The next morning, Merlin woke up early before the sun rose. He climbed into some thicker brown pants, thick boots, and a thin shirt with a thick black jacket that fit snuggly. He looked through the drawers, and found another black cloak with a hood. He tied it around his neck, and pulled the hood over his head.

Merlin grabbed a Quince fruit from Gaius's room quietly, and headed down the street towards the gates. Two knights stood there awake and on guard. They held their spears to Merlin, whose face was covered.

"Who are you?" One asked. Merlin peeled back his hood.

"I'm sorry to have alarmed you." Merlin apologized. The two lowered their spears.

"We're deeply sorry for that, sire." The other apologized.

"It's alright. No trouble. I will just be on my way now." Merlin said. He popped his hood back on, and the continued out of the city. The knights were confused, but just stood guard.

Merlin continued into the forest for about 10 minutes, and stood there.

"Ebony!" Merlin called out. He heard her thumping footsteps, and he saw her run to him in her natural form. She had some blood on her claws, probably from a stag.

"Hello there. Would you mind bringing me to the druid camps? I need to speak with them before I get tired again." Merlin asked. Ebony crouched down for Merlin, and then she set off. Merlin guided her to where he could feel the strong magic force. As they rode, Merlin watched the sun rose.

It was about a couple hours into their journey until Merlin found the camp. Clothes hung everywhere, as long as strips of cloth. Merlin jumped off of Ebony, and walked towards the camp. He was met with a couple women who were washing clothes in the stream.

"Emrys. Welcome back. The rest of the group is right ahead." One woman greeted. Merlin thanked her, and headed further. He finally was greeted with the many people walking around, dancing, cooking, or talking. Many heads turned, and greeted Merlin. The chief of the camp walked towards Merlin.

"Emrys. It's so nice to meet you. I go by Azerus. Please come with me." He ushered Merlin. Merlin followed him through the camp to a large tent, and walked inside. There were makeshift tables and chairs set up, and the more important druids of the camp among themselves. But once they were alerted of Merlin, they soon greeted him.

Merlin and Azerus sat down, and talked.

"Would you like some tea? Or some water? Or maybe something to eat." He offered. Merlin turned down these offers.

"I actually came for some answers. I believe you may know." Merlin asked. Azerus nodded, and let Merlin continued.

"A couple nights ago, I was struck down by many arrows. I went into a coma, and soon after I died. But then I came back. I thought maybe you would know how that would've happened. Or maybe I never died in the first place." Merlin asked.

"I thought you already knew about this, Emrys?" Azerus said confused. "You do know that you are immortal. As long as the druid race is alive, you will always come back from the dead." Azerus broke the news to Merlin. Merlin leaned back in the chair and rubbed his face. He was not told this.

"I'm sorry if I have upset you Emrys. I thought you already knew." Azerus apologized.

"Is there anyway to reverse this? To make me mortal?" Merlin asked. Azerus rose an eyebrow.

"You wish to become mortal?" He asked. Merlin looked him in the eyes.

"I apologize Azerus if it sounds selfish of me. It's just that I have found someone to love. They're mortal. I will be living past them, and my family and friends, too." Merlin apologized to him. He felt a bit selfish now.

"It's natural to feel this way. Sadly there is no way to reverse it. Once the last druid has died, then you will become mortal. But that won't be for a couple of centuries I'm afraid." Azerus spoke softly to Merlin. Merlin was shocked. Usually there was a way out, but not this time. Merlin was doomed.

"There is more you seek, I can feel it." He said. Merlin nodded.

"After I woke up, I can feel more magic energy. It just invades me, and makes me feel the emotions of others, even non magic townsfolk. It makes me extremely tired and emotional, and was wondering if you knew why this was happening, or how to stop this." Merlin explained. Azerus nodded.

"This will happen after every time you wake up from death. You may not remember, but as a child, you would feel this exact same way. You were new to the world, at least in that vessel, and so you slowly readjusted. You were actually always able to feel this aura around others, but have gotten used to it, or have pushed it away. You're body has forgotten how to push away the strong aura's of others. If you let it be, and try concentrating your energy as a shield, then you can become more used to it. It will just take time." Azerus explained. Merlin understood. As an infant, Hunith told him that he cried much more than the average child, and was that way for a year or so.

