A/N: Still own nothing.

14. Mudblood

"Gwen told me," Morgana explained before Gaius could even say anything. "Good gracious, I can't even believe it's true." The last part was said in a dying whisper. The court physician waited for her to elaborate.

"There was this story I heard when I was a child," she straightened her back and faced the man. "It was when a man who practiced magic was to be burned at the stake. I had sneaked out of the castle to see the witch, my first. I cheated the guards and went to see him in the dungeons. I sat in front of the bars and stared at him, and he stared back." She made a short pause, tucking Merlin in. "And he told me a story."

"He told me there was a disease, a plague that haunted every woman," she glanced down at Merlin with a small smile that could win a hundred hearts. "But especially the women who carried the ancient bloodline of a family that according to records in Camelot's archives had died out. The family of Mortimer."

Hearing that made the old man stop mixing his concotion. He looked up at the lady, unsure what to say to this revelation.

"Is that so?" he asked calmly, returning to his work.

"He said, that the family had mixed with the common folk," she continued without fear. "So I thought, what if that was what was causing Merlin her pains?" Her voice was growing in excitement, unafraid someone might overhear them.

"It is just a story," Gaius said, knowing well how much trouble this conversation could bring. The dark veil of secrets that had always surrounded the family had led many to believe their connection to witchcraft.

"It's a story that tells how to fight that kind of distress," she answered wisely. "Besides, you can't hope to fool Arthur for long!" She gave a short laugh. "One or two months more and he'll be thinking she's a werewolf."

"At least my secret would be safe still," Merlin tried to joke, but they all knew the gravity of this situation. If the prince found out his manservant was no man at all, she could lose more than just her head.

"Go on," Gaius urged the woman to talk. Morgana bit her lip, knowing this was the hardest part to tell.

"The stories told of a concotion. It is based on a flower that only grows in winter and blossoms once in a lifetime."

"No," For the court physician, there wasn't even a question about it. "It is too dangerous to get. There is a reason it was on the crest of that dreadful family."

"Yeah," Merlin agreed from her bed. "If Gaius says it's dangerous to get, it is. Besides, there are other, easier ways of dealing with this." She sat up, looking better than before but still weak. Morgana shot her a dark look. Merlin smiled.

"Besides, I'm no pureblood," she chuckled. In middle school, they had to study their family tree and Merlin had done well. There were doctors, scientists, high school dropouts, but certainly no one regal. Even if it was because she couldn't trace it far enough, she was sure there would have at least been stories, family legends about it. "I mean, when I was a kid, I dreamed I was a princess, but that's where it ended."

She was glad mentioning Disney movies was inappropriate. It saved her from the sweet embarrassment of having to explain why she, at her age, was still spending enormous amounts of time watching animated fairytales.

"Mortimers weren't just a family," Morgana said, standing up. "I think you'd do well to look into it." She had a knowing look in her eyes, when she leaned forward to whisper in her ear. "Your secrets are safe with me." She straightened herself up and left with short small steps, her gown barely touching the ground.

When the door closed behind her, Gaius stepped closer and handed Merlin his finished product. The girl scrunched her nose and downed it in one go. Its vile taste made her want to puke. What made her not to, was the book she had hid under her blanket as soon as visitors had started pouring in. There was no way her idols were to witness her in such a state.

"You'd do well to not listen to her," the man said, passing her a glass of water. "She has a way of knowing things, her dreams, but not always are they good."

"But who are Mortimers?" she asked, her curiosity picked. "Were they magical?"

"I can tell you with almost utmost certainty that no, they were not," Gaius answered. "Except perhaps for one."

"What was his name?" she asked, almost breathless in anticipation.

"Her name was Alice." The court physician looked at her with pity. "And she didn't leave to be 13."

"I love the name Alice," the girl mused, standing up with the idea of getting herself cleaned up. The night was falling and although she wished she had an invisibility cloak on hand, it wasn't too difficult to walk past the guards for a midnight swim. "I'll be back before dawn," she promised.

Without thinking, she was on her way to the dungeons.

"Tell me something," she called into the cave. "Do you see the past?"

"The past, the present, the future," the dragon bellowed, flying closer. Merlin rolled her eyes.

"When will I get home?" she asked, crossing hands over her chest. It wasn't the question she had come here to ask, but it was still something she wanted an answer to.

"When Albion is united and the once and future king reigns over his people, then shall the portal open once more and the history is reset, my small friend." He looked at her teasingly. Merlin stomped her foot down, unhappy to be called small.

"Thank you," she forced herself to say politely. "What can you tell me of Morgana? What is her connection to Alice Mortimer?"