Title: Heads and Tales: Part 3
Author: Hermitknut
Pairing: Merlin/Arthur
Rating: PG at the moment, might become PG-13 or even 15 at a later date.
Warnings: Slash, a bit of violence in this chapter.
Summary: Merlin and Arthur; two names that are heard together throughout history. But both are falling into easily laid traps as well as love, and it seems that they might not ever reach their destiny.
Disclaimer: Not mine – if it was then I wouldn't be posting on here, now, would I?
A/N: Chapter index is here. This fic will now be updated every two weeks, on a Friday, and I can now confirm that it will be made up of six parts, not including the Prologue, Interlude (up next) and Epilogue. Thanks for reading so far!

Isa and Jethar followed quietly when Emrys left around noon. The walk was long and they often had to stop to untangle the warding spells Emrys was leaving behind him. Finally, about an hour before dusk, Emrys entered a clearing and stopped, sitting down in the long grass apparently to wait. Isa and Jethar settled themselves a distance away, well-hidden.

Within a few minutes, there was a new arrival. A young man, about the same age as Emrys but more strongly built, appeared almost silently on the opposite edge of the clearing. Emrys stood.

Isa and Jethar stiffened, reacting to the tension in the air, expecting a fight, but they were wrong. After a moment's appraising pause, the two young men moved together and kissed, passionate, strong, hands in each other's hair, hands running down spines, each desperate for the other. Jethar took Isa's hand, thinking to pull her away and give Emrys and his friend some privacy, when the two young men slowed and stopped, breathing heavily. Emrys leaned into the stranger's embrace though they were hardly different in height, his waist willingly encircled by the stranger's arms, the stranger's blond hair mingling dramatically with Emrys' black. The stranger spoke first.

"I missed you." His voice was softer and more tender than Jethar had expected. Emrys replied only with a quiet murmur that Jethar couldn't quite discern. The stranger gave a low laugh.

"Liar."

Emrys smiled slowly, his expression delighted but unsurprised.

"Alright, I missed you too," he replied, his teasing tone undermined by his serious eyes. "Happy?"

"Hardly," the stranger replied. "Can't be with you so far away. It's getting more and more difficult to get away to see you."

Emrys watched him closely, concerned.

"How are things at home?" he asked. "We don't get much news out here, it's too risky."

The stranger shrugged and disentangled himself from Emrys, sitting on the ground. Emrys joined him.

"Camelot is much the same," he said. "There's a curfew now, and security is tighter than usual, but that's hardly news."

Isa and Jethar looked at each other, startled. The stranger was from Camelot! Perhaps not surprising, given that Emrys had come from there; but still, a citizen of Camelot this close to the druid's camp could mean nothing good.

"I'm surprised you could get here," Emrys said quietly. He looked up at the sky. "You'll barely make it back before nightfall, even if you leave now."

"I know." There was a pause. "But I had to see you, even for a few minutes."

After a moment, Emrys leant over and they kissed again, gently. When they reluctantly parted, Emrys stood, and offered the stranger a hand to pull him to his feet.

"You should go," Emrys said quietly. "You'll be missed."

The stranger nodded and kissed him again before walking away to the edge of the clearing and disappearing. Emrys stood, motionless, as he left. After a minute or so, Jethar took Isa's hand again and drew her away.

"We need to get back before he does," he muttered. She nodded and they made their way back to camp.

,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,..,.,.,.

"Keep going! Don't stop running!"

Merlin kept his eyes forward as he ran, knowing that if he didn't he was bound to trip over something, but in between dodging trees he called forward to Arthur.

"How – can – you –" he panted, "run – and – shout – at – the – same – time?"

Arthur let out a loud laugh completely unmerited, Merlin thought, by the seriousness of the situation.

"Come on, Merlin, keep up!"

He sped up himself, and was quickly out of sight. Merlin swore under his breath. There was a growl behind him and he made the mistake of looking over his shoulder. His foot caught a fallen branch, and he went down without warning.

He was back on his feet almost immediately, but already the growling was getting louder. There was a sudden rustling ahead, and Arthur reappeared.

"Merlin, you idiot, come on – I'm not leaving you behind," he said.

"Didn't know you cared."

