Hello, thank you so much for reading. I was honestly really starting to lose a lot of interest in this story, it felt like there was no one really reading and no reason to bother. So thank you so much for all of your feedback. It really means a lot to me and makes me more motivated to up-date and just write the story. So again thank you for that, for sticking with the story for so long.
Guest. Thank you I am glad it worked okay. I never now with chapters that are mainly dialog. I find them essayist to write, but I always worry they can be boring to read. I am also glad that I was able to get across her complex feelings in a way that made sense. I agree I never liked him. The fact that Merlin never questioned him, just did what he said all the time really made no sense to me.
tung98bill. Thank you. Hope you like the new chapter.
Haraf. Thank you. I hope you will like this new chapter, I also hope that rereading the story doesn't put you off reading the rest of the story.
It was only for a minute at most, but Merlin was surprisingly pleased by how long Morgana allowed him to comfort her and that she, though only faintly returned the hug. She also pulled away without excessive force, which was also surprising. Not knowing what to do or say next, Merlin moved to leave, but Morgana suddenly took hold of his arm, stopping him.
"I need you to get something." He nodded. "In the jewellery box in my chambers there's a ring that bares the mark of the old religion."
Before she had a chance to say anymore, Merlin was gone in faint cloud of smoke. Which she thought was a little excessive. A few seconds later he appeared again without the smoke, but with a grin and a ring held out towards her.
It was Gilli's ring, he had given it to her almost three years ago. When he had returned to Camelot to take part in a tournament. She had tried to return it to him before he left, but he had refused. Saying she would need it more than him. At the time he magic had been blocked, so it was little use to her. It had been forgotten when she herself left Camelot. This time she would make sure he took it back. She was sure that he in-fact needed it more than her, if he was linked to Nimueh. Taking the ring from Merlin they left the hovel.
It was part relief Morgana felt that she did not have to walk very far in Merlin's company after showing a moment of weakness and part worry that the meeting place was so close to her hovel that she felt when she found out where they were to meet Gilli. Merlin maybe trying to maintain some form of faith that he was their friend that he want to truly help them, but she was more realistic. If he was close to her hovel, then Nimueh maybe as well. At the very least she would not be to far away. She doubted Gilli would be able to get away from her for long.
The meeting place in question was a small clearing at the bottom of a small hill. Merlin was the first to make his way down the small hill and step into the clearing. He was almost instantly greeted with his name being called by a mouth set in a wide grin. Gilli stepped out into the clearing, looking just as he had down all those years ago when he had last seen him. It for a second made him question how he himself had changed, aged over the years. A brief glance behind him to Morgana made him see just how much she had changed.
When Gilli caught his first glimpse of her his smile grow even wider, despite how she looked. Walking quickly past Merlin he almost knocked him over. Once he reached Morgana on the edge of the clearing he wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. She even if she had seen it coming did not have the strength to pull herself free form his hold. Her hands were pinned to her side. Merlin saw her hands clench tightly at the sudden physical contact. It must have been a long time since she had had any real physical contact, especially twice in one day. Despite that unpleasant thought and the reason for it, he could not help but smile a little at the uncomfortable look on her face.
"Morgana." Gilli said in low voice into her ear. "It's good to see you."
It was hard to tell for where he was standing, but Merlin was almost sure that he saw Morgana give a small nod at this. Finally Gilli let her go, but he kept his hands on her shoulders. He clearly had more he wanted to say to her. For the moment though he wanted to get a prober, closer look at her. What he saw pained him.
"I had nothing to do with what happen to you….." She scoffed, of course he would say that. "You have no reason to believe me, I know. I only knew what happened once it was too late."
"Too late."
"I could not go against her."
"Nimueh." Merlin pressed.
Gilli let his hands drop to his sides as he took a step back from Morgana. His eyes widened with a look of panic in them. Very slowly he nodded his head.
"Are you scared of her." Merlin asked.
Gilli almost looked pained. His mouth was shut tightly, but he seemed to want to say something. Morgana had an idea what was going on and it did scare her. If Nimueh was able to do that, then she was more powerful than she had though her to be. This did not change her mind on what she was going to do, it just made her realise that her chance, while always small of surviving this upcoming battle was smaller than she thought. She accepted this, made her peace with it. That did not mean that she wanted to rush towards it faster than she had to.
