"Well, he can't go home yet."

"What do you mean he can't go home yet?" Hunith demanded angrily. She paced frantically in Merlin's hospital room, looking just as scared as she was distressed. All she wanted to do was to take her baby home. Her steps increased and as she spun around, Merlin gave her a look of understanding but she wouldn't accept it.

"Merlin lost a lot of blood that night, and his red and white counts are not as high as I would like them to be yet," the doctor explained patiently. "He'll need at least another month to allow for his recovery before he should fly again."

Hunith sighed into her hands before turning to her son. "Baby, I'm sorry."

Merlin looked up at the doctor and then to his mum. He didn't want to spend a month in America, especially when Arthur wouldn't be there with—

"I'll stay with you, of course," Arthur said, and Merlin shot him a bright look of. It was like he was reading his mind.

But Arthur felt like he couldn't leave Merlin here alone. He felt like Merlin really needed him right now, and he didn't care if it made him look soft or gay. Merlin was his best friend.

Merlin gazed at Arthur and their eyes were locked yet again. He felt the warmth and love flow to and fro between them, as if they had known each other for their lives, as if Arthur was the only perfect person for him. He couldn't help but feel so connected to Arthur, like they were soul –

"And of course, he can stay with me."

Everyone snapped to the door, through with Gaius was walking slowly and smooth, as he always seemed to. The old man glanced to everyone in the room, enjoying the shocked look on their faces. Gaius had a thing for being awesome, and he smiled inside, knowing that if he actually smiled it would steal this cool factor he was entirely aware of, and he couldn't have that.

"I'll clear a spot in the living room and you and Arthur can sleep there, Merlin," he said. "I'm only five minutes from here in case anything goes wrong."

"Oh, Gaius! Thank you so much!" Hunith cried. She looked at him tenderly, and then back to Merlin, who couldn't help but think this month wasn't going to be so bad after all.

Arthur and Merlin entered Gaius's old house, knowing all too well that this time wasn't as cheery as it had been before, and they placed their bags on the floor. Gaius pointed towards the back room, which apparently served as the living room.

He noticed the gold squiggles that plagued the walls, making odd designs that looked familiar. Merlin never really took the time to admire the odd markings on the wall. Every time he had been here he only stayed for tea and some talk, never really looking or watching or noticing how cool this place was.

They entered the room and Merlin looked around again, this time admiring the windows, the couch, the table, the telly, the walls and the odd plants that were perfectly scattered around the room. Something was off, though. The floor...

"Why did you get two air mattresses, Gaius?" Merlin asked before thinking otherwise. His mind soared back into the last two weeks, each night spent with Arthur, watching the telly together, eating junk food, having heart to hearts and then wrestling or arguing about who the better foot ball team was, and of course sleeping together, side by side.

"Well, Merlin, I was under the impression that you and Arthur would want separate sleeping accommodations... unless you both really are dating, and in that case it was my mistake," Gaius quipped, and he almost smirked at how clever he thought he sounded.

Merlin flushed a deep red, and Arthur almost fell over beside him. When they looked to each other neither were able to understand the expressions on each other's faces. Merlin walked over to the couch and sat down, and the feeling of embarrassment quickly faded as Arthur sat with him.

Gaius looked at Merlin and then to Arthur and smiled. "Well, I'll leave you two alone for now. Merlin, make a note to see me before you go to sleep."

Merlin nodded and Gaius left the room.

"So..." Merlin began while picking up the remote to turn the telly on, "what do you wanna do?"

"Whatever you want to," Arthur replied, and he leaned back into the couch and threw his arm around Merlin. Merlin grinned at him and then leaned back, laying into Arthur's arm.

Merlin walked the tall steps to Gaius's chambers, feeling a sense of familiarity and solace in the walls. He knocked gently on the large wooden door.

