A/N: Sorry for yet another long wait for an update, but only 2 more weeks till I'm finished working at this school.

Lillian sat on the side of the bed next to Arthur, dipping a piece of cloth into a bowl of cool water before dabbing it against his sweating head.

"You're not going to die, Arthur. I'm telling you. Because I know, that one day, you will be king. A greater king than your father could ever be. It's what keeps me going. You are going to live and be the man I've seen inside you. The man I have always know you to be, Arthur." She said, moving the cloth and dabbing it against his chest.

"I can see a Camelot that is fair and just. I can see a king that the people will love just as much as I do, and be proud to call their sovereign. I know you're going to live, Arthur." She told him, putting her hand against the side of his face. "I have made sure of that. I told you, I would lay down my life for you."

Lillian let out a sigh, the last time she had been able to talk to him like this was when he had been sleeping before the fight against Tristan. "You have no idea who I really am, Arthur. You think that all magic is evil, when it's the person who wields it who is evil. The magic you have seen has always been out of revenge. Just once, I want you to be able to see how magic can be used for good."

She wondered if now was a good time to tell him. If he remembered, he wouldn't be able to do much to her, she'd already be dead. "I have magic, Arthur. I was born with it, I didn't choose to have magic, it chose me. That was why we left Camelot, that's why no matter how much I love you, we can never be together." The tears were falling again. Lillian didn't know how she could still be crying, she had shed so many tears already.

"I never use magic. Not if there is another option. I would never use it to harm you or anyone in Camelot. The only times I have used it, is to help you. To keep you safe. I let my parents and my town die, because I wouldn't use my magic. If I had, then I could have saved everyone. But I would have been found out, and sentenced to death." She hated thinking back to that night, the night she let so many people die. "I could have saved them, I should have saved them. Instead, I saved myself."

Lillian let out a sigh, her head was in turmoil, she didn't know what to think anymore. "I was selfish. I listened to my parent's pleas and ran, they told me not to use my magic, they feared for me. Now look where they are, gone."

"But it's okay, Arthur. Everyone I have ever let down, I will see them all soon. I deserve this for what I have done. I lied to you, I let my friends die, all to protect myself. Well, not anymore, Arthur Pendragon." She noticed him stirring a little, mumbling in his sleep.

Lillian let out a sigh and began to wipe his forehead again. "You're okay, Arthur, you're going to be just fine, I promise you."

"Lily…" She heard him whisper.

"I'm here, Arthur. I'm not going anywhere. I will be with you for a long as you need me." She told him, knowing that the moment he was healthy, she would be gone.

"My Lily…"

"Yes, I am your Lily. Your little Lily, and I always will be, no matter what. Remember that, Arthur." She tried her best to hold back a sob, and it ended up caught in her throat. "After this, you need to forget about me, Arthur. Forget me and live your life."

Arthur started to get a little restless again at that point. "Lily… I…"

"Shh, Arthur. You need to rest, let me do the talking for once." She told him, clasping a hold of his hand. "I love you, with all my heart. And I have done for longer than I can remember. I've only ever told my brother exactly how I feel, but he claimed to have always known."

This was it, her last chance to tell him everything, and she was going to take it. "I have no doubt that I could love you forever. The only trouble is, I really don't have the time. Even if I did, would you really want to know me, knowing I have magic?" She asked him, hoping with all her heart that he would answer her and say yes. But he didn't say a word. "I've got one night only, Arthur. That's all I have to spare. I only have till dawn." She told him, glancing up at the window and at the darkened sky.

"By the time you wake up, I'll be gone. But that's okay, honestly, at least I know that I finally told you the truth."

"Lillian, I have it. I have water from the Cup of Life. Arthur isn't going to die." Merlin called to her with some sadness in his voice.

"And what price did you pay, Merlin? Who's life did you offer to Nimueh to save Arthur?" She knew she had to act angry, she had to keep up the pretence just a little longer.

"My own. But… how did you know it was Nimueh?" The confusion was evident in his voice.

"Merlin, there is something I should tell you. You need to know the truth about me." She knew it wasn't just Arthur she needed to confess to.

"What is it, Lillian? What's wrong?"

"I am a High Priestess of the Old Religion. Born to serve in the new age of magic that will rise when Arthur is king." She told him, trying to keep herself strong. "That is how I know so much, Merlin. That is why Arthur can never know about me."

"What? A High Priestess? I don't understand. You're a High Priestess?" He asked her in shock.

