I cannot thank you enough for all of your support after the fiasco of the last chapter. It really touched me to see your reactions, and that you want this to continue, thank you so much! A special thanks to Emachinescat for your support, it really means a lot, honey!
Another huge thank you to MerlinStar for being an amazing beta, couldn't do this without you! *hug*
Arthur stretched his aching back painfully, wincing when he heard the bones crack in protest of spending the night balanced precariously on a stool. That seemed to have been a habit lately, the prince refusing many a night to return to his own chambers until he knew Merlin would make it through. As thoughts of his servant flickered through his head, the prince leapt to his feet, his gaze falling on the shut door. Swallowing apprehensively, Arthur slowly approached the door, listening hard. When no sound met his ears, he carefully pulled the key down and unlocked the door.
The second the key turned, the door sprung open and Merlin toppled out in a tangle of limbs. Eyebrows raised as his servant landed on his back, Arthur looked astonished at the boy's sudden arrival.
"What were you doing, Merlin?"
"Leaning against the door. What are you doing, Sire? How come my door was locked?"
"It must have just got stuck," Arthur lied, slipping the key up his sleeve. He didn't want Merlin to know that he had spent the night trying to watch over the boy, something he felt he had failed at judging by the fact he had obviously fallen asleep.
"Mmm hmm," Merlin responded, his tone apparent he didn't believe his master in the slightest. He couldn't remember much from the night before. He remembered Claton making him leave, and them arriving at the cave. After that was a blur, it was as if he hadn't really been there. Vague snippets randomly appeared in his mind, taunting him with the knowledge Claton had used Merlin's own magic to cast some very powerful spells indeed, but the meaning behind them escaped the boy. Then he had woken up in his bed again, his headache the only reminder it had not all been just a dream. Claton had made his presence felt already, but he had seemed to have backed off a bit for now, much to Merlin's relief. Knowing Arthur was still in Gaius' chambers; Merlin had sat himself down in front of the door, leaning back for support whilst he waited for the prince to officially let him out.
"So why are you here then, Sire?" Arthur frowned at Merlin's tone; it was as if he knew more than he was letting on. But that was impossible, the door had quite clearly remained locked all night and Arthur was almost certain he hadn't made any noise that would have given away his presence.
"It may have escaped your notice, Merlin, but the sun is fully up. Meaning you are late for work."
"Thought you told me to go away," Merlin muttered darkly, reminding the prince of their latest argument from the day before. In truth, Arthur had been so worried about what was wrong with Merlin he had completely forgotten his banishment of the servant.
"Now I'm telling you to hurry up," he responded, striding across the physician's chambers and pulling open the door. Striding out, Arthur paused momentarily to make sure there was no one around to witness his departure before speeding back to his chambers, taking the most complicated route he could think of so no one would know that the supposedly sick prince had spent the night elsewhere. He shuddered to imagine what Uther's reaction to that would be.
Watching Arthur leave, Merlin couldn't help but frown. He knew full well the prince had been lying to him, the fact he had seen Arthur here during the night was a testimony to that. But what exactly was the prince trying to hide? Being something of an expert in keeping things hidden, Merlin had become quite apt at reading people during his time in Camelot, but whilst he knew Arthur was hiding something, the warlock couldn't for the life of him figure out why Arthur had locked him in his room and then not admitted to it.
"Time to put the plan in action, boy." Claton suddenly invaded Merlin's mind in a rush, driving any other thoughts from his head with his sheer presence. What unnerved Merlin most of all was how much stronger the sorcerer seemed.
"If you think for a second I am going to help you, then you are even more deluded than I thought." The second the words had left Merlin's mouth, his head felt like it was going to explode as Claton reacted. Seeing stars, Merlin tried not to cry out as the pain slowly resided, leaving him breathless and shaken.
"If you want that to stop, then yes, you will help me."
"I won't let you do anything to hurt Arthur, or Camelot. It doesn't matter what you do to me."
Instead of immediately reacting, Claton paused for a moment, simmering. Then suddenly, before Merlin had the chance to react, he raised the warlock's hand and uttered a short command, making the stool Arthur had sat on the previous night burst suddenly into flames. Yelling out in surprise, Merlin hastily quenched the flames, before standing still in the middle of the room, shaking slightly and uncertain about what he should do.
"If you don't help me, then that will be your precious prince. Now, we are going to see Arthur."
