A Righteous Return - AU - Locked to seaweed_writes

[ihadabadday]

Once Upon a Time in a kingdom far away and filled with magic and dragons, there was a King and his Wizard. Together they did great things, bringing peace to the world and to its people. They were the best of friends, as close as any two men could be. Until one day the King was gravely injured defending his Wizard...

He gasped as the arrow struck his shoulder. Just between the gap in his armor. Too low to be anything but fatal. He knew that. But he was the King of England. He wielded Excalibur. He would not go down with out a fight. Of course /he/ would call him foolish for this. For defending him in this way. He was a sorcerer, a wizard, after all.

His knees gave out as the blood loss started to affect him. He barely noticed as strong arms came around him.

"It's okay." He assured the man, "You'll be okay. If... I'll return." He coughed a bit, feeling the pain. But it was all okay. His friend. His Wizard was alive. He pressed Excalibur into the man's hands.

"Return this to the Lady of the Lake. Please. It needs to be safe." He knew what would happen if it was in the wrong hands.

He didn't have much time. He knew that. He reached up and touched his Wizard's face. "Find me again." He managed before he closed his eyes, arm falling limply to his side.

The King of the Brits, of England, was gone.

---

John shot up in bed, gasping for breath. He pressed a hand to his face and took a deep breath. Another nightmare. So many had piled up over the years. Loosing Arthur, the two Great Wars. Even recent events were enough to make him frightened. He got out of bed and walked over to the window. After opening the blinds, he stared out at the blinking lights. Albion had changed so much in recent time. Just the past hundred years alone. He let out a sigh.

There had been one time in all these years the had started to feel Arthur return. During the second Great War... The need for him was great then than it had been years earlier during the first. He pressed a fist to the window and sighed. "Arthur, we need you..." There was the unspoken, I need you. It was always unspoken. He had never dared tell the King. He couldn't, not when he had a Queen that adored him so and who he adored in return.

He let out a long held breath and looked back out to the night sky. He didn't need this flatshare, but it was convenient to be around people again.

---

He had been living with Sherlock Holmes for three months now. Just long enough to know he could stand the man, but not long enough to really know how he felt about the man. Other than... Okay.

John had left Sherlock lying on the couch when he went off to work. The A&E. He loved working in emergency medicine. He could help people and keep an eye out for Arthur and the Knights.

Of course, this was the day when a psych patient broke out and started to wave a scalpel at everyone. John stepped in front of a nurse only to get stabbed in the neck. He put his hand up to press against the wound, trembling. Oh, shock. He slowly sunk to the ground as he heard his coworkers starting to swarm.

And it was about fifteen minutes later that Sherlock's mobile started going off.

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[ihadabadday]

"I don't want them to go through this. I don't want them to be hurt. I want them to be happy and live their lives." John looked up.

"Ered... Thank you."

He rose to his feet and touched the dragon's hand.

"You have been a good friend and guide all these years. I hope that this isn't our last meeting."

John turned to go to the door.

[seaweed_writes]

"I understand, and you are a better person than many because you care so much. As much as that particular characteristic of caring for others so much can hurt, it can also ultimately help you in your quest as well."

He was quite for a moment, as he put the spell to hide his magic from others back on again. He went to the door and oped it for John. Of course he knew whether or not it would be their last meeting, but he didn't respond to that comment one way or the other.

"Be well, Merlin the Great. Even if you do not see me, I will be there, watching over you I wish you the best for you and your Arthur." He nodded, walked through the door, and disappeared. If anyone other than John felt a great whoosh of air at the entrance to the cafe, they would have called it no more than just a brief bit of wind as the invisible dragon took flight again.

[ihadabadday]

John returned to the flat and didn't join Sherlock in bed. Instead he went upstairs to his old room and knelt down in front of a trunk. He whispered a spell, with his hand pressed over the lock. Hearing it release, John pulled back and opened it. Inside were books and scrolls from the days of Camelot. Things he thought he may need and used a preservation spell on the items...

He dug until he found the scroll he was looking for. It was more accurate than his other spell. It would pinpoint exactly where the other Knights were. He had to find them. He had to awaken them.

[seaweed_writes]

Sometime, in the middle of the night, Sherlock awoke. He could tell that the bed was empty beside him. It was cool, so he had been gone for a long time, he knew.

