I don't have much to say here, so enjoy the story!
Spoilers for all 3 fandoms up to end of HP (follows the books), end of Merlin, and end of season 4 for OUAT.
Summary: Emma becomes the dark one and starts to terrorize London, Merlin has to fix a couple thousand year-old wrong and Harry Potter has to battle another Dark Lord… Lady… Also starring: Henry, Snowing, Outlaw Queen, R/Hr, H/G, Neville, Elaine (kind of an OC), and other BBC Merlin chars later :D
Chapter 4: Control
MERLIN
Merlin was kind of bored, to put it plainly. He thought that once he started this adventure-the first one in a long time-he'd actually be doing things. Like the times in Camelot where he would be on constant alert, fighting to save Arthur, trying to figure out the next move…..because even though he was usually terrified out of his mind, things were exciting. They were challenging and pushed him to his limits, to be greater. His "quest" right now was nothing more than a glorified scavenger hunt.
Granted, he was going around collecting some of the most powerful items in the world, but when you can teleport… it becomes almost trivial. Neville has been helping him out by collecting some of the more ordinary ingredients; he refused Merlin's wishes to stay uninvolved. He also told Merlin where his next item was, which is how Merlin found himself outside of Hogwarts.
Merlin transported just outside of Hogwarts so as not to trigger the wards around it. Although he was fully capable, disabling the wards just so he could teleport a little closer to Hogwarts seemed like a waste of energy. There was also the matter of alerting everyone there to his presence and leaving them vulnerable to Emma should she decide she wants to attack Hogwarts. So, Merlin just walked there instead under an invisibility spell of his.
He walked around the shores of the lake, his destination now in sight. Dumbledore's grave, the White Tomb. A long time ago, when Merlin defeated Morgana, there simply was nothing powerful enough to defeat her completely. The Sidhe staff could only seal the darkness away in a pocket dimension that then grew over time. Even as the world replenished its magic, there was still nothing strong enough to conduct it. Merlin could use himself as a magic conductor, but that ran the risk of destroying him and then upsetting the magical balance and…..well, he'd rather not think about that.
As Merlin tried to figure out another way to keep the balance stable and destroy the Darkness, a curious thing happened. In one of the worlds he created, a story began to unfold about three impossible items. In this world, Death appeared in front of three brothers and gifted them three items for defeating him: a wand, a stone, and a cloak. Merlin paid little attention to this story that his author made at first, as many stories contained magical items. But then, one day, these items appeared in the real world. These items were powerful enough to break through the limits of their world and enter the real one. Merlin had never anticipated this, he never thought the things he created could become more powerful than he was. He felt rather like a father in that way…
So now he stood in front of the White Tomb to take the Elder Wand. He had lost track of it over time, but when he mentioned a powerful wand to Neville, he was told exactly where it was. The tomb was beautiful, too, made of a pure white stone and built on a small hill overlooking the lake. It was a pity Merlin was grave robbing it. He felt bad about it, he really did, but he needed this wand. If Dumbledore was alive, Merlin was sure he would understand. However, that thought did nothing to alleviate the sour taste he had in his mouth from what he was about to do.
Pushing aside his apprehension, Merlin raised one hand and brought down the wards as gently as he could. While the spells were powerful for new magic users, they were no match for the power of the old religion. Merlin heaved a sigh as he prepared to take off the top of the tomb when he heard someone yelling behind him.
"Young man, step away from there!" a woman's voice intoned behind him. Merlin's eyes widened as he realized who it was and he turned around slowly to confirm it. There, striding towards him purposefully with her wand raised and pointed at him was the current Headmistress of Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall.
"This isn't what it looks like…..okay, maybe it is. But I swear to you there is a good reason for this," Merlin told her, holding his hands up so she could see them. She narrowed her eyes at him and refused to lower her wand.
"There is no good reason for students to be here at this time, not to mention setting off the alarms on the wards." There were alarms on the wards? Merlin was out of practice then, he didn't think they would account for that possibility seeing as the wards should have been able to block all new magic. Gaius surely would have scolded him for not being careful enough. More importantly, student?
"Oh, uh, Headmistress McGonagall, I'm not a student here," Merlin told her. She took another step closer and angled her head a little bit, probably trying to see him more clearly.
"So you are not," she said before she gripped her wand tighter in preparation to attack, "Then you should not be in Hogwarts at all. How did you get past the wards?"
