A/N: I hate exams. That is all.
Also I went to the Gold Coast for a holiday, and while I had my laptop (meaning I could write) I didn't have an internet connection so I couldn't upload anything. Nevertheless, here the chapter is- finally!
This chapter is kind of a filler more than anything else, but the next chapter will definitely contain the funerals and most likely Merlin and Arthur's arrival in Ealdor. There is also something else that I want to put in there (which I don't want to spoil), though, which might mean that Ealdor might be pushed into the chapter afterwards. But anyway, on with the story!


Chapter Seven: Much to Discuss


Arthur caught up with Merlin near the end of the corridor. "For a guy that passed out yesterday, you sure have a lot of energy," he remarked, sounding almost annoyed.

"I just needed sleep," said Merlin. "Now that I've had it, I don't feel so drained any more. I can feel my magic just under my skin again, just waiting for me to let it out."

Arthur hesitated for a moment at the casual way Merlin had talked about his magic, before speaking. "As long as you don't break anything," he said. "More than you normally do, anyway."

Merlin sighed. "Whatever you say, sire," he said, but then he smiled, bumping in to Arthur. Arthur looked almost angry, before grinning and bumping Merlin back. They continued in this manner through the castle, with Merlin often running ahead of Arthur before Arthur caught up to him, before arriving at the council chambers. The two guards standing outside instantly moved to open the doors, letting Merlin and Arthur into the room.

Leon, Percival, Gaius and Gwen were already gathered in the room, waiting. They looked up when Arthur and Merlin entered, both Gwen and Gaius getting to their feet when they saw Merlin. "Merlin!" Gwen cried. "You're here!"

Merlin smiled at his friend, as she completely ignored propriety and ran over to hug him. "Of course I am, my lady," he said when they broke apart. "Arthur needs all the help he can get to run this kingdom."

"Hey!" Arthur cried, as the others barely managed to stifle a laugh.

"So you're okay?" Gwen continued. "I mean, Leon told us that you were awake, but are you really okay?"

Merlin nodded. "I'm fine. All I needed was sleep, anyway. I'm completely recovered now."

"Come sit down, anyway," said Gwen, leading Merlin over to the table where Percival and Leon were sitting. Gaius pulled Merlin into his embrace when he drew near. "My boy," he whispered. "Well done. We'll talk later."

Merlin nodded, grateful for Gaius's praise. Merlin's guardian and mentor had always been there for him; he'd been the one to keep Merlin grounded and had been there for Merlin to talk to, especially concerning things Merlin had been unable to tell anyone else about. And he'd been the only one to congratulate Merlin on a job well done when he'd saved the day, when no one else had known what he'd done. Merlin would be forever grateful for that.

Merlin dropped into the chair beside Gaius, with the elderly physician and Gwen resuming their seats. Arthur crossed the room as well and sat down beside Merlin, Gwen on his other side. Percival was sitting on Gaius's other side, and Leon was beside Gwen.

Arthur gestured to his second-in-command, who began to speak. "There are a large number of dead, sire," he said. "Some have succumbed to their wounds overnight, and there are still some that Gaius reckons could die in the coming days. We will have to hold the funerals over several days. And as for Gwaine…"

"Gwaine died at the hands of Morgana while trying to stop her from finding Merlin and me," said Arthur. "He saved the life of his king. And he was a part of my trusted council. It may be selfish, but I want to give him the same funeral we were able to give Elyan."

"Gwaine deserves it," Percival spoke up. "He was brave until the very end. I still just wish he knew he hadn't failed. That Arthur lived, and Morgana is dead."

"I just wish I'd had a chance to tell him about me," said Merlin sadly. "To tell him about my magic. He deserved to know."

None of the others knew what to say to that. They had no idea what it had been like for Merlin (with the possible exception of Gaius), having to keep his secret from those who mattered most to him. None of them knew what it could be like to live with that regret.

"On to other matters," said Arthur. "As I have previously mentioned, I will be repealing the magic ban. Dark magic and using magic for evil will, of course, still be banned. I know now, and I'm sure everyone present in this room knows now, that not all magic and magic users are evil." Arthur glanced over at Merlin as he said this, before focusing on the whole group again. "However, I will not be able to do this straight away."

Everyone else, save for Merlin, looked confused at this revelation. "What for?" Leon asked, voicing what everyone was thinking.

Arthur glanced over at Merlin again, who nodded. "I wish to visit my mother, before I'm revealed as a magic user, and before the ban is lifted," Merlin explained. "I need to explain to her what is going on, so she can be prepared. And I'm sure she'll have heard about the battle at Camlann. She needs to know that I'm alive."

"And we need to offer her protection, just in case," said Arthur. "If Camelot's enemies discover who she is, they are likely to use her to get to Merlin."

"And there is no way I'm letting that happen," Merlin added forcefully. Gwen nodded at this; she'd seen how protective Merlin was of his mother before, when they'd gone to protect his village from bandits. Not to mention the fact that she'd seen herself what a wonderful woman Hunith was, providing refuge to a woman who she had only met once before.

"We'll wait a few days, so we can hold the funerals for those that died at Camlann, and make other arrangements," Arthur continued. "After that, Merlin and I will head to Ealdor to see his mother. There are things that I must talk to her about as well."

"Just the two of you?" said Leon, surprised. "Are you sure that you don't want any of the knights to come with you?"

Merlin laughed. "I can take care of myself, Leon," he said. "And I can deal with any enemies we encounter, be they Saxon or otherwise."

Arthur made a noise of agreement in his throat. "I can certainly vouch for that," he said, remembering the two Saxons Merlin had dealt with on their way to the Lake of Avalon, and the other two he had tricked into going in a different direction. Merlin looked over at Arthur, slightly worried, but then Arthur offered him a small smile and he relaxed. It seemed that Arthur truly was okay with who Merlin was.

