Like Shadows in the Night - Part II
TITLE: Like Shadows in the Night
WRITTEN FOR: merlinreversebb
ARTIST: greenclove
RATING: PG
GENRE: Modern Magic AU
SUMMARY: Merlin is leading a double-life, which complicates his relationship with Arthur, who just so happens to be the leader of the elite PSA team responsible for keeping the citizens of Camelot City safe from magic users.
PART I
**
When Merlin returned to his room, he saw his ear piece flashing on the desk, Aithusa batting at it playfully. He gently scooped the cat away, collected the device and slipped it over his ear.
“Where have you been?” Arthur’s voice demanded when he tapped to receive the communication.
“Can’t a guy take a pee for a minute?” Merlin groused good-naturedly.
“And you can’t pee with your ear piece on?” Arthur quipped back.
“Not if I don’t want you potentially listening in,” Merlin returned, smirking though Arthur couldn’t see that.
He heard Arthur sigh then, “You know the castle ruins at the end of old Camelot Road?”
“Yeah.”
“I need you to meet me here - five minutes ago.”
**
Merlin borrowed Gaius’ old car not wanting to try Arthur’s patience by riding out to the castle ruins on his well-used but trusty bicycle. On the way, Arthur filled him in on what had led him to the castle ruins on the west end of the city.
“Something Freya Lake said made me wonder,” Arthur informed him. “I found a functioning entrance in the southwest wing, covered in ivy, but it looks like it was recently used.”
“And what made you think you should go there by yourself?” Merlin scolded, rolling his eyes upward. Arthur was a fanatic about two-man teams for safety and yet here he was on a risky adventure solo.
“I’m not going to be by myself, Merlin,” Arthur said matter-of-factly and perhaps a little smugly. “I’m going to have you with me.” There was a moment’s silence then Arthur said, “I think there’s been an enchantment placed on the door to keep nosey agents out. I need you to counter the spell. How far away are you?”
“I’m just pulling up the road now,” Merlin told him, as he eased the car down the old road toward the southwest wing of the castle ruins. As he got closer and adjusted his vision to the scant illumination of the moonlight, he shut off the headlamps.
“Make sure you turn off the headlamps,” Arthur instructed into the ear piece.
Merlin rolled his eyes. He directed the car to the small grove lining the south end of the ruins where he saw Arthur’s black vehicle already tucked away.
“And hide the car in the grove,” Arthur instructed further. Merlin rolled his eyes again.
He made his way in the darkness to the southwest wing and Arthur.
“There’s an enchantment, right? A spell?” Arthur said after he had Merlin do a cursory inspection of the entrance.
Merlin nodded. He loved the way Arthur’s eyes lit up when he thought he was able to detect magic.
“Can you break it?” Arthur asked.
“’Course,” Merlin said with cheeky confidence. Most of the time, Merlin could use the technology programmed into his computer pad to break various spells and enchantments. But what Arthur didn’t know was that, if not under direct scrutiny, Merlin could and often did more easily use his own magic to counter-act other magic. It was usually as simple as the flick of a hand, a flash of his eyes, or a few spoken words.
Merlin tapped out some commands on his pad. “Uh, keep a lookout, would you?” he told Arthur.
Arthur looked at him quizzically for a moment before going round the building’s entrance purportedly to ‘keep a lookout’.
Once Arthur was out of sight, Merlin concentrated on the door and whispered the words, “Aliese duru ryne.” The heavy wooden door eased open.
“Got it,” he called out to Arthur.
Arthur emerged from around the corner. “I hardly needed to lookout for the amount of time that took,” he huffed, moving past Merlin to take the lead. For the fourth time in less than fifteen minutes, Merlin rolled his eyes.
It was dark and dank inside the tunnelled entrance. Arthur produced a small flashlight from some pocket on his cargo pants and flicked on the lamp. Merlin silently lamented that it was times like these when he wished he could ‘wow’ Arthur by uttering a simple illumination spell to light their path.
They followed crumbling corridors and passageways, training both their eyes and ears to their surroundings. When they saw faint lights flickering ahead and below, hearing accompanying murmurs, Arthur switched off the flashlight and grabbed the sleeve of Merlin’s hoodie, guiding him forward.
There was a break in the stone wall that allowed them to see into the chamber a level below. Arthur pulled Merlin down to crouch beside him, huddled close together in order to spy through the crumbled wall.
The chamber was lit up by a fair number of candles and oil lamps providing enough light to illuminate the area of activity. Merlin counted about a dozen or so people gathered - all women it looked like, very likely a witches’ coven - forming a rough circle. In the centre were three women, all wearing cloaks of a dark colour. Two of the women, one golden and one auburn haired, were standing. Before them, kneeling, was a third woman, the hood of her cloak up around her head.
“What are they doing?” Arthur whispered, so close to Merlin’s ear that his breath caused a shiver to trace down his spine.
“It’s some kind of induction or bonding ritual, I think,” Merlin whispered back. He had never seen such a ritual before but he had read about such things in Gaius’ books.
Merlin and Arthur watched as the ritual played out and the kneeling witch finally stood, pushing the hood back, revealing long raven hair framing pale ivory skin.
“It’s...” Merlin started.
“I know who it is, Merlin,” Arthur whispered fiercely, shuffling back.
Arthur had seen all that he wanted to see. “Let’s go,” he said shortly, grabbing Merlin’s sleeve and hauling him up. He started making their way back, using the mini flashlight to guide them, tugging Merlin along by the sleeve of his hoodie like an obstinate puppy on a lead.
When they emerged out of the ruins into the night air, Arthur finally let go of Merlin’s sleeve.
Merlin took a deep breath, glancing at him, his eyes guarded. He began cautiously, “What do you think it means that Morgana was--”
“How the hell should I know, Merlin?” Arthur barked, feeling surlier by the minute. “You’re the sorcery expert!” he added accusingly, though what fault Merlin was responsible for Arthur couldn’t imagine.
Merlin’s face grew dark in the moonlight and Arthur immediately regretted his accusatory tone. “Yeah, well - sorry,” Merlin huffed, his lips pressing together tightly. “I don’t know!” He gave Arthur a pointed look then stomped off toward the grove, refusing to engage in further conversation.
Arthur watched as Gaius’ old car emerged from the woods and tore off down the road. He waited until he could no longer see the car’s taillights before tapping his ear piece.
