Disclaimer: Merlin belongs to the BBC and the four J's - Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Johnny Capps
and Julian Murphy. It's not mine. If it were, I'd make Merthur canon!

A/N: It's my first Merlin fic – be kind. Thanks to all my great reviewers – I love you all.

Chapter 12: Responsibilities

.~.

The next day, as promised, Arthur issued a proclamation to the public. It stated that any person wishing to try out for the school of magic must be present on the next Sunday, which was a week away. This was long enough to give people from the outlying villages time to come to Camelot to be tested should they wish to do so. The proclamation stated that Merlin and Morgana would meet the magical hopefuls on the knights' training field at sunrise, and begin the registration and testing.

Merlin couldn't stop talking about the potential of the school to anyone who would listen, namely Arthur. The king was happy that Merlin was so excited, but did he really have to talk about it every second of the day?

Arthur had his own worries. Camelot was about to be overrun with a barrage of visitors. Not only the magical hopefuls, but many eligible noblewomen would be coming to stay at the castle to compete for Arthur's hand in marriage. Arthur made Merlin promise to play manservant for him when he had to take a lady out to the forest for an outing to get to know her. Then, that night they would decide if said woman would make queen material.

The week went by quickly. Ironically, as the countdown to the king's marriage began, Arthur and Merlin's relationship grew deeper each day. Although they didn't have as much time to spend together as before Arthur became king, they enjoyed their stolen moments during the day and spending their nights together. After Arthur fell asleep, Merlin slept in Ygraine's room, which had been thoroughly cleaned. Her personal objects remained, however. Arthur couldn't part with them just yet, and Merlin was happy to let them stay.

The only real downside to the week was talk of the sorcerer who currently resided in the castle's filthiest jail cell.

Arthur agonized over how he should have the sorcerer killed. It had been established by the council that any attack on the king, magical or otherwise, would be considered treason and that the penalty was death. But Arthur didn't want to remind his people of the executions of people caught using magic when Uther was king. He really wanted to distance himself from the image of a terror-inducing tyrant.

"What am I going to do?" He asked Merlin one day while they were taking breakfast in their chambers. "I have to kill him. I can't let him go – if I do, he'll just come back more powerful than before."

"You must kill him," said Merlin. "You have set a precedent that anyone who tries to kill the king must themselves be killed. You don't have a choice, Arthur."

"You just want him killed because he tried to hurt me," said Arthur.

"That too," Merlin said darkly.

"I hate this," Arthur said bitterly. "I'm condemning this man to death. Yes, he broke the law but I feel like it's not my life to take."

"How is this any different from the lives you've taken in battle or on patrol?" Merlin wondered.

"I don't know!" Arthur said, frustrated. "It just is. Maybe because it's the first life I'm officially taking as the king."

"That must be it," said Merlin. "Arthur, you can't blame yourself."

"How can I not blame myself?" Arthur cried. "I'm the one who will be giving the order! I don't want to kill him. You've taught me that all life is precious."

"If you let him go, he will kill again," said Merlin. "He might try to kill you, or me, or one of your subjects. You're doing us all a favor by ending his life."

"I suppose." Arthur had to admit, what Merlin said did make logical sense. He did have a responsibility to keep his people safe, especially from someone that they could not defend themselves from. The sorcerer had dug his own grave. All Arthur was doing was carrying out the sentence, as any king was required to do.

"If I have to do it, I don't want to make a spectacle out of it," said Arthur. "You remember when I told you how much I was affected by watching an execution when I was five? It was awful! I'd never been so scared, and so horrified that one person could do that to another."

"Why don't you execute him just before dawn?" Merlin suggested. "You and I are the only ones who have to be present, along with the executioner and the guards that escort him from his cell. No one else has to know about it."

"Word would spread that the evil sorcerer had been executed but the people wouldn't get the chance to watch it. It's a good idea," Arthur mused.

"Then the people would know that you wished to do things differently than your father," added Merlin. "A public execution is often used to strike fear into the hearts of the people – that if they step out of line, they could be next to lose their heads. A private execution is much more civilized, for the prisoner and for the would-be audience. There is no reason why the people should have to watch the actual killing, other than it is tradition."

"That is one tradition that we certainly don't need to continue," said Arthur.

Merlin kissed him in response and Arthur put the matter out of his mind until the day arrived.

.~.

