Sorry I haven't been posting on any sort of schedule but I've been really busy with upcoming midterms so... yeah here it is:
A small amount of time later, the chamber doors opened and Gaius stepped in, looking weary and older than normal with an equally tired servant trailing his heels. The physician instructed the servant to set the things that they were carrying down on the table and Gwaine heard the unmistakable clink of bottles as the young boy who reminded the knight very much of a young Merlin unloaded his arms. Gaius thanked him and waved him off before going over to the bed.
"He hasn't woken." Gwaine commented seriously.
Gaius's face stayed the same at the news. "No, I suspected not. He was helping me brew potions all day and the work has tired him out."
Gwaine exhaled loudly, his grip tightening on Merlin's shoulder slightly.
"Will he be alright, Gaius?"
It was a question that the knight had avoided asking. He had lost too many friends, too many comrades, to hear the news that another one might be soon somewhere he couldn't see them.
"I do not know." Gaius said simply, sitting down with creaking limbs on Merlin's bed. The owner of which slept on peacefully.
Gwaine's eyes darkened. "What can I do? Arthur will give me leave if it's about Merlin."
"There is not much that we can do at the moment. I will know more after my trip but for now we must simply keep him warm and fed and let him get as much sleep as possible." The physician sighed.
The dark-haired knight looked back to Merlin, willing those blue eyes to open and for his friend to sit up in bed, laugh and say "gottcha" in that cheeky way he always did but there was no movement other than the gentle rise and fall of the warlock's chest under the blankets.
"I will stay with him then." Gwaine proclaimed.
Normally, Gaius would have opposed but it was doubtful that much could change the knight's mind at this point.
"You may if you wish. I'm sure that Merlin would be more likened to the idea of a friend helping him than a servant. I will come to check on him tomorrow morning before I depart but the biggest concern is getting him to eat and drink, and no, I do not mean ale Sir Gwaine," Gaius said sternly at the grin that spread across the knight's face, "I don't expect that he will wake tonight but I will leave a note for if he does."
Gwaine had been prepared to crawl into the bed beside his friend but was shooed away by Gaius, who claimed that the notion would be ridiculous and he should go back to his own room, provided that it had been cleared out of the drunkenness and chickens.
Once the knight had gone with one last backwards, worried glance at his friend, Gaius lined up the potions carefully on the table. Merlin would know which ones to take when he woke but the physician left a note explaining each one incase Gwaine would need to administer them as well as a note for his ward.
Merlin,
I have gone to visit my friend and will back in four days time. While you slept we moved you to your new chambers. Do not pout about it, they are far nicer than your old one. Sir Gwaine is all-too-eager to look after you during this time and I expect you to be gracious about it. Eat properly, more than one meal a day and try to refrain from doing anything strenuous.
With love,
Gaius
The old man folded the note and set it on the table next to the potions, scribbling MERLIN across the front before blowing out the candle on the table and sighing heavily.
The next morning Gaius woke up, still weary, to a knock on his door. The old man grunted for the knocker to enter and stood up, stretching his old, tired bones. A moment later a very worried-looking king entered the room and shut the door behind him.
"Are you set to depart?" Arthur asked.
Gaius yawned, already packed for his trip. "Yes sire, I just need a moment to check up on the queen and Amr."
Arthur smiled coyly and opened the door again. A very excited three-year-old bound into the chambers, with dark skin and a mop of shaggy dark hair. He took after his mother more than father except for the bright blue eyes that scanned the room happily. Gwen stepped in a moment later, already wearing a maternity dress but looking positively beautiful none-the-less.
"Ah." Gaius said, feeling that he should have expected that much. "My lady, how are you feeling this morning?"
Gwen pursed her lips. "I am fine Gaius. It is not myself that I am concerned about. How is Merlin?"
Motioning for the queen to sit down on the patients bed, Gaius tried to put on a unconcerned face.
"He will be fine, my lady. It is not good for the child to fret over such matters. Have you been eating properly?" The physician asked quickly to get the subject off of his ward's failing health.
