Hi !
Here's my first Merlin fanfiction. Please bear with me as I have only watched Seasons 1 and 2. I'm still trying to find a suitable website to watch Season 3; feel free to offer some.
I'm usually a Harry Potter writer ("Harry Potter and the Archway of the Dead", "Harry Potter and the Dream Book"). I will try to update as often as I can, but please remember that I do have a day job.
Disclaimer: Obviously, I don't own Merlin.
Enjoy.
HighEmpress
There are things in this world of a mysterious nature. Events that may seem like a coincidence can change the course of a person's life for the better, or send an entire world into darkness and chaos. Is it chance? Is it destiny? And if there is a greater design, then is there such a thing as free will, or are we all just puppets of the same master? How can we make the right choices without knowing the end?
The wisest of the wise do not know the answer to those questions.
Except one.
MELIN: The Light of Eriador
Merlin crashed into his bed and felt the tiredness overpower him the moment his head hit the pillow. The day's countless hours of labour had left him sore and mentally exhausted. He had depleted his extensive collection of witty substitutes for "prat" to the point where he could not think of a synonym that he hadn't use at least twice. On the bright side, he had succeeded in annoying Arthur all day; on the other hand, he had brought upon himself an abundance of additional shores that his body would have happily lived without.
All he wanted was to close his eyes and not think about anything only for a few minutes, until he fell deeply…
"You're not going to sleep now, are you?"
Without seeing him, he could easily imagine Gaius standing in the threshold with his arms folded and a scolding look.
"I sure am," he grumbled without opening his eyes.
"You're not taking your studies seriously, Merlin. I gave you books and they are not so that you can use them to pile up clothes."
Merlin glanced sideways at what he knew to be the resting place of three or four of old and voluminous books which were now covered by a lump of blue, red and brown fabric.
"I have to mend those."
"You're not going to become a good physician if you don't bother to learn the basics," said Gaius while taking a step into Merlin's chambers.
The comment made Merlin spring and sit in his bed to face his old mentor.
"I'm not having that conversation," he protested grumpily. "I'm much too tired."
Gaius had grown more and more restless and conscious of his age, which had resulted in Merlin showing more enthusiasm than what he was actually feeling just to cheer him up. One thing leading to another, Merlin's new attitude had also resulted in the birth of a whole new idea in Gaius's mind: Merlin the Physician. Gaius was now insisting that Merlin spent more time studying anatomy, herbs, potions and everything else that was important for the position. What had started as a trivial comment about the future had turned into and obsession and now the young sorcerer wished he had never opened the door to the possibility at all.
"Merlin," said Gaius pointedly, enunciating the surname as he did when matters were serious, "you can easily imagine that someday I may not be here and…"
The young man slouched back unto his bed and buried his face in the pillow. "I'm not listening."
He could hear Gaius pace around the room.
"That's very mature, Merlin. Maybe you do not see yourself as Prince Arthur's manservant all your life, but I guarantee you that you're going to be court physician long before you become court sorcerer."
"No, I'm not," said Merlin, annoyed. "I'm going to be King Arthur's manservant before I am court physician, and that is assuming that I'll be court physician at all, which I very much doubt. I'd rather be court sorcerer. That would just be…"
He couldn't help it. The idea was making him smile.
"Tell me, what will happen to King Arthur when he catches a fever in the winter and there is no physician to know what to give him."
"You'll be there."
He knew that the retort was irrational, but there was no way he was going to go down that line of thought, not tonight when he knew how much work he was going to have to do in the morning. He was sure he had heard something about polishing the floors before the arrival of Uther's guests. He was sore all over. How could he possibly study in that state?
Now he wished that he knew some healing spells, but Gaius was still there and he hadn't given up yet. "I'm making a tonic for King Uther. You're going to help me."
"I'd rather cast an enchantment, it's much easier," he mumbled with his head still on the pillow.
"Merlin!" cried Gaius. "You're not getting out of this, not this time."
"Tomorrow, Gaius, please. Uther's guests will be here by nightfall, Arthur will be busy, and you'll have me all to yourself."
"You've had weeks to prepare. It starts tonight, Merlin."
"I'm just going to let my head rest here for a while…"
He let his voice trail. His eyes were so heavy. He imagined that he was cleaning the floors with magic. That would be nice, he thought. So easy…
"Merlin!"
What's the point? Gaius is going to win this.
"Fine!" he cried a little more forcefully than he had intended.
