A/N: Thank you to everyone for the follows and reviews! I'm editing chapters as quickly as I can and hope to get them up in fairly quick succession. Thank you for your patience!
Gaius brought his charge to the throne room, settling himself and her in chairs off to the side, where they could watch the proceedings, while being apart from the crowd. Arthur, Merlin, and Guinevere were already present, and Gwen's hands flew to her mouth at the sight of the girl with her bruised face and her arm in a sling.
After they were seated, the prisoner was brought in. It took five men to wrestle him to his knees before Arthur and Merlin.
The king began without preamble. "Yesterday you were arrested because you left an innocent unconscious in my marketplace and visited bodily harm upon the High Sorcerer. Either of these offenses would earn you further time in the dungeons, but it has since come to my attention that dark magic is also involved."
"My king," the man laughed nervously, "I assure you, nothing could be further from the truth."
"That remains to be seen. Remove your ring."
At this, the man's head snapped around and he snarled at Branwen. "You BRAT!" He struggled to rise, but the guards held him down. He fixed a mutinous stare on Arthur, who returned it coolly.
"I'll not ask again."
For a moment, Merlin thought the man wouldn't comply, but then he removed the ring with an angry jerk and held it out to the king. Arthur shook his head. "Give it to her," he instructed, nodding in Branwen's direction.
The girl's eyes went wide and she looked to Merlin for confirmation. At his encouraging nod, she rose and stepped over to where the guards surrounded the prisoner. The man glared daggers at her, but dropped the trinket into her trembling hand with no more than an irritated huff.
The girl snatched her hand back and retreated several steps, clutching the ring to her. She addressed Merlin. "My Lord Sorcerer, if it pleases you, I ask that you grant me a moment's indulgence."
He nodded, curious as to what she would do. He watched closely, leaning in a little as she chanted an incantation, gold flickering through her eyes before she closed them. At first, nothing appeared to happen, but then she seemed to blur a bit around the edges. Her features went indistinct and she grew several inches before her form solidified and regained its detail.
The adolescent had faded away, leaving a young woman standing in her place. She was barefoot and her dress was far too small, but she stood straight and dignified. She turned to the man and he shrank away from her, his eyes full of fear. The throne room was utterly silent as she regarded him, unsure of what she might do.
In the end, she simply turned away, as if it was beneath her to give him any further consideration.
She dropped a curtsey to Merlin. "Thank you."
Merlin was dumbfounded, not only by the girl's transformation, but also by how much she reminded him of Freya. The dark, tangled hair, pale skin, and deep, cautious eyes were nearly identical. Branwen's face had more roundness to it, though, and she was shorter. Much, much shorter. It occurred to him that she must have been under the influence of the youth spell for so long that it might have stunted her growth.
Arthur's insistent, "Merlin!" brought him abruptly out of his thoughts.
"Sorry. What?"
"Since this crime is magical in nature, it falls under your authority."
"Right." He addressed Branwen. "I'm sorry, but I need to ask you some questions."
"Of course."
"How did you come to be under this man's spell? Is he a sorcerer?"
"I've not seen any evidence that he knows magic, my lord. He already had the ring when he came to my grandmother's cottage. He," she swallowed, "killed her and used the spell on me."
Merlin felt a flare of anger. "How old were you?"
"I was eight."
"And how old are you now?"
"I'm nineteen."
A murmur ran through the room.
Merlin pressed on. "If he has no magic, where did the youth spell originate?"
"With me, my lord."
"He made you cast it on yourself?"
She nodded.
"For what purpose?"
He watched her eyes fill with fear and a deep blush creep across her cheeks. She tried to stammer out an reply, but he held out a hand against the intensity of her reaction. "It's alright. You don't have to answer." He looked at her captor, and the leer on the man's face told him all he needed to know. The flame of anger grew.
He addressed the man, keeping his rage in careful check. "You have enslaved an innocent by means of dark magic. I fear that, if left to your own devices, you will do the same to another. I won't allow lives to be put at risk in Camelot, or any other kingdom. I therefore have no choice but to sentence you to death."
With an enraged bellow, the man threw off the guards and charged, not at Merlin, but at Branwen. She danced away, but the man still managed to grab her injured arm. She screamed and Merlin, grateful to have an outlet for his anger, took action. He made a forceful gesture, his eyes flashing gold, and the man fell dead, dragging Branwen down to the floor with him.
Merlin rushed to her side, releasing her from the dead man and helping her to her feet. "Are you alright?"
She nodded, but Merlin had the distinct impression the gesture was more habit than truth. He put an arm around her and guided her back to Gaius, who immediately inspected the damage. With the flash of his eyes, her pinched expression eased and Merlin breathed a little easier.
"Well," Arthur announced quietly, "I think we're done here for the day. I believe we all need some time to… recover from this unfortunate incident."
Walking over to Merlin he asked, "Are you alright?"
The enormity of what he'd just done was starting to hit him, but he tried to smile. "This didn't really turn out the way I expected it to."
Arthur squeezed his shoulder. "It happens. You did the right thing, though. Your decision was sound."
"Thanks."
Merlin turned his attention back to Branwen. She was staring at the body, and was fidgeting anxiously with the ring.
He stepped in front of her, blocking her view. Feeling the need to redirect her attention, he asked, "What will you do now?"
It took her a heartbeat to focus on him. "I don't know." She stopped twirling the ring and seemed to truly see it for the first time. She slid it on and, with a brief incantation, the ring fit itself to her finger.
Gaius leaned forward, brows drawing together. "I've not seen a spell like that before."
"Oh." She seemed flustered. "Well, before she… died, my grandmother was teaching me spellcrafting. She said I had the gift. I guess… I guess I just needed to see if that was still true."
Gaius' eyebrows rose nearly to his hairline. "Spellcrafting! I thought that art died out in the Great Purge."
"Really?" She glanced at the body being carried out of the chamber. "Maybe that's why he targeted us."
"What's spellcrafting?" Merlin asked.
"It's exactly what it sounds like, my boy. Every major spell that exists was created by a spellcrafter. Some of the more complex ones took years to perfect. It's an uncommon gift." He smiled at Branwen, and she smiled shyly back, the first real smile Merlin had seen from her.
"Do you have any knowledge of herb lore?" Gaius asked.
"A little."
He nodded. "How would you like to be my assistant? My previous boy got himself promoted to High Sorcerer and I haven't been able to find a suitable replacement."
"Well, that was quite rude of him."
There was a moment of startled, unsure silence until her ghost of a smile drew answering grins from the men.
Gaius chuckled. "Yes, very rude indeed."
Merlin shook his head. "There's just no pleasing some people."
Branwen laughed, and Merlin smiled, liking the sound. She told Gaius, "I think I would very much like to be your assistant."
"Wonderful! It's settled then. You can have his old room."
They were interrupted by the approach of Guinevere.
"Might I borrow Branwen for a while?"
Gaius cast a concerned eye over his new assistant. "May I ask what for, my lady?"
"Well, I was thinking a hot bath, clothes that fit and," she winced at the mat of tangles on Branwen's head, "a new hairdo, perhaps? If that's alright with you, of course."
Gaius smiled. "I think all of those will do her a world of good."