"Who?" Lancelot asked confused as Leon frowned before his eyes widened in recognition.
"The old man who pretended to have enchanted Arthur and Gwen?" Leon asked and Gaius nodded solemnly.
"I knew him in our youth and when the Purge began, I helped him to hide. He lives somewhere in the Darkling Woods." Gaius lied quickly as Merlin looked at the still-confused knights and quickly explained.
"A few weeks before Morgana took over, for some reason she suddenly decided Gwen was a threat to her and her claim on the throne due to her relationship with Arthur. Morgana attempted to have Gwen be accused of witchcraft and have Uther execute her only before Gwen could be put to death, Arthur found the old man, Dragoon in his chambers enchanting a poultice. He was arrested and sentenced to death but escaped before he could be killed." Merlin explained, accidentally on purpose omitting the fact that he himself had been Dragoon.
"Are you sure he'll help us? If he's a sorcerer, he won't be so willing to help the heir to the throne." Gwaine commented.
"I know he will." Merlin replied. "I mean, we all know Arthur and Gwen weren't enchanted to fall in love so why would he have risked his life to pretend he had enchanted them especially since neither of them knew him."
"We don't have any other options. Gaius if we find this man, can you be sure to have the potion ready for our return?" Leon asked as he worked out what needed to be done in his mind.
"I'll do my best." Gaius replied and Leon looked back at the knights.
"All right, we can't exactly let anyone know that we'll be using sorcery to heal Gwen but we really have no other option if it's the only way that both she and the baby will survive. Therefore we tell nobody where we are going or what we are doing. If they ask, we say that we are searching for Morgana. Is that understood?" Leon asked.
"Don't worry, we know what we have to do. If we leave now we could be back before nightfall hopefully." Gwaine said as he, Leon and Percival left the room and Lancelot hung back, looking at Merlin with an expression almost like disappointment before he too left to prepare to find Dragoon. As soon as the door shut, Merlin turned to Gaius and began moving quickly around the room. Time wasn't on their side and he had to work fast in order to reach the woods before the knights did. Merlin quickly duplicated the page with the spell on it into another book before stuffing it in his bag and hurrying from the room. As the door shut behind him, Gaius turned and began preparing the potion.
This had to work.
The hall was silent as the people gathered in the crowded hall stood in silence waiting. Eventually the door opened and a lone figure walked slowly up the aisle through the split in the crowds. The woman slowly moved forwards to the steps at the bottom of the platform where a man was waiting on her. The man was extremely old; his face wrinkled and his eyes were bright and wise. His long white hair and beard fell far past his shoulders and in his hands was a shining golden crown. The old man placed the crown onto the kneeling woman's head.
"By the sacred and lawful powers vested in me; I crown you, Guinevere Queen of Camelot." the old man announced as he helped the queen stand and face the crowd. Her stomach, swollen by pregnancy was not hidden by her dress, rather the fabric was stretched to emphasise and draw attention to the unborn child as the queen sat on her throne and the old man led the crowded room in a loud chorus of 'Long Live The Queen'.
"NO!" Morgana gasped as she jolted awake. Whatever had caused her to fall asleep was forgotten in the wake of her vision. A heavily pregnant Gwen being crowned queen of her kingdom! And she was being crowned by Emrys nonetheless! Emrys- the man forewarned to be her doom aiding the usurping whore who dared steal her right of being heir to the throne. What did this mean? How could Emrys, who had powerful magic, whoever he was, ally himself with Camelot, the kingdom which loathed the very mention of magic? What had she done to deserve Emrys' hatred?
Morgana stopped pacing and threw the dagger at the wall where it lodged itself in a wooden beam. Emrys' hatred of her was a puzzle for another day. Indeed, as Morgana dislodged the dagger, she dismissed the dream she had had. If she was right and her plan had worked then Gwen was dying and would soon be restored with her precious prince. Once Gwen was dead, all she had to do was kill Uther and destroy anyone who got in her way. Camelot was rightfully hers.
"How much further do we have to go?" Gwaine asked as the knights rode through the developing dusk. The short January days were not working in their favour, night was drawing in and they were beginning to feel the chill sweep through the air.
"It shouldn't be much further." Leon replied and just as he said that the knights stumbled across a slightly dilapidated old house from which smoke was issuing from the chimney. The knights stopped and regarded the house; it was the only building they had seen for miles and with the night drawing in and the time the poison took to kill; time was not on their side.
"Do you think that's it?" Lancelot asked. He was admittedly feeling slightly let down by Merlin. It wasn't like Merlin to at least try and do something to help, even when the risk of being caught was there. However given that Elyan had barely left Gwen's side, Lancelot reasoned that Merlin also needed to think about protecting his own life as well as attempting to save Gwen's and the baby's.
"Let's find out." Percival replied as they dismounted and approached the door. Leon as the de facto leader stood in front of the door and knocked sharply on the wooden door.
