A/N: Man, is it so damn cold where you are living as well? I don't have anything against winter… I just don't like the combination of dark, cold and wet.

Anyway, here's the next chapter :)

Disclaimer: Even after 17 chapters, I don't own Merlin.

CHAPTER 17: FALLING ANGEL

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Merlin watched as Arthur went into some kind of trance. The blonde was just staring right through him, his eyes clouded by various emotions and thoughts.

The golden trophy which lay shattered on the ground was long forgotten.

Merlin could only imagine how his protégé felt, he himself was still a little bit shaken. For Morgana to reveal herself in front of all those people as a demon… All reason must've left her.

The stadium was getting emptier with every second, people practically fleeing. Merlin saw that Gaius was talking to Uther in a vivid manner, their expressions both grim and wary. Next to them Gwen was worriedly casting her eyes around and when she noticed a child sitting alone on a seat, tears running down its face, she quickly hurried over and tried to be comforting.

The others of the team had already left and Merlin quickly grabbed Arthur's trembling hand and started to drag him into the direction of one of the exits. He was going to take his friend away from here as fast as possible. Morgana had always been a threat, but now Arthur knew about her and Merlin wasn't sure how the blonde would react when he had processed what was happening.

The young angel glanced at him out of the corner of his eyes and registered with a flinch how pained he looked. Merlin could make out betrayal, hurt and anger in his friend's steel blue eyes and it made him incredibly worried.

When they were standing out in the sun a few minutes later, waiting for their cab to arrive, Merlin noticed Mordred stumbling around on the other side of the street. He looked a little lost, as if he didn't know what to do or where to go.

Their eyes met for a second and Merlin wondered whether the inner conflict he saw in the boy's eyes or the hesitant step into their direction were only part of his imagination before the dark haired turned around with a growl and vanished into a dark alley.

Slightly confused, Merlin glanced at Arthur again, whose hand was still hanging loosely in his own. The blonde looked a little bit calmed down, but he still seemed lost in thought and looked a little bit pale.

After a few moments, the cab came to a halt next to them and they both climbed in and sat down on the backseat. Throughout the whole drive, there was a slightly uncomfortable silence hanging over them, but Merlin could understand. This mustn't be easy for him, as it would be for any other human as well.

He was quite relieved when they finally left the cab and entered their hotel. All Merlin wanted now was to get Arthur into bed (he could literally see his exhaustion) and be able to think all the things over. He also had to arrange what he wanted to tell Arthur. He surely wouldn't be able to get away without at least answering some questions.

Merlin quickly brought Arthur to his room and the blonde instantly collapsed onto his bed, not even taking the time to take a shower. "Thank you…" Came his muffled voice from under the blanket and Merlin smiled when he let himself fall onto a chair in the far corner.

"You're welcome. I'll stay here for a little longer, if you don't mind." Even if Arthur did mind, he would stay here nevertheless. There just was no way he could let him out of his eyes in a critical time like that.

Arthur just grunted from where he was lying and Merlin took this as an 'I don't mind at all'.

With this, thy young angel started to lay out the words he was going to say to his friend once he woke up.

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Arthur was walking along a stony path into seemingly nothing. It was pitch black around him and he could only vaguely make out the edges of the path. This whole place seemed strange to him and he would have liked to turn around and run away, but an invisible force was dragging him forward.

He tried to struggle but it was of no avail, so he complied.

It seemed to him like he walked for hours but there existed no time in this place. The path got steeper with every step he took and soon (or was it an eternity later?) Arthur found himself standing in front of an abyss. Its end must have been so far away that you couldn't even see it. Or maybe there just was no end to it.

Arthur looked around, unsure of where to go no. His eyes landed on the dark clouds forming above his head, wondering where they had come from.

It looked like it was going to rain but Arthur saw no shelter. He saw nothing at all besides the path he had come from.

Silently, the blonde stared up at the sky, expecting rain drops to fall onto his face but they never came. It must be because of the lack of time, Arthur mused.

Yet the clouds were constantly shifting, there movement never stopping. After an unknown amount of staring upwards, there finally appeared something in the sky of blackness that was worth gazing at.

It seemed like some murder of crows. Big black crows with shining red eyes. Arthur shivered, instantly wanting to get away from the ominous birds. He walked along the path he had come from, his steps constantly speeding up.

