The Mark of Nimueh
It was a rather nice day at Camelot, or at least it would have been...had a body not been found at the edge of the market place. Gaius had been called in and so, of course, his niece and nephew asked to go with him, Arthur was at training with the knights so it wasn't like they were needed for anything important. And...if they could drag this out a bit, perhaps they could be set to help HIM instead of following Arthur around. Which was why morning would find Marayna and Merlin crouched next to Gaius as he carefully examined the body on the ground.
"Aren't you worried?" Marayna asked, wrinkling her nose at the body lying face down before her.
"Of what?" Gaius questioned offhandedly, too focused on the body.
"That you might catch whatever it is," Merlin answered.
"I'm the Court Physician. This is part of my job. Most of the time there's really nothing to be scared of," he reached out to roll the body over, earning a squeak from Marayna as she jumped back at the sight of it. It was pale, far too pale to be normal, with pale blue veins bulging all over, its eyes as cloudy and blue as the rest of him.
'I'm guessing this isn't one of those times?' she asked her brother silently.
Merlin grimaced, "You were saying?"
Gaius looked around, startled, clearly not even HE was expecting something like that. He sighed, murmuring quietly to them when he noticed people walking past the small alley they had found the body in, "The people mustn't see this, they'll panic."
Marayna looked around and, spotting an old cloth, grabbed it and threw it over the body so that Merlin and Gaius could lift it onto the small wagon they'd brought with them.
~8~
'What do you think it is?' Marayna heard in her mind as she glanced up at her brother, who was pulling the cart with Gaius as she walked behind it.
'I have no idea,' she replied, 'But it can't be a natural disease.'
'You think it's magic?'
She shrugged, 'I hope not, but what else could it be?'
Merlin furrowed his brow, 'Hopefully Gaius can find an answer.'
'And a cure,' she added, 'I just hope it doesn't spre…'
"What're you doing?" a voice asked from behind them, startling them. They turned quickly to see Gwen walking up to them with a small handful of flowers in her hand and a basket on her arm.
"Uh," Marayna started, looking quickly at her brother for help.
What do you say to a question like that? Especially when one was trying to discreetly move a body without others noticing.
"Just...moving something," Merlin answered, mentally wincing at the knowledge that the something was what seemed to be a magically diseased corpse. He walked over to Marayna, standing next to her so that Gwen wouldn't be able to see the leg sticking through the cloth.
"Looks heavy," she commented, trying to peer around them to no avail as they leaned over every way she turned to block her attempts.
"Ah, not really," Merlin shrugged, trying to look casual, "You just have to…"
"Has someone given you flowers?" Marayna questioned suddenly, trying to steer the conversation away from the body and noticing the bouquet in Gwen's hands.
"Oh no," Gwen blushed, fiddling with the flowers for a moment before looking at them, "Would you like one? A purple one," she shuffled through the flowers, trying to pick two out.
"Sure," they replied slowly, reaching out as Gwen handed them some of the little lavender flowers. Marayna stuck one over her ear as Merlin placed his in his neckerchief. Gaius cleared his throat behind them and they quickly said their goodbyes, pulling the cart the rest of the way to the physician's chambers.
~8~
Meanwhile, in another part of the castle, Gwen entered Morgana's chambers, smiling brightly as she saw her Lady gazing out the window at the courtyard she had just been in. She could see a faint smile on Morgana's face and knew exactly what (who) she had seen to put that smile there. Her grin widened as the noblewoman turned to face her, "You look happy," Morgana commented knowingly.
"I picked these for you," Gwen said, holding out the flowers for her to take.
"Aw, that's so sweet," Morgana gushed as she held the flowers to her nose, inhaling their sweet scent.
"Something to cheer you up," Gwen shrugged, offering her a concerned look, "I know you're not sleeping well."
"You cheer me up," Morgana smiled.
Gwen smirked, "Though not as much as a certain other servant I suppose?" she laughed as Morgana blushed.
She really loved that about Morgana, about the relationship she had with her mistress, they were...friends. They were truly friends, had been ever since they were children and it was just...it relieved her to see that, despite being raised to privilege, Morgana was still very grounded and thankful for all she had. She never treated her like a servant, always fretted about her and was kind to her. Morgana made sure that both she and her father were well taken care of, always had a bit of extra coin, fabric for any dresses she may want to make, time to tend to her father and help him when needed. She was just...a very understanding mistress, very kind and always asked her to do things instead of ordering her to do them like other nobles.
She enjoyed that, being friends, she was glad Morgana saw her as that and not a servant. She never really saw others as servants though, she saw them as people, doing a job, a rather hard one. Morgana always tried to make life as easy as possible for her, tidying after herself, selecting her own clothes, keeping her room in order, anything she could to try and help Gwen out. And she appreciated it so much. She loved how Morgana saw the people and not the station...perhaps that was why she'd taken to Marayna and Merlin so quickly, she saw the sort of people they were, just...wonderful people.
~8~
Merlin and Marayna stood off to the side as Gaius continued to examine the body as it laid on an examination bench in the physician's chambers, looking through a magnifying glass as he poked at the protruding veins, "I've never seen anything like this before," he muttered to himself.
"Is it like a...plague or something?" Marayna asked, shaking her head as she stood a bit behind Merlin, the sight of the body was starting to unsettle her quite a bit. Despite being in such a small village, they'd never been exposed to many dead bodies, none like this.
"No, I fear that something like this could never come from nature," he answered before muttering, "But who has this kind of power?"
"You think it's caused by magic?" Merlin glanced at his sister, their fears already confirmed.
Before Gaius could actually speak though, a pounding on the door echoed throughout the chambers, "Merlin! Marayna!" Arthur's yells could be heard even through the thick wood.
Merlin laughed as Marayna rolled her eyes and went to open the door, muttering something about pratly, impatient princes under her breath,"We're coming!" she huffed, opening the door and half-glaring at the blonde man standing on the other side, "SO sorry we're late," she replied, though her tone alone told him she wasn't sorry in the slightest.
"Don't worry, I'm getting used to it," Arthur sighed, before his eyes fell on the flower tucked away in her hair and his jaw tightened unconsciously, "Has someone given you flowers?"
Marayna eyed him, a delicate eyebrow rising at the question, it was said with...quite the different intonation than she'd given to Gwen, "Oh yeah," she rolled her eyes, "A rather dashing young man ran up to me in the market, gave me this flower, kissed me full on the lips, and declared his vast, undying love for me."
Arthur stared at her in wide-eyed shock. She had said it so seriously he wasn't sure whether she was telling the truth or having one on him. He wasn't sure why the thought of it being true bothered him though. She was a servant, a peasant, she was...fair, he supposed, to look at, but that was besides the point in that he really...shouldn't be bothered...and yet he almost felt he might just be...which was ridiculous, he'd only known her a short while!
"She's joking sire," Merlin cut in, seeing the shock and brief hint of...something that resembled pain flash across the young man's eyes. His own narrowed slightly, it seemed the prince was starting to care about his sister and, while the Dragon said it was destiny, he didn't have to like it. But still, he glanced at his sister and whispered in her mind, 'Aya be nice, he's not used to your humor yet.'
And indeed, Arthur didn't seem to take kindly to her jest either as he glared at them both, "Just tell Gaius my father wants to see him, now," and before they could speak another word, he stormed off.
