Chapter 20

The following morning was only the first day of the road to the king's official wedding and Guinevere's coronation ceremony. Arthur had staged a tourney as his engagement present to his future wife. Him and his knights were the source of the entertainment, though it was clear in Gwen's eyes that just seeing Arthur was enough for her. She sat with Agravaine in her new spot above everyone else, clapping and smiling and enjoying herself. As she should have! She was to be queen soon! Merlin stood near the tents like he normally did, watching and waiting in case Arthur needed anything else. Laila was missing out on the event, saying she wasn't feeling well. Gaius had stayed behind as well to check up on her. He promised her he would come back the minute the tourney was over. It had become natural for him to feel overly worried for her.

The king's horse trotted over to the tents, meaning his turn was over. "I've got to hand it to you," Merlin laughed, arms crossed. His master pulled off his helmet and tossed it to his servant who caught it just as it fell to the ground. "If nothing else it's certainly an original engagement present."

Arthur hopped off his horse and went over to where a jug of water was waiting for him. Merlin followed, continuing to tease him. "As far as romantic gestures go… flowers? Or have a song written? Instead you present her with two days of sweaty men knocking the sense out of each other!"

"Exactly as it should be!" Arthur waved his cup of water before bringing it to his lips. "My father staged a tourney before his wedding, it's tradition!"

"Ah, so it's not even an original gesture then?" Merlin pointed out.

"I think my future wife understands." Arthur nodded in Gwen's direction. Percival had just finished his turn, hence the crowd's applause. The king smiled, completely love-struck. Merlin would have laughed at him, seeing as it took Arthur forever to admit he was head over heels for Gwen. He turned to address his servant again. "Where's your lady? Laila would never miss a day like this."

The warlock's smile faltered a little and he distracted himself by giving the helmet an unnecessary polish. "She hasn't been, uh, feeling well these days, decided to skip out for today."

Arthur looked a bit surprised. "Well is she okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, she's… I'm sure it's nothing," Merlin shrugged, not meeting Arthur's eyes yet he could feel them practically burning into him, studying him silently.

"Merlin," he started, "We've been together for quite a long time, haven't we?"

"Er… yes, I'd say so." Where was he going with this?

"And I would say that I know you pretty well, more than I know myself sometimes… which is frightening," Arthur went on, "Nevertheless, I know when you're trying to avoid a subject and when you won't shut up about one. Spill it, big man, what's wrong?"

Times like these Merlin hated that he and Arthur knew each other so well. Despite being the king's manservant, they had a deeper relationship than that. Arthur had even once said that he trusted Merlin above all and he himself never failed to remind the king that he would protect him no matter what. Most of the time, they took their friendship for granted, what with insulting each other and occasionally getting angry, to the point where Arthur would threaten to throw him in the stocks. But there were times where their interactions reminded them just how close they were.

"I don't know, to be honest," Merlin sighed, putting the helmet down and lifting his head to meet Arthur's gaze. "Things have been… a bit weird since she came back."

"That much is expected. She did, after all, run away from you."

"It's not just that, it's… I think she might be hiding something," the warlock finally admitted. "I can't just sit back and buy the explanation that she felt insecure about what we had and chose to run away from it. There's something else and it could be affecting her, and it's bothering me so much, I don't know what to do."

The king thought for a moment. "You're stressing yourself out too much," he finally said, "Granted your relationship with Laila is… complicated, the best way to put it. She's had a tough life, what with losing her family and adjusting to a new home, perhaps she still needs time to fully settle."

"That's another problem," Merlin pointed out, "I don't know much about her past either."

Arthur scoffed, shaking his head disapprovingly. "Well, you're not a very good boyfriend then, are you, Merlin? Talking about yourself all day and not letting the girl speak. What's wrong with you?"

Before Merlin could protest, the sound of the horns signaled that it was another knight's turn. Both the king and servant turned to see a knight ride his horse up to the field, staff in hand. His helmet was closed so neither could identify who it was. Interestingly enough, all the knights should have gone already, who was this stranger?

"Who's that?" Arthur echoed Merlin's thoughts.

"No idea," Merlin replied. The two watched as the knight prepped himself before he raced his horse down the field and pointed his staff into the ribbon-covered ring hanging by a string. His aim was spot on and broke the string it was hanging off of. The audience burst into another round of applause. Gwen clapped politely and stood up to accept the ring. The knight stopped in front of her as she slipped it off his staff. Then, he took his helmet off. It was as if Gwen, Arthur, and Merlin each had flawless timing because their expressions changed all together and matched perfectly; a mix of shock, confusion, and awe.

