aaaaaaaaaaa

alrighty here we are

Mordred is the same age he was in season 5, so he's not a child

-

Merlin tried to cuddle up to Arthur more than he already was. They were sitting in his bed, just enjoying each other's presence for the afternoon, and it was the most calming thing Merlin had experienced in a while. He didn't have to worry about anything, and being with Arthur allowed him to forget about the outside world for a bit. Arthur had his arms wrapped around him lazily and his head on Merlin's shoulder, falling asleep. Merlin, however, was reading a book and trying to stick the memory of how adorable Arthur looked into the back of his head.

They'd been "courting" (as if they could really call it that) officially for a few weeks now, and Merlin thought it felt like the best few weeks of his life. He was probably exaggerating, but it definitely felt like he was in love. Since all it had taken them to build up to the point they were at, he thought it was most certainly plausible that he could consider himself in love with Arthur. After what happened that first night, Merlin had refrained from going further with him than kissing, no matter how much he wanted to. There was no way he'd be able to control what would happen to his magic if he'd tried.

He knew he would have to address it somehow, either find a way to control his magic when they finally had sex, or reveal himself. The first option seemed to be the better one, even if it was impossible. Merlin didn't want to tell Arthur if he didn't have to, but it also made him feel guilty for lying. However, if he didn't lie, his secret would be out in the open and he had no idea how Arthur would react to it. He knew the other man cared for him, but he didn't know how far it went. Would he willingly keep a sorcerer around, or would he sentence Merlin to death for lying to him?

As Merlin was thinking, Arthur opened his eyes and let out a groan. He pulled Merlin down to lie next to him and then opened his eyes and smiled at the face in front of him. Tugging Merlin closer to him, Arthur planted a kiss on his forehead, and then on his nose, only to follow with one on his lips. Merlin kissed back eagerly, loving how Arthur was always so gentle and caring.

"You're awfully affectionate today." Merlin said after they'd pulled apart, smiling. Arthur could only grin brightly back at him before rolling on his back and taking Merlin with him, so he was laying his head on Arthur's chest. His arm stroked up and down Merlin's back, sometimes moving up to his hair and raking through it.

"Merlin," Arthur sighed wistfully, "I think-," But he couldn't finish his phrase because there was a very hard bang on Merlin's door, making both of them jump. Before either of them could move fast enough to get it, it swung open and revealed three very sweaty and tired knights. Gwaine, Lancelot, and Leon entered the room, As soon as the three of them saw Merlin and Arthur's position, they all had very different facial expressions.

Gwaine was smirking, Lancelot was glaring at Merlin, and Leon just looked very, very confused. However, they didn't have the time to make sense of what they saw, as they shook themselves out of their daze, and Leon spoke.

"Sire," He began, breathing heavily, as if he'd just chased after bandits in the forest, and then had had to fight them. It looked like he'd been to hell and back, they all did. Gwaine looked like he was going to fall over at any moment, so he held onto the table to steady himself. His legs were wobbly, and he was trying to control his breathing, to regulate it again. Lancelot had proceeded to sit by the fire, relieving his cold fingers from the cold they'd witnessed outside. His armor of his sword arm looked as if it had been sliced through, leaving a hole for the cold air to get straight through to his skin. It left him freezing.

As Leon spoke his next words, both Gwaine and Lancelot looked straight at Merlin, for they knew that reality was separate from what Leon was saying. It was all they could do to try and plead with him mentally to not give himself away in his haste to do something in order to save whoever it was that was being framed.

"We've found Emrys."

~•~

Merlin had followed Arthur down to the castle, hiding behind a cloak and placing a spell on himself so he would go unnoticed by anyone. Whoever it was, whether it was a sorcerer or not, was not Emrys. And even if they were a sorcerer, Merlin would do everything in his power to make sure they were not killed, because no one deserved that horrible fate. He walked only a few feet away from Arthur, trailing behind him while the knights were around him. They talked in low voices, with Leon informing Arthur of exactly what had happened.

