A/N: Yes, I have another story out. This plot has been bothering me for a while now, I hope you enjoy it! I'm also hoping I haven't made the characters too OOC, because I felt I did. Then I changed certain areas but I still think it's slightly OOC. Give me some good feedback in the reviews! Enjoy the story!

Also a big thank you goes out to my best friend who helped with the editing and helped me hammer out both Arthur and Merlin's characters. Love you m'dear! A thank you also goes out to Jissai, who read through the story. I know I didn't take your suggestion into account...it was because I was lazy...it would have taken too long oO...But thank you anyway!

Spoilers: Until season 3.

Pairings: None

Disclaimer: The show "Merlin", its characters, and its plot are not mine.

Secrets

Merlin entered Arthur's chambers with a breakfast tray balanced precariously on his hands. The Prince had been out on a small hunting trip yesterday and had returned late in the evening. Merlin had found himself with a day-off and as much as he wanted one, he was hard-pressed to find much to do. There were only so many times he could look through his spell book.

There was also that constant worry that Arthur might have been in trouble without Merlin around. The hunting trip itself had been quite suspicious. The Prince had informed Merlin about it at the last minute the day before yesterday.

Before Merlin could whine about it however, Arthur had told the servant that he was going alone. Merlin had blinked in surprise and questioned the idea. The Prince had said he needed some time alone to think and Merlin had been surprised again. Not that there wasn't much to think about, what with all that had happened, but it wasn't like the Prince to just sit around and contemplate the world. However, it was true that Arthur hadn't had the chance to sit and relax in a while. So Merlin had left it at that not wanting to push the issue and he certainly didn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth.

However, later on when he had time to think, a lot of unanswered questions had cropped up. Like how the Prince was allowed to go alone? Why hadn't his father stopped him?

It was on the morning of the suspicious hunting trip that Merlin had found out that Uther hadn't known about Arthur's trip at all. The King had barged into Gaius's chambers in the morning and demanded to know where Arthur had gone. The King had assumed Merlin had also left with the Prince, but when Uther spotted Merlin in the chambers along with Gaius, confusion had set in. That's when Merlin had realized that Arthur hadn't told anyone except the servant that he was leaving.

When he had told the King that Arthur had given him the day off and gone hunting, Uther had said in rage that the Prince had never asked for permission to leave. Merlin's genuine shock at the news had been enough to let him off the hook.

There had been Knights sent out to look for Arthur. Merlin had panicked at first, however after a little bit of thinking it had come to the warlock that the Prince had probably wanted some time away from everyone. So he had stayed in his chambers and decided to trust the Prince to look after himself. Arthur was given a day, that was all, for his private thinking after which Merlin had planned to go after him, weather the Prince liked it or not.

That thought had calmed his nerves slightly and Merlin had spent the day reading through his spell book. The Knights had come back with Arthur later on in the evening. Merlin had rushed out to see the Prince. When they passed in the hall Arthur had curbed Merlin's questions with a hastily whispered, "Later, I'll see you in the morning."

Then the Prince had gone to speak with his father and Merlin had gone back to Gaius's chambers. So this morning the warlock was bursting with questions. They were all running around in his head clambering for priority.

The servant entered the darkened chambers and tiptoed softly towards the cluttered desk and placed the tray down. He turned around to wake Arthur only to start in surprise to see the Prince awake and dressed.

Arthur was scrutinizing Merlin as if dissecting the warlock. Merlin blinked once and said, "Oh...you're awake..." Then noticing the dark circles under his master's eyes continued by saying, "Or you haven't slept at all..."

Arthur kept staring and Merlin, suddenly very nervous, decided to open up the curtains. He also began cleaning up the place and struck up a one-sided conversation about gossip he'd heard around the castle. All the while Arthur kept staring and then suddenly Merlin was cut off.

"I wonder if I would do the same thing..."

Merlin turned to face Arthur and noticed a far-off questioning look in the Prince's eyes. It was as if Arthur was questioning Merlin while thinking about something in the distant future...or past.

