Merlin fic - The Amulet of Aphrodite - Merlin/Arthur
Title: The Amulet of Aphrodite
Author: mahaliem
Fandom: Merlin
Pairing: Arthur/Merlin
Rating: PG-13
Wordcount: ~4,000 words
Summary: Arthur rescues a mysterious woman, but now who will rescue Arthur? Why, Merlin, of course! - Think of this story as an episode of Merlin, albeit a very slashy episode.
Notes: Thank you so much to my betas dancinbutterfly and justabi. Their help was more valuable than I can say. Any remaining mistakes are mine and mine alone.
The Amulet of Aphrodite
It had been a fine day for riding, but Arthur was looking forward to returning to Camelot. He smiled as he thought of how Merlin would question him about his day as he helped Arthur shed his armour and stained clothing. Merlin was an idiot, but he'd proved himself loyal.
A scream rent the air. Arthur whirled his horse about, and raced in the direction from whence the scream had come. Bursting through the trees, he saw a camp in tatters. Horses were rearing, the whites of their eyes visible in their panic. Two men, their bodies and clothing slashed, lay unmoving. Of greater concern, a woman was attempting to fend off a creature of monstrous origins. It might have been a beetle, but for its size, which was more like that of a hound.
Drawing his sword, Arthur charged the beast, which retreated at the approach of his horse. He slid from his mount, situating himself between the creature and the prey it sought. Though it snapped its mandibles furiously at him, he once more engaged it, striking it hard, echoes of which ran up his shoulders. When it skittered forward, he side-stepped it and with a fateful blow struck its head from its body.
Chest heaving with exhaustion, he paid little attention to the woman as she thanked him for his heroic deed. Much needed to be done. The dead men needed burial and an alert should be sounded so that if more creatures such as the one he'd slain appeared, Camelot would be ready.
"Sire," the woman said, this time laying a hand on his chest and commanding his attention. "Please allow me to reward such bravery."
"It was nothing." Arthur waved her gratitude aside. "I was merely doing my duty to Camelot."
"I must insist," she continued. From a pouch at her waist, she withdrew a strangely etched medallion. "You saved my life and I would be remiss not to thank you properly."
Sighing, Arthur nodded and lowered his head so that she might place the medallion around his neck. The chain felt hot, almost as if it were burning the skin of his nape as she draped it on him. He flinched and was about to protest when abruptly it cooled.
As he straightened up, he saw her smile at him and he blinked in wonderment. How had he not noticed before how very beautiful she was?
* * *
"What's going on?" Merlin asked as he joined Gaius and Gwen near the entrance to the courtyard.
"It seems that Arthur fought a creature in the woods." Gauis nodded toward the woman accompanying Arthur toward the entrance to Camelot. "He saved a damsel in distress in the process."
"Doesn't he do that every week?" Merlin said grinning.
Gwen laughed. Gaius smiled back at Merlin and then left to return to his duties as Court Physician.
Merlin watched Arthur approach. He seemed unusually solicitous of the woman with him. As he escorted her, her hand on his extended arm, Arthur stared at her intently.
"What did you fight this time, Sire?" Merlin asked as Arthur came near.
Instead of answering, Arthur acted as though he hadn't even heard him. As though he didn't even see him, either, which was a possibility as his gaze never left the woman at his side, passing by Merlin without so much as a nod of acknowledgment.
"Morgana is not going to be pleased," Gwen murmured to Merlin before following the couple inside.
Merlin stayed where he was, still astonished at having been so thoroughly ignored. What was going on and who was this woman that commanded Arthur's attention so completely? It wasn't like Arthur at all and Merlin grew determined to discover the truth of the matter.
* * *
"I don't understand this," Gaius said as he bent in the grass to examine the detached head of the creature.
Merlin peeked over Gaius' shoulder to see what was intriguing Gaius. "What is it?"
"It appears to be a common sun beetle, albeit one of enormous proportions."
"Do you think that..." Merlin paused to be sure no one was nearby and could overhear. "That it was enlarged by magic?"
Gaius nodded. "Which leads us to more questions, ones that I can't possibly answer."
"Such as who created such a monster?"
"Certainly, but of more immediate importance is that the sun beetle is a plant eater. It wouldn't normally attack anything, much less kill two trained soldiers." Gaius huffed in frustration. "I do wish the men hadn't already been buried so that I might examine their wounds."
"You aren't thinking of digging them up again, are you?" Merlin asked, faintly disgusted.
Gaius hesitated, then shook his head. "I highly doubt Uther would permit it."
"Thank God for that. Not that I wouldn't have done it if you'd asked," Merlin added quickly. "But... didn't the woman Arthur rescued--"
"Maitane. Her name's Maitane."
"Didn't Maitane say that the monster had killed her men?"
"She did. Which is why the entire matter is so very puzzling."
* * *
Gaius entered his rooms later that day only to see himself standing at his desk. Quickly, he shut the door.
"Working on your glamours, I see."
The other Gaius smiled in way that was so open and joyful that Gaius wondered when the last time was that such an expression had crossed his own face, if it ever had.
