A/N: I'd just like to clarify in advance that while Gwen and Lancelot are aware of Mordred's tendency to use telepathy, they cannot hear him. They've gotten used to watching Morgana and/or Merlin's reactions to recognize when Mordred is talking.
Much to Gaius's chagrin, Mordred showed absolutely no interest in the physician's art. He insisted on trailing either Merlin or Morgana everywhere like a lost puppy, and he refused to speak out loud to anyone but Arthur. He happily joined Morgana's magic lessons, and seemed to think it was the best thing in the world to be taught by Emrys. Morgana noticed that Merlin seemed a bit overwhelmed by the hero worship.
Meanwhile, both Arthur and Morgana were resolutely refusing to speak to Uther. They dined with him if commanded, but spoke only to each other. Any time Arthur returned from a patrol, he designated another knight to give the report. Gwen relayed rumors that Arthur had threatened to abdicate his place in the line of succession unless Uther spared Mordred; a decision that was generally applauded.
Morgana supposed it was inevitable that the Camelot rumor mill would eventually lose its uncanny accuracy.
Arthur came of age, and with that milestone came a ceremony that would force him to interact with his father: the ceremony to formalize his position as Crown Prince. Morgana could see the tension in his stance as he knelt before the king.
Uther held out a scepter, no trace of the recent family conflict on his face. "Do you solemnly swear to govern the people of this kingdom and its dominions according to the statutes, customs and laws laid down by your forebears?"
"I do, Sire."
"Do you promise to exercise mercy and justice in your deeds and judgments?"
"I do, Sire."
"And do you swear allegiance to Camelot, now and for as long as you shall live?"
Arthur reached out to grip the scepter. "I, Arthur Pendragon, do pledge life and limb to the protection of the kingdom and its peoples." Morgana noticed that he had skipped the traditional line pledging service to his king.
If Uther noticed too, he didn't show it. "Now, being of age and heir apparent, from henceforth you shall be Crown Prince of Camelot." He took a coronet from a velvet cushion and placed it on Arthur's head. Arthur stood up and turned to face the crowd, smiling at the applause.
Can I call him my king yet? Mordred asked from his place between Merlin and Gwen.
No, not yet, Morgana replied. She just barely restrained the urge to laugh at his look of utter disappointment.
Don't worry, you can still help me with his royal socks if you like, Merlin suggested. Mordred made a disgusted face at that.
Suddenly, an armored rider on a black horse crashed through the stained-glass window at the far end of the hall. His face was concealed by a visored helmet, but Morgana could clearly see the crest on his shield: a white falcon on a black field. She squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them again, certain she must have been mistaken. She was not.
The black knight advanced down the center of the room and threw down his gauntlet at the king's feet. For a few moments, there was total silence. Then, a young knight picked up the gauntlet. "I, Sir Owain, accept your challenge."
The black knight looked down at Owain. "Single combat. Noon tomorrow. To the death." With that, he turned his horse and rode back out of the hall.
After the crowd dispersed, Arthur came to Morgana's chambers to rant. "He shouldn't have picked up the gauntlet!"
"I think you're right about that," Morgana agreed. "Arthur, did you see that knight's crest?"
Arthur frowned at her. "Yes, but it wasn't one I've seen before."
"That was the crest of your mother's brother, Tristan de Bois. His personal crest."
"You're sure?"
Morgana nodded. "Positive, I reviewed quite a few old crests back when I was trying to find my mother's family. I remember that Tristan challenged Uther to single combat shortly after your birth, and he lost. I could find no record explaining why. By all accounts, he was a trusted member of the court before that."
"Yet another family secret our father is hiding," Arthur said with a scowl.
"A secret that could get Owain killed," Morgana noted worriedly. "Whoever this man is, he must have chosen that particular crest for a reason. Is there nothing you can do to stop the fight?"
Arthur grimaced. "Owain picked up the gauntlet. Now he must fight. That's the Knight's Code. He knew that." Arthur left the room, sighing as he went.
