Thank you once again to all of you who have been following this and sticking with me, it means a lot!

Another thank you to MerlinStar for beta-ing, i owe you so much, hun!

Leon didn't notice the small creature that was whizzing towards him at an astonishing speed; he was too busy trying not to drop the unconscious boy draped across his back as he ran as fast as his legs could carry him towards the frantic Arthur. The prince appeared to be yelling something, and whilst Leon knew enough to know that it wasn't addressed at him, he couldn't make out what was being said, the blood was pounding too hard in his ears as he focused on getting Merlin – not to mention himself – to the safety of the trees.

"Pulchra, come back! It's dangerous! Pulchra!" Yelling as loudly as he could towards the vanishing blue blur, Arthur couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to go very wrong. This in itself was mysterious, for things had not looked this positive for a long while. The Knights were back with him, the last almost there, and Merlin was there as well. So why on earth did Arthur feel like he was losing control of the situation even more than before?

"My Lord, who is this Pulchra?" Percival asked quietly, also having not noticed the small creature. Pulchra had shot off at such a speed when Leon came into view, Arthur realised he was the only one who had seen him because he had grown accustomed to locating the small thing even when it was travelling at amazing speeds. He hadn't had a choice but to adapt, for he knew that if he had lost sight of Pulchra when they were in the forest, he would have been hopelessly lost himself.

"My guide," the prince muttered quietly, not quite sure how to explain to the men exactly what Pulchra was, especially as they had yet to see him. "Why would he want to go towards there though – he was scared."

"My Lord?" Shaking his head distractedly at Gawain's question, Arthur instead stared out across the grass, his eyes locked on the fast approaching Leon. He could tell even from this distance that the man was relieved to see him and to once more be able to come to Arthur's protection, it was something he had done for as long as either of them could remember. However, he had almost reached them when suddenly Leon went crashing to the ground, causing all of the Knights to yell out in shock and surprise. Sparing a glance at each other, the men then looked to their prince, only to see him already racing towards Leon. Still unable to shake the feeling that something was happening, Arthur was not going to lose them again.

"Leon! Merlin! Answer me!"

"Sire…" The weak groan made Arthur pick his pace up to levels he didn't think were actually physically possible as he watched Leon try to raise himself, only to slump back to the ground again, his strength having completely disappeared. What was perhaps more worrying was that as soon as Leon had fallen, Arthur had lost sight of his servant.

Dropping to his knees as he reached Leon, Arthur ran his eyes over the man anxiously. There was no other word for it, the knight looked awful. His face was pale, a sheen of sweat breaking out over his forehead as he tried to acknowledge the arrival of his prince.

"Shh, don't move," Arthur ordered softly, glancing about him for any sign of his servant. "What happened?"

"Magic… creature… Merlin…" Unable to form a coherent sentence, Leon locked eyes with Arthur desperately one more time before his head hit the ground. Staring at the unconscious man in front of him, Arthur flexed his fist, feeling the anger growing inside him. He had trusted Pulchra, relied on the creature to lead him to his men and help him free them. And as much as he didn't want to admit it, he had enjoyed having his company, the creature's peculiar chatter and actions had been a welcome source of amusement during the long trek through the forest. And all along, he had been taken for a fool.

The thumping of feet announced the arrival of the other men as Arthur slowly drew himself to his full height, looking every part the royal prince that he was, authority and power simply screaming from him as he stared unseeingly down the hill.

"Sire?" Gawain asked gently, knowing by Arthur's posture that he would be prone to a sudden outburst at any minute if provoked. They had all seen him like this before; the passionate young man was easily fired up. Luckily, it tended to be during occasions of injustice, meaning that no one really minded his temper, but still, they had all learned not to cross him when he was in that mood.

"Take Leon back to Camelot." Arthur ordered, his voice cold and lacking in emotion. Whilst it may have appeared cold hearted, his men knew better. Arthur had a way of covering his emotions when they were getting the better of him, but to those who knew him, it simply showed how emotional he was.

