Disclaimer: I don't own BBC Merlin. And cause I'm bored with putting disclaimers up every chapter, I'm not anymore. I'm never going to own Merlin anyway *sniff*

A/N- Thank you all for the reviews! I wanted to reply but school is starting to kick my butt. More on that at the bottom.

Thanks for beta-ing, Paralelsky!

o}O{o

The first thing Mordred was aware of was the pungent smell of herbs. He thought he might have been in Delma's tent, but then he caught the scent of drafty stone and sweet perfume. His mind immediately formed the image of the beautiful lady in the throne room. Throne room?

Merlin!

Mordred gasped and bolted upright, desperately trying to regain his senses. He found that he was lying in a bed placed in a cosy, yet cluttered room. All around him he could see many full bookcases that housed a stunning assortment of books, vials of potions, dried herbs and various tools. Any other time Mordred would have been fascinated, but Merlin was alone and in danger. He had not been without Merlin's company in the past two years for a moment- his absence made him highly uneasy.

"Just relax, you are safe now," a lilting voice gently spoke from his side. Mordred snapped his blue eyes up to the most beautiful woman he had ever seen: Rosy lips below light jade eyes were smiling on a pale face which was framed by ebony tresses. And were Mordred old enough to notice such things he would have also admired her elegant indigo dress.

But then Merlin's bright eyes flashed in his mind, bringing the room back into focus. "Merlin," he gasped and looked about the room. His eyes landed on an old man that was sitting on his other side. The man's face was wrinkly and his blue eyes stern; however after years of dealing with Selwyn, he recognized that the harsh shield was very thin. Especially compared to the druid.

"You're Gaius," Mordred realized and stared.

The old man raised an eyebrow and the boy was made aware of his mistake: this woman was a lady of the court, what explanation could he give without risking Selwyn? The thought of the tall man caused worry to sprout in his gut but he stubbornly warded it off.

"I need to find Merlin," Mordred stated and tried to leave the bed. But the lady's gentle hands firmly held him in place. "You need to rest," she said softly.

Mordred shook his head, "But Merlin-"

"You needn't worry, Prince Arthur is in charge of the search himself," Gaius said while appraising him. His eyes lingered on Mordred's ivory pendent.

"You don't understand, I need to find him!"

At that moment there was a knock on the door and an armoured man walked through. He had mid length wavy hair that was the colour of wheat and large round azure eyes. Mordred only noted that he was tall but not taller than Selwyn.

"Lady Morgana, Gaius," he nodded to the two adults.

Lady Morgana. That was the fair lady's name.

"Has Prince Arthur arrived yet? He told me to gather four search parties and meet him here," the knight asked.

"You haven't started yet?" Mordred asked incredulously. Merlin was in danger, right now! Ethel and Nyan were after him!

The tall knight drew his head back and analysed Mordred, extremely unimpressed. Just as he was about to reprimand him, the door flew open and he had to step forward to avoid being hit. The prince of Camelot strode through, sweeping authority in the room along with him. His eyes immediately found his second in command. "Leon. You assembled the search parties?"

"Yes, Sire." Leon clasped his hands behind his back. Arthur nodded and looked to Mordred.

"Ah, good you are awake," the prince said in a superior tone. Mordred could only sit straighter as the lady Morgana's hand was still on his shoulder.

"I need you to tell me what the boy looks like," Arthur commanded.

"He's very small, has black hair and blue eyes. He's pale and wearing a dark blue cloak," Mordred fired off. "I will help you. Excuse me," he ducked his head to Morgana.

"You are in no fit state to go anywhere, Mordred," she said soothingly. Mordred blinked at her and remembered lately that he had told the king his name.

"She is right, you are to stay here. I will be bringing the child he-"

"Merlin," Mordred cut the prince off to the shock of everyone in the room.

"...Merlin. Here." Arthur said slowly. He then abruptly turned to Leon. "You lead the search in the upper town, I will do the same for the lower. Have Sir Pellinor lead one outside the north gate and Sir Ellias to do the same outside the south and get them to fan out. Be on guard for hostile sorcerers. Morgana, do not even think about coming." The prince led the way to the door but turned back before exiting. He met Morgana's narrowed eyes before looking at Mordred.

"We will find Merlin. You do not have to worry," he said to him before turning on his heel and disappearing from sight.

Mordred stared forlornly after the two knights until Morgana leaned toward him. "How are you feeling?"

