A/N: Hello all. Thank you all so much for the lovely lovely reviews. Not 100% sure i like this chapter, but its hurt/comfort/angst no doubt. This is not meant as slash, tho those of you that ship merthur feel free to take it as you wish. Enjoy and as always R&R

Chapter 11

Morgana giggled at first until it turned into a full blown cackle echoing throughout the throne room. "Arthur" she could barely contain her amusement. "do you really expect me to believe that your clumsy oaf of a servant is capable of being a powerful sorcerer." she pointed to Merlin.

The warlock had almost silenced, his hoarse throat was broken and he all but twitched and moaned as he lay broken on the floor. Arthur could not bring his eyes to meet his friend.

"Please." Arthur pleaded again. "stop this madness"

"Very well" Morgana sneered and her chuckle finally began to dissipate. "I've had some fun for now, guards take them back to the cells" she waved her hand aimlessly. "Maybe when you've thought about it Arthur, you'll start to tell me the truth" She ripped the serpent from Merlin's skin and the warlock gave a weak shriek from his raw throat.

Arthur did not remember much of his journey back to the dungeons, all except the faint moans of his friend being dragged beside him. He was pushed roughly into his cell and turned quickly to catch his friend as he was pushed in behind him. Merlin's body was limp and heavy against the king and he let him slump slowly and gently to the floor and followed him there.

"Merlin?" Arthurs cheeks rolled with fresh tears. "Merlin can you hear me?"

The warlock's eyes were rolled back and his head lolled back on the kings lap. Blood was still dripping freely from his nose, pooling around his lips and spilling onto his friends trousers. The serpents many bite marks were red raw, angry and oozing.

"Please Merlin?" Arthur gently shook his friend and the warlock's eyes rolled back forward, though still vaige and seemingly unseeing. The King shuddered at the sight of him, not far off the look he had seen when the warlock had suffered the dorocha attack. "selfless fool" he sniffed.

"I ... heard that" Merlin's voice cracked, half conscious, and was so quiet that the King barely registered him. He tried to lift his head but it somehow refused. His entire body was on fire, but still felt nothing to the poison bite of the Nathair. He shifted a little and let out a deep groan.

"Don't move you clot pole, you need to rest" Arthur smiled through the un fallen tears, his voice was wavering.

"Are you crying like a girl?" Merlin breathed out, struggling to finish the phrase.

"No" Arthur shot back, wiping his damp cheeks hastily. "why would i be?"

"Well" the warlock inhaled harshly, "i cant see you, but you certainly sound like you are" his breath caught then and his body racked with painful retching coughs. Arthur held him close and steady as his body drained of even more energy; he slipped into unconsciousness then. Arthur sighed with relief, that his friend's suffering had temporarily stopped. Laying the warlocks head gently down he retrieved an moth eaten blanket from the cell floor and covered him with it.

"I'm so sorry" he held the emotions in this time.

Arthur sat for a moment, swallowing the lump in his throat he surveyed his friends face. The deep bruise from nearly three days ago on his temple was slowly fading, far quicker than the king expected in fact. The darkened circles under the warlocks eyes had doubled in shade though, Arthur supposed his sleepless eyes probably looked similar. His jaw was slack, leaving his mouth slightly open. The king lightly pushed it to, and with a thumb he gently wiped the fresh blood away from his friends lips and nose, the flow was beginning to ease. Arthur then had a quick look under the servants tattered tunic at the shoulder wound. All but two of Gaius's neat stitches had given, leaving the wound gaping once again, it had bled somewhat. He gently pushed the edges to see that the discharge was far less. Merlin moaned and half heartedly pulled away.

"Do you mind?" his eyes snapped open, though still unfocused he seemed slightly more lucid.

"I'm just checking" Arthur pulled his hand away and patted the tunic.

"Ow" Merlin said simply.

The king patted down his own tunic. The tincture was gone, he must have lost it in battle, or by a guards hand, he didn't know. Typical.

"Am I dead yet?" the warlock's voice grimly moaned as he tried again to shift with little effect.

Arthur's heart nearly broke at the request, for all they had been through he'd never heard his friend say such a thing. For his stalwart companion to say such, frightened him.

"No." he answered, "but you will be if you don't rest your sorry ass like i told you" He pulled himself up, going to the tiny window vent to look out. Still no sign of movement, not even a lit torch was visible.

Neither said a word for several minutes. Merlin's eyes remained wide and plastered to the ceiling. Arthur wasn't sure if he had even seen him blink at all since coming round. It was a while later, when Arthur was looking out the window for what seemed like the thousandth time he heard his friends cries.

"Arthur?" The warlock was still wide awake, or at least wide eyed. Arthur noticed his body shudder a little at first and he bent down to comfort him.

"It's ok" Arthur pulled the sheet from his friends prone form. "it's probably just your fever"

"No" Merlin sucked in an unsteady breath and began to hyperventilate. His shudders worsened and his face contorted in pain. "Please Arthur" He moaned, eyes seemingly staring at some unseen form.

"Your seeing ghosts Merlin, its ok" Arthur gently squeezed his friends good arm but to no avail. "It's ok, your safe now"

"No, no, im not, no" the servant's raw voice hitched up as his breaths did. "Arthur please don't leave" He was becoming hysterical now. Some sort of torture induced waking nightmare Arthur assumed.

"Please, please" Merlin's twitching continued, but his eyes did not leave the spot in the corner of the room. The king wondered if there really was something there for a moment, perhaps magical so he couldn't see it.

"It's ok" He tried to comfort him again, this time taking his hand in his own. "Im here Merlin, what is it?" He felt his emotions spilling into his voice as it cracked again.

Merlin gripped the kings hand with force, causing both to become pale and white from the pressure. "Please Arthur don't leave me" tears began to trickle quickly down the warlocks cheeks and he closed his eyes against them. "Please don't let me go" he sobbed.

"Im here" Arthur inhaled an unsteady breath, "I'm not going anywhere" he brushed his friends matted and sweat soaked hair back. "just please... try to calm down"

Merlin wept quietly for several minutes but Arthur did not move. He held him close and wondered if the blood supply to his hand would ever return. The warlock's cries died down eventually and Arthur watched as he slipped into a deep and uneasy sleep.

Much of the next few hours were spent calming the warlock's nightmares. The King did not move from his spot, allowing his friend to use his lap as a pillow for the time being he slipped into a slumber himself.

It was only when the first signs of light began to creep into the tiny window that both were woken suddenly. The warning bell sounded.