“What,” came the miffed reply.
“Just--” he said then decided on, “Drive carefully”, hoping that would suffice as an apology, considering it was the best he felt he could give at that moment.
**
Arthur sat at his desk, a thousand different and unpleasant thoughts running through his head. He knew he would have to tell his father about Morgana but the longer he could postpone the inevitable, the better. Uther Pendragon would not take kindly to hearing that his banished daughter had recently decided to stick the proverbial knife in his back by taking up with the sorcerer Sigan and his followers.
Morgana was Arthur’s sister - well, half-sister, but it was all the same to him, really. And up until about two and half years ago, Morgana had been very much a part of PSA and Arthur’s life. Then Morgana discovered she had magic.
Uther, the head of a security company that essentially disdained magic and magic-users, had not taken Morgana’s discovery well. To make matters worse, Morgana - ever strong-willed and defiant - had refused to heed her father’s advice to push away those yearnings and, instead, had actively sought to nurture her new-found magical abilities. Of course, their father had been outraged. A battle of two very strong wills commenced and subsequently ended with Uther Pendragon pushing Morgana out of his life and, by extension, Arthur’s. Morgana had left, her last words to Uther telling him to “go to hell!”. To Arthur, there had been nothing - no tirade, no excuses, no plea for support, no goodbye.
What bothered Arthur the most was that Morgana hadn’t even trusted him enough to make an effort to continue their sibling relationship. Arthur was not his father. He would have understood Morgana’s need to explore her magic and would have offered his support. But Morgana had never even allowed him the chance. She had simply left him, never once looking back. And it had hurt. It still hurt.
He was writing the report that would be the basis of his briefing to his father when Merlin, forgoing knocking as was his habit, blew in, his computer pad in one hand and a large open book in the other. Arthur barely had time to register that Merlin’s hair was a whirlwind of a mess, as though hamsters had been running through it during his sleep, and that there was a fair amount of residual powdered sugar on his bow lips, before Merlin plunked the heavy book on his desk and animatedly pointed to something on a page.
“I’ve been reading Gaius’ books,” he said as preamble.
“Don’t you ever knock, Merlin?” Arthur interjected, noting with fond amusement Merlin’s t-shirt witticism of the day: coffee.exe missing insert cup and press any key. Something told Arthur that Merlin had already exceeded his coffee and jelly donut allowance for the day.
Merlin rolled his eyes at him. “Anyway,” he continued, tapping his long finger on the open book to direct Arthur’s focus. “It seems an induction or bonding ritual can take place informally without any specific allegiances claimed. We both saw symbols representing Sigan all around that chamber. But according to some of these old readings,” He tapped the open book again, “the fact that Sigan wasn’t actually present might indicate that the ritual was independent, involving just those witches we saw gathered.”
“So, what are you saying, Merlin? That Morgana hasn’t pledged her allegiance nor sold her soul to Sigan?” Arthur knew he sounded cynical but it was what it was.
Merlin shrugged. “What I’m saying is that Sigan’s symbols there may have no relevance,” he said. “All we saw was a bonding ritual being performed with what looked like three key players and a handful of witnesses. Sigan’s symbols were all around. But no Sigan.”
Arthur nodded. He trusted Merlin’s possible interpretation even if it was likely his tech guru was on a coffee and sugar overload. Despite Arthur’s gruff comments the night before, Merlin was the sorcery expert and Arthur generally believed Merlin knew what he was talking about.
“Oh, and the two witches who performed the induction?” Merlin remarked. “Not one hundred percent certain, but the word out there is Morgause and Nimueh.”
“Names we’ve heard before,” Arthur commented. Even if he didn’t have to tell his father that Morgana had joined Sigan’s following, he would still have to mention her apparent recent bonding with the two sorceresses.
“Talked to your father yet?” Merlin asked, his tone gentle. Arthur had to marvel that, despite his own behaviour the night before which had been completely uncalled for, Merlin remained kind and understanding. In fact, Merlin was always kind and understanding, despite Arthur’s many and myriad faults. Arthur figured this was probably the reason his crush on his tech guru was Percival-sized. Well, he admitted, that, and Merlin’s hamster hair, bow lips, fantastic cheekbones, silly t-shirt sayings and jelly donut addiction.
Arthur shook his head. “Not looking forward to that conversation,” he told Merlin.
“Can’t blame you,” Merlin replied. He swept the book from the desk and shoved it in the crook of his armpit, moving toward the door. “If you need backup,” Merlin seemed to offer as he exited through the door, “call Gwaine.”
Arthur tipped his head back and laughed.
**
Merlin was worried about Arthur. It could not be easy for him to have stumbled upon Morgana again after over two years, especially under these circumstances. Though Arthur had never mentioned it, Merlin was sure he was still hurting from Morgana leaving after coming to rows with their father over her insistence on cultivating her magical abilities. From what Merlin understood, Morgana had left without a word to Arthur, had severed their relationship, preferring to be estranged from both of the Pendragon men.
And while Merlin was happy to report that there was strong doubt that Morgana was in the process of becoming a devoted follower of the dark sorcerer Sigan, he was not about to breathe a sigh of relief. Nimueh and Morgause were known amongst the community of magic users to be formidable sorceresses. That Morgana seemed to be taking up with them was still a cause for concern.
Merlin went back to “The Dungeon” to organize the mounting rubble that was overtaking his space. After finishing that daunting task (and the last two jelly donuts), he figured he owed himself to cut out a half hour early. His plan was to stop by Freya’s for a visit before heading home to take a quick nap with Aithusa curled beside him then to help Gaius with dinner.
Besides, it was probably a good idea to be out of the building’s vicinity when Arthur told his father about Morgana. To appease his guilt, Merlin tapped his ear piece to connect him to Gwaine. Having Gwaine on standby support really wasn’t such a bad idea.
**
“Hello Arthur.”
Arthur recognized her voice immediately, though it sounded colder and more ominous coming over Merlin’s communication piece, causing Arthur’s jaw to clench in trepidation.
“Got something of yours here,” she said. “Tall and skinny. Fond of wearing t-shirts with ridiculous sayings on them. Could really use a more competent hair stylist...”
“I swear, Morgana, if you hurt Merlin...” Arthur threatened.
