Hello lovlies, here it is. The new story. This is a wee bit longer than my usual, but oh well. I warn you there are much feels in this chapter. Also, it's a bit confusing because there is a lot of information, but trust me, it becomes clear. Ta
Chapter 1: In a land of Magic
Hogwarts, Hospital wing—1995
Arthur was sitting in the Matron's office; a small cramped space that shouldn't have held as many people as it currently was. He shifted in his cotton and leather, he'd removed his armour when Gaius had assured them all they were safe. By them Arthur was thinking of his closest knights, the first of the round table; Leon, Percival, Gwain, Elyan, and Lancelot. Gaius was present in his usual red wool, but no one else from their lifetime.
The once and future king was still rather disturbed. The last he truly remembered of anything was dying in Merlin's arms at dawn in that damn forest clearing; looking into those bright eyes, wishing he'd know everything Merlin had done for him and Camelot, wishing it didn't end the way it did, leaving Merlin alone in a cold world with few friends left. That wasn't everything, though. Somehow, he'd imparted that knowledge to his fellow knights during the centuries of their deaths, although Lance seemed to have known before hand. That information caused a burning pinch in his gut; he'd learned on his death, Lance had known since he'd first met Merlin.
The other knights had taken the news rather well, especially now that Gaius was explaining the true nature of magic to them, and Lance had told them everything he knew Merlin had done for the kingdom. Arthur's gut continued to twitch and burn as Lance gave up secret talks he'd had, the quips he'd shared, with Merlin at night or in private places. Arthur loved Lance like a brother, the way he did all the knights present, but it didn't sit well in his heart to know that the one of them Merlin had trusted with such secrets had been Lancelot, not Arthur, not his king, his friend, his…
"So, if we're back from the dead, does that mean Merlin is too?" Elyan asked Gaius. The strict matron, Pomfrey, had left her office to speak to the Headmaster of this school.
"Well, in truth, Merlin never died," Gaius said from his seat. "He ended up immortal, he's been alive all this time."
Merlin had lived all these centuries? Arthur and his knights were shocked.
"Is he the one that brought us back?" Leon asked, he'd been the last of the knights to die, and had seen the fall of Camelot.
"I suspect not. In fact, I suspect this is more the work of the divine than of man. Not even the darkest of magic could have done this," Gaius said.
"So, this must bring you back Gaius. Sitting in this…school, where you learned magic," Gwain said as he looked around. As always the rough looking knight seemed un-phased by the heavy conversation.
"No, Hogwarts was built by its founders when I was studying under my mentor. That was how it was done before this institution. Although, if I remember correctly, Merlin went here in his youth; he one of its first students. He left before he was fifteen, but he never told me his reasons for not finishing his training," Gaius said.
"Merlin, went here? He got trained in magic?" Percival asked. He knew so little about the man who'd always travelled with them, whom they'd continuously teased, who had been so close to them all. He wanted to know.
"This castle has, since its beginnings, always been one of the only places where young mages are safe from being hunted. As the Old Religion was fading into story, the school was built to take its place. Any mage could come, but it would have been expensive for Hunith, and also the only option she had to help him gain control and learn to hide his power. He has so much magic, it must have been near impossible for him to completely control alone at that young age."
"Do you think he'll come here? To find us?" Lance asked. Gaius sighed.
"I may be the only one here who knows about both magic and Merlin, but even my knowledge is finite. I don't know."
Just then the door opened and the matron burst in.
"Gaius, the old man you described, he showed up when Albus tried to summon Merlin. The old fool, thinks he can just do something like that, anyway there's something wrong. I have him in a bed now," She said. The group rushed to their feet and out the office door. Pomfrey led them to a bed where several people were hovering. The healers pushed them out of the way.
"Move, out of the way. I said move!" Gaius ordered as he came up beside the old, fragile man in strange garb. There were layers of wool jumpers and a pair of ripped woollen trousers. The boots were scuffed and should have been thrown out long ago, a jacket was frayed and worn thin, with fingerless gloves that did nothing to protect the long fingers from the November chill, a strange cap covered the dirty grey hair. Gaius's medical satchel was resting at the foot of the bed.
