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[A/N]: This will be the last update for the next month. I am participating in NaNoWriMo all through November and will be focusing on that. ~Reiya
For the most part, life went back to normal. Or as normal as can be in a kingdom seeped in magic. There was still the occasional magical incident where a witch's pet got loose, or a sorcerer's spell got out of hand.
Merlin was called on only a few times to deal with these since there were other magic users in the surrounding villages to help out. There was one case that he had taken personal interest in though.
Before Merlin had arrived, Morgana, the king and queen's ward, had suffered from horrific nightmares. Gaius was at his wit's end trying to stop them. Sleeping draughts only put her to sleep and kept her from waking from them. Tonics did little but keep her calm.
And although he had an idea about what was plaguing the noble woman, he didn't have tangible proof of these theories. And then Merlin had arrived, with years of knowledge stored in his brain about magical ailments and anything to do with magic.
Within a week, he had pinned down what it was Morgana suffered from. "You are very fortunate I came along when I did. Few who bear the gift of foresight can keep from going mad without help. You are also very lucky to be given such a gift. Seers are rare even among my people and are revered with the rest of our upper society." He'd smiled at that and had gotten to work fixing something for her, with Gaius's help.
"This will help you greatly. Although it will not stop the visions, it will keep them from overwhelming you. You will be able to observe your visions and analyze what they might mean. But remember, visions only show you part of the whole, and what you see might not even pass. Trying to change the future will only speed things up in some cases." Morgana nodded and took the draught that Gaius handed to her.
Soon after, her sleep was peaceful, with Gaius making a new potion for her once a week. Although most of Camelot had known of Morgana's nightmares, only the royal family, Gaius, Merlin, and Gwen, Morgana's maid, knew about Morgana's abilities.
So when she had a vision that she thought must be known, she told one of the ones who knew, letting them pick it apart for its kernel of importance. Now was no different as he watched the pale beauty pace the small room she had dragged him into.
She didn't even seem to notice Lancelot standing guard by the door. He stepped closer. "Morgana, is everything alright?" He asked her.
"Merlin…" She turned to look at him. "I've seen something horrible and…oh, god, I don't want to even contemplate it." She was shaking with nervous energy.
"First off Morgana, calm down." She looked at him then nodded. Taking a deep breath, she tried to relax the tense set of her shoulders. Seeing her relax slightly, he guided her to a nearby seat. "Now, tell me what you have seen."
"It…it was Arthur." She blurted out.
"I don't see how Arthur alone has put you into this state." He commented dryly, trying to lighten the mood. She shot him a halfhearted glare. "Alright. So what has Arthur done to warrant your distress?" He asked her.
"I'm…I'm not even sure it was him, but…it just felt like him…" He motioned for her to continue. "All I could see was light, filtering through water and…a woman, pretty, with light brown almost blonde hair. She was dressed in gold, golden light all around her. She was watching, just watching and as it went on, she was getting further away. I think she was drowning him, Merlin. Drowning Arthur." She let out a soft sob.
"Shh." He whispered gently, stepping forward to wrap an arm around her shaking shoulders. "There's no need to worry. I will personally make sure this future does not happen."
"But you said…" She started, pulling back.
"Sometime, the future must be rearranged for the good of time as a whole." He told her sagely.
"Emrys, is this a wise idea?" Lancelot spoke once Morgana had left. Merlin had remained in the room with his back to the door and his bodyguard.
"What else is there to do? If Arthur dies…who know what will happen to the peace talks. He is as vital as I am. Besides, I don't want him to die." He went on stubbornly, watching the sun rise higher in the sky.
He could just make out Lancelot's reflection. The darker Druid bowed. "Very well, but there may be consequences for this meddling in the future. Are you willing to do this only to cause something worse?"
Merlin spun around, anger blazing in his eyes. "How can saving a life cause something worse?" He demanded hotly.
He was taken aback by the look in his bodyguard's eyes. "Fate does not like it when you mess with her plans." He said simply.
Merlin felt a chill run up his spine at the man's words. He nodded mutely, but said nothing, not sure what he should say.
"Come on, Merlin. It's one of our few days off, no talks, no scheduled events." Arthur cajoled the pale Druid. Merlin gave a weary sigh, but finally he nodded in ascent. 'Good, then meet me in the front courtyard in ten minutes." Arthur walked off, leaving the Druid standing in his doorway, watching him leave.
He turned to look at Lancelot, who had been in the room talking with the other Druid when Arthur had knocked. "Well, looks like we're going hunting today." He was shocked to see the grin spread on the Druid's face at the coming fun.
The forest was silent as the three men headed out. There were others, but they had headed out already in a different direction. They planned to meet up later on. For the most part, they stayed on the trails, following them as they headed for the denser forest. They were after larger game and needed to head in deep to find them.
The ride was silent as Lancelot and Arthur communicated with a handful of hands signs that Merlin was too lazy to try and decipher. Yes, Merlin could hunt, but he preferred not to. Not because he was a vegetarian or that killing animals made his sick or something. He just didn't like killing for sport, though the game would be eaten.
