Hey guys!

Thanks for your reviews of the last chapter! There was more this time, so it's getting better! I'm just glad to see that some people are reading this, that's all I really want to know, and what you guys think of it. There was a few questions, and though I answered a few of them through PM's, I thought I'd answer them again in this Author's Note, just in case anybody else had similar questions.

Merlinfan5 - "Why is Merlin gay?"

I know he's not actually gay in the show, but this is just a fanfic. I "ship" Merlin and Arthur together, like, I'd want the two characters to be a couple. It's more that I'm writing Merlin as gay, because that's what this fanfic is, it's about . . . . I don't really know how to explain it. This fic is about Merlin and Arthur being paired together romantically, so obviously, they'd have to be gay.

nannily - "Wouldn't Merlin know the story of Arthur's mother, as he's friends with Morgana?"

I could see how you'd think that, as it's not very common, and if Merlin knew that, he'd see that 'A' had a lot more in common with Arthur than just that. But I'm going to say that Merlin didn't know about Arthur's mother, as it was a little too personal to Arthur, Morgana didn't want to tell him.

E-girl6 - "Do you have any idea how long it's going to be?"

I'm going to say about fifteen chapters, but already, I have a feeling it might go a bit over that. I'll say that fifteen is the minimum.

That will be all for now, but if any of you have any more questions, please do ask, because I love to answer them!

Megz

oxox

Merlin walked into the library with his head hung low in shame, clutching the dirty, but now dry, books to his chest. He'd tried his hardest over the weekend, when he'd found out he couldn't buy them anywhere, to clean away the mud, but it hadn't worked. The books were beyond repair, and he was dreading having to tell the librarian about it. She was kind enough, but Merlin wasn't sure how understanding she'd be about this. It was all Arthur Prat-dragon's fault, of course, but he wasn't going to tell her that. Although Merlin secretly hated him, he didn't like people to think of him as someone spiteful. The only person he ever told of his hatred for Arthur were Morgana, Gwen, and 'A', because he knew that they wouldn't judge him.

Looking down at his feet, he was almost up to the desk, when he lost his nerve, shoving the books back in his school bag. He told himself that he'd bring them up later, when he'd rebuilt his courage. He took in a deep breath, and walked up to the desk, leaning on the front of it, and leaning over the desk to look at Alice, the librarian, while she typed on the computer furiously.

Alice was quite an old woman, with quite a worn, but plump face, and thin lips that were almost always turned up into a comforting half-smile. The corners of her grey-blue eyes were crinkled with laughter-lines, and she always smelled very faintly of lavender, no matter what distance you were from her. She had faint, light hair, that Merlin could never tell whether it was blonde or brown, which she tied back into a loose bun at the nape of her neck. He liked Alice. There was something very motherly about her fraying shawl that she always wore, and the way she fussed over him sometimes. She could never compare to his actual mother, of course, but it was still nice all the same.

Merlin had met Alice on his first day at Camelot High. He'd arrived halfway through the term, and coming from Ealdor, didn't know anyone. His first day, he spent any moment not in class, in the school library. Alice noticed him, and started talking to him, and it turned out that she knew Gaius growing up, and they were actually still very close friends. Merlin knew it was probably more than that, but it freaked him out more than a little to think of Gaius like that. Still Alice had been kind to him, suggesting books that she thought he might like, and listening to him when he had a problem. She was one of the first people that Merlin told when he knew he was gay.

Glancing up from her keyboard, Alice noticed Merlin stood by her desk, and stopped typing immediately. She closed whatever she'd been doing, and took her glasses off her nose. She wheeled her chair over to sit at the desk properly, and looked up at Merlin, clasping her hands in front of her.

"What can I do for you today, Merlin?" she asked him, a smile gracing her lips. Merlin shrugged. It was quiet in the library, as there were only a few other students in there, but Merlin didn't mind. The library was one of the very few places that felt like home to him, he felt like he could say whatever he wanted, or do whatever he wanted, and be himself. He felt safe, surrounded by one of the things he loved more than anything; books. "How was your weekend?"

"It was alright," Merlin replied, smiling back at Alice. There was something about her, that, when she smiled at you, you couldn't help but smile back, no matter what mood you were in. He smiled again, as he thought of 'A'. "It didn't start off that great, but it got better."

"Not this Arthur-bloody-Pendragon again, was it?" Alice replied, though her insult did not hold the same anger it usually did, Merlin had to laugh and shush her. She couldn't say things like that, especially not in the very school that was run by aforementioned prat's father. Not that Merlin really cared. It was nice to see someone else hating Arthur for a change. It made him feel a little less alone, to know that Alice saw it too. "Don't shush me, it's my opinion!"

