Vivienne chuckled as she opened the wooden chest. She looked her daughter with an amused glint, "It is another gift from the king. Furs this time it seems."

Morgana rolled her eyes. It was her plan to play coy with King Maelgwn and get him just interested enough so that when Merlin returned she could play off the jealousy she knew he would feel. However, the king appeared to be more attracted to her than she initially hoped. Every week he sent a rider with gifts for the keep. At first it was food and other necessities that would help over the winter. Then a jeweled necklace with a green gem almost the same color as her eyes arrived with an invitation to his castle on the nearby Isle of Mona. She attempted to return the necklace and invitation with a polite refusal. However the following week the jewels came back with a bolt of undyed silk and the request that she have a dress made out of it for when she arrived.

He was nothing if not persistent. Some of the gifts were accompanied by letters hinting at thinly veiled threats of how he could simply have her and the keep if he truly wished. The former priestess could feel her magic tingling at the thought of the short man filthy man thinking she would be such an easy prize. As more of her memories of the dark days were coming to the forefront of her mind, she knew inside herself was the power to destroy the vulgar little Viking. With her mother and the druids she had begun separating her own abilities from those implanted in her by Morgause's spirit. It was strange how she could recognize now the limitations of her sister's magic, and deep down Morgana feared that she might succumb to a new form of darkness if she allowed herself to follow the urges to eliminate the king.

"Do you want to try and return it to him again?" Her mother's voice broke through her inner turmoil.

Morgana sighed, "No, it won't do any good. And his letter this time promises a personal visit if I do such a thing." As much as she hated to admit it, she felt she was in a bit over her head when trying to deal with the chauvinistic monarch and his conflicting intimidations and flirtations, especially while Dinas Emrys was still rather unguarded against threats. She actually wished Merlin would return sooner than the promised spring, although she feared their last encounter might have pushed him too far. Perhaps he would just laugh at the situation and try to offer her as a way of making peace with the so-called Dragon.

(*~*~*~*)

Merlin made his way through the corridors of the palace, yawning into his elbow. It had been a long day and it still wasn't over yet. Gilli was set up and ready for tomorrow, he hoped. Although Merlin felt certain the young man would be cursing his name well before mid-morning.

"It's perfect, Gilli! Arthur doesn't need a nanny per say, ok maybe he does, but what I need is someone who can shadow him, especially when he gets too far into his own head about things, and you need work. It is probably going to be the worst job you can ever imagine, and you'll be horrible at it. He'll use you as a training dummy, but with your sword skill already it might not be as bad, and he'll probably try to train you even more in it."

"So in exchange for getting things thrown at me, having to dress and feed a grown man, clean up after him and do whatever he wants of me, I can get training in swordplay from the King of Camelot himself?"

Merlin nodded excitedly, "Yeah that about covers it."

"Why me though? I mean, I know you were his servant, but aren't there more better trained people to take over babysitting?"

"We've tried to find someone. Most aren't… hardy enough to withstand him. He doesn't need a trained bootlicker, he needs someone who isn't afraid to stand up to for themselves. Plus with your bit of magic, trust me, it will come in handy, especially when he goes out hunting," the warlock explained.

"I like hunting," Gilli nodded with a half-smile.

"See you're perfect for the job! Probably even better suited for it than I ever was." Merlin tried thinking of more benefits to press Gilli into agreeing, "You'll get paid, plus a roof over your head and Mary is an amazing cook, but don't try to touch her food before the nobles are served or you'll find yourself working in the kitchens on top of your regular duties."

The young sorcerer sighed, "Alright, I'll give it a shot."

"Excellent!" Merlin beamed at him, "Just remember though, while you will be working for Arthur, I will still need you to work for me too. Like you did today. You will need to be my eyes and ears among the servants and in places I can't go anymore."

The two men arrived at their destination in the servants' quarters of the castle. Merlin knocked lightly on a door and after a few moments it was opened by a recently woken George. The warlock almost sputtered with laughter at the sight of the disheveled looking man. He could not remember a time in all the years of knowing the always prim and proper, never a hair out of place, George where the servant actually appeared human.

