"I still can't believe how lucky I was. I owe that boy my life and I don't know who he was or where he's from. You need to make sure you give him a decent burial," Arthur states sadly.
"I'll do that. If you'll allow me the time," Merlin pipes in as he serves the Royals their dinner.
"Oh, so you can go and visit that girl again." Arthur replied giving his friend an odd look similar to the one his wife was giving him.
"What?" Asks a thoroughly confused warlock.
"The girl." repeats the monarch.
"Don't have one." Merlin states tersely.
"That's not what Guinevere tells me." Arthur says accusingly.
At this statement Merlin pauses, then turns to look at Gwen. She smiles at him, letting him know that she had concocted an awkward story at his expense to explain his absence.
"So, why don't you tell us all about her?"
Merlin pours Arthur's wine, then looks at Gwen again. She holds out her glass and raises her eyebrows, as if daring him to expose her.
"Right." Merlin states dryly as he pours Gwen's drink.
"And why you're walking with a limp." Arthur continues with a look that showed both embarrassment and reluctance.
Gwen quirks one of her eyebrows at Merlin and they stare each other down.
Finally Merlin breaks down and tells them a story.
"Do you remember my friend Will back in Ealdor? The one who… Well he had a sister. When I was 15 my mother got very sick. I couldn't manage the fields by myself and no one wanted to help the … Well to help the son of a woman who never married. Will was torn. He could help me and help his mother and sister, but the village would look at it as him as a dosser. His mother and mine were best friends before I was born, so she decided that I should marry her daughter and share the duties of both farms… Bridget and I were married on the summer solstice. Mother got better and moved in with Will and this mum, leaving us newlyweds alone in the hut I grew up in."
Arthur and Gwen's faces wore identical looks of shock. The queen's was because she realized that Merlin had a way around her ploy, and Arthur's was due to the thought of Merlin having lied all these years.
"Hang on. Are telling me you have been married over 10 years I never knew!?" Arthur bellowed.
Merlin stared at the floor as he replied softly, "no"
Arthur Glanced at his wife and saw the confusion he felt in her eyes. "What do you mean 'no'?" He asked cautiously.
"She died not long before I came to Camelot" Merlin answered as a tear ran down his face.
"Oh Merlin" Gwen said softly, playing the part of a concerned friend for Arthur's benefit.
Arthur was even more confused at this point. "If you weren't with your wife the last few days who is the girl?"
Merlin's next statement shocker the royals completely. "My daughter."
o=(======= .*･｡ﾟ｡･*. =======)=o
"YOUR WHAT?! You have a daughter?! I have been to Ealdor with you several times over the years, how have I never met the child?" Arthur bellowed as he began pacing the room. There were two reasons for his pacing. One, he wanted to move around to release the fury he felt at his friend keeping such a large secret from him and two, Merlin looked like he was about to collapse, so Arthur forced him into his now vacated seat.
"She was sent to live with her mother's aunt after Bridget died giving birth to her. I was in no place to raise a child and Silvian had recently lost her own baby and was willing to raise mine as her own. At least until a few days ago…" Merlin said quietly as tears ran freely down his pale face.
Arthur noticed how pain was in his servant's eyes and asked his next question with a bit more care. "What happened?"
"Silvian lived almost a day's walk from Camelot, but I received word three days ago that she died a little over a week ago and my daughter had run off into the forest." As he said this he pulled out a small piece of rolled parchment and handed it to Arthur. The message had been sent by Silvian's sister-in-law who knew the real story behind the child. "I rushed off to help in the search…"
Arthur's eyes softened as he read the note. "So that's why you ran off."
All he received was a teary nod. In truth, Merlin had also received word that the druids were helping search for the daughter of Emrys. The druids told him they would keep him apprised so he could continue his duty of protecting the Once and Future King, but Arthur didn't need to know that.
"Did you find her?" the king inquired gently.
He was surprised by the amount of pain and sadness he saw in his friend's blue eyes. That look tore Arthur's heart as he realized his friend had not found his child.