After a while (or maybe just a second) he stood in front of yet another abyss, exactly like the one on the other end of the path.

Frustration settled in Arthur as he turned around and saw the crows rushing towards him. Expecting the impact with them, he closed his eyes and covered his face with his arms. He wasn't too keen on losing an eyes, after all.

The crows were flying around him, scratching his arms with their beaks and claws.

Subconsciously, Arthur took tiny steps away from the furious black birds, not even noticing when the heel of his left food stepped over the edge of the abyss.

When he took another step backwards though, not noticing was inevitable as he fell backwards, his eyes widening in horror.

Paralyzed, he felt the air rushing around him, tugging at him as if it wanted to tear him apart. The crows had left, as if their task was fulfilled.

Arthur struggled with breathing as he continued falling into the groundless abyss. He braced himself for the impact which was sure to come.

It never came, Arthur just kept falling and falling and falling and falling until…

He snapped his eyes open and suddenly bolted upright, unable to contain a gasp.

With his shaking hand, Arthur wiped some sweat of his forehead, looking around the room aghastly. After a moment, he realized that he was sitting in the bed of his hotel room.

"It w-was just a d-dream…" Arthur mumbled, tiredly rubbing his eyes. Suddenly, all the previous events came rushing back to him. He found that he was still shocked and confused, but could now think clearly again.

Arthur wanted to start reflecting on everything but he was interrupted by some strange noise coming from the corner of the room. The blonde froze, slowly turning his head into the direction the noise had come from.

What he saw almost made him shout, but he fortunately settled for a whispered "What the hell?!"

In the far corner of the room there was sitting a certain raven haired, seemingly fast asleep with a slight frown on his face. His dark form was almost invisible in the darkness if it weren't for his pale skin.

Arthur wondered what his friend was doing here at this time of the night. Why wasn't he sleeping in his own room?

Arthur remembered that Merlin had said that he would stay a little longer, but just how long had that been? Surely Merlin couldn't have stayed this long on purpose… But then again, that just would be so Merlin that it made complete sense.

With a tired smile, Arthur climbed out of bed, noticing that he was still wearing his sweaty clothes from the tournament. He knew that there was no way he could get back to sleep right now, so Arthur decided he might as well take a quick shower.

The hot water was quite relaxing but after his shower, Arthur felt even more awake then before. He restlessly strolled through the hotel room but when he accidently made a loud noise by knocking over his suitcase, he decided that he couldn't continue like this or he would wake his sleeping friend.

Arthur just slipped into his shoes and left the room, not knowing where he actually went. He just let his feet carry him wherever they wanted.

The walking helped Arthur to organize his mind. He knew now that Morgana was some kind of supernatural monster. It was still hard to comprehend, Arthur had never been one to believe in this kind of thing. Additionally, he did not know how Morgana became like this, she couldn't have been like that since her birth. The thought was…highly unsettling.

Also, Morgana seemed to be after him. He knew of course that their relationship was more than damaged but still… Wasn't she taking it a little too far?

Lost in thought, Arthur didn't even notice how he slowly left the city and found himself on some kind of riverbed. Still pondering about various things, he subconsciously walked along the river, up a stony hill.

When he was back to reality a few moments later, his heart skipped a beat. He was standing in front of a cliff which lead hundreds of meters down into a torrential river.

This was just like his dream and Arthur hastily stepped away from the edge, warily looking for crows out of his eye.

He did indeed see something, but it was the silhouette of a person. Expecting Morgana, Arthur spun around but he was confused when he watched Merlin stepping into the light the moon cast down on them. He looked tired but awake at the same time.

"Merlin? What are you doing here?" He asked, somehow not as surprised by his friend's presence as he thought he would be.

Merlin smiled at him, but it was a worn smile, lacking his usual goofiness. "I could ask you the same, but I think you're not here on purpose. Actually, you woke me up and when I saw you were leaving, I just followed you." Arthur wasn't sure if he just imagined it, but Merlin sounded genuinely worried. It was only then that Arthur fully comprehend in which danger he actually was, with Morgana on the loose and all.

"Well, now that we're both here… Why don't we have a little talk?" Arthur suggested and sat down on a tree trunk, indicating Merlin to join him.

The raven haired suddenly seemed a little nervous, fidgeting while he sat down. He stared at the ground for a while, then took a deep breath. Finally, he looked up at Arthur and a strange determination shone in his cerulean eyes.

