A/N: Another short one, but at least it was fast! ;)

Lady of Magic

Chapter Fourteen

Shortly after Arthur sentenced Seltor to execution, he received a missive from King Adris with a bizarre inquiry.

"Why is that suspicious?" Gwen asked, as she mixed a gruel for Lancelot's still-ailing horse.

"Well first of all, Adris told me before the wedding that he was heading to Talthorn, presumably to visit Princess Rowan." Arthur stared at her for a moment. "You really should get a real servant to do this, Gwen."

"What do you mean, a real servant?"

Marrying a knight automatically elevated Gwen to ladyship status. Ladies could still conduct many duties of a lady-in-waiting, but they consisted of far more sanitary and less strenuous tasks than making food for horses. Gwen, strangely enough, seemed affronted whenever Arthur suggested she should stop doing what she had done all her life. Arthur knew it was because Gwen was defiant about her past; she did not want to think of her upbringing as something to be ashamed of and cast away at the first opportunity.

Still, those velvet sleeves were not going to stay unstained forever, especially if Gwen stubbornly does these kind of chores all day.

"Either do that," he compromised, "Or change out of that outfit. The contrast is disturbing."

Gwen gave him a look that was thankfully more amused than offended. "Plans change," She continued the conversation where they left off, "Perhaps Talthorn cannot quite receive him, and he wants to take a look at Camelot's highways in the meantime."

"If he were actually interested in the highways, which I doubt he is," Arthur followed her lead, "First of all, the longer Adris remains outside, the more paperwork he will accumulate."

"Maybe he is a procrastinator, unlike you."

"And," Arthur went on, "What highways would he build? Unlike Camelot, Avarok is in the middle of nowhere."

"Perhaps building highways will make it more accessible."

"The money does not add up. He would devote more resources than he can handle, all to something that may not even be profitable. Everyone knows Camelot is already the better site. It makes no sense." Arthur glared at Gwen's expression. "Yes. I do math."

"I said nothing, Sire."

"No, but your thoughts speak for themselves. Adris is not visiting Camelot to 'look at highways for inspiration'. He wants to meet Merlin, and I cannot fathom what for."

Normally, this was something Arthur would ask Pollux, but Pollux had pled leave for a few days due to being a little under the weather. The man was normally a hard worker, so the King granted it without much haggling.

"What makes you think he wants to meet Merlin, and why is that so bemusing?"

"He was asking me about her all throughout the breakfast after the wedding. Such peculiar questions too, like how old she was—what does he care? And going out of his way just to see Healer Emrys when he had all that paperwork back home?"

"Well, he was due to Talthorn, and if that plan went awry, he now has several extra days with nothing to do. What better time than now, to fulfill his curiosity? Plus, looking at highways cannot hurt. He knows he is not competition for Camelot, so declaring it openly is harmless enough."

"There is something more to this," Arthur insisted. Everything Gwen mentioned made sense, and by all appearances there was nothing to indicate shady intentions, but…"I feel it in my bones. There is something off about the whole thing."

"Well can you refuse without seeming like a complete prat?"

"Of course I can. I can state some reason or other to delay his visit. The highways are nowhere near presentable, at any rate. If his motives are innocent enough, I have no compunction allowing him to view to his pleasure, but I need time to sort this out. Besides, Merlin is not even here." Arthur paused. "Though I would not go as far as to announce that openly."

People probably knew. Merlin's departure was not flamboyant, but neither was it quiet. News would have spread by word-of-mouth that the healer had departed on her medical missions. Still, news traveled slowly this way, and there was no reason for Arthur to confirm that she had not yet returned.

"I wonder if he abandoned Talthorn to pursue Merlin," Gwen remarked thoughtfully.

Arthur blinked. "I don't follow."

"I mean, he was asking about her age," She pointed out, "You must have told him that she was unmarried."

Arthur stared for a moment. The idea that men would want to marry Merlin had never occurred to him. Ever. "That is ludicrous. Why would he want to marry Merlin?"

Gwen glared. "And why wouldn't he? Merlin is nubile."

"…But—she is a sorceress!"

"That is no stranger than marrying a servant."

Arthur swore despite himself. "Sorry," He said quickly to the lady. "That conniving son of a—!"

"I thought you were interested in that Gallic lady, Sire" Lancelot said in confusion.

Arthur whacked the dummy, nearly spitting with effort. "She is not Gallic, she is going to Gallic druids for some mystery illness that only they can cure."

"Same difference. So Avarok matches with Emrys who, at the very least, would not want harm to befall Camelot. One can forge a strong alliance."

