12. Head over heels

"So you're saying that the facts Yvain gave me are true but that he ...twisted them, to fit in the version of the story he has made up for himself?" Arthur said musingly.

Merlin shrugged. "More or less, yes. That's the essence of it. If the story were a house I'd say he took the ceiling to make the floor and the door frames to build the walls."

"And it wouldn't be that you are condemning the Duke for making up his personal version of my father's doings while believing in a no less biased version that stems from my father's lifelong friend?" The Prince had no idea where that thought had come from. But somewhere inside him a nagging feeling was very persistent. The feeling that not everything Yvain had shown him was a lie. And he was very much convinced that this particular judgement was his own, not his uncle's.

His suspicions grew when Merlin took immediate offence at the implications of this question. "Gaius wouldn't lie to me, not even for your father's sake!" The warlock's face was strained with anger and insult.

"I never said that Gaius lied to you. I said that he would naturally be biased. He is King Uther's friend. He always has been."

"But he wouldn't have kept it from me if your father really were the villain Yvain accuses him to be." Merlin didn't want to give up without a fight.

"So you should know whether it is true that Gaius stood by when my father had the Blessed Isle destroyed? Even the young acolytes were killed, male and female, burned alive, at King Uther's orders. Only his relatives were spared! If you were a Pendragon you could go free albeit it had been his own family that had caused the whole mess! True enough, my uncle taking his whole order with him to Tintagel and overthrowing the garrison here had not been part of Uther's plans, but even so he made a truce with his brother while all the others, all the others, lay dead!"

Merlin felt the confidence Gaius' tale had given him dwindle. He didn't understand a word of this, let alone the volcanic eruption itself. "What are you talking about? I've never heard anything of these things, not from Gaius, not from anybody."

"But I did" Arthur said, his voice being somewhere on its way from anger to sadness. "And long before I was brought here."

He combed all ten fingers through his hair before he sat down, cross-legged, at Merlin's side. "I didn't understand it at the time, but one day, I must have been six years old, my father and his knights came back from the battlefield and everything was different than it had been before. They had been victorious, everybody said so, but nobody was happy, let alone triumphant. Instead the commanders and my father quarrelled all the time. I was in the habit of hiding somewhere near the council chambers at that time, I heard them shout and yell at each other. Later most of his commanders resigned their commission and asked for their leave. They went away with their knights and soldiers and their families and I never saw them again. Only Margath and a few others stayed with us, but they were changed. You see, they had always been...kind to me, playing with me or making fun with me, at least as long as my father wasn't around to see it. But now they padded around, looking shy and furtive, like kicked dogs.

The King didn't want to see me; he denied access to his quarters to everyone. So I went to Gaius and found him packing. He was upset, I mean really upset. When I came to him I thought he'd be crying, he definitely looked like it. Suddenly my father stormed in, pushing me aside. They started yelling at each other and I didn't understand what they were talking about. When my father left he saw me there. He looked at me as if he'd never seen me before. Finally he shouted 'take that child away'. As if I didn't have a name.

Gaius came and took me by the hand. "Leave the boy alone" he said or something like that and my father replied "If it weren't for him, nothing of this damned mess would have happened. If it weren't for him, Gorlois would still be alive. For the Gods' sake, Igraine would still be alive!"

Gaius said "not again, Uther. Please. Not again."

My father got mad. "Don't you dare telling me what I can do and what not" he cried and Gaius yelled back "Damn it, if you could spare your murderous brother you will for fuck's sake spare your innocent son! If you ever go for the boy like that again you will regret it, even if it is the last thing I'll ever do!"

"You're imagining this, aren't you?" Merlin smiled disbelievingly. "Or maybe it's a leftover from Yvain's attack."

Arthur rose and started an angry pacing "No, it's not. It happened!"

"Come on, now. It's not a very probable story, even you must admit that! You didn't have a clue that your father has a brother until you came here."

"Merlin, I'm telling you, it happened. I'm neither imagining it nor am I completely deranged by what my uncle did. I had completely forgotten the whole incident until now. But the battlefield they came back from must have been the massacre on the Blessed Isle. And if it hadn't been exactly the disgraceful affair Yvain told me it was then why should Uther's men have left him? Why all the quarrelling? Why should even Gaius have wished to leave if not for this precise reason?"

By now the warlock was really scared by his friend's strange behaviour. It couldn't be that Yvain had been successful where Morgause had failed? Surely Arthur hadn't begun to hate the King? "But your father loves you, he'd do anything for you" he said helplessly. "He's doing it right now, remember?"

