enchanted | a. pendragon [on hold]

iii | goblin's gold

"you do not want to make a habit of spending the night in jail cells. trust me."

[3.3 — Goblin's Gold]

"I have no idea why you are coming along," Merlin said. Gaius had sent him down to the Hall of Records to retrieve a book, and Lia decided to accompany him.

"Because Geoffrey hates you," she replied simply.

Merlin rolled his eyes. "He does not hate me."

"Well, he doesn't like you either," Lia mumbled.

He scoffed and gently elbowed her before entering the Hall. They walked up to Geoffrey, who was sitting at his desk and looking over some records. Merlin smiled brightly and went to greet him, but Geoffrey quickly put up his hand to silence him before the words even left his mouth. Lia snickered as Merlin's smile dropped.

While Merlin waited impatiently, Geoffrey took his time reading the documents before finally looking up at them. "Yes?"

"Gaius asked me to fetch a book. The, uh..." Merlin trailed off, the long name slipping his mind.

"The Bestiary of Phylum of Cambria," Lia said, remembering it for him. Merlin smiled sheepishly and nodded in thanks.

"The Bestiary? I haven't seen that for many years. It'll be somewhere in the east wing," Geoffrey said. "No idea where."

Merlin sighed but turned to his right and began walking. Lia sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Wrong direction."

He stopped and turned back around with wide eyes. Geoffrey pointed in the correct direction. "East is that way."

Lia put a hand on his shoulder and led him to the east wing. They trudged up and down the shelves, searching for the ancient book. Merlin was suddenly glad that Lia had tagged along so that he did not have to search alone. After a bit of searching, Merlin spotted it. The Bestiary sat at the very top of a tall shelf, covered in dust and cobwebs.

"Great," Merlin muttered.

Lia watched as he stretched his arm and jumped, trying to reach it. "Merlin, that is a fifteen-foot tall shelf. You cannot jump that high."

Merlin rolled his eyes before beginning to climb up the shelf. Before Lia could crack a joke or even offer to fetch a ladder, he ended up triggering some kind of switch. Her jaw dropped as the shelf spun around and disappeared into the wall, replaced with a stone wall.

"M - Merlin?" she stuttered, taking a careful step towards the wall. She banged against the wall with her hand, wondering if he could hear her wherever he was. "Merlin?"

A moment later, the wall opened up again and Merlin was grabbing her arm, dragging her through the secret door. They were in a hidden chamber that looked as if it hadn't been touched in years. It was a jumbled mess with books and objects scattered all over the floor. Just glancing at some of the things told them that they were magical artifacts.