Another Storm To Weather

by Miss AudreyBear

It's the storm of the century and Arthur's been cooped up for too long. In a fit of boredom he drags an unwilling Merlin out into the downpour for a hunt. Things turn dangerous quickly Merlin gets ill and bandits seeking a king's ransom kidnapp them. To escape they'll need the help of an unlikely ally, all the courage they can muster, and maybe even a little magic. No slash.

Author's note: Hi guys! This is my first Merlin story and I'm super excited to share it with you! I've been working on this for a long time and my friend finally comnviced me it was good enough to share with all you. So here you go, read and review and enjoy. Just a side note this is from Aurthurs POV. Anyway, enjoy!

XXOXX Miss Audeybear

Another Storm To Weather.

It's been raining all week and I'm practically going insane. The whole castle is. We've been trapped inside with each other for a week and it doesn't look the rain plans on stopping. I'm going nuts and I need to get outside, even if it's pouring. And because I'm going hunting it means Merlin has to come too.

"You're joking right?" he groans when I tell him to prepare a pack for us and assemble to weapons. "Really? You have to be joking!?"

I'm not joking and I say as much.

Merlin glances outside, where the rain is currently attempting to wash away any poor person unfortunate enough to be outside, and looks back at me with raised eyebrows.

"We can't go hunting!" he cries voice jumping up an octave in a way I find hilarious. "We'll be drowned, or washed away...or...or...attacked by sharks."

I roll my eyes." Don't be such a girl's petticoat Merlin. Now go get the stuff ready, I'll meet you here in an hour and half."

Merlin is a half hour late and I'm quite surprised, rarely is he so punctual. He arrives laden down with his pack, weapons tucked under his arms, and glaring daggers at me.

We're soaked the moment we step out the door.

I'm too stubborn to turn back though so I plod on. We're not bringing any horses, it's too treacherous for them, so we have to walk. Merlin's hair is slicked flat to his head and his dorkish ears stick out farther than normal. He looks incredibly grumpy and extraordinarily wet and it's all very amusing. We walk almost all day. By the time we decide to make camp I'm freezing and our clothes are sticking to our bodies. Merlin is shivering violently and his lips are blue. For the first time on this trip I feel bad for making him go.

We find a tree that looks relatively sturdy and set up camp beneath it. It's thundering by now and lightning lights up the sky. I barley get any sleep, what with Merlin shaking next to me and making an annoying teeth clattering sound.

"You should have brought more blankets you idiot," I mumble as he shivers.

"I-I-I c-couldn't-t f-f-find an-n-y," he stammers. So I give him mine.

I'm big and tough and I don't need blankets because of all my muscles but Merlin is skinny as a rail and fragile like a china doll. He tries to refuse at first, but I can see the longing in his eyes. Finally I just lean over and tuck it around him. I'm colder now, but Merlin's stopped shivering so violently so I guess it's worth it.

Morning comes and it's still raining. Merlin looks like a drowned kitten, shivering and utterly miserable. His lips and ears are blue and he has a strange half lidded look to his eyes. He seems very dazed and out of it, stumbling more than usual and not talking at all. Suddenly he just stops in front of me, dead still. He doesn't say anything, just stands there swaying slightly.

"Merlin?" I ask but he doesn't respond. "Merlin?" I ask again. I ask three more times and each time I don't receive a response I become more and more frantic. It's not like I care about him or anything, but Gaius would have my head if he died or something.

"MERLIN!" I shout taking him by the shoulders, spinning him around, and giving him a good shake. My stomach rolls at the way Merlin's head lolls limply back and forth, before bobbing up again. His eyes are distant and glassy.

"Arthur?" he croaks squinting at me as if just noticing I'm there.

"Genius observation Merlin," I say with a frown because through the fabric of his shirt Merlin's skin is hot even though he's shivering violently. I raise my hand and press it against Merlin's forehead. He tries to shrink away from my hand but I hold him steady. I am horrified at the heat radiating off him, it feels as if a sun''s burning in his head.

"Oh Merlin!" I cry because why didn't that idiot say he was sick? "Why didn't you tell me you were sick?"

"I'm sick?" Merlin asks and then he doubles over and pukes. I cringe in horror, but thankfully none of Merlin's regurgitated breakfast ends up on my boot. Merlin straightens up, looking terrible, and then dramatically sways. I catch him before he falls.

"Let's get you back to Camelot," I say looping an arm around his back.

Then the bandits jump out of the woods.

"You've got to be kidding me!" I cry pushing Merlin behind me and drawing my sword. The bandits come slowly forward, swords drawn as well. They seem strangely hesitant to attack which is odd. We stare at each other for a moment, then a battle cry emanates from somewhere in the middle of the crowd and they all rush at me. There are about twenty bandits and I know that there's no way I can win this battle. The bandits are going to overwhelm me eventually. That doesn't mean I can't try though. I've killed three bandit's before I noticed my mistake. I hadn't been watching behind me, and in my lapse of attention a huge bandit had snuck behind me and grabbed a hold of Merlin.

