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Merlin smirked, "Well at least I can say that I talk about interesting things...I think" he looked ahead and frowned at his own words, before turning back to Elyan, "anyway Gwaine is just as bad! Who would you rather be stuck in a cell with, me or him? Because im pretty sure that my ears would fall off within hours." Gwaine did talk more than Merlin, and no one could ever get him to shut up.
Merlin nodded in agreement with Elyan. "I hope so" he sighed, "and she'll be alright, she's strong enough to defend herself."

"Well, if there's anything else, any secrets or anything you need to get off your chest, don't hesitate to tell me."

Merlin could've launched into a thousands secrets that could have been shared, but those had to be kept quiet for his own sake and Arthurs. He smiled and didn't look at his friend, Elyan was most likely expecting him to say something along the lines of, "sometimes I can't be bothered to wash Arthur's socks so I just put them to the back of his cupboard until they are used again..." or there was always the forbidden secret which he could just come out ever so bluntly with and have Elyan pass out. "Did you know I can make mops move on their own, oh by the way I have magic and can talk to dragons."
No, that was defiantly not an option! Instead he just gave a little nod to himself. "Im sure if I think of anything i'll tell you," he grinned, "but that's all there is really, nothing else. Just me...little old Merlin..."

Yes just him, and only him. Nothing out of the ordinary about Merlin.

Merlin gave a rather loud snort at the thought of being considered one of the Knights. "Sir Merlin..." he pondered and then nodded, "I think I rather suit a Sir..." he looked at Elyan in approval, "and im sure that Arthur thanks his lucky stars every day that he has me" he joked, "secretly we all know that he can't live without me - his socks would suffer so much if I wasn't there to wash them." A small smirk spread across his lips.

Merlin decided not to speak of Tom to Elyan anymore - by the way Elyan was speaking and the words 'the rest is history' had now come into the conversation, it seemed that it was well and truly over for that part. But no, Elyan had other ideas.

"But what about your father? I've never heard you speak of him."

So it now was that the subject of fathers was to be the new topic of the evening despite what had been said. Merlin shook his head.
"I never really knew him, he left my mother before I was born and i've only met him once - but he's dead now, so I guess that's why I never really talk about him - I hardly know anything about him either so there's not much to tell." That much was true - but even though he hadn't known him for that long, it hadn't stopped the tears from falling when he died. At least he still had part of Balinor left with him. The gift of the dragonlord.

Merlin didn't really know how he had managed to pull off getting Freya out of the cage, let alone being able to hide her beneath the city in the many tunnels that ran under it. But he had done it, and soon Freya would be safe and out of Camelot without any suspicion. Well, perhaps a little but that was always going to happen.

He lit a torch to get a better look around, she would be safe here for a while until he fully figured out what to do. She looked so helpless. Merlin gave her a half hearted smile, "Hey, hey it's alright" he soothed, "They won't find us here." He sat down next to where she was huddled. "Im going to look after you," he told her with some look of determination, after all didn't she deserve to be looked after for once? Instead of being treated like cattle going to market.

"Are you hungry?" he asked eventually, knowing she should at least have something worth while to eat.

Merlin hadn't really thought himself as manly as some of the knights could be - but then again he was his own version of manliness - and he couldn't actually believe that the coversation had turned to this. "Being Arthur's servant is a strength itself, I don't know about also having a lot of it" he grinned, "Mind you, I have better reflexes than you or the Knights when it comes to flying jugs, shoes...well - anything that's thrown at me in a moment of annoyance." The look on his face was a triumphant one, and Merlin loved nothing better than to get under Arthur's skin about subjects that he was embarassed about.

Elyan was right. The past was the past. You couldn't go back and set it a different course. There were many things that Merlin himself had always regretted, even now - but he knew that he couldn't change it, and that it was only making him a stronger and hopefully a better person himself. He then turned to Elyan "If there was one thing you could change...one thing at all" he asked softly, "what would it be?..."

Merlin already knew what he would change if he could, and that was many, many things that had gone wrong or silly mistakes he'd slipped up on, that had cost him (and others) so dearly. He now tried not to think about his father, Freya, Lancelot, or anyone who had come so close to the fire and was burned for it. It always made him wonder, who - just who would be next? And how could he stop it before it was too late.

Ealdor was preparing for battle. Ealdor would arm themselves with what little they had for war. Fighting against Kanen for their lives. Merlin had gone to aid his mother with the help of Arthur, Gwen and Morgana - now he found himself questioning his own conscience as to whether they could pull this off and fight. He knew the people in the village were strong, Will was one of the strongest he knew as well as his mother, but Merlin also knew that the last resort would be to take subtle measures to ensure that everyone was safe against Kanen, and that the battle was won.
Will had already turned his back on him, refusing to fight and wanting to give Kanen and his raiders what they wanted. Part of Merlin wanted to take his friend's side, but the other knew that he should and would follow Arthur's word. If they did not defend themselves, Ealdor would be at regular mercy to Kanen.

