The Dragon's Call: Learning about destiny

The next morning I wake up late. I stumble into the main room, yawning, to find Merlin in a similar state lifting up some very watery looking porridge before letting it fall back into the bowl.

"I got you both water," Gaius called to us as I sat down next to Merlin at Gaius's small table, looking to see I had the same watery looking porridge as well. "You didn't wash last night."

"Sorry," Merlin and I replied at the same time. We were a bit preoccupied with looking out at the view of Camelot at night.

"Help yourself to breakfast Sapphire."

As Merlin and I were looking at our disgusting looking porridge we didn't notice Gaius intentionally knock over a bucket of water that he had placed on the table but we did notice when it started to fall. We both stood up quickly and Merlin was the one to stop it in mid air using magic. The three of us looked at each other after Gaius gasped before Merlin let the bucket fall.

"How did you do that? Did you incant a spell in your mind?" Gaius asked us, not being quite as interrogative as yesterday but more curious now.

"We don't know any spells," I said, repeating that from yesterday.

"So what did you do? There must be something." He'd never before seen anything like this in his entire life. Everyone he knew who had magic, including himself had to learn how to use it through spells and incantations.

"It just happens," Merlin replied, I nod in agreement with his statement before he got out a mop and started to clean the mess of water on the floor.

"Well, we better keep you two out of trouble. You can help me until I find some paid work for you." He brought out a small brown sack and a potion onto the table. Merlin, hollyhock and feverfew for Lady Percival. Sapphire," he held up the small potion bottle. "This is for Sir Olwin. He's as blind as a weevil so warn him not to take it all at once."

"Okay," we both agree and started to head out before Gaius handed us two bacon sandwiches. We both took one with a smile of thanks.

"Off you go." Just as we reached the door Gaius called to us once more. "And you two! I need hardly tell you that the practice of any form of enchantments will get you killed." Hunith had asked him to look after them both. He wasn't going to let them be killed when they've only just arrived. He needed to warn them of the dangers of using magic here.

We nodded seriously in response to that. We did just see an execution yesterday for someone who was just practicing magic.

Once we reached the courtyard we decided to meet back up here in an our or two explore the city.

I asked directions from a passing knight and headed over there immediately. I knocked on the door and it revealed a squinting old man behind. "Here is your medicine from Gaius." He just held his hand out in one jerky motion and I put it in his hand.

I was about to walk away when I remembered Gaius's warning. "Gaius said 'don't drink it all..." before I could say any more he had popped off the cork and just started gulping it down. He was definitely blind but I also think he was deaf.

It was probably fine for him to do that, I thought as I walked away.

Gaius had us drop off a few more deliveries, then we had lunch. It was another three hours later before Merlin and I could explore the city.

~MAS~

We decided to explore the Upper quarter of the city first and so crossed the drawbridge. As we passed the training grounds we noticed a few villagers were watching what looked like a man, who was actually Prince Arthur Pendragon son of King Uther, bullying his young serving boy who was called Morris.

"Where's the target?" Arthur was asking, what looked like his gang of knights laughing near the walls of the castle.

"There, Sir?" Morris asked.

"It's into the sun?"

"It's not that bright."

"A bit like you, then?" Arthur immediately taunted. He had fun taunting his servants. It showed the people who was the boss around here. He rarely found one that was competent enough for him. The most that's ever lasted was this one and he found he didn't like him.

"I'll put the target on the other end, shall I, sir?" Arthur nods and the boy carries a round archery target towards the wall.

"Teach him a lesson. Go on, boy," one of Arthur's knights called.

"This'll teach him," Arthur called. Arthur then throws a dagger at the target as Morris is still moving it.

"Hey! Hang on!" Morris complained.

"Don't stop!" He ordered. He was definitely having fun.

Morris moves the target a bit more to the left. "Here?" he asked.

"I told you to keep moving," Arthur said in response. He servant was not very good at listening.

As Morris moved again Arthur threw another dagger at the target missing the middle. He throws another dagger as Morris shuffles along, tying not to drop the heavy target.

"Come on! Run!" I really don't like this man, he's beating up a young boy. Though it's strange, I feel strangely protective of him. Though I don't know why anyone would want to be. "Do you want some moving target practice?"

In the end it seems the target is too heavy for Morris as he drops it and it rolls to my feet. I decide to put an end to this and so put my foot on the target so the boy can't pick it up again. "Hey, come on, that's enough."

"What?"

"You've had your fun, my friend."

"Do I know you two?"

"I'm Sapphire and this is Merlin." Merlin held out his hand.