Merlin murmured a spell and his face and form reverted to normal. "Sorry," he said, completely unapologetic. "I needed hairs and yours were most readily available.
Gaius dismissed the apology with a wave of his hand. "Shouldn't you be with Arthur now instead of pretending to be me?"
"Arthur currently does not require my services." At Gaius' look, Merlin added, "Since Maitane's arrival, all he wishes to do is be with her and when he's not, he writes her poetry. Love poetry. Bad love poetry, actually."
"Ah, young love."
"I... something's not right," Merlin said, shaking his head. "Arthur's not training; he's not patrolling with his knights. It's been days since he's called me an idiot."
"You suspect magic is involved?"
"I know of nothing else strong enough to cause Arthur to shirk his duties to Camelot - not even love."
Gaius studied him. "And you're sure you're not just feeling... neglected?"
"What? No! Not at all."
"Then, if you suspect that there is magic at work, I will research the subject. And, speaking of research, did you find something that might be of use if more giant beetles are discovered?"
Merlin nodded. "Yes, but perhaps the spell I found worked too well. When I tried the spell, it shrank the object down to nothingness. I couldn't find a trace of it no matter how hard I looked."
"Hmm. While perfectly fine for fighting monstrous beetles, it won't be particularly useful if we wish to simply make something smaller," Gaius commented. "In the meantime, you might want to talk to Arthur and see if Maitane has given him any potions or such. Though there have always been rumors of love potions, I've never seen anything that proves their existence."
"I'll ask him." Merlin headed for the door.
"Good." Gaius looked about, then looked again. "Merlin, where's my chair?"
"Er... didn't I tell you what I shrank?"
"No, you did not."
"Um...sorry?"
Gaius could only shake his head as Merlin hurried out and wonder what he was going to do with that boy.
* * *
"How does this sound - Your lips are as red as blood splattered on new-fallen snow."
Merlin held back a wince at Arthur's poetry. "That's... that's great."
Arthur smiled at him and returned to contemplating the parchment before him. Merlin hoped that this parchment would be spared the sufferings of its brethren, as many of its kin were crumpled into balls and scattered about the room. Merlin had already picked up at least twenty of the same.
"When I was a lad," Merlin ventured, "many of the girls in the village, when they were interested in someone, would fetch him some fresh water from a nearby spring. Has Maitane fetched you anything to drink, Sire?"
"No. What rhymes with horde?"
"Bored?"
Arthur thought for a moment, then shook his head. "That won't do. Think of something else."
"Ford?"
"That one's a possibility." Arthur wrote it down, then wrote some more.
"The older ladies would ply the men with mead or wine. Surely Maitane has served you something similar."
"No, she hasn't." Arthur glanced up. "If you're looking for something to do, you can clean my formal cloak."
"Certainly." Merlin thought for a moment. "Is there a celebration or special occasion that I'm unaware of?"
"There is. Tonight I'm asking Maitane to be my wife."
"Your w-wife?" Merlin spluttered. "You're planning to marry her?"
"That's usually what's involved, yes."
"But you hardly know her!"
"Merlin! You forget your place."
Merlin gave Arthur a hasty bow. "Forgive me, Sire. My only excuse is my concern for you."
"Very well," Arthur nodded. "But have no fear. My love is as true and shining as... as this medallion I wear."
"Medallion?" Merlin stepped forward. "I don't remember seeing that before."
"Maitane gave it to me as a reward for saving her life. She placed it around my neck herself."
The medallion had to be part of the spell! No other explanation for Arthur's strange obsession with this woman was possible. Merlin noticed the etchings on the medallion, but couldn't make them out clearly. It would be best if he could take it to Gaius to study.
"Perhaps, seeing as this is a special occasion, you might like for me to take the medallion and polish it."
"That I cannot allow," Arthur stated. "I vowed to her that I would never take it off and I mean to keep my word."
"But-"
"No, Merlin. Now finish your cleaning and go. And don't forget my cloak."
As Merlin picked up the room, he thought furiously for some excuse to take the medallion, but none came to him. He might be able to take it while Arthur slept, but he was just as likely to end up with a sword through his belly if he woke Arthur by accident.
"Are you done yet?" Arthur asked.
"Yes, Sire." He snatched up Arthur's formal cloak to clean. "Is there anything else you need before I leave?"
"Yes," Arthur stood up holding the piece of parchment he'd been working on. "How does this part sound?
When you are near my heart does pound
As if I faced a monstrous horde.
But firmly I must stand my ground
And reaching down, I grip my sword.
"Um..." Desperately, Merlin attempted to keep a straight face. "I'm sure she'll love it."
* * *
"I found it," Gaius told Merlin. He pointed to an illustration in his book. "Arthur's medallion must be the Amulet of Aphrodite. It says here as long as the person wears it, they will be ensnared by love to the one who enchanted them."
"Then we have to get it off Arthur."
"And how do you suppose to do that? Knock him unconscious? You said yourself that he vowed to Maitane that he will always wear it. As long as he is bewitched by her, no one will be able to convince him to part with it."