Leon and Percival just looked at Merlin. "You've been able to do this all along?" said Percival.

"And I have been doing this all along," said Merlin. "Come on guys, do you really think all those 'lucky accidents', where trees happened to fall over, bandits happened to drop their swords, and saddles on our enemies' horses just happened to break, were actually accidents?"

"Of course they weren't," said Leon. "How could anyone be that lucky?"

"They can't," said Arthur wryly, crossing his arms. He had such a petulant expression on his face that Merlin, Gwen, and even Gaius were struggling not to laugh. Merlin couldn't help but wonder whether Arthur had thought he actually was just that lucky. But surely, Merlin reasoned, not even Arthur could be that stupid. Surely.


Merlin returned to his own room that night for the first time since the Battle of Camlann. It felt strange, somehow, like Merlin had been a completely different person the last time he was here, and had come back reborn or reinvented. Which in a way, he supposed he had- his magic being restored in the Crystal Cave had felt like being reborn to Merlin.

Merlin sat down on his bed, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He couldn't remember having a moment by himself in a long time, just to sit and rest and think. So that was what he did. So much had happened over the last several days… Morgana had stolen his magic. Merlin had had that magic restored to him in the Crystal Cave, in the process discovering the true extent of his powers. He defeated most of the Saxon Army using said powers at Camlann, saved Arthur's life, and finally defeated Morgana. That was far too much for most people to handle- hell, it was nearly too much for Merlin to handle. Part of him still couldn't believe that all that stuff had happened. It would take a long time for it to sink in.

After Merlin had been sitting there for a while, the door to his room slowly creaked open and Gaius stuck his head in. "Merlin?" he said. "May I come in?"

Merlin grinned at Gaius. "Of course," he said, patting his bed. "Pull up a chair."

Gaius chuckled, sitting down beside Merlin. "So, my boy. You've sure done a lot since we last spoke."

Merlin grinned. "I sure have." His expression changed then, becoming more serious. "I still can't believe I did it though. I still can't believe Morgana is gone. And I still can't believe I managed to save Arthur."

"If anyone could've pulled it off, it was you, Merlin," said Gaius sincerely. "And after everything you did and went through to get to this point, you deserved to succeed."

"And this time I'm actually getting recognition and thanks for it, from Arthur," said Merlin, still sounding slightly stunned. "He knows about me. And he doesn't hate me. He's… he's actually changing the magic laws. I still can't believe that he's doing it. I thought he hated magic. I mean, look at what it took from him."

"You do know why he's doing it, don't you?" Gaius asked.

"Because it's the right thing to do," said Merlin. "And because he now knows that not everyone who possesses magic is evil."

"Well, there's that," Gaius conceded. "But it's not the only reason."

"It's not?"

"No. He's doing it for you, Merlin. He's repealing the law for you. He can't stand to see you unhappy, you know. He knows you feel hidden and trapped because of the magic ban, and he wants you to be free. It's also his way of repaying you for everything he now knows you've done for him."

"Wha… he's doing it for me?" said Merlin, stunned. "Really?"

"Of course," said Gaius, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "He really does care about you, Merlin. You mean the world to him. I'm certain he would do just as much for you as you have done for him, and would do so in a heartbeat. You are his best friend."

"Even if he has a funny way of showing it," said Merlin, but he was smiling. He had never thought about Arthur repealing the magic ban in that way. He had thought that Arthur was only doing it because it was the right thing to do. He'd never even considered that Arthur was doing it for him. He'd never thought that Arthur was doing this so Merlin could be free. "I… I don't know what to say to him."

"Maybe you shouldn't say anything," said Gaius. "Unless Arthur brings it up. You know how Arthur is about his emotions."

"Mmm," said Merlin in agreement, nodding. "Never wants to talk about them." Merlin's expression became more serious then, and he looked over at Gaius. "Gaius, I… I wanted to thank you. For everything you've ever done for me, ever since I first arrived at Camelot. I don't know what I would've done without you. And I don't know how I could ever repay you."

"My dear boy, you don't need to repay me. Just by being in my life, you've given me everything I've ever wanted. You are the son I never thought I'd have, Merlin. And everything you've ever done for me, and for Camelot and for Albion are thanks enough."

"Can I at least say thank you?" said Merlin with a smirk.

"Of course you can."

"Well, thank you." Merlin and Gaius just looked at each other for a while, before both of them burst out laughing. Both men laughed and laughed, until their sides ached and tears were running down their cheeks. Finally, after what seemed like ages, both men fell silent.

"Get some sleep, Merlin," said Gaius. "The next few days will be busy, cleaning up after the Battle of Camlann and holding the funerals for all those who fell. And then you and Arthur will be leaving for Ealdor to visit your mother."

"Mmm." Merlin sat in thought for a moment, before looking up at Gaius again. "How do you think she'll react?" Merlin asked. "When I tell her what I've done, and what's happened? When I tell her what's going to happen."

"She will be just as proud of you as I am, if not more," Gaius replied without a moment's hesitation. "And not just because she's your mother, and she loves you. But because she knows just what an incredible person you are, Merlin, and how amazing what you've achieved is. She knows this is what you were born for. Believe me, my boy- she will be proud of you."

Merlin smiled, at the same time being able to feel the tears building in the corners of his eyes. "Thank you, Gaius," he whispered. "Thank you." The elderly physician nodded, before backing away and leaving Merlin alone.

The warlock sighed, leaning back against his bed. He knew his whole life was going to change very, very soon. But first, before all of that, he was going to see his mother, for the first time in a long while. That was something that Merlin desperately, desperately needed.