Thank you sooooooo much to all those who have reviewed, favourited and alerted my story. I'm so happy to know that you're enjoying it. Well, now that I've left you all in suspense at the end of that last chapter, lets see what you make of this one. Enjoy :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.


Chapter 4

Arthur turned towards him.

"Now. What on earth was all that about?"

"What on earth was what about?"

Arthur pointed a finger accusingly and whispered. "You cast magic!"

Merlin allowed a split second pause as he tried to contain the ball of fear which had just settled into his stomach. "No I didn't."

"Yes you did"

"Did not"

"Did"

"I think I'd know if I'd cast magic Arthur." That made Arthur stop. The Prince blinked as he considered this, before drawing his arm back to his side and plonking himself down next to his servant.

"True." Merlin breathed a sigh of relief. "I guess if could have been a trick of the light. A coincidence. Nothing more." Okay, Merlin was confused now.

"What was a coincidence"

"Nothing. Don't worry about it."

"But you've got me interested now. I'm intrigued. Come on, tell me."

Arthur sighed in annoyance. They both knew that Merlin was going to win this one.

"Fine. I'll tell you. You were dreaming, said something about wind and woke up. The fire must have reflected in your eyes or something, because for a second there they looked like they has turned golden. Right at that moment, that stupid wind suddenly blew through the camp." He turned to Merlin. "I guess I just got a bit jumpy from being on watch. I mean, you didn't even say any magic words or anything anyway."

He looked away again, a bit grumpy at having to admit that he had jumped to conclusions. "There. I've told you. Happy now?"

Merlin quickly shifted his gaze, trying to hide what he knew must be expressed in his eyes. Had he actually done it? Had he used magic in his sleep? Surely not. Surely he'd know. Arthur was right. It was a coincidence. Nothing more. Swallowing, he turned back to the man sitting at his side.

"Of course sire. Now, if you don't mind…" He gestured, indicating where Arthur had sat on the edge of his blanket.

"Oh, of course." He stood. "And Merlin…" There was a pause in which they gazed at each other, the elder of the two with concern evident in his eyes before he gave an embarrassed cough, "I'll, um, be right over here if you need to talk."

"Thank you sire." He almost laughed at how awkward the Prince seemed. The man really couldn't deal with emotion at all.

Merlin lay back down again, turning over so he faced away from his friend before he allowed his worry to show on his face. He had a lot of thinking to do. A lot. It was just a shame that he couldn't seem to keep his eyes open.


Arthur could have sworn that there had been a hint of fear in Merlin's eyes as he had quickly turned his face away after the young man gave his description of what he had seen, hiding his expression. But he was confused. What could Merlin have to be afraid about? He had been right- there was no way Merlin could be a Sorcerer. It was impossible for him to have used magic. Besides, if the young man had been a sorcerer, was it really likely that he'd have moved right to the heart of Camelot- right under the King's nose- and stayed there for two whole years? Merlin may be an idiot, but he wasn't quite that stupid.

No, something was certainly going on with his servant, but it definitely wasn't anything magical. That he could be sure of. The problem was that he had absolutely no idea what the problem could be. There was no choice- he'd have to talk to Merlin tomorrow. Find out what was wrong. He would never admit it, but it really bothered Arthur to see his friend suffer like this. They needed to get to the root of the problem, before Merlin ended up getting himself hurt or becoming ill.

A new bout of fitful mumbling from where Merlin lay jolted him out of his reverie.

Tomorrow. They could talk tomorrow.


The next morning, Merlin felt even worse. Clutching his head, he felt a wave of nausea wash over him. He couldn't continue like this for much longer. He had slept in fitful intervals of about five minutes, his dreams waking him each time. For most of the night, he had just lain there, wondering desperately if this was in fact affecting his magic- making him lose control of his lifelong source of comfort and strength.

Seeing the Knights beginning to stand around him, he clambered shakily to his feet. Picking up his blanket, he began to walk over to his horse- only to collapse before he was even halfway there.

"Merlin!" Arthur's voice rang out as he ran over to where Merlin lay and crouched down next to him. "Merlin!"

Blinking his eyes in confusion, Merlin sat up.

"Wh-what the…" He looked at the Prince, and allowed a small smile to flit across his face. "Well, that was an unexpected trip."

He tried to stand once again, only to have Arthur's firm grip keep him in place.

"Oh no you don't- you're not moving from that spot until I'm sure you're okay to move."

"I'm fine." The words sounded fake even to himself. In truth, he really didn't feel like he would have the strength to walk for a while yet- but rather that he might just collapse at any moment.

"No Merlin, you're not fine." The Prince spoke in his usual brisk, matter-of-fact tones. "You will stay in that spot until I say otherwise. That's an order Merlin." He looked around at his Knights, who were standing watching the scene with concern evident on their faces. "I shall stay with him for today. You men continue the search from where we left off yesterday."

Ignoring the protests from the Knights that he should be the one to stay behind just to watch over a servant, he quickly relayed an order to Leon that he would be leading the search for the day.

It seemed like an age before the Knights eventually left. The Prince stayed by his manservant's side the entire time. Checking that the young man would be okay walking, he grabbed him by the arm and supported his weight as they made their way back to where they had lain the night before.

"Come on Merlin, you're going back to sleep."

Merlin froze for a second, before shaking his head.

"I can't Arthur, I just can't."

Arthur sighed, forcing his friend down into a sitting position before turning and sitting opposite him, looking him straight in the eye.

"Look, I know you're having trouble sleeping, but you have to at least try. You can't continue like this." Another shake of the head. Merlin met his gaze, and Arthur was shocked by the level of fear and pain evident in those normally clear blue eyes.

"You don't get it Arthur. I can't. I can't face it all again. All those images, all that pain. I can't face it again." He clutched his head briefly in his hands before looking up once more.

"Every time I close my eyes, all I see is sadness, anger, pain. It hurts Arthur. I can't escape it." He hung his head, kneading the palm of his hand against his brow. "It's all coming back, and there's nothing I can do."

Arthur watched, a lump rising in his chest as he saw the tears of frustration filling his friend's eyes. All of those times Merlin had been there for him- through every trial he faced, every frustration he felt, the boy had always been there to offer a cheeky grin and a quirky comment, and even occasionally the odd word of wisdom. Was there nothing he could do for the younger man? For once, Merlin needed him. And he had no idea what to do. He was completely useless.


So there you are. Hope you liked it, and please review :)