Thaumaturgy

Chapter 6

Dirk blinked his eyes open when a cool breeze stroked on his face and he found them standing quitealone in a wooden clearing. Dirk took a staggering step back, glancing around the glade; his face ripe with confusiong. Merlin warched him from thr corner of his eye, thoughts of how adorably strucken he was not entirely chased out of his brain by pain, though it was considerable.

"Cmon help me up the ladder" Merlin groaned as the ladder dropper down and the tree house was reveale. Dirk let out an audible gasp of shock.

"How- where- w-w-what?" he stammered. Merlin sighed and gave Dirk a fond scathing look.

"Magic, clotpole. Now help me up." he said in reply, words short and put upon.

Somehow, Dirk halled MErlin up the riggety ladder, pausing to stand on the porch balcony when they reached the top, he looked around. Merlin saw his expression and frowned.

"Don't tell me you're afraid of heights?" he asked. Dirk looked back to him, confused.

"I don't know. I've never been this high up before" he said exitedly, face breaking in an exicted grin. Suddernly, Merlin inhaled sharply as a twang of pain hit him, reminding them both their reason for being there.

"We need to get you looked at" Dirk muttered gently getting Merlin into his own home. They walked together down the hall way.

"There's a medical kit in the bathroom." Merlin said, from behind.

"The bathroom? You have a bathroom up here?" resonded the blacksmith, surprised at the luxury to be found in a tree house.

"Magic, Dirk." smiled back the warlock, rolling both his eyes and his sleeve up is arm to expose his injury.

"Why can't you just cure yourselve which magic hen?" asked Dirk as the wizard sat himself in the bathroom and alllowed the blonde man to gently clean his wound removing all the dried blood. He applied a cream Merlin indicated and wrapped the wound in bandages.

"It doesn't work that way." said Merlin. Dirk sighned in fustration, dropping his arms and hands to the sides.

"Then why the hell aren't you more careful?" he snapped in response. Merlin gasped in shock at his reasction, a small delicte sound in the air.

"You could have been seriously injured! Or killed!" the blonde blackesmith continued, pacing around the room as he ranted.

"You can't just risk your life like that. What if you die? What would your mother do? What would your sould mate do?" Dirk was in fall flow now: running his hands through his golden hair. Merlin sat watching him: eyes crest fallen at his last sentence.

"I don't think my soul mate would care." he said, softlier than Dirk had ever heard himm, it knocked the wind from Dirk's sails. He stopped and stood and stared at the raven-haired-man, whos now semed so unconfident, hunched over on himself to be as small as possible.

"Why not?" he said, begiled.

Instead of an answer in words Merlin stood, rotating his wounded arm so Dirk could see the soul words which embellished it inky black:

ARTHUR PENDRAGON.

Dirk sighed in understanding.

"You see, because he's already daed." explained Merlin.

"But...other people care about you. Will and Gwaine and Lance and your monther and...and me." Dirk said blushing and looking away, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment

"Yes. And you" Merlin said gazing at Dirk gently. He tenderly touched the othe mans cheek feeling the short stubble on his cheek under his chiselled fingerstips.

"Anyways" Dirk coughed and stoop up and rolled his sleeve up. He looked down at the black marks exposed, a scrawl on his tanned skin and muscular arm hat splet out one cryptic word.

"At least yours is a real person. I don't even get a full name. No one knows what 'Emrys' is, no one has even been called that, it's just a druid word that doesn't mean anything. I'm not...I'm never..." he trailed off, overome with the enorminty of it. Merlin sttood then and placed and gentle hand on his shoulder, running it from his shoulder to his neck until he was cupping the blond man's chiselled jawline.

Dirk's face looked so broken and miserable Merlin could feel his pain deep in his chest ling a ringing sort of tightness. The blonde blackmith looked up at him through his dark eyelashes cerculean eyes shining with tears that sat on the brims of his eyelids and Merlin felt his breath atch and his hert flutter like a hurricane butterfly flittering in his chest.

"I..." He trailed off. There was no point. Yoour soulmate was your only true match on earth, everyone knew that. It didn't matter how the warlock knocked the air out of his lungs, or that there was a breathless twinkle that danced in Merlin's cheeky grin that made him think that the burning static that crackled between them was mutual. There was nothing for him here. He cleard his throuat. The sound pulled both of them fom their reveries.

"We should head back" Merlin almost choked on the words and he say a bit of light fade from the other man's eyes as he did, like the sun being enshrouded on a cloudly day, Dirk gelt like he had just been doused in something cold as the heat between them fased.

"Right." Dirk stepped away from him, and looked at the grain in the treehouse's wooden ground, The black haireds mans hand slid from his shoulder and returned to his side, feeling cold and empty in the absensce of his heat.

"Right." Merlin agreed hollowly. The silence of wrods unsaid and risks not taken echoed around them; thickening the air into molasses.

----

Outside the hidden window of cut glass the torrent of rain lashed the window of the King's study, the storm that always ragen over Camelot, Uther did not even notive any long as the lightning cracked and flashed in the the dark sky in an illuniamting roar.

Uther sat alone in a darkened room, pooring over old scrolls with cursed words by the light of a flickering canlde that spat wax as it burned. Heavy tapestries and drapes covered the walls, all the colours faded and covered by dust until they were just a grey-brown colour with no detail or evidence of the beautiful pitures they used to be. Lighting crackled outside There was a meek knock at the door.

"Come" he ordered and the door creeked open and a shuffling figure came in, his head bowed.

"Ralph. You have news." the king said as a fact. He had told him not to disturb him unless it was to say the plan was working.

"Yes sire" His nasal voice said "All the artifacts are arranged. Our tests have proved....successfull. The subject...destroyed" he smirked, revealing pointy wet teeth.

"Good." Uther nodded, ignoring his manserevents obvious happpiness. He had worked long for this, and soon...he would have his way. The bain of the earth will be gone. Everyone would be safe again. He glanced up and sawe his serants worried face.

"What is it, Ralph" He said with doom in his voice, he drew himself to his feet and full height and looming darkly over him. Ralph bowed so low his pointy face almost touched the round, his greasy hair shinning in the candle light.

"There is one little thing, my lord." he grovelled ina weedy voice "The artifacts, they need time. So far we have only been abelt to protect ourselfs within tha castle, for the effect to go over the world-" He was interrupted by Uther's snappignv oice and winced, kneeling on the cold stone ground of the room.

"How long will this take." Uther boomed demanidingly.

"It will take time, my lord" he said holding his hands in plea.

"HOW LONG!" The King repeated, almost shouting, cold fury in his eyes.

"Days, lorde" he flinched expecting this to be punished. But when nothing happened he looked up. The king looked calcuating, the anger gone from his face. Finally he nodded and lookekd at the man groveling ont he floor.

"For the love of Camelot. MAke it so" with that he swooped out of the room ina worl of dark cape, slamming the large looming door behind him.