Author: LadyFromPoland

Disclaimer: I don't own "Merlin". It is a TV show which belongs to BBC.

Warning: SLASH

English is not my mother language.

I hate January! It's the time when I sleep like 4 hours a day. I've been so busy that I couldn't update sooner. I'm so sorry!

Engagement of an idiot

Chapter 11

"Blessed with knowledge"

The first thing that Merlin saw was a small group of people. Then he noticed a cart behind their backs. After a while he realised that it was an attack of bandits.

He heard another scream. Now he was sure - it belonged to a woman.

Merlin was so determined to help that he forgot about his own problems. It was a bless for which he would be grateful later.

"Leave her!" Merlin shouted.

The bandits were so surprised by his determined voice that they turned their heads to look at him.

"Take him," shouted the oldest of them.

"I wouldn't dare if I were you," Merlin said, stopping his horse. "Leave her alone before I use force."

The men burst out laughing. "You?" one of them asked with pity.

"I warn you," the sorcerer said firmly.

"Go on, then," the youngest and probably the most stupid of the bandits encouraged him. "I'd love to cut your pretty face. It lacks colour and the scarlet blood all over it should do the work."

Merlin sighed inwardly. He hated using his magic against such people like them but he didn't have a choice. It wasn't even fun to defeat such arrogant and heartless bastards. It was just the right thing to do in such situation.

The sorcerer made a lazy gesture with his hands and immediately all of the bandits were thrown backwards. All of them hit the hard ground and lost their consciousness. They wouldn't hurt anyone for quite a long time.

Merlin turned towards the woman. She was lying in the grass, holding her baby very tightly.

"You're safe, now," Merlin said, moving towards her.

He knelt down by her side and saw that she was stabbed.

"You're bleeding," he told her.

She gasped for air. "Doesn't matter... take my child... my husband's... dead." She could barely speak but she was glad that there was someone who would take care of her baby.

"I can cure you," Merlin said. "I'm the Magician at king Arthur's Court."

"Too late..." the woman whispered.

"No..." Merlin touched the bleeding. He had to pull the dagger out. Only then would he use his magic.

"Don't," she said. "Take him... His name's William."

Merlin looked at the baby. His very short hair was blonde and there was something familiar in his facial features.

When he glancedat the woman again, she wasn't breathing any more. She was right. It was already too late for her.

Merlin took the child gently in his hands. The little boy had fallen asleep in the arms of his dying mother. Merlin sighed. One day he would tell him about it.

He knew that he couldn't just leave the two dead bodies in the middle of the forest. The two people who blessed him with William and therefore gave him hope, deserved for a proper funeral.

Merlin used his magic to put the bodies in the cart. Then his horse and the horse that once belonged to them, carried the cart towards the nearest lake. It was not far away from where the tragedy had happened. When they finally reached the lake, Merlin cast a spell which turned the cart into a boat and then he let it float.

Despite the blood on their clothes, they looked as if they were sleeping peacefully. Merlin's eyes turned gold and the boat was set on fire.

The flames consumed it slowly and at the moment it sank, the rain stopped falling.

oOoOo

It was the early evening when Merlin reached Camelot. His journey was prolonged because he needed to be careful. Merlin didn't have much experience in taking care of babies. He was afraid that he would harm the little boy and therefore he made the horse move slowly.

When he arrived at the city, the few people that he passed by looked at him, frowning. He couldn't blame them. He disappeared for a whole day and Arthur had probably been looking for him. Now he was coming back with a baby in his arms. It was not something what people expected.

The stable-boy took his horse, not asking about anything. However Merlin noticed the curious look in his eyes. The warlock sighed inwardly. The boy needed to wait like everybody else. He had to see Arthur first to explain everything to him.

The first person that he met within the castle was Raven.

"Merlin," she greeted him, looking at the child in astonishment. "Arthur's worried about you. You should go to him as soon as possible."

"I know," the warlock replied. "I'm just going to do this."

"You're going there with the baby?" she asked.

Merlin looked at the boy. "It's probably not the best idea," he admitted. He wanted to introduce little William to Arthur but first he needed to tell him what he'd seen in the Crystal Cave. If Arthur saw Will, then he would like to know child's story first. "Could you take care of him?" Merlin asked her. "His name is William."

"Of course," Raven agreed, taking him into her arms. The boy cried suddenly. "When was he fed last?" she asked.

"I don't know," Merlin said embarrassingly. He hadn't thought about feeding the poor child. "It must've been long ago." He sighed. "I saved him, though I wasn't able to save his parents."

