AN: I don't even have an excuse for not updating. I'm just a bad person.

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin in any way, shape, or form! I do own Elizabeth Malinor and any other characters I make up!

Enjoy!

I didn't know where to go. I didn't want to go to my room, I didn't even feel safe there. So I ended up wandering the castle, and found myself at Gaius's chambers. I gently opened the door, and Merlin was standing by the window.

We both took a few seconds to look at each other, and then we were running to each other. We collided, and I held him tightly as my tears fell. "Merlin, I am so sorry we couldn't do anything!"

"Don't be, because we are going to do something," Merlin said firmly. "It's us, remember?"

"What are we going to do? Gaius has already confessed," I said, confused.

"Gaius was falsely accused," Merlin stated. "Aredian planted that amulet in here."

"But why-" I started, but my question was cut off as the door opened, and Gwen stepped inside. "Merlin? Elizabeth?" We both turned our attention to her. "He won't let go! He won't stop!"

"What happened?" Merlin asked.

"The Witchfinder is questioning Morgana again," Gwen informed us.

"Wait, again?" I repeated. "He's questioned her before?"

She nodded. "She was so shaken up afterwords. I'm worried, she's close to breaking point."

"That's what he does," Merlin stated as he begun to pace. "He breaks you down, and in the end, you confess whether you're guilty or not."

"What do you mean?" Gwen asked.

"Aredian planted the amulet," I told her. "He set Gaius up."

"But why would he do such a thing?" Gwen asked, which was exactly my question from before.

"Aredian is paid to catch sorcerers," Merlin thought aloud as he paced again. "Maybe he doesn't care whether someone is guilty or not. Maybe he gets confessions by lying, by planting evidence. As long as he gets a confession he gets his money."

"Even if this is true, what can we do without proof?" Gwen asked, which was a very good point actually.

Merlin thought for a second before he said, "Get some." And without another word, he ran out the door.

I sighed, and lifted up my skirt so that I could run after him. Before I could, Gwen's voice stopped me.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

I looked back at Gwen. "If I don't go after the idiot to make sure that he doesn't end up in trouble, then who will?"

And with that, I sped off after Merlin.

I ended up following him into Aredian's chambers, and the poor boy nearly jumped out of his skin when I opened the door. "Sorry, it's just me," I whispered as quietly as I could as I shut the door behind me. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for proof that Aredian planted evidence on Gaius," He answered. He pointed at the door. "You stand watch."

I rolled my eyes, but turned around and stared at the door as he began to rummage through Aredian's belongings.

After a few minutes, he ran over to me. "I think I found something," He said, holding his hand out for me to see.

I peered into his hand to see several orange, pinkish flower petals. I opened my mouth to ask what they were, when the sound of a distant door opening alerted us to someone coming.

"Quick, under the bed!" Merlin whispered, and we ran over to where Aredian's bed was. It was a tight fit and we were pressed up against each other, but we managed to fit under as the door opened and Aredian stepped in.

He walked over to his closet where Merlin was looking, and I had to restrain myself and not smack him upside the head for leaving it open like that. Then, Aredian went over to the curtain and pulled it aside, thinking that someone was there. No one was, and my heart started beating widely as Aredian walked over to his bed. I pressed myself closer to Merlin. Eventually, Aredian walked over to the door and left.

Merlin and I both let out long sighs of relief, but I smacked Merlin upside the head as soon as we knew we were safe.

"Ow! What was that for?" He asked as he rubbed his head.

"For being an idiot and leaving the door open!" I exclaimed. "Honestly, how are you still alive?"

We rushed back to his chambers and immediately got to work. Merlin didn't know what the flower was, so he, Gwen, and I pulled out every plant based book that Gaius owned and looked through it.

After a few hours, Gwen threw her book down in frustration. "This is hopeless!"

"Keep looking!" Merlin persuaded.

"We don't even know if this flower means anything," She pointed out.

"And we're not going to unless we keep looking," I told her, flipping through my fifth book.

"Lizzie's right," Merlin piped up. "It's all we've got." A few minutes later, Merlin's head shot up. "Here!" He said, pointing at his book. Gwen and I ran over to Merlin to look at the book. "Belladonna."

"'For the alleviation of ulcers, allergies, muscular inflammation...'" Gwen read, but she sighed. "This is hopeless, Merlin."

"Wait, listen!" He insisted. "'Under some conditions, the flower's tincture produces hallucinations."

"So?" Gwen asked.

Merlin laughed. "Aredian's witnesses. It wasn't magic they were seeing..."

"It was visions!" I finished excitedly, grabbing Merlin's hand.

"It makes sense if he's faking the evidence," Gwen allowed. "But how do we prove it?"

"He's too clever to have given them the tincture directly," Merlin thought aloud. "The witnesses, they must've gotten it from someone else."

"Like who?" I asked.

