Title: Ungodly Hour
Authors: Cassy27
Words: 2304
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Merlin.
Spoilers: Spoilers from both season 1 and 2
Summary: Morgana returns to Camelot and Merlin seems to be the only one who understands why she is back. Why does no one listen to him and what consequences will it all have? Emotions run high, but Merlin must decide where his loyalty lies.
AN: Any and all mistakes are completely my own.
I hope you will enjoy this chapter. It is long, but I don't think anyway will be bothered about it. Here is goes...
Chapter 7
Merlin had promised Gaius not to tell Arthur anything before he had found decent proof. That would not be an easy task, however, and Merlin had absolutely no idea how to even begin at it. Maybe he should have Morgana give him useful information to start with. That was a bad idea; like Morgana would just tell him things.
The young servant sighed, letting his mind drift off. She must be meeting with Morgause again. Maybe he could have Arthur witness all of it. Then again, how would Merlin even know when Morgana would meet with her half sister. This was hopeless. The first time Merlin had simply been lucky he had seen Morgana leave for the forest.
The King's ward had been back for two days now and Merlin tried not to leave her out of his sight. It was everything but easy, though. Arthur was keeping him very busy with chores and stuff to do that didn't even seem to have a purpose.
"And then you should scrub the floor," Arthur finished his sentence.
Merlin only wished he had been listening to the first part. He had no idea what Arthur really wanted from him. He smiled, however, nodding his head to make Arthur believe he had understood him completely.
"Where is your head, Merlin?" Arthur asked.
It seemed Merlin had not been convincing enough. "Nowhere," he quickly said. He conjured up his most decent smile. "It's been a busy day, that's all."
"You are a terrible liar, have I told you that before?" Arthur said, smirking. He stumped Merlin on the back as he walked by him. "What is wrong?" he asked again then, turning to look Merlin in the eyes.
"Have you spoken to Morgana recently?" Merlin asked. He remembered his promise to Gaius, but that didn't mean he couldn't try and figure what Arthur was thinking about all this.
"A few times," Arthur answered, frowning. He let his gaze drift away, remembering the times he had spoken to her. He quickly refocused again. "Why?"
"Gwen seems very worried about her," Merlin explained. It wasn't exactly a lie. Gwen had spoken to him about Morgana's silent behavior. He had wanted to tell her to be careful, but of course he couldn't. It would only upset Gwen more and she would be in danger from Morgana. Merlin didn't even know anymore if Morgana would mind eliminating Gwen is she posed as a danger.
"What did she say then?" Arthur wanted to know. He suddenly seemed alert.
"Nothing special," Merlin answered, "just that Morgana always seemed quiet and distant."
"She's still processing everything that has happened," Arthur defended her.
This was not good, Merlin knew Arthur wasn't suspecting anything. He cleared his throat, thinking of what he could say next. "Yes," he eventually sighed, "yes, she has been through a lot, that's probably it."
"Merlin," Arthur said quiet loud, rolling his eyes, "what is it?"
"She's hiding something," Merlin blurted out. Immediately, he regretting having said those words.
Arthur's mouth popped open a little, his eyes narrowing as if he was trying to find a sign that Merlin was only kidding. He couldn't find any sign. "What would she be hiding?" he asked, his voice rather cold.
Merlin swallowed heavily. He should just shut up. "I don't know," he sighed, "I am probably imagining things."
Arthur didn't say anything for a moment. The silence hung heavily down on Merlin who just wanted Arthur to say anything. "I should start repair your armor," Merlin said, needing to break the silence.
"You should," was all Arthur said.
MMM
Merlin couldn't help himself. When seeing Morgana walk towards the forest, he simply had to follow her. This time, he was more careful. He even used magic to make sure his footsteps could not be heard. Morgana chose another place now, and not even a minute after she had come to a halt, Morgause appeared.
"I have it," Morgana smiled, triumph in her eyes. Lifting her coat, she took out a small book. It looked awfully old, like it could fall apart any moment. The eldest sister took it over with care, examining it with the most interest.
"It's beautiful," she smiled, "you have done a wonderful job, Morgana."