"Put down your weapons!" the bandit snarls. He is most likely the leader judging from his size. His hands are huge, big as Merlin's face. His eyes are dark like empty wells and while he is bald a thick dirty beard erupts from his chin and ends at shoulder length. He has a hand tangled in Merlin's black hair to hold him, and a sharp dagger pressed to Merlin's pale throat. Merlin looks dazed and scared. He is shaking slightly in the man's grip, his eyes rolling around in his head.

"Put down your weapons or I'll cut his pretty little head off!" the bandit hisses giving Merlin a shake. I want to argue that Merlin was in no way pretty but I decide against it. The man doesn't look like he is bluffing judging by the fact that the dagger has already cut into Merlin's skin a little. Bright red blood trickles down from the cut and stains Merlin's dark blue shirt. Merlin looks puzzled, as if he either can't figure out why his neck is hurting or where the blood soaking into the fabric of his shirt is coming from. The man presses the knife in a little deeper and Merlin lets out a little gasp. I groan softly because of course Merlin has to go and get us stuck like that. It is with a sigh that I drop my sword onto the ground. Instantly two men jump on me, yanking my arms behind my back and tying my hands with thick coarse rope.

"That was easier than I thought," laughs the man. He gives Merlin a push causing him to crash to the ground with a shout of pain. The man sneers and gestures with his hand for a bandit to come and tie Merlin up, he then walks over to stand in front of me.

"I'm Sheklet," the man says. I glare. "Nice to meet you, Arthur."

I glare some more.

Sheklet pouts.

"You're no fun," he whines. "You should be saying things like 'How do you know my name?' or 'What do you want from me?'"

He sounds very condescending so I remain silent, refusing to play along. Sheklet grins wickedly.

"Very well, you refuse to talk, but maybe he will." Sheklet turns to face Merlin and stalks over.

"What's your name boy?" he asks. Merlin squints up at Sheklet as if trying to decide if he's real or not.

"Huh?" he croaks stupidly.

"I said," snarled Sheklet backhanding Merlin across the face, "what's your name!?"

Merlin cringes away from Sheklet as blood trickles over his chin from his split lip.

"Stop it, leave him alone!" I snap because no one but me gets to mess with Merlin.

"Just trying to be friendly," Sheklet replies with a mocking smile. He grabs Merlin's chin in his meaty hands and forces his head up.

"So what's your name?" he asks. Merlin blinks at him sleepily.

"Who'r you?" Merlin slurs. Sheklet backhands Merlin again. Blood splurts out of his nose and onto the ground below.

"I ask the questions boy!" growls Sheklet. Merlin's head lolls on his neck.

"WHAT'S. YOUR. NAME!" Sheklet shouts each pause accompanied by a vicious slap. Merlin slumps to the ground and starts to shake violently while I shout insults.

"His name is Merlin you dunderhead! Merlin! Do you hear me? Merlin! Now leave him alone he's sick!"

"Is that so?" Sheklet replies in a dangerous voice. I realize my slip up and my eyes widen. He grabs Merlin's shoulder and halls him to his knees. Merlin looks like he's going to pass out at any moment. Blood is streaming from his nose, mouth and from a cut on his cheek. "You sick?" he asks Merlin giving him a rough shake. Merlin whines quietly and slumps over for a minute, then he suddenly straightens up.

"Let Arthur go," he demands,and his voice only wavers a little. My mouth opens in surprise. Sheklet raises an eyebrow.

"Not a chance," he responds with a smile and then smashes the hilt of his dagger against Merlin's temple. Merlin slumps bonelessly to the floor, mouth falling open.

"He's annoying," Sheklet says casually to me. He wipes his bloody hands on Merlin's hair.

"You will pay dearly for this," I growl. Sheklet smiles.

"Oh yes, I'm terrified. Now, we must be moving off." He nods to someone over my head and I feel arms hoist me up to my feet.

"What we gonna' do with this runt?" A bandit asks prodding Merlin's prone form with his toe. Rage bubbles in my gut and I vow that when I escape I will cut that man's feet off

"Ehh, kill him," Sheklet replies. My heart drops into my toes and I feel cold and clammy over. No. No. No. No.

"Awww bossss, do we hav' ta' kill 'im? the bandit whines. Sheklet raises an eyebrow.

"You want him alive?"

"We 'aven't 'ad any fun in forever, please let us keep 'im," the bandit pleads. I feel so sick suddenly. Sheklet glances at me and then smiles, a slow, scary smile.

"Sure, you can have him as long as he lasts."

