Darkness. There was nothing but the dark, and the screams that rang in her ears. Some of them were her own, some were Aithusa's. Who'd have thought, Morgana the Mighty scared of the dark. He'd come down to visit daily. The thought filled her with dread. They were even worse than being left alone. The abuse that followed filled her with rage, but she refused to use her magic to help herself, for fear he would hurt Aithusa more than he already had. Morgana hadn't seen the sky for two years.

"Witch, you deserve nothing better. You should be grateful to be hidden away. You disgust the foulest of creatures, for they are beautiful compared to you. You will never leave this place. Eventually you will die here. I will be the only voice you hear, ever again. The last face you see."

It felt as though the Sarrum's words bruised her, because there was truth in them. How would she ever leave this place? There was no hope.

The days turned into weeks. There was a strict routine. One visit daily, maybe an hour of abuse, physical and verbal, then she would be left alone. Sometimes she cried. Aithusa always did. The poor creature needed more room to grow, as a plant would.

Weeks turned into months.

Still no hope.

Until one day, something changed.

The Sarrum had left for the day. Morgana was bitterly tired. Her head felt too heavy for her shoulders. And then, something miraculous happened. The roof above her was lifted off. She looked up. Maybe this was dying? Her eyes were screaming to be shut, the brightness was so intense, but she didn't want to stop seeing this light. Aithusa raised her head, and opened her wings, slightly. She looked back at Morgana.

"Go" she croaked.

Aithusa stared at her, for a few seconds, and then affectionately nudged Morgana with her nose.

She flew into the light, fading into a black smudge and then disappearing altogether.

A voice was calling to her, down the well.

'Morgana? Oh god.' He sounded so far away. Her eyes were so heavy. She felt herself being lifted, as though she was being carried, a pull on the shackles on her hands, and they were free. In her foggy state she realised no one had been lifting her, only once she had crumpled into someone's arms.

•••

Morgana woke up in a bed. She took a deep breath. The air was fresh. The first fresh air she had breathed in two years. What had happened? She turned slowly to look around the room. And she saw the man who had saved her.

"You!" she croaked angrily at him.

Merlin grimaced. She made a weak attempt at getting out of bed. Sharp pain ran up her left side, and she gasped. He rushed over, and she began to protest. She had never felt so feeble. She sighed, giving in without a struggle, letting him prop her up on a pile of pillows.

"You should have a drink of water," he suggested, offering her a flask brimming with water.

She eyeballed him.

"Is that supposed to be funny Merlin?" she wheezed at him.

"No, it's really-"

She grabbed the flask from him and drank, gulping down as much as she could.

"Remember to breath!" he pulled the flask away from her again.

They were silent for a minute.

"Where's Aithusa? I have to see her. Please."

"I don't know if you're up to walking?"

Morgana was already trying to escape the blankets again.

"Please?"

Merlin sighed. "Alright, we can try."

He ended up almost carrying her. She insisted on having her feet on the ground, but he supported her weight with his arm around her waist and hers gripping his shoulders. It wasn't until later he realised she didn't have any fingernails.

They were at the mouth of a cave, high above the treetops. The sun was setting on the horizon. Two dots grew slowly closer to Merlin and Morgana, and as they watched, their shapes became clearer. There were two dragons, one big and one small. The small one flew above the back of the larger, and flapped clumsily, but remained airborne. When it saw Morgana it squeaked excitedly and fell from the air, landing on its head on the older dragon's back. There was a confused squeal, and Merlin and Morgana laughed. His laugh was merry, hers tortured, but a laugh all the same. Morgana realised it was the first time she had laughed properly for far longer than she had been locked away. She hadn't laughed in seven, eight years.

The dragons soared over their heads.

"Time to go back inside?" Merlin asked.

She nodded.

•••

Morgana was sleeping. Merlin buried his head in his hands. She was very ill. Her skin was grey, and the veins underneath were visible. Deep cuts and bruises ran up along her arms, showing no signs of stopping where her dress covered the skin on her back and legs. There were dark rings under her eyes, and dirt in her hair, and on her face. It would be a long road to recovery, but it was a road he was prepared to travel along with her. He knew he could fix her. He could fix her trust in him; show her everything that magic could be. The Morgana he had known was still in there somewhere. The Morgana he had fallen in love with so many years ago hadn't been lost yet. Merlin knew he could find her.

What do we think? Should I leave it as a short little story, or turn it into a longer one? I thought either might work, I'll leave it up to you to decide.

•••

Wrote this after a lot of crying over today's news that there's not going to be another season of Merlin after season 5 ends! What will I do with my Sundays now?! It's been amazing, and I only really realised today that the cast of Merlin, especially Colin Morgan and Katie McGrath will be the faces of my childhood forever. (I think I might be crying again).

**EDIT*** Thanks to everyone for all your feedback so far! I was AMAZED at all the feedback I got, and I've decided to keep writing! Hopefully I'll have another chapter up in a week or so.

(Thank you also for pointing out that Merlin actually named Aithusa... Oops?! I think the only half decent excuse I have is that in my grief-stricken state I began to forget the original storyline... Or Merlin suffers from mild amnesia! I've edited that bit out now.) Xxx