Merlin and Arthur in Lockdown

Sixteen

Watching the chaos unfold on the news took Merlin back to the afternoon. It was bizarre thinking he was actually there. His mind had been so focused on making sure Arthur was okay that it was as if he had forgotten being there, like it was all a part of being in a trance. As soon as he returned home, he put the hoodie he wore well out of sight. He couldn't have Arthur recognising it.

Arthur had freshened up and now joined Merlin at the other end of the sofa. It was no secret anymore that he was a part of the taskforce; the speculations were on the TV right before them. 'You were there, weren't you?' Merlin asked.

'Hmm,' Arthur agreed absently. He appeared dazed, even though he only had the small cut on his face as evidence of being at the events outside the library. Thankfully he didn't return the same question for Merlin.

Merlin had convinced himself he wasn't at the protest just so denying it to Arthur came easily. But thankfully Arthur made no point of recognising Merlin from the crowd.

'It's all a mess,' Arthur said after a while. 'Now that it's been said those guys weren't sorcerers.' The initial investigation had found typical explosives set up at the library premises -explosives and smoke bombs which genuine sorcerers wouldn't need to use. The protesters who came out to support the sorcerers were caught by surprise, some even injured in the attack. All signs pointed to the so called 'sorcerers' in the library being fakes, out to cause trouble.

'But they won't admit it,' said Merlin, eyes following the reel of news headlines at the bottom of the TV screen. 'Apparently there's no proof the group weren't sorcerers. The King even released a statement condemning magic for the attack.'

Arthur leaned forward, holding his tongue. He gave in to a sigh, eyes still on the TV. 'My father doesn't want to believe me.'

'About what?'

'That the man who attacked me didn't have magic.'

'Are you sure?'

'His eyes- they didn't glow when he cast a spell.'

'There's some proof then!'

'I don't know. Perhaps I was wrong. Anyway, they took down what I said.'

A bitter shadow came over Merlin's eyes. 'But they're determined about what story they want to tell. They've already decided the sorcerers are to blame.'

'There is...'

'What?' Merlin turned to see why Arthur was stalling.

'Something I didn't say in my statement. I didn't know if what I interpreted was right.'

Merlin swallowed. He had wished Arthur forgot about the sorcerer who tried to protect him. 'About what?'

'I think a sorcerer...helped me. He used magic to attack the guy who I was fighting.'

Merlin didn't know what the best response was. Steer him away from his secret? Or encourage Arthur to see what the truth was, something Uther was too stubborn to consider?

The current news segment ended only for another round of coverage of the library attack to begin. Arthur turned the TV off.

'Have you told Uther about the sorcerer?' Merlin asked tentatively.

'He wouldn't hear of it.' Arthur leaned back into the sofa and tucked a hand behind his head. 'I wish being a part of the taskforce didn't feel like such a waste. I mean, I know I was there to mainly observe. But I essentially got rescued out of there. So much for playing my part as Prince of Camelot.'

'It was your first mission.'

'Thanks for the consolation.' Arthur gave a wry smile to the wall behind the TV. 'I was being naïve in thinking I could help. But the truth is I'm only too happy to sit home, talk to people on Zoom and go for the occasional run.' He paused as if to revel in his disappointment in himself. 'So much for making a difference.'

Merlin listened with his eyes on the coffee table, his fingers clasping tighter. 'You can make a difference. Tell people the truth.' He could feel Arthur look his way so he turned to meet his eyes. 'Maybe being the Prince of Camelot doesn't mean you have to be out there all the time. Or that you have to literally take on sorcerers. All these people -they like you. I read some of the comments sometimes -and yeah there's a lot of heart emojis- but there's people who see something in you. They appreciate that you don't want to be distant to your people.

'You give people, I don't know, hope maybe. Maybe just something to brighten up their day. That is making a difference, as far as I know.'

Merlin saw Arthur swallow. Maybe Arthur's eyes welled up but he looked away from the prince before he could confirm.

When he spoke, Arthur's casual tone gave nothing away. 'Well, you do put out most of my social stuff, so thanks for your half of it.'

Merlin didn't drop the serious tone. 'I think it would mean something to people if you told them what you really think. Instead of running with what the government is saying or the official Royal statement.'