The bandits cheer.

One of the bandits pick Merlin up and slides Merlin's bound arms over his head. The bandit tucks Merlin's legs around his waist, a sort of piggyback ride.

"Alright, let's go," says Sheklet.

We walk all day. By the time we reach the bandit camp my legs are cramping terribly. Merlin's even worse than he was this morning. He's angered the bandits because he's thrown up twice. The second time it was bile mixed with blood. I'm no physicist but I know that that's not good.

They drop me and Merlin down next to each other on the ground. I try to get a look at Merlin, but I can't see him over the giant bandit tying my legs together. On the other side of the bandit I know another ruffian is doing the same to same to Merlin, not that they really need to. it's not like Merlin's well enough to try and make some kind of mad dash bandits clear out and I finally get a good look at Merlin. Merlin lies so still I worry they've broken his neck. He's breathing though, so that's good. It's still raining, has been all day, and I know the cold can't be good for Merlin. I'm starting to worry that Merlin's developed pneumonia. His breath rattles in his chest in a very concerning way. After a minute of silence he begins to cough. It's a horrible hacking choking sound. Merlin coughs and coughs and coughs, his body shaking with each cough. Finally he lies still.

"Merlin?" I whisper. "Merlin?"

Slowly Merlin rolls over to face me. He's incredibly pale except for two horrible splotches of bright red on his cheeks. His eyes are glassy and half closed.

"Arthur?" he croaks. "Are you okay?"

I laugh quietly, without mirth.

"I'm fine you idiot, you're the one who's ill."

"I am?"

I roll my eyes.

"Yes Merlin, we've been over this at least a thousand times."

"Have me?"

"What?"

"I meant me... me? We? Who am I?"

I roll my eyes again yet I'm quite distressed. I shuffle over, which is no easy task with bound feet and hands, and press my hands against his forehead. It feels as if he's on fire.

"Arthur?" Merlin asks me squinting at me in confusion. "You're Arthur right?"

"Yes I am."

"I'm supposed to protect you, though I don't think I'm doing very good."

I smile softly, sadly.

"You're doing just fine Merlin."

"Oy, quiet down you lot!" I hear a man call. He's our guard, assigned to make sure we don't crawl away, some how.

"He's sick, he needs help!" I call back. I doubt we'll actually receive any but it's worth a shot. There's silence for a moment , then Merlin murmurs "Who's sick."

I wonder how many times I'll have to slam my head against the ground before I die because I cannot take this nonsense anymore. If that is the way I go out though, it'll have to be heavily edited in ledged.

There's the crunch of boots on dirt and the guard stalks over. He's tall, thinnish in a way that reminds me a bit of Merlin. He looks down at Merlin for a moment in a strange speculative way and then crouches down by him. He takes Merlin's shoulder gently and rolls him over so he can look at him better.

"How you feeling boy?" he asks surprisingly gentle. Merlin blinks at him in a confused, sleepy way.

"Where'd Arthur go?" he slurs after a minute.

"I'm right here," I reply observing the guard with narrowed eyes. Merlin twists to look at me and then turns back to the guard.

"But where'd he go?" he asks again. The guard whistles and waves a hand over Merlin's face, Merlin's eyes don't follow it.

"Wow, he's really out of it," the guard says mildly pressing a hand against Merlin's forehead. Merlin tries to cringe away but he can't.

"You're not like the other bandits," I comment mildly as the guard manhandles Merlin into a seated position, leaning against a tree.

"Well I'm not the other bandits," he replies. I would have loved to congratulate him on his acute observation had I not worried it would jeopardize our chances of receiving aid. He stands and walks away, returning a few minutes later with a small leather bag. He crouches down next to Merlin again and opens the leather bag, drawing a flask and a roll of bandages from the bag.

"I'm Nikodious," he says after a minute slowly unwinding the roll of bandages.

"I'm Arthur," I reply.

"I know." He wraps the bandages around Merlin's head. "Who's he?' he nods to Merlin.

"He's Merlin, my manservant."

Nikodious nods thoughtfully.

"He reminds me of my boy," he says slowly uncorking the flask and shoving the opening between Merlin's teeth. Merlin's eyes widen then he reflexively swallows. He shudders a little, face screwing up at the taste.

"What is his name?" I ask attempting to win Nikodious over with my charming manners. Nikodious' face darkens.

"His name was Carvin."

Oh this is awkward, I think.

"I'm sorry," I murmur after a moment. Merlin shakes his head a little and grimaces again.

"You should be sorry, this hunting trip is all your fault. I told you we'd drown and now a shark's biting my leg," Merlin looks mournfully at his leg. "You're gonna bite it off if you don't let go. "

"Whatever you say Merlin," I mutter.

