Becoming Magic

King Arthur

It's been a week since Arthur took his oaths and became the Once and Future King of Camelot. A full week of festivities had been enjoyed and there was still one more week of celebrations planned. There were still signs in the citadel and lower town of people rebuilding after Morgana and Morgause's attempt at taking over. Uther was still in his disconnected state. Gaius said the best anyone can do for him is keep him comfortable. It's not easy for Arthur to see his proud, strong, imposing father reduced to this broken, shell of a man staring out the window. Arthur sits with him at the end of every day for an hour or two. This leaves Merlin off early most days as once Arthur has visited his father he usually works at his desk or goes to bed. Merlin has been learning more and more from Gaius. He isn't quite a skilled physician yet, but he gets by being an apprentice and treating small ailments and injuries in the lower town. Using his magic as sparingly as possible, obviously.

The knights spend time preparing for a tournament to be held the last few days of the celebrations followed by one final feast, before things were expected to turn back to a more normal pace. Lancelot and Leon were pretty evenly matched with a sword, Gwaine was unconventional and brash, Elyan was skilled, just not quite on Lancelot or Leon's level. Then there was Percival who most couldn't even get close to due to his reach. There were many commoners who had entered as well, determined to make an impression on the new King and get a chance at joining his Knights. Evenings were spent enjoying a meal together or making bets for the upcoming tournament, or, in Gwaine's case, going to the tavern and occasionally dragging Elyan or Lancelot with him. As much as he tried he couldn't seem to get Merlin to join them. Of course, most of them didn't know that Merlin was not even 20 yet. He had only turned 16 a few months after arriving in Camelot. Arthur was to be 25 soon. The youngest of the Knights that Merlin knew of was 22. It was strange sometimes when he stopped to think about their differences, not only in age, but of life experience in general. Arthur was raised to be a king one day, Gwaine's father had been a Knight (though he refused to tell anyone), Lancelot had an uneventful and normal childhood dreaming of being a Knight one day; Elyan had planned to follow in his fathers' footsteps working a forge, which he did for a time. Leon had known since he was very small that his duty would be to protect the future king, while Percival had lived on a farm but never really dreamed what would happen when he was grown. They all shared their stories and childhood tales every time they went out on hunting trips or were tricked into a drinking game with Gwaine.

No one had realized that the only things they knew about Merlin were that he was from Ealdor, his mother was Hunith, he was an apprentice to Gaius, and he became Arthur's manservant by a weird twist of fate. Gwaine actually paused in the middle of a maneuver on the training grounds just realizing this, leaving himself open to get hit by Lancelot knocking him to the ground. Lancelot gave him a confused look and put his hand out to help him up.

"You lost focus there my friend. Something on your mind?"

"I just realized something. Merlin has brought us all together, and we've had our adventures with him, but, what do we actually know about him?" Gwaine huffed out catching his breath from the hit.

"He doesn't really ever talk about himself," Elyan noted.

"Ever! I mean he makes small talk well enough and gets the King all worked up, which is hilarious, but he doesn't ever talk about his life, or anything he's done or does when he's not with us", Gwaine said, his mind turning because he wants to rectify this with his best friend.

"Merlin certainly is an enigma," Lancelot states. Gwaine catches the look in Lancelot's face and realizes something. Lancelot knows something of Merlin's past.

"What is it you know?" he asks Lancelot.

"It is not my place to say what I know, it is up to Merlin if he wants to share any of what he's been through."