He tried to go back to sleep, knowing that John was not going to go out and do something rash without him. But he just couldn't.

He got up, used the look, and pulled a dressing gown over his naked body, tying it it tight. John was not in the living room, so Sherlock went part of the way up the stairs, consciously avoiding the creaking third step. He saw the light under John's old bedroom window, and he felt the tingle of what he now knew was magic emanating from under the door, it was like a warm blanket swirling in the air.

John was busy, Sherlock knew, so he went back down the stairs, and opened up his laptop to wait. He knew he wouldn't get any more sleep tonight.

[ihadabadday]

The map on the kitchen table lit up, the areas they already marked shifting and narrowing. Eleven points of light burned into the map, exact locations of the Knights.

John had specifically left out the one that had betrayed them.

Mordred.

Anger coursed through him. How had he not seen it coming?

He rolled the scroll back up and slowly rose. John let out a breath and then eased himself downstairs. He was sweating and exhausted.

[seaweed_writes]

Sherlock was in his chair, with his laptop in his lap. When the map in the kitchen lit up, he immediately noticed it. He got up wand watched the dots shrinking and moving slightly until they were 11 very specific points of light.

The entire able was emanating magic, and he was actually slightly surprised when he heard John almost stumble down the stairs. He rushed to the man, who looked like he had just ran a marathon.. twice.

"John!" He exclaimed, actually picking the man up in his arms. "Bed. Now." Sherlock carried him to bed, and went to the loo, gently wiping his sweaty skin with cool, damp flannels.

"Rest, John. We can talk in the morning."

[ihadabadday]

John didn't know how he managed to get down the stairs. Oh god. He was grateful that Sherlock was there.

Oh. That spell had taken more out of him than he thought. But he was glad that he was helped to bed.

He was out before his head hit the pillow, relaxing. The tension eased out of him and he just looked... Content.

[seaweed_writes]

Sherlock leaned down and kissed him gently on the forehead. This was the second night in a row that he had to put John to bed, though for completely different reasons.

He tucked John in and went back to the living room, stopping to look at the map on the kitchen table. It wasn't glowing any more, but the dots were still there, and he could still feel the residual magic dissipating in the air. He went back to his laptop to let John sleep, and do more research himself.

[ihadabadday]

In the morning, John got up. He was aching. He took himself to the loo to clean himself up and shower. He let the hot water beat against his muscles, oh that felt good.

John pressed his forehead against the cool tile, relaxing.

He needed to get stronger. Increase his stamina. He would need to so he could face Morgana.

So he used his magic to start breakfast for the two of them.

[seaweed_writes]

When John woke up, Sherlock heard him get into the shower. He thought about getting in there with him, but then he decided that maybe he needed a little time to himself, so he just continued his work on the computer.

That is, until the kitchen started to make food for itself.

He got up and watched as bread went into the toaster and eggs cracked into a pan right before the gas for the stove top turned on. While John was in the shower. He wasn't sure whether to laugh, or just stare and watch, or help the magic along.

So he watched as breakfast made itself- the only help being that he moved the map off the table just in time before the plates sat themselves down onto the table on top of it.

All he could do was shake his head and smile.

[ihadabadday]

John got out of the shower and dried off. He dressed and left the bedroom. There was a smile on his face as a cup of tea floated over. He took it and sipped.

He then looked at Sherlock. "What?"

[seaweed_writes]

"What... can you do with that magic of yours?" He asked, sitting at the table, munching on a bit of the eggs that the magic had made. "Though I had to admit that they made it just the way that I like it." He smiled at the man, got up, then gave him a soft kiss between his sips of tea.

"You are walking a bit oddly. A bit sore from yesterday, I see?" He asked with a smirk.

[ihadabadday]

"A lot." He said with a grin, "What are you thinking?"

He smiled at the kiss, returning it softly before relaxing back in the chair. He took a bite of his eggs and toast, looking better than he had mere hours earlier.

"Just a bit sore, but it was quite worth it."

[seaweed_writes]

Oh, he was thinking about a lot of things that could possibly be done with that magic. He didn't say anything, but the growing smirk on his face showed EXACTLY what he was thinking about.

"As much as I would love to test the theory that your magic can do.. 'a lot', I think we really do need to start working on getting the Knights together." He hated to ruin the moment, but they had already lost one day, and they had no idea how much time they had left.