The knights could hear movement and the door opened the tiniest crack. "What do you want?" a male voice asked.
"Open up in the name of the king. It is a matter of great importance." Leon replied. As the door opened, Leon caught sight of the old man he had only seen once before standing in the doorway. The old man looked the same as he had the last time Leon had seen him; wrinkled and dressed in a red robe with long white hair and beard.
"What do you want?" Merlin asked, careful to maintain the faked voice he used the last time he had used this disguise.
"Dragoon, our friend is in great danger. Morgana poisoned her and if you don't help her then she'll die." Leon explained and whilst Merlin was bursting to reveal himself as well as agree immediately to help; he had to remember that he was pretending to be a sorcerer who was almost killed by Uther and therefore unwilling to return to Camelot.
"What do you want me to do gentlemen?" Merlin asked, hoping that none of them would recognise him. He was especially careful not to look too long at Lancelot, if any of them would possibly recognise him; it would most likely be Lancelot.
"Help her, heal her." Lancelot replied looking at the old man. There was something inexplicably familiar about him but he couldn't put his finger on what it was.
"Why should I do that? You are Camelot knights and the only reason you would seek my help is if you would seek the aid of magic. Why should I risk my life to save your friend?" Merlin tested as he turned away from the knights, hoping they wouldn't see through the lies and disguise.
Gwaine frowned at the old man and the knights. This was stupid. The old man was being too stubborn and borderline insolent and they didn't have time to play any stupid games he may have planned. Gwaine was tempted to fetch his sword in order to 'persuade' the old man to help them. Instead however, he settled for the best possible reason to get the old man to go with them and help to save Gwen and the baby's lives.
"She's pregnant. If you don't help us then both Gwen and the baby will die." Gwaine said and the old man seemed to freeze for a moment before turning back to them.
"What do you need me to do?" Merlin asked.
"Our physician is preparing a potion as we speak but in order for it to work, you need to cast some sort of spell. We will pay you for your time and help." Leon offered and the old man shook his head,
"I have no requirement of gold. I shall help your friend if you grant me one request." Merlin said; obviously he was going to help Gwen anyway but in order to make his alter ego more believable 'Dragoon' would need to create some sort of bargain.
"Name your price." Percival replied.
"Tell your friend how she was healed. That is all I ask. Give me your word that you shall prove to her that not all magic is evil and I shall heal her." Merlin offered. The knights were silent for only a second before Leon held out his hand to Merlin.
"You have our word." Leon replied. "We need to leave now. There's no telling how much longer Gwen has."
"Indeed," Merlin said as he used magic to extinguish the fire he had lit and to retrieve the book he had hurriedly placed on the shelf before turning to the knights and following them out the door. As he mounted on the back of Gwaine's horse, Merlin felt a sense of trepidation and nerves build up within him. Everything was resting on the edge of a knife tonight, no matter what happened; tonight would be the night that changed everything. Forever.
"I haven't always been the best brother have I? I was an absolute demon as a child and I only got worse as I got older. You were always there for me, covering my back and bailing me out of trouble. Even when you got into trouble too, you always were willing to help me the next time I did something stupid. I never really did thank you properly for any of that. I just sort of shrugged it off and said I wouldn't do it again even though we both knew I would. I used to wonder why you even bothered with me; I wouldn't even have bothered with me but I know now. It's what you do when you love someone; you do whatever it takes in order to make sure they're safe. I swear that's what I'll do for you. You and my niece or nephew. If Morgana wants to harm you, she'll have to go through me first." Elyan said as he knelt on the floor next to Merlin's bed and placed their linked hands over Gwen's stomach.
"It's the three of us against the word Gwennie. No matter what." Elyan promised. He wiped his damp eyes and tilted his head back towards the ceiling. Elyan was not a praying man and never had been. However he wouldn't see this as praying, he was seeing it as bargaining.
"Arthur, Father… don't take them away from us. I know you both miss Gwen but it's not her time yet. We need her. Camelot needs her. I need her. Please," Elyan trailed off, sniffed and wiped his eyes as Gaius entered the room.
"Elyan, the potion is ready. Once the knights return, we will be able to use it to help Gwen. They'll be fine." Gaius reassured and Elyan looked nervously at Gaius, unable to withhold the sickening feeling of doubt twisting away at his insides.
"What if it doesn't work? What do we do then?" Elyan asked and Gaius sighed deeply and looked at Gwen.
"It ought to work; Gwen is stronger than she looks." Gaius reassured and Elyan nodded in agreement, noting how Gaius had avoided answering his question.
Darkness had fallen completely by the time the knights arrived back in Camelot along with Dragoon/Merlin. The knights timed their return for that momentary respite between the changing of the guard allowing them to enter the castle along with the sorcerer without any confrontations. As they made their way inside, none of them noticed the figure standing at one of the windows watching them.
