I'm so sorry that this is a little later than I wanted it to be. My life has been crazy! I'm preparing to move 3,000 miles away from my current home and am getting a new computer and it's just been insane. On to the story, cuz I'm sure you don't care what's happening in my life. :) This chapter is longer than most of my chapers usually are, and I found that I couldn't fit the rescue in here, so that's next chapter! Enjoy!
Chapter 4
The next morning was bright and pretty and Merlin couldn't help but wish he'd slept through it. Instead, he'd been awoken at some ungodly hour by a small man with black hair throwing his drapes open and then been told that he was expected on the practice field in half an hour. By the time he was ready he was already five minutes late, and it was ten minutes later when he finally found his way to the practice field, where knights stood in small groups while others sparred or sharpened their swords.
Morgana was there already, stretching her legs and flexing her fingers. She gave Merlin a look when he jogged up to where she stood, a little ways away from the Knights of Camelot.
"Why are you so late?" she hissed, changing legs. He flopped down on the grass beside her and bent his own legs into a a stretch.
"I'm always late. Besides, you didn't wait for me and I got lost on the way down here," he said defensively, curling his fingers around his toes and touching his nose to his knees.
Morgana stood up straight and grabbed her sword from the rack right next to them. "Well, at least try not to let it happen again," she said finally, conceding implicitly to his point.
Merlin switched stretches. "I'll try, but I don't have a map of the entire castle in my head like you do!"
"Keep your voice down!" she said quietly, emphatically. "I will not be caught because of your foolishness."
Merlin winced. She had a point. "Sorry Morgana."
She smiled, her irritation melting away. It was always difficult for her to remain irritated with Merlin for long. Angry, yes, but not irritated. "Just don't let it happen again."
Merlin's reply was cut off as Arthur called to Morgana from across the field. "Lady Morgana! Are you ready?"
She turned to look at him, gray eyes playful. "If you are, sire. That's still time for you to back out if you so desire."
The blonde prince laughed. "Same goes for you, my friend. I however, am staying. You can't lose me so easily."
Merlin stood up beside Morgana and she fixed her eyes on him. "Wish me luck," she said, smirking.
He gave a low chuckle and put a hand on her shoulder. "He's the one who needs it."
She gave him a bright smile and without another word turned and stalked to the center of the field they were using as a training ground. A layer of grass covered it and the other knights stood in a circle around Arthur, forming the sparring ring. Sir Leon approached Merlin, his chain mail looking incredibly uncomfortable. The warlock shifted, thankful he wore loose cotton clothes rather than layers of metal.
"I do hope that the Lady Morgana is as good as you say she is," the knight said, clearly not hoping for that. They watched in silence for a moment as Morgana approached the prince, their unsheathed swords glittering dangerously.
Merlin chuckled again. He could sense the knight's insincerity and could tell that he wished to knock the visitors off their high horses. "Believe me, Arthur had best not hold back simply because she's a girl. More experienced men than he have fallen prey to that trap."
"I do not believe that Arthur is one to hold back simply because she is a woman. Besides, once he gets an idea of her skill, he will adjust if necessary. We don't want anyone getting hurt." Leon smiled with his eyes, this time allowing the truth of his words to come through.
For a second, Merlin considered this. He knew that Morgana was beautiful, and caught the eye of many men. It hadn't occurred to him that that might be an obstacle here, but he realized how foolish he had been. It was obvious that she would attract attention, especially in Camelot, since they would be staying for a while. The thought ignited a funny feeling in his chest, but he pushed it away and concentrated on the moment. "No, we don't. I believe that Arthur is in more danger than Morgana right now, though."
"We shall see," the knight said. "I know we were introduced at dinner, but we have not personally met yet." He stuck out his hand for Merlin to shake. Despite his desire to show the visitors who was better on the battlefield, Sir Leon was friendly and kind. "We should talk sometime. I would love to hear of your homeland."
"That would be nice. It is wonderful to finally speak to you, Sir Leon," Merlin said, taking hold of Leon's fingers and praying that he did not have to kill this man in the future.