"...in the forest... a Druid boy... causing trouble..." It was only bits and pieces Merlin could pick up, but it was enough for him to understand that he needed to get the boy out. They walked into the castle and he let out the breath he'd been holding in; earlier he had thought they would catch him before he got in. Gwaine turned around, and it felt as though he looked right into Merlin's eyes before looking forward again. After that, they began to walk toward the dungeons, and he walked after them as silently as possible, to avoid any confrontations.

The four of them, followed by Merlin, arrived at a cell in one of the deepest part of the dungeons, reserved for those whom the king deemed unfit to even be jailed amongst others. There was no one around, and the boy was chained in a cell that had nothing but the stone ground. The cell was as bare as it could possibly be, without a cot nor a window, only the flames on the outside of the cell that provided light. On the inside, it was shadowy and dark; a figure sat against the wall parallel to the barred door. He slightly moved his hands and the chains clinked as he groaned in aching pain.

Merlin was afraid of what could possibly happen to him if he was ever found out. Thinking of it happening made his palms sweat and his throat to dry, but he could only look on worriedly as his love looked on to someone no different from himself, wishing to kill on sight. Merlin knew exactly how Arthur looked when he was angry. He would be breathing so heavily his breaths would overtake his entire body, then his fists would clench, the veins in his arms would stand out, and his forehead would break a sweat; looking at him while he saw the Druid boy against the opposite wall, Merlin knew he was furious.

It didn't take him long to find his voice and proceed to speak. However, it highly contrasted with how he looked, because he spoke in even tones and his voice didn't waver even slightly.

"Emrys. I've finally found you." Arthur began, looking down at the pale boy who sat against the wall. The boy raised his head, and focused his eyes on Arthur, but it seemed whatever he had tried to attempt was in vain. His body shook in pain, and his limbs flailed around as far as they could possibly go. He managed to drag himself to the bars of the cell, and looked up at Arthur in disgust. The king only smirked, before crouching down to look him straight in the eyes. "Magic-confining chains. Useful when catching illegal sorcerers, no?"

The boy struggled to try and reach past the bars, but could not because the chains had cuffed him to only so much distance. They weighed him down, and it seemed to Merlin as if each time he tried to move a single muscle it felt like he was lifting the weight of the entire world. Instead of trying again, he just looked at Arthur.

"I'm not Emrys." He said. Arthur chuckled.

"Sure you're not." Arthur began. "If you're not Emrys, who are you?" He asked the question with a sarcastic tone, completely disbelieving of what the Druid boy had said.

"I'm Mordred. You have no idea who Emrys is, what he's capable of. He's the most powerful sorcerer alive. You'll never be able to capture him." And this, was news to Merlin, because what? Most powerful sorcerer alive? There was no possible way.

Arthur, however, had taken the news in an entirely different way. His blood was boiling beneath his skin, and his face had gone red with fury, as he grabbed the front of the boy's cloak and pulled him against the bars. It stretched his arms back in the chains, and Merlin could only hope the crack he had heard because of it wasn't a broken bone. The scream the boy released revealed otherwise. Arthur flung him out of his grasp and he whimpered before backing up into his cell.

"Well, Mordred. Whether you're Emrys or not, you'll be dead by this time tomorrow. Enjoy the last few hours of your meaningless life." Arthur spat, before retreating through the dungeons with his knights. After Merlin could no longer hear the steps, he removed the spell from himself and took a few steps toward Mordred's cell. The sound made him look up, and as soon as he saw Merlin he gasped. He struggled to move forward but could not due to the injury to his arms. The chains ache on his wrists and were heavy on his body.

"It's you. It's you." He said, gaping up at Merlin. "Emrys." He whispered, as soft as possible. After his initial shock, he calmed himself down and spoke again. "What are you doing? You know they want you dead. Camelot isn't safe for you."

"How do you know who I am?" Merlin asked. He hadn't even stated his name, nor why he'd come.

