Author: LadyFromPoland

Disclaimer: I don't own "Merlin". It is a TV show which belongs to BBC.

Warning: SLASH

English is not my mother language.

I need to say that I enjoyed writing this chapter very much. Well... writing Merthur fic is way better than learning, isn't it? Now you enjoy!

Dearest to his heart

Chapter 6

"In the shadow"

Lizzie, Morgana's maidservant, went into her mistress' chambers to take some clothes and make laundry. She did it on every Friday at the same hour. However this time Morgana noticed that there was something wrong. The young girl moved nervously and avoided her mistress sight.

The lady didn't want to make a fuss about her behaviour because Morgana knew that if Lizzie had needed her help, she would have asked her. However when the maid stumbled, dropping all the laundry on the floor, and started crying, the noble woman wasn't going to pretend that nothing had happened.

"Lizzie?" the sorceress asked her servant. "What's wrong?"

The girl glanced at her mistress but didn't answer. She tried to pick the clothes off the floor but Morgana prevented her from doing so immediately.

"Lizzie... You know you can trust me."

"I do, my lady," the girl said weakly.

"Don't be afraid and tell me what's wrong." Morgana shouldn't have been doing that but she helped Lizzie to stand up and lead her to the armchair.

"You're too good to me, my lady," she whispered.

"Stop calling me my lady when we're alone," the sorceress told her. "It makes me feel as if people were watching me and I really hate that feeling. Especially in my own bedroom."

Lizzie nodded politely, even though her mistress' request seemed to be odd.

"Now tell me everything." Morgana's voice was as soft as if she was talking to her own baby. The woman knew how to act around people.

"It was Lady Miranda," Lizzie said very quietly.

"What did she do?" Morgana asked quickly. It didn't even surprise her that the princess was responsible for her maid's strange behaviour. "Has she hurt you?"

The girl shook her head. "No... of course not..."

"Something must have happened," the sorceress insisted.

"I'm not sure if I should say it..." Lizzie was clearly disturbed and scared.

"You can tell me everything."

The maidservant smiled lightly. She couldn't believe that Morgana was so concerned. "The princess Miranda started saying Lucy about some decoration. She wanted to change the look of the corridors in the west wing." The girl sighed. "Lucy tried to tell her very politely that she could not give her the orders about decoration, that she couldn't just change them... Lady Miranda is a guest after all. She's not living here, she's not a queen..."

"Did Lucy tell her that reasons?" Morgana couldn't help asking.

"No... she's quite naïve but not so stupid." Lizzie sighed. "Lucy did her best to not irritate lady Miranda but it was hopeless. The princess started threatening her... I couldn't stay in the shadow and watch. Lucy needed some help..." The girl tried to explain relationally her own behaviour but it was simply inconsiderate to get involved.

"What did Miranda do?" Morgana asked. She could warn the girl a bit later.

"She... she looked at me so icily." Lizzie started trembling. "There was something in her eyes... something dangerous. I was so scared... I glanced at Lucy's face and it was so broken. She must have felt the same." The maidservant closed her eyes for a moment. "Then lady Miranda whispered that things would be different soon and that we should be more careful if we want to keep our jobs."

"I can't believed it!"

Lizzie opened her eyes and saw the sparks of hatred in her mistress' eyes. She knew that Morgana wouldn't have hurt her but she couldn't stop feeling a bit ill at ease.

"Don't worry, Lizzie," Morgana said suddenly. "You won't lose your job. You're my servant and she has no right to tell me that I can't keep you. Not now, not ever!" The lady straightened. "No matter what."

The young girl smiled timidly. "Thank you, my lady."

"Lizzie... I told you what I think about my lady," the sorceress reminded her.

"Of course." The maid's smile grew a bit. However after a few seconds it faded completely. "What if... what if she becomes queen?" Lizzie asked.

"I told you no matter what," Morgana said but her voice was no longer so firm.

"I didn't mean my job." The girl swallowed hard. "What will happen to Camelot when she marries king Arthur? It won't be the same place any more... I..." She hesitated. "I can't imagine her being my queen. I should probably keep it to myself since I'm just a servant but I don't want her to stay here."

Morgana watched her maidservant carefully. She had never thought that Lizzie was so bright. The girl could see the things that Arthur didn't notice. The sorceress started to be more and more worried about the kingdom.