Taking a step towards Gilli she reached out and took hold tightly with a strength that she did not look like she should possess, of his chin squeezing it till his mouth opened a little. In a very low voice that neither of the men could hear she said a few words. After that she took in a deep breath. Then a little angrily let his face go, pushing to away with more force than was needed. Which was no force at all.
"You can't speak of her can you."
It was not as slow as the last time he nodded, but it still took him sometime.
"What has she done." Merlin questioned.
"Cursed him." Both men's eyes widen a little. "That is the technical term. She has sealed his tongue from being able speaking of her. He can't tell us anything of importance." She sneered a little.
"Can you remove it." Gilli questioned, trying not to sound too hopefully.
Morgana shock her head. "I could, but she would know."
"You could-"
Seeing where Merlin was going, Morgana stopped him. "Only the person that places the curse can not be spoken off. I could only stop him form talking of myself. Which would help us." She looked at Merlin, then back to Gilli. "But not you."
Gilli nodded in understanding. It was a risk, Nimueh would know that he had spoken to Merlin and Morgana. She would have no use for him then.
"What can you tell us." Merlin stepped forward not wanting to lose this change to get any information no matter how small that they could get on what Nimueh was planning.
Gilli looked away from them, a clearly defeated look on his face. "I thought I could say more."
"She has grown in strength." Morgana stated.
She wanted it to be a question, for him to give them more information on how powerful she was. It of course was now just a statement. One that he could not agree with or disagree with. She wanted to turn and leave. If he could not tell them anything then what was the point of speaking to him. There was one thing that she had to do first. Reaching into the pocket of her long coat she pulled out a small object that she had only just remembered to take with her when she left her hovel. With an open hand she held her hand out towards Gilli.
His eyes opened wide in surprise at the sight of his Father's ring. It had been so long since he had seen it. He hadn't realised how much he had missed it till right now. Not because of any power it may give him, but because it had been his Father's. Slowly not fully knowing what he was going to do till he touched her hand he reached out to the ring. The second his hand touched hers he quickly wrapped it around her hand, closing it tightly around the ring.
"I want you to keep it."
"I know I'll need all the help I can get." She said. But still did not take her hand way from his, instead pushed it towards him. "But I don't care."
"Morgana-"
"It was your Father's."
That was as much as she was going to say on the matter. She knew what it meant to him and why she was not going to keep the ring. He understood this, but he also had a good reason as to why he wanted her to have it and it was not what she expected.
"And the bracelet that she now wears was your Mother's and given to you by your Sister."
Merlin found himself looking at Morgana's right wrist. He saw the scars from her time in the pit, but he did not see her healing bracelet, not that he really expected that he would. That piece of jewellery had become linked almost unconsciously with Morgana herself. He did not understand how he had not fully realised that she had not been wearing it. Looking up at her he saw Morgana's face flash for a second with anger, then steal itself back into a blank expression. The idea that something that meant so much to her was in the hands of someone that she loathed he knew would be eating at her.
"When you get that back, I'll take the ring back."
With some force he let her hand go and pushed it back towards her. Confusion now crept over her face. She did not understand why he was so determined for her to have the ring. "Why."
He was silent as he took a step back from her and Merlin. In all honesty he did not know himself. He shrugged. "I don't want you to die. I know what happened to you, what she did. What she is planning. I don't want her to hurt you."
It was clearly hard for him to say as much as he did, but he felt that he had to say it. Merlin was the first to react. Moving forward he placed a hand on his friends shoulder. "Thank you for trying."
"I wish I could do more."
"So do I." Morgana added.
If she could spare the energy it would take for her to remove the seal and replace it then she would. It was however not worth the effort in the long run. She did not try and deny to herself that she was being selfish it doing this. as well as not wanting to risk Gilli's life. Saving her energy meant that she had a better chance of killing Nimueh and maybe just surviving. Maybe there was a part of her that wanted to try and live beyond all of this after all. Not that she knew what she would be living for.
"I understand." Gilli replied. "We have all made out choices and have to live with the consequences."
None of them could argue with that. Merlin found himself feeling more disappointed than he had expected he would that they had not been given any real information that would help then in what was to come. He tried not to let it show too much, as he could see that Gilli was feeling guilty that he could not tell them more. He gave him a small smile and turned to leave. Gently he placed a hand on Morgana's back and guiled her out of the clearing.
"She is…going to make…..her move soon." Gilli all but screamed. Turning quickly run Merlin and Morgana moved back to stand by him. "It is something….."
