Another chapter up! I have the story all planned out in my mind but it is not written up properly yet.

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Merlin' or any of the characters.

….

The Queen raised her hand and paused, hesitating for a fraction of a second before rapping twice on the cool wood of the heavy oak door.

"Who is it?" asked the familiar voice of her older brother. She pushed the door open a little way and peeked into the room, where Elyan was sitting on the edge of the bed. He looked up, his face relaxing into a smile when he saw her. He was arrayed in a loose-fitting white cotton tunic and brown pants and was fiddling with a faded bracelet, made of several pieces of material braided together.

"Gwen." He slipped the bracelet onto his wrist and stood, a welcoming smile on his face. Gwen entered the room, closing the door gently behind her and walking forwards to embrace her older brother. The knight smiled at his sister and gestured towards the bed. Gwen sank down onto the bed gracefully, not taking her eyes off of her brother's face.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, sitting next to her.

"Everything's fine." She smiled at him. "How are you?"

"Sore", Elyan admitted with a grin. "I just had training. You need to tell your husband to go easy on us."

"Not a chance", Gwen replied, grinning wickedly at him. "Besides, you love it." Elyan bit his lip, trying not to smile. His sister was right though; she was always right. He did love being a knight, although Arthur could work them to the bone whenever the mood arose.

"I suppose it's better than what he's been like the last few weeks", the knight admitted. Gwen raised an eyebrow questioningly, surprised by her brother's tone.

"When he was worrying about Merlin", Elyan explained, "He couldn't concentrate. He wasn't fighting as well as usual. It's better now that he's sure Merlin will be alright", he added reassuringly.

"I felt it too", Gwen murmured with a small nod of understanding. "He was much quieter, much more reserved. I understand why, though – although he won't admit it, he and Merlin are very close. I'm not surprised he was having trouble with his focus."

"It did feel good to beat him, though", Elyan confessed, a reminiscent glint in his eye. He smiled at his sister, who was looking at him disbelievingly.

"You beat Arthur?" she asked incredulously.

"Well, he was fairly distracted", Elyan reminded her. Both were silent for a moment.

"Have you seen Merlin since his injury?" Gwen asked softly.

"Yeah, he was at training today", Elyan replied quietly. "He seemed fine. He was irritated at Arthur, actually." He smiled.

"How was Arthur?" The Queen enquired.

"Overprotective", Elyan chuckled. His expression became more sombre. "But he did seem more relaxed. You know how much he worries about Merlin." Gwen smiled softly, nodding in silent agreement.

"And Percival?" she asked inquisitively. "Is he back at training yet?"

"He came back a few days ago", Elyan assured her. "He's fine." Guinevere smiled.

"That's good news." She leaned against her brother's shoulder, both of them lost in their own thoughts.

"It is, my Lady", Elyan said, the ghost of a smile flickering over his lips. Gwen smiled in response.

"Elyan, you know you don't need to address me like that", she said gently, pulling back to stare into her brother's eyes, the same chocolate brown as her own. Elyan smiled, cuddling his younger sister closer to him.

"Dad would be proud", he said quietly.

"He would be proud of you", Guinevere said tenderly, stroking her brother's short crop of dark brown hair. Elyan shook his head.

"I messed up, remember? Running off, not helping out after Mum died…" Gwen put a finger to his lips, silently shushing him.

"That's all in the past", she said firmly. "Look at you now! You're a knight!"

"Yeah. Bet Mum and Dad never expected that", he said with a low chuckle.

"Don't be silly! They always had complete faith in you!" Gwen said, her brow creasing in shock and disappointment. Why did her brother never believe himself to be worthy of happiness or honour? She wondered sorrowfully.

"Gwen." Elyan tilted his sister's face upwards, so that he was staring directly into her eyes. He lowered his voice, leaning closer to her. "Commoners weren't allowed to be knights." He smiled, and Gwen smothered a giggle with one hand, realising the joke.

"Anyway", Elyan continued, with a sideways glance at his younger sister, "I think they would be prouder of you."

"And why is that?" Gwen asked indignantly. She was glad that Elyan believed that their parents would be proud of her, but she wished that he had more certainty in how proud they would be of him. Elyan chuckled, poking his sister in the side so she squealed with laughter.

"Well, you are the Queen", he pointed out with a grin.

Both sat in a comfortable silence, each lost in memories of their deceased parents.

"Has Gwaine seemed strange to you recently?" Elyan asked suddenly. Gwen looked up, confusion evident in her dark eyes.

"I've barely spoken to him since he returned after Merlin's injury." Elyan looked troubled. "Why?" The Queen probed. "Do you think there's something wrong?"

The knight shook his head. "I'm not sure", he said uncertainly. "Ever since we got back he's been acting different. At first I thought he was just worried about Merlin, same as Arthur…"

"But Merlin's nearly recovered now; why would he still be acting strangely?" Gwen asked. Elyan shrugged.

"I'm not sure. But it's not just him – it's Percival too. He and Gwaine are usually joking around together but they've barely spoken for weeks."

"Maybe it is related to Merlin", Gwen suggested once more. "He did have a close call, and Arthur told me it was Gwaine who found him." Elyan nodded pensively.

"I guess none of us realised how much of an influence Merlin has on us… He's always there." He paused. "When he was gone it just felt like someone was missing."

Gwen nodded in understanding, leaning against her brother's chest. There they sat silently, each lost in their own thoughts.

….

The knight ascended the short flight of stairs that led to Merlin's tiny room and paused on the threshold. The door was ajar, and he could see his friend tucking something into his tiny cupboard, but the servant hadn't noticed him yet.

"Merlin." The younger man turned, surprise flickering over his features quickly before his expression became wary. He gave the knight a tight smile which did not reach his eyes.

"Hello Gwaine."

Gwaine stepped into the room, closing the door softly behind him.

"Do you have a minute?" He asked, his voice lacking its usual warmth and cheer. It felt so strange, speaking to Merlin like this – as though he were a stranger. But he couldn't act as though nothing had happened between them when so much had changed. Merlin nodded, his steadfast blue eyes fixed on Gwaine's face. Gwaine tried not to look at them – he didn't want to remember how those eyes had turned a deadly gold, or the torrent of words that had poured forth from his mouth in the Old Language.

"Of course."

The servant gestured to his neatly-made bed, the scratchy grey blanket pulled tightly across the thin, worn mattress. For a minute Gwaine wondered why, if Merlin had such power, he didn't use it to make his bed more comfortable. Surely he must have been envious of the gigantic, downy mattress and crimson coverlet of Arthur's bed, which he made every day. Then he banished the thought from his mind. He had more important things to discuss.

The knight perched uncomfortably on the edge of the bed, his body lined with tension. Merlin hesitated, then sat beside him, his back ramrod straight as he eased himself onto the bed.

"I know things have been difficult these past few weeks", Gwaine began finally, deliberately not looking at Merlin. He twisted the gold ring on his finger as he spoke; his one, tenuous link to his long-dead father.

"I still have a lot of things I have to think about – things I need to sort out. But I want you to know", he looked up at the warlock, who was watching him with mounting trepidation, "That I will not reveal your secret."

…..

So Gwaine at least trusts Merlin enough to keep his secret. Next chapter, he enlists Percival's help to uncover why a sorcerer killed his mother.

Hope you are enjoying the story! Please leave me a review to let me know what you think.