"Let's hope she won't." Morgana forced herself to smile. "Miranda already acts as if she owned that place. It proves that she can't be a good queen. Besides she's so different from Arthur... he doesn't really care much if you are peasant or noble. He respects you for who you are. Not for who you were born."

Lizzie nodded quickly. "I know... the king gives commoners a chance to become knights." The girl blinked a few times. "He made Merlin his advisor."

"Merlin..." Morgana repeated her friend's name. "I think he's the only one who can show a true face of princess Miranda to Arthur."

"Will he do it?" Lizzie's face lit up with hope.

"I have no idea... First of all he must believe in himself." The lady sighed. "Now I must go for a while," she said abruptly. "You can finish what you've started." Morgana took a look at the laundry and left baffled girl alone.

oOoOo

Morgana was heading directly towards Merlin's chamber. She was ready to talk with him as long as it was necessary. He had to finally understand that he could convince Arthur to do almost anything. Someone had to tell the king that making Miranda his queen would be a disaster and Morgana was pretty sure that the man wouldn't listen to her.

Abruptly the sorceress heard some steps. She didn't know why but she hid in the shadow. Something was just telling her that it was a good idea.

After a few seconds she heard a bitter-sweet voice that she recognised very easily.

"Well, well, well..." Miranda said to someone. "Hello, Merlin. Aren't you going to talk with me for a while?"

Morgana gasped silently. Merlin should have avoided that woman.

"No, I'm not," the warlock answered shortly.

"I'm afraid but you have to." The princess was clearly amused.

"You cannot make me," Merlin hissed and Morgana thought the same.

"Are you sure, my dear?" The woman laughed. "Since I know your dirty little secret you should be nicer to me."

The dark haired woman held her breath. Miranda once again started making a use of others' weakness. It was simply sick.

"What do you want?" Merlin asked after a few seconds of silence. His voice was tired and resigned. Morgana was sure that he was fed up with Miranda's games.

"I just want to ask you how are you feeling," the princess said innocently. "You are so pale... There was no council yesterday if I remember well. You should have used that spare time for sleeping. We don't want our Court Magician to be ill, do we?" She smiled arrogantly. "I spent that time fruitfully."

Merlin remained silently. Morgana couldn't see it but he was looking at Miranda's face with disgust. He was very close to the breaking point.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" the red haired woman asked, rasing defiantly her right eyebrow. "Is it my imagination or I really see a jealousy in your eyes?"

The man started shaking.

It couldn't end well so Morgana decided to get involved. "Is something wrong?" she asked, coming out of the shadow.

Miranda looked up at her and took a step back. "No, of course not," she said nonchalantly. "We just had with Merlin a little chat."

"I see," Morgana said, coming closer. "Have you possibly finished that chat?"

"Actually yes, we have." Miranda glanced at the warlock. "At least for today." Then she walked away gracefully.

Morgana waited as the princess' steps trailed away and then looked carefully at Merlin. The man was like a shadow. He looked dumbly at the wall in front of him.

"Oh, Merlin..." The sorceress couldn't help hugging him. "Don't listen to her. She hurts you because she fears you."

Merlin didn't even stir.

"Come on." The woman grabbed his arm. "We'll go to your chamber and ask some servant to prepare a hot bath for you," she told him. "It will make you feel better."

"I want to tipple," the man mumbled.

"I won't let you," Morgana assured him. "Merlin... it's not going to solve your problems." She sighed. "We need to talk seriously but not here. To your chambers... Now!" she ordered.

Merlin was only moving his legs. Morgana was the only one who led him to his own chambers. He really stopped thinking about humiliation. The only thing that he cared about was Miranda's words: I spent that time fruitfully."

oOoOo

Merlin lay down on his bed. He didn't want a bath or anything else and Morgana respected his decision. Their conversation could wait one day.

The woman covered the man with a blanket and stroked his forehead. She started feeling as his mother but it wasn't so bad. Merlin probably needed his mother now as much as he needed Arthur. However Hunith was quite away from Camelot and she couldn't support her son. Morgana had to be enough for poor Merlin for that evening.

