Merlin had magic.
He had to.
Or else how would he have gotten all of those hidden secrets you kept quiet all your life out of you. He had this way of making you spill your guts so that you told him every sordid detail of the scandalous parts of your life; and he tossed out mere snippets of his own life like amusing a dog with a snack.
Well.
Gwaine had had enough.
Merlin was far too careful for Gwaine to simply get him drunk - he never had more than a single tankard of watered down ale. And even on his most distracted moments he kept his guard up, like he was just waiting for an attack.
From Merlin this idea was slightly creepy. Who would want to attack Merlin?
Well enough was enough.
Gwaine was going to find out what secrets haunted his friend. And soon.
Today.
Today he was following Merlin.
oOo
He'd been sitting in the tavern (with only two tankards of ale) by the murky window, half-heartedly entertaining fellow drinkers with jokes that sounded much more funny when you were intoxicated and the occasional arm wrestle - all of which he won despite his gaze bring glued to the window. Luckily it was a bright, clear day so looking outside was no issue even with the dirt and grime obstructing his view.
Merlin was walking towards the East gates. Well, not so much walking as a strange sort of assault course involving him hiding suspiciously behind conveniently placed barrels and stalls.
It was like Camelot was built for people to sneak in and out. He'd have to mention it to Arthur in the morning.
Merlin was moving towards the forest, unusually silent and unnoticed. Usually by now he would have tripped over at least twice. It was almost odd watching him walk so silently. It would be much harder to follow him when he was being this quiet.
It seems he was trying not to be followed.
Wonder why?
It made Gwaine even more curious.
And even more determined to follow him.
Even as various as Merlin was being, against a curious Gwaine he stood no chance.
Gwaine was going to learn something new about his best friend tonight.
oOo
He'd followed Merlin deep into the forest, we're the light was dim and the forest thick and damp. The dark shrubbery made concealing himself silently even more difficult than normal. After about half an hour Merlin forced himself out of the trees into a spacious clearing, hidden deep within the forest. Judging by the ease with which Merlin had made the journey (if not for the shrubbery), he had been here many times before. There was a roaring sound - coming from Merlin.
He stood in the middle of the clearing as though waiting for something. Or someone.
After another ten minutes Merlin looked towards the sky and there was a strong and unnatural gust of wind. Gwaine looked up.
His mouth dropped open.
Landing in the clearing, opposite Merlin, was a dragon. The Great Dragon, tales of which had spread far and wide. The Great Dragon that was supposed to be very dead.
At this rate Merlin was going to be very dead. He was seconds away from rushing into the clearing when the dragon inclined its head and spoke. The dragon spoke.
Gwaine swore he hadn't drunk enough ale yet.
"Why have you summoned me, Merlin?" it said.
The dragon knew Merlin's name.
That either meant the dragon had magical powers or that Merlin had often been meeting it in secluded clearings. On the one hand Merlin had known the way to the clearing far too well, on the other it was a dragon. It wasn't too farfetched to assume it had magical powers.
"There are rumours of a dragon egg." Merlin seemed totally at ease.
The dragon snorted derisively. "There are always rumours."
"About the tomb of Ashkanar."
The dragon visibly perked up, eyes widening in the hope it was trying to suppress. "What are these rumours, young warlock?"
Warlock. That meant magic.
As often as he'd told himself Merlin must have magic, he'd never quite believed it. And here was a dragon saying, loudly and clearly, that Merlin was a sorcerer. Gwaine thought about it. It did explain several odd occurrences around himself, Arthur and the Knights - and the only consistent factor was the presence of Merlin.
Okay.
Merlin was a magic user serving a king that executed his kind.
His opinion of Merlin's sanity dropped several notches (not that it was particularly high before - running after Arthur and the Knights, straight into danger, every time.)
There was no doubt that Merlin was the reason behind all the odd coincidences that kept piling up, the strange occurrences no one but him ever seemed to notice, never mind acknowledge. He wondered why. Gwaine himself had heard Gaius say that something couldn't be defeated without magic, for them to promptly defeat whatever opposition they faced within another twenty four hours. There were also random bursts of fire and bandits falling conveniently out of trees when they came close to any of the Knights.
He couldn't believe that he was the only one who noticed. Then again, it was relying on Arthur to spot it - and he was the son of Uther Pendragon, who was firmly convinced people listened to him when he attempted to ban magic from the kingdom. Obliviousness obviously ran in the family.
"The egg is apparently hidden there."
The dragon nodded.
"Is the rumour true?"
"I had heard that there is an egg hidden in the Tomb."
"Surely it would be dead?"
"A dragons egg can live for a thousand years before it hatches. It will do well for a while yet."
"Then...you may not be the last of your kind."
"Perhaps not." The dragon sounded indifferent, but its golden eyes glinted with a hint of hope.
Gwaine sat in the bushes listening to the conversation with an astounded expression and dawning realisation.
Another dragon. There would be another dragon. As far as he was concerned there wasn't even supposed to be one - not that he was surprised by this new development. Odd things happened around Merlin - you learnt to expect them. It was only now he was learning the reason why.
He probably never would've imagined something like this.
(And if he had, he would've been very concerned about his alcohol intake.)
"You will still be the last," the great beast intoned heavily.
"I'm used to bring the first and the last," Merlin said lightly, his words undermined by the deep and dark look in his eyes.
"And I wish it were not so, young warlock."
"I know you do Kilgharrah. I know you do."
The pair stood in silence a few moments, almost as though giving Gwaine the chance to think everything over. Merlin was a magic user who used his magic to save to Kings life where it was both illegal and liable to get his executed and, apparently, he seemed to be a dragonlord.
All in a usual Tuesday evening then.
"Bring the egg here when it is rescued. You must succeed."
Merlin patted the scales gently. "I know I must. I will."
The dragon threw Merlin a slightly fond look before stretching out its wings and launching into the sky. Merlin stood in the clearing for a short while longer, watching the shadow if the dragon disappear from the sky. After it vanished behind the clouds he sighed and turned to make his way back through the trees. As he passed, Gwaine lurked suspiciously behind a tree.
He'd thought Merlin had had magic, but never in his wildest dreams had he suspected something like this. He was curious - who wouldn't be? - even if he wasn't sure if he'd like the answers.
He needed to stop by the tavern on his way back into Camelot.
I finally finished this x Please read and review :)