"They could've been getting it from anyone," Gwen pointed out.

"Is there anything at all that these people had in common?" Merlin asked us.

"They were all women," Gwen offered.

"But that doesn't tell us anything," Merlin argued.

Wait a second...yes it did!

"Make up!" I exclaimed, and Gwen and Merlin looked at me like I was crazy.

I shook my head. "Only women would buy things that made them look or smell beautiful." I grabbed my cloak off of my chair. "Come on, follow me!"

We made it to the apothecary, and I practically forced myself inside. "Do you sell a tincture of Belladonna?" I asked as the owner led us in.

"What's this all about?" He asked as he set his candle holder down.

"Please, it's important," Gwen said.

"Well, I think I've got it somewhere, but what you'd be wanting with eye drops in the middle of the night, I really don't want to know," He said as he walked further into his shop.

Merlin, Gwen, and I all looked at each other. "Eye drops," I said, and grabbed the bottle right out of his hand to show my friends.

"Yes, women use them to make their eyes more beautiful," The Apothecary explained.

Times like this I missed eyeliner.

"Where did you get it?" Merlin asked.

"From my usual suppliers," He answered.

"Sure you didn't get it from someone else?" Merlin reiterated.

"Of course I'm sure," He stated. "If it's all the same to you, I'd like to get some sleep."

He moved to walk past Merlin, but Merlin didn't let him. "It was Aredian who gave you the Belladonna, wasn't it?"

The Apothecary froze for two seconds, before deciding to lie. "I don't know what you're talking about," He dismissed, and moved to leave again.

I grabbed him by the arm before he could leave. "Gaius is going to be executed tomorrow. You do realize that, right?"

"That has nothing to do with me," He insisted.

"It has everything to do with you!" Merlin argued. "Aredian's witnesses saw visions. Visions produced by the Belladonna in these eye drops. If we can prove this, we have a chance of saving Gaius," Merlin pleaded.

The Apothecary took a good long look at the desperate looks on our faces, before sighing. "He...forced me to sell it. He said he'd kill me if I said anything to anyone."

"It was him?" Gwen asked to confirm, looking at Merlin and I. "It was Aredian?"

"Yes, it was him," He confirmed.

We all thanked him and bolted out of the house. We had a court physician to save.

"We've got everything we need," Merlin said as he grabbed the book, the eye drops, and the Belladonna from the table back at the house.

"Is it enough?" Gwen asked.

"We've got a witness as well, it's enough," Merlin insisted.

"It's still our word against Aredian's," Gwen pointed out.

"But I am part of that word," I said. "Uther will believe me over Aredian any day."

"But what if it's not enough?" Gwen asked. "Uther may trust you Lizzie but this is Uther and magic. We've only got one chance at this. We've got to give Uther something that he cannot deny. Something not even Aredian can talk his way out of."

Merlin thought for a second before leaving his book on the table. "I'll be as quick as I can!" He called after his shoulder as he ran out of the room.

"Merlin!" I called and was about to go after him when Gwen grabbed my arm. I turned my head to look at her.

"I think he's got this one," She said.

Merlin was gone for a really long time, and I didn't know why. He had left when the sun was down, and by the time he had come back it was up and Gaius had been forced out of his cell for the execution.

"It's done!" He said as he ran inside. "Everything's in place.

"But it's too late! Gaius has already left the dungeons!" Gwen said.

"Then we'll have to delay the execution!" Merlin decided.

"How on earth are we going to do that?" I asked.

"Arthur!" Merlin exclaimed. "I'll speak to Arthur."

"No!" Gwen said, putting her hand up. "Leave Arthur to me."

With that, we all ran out of the chambers to try and save our friend.

We made it to the town square, where the execution was to take place. The whole town was surrounding the pyre, where Aredian was leading Gaius up to it. My heart nearly stopped and my legs did stop, but Merlin grabbed my hand and forced me to keep running.

We came to a stop as Gwen got to Arthur, and I could see her moving her lips but couldn't hear what she was saying. By the look on her face she was trying really hard to convince Arthur. I squeezed Merlin's hand as hard as I could as I watched Aredian light a torch so that he could set Gaius on fire.

"Come on, Arthur," I whispered to myself.

Aredian was about to set the torch on the ground when Arthur held his hand out. "Wait!" He called, which stopped Aredian.

Ten minutes later, we were all gathered in the Great Hall, where Merlin was going to present the evidence to Uther.

From my position behind Uther, I gave Merlin an encouraging smile as he took a deep breath. "Sire, the witnesses saw nothing but hallucinations induced by the Belladonna in these eye drops," Merlin said, handing the bottle over to Uther.

"And you bought this Belladonna from this man?" Uther asked the witnesses, who all nodded.

"Where did you get it from?" Uther asked the Apothecary.

He was silent for a moment until Uther said, "Don't be afraid, no harm will come to you here."