He heard Morgana tsk through the ear piece. “How touching.”
“What do you want?”
“It’s simple, really,” she told him. “You convince Uther to stop his War on Magic and I let you keep what is most precious to you.”
“You know damn well, Morgana, that Uther will never give up that fight.”
“Well for Merlin’s sake, you better hope that you can convince him,” Morgana said then broke the communication link between them.
What the hell kind of game was Morgana playing at?
**
Merlin took stock of his situation. From the darkness and cold dankness surrounding him, he was reasonably certain he was somewhere within the castle ruins on old Camelot Road. His hands were bound with rope and strung above his head. It wasn’t ordinary rope - he could easily tell. He could magick away ordinary rope and none of the spells he had tried thus far had worked. Morgana or one of the other witches must have enchanted it. He’d find a way to counter-spell it, but it would take some time and he didn’t want to get caught at it, if it could be helped.
He cursed himself for having been caught off-guard on his way home from Freya’s, enabling The Witches Three, as he now liked to call them, to stun him with magic before he had even realized what was happening. In fact, the more Merlin thought about it, the more embarrassing it was. And why the hell had they nabbed him and strung him up in this castle? he wondered. It didn’t make any sense.
**
Arthur had known this conversation with his father would not go well.
“Morgana has Merlin,” Arthur told him, not bothering with a preamble. “She says she’ll return him unharmed if you agree to surrender your War on Magic.”
“I see,” Uther Pendragon said, training an eye on Arthur from behind his massive desk. “And you truly believe she’d hold up her end of the bargain if I were to do so?”
Arthur shook his head. “No. I figure this is her attempt to lure me out. For what purpose, though, I haven’t a clue.”
“She wants you to rescue the boy,” Uther Pendragon said, his features carefully schooled. “I would think her plan is to ambush you, to attack you - to get back at me.” He released a heavy sigh. “And for that reason, I expressly forbid you to make any attempt to rescue him, Arthur.”
These were not the words Arthur wanted to hear. “I won’t forsake Merlin!” he expressed. “He’s a member of my team. I can’t bear to lose him. Like--” His voice faltered. “Like we did Lancelot.”
Uther slammed a fist down on his desk, the first sign of any emotion. “Damn the Wiz Kid, Arthur! You must consider him collateral damage. I’ll find you another sorcery expert. Hell, if he was such an expert on magic, he wouldn’t have gotten himself in this predicament.”
Arthur’s jaw clenched. Merlin wasn’t a toy that his sister had taken, broken, and then could be easily replaced by his father. Merlin was... Merlin was a member of his team, his friend. The one whose smile brightened his day and made his heart beat faster.
“Just forget him, Arthur,” his father said, his usual calm returning, showing that he was once again in control of the situation. “It will be very damaging to the company for your team to suffer another loss,” he dismissed, “but with some skilful PR, we’ll get through it.”
“Of course,” Arthur said in response, though he wasn’t really listening. In his head, he was already formulating a plan.
As soon as he was a respectable distance from his father’s office, he tapped his ear piece, connecting him to the rest of his team. “Gear up,” he told them. “We’re going after Merlin.”
**
Merlin was still struggling to find the right spell that would release the bindings when Morgana appeared, carrying an oil lamp that filled the dark space with soft light.
“Don’t get too comfortable, Merlin,” she chided with a smirk. “You won’t be strung up there much longer. Promise.”
Merlin swallowed back a gulp. “What is that supposed to mean?” he asked, though he wasn’t all that sure he wanted to know.
Morgana cackled. “I’ve delivered a message to Arthur,” she told him. “If he convinces Uther to cease his War on Magic, you’ll be returned - no worse for wear.” She glanced down at the mangled and broken objects that lay at Merlin’s feet - his glasses and his computer pad. “Well, more or less,” she amended then conceded with mock apology, “It really wasn’t very nice of Nimueh to step on your glasses.”
“Uther Pendragon will never give the fight up against magic,” Merlin said. “You know that as well as I do, Morgana.” He tried not to wonder what that meant for him.
Morgana smiled cruelly. “No. He will not. But then Arthur will have no choice but to try and rescue you and when he does...” For a moment, she had a faraway look in her eyes but then refocused a steady gaze on Merlin. “I have every intention of destroying him. And then Uther will know exactly what it is like to lose something so dear to him.”
“It will only make him more bitter,” Merlin pointed out, a chill settling in his bones upon realizing her intentions, “and more hateful toward magic. You won’t get your revenge.”
“You know nothing about the sweetness of revenge, Merlin,” Morgana said. “Uther cast me away when he found out I had magic, disowned me! Said he couldn’t possibly have fathered a witch. Arthur is all he cares about, is all he has ever cared about. The perfect son, following in his father’s footsteps.”
“You know that’s not true,” Merlin argued. “Arthur is not your father. He would have helped you if you’d given him the chance.”
“You’re wrong, Merlin,” Morgana insisted. “Arthur’s very dedicated to his job and to PSA and to Uther. He would never have accepted me.”
Merlin knew that Morgana was wrong, though it would be difficult to convince her otherwise. The years had made her bitter and vengeful. Morgana was family and Arthur would never have turned his back on her. That was the kind of man Arthur was, the kind of man Merlin admired.
“Your plan won’t work,” Merlin tried to further reason. “Arthur won’t come for me. “I’m just the tech guy. Collateral damage. I don’t matter.”
Morgana let go a shrill laugh. “Are you really that oblivious, Merlin?” she wondered. “Arthur would stop the world for you. You must know that.” She moved in closer to him and traced a finger along his cheekbone, unkind amusement in her expression. “You are Arthur’s greatest weakness.”
His emotions whirled inside him, trying to absorb what Morgana had said. Surely, she was mistaken. Merlin was about to say just that when he heard voices from beyond, calling to Morgana.
Morgana sneered at him. “Told you Arthur would come, Merlin. Now be a good boy and stay put. This shouldn’t take long.” She turned and glided away to the outer chamber, leaving Merlin alone in the darkness.
**
Arthur made his way into the inner chamber, leaving the team to fend off the six skilled witches the more powerful sorceresses had sent to waylay them. He figured Morgana would prefer it this way, that he was the one to go after Merlin. But he was soon outnumbered as the three women - Morgana, Morgause and Nimueh - came together in the dimly lit chamber to meet him.
