Merlin was only about five minutes late to pick Freya up, but she didn't mind. When he pulled up she was deep in conversation with the curly haired girl. Merlin let her talk for a second before honking the horn. She looked up and smiled, saying goodbye to her friend.
"Gwen," Merlin asked when she got in the car. She nodded and fastened her seat belt. "I have a present for you," he said and he pulled out the bag of books. Her face was a mix of joy and awe.
"But Merls we can't afford these!"
"I didn't buy them." Merlin sighed heavily. "They are an apology and gift slash bribe from on Arthur Pendragon." Freya froze, her hands in the bag. Merlin assumed she was contemplating the apology. After what seemed like ten minutes, Freya kept digging through the bag, accepting the apology.
"Hmm, these are fascinating," She said softly. Her hands were running along the covers of each book individually, seemingly absorbing their information. Her face was pinched with concentration, and when she got to the last book in the stack, she broke into a smile. It was titled, 'The Myths and Lore of Avalon.' "This is exactly what I've been looking for."
"Good, he made it very clear they were his sincerest apologies."
"And of course you forgave him," Frey's tone was joking and her smile was mischievous.
"What's that supposed to mean!?"
"You just can't help getting lost in those blue eyes." Merlin almost swerved off the road at her statement.
"I think we need to reevaluate your perception of my feelings." Merlin said.
"I think we need to reevaluate YOUR perception of your feelings." Freya countered.
"I think I know your hardheaded and will refuse to let this drop, so this conversation is officially over. Forever." Freya just shook her head with a smile. "How was school?"
"Fantastic. My classes are amazing, and Gwen is beyond phenomenal." Freya gushed all the way home, but what she said was stuck like a seed in Merlin's brain. He didn't have feelings for Arthur. He was a selfish prat that was raised to think everyone but a handful were scum. As soon as he thought it, a small part of his brain began to rebel, knowing that wasn't completely true. Merlin shoved that part of his mind away and locked it in a closet.
Gauis wasn't home when they arrived at the apartment, so they settled down to read and finish their homework. At around five o'clock, Merlin rose to make dinner. Gauis trudged in about 30 minutes later to the smells of vegetables frying and pasta sauce simmering.
"I was not aware if you ate meat or not, so I just made pasta," Merlin said as Gauis walked into the kitchen.
"Very well my boy, and I do indeed." Dinner was a quiet affair, with Freya's nose in a book and Gaius disappearing to do work in his room.
"Merls, about what I said earlier," Freya said quietly. She had snuck upon him as he was doing the dishes.
"No, no. It's okay, let's just forget about it." Merlin edged around the topic uncomfortably.
"No, I have to say something. If things ever come to pass, don't ignore your feelings because of outside forces. Don't push them away fight for it." She smiled and disappeared into her room. For a second time that day, Freya had left him with plenty to think about. She was becoming much too wise and insightful for her age.
The next day, Merlin woke up with a splitting headache. His vision was blurred to the point he couldn't see if his shirt was right side out. He tried to pass it off as if nothing was wrong, but his first bad move was tripping over a knee high stack of books. Freya reached out and caught him before he hit the ground, and magically stopped the books from falling. She sat him on the couch and called for Gaius, who showed up in an old fashioned dressing gown.
"Merl what's wrong." Freya's voice was distant.
"Can't see, everything in my head is fuzzy and painful. I can barely hear you." Gaius and Freya shared a concerned look.
"I will call Kilgharrah." Merlin heard a shuffling and assumed Gaius had left.
"Merls, Gaius went to call Kilgharrah, can you still hear me."
"Yes I can hear you, but it's still distant." It didn't take long for there to be a loud knock on the door, seconds actually. Gaius answered the door angrily to find Kilgharrah.
"I was just about to call you." Gaius said, very confused and flustered.
"I felt something was wrong and I came right over." Kilgharrah strode into the room and spotted Merlin on the couch. He grabbed Merlin's face and pulled him up. Examining his pupils, Kilgharrah found them to be glazed and foggy. "When did this start?"
"This morning, when I woke up." Merlin answered. Kilgharrah mumbled something unintelligible and he checked Merlin's pulse.
"Well?" Freya asked impatiently.
"Well he is unable to attend school for at least a few days. Freya, if it isn't too much trouble, would you mind staying with him? Perhaps you could collect his homework as well."
"Of course I will, but-"
"Well ta, must be off!" Kilgharrah bowed deeply and was gone.
"What the bloody hell!" Freya exclaimed.
"Always so helpful." Merlin grumbled.
"Okay I need to go to class, Freya would you like a ride? I can give you a copy of his schedule."
"I need to contact Aithusa as well," Merlin mumbled.
"I'll take care of it. Merlin don't you dare move from the couch." Freya growled.
"Yes ma'am." There was a flurry of sound, but to Merlin, everything was wispy, like the sound of feathers in the wind. He was at the end of a long tunnel, trying to listen to what was happening on the other end. He felt a small hand slip into his.
"I'll be back Merls." Freya's voice was soft and frightened. Merlin's eyes widened as he thought of the last time he heard that tone. She was gone before he could say anything.