He blinked at Merlin, shocked that he would be in the servants area of the castle, "Is something the matter my lord?"

"Not at all, actually I wanted to introduce you to someone," There was a gleam in Merlin's blue eyes that spoke of true mischief.

George's eyes scanned over the other man without emotion. He had seen the young man following Merlin around earlier in the day, but he was so distraught about the head being taken, he didn't press the warlock for an introduction. If Lord Emyrs did not want to acquaint him with his companion that was his prerogative.

"This is Gilli, he's going to be your replacement."

The mousy man sparked to life, he thrust his hand out towards Gilli. "It is a pleasure to meet you," he said with undisguised enthusiasm.

After that it was easy to get George agree to allow Gilli to stay with him while he trained and got settled. Plus he knew Gilli could probably get more information out of the other servants about the goings on in the castle than Merlin or George could now. Merlin wanted to know more about the boy that disappeared with the head if possible.

He knew it was late but with what Gilli had mentioned, he needed to speak with his mother before any more time had passed. If the nobles were brazen enough to steal Bran's head what else were the discontented Lords going to do? Or if he took Gilli's overheard conversation a slightly different way, it could be that stealing the head was a fluke. Either way, Bran was out there somewhere. Merlin was at a loss for how to find him and his instincts told him this was only the tip of the iceberg.

Did they mean him or Loholt, or was it someone else entirely caught up in oncoming mess? Merlin didn't have a clue, but it was better to err on the side of caution and protect both fronts. He rapped lightly on the door to Hunith's room, reluctant to possibly wake her. The door cracked open slightly and Merlin could see candles still burning inside.

Hunith smiled at her son, "Shhh, your daughter just finally fell asleep."

A crease formed in Merlin's brow, "Is she alright?"

The older woman stepped back to allow her son to enter, "She's fine, just upset about Bran missing. I don't believe she had anything to do with it."

He felt a pang of guilt. He had been so preoccupied he didn't even think about how the dragon girl must have taken the news and accusations. It only proved to him how unfit he was as a father that he wouldn't have considered finding Aithusa to reassure her. "I know she didn't, but I've been working on trying to find out who did take him," he said trying to reconcile his own emotional turmoil.

"You have so much on your plate, she'll understand more when she's older."

Merlin smiled at his mother's comforting words. They sat down near the dying fireplace; Merlin's eyes glowed softly as he brought it back to life.

"What brings you here in the middle of the night?" Hunith asked reaching out to take her son's hand.

"I need to get you and Aithusa out of Camelot," He stated quietly, his eyes on the flames.

"Does this have to do with Prince Bran?" Merlin nodded but didn't elaborate. They sat together quietly in their own thoughts. After almost thirty years, she knew to trust her son's instincts. "Well, I can take her home with me, back to Ealdor."

Merlin shook his head and withdrew his hand from hers, rubbing his face tiredly. "No, you wouldn't be protected, and it would be too easy to find you both there."

"Well, I did receive an invitation from Lord Godwyn to visit his estate. It seems his daughter had quite a few suitors after the ball and she has agreed to marry one of them. He would like to escort me to the event."

Merlin's eyes shifted over to his mother. Hunith had never before shone any inclination in any man, "I didn't think you would be interested in anyone."

She patted his shoulder and sighed, a sad smile playing on her face, "I wasn't. Perhaps I had always held out some hope of seeing Balinor again. Which is why I never left Ealdor, even with all that happened, I couldn't bring myself to leave thinking there was even a slight chance he might return." Her eyes began to mist over with tears, "Now to find out I am truly a widow, it puts things in a different perspective. You have your life here, my son."

"Do you care for him?" He felt awkward speaking to his mother about the subject. The thought of his mother somewhere other than the village he grew up was a foreign concept to wrap his mind around, "I mean, you could stay here and have a comfortable life, mum."

"Camelot is such a busy place and Godwyn is a kind man," She said trying to reassure her son.

"What about Snowdonia? It's a quiet place and…"

"And far from here. I rarely get to see you as it is and you are travelling so much, I'm sure that isn't going to change for a long time. You have your destiny to consider before all else." Hunith took his chin in her fingers and turned Merlin to face her, "You are my world, Merlin, and you always will be. It is one invitation I am accepting. If something else comes of it, well, it might be nice to have a warmer place than our little hut in Ealdor to grow old in."