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Morgana sized Arthur up as she walked across the field to meet him. He walked arrogantly, more of a strut than a walk, and held the hilt of his weapon loosely, with an ease that spoke of years of familiarity. She had fought men like him before. They always assumed that because she was a woman they could easily beat her. It was never long before they realized their mistake.
The opponents met in the center of the field and bowed before turning and taking five paces away from each other. Morgana turned, raising her sword and narrowing her eyes. Arthur did the same. For several long moments they stood there, each waiting for the other to make a move.
Suddenly Arthur did, stepping forward and bringing his sword out and around, towards Morgana's neck. She ducked, and the sword whistled harmlessly over her head. She laughed loudly, eyes glittering.
"Please, Arthur. Don't patronize me." Her sword was raised again. "Now let's do this properly." She stabbed forward, at the prince's gut, her blade sliding along his with an ear-grating metallic noise. Morgana stepped around him and twisted her wrist, freeing her sword. Arthur swung as though to strike her chest, but was blocked by Morgana's sword. She levered the sword up and Arthur stumbled backward, swinging wildly in an attempt to regain his footing. The witch paused, allowing him time to regain his footing.
Silently, they circled around each other and Merlin noticed how much Morgana resembled a snake, coiled and ready to lunge towards her unwitting prey. He smiled inwardly at the thought.
Arthur spun out, his blade slashing towards Morgana's head. She ducked, twisting like a snake to avoid the blow and stabbing towards the Prince's stomach with her sword. He stepped to the side, and her sword missed his breastplate by a millimeter. With lightning reflexes, she brought her sword up, the movement causing the prince's hair to ruffle.
He ducked instinctively and took a step back back, then swung two handed at the black-haired girl's midriff. She dropped towards the ground, then used her hands to push herself up into a crouch and swung one foot out. It connected with the back of Arthur's knee and his legs buckled, unprepared for the sudden change in balance. The heavy armor he wore allowed for little quick adjustment, and the half-second he needed in order to correct his stability was all Morgana needed. She moved, snakelike in her grace and swung her arm around to lay her shimmering blade against his throat from behind. For a second, everything was still.
Then she removed the sword and stepped around the prince, offering him her hand. He took it and hauled himself to his feet, locking his eyes on her, breathing hard.
"Nice try," Morgana said finally, removing her hand and shifting back. Arthur clambered to his feet, more than a little shocked that the lady had beaten him. She looked like a strong gust of wind could blow her away if she wasn't careful.
"How did you-" he began, reaching for his sword where it lay in the grass. "Nobody's ever-"
Morgana flipped her hair from her face and grinned at him. She was barely even breathing hard and looked like she could have gone on for quite a while longer. "Sire, it is a combination of hard training, a refusal to be put down, and people who don't believe I can handle a sword that has allowed me to beat endless numbers of good fighters. Now I have another name to add to my list."
Arthur gaped at her. "What about a rematch? Tomorrow, perhaps? Of you could show me some of your tricks, I could show you mine."
Morgana turned the proposition over in her mind. If she refused, she might lose the chance to befriend the prince and through him, the knights. If she accepted, they could lose time and she would be forced to spend more time with the arrogant prat of a prince. But they couldn't risk losing the good will of anyone at Camelot court. She'd had her fun – it was time to work. A smile plastered itself across her face.
"I would love to, Arthur." The prince gave her a weak smile. She could tell he was embarrassed, and she needed to find some way to rectify it. Even if that meant risking the dignity of her companion. She cast a look over her shoulder, to where Merlin stood awkwardly, nose wrinkled and eyes squinted against the harsh glare of the sun. She gave an internal giggle. Who was she kidding? Merlin had no dignity to risk.
"Maybe if you spar with Merlin you'll feel better, sire," she said, grinning. "I always do."
Arthur laughed despite himself. "Well, how can I resist after that endorsement?"
Morgana turned to Merlin and grossed the field, holding out the hilt of her sword to him. "Merlin, Prince Arthur had issued his challenge. Do you accept?"
Merlin's eyes widened. "Are you sure he meant me?" he called back.