As though answering to his word, a surge of magic swept the floor in one powerful swirl of wind, sending clouds of dust, Arthur's clothing and a good number of books flying out of Merlin's bedroom and into Gaius' chambers. Merlin got to his feet at once and raised his hand. The command was instantaneous: the objects stopped in midair, as though frozen in time. A pair of red socks was floating in front of Merlin's eyes.
"I was wondering where those were," he said happily, marveling at his accomplishment.
One glance at Gaius was enough to wipe the smile off his face. The old man was walking around his chambers, observing the numerous objects that were floating as though each of them was attached to an invisible string. Actually, Merlin realized, all the shelves, tables, and stools were empty. Everything that Gaius owned, every small object, was hanging in the space between the floor and ceiling, strangely out of place, like some odd dream. The look on Gaius' face was hard to read, but his face was pale.
"Gaius?"
The old physician put a finger on a book, but the object kept hovering like a soap bubble. He seemed lost in his thoughts.
"I'm sorry," said Merlin. "I know I shouldn't be doing that. I lost control, I think. It won't happen again."
Gaius looked at him inquiringly.
"Can you put it back? Can you sort it and put every object in its rightful place?"
Merlin didn't try to contain his shock.
"Gaius! Are you actually asking me what I think you're asking me?"
Gaius strode to the door and bolted it.
"Now would be a good time, Merlin."
It only took a few seconds for the young wizard to come up with the right words. Then he raised his hand for the second time and his eyes turned gold as he spoke. Magic always seemed to take birth inside of him, like that surge that had turned Gaius' chamber inside and out. He felt it through his every limb, a rush forward, like an extension of his own body. All of the items that were floating zoomed in different directions, some of them lining up on shelves, some others folding themselves neatly on a table. A miniature wind swirl danced across the floor, gathering all the dust and dirt. Merlin bent down and put the palm of his hand above a wooden bucket and suddenly it was filled with water, and then the small twister of debris and soot stopped just above the container and plunged inside.
"That will do, Merlin."
As quickly as it had come, Merlin felt the gush of magic to diminish and become nothing but a whisper, a pulse.
"Your spring cleaning is done," he announced, every part of him radiating with pride.
He only wished that Gaius wouldn't look so thoughtful.
"Have you even noticed it?" asked the old man, seating down on a stool.
"Noticed what?"
"Your magic, Merlin! How powerful it has become."
Merlin took the opposite seat and glanced around at the room, trying to see if he had missed something that Gaius hadn't. The floors were not shining. He had though that using his magic for polishing might be too much of a stretch. After all, Gaius' asking him to use magic for a chore was a big step and he didn't want to spoil it.
"I don't see how this is any different from everything else that I've been doing."
Gaius took his most serious tone. "Merlin, when you first came here, you didn't know any spells. You could do magic by instinct. Moving things around is powerful magic, even for an average sorcerer."
"Are you saying I'm average?" laughed Merlin. "That certainly is new."
"You really have no idea, do you? Men much older and much more disciplined than you are have struggled for years to cast spells that are as easy as tying your shoes to you. Not only do you know the words, but you play with them, mix them, and make them work for the purpose that you choose. The complexity of what you just did, it's just… unheard of."
Merlin felt as though a dark veil had been cast upon him, a weight on his shoulder. It was the same weight he felt every time he stopped to think about how his and Arthur's destinies were intertwined. It was something thick and deep that he couldn't penetrate. He knew that one day, he would unravel the mystery, but he just didn't feel up to it yet.
"What are you saying, Gaius? I'm powerful; we both know I'm powerful. It doesn't mean anything. It's just what I am."
"Magic draws magic, Merlin. The more potent you become, the more enemies and dark sorcerers will be drawn here."
"Are you saying I'm dangerous?"
"No!" Gaius grabbed his hand between his. "No, you must never think that. I'm just saying that you have to be more careful. It may be time for you to start thinking beyond the words, to try to understand magic, as opposed to simply using it."
"How am I supposed to do that?"
He wanted to add 'and protect Arthur at the same time', but he stopped. This wasn't Gaius' fault.
"I'm not sure, Merlin. My instincts tell me that you should try to feel more. Feel your magic, and then you may be able to see how far it goes."
"Isn't that opposite to keeping my magic a secret?" But seeing Gaius look so troubled, he thought that maybe the witty remark wasn't really appropriate. "I think I will try," he offered.
"Good," replied Gaius with a faint smile. "As long as you don't do anything stupid like showing off in front of the whole court, I don't see . Now, I will get what you need to start working on Uther's tonic."
As he watched his mentor open an old and voluminous book and drop it in front of him with a thud, Merlin couldn't help mutter under his breath. "Gaius, one. Merlin, zero."