"Um, they let me pass. Look, I need the Elder Wand from Dumbledore in order to defeat the evil that is now descending upon London."
"How do you know about the Elder Wand? And what do you mean, the wards let you pass?" Minerva questioned, still ready to attack him. Merlin was surprised she already hadn't done so, but she was a very reasonable woman. Lucky for him.
"I can't really tell you the answer to those. Even if I did, you wouldn't believe me, but I can assure you I mean no harm to any of the students or staff here and I will only use the Elder Wand for good."
"My boy, while I do not doubt your words, I cannot in good conscience let any unknown man walk the grounds of Hogwarts. Unless you tell me who you are, I will use force to make you leave." Merlin admired her for her courage to stand up to him. She really did belong in the Gryffindor house despite what everyone says. Besides, he knew her to be a good person who would keep his secret if he asked. But first he'd have to convince her.
"Well, it's not like I've been doing a great job at keeping my secret lately anyway, so okay. But, even after I tell you, you won't believe me."
"I would like to be able to decide that for myself."
"You also can't tell anyone else. In order for me to do my job effectively, it's best that not many people know who I am. Will you promise me that you won't tell anyone after I tell you?"
"I will keep your secret so long as it does not jeopardize the safety of my students." Merlin shrugged in response, that was fair enough.
"Ok, the reason the wards let me through them is because I helped make them. And I know about the Elder Wand because I am partially responsible for creating it. My name is Merlin."
Merlin watched as the Headmistress looked him over for signs of deceit. He could see the disbelief written across her face and her unwillingness to accept it. As brave as she was, this was just a little bit too much for her to accept without proof. Merlin sighed, he hated doing this, but unless he did, no one ever really believed he was Merlin.
Before the Headmistress could protest the validity of his claim, Merlin swept his arms and his eyes flashed gold. Merlin saw McGonagall shield her eyes from the spell, caught off guard as she was. And then she began to gape, her wand slowly falling to her side. Merlin had changed into the Great Dragoon, the form that nearly every wizard knew from all those chocolate cards with his picture on them. He watched her blink a few times to try and regain her senses before he chuckled.
"Yes, this form is what everyone seems to recognize me as. It's not as mobile as my other one, being so old. And everything aches. All the time. But it's what historians remember me as so, here we go," Merlin finished with a small flourish of his hands. Minerva still stared at him in shock and he couldn't help it, he had to tease her just a little bit.
"Are you going to give me detention now, Headmistress McGonagall?" Merlin asked with a big grin on his face. McGonagall shook her head at him numbly, her brain still catching up to the present. And then she must have remembered how she was threatening him earlier and the blood drained from her face as her knees collapsed on her. Merlin was ready for it, though, and conjured a chair for her so that as she fell she slumped into it instead.
"Now, you just have a seat while I grab this wand and get out of your hair." Merlin then pushed the top of the tomb off, sliding it carefully over the edge and laying it down on the grass.
"You're Merlin," Minerva said behind him, just above a whisper.
"Yeah, that's me. Powerful sorcerer and all that." Merlin debated whether or not he should turn himself younger again as he hobbled to the tomb. Had being the Great Dragoon always been this tiring?
"But you should be dead."
"Oh, but I'm very much alive, thank you. Been around quite a bit." The wand was placed over Dumbledore's heart with his hands clasped around it. Merlin said a soft prayer and thanked Dumbledore for holding on to it all this time before gently prying it out of his grasp.
"I called you a student."
"That you did. Which isn't completely incorrect, I've been through here a few times as a student."
"You have?" Minerva asked, and Merlin noted that she was coming back now. Good, he had to reaffirm her promise not to tell anyone about him.
"Yes, I find it fun to come through here and learn the latest techniques of wand magic."
"But you don't need a wand," the Headmistress noted. Merlin shrugged.
"I can use one, it just isn't as instinctual for me. But in the case of this wand," Merlin held up the Elder Wand, "I will make an exception. Also, you will not tell anyone about me. I rather like my privacy."
"Of course, Merlin."
"Good. Well, good day Headmistress McGonagall. It was a lovely chat," Merlin said with a slight incline to his head and then he turned himself invisible. While invisible, he reverted back to his younger age and began to walk to Hogsmeade.
