Previously:

Pellinor stood from his seat "Sire with the current ban on magic in place you can hardly be seen rewarding a well known sorcerer!"

"That is why… it is my intention to re-evaluate the laws."

Arthur

At this there was uproar.

When everyone finally quieted down Arthur spoke.

"I know you all have opinions on the matter and that is why I have called this meeting." He looked around the table "We have all seen the evils brought by magic, but many have also seen the good. I would like to hear what each of you has to say."

Leon was the first to speak. "Sire, I would like to request time to think about my answer. This has not been a possibility for many years and I am sure all of us would like time to think about it before presenting our views."

"As would I" agreed Percival.

Arthur nodded "We shall reconvene in three days' time to discuss the matter."

As they were leaving the hall Gwaine clapped the king on the shoulder. "I, for one, think it is splendid idea."

Arthur smiled wanly, glad someone had not immediately rebuked the idea and seemed open to the idea of magic. He turned to leave but spun back when a thought occurred to him. "Gwaine, how would you say you are with children?"

Gwaine

Gwaine was at a loss. "What?"

Arthur rolled his eyes (a gesture which Gwaine decides was completely uncalled for) and repeated the question. "How, Sir Gwaine, would you say you are with children?"

"Fine, I guess?" Gwaine could not figure out where this conversation was headed.

Arthur turned and strode from the room abruptly. "Good. Come with me."

Gwaine blinked, then hurried to catch up with Arthur's sudden departure. "Whoa Princess, what's this about?"

Arthur lowered his voice "I need to be able to trust you. This is a matter of great importance."

Gwaine dropped the joking attitude as he sensed the serious conversation. "I am loyal to you Arthur."

Arthur paused. "Dragoon did something else besides save my life. Morgana is not completely dead."

Gwaine stopped in his tracks and rounded on Arthur, anger clouding his features. "How can she not be completely dead?"

Arthur turned to him and raised a hand to try and calm his knight. "The Morgana you know is dead. Dragoon reverted her back to her child self. She has no memory of all that has happened and looks exactly as she did when she first came to Camelot after the death of the man she knew as her father."

Gwaine stared at him, dumbfounded. "Let me get this straight. He turned Morgana, your evil half-sister, the one who's been trying to kill us all for a long time, into a kid?!" Arthur nodded. "Morgana's still out there? What if she becomes even worse this time around?"

"She's not out there; she's here, in the castle."

Merlin

He'd been through worse. He defiantly had. This was nothing next to being poisoned, the fomorroh, or serket's sting… but it was no picnic either.

Merlin tripped on yet another root and tumbled, arms flailing, into the mud. He struggled to his feet once more, gasping as the effort pulled at the tender wound. The rain was pouring down in sheets, his once clean clothes soaked through and his shaggy hair plastered to his forehead.

Merlin grumbled as he continued his stumbling trek back towards Camelot. He had no doubt that Arthur returned hours ago. What he wouldn't give for a horse right then. The bandages wrapped around his abdomen are soaked through and though the wound is no longer fatal in itself, Merlin feared that if he didn't get Gaius to look at it soon, infection may set in.

As he finally staggered out of the trees, he sighed in relief. Night had already descended and the heavy rain clouds made it even harder to see, but Merlin could just make out Camelot's white walls in the darkness. The guards were still as easily fooled as they had always been. A rock shifted out of place by a tiny amount of magic and they didn't hesitate to abandon their post to investigate, allowing Merlin to slip through the gates unnoticed. Merlin thought he should probably tell Arthur about the horrifying lapse in security but that would make it harder for him to sneak in and out of the castle to save the pratt's life all the time.

Despite exhaustion and the small amount of blood that had begun to seep through the bandages, he soon found himself at the top of the stairs outside the Physicians quarters. Merlin leaned against the wooden door to catch his breath and yelped when the door swung open. Merlin flailed in order to stay upright when his support disappeared, but in the end failed miserable and ended up groaning on the floor, a very alarmed Gaius standing over him.

"Merlin!"

"Hi Gaius." Merlin scrambled to his feet with the help of the old physician and what quickly enveloped in a warm hug. Before he could respond, the hug ended and he received a whack upside the head. "HEY! What was that for?!"

Gaius raised an eyebrow and huffed. "That was for being reckless and stupid and making me worry!"

Merlin froze, he hadn't really thought about what would happen to Gaius when he heard about what had happened at Camlann or his mother, for that matter, if he had died and Gaius was the only one who truly knew what had happened to him. He felt guilty, but the only thing he had thought about was saving Arthur. "I'm sorry Gaius I didn't think―"

Gaius interrupted him, alarmed. "Is that blood?!" Merlin looked down to see what the physician referring to. The small trickle of blood that he had noticed in the woods had apparently increased with the stain, and the fall into the room had decidedly not helped. Adrenaline had kept him going and it was only then that he realized he really didn't feel well. He smiled sheepishly at his mentor. "Uuhhhhh…" He was vaguely aware of the world going fuzzy around him as he crashed to the floor, the exhaustion finally catching up with him.

Leon

Leon sat down on his bed with sigh. It had been a long day; the trek back from Camlann had been long and hard with many wounded men to account for. Others were not so lucky as to be counted among the wounded or the living. He had taken a blow to the arm during the battle. It wasn't much and he had been able to tend to it himself but it still hurt.

Leon wandered over to his chamber window. He had one of the better rooms, over the years of being in the king's service, first Uther and then Arthur, he had moved up in the ranks of the knights. He was now the highest ranking knight and in the absence of a ruler their guidance fell upon him.

With higher rank came better living space. While others may have internalized rooms with no windows, Leon's walls were graced with two windows that looked out upon the castle courtyard. A long time ago, this would not have been preferable since it gave the occupant a clear view of executions during the Great Purge. The smoke from pyres would carry the stench of burning flesh into the rooms, making them inhabitable. Now, however; they were some of the best rooms in the palace. The Great Purge has ended years ago. When Uther had reigned there had still been the occasional execution but Arthur did not resort to such torturous punishment and the executions were also fewer in number.

It was from these rooms that Sir Leon now had a clear view of the courtyard.

He began to remove his sword belt, and then paused as something caught his eye. A lone figure picked its way through the shadows of the courtyard. Leon refastened his sword. Who would be out at this time of night? Leon wondered. His thoughts drifted to the dark waters of Camelot's past, another threat so soon. If a foe did wish to attack the city, now was the opportune time to do so. Camelot was still weakened from the war against Morgana and would no doubt fall if attacked so soon after the recent battle.

The knight watched the mysterious figure, hoping he might be able to discern whether they were friend or foe. It would not do to cause alarm over something that turned out to be harmless, given the city's current state and the fragility of the calm among its citizens. The figure stumbled, clutching its abdomen in a motion that indicated pain, and for a moment was visible. Shaggy black hair, big ears and a borrowed shirt were graced with the light of torches before the kings missing manservant shot back into the safety of the shadows.

Leon stumbled back from the window and rushed towards his chamber door. The wayward servant would no doubt head back to the Court Physician's chambers and Leon had questions that needed answering.