AN: Hey everybody!
How's it going? I'm sorry I haven't been replying to reviews, I spent the day in the hospital and have been crazy on painkillers lately so things have been a bit silly over here. Anyhoo, really wanted to post more because I love all the wonderful people who review and I want to give them everything! Or at least another chapter. You are all fabulous.
And this chapter was also edited by starwater13! YAY! it's kind of awesome because she gets my sense of humor, which got slightly prevalent in this chapter. It was mostly stupid, but I did it anyways... Hope no one minds
Still don't own Merlin. I may have seen a dragon while on dilaudid, but that's not helping..(drugs were for medicine! I swear! Just made me laugh what they decided to give me)
Chapter Fifteen: Earning it
Arthur had to admit, Leon was amazing. The two men guarding the dungeons also let him pass with a bow, neither questioning what he would be doing down in the dungeons whose only occupant was a prisoner who was permitted no visitors. It didn't take him long to find the cell Merlin had been locked in, it had a lone guard standing in front of it, monitoring the dark hallway. Arthur approached him and said, "I need to speak with the prisoner, alone." The man tilted his head and walked back towards the entrance of the prison, leaving Arthur with Merlin.
"Merlin!" Arthur called through the bars, "I need to talk to you."
He heard a clanking of chains as the shadowy figure in the back of the cell shifted slightly. "Get away from me, Arthur. I don't want to speak with you."
Arthur was confused. Why wouldn't Merlin want to talk? "But-"
"NO, Arthur! Leave me alone." Merlin shouted, then shifted again before saying, "I should have known, god damn it! How could I be so stupid!" Arthur didn't know if Merlin was speaking to him or not, but he kept listening, hoping that Merlin would say something that would explain why he didn't want to talk.
"I thought you loved me!" Merlin continued, "I really thought the son of Uther fucking Pendragon loved me! I trusted you with everything, I was so stupid! And you, with your sympathetic words and scheming lies, you tricked me. Well, now at least maybe your father will be proud you. I hope you got what you wanted, Arthur. At least now I know the truth."
Arthur was speechless. It sounded like Merlin thought that he had lead Aredian to him purposefully. How could he possibly think that? Arthur loved him, more than anything, he could never betray Merlin. He was about to protest as Merlin continued with his speech in a much softer voice, saying, "And do you know what the worst part is, Arthur? Even after everything you've done, I still feel this urge to protect you. For some reason your backstabbing life is more important than mine, according to my fucking destiny."
He seemed to be done as he moved once more and the chains rattled again. Arthur was still slightly stunned, but he decided to use this as a chance to get his own voice in before Merlin started yelling at him again.
"Merlin, I didn't mean to lead Aredian to you."
The chains rattled again but there was no other response, so Arthur continued.
"He must have had me watched, and followed me when I went to warn you. I love you, Merlin. And I still do. And I am going to do whatever it takes to get you out of here."
"Shut up, Arthur." Merlin said, sounding slightly less angry this time, "I'm not falling for your tricks again."
"I'm not trying to trick you." Arthur said, his voice bordering on hysterical. "I've never lied to you. If I wanted to turn you in to my father I could have done it much sooner and gotten all the credit, instead of waiting and letting that witchfinder creep would get all the glory. I knew where your camp was, and I did nothing. And what about Morgana? She came to me because she knew I was different from my father. Would I really have brought my sister to you if I was going to arrest you a few weeks later? My father doesn't know your name or who your father is or what your friends look like, all things that I could have told him if I was working with him. Please Merlin, think about it. I know it's my fault you were captured, and I will get you out of here, but I need your help. I need you to trust me again."
Arthur stopped. He hoped that that was enough, he hoped that Merlin would realize the truth. There was more clinking of chains and a few grunts while Merlin moved over to the bars of the cell. When they were face to face and the chains were stretched as far as they could reach, Merlin's gaze met Arthur's.
"You're not lying?"
His voice sounded so desperate, so hopeful, and so sad that Arthur wished he had magic so he could make the bars disappear and give Merlin the biggest hug he could. But he didn't, so he settled for reaching a hand through the bars and cupping Merlin's cheek. "No, I'm not lying. If you need further proof, remember the sigil. I wouldn't have given that to just anyone, it's all I have left of my mother. I love you, Merlin. I would never betray you."
Merlin gave him a small smile and said, "I'm sorry, Arthur. I shouldn't have listened to them."
"It's alright, Merlin. I understand why you would think that, I just hope you know that I really would never do anything that would hurt you."
Merlin nodded and his smile widened slightly as he said, "Please tell me you have a plan? I don't think I have a whole lot of time before Uther chops my head off."