Mordred merely shrugged in response and stared down at his lap. He was not sure how to act around the two strangers.

"Here," Gaius said not unkindly and reached for a slim ceramic mug on the stool behind him. Mordred took it and looked questioningly into the dark, slightly acrid smelling liquid.

"It will clear your exhaustion for a while. You look like you are about to fall asleep and I suspect you want to see your friend. Merlin was it?" Something in Gaius' tone made Mordred look up at him. The physician had a faraway look in his eyes.

Mordred stared at the old man and decided to trust him. Selwyn said he could after all. He downed the liquid which tasted as bad as it smelled and pulled a grimace.

Morgana made a sympathetic face and handed him some water which he gratefully accepted. "Thank you," he looked at both of them and was mildly surprised at how fast his fatigue dissipated. "I am truly grateful for your help."

"What kind of people would we be, had we not chosen to help two young boys in need?" Morgana asked as if the prospect was unthinkable. Mordred could not resist sending her a small smile.

"I do not believe we were introduced. My name is Morgana." Pearly teeth were revealed as she gave him an encouraging smile.

"Mordred," he bent his neck in a respectful bow. He could hardly believe a lady of Camelot was actually talking to him, a boy born to a peasant family.

"And you seem to already know Gaius." Morgana looked between the two curiously.

"I was only told about him. The court physician?"

"Yes. And as physician, I would like for you to tell me how you are feeling. A shrug of your shoulders will not suffice." Mordred recognized a change of topic when he heard one.

He could only think of two things, but he dared not say that his feet were killing him or his stomach was aching from worry in front of a lady. So he employed the skill that Rolf had taught him where he told the truth, it just wasn't the most relevant one. "I fear I have a small headache," he answered quietly.

Gaius smiled kindly at him and Mordred found that it made him less scary. Not that he was scared of a crabby old man. "That is easily remedied," he said and hobbled off to a shelf to rummage through the different vials.

He risked a glance at Morgana and jumped in surprise when he met her gaze. She looked at him as though in recognition but Mordred knew that couldn't be right for they had never met before.

"You do not need to be worried. As insufferable as Arthur is, he is very capable. He will have Merlin back in no time," Morgana reassured.

Mordred was a little taken aback that she could read him so well already. There were only two people that had ever had that art down. He swallowed nervously but managed a miniscule smile- he hoped she was right. If the prince wasn't back in an hour, he would go out there himself.

o}O{o

People peered uneasily out their windows as the knights of Camelot hunted the dark streets. Alleyways were explored and nooks investigated. Prince Arthur's search had taken him to a narrow side street in the lower town and he was beginning to wonder if the boy was even in the city. Some might say that Arthur was a selfish prince only capable of caring for himself, but the thought of a five year old boy wandering the streets or forest alone and in danger stood against everything Arthur was.

"Sire, no one has seen a child alone. Shall we head to the upper town?" Sir Peter asked after turning away from a small house.

"No," Arthur said harshly, "I trust Leon to have his search in hand. We will not rest until that boy is found, understand? Now get back to searching, you are wasting precious time."

The pale skinned knight looked taken aback at his fuming eyes for a split second before bowing and heading off to search between the barrels just outside the nearest alleyway. Even Arthur was momentarily surprised at the fierceness of his own response. But the thought of delaying the search even for a moment was repulsive to him. It drenched him with a sense of wrongness that went deeper than just not doing the right thing.

Starlight poured out of the sky and cascaded through the narrow streets. Arthur's feet took him to a dead end and he was forced to eliminate this section of town. How bloody hard could it be to find one child? It had been four hours now and there was not even one thing out of place. And those escaped druids must be looking for the boy as well. Just as worry made him inexplicably uneasy, a child's scream ripped the curtain of silence blanketing Camelot.

The knights immediately bounded after him as he ran towards the chilling sound. Arthur heard hushed voices up ahead and he quickened his pace while shifting into a stealthy crouch. He led the knights under the stone walls and rickety roofs only stopping when the voice of an old woman gently called out.

"Come, Emrys, we will not hurt you."

There was a high stone fence blocking Arthur from what must have been the druids and the boy. He edged toward the wooden gate and waited for the boy to speak. He gestured to his knights to halt behind him and stilled to listen while furrowing his brow- wasn't the child's name Merlin?

"Do not be frightened, Emrys. Hurry!" an old man's voice soothed. It sent shivers down Arthur's spine and an anxious ripple swept through the knights- letting him know that his instincts were right.