Merlin softly said, "I don't understand..."

Arthur continued staring at Merlin and said in the same monotone voice, "The same thing he did."

The 'he' was spat in vehemence and Merlin flinched at the venom in Arthur's voice. Then he really took notice of the Prince's posture. Although Arthur was lounging on his bed with his hands supporting his weight, his posture was tense. The Prince had an aura of crackling anger around his form.

Merlin gulped and spoke softly to placate a volatile Arthur, "Who are you talking about?"

Arthur's eyes sharpened in focus and bore into Merlin's as the Prince said, "Uther!"

Merlin felt his heart stop and stared at Arthur wide-eyed, "What...what did he do...?"

"Lied to me..."

And they were back again to the dead monotone voice. Merlin softly asked, "I thought you were alright with the Morgana incident..."

Arthur's eyes narrowed, however the Prince's tone of voice didn't change, "Oh...that's not the only thing he's lied about...you remember...you should remember at least...after all you lied that day too."

The shirt that Merlin had been twisting in his hands out of nervousness fell from his limp fingers. He stared at Arthur in shock, "I..I didn't..." Then he sighed, resigned and said, "You know...how...?"

"Not important...what is important however is why you deemed it necessary to leave Uther alive after what he has done in the past."

Merlin swallowed heavily, Arthur was angry. Merlin was surprised the Prince hadn't run Uther through already, "I thought...he's your father..."

Merlin didn't know how to deal with this Arthur. The Prince was sitting on his bed, looking for all the world as though he were lounging, but his posture was tense as if ready to pounce at a moment's notice. Then there was that deadly, calm voice...it wasn't helping Merlin's nerves.

Arthur blinked, "And that excuses everything he's done then does it?"

Merlin remained silent and unable to look into Arthur's accusing eyes dropped his own down to the floor.

"You will not turn your eyes away from me...I won't be able to tell if you're lying or not then."

Merlin snapped his head up to meet Arthur's gaze in shock and said, "I...I won't lie...you already know anyways..."

"Yes, yes I do don't I? But I wonder...would you have told me at all if I hadn't found out myself?"

Merlin blinked, that was something the warlock wasn't sure about. He had always planned to tell Arthur about his powers and all the times he had saved the Prince, which meant the circumstances of Arthur's birth would have come out into the open too. But, if he would have told Arthur about just the Prince's birth...

"I...don't think it's my place to say anything about that...it should be your father that speaks to you about that..."

The Prince gave an empty, cold laugh that had shivers running down Merlin's spine. This Arthur was someone Merlin didn't know. This wasn't a normal anger. Arthur's anger was way past the point it had been at when the Prince had found out about his mother's death the first time around.

"My father? Right, of course! He would have told me like he told me about Morgana, like he told me about Nimueh, like he told me about Morgause, like he told me about Gaius, like he told me about the wraith of Uncle Tristan! Of course, of course he would have told me!"

Merlin's eyes had steadily grown wider as the list had continued. He softly asked Arthur in confusion, "How...who told you all of this?"

Arthur stared hard at Merlin in fury as he said, "You should have...you should have been the one to tell me! But you never did! You left me in the dark!"

Merlin's heart stuttered to a stop and he choked out, "I couldn't...I didn't know about ..."

"Don't lie! You knew about all of it! All of it and more! I always wondered what it was that you were hiding from me. I always knew you kept things from me, always knew you were lying! But I let it go. I thought you'd tell me...thought I could still trust you enough because it was only a matter of time before you told me everything...but I was wrong..."

Merlin had a terrible feeling that Arthur had figured everything out, "...It wasn't my place to tell you...you wouldn't have believed me about half the things anyways..."

Now the look Arthur gave the warlock was so intense and accusing that Merlin's magic unconsciously rose up in defence, preparing for an attack.

"There was something you could have told me to make me believe you. Something you've kept from me that is even more damning then all of this. These secrets were all my fathers'...my family's!"