Lillian let out a sigh. "Yes, Merlin. That is what I said. That is why Nimueh wishes me dead." That was entirely true, but they would never have to find out the truth now. "Merlin, just hurry up back here with that water. The people have already started to gather to say goodbye to their prince."

"I don't think there is anything else left for me to tell you, Arthur. I've told you the truth, about who I am and how I feel about you. I accept that you will now hate me, but do not take this out on my brother. He has never done anything apart from try to protect his younger sister." She told him.

"Lily…" He whispered again. It broke her heart to hear him calling her name, because she knew she wouldn't be there when he woke up.

"Rest, Arthur." She told him, squeezing his hand.

"Lily… I…" She knew he was trying to say something, but she wasn't sure she wanted to hear it.

"No, no talking, Arthur. You need to sleep."

"I love…"

Lillian's eyes widened. "No, don't say it, Arthur. Please, don't say it." She begged, hoping he would just stop and sleep like he needed to.

"I love you…" He told her, gripping her hand tightly.

"No, Arthur. No. You are not allowed to say that, not after everything I have just told you. You have a fever, you're delusional. You have no idea what you are saying." She rambled, mainly trying to convince herself more than anything that he didn't mean it.

She heard the door creek open and turned to see Uther standing at the door. "How is he, Lillian?" He asked her softly as he came over to the bed.

"He is not getting any better, but he is also not getting any worse. He has been mumbling a lot. I've been talking to him, telling him he is going to survive." Lillian told him, moving off the bed and sitting back in the chair so the king could be closer to his son.

"You should get some rest, Lillian. I will inform you if there is any change." He told her, resting a hand on her shoulder.

"No, Uther. I will not leave him. As I have said before, he never left me, and I will never leave him." She told him firmly.

There was a small smile tugging at the corner of Uther's lips. "How like my son you are. We are all blessed to have you here, Lillian. You bring out the best in him."

"He brings out the best in me as well. He is the greatest man I have ever known, and ever will know." Although Lillian was completely exhausted, she was not going to yield to it yet. "I don't know who I'd be without him." She whispered.

"Losing the one you love is the hardest thing anyone can go through." Uther told her, watching her closely.

"I'm not going to lose him." She said firmly, even though her eyes were filling up again. "I am not going to lose him."

"I can see just how much you love my son, Lillian. But we are losing him."

"No. He will live, he will pull through this, he will make it." There was so much fire and determination in her voice now. "I am not going to lose anyone else. I am not going to lose the man I love."

Uther seemed a little shocked by her attitude, but he could understand it. "You admit that you are in love with my son?"

"I am. And I would do anything for him. If I could trade places with him, I would. I would gladly die for Arthur, and he knows that."

"I know my son loves you just as much. Even if he is too stubborn to admit it." The king told her.

"He could never love me. And I wouldn't want him to, he deserves so much better." Uther could hear the sadness in her voice.

"Princess Lillian, you are more than worthy of my son, if anything, it is you who deserves better."

She smiled at him a little, before turning her attention back to the prince as Uther took the seat beside her. They continued to watch over the prince, until Lillian fell asleep, resting her head on the side of the bed.

Uther left her alone with his son. He was pleased that she had finally admitted how she felt about him, he just wished the pair had realised what they had sooner.

While Lillian slept, Gaius and Merlin came to Arthur's chamber. "Do you think we should wake her?" Merlin asked, noticing the sleeping princess.

"No. She has not left his side. Let her rest." Gaius told him, as they approached the bed.

Merlin lifted the prince up slightly, while Gaius dripped the water from the canteen into the prince's mouth.

"What are you doing, physician?" Uther asked, opening the door and noticing them at the bed. "What are you giving him?"

"It's a… a tincture made from the lobelia plant, an ancient remedy for poisonous bites." Gaius told the king nervously.

"A cure?" Uther was now hopeful.

"We hope."

"Do you really think it will have some effect?" The king asked, watching them closely as he approached the bed. He noticed Lillian sleeping soundly with her head on the edge of the bed.

"It's our last resort, sire." Gaius told him, before continuing to get as much of the water into the prince as he could. "Perhaps you should allow him to rest." The old man recommended.

"I will not leave him. Just as Princess Lillian has not left him." Uther said, sitting in the second chair as both Gaius and Merlin left.

And that was where both of them stayed. Eventually, Uther fell asleep, slumped back in the chair while Gaius paced the room. He didn't wake until he heard his son take a deep breath, followed by another.

