hullo, i have a cold. which sucks, but look! a new chapter! yey! there has been a slight time jump between last chapter. dont worry it isn't years like in the show. just enough time to hurry the polt along because i want daddy merli, and soon lol this chapter we bring back another guest star :D i think the title gives it away.
i don't own merlin. only my OC's
hope you like this chapter.
Merlin rode back through the forest having been to see Freya. He was still feeling uneasy even now a month after he had spoken to her about Arthur's request. She had agrees, and had now been carrying his child for three weeks. He made regular trips to see her to make sure she and the child were ok. It amused her but she knew his concern was valid, she wasn't a human woman any more she was something else. She would give birth to a human child that much was certain but Merlin's magic would be needed to give the child a chance to live. Sir Ulrich had already stepped forward and offered to give his life so that the new born prince could live, word had been sent to his grandsons lord Malcolm and sir Leon, who had been meeting with his grandfather to get the old knight's affairs in order, over the years he had gained vast wealth and lands for his heroic service to Camelot.
Merlin slowed his horse as he approached the gates of Camelot. There was a woman on a cart, a woman he recognised clearly. "Alice?" he asked as he came level with the cart, the lady turned her head to the side and saw her nephew. "Oh Merlin, I wasn't expecting to see you just yet" she said as she fiddled with the reins of her horse. Merlin could tell she was nervous. "You needn't be afraid, uthur is dead, by another's hand, and you need not fear punishment for events which were beyond your control." He voice gained an edge to it at his last statement. Alice smiled at her beloved's nephew, "why do I feel you need to take your own advice? You can not keep blaming yourself for what has befallen Gaius. That he is alive even if comatose speaks a lot of his force of will and devotion to those who dwell here." Merlin smiled at the kindly older lady. Ever since Freya had fallen pregnant Merlin had been trying to work out how Gilli had come to be, Gaius and Alice were both beyond traditional child baring age when his cousin was born. As if reading his mind Alice spoke up.
"Gaius and I were officially engaged to be married in the eyes of the new religion but had already promised ourselves to each other in the manner of the old religion. It turns out, magic wishes to survive even in the direst of times, your mothers family, magic runs deep in them, almost as deep as in your dragonlord father's. The magic fortifies them, keeps them younger for longer, have you ever seen Gaius hurt?" Merlin thought about her question, yes, he had seen Gaius thrown across rooms, tied to stakes, beaten and battered, but the old man stayed as strong and as steadfast as ever. Now he finally realised why, Gaius may look like an old man but inside and n his soul he was closer to Hunith's age. Merlin smiled at his aunt. "that is the other ting I meant to mention, up until now my mother and I have been doing what we can to keep Gaius comfortable and stable, if ever you have need call for me or Bellanor or your son. You are not alone, never feel that you are" Alice felt tears well up in her eyes, it had been years since Gilli left on his travels carrying a ring which had belonged to his step father, it wasn't until after he left that he discovered who his real father was, she had also not seen Bellanor for some time, she had been so alone and then isolated through fear by the Manticore but now finally she was safe, she was near her family again, and it felt right.
As they reached the citadel gates the guards stood to attention only relaxing when Merlin sent an amiable smile and vague wave of dismissal the guards smiled back. It surprised Alice how easily Merlin had slipped into his role as prince. She saw Merlin mutter something and felt a shiver of magic which was followed moments later by a group of knights lining up and forming a corridor for Alice to ride down to the castles entrance where the king stood in his full regalia. Merlin leant over in his horse to talk to his aunt. "I have a confession to make, I had an errand I had to run, there is an oracle and she is soon to give birth to my child, I timed my visit to her guessing you would likely be arriving now. So I could escort you and also so I could send word ahead to the king so he knew to get dressed in his proper cape and shiny crown" before she could ask any further questions the king called out to her companion. "Hey, Emrys! You forgot to end your spell genius! I can still hear what you are saying!" it was an oddly informal exchange but Alice was quickly getting the impression that Merlin and Arthur were not a normal prince and king. Merlin to his credit just shrugged and hopped off his horse which stood as still as a statue as soon as he had dismounted, Tristain stepped forward handing Merlin's crown over to the reluctant prince.
