Hullo,

I've just found this oneshot stashed away on the depths of my many files and decided to post it, I hope it entertains some of you.

There was a feast, again. Merlin could not figure out what it was about nobles and feasts. Then again, if he could sit around eating pounds of the result of their great cook's hard work and filling his stomach with mead, he would probably throw a feast every day. The fact that they – with Merlin's unknown help – had just defeated a magical beast on the previous day could have something to do with it.

Unfortunately, as it was, he could not partake in the event. He was a servant, which meant spending hours on his feet, watching nobles eat, drink and tell tales of battle while keeping an eye out for the king and queen's goblets, making sure they was always full of the diluted wine in Merlin's hand.

Of course, the knights being there was a plus. Gwaine went out of his way to joke with Merlin, even Lancelot included him on a few conversations if he stepped by, but his feet hurt, his head was pounding for his lack of sleep and the excessive talk, and he had not eaten anything decent since lunch. He was tired, and desperately wanted to fall into his bed.

His hopes went up when some knights and other guest started to leave. It meant that soon there would be only Arthur, Guinevere and the other knights, and shortly thereafter no one at all. He would help the other servants tidy up and finally have some well-deserved sleep.

So he thought, until sometime later the doors of the dinner hall burst open, hitting the walls with the strength they opened with. The king and his knights immediately jumped to their feet, while the few remaining servants had a look of who was at the door and ran out.

The woman in the purple dress, black hair down to the middle of her back and cruel blue eyes fixed on the king raised a hand, making all other entrances snap shut once a servant had passed and keeping them all very much stuck in there.

Merlin had not run with the servants, of course. He still stood behind the thrones, eyeing Morgana with anger and a lot of impatience. This was the last thing he needed, one more thing to tire him out and keep him from his precious sleep.

"Hello, brother" Morgana smirked, stepping forward and closing the doors of the hall behind her "did you miss me?"

"Morgana" Arthur acknowledged, tight lipped "What do you want?"

"What I've always wanted. My birthright" She sneered "And I've come to take my throne"

Merlin has heard the speech so many time and he cannot help but to snort at the ridiculousness of it all. Doesn't she ever learn? Unfortunately, the noise calls her attention to him.

"Are you finding something funny, Merlin?" She narrows her eyes, hands raised toward him.

The king and the knights tense.

Merlin is just too done with it all to care.

"Yes, actually" He answers blandly, ignoring Arthur's whisper of 'Merlin, what the hell do you think you're doing?' and continuing "If you don't mind, just why you think you have a birthright to the throne?"

"I am Uther's daughter and a High Priestess of the Old Religion," She says, as if talking to someone mentally challenged.

"The throne goes to the oldest male in line, you being his daughter wouldn't change that," Merlin explains in the same tone "I have a proposition for you though"

"What can you do for me? You're just a mere servant" Morgana scoffs.

"Yes, I'm just a servant. A servant that just spent almost two days awake, had to work the whole day for Arthur, pick up Herbs for Gaius, clean all the armors of the knights and stand for hours serving in the feast, I'm bloody tired and I had high hopes of going to bed until you showed up with your old temper tantrum." She looked more offended by the second, and her fingers sparked with the held-back magic "My whole body hurts, my head is killing me and I don't care to hear again the same nonsensical speech you do over and over and over. Can we please talk without all the melodrama? It's tiring and old news for everyone"

"…Talk?! You want to talk. I tried it already! No one ever listened to me! Not even you, you traitor! I'm tired of talking; I'm taking what's mine!" She pulled her hand back, as if ready to launch her magic straight at them.

"I'm sorry," Merlin says, and she ignored it, but he continued, "I'm sorry I didn't believe you when you came to me about your magic. But I took you to the druids!"

That makes a few people gasp in surprise, and Arthur glances at Merlin with eyes wide for a moment.

"You poisoned me!" She steps closer, making the knights next to the end of the table try to step back and realize they cannot move, feet glued to the ground.

None noticed the slight shimmer of gold in the servant's eyes before the whole thing started.

"You were the cause of the sleeping spell" He exclaimed back "I had to get Morgause to cancel it"

"You wanted to kill me!"

"If I wanted to kill you, I would have cut your throat, not fed you a slow-acting poison and told your sister the antidote" He deadpans "You can't blame me for your bad decisions"

"No, I blame Uther"

"And he's dead, because you slipped an amulet to him that would reverse healing spells" He rebutted "How do you expect people to accept magic when all you do with yours is cause pain and suffering?"

"I'm ridding the world of those that will never change!" She comes close

"You may be a seer, but you can't know that" He shook his head, and Morgana's mouth dropped open slightly in surprise "If magic users stopped being so bloody stupid and ceased to attack Camelot, maybe things could change!"

Most people in the room gaped at the treasonous talk, but Lancelot simply looked sad.