As he walked away, he heard McGonagall muttering under her breath, "I can't believe I just talked with the Merlin…" causing Merlin to chuckle. He never felt like he ever did anything that deserving or great, but everyone revered him as some sort of saint. Or God. Or some new way to curse inventively with his beard or pants….which are technically trousers, but that's beside the point. Merlin accomplished what he came here to. Soon, he would have everything he needed. Soon, he would be able to face the Dark One.
EMMA
Emma wasn't quite sure how she felt about the recent developments she'd set in motion. On the one hand, it seemed like the right thing to do. No one should have to live their lives in fear or try to hide who they really are. They should be proud of their magical abilities and work together with muggles to make things better for everyone. On the other hand, Emma very much felt like she just started a cult and became their leader. Not something she was quite comfortable with.
Most of the people that joined her were rather normal people who were looking for something to believe in. Emma gathered from the many conversations she'd had that most wizards lost faith in their government, the Ministry of Magic, a long time ago despite the many improvements they were making. Emma related it to how McDonald's would always be known for terrible quality no matter what they did to their food. Either way, it worked in her favor quite well.
But then, there were the psychopaths that joined her. These people were descendants of those who worked for Voldemort and were trying to make her into him. Overall, they were ruthless with no morals and a lust for power that they thought Emma could provide. And she could, if she wanted to. There was that little voice in the back of her head saying that she should indulge them and make them all powerful, but her sensible side told her that giving them too much power would only hurt her.
Instead, Emma bided her time and made her main priority spreading her ideals around. They already knew she was powerful, so she didn't need a power display. The government couldn't track her since she used a different type of magic than they did. What she needed was to figure out how many people she had and what they could do in order to plan accordingly.
Her goal remained the same though: make muggles aware of magic. So in addition to spreading the word to get new followers, she created a charm that would mimic the effects of the potion she used. It was only temporary, but with the amount of people she had, they'd manage to cover a lot of area. This also allowed her followers to remain anonymous, subtly applying the charm she made as they went about their daily lives. She didn't want to cause a commotion, not yet.
Emma sighed as she lay back in her chair, she would have to make her next move soon, and this time it would have to be powerful. More than just showing up at the Ministry of Magic. This would have to get the attention of the world, but in a non-aggressive way. Even as she thought that, something tugged at her, tempting her to burn an entire city to the ground or cause a massive tidal wave. It was hard to temper that lure.
"Lady Emma?" someone asked as they knocked on her door. Emma lazily waved her hand and the door opened. "We've finished applying the muggle charms for the week."
"Thank you."
"Lady Emma," and for some reason that name didn't bother her as much as she thought it would have, "I mean no disrespect, but, a few of us have been wondering what the next step of the plan is. We would like to help if we can or prepare for it."
Emma mentally translated this to "We're impatient and want to get a move on with something" and after a moment of consideration, she responded appropriately, "Our next step is to gain their full attention." The man immediately shut his mouth, probably not expecting an actual answer.
"You mean… a display of force?" And Emma remembered why this man… Alan? Was the one she talked to usually. He had the guts to ask the right questions and Emma appreciated that.
"In a way. I don't want to follow the footsteps of Voldemort," Alan flinched at the name, "in how he hurt innocent people, but I still need to demonstrate that we are serious about our endeavor. I want to leave no doubt in their minds that we will do whatever it takes to accomplish our mission: reveal magic to the world."
Emma could see the way her words affected Alan, the awe written across his face. Something about this felt natural to her, familiar. That people would look upon her with awe. But Emma was sure that this had never happened in her life, none of her conscious memories reflected this. But she still knew this was true.
"Yes, Lady Emma. I will spread your words to everyone else." Emma nodded in response and waved Alan away. As Alan closed the door, Emma locked it and closed her eyes, entering an almost meditative state. She had a few questions she wanted to ask the Dark One.
"These feelings I'm getting, are they yours?" Emma asked in her head. Like so many times before, she could feel the Dark One's presence there, but it seemed to be closer, stronger than before. Like it was growing inside her head.
"Yes, those are my memories you're feeling. It might be hard for you to imagine, but I once commanded a high level of respect and garnered men's attention with ease."
"But why am I feeling them, remembering things I've never experienced before?"
"Because dear Emma, we are one."
Emma recoiled at this, trying to shut the Dark One out, but found that she could not. Even after opening her eyes, their weight pressed insider her head, the memories and feelings that weren't hers still lingered. The implications of this sent Emma reeling. The Dark One had been influencing her decisions this whole time?