"This may not be the case right now, but your magic energy is also affected by the druids energy. The more druids, the more your energy is diluted. Still strong, but not as strong as it could be. As the numbers of druids dwindle, your magical force will increase. Our Seer told us that this would not happen anytime soon, but it will one day. Once you are the last of our kind, you will harness every piece of magic energy. This will make it extremely hard to die, but very possible." Azerus added. He had remembered the meeting a couple fortnights before. The Seer told of a mass killing of many, somewhere in the near future, but there was no distinct date.

"Thank you for giving me this vital information, Azerus." Merlin thanked him. They talked for some more. Apparently a large part of the druid community heard of King Arthur's new edict on magic. It was still passing around the different kingdoms. Some kingdoms were infuriated while others were now more open to working with Camelot. Merlin was even able to meet with the camp Seer.

The Seer was a very young boy, maybe 15 or 16, and he had milky eyes, dark black hair, light freckles, and a druid mark on the side of his neck.

"Hello Emrys. It is very nice to meet you." The boy greeted. Merlin could tell he was blind from the lack of pupils. His eyes sort of wandered around as they talked.

"This camp had just lost it's previous Seer to a disease, which sparked the birth of another. You see, every time a Seer dies in a group, the gift and memories of the previous transfers to the next most healthy group member. Grisha was chosen almost a year ago, and went blind. He learned how to walk around using his abilities, and can now see into the futures of many. He is still training, but he is doing very well." Azerus told Merlin. Merlin understood.

"Hello Grisha. How are you?" Merlin asked.

"I'm very well. And I can tell you have been doing well, but something heavy weighs on your mind. You must learn to let those feelings rise off of you, you know. Or else you will live a miserable life full of self loathing." Grisha advised Merlin. Merlin could sense the age in his energy, yet he was only a teen.

"Thank you. Have you anything important to tell me? Something that I can prevent." Merlin asked.

"There is a war coming. It is small and quiet at the moment, but two dark forces will join together and fight Camelot. It is not clear yet, as it is further into the future, but a tragedy will happen. Many will die. And I do not believe it is the future, but the destiny. You may have completed the destiny you were set out to, but there is another destiny unknown by me. And it will lead to someone's downfall. I'm sorry that I must be so vague, but I truly to do not know anymore. My powers are not strong enough yet to provide the key details, and the event is further down the road." Grisha apologized. Merlin thanked him anyways for the information. He knew whatever war he spoke of was happening, but he also had no idea when it would strike.

Merlin ate the Quince he brought, and a bit of food from the druidic people. Merlin spoke to them for a little, and then proceeded to say his goodbyes.

"Thank you for your hospitality, but I must leave if I want to arrive to Camelot soon." Merlin excused himself. Merlin walked away from the camp, and climbed onto Ebony.

As he rode back, he thought more of the situation. He was too preoccupied by the happy energies of the people to really think about what he had learned.

'I won't be able to stay with Arthur forever. He will die, and so will everyone else. And I will just watch.' Merlin thought to himself. He thought about possibilities, but he knew they were not possible. He would not die until every other druid was gone. And with that thought, tears prickled Merlin eyes. When they got within view of the castle, Ebony turned into a horse, and carried Merlin into the kingdom. The knights were confused as to how Merlin came back with another horse, but they did not question. Merlin furiously wiped away the tears, and hopped off of Ebony.

"Thank you girl. You can go back to the forest, or do as you wish." Merlin told her. She nodded, and walked out of the city. People were very confused and amused to see Merlin's horse just walk right out of the city without him, but they just laughed and continued on.

Merlin walked into the castle, and looked for Arthur. He found Arthur in his quarters, looking through some more paperwork.

"Hello Merlin. Glad you got back safe." Arthur greeted. Merlin pulled his hood back as Arthur embraced him. Merlin wiped his face a little more on Arthur's shirt, and they separated.

"Have you been crying?" Arthur asked. He could see Merlin's tear stained face, and red eyes. Merlin nodded. Arthur hugged him again.

