A/N: Well hello hello again. I wasn't sure when I should post the next chapter, but I decided when I hit 9,000 views I would. So if you're reading this then I've passed my goal! So close to 10,000 views I can't believe it. Thank you all so much for the love and support you give me and this story. It means so much to me. You can take solice knowing I've already started working on the next episode. Lol but that being said there's no telling when I'll actually get around to updating again. Hopefully I've left you with enough enjoyable material that you can patiently (or not so patiently) wait for the next update. I swear to you I won't go another 11 months before updating. How long will you end up waiting? Who knows. I hope you guys enjoy, read and review as always. I'll see you in the next part (whenever that is)!


The Poisoned Chalice: Part 2

By the time Adrielle woke the next morning the sun was already pouring into the room. Beacon's warm breath spread across her face. When she opened her eyes they met Beacon's adorable dog face.

"Alright, alright. I'll take you out, boy. Give me a second," Adrielle rasped. She rolled over in bed and stretched her achy limbs out. She couldn't believe it. It had actually worked. She had actually been able to enhance the potions effects with her magic.

Ten points to Adrielle.

Beacon barked at Adrielle, obviously disappointed with the rate at which she was moving.

"Calm down, Beacon. I'll move as fast as I want to, okay?" she sassed the dog. He gave a playful whine and rested his head on her bed. Adrielle looked over at Merlin's bed and found it empty. She supposed Gwen had already gotten up to attend to Morgana this morning. Adrielle changed swiftly into her everyday dress and descended the stairs into the main part of their chambers.

"Good morning, Adrielle," Gaius greeted. "You're up later than usual. You had a restful night of sleep, I trust."

"I did. It seems my 'enhanced' potion really did the trick," she responded.

"Good, good. I'm glad to hear that," Gaius said with a smile and a slight twinkle in his eye.

"How's Merlin?"Adrielle asked apprehensively, her mood taking a quick turn from accomplished and calm to anxious. She had taken a seat at the table across from where her brother still lied unconscious.

"No change," Gaius replied while handing Adrielle a bowl of fresh porridge sprinkled with fresh berries on top.

"No news is good news I suppose," she murmured while playing with her porridge. She picked off a few of the fresh berries and fed them to Beacon, who sat attentively next to her.

~xx~

Adrielle returned to her chambers after an hour of walking through the woods with Beacon. He was certainly grateful for the extended walk in the forest. He frolicked through the tall grass and flowers, chasing squirrels and nipping at butterflies. Adrielle just thought. She always felt more at ease when she was in the woods. The quiet of nature helped her to clear her mind and escape whatever was troubling her.

"How is he?" Adrielle asked once she was inside the room. Beacon immediately ran over to greet Merlin who still lied on the cot. His face seemed paler than it had before, and he appeared to be writhing slightly in his bed. Beacon barked at Merlin happily and waited to receive his petting. When none came, Beacon whined before sitting down and resting his head down on Merlin's bed.

"He's getting hotter," Gwen commented while still tending to his fever.

"Liffrea, wuldres wealdend, woroldare forgeaf," Merlin muttered. The trio stared at Merlin in confusion.

"Is he waking up?" Adrielle asked hurriedly while rushing towards her brother's side. She recognized those words. She might not be able to translate them exactly, but she knew they were words of the Old Religion. Those words were part of the language she and Merlin spoke when incanting spells

"What language is that?" Gwen asked confused.

"Er, none," Gaius lied. "The fever's taken hold. None of those words are his own."

Why is he saying spells then if he's not awake? Surely he couldn't randomly incant spells in his unconscious state, Adrielle thought to herself. She picked up Merlin's wrist and searched for his pulse. His was definitely stronger than she remembered Ewan's being, but not by much.

"His pulse is getting weaker, Gaius," Adrielle announced. As she laid his arm back down she noticed something on the inside of his arm. "Gaius?"

"What is it?" Gwen asked.

"There's some sort of rash on his arm," Adrielle said while staring at Merlin's arm. She could see it peeking out from the bottom of his sleeve. Gaius hurried over to Adrielle and took Merlin's wrist, lifting up his sleeve so he could get a better look at the rash.

