A/N: Hello, fellow readers! Here goes nothing, just a little piece that had been nagging at my mind for a few days after I finished the whole 5 seasons in a little less than a week. English is my second language, so feel free to correct any mistake. Mistakes are to me what magic is to Uther! So, DIE MISTAKES. I cut it in chapters since it appeared to be long, so the next chapter(s) is/are coming very soon!

Warnings: Merthur slash. Rated M for a reason (not this particular chapter though).

Disclaimer: Of course I own nothing. This is all for my and your entertainment. If I did own something, that series would have had some interesting plot twists. Heh. My mind is reeling right now, so I'll let you go and start reading.

Reviews are greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance for any comment you may leave.

PS: Kudos to anyone able to find the one (twisted) Star Trek reference in this chapter and in the next one too (when it will be published).

The Wonders of Magic

The swords clashed and scraped against each other, drawing that screeching sound of metal against metal as a few sparks ignited to life due to the friction. The moves were calculated and precise, the attacks and the parries, the dodges and the ducking, the turn of the wrist as one of the fighters sent his blade straight and heavy into his opponent's shield. Brute force flirted with deadly precision, strong blows meant to trip followed light touches meant to confuse, and head-on charges skirmished with clever steps.

It was a dance, Merlin realized as he watched Arthur spar with Lancelot. A light and yet complicated dance where any misstep could mean injury or death. When the fighters weren't engaged in the kind of melees and tournaments the royalty of Camelot seemed to be so fond of, swordsmanship was actually quite beautiful to watch. Merlin's gaze was still on the fight, admiring every move. A duel, he thought, looked so much cleverer than the inanity of jousting. He noticed Arthur's arm raising a little, and his weight shifting to his right foot, making the sand covering the training ground sink a little. Merlin smiled, because he knew that move. Lancelot will end up on the ground – and not thirty seconds later it was exactly as he foretold. Arthur took off his helmet, dropping it next to him and spun around, granting every knight one of his bright smiles, before holding a hand out to Lancelot, who took it with a laugh and got back on his feet.

"Training's over for today, sirs!" the Prince shouted, before picking his helmet up and making his way toward Merlin. "Ah, training went very well this morning," he added, holding his arms out so that Merlin could start getting him out of the armor.

"That last move was a sure kill. Every time I see you use it, no one stands a chance."

Arthur looked up at Merlin, or more accurately looked down, as his servant was slightly bent over, working on the buckles at Arthur's side.

"So you were paying attention. I thought you didn't like fighting?"

"Well," Merlin said, looking at the Prince's face for a second, raising an eyebrow and making a face on purpose, "I don't like seeing twenty or more men fighting each other until only one is left, just to prove whose is bigger. I mean," he went on, seeing Arthur's mouth open but cutting him short, "There's just no point in risking injury or worse if there's not even a war going on."

It was Arthur's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"Some things are really lost on you, Merlin!" he said, and as said Merlin finished taking off the chainmail, he ruffled his hair, taking advantage of the fact that his servant had both hands full.

"Hey!"

"Get that to the armory, and have a bath ready for me right after!"

"Yes sire, as you wish, sire," Merlin grumbled, as he gathered the remaining armor parts in his arms and followed Arthur to the castle.

oooooooooo

After polishing Arthur's armor and tending to his bath, Merlin made his way to the dining room with the Prince. His thought were elsewhere for the greater part of the lunch, until Uther informed Arthur that they had been made aware of a woman practicing sorcery, and that she was soon to be brought back here and imprisoned. Merlin's eyes snapped back into focus, and he listened carefully. Arthur was frowning.

"What crime did she committed, father?"

"Well, she was working as a physician in a village close to the castle, but a traveler came this morning and informed us that she was using magic openly to heal the people. He was just passing through the village, and had hurt his hand, so they brought him to that woman, and she treated his wound normally, it was not very serious."

"Then how would he know about her using magic?" Arthur asked, frowning again.

"While he was treated, a young boy was brought in. He had been hurt working in the fields, an accident with a sickle, the traveler said. The wound was bad. The boy was laid on a cot on the far side of the room, and a curtain was drawn, but not entirely. The man said that he peeked through while washing his hands, and he saw her magic. He heard the words, and noticed the glow of her... spell."

Merlin strained his neck to see Arthur's face from the side, and saw that the frown had deepened.

"Father, may I ask you something?"

"Yes son, what is it?"

"If..." Arthur seemed to be choosing his words carefully. "If she didn't do anything but heal people, does she really deserve to be executed? I understand that magic can be used for evil, and that is what we have encountered the most, but someone who has good intentions..."

"Arthur. I have told you this all your life: it doesn't matter why magic is used or by whom. Magic is evil, it corrupts those who want to use it, even with good intentions. And," Uther added, jaw clenched, gazing hard at his son, "it was because of magic that your mother is dead. The discussion is closed."

