Merlin: The Depth of Secrets

11- Reaction

It had been a week and a half since the ban on magic was repealed. So far there had been an amazing reaction in the public. That was less so in the court. In the court, older members look at him with distaste and he had been scolded a few times already from destroying what his father's life work had been.  In the city, the embrace of magic was instantaneous.  There had already been numerous shops opened to the people. Arthur and the court figured that these shops had existed before the repeal but now they were less illegal and private. You could walk into the marketplace and be offered enchantments and magic healing. Speaking of healing, Gaisus has already saved a score of people with the use of magic and spells.  They had also witnessed the flock of new arrivals ranging from druids to just sorcerers who used to be in hiding. These newcomers had added a larger sense of trade to the marketplace.  Despite all of these wonderful things, everyone was still being cautious . This was because of one of Uther's tactics in finding sorcerers. Uther would say that magic was now legal and wait a few weeks for everyone to emerge from hiding and then he would capture them and hold mass executions. Arthur and the knights tried to prove this theory wrong by supporting the new businesses that would arise and welcoming some of the new arrivals into the castle until they found a place to live.  

Merlin had not yet returned. It had been four and a half weeks. Arthur, the knights, and Gaisus especially wanted to send for him but Gaisus had requested that they allow Merlin time to spend with the Druids. Gaisus wanted Merlin to learn more of the prophesies. He wanted the Druids to teach Merlin in the way of magic.  And in doing this Gaisus was wise. Although they hadn't seen Merlin for a long while they knew that when they did he would be changed in a sense. Merlin would return to them in a healthier condition. He would be wiser and more powerful than before. Perhaps the councilmen did bring harm to Merlin but they also aided magic in doing so.  Yet since the repeal of the ban, Arthur had been struggling to make desicions. He didn't want to make any judgement on magic without Merlin's help. Even Gaius agreed that Merlin would make a greater adviser than himself.

It was funny actually how lost Arthur seemed with Merlin. None of the other servants worked as efficiently and none of them were comfortable enough to make banter with Arthur. After a two weeks of trying different servants, Arthur gave up and decided he could go without a servant until Merlin returned. Despite his resolve, Arthur was unsure if he wanted Merlin as a servant anymore. Ever since the Druids had called Merlin, Emrys. Arthur felt weird knowing how powerful Merlin was prophesied to be.  He also needed Merlin present as a magical adviser to  him and the court. He needed someone who could represent magic. And he needed someone he could trust.  

Arthur didn't want Merlin gone much longer. And yet he was thankful for the time without him. Because he could process all that occurred. He could figure out where he wanted Merlin to be present in the kingdom.  He already knew that Merlin could be trusted and understood why his magic had been kept a secret. He figured that again it was best to allow Merlin to decide how he wanted to help. 

One Week.

That is the amount of time until which they would send for Merlin.

They didn't have to.

He returned all on his own.

Urgently.