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The Magic of Love	By : kdarkbutterfly Category: M through R > Merlin (BBC) > Merlin (BBC) Views: 4251 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin or any characters on the show that is owned by the BBC and I do not make any money/profit on this

Chapter List
- 1-The Magic of Love
- 2-Ch. 2
- 3-Ch. 3
- 4-Ch. 4
- 5-Ch. 5
- 6-Ch. 6
- 7-Ch. 7
- 8-Ch. 8
- 9-ch. 9
- 3
- 4
- 5
**Merlin**
It felt good walking with no real sense of hurry as nobody expects his arrival, so he ambles along towards Camelot. He thinks of ways on how to best protect Arthur from afar as he’s sure that he’s not allowed to even show himself to anyone. He figures if he can get a house in the lower part of town, he can set up some kind of healing business to generate income while he can watch Arthur and Camelot.
He arrived just as the sun was peeking over the earth and it wasn’t until mid-day when he enters the Valley of the Fallen Kings that he stumbles upon a person’s camp. He really wasn’t paying attention until the smell of cooked meat reaches his nose and the sudden movement of someone holding a sword at his chest.
“Oh,” Merlin startles out of his deep thoughts and swallows nervously, “Ah, I’m sorry.”
“Emrys?” The young man holding the sword looks shocked and the sword dips down. Merlin jerks in reaction to the name and takes a closer look at the man. He’s tall with short curly hair, but it was the eyes that seemed very familiar.
“Mordred?” Merlin finally recognizes him as he remembers the little druid boy they had rescued from so long ago. Now he’s no longer little as he’s grown up into a handsome young man.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” Mordred says as he sheathes his sword, “I’d expected you to already be in Camelot by now.”
“Why? What’s happened?” Merlin asks, concerned about Arthur and his friends, fearing the worse.
“You mean you don’t know?” Mordred looks surprised, “Where have you been?”
“Ah, in a secluded place,” Merlin hedges, not wanting to let Mordred know about his new home.
“Must’ve been someplace filled with magic,” Mordred comments as he looks at Merlin’s eyes closer.
“What? Why would you say that?” Merlin asks, a little weirded out by the looks Mordred is giving him.
“Your eyes,” Mordred replies in a slightly awed voice, “they’re streaked with gold.”
“Oh no,” Merlin groans, trusting Mordred to not lie about this, but really hopes they’re not as obvious as his eyes will give away the fact that he’s filled with magic.
“Come on,” Mordred sheathes his sword, “We can talk on the way to Camelot.”
“But I can’t go,” Merlin protests as he knows he’ll have to find a way to hid his eyes. Maybe if he covers them and pretends he’s blind….
“You must,” Mordred insists as he breaks down his little camp, “It’ll be fine, more than fine really. Magic is back again in Camelot.”
“Wait, what?” Merlin is poleaxed by that statement.
~@~
While Merlin and Mordred walk towards Camelot, Mordred tells him about Uther’s death and Arthur’s repeal of the magic ban. He recounts Arthur’s passionate speech about why magic shouldn’t be outlawed, using Uther’s death as an example of how Camelot needs to fight fire with fire as well as to allow people to use magic for the greater good. Mordred also goes into about how Arthur negotiated a treaty with the druids, giving the druids an honored position of being in charge of how magic will be taught as well as help in devising a tournament for the position of Court Sorcerer.
Merlin was astounded by all the changes that happened while he was away and chuckles when he hears about the tournament, saying that it sounds like something Arthur would do. Mordred then insists that Merlin enter the tournament, which starts tomorrow. Merlin almost declined, but then Mordred mentioned that Arthur had asked the druids to send a special invitation for Merlin to come participate in the tournament. Merlin accedes though on the condition that Arthur shouldn’t know it’s him until later. He’s still not sure about Arthur’s feelings towards him and feels like he wants to prove to Arthur that he’s competent for the position before he reveals himself. Grinning, Mordred agrees and promises to help Merlin.
They make camp in the forest that surrounds Camelot as Merlin doesn’t want anyone to recognize him before the tournament. Merlin likes Mordred and as they settle down with dinner, a rabbit caught by Merlin along with some herbs that ‘mysteriously’ were found, it was then that Merlin opens up to Mordred, explaining his actions towards him as he tells him about the prophecy and Mordred’s role in it.
“That’s…” Mordred watches the fire as Merlin finished telling him about how it will be Mordred that kills Arthur, “I can’t believe it, but I’ll take your word on it. I don’t have anything against Arthur, he brought back magic and from what I hear, he’s becoming a good and just king.”
“I didn’t want to believe it at first,” Merlin admits, “But I’d do anything to keep Arthur safe, which is why I was so horrible to you that second time.”
“I felt betrayed by you,” Mordred looks up at Merlin, “But now, I can understand why you did it. I wouldn’t know what lengths I would go in order to keep the one I love safe.”
