Arthur saw Gwen, Merlin, Gaius, and all his knights as he entered the palace, as if he had never left. This being a dream, he also saw Morgana—reformed, much like her old self before the betrayal—and his father, King Uther—a wise, noble ruler—standing on either side of his beloved wife. Next to Uther was his mother, Queen Igraine, alive and healthy, her eyes resting on him and giving him a warm, safe feeling. He also saw Freya smiling at him from Merlin's side, and Merlin looked happier than Arthur ever remembered him as he held her hand.
"Back so soon?" Merlin asked playfully. Gaius walked over to Arthur and inspected the returned prince.
"Where have you been, Arthur?" the old physician fretted like a grandfather, checking his temperature and demanding to see him for a checkup.
"We've all missed you so much." Guinevere—his beloved Gwen—came and embraced him as sweetly as ever. From where he stood, Uther had his arm around Igraine's shoulders.
"Indeed we have, Arthur" his father sounded relaxed, and smiled fondly at Arthur and Guinevere. "I believe this calls for a feast—no, a three-day festival!" In typical Uther-fashion, he immediately had extravagant plans for a celebration of his son's return from the grave.
"Actually, father," Arthur said without fear, "I would like to celebrate by spending time with my wife, my knights, and Merlin—and, of course, you, mother, and Morgana."
"We'll do whatever you like, my son" dream-Uther smiled at Prince Arthur, and dream-Igraine suggested a picnic in the woods, to which everyone agreed.
"Welcome back, brother" Morgana finally got her word in, eyes sparkling just as they used to, and everything was more perfect than it could ever be in the waking life.
Suddenly, the world went dark. Something had blocked out the Sun! Arthur could hear the panicked screams of his subjects as the ceiling disappeared and the walls crumbled. He was standing alone when a great dragon gripped him in its clawed forefeet and lifted him higher, higher, and higher until he could see all of Albion down below. He tried to say something, scream, make any sort of noise, but the wind ripped his voice from his lips before any sound could be heard from them. Looking down, he could see his beloved kingdom surrounded by shadows. The black, foggy mass was rushing in from all sides, consuming everything in its path…yet nobody noticed. He could somehow see everyone—noblemen and peasantry alike—as they went about their daily business, completely oblivious until the fog was upon them. Then, as the shadowy mass devoured them, he saw their faces freeze into masks of horror. He wanted to shout at them, tell them what was happening before it hurt them, but he was absolutely mute. So absorbed was he by these sights that he did not notice the writhing shadows squirming beneath him. The dragon released its hold of him, and down he plummeted, headfirst and falling straight into the mass, faster and faster. When he was almost on top of it, he was blinded by a flash of light—
That was when he woke up to the dawn piercing veils of mist surrounding the Isle of the Blessed.
I hope you enjoyed this oneshot: it was originally going to be a part of Chapter XII of my other (much longer) story, Kilgharrah, but it was just unnecessary by my standards, so I finished it, cut it out, and put it as a type of "deleted scene" instead . I could have posted this before its corresponding chapter, but then it would have been a major spoiler to those following the story!
Please excuse how clichéd it is XD. It just seemed in keeping with the spirit of Arthurian styles (the king having this type of dream). For those of you who haven't read Kilgharrah, I highly suggest you do ;)!
Let me know if you would like to see other characters' dreams, and I might add them to this, making it a collection ;D.
I do not own Merlin, by the way (nor can I buy it :P).