A/N

Lady Flurryous: We'll see ;). The following chapter will take place over one week so I haven 't started writing other peoples reaction to Morgana yet. I love writing parts where they bicker. I have noticed that it has become something of a recurrence that I write over 4000 words. We'll see if I can keep it up =)

WhistlingWolf: Thank you =)

FateOfChaos: The following chapter will take place over one week but after that I will write about how Morgana is dealing with her time at Hogwarts. I hope you'll like it.

Triquetra123: I'm glad you understand my reasoning =)

IlikeHotDogs: It sure does =)

Bookybookworm: He might find her slightly attractive =P. The prank may be a bit immature, but I'm like that. I have a very immature humour sometimes. I blame my mum. Thank you so so much =)

Female whovian: I like writing their banter sections =). I can't tell you if they will be together, I think that would ruin the story. There's a lot of possibilities and I want to leave them all open as long as I can. (Of course I know how I want it to end but if the story progress in a different direction then it may change.)

Guest: Arhtur will come but it will take some time. Be patient =)

Not Beta:ed

Chapter 23 The One With the Goblin Incident

Merlin walked aimlessly around the castle, a little irritated by Morgana's question. He had told her he didn't want the others to know yet, why did she have to be so stubborn? He didn't look where he walked and soon he found himself on the seventh floor, outside the Room of Requirement. He figured he might as well create Gaius chambers again but was interrupted by someone calling after him.

"Marcus!" It was Hermione that called after him.

"Hermione! What are you doing here? Don't you have a lesson now?" He asked puzzled.

"I needed to talk to you." Hermione said when she had caught up to him.

"I'm guessing it's important, since you're skipping class." He said

"Yes, it is." She confirmed with a nod.

"Then we should probably go somewhere private." He said with a furrowed brow before he started pacing in front of the wall three times. On the third lap, a wooden door appeared. He opened the door and indicated for Hermione to walk in.

"Where are we?" Hermione said breathlessly as she took in the room. Just like last time he was in here, it was cluttered with potion bottles and books. This time, there was two plates of food on the table as well, looking very inviting.

"This is how my chambers looked in Camelot, when I was living with the court physician. Unfortunately, most books and potions are just empty copies." He said and sat down at the table, Hermione following his example soon after.

"What do you mean by empty copies? We have used this room before and every book that has been in here has been real." She asked perplexed.

"That's because those books still existed. Most of these books were destroyed long ago. They are only here because that's how I remember it. You see that there are empty spaces in the bookshelves?" He pointed to the shelf behind her. She turned around and looked and then nodded in confirmation. "That's because I don't remember the books that stood there, and most of the other books, I only remember the backside of. If I were to open one of them..." He stood up and walked over to the shelf. He took one of the books and put it in front of Hermione, who opened it.

"It's blank!" She said as she flipped through the book. Page after page was empty, even the front.

"See? But if I were to open one of these." He took one of the books on the workbench and gave to Hermione. She opened it and there were some empty pages but most were filled with text. "This one isn't completely empty because I looked through it so many times, I remember most of it." He said and took the books back.

"So, you can't look through these books and learn something new, because everything that's in these books, you already know?" She asked. "That sounds annoying." She gave a half chuckle.

"Yes, but that's just how it is." He shrugged. "I managed to retrieve most of these books when Gaius died, but the rest was destroyed when Camelot fell." He said a little sadly and sat down at the table again.

"Then why do you conjure up this room then?" Hermione said with curiosity.

"Because it's home." He sighed and he could see that Hermione understood. "That door over there..." He inclined his head to the door up the stairs. "That was my room. My bed and everything I remember is in there, because I spent so much time there, it's edged into my memories." He smiled. "You can eat the food, by the way. It's fresh." He said when he noticed Hermione glancing at the plate in front of her with hungry eyes.

"Well, I am a bit hungry." She said and took up a piece of bread. "I missed lunch earlier." She dipped the bread into the vegetable stew on the plate. "Hmm, this tastes amazing." She said and licked her lips appraisingly. "What is it?"

"It's a stew Gaius used to make for me when I'd done something extra well." He answered and started digging in himself. "But we're not here to talk about food are we?" He levelled her with a look.

"No," Hermione swallowed and put down the half-eaten bread. "I want to ask you about your friend, Morgan."

