Arthur went into a panic, shaking Merlin's shoulders. "Merlin! Snap out of it!" He yelled and slapped him. The sound rang in Arthur's ears but Merlin's eyes didn't focus on the now.
Merlin kept crying, crying as if he would never stop. It was a throaty sound that made Arthur's eyes prickle with humidity.
He moved back and looked around. He needed Morgana... and Gaius!
He turned to Merlin first. "Come on, Merlin." He said softly, getting him in a position where he could dress him. It was difficult but Arthur did his best, making him neat and presentable. In the end, Merlin simply curled into himself on top of the covers and cried, the cursed crystal still held firmly against his chest.
His heart squeezed at being unable to help Merlin with the pain he was feeling. He leaned down and kissed the top of his head, pressing their foreheads together.
"I will make it better, you'll see." He stood up and left with orders that no one should enter his room.
oOoOoOo
Morgana hummed to herself as she brushed Mordred's hair, Gwen organising the room around them.
"Now, Mordred, remember, no one can know about your magic here. Be extra careful with Gwen, since she's my maid." Morgana whispered and Mordred nodded.
The door burst open and Arthur stormed in. "Morgana! Merlin's trapped in the crystal's enchantment! I don't know what to do, I've tried taking it away from him but I can't! He won't wake up. I didn't even realise his magic was probably powerful enough to wield the crystal and I just threw it at him! He won't let go! He's not responding! What was Alvarr thinking? He was planning to get the child to wield it!" Arthur wouldn't let Morgana even put a word in.
Arthur started pacing and turned and finally shut up when he saw Gwen staring at them horrified.
"Gwen?" Arthur said surprised.
"Arthur? Wh-what's happening?" She asked. Morgana felt her heart race with fear and pulled Mordred's back against her, hugging him tight.
"Gwen… please…" Morgana whispered.
"Merlin has magic?" Gwen asked softly. Yes, that part was as much news to Morgana as it was to Gwen. "And Mordred too?" She frowned trying to understand.
"I do too, Gwen… We were born with it. We couldn't help it." Morgana said softly. Gwen looked ashen at that.
"My lady? You? But… no… I've been with you for years." She said softly.
"I know… but it kept getting stronger until… until I was too scared of it." Morgana said softly.
"Gwen… you mustn't tell anyone about this, please." Arthur said.
"And what about you? Do you have magic, your highness?" Gwen asked, stepping back when Arthur tried to get closer.
"No… I do not." Arthur said. "Please Gwen… we have to help Merlin. You mustn't tell anyone." Arthur said.
Gwen looked down and took a deep breath. "Merlin has always been there for me… as has my lady. Of course I won't say anything Arthur." She said gently. Morgana felt the tension in her shoulders fade away. "But what's wrong with Merlin?"
oOoOoOo
Arthur returned to his room followed by Morgana and Mordred. Gwen followed a few minutes later with Gaius in tow. Merlin lay on his side, still weeping mournfully.
"What happened?" Morgana asked trying to reach for the crystal, but was zapped away. "Ouch!"
"All he says is my name when he does speak." Arthur said softly.
"Arthur! What… this is magic." Gaius said with worry. "So this is why Merlin's been so secretive. You know of his magic." Gaius said softly, staring at Arthur.
"I only found out very recently." Arthur said and Gaius rushed to check on Merlin, pausing as he saw his mother's ring on Merlin's index finger.
"I'll try and talk to him." Mordred said and came closer to Merlin, staring intently at him.
"You? What are you doing back here child?" Gaius said, clearly the first time he'd seen Mordred since he'd returned. Clearly Gaius had better memory than his father, but then again, Uther had never gotten a good look of Mordred in the first place.
Mordred didn't reply, eyes focused on Merlin who released a mournful wail and sobbed harder. The sound made Arthur's eyes burn. "He's gone… he's gone."
Mordred turned to Arthur. "He saw your death." He said.
"But I'm right here." Arthur said.
"That's the crystal of Neahtid, how did you get it? It's supposed to be sealed in the vaults!" Gaius said, standing back exasperated. "Sire, you must explain what is going on." Gaius spoke to him and Arthur took a deep breath.
"We stole it."
"Why?" Gaius didn't understand.
"To aid the cause against my father." Arthur said bitterly.
Gaius took a step back. "Treason?"
"Don't act so surprised, Gaius, harbouring a young sorcerer falls just as much under that tag as my actions." Arthur said and Gaius looked at Merlin and sighed.
"You can't do this, Arthur, you'd help kill your father to become king? That's not the way things are done." Gaius said.
