Merlin made his way back to the battlements, that was where he'd planned to contact Iseldir. As well as the usual mind speech, he'd have to throw a hefty dose of magic with it to cast the enchantment past the normal limitations of telepathy, as well as ensuring it was only received by Iseldir.

He leant between two large pillars to conceal the glow in his eyes.

Iseldir, Emrys seeks you. Will you answer my call?

He said nothing else, Iseldir knew where he lived. He sent the thought out several times over the next half hour, then stopped when he was confident that it would have reached Iseldir's ears. Now he had to wait for him to make contact back.

He caught up with Arthur later. "I've sent Iseldir a message."

"What did he say?"

"Oh. Well, I don't know yet. I don't expect to hear from him for several days."

"I thought you could reply instantly with this mind speech if you both had magic?"

"Well." Merlin's cheekbones tinged with pink. "You can. But Gaius was correct when he said mind speech doesn't usually work over great distances, it doesn't, both participants generally have to be in the near vicinity. But," he hesitated, and added awkwardly, "I can throw it as far as I like. But I don't think he can. So he won't be able to reply until he's closer to Camelot." He shrugged, slightly embarrassed.

The response came three days later. Merlin was idly cleaning Arthur's armour in the prince's chambers, without magic, because he wanted to use the time to think, when he heard Iseldir's voice.

"Emrys, I am here."

"Do you come alone?"

"I bring two with me, Calatin and Senias."

Merlin hadn't met them. He allowed Iseldir to sense his unease. "Where will I find you?"

"We are in the forest, near a clearing not far from Camelot's south gates."

Merlin thought for a moment. He knew Arthur would want to speak with Iseldir too, but Arthur was in one of his twice-weekly meetings where he met with the townsfolk to settle disputes, or address concerns they had about anything in particular. It would be difficult to disturb him for the next hour without raising questions. And, he wanted to meet Calatin and Senias before allowing Arthur anywhere near them, he did not know if they could be trusted.

He slipped into his own time, and made his way undetected into the forest. They were there, where they said they'd be, back from the road, their long druid robes blending in to the camouflage of the trees. Iseldir and two druids he'd not seen previously, both of them white-haired older men, he guessed them to be not much younger than Gaius. They were silent and watchful, and being this close to Camelot they probably had good reason. Merlin was close enough to them to touch, but they could not sense him at all, not in his time, not even when he allowed his feet to bend the grass as he walked.

He moved closer to the first man, the taller of the two, and took a deep breath, allowing the scent of the man's magic to flow through him. The aroma of his magic was much like Iseldir's, of the earth and the trees, originating from nature. Merlin was fairly satisfied there was nothing dark about him.

Then he turned his attention to the other. The second man, the shorter one, was different, Merlin sensed the tang of old times, of caves, of secrets deep within the earth. It wasn't that there was the scent of evil about him, but that his power was raw, and he sensed the man's vengeance, when angered, would be swift and unyielding. Though polar opposites in belief to Uther, Merlin knew intrinsically he had the same nature, the capability for blindness, and the lack of adaptability to change. He'd be merciless in his judgement, and he would judge too much because of his power allowed him that liberty. He would do what he needed to further his own ends without considering the consequences. Merlin wanted to reserve his own judgement on the second man, but he knew he would not trust him anywhere near Arthur alone.

By the strength of the scent underpinning their magic, he assumed they were chieftains or at least high ranking druids. He didn't know how the druids ranked themselves, what hierarchies they had, but these two were clearly powerful, on a similar level to Iseldir.

He thought about returning to Camelot, and walking out to them normally, but with some amusement he decided with the last man at least, a demonstration of theatrics might better serve him.

He leant back against a nearby tree, his hands hanging casually by his side, fingers loose and relaxed, slowly returning to their time, his magic working subtly. It did occur to him the time conversion may create some pain in them, but these men were skilled magic users, and the magic they carried in their veins should create enough natural protection for them to be unharmed. With a quick burst of magic at the end, he appeared to them, mere seconds he'd spoken with Iseldir.

Almost in unison, they startled at the sight of him. "How did you do that?"