Merlin thought for a moment, then a smile lit up his face. "I think I have an idea."
"What is it?" Gaius asked as Merlin rushed to the door.
"It might be better if I don't tell you." Merlin told him before shutting the door behind him.
* * *
"Here it is," Gwen said, as she handed an object to Merlin in the corridor outside of the guest bedchambers. "Please hurry. I need to get back to Morgana."
"It must be difficult for her, seeing Arthur pay so much attention to another."
Gwen nodded. "It is. She's so upset that she's convinced herself that it's not love that has Arthur so obsessed by Maitane, but by something else. "
"She could be right," Merlin said, feeling defensive. "It did happen fairly quickly."
"That's how love is some times. Other times, love comes slower. You are friends then one day discover that your friend is the one you've been searching for all of your life." Gwen looked up at Merlin and smiled.
"Er... right," Merlin said. He made a show of examining the hairbrush that Gwen had handed him. "This looks completely different from the silver brush that Arthur plans to give Maitane as a gift. He'll be pleased to know that his gift is unique." He grinned at Gwen. "Thank you for helping me."
Gwen's smile had faltered in the meanwhile, but she dredged up a smaller version of it. "I'm always willing to help a friend."
After she walked back into Maitane's bedchamber to return the hairbrush and Merlin was left alone, he opened his hand to examine the hairs he'd snatched from the brush.
* * *
Arthur opened the door to his rooms to see Maitane standing there.
"May I come in?" she asked.
Tongue-tied at how beautiful she looked with her raven-coloured hair and her fair skin set off by the dark blue of her gown, Arthur merely nodded and motioned her inside.
"I wish to ask a favour of you," Maitane said as Arthur shut the door behind her.
"Anything. You need only say it and it is as good as done."
"Your medallion - the one I gave to you, the one you are currently wearing - I wish for you to return it to me."
"My medallion?" Arthur repeated, closing his hand about it protectively. "You wish for it back? Have I displeased you? Tell me what I did and I will fall to my knees to beg your forgiveness."
"No!" Maitane shrieked. "I... it's the chain. One of the links is weak and I would replace it for you."
Arthur smiled and moved closer to her. "But you made me vow that I would never remove it. Surely a worrisome link is not nearly important enough for me to break my promise."
Maitane retreated a step, uneasy at Arthur's closeness. "It is. I wouldn't wish for the chain to break and for it to be lost."
"Forgive me, but that's still not incentive enough to be forsworn" Arthur said, moving even closer. "But I will gladly give it to you in exchange for something else that I might treasure even more dearly."
"And that is?"
Arthur's voice grew low and intimate. "A kiss."
"What?" Maitane scrambled back. "You want a kiss?"
Arthur nodded and closed the distance between them a second time. "Yes, my love. A knight's word for a kiss - it seems a fair bargain."
"And that's the only way that I might have the medallion from you?"
"Yes. For a kiss, I will break my vow. For your love, there is no measure of what I would do. I would face the fiercest beast, fight the mightiest foe. For you, I would even abandon my throne and leave Camelot forever."
"You would leave Camelot?" Maitane asked, looking shocked. She hesitated for a moment as she absorbed that information, took a deep breath, and then nodded. "A kiss it will be, then."
She moved towards him and Arthur smiled inwardly at what a shy maiden she was. Maitane surprised him, though, when she grasped him by the neck and pulled him to her so that their lips might meet.
A few seconds later, Arthur stared dumbfounded at the closing door, the chain gone from his neck. He touched his lips in amazement with a finger and doubted that his world would ever be the same.
* * *
Merlin slammed the door behind him and quickly spoke the counter-spell.
What had he done? Well, he'd kissed Arthur, that's what he'd done, but never before had he felt a kiss such as that. It should have been as simple as two pairs of lips pressing against each other for the barest amount of time.
Instead, it had changed his world. Taken everything he thought he knew, everything he thought he was, and tumbled it about until Merlin didn't know what was real or true anymore. All that he knew was that when Arthur's lips had touched his, it had felt more right than anything else in the entire world.
The dragon had said that he and Arthur were two sides of a coin. Merlin hadn't realised the full implication - that he and Arthur were destined to be as one.
He was still catching his breath when Gaius entered. He looked at Merlin with a puzzled expression, but said nothing until Merlin handed the medallion to him.
"This is what caused the enchantment?" Gaius asked.
Merlin nodded. "It is."
Do I want to know how you came to possess it?"
"No, you definitely do not."
"Very well, but I do have one minor comment to make."
"And that is?" Merlin asked, arching an eyebrow.
Gaius smiled. "That particular shade of blue looks quite fetching on you. You should have the seamstresses make all your dresses in that same shade."
Letting out a low curse, Merlin hurried to his room to change clothes while Gaius chuckled quietly behind him.
* * *
As he stood in the Great Hall, Merlin felt better than he had in days. While helping Arthur dress, there were clear signs that his senses had returned. Arthur's eyes had glanced over the parchment he'd been working on before and he crumpled it into a ball and thrown it down.