"That can't be right," Gaius muttered to himself.

"Gaius, what's wrong?" Adrielle asked worriedly. She looked back down at the rash and examined it herself. It looked as though someone had attempted to bite Merlin, except there were no teeth marks. The rash was a deep purple colour in a long oval. As she looked up Merlin's arm she spotted more and more of these strange ovals in varying sizes.

"The rash is not supposed to appear until the final stage," Gaius said while scrunching his eyebrows.

"Final stage?" Adrielle repeated. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Gaius let go of Merlin's arm and quickly returned to the book he had consulted once before.

"It says here that "once a rash appears, death will follow within two days." Gaius read.

"Two days? You told Arthur he had four," Adrielle said.

"Something's increased the flower's potency. It warns that "the effect of the Mortaeus will be more rapid if an enchantment is used during the flower's preparation."

"An enchantment?" Adrielle repeated. She had heard him clearly she just didn't understand how the pieces were meant to fit together.

"But Bayard's no sorcerer," Gwen replied.

"No he isn't," Gaius murmured, looking off in the distance at nothing in particular.

"Then who did this?" Adrielle pressed.

"It can't have been. She wouldn't dare come here. Unless..." Gaius said, speaking mostly to himself.

"Unless what?" Gwen continued.

"What happened to that girl?" Gaius asked, now turning to the two young women.

"Which girl?"

"Just before Merlin burst into the hall one of Bayard's serving girls took him outside," Gaius continued.

"She had dark hair. Very beautiful," Gwen recalled.

"The same one we saw in the hallway the day of the feast? Cara?" Adrielle asked Gaius.

"Yes. Find her. Quickly."

Gwen stood up without another word and hurried quickly from the room. Adrielle moved and took Gwen's now empty seat and continued to pat Merlin's forehead with the cloth. Adrielle was still worried for her brother's well being, of course, but it seemed that her nerves had been tamed after a night of rest.

"What aren't you telling me, Gaius?" Adrielle questioned. "Please, if it's about Merlin it concerns me."

"I can't be sure yet. I have a theory, I just hope I'm wrong," Gaius replied.

"I'm starting to wonder if it's no coincidence that Merlin stepped in to save Arthur," Adrielle theorized.

"As do I, Adrielle. As do I."

~xx~

"Let me guess, she wasn't there," Gaius said to a confused and slightly lost Gwen when she returned.

"No one has seen her since the banquet. Who is she?" Gwen asked with an exasperated sigh.

"Not who she claims to be," Gaius murmured, looking ahead mysteriously again.

"But you know, don't you?" Gwen continued. "Didn't you say her name was Cara?"

"Yes, but that's not her name. Not her real name, anyway."

"Then who is she?" Adrielle asked becoming frustrated. Who was this strange woman and why had she poisoned her brother before suddenly disappearing.

"Her real name is Nimueh. She use to be a member of King Uther's court," Gaius explained.

"Does she have magic?" Gwen asked skeptically

"Yes. Don't tell anyone you heard this from me, but she was a trusted member until the Great Purge. She was in the King's good standing until one day; Uther asked her for a favor that only she could grant, a favor involving magic. The King got what he had asked for, but suffered a loss he had not foreseen. He blamed her for this loss," Gaius recalled.

"That's what started the Great Purge?" Adrielle asked. "It must have been something terrible that happened to cause such dramatic retaliation."

"That must be why she tried to poison Arthur," Gwen said. "We have to try and catch her.

"She'll be long gone by now," Gaius shrugged off. Adrielle knew he was right. An enchantress of her caliber wouldn't stick around to see the damage she'd done and risk getting herself caught. "There's no telling where - oh no."

"What?"

"She knows the only place an antidote can be found is in the Forest of Balor," Gaius explained.

"Arthur could be walking into a trap," Adrielle realized, her heart dropping again. "We have to do something."

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do now. All we can do is wait for Arthur to return," Gaius said solemnly.