"Okay not quite there yet, here Merlin drink more of this.," Nikodious says fondly. He pushes the flask back between Merlin's lips. When Merlin has drunk at least a quarter of the flask he pulls it away, corks it, and stashes it back in his bag. He stands with a grunt and cracks his back.

"Here," he says tossing me a flask of water. "Get him to drink some of that and you have some too."

"Thank you, for doing this," I say.

"Doing what?" he replies with a meaningful look and a finger pressed against his lips in a shushing gesture. Then he disappears back into the shadows.

"Who was he?" Merlin asks sounding slightly more coherent.

"I'm not quite sure Merlin."

The next morning dawns pale and cold. The rain's let up a bit though it's still drizzling a little. Merlin is looking a lot better though still quite grumpy and annoyed.

"Where are we?" he asks as soon as I'm awake. I don't respond, instead I struggle into a seated position and press my hands against his forehead. He's still too warm, but it's better than it was last night.

"We're in a bandits camp," I say as I lean against a tree.

"How did we get here?" Merlin continues. He shuffles over to where I am, leaning against me and shivering.

"What do you remember?"

"Sharks?" Merlin responds sounding unsure. I shake my head.

"There were no sharks Merlin."

"Are you sure?" Merlin asks sounding uncertain.

"Positive."

"Good mornin' boys," Sheklet booms suddenly interrupting our conversation. Merlin flinches, his eyes widening comically. "Did'ya sleep well?"

"We slept fine thank you," I reply coldly. Sheklet grins at me, then turns his attention to Merlin.

"Hello Merlin," he drawls leaning down so that he's eyes level with Merlin. "How ya' feeling?"

Merlin shoots a confused look my way.

"Why do you care?" he demands boldly. Sheklet grins ferally.

"Can't have you dying on us before the fun's even begun." he responds. Merlin's breath hitches.

"Leave him alone," I command. Sheklet looks at me and sighs.

"Now why would I do that?"

"He's just a servant, there's no honor in hurting him."

"If he's just a servant, then why do you care if we rough him up a little?"

I don't respond.

"That's what I thought," Sheklet sneers with cruel eyes. He grabs Merlin's arm and starts to drag him away from me.

"Give him back this instant," I demand angrily. Sheklet sneers at me and gives Merlin a shake.

"Not a chance-" he suddenly lets out a high pitched scream. Merlin has somehow, mustered up his strength, sat up and sank his pearly white teeth into Sheklet's arm. Sheklet howls and shakes his arm back and forth while Merlin clings to him like a leech.

"YOU LITTLE RAT!" Sheklet screams and then grabs Merlin's right arm. He yanks it over his leg and then slams Merlin's arm down across his leg, much like how Merlin brakes sticks for the fire. There's a loud snapping noise and Merlin releases his grip on Skeklet's arm. Now it's Merlin's turn to scream and he does. Head thrown back, eyes slammed shut.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" I howl my stomach churning at the way the Merlin's arm awkwardly hangs down, the bone snapped in half. Merlin's screams have trailed off into muted whimpers. He's biting the back of his left hand to stop himself from screaming again. Tears are streaming down his cheeks and he's shaking.

Sheklet snarls at me.

"Boss, what you screaming about?" a bandit asks walking up to Sheklet. His eyes land on Merlin and then flash dangerously.

"Little rodent tried ta' take a bite out of me," Sheklet replies showing the bandit the bite mark on his arm. Blood is streaming from a bite mark on his arm.

"E' deserves to be punished," the bandit hisses quietly.

"I agree."

I swallow, hard.

...

"Easy Merlin, easy," I murmur. Merlin is shaking so hard I'm afraid he's going to fly apart. His eyes are moving restlessly beneath his eyelids. He's so pale, I've seen ghosts with better color. Blood trickles, shockingly red against the white of Merlin's skin, from his mouth and nose. I run my hands up and down his torso checking for injuries. He whines when I press against his ribs, I'm sure a few are broken.

After the beating he took...

I sigh softly and brush his hair away from his forehead. I'm terrified now. Merlin's fever has returned with vengeance and from the bruises splashed across his torso I worry he might have internal bleeding. Merlin's eyelids flutter open. His pupils are blown wide and he's slightly cross eyed.

"Mother?" he murmurs sleepily. It would be funny, but I don't laugh because I'm so scared.

"No Merlin it's me Arthur," I reply. Merlin looks at me for a minute in confusion.

"Who?"

My heart lurches painfully. Does Merlin not remember me? Has the fever and the pain erased my memory?

"It's me Arthur, King Arthur, your friend," I choke out. Merlin squints at me for a moment and then his face breaks out into a huge smile.

"Arthur," Merlin sighs contentedly. "I didn't see you there."

That's... concerning.

"How are you?" Merlin continues. "I think maybe you got hurt...there's blood on your hands."