In an attempt to gain even a small advantage, he quickly pulled and threw daggers successively, hiding his frustration when each one was magically deflected, save for one that grazed the upper arm of the blonde sorceress.
Morgause touched the spot with gentle fingers and shot him a fiery look.
“Still playing with knives, Arthur?” Morgana scorned. Her look was dark and cynical and Arthur wondered where his vivacious sister had gone.
“Where’s Merlin?”
Morgana laughed. “That’s not how the game is played, brother dear,” she said.
“Let Merlin go,” Arthur said, intent on stipulating the rules of this game, “then we get this over with.” Arthur didn’t care what happened to him, he only wanted to be sure Merlin would be safe.
“Tempting,” Morgana said in response. She seemed to consider then said, “Do you know poor Merlin actually has no idea how you feel about him? How can someone so brilliant be so utterly obtuse?”
“Get on with it, Morgana,” Nimueh urged. “This is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Destroy him and you will destroy your father.”
Morgause uttered a similar sentiment and Arthur could see Morgana preparing herself to do what she felt was necessary.
“What happened to you, Morgana?” Arthur wondered. The Morgana that stood before him was nothing like the Morgana he had known.
“You know what happened to me,” Morgana returned, her voice softer, more vulnerable sounding and Arthur felt a spark of hope. “Uther turned his back on me, on everything that I am. I was sent away and had no one in the word until--” She cast a glance at Morgause and Nimueh.
“You had me,” Arthur said to her. Morgana’s green eyes flicked up to his face and Arthur saw raw emotion there, a look he remembered. “I wouldn’t have let you be alone.”
“Arthur...” Morgana began, her defences beginning to break down.
Nimueh, apparently, was not impressed. “Enough nonsense!” she shrieked. “If you can’t do this, Morgana, then I will!” With that, she conjured up her magic, ready to do business.
**
It was “Isen faestnunga onlucan me” that finally did it.
Merlin wasted no time untangling himself from the rope. He had to get to Arthur.
**
They say that there are moments when time stands still. Arthur felt like this was one of them. The moment Nimueh cast the fireball and aimed it toward him, Arthur became almost frozen, acutely aware of the things around him - Morgana’s look of horror and regret, Merlin in his periphery rushing toward them, speaking strange words, desperation in his tone - did the sweet idiot think he could somehow save him? And Nimueh, her face lighting up with wicked delight at being the one to destroy him. In that very instant Arthur knew how Lancelot had come to die. It hadn’t been Sigan who had struck him down. It had been Nimueh.
Merlin spoke the words strongly (“Ic pe wipdrife!”), the force of his spell to counter the fireball directed at Arthur by Nimueh powerful enough to knock all three of the witches back. Nimueh and Morguase had been the hardest hit but Merlin hit them with another blast just in case they had other ideas. Besides, it hadn’t been very nice of Nimueh to step on his glasses nor Morgause to have wrecked his computer pad.
“Merlin!”
He turned his attention to Arthur who was staring at him and the scene around them wide-eyed and amazed. “Impressive,” Arthur complimented.
“Um, thanks?” was all Merlin could manage, adrenaline still on super-max. He really wanted to check Arthur for any damage that may have been inflicted that he hadn’t been able to deflect, just for his own peace of mind, but before he could get himself under control to do so, Gwaine, Percival, Elyan and Leon sailed into the room, looking like ninjas ready to do more battling.
“Who’s next?” Gwaine challenged loudly.
There was a flash and suddenly Nimueh and Morgause were gone. Morgana, who was lifting her head and coming to, was left behind.
Arthur quickly went to his sister, Merlin following close behind. He pulled Morgana into his arms, cradling her.
“I’m so sorry, Arthur,” Morgana sobbed.
Arthur brushed his fingers against her cheek and soothed her quiet. And when Arthur smiled up at him like a man who had just discovered he had the very best things in his life, Merlin felt his heart swell.
“Help me get Morgana out of here,” Arthur said and Merlin did without any hesitation.
**
They were finally back at PSA, in Arthur’s office, after helping Morgana to a safe haven where she could begin the process of thinking and healing. Merlin had suggested Freya and, for once, Arthur offered no argument. In fact, he expressed that he thought Freya Lake would be very good for his sister.
“You should have told me, Merlin,” Arthur said.
Merlin knew they’d be getting around to that. “I wanted to,” he said. “But Gaius didn’t think it was a good idea.”
“Well, given my father’s stance on magic-users,” Arthur conceded, “he was probably right.”
Merlin traced a pattern on the floor with the toe of his shoe. “Lancelot knew.”
“Oh?”
Merlin thought he heard a note of hurt in Arthur’s voice and quickly explained, “I didn’t tell him. He just accidentally found out.”
Arthur seemed to ruminate for a moment then said, “Lancelot was a good man.”
“Yeah, he was.” Merlin wondered if Arthur would now blame him, for having magic and not having been able to save Lancelot.
“I do miss him,” Arthur said quietly. Then he surprised Merlin by moving in closer, close enough to press their foreheads together and stare intently into Merlin’s eyes. “But it would have killed me, Merlin, if I had lost you.”
Merlin didn’t know what to say to that, so he did the only thing he could think of. He cupped his hand at the back of Arthur’s neck and pulled his mouth in to meet his. The kiss was slow and deep, full of the things neither of them had dared yet say to each other. It was utterly perfect.
“Mmm,” Arthur murmured, finally pulling away. “You taste like jelly donuts.”
Merlin laughed. “I didn’t think you liked jelly donuts,” he said.
Arthur shrugged, a smile playing at his lips. “Well, I like the taste of them on your lips,” he teased.
“Good to know,” Merlin said, feeling ridiculously happy.
Arthur ruffled his hair playfully and tugged him toward the door. “So tell me, Merlin,” he drawled, “You’re the Shadow Sorcerer, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh really. Let’s go back to your brownstone then,” Arthur suggested. “I bet Aithusa will tell me everything I want to know.”
“What? You’re going to interrogate my cat?”
“Not interrogate, Merlin. Question.”
Merlin snorted. “I’d like to see you try.”
Arthur snagged an arm around Merlin’s shoulder and pulled him closer.
There. He had a date with Merlin’s cat - finally. Okay, so maybe that meant he kind of had a date with Merlin too and that made Arthur very happy.