"He's an orphan," Raven said sadly. She knew the feeling of being alone in the world very well. "I know one woman who's recently gave birth to a daughter. I'm sure she'll be happy to breastfeed him too."

Merlin smiled at her. "Thank you," he said. "You're wonderful."

The girl blushed lightly. "If I were you, I would already run to Arthur. The king is sometimes a very impatient man and I assure you that he's going to explode soon."

"You're right," Merlin admitted. "Just... bring William to Arthur's chambers in an hour, okay?" he asked her.

"Don't worry, I will," Raven assured him. "Now go."

Merlin gave her last smile and ran upstairs to face his king, his Arthur, his destiny...

oOoOo

"Arthur," Merlin said softly, opening the door.

The king stood up immediately. He gaped at his friend, not believing that he was truly standing there. He wanted to do thousand things at once but he couldn't move and do even one of them.

"I'm sorry," the warlock said, coming closer to his king. "I'm so sorry..."

"You should be," Arthur finally replied. "Do you have any idea...?" His voice broke. He was feeling too many emotions to be able to speak properly.

"I do," Merlin assured him. "The hell! I do very well."

They looked at each other for a while in complete silence. Then they moved towards one another and fell into tight embrace.

"Don't leave me," Arthur whispered into Merlin's ears. "Don't marry Rowena, I'm begging you. Do you know what she's told me?"

"I won't marry her," Merlin promised frantically. "She's deceived both of us."

Arthur laughed happily and pulled Merlin closer. He wanted to kiss him but his friend did not let him.

"Arthur," Merlin said in a serious voice. "We need to talk. I need to explain everything."

The king groaned. "Can't you just let it go?" he asked.

"No," the warlock said firmly. "It's important."

Arthur let out a sigh. "Fine," he said. "But if you're about to tell me that you've found another fiancée, then I swear to God I won't let you marry her."

"Don't be a prat," Merlin told him but part of him was glad that Arthur was so possessive. "Let's sit down. My story is quite long."

Arthur nodded in a silent agreement. They both took a seat on king's bed because it was the most comfortable place in the whole chamber.

"I once told you about the Crystal Cave," Merlin began his story. "Do you remember what it is?"

Arthur did. Then Merlin started explaining everything, step by step, telling his king what happened to him. Arthur listened to his story with great patience. He didn't disturb Merlin when it wasn't necessary, though when he heard about the second vision he couldn't help himself.

"Merlin," he said softly. "I swear, I..."

"Hush." Merlin put his fingers on Arthur's mouth. "Let me finish first."

"But I won't hurt you like this," the king promised.

"Arthur."

"I love you," he said before Merlin could stop him.

The warlock remained silent for a while, watching his king very carefully. He blushed lightly and smiled shyly. He was aware of Arthur's feelings but it was the first time when Arthur actually said it out loud.

"I do, Merlin," the blonde assured him.

"I know," Merlin said. "And I love you too, with my whole heart, but please... let me finish my story."

Arthur grinned madly. Merlin just admitted his feelings to him. Now he could sit down and listen patiently to the rest of his story. He was the happiest man all over the world.

Merlin continued his story. He told him about saving child's life and then hesitated.

"You brought him to Camelot, didn't you?" Arthur said. He was proud of Merlin. He was proud that he had him in his life.

The dark haired man nodded.

"Where is he now?" the king asked him.

"Raven's taking care of him," Merlin told him.

"Good." Then Arthur turned pale. "You know about Raven?" he asked after a while.

Merlin looked down on the floor. "Yes, I do," the warlock admitted. "Did you want to keep her a secret?" he asked.

"It's not like that," Arthur assured him quickly. "I just... It's better when people don't know such things about their kings."

"Do you truly believe they don't?" Merlin asked him. "I've found out recently but I was blind. I never saw what I didn't want to see. At least when it was about you."

"I'm sorry," the king said honestly.

"Don't be sorry." Merlin sighed. "You had right to do so. Besides... it doesn't matter any more. And it doesn't concern me any longer."

"But it did concern you," Arthur pointed out. "Were you jealous?"

Merlin blushed. "It doesn't matter," he said after a while. "And you haven't let me finish my story yet!"

"I thought it was the end," Arthur said as a defence.

"It wasn't." The warlock cleared his throat and looked his king in the eyes. "Before boy's mother died, sherevealed his name to me."

"Which is?" Arthur asked, frowning.

"His name's William," Merlin said, smiling hopefully.

"Wasn't it the name of my son from the vision?" Arthur needed to make sure that he remembered it.

"It was," Merlin confirmed, now grinning like a madman.

"Can it mean that...?" He was too happy to name it. There was a hope that he was going to have both Merlin and an heir.