"We—the Druids—have known about you for centuries, it is said you'll bring light to the dark abyss that has come upon the five kingdoms and peace to Albion. You are the most powerful warlock to ever live, it is my honor to even be in your presence. I apologize that I am not in the condition to show you how far my respect goes." Mordred bowed his head at Merlin, trying to show his loyalty. It felt a bit too far to Merlin, but when Mordred looked up with stars in his eyes, he knew there was no possible way he wasn't telling the truth. Or, at least, what he believed to be the truth.

"Alright." Merlin said, and decided to get to the point. "Mordred, I am going to get you out of here, and beyond the walls of Camelot."

"I could never wish that you would do that for me, but I should assure you it isn't necessary. I am by no means important."

"Mordred, you are far more important than you think. Don't you have family, friends? They will already be missing you. Please just allow me to help you." And after he said that, Mordred acquiesced with a silent nod. Merlin opened the cell door with his magic, and took steps toward Mordred before leaning down to touch the iron shackles. As soon as his skin fell upon the rough metal, it felt as if it was burning him from the inside out. The feeling made him immediately let go of the metal and fall backward onto the stone. "Wow," he grumbled, "That's powerful." Mordred raised an eyebrow at him.

Suddenly, they heard steps coming from down the hall, and Merlin and Mordred both widened their eyes at each other, and Merlin quickly said the spell to making himself hidden and stayed in the dark corner of the cell. Mordred resumed looking as he did before he'd been provided with the idea that he was going to survive.

It was Gwaine. Sighing, Merlin made himself reappear, and as soon as he did, he was faced with a very stern looking Gwaine in front of him.

"Merlin."

"Gwaine." Merlin gave his friend a close-mouthed smile. In return, his friend sighed.

"What are you doing here? You're lucky the king sent me to find you instead of Lancelot, he would have had your head after seeing you with Arthur earlier."

"He's going to have my head anyway." Merlin sighed. "I need to get Mordred out of here. Will you help me?" Throughout all of their conversation, Mordred had been watching on silently, wondering why the knight who had just arrived with the king had come again and was speaking with Emrys is such a casual tone. It seemed that they felt comfortable around each other, so maybe the knight could be trusted?

"Of course I'll help, Merlin. What do you take me as?" Gwaine said, "How do you want me to help?"

"We need the key to his shackles, and for you to open them after we get them. Do you know where they are?"

"Arthur keeps his keys on him all the time. Even at night, he doesn't keep them out of arm's distance. There's no way I'd be able to get them without raising suspicion." Gwaine said.

"No, of course not... I, on the other hand... I could get the keys. Could you meet me back here around mid-night?"

~•~

"And you wanted me here, why, exactly?" Arthur asked as soon as Merlin welcomed him in. Merlin sighed before reaching and wrapping his arms around Arthur's waist

"I just... didn't want to be alone tonight, is all." Merlin said, once he drew away. He looked at Arthur from under his dark eyelashes and pouted his lip just the tiniest bit, to make himself seem as the lonely young boy he'd wanted to seem like. Immediately, Arthur gave in, because he could never say no to Merlin. Grabbing his hand, Arthur pulled Merlin over to the bed, pulling their shirts off as they went, and embracing each other under the covers. Arthur then took his key ring from his belt loop and placed them beneath the pillow.

"You know, if anyone finds out I'm not in my bed in the morning, they'll assume the worst." Arthur whispered into Merlin's ear, before tugging him closer and mouthing at his neck. He pressed his body against Merlin's side, with an arm wrapped around his torso, and placed soft kisses on his neck. He heard a whimper come from Merlin, so he nuzzled into his neck and shut his eyes, willing sleep to come.

Merlin, on the other hand, patiently waited for Arthur to fall asleep, so he could put his plan into action. He was going to save Mordred from the dungeons, and take him back to wherever he needed to go. The idea was an easy one; release Mordred from the shackles and teleport him out of Camelot, and then continue on foot to their destination. However, Merlin felt it wasn't going to be as simple as he thought it was.

After he was sure his king was fast asleep, he carefully reached underneath the pillow and grabbed ahold of the keys. He pulled them out and got out of the bed slowly, making sure Arthur didn't wake up while he did. Once he was standing away from the edge of the bed, he hoped Gwaine would be in the dungeons already as he teleported himself to the dungeons.