"This is rubbish," Arthur had said.
"You mean her lips aren't as red as blood splattered on snow?" Merlin had asked.
Arthur had simply glared at him in response before ordering him to hurry things up.
Although Merlin was too far away to hear what Arthur and Maitane were discussing, Arthur looked decidedly uncomfortable every time Maitane placed her hand on his arm or leaned in close. Whatever they were talking about, the conversation was becoming decidedly heated.
"What?" Maitane shouted, causing everyone else to fall silent and look at her.
"I apologise, my lady, but my first duty will always be to Camelot."
"This is impossible. You shouldn't..." Her voice trailed off and her eyes narrowed. "Where is the medallion that I gave you? You swore that you would never take it off!"
Arthur blinked in confusion. "You took it from me."
"I did no such thing! I would never have you remove it."
"You did! Earlier, you came to my room and-"
"That wasn't me!"
"It wasn't?" Arthur stared at her for a moment before his puzzled expression cleared to be replaced by that of enlightenment. "No, it wasn't you, was it? It couldn't have been."
Uther chose that moment to step forward. "Arthur, what is going on here?"
"Nothing. Nothing at all." Arthur took a step back from Maitane. "However, I do believe milady requires an escort to return her to her home tomorrow."
"See to it, then," Uther commanded.
"You think to be rid of me so easily," Maitane shrieked. "See if you can forget me once Camelot lies in ruins." From the pouch about her waist, she withdrew a small vial and downed the contents.
At first nothing seemed to occur then, before their very eyes, Maitane began to grow and grow.
"Seize her," Uther ordered.
At his command several soldiers hurried forward, but Maitane was so large by then that she picked up a table and tossed it at them, sending them sprawling. Guests and servants alike were screaming and scurrying for safety.
Maitane was as high as the ceiling and Merlin had thought that would contain her, but she simply placed her hands upon it and shoved upward. Stones the size of chairs rained down and the castle shook.
"Go," Arthur yelled to his father as he drew his sword.
Uther hesitated, then nodded. "I will gather the men outside. We will make a stand there," he said before hurrying out.
The hall was soon empty of all but Maitane, who was growing still larger, Arthur, who faced her with his sword, and Merlin, who crouched behind a stone that had minutes before been part of the ceiling above his head.
"You think you can harm me?" Maitane roared, as Arthur approached her, sword at ready. "I will crush you like an insect."
Arthur dove for the ground as a stone Maitane tossed at him sailed past to crash into the wall.
Merlin concentrated his powers as he stared at Maitane and began the words of the spell he'd learned to shrink Gaius' chair.
"I will not let you destroy Camelot," Arthur yelled, rising to his feet.
Maitane laughed as she kicked her feet at Arthur. "And you think you and your puny sword will stop me?"
Arthur swung his sword and this time connected with her leg. Maitane let out a scream that caused the walls to shake as blood poured from the wound. Furious, her next kick glanced off of Arthur with power enough to send him thudding into a wall unconscious.
Fearing that Maitane might finish Arthur off, Merlin rose from his hiding place to draw her attention away. His voice rose as he continued reciting the spell.
"You!" she shouted upon spying him. "It was you who took the medallion from Arthur. It was you that ruined all my plans!"
Merlin focused all his energy on the spell.
"Were you jealous?" she sneered. "It is not me you need to be jealous of. Camelot will always come first in Arthur's heart." She bent to pluck up a stone, then stopped, unable to lift it. It was only then that she looked about and saw that she was rapidly shrinking.
"What have you done?" she cried, growing smaller, then smaller still, shrinking past her normal human size.
Merlin shook his head. "I'm sorry."
"What's happening to me? Help me!" Maitane screamed as she dwindled down, becoming tinier and tinier.
Merlin could only look helplessly on until there was nothing left to look at.
* * *
"Once again you saved Camelot, Sire. You should be rejoicing or at least acting pleased."
Arthur turned away from the window where he'd been staring out at the darkness. "And, once again, I have no idea how it was done. But I should be happy at Camelot's salvation, shouldn't I?"
"Is there something wrong?" Merlin asked.
Arthur touched a finger to his own lips. "We shared a kiss."
"What? No!" Merlin stepped back. "I mean--"
"I know it wasn't Maitane," Arthur said. "No need to get upset about it. But someone came to my rooms and relieved me of the medallion that enchanted me so. It was that person whom I kissed."
"Do you have any idea who it might have been?"
"No, and better that I do not for magic was at play and I would not wish to see that person executed."
"Oh," Merlin said, trying hard not to feel disappointed that Arthur didn't know that it had been him.
Arthur took a deep breath and closed his eyes momentarily before opening them again to stare at Merlin. "It was but a single kiss, but that kiss will haunt me with its perfection. Never before had I felt so complete, as though my soul had been seeking its match for eternity and at last had found it."
"Two halves of a whole," Merlin murmured, unable to tear his eyes away from Arthur.
"Exactly!" Arthur's gaze intensified. "You know it, then? You've felt that feeling?"