His hand went up to hold his throat. It burnt and began to spread down into his chest. His breath became very hard to catch. Merlin was about to take a step closer towards him, but stopped as Gilli lifted his hand up to stop him. Asking for a minute to get some control so that he might be able to say more.
"Planned…long time…..ago…now acting…"
Not seeing how what they were being told was worth the pain it was cause to hear it, Merlin stopped him by sating his name firmly and placing a hand on his shoulder. "That is plenty." Gilli looked up at him with gratitude in his eyes and gave a small nod. "Thank you."
"How fairs Gwaine and the other knights." He asked through a broken voice, trying to change the subject. Take the attention away from himself.
Merlin and Morgana gave a quick glance to each other at this question. Not understanding why he was asking it. A memory of how things had been in Camelot when Gilli had been there made Merlin think he understood a little of his friends question. It also made his determination for Morgana to keep his Father's ring a little more understandable. Her turning quickly away from him after he asked the question also made him sure that he was at least somewhat on the right track.
"They are fine." He answered.
Gilli, now his voice had recovered a little more spoke in a stronger voice. "That is good to hear." He let out a deep breath and seemed to relax a little. "Camelot needs it's strong knights."
Merlin wanted to ask him more, but choose not to. Morgana having one eye on them and the other on the path that they had arrived form, let him know that she did not want to stay around any longer than she had too. Offering him good luck, Merlin began to walk away again. Morgana who was closer to the edge of the clearing walked ahead of him. Just as he was about to leave the clearing too, Merlin felt his arm being pulled.
"Look after her."
Gilli looked him right in the eye, his voice stern and clear once again. Merlin gave a small nod. That seemed to be enough for Gilli who let his arm go and then turned to leave himself. He didn't know who he felt more sorry for. Gilli caring for someone that did not seem to notice or Morgana that did not even notice that someone cared. One thing that he was sure of though, was that he did not envy either of them.
Much as they had done before they walked back the way they had come in silence. This arrangement was one that suited Morgana very well, but Merlin was starting to think over what was to come. Overthink it all, he needed something to take his mind off his racing thoughts. Something that he could focus on. Being that they were going to have to find a way to trust or at least work together, getting a better idea of what Morgana was thinking seemed like a good think to focus on.
"Why do you think he wanted to know about Gwaine and the…"
"I really don't care."
He expected that. "It just seems strange."
Walking a little way ahead of him, she let out a sigh and stopped turning to face him. "It doesn't matter…..he wanted to know, that Camelot was strong enough to face what she has planned ….or he wanted to know so that he could tell her." She turned away from him and began to walk on again.
"Do you really think he would do that."
He had now moved to walk by her side. He watched her as she thought over her answer. "No." She finally answered, but added. "That does not mean that she couldn't get it form him if she wanted too."
They feel back into a silence. To Merlin's surprise it was Morgana that spoke next breaking the silence. "I'm sorry." Merlin looked at her in confusion. "I blamed you for abandoning Aithusa. When you didn't have a choice." He still looked confused. "Kilgharrah broke the link between you and Aithusa."
"why."
Morgana reluctantly answered. "So i did not brake. It's my fault-"
"No." HE firmly stated as he stepped towards her, taking hold of her shoulders, so she had to face him. "None of that was your fault."
She couldn't agree with him, but did not want to argue the point either. So she changed the subject. "What are you going to say when you get back."
It was now his turn to take a little time to think of an answer. "Nothing…...what could I tell them." He said defeatedly as he left his arms fall to his sides.
"The truth."
If her tone had not been as light he would have been sure that she was trying to bait him into starting a fight or at the very least just insulting him. It however was said in a light tone, like she was gently teasing him. A faint laugh escaped his mouth. "Wouldn't that be nice."
"I don't know. The truth can be over rated." Surprisingly all he could do in reply was nod his head.
He was about to speak when he heard something in the distance. It was faint, but he was sure that he had heard. Glancing towards Morgana he realised that he had not been the only one to hear it. Her hand went automatically for the dagger she wore on her belt. Not having any real physical weapon, Merlin readied himself to use his magic. For the next few seconds they did not hear anything, but they could still feel that someone was out there, watching them. It was hard to tell, but Merlin was sure that he saw a figure a few feet ahead of them moving through the trees.
"Go on…..I'll hold them off."
Morgana now stopped scanning the area and turned to face Merlin. "We don't know how many of them there are."
"I brought you here…..go."