~xx~

Three days had passed since Arthur had left on his quest to obtain the Morteus flower to save Merlin. The world seemed to continue on just as it had before for everyone except Adrielle. Gwen would come and go, leaving to tend to her father and Morgana. Although Morgana would continually reassure Gwen that she could get by without her service until Merlin was well again. That where Gwen was needed most right now was with her friends.

Gaius had taken over the full load of his physician duties while Adrielle looked after Merlin. She insisted that she could still help Gaius as his apprentice, that she needed something to take her mind off her brothers deteriorating condition. Gaius would smile and pat Adrielle on the shoulder, repeating that where she was needed most was with her brother.

The first sign of good news for Merlin, and for Adrielle's mental health, came on the evening of the third night. Word had spread that Arthur had been seen returning to the castle, only to be stopped by a blockade of guards. The King was apparently so upset by his sons out right act of defiance that as soon as he had returned to Camelot he was placed under arrest. Arthur now sat in his own cells upset and disgruntled. There was no mention if he returned from his quest victorious or not, with the flower in hand or without.

"They won't let anyone in to see Arthur," Gwen sighed exasperated. She had tried to weasel her way into the dungeons to see Arthur, but to no avail. "Is there nothing we can do?"

"I don't know, but we need to think up some sort of plan fast. Only the leaf of the Mortaeus flower can save him, and I'm afraid Merlin hasn't got much time left" Gaius remarked.

"We've got to find out if Arthur's got that flower," Gwen responded.

"How are we going to do that?" Adrielle pipped up. "His father won't let anyone near him."

"I could try to sneak into the dungeons?" Gwen suggested.

"That would be very dangerous," Gaius advised.

"We've got to do something," Gwen said desperately. "Without that flower Merlin is lost."

"She's right," Adrielle decided. "Our best bet is to sneak into the dungeons and confront Arthur. I'll go."

"Are you sure, Adrielle?" Gwen asked.

"I'm sure. I have to do something to help Merlin. I'm sick of sitting here helplessly while my brother slowly dies. I need to do this. For him," Adrielle said while standing up. Gaius looked up at Adrielle and nodded in understanding.

"Be careful," Gaius offered to the young girl.

"Aren't I always?" Adrielle replied with a quick smile before turning and closing the door behind her.

She hurried through the corridors, brainstorming ways she could sneak in and get close to Arthur. She needed some sort of disguise, some sort of excuse to get herself in there. Who could roam around freely without much question? If she were royalty she could surely go wherever she liked whenever she pleased.

Ha, like that would ever happen, Adrielle laughed to herself. It's not like she could dress herself up and pretend she were someone of authority. The guards would know she wasn't anyone special and turn her away. Who else could go virtually anywhere in the castle without much discrepancy?

Servants! Of course! Servants were able to go wherever as long as it was part of their job or their under their "masters" approval. Adrielle wasn't explicitly a servant, per say, but Arthur had said it himself the other day.

"Merlin's absent so as his sister his duties fall to you"

Sure he was just being a prat at the time, but Adrielle would use his 'flawed logic' to fuel her plan. Surely Arthur would still have people serving him even when his father had thrown him in the dungeons. Adrielle decided she would sneak into the dungeons by preparing him a meal and serving it to him there. She didn't have to prepare him a banquet or anything, just something substantial. She had seen some of the plates her brother had prepared for Arthur before and there wasn't much to live up to there.

When Adrielle reached the kitchens she tiptoed up to the door and slowly peered inside. Just a couple of women stood at the far end of the kitchens washing dishes. Both of their backs were turned to Adrielle. She pushed the door open quietly and crawled inside on her hands and knees. She grabbed an empty plate and crawled over to a nearby table. She placed her hand on the table and blindly grabbed for whatever food she could find. Once Adrielle had grasped onto some pieces she pulled them back quickly and placed them onto the plate. She looked over the two whimpy pieces of bread and few squares of cheese she had procured and shrugged.

I didn't say it needed to be good, she thought again. Adrielle held the plate to her closely as she stood up and quickly retreated from the kitchens.