"I think so," Merlin whispered, pulling Arthur into a kiss. When they pulled apart, they started laughing out loud, rolling on royal bed.

When they calmed down, Arthur looked at Merlin and said, "do you know that the whole Camelot thinks that you're going to marry Rowena tomorrow?"

The warlock shrugged. "They'll be surprised then," he said. "I will never get married."

Arthur turned his gaze away from Merlin.

"Arthur?" the warlock asked worryingly.

"I wish we could..." he said silently.

"Me too." Merlin touched his hair lovingly. "But it's impossible. Probably they would accept me as your royal bed-warmer but they would never accept me as your legitimate husband."

"Don't call yourself my bed-warmer," Arthur said firmly. "You're so much more."

"I know," Merlin said idly, "but I'd rather be your bed-warmer than Rowena's husband."

Arthur gave him a small smile. "I'm glad to hear that," he whispered. "You know what? I can't wait to see our son.

Merlin blushed madly which wasn't unnoticed by Arthur.

"Although you can't be my husband, William will be our son. And I'm not going to hide that I think of him as ours," Arthur said firmly.

"I'm not sure you should," Merlin said shyly.

"I'm not going to hide that you're the most important person to me either," the king assured him. "I want everyone to know that they can't steal your from me."

"I wouldn't let them anyway," Merlin assured him.

"I hoped to hear that," Arthur said, making Merlin laugh.

Then someone knocked on the door.

"It must be Raven with Will," Merlin said, sitting up on the bed.

Arthur followed him. "Come in," he said loudly.

Merlin was right. It was Raven with their son. "I think you should get to know someone, Sire," she said, smiling.

Arthur walked up to her quickly. He looked at the little boy and couldn't help feeling love and gratitude.

"Take him, Sire," Raven encouraged the king. "You won't break him."

With slightly trembling hands, Arthur took William into his arms.

"He's smiling at you," said Merlin, who stood right behind Arthur's back. "He likes you."

Raven watched the small family in silence. She smiled to herself with satisfaction. She'd always known that there was a way for those two to be together. The little boy was the miracle that she'd been waiting for.

She sighed inwardly and left king's chamber in silence. The new family needed time for themselves.

oOoOo

There was one more thing that Merlin needed to confront on his own. It was Rowena. Arthur insisted on going with him but Merlin told him firmly that he had to do it alone. Arthur was not content with his decision but he respected it.

Rowena let Merlin in to her house, smirking victoriously. "Finally," she said before Merlin could open his mouth. "You've realised that my offer is the best you can have. I knew you would come to such conclusion."

"I was thinking a lot," Merlin admitted. "I didn't know what to do. I used to think that you were entirely different person."

"It's better when one doesn't know everything about their spouse," she said smoothly.

"I wish I knew you better," Merlin told her frankly. "Then, maybe, I would know what to do from the very beginning."

"What do you mean?" Rowena asked. She didn't like the way Merlin was speaking.

"I'd rather die than marry you," he said firmly. "The wedding is cancelled."

"Are you insane?" she asked him. "Can't you see that it's the only way you can have your beloved king?"

"Even if it were true, I wouldn't marry you," he said decisively. "However I'm lucky that you've been wrong all along."

Rowena snickered. "Your dear Arthur told you so, didn't he? He told you that he won't marry anyone and that he'll always be faithful to you, right? Don't be naïve Merlin... The king needs an heir and you can't give him one. Sooner or later he'll have to take a wife and sleep with her to sire a son. If she bears a daughter, then they'll have to do this one more time." She came closer to him. "Dear Merlin, you'll never have him on your own. That's not going to happen. It's better for you to have a wife for yourself and pretend to be normal."

"You know nothing, Rowena," Merlin replied, smiling. "I have given Arthur a son."

Her eyes widened. "What do you mean?" she asked with a weaker voice.

"I've given him a son," Merlin repeated. "His name is William. Besides... I could do it thanks to you. If you weren't such a cruel woman, I wouldn't leave Camelot and therefore I wouldn't save baby's life. At least for this one thing I should thank you."

Rowena turned pale. For a few seconds she was absolutely speechless. She could only gape at Merlin hatefully. "People won't accept you anyway," she said eventually. "They'll want a queen."

"Perhaps you're right," Merlin said. "Perhaps you're wrong." He shrugged. "For Arthur, I'll take the risk."

"Then you're naïve," she barked.

"I'm in love," he replied. "I have right to be a little bit naïve."

Then he left her house, knowing that he would never go there again. He'd made the decision and he was more than happy to face all the consequences. With Arthur by his side, he would conquer all.

Please, review!

I promise that I'll do my best to update an epilogue in a few days.