Artur stood outside of the physician chambers, he hesitated before he entered. He could hear Gaius shuffling around by not much else. He knocked faintly and then entered. Gaius turned around and gave a small bow.

"Sire." Arthur gave him a quick nod and looked around the room. "I moved him into his bed." Gaius motioned towards the small room. "He woke for a little, but he is still very weak. He needs to eat something, but I can't get him to stay awake long enough." Arthur didn't move and just stared at the closed door that led to Merlin's room. "Is there something else sire?" Arthur turned to Gaius.

"You have some knowledge of magic?" The question caught Gaius off guard. "You may speak freely." Gaius nodded and motioned for Arthur to take a seat. Once they were both sitting Gaius spoke.

"Yes, I was quite knowledgeable before the purge. Once Uther banned the use of magic, I stopped studying and left it in the past."

"Would you say all magic is evil?" Gaius hesitated again. "Nothing you say will be held against you Gaius."

"Then no, there is a lot of good that magic can bring. But there is also a lot of evil. But that is why there needs to be good people who practice. The good does outweigh the bad."

"Do you think my father was wrong to have magic banned from the kingdom?"

"That is not for me to say Sire. My opinion does not matter."

"It matters to me." Gaius looked up and met the serious look of his king.

"Then yes, I did not agree with it when he did it. But he was my King. I have seen the good that magic could do, and all Uther could see was the bad." Arthur leaned back in his chair and sighed. "May I ask why the sudden interest?" Arthur hesitated but decided that Gaius could be trusted.

"I saw someone practice magic, but they were protecting another, and I am not sure what to do with this information. Believing that magic can be good goes against everything I was taught."

"It seems to me that you have already decided what you're going to do about it, otherwise you would not be here talking to me."

"Thank you, Gaius." Arthur stood, "I'm going to check on Merlin." Gaius nodded and turned back to his potions that he was working on.

Arthur slowly pushed open the door and entered the little room. The room was tidy for once. Arthur pulled a chair from the corner of the room and next to Merlin's bed. Although his bed was small, Merlin still looked small. His skin was pale, but his chest rose and fell steadily. Arthur reached over and grabbed the books that Merlin had on his bedside table. They were all about medicine. He didn't know that Merlin was interested in that kind of stuff, but it made sense. He did live with the court physician, who was growing old and would eventually need to be replaced. Arthur grinned; Merlin would be a great physician. Arthur was hard on him, but Merlin was smart and brave, he had a bright future ahead of him. Merlin began to stir and Arthur set the books back onto the bedside table. Merlin's eyes opened and for a second Arthur swore that they glowed gold. Merlin looked around the room and met Arthur's eyes.

"Arthur?"

"Well, hello there, Sleeping Beauty. Gaius says you need to eat." Merlin went to sit up but winced and groaned in pain. Arthur reached out a hand and helped Merlin sit slowly.

"Thank you." Merlin kept his eyes low and pulled his blanket back onto his lap.

"Tell me again what happened in the woods." Merlin looked at Arthur confused.

"I already told you. The beast attacked, you killed it, and fell and hit your head on the rocks. Did you let Gaius check your head? If you're having memory problems, then your head injury could be more serious." Merlin gave Arthur a concerned looked.

"My head is fine. I'm just having trouble lining up the facts. If I slayed the beast, then why was my sword still sheathed and clean? How did the beast do so much damage to you and none to me?" Merlin sat speechless trying to find a way to explain. "I'll tell you what really happened." Merlin's eyes flickered to Arthur's. He could see the fear building in Merlin's eyes, but he pressed on. "The beast came out of nowhere and spooked the horses. I was thrown and knocked unconscious. Then you fought against the beast and killed it." Merlin sat and stared at Arthur his face paling more. "And you did it with magic." Merlin stood abruptly, wincing in pain and back against the far wall as far away from Arthur as he could. Tears threatened to spill from his eyes as he thought about the punishment he was about to receive. Arthur stood, but Merlin just pushed himself further against the wall.

"I'm sorry Arthur." Tears flowed from Merlin's eyes. "It was the only way I knew how to protect you. The beast would have killed us both." Merlin kept his eyes on the floor.

"Merlin," Arthur waited for Merlin to look at him. "Merlin!" Merlin brought his eyes from the floor and met Arthur's. He expected to see anger, but instead he found concern. "It's alright Merlin. I've had plenty of time to think about this, and it's ok." Merlin took a small step forward and reached a hand out to the wall for support. "It all makes sense now. You've always been by my side, protecting me. You are the reason I am still alive today." Merlin looked at Arthur confused. He had wondered what Arthur's reaction would be, but he had not expected this.

Merlin swayed; all his energy zapped from the sudden rise in adrenaline. Arthur walked over slowly and helped guide him into bed. Merlin never took his eyes off Arthur. Preparing himself for Arthur to suddenly snap and say that it wasn't alright, and Merlin was to be punished.

"I'm going to get Gaius." Merlin nodded, still in shock."