Arthur woke feeling refreshed, and almost felt that was wrong somehow. He had expected some kind of magic hangover—but he felt better than he'd ever felt before a battle or confrontation. His worries usually kept him up late and left him grumpy the next morning. He always worried about what would happen. Would anyone die? Would he make a mistake? He was a man who had made mistakes that had caused famine and war—he had to weigh his decisions very carefully.
He wondered if he'd made the right decision asking Merlin to capture Morgana if he could. Would that decision put Merlin in danger? Would it put all of Camelot in danger? In a way, he felt that since Morgana could not be reasoned with, and could not be stopped, her death was the only way to protect Camelot from her. And of course, she had to die for the harm she had caused. She had committed treason. It might be easier to have Merlin kill her if he had the chance; but maybe that was the coward's way out. Maybe he only felt that way because he didn't want to be the one to order her death.
That is, if Merlin could even contain her. That morning as they were packing up and getting ready to ride, Merlin had told Arthur that he had serious doubts as to whether he could really do it. Morgana may have come to magic later in life than Merlin, and Merlin was, by all accounts, the stronger of the two. But Morgana was a trained high priestess, and her every action was fueled by hatred, while Merlin's actions were generally tempered by compassion.
They approached the castle carefully, but there appeared to be no strict watch enforced, probably because they were not expecting to be attacked.
Arthur ordered his men to surround the Keep, but to kill no one. In less than an hour, the small Nemeth force had been neutralized.
Arthur, Merlin and Gwaine entered the Keep, and walked right into the great room. Morgana was there with Lord Thano, eating lunch.
"King Arthur," Lord Thano said, smiling. "I see you got our message."
"You have been deceived," said Arthur. He kept a careful eye on Merlin and Morgana, who were eyeing each other warily.
"Whatever you're planning Morgana, it won't work," Merlin said.
Lord Thano's face seemed to drain of blood. "Morgana?"
"Yes, I see you've met my half-sister," Arthur said.
"Well, if it isn't Arthur and his lap dog Merlin," Morgana smirked. "Or is it the other way around?"
Merlin said nothing, but thrust his hand into the air in her direction, and Morgana flew against the wall. Merlin ran to her and took his left hand in her right, then started wrapping leather around their clasped hands. He mumbled some words in an ancient tongue, and then his eyes glowed like fire.
Morgana began to come to, and then struggled against Merlin's grip, shouting in the old language—but no spell worked, and Morgana began to panic.
"Merlin, why am I tied to you? What are you doing? Why can't I do magic?"
"Arthur wanted you captured alive. I've bound your magic to me. You can't do any magic unless I allow it, and I will not allow it," Merlin said.
"Merlin, he's going to kill me! How can you let this happen? How can you do this to me?" she said.
"Do you need her conscious?" Merlin asked.
"No," Arthur said.
"Mameran," Merlin said, and she slumped against him, asleep. He mumbled something else, and then gathered her in his arms and picked her up, walking over to a seat and sitting down with Morgana on his lap.
"Are you really that strong?" Arthur asked.
"If I did a spell to make myself stronger or her lighter, do you think I'd really admit to it?" Merlin said, grinning. "The containment spell seems to have worked so far. There's no way I can use magic to get back to Camelot, though, and we're too cumbersome for a horse. Do you think we could find a cart?"
"We brought a cart in case there were wounded," Gwaine said. "I can take you to it."
"Can the two of you sort this out without me?" Merlin asked, but he was looking at Arthur.
"I can handle this," Arthur said. "If you see Mithian, can you have her brought in here?"
Merlin nodded and picked Morgana up and walked out of the room with Gwaine.
Arthur looked at the regent. "Your king is not happy with you."
Despite the fact that the boy was only ten years old, Lord Thano looked dismayed at the idea of the child being angry with him. "I did not know. She told us she was in trouble. We thought we were doing what you would have wanted us to."
Arthur narrowed his eyes. "You know, there's a reason for borders. I am supposed to be the law on my side of the border, and you are the law on your side. It's when we cross over the border and start meddling in each other's business that the trouble starts."
"I see that know," Thano said. "Believe me. Mithian, you must plead my case with Donal. Neither of us meant any harm."
