Merlin was confused when he awoke to the sound of birdsong. Third Watch should have started at around three o'clock in the morning yet here he was blinking into the soft grey pre-dawn light. He slowly stretched and sat up and looked around, a small frown creasing his brow. Mordred sat on the opposite side of the fire stirring herbs and rosehips in a kettle for their morning brew.

"Good morning Merlin", he said softly as Merlin sat up. "You were sleeping so soundly and snoring so loudly that I didn't have the heart to wake you for your watch".

Merlin scowled back, dismayed. His plan for drugging Mordred's tea and leaving him behind had been thwarted and he was not at all pleased about it.

Mordred stared back at Merlin. He wasn't fazed by the scowl and assumed that it was there because the boy had just woken up. "How's your head?" he asked amiably as he handed a steaming cup of tea across the fire to Merlin.

Merlin took the tea with a nod of thanks and put it on the ground beside him. He felt the back of his head and found a large tender lump there. "Headache's gone", he mumbled, "but I don't think I'll be wearing a helmet any time soon with this bump". Mordred snorted out a short laugh at the thought of Merlin in armour.

Suddenly a snarling growl sounded from close by. Both men jumped and turned to face the noise, Mordred with his hand on the hilt of his sword. Both men immediately relaxed when they realized that it was just Arthur waking up.

"Gods Teeth!" he said, rolling over to face them, "not even the bloody birds have woken up properly and you two are gabbing away like fish-wives!"

Mordred mumbled an apologetic, "Sorry Sire". Merlin simply rolled his eyes and mumbled obscenities under his breath. Mordred looked at him, a little shocked.

"You need to shake a leg, Sire" said Merlin, getting up and rattling pots and plates unnecessarily loudly close to the King's head which disappeared into his blanket, "the sooner we get to the Cauldron the better and we still have a good half day's travel."

Arthur sat upright and scowled at his manservant. "You forget yourself, Merlin" he grumbled, "I am the King and I decide when..."

"...I'll get all this packed up and we'll head out as soon as breakfast is finished" said Merlin decisively as if he had not heard a word Arthur had said. As an afterthought and after a long pause he added, "Sire." in a tone that radiated everything but respect.

Arthur's resulting grumbling and scowling were somewhat lessened by the crease along his cheek and the fact that half his hair stood on end from being squished by his bedroll.

Mordred ate and drank quietly then helped pack the bags. He wondered at Merlin's utter lack of respect for authority.

Despite the King's protestations they were packed and hiking along the gorge within half an hour. Mordred had offered to shoulder half of Merlin's load but Merlin had simply growled something about being "perfectly able to do my job" and stomped away so the Knight let it go.

As they walked along in silence Mordred wondered if Arthur and Merlin were always this grumpy whilst out on quests, and if so how come they always succeeded and had so far managed not to murder each other.

He got his answer when the white dragon suddenly appeared out of the heavy grey sky and bore down upon them, breathing flame. The King and his Knight did the sensible thing and dived for the nearest piece of shelter behind a rock. Merlin lingered a few moments more before diving for cover alongside them. As soon as the dragon had passed he threw down the bags and all but commanded Arthur, "You go, I'll distract it". Despite thinking him foolhardy to say the least, Mordred could not help but respect his bravery and willingness to sacrifice himself for Arthur.

"No..." argued the King, trying to prevent Merlin from passing him.

"You must!" shot back Merlin, and was already half out of the shelter when the dragon buzzed by them again. Arthur argued in vain as Merlin struggled to push past him. Mordred saw a chance to prove himself to Merlin and show loyalty to the King. He grappled with Merlin and pulled him back into the shelter.

"Get Gwen to safety Sire!", said Mordred in a commanding yet respectful tone, "We'll cover you and join you beyond the gorge".

With a resigned "Very well", Arthur jumped from the hiding place and started to make his way along against the rock wall.

Any hope that Merlin might appreciate this intervention were dashed a few moments later. Mordred tried to stop the boy from going out to face the creature alone. Merlin roughly pushed him away growling, "I know what I'm doing Mordred." and went out alone anyhow. Amazingly he came back less than a minute later completely unscathed. Mordred could only guess at how he had overcome the dragon. He asked the manservant but Merlin ignored him, simply gathering up the bags and snapping, "We need to move" before heading out of the shelter again.

Mordred tried to press him further, to find out how he'd managed to overcome such an adversary alone. He never got the chance through. Suddenly a jolt of power slammed into his back and threw him through the air. The impact knocked him out stone cold.

Once again the bags he was burdened with broke Merlin's fall. He was winded for a few moments but never lost consciousness. He looked over at the inert form of Mordred next to him. In a split second he decided to leave the boy there. He'd anyway planned on leaving the Knight unconscious up at the camp, so why not here? Without thinking any further upon the morality of leaving a man helpless like this, Merlin staggered upright and rushed off toward the end of the gorge and his King.

Arthur's relief at seeing Merlin alive and well was as great as his distress at finding out that Mordred had not made it. Merlin had to physically restrain him from heading back into the gorge to rescue the Knight, and to argue with him that to get Gwen to the Cauldron was much more pressing. It pained Merlin to see Arthur so distressed and he suddenly questioned his own actions. He was conflicted in his own mind. Part of him was appalled that he had left the man helpless and exposed. There was more than a good chance that Morgana would find Mordred and might even kill him. But another darker side of him thought coldly that perhaps this was for the best. If Mordred died here, then perhaps the prophecy that Merlin had seen in the cave need not come true after all.

Struggling under the weight of the bags and even more under the weight of his conscience, Merlin urged Arthur toward the Cauldron of Arianroed.