"So I don't know you." He didn't end up shaking Merlin's hand. he was trying to act intimidating. It wasn't working.

"No," Merlin answered.

"Yet you called me 'friend'."

"That was our mistake," I agreed.

"Yes, I think so."

"Yeah," Merlin also agreed. "We've never have a friend who could be such an ass, have we Saph?" he didn't like the way he was treating himself and Saph. He was always protective of her and always will be and he certainly didn't like this guy. He seemed very arrogant and self-centred. He couldn't see himself wanting to be this man's friend. He seemed older than himself though he was sure he was about sapphire's age. He was taller then himself and sapphire by a few inches, he had Sapphire's blonde hair though it was a bit darker and he also had much lighter blue eyes then Sapphy did, they were more a grey blue colour. He also had a very muscular build showing that he trained here a lot, as evidenced by his knife throwing we saw him do earlier, and he was very fit.

"Nope," I agreed, popping the 'p'.

"Good one Merlin," I called to his mind.

Merlin and I start walking away. We saw no reason to stay. We said what we wanted to say to the blonde man whom I felt strange, protective, almost brotherly feelings for.

Arthur snorted. "Or I two who could be so stupid." We stop walking. "Tell me, Merlin, Sapphire, do either of you know how to walk on your knees?

"No," we both replied.

"Would you like me to help you?"

"I wouldn't if I were you," I boldly answered.

Arthur chuckled. "Why? What are you two going to do to me?"

"You have no idea," Merlin warned.

"Be my guest!" We look around to see people watching us. "Come on. Come on. Come onnnnn!" he taunted.

That did it. Merlin and I took a swig at him but he just twisted our arms behind our backs. Owww, that really hurts. I heard the villagers gasp at our actions and unknown to us Gwenievere, the Lady Morgana's maid, also gasp where she was drying her Lady's bed sheets out of one of the castles windows.

"I'll have you thrown in jail for that," Arthur said.

"Why who do you think you are? The King?"

"No, I'm his son Arthur." Oops. He then kicked our knees from under us, that hurt, before we were grabbed by some knights and taken to the dungeons. They didn't bother to put us in separate cells so Merlin leant me the thin blanket that I would use for the night.

~MAS~

A quarter of an hour later and the sky had gone dark. Mary Collins, now disguised as Lady Helen, rides across the drawbridge and into the Square with her escorts. She looks down at a pudddle and the relection of herself reveals Lady Helen as Mary like with the mirro in the tent the other night. Lady Helen, or Mary, entered the Throne Room to meet Uther, Lady Morgana and her maid and a few court members.

"Lady Helen," Uther stepped forward to greet her, taking her hands and holding them together. "Thank you so much for coming to sing at our celebrations."

"The pleasure's all mine," Lady Helen smiled charmingly.

"How was your journey?"

She sighs and answers, "Oh, the time it took, Sire."

Uther kisses both of her hands.

"Well, it's always worth the wait."

"It will be," she began to fiddle wih her nexklace while Uther continued to shower her with compliments.

~MAS~

The same voice that woke me up yesterday woke me up again today. It kept calling my name.

"Did you hear that?" I asked him.

He nodded and noticed that it sounded as if it was coming from beneath us.

"Merlin... Sapphire ..." It called again.

Merlin moved towards the floor to inspect it but before he could Gaius called for us and entered our cell. "Merlin! Sapphire! You never cease to amaze me! The one thing that someone like you two should do is keep your head down, and what do you two do? You both behave like idiots."

"We're sorry," we both replied and we were. we didn't know it was the Prince, though it wouldn't stop us standing up to him in the future. We were sorry because we really didn't want to spend the night in a cell nor do we ever want to again.

"You're lucky. I managed to pull a few strings to get you released."

"We won't forget this," Merlin told him. We were both happy to be free of this cell.

"Well, there is a small price to pay." We both look at Gaius oddly for the tone his voice had taken, it sounded as if he were trying not to laugh.

~MAS~

An hour or so later would find Merlin and I in the stocks in the Lower town, being pelted with rotten fruit and vegetables by children.

"Oh, no," Merlin murmured minutes before we were being pelted.

Gaius laughs as he passes us by.

"Thanks a lot Gaius!" I call to him.

As the children leave to get more rotten fruit and vegetable, we were trying to spit out the pieces that gotten in our mouths when young black girl with very curly dark brown hair and brown eyes approached us. She looked about our age.

"I'm Guinevere," she introduced herself, "but most people call me Gwen. I'm the Lady Morgana's maid." Yes, I'd heard of the Lady Morgana from passing knights who had hardly nothing to say about her execpt her beauty.