THE END
WRITTEN FOR: merlinreversebb
ARTIST: greenclove
RATING: PG
GENRE: Modern Magic AU
SUMMARY: Merlin is leading a double-life, which complicates his relationship with Arthur, who just so happens to be the leader of the elite PSA team responsible for keeping the citizens of Camelot City safe from magic users.
PART I
**
When Merlin returned to his room, he saw his ear piece flashing on the desk, Aithusa batting at it playfully. He gently scooped the cat away, collected the device and slipped it over his ear.
“Where have you been?” Arthur’s voice demanded when he tapped to receive the communication.
“Can’t a guy take a pee for a minute?” Merlin groused good-naturedly.
“And you can’t pee with your ear piece on?” Arthur quipped back.
“Not if I don’t want you potentially listening in,” Merlin returned, smirking though Arthur couldn’t see that.
He heard Arthur sigh then, “You know the castle ruins at the end of old Camelot Road?”
“Yeah.”
“I need you to meet me here - five minutes ago.”
**
Merlin borrowed Gaius’ old car not wanting to try Arthur’s patience by riding out to the castle ruins on his well-used but trusty bicycle. On the way, Arthur filled him in on what had led him to the castle ruins on the west end of the city.
“Something Freya Lake said made me wonder,” Arthur informed him. “I found a functioning entrance in the southwest wing, covered in ivy, but it looks like it was recently used.”
“And what made you think you should go there by yourself?” Merlin scolded, rolling his eyes upward. Arthur was a fanatic about two-man teams for safety and yet here he was on a risky adventure solo.
“I’m not going to be by myself, Merlin,” Arthur said matter-of-factly and perhaps a little smugly. “I’m going to have you with me.” There was a moment’s silence then Arthur said, “I think there’s been an enchantment placed on the door to keep nosey agents out. I need you to counter the spell. How far away are you?”
“I’m just pulling up the road now,” Merlin told him, as he eased the car down the old road toward the southwest wing of the castle ruins. As he got closer and adjusted his vision to the scant illumination of the moonlight, he shut off the headlamps.
“Make sure you turn off the headlamps,” Arthur instructed into the ear piece.
Merlin rolled his eyes. He directed the car to the small grove lining the south end of the ruins where he saw Arthur’s black vehicle already tucked away.
“And hide the car in the grove,” Arthur instructed further. Merlin rolled his eyes again.
He made his way in the darkness to the southwest wing and Arthur.
“There’s an enchantment, right? A spell?” Arthur said after he had Merlin do a cursory inspection of the entrance.
Merlin nodded. He loved the way Arthur’s eyes lit up when he thought he was able to detect magic.
“Can you break it?” Arthur asked.
“’Course,” Merlin said with cheeky confidence. Most of the time, Merlin could use the technology programmed into his computer pad to break various spells and enchantments. But what Arthur didn’t know was that, if not under direct scrutiny, Merlin could and often did more easily use his own magic to counter-act other magic. It was usually as simple as the flick of a hand, a flash of his eyes, or a few spoken words.
Merlin tapped out some commands on his pad. “Uh, keep a lookout, would you?” he told Arthur.
Arthur looked at him quizzically for a moment before going round the building’s entrance purportedly to ‘keep a lookout’.
Once Arthur was out of sight, Merlin concentrated on the door and whispered the words, “Aliese duru ryne.” The heavy wooden door eased open.
“Got it,” he called out to Arthur.
Arthur emerged from around the corner. “I hardly needed to lookout for the amount of time that took,” he huffed, moving past Merlin to take the lead. For the fourth time in less than fifteen minutes, Merlin rolled his eyes.
It was dark and dank inside the tunnelled entrance. Arthur produced a small flashlight from some pocket on his cargo pants and flicked on the lamp. Merlin silently lamented that it was times like these when he wished he could ‘wow’ Arthur by uttering a simple illumination spell to light their path.
They followed crumbling corridors and passageways, training both their eyes and ears to their surroundings. When they saw faint lights flickering ahead and below, hearing accompanying murmurs, Arthur switched off the flashlight and grabbed the sleeve of Merlin’s hoodie, guiding him forward.
There was a break in the stone wall that allowed them to see into the chamber a level below. Arthur pulled Merlin down to crouch beside him, huddled close together in order to spy through the crumbled wall.
The chamber was lit up by a fair number of candles and oil lamps providing enough light to illuminate the area of activity. Merlin counted about a dozen or so people gathered - all women it looked like, very likely a witches’ coven - forming a rough circle. In the centre were three women, all wearing cloaks of a dark colour. Two of the women, one golden and one auburn haired, were standing. Before them, kneeling, was a third woman, the hood of her cloak up around her head.
“What are they doing?” Arthur whispered, so close to Merlin’s ear that his breath caused a shiver to trace down his spine.
“It’s some kind of induction or bonding ritual, I think,” Merlin whispered back. He had never seen such a ritual before but he had read about such things in Gaius’ books.
Merlin and Arthur watched as the ritual played out and the kneeling witch finally stood, pushing the hood back, revealing long raven hair framing pale ivory skin.
“It’s...” Merlin started.
“I know who it is, Merlin,” Arthur whispered fiercely, shuffling back.
Arthur had seen all that he wanted to see. “Let’s go,” he said shortly, grabbing Merlin’s sleeve and hauling him up. He started making their way back, using the mini flashlight to guide them, tugging Merlin along by the sleeve of his hoodie like an obstinate puppy on a lead.
When they emerged out of the ruins into the night air, Arthur finally let go of Merlin’s sleeve.
Merlin took a deep breath, glancing at him, his eyes guarded. He began cautiously, “What do you think it means that Morgana was--”
“How the hell should I know, Merlin?” Arthur barked, feeling surlier by the minute. “You’re the sorcery expert!” he added accusingly, though what fault Merlin was responsible for Arthur couldn’t imagine.
Merlin’s face grew dark in the moonlight and Arthur immediately regretted his accusatory tone. “Yeah, well - sorry,” Merlin huffed, his lips pressing together tightly. “I don’t know!” He gave Arthur a pointed look then stomped off toward the grove, refusing to engage in further conversation.
Arthur watched as Gaius’ old car emerged from the woods and tore off down the road. He waited until he could no longer see the car’s taillights before tapping his ear piece.