It was the shorter one who'd spoken, the second one, the one he did not trust. Merlin allowed himself a faint smile, he knew the man had sensed no incantation, nor the rush of sound and air usually associated with teleporting. And to add to that, Merlin's eyes had not appeared gold, they were always back to cerulean blue by the time he reappeared in the earth's time. He spoke to the one he'd wanted to see. "Iseldir, thank you for heeding my call."

"Emrys," Iseldir nodded, then did something that startled Merlin. He turned to Merlin, then bent his head respectfully and bowed. "I will serve you, whenever you have need of me."

"Thank you." Merlin was surprised.

Iseldir motioned the other druids to come forward. "This is Calatin," he motioned to the first druid, the one Merlin thought was much like Iseldir. "And Senias. They are both Chieftains from settlements near the Perilous Lands. They were visiting my camp when you called."

Merlin nodded a greeting at them, and Iseldir continued, "What assistance can I give you, Emrys?"

Distracted, Merlin glanced back at Camelot. Since taking Arthur into his own time he'd found he could hear the prince across long distances, but only if Arthur used his name in verbal speech. He wasn't about to mention that to him though. He thought it might be a side-effect of their travel through Merlin's time together that would wear off in a few days, and he almost hoped it would, it was a little disturbing. Arthur's meeting must have finished earlier than expected, as Merlin had been able to hear him for the past few minutes, asking several different people throughout the castle variations of, "Have you seen Merlin?"

"I need to speak with you, Iseldir, but Prince Arthur will want to meet with you too. You shouldn't come into Camelot, so I'll bring him out to meet you." He added bluntly, using mind speech, and only to Iseldir.

"Bear in mind, when we speak, I will speak only with you."

Iseldir gave him a barely perceptible nod.

Senias spoke up. "You are sure your prince will come with you?"

Merlin looked at him sharply. "Yes."

Senias did not speak further so Merlin continued, "One more thing, before I go to Arthur ..." He wasn't sure if he should expose his ignorance, but he really wanted to know, so why not? After all, it wasn't like Morgause would offer to tell him. "What's the incantation for teleporting?"

The three druids exchanged glances. Catalin admitted, "I can't do that."

Iseldir was amused, Merlin guessed he was re-evaluating his opinion of the powerful Emrys. "I use, "Behile mec! Nú forþweg fram hér!"

When the third man was silent, Merlin asked pointedly, "Senias? What of you?"

The man answered reluctantly, "I cannot teleport."

Hmmm. Merlin thought about it. He didn't think Iseldir's incantation would work for him, his pronunciation was different too, but a variation of it probably would.

Iseldir warned him. "Emrys, you must work your way up to such an incantation. I do not suggest you try that spell without practising by sending objects through it first. It's not a spell you want to get wrong, the consequences can be fatal, and even experienced users can have accidents. It requires great concentration and focus."

The druid continued seriously, "You must also know exactly where you are going to land, and be able to visualise the location clearly in your mind. For instance, I am sure you can see the repercussions of such an error as landing within a wall, or inside a tree. It's very dangerous."

Merlin blinked. "Oh. Yes." He rubbed his forehead and glanced back at Camelot. Arthur was still asking people where he was, his own name was creating an annoying buzz in his head. He made a decision. "Thank you, for the warning, but I'll try it anyway, I must go. Iseldir, if you'll wait here I'll bring Arthur back shortly. Catalin, Senias – I'm pleased to have met you."

He decided to land in Arthur's chambers, since his own room was too small and he didn't want to break anything. Gaius's main room was out, he had too many visitors. And no one was likely to be in Arthur's chambers, except possibly Arthur. And he was meant to be in Arthur's chambers, cleaning his armour, which, Merlin suddenly remembered, he'd left strewn all over the floor in his haste to meet Iseldir. If he hurried, he'd be able to get that fixed up before Arthur arrived. All in all, Arthur's chambers was the logical place to end up.

He walked away from the druids, his eyes flashed gold and he spoke the incantation. "Behile mec! Wídsij onfæste fram hér!"

Woah, this was nothing like he'd experienced before! The spell leaped through his body, and he was twisting and spinning, upside down and inside out, until he landed with a loud crash in Arthur's chambers, smashing heavily onto the ground and skidding on his back across the floor, sending armour skittering everywhere, until he stopped with a hard thud against one of the dining chairs which promptly fell over on top of him.