Merlin blushes, wondering if he’s been that obvious if Mordred figured it out. He knew Gwen had seen it and brought it up with Merlin, who confessed his feelings for Arthur to her, but he was sure that no one else found out.
“Yes, well,” Merlin bites his lip, uncomfortable as he’s not sure what’s going to happen between him and Arthur, “the point is that I can change it, I have the power to change your destiny so you don’t end up killing him.”
“I’d like that,” Mordred nods his head before pausing to think, “Like I said, Arthur is becoming a great king and I don’t want to be responsible for ending his life. I assume it’ll take a lot of magic to make that kind of change as it’s not easy to divert a well-known prophecy, so I want to wait until after you win the tournament before doing it.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Merlin nods his head, smiling as he agrees. He really wants to win that tournament and to prove he’s capable.
~@~
The next morning, Merlin wears one of his sorcerer robes as well as his cloak, putting up the hood to hid his face, using a little bit of magic to make it stick to his head as he doesn’t want it accidently slipping. They planned on going straight to the tournament and announcing his druidic name rather than the one that most know him by, hoping that those that know it’ll be him won’t spoil it by telling Arthur. Mordred did explain that the participants have to be approved by the druids, but they both know Merlin will get it.
They get into the city without any suspicion, though Merlin is amazed that it looks like the people have already set up a celebration for the return of magic. He grins as it seems like people are rejoicing rather than living in fear of magic, which makes him feel that much better about his and Arthur’s destiny. They reach the tournament arena as most everyone is attendance to watch the sorcerers compete. Merlin sees that about twenty people are already lined up in the arena, facing the royal box where Arthur is with Gaius and one of the druid leaders.
Merlin swallows nervously as he looks at Arthur. He looks every inch the king he knew Arthur could be, standing up there as he addresses the participants and he knew that his love for Arthur hasn’t diminished. Knowing they’re going to cause a scene, Merlin stands up straight as they enter the arena.
“What is the meaning of this?” Arthur asks, apparently taken aback at their rudeness.
“I’m sorry, Sire,” Mordred bows to Arthur as they both agree that Merlin should talk as little as possible, “But I would like to request a late entrance.”
“Mordred?” Arthur seems to recognize him as the druid boy too, “You want to enter?”
“No, sire,” Mordred shakes his head, though is smiling, “I’m here to see if you’ll let my friend, Emrys join the tournament.”
With that declaration, Merlin hears his druidic name being whispered amongst the crowd. Arthur looks conflicted, but then turns his head to the druid leader to see if he gives his approval.
“It would be a great honor to have Emrys compete,” The druid answers Arthur’s unspoken question, which causes even more whispering. Merlin looks at Gaius, who is giving him a reproached, yet approving look.
“I would like to withdraw,” one of the sorcerers announces as he breaks the line to leave, “I don’t stand a chance against the great Emrys.”
Merlin smiles, knowing his reputation precedes him, but tries to control it as Arthur swings his gaze from the fleeing sorcerer to Merlin.
“You obviously have a reputation of having great skill and with a whole hearty approval from the druids,” Arthur announces, though only to Merlin he looks conflicted, “It seems that I have no choice but to allow you to participate. I do ask that you reveal yourself so that we all may know who it is that wishes to compete.”
“Thank you, Sire,” Merlin pitches his voice low, trying to disguise it, “But I would rather keep my anonymity for the time being until I win.”
“So be it,” Arthur nods his head, wise enough to know to not push the issue.
With that, Mordred pats Merlin on his arm before joining the crowd, to cheer Merlin on as Arthur resumes his kingly speech.
“The purpose of this tournament is to determine who among you are worthy for the position of court sorcerer as it is a responsibility that comes with great power to benefit all of Camelot. The tournament will have three unique trials based upon skills used for combat in defending Camelot, magical prowess to assist the people, and wisdom to ensure the best course for Camelot’s people. The first trial will be combat as you will have to fight one-on-one until there are five victors to proceed into the next trial.”
The crowd cheers at the end of Arthur’s speech and all of the participants bow to Arthur before walking off the arena grounds in order to prepare for the first round. Merlin’s first battle isn’t until much later, so he spends the time watching the other sorcerer’s gauging them on their skills and seeing who would give him the most trouble. As the day progresses, Merlin sees about half of the sorcerers aren’t up to snuff and they’re eliminated rather quickly, even his first opponent was rather weak and Merlin barely used any power to defeat him. However, it becomes clear who the top five will be.
The first sorcerer to pass through as one of the top five is a hulking man who looks more adept in a smithy that as a magic user, but he is strong enough to just overwhelm his opponents with raw magic.
The second sorcerer is the opposite of the blacksmith, where he uses his magic to enchant his sword and physically attacks his opponents, which is rather clever as most magic users have a hard time doing both magic and physical fighting.
The third victor makes Merlin nervous as he’s very powerful, but also extremely experienced with using his magic and knowing his limits. Merlin knows this one is to be watched closely as he’s not sure who would win if Merlin went up against him.