“What,” came the miffed reply.
“Just--” he said then decided on, “Drive carefully”, hoping that would suffice as an apology, considering it was the best he felt he could give at that moment.
**
Arthur sat at his desk, a thousand different and unpleasant thoughts running through his head. He knew he would have to tell his father about Morgana but the longer he could postpone the inevitable, the better. Uther Pendragon would not take kindly to hearing that his banished daughter had recently decided to stick the proverbial knife in his back by taking up with the sorcerer Sigan and his followers.
Morgana was Arthur’s sister - well, half-sister, but it was all the same to him, really. And up until about two and half years ago, Morgana had been very much a part of PSA and Arthur’s life. Then Morgana discovered she had magic.
Uther, the head of a security company that essentially disdained magic and magic-users, had not taken Morgana’s discovery well. To make matters worse, Morgana - ever strong-willed and defiant - had refused to heed her father’s advice to push away those yearnings and, instead, had actively sought to nurture her new-found magical abilities. Of course, their father had been outraged. A battle of two very strong wills commenced and subsequently ended with Uther Pendragon pushing Morgana out of his life and, by extension, Arthur’s. Morgana had left, her last words to Uther telling him to “go to hell!”. To Arthur, there had been nothing - no tirade, no excuses, no plea for support, no goodbye.
What bothered Arthur the most was that Morgana hadn’t even trusted him enough to make an effort to continue their sibling relationship. Arthur was not his father. He would have understood Morgana’s need to explore her magic and would have offered his support. But Morgana had never even allowed him the chance. She had simply left him, never once looking back. And it had hurt. It still hurt.
He was writing the report that would be the basis of his briefing to his father when Merlin, forgoing knocking as was his habit, blew in, his computer pad in one hand and a large open book in the other. Arthur barely had time to register that Merlin’s hair was a whirlwind of a mess, as though hamsters had been running through it during his sleep, and that there was a fair amount of residual powdered sugar on his bow lips, before Merlin plunked the heavy book on his desk and animatedly pointed to something on a page.
“I’ve been reading Gaius’ books,” he said as preamble.
“Don’t you ever knock, Merlin?” Arthur interjected, noting with fond amusement Merlin’s t-shirt witticism of the day: coffee.exe missing insert cup and press any key. Something told Arthur that Merlin had already exceeded his coffee and jelly donut allowance for the day.
Merlin rolled his eyes at him. “Anyway,” he continued, tapping his long finger on the open book to direct Arthur’s focus. “It seems an induction or bonding ritual can take place informally without any specific allegiances claimed. We both saw symbols representing Sigan all around that chamber. But according to some of these old readings,” He tapped the open book again, “the fact that Sigan wasn’t actually present might indicate that the ritual was independent, involving just those witches we saw gathered.”
“So, what are you saying, Merlin? That Morgana hasn’t pledged her allegiance nor sold her soul to Sigan?” Arthur knew he sounded cynical but it was what it was.
Merlin shrugged. “What I’m saying is that Sigan’s symbols there may have no relevance,” he said. “All we saw was a bonding ritual being performed with what looked like three key players and a handful of witnesses. Sigan’s symbols were all around. But no Sigan.”
Arthur nodded. He trusted Merlin’s possible interpretation even if it was likely his tech guru was on a coffee and sugar overload. Despite Arthur’s gruff comments the night before, Merlin was the sorcery expert and Arthur generally believed Merlin knew what he was talking about.
“Oh, and the two witches who performed the induction?” Merlin remarked. “Not one hundred percent certain, but the word out there is Morgause and Nimueh.”
“Names we’ve heard before,” Arthur commented. Even if he didn’t have to tell his father that Morgana had joined Sigan’s following, he would still have to mention her apparent recent bonding with the two sorceresses.
“Talked to your father yet?” Merlin asked, his tone gentle. Arthur had to marvel that, despite his own behaviour the night before which had been completely uncalled for, Merlin remained kind and understanding. In fact, Merlin was always kind and understanding, despite Arthur’s many and myriad faults. Arthur figured this was probably the reason his crush on his tech guru was Percival-sized. Well, he admitted, that, and Merlin’s hamster hair, bow lips, fantastic cheekbones, silly t-shirt sayings and jelly donut addiction.
Arthur shook his head. “Not looking forward to that conversation,” he told Merlin.
“Can’t blame you,” Merlin replied. He swept the book from the desk and shoved it in the crook of his armpit, moving toward the door. “If you need backup,” Merlin seemed to offer as he exited through the door, “call Gwaine.”
Arthur tipped his head back and laughed.
**
Merlin was worried about Arthur. It could not be easy for him to have stumbled upon Morgana again after over two years, especially under these circumstances. Though Arthur had never mentioned it, Merlin was sure he was still hurting from Morgana leaving after coming to rows with their father over her insistence on cultivating her magical abilities. From what Merlin understood, Morgana had left without a word to Arthur, had severed their relationship, preferring to be estranged from both of the Pendragon men.
And while Merlin was happy to report that there was strong doubt that Morgana was in the process of becoming a devoted follower of the dark sorcerer Sigan, he was not about to breathe a sigh of relief. Nimueh and Morgause were known amongst the community of magic users to be formidable sorceresses. That Morgana seemed to be taking up with them was still a cause for concern.
Merlin went back to “The Dungeon” to organize the mounting rubble that was overtaking his space. After finishing that daunting task (and the last two jelly donuts), he figured he owed himself to cut out a half hour early. His plan was to stop by Freya’s for a visit before heading home to take a quick nap with Aithusa curled beside him then to help Gaius with dinner.
Besides, it was probably a good idea to be out of the building’s vicinity when Arthur told his father about Morgana. To appease his guilt, Merlin tapped his ear piece to connect him to Gwaine. Having Gwaine on standby support really wasn’t such a bad idea.
**
“Hello Arthur.”
Arthur recognized her voice immediately, though it sounded colder and more ominous coming over Merlin’s communication piece, causing Arthur’s jaw to clench in trepidation.
“Got something of yours here,” she said. “Tall and skinny. Fond of wearing t-shirts with ridiculous sayings on them. Could really use a more competent hair stylist...”
“I swear, Morgana, if you hurt Merlin...” Arthur threatened.
He heard Morgana tsk through the ear piece. “How touching.”
