Disclaimer: I Kind of own my laptop.

A/N Thank you to my beta Carinims01 :)

Arthur didn't speak for the longest of moments, his face blank. Merlin waited with baited breath for what he would say. Would he condemn him?

"I'm guessing I didn't know before, right?" His voice was dead, it held no trace of emotion. Fear clawed up Merlin's throat.

"No." Merlin whispered fearfully.

"Right."

"Arthur… you have to understand I couldn't tell you before, first there was Uther and then I wasn't sure-" Arthur held up a hand, silencing Merlin quite effectively. There was an uneasy silence between them.

"You don't need to explain it to me." Arthur said heavily.

"What? Of course I do… I lied to you for four years!" Merlin exclaimed angrily.

"What is the point of telling me when I don't remember anything about our friendship before a couple of days ago?"

"Yes but…"

"But you want me to relieve you of your guilt?" Arthur gave a hollow laugh "Not right now Merlin."

"Arthur it's not like that!"

"You just want me to say 'it's okay Merlin' 'I forgive you Merlin'. It's tough, maybe when I have my memories back I will understand, maybe I will be angry. I don't know, but for now I really don't care Merlin. All I care about is defeating Morgana and returning Camelot to normal. Your guilt can wait."

"Of course," said Merlin flabbergasted. There was no denying the anger in Arthur's words and he was right to a certain extent, Merlin did need him to tell him that he had done the right thing, the guilt of lying to his friends had weighed heavily on his soul for far too long, but it was selfish of him to assume that Arthur would or could solve it for him.

"So I'm assuming we need your magic or something and this sword to destroy it." Arthur said matter of fact.

"Yes, it's not so much my magic but the earth's magic… I channel my magic from the earth- in its purest form."

"Right," said Arthur, nodding as though he now understood everything, he didn't. "So are we doing it now?"

"I don't see the point in waiting; the sooner we do this the sooner the knights will trust you again." Merlin hesitated slightly.

"What's wrong?" Arthur asked curiously.

Merlin shrugged before responding "It's just me being selfish I suppose. I'm scared that you are going to end up killing me, banishing me…"

"Do you not trust me at all?" Arthur clenched his teeth as he spoke.

"Of course I do."

"Then if you trust me, why would I bloody kill you?"

"I know, being an idiot again."

"Same as usual then." Arthur laughed quietly.

"Right, I think to do this we need to do it at the same time. I'll count down from three and then you stab the vessel- okay?" Arthur gave a firm nod and tightened his hold on his new blade. "Three" Arthur shifted his grip nervously "two" Merlin held out his hand and began to concentrate "One" Arthur slammed the sword into the vessel at the same time as Merlin drew magic from the surrounding ley lines and released it of his hand and into the vessel.

There was a moment when nothing happened. Arthur and Merlin traded nervous glances and then they felt the pull, staggering forwards slightly before being blown backwards as the vessel's magic exploded outwards, sending ripples of magic through the Kingdom.

Gwen stumbled, as did the others around her- it felt like a powerful gust of wind had just blown through the woods when previously there had been none. It wrapped around her, twirling her dress around her legs and whipping her hair around her face. It was no longer blowing towards her; it seemed to be blowing around her.

It was strange she would later reflect, but her memories or the real reality didn't fade in like one would presume, instead they hit her all at once.

So a brief second after the winds began every single knight in the clearing turned to each other, mouths wide open in shock.

No words were spoken and none were needed, the simple reality had already stuck them- they had already realized everything that could possibly be discussed.

The anger the group felt charged the air like electricity, if Morgana was in for a hard fight before it was nothing like she was going to receive now.

She wasn't going to get away with this.

Gwaine had been riding back to Camelot with a trail of weary Knights behind him when the curse broke.

He had sworn loudly.

Not only had he forgot about the bloody Princess, he knew the curse had affected him as well. He didn't know how yet, he was still going over the last few days events in his mind. He'd even managed to pinpoint when everything had changed. Merlin had collapsed on the training field, they'd all looked up and started to run over- that was when things had changed.

Arthur had simply walked off, eyes vacant and unseeing. He remembered that now. The others had continued running over, as though nothing was different.

That annoyed him no end, that Morgana had the ability to change everything and it had taken Merlin to realize and help change it back.