~•~

When he arrived, he saw Mordred jump at his sudden appearance, before letting out a groan at the movement. His chains clinked against each other, which only made him release another groan, as if it amplified the pain. Gwaine was sitting beside him in the cell, and had been considerably less startled at Merlin's arrival. He entered the cell and passed the key ring to Gwaine so he could release Mordred's shackles.

"Emrys... you have the ability to transport yourself at will, using magic?" Mordred asked, in complete awe of the sorcerer in from of him, as Gwaine began to test keys on the chains. Merlin tilted his head at the boy, because didn't all magic users know how to teleport? It had been something he had accidentally discovered how to do when he had been younger; one day, it was very hot out, and he'd wished to go to the lake located in forest outside of Ealdor. His mother had declined him, as she was very busy that day and couldn't take him. He'd been disappointed, and had lied on his cot that night, thinking of the lake and its blue, glistening water. The coolness of it, how it would look when the moonlight shined on the surface. It was then he found himself lying in the grass beside the lake, and for a short amount of time he'd been afraid, but then he fully embraced what had happened and jumped into the lake.

"Yes? Is it not something all magic users are capable of?" Merlin asked, curiously. Mordred shook his head excitedly.

"No, our elders have told us only the most powerful are able to move their bodies across long distances at will. Only the most practiced of my people are capable of it, and my camp has no one with the ability. I am continually honored to be in the presence of such a sorcerer as you, Emrys." Mordred said, with a tint of red on his cheeks. Merlin had no idea what to say. If what he was saying was true, did that really mean he was the most powerful sorcerer alive?

Gwaine tugged at the chains after fiddling with the keys, and they came apart off of Mordred's wrists. He immediately smiled at the feeling, because he could feel the magic flowing through his veins again, not being held back by the iron chains. The energy ran through his body and he immediately stood up and thanked Gwaine, who smiled at him in response before turning to Merlin. He handed the key ring back onto him.

"So, what's your plan?" He asked, and Merlin walked over to Mordred and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm going to get him out of here and back home, your work is done. Thanks for your help, Gwaine, it means a lot." Merlin said, smiling at his friend before gripping onto Mordred's arm. He told Mordred to hold on, and then disappeared into thin air, with nothing but the light of the torches on the walls illuminating their exit. Gwaine could only hope Merlin wouldn't do anything stupid that would endanger him or Mordred.

~•~

They arrived in a clearing just outside the walls of Camelot, and Mordred gaped at Merlin openly. He could hardly believe that he had just experienced the feeling of teleportation. He was curious, so he asked Merlin how he did it as they quietly walked through the darkness of the forest. Mordred knew the way to his camp, so he led Merlin through the trees toward it.

Throughout the entire journey, Merlin was anxious of the knights that would be on patrol at night. He couldn't help but feel like there was something that would go horribly wrong, and as Mordred chattered on, he kept glancing to either side of him. It felt like something or someone was going to jump out at him, and as they went farther on into the depths of the forest, the feeling only intensified. By the time they reached the outskirts of the camp, all Merlin wanted to do was go home. If Arthur had woken up... it was another problem in its entirety.

"Alright, Mordred. I should be heading back now-," He started, but Mordred grabbed his wrist and looked at him.

"No, no you must come into the camp and meet the chiefs. They will not allow me to go on if they come to know that the great Emrys has saved my life and I have not brought him to meet them." Mordred said, pleadingly. Merlin knew there was no way he could possibly get out of the customs of the Druids, so he nodded and they entered the camp. He immediately noticed there were no torches, but instead lamps filled with orbs of light. However, they were nothing like the ball of light he had created before, as they didn't seem to be alive in any sense. There were two hooded figures surrounding a fire in the center of the camp, speaking in low voices. The rest of the camp was quiet, and most of the people must have been asleep.

At the sound of their steps, the figures turned around, and stood up in order to greet them when they reached the center of the camp.