The fourth is a woman, which surprised many people, but she proved her worth as she nearly killed one of her opponents. It was quick thinking on her part to save her opponent’s life that really won Merlin’s admiration.
The last winner is now between Merlin and a sorcerer that Merlin’s been watching carefully as he’s ruthless. He killed one opponent and severely maimed another. Clearly he’s not a crowd favorite, which means the people are all cheering for ‘Emrys’ as he steps into the arena. His opponent was ‘booed’, but it didn’t bother him as he’s solely focused on Merlin.
“I’m going to be famous for killing the great Emrys,” The many says quietly with a sick grin that makes Merlin want to puke.
“We’ll see about that,” Merlin replies, putting confidence in his voice. He can see the man is already deceptively gathering magic into his left hand and Merlin knows that as soon as the flag goes down to start the fight, he’ll attack first.
Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the flag drop, signaling the start and he immediately jumps and rolls out of the path of the sorcerer’s fireball. As soon as Merlin is back on his feet, with his hood still obscuring his face from the others, he creates a mini whirlwind similar to the one he did in Ealdor. He pushes the wind towards his opponent, using it as a distraction for a binding spell.
He casts a spell and it takes in the form of a huge magical snake, slithering towards the other sorcerer. As the sorcerer uses his magic to push the whirlwind away from himself, he doesn’t notice Merlin’s snake until it starts entwining up and around his leg. Merlin quickly dissipates the wind storm as it is dangerously close to the stands. The sorcerer grunts as he tries to blast the snake off of him, but the beauty of this spell is that any part of the snake that is cut off will regrow. Unless of course it’s the head in which the sorcerer deduces and manages to cut it off with a knife. Merlin thought it was a good spell despite the obvious flaw.
The sorcerer fires off a lightning bolt, which is what killed his last opponent as there was no time to defend or dodge. Merlin however, has the distinct advantage of slowing down time right as the sorcerer shouted the words. Merlin sees that the lightning is already a few feet from the sorcerer’s hand and so with the time in suspension, Merlin walks over to one of the guards and pulls out his sword. He then walks back to where he was and thrusts the sword into the ground, so the lightning will hit that instead of whatever will be in its path. He then moves to be behind the sorcerer and pauses to look at Arthur, frozen in his seat, but is avidly watching the battle. Merlin is half tempted to just climb up the fence to ‘appear’ right next to Arthur, but he doesn’t think that would go well, so he sighs and readies his next spell before ending the time freeze.
As he predicted, once time resumes, the lightning spell jolts the sword in Merlin’s place, causing everyone to cry out in fear for Merlin. He pays them no heed as he chants his spell and the crowd gasps at his ‘sudden’ reappearance behind the sorcerer. He finishes the evocation of the spell just as the sorcerer turns around in surprise. The ground underneath starts to shake, but it is short-lived as columns of stone rises from the dirt underneath the sorcerer. Merlin manipulates the stone into a lattice work to cage the man in a tiny prison. He knew the spell was a bit flashy, but he wanted to impress Arthur with one of his new spells.
“Do you yield,” Merlin asks the trapped sorcerer and for incentive, Merlin has the stone fill in the holes to show that he could encase him in pure stone.
“Yes,” The sorcerer replies, grudgingly and the crowd cheers at Merlin’s victory, placing him as the fifth victor. Merlin melts the stone and have it sink back down into the earth where it belongs before walking up to where Arthur is now standing in the royal box.
“My king,” Merlin bows to him and just as he straightens, he hears the sorcerer let out a magic word. He turns to see a blot of magic heading straight at Merlin and before he could react, his own magic comes in his defense with a rebounding shield that reflects the attack right back at the sender. The sorcerer’s own magic bounces off Merlin’s shield and returns back to him, killing himself. The crowd had gasped at the sorcerer’s treachery, but cheers as he is now dead.
“I congratulate you on your quick thinking,” Arthur says once the crowd settles down, “You are the fifth victor and will proceed into the next trail which begins tomorrow.”
The crowd cheers once again and starts to celebrate the first trial being over. Merlin smiles as he bows at Arthur before taking his leave.
:Congratulations, Emrys: A voice says in Merlin’s mind and he looks around to see who it is. He spies the druid leader looking at him intently.
:Thanks: Merlin replies as he inclines his head towards him, :Just don’t let Arthur know who I really am, please.:
:I promise: The druid leader says before adding, :I’m looking forward on seeing what magical feat you will accomplish tomorrow:
Me too, Merlin thinks to himself as he realizes that tomorrow he’ll have to do something impressive in order to be one of the top three for the final round. Not that it wouldn’t be difficult for him, but he’d rather not show off too much or people will expect him to do it all the time.
Gaius approaches him, looking at him curiously and Merlin grins, knowing that Gaius knows his druidic name.
“Hello Emrys,” Gaius smiles at him, “I had hoped you would show and I’m so glad you have.”