Marayna rolled her eyes and turned to shut the door, she looked up to see Gaius chuckling silently to himself, "And what, may I ask, is so funny uncle?"
Gaius smiled as he shook his head, his gaze still focused on the body, "I never quite pictured Arthur as the jealous type," and indeed he hadn't, the boy had always been rather a bit...arrogant, hardly ever to feel inferior to someone else, fully thinking himself capable of obtaining whatever he wished.
"Right," she commented sarcastically, "Arthur is jealous, and I'm the Queen of Camelot."
'You will be one day,' Merlin smirked at her, 'The Dragon said so.'
'Yes, because Uther would just LOVE to see a Queen who is not just a peasant, but a witch,' she muttered back, though he could hear her perfectly.
'Uther isn't Arthur,' Merlin replied wisely, 'The Dragon said Arthur will return magic to Camelot.'
'The Dragon also said you were two sides of the same coin,' she mirrored his smirk as his own faded, 'Or have you forgotten?'
He groaned in his mind, 'Don't remind me.'
'Just because some overgrown lizard with wings says it, doesn't mean it has to be true, for all we know he went round the bend AGES ago,' she laughed to him, making him chuckle at her calling the Last Great Dragon an 'overgrown lizard.' She smiled at his laugh and turned to face her uncle who hadn't even noticed the whole scene had gone on, "Uncle..."
"I heard," he replied, still not looking up.
"I mean, why couldn't he just tell you himself?" Merlin grumbled, still a bit put off at the reminder of his and Arthur's destinies being entwined, but then he recalled, at least he didn't have to marry the prat and felt a bit better.
"Because that's the way it is," Gaius finally looked up at them, "You're servants."
"Well, if he knew who we were," Merlin started, "What we've done…"
"You'd be dead servants," Gaius remarked flatly, "Right, get this covered up."
"Why should we?" Marayna asked innocently, "We're not your servants."
"No, you're my dogsbodies," he deadpanned, "Come on, hurry up."
~8~
Marayna flinched as she saw why her uncle had been called so urgently to the Great Hall. There, on the floor, surrounded by the king and some of the knights, was another body. She glanced to her side as she felt something take her hand and smiled thankfully at her brother for his silent comfort. She might have been the girl to hang around her brother and the other boys of the village more than with the girls but...dead bodies were just disgusting. They made her shudder and grimace and feel like her skin was crawling.
"What's happened to him?" Uther asked, his eyes wide with fear as Gaius rose from examining the body.
"I don't know, sire," he sighed, "That's the second case I've seen today."
"Why didn't you report it to me?" Uther demanded.
"I was attempting to find out the cause," Gaius replied calmly, Marayna had no idea how her uncle could remain so calm with Uther half-shouting at him.
"And what did you conclude?" the king eyed him, though everyone could tell he was dreading the answer.
"I don't think it's time to hurry to conclusions, the scientific process is a long one," Gaius looked away, trying to lead the king away from the topic he knew was coming, one he knew Uther would react very badly to.
"But why did you conceal this from me?" Uther questioned, more softly this time.
"Sire, I've never seen anything like this," Gaius answered quickly, "The victims are dying within 24 hours and it's spreading fast."
"So, what is the cause?" he demanded once again.
"I think you should say the cause, the most likely cause...is sorcery," Gaius answered reluctantly.
Uther gasped, his face growing two shades paler while Merlin and Marayna glanced at each other uncomfortably. This would not end well, especially if magic was involved. And now that Uther suspected a sorcerer to be the cause, they would have to be even more on guard with their magic. It was times like these where they actually felt a bit fearful. Uther's hatred of magic was well known and with him on alert...even the smallest suspicion or inkling of magic would set him off. Marayna squeezed Merlin's hand this time, more worried for her brother than herself. She hadn't done much accidental or reactive magic in her life, unlike her brother who, if you snuck up on him, would make things fly and whizz about in an instant. HE was the one she worried for, not herself.
Uther did not let his shock last long as he turned to Arthur and ushered him to the side, "We must find who did this…"
"I will father," Arthur promised.
"Conduct door to door searches, increase your presence in the town, double the guards on all the gates," Uther listed, trying to cover any and all bases he could think of, "And lend the physician your servants."
"Merlin and Marayna?" Arthur blinked, a bit shocked by the request, "But…"
"We need Gaius to find a cure, he needs all the help we can give him," Uther replied seriously and Arthur knew there would be no arguing with him, "If Gaius is right, believe me, this city will be wiped out. This is the kind of magic that undermines our authority, challenges all we've done. If we cannot control this plague, people will turn to magic for a cure. We have to find this sorcerer and quickly."
Arthur sighed, "Yes, father."
~8~
Merlin and Marayna stood at the corner of an alley in the Lower Towns, watching as Arthur fulfilled his father's orders, breaking down the door of a small house and entering to check for evidence of the sorcerer. Gaius stood between them, waiting a moment before turning and gesturing for them to follow. They only made it a few steps before Marayna heard someone coughing. She turned to see a pale man sitting against a beam of a store and ran to his side, "Uncle!" she called, getting both his and Merlin's attention.
Merlin immediately joined her at the man's side before turning to look at their uncle, "Gaius, he's still alive."
"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do for him," the old man sighed.
"But we haven't tried," Marayna argued, grabbing the man's hand, trying to offer him a bit of comfort.
"If we don't know what the disease is, then how can we cure him?" Gaius reminded them.
"With magic," Merlin whispered firmly, looking at the old man.
Gaius quickly reached down and pulled them both to their feet, taking their arms and leading them away, "Look, they're suspicious of everyone," he whispered to them as they walked, gesturing at the guards all over, "This is not the time to be using magic. Science will lead us to the source of the disease."
Merlin and Marayna could only look at each other and hope their uncle was right, though they couldn't help but feel like, by the time that happened, most of Camelot would be dead if it truly was spreading as fast as he feared.
~8~
Merlin sat on a stool in the physician's chambers while his sister took her usual place on the table, both of them watching their uncle swirl something around in a vial. It was odd, the only time Marayna ever really sat on the bench properly was when she was eating, claiming that the mice and rats would be more inclined to climb up to the food than scamper on her feet. He had to chuckle a bit, imagining it, his sister, as the Queen, sitting on top of a table in her regal gowns as a treaty of some sort was being signed, the neighboring kingdom eyeing her as though she'd gone mad. It was...quite the amusing image.
"What are you doing?" Merlin asked, shaking his head from his thoughts to grimace at the awful white color of the fluid, it looked a bit too much like the coloring of the plague victims.
"I'm examining the contents of that man's stomach," Gaius replied simply.
There was a moment's silence before Marayna spoke, "And...that'll tell you who's done this?"
"No, but it might tell us how it's spread," he sighed and looked at his niece and nephew, "One thing I do know, this is magic of the darkest kind."
"Why would anyone ever use magic like that?" Marayna said out loud, she just couldn't fathom why someone would use magic to hurt someone else, especially innocent men and women and children, "It's not like it gives Uther or Arthur the best examples of how it can be used or gives hope of anyone seeing it besides being evil."
"Magic corrupts," was the answer Gaius gave, "People use if for their own ends."
"But not all magic is bad," Merlin insisted, looking at his sister who was nodding in approval. If magic was bad, then so were they and they very much liked to think that they weren't evil, "We know it isn't."