"Mordred!" One of the men said, exasperatedly. "Where have you been?!" But when he saw Merlin, he immediately stopped. "Emrys?!" He wondered aloud, and Merlin nodded in response. The two men bowed to him, and he felt a blush on his cheeks because he'd never had someone bow to him before. It was weird, he decided, and he would avoid it whenever he possibly could.

"Please, that's not necessary." He said, shyly. "I only helped Mordred, there is no reason for this."

"Oh but we must, Emrys, you are going to be our savior, the savior of magic in the five kingdoms. We have known your destiny for centuries." The other man said, after rising from his bow. He smiled brightly at Merlin, looking as if he had just found the answer to all of his problems. Which, in a sense, he had, because the banning of magic had kept the Druids unsafe to live as they pleased. They were not allowed to live in Camelot, as they were considered sworn enemies of the king.

"Oh..." Merlin had no words, because he still didn't believe that he was the great sorcerer that they said he was. He was a boy from Ealdor, a small village nobody ever knew about, how could he possibly have the destiny they claimed he had? It made him wonder if his mother knew anything to do with this, since she was the one who had known his father. His mother has magic-less, which meant his father must have been powerful in order to pass the power onto Merlin. He drew himself back to the men in front of him, and thanked them.

They sat him down by the fire with them and began to speak of things he had never even heard of. The things they could do with magic, it was something Merlin had no idea about. He contributed to their conversation, explaining how he teleported and even providing a demonstration. They were astounded by it, and he was astonished by everything they were telling him. It felt so amazing to have people he could talk about his magic to, people who would understand. They taught him some tricks, which he picked up very easily, so they went on teaching him more and more.

Eventually, Merlin realized how much time had passed, and that he needed to get back home before the sun rose and Arthur woke up. He thanked the men,—whom he now knew as Iseldir and Aglain—promising them he would return soon. Then, he exited the camp and made his way back toward Camelot, until he was at a close enough distance to teleport to his home.

When he reached home, he saw Arthur sleeping peacefully, and let out a relieved sigh. He'd had half a mind to drug his king before he went out, but had decided against it. If Arthur awoke and realized he'd been drugged, it would have given him even more trouble than if he were to wake in the middle of the night to see Merlin gone. He would have been able to come up with a better excuse for the latter.

Merlin slid into his bed, wrapping Arthur's arm around him. He placed the keys underneath the pillow, as they had been before, and as the sun was about to peek out on the horizon, he finally found sleep.

~•~

Arthur awoke right before the break of dawn, desiring to stay in bed and be with Merlin, no matter if he had to return to his palace. However, he knew he had to handle his duties as a king, so he stepped out of bed and reached for his shirt before putting it on. He stretched out his arms above his head and yawned, and then leaned over the bed to press a kiss to Merlin's forehead. After finding his keys beneath the pillow and attaching them to the belt loop of his pants, he left Merlin's home and walked toward the castle.

When he arrived, he was immediately found by Sir Leon, who looked at him with wide eyes as he quickly walked toward him.

"Sire!" He said, "The sorcerer has escaped!" And then Arthur was just as frantic as he was, unable to comprehend how exactly Mordred had gotten out.

"How?! How could he have possibly gotten out of those shackles?! They were magic-proof!"

"I haven't an idea, Sire. Maybe he had help?" Leon suggested, and it was then that it clicked for Arthur.

"No," He mumbled, "No, there's no way." He looked up at Leon, who was giving him a concerned look. "There's only one explanation. He must have been telling the truth last night, that Emrys is the most powerful sorcerer that has ever lived. He must have had help from Emrys to escape." Arthur gulped.

If what the Druid boy had said was true,—which Arthur believed it was—then Camelot was in an immense amount of danger.

And Arthur had no idea how to handle it.

-

Welp here we are. This is the third to last chapter and then there's the epilogue.

I can't believe we're almost done??? like whoa I started writing this like 3 weeks ago.

Next chapter will be up next weekend, unless I find the time to write it earlier.

vote & comment if you liked it!

~Dev❤️