A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for the interest in the story :) I'm sure a lot of you have seen where this is going, and your suspicions shall be confirmed forthwith.

The first time it happened Merlin didn't even notice; the second time he started to doubt his own senses. The third time… the third time it was hard to deny.

Gwen had accepted it easily enough; Gaius had obviously been mistaken - Merlin's heartbeat had been too faint, perhaps. But Gaius knew better. Merlin had died; the poison had done its work.

The two had stared at each other for quite some time after Guinevere left, but ultimately Merlin could keep his eyes open no longer and the elder had helped him back to his own bed. Discussion had been put off until the next day, and then the next, and the next… honestly it was just one thing after another in Camelot and the whole thing didn't come up again until a certain druid showed up and called him "Emrys".

"What does that mean, Gaius?" Merlin asked, idly stirring his stew and not looking up at his guardian until the silence dragged on just a moment too long. The elder had staggered back from the table, his own bowl drooping in his hand until Merlin caught it. He flinched in anticipation of a reprimand for using magic so frivolously, but none came. "Gaius?"

The physician shook himself and sank onto the bench.

"You're certain he called you 'Emrys'?"

"Yes… is that bad?" The stew was completely forgotten as Merlin put all his focus on his mentor's response.

"It's… not bad, exactly…"

"Well it certainly doesn't sound that way."

Gaius straightened, pulling out of his dazed thoughts and pinning his ward with a speculative gaze. "It would explain what happened with the Morteus poison."

The warlock swallowed the lump in his throat. He really did not want to know where this was going.

"The druids have prophecies about 'Emrys'; they laud him as the most powerful sorcerer of all time."

"I couldn't possibly-"

"The name means 'immortal'."

Merlin gaped, then frowned. "But I died."

"And yet you're alive."

The two stared at each other for a few heartbeats before Merlin stood and stumbled toward the back room.

"I need some time to think about this."

"Merlin-"

He pulled the door closed, cutting himself off from Gaius and the rest of the world. Climbing onto his desk, he looked out the window until the only light remaining was that of the stars.

Gaius attempted further talk several times in the coming weeks, but a look from Merlin was enough to stop him each time. The boy seemed to be trying his hardest to forget what he had learned. There may have been further incidents based on the set of Merlin's face after certain magical events, but Gaius couldn't pry a word on the matter out of his ward.

It all changed when Arthur was bitten by the questing beast.

Merlin tried to convince him it would be fine for him to give his life for Arthur since he would just revive, but Gaius wasn't so sure - he didn't think Merlin actually believed it either. He was beginning to worry about the boy's recklessness; it seemed as if he were trying to find a permanent solution to his immortality.

In the end it had only been Nimueh who died, and that wasn't the only positive.

"You know, Gaius, I'm beginning to think this may be a gift."

He had remained silent as his ward stared off into space, waiting for Merlin to continue.

"If I had just died, who would save Arthur next week? This way, no one else has to sacrifice themselves."

"Merlin-"

"Well, I know there will be knights and guards who… but if I can save other lives as well, then I can handle this."

It saddened Gaius to see the resignation Merlin had developed, uncertain whether he preferred that or the denial. Still, they soon settled into a routine. Any time Merlin was dying he would hide or make his way to Gaius if possible. Once he'd gone, his magic would restore the body before reviving him. This process was usually quick, but on certain occasions took a bit longer. The physician had made the uncomfortable decision of speeding his ward's passing more than once, heart throbbing in his chest as he waited for Merlin to draw breath. The serkets had been the worst so far, and Gaius could only be glad he hadn't had to watch his boy suffer that.

He had always come back, but Gaius feared a day when he wouldn't.