"I'm fine Merlin." I assure him softly. Merlin shakes his head and then cringes when the movement pulls on a cut on his neck.

"But...you're in pain."

I shake my head in a confused manner.

"I feel fine Merlin."

"Your heart hurts."

This is a strange development. I guess I must be worse at hiding my emotions than I thought. Merlin is looking at me with a strange, thoughtful expression. As if he can see through the mask I put on. My heart really does hurt because this was never supposed to happen. As much as I try to downplay my affection for Merlin I do really feel a strong bond between us. He's almost like the annoying little brother I never had. He's just so goofy and sweet, loyal and kind. I'm the king, It's my duty to protect my subjects from harm. How can I protect them from the dangers of the world if I can't even protect my best friend from a ragtag group of bandits? I vow then, that no matter what it takes I will get us out.

"Don't worry Merlin," I say quietly yet firmly. "I'm going to get us out of here."

"Out of where?"

I'm woken very early in the morning by the sound of someone choking. My eyes peel open and I sit up groggily. Merlin was sleeping a little while ago with his head resting on my knee, but somehow he's rolled over onto his stomach. It is he who is making the choking sounds. With shaky, bound hands I roll Merlin over. I discover as soon as he's on his back, to my horror, that he's choking on blood. I sit him up and pound him on the back and he coughs and splutters, blood dribbling out of his mouth and onto the ground below.

"I'm-drowning," he chokes out through a mouthful of blood.

"No Merlin you're going to be just fine," I reply cringing at how my voice wavers. Merlin's making quite a racket so I'm not surprised when I hear footsteps coming in our direction. My heart still speeds up though.

It's Nikodious and I'm honestly incredibly glad to see him. He looks very worried as he hurries over to where Merlin and I are.

"What's wrong with him?" I cry cringing at how my voice cracks. Nikodious examines Merlin for a minute and then rolls him over so that he's on his side.

"Hold him like that, I'll be right back," Nikodious commands jumping up. I slide over to take his position, my hands steadying Merlin who is taking gasping breaths. Nikodious returns with a flask of a strange white liquid that looks a bit like watery milk.

"Here you have to get him to drink that, all of it." Nikodious says handing me the flask. I prop Merlin up against me and push the flash into his mouth. Merlin's eyelids flutter. I tilt the flask back and the liquid starts to dribble down Merlin's throat. It's slow going because I have to stop every few minutes to let Merlin breath. Finally the flask is empty.

"There," Nikodious says, "now you must hold him very still, this is going to hurt and if he moves around too much it will take longer."

"What's going to hurt?" I ask but Nikodious doesn't reply. He places his hand on Merlin's chest and starts to murmur in some foreign language. Then Merlin's chest starts to glow.

"You have magic!?" I cry struggling to restrain Merlin who is thrashing around, mouth open in a silent scream. Nikodious nods while continuing to chant. If I had my sword I'd probably run him through, but I don't, which is probably a good thing, because Merlin's breaths are slowly coming easier, gentler. He slumps up against me, eyes fluttering closed. Finally Nikodious stops chanting.

"What did you do to him?" I whisper.

"A broken rib punctured his lung, I fixed the break and healed the lung."

"What was the white potion?"

"Makes the bones more pliable, makes the process easier."

I nodd as I adjust Merlin to lay with his head on my knee. I can hardly comprehend what I just saw. A man used magic, which is evil, for good, He used it to save my best friend.

"You have magic," I say again. Nikodious glares.

"I can see why they made you king now, with your level of intelligence I'm sure there's no one better for the job."

I ignore him, opting instead to carefully examine Merlin, who is sleeping almost peacefully now.

Nikodious stands with a grunt and a yawn and starts drifting away from us, back to his post.

"Thank you," I call.

"Pray don't mention it, seriously never mention it or they'll kill me."

I smile slightly.

They're hitting him again and again and again. I can barely see him, he's buried beneath a pile of striking limbs, but I can certainly hear him. He's screaming so loudly I'm surprised they don't hear us back in Camelot. I'm screaming too though, and begging which is something I've never done before.

"STOP! STOP! PLEASE! LEAVE HIM ALONE! PLEASE!"

They don't listen to me.

The screams fall silent.

Eventually the bandits must get bored and they start to drift away. Now I can see him. He's lying on his side, curled into a little ball with his arms wrapped around his torso.

"Merlin!" I call because he's lying so still that he could be dead. He uncurls slightly at my voice.

"Arthur?" he croaks voice hoarse with screaming and blood, red and terrible runs from the corner.

"Yes it's me, you're going to be fine Merlin,"

The blood keeps pouring from his mouth, it's forming a puddle underneath his head. The puddle is growing, becoming larger and larger until it's lapping at my feet, and then higher. It's reached my waist, hot and wet. Thunder booms and lightning flashes across the sky. Then it starts to rain. Except it's raining blood.