"I am sorry it took me so long," Morgana apologized, "it seems like there is always someone watching me. Uther, Arthur, Merlin. Even Gwen."
"Do they suspect something?" Morgause sounded alarmed. Her hand reached forward, gently touching her sister's hair.
"No," Morgause answered, "they all believe I have just been going through a hard time."
Merlin knew she was lying, but what he didn't know was why. It seemed she didn't want Morgause to know about him. Was Morgana actually protecting him? That seemed impossible and a chill ran down Merlin's back.
"Good," Morgause smiled, letting her hand drop to Morgana's shoulder, "don't worry, you will soon be able to be yourself again."
"I am tired of being this woman that I am not," Morgana sighed, "of being the King's loving ward."
"I know, sister," Morgause smiled, her voice warm, "but like I said, everything will soon be over."
Morgana smiled as well just as Morgause disappeared, the small book still clenched in between her fingers. A whirlwind filled the air, dead leaves soaring up and when it finally became calm again, Morgana was staring at empty air.
Merlin held his breath. He would have to wait until Morgana was gone as well to leave. He did not want to be caught again. His plan worked! Morgana left, not even looking behind to make sure she hadn't been followed. As soon as it was safe enough, Merlin came out of his hiding place.
Almost running back to the castle, he hurried to see Gaius.
"Merlin?" Gaius seemed worried when seeing Merlin so out of breath.
"I saw them again," he said, still gasping for more air, "Morgana gave a book to Morgause. That must be why she's back; to get something."
Gaius frowned. "Are you sure?"
"I saw it with my own eyes, Gaius," Merlin said, throwing his hands in the air, "why don't you believe me?"
"I do," Gaius quickly said. He moved some stuff around as if he needed to keep his hands busy. "It's just hard to believe, Merlin, I'm sorry. This is Morgana we're talking about."
"I know," Merlin sighed, understanding what Gaius was telling him, "I can hardly believe it myself. She always seemed like the one person in the world that would always do what was right."
Gaius didn't say anything, he simply looked at Merlin, doubt still filling his eyes.
"She seemed like she had a pure heart," Merlin continued speaking, letting his gaze drift of. It was like everything around him became unfocused, it just wasn't important anymore. Only his memories mattered now.
"Merlin?"
Gaius' voice brought him back. Merlin's eyes widened for a moment as he tried to remember what he had been talking about in the first place.
"Did you see what book she gave Morgause?" Gaius asked.
"Not really," Merlin sighed, knowing he was being much of a use, "it was old, that I could see, very old and small."
"There are a lot of old and small books in Camelot, Merlin," Gaius said.
"I know." Merlin wanted to curse himself for not having taken a better look at the book. In his mind, he was already trying to think of a way to gain more information from Morgana. "Morgause said that it would happen soon. You and me both know what that means. They are going to kill Uther soon and that means Arthur will be in danger as well."
Gaius took in a deep breath. "We still have nothing," he said, "we have nothing to save the King."
"Nothing yet," Merlin corrected him. Not taking any chances was getting them nowhere and so the young warlock knew what he had to do next.
MMM
Morgana was walking through the halls of the castle when Merlin spotted her. She didn't seem to be going anywhere in particular. Then again, her task had been fulfilled. She had come back to retrieve a book and now Morgause had it in possession. Merlin even wondered what she was still doing here.
If only the young servant knew what that old and small book was for.
"It's rude to follow people around," Morgana said, not even looking behind her.
Merlin wasn't surprised that he had been caught. Actually, he hadn't been secretive about following her so he hadn't been caught really.
"I wasn't following you," Merlin said, keeping a safe distance away from her. It was the truth. He had been heading for Arthur's chambers. Morgana just happened to cross his path.
"That's a change then," Morgana said. Merlin could hear her smile. She turned around when seeing that Merlin was trying to catch up with her. Merlin stopped walking suddenly, making sure they were still a few feet apart.
"Why are you still here?" Merlin asked. He didn't care anymore whether he was being careful or not. There was no one around that could hear them anyway. The hall was completely abandoned. It didn't matter either that Merlin knew about the book.
"I don't understand-"
"You gave Morgause a book," Merlin interrupted her. He didn't want to play any games. "What is it for?"