The knight was Lancelot.

"Have you considered… the other reason?" Gaius asked, playing it as subtle as he could. Him and Laila were sitting at the table after he had examined her to understand why she had been feeling sick these few days. Across from him, Laila's head was turned, resting on her hand, eyes fixed on the window. Anywhere but at the old man. She feared a simple look would answer Gaius's question. She had considered the other reason; she just didn't want it to be a possibility.

"I'm sure it's nothing," she finally said, turning her head to him. "And most likely not… that."

"It is plausible, Laila. Don't brush it off." And embarrassing. That meant Gaius knew that her and Merlin had gone pretty far. She bit her lip but didn't say anything. What could she say? What was her knowledge of infections and illnesses compared to that of Gaius's? She couldn't just make something up…

Gaius lowered his voice. "When you described your symptoms to me, it was the first conclusion I came to. I had considered that maybe it was caused from an open wound or food poisoning or whatever else that could coincide with the symptoms. But truthfully, that's the most reasonable one."

Groaning, Laila covered her face. When it was coming from the court physician, there really was no denying the truth. "Great. That's just wonderful…"

The old man looked sympathetic. "When are you going to tell Merlin?"

"That's the problem. I don't want to tell Merlin."

"You can't keep this from him, Laila, he has the right to know," Gaius urged, shooting a look in her direction. "He's going to ask me too, and I don't want to lie to him. I've kept enough secrets from him the past, for reasons I believed were important. But this… there can be no excuses. He has the right to know."

"I get it, Gaius," she sighed, not wanting to hear him repeat himself. "I just wish I knew how he would react."

"You should be happy about this," he replied, trying to sound optimistic, "Though I can imagine how much it would put on Merlin's plate…"

You don't even know how much it's going to dump on my plate. "I'll tell him. But not now, Gaius. Later. I will, though. Really."

He observed her for a moment before nodding his head. "Whatever you feel is right. And what shall I say to him if he asks?"

"Tell him it's nothing big, just a stomachache. And when the time is right, I'll tell him the real news." If there ever will be a right time.

"Very well, then." Before anything else could be said, the doors to the chambers flung open and the two turned to see Merlin run in, looking flustered. Gaius rose from the table. "Merlin? Is something the matter?"

"Not at all!" A big smile spread across Merlin's face. "Gaius, Laila, you are not going to believe this. Lancelot is back!"

Laila had already predicted this but nevertheless, mimicked the shocked expression on Gaius's face as Merlin hurriedly explained what had happened at the tourney earlier today. After Sir Percival, a mysterious night appeared on the field and took off his helmet, revealing his true self to everyone. The girl did not have to ask to find out what the look on Gwen's face was when Lancelot glanced up at her.

"So it seems we missed quite a bit today," Gaius finally said after Merlin finished. "Lancelot returned, and just in time for the wedding."

His timing couldn't be more terrible. "Now I'll actually get to meet him!" Laila played along, getting up from the table. "Where will he be staying?"

"I offered him a place here," Merlin replied, "He'll take the upstairs room and we'll sleep down here, if that's alright with you."

"Of course! It's no problem with me."

"Good." The warlock smiled, placing his hands on her shoulders, eyes sweeping over her small figure. "And you? How are you feeling?"

The girl ignored Gaius eyeing her and shrugged. "Better. I suppose it was nothing. I wish I hadn't missed the tourney." Look away, Gaius, please look away.

"There's another one tomorrow. And Lancelot will be joining everyone for dinner tonight for the first time since we lost him. He's going to explain here he's been all this time."

Was he now? Laila would have to watch and see how so-called Lancelot could make everyone believe that he had not really been dead. And she would have to see Gwen's reaction to his surprise arrival.

The hours flew by quickly and just as Merlin had said, the knights plus Gwen and Agravaine sat at the dinner table, listening to Lancelot recount his tale of what happened after the veil. Merlin and Laila served as usual, but paid close attention to what he was saying. He had remembered very little after the veil. He claimed to owe his life to the "Madhavi people" who had saved him and traveled with them until he made his way to Camelot. Morgana was quite a storyteller, passing down her lies to him. Arthur ate it up and said he made his way home. Gwen looked both happy and unhappy to see him, whilst Merlin just looked happy… yet suspicious. And all throughout his story, Agravaine sent him approving looks that seemed to go unnoticed by everyone. This almost made Laila laugh. Didn't anyone (besides Merlin) notice anything about Agravaine's behavior? Or maybe it just appeared that way to her because she knew what his true intentions were? What with all these evil expressions he made, one would think Agravaine was trying to give himself away.

