Merthur - Arthur's Secret

Chapter 39 - First Week in Camelot

A/N - Thank you everyone for being patient! Here's the next chapter!

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Arthur's POV

Merlin stares back at me wide eyed. His body remains completely still.

"Merlin?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"You're the king?" He says quietly, voice filled with awe.

I nod, still a little confused.

"What in the world did I do to make a king fall in love with me?"

I roll my eyes at him. "That's the first thing you ask?!"

He shrugs, an innocent expression on his face. I glance down at his plump, red lips. I quickly turn away, resisting the urge to lean in and claim them as my own.

Merlin's gaze suddenly hardens once again. "Wait... if you're the king... then why did your Knights attack me and my friends?!" He shouts.

"I don't know! The order I issued was to find you!"

"Oh they found me alright..." He crosses his arms over his chest.

"Can you describe the Knights to me?"

He sighs. He gives me a description. They did sound familiar. The descriptions reminded me of Sir Dennis and Sir Kay, but I know them both personally. I trained them. They were friends with Merlin as well. They would never attack him or his friends.

I remove my hands from the wall. I point a finger at Merlin. "I'll take care of this later. Right now we need to find a way to get your memories back."

Merlin huffs, clearly frustrated. "Fine."

We both exit his chambers. As I head down the few steps I see Gaius lying face down on one of his books. Notes and various other pieces of parchment are stacked high on his desk.

"Gaius," I call out to him loudly.

He immediately jolts awake, giving me an annoyed glare. "Sire, could you please wake me more gently? I am an old man."

"Sorry Gaius, but I need you to find a way to fix Merlin's head and fast."

He sighs, closing the book in front of him. "What do you think I've been doing all night? I've looked through every spell book I have. There are a few I would like to try out."

I nod, flashing him a grateful smile. "Thank you Gaius."

I gesture for Merlin to sit down on the stool in front of Gaius. He slumps down reluctantly. Gaius grabs another book from the stack on his desk. He flips through the pages.

"Is this going to hurt?" Merlin asks.

Gaius looks up at him. "A little..."

Merlin raises an eyebrow.

"A lot." He corrects himself.

I see Merlin swallow the lump in his throat. He glances at me in worry. His legs are bouncing up and down nervously. I place a hand on his shoulder. "It'll be fine Merlin. I promise."

He nods and turns back around to face Gaius, his hands fidgeting with the end of his tunic.

Gaius raises a hand and places it against Merlin's forehead. He begins to chant. Merlin closes his eyes.

Gaius's eyes shine gold as the spell is cast. Merlin's body tenses. His eyebrows furrow and his fists clench.
He cries out in pain.

I start pacing back and forth
around the room with worry, trying to find anything that can distract me. I try to cover my ears to block out his screams but I can't. I'm tempted to push the old man onto the floor so he couldn't hurt Merlin anymore but that would only hinder the healing process.