"Oh no, these have all been your decisions," the Dark one answered her thoughts, "it's also quite useless to try hiding your thoughts from me. We are the same person after all."
"I am nothing like you."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. While I admit we are different in some ways, in many ways we are very similar. You want to free everyone from the burden of hiding their magic, and so do I. You possess abilities that terrify you, and at one point in my life, my powers terrified me too. And then I learned to embrace them and use them. I can help you do that, too. You don't have to be afraid."
Emma's heart pounded in her chest and not for the first time she wished Mary Margaret or Henry or Hook or someone was here to help her. But as she thought about how much she missed them, another thought told her that they were just holding her back. That she didn't need them. That killing them would earn her her freedom from the dagger. The pull in her mind was insistent, so she squashed the idea of seeing them altogether as she has done almost every day.
"But we could be free, Emma. Let no one tell us what to do or how to live our lives."
"No. I will not hurt my family. We will continue this crusade to free these people from their magic and I will keep my family safe."
"If that is what you want, Emma, then it is what I want, too," the Dark One told her, but Emma could see the sly smile on their face, like honey and venom combined into one devious expression. The Dark One was a very convincing liar.
"Oh, that's not a lie, Emma. I'll do whatever you want. I don't really have a choice in that matter, seeing as I'm tied to you. I just hope that one day, you'll see things my way. As I've said before, I'm very patient."
"Fine. So help me think of our next move then, one that doesn't kill people but gets our point across."
"Gladly, Emma. Gladly."
And so Emma let her mind mingle with the Dark One's, forming their next plan together. Emma thought she had control of what was going on, but the Dark One knew better. She knew that every time Emma let her in, she grew a little stronger, a little more in control of Emma's thoughts and actions. Emma's freedom was an illusion requiring great patience. But she could wait. She's waited thousands of years after all, what a few more days? Soon, she will have her revenge. Soon.
REGINA
Regina was tired. Not in the physical sense, although that was true, but mostly in the "I'm tired of this shit" sense. So maybe frustrated was a better word. They've been traveling the countryside for days only to grab a few items Regina was almost sure they could have gotten somewhere else. Salamander blood couldn't have been that hard to find. Heck, Regina thought she had some in her potions lab. But they went on a three-day excursion for it anyway. The more the days passed, the more Regina was starting to believe Henry.
How Elaine found them was suspicious enough in the first place, not to mention having the exact solution they needed for a problem they hadn't known about. Sure, being a seer could explain some of that away, but it was all too contrived. Too easy. Their adventures usually consisted of one wrong turn after another and everything going to Hell at some point, but they'd encountered nothing bad so far.
Well, besides Emma becoming the Dark One. That was pretty bad.
Speaking of which, they still had no idea where Emma was or what she was doing. Elaine told them that Emma would be in London, but all they had was her word. Which Regina was starting to trust less and less.
Regina pondered these things as everyone talked around her at the campfire, Robin Hood to her immediate left and everyone else scattered in a circle. Henry usually sat next to her, but lately he'd been next to Elaine, waiting for her to slip up again. Regina was just a little proud of him for that.
"Regina, how are you holding up?" Robin Hood asked as he leaned in next to her.
"I'm fine, just tired."
"Well, it is late. Perhaps you could turn in early?"
"No, not yet. I'm… thinking about something."
"Anything I could help with then?" he asked and Regina finally turned to look at him. It killed her most times she looked into his eyes. They were always so straightforward and honest, sincere and kind, like she had never been. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that he'd be there for her if she ever needed him. All she had to do was let her guard down and ask. But this wasn't the right time for that, not with everyone else around.
"Right now I just need to work through it on my own. I'll let you know when I need your help, though. Thank you, Robin," Regina said as she put her hand on his, a rare gesture for her. Robin seemed to accept her answer though and gave her a little nod before returning to the conversation.
"Anything I could help with then, Regina? I am a seer after all," Elaine said, apparently having eavesdropped on their conversation.
"While I don't appreciate eavesdropping, there may be something you can help me with, actually. Can you show us Emma?" Regina noticed Elaine tighten her smile for a second and open her mouth to respond when Snow cut her off.
"Oh yes, I'd very much like to know how Emma is doing."
"So would I," Charming echoed, "you can do that?" And Regina watched as Elaine's face fell for half a second before she put on a fake smile.
"Yes, it's not easy, but I can. I need something of hers though to anchor my thoughts, if that's all right." Snow nodded and took off a bracelet she was wearing and handed it to Elaine.
