Maddie's vision was now in black and white, and the vision disturbed her. She watched, from what seemed like a birds eye view, as Saber walked into what Maddie thought was the headmaster's office. He sat down, then in walked the headmaster and a red-haired man.
Saber, I'm glad you came. The headmaster said. Saber nodded. There was a slight pause.
Don't be rude and snide now! Merlin yelled at Saber.
You know Merlin now. He said pointing to the red-haired young man. Maddie watched as Merlin walked behind Saber.
How much did you see? Merlin asked. Saber shrugged. I asked you a question! Answer me! Merlin instructed.
I know you're not the famous, old wise man everyone thinks you are. Saber replied.
Well, I'm sorry Saber, then we have no choice. The headmaster explained. Saber's face went pale. Maddie watched as Merlin placed his hand on Saber's head and Saber screamed in pain as Merlin's finger tips dug into his skin. Saber's hands flew to Merlin's and tried to pry his hand off.
Suddenly the door opened. Lancelot walked in, his expression soon turned to terror as he watched Saber scream in pain. Lancelot looked from Saber to Merlin, and then Saber went limp.
Maddie was afraid to open her eyes, she opened them just enough to see the tips of her eyelashes. She slowly opened them all the way. She didn't notice it, but her knuckles were white, and her fingertips were digging into the table.
She looked up at the headmaster and Merlin. Merlin was no longer old, he was the young man from her vision. Saber was right.
I can't believe this! She thought as she slowly released her hands from the table.
What do you see? Saber sent Maddie the question.
He's young, what's going on. Do you know something about Merlin? Maddie thought. Saber shook his head "no". He turned to her.
"I need to go to the bathroom, anyone else need to go?" he asked looking directly at Maddie. Everyone shook their heads.
"Umm, I do. Be right back Bil," Maddie said as she nearly jumped out of her seat.
"You just went like twenty minutes ago!" Billi hissed.
"Stomach ache, could be a while," she whispered back. Billi just waved her off with her hand and returned to listening to the headmaster's speech. Maddie started down the aisle to the exit of the dining hall.
"Miss Maddie, where are you going during my speech, you do know it is rude to leave during such an exceptional speech," the headmaster asked. Maddie was really beginning to feel sick now. Everyone's attention was now turned to her.
Maddie spun around on her heel.
"I'm sorry headmaster, I seem to have a small stomach ache, it is an exceptional speech and I hate to be the one to make you loose your train of thought. I'll be back to hear the rest of it, but please continue, I'll have my friends inform me about what I missed," Maddie said in the most pleasant voice she could manage. After all, she had just witnessed him and Merlin sucking the life out of Saber. She gave a small smile and nod to the headmaster. She stole a quick glance at the young Merlin. He was looking directly at her, his face slightly contorted. Finally the headmaster waved her off.
The headmaster continued with his speech, and telling the students about his plans fro the new school year.
"This year we will be trying out a new form of housing," he said to the students. There was a round of applause, then it quieted and the headmaster began talking again. "There are ten cottages on the school premise. Up to ten students can live in the same house, five male, five female." Some students made "booing" noises. "Please, quiet. Now, I must ask, how many of you have or can, bake a cake?" Almost everyone's hand went up. "How many have done it without assistance?" A few hands went down. "Ah ha! And how many have baked a cake without their powers?" Lots of hands went down, but there were about fifteen still up. "How many can bake a cake without magic at all?" only two were left, Billi and a boy across the dining hall. "A cake that will taste decent?" the headmaster chuckled. The boy's hand went down. "There you have it, this is why I am instating the new housing. Although you all have powers or magic, it doesn't mean you can always use it, you need to learn how to live without it."
Maddie wandered out of the dining hall, wondering where Saber had actually gone to, instead of the bathrooms. Suddenly, something grabbed her arm, Maddie let out a small scream, which was muffled by Saber's hand.
"What do you know? How do you know it? You need to tell me," Saber instructed Maddie as he pulled her over to a small corridor that looked thoroughly abandoned.