Merlin nodded. "Once upon a time."
The End
Author: mahaliem
Fandom: Merlin
Pairing: Arthur/Merlin
Rating: PG-13
Wordcount: ~4,000 words
Summary: Arthur rescues a mysterious woman, but now who will rescue Arthur? Why, Merlin, of course! - Think of this story as an episode of Merlin, albeit a very slashy episode.
Notes: Thank you so much to my betas dancinbutterfly and justabi. Their help was more valuable than I can say. Any remaining mistakes are mine and mine alone.
The Amulet of Aphrodite
It had been a fine day for riding, but Arthur was looking forward to returning to Camelot. He smiled as he thought of how Merlin would question him about his day as he helped Arthur shed his armour and stained clothing. Merlin was an idiot, but he'd proved himself loyal.
A scream rent the air. Arthur whirled his horse about, and raced in the direction from whence the scream had come. Bursting through the trees, he saw a camp in tatters. Horses were rearing, the whites of their eyes visible in their panic. Two men, their bodies and clothing slashed, lay unmoving. Of greater concern, a woman was attempting to fend off a creature of monstrous origins. It might have been a beetle, but for its size, which was more like that of a hound.
Drawing his sword, Arthur charged the beast, which retreated at the approach of his horse. He slid from his mount, situating himself between the creature and the prey it sought. Though it snapped its mandibles furiously at him, he once more engaged it, striking it hard, echoes of which ran up his shoulders. When it skittered forward, he side-stepped it and with a fateful blow struck its head from its body.
Chest heaving with exhaustion, he paid little attention to the woman as she thanked him for his heroic deed. Much needed to be done. The dead men needed burial and an alert should be sounded so that if more creatures such as the one he'd slain appeared, Camelot would be ready.
"Sire," the woman said, this time laying a hand on his chest and commanding his attention. "Please allow me to reward such bravery."
"It was nothing." Arthur waved her gratitude aside. "I was merely doing my duty to Camelot."
"I must insist," she continued. From a pouch at her waist, she withdrew a strangely etched medallion. "You saved my life and I would be remiss not to thank you properly."
Sighing, Arthur nodded and lowered his head so that she might place the medallion around his neck. The chain felt hot, almost as if it were burning the skin of his nape as she draped it on him. He flinched and was about to protest when abruptly it cooled.
As he straightened up, he saw her smile at him and he blinked in wonderment. How had he not noticed before how very beautiful she was?
* * *
"What's going on?" Merlin asked as he joined Gaius and Gwen near the entrance to the courtyard.
"It seems that Arthur fought a creature in the woods." Gauis nodded toward the woman accompanying Arthur toward the entrance to Camelot. "He saved a damsel in distress in the process."
"Doesn't he do that every week?" Merlin said grinning.
Gwen laughed. Gaius smiled back at Merlin and then left to return to his duties as Court Physician.
Merlin watched Arthur approach. He seemed unusually solicitous of the woman with him. As he escorted her, her hand on his extended arm, Arthur stared at her intently.
"What did you fight this time, Sire?" Merlin asked as Arthur came near.
Instead of answering, Arthur acted as though he hadn't even heard him. As though he didn't even see him, either, which was a possibility as his gaze never left the woman at his side, passing by Merlin without so much as a nod of acknowledgment.
"Morgana is not going to be pleased," Gwen murmured to Merlin before following the couple inside.
Merlin stayed where he was, still astonished at having been so thoroughly ignored. What was going on and who was this woman that commanded Arthur's attention so completely? It wasn't like Arthur at all and Merlin grew determined to discover the truth of the matter.
* * *
"I don't understand this," Gaius said as he bent in the grass to examine the detached head of the creature.
Merlin peeked over Gaius' shoulder to see what was intriguing Gaius. "What is it?"
"It appears to be a common sun beetle, albeit one of enormous proportions."
"Do you think that..." Merlin paused to be sure no one was nearby and could overhear. "That it was enlarged by magic?"
Gaius nodded. "Which leads us to more questions, ones that I can't possibly answer."
"Such as who created such a monster?"
"Certainly, but of more immediate importance is that the sun beetle is a plant eater. It wouldn't normally attack anything, much less kill two trained soldiers." Gaius huffed in frustration. "I do wish the men hadn't already been buried so that I might examine their wounds."
"You aren't thinking of digging them up again, are you?" Merlin asked, faintly disgusted.
Gaius hesitated, then shook his head. "I highly doubt Uther would permit it."
"Thank God for that. Not that I wouldn't have done it if you'd asked," Merlin added quickly. "But... didn't the woman Arthur rescued--"
"Maitane. Her name's Maitane."
"Didn't Maitane say that the monster had killed her men?"
"She did. Which is why the entire matter is so very puzzling."
* * *
Gaius entered his rooms later that day only to see himself standing at his desk. Quickly, he shut the door.
"Working on your glamours, I see."
The other Gaius smiled in way that was so open and joyful that Gaius wondered when the last time was that such an expression had crossed his own face, if it ever had.