"For love or for guilt?" Arthur shot back mercilessly.

"Who gives a damn?" Merlin yelled and finally his protectiveness of his old mentor got the better of him. "If any of this were true, Gaius would never have forgiven him, not for such atrocities!"

"My dear Merlin, Gaius forgave my father's indifference when Aredian put him first through the wringer and finally to the pyre. He would forgive him anything!"

As the warlock kept silent after this Arthur turned and found him staring down at his lap, angrily tugging at the blanket's tassels. The Prince's heart went out to him. Instead of finding the desired clarity he had only forced his own confusion and awkwardness upon his friend. He decided to drop the subject, once and for all. Like it or not, he had no other chance but to face Yvain over this – and eventually his father. If he ever got the chance to see his father again, that was.

In this very moment Arthur's homesickness and misery became overwhelming. Gods, what he would give for a way out of here. Out of this room, of this godforsaken stronghold, away from these people...

Briskly he walked back to the divan, grabbed Merlin from behind and roughly rubbed his knuckles over the other man's head.

"Ouch!" Merlin yelped. "What did you do that for?" He struggled to break free from Arthur's grip.

"That was for almost making me forget what I really wanted to talk to you about. Speaking of Aredian..."

"Oh no" Merlin said while he backed away from him, waving his hands in firm resistance. "Enough talking for one day."

"We agreed to talk about your magic, remember?" Arthur said while he followed his servant as if he were hunting him down.

"We didn't agree on anything, Sire, you just ordered me about, as usual!"

"And am I not entitled to do so?"

"Only to a certain point!"

"What makes you believe that?"

"If you had any common decency at all, you'd know that I am right!"

"C'm on Merlin, you put the toad in his mouth, didn't you? As much as you stuffed all these bracelets into his sideboard!"

"I had to save Gaius, in case you have forgotten. And he did sell the belladonna to get his 'witnesses'!"

By now they had almost made their away around the room, with Merlin backing off and Arthur following him in mock pursuit.

"But to make him spit out a toad!" Arthur stopped and fought against the broad grin that split his face against his will.

"It was ugly, wasn't it?" Merlin said while his own face showed the goofy smile that was his speciality. "Real ugly!"

"You bet it was! I think I'll never forget his face when he looked at it!" The Prince finally lost his fight and laughed wholeheartedly.

"Arthur?" Merlin said, suddenly all seriousness.

"What is it?"

"I've never thanked you, I mean, really thanked you for letting me see Gaius back then. If it hadn't been for you breaking the law, Gaius would be dead by now. As would I be; most probably."

"Well, it's a bit late for that, but anyway: You're welcome!"

As trustingly as he had always been Merlin trotted a bit nearer. "Things haven't ….changed for us...for you I mean because I am a warlock, have they?" he asked.

With an effort Arthur avoided rolling his eyes to the ceiling. "As long as you are wearing these damned bracelets, you aren't a sorcerer. So I suggest we concentrate on getting you safely out of them and worry about everything else later."

"But I..."

However in this moment the great bell of the castle stroke the time and Arthur flinched. "Merlin, get lost. To the other room, see to it that you make yourself invisible. The lesser they see of you the better!"

"What..."

"You've been unconscious ever since you first came here. You can't know it, but my beloved uncle has made it a habit to have me around whenever he has a chance. It's like a hobby."

"Have you around? Like what?"

"Like one of his pet dogs I assume! Or maybe someone told him that my father preferably socialises with me over a well filled plate, I don't know! Now make yourself scarce, you should still be in bed any road."

Indeed they had only a few minutes left before the guards came for Arthur. Mindful of his friend's wishes Merlin kept out of sight. Anger rose in him when Arthur followed the soldiers without any word or sign of resistance.

The moment the door was shut he started to work at the things that restrained his magic. It was obvious that Arthur was on the edge, that Yvain had him near breaking point. They had to get out of here, and fast.

It took only four minutes and as many attempts to rekindle his magic before the restraints brought him to his knees, whimpering with pain. Another attempt knocked him out cold for a few minutes. When he came to and the tremors finally stopped he knew one thing for certain. The role of the magical rescuer would go to the understudy this time. The first cast was seriously indisposed.

A soon as he could he crawled on the bed. There was nothing for it. He would have to wait for Arthur's return. Like a child he kicked his foot at the sheets in anger He detested waiting. And behind locked doors, with nothing to do! Really, this was horrible! A small, vicious voice began to mock him. Imagine how this would feel after a whole week! Or after six months!

