Set in Season 4

Annie sat in the corner of the market square, her head buried in her lap, tears wetting the fabric of her dress. Gaius was supposed to be able to help everyone. He wasn't supposed to let her baby sister die. The fever that ran through Camelot had hit the youngest and the oldest of all ranks the worst. She started when someone sat next to her. She looked up and saw Merlin beside her, reaching out and putting his thin arm around her just as thin shoulders. Annie leaned into his warm shoulder. Neither said anything as Annie wept into Merlin's neckerchief. Eventually Annie's sobs slowed to ragged hiccups.

"Why, Merlin? She was just a little baby."

Merlin shook his head. "I don't have any answers for you, Annie. There is no reason for it." He rubbed her shoulder. "The Druids would say death is a natural part of life. The Christians would say your sister has gone on to heaven. I don't know which is right or even if either is wrong, but I do know she didn't deserve it and neither did your family."

"Dame Larkin died, too, but she was old." Annie studied her hands. "She was nice to me. Ranald died, too. He wasn't always nice."

"Ranald was just always upset because you threw cabbages at his head." Merlin squeezed her shoulders.

Annie's mouth crooked up in the corner. "He was nicer when he was drunk."

"Drinking was what made him feel better. He was a hero, you know. He helped Sir Ector save King Uther once. They were attacked by a group of bandits and almost all of the soldiers and knights were killed. Only the King, Sir Ector, and Ranald were alive by the end of the fight."

"If he was a hero, why did he need to feel better?"

Merlin drew in a deep breath. "From what Gaius told me, it was Uther's war against magic that made him need to drink."

"How? Magic is evil."

Merlin was glad Annie couldn't see his grimace. "Ranald was part of a group that attacked a Druid village right after his own family died from a fever. A lot of children died and he just couldn't deal with it, except by drinking."

Annie was silent for a minute. "He was sad, wasn't he? Because those kids died." Merlin just nodded, knowing Annie could feel it. "I'm sorry for him and I'm sorry I threw those cabbages at him."

Merlin and Annie sat silently for another minute. "Merlin, am I bad for not feeling sorry I threw cabbages at you?"

Merlin snorted. "No, Annie. You know I'm not angry at you for it. Although, some of those shots did hurt. A lot." He smiled at the girl. "You'd be a pretty good fighter yourself, you know. You have excellent aim."

She cast a tiny smile back up at him. "No, I just want to marry Morris and be a tanner's wife."

"Oh, dear gods, you make me happy Arthur doesn't seem as inclined as his father to put me in the stocks. Your children would be in their glory." Merlin chuckled. "Does Morris know you want to marry him?"

Annie grinned. "His mother and father do. I'm working on Morris. Right now he seems to think that Meg's daughter is right for him. Obviously, he's wrong."

"Oh, yes. Obviously." Merlin helped the girl stand and they started walking back toward her home. There was much to do to bury her little sister, but for this brief moment, she was looking forward to life and the future. Yes, she and Morris would do just fine together.

Ah, my little OCs are growing up. I don't mean to be cruel and kill off little children and old people, but Gaius didn't exactly have access to penicillin. As for mentioning the Christians, historically, they would have already been a presence in Camelot, brought in with the Romans. I'll be honest, I'm glad the show didn't really address this, since it could have been done really badly.