Gwen laughed almost bitterly. "Yes I've been eating as much as one of the horses and with around the same diet. I fear I'm becoming huge!"
Arthur snorted in the background, holding Amr on his lap while he sat on one of the benches. The excitable toddler was chewing on his father's sleeve happily and the king made no motion to stop him.
"My lady you are as beautiful as ever and don't appear to have gained any extra." Gaius said reassuringly. He proceeded to check her over and tell her to keep drinking the potions that he had provided.
Next was Amr. The youngster was a bit more difficult to look over do to his constant squirming.
"I am sorry Gaius, Arthur has just started teaching him to ride and he is bursting to get back in the saddle." Gwen laughed happily as the toddler evaded yet another poke from the physician.
Arthur did his best to hold him son still and answer the old man's questions.
"The sniffle is gone then, I take it?" Gaius said in reference to the small chill that the child had developed earlier that month. It had been the start of several frantic late-night visits from the physician only to be told that one cough was no cause for concern or that a singular sneeze was normal for such an ailment.
"Completely better, thank you Gaius. We were both so worried." Gwen piped up, looking at her son lovingly.
"Good boy." Gaius said, finally done with the prince. Amr bounced up and down on Arthur's knee as Gaius handed the boy a honey-covered nut on a stick, an old trick he had used with the king when he was a boy to get him to stay for a full examination.
"Gwen, will you take Amr to play in the gardens?" Arthur asked, the subtle hint that he wanted to discuss Merlin was understood and Gwen bid her goodbyes, ushering the toddler out with her.
As soon as the door was shut, Arthur let out a heavy exhale.
"I went to check on him this morning, Gwaine was already there but it didn't look like he had woken at all yet. I gave Gwaine the entirety of your trip off." The king said.
Gaius nodded. "Thank you sire, I'm sure that he'll take good care of Merlin. I am ready to depart as soon as the knights are gathered."
The king grinned. "The knights are waiting in the courtyard. I've sent Leon along as well."
Sir Leon was Arthur's most trusted knight. Though the man was a few years older than the king, he listened well and was one of the first to except the idea of magic and help the other knights with the transition.
Gaius wasted no time in departing. He had managed to get a few servants to deliver the potions and only had to stop to check on Merlin before he left.
Merlin was surprisingly awake when Gaius entered the chambers. He and Gwaine were seated at the table, the potions pushed the the end, note obviously red and a large plate of breakfast between them.
The warlock looked tired but slightly better than the night before. His plate had a single piece of bread and cheese on it. Gaius frowned when he saw how little the man was eating and Merlin looked up guiltily at the physician.
"Good morning Gaius." Merlin said softly, his voice still full of sleep.
Gwaine turned to greet the physician as he entered.
"Merlin you must eat more than that." Gaius said sternly.
Merlin looked down. "Yes, I know. I wasn't all that hungry this morning."
It couldn't be helped. Merlin was used to having to do without breakfast thanks to always being late serving Arthur all the years and had gotten used to going without in the morning. Still, the warlock needed to pay more attention to his needs, especially during this time.
Moving past the issue, Gaius wasted no more time.
"I am departing and will be back soon. I've left you in Sir Gwaine's care for the time being. I won't be long but take care of yourself, my boy."
Merlin stood up unsteadily and stiffly. It was obvious that he didn't want the physician to go.
"I could come with you." The warlock offered but Gaius shook his head.
"No, you need to stay and rest. I will be back before you realize it. I'm sure that you won't be bored with Sir Gwaine here to keep you company."
The knight in question turned to grin at the physician with a huge piece of bread shoved in his mouth and dark eyes dancing once more now that Merlin had finally showed some sign of life.
Merlin looked hesitant and almost like he was about to cry but simply embraced his surrogate father and mentor.
"I will see you soon, my boy." Gaius rubbed his ward's broad back that was hard from years of mucking out stables and carrying armor.