"Will this work? I borrowed it from Emma's room before we left."
"Yes, that should be fine," Elaine confirmed as she reached into her bag and pulled out a handheld mirror. That must be the one Henry claimed to have seen things in. Elaine put the bracelet around the handle of the mirror, holding it up and saying something in a strange language. It was magic Regina had never seen before, drawing power in way completely unlike her own. She knew no one else in the circle could feel it, but she could. It wasn't dark, not necessarily, but it wasn't good either. It was clearly powerful, though.
At the end of the incantation, the mirror showed images like a small TV screen. It flipped through several before focusing in on one of Emma. She looked noticeably more haggard, but also more enchanting. Regina couldn't pinpoint what was different about her, but she seemed more confident, more imposing. Perhaps it was the chair-or more accurately, throne-she sat in, alone in a large chamber with a high ceiling and decorative walls. It looked like the main room of a castle, complete with a red carpet leading up to her. As they all watched, a man came in to… report to her? They talked for a bit before she waved him away and went back to closing her eyes and thinking, her face twisted in a grimace.
Then the image disappeared, replaced by the reflective surface of the mirror. Elaine removed the bracelet and handed it back to Snow with a small thank you.
"Emma looks…different," Snow commented thoughtfully. Regina almost snorted.
"She looks like an evil queen, with henchmen and everything."
"Regina!" Snow said in almost a gasp.
"Okay maybe not evil, but definitely a queen and definitely not good."
"Do you think that the Dark One is taking over her already?"
"I couldn't say…" Regina trailed off, wishing she could give the expectant eyes of the group a better answer than that.
"Charming, what do you think?" Snow asked her husband, reaching over to hold his hands for comfort.
"I don't know, but that person didn't look like our Emma. Something is affecting her and the only thing I can think of is the Dark One."
"Which is why we're doing our best to gather the ingredients as quick as we can. So we can save Emma," said Elaine. Snow and Charming nodded, satisfied by this answer, but Regina could see that her son did not feel the same way. She was about to say something before Henry cut in.
"I think we should find Merlin."
"We tried Henry, but we don't have any leads. In the end, we decided that this would be our best course of action," Snow said gently, trying to reason with Henry peacefully.
"We didn't try hard enough. We just started following Elaine because it was the easiest option. The apprentice told us to find Merlin, and what do we do? We blow him off."
"Henry, Merlin is a very elusive man. It could take years of searching and we still may not find him. We don't have that kind of time," Snow pressed on.
"I know that. But we didn't even try looking for him!" Henry nearly yelled in frustration.
"We don't have the time to waste on looking for him. Every day we wait is another day that Emma could be lost to the Darkness forever. I won't let that happen."
"How do you know we can trust Elaine?" Henry said in a harsh whisper, but in the stillness of the night everyone heard him clearly.
"Henry! Elaine has been nothing but nice and helpful to us. She gave up a lot of her time waiting for us just so she could help."
"Yeah but-" Henry began to protest before Elaine interrupted him.
"How do you know you can trust Merlin?" Regina felt a pang in her heart as Henry hesitated to answer her. He must be thinking on the words she herself told him, and she almost felt bad for crushing his naivety, but she had to. Maybe Elaine wasn't to be trusted, but maybe Merlin wasn't either.
"Because the apprentice said so."
"And you trust him?"
"Yes!" Henry shouted, growing frustrated again. At this point, Regina moved away from Robin to sit next to him and rub his shoulder comfortingly. It seemed to calm him down a little bit, but neither he nor Elaine would stop staring the other down.
"Henry, I would like to tell you a story. Once upon a time, in a land of myth, and a time of magic… the destiny of a great kingdom rested on the shoulders of a young boy. His name… Merlin. From the time he was just a boy, magic came so easily to him. To anyone who knew of his magic, it was clear that he would one day become great. He traveled to Camelot to study under a friend of his family's and there he met Prince Arthur, Lady Morgana and the Great Dragon. The Great Dragon told Merlin of his destiny, to bring magic back to the land of Camelot by making Arthur king.
"The Great Dragon also went on to tell Merlin that the Lady Morgana, King Uther's ward, would be his greatest enemy. At the time, Lady Morgana didn't even know she had magic, that her dreams were anything but dreams. But the Great Dragon told Merlin that she would become evil in the future and Merlin, despite being close to her, grew not to trust her. When she went to him for help with her growing magic, he turned her away. Alone and afraid that someone would find her magic and kill her, she turned to another for help.