"Well, all of a sudden I had this, well, vision, premonition thing. I don't know, it scared the shit out of me," Maddie started blabbering.
"I mean in the vision, what did you see? Was it about Merlin?"
The speech was over and Merlin was uneasy. Now there were two students that had seen him, the real him. Suddenly, both of them had disappeared. He needed to talk to Guillermo in private.
"Guillermo!" he hissed out of the corner of his mouth.
The headmaster turned to him. "Yes?"
"Two of them know, they both disappeared though," Merlin replied.
"That makes no sense," the headmaster retaliated. "Maddie has no powers to speak of, at least not yet. Who was the other one?"
"I don't really know, all I can tell you is he has two different colored eyes," Merlin explained. The headmaster was suddenly very worried. "What is it, tell me Guillermo!" Merlin insisted.
"That one is Saber. I'm worried about his powers, they seem to be out of control. He was expelled from Homer's and Ricotine due to them. I now have no doubt about why he was. He doesn't know it, but he killed three students." The headmaster said, he seemed to be in a daze.
"What are we going to do, do you think he told the other girl about me?" Merlin questioned in fear.
"I have a meeting scheduled with him, tonight, you will come."
"You said he had his hand on my head?" Saber asked Maddie, pacing back and forth. Maddie nodded her head.
Suddenly Saber looked up from the ground. Footsteps, they were far off, but they worried him. "You hear them?" he asked Maddie. She shook her head.
"Hear what?" she asked.
"Footsteps?" he asked. She shook her head again. They stayed silent for a few minutes longer. Suddenly Maddie began to hear them.
"Do you have like, super senses or something. You heard those footsteps a mile away!" Maddie laughed as the started to walk back towards the dining hall. As they were about to reenter the dining hall they ran right into Merlin and the headmaster.
"Good evening," the headmaster said pleasantly. Then he looked to Saber, "young man, I believe we have an appointment in only a few minutes. I'll walk you to my office."
Maddie froze up, this was it, Merlin and the headmaster were going to perform what she had seen in her vision.
Watch your back! Maddie thought. Saber turned to Maddie, his face contorted.
You too.
Maddie watched as the headmaster walked off with Saber, then realized that Merlin hadn't followed; he was still standing in back of her.
"Good evening," Merlin said cheerfully to Maddie. Maddie gave him a nod as she started to walk back to the dining hall. "Excuse me, miss? I'm quite sorry, I do not know your name."
"Maddie Fallon," Maddie answered.
"I thought that your sister's name was Fallon, or that is what Mr. Josomer told me?"
"Her name is Peregwin, but people have always called her Fallon," Maddie informed Merlin.
"Oh, I see, well in that case would you do me a favor?" he asked. Maddie nodded.
"I guess, what do you need?"
"You seem to know where the restrooms are, would you bring me to them?" he asked in a sincere voice.
"You just want directions?" Maddie asked.
"Oh no! I'm horrible with directions, I know it sounds awkward, but would you actually take me to them?"
"Umm, sure," Maddie answered.
"Lead away then," Merlin replied as Maddie started down another corridor. She took a few turns, and finally came to the bathrooms. She stopped at the door. "Here they are," she said. Suddenly she felt a tickle on the back of her neck. It was something with a wooden tip.
Merlin couldn't believe he was holding his wand to the back of a student neck. She had done nothing to deserve this, but she obviously knew something. He heard her breathing get heavy.
"What do you see when you look at me?" he asked calmly and quietly.
Maddie shuddered. She was horrible at lying. "I hate to seem rude, but you are very old, a long white beard and." Maddie was cut off mid-sentence.
"Stop lying! I can sense it," Merlin yelled, he was starting to get angry and irritated. "Tell me the truth!" he hissed into the girl's ear.
"You're young! Red-hair, that's all I see!" the girl cried. He felt her start to shake.
