AN: I did not realize until after I wrote this how similar the first scene was to T&D. So…whoops? As you'll see, it has already diverged from T&D, so hopefully you can forgive me for my lack of originality there.

As with T&D, this story is completely written. I just need to polish and proofread chapters before I post them, so updating should go relatively quickly. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin.

Chapter One

Arthur sat with his chin resting on the table, spinning a spoon in front of him as he thought aloud. "It could be a trick," he mused. "Something to make me trust him, and then he could turn against me later."

"Not a very well thought out trick," Merlin said from across the room where he was making Arthur's bed. "If he's just trying to earn your trust, then it doesn't make much sense to do it anonymously."

"I don't know. Maybe he just wants me to trust all sorcerers?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Or maybe he just genuinely wanted to help."

Arthur sat up and looked at Merlin curiously. "It's not like you to defend a sorcerer, Merlin. You usually get jumpy if I even mention magic."

"I do not!" Merlin protested, looking offended.

"Yes, you do. Any time someone mentions magic, you go pale – paler than normal, I mean – and you shut up, which is almost a magical event in and of itself."

Merlin scowled, but didn't argue.

"Why is this one different?" Arthur pushed.

"Because he helped!" Merlin resituated the pillows, making sure the bed looked perfectly neat. "You would have died if he hadn't intervened, so I guess I'm grateful to him. I mean, without him, I'd be out of a job."

Arthur snorted, tilting back in his chair. "And heaven knows no one else would ever hire you as a servant."

Without warning, the chair slipped under Arthur, dumping him unceremoniously out on the floor. Merlin didn't even try to hide his laughter as Arthur got up and brushed himself off, doing his best to look dignified.

"Not a word," he warned, pointing a finger at Merlin. Merlin just chuckled to himself as he moved on to cleaning up the breakfast dishes.

"The thing I keep coming back to is how the sorcerer even knew where we'd be."

"Maybe he just stumbled upon us on accident?" Merlin suggested.

"A mile deep into an underground cave?"

Merlin shrugged. "I guess he must have followed us then."

Arthur frowned, flopping down on the newly-made bed and staring at the ceiling. "Every breath echoed in that cave. Surely we would have heard someone following us. Besides, with all of those forks, they would have had to stick pretty close not to lose our trail."

"Arthur, he's a sorcerer. He probably just used magic."

"Yes, probably," Arthur agreed halfheartedly. "But before that, he would have had to follow us through the castle, which means it's someone who could move through the castle unnoticed." Arthur looked worried suddenly. "What if it's someone in the castle? What if it's one of my knights?"

"So what if it is?" Merlin asked. He finished stacking all of the dishes on the tray, and he moved on to gathering up the laundry scattered throughout the room. "He helped you, Arthur."

"It could be anyone though, couldn't it?" Arthur said, ignoring Merlin. "Not just the knights. It could be one of the guards. It could be one of the servants." He sat up and looked at Merlin. "Merlin, I know servants talk. Are there any rumors among the servants about someone being a sorcerer?"

"No," Merlin said shortly. "Those kinds of rumors get people killed. The servants I'm friends with are smart enough to know that."

Arthur ignored Merlin's cross tone and stared thoughtfully into space. "Even if he did follow us, why? Assuming his intentions are sincere – which I'm definitely not sold on yet - I doubt he just follows every step I take. He must have thought I'd need his help." Arthur looked at Merlin suspiciously. "Did you tell anyone what we were doing?"

"What?" Merlin asked, startled. "No, of course not!"

Arthur made a face. "No, you don't normally let things like that slip. Which is a miracle, considering how you are with secrets."

Merlin scowled at him, then picked up the trays of dishes and left the room, leaving Arthur to his thoughts.

When Merlin returned to Arthur's room that afternoon, he was surprised to find Arthur there.

"I thought you were training this afternoon?" he asked as he carried the clean laundry over to the wardrobe.

"Hmm?" Arthur said, turning away from the window. "Oh, yes. We did. For a bit. I ended it early."

Merlin looked at him in shock. "You ended training early?" he repeated disbelievingly.

"Yes," Arthur said. "I wanted some time to think."

Merlin frowned at the wardrobe, his back to Arthur. Arthur had done entirely too much thinking since their adventure in the cave. Merlin half wished for a crisis of some sort to distract him.