"Not yet, but I will. I swear Merlin, that's not going to happen." Arthur replied, wishing he had actually been able to come up with something before racing down here.
"What about the key to this collar? If we could get it off, I could break out of here myself."
"Aredian keeps that with him at all times. I could try to get it away, but I just don't think we should rely on that. What about your friends? Won't they be attempting to rescue you sometime soon?"
"Probably, but they won't be able to do it on their own. They will have a lot more trouble getting into the castle without my magic. Our camp isn't far from the one you found, just about a mile north-east. If you could meet with them, I'm sure they would help you. You would just need to be careful, I'm guessing they may not trust you quite as much anymore." Merlin said with a small guilty smile. Arthur nodded, that did make sense. He knew he wouldn't be able to leave the castle, but maybe someone else could. He stashed that information away and said, "what we really need is another way to get that collar off. If we could remove it without the key, things would be a lot simpler."
Merlin nodded, but didn't respond, so Arthur continued. "Is there any kind of magical device, something that could open any lock without its key?"
"I don't know." Merlin replied. "I've studied spells, but I don't know a whole lot about enchanted objects, you would have to find someone who knows more than I do."
"More than you? Aren't you kind of the expert? Or is there some other reason that the Druids practically worship the ground you walk on?" Arthur asked, smiling a little.
"Shut up, Arthur," Merlin said again, but this time he also was smiling. "I may be powerful, but I'm still young. There's a lot I don't know. You would need to find someone older and wiser than me."
"But who? I can't really risk going to Iseldir now, even if I did know where he was." Arthur replied. What magic-user would help a Pendragon, especially now that Merlin was imprisoned?
"No. Not Iseldir…" Merlin said, obviously deep in thought. He pondered the question for a moment before shouting, "Arthur, the Dragon!"
Arthur looked at Merlin with confusion as he replied, "No, Arthur PENdragon. I am most definitely not a dragon."
This made Merlin laugh, something Arthur hadn't expected could happen with the current situation, but of course Merlin would be able to find joy even in the darkest of places. Unfortunately, the joy didn't last very long as Merlin winced, bringing a hand over his ribs, before saying "No, Arthur. The Dragon, under the castle, he might help us. He would know if there is any way of removing this thing without the key."
"Are you sure it wouldn't burn me to a crisp?" Arthur asked, "I'm not sure a dragon is going to really want to talk with me."
"Tell him I sent you. He trusts me, and he told me to trust you, so he shouldn't attack you." Merlin said.
"Alright. I'll get to the Dragon. I don't know how, but I will." Arthur said, squeezing Merlin's hand through the bars.
"Thank you, Arthur. I'm sorry I doubted you." Merlin said, returning the squeeze.
"Well, isn't this sweet. The prince and the thief, together again." A voice behind them said. Arthur jumped around as Merlin hissed, "Aredian."
"I sincerely hope he has some type of spell on you, Arthur Pendragon, because otherwise your father will be quite upset with you." Aredian said, smirking at Arthur.
"Don't you dare touch him," Merlin growled, his voice almost hidden by the rattling of chains as he tried to jerk his hands up further than his bonds allowed.
Aredian just smirked before turning back to Arthur and saying, "I have to thank you though, you've gotten more information out of him than I've been able to so far. Now I know that he was involved in Morgana's disappearance. I think we have quite a few new things to talk about, Emrys. And don't worry about Arthur, I'll see to it that he is escorted back to his chambers, although I can't promise he will speak with this dragon you were talking about."
As he said this he motioned for two of the guards following him to take a hold of Arthur and pull him away from the cell. Arthur wasn't going to give up that easily though. He jerked himself free, rushing in between Aredian and Merlin and shouting, "You can't hurt him! He hasn't done anything wrong!"
"This is far worse than I thought." Aredian said, glaring at him and Merlin. "Guards, I need you to make sure that no one enters or exits the prince's chambers once you bring him back there."
"I'm not leaving him!" Arthur shouted as the guards moved to attempt to restrain him again. As he began to fight Merlin said, "Arthur, it's alright. I'll be fine, you should go."
"Yes. I'll take very good care of Merlin, that was what you called him, right? We're just going to have a nice little chat." Aredian said with a smirk[MP4] .
"Why are you doing this?" Arthur pleaded, "If it's for the money, I can get you more, just don't hurt him!"
"I don't think so, Prince Arthur, because I, unlike you, can see the evils of sorcery, and I will do whatever I can to exterminate it." Aredian said, before turning back to the guards. "If you need help escorting this confused boy back to his room, I suggest you go get it quickly. I can't do my job with him here."
Arthur glared at him, trying to muster as much hate as he could. His gaze flashed away as Merlin's chains rattled behind him. "You don't need to stay, Arthur. I don't want you to get hurt."
