Time || Merlin
They were close. Merlin could feel it, a tingling in the back of his head that only Elsa recognized when he mentioned it. The trees had long since changed their foliage from leaves to needles, and the animals changed their colors. The last few days, no one, magical or otherwise, had interrupted their path. Arthur had used the mirrors to call them twice, updating them on how tracking Agravaine was going. Apparently, there hadn't been any more visits to Morgana.
"I hope that doesn't mean anything," Elsa sighed, staring at the fire without seeing it. The two of them were the last ones awake that evening. Taking the first watch seemed like the obvious choice when neither could fall asleep. The magic kept them awake the same way the knowledge of an incoming ambush would.
"Why would it?" Merlin asked. He reached for her hand out of habit. It was the same temperature as his, but he didn't let go once he'd checked.
Elsa's gaze remained fixed on the flames in front of them, but she squeezed his fingers back. "Morgana could be working with Hero."
"Hans says she isn't."
"Hans says she wasn't. Things could have changed. Or he could be lying." She glanced over at his sleeping form stretched out between Gwaine and Ruben. "Did we make a mistake in releasing him?"
"We won't know until something happens, but… I think I trust him for now."
Elsa's fingers twitched in his hand.
"You don't?"
"How can I? He wanted me dead. He cursed my sister to a life with no autonomy. How can a person who does that with no remorse ever be trusted?"
When they have a common enemy, Merlin thought. When they finally showed some humanity. In Hans' case, Merlin took comfort in the fact that Hans still felt love. He clearly loved his sister. And, over the past few days, he'd come to an odd sort of agreement with Gwen: Gwen was reluctant to accept all of his offers of friendship, but they'd arrived at some kind of alliance based on conversation rather than a common enemy.
Out loud, he just told Elsa she had a good point. She did. Elsa had the most reasons to distrust Hans, and Merlin wouldn't have blamed her if she never forgave him. He knew he hadn't. It was just that somehow, he'd managed to separate Hans' trustworthiness from his guilt.
As the night got colder, they moved closer together. Eventually, wordlessly, Merlin draped an arm over Elsa's shoulders and she scooted closer, leaning her head on his shoulder.
"I hate not knowing how Anna is," she whispered, "but at the same time, I feel more at home with you than I ever do as queen of Arendelle. Is that wrong? Is wanting to leave that behind me so wrong?"
"I don't think it can be. It's a feeling. It's what you do about that feeling that makes it wrong or right. And I think there could be multiple 'right' ways to address that."
Merlin watched the dying fire's reflection in Elsa's eyes, waiting for a response that never came. Her eyes blinked, closing for longer and longer until Merlin could tell she was asleep.
Once they reached the barrier, everyone stopped. One of the horses had alerted them to its presence by stepping through and immediately being hidden from their sight.
"Once we go in, there might be no coming back through," Elsa said. "Any last minute ideas for a plan?"
"We can't plan for something this unknown," Hans said. He stepped through without waiting for any of the others. Both Gwen and Reuben had reached out at the last second to grab him, but both were too slow.
They'd lost him.
At least, they thought they had until a hand shimmered back into existence. Then there was a foot, a leg, and Hans' entire body.
"I don't know where you got the idea that no one can leave, but I certainly can."
Merlin reprocessed Elsa's story. None of her guards had come back. Was it some kind of betrayal on their part, or had someone been waiting to attack them on the other side? Or, he considered, was it Hans magic that allowed him to come back through.
"Magic," Elsa said, speaking Merlin's suspicions out loud. "None of my guards had any. Maybe that's why they couldn't cross over."
Hans nodded. "Multiple of us do have magic, so what are we waiting for?"
Almost in sinc, everyone took a step forward and immediately found their feet frozen to the ground in ice. Merlin looked at Elsa, everyone else clearly doing the same in his peripheral vision.
"I have to test it. It's my kingdom, this is my risk to take. I'll see if my magic works. If it doesn't —"
"If it doesn't, it doesn't matter," Merlin insisted. "We'll go after you anyway."
"If it doesn't, you can at least consult with Gaius first and search for another option."
Merlin nodded, knowing while he did so that the nonverbal commitment was a lie. If Elsa didn't come back, he'd go in after her, Gaius' advice be damned.