"What about you, Sire?" Owain muttered, his own eyes flickering across the surrounding area for any sight of Merlin. Suddenly, a movement caught his eye and the Knight turned, only to gape in astonishment at the scene unfolding in front of him.

He had found Merlin, that was for sure, but not the servant. Instead, he was now watching the powerful warlock as Merlin battled furiously against something Owain could not make out. He could tell by the way the young man was stumbling that he was losing though. Whatever he was fighting was fast. Glancing back towards Arthur, Owain bit his lip, not knowing what to do. The prince had yet to notice his servant, his eyes still fixed on Leon, but Owain couldn't help but feel extremely torn. If he told Arthur where Merlin was, all would be revealed, and especially giving the mood the prince was in, Owain was not sure that would be such a good idea. And yet at the same time, Merlin was clearly losing, he was too weak to keep up that level of magic for much longer. Watching Merlin drop to his knees in order to avoid the pulsing light that was shot over his head, Owain made up his mind. If Arthur was this worried about his servant, despite knowing what his father would say, then surely he would be able to forgive the fact he had magic when Merlin was fighting for his life.

"Sire…"

"I see him!" Tristam suddenly yelled, causing Owain to jump violently, cursing under his breath. This certainly wasn't going to make things easier.

"Where?" Arthur yelled back, his voice, if possible even louder, cracking slightly in a way that betrayed how he was feeling. Glancing over his shoulder at Tristam, Owain felt his heart sink. The young Knight was looking precisely at the point where he knew Merlin was, yet to his surprise, didn't look the slightest bit surprised by what he was seeing. Just as Owain himself turned back around, Arthur followed the pointed finger with his eyes.

"Pulchra!" He suddenly thundered, making all the Knights look towards him in surprise. Never before had they heard that amount of hatred pounding out from Arthur's voice. Sparing his liege a glance, Owain blinked to see Arthur was already half way down the hill. Swallowing hard, he forced himself to look to see how much trouble Merlin was going to be in with his master, only to raise his eyebrows at the way the battle had turned.

No more was Merlin fighting with magic, instead he was struggling physically against the men holding him; men, Owain knew, hadn't been there a second ago. By squinting his eyes, Owain thought he could just about make out a small blue light pulsing in front of the squirming servant, and it was for that light Arthur was making directly for.

Merlin himself didn't know where the men had come from. One moment he had been trying to neutralise the threat from the small, yet strange looking creature in front of him, wondering how on earth he was half way down a hill for the last thing he remembered was running down a corridor with Leon, who was no longer in sight. The next, his arms had been grabbed from behind, and in his surprise, Merlin had forgotten to use magic, instead trying to wrench the limbs free. Hearing a thunderous shout, he had glanced up to see the prince charging down the hill towards him, and in that moment, Merlin had never been less thankful to see Arthur. If only he had stayed away for a few more moments, the warlock knew he would have been able to defeat the men with just a mere flash of his eyes, but now, with the furious man charging towards him, sword at the ready, Merlin knew he would have to go back to being the helpless servant, just waiting for Arthur to come and rescue him. It was annoying.

Watching Arthur approach them, Merlin knew within a very short space of time that it was not the men the prince was heading for, but the pulsing light in front of him. It was too bright for him to make out what was being shielded within, but it was typical Arthur to ignore all else and go towards the magical threat.

"Arthur, don't!" Merlin suddenly screamed, knowing that if he didn't stand a chance against the creature with some of the most powerful magic known – or in Arthur's case, not known – then the prince had no hope at all.

"Don't worry, Merlin!" Arthur yelled back, a small smile flickering over his face momentarily when he saw that his servant was awake and struggling. There was no way Merlin was about to make this easy for his captors, and sure enough, as Arthur continued in his mad dash down the hill, the servant had taken to kicking the men on the shins.

Skidding to a stop in front of Merlin, Arthur turned his back on his servant, instead facing Pulchra. As if recognising his presence, Pulchra allowed his light to fade a little, revealing the creature within and making Merlin let out a small gasp of surprise. Arthur, however merely narrowed his eyes.

"I trusted you." he snarled, the hand he had gripped around his sword shaking slightly as he tried to control himself. He had a feeling that charging at Pulchra would aid him in no way at all.