Lancelot stood to propose a toast to Camelot. Everyone echoed Lancelot and raised their cups. By now, Merlin and Laila were just standing around, watching and listening. Once Lancelot took a sip from his cup, the girl noticed the sudden change in Merlin's expression. She turned her head to him. "Is something wrong?" she whispered.

Merlin shook his head and managed a smile. "No, nothing at all. Just… glad he's back." But Laila knew that look anywhere. He was slowly figuring out. And eventually, he was going to figure it out. The night carried on without an ounce of drama and Merlin didn't verbalize his thoughts, though he probably would once the meal was over. After dinner, the two escorted Lancelot back Gaius's chambers where he would be sleeping in Merlin's room.

"I don't believe I've met you before," Lancelot addressed Laila as he walked between the witch and the warlock. "You were not here last I remember." There was an odd, rehearsed quality to the way he spoke which to the untrained ear, sounded like someone genuinely interested in making her acquaintance. Oh yes. Morgana had trained him all too well. His act would have been convincing if Laila was not into on the woman's plans.

"I'm relatively new," Laila responded casually. "Nice to meet you, Lancelot. I've heard great things about you."

The knight nodded his head. "All good, I hope."

"Definitely," Merlin cut in, smiling at the knight, "This way, in case you've forgotten."

After greeting Gaius, Lancelot was led upstairs. Merlin threw open the door and the knight followed, but Laila stayed behind, eyeing them as they left. Many things could happen- Merlin finding out, Lancelot giving away Morgana's plans, and somehow, Laila's only personal secret could be found out- the possibilities were endless.

"Would you be comfortable down here, Laila?"

The girl jumped when she heard Gaius's voice. She turned her eyes to him, confused at what he was asking. Discreetly, the old man patted his stomach and looked at hers. Laila's cheeks turned pink and she wrapped her arms around her own stomach. "I'll be fine," she muttered. She minded her own business for a few moments, setting up her and Merlin's bed when she heard footsteps and turned to see the warlock coming down the stairs, the same expression from before on his face. Only this time, Gaius detected it the suspicion in it as well.

"Oh no," he said, slowly closing his book, "I've seen that face before."

Merlin didn't answer him, merely took a breath. "I'm fine," he sighed, "I'm just tired and a bit overwhelmed from today's events."

"Did Lancelot say something?" Gaius questioned. Yes, Merlin, did he? Laila was tempted to voice her urging but kept her mouth shut.

"No, he's still adjusting to being back and all, doesn't talk as much as he used to." There was more but he wasn't telling Gaius. Why? Laila could see it, it was plain on his face. Merlin was sensing something was wrong, in the midst of all the good things that were happening. Yet another thing for the warlock to worry about and make sure no one else got hurt. The matter was closed and everyone prepared for bed themselves.

Laila found she could not sleep at all. The space her and Merlin had downstairs was bigger than his bed in his room, she would think she'd be much more comfortable. It was her thoughts that were keeping her awake, the constant nagging at her to do the right thing. But what was the right thing? It all mattered on which side she was on. On Morgana's side, the right thing was the assist the woman in her quest to snatch the throne from Arthur and take Camelot as hers. On Merlin's, it was to fight against the witch and protect Camelot from her. For a while, Laila had told herself not to choose sides- but to somehow merge them together. That was proving to be impossible. Morgana would not budge and after this, neither would Merlin. The High Priestess had made her biggest mistake, throwing Laila into the equation. She had not considered that Laila was just as much human as anyone else, with thoughts and feelings, her own sense of right and wrong. Just because she was some brothel girl from a hated city did not mean she had none of the above. What am I going to do?

The girl turned onto her other side and to her surprise, she found that Merlin was awake as well, on his back, facing the ceiling. He seemed to have felt her eyes on him and averted his gaze to her. "You're still awake?" he whispered.

"I should be asking you the same question," she whispered in return, "What's wrong?"

Merlin paused. "Something's wrong."

"I deducted that much," Laila noted, her voice almost inaudible as to not wake Gaius. "What is it?"