Gwen swallowed. "Is there nothing we can do?"
Morgana shook her head. "This is a matter for the knights, not a matter for sorcerers." She walked over to her vanity and took out a red ribbon. "Give this to Owain in the morning. Perhaps it will bring him luck."
The favor brought Owain no luck. He fought valiantly, but the black knight was ultimately victorious. The black knight turned to the royal box and threw down his gauntlet again. Arthur tried to rise out of his seat, but Uther put a restraining hand on his shoulder. Sir Pellinor picked up the gauntlet instead.
There's something wrong with that knight! Mordred called fearfully. He should have died when Owain stabbed him!
What do you mean? Morgana responded, confused. Owain never landed a blow.
No, I saw it too, Merlin confirmed. We must have had a better angle than you.
Morgana swallowed hard. Perhaps she'd been wrong to assume that the black knight could not possibly be the real Tristan de Bois.
Later that day, Merlin and Mordred came to Morgana's chambers. Mordred immediately ran to Morgana and flung his arms around her, burying his head in her chest. Morgana returned the embrace and gave Merlin a worried look. "What's wrong?"
"The tomb of Tristan de Bois is empty," Merlin revealed with a grimace. "Gaius thinks the black knight is a wraith, conjured from the dead to take his revenge."
"On Uther," Morgana surmised. "Not an entirely objectionable idea, if only the knights would stay out of his way."
"And therein lies the problem," Merlin confirmed. "No mortal blade can kill a wraith."
"So Pellinor is to suffer Owain's fate?" Lancelot asked worriedly.
"It looks that way," Merlin agreed.
"But what about magic?" Gwen argued. "Surely there must be something you can do."
"I've got a few ideas, but I'm going to have to wait until nightfall if I'm to use them undetected," Merlin replied.
Mordred finally pulled away to look at Merlin, though he did not completely let go of Morgana. Emrys will kill the knight. Emrys can do anything.
Merlin snorted, looking both amused and exasperated. "Let's hope you're right, and Pellinor will live to fight an opponent he can defeat."
Mordred spent the remainder of the day glued to Morgana's side. Merlin eventually returned after nightfall, looking grim. "Nothing worked," he announced.
Mordred frowned. But you're Emrys.
Merlin sighed. "Mordred, your absolute faith in me is both touching and wholly misplaced. I've had less than a year to study magic. I have to know what I'm doing in order to do it."
But now Pellinor will die!
"Believe me, I wish there was something I could do about that." Merlin held out a hand. "Come on. It's time for you to go to bed."
Mordred reluctantly took Merlin's hand, and together they left the room. Morgana herself retired to bed, worried for what the morning would bring.
Sure enough, Pellinor also fell to the black knight, though he landed a should-have-been-fatal blow that was plain for all to see. The black knight approached the royal box again, but before he could throw down his gauntlet, Arthur threw his own gauntlet at the feet of the black knight. Morgana watched in horror as the black knight accepted Arthur's challenge.
"Have you gone completely mad?" Morgana demanded, marching into Arthur's chambers.
Arthur rolled his eyes. "Not you too."
"Did you not see what happened when Pellinor stabbed the knight? This is no living man borrowing your uncle's crest; this is your uncle Tristan, conjured from the grave! You can't kill something that is already dead!"
Arthur raised his eyebrows at her. "Gaius said the griffin could only be killed by magic, and look how that turned out."
Morgana winced. "That was different. Griffins are so rare that Gaius hadn't even believed they were real until one turned up here; it's to be expected that the legends were not entirely accurate."
"Gaius was wrong before, he can be wrong again," Arthur insisted confidently.
"And you're willing to stake your life on that?!"
"Have you had a vision of me failing?" Arthur challenged.
"Well, no, but—"
"Then I'm fighting, and that's final. I'll not allow this man, whoever or whatever he is, to continue killing my knights."