The execution happened just like Merlin and Arthur planned. The only difference was that Morgana was present, ready to add any magical protection in case the assassin tried to break free. But he didn't – he wasn't a fool to try anything under the watch of Merlin and Morgana. His hands bound, the prisoner walked towards the gallows.

"Any last words?" The executioner asked.

"Arthur Pendragon," the sorcerer snarled, deliberately leaving the 'king' out. "You and your weakling court sorcerer should enjoy the time you have left. I was just the beginning. He's coming for you, and not even a whole army of wizards could stop him. The sorcerer spat in Arthur's general direction as he was forced to kneel down on the block.

"You don't scare me," Arthur said softly, and gave the order to kill.

They heard the swing of the blade, and it was done. The executioner and the guards quickly removed the head and the body.

"I wonder what he meant by that?" Morgana wondered.

Merlin shivered, despite the warm temperature. "I hope we never have to find out."

"There's one thing I don't understand," said Arthur. "If the witchfinder is behind this, how could he be so powerful that not even an army of magical users could stop him? The witchfinder usually works alone, and his motivation is the money that he gets from delivering magical users to buyers. It doesn't make sense."

"Maybe the prisoner was just making things up?" Morgana suggested.

"Or maybe he was telling the truth," Merlin worried. "If the witchfinder has stumbled on some sort of dark magic, it is theoretically possible that he could use it to bring down an army, even a magical one."

"Dark magic?" Arthur frowned. "I've heard of it, but I'm not quite sure what it is."

"Enchanting dark creatures to kill, necromancy, mental torture, possession of one's soul – these are just some of the things that can be done with dark magic." Merlin gulped, not liking even talking about it. "Truly awful things."

"But you're powerful enough to stop such magic. Right, Merlin?" Morgana asked.

Merlin didn't answer.

"Merlin?" Morgana pressed, sounding scared.

"I don't know," Merlin whispered. "I couldn't even stop the assassin from attacking me."

"If I hadn't been distracting you, you could've," said Arthur.

"That's just the point, though." Merlin sighed. "The enemy – they must know by now that I shielded you before I could protect myself. That's common knowledge now."

"You said you wouldn't do that anymore," Arthur reminded him with a glare. "You promised me."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "I know, you prat. The issue is that by now the enemy already knows that you're my weakness. Of course everyone knows that my official job is to protect the king, but that I would sacrifice my life for yours is rather telling. It's more than a part of a job or an obligation out of duty. They know that I care for you enough to die for you."

Arthur had nothing to say to that. It was true. He was Merlin's only weakness. Even the people who didn't know about the intimate nature of their relationship knew that Arthur and Merlin were extremely close friends.

"You won't have to face such a man alone next time," said Morgana. "I'll be there, as will Rowan and Caelia. And those who sign up for our school of magic. The sheer numbers alone - our enemy wouldn't dare…"

"What if they bring us down from the inside?" Merlin suggested. "Target each magical user one by one. Pick us off until only a few strong ones are left? Then make a go for it?"

"Whatever happened to your usual optimism?" Arthur said, trying to lighten the mood. "Why would you even say that? Merlin?"

"Because that's what I would do if I were him," Merlin ground out. He strode away, his jaw clenched.

Morgana started to go after him, but Arthur grabbed her arm. "Let him go," said Arthur. "He needs a little time to process all of this. This is all theoretical to us, but to Merlin, the threat to Camelot is very real."

"You mean the threat to you," Morgana corrected.

"Yes." Arthur sighed. "He's right – I'm his weakness. Anyone who's heard the story of what happened will know that Merlin would give his life for mine."

"That's obvious from the way he looks at you," said Morgana.

"And to the people, it is obvious that I value him, as I appointed him Court Sorcerer." Arthur pursed his lips. "There's nothing I can do to change that now. We'll just have to be extra careful."

Morgana laid a comforting arm on Arthur's shoulder as they watched Merlin leave.

The newly proclaimed Court Sorcerer returned to the castle about an hour later but he acted rather subdued for the rest of the day.

.~.

The next morning

It was the rare occasion that Arthur woke before Merlin, thanks to a well-placed sun beam through his window. Arthur decided to savor it. He crept into Ygraine's old room, and stared at the welcome sight of Merlin fast asleep in the bed. It was his turn to disrupt Merlin's sleep for a change.

"Today's the day, Merlin! Up and at 'em!" Arthur yanked the covers off his lover, leaving Merlin freezing and cranky.

"Arthur!" Merlin moaned, keeping his eyes tightly shut. "WHY? That was completely brutal. Couldn't you just have awakened me with a kiss or something?"