The warlock murmured something about wine but Morgana was stubborn. She wasn't going to let him get drunk now. It was pointless. The witch decided to stay with Merlin as long as he was awake. She knew that if she wasn't there he would have already flicked with his fingers to get as much alcohol as could let him forget.

"Sleep..." Morgana whispered softly. "Everything else can wait until morning."

Merlin was willing to listen. The bed was warm and comfortable. Lying there didn't seem to be a bad idea.

The sorcerer closed his eyes and after a while his breath became slow and steady. Morgana waited a while longer to make sure that he was really sleeping and then she left his chamber very quietly.

The woman was surprised seeing Arthur in front of Merlin's door.

"Morgana?" the king asked. "You..." He glanced at the door. "What are you...? Where's Merlin?"

"Merlin is sleeping in his bed," she answered. "Please, don't wake him up. He had a hard day."

"I suppose so," Arthur said bitterly.

Morgana looked carefully at him. He was hiding behind his mask of arrogance but she noticed a pain in his blue eyes.

"It's not what it seems," the woman assured him. "You don't understand."

"Oh, I understand very well, Morgana." The blonde looked away. "I just don't know why you didn't tell me."

"Because there was nothing to tell," Morgana said immediately. "Merlin is just my friend. I care for him as if he was my brother... And he treats me like a sister too!"

"You don't need to explain anything," Arthur mumbled. "I just... you could just tell, okay? I would've understood."

Morgana had thought that jealous Arthur was amusing but now she was truly worried. It went way too far. The king shouldn't have seen her leaving Merlin's chambers at such a late hour. His sick suspicions would lead to marriage with Miranda and consequently to two broken hearts and one broken kingdom.

"Arthur, please, listen to me." The dark haired woman wasn't going to give up so easily. "Me and Merlin aren't lovers. We never were and never will be."

The king shrugged. "You can be whoever you like," he said harshly. "I don't care."

"Yes you do, Arthur," Morgana couldn't help saying.

"Good night," he murmured, pretending that he didn't hear her words, and walked away.

oOoOo

"Kiara!" Miranda called her maidservant and the girl appeared by her side almost immediately.

"Yes, my lady?" she asked politely.

"We have a problem," the princess said bitterly.

"What's happened?" Kiara asked, feeling that it had something to do with Merlin and the throne of Camelot.

"Lady Morgana is at Merlin's side," Miranda explained to her maid. "She feels that something is wrong. I've seen it in her eyes today."

"She's close to king Arthur..." Kiara murmured.

"Exactly."

"Will she tell the king something, my lady?" The girl looked really disturbed.

"I doubt he would listen to her," the princess said candidly.

"What's the problem then?" Kiara was really confused.

"The problem is that Morgana knows very well how Merlin and Arthur care for each other. Alone they would never find out about the true nature of their feelings. However she supports them and with her help..." Miranda shook her head. She didn't even want to think about that possibility.

"Then what are you going to do, my lady?" the girl questioned. "I don't suppose that you're going to sit and watch how Merlin takes away the place that should belong to you."

"You're right, Kiara." The princess smirked. "I need to hurry up... quicken some things. I need to be faster than Morgana. She's worried about Merlin and Arthur so she acts slowly and warily."

"Sentiments make her weak and careful." Kiara started to understand her mistress' plan.

"Yes." Miranda smiled dreamily. "If I have a little chats with our dear Merlin everyday and if I use all my charm to tell Arthur about all the advantages of our kingdoms' union, then Morgana will be helpless. I also need to keep Arthur away from Merlin. I'm afraid that if that boy smiles at his king as a lovesick girl and tells him about some trip, my female tricks will not work. When they talk, Arthur can't see the rest of the world. He's all Merlin's," she said angrily. "It's rare but dangerous."

"My lady?" Kiara asked.

"Yes?"

"What if Merlin is stronger than he seems? What if he stays by Arthur side even after the marriage?" The girl hesitated. "You won't change king's feelings, my lady. He will still care for the sorcerer."

"Merlin won't be by Arthur's side," Miranda said firmly. "Even if he's stronger than I think, there's no way he will bear everything that I prepare for him."

"Are you sure, my lady?" the girl asked.

"Yes, Kiara. You know... when you find someone's greatest weakness and you know exactly how to turn it against him, then you don't need to worry." The princess smirked once again. "Merlin is going to crave for death."

And what do you think? Please, tell me!