Arthur said the word 'family' as though it were a horrific disease. Something he didn't want to associate himself with. However, the part that had Merlin's heart thudding against his chest was the first part of the sentence.

Merlin stared at Arthur, trying to gauge how much the Prince already knew. But Arthur's face was a blank mask, the only indication of the Prince's emotions were the ice cold blue eyes.

There was a pregnant pause. Merlin was unwilling to reveal his secret out of abject fear; meanwhile Arthur was seemingly waiting for the warlock to broach the topic. They were at a standstill and Merlin wished he could crawl into a hole to hide.

Merlin opened his mouth to voice an excuse when Arthur angrily stated, "Don't give me any more lies Merlin...I'm sick of it!"

The warlock swallowed hard and, with his eyes staring directly at the floor, softly asked, "How did you find out? Where were you yesterday? I know you didn't go hunting...wherever you went...whoever you met clearly told you everything..."

Merlin was stalling, but what was he to say. He now knew that the anger seen in the Prince's eyes was directed not just at Uther but at him as well.

'Did that mean Arthur doesn't accept my magic? Was he just waiting to call the guards? Was he just waiting for confirmation from me before I'm sentenced to death?'

Arthur said, "I thought I told you that it is unimportant. It doesn't matter where I heard it from...in fact you don't really have to explain anything. I know everything already. From the time you first set foot in Camelot to now..."

Merlin's head shot up in shock and he stared at Arthur, "So then why are you still angry? I...I did everything to protect you! I've never used my magic for evil...I'm not evil..."

Arthur's eyes narrowed, "You still lied! How do I trust you? Every moment since you first set foot in Camelot you've lied! To my face, without remorse! I gave you my trust freely, but you threw that back at my face...I cannot have someone I do not trust around me..."

Merlin felt his heart shatter as he whispered brokenly, "What are you trying to say?"

Arthur turned away from the warlock and Merlin felt the whole four years or so that he'd spent with the Prince crumble away. The trust between the two was gone and the warlock felt like crying. Merlin had always wanted to tell Arthur about his magic, but this was not how he had pictured it. This was not how it should have happened.

Merlin tried once more, "Arthur please..."

Arthur gave a curt reply, "Leave."

That one word stabbed at Merlin's heart more than he would ever admit. However he said not a word, only straightened his spine and gritted his teeth hard. His hands that were lying uselessly by his side before curled into fists. He then nodded once, although Arthur couldn't see it, and turned around to walk out the door. When he reached the door he heard Arthur ask him a question.

"That girl...Freya...were you seriously willing to drop everything and leave Camelot with her?"

Merlin stiffened when he heard the words. In a regular situation Merlin might try to reassure Arthur, but the warlock was angry and hurt by Arthur's curt dismissal so he said in the same deadened voice the Prince had used before, "Yes...if she hadn't...if you hadn't killed her then yes I would have left Camelot...forgotten every bit of this destiny that I have before me and lived a happier life elsewhere with her."

Merlin's senses picked up on the object thrown his way, however he didn't move. He knew the Prince well enough to know Arthur wouldn't hurt him. And he was right, the knife embedded itself in the door right beside Merlin's head, he turned slightly to give Arthur a glance to see the Prince's angered look, then Merlin walked out the door. He made his way to Gaius's chambers and was glad to see the physician had already left.

The day had just barely started and Merlin was already tired...emotionally. He collapsed onto his bed trying to wrestle his emotions to a state of calm. He shouldn't have said what he had but he was angry. Arthur knew everything and yet the Prince had chosen not to trust the warlock. He was frustrated but also terribly sad.

'What do I do? What do I say to him to make him understand! How do I make him trust me again?'

Merlin scoffed lightly as he remembered the dragon's words that had been uttered so long ago...

"The half cannot truly hate that which makes it whole"

How wrong he was...