"Lancelot," he replied, turning his whole body to fully face her, "I want to believe everything's fine. I want to believe we have him back…"

"But?" She knew the answer.

"When he was telling his story, I sensed it," Merlin continued, his tone matching Laila's, "The way he greeted me, it seemed suspicious, but what happened now just made me sure. He forgot I had magic… Lancelot would never do that."

This time, she was caught off-guard. She had forgotten that Lancelot knew about Merlin's magic. If Morgana had known… if she had been told beforehand… this would not have happened, another flaw in her plan. "It is strange," she admitted, "But you mustn't forget, Merlin, after what he's been through… you can't really expect him to be his old self, much less remember all the details."

"This is a big part of me. He could never forget this," Merlin insisted. "It's almost like he's… not himself. And he always looks as if he's got some other motive. Something dangerous, for sure."

"Give him time," Laila promised, reaching out to take his hand in hers reassuringly, "Lancelot will remember. Everything about you, the big parts, the little ones… all of it. He'll be back to the same, noble knight that everybody knows him to be. Trust me."

Merlin was silent for a few moments, just pondering to himself. Finally, he gave in. "Well… I suppose. It is his first day back after all."

"That's right. Now stop worrying all the time, you're less fun to be around."

The warlock smiled at her and slowly pulled her towards him. "Well, what about you? Why are you awake?"

I'm awake because I'm thinking about how fucked up the future is going to be if I don't do the right thing. The problem is, I don't know what the right thing is and normally I'd confide in you because I trust you with all my heart but I can't because if I did, you would hate me. Oh, and by the way, there is a very good chance that I am pregnant with your child. "Just thinking also," Laila shrugged, letting him wrap his arms around her. "Nothing special."

"Thinking about what exactly?" he murmured, face inches away from hers. "About me, I hope?"

She giggled quietly. "Sort of…"

"I think I'm okay with that. If it's sort of about me, what's the rest of it?"

She hesitated for a second. "Merlin…"

"Yes?" The worry that had been permanent in his tone of voice since Laila had come back had returned and it almost made her cry at how he could still feel so protective over her. If he knew… he would leave her in no time.

"What's going to happen in the future?" Laila asked softly, unsure if it was came out the way she wanted it to.

Merlin furrowed his brow. "I can't really tell you… I'm not the Seer here, love, you are."

The only visions she was having was of her in the same cell back in Cervena with Rheon's voice taunting her. But she wasn't about to talk about those, neither were they what she was going for. "What I mean is… with us. Will we ever… I don't know… get… more serious?"

She couldn't see his face all too clearly in the dark but his silence indicated that he had not been expecting this. His arms loosened around her but he did not pull away. Was that a bad sign or did it not mean anything at all?

"I know it's a weird question," Laila confessed, "I shouldn't have asked, it was too soon…"

"No, no it wasn't," Merlin interrupted, "You've every right to ask that and honestly, I can't believe we never discussed it up until now."

"…Really?"

"Yes, really." Another smile was playing on Merlin's mouth. "I know it's not exactly the life someone like me could lead- one like Arthur's where I'll get married, have kids, make a family of my own. But I want that life. Ups and downs, enemies and supernatural beings, saving lives nearly every day… I still want that future."

"Will that happen the way you want it to?"

"I hope so. It depends on many things. But right now with you… I think we can work towards that."

The last sentence made Laila feel a sudden mix of emotions that she looked away from him. He was smiling, it was obvious in his voice and she wanted to return it. Maybe this would make him happier. This piece of news… "Merlin…" she began. Go on, tell him. Tell him what he has the right to know. You can't keep this secret from him.

"Mhmm?" He sounded sleepy now.

Tell him, Laila. Tell him! "I want that too," she finally decided, backing out of her decision at the very last second. Now was not the time. But the conversation confirmed it all. Once the warlock had closed his eyes and drifted off, Laila turned on her other side and closed her own. She had made her decision. She knew what side she was on. And she would stay there, and make sure no one, especially not Merlin would get hurt.

The next morning, nothing drastic happened. No fights, no exposing of true identities, none of that. It was only the beginning after all. Laila decided to go see how Gwen was doing after she finished her morning duties. Cook gave her Agravaine's breakfast and she took it upstairs to his chambers without much enthusiasm- all this time and she still could not take a liking to him. The girl knocked lightly on the doors before pushing it open cautiously. Agravaine was sitting at his table as if he knew she would come at this precise hour.

