Lana turned in surprise as the door crashed open without warning. Merlin looked ... unhappy. "Uncle Emrys!" she said. "What is it? What's happened?"

At first, Merlin didn't seem to digest that she was speaking to him, or that she was even there at all. Then he answered. "They've taken Eve prisoner," he said. "Ah, blast it! I should never have brought her with me! If something were to happen to her ..."

The news that Eve had been captured rattled Lana. She stared at Merlin, unable to fully process what that could mean. It took him a few minutes to recover himself. "Forgive me," he told Lana. "I need to keep a clear head if we're to save Elisa and Eve. Have you seen anyone?"

"Just you," she said.

Merlin nodded several times. "Good, good." For the first time, it occurred to Lana that Merlin did not have everything under control. Since the first moment that she'd met him, even bleeding and dying from poison, he'd seemed perfectly capable and in charge. With Eve in danger and things beginning to unravel, she saw that his air of confidence was a simple façade. That made her feel even more anxious.

Merlin must have seen the look on her face. Gently, he laid a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry," he told her. "Everything's going to be fine, you'll see. I will fix this. But I'm going to need your help. I need you to—"

A knock on the door interrupted them. Glancing at Lana, Merlin went to the door before mouthing to her, "Expecting anyone?" At least, she thought that was what he'd mouthed. She wasn't great at reading lips. Hoping she was right, Lana shook her head; nobody had seen her, as she'd told Merlin.

He leaned on the door. "Who is it?" A fireball lit his fingertips.

"A message for Fraulein Lana," the man said.

"Deliver it, then."

The man awkwardly cleared his throat. "Is the Fraulein in there?" he asked.

Lana looked at Merlin, and he motioned to her. Not really certain what a fraulein was, she answered, "Yes." Hopefully it was something good and not cruel, she thought belatedly.

"I am afraid that your performance will be postponed until tomorrow night," the messenger reported. "Two executions will be held tonight."

"Two?" Lana said before Merlin could stop her. "How horrible!"

"Enemies of the crown must be dealt with," the man said awkwardly. "King Hans begs your pardon. Schonen tag." Lana could clearly hear the man scuttle off like a bug.

She turned to Merlin, distressed. "They can't execute Eve!" she cried in a barely restrained voice. "She's my friend. They can't kill her!"

Merlin gently gave her a comforting hug. "They won't. I won't let them," he said. "This changes nothing. We must act quickly. Nimueh obviously knows I'm here, and she's hoping to bait me into foolhardy action. Well, she's in for a surprise. Listen; I need you to find Gwaine. Tell him to meet us here in two hours. I have to make contact with Arthur and Rampion and tell them to find the swans. We're going to need all the help we can get. Go!"

Lana hurried out of the room, remembering at the last minute to grab her lute. At the very least, she would have an excuse for going into the servants' area of the castle. Contrary to what Merlin had thought, she'd been quaking in her boots before Hans. Knowing anything she said might get them thrown out or worse had been horrifyingly frightening, yet she'd managed. She would find Gwaine and figure this out.

As Lana entered the kitchens of the castle, someone grabbed her arm. One of the servants, an old, frail-looking man, started yelling at her in German. Lana interrupted him. "I'm sorry! I don't speak your language."

Instantly, his expression changed from disapproval to kindness. "My apologies!" the man said. "You must be the performer King Hans has brought here."

"Oh, yes, sir," Lana said. "I was looking for a place to practice. Might you know of somewhere good?"

"You can practice anywhere you want to!" the man said graciously. "I love music. I was most distressed to hear that your performance was canceled tonight for two mere executions. See over there, where the wall goes in a little? You can play there. You won't have to move for people coming in and out, and we can all hear your lovely music."

Lana smiled, adding a little shyness to her voice. "Oh, I hope I don't disappoint you. Thank you very much," she added, sweeping a bow. She never curtsied. The man hurried on his way and Lana went into the corner the man had indicated for her. Although she'd rather be looking for Gwaine, she would have to wait until he found her instead. Otherwise, she'd blow her cover.