Merlin stepped forward towards the king, spinning around as he placed the crown on his head, he winked at Tristain before in unison with Arthur he announced "my lords, ladies and citizens of Camelot, today is a joyous day, today we gain a new court physician. One who was is, beloved by our dear friend Gaius." Merlin stopped speaking as Arthur continued. "She is aunt to the prince, and taught Gaius everything he knows, if anyone can keep up his good work and find a cure for him, it is she. It is Alice Springsong." Alice stepped down from he cart and walked over to the king, she spoke as she dipped into a deep curtsey "my lord I have done a great many dishonourable things in the past, I promise to repay the debt owed" Arthur smiled at her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"That you even feel the need to say that proves to me that you already have punished yourself more than anyone else could. Your quarrel was with my father, not me, he is dead now," Arthur paused realising there were others gathered. He leant on and whispered in her ear. "My father's last words were to trust in Merlin, and I do. He trusts you so I trust you, whole heartedly." She felt light headed at the ease of his forgiveness. Merlin interrupted the moment smiling widely as he motioned for her to follow him. "Gilli and Bellanor are already in your new chambers making sure you have everything you need. They will both be so pleased to see you" he set off through a net word of corridors and stairs as she followed behind him. "I'm sorry you missed my mother I'm sure she would have liked to see you again, she had to go back to Acetia though." Alice smiled at the memories she had of Hunith. "Did you know you created sparks when you were three days old? Bellanor had been crying in her crib next to you and you created multi coloured sparks that had her giggle, you mother and I rushed over to find that Bellanor's blanket had slipped and the poor child was cold, Hunith was so scared and proud of you, even at three days old you were protecting others, of course as she carried the two of you over to the fire Bellanor's eyes went gold and the flames sprung up to full heat," Merlin paused at the door to Alice's new chambers.
"It is such a shame things couldn't have been different, I am sure with her by my side I'd have gained control of my power sooner, and she could have come with me to Camelot aiding me in my destiny. As it is now." He knocked lightly on the door and opened it only to be knocked back into the corridor by a blur that turned out to be his sister, she hugged him fiercely "I hear my nephew is doing well as is the mother" she said happily Merlin went to answer but his sister interrupted him with an excited squeak before she enveloped her aunt in a hug. "Alice! You made it!" She called over her shoulder. "Gilli! Your mother's arrived!" Gilli emerged from what used to be Merlin's room he was covered in dust and cobwebs hung from his hair. He smiled at his mum
"Mother, it is good to see you, I'm sorry I wasn't there to greet you but someone" he looked at Merlin. "Forgot to have servants clean his old room." Merlin rolled his eyes at his cousin. "As my cousin and right hand man, you do realise you have the right to order servants your self, if you so choose, lord Gilli."
Gilli rolled his eyes at the prince, "I keep telling you not to call me that." He shook the dirt off and used magic to condense it. A small rock like ball formed and he threw it towards Merlin before Bellanor intercepted by incinerating it with a ball of flame. The cousins laughed before Gilli stepped forward and embraced his mother happily, Bellanor skipped over and joined in, hugging the woman who raised her close, Merlin stood to the side not wanting to interrupt the reunion. Alice noticed his hesitance and shooed her son and niece away happy tears in her eye, she moved over and pulled Merlin into a tight hug speaking quietly into his ear. "My greatest regret in life is that Gilli never knew his true father and that I could not be here to care for Gaius, I know, I have seen what a joy it was for him to have you here, family, companionship. Thank you my boy, thank you." Merlin smiled happily. The moment ended with a knock on the door, it was Sir Leon.
"I'm sorry sire, but there has been an accident, one of the new blacksmiths was trying to get a boy to use magic to heat his furnace the child was in experienced and the man has been burned." His eyes flicked to Alice then back to Merlin, while he was a knight of Camelot and not supposed to show fear he knew Merlin had caught the hesitation in his voice. Alice dug out some jars from her bag before turning to the knight. "Tell me sir, what is Arthur's true stance on magic? I can clearly see he has at least three powerful magic users within his court." Sir Leon paused briefly before answering.
"He is still weary of it but Merlin and Bellanor have both proven to him that in the right hands it can be used for the betterment of all, he tolerates it mostly but does not trust it blindly." He looked out the door nervously. "Forgive me sire but we must hurry, I don't think the man will last long, he's not." The knight looked out the door and started moving away, Bellanor shot her brother a worried glance, she had heard what the dragon did to Leon, what Merlin had to heal. She may not know the knights as well as her twin but even she could sense the knight's fear, he was a knight of Camelot who had survived dragon fire and shrapnel melted into his flesh, but he had spent years training to survive torture and battle wounds this blacksmith had not.
Alice hurried after the knight with Merlin at her side. "Lead the way sir knight, for I am about to show again what can be done with magic when it is put to healing." Leon flinched, in his stride, Merlin caught up with his aunt. "Alice, I regret to say the knight has already had to witness that." She looked at her nephew with a puzzled expression on her face. They turned into a corridor as the knight looked behind him, "when the great dragon attacked Camelot a select group of knights rode out with Arthur and Merlin, of those knights I was the only one to survive, but the life I was left was worse fate than death, I was caught by the dragons fire, it incinerated my cape, scorched my helm, melted my chainmail into my skin and burned my whole body, it took me a day to travel the half hour back to Camelot" he kept walking letting the full horror sink in. Alice raised a hand to cover her mouth as her eyes swept over the knight assessing his movement to check for injuries, and she found no sign.