"Mistress promised Pulchra a reward. Pulchra was to be free."

"You already were free!" Arthur cried, frustration pouring forth at the obvious betrayal. He should have known better than to trust something magical. "I promised I would protect you and help you find your precious Emrys if you helped me." Ignoring Merlin's obvious stiffening behind him, Arthur looked pleadingly towards what had been his guide.

"You were supposed to help me get them all back." he whispered quietly, noting that his voice sounded suspiciously close to pleading. Pulchra glanced down at the floor, almost as if he was considering the prince's words, but before he could say anything, Merlin let out a yell.

Spinning back around, Arthur cursed himself for getting distracted by Pulchra. For in the time he had been trying to make the creature change sides again, the men had begun to drag Merlin away with a speed that wasn't entirely natural.

"Arthur!"

"Merlin! No! Merlin, hold on, I'm coming!"

Sprinting across the ground, a small part of Arthur's brain knew he would never be able to catch up with them; the men were moving far too quickly for magic to not be involved, Merlin struggling helplessly in between them. Just as the gap between the two of them was finally beginning to close, the men suddenly disappeared into what looked like a solid rock face, taking Merlin with them.

Skidding to a halt, Arthur paced frantically in front of the rock face, desperately trying to find the entrance through which they had disappeared. But considering the speed they had managed to take Merlin with, Arthur knew he would never gain entrance. He was lacking the one thing they had, he was lacking magic. Suddenly, Arthur straightened his shoulders, his head lifting as a thought entered his mind. He did have magic. He had Pulchra. And he was going to be damned if he let the creature get away with aiding in the capture of his servant.

Racing back towards the hovering blur, Arthur stared harshly at Pulchra, ignoring the fact that the creature looked incredibly guilty and sad. Why should Arthur care that he looked sad? This creature was responsible for the fact Merlin had once again been taken from him.

"Open the entrance," Arthur said quietly, his voice soft and dangerous. Pulchra glanced up towards the prince before shaking his head.

"Can't." he muttered in return.

"I'm not asking again," Arthur snarled, his sword already beginning to rise. As Pulchra once more shook his head, Arthur made to lunge forward, only to feel like he had hit a brick wall. Making to take a step to the side and go in at a different angle, Arthur cursed when he realised he couldn't move.

"Pulchra, let me go now." the prince snarled.

"Can't. Pulchra forbidden to help prince."

"You've helped me this far, haven't you?" Arthur asked, trying again to make the creature change his mind, for Pulchra was the only clue he had to getting Merlin back.

"Different. Can't help." What Pulchra had forgotten, however, was that this time, Arthur was not alone. Whilst the prince may have been trapped, his men had been far from it, sneaking up behind the creature whilst it was distracted. It had come as a surprise to hear Arthur talking to it, almost as if he knew both who and what the creature was, but they didn't let that get in the way of their training. Once more, the prince was in danger, and this time, the men were able to help.

Somehow, none of them would ever be able to say quite how they managed it, Gawain managed to catch hold of the small creature in his fist, wincing almost immediately as Pulchra fought furiously to get free. But it was not for nothing that the Knights of Camelot were known for their teamwork. Within an instant, Percival closed his fist around Gawain's, meaning Pulchra then had to fight free of two of them if he wanted to break lose. Grabbing the first thing he saw, Tristam then came charging down the hill, emptying the water skin as he ran, and as he breathlessly skidded to a stop next to his comrades, the three of them forced Pulchra into it, drawing the lid closed behind him. Due to the thinness of the skin, however, the angry blue light could still be seen glowing through as the creature within fought to be free. As soon as Pulchra had lost control of the situation, his spell over Arthur was broken, and the prince was once again sent stumbling forward as his balance was returned to him.

"Are you alright, Sire?" Gawain asked softly, watching the prince closely. They had left Owain standing guard over the motionless Leon as soon as they saw Arthur running after Merlin, but the scene they had arrived at was not one any of them had expected to ever see, let alone in a situation like this.