"I don't. I just don't want to deal with the hassle of getting a new manservant – now get a move on!"

They set off running again at a reasonable speed, but the noise behind them was much louder than before.

"It's going to catch up," Merlin said. Arthur's mouth was set in a grim line, all traces of his previous good humour gone from his face. The growling got even louder. Merlin saw a flash of red ahead as they caught up with the knights, and made his decision. He gave Arthur a hard shove, knocking him to the ground – because whatever the prince liked to think, Merlin had some strength at his command – and then darted back in another direction. He heard Arthur shouting behind him but he tuned him out, running indirectly to the source of the growling. He had to lead the creature away from Arthur.

He came upon it more suddenly than he had expected, but luckily from the side. He grabbed a couple of stones from the ground and threw them, hard. The beast roared at turned towards him. Merlin let it get a good look at him before throwing a final stone and running away, the creature fast behind him.

I knew there was something wrong with that castle, Merlin thought somewhat self-righteously as he ran. He had been right. Not that his prat of a lover had believed him until they had had this creature set on them upon their leaving. Merlin tried to shove thoughts of Arthur out of his mind – really, he was a horrendous distraction – as he ran this way and that, leaping over fallen trees and leading the creature ever-further away from Arthur and his knights.

,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,

When Emrys returned, Isa and Jethar had already spoken with the elders, Jethar doing most of the talking.
"He's just meeting a friend," he had said. "I don't think it's anything to be worried about."

"What kind of friend would travel so far just to meet?" Farson asked suspiciously. Jethar glanced at Isa, who gave a little giggle, blushing. Mylan raised his eyebrows.

"Are we to understand that they are perhaps more than merely friends?" he asked. Jethar nodded, and Mylan smiled.

"There is no harm in the young man going to meet his love," he said kindly. Farson and the others nodded, some a little reluctantly, but most with humour in their eyes.

When they all sat around the fire that evening there were more than a few intrigued and good-humoured glances thrown in Emrys' direction, but fortunately he didn't seem to notice. Jethar watched him as closely as he dared, and has he closed his eyes to sleep than night he found himself wondering what it would be like to share something like that with another man. To hold a body like yours instead of full curves; to not need to bend down a little to kiss; to run hands through the untidy black hair… he stopped those thoughts right there. Emrys was not his, he couldn't be thinking like that.

But Jethar couldn't help the tiny part of him that hoped that the blond man would not meet with Emrys again.

,.,.,.,.,.,..,.,.

Merlin had finally lured the creature to a clearing. He was bruised and battered and dripping wet – he'd fallen into a little stream on the way – and most definitely out of breath, but now there was space, and more importantly he could work magic unseen.

He summoned crackling magic to his hands, and threw it with all the force he could muster. But some of those bruises were beginning to make themselves felt, and as he moved suddenly to dodge the creature's claw he felt the dizzying sensation of a rib moving unnaturally under his skin. He swallowed back nausea, and summoned his magic again. But this time he wasn't fast enough. The creature caught him with a bat of its claw, sending him flying backwards. He had just enough sense left to slow himself down in the air, so he didn't land as hard as he could've, but his head hit the tree trunk with a horrible thump. Pain seared along the back of his skull and neck and he winced. His vision was a little blurry as he pulled himself to his feet, but he forced himself to ignore it as well as the sticky dampness he could feel on his neck.

He raised his hand, spells coming quickly to mind despite his dizziness, and cast the powerful magic he knew would kill the beast, pulling the power from within him as he always did, expelling it out of one outstretched hand –

"Merlin!"

Arthur. But it was too late, the spell was gone. It hit the creature and consumed it, crumbling it to ashes. Merlin turned to where the cry of his name had come from and saw Arthur staring at him, his face ashen. Merlin reached out an arm, unthinking, just wanting to communicate, to touch –

Arthur drew his sword violently.

"Get away from me, sorcerer!"

His voice is shaking. The words are made all the worse by the betrayal in Arthur's eyes. Merlin falls back a step, his arm dropping to his side, desperately struggling for the right thing to say. But the choice is taken away from him as he stumbles and the dizziness overwhelms him. The last thing Merlin sees before he passes out is Arthur, leaning over him, calling out his name.