Morgana chuckled. "You want me to tell you that?"
Merlin didn't say anything. He refused to break away his gaze from her. He would stare into her eyes for hours if that was what it would take to show her that he wasn't kidding around.
"I won't," Morgana said, serious again, "tell you what it's for. You already know too much, actually."
"Because for some strange reason you told me everything," Merlin said, sounding casually while slowly nodding his head, "that's another fact that has me mesmerized."
"I tried to explain it all to you," she sighed, "I failed."
"And I tried to help you," Merlin said, his voice hard, "you refused."
Morgana didn't say anything, his gaze having suddenly grown very soft. "You will fail," she whispered, her voice sad as well. "Merlin, can't you see?" Morgana swallowed heavily. "You will lose so much and there is nothing I can do to help you. I wish I could, truly, but you are lost."
"I won't give up," Merlin told her, certain of his words, "I will fight this until the very end."
Morgana was now the one that slowly nodded. "I hadn't expected anything else from you," she smiled genuinely, "that's what I admire. You are stubborn and brave."
Merlin didn't know what to do with this. Morgana seemed to have let her guard down for him, she seemed to be sharing her emotions with him and Merlin couldn't help but think that he understood her completely.
"Things could have been so different," he sighed. He took a step forward, his hand slowly stretching out. He wasn't sure why he was doing this. It was like he wasn't in control of himself.
"I know," Morgana whispered. She too stretched out her hand and their fingers touched gently. Merlin felt a sudden warmth run from the tips of his fingers all the way to his heart.
"I will miss you," Morgana said, taking in a deep breath, "truly."
Merlin nodded. He should say something back, this might be his last chance. His mouth felt dry, however, and Merlin was suddenly lost for words.
"Morgana?" It was Gwen's voice who called out to her.
Morgana and Merlin quickly retracted their hands, adjusting their attitudes to normal one again. Morgana became all tall looking again, full of confidence while Merlin suddenly appeared like an awkward servant once more.
"Is everything okay?" Morgana's maidservant asked. She came to stand next to Morgana, her gaze shifting from her mistress to Merlin and back again.
Morgana looked Merlin straight in the eyes, her eyes seemingly apologetic. Merlin didn't understand it, but he knew something was about to happen that he would not like at all.
"He threatened me," Morgana suddenly said. Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke. "I'm so glad you are here, Gwen," she turned to embrace her, "he scares me so much!"
"I don't understand," Gwen said, confusion in her her eyes. She took Morgana into her embrace, her eyes scanning Merlin, confused.
"Merlin said the most horrible things," Morgana continued speaking, "he accused me of wanting to kill Uther and Arthur!"
"What?" Gwen couldn't hide her shock. Her eyes widened, her lips parted in disgust. "Merlin, is this true?" she asked.
Merlin didn't know what to say or do. He was too astonished to say or do anything!
"Merlin?" Gwen asked again, her voice high.
"I..." Merlin couldn't finish his sentence. Morgana's actions had him completely disorientated. Suddenly, he didn't even seem to know anymore how to react to such an accusation. He should lie, he should tell Gwen Morgana is just distressed from everything that has happened to her the past few days, but his lips remained shut.
Run! Morgana's voice sounded clearly in his head. It caught Merlin by surprise, making him gasp softly. Her voice inside his head wasn't something he was used to.
Run! she sounded again and Merlin did so. What other choice did he have? Gwen and Morgana would be going to Uther with this and who would the King believe? A servant or his ward? Even if Merlin denied having said such words, Morgana would make Uther believe he did.
Gaius had been right, Merlin had nothing to support his accusation and he had nothing to defend himself. Even Arthur would take Morgana's side because Merlin was so stupid to have told him he suspected Morgana was up to something.
Running was all he could do.
AN: Another chapter done. It's quiet long and I don't even know where it all came from. I love writing Merlin and Morgana together and the drama makes it all the more fun. I can't wait to find out what you guys think of it.
What will happen next? Will Merlin be okay? What will Morgana do? What is that little book for? When will Morgause attack? Many, many questions, but I will answer them as soon as possible!
Reviews are always welcome :)