"This person then used Morgana as a vessel for a magic spell without her knowing in order to destroy Camelot. Merlin found out that Morgana was the source of this and poisoned her to stop the spell. She was one of his best friends, and he sentenced her to death for unknowingly being part of the spell. He believed the Great Dragon's words that she would become evil, and by believing them, he made them true. Lady Morgana eventually became Merlin's greatest enemy, and they battled for many years after that before Merlin defeated her at the Battle of Camlann.
"So tell me, Henry, do you trust this kind of man? The one who would kill his own friend to save a kingdom?"
A silence fell over the camp as the group processed the story on their own. Regina had never heard that story before, but it was consistent with how she thought of Merlin. Growing up, she had heard stories of Merlin, too. Stories about his power and strength and sense of justice. As a ruler of a kingdom for years, even an evil one, she understood that being powerful meant making tough decisions. What it came down to now was whether or not Merlin ever felt regret for his actions or dismissed them as a necessary evil. But without Merlin here, there was no way to tell.
"Is that why you hate him then, because he killed your sister?" Henry asked quietly. Immediately Elaine's eyes lit up with a fire in them, her hands clasping and unclasping at her sides in an effort not to let her anger show. It was kind of amusing.
"No. My sister was overcome by darkness at that point. I am angry with him for not giving her the chance to be good. I do not trust Merlin. So, if you wish to find him, then I will have to part ways with you."
"Wait!" Snow jumped in, her eyes darting between her grandson and Elaine, "Elaine, please stay with us. Without you, we cannot save Emma."
"Yes we can, we just have to find Merlin," Henry insisted, now pointing his gaze at Snow.
"Henry, we don't have time for that."
"Well I can't go along with this anymore. I would like to find Merlin and get his help. I don't want hers," Henry said, glaring at Elaine.
"We need her help," Snow pressed on.
"No, we don't."
"Perhaps we should split up then," Regina suggested before her brain could really process the idea, "I mean, it doesn't take six people to gather ingredients. Some of us could go look for Merlin and the rest can help Elaine."
"Mom, I don't think-"
"Henry," Regina leaned in closer to whisper so no one else could hear, "if she is setting a trap, I would like someone close to her to keep an eye on her, okay? Friends close and enemies closer."
"Ok," Charming said, bringing everyone back to focus, "Snow and I will stay with Elaine then. Regina, I'm assuming you're going with Henry?"
"Of course."
"And I'll go with them as well," Robin Hood chimed in. Regina almost laughed at how lost he looked, but he seemed set on following her anyway. It was kind of adorable and heartwarming.
"So come morning, we'll go our separate ways?" Snow reiterated for clarification, earning nods from the group.
"Well now that that's settled, I think we should all get some sleep now," Elaine said before getting up and heading to her own bed. Snow and Charming agreed and left as well. Robin gave Regina a look as if asking if he should stay, but Regina waved him off. She needed a quick chat with Henry.
"Are you sure about this, Henry? I don't think Elaine was lying about that story, based on what you told me a few days ago anyway."
"I'm sure. Even if Merlin isn't the great person I thought he was, I trust the apprentice when he told us that we'd need Merlin's help. And who knows, maybe Merlin is the person I thought he was and he'll actually want to help us."
"I hope so, Henry. It'd be nice to have the great Merlin on our side." With that, Regina kissed the top of Henry's head and told him to go to sleep soon. He agreed with a yawn and they both retired to their sleeping bags.
Regina hadn't intended to separate the group, but she couldn't help but agree with Henry. Something didn't sit right with her about Elaine. It was like she had that story all planned out, to try and drive a wedge between them. Was that her goal all along, to split them up? What would she gain from it, though? Would Merlin be able to help them, and if he could, would he be willing to?
Flopping in her sleeping bag with a sigh, she tried to rid these thoughts from her head. They were getting her nowhere and she was tired. Tomorrow she could deal with them, but right now, all she wanted was some sleep.
I think this will be one of my fastest updates. It sure feels like it, but time has been smooshing together lately.
And yes! I unveil who Elaine is! Surprise! Kudos to anyone who figured it out before this chapter. I thought I would keep it secret longer, but this story is moving at a super-fast pace. Not my intention, but I usually have a habit of dragging things out anyway, so maybe this is good. Until next time!