Arthur went through the entire week mechanically. He didn't participate in training because he was afraid of hurting anyone in his anger. His Knights had asked him about what was wrong but he hadn't told them anything. It was especially hard to be civil with Lancelot. Then there had been questions about Merlin and where the servant was. Again those had been answered with silence. Even Gwaine sensed the anger and uneasiness and did not push Arthur, which was a surprise.

They had all stopped asking after the first day. Maybe it was because some of them had gone to visit Merlin. The Prince had realized this was true when Gwaine had begun to give Arthur a nasty look for the rest of the week. Lancelot was a lot more subtle about his anger, but it was still there. Percival was too reserved to openly show any form of dislike towards Arthur. Then there was Elyan, who also didn't openly say anything.

The only time Arthur had had the sudden urge to reconcile with Merlin had been when he had seen Guinevere in the hallways. She had given Arthur such a disappointed look that the Prince had felt disgusted with himself. However, he hadn't budged. Merlin was the one at fault, he should never have lied. He had betrayed Arthur in the worst possible way. It wasn't just the magic, it was also the fact that the servant had known everything and had left Arthur in the dark.

His father was a different story altogether. He couldn't avoid the King so he had to keep a tight handle on his anger. During each council meeting Arthur had been on tenterhooks because every word out of his father's mouth about the evils of magic had the Prince clamping his hand around the hilt of his sword. When he had found out the truth about...everything...Arthur had been very close to running into Camelot and killing his father right then and there.

However, he had been forced to make a vow not to touch Uther. When he had asked in rage why he was to make such a vow he had been told that Emrys would not be happy when he found out about what had taken place. Arthur wanted to laugh out loud, they were afraid of Merlin...

That was one part of the week Arthur didn't want to go over. He hadn't caught a glimpse of the warlock since that day.

'Warlock'

Merlin had been lying...for so long. After the amount of trust he had placed in Merlin he had been lied to.

'Over and over again...and they expected him to trust Emrys? How? How do you trust someone who has been lying for so long? How do you consider someone like that a friend? Friendship is built on trust...which their relationship had none of. At least the trust wasn't flowing both ways...'

Then there was the incident with that druid girl. Arthur didn't want to admit it to anyone but it had hurt him deeply when Merlin had been ready to throw everything away for the girl. It felt as if their friendship had meant nothing to Merlin. As though everything the two of them had been through together until that point had meant nothing.

After that thought, Arthur had forcibly pushed all thoughts of Merlin to the back of his mind. He hadn't wanted to relive the scene in his chambers again. He had known he had hurt Merlin, but Arthur couldn't look past the betrayal, lies, and the hurt to comfort his friend...no, Merlin wasn't his friend anymore.

This was how his entire week had been, a maelstrom of thoughts that he kept pushing to the back of his mind so that he could get through the day without killing anyone...mainly his father.

Unlike with his father, there hadn't been once through the week that he had thought of hurting Merlin. Yes he was angry with the warlock, but never once had he thought of killing him...or calling the guards and telling his father. Then again his father had lost a lot of his respect overnight.

Arthur sighed and dismissed the servant who had been helping him through the week. He didn't even know the boy's name. Well he hadn't bothered to find out the name...all he knew was that the boy wasn't Merlin...

'Again the warlock came into his head!'

The Prince sat down heavily on his bed trying to think past the burning anger and churning betrayal.

He finally admitted, to himself at least, that he had been unfair. Merlin had been loyal to him, very loyal. No matter what Arthur said Merlin had definitely considered the Prince a friend, 'Just not trustworthy enough to admit his secret to.' Arthur gritted his teeth in anger at the thought.

Then Merlin's hurt and broken voice from that afternoon flashed through his mind and the Prince deflated. He sat on his bed for hours and as the sun set, the silence of the night creeping around the castle, he stood up slowly.

He walked silently through the halls of the castle ignoring the guards and their curious expressions. He made his way to the physician's chambers. Once there, he was surprised to find the doors unlocked and the chamber empty of Gaius.

'Right, Gaius is away for the week.'