Ignoring the question, Arthur pushed aside the worry he was feeling for his friend and instead slotted back into being the prince. He didn't seem to notice that the only time he truly acted as his title dictated he should was when events were sent spiralling out of his control. His men, however, did, and it was a welcome thing, for it meant they knew whether they were addressing Arthur the man, or Arthur, Crown Prince of Camelot and their leader.

"You are to start taking Leon back to Camelot, I will catch up with you when I have found Merlin."

"But Sire, the King…"

"I know very well what the King will say, Percival, and I am the one who will bear the consequences of that, unless you have a desire to not follow your orders."

"Allow one of us to stay with you then, my Lord," Gawain begged, not willing to either leave the prince on his own, or face the King. As all of the men voiced their agreement, Arthur rolled his eyes. He knew precisely why they wanted to stay. It was not bravery to protect him, it was the fear of having to tell his father why they had returned to Camelot without the prince.

"Very well, Owain can stay." Arthur responded, trying not to smirk as they all glanced at each other in despair. Owain would probably feel exactly the same way as they were feeling, but considering he was standing some distance away, not at all aware of the conversation that was taking place, no one could say he had any say in it.

Without another word, Tristam handed the buzzing water skin over to the prince and the sombre group headed back up the hill, thinking of ways they could transport Leon back to Camelot with no horses and wondering how to break the news to Owain he couldn't return home. Although judging by the stony silence Arthur maintained on their walk and how tightly he was gripping the water skin, maybe facing the King would be better than staying with the prince. And there had not been many occasions in Arthur's life when that was the case.

Dropping back so that the men could talk to their friend without having to worry about guarding their tongues against the prince, Arthur glowered at the bag in his hand, raising it up to eye level so he was looking directly at the glow he knew was Pulchra. Giving it a shake, Arthur's voice was practically trembling in fury.

"I trusted you. Despite everything I have been taught, I was prepared to let you lead me to my friends, to help me save them. And instead, you help capture one of them. Was that your plan all along, to make sure that he never is free again?"

"Mistress promised." Came the sullen reply, making Arthur start in surprise. It hadn't quite dawned on him that Pulchra would still be able to hear him, but in a way, the prince was glad. The small creature deserved to hear what he had just put the man he had been calling Master through.

"And all that talk about her hurting you? That you couldn't go back there? What about this Emrys? You reacted when you heard my men had been caught, is one of them Emrys? Is that why you have allowed the Knights to go, but not Merlin? What has he ever done to you to warrant being put through that?"

His voice ending in a shout, Arthur knew immediately by the way his men stopped talking, and then all started at once that they had heard his outcry. But for the first time in a long while, Arthur found he couldn't care less that his men heard he was close to breaking. It wasn't as if this had been a walk in the park for them either. Pulchra didn't answer, and part of Arthur could almost sense the regret coming from the small thing, but he was too angry to care.

"Sire?" Tristam's voice breaking him from his dark train of thought, Arthur glanced up to see that the knights, with the exception of Owain, were ready to leave, somehow having made a makeshift stretcher in which they could transport Leon. It wasn't the most practical of things, but it would do. Shutting his eyes, Arthur nodded softly, jumping when a hand gently squeezed his shoulder.

"You'll find him, my Lord." Percival whispered softly, respect and friendship mingled in his voice. Giving his knight a grateful smile, Arthur stood side by side with Owain as they watched the rest of their comrades walk slowly off into the distance, their pace hindered somewhat by Leon. The optimistic side of the prince hoped that they would be able to catch them up before they reached Camelot, but the realistic side knew that wouldn't be the case.

"Come on, let's go," Arthur eventually muttered, turning on his heel and walking back down the path, leaving Owain to pick up the packs. Whilst the Knight didn't grumble in the slightest, he knew what the prince was going through; there was still a niggling doubt in his mind over what Arthur had just said. Where, precisely, were they going?

MMMMMM

"Let me go!" Merlin yelled, throwing himself at the bars in frustration. The woman on the other side, however, just raised her eyebrows.

"Why would I want to do that? You made a mistake trying to escape, Merlin, one you will pay for."