For several minutes, Lana sat there and strummed her lute. It was a little out-of-tune, and she started adjusting the strings. Since it was something she'd done uncountable times before, it required little focus and she was able to look at passerby for Gwaine. There was no sign of him yet, but she was confident she'd be able to spot him with little trouble.

Then she saw him. He looked completely out of his depth, covered in flour and who-knew-what else. As she watched him, he nearly tipped over with two trays of food in his hands. Like magic, two other servants grabbed them from him and gave the knight disdainful looks as they carried the trays away. Since he stood by himself, Lana whispered as loud as she dared, "Gwaine!"

He turned to her, his eyes wide. They had been specifically instructed not to approach each other unless completely necessary. Gwaine must have known something was wrong. He hurried over as Lana started playing her lute louder. "What is it?" he asked her in a low voice.

"Eve's been caught," Lana answered, matching his pitch. She performed a complicated chord on her lute, and the listening servants nodded approvingly. None of them could probably understand what she was saying, but she wanted to make sure that their words were drowned out. Just in case. "Merlin wants you to meet in my room in two hours. Alright?"

The knight looked extremely concerned. "Is she alright?" he said.

"We don't know." A lump formed in Lana's throat, but she pushed it down. She needed to be focused to save Eve. "I hope so. Now go. And don't forget."

Gwaine hurried off, dusting flour from his hair. In order to not attract suspicion, Lana continued strumming on her lute, even though her mind was in a turmoil. Lord, please keep Eve safe, she prayed.

. . . . . . . . . .

Eric and his five brothers landed in Lana's room, having had the message relayed to them by Rampion. Emrys and the others were already there, watching as the brothers shed their feathers and returned to human form. "What's going on?" Eli asked, looking concerned. "This seems urgent."

Merlin crossed his arms. Even though all the brothers dwarfed him in height, he made up for it in the unhappy look on his face. He seemed to be making Elisa's brothers nervous. "We found Elisa," he said. "Or, more appropriately, Eve found her."

"Oh, thank God!" Eli cried.

"But what happened?" Eric interrupted.

"She got caught," Lana whispered. "And now they're going to execute her in less than three hours."

"They said two executions," Edmund noted.

"Elisa is going to be killed as well," Merlin said.

That certainly got their attention. They all fell silent, watching Merlin, waiting for him to continue. When no further words were forthcoming, Eli dared to say, "But you have a plan to rescue them?"

Merlin flexed his fingers, flames dancing across them. Emrys marveled at the easy manner his father had and the unspoken power he was demonstrating. Such a spell required incredibly self-control and willpower to maintain the flames. "Yes," Merlin said. "Gather around and I'll tell you. We'll enact it in an hour ..."

. . . . . . . . . .

After the meeting was concluded with the swan brothers, Emrys and Gwaine went back towards the servants' quarters. It was dinnertime, and the two wanted to talk before it would be time to enact their plan, since nobody would be wandering around. "It's funny," Emrys said as they walked through the quiet hallways. "I thought Eve was annoying, but now that she could die—I feel ... well, worried. What if she does die?"

Gwaine clapped Emrys on the shoulder. "Don't worry about the fair maiden so!" he said. "Father will take care of everything."

"I never said anything about her being fair," Emrys protested. A blush rose to his cheeks.

"You didn't have to say it," Gwaine said with a grin.

"Hey! Hold on!" The two turned and saw Rampion running up to them. Her face was pale. "You've got to help me ... my head, it's pounding. I can hear her. Emrys, please!" She had never looked quite so young as she did in that moment.

"Rampion, what is it?" Emrys asked, taking a step towards her.

"I'm sorry!" she wailed. Before either could fully comprehend what she was sorry about, her hair whipped out from behind her. Gwaine cried out as it wrapped around them, pinning their arms to their sides. Another curl snaked its way around their ankles, yanking them off balance and sending them slamming down to the floor.

"What the devil?!" Emrys yelled. He tried to summon magic, but his confused emotions threw off his ability to cast spells and nothing happened.

A figure knelt beside him, smiling. "You really are the perfect image of your handsome father. I'll enjoy sending you to burn at the stake to get to him," Nimueh told him, and she patted his cheek. "I can't wait. Come along, my little puppet, let's bring these birds to their new cages, shall we?"