"It's neither good nor bad," Gaius explained, smiling softly at his family, knowing where their minds had gone and...he had to admit, they were likely the best chance anyone had of ever coming to see magic as a force of good as opposed to evil, "It's how you use it."
"Like a sword," Marayna murmured in thought, "It's just a tool, it's how the person holding it wields it that counts."
"Maybe we could tell that to Uther," Merlin jested, trying to lighten the mood, "Maybe he'll ban swords and we won't have to clean Arthur's armor anymore."
Marayna had just giggled when Arthur and some guards burst into the room, 'And he complains about US not knocking,' Marayna thought to her brother.
"Sorry Gaius," Arthur looked around, "I'm searching every room in the town."
"What for?" Gaius demanded.
"The sorcerer," Arthur stated, motioning for his men to search.
"Why would he be here?" Gaius asked as Merlin and Marayna backed away from him a bit, knowing full well that their uncle took serious offense to that statement, that he might be harboring a sorcerer who meant harm to Camelot in his chambers. Merlin suddenly realized where his sister got her temper from, while neither she nor Gaius angered easily, when they were, they were dead scary.
"Look, I'm just doing my job," Arthur grumbled, clearly he didn't like this either.
"Well, we've nothing to hide, go on then, search," Gaius glared, his temper just a bit lessened by the prince's tone, but still...to have him or his father think that the sorcerer that conjured the plague was with him, why it was ridiculous! If anything, the sorcerers that would most likely end the plague resided with him. But Arthur mustn't know that.
Arthur looked around before walking over to a pile of books on a table, "All these books and papers?"
"My life's work, dedicated to the understanding of science," Gaius said proudly, "You're quite welcome to read through them if you wish."
Arthur made a face that mirrored Merlin and Marayna's at the thought of reading through all those books. Arthur and his men continued their search when Arthur saw a door at the back of the room and moved towards it, "What's this room up here?"
"Oh, it's ours," Merlin answered, taking a step towards it.
"What do you expect to find in there?" Gaius asked as Arthur reached out and opened the door.
"I'm looking for materials or evidence suggesting the use of enchantments," Arthur repeated as though he had said it hundreds of time before, which he probably had.
Marayna's eyes widened as he disappeared into the room and she realized that she hadn't put the book away from when she'd been reading it last night!
"What have you done with that magic book I gave you?" their uncle whispered, noticing her expression.
'You put it away...didn't you?' Merlin asked, 'Please, Aya, tell me you put it away.'
'I didn't,' she replied, actually frightened, 'I'm so sorry Merlin!'
Before another word could be spoken, Arthur's voice reached them from their room, "Merlin, Marayna, come here, look what I found."
The two looked at each other for a moment before rushing to the room, praying to every entity they could think of that Arthur had missed the book. They nearly cried with relief at the sight of Arthur looking at an empty cupboard in the back and not the magic book lying right at the foot of their bed, surrounded by an old blanket but still very visible.
"I found a place where you can put things," Arthur spoke, shutting the small door and turning to face them, "It's called a cupboard."
They strainedly grinned at him as he stepped past them and across the room to look at their bedside. While he wasn't looking Merlin quickly used her magic to drop a sheet over the book, hiding it. Arthur looked around once more before heading back to the main room, Merlin and Marayna following him with a relieved sigh, "How long do you think it may be before you find a cure?" Arthur asked Gaius.
"Depends on how many interruptions I get," Gaius replied tersely.
"Of course, I'm sorry," Arthur winced, embarrassed, before turning to the guards and motioning for them to leave, "We're finished here."
As soon as they were gone and Gaius shut the door he turned to face the two nervous siblings, "We have to hide that book," he told them simply.
"No, we must use it," Merlin smiled at his idea. He knew just what to do to stop the plague.
"Don't be stupid," Gaius remarked, his face setting into a serious expression.
"I have this legacy and what is it for?" Merlin asked, frustrated, "You keep telling me it's not for playing tricks…"
"You want to practice magic when the king is looking for sorcerers? Are you mad?" Gaius stared at him, completely at a loss to Merlin's reasoning.,"Merlin, your life is destined for more important things."
"But if he doesn't practice, how will he get to be this great warlock?" Marayna countered, smiling as Merlin gave her a grateful smile, "How will either of us?"
"There will come a time when your skills will be recognized," he insisted.
"When?" Marayna asked with a bit of a disbelieving laugh.
"How long do we have to wait?" Merlin added.
"Patience is a virtue," was all Gaius said.
"Sitting by and doing nothing, that's a virtue?" Merlin nearly spat. He hated being powerless to help those around him, especially when they were suffering. It was just as much in his nature to try and help someone in pain as it was for his sister to punch someone for being a pain.
"Your time will come."
"Uncle...if we tried, we could probably cure that man we saw in the market," Marayna pleaded.
"I know it's tempting to use the way you find easiest…" Gaius started until Merlin interrupted.
"It is when it would save a life!"
"It's no good just saving one person," Gaius finished, as though Merlin hadn't spoke, "We need to discover how this illness is spreading."
"Arthur is out there right now looking for the sorcerer," Marayna added, her implication that their time was limited and the danger for them was imminent was not lost on anyone.
"A sorcerer who's powerful enough to do this will not be found searching the town," Gaius stated knowingly.
"So what can we do?" Merlin sighed.
"Hope that science can find the answer before this kills us all," Gaius sighed before turning back to his concoction.
~8~
A day or so later, yet another body appeared on Gaius's examining bench. Merlin and Marayna stood on either side as Gaius stood at the head, each of them looking at the poor soul who had fallen prey to the plague, "What's different about this victim?" Gaius questioned, looking at the two before him.
"She's a woman?" Merlin replied, confused as to where this was going.
'Way to state the obvious Merlin,' he heard in his head and glared at his sister.
"Sometimes I do wonder whether your magical talents were given to the right person," Gaius muttered, "Anything else?"
"She's a courtier," Marayna answered, "But what difference does that make?"
"Ah, courtiers seldom go down to the Lower Towns so what does that mean?" Gaius answered with another question.
Merlin and Marayna groaned, he wasn't going to make this easy was he? Merlin rubbed his head, getting a feeling his uncle was about to become worse than that bloody Dragon with his riddles.
"She'd never be caught dead talking to a peasant?" Marayna guessed.
"Do try to choose your words more carefully next time Rayna," Gaius sighed at her phrasing, "But yes, it suggests that the disease is not spread from physical contact."
"And they probably ate different food," Merlin supplied.
"Good, anything else?"
"I doubt they breathe the same air," Marayna thought out loud.
"So what's the only thing they do share?"
"Water?" Merlin asked as Gaius nodded, "Water! You think the disease is spread through water?"
"Merlin, you're a prodigy," Gaius replied sarcastically as he handed him a bucket.
Merlin and Marayna quickly left Gaius's chambers and went to the market to collect some water from the pump. Marayna had just finished pumping enough water to fill the bucket when Gwen ran past them, tears streaming down her face.
"Gwen?" Merlin asked, not entirely sure if it was Gwen he had seen, she ran by so fast.
Realizing it was the girl in question though, Marayna quickly ran after her, leaving Merlin to grab the bucket, "Gwen!" she called, losing her as she reached Gaius's chambers.