"Arthur, in six years, I have never once known you to end training early."

Arthur just shrugged. After a minute or two of silence, Merlin looked up from the clothes to see Arthur staring at him.

"What?" he asked nervously as he folded a shirt.

Arthur made a face, pursing his mouth thoughtfully, then took a step towards his servant. "Merlin?"

"Yes?" Merlin asked, glancing only briefly at Arthur as he placed a couple of folded shirts in the drawer. It was his standby technique. If Arthur was paying a little bit too much attention, just focus on his chores like everything was normal.

"I have a crazy question for you," Arthur said. "I know the answer, but just…humor me. To put my mind at ease."

Merlin went very still for a moment, then went back to folding clothes, although noticeably more carefully now. "Yes, sire?"

"You…" Arthur laughed uncertainly. "You're not the sorcerer, are you?"

Merlin's stomach dropped. He had pictured a thousand different ways that Arthur might find out his secret, but most of them involved him triumphantly saving Arthur's life. None of them involved him folding Arthur's socks.

Before Merlin could come up with an answer, Arthur shook his head. "Of course you're not. Sorry." He laughed again, and Merlin laughed weakly with him. "It's just that it would explain everything. And not just the thing in the cave. Other things too. But that's crazy. I mean, after all of these years together, I would know. You wouldn't keep that from me. Right?"

Merlin focused hard on putting the stack of folded socks in the drawer.

Just lie. It's what he had done a thousand times before. And it was clear Arthur didn't really believe the idea he was suggesting. Merlin knew he would be easily persuaded.

But for all of the lies he had told, he had never looked Arthur in the face and said he wasn't a sorcerer. And Merlin knew that sooner or later, Arthur would have to know the truth. And when that time came, he would remember this moment.

Ever since Uther died, Merlin had said he was waiting for the right moment. The right opportunity. And opportunities didn't get much more obvious than this.

And the truth was…Merlin was tired. Of the lies. Of the hiding. And in that moment, the idea of telling another lie – of telling the biggest lie of all – sounded exhausting.

He wasn't ready. But ready or not, the time was here.

Merlin slowly rose to his feet and turned to face the king, who was watching him curiously. It was clear from the look in Arthur's eyes that he believed the idea was crazy. He looked almost sheepish. But the longer Merlin went without speaking, the more Arthur started to look confused.

Merlin licked his lips nervously and took a deep breath. When he finally spoke, the words were barely audible, and his voice shook.

"Yes. I mean, no. I mean…" he trailed off, took another breath, and tried again. "Yes, Arthur. I'm the sorcerer."

Arthur stared at him, searching Merlin's face for a sign that this was a joke. First he looked confused, and then astonished, and then confused again. Then he stumbled over a few feet to a chair and sat down.

"I wanted to tell—" Merlin began.

"Shut up." Arthur didn't say the words with anger, or with any emotion other than shock. They were barely more than a whisper.

Merlin's mouth snapped shut. He stood with his hands behind his back, shifting nervously as he waited for Arthur to process the information enough to react.

"You're a sorcerer," Arthur said finally, looking up at Merlin for confirmation. Merlin nodded, and Arthur looked away again.

"All this time," he whispered in disbelief, "you've been lying to me?"

"I wanted to tell—" Merlin tried again, but Arthur cut him off.

"Shut. Up." He still didn't raise his voice, but the first traces of anger were audible. "I don't…I don't want to hear excuses, Merlin," he said, still sounding dazed. "Just the truth. Was it just a lie of omission?" he asked. "Or have you been lying to my face?"

Merlin flinched. "I've lied," he admitted, looking away. "Not just by omission."

"Look at me, Merlin." Arthur sounded less dazed now, some of the authority of the king coming back into his voice. He waited until Merlin met his gaze again to continue. "Once or twice?" he asked. "Or has lying to me been a regular thing for you?"

Merlin's eyes closed again. He could feel himself starting to tear up. Don't cry, he ordered himself fiercely. Do not cry.

Arthur had ordered him to look at him, he remembered, so he forced his eyes open again. He'd been silent long enough that he knew Arthur already had his answer, but the king was still looking at him expectantly.

He's going to make me say the words. Merlin's stomach turned.

"Not just once or twice," he admitted shakily. "I've…there have been a number of lies."