He silently walked towards the door that led into Merlin's room. He knew he could open the door from the outside but a sound made him still. He strained his ears slightly and realized that Guinevere was in the room with Merlin.

Arthur tensed when he heard his name being said by Guinevere and leaned closer to the door to listen in to the conversation.

"Arthur probably didn't mean it Merlin. Why don't you try talking to him?"

"No Gwen, it's useless. He made it quite clear that he wanted nothing to do with me. Let's not get into this again please. No matter how many times you say Arthur didn't mean it, my reply will be same."

If Arthur hadn't known Merlin had been in the room then he wouldn't have known who spoke. The servant's voice was dull, listless, and dead. The Merlin he knew would never talk like that; he would always have a smile on his face and would do anything to keep the people around him happy. The Prince cringed as he realized it was his fault that Merlin's voice was like that.

"At least don't leave! Please! We have all accepted you! We're your friends Merlin! Please!"

'Leave? Merlin was leaving!' Arthur panicked. That wasn't what the Prince wanted.

"I can't stay here anymore Gwen. Once Gaius returns I will leave...I'm sorry...and thank you! It means a lot to me that you all accept me for who I am."

"Arthur does too Merlin! Just give him some time!"

"No Gwen...I'm tired...I just...please don't make this harder than it already is..."

There was a ruffle of sheets and Arthur heard a sob. He realized that Guinevere had given up and was crying. He slid onto the stairs right outside the room and put his head in his hands.

'What have I done?'

It was a while later that he heard shuffling noises from the room. He stood up quickly from the stairs and almost made to run out of the room but he paused in the middle of Gaius's cluttered space.

"I'm tired"

Those words played in his head. He knew he had to talk to Merlin. He had to make the warlock see sense! Merlin couldn't leave...he was after all the first friend Arthur had ever had. Merlin couldn't be tired of it all already!

Guinevere walked out of Merlin's room dried tear tracks on her face. She paused when she noticed the Prince. Then Arthur heard a small gasp and tilted his head upwards slightly to catch the surprised look on Merlin's features. The look however, gave away to sadness and Merlin turned away from the Prince. Arthur felt the guilt consume him entirely at the hurt that was swimming in Merlin's eyes.

He turned to look at Guinevere who had come up beside him and squeezed his bicep in reassurance. She smiled and Arthur could see the happiness in her eyes. He inhaled and then pulled away from her, making his way towards Merlin's room. He heard Guinevere's soft footsteps as the maid left the room closing the door behind her.

When Arthur entered the room Merlin was sitting on his bed with his back to the door. He turned to glance at Arthur and it was then that the Prince noticed that Merlin's face was paler than normal, which brought the dark circles under his eyes into sharp focus. The Prince also noticed the chapped lips and gaunt features, which led to the conclusion that the servant had probably not eaten or drank properly for the entire week. And the eyes...Merlin's eyes looked dead.

The guilt struck him hard again. After everything Merlin had done Arthur had thrown him aside in a fit of anger without a proper explanation from the warlock. The Prince sighed softly and raised his hand to thread it through his hair.

Merlin turned away from Arthur and stared at a point on the wall. The Prince picked up a chair and placed it beside the bed and sat down on it facing Merlin, forcing the servant to look directly at him. The servant turned his head a little more so that Arthur wasn't in Merlin's direct line of sight.

The Prince felt the guilt cut into him again and he joined his hands together crouching forwards using his elbows on his knees as a support. He sighed heavily once more. He was never good with apologies.

Merlin's head shifted and he stared at the floor as he asked, "Are you here to arrest me?"

Arthur blinked and said, "That thought never crossed my mind even once since I found out about your secret."

Merlin's head shot up and a slight hopefulness entered the warlock's eyes as he asked, "You're not angry anymore...?"

Arthur stared at Merlin. He was still slightly angry and he said as much only to watch Merlin's eyes darken in sadness and hurt. So Arthur rephrased and said, "I just want to know why you didn't tell me. I shouldn't have gotten that angry with you I know...not after everything you've done for me...but I was...I was disappointed...very disappointed that you didn't think to tell me about something so important."