“I almost didn’t,” Merlin admits, “But luckily I ran into Mordred, who told me what was going on.”
Gaius discretely looks around at the still crowded area.
“Meet me in my workshop two hours after sunset,” Gaius whispers to him and Merlin nods his head, “Good, I shall see you later.”
With that Gaius leaves him and Merlin heads towards the city. Mordred finds him and hands him his pack as he walks alongside, discussing the first trial in detail. They both agree that Merlin’s biggest competition is Froki, the third victor. They head to an inn, one that isn’t so frequented by the knights as Merlin still doesn’t want to let anything slip. The innkeeper, seizing the opportunity of having one of the top five sorcerers stay in her inn, gives them a room for free.
Not wanting to be stared at all evening, Merlin had the innkeeper send up an empty tub and dinner for himself. Mordred elected to stay downstairs to enjoy the revelry and to give Merlin some privacy for his bath. Once it is ready, Merlin heads into their room and uses magic to fill the tub with heated water. He strips and blissfully enters the steaming tub as he has a new love of being clean.
After he is cleaned, Merlin dries himself off and puts on a pair of breeches before laying on the bed with the plate of food floating in the air for easy reach to pick off. He pulls out the spell book and starts flipping through it, hoping to find a spell to disguise his more obvious features. Mordred enters the room and raises an eyebrow at Merlin.
“That’s an interesting tattoo,” Mordred points out, not bothered by Merlin’s half-naked status.
“Hm?” Merlin looks up from reading a spell on glamouring before looking back down at his chest tattoo and then sheepishly adds, “Oh, yeah. I got it when both the land and magic accepted me.”
Merlin didn’t want to go into detail about how exactly he got them, but Mordred just nods his head, understanding the significance and importance of the tattoos.
“I found a glamour spell that’ll help me go about unnoticed,” Merlin grins, glad that he doesn’t have to do that aging spell. He hates the rickety feeling of being old.
“That’s great,” Mordred grins in return, “You better hurry though because you’ve got about half an hour before you promised to meet with Gaius.”
“Crap,” Merlin leaps out of the bed and quickly puts on a tunic before going back to the book. He memorizes the incantation, noting that he has to have the look of what he wants people to see firmly in his mind as he casts the spell. With a calming breath he pictures himself having blond hair with green eyes and a different shaped nose. As he keeps that in mind, he utters the words and he feels the magic overlay his face.
“What do you think?” Merlin asks as he tries to gauge Mordred’s reaction with how successful the spell is.
“You don’t look like Merlin,” Mordred answers with a grin, “How does it feel?”
“Odd,” Merlin answers with a twist of his lips, “Like there’s a mask over my face.”
Merlin looks at the book again to memorize the canceling spell so that Gaius can see his actual face before putting on his boots. He bids Mordred goodbye and happy use of the tub before leaving the room. He checks to make sure nobody is watching before he heads down the stairs and out of the inn.
His trip sneaking into the castle was uneventful as he uses his knowledge of the castle’s layout and magic to dodge the guards and servants still working. He opens Gaius’ door and smiles as he closes it.
“I’m sorry but unless it’s an emergency, I’m not on duty,” Gaius tells Merlin, who is grinning even more.
“Gaius, it’s me, Merlin,” Merlin announces gleefully before saying the words to break the enchantment. He knows it works as the mask feeling vanishes, but also when Gaius gasps in surprise.
“Merlin?” Gaius moves closer to inspect his pseudo-son, “You’re eyes.”
“I know,” Merlin replies, still grinning like a madman. Then in a rush, Gaius hugs him tightly.
“My dear boy, I’m so glad to have you back,” Gaius’ voice is thick with emotion as he pulls back to take a closer look at Merlin’s face, “I bet there’s a story behind those eyes.”
“There is,” Merlin grins, “And you might not believe it.”
They sit down and Merlin regales his time spent in the God’s presence, telling him everything that happened. When he gets to the part where the land accepted him, blushing while he glosses over some of it, he takes his tunic off to show him the tattoo. Gaius was amazed at the intricate detail of the tattoo, commenting that it is more elaborate than the norm. However, Merlin continues his story and when he gets to the Heart of magic bit, he points out in the tattoo that is from the magic’s acceptance. It took Merlin almost three hours to finish his tale with Gaius asking questions to clarify some parts.
“It is quite fortuitous for you despite the reasoning behind it,” Gaius says delicately after Merlin finishes his story, “And you’re right, if it were anyone else telling me this, I wouldn’t believe them, but only you could have these kinds of events happen to them.”
“Thanks,” Merlin ducks his head slightly, knowing that strange things seem to happen to him.
“It is getting late,” Gaius suddenly announces, “And you have a tournament to win tomorrow.”
“Yes, Arthur’s going to be so surprised when I finally reveal myself,” Merlin grins at the thought of Arthur looking poleaxed.