"I see." His lips twitched a little in the corners. He knew Hermione would figure it out fast now that she had the diary.

"She's Morgana, isn't she?" Hermione asked with determination.

"Yes, she is." Merlin nodded.

"Why? Isn't she supposed to be...evil?" She said the last bit quietly; like she was afraid Morgana would hear her.

"She is, yes, but not anymore. At least I hope not." He grimaced. "It's a long story," He sighed. "But I've been told by the Lady of the Lake, the guardian of Avalon, that Morgana is needed for Arthur to rise again. And...she is supposedly regretting her actions in Camelot, and this is her chance to make it up to me and the Old Religion."

"But you don't trust her?" Hermione stated.

"No..." He shook his head. "No, I do not. At least not yet. We have reached an understanding and I don't think she will try anything, but centuries of mistrust don't go away over a night."

"Does she know that I know who you are?" She asked him.

"Yes. I told her before we came here. Gave her a crash-course in all things Hogwarts." He chuckled. "So you don't have to worry about keeping quiet around her." He gave her a reassuring smile and she gave a half-hearted one back.

"So, the ones that know about you is me, Morgana, Snape and...Dumbledore?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"Why does Dumbledore know... I mean, how does he know?" She said shyly. "Not to pry or anything, I'm...I'm just curious." She took up her spoon and twirled it in her fingers.

"Dumbledore found out the day Harry came to the Burrow. He had figured out that I was lying about my druid heritage and my name, so I had no other choice then to tell him the truth."

"And Snape?" She said, still not meeting his eyes.

"Dumbledore wanted me to tell him, but I can't tell you why, not yet." She didn't answer and they sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Why did you give me the diary?" She looked up at him but quickly diverted her eyes again when he met her gaze. "Not that I'm not grateful, I'm just confused."

"I gave you the diary so that you could get to know the real me. I could tell you everything myself but that would take a long time and I'm not sure I'd remember it all." He said and scrapped some stew on a piece of bread.

"How come you trust me like that? We've only known each other for a few months, and the first months you spent mostly with Ron" Hermione furrowed her brow and finally met his eyes again. "I could have told Ron and Harry everything."

"I know you wouldn't." He stared into her eyes with a steady gaze. "I've been looking over Harry, and as an extension, you and Ron, ever since you started Hogwarts. I know that you are trustworthy and loyal and would never betray anyone you hold dear." He reached over and placed his right hand over her left. "I trust you, Hermione, with my life. Not because you're the smartest witch at Hogwarts or because you have Old Magic. I trust you because of whom you are and who you will become." He let go of her hand leaned back on the bench a little.

"Thank you." That was all she said but he could see how moved she was, by the tears that threatened to break free. They sat in silence for a while, neither able to say anything more.

"So Arthur will come back?" Hermione was the first to break the silence. She picked up the bread again and took a bite.

"That's what I've been told, but it won't happen for a while." Merlin nodded in response. "Do you like the diary?" He asked and took another spoon of the stew.

"It's amazing." She said with a longing expression. "I've only read a few entries so far, up to when that Knight Valiant came to Camelot, but I can't believe you endured so much in only a few days. I mean, an execution," She had a look of distaste when she said it. "A vengeful witch... and a dragon. All in less than a week."

"Well, that's Camelot for you." He chuckled. "Don't hesitate to come to me if you come across something you don't understand."

"I will." She smiled.

They spent a few hours in the room, talking about Camelot and Arthur, until it was time for Hermione to get back to the Gryffindor Tower before curfew.

Morgana was left alone on the third floor, without any idea how to get back to Merlin's chambers. She wasn't even sure which floor it was on, what with the moving staircases and everything.

Somehow she made it to the first floor, just by the entrance, and that was where she met the two boys from earlier, Harry and Ron, if she remembered correctly, but she had no idea who was who.

"Morgan was it?" The red-headed one asked her.

"Yes, Morgan it is." She gave a half-hearted smile to them, not feeling particularly happy at the moment.

"Is something wrong?" The other boy asked. "You seem lost." He seemed thoroughly concerned for her.

"Well, me and...Marcus," It felt weird saying Merlin's other name. It didn't sit well with her. "Had a bit of a falling out, my fault probably, I said something mean. It wasn't until he walked away that I realise I don't know my way back to our chambers."

