Camelot, 12th century

"Mother is going to be so excited when she sees this!" Lucia giggles excitedly as she hurries towards the throne room, a jar filled with colorful floating lights in her hands. For the past week she had been trying to figure out how to change the color of firefly lights into various other colors, hoping to release them on her uncle's birthday as a present to him, and just today she figured out how to do it!

"Lady Lucia, you can't enter right now." A guard says when she arrives at the doors.

"Why not? I have something to show my mother and uncle about my magic studies." Lucia asks, holding up her glowing jar. "If he's just sitting on his throne and sulking, then he's not busy."

Before any of the guards could say anything, Lucia quickly opened the doors and slipped into the throne room.

"Mother! Mother, look what I did just now!" Lucia yells as she bursts into the throne room holding her jar with colorful little lights floating around inside and rushes up to her mother, who stood near the steps of the throne and eagerly shoves it in her face. "I turned a jar of fireflies into different colors! Isn't it neat?"

"Lucia dear, we're in the middle of a discussion." Morgana scolds as she gently pushes the jar down. "Go wait for me in my chambers dear, and you can tell me all about the fireflies."

"What's going on?" Lucia asks in surprise and peeks past her mother to see three teens standing behind her and an armored troll kneeling on the ground. "Hisirdoux? What are you doing here dressed like that? And who are these people and the troll?"

"Lucia, do as your mother asks." She hears her uncle say coldly. "Now."

"Uncle, what's going on?" Lucia asks, turning back to the front.

"Your uncle is being stubborn - again." Her mother states coldly and glares at the king. "Despite my protests that fall into his deaf ears."

Ah, it was one of those days again. Lucia steps back towards where her friend and these strangers stood until she stood next to him.

"What's going on?" She whispered to Hisirdoux. "I mean I know my mother and uncle are fighting again, but bring me up to speed?"

"Guards found us in the woods, got arrested, now we're waiting for what's going to happen to Jim." Hisirdoux whispers back.

"Weren't you milking something earlier? I saw you in the courtyard with an empty bucket heading to where Merlin keeps the Slor, and why are you dressed like this?"

"I'll tell you later."

"Bring him to the sunlight!" Arthur commands as two guards grab the troll and drag him towards the light.

"Hold on!" Hisirdoux yells as a guard grabs him. "Isn't it a bit hasty?"

"Uncle no!" Lucia yells as the troll is struggling to get away from the sun. "Mother do something!"

The troll screams in pain as his face is pushed towards the light and Lucia feels her stomach drop. She had seen too many trolls growing up arrested and thrown into the sun filled throne room to be turned to stone and smashed on the spot, unable to look away from the pained faces and unable to block out their pained screams when burrowing her face into her mother's skirts.

"STOP!" She hears a girl scream as the room suddenly grew cold and the light shifts away from the screaming troll. Lucia looks to her mother in surprise, but from the look of surprise on her face, she could see that she wasn't the one who saved the creature.

"Morgana, is this your witchery?" Arthur asks as he steps down from his throne. "Cease it at once. Or is this Lucia's doing?"

"I can't do that sort of magic!" Lucia protests as her mother quickly stands in front of her protectively. "At least, I don't think I can..."

"Just because you're scared of him, doesn't mean he shouldn't exist!" She hears someone say before a girl with dark hair and wearing armor rushes to the now kneeling troll. "It doesn't make him evil!"

"But it makes him dangerous." Her uncle argues as he steps down from the throne. "I will not fail to protect my kingdom!"

"If you give into fear, that is failing!" The girl says as she gets to her feet.

"Uncle she is right, you've always told me to never give into my fears." Lucia says as she steps around her mother and walks forward. "Isn't that a bit...forgive me for saying this, hypocritical?"

"The girl and your niece speak truth, please listen to them." Her mother pleads as she steps to stand in front of the two.

"Fine, I will show the troll mercy." Arthur finally says and Lucia gives a sigh of relief. "He will live in the dungeon. As for you Hisirdoux, shouldn't you and Lucia be with Merlin?"

"Ah yes, I was...well...busy, recruiting these two." Hisirdoux says gesturing to the armored girl and the boy in the back of the room who was oddly dressed. "They're here to help...for the war! This is Claire of the house of...Nunez, and well...this is the village idiot."

"Oh me? I'm just an in-sol-lent knight!" The boy yells as he hurries forwards. "All state champ, sir Steve of Palchuckia!"

Guess this Palchukia has low standards of knights. Lucia thought with a cringe. But I'm sure Hisirdoux had a good reason to recruit him. Might as well ask him later in private.

"If you truly be friends of Camelot, then prove your worth." Her uncle says. "Hisirdoux, Lucia, rejoin Merlin. Sir Steve, to lord Lancelot in the barracks. And as for you mistress Claire..."