Arthur pondered this, chewing on a piece of bread, before nodding curtly.

"Yes, father."

Arthur and his father finished eating in a silence as heavy as Camelot itself. The Prince finally excused himself from the table, and motioned for Merlin to follow him - quite uselessly, where else was he supposed to go? Merlin looked at Arthur walking before him, back stiff, his hands clasped behind his back. He suddenly stopped and spoke, startling his servant.

"What do you think, Merlin?"

"Er, about what?"

"That woman in the village, being a witch. I know that every person who had magic I've encountered till now tried to kill me, or my father, or destroy the kingdom, or everything at the same time. That is evil, but I don't know, using it to cure people don't seem very evil to me."

Merlin drew in a breath, carefully weaving his next sentence.

"Do you want my honest opinion?" he asked, just to be sure he wasn't going to end in the stocks today.

Arthur rolled his eyes.

"When are you not honest, Merlin? Even when you shouldn't, you just speak your mind! So here, I ask you for your opinion, so don't refuse to speak just because I want to hear it, for once."

"So," he started, "healing and curing doesn't seem very evil to me either, even if magic is used to achieve that. I know every person you met and who could wield magic tried to affect the safety of the kingdom and the king, but these were evil, and wanted to use their magic with bad intentions. Since magic was banned, no one, even those with no evil intent whatsoever, would come around showing their magic, even to heal someone. There are a lot of people who can use magic out there whom no one knows about, because if they did, they would be brought in and executed."

Arthur was silent again, thinking.

"My father thinks that magic corrupts people and renders them evil, whether they want to use is for good or not," he finally said.

"With all the respect due to your father, I disagree with that," Merlin said. He was glad for the opportunity of showing Arthur that magic wasn't always evil. "Hey, you did ask me to speak honestly," he shrugged, before flashing a sheepish grin at Arthur's bewildered face. "What is evil is the people who want to do evil things," he roughly summarized, "not the magic they happen to have, and they would be evil even if they didn't have magic. That's what I think." He cast a side look at Arthur. "Please don't behead me?"

Arthur let out a bark of laughter.

"Ha! No, I won't! You're a terrible servant, but I don't want to go through the trouble of finding another. Because I will not have George at my service again. Definitely not." His grin diminished to a simple smile, and he added, "I asked you for your opinion, I'm not going to have you killed for it. Besides, what you said isn't... stupid." He spun around to resume his walk toward his chambers. "We're going hunting this afternoon!"

"Oh, just great, more mindless killing," Merlin complained aloud.

"I heard that!"

oooooooooo

Merlin just knew that they should have avoided hunting this afternoon. It doesn't matter how, but he simply knew it. Well, no, actually, he hadn't known anything about how bad a hunting party could go. It just occurred to him that every single time Arthur dragged him along to do something where they could potentially be in danger, danger was never one to disappoint.

This is what was running through Merlin's mind as he rushed forward on his horse after Arthur, who had decided that he wanted to race a deer. Gwaine and Percival, who had accompanied them, were left behind, for they were taking a break when Arthur had spotted the deer. The Prince's crossbow bolt scared the animal, missing it only by a hair's breadth, and he had taken off. So had Arthur. And so had Merlin, but not after a string of colorful curses directed at the stupidity of a specific member of Camelot's royalty.

After many branches whipping at his face, Merlin spotted Arthur holding his horse still not so far from him. Putting his own horse to a trot, he then came to a stop near Arthur, breathing heavily.

"I swear... Taking off like that... Madness... Where's that deer anyway?"

"Oh, lost it," Arthur cast an uncaring look in the direction the deer had probably taken. "But, more importantly, look at that," he said, waving a hand to their right.

Merlin managed to hold back the snarky comment that was threatening to spill from his lips, looked the way Arthur was pointing, and saw some sort of clearing through the trees. It seemed to be sheltered by a thick grove of oaks, and from where they stood, they couldn't see much of it. Dismounting, Arthur tied his horse to a nearby tree and made way to the clearing, Merlin doing the same then following him, mumbling all the way.

Upon entering the place though, Merlin felt a chill, starting in the small of his back, up his spine and down his arms. It was not an unpleasant sort of chill though, but as Arthur prowled curiously around, only Merlin knew what it meant: something magical was at work here. The clearing was rather small, fringed with the thick trees almost all around, except for the small arch they went through. The ground was covered in thick grass, and to the side there was a pond of clear water with rocks at the bottom. A medium-sized plate made of stone stood near the pond, with some drawings and words engraved in it. Arthur decided to study it, and as he came closer to the plate, Merlin felt the chill come back, right up his neck, making the hair on the nape stand. Arthur reached his hand to touch it, and Merlin got such a sense of urgency that he opened his mouth, taking one step toward Arthur, about to shout something, but it was too late. Arthur's hand brushed against the plate, and it started to glow.

