A/N- So, I've finally succeeded in updating sooner than usual! I'm happy! And I'm sure you are, too!

Sorry for the lack of replies to reviews, I've been busy. Trying to write a ten paragraph report on Jolly Ranchers for school. ONE CANDY. Seriously. Takes too long.

Thanks to MerlinFan1996 for betaing!

Benugan!

"Merlin!" Arthur yelled. He quickly grabbed the warlock in a bone-crushing bear hug. "You're alright!"

The raven haired boy wheezed with the force of the embrace. "Ar-Arthur," he gasped out. "Can't breathe…"

Arthur started and pulled back suddenly. He kept a firm grip of the boy's shoulders, though. "Sorry," he said, expression meek. "I just… I thought you were dead."

The warlock suddenly started laughing. Arthur looked at him. "What's so funny?" he asked as Merlin finally settled down.

"You just said almost the exact same thing Gwen did when I drank that poison for you! I found it hilarious!" Suddenly, Merlin stopped smiling. It disappeared in a mask of seriousness, though a twinkle remained in his eyes. "You're not going to kiss me like she did, are you?"

The prince's face turned red with embarrassment and shock. "Gwen kissed you?"

Merlin grinned. "Yeah, she did. Long before she ever liked you!" He laughed, but stopped, clutching his stomach. The warlock hissed in pain. "Ow."

Arthur wrung his hands, unsure quite what to do. "Should I get Gaius?"

"I-I'll be fine."

"No, you're obviously not. I'll be right back." As Arthur got up and was about to open the door, he turned back to Merlin with a fond smile on his face. "I never trust you when you say that."

The raven haired boy grinned his trademark smile. "Don't be too sure about that."

Arthur shook his head and went out, still in shock that his best friend was alive.

IDIOTTOIDIT

As soon as the prince was out of the room, Merlin slumped down with a groan of pain. The truth was it felt like his stomach was on fire. Of course, he wouldn't tell Arthur that, but oh well. Unfortunately for him Gaius would be up soon, along with a vile tasting potion. But he'd take it, if only for their sake.

Sure enough, the physician soon hurried into his room, the prince not far behind. He came right over to him, while Arthur stood a ways back. "Here," he said. "Arthur told me you were hurting."

Despite knowing he was going to have to take it anyways, Merlin shook his head. "I'm fine. It's not too bad. I'll survive."

Gaius fixed him with the eyebrow. "Merlin, you are taking this no matter what you say."

"Gaius-" Merlin was interrupted in his protests, however, when he found the old man had sprung forward and tipped the liquid in his throat. He swallowed and sputtered for a moment, eyes wide. "Gaius!" he said, exasperated. "I was going to take it!"

The physician merely shrugged. "Just making sure."

Arthur was giggling. "Arthur!" Merlin whined. "Shut up!"

"And why should I?"

A smug look on his face, the warlock replied, "Because it's not manly to giggle!"

"Merlin!"

"Yes, Arthur?"

"Shut it!"

Merlin laughed, feeling how the potion was working. It was numbing the pain, sure, but Gaius (the sneaky old man) had also slipped a sleeping draught in. His eyelids were beginning to droop, dropping lower and lower. Even as he tried to contain it, a huge yawn opened his mouth wide. The prince smiled and came over. "Come on," he said. "It's time for you to sleep."

The warlock tried to feebly protest, but was ignored as Arthur lowered him down onto his pillows. He pulled the blanket up to his friend's chin, smiling gently at him. "You need it. Goodnight, Merlin."

Blearily, the younger boy blinked up at them. He surrendered to the potion and said a small, "Goodnight, Arthur," before drifting off, a sleepy smile on his face.

Neither even remembered the magic that had been revealed.

PRATTARP

The next day found the prince in the physician's chamber, by Merlin's side again. Still he would not leave.

Uther had thought once the boy had woken up Arthur would go back to his duties, but grudgingly accepted that his son would not fully go back until his servant was mostly healed. He did not come to this conclusion, however, until Arthur had gotten right up in his face, telling him the facts in a deadly hiss. So the prince was allowed to stay.