When the king opened his eyes, he saw his son was awake. "Arthur." He said, relief flooding him at the sight of his son recovering. That was when Gaius left the room, to go and inform Merlin of how the prince was.

"I thought we'd lost you." Uther told his son. Night had now fallen and the prince was looking much healthier. The colour had returned to him and he was regaining his strength.

"Don't worry, father, I'm not going to die. I think there's someone watching over me, keeping me from harm." Arthur told him, looking at Lillian still sleeping away.

"Maybe you're right. On your long journey to become king, you will need a guardian angel." Uther told him, looking at Lillian as well. "She hasn't left your side. The poor child is exhausted, she has been sleeping most of the day."

"She has been here the whole time?" Arthur asked, looking at the woman. Her hair was sprayed out around her, her head resting in her arms on the bed.

"Yes. She refused to leave you, just like you refused to leave her." There was a smile on the king face. "I shall inform the court that their prince lives." He said, walking towards the door.

Arthur reached out his hand and began to gently stroke Lillian's hair. "Hey, Lily. I think it's time you woke up now." The prince told her softly. "Come on, Lily, you've slept for long enough." He told her, brushing some of her hair away from her face.

She was pale, and the only time he had ever seen her as pale as that was when she had been poisoned. "Lily?" He called, a little more worried than before. "Lillian?" He gently shook her, but still she didn't wake.

He sat up in the bed, not caring about his own injuries. "Lillian, this isn't funny. Wake up, please." He pleaded.

The door opened and a worried looking Gwen stood there. "Is everything alright, My Lord?" She asked him, having heard his worried calls as she was passing.

"Fetch Gaius." He told her, placing a hand against Lillian's face. It was a cold as ice.

"Are you not feeling well?" She asked him, not able to see what had happened.

"It's Lillian, she won't wake up. Her skin feels like ice and she is paler than those sheets you are holding." He told her, referring to the clean white linen she was carrying.

Gwen didn't waste any time, and after dropping the sheets on the floor, she ran to the physician's chamber. "Gaius, you have to come quickly, it's Lillian, Arthur can't get her to wake up." Gwen told him in a panic.

"Slow down, Gwen. Tell me again." The old man said, placing a hand on her arm to calm her.

"Arthur is trying to wake Lillian up, but he can't. His said her skin feels like ice and she is so pale." Gwen told him, trying to stop herself from breaking down into tears. They had just heard word that Arthur was alive and well, but now the princess was in danger instead. Gwen didn't know what to do, that woman had been there for her when her father was killed. She had comforted her, ensured that she would be looked after and told her that if ever she wanted to leave Camelot, she would be welcomed in Rolana.

He glanced back at Merlin's door, before grabbing his bag and following Gwen out of the room and back to the prince's chamber. When they arrived, Arthur was pretty much out of his bed, and Lillian was now lying there instead.

"Sire, you should be resting." Gaius protested, seeing the prince fussing over the woman in his bed.

"I cannot rest, Gaius. Not until Lillian has woken up." He told him determinedly.

The old man didn't say another word, he just examined the woman in the bed, frowning the whole time. "I cannot be sure exactly what she is suffering from, but I am afraid it does not look good." He told the prince.

"Do everything you can, Gaius." Arthur said to him and he watched Lillian. He just couldn't understand why this was happening. He had almost lost her once, and now he was losing her all over again.

While the physician worked in his chamber, trying to understand what could possibly be wrong with the princess and how he could save her, Merlin finally woke up.

"Gaius! I'm alive!" He cried, throwing open the door to his room and bounding down the few steps. The old man just glared at him. "What is it? What's happened?" Merlin asked, sensing that something was wrong.

Gaius let out a sigh. "Merlin…"

"What's wrong?"

"Princess Lillian. I am afraid she is not well." He told him, checking his book before turning his attention back to the potions brewing on his workbench.

"What's happened to her?" Merlin asked in a panic.

"She's gravely ill."

Merlin didn't know what to say. He had bargained his life for Arthurs, and yet it was Lillian's that had been taken. If only he had known that this was what Lillian had wanted, if only he had known that this was what she had asked for. "Do something." He demanded.

"If only I could."

"Please, Gaius." He pleaded.

Gaius just shook his head at him. "Merlin, this is no ordinary illness."

The warlock was still in disbelief about what had happened. "This cannot happen." He cried.

"Who did you meet on the Isle of the Blessed?" Gaius asked him suddenly.