Morgana swallowed. "Please, I don't want to lose you."
Arthur gently put a hand on her shoulder. "I have to do this. It's my duty."
"I understand." Morgana pulled away and left the room, closing the door behind her. "I understand you're too damn honorable for your own good," she continued under her breath.
Halfway to the physician's chambers, Morgana ran into Merlin and Mordred. "We've got to find a way to kill that wraith," she stated.
"I know," Merlin agreed. "I'm going to ask my father if he knows how to kill one."
"And if he doesn't?"
"You could look in the palace library while I'm gone?" Merlin suggested.
"As if the palace library would contain any books on necromancy," Morgana scoffed.
"Well, unless you want to break into the vaults…"
"Might be worth a try," Morgana muttered. She glanced at Mordred. "But I suppose we can wait until you've talked to Balinor first. Wouldn't want Uther jumping to unfortunate conclusions about the break-in."
"I'll be as quick as I can," Merlin promised. Mordred took a step toward Morgana and tightly gripped her hand.
Unwillingly to sit idly by and wait for Merlin's return, Morgana (and Mordred) went down to the palace library to look for any book that might mention wraiths. She amassed a pile of admittedly unlikely-looking books, then carried them over to a table and began skimming them. Mordred anxiously watched over her shoulder.
A throat cleared behind her. Morgana jumped, then turned to see Sir Geoffrey looming over them. "Can I help you find anything, my lady?"
"No, I'm just…" Morgana glanced at the rather questionable illustrations of her current book. "Just showing Mordred the horrors that magic is capable of."
"I see. Let me know if I can be of assistance." Geoffrey walked away, and Morgana heaved a sigh of relief.
Magic isn't all bad! Mordred complained.
I know that and you know that, but the king ordered us to teach you that it's bad, remember? Morgana gently reminded him.
Mordred pouted. I hate Uther.
He won't reign forever, Morgana promised.
Shortly after nightfall, there was a cautious knock on the door of Morgana's chambers. Gwen went to answer it. "Merlin!" She stood aside to let him in. "Have you had any luck?"
"Yes," Merlin confirmed. "But I need a favor."
"Name it," Morgana said, approaching the door.
Merlin shook his head. "No, I need a favor from Gwen."
"What could I possibly do to help?" Gwen said, surprised.
"I need a sword, the strongest sword your father's ever made."
How will that help? Mordred asked.
"A sword forged in a dragon's breath can kill anything, alive or dead," Merlin explained. "My father's waiting just outside the city. Once I have the sword, we'll sneak him in to Kilgharrah's prison."
"Balinor is coming inside the city?" Lancelot repeated, worried.
"We don't have a choice," Merlin said grimly. "Considering what happened the last time Morgana and I spoke to Kilgharrah, I doubt he'll help us out of the goodness of his heart."
Gwen swallowed. "Of course I'll help. I know just the sword. But my father won't be happy I've taken it."
"I'll pay for it," Morgana stated, walking over to her dresser. She took out a pouch of gold coins. "At the very least, Tom should be fairly compensated for saving his prince."
"Thank you," Gwen replied.
Mordred determinedly accompanied them to Gwen's house, even though he was visibly yawning as he did so. Once the sword and payment had changed hands, Morgana gave Mordred a very stern look. "Time for you to go to bed now. You can see the finished sword in the morning."
Mordred pouted, but let Morgana take his hand and lead him back to the castle.
Once they reached the physician's chambers, Morgana reached out a hand to open the door, but froze when she heard the king's voice inside. "I should have listened to you. You said that no good would come of using witchcraft at Arthur's birth."
Morgana and Mordred shared a wide-eyed look, both wondering if they'd really heard that right.
"You wanted an heir, you thought it was the only way," Gaius replied.
"Nimueh told me there would be a price to pay," Uther said wearily.
"You weren't to know that price would be Ygraine's life," Gaius soothed.
