"Tough, you think you've got the stuff
You're telling me and anyone
You're hard enough

You don't have to put up a fight
You don't have to always be right
Let me take some of the punches
For you tonight

Listen to me now
I need to let you know
You don't have to go it alone"

- U2, Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own

IYîYîYîYI

Out of the Woods

Two knights had been sent to investigate rumours of a band of robbers attacking travellers in the woods near the northern villages. It wasn't considered a particularly dangerous mission – there might be a fight, but unless the band was considerably larger than reported the knights should be at a clear advantage. So when only one of them returned, bruised and bloody, it caused a real commotion. The courtyard filled up with curious civilians and concerned knights. Once in the safety of Camelot, the wounded knight lost consciousness and began to slip off the horse's back. Sir Percival was just in time to catch him and carry him off to Gaius' quarters. Arthur and Merlin went together to visit him.

"How is he Gaius?" Arthur asked as soon as he burst through the doors.

"Alive," answered Gaius, walking between his table of books and potions and his patient. "Though that is about as much as I can say, I'm afraid. He has taken a rather nasty hit to the head."

"Do you think he will wake up soon?"

"Well, it's hard to say when, sire, but certainly not today."

"Dammit." Arthur sat down. Merlin remained in the doorway, eyeing the young woman who was sat in a corner concentrating fully on a book of healing potions. It was hard to think that had been him, not so long ago. Or, he guessed it hadn't really. He would have looked in an entirely different book.

"What do you think did this to him, Gaius? There were only supposed to be a handful of robbers out there, four, maybe five. How could they do this to a knight of Camelot?"

"From his wounds I'd almost say he'd been knocked over by a small bear. See these marks on his face? They could be marks of claws. But I guess it could have been the robbers, too, if they had some sort of large, splintered club or the like, it's too hard to tell. I suppose they must have surprised him, if there weren't indeed more of them than you thought."

"Beasts or robbers. Not magic then?" said Arthur.

"There's nothing to suggest it, sire."

Arthur looked at the knight lying lifeless in the middle of the room.

"Sir Ewan is still out there," he said. "He could be alive. We have to go after him as soon as possible. But if William doesn't wake up we'll have no idea what it is we're facing."

Gaius looked at Merlin. Merlin shrugged.

"We'll just have to bring the best knights we've got, be prepared for anything."

Arthur gave him a look.

"'We', Merlin?"

The woman looked up at them. Merlin tried to look as if nothing unusual was happening. Which it wasn't – this was how they talked. But Merlin had become increasingly aware with every foreign delegation visiting that it wasn't how most kings talked with their menservants.

"I'll be going with you, of course."

"I didn't say I was going," Arthur said.

Merlin raised an eyebrow in return.

"I know you think I'm stupid, Arthur, but I'm not that stupid."

At the sound of the Kings given name, the woman in the corner dropped her book. She immediately dived to pick it up, but managed to knock over a bucket instead, which made a real racket rolling away. "Sorry, I'm so, so sorry!" she blurted as she got up and went after it.

Arthur stood up. "Really, Gaius, you do know how to pick them, don't you?" he said as he picked up the book and gave it to the blushing woman with a disarming smile. "There you go, Miss ...?"

"Emma, my lord," she said, nearly whispering and turning an even brighter shade of red.

"Nice to meet you, Emma. Well Gaius, it seems we're only in your way here. I'd tell you to do your best for him, but I already know you will."

"Of course, sire. Goodbye Merlin."

"See you later, Gaius."

IYîYîYîYI

As they walked back to where the knights had gathered, Merlin brought up an old subject.

"You really shouldn't be doing these things you know. Riding out with the knights, risking your life. The King should stay here in Camelot."

"It was your idea, Merlin."

"It wasn't an idea, it was just a fact. You shouldn't be doing this, but you always do. Especially when we don't know exactly what we're facing. Sometimes ..."

When he didn't finish the sentence Arthur turned to face him.

"Sometimes what?"

"Sometimes you remind me of Uther when Morgana first went missing." Arthur grumbled and turned away. "How every single rumour would make him run and look for her. Or send you, when his health got worse. Are you still expecting her to come back?"

"Of course I am! If she's alive, do you really think she'll just let it rest?"

"It's been almost two years. Maybe hearing about Uther's death was enough for her."

"Maybe. But I wouldn't bet any money on it. The way she was ... it wasn't the Morgana I knew. It was like she was possessed."

Not thinking this was the time to defend magic, Merlin replied: "Maybe she was."

"No." Arthur sighed. "I don't really think she was possessed by anything but rage. She was always disagreeing with him, getting angry. I just didn't notice when it changed into hatred."

Merlin studied Arthur for a while, but his face gave no clues to what he was thinking.

"Do you miss her?" he asked quietly.

"Sometimes."