Still, he hesitated before he said, "The Witchfinder. He gave them to me."

Immediately whispers flooded the hall, and I sighed in relief at Uther knowing the truth.

"Did he tell you what it was for?" Uther went on.

"No. Only that if I didn't sell it he'd have me burned at the stake," He told Uther.

"How do you answer to these accusations?" Uther asked Aredian.

"They are absurd," Aredian dismissed. "The boy is clearly concocted these lies in the hopes of saving his master."

"Then you won't mind if we search your chamber, will you?" Merlin asked him, the same words Aredian said to Merlin.

"Silence!" Uther boomed. "You have no authority here!"

"Father," Good ol' Arthur stepped in. "Let's settle this once and for all." He walked over to Merlin, sharing a secret look with Gwen that I did notice, thank you very much. "If what Merlin says is wrong, then he must bear the consequences. But if there is some truth to what he says...?"

Uther looked over at Aredian, who answered, "I have nothing to hide."

Next thing I knew, the guards were searching through Aredian's chambers like crazy. Opening cupboards, knocking over stuff, sifting through papers.

"You're wasting your time," Aredian deadpanned.

"The cupboard over there," Arthur said, completely ignoring Aredian and pointing over at the cupboard the guard had missed.

The guard went over, and opened it. As soon as he did, he had to step back because these gold amulets that looked identical to the one found in Gaius's chambers came tumbling out. Underneath the first shelf were vials and vials of the Belladonna potion.

He was caught.

"These things don't belong to me!" Aredian protested, walking over to the cupboard. He kicked at the amulets on the ground. "This is a trick!" He pointed at Merlin. "That boy plotted against me!" He faltered at the last couple of words, nearly falling over. He grabbed on to the chair that was in front of him. Before he could start talking again, he began coughing. It became so bad that I thought he was going to throw up, but instead, he was coughing something up. It fell out of his mouth, and I nearly threw up when I recognized it to be a toad.

"Sorcerer!" Uther declared as he, Arthur, and some of the guards drew their swords.

Thinking quickly, Aredian grabbed the small dagger from the table next to him and I scoffed. What the hell was he going to do with a small-

The next thing I knew, Aredian grabbed my arm and dragged me to his chest. I was so surprised that I didn't even think to fight as he turned me around so that my back was against his chest. He put the dagger to my throat.

Oh. That was what he was going to do with a small dagger.

"Aredian, think carefully about what you're doing," Uther warned. "You will never escape from Camelot alive."

I cringed as I felt the dagger push closer into my throat. I didn't dare try to move in case I got my throat cut.

"I will if you value the life of a Knight's daughter, hmm?" Aredian said as he pulled us closer to the window.

Suddenly the handle of the dagger that Aredian was holding heated up, and he screamed in pain as he dropped the dagger, and let me go.

Oh, he wasn't getting away with that.

Before anyone could stop me, I turned around and punched Aredian right in the face.

"OW!" I groaned, shaking my hand to get rid of the pain. Morgana grabbed my arm and pulled me away from Aredian.

Aredian stumbled, and tripped backward over a box. Before anyone could catch him, he fell right through the window. The glass shattered as he fell, his screams filling the air as he fell. They abruptly stopped as he hit the ground.

I winced. Okay, Aredian was scum, but death of falling out a window was bad.

TBC...

Kind of a shitty chapter, only because it was kind of a shitty episode.

BUT THE NEXT CHAPTER IS GOING TO BE SOOOOOO GOOD LIKE Y'ALL DON'T EVEN KNOW.

REVIEW! FOLLOW! FAVOURITE! THANKS! STAY TUNED!

THE ADVENTURES OF ELIZABETH MALINOR CONTINUE...

A masked figure managed to disarm one of the guards of the castle.

"My name is Morgause," She revealed to King Uther in the Great Hall.

"You think that Morgause knows the true circumstances of Arthur's birth?" Gaius asked Uther.

"I fear that more than anything," Uther revealed.

Arthur and Morgause fight.

"I want to hear what she has to say about my mother!" Arthur said to his father.

"Maybe we should turn back," Merlin suggested. "The woods could be filled with Odin's men."

Elizabeth couldn't help herself as she overheard Gaius and Uther privately talk. She had passed by Uther's chambers when she heard Uther say her name to Gaius.

She leaned her head against the door, desperately trying to pick up the conversation.

"Elizabeth can never know the truth," Uther said to Gaius, and her eyes widened in surprised as she tried to listen for more.

"You are nothing but a hypocrite! And a liar!" Arthur screamed at his father, throwing his sword in his direction. His hit was blocked with Uther's sword as he defended himself.

"They're going to kill each other!" Merlin told the guard who held him against the wall.

Arthur shoved Uther on to his throne, holding the tip of the sword over Uther's chest.

WHAT CAN ELIZABETH NEVER KNOW?