"Right. I'm Merlin. and this is my best friend Sapphire." We reach our hands out further out of the stocks to shake hers. "Although, most people just call us Idiot."

"No, no, no. I saw what you did. It was so brave."

"It was stupid," I murmered, thinking about the repercussions of our actions.

"Well, I'm glad you both walked away. You weren't going to beat him."

"Oh, I- I can beat him," Merlin said.

"You think? Because you don't look like one of these big, muscle-y kind of fellows."

"Thanks," well, he difinately loooked and sounded insulted.

"No! No, I'm sure you're stronger than you look."

I snorted at that, "believe me Gwen he isn't."

"Saph?!" Now he looked double insulted.

"What, you know it's true."

"What about that time when you twisted your ankle as you got stuck climbing a tree and I had to carry you home so mother could treat it."

"Will helped," I countered. "Remember?"

He just huffed and grumbled to himself.

Gwen was griining at us as we looked up when she sppoke again, us two almost forgetting she was there. That happens a lot when we talk to each other. It's often like we're in our own little worlds when we're together. "It's just, erm... Arthur's one of these real rough, tough, save the world kind of men, and... well..."

"What?"

"You really don't look like that."

He motioned for her to move closer after making a show to see if anyone was listening. "I'm in disguise," he was referring to his magic though Gwen didn't know that. He really was insulted though that both Sapphy and what seemed like there new friend Gwen both thought him to be so weak. It hurt his pride.

She laughed and steps back. "Well, it's great you two stood up to him."

"What? You think so?"

"Arthur's a bully, and everyone thought you guys were real heros."

"Oh, yeah?"

She nods. "Thanks Gwen," she definately made my day better, especially after being in the cells for the night and then being pelted with fruit the next day.

The children then return with more rotten fruit.

"Oh, excuse us, Guinevere. Ours fans are waiting." We waved to her as she ran past before we were being pelted again.

~MAS~

Merlin and I sit down to eat. I already had a shower but merlin was still pulling pieces of rotten fruit out of his messy dark brown hair.

"Do you want some vegetables with that?" Gaius asks us, refering to our soup on the table.

Merlin snorted, "I know you're still angry with us."

"Your mother asked me to look after you two."

"Yes."

"What did your mother say to you two about your gifts?"

"That we were special." She didn't really say anything else. It was probably because she didn't know anything else

"You are special. The likes of which I have never seen before."

"What do you mean?" I asked him, maybe now we can learn about our magic.

"Well, magic requires incantations, spells. It takes years to study. What I saw you do was... elemental, instinctive."

"What's the point if it can't be used?" Merlin asked him. It's seems that we won't be able to use it as much as we thought we were going to since we found out magic is banned here. I wonder how we're supposed to learn it now.

"That I do not know. You Merlin, Sapphire are a question that has never been posed before." Gaius had never seen anything like these two before and he was pretty sure he'd never heard of this in long times past either.

"Did you ever study magic?" I asked Gaius, thinking that because it looked like he knew a lot about it that maybye he learnt it.

"Uther banned all such work twenty years ago."

"Why?" we both asked, very alarmed. we didn't knew magic was banned till we came here. We knew people didn't like or trust it but not anything else.

"People used magic for the wrong end at that time. It threw the natural order into chaos. Uther made it his mission to destroy everything from back then, even the dragons."

"What? All of them?" Merlin questioned.

"There was one dragon he chose not to kill, kept it as an example. He imprisoned it in a cave deep beneath the castle where no one can free it. Now, eat up. When you've finished Sapphire, I need you to take a preparation to Lady Helen. She needs it for her voice." Maybe it was this dragon that was calling for us both since the old, ancient sounding voice sounded like it was from beneath us.

I walk up Spiral Stairway across the Balcony Corridor and enter Lady Helen's guest chamber to find it empty. I decide to put the potion bottle on the vanity table but notice an effigy and a special, fancy book that I couldn't seem to open. I hears someone coming, guessing the Lady herself and put the book down, trying to cover up the evidence that I was snooping.

"What are you doing in here?" Lady Helen asked, making me jump and turn around.

"Gaius, the Court Physician asked me to deliver this," I grabbed the potion and handed it to her. "He said it should help with your voice". As I moved towards her I noticed the curtain that was hanging on her mirror had slipped and I could see her reflection for a second: it was not Lady Helen that I saw. In fact it looked an awful lot like Mary Collins. She smiled uncertainly when she took the potion and I left. Getting a bad feeling off her and the contents in her room. I decided not to tell either Gaius or Merlin. For one thing, I wasn't sure if I was imagining things, though Hunith always told me to trust my instincts which were telling me not to trust Lady Helen and that she was dangerous. Another thing was that I wasn't even sure if they or even anyone else would believe me.