Merlin murmured a spell and his face and form reverted to normal. "Sorry," he said, completely unapologetic. "I needed hairs and yours were most readily available.
Gaius dismissed the apology with a wave of his hand. "Shouldn't you be with Arthur now instead of pretending to be me?"
"Arthur currently does not require my services." At Gaius' look, Merlin added, "Since Maitane's arrival, all he wishes to do is be with her and when he's not, he writes her poetry. Love poetry. Bad love poetry, actually."
"Ah, young love."
"I... something's not right," Merlin said, shaking his head. "Arthur's not training; he's not patrolling with his knights. It's been days since he's called me an idiot."
"You suspect magic is involved?"
"I know of nothing else strong enough to cause Arthur to shirk his duties to Camelot - not even love."
Gaius studied him. "And you're sure you're not just feeling... neglected?"
"What? No! Not at all."
"Then, if you suspect that there is magic at work, I will research the subject. And, speaking of research, did you find something that might be of use if more giant beetles are discovered?"
Merlin nodded. "Yes, but perhaps the spell I found worked too well. When I tried the spell, it shrank the object down to nothingness. I couldn't find a trace of it no matter how hard I looked."
"Hmm. While perfectly fine for fighting monstrous beetles, it won't be particularly useful if we wish to simply make something smaller," Gaius commented. "In the meantime, you might want to talk to Arthur and see if Maitane has given him any potions or such. Though there have always been rumors of love potions, I've never seen anything that proves their existence."
"I'll ask him." Merlin headed for the door.
"Good." Gaius looked about, then looked again. "Merlin, where's my chair?"
"Er... didn't I tell you what I shrank?"
"No, you did not."
"Um...sorry?"
Gaius could only shake his head as Merlin hurried out and wonder what he was going to do with that boy.
* * *
"How does this sound - Your lips are as red as blood splattered on new-fallen snow."
Merlin held back a wince at Arthur's poetry. "That's... that's great."
Arthur smiled at him and returned to contemplating the parchment before him. Merlin hoped that this parchment would be spared the sufferings of its brethren, as many of its kin were crumpled into balls and scattered about the room. Merlin had already picked up at least twenty of the same.
"When I was a lad," Merlin ventured, "many of the girls in the village, when they were interested in someone, would fetch him some fresh water from a nearby spring. Has Maitane fetched you anything to drink, Sire?"
"No. What rhymes with horde?"
"Bored?"
Arthur thought for a moment, then shook his head. "That won't do. Think of something else."
"Ford?"
"That one's a possibility." Arthur wrote it down, then wrote some more.
"The older ladies would ply the men with mead or wine. Surely Maitane has served you something similar."
"No, she hasn't." Arthur glanced up. "If you're looking for something to do, you can clean my formal cloak."
"Certainly." Merlin thought for a moment. "Is there a celebration or special occasion that I'm unaware of?"
"There is. Tonight I'm asking Maitane to be my wife."
"Your w-wife?" Merlin spluttered. "You're planning to marry her?"
"That's usually what's involved, yes."
"But you hardly know her!"
"Merlin! You forget your place."
Merlin gave Arthur a hasty bow. "Forgive me, Sire. My only excuse is my concern for you."
"Very well," Arthur nodded. "But have no fear. My love is as true and shining as... as this medallion I wear."
"Medallion?" Merlin stepped forward. "I don't remember seeing that before."
"Maitane gave it to me as a reward for saving her life. She placed it around my neck herself."
The medallion had to be part of the spell! No other explanation for Arthur's strange obsession with this woman was possible. Merlin noticed the etchings on the medallion, but couldn't make them out clearly. It would be best if he could take it to Gaius to study.
"Perhaps, seeing as this is a special occasion, you might like for me to take the medallion and polish it."
"That I cannot allow," Arthur stated. "I vowed to her that I would never take it off and I mean to keep my word."
"But-"
"No, Merlin. Now finish your cleaning and go. And don't forget my cloak."
As Merlin picked up the room, he thought furiously for some excuse to take the medallion, but none came to him. He might be able to take it while Arthur slept, but he was just as likely to end up with a sword through his belly if he woke Arthur by accident.
"Are you done yet?" Arthur asked.
"Yes, Sire." He snatched up Arthur's formal cloak to clean. "Is there anything else you need before I leave?"
"Yes," Arthur stood up holding the piece of parchment he'd been working on. "How does this part sound?
When you are near my heart does pound
As if I faced a monstrous horde.
But firmly I must stand my ground
And reaching down, I grip my sword.
"Um..." Desperately, Merlin attempted to keep a straight face. "I'm sure she'll love it."
* * *
"I found it," Gaius told Merlin. He pointed to an illustration in his book. "Arthur's medallion must be the Amulet of Aphrodite. It says here as long as the person wears it, they will be ensnared by love to the one who enchanted them."
"Then we have to get it off Arthur."
"And how do you suppose to do that? Knock him unconscious? You said yourself that he vowed to Maitane that he will always wear it. As long as he is bewitched by her, no one will be able to convince him to part with it."
