Title: Confrontations
Description: Mordred wants to know why Emrys had been acting so cold towards him. So, he went to his old druid camp to see what they might know on the matter. This fic is his confrontation with Merlin (and later Arthur) after learning about his role in the prophecies of the Once and Future King.
Word Count: 1,886
Part: 1/1

Yes, you're going to see a lot of Mordred fics in this book because he's my favorite character and not many people like him very much (that I've seen). I'm mostly writing things I don't see a fic for or there aren't enough of (in my opinion) lol.

Mordred had been gone for a couple days. He'd asked Arthur for a little time off to do... something, but he didn't tell anyone where he went. Then suddenly, he was back. He was back, and he was stalking over to Merlin, angrily. The man was standing on the training field, watching while Arthur trained his knights.

"You knew!" Mordred yelled at him, causing him to turn around, "The whole time!"

"Mordred-"

"And you never saw it fit to tell me!"

"Tell you what?"

Merlin was confused, and angry that Mordred was yelling at him.

"About the prophecy!"

Merlin paused.

Oh.

"Well, how was I supposed to tell you?!" he yelled at the younger man.

"That's not my problem! You needed to figure that out! I had a right to know, Merlin!"

There was a small pause, the commotion had caught the attention of the knights who had been training.

"Who told you," Merlin asked, phrasing it more like a demand.

"Does it matter? I know now."

"Who," he repeated, crossing his arms.

"I went to the elders of my old camp. I asked them what I did to deserve your mistrust. They were the ones that told me."

Another pause.

"So, now you know. What are you going to do about it."

Mordred answered, "What do you want me to do? Stay? Leave? You tell me."

"You're a grown man Mordred. You don't need me to make your decisions for you."

"Maybe not, but you're still Emrys. If you tell me to leave, I'll go. If you want to keep an eye on me, I'll stay."

"Honestly Mordred, I don't know what to do, okay? When you were gone, I worried about what you were doing. Now that you're here, I worry about Arthur doing something that will set the prophecy in motion."

"Well, I want more than anything to stay, but I don't see how I can! Not anymore."

"What's going on over here?" Arthur asked, walking over to join the conversation, having heard enough.

"Nothing," the two said almost simultaneously.

"It doesn't sound like nothing. Why would one of my best knights not be able to stay?"

"Arthur, it's nothing you need to worry about, really."

"Are you sure? Cause I'm pretty sure I heard my name somewhere in this conversation and last time I checked, I'm still the king."

"Arthur-"

"No, Merlin. I don't want any half-truths or excuses. I want to know exactly what's going on. Right now."

Merlin sighed, not knowing a way to get out of this. He was about to ask Arthur to at least take the conversation somewhere more private, when Mordred spoke up.

"I would like to resign," he said.

Arthur looked like he'd been caught off guard.

"What?"

"I need to leave Camelot. Forever."

"Why? Are you unhappy here?"

"No, I am happy. Very happy. But I can't stay here anymore. I need to go."

"Arthur, let's take this inside," Merlin suggested before Arthur could reply to Mordred's statement.

He paused for a moment before nodding, "Alright."

He turned to the knights, who had continued on with their training.

"Leon! You're in charge for the rest of training."

There was a quick, "Yes sire" before Arthur, Merlin, and Mordred headed to Arthur's chambers.

"So," Arthur started, once his door was shut, "Why does Mordred have to leave? What was that whole conversation about? What is going on?"

"It's complicated, Arthur. It's complicated and you aren't going to be happy with it. Any of it. You might just decide that both of us need to be banished, or even-"

Merlin didn't want to finish that sentence. He didn't want to speak it. He couldn't imagine Arthur giving the order. The pyre being lit, or the ax coming down on his neck. Well, he could, and that was the worst part of it all.

Do you really think I would do it? Mordred spoke into Merlin's head.

I don't know what to think.

"Are either of you going to tell me?"

There was a brief pause.

"You really aren't going to like what I have to say. Sometimes, ignorance is for the better."

"No. I'm done being ignorant. You either tell me what's going on, or I'm going to find out myself."

Merlin sighed, defeated.

"Very well."

Mordred looked at Merlin.

Do you want me to? Or...

No. I will do it.

Merlin hesitated, before speaking out loud again.

"You should go, Mordred," he gestured to the door, "Leave Camelot while you still can. At least for a little while."

Arthur was about to protest, but Mordred did first.

"No. Whatever Arthur decides to do with you, he'll have to do to me too."

"Mordred. The prophecy..."

"Arthur isn't like it. I know he isn't going like it. But, he won't condemn a man for something he hasn't yet done."

Mordred paused before speaking again, "Something he won't do."

"Okay. Arthur-"

Merlin stopped.

"Sorry. I'm not really sure how to start. I've imagined you finding out so many times. I just... never thought it would be like this. Me, telling you willingly, while I'm still illegal."

Arthur scoffed, rolling his eyes, "You aren't illegal Merlin."

Merlin raised an eyebrow.

