Merlin's horse had been tied to Gwain's after the fifth time the boy fell asleep in the saddle. Yet after the twelfth time of falling off he had found himself sitting behind Lancelot. He could feel his eyelids getting heavier again. Before he knew it his head was on the knight's back as sleep claimed him. Arthur looked over at his servant concerned.
He had sent Merlin away early so he could get some sleep, yet it seemed his servant didn't do that at all. Lancelot could feel several pairs of eyes in his direction and glanced over his shoulder at his sleeping friend. A smile flickered on his features as if pleased to see him finally getting some rest. He looked to Arthur and debated on how much to tell him.
"Just nightmares sire." He settled for. "All the action from a few months back catching up to him is all." Arthur took the excuse muttering something about how much like a girl Merlin was as he rode ahead. Lancelot looked back at Merlin again, just what had spooked him last night?
By the time they set up for camp that night Merlin was looking a lot better and was stumbling among the other servants getting the nobles food and whatnot. It was another few hours before everyone started to settle down to go to sleep. Lancelot placing himself closer to Merlin than the rest, he was starting to have a sneaking suspicion that maybe Merlin's nightmares were more than that.
It was night as the halls twisted and turned before Merlin's eyes. He slowed at a door that just swung open for him. He was in a lady's chambers and he could hear a soft humming. He turned and saw that lady from the other night walking out from behind a screen brushing her hair.
His brow furrowed, wasn't she dead? He had seen the act take place. Now that she was all cleaned up he could tell she was remarkably pretty, clear that she was part of royalty. He watched as she walked over to the covered mirror and sat down. She set the brush on the table before her and then reached up to pull the fabric away from the reflective surface.
Merlin saw himself standing behind her, but the woman looking back at him made his blood freeze. Nimueh was sitting there, a loving smile on her lips as her eyes locked on him with a possessive light.
Merlin shot up on his bedroll looking terrified. No, it was a dream, a nightmare. They would go to Alysa's kingdom and find his lovely daughter was in fact back home safe and sound. She would look nothing like the woman he had seen murdered in his dream. Yes that would be the case, his breathing slowly became normal again as he laid back down. He turned feeling a comforting hand land on his shoulder.
Lancelot offered a smile that Merlin returned before drifting back into a deep sleep