Merlin spoke finally, his voice full of regret and pride, "I failed to stop the dragon in time, I could not use magic to help him. But a time came when Arthur revealed that he knew of my magic, he knew and did not wish to see me hung, I grew frustrated and the first thing I thought to do was heal Leon. It worked sort of, but there must be balance and it took a lot out of me and I didn't heal all of him, I'm so sorry Leon" the knight turned round and took the prince by the shoulders. "Enough my friend. You saved me, you saved us all, and you did it in the shadows, the hurt it must have caused having to lie to us all, living in fear of death for simply helping, no you didn't heal all of me, yes I still have a few faint scars on my back, and one on my neck, but I am healthy and alive enough to fight, and that is thanks to you. Any injuries to do with fire and burns will always remind me of what it was like to live like that, but I choose to use that pain to push harder to do my duty to Camelot, to you the prince and to Arthur my friend and king." Merlin nodded before he looked out the nearest window.
"This accident where did it happen?" he asked, Leon pointed towards a small stone hut at the end of a row of buildings. Merlin held out his hand. "Alice take my hand and hold tight, Leon take her other hand." The knight did as asked before he could ask why Merlin's eyes went gold and the prince stated simply "this may hurt" suddenly Leon felt the prince touch the stone wall and felt his blood go as cold as that stone the world went grey briefly before his blood boiled and he felt the cool air of the lower town hit him like a bolder. He blinked a couple of times getting his bearings, he looked up to the citadel and saw the window they had been next to in the distance, he looked to his side and saw Merlin helping Alice back to her feet, and picking up her bag for her. "We just travelled through the stone didn't we?" Leon asked the warlock, Merlin simply nodded, as he walked into the forge. Leon walked forward and held the door open for Alice.
"You stupid, stupid man! Next time try something less advanced!" Merlin shouted at the hurt blacksmith who was clutching a severely burnt arm and had a look of agony on his face. Alice slapped the prince on the arm and tutted at him before setting to work. "Berate him later nephew, now if you won't help me heal him kindly go and check on the boy." Merlin rolled his eyes and left the room with one last glare at the blacksmith. Alice turned back to the man. "My nephew knows a lot I'm sure you will all have heard the rumours of his magic and power, he worries for his people." The injured man looked at her puzzled, "so he does have magic?" she nodded as she picked up a crystal and placed it against the man's burn.
"No, he doesn't have magic, he is magic, I guess you could say magic has him, he has only ever used it for good and for protecting Camelot, and it was he who inspired the king's weary acceptance of magic. There is a long way to go before those with magic are free again, but we have finally been given the chance to prove we can do good as well as harm." She smiled sadly before she patted the man on the arm. He looked down to see only a slight barely noticeable scar on his arm where moments ago there had been an angry burn. He smiled at her and thanked her. Merlin walked back in holding hands with the young boy who had caused the accident. He let go of the hand as he crouched down next to the boy pointing at the blacksmith and whispering something the boy smiled widely and ran over towards the furnace which had gone cold. "next time you force your child labour to light your furnace using magic, try something less dangerous sir, like a spark" he nodded at the boy who shouted "sparks!" in the old tongue, tiny little sparks shot out of his hand and gathered in the driest part of the furnace a fire leapt up and the furnace burned strong, Merlin smiled, at the blacksmith and his young apprentice.
"Magic is not all about power and strength sometimes it is the little things at last the longest, and the powerful that are the most beautiful." He held out his hand his eyes glowering gold. A bright blue flame leapt up in his hand and formed the shape of a galloping unicorn. He smiled and sent it galloping around the room it brushed against the blacksmiths leg, as bright as the fire was it wasn't unbearably hot. Merlin chuckled "I shine, not burn. I shine, not burn." He said smiling as the flame unicorn faded into the air. The blacksmith shook the prince's hand. "Thank you sire thank you. I swear I will never forget your sage advice and I shall never ask too much of my youngest apprentice again." He turned to Alice, "and thank you ms for healing me I will never forget what you and your magic prevented." Alice smiled at him.
"I am the new court physician, it was a pleasure to heal you sir, for with out hard working men like you the knights would have no armour, the farmers would have no tools, the wheels would have cogs." She smiled once more before leaving with Merlin, sir Leon was still outside waiting, Alice rummaged in her bag a moment before she produced a clear blue crystal and handed it to the knight. "Here, its magic will calm and order your mind when needed, sleep with it next to your bed. Or carry it in a pouch." Sir Leon smiled and thanked her, the both of them edging away when Merlin went to touch the wall and travel through the stone again he looked at them puzzled Sir Leon smiled. "Oh no, once was enough my friend" Alice simply nodded linking arms with the knight as they headed back to the castle, Merlin shrugged took a deep breath and touched the wall disappearing.
alice is back! and leon still has fire issues. also, expectant father merlin doesn't like silly blacksmiths lol
also,as you might have guessed, merlin may not mind his new trick of traveling through stone but others are not so keen on it.