“What do you want?”
“It’s simple, really,” she told him. “You convince Uther to stop his War on Magic and I let you keep what is most precious to you.”
“You know damn well, Morgana, that Uther will never give up that fight.”
“Well for Merlin’s sake, you better hope that you can convince him,” Morgana said then broke the communication link between them.
What the hell kind of game was Morgana playing at?
**
Merlin took stock of his situation. From the darkness and cold dankness surrounding him, he was reasonably certain he was somewhere within the castle ruins on old Camelot Road. His hands were bound with rope and strung above his head. It wasn’t ordinary rope - he could easily tell. He could magick away ordinary rope and none of the spells he had tried thus far had worked. Morgana or one of the other witches must have enchanted it. He’d find a way to counter-spell it, but it would take some time and he didn’t want to get caught at it, if it could be helped.
He cursed himself for having been caught off-guard on his way home from Freya’s, enabling The Witches Three, as he now liked to call them, to stun him with magic before he had even realized what was happening. In fact, the more Merlin thought about it, the more embarrassing it was. And why the hell had they nabbed him and strung him up in this castle? he wondered. It didn’t make any sense.
**
Arthur had known this conversation with his father would not go well.
“Morgana has Merlin,” Arthur told him, not bothering with a preamble. “She says she’ll return him unharmed if you agree to surrender your War on Magic.”
“I see,” Uther Pendragon said, training an eye on Arthur from behind his massive desk. “And you truly believe she’d hold up her end of the bargain if I were to do so?”
Arthur shook his head. “No. I figure this is her attempt to lure me out. For what purpose, though, I haven’t a clue.”
“She wants you to rescue the boy,” Uther Pendragon said, his features carefully schooled. “I would think her plan is to ambush you, to attack you - to get back at me.” He released a heavy sigh. “And for that reason, I expressly forbid you to make any attempt to rescue him, Arthur.”
These were not the words Arthur wanted to hear. “I won’t forsake Merlin!” he expressed. “He’s a member of my team. I can’t bear to lose him. Like--” His voice faltered. “Like we did Lancelot.”
Uther slammed a fist down on his desk, the first sign of any emotion. “Damn the Wiz Kid, Arthur! You must consider him collateral damage. I’ll find you another sorcery expert. Hell, if he was such an expert on magic, he wouldn’t have gotten himself in this predicament.”
Arthur’s jaw clenched. Merlin wasn’t a toy that his sister had taken, broken, and then could be easily replaced by his father. Merlin was... Merlin was a member of his team, his friend. The one whose smile brightened his day and made his heart beat faster.
“Just forget him, Arthur,” his father said, his usual calm returning, showing that he was once again in control of the situation. “It will be very damaging to the company for your team to suffer another loss,” he dismissed, “but with some skilful PR, we’ll get through it.”
“Of course,” Arthur said in response, though he wasn’t really listening. In his head, he was already formulating a plan.
As soon as he was a respectable distance from his father’s office, he tapped his ear piece, connecting him to the rest of his team. “Gear up,” he told them. “We’re going after Merlin.”
**
Merlin was still struggling to find the right spell that would release the bindings when Morgana appeared, carrying an oil lamp that filled the dark space with soft light.
“Don’t get too comfortable, Merlin,” she chided with a smirk. “You won’t be strung up there much longer. Promise.”
Merlin swallowed back a gulp. “What is that supposed to mean?” he asked, though he wasn’t all that sure he wanted to know.
Morgana cackled. “I’ve delivered a message to Arthur,” she told him. “If he convinces Uther to cease his War on Magic, you’ll be returned - no worse for wear.” She glanced down at the mangled and broken objects that lay at Merlin’s feet - his glasses and his computer pad. “Well, more or less,” she amended then conceded with mock apology, “It really wasn’t very nice of Nimueh to step on your glasses.”
“Uther Pendragon will never give the fight up against magic,” Merlin said. “You know that as well as I do, Morgana.” He tried not to wonder what that meant for him.
Morgana smiled cruelly. “No. He will not. But then Arthur will have no choice but to try and rescue you and when he does...” For a moment, she had a faraway look in her eyes but then refocused a steady gaze on Merlin. “I have every intention of destroying him. And then Uther will know exactly what it is like to lose something so dear to him.”
“It will only make him more bitter,” Merlin pointed out, a chill settling in his bones upon realizing her intentions, “and more hateful toward magic. You won’t get your revenge.”
“You know nothing about the sweetness of revenge, Merlin,” Morgana said. “Uther cast me away when he found out I had magic, disowned me! Said he couldn’t possibly have fathered a witch. Arthur is all he cares about, is all he has ever cared about. The perfect son, following in his father’s footsteps.”
“You know that’s not true,” Merlin argued. “Arthur is not your father. He would have helped you if you’d given him the chance.”
“You’re wrong, Merlin,” Morgana insisted. “Arthur’s very dedicated to his job and to PSA and to Uther. He would never have accepted me.”
Merlin knew that Morgana was wrong, though it would be difficult to convince her otherwise. The years had made her bitter and vengeful. Morgana was family and Arthur would never have turned his back on her. That was the kind of man Arthur was, the kind of man Merlin admired.
“Your plan won’t work,” Merlin tried to further reason. “Arthur won’t come for me. “I’m just the tech guy. Collateral damage. I don’t matter.”
Morgana let go a shrill laugh. “Are you really that oblivious, Merlin?” she wondered. “Arthur would stop the world for you. You must know that.” She moved in closer to him and traced a finger along his cheekbone, unkind amusement in her expression. “You are Arthur’s greatest weakness.”
His emotions whirled inside him, trying to absorb what Morgana had said. Surely, she was mistaken. Merlin was about to say just that when he heard voices from beyond, calling to Morgana.
Morgana sneered at him. “Told you Arthur would come, Merlin. Now be a good boy and stay put. This shouldn’t take long.” She turned and glided away to the outer chamber, leaving Merlin alone in the darkness.
**
Arthur made his way into the inner chamber, leaving the team to fend off the six skilled witches the more powerful sorceresses had sent to waylay them. He figured Morgana would prefer it this way, that he was the one to go after Merlin. But he was soon outnumbered as the three women - Morgana, Morgause and Nimueh - came together in the dimly lit chamber to meet him.