"I WAS SUPPOSED TO PROTECT YOU!" I hear Merlin scream. "IT WAS MY DESTINY!"

Then I wake up.

I wake up with a gasp, startling Merlin, who was resting with his head pillowed on my thigh, into awareness.

"Wha'?" he asks groggily. I've never had a dream like that and I'm thoroughly shaken up. My heart is pounding frantically in my chest, so loud I'm sure Merlin must be able to hear it. Speaking of Merlin, I grab his shirt with my bound hands and haul him into a seating position, dragging him near to me and slipping my bound hands over his head. A parody of an embrace. Merlin hisses in pain when his multiple wounds are jostled but other than that remains silent.

"What's wrong Arthur?" he asks quietly after most of my shaking has subsided. "Did you have a bad dream?" There is no mockery in the words, just honest care, and I find myself relaxing.

"I did," I reply softly. I slip my hands back over Merlin's head and settle them in my lap. Merlin leans against me and raises his bound hands to pick at a scab on his chin. I slap his hands away without thinking.

"Care to elaborate?" he asks, now fiddling with a hole in his pant's leg.

I shake my head.

"We spotted the patrols not two miles from 'ere," I hear a voice say not to far away. Merlin and I quite down to listen.

"So?"

"So we'll neva outrun 'em and think of what they'll do when they find us!"

"What do you suppose we do?"

"Slit their throats and run. Boss won't find out till late morning and by then we'll be long gone and safe."

"Hmmm, seems like a good enough idea." I hear the crunch of boots and my heart speed picks up again. Two dingy bandits come into view, one of them holding a long wickedly sharp knife. He sneers at me. The other bandit seizes Merlin by the upper arm and drags him away from me. Merlin struggles slightly and the bandit cuffs him over the back of the head.

"Can't believe 'es still alive," he mutters to the other bandits giving Merlin a brutal kick to the side. Merlin lays there wheezing while I struggle to get away from the other bandit who has crouched next to me, the knife pressed against my neck.

"Say your prayers golden boy," the knife is pressing deeper against my throat, this is it we're going to die...

"NO!" Merlin shrieks suddenly and his eyes turn gold for a split second. Then the two bandits go flying back at least ten feet, crashing into some trees and slumping to the ground. Merlin starts screaming and shaking, his eyes flashing from blue to gold . The trees shake and rustle as if being blown by a wind that isn't there. There is a loud bang! Like a clap of thunder and the clouds suddenly clear. For the first time all week it stops raining. Merlin violently throws up and I'm horrified to find that it's mostly blood. My mind is whirling as I try to come to terms with the fact that Merlin just threw two people away, that Merlin has magic.

There's the sound of footsteps rushing over and Nikodious appears. In his hand he too has a sharp knife but he uses his to cut our bindings. I massage the feeling back into my wrists and fingers while Nikodious examines Merlin.

"What was all that?" I ask after a minute. "The trees and the thunder, did you see it?" Nikodious nodds.

"That was Merlin wasn't it? I thought so. I sensed it when I first touched him, he's been communicating telepathically with me for a few days now."

"What's he been saying?" I ask.

"He's not been really saying much. It's mostly just sounds with the occasional word throw in. Like...screaming and shrieking and then a murmured word. It's been very distracting."

"I bet," I murmur darkly. "What was all that? The lighting and the trees?"

Nikodious pauses for a moment and thinks.

"Sometimes people don't mean to use magic, it's like an instinct, like adrenalin. From what I gather Merlin got really scared and lashed out with his magic, then he had to burn off the remaining magic, like running after a battle to burn off the leftover adrenalin."

I nodd a little, it makes sense, and then I stand with a grunt. I almost crumple back to the ground, my legs thoroughly asleep, but I catch myself on a tree. Nikodious stands, scooping Merlin up like a baby. 'He must be very strong,' I think but then Nikodious shoves Merlin into my arms and I realize Nikodious isn't necessarily strong but Merlin is extraordinarily light. I can feel his ribs pressing into my chest through the fabric of his shirt. I'm horrified, I mean I've held children that weigh more, but I ignore my concerns. I can worry about Merlin's weight and his magic later, for now I need to get us out of here.

"The Camelot patrol is coming, they're almost here," Nikodious says hurriedly. "Take him and run."

I can hear shouts from the bandits, they must have noticed the missing guards.

"I'll stall the bandits, go!" he hisses giving me a shove. I stumble a little and then straighten up. I take a few hurried steps before turning around to face Nikodious.

"Thank you," I say putting as much gratitude and meaning as I can into the words. Nikodious smiles slightly.

"You're welcome."

As I hurry away I hear Nikodious mumble, "Carvin, here I come."

I don't look back.