He groaned and opened his eyes, rubbing the back of his head. That hurt! He heard a sound behind him and twisted his head to the source of the noise, pushing the chair off him. Arthur was leaning against his desk, head tilted to one side, arms crossed over his chest, eyebrows raised in a fair imitation of Gaius. Beneath one of his boots, he'd trapped a piece of stray armour that had been sent his way when Merlin burst into the room. A sheet of paper fluttered off his desk and onto the floor.

"Hmm." Arthur kicked the piece of armour, a gauntlet, back towards him, and looked at him contemplatively. "Merlin. Since you are such a powerful, highly skilled warlock, I'm sure there is a very complicated, magical reason for you to do ... whatever it was, that you just did. Not having any magic myself, I can never hope to understand why sliding across my floor, and crashing into my chair is so ... necessary, ... but I will accept your superior knowledge of such matters. I would however, truly like to know how you'd explain yourself if I didn't already know you had magic. You just appeared out of thin air."

Merlin wanted to shut his eyes again, but he didn't. He sat up, still rubbing his head and said rather grumpily, "Sometimes Arthur, a little bit of sympathy wouldn't go astray! That hurt!" He scowled at Arthur, like it was his fault, and it probably was, because if Arthur hadn't been looking for him he wouldn't have rushed back so quickly. He might have even walked, instead of trying out teleporting! He let the prince pull him to his feet. "And I would hardly have picked your chambers to land in if you didn't already know about my magic."

Arthur was trying unsuccessfully to control the twitching at the corner of his mouth. "If there's one certainty about you Merlin, it's that you keep life interesting. Now, are you really injured?"

Merlin said a bit huffily, "No, I'm alright. My head and shoulder hurt, but it's no worse than when you throw things at me."

Arthur sat him down on a chair, the one that had just fallen on him. "What were you doing this time, anyway?"

Still offended, he muttered, "I just learned to teleport!"

"I can see you 'just learned' something. You need more practice, whatever it is you're trying to do."

Merlin said a bit crossly, "Well, I suppose that was obvious, the landing wasn't exactly how I expected it to be." He rubbed his head again, a distraction was necessary. "Iseldir told me how to do it. I came to find you, he's here."

Instantly, Arthur was all business, teasing forgotten. "Where?"

"Not far from where you saw me with Kilgharrah, and he's bought two other chieftains with him." Merlin looked at Arthur seriously, banter put aside. "Arthur, you must be cautious of all three druids, even Iseldir, for a while at least."

"What makes you say that?"

"Iseldir has come, because Emrys has called. But the druids are not yet on your side. Some may never be, even when the time prophesised is here. That time is not yet, you are still only Regent, your father may recover and sit on the throne again. They will never support him."

"I realise that, Merlin. But if you advise caution, then why involve them in the first place?"

"Iseldir could be a shortcut to finding Morgana and Morgause, Arthur. That's one reason I have contacted him, but there is another."

Merlin was intent, no trace of playfulness on his face. He stood up. "The other reason is because we both need to make ourselves known amongst the druids, now. Uther's reign has created hatred and division between those who have magic and those who don't, and Albion is imploding. It may take decades for this animosity to recede before there can be peaceful co-existence between the two groups."

He paused, Arthur was watching him pace back and forth. "Sire, we must start building relationships and creating trust with the druids now, before the time of the Once and Future King. It's vital that they begin to know you now; as a prince you will be more accessible to them, someone they can meet with and talk to around a campfire. You'll be approachable. We need to meet with them informally, not as a delegation from Camelot. We must begin to undo the damage exacerbated by your clashes with them when searching for Morgana a year ago. If they get to know you now, I'm confident you won't battle for their loyalty as an unknown king. We need that foundation established before your reign begins."

Arthur was still watching him, serious and expectant, and Merlin continued. "And later, when the time comes, I will have to enforce your law and dispense your justice. I too, must begin to establish trust with them. Emrys will be their representative, yet my knowledge of the druids, their way of life, and their traditions and beliefs, is very limited. I must make myself known to them and earn their respect now, so they have something on which to base their confidence in Emrys, later on."

