Six degrees of seperation part 3
[Sis degrees of seperation part 3]
Arthur sat on his throne in the great hall, his head leaning back against the chair and his eyes closed.
Merlin was…he was… he betrayed him… he… And after last night…. He really thought…
Arthur shook his head, there had to be an explanation to this, there has to be-
The doors banged open, revealing an angry looking Gaius and a distressed looking Gwen and Lancelot.
"Gaius." Arthur said calmly and Gaius glared.
"What is the meaning of this sire?" He demanded. "I just saw two guards leading Merlin down to the dungeons!"
Arthur didn't miss the fact that he said nothing about his uncle.
"When I tried to talk to Merlin he didn't answer me! He didn't even look at me!"
Arthur's eyes narrowed into a glare of his own.
"Merlin betrayed us. He was working for Morgana, planning to kill me."
Gaius's mouth dropped open before he shook his head.
"No, that's impossible; Merlin would rather die than betray you."
"Well he didn't exactly denied working for her." Arthur hissed.
Gaius's eyes closed and when he opened them there was a pained expression on his face.
"It is possible that we missed something," He said quietly and Arthur glared.
"Like what?" He demanded.
"Well, it is possible that Morgana brought back a shade, a sort of a demon that will look like Merlin but is actually an empty vassal for Morgana's wishes. She could have told him everything she knows about Merlin, enough so he could pretend to be Merlin and…"
Gaius trailed off and Arthur closed his eyes in pain. For one night, it was so perfect.
"No." Lance's voice penetrated the silence and Arthur looked at him.
"No?"
"No. I refuse to believe that this isn't Merlin, I talked to him, he knew things that Morgana couldn't possibly know."
"Then how do you explain this?" Arthur asked his voice angry.
"Why don't we ask him?" Gwen offered, her voice trembling.
Arthur gritted his teeth before rising from his throne.
"Fine, let's go."
Five minutes later they were down at the cells, looking at Merlin's form curled in the corner, his eyes staring off into the air and mumbling to himself.
Arthur averted his eyes and turned to look at his uncle, his uncle was sitting on his cot, his back straight and expression proud despite being discovered as a traitor and thrown in the dungeons.
"Merlin?" Gaius's soft voice drew Arthur's attention back to the first cell.
Merlin shook his head and curled even deeper into himself.
"No…" He mumbled. "Go away… I want to wake up…" He whimpered. "Please Cornelius…"
Arthur frowned. "Cornelius?" He echoed and Gaius glanced at him.
"I don't know."
"Merlin, Merlin my boy, look at me," Gaius tried again and Merlin closed his eyes tighter.
"No, go away, this isn't real, it's another dream!" He opened his eyes and glared at Gaius.
"Where is Nimueh?" He demanded and looked around him.
Gaius looked taken aback. "Nimueh, Merlin what are you talking about? Nimueh is dead."
Merlin looked at Gaius, considering.
"Then Morgause," He said, rising up and moving closer to the bars. "Morgause is responsible for this?"
"Merlin what are you saying?" Gwen asked, tears streaming down her face.
"He thinks he is still dead…" Lance whispered, his eyes widening in realization and he moved to the bars, grabbing Merlin's hand through them.
"Merlin, where are you?"
Merlin stared at him with wide eyes and ripped his hand away.
"Are you kidding me?!" He yelled. "I've been through this once; I won't fall for this a second time! This wasn't really Camelot from the beginning right? That whole thing with Morgana… I should have known… but… I didn't… Cornelius told me not to go but I didn't listen…Oh god…" He groaned and slumped down, his head leaning on his crossed arms.
"Merlin…" Arthur growled. He has had enough of these games.
"What on earth are you blabbering on for the love of Camelot?!"
Merlin lifted his head to look at Arthur and tears streamed down his cheeks.
"This is all a dream don't you get it? You aren't real…" He covered his face with his hands and Arthur had to strain his ears to hear him.
"I don't know why I'm telling you this but…you are just a dream…"
"Doesn't matter," Gaius said immediately. "Just talk to us."
"When I just passed through the veil I… I reached the underworld, and apparently, I wasn't really popular there." He let out a bitter laugh.
"I sent a lot of people down there and they weren't too happy to see me. I was fighting for my life, err, sort of life, for the first two months constantly." He sighed and glanced at Gaius.
"Nimueh was the first to try and poison me but apparently when you poison someone in the afterlife he doesn't die he just gets into this, dreamlike world, like this one," Merlin waved around him. "And then Cornelius found me.
"Cornelius Sigan?" Gaius clarified and Merlin nodded, his brows furrowing.
"Like you don't know that…" He snorted.
"Carry on." Arthur said slowly, his heart in his throat; could it be that Merlin wasn't a traitor?
"He helped me to get out of that dream and taught me everything he knows about the underworld."
"Why would he do this?" Lance asked.
Merlin shrugged. "He said he had no quarrel with me and only Camelot and since I'm already dead there is no need to try and kill me again. So for the next three months we stayed together, he protected me when I slept and I did the same for him, it didn't stop other magi users from trying to kill me but… well… it's easier to kill someone who's already dead.
Arthur felt sick to his stomach. Merlin suffered all this while being dead.
"What then?" Gaius asked.
"The Calilach summoned me one day, telling me that the sacred goddess made a deal with the once and future king," Merlin's eyes turned to Arthur. "She said that you promised her to lift the ban over magic and embrace the old religion back," He snorted. "I should have known she was lying to me."
Arthur glanced at Lance and Gwen and was surprised to see only approval in their eyes.