It's started raining again and I've been running for who knows how long. Merlin's slipped even deeper into the coma he's seemed to have fallen into, and his dead weight is not making to running any easier. Even the lightest burden can become hard to bear when you're starved, thirsty and hurt.

I don't even notice the Camelot patrol.

When I do see them I'm half out of my mind with hunger and thirst. Screaming for them to "keep away or I'll kill you!" and clutching Merlin to my chest I try to stumble away. It's isn't really hard for Percival and Gwaine to grab me. Once I realize who it is I relax, though I still refuse to release Merlin. We're brought to a cave, and a fire is made. Merlin and I are wrapped in blankets and sat by said fire. Merlin lays across my lap in a dead faint while I eat and drink. After I've had something to eat and drink my head clears a little.

Gwaine and Percival are discussing what to do. They finally decide to send Merlin and I, along with Gwaine back to Camelot on horseback while the rest of the patrol hunts the bandits.

Everything is blurring together and moving too quickly, I can barely keep up.

Within minutes Merlin and I are loaded onto horses and on our way back to Camelot.

I understand the urgency. Merlin's condition is only worsening. I didn't think it possible but he's even paler than he was earlier. He lies so still he could be a corpse but for the shallow, slow breaths he takes.

I must drift off on my horse because suddenly we're at Camelot. Gauis and a host of other knights, servants and...the baker, are standing in the courtyard. Percival helps me off my horse, hands reach for us, for Merlin. One hand settles on Merlin's shoulder. I bite it.

The hand turns out to be Leon's. He recoils with a shout of pain that has my head spinning. My feet are moving automatically though I don't know where I'm going. Someone leads us upstairs, to my bedroom.

I hear a soft, gentle voice telling me that "It's alright, you did well your majesty."

"Merlin?" I manage to garble out.

"Merlin will be fine, lay him down, let him go now he's safe."

I gently lay Merlin down onto my bed.

Then I faint.

I wake up and for a minute I fear I'm on fire.

I hiss and struggle because I'm so hot, and I need to get away from the flames.

When I wake up I feel like I've sleep for a century. I awake feeling refreshed, something that rarely happens when I faint.

I roll over with a yawn and crack my eyes open.

Merlin's grinning face is inches from my own.

With a yelp of surprise (A yelp this is low pitched and completely manly) I recoil backwards and off the bed, landing with a grunt on the floor.

I can hear Merlin laughing.

"You idiot," I growl climbing back into the bed. There's no heat in the words, I'm too replieved that Merlin's eyes are clear and that he's away for anger.

"Did you know you talk in your sleep? Well you do, it's hilarious."

"I do not," I reply grumpily. Merlin flashes me a particularly cheeky grin, he absentmindedly picks at a cut on the back of his hand, I slap his hand tiredly.

"You kept going on and on about magic trees and lakes of blood, it was really strange," Merlin adds thoughtfully. Sitting next to Merlin on the bed I can better examine him. He's wearing no shirt, though neither am I, and his torso is covered with bandages and bruises. Bruises ranging from reddish purple, to black, and green. His arm has been carefully bandaged and rests in a sling. He sports a spectacular shiner, and the left side of his face is heavily bruised.

"What are you looking at?" he asks me with raised eyebrow. I shake my head. There's a nagging feeling in the back of my head. Like I've forgotten something that happened, something important.

Then it hits me.

"Merlin, do you remember the last night we were in the bandit camp." I ask, my voice even. Merlin scrunches his face up and thinks for a minute.

"No, not really. I remember bits and pieces of the bandits..." he shivers suddenly, "but nothing was really consistent after our second day hunting. I guess that's when I got sick. Why?"

"Because you did something, I didn't know you could do," I say slowly. "There was a bandit, he came at me with a knife. He was going to cut my throat. You screamed and then your eyes turned gold and you used magic."

Merlin stills so suddenly, and pales so quickly I'm afraid I might have killed him.

"What?" he squeaks.

I nodd.

"You threw the bandits back about ten feet. After that you made the trees shake and the rain stop."

Merlin's eyes become glassy with what I realize is tears.

"I-I-I didn't I...I never meant...I only...it's just for you...I'm" he stutters. I raise an eyebrow.

"I...I..." Merlin bursts into tears, bending over to hide his face in his knees.

"I'm sorry," he wails.

I reach out and pull him into a hug. Merlin stiffens at first and then melts into it, shaking with sobs and garbled apologies. I shush him quietly, rubbing a hand up and down his back.

"It's alright Merlin, I'm not angry," I say and I realize that I'm really not. I thought I would be but I guess I was wrong. I guess that if you go through a near death experience with someone and then they save your life you can't really be too angry about how they did it.

Besides my opinion of magic is different than my fathers.