"Gwen?" Gaius turned as the girl maneuvered her way around the various tables and chairs to stand before him, heaving from her run.
"Gaius," she cried.
"You have the sickness?" he questioned, immediately assuming the worst and trying to subtly examine her for symptoms.
She shook her head, "My father, please Gaius, he's all I have."
"Gwen," he swallowed, solemn, "I have no cure."
"I am begging you..."
"I wish there was something, anything, but so far, the remedy's beyond what I can achieve. I'm sorry Gwen."
Gwen simply shook her head and fled the room, her tears returning as Merlin and Marayna looked on in sorrow, "There must be something we can do?" Marayna turned to her uncle, her heart breaking for the girl. She knew both she and Merlin would be in the same boat if it had been their mother.
"Let's hope that this can provide some answers," Gaius took the bucket from Merlin.
"But that'll be too late for Gwen's father," Merlin protested.
"I fear you may be right," Gaius agreed, placing a small flower into a vial of water and shaking it.
~8~
Merlin glanced around the room that night as he carefully skimmed the magic book, looking for anything that could help Gwen's father. Eventually he found a spell that was exactly what he was looking for. He shut the book with a grin and quietly got up, careful not to disturb his sister or Gaius as he proceeded to sneak out of the room. He managed to get to the edge of the castle, right where the village started and he knew Gwen's house to be. He leaned around the corner to see a guard patrolling the street and tried to spot anything that could help him get past...
When he felt a hand on his shoulder.
He spun around, about to shout at the disturbance, when a hand was slapped across his mouth, "Shhhhh!" Marayna hissed as she kept her brother from calling out and alerting the guard.
Merlin pulled her hand off him, 'What are you doing here Aya!?' he asked in her mind, not willing to risk whispering out loud.
'Did you REALLY think I'd let you do this by yourself?' she replied with a smile, 'I want to help Gwen just as much as you,' she couldn't help her mind flashing back to thoughts of what she would do if it had been their mother.
Merlin smiled at her, sensing her thoughts. He was happy she was there, they always accomplished more together than they did apart, it was like...she channeled his raw magic, focused it in a way, where he was the power she was the aim. Not that he didn't think she was powerful in her own right, he'd seen...quite a few enormous things happen when she really focused and concentrated, but she just seemed to have more natural control so he never saw much of it.
He was about to ask her what to do about the guard when she leaned across him to peer around the corner, "Onstyrian, onbregdan," she whispered.
He turned quickly to see a door shut and the guard walking towards it before it swung open, effectively knocking him out, making him laugh, 'That was brilliant,' he praised, putting an arm around her shoulder to tug her close and press a kiss to the side of her head before he pushed off the wall, taking her hand in his own and silently running down the street towards Gwen's.
They managed to reach it with no other guard in sight and carefully crept inside. Gwen's father was sleeping fitfully on the bed, Gwen kneeling beside it asleep as well. Merlin pulled out a poultice from his pocket and placed it under Gwen's father's pillow, trying his best not to disturb either father or daughter. He stepped back to where Marayna was standing and held out his hand towards the sleeping figures, "Rumfornimest adl fram guman," he whispered, his eyes flashing golden in the night. Marayna tugged his hand, pulling him back outside as Tom began to stir in his sleep. They watched though the window as Gwen woke to her father's movements and threw herself at him when she noticed he was well again, the faint blue veins already starting to fade.
They glanced at each other, smiling at how their magic had saved a man's life.
~8~
The next morning Gwen was practically skipping around Morgana's room as she straightened up, the smile on her face as radiant as the sun.
"How's your father?" Merlin asked, sticking his head into the room. She spun around to see Marayna stick her head in under her brother as well.
"Feeling better?" Marayna added.
"Yeah," she replied, her smile growing even more if it were possible, "It's incredible! It's a miracle."
Merlin and Marayna glanced at each other, smiling secretly, something that didn't go unnoticed by Gwen, "His skin's clear and back to normal?" Merlin turned to face her again.
"Yes," she answered slowly, eyeing them.
"Wonderful," Marayna replied, moving to leave when Gwen called out again.
"You don't seem surprised," she commented.
"Oh, no, no, we are," Merlin said.
"It IS a miracle, isn't it?" Marayna confirmed.
"But how did you know he was well?" she shook her head, something was going on with those two.
"Because you're smiling?" Merlin ventured.
"It's really weird because I haven't told anyone, but you know," Gwen commented, "How could you know?"
Merlin and Marayna looked at each other again, before dropping their heads with a sigh and making their way into the room, "I suppose, since you've worked that out," Marayna started, "We could probably say…"
Gwen looked at them expectantly, her face reflecting the seriousness she thought the moment held, "We're psychic," Merlin smiled.
"No you're not," Gwen laughed, shaking her head at their antics.
"We are though," Marayna laughed as well, happy that her friend was happy.
Ooh that was strange, having a friend, well, having a friend who was a woman. She'd had a few male friends, some she probably shouldn't be friends with given how others saw them (but what did she care about the standards of others?) and...she'd never really had a true, female friend before, unless she counted her mother, who truly was her best friend ever...apart from Merlin. But Gwen was nice and she was sweet and...she was a good, kind, and understanding person.
"Alright," Gwen gave them a look, "What am I thinking?"
"That we're not psychic," Merlin answered.
Gwen laughed heartily, "You're strange," she started, before quickly looking between the two, worried, "Oh, I don't mean that in a nasty way. You're just...funny."
"We're pleased for you," Merlin replied after a moment of smiles. Marayna nodded and turned to leave with Merlin when Gwen spoke one more time.
"Thank you," she whispered.
"What for?" Merlin asked, turning to face her.
"Dunno," she shrugged, "Just...for asking."
"You're our friend Gwen," Marayna smiled, "Friends don't like to see each other so upset," she smiled, reaching out to squeeze the girl's hand for a moment.
"Well," Merlin spoke up, "We have to get on," Gwen nodded and smiled as she watched her friends leave the room.
~8~
Unfortunately, all the happiness that had infected anyone who spoke to Gwen that day, didn't last long. Word of Tom's recovery spread fast through the kingdom...and Arthur was sent to investigate how the man had miraculously gotten so well again, and had found the poultice Merlin had created. The next thing anyone knew, Gwen had been arrested for sorcery!
Merlin and Marayna had just entered one of the halls with Gaius when Arthur walked past them, with two guards pulling a frantic Gwen behind them. They made a move to help her, when Gaius grabbed them and dragged them back to his chambers, "What have you done?" Gaius demanded, just KNOWING it had been the two of them getting into trouble once more.
"What?" Merlin shook his head, still confused about what was going on.
"I warned you," he half-shouted, "Oh, I understand you thought you were doing good..."
"It's not like we could just sit there and watch her father die when we knew we could help him!" Marayna defended.
"Didn't you think it might have been suspicious, the curing of one man?" he held up one finger to emphasize his point, had there been an outbreak of cure...well, even with it being suspicious it would be less so than just ONE person out of hundreds recovering, and to recover so suddenly? Did they not think of that?!
"Then all we have to do is…" Merlin trailed, trying to come up with something, "We'll cure everyone. No one will ever have to know it was magic."
"It's too late!" Gaius exclaimed, "Everyone thinks Gwen is a sorceress. They think she caused the disease!"