“While I don’t condone his rash behavior towards you that day, do remember that he has been under a lot of stress since Morgana’s coup,” Gaius gives him a stern look.
“I know,” Merlin nods his head, “and I’ve forgiven him, but I won’t forget it.”
“I’m sure he hasn’t either,” Gaius replies, “But I don’t think he has forgiven himself.”
Merlin just nods his head again, not sure what to say. Until him and Arthur have a talk, their entire relationship is going to be strained.
“Goodnight Gaius,” Merlin finally says.
“Goodnight Merlin,” Gaius replies.
~@~
The next day, Merlin was a ball of nerves as he’s still trying to work out the spells in his head to show off his magic for everyone. He donned on his cloak and redid the spell to ensure that his face will still be obscured. Now it’s all about waiting for Arthur to finish his speech about wanting to see what each are fully capable of while in the service of Camelot.
The blacksmith is up first and instead of presenting his magic in the arena, he walks over to the adjunct forest. Everybody is watching, wondering what he’s going to do. Merlin can see the gathering of magic surrounding the man and he’s impressed by just how much he can hold. He stretches out his arms and with a word and a thunderous clap, the man uses his magic as a battering ram, mowing down scores of trees in its path.
The people in awe at first but then clap and cheer, but in Merlin’s mind the land clamors its protest on the sudden destruction of the forest and he whimpers on the loss of life. The Heart of magic whispers in his mind on how to repair the damage and Merlin listens, not paying attention as the enchanter goes up for his turn. Merlin barely sees the dozen swords held up in the air, fighting each other as he’s still reeling from the land and magic’s reactions.
Merlin couldn’t take it anymore and so when Froki walks up for his turn, Merlin interrupts him on the arena ground.
“I’m sorry, but I would like to go next,” Merlin announces, pleading with Arthur and Froki, knowing he’s breaking the order, but he can’t let the land still feel wounded like this.
“I’ll allow it if Froki is willing,” Arthur says as he looks down at them.
“It is fine by me,” Froki replies and bows to Merlin for him to proceed.
“Thank you,” Merlin whispers to Froki before walking towards the damaged forest. The land is still upset over the destruction, but at least quietens down as it realizes that Merlin is going to do something about it. Merlin holds out his hand, knowing that the Heart’s staff will appear as the magic is surging within him to fix this.
The crowd gasps as the staff appears in his hand and he grips it tightly as more magic swell inside him with the addition of the Heart. He points to the damaged area with the tip of the staff, using it as a focal point to steer his magic through.
“Ail Dyfiant,” Merlin all but shouts as the magic uses him as a conduit to pour through and out of the Heart crystal, illuminating the broken trees with light. The magic sparkles as tree saplings start to push through the dirt, accelerating the growth that would have taken years in just mere seconds. He continues to pour more magic into the growth, wanting to replace what has been lost. The trees and surrounding plants flourish with the aid of magic until it is nearly seamless with the rest of the forest.
With that, Merlin reigns in the magic, knowing the job is complete and the magic obeys, rushing back into him to return some of the energy it took from him to do the task. He sags heavily on the staff, looking at the regrown forest with pride as the land sings his praise. He turns to see the people in stunned silence at his display of power, which is a little unnerving.
:That was beyond my wildest expectations, Emrys: The druid leader says in Merlin’s mind with approval lacing his tone. Merlin looks up at him and grins, though he hesitates as he sees the over-awed with slight fear in Arthur’s face. Regardless, Merlin walks over to the royal box and bows to his king, though out of the corner of his eye, he sees where he walked upon flowers growing in his footsteps and he groans.
“Well done,” Arthur announces with a nod of respect. Merlin only has the strength to nod back before walking out of the arena.
“Very impressive,” Froki says good-naturely as Merlin passes him, “It’ll be a hard act to follow.”
Merlin chuckles weakly, grateful that Froki allowed him to go next. He enters the tent that is for the sorcerers to rest in and he collapses in a corner, drained of energy.
He doesn’t know how long he’s passed out, but when he comes to, he’s surprised to be surrounded by briar of thorny vines. He groans as he sits up, being mindful of the thorns and blinks away the sleep.
“Good to see you’re awake,” Mordred greets him, “And in time for the next trial.”
“What? Oh,” Merlin gasps as the vines vanish and then he looks back up at Mordred, “I need to hurry then.”
Mordred smiles as he helps Merlin up, “Gaius is doing all he can to delay the next trail, but I fear Arthur is getting impatient.”
Merlin nods his head and makes sure his clothes are straightened and his hood is still on. He picks up his staff and strides out with confidence that only a nap could provide. He sneaks a glance at the ground to make sure flowers are not blooming in his wake and sighs with relief as the land decided to stop that. As soon as he steps into the arena, the crowd roars with cheer and praise. He looks to see that Froki and the woman are standing in front of the royal box, so he assumes that the other two didn’t make it into the final round. He moves to stand next to Froki, who is smiling at him. Arthur raises his hand and the crowd falls silent.
