I'm terribly late, sorry. School begins next week and I had my summer homework to do (which I still haven't finished) and then I had to catch hip with some fics I haven't had time to read previously.

The good thing is that this chapter is the longest until now and I like the result. Strange. I usually hate my chapters.

Thanks for the bottom of my heart to everyone who reviewed/favorited/followed. I love you, guys, seriously.

Enough with the ramble. Enjoy!

It turned out that the answer to Arthur's inner question had not been really difficult to reach. The answer would always be the same, after all.

No matter what happened, he would never be able to intentionally harm Merlin. The man was kind - sometimes ridiculously so - and much too loyal for his own good. He always tried to see the good in everyone and would oppose to anyone harming even a rabbit. Yeah, that was the exact definition of 'evil', wasn't it?

Arthur had though about it for a long time - Merlin kept being lazy and hadn't woken up once in the two days prior - and he had reached the conclusion that the servant couldn't be evil. That comforted him slightly, at least.

So, if he wasn't evil, he simply was completely and utterly idiotic. Why in Avalon had he decided to practice magic in Camelot, of all places?

That being said, his mental affliction wouldn't spare him the long discussion Arthur planned to have with him - he had, after all, disobeyed to the laws of Camelot and committed treason, but he had, most of all, lied to him and had hidden his magic from him for almost eight years.

That was what pained Arthur the most - that Merlin hadn't trusted him with his secret, not even after his father had died and he had become king. And while Merlin knew everything about him, Arthur couldn't say that he really knew anything about the servant. What if everything that made Merlin, well, Merlin, had been nothing but a carefully constructed lie? What if everything the warlock had told him when he needed comfort had been just a way to get close to the king, without really caring about him, but just about his title?

He couldn't be sure. He wasn't sure about anythinganymore, and he needed Merlin to wake up and answer to those questions, damn it!

That was why, when Merlin finally woke up, the first thing his bleary eyes saw was the angry and somewhat hurt face of the king, looking him with a stern look.

"You and I need to talk."

The servant's brow furrowed in confusion and he sat up slowly, gazing around the room, a hand wiping away the sweat glistening on his clammy brow. His eyes settled once again on the king's serious face, and he had to swallow against the inexplicable uneasiness he was feeling. "What happened?" he rasped out, his throat dry and voice croaky from lack of use. He winced when he tried to move, being painfully reminded of his wound. He remembered getting hurt, but his memories were still confused.

Arthur didn't answer right ahead, instead he stood up and poured some water into a goblet, offering it silently to the other occupant of the room.

They were in Merlin's tiny room, since Gaius had declared it would be better for the young man to have some privacy - which couldn't be possible if he stayed in the main part of the physician's quarters, often visited by the old man's patients. Said man had left them alone in Merlin's room, giving them the chance to speak freely once the wounded servant awakened. Guinevere had left, as well, for she had her duties as queen to attend to. They had both looked at Arthur intensely, daring him to harm Merlin or to wrong him in any way during their absence.

The young king was currently offering the goblet to his manservant, who smiled tentatively at him, grateful. Arthur didn't return the smile.

The cool water trickling down Merlin's throat tasted as sweet as milk and honey to him, but he knew better than to swallow it too quickly, aware that it would just make him sick. As soon as he was done drinking, he slumped back on the bed, tired even after those few minutes of consciousness. He was visibly exhausted, but he stubbornly refused to sleep, knowing that he had to understand what was happening.

They fell into an uncomfortable silence, broken only by Merlin's heavy breathing. The tension was so thick that it could be cut with a knife.

It was Arthur who broke the painful stillness of the room with a long sigh. He raised his head and locked eyes with Merlin for the first time since his awakening - he hadn't been able to look at him directly until then. "Why would you betray me, Merlin?" he asked quietly, some kind of twisted disappointment etched on his face.

The warlock's eyes widened comically as he shook his head. "I would never betray you, Arthur," he answered, his voice surprisingly steady despite his weakness.

The blonde sighed again, dropping his gaze to the ground for he shortest of moments before he raised his head again. "Don't lie to me. Merlin, I... I know. I know about your... curse," he whispered, his eyes surprisingly bright.

Merlin was even more confused, if it were possible. The last word made him remember things he had buried deep inside his heart, and he had to close his eyes against the wave of grief that threatened to overtake him.

"Magic doesn't have to be a curse. It can be a gift."

His own words from so long ago comforted him slightly, lulling him into a false sense of security. Maybe Arthur wasn't referring to his magic, because magic wasn't a curse - in his eyes, at least. Maybe it was just a misunderstanding.

The feeble thread of hope he so desperately held onto was destroyed by the king's next words. "You're a sorcerer," the royal breathed, having still not come to terms with the revelation.

Merlin could have denied it. He should have, really. But Arthur's eyes were unsure and full of poorly concealed fear, and yet there was still some kind of foolish hope in them. It was what made Merlin's resolve crumble - Arthur wanted to believe that he wasn't a sorcerer, that he hadn't betrayed him. But he had, really, and he couldn't bring himself to lie again, not when the king was so vulnerable.

He nodded, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered, ashamed - not of who he was, but of his many lies and constant deception.

Something in Arthur's eyes broke in that moment, when his fears were confirmed - as if the ground under his feet had just crumbled and he had nothing left to hold himself upright. "Why?" he choked out, faced for the thousandth time by the betrayal of someone he trusted - had trusted.

"For you, Arthur. Only for you - always for you," Merlin replied, gripping the white sheets of his bed tightly, his heartbeat quickening in anticipation.

The blonde sighed. "Don't blame me for your treachery," he said, but the threat sounded pitiful even to his own ears.

Merlin shook his head, a grim smile on his pale face. He fought against the urge to close his eyes and sleep forever, focusing his attention completely on the man in front of him. "It is my destiny - it has always been, and it will always be - to protect you, Arthur. I was born with magic. It's a part of me, as I'm a part of it. And I've been gifted with these powers to keep you safe," he explained slowly, his hands twisting the white fabric of the bed sheets.

"My magic is connected to you, it can feel you - if you didn't exist, I'm fairly sure that I wouldn't exist either, or at least I wouldn't have magic. You see, Arthur, together we are Destiny, you and I. Our lives have been foretold for centuries - there are legends, prophecies about us," he said, pausing for a moment to let everything sink in.

"You are the Once and Future King who will unite the lands of Albion and bring about the Golden Age, an era of peace and prosperity and magic, in which knights and sorcerers fight one beside the other, in which peasants and Druids live as neighbors," he continued, his voice growing stronger as he imagined the utopian world of his dreams become true.

He smiled softly, preparing himself for the last part of his explanation. "And I'm here to make sure that you live to see that day."

He inhaled deeply before extending his hand and murmuring a spell, his eyes flashing gold. A bluish light appeared between him and Arthur, floating gently before them.

"Arthur, I was born to serve you."

I'm sorry for any errors or typos I missed, but I edited this in a hurry.

(09-12-2013)