"But she didn't!" Marayna shouted.
"And how are you going to prove that?" Gaius countered, disappointment shining in his eyes.
Marayna quickly turned, grabbed Merlin's hand, and dragged him out of the room. They fled down the hall, coming to a stop just outside the Great Hall, needing to know what was going on. The doors were shut, they couldn't enter, but they could still hear what was being said.
Marayna could feel tears coming to her eyes as she listened to Gwen begging for her life, proclaiming her innocence while Uther turned a deaf ear. Gwen was dragged out of the room, the people within dispersing. Merlin and Marayna could just barely see Morgana approaching the king to plead her maidservant, no, her friend's innocence, before the doors shut and they were locked out again. They could hear Morgana defending Gwen, arguing with the King. Arthur even tried to talk some sense into his father.
But it was to no avail.
Marayna let out a strangled cry and buried herself against her brother's chest as he hugged her, Uther had just ordered Gwen to be burned rather than beheaded.
A moment later Morgana stormed out of the room, tears in her eyes. She was just about to pass them when Merlin reached out on instinct of seeing someone upset and took Morgana's hand in his own. She paused, turning to face him, a sorrowful expression on her face. He smiled softly and squeezed her hand, the unspoken promise that everything would be alright lingering between them. Morgana seemed to sense it and smiled in reply before quickly rushing off down the halls towards the dungeons to speak with Gwen.
~8~
"We were just trying to help Gwen," Marayna spoke brokenly as she and Merlin sat in Gaius's chambers, "We just...wanted to help, to do something good with magic."
"I thought we were saving a life and it seemed so simple," Merlin admitted.
"An easy solution is like a light in a storm," Gaius spoke wisely, "Rush forward at your peril for it may not always lead you to a safe harbor."
"We see that now," Marayna muttered, wiping a tear from her eye.
"How many times have I warned you of the responsibilities of practicing magic?" Gaius mused solemnly.
"I have to see her," Merlin stood, Marayna nodded and stood as well, following her brother out of the room and towards the dungeons.
~8~
Marayna shuddered as she looked around the dungeon, it was so dark and damp, she couldn't imagine what it must be like for Gwen to be held there. Merlin had told her before, of how he had been locked in the prison for taunting and fighting Arthur, but that was all a light charge compared to what Gwen was there for. Gwen had done nothing wrong, absolutely nothing! She was an innocent person and had no business being down there and charged with death for a magic she didn't possess. If anything, it should be she and Merlin stuck in that cell, but, she realized, if there were there, then no one would be around to free Gwen and stop the plague.
They were just passing the guards when Marayna whispered, "Na híeran."
'Thank you,' she heard Merlin speak, 'I didn't even think of that.'
She shrugged, 'No one should hear what we're about to tell her.'
Merlin should have been confused by his sister's words, but he knew what she meant. They had to tell Gwen the truth. She deserved to know whose fault it was that she was there. He only hoped she wouldn't hate them for getting her in this predicament and that...that she'd understand and not...not subject them to Uther if they managed to clear her name.
They rushed forwards as her cell came into view and wrapped their hands around the bars as they stood before it, "Gwen," Marayna whispered. It wasn't that there was any other prisoner down there to hear them, it was just Gwen, but...the girl was laying down and she wasn't sure if she was asleep or not. If she was there was no point in waking her.
Luckily, Gwen was not asleep and quickly rolled to her feet, managing a smile at her friends standing before her cell, "Thank you," she murmured, stunning them. That was not the welcome they were expecting to hear.
"What for?" Merlin asked.
"Coming to see me," she shrugged.
"We're sorry," Marayna spoke, tears coming to her eyes again.
"It's not your fault. It's alright, don't worry about me. There's no point in crying about it," she looked at them, wide-eyed, "I mean, I mean I'm not saying you were going to cry about me. Obviously I don't think that. I just…"
"We're so sorry Gwen," Merlin repeated after his sister, tears in his eyes now too, "This is all our fault."
"Like I said, it's not your fault. I…"
"It is though," Marayna whispered quietly.
Gwen looked at them, about to tell her once more that it wasn't...when she caught the tortured look in the girl's eyes, the guilt in Merlin's...and then she understood.
She gasped and stared at them, "You cured my father? The two of you?" she looked between them, "You practice magic?" she said the last part so quietly they could barely hear her, glancing down the hall towards the guards.
"You can speak as loudly as you want," Merlin tried to smile, "The guards won't hear us."
"You know," Marayna added with a small shrug, "Magic and all."
"You really practice magic?" she asked, just a bit frightened, she had heard all the stories about sorcerers and what they did to people, how cruel they were, how evil, how black their hearts...
"We don't really have to practice," Marayna responded, "We didn't exactly have a choice in it."
"We were...we were born like this Gwen," Merlin explained, "It just comes naturally to us."
"We would never hurt you Gwen. Not ever."
"We're so sorry this happened to you, we just…"
"Thank you," Gwen cut them off, smiling at them through her tears.
Though their ramblings she was reminded...they were anything but cruel or evil or black hearted. Look at them, standing there, stuttering away, rambling, frantic over what SHE thought of them. And for what? For saving someone's life? For saving the life of her father? The only person she still had in her life since her mother had passed and her brother practically ran away? They had been trying to END the sickness, they hadn't caused it. They were just...trying to help and...to do that, well, she KNEW that was how they naturally were, there was just...no way that Merlin and Marayna could be as evil as Uther claimed all sorcerers were.
Uther, she knew, had been wrong in the past, and now...now she firmly believed he was wrong in this as well.
All magic couldn't be evil of people like Merlin and Marayna possessed it, if they'd been BORN with it.
"You saved my father," she continued, touched. In Camelot, the punishment for magic...she was well aware (all too aware now) of exactly what they'd risked in helping her, "You risked yourselves to save him, to help him. You're...amazing. And you've done nothing wrong."
"But Gwen," Merlin started, but was unable to continue.
"You're going to pay for our crimes," Marayna finished.
"What you did," Gwen shook her head, starting to laugh a bit through her tears, "It wasn't a crime, you saved someone's life. You gave me my father back," they were silent for a moment as the seriousness of the situation caught up to them, "Please, one thing, you don't need to but…"
"What?" Merlin asked.
"Yes, we'll do anything," Marayna added.
"Remember me."
They frowned, "You're not going to die," Merlin stated firmly, so firmly in fact that Gwen almost believed him.
"We won't let this happen," Marayna promised before they both turned and quickly left.
They had to fix this.
~8~
"What are we going to do?" Marayna asked Merlin as they left the dungeons.
"Gaius went to meet Uther, probably to talk about Gwen," Merlin muttered, "I have to tell Uther that I did it."
"Merlin you can't!" Marayna shouted, grabbing his arm and stopping him, spinning him to face her in the middle of the empty hall, "If you do that, I'll tell him I helped."
"But I was the one who did it," he reasoned.
"If you hadn't, I would have," Marayna countered, "If we go to Uther, he'll have us both executed and then who will help Gwen?"
That seemed to get through to Merlin a bit. He nodded, squeezing her hand and running off with her back to Gaius's chambers, maybe there was something in the magic book that could help them find the source of the enchantment and cancel it. They had only just made it to their room when Gaius entered, grabbed a bag, threw it at them, and ordered them to follow him. He was going to the source, the water supply.