When Adrielle finally reached the dungeons she paused and took a deep breath to compose herself. She needed to go down there and be strong and stable. She wasn't going to take no for an answer. Adrielle needed that flower and she needed to save Merlin. She descended the last set of stairs and strided up to the guards that stood posted at Arthur's cell.

"Food for the prisoner," she declared. Adrielle could see Arthur stir slightly in his cell, but nobody else made to move.

"The King has ordered no one to visit the Prince," one of the guards dictated to her.

"Believe me, this isn't a leisurely visit. I've been ordered to serve the Prince his food," Adrielle said, raising her voice as if she were the one in charge and handing out orders. The guard who had spoken to her raised his hands in surrender and moved to unlock Arthur's cell. The door opened with a rickety screech, and shut with a klank behind her.

Adrielle stood there in the cell with Arthur, unsure what to do next. The two guards were still standing attentively outside the cell; there was no way she could openly ask him about the flower. Hopefully Arthur was intuitive enough to know why she was here, so neither of them had to openly talk about their business.

"Put that down over there," Arthur said, nodding towards a small table in his cell. Adrielle turned and took a few steps towards the table, looking it over carefully for any traces of the flower. She frowned slightly, trying to keep her facial reactions neutral in case the guards were watching. Adrielle set the plate down onto the table and stepped back to her original spot. She stood there quietly waiting, staring at Arthur almost expectantly. She wasn't leaving without that flower.

What if Arthur didn't have the Mortaeus flower? What if he had failed in his mission and barely escaped with his life? What if he had obtained the flower, but Uther had been so furious with his son for disobeying him that he destroyed it? Adrielle might not be taking no for an answer, but if there was no Mortaeus flower to fight for it was hopeless.

Arthur had stood up and walked towards the table and began inspecting his food. He picked up the plate and squinted at the morsels. He tossed the plate back down on the table and walked to his seat with his back turned towards Adrielle.

"I couldn't possibly eat this, it's disgusting," Arthur sneered. "At this rate, I'm not sure it's fit for anyone." He finished with a pointed look before sliding down the wall until he was sitting again.

What the hell is he on about? What's that suppose to mean? You don't actually have to eat the food, you idiot. It's just a cover for me to get down here, Adrielle thought. Unless he was actually expecting me to serve him his food in Merlin's place.

Adrielle bit her tongue in order to keep all comments to herself. Her brother had been poisoned and was currently hours, maybe even minutes from death, and Arthur had the gall to be picky about his food. She couldn't believe what a fool she was. She had been worried about Arthur's well-being on his noble "heroes quest", but here he was still behaving like a giant, spoiled brat. In the dungeons! Adrielle picked up the plate, still fuming at Arthur.

He's expecting me to get him better food, so I guess I'll go get him something else or...What am I saying? If Arthur doesn't have the flower I'm not bringing him anymore food! I'll have to rush back and figure out a Plan B to save Merlin! With magic! I should have been scheming Plan B all along in case this very thing happened!

Adrielle's internal monologue was too intense she almost completely overlooked the flower that sat in between the pieces of bread. The flower was a little yellow thing with a thin green stem. Her whole mood changed instantaneously. Adrielle's anger and annoyance at Arthur faded instantly and was replaced with an overwhelming sense of gratitude.

Merlin's going to live. He's actually going to live! Oh, Arthur I could almost kiss you!

Almost.

A huge, giddy grin had appeared on Adrielle's face. She swallowed hard and composed herself again, flattening out her smile. She turned her head towards Arthur and mouthed a sincere thank you to him before turning to leave.

The guard opened the door for her and closed it behind her just as he had before. She started to leave slowly, trying to remain as inconspicuous as she could. The moment she was out of sight she would take off as fast as she could back to her chambers.

"Wait!" one of the guards called out to her. Adrielle held her breath and continued walking, pretending as if she hadn't heard him.

"You! Halt!" the guard ordered louder this time. Adrielle stopped and turned around to face them.

Shit, shit, shit.

Calm down, you're not in trouble. You've done nothing wrong. They don't even know what you're doing down here. As far as they know you're trying to serve Arthur his meal. That's all.