Merlin lifted his head up slowly to stare at Arthur and said, "I wanted to tell you so badly. You were the one person I really wanted tell...but you were also the one person I couldn't tell. You are the Prince of Camelot Arthur, you're honour-bound to report any acts of sorcery to your father. I know how much you value your honour."

Arthur blinked and said, "But I've broken the rules for you before haven't I? Why would you think I wouldn't do it for this?"

Merlin dropped his head down to stare at the floor, "I was afraid...terrified actually of what you would think of me when you found out. You've been raised to believe all magic is evil and people who practise it even more so. I was afraid that once my secret was out we could never go back to being friends. And...and no matter how much I deny it, there was a part of me that feared you would just clap me in chains and throw me into the dungeons to await execution..."

Arthur stared at the bent head of his servant in sadness as he asked, "Even after all we've been through together you believed I would kill you...or watch you die? You really believed I would shun you just like that?"

Merlin lifted his head up to stare at Arthur and the Prince saw a slight spark of fury enter the warlock's eyes as he said, "Then how do you explain what happened at the beginning of the week?"

Arthur winced and turned his head away from Merlin. He stayed silent processing that information. It was true. He tended to be the kind of person who ran head first into things without thinking about the consequences. It was the same with people he cared about, he would say things he didn't mean and hurt them unintentionally, only to realize later what a fool he had been.

If Merlin had left Camelot Arthur would have never forgiven himself.

"Alright, so I tend to be rash when it comes to certain things, but you've got to understand you were...I grew up believing...never mind you get the idea."

And then Merlin gave him a lop-sided smirk reserved for their bantering. Arthur felt his heart lighten of the guilt that had been raging a storm in his chest. Had it been any other situation than the present one, Merlin would have cracked a joke at Arthur's expense, but the air was still slightly tense around them.

Merlin softly said, "I'm sorry Arthur. I would have told you I swear...I just didn't think it was the right time. It hasn't been that long since the Morgana incident and you've been busy rebuilding your kingdom...I just didn't think you would appreciate me dumping this on your plate."

Arthur sighed, "I know. I was just angry I guess...I do trust you Merlin...what I said that morning was a lie."

Arthur had turned his eyes away as he said that, utterly embarrassed at the words that were spewing forth from his mouth.

A small elated laugh, however, forced him to turn back to face Merlin. He blinked in surprise to see the faith and forgiveness in the warlock's eyes, "I trust you too Arthur...with my life and now with my secret too. You will one day make a great King and I want to help you get there. Will you let me continue to stay by your side?"

And Arthur smiled, the first genuine smile since the day he found out the truth, and said, "Yes, always...Who else is going to polish my boots and clean my armour?"

Merlin laughed and said, "Prat! What happened to equality?"

Arthur blinked mock seriously, "That doesn't apply to you Merlin!"

They laughed and exchanged insults before falling silent. Something had been bothering Arthur since 'that day', as he termed it, so he asked, "About that druid girl...Freya..."

The Prince would have continued talking had he not seen Merlin stiffen slightly at the mention of the girl. Then the servant softly said, "I loved her...I truly did...but I don't blame you for her death Arthur. What I said that day was said in anger...I didn't mean any of it."

Arthur nodded and then asked, "But you would still have left then...?"

Merlin stared hard at the Prince and said, "When Guinevere was almost executed you were planning on running away with her weren't you?"

Arthur blinked and then looked away. Merlin continued talking, "I was tired Arthur...you've seen what I had to do...Gaius really was the only one I had to talk to...it was hard and I found some form of peace with her...she was like me..."

Arthur understood the somewhat stilted explanation. Merlin was placed under a heavy burden that he had to deal with all on his own and Freya gave him a form of escape that he had never had before.

"I probably shouldn't have brought her up..."

Merlin shrugged then asked, "Who told you all of this?"