"I'll take the girl, Lucia and I could use a new handmaiden." Lucia hears her mother say and for a moment she could have sworn the girl looked like she wanted to strike her mother before looking away in defeat. How strange.

"It is done. Now, out! I have a kingdom to run."

.•*¨*•.¸¸♪♪¸¸.•*¨*•.

"Sooooo, are you gonna tell me now?" Lucia asks as she approaches her friend in the hallways. "Because just now I saw you carrying a bottle of Slor juice."

"Lucia I promise I'll explain in a bit, just please don't tell Merlin anything." Hisirdoux says as he looks around the corner.

"Hmm...you're from the future, right?" Lucia asks and grins when he freezes. "I knew it! The clothes looked way too weird even for you, you don't even have your cute little bun, your hair is a bit longer and colored at the ends, and you are talking a bit differently!"

"Okay that's...the truth."

"Hey I do tend to notice details hardly anyone notices, mother always did say that was going to help me in the future someday. Tell me, am I still alive from wherever time you came from? Oh! Do I get my own familiar in the future? Is it a cool one?"

"Uh...yeah you are still alive from my time period, still quirky as ever." Hisirdoux says as he grabs her hand and pulls her down the hallway towards Merlin's workshop. "And you actually do have a familiar, but I am not going to tell you what it is or their name."

"Is it a cat? Kind of a shape shifter like Archie?" Lucia asks as they stop and he looks around the corner again. "Oh! Or is it a snake? Mother did say she thinks if I was to have a familiar it'd be some sort of reptile, I adore reptiles!"

"Hisirdoux! Do you have feet for hands?" They hear a familiar voice shout ahead and hurry forward. "All the Slor juice? You know how long it takes to milk one of those?"

"Sorry sir, I was just trying to save time." They hear past Hisirdoux say.

"Why does Merlin have to be so hard on you? He's never that way with me." Lucia asks as they peek around the corner to see Merlin scolding past Hisirdoux.

"Ugh that hair was a mistake." Hisirdoux mutters. "Why did you ever find it cute again?"

"Uh because it's a tiny bun, and you are the only guy I know who can actually pull it off." Lucia laughs as her friend changes his clothes with magic to look like his old clothes.

"Well here's hoping this doesn't break the time space continuum." Hisirdoux mutters as he hurries after his past self. "Just stay quiet."

Lucia just rolls her eyes as her friend grabs his past self and familiar back into the room and watches as the other Hisirdoux freak out.

"Double Douxies?!" Archie gasps. "This is a disaster! What's next, a trio of Lucia's?"

"Rude!" Lucia gasps as she steps out from around the corner of the room.

"Give me a break Arch!" Both Hisirdoux's scold. "Oh wow, this is wild!"

"Having two of you will be a logistical nightmare." Archie mutters as he climbs onto a barrel.

"Well there's only one solution to this, one of you has to go away for a bit." Lucia says as her friend starts messing with his bracelet.

"Great idea!" Past Hisirdoux exclaims. "But which one of us -"

"Intermunus noxie subversa!"

"I should have seen that coming." Lucia laughs as her friend tries shoving his past self into a nearby closet, only to get his head stuck before managing to finally push it back.

"I know this looks bad, but I swear I've got this under control." Hisirdoux says, turning to Archie.

"If that were the truth, things in the future have really change." The familiar comments. "Let me guess, this Lucia is also from your time?"

"Ha ha, no she's from here. Just don't go blabbing to Merlin, either of you."

"Not letting the cat out of the bag, I swear to it." Lucia says as the closet doors open and past Hisirdoux falls onto the future one.

"Fine, this should be fun to watch." Archie says with an amused smile.

"Hisirdoux! What is taking so long!" They hear Merlin yell. "And where is Lucia?"

"Just cleaning up another mess!" Future Hisirdoux shouts as he shoves his past self back into the closet before Lucia drags the barrel in front of it to block it. "And she's right here with me! Come along Lucia!"

"We spellcasters should be fleeing to the Wild Wood, not slaving away for that fool!" Lucia hears her mother say as she and Hisirdoux enter the workshop.

"Mind your tongue Morgana, you speak treason against our king!" Merlin says as the two teens walk over to the work table.

"I speak truth! After all Arthur has done, why build this amulet for him?" Morgana asks as the older wizard levitates several metal pieces and other odd bits into the air with his magic.

"It's not for him. Gunmar's war is a threat, and amulet will end it." Their mentor corrects her. "This dragontooth iron should be strong enough to contain the daylight."

Lucia watches in interest as he brings the pieces together into one object and begins to say an incantation, before the amulet bursts apart and sends pieces flying across the room. She ducks as a piece flies towards her and hears something shatter from the bookshelves before hearing the excited squeals of a freed gnome before it runs off.

"Blast it all!" Merlin groans. "Hisirdoux, Lucia! Stop gawking about and give me a hand with those raw ores over there!"