Merlin just laughed. Alice really did not approve of the way that Arthur picked on him. She would often see him coming into the library, and could just tell from the look on his face whether he'd seen Arthur that day or not. Merlin didn't know if she'd ever even met Arthur before or not, or whether she just based her opinion of him on what Merlin told her. There were a few times when Merlin had had to shush Alice's protests, on fear of her getting fired by Uther.

To keep her mind off Arthur, and also partially to stop her from getting out of hand, Merlin pulled the books out of his bag, and let them fall to the table with a dull thud.

"He kicked a football at me when I was carrying them, and I was walking through mud at the time. Don't worry though, I'll find the money somehow - " Merlin began, but Alice held up a hand to silence him, beaming widely.

"Oh nonsense, Merlin," she whispered, for once actually obeying the rule of "silence in the library". "You and I both know that you and Gaius don't have anywhere near enough money to pay for these books, no matter how well the pharmacy might be going."

Merlin knew it was true. Back in Ealdor, him and his mother hadn't had enough money as it was. She had to scrape together most of her earnings to send him to school, and Merlin would be eternally grateful for that, but their house was always cold, and their stomachs never quite full. He'd only been in his first year of high school in Ealdor, when he'd realized that the cost of sending him to school was really taking its toll on his mother. She was very behind on most of her bills, and was borrowing money from wherever she could, whilst working three jobs at the same time. Merlin had realized that they couldn't carry on living like that, and insisted that his mother sent him to live with Gaius, while she tried to get back on her feet.

Still, even though Gaius was far better off than Hunith, it didn't mean to say he was exactly rich. His house was of a suitable size, and there was always a substantial amount of food on Merlin's plate, but the price of all the books together was still quite expensive. It would take Merlin a long time to pay Alice back, but he couldn't just let her leave it, it wasn't the kind of person that he was. He'd have to find the money somehow . . .

"Besides, a very sweet young man stopped by earlier and paid for all of them," Alice muttered, so quietly that Merlin almost missed it. His mouth fell open, and Alice just laughed, the sound which was remarkably like the tinkling of bells. He was just about to start asking a long string of questions, but she held up her hand again to stop him, "And before you start, he paid me extra not to tell you who he was, said that it was very important I didn't."

Later that night, Merlin logged back in to AskMe. He needed to talk to 'A', now. He knew it couldn't possibly have been anybody else that paid for the books, as no one else knew about it. Well, only Morgana, Gwen and Arthur, but Alice had said it was a "sweet young man". And the day that Arthur Prat-dragon did something nice for Merlin, was the day that Merlin learned how to fly. So obviously, 'A' was the only logical explanation.

All the same, Merlin still couldn't quite believe it. It didn't seem to work in his mind that 'A' really did exist in the outside world, and went to school with him. He just couldn't make sense of it. And the fact that he was now doing things in private, just so that Merlin wouldn't find out his identity, annoyed him to no end. He knew that 'A' would have reasons, even if he wasn't very willing to discuss them, but it was still annoying, knowing that someone so funny, so charming, so perfect, existed out there, and Merlin kept just missing him. It was infuriating, to know that he was just out of his reach, like a toy being dangled on a string.

~ Monday, 21:00 ~

Well, how was your day? Figure out who I am yet? - A

It was good, thanks. But no, I haven't. To be honest, I completely forgot to look out for you. It's not that I wasn't thinking of you, though. I was too side-tracked trying to think of a way to pay you back for the books. I'm presuming that was you? - Merlin

You would be right. But you don't have to pay me back Merlin, I promise. I told you, my father has more money than he needs, he, nor I, are bothered what it is spent on. - A

If you say so, but I am still in your debt, whether you like it or not. I will make it up to you someday, though I'm not sure how, yet. - Merlin

Getting to talk to you finally is good enough for me. So I ask again, how was your day? - A

It was surprisingly good, actually, really, it was. Arthur and his friends left me alone today, which is very rare for them, but I appreciate the freedom, because I have no idea how long it's going to be before they start again. - Merlin

You always hurt the ones you love. - A

What's that supposed to mean? - Merlin

Forget it, Merlin. So, I know that you like books, would you recommend any? - A

Oh . . . . so many! It really depends on what kind of books you're into, though I like them all. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, that's a good one, um . . . Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens, if you think you can handle a classic. Or if you want something a little simpler, there's always Animal Farm by George Orwell. I'm sorry they're all quite old, but they're some of my favourites. And I think some of the other books I've read might be a little to advanced for you. - Merlin ;)

Lucky for you, I'm going to try not to take offence from that, Emrys! - A

You know you love me. - Merlin ;)

You wish. - A

Well? I know it was short, but . . . I hope it was good enough! Don't worry, there is plenty more to come! There was only really one main event in this chapter, so I tried to make it as long as I could. Review please!