Against his will, Merlin once more found his feet begin to move, heading down a route so familiar to him he was sure he could do it with his eyes shut. For one moment, he caught sight of Gwen in the distance, but Claton moved them into a corner, leaving the servant girl confused as to whether she had seen her friend or not.
Merlin was furious. He had no idea what he was supposed to do. He knew helping Claton would only spell disaster for Camelot and for Arthur, so maybe it was easier just to give in to the man. At least that way, it may only potentially be Arthur to suffer. Yet whilst that seemed to make sense to a small, cold detached part of the warlock, he knew in his heart he could never live with himself. Whilst the prince was still alive, Merlin had something left to fight for; he could still protect his destiny. And if said destiny was alive and fighting, there was just a chance Claton could still be defeated. For the first time since they had left, Merlin was glad Gaius was out of the castle. He really didn't want to know what Claton had planned for the man who had killed him.
Swallowing hard, Merlin blinked when he found himself staring directly at Arthur's door.
"What do you want me to do?" he asked, teeth gritted. Every fibre of his being was screaming at him to resist, yet he knew he could not endanger Arthur any further, not until he had sussed out what Claton was planning. The warlock was only thankful he had found a way to shield his thoughts from the sorcerer. It would definitely make planning a lot easier.
"Enter in your usual way." Trying to hide his smirk at Claton's first blunder, Merlin raised his fist and respectfully knocked on Arthur's door, waiting patiently until he was told to enter. Hoping that Claton didn't register the surprised look on Arthur's face when he realised it was his own manservant who had so respectfully knocked, Merlin stepped quietly into the room, closing the door gently behind him.
"Sire," he added, bowing his head slightly. By carefully monitoring Claton's reactions, Merlin was thankful to discover the maniac actually believed he was this respectful to his master the whole time. Trying to warn Arthur with his eyes, Merlin bit his lip, hoping the prince wasn't about to give anything away. Not sure what he was supposed to do next, Merlin simply remained standing there, locked into a staring contest with the prince and wondering who would break free first. It was clear Arthur was still expecting some answers regarding Merlin's behaviour the day before.
"Tell him you're leaving."
"Arthur… I have to go." Dutifully carrying out Claton's orders, Merlin tried to ignore the throbbing growing in intensity behind his eyes. He had to make Claton believe that Arthur thought he was truly leaving, whilst at the same time letting the prince know something was wrong. Time to see if he really could manipulate what Claton saw to the extreme.
"Why?" Breaking the eye contact for the first time since his servant had arrived, Arthur watched the boy in disbelief. He was extremely pale and his eyes seemed to be pleading, yet the stubborn set of his jaw line meant Arthur knew immediately Merlin would not back down in this, whatever this was.
"Let's just say I'm making good on my oath from the caves of Krilla." At Arthur's small frown of confusion, Merlin allowed himself a slight smirk. As the pain gave another throb, he turned around and walked out on his master, not sparing a backwards glance at Arthur's disbelieving expression.
The moment the door shut, Merlin felt himself thrown to his knees. Pressing his palms against his eyes, the warlock screwed his face up, trying to alleviate some of the pain.
"Stop it!"
"I told you not to warn him or I would kill him."
"I didn't!" Noting how close his voice sounded to begging, Merlin bit his lip, trying not to cry out. His vision wavering alarmingly, the warlock focused all of his attention on the hated voice echoing within his mind, knowing Claton would not allow him the sanctuary of unconsciousness.
"What did you mean by the cave of Krilla then, boy?"
"It was months ago. We had a fight and I swore I would stop being his servant the moment we returned to Camelot. Please, stop!"
"You better not be lying to me, boy."
"You're in my head, how can I lie to you?" Gritting his teeth against the pain, Merlin forced himself to his feet as the intensity died away a little. Good, Claton believed him. That at least should buy Arthur some more time.
"Move." Whether he wanted to or not, Merlin felt his feet begin to move on their own accord, this time down a route not entirely familiar to the servant. Breathing heavily, Merlin let his mind wander as his feet continued on their journey, desperately trying to think of something from a happier time as a distraction from the nightmare that threatened to suffocate him.
Sprinting down the corridor, sword in hand, Arthur skidded to a stop outside Gaius' chambers and wrenched the door open. A quick glance inside told him all he needed to know: Merlin was not here. Turning on his heel, the prince quickly sped back the way he came, frantically trying to wrack his brains for where Merlin would go. As he slowed to a stop outside his own door, Arthur felt a sense of dread settle on him as he realised he was taking the same route he had pounded many times the first time he had lost his servant. Spotting a figure in the distance that might just be able to help, Arthur shot off again, ignoring the fact he was completely out of breath.