He couldn't argue the wisdom of her words. It would give him more peace of mind to know she was being taken care of as she aged. A few moments passed before he sighed in resignation, "Then accept his invite and give Elena my best at her wedding."

"I can even take Aithusa with me to the event," Hunith glanced over at the sleeping child on her bed with a warm smile.

Shaking his head, Merlin replied, "No. It would be too risky to send you both together. Besides she and I need to have a bit of a discussion about what she is."

Hunith looked slightly offended, "She is a beautiful, intelligent, spirited child, and your daughter."

He licked his lips, staring back at the fire, "Yes, and I seem to be as poor of a father as she is a dragon. I think it's time she learned that from someone who can hopefully teach her what it means."

(*~*~*~*)

He was almost back to his own room and ready to collapse when he looked up to see a well-dressed woman with dark curling hair and soft brown eyes standing in front of his door. Merlin almost thought about turning around and finding a storage room or some other hidden alcove to sleep in when the woman spotted him.

"Merlin?" She asked, a tremble in her voice caught his attention.

"Gwen, what are you doing up so late? Tomorrow is going to be busy with Arthur's birthday feast," He said.

Guinevere wrung her hands together nervously, "I understand that, but no one has seen him since he left us earlier this evening. I know my husband well enough to realize he is not fully well. Please, can you just look for him?"

Merlin nodded tiredly and raised his hands in defeat, "Go back to your chambers, My Lady. I'll find him and make sure the cabbage head hasn't done anything stupid."

(*~*~*~*)

Merlin spent almost two hours searching for any sign of the king. His feet were dragging, but the anxiety of not finding Arthur kept him going. He had one last place to check before he called in the guards. He felt a half smile form as he thought of that. Perhaps having status in some situations could be a good thing. The guards and knights wouldn't be as quick to question his authority if he chose to assert it. He also played with the thought that perhaps there were more people out in the land like Gilli that he could hire to be his eyes and ears around the kingdom.

The warlock sighed in relief as he came upon the doors to the crypts and found them unlocked. He should have checked this place first. Making his way through the silent stone passageways he came up to one of the more recent additions to the tombs under Camelot. He could faintly hear someone inside mumbling. The warlock pushed the door open enough to see inside. In the near darkness he barely was able to make out the form of the king slouched in between his parents' sarcophaguses holding a flagon of some strong alcoholic beverage. An empty vessel lay next to the blond man, tipped over when there was nothing left in it to spill.

"Are you just going to stand there gawking like a half-wit or are you going to be joining me Merlin?" The king's words slurred slightly and lazy blue eyes tried unsuccessfully to focus on the warlock. With an unsteady hand Arthur held out the container in offer to the other man.

Making his way inside Merlin settled himself on the ground next to his cousin and accepted the drink. It wasn't every day that the King of Camelot felt like sharing. Inside was a strong dark wine and the dark-haired man knew in his tired state to only take small sips.

"Gwen is worried about you."

"Mmm. Been here the whole time."

"I see that. I'm surprised there's anything left to drink and I'm not carrying your unconscious body back up to your bed." He evaluated the King's state in his mind and realized it wouldn't be long before he would have to try and wrestle with the larger form up the stairs through the castle.

"Find anything yet?"

"Yes."

Arthur sucked on his teeth for a moment, wondering why they always felt furry when he'd been drinking. His mind came back around to realize Merlin hadn't tried to elaborate on his answer, "What?"

"Overheard conversation."

Sometimes the dark-haired man didn't know when to shut up, other times his answers were always too brief, "Did you hear it personally?" He squinted his eyes to where he could make out one Merlin instead of two before answering his own question, "No, but you trust the source."

"I do."

"Fine, fill me in."

"Lord Edmund…"

"Ha, I should have known. Sir Geraint was his eldest son, and technically second in command under Sir Leon. I thought that Edmund was just a grieving ass kisser. But death can change a man and cause him to do uncharacteristic things." He looked at the stone relief on Uther's casket pointedly, "Who else?"