"Yes," Morgana sighed in mild exasperation. She crooked her finger at him, motioning him onto the field. Reluctantly, he crossed the grass and reached for the sword she held. As his fingers took hold, Morgana put her other hand on his shoulder and leaned in almost imperceptibly.
"Let him win," she whispered, then moved past him. Any observer (and there were plenty) would have seen nothing suspicious in the gesture – just one friend showing support for another. Morgana knew that he probably couldn't beat Arthur in simply a swordfight, but using magic, no matter how subtle, would certainly enable him to win, and that was the last thing they wanted or needed. They needed Arthur to win, as heinous as that sounded to her.
Merlin, though a little annoyed that a fool would be made out of him instead of Morgana, understood her reasoning and agreed with it. Keeping Arthur in a good mood and friendly towards them was maybe the best thing they could do right now. If the prince didn't trust them, he could influence the king, who could influence Gaius, and that would put the entire plan at risk.
Resolving to someday pay the prince back in kind, Merlin allowed himself to be soundly defeated. The fight lasted all of two minutes but by the end, Arthur looked very satisfied with himself as he laid the flat of his sword against the warlock's chest.
"Well," the prince said, lowering the blade and eyeing the false lord. "Morgana was right. Fighting you does make me feel better. We shall have to keep you around a while longer, eh?" He smiled good-naturedly and slapped Merlin on the back.
Merlin gave a weak smile as well, accompanying Arthur as he walked to the edge of the ring of knights, who were dispersing as they saw the action end. "Maybe I will, sire, seeing as I have no home to go to."
Arthur looked at the younger man, the smile slipping off his face as he remembered his guests' plight. "You and the Lady Morgana will always have a place to stay here, Lord Merlin. My father is very sympathetic to those in need, especially if they are being persecuted for no reason."
It took all of Merlin's strength to stop his lip from curling in disgust at the hypocrisy pouring out of Arthur's mouth. "I should probably go see Gaius now," he said instead, handing Morgana's sword to a nearby servant to be cleaned. "After all, I am a man of words and books, not of swords or fights."
Arthur smiled at him again, trying to smooth over the rough moment. "Do you know how to find his rooms?"
"Yes, I believe so," Merlin replied. "Thank you. I guess I will see you later." The prince nodded, and Merlin turned and left the field. It was time to worm his way into the confidence of the man who would unwittingly help him kill the king.
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Merlin climbed a set of winding stairs and emerged into a hallway. A single door was set into the left hand side, with a small wooden plaque hanging on the wall beside it. It identified the room as belonging to Gaius, the court physician.
The door itself was open, and Merlin knocked hesitantly on it, peering into the cluttered room beyond. Tables were covered in papers, books, bundles of herbs, and glass decanters half-full of oddly colored liquids. The walls were lined with shelves, cases, and cabinets, all full of the same things that lay strewn across the surfaces. Along one wall a rickety staircase led up to an even more rickety platform with yet more books on shelves. A small cot was pushed into a corner and directly across from where Merlin stood was a set of three stairs leading up to another wooden door, this one closed.
"Hello," Merlin called when his knock failed to elicit any sort of response. "Mr Gaius?"
A muffled crashing noise, like the sound of a large pile of books falling from a table to a stone floor, came from behind the door, swiftly followed by a very loud and irritated "Oh bother!"
"Mr Gaius," Merlin called again, a little worried now.
"'I'm quite all right!" came the prompt, if somewhat breathless, reply. "I will be there in just a moment."
Merlin hesitated, bouncing on the balls of his feet before taking a couple of steps into the room. It was very messy, he noted, a little surprised. Gaius had not struck him as the unclean type. Still, he was glad. Back at his home on the Isle of the Blessed, his room constantly looked as through a hurricane had swept through. It was one of Morgana's pet peeves, and she had spent a great many fruitless hours trying to convince him to keep it clean.
The door across the room opened and the old man appeared at the head of the steps, carrying a large square book. Merlin hurried to take it from the physician.
"Here, let me help you with that," he said quickly, taking the book into his arms.
"Oh thank you," Gaius replied, clearing a space on a nearby table and motioning for Merlin to set the book down. Merlin did so, marveling at how something made only of paper could weigh so very much. "Now what bring you here today, my lord?" Gaius asked, turning to the warlock.