"You don't know what you're talking about! You are a no one" She laughed, "You're not even worth my talking to you, you don't know what it is like to be hated for what you can't help to be! I'm only trying to build a better future for my kind, and I don't owe you any explanations!" the light in her hands enlarged, glowing a bright red, and he was suddenly reminded of Nimueh "The time to talk has ended" She threw it at him.

He did not dodge in time.

There were gasps as the king, queen and knights saw the manservant be thrown at the back wall, and all now realized they could not move and were completely at the witch's mercy.

"You have – no idea" Merlin's voice startled them as the servant got up and looked at his shirt for a moment, noting the round hole in its torso.

"Y-you should be dead" Morgana faltered, stepping back slightly "How aren't you dead, why don't you ever stay dead?!"

"You had it easy, Morgana" Merlin looks up from his shirt, eyed determined as he locked them with hers and starts walking towards her "You only found out when? When you were nineteen, maybe?"

"Stop right there!" She threw another ball of fire at him, but he ducked it in time for it to scorch the wall instead of his head.

"You had a brother who once helped you sneak a Druid off the castle, Arthur would have accepted you!" He had passed the table, now only a few feet away.

"He is just like Uther!" She argued, "He stood back at the unjust executions even when he could do something about it! He does not deserve his throne!" she tried hurling spells at him, but he expertly dodged them all "Stay back!"

"So did I" Merlin admitted

"You're a servant, you couldn't have done a thing" She steps back again.

"Oh, but I could" Merlin chuckled, and it startled all in the room "You say I don't know what you feel like but I do. I did since I was a child! You never had to grow up isolated because sometimes you wanted something, and it floated your way because you could not control it, you did not have to fear for your life all those years before you discovered what you could do! And you bloody well didn't get sent to a city and see an execution for magic right on your first day, then uses magic to save the life of the same bully that beat you up in the market! And then, then" he laughs, and it's cold and so un-merlin like "you keep using it, time and time again, to save the same prat's life, because you hope he'll live to see his coronation and become the best king the kingdoms have ever seen, the Once and Future King" He sighs "You're a child throwing a tantrum"

"H-he's not – he can't be the Once and Future King!" Morgana now seems genuinely unsure "He is a tyrant like Uther, he could never bring Magic back to Albion" she now seems more sure, and smirks "Besides, if he is the Once and Future King, where is Emrys to protect him?"

Merlin looks at her seeming slightly disappointed.

"By his side, of course" He smiles "Always"

"Y-you – no, I refuse to believe it" Morgana steeled her will, raising her hand again "ácwele bitre"

Merlin raised his too, just in time to cast a shield in front of himself, eyes lighting up with gold.

"You're a sorcerer," She said in manner of accusation.

"Warlock, actually. Emrys. Not very nice to make your acquaintance" He replied, hoping things would end here, but he did not count with the eager glow in her eyes.

"You will join me," She announced.

"Never" Merlin looked at her as if she was crazy

"You've just revealed your magic in front of the king, he will have your head" She smirked "We could kill him, with your power none would oppose our reign"

Merlin sighed. She really did not get it, did she?

"I don't want any power" He explained "And I would never join you. If Arthur asks for my head, I will hand him the sword. I am loyal to him and Camelot… and, prophecy or no prophecy, he is my friend"

He did not look behind him to see if Arthur felt the same, he was afraid the answer might weaken his resolve.

"So be it" and she moved.

Merlin did not have the time to stop her from casting, and the spell was coming straight for Arthur. Luckily, he the King could take care of himself, and immediately ducked.

"That is enough!" Merlin extended his hand, and Morgana emitted a choking gasp.

The witch fell to her knees, hands coming up to her throat as if in lack of air.

Merlin kneeled in front of her, taking her pulses and willing his magic to give him what he needed. A moment later, metallic shackles engraved in runes were around her wrists and neck. She gasped again, this time at the loss. Her ever-flowing power could no longer be felt through her body, and she knew this was the end.

Merlin got up, trembling on his feet at the overexertion of his powers, and then turned to the table. Ignoring the various reactions, he cancelled the spell that kept the people in place, eyes solely on Arthur.

The king sidestepped the table, waking towards Merlin, with some knights moving behind him. Lancelot noticed this and hurried to Merlin's side, sword raised against their sovereign. Surprisingly, Gwaine and Percival joined him, flanking Merlin. He smiled slightly.

"It's ok" Merlin spoke calmly, and then looked at Arthur before doing something unexpected.

He kneeled.

"You're a – warlock," Arthur echoed, and Merlin nodded.

"Yes" he reinforced.

"I'm not letting you kill him" Gwaine stepped forward, stopped by one of the other knights from getting to the king.

"You would die for me," Arthur stated.

"Yes" Merlin nodded again "Now, please either kill me or let me go to bed, I'm exhausted and probably won't be able to magic up a cup of water for a week after that. It's bloody hard to use magic to create something that will contain magic, you know. I wasn't even sure it would work"

"You're an idiot," Arthur said, exasperatedly but with a touch of fondness.

"So I'm told" Merlin grinned.

Thoughts?