"And I don't want you to get hurt!" Arthur shouted back.
"Unfortunately, that is rather unavoidable at the moment. You don't need to be though. Please, Prince Arthur, things will work themselves out, but you can't do anything now." Merlin said his eyes fixed on Arthur's.
Arthur paused. That was the first time Merlin had ever addressed him as 'Prince Arthur'. Merlin had called him by his title. He had finally earned his respect. Arthur turned to Merlin with a look of confusion, as he gave him a slight bow before smiling and winking. Arthur smiled back before saying, "Alright, Merlin. And I will get you out of here, I swear."
Merlin just smiled weakly at him as Aredian said, "Don't get your hopes up, Emrys. The only time you'll be leaving here is when we take you out to be executed. Now, Arthur, you said you were leaving?"
Arthur glared at him before turning to exit the dungeons. One of Aredian's guards went with him, following him like a confused and nervous puppy all the way back to his chambers. He could hear the door to the only occupied cell open as he traveled up the stairs. He almost ran back down when there was a large, rattling, crash, but he knew he needed to get away. Merlin was right, there was nothing they could do without some type of help. Going back would accomplish nothing except cause more pain for them both.
Arthur had barely gotten back to his chambers when Leon burst through his door. "Did you get down there alright? I tried to find Aredian, but he disappeared."
"He's down with Merlin." Arthur said in a hollow voice. "I got to talk with him, but little else. We have to get him out of there before it's too late."
"I'll help in any way I can." Leon said, "But I don't know what I'll be able to do."
Arthur thought for a second. He would be under intense scrutiny, so he definitely wouldn't be able to get out of the castle, but he could at least try to get down to the dragon Merlin had told him about. Still, he needed more help, so he turned to Leon and said, "Do you think you can get out of the castle without raising too much suspicion?"
"That shouldn't be a problem. King Uther has many of the knights on patrol looking for Emrys' partners. I can say I am joining them for a period. What do you need me to do?"
"Do you remember the place you first met Merlin?" Arthur asked, and waited for Leon to nod before he continued on, "His camp is about a mile north-east of there, if you can get there you can explain what is happening to Merlin's friends, Percival, Gwaine, and Lancelot, they will definitely help us."
"Wait," Leon said with a look of confusion, "Lancelot? Not the commoner who tried to join the knights of Camelot?"
"Yes," Arthur said with a little disbelief, "you remember him?"
"How could I forget? I was there when he spoke to the king. I offered to give him a position as a squire afterwards, since he couldn't be a knight, but he turned it down."
"Well, after that he fought a gryphon and made friends with a wanted thief, if you were curious. Maybe he'll remember you as well. I'm not sure if it will be in your best interests to tell them I sent you, most of them probably hate me at the moment. It may appear that I lead Merlin into a trap, so you'll need to be careful."
"Alright, Arthur." Leon said nodding. "I will go the first chance I get. Do you have a plan?"
"Not as of yet." Arthur said, "For now, I need to get down to the dragon underneath the castle, he might know a way for me to free Merlin's magic. That's my priority at the moment. Do you think you can keep the dungeon guards and the guards outside my chambers on my side?"
"I'll try," Leon responded, "but I can't guarantee anything. Uther still seems to trust me, but after today, I don't know. I suppose it depends on what Aredian tells him."
Arthur nodded, and said, "Do you know how the knights feel about all this? I need to know who supports me."
"Many of the older knights still side with Uther, but there are a few who only want the best for the people and are questioning whether or not Emrys' intent is evil. Many of the newer knights, the ones you trained, seem to be more loyal to you than to your father, but there are others who will do anything to impress the king, even if that means selling out his son."
"I want you to speak with as many of the knights as possible, try to convince them that their loyalty is to the people, not to the king. I'll try to get down to the dragon tonight, then we can meet back up and discuss what we have learned."
"Sounds good, Arthur. I will see what I can do about the guard on your room tonight." Leon said, before bowing his head and leaving Arthur to his thoughts.
Uther was pleased. He finally had Emrys, now all he had to do was wait. The people would become loyal to him once again now that that scum was off the streets. There would need to be some sort of celebration, some party where he could show off his wealth and power. He had begun listing off the names of people to invite to his manservant when there was a knock at his door. He stopped in the middle of Lord Sherringford Alistar Fennington the Third's name to order his manservant to see who it was. It was about time for his dinner, maybe a maid had brought it up to him. Unfortunately, it wasn't his dinner, but Aredian. He sighed and allowed the witchfinder in, hoping the man had some good news.
"Sire." Aredian said with a bow, his face completely emotionless, making it impossible for Uther to guess what type of news he had.
"Well," Uther replied impatiently, "what information do you bring me? Has Emrys talked?"
