With a barely perceptible pop, Merlin appeared in the shadows of Pierrefonds. Thankfully no one was around to notice the obvious magic. Any tourists had long been sent home, and most locals would not be out and about at this hour.
The only people awake were the film crew. It was nearly time for the night shoot. Merlin's team had been here earlier in the day to set up what they needed to, and now in the lingering light of the setting sun, the rest of the needed crew was shooting the establishing shots they needed while the actors were able to take a nap. They had been shooting all day of course and would probably be up most of the night as well.
Merlin strode out of the shadows toward the trailer camp where Colin would be found. He thought he was doing good at going unnoticed until someone called out his name. He bit back a curse.
"Matthew, hey, quick question for you." It was one of the ADs.
Merlin turned to him with a cheerful smile. "Yeah, what is it?"
"The director wants to go over with you how your team is doing the ring of fire and flying dagger in Remedy to Cure All Ills. Do you have a minute?"
"Actually, you would be best talking with Karen," he replied. "She is in charge of that scene and can explain it better than I can."
"Great, do you-"
"Courtyard," Merlin interrupted. "I've got to run." And with that he used his long legs to quickly put some distance between him and any further inquiries. A glance at his watch tells him he does not have long until someone is sent to make sure Colin is awake to report to set.
He uses his magic to unlock the door to the actor's trailer and creeps inside. It's surprisingly neat. A few pictures from home and of friends decorate the otherwise blank walls inside. He recognises the backdrop of one family photo as Colin's dreamscape. It reminds Merlin of the couple times he attended college and had to live in a dorm room.
Merlin was able to use his naturally amplified night vision to find his way to Colin's fold out bed where the man was passed out. It was eerie how similar the actor looked to him when he was that age. Not that anyone but him would know. Taking a steadying breath, Merlin hovered his palm above Colin's eyes and recited the spell. He designed it to hide the telltale gold of magic in his eyes when he needed to perform magic unheeded. A slight modification should allow the cameras to still pick up what no human eye could.
The warlock had just completed the spell when a loud sound of drums and guitar erupted. He lept backwards just in time for the actor to roll over and slap his phone to turn off the alarm. In a panic, Merlin fell to the floor and rolled underneath the bed. As he listened to the sound of the Irishman rousing himself to go to set, Merlin mused to himself that maybe the screenwriters knew more about him than he had thought. He did always seem to find himself in situations like this.
Finally Colin left and Merlin rushed to beat him to set. Now he sat on top of the low wall and watched the rehearsals. He had laid the pipes designed to create a fire effect that he would actually do with magic. This would be the first test of channeling his magic through Colin. He had practiced in dreams, but not in real life yet. At least it was the second unit so if something went wrong, less people would be aware.
Finally the time had come to film the small scene. The cameras were rolling and Merlin reached out his magic to connect with Colin's.
The director called for action and the Irishman walked out from behind the pillar. He raised his arm and cast the spell. Merlin felt the tug on his magic and watched as the actor perfectly channeled the magic to perform the spell. Merlin couldn't see his eyes change, but he knew it had worked. The line of fire raced to circle the other man and flared higher.
Counting in his head from when the man turned to look at Colin, Merlin then silently cast the counterspell to extinguish the flames.
As the director yelled cut, Merlin couldn't help the small smile on his face. It had gone perfectly.
"Reset!" Or maybe not as perfectly as he had thought.