And Elsa did go through the barrier. Merlin watched, waiting for a disembodied hand to come back through as it did with Hans. Nothing happened. Merlin reached for the barrier, not entirely sure what he intended to do, only sure had to do something.
"Wait," Hans said. "Let me. I'll go after her, I know I can get back through."
"But why?" Gwaine asked, voicing the same question Merlin was thinking. "If you're really not working with Hero, why are you the only one that can get through?"
"I don't know!" Hans, his voice barely softer than a yell, held his hands out, palms up. "I don't know. Just trust me."
Merlin didn't trust Hans, but Gwen held him back just long enough for Hans to go ahead of him.
"Gwen, what? Why would you, he could do anything, he's using his magic again!"
"Just give him a minute, Merlin." She clung to his hand, staring into the space Hans had disappeared instead of looking Merlin in the eye.
"So what, you and Hans are friends now?" Gwaine asked. "Seems like a risky move to me."
"Everyone deserves a second chance. And look."
Merlin followed her eyes back to the invisible barrier. Two figures were barely visible through it, the surface rippling and catching the light just enough to make it visible. And then they were through, Hans first and Elsa second having been dragged through by her arm. Hans quickly let go.
"I couldn't do it," Elsa said. "It's not just magic."
Hans glanced at Merlin hesitantly. "Maybe it's time for magic, like those creatures were talking about. We are surrounded by trees, and those were connected."
"Maybe," Merlin agreed. If that was the case, Merlin would be able to pass through as well.
They repeated the test, this time Merlin going through the barrier. Hans was right about it being connected to time. Merlin's heart slowed to an almost unnoticeable beat as soon as he arrived at the other side, the stillness making Merlin feel as though he should see nothing in motion. Yet he did — wind still rustled trees on the other side, animals still made their way around the forest. And even though he felt time slow, he couldn't get back through. After a couple minutes Hans followed him in.
"Can't you feel it?" He asked. "I thought you'd be able to."
"I can. Things are slower here, I can tell. But I can't get back out."
Before Hans dragged him back through to normal time, the others in their group joined them.
"There's no point sticking around until we figure out how this barrier works. My sister needs me." She paused for a moment before adding, "My kingdom needs me."
So they kept going. At the edge of the city, they stopped, waiting for Elsa to make some comment, to point out what had changed, but nothing had.
"It looks the same," she said.
"It does," Hans agreed. "If I couldn't feel the difference, I wouldn't notice a thing."
"Feel what difference?" Leon asked.
"The time thing," Merlin said. "We can both tell that time runs slower here than in the outside world. It's only been a few minutes to us, but the rest of you have experienced hours."
"You have to be joking."
"No. He's not." Hans said.
"It could be a good thing," Gwen pointed out. "It means that even though it's been a month since Arendelle's capture on our side of things, the people here have only experienced a few days, or a week."
"And if Hero's spent most of her time here, she'll have had less time to plan," Leon added.
Hans snorted. "As if you all actually used your time to plan anything."
"Hey, you're part of our group now, you ass, you didn't do any planning either," said Gwaine.
It was true. No one had any idea of a plan. How could they when they knew so little about their enemy? They'de arrived with the expectation of an invading force, soldiers to back Hero's power, but they saw none. The townsfolk darted around doing ordinary tasks. Some looked uneasily up at the castle, but most looked entirely normal. And then there was Anna.
Somehow Merlin noticed her before Elsa did. She wore a dress better suited to the working class than a princess, but her skin bore no sign of injury and her face held an expression more blank than angry or fearful.
"Anna," Elsa breathed. "She's okay. I have to go talk to her."
Merlin grabbed her hand before she could step out into the open. "Not a good idea. Have someone unrecognizable bring her here. Gwen?"
From across the square, Merlin saw Anna's eyes widen in surprise and recognition. Her fists clenched and pulled in towards her chest, her wide grin revealing her excitement rather than rage. The two exchanged a few words, none of them recognizable at Merlin's distance, and Gwen returned. Alone.
"She gave me a location. She said Elsa would know how to get there — the shed behind Mattias's house?"
Elsa nodded and ushered them out from their hiding spot back into the forest. "It's at the edge of the city, we can get to it by going around. We shouldn't be spotted.
It took them only a few minutes (a few seconds, by Merlin's sense of the outside world) to get to the right place. On the way, Elsa explained Mattias' role as a soldier, connecting him to the events of the past year and explaining he'd been with her when she first noticed the barrier go up.
