Merlynn's Secret

Chapter 8

Gwaine fully intends on going up to Lancelot and giving the man a piece of his mind. Or rather, a fist to his regretfully handsome face, the next time he sees him. Lancelot, as well as the rest of the round table knights, knows about Gwaine's feelings for a certain former serving girl. Hell, the whole of bloody Camelot knows it by now. Everyone bloody except for Merlynn. Gwaine finds it both infuriating and endearing at the same time, and he loves her all the more for it.

By the time he does find Lancelot, he is red as a tomato and looks like he is ready to burst. "Are you alright Gwaine?" Elyan asks when he sees the very enraged Gwaine eyeballing an unsuspecting Lancelot.

Elyan's question falls on deaf ears. "You, you traitor! Why now, you know of my feelings for Merlynn! You had all that time, years ago, to win her favor. Why do you choose now to step in and ruin everything I'm trying to build?!" Gwaine roars.  

It is true, once upon a time Lancelot did hold feelings for Merlynn.However, he saw how blind to his intentions she was and realized how naïve shewas. In many ways, still is. So, Lancelot thought it best to be the best friendand big brother to Merlynn he could possibly be. Through the years he really has grown to love her like a little sister. 

Gwaine catches Lancelot's full attention, as well as that of everyone around them. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you sitting next to her at dinner, you being the first one of us she entrusted all her secrets to, and you being the first person she introduced to her bloody PET DRAGON! Why does it always have to be you!?" At this point, Arthur and Leon join Percival, Elyan, Lancelot, and Gwaine. All of them aside from Gwaine begin to laugh hysterically.

"You are so whipped, Gwaine!" Percival heartily taunts his friend.  

"Yeah buddy, you have it really bad," Elyan adds with a large grin.

"Merlynn has a pet dragon?" Is the only thing that registers in Arthurs mind at the moment.

"If you truly love Merlynn as much as you claim too, you need to tell her as much. Merlynn is quite oblivious when it comes to matters of the heart, she will never figure it out by herself." Leon is absolutely correct. Merlynn is blind to any and all advances towards her. Especially in recent days, since becoming court sorceress she has become something of a spectacle in Camelot. Visiting nobles from all over have come just to meet Merlynn.

Arthur manages to stop laughing and gets a serious look on his face, "understand this Gwaine, if you hurt Merlynn in any way, I'll have you thrown in the stocks for a week". Arthur, much like Leon, Elyan, Lancelot, and Percival thought of Merlynn like a younger sister. Since discovering that she is, in fact, a woman, they have all become fiercely protective of their sister.

"Gwaine, I swear on my honor, the only strong feelings I have for Merlynn are strictly familial," Lancelot said with his hands raised in surrender.

That's when they see Merlynn making her way over. "Hello all, what are you talking about? Gwaine, your face is red. Very red, are you feeling sick?" She asks as she places her warm pale hand on his forehead.

Now Gwaine was red in the face for an entirely different reason.

"N-no, I'm fine, Merlynn."

"Well, let's get you to Gaius right away, just to be safe." Just like that, Merlynn drags the rugged knight away. The other knights begin to snigger as she pulls him away.  

...   

Merlynn walks the halls of the castle. Having just finished taking Gwaine to see Gaius, she makes her way back to the training fields to find the knights and Arthur. She's just gotten down the stony steps when a dull pain begins to pulse in her head. It starts out like a light throb but quickly turns into a sharp jab. The pain becomes more intense causing her ears to ring.

"AHHH!" Merlynn bellows out as the sharp pain in her head and the ringing in her ears both intensify further. Over the noise in her head, Merlynn hears a quiet whisper. It sounds like a hundred voices all synchronized, all repeating the same thing. The whispers say, 'in four days' time, Camelot will be in great danger. Emrys, you must stop it.' Merlynn knows these voices but her pain is too great, and she can't yet place them.

"In danger of what?!" Merlynn screeches back to the faint voices in her head. The pain increases more than the young witch thought possible and she lets out yet another guttural scream, "AHHHHH!". Merlynn covers her ears and falls to her knees. "In four days' time, Camelot will be in great danger. Emrys, you alone can stop it," the voices say together. As fast as her pain came it was gone. In its place, came the welcoming darkness.

...  

As the knight continue training, they hear a scream of pain. Not just any scream. This is Merlynn's scream. At the sound, they all stop what they are doing and bolt towards the sound.

"AHHHHH!" They hear another guttural scream. This one is louder and filled with pain and terror. The knights and Arthur move quicker at the harsh sound. 

When they finally get to Merlynn she is on the ground huddled up in the fetal position. Merlynn is covering her ears and screaming. "Merlynn! Merlynn, what's wrong?!" Arthur tries to get her attention.

"Merlynn!" Elyan cries.

"What's happening?" The normally calm Leon asks, sounding panicked.

Lancelot is rubbing Merlynn's back, trying and failing to soothe her. This continues for a few moments until she falls unconscious.

It is Percival who, once again, silently scoops her up and begins carrying her to Gaius.

...  

Gwaine is on his way out of Gaius' chambers when he very nearly bumps into Percival who is carrying someone. He looks to the dainty figure in his friends' arms and realizes instantly who it is.

"Merlynn! What the hell happened to her!?" None of them answer the roughish knight. Not because they are choosing to ignore the man, but because none of them have any answers to give him.

They enter the Physicians chambers and lay Merlynn down in the same cot as the last time she was brought here unconscious.

"What's happened this time?" Asks a worried Gaius. He pulls the curtain around himself and his ward and begins to examine her. It's when he looks at the inside of her forearm that he sees the ancient runes written in black appear.

Pulling back the curtain, Gaius looks to the king and his knights. " This is the work of very powerful magic, sire. The evidence speaks for itself." He says revealing to them, Merlynn's arm.

"What does it say?" Arthur is the first to speak.

"That I do not know, sire. It is written in the old religion. Merlynn can tell us what it says when she wakes. But perhaps, until then, I should study Merlynn's book of sorcery. I may be able to make a loose translation."

Arthur and his knights nod their approval. Elyan offers his help with translating the runes on Merlynn's arm. Having started to spend as much time as possible with the girl he considers a second sister, he's come to learn a phrase or two in the old religion.