"Now why would I do that?" Arthur smirked at a shivering Merlin. It was payback for all the times that Merlin had abruptly woken him when he'd been a servant. "My Court Sorcerer needs to be on his toes today. We need trained magical users, and soon," Arthur reminded him. "You're finally testing the people today. At least then we'll have a rough idea of how many people have the magical gift and want to learn to use it."

"Alright, I'm up." Merlin rubbed his eyes and slid out of bed, glaring at Arthur.

"Here are your clothes." Arthur tossed them to his sorcerer.

"Isn't this a switch." Merlin chuckled as his shimmied out of his sleep clothes and into his tunic and breeches. Of course his outfit was not complete without his neckerchief. "Where's breakfast?"

"It's here in my room. But first, I wanted to talk to you about something."

Merlin was immediately on his guard. Arthur sounded serious. "What's that?"

"It's about dark magic. Look, I'm sorry I asked about it yesterday." Arthur came up behind Merlin and wrapped his arms around him. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"You need to know what could happen," said Merlin. His shoulders began to shake, and he choked back a sob. "I don't know if I would- if I-I had to prevent your death, if I would…"

"If you would use dark magic?" Arthur finished.

Merlin nodded miserably. He turned around to face Arthur. "I've never tried to use it – I've never wanted to. Gaius made me promise not to, and I was happy to obey him. He said only evil would come to those who used it. But if you were in danger... I don't know. I would definitely be tempted."

Arthur shook his head. "I wouldn't want you to use dark magic for my sake. Who knows what the after-effects would be on you?"

"I know," Merlin whispered. "I just don't know what would happen to me if I lost you. What if I just lost it? Like Uther did when your mum was killed?"

"You're nothing like my father!" Arthur insisted.

"You don't know that!" Merlin cried. "Your father was an honorable man, a just and fair king until the day that he lost the woman that he loved. Then, he snapped. That could happen to me if you died."

"Merlin, I know you," Arthur soothed. "You're a good person and you value all life. You wouldn't go down that path. If I was killed, you would grieve but you would not give in to evil and hatred. You would do your duty to keep Camelot safe. Just like I would do if you were killed."

"I can't lose you, Arthur," Merlin said, sounding broken. He sought refuge in Arthur's arms. "I can't."

"Merlin, you can't let the assassin win. He was only trying to scare us."

"Well it worked," Merlin pulled away and glared at Arthur.

"We can't live like that, always looking over our shoulder to see when the next threat is coming. All we can do is live the best lives that we can, and enjoy what time we do have together." Arthur caressed his cheek and Merlin leaned into the touch. He brought their foreheads to rest against each other. They stayed that way for a few minutes, reveling in the closeness and listening to each other breathe.

"You're right," Merlin sighed as he straightened up. "I'm being stupid."

"No, you aren't. You have every right to be cautious," said Arthur. Merlin tried to protest, but the king cut him off. "I'm not dismissing the threat. I just don't think we need to worry about it right now."

"Easy for you to say," Merlin shot back.

"Perhaps we could assign a few magical users to guard duty," Arthur suggested. "That way, if we were distracted, we'd at least have a little warning."

"Alright," said Merlin. He didn't really believe it would help them - he just wanted to placate Arthur.

"Come get your breakfast – you must be hungry." After Merlin walked into the king's chambers, Arthur handed him the food filled plate. He watched as Merlin ate slowly, eager to change the subject to something not quite so morbid.

"My first suitor is arriving today," Arthur complained. "Her name is Vivian. I have to show her around. But I'm not going anywhere with her alone until you get back."

"I don't know how long it's going to take me to administer the test to everyone," Merlin cautioned. "You may have to go on without me."

"Merlin!"

"You appointed me Court Sorcerer, remember? That's my first obligation, to administer the magical tests."

"I know." Arthur pouted, which Merlin did not find adorable. "Couldn't you just let Morgana take over near the end? Then you could come be with me."

"We'll see," said Merlin. Then he chuckled. "Good lord, Arthur! You sound so nervous! It's like you've never gone on an outing with a girl before."

"Girls confuse me. I always did prefer your company, even if I said otherwise," Arthur grumbled.

This statement buoyed Merlin's spirits all the way to the courtyard.

.~.

End Chapter 12

A/N: It's not super long, but I wanted to give you guys something. The next part should be a laugh, with Arthur going on a 'date' with Lady Vivian and Merlin pretending to be a servant. Look for that soon!