Chapter 11

As Merlin scrambled through the undergrowth his mind raced coming up with excuses and stories that were dismissed as soon as they came up. No he wouldn't lie to Gwaine, it was clear that even if he wanted to he wouldn't be able to. Gwaine would hear the truth, from beginning to end and who knows maybe then Merlin would feel better about it. He made his final decision just as they broke through the trees and were left gazing out over the lake of Avalon. Without looking back Merlin walked to the shore and sat not looking back and not reacting when Gwaine settled down next him. Merlin took a deep breath and prepared to speak.

"I don't know what I am going to tell you, I don't know how or where I am going to start but let me assure you everything I am about to say is the truth." Throughout his short speech Merlin still hadn't looked at Gwaine and remained rigid as he stared out over the water.

"I grew up in a small farming village on the edge of Cenred's kingdom. I was the bastard child of a poor woman so I wasn't treated very well, despite this I was happy we had just enough food on the table and I was loved. This all changed when I was five. It was just after the harvest and a contingent of men on horseback trouped into our village, at the lead was a king. The village stopped what they were doing and looked on in shock, the king called for silence saying that he was King Urian and he was looking for men and boys to join his army. Naturally my village said no. What right did this man have to our families? We were citizens of Cenred's kingdom not his. Soon after we pointed this out he sighed and simply told the guards to grab any man or boy who looked eligible. Of course our village scattered like sheep when faced with a wolf and in the confusion I was seperated from my mother and knocked down. As I fell I did something, I don't want you to judge me when I tell you just listen." Merlin took a deep breath and prepared to spill his secrets when Gwaine interrupted him and said,

"Just get on with it mate, your just building up suspense here." Merlin just sighed and continued.

"I did magic Gwaine I have magic." It was only then that Merlin finally looked at Gwaine. Gwaine was sitting staring at Merlin with a strangely blank expression on his face, Merlin sat fidgeting wait for the reaction he believed was coming fear, anger and hatred. What he got instead was a giggle. Merlin's head whipped around and stared and the tremors racking Gwaine's body and the tears of mirth coming to his eyes.

"It all makes sense now!" Gwaine half shouted when he finally had his body under control, Merlin continued to stare on in shock as his friend did the exact opposite of what he expected.

"The random falling branches, the weird sudden skills, the misdirected arrows and spears, the fire in the slavers lair and you making it through almost every fight unhurt without any armour." Gwaine continued, with each sentence Merlin's stomach dropped slightly he knew he wasn't that subtle but did all the knights know. Seeing Merlin's fear Gwaine hurriedly covered.

" Don't worry I only noticed because I actually bother watching my surroundings and you while I fight, the others are all too thickheaded to notice you during fights. Except for maybe Lancelot." Merlin relaxed at that.

"It's ok if Lancelot notices he's known almost since we first met." Seeing Gwaine's slightly hurt face he quickly added.

"I didn't tell him he found out because of the griffin." This left Gwaine with a strangely bemused expression on his face.

"Now there's a story I'll have to hear eventually, but now continue with your story." Gwaine appeared appeased and much happier now that Merlin was being on the level with him but Merlin was sure that it could snap at any moment.

"Once I arrived at the King's court I was assigned to the… assassins guild." Once again Merlin paused and checked his friends reaction, Gwaine appeared a bit shocked and it looked like things were starting to add up in mind.

"When I arrived I was assigned a room with three other boys. They're names were Galahad, Kay and Bedivere. Kay was a lot like you always laughing and joking, Bedivere was more like Percival I guess strong, large and silent but Galahad was my best friend. He was like Lancelot with a bit of Arthur, kind and loyal to his friends but to his enemies he was brutal and merciless and held long hard grudges. He had magic aswell, he was a Druid and his camp was massacred by Uther as a child he hated Camelot and Uther for that. All three of them had come of their own accord to be trained from an orphanage in Urian's kingdom. They were all seven and I was a scrawny five year old the youngest trainee ever, they adopted me as their younger brother and protected me from the older boys when they could." Here Merlin paused thinking back on his childhood before the missions and the death, then he plunged back into his story.

"When I arrived I didn't want to learn to kill I just wanted to go home and I figured that if I was bad enough at what they were teaching me they would let me go so I only tried when they taught me how to use my magic or to read and write. About two months before the harvest when the boys confronted me about it they then told that the worst boys of each year are cut and released at the Harvest and the Yule, but even though the King may have released them they will become the first kills of the top bays in the year before they reach the gates. With their help I picked up the slack then and worked my way to near the top of the listings and survived the first cut, I hated it but I did it to survive." Here Merlin took another breather to think about his time at King Urian's court and how to explain it to Gwaine.

"I guess the next thing to tell you about is my first kill."