"There appears to be some adverse affects on him, I suppose due to a potion of some sort," said a dour man from the other side of the bed. He was dressed in dark green and his chin length hair looked like dark silk tied back with a leather band.
"It's an aging potion yes. Merlin developed it himself when he'd had to save Gwen from Morgana. I know the recipe for the counter potion," Gaius said as he analysed the ancient healer. Dark eyes glittered at the prospect.
"I am Severus Snape, the Potions master and head of Slytherin house. I don't know if it would quicken his healing, but it may help," the dour man said. "I can take you to the potions rooms and we can begin making it."
"Is this it?" Gwain asked as he held up a vial of bright blue liquid. Gaius took stock of it.
"Yes, where did you find it?" the healer asked.
"In the bag, figured it'd be there," Gwain said with a shrug. The other knights were the only ones who did not gap at the man's recklessness. Candles lit up around the open room as dusk came to the land. Gaius took the potion before forcing it down the unconscious man's throat. Nearly immediately the old features melted away, leaving Merlin looking young and the way he'd been in Camelot. His hair was still dirty under the cap, and the beard had shrunk to stubble; but the effect of the rest of the clothing was stark. Merlin the old man had looked dirty and a traveller in his clothes, now he looked ragged and starving.
"Someone should stay and watch him, in case he wakes," said Gaius after a silence. The mages in the room could not believe this was the great Merlin.
"I'll sit with him; the rest of you go eat something, look around, get to know everyone. We can change shift later," Arthur said. Gaius nodded and the knights began to file the confused mages out. Pomfrey returned to her office and shut the door. The others, minus Snape, protested, before a look from the knights quieted them as they all left.
Arthur sat in a chair near the bed, towards the head of his manservant. The king sat there as night came, a strange creature popped out of nowhere with food but Arthur barely noticed. He couldn't take his eyes of his Merlin. The warlock looked almost no different than he had in the forest clearing, or the day in the training field when they'd first met. The clothes were different, but the style was the same, right down to the red scarf hiding his neck.
A tan hand reached over and clutched Merlin's thin, pale one. Arthur lost control after that, he fought the tears that threatened, but lost the battle to leave the contact at hand holding. The regal knight moved to sit on the bed and brushed the dirty hair from Merlin's brow.
"…I'm sorry. All right? Happy now, you clever clogs? I'm sorry that you had to protect me, I'm sorry I thought you were just an incompetent manservant, I'm sorry I… I'm sorry—I—that I—I'm sorry you had to…" Arthur took a breath to steady his breathing. "Merlin, I'm sorry you had to watch it. All of it, the executions father did, the bigotry and hate towards you and people like you, my—my waffling over magic, my continuing to hunt mages… My death, all our deaths. I'm sorry you had to watch it all, and then, when it was over, I'm sorry you were left alone….
"We're back, now, though. Elyan, Leon, Lance, Percival, Gwain, and even Gaius. We're back, and it'll be different, I'll know this time. I'll understand, now wake up. I can't do—whatever it is I'm supposed to do without my incompetent servant with me and my knights."
"… You say the kindest things Arthur, you know that. I really feel your concern for me," Merlin groaned. His voice dripped sarcasm and cheek. His bright eyes opened a little and his hand came up to still the one Arthur had in his hair. It wasn't the first time they'd been this close, this intimate with each other. Moments such as this had happened in Camelot too, when one of them was recovering from some near fatal event. Merlin's eyes were wet.
"You're back… Oh, triple goddess you're back. I'd started to think—" whatever he'd been about to say was cut off when Arthur captured his mouth. His words turned into moans as he kissed back. They'd shared few kisses back in Camelot, when they couldn't resist, when Arthur couldn't help himself, when no one would see and judge it wrong; even though in Merlin's world it was as natural to love a man as a woman.
I wonder if he knows it's common here? I wonder if he knows…
"OH!" Pomfrey's voice cut through the moment and Arthur broke away and got up. Merlin lifted himself into a sitting position as Arthur stammered his way through a lie before saying he was going to find the others. Merlin took his hat off and scratched his head.