"Are you alright? What happened? Is it bad news?" He asked. Merlin didn't give him a response. The news was both bad and good. And he did not want Arthur to know. He couldn't bare to tell him.

"Oh it's just my emotions. The druids told me that it would be like this for awhile. After the trauma of the arrows, my body forgot to shield away the aura's of others. It'll just take me a bit, and I'll be better." Merlin assured Arthur. Arthur was glad.

"So was what happened a fluke? Gaius just misspoken you as dead?" Arthur asked. Merlin nodded.

"It happens. The heart slows down so much, that it's too quiet to hear or feel. It must have happened after the immense amount of blood lose." Merlin explained. Although he knew he was lying, he felt better. He decided not to tell anyone about himself. He would when the time arose. When people would start to question how Merlin stayed alive so long.

"Well that's good to hear. I'm glad we know for certain what happened. Do you feel better?" Arthur asked. Merlin sniffled, and nodded. He felt better to have lied to Arthur. He could ride off this lie for a couple years hopefully.

The two headed down to see the priest and recorder. Neither had anymore documents to sign, so Arthur had the day off.

"I haven't trained in awhile with the others. Let's see if their still training." Arthur said. Merlin headed out to the training field with Arthur, and stopped by to put on Arthur's armor. Merlin quickly strapped Arthur up, handed him his sword, and watched. He training with Gwain and Percival, and let Leon stay in the back brooding as he practiced with another group. It seems that Leon had not fully accepted Arthur or Merlin, but they did not worry too much.

As Merlin watched Arthur and the others fight, he felt like fighting as well. He took off his cloak, and grabbed a sword that was lying around.

"Come to join us I see." Gwain said. He made a deep humorous bow. "You're loveliness." Gwain said. Percival smacked him upside the head for his antics.

"Show us what you have Merlin. We know you've been holding back for some time now." Percival gestured. Gwain held his sword up, and Merlin stood with the sword rooted in the ground.

"Whenever you're ready." Merlin told Gwain. Arthur and Percival watched closely, and some of the other knights did as well.

Gwain charged after Merlin, his sword raised. Just as Gwain's sword became ever so close to Merlin, Merlin ripped his sword out of the ground, and struck Gwain's sword. Merlin clashed his sword against Gwain's, and slowly fed some of his magic through the sword to make his strikes stronger without using too much physical energy. The fight took a turn, as before Merlin was backing up, now Gwain was. Merlin could tell that his strikes were weaker and less coordinated. Merlin smirked. Gwain was trying to trick him. Merlin knew that Gwain had one of the strongest fighting stamina's out of Camelot's army, so for Gwain to tap out so soon couldn't be real. Merlin predicted correctly.

Just as Merlin striked less and less, Gwain dodged to the side, and tried to strike Merlin. Merlin ducked the swing, kicked Gwain down, and stood up, pointing his sword to Gwain.

"Admit defeat." Merlin laughed. Gwain admitted, and stood up.

"You tricky little bastard. How did you know I was faking?" Gwain asked.

"I know your fighting just as well as I know Arthur's, Percival's, and Leon's. You all fight differently, with different tricks." Merlin told them. Arthur was impressed.

"Can you fight with a dagger against a sword?" Percival asked. Merlin wagered he could.

"Grab yourself a dagger, and let's fight." Percival told Merlin. Merlin swapped his sword for a plain old dagger, and they fought. Merlin still waited for Percival to make the first strike, but he never did.

"Are you going to fight me or not?" Percival teased. Merlin shrugged, and charged him. Just as Percival swung his sword to hit Merlin, Merlin slid between Percival's spread legs, flipped over, and tackled him to the ground. Merlin sat on Percival's back, holding a dagger to his neck.

"I admit defeat." Percival said. The knights clapped for Merlin as he helped Percival stand.

Arthur clapped Merlin on the back. "You did very well. I did not expect that kind of fighter attitude out of you." Arthur told him. Merlin had noticed the little crowd he stirred. He watched as Leon walked to him. Leon held a hand out, and dropped a stone in between themselves.