"Why not? My father didn't inherit this kingdom, he won it. As will I to end his reign of terror on those innocents born with magic or who use it for no ill purpose." Arthur said.
"That's still murder, sire." Gaius said.
"So is what he has had me do again and again with the countless druid settlements I have been sent to destroy since I reached my seventeenth summer." Arthur growled. "I'll never have my hands clean, but with him gone at least they won't get any darker!"
"I must report this to the king." Gaius said. "Surely you understand."
"No, Gaius, I don't. You tell him and you'll send Merlin straight to the pyre. As well as Morgana, as well as the child, as well as I." Arthur said and Gaius sat.
"Of course I won't do that… but what will you do about the crystal?" Gaius said. "You don't even know what it does! How could Merlin have been so irresponsible to hold a magical artefact he has no knowledge of?" Gaius said.
Arthur looked down with guilt. "That was my fault… I threw it at him." He said. Gaius gave him that disapproving look he'd caught him sending Merlin a couple of times and felt like a small child all over again.
"This is what happens when you play with magic you have no knowledge of." Gaius said.
"Well…" Mordred spoke and they turned to look at him. "It's supposed to show the future but… Alvarr wasn't sure how it worked exactly." Mordred said, swaying nervously on the spot.
"Who knows how it works?" Gwen asked.
"My sister is high priestess, we could ask her." Morgana said.
"Sister?" Gwen said surprised.
"Morgause." Morgana said and smiled apologetically as Gwen had to sit down.
"Need I remind you, my lady, that Morgause tried to kill Arthur in tournament?" Gaius asked and Morgana smirked at Arthur.
"And beat him she did." Morgana said and Arthur rolled his eyes.
"She used magic, I just know it."
Morgana scoffed in response. "Always the sore loser, little brother."
"Always the annoying wench, dearest sister."
"Brother? Sister? What?" Gwen spoke again, looking pale now as well as very confused.
"Dear lord… it's all out in the open now, isn't it." Gaius said, sitting himself down beside Gwen, looking as ashen as her though for very different reasons.
"Before we go to Morgause, we have to speak to the dragon." Arthur said.
"Dragon?!" Morgana and Gwen exclaimed, while Mordred sounded excited, eyes full of wonder.
"Of course…" Gaius said, rubbing his temples. Arthur sighed and explained.
"So we have to smuggle Merlin, to the dungeons, past all the staff, past the guards, to the depths of the dungeon and then back out again?" Gwen asked.
"It may be our only choice. You don't have to come, I'll take Merlin." Arthur said.
"I'm definitely going." Morgana and Gwen said simultaneously and Mordred nodded.
"There is another route out of the cave, if you ask the dragon. I will stay and try to distract Uther… perhaps mention a last minute hunting trip you went to with Morgana. I'm sure seeing you two get along will soothe his concerns." Gaius said.
"Um… I don't think-" Mordred started.
"Sounds perfect, let's go pack." Morgana said.
oOoOoOo
They prepared for a bit of a trip. Morgana packed with Mordred's help while Gwen helped Arthur with his armour.
"He's absolutely heart broken." Gwen said gently as she tightened Arthur's shoulder strap, watching Merlin as she worked. "I knew he was a loyal friend but…"
"We're not just friends anymore." Arthur said gently, watching Merlin cry. Gwen paused and looked up at him.
"Arthur…"
"I know it's unusual, but I love him." Arthur said softly.
"Arthur… when you asked me… I said no because a servant and the prince could never be. But a male servant and the crown prince are even more out of bounds." Gwen said softly.
Arthur smiled softly and looked at Merlin. "Well, it seems, that the heart has no such bounds... nor does the old religion."
"What would your father say?" Gwen said softly.
"Before or after he hears his castle is harbouring three powerful sorcerers? One of which is his own daughter. It was he who put us in this situation in the first place." Arthur asked.
Gwen pressed her lips together before sighing. "Well said, your highness." She said politely and Arthur smiled at her, as she finished and handed him his sword.
oOoOoOo
They waited till sundown, an hour before the guard change. So at least the guards would be a little bit more tired.
"Come on Merlin." Arthur said, forcing Merlin to his feet, having to support him. The only blessing they had was that Merlin was a silent crier.
They made it to the dungeons, where Arthur paused. Now what? Merlin would always put the guards to sleep before but now he couldn't even stand upright.
He looked down at the boy who looked up almost knowingly. "Mordred, can you put them to sleep?" Arthur asked.
"I don't know any sleeping spells. I… haven't learned many spells yet." He mumbled.