Their gazes locked and Merlin gulped one last time, before he started to talk. "Alright, Arthur. First of all, there's something I have to tell you. Please, listen to the whole thing before you do anything, alright?"

Arthur was taken aback by the intensity that came with Merlin's words, so he just nodded and stared at his friend, curious to what he was going to say.

"Arthur, I am your-"

Footsteps interrupted Merlin and he instantly shut his mouth, silently cursing. He had brought up all his courage and had finally decided that he could no longer delay telling Arthur about everything, and know he didn't even get the chance! Who would be out here in the middle of the night other than them?!

The answer to that rather rhetoric question was quite surprising: Uther.

The man headed directly towards them, a deep frown on his face. "Arthur, what are you doing here in the middle of the night?" He asked, not even acknowledging Merlin's presence.

Arthur looked up at his father in confusion, then over at Merlin, who just shrugged in nonchalance.

"I could ask you the same question!" What was it with random appearances lately? Was everybody just walking around, waiting until they coincidently stumbled upon Arthur?

"I couldn't sleep so I went for a little walk." Uther said and waved his hand dismissively, as if this all made perfect sense.

"Whatever…" Arthur mumbled, rubbing his temples to prevent a slowly growing headache. "I think we all should go back to the hotel and get some sleep. Today's events were tedious enough as they were." Arthur suggested, really not wanting to talk about his monster sister with his father right now. With Merlin, it would've been fine, a great relief even.

"Are you sure we should delay the confrontation with this problem any longer? I agree that this might not be the best time but I doubt any of us will get any sleep tonight, so why not use this otherwise wasted time?"

Arthur let out a sigh. "Alright, but let's do this someplace more comfortable" He said as he slowly got from the trunk. He turned around and looked at Merlin, but the other was just staring into the sky, not even bothering to move.

His cerulean eyes seemed clouded and a little watery. "Hey, Merlin, you alright?" The blonde asked, slightly worried about his friend's absentness.

Merlin did not react at first, but then he suddenly jumped to his feet. "We have to get out of here, NOW!" He hissed, his eyes darting around in panic. He could sense it, Morgana was moving towards them and that with incredible speed.

Arthur looked at his friend in confusion. Had everyone turned crazy now?

But then he saw it.

Two winged creatures appeared as small dots in the sky, quickly coming nearer. They soon were totally visible and Arthur's breath hitched. Not only was Morgana a monster, Mordred too!

His world was now officially turned upside down, shattered even. Was there anything real at all or was everything he looked at merely a façade? Really, who was he to know?

Mordred looked a little less terrifying than Morgana, but his black wings still made Arthur instinctively take a few steps back. He suddenly wondered how many more people on this world were such creatures. He somehow felt like in some kind of fantasy novel and he really didn't like it.

Mordred and Morgana landed in front of them, Morgana's glowing red eyes pierced right through Arthur, it was like staring right into burning flames.

Next to him, Uther looked genuinely uncertain, something he rarely saw on his father's face but he could understand him.

Who wouldn't be uncertain in this kind of situation? Well, Merlin wouldn't. Or at least that's what it looked like.

The raven haired next to him looked more determined than everything, his jaw was set and his eyes focused. Arthur wondered if his friend was too stupid to understand what was going on or if he knew so much that there was no need for fear. Either way, Arthur envied him as his own heart thumped in his chest.

Morgana stayed silent, but her eyes wandered from Arthur to their father. Her lips stayed sealed but she raised a pale hand and made a flicking motion. Mordred instantly followed her gesture, a look of distress in his cold eyes.

He rushed up to Uther, suddenly a silver dagger in his hand. Arthur wanted to shout something or push his father out of the way and he would indeed have been fast enough, but someone else was even faster.

Gaius suddenly stood behind Uther, pulling him away from the dangerous blade.

Arthur wanted to be confused about the old man's sudden appearance but there were other things occupying his mind right now. Morgana was actually trying to kill his father and him probably too.

How had they deserved something like this?

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Meanwhile…

Kilgharrah was currently writing a new report about recent activities on earth. He heard footsteps and when he turned around, he noticed his young assistant and disciple Aithusa standing in the doorway to his office. She looked as though she had just run all the way from the entrance to heaven to his office, her long white hair looking slightly disheveled.

