It took Merlin a moment to register what had happened. His brain froze as soon as Gwaine crumpled to the ground. Slowly, it began to reconnect and comprehend the events that had just happened. Merlin was sure his heart had stopped when he realized that Gwaine was lying on the ground and not getting back up.

"Gwaine!" Merlin cried. He jumped out of his seat and went to jump over the railing. Leon was quick and grabbed him before he could injure himself.

"Don't worry, Merlin. Gaius and the others can look after Gwaine. Merlin was struggling against Leon's hold. Morgana and Leon had lied to Merlin. They said no one would get hurt.

"But Gwaine's hurt! We have to help him!" Merlin cried.

"Don't worry. I'll take you there right now. But please calm down. Gwaine will be fine," Leon said earnestly. Merlin stopped struggling in Leon's arms and allowed himself to be led away from the stands. He almost wanted to scream at Leon for letting this happen to Gwaine, for lying to him about the tournament. But Leon and Morgana both looked scared as well. So maybe Gwaine wasn't supposed to get hurt?

Percival and Lancelot had already taken Gwaine off the field and Valiant was declared the winner. Gwaine wasn't supposed to get hurt. It was all that man's fault for hurting him and making Leon and Morgana worry. Merlin's eyes flashed angrily and a gust of wind kicked up a large amount of dirt into Valiant's face. Merlin felt a little better seeing the mean man cough and choke on the dirt.

"Merlin!" Leon gasped. "Don't do that. You need to control yourself," he scolded. Merlin felt a little guilty at Leon's words.

"Sorry, I really didn't mean to. But I don't like Valiant," he mumbled. Leon sighed and led Merlin into the tent. Leon would talk to Merlin about it later when he wasn't so upset.

Surprisingly, Gwaine was already awake and cursing as Gaius tried to bind his ankle. Leon made a show of entering the tent, so that Gwaine wouldn't let any more profanities slip. He didn't need to have this conversation with Merlin. Gwaine saw the pair enter and quickly swallowed a word that sounded like it started with the letter f.

"Gwaine!" Merlin said, running up to the knight and hugging him.

"Merlin, be gentle," Leon said. Gwaine let out a laugh and wrapped an arm around Merlin. One was still cradling his ribs. Leon could see the knight wincing and trying not to curse again. Merlin squeezing him probably wasn't helping with the pain.

"No need to worry. Gaius says my ribs are just cracked. Did you like the fight, kid?" Gwaine asked.

"No. You lost," Merlin said, shaking his head. He looked like he was trying to burrow into Gwaine's side. He wasn't going to let go any time soon.

"Yeah, well Valiant cheated," Gwaine said. His voice was bitter and his eyes seemed to burn with hatred towards Valiant.

"Just because you lost doesn't mean he cheated. You won't always win every fight you're in. Perhaps this will help with your ego," Leon said. Gwaine winced as Gaius finished bandaging his ankle.

"Yeah, yeah. But there is something weird about this guy. Something isn't right here," Gwaine said. Leon narrowed his eyes and jerked his head towards Merlin. The boy didn't seem to comprehend what they were saying. But Leon didn't want to take a chance that Merlin would investigate the matter on his own and get into even more trouble. Gwaine was thinking along the same lines and any other complaints he had were not heard.

"We'll keep an eye on it," Leon said. "Merlin, are you staying here or coming back out?" Merlin's arms still were clamped tightly around Gwaine's neck.

"I'll stay here and keep Gwaine company. Should I call Rowena so she can heal it?" Merlin asked Gaius.

"No, a wolf running through the streets of Camelot would raise suspicion Merlin. Besides, most people assume Gwaine's ankle to be broken at the very least. It would be weird if he didn't have any injuries," Gaius replied.

"I'll leave you here then. Gwaine, be good," Leon said. Gwaine smiled and shook his head.

"What makes you think I'll be anything but?" he asked. Leon muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like the words tavern and last week. Merlin didn't appear to catch this and just went on cuddling with Gwaine.

oOoOoOo

Valiant rushed off the field, a wide smile on his face. Not even that weird cloud of dirt that choked him could stop him from feeling absolute elation at the fact that he had won. He had won against a knight of Camelot.

"Don't get too complacent," a familiar voice said from behind him. Valiant turned and shook his head at Nimueh.

"I didn't even need to use the shield to win this time. Your sword is amazing. Besides, did you hear the crowd? They loved me!" he said.

"I think you overestimate your charm. That knight you took down was a people's favorite. They might not like you as much as you think. Besides, that cloud of dust wasn't natural," she said, her eyes burning with anger.

"What do you mean?" Valiant asked. Nimueh shook her head and gave him a smile.

