I knew Merlin was different from the second time we met. I'm not talking about his personality, though that certainly stood out. No, I'm talking about something else entirely. We were fighting, and my mace got tangled in two hooks I had thought weren't touching. I stepped into a box that I hadn't seen a second before, and I tripped over a rope I could have sworn had been limp on the ground. That rope had no reason to be taut. He was a skinny little boy with no fighting skills, and yet, if he hadn't gotten distracted, he would have beaten me. I took it all as coincidence – why would I think that Merlin was a sorcerer? – but I still knew there was something odd about him.
He recognized the magic on Valiant's shield. I thought it peculiar that the magic would work for him and no one else, but Merlin was full of surprises. I didn't give it a second thought. It wasn't until Merlin came running into the room, announcing he was a sorcerer, that I realized he was telling the truth. Gaius tried to play the "he's a kid" card, but, although younger than I, Merlin knew exactly what he was doing. I passed off his confession as a bid to save Gwen's life because he loved her.
"There is no way," I said, "that Merlin is a sorcerer." I looked him right in the eyes, and told him without a word to be careful and not get caught. If I saw him do magic, I'd have to turn him in. I don't think he realized I knew, but he got something from that silent exchange. Not sure what, really.
Since that day, I have seen him cast much magic. Always out of the corner of my eye, of course. I've seen him fight my enemies with unmanned weapons. On winter nights, I've heard him murmur something and felt my bed warm up beneath me. He stole my sausages once.
If you want to know the truth, I purposefully give him more work than he can manage without magic, because I love to catch him doing spells in the corner of my eye. His eyes flash gold, and it's honestly one of the most beautiful things I've ever partially seen. Not that I think Merlin's beautiful! He's a guy.
Honestly.
When I'm king, I'll make magic legal, if only so that I can look into those eyes when they flash gold, and not see them sparkle like a coin in the ground.
That's a promise.