In an attempt to gain even a small advantage, he quickly pulled and threw daggers successively, hiding his frustration when each one was magically deflected, save for one that grazed the upper arm of the blonde sorceress.
Morgause touched the spot with gentle fingers and shot him a fiery look.
“Still playing with knives, Arthur?” Morgana scorned. Her look was dark and cynical and Arthur wondered where his vivacious sister had gone.
“Where’s Merlin?”
Morgana laughed. “That’s not how the game is played, brother dear,” she said.
“Let Merlin go,” Arthur said, intent on stipulating the rules of this game, “then we get this over with.” Arthur didn’t care what happened to him, he only wanted to be sure Merlin would be safe.
“Tempting,” Morgana said in response. She seemed to consider then said, “Do you know poor Merlin actually has no idea how you feel about him? How can someone so brilliant be so utterly obtuse?”
“Get on with it, Morgana,” Nimueh urged. “This is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Destroy him and you will destroy your father.”
Morgause uttered a similar sentiment and Arthur could see Morgana preparing herself to do what she felt was necessary.
“What happened to you, Morgana?” Arthur wondered. The Morgana that stood before him was nothing like the Morgana he had known.
“You know what happened to me,” Morgana returned, her voice softer, more vulnerable sounding and Arthur felt a spark of hope. “Uther turned his back on me, on everything that I am. I was sent away and had no one in the word until--” She cast a glance at Morgause and Nimueh.
“You had me,” Arthur said to her. Morgana’s green eyes flicked up to his face and Arthur saw raw emotion there, a look he remembered. “I wouldn’t have let you be alone.”
“Arthur...” Morgana began, her defences beginning to break down.
Nimueh, apparently, was not impressed. “Enough nonsense!” she shrieked. “If you can’t do this, Morgana, then I will!” With that, she conjured up her magic, ready to do business.
**
It was “Isen faestnunga onlucan me” that finally did it.
Merlin wasted no time untangling himself from the rope. He had to get to Arthur.
**
They say that there are moments when time stands still. Arthur felt like this was one of them. The moment Nimueh cast the fireball and aimed it toward him, Arthur became almost frozen, acutely aware of the things around him - Morgana’s look of horror and regret, Merlin in his periphery rushing toward them, speaking strange words, desperation in his tone - did the sweet idiot think he could somehow save him? And Nimueh, her face lighting up with wicked delight at being the one to destroy him. In that very instant Arthur knew how Lancelot had come to die. It hadn’t been Sigan who had struck him down. It had been Nimueh.
Merlin spoke the words strongly (“Ic pe wipdrife!”), the force of his spell to counter the fireball directed at Arthur by Nimueh powerful enough to knock all three of the witches back. Nimueh and Morguase had been the hardest hit but Merlin hit them with another blast just in case they had other ideas. Besides, it hadn’t been very nice of Nimueh to step on his glasses nor Morgause to have wrecked his computer pad.
“Merlin!”
He turned his attention to Arthur who was staring at him and the scene around them wide-eyed and amazed. “Impressive,” Arthur complimented.
“Um, thanks?” was all Merlin could manage, adrenaline still on super-max. He really wanted to check Arthur for any damage that may have been inflicted that he hadn’t been able to deflect, just for his own peace of mind, but before he could get himself under control to do so, Gwaine, Percival, Elyan and Leon sailed into the room, looking like ninjas ready to do more battling.
“Who’s next?” Gwaine challenged loudly.
There was a flash and suddenly Nimueh and Morgause were gone. Morgana, who was lifting her head and coming to, was left behind.
Arthur quickly went to his sister, Merlin following close behind. He pulled Morgana into his arms, cradling her.
“I’m so sorry, Arthur,” Morgana sobbed.
Arthur brushed his fingers against her cheek and soothed her quiet. And when Arthur smiled up at him like a man who had just discovered he had the very best things in his life, Merlin felt his heart swell.
“Help me get Morgana out of here,” Arthur said and Merlin did without any hesitation.
**
They were finally back at PSA, in Arthur’s office, after helping Morgana to a safe haven where she could begin the process of thinking and healing. Merlin had suggested Freya and, for once, Arthur offered no argument. In fact, he expressed that he thought Freya Lake would be very good for his sister.
“You should have told me, Merlin,” Arthur said.
Merlin knew they’d be getting around to that. “I wanted to,” he said. “But Gaius didn’t think it was a good idea.”
“Well, given my father’s stance on magic-users,” Arthur conceded, “he was probably right.”
Merlin traced a pattern on the floor with the toe of his shoe. “Lancelot knew.”
“Oh?”
Merlin thought he heard a note of hurt in Arthur’s voice and quickly explained, “I didn’t tell him. He just accidentally found out.”
Arthur seemed to ruminate for a moment then said, “Lancelot was a good man.”
“Yeah, he was.” Merlin wondered if Arthur would now blame him, for having magic and not having been able to save Lancelot.
“I do miss him,” Arthur said quietly. Then he surprised Merlin by moving in closer, close enough to press their foreheads together and stare intently into Merlin’s eyes. “But it would have killed me, Merlin, if I had lost you.”
Merlin didn’t know what to say to that, so he did the only thing he could think of. He cupped his hand at the back of Arthur’s neck and pulled his mouth in to meet his. The kiss was slow and deep, full of the things neither of them had dared yet say to each other. It was utterly perfect.
“Mmm,” Arthur murmured, finally pulling away. “You taste like jelly donuts.”
Merlin laughed. “I didn’t think you liked jelly donuts,” he said.
Arthur shrugged, a smile playing at his lips. “Well, I like the taste of them on your lips,” he teased.
“Good to know,” Merlin said, feeling ridiculously happy.
Arthur ruffled his hair playfully and tugged him toward the door. “So tell me, Merlin,” he drawled, “You’re the Shadow Sorcerer, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh really. Let’s go back to your brownstone then,” Arthur suggested. “I bet Aithusa will tell me everything I want to know.”
“What? You’re going to interrogate my cat?”
“Not interrogate, Merlin. Question.”
Merlin snorted. “I’d like to see you try.”
Arthur snagged an arm around Merlin’s shoulder and pulled him closer.
There. He had a date with Merlin’s cat - finally. Okay, so maybe that meant he kind of had a date with Merlin too and that made Arthur very happy.
THE END