“A court sorcerer must be brave, skilled, and lastly cunning,” Arthur declares, “For it is he or she that will be granted stewardship of Camelot’s magic. We have seen their bravery as they fought against each other and we have seen their impressive skills in magic, now the last test is about their wits and knowledge. Each participant will be asked three questions and will be judged on how well they respond. Their total will be added into the whole score of their performance and a winner will be announced shortly after.”
The crowd cheers at the end of Arthur’s announcement.
“Emrys, please step forward,” Gaius states and Merlin obeys, “First question, how does one defeat an Afanc?”
Merlin smiles as he remembers one of the first creatures he’s had to face when he arrived in Camelot.
“Since the Afanc is created with earth and water, it can only be defeated by air and fire,” Merlin answers with pride.
“Second question,” Gaius goes on, “What walks on four legs at dawn, two legs mid-day, and three legs at the close of day?”
Merlin is stumped as he thinks about the question.
“Oh!” Merlin gasps as he suddenly gets the question, “Man because as an infant, he crawls on four legs, at his prime he walks on two legs, and in old age he walks with a cane.”
“Third question,” Gaius continues, “What is the strongest force on earth?”
“That’s easy, love,” Merlin states, “Because it is what motivates people to do good things, no matter how powerful they are. Love brings us happiness, joy, kindness, and loyalty. It can also make people sacrifice themselves for the ones they love, such as a mother’s love for her child, or a lover has for their beloved, or a king has for his people. And it is better to have the love of the people than their fear.”
The crowd claps at Merlin’s answer and he smiles as he steps back.
“Froki, please step forward,” Gaius calls for the next sorcerer, who steps up.
“I would like to withdraw my candidacy,” Froki announces before Gaius could ask the first question, which cause a ripple amongst the crowd, “It is no dishonor to retreat when you know you will be beaten.”
“If that is what you wish to do, then I have no choice but to allow you to bow out with grace,” Arthur pronounces.
“Thank you, sire,” Froki bows to Arthur before glancing at Merlin. :It has been an honor to see you reach your potential and I hope that our paths will cross again, Emrys:
Merlin nods his head, knowing that Froki is throwing the trial for him. Froki walks off the arena grounds, still causing a buzz in the crowd.
“Well then,” Gaius gets the crowd to be silent as he proceeds with the rest of the trial, “Isadore, please step forward.”
The sorceress does, but looks nervous now after Froki’s declaration.
“First question, how would you defeat a manticore?”
“With magic,” Isadore replies, though sounds unsure, “Aim for its heart with a bolt of magic.”
“Second question,” Gaius goes on with no indication if she is right or wrong, “If you have me, you want to share me. If you share me, you haven’t got me. What am I?”
“Money?” Isadore answers, though Merlin thought the answer is secret as he knows the burden of having one.
“Third question,” Gaius keeps going, “What are you willing to sacrifice for Camelot?”
“Everything that I have to give,” Isadore says with conviction, “That includes my magic and my life.”
People clapped and cheered at her answer and Gaius looks satisfied.
“We will know tally up the scores and determine who is worthy of the court sorcerer position,” Arthur announces before the three of them, Arthur, the druid leader, and Gaius walks off and head into a guarded tent. Merlin walks over to Isadore and reaches out to shake her hand.
“We both did a wonderful try,” Merlin says with a smile, “I think it’ll be a hard choice for them.”
“I doubt it,” Isadore replies as she shakes Merlin’s hand, “You were a miracle worker with that forest, but it is an honor to have known that only the great Emrys beat me.”
“I’m not that great,” Merlin insists and there is a change in the crowd as the three come back after apparently a short deliberation.
“We are all unanimous in choosing the right person for the position,” Arthur announces as he holds up a medallion to signify the position. Both Merlin and Isadore stand close to the royal box, “Camelot’s court sorcerer is Emrys.”
With that announcement, the crowd goes wild, yelling out Emrys’ name and cheering him on. Merlin has the biggest grin on his face as he is declared court sorcerer. The land senses his happiness and suddenly the arena is filled with flowers blooming. Merlin blushes as everyone ‘oohed’ and ‘awed’ over the explosion of flowers.
“Now then, before you take this,” Arthur holds the medallion out for Merlin, “I think it is time we all can see who our court sorcerer really is.”
“Of course, sire,” Merlin bows while reaching up to remove his hood. As he straightens, his hood falls back, revealing his face.
“Merlin!” Arthur squeaks in surprise and everyone is quiet as those that know Merlin whisper to the others on who he is.
“Hello Arthur,” Merlin replies, cheekily as he reaches for the medallion from Arthur’s loose hand.
“Merlin,” Arthur says his name again, still in disbelief, “You’re the great Emrys?”
“Yes,” Merlin replies, enjoying this immensely.
“You… we’re going to talk about this,” Arthur’s eyes narrow.
