Vivien

Family: Mark's hall · Role: damsel-errant · First appears: Balin and Balan 3

At Caerleon, a year after the secret meeting, Vivien told Balin that Lancelot and Guinevere had embraced in hiding. Claiming she fled Mark, who had pursued her, and seeking shelter for her maidenhood, she asked Balin to guide her to Arthur, while declaring herself Arthur’s enemy. She also rejected Gareth when he declared that he could die for her, telling him, “I better prize / The living dog than the dead lion: away!”

On a festal day, Guinevere granted Vivien temporary shelter among her maidens. Vivien then spread an insinuation through Arthur’s court and left it as an enemy; she later pursued Merlin, flattering him until he grew tolerant of her conduct. In the wild woods of Broceliande, she repeatedly sought the charm that would give her power over Merlin’s life, name, and fame. When he explained that it could harm anyone and could never be undone, her love turned to hatred; she tried to stab him but found no dagger, ended their love, and demanded proof of his trust.

Merlin finally yielded, told her the charm, and fell asleep. Vivien cast it, leaving him apparently dead and stripped of “life and use and name and fame.” Later, while lurking, she heard of the planned farewell meeting between Guinevere and Lancelot and told Modred.