Chapter 2 [Camelot]
A hundred miles to the southeast, Arthur's realm pressed on as it always did. Rows of wheat, barley and corn waved in the soft breezes as they neared harvest. Cattle and sheep grazed serenely on green pastures and village commons. Blacksmiths hammered away at metal in their forges. Merchants peddled and traded away in their areas.
With Morgana's latest defeat, most assumed that this would now be the case. The recent passing of the mantle from Uther to Arthur had begun a period of transition and changing of custom. Old enemies negotiated truces. Long divided regions reached out to each other. Underneath it all, those with magic hoped and prayed for the acceptance denied them since the Great Purge.
With the rumored stirrings of Albion came a new hope….
[Physician's Quarters]
Within Gaius' chambers, Merlin sat at his mentor's weatherbeaten worktable forlornly. His forearm, wrist and hand pushed down on the wooden pestle directing the latter's movement in the bowl in front of himself. The robotically repetitive activity allowed his mind to detach itself from the abuse toward the rosemary, henbane and water in the bowl …
…towards Arthur's safety while on patrol…..
…toward the rise of Albion….
…toward his developing role as Emrys of the Druids and the Last Dragon Lord….
…toward Morgana's continued threat….
…toward Princess Mithian's attractive brazenness and the warmth she inspired….
Wait…Princess Mithian and warmth? That thought jarred him back to his surroundings. It narrowed his eyes and made his head spin. Granted he really appreciated the respect she had afforded him during her two visits. He marveled at how she'd given him acknowledging his influence even if Arthur would outwardly admit to such.
She'd even told Arthur to stop harassing him during the picnic on her first visit…
She'd requested Merlin's acceptance and a chance to earn said quality…..
…even if he was a servant and little more than a peasant….
While they're nice to me, the knights expect me to handle the chores and such. For me to hope at being more than a respected servant is pure poppy cock anyhow! He sighed and rolled his eyes at the illusion he might have had with Mithian. It's just like with Gwen. She's royalty! Get that straight. Do you think Arthur would accept your magic if he knew? He recalled the scene in his home village from years earlier.
He'd saved them all from the raiders….
Will took a killing shot intended for him….
And Arthur? Arthur, stunned and in disbelief of the outcome, denounced, "That is why magic cannot be trusted! It is dangerous. I can see why you kept Will's sorcery a secret."
Then he recalled Freya's curse…and her death at the hands of Camelot's knights. His heart ached all over again at her gentle heart and soul's light being snuffed out. How the light in her eyes was subsumed by the accursed beast she became after sunset.
And all because someone wanted her dead…because someone hunted her….
Wonder if Arthur realized how many times my magic's saved him? Merlin gave the paste a rather demonstrative series of twists in response. Maybe if he'd been more accepting, Morgana would have been an ally rather than an enemy. Maybe I wouldn't have had to do what I did either. He let off a heavy sigh. You have your destiny. Gaius would tell you to keep your head on straight. No more, no less. He finished his grinding before scraping the paste into a small clay jar. He screwed the lid on tight and set it on a shelf beside the table for Gaius to use later.
A knock came from the door.
"Yes? Enter," Merlin bade. Seeing Gawain stick his head into the room, he grinned at the knight. "What can I do for you?"
"So formal," Gawain chided half-seriously. As with the other knights, he remained concerned over his comrade's bemused state. He wondered how seriously Morgana had hurt Merlin on the river bank after Mithian's failed warning there. He also hoped that none of the debris in the cave in had hit the servant either. "Arthur's paging us. You done raising a stink already?" He motioned with his eyes toward the used bowl.
"Just finished. Gaius'll kill me if I don't clean it. Just take a minute," Merlin advised knowingly.
"Sppt! Live a little! Besides Arthur will vouch for you, right?" Gawain teased. He realized how seriously the healer took his equipment and state of things in the lab. Still he couldn't resist shaking up the apple tree to see Merlin's reaction.
"Yeah right." Merlin grinned at his friend's attempt to raise his spirits. He wiped the bowl clean with an old rag and replaced the former in its cabinet. The latter, he pitched into the growing laundry pile in his room. Then he exhaled deeply. Arthur can't rest. Neither can I. Putting on his best face, he strolled out and shrugged. "There. No worrying about mucking out the stables now."