As soon as Gaius had left Merlin sat back down and started on his breakfast, managing to eat the entire thing as well as an apple and he and Gwaine joked and laughed. Though he had just woken up, Merlin already felt tired after his meal but pushed past it.
"What's in all these books mate?" Gwaine asked, looking around at the tomes surrounding them.
Merlin smiled. "They are all the books locked away in the vaults, so I'm guessing very old, very powerful magic."
Both men looked at each other, much like children would before playing a trick.
"Let's see some then." Gwaine said deviously and Merlin shot up as fast as his slowing body would allow to grab the nearest book. The tongue was old but the words were as clear to the warlock as anything written by his own hand.
By mid-afternoon, the room was littered with opened tomes and bits of magic floating around. There was a scorch mark from flame creatures that Merlin had conjured from the fire, floating plates and bits of fruit, Gwaine's hair was a hand longer and he was now sporting a magnificent beard and snow fell from the rafters but stopped just above their heads.
Despite having fun, Merlin could feel his magic get weaker and weaker with every spell that he cast. Gwaine noticed it too-the way that instead of bright gold, the warlock's eyes only glowed a dull copper color.
The plates that had been floating suddenly clattered to the ground with the fruit, sending tomato and apple bits spraying over the newly polished floor. The snow stopped dissolving in the air and fell to the floor for a moment before completely fading from the ceiling and Merlin fell back against a bookshelf.
Gwaine was there in a moment, helping to support his friend and get his over to the bed. Even though Merlin insisted that he was fine, his legs felt weak and he could hardly keep his eyes open.
The last thing that Merlin could remember happening was Gwaine letting him down on the bed with a "here you go mate", then darkness. Judging by the light coming in the windows it was still daytime. The warlock spotted the dark-haired knight sleeping in one of the many comfy chairs sitting around the chambers. He cursed his own weakness at having fainted like a girl in front of his friend.
Sighing, Merlin pushed back the blankets and discovered that he was wearing sleeping clothes. He wondered in Gwaine had changed him but didn't think too much about it. With Gwaine, modesty was a lost cause. He'd gotten the drunken knight out of some very awkward and naked situations before and both men had seen each other in nothing more than once, though Merlin only started taking part in that after he had been discovered to have magic. His body was covered in one-too-many scars to explain without everyone knowing.
"Gwaine." Merlin whispered to the sleeping knight as he approached. Gwaine jerked awake roughly with a cut-off snort and incoherent mumble. A speck of drool was dripping from his chin that was now sadly, beardless.
Gwaine looked at Merlin without really registering who he was looking at. The warlock smiled at his friend's antics.
"Let's have you, lazy daisy." Merlin said happily, used to having to wake the king with the same words.
"Merlin let me sleep." Gwaine mumbled tiredly but then his eyes snapped open. "Merlin! Are you feeling alright? You should eat something."
Merlin shrugged. "I haven't been asleep that long, it's still day out. Besides, I just got tired."
Something dark flashed in Gwaine's eyes. "Mate it's the next day. You slept through the night too."
The warlock faltered. He'd felt like he could sleep for an entire day before, normally after saving Arthur's life, again, but he'd never actually done it.
"Oh no." He whispered and Gwaine got up quickly.
"Merlin, mate, what's wrong?" The knight asked seriously, putting his hands on the warlock's shoulders.
Merlin looked up at him pleadingly. "The make-up council meeting. It's about to start and I was supposed to be there because I sle- I missed the last one."
Gwaine looked a mixture between relieved and annoyed.
"The princess really expects you to go to a council meeting when you're sick?" He asked angrily.
Though the knight mocked the king, called him names and skipped knight training to hang out in taverns, he had a deep respect and friendship with Arthur, but when it came to Merlin and his health Gwaine tended to judge the king harshly.
"No no no," Merlin said, "I asked him to call another one after missing the first. I had forgotten because I was helping Gaius all day and I happened to see him in passing. I have to get ready!"
To be warned a LOT of this is just feel-good fluff because I love it.