"What the... ?"

The glow exploded.

Merlin awoke to the feeling of Arthur shaking him and calling his name.

"Merlin? Merlin! Damn it, Merlin, just open your eyes!"

Merlin blinked, once, and groaned.

"Finally!" Arthur let go of him and heavily sat next to his groggy servant. "What the hell happened?"

"You tell me," Merlin answered, rubbing one eye. "You touched the thing, and all hell broke loose. Why do you always have to do something that will end up badly?" He regained full consciousness, and looked straight at Arthur, who looked vexed. "What? You are always the one to make decisions which have you or me injured in the end, when it's not enchanted or something. "Let's go into that cave, Merlin, I want to see what's inside", "let's go through the Valley of the Fallen Kings, Merlin, it's a shortcut", "let's go fight a dragon, Merlin, it will save the kingdom"." Merlin rolled his eyes.

"Shall I remember you who exactly you are talking to?" said Arthur, raising his voice a bit and looking very annoyed.

"No sire," Merlin answered with a grin, "I know exactly who I'm talking to, my Prince."

He then proceeded to get up and walk toward the plate, leaving a bewildered Arthur behind. That nerve! he thought. He also got up, mumbling something about stocks, and noticed a faint shimmer near him, just before the lines of oak trees surrounding them. He frowned, then reached out, palm first, until it laid flat against... nothing. After the first moments of surprise, the Prince slid his hand to the left, then to the right. He pushed hard against the... nothing that kept his hand from going through.

"Merlin!"

"What?" came the answer from the young man, who was crouching near the stone plate and examining it.

"There is an invisible wall all around the clearing."

"There... What?"

"Come and see for yourself."

Merlin got back up, looking at Arthur, who had both his hands in the air, obviously straining against something. He rounded the pond and approached the trees from the opposite side of where Arthur was standing. He noticed the shimmer, reached out, and bumped his hand against something. Repeating Arthur's motions, he tried to move his hands around, but everywhere there was this invisible force that didn't let him through.

"Ah, I get it now. Come here," he told Arthur, who had turned toward him. They both walked back to the plate, and Merlin pointed at the drawings. "Here, look at this. This drawing depicts the clearing and its pond, there the plate is glowing, and there is this sort of dome surrounding the whole clearing. And no exit. See this symbol here? We've already seen something like this, it's a druid mark. I think this may have been a secret and sacred place for them, with some sort of defensive spell, which you triggered when you touched the plate."

"Well then, let's get it down the same way."

Arthur put his hand on the plate again, looking around. Merlin shook his head, and wound a hand through his black hair.

"No, I don't think it works like that. This is obviously magic, since you don't have any, I wonder how you could even put it up in the first place. Moreover, look, there is something written on the plate, with another drawing. Only magic can undo magic. And if I understand the drawing here, someone who can use magic has to call the shield off by... attracting its power to themselves?" Merlin frowned, but it was what it looked like.

"Well, first, I think Gwaine and Percival will soon follow our tracks and find our horses. I don't know how long we've been gone, but it shouldn't be that long for them to find us."

Merlin nodded, and examined the plate again for some clue he may have missed, while Arthur walked back to the small arch in the trees that was their entrance into the clearing and started pacing. Not that long after, they heard the sound of several people riding toward them. Merlin jumped on his feet and joined Arthur by the arch, looking intently at their horses, or what he could make of them through all the leaves and branches. A moment later, they saw the two knights who were left behind earlier riding toward them. Percival pointed at their horses, and they stopped near them.

"Percival! Percival! Gwaine! We're over here!" Merlin shouted. None of their two friends seemed to hear. Gwaine pointed at their footprints in the slightly muddy ground, and started following them. Soon enough he arrived right in front of Arthur and Merlin, just before the small arch. He looked at the ground, puzzled, then seemed to take in his surroundings, looking around and frowning.

"Gwaine?" Arthur said, rather loudly. "Do you hear me?"

"Found something?" Percival yelled.

"Nothing!" Gwaine answered. "The tracks just stop there, there's nothing at all after that."

Merlin's eyes went wide, and turning to the Prince, he stated flatly:

"They can't see nor hear us."

"Seems like it."

Arthur sounded frustrated, and he tugged at his hair with one hand. Gwaine was heading back to Percival.

"Better go back to the castle, he said. Not much of a search party with just the two of us."

Percival agreed, and the two of them rode off, taking the other horses with them.

Merlin sagged against the invisible shield, putting one hand on his face.

"Greaaaaat, we're again in one big mess here..."

"Whining doesn't help," Arthur said half-heartedly. He wasn't feeling so optimistic himself right now.