"Why did you stop looking for her?" Gwen asked suddenly, causing both men to jump as they had been so caught up in the story that they had forgotten she was present.
"I heard that Morgana had bought off one of the Sarrum's men in order to assassinate Arthur and weaken Camelot so she could take over once again… I rushed back as quick as I could, but…" Merlin trailed off as he gently prodded his right leg near a new stain the Arthur quickly realized was a slowly weeping wound. He was about to lecture Merlin about being clumsy and calling Gaius to deal with his friend's injury when Merlin continued his story.
"I should have stayed the night and continued at first light, but I wanted to stop the assassin and return to my search. I set off back for Camelot a little before dusk. The moon was bright so I pressed on through most of the night, until I fell into a ravine after tripping over a root when the moon was hidden by a cloud. I woke about midday. I bound my leg and continued on. I got back just in time to meet the boy that saved you before he died…"
Arthur was shocked. He thought the boy had died before anyone had been able to reach him. He had a million questions for Merlin about the boy but held his tongue as he realized Merlin had not only stopped searching for his daughter in order to protect his king, he had also been injured, eaten very little, and had only slept when he had been knocked out in the fall. Merlin needed a friend right now and Arthur planned on being there for him as he had always been there for the king.
Arthur told Merlin he could finish his story after Gaius had looked at his leg. Excusing himself from Gwen and the meal which laid forgotten on the table, Arthur helped Merlin to Gaius's chamber and watched as the old physician check his ward's injuries. Not only did Merlin have a nasty gash on his leg, he also had a concussion, two cracked ribs, a low fever, and was severely dehydrated.
o=(======= .*･｡ﾟ｡･*. =======)=o
Overnight Merlin's fever spiked. The next morning he was delirious. Arthur sent Gwaine and Percival out to village where Merlin's daughter was raised to help in the search. He didn't tell them the girl was Merlin's child, instead he told them she was the niece of Merlin's best friend back in Ealdor who had died protecting the future king of Camelot. The two knight assumed this was Arthur's way of repaying the young man.
Arthur also sent Leon to Ealdor to bring Hunith back to Camelot to help with her son.
Once Hunith had settled in, Arthur told her what Merlin had said the night he returned to Camelot. She was shocked that her son had share with the king and queen the story of his short marriage. As it turned out, even Gaius didn't know that Merlin was a widower. Hunith had never written about her son getting married. Hunith decided that since the king knew the majority of the story she would let him in on some of the details.
o=(======= .*･｡ﾟ｡･*. =======)=o
Arthur felt ashamed. He had teased Merlin for nearly 10 years about his neckerchiefs, but now he understood. Those pieces of cloth had once been Bridget's head scarves and when she died he took to wearing them around his neck in remembrance. Arthur decided that he would be careful with those scarves from now on.
Hunith was proud of the young king as she saw the guilt at his previous act show in his eyes as he told her his plan. She knew her son's faith in the man was justified. She knew that Merlin had not told the king that the girl was raised mostly by the druids nor her granddaughter's name. She didn't know if it was because he was scared or if he hadn't gotten that far when the king had cut him off. She would wait and let her son sort it out later.
o=(======= .*･｡ﾟ｡･*. =======)=o
Two week later Merlin was well enough for Gaius to allow him to do light duties, but he could not remember the day he had returned to Camelot. Gaius had told him all he knew and Arthur had filled him in on what the warlock had told the royals, but he left out the part about knowing that the missing girl is Merlin's daughter.
Gaius had seen to it that Daegal had a proper burial. Gaius took Merlin to the spot as soon as he believed his ward was well enough to do so.
Merlin placed a bundle to the very plants Daegal had used to help him on the boy's grave and said, "His life had only begun."
As that started back towards Camelot Merlin stated, "It can't go on, Gaius."
"Gwen?" The physician inquired.
Merlin confirmed it by continuing. "We have to do something about her."
"Yes, but the question is, 'what?'" the words of his mentor caused a surge of determination raced through the warlock's body and could be seen clearly on his face as he strode off.
He had work to do.
o=(======= .*･｡ﾟ｡･*. =======)=o