"I don't suppose I could have a bath? I was travelling from Russia, just got back to England," Merlin said in a huff. Pompfrey nodded and gathered sleeping pants and bath things for the immortal warlock.
Godric's Hollow—1981
"Are you sure, Albus? What if…" Lily couldn't complete the thought. She'd woken up a few hours ago; the spell Voldemort used on her had been brutal. She'd been near death for about two days, and so much had changed in that time.
"Your elder twin, Edward is unharmed and untainted by Voldemort's curse. Harry, on the other hand, is changed… It's for the best Lily," Albus said. "Edward is the one of the prophecy, and Harry…"
"Lily, it would be a mercy—" James started.
"NO! I won't let you do this; you're talking about killing my son! Abandoning him in the woods to die! He's a baby, you don't—"
"Lily, I grew up with people like them, remember. I know what tainted children turn out like. Prongs is right, it… It's a mercy," Sirius said. Lily glared.
"How can anyone be tainted with magic? You all sound like narrow-minded muggles, calling my son a monster because his core shows signs of dark magic, that doesn't mean he's dark! It doesn't mean he'll be evil if he is dark!" she cried as she clutched her youngest son to her breast. His bright green eyes had become more blue, the scar on his brow angry and stark to his now pale skin. She hoped Remus would get here soon. Perhaps he could talk sense into these men.
"Lily, he's a threat."
"James, he's your son," she retorted as he tried to snatch their second born from her.
"…I only have one son."
The statement, so cold and precise, shocked the witch. Her arms slackened just enough for them to pry her child from her. As James took the boy to leave in the wood.
"I'll never forgive you, James Potter! We're through, do you hear me? I'm leaving you, we aren't bonded, BRING HIM BACK!" she cried as she lost sight of her son. James made no reply as he continued walking.
Wood—1981
Remus couldn't believe it; he looked down at the bundle he carried. Lily's son Harry, he'd found the baby in the wood; where Lily screamed they'd taken him. Prongs and Padfoot, they'd abandoned a baby to die because he may have a dark core. He felt his heart break at that, but he steeled himself as he continued on his way.
Lily was leaving James. They'd never been bonded, only a civil marriage, so she was well within her rights. The only thing was that the law stated James got Edward. Remus longed to return her younger boy to her, but when he'd found the babe he'd seen the scar. The Disir had told him to bring a boy with Harry's scar to them; and he served the Disir.
Mages were chosen at birth to serve the Disir as agents, and Remus had been one of them. He had little choice but to do their will; after all, they spoke for the triple goddess. He brought the babe to the cave, where the three women were.
"So, you've come," said one.
"You bring the child with the mark," said the other.
"Then lay him here, no harm will come to him from us," said the last. Remus laid the sleeping baby in the riverweed basket. The three women huddled around the boy, murmurs and magic echoed through the dark cavern. When they withdrew the baby was still asleep, but his scar had vanished. Remus longed to ask, but he'd learned long ago that if information was not given, asking would not bring it forth.
The eldest of the three lifted the basket up and carried it over to a stream that trickled from the massive pool. She placed the basket into the water and pushed. Remus nearly gasped as the basket and baby disappeared.
"The child will return, Remus. With him, will come the Old Religion," said the eldest.
"Tell the mother he is safe, but the Goddess has need of him elsewhere. She shall see him again one day," said the second. Remus nodded and left the cave.
Far away, centuries in the past, a woman named Hunith was washing her clothes in the river near the foot of the mountain. The walk was far, but she had little choice, like most of the women. She heard a merlin hawk cry overhead above the trees. Then, she heard a responding giggle from the bed of reeds to her right. She searched the bed and found a baby boy in a basket. He was over a year, but not quite two, and she'd no idea who'd left him there.
Probably floated downstream from one of the cities, she thought as she picked up the babe. He smiled and her heart melted. She'd resigned herself to never having children, she was unable to give birth, but perhaps this was a sign. The merlin hawk cawed again as Hunith gathered her things and the baby to begin walking back to the town.
"How about Merlin?" she asked the baby. "Do you like that name?"
She took the giggle for a yes.
