Comments: Final chapter for Morgana returns, I hope you like it. Thank you AugustMist
The next day Merlin woke up with his head throbbing, he placed his hand on the back of his head and brought his hand forward: Blood!
He tried to think straight, he needed to be somewhere…he looked around and through his eyes he could see a mixture of green and brown..he tried to focus, 'Where am I?' the trees began to rustle in the breeze and then it all came flooding back to him!
'Gwen!' he stood up, the whole forest spinning around him. The sun was beaming down, he had been unconscious all night, and she could be dead by now…
He ran as fast as he could towards Camelot.
Standing on the steps leading up to the castle, Arthur stood, his arms crossed a mixed look crossing his face of anger and relief.
"Oh there you are Merlin, finally decided to arrive for work?" Arthur shouted at Merlin as he ran towards him – he was out of breath. It was lunchtime and Arthur had spent all morning looking for him.
"Morgana… Gwen…" he panted, Arthur placed a hand on his shoulder.
"What now, Merrrrlin?" Arthur raised his hand up from his shoulder it was now covered in Merlin's blood.
"WHAT IS GOING ON?" he looked between his bloody hand and his out of breath man servant.
"She's... In danger… Where is she?" Merlin thought he might pass out.
"Who? Talk sense, man," Arthur said, concern showing through his voice.
"It's Gwen! Morgana ... kill her; no time!" he said in between breaths.
At the mention of his beloved's name, Arthur joined Merlin in running into the castle.
As Gwen entered Morgana's chambers she noticed that lunch was already laid out and it looked like Morgana was drinking wine.
"Please join me Gwen. I need to talk to you," said Morgana, causing Gwen to jump as she walked up behind her. Morgana smiled sweetly – but something about it did not put the maid at ease. "Sit!" she ordered and Gwen did.
Morgana poured a goblet of wine for her.
"I am sorry for any embarrassment caused last night." She handed her servant the goblet.
She didn't really want to kill Gwen in her chambers, but she didn't also want to be seen walking out of town with her, she had already planned the whole thing… Kill her and then place her body in the servants quarters...the potion used would make it look like a simple, natural death.
"No apology needed," said Gwen nervously; she didn't know what to say, she had embarrassed her and caused no end of trouble.
"I wanted to talk to you about Arthur. I was a fool not to spot it before…" Morgana trailed off and watched Gwen silently over the rim of her own goblet.
Gwen held onto her drink, her mind swimming with what Morgana was saying. "I am unsure of what you mean…?" she asked, attempting to feign innocence.
Morgana looked angry now, but tried to compose herself.
"Is our friendship really that broken, that you cannot confide in me about your love of Arthur?"
Gwen felt terrible, she had figured it out, of course she would in the end and she had still lied to her.
She placed the goblet down and placed her hands on her face "I am so sorry Morgana; I should have confided in you… I know it must seem silly." She didn't know why she felt the urge to not tell Morgana about her and Arthur, but now she had been caught out.
"Yes you should have. You will never become Queen; I would have told you to not be foolish and saved you all the heartache." Her hands traced the rim of her goblet, her eyes dark.
Gwen lifted her head up, tears now filling her eyes.
"I know, but I love him." She hated how pathetic that sounded.
"You LIED to me Gwen; I have trusted you for so long – and you LIE TO ME!" Morgana stood up from the table and paced around the room.
"I know I do not deserve your friendship, but please Morgana... You had so much else to worry about, I did not want to burden you with my problems."
"You should have told me." Morgana softened her words, what did it matter now what had passed, she had to finish what she started.
"I am so sorry Morgana...you are the only family I have left, I should not have treated you so." She felt terrible: Morgana was her friend, she should have trusted her.
"No you should not." Morgana handed her the goblet of wine and tried to shut out Gwen's simple and sudden use of the word 'family' – it wouldn't help her in any way.
"Perhaps we should drink to new beginnings," she said, gently, trying to contain her emotions. Gwen looked confused.
"You forgive me?" she asked, although doubt consumed her.
"In time I will… A toast to the start of something new," she said, raising her carefully chosen goblet to her lips.
Gwen looked down into hers. "I feel ashamed for my actions. I love you like a sister and the hurt I have caused you is unforgivable... I hope in time you will be able to find a place in your heart for me..."Gwen repeated her earlier words, "You are the only family I have left."
At the words, Morgana's heart broke and she suddenly could think straight; her friend was in front of her – the young maid who had always been by her side as she had grown into adulthood. The person who stayed up all night to help with her nightmares…
Everything happened so fast.
Gwen raised her goblet. "To forgiveness – and to no more secrets."
The goblet touched her lips, but before she could take even one sip, Morgana knocked it out of her hands.
It landed against the wooden drawers and Gwen watched as the liquid pooled onto the floor; it hissed and bubbled and, before she knew what was happening, it had turned a deep, poisonous green.
Morgana held her in her arms and sobbed, "I am so sorry. I don't know who I am anymore…"
Gwen soothed her, the full weight of what had just happened slowing dawning on her. Morgana had tried to kill her, to poison her!
Still in shock, she could feel Morgana sobbing against her and instinct took over. She rubbed soothing circles on her back 'shhh...it's alright' she whispered and when Morgana's breathing began to calm, she pulled her back to look in her eyes.
Darkness no longer consumed them, regret now took its place.... "Morgana...please talk to me?"