~8~
Merlin lit a torch as he and Marayna entered the caverns below the castle with Gaius taking the lead. It was a bit dark and creepy, but neither of them had much of a problem. They hadn't been scared of the dark since they were five and with their magic, there wasn't much that could hurt them.
They walked for a bit till Gaius came to a stop before a small wall with water behind it, "The water from here supplies the whole town," he explained, handing Marayna a bottle, "Take a sample."
Marayna stepped forward and dipped the bottle into the water to take the sample. She stepped back and handed it to Gaius who held it up, trying to see more of it in the torchlight but it wasn't working well, "Best take it back and examine it."
No sooner had he spoke, a giant creature sprung up from the water before them. It was only for a moment but it was enough for them to realize it wasn't a normal, natural creature, it was one created from sorcery.
"What the hell was that?!" Marayna exclaimed as the creature dove back into the water.
~8~
They had rushed back to Gaius's chambers and immediately set to work searching his books for whatever that creature was.
"There!" Gaius proclaimed, pointing to a page as Merlin and Marayna came over, "It was an Afanc."
"An…a what?" Merlin asked, staring at the picture in the book. It looked like the creature he had seen, though he couldn't be certain, it happened so quickly.
"A beast born of clay and conjured up only by the most powerful sorcerer," Gaius read before looking at them, "Now we have to find a way to defeat it. But where?"
Gaius looked up at his vast collection of books, as Merlin and Marayna looked at each other, "That could take days," Marayna complained.
"Gwen'll be dead by then," Merlin added.
"Have you got a better idea?" Gaius asked, glancing back at them.
The siblings blinked and looked at each other, before grinning and taking off out of the room.
Indeed they did have a better idea.
~8~
Merlin and Marayna quickly made their way to the Dragon's prison, only to find it empty, "Hello?" Merlin called.
"Hello," a voice called from the darkness, before a gust hit them and the Dragon appeared, flying up from somewhere to perch on the rock in the middle of the cavern, "The great warlock and witch return, as I knew you would."
"How do you defeat an Afanc?" Marayna got right to the point.
"An Afanc," the Dragon mused, "A creature of clay and magic..."
"Will you help us?" Merlin cut in, quite annoyed at the Dragon's less than straight answers and odd ramblings. They knew what an Afanc was already, they needed to know how to stop it!
"Trust the elements that are at your command," the Dragon answered.
"Elements?" Marayna questioned, "How is that supposed to help us?!"
"You cannot do this alone," the Dragon continued, ignoring her, before looking at Merlin, "You are but one side of a coin, Arthur is the other."
"We don't understand, just tell us what is it we have to do?" Merlin spat back. The Dragon didn't seem to like his tone as he spread his wings and began to ascend, "No! Please, help us!"
"I have," was all the Dragon said as he flew off.
"Oh, yeah, right, thanks!" Marayna yelled back, "That helped SO much!" she huffed and crossed her arms, 'Bloody Dragon,' she whispered to Merlin, 'Is he always like that?'
'Worse,' Merlin remarked.
'Well THAT makes sense,' she grumbled, running a frustrated hand through her hair, 'He can tell me, in NO uncertain terms, that I'm supposed to marry a clotpole but he CAN'T tell us how to get rid of a clay monster?!'
Merlin just laughed at her irritation, taking her hand and pulling her off before she started shouting obscenities at the 'overgrown lizard.'
~8~
Merlin and Marayna quickly skimmed through Gaius's books, taking turns pulling them off of the shelves and stacking them on the desks and benches before them. They were trying to find anything at all on the elements but were having no such luck. A moment after Marayna had slammed yet another useless book shut the physician himself entered.
"What're you doing?" he asked, looking down at the number of books lying haphazardly around the room. This would take forever to sort through...again. Arthur had already set them all out of order.
"Looking for a book," Merlin answered, shutting one and grabbing another.
"Going to tell me which one?" Gaius frowned as Merlin pulled a book from a pile, causing the others to fall over.
"We need to know about the elements," Marayna spoke this time.
"The elements?" Gaius shook his head, not knowing where they were going with this.
"Yes, which one would we find them in?" Merlin looked up at him, a book open in his lap.
"Most often the base elements are at the heart of the scientific process," Gaius recited.
"Yes, uncle, as much as I would just LOVE a lecture on science, I'd really rather just work out how the elements are meant to help us kill the Afanc," Marayna remarked dryly, looking up from the book in her hands as well. She knew she was probably being a bit snide and rude to him, but she tended to get that way when she was frustrated and in a rush
"Well an Afanc is a creature made from earth and water, that's two of the four base elements," their uncle explained, not at all perturbed by her remark.
"What about the other two?" Merlin questioned, getting excited, this could work after all!
"Perhaps they would destroy it?" Gaius replied, catching onto their train of thought, "With fire, wind and fire. How did you find this out?"
"Uh, we just knew, you know?" Merlin lied, glancing at his sister for help.
"Part of our powers," she added.
"And what else do your 'powers' tell you?" Gaius gave them a look that told them he didn't believe a word of it.
"That Merlin is only one side of a coin," Marayna began, fiddling with the edge of the page she had been about to read.
"The brighter side obviously," Merlin muttered.
"And who's the other side?" Gaius asked, curious.
"Arthur," Marayna snorted.
Merlin glared at her, "If I'm one side and he's the other, you're the inscription on both sides."
Marayna was about to stick out her tongue at him when Morgana suddenly burst into the room, "They're bringing forward the execution!" she cried as she rushed over to them. Merlin immediately stood and took a few steps towards her, "We have to prove Gwen's innocence."
"We tried," Gaius said sadly.
"Please just tell me what I can do to help," Morgana begged, her eyes locking with Merlin.
Marayna looked between the two when neither made a move to speak. She would have smiled at the scene had the times not been so serious, "We'll need Arthur's help."
"Arthur?" Morgana asked, snapping out of her thoughts and looking over at the girl.
"There's a monster, an Afanc in the water supply," Merlin explained, "That's what's causing the plague."
"Well, we must tell Uther," Morgana started, when Gaius cut her off.
"The Afanc's a creature forged by magic," he informed her grimly, "Telling Uther wouldn't save Gwen, he'd just blame her for conjuring it."
"So what are we to do?" Morgana nodded, understanding their logic.
"Destroy it of course," Marayna answered with a smirk, "With the plague over some sort of sense might just stand a chance of actually making it through Uther's thick skull."
"Aya!" Merlin gaped at what she'd said.
"Marayna!" Gaius chastised, frowning at his niece for speaking such a thing, especially before Morgana.
"What?" Marayna looked at them, "It's not like he's standing right here to be insulted!"
"That is still your king," Gaius reminded her.
"Not my king," she countered back, "I am NOT a subject of Camelot and, until he conquers Ealdor, he's not my king. Cendred isn't even my king. He's A king. And I will not respect any king that doesn't care for his subjects..."
"Marayna," Gaius cut in again, "Uther may be many things, but to claim he does not care..."
"Mention magic around him then," she challenged, "Go on, just mention it and see how reasonable he becomes. He cares about his kingdom, he doesn't care about the people in it if he's willing to become so blinded by a hatred of magic that he'll slaughter his innocent subjects."