"Sorry!" Lucia apologizes as she gets up and hurried over to the table to grab one of the ore blocks as Hisirdoux grabbed the others.

"How many more failures before you realize this amulet of yours is pointless?" She heard her mother ask.

"I hear your concerns, but trust me, the amulet will bring peace." Merlin says as they bring the items to the table.

"At the cost of all that we hold dear?" Morgana shouts before several objects in the room start to glow yellow and levitate off their places. "How long before he comes for us? You are a fool Merlin, and an old one at that."

"She does have a point." Lucia sighs as her mother storms out of the workshop before walking over to pick up a fallen item by the floor of the table. "How long before he comes after us?"

"Oh forget her, we got this!" Hisirdoux says and leans across the table with his hand out to Merlin.

"What is this strangeness?" The older wizard asks with an annoyed expression. "Put your hand down."

"It's a high five, it's a sign of victory amongst barbarian tribes. It's a new thing."

"Human customs are terribly odd." Lucia hears Archie say from the table.

"Indeed." Merlin agrees. "You don't seem yourself today, Hisirdoux. Well except for your inability to tidy up."

"Rude." Lucia mutters as all the objects are pulled out of their grasp by Merlin's magic and thrown into his vault.

"No more distractions, go milk the Slor, both of you." Merlin orders.

"But -"

"Dismissed!"

.•*¨*•.¸¸♪♪¸¸.•*¨*•.

"Alright, it's your turn." Lucia says as she shoves the bucket into Douxie's hands. "Last time Merlin had either of us do this, I did it and looked like I had been eating blueberries for three days."

"This is the most disgusting task Merlin has ever made us do." The older teen says with a shudder as the gate to the Slor's pen was lifted. They could hear the growling and hissing noise of the creature in the darkness and Douxie gulped nervously. "Hey girl, just gonna come in for a quick little milking."

Lucia quickly moves to the side as Archie grabbed a nearby bucket to cover himself as a stream of blue liquid came gushing out, followed by Douxie's loud scream. They both peeked out of their hiding places for a bit before another stream came flying out and an "ugh it's in my mouth!"

"Should we help him?" Lucia asks Archie before another stream sprays out followed by another yell.

"No, let him deal with it." The cat responds before he moves the bucket to the wall near the teen. "So, what did this Douxie tell you so far about the future? I'm assuming I'm still alive since I'm his familiar and we're both immortal."

"Well I'm still alive in that time, and I apparently have a familiar." Lucia responds and grins. "I didn't ask when I got it, but I'm sure it's sometime in the future. Oh I can't wait to see what it is, I bet you and my familiar are the best of friends!"

"Ew ew ew! This is disgusting!" An unfamiliar voice yells from inside the Slor's pen before something small and blue comes running out, followed by Douxie dragging out his bucket and his hands dripping in Slor milk. "Lucia, Douxie, Archie! Oh good I found you!"

Lucia looks down in surprise to see a small rabbit with what looked like a small set of antlers protruding from it's head and covered in the same blue liquid as Douxie. What on earth was that?

"Drew? What are you doing here?" Douxie asks in surprise as he places the bucket down and picks up the strange rabbit. "Wait did you fall in with us?"

"I did! I managed to land in a tree, climbed down and ran for this castle in hopes you and the others would be here!" The rabbit says and looks to Lucia. "Is that the Lucia from our time or is she from the past?"

"She's from the past, this is when she didn't have a familiar yet. Arch is from this timeline as well."

"Oh, that explains why she is looking at me funny, and she didn't find me until you three came to a different part of Europe about...a century or two later?"

"Where now?" Lucia asks in surprise before Douxie holds the rabbit out to her.

"Lucia, meet your familiar from the future. This is Andrew, Drew for short." The older teen says as the younger teen holds her hand out for him to place the creature in her hands. "He's a jackalope, where he comes from he's considered a cryptid, and very powerful and probably quite dangerous. But lucky for us all, he's a bit of a coward who acts more like an emotional support animal."

"Oi! I've fought at least twice during my time with Lucia, and I am only an emotional support animal for her when she's feeling upset and needs something soft and warm to hug!" Drew retorts, his violet eyes narrowed and his ears twitching violently.

"Huh, I was expecting something like a snake or maybe an owl, but I suppose if you are my familiar it's for a good reason." Lucia says, turning the jackalope around to give him a smile. "Better than nothing I suppose. "Oh I should show you to mother-"

"Maybe you shouldn't yet." Archie suggests. "Douxie and the humans he brought into this time may have already messed with time itself. You best hide him before your uncle sees him and starts asking questions."

"Well hiding him in my chambers should be easy enough, but we'll have to clean him up first." Lucia says, bringing Drew close and gags at the smell. "If anyone sees him I'll just say he was one of my odd experiments."