Merlin rose his brow. Dropping a stone to another knight was the challenging of a duel, where the challenger would set up the rules of the fight. The only difference between normal practice and duels, was the opponents could get injured, but not be allowed to tap out unless they're dead.

"What are your rules?" Merlin asked. Everyone watched.

"You have no weapon, and I will have a sword. No shields. You cannot use your magic directly on me. If you do, I get to strike you down in front of everyone. Once you have taken my sword away by hand, then the duel will be over." Leon told him. Merlin agreed, and shook his hand. The knights gave them some room.

"Do you want some armor to protect your body?" Arthur asked. Merlin shook his head.

"I will be fine. I'm invincible, remember?" Merlin said. Arthur wasn't so sure, but he allowed him to fight. He did have a say, but he truly thought that Merlin could win.

Leon started 10 feet away from Merlin. And by code, Leon would have to attack first, and land some kind of blow. It would be a bit tough, as Merlin had only his body to absorb the blow, but he felt he could do it.

"Sword up." Gwain told them. "Duel." He commenced. Leon ran towards Merlin, his sword raised high.

Merlin quickly jumped into the air, and the sword hit the thick leather against Merlin's shoe sole. Because of Merlin's momentum, the boot was not cut at all. Merlin was finally allowed to fight back. Merlin ran to an opposite corner, and crouched to the ground. As Leon ran to him, ready to strike, Merlin vibrated the ground.

The pulsating ground made Leon's knees weak, and fall down. Merlin grabbed some dirt, and threw it at Leon to disorientate him. Merlin ran in the grab Leon's sword, but Leon swung his sword. Merlin avoided it as best he could, but he got a slight cut on his arm. Merlin quickly pulled the jacket off, and threw it to the side. He held his arm for a quick moment, and the cut turned into a very faded scar.

Merlin ran back towards Leon, jumped, and kicked him with both feet in the chest. The force of the kick sent Leon's sword flying out of his hand. Merlin ran to grab the sword, but Leon tackled him. Everyone watched Leon punch Merlin in the ribs repeatedly as Merlin tried getting up. Just as Leon tried to stand to grab his sword, Merlin flipped around, and suck punched him in the mouth, which made him stumble back. Merlin channeled his magic to his arm muscles, and he picked up Leon, and threw him across the field. Merlin ran towards Leon's sword, and picked it up proudly. He walked over to Leon with the sword, and showed him.

"I win." Merlin said panting. Gwain rooted for Merlin. He threw the sword to the side, and placed his hands on Leon's side. He was able to heal the bruises on Leon, and was able to take the pain away. Merlin as well healed his own bruises.

"You did very well Leon." Merlin told him. Merlin held his hand out to Leon.

Leon reluctantly grabbed onto his hand, and shook it. "Thank you. I guess you did well. As you had no weapon but your own magic." Leon said.

"I hope you feel a little bit better about me." Merlin told him, while he still held onto his hand.

"I think I will like you a whole lot better in a couple of seconds." Leon said. Merlin was confused. In one swift movement, Leon pulled Merlin extremely close to him, while his opposite hand pulled out a dagger. Leon threw the dagger upwards, and sliced Merlin's vocal cords. Merlin's body finally reacted, and threw Leon away from himself. Arthur rushed to Merlin as Merlin held onto his sliced throat. Merlin was slowly loosing oxygen. He hastily started to heal his throat, but it felt agonizingly slow.

"Seize him and throw him into the dungeons!" Arthur yelled to the knights as he crouched down to Merlin's level. Two knights grabbed onto Leon, and dragged him off. They could hear Leon's cackling laugh from afar.

Merlin gasped for air as he healed his throat. Just before he passed out, be completely the healing, and he fell to the ground. Arthur thankfully saw the healed scar on Merlin's neck.

"Are you alright?" Arthur asked. Merlin nodded. Merlin took a gulp of air, thankful that he didn't die again. That would certainly release the little secret he had.

Merlin shakily stood up. He tried to speak, but his vocal chords where very sensitive. It was painful, but Merlin spoke very quietly.

"No need to worry. I am alright now." Merlin whispered. The knights looked at him weirdly, but continued to train. Some of Leon's followers talked sadly to the others, at how Leon's attempt failed.