The guard approached Adrielle only to stop in front of her. He looked down and picked over the pieces of food Arthur had rejected. Adrielle eyed the flower carefully, hoping and praying the guard just thought it was some fancy garnish.

"Waste not, want not, eh?" he smiled while settling on a piece of bread and picking it up. "We're not all as precious as our Royal Highness."

Adrielle let out a short breath and smiled politely in response. She turned back around and let out a longer breath, hardly believing she had successfully pulled all of that off. Without having to use magic as a diversion.

Maybe I don't use magic as much as Merlin in my day to day life because I'm actually able to accomplish things without completely screwing them up. I don't need a scapegoat to fix things, Adrielle pondered to herself.

As she ascended the stairs swiftly, Adrielle passed another serving girl who carried a goblet of wine and a much nicer plate of food.

Damn, Adrielle thought. Arthur really does get people to serve him food, even when he's in prison. Lucky guess on my part, I suppose. But upon reaching the guards the serving girl announced herself with, "Food for Prince Arthur."

The guard looked from the serving girl to Adrielle confused. When he realized what had happened, that he had been duped, he shouted, "Stop!". Adrielle picked up the flower and dropped the rest of the plate behind her as she ran up the stairs two at a time. She ran faster than she possibly ever had in her life the rest of the way back home. She barreled through the door when she returned, causing Gwen and Gaius to jump

"Have you got it?" Gaius asked, standing up quickly when he realized the intruder was Adrielle. She was bent over and braced herself on her leg with one hand while the other was outstretched, holding up the Mortaeus flower.

"Yea- I...I got..." Adrielle panted, the rest of her words coming out in a mess of incoherent mumbles. Thankfully she didn't need to use many words to confirm the mission had been a success, the visual confirmation had been enough. Gaius snatched the flower from Adrielle and started to prepare the potion with the final ingredient. Adrielle sat down to rest and chugged a nearby cup of water as Gaius worked.

"His breathing's much worse," Gwen informed. "We have to hurry."

Gaius was busy crushing the flower leaf when a thought struck him suddenly, causing him to stop his work.

"What is it? Why have you stopped?" Adrielle asked, her breathing coming in more normal stretches.

"The poison was created using magic, we may need it to create an antidote," Gaius explained. He glanced up from the flower at Adrielle before looking over at Gwen.

"But we can't," Gwen started quietly. "It's forbidden. Even if we could, we aren't sorcerers, and we certainly don't know any." This time both Adrielle and Gaius glanced up at each other.

"I suppose you're right. I'll have to make it work without magic," Gaius said while crushing the flower once more. "Gwen, could you go and fetch me a cup of water? We'll need it for the final potion, and it seems that Adrielle has drank all of it."

"Sorry," Adrielle mumbled as Gwen obediently hurried out of the room.

"Worry not, my child. I just needed a distraction to get Gwen out of the room. We will need to use magic for the antidote to truly work. Well, you will," Gaius spoke.

"Me?" Adrielle asked surprised. "But Gaius-"

"Don't worry, Adrielle. I have faith in you," Gaius said. He put the finishing touches on the potion and handed the vial to Adrielle. She looked down at the potion in her hands, uncertain. She wasn't sure what spell she needed to use exactly. She thought for a second, when all of a sudden the spell popped into her mind. She rolled her shoulders back and inhaled deeply, closing her eyes so she could concentrate. She exhaled deeply, and before all of her breath was gone she whispered, "Sythan."

Adrielle opened her eyes just as they returned to their natural blue colour. She looked down to see the potion sizzling in her hands. She smiled brightly, still amazed at what she could accomplish with her magic.

"Well done, Adrielle," Gaius beamed, giving her a congratulatory pat on the back. Gwen came barging back into the room just as the potion had settled itself back down.

"Thank you," Gaius said while watching Gwen. Once she handed him the water she sat back down at Merlin's side. Gaius took the potion from Adrielle and added the water to it. The pair looked at each other and shared a look, a look knowing they had accomplished the magic needed to save Merlin while still hiding it from Gwen.