"Come in, lad,"

"You wanted to see me, Uncle Gaius?" he asked as he slipped into the room, and he gasped at how pretty it all was. Many colors filled it; the walls chaotic collages of color and design, the spaces filled with books, all marked with a language he didn't recognize—and that meant something, Merlin could read a lot of languages.

"Why yes," Gaius replied, pulling him back from his admiration. "Tell me, Merlin," he continued almost immediately, "what have you noticed about your life since Arthur came into it?"

Merlin was taken aback by the question. What was he getting at? He looked at Gaius questionably and cocked his head to the side, clearly not understanding the man.

"I don't quite know what you mean, Uncle?" Merlin finally said after a few seconds of pondering, and he let it hang as a question. Did he think he was in a relationship with Arthur? He really wasn't... or at least he thought he wasn't... Arthur was really, really flirty, but that didn't mean anything at all – right?

Gaius sighed. He'd known he had to prepare Merlin quickly, but he didn't want it to be so quick and overwhelming for the boy; he was still only young, despite everything. "Merlin, there's a lot in this life you don't know yet, and there's a lot I need to explain to you, but I can't just yet. It needs to happen in time," Gaius tried to explain. His eyes drifted off to the side, as if he was remembering something dark, something dreadful.

Merlin couldn't take this, all the cryptic bullshit. He loved Gaius but it was really getting old. Merlin rolled his eyes in irritation and Gaius could sense that he was losing Merlin's interest and his patience. "Gaius, can you please just tell me what you're talking about?"

Gaius adjusted his chair and reached out his hand.

"Give me your hand Merlin," Gaius said.

Merlin walked closer to Gaius and took his hand. Gaius closed his eyes and Merlin waited.

And waited.

He was so confused as to what was happening, but then he felt a tingling in his hand that stretched to his stomach, up and through his body, and he couldn't help but laugh as it tickled its way into his core until he experienced a surge of light and power flowing through him. His eyes glazed over white and he felt all the knowledge of everything in the world flow into him—every language, every feeling of every person, every episode of every show of every nation, every thought of every person.

Above everything, Merlin felt Arthur. He felt his love, his power, his joy, his being...

Finally, in what could have been hours or no time at all, Merlin couldn't take the power anymore and reacted instinctively, pushing the power back into him—back into reality, into the room, and he quickly retracted his hand. The feeling left.

"Gaius... what was that," Merlin asked, scared. His breath was quick and his heart was beating fast, and in between it all, he felt weak and powerful at the same time.

Gaius seemed to steel himself before answering. "A long time ago," he finally started, "you wove me, yourself, and Arthur into time, and you forced our souls to meet up. And me... I am a spirit of the Old Religion, Merlin. I remember everything."

Gaius got up and began to pace around the room. He ignored at how Merlin was staring up at him, whose mind was all but screaming what the hell was he even talking about? The Old Religion? What?

"But that's enough explaining for now," Gaius huffed, "Merlin, just trust me. You are very powerful and you must be careful. Your little healing tricks have gone unnoticed for now, but there are people out there who hunt your kind—who hunt us."

Enough explaining for now! Merlin thought. Almost impossibly, he was even more confused than he had been before, and yet... Something inside told him to trust Gaius, that he would help him.

"So, Merlin, for the next month, I will train you to control your powers, and you will learn to harness them. But be warned, it will not be easy." Gaius had placed himself in front of Merlin, and he had a serious look plastered on his face. He was waiting for Merlin's response.

"Alright," Merlin said, not having a clue what was going on or what he was getting himself into. He knew there was something special about him, that he had been able to save Arthur's life as he'd fallen, that he'd heal his arm, healed himself—maybe Gaius could train him to do more than just that, and he felt excited at the prospect, like he was Harry Potter.

"Let's begin."

Arthur felt his body twist and break. Invisible forces were pulling and contorting his flesh and tearing him to his very bone, ignorant to how he screamed and screamed. The room was bright, white paint was chipped from the walls, and torches hanging from the ceiling lit the air with a red haze, ominous with death. Arthur looked forward to see a black figure materialize.