Merlin wasn't sure he should tell him, but what other choice did he really have. "Nimueh."

The old man just looked at him in shock. "Nimueh?!"

"It was as you said. She demanded a price, but I bargained my life, not Lillian's." Merlin told him, the tears almost falling from his face. "I will make her better. I will." Merlin said with determination before charging out of the room.

He made his way down to the cave where Kilgharrah was kept captive. "You knew this would happen! You had me trade Lillian's life for Arthur's!" The warlock screamed at him.

"You said you would do anything."

"Did you know Lillian would die?" Merlin asked him.

"I knew the price would be heavy one." The dragon admitted.

"But you sent me anyway." He was past angry now, he was absolutely fuming with the dragon.

"The young princess knew what she was doing when she went to the Isle of the Blessed." Kilgharrah told him.

Merlin stared at him. "What do you mean? She went to the Isle of the Blessed?"

The dragon slightly nodded at the warlock. "She knew what was going to happen to Arthur, so bargained her life for Arthurs. Nimueh could not take your life for the prince's, the deal was struck between two High Priestesses."

"You knew she was a High Priestess?" The dragon didn't answer him. "But what about Lillian? She's going to die now, what about her destiny? She is meant to be the other half of Arthur, how can she when she is dead?" Merlin spat at him.

"We need Arthur to live. His destiny is greater."

There was a fire burning inside of Merlin. One of his best friends was dying, and the dragon didn't seem to care at all. "I'm not one of you!"

"We are both creatures of the Old Religion. It is the source of your power."

"What's that supposed to mean? Lillian is a High Priestess of the Old Religion. Are you telling me that her life means nothing?"

"Your destiny is to protect the young Pendragon until he claims his crown, and when he does, magic can be returned to the realm. Only then will I be free."

"Oh." It had finally dawned on Merlin. "So that's all you cared about? I thought you were my friend?"

"I am more than that, Merlin. I am your kin."

"No. The only family I have is my mother. And Lillian was like family to me as well, and now she is gone." Merlin spat at the dragon.

"Her life has not been taken in vain. We will achieve great things together, you and I."

"You will never be released, for what you've done!" The warlock shouted at him. "I'll make sure you never see the light."

"Merlin!" The dragon bellowed, before breathing fire at him. He shielded himself from the wrath of the dragon before facing him one last time.

"You… won't see me… again." He hissed.

He made his way back to see Gaius. He couldn't believe that Lillian knew what was going to happen and took it upon herself to make a deal with Nimueh, the woman who tried to kill her. "How is she?" Merlin asked as he noticed the man still working away at his bench.

"No change." The physician told him.

"I have to save her. Arthur needs her more than he needs me, they need each other." Merlin told him stubbornly.

"You cannot."

"If the balance of the world needs a life, then Nimueh must take mine." He decided.

Gaius just looked at him in shock. He had to stop him, he couldn't let him go back there again. "No, Merlin."

"Yes. I will return to the island."

Gaius shook his head at him. "You are young. Your gifts, your destiny is far too precious to sacrifice." He told him gently.

"My destiny? What about Lillian's? My powers mean nothing if I cannot save her. You have taught me so much. Taught me who I am. Taught me the purpose for my skills. Taught me that magic should be only used for great deeds. But most of all, you have always taught me to do what is right." The warlock was getting emotional, and he tried to hide it as best he could. "I need to say goodbye to Arthur."

Arthur's heart was breaking all over again. After everything that had happened, everything that they had been through, he had to watch her die in front of him again. "No, you pulled through once, you will do it again." He told her with determination.

He couldn't help but wonder why the world kept doing this to him, why it kept trying to take her away from him. He loved her, he knew he did, but he had never found the courage to tell her. Until he could have sworn she had told him that she loved him. "You're going to be fine, Lillian. I know you are."

A/N: And now Merlin knows the truth about Lillian. I guess that's going to make things a little more complicated for everyone.

Anyway, I'm glad to see so many people are enjoying my stories, and have stuck by with all the nonsense of irregular updates due to my crazy uni/school/everything else. It's going to get even crazier in June when I'm in Holland for 3 weeks, working.

Swiftly moving on, thank you to all of you who have reviewed. You guys really do make my day. I get rather excited when I get that little email, and a smile takes over my face when I read them. So keep them coming.

Big thank you to everyone who has followed/favourtied the story as well. I'm glad you guys are here, you're all awesome.

Pippa.