"You'll have to hold his nose," Gaius instructed as he and Adrielle moved to Merlin's side. Gwen pinched Merlin's nose, his body reacting to the decrease in oxygen intake. He arched his back slightly and opened his mouth wider in an attempt to gain more air. Gaius held the bottle up to Merlin's lips and tipped it back slowly.

"Come on, Merlin. Swallow. Please," Gaius whispered. When there was too much liquid in Merlin's mouth, his body reacted again and began swallowing the potion until it was all gone. Gaius stepped back and they waited. Adrielle relaxed, assuming it would only take a few seconds, minutes at the most until Merlin was awake, alive and well, again.

"Gaius, he's stopped breathing," Gwen observed after half a minute.

"What? What's happening?" Adrielle inquired. Gaius leaned over and pressed his ear to Merlin's chest and listened. After a few seconds he pulled back, staring down in disbelief.

"His heart. It...it's stopped beating."

"What?"Adrielle whispered in shock. "He...he's...?"

"He's dead?" Gwen finished. Both girls were silent after that. Adrielle started down at her brother's body and waited, hoping and praying with all of her might that he would wake up soon.

No, he can't be...he can't be! I'll give up all of my magical abilities for him to live! Please, Merlin. Please wake up, Adrielle thought to herself, pleading with whatever benevolent force might be listening to her.

"He can't be," Gaius whispered. "He can't be. It was his destiny."

Gwen stood up and buried her face into Gaius's chest.

"It's all my fault," she cried. "If I had only gotten here sooner, if I had only gotten here quicker."

"No, this is all my fault," Adrielle whispered. Her body had already begun shaking with sobs. Her eyes were burning as tears began to spill onto her cheeks. "I wasn't powerful enough to save him. I wasn't strong enough to protect him."

Adrielle bent forward and laid her head down on Merlin's chest. She covered the top of her head with her arms and let herself cry. She couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe that Merlin was actually dea...gone. Her body felt incredibly numb. It hurt her more than words could ever begin to describe. She might have been able to use magic by herself and get out of sticky situations by herself, but that didn't mean she wanted to without Merlin. Alone.

Adrielle felt like she was losing a piece of herself. Her brother had always been there beside her. He had been there through everything with her. They had gone through thick and thin together and always managed to come out together. How would she fare against the odds now without her partner in crime? The person whom she had been born into the world with, granted it was twenty minutes apart, was gone. Adrielle felt incredibly alone and isolated, abandoned by her brother. How could he leave her like this?

"That's disgusting! You should be ashamed of yourself. You're old enough to be her grandfather!" Merlin's voice suddenly cried out in disgust. Adrielle looked up from her brother's - presumably dead - body to see him staring and Gwen and Gaius who were still embracing.

"Merlin? You're alive?" Adrielle gaped at him. She was surely going mad now, wasn't she? Her brother was suppose to be dead, or so she thought. She had seen his body react negatively to the antidote, his heart had stopped and everything. He was completely dead.

"No, I'm the ghost come back to haunt you," Merlin retorted with a cheeky smile. Adrielle couldn't help but smile and laugh, relief beginning to flow through her body. She continued to stare and Merlin, confused and unsure of what was happening.

Adrielle leapt forward and wrapped her arms around Merlin, bringing her brother tighter into her embrace. His skin felt colder than her own and he was still covered in a layer of sticky sweat. But as Merlin wrapped his arm around his sister, undoubtedly seriously confused at her sudden affection, Adrielle could feel Merlin's heart beating against hers. I suppose magic works in mysterious ways, Adrielle thought to herself.

Adrielle pulled back from her brother, still beaming at him. In a rush of happiness and relief Gwen bent down quickly and grabbed onto Merlin's face, planting a kiss on his lips. When she pulled back a few seconds later, everyone shared the same surprised and slightly confused looks on their faces.

"Sorry," Gwen started, heat already starting to spread up her neck towards her face. "I'm just...I thought you were dead."

"It's fine. It's more than fine," Merlin muttered, staring at Gwen in shock. He shook his head and regained his composure, or whatever composure you have after dying and coming back to life."Erm, what happened? The last thing I remember is drinking the wine."

