Guys, thank you so much for the reviews, my confidence is crap so you are really helping. Yet at the same time I get nervous to upload the next bit in-case I dissapoint some of you. There's a bit of poor Merlin in this but just wait, we'll get badass Merlin in later chapters too. :)

All mistakes my own, I sadly don't own Merlin either. :(

His sleep was full of nightmares, he had no idea where he was, what was happening or who was near him. All he knew was that his wrist hurt, but Morgana had gone quiet. She no longer shouted in his ear and told him what to do, she wasn't laughing or forcing him to hide in the deepest recesses of his mind.

'I'm right here Merlin, don't worry, everything will be better tomorrow.'

He'd heard Arthur's voice just minutes before, it sounded right next to him. He could feel the warmth of his King close by, but couldn't find the strength to wake up, or call his name.

For hours, he tossed and turned, dreaming of the knights of Camelot chasing him, shouting at him and threatening to kill him the minute they caught him. He could see himself on the fire and stood in the centre of Camelot's courtyard, with all eyes on him, focused on the sorcerer who needed to be killed. He was a threat and needed destroying. The drums grew louder, he could see Arthur's face, no emotion, just staring, as if into Merlin's soul, his hand held in the air. The moment he dropped it, Merlin would be burning alive. He could feel the heat of the torches, the eyes of everyone, and then...laughing. It was Morgana's, she stood, at the foot of the plinth looking up at him. The drums stopped, the torches caught the wood and straw around Merlin's feet and he could feel himself burning. Screaming filled his ears, his screaming. A storm had suddenly appeared out of no-where, the crashes of thunder seemed to emanate along with his cries for help.

A flash of lightning and Merlin jolted awake, the light reflecting in his blue eyes, making them seem even brighter than usual. His wrist burned, he thought he was still on fire and began hitting himself to swat out the flames. He felt hands on his arms and his name being called, somewhere in the distance... 'Merlin, calm down.'

'No!' He pulled away, another flash, another crack of thunder, and he pushed whoever was holding him. 'NO!'

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arthur was right, he wasn't going to sleep that night, everything was swirling around in his mind and the thunder rattled too much in the cave. He remembered when he was a child and had been scared of storms, his father had always told him to grow up, but Morgana had been the one to keep him company until it past. He couldn't think of Morgana now, it hurt too much.

Merlin mumbled in his sleep, and he knew he was having a dream. But it was when the mumbling became more hurried, and held a glimpse of fear that he knew Merlin wasn't having a dream, but a nightmare. He grabbed his hand and started patting it reassuringly, he didn't know what to do. The storm was overhead now and lightning flashed every minute. As the storm grew more intense, so did Merlin's fits, he tossed and turned, mumbling more and more, even calling out a number of times; but not enough to wake anyone else.

Merlin was burning up, Arthur thought about waking Gauis. He was just about to go over to the physician when Merlin jolted awake, his eyes glowing. He looked scared, no, not just scared, Petrified! Within seconds he was hitting himself, all over his body, as if there were creatures crawling all over him. The worst hit areas were his legs and chest, he began panicking even more, hyperventilating and crying. Arthur grabbed his arms, making sure not to catch the burnt skin on Merlin's wrist, and tried to keep him still. He didn't want to hurt him anymore and was worried at how close Merlin's head was to the rocks; one false move and he could knock himself out or cause a serious head injury.

'Merlin, calm down.'

Merlin cried out, 'NO!'. Out of the corner of his eye, Arthur could see everyone else was now awake, and slowly making their way to Merlin, not wanting to spook him. Arthur looked up and gave a silent warning to stay away, too many faces would cause mayhem. Suddenly 'NO!' and Merlin shoved Arthur with as much force as he could muster. Arthur fell back and sat in shocked silence as Merlin jumped up and tried to run out of the cave, only to be caught by Gwaine.

'It's ok, come on buddy, you're fine.' Gwaine held Merlin tightly and made sure his arms were strapped to his sides, so he couldn't lash out at anyone else. When Merlin began to calm down again, Gwaine grabbed his cheeks, one with each hand, and looked straight into his friends' eyes. 'You're safe, I promise.'

'Gwaine.' Merlin's voice was hoarse, but he was able to smile slightly when he saw his friend, he knew he was ok. Merlin slumped slightly in Gwaine's arms but did not pass out. 'You stink.'

With that everyone was laughing. They had Merlin back, even if it was only for a short time, and even if he was broken.

Gwen looked back at Arthur, she didn't lock eyes with him but did see he was silently shedding a few tears. Seeing him like this proved he truly was nothing like his father, she smiled at him and let the tears fall. She walked over to Merlin and took him from Gwaine's arms 'What are we going to do with you Merlin?' She laughed.

'Don't kill me...' He said it only so she could hear, and his eyes showed no laughter, he meant it.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

'Something's on your mind.' It wasn't a question, it was a fact. Arthur could see that look on Gwen's face, that she was holding something back.

'He...' she trailed off to look at Merlin, who was now propped up against the rock wall with Gauis watching over him as he ate a small plate of food. The knights had seen the conversation taking place and came over to listen. 'He thinks we're going to kill him.'

'No! Merlin knows we would never do that. He knows we're his friends.'

