Chapter 21 – Confession

As they stood beside the heavily sleeping but freshly healed Arthur, Merlin's confusion made Willow angry. She hated Granny Tock for causing them pain. Rolling her eyes, Willow said, "Merlin just cast me aside already and be done. This is making no sense. What is it you want?"

He looked back at her with pain in his eyes. "Willow, why would you tell me to cast you aside? I want to be with you if you'll have me. But I must stay with Arthur for now." He waved his hand at the sleeping prince, then crossed the room, walking away from him. At the far side of the room, he turned to face her. "It's my destiny to help him. I had hoped you'd wait for me. But I understand if you don't want that. It's hard caring so deeply for someone who you can't be near–"

Willow felt her heart breaking. "Of course you're casting me aside. The curse made you care for me, then cast me aside."

He turned away. "No, it's you who wants to cast me aside. And I underst–"

"No! I don't want to cast you aside! That's the last thing I want." She started to cry.

He turned back to her. "Then why are you saying I won't visit you?"

She started to sob as everything came out in a rush. "Because I'm cursed. 'Powerful men will always fall for my beauty, but soon they will tire of me and cast me aside, breaking my heart as I broke Joel's.' That's why Arthur and Uther and you and Gauis have all fallen for me. Only I didn't really break Joel's heart, he just told his granny I had and now you don't really love me and you're casting me aside like the curse says."

Merlin's eyes grew large. "No, Willow." He paused. "I… I'm not a powerful ma–I didn't fall in love with you because of some curse." He paused again.

Willow looked away. Her voice squeaked as she asked, "How do you know?" She glanced back at him.

Merlin looked down. "Casting you aside is the last thing I want too." He strode across the room back to her but stopped a few feet before he reached her. "I love you, Willow." He looked up into her eyes. "I want to be with you." He looked away. "But my destiny and Arthur's are intertwined. I need to be with Arthur. And for now where Arthur is, so is Uther."

Willow swallowed the huge lump in her throat. "And so the curse makes you cast me aside."

Pain crossed his face. He shook his head. "Willow, stop saying that." He closed the distance to grab her shoulders. "I'm not." He let go and turned away. "I'm asking you to wait for me here in Crabtree. I realize that will be extremely difficult. I understand if you don't want that."

She shook her head. "But what about the curse?"

Merlin turned back and looked her in the eyes. "I don't love you because of some curse."

Willow shook her head again. Why was he being so dense? "But how do you know? I'll never know if the curse made you love me. You'll never know."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Willow, I'm not casting you aside. If I have to break a stupid curse to prove that to you, then I will."

Willow shook her head and started to pace. "Granny Tock said the curse is unbreakable."

Merlin frowned. "That's ridiculous. No curse is unbreakable. If this Granny Tock dies the curse will be over."

Willow stopped pacing to gasp, a shocked look of accusation on her face.

Merlin sputtered. "I'm not suggesting we kill her. That's just an example of how the curse could be broken."

Willow shook her head sadly. "I hate Granny Tock for doing this to us," Willow couldn't murder someone. She was a healer and so was Merlin. Nor could she let someone else murder her for them. "but Joel would be heartbroken if the old bat died." Stupid Joel. "Granny Mill and I were trying to come up with a way to break it. But I fear it's hopeless."

Merlin grinned. "Then let's go talk to Granny Mill. This Granny Tock has to be wrong. We'll figure out a way to break this curse. Then you'll believe me that I love you. I want to be with you."

Willow gave him a sad but hopeful smile. "Thanks, Merlin."

They left the still sleeping Arthur in the care of his guards. As they walked through the dark, quiet village, Willow asked, "Merlin, what do you mean when you say your destiny and Arthur's are intertwined?"

He reached out and took her hand in his. "Arthur is destined to be the greatest king Camelot has ever known." Merlin glanced away into a clump of dark trees. "And I'm destined to help put him on the throne and guide his kingship. To help him usher in a new age of peace and magical freedom. To stand at his side."

Willow stopped walking and pulled him to a stop. She looked him in his eyes. "That's huge. How do you know that?"

He checked to make sure no one was about them, then whispered, "A dragon told me."

Willow stepped back. She shook her head. She also checked that they weren't being overheard. She whispered back, "Uther killed all of the dragons. Didn't he?"

Merlin scrapped a toe through the dirt, looking off into the trees again. "No. He has one chained beneath Camelot. I sometimes go down and talk to him. He gives me advice. He wants me to free him." Merlin looked troubled. He shrugged. "I can't do that." He sighed. "At least, not yet."