Adrielle and Gaius looked at each other, wondering where they should start, and how much they should save until Gwen had left. Adrielle let out another laugh of relief, unable to keep herself from smiling.

"It's good to have you back Merlin."

~xx~

Merlin had been given a few days off after his scuffle with death to relax and recuperate, mainly because Uther was still upset with Arthur and was still sitting in the cells as punishment. Adrielle hadn't dared ventured down to visit Arthur since she had snuck down there to retrieve the Mortaeus flower from him. She wanted to thank him personally for risking his life to save her brother. Adrielle's life saving magic wouldn't have been much help if the flower had not been procured in the first place. She decided, however, that she would wait until Arthur was released to thank him. Gaius' philosophy would classify this as 'good character building' for the soon to be Prince. Adrielle wasn't sure if Arthur would actually get any character built out of this experience in the cells, but she was pleased that she could say she has spent less time in jail than Arthur and her brother.

The opportunity presented itself to Adrielle a week after Arthur had returned to Camelot. He was released from his stint in prison with a slap on the wrist and a severe reprimanding look from his father. This wasn't a defiance the King was likely to forget so soon.

"Well it looks like your rash has cleared up nicely," Adrielle said while examining Merlin's arms. She put his arm back down and took a seat across from him. A knock came from the doors followed by Arthur's voice.

"Still alive, then?" he called while approaching the seated pair.

"Oh. Yeah, just about," Merlin replied. "I understand I have you to thank for that."

"Yeah, well, it was nothing," Arthur shrugged nonchalantly, rubbing the back of his neck subconsciously as he spoke. Arthur moved so he was standing just behind Merlin's chair, directly across from Adrielle. "I was only dropping by to make sure you're alright. A half decent servant is hard to come by."

"Half decent? That's definitely a couple steps up for you, Merlin," Adrielle remarked playfully.

"What happened to the girl who cried permanent stains into my tunic? Where's my sister who showed me unprecedented affection when she found out I was alive? I want her back," Merlin retorted.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Adrielle squinted, suddenly embarrassed. She wasn't sure why she was embarrassed; because Merlin was talking about how she acted in that moment of happiness, or because it was in front of Arthur. "So now I'm not allowed to pick on you anymore because you almost died? I'm not sure if I like this trade off anymore."

Arthur stood there and watched the two twins banter back and forth. As he watched he couldn't help but smile at the pair. He was glad to see they were quickly returning to their old lives .They were able to bicker like normal siblings, almost as if no one had almost died. There was something special about Merlin and Adrielle, something Arthur liked about the two, but not something he could place.

"Glad to see everything's back to normal around here," Arthur commented sincerely. "I expect you to be back to work tomorrow, Merlin."

"Oh yeah, yeah of course. Er...bright and early," Merlin replied unenthusiastically. Arthur gave Merlin a pat on his back before turning to leave. Merlin called out to him just as he was about to exit the room.

"Arthur."

The young man stopped and turned to look at Merlin and his sister.

"Thank you."

Arthur registered this before nodding in comprehension. "You too. Get some rest."

Adrielle watched as Arthur turned back around and glided out of their room. She suddenly remembered how desperately she had wanted to thank Arthur in person for saving her brother. Now that Arthur was out of the room, she contemplated whether she should follow him so she could thank him, or just let it go. As she was thinking to herself her subconscious had clearly made up its mind already; Adrielle was on her feet swiftly following after Arthur before her mind could register what she was doing.

"Arthur!" Adrielle called out once she was in the corridor. She watched as he stopped and turned around to see who was calling out to him. Although by now Arthur was able to more easily recognize Adrielle's voice, even if they were in a crowd of a thousand people all speaking at once. He turned around and watched as the girl jogged to catch up to him, taking a few steps toward her himself.

"I just..." she started once she was in front of Arthur. "I just wanted to personally thank you. For risking your life to save Merlin's. I know you didn't have to. I don't know anyone else who would have done something like that for him."

"It was nothing, honestly, and that's not me trying to be modest or anything. He's saved my life before, Hell he saved my life by drinking that poison in the first place. It only felt like the right thing to do," Arthur replied casually.