Mordred audibly gasped. There was silence inside the room, then footsteps approached the door. Morgana slapped a hand over Mordred's mouth and quickly hauled him back down the steps and into a nearby alcove. The door opened above them, but thankfully no one emerged. The door closed again.
Did Uther really say he used magic at Arthur's birth? Mordred demanded.
From the sound of things, he had Nimueh use magic at Arthur's birth, Morgana corrected. And she betrayed him and killed Ygraine. Small wonder he hates magic now…though it certainly doesn't justify slaughtering us all.
Why would Nimueh do that?
Morgana grimaced. I don't know. I met her once, and she certainly wasn't a nice woman. She tried to kill both Arthur and Merlin.
Why would she do that? Doesn't she know who they are?
If she does, then she certainly doesn't care about the ancient prophecies.
At that moment, the door opened again. Morgana and Mordred drew further into the shadows as Uther walked past. They waited a minute to be sure he was gone, then climbed the stairs to the physician's chambers again. They met Gaius in the doorway.
"Ah, there you are, Mordred," Gaius greeted. "I was about to come looking for you. It's past your bedtime. Thank you for bringing him, my lady."
"It was no trouble at all," Morgana replied, forcing an innocent smile.
"If it's not too much to ask, would you mind putting him to bed? I've one last errand I need to run before I retire myself." Gaius held up a sleeping draught.
"Of course," Morgana agreed. "Good night, Gaius."
"Good night, my lady." Gaius stepped around her and walked down the stairs.
Mordred looked up at Morgana. What do we do? Should we tell everyone?
Morgana shook her head. No, that's a bad idea. Uther already threatened to kill you if I spilled one of his other secrets. Best not see what happens to you if word of this gets around.
But shouldn't Arthur know? Mordred persisted.
Oh yes, he absolutely should, Morgana agreed. And as soon as you go to bed, I'm going to tell him. Don't you worry about that.
When Morgana rounded the corner to approach Arthur's chambers, she was shocked to see Gaius locking the door. She opened her mouth to ask just what the hell he was doing, then thought better of it. No doubt this was connected to Uther's earlier visit. She backed out of sight, waited a few moments, then rounded the corner again. "Gaius! Have you just been to see Arthur?"
"I'm afraid he's already asleep, my lady," Gaius replied. "If you were hoping to speak with him, you'd best wait until morning."
"Of course. Thank you." Morgana smiled at Gaius, then turned around and walked away in the direction of her own chambers. Once she was certain Gaius must be gone, she turned again and rapidly walked back to Arthur's chambers. She checked that the corridor was empty, then held out a hand and whispered the unlocking spell. The door clicked open.
Inside, the candles had been doused. Morgana magically lit a few, illuminating the room to reveal Arthur passed out on top of his covers. An empty bottle of sleeping draught sat on his nightstand. Morgana recalled the sleeping draught that Gaius had taken on his 'errand', and she scowled. Judging by his position above the bedclothes, Arthur hadn't known what he was really drinking. Uther must have commanded Gaius to keep Arthur away from the arena by any means necessary—including drugging and imprisonment.
Well, Morgana wasn't going to stand for that. She might not particularly want Arthur to fight, but she would never have dreamed of locking him up like this—and besides, once the new sword had been forged, Arthur would actually stand a decent chance in combat. Arthur had earned his reputation as the finest swordsman in the kingdom.
Morgana quickly perused her mental repertoire of spells for one that would wake Arthur from his drugged slumber. Finding one, she prepared to cast it, but then she caught herself. She would need an explanation as to how she'd helped him overcome the drug. Looking around, she spotted a pitcher of water sitting next to the empty vial of sleeping draught. Morgana murmured a silent apology to Merlin for the mess, then tossed the water in Arthur's face and incanted the spell to wake him.
Arthur sputtered and blinked open his eyes. "What…" He blearily looked up at Morgana. "Did you just throw water over me?"