But he couldn't know what was really on Merlin's mind right now. It was either use magic and hope to live, or both of them dying here.

oooooooooo

The sun was setting upon the forest, and still Merlin and Arthur were stuck in the clearing. Merlin had reached an agreement with himself, and he was decided. There was no way they were staying stuck in there until death do them part - which would be sooner than later, with water to drink but not a single bit of food to eat. He could wait until Arthur was asleep. But something in him longed to tell the truth to his Prince, his friend. Or so he hoped. He got up, jaws and fists clenched, and walked to the middle of the clearing.

"What are you doing?" Arthur asked Merlin, who had his back to him.

"I am your servant, aren't I?"

"Well... Sure you are, what the..."

"Please listen. I can get us out of here. Just..." he swallowed. "Just remember that I am your servant. Whatever happens, I have been, and always shall be, loyal to you and Camelot. Whatever happens, remember that. Remember that if you were not a prince, we could have been friends." He turned around, looking Arthur in the eye. "Remember that I trust you."

Before Arthur could say anything else, his mouth hanging open, Merlin raised his arms and faced each of his palms to the sides of the shield.

"Clachan crine sgiath, m'feargh skearn diolath!"

The words left his lips, loud and clear. His eyes glowed golden for a second, and the whole dome shielding the clearing glowed as well. From the top, it started to disappear, the light heading right to Merlin, who seemed to be basking in it. Arthur still hadn't managed to close his mouth, and witnessing this did nothing to improve his less than royal looks at the moment. When the last of the light had come to surround Merlin, it flashed, blinding the Prince, before disappearing completely.

When sight came back to Arthur, he saw Merlin kneeling on the ground, breathing heavily, and then collapsing. The blond man crawled on all fours, no matter the princely behavior, torn between anger at Merlin being able to use magic, concern for his frien- servant who didn't look so good after that feat, and a big imbroglio of thoughts that he was certain to deal with later. Just, not now. He reached Merlin and rolled him on his back, the motion having the warlock blink and cough. Merlin then drew in a shaky breath, closing his eyes, not really wanting to see Arthur's face right now.

Arthur had a million things he wanted to do and say, but the first thing he managed was not really consequential.

"I should kick your ass to the Valley of the Fallen Kings and back."

Merlin let out a raspy laugh of disbelief, before starting coughing again.

"You," he said, barely audible, "can have me in the dungeons as soon as we get back. Or if you prefer, you could always leave me here. I'm sure there are some hungry wolves close by."

Arthur, not smiling, shoved him hard.

"Don't joke with that. You. Hell, you..." He rubbed his face with his hands. "You lied to me from day one. Don't speak, for God's sake. Just... Shut up."

Merlin closed his mouth. Whatever he had wanted to say would probably sound more like croaking than talking. Arthur grabbed his arm, ungentle, and yanked him up. He rested Merlin's arm on his shoulders, holding his wrist, and grabbed his waist. Camelot was a going to be a long way back.

oooooooooo

By the time they arrived to the castle, Merlin could walk on his own, which was fortunate, since Arthur dumped him where he was standing as soon as they entered the main yard. He stumbled a bit, but managed to stay up. Arthur had not said a single word during the walk back. He saw the knights and Uther come down, and Arthur explaining how they got lost while he was chasing a deer, and how they had continued by foot to track it better, and how they ended up into a multi-tunneled cave that had taken them hours getting out of... Wait a minute.

Staggering slightly, Merlin grabbed the big stone banister and looked at Arthur. He had his back to him, but he was clearly and noticeably making something up. Sooo he wouldn't sleep in the dungeons tonight, nor face execution tomorrow. Nice. Since everyone present was starting to go back inside the castle, he started going up the stairs, but almost fell, until someone grabbed his arm and held him up.

"Merlin? What happened to you? I heard Arthur but you seem..."

"Gaius. Ah, I need to..."

"Yes, yes, well, let's get you inside first, alright?" said the elderly man, gently leading Merlin to their apartments.

Once Merlin was seated at the table with a hot bowl of soup in front of him, he retold everything that had happened.

"He knows, Gaius," and the fact was sufficient to make him blanch. "He knows, and now I will never be able to..." His voice became strangled. He laid his hands on his face and stayed like that a few moments.

"Merlin," Gaius said, "look, you heard Arthur, didn't you? If he wanted you dead, surely he would have told Uther right away. Instead, he lied about what you really went through."

"This doesn't say whether he will ever talk to me again," Merlin sighed.

"You'd better go to bed now, my boy. He didn't say anything about not coming to wake him up tomorrow, didn't he?"

"Well, no, but..." Merlin's stomach churned at the thought.

"Then you will go. Tomorrow. Now's the time to sleep, and don't make me force a sleeping draught down your throat," Gaius threatened.

Merlin all but ran up the stairs to his room. The old physician let out a hearty laugh.

"I'm sure Arthur will surprise you, my boy," he murmured for himself, "and in a good way."