"Yeah that doesn't really comfort me, Mags. I'm just glad it will all be hidden by a shirt. Mum is going to freak out."

Morgan laughed as she finished rubbing the cream in. "Nah. I mean, she will, but she'll get over it." She climbed off the bed and back around in front of him, leaning forward to get a better look at the head of the snake. "Wonder how they got the illusion in it. I might ask some of the cheerleaders who was there."

"What illusion?" Lance looked down, and the head of the snake was no longer biting him on the collar bone. He couldn't quite make out the angle it was facing now though, being so close to his head.

Morgan reached out with a finger and traced the outline of the tattoo. Lance sucked in a breath as the pain shot through him. "It looks like it's staring at you now. So cool. Must be one of those shifting things, when you look at it from one angle it changes." She pulled back and took a breath. "Right. Get out. I've got a lunch date to get ready for."

The pain in Lance's shoulder intensified and he winced. Morgan frowned in concern. "You ok? I don't think infections can take hold that quickly, but I could be wrong."

He took a deep breath and stood up off the bed, giving his sister a quick hug before walking to the door. "I'll be fine. Thanks, Mags. Have fun on your date."

He made his way back to his room and laid down on the bed. He needed a nap. Maybe the persistent throbbing in his head would go away if he did. Hadn't it already disappeared after his shower? Ah it didn't matter, a nap couldn't hurt.

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Lancelot drifted lazily on his back in the water, letting the stream push him gently along the bank. It was slow, it wouldn't take him long to return to his belongings and horse. He let his worries wash away as he watched the castle in the distance and smiled. Camelot. He had been waiting for this moment. The young prince had been fighting in Hibernia since he was only fourteen. But finally after four years he was old enough to leave his fathers service. It had taken several days of hard riding to get here. But now he was here. Finally. Would the king accept him? Would he even make a decent knight when not surrounded by the trappings of his family? These thoughts raged through Lancelot's mind as he started to move his arms and propel himself back towards the bank.

"Ser, I think the rudder is meant to go beneath the water."

Lancelot's surprise caused him to buckle at the waist, which lost him his buoyancy. Quickly his head dipped under the water and he bounced up, sputtering and spinning around trying to locate the voice, water in his eyes. Instead all he heard was a musical giggle. With a grimace the young prince rubbed the water out of his eyes and looked to the bank.

A beautiful young woman stood atop it, her long brown hair perfectly curled an cascading down over her shoulders. She wore a riding outfit, her tight pants leaving absolutely nothing to the imagination. Lance found it difficult to keep his eyes off her and hoped she would turn around. With great difficulty, he raised his eyes to hers. "My lady, I can only beg an apology. I believed I was far enough from the village that I would not be seen. Where is your chaperone?"

She raised one eyebrow imperiously with a half smile upon her face. "It would seem you didn't go far enough." She crossed her arms underneath her bust. "Ser, I am not so young to need a chaperone. I am perfectly capable of looking after myself."

There was an awkward pause while each considered how to continue in this predicament. A smile built on the woman's face.

"So will you be leaving, Ser? I also need to bathe."

Lancelot's eyes flicked to his gear at her feet, then down to the water beneath him and back to her eyes. "My lady..."

"It's not like I can close my eyes and leave myself helpless in front of a stranger, Ser. We will just have to deal with the embarrassment."

Lancelot swallowed and took a breath. Suddenly he realised that there may be a larger problem. This woman's self-assuredness was arousing him. "Very well. I will attempt to be quick." The young prince walked forwards out of the river, the water cascading down his body. The woman's eyes followed the water as it ran, lingering on his now semi-erect manhood. She mumbled something, but Lancelot rushed to his gear and began to get dressed. He heard movement behind him but dared not look. Finally getting his breeches on, he turned and looked upon the now naked back of the woman. That ass was simply divine. It looked full and soft, there was an ever so slight crease where it met the tops of her thighs. He could almost see the shadow of her nether regions between them. He slowly brought his eyes back up her body until he saw she was looking at him, that same smile back. Lancelot could have sworn he hadn't seen a hungrier smile on a wolf.

"It was only fair as I saw you, Ser." With that, she walked into the water until it was up to her chin and her hair floated lazily behind her. She did not look back.

Lancelot tried his best to ignore the pain caused by the tight riding breeches restricting his engorged member, and fled the scene.

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"So what about that little brunette number you were entertaining in the pool?" Arthur asked. The King of college had come over unannounced pretty soon after Morgan had left for her lunch date, waking Lance up from a very strange dream. The pair had been chilling in Lance's room debriefing on the party. Or at least that's what it was supposed to be. In reality, Arthur had spent the last hour talking in great detail about the three girls that he had entertained the night before. Lance was pretty sure he only saw two, but Arthur never let details get in the way of a good story. He knew more about those girls now than he ever needed to know. Except for their names, of course. The King sure was classy. "And several times after the pool as well."

Lance blushed, but Arthur just plowed right along. "Bro seriously. The noises coming out of that house drowned out the music. More than one girl asked me for your number afterward. I of course, obliged." Lance groaned but his friend grinned and slogged him in the arm. Luckily again it wasn't his tattooed one. "You've broken out of the funk! Fuck yes. This is going to be awesome. We're going to run this school. I mean. I already do. But you're going to join me at the top!"

Lance didn't really want to ask Arthur about the tattoo. Plus, he'd apparently been very busy in the bedroom of the cheerleaders' parents and wouldn't have noticed a damn thing. But maybe he did know something. At that moment though, they heard the pinging notification of discord in the background. Lance stood up and Arthur got off the worn out sofa, jumping onto the bed instead and stretching out. "You snooze you lose, bro."

Sitting down at the desk, there was a new bubble, one that he didn't recognise. It was a fanart of the original busty Dark Magician Girl art. The banned art of the Yu-Gi-Oh card. The username was an entirely original 'Dark Magician Girl'.

DMG: You're in danger.

Exactly what you want to hear to start a conversation.

L: Hello to you too.

DMG: They'll be watching you.

L: Who is this?

DMG: It isn't a tattoo.

L: Ok, wtf. Who is this? Were you at the party?

Lance heard the front door close with a slam, probably Morgan coming back from her date. From the sounds of it, she was pissed of. Arthur shot to his feet and leaned out the door.

"Bad date, Morgan? I can make your afternoon better." There was no response, but from the sheepish grin as Arthur pulled back into the room it wasn't received well. A few seconds later, they heard a second door slam loudly. Lance glared at Arthur, who just shrugged. "Oh she'll never go for it, bro. Calm down. Anyway, I'm off. Going to see if one of the girls from last night wants to for round two. Jen? Jenny? Jenna? Ah who knows." He walked out, not waiting for a response.

Lance shook his head and turned back to the computer, but the Dark Magician Girl was offline. Looking around, he took off his shirt and stood up, walking toward the mirror on his wall. The head of the snake was staring straight out at the mirror and it looked bored.

"Just a tattoo," he muttered to himself, before going to turn away. A sharp pain lanced through his shoulder at his words and he paused. The snake was now biting his shoulder again. Lance's eyes widened. "Ooookaaaay. That was weird."

Then it moved, and Lance passed out.