When they arrived, the shed was nowhere near empty.
"Elsa!" Anna threw herself into her sister's arms, nearly pushing Elsa right back out the door. Merlin squeezed around the sisters, seeking a seat among the men already present. One Merlin recognized: Kristoff, wearing his old clothes and looking the same as in memory with the exception of slightly longer hair. The rest of the men were a mystery, likely guards along with Mattias. With the Camelot knights added in, the space barely accommodated any movement. Even so, it took a while for the greetings to die down. The young Sir Ruben, who Merlin barely took notice of the entire trip, became the center of attention among the Knights of Arendelle, all of them congratulating him on his journey and return.
Kristoff, Anna, and Mattias crowded around Elsa, half intending to ask questions, but mostly just laughing and glad to see her safe.
In the quarter hour (still less than minutes, Merlin figured) after their arrival, nothing was accomplished but a reunion. Not all of them were good.
When Hans was at last noticed, standing awkwardly in the doorway, swords were drawn and Kristoff pushed princess Anna into safety behind him.
"You were followed. I should've guessed you'd turn up soon enough, now that your sister's here."
"He's with us now, Kristoff," Elsa said. "It's hard to explain, but he's been… somewhat helpful, at least."
Kristoff laughed. "As if I'd believe that. He's using you, Elsa, just like he used Anna. He needed a way here, to get to his sister, didn't he?"
Merlin met Elsa's glance, her expression matching his. That had been Hans' goal. But what did that have to do with anything Arendelle was going through."
"His sister did this. His sister is the reason we're all trapped here."
"That's ridiculous," Hans said. "You must have gotten unreliable information."
"From our outside information, we've gathered this capture was done by a sorceress by the name of Hero, a powerful magician with control over time," Elsa said. Even with her statement, she turned so her back no longer faced Hans, and around the room, knights from Camelot did the same, hands going to sword hilts.
"Time?" Anna asked. "I don't know anything about time, or the name Hero, but I know who's taken over, and how. It's Liesel, Hans' sister. She's got powers like Hans, but stronger. And she can change her appearance to look like anyone."
"You lied. I don't know why I ever believed a word you said," Elsa said.
Hans backed away slowly, back into the entryway of the storage room. "I swear, I didn't"
"Fine. You didn't directly lie, did you, I'll give you that. You just excluded some very important information."
"Information I didn't have! Please, Elsa. Merlin? Gwen. I didn't know, I don't know anything about this. My sister never showed any signs of magic."
"And the dog you recognized? You didn't once think 'huh, that dog Hero has around her looks a lot like my sister has?'"
"My sister doesn't have a dog! Or at least, I didn't think she did. Our parents made her get rid of that damn puppy once it started getting too big… oh."
The confusion and reluctant shuffle backwards looked real enough to Merlin. And the barrier — if Hero had used some form of blood enchantment to make the spell stronger, it would make sense that only someone related to her could get through it.
"I don't think he's lying," he said, surprising everyone including himself.
"I don't think it matters," Elsa returned. "Even if he isn't lying, he came here for his sister. What reason does he have not to join her side now that he knows her true identity?"
Merlin didn't have an answer. They all looked to Prince Hans for his response. He stood gaping, hands rising to gesture every time he started a sentence and falling as he was unable to continue.
"I think he should leave," Anna whispered.
"Anna…"
"Don't. Don't say my name like we're friends, like you didn't hurt me."
Mattias cleared his throat, drawing the attention back to himself. "I agree he can't be trusted. However, he can't leave. Pushing him out would be giving ourselves up to Liesel. He'd tell her our meeting place, and everything else he knows. I don't think I need to explain how bad that would be."
"I'll stay," Hans said. "I… I won't tell her a thing."
"No, you won't," Kristoff agreed. "Because you won't be able to."
Hands were rebound, and Hans once again had a gag preventing him from speaking. Merlin looked away when they did it. Hans hadn't exactly proven himself a friend so much as a temporary ally, but it still felt wrong to see him as an enemy again. Looking around him, no one shared his reluctance to keep Hans as a prisoner once again. No one except Gwen.
Across the room from Merlin, cornered between Sir Leon and someone Merlin didn't know, she watched as Hans was tied down. Her lips pursed and behind her eyes the same conflict raged.