Morgana jerked her head at the empty vial. "It seems Gaius drugged you to keep you out of the fight. Luckily for you, Gaius has been feeding me those things for years, which means I know their weaknesses."
Arthur gave the pitcher a wary look. "Dare I ask how you found that one out?"
Morgana quickly set the pitcher back on the nightstand. "Not important right now. I've just overheard the king telling Gaius something very interesting. Apparently, he had the sorceress Nimueh use magic at your birth, and this magic caused your mother's death."
Arthur sat up, now very wide awake. "He did what?!"
"I didn't hear the whole story, but he was very clear on that point. He used witchcraft at your birth. Nimueh told him there would be a price to pay, but not that the price would be your mother's life."
"My mother's life," Arthur repeated, breathing heavily. "All these years, I've blamed myself for her death, when it was really…" He broke off, eyes widening. "That must be why Tristan challenged Father. He blamed him for my mother's death."
"And now he is to fight you, the babe she died for." Morgana swallowed. "And on that subject…I was looking through the library earlier, searching for any way to kill a wraith, and I found one."
"What?"
"A sword forged in a dragon's breath can kill anything, alive or dead. When I met Balinor, he told me where one such sword is hidden in Camelot. Merlin has gone to fetch it. If you fight with that sword tomorrow, you can kill the wraith."
"Good," Arthur growled. "I'll show Father he was wrong to ever doubt me. And once the wraith has returned to the grave where it belongs, he will answer for the lies he told about my mother!"
Morgana winced. "Actually, about that…Mordred was with me when I overheard Uther, and he wasn't entirely silent. I fear Uther may suspect there was an eavesdropper, and seeing as the conversation was held in Gaius's chambers, where Mordred lives…I'd hate for Uther to think Mordred had anything to do with you finding out. Believe me, I'd like to have a few words with Uther myself, but I'm worried what he would do to Mordred."
Arthur scowled. "Yes, Mordred does make a rather convenient scapegoat to keep us in line. A dishonorable act unworthy of a king."
"I couldn't agree more." Morgana took a deep breath. "Good luck tomorrow."
"Thank you."
In the morning, Uther looked chagrinned and thoroughly anxious as he entered the royal box. Arthur already stood in the arena, wielding the new sword and looking deceptively calm. The black knight also entered, and Uther very reluctantly gave the order for battle to commence.
Fortunately, the battle did not last long. Arthur repeatedly dodged and blocked blows, waiting for an opening. Since the wraith believed itself unkillable, it did not maintain its guard as carefully as it should have, and Arthur soon stabbed it in its exposed left side. The wound immediately began to smoke. The wraith stumbled backwards, letting out an inhuman howl, then caught fire and exploded. Arthur removed his helmet as the crowd cheered his victory.
Morgana joined Arthur as he stormed into the council chambers to confront Uther. "You had Gaius drug me," Arthur stated in a low, angry voice. "You would have forced me to break the Knight's Code and look the coward in front of all of Camelot!"
"You were not meant to fight him," Uther retorted. "He sought vengeance from me, not you. The fight was always meant to be mine."
"And why did he want vengeance?" Arthur challenged. "All I've ever been told is that he challenged you to a duel after his sister, my mother died. One would think he blamed you for a woman dying in childbirth."
Uther's eyes widened. "Who told you that?"
"I did," Morgana spoke up. "The crest of Tristan de Bois is no great secret. I believed Arthur deserved to know. And whatever the story behind the challenge, I believe he deserves to know that too."
Uther shook his head. "We were both betrayed, and he took his anger out on me. It is of no consequence now."
"Two good men are dead because of him," Arthur retorted. "Had I not fought today, how many more would have joined them?"
"None!" Uther snapped. "I meant to fight the wraith myself this morning. He sought vengeance on me, not you, and my death would have stopped his rampage."
Total silence filled the room, and both Arthur and Morgana stared at their father. "You…you were going to die…for me?" Arthur asked quietly.