"I do not know where to start?" Morgana looked so venerable and in her eyes flickered a reminder of the young girl she used to know.
Gwen led her to the bed "The beginning...would be a good place"
Morgana told her of the plan to marry Arthur, and what Uther had done and about how she had been angry at Gwen for keeping her relationship with Arthur a secret... She spoke of her magic and Morgause's plans. She told her about Merlin and how he had tried to kill her – and about him now lying in the woods, maybe even dying.
Gwen felt sick at Merlin lying somewhere in need of help, she was torn between running to find Merlin and staying with Morgana.
"Morgana let me help you," she said, slowly – keeping her voice controlled and gentle. She wiped away the tears on her face.
The sound of shouting and loud footsteps made them both stand up. Merlin and Arthur could be heard outside the door.
"IT'S LOCKED" Arthur shouted, trying to open the magically shut door.
Morgana's hands were shaking and Gwen placed hers over them. "Let me help you!...let Arthur help you"
Morgana looked between Gwen and the door that Arthur was obviously throwing himself against, in an attempt to open it.
"You cannot... I must leave now," she said now looking directly at Gwen.
"No Morgana! We can keep you safe, we can help you."
She held onto her maid's hand tightly. "No one can help me now. My path is decided and I no longer belong in Camelot."
"Morgana this is madness you cannot leave!" said Gwen desperately. "We can help you!" she repeated, stroking Morgana's tangled hair out of her eyes.
"What I have done is unforgivable....I need to leave, be with my own kind!" tears fell down Morgana's face as she spoke. "Forgive me Gwen!....I." she couldn't finish her words.
"Morgana stay, please; whatever has happened...whatever path you are on, we can help you" although she was not sure how she could help with Uther around.
Bang, Bang as Arthur pounded against the door "No Gwen...I cannot stay, but you could come with me?" she asked hopefully. Perhaps they could leave and start a life, two friends together away from all of this, like they talked about growing up!
Gwen held onto her hands "I cannot!" she felt torn in two, between trying to help Morgana and staying to see Arthur become King....she could not leave Arthur, not now. "Stay Morgana" she begged one more time as the Morgana's door now collapsed on the floor with Arthur on top of it.
"I am sorry Gwen" she pulled her hands away from Gwen's and pulled a vile out of her sleeve.
"NO Morgana" Gwen pleaded as the vile dropped on the floor and in a puff of smoke she was gone.
Gwen's legs buckled and she felt along the floor where Morgana just stood.
"Guinevere" Arthur ran to her side, his mind spinning with what he had just seen. He knelt down in front of Gwen pulling her into a hug as he surveyed the scene. Green liquid bubbling against the floor, a puff of smoke which Morgana made magically appear "What is going on?" he said out loud as he soothed Guinevere who was now sobbing into his shirt.
When Gwen finally calmed down, she relayed her conversation with Morgana to Arthur, she left out the part about Merlin trying to kill Morgana, that conversation needed to be had with Merlin. She knew Merlin well enough that he was not a murderer, so she wanted to find out why he had done it. Merlin looked gratefully at Gwen as the story missed out his involvement...he left them alone and went to seek out Gauis.
"I can't believe it." Arthur said, his head tense from all the new information.
He still held Guinevere tight in his arms, not just for her sake, but for his own...he felt her pull back from him and he found her brown eyes now looking at him....her eyelashes still holding onto droplets of sorrow for the story just told.
"The truth is, if she would have told me she wanted to be your queen" she looked away from his gaze "I would have walked away, or even helped her on that path"
He lifted her chin so she looked at him. Arthur struggled to formulate his words, this whole day had been a nightmare. "Why would you do that?"
She closed her eyes and sighed "Because I always believed she was born to be your queen"
Arthur shook his head and his words were soft "No...along time ago, I may have believed that too, but she was, is...like a sister to me"
Gwen opened her eyes to look at him, there was nothing but honesty in his eyes. "You are the only queen I want"
She started to speak but he held his hand up to stop her, he had had enough today, he did not need to hear the complications of their relationship laid out again.
Gwen sighed and her thoughts turned back to Morgana "We should have helped her,"
"Guinevere… I fear it had already passed that point. She tried to kill you and Merlin." He rubbed his temples trying to think about everything that had passed.
Not without reason, Gwen thought, but would never say that to Arthur.
"What will you tell your father?" she asked instead.
Arthur sighed; he would need to face his father and the council. "I will tell him that I failed him again, that Morgause took her back."
It was the best thing to do; he would rather his father think on her as she was, than being forced to hunt her down. Perhaps Morgana would change; perhaps she would use her abilities for good.
After all that had happened today, he needed to at least try to believe that Morgana had some good left in her; that she had, although about to, restrained from killing Gwen – that she hadn't been able to deal the final blow. He needed to believe that magic could be used for good – that there were Sorcerers or Warlocks that possessed virtue and nobility still left in the world.
At his words Gwen wrapped her arms back around him and held him tight. "We will see Morgana again and help her if we can" she whispered into his ear.
The weight of the future that lay ahead of him made his heart heavy...he not only needed to make a maid his queen, but he needed to save his sister who was now a witch. All of these challenges had one big hurdle Uther....at that thought a shiver ran down his spine and Guinevere held him tighter. Arthur noticed Merlin enter and he felt some comfort that no matter what this journey had in store for him, he had two people he cared more than anything about to help him on the way.