Arthur knew the servant wanted to change the topic so he grinned and said, "That's my secret and you'll have to suffer for a few years before I tell you!"

Merlin's disgruntled look had Arthur chuckling and giving in. He said softly, "I'll tell you but only if you agree to eat and drink something...why did you stop eating you idiot?"

Merlin blushed and whispered in embarrassment, "I... it's cause you..." The rest of the sentence was mumbled so softly that the Prince didn't catch it. So Arthur, out of curiosity, asked the warlock to repeat what he said.

The servant turned his head away and said in a frustrated but resigned tone of voice, "I was sad alright!"

Arthur blinked; he would have made a disparaging comment if the guilt hadn't set in again. Merlin it seemed had correctly interpreted Arthur's silence and immediately got up to his feet. However, with no food or water in a week Merlin's body didn't agree with the sudden change in posture and he sat back on the bed clutching his head.

Arthur moved quickly and sat beside the warlock. He put an arm across Merlin's shoulders to support the servant. The Prince looked around the room and found a jug of water. He carefully set Merlin against the pillow on his bed and went to grab the servant a goblet of water.

The Prince handed the goblet over and then went to the physician's rooms to find something for Merlin to eat. Arthur realized too much food would probably not be good for the warlock right then, so he only took some light food to the servant.

He sat on the chair he had vacated and watched Merlin devour the food, drinking some more water as well. Although it wasn't much, Arthur noticed a slight bit of colour return to Merlin's features and sighed in relief. He vowed to himself that something like this would never happen again. He also realized had Merlin not been a powerful warlock he would have been dead already.

After eating, Merlin asked his question again, "So now that I've eaten, who told you about everything?"

Arthur nodded and then softly started his story, "I read an interesting message that was left on my desk the day before I went on that fake hunting trip. It said that all the secrets that have been hidden from me will be revealed if I met them in the Darkling Woods. It also told me that someone close to me has been keeping a dangerous secret. Of course that had me curious."

Arthur heard Merlin sigh in frustration as the warlock said, "You went into the woods on a whim? Arthur are you mad? What if it had been a trap?"

The Prince shrugged and said, "I don't know how to explain it...but I had this feeling that it wasn't a trap..."

Merlin was staring at Arthur like the Prince had lost his senses but Arthur ignored the warlock and continued, "Anyways, so I went to the woods and before you ask the reason why I didn't take you along, I was told to go alone. They even mentioned you...well the letter said not to bring your manservant along...which I found really odd...well I found it odd until they told me your secret."

Merlin interrupted again and said, "They? You keep saying they? Who were they?"

Arthur calmly stated, "The druids...they were a small group of druids who said that they were tired of waiting for you."

Merlin blinked and said, "Oh...I guess I don't blame them...with you not knowing my secret there were many things that I had the ability to do but couldn't do because I was afraid I'd get caught."

Arthur shrugged and continued, "Well that's it I guess. I got there and they showed me everything...took an entire day. They extracted a promise from me that I wouldn't kill my father...because they were afraid of what you would do to them."

Arthur felt a surge of anger again at the thought of his father's lies. Then Merlin patted his joined hands saying, "It's ok...what's done is done. You can't change anything from the past but you can change the future."

Arthur sighed and nodded, "I know...but Merlin no more secrets. Next time I won't be so forgiving. You must not keep anything from me...it doesn't matter how much it will hurt me!"

Merlin nodded vigorously and said, "No more secrets! I swear!"

They sat in companionable silence for a little bit before Arthur decided the serious conversation had been a bit much and said, "So you starved yourself because I was angry with you! You acted like a love-sick girl!"

Merlin's shocked and irritated expression gave Arthur immense satisfaction and the pair continued on with their typical style of banter. Arthur knew from here on out everything would be alright.

A/N: Gah! Even after the changes it still feels like Arthur and Merlin are slightly out of character! So frustrating! Please tell me if I got their characters right! Review, review, review!