[ihadabadday]

"The map should have exact locations now. We'll go and round them up." John said, "We don't have time to play around. Something is coming. And... It's not going to be easy on any of us."

[seaweed_writes]

All of a sudden, the eggs sat heavier in his stomach, and he really didn't feel like eating any more. He gently pushed his plate away from him.

"I will take a quick shower, and then we can start." He said, standing up and taking his plate to the sink, then heading for the loo. It was a quick shower. He got dressed and was back in the living room in less than 10 minutes, his hair still wet but perfectly coifed, as always.

"Where to first?" He asked, already grabbing his coat and scarf from the coat rack.

[ihadabadday]

John summoned the map to himself and folded it up. "Saint Bart's." He said as he pulled his coat on.

"There is a knight there." And the dragon... But he didn't let Sherlock know that yet.

He slid his phone into his pocket along with his wallet and keys.

[seaweed_writes]

"Molly." Sherlock said, a little horror in his voice. He understood that this was a war that was coming, and that people could die. As much as he always berated Molly, he did care for her as a friend, and would never want anything to happen to her.

"Is it Molly, John?" He had to ask, he had to know.

[ihadabadday]

"I'm sorry." He said quietly.

John didn't want it to be Molly. But... But it was the logical conclusion.

"I'll protect her. I know she's not a fighter."

[seaweed_writes]

Sherlock sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. There were going to be others that he knew and cared about that were going to be drawn into this, he knew it.

When he opened his eyes again, they were full of a steely determination. He looked over at Excalibur, which he had been polishing while John slept the night before. It was wrapped up in fabric again. He knew no one else could wield it, even if they wanted to, so he had no worries about leaving it out, but he wished that he could take it with him.

He looked back to John. "We will both protect her." He said, wrapped his scarf around his neck, then head ed down the stairs.

[ihadabadday]

John glanced up at the sky as they stepped outside. Ered... Old Ones... Keep the knights safe. Keep those who were born innocent safe.

He focused back on Sherlock and touched his hand. His feelings for Sherlock weren't a hinderance, no. They were power. He felt powerful knowing he had admitted his feelings for the man. He could feel his magic coursing through him, bubbling and just under the skin. A sensation he had not felt since the first Arthur was alive.

John opened the door to the morgue and stepped inside. Molly...

[seaweed_writes]

"Oh! Hello there! Fancy seeing you two! I was just going over a few things with Molly." The smiling face of Mike Stamford greeted them both. He threw a little wink John's way.

"And Sherlock, always nice to see you. It's been a while. I knew John would make a good flatmate when I introduced you two!" He said in his thick accent. Of course him introducing the two had been no accident at all, the Old Ones had allowed him to make this one move to help them come together. Everything else, the relationship that came of it, had been of its own accord.

"I'll let you three chat." He turned to Molly. "I'll talk to ya later." He smiled again, mostly at John, and then was gone.

Molly smiled her mousey little smile at them. She was already taking off her rubber gloves. "Sherlock. John. Nice to see you again. What can I help you with? I don't have any spleens for you yet, Sherlock. I'm still waiting for a good one to come in."

[ihadabadday]

John returned the smile at Mike gave him. Well then. Alright. No doubt the dragon knew that this would be their first stop.

"Molly, we're not here about a spleen." John said as he stepped over to her. His fingers itched with magic, he knew... This was... This was...

Kay...

Arthur's foster brother.

He let out a breath. "Molly... I..." He didn't want to wake her, break the veil of innocence over her.

[seaweed_writes]

Molly's face changed to a look of confusion. Usually John was confident with his words and actions, it was very strange to see him like this. She looked over to Sherlock, who was, as he was often, wearing a hard to read expression. Then she looked back to John.

"John.. are you two.. alright? Has something happened?" She could feel something.. strange. in the air, but she couldn't place what it was. It was warm and tingly and inviting, but she was stiff and on her guard.

"Do you need a seat? Just take a deep breath, and explain. I will try to help however I can."

[ihadabadday]

He stepped forward and placed a hand on her face. "Molly, I'm sorry..." John told her, "I am so sorry for this."

John let out a breath and thought one word. Wake...

He wanted to wake the memories of Kay inside Molly, bring them to the surface, bring the faithful knight to the front,