"Gaius," he said in his current spot near the window. "Merlin is going to be alright now, right?"

The physician smiled. "He'll be just fine. No complications, no infections, nothing. He's making a great recovery, sire."

Arthur turned, rolling his eyes. "You don't need to call me 'sire'. You've called me Arthur before, and I'd prefer if you kept calling me that."

Gaius smiled. "Of course, Arthur."

Arthur turned back to the window, staring out of it with glimmering eyes. Quietly, he muttered to himself, "Merlin is going to be alright." Though he felt like crying in complete joy, he kept it in, seeing as the physician was there. He just couldn't believe it. As he thought, Arthur recalled the words he had said just before Merlin had woken up and been on the road to recovery. "You can go, Merlin." Those had been his words.

The prince realized something and felt his face start to grow red. That little... he thought. Angrily, he stormed past Gaius, up into his servant's room.

"Sire, where are you going?" the older man called.

He growled and said nothing, just continuing his trek. Once up the steps, he threw the door open. "Merlin!" he yelled. The poor boy sat up with a yelp, still half awake from his nap.

"Wha...?" he squeaked.

"You are such an idiot! You came back just to disobey me, didn't you?"

"What?" Now he was awake.

Arthur stormed over and sat on the edge of the bed. "I told you you could go. Everything. I said my goodbyes, I had accepted it. Then you came back. You came back just to spite me, didn't you?"

The warlock grinned. "So? Since when have I ever listened to you?"

"No, Merlin, it's not funny! You scared me, I thought you were going to die! Why did you do that? Why did you make me go through that?" Tears brimmed in Arthur's eyes.

Merlin looked down, unable to meet the prince's gaze. "I-I didn't want to. I wanted to stay, to come. But it hurt so much, it was too dark. Yet once you said that, I knew I had to come back. There was a light all of a sudden. Because you had given up on me. I could not allow you to do that. If you had and I had really died, I fear you might have become like your father. Unguided, fueled by hate and guilt. But it wasn't your fault, no matter how much you told yourself that. I had to come back. Not for me, oh no. But for you. I came back to save you again."

The word again struck the prince. He knew about Merlin's magic, how could he not now? But that simple word, that one addition that his friend had so nonchalantly stuck onto the end of his sentence showed Arthur how many times he really had been saved by his servant. He needed the whole story. And soon.

Arthur sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have gotten angry. I should have been glad just for the fact that you are here, alive and well, and not question why. I'm sorry if I sounded ungrateful."

"Your apology is accepted, Arthur. You don't need to do that, though. It's perfectly understandable. I know what you mean by saying all of what you did." He smiled reassuringly at the prince.

Arthur breathed a sigh of relief. "Really?"

The warlock nodded. "Really."

"Well, don't do it again, you hear me? Don't go out and get yourself killed. At all. In fact, I may have to keep you under lock and key!"

Merlin's eyes widened. "Arthur! You can't do that!"

He crossed his arms, smirking evilly. "And why not?"

"Because I'd get bored from being cooped up all day!"

Arthur laughed. "Only you, Merlin!"

"What!" he replied, faking an indignant tone.

The prince simply shook his head and turned to go. "Get some sleep, Merlin." With that, he left, still smiling fondly, knowing Merlin would do as he asked.

Only once he was outside did he realize.

He didn't ask to hear his friend's history with magic.

A/N- Heya. Yeah, I know, not really a cliffie! AH, shocker! Right? XD

I will try to update sooner, as I have a sequel planned. And it should be better than this one. Hopefully.

GUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS! I have a facebook account where you can see what I'm doing and get updates on about when I'm updating! Haha, said 'update' twice in same sentence! Anyways, my username is Luna ShadowWolf. My pic is the same one as on here, the one with Arthur saving Merlin from the pyre? Yeah, that one. Don't worry about your identity being stolen, or whatever, because I don't look at that. I already have one person friends with me for updates, and I still have no clue who they are. At all. Don't even know their name. Your identity is safe with me!

And I need some advice. Should I get a twitter account too? So that it's even easier?

Please review!

~L~