"And then Morgana dragged my soul back, sacrificing Mordred in the process and I was back." He sighed. "I should have known it was a dream, there is no way Morgana would kill Mordred."
"Merlin…" Gaius whispered. "This isn't a dream."
But Merlin wasn't listening to him, immersed in his own world he carried on.
"She thought I was her slave, she was planning to use me to stop the wedding and kill Arthur," He turned to look at Gwen. "I'm sorry Gwen, even if it is only a dream."
"It's alright Merlin." Gwen whispered and he nodded a soft smile on his lips.
"Agravaine was with her when she brought me back which is why he thought I was her servant but the moment he left back to Camelot I killed her."
A distressed yell sounded from Agravaine's cell but they all ignored it.
"You killed Morgana?" Gaius asked his voice incredulous.
Merlin shrugged. "It's just a dream."
Arthur wanted to smack his head and from the look on Gaius's face so did he.
"And then I was back in Camelot and things looked so normal and real," His eyes wandered to Arthur again. "Better than real and then…" He stopped.
"I should have known it's a dream…" He mumbled to himself and Arthur groaned.
"He is an idiot." He told the rest and got several nods in agreement.
Unlocking the cell, Arthur stepped in and lifted Merlin up.
"You are an idiot." He told him and kissed him, ignoring the fact that they had company, ignoring the fact that Merlin kept pushing him back, trying to push him away.
"Stop," Merlin panted against him. "This is the worst thing…" He sniffled and Arthur smiled softly down at him lifting his chin gently and forcing him to look at him.
"Merlin…" He whispered, realizing that their company left and they are alone.
"Merlin this isn't a dream, you are alive and real and I love you."
Merlin didn't say a word as he kept on staring at Arthur.
"What do you want me to do to prove it to you?"
Merlin looked down and then back up. "Kiss me again?" He whispered and Arthur smiled.
"Gladly."
His lips pressed against Merlin's chapped ones and he stayed there for a while, just pressing their lips together, waiting for Merlin to relax.
A protesting moan from Merlin made him smile and he opened his mouth, letting his tongue out to caress Merlin's lips and coax them open.
Merlin opened up to him in an instant and Arthur drew his body closer to his, pressing them both flush together.
"Arthur…" Merlin whispered when they parted, panting against each other's lips.
"Hmmm?"
"Are you sure it's real?"
Arthur smacked him over the head.
"Ouch!" Merlin cried and jumped back, glaring at him. "What was that for?"
"You felt it?" Arthur demanded.
"Obviously!"
"See?" Arthur smirked. "This isn't a dream."
Merlin's mouth dropped open and then his eyes narrowed.
"So that means you threw me in the dungeons without hearing me out!"
Arthur flushed. "Now look…-"
"You are such a prat!" Merlin stomped past him and left the dungeons, leaving a stunned looking Arthur behind him.
Arthur rolled his eyes and stepped out of the cell, glancing at his uncle's frozen form.
"I'll deal with you later." He told him and left the dungeons.
Slowly and carefully Arthur made changes in the laws of Camelot, first allowing the druids to return to Camelot's grounds and welcoming Alator and his people.
"So when were you going to tell me you are Emrys?" Arthur asked after Alator and his men dropped down to their knees in front of Merlin, who stood there with a shocked expression on his face while Gaius face palmed.
"Err… someday?" He tried and Arthur smothered him with his own pillow.
He allowed magic users into the market, keeping an eye over his people mood and smiling when the children kept laughing at every new magic trick.
"So what sort of tricks do you know Merlin?" Arthur asked, lounging on the rug in front of the fire.
"Keeping you alive is the hardest trick of them all." Merlin replied from his seat on the bed, cross legged and mending one of Arthur's shirt.
"I'm not impressed." Arthur said with a smirk when Merlin lifted his head to glare at him.
"Oh really?" He asked slowly, laying the shirt down on the bed and dropping down to crawl on all four towards Arthur, a wicked glint in his eye.
"Really," Arthur breathed when Merlin reached him, leaning over him and breathing against his lips. "Got something more useful to show me?"
Merlin smirked and leaned even closer.
"Let me show you a trick your highness."
After presenting the court with evidence of Agravaine's betrayal Arthur ordered him executed. His Uncle tried to beg for his life but Arthur refused to listen. A traitor was a traitor, no matter who it was.
When Arthur declared the old religion as a permitted religion once more his court erupted in cries of protest, the people however were overjoyed and that was what mattered to Arthur.
"I still can't believe you did it." Merlin said, glancing down at the celebrations in the lower town in honor of the old religion.
"Why not?" Arthur asked, wrapping his arms around Merlin's waist.
"Well, it's just… It's weird and wonderful, but weird."
"How eloquent of you, my precious court sorcerer."
Merlin snorted. "Shut up prat."
"Hmm," He hummed, kissing his way up Merlin's neck. "Make me."
Merlin turned in his arms and smiled softly. "With pleasure."
When the last peace treaty was signed Merlin introduced Arthur to Kilgarrah.
"Merlin…" Arthur said urgently as he eyed the golden eyed beast before him. "Is that-"
"The great dragon, yeah." Merlin said with a smile.
"I'm very proud of you young warlock," The dragon boomed." You've done a wonderful job."
Arthur glared at it. "WHAT?! I was there too!"
The dragon's roaring laughter shook the earth and Merlin hugged Arthur' patting his shoulder.
"Don't worry my king," He whispered in Arthur's ear and kissed his cheek softly. "Everyone will know that."
And they did.