Facing his captor across the length of the splendidly furnished breakfast room his royal friend could have told him and it wouldn't have made a comfortable tale.

"Your Grace!"

"Come over here!" As soon as the young man reached him Yvain continued "We've got news from Camelot! It's not quite what we expected, I fear."

Arthur's mouth went dry. "What happened?"

"As promised your father informed his council of Endred's survival and of his intention to name him his heir. As I understand it, things deteriorated from there and the meeting became somewhat... heated. Let's just say that apparently Camelot's notables were not as convinced as we had hoped that one Pendragon is as good as another. They absolutely, categorically refused. Against all odds and probabilities they had secretly agreed on one from their own ranks to become Crown Prince. It seems they had become somewhat impatient with your father's stalling."

Yvain cocked a brow when Arthur snorted disdainfully at this but he let it go.

"Apparently your father stated that he would make the public proclamations on Endred's and Lordegrade's behalf anyway" the Duke continued "and that he would receive his eldest son in Camelot and the notables be damned. It goes without saying that he must have thought only of you in this moment, or he wouldn't have committed political suicide that easily."

Horribly ashamed of his former disgracing thoughts about his father the Prince stared silently out of the window into the pouring rain that lashed the windowpanes.

"The council – and I didn't know this to be possible – passed a bill that forbade Endred's and Lordegrade's from entering Camelot's territory as well as any state acts on their behalf. Especially any declarations suitable to slander your mother's memory. Seems as if Gaius was perfectly right. Not Uther's son but Igraine's child is the heir to Camelot's throne."

"Or was" the Prince stated flatly what was obvious to him.

"Not quite" Yvain said drily. "Your father threatened them with military force and ordered their arrest. They began to shout something about their own forces and about civil war."

Arthur closed his eyes. "Gods, no" he murmured.

"Belay that my boy. Our mutual acquaintance Geoffrey chose this exact moment to inform the council, as well as the knights and soldiers present, about your survival, the fact that you are my hostage and that your father was acting under duress."

When Arthur stared at him, dumbfounded, he grinned sarcastically. "Who would have thought it possible, eh? I have reason to believe that your father had nothing to do with that. Apparently your old friend Gaius had found it necessary to inform Uther's secretary of the circumstances in advance. Forced to choose between your safety and Camelot's welfare, as he saw it, he ditched you."

"I don't believe that for a second" Arthur thought "How come you know all these details?" he asked bluntly. "Or are you speculating?"

"Not in the least" Yvain said with a derisive smile. "I had a first-hand report only last night. My friend's' messenger killed at least three horses to bring me the news and still he needed some magical support!"

"You have an informer in my father's council?" The Prince just couldn't believe it. The council members were hand-picked, they all were close to Uther, to him; they had been trusted friends and allies ever since he could remember...

"For more than twenty years. Didn't you think it likely?"

"Would you tell me his name?"

"Most definitely not!" Yvaine laughed. "Besides, we are straying from our subject. To make a long story short, the council ordered your father's temporary suspension – what strange laws you have over there! - and decided to press for your immediate release, under threat of outright war. Doubtlessly the official herald is already on his way."

"This would mean that my father is under honourable arrest until I'm either freed or proven dead." Arthur swallowed hard to hide his joy. Maddox would have no chance of coming anywhere near his intended victim, with or without a 'bargain'.

"You do not seem very surprised by this unlikely chain of events!"

"It wasn't unlikely from the start" Arthur said scornfully. "It was rather foreseeable for everyone who knows the ways of Camelot."

"For someone like you?" Yvain said silkily. "What does your foresight tell you about your own fate now?" He grabbed a handful of Arthur's hair and pulled softly. "Your friends may have thought they could take me by surprise, that I would let down my guard, rely on your father's promises. Under normal circumstances any message from Camelot would need three weeks. Under normal circumstances you are much too valuable a hostage to be harmed. But these aren't exactly normal circumstances!"

"What are you going to do then?" Not for the life of his Arthur would have admitted that, although he felt almost hilarious with relief that his father and Camelot were safe, he was by now genuinely scared for his friend and for himself.

"I'd say it's time for plan b" Yvain said. "Tintagel could last for years under siege but my own barons will forsake me at the first sight of Camelot's troops. Whether I killed you or kept you, finally I would fall into their hands or die myself and I will not grant my brother this satisfaction. However, I promised your father that he would never see you again when this went wrong and I intend to keep my word. I am going to leave Albion altogether and you are coming with me. Let him wonder for the rest of his life what has become of you."

