Author's Note:

Hi everyone :)
I really never expected such a great response to this idea. 12 reviews- wow! Thanks to everyone who wrote one of them, alerted or favourited this fic :D.
Here's the second chapter, in which you get to know Merlin as Lord Emrys. I'm sorry they don't meet yet, that will come in the next chapter :). To all who read Master of Thiefs: I had to decide between writing the next chapter for this fic or for MoT... finally decided on this, but I'll still try to continue MoT soon :D.
Now enjoy, and please R&R! ;D

Disclaimer: This is always the same... and thanks to school, no progress on the blackmailing-side ;).

Chapter 2: Red and Gold

The flames were everywhere around them, dancing and glowing with way too happy red and gold as fire bit skin. A piece of wood cracked and broke under their force, accompanied by the man's swearing as the ash burned in his eyes and lungs. For a moment, small sparks illuminated the dark cloak like a coat of liquid gold.

The fire had almost risen up a man's height now, easily hiding the ducked figures from the villager's view. In some ways, he was glad those boys had seen him last time. The whispered rumours hadn't led to discovery like they feared, but rather resulted in a bigger fire. After all, the peasants had to make sure every rest of the evil witch was burned. It wouldn't do for her soul to manifest as a black shadow, as it obviously had last time, and simply search another victim.

Gossip. Oh, how he sometimes hated it.

His lips parted in a bitter smirk, only lasting seconds before he clamped one gloved hand over it in an attempt to suppress his coughing. Note to self: Don't open your mouth in the middle of a hot, smoky fire. Manifesting souls were alright. Coughing manifesting souls less so.

Another wood broke in a coat of merrily dancing sparks, part of the pyre crumbling and collapsing. Luckily it was an outer part. Still, the girl screamed in pain as the sparks touched her bare arms and legs, forcing him to swear again. Second note: Getting sidetracked in the middle of the same hot, smoky fire didn't do anyone any good either. Now the poor girl was most likely marked for the rest of her life, given the size of those flying coals. He hadn't yet found a way to make scars fade.

Emotional even less than physical.

The man sighed and warily passed one hand before his face, careful not to remove the hood. She wouldn't forget this anyway, with or without the scars. No one could.

And she was still so young, barely more than 15 years old by the looks of it. An innocent face framed with angelic golden hair that originally must have fallen on her thin shoulders in wild locks, but now hung dirty and lifeless as the fire tore this beautiful innocence from both her eyes and her soul. The light, smooth skin was covered with dirt and blood, dark bruises shining through at places, mostly on the back where she had been whipped. Despite the obvious pain she held her eyes closed, not ready to give in to tears like anyone else would, maybe excluding himself and some of the Elders. Her breathing hitched dangerously as she backed up further against the stake, making her back burn and ripping her wrists open in a hopeless fight against the manacles.

"Witch! Come, let the filthy sorceress burn!"

His stomach churned in disgust, making him want to get out of this bloody fire and teach those foolish peasants never to use such words again. Oh, he had heard them talking, only a few days ago, about the skilled young physician. Funny how quickly they could reduce somebody to the enemy.

But then again, people always can. Especially with someone who had no family.

With a last disdainful glance at the moving shadows on the other side of the wall of fire, he forced himself to take a step forward through the flames, reaching for the curled-up girl.

The moment he touched her shoulder, her eyes snapped open and she instinctively tried to back away, hissing as the flames came in contact with her skin. He didn't even hear the sound, simultaneously drawing a sharp breath in.

Brown. He knew that eye colour too well. But how was this even possible? And exactly the same shade too, soft brown with green speckles, like a doe...

He only noticed that his fingers were digging into her shoulder when she bit her lip painfully, but then he instantly let go and took a step back, raising his hands in a sign of peace.

Great. When you appear as a black-hooded stranger on the pyre of someone, just make sure to also hurt and frighten them a bit more.

"It's OK, don't worry. I'll get you out of here."

It was most likely the crappiest consoling speech every, he could see it in her distrustful stare, but then her eyes suddenly grew wide with surprise and something akin to hope.

"Emrys?"

It was barely more than a whisper in the crackling of the fire, before she doubled over, grimacing at a sudden wave of pain- but still it was enough to freeze him for another second.

How could she possible know...?

His eyes narrowed curiously, debating on the best answer. In the end, he decided for the truth. She would know soon anyway.

"Yes."

The simple word made a whole chandelier of light opening oer face as she smiled weakly, her gaze suddenly unreadable.

"I knew you would come."

All at once her face contorted again painfully and she doubled over, seemingly losing consciousness as she hit the wood. The shackles stopped her head from meeting the branches in the last moment, holding her limp form halfway up.

Emrys swore loudly and was at her side in a second, quickly checking pulse and breathing. It wouldn't do for her to die now. He couldn't lose those eyes again, after just one look...

...there. It was weak, barely noticeable, but still there.

