Merlin cocked his head to the side, deliberating over the curious statement the girl had made.
He pointed to Edwin still confused at the appearance of a child in the middle of nowhere, "umm…are you two acquainted?"
The girl seemed only half interested in the three men standing there gawking, as she was easily distracted by the wonders she found around her, even when the cold rain fell on her bare head. She crouched down on the dirt road and waddled like a frog watching where a groove in the mud crated a small river of water. She plucked a petal from a flower she was holding and placed it on the surface, watching with glee as it sailed downwards between their feet.
Again, she squealed with joy and clapped her hands rapidly, bouncing up again waiting for their displays of astonishment of what she had done and grunted when they gave her none, puckering her lower lip sadly.
Her little arms crossed, she kicked her sodden skirts, "no one wants to play with me."
"uhh, are you lost child?" Arthur asked, searching around for anyone who might claim the girl. He was wary because if this land belonged to and was a secret only to those with magic, then it was likely the girl may be a druid or something worse.
She perked up at the question and dropped her arms like now that someone had mentioned it, she actually didn't know where she was and her carefree expression furrowed into one of worry and she shrunk in on herself, as the largeness of the world was suddenly a frightening prospect. Thunder roared above them at the same time her mood changed, causing merlin to jump and the others to stare up at the black clouds which had stained the grey which had only been there a second ago.
Arthur felt pity for the girl who was too young to be left on her own, especially on a road and went to take a step forward, but he was stopped by Edwin.
"…but we were playing a game young one. Like you said you found me! you're not lost anymore."
Edwin shifted as easily as the girl did, his shock softening into a calmer expression so she wouldn't be put off by them and their apprehension in her little arrival on the scene. However, Edwin as soon as she had called his name knew instantly who and what he was dealing with.
Arthur threw Edwin's hand away. What he hated among those with sorcery was not their danger, he was brave enough to face that like countless of other enemies, but this air of secrecy they maintain, making everyone feel like fools for not being in on what they knew and they waltz around feeling superior because of it.
Arthur growled, "what are you doing, or even talking about!"
Seemed the prince still needed to be spoon fed, but children do not learn if the answer is just handed to them Edwin chuckled, they need to work things out for themselves.
"take a closer look at her, tell me who does she remind you of?"
Arthur sneered at Edwin, wondering who he could possibly ever compare the child to and who they both knew in common, since Edwin was a stranger that Arthur only knew part of the story of and none of it good. the only reason he wasn't rotting in a cell or killed by Uther was all because of…
His gaze darted back to the girl and knowing he was looking at her she cocked her head to the side and cheekily stuck out her tongue and instinctively he returned the exact same look to taunt her back, making them both giggle. Then he realised how many more times b he had done that exact same thing with another and that person only, however the little girl had mimicked it perfectly like he did with Elaina.
That was her exact character, as well as the hair and eyes…
"I mean…" he mumbled, "there is a resemblance; but obviously it can't be!"
The girl came running over to them seemingly happy that she had ruffled Edwin and Arthur's feathers, while Merlin remained indifferent as one child was as much the same as any another to him.
She clumped a wad of dirt in her hand preparing to launch it at him, when he asked, "what are you two blabbering on about- WOW hey missy!"
Amused at the girl and the fresh mess on his friend's shirt, Arthur explained "seems Edwin here thinks that although we have one Elaina in our wagon, this somehow is also her. Only she has shrunk somewhat and recovered well."
He was trying to brush it off, but a damp brown stain was left cold against Merlin's skin, but what Arthur had said distracted him from it since such a thing wasn't possible.
Edwin was furious that even merlin with all his gifts somewhat mirrored Arthur and his lack of knowledge of the world he belonged to. Elaina had always thought herself useless, but if this was what the young warlock was like without her then she was indeed a valuable asset to his cause and he wished he could have only shown her this. As a grimoire she was one of the few bridges left connecting people to the old ways and even in that time, she would have been protected just as much as the priestesses.
destiny placed her at the side of merlin and Arthur for a reason and they needed her wisdom to carry them onward in their journey's and to save their necks when the earth's core wanted to whisper to them secrets of the magic that ran through it like a vein pumping blood to make it thrive.
Without her, Edwin assumed her role and tried to explain to them the knowledge they lacked.