"No, I mean it. Seriously, Arthur, thank you," Adrielle continued. "Merlin...he may be a lousy servant and incredibly annoying at times, I should know, but he's still my brother. We came into this world together and I don't intend on us leaving any differently. There was a moment while the antidote was working that I...I thought I'd lost him. I can't even begin to describe to you how it felt. All I can say is that it's the most painful thing I've experienced in my eighteen years of life. I'd rather not revisit those feelings anytime soon, or ever as a matter of fact. Don't tell him or anyone else I said this, but he's the most important person to me right now. He's all I have, really."

Arthur watched Adrielle as she spoke and took a moment to fully absorb her words. He knew he was risking his life for Merlin, he had saved Arthur's life so it was only right he did the same in return, but he hadn't fully comprehended he was also doing this for Adrielle. He hadn't realized exactly what a huge service he was doing her. If she had one wish in this world, Arthur would bet that she would have used it to save her brother. Arthur had been involved in that one wish.

"I...uh, you're welcome, Adrielle. I'm glad I could help you," Arthur started awkwardly. He felt as though he should say something to Adrielle, what he had done was tremendous to her, but he wasn't sure what words to say exactly. Adrielle said nothing in return. The pair stood there in the corridor looking over the other. Neither of them realized that when he was speaking to Adrielle, Arthur had reached out and placed a comforting hand on her upper arm. It wasn't until after they had stood there quietly in the silence of the moment that both Adrielle and Arthur realized what had happened.

Arthur looked at the spot where he was touching her and pulled back his hand quickly. He averted his eyes, trying to think of what to say, if anything. Arthur settled on keeping quiet; to apologize or say anything about that brief moment of contact would mean Arthur had known what he was doing at the time, that he had intentionally meant to touch her.

"I'll see you around, Adrielle," Arthur said after clearing his throat. Adrielle nodded and waved goodbye quietly.

Adrielle watched Arthur as he walked away, trying to find enough air to breathe and the energy to walk back to her chambers. That interaction between her and Arthur had been small, insignificant to some, but it felt as though it had set off a fire inside of her.

What is going on with me? Maybe Merlin's right. Maybe I do-

No! Adrielle cut herself off. Merlin's an idiot, he doesn't know anything. Besides, even if I did have...you know, it's not like anything could come from it. Not saying I do because I don't. Absolutely not. Things are better off the way that they are.

Adrielle shook her head, trying to dislodge whatever strange feelings Arthur had just instilled in her. She took a deep breath in a vain attempt to relax herself before returning to her chambers. Merlin might protest to being picked on, since he'd nearly died, but Adrielle would bet her left hand that given the chance to tease Adrielle he would. He usually did, but given the fact he had been out for three days he needed to makeup for that lost time.

When she had returned to her chambers she sat back down across from Merlin as discreetly as she could. Merlin looked up from his soup, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Adrielle glared at him, ready to deny any accusations he might make. Gaius intervened before either twin could say a word.

"Arthur may give you a hard time, but at heart he's a man of honour. There aren't many who'd have risk what he did for a servant," Gaius said.

"It all would've been for nothing if you didn't know how to make the antidote, Gaius," Merlin noted. Gaius shook his head.

"What I did was easy. You have your sister to thank for that. It was her magic that made the antidote work properly."

"Really?" Merlin replied surprised. He looked over at his sister waiting for her to say something, and she merely shrugged.

"We may annoy each other and argue from time to time, but you're still my brother, Merlin," Adrielle responded.

"I suppose I should thank you, too," Merlin continued.

"If you want to, but don't expect me to be all sappy now. You're my brother and I love you, you know that, but I much prefer picking on you instead," Adrielle

"I wouldn't want it any other way. There's still something I don't understand," Merlin started. "Why she went to all the trouble of framing Bayard? She could've just kept quiet and killed Arthur."

"But destroying Arthur and Camelot wasn't all she was after," Gaius started to explain. "She knew you would be forced to drink that wine. It was you she wanted to kill. Seems someone else knows you're destined for great things, Merlin."