Empathy
Morgana, Merlin, Arthur; He means what he says but he doesn't always say what he means.
There is a moment when Morgana's powers lose control and set one of the tapestries in the corridor on fire. Merlin is suddenly there in an instant pulling it down to put out the fire before any of the guards have the chance to notice. Morgana's not really sure what she's saying because all she can really tell is that she terrified and panicking. Merlin grabs her by the upper arm and forces her to focus her attention on him.
"I understand," he tells her, "but you have to calm down." The panic leaves her as she focuses on that one little detail, those two words that mean something more then she thinks they should. I understand, he says to her but there's no way he can, unless. She wants to ask him how; how could he possibly understand.
"Merlin," Arthur's voice yells from somewhere down the corridor and Merlin turns to look in the voices direction before turning back to Morgana.
"Will you be okay?" he asks, but it's almost as if it pains him not to go running every time Arthur calls. As if the instinct to follow Arthur is somehow ingrained into his very being.
"I'll be fine," she tells him but what he said is still haunting her. She has this overwhelming need to know what he means. Maybe he has a sense of empathy for the situation but something about the way he said those two words makes her think it's something deeper. He grins at her as he turns and rushes away, off to follow his prince. Morgana thinks maybe she should forget he ever said a thing.