A/N: I say it every time, but once again, a massive thank you for the responses to this fic so far. This chapter was written in quite a rush. I wanted to put something up before I'm off back to work. I have edited it several times, but I apologise if there's anything I've missed. Anyway I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It's something I've been looking forward to writing.

Chapter 9.

It was one of those nights where no matter how hard he tried Arthur could not switch off. His eyes were heavy and his body ached for sleep but Arthur's mind was whirring. For the past several hours he had been replaying his meeting with Merlin. Analysing everything the servant had said. And more importantly everything he hadn't. The stony look on Merlin's face and the seriousness in his voice set Arthur on edge. If the usually smirking and quick-witted Merlin was being this serious, something was wrong.

He tossed and turned, squeezing his eyes tight in an effort to rid his mind of Merlin's serious expression. The background noise of people walking the corridor outside and the mysterious boops and beeps of this place did not help. Despite the previous comfort, the sheet suddenly felt very hot and itchy on his skin. He threw it aside but after a few seconds goose bumps sprouted on his skin. He had to face it; it was unlikely that he was going to get any sleep tonight.

There was a muffled banging coming from somewhere outside. It was a different noise to what Arthur had become accustomed to in this strange place. He did not know what to make of it. Perhaps people making as much noise as possible in the middle of the night were another quirk of this kingdom. That was yet another reason to get away from here as soon as possible, Arthur thought irritably. Arthur did not appreciate having his sleep disturbed. He chose to ignore the fact that he had been unable to sleep before the muffled banging had started.

Arthur was unsure of how much time had passed. The room was dark apart from a thin slither of light coming in underneath the door. The banging had started to grow louder now as if the perpetrator was edging ever closer to Arthur's room. His eyes fixed on the door, all thoughts of sleep completely lost. Maybe this was what Merlin had been so worried about. Maybe it was a monster that roamed the hallways at night, preying on unsuspecting visitors. Keeping his eyes trained on the door Arthur fumbled clumsily with the cabinet beside his bed. As quietly as he could, he pulled his sword out and held it before him in a defensive pose.

His heart was hammering in his ears, almost in time with the banging on the other side of the door. He waited with bated breath, bracing himself for what was coming next. His room was the last one in the corridor. It had to be coming for him. It took a second for Arthur to realise that the banging had stopped. The seconds slowed down as time itself seemed to stop. Painfully slowly, the door began to open with a quiet squeak. Arthur found himself tightening the grip on his sword. If he could have seen properly in the darkened room, he was sure that his knuckles would have turned white.

A beam of light fell into the room. Arthur was temporarily blinded after being accustomed to the dark for so long.

"Arthur?" a familiar voice whispered.

Arthur let out a laugh of relief. How could he have been so stupid to have thought he was in danger? He lowered his sword and shook his head. The figure shushed him and entered the room, closing the door behind him again.

"You're telling me to be quiet?" Arthur whispered. "I'm surprised you didn't wake the whole building with the racket you were making,"

Arthur saw the figure raise a hand and rub the back of its neck. He was positive that a sheepish grin was being directed at him, even if it was too dark to see.

"Merlin, what are you doing here?" Arthur asked.

"I'm breaking you out," was the response. Merlin strode across the room and took something off of his back. After a few seconds of rustling something was shoved into Arthur's arms. "Here put these on,"

Arthur tried to examine the material in his arms, but the lack of lighting made it near impossible. He deduced it was soft fabric of a dark colour. Arthur wondered where the clothes had come from. He would much prefer to put his own clothes on. Merlin was already collecting Arthur's possessions from the cabinet.

"You need to blend in," Merlin explained, as if reading Arthur's thoughts. "We can't alert people to your presence if we want to get out,"

Arthur sighed but complied, slipping into the clothes the best he could in the darkness. "They're a bit tight," Arthur grumbled through clenched teeth as he pulled the shirt over his head.

"Best I could do in the circumstances," Merlin whispered. Arthur thought he heard a smile in Merlin's voice.

Merlin watched the shadowy figure of Arthur struggle to put on the clothes that Merlin had provided. He couldn't help but smile to himself. Arthur stood awkwardly in front of Merlin in the ill-fitting clothes.

"Ready?" Merlin whispered. He could not believe he was doing this. Arthur nodded in his direction and the pair headed to the door.

Merlin held up his hand, signalling for Arthur to wait before opening the door. Closing his eyes, Merlin took a deep breath and concentrated, reaching out with his mind, trying to determine if there was anyone in the corridor.