"Gwen! Gwen, wait! Have you seen Merlin?" Ignoring the maid's puzzled glance, Arthur searched her face pleadingly, desperately wanting her to say yes.
"No, I'm sorry, Sire. I thought he was with you."
"Damn him! Don't do this, Merlin. Where are you?"
"Is there a problem, Milord?" Watching the prince in concern as he anxiously twirled his sword, barely even aware of his actions, Gwen couldn't help but echo Arthur's previous thoughts. She hadn't seen him this worked up since Claton had kidnapped Merlin a couple of months ago.
"Yes," Arthur responded, spinning to face her again. "Something is very wrong and he can't seem to tell me."
"How do you know he was trying to warn you then?" Even more confused now, Gwen found herself subconsciously biting her lip as she took in Arthur's agitated posture.
"The caves of Krilla," Arthur muttered deep under his breath, quickly continuing when he saw Gwen's strained face, "we were attacked by some bandits and I was injured. I told Merlin to run, but the idiot instead swore that he would never leave me in danger whilst he was still alive. He just bought it up again now and said he was making good on that promise."
"So why can't he just tell you what is wrong?"
"I don't know," Arthur cried, his eyes searching the corridor frantically, as if he was hoping Merlin was simply going to pop out of a tapestry. "Something has been wrong for days, yet he won't tell me what!"
"Milord?" Gwen questioned, slightly concerned about the ranting of the pacing prince seemed to be doing. It was unlike Arthur to look this out of control of a situation, and that scared the maid. She, along with many others within the castle, had always trusted Arthur to be the one who could come up with a solution to anything. Yet the servant knew to see him this anxious meant something must be very wrong indeed. And if it was to do with Merlin, it meant there was no one left to talk any sense into the prince, causing her to worry even more that he might do something rash; he certainly seemed to be in that sort of mood.
"Milord, please, calm down." It was harder to say who was more startled when Gwen suddenly gripped Arthur's arm, forcing the prince to stop pacing.
"Now, Sire," the maid continued, amazed by her own bravery, but her concern for both of the boys overcoming any usual shyness. "You don't know where Merlin, who has been acting strange, is, am I right?" At Arthur's nod, she continued, thankful she was at least getting through to the prince to some degree.
"Then I suggest you start by searching the usual servant routes, which is where he will go if he doesn't want you to find him." Gazing at Gwen as if he had only just seen her, Arthur smiled. Of course. It's easy to hide from a prince, or any noble for that matter within the castle. You simply go down a route they wouldn't even think for a second of taking.
"Thanks, Gwen. I owe you!" Speeding off, Arthur was around the corner before Gwen could so much as blink, thankful he was gone so as not to see the blush staining her cheeks. In a much more confident mood, Gwen strolled off, humming merrily to herself. The aura of danger seemed to have passed the moment Arthur had relaxed, meaning Gwen was quite content to go and find her mistress without any fears. She had witnessed herself their argument on the training field the other day. No doubt something like that had happened again and Merlin had just wanted to get away from his master for a while. If she was honest, Gwen didn't blame him.
Within a matter of moments, Arthur knew for sure that whilst Gwen may have been sure that was where Merlin would normally hide from him, she was wrong on this occasion. Apart from a few servants, one of whom had practically screamed when she saw the prince round the corner, the hallways were deserted. Certainly no lanky, black haired servant hiding down here.
Grinding his teeth together in a mixture of worry and anger, Arthur turned on his heel and marched back the way he had come, subconsciously avoiding the routes he knew his knights would be patrolling on the lookout for any sort of threat. Coming to a standstill, Arthur couldn't help but ponder if he should ask them whether they had seen the illusive servant or not. It would at least give him a starting point.
Striding off again, Arthur's step regained his usual confidence; having a direction to go in made the prince feel much more certain. He hated being out of control of a situation, and the fact it was his servant who had left him feeling like this only added to his annoyance. Beforehand, it had only been in his father who had made him feel like he had failed in achieving his goals. Now it seemed his damn servant had also developed the ability to make the prince feel extremely guilty, despite the fact he had done all he could to look after the stubborn boy. It wasn't his fault Merlin refused to let anyone help, especially not the prince. It was almost as if he was scared of letting anyone get close to him, and that instantly made Arthur wonder what else he could be hiding.