Arthur's irritation channeled Gwaine's influence. "My grandfather's withered manhood a 'strong alliance', who does he think he is? His spine might as well be made of water, he sags away when you blow at him, and he thinks he can match Merlin?"

"Well…not everyone can have the same spine as the King of Camelot."

"—And what is Avarok, anyway? Some tiny gnat-country in the middle of nowhere—"

"Not every country can be as fine as Camelot, Your Majesty—"

"And after establishing her clinic here, where she has access to patients from all over Albion, why would she want to go there? She wouldn't!"

"Uh…I think this is something that is really Merlin's to decide—"

"Of course it is, Lancelot." Whack. "She is an intelligent woman, and has been independent for so long. Why would she want to answer to a king like Adris? It is ludicrous."

"Well, she is defiant in that regard—"

"And really, people like Adris should only find women who are content to be nothing."

"Well that's a little harsh, Sire, he is still a king of a kingdom—"

"Even Renel would suit him better than Merlin. Really, Merlin would give him a run—I would be doing him a favor by refusing to let him come at all."

"That really does not sound like letting Merlin be the one to decide—"

"Really, Healer Emrys has far better things to do than entertain the pathetic attempts of every interested bloke."

"I am sure that is true, Sire, but Adris isn't exactly just any bloke—"

Arthur suddenly froze. "Heaven preserve me. You don't suppose there are others?"

"…What?"

"All the bachelors at the banquet," Arthur reflected on the meals and the various conversations. He swore. Lancelot winced, rubbing his ears.

"Me and my big mouth! I should have nipped it in the bud! Those rascals all have it in their heads now! Son of a—"

"Your Majesty," Lancelot interrupted, "You hardly seemed this worked up about Lady Renel—"

"If any of them gets Merlin, do you have any idea what that would mean for Camelot?"

"Right," Lancelot muttered, voice dripping with sardonism. "That's what this is about."

"It's ridiculous! 'Two sides of the same coin'. She can't leave Camelot. She can't leave me. Hare-brained knaves, why I ought to—"

Lancelot looked vaguely intrigued by that. "You heard the phrase 'two sides of the same coin' and it never occurred to you…?"

Arthur broke off. "What?"

"I mean, granted none of us thought of that either, but…"

"Thought of what?"

"'Two sides of the same coin?'"

Arthur's gaze flattened. "Yes, some quote from the druids, it's not helpful to keep repeating the same sentence over and over again, Sir Lancelot."

"You never thought Merlin would get married one day?"

Arthur was in a ridiculous mood, so his response was equally so. "Of course not! Why in Heaven's name would Merlin get married?"

"Why wouldn't she?"

"Well for one thing, if she were to get married she would marry a—" Cute servant girl…which was not quite true because Merlin was a girl herself—Arthur sometimes still had trouble reconciling his old impressions of his manservant with the healing woman in the present. "Not some snobby noble!"

"Well that's probably true," Lancelot allowed, "But Adris is hardly snobby, you've said so yourself—"

"And she wants to build her identity. Hardly conducive to that, being someone's wife!"

"Well that's not necessarily true, Sire—"

"Plus, Merlin, married? Merlin is not supposed to be married!"

"Why not?"

"Because she's Merlin!"

"Shouldn't you let her decide?"

"Of course, but she's not supposed to be married!"

"That does not sound like letting Merlin decide…"

"Are you questioning me?" Arthur glared.

Lancelot looked incredibly perplexed. "So wait, you could think of marrying Lady Renel, but Merlin is out of the question?"

Something important about that remark flew completely over Arthur's head.

"Of course it is out of the question!" He dumped his shield on the ground, his practice sword following after. "Merlin belongs in Camelot! She and I are two sides of the same coin! If anyone challenges that, I will have his head! No one is allowed to marry Merlin!"

Lancelot waited a few seconds, but Arthur was stumping away from the courtyard, still channeling Gwaine and cursing to himself.

"Merlin will never marry if I have anything to say about it!"

Lancelot threw up his hands. "That certainly seems like it."

"What do you suppose is keeping him in denial?"

"I'll let you know once I discovered all the secrets between Heaven and Earth."

"It is almost as if the idea were so outrageous that he cannot grasp even the shadow of it," Gwen mused, "Though I suppose…I mean, we were all rocked off our feet when Merlin turned out to be a girl, so I guess some part of Arthur is still use to her being a boy instead? Do you think that could be it?"

Her husband shrugged, cutting a slice of steak. "Frankly, I would almost consider that he was bewitched. I have not seen such blatant blindness from him since Uther was still King. Some curse, perhaps, to keep him and Merlin apart, so Camelot never reaches its full glory. The druids rejected the idea, however. They said there were more subtle ways of doing it, and Arthur certainly wouldn't be flying off the hinges in blatant jealousy. He was like a raving lunatic at practice earlier today, you should have seen him."