Merlin thought for a moment, then a smile lit up his face. "I think I have an idea."
"What is it?" Gaius asked as Merlin rushed to the door.
"It might be better if I don't tell you." Merlin told him before shutting the door behind him.
* * *
"Here it is," Gwen said, as she handed an object to Merlin in the corridor outside of the guest bedchambers. "Please hurry. I need to get back to Morgana."
"It must be difficult for her, seeing Arthur pay so much attention to another."
Gwen nodded. "It is. She's so upset that she's convinced herself that it's not love that has Arthur so obsessed by Maitane, but by something else. "
"She could be right," Merlin said, feeling defensive. "It did happen fairly quickly."
"That's how love is some times. Other times, love comes slower. You are friends then one day discover that your friend is the one you've been searching for all of your life." Gwen looked up at Merlin and smiled.
"Er... right," Merlin said. He made a show of examining the hairbrush that Gwen had handed him. "This looks completely different from the silver brush that Arthur plans to give Maitane as a gift. He'll be pleased to know that his gift is unique." He grinned at Gwen. "Thank you for helping me."
Gwen's smile had faltered in the meanwhile, but she dredged up a smaller version of it. "I'm always willing to help a friend."
After she walked back into Maitane's bedchamber to return the hairbrush and Merlin was left alone, he opened his hand to examine the hairs he'd snatched from the brush.
* * *
Arthur opened the door to his rooms to see Maitane standing there.
"May I come in?" she asked.
Tongue-tied at how beautiful she looked with her raven-coloured hair and her fair skin set off by the dark blue of her gown, Arthur merely nodded and motioned her inside.
"I wish to ask a favour of you," Maitane said as Arthur shut the door behind her.
"Anything. You need only say it and it is as good as done."
"Your medallion - the one I gave to you, the one you are currently wearing - I wish for you to return it to me."
"My medallion?" Arthur repeated, closing his hand about it protectively. "You wish for it back? Have I displeased you? Tell me what I did and I will fall to my knees to beg your forgiveness."
"No!" Maitane shrieked. "I... it's the chain. One of the links is weak and I would replace it for you."
Arthur smiled and moved closer to her. "But you made me vow that I would never remove it. Surely a worrisome link is not nearly important enough for me to break my promise."
Maitane retreated a step, uneasy at Arthur's closeness. "It is. I wouldn't wish for the chain to break and for it to be lost."
"Forgive me, but that's still not incentive enough to be forsworn" Arthur said, moving even closer. "But I will gladly give it to you in exchange for something else that I might treasure even more dearly."
"And that is?"
Arthur's voice grew low and intimate. "A kiss."
"What?" Maitane scrambled back. "You want a kiss?"
Arthur nodded and closed the distance between them a second time. "Yes, my love. A knight's word for a kiss - it seems a fair bargain."
"And that's the only way that I might have the medallion from you?"
"Yes. For a kiss, I will break my vow. For your love, there is no measure of what I would do. I would face the fiercest beast, fight the mightiest foe. For you, I would even abandon my throne and leave Camelot forever."
"You would leave Camelot?" Maitane asked, looking shocked. She hesitated for a moment as she absorbed that information, took a deep breath, and then nodded. "A kiss it will be, then."
She moved towards him and Arthur smiled inwardly at what a shy maiden she was. Maitane surprised him, though, when she grasped him by the neck and pulled him to her so that their lips might meet.
A few seconds later, Arthur stared dumbfounded at the closing door, the chain gone from his neck. He touched his lips in amazement with a finger and doubted that his world would ever be the same.
* * *
Merlin slammed the door behind him and quickly spoke the counter-spell.
What had he done? Well, he'd kissed Arthur, that's what he'd done, but never before had he felt a kiss such as that. It should have been as simple as two pairs of lips pressing against each other for the barest amount of time.
Instead, it had changed his world. Taken everything he thought he knew, everything he thought he was, and tumbled it about until Merlin didn't know what was real or true anymore. All that he knew was that when Arthur's lips had touched his, it had felt more right than anything else in the entire world.
The dragon had said that he and Arthur were two sides of a coin. Merlin hadn't realised the full implication - that he and Arthur were destined to be as one.
He was still catching his breath when Gaius entered. He looked at Merlin with a puzzled expression, but said nothing until Merlin handed the medallion to him.
"This is what caused the enchantment?" Gaius asked.
Merlin nodded. "It is."
Do I want to know how you came to possess it?"
"No, you definitely do not."
"Very well, but I do have one minor comment to make."
"And that is?" Merlin asked, arching an eyebrow.
Gaius smiled. "That particular shade of blue looks quite fetching on you. You should have the seamstresses make all your dresses in that same shade."
Letting out a low curse, Merlin hurried to his room to change clothes while Gaius chuckled quietly behind him.
* * *
As he stood in the Great Hall, Merlin felt better than he had in days. While helping Arthur dress, there were clear signs that his senses had returned. Arthur's eyes had glanced over the parchment he'd been working on before and he crumpled it into a ball and thrown it down.