The sound of footsteps shuffling loudly toward the fence and a frightened whimper forced his hand. After motioning for his knights to stand by, he rose out of his crouch and vaulted over the gate.

A child in a midnight blue cloak stood between him and two cloaked druids. The woman looked like a magpie, with hard dark eyes and black and white robes. The man's back was straight but it looked like a gust of wind could knock him off his feet. He was glaring at Arthur with chilling brown eyes. The small boy whipped around upon sensing his presence and Arthur could not help but stare.

He was standing rigid, his messy raven hair and blue eyes standing out starkly on his pale skin, and his hands were at his throat. This was the boy Mordred was talking about, the five year old, Merlin. The prince did not know much about children, but he was sure that five year olds should be a lot bigger- it looked that the boy would only stand as tall as Arthur's thigh. The prince didn't think it was possible to smell fear before now.

Merlin's watery eyes were huge on his sad face, his lashes wet with tears that were trailing down his cheeks. Arthur was momentarily stunned to stillness upon seeing the ocean blue orbs bright enough to pierce through the night.

"Emrys, please!" the old lady held out her arms non-threateningly and took a step forward. Merlin hastily took a stride back but ended up stepping on the end of his cloak which sent him sprawling toward the floor.

Arthur took a menacing step toward them and glared at the druids. He dared not unsheathe his sword for fear of scaring the boy. They stared back and eyed the fence behind him warily.

"Merlin," he called and crouched down. The boy immediately craned his neck to look at him and the prince unknowingly let his face soften.

"Just reach for my hand. If you don't belong with them, take my hand," Arthur said quietly. The boy didn't even give the two a backward glance and got up to run into the prince's arms, where he hid his face and quivered into his chest. Arthur quickly enfolded his arms around the boy, hoisting him up gently; his arms flew up too fast but he recovered smoothly. He wasn't expecting the boy to be so light, he reminded Arthur of a bird.

"Now!" He called to the knights who burst over the fence and swarmed past them. Merlin wrapped his tiny arms around his neck and clung with his legs. Arthur felt something in his chest shift upon feeling his quaking body. "It's alright. You're safe now," Arthur whispered and retreated behind the knights. The prince tightened his arms when a cry of alarm was emitted from the knights- he craned his neck up to view a gale of wind swirling above their heads.

"They're gone, Sire!" Sir Peter cried and made his way to him, letting his gaze linger on the back of Merlin's clinging form before bringing his dark eyes to look at the prince.

"Try and find them. Inform Sir Ellias. I'm taking the boy to Gaius," Arthur said, turning around and calling two knights to him. Sir Peter bowed to his retreating back and nodded to the two knights hurrying after the prince with the remainder of the knights at his heels. "Owain, go tell Leon that we have found the child and tell him to direct his efforts to finding those druids. Ector, do the same with Sir Pellinor. Make haste."

The two young knights hurried to do as they were bidden and Arthur sped back to Gaius. On the way he tried to coerce Merlin to talk, but the boy did not respond to his questions and only curled his arms tighter around Arthur's neck. Anymore and he would choke.

As Arthur felt the boy's hot tears on the side of his neck, anger boiled in his stomach. How dare those druids seek to imprison innocent children? The prince did not care that they were old, when he found them, he was going to see that they were punished. He finally made his way through the courtyard and entered the familiar corridors to Gaius' quarters. Arthur looked down uneasily at Merlin- it was the first time he had even spoken to a child and now he had one that seemed quite intent on trying to strangle him.

So it was with considerable relief that he finally opened the doors to the physician's chambers. The warm light was quite a contrast to the coolness of the night outside and it was certainly lively inside the chambers as well. There were two guards directly in front of him, seemingly blocking the pacing Mordred from running out the door. Morgana was tapping her foot anxiously where she sat at Gaius' table and the physician himself was rummaging fiercely through a collection of letters.

The second he entered the room Mordred froze and turned to him, the boy's turquoise eyes spearing him with their intensity. Arthur errantly thought that one could almost certainly see the kid's eyes from a mile away. The guards parted to let Arthur through but the prince did not make it a step before Mordred was in front of him, peering anxiously at Merlin.

Arthur knelt down to put down the child but he clung with surprising strength, which caused the older boy to turn a strange glance to the prince.