"We know the way, we can take you there." The red-headed one said eagerly.

"That would be most welcome, thank you." She smiled genuinely this time.

"So, how do you and Marcus know each other?" The black haired one asked when they started walking upstairs.

"Oh, we got to know each other when he went to live with his uncle, Gaius." She and Merlin had rehearsed their background story earlier the same day, Merlin stating that the people he surrounded himself with now, liked to ask questions. It seemed he was right for a change.

"So you are a Warlock as well?" The red-headed asked.

"No, only men are called Warlocks. Technically, I'm a Witch, but I prefer Sorceress." She didn't want to be associated as a Witch anymore. Merlin had told her that the sorceresses of today were called witches, but she only associated that word with her evil ways. She was turning a new leaf so her Witch days were behind her.

"Are you as powerful as he is?" The black haired asked.

"We are equals in many ways, but he is better at instinctual magic." She answered truthfully. She had been more knowledgeable in spells, but she suspected that Merlin was the better one now. He had after all had a long time to practise his skills. "I didn't come into my powers until my late teens, so I need to work harder to access my magic then he does."

"Do you have the New Magic as well, like Marcus?" The same boy asked.

"New Magic? Do you mean the Wand Magic?" She couldn't help but laugh a little at that. She was a High Priestess of the Triple Goddess, there is no way she would be associated with this weaker form of magic that existed today. "No, my magic is purely from the Old Religion." She felt liberated at being able to talk so freely about magic, a bit different than her earlier life.

"So you don't react when you come across Dark New Magic?" He asked.

"What are you talking about?" She had no idea what he was implying.

"Well, it's just that there's this guy, he's in our year but in Slytherin. Earlier this summer, when we were buying school supplies, Marcus..." He began but was soon interrupted by the other boy.

"Don't Harry." The red-headed said, which she supposed was Ron, if he called the other one Harry.

"Why!? Why can't I ask her that?" Harry raised his voice, clearly irritated.

"You can't go around and implying Malfoy is a...Deatheater," Ron whispered the last word. "To everyone you meet."

"I'm not implying anything, Ron. I just wanted to ask a question, and it's not like anyone believes me, so what's the harm!?" Harry almost yelled at the end. Ron didn't respond and both boys now looked sour. Morgana had no idea what was going on but she made a mental note to ask Merlin about it later.

They walked in silence the rest of the way, until they reached the familiar portrait. Merlin had given her the password, so she opened the door and made to walk in.

"Thank you for showing me the way, I really appreciate it." She smiled at them and watched them walk away, still not talking to each other.

Morgana walked over to the bedroom and she was a bit surprised when she entered, because there were now two beds, instead of just one. 'That was quick.' She thought. She sat down in front of the desk, where Merlin had placed a mirror earlier. He said he had saved it from Camelot, and knowing that she liked to sit down and do her hair, he had taken it with him from the house so she could sit by the desk instead of in the bathroom, which she wasn't entirely comfortable using yet.

So she sat down and started brushing her long black hair. She had decided that she didn't want to let it get as bad as it had been when she lived alone in her hovel. She was a Lady and that was how she wanted to be seen.

When she had brushed her hair, she opened the bag Merlin had brought with them, containing all her new clothes. He had gone out and bought them himself this morning, while she learned how to use the TV, she wish she could have brought the TV with her to Hogwarts.

The clothes were different but she liked them. They were much more comfortable than her old rags, and it felt nice being able to use breeches freely, not that these – leggings – Merlin had said they were called, was anything like any breeches she had used before, but she liked them. She decided that she would try everything on, while she waited for Merlin to come back.

Merlin said goodbye to Hermione and then walked down to the second floor and his own chambers. He climbed in and was greeted by a very angry sorceress, when he had made his way to the living room.

"Where have you been, Merlin? I've been waiting for hours." She was fuming.

"I needed to cool off, so I walked around the castle a little." He didn't want to tell her about his and Hermione's conversation. He had a feeling she wouldn't like it.

"You left me alone with no idea how to come back." She said, aghast by his words.

"Well, you're here now." He shrugged and locked himself in the bathroom.

"That's not the point, Merlin, and you know it." He could hear her standing just outside the door so he opened the faucet and tried do drown out her voice.

