Luminescence ✺ Arthur Pendragon

The Poisoned Chalice [2]

Gwen had gone home for the night, and Arwen told Gaius he was free to sleep in her and Merlin's room for the night as her brother was now occupying his bed. Arwen herself was unable to go to sleep. Instead she remained by Merlin's side. As she sat there in silence, Arwen's mind wandered back to her childhood and all the memories she and Merlin had made through the years. She could distinctively remember the first time she had seen Merlin use magic.

It was rather early into her stay with their family. That cold night, both Merlin and Hunith had believed Arwen to be asleep. Hunith was struggling to light a fire that would keep them warm for the night, when six year old Merlin did it within a second, the only indication that he had done anything being a golden flash in his eyes. Arwen was awake, despite their belief, and had witnessed every moment. However, she never said anything. She may have been young, but Arwen was very aware of what the world around her was like. Elaine, the woman she had been traveling with her whole life before coming to Ealdor after Elaine's death, had just started to teach her about magic. How it was a force of good, but many people didn't see it as such.

She was scared of what would happen to her were she to admit to them that she knew Merlin had magic. So Arwen kept quiet about what she had seen. And their lives continued on. There were some other times when she had seen similar things. Merlin levitating and moving things he couldn't reach without having to move when he thought she wasn't looking or helping his mother around the house through small acts of magic. She never said anything. Until one day. A year had passed, and during that time Arwen had become a part of their small family. Hunith knew that the secret couldn't be kept from her forever. So one day, she sat her down at their small table in their house.

At first, Merlin and Hunith looked at her, stumbling over their words and unsure of how to begin the conversation. Hunith had no idea of how the girl would react, and it would not be good for them to have her run out into the town in fear of Merlin. The boy himself had never gone through this before, never had to tell anyone about his gifts. His young mind was mostly thinking the same as Hunith, however, not for the dangers that Arwen's possible fear may pose to him. After the year spent with her, Merlin had grown extremely fond of Arwen, and the thought of her being scared of him saddened him.

Worried looks passed between mother and son, but to their surprise Arwen, wise beyond her years, was the one to speak first. When they first sat her down, so serious and calm, she had feared the worst. Her mind jumped to the thoughts of them sending her away, and not wanting to have her live with them any longer. But as she watched their silent interactions, seeing Merlin sitting on his hands as if stopping himself from using them, and the worry in Hunith's eyes, Arwen quickly gathered that this wasn't about her.

"You want to tell me Merlin has magic don't you?" Arwen's young voice stunned both Merlin and Hunith and made them look at her with wide eyes full of surprise.

"How did you... When did you... How do you know?" Hunith was the first to speak in complete shock, stumbling over her words as she started at Arwen.

"I saw him use it." Arwen said honestly, but when she saw Hunith send Merlin a reprimanding look, she quickly added. "You both thought I was asleep, and he lit a fire, it wasn't his fault." She defended Merlin, not wanting for him to get scolded by his mother for not being careful, something she had heard the woman do before.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Merlin asked unable to hide his big smile. If she had known, that meant she wasn't scared of him.

"I didn't want you to send me away." Arwen said shyly, looking down at her hands. Now that they knew she had kept this from them, she wasn't sure how they would react. Hunith quickly got to her feet as she moved around the table towards Arwen. The young girl was surprised as Hunith's arms wrapped around her small shoulders and brought her into a tight embrace.