Willow stepped further back and cocked her head. "Merlin, you are mixed up in far more mischief than I gave you credit for."

He grinned at her. "Does that make you wish I would cast you aside?"

Willow laughed. It felt good to laugh after so many tears. She snorted. "And you actually started to say you're not a powerful man." She shook her head, the smiled at him shyly. "No, it doesn't make me wish you'd cast me aside. It makes me extra sure I want to break this curse. If you really do love me, I want to hold on to you as long as you'll have me." He stepped forward and took her in his arms. He leaned in for a kiss. She grinned at him but put a finger against his lips. "I can't. Not as long as I feel like the curse is making you love me."

He leaned back and nodded. "I understand. You still doubt my love." He grinned. "Let's go wake Granny Mill and break this blasted curse."

Willow smiled. "She'll be awake. Old women are light sleepers."

Granny Mill was awake. They went to the herb preparation room. Merlin and Willow stood while Granny sat. They spoke quietly telling her about wanting to break the curse. Granny winked at Willow and said, "Good for you. You were honest with him. That makes this all so much easier. Now since the curse is tied to your beauty perhaps we could destroy your beauty, I don't know, with a hideous scar across your face or something."

Willow gasped, then frowned. "I don't like the sound of that."

Merlin smiled and said, "Maybe we could do just a temporary scar. Then take it away again."

Willow shook her head. "If that would work then I would have broken the curse every morning when I wake up with my hair in a hideous tangle."

Granny grinned. "Okay, a permanent hideous scar across your face. Right about here." She held a hand up to Willow's face.

Willow batted it away. "We need a new plan. I don't like that one."

Merlin mused aloud, "She's the type of witch that gives magic a bad name. King Uther has banned all magic because of people like her. If only we could take away her magic."

Willow nodded, eager.

Granny Mill frowned. "It takes powerful dark magic to steal away another person's ability to do magic. You don't want to mess with that."

Willow sighed. "We need to find out how she cast the curse. How can we do that?"

Merlin frowned. "A truth serum? Could we make that?"

Granny Mill smirked. "Why not just ask her how she cast the curse."

Willow rolled her eyes. "She'd never tell us."

Merlin grimaced. "We'll just have to make her."

Willow looked at Granny. Granny tsked and rolled her eyes.

Merlin looked uncertain. "She's an old woman. How hard can it be to get her to talk?"

Granny said, "We old women can be the most stubborn creatures on earth." She sighed. "But it's worth a try."

Merlin nodded. "We'll visit her first thing tomorrow morning."

Willow grinned. "Why not now? As I said, old women are light sleepers."

Merlin yawned. "Okay. Now then. It'll probably be easier to get her to talk now anyway."

It wasn't.

After the dog, Biscuit, growled at Merlin until Willow used her magic to tell him Merlin was her friend, Granny Tock refused to help them. She refused to say anything about how she cast the curse on Willow. Joel was bunked down with the soldiers and Granny Tock was furious. "Willow, you're an evil girl who just makes me and mine miserable." The old woman sat on her bed and aimed a half-hearted kick at her dog.

Willow gritted her teeth. "You're the one who's evil. Using magic to hurt people in petty revenge for something you think they did. It's wrong. You should be ashamed of yourself."

Merlin squinted at Tock. "Listen, old woman, I'm Prince Arthur's personal servant. I could get you into a lot of trouble with the prince."

Granny Tock cackled. "Servant?" She grinned a toothless smile at Willow. "So you got this one on your own, eh girl? A servant is about all you deserve."

Merlin puffed himself up. "I'll have you know–"

Willow pulled him away and whispered, "Don't tell her anything, Merlin. She's petty and dangerous. She'll use whatever she knows against you."

Merlin gasped. "What? I wasn't going to tell her anything." Willow looked him in the eye. He sighed. "You're right. Telling her anything would be a bad idea." He straightened his shirt.

Willow turned back to the old woman lying on her bed. "Joel has a chance here to win great honor if he goes with Prince Arthur. And he could save many, many lives."

Granny Tock spit at Willow's feet. "What good is honor if he's dead?" She picked up an apple and let fly. Willow ducked. The old woman accused, "All you've ever done is ruin things." She threw knitting needle.

Willow ducked again. A pair of scissors came next. Willow didn't have time to duck those. They came straight at her face.