Watching Merlin with narrowed eyes, Morgause found it hard not to just kill him on the spot, out of sheer frustration if nothing else. She still had no idea how on earth the Knights had managed to escape. It was only thanks to Pulchra she once again had Merlin back where he belonged, in a cell under her control, but any defeatist attitude he had shown before had vanished, the stubborn pride coming to the surface once more. She felt like she was going around in circles with the young servant. Her revenge wasn't supposed to be like this.

"Because Arthur is on his way here right now and he will kill you. If you just let me go, we can all go about like nothing happened."

"Is that what you did, Merlin? When you poisoned Morgana? Went about like nothing happened?"

Banging his head on the wall, Merlin sank down it into a sitting position. Why was talking to Morgause always like talking to a brick wall, he could never get the conversation to move past her desire for revenge. He didn't even know if Morgana was here, if Morgause had managed to mutter the spell in time or not to save the King's ward.

"Why are you so bitter?" Merlin eventually asked quietly, watching her closely. She may think that there was something odd about him, something she was entirely right about, but there was also something different about Morgause. She was talented, the fact she had both defeated Arthur in combat and managed to capture the Knights as well as being an extremely powerful sorceress showed that. She was also, much as he didn't want to admit it, rather beautiful. She could probably have anything in the entire world that she wanted, and yet this was what she was doing. Wasting her time taking out revenge on what she saw as someone being no more than just a common servant. So much for ambition.

"Why are you so confident?" she shot back, without missing a beat, causing Merlin to sigh. "You are no more than a servant, Merlin, you should be trembling at my feet. You know full well what I can do to you and instead you act as if this is all just a mere inconvenience."

"It is," Merlin responded somewhat tonelessly, rolling his neck in an attempt to loosen up the stiffening muscles. The fight against both whatever that creature had been and then the men had taken its toll on his battered body. "Gaius wanted me to collect some herbs, he'll be most disappointed."

"Silence," Morgause snapped, hand outstretched in preparation to do magic. Merlin, however, heeded her words and bit his tongue, knowing full well what she could, and would, do to make him stop talking. Only this time, whilst he wasn't going to just let her win, he wasn't going to just sit here and wait for her to kill him. As soon as she was gone, he was out of here, before Arthur walked straight into another trap.

"Mistress, the prince is approaching." His head jerking up quickly as a man slowly entered the room, Merlin smirked in satisfaction as Morgause looked a little irritated.

"I knew that thing wasn't to be trusted. Very well, we'll just have to speed things up. Ready the men."

"Yes, Mistress," the man responded with a small bow as he backed out of the room, giving Merlin such a look of loathing that the warlock didn't know what he had done to deserve it.

"What are you going to do?" Merlin asked hesitantly, feeling even more worried as Morgause just shot him a disconcerting smile.

"You'll see. You two," spinning sharply on the spot, she addressed the two men Merlin had forgotten were still present, the two that had once again dragged him back. "Bring him upstairs."

With those words, Morgause swept out of the dungeons, her long hair flowing gracefully behind her. Watching the men approach the cell, Merlin backed into the furthest corner, ready to use magic to make a run for it. This was clearly some sort of trap for Arthur, and Merlin had had quite enough of playing the helpless servant. It was his destiny to protect Arthur, not the other way around, and he couldn't very well do that stuck in a cell who knows where.

As the men carefully opened the door, obviously trying to take every precaution they could, Merlin didn't move, forcing them to come into the cell if they wanted him to come out. However, as soon as they were both in and a reasonable distance from the door, the warlock sprang. Dodging past the surprised men with a considerable amount of ease, Merlin raced for the door. Jumping over the second man from where he had fallen, the servant tore out of the door, slamming it shut and grinning in satisfaction when he heard the lock click behind him. Sometimes, just sometimes, even Merlin didn't need magic.

Creeping forward at a much slower rate, Merlin carefully checked around each and every corner as he stole forward. He wasn't going to get caught again just because he was careless. However, despite his best intentions, the warlock took a wrong turn. Silently slipping around a corner, he stopped short, cursing inwardly when he saw Morgause standing in the middle of the corridor in front of him, talking to a man that he could only see the back of. Hoping that she hadn't yet noticed him, Merlin held his breath as he slowly retraced his steps back around the corner, praying that he would just be able to slip away again.