"Aithusa! What happened?" He asked in concern as she leaned onto the wall in order to catch her breath.

The young girl had recovered after a moment, quickly starting to tell her teacher what was going on. "We have a big problem! One of the observer angels just came back from a patrol, you won't believe what he told me! It is concerning your former student, Merlin, as well. The observer said, he had sensed a guardian, an archangel, a fallen angel, two humans and a demon! Can you imagine what kind if mess this is going to be?"

Kilgharrah let the girl rattle on, just nodding to show he was listening, but then he couldn't wait to ask one question. "What had Merlin to do with everything?"

Aithuse stopped with her rambling, adverting his eyes. "He is there as well, but his presence wasn't the one of the guardian angel…"

Kilgharrah did not need to hear more, he already knew what was going on. He had also known that Merlin had incredible power which just had been waiting to break through, and it seemed the time had come. But he also knew that his former student must be in quite a hassle right now, so he did something he rarely did.

He helped someone because he wanted to. "Alright Aithusa, thank you for telling me, well done."

The girl looked up at him with a smile, brushing a strand of white hair out of her face. "What are you going to do now?"

Kilgharrah chuckled, standing up from his cushioned armchair. "There is only one thing I can do in this moment, young one."

With that being said, he left the room, Aithusa staring after him with a confused yet satisfied smile.

Kilgharrah quickly made his way over to the doors of heaven, spreading his wings as he stepped onto the edge and flew down.

Down to earth where a friend would need his help.

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Gaius was dragging Uther away from Mordred, positioning himself in front of him in a protective manner.

"Gaius! What are you doing here?" Uther asked, staring at the old man in disbelieve.

Gaius just smiled, occupied with staring Mordred down. "Just doing my job."

"I don't think something like this stands in your job description." Uther corrected him as he quickly created as much space as possible between him and the black winged boy.

Gaius couldn't restrain a chuckle as moved away from Mordred as well, still daring the boy to attack them.

Meanwhile, Morgana was moving towards Arthur and Merlin. Her deadly eyes pierced right through the raven haired, but he was not afraid to meet her gaze. The last night, he had had enough time to figure out what to do. He was going to defeat Morgana, even if it was killing him. He had to protect Arthur, not just because it was his duty but because he was his best friend.

He knew Arthur would probably lash out at him, but there was no way he could keep all this from the blonde any longer. As it was, he deserved to know. He had to know, in order to keep on living.

He subtly positioned himself in front of Arthur, ignoring his protégé's confused "Merlin?" Morgana now was only a few steps away from him, her dark wings stood in deep contrast to the white bones that shone through at some parts and the moonlight made it seem even more demonic.

Suddenly, a voice as sharp as a razor blade appeared inside of Merlin's head and he had to grit his teeth at the blood curdling sensation.

"You killed Morgause."

Merlin shook his head, not wavering under the demon's gaze.

"I just removed her from earth. It wasn't even intentional."

"I don't care! She is gone and that's your fault! You'll pay!"

The connection broke of and Morgana rushed towards him. Merlin was prepared to unfold his wings, but he didn't even get a chance. Morgana had reached behind him, grabbing Arthur's collar. "I wonder how he'll react…" She hissed as she flew to the cliff with Arthur in her hands.

The blonde struggled, trying to free himself but Morgana was a lot stronger than she may look, her grip like iron on him.

When she was flying above the cliff which lead to a torrential river, Arthur started to panic. "Let me go!" He screamed, trying to kick Morgana with his feet, but he did not come even close.

Suddenly, the iron grip on his collar vanished and he fell.

It was just like in his dream, the sensation was exactly the same. Air tugging at him as he fell into the endless abyss. But this time, there was no way he could wake up.

His heart fluttered in his chest like a panicked bird and Arthur could hear someone calling his name in the distance. "Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!"

He wanted to shut his eyes, but he couldn't. He had to stare upwards, vainly hoping that someone was going to save him.

Just when hope decided to vanish into emptiness, a pair of golden eyes came into view, followed by gigantic, white and golden wings and a mop of scrubby, raven hair.

Huh? An angel? Am I dead already? But no, this is a very familiar face… MERLIN?!

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A/N: It's REVEAL-TIME! Yay :D Also, Kilgharrah is going to join the random appearances xD Hope you liked it :)

Until next time~

By DarkChain