"Not exactly," Aredian said, confusing Uther, "we may have a slight problem. There is good news though, it appears that the Lady Morgana is still alive, and Emrys did have something to do with her disappearance. I have questioned him more about her, but he is refusing to respond to my attempts to extract information."
"Morgana is alive!" Uther said with excitement. "You have to learn where she is!"
"I am doing everything in my power, but it will take time. Unfortunately, the prince has put a brief hiccup in my plans."
Uther growled. Arthur needed to stop getting in his way while he dealt with this filthy sorcerer. "What did my son do?" Uther spat.
"He snuck down to speak to the prisoner, but, before you judge him too harshly, I believe he may be under the influence of a spell."
"You mean Emrys enchanted my son? I knew it! I knew Arthur would never act like this. You must force Emrys to remove the spell."
"I have tried, your majesty," Aredian said with the utmost respect, "but Emrys has refused. Besides the time he spent with your son, he hasn't said a word since he was arrested. My methods do not seem to be working as they usually do."
"I don't care about your methods, I just want my son back!" Uther yelled at Aredian, who unfortunately didn't seem very intimidated by him.
"I know, my liege, and I will-" Aredian started before Uther cut him off, saying, "NO! This is too important. I will speak with him myself!" before marching out of his room and towards the dungeons, his manservant, the witchfinder, and a pair of guards scurrying to keep up.
Merlin was in pain, but he still felt better than he had in quite some time. Aredian's interrogations were unpleasant, but at least now he knew Arthur hadn't betrayed him. As long as he focused on that, he was alright. As long as he chose hope over despair, he knew he could make it. He had a destiny to fulfill, so he couldn't die now.
Aredian had taken him to a different cell after had Arthur left. He had been chained to a chair where Aredian shouted questions at him which he refused to answer. He had stopped paying attention to what was being asked of him pretty quickly. It didn't really matter, he wasn't going to give Aredian any information, so he didn't feel like it was exactly necessary to listen. Unfortunately, it was a bit harder to ignore the punches, kicks, and cuts that followed each unanswered question. A few of the cuts were still dripping slightly, covering him in streaks of red over colorfully bruised skin. The interrogation had felt endless, but eventually Aredian had disappeared, letting the two guards with him drag Merlin back to his original cell, making sure his shackles were secured before leaving him alone again.
He was starting to doze off when a thundering noise pulled him back to wakefulness. It sounded like all of Camelot was stomping towards his cell, making way more noise than was really necessary. His skull pounded with each banging footstep until the party stopped in front of his cell. He still hadn't glanced up at them, as it was probably Aredian back with more questions, and there was really no reason to torture himself any more by looking at his ugly mug. Merlin definitely hadn't been expecting the king's voice, so when Uther started screaming above him his head shot up.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY SON!" Uther shouted. He probably hadn't realized that Arthur was the best way to get Merlin's attention, as he slowly pulled himself to his feet, asking, "Why? What's happened to Arthur?"
"Don't fake innocence, sorcerer! Arthur hasn't been the same since you captured him! I know you enchanted my son! You will set him right, now!" Uther screamed, his face appeared to be glowing with the fires of hell in the darkness of the cell as it reflected the light of the torch.
Merlin laughed at that, "I did nothing to Arthur. He chose his side all by himself; I would never manipulate another's mind."
"You're lying. You've destroyed my family, you heartless bastard! You've kidnapped Morgana and subverted Arthur. You will set him right and tell me where she is."
"I did not kidnap Morgana, she left all on her own. If you had accepted her for who she was, she wouldn't have had to run away. And if you hadn't been such a terrible king Arthur wouldn't have sided with me. You destroyed your own family. But then again, your good at that, aren't you?"
"What do you mean, sorcerer? I would never hurt my family." Uther growled, still looking furious but also quite confused by that last statement.
"Maybe not your own, well at least not purposefully. But you've been destroying families since you took the throne, it was only a matter of time until you destroyed your own as well." Merlin paused to breathe for a moment, but as no one else spoke, he continued, yelling at the king. "You murdered my parents, Uther Pendragon! They hadn't hurt anyone, and you killed them! My mother wasn't even a witch, but that didn't stop you. You obliterated my village, you've destroyed countless families, and now you've destroyed your own."
"Who are you?" Uther asked. Merlin stood as tall as his bruised and bloody body could as he responded with pride, "I am Merlin of Ealdor, son of Hunith and Balinor."
Uther's eyes went wide and his face paled slightly as Merlin announced who his father was. He glared at Merlin for a moment before turning and racing up the stairs, his small entourage of guards and servants following after him. Merlin collapsed in his cell, trying not to think about what a big mistake he had just made.