It would have worked if it wasn't for the vase balanced on a small table that happened to be level with the warlock's knees. Having completely forgotten it was there, Merlin tiptoed around the corner, only to hear the sudden smash as the vase hit the floor, shattering into tiny pieces. Within a second, Morgause had stopped her conversation and already Merlin could hear her footsteps.

Setting off at a run, the warlock sprinted as fast as he could down the corridor, hearing her frustrated cry bounce after him. He no longer had any idea where he was going, only knew that he had to put as much distance between himself and Morgause as possible. It didn't matter about remaining undetected now; it was far too late for that.

When he could no longer hear the sounds of pursuit, Merlin slowed down considerably, leaning against the wall shakily as he tried to regain his breath. He wasn't physically strong enough to deal with this right now, not having already been forced to fight with magic after everything they had done to him. Wiping his hand across his sweaty forehead, Merlin winced when he felt how hot it was. There was no way he would be able to keep this up for much longer, but if it was true about Arthur being on his way, then he would have to, for there was no way he was about to let the prince walk into yet another trap for the sake of his servant, it was something he had done far too many times.

Worried that he had stayed still for too long, Merlin made to set off again, only to jump violently as the two men he had locked in the cell appeared either end of the corridor, leaving him with nowhere to run. Straightening up, Merlin tried to look a little more threatening than he was feeling, but when Morgause appeared at one end, he sagged again. He could tell that the sorceress just wasn't going to give up.

"Redimio," she snarled, and before Merlin could so much as blink, heavy manacles had formed themselves out of thin air and wrapped around his wrists and ankles. At her nod, the men strode forward, each grabbing one of the warlock's upper arms and dragging him forward.

"You really won't give up, will you, Merlin?"

"You'll never win," Merlin spat back, adamant that he wasn't going to sound beaten. He still had a chance, he still had magic at his disposal if he needed to use it. There was no way Arthur could be allowed to reach here, Morgause bettered him in everything.

"Oh won't I?" Morgause responded coolly, raising an eyebrow at Merlin's expression of disbelief. If only he knew what was coming, he wouldn't be so quick to goad her. Stretching out her hand, Morgause smirked in satisfaction as Merlin tried to back away, only was held fast by the combination of the chains and the men. Placing it on his forehead, she chose to ignore his struggles, knowing she had to focus. As the magic built up inside her, she took a deep breath, allowing the golden tinge to fill her eyes and causing Merlin to take an audible gasp.

Staring into her enemy's eyes, Morgause let the words roll off her tongue, knowing it was about to change everything.

"Aufero suus memoria."

I'll probably repeat this at the beginning of the next chapter as this is directed at someone I can't respond too, but there is a reason why Morgause is getting the upper hand, even if Merlin is more powerful. Last chapter, Merlin was disorientated from the transportation, weakened, hence why at that moment in time, Morgause was stronger. Then they basically tortured him. He knew Morgause wanted to break Arthur and was trying to use him to do it, so did not want to use magic because it was giving her fuel to the fire, so to speak. As he was weakened and refused to leave without the Knights, he knew his chances of getting out of there were not good, there were too many of them. Morgause wanted to destroy the prince and what better way to do it than tell Arthur his friend was a sorcerer who was responsible for poisoning the woman who was like a sister to him?

He also didn't use magic to fight of the men simply because they took him by surprise, and then he saw Arthur and assumed the prince would be able to help, so there would be no need. At the end, he was preparing to use magic, but she beat him too it. He has been tortured, fought with magic, collapsed etc, she does have the upper hand there. Even the best swordsman can be defeated if weakened, no matter how invincible they normally appear. I'm truly sorry if you feel that is out of character for him!

Besides, we know Merlin can't just stop everything Morgause does - series 2, episode 12, he can only lift her curse through the death of Morgana and ultimately blackmail, his magic doesn't work against hers because of the nature of the spell. Even so, I appreciate the feedback and am sorry you aren't enjoying this!