He tried to talk to Merlin, but something was obviously wrong. Gwaine had embraced the frail warlock and ruffled his dark hair – trying to reassure the boy that everything was going to be okay. It warmed his heart when Merlin returned the hug and rested his chin on Gwaine's armored shoulder. Honestly, Gwaine couldn't imagine that he was comfortable to hug in plate armor, however Merlin didn't seem to mind much.
There was a small magical creature who hovered disapprovingly near Merlin's back giving Gwaine a dirty look. When Gwaine looked over at Gwen, he saw that she was watching the scene with suspicion
"You have to eat," insisted a tiny blue thin female – what ever she was – to Merlin. She pulled Merlin away from Gwaine, looking over her master – as if checking for damage or contamination. Merlin turned away from Gwaine and the creature, but she flew before him so that she could thrust a dull looking raw crystal bowl in his face insisting with her harsh voice, "You'll feel better if you eat."
"Feed Gwaine and Gwen," muttered Merlin in barely audible tones, "I'm tired. Leave me alone. I'll eat when I wake up."
He felt helpless. He wanted to take his friend back to Camelot, but it didn't look like that was going to happen as long as Merlin wasn't well. Gwaine watched as Merlin went to stretch out on the cave floor. A cloth of brightly woven fabric appeared beneath his friend's body – another hovered until Merlin settled into position and then it fluttered down elegantly. At first Gwaine thought it was Glinde who had done the magic, but it seemed that Merlin had been tucked-in by fireflies. The fireflies encircled the boy, their lights dimming, as he drifted to sleep.
Gwaine was sitting next to Gwen, who hadn't stopped fidgeting with the fabric of her skirts. When the little blue servant approached them with two bowls – Gwaine accepted them both graciously. He handed one to Gwen. He half expected her not to take the bowl, but she surprised him. Her small trembling hands cradled the bowl, but she rested it in her lap. Apparently she was going to wait for him to taste his first.
"Thank you. I appreciate it," he said to the creature. He wasn't sure how far politeness or charm would work on her, but he was giving it a shot. Her strange face that had been twisted in disapproval took on a more thoughtful look, but the surly creature did not speak to him. He tried not to stare at her overly large ears that only seemed larger thanks to the strange cap on her head. Gwaine glanced into the bowl, his dinner was an assortment of glistening nuts and berries. He took the spoon, that had been stabbed into the center of the bowl and shoveled a large portion into his mouth. He smiled his best charming smile, "It is good! You added the perfect amount of honey!"
The creature's face briefly smiled, but only for a second. She nodded at Gwaine, almost disrespectfully, and flew on her iridescent wings to take a protective position near Merlin's sleeping form.
"He likes porridge," Gwaine said in conversation tones to the blue creature. "He puts fruits, nuts, and honey - on the porridge. So this, is extra special. It's his favorite topping," He took another mouthful and chewed gratefully. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gwen taste her own dinner. He then declared,"This is good but I'm thirsty."
Two large goblets of rough crystal, lined with imperfections, and a matching picher filled with water appeared near his feet.
"Thank you, that was kind of you," said Gwaine putting his bowl aside for a moment so that he could pour water into the goblets. "I was worried about him, but now I see he has you to care for him. It puts me at ease."
The creature rewarded him with a smug look.
Gwen ate daintily, but quickly. Gwaine wondered if she had been accepting food from Merlin or if she had been too frightened to eat. He ate his food quickly, it was definitely better than what he been offered over the last few days – admittedly his own cooking skills were lacking. It had been quite some time since he had to cook for himself. When he was on his own, he preferred the warmth and social atmosphere of a pub or an inn and after he joined the ranks of Arthur's knights - Merlin did all the cooking and fussing.
Merlin's sense of duty had always impressed Gwaine.
All of his hopes rest in Gwaine's hands and this was not something that gave him a lot of hope. It wasn't that he did not believe that Gwaine wanted Merlin to come home as much as he did, but he was familiar with Merlin's stubbornness. He wasn't confident that Gwaine could bring Merlin back.
Merlin had to come back. There were too many unanswered questions, too much he still had to say to his friend, and there were answers that he couldn't face without Merlin at his side. Arthur did not trust himself at the moment. Merlin had broken his oath to stay by his side and he didn't know why. Merlin had often criticized him, but he had also protected him. Arthur despaired over whether or not he was worth such devotion and what Merlin's abandoning him might mean.
There was another problem that waited for him when he returned to Camelot. He did not know how to handle Hunith's request for employment. He couldn't bring himself to hire Merlin's mother as a servant. She was a strong woman who had been living a life of hard labor and he did not intend for her to struggle for the rest of her life. Merlin's service to him gave him a debt that could never be repaid, even if he had two lifetimes to dedicate to the task.