"This is rubbish," Arthur had said.
"You mean her lips aren't as red as blood splattered on snow?" Merlin had asked.
Arthur had simply glared at him in response before ordering him to hurry things up.
Although Merlin was too far away to hear what Arthur and Maitane were discussing, Arthur looked decidedly uncomfortable every time Maitane placed her hand on his arm or leaned in close. Whatever they were talking about, the conversation was becoming decidedly heated.
"What?" Maitane shouted, causing everyone else to fall silent and look at her.
"I apologise, my lady, but my first duty will always be to Camelot."
"This is impossible. You shouldn't..." Her voice trailed off and her eyes narrowed. "Where is the medallion that I gave you? You swore that you would never take it off!"
Arthur blinked in confusion. "You took it from me."
"I did no such thing! I would never have you remove it."
"You did! Earlier, you came to my room and-"
"That wasn't me!"
"It wasn't?" Arthur stared at her for a moment before his puzzled expression cleared to be replaced by that of enlightenment. "No, it wasn't you, was it? It couldn't have been."
Uther chose that moment to step forward. "Arthur, what is going on here?"
"Nothing. Nothing at all." Arthur took a step back from Maitane. "However, I do believe milady requires an escort to return her to her home tomorrow."
"See to it, then," Uther commanded.
"You think to be rid of me so easily," Maitane shrieked. "See if you can forget me once Camelot lies in ruins." From the pouch about her waist, she withdrew a small vial and downed the contents.
At first nothing seemed to occur then, before their very eyes, Maitane began to grow and grow.
"Seize her," Uther ordered.
At his command several soldiers hurried forward, but Maitane was so large by then that she picked up a table and tossed it at them, sending them sprawling. Guests and servants alike were screaming and scurrying for safety.
Maitane was as high as the ceiling and Merlin had thought that would contain her, but she simply placed her hands upon it and shoved upward. Stones the size of chairs rained down and the castle shook.
"Go," Arthur yelled to his father as he drew his sword.
Uther hesitated, then nodded. "I will gather the men outside. We will make a stand there," he said before hurrying out.
The hall was soon empty of all but Maitane, who was growing still larger, Arthur, who faced her with his sword, and Merlin, who crouched behind a stone that had minutes before been part of the ceiling above his head.
"You think you can harm me?" Maitane roared, as Arthur approached her, sword at ready. "I will crush you like an insect."
Arthur dove for the ground as a stone Maitane tossed at him sailed past to crash into the wall.
Merlin concentrated his powers as he stared at Maitane and began the words of the spell he'd learned to shrink Gaius' chair.
"I will not let you destroy Camelot," Arthur yelled, rising to his feet.
Maitane laughed as she kicked her feet at Arthur. "And you think you and your puny sword will stop me?"
Arthur swung his sword and this time connected with her leg. Maitane let out a scream that caused the walls to shake as blood poured from the wound. Furious, her next kick glanced off of Arthur with power enough to send him thudding into a wall unconscious.
Fearing that Maitane might finish Arthur off, Merlin rose from his hiding place to draw her attention away. His voice rose as he continued reciting the spell.
"You!" she shouted upon spying him. "It was you who took the medallion from Arthur. It was you that ruined all my plans!"
Merlin focused all his energy on the spell.
"Were you jealous?" she sneered. "It is not me you need to be jealous of. Camelot will always come first in Arthur's heart." She bent to pluck up a stone, then stopped, unable to lift it. It was only then that she looked about and saw that she was rapidly shrinking.
"What have you done?" she cried, growing smaller, then smaller still, shrinking past her normal human size.
Merlin shook his head. "I'm sorry."
"What's happening to me? Help me!" Maitane screamed as she dwindled down, becoming tinier and tinier.
Merlin could only look helplessly on until there was nothing left to look at.
* * *
"Once again you saved Camelot, Sire. You should be rejoicing or at least acting pleased."
Arthur turned away from the window where he'd been staring out at the darkness. "And, once again, I have no idea how it was done. But I should be happy at Camelot's salvation, shouldn't I?"
"Is there something wrong?" Merlin asked.
Arthur touched a finger to his own lips. "We shared a kiss."
"What? No!" Merlin stepped back. "I mean--"
"I know it wasn't Maitane," Arthur said. "No need to get upset about it. But someone came to my rooms and relieved me of the medallion that enchanted me so. It was that person whom I kissed."
"Do you have any idea who it might have been?"
"No, and better that I do not for magic was at play and I would not wish to see that person executed."
"Oh," Merlin said, trying hard not to feel disappointed that Arthur didn't know that it had been him.
Arthur took a deep breath and closed his eyes momentarily before opening them again to stare at Merlin. "It was but a single kiss, but that kiss will haunt me with its perfection. Never before had I felt so complete, as though my soul had been seeking its match for eternity and at last had found it."
"Two halves of a whole," Merlin murmured, unable to tear his eyes away from Arthur.
"Exactly!" Arthur's gaze intensified. "You know it, then? You've felt that feeling?"
Merlin nodded. "Once upon a time."
The End