(just gonna get right to it)

Chapter 7:

Gaius stared at merlin for a moment before speaking, "Why didn't we save who?". Merlin didn't answer and Gaius could see that he was trying to remain -internally- conflicted. As though he was hiding something.

Merlin shook his head, and looked back to the child before him, and asleep she looked just that. Laying gently on her back, which was bandaged and wrapped to prevent the stitches getting caught or infected. Her face lax, quite the contrast to twisted in pain as it had been before, and her fearful eyes covered by her lids. They seemed to dark, too deep for such a young being. As if she hadn't slept in days. Although merlin didn't doubt that behind those closed eyes was the desperation, fear, and agony he'd seen prior. For now though, she slept. Her breathing was even and soft. She didn't shift about or even stir a lick. Just still. If merlin hadn't known better he'd thought she died.

Gaius's question danced his head. There was only one who he could come up with…

Elliott. Elliott. Elliott. That was all merlin could think about. It was the only thing that made sense, but in the same fashion utterly confused him. Elliot had spoken of a sister. She was often by his side in all his journeys. This was a child, and the way Elliott had always told his stories Merlin was under the impression his sister had been older. He always spoke of her in high regards, and of being wise. This little girl couldn't be more then 15, and yet nothing else fit the bill. Merlin thought back and forth quickly. It could have just all been coincidence, and someone else needed saving that hadn't been saved. He didn't know all that happened in camelot. There could be other factors that he was completely unaware of. It just seemed to familiar, and too close to be coincidence.

Merlin took a good look at her. She had soft but defined features, and her hair was brown with gold and rouge lightly streaked throughout. Elliotts hair had been brown, but his was darker. Her eyes, which were burned into merlins memory, were an icy blue. Elliott's had been a deep brown, nearly black. He was trying to find something physical that tied the two together. A feature, a birthmark, an extra finger.. something..anything. All that really stood out to him was this girl spoke in dragon, and Elliott obviously had magic. There was a magical component to the two of them. That had to mean something. A hard clearing of the throat brought merlin out of his thoughts.

Gaius was staring at him intensely, his eyes wide as if to say 'Well?'.

"Gaius, had you ever heard Elliott speak of his sister before?" Merlin asked tentatively. Gaius's brow furrowed, and his eyes glimmered with remembrance of times when he and elliott shared stories. Elliott seemed beyond his years in how he spoke. A young man who'd seen to much, who knew too much, and who'd gone through to much.

"Yes, yes I have. You aren't suggesting this is her, are you?" A sort of desperate skepticism was laced throughout his words. As if he either didn't believe it, or didn't want to believe it.

"I am, think about it Gaius. Why else would she be here, asking to save 'him'? A him we do not know. On the day of elliott's execution no less. She spoke in Dragon, and while Elliott never mentioned his sister being magical he never let it out he had magic to either of us. What if this is her? What if she came because she knew what was going to happen to him? What if she came to save him!?" Merlin was getting increasingly loud, and his eyes widened as he rose from his chair.

Gaius rose with him and gently placed his hands on his shoulders. Merlin turned to face him. Gaius's eyes were hard and focused. "Merlin, you need to be calm. You'll wake half the kingdom." His voice was firm, but gentle. Merlin, as if he hadn't realized how emotional he was getting, hung his head.

"There is something else about her Gaius. I feel drawn to her." Merlin mumbled. "I can't understand it. I can't place why."

The boy failed to meet Gaius's eyes. The two stood there for some time in the silence.

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM(W/ Arthur)MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

Arthur hadn't been able to sleep. He layed in his bed staring at the top of the canopy. He shut his eyes tight and flipped to his stomach with his face pressed into the pillow. After many failed attempts he came to accept that this would be a restless night.

That girl. There was something strange about her, and the way Merlin reacted… He'd never seen his manservant in such a manor. He was afraid, but a different kind of fear. A kept secret kind of fear. This was not the day for such events. Elliott had been a friend to them all, and the day had already been expected to have misery. A depth of pain that only those who'd lost someone could understand. His father was a good man, and a great king. A king Camelot should be proud of, or so Arthur had always told himself.

Magic confused him. He understood his fathers fear of dark magic. It was evil, and it brought nothing but pain to those involved. Good magic, if there was such a thing, shouldn't be something worth of punishment… should it? Elliott had only been trying to help the kingdom. Help those who needed it. If anything he should have been rewarded. Arthur would have made him a knight if the boy had any kind of fighting drive in him. He was honorable, loyal, and kind hearted. He had an instinct to protect. This was something that Arthur found very respectable. It was also something hard to come by in this time.

He was angry. He was also guilty for being angry, and he was frustrated at his guilt. Arthur found himself thinking of the future. What kind of king would he be? What kind of laws would he rid the kingdom of, and what kind of laws would he decree? It was all incredibly overwhelming.

His mind flashed again to the girl. As if he didn't have enough in his thoughts. He wondered if she'd awoken, or even if she'd died. There had been a lot of blood on her, and Arthur began to question if it had all been hers. She looked so small, and so weak. When he'd picked her up, however, there been a weight to her. A surprising amount of weight that didn't seem to fit the size.

Who was she? Why was she here? what happened to her….

Arthur felt his eyes closing, and he fought to keep them open. He wanted to know, he wanted more information. He wanted to ponder and figure out what to do, and what was going on. He needed his thoughts to be clear. It seemed unfair that just as he was beginning to accept and reflect that his body protested and wanted rest.

One last look around and the door to his chambers was the last thing he laid his eyes on before they closed and he fell into a reluctant slumber.

TBC