A/N I have narrowed down the time this story takes place to between 'The Once and Future Queen' and 'The Nightmare Begins'. Kilgarrah is still imprisoned, Arthur has blossoming feelings for Gwen and Morgana is not evil yet.
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the BBC and Shine.

Bushfire. Chapter 2

Fear pushed the two young men onwards down the hill, their feet sliding and stumbling in panic. The noise of the fire was getting louder and louder as it picked up momentum going downhill, until it sounded like the very flames of hell were almost upon them. Every now and then a sharp explosion could be heard above the general noise of the conflagration as a tree's sap heated up beyond boiling point, the bark no longer able to contain the pressure build up.

In an effort to control his escalating fear and panic Merlin concentrated on one thing - keeping Arthur within an arm span of himself. He trusted his Prince's instincts completely and if anyone could guide them to some semblance of safety it was him.

"Merlin, I see the creek bed, stay with me!" Arthur shouted over his shoulder.

"I'm right here, don't worry." Merlin shouted back. He wasn't sure if Arthur had even heard him above all the noise.

The sight of the stream did little to ease the boys fears. It was not much more than a trickle.

Arthur swore loudly, coughing in the smoke laden air. Thoughts of his father, Gwen, Morgana and never seeing anything he loved again flashed through his mind. What would his father do if he died? Who would be the next ruler of Camelot? He had so many hopes and aspirations for the future; the type of King he waned to be and how he coud improve life for all of Camelots inhabitants.
There was no way he was going to give up yet!

"Keep going down stream Merlin, there may be deeper pools."

Merlin struggled on, this time he was in the lead. "It's right behind us Arthur, I don't think there's time."

Suddenly Merlin was on his knees again. But this time it wasn't due to him being a clutz, he had lost his footing in the knee high pool of water he'd just stumbled into!

"Merlin, you wonderful, clumsy idiot!" Arthur couldn't help the spike of hope he felt at that moment, and splashed down beside his servant with a short laugh. Merlin gave a half smile at Arthur's words of praise. Funny how the prat only ever said nice things to him when they were about to die.

With shaking hands Arthur pulled off his own pack and then tugged Merlin's bedroll from his shoulder.

"Soak the blankets in water, then we can huddle under them. My suede jacket too."

Arthur was doing his best to sound authoritative but his voice came out shaky with fear and raspy due to the grime he had inhaled.

He had automatically assumed the role of commander much earlier in the day and as such, felt it was his duty to protect those in his care. He had a lot of experience in the horrors of meeting an enemy in battle- and this is how Arthur unconsciously chose to deal with the situation at hand. If he had any chance of staying in control he needed to think of that hideous fire, which was devouring all in its path, as another adversary to be faced and defeated.

"I don't know that it's deep enough Arthur," Merlin replied as he continued his struggle with the woolen blankets.

Arthur glanced at his friend huddled beside him. The boy didn't have his training or background and although he had shown his undoubted courage before, he could not expect him to be much more than the trembling wreck he appeared to be.

"Merlin, it's okay to be scared." Arthur spoke to his friend, in what he hoped was a reassuring tone. "We'll get through this together."

Merlin was indeed scared but not only because of the rapidly approaching flames. It was becoming obvious that he was going to have to call upon his magic, if they were to have any chance of survival. The idea of revealing himself to the Prince and the resulting fallout was something Merlin had dwelt upon many times before. If Arthur rejected him for what he truly was, he didn't think he'd be able to go on. It seemed a rather unpleasant irony to him that the conditions he faced right now were probably much like those a convicted sorcerer would face when condemned to being burnt at the stake.

He gave Arthur a half grimace /smile, "Arthur. If this goes wrong..."

"Qiuet Merlin, save your breath. Get down as low as you can."

As the oppressing heat and noise grew, the orange light of the flames were suddenly all around them. It was now or never.

Merlin made sure his face was not in Arthur's line of vision as he incanted a spell as quietly as he could, his eyes flashing to gold. Although they couldn't see it from under their woolen canopy, water around them was suddenly propelled upwards into a fountain like spray that completely encased the lump that was Merlin and Arthur. The strength of the fire was massive though and whether the watery shield he'd created would be enough of a barrier to stop it's path of destruction, Merlin wasn't sure.

Time seemed to have slowed down as the two men sat crouched in their muddy haven. The energy Merlin was expending to maintain the protective shield wouldn't usually be a problem, but since he'd spent the last few hours running in an adrenaline fueled terror, he began to feel extremely drained after only a minute or so. It took all his willpower to keep the spell active for another few minutes.

After several minutes, that felt more like a half an hour to Merlin, the noise and heat finally began to recede and the eerie orange light had dissipated. Arthur finally spoke, "I don't know what that prayer was you uttered Merlin, but I think your deity obliged."

Arthur started laughing and jumped to his feet, causing the blankets to fall aside.

"We made it Merlin, we're alive!"

Merlin stared first at Arthur, then at the surrounding forest. Was he going to say something about the magic or had he gotten away with it? It had been awfully noisy and it's not like Arthur would've recognized the language he had used in his incantation.

Merlin slowly stood up, still somewhat dizzy from his exhaustive efforts and gazed at the destruction all around them. Everything was blackened and dead, except for a few remaining glowing embers here and there. He sucked in a few breaths, hoping Arthur wouldn't notice how tired out he was.

"Merlin, in case it has escaped your notice, we're alive! Try to look a little relieved will you!"

Yep, he was safe, in more ways than one. The amount of times the Crown Prince failed to notice what was happening right in front of him was unbelievably fortuitous sometimes. Perhaps this 'magic blindness' was all part of their destiny? Whatever the case, Merlin felt relief flood through his body in a rapid wave. He hadn't realised just how tensed his back and shoulder muscles were till he relaxed.

Merlin grinned widely, "Yeah, can't believe we got away with it Sire!"

Arthur punched Merlin's arm, hard, to show how happy he was, his entire face lit up with delight. Why he couldn't show affection in more normal, less painful ways, was a reoccurring predicament to Merlin.
He returned Arthur's disguised compliment with a pained, "Ouch! Yes, I'm glad your alive too Arthur."

The surrounding ground and what was left of the trees, were still radiating relentless heat and the smoke remained unpleasantly thick. Two pheasants who'd used the stream for shelter too, took off suddenly as a loud crash of thunder echoed through the sky. Merlin's gaze swept upwards and he wondered if a lightening strike was what started the fire in the first place.

"If that gathering storm breaks, it might be enough to stop this monstrosity. Can't think of anything human kind could do to halt such a massive fire front." Arthur mused out loud, his gaze too turning skyward.

Merlin nodded in reply, thinking about all the animals who had lost their lives and homes. Maybe even people.

"Do you know where we are exactly Arthur? Are there any villages nearby?"

"Well, if I've got my bearings right, following this valley should take us to Haldor. But i'm not sure how faraway it is." The smoke, darkness, fear and the inability to see further in front of himself than a few body lengths during their flight had disoriented the Prince more than he wanted to admit.

"I hope the fire didn't go that way. The villagers wouldn't have stood a chance." Merlin looked at Arthur as he spoke, noting how dirty and bedraggled he was; hair wet, mud and charoal deposits coating most of the exposed skin of his face, neck and arms as well as large areas of his clothing. He supposed he looked much the same.

The stream was rather muddied up by now, but Merlin searched for an area that was still running clear so that he could fill the water skins. Who knew how far or for how long they'd have to walk before they found help.

As they set off again, another loud rumble filled the air as the thunder storm continued to brew.

A/N Well, they survived the fire but what now? Will anyone come to their aid? How will they survive in a burnt out forest?