This conversation felt oddly familiar to them. Though neither would let themselves think about it. A little reluctantly she gave the smallest nod and ran off. He watched her go till he lost sight of her between the trees. When he could no longer see her he looked back to the place where he was sure he had seen someone. Only a few seconds later and he was proven correct, as three man began to make their way towards him. None of them had weapons that he could see, he doubted that they would need any. He was very sure he knew who had sent them and what they had been ordered to do. Most likely they believed that they had the upper hand, as there were three of them and only one of him. That confidence he hoped to use against them.
Quickly and with as much force as he could muster he lifted his right arm up and sent out a stunning spell that knocked the three men back a good few feet. Feeling a little relieved, though still on alert, he let out a deep breath. He was only able to enjoy some relief for a few seconds, before pain thought through his left shoulder. Looking down he saw an arrow sticking out. It seemed that there was four men not three. Not wanting to stay around and meet this other man, he focused his energy into trying something that he had not really tried before. The wind picked up a little and in a second he was gone.
He reappeared about half a mile down the track that he had been walking on. Seeing a fallen log by the nearby small stream he slowly moved to sit on it. Bracing himself he took hold of the arrow and snapped it in half. Then through away half the shaft and the fletching he looked more closely at the wound. Only the head of the arrow had broken the skin that was good. There was less chance of damage to any nerves and tendons. It was still going to be painful, very painful to get out. Looking around him he hoped that he would see her, hoped that she would continue down the path that they had taken before. She had been running, she should be here soon.
The seconds and minutes ticked by, the pain in his shoulder grew worse. He took in deep breaths trying to take his mind off of the pain, but it did little good. If Morgana did not turn up soon he would have to try and remove it on his own. He was not a natural at healing magic, he could do the basics, but she would be better at healing it. He clenched his eyes shut for a seconds as a wave of pain at his attempt to roll his shoulder washed over him. As the pain dulled a little, he opened his eyes. The sight that he saw was one of the best he had seen in along time.
Once she saw Merlin, sitting on the log a pained look on his face and half an arrow sticking out of his shoulder, all she could do was roll her eyes and make her way towards him. When she was standing in-front of him she smirked and shook her head.
"Can't leave you alone for five minutes."
"Like you are much better. You took your time"
He had noticed that she had not been running when he saw her. Even in her weakened health, she would have been able to keep up the steady speed she was running at for longer than she had. This meant that she most likely had hurt her leg in some way. He didn't get a chance to ask about it as she moved to sit next to him. Hitting his hands away so that she could get a better look at the wound. It was not bad, but as he knew it would he painful to remove it. That fact did give her a small sense of satisfaction. Without any warning she slightly twisted the arrow, then pulled it out.
Surprisingly he was able to hold back the yell of pain that she could see want to leap from his lips. With a sharp tug she pulled his blue neckerchief. Dipping it into the stream she then brought it up to the wound. He kept his eyes trained on her as she cleaned the wound.
"What are you doing."
"Haven't you ever seen Gaius clean a wound before."
"Okay, I know what you're doing…..what I don't know is why."
She briefly looked towards him. "It will get infected."
"You can heal-"
"I don't want to waste my energy on such a small matter."
He let out a small laugh. Before he could say anything she placed the damp neckerchief in his hands and moved to stand up. "We should not stay here for long."
He nodded and stood up too. "I knocked them back as much as I could. Though I don't know how long they will stay knocked out."
Before he had a chance to turn to look at her, she was gone. He laughed again. It seemed that she did have enough energy to waste in transporting herself away. He didn't blame her really. When it had counted she had been there. She came with him to see Gilli, did not run away right away when he offered to hold them back, did not leave him injured. It was small things, but they did count towards something he hoped. He could trust her to face Nimueh and her plan united. He didn't have to do it alone and neither did she. Together he believed that they could face whatever Nimueh had planned. He had to hold onto that. He was tired, in his mind body and soul, but he had to keep going. Feeling that he was not alone made it easier to keep going.
As always thank you so much for taking the time to read the story. I hope that you liked the newest chapter and are interesting in see where things go from here. I feel that I should say that if you don't remember as it was a long time ago Gilli was in the story back in part one from chapter 14 to 17. If he doesn't make sense in the story, then you can if you want to go back and read his part. As I said before I plan of up-dating more often, especially because I am so close to the end of this part of the story. All feedback and in-put are very welcome and I hope to hear from you.