"Let's see… what was it that Merlin… Swefe nu, that's what Merlin always says. Does that help?" Arthur whispered. Mordred brightened up and nodded, leaning over the railing, concentrating deeply and extending his hands.
"Swefe nu!" Mordred yelled startling them all. The guards jumped but instantly swayed and fell to the ground. Mordred looked up, bright eyes and smiling. "I did it!"
"You did! Well done." Morgana said and Arthur nodded, wondering if Merlin ever got such reassurance when learning his magic.
"Let's hurry!" Gwen whispered.
oOoOoOo
The dragon sat looking quite bored until Arthur appeared with the rest of the group. "I may have spoken to you, young Pendragon, but don't doubt for a second I won't burn you all to a crisp if you're here to gawk at the Great Dragon in chains."
"That's not why we're here, dragon." Arthur said although Mordred very much seemed to be gawking. He pulled Merlin's hood down and showed the crystal in his hands. The dragon stared closely and frowned.
"He is trapped in the crystal's vision." The dragon said.
"So it really shows the future?" Arthur whispered. If this was how he was going to leave Merlin when he died… Arthur wouldn't be able to bear it.
"Perhaps, someday, young Pendragon. But the crystal doesn't show the definitive future. It shows the future the seer most fears. For those untrained to the crystal's tricky nature, the vision can be so horrific that it traps the seer in it until they waste away from lack of food and water."
"Why would anyone ever use anything like that?" Morgana asked horrified, holding Mordred protectively against her.
"If your worst fear is that the knights of Camelot might attack, you'd be able to see exactly when they would come, from where, and how many." The dragon said simply. "I believe, the day Uther won this crystal from the high priestesses, the seer that used it was found trapped in the horror of a vision." The dragon said. "Otherwise, they would have escaped."
"How was she freed?" Arthur asked.
"She was killed, Pendragon." The Dragon said and Arthur huffed.
"So how do I free Merlin without killing him?" Arthur demanded.
"You must seek a high-priestess of the old religion. She must finalise your union." The Dragon said.
"Finalise? How? I thought we already gave ourselves to each other." Arthur said.
"In mind, in body, but not in soul. Not entirely, at least." The dragon said. "When you seek the high-priestess she will need to perform a hand fasting ritual, and re-join your souls as one."
"Re-join?" Arthur asked.
"You also need my fire." The dragon said. "I must be present in the ceremony. You must free me so I can assist with the binding of souls."
Arthur stared at the dragon then looked at everyone else who looked petrified at the thought. Arthur looked back up. "How do I free you?" He asked.
"There is something that Merlin gave you last night." The dragon said. "You must cast a spell that will set me free. It can only be Merlin who casts it… but the magic he released to you should be enough to free me. Will you do it?"
"I… I don't even know if I can… I've never even considered… performing sorcery myself." Arthur said. Could he really do it? Merlin might be strong enough to possess it, Morgana was always pure of heart and a seeker of justice, Mordred was an innocent child with a hard start in life… how could Arthur compare to them to trust that the magic won't corrupt him?"
"I will show you… step closer." Arthur stepped further ahead and everyone else stepped back.
"A-Arthur…" Gwen whispered in fear.
"I'm alright, Gwen." Arthur said softly and the dragon took a deep breath in. Arthur closed his eyes and held Merlin closer. He'll do it for him.
He felt cold air surround him, drowning everything else as whispered words repeated again and again until his mind could never forget them. He felt a pull inside him, under his skin, and felt shaky at the strange sensation as the dragon stopped.
"How do I know you won't turn on us and harm Camelot?" Arthur asked once he could figure out how to speak again.
"Because now you understand that we share the same enemy." The dragon said and Arthur passed Merlin onto the care of Morgana and Gwen.
He followed the stone steps down to the heavy chains of the dragon. He let the dragon's words, ringing in his head, to guide him as he drew his sword and held it high. This wasn't going to work. He was no sorcerer.
"You were born of magic." Ygraine's voice whispered and Arthur flinched looking around. He frowned rubbing his forehead. His head was hurting already.
"Do it, Arthur Pendragon, king that will be." The dragon rumbled, but it sounded distant.
Arthur gripped the sword tighter. "Ic Bedeode thisne swurd thaet he forcearf tha briede thara dracan." Arthur's skin began to glow with the same light that Merlin had passed onto him. It felt warm, soothing, powerful and safe. "Un clyse!" His eyes burned with magic.
His sword clashed onto the chains and with a burst of light, the chains turned to dust, releasing the dragon.