Arthur looked behind him to see that Mithian had entered the room. She looked at Thano sternly, and Arthur was again glad he had not married her. Thano seemed to become slightly smaller under her regard. "And yet, your actions resulted in Donal and I getting locked in the dungeon. If cooler heads hadn't prevailed, we could have been killed. Arthur could have invaded our country in retaliation for your actions. He still could!"
"Please, King Arthur, I know this is a horrible breach of protocol. I don't know what came over me. I never would have normally done it. She must have used magic on me," he said.
Arthur looked at Mithian. "It is possible she did use magic. However, if that is the case, I don't know why he isn't attacking us or something."
"We'll have to ask Merlin, or I suppose we could ask Morgana herself," Mithian said.
"No, Mithian, stay away from her. She's dangerous. Even without magic, she's one of the most dangerous women I've ever met," Arthur said.
"I suppose we should take him back to Camelot, and then, if you will allow it, we will transport him back to Nemeth when we leave. Donal apparently has to find himself a new regent."
Arthur looked at Mithian. "I think he has. He allowed you to act for him today. I think I can see where this is going."
Mithian looked, for a moment, as brittle as glass, and then seemed to straighten her back. She looked at Arthur calmly. "It was what most of the councillors and lords wanted anyway—actually, most of them wanted me to be their queen."
"You would make a great queen," Arthur said.
"I will refuse to be a queen, but I suppose if I must, I could be a regent," she said.
Arthur did some mental calculations. "It will be ten years, tops. Maybe five. The boy already acts more like a king than I do."
"But what if there's some way to prove that she used magic on me? It wouldn't really be my fault, would it?" Lord Thano asked.
"I sincerely hope that you can prove some enchantment," Mithian said, "because I have no wish to replace you."
Arthur didn't envy her. It was a heavy responsibility to run a kingdom, and Arthur still chaffed against it even though he had known his whole life he would one day be king. To be thrust into such a job without any prior warning would be terrible. And she was a woman, too, so neighbouring kings and bandits and warlords would probably think she was weak, and test her kingdom because of her sex.
And she was in love, too, with Merlin. She wouldn't be able to be with him, now, whether Merlin loved her or not. He was loyal to Arthur and their shared destiny, and Mithian was loyal to her own kingdom.
Arthur wondered if Merlin wouldn't be just a little pleased that Mithian was leaving. Although the man seemed to care for her a great deal, he seemed confused and alarmed by her feelings for him.
Arthur could understand how he felt. Love was frightening—the vulnerability, the dependence on another, the unbearable pain. He didn't understand why Merlin was so cautious, however; he would have thought that Merlin would have jumped in to first love with both feet. He was usually so openhearted.
Arthur walked into the courtyard, asking Elyan what damage the Keep had sustained.
"The Keep is not badly damaged, and Lord Michael appears to be recovered quite well from his injuries," Elyan said.
"Good work," Arthur said. "If we set out now, we can make it back to our camp by nightfall."
"But Sire—"
"Yes?"
"Aren't the soldiers from Nemeth joining us? Won't the amount of men slow us down?" Elyan asked.
"I hadn't thought of that. I confess I am eager to get home. Mithian has promised that she and all her people will leave the Kingdom if we collect their King from Camelot," Arthur said.
"Perhaps we should stay here tonight, and make sure we have enough supplies for everyone in the meantime," Elyan said.
"Do it," Arthur said.
Arthur thought about Merlin, trying to find a cart so that he and Morgana could be transported more quickly to Camelot. "Is Merlin looking for that cart?" Arthur said.
"I think he sent Gwaine to do it. Merlin's sitting over there in the shade," Elyan said.
"Send someone to tell Gwaine we won't need the cart today," Arthur said.
Elyan did as Arthur bid. They both looked over at Merlin and Morgana, sitting as close together as lovers. Morgana was still asleep, and her head rested on Merlin's shoulder. They looked as small and normal as any regular couple, sitting on the grass. It was hard to believe that between them they had so much power they could tear kingdoms apart.
"Do you think Merlin can keep her contained?" Elyan asked.
"I hope so," Arthur said. "Because the second she gets her power back, she's going to kill him, first, and then come after me."