Arthur nodded and said quietly. "Yes. I can see the sense in what you say, Merlin." He gave him an inscrutable look. "I don't like to say so, but maybe ... this one of those times when you demonstrate a type of ... well, wisdom, and ... some sort of intelligence, or ... good judgement ... perhaps."

Merlin smiled. "Nah."

Arthur punched him lightly. "I'm right. And so are you. So we'll meet Iseldir now. Should we visit his camp first, once we start to seek them out and meet the people?"

Merlin rubbed his arm. "No. He's too far away, I can't go that far away from Camelot until we've dealt with Morgana and Morgause. So we'll see if Iseldir knows of their whereabouts, and if not then I'll concentrate on the camps near Camelot first, to look for them and to begin associations with their chieftains, if they are suitable."

"We'll go alone, just the two of us?"

"It's easier for me if I only have to worry about protecting you. But we could take some of the knights, if you wish, to some of the encampments, but only the ones where I'm confident we won't encounter any trouble. And probably only a couple of the knights, not too many anyway as we don't want the druids to see us as a threat. I suggest promoting the assumption in Camelot that you are going on hunting trips, yet using the opportunity to visit the druids. We should not be making it generally known what we're doing."

"I can't get used to the idea of you protecting me, Merlin. I'm so accustomed to thinking you're useless with a sword."

"That won't change, I am. But fortunately I have no need of a sword, since I'm a weapon in my own right." He grinned in amusement at the look on Arthur's face. "Arthur. One thing I ask of you. The druids must not know about Kilgharrah. No one can. I have already asked Lancelot and Gwaine for their silence and I'm confident I have it. Gaius will never tell either. Arthur, Kilgharrah must remain secret, he's my get-out-of-trouble card. There's still a lot about magic I don't yet know. Kilgharrah saved me from the serkets when I couldn't escape Morgause's magical chains, and I'd say at some point I'll need his help again."

"What?" Arthur's expression stilled, frozen.

Merlin caught the alarm in his tone, and knew it was a demand for further explanation. "Before the battle with the skeleton army, I was spying on Morgana and Morgause, in the woods at night. They caught me, bound me with magical chains, I couldn't escape. They left me alone with the serkets in the woods, after they'd gone I called on Kilgharrah, but I'd already been stung by then."

He shot a sly glance at Arthur. "I seem to remember coming back to Camelot a couple of days later, still incredibly sore, waking you up in the morning for breakfast and getting yelled at for being away without your permission. You didn't believe me when I told you I'd been dying, but I had been. Their venom is deadly, if Kilgharrah had not saved me from them, and given me an enchantment to stop the poison, well, ... you would have had to find a new servant."

Arthur wasn't happy. "I thought you had enough magic to get out of those situations!"

Merlin shrugged. "If I hadn't been trying to ensure my magic remained hidden from both of them, I may have been okay. And I know how to break the chains too now, although I don't think Morgause would bother with them again, if she recovers."

"Merlin ... you should not take such risks. That's not acceptable to me."

"No matter, it's done now. There is another thing you should know before we meet Iseldir. But again, I ask you to never, ever tell anyone, not even Gwen. Only you and Kilgharrah know of this."

He waited, Arthur nodded.

"I have an advantage, something that allows me to ascertain without doubt, those magic users who will support our cause, and those who may oppose us. I can read them, Arthur, they don't know it, but they can't lie about their intentions to me."

"You can read their minds?"

"No, but I can read their magic. Magic cannot lie to me. Magic has a scent, a spirit, an essence. All magic users with reasonably strong power can sense when magic is in use or a strong magical object is nearby, but that tells them nothing, just that magic is there, somewhere. But I don't believe there are any, except me, who can translate that magic into a map of that person's character and beliefs. Their magic speaks to me, I understand its soul, its life-force, what drives the person behind it. I can't explain how I decipher it, but I can. I don't doubt my ability."

"And that's why I have chosen Iseldir, to begin. From my limited exposure to him, I believe the spirit of his magic – and hence his ethics, his sense of right and wrong – to be good, to be compatible with what we believe in. We will begin with the chieftains who I believe will welcome your rule, he'll be one, eventually. We can't yet travel to his camp but he'll come to me, when I ask. Yet that does not mean we should trust him, or any of them, unconditionally. But I believe he wouldn't purposely cause you harm, or damage our cause. When we meet him, soon, I'll ask him to perform some magic, as I can sense his intentions better if he's actually using his power, rather than leaving it lying dormant inside him. I want to check it again."

