In Sickness and Health.

Chapter Ten

Summary: Gwaine and Merlin are attacked by a sorcerer. While Gwaine comes out scratch free, Merlin realizes that not only has he fallen sick, but his magic. Now, Merlin must rely on the help of others to cure him before his time runs out.

-M-

Merlin woke up with the strange feeling that he was being watched. He was afraid to open his eyes, though, as doing so in the past week had never ended well for him. Instead, he waited a few minutes with the expectation of pain that never came. He was sore, yes, but the pain he had been feeling was almost completely gone. Feeling brave and energized by this revelation, he dared to open his eyes. He was, no doubt, back at Camelot, but not in his room. The dark made it hard to see just where he was, but, if he had to guess, he would have to say that he was in the room of a noble. The fine silk of the bed he was laying on as well as the obscured shapes of several pieces of furniture- no servant or serf would ever have so much furniture!- all but confirmed that he was right. Merlin suddenly remembered why he had opened his eyes to begin with: someone was in the room. He shifted as quietly as he possibly could in attempt to locate the person, but his endeavor was fruitless. Now that Merlin wasn't in pain, he was just annoyed. Where in the world was this noble?

The sound of footsteps made Merlin stiffen. I swear, he grumbled in his thoughts, if I was kidnapped again, I will tear apart whoever is holding me in the most painful, magical manner I can possibly think of!

"Merlin?" a voice asked. "Are you awake?"

Wait- that voice didn't sound threatening, rather, it sounded quite familiar and perhaps even a bit concerned. Merlin tried sitting up to announce his state of wakefulness, but, much to his displeasure, he found the action a bit more painful than he had anticipated. The pain was nothing compared to what he had felt before, but it still bothered him nonetheless. The man in the room with him lit a couple of candles, and realization dawned on Merlin. He had been in this room before, and he did in fact know the man who seemed to be taking care of him.

"Mordred?"

The young knight smiled at Merlin. "How are you feeling? Gaius said you had a fever, though he didn't seem too worried about it."

"How long have I been sleeping?" Merlin was afraid of the answer; it seemed as though he had slept the entire week away, and he didn't know if he could handle knowing that he had slept for yet another entire day.

"Don't worry," Mordred smiled, sensing the young warlock's concern. "You've only been out a couple hours since we returned to Camelot."

"Good," Merlin sighed in relief. He watched as Mordred sat down at the edge of his bed. Merlin wasn't sure what to think of the knight anymore. Mordred, if he correctly remembered, had agreed to bond his magic to his own. The fact that Mordred was there in the clearing with the dragon was enough for Merlin to believe that Gaius at least trusted him. Maybe he had been too harsh on the knight; maybe he was sincere after all. Mordred clearly cared about him- he'd given him his own bed, for god's sake!

"No one will say anything if you are still tired," Mordred said quietly.

"I'm not tired, though," Merlin replied. He statement was weak, though, especially since he had ended it with a poorly-hidden yawn. He hadn't even realized he was tired until Mordred had mentioned it.

"Merlin, you have just had magic pushed into your own, then torn out again, only to have a new bond forced back in. On top of that, you were just healed by a dragon not even six hours ago. You must rest so our magic can heal you." Mordred was nearly begging Merlin by the time he finished. Merlin didn't say a word, however, so Mordred tried again. "I know you don't trust me for whatever reason, but surely you must see that I am only trying to help you. Besides, Gaius and Alator gave me permission to use their sleeping spell on you if you refuse to do so willingly. And since your magic is sick and my magic is inside of you right now, you will not be able to block the spell."

Mordred let his eyes shift away from Merlin for just a moment. He would be lying if he said that Merlin not trusting him didn't hurt, but he couldn't help but to secretly understand why Merlin didn't. Being of magic, Mordred knew how careful a magic user must hide their secret. Mordred knew about Merlin's magic since the day he met him. That couldn't have been easy for Merlin. He would have to earn his trust- slowly, he was sure, but it would be worth it.

"Merlin, would you please just-"

But he didn't have to finish his sentence, for Merlin was fast asleep yet again. Mordred smiled softly as he placed his hand on Merlin's forehead. His fever was mild, and he was sure it wouldn't complicate the healing process too badly. Just in case, however, his eyes glowed gold and his magic pushed itself into Merlin just a bit deeper. The boy relaxed a bit more after that. Satisfied that Merlin would be fine, Mordred got up and snuffed out the candles.

The dragon's last warning still echoed in his mind, though. If the worst had yet to pass, he couldn't bear to think about the pain yet experienced by Merlin. He would need to be strong, and he would need to be prepared. Without a moment's notice, Mordred decided that it best be time to pay Gaius a visit.

-M-

Arthur was torn between being relieved and being angry. His feelings as of late seemed to be shifting between those two emotions far too much. Merlin was safe, he kept telling himself, and then his anger would automatically subside. He had been able to see his manservant only once, and even then he was sleeping. Gaius had warned all of the knights not to visit him too often, though, as he was still recovering. But Arthur didn't know if he could wait much longer to see him again.

"Merlin is still sleeping," Gwen sighed as she gracefully re-entered the room. For a moment, Arthur had completely forgotten that she had even left. He felt guilty for that, too, but he pushed that emotion back down. Gwen wrapped her arms around her husband. "He will be okay, Arthur. You know how Gaius will take care of him, and with Mordred housing him for now, I'm sure he is in good hands."

"Mordred is housing him?" Arthur frowned. No one had told him this.

"Yes," Gwen confirmed. "You seem concerned about that."

"I don't think Merlin trusts Mordred. I fear that he may not appreciate us trusting his well-being with him," Arthur sadly confessed.

"I know," Gwen admitted. "It's just… I don't understand why he doesn't trust him."

"I don't either, but if he seems uncomfortable staying with him, I'll arrange for him to sleep with me or Gwaine- whichever he would prefer. I know that his own room is out of the question- Gaius was worried about Merlin being alone when he is out doing his rounds, and since Merlin's room is so cold, he believes that he might become even sicker."

"Did Gaius tell you what Merlin has?"

"He had the beginnings of pneumonia, but it appears to have died down into a fever, thankfully," Arthur sighed. "Gaius says he should recover in a couple of weeks."

A knock on the door halted their conversation. Arthur frowned at Gwen before yelling, "Enter." A worried-looking Leon entered, and almost immediately Arthur tensed. Something was wrong- he just knew it.

"Sire, there is a problem."

"What is it?"

"Queen Annis has requested your presence. It appears as though a sorcerer has made all her kingdom's crop fields fall fallow, and she hopes that Camelot may offer some assistance."

"Queen Annis has been a most helpful and loyal alliance. When is she expecting us?"

"In two days, sire."

Arthur sighed. He understood the queen's rush, and he would still help, but he did wish that they had more time. "Very well. We will start off with a small group, and when we arrive, we will assess the damage and send for more knights if necessary. Make sure Gwaine, Percival, Elyan, and Mordred are ready to leave by daybreak tomorrow."

"Of course." Leon bowed before he headed out.

"Gwen, I'm sorry-"

"There's no need to be, though." Gwen offered him a kiss to prove her point. "Although, are you sure you should bring Mordred? He's been so helpful with Merlin…"

"That is the specific reason why I want to bring him," Arthur sighed. "Merlin's coming with us."