~MAS~

I was helping Gaius with creating a potion that he needed stocking up, just mixing and grinding the ingredients while he stirred the cauldron, when we heard a gathering of noises out in the market square. We got up to look out the window to see that Merlin and Arthur were fighting.

We immeadiately went over there, Gaius to probably chatisise him and me to hopefully help him.

We reached down there to see that the fight looked like it was nearing it's end. Arthur was busy trying to get a mace out of two hooks while Merlin was looking pleased with something.

"What are you looking so pleased about?" I asked him, making him jump slightly.

"I'm winning the fight against Arthur."

"I'm not so sure about that."

"Why not?" before he was knocked down by a broom Arthur had found.

"Merlin!" I ran over to him to help him up but found we were grabbed roughly by guards.

"Wait. Let them go. They may be idiots, but their both a brave one. There's something about you, Merlin, Sapphire. I can't quite put my finger on it," Arthur said before he left.

"How could you be so foolish?!" Gaius immeaditly rounded on Merlin once we entered Gaius's chambers.

"He needed to be taught a lesson."

"Magic must be studied, mastered, and used for good! Not for idiotic pranks!"

"What is there to master? We could move objects like that before we could talk!"

"Then, by now, you should know you should both know how to control yourselves!" Gaius was just making us both angry.

"We don't want to! If we can't use magic, what have we got?!" I shouted at Gaius. "We'll just be a nobody, and we always will be. If we can't use magic, we might as well die," this was the last words either of us spoke to Gaius for a while as we both went into our room and slammed the door.

"Maybe we shouldn't have shouted at Gaius, Merlin," I said to him as we sat down on my bed, me learning on his left shoulder. I was feeling a little guilty for shouting at Gaius. All he was doing was trying to protect us.

"Well, why wouldn't we? What we said was the truth."

"Yes but he is just trying to protect us, like your mother told him to."

"I wish mother never sent us to Camelot." Nothing but bad things, apart from meeting Gwen, had happened to them since arriving in Camelot.

"You don't mean that."

"Yes, I do."

I just sighed, I'm sure he would come to resent what he just said someday. Apart from the cells and the stocks I quite liked Camelot so far.

I turn see Gaius enter my chamer after a while carrying a medcal basket.

Gaius sighed and put the medical basket on his knees after he sat down next to Merlin. "Merlin? Take your shirt off."

Merlin removes his shirt, revealing a few bruises and one nasty scratch on his right shoulder blade.

"You don't know why we were born like this, do you?" he asks Gaius.

Gaius replied after a few seconds, "no."

Gaius then tended to Merlin's wounds wounds by cleaning up some of the blood.

"We're not a monster, are we?" I asked him quietly. We sometimes thought we were monsters with most of the villagers and the kids giving us the cold shoulders or the kids taunting us. Most of the time we spent as much time as we could with Hunith in our house or with Will when we became friends.

We know that we both that that we were monsters, we share everything, it was always and will always be us two against the world.

Gaius looks us in the eye. "Don't ever think that."

"Then why are we like this?" I ased him, desperate for answers like Merlin was. "Please, we need to know why."

"Maybe there's someone with more knowledge than me."

"If you can't tell us, no one can," Merlin replied, looking down away from Gaius. He was the one who seemed to know the most about magic, especially the only one who was close enough to go to for answers. If not him then there was no one else, there wouldn't be anyone else to ask in a land where magic was banned.

I then saw Gaius pour a potion from his bag into a tiny cup which he offered to Merlin. "Take this. It will help with the pain."

Merlin took it and Gaius left. Once Merlin drank it he made a face. "That was disgusting." He did no want to try another one of those or see what his other potions tasted like. They probably tasted the same.

I just laughed back in his mind.

~MAS~

Uther was now dining with Lady Helen in the Council Chamber.

"Will you sing for me tonight?"

"You will have to wait, Sire."

"You will not deny me." He was the King. everyone acquiesced to his every needs/orders.

"I am saving myself for my performance tomorrow," she laughed and he smiled. "Will everyone be there?"

"Who would dare to miss it?" He asked in an astonished voice. He couldn't think of anyone not wanting to miss what was surely going to be one of the most splendid performances he'd ever seen.

"How about your son?"

"Well..." He was one person who might try and miss it, no matter how much he ordered or persuaded him.