“I don’t doubt it, sire,” Merlin knows he’s being insolent, but he just can’t help himself. This is worth all those times in the stockades.
“Merlin,” Merlin hears Gwen’s voice before he is ambushed with a gripping hug from her, “Oh my God Merlin, you’re back, you’re a sorcerer, you’re now the court sorcerer. I can’t believe it. I’ve missed you.”
Merlin hugs Gwen back, so glad to see her again, “I missed you too… I can’t breath.”
“Oh sorry,” Gwen kisses his cheek before pulling away, grinning, “I’m just so excited on seeing you back home.”
“I’m glad to be back too,” Merlin responds with a grin, a little pink from Gwen’s kiss.
“Hey, congratulations, Merlin,” Percival says with a huge grin as he walks up with Lancelot and Gwaine. Percival pats Merlin’s shoulder which makes him stumble slightly.
“Thanks,” Merlin replies, grinning at the knights.
“You gave us quite the scare,” Gwaine says before he pulls Merlin right up against him to kiss him on the lips. Merlin struggles slightly as he tries not to respond, but gives in and quickly kisses him back.
“Next time princess does something stupid, just come to me and I’ll take you in,” Gwaine offers with a wink before letting go.
“You know I can take care of myself,” Merlin replies with a smile.
“I know, you’re now the court sorcerer,” Gwaine replies, “so you could just change him into a frog now.”
The knights all chuckle.
“Come now, we all know Merlin would change him into a royal ass,” Percival teases and they all laugh.
“We should head to the castle,” Gwen suggests as she grabs Merlin’s arm, “They’re starting the feast soon and Merlin should clean up.”
“They brought out the good stuff,” Gwaine grins, always thinking with his stomach, “To the castle then.”
Merlin is escorted to the castle with Gwen and the knights as they talk about the tournament and other things. Mordred joins them and they accept him in their little group readily, asking him questions on how he knows Merlin and what he’s going to do in Camelot. Surprisingly, Mordred expresses an interest on becoming a knight, which the knights then encouraged.
Soon, Gwen and Merlin separate from the others as Gwen shows him his new court sorcerer chambers, which is close to Arthur’s chambers. Inside is a standard room that has a decent size bed, a wardrobe, a small table with two chairs, a desk, and a bookcase. Merlin also sees a boy standing in the room and Merlin looks at Gwen.
“This is Edwin, your servant,” Gwen introduces Merlin to the boy, “I’ll let you get ready and will see you at the feast.”
Merlin looks at the boy who is apparently in awe of Merlin.
“Ok,” Merlin starts off, nervously, “So I know how it is being in your place and really I’m used to taking care of myself, so your duties will be fairly light. All I really need done is bed sheets changed every now and then, meals sometimes served inside, a bit of laundry, and an empty bathtub sent up. I’ll fill it with hot water, which was the part I hated the worst traversing up and down the stairs. Sounds good?”
“Y-yes, sir,” Edwin nods his head.
“Also, just call me Merlin,” Merlin smiles at him kindly, “And if I’m doing something prat-ish, just tell me.”
“Yes, Merlin,” Edwin grins at him, “I promise.”
“We’re going to get along just fine, then,” Merlin grins at him, “Now then, I won’t need you for tonight. Go enjoy the feast, but not too much because I’ll want breakfast in the morning.”
“Thank you Merlin,” Edwin gives him a huge grin, “I’ll be here bright and early in the morning.”
“Well, maybe not too early,” Merlin winks at him, “I just know that Gwaine and the other knights plan on getting me drunk and I’m such a light weight.”
“I’ll see if the serving staff can have your drinks watered down,” Edwin suggests.
“Great,” Merlin beams at him, “Now go, have fun.”
“Ok,” Edwin grins back before leaving Merlin alone in the room. Merlin quickly unpacks his bag, placing his clothes in the wardrobe, his herbal remedies on the bookcase as well as the wooden figurines that he plans on giving later, and lastly the book on the desk. He puts his staff near his bed and strips off his clothes before putting on a pair of black breeches and the dark blue and silver trim tunic. He looks at the medallion, noting that on one side it has the Pendragon shield and the other side, the druidic Triskelion. He smiles as he puts it on and makes sure he looks presentable for the feast. He does remember to place the hangover potion by his bedside, because he knew he will need it right away in the morning.
~@~
“Rise and shine,” An ungodly perky voice breaks through Merlin’s alcoholic induced sleep and he groans as the rising sunlight hits him in the face. He groans even more, his mouth feels like it has been stuffed with cotton rags and his head been used as a battering ram.
“It’s time to get up,” The voice tries again as his blankets are being pulled off his body, “Oh, I’m so sorry, Merlin.”
The apology registers in Merlin’s mind and he recognizes it as Gwen’s voice, but he’s confused as to why she’s sorry. He bleary opens his eyes and looks down to see that the blankets have exposed half his body and then he starts to understand.
