AN: Thanks once again, all who reviewed/faved/followed etc etc. The following was an idea inspired by a fic I read a long time ago, (Thus I am sadly unable to give credit where it is due) where Kilgharrah contacts Arthur and the king bursts into Merlin's room in the middle of the night. This seemed like a perfect way to segue into the coming adventure, and it was quite enjoyable to write!

Mersan123: I know - it seemed quite necessary. :)

Read on, friends!

The young warlock was in the middle of a dream so food-related and real feeling that Gwaine would be proud. Suddenly, just as he was about to start on his second slice of apple pie, a voice that seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere forced its way into his dream.

"Merlin! Wake up!" It was Arthur's voice. What was Arthur doing interrupting his dream? As soon as this disruption was noticed, the dream seemed to decide it had had enough. Fading and liquefying as dreams do, Merlin's dream-self was soon left in a sleepy blackness, and he was tempted to stay there as it was calm and there was no stress. However, he was slowly waking up, and with a woosh! cold began to work it's way into his body and he curled up. Arthur must have removed his blanket. Finally, he opened his eyes and focused on the shadowy form of the king in front of him, before glancing at the window. It was still pitch-black outside, with one or two stars. The middle of the night.

"Arthur, why are you waking me up in the middle of the night?" The manservant complained. Seriously, even though he was Arthur's servant, and that did require a lot of annoying chores, waking up in the middle of the night was asking too much.

"Well... it's just that..." Arthur began, sounding more nervous and confused than ever, and the last day had been both very confusing and very nerve-racking. As Arthur finally seemed to be managing the formation of coherent thought and thus words; the door to Merlin's room banged open and Gwaine burst in. Merlin looked shocked, his eyes wide.

"Gwaine?" Merlin and Arthur said at the same time.

"Arthur?" Gwaine asked simultaneously. Gaius chose that exact moment to walk in, still wearing his night clothes and bearing a dim candle.

"Merlin, what are you doing? Having a party? Oh! Sire. I didn't see you there. And sir Gwaine." Gaius was always bound to stick to semi-proper etiquette when addressing Arthur and a knight, even if he was in his rather ridiculous nightclothes.

"I just have something to talk Merlin about." Arthur said. Then Gaius turned to Gwaine, giving him a similar, expectant look.

"Me too." Gwaine agreed. At this, Gaius' smile was still there but it now seemed pasted on. He glanced a worried look at Merlin, who hadn't told him about neither Arthur nor Gwaine finding out about his magic. Therefore, having the King and one of his most trusted knights in the warlock's bedroom was cause for suspicion. The book of magic spells was lying conspicuously out on the floor. Merlin tried to give Gaius a reassuring smile. He didn't want to break the reveal news to his mentor just yet; now was not the time.

"O...k I'll leave you to your discussion." Gaius said, a bit confusedly, and closed the door. Though he had faced many magical and non magical foes of any and every sort, he had never been more worried for the warlock. Who knew what Arthur would do if he found out about Merlin? Gaius wondered. Little did he know that, at this point, he was the one who is was in the dark about Merlin's secret. As soon as Gaius shut the door softly behind him, Arthur and Gwaine turned to Merlin. They were exhibiting a mixture of glaring and searching and confused expressions.

"What?" Merlin asked once it grew uncomfortable. Arthur was able to shrug off Gaius' strange confusion over the whole magic reveal, for surely Merlin had told him. The young warlock was not someone who would keep a secret from his mentor and father by every definition except blood. Gwaine was focusing on the apple on Merlin's bedside table, right next to the book of magic, but he appeared more thoughtful and as though he were focusing on something internally.

"Is it you?" Gwaine asked. Merlin just looked more confused than ever. Arthur looked a little shocked himself.

"Wait... you can hear it too?" Arthur asked. Merlin, who didn't at all enjoy being in the dark about anything (especially something that had both Arthur and Gwaine in his bedroom in the middle of the night), jutted his chin out in petulance.

"Hear what?" Merlin asked again, crossing his arms.

"There... is a voice." Gwaine said, as if he couldn't believe he was saying it. Arthur nodded vigorously, his eyes widening.

"A... a voice." Merlin asked, sounding almost annoyed with his incomprehension.

"It's inside my head." Gwaine continued. Now the young warlock realized why they had come to him. It made him proud that he was now the one they came to, and grateful that he didn't have to force Arthur in a roundabout way to tell him when something magical was going on.

"Is it you?" Arthur asked.

"Arthur. Does it sound like me?" Merlin asked, as though speaking to a child. That is indeed how the King of Camelot felt at that moment, for he knew so little about magic and it's ways of being used for good, which is of course the only way Merlin had and ever would use it. Merlin's heart was too pure for any other usage of his power. Arthur marveled at the boy's lack of self-preservation and his loyalty to someone who ultimately, had circumstances been different, would have had him burned at the stake or beheaded.

"Well... no." Gwaine and Arthur both answered.

"Does it sound like a person, or does it sound all raspy and low?" Merlin continued. There were really two normal explanations for what was going on. Either the Druids were trying to contact Arthur and Gwaine, which was less likely; or the great dragon was trying to contact them, which was more likely. This was proven when Arthur spoke up and described it.

"More raspy and low. Does that mean you know who it is?"

"Yeah." Merlin looked a little tired and he let loose an impressive sigh. Arthur and Gwaine waited patiently for him to explain who was intruding on their thoughts.

"It's the great dragon."