"It seems a shame not to have met him." Not that it would matter, she thought, he would die soon anyway.

"That's Arthur." He's almost always out by the training grounds training with the rest of his knights. He always let Arthur be in charge of the knights while he looked after most of the kingdom. Arthur did a few other jobs here and there like going to Council meetings, attending feasts, going on hunts and attending Knighting Ceremonies.

"Poor child," she murmered.

"Hmm?" he didn't quite catch what she said.

"Poor child," she repeated, louder to him. "It can't have been easy to- to grow up without a mother." She had to make that up quickly. It wasn't what she meant for the phrase 'poor child'. She was referring to having to be brought up by this horrid, evil man Uther but soon she would end his suffering.

"No," Uther looked down at his plate sadly.

"Hmm. That bond between mother and son, it's so hard to replace."

"Hasn't been easy."

"I'm sure." She smiles at him and he smiles back, the slightly tense atmosphere dissapating. "Perhaps if you found someone...If you remarried. I'm sure you'd have the pick of any maiden in the kingdom."

"Well, perhaps I'll find love again. But I'm afraid it's too late to replace Arthur's mother."

"Yes. It's certainly too late for Arthur." It definitely was as he was soon going to die by my hand. She had it all planned out.

~MAS~

I'm stil lying awake a few hours later in my bed, everyone else asleep, just waiting for that strange voice to speak.

"Merlin... Sapphire..." there it was. I put on my shawl and entered the main room to see Merlin grabbing his brown jacket. We grinned at each and sneaked out of our chambers, crossing the square.

"Merlin..."

We descend the Wrought Iron Stairway and we see a pair of gaurds sitting at a table playing with a dice.

"How are we going to distract them?" I whisper asked Merlin.

"Watch and learn Saph," he grinned at me before concentrating on the dice and used his magic to knock it off the table. The guards here are so stupid and easy to control.

"Ha ha, brilliant."

He knocked the dice away, the gaurds following till they went around a corner and were out of sight.

I notice it's dark down the tunnel and so grab a torch hanging of the wall and light it with magic before leading the way down the stairs.

"Sapphire... Merlin..." the voice called again. At least we were going in the right direction, I think.

We enter into a huge cage, a river far below us and we couln't see the very top of the cave. In front of us lies a tall peak with stairs winding around it. I think it leads to the platform we are on now as I see some steps off to our left though I can't be sure.

"Merlin, Sapphire," the voice called before it laughed, in fact I think it was a man's voice.

We look around for the owner of the voice but couldn't see anyone or anything.

"Where are you?" We both asked the voice.

A second later a huge brown old Dragon flies to land in front of us onto of the peak. This must have been the Great Dragon Gaius was talking about that was imprisoned. He sure looks old and big enough to be but I can't believe that I'm actually seeing a dragon and that they are real. "I'm here! How small you both are for such a great destiny."

"What destiny?" I asked him, mabye it's him that will give us the answers we want. We've searched for them for so long now.

"Your gift Merlin, Sapphire, was given to you two for a reason."

"So there is a reason," Merlin and I breathed out, very thankful that there was. If there wasn't a reason what was the point of our existence.

The Dragon laughed, "Arthur is the Once and Future King who will unite the land of Albion." Great, that's nice to know.

"Right." It seemed Merlin was confused too. what's that got to do with anything.

"But he faces many threats from friend and foe alike," the Dragon continued.

"I don't see what this has to do with us."

"Everything. Without you both, Arthur will never succeed. Without you both, there will be no Albion."

"No. No, you've got this wrong."

"There is no right or wrong, only what is and what isn't."

"But we're serious!" I protested. "If anyone wants to go and kill him, they can go ahead. In fact, we'll give them a hand." Arthur was such an arrogant prat.

The Dragon laughed again, "None of us can choose our destiny, Merlin, Sapphire, and none of us can escape it."

"No. No way. No. No," Merlin disagreed. "There must be another Arthur because this one's an idiot." there is no way either of us could ever want to save him.

"Perhaps it's both of your destines to change that," the Dragon replied before he flew away, higher into the cave till we couldn't see him, seeing a chain following him showing he was chained in here. It made me feel sorry for him though I still felt plenty of irritation at how he wasn't given us very good and clear answers.

"Wait!" I called up to him. "Why can't you tell us more?"

We both huffed, annoyed when he didn't answer us and just decided to go back to bed, going to try to forget this meeting ever happened. It didn't seem too hard as the information was something that we didn't wasn't to hear anyway, which was ending up being very surprising considering we wanted to learn why we both have magic for a long time now.