"Well sir," Merlin began, a little slow as he thought about how to phrase his response. "I wanted to speak to you about starting my studies, Mr Gaius. You see, I have wanted to learn for so long, and with all this time I have on my hands, I figured why not begin as soon as possible?" Merlin was not sure how convincing the half-lie was, but the physician seemed to buy it, smiling widely at him.
"It's wonderful to see a young mind so eager to learn," he said, running his fingers over the cover of the book. "We don't get many of those around here, unfortunately."
Merlin gave him a gracious smile. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately, but none of them were real. It was more than a little ironic. "That is too bad," he agreed. "Where should we start, Mr Gaius?"
The old man laughed shortly. "Oh please, just call me Gaius. 'Mister' is far too formal."
"Alright," Merlin said. This seemed to be going well, but he was not always the best judge of such situations.
"I am sorry about the state of my chambers," the physician added, turning to look at the disaster. "I was searching for a book and didn't quite realize what a mess I had made." Gaius looked around nervously, as though Merlin might chastise him for not being neat.
"It's no problem," Merlin said hastily. "My room back home was much worse. Morgana used to tease me endlessly and the servants would draw lots to decide who would have to clean it."
Gaius laughed. "The servants have just stopped coming in here entirely." He was silent for a moment, surveying the chaos that surrounded them. "Well, I guess I'd better get on to cleaning this up. I'm not sure that today is the best day to begin your education." His eyes met Merlin's a little regretfully.
"Perhaps I can help you," Merlin offered without thinking. "We can talk while we work."
Gaius raised an eyebrow, "Are you positive?" he asked a little skeptically. "It is not a nobleman's place-"
Merlin interrupted him. "I am your student now, Gaius. It is my job to help you with mundane everyday tasks like these."
"Well, if you must," the old physician amended, stepping over to Merlin's side and surveying the room. "Why don't you pick up all the bottles that are scattered around," he suggested.
"Sure," the warlock responded, beginning to pick his way across the room to one of the tables. "Where should I put them?" he asked, gathering a few into his hands and looking around.
"On that shelf," Gaius told him, gesturing at a very messy shelf of similar bottles. "We can organize them later."
Merlin smiled to show he'd heard and moved over to the shelf, casting a glance at the physician as he did so. Gaius was leafing through stacks of paper, separating them into piles of loose-leaf pages, books, and scrolls. The large square book sat untouched at the end of one of the tables.
"What were you looking for?" Merlin asked, turning to pick up more little glass bottles.
"Excuse me?" Gaius replied, looking up from his work.
"The book." Merlin nodded at said object. "What's in it?"
"Oh, just old remedies. Uther has been complaining of back pains, and no matter what I give him, he says they won't go away. This book is a little radical in its ideas, but I hoped it would hold a possible cure for the king," Gaius explained.
"Oh." Merlin returned to his work, thinking how best to phrase his next question. He knew that Gaius would not be bold enough to speak out against him if he demanded something, but he didn't want to make him suspicious either. Morgana had warned him that the physician had the king's ear. But, Merlin decided, it was for more likely that Gaius would simply think him eager to learn.
"Are you going to make it later today?" Merlin asked over the clinking of glass on glass.
"Yes, actually I was," Gaius said, a little surprised. "Why do you ask?"
Merlin shrugged. "I wanted to know if I could watch or help. I really would like to learn as much as possible."
Gaius gave the boy a toothy grin. "Of course, you are welcome," he replied. "It is always nice to see someone so eager to learn."
Merlin smiled, a genuine smile at last. Finally he would be well on his way to accomplishing something. Except, only Uther took that medicine … so how would he administer poison to that arrogant prat prince? Gaius was the key, Merlin decided. If he could get close to the physician, he could get anything done. The old man seemed to be in such a good mood that it made Merlin feel more than a little guilty. If he played his cards right, the lonely old man would give him everything.
Please review and tell me what you think, your thoughts are always important. And how many of you saw the trailer for season 4? I am SO EXCITED there aren't even words. What did y'all think of that?