A/N: Thanks again for your reviews - I can access them now, huzzah! And thanks if you're still reading - I've mentioned before but I'm not as versed in this fandom as others, so delighted people are enjoying this. A lot of long-awaited action this chapter. Enjoy!

CHAPTER 6

Merlin skipped that evening's feast, opting instead to eat in his room. He would have dined with Gaius again, but the physician was out of the castle with Gilli to assist with a birth in the lower town. He smiled in fond remembrance, wondering if Gilli would be as abjectly disgusted as a young Merlin had once been.

After the ban on sorcery was lifted, Geoffrey had sheepishly admitted to having hidden an extensive collection of ancient books on magic during the Purge. Merlin had requested a few of these but, given the chaos of the past few weeks, had not yet had the chance to look through them properly. He picked one at random and started to read, but was soon so drawn in that he forgot his food completely. It was dark outside when he heard a knock on his door.

"Come in!"

He had assumed it would be Arthur, perhaps coming to berate him for missing another dinner, but was shocked to see Morgana instead, contrite and with Gwaine and Elyan at each shoulder.

"Can we talk?"

Merlin closed the book and got warily to his feet. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to apologise." She grasped her hands in front of her. "For breaKing our agreement. I know there was little chance of you forgiving me even before that, but the truth is that I don't want us to be at odds. You might find that hard to believe-"

Merlin scoffed before he could stop himself. "Morgana, you've tried to have me killed more times than I can count! And that's not to mention Arthur or Gwen or anyone else you used to care about!"

"You've not been innocent in all this," she reminded him harshly. "You poisoned me. Long before I ever did anything to hurt you."

Fine, Merlin thought grimly. If they were going to have it out, they might as well do it now. "I poisoned you because you were the vessel for a spell that was going to destroy Camelot. It was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make, but I would do it again if it meant saving the Kingdom. Can you leave us?"

This last was directed at Elyan and Gwaine who exchanged a doubtful look.

"Merlin, are you sure?"

"I can handle it," he told them sharply. "Just wait outside. We won't be long."

As the knights departed, Morgana took a step closer to Merlin. "I know things can't be the same as they once were, but they must move forward. I want to be here to usher in the new age of magic."

"But that was never all you wanted," Merlin disagreed. "You wanted the throne. You wanted revenge."

"All I want is to see magic free again," she insisted passionately. "And much as I'm loath to admit it, I have you to thank for beginning that process. Can't we finally work together? Do things right this time? This morning at the Druid camp I thought we were seeing eye to eye."

"So did I," he admitted softly. "But then the wyverns came and you-"

"You have to believe me when I say I am sorry for that." She took another step, gaze earnest. "But it was like an instinct. Arthur is my blood. That means something."

"It didn't with Uther."

"No." She took a juddering breath as her gaze grew distant. "When Uther died, I felt it. I thought I would be happy, but I wasn't. I lost something that day." Her eyes sharpened on his once more. "I won't pretend I didn't hate him. But Arthur is not his father and what's past is past. Can we try and move forward?"

She looked so like her old self. The same woman who had ridden out to defend his village against impossible odds, who had spoken out against the King on behalf of Gwen's father. But so much had happened since then. "I don't know Morgana. I...I want to be your friend again-"

"You do?" She took another step forward. There was less than a foot between them now. "Merlin, if that's true then..." She beamed. "Then you're a bigger fool than I thought." And, still beaming, she pulled a metal cuff from her skirts and slammed it down onto his left wrist.

He tried to pull away, but as his skin touched the metal, it was as if the world had turned inside out. His vision blurred, his knees buckled and, as he struggled to get his bearings, he was vaguely aware of a second cuff clicking into place around his right wrist.

"My friend? You want to be my friend?" He was on the ground now, Morgana towering above him. "Swefe nu!"

There was a thump outside the door - she had cast a sleeping enchantment on the knights.

"You knew I had magic and you never helped me," she continued furiously. "You're a coward! A traitor to your kind. You only care about yourself and your precious prince."