"What are you waiting for?" Arthur snapped after a few seconds. Without answering, Merlin pushed the door open and stepped out.

Once out in the fully lit corridor, Merlin could feel Arthur's eyes on him. He glanced at the former King who was indeed staring at Merlin with an unreadable look on his face. Besides the clothes, Arthur looked exactly the same as he always had. Merlin fought the urge to pinch himself. This was just too surreal. But he knew he wasn't dreaming. After a minute, the pair walked slowly down the corridor. Arthur, uncharacteristically let Merlin lead, though he would tut or sigh every time Merlin did something that Arthur did not deem correct. Tentatively, Merlin let his mind explore the corridors ahead of them. He made sure there were no unnecessary obstacles, pulling Arthur into hiding places and ducking into empty rooms every time he sensed that they were not alone. Arthur watched Merlin curiously, the entire time, but did not voice any of his concerns. Merlin couldn't help but wonder what was going through Arthur's mind, but he pushed the thought away. It was something they would address when they got to somewhere safe.

There was a forest behind the hospital. If Merlin was careful they would be able to reach it without Arthur spotting the cars in the car park or the ambulances parked out front or anything else Merlin would struggle to explain to a panicking King. He thought if he could get Arthur into the trees, away from anything that would lead to too many questions, Merlin might be able to start explaining the situation.

Finding the exit had been surprisingly easy. Merlin had expected, at best, protests from Arthur. At worst, he'd expected to walk straight into an unfriendly doctor.

"Head for the trees," Merlin instructed, daring to speak up slightly now they were out in the open.

The pair walked for quite a while. A wave of nostalgia hit Merlin as he thought back to the countless times the two of them had fought their way through the trees in the past. After about half an hour, Arthur came to an abrupt stop. He fixed Merlin with a glare.

"Are you going to explain what is going on or not?"

Merlin grimaced slightly. He had to admit that he had been putting this off. But he knew there was no escaping this issue. They were in a slight clearing, big enough for the two of them to sit fairly comfortably. Hesitantly, Merlin sat on the ground and then patted the patch next to him for Arthur to join him.

"First of all, where are we?" Arthur asked as he took his place next to his servant. That was the question Merlin had perhaps been dreading the most, apart from the inevitable discussion about his magic. Merlin sighed. He opted for the truth.

"We are close to the lake of Avalon," Merlin said.

"That place is not like any I have ever seen near Avalon," Arthur said, gesturing in the direction that they had come from. "I was lead to believe that I was a long way from home,"

"A lot has changed since you were here last," Merlin fiddled with a loose piece of cotton on his sleeve.

"What do you mean? It was only the other day, the two of us were heading for the lake," Arthur was staring at Merlin again. There was a mixture of emotions in the man's eyes; fear and confusion being the most prominent.

"You were unconscious longer than you think," Merlin explained. This was it. He was going to have to tell Arthur what had happened. He inhaled deeply, avoiding Arthur's gaze. "Please don't freak out when I tell you," he said it quietly, but Arthur still heard him.

"That does not make me feel any better Merlin," Arthur said, his voice hardening. "Tell me what is going on,"

"It is a long story. You will have to bear with me," Merlin sighed again. He felt sick and Arthur's stare was certainly not helping.

"Merlin!"

"Well, you said you remember the battle. You remember what happened with Mordred?"

Arthur's hand flew to his side and he rubbed the area that Mordred's blade had penetrated. The expression on Arthur's face betrayed the emotional hurt that the memory caused. A split second later, the expression was gone, replaced by a stony, determined stare. "Tell me, Merlin,"

"I tried, Arthur. I tried to help you," Merlin mumbled. He was in danger of losing control again. He dug his fingernails into the palm of his hand.

"What are you going on about?" Arthur's voice was raised. It rang in Merlin's ears, echoing around his head. "Tell me!"

Merlin's breathing was becoming laboured. The world spun. He couldn't do this. All he could hear was Arthur's demanding voice ringing through the trees. He clenched his teeth, trying to block out the painful memories flashing through his mind. Arthur's hands were on him, shaking him. His face was in his, his lips were moving and noise was coming out but Merlin could no longer tell what he was saying. It was too much. He clamped his eyes shut and shoved Arthur away.

"You died Arthur! Mordred stabbed you and you died!" Merlin blurted it out before he could stop himself.

Then there was silence.