"there are few things that are truly impossible in this world, unveil your eyes from the ignorance your father has taught you. The world has magic in it, which does not come in one singular form. Sometimes you must feel for the truth, not reach for logical explanations."
Merlin was the first to grasp Edwin's meaning, kicking himself because if he had just leaned into his instincts, he would have sensed much sooner the air in which the child carried, that was all too familiar and welcoming, rather than if she had been a threat. His reaction to her was to smile, as it was Elaina indeed and though he hadn't known her at this young an age, she still was recognisable behind that baby face, shining bright like a star, fearless and strong with sure footing. He just had to blink to see this child tbecome the woman.
Arthur was without this ability and still needed convincing as the insult made by Edwin and his asking that the prince give in to accepting magic being a natural state of the earth was harder to swallow to explain the child's appearance.
So he asked her, "little girl, do you have a name?"
She hesitated, as children were warned of the dangers of giving their name and looked to Edwin for encouragement that she was safe to do as she was asked. He nodded at her and she cried out, "Laney!"
Smugly Arthur grinned, gesturing to what he took as an indicator that without a matching name, Edwin's theory was wrong, "there you have it!"
Edwin's lip sat in a grim line scratching his cheek as the burn scars irritated him now and then, when he returned with a counterattack, "yep, and who exactly used to call Elaina by that nickname? Come on now, if like siblings she must have told you."
His arms dropped down when the memory hit him. Elaina very rarely went into detail about her father, his name she would mention only fleetingly as if the more she revealed the more he left her and it was a loss her grief has never gotten over, as her father had been everything to her even more than morgana.
It had been at the first dinner they shared when the sisters became the king's wards, Morgana had used the name once surprised when Elaina abruptly forbade her sister from using it, as their father would be the last she would allow to call her it, considering that now he would never utter the name again, it was too painful to hear.
"…her father Gorlois."
"My Papa!" excitedly she lit up like a spark at the mention of the knight, a girl who shone with pride and adoration for the man who was the true hero of his little girl's heart.
Finally, the theory had come to be truth and though Arthur could now accept that this was Elaina, he didn't know how or why. He wasn't given much chance to think it over because since he had used Gorlois's name, the child had claimed his hand in hers and dragged him down to her height. she asked Arthur of all he knew about the knight, with him answering honestly, while she shared stories of her own revolving around her father's fights and victories. she acted them out before him, which was enchanting to watch since the present Elaina had been clouded with much sadness.
Since Arthur was distracted, Edwin caught the young servant's attention.
"merlin. I told you Elaina is not happy with the plan we have trying to save her; I think she has tried to break the barrier keeping herself and since its weakening with the poison, only this has managed to slip through the cracks and matched with her poor strength, this representation is the result."
For a moment merlin was confused, Elaina couldn't use magic like he and Edwin could, as was the cost of being a grimoire.
Apparently from what Gaius and Elaina had told him, it was a curse laid down due to a sorcerer long ago, who with this talent for vast knowledge in the mystical arts had turned evil and almost brought the earth to its knees. however, the priestesses of the old religion entrapped and broke the person's gifts into pieces and passed them onto other people to be vessels of the talent, which would be inherited by one born of their bloodline. Elaina had been such a vessel now to be given the gift, that has cost her magical abilities as a result. only Edwin assured him that the power was in Elaina's mind, that she had unlock parts of her brain no one else could and though she might not enchant any spells, if she concentrated enough, her willpower could do marvellous things, for instance the visions she has was just a small part of what she could do and now this was another.
Worry set in and now merlin was regretting his boredom and waiting for something more to trouble them.
"what are you saying, that Elaina has conjured a version of herself to try and stop us?"
Listening as she laughed sweetly with Arthur, Edwin confirmed merlin's question and with a sigh, believed it could have been much worse.
"thankfully, this one might not be as troublesome as her adult form. But her memories are there, she recognised me for example."
Just then another shot of mud flew through the air and hit Merlin, this time with Elaina having forced Arthur to do so with a few mischievous whispers in his ear, which the prince had been more than glad to obey.
"so," he groaned, being sharper in his wiping off the dirt than before, "what exactly are we meant to do?"
He slapped merlin's shoulder, "we have no choice but to bring her along for now."