"It would do you some good to get an actual servant," she said, walking in without saying hello, "I swear, a hundred different people do various chores for you."

The man did not seem bothered by her words and waited until she placed the tray down in front of him when he spoke. "I went to Morgana last night."

Laila straightened up. "And?"

"Guinevere was shaken by Lancelot's arrival, but I feared that her love for Arthur is much stronger than you or I thought."

"I never doubted it for a minute." The girl crossed her arms stubbornly.

Agravaine ignored her. "Our lady gave me an object of magic that could help enchant her. He is going to give it to as a gift from the so-called people he traveled with as a token of good fortune. Once she wears it, it will stir up some old feelings and we will get the outcome we wanted."

What sort of object? Laila questioned it no further. Instead, she bowed her head and exited Agravaine's chambers. She looked around to make sure she wasn't being followed and went down to the lower town. Sure enough, when she looked ahead, Lancelot was leaving Gwen's home. He examined his surroundings before he made his way back up towards the castle. Laila wanted to follow him but decided to leave it alone, for fear of getting caught. Besides, today was the second tourney and fortunately, Laila was feeling well enough to go. The first half of it was filled with cheering and excitement… though she couldn't help but find it just a little bit boring.

"Tell me something," she was saying to Merlin, watching one knight knock another knight off his horse, "Is it just me when I say I can't find anything too romantic in knights hitting each other to the ground?"

He laughed and shook his head. "Exactly what I told Arthur. But it's tradition. If Uther did it, there's no way Arthur's not doing it." They turned their heads to see Lancelot take his turn, his staff knocking a knight down, the horse dragging the fallen man as it raced down the track. The knight lifted his staff in response to the crowd's applause. Gwen and Agravaine clapped for him, both with looks on their faces that worried Laila.

"Gwen's doing a lot of admiring," Merlin noted, suspicion back in his voice. "Must be really happy Lancelot's back."

"Must be," Laila agreed. The silence that followed did nothing to comfort her. She looked up to see Merlin's smile had faded and he was frowning now. "What is it?"

"I know we talk about this, but I can't help but feel bothered by it," he told her. "Look at Gwen. She's so… she seems… I don't know." They watched quietly as Arthur was next up, not surprisingly winning this round, raising his staff proudly over his head. But neither serving boy nor girl could be happy for him. Both stood there, unsmiling, each thinking the same thing. At that moment, Sir Percival passed by the two of them, panting and carrying his helmet. He eyed the two of them and smiled.

"Don't look so worried, you two," he noticed, "Arthur won!"

"Yeah," Merlin replied, forcing a smile in return, "He's in the final with Lancelot!" Once Percival was out of earshot, he turned to her. "Scratch what I said last night, I've a right to be suspicious. It's bugging me and I know you want me to believe everything is fine but I can't."

The girl didn't say anything in return. What could she say? What else to persuade Merlin that this was the real Lancelot? Laila had promised herself she would make sure he wouldn't get hurt; knowing what Lancelot truly was would be risking it. And not just Merlin's life, but others as well. She didn't know just how potent that object of magic was, but if it twisted Gwen's feelings, her life would be on the line as well. There was one thing she knew for sure- that Lancelot would not kill Arthur.

And he didn't. When they raced towards each other down the track, staffs pointed, Merlin had grabbed Laila's wrist out of fear unknowingly, afraid for the very thing Laila knew Lancelot wouldn't do. He had managed to injure Arthur; but that was it. He didn't go for the kill. The warlock had relaxed next to her. Momentarily, at least.

"I suppose I should be pleased Arthur's alive," he breathed.

"You really didn't think Lancelot was aiming to kill Arthur, were you?"

Merlin wasn't denying it. "I was prepared to use magic to stop it." Nothing ever escaped him, did it? Laila should have felt proud of herself for keeping up this lie for so long, but she wasn't sick enough to enjoy the fact that she was doing it. "I still believe something's up."

"We won't know until it happens, will we?" Laila answered. That was the best way she could respond for now. Merlin dropped the matter and went over to where Gaius was standing. She was about to follow when something caught her eye and she looked over her shoulder to see Gwen going to Lancelot's tent. There we go. She slipped away casually and walked in the same direction Gwen had gone. Laila could do this quietly… without anyone finding out. Everything would go back to normal… and then she was stopped when she noticed Agravaine walking towards her.

"My lord," she addressed briskly.