"Alright."

"And Arthur, how are you finding mind speech? If it does not bother you too much I would like to use it when we meet the druids, but you should not let on that I am communicating with you in that way."

"Merlin, as long as you are not threatening to turn me into a toad, then yes, it is fine."

Merlin wasn't at all abashed. "Come on, it was funny!"

"Hmm. Is there any way I can talk to you, like that?"

Merlin was doubtful. "I don't think so, you have no magic. Anyway all the fun would go out of it for me, if you could insult me in my own head. I much prefer just being able to speak to you."

Arthur felt he was being out-manoeuvred again. "Very well. But Merlin," he walked over to him, trying to look threatening. "You'd better watch the insults. Nobody likes a clever clogs, huh?"

"I think you do." Merlin smiled cheekily and stepped backwards hurriedly, "Oh no, I know that face!" He tried to edge around to the other side of the table, but Arthur was too quick. "Ow! Lemme go!"

Arthur didn't release the headlock, but what came out of his mouth wasn't exactly what he'd planned. "Just be careful with your safety with all this stuff, huh? Don't be an idiot about it, don't take risks, and don't get yourself killed."

Merlin tried to twist around but Arthur tightened his grip. "Arthur, what?"

"You heard me, Merlin." Arthur let him go and gave him a little push, Merlin straightened and rubbed his head, looking at him curiously. After a moment's silence, Arthur gave in. "I mean it. Now enough of that, I'm beginning to sound like a girl. We'd better go and see Iseldir, now."

"Yes, but how?"

"What do you mean?"

"It is widely known amongst the druids that the Once and Future King is not yet aware of the identity of Emrys. That's why Iseldir used mind speech in front of you when we collected the Cup of Life, he did not want to give me away. What do you want to do in this meeting we are about to have, do you want them to continue to assume that is true, or let them know you know?"

Arthur was thoughtful. "What do you think?"

"I think it's up to you. But the seers who live with the druids can read the signs, they will know a new time is dawning, although they will not know exactly when. The assumption of your ignorance may not hold for much longer. And it will be easier to visit their encampments if we do not have to hide your knowledge from them. If they can see you accept my magic, they will be more open with you."

"Fair enough. Then I say we let them know I know your secret. We're a team, Merlin, let it be recognised where it can."

"Thank you." Merlin suddenly grinned at him, dimples showing.

Arthur smiled back. Then his eyes narrowed. "Want to have a bit of fun, with that revelation, Merlin? After all, Iseldir didn't think that much of me last time we met."

"You did threaten a child Arthur, that wasn't one of your finer moments. What are you planning?"

"Take me down to see him now, in your time. He'll have no doubts about what I know about you after that."

Merlin was a bit sheepish. "I did that already, when I went down before. But are you really sure it didn't make you feel ill, afterwards?"

"No. But what of them, how were they?"

"No headache Arthur, their magic protects them well enough."

"Then let's do it." Arthur picked up his sword and Merlin rolled his eyes.

"We're not taking weapons, Arthur. It's just not necessary."

"I'd prefer to."

"Well I'm not taking you in my time then! A sword is a waste of time if you're facing a druid with magic. And they're not here to kill you! Not to mention, if you have trouble adapting to the time change – and you might, you've only done it once – then I really don't need you getting impaled by your own sword, or accidentally stabbing me with it! It might happen, Arthur!"

Arthur sighed, but he did place his sword back down on the table. "There's just no point arguing with you sometimes, when you get yourself all worked up, is there? Very well, then."

Somewhat mollified at the concession, Merlin decided to ignore the subtle insult. He tucked his arm under Arthur's. "Ready?" Arthur nodded, Merlin's eyes glowed and they were back in that space where nothing looked quite right.

Translations:

"Behile mec! Nú forþweg fram hér!"HIDE ME! NOW AWAY FROM HERE!

"Behile mec! Wídsij onfæste fram hér!"HIDE ME! TRAVEL FAST FROM HERE!