After yet another disagreement with Will, as to why he wouldn't be resorting to using sorcery, Merlin found himself a quiet spot in the woods surrounding the village, where he could sit and think. Boy did he need it! Everyone else was off preparing for the events of what was to come the next morning so he wouldn't be distrubed. Shifting himself back against a tree trunk he looked to the village. It was quiet from here, no voices or the clashing of makeshift weapons that were being practised with. Just the breeze and the sounds of the trees.

He hoped that they would win tomorrow, and Merlin was prepared to go down fighting for his mother and friends, no matter what the cost.

Merlin put his hand to his chest mockingly "ouch...now that stung" he smirked, knowing full well the abuse he had about not being deemed as manly as he should be. He was just as manly as any of those Knights - just because he barely picked up a sword it didn't mean to say that he wasn't as strong. In fact he had pretty darn good reflexes from dodging things Arthur aimed at him.

So had Elyan come up against Lucan? The answer was yes. Well, yes in training, and I must say he is rather skilful with a sword." That was true, Merlin had seen him - then again all the Knights were skillful with any type of weapon (with the exception of Percival who could push over boulders) so it wasn't a surprise on hearing Elyan's answer. "Perhaps I need to work on my swordcraft a little more" Merlin smirked to himself. "The maybe i'll be more manly"

Speaking about the positive outcome that could emerge from his possesion, Merlin nodded at Elyan's words as well as his question. "You could learn from it?" Merlin offered, "After all - now you can be more aware of surroundings and suspicious places when you enter them." suspicious, being deemed as the druid camp. "I think that it will make you stronger than before - not that you could get any stronger" he half laughed, "basically what I'm trying to say is that you should welcome any change, no matter how good or bad - because things happen for a reason". Merlin shrugged and smiled at Elyan, that was the only possible explanation that he could muster at the moment.

Part of him was glad that she was so determind to stay so long above land, but the other part worried for her. Especially when she said that she had been pushing herself to stay so long away from the water. "You mustn't put yourself through that, I know you're in pain like you was last time. You shouldn't do that...especially for my sake - you'll become stronger in time."

Merlin leant back on his hands and looked out over the lake, it had been so long since he'd been there last - how had he managed to stay away for so long? "So is that all you have been doing since I was last here?" he asked, "Practicing?" for all he knew she could have stayed on land for sometime and met someone - another boy perhaps? Why had he even just thought of that? Merlin wasn't the jealous type and yet here he was thinking about 'what if's' all of a sudden.

Shaking those thoughts from his head he decided to focus on him and Freya now, she was there and so was he, and nothing could come between them right now.

Elyan's humour was certainly brightening Merlin's evening. He hadn't laughed like this in a while, and when the subject came down to just joking around about Arthur - it was certainly a nice way to bond a little more. As much as Merlin had come to know Elyan within the last year, he still felt as though there was so much more that he needed to know about it. "Why would we stop when it's fun?" he asked innocently, "besides, Arthur spends most of his time throwing things at me so I have all the more reason to want to make the odd joke here and there."

"I hope you do not think any less of me for what I have said." Merlin frowned and looked at Elyan at this. "I wouldn't think any less of you if it were me you were speaking of." he told him, "everyone has their own views and opinions, yours is just as valid as mine, or Arthur's or anyone elses." he clasped his hands together and put them in his lap, "besides, you're a knight...you have to speak the truth."

Merlin shook his head at Elyan thinking that there was gossip around. "Things happen, people soon forget about it and move onto the next thing to talk about." he told him. He hadn't heard any of the Knights speaking ill about Elyan - they were all like brothers, and even if they made jokes about one another on the field, they were not harsh to one another at all in any way. "I will be sure to give him my thanks for his concern." Elyan was now speaking of Sir Lucan. Merlin nodded at this and smiled, "he'll most likely be beating the life out of a poor dummy on the training field tomrrow, so you'll probably catch him then."

Then the subject turned to gossip. "It's not my place to talk...." he told him at the mention of there being rumours of such, somewhere around the castle, "some things are best kept secret." and boy did Merlin know about those!

The day had been quite eventful considering that Arthur had indeed been beaten by a girl, and a very strange one indeed. Morgause was her name, so she had stated when challenging Arthur. Why she was there was another story. Merlin had his suspicions, then again he was always on edge of whoever came to Camelot, without a valid reason these days. It was his job to protect Arthur - he'd even been sent by the Prince to ask this woman to withdraw, but she had refused. Merlin had no choice but to stand by and watch, thankful when everything was over and Arthur was safe.

One question still niggled at him though. Morgause. Who was she and why was she really here?
Merlin had finished up the days list of chores for that evening and was now on his way back to the quarters that he shared with Gauis. Only the door ajar from the guest chamber that was Morgause's made him stop. Should he just 'check' that her wound was ok? That she needed anything? Yes Gauis had most likely treated her earlier, but the more Merlin could find out about this woman, the better.

Knocking lightly on the door, Merlin poked his head around a little, if Morgause wasn't there then he would always go back tomorrow. Circumstances were strange, and it made Merlin all the more curious about her.