"I could not watch you die," Uther replied, equally quietly. "You are too precious to me." He glanced at Morgana. "Both of you are. You mean more to me than anything I know, more than this entire kingdom and certainly more than my own life."
Morgana continued staring at Uther. For the first time since she had learned the truth of her parentage, she felt the faintest stab of affection for the king. For all his flaws, she now realized he truly did love her.
Arthur finally found his voice. "I…I always thought that…that I was a big disappointment to you."
"Well that is my fault, and not yours," Uther replied softly. "You are my son, and I have always been proud of you."
Arthur clearly had no idea what to say to that. After a few moments, Morgana decided to speak up. "And I was always proud to call you my brother, even when I believed it was only in spirit."
Arthur swallowed hard. "Thank you. Thank you both."
Balinor had apparently been very upset when he gave Merlin the finished sword, and had departed the city without explaining why. Merlin was concerned about his father, and Morgana insisted on accompanying him to visit Balinor again.
When they arrived, they were surprised to discover that Balinor wasn't alone. He was talking to Nimueh just outside his cave. "What is she doing here?" Morgana demanded, dismounting.
Nimueh turned to Morgana, looking subdued. "I came to convey my deepest apologies for…everything."
"You're sorry?" Merlin repeated, his voice cold. He also dismounted. "Do you know how many people died in your afanc's plague before I found a cure? Twenty-two. Twenty-two innocent people are dead because of you."
"And so are the two knights who fell to my wraith," Nimueh acknowledged. "I offer no excuse for my actions. I was blinded by my anger toward Uther. I was so wrapped up in the past that I lost sight of the hope for a better future…and I became the very monster that Uther's slanderous lies had painted me to be."
"What changed your mind?" Merlin demanded.
Nimueh bowed her head. "Arthur defeated the wraith. He could only have done that by accepting aid from magic. And in that moment, for the first time I saw not the tyrant's son, but Ygraine's. The child I helped create. The child for whom my dearest friend gave her life."
"Dearest friend?" Morgana repeated. "What exactly did happen to Ygraine?"
"She and Uther had tried for an heir, but she could not conceive. They turned to me for help. I warned them that to create a life, a life must be taken. Uther believed it was worth the price. I had meant to trade the life of Ygraine's other brother, Agravaine—he is a vile man who never did seem to understand that his advances toward me were thoroughly unwanted. To this day, I've never understood how my spell went so wrong."
"I do," Balinor revealed with a grimace. "When I took the blade to Kilgharrah to burnish, he admitted the truth to me. He, in his eternal hatred for all women, interfered with your spell to ensure it took the woman's life."
"He what?!" Nimueh demanded, shocked. "Uther threw us from the court and slaughtered all of our kind…because of that old lizard's burning hatred of women?"
"I was as shocked as you are," Balinor replied. "For his crime, I swore to him that he will never see the light of day again. He will spend the rest of his life in chains, knowing it was his own prejudice that brought about the destruction of his kind—and ours. I can think of no more fitting punishment."
Nimueh broke into a wicked smirk. "Indeed. Though perhaps I shall pay the occasional visit to give him more reasons to hate me…"
"Hold on," Morgana interrupted. "This…this was what started the Purge? Uther sought revenge for Ygraine's death? For one single spell that went wrong?"
"In essence, yes," Balinor agreed. "Back in those days, there were many sorcerers who turned to dark magic, which is how Uther gained so much support in the council at the time. But for Uther, I believe it was only ever revenge for Ygraine's death."
"He is a true monster," Morgana whispered, that faint stab of affection completely gone now.
"I made the mistake of believing Arthur to be just like him," Nimueh said softly. She looked at Merlin. "But I understand the truth now. I understand who you and he truly are. You have nothing more to fear from me."
Merlin gave her a hard look. "I cannot forgive your past sins. But if you are willing to leave us alone, then I am willing to leave you alone."
Nimueh nodded. "That is acceptable."