"Not even if I was born with magic?"

The whole room froze.

"Don't be ridiculous Merlin. People aren't born with magic, and you certainly don't-"

He was cut off by Merlin's eyes flashing gold and a blue butterfly flying from his hand. No spell needed. Mordred looked at the man in amazement.

"I knew you were- But to create life... And without a spell too..."

Arthur looked as if his whole world had been turned upside down, and shaken a couple times, just for good measure.

"You- You're a sorcerer. You have magic."

"I was born with my magic. I didn't have a choice."

"You came to Camelot. That was a choice."

"My magic was growing and my mother didn't know what to do. The people in Ealdor were bound to find out, and I didn't fancy being Cenred's slave. Better to be dead."

"But why, Camelot of all places. There are plenty of kingdoms that accept magic."

"Gaius. He's my mother's brother. He could've helped me control it. Not that he did much. Really, all he did was give me a basic spell book and tell me not to use magic."

"Gaius..."

"No! Wait, he's innocent! He-"

"Calm down, Merlin. I'm not going to hurt him."

Arthur turned to Mordred.

"And you? You have magic too?"

Mordred nodded and looked Arthur confidently in the eyes. If Emrys was willing to reveal himself, he could do it too.

"Yes, sire. I too, was born with it. Although, my magic developed later, just before my seventh summer."

Nobody spoke for a good minute while Arthur was thinking these things over.

"I didn't even know that it was possible. To be born with magic."

"That wasn't your fault. Uther taught you lies," Merlin assured him.

"Still, I've killed innocents. So many innocents that are dead, because of me."

"You were doing what you thought to be right. You still saved me, as a child."

Arthur looked at Mordred.

"I did?"

Mordred looked confused for a moment, "Yes. Do you not remember?"

Arthur thought for a moment before a look of realization crossed his features.

"Mordred. You-"

Arthur was stunned. He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it sooner.

"You're the druid boy!"

Mordred flushed, "I'm a little surprised you didn't remember."

"So, you were both born with magic. But, that still doesn't explain what happened on the training field today."

Merlin looked about ready to explain, but Mordred said, "I can tell him."

Merlin only nodded and so Mordred continued.

"As you know, Merlin's never cared much for me."

Arthur nodded.

"He- I recently learned why. A prophecy. One saying that-" Mordred paused to take one shuddering breath, "One saying that I'm destined to kill the Once and Future King. You."

Arthur looked the most surprised he had all day.

"But I don't plan to! I don't want to. You're my king; my friend. I don't know what is supposed to happen to cause this but, now that I know, I will fight against it. It doesn't have to come to pass."

Arthur turned to Merlin, looking for his opinion on the matter.

"I've been told by several... people, that I should kill "the druid boy" and that he's destined to kill you and ruin everything I, we, have been working towards. But, I didn't see how I could kill someone for something they haven't even done, and might not ever do. So I just watched. Now, I know that that wasn't the right thing to do either. I needed to be there for him, as a friend. Like I didn't do with Morgana."

"With Morgana? Because of her- Oh. How long did Morgana have magic? I guess... I guess I always thought she'd turned before she learned it."

"She's had it her whole life, but they first showed up as her dreams. They were visions of the future. She's a seer. I was being told that she was destined to ally with Mordred in evil, so I didn't tell her about my magic. The most I did was send her to a druid camp."

Both Arthur and Mordred looked startled.

"So... That's why I felt a connection with her? Because of destiny?"

"Yes, but-" he paused, "Screw destiny. I'm done playing into her cold, selfish hands."

"Why did Mordred call me the Once and Future King?"

Merlin explained that he's destined to unite Albion and return magic to the land. And that Emrys is supposed to be by his side, helping him. The two are like brothers.

"You. You're this, Emrys?"

Merlin nodded.

"And- You've only stuck around this long because, what, you think I'll return magic to the land?"

"No! I mean, at first, maybe. But as I got to know you, you became a little less of a prat and more like the king you're destined to be. I can see the goodness in you. Even if you never return magic to the land, even if you never unite Albion, you're still a fair and just king."

Arthur looked surprised (again).

"You have such faith in me, and yet, magic is still against the law. Your people aren't free."

"Yes, but we aren't being hunted. You only put to death sorcerers who have been using their magic for evil. That is how it should be. Yes, magic is against the law, but you're a much better king than Uther. Never once in your reign was a witch hunter invited within the borders."

"That's because of what happened the last time a witch hunter was here."

"What happened last time?" Mordred asked.

"He was revealed as a fraud," Merlin explained.

"And he was a sorcerer himself," Arthur added.

"Well..." Merlin hesitated, "That's not exactly true."

Arthur turned to look at him, his mouth dropped in shock.

"The frog... That was you, wasn't it?"

Merlin managed to look at least a little ashamed.

"Guilty."

Arthur rolled his eyes and laughed, and they all knew that everything was going to be okay.

The End
Yes, I know It's a little bit of a
cliche ending, but just roll with it, lmao.