"Oh, he would not stop swearing in my presence."

"I would go as far as to say that he was even more mental about Adris than he had been about me when the two of us were vying for your hand. No offense, my love."

"None taken. So no spell, then?"

"No magical one, anyway. They did say that his mind might have conjured up its own tricks to bar the idea. And your comment about some part of him still adamantly believing Merlin to be a boy might have some merit. 'Two sides of the same coin' has a totally different connotation to it if Merlin were a boy, doesn't it?"

"i don't think I was ever comfortable with the idea of her being a girl instead," Gwen admitted, "Not until she came in the flesh again. I knew, I mean, the facts were there, but it just never sank in until I saw her as a healer. The mind is a mysterious thing."

"None of us thought anything of it until we saw her, anyway," Lancelot agreed. "Though even when she did, she was so cold to everyone, we did not think it would happen."

"She warmed up quickly enough. She had hardly been here long enough to form any conclusions. Do you suppose we should point out that he could marry Merlin and do away with the rest of this nonsense?"

Lancelot sighed. "We have no doubts about his feelings, but—I don't know about you, but I'm not sure about Merlin. I don't want him to entertain this notion if she does not return them at all."

"That is true," Gwen agreed, "Perhaps the best course is to steer him away from these feelings, but before we settle on that, I think I can help determine for sure. Women tell each other things they would never share with men. I can see if I can't gauge her feelings on the matter. He is still pursuing Lady Renel?"

"I have absolutely no idea. He practically volunteered her to Adris instead. Of course, he was also completely out of his mind, so it's really hard to say."

"…Oh my. Well, I doubt Renel would be a smart choice, then." Gwen frowned at this. "I will need to have a talk with him. That is improper. Handing women about like we are nothing but property, even with words…I prefer his foul mouth over that."

"Don't take it personally, dear heart. Once Merlin, Gwaine, and Roskin return, I'll tell Gwaine to teach Arthur more oaths so that Arthur has more productive ways of venting his temper."

Gwen used the end of her fork to tap Lancelot's bicep in a mock-blow, lips quirking. "You are diabolical, my husband. What kind of image would that present, to have our King utter a long train of colorful words every time he gets angry?"

"A hilarious one, for the rest of us. See? More productive."

After Gwen regained her composure, she went on, "Well, we will assume he is still 'interested' in Renel, and I will relate it as such to Merlin when she returns. I am actually not sure if I want her to be as absurd as Arthur, but at least we do not lose either way."

"I suppose."

"When is she due to be back?"

"I have no idea. It is a two-week journey to Culacia, and she has to be there at least for a while to cure everyone. Soon, I would wager. If anything untoward had happened, I am sure we would find out somehow."

Gwen sighed unhappily at this, dropping her fork on her plate. Lancelot reached forward to take his wife's hand.

"There is no use worrying when we have yet to know," He pointed out.

Gwaine and Roskin arrived the next morning…without Merlin.

"Mordred attacked," Said Roskin, "He took Merlin and fled. We have failed, Your Majesty."

Jealous Arthur might utter plenty of nonsensical things, but when jealousy did not factor in a situation, he was actually a King of few words.

"Is he keeping her alive?"

There was a pause. "Yes," Gwaine said.

No one asked how he knew for sure. Arthur himself wondered, but he could not bear to ask.

"Do we know where he is?"

"Not exactly, but I am told of the general area."

Arthur asked only a couple of questions after that. What of the Culacians? They were victims of the mess. Was Crestathion involved?

"Yes," Said Gwaine readily, "Queen Aldrea of Culacia informed us that he was the one who was responsible for the plague, and he intends to spread it to Camelot if we do not find Merlin for him."

"How fortunate that Healer Emrys can match Crestathion's magical strength," Arthur said coldly. He hardly needed a threat to his kingdom to be motivated to rescue her. "And, finding Emrys would be in Culacia's best interests as well. Would this Queen Aldrea be opposed to such an alliance?"

"She is the one who volunteered," Gwaine replied.

"Very good." Arthur stood, and the whole court watched warily as he declared, "Healer Emrys has done much for Camelot, and has the potential to do more. Mordred has always been an enemy of Camelot's. If we can secure the kingdom's prosperity by addressing them both, so much the better. Does the court object?"

A chorus of 'Nay's sounded.

"Sir Lancelot," Arthur ordered, "Ready the men. Sir Gwaine and Sir Roskin, you two have an opportunity to make up for this disappointment by leading us to wherever Mordred is hiding her. I want Emrys back in Camelot as soon as possible."

And really, there was not much more to be said on the matter.