He stood there, smirking triumphantly. "Did you see that? Gwen is enchanted by him. It means the spell is working. By tonight, everything will go exactly as Lady Morgana has planned."

"And we'll just be standing around to watch?" Laila brought up flatly.

Agravaine's smile dropped and he eyed her carefully. "You will make sure nothing goes wrong tonight, won't you? Morgana would not like it if you let Merlin ruin yet another one of her schemes again. That's your job, remember? Do whatever it is you're good at, just as long as he stays out of it."

The girl felt her cheeks flush in anger and she gripped her fists to keep from lashing out. He had taken a dig at her and she was trying her best to stay cool. "Oh, believe me. I'll do whatever it is I'm good at it, my lord."

Merlin had spent all day thinking about Lancelot, and was still at it that night, lying in bed. How could he not? The behavior, the way he spoke, the way in which Gwen was looking at him… something was up. Perhaps he wasn't there to kill Arthur, but if not that, then what? And the whole deal with Gwen… was it possible her feelings for him had come back? Or was this all part of the bigger picture? Usually when a situation like this occurred, Merlin could safely turn to Morgana as the source of it all. But why would she want Lancelot to be a part of her plan? To sway Gwen and break Arthur's heart? It wouldn't come as a shock to him. Morgana is rather skilled at breaking the hearts of those she loved, he thought bitterly to himself. More skilled in that than her plans to thwart Camelot, if anyone would believe it.

Another thing; why was Laila being so nonchalant about this? When Merlin was on the alert, so was she. But she seemed strangely cool about the matter, like she detected nothing wrong. Of course she did not know Lancelot up until now, but come on. Laila had to have noticed Gwen's looks and judge based on what Merlin had told her. And he had told her a lot about Lancelot. He hated to say it out loud, but he was starting to become rather observant of her as well. These days, she had this look on her face as if she knew something he didn't. And not to be clingy, but Merlin felt he had a right to know what his girlfriend was looking so troubled about.

The warlock had managed to doze off for a few minutes until thirst pulled him out of sleep. He got up out of the bed and crept over to the table to pour himself some water. Before Merlin could take a sip from the cup, he heard noises upstairs and glanced up to his room. Lancelot was awake. The door opened and he quickly darted behind the screen, careful not to wake Gaius or Laila. He watched through the holes as the knight walked as silently as he could across the chambers and to the door. Merlin held his breath. Yes, he had a right to be apprehensive. Lancelot was definitely up to something.

Before he could move from his hiding spot, he saw Laila get up from their bed and scan her surroundings before getting up and grabbing her cloak. Merlin watched in confusion as she wrapped it around herself and follow out the door merely moments after Lancelot had exited. He appeared from behind the screen, eyes narrowing. Lancelot left and Laila followed. Oh, she better not be doing what I think she's doing. If so, it would explain why she's so calm. It was ridiculous, thinking after two days, they would be having an affair… but it would make sense… and was not helpful at all. Without a second thought, Merlin was after the two of them, swallowing back the nauseous build-up in his stomach. Of all things he hadn't planned, it was stalking Laila who was stalking Lancelot who had something up his sleeve… well, it wasn't shocking, but it wasn't usual either.

He kept as many paces as he could behind the two of them. It didn't look like they were planning on meeting at a designated spot so that was slightly comforting. From the looks of it, Laila was on to him the same way Merlin was on to the both of them. He just had to find out what her intent was.

The girl stopped behind a wall and Merlin at the end of the hall, out of eyesight. She was peeking out from behind it, her cloak over her head in an attempt to cover at least some of her identity. Lancelot was nowhere to be seen but judging by the way Laila was leaning a bit forward, she was listening in on something. It had to have been Lancelot. But who else? Gwen, probably? Merlin's thoughts were interrupted when he saw Laila walk ahead and this time, hurriedly. Lancelot was on the move again. The warlock kept a good distance between them as they entered another corridor. He waited a few seconds before slowly going the same way.

Just as he was closing in on them, Merlin heard a slam and ran the rest of the way and halted to a stop at the sight before him. Lancelot had fallen to the ground on his stomach, not moving. Behind him was Laila, removing the cloak over her head and hurrying over to his unconscious body. What is she doing?! Did she throw him back?! Second time that night, Merlin acted without thinking. He stepped out into the hallway. "Laila, stop!"