"I should get Gaius to look at the inside of my throat. I may need to fix them a little more." Merlin told Arthur quietly. "You stay here." He told him. Arthur understood, and stayed with the others as Merlin walked back to Gaius. He grabbed his cut jacket on the way, and put it back on.

Merlin felt the scare on his throat. It was very large, and raised. Signature of a deep slice.

He walked inside to see Gaius and his apprentice cleaning.

"Hello Merlin. What happened to your neck?" Gaius asked, immediately noticing the large scar on his throat.

"Leon sliced my throat. Can you see if my vocal chords need more fixing? It is very hard for me to speak." Merlin asked very quietly.

"What did you say?" Gaius asked.

"He said he would like you to look at his vocal chords, sir. His throat has been sliced." Don told Gaius louder. Gaius's hearing could only pick up what Don told him, so he motioned for Merlin to sit down. Merlin opened his mouth, and Gaius looked down his throat.

"You're vocal chords are inflamed alright. Scared over as well. I think you'll be good as long as you don't talk for a couple of days, or talk very minimally. But I don't know how your speech will be affected. You've got a nasty scar, but it might just make your voice a bit more raspy." Gaius told him. Merlin nodded. He leaned into Gaius's ear, and thanked him as loud as he could.

Merlin walked back to the training ground to join Arthur.

"Are you going to be alright?" Arthur asked. Merlin just nodded. Merlin buttoned his jacket up all the way up to the collar, and hid his scar.

Merlin watched as Arthur fought with the others, and Merlin would occasionally float the targets around so the knights could practice aim. Merlin threw up a clear barrier between himself and the arrows just in case one 'happened' to fly by.

When they were done, Arthur headed back to his quarters to take a bath. A servant brought him a tub, and Arthur soaked as Merlin looked through some of Arthur's latin papers.

"Are any of them urgent?" Arthur asked. Merlin shook his head.

"Any that need to be signed right away?" Arthur asked. Merlin nodded. He wrote down on a piece of paper what some of the documents asked. Mostly about the blessing to create new bridges somewhere, or to clear damns and certain areas of the forest. Merlin held the note for Arthur to read.

"I will sign those once I'm out." Arthur said. He scrubbed away to get rid of the dirt and sweat, and then got dried off and changed. He signed those papers, and Merlin placed the others away.

"So you won't be talking for a couple of days?" Arthur asked. Merlin nodded. Arthur groaned.

Arthur sneaked his arms around Merlin, and kissed Merlin. He quite enjoyed this.

They stopped as they heard another servant knocked on the door, as usual.

The servant stopped by to collect the tub of water, and left. Just before Arthur and Merlin continued to kiss, Gwen knocked on the door.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but there's a visitor seeking your presence." Gwen told them through the door. Arthur sighed, but walked with Gwen downstairs to the throne room. Merlin followed.

Gwen lead Arthur to the throne room, and introduced an older looking woman, with a child hiding behind.

"Thank you for seeing me. My name is Matilda." She told them. "I have a situation with this young girl, but I believe you can help me." She told them.

"What is wrong with the girl?" Arthur asked. Merlin could feel a strong magical force coming from the child. The old woman pushed the girl towards them.

"Her name is Ethel. We found her abandoned in a crate along a trail. I think smugglers tried to bring her along, but dropped her." She explained. The little girl was about 5-6 years old, with long white hair, fair skin, and blue eyes. Merlin had read about children like her.

"She's a druid child, I can tell. No child her age can be self taught in magic. I can also tell that she has poor eyesight. She must have been in the dark most of her life, as her eyes cannot adjust to the lights." Merlin whispered. Her pupils were as small as can be, and her eyes squinted very slightly.

"We could not find any parents. I thought if I brought her to you, you could help find her a home. It is very hard for me to walk these days." She told them. She did had a very large hump on her back, and her body shook as she stood.

Merlin crouched down close to her.

"Can you come here?" Merlin asked very quietly and raspy. She stepped forward to him. Merlin held his hand over her eyes, and repeated a spell inside his mind. A slight blue glow of light, and Merlin took his hand away. The girls eyes widened. Merlin healed her eyes, and let them adjust to the light. She was able to look around her surroundings, and rested her gaze on Merlin. She silently ran to Merlin, and hugged him.