Morgana merely nodded along, a soft smile on her face to find someone else openly thought the king rather stubborn and as biased as she did, "Which is why we need Arthur," she realized, "Uther will listen to his son more than any other, and if Arthur can defeat the Afanc..."
"His head will grow exponentially to realize he's also saved the kingdom," Marayna let out a long suffering sigh, "But he's the only one who won't naturally assume it's Gwen and think to kill her first to end the enchantment," she frowned, "He doesn't seem the sort to disobey his father though..."
Morgana looked at Marayna intently, when an idea struck her, "Leave that to us," she stated before grabbing the girl's hand and pulling her out of the room, Merlin and Gaius standing there stunned at the conversation that had just happened before them.
~8~
Morgana quickly stopped outside Arthur's room, "Stay here till I signal you," she said before casually entering the chambers. Marayna stepped up and peered a bit around the door frame so she could see Morgana and hear what was being said.
"Are you alright?" Arthur asked when he saw Morgana. He glanced around his room which drew Marayna's attention to how messy it was, making her roll her eyes at it. Honestly, was the man that incapable of cleaning up after himself? "Sorry, about all this, my servants haven't been in today."
Ok, obviously he was.
"Poor Merlin," Morgana muttered, "Poor Rayna."
"Yeah," Arthur nodded, not knowing what else to say.
"I heard them speaking on the way to Gaius's before, they were about to give themselves up for Gwen," she remarked offhandedly, startling Marayna as she and Merlin hadn't seen her. She hadn't heard everything they were saying, they were speaking far to quietly, but she could make out the important details that they were going to go to Uther and claim they were the ones who cured Tom.
"You're joking?" he gave her an incredulous look, how foolish could his servants be?! Lying to the king about magic could get them executed as easily as actually practicing it! And then where would he be? He'd have to train new servants and his room would be in even worse condition.
Morgana looked at him from under her eye lashes, "To be willing to give up their lives for Gwen's…I certainly can't imagine anyone, any man, loving me so much."
"No, I certainly can't imagine that either," he muttered, wondering where it was she was going with this.
"That's because you're not like Merlin," Morgana stated, quite serious all of a sudden, Arthur's brow furrowed as he detected some other emotion playing behind her words, "He's a lover."
"Yes," he began slowly as Morgana turned to glance around the room, her gaze lingering over her shoulder for a moment, "Maybe that's because I haven't found the right person to…love."
Just as he finished speaking, Marayna walked into the room. Morgana chanced a look at the prince, only to smirk slightly to herself as she saw his attention fully focused on the other girl. Whatever it was he might feel for the girl, irritation, fondness, what have you...he certainly was intrigued by her. She turned to face the girl in question, "Ah Rayna," she smiled, as though she hadn't known the girl was right there, "Doesn't it seem as though the age of gallantry is dead?"
Marayna glanced at her in confusion for just a moment before she nodded slowly, picking up on what the noblewoman was planning, "Yes," she answered, sighing, "It seems like, these days, any old fool can put on armor and call himself a hero," she glanced at Arthur from the corner of her eye, "Yet all of them would turn their backs and flee the moment a chance came to prove themselves and do what's right."
Arthur nearly laughed at the situation, the girl was either spending far too much time with Morgana, or an extremely fast learner, "What do you want me to do?" he asked, knowing they were trying to bait him.
Morgana looked at Marayna, indicating she was to explain. Marayna took a breath, "We know what's caused the plague," she answered, "There's an Afanc in the water supply."
"And I am to…" Arthur trailed, leaving the question open.
"You're supposed to invite it over to a lovely dinner," she deadpanned before rolling her eyes, "Kill it obviously. You've got a sword," she gestured vaguely at him, "It's all sharp and pointy, I know it is, Merlin nearly beheaded himself trying to clean it. So USE it."
"Please, Arthur," Morgana spoke up, "We don't have much time."
Arthur nodded, hearing the hidden words in Morgana's plea, Gwen didn't have much time. He liked the girl, he had known her as long as he had known Morgana, she was like another sister to him. And he knew her well enough to know this was not her doing. He hadn't once believed she was a sorceress and this was his chance to clear her name.
He picked up his sword and strode out of the room, Morgana and Marayna following after him, both women sharing a secret smile.
~8~
They ran across the courtyard, seeing Merlin waiting for them to lead the way down to the tunnels, having heard a metal call from Marayna to get down there, that Arthur was coming. Marayna rushed ahead to join her brother's lead. They paused at the opening of the staircase that would lead to the monster, lighting some torches and making their way down to the dark depths below.
"You better be right about this," Arthur muttered as he glanced at his two servants. As soon as he spoke a low grumbling (that sounded a bit too much like a growl for comfort) echoed through the cavern.
Morgana let out a surprised gasp and reached out, only to have Merlin's hand take hers in comfort. She glanced at him, smiling in relief and thanks.
The gasp seemed to remind Arthur that it wasn't just him and Merlin exploring the shadows as he glanced back at Morgana and Marayna, "You should stay here," he tried to sound authoritative, suggesting it wasn't a request at all but an order, "Both of you."
"I'm coming with you," Morgana argued, her grip on Merlin's hand tightening slightly, though Arthur couldn't quite see thanks to the fabric of Morgana's dress fluttering over their entwined hands. Marayna simply nodded in agreement, trying desperately not to smile at the hands she had glimpsed.
"No."
"Scared we'll show you up?" Marayna challenged.
"Father will slam us both in chains if he knew I'd endangered you," he said, more towards Morgana. He knew his father wouldn't care one way or another if Marayna was hurt, but he knew he'd never forgive himself if anything happened to her either.
"Good thing he doesn't know about it then," Morgana replied.
"I'm telling you Morgana, I'm telling you both, turn back," he nearly shouted, glancing between the two, "You could get hurt!"
"Oh and YOU will most certainly get hurt," Marayna took a few steps towards him, stepping right up to him, her chest nearly touching his...before pushing past him, being sure to nudge his shoulder a bit, "If you try to stop me going anywhere my brother goes."
Morgana smirked at the girl before walking past Arthur as well, Merlin following along behind her as she had yet to let go of his hand, "How are we going to find it?" she asked after a moment, looking around.
"Just like we did…" Merlin answered, "Or it finds us."
"Stop!" Arthur suddenly shouted.
"What?" Marayna spun around, following Arthur's gaze towards the shadows that lined the walls.
"It's just a shadow," he replied, still staring at the wall warily, "Spread out."
They entered the chamber that Gaius had led them to before and began walking in different directions, Morgana letting go of Merlin's hand as she went to inspect something to the side. She had just picked up what appeared to be the remnants of an egg when she heard Arthur cry out and the swish of a sword cutting air reached her.
"What is it?" Morgana asked, rushing to where he stood.
"Are you alright?" Marayna added.
"Did you see it?" Merlin continued
Arthur nearly rolled his eyes at them, "Yes."
"What did it look like?" Merlin looked around frantically, trying to find it.
"It's quick," was all Arthur could get out before Morgana screamed, the Afanc appearing right in front of her.
Marayna didn't even think as she immediately tackled the woman to the side, succeeding in pushing her out of the way before the monster could attack her.
Arthur lunged at it, but missed as it disappeared once again, "Where is it?" he spun around in an effort to spot it. Marayna glanced around as well as she helped pull Morgana to her feet, muttering apologies under her breath which Morgana shrugged off, no need to apologize for saving her life.