Arthur's eyes still hadn't left him. "Little white lies or big lies?"

"Some of both." Merlin sniffed, then flinched when Arthur stood up and walked towards him. But Arthur just handed him a handkerchief and stepped back again, beginning to pace next to the table. He waited until Merlin had wiped his eyes and nose before continuing.

"How long?" he asked. When Merlin looked genuinely confused by the question, he clarified, "How long have you been studying sorcery? How long have you been lying to me? In other words," Arthur's mouth twisted into a pained smile, "at what point in your service to me did you decide to betray me?"

"No!" Merlin almost shouted the word. "It wasn't like that, I promise. I was born with magic. I never had a choice. Arthur, I have never betrayed you. I swear it."

Arthur looked taken aback. "Born with it?" he repeated, puzzled.

Merlin felt a small surge of hope. If Arthur would allow him to explain, there was at least a chance he could make him understand.

"I've always had magic, from the time I was a baby. I didn't have to learn it. It just happened."

"Huh." The noise came out almost as a laugh, and the hope vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Arthur studied him carefully, his mouth turned down tightly. "So you've been lying to me literally from the very beginning. I've never actually known you."

"It's not like that." Merlin did his best to keep his voice even. "I'm still me. And I have always, always been loyal to you. I use my magic to help you. To protect you."

Arthur let out a harsh laugh. "Why should I believe you? Why should I believe that everything else was a lie, but this is the truth?"

Merlin shook his head desperately. "Everything else wasn't a lie, Arthur. Just…" he sighed. "Just some of it."

"I trusted you." Arthur finally turned away from him and faced out the window. "More than anyone else, really. With my secrets, with my information, with my weapons. I trusted you with my life!" Arthur laughed incredulously. "And you lied! For years, you lied to my face, over and over again!"

"I would have been killed!" Merlin's voice rose with frustration. "Sorcery is punishable by death, in case you've forgotten! Because believe me, I never forget it. Not for a minute."

"Because magic corrupts," Arthur said bitterly. "It's poisonous to everything it touches."

"No, it's not." Merlin argued passionately. "Magic can be used for good or evil, just like a sword."

"Magic is nothing like a sword!" Arthur snapped. He ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head incredulously.

"It was just a crazy idea," he said after a moment. "I never dreamed you'd actually say yes. You're Merlin, for heaven's sake! Why…why would you even come to Camelot if you had magic?"

"I—"

"I wasn't actually asking," Arthur said sharply. "It's not like you didn't know what happens to sorcerers in Camelot! Why run the risk? Unless…" Arthur stopped pacing abruptly and flinched as though he'd been hit. "Unless your plan all along was to get close to me?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Merlin retorted before he could help himself, and in an instant Arthur had crossed the room.

Merlin barely registered the movement before he felt the fist connect with his face. He grabbed a chair to help him keep his balance, his vision swimming for just a moment. When it cleared, he could see Arthur, still standing mere feet from him.

"You have lied every minute that we have known each other." Arthur's voice was rough with rage. "You have kept secrets that would endanger me and my kingdom. And you have the nerve to say that my suspicions are ridiculous?"

Merlin swallowed and took a step backwards. He'd seen Arthur fight enough to recognize the way he was standing, his feet braced, his hands ready. There was a very strong possibility he was about to throw another punch.

Then, to his surprise, Arthur dropped his hands slightly and rolled his eyes. "For heaven's sake, Merlin, have you never been in a fight before? You're supposed to try to hit me back!"

Merlin froze, his hand still covering the cheek where the punch had landed.

"I know you're not much of a fighter," Arthur added, just a hint of mockery in his voice, "but are you a sorcerer or aren't you?"

And another fist hit his ribs, harder than Merlin would have thought possible, knocking the wind out of him and making him double over.

"Come on, Merlin!" Arthur cried. "You could take me down without touching me, couldn't you? Fight back!"

One more blow, this one to his eye, and Merlin finally fell backwards, the table behind him saving him from sprawling on the floor.

As he saw Arthur draw back for another punch, he shielded his arms over his head.

"I will not fight my king!" The words came out choked and shrill, but fierce. He waited, but the next blow never landed. Slowly, he lowered his arms to find Arthur glaring at him, hands at his side. Then Arthur turned his back and walked away from Merlin.

"Get out of my sight."