Arthur smiled as he watched the girl hold on. Merlin stood up, and carried her on his hip.

"She is just frightened. I think we may be able to find her a home here in Camelot." Arthur assured the woman.

"Thank you so much. I feel so sorry for her, but I just want her to be in a better place." The woman thanked them. She left Ethel with them, and headed back to where she lived. Ethel held onto Merlin desperately.

"Do you remember anything? You're last name, you're birthday, where your parents live?" Arthur asked. She shook her head.

"Where is your druidic mark?" Merlin asked very quietly. She silently pointed to hip. Merlin nodded.

"Let's get you washed up and dressed. I have a very nice friend of mine that I bet you will like." Merlin told her. Merlin walked around, searching for Gwen. They finally found her on her way out for the day.

"Hey Gwen. Are you able to help us out?" Arthur called out. Gwen walked towards them.

"Do you think you could find some clothes that would fit her, and give her a bath? Tomorrow we will try to find her a new home." Arthur asked.

"Of course I could. She looks like a cutie. Come here." Gwen said as she reached for Ethel. Ethel recoiled into Merlin, and held on.

"She's grown very attached to Merlin very quickly." Arthur told Gwen.

"You can trust Gwen. She would never hurt you. Just let her give you a bath, and dress you. Then you can come back to me." Merlin told her. Ethel seemed to think for a bit, before letting go, and letting Gwen hold onto her hand. Gwen lead her to Morgana's old room, and grabbed some of Morgana's childhood clothes that were left untouched in her wardrobe. As much as Gwen hated being in that room, it was the only place that would have children's clothes.

Gwen brought a smaller tub filled with lukewarm water, and proceeded to wash Ethel off. Gwen was definitely able to see the mark on her side, as the blue contrasted a lot against her pale skin. Once she was washed and dried, she dressed her up, and brushed her hair.

"You have very pretty hair. Very silky once it's given a good brush." Gwen told her as she blushed her hair. She tied some strands back, and finished. She lead Ethel back to Arthur's quarters were the two were.

"She's all clean, and perfect. I didn't see any bruises or anything wrong." Gwen told them. Ethel took to Merlin immediately, and stood by his side.

"Thank you again. Sorry to have kept you longer." Arthur apologized.

"Oh it's no problem. Well I'm off. See you two tomorrow." Gwen said.

Arthur was currently at his desk, and Merlin was sitting in a chair. A servant came by, and asked if they need dinner brought up. Merlin decided to head down, but had Ethel following the entire time. She watched Merlin carefully as he got the tray of food, and brought it up. She followed him like a duckling, all the way back up to the room where he placed the food on the table. Merlin placed the plates down, and even brought an extra one for Ethel.

"You can sit down with us." Merlin told her, patting a seat next to him. She climbed onto the seat, and sat on her legs so she was able to see above the table.

Arthur piled each of their plates with food, and have Ethel as smaller amount, as she would probably not eat a lot.

"Is your throat feeling better?" Arthur asked. Merlin nodded, but didn't say anything.

"What happened to your throat?" Ethel spoke up very quietly. She had a very soft voice, and it was very high pitched. Arthur and Merlin listened.

"Just hurt it a little. I will be able to talk somewhat normally in a week or so." Merlin told her. She nodded, and continued to eat her food. She was a bit of a messy eater, but Merlin just wiped off her face for her.

"Where is she going to sleep?" Arthur asked. Merlin shrugged.

"I can have a cot set up in our room. I do not think she'll like the idea of sleeping alone." Merlin spoke softly.

Arthur flagged down a maid to have Ethel changed into some sleep clothes, and for a cot to be brought into Merlin's room. The maid brought her back, with a dress for tomorrow, and servant carried in a cot.

Merlin kissed Arthur goodnight, and tucked Ethel into the cot.

"In the morning, you and I will walk around the city, alright? The faster you fall asleep, the earlier you wake up." Merlin told her. She nodded, and turned on her side to sleep. Merlin climbed into bed, and soon feel asleep.