"I'm so sorry," Merlin said, he watched as the girl let out a big sob and rubbed her eyes. "Dormi!" he said with the wand tip still at the nape of her neck. She crumpled into Merlin's arms. She was only asleep, but he felt horrible for having to cast a spell on a student. He gently laid her on the floor and pointed the wand at her, and with a flick of his wrist, the girl had disappeared.
The headmaster walked in back of Saber to make sure he didn't try to run. They finally reached his office. Saber didn't see anything until the headmaster had waved his hand in some weird pattern and a doorknob had appeared.
"You can just go in, I have to do something very quickly," the headmaster instructed as he opened the office door for Saber. "Just have a seat, help yourself to some chocolates," the headmaster insisted as he left Saber to sit down. He quickly closed the door. The door disappeared again.
Saber looked around the room. The walls were covered in shelves and books. Saber looked for another way out. He drew a blank.
"Guillermo!" Merlin yelled as he ran down the hall towards the headmaster.
"What did you find out?" he asked Merlin.
"The girl! She can see me too."
"Well, first we have to take care of the boy, let's go," the headmaster instructed as he did the series of hand gestures and then the doorknob appeared.
Saber's heart started beating faster as the door started opening. The headmaster and Merlin emerged, just as Maddie had said they would. Merlin paced behind Saber, while the headmaster stayed in his view.
"Saber, I'm glad you came," the headmaster said. Saber nodded.
I didn't have much of a choice.
"Don't be rude and snide now," Merlin instructed him.
"You know Merlin now" He said pointing to the red-haired young man.
"How much did you see?" Merlin asked. Saber shrugged. "I asked you a question! Answer me!" Merlin instructed.
"I know you're not the famous, old wise man everyone thinks you are,"Saber replied.
"Well, I'm sorry Saber, then we have no choice," the headmaster explained. Saber's face went pale. This was what Maddie had warned him about. Saber felt Merlin's large hand palm the top of his head. His fingers started digging into his flesh and an excruciating pain began at each finger. He felt like his life was being sucked from him. Saber gasped in pain, he immediately tried to pry Merlin's hand off of his head, but it felt like it was cemented to his skull. Saber watched in his mind's eye as images of Merlin flew out of his mind. He was beginning to feel weak, and the pain was worse than ever.
Suddenly the door opened. Lancelot walked in, his expression soon turned to terror as he watched Saber scream in pain. Lancelot looked from Saber to Merlin, then back to Saber, yelling in pain.
In the panic of the intrusion, the headmaster had pulled out his wand and threw the hardest curse he had at the intruder.
"Malmort!" he cried. He watched as Lancelot crumpled to the ground, gasping for breath.
"No!" Merlin cried as he detached his hand from Saber, who then went limp. Merlin ran to Lancelot's side. "I needed him! You fool!" Merlin cried at the headmaster as he raised his wand.
"WAIT!" the headmaster cried when he saw Merlin pulling out his wand. "He won't die," the headmaster informed Merlin as he rolled Lancelot over. He was in the middle of a very long seizure. Finally he stopped shaking and Merlin watched in amazement as he started breathing easily again.
"Why didn't he die?" Merlin asked as he watched Lancelot's chest rise and fall steadily.
"He was cursed, by the Lady of the Lake for having an affair with Gwenivere. The curse sent him into the future, that's why he's here. It also stated that when true love befalls him, he will die a true, heroic death in an act of love. He cannot die until then, he is, invincible," the headmaster recounted to Merlin.
"She was one Lady to be reckoned with," Merlin chuckle as he recalled his few accounts with the Lady of the Lake. "Has he found the girl yet?"
"We think so, but we are keeping him away from her, her name is Belle," the headmaster explained.
"Why are you keeping them apart?" Merlin questioned.
"Because of him," the headmaster answered as he pointed to Saber. "He would be blamed for Lancelot's death. He has a rare form of power. It is so powerful that it takes over him and he can't control it. Similar to a werewolf, when he changes to a tiger, he can't control it. After he changes back he doesn't remember anything. The counsel for the magic schools announced that if any students die this year from unnatural causes then Saber will be executed and the schools shut down. I can't let that happen."