"Where are you taking me?" Arthur asked hoarsely.

"You'll see soon enough. The ship's going an hour from now. Just enough time to tell your little sorcerer friend that he's in for the journey of a life-time!"

Yvain let go of Arthur's head and saw the change in his captive's face. He straightened his shoulders. "Don't even think it, Arthur. You know what it would cost you. And your friend, remember?"

"Can't you just leave him behind? Let my people find him and bring him home. He has nothing to do with all this. Please!"

"What are his chances if your people find out what he really is? You said it yourself; your father would kill him immediately if he found out about Merlin's magic. As he killed all these innocent people on the Blessed Isle."

"Your men eavesdropped on us?" The Prince almost retched for the sour taste that formed in his throat. This conversation hadn't been meant for anybody else.

"No they didn't. I did. I wanted to know where we stand with each other, you and I. Tell me, Arthur, if Uther's men were to find your 'servant' here, with you and me gone and the boy without a visible scar, what would Merlin's chances of survival be?"

"Then let him go now, let him run while he still has a chance. Please, I promise I'll do anything you want."

"Anything? That's a very tempting offer, indeed!"

"Then why not take it while it stands?"

"Very well. No more escape attempts, no more going against me, neither to my face nor behind my back. If you give me your word on that I'm willing to release him here and now. With the bracelets on his wrists of course."

"No! You will take the damn things off or I'll..."

"Or you'll what? Watch me hang him from the highest wall, as a welcoming present for his friend Gaius?" Yvain shook his head. "Be reasonable, Arthur. He ran after you once; given the slightest chance he'll do it again. If you want him to be safe you of all people cannot want me to give his magic back to him! It's either that or he accompanies us. You choose!"

Arthur bit his lip, frantically racking his brain for a reason beyond argument for Merlin's complete release but found none. "All right" he finally said. "We have a bargain. Can I go now?"

"Suit yourself. I'll send Maddox over to you. He can escort your friend out of Tintagel. We wouldn't want him to run into the seals again, would we!"

The moment he said it the solution hit Arthur in the face. "No, of course not Your Grace" he said softly, with as much submission as he thought was believable. But somehow this wasn't quiet enough. "Thank you, uncle" he added and made haste to leave the room.

The very second the soldier closed the door bolts Arthur shot through the room. "Merlin, where are you?"

"I'm here" came a miserable voice from one of the darker corners. "You said I should get lost any time someone entered!"

"Yes, right, but we don't have time for that now. Listen to me, you are to leave Tintagel; Maddox will escort you out and..."

"What? Who's Maddox?"

"The man who brought you here. The so called messenger. He'll escort you out. You are to do exactly as he says but you will stay in the vicinity of Tintagel until my father's troops arrive."

"Your father's troops?"

"Yes, Merlin, these soldiers with the nice red banners with the even nicer golden dragon, for heavens sake, man, don't play daft with me now. As soon as Camelot's men enter Tintagel they must find you as a victim of the magic seals. Otherwise you'll never have a chance to go back to Camelot safely, do you understand?"

"Nope! Beats me, all of it!"

Arthur inhaled deeply to calm himself as best he could. Once, twice. "The Duke is going to run, with his tail between his legs. He's willing to release you, but if our men should find you here, bright eyed and bushy tailed, with these magical looking things on your arms, this release would be the death of you, don't you see that?"

"Yes" Merlin said while the beginning of understanding dawned on him. "But why can't you simply tell everyone that I'm not in liege with Yvain's men?"

"Because I'm not going with you. Now tell me, do you think you could survive another encounter with these damned seals or not? For if you can, you could tell everybody that the two of us ran into their barrier, that we both were knocked out and that Yvain took me with him but left you behind. You could even tell them that these damned things around your wrists have something to do with the seals. The story would cover you!"

Merlin thought of his last experience with the seals' onslaught and shivered. "Naturally I could stand it, easily, but why can't I come with you? Surely, as long as we're together chances are much better to..."

"Damn you, don't you ever listen to me? I've told you before, you're only making things worse for me! I want you back home, and safely so, now please promise me to do as I say. If my father ever learns what you are, you're dead. And Gaius too. Promise me, Merlin, please!"

"But where are you going?"

"My Lord Duke is going to have a prolonged seaside vacation. I have no idea where he's going and I have no chance to prevent him from dragging me after him! Now, promise me!"

Maddox was already halfway through the door when Merlin finally nodded.