"Arthur's all bark and no bite in that regard, Merlin. Come on. The others are waiting," Gawain bade, letting the impatience creep into his voice.
Merlin closed the door firmly behind them. He resisted the temptation to give his impertinent friend a magical shove in response.
Some things just weren't worth it…..
[Council Chamber—Five minutes later]
Arthur leaned back against the polished oak chair and stared at the ceiling impatiently. To him, it seemed an eternity since he'd dispatched Gawain to retrieve Merlin. "Remind me, Gaius, why Merlin isn't here to begin with?"
The elderly physician remained unaffected by the younger man's tone. "The fault, Sire, lies with me. I asked Merlin to properly mix and prepare a cure for the Rudsian Plague. Such procedures are delicate and must be completed properly. I do apologize."
"Arthur, we do have our subjects to consider," Gwen interjected in Gaius' and Merlin's defense. She had heard word of the malady's spread in the outermost regions of the kingdom. "I'd rather not have a full blown epidemic on our hands." She added a pointed glance at her husband to emphasize the point.
"Yes, yes….fine." Seeing the prodigal servant enter briskly along with his knight, Arthur sighed demonstratively. Granted he wasn't really going to punish his manservant for being late especially since the latter had reason for doing so. Still he was the King and there was the royal prerogative to consider. "So glad that you could finally join us, Merlin."
While he wanted to fire a snarky retort back at his master, Merlin thought twice about it. Perhaps if they were in private or on the trail but not in the council chambers….
…and not with the emotions he could almost perceive rising from the royal head like heat from a summer sidewalk….
"Least you could do, Merlin, is bring the ale if you're going to be late," Percival quipped. "Gawain, figured you'd be all over that."
"He probably drank it on the way," Elyan cracked eliciting a round of chuckles and coughs from around the table.
Merlin shrugged off the gibes knowing that they were meant in good spirit. "The first batch of paste is ready for distribution. Sorry it took so long."
"Very good, Merlin," Gwen complimented with a protective smile.
Arthur rolled his eyes eliciting a queenly elbow in the ribs. "Well as long as you are supporting the bigger agenda, Merlin, I may just have you muck out the stables or empty my chamber pot again. In the meantime, please sit down. I do want to start this meeting some time today."
"You just had to ask, Arthur," Gawain retorted half-seriously as he and Merlin took the two remaining seats.
"Yes…well…we do have the matter of Nemeth to discuss. Despite Rodor's assertion that he can handle the rebuilding on his own, I still wish to offer further assistance. Elyan, perhaps you and Percival would lead an expedition to do so?"
His brother-in-law nodded respectfully. "We'll get right on it."
"There. You see, Merlin? Someone's paying attention unlike a certain idiot," Arthur jabbed half-seriously.
Seeing Gaius shake his head almost imperceptibly, Merlin conceded the point tacitly.
"Of course, Sire, Merlin could accompany the expedition in case there's a medical emergency. I am afraid the epidemic will require me to be in the eastern provinces for the next fortnight or so," Gaius suggested.
"Really? I do need my affairs tended to, Gaius," Arthur pointed out knowing what the alternative would be.
"George is very attentive. I'll let him know you'll be looking forward to his immediate oversight of your daily affairs, Arthur," Merlin insisted. While he didn't let on, the warm feelings started coursing through his middle again. Will you stop already! You know you can't be with her!
Arthur made a noise almost like a strangling cat in response. While he couldn't fault George's attention to detail, he couldn't abide being around the guy. After all, George joked about tiles and cleaning.
Not exactly stand up comedy, that stuff….
"We will survive. Won't we, Arthur?" Gwen supposed with a smirk and her eyes shining.
"Yes. I suppose we will. It is important that we shore up our alliances with the neighboring lands. Very well, Merlin, you will accompany the knights to Nemeth. Gawain, make sure he doesn't trip and crack his head again," Arthur conceded.
"If you don't crack George's first," Gawain gibed eliciting another round of chuckles from the table's contingent.
Arthur knew better than to respond and thus fall head first into that particular tar pit of no return. "Yes and now onto the grain prices in the western regions…."
Business did need to be attended to first after all…