"I think it's gone this way," Merlin called from behind them.
Arthur quickly made his way down the tunnel Merlin was standing by, waving his torch to try and get enough light to spot the monster. He didn't have to wait long as the Afanc made itself noticed. It came towards them slowly at first and Arthur slashed at it with his sword, but the monster knocked him back. Marayna grabbed the torch from Morgana and swiped at it, buying them some time for Merlin to help Arthur back to his feet. Arthur took the torch from her and went after the beast, distracting it from the others until he realized that, while his plan had worked, he had also backed himself into a wall. He only had a torch in his hand at this point, and it seemed as though the fire wasn't doing anything to the monster as it rose up, raising its giant claw to swipe at him.
"Arthur!" Marayna gasped as Merlin rushed up next to her.
"Use the torch!" Merlin yelled, before looking over to see his sister shielding Morgana, keeping the woman's view of the monster hidden. She quickly nodded at her brother and he knew she was keeping Morgana from seeing his magic, "Lyft sy be in bǽlwylm ac forhienanse wiðere!" he chanted quietly, holding out his hand at Arthur and the monster.
Arthur held up the torch, sticking it out as though he were holding an enemy at sword point...when suddenly the flames began to grow as wind blew around him. He averted his eyes as the fire grew quite bright and, the next thing he knew...the beast was destroyed.
Arthur looked around at everyone, Marayna backing away from Morgana, allowing her to see everything once more, "Is it gone?" the king's ward asked, a bit shaken from the sight of the horrid creature.
Marayna looked at her brother and then the prince before turning to the woman, "I think so."
A split second later Morgana was standing straight up, a determined look in her eyes, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's tell Uther that the plague is over!"
And with that, she marched back towards the entrance, three very amused people following behind her.
~8~
As soon as Uther had been told of the monster and its destruction, he immediately released Gwen from prison. Gaius took the egg that Morgana had held onto and, with its help, was able to devise a cure for the rest of the people who had been infected by the water. At the prison Gwen was being hugged by her father as Morgana, Merlin, and Marayna stood by and watched, smiles on their faces. She turned to face Morgana, tears of happiness in her eyes, "Thank you!"
"Don't thank me," Morgana said modestly, "It was more Merlin and Marayna."
Merlin blushed a bit at the beam Morgana was directing at him and Marayna couldn't help but smile, her brother was just too cute.
"Really?" Gwen looked at the two. A knowing smile made its way onto her face as she pieced together what they had done, used magic to not only save her but the rest of the ill people.
"They're the real heroes here," Morgana confirmed.
"I don't know what to say..."
"We didn't do anything," Merlin insisted, averting his gaze from Morgana's before his face became completely red.
"I'm grateful to you all," Tom interrupted, "Come on, Gwen."
"Just a minute," she smiled, nodding at her father to wait for her a little ways away. She waited till Morgana went to speak with him, leaving her alone with Merlin and Marayna before jumping at them and embracing them both in a hug, "I wanted you both to know...your secret's safe with me."
They smiled into the hug, breathing out a sigh of relief at that and squeezing her just a bit tighter before pulling back to speak with her, "Thank you," Marayna replied.
"I'll keep your magic and everything a secret," she swore.
"Thank yo…everything?" Merlin asked, staring at her confusedly.
Gwen nodded, "You and Morgana."
"Me and Morgana what?" he repeated, even more confused while Marayna smirked as she watched her brother squirm and become more flustered.
"You like each other," Gwen stated as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"No!" Merlin nearly shouted, before remembering Morgana was only a few feet away and quieting himself, "No, we don't."
Gwen nodded slightly, "Then why were you holding her hand just now?" before Merlin could respond Gwen walked past him to join her father and Morgana, departing the prison a moment later.
Merlin turned to his sister, "Was I really holding her hand?"
Marayna just laughed, giving him a nod and a smirk before she left as well. She found it rather amusing that he hadn't noticed.
~8~
That night, as various books magically sorted themselves on the shelves, Merlin and Marayna sat in Gaius's chambers, enjoying…or trying to enjoy…a quiet dinner with their uncle after a job well done. They glanced down at their soup, staring at the broth as though it contained some sort of disease, which it very recently had.
"The water's fine now, there's no need to worry," Gaius stated, taking a bite of his soup, "This is the work of a very powerful sorceress," he warned them, having recognized a mark on the egg that Morgana had found, a symbol used by the sorceress Nimueh, a dreaded foe of Camelot apparently, "I only hope you didn't come to her attention."
"Doubtful," Marayna snorted and Gaius just gave her a questioning look.
"Well, no one else seems to appreciate our skills," Merlin clarified.
"It would be nice to just...be seen for who and what we are," Marayna mumbled quietly, "You know, without anyone trying to kill us for it."
"Like Gwen does," Merlin added.
Gaius pursed his lips, he still wasn't quite happy with them telling their secret like that. Gwen was a sweet girl, trustworthy of course, but this was his family. He would do anything to protect them and the more people who knew...the less safe they were. He knew, without a doubt, that their secret, their magic, was something he would take with him to the grave, nothing would ever make him betray them. But Gwen...she was kindhearted, less...hardened and prepared for what might come by ways of someone wanting a confession or information from her. He couldn't be certain that, under the most dire of circumstances, she wouldn't let loose the secret.
He sighed, what's done is done, "One day, you two, one day."
"One day, what?" Merlin looked up.
"One day, people won't believe what idiots you were," Gaius joked.
"Oh thanks uncle," Marayna replied sarcastically though with a bit of a laugh, "You make us feel so loved."
~8~
Unbeknownst to them, in a cave not too far from Camelot, the evil sorceress Nimueh was absolutely livid as she watched the three joking and laughing in her Scrying Pool.
"Merlin, Marayna…you will pay for this," she spat before splashing the water with her fist, distorting the image till it faded away.
A/N: Again, SO sorry the last chapter was so dreadfully late :( Apparently it was a widespread thing through all of FF, no one was able to update :( Believe me, I woke up at 6:30am to post...and was STILL waiting for the actual page to load at midnight :(
But anyway, onto the story lol :) I really felt like that moment with Gwen in the cell would have been the perfect time for Merlin to tell her he had magic in the show, so that she would know that he'd saved her father's life and that not all magic was evil, because I genuinely believe that she would have seen that despite being the one in the cell. I think he backed off from doing it because he had Gaius's voice in his head saying not to, but with his 'mouthy little sister' there...I think her voice would have been a bit louder than Gaius.
This will...definitely change things ;)
Na híeran - Do not hear
No real notes on reviews at the moment, darn glitches lol. I should note that, if anything like this happens again, where FF doesn't allow an update, please check Marayna's page on my tumblr (The Draconian Prophecies page) about 6 hours after the normal posting time, if the site isn't working by then or I wasn't able to get the chapter posted, I'll place it there ;) For the record, I tend to update FF around 6:30-6:50am (for me at least, EST), every single day (which means I drag myself out of bed on weekends just to post before collapsing back in bed lol). So if there's ever a missing post...assume I'm either suffering from the plague or that the site is glitching (though it'll probably be the latter, I'd still drag myself out of bed, coughing up a lung, just to update for you all lol) ;)