"As- astrice!" Merlin managed to gasp, but nothing happened. His magic buzzed angrily under the metal shackles, igniting the carved runes engraved upon them with a fiery red.

"Try all you want." Morgana seized his arms and dragged him along the floor. He moaned and tried to writhe from her grip but the room tilted strangely around him. Everything felt wrong. "The only good thing about you was your magic, and now it's gone. You're worthless. And Arthur's defenceless against me."

George had nearly extinguished all the candles in his room when Arthur felt it. He bolted upright in bed, stomach turning, but it wasn't sickness. He wasn't sure what it was.

"My Lord? Are you well?"

He had been feeling off all evening, but he knew the reason for that. Watching Morgana laugh among the nobles and royalty at that evening's feast, while Merlin had never shown, was disconcerting. Glad as he was they had reached an agreement on the treaty, and grateful though he was for Morgana's input, he resolved that after this evening she would stay under guard in her room as they prepared for her trial.

But this was something different.

"My Lord?"

"I have a funny feeling." That was usually what Merlin said, wasn't it? He had said it just before Olaf arrived. "George... sound the warning bell. And bring some guards to Lord Merlin's chamber."

Arthur thanked the Gods he had been given a servant who was actually good at his job. George didn't ask any questions, just sprinted to do as he was told. Arthur pulled a shirt on, grabbed his sword, and ran out after him.

He ran nearly headfirst into King Olaf on his way to the East Wing of the castle. They peered at one another through the darkness of the unlit corridor.

"I came to ask Lady Morgana's advice about my daughter's enchantment," Olaf explained. "But she didn't come to the door when I knocked. Probably already asleep."

The warning bell started to ring and Arthur set off again, a confused Olaf in tow.

"Arthur? Arthur what's wrong?"

"Merlin!" Arthur called over his shoulder, as though that explained everything.

Merlin did not much appreciate being stuffed into his own wardrobe and he made that known, kicking and scratching every inch of the way. His magic twisted uncomfortably inside him, throwing off his balance and focus entirely, so he just did his best to keep all his limbs moving at once and felt a thrill of grim satisfaction as what he thought could be his knee finally met Morgana's chin with a satisfying slap.

She hissed her displeasure and her eyes flashed, sending his head hard against the sharp corner of the wardrobe. When she spoke it was as if he was hearing her through a large body of water.

"Emrys... I've spent so long afraid of you and to think, you were just a pathetic serving boy." The wardrobe door opened, revealing his new clothes from the palace tailor. "Arthur can try and dress you up, but everyone can tell."

He tried to talk, but his mouth wouldn't cooperate. All he produced was a strangled moan.

"Shhh, Merlin." She used a spell to deposit him roughly inside the wardrobe. "Stay there, where no one will find you. And when Arthur is discovered dead tomorrow in his chambers, who else will they think responsible? What with all those rumours flying about that you've enchanted him. And I'll track you down of course, defeat you and bring you back here to live in the dungeons as an example of my courage."

"Thhh...The kniights..." Merlin managed to slur, leaning forward with immense effort. "Thhey... won'..."

Morgana pushed him gently back into place. "The Knights of the Round Table? Well when I inherit the throne I'll reinstate the First Law of Camelot. After all, who knows what silly decisions Arthur made under the influence of your powerful spell?"

She went to close the door on Merlin's prone form, but paused as the warning bell began to ring. She narrowed her eyes at Merlin suspiciously, then shrugged and raised a hand. "Goodnight Merlin. Swefe nu!"

When he saw Elyan and Gwaine sprawled outside the entrance to Merlin's chambers, Arthur felt a thrill of cold fear.

"What on earth..!"

Arthur shushed Olaf, padding forward to examine his knights. Their chests rose and fell, deep and regular - only sleeping.

"Hand me a sword." Olaf spoke in a determined whisper and Arthur obliged, pulling Elyan's sword and handing it to the Amatan King. "There is foul magic afoot."