In my opinion magic is like a sword. A sword isn't good or evil it's just a tool. What the sword does is up to the beholder. A good person could use a sword for good or an evil person could use a sword for evil. So I think magic is like that, it's a tool, and what you do with it it up to you.

Merlin has magic but Merlin is good. Merlin used his magic to protect me.

Nikodious has magic but he is good too, he used his magic to save my best friend.

Eventually Merlin's sobs quiet, and turn into sniffles. He sits back and rubs at his eyes.

"So...what now?" he asks. I shrug.

"I don't know, I should probably be doing something productive but I think I'll just lay here instead."

"Yeah, let's have a lie in, I think we've earned it."

Merlin reclines against the pillows with a sigh and then a yawn. I examine him carefully. Now that his eyes are all puffed up and red from crying he looks even worse.

"Merlin,"

"Hm?"

"You look terrible."

"Thanks."

"Can't you do something like fix yourself?"

Merlin flops onto his stomach with a dramatic sigh.

"No, I'm afraid I'm rubbish at healing spells."

There is silence for a few minutes.

"How long have you been...you know...practicing magic?"

"My whole life, I was born with it."

"Really?"

"Yes really. It's part of some kind of prophecy destiny thing... we're two sides of the same coin or something like that."

I nodd a little though I don't really understand. Oh well, there's a lot for me to catch up on and a lot for me to learn and it doesn't have to be now. Merlin looks like he's about to fall asleep, his eyes are at half mast and dropping lower.

"Merlin,"

"Hm?"

"I'm glad you're with me."

Merlin smiles.

Two months later.

I round the corner just as Merlin comes sprinting down the hall. His face is broken into a huge grin, his eyes dancing in a mischievous way that has me instantly suspicious. When he spots me, he rushes over to me and ducks behind me, using me as a hiding place.

Merlin has recovered very well from our ordeal with the bandits. He's still bruised and sore and of course his arm is still broken but everything is healing nicely. The bruises on his face and torso have faded to greens and yellows and reds, an improvement from black and blue. As Merlin hides behind me he's giggling, my suspicions increase.

"What did you do now?" I ask.

Just then Gauis rounds the corner and I no longer need Merlin to tell me.

Gauis's hair is pink.

"Hello sire," says Gauis perfectly calm, "have you seen Merlin anywhere?"

I shake my head, not trusting myself to open my mouth for fear of losing it.

"Well if you see him could you send him my way. There's a few things we need to...discuss."

I nodd again. Gauis turns and bows, heading the other way. As soon as he's gone Merlin begins to giggle again. I grab Merlin by the scruff of the neck and start hauling him back to my room. Merlin struggles a little, but all I have to do to calm him down is lift him up so his feet don't touch the ground. He glares at me as I drag him back to my room.

"Where are we going?" he asks.

"Back to my room for lunch."

"But I've already had lunch," Merlin protests.

"And now you're going to have another one, you're far too skinny Merlin-need to get some meat on your bones." I poke his stomach and he glares at me.

"I'm not skinny! I'm lean!" Merlin argues.

"You stopped being lean a long time ago, you're positively skeletal!"

"You're such a mother hen," Merlin groans.

"More like mother badger," laughs a voice behind us. I turn around the see Gwaine casually leaning against the wall.

"Hi Gwaine," Merlin chirps.

"Gwaine, why aren't you at practice?" I ask.

"Why aren't you, at practice?"

"Good question," Merlin laughs kicking a little in an attempt to get down.

"Because I'm the king and I can do what I want."

"Like kidnapping Merlin?"

"I'm not kidnapping him, we're going back to my room to eat."

"I already ate and I'm stuffed," Merlin groans.

"Oh really?" I ask poking Merlin's belly again. He glares as he bats my hand away.

"Arthur, put me down...or else."

"Or else what?"

There's a bang and the next thing I know Merlin is standing by Gwaine, laughing.

"Merlin, what have I said about magicing yourself away from me?"

"That I can't."

"Then why did you?"

Merlin just laughs, then he turns and runs.

I, of course, give chase. Through the halls, down the stairs, into Morgana's room (she throws a hairbrush at me and beams at Merlin), and out into the courtyard. Merlin, despite appearances is actually very fast and hard to catch. I finally corner him in the training fields, though I own his capture in large part to Percival, who picks Merlin up like he's a child and hugs him tightly, preventing him from escaping. Then I get an arm around his neck and hold him there, noogieing him until he's begging for mercy.

"Uncle...please...Arthur! Stop! Arthur please! Uncle!"

After Merlin regains his composure we head back to the castle. Merlin's hair is sticking up in a thousand different directions. He looks flushed and (relatively) healthy and content. I glance at him and he meets my eyes, together we smile. The sun beats down on our backs. The storm is over, we've made it, and I know that we'll be able to weather the next one.

Fin.