So he gave his mare her head and let her follow the other two as he looked about, taking note of the magic saturating the forest. The trees here were bursting with life as summer made itself known to the world.
Content for the moment, he let his magic wonder free for a little bit, relaxing the tight rein he held over it. It sprang free with a bound, twining with the natural magic that thrived here among the trees like excited kittens. When he had been younger, he'd kept his magic like this always, giving it free reign to do as it pleased.
He'd once asked some of the older Druids if their magic would like to play with his. They'd stared at him as if he'd sprouted something incredible stupid. It was soon after that he realized that his magic was different compared to the others. Where for others, magic was energy, a force to be manipulated; his was like a living entity, always eager to please and always wanting to do things. It was like there was something else inside him that coexisted with him, one relying on the other to survive.
Smiling at the happy vibe his magic was giving him, he reined it in some, keeping it to a set range. No need to let it get up to too much mischief. He couldn't tell you how many times he'd gotten in trouble because his magic had a mind of its own.
The other two had gotten a little ahead, so he spurred his mount onwards to catch up. He came upon a strange scene. Arthur was talking to a young woman and older man while Lancelot rifled through two dead men's belongings. Eyeing the scenes, he put two and two together, realizing that these men must have been bandits or something along the line.
He turned to see who Arthur was talking to. The man walked with a staff, hair and beard turned a steal gray, his robes travel worn and mud stained. The woman was the same, though her dress was a vibrant gold. Curling light brown hair, almost golden in the sunlight, and round, heart shape faced finished the picture.
Then Morgana's words whispered through his mind at the same moment that his magic informed him of a familiar magic close by. His magic curled around both staves they carried and he looked closely, taking in the symbols carved into them. It clicked, finally, what he was seeing. "Arthur!" He called out, drawing the blonde's attention as his horse fidgeted being so close to such strong magic.
"You will leave here at once!" He hissed at them, voice harsh and rolling as he spoke to them in their native tongue.
Arthur jumped back as their eyes flashed crimson, pulling from the woman's grasp as she tried to grab him. Lancelot ran up next to him as he and Arthur both drew their swords. "You have no power over us, lowly Druid. What's to stop us from taking what we want?" The man paused, looking at Lancelot. "Your steel will not stop us. Only the High Priest or Priestess and their immediate family may hold sway over us."
"He may not have power over you but I do." Merlin said aloud in his normal voice, while his magic curled around him and the other two protectively.
"Ha, how could one such as you have power over us?" The woman laughed aloud, her soft voice grating on the ears.
"By my right of birth, given to me from my mother, the late Hunith Emrys, High Priestess of Avalon and you will obey me Sidhe of Avalon."
The two blanched at his words, taking a step back. "You can't be…" Merlin's eyes flashed golden, magic pressing in on them, laying control over their mortal forms. They glared up at him as his chains of magic settled, unseen, on their shoulders. "Emrys." The man said grudgingly.
"I know what you planned, Aulfric, and for that I should kill you." The man paled noticeably. "But, I am not one to kill needlessly. You will leave here. Seek the High Priest Maythn and tell him your case. Tell him I sent you, but do not seek mercy from him as I have shown you. You will find none."
The two bowed low to him and left quickly, compelled by the command he had placed on them. As they disappeared from sight, Merlin let his guard down a little, pulling his magic back in. It curled around him, trying to comfort him as emotions roiled around inside him.
He pushed away the still fresh grief until it was a dull presence in his mind. He'd patched the flood gates, but it wouldn't hold for long. "Merlin?"
He looked up to see Arthur and Lancelot watching him closely. "I'm alright." He tried to reassure them.
"What did they have planned?" Lancelot asked him.
"I thought Sidhe were small…and blue?" Arthur asked in confusion.
Sighing, Merlin got down off his horse, patting it reassuringly on the side before he turned to the others. "Normally they are, but these were not normal Sidhe. Aulfric and Sophia were banished from Avalon and forced into mortal forms." He explained.
They waited for him to continue. "There is only one way for a Sidhe to be banished: to kill another Sidhe. As to what they were planning, or Aulfric was planning, it was to get his daughter back into Avalon since she was banished because of him."
He continued without them asking. 'There is only one way to get back into Avalon: sacrificing the heart of a prince."
Merlin looked up at a knock on his door. Before he could answer, it opened and Arthur walked in. "You alright?" He asked the Druid who sat on the edge of his bed. Arthur sat down next to him.
"Yeah. Today just brought up some memories and it made me miss her all over again." They were quiet for a few minutes, each in their own thoughts. Merlin finally spoke. "It seems like a dream sometimes. Like I'll wake up one day and there she'll be, telling me to get up and get ready or you to stop picking at your food and eat it."
"I know what you mean. But she's still here, inside us, living through us. And who knows, maybe she's already been reborn into a new life."
"Let's hope so." They continued to sit like that for some time afterwards, just soaking up the warmth and love from shared memories of the fierce woman they had known for so long.