He suppressed a relieved smile at the slow heart beats, carefully leaning her thin frame against his shoulder to get a better hold of her arms. Only his strong will allowed him not to let go as they instantly became sticky with blood and she whimpered at the touch.

Again, the heat of his fury surprised him. How could those peasants destroy something so beautiful, simply because she had special powers? This girl had helped them with all her medical knowledge, only to be as a thank you burned for her gifts. Just like so many others before her. All because one man's guilt.

A King shouldn't blame things on others. He shouldn't teach his subjects to kill innocent people on suspicion and rather how to show mercy. But King Uther hadn't been a really good king in a long time and it was tearing Camelot apart- magic against swords, brother against sister. Destroying everything in the process.

He was trying to help secretly, save those who were condemned to death and cool the minds of angry men, calling for war, but even the mighty Emrys could only do so much. And it was never enough.
He wanted to show them. Of course Emrys knew that his small community could only survive as long as it was kept secret, that this was his only way to save lives. But there were still times when he just wished he could stand up and show them, Uther in particular, what it felt like to die on stake, alone and hated by everyone.

The girl's groan pulled hm out of his dark reverie just in time, as already the first flames reached them, licking greedily at her golden hair. The man shook his head to clear his mind again, softly cursing himself.

Dreaming fool. What was it with getting sidetracked in the middle of the fire? There was really no need to let the poor girl pay for his own memories and experiences. They were hard enough for one to bear.

"Ábæde ús æt sé friþsumum bearunæse!"

His voice was less than a whisper, too raw for his liking, but the magic reacted immediately. Warm glory ran high in his veins, cursing through his whole body, only visible to anyone else in the golden glowing eyes. A whirl of black and red fell like a cloak around the two kneeling figures and engulfed them as the scenery became blurred and faded. Colours flew around them, twisting in various pattern, before the cyclone of magic slowly died down and left both alone on the forest floor.

The warlock sank down, unable to hold himself awake as his power left him with sudden weakness. Still he smiled when the world turned black again.

The others were nearby like he had told them to. They would find the girl and keep her safe. As for him... a last movement passed through his body, magic once again enwrapping and concealing him, before Emrys finally gave up and welcomed the peaceful darkness.

When the druids arrived, all they could see was the battered body of a girl on the floor.

The people in the village never even noticed that their witch had disappeared once again rather than died.

xXx

The waking was always the worst.

There was the one moment of total confusion, not knowing where he was or how he had come here and in this position. Then came the pain. His back hurt like hell from spending the night on the hard forest floor. A particular nasty stone was digging into his left side and he shifted painfully, groaning as his whole body protested. His left arm burned at contact with the dry leaves, being red and raw from touching the flames. A throbbing head ache had settled over night, turning his every movement into a new wave of agony. His mouth was dry and sticky, the throat sore as if he had spent the last evening screaming. And if that all wasn't enough, the blood had dried and made his skin itchy and hard like a strange mask.
But this whole pain was nothing against the feeling of utter exhaustion that always accompanied too much use of magic.

Merlin carefully lifted his head to gaze at the surrounding forest, but then let it fall down again with a thud. Only a few more minutes...

"You fools!"

"Why? Better thank us. We've saved y'all a lot of trouble!"

The warlock groaned softly and lifted his head again to stare at the four men that were just about to enter the clearing. So much for having a few moments of peace and quiet.

"You don't get it, do you?"

Merlin frowned as he recognized the voice of the druid leader, Iseldir. The usually ever-calm man looked rather worryingly furious at his three companions. Their cloaks identified them as lower druids, three known troublemakers, of which one currently held his bandaged arm. Slightly alarmed, Merlin rubbed his temples painfully, before he heaved himself up and adjusted his black cloak, waiting patiently until the world stopped turning. Only then he showed himself to the four men.

For a moment there was only startled silence- to the four it must seem like he had appeared out of thin air.

Which I kind of have, the warlock pondered. If 'invisible' is seen the same as 'disappeared'.

Unsurprisingly, Iseldir was the first to recover.

"Ah, Emrys. We were looking for you."

Merlin almost rolled his eyes at the relieved tone.

"What is it now?"

"We have the Prince" one of the men, the wounded one, threw in before Iseldir had the chance to speak. For a moment everything seemed to freeze in confusion. Even the birds fell silent, listening intently.

"You have the Prince?" Merlin repeated with barely covered shock. The three men didn't notice his tone, nor the quick glance Iseldir and Merlin exchanged, as they stood with pride-swelled chests.

"Yeah. Right off his golden chambers. Should've seen that look... ain't no great king in his dirty clothes, is he?"

Both Iseldir and Merlin just stared at him in shock, and slowly the man seemed to comprehend his mistake. "What? A 'Thank you, James' would be nice. Was me after all who planned it."

"James" Merlin said very calm to the sulking man. "You know that kidnapping the Crown Prince is seen as an act of war?"

The druid just beamed at him, his two companions nodding enthusiastically to every word. Iseldir sighed hopelessly.

