Merlin ran for his life.
Luckily, large parts of his youth had been focussed on running away from danger, and to his surprise, the guards were not catching up. In fact, their footsteps sounded further and further away as he ran. He jumped down the stairs, landing softly on the soles of his feet and continuing to run down the marble corridors of Camelot. He dropped all pretence of being a normal servant, using magic whenever he could to speed up or land safely when jumping...there was no point hiding his skills now, was there?
He headed for Gaius' chambers; he hoped that the news would not have spread yet. Hopefully, nobody would be there waiting for him. All he needed to do was get the book and flee. Saying goodbye to Gaius depended on how fast he could run from the guards. He quickened his pace.
As he turned around the corner, he ran straight into Guinevere, causing her to drop the vase she was holding and scream. When she saw who it was who'd just ran into her, her face composed and her eyes narrowed.
"What are you doing Merlin? Been provoking Arthur again?" Her eyes were alight with merriment, enjoyment at teasing Merlin.
"No; Gwen, I have to go..." Merlin's eyes darted down the corridor uneasily, looking out for the approaching guards.
"Why, what's wrong? Surely you have time to-" She was interrupted by Merlin.
"Gwen, I have to go. Far away." He carried on, ignoring her protests. "Uther saw me doing magic, and… well the choice is, exile or death." he said hurriedly, hoping Guinevere would understand he could not wait any longer. He started jogging down the corridor, just as the guards' footsteps began to echo along the corridor towards them.
He looked back over his shoulder and saw Gwen shouting something. He didn't hear her; she was already too far away. He would miss Gwen. Maybe one day, he would see her again, but as long as Uther was King he could never return.
He rounded the corner to Gaius' lab. He opened the door with a twist of his hands and ran through. With another motion towards the door, his eyes lit up with fire and it closed and locked itself. It was sure to delay the guards for a few seconds.
"Merlin! What in God's name is the meaning of this?" Gaius exclaimed. Merlin saw he'd caused Gaius to drop one of his concoctions on the floor, and resisted the urge to laugh, despite the distinctly unfunny situation he was in.
"Sorry, Gaius. I need to leave." He ran towards his chambers and shouted over his shoulder: "Uther caught me doing magic!"
He fumbled around in his drawers and after a moments' searching he found the book, the battered cover falling apart and the pages yellowing with age. But the magical aura around it was still as powerful as when it was created; a product of the Old Religion would retain its powers for all time. He had learnt that from the Great Dragon.
When he came back, Gaius faced him, arms crossed, the disapproving eyebrows nearly disappearing into his hair. "I told you to be careful. I knew this would happen; it had to some day!" His eyes softened and a loving smile spread across his weathered face. "Of course it would."
Merlin smiled. "I've never felt at home more than I have at Camelot, Gaius. Thank you. Thank you for everything."
At that point a knock sounded on the massive wooden door. Both Merlin and Gaius' heads turned towards it. Gaius gave Merlin a meaningful look and hurried towards the door. Merlin ran in the opposite direction, towards the door that lead towards the outer town of Camelot, the path of his escape. With a glance back at Gaius, he opened the door and sprinted down the long, dark corridor.
As he ran, he wondered where his friends were. He wondered whether they knew where he was, and whether they even cared. Gwen would be in Morgana's chambers, probably telling her everything. Arthur would know; his father would've told him at once when he saw him.
Uther had never missed a chance to embarrass Arthur. Merlin could imagine the things that would be said… how irresponsible Arthur was for befriending a wizard, how Arthur should've had the foresight to check his servants' chambers before letting him work, and Arthur would be helpless against his father's taunts.
Merlin felt guilty. He could just imagine how much he'd let Arthur down, how disappointed Arthur would be that Merlin had never told him. He could imagine how betrayed Arthur would feel when he found out his friend - his boyfriend - had hidden his darkest secret from him. After all, Arthur confided all his secrets in Merlin.
He slowed down and came to a halt. He rested against the wall of the corridor, and held his head in despair. He slid down the wall and sat on the floor, crying. The realisation that he had left without having a chance… to say goodbye broke his heart. What if Arthur had come to the conclusion that it hadn't been real? What if someone had convinced him he was under an enchantment, that it had been nothing but a fling between two young boys...?
Merlin knew it wasn't. He and Arthur loved each other. Every day when Merlin went to wake Arthur up, his face lit up when he saw his knight in shining armour, resting his beautiful blonde head against the pillow.
Watching him practice with the knights, invariably winning, and then escaping to a disused room afterwards for him to pull off his helmet and kiss Merlin passionately, celebrating another success.
Hours spent in each others' company and never a dull moment. Never a moment when he didn't love Arthur.
The tears trickled down his cheeks as his feelings overwhelmed him. They flowed down his face, past his cheekbones, down his chin and finally fell into his lap.
He stood up shakily, knowing it wouldn't be long until the knights were awake and had Camelot surrounded. He walked briskly down the corridor, trying to keep his mind away from Arthur, but it was too hard, Arthur had become a part of his life more than anybody else.
He kept himself going, knowing that Arthur wouldn't want him dead. It was better for him to flee than have to face Uther's fury. And maybe one day, if Arthur hadn't moved on, he might be welcomed back to Camelot, to Arthur. Maybe in the future some day they would be reunited once more.
As he reached the end of the long corridor, he slowed down. As he reached the trapdoor, someone stepped out of the shadows.
It was Arthur.
He looked as beautiful as usual, albeit rather tired-looking. His dirty blonde hair was ruffled, as if he had just been rudely awoken. His clothes looked as if they'd been thrown on, and he was bare-footed. They stood in the semi-darkness, looking at each other.
Merlin closed the gap between them and reached up to kiss him. Their lips met, and Merlin suddenly felt totally awake, a newly born energy raging in his stomach. It was as if Arthur had given him the kiss of life to keep him going through the arduous days and dark nights that faced him.
When at last their kiss ended, both of them stood back and Merlin was the first to speak.
"How did you know where I'd be?" he asked. Merlin could see that Arthur had been sleeping and that someone had woken him.
"Guinevere woke me up, she said she'd bumped into you and that you were leaving the castle, and I couldn't let you go without saying..." Arthur's voice crackled; it seemed he could not finish his sentence.
"Goodbye?" Merlin finished his sentence for him.
"Yes. I'll miss you Merlin." Arthur's voice was quiet, and it was obvious that he could not bear to see him leave.
"Just promise me that you won't forget? When you get a new servant, when you find someone else, just remember one thing, Arthur Pendragon. I love you. And if I had a choice, I would never leave Camelot. I would never leave you." His eyes welled up with tears again as the realisation of the situation hit him.
After a long wait, Arthur answered. "I'll never forget you, Merlin. As long as nights are dark and Camelot stands, I will never forget you."
Merlin looked into his eyes, wishing the moment could last forever. He stepped forward once again to embrace his one and only love. When they had finished, Arthur spoke.
"There's a horse is waiting for you by the gates. You should find it equipped with everything you need to travel far away, and the horse is pretty good too..." His voice trailed off, but Merlin knew what he wanted to say and he spared him the torture of having him there any longer.
"And Merlin?"
Merlin turned his head and looked back at Arthur.
"God speed."