Morgana.

She chuckled and stared Arthur down as she pulled out his hand and began to caress his face, her fingers running over his gentle stubble, his nose, his ears, running everywhere until her gaze turned to his twisted and broken limbs.

"Oh, poor baby, are you hurt?" she asked mockingly and walked circles around Arthur. Her black hair moved as if it were alive against the stagnant air in the room. Her eyes were black and cold—as black as her soul, and as cold as her heart.

Arthur didn't give her the satisfaction of looking her in the eye; he knew what was said, that her gaze was deadly, turning greater men than him to stone, and he refused to chance it.

Morgana whipped out a knife with deft hands and held it to his neck. "You will tell me where Emrys is," she commanded.

"Alright, I'll tell you, please, please just stop," Arthur pleaded. He gave a sigh of relief as the pain stopped and his bones popped back into place.

Morgana looked him up and down, apparently thoroughly pleased, and she leaned in close. Her breath was on his face, abrasive against his stubble.

"P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney." Arthur responded, and a smile cracked across his face.

Morgana's eyes lit with fire. She backed up and her eyes glazed with gold the very moment Arthur felt his body twist once more, felt his limbs break, heal, and then re-break again. He felt his body give in and he screamed.

"You think I haven't seen the future either? The future that you two hold? You think you're so funny with your jokes but mark my words, Arthur Pendragon, I will find out who he is, one way or another!" Morgana screamed.

She pulled out a worm from her satchel and walked over to Arthur, it squirmed and twitched in her hand, she held it next to his ear and he felt it enter, he felt it burrow into his ear, he felt blood pour and he felt his mind–

Arthur yelled and sat up. Sweat ran cold on his face; his heart was racing, his body was sore, as if the dream was real. He looked around the room for the evil witch, making sure that she hadn't come into the real world like his pain did. His breath was hitched with fear and his head was pounding.

"Arthur..." Merlin groaned beside him, "w-what's the... matter...?" he asked, and with his eyes still closed he reached his hand up and rested it on Arthur's bare chest, gently applying pressure and pulling Arthur back down onto his air mattress.

Arthur felt his body calm down. Merlin's touch was intoxicating. He laid back into his pillow and could hear Merlin's faint snoring. Arthur managed to smile slightly; he was spending the month with the boy of his dreams, could this get any better? Merlin's hand was still on Arthur and his eyes began to close, his mind at peace.

"Again," Gaius yelled.

Merlin closed his eyes and concentrated, feeling his power morph into the air, fill beneath him. He felt it grip him and he began to float. The power was addictive, the feeling of being able to suspend himself, to defy physics, to corrupt and manipulate the existence around him, it made him high. It made him real. Merlin tried to hold on to this for as long as he could, but it drained him so quickly.

He felt himself lose grip, lose concentration and he fell to the ground.

"Almost thirty seconds," Gaius praised as he consulted his stop watch. "You're doing very well, Merlin."

"But will it be enough to protect me?" Merlin asked. "From the Purge?"

Gaius sat down on his stool, his face flushed with dread. He looked at Merlin apologetically.

"Sadly, my lad, I don't think I can train you enough. You need to remember into your past lives, feel the power from them. You left yourself much power, so much more than anyone could ever hope to posses."

Merlin looked at Gaius. It had been two weeks since they started training—two weeks—and it was going slow. He couldn't stand feeling weak. In their time together, Gaius filled him in on the Purge. It was a vast group of Crusaders who wanted nothing more than to behead the heads of witches and wizards like himself, and Merlin was scared. Really scared. He was so new to all of this, and Gaius had sprung it on him so fast, but Merlin trusted Gaius without a word and he knew that Gaius wouldn't put him up to this if he wasn't ready.

Merlin sighed and closed his eyes, steadying himself to concentrate again. He needed to become powerful, to protect himself, and above all, to protect Arthur. At the very thought, light began to emit from his chest, and it resonated through his eyes, and Merlin allowed himself to let go.