She said more things that he, successfully, didn't hear. But he knew he couldn't stay in the bathroom all night so he pushed the door open, surprised to find the hall empty, and walked over to the bedroom were he found her.

"I know you're angry, Morgana, but you started it." He told her while putting his used clothes in the wardrobe, fully intending to use them again the next day. She didn't answer him. "So you're giving me the silent treatment now, how mature." He mocked her. He knew he shouldn't but it was fun and he needed it.

Neither said anything while getting ready for bed, and when Morgana cast a silent spell to blow out the last candle, he couldn't take it any longer.

"Fine, I'm sorry Morgana. I didn't mean to leave you stranded when you don't know your way around yet." He started and when she didn't respond he continued. "How did you get back anyway?" He lay on his back, looking up at the ceiling.

"I met those two boys from earlier, Harry and Ron. They helped me back." She said bitterly.

"That was nice of them." Merlin said quietly.

"Yes, it was. It feels good to know at least someone still have chivalry in them." She still sounded bitter, but it wasn't as noticeable as before. "The boy, Harry, said something weird though." She continued.

"He did?" Merlin asked, curious to know what Harry had said.

"He started asking me about Dark New Magic and a boy named Malfoy, but the other one, Ron, interrupted him before he could finish. Do you know what they were talking about?" The bitterness was completely gone now, replaced by curiosity.

"Harry believes the boy, Malfoy, is a Deatheater. I have done a bit of research into it, and unfortunately, it's true." He sighed.

"How do you know?" She said quietly, realising the seriousness in the situation. Merlin had explained about the Deatheaters the same morning, while giving her a crash course in today's society.

"Every time I make eye contact with him, my magic begins to uproar. The first time it happened, I almost snapped and did something very bad to him. I asked Aithusa about it and she said it's because he's tainted with Dark Magic. When Harry told me his theory, I didn't want to believe he truly was a Deatheater, but I and Aithusa have been keeping an eye on him, here at Hogwarts, and unfortunately we were able to confirm it. Aithusa saw his mark one day when she snuck into the Slytherin common room." He finished with a big sigh.

"What are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know yet. I will continue to keep my eye on him and I have talked to Dumbledore about it, but he seem to want it take its course. He has something planned that he won't tell me."

"I think you will figure something out soon. You always seem to work best under pressure." She said while suppressing a yawn. "Goodnight, Merlin."

"Goodnight, Morgana." He lay awake for a while longer, thinking. He could hear Morgana's soft snores after a while and soon, he too, succumbed to sleep. But it wasn't a restful sleep.

He dreamed about Arthur on Camlann, but just as Mordred was about to give the killing blow, Arthur was replaced by Harry and Mordred by Malfoy. And instead of swords, they had wands and soon they were duelling. Malfoy yelled a spell but when it hit the target, it wasn't longer Harry but himself. He crumpled on the ground and saw Snape standing over him, glowering. He tried to get up but the ground disappeared under him and he was tramping water, trying to reach a nearby log, but the beaver that had felled it, swatted his hands away, saying that it was his log and that he should leave it alone. All of a sudden, a big eagle like bird swooped down and picked him up. It flew him to its nest, demanding Merlin to babysit its newborn chicks, while it went to get some food. Merlin ended up living in the nest while the chicks grew up, and one of them offered to fly him home on its back. They ended up flying around the world together, until he fell of when they had to dodge an airplane. Merlin woke with a startle, right before he hit the ground.

As planned, Ron came to Merlin's chambers the next morning. Harry and Hermione came to, but they decided to give Morgana a tour of the grounds since it was Saturday and they had the day off, Harry's lesson wasn't until the evening.

"So, how are we doing this?" Ron asked when they were alone.

"We need to make sure it can't be traced back to us." Merlin answered while putting on his working boots. He was working for Hagrid today so Ron would come with him.

"Are we doing it to everyone or just a few?" They walked through the door and headed towards the stairs.

"It would be mean to do it to everyone, so I suggest we only target the ones that deserve it." Merlin answered.

"Who do you have in mind?" Ron grinned.

"Oh, I have my suggestions." Merlin returned the grin. He knew exactly who he wanted to target.

They couldn't openly plan the prank while Hagrid was around, but they had all the details down. They only needed to come up with the perfect opportunity, and as luck would have it, the opportunity arouse that very evening, at dinner.