'Gwaine, think about it. It's obvious that somewhere deep down he is worried that we'll kill him, or banish him. Why would he have kept his powers secret all this time.' Leon looked at Arthur for reassurance.

'When my father was alive, it's obvious he kept it silent because of his laws. But when I became king, he had hope the laws would be changed. He told me how he felt when I found out about him. Merlin was the old man who tried to heal my father but it went wrong, he said he'd hoped the actions would change my view of magic and that it wasn't all bad. But when it didn't work I told him to his face that I would never trust magic again. Then all of this with Morgana over the years and...there could be no trust with us. He trusted our friendship, that we would all protect each other, but not his abilities. Merlin's lived his whole life in fear of the consequences of being found out, in a kingdom where magic is punished by death. Why else do you think he's kept it a secret?' When he'd finished, Arthur combed his fingers through his sandy hair and let out a deep sigh that had been sitting in the pit of his stomach, making him feel sick.

Everyone else was shocked into silence, they had no idea what to say or do. Their best friend had been so scared of who he was that he'd not been able to trust them with his deepest secret. However bad they felt, they each knew exactly how they would have reacted if they'd found out about the magic at the heart of Camelot:

Elyan would probably have begun attacking Merlin, fighting him into a corner whilst shouting for back-up.

Leon would have placed Merlin in the toughest chains and thrown him straight into the dirtiest, dankest cell possible. No food, no light, no water!

Gwaine, he would probably have been the nicest of them all due to his closeness to Merlin, but he would still have probably hit him, backed him to the wall and demanded answers.

Percival, probably a headlock, straight to Arthur. No questions asked, no secrets, no second chances.

It made each and every one of them fill with guilt, they could feel it rise up from the pit of their stomachs, feel like a lead weight in their hearts and cause a dull throb in their heads. No wonder he was as scared as he was. If they thought about it, and they'd all been a little more accepting to magic, maybe Morgana's taunting would have had little effect and Merlin wouldn't have run off in the first place.

'So what do we do now? What's the next step Arthur?' Arthur looked up at Leon, the head of the knights, literally as well as metaphorically.

'I'm not sure. Gauis?' The physician looked over to the small group. 'Could we spare you for a minute please?'

Merlin could barely move but his head twisted slightly to look over to his friends, a small, pitiful smile on his lips. Gauis said something to him and he nodded, before looking away to watch the continuing storm which didn't seem to be calming down; it was like an omen following them.

'Yes Sire?' Gauis had made his way over and sat between Arthur and Gwaine, facing Merlin so he could keep an eye on his young ward's condition.

'We would like to know what the next step is? What do we do?'

'Well, we can't do anything until we get back to Camelot. Everything I need is there. So the next step is, I'm afraid, just to make our way quickly but steadily back to Camelot.'

'Okay, we'll have to wait until morning. I'd also like to wait until this damned storm has past but I doubt that will be anytime soon. How long should his...the...how long should it keep Morgana at bay?' He knew Gauis had said it should take them until they reached Camelot, but already they had slowed and were at least half a day behind what they would normally be. Secretly, he also asked because he didn't think he could bare to stand listening to the screams again.

'I originally said it should take us until we were home. But...' The old man trailed off.

'Gauis. What is it?' Gwen's soft tone reassured Gauis and he looked up, though did not make eye contact with any of the group, instead, choosing to look over to Merlin once more.

'I've seen flashes in his eyes. I'm not mentioning anything about the situation in case it sparks a reaction from him, but sometimes I shall mention someone, like Gwaine, and his eyes seem to become empty. I have treated Morgana her entire life and know her eyes from memory. And when Merlin's become empty, something else fills them...Morgana's eyes are staring right back at me.'

He let the information sink in. When no-one moved to respond, he continued.

'At first, it was just for a split second, maybe even less. But since he's awoken, they've become longer. Still only a couple of seconds, then she's gone, but he closes his eyes as if fighting off something, or as if in pain. I'm afraid she may be fighting back.'

'Thank you Gauis. I suggest we try and get a little more sleep, or at least keep everyone-' he momentarily looked at Merlin '-comfortable and stable. Then when it becomes light enough we move out. Though I'm worried that we'll still have to travel in a half light, this storm is terrible.'

Beside him, Gwen shivered. He threw a supportive arm around her, held her close and kissed her cheek. It was a sign to everyone that the conversation was over and the King wanted time with his wife. The knights followed Gauis over to Merlin where they drank, ate and laughed as best they could. Merlin's shoulders even shook up and down slightly with occasional humour; for now, he was fine.

'Tell me Arthur,' Gwen said from below Arthur's chin, 'What will happen when all this is over? How do we deal with Merlin's...abilities?'

'Honestly. I don't know. I'm not killing him, but I must enforce the laws of Camelot. Magic is banned and dangerous. I can't bear to lose him but...we can't just accept what he is. No-one has to know, we could say he has to return home for his ill mother, but I'm scared that I may not be able to allow him to stay in Camelot.'

Silently, Gwen closed her eyes, disappointment evident in them, and let the tears flow. Merlin meant them no harm. For once, she was very much against what her husband was saying.

Next up- On the road back to Camelot, Gwaine's complaining stomach, Morgana and a heart to heart with Merlin and Arthur.