"Merlin?" Mordred whispered and crouched beside Arthur. The boy flinched and immediately let go of Arthur. He barrelled into Mordred and the older boy held on tightly. "I promised you didn't I? We're both safe now," Mordred squinted his eyes shut and it did not look like the two boys would let go of each other anytime soon.

"That is Merlin then?" Arthur felt the need to say something to break the silence. Morgana and Gaius both wandered closer to them. He dismissed the guards with a nod of his head.

Mordred looked up at Arthur and nodded. "Thank you, Prince Arthur. I am in your debt."

"Nonsense," Arthur said quickly, "I am glad to have helped." Morgana tilted her head at recognizing the sincerity in Arthur's tone. "I have to wonder though, why did they call him Emrys?"

Arthur was too busy watching Mordred's face turn into an ugly scowl to notice Gaius stiffen considerably where he stood.

"That isn't his name...they thought he was young enough to control. So they tried to give him a new name, but he told me it was Merlin when we met. He has not talked since."

Arthur's eyes climbed to his hairline and he forgot about the name Emrys. "Not a word?"

Mordred sadly shook his head and began to rub Merlin's back gently. "Merlin? Can you look at me?" The boy's face was buried in Mordred's chest. Merlin shook his head and clung tighter to Mordred. "He is shy around people," he explained.

"Perhaps we should leave then," Morgana said quietly to Arthur, and then turned to address the physician. "Gaius, you do not mind taking care of them for the night, do you? I can send Gwen to help if you wish."

"That will not be necessary, my lady. I can treat them just fine."

"Alright then, goodnight, Gaius. I will have someone check on you boys tomorrow." Arthur spoke and turned to leave.

"Take care, Mordred, I will come see them tomorrow. Gaius." Morgana smiled at them before following the prince. Just as Arthur opened the door he was held back by Mordred's quiet voice.

"Prince Arthur? What will happen to Isaac? He was good to us." The boy did not hide a worried frown.

Arthur could only blink at the boy before turning his back and disappearing out the door. He could feel Morgana's stare like an itch at the back of his head. He counted down from ten and was not disappointed when Morgana surged forward to stride beside him right on time.

"You cannot have him executed, Arthur," her tone was stern.

"Morgana, he's a sorcerer. He disobeyed the law," Arthur droned and rolled his eyes.

"He is a druid," Morgana hissed, "they are harmless."

"They held children against their will-"

"That boy just said that he was good to them," her voice rose incredulously, "he told Gaius and I that the camp was split in two in regards to them. That man did nothing wrong."

"He has magic," Arthur said with a final tone.

"He saved that child's life!" Morgana seized his arm, "Mordred told us! You would have a good man executed?"

Arthur flicked his gaze to her hand but she did not remove it. "My father-"

"It does not matter what Uther thinks! He-"

"-Is the king Morgana. We cannot bend the law for one man, no matter how honourable he appears to be," Arthur said callously.

"Then break it."

"Excuse me?"

"If the law says that saving a child is evil then to hell with it!" Morgana appealed. Arthur looked to her surprised- he had never seen her so incensed before.

"The law says magic is evil. Morgana-" he held up a hand to halt her from speaking. "I am not hearing this. That man will be executed for his crimes and we will forget about him by the end of the week. Alright? Now go to sleep, and leave me to report to my father." He ignored her burning eyes and pursed lips, and turned his back. The prince was supposed to be loyal to the kingdom, why didn't she understand that? Just as he was about to turn the corner, Morgana's voice echoed down the hall.

"It is a sad day when it is a crime to save a child. To be punished for saving your friends at the cost of your life," she began scathingly, "so it is only just that he should be treated like a murderer. A man who probably never hurt a fly! I thought you had honour, Arthur Pendragon." Arthur was clenching his jaw and working not to shout at Morgana as her heels echoed down the fire lit hall.

Who was she to dictate what was right or wrong? What did Morgana know? But she's right, a small niggling voice at the back of his mind told him.

Nonsense.

The man was a druid and that was that. The children were safe and Camelot gained another victory against sorcery. Arthur continued on his way to his father's chambers to report to him with his head held high. He should feel proud, so then why on earth did shame make his skin crawl and blood burn hot in his veins?

o}O{o

There! Merlin and Arthur have met :) Was it up to expectations?

Also, heads up- since school is going to become a storm of epic proportions, I'm very likely not going to be able to write as much. Unfortunately that means updates will be slower :( But remember that reviews sustain me and I won't leave you guys waiting too long. Mid March at the latest.

So tootles, and thanks for reading!