A/N: Sorry...this is slightly late. But I hope you enjoy it anyway! If you have time, feel free to leave a review! I appreciate them. And a thanks to all those who have reviewed, followed or faved this story!

Disclaimer: I do not own...

Chapter 3

Hermione had been hardly responsive during the past few days. Merlin tried to comfort her in whatever way he could, but nothing worked. It was understandable that his efforts brought him no fruit, because really, what could anyone say to a little girl who just lost her parents? He did manage to figure out what to do with her though. She begged him not to send her away after he mentioned taking her back to the campground, and it was then and there that he decided that he would take care of her. He was sure it was going to be a strange next few years, but he liked the idea of having someone else around that could use magic, not that she knew about her magic. He hadn't been able to mention it yet. He sighed. It was time to see what his new charge was doing.

She was sitting on one of the rocks with funny markings on them. Hermione was thinking as she had been ever since that morning when Merlin had explained to her that her parents where no longer among the living. He tried to send her away, but she was able to convince him not to leave her to fend by herself. She knew that she needed to get on with her life, but she couldn't. She kept thinking of her parents. The more she thought about what happened the more she sunk into her grief. She was sick and tired of thinking, of feeling sad.

She startled when Merlin sat next to her. She glanced at him and noticed him watching her. "You know, wallowing in despair won't do any good," he stated carefully.

"And what do you know about it?" Hermione replied angrily.

"More than you can know. I've lost my parents too as well as friends and those that were closer than family." Merlin couldn't help allowing himself a moment to think on Arthur. He mentally pushed his thoughts aside. "It's tough, but eventually it doesn't hurt so much anymore. Sure, it'll always stick with you, but the key is to rise above you pain and misfortune and find a way to carve a better world for you and those who are left behind."

Hermione stared at him. She wondered why she had never thought about it like that. Those dark figures killed her parents, how many other children were orphans because of these same people? Her eyes hardened, and she vowed to herself that she would do everything she could to stop whoever these people were and save others from being killed or from losing loved ones. "I want to fight them, stop them from hurting other."

Merlin nodded and smiled a grim smile that hinted more at resolve than any kind of mirth. "I'll help you then. You'll need someone to stand by you when things get rough."

Hermione blinked. "You mean…like a friend?"

Merlin looked surprised by this, but gave a nod and a smile. "Like a friend," he agreed.

Hermione gave a bright smile at that, the first one in what felt like ages. They sat there for a while in comfortable silence, until Hermione broke it. "Can you teach me how to do that glowing eye thing? It could be useful."

"Glowing eye thing," Merlin repeated with one brow raised. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, when your eyes glow and things just move without having to touch them," she said sheepishly. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Oh, you mean magic. Sure, I don't mind teaching you. I was planning on it anyways. When I realized you had it too, I figured it would be necessary to help you learn how use it."

"Wait…magic? You can't be serious! There is no such thing!"

Merlin laughed. "No such thing as magic? You've got to be kidding. Didn't you see me use it over the past few days? My eyes tend to glow gold when I do it." He watched in amusement as Hermione's face reflected each and every emotion that she was feeling from wonder to disbelief. "Don't hurt yourself by thinking too much. If you want me to show you some simple spells, I can."

"Really?" she exclaimed excitedly. Merlin smiled at her enthusiasm. It was nice seeing her so cheerful. It surprised him that she was able to bounce back after the past few days. This could be the start of her healing process. He would still have to keep a close eye on her though. It would be bad if she were to suffer a relapse.

"Yep, how about a simple levitation spell to begin with? From there we can decide where to go next." Merlin noticed how the girl beside him straightened and looked at him eagerly.

"That sounds great! Can you show me now?" He gave her an impish smile and a nod.

"Ok, the incantation is 'ábregdan'(1)." As he said it he stretched his hand out in front of him and levitated a small pebble depositing it in his hand. "As you can see, it's magic. I don't expect you to get the spell right the first time, but once you figure out your magical flow, you'll be able to do most of the simpler spells."

The next few days passed in a blur for Hermione. The distraction of magic allowed her to push aside her memories of her parents at least during the day. The only time when she couldn't truly forget was at night. The nightmares were frequent, and if not for a sleeping potion Merlin had her drink before bed, she would not have had any sleep at all. She had been progressing nicely in her magical studies though. Merlin had given her a book of spells that had been his. It looked old and not for the first time she wondered about the mystery that was her friend and mentor. He spoke as if he was much older than his appearance.

Today she was sitting outside Merlin's house reading the book of spells. It was hard getting through it, and unfortunately she wasn't able to practice any of the spells unless Merlin was there or unless she had already done it once in his presence. She had missed having a book in her hand. It felt right being able to soak up knowledge. She was so engrossed in her reading she didn't notice Merlin until he was right beside her.

"How would you like to go somewhere new?" Merlin's voice startled her out of the trance like state she always assumed when reading. She jumped and whipped her head to look at him.

"You scared me," she accused.

Merlin laughed at her pout and smiled down at her. "Maybe you should pay more attention to your surroundings then." He ruffled her hair a little with his hand and plopped down next to her.

Hermione just huffed and glared at him. "You mentioned going somewhere?" She still looked a bit irked, but her curiosity was slowly winning her over.

"Hmm, I did, didn't I?" Merlin teased picking up the book Hermione had been reading and examining it. He slowly turned a page as if he had all the time in the world.

"Well, are you going to tell me?" Hermione narrowed her eyes. He was so infuriating.