Arthur wondered if perhaps Olaf thought Merlin, not Morgana, to be responsible. But there was no time to dwell on that now. Together they rushed into Merlin's room.

Morgana turned to them with an expression of feigned surprise. "Arthur! King Olaf! What are you doing here? I heard the warning bell and thought I'd be safest with Lord Merlin, but I can't find-"

"I've had enough of your lies." Arthur's sword was aloft and pointed firmly in her direction. "Where is he, Morgana?"

Her face darkened. "That's none of your concern."

"I swear if you don't tell me I'll run you through where you stand." Arthur's voice was level and calm, even as he inched closer to the witch. "The guards are already on their way. Where is he?"

"The guards won't find you alive!" She shrieked a spell that sent Arthur and Olaf flying back, pinned to the wall by some invisible, magical force. They were trapped.

His magic wouldn't let him sleep for long. The longer the shackles were on him, the more pressure built inside his skull. The throbbing lump on the back of his head from where Morgana had slammed him against the wardrobe was nothing compared to the building headache.

"Where is he, Morgana?"

Ah. Perhaps it was actually Arthur's voice which had awoken him.

"That's none of your concern."

"I swear if you don't tell me I'll run you through where you stand. The guards are already on their way. Where is he?"

"The guards won't find you alive!"

There was a clatter as a sword was dropped, a gasp, and a yell that wasn't Arthur's.

"Lady Morgana!" Merlin recognised King Olaf's voice. "Why are you doing this? You were so kind, so helpful... my daughter-"

"Your daughter was an insipid viper!" Merlin started to move his foot, in which direction he wasn't sure, but something was surely better than nothing? Arthur was in danger... Was he already dead? "You think I ever really had a cure for her enchantment? You stupid old man."

Merlin's foot found something hard. He kicked viciously and, as fortune would have it, was positioned such that it sent the wardrobe door ricocheting open.

Light flooded his senses and his vision slanted upside down as he rolled gracelessly out onto the floor of his chambers. He was vaguely aware of Arthur worriedly calling his name and if he could remember how his lungs functioned he might have breathed a sigh of relief. The King was still alive, at least.

But the pressure in his head was growing still. As he opened his eyes Morgana, who had been leering above him, jerked back in fear. Merlin twisted and saw, on the other side of the room, Arthur and Olaf pinned magically in place against the wall. The King gaped.

"Merlin, your eyes-"

"Enough!" Morgana had recovered from whatever had shocked her and delivered a harsh kick to Merlin's side, sending him so severely out of kilter that he thought for a moment he might be sick. As he tried desperately to regain himself, limbs twitching against the cold floor, she locked the chamber door with a flash of her eyes and turned back to face Arthur and Olaf. "This ends now."

The relief Arthur felt when Merlin tumbled out of the wardrobe was quickly undermined by the state his friend was in. His muscles trembled, his breaths came in strange stutters, and his eyes... Arthur had never seen anything like it. They burned a brighter gold than he had ever seen. Merlin barely looked human.

"What happened to you Morgana?" Arthur demanded. Outside he could hear the guards struggling to break down the door. "I thought we were friends."

Hurt coloured her voice. "As did I. But alas, we were both wrong."

"I had nearly forgiven you." His voice shook no matter how he tried to steady it. "You could have had everything you wanted. You can't blame me for my father's sins."

Her expression hardened. "I know you, Arthur. You never fought for me and my kind. I have been through so much pain, lost my sister, my home... All because of you and Merlin." She spared the sorcerer another kick, but he barely twitched. In fact, Arthur noted with some alarm, he had gone almost completely still. "You're not as different from Uther as you'd like to think."

Arthur strained against whatever magic she held him with, but it was no use. "Nor are you."

"I'm going to enjoy killing you, Arthur Pendragon." She raised her hand, eyes beginning to spark. "Not even Emrys can save you now. Hleap on-!"

But she never finished the spell, for at that precise moment the world erupted.

A/N: Apologies for the cliffhanger! And yes, I've gone with a favourite trope of mine - magic restraining handcuffs. A Merlin!Whump classic.