"Nothing, just focus on getting into Uther's good graces so that you can get close to Arthur," she said. She turned to the crowd, spotting Morgana. Nimueh cursed under her breath.

"What is it?" Valiant asked.

"I might have to take care of another competitor," she said, walking away from Valiant, leaving him very confused. Valiant just shrugged and went to get cleaned off. He had spotted the Lady Morgana in the stands earlier and hoped that he could impress her at the banquet a few nights from now. She was one of the most beautiful women he had ever laid eyes on. It shouldn't be too hard to convince Uther and Camelot that Valiant was worthy of a knight's position. And it wouldn't be too hard to convince Morgana to fall for him.

oOoOoOo

Gilli flicked a rock at the wall across from his cell. It hit the third brick from the right, four bricks up. He was aiming for the one right above it. His aim was getting better at least. Maybe he could flick stones at the guards to annoy them.

"Stop that," Iseldir scolded. Gilli flicked another stone. Bulls-eye!

"Why? We've been stuck in here for ages. What does that witch event want with us?" Gilli snapped back. "She takes us for her army, and then just leaves us here to rot! Either use us or let us go, that's what I say," Gilli muttered.

"That witch currently has the power to kill use should she see fit. At the moment, the only thing that's keeping me alive is the knowledge of the whereabouts of the cup of life. You, on the other hand, are not so special," Iseldir responded.

"Still, death would be better than stuck in here," Gilli said under his breath.

"You cannot possibly mean that. You are young and have so much life left to live. Patience. Emrys has made it to Camelot where he will be able to bring us some help."

"Yeah but when?" Gilli said, throwing his hands in the air. "When he got out, I thought it would be less than a year and we'd be out too. But it's been so long, I've forgotten why I should stay alive!" he cried.

"You forget that Emrys is a child. He is scared and unable to comprehend all the terrible things that have happened to him. Stay strong. Freya has not given up yet," Iseldir said, trying to calm Gilli down.

"Yeah, well, I'm not Freya," Gilli muttered under his breath.

Several of the King's personal guards made their way down the stairs. Iseldir stood and walked up to the front, blocking some of the other occupants in the cell.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"Lady Morgause wishes to speak with you," the head guard sneered.

"Iseldir, don't go," Alice said, standing next to him. "You can't survive another session like last time." Iseldir put his hands on her shoulders.

"I don't think this is about the Cup of Life, Alice. Besides, I really have no choice in the matter," he said sadly. The guards swung the door open and pulled Iseldir out. He stumbled before gaining his footing and hobbling away.

"No funny business, old man," one guard said.

"I would dream of doing no such thing." The group wove through the castle before stopping in front of the doors to the throne room. Iseldir couldn't help but smile as he smelled burning wood. So Morgause had thrown another temper tantrum. He wondered what this one was about. The doors swung open and Iseldir was pushed in. He spotted Freya in the distance.

"How are you, my dear?" he said.

"Good. How are you?" she replied quietly. Morgause stormed out in front of her. Her eyes were constantly oscillating between gold and brown.

"Enough with the pleasantries, you were talking about Nimueh earlier," she snarled. Iseldir sighed. He should have known this was what she wanted to talk about.

"Yes, one of the seerers saw a woman with her mark wreaking havoc on Camelot. I know nothing else, milady. If you were to kindly remove some of the magical suppressants I might just be of help to you," Iseldir said. A large crack appeared in the column next to him. Iseldir fought back a sigh. He wasn't sure if it was his age or position that made him so patient, but Morgause had yet to perfect her tolerance of time. She expected things to happen immediately, as soon as she wanted them done. It was only one of the many reasons why she was not the once and future king, or queen in this context.

The once and future king had to be kind and patient. He couldn't push on things outside of his control. From the rumors Iseldir had heard about Prince Arthur, it didn't sound like he was a much better candidate. But he was also young and Merlin was with him. Destiny had a funny way of working out in the end.

"I need to know everything you know. Camelot cannot be destroyed. I won't allow it. I need it," she said, stomping up to Iseldir and attempting to tower over him. Iseldir did not cower.

"I will help you. But only because I fear what she will do to Merlin. I will ask the seer if she saw anything else. But I cannot promise you anything. You of all people should know that the future is fickle and that one small change can affect the entire outcome," Iseldir warned. Morgause clenched her jaw and stormed away.

"I want answers, Iseldir. Do not disappoint me." The door slammed shut and Iseldir turned to Freya.

"Well, my dear, should we return to the cells? There is work to be done." Freya nodded and skipped up to Iseldir. The guards led them back down to the cells. Iseldir hoped that he would be able to find answers before Merlin was hurt. He feared for the safety of all involved.