Consulting Gaius was a thought that flitted briefly in his brain before it flew away into obscurity. Even the old physician admitted that Merlin's reasoning was a mystery. They had spoken often since Merlin's leave of absence about the unique nature of Merlin's personal philosophies and neither Arthur or Gaius could claim that they could predict Merlin's thoughts. He was always surprising, always challenging, and always withholding the full impact of his own truth.
Arthur did not want to insult Hunith, but he also did not want to put her in a position where she would have no status. She was the mother of his precious friend. She was also the mother of the most powerful warlock who would ever walk the earth. She was the one who shaped Merlin's mind and protected him from a harsh world that would execute him for the crime of being. She taught him how to be giving and selfless. She was the one who sent Merlin to Camelot. Arthur would have never of known Merlin if it wasn't for this woman's courage and her faith in her son's ability to thrive in Camelot.
He just couldn't make such a magnificent and yet humble woman into a servant and yet she had requested a job so that she could serve in his household. He did not want her to want for anything and he didn't want her to have to continue a life of hard labor.
He stared out of his window at his courtyard watching the activity of his people. The panes of his window were decorated by the touch of a light frost. Soon winter would be here and that humble woman might not properly heat her home if she despaired that she had no income. He imagined her worrying about paying her rent, the taxes of the kingdom, and hoarding the small purse he had granted her for Merlin's service. Arthur's guts twisted. He could also imagine her not spending the purse because she believed that she was merely holding the coins for her son.
He pressed his royal forehead to the cold pane. The sensation was refreshing and relieved the pain in his head. He had to make a decision. He had to come up with an answer. He couldn't wait for Merlin to return.
Merlin wouldn't say what to do about his mother.
Merlin wouldn't suggest anything.
Merlin would take on the burden himself.
This was a problem that would not solve itself.
"What's wrong with him?" asked Gwaine to the creature who called herself Glinde.
The creature was blotting sweat from her master's forehead with reverence, but she answered his question, "He is ill from doing what only he can. He injured himself and now yearns for a solution."
Gwaine did not like the answer. It was cryptic. It was an answer that only inspired more questions, "He seems to be getting worse. Is there anything that I can do to help him?"
"You do not have the power," she said with confidence and that made him angry.
"But there is something that could help him?" pressed the knight.
Gwen muttered under her breath about futility and magic, Gwaine ignored her. He needed to press the magical being for answers. He hoped that if he could solve Merlin's problem, Merlin might return to Camelot with him.
"Only Emrys can help Emrys. He is the King of Ages. He is the One. He is a perfect being and he has torn his soul in his service to a mere mortal. Tell me, Knight, do you know how to mend such an injury? Can you heal that which you cannot touch? Can you reweave the fabric of his being? You don't even have magic. You cannot even understand what he is."
"I understand Merlin just fine!" spat the knight in a low but gruff voice, "He's a good man. He's my best friend. He's the one who gave me purpose. He stood up for me. He knows what I am and he does not judge me. He saved me from a life of wandering. I might not have magic or know how to use it, but understand this – I would do anything to help him. Anything!"
The creature turned her back to him and continued to dab a cloth to Merlin's pale and dewy face. She paused after a while and hung her head. She admitted, "I also do not wish for my lord to suffer." Frustration bubbled in Gwaine. She continued, "There might be one way to heal him, but he would not approve. He already turned down the suggestion."
"And that is?" pressed the knight.
"If we take him to Avalon, he might be healed by basking in the power of the Gate that separates your world from mine. The source of the wellspring that feeds the Cup, the magic that only He has mastered springs forth from the Cup. The Cup was created by the Sidhe and it was stolen by humans who called themselves priestesses of the Old Religion. For us, it was a tool of rejuvenation. For humans it was a way to cheat death, even though it taxed the Old Religion and required a heavy price. For the Sidhe, it focused our souls as we do not crave life, but instead revel in our immortality. We are neither living or dead, we are Eternal. Emrys used the power over life and death to repair a soul and used his soul to give the magic power. The Old Religion is fading, but as our king, he has the ability to use our power."
Gwaine didn't understand. Merlin was a king? What magic? What power? He used his own soul?
Gwen had gasped and was now holding her hands over her mouth.
Gwaine shrugged, "I admit I don't quite understand what you just told me. If he needs to go to Avalon, then lets take him to Avalon. I'll apologize to him if he doesn't like it."
The creature smiled exposing her sharp pointy teeth to the human guests, "I will bring you there."