“Sorry Gwen,” Merlin apologizes as he slowly gets up, trying to get the room to stop moving.
“I take it you didn’t quite make it to bed?” Gwen asks with her back turned.
“No, the place I’ve been staying at didn’t believe in bedclothes,” Merlin replies as he slowly reaches for the hangover potion.
“Really?” He can imagine an eyebrow raised as she files that little tidbit of information away.
“Yeah,” Merlin answers as he uncorks the potion and downs it with a grimace, “I really need to come up with a better tasting remedy.”
He reaches down to pull on his breeches from last night, remembering how he stumbled back in his room after drinking and barely took off his clothes in the wake of his path to the bed. The feast was great with lots of food, wine, lots of people, more wine, and revelry with even more wine. He must have talked with everybody there at least once as people came up to him to congratulate him or ask him where he learned his magic.
“It’s safe,” Merlin calls out as he manages to tie his breeches. She turns around and stares right at his tattoo.
“It didn’t really hurt,” Merlin answers her unasked question, “But it’s from a ritual to have the land and magic accept me.”
“Sounds interesting,” Gwen says with a smile, “How are you feeling today?”
“Like I drank too much,” Merlin gives her a rueful smile, “but soon I’ll be better once that potion takes effect.”
“Well I brought you breakfast to help,” Gwen points out to the plate of food she brought in.
“Why are you acting like a servant?” Merlin asks curiously.
“I’m just making sure last night wasn’t a dream and that you are really here,” Gwen answers, “As well as to see if I wasn’t mistaken on seeing you making moon-eyes at Arthur all night.”
She giggles as Merlin blushes.
“I was not,” Merlin protests with a small blush, knowing that he didn’t spend all night watching Arthur.
‘Sure thing,” Gwen doesn’t believe him, “Now then, you should eat something. The first meeting is mid-morning and then you have a meeting with Owen, the druidic leader and Gaius.”
“Thank you Gwen,” Merlin smiles at her as he walks over to the table to eat breakfast.
“No problem,” Gwen kisses the top of his head, “As much as I would like to eat and catch up with you, I need to make sure Lancelot is dressed properly this time.”
Merlin chuckles knowing that the knight over-drank as well. He remembers talking to Lancelot last night about his wedding to Gwen, something he missed during the months he was gone. She leaves him in peace to eat.
The rest of the day was spent in meetings to catch Merlin up with the goings on within the kingdom and his role in the order of things. During the afternoon, he talked with Owen and Gaius about how to be a court sorcerer and setting up lessons as Merlin still needs to learn more about traditions and threats to the kingdom. Arthur managed to snag him before dinner, asking to have dinner with him so they can talk about the kingdom and magic.
Merlin was excited on seeing Arthur again, but is still hesitant on how to act around him. He hasn’t forgotten the anger behind the words as well as the words themselves, but knows he still loves him. He takes a deep breath before knocking on Arthur’s door, wondering how they’re going to interact now.
“Ah, Merlin, come in,” Arthur opens the door with a lopsided smile and gestures for him to come in.
“Thanks,” Merlin smiles back and enters the very clean room, “I guess you’ve gotten what you’ve always wanted, a competent manservant.”
“He might be good, but he’s not you,” Arthur replies a little wistful as he motions for Merlin to sit at the table with two settings of food and drinks. They both sit down and Merlin can feel the awkwardness of this dinner between them.
“I just want to say I’m sorry,” Arthur finally breaks the silence with a nervous look at Merlin, “You deserved much better than my temper being directed at you. I’m not my father, who is blinded by the evils of magic and I shouldn’t have said those things to you. I was under a lot of pressure and stress, but that shouldn’t excuse my behavior and I want to make it up to you. Anything within my power that I can give you or do for you, I will do it. Any punishment you see fit for my angry outburst, I will bear it. Anything to make it up to you.”
Merlin is surprised at Arthur’s confession and is willing to do anything for Merlin’s forgiveness.
“I, ah, need time to think about that,” Merlin replies softly, “I’ll admit, the words hurt and I wanted you to find out about my magic in a different way, but I don’t regret using it to save your life. I’d do it again in a heartbeat. You have changed for the better, you’ve allowed magic to come back into the kingdom and that’s all I would really ask for.”
“I know, I’ve done it all for you,” Arthur admits, “as well as for those that my father’s laws were unjust towards. But I want to do something for you to make up for my harsh words. I owe you my life and I repaid you with putting you down.”
“You don’t owe me anything,” Merlin replies, “I didn’t do it for acknowledgments, you’re my friend and I… care for you a lot.”
Merlin almost confessed his love for Arthur, but changed his words as he doesn’t want to make this more awkward than it already is.
“Just let me make it up for you,” Arthur orders Merlin with a small smile.
“Alright, just give me time to think about it,” Merlin smiles back. They eat in silence as the awkwardness still lingers between them. After dinner, Merlin yawns as the day is catching up with him and bids Arthur a goodnight.
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The Magic of Love