"This way, quickly." Leon guided the old man towards Gaius' quarters. Merlin followed and as they reached Gaius' quarters, Leon knocked twice and stepped inside. As the men filled into the room; Gwaine had the foresight to lock the door behind them. Merlin stepped forwards and turned to Gaius, reminding him not to say anything or give any sort of indication that it was in fact Merlin standing in front of the knights.
"Dragoon," Gaius said as he handed Merlin the vial with the potion inside it. "I brewed the remedy; once Gwen has drank it, the spell must be recited."
"I know this Gaius, where is the woman?" Merlin asked and his nerves increased ten-fold as he was led into his room where Gwen was lying on his bed and Elyan kneeling beside it. Elyan leapt to his feet as soon as they entered the room.
"Who are you?" Elyan asked.
"I am Dragoon; I have come to heal your friend." Merlin replied.
"Gwen's my sister." Elyan corrected and Merlin moved around to the other side of his bed to prop the book open against the wall as he opened it at the right page. Merlin tilted Gwen's head back in order to open her mouth and pour the vial's contents down her throat. As the vial emptied, Merlin glanced at the book and placed his hands over Gwen's heart. The poison was in her blood and he needed to cleanse the blood from the heart to remove the potion.
"Corpus aufero venenum. Liceat mulieri et puero sanari." Merlin recited as his eyes flashed gold. He could tell it had worked the second he had felt the magic leave his body. Gwen's clammy skin seemed to warm a fraction and her breathing hitched before slowly regulating. The silence seemed to compress on all of them until finally Merlin stood upright and looked at the others who were looking at him and Gwen anxiously; waiting on some sort of confirmation or denial of what he had done.
"She should be all right. She will need rest to allow her body to heal and ensure both her and the child's recovery." Merlin said and the silence was broken by relief-filled sighs. Elyan covered his mouth, composed himself and stepped forwards; gripping Merlin's aged hand tightly.
"Thank you; I don't even who you are but thank you." Elyan said. Merlin shook his hand and stepped back, looking at Leon, Gwaine, Percival and Lancelot.
"Remember your vow." Merlin said as he grabbed the book and swept out of the room as Gaius moved to check over Gwen and the knights watched him.
"What vow did you make to him?" Gaius asked Leon.
"We promised that if he healed Gwen, we would tell her how she was cured." Gwaine replied as they stepped down into Gaius' main quarters and retold their story of how they had found and bargained with Dragoon. A few minutes after the story had been recounted, Merlin entered the room dressed in his usual attire and looking like himself again.
"What happened?" Merlin asked.
"Gwen should make a full recovery. Where did you go?" Lancelot asked curiously.
"I had to tend to the king." Merlin covered quickly as Leon got to his feet. In all the commotion they had forgotten about the meeting between Rodor and Mithian.
"We better inform Rodor and Mithian that the meeting will need to take place another time and that Gwen should make a recovery." Leon said.
"I'm sure they will understand however be sure not to tell them the full story." Gaius advised as Leon walked out of the room and they told Merlin what had happened when he was 'working'. As far as Merlin could work out, none of the knights had made the connection between himself and Dragoon. Whilst it was another lie to the tower of falsehoods he had built up around himself, Merlin knew that it had been for the greater good.
The first thing she felt was pain; all of her body felt as though she had gone to battle with no armour to protect her. Her limbs felt heavy and her head was throbbing violently. Even opening her eyes took effort and once they were open, all she wanted to do was close them again. She felt so tired but could feel her body dragging her back to consciousness. She attempted to speak but all that came out was a rasping groan. The net thing she was aware of was someone grabbing onto her hand and shaking her slightly.
"Gwen? Gwen can you hear me?"
The voice broke through her foggy mind and slowly Gwen attempted to pull herself up and open her eyes. Elyan was crouched next to her and turned way as he yelled for Gaius to come quickly. Gaius entered the room, followed by Merlin.
"Gwen!" Merlin exclaimed as he stood at her other side. Gwen turned to look at Merlin but the slight shifting movement was enough for her child to make its presence felt the only way it knew how.
"Come, bring her down here Elyan. Gwen how do you feel now?" Gaius asked as Elyan gently picked up Gwen and carried her slowly down the few steps and placed her back onto one of the beds whilst Gaius placed a bucket at the bedside, leaving Merlin standing in his bedroom.
As the door shut behind him, Merlin let out a sigh of relief and ran a hand through his hair. That had been a close call, almost too close. How many more close calls and near-misses were they expected to face over the coming months? How far was Morgana going to go? What was she going to do next? When was she going to strike next? These thoughts were stopped as Merlin took a deep breath to calm his mind and his nose was assaulted by the 'pleasant' reminder of one of the most notable aspects of pregnancy. Merlin rolled his eyes skyward as he gingerly kicked off his boots and clutched his nose as he searched for his second set of boots.
"I save its mothers' life and I'm thanked by it making Gwen vomit over me. That's your child all right Arthur." Merlin muttered as he pulled on his second set of boots and went to fetch some water to clean his bedroom floor.