The girl whipped around and sucked in a breath when she saw Merlin. "Oh, Gods, no," she muttered. Before the warlock could move, Lancelot got up and tripped Laila. She fell forward to the ground, losing her step. Merlin ran forward and tried to stop the knight but Lancelot had his sword out and thrust a fist at him. He was taken by surprise, the breath knocked out of him. It was a few seconds before his world went black.

Merlin didn't know how long he had been out, but when he opened his eyes and took in his surroundings, he realized Laila was gone. Fucking hell… she ran off after Lancelot. It had to have been an act; the coolness, the relaxed attitude towards the matter… Laila knew all along that Lancelot was not himself. And Merlin had to find out how and why she did not say anything to him. He picked himself up, feeling a sudden, sharp pain in his forehead. He pressed a palm to the area, inwardly cursing. When his focus came back, Merlin rapidly made his way down the hall he was positive they had gone down.

She was running out of time.

I hope I'm not too late. Laila had timed this as carefully as she could. But she hadn't planned well enough. She should have thought twice when she noticed Merlin was not in bed. He had followed them; he had gotten in the way, and in this case, it was not good. She had wanted to do this without him knowing. But now Laila was going to be forced to explain. Whatever. As long as I get the job done before Arthur finds out.

She burst into the throne room, the find Gwen and Lancelot locked in an embrace, gazing dreamily at each other. They turned their heads to her, and Gwen did not suppress the surprised shriek that escaped her lips. Lancelot looked irritated, as if it hadn't been enough he tripped her.

"Gwen, back away from him," she ordered, shooting a glare at the Shade.

Gwen looked frantically to Lancelot who stepped in front of her protectively. "Go back to bed, young girl. I am only doing as our lady commands."

"Yeah? Well I'm saving us." Laila ran forward and for the second time, knocked him down. Gwen gasped and stepped back, screaming at them to stop. Lancelot tossed her off of him and pulled out his sword. She ducked out the way before he could slice at her skin. She stood up and faced him. "You don't have to do this," she said in a low voice. In other words, don't make me kill you. I don't want your blood on my hands.

"I am not yours to command. I am my lady's," Lancelot snapped, swiping at her. "Do not stand in my way, young girl. She told me if anyone did, I am to kill them immediately."

Even he was calling her "young girl." The Shade was so controlled by Morgana, he could not think for himself. He was simply a puppet, and Morgana had him by the strings. And so was Laila. It took her all these months to realize that she was just another pawn in Morgana's game and that maybe, she would easily dispense of her the way she would with Lancelot once her job was done. Both of them had been assigned to break hearts; but Laila's was personal and she could not take it anymore. She had chosen her side last night; and she was going to stick with it.

"Both of you, stop this!" Gwen shouted, backing up into the pillar, frightened out of her mind. "Please, this has to stop, now!"

They ignored her. "Your lady is playing with you, Sir Lancelot," Laila said, taking a deep breath, "As she has been with me." Lancelot took another swing at her and she took her chance, lowering her head, eyes flashing gold. Lancelot was thrown back once again, his sword slipping from his grip. Acting quickly, the girl reached for it and threw herself on top of him. Laila heard footsteps behind her but blocked them out, not thinking right then. Pointing the sword directly at his chest, she lifted it up and with all her strength, thrust it into the Shade.

It would forever come as a shock to her for the rest of her life how in that moment, the only moment ever that she had been able to conjure up that much strength.

A/N: I know, I know, it's been over a month since I've updated and I am so very, very, very sorry! I was on vacation and then once I got back, my classes started and the sky was falling and… anyway, here's chapter twenty.

Okay, a few things I should discuss. One, the end. Talk about major twist! I tried to make it as subtle as possible that Laila was slowly going over to Merlin's side from Morgana's. If it didn't work, then I am majorly disappointed in myself. Two, Laila's pregnancy. If you know anything about me, you would know that plot twists are my best friend. So don't be too set on the story going in that direction. In fact, it's safe to say that with this story, you should never be too set on anything. Three, where in the world is Morgana? She's coming back next chapter, along with the Kanark brothers. She will be reunited with Laila too, and we'll see what becomes of their relationship after this. Four… well, I got nothing. I just like even numbers.

I know I'm a frustrating person, particularly with this story, but I encourage you to stay till the end. Feel free to be angry with me for not publishing regularly, but keep your faith in me.

P.S. Go read Your Heart Is A Mess, it will take care of your Mergana needs. That will be updated tomorrow. Jussayin'!