Merlin knew Geraint, the man had a wife and children of his own, so more often than not he volunteered to stay behind with the knights in the castle. He was unaware before this moment of the relation to Edmund. Things were beginning to make sense now, "Lady Thea was the one to hire the servant we now can't find, that we believe stole Bran's head."

Arthur scrunched his face, showing his front teeth in drunk confusion, "Their family has always been loyal to me."

"But that was before their only son came back nearly dead and then disappeared," Merlin offered. Two prominent families, two sons that had fallen while going north to a battle with their king for a man they now suspected was a sorcerer. A theory was beginning to emerge. In the morning, when Arthur – if the king could get out of bed- planned to go hunting, Merlin would stay behind and find out the names of the other knights lost in that battle.

"We should have told them of our plans," Arthur's voice was heavy with guilt.

"No, I only think that would have made it worse. There are a few others involved as well although the situation is becoming clearer as to a motive."

"Hmph, and so what are they planning to do?"

"I'm not sure, but it was overheard that it might be something against our family. I've spoken with my mum and she's been invited by Lord Godwyn to attend his daughter's wedding. So she'll be leaving to go to that."

The king nodded thoughtfully. He hadn't taken another drink since Merlin arrived, for which the warlock was thankful. "Guinevere and I received the invitation as well. I think she should go too. And your dragon?"

"I'll be getting her out of here soon."

"Hmm. What was that saying? The one the Roman's used to say, 'Lex talionis'!"

Merlin's face scrunched in confusion, "I can speak a few words from the northern area, Dragon, and the words of magic. I've never been taught Roman."

Arthur chuckled, it was becoming easy to forget that Merlin hadn't always been a noble and was not privy to any formal education. The king corrected him, "Latin not Roman. It is the law of mirror punishment. An eye for an eye," Arthur's eyes widened for emphasis.

"A tooth for a tooth," Merlin continued somberly, recalling his first day in Camelot. He sighed and took a drink of the wine, "And a son for a…"

"Oh dear god," Arthur started, fear for the boy coursed through him, sobering the king up a bit.

"I don't think they know about him," Merlin assured his cousin.

The king gazed heavily on his companion, "Are you certain?"

"How could they?"

"George found out!" He exclaimed loudly.

"Naw," Merlin's brow furrowed, "he wouldn't be involved. He's too… I don't know what that man is sometimes, but he wouldn't do something like that."

"What if it wasn't intentional? Like, oh leaving Bran on a table? Or what if he'd finally had enough? You yourself said so when you spoke on his behalf and told me not to punish him!"

Merlin mulled it over for a while. The mousy little man was exhausted, bruised, and battered. He was desperate for Merlin to find a replacement, which the warlock finally did just a few hours ago, but what if it was too late? Could the ever faithful and proper brass polisher be a weasel in disguise when pushed too far? "Well if anything he's going to be rather preoccupied tomorrow when he begins training of your new servant, so I can try and look into it."

"New servant? Who?" The king asked suspiciously.

"You remember the common boy that nearly won the open tournament from Uther? After you let your father beat you that is."

"Vaguely," Arthur nodded. Although he was curious as to why a skilled fighter would sink to being a servant, "You know him well?"

"Well enough, we're sort of kin," He didn't want the king to know that in fact he and Gilli had only met during the time of the tournament, then again recently.

"Is he like you then?"

Merlin understood the vague question. Does this new servant have magic? Reluctantly he answered, "Yes, nothing compared to what I can do, but hopefully it'll be enough to help keep you out of trouble."

"I don't get into trouble, Merlin."

"Right, keep telling yourself that, Sire. Someday someone might believe you. And please try not to give him a concussion… for a while, at least."

Aerist- I agree. I didn't even feel like I knew Gwen 5th season.

Nance- Yep I had that same visual of his grin as he said "Not if I'm 80 years old" and Alice is still sweet, but I figured after everything she can be a bit snarky too.

Megami and Starbolt, thanks for your reviews, you guys all make my day so much brighter.. even when the pineapple express storm front is blowing outside my window.