That was the question though wasn't it? How had Merlin remembered, retained all his knowledge when the others had not.

Gwaine didn't know, he had tried to immediately dismiss the thought that Merlin could have been working for the witch, it was unlikely and damn right near impossible. After all Merlin had told them the truth, Merlin had helped them break the curse and he was Merlin! Merlin wouldn't ever do such a thing.

But how else could he remember? Why else would the curse not affect him?

Gwaine pushed it to the back on his mind and pushed his horse on faster, the rest struggling to keep up.

Looked like the Princess was going to need some help.

Merlin lay dazed on the floor, his head was spinning and his magic felt almost woozy. It had taken more out of him that he thought, calling upon the magic of the earth like he had. The trees above him were leafless and he could feel the afternoon chill setting in.

Merlin turned his head to the right; Arthur was just sitting up and rubbing the back of his head. He gulped and slowly raised his head. He could just about see the source, it was blackened and smoking but Merlin knew that they had succeeded- the vessel had been destroyed and Morgana's plan was in tatters.

Except that of course created one problem, Arthur would remember everything and not only that, he would know the truth about him. Merlin couldn't help but panic as his stomach clenched in nervousness, deciding not to put of the inevitable for any longer Merlin sat up, turned and met Arthur's furious gaze.

Merlin didn't know what to do, he opened his mouth to speak but no words could come. There was nothing he could say that would make everything okay, nothing he could say to explain why he had lied for as long as he had.

Nothing he could say was good enough and he deserved the angry tirade that was due to come his way.

Arthur still hadn't said anything and he couldn't cope with this waiting anymore; here they both were still sat in the mud in silence.

"So, when where you going to tell me?" Arthur eventually asked, he didn't seem as angry as Merlin had expected- he just sounded sad.

"I don't know. Never?" Merlin replied.

"Right."

"I know! At first I couldn't and then I was just afraid." Merlin tried to explain, but it sounded pathetic even to his ears.

"Merlin, I know we don't say these things but you are my friend and I thought I was yours." Arthur inhaled deeply. "Apparently you don't feel like that."

"I do, Arthur."

"No, you don't, friends trust each other. I trusted you and you didn't give me the same in return." Arthur stood up and turned away from Merlin.

"What are you going to do?" Merlin asked fearfully as he wearily got to his feet.

"I'm not going to execute you Merlin." Arthur spat "How could you think so low of me?"

"I didn't- I wasn't"

"That's what you thought. I won't even banish you Merlin. I'm assuming you are going to help us against Morgana?" Arthur's words sounded hollow, yet another person he had trusted had lied to him.

"Of course."

"You will help us then, but we aren't friends anymore Merlin." Arthur said harshly "You can stay in Camelot after or you can leave- I don't care."

"Arthur, please…"

"No." Arthur stopped him. "I don't want to hear your excuses; I have more important things to worry about right now."

Merlin fought against the tide of tears that threatened to overwhelm him; somehow this was worse than execution or banishment. Arthur had just proved that he would have made the right decision if Merlin had told him when he didn't have to then everything would have been fine.

All the possibilities swum in his mind, all the chances he'd had to tell his friend, to trust that his friendship meant more to the King than his inbuilt prejudices.

If only he had given Arthur a chance.

"Whatever you say, Sire." That last word hurt, it signified the end of everything they had built up over the last four years. It signified the end of a great friendship.

They rode to the camp in stony silence, Excalibur hanging on Arthur's hip and the destroyed vessel hanging on Merlin's- the tatters of their friendship hanging between them.

"No!" Morgana screamed in fury, her eyes flashed and several startled guards were sent flying backwards. "No!" She yelled again.

Her vessel had been destroyed, its magic now null and void. How could Arthur have destroyed it? How could he have found such a blade and a willing sorcerer?

All her plans had dissolved into dust.

She snarled and stalked away from the silent men.

Someone had to have helped them, someone with magic- Emrys. That stupid, interfering, doddery old man had got in her way yet again. He had managed to destroy the most powerful magic she had ever cast and there was no doubt that he would now be ready to face her.

He wouldn't get away again. The next time they crossed paths would be his last, he was far too meddlesome to survive.

She looked forward to separating his head from his body. A blood red smirk rose upon her lips, she would not lose.

A/N Thanks for reading, leave a review please! Also what do you think of this image manager thing? I hate change! :)