When Merlin had finished at Hagrid's; he had to collect some Bundimuns, a greenish, many-eyed fungus with a capability to spit acid, for next week's classes; he went to take his OWLs and NEWTs in Herbology. Professor Sprout had managed to schedule the test before dinner, so when he was finished, he met up with Ron again who had been assigned to make the preparations for the prank.

They found Harry, Hermione and Morgana in the great hall, sitting at the Gryffindor table, so Merlin and Ron sat down beside them. Merlin sat with them when there wasn't a big feast or something important going on, where he needed to sit among the teachers.

"Why do you two look so smug?" Morgana asked them when they sat down. Hermione had been a bit sceptic to her at first, knowing who she really was, but she had grown to like her during their stroll today.

"Nothing." They answered in chorus and started laughing when they saw each other's expression.

"You're up to something, aren't you?" Hermione said with a grimace. "They acted the same way when they pranked Fleur this summer." She explained. "I had to watch them do it almost once a week, so I recognise the signs." She continued. "Why do you have to do it here at Hogwarts? Weren't you satisfied when you made Fleur grow two heads?" She sighed.

"They actually did that?" Morgana asked aghast.

"Well, Fleur wasn't so perfect either." Harry chirped in. "She made them unable to speak for a whole day. The only sounds from them were neighing."

"That sounds like the time when the Goblin made Arthur grow donkey ears and he could only bray." Morgana laughed at the memory and Merlin smiled back. He didn't seem as upset with talking about Arthur when it was with Morgana. Hermione liked that, he needed someone to talk with.

"Well, what I remember most from that time were you, Gwen and Uth...erhm...Arthur's father, farting in front of everyone." He grinned at her.

"Well, we don't need to talk about that anymore." Morgana said a bit put off.

"It was hilarious, and I would probably have found it funny at the time if I hadn't tried to find a way to save Gaius from being possessed by the Goblin." He continued to smile at Morgana, who didn't seem to like it one bit.

"I didn't know Goblin's could possess people." Ron said, breaking the growing tension between them.

"It wasn't a regular Goblin. This one was more primitive, an ancestor to today's ones." Merlin answered. "I found it in an old abandoned cage and accidentally opened it."

"You released the Goblin?" Morgana gasped in mock horror. "I knew you weren't as perfect as everyone seems to think." She smirked.

"Well, the point is that everything worked out in the end and the Goblin is back in its cage." Merlin levelled her with a look that said he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

"Fine." Morgana rolled her eyes and popped a grape into her mouth.

"But what's this prank you're planning?" Harry asked.

"I thought you didn't want to know." Ron said and smiled. They had been a bit grumpy when they came back to the common room the day before, but she had made them talk it out.

"I didn't, but I have a feeling I should be prepared." Harry furrowed his brow. He seemed genuinely worried.

"You will find out soon." Merlin said and looked over at the Slytherin table, grinning.

The others followed his line of sight and saw that Crabbe and Goyle seemed to feel uncomfortable. Goyle grimaced heavily in pain and it didn't take long before he stood up and ran away from the table. While he ran away, everyone nearby started laughing, because he had started to fart, and with each fart he groaned in pain.

"Speaking of the Goblin incident." Merlin said in between laughs.

When Goyle had disappeared from the Great Hall, Crabbe stood up as well. He had tried to keep a straight face but when he too started farting, he walked as quickly as he could out of the hall, but not before he farted so loud you could hear that it wasn't purely gases.

Merlin and Ron were laughing like maniacs, together with the rest of the students, all the way through dinner, and wasn't able to stop until the dinner was over. Unfortunately they came across both Crabbe and Goyle, when they were walking with Harry to Dumbledore's office. They walked past a bathroom on the third floor, which, if the sounds were anything to go on, were occupied by them both. They started to laugh again and didn't stop until they fell asleep in their respective beds, later that night.

A/N

I got really annoyed when I watched the Oscars last night. There were four women commenting on the show in the breaks. It wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't for the fact that they kept dissing Benedict Cumberbatch. Some of them said that they found him untrustworthy and that he was up to something etc. It really pissed me of because they didn't do that to other actors/actresses. Anyhow, it was a great show even if the results wasn't what I had hoped for (I won't say any specifics if there are someone who hasn't seen it and want to see it later).

Have a great week =)