Merlin turned another page, making a show of running his finger along a sentence as if he was engrossed in reading it. Hermione was growing more impatient by the minute. "Tell me already!" she said annoyed. She had detected a whiny edge in her last statement and was kicking herself. "Patience, Hermione," she thought to herself, "he's got to tell you sometime soon."

He finally looked up and gave her a fond smile. "I suppose I should, but I don't think I will. It'll be a nice surprise." Hermione looked beyond annoyed. Merlin chuckled. She looked like a cat that had been doused with water. "Don't worry. You'll know soon enough. But we should get going or you won't find out the surprise until tomorrow."

Hermione kept up her glaring and stole the book back. "Do I need to bring anything?" She thought about the clothes she had borrowed from Merlin. They were boy's clothes and a bit strange. Rougher than normal clothes and made out of different material than any sort of clothing she had seen. He had told her that they were sown by hand, and she assumed that meant someone had made them (either him or maybe a parent…she wasn't too sure).

"Nope, they'll have anything we might need there, so you don't have to bring clothing or food. Though, you could bring that book if you want. I don't know how long we'll stay." Hermione pondered what he had just said…"they" means other people. She smiled. She liked Merlin well enough. He was definitely a good friend, but she was tired of only ever seeing him.

"Ok, then." She tucked her book under her arm. "Let's go!" Merlin gave her another cheerful smile. She never did tire of seeing his smiles. They were always warm and gave her a feeling of belonging and home.

"This way," Merlin directed her. She sure was enthusiastic, already demanding they go. An image of another demanding friend came to mind, and he pushed the memories back, not wanting to dwell on his long gone friend. One last thought drifted unwillingly to the front of his mind – his other friend sure had sure been a prat, a lovable, loyal prat, but a prat nonetheless, altogether much different from his new friend who was also loyal and kind and good, but decidedly not a prat. And yes, he did consider Hermione a friend. She was a bit young, but he appreciated having someone to talk to. He hadn't realized how lonely and isolated he had been until these last few days.

They had gone quite a way when Hermione started to try and wheedle information from him about where they were going. "So 'they', huh?" she drawled trying to keep the curiosity off her face. "Who exactly are we going to see?" She glanced at him as they walked. He allowed a small smile to form on his face. Her antics were amusing. He'd give her that, at least.

"Hmm, I guess you'll see when we get there, won't you?" Merlin raised a brow as she pouted.

Hermione continued trying to get anything she could out of Merlin, but he deflected her queries easily. Finally, she gave up and seemed content at just glaring at him every so often. He in return would give her a few cheeky grins, knowing that it was driving her crazy.

They soon entered a part of the Forest of Dean that felt odd. The magical presence here was much greater than normal. A mysterious feeling emitted from the rocks and trees. The presence of ancient power washed over her senses. It was not unlike the first time she met Merlin. Speaking of Merlin, he appeared to be moving quicker. She ran to catch up, but crashed into his back as he stopped suddenly.

"Welcome to Puzzle Wood, Hermione." He gave her a smile. "A place where old magic remains as well as being the hidden home of the Druids."

"Druids?" Hermione frowned. Her face scrunched up in confusion.

"Yes, the druids live here and have for centuries. They have free reign to move about in the hidden caves."

"You've taken me to see the druids? That's neat…I think. What are they?"

Merlin stared at her for a moment. 'She doesn't know who the druids are?!' he thought. He was bewildered by this piece of information, until he remembered she didn't grow up in the magical world and even if she did, it would have been possible for her not to know.

"I suppose it's my fault for not explaining. The druids are followers of the old magical ways, like me, but they band together and form a group where anyone is accepted who has belief in the old religion. I spent some time among them long ago, but it's been a while since I visited. Figured now was as good of time as any."

"So, they're magical like you and me."

"Yep! They'll be glad to take us in for a few days." Merlin grabbed her hand and started pulling her down a slight incline towards an opening in the earth.

"Wait! A few days?" Hermione gasped as they flew through the opening. It was dark and cool. She blinked a few times trying to allow her eyes time for adjustment to the cave.

As her eyes adjusted, she noticed that they were not alone. People were in the cave. They wore odd clothes and had symbols tattooed to their skin as well as many of them had pendants made out of stone or wood hanging around their necks. An old man stepped forward.

"Welcome, Emrys." He stated clearly. "What do we owe for this pleasure?" He gave a half bow. "And you have brought company, I see."

Merlin nodded. "Calatin, it's nice to see that you're still here. This is Hermione. She's staying with me." The man, Calatin, merely inclined his head.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Hermione. May your stay among our people be enlightening. I presume you are staying, yes?"

"We will be staying here for a bit," Merlin affirmed.

"Good. We will prepare you some food, and then we may talk." Calatin motioned for them to follow him to the back of the cave. A young girl walked up to them and gave slight bow. "This is Keena," Calatin said, "she would be happy to show Hermione around, while food is being prepared." Hermione looked at Merlin uncertainly.

Keena appeared to be around her age with light brown hair and blue eyes. She didn't seem threatening at all, but Hermione wasn't certain of wandering off without Merlin.

"It's fine. Go off and have fun." Merlin gave her a nudge. "Why don't you ask any questions you might have about the druids? This is a good opportunity." Hermione glared at Merlin before nodding to Keena.

"Ok, if you don't mind, we can explore." Hermione hesitantly smiled at the girl who nodded and grabbed her hand all the while wondering what Merlin had gotten her into this time, first magic and now this.

(1) To raise (up)