"Of course we will have war! We will force the King to give up his throne, won't we, and then we conquer Camelot and those damn bloody idiots will regret ever chasing us. Happy end'n all."

The druid leader looked on the brink of tearing his hair out at the speech. Merlin knew exactly what he felt like.

"So you thought you would just kidnap him, right?"

They nodded, big smiles plastered on their faces.

"And Uther won't search his son, will he?"

A mutual shaking of their heads, though this time a tad unsure. Some brain, after all.

"And surely he won't kill random peasants either?"

Finally the stupid grins were replaced with a slight frown.

"Well, I thought-"

"No!" Merlin interrupted him harsh, taking a step towards their obvious leader. He was glad for the hood to hide his grim smile when all three backed away, suddenly not all-confident anymore. Merlin usually didn't want to scare people, but for the life he lived grim, always-hooded and mighty Emrys was so much more useful than friendly Merlin.

"No" he repeated softer. "You didn't think at all. The King has to see your petty kidnapping as an attack to his honour, land and life. It is an act of war and will be treated as such. Within the week Camelot will have sent the news everywhere and form countless search parties. Uther will start another purge on the citizens- innocent men and women, loved families. No one is safe." He paused to let his words sink in. "I would give us, let's say, a week until we are found and maybe another one to form an army and overrun us. I am powerful" he added with a meaningful glare, seeing their protests "and I will protect you as long as I can. But not even I am able to stop a whole army."

The two quieter men seemed to have understood, both staring sheepishly and a little guilty at their feet, but their leader still gazed at Merlin with a strange small frown.

"Well-"

"Stop!"

This time it was Iseldir who interrupted James. "You have already done enough today. For your actions, you will spend a week in the cave. Without talking, little food and only the water from the walls. Maybe then you all can see clearer. And now go. I'm sure Lord Emrys has better things to do than listen to your rambling."

Without another word, all three bowed shortly and left, James only after sending a glare in Merlin's direction.
The warlock and the druid leader waited until they were out of hearing distance before Merlin nodded thankfully. His head still felt like it had gotten under a heavy warhorse's hooves, making it hard to concentrate, and his whole being strained to just lie down and rest right here and now. Merlin sighed. Why couldn't his life be simple only once?

"Prince Arthur is in the Red cave and, I believe, still unconscious" Iseldir's quiet voice broke his thoughts. When Merlin looked up he caught the older man's sympathetic look, which strangely and despite his hatred of pity didn't bother him anymore. Iseldir was as close to a father as Merlin had had in years and one of the only who had seen Merlin's face and dared to talk freely. Plus, there was no reason to deny his exhaustion- the druid leader knew strong magic's effects better than anyone. So Merlin just shrugged, both falling silent for a few minutes.

A bird resumed his song above them, the clear notes reverberating softly in the chilly air of late evening, almost like a lullaby. The last sun rays formed a beautiful pattern of light and shadows on the forest floor, only making it even more inviting to lie down and rest. Merlin blinked heavily, working hard to resist the temptation.
Finally, Iseldir broke the sleepy silence again.

"What will you do now?"

The warlock debated for a second before he forced a careless smile on his face, even though the other man was unlikely to see it under the hood and less to be deceived.

"Well how about returning to the camp? I believe there's a Prince waiting yearningly for my visit."

Hope you liked it... just a few things:

1. The girl in the fire isn't a love interest for Merlin. She just reminds him of someone from his family who was killed sometime ago.
2. While Iseldir is the druid leader and first of the Elders, Merlin (Lord Emrys) is their King, so they will always come with thier smaller problems to Iseldir and with the bigger ones to Merlin.
3. Apart from Iseldir, virtually no one there knows what Merlin looks like. Basically so he could be the 'great Emrys' and isn't seen as some stupid half-grown.
4. "Ábæde ús æt sé friþsumum bearunæse!" = "Take us to the safe shore!"

Review Responses:

Clairepenndragon: Woah, I'm really gald you think it's great. Thanks! :D
Merlin will meet Arthur next chapter... it's from Arthur's POV and he is pretty angry, that will be fun to write^^. I'll try to get it done soon, though I'll write the next chapter for Master of Thiefs first, so it could still take a while.

minnie: Thanks for your review :D. After this response, I'll definitely continue, though I don't really know all of the plot yet... well, we'll see^^.

zara: Thanks for your review and the confidence boost. It helped a lot! :D I hope this came soon enough... :)

Kthln: Thank you for your review :). I never thought so many people would like the idea- but well, I'm definitely glad you do :D. I'll try to update soon, though might take a while.

So... I'm really happy everyone liked last chapter so much and hope you liked this one as well... if not, please tell me what to change. If you do... well, I can always use confidence boosts :).
Anyway, I try to continue soon, like I already said to some, but it might take a while. Hope you don't mind too much :D. Oh, and this chapter was surprisingly long for me. Please don't expect me to keep this length- I'll probably be back down on half of it next chapter ;).