Past, Present, Future

by carinims01

Sequel to 'What Happens.' Not two weeks after the ban is lifted, Merlin is transported -by accident- twelve years into the future. Reacquainted with old friends, he learns he's been missing, presumed dead, for twelve years to the day he was transported. Now, faced with more problems than he can deal with, he has to find a way home, before something goes terribly wrong. No Slash.

7. A Night's Outing

Disclaimer: IDOM

Hey, guys! Don't worry, I have defiantly made good use of this five-day weekend and cold-thingy. Including writing this and working on my Merlin painting. However, I'm still working out the kinks and plotline and length. I know this won't be as long as "What Happens", so I'm tentatively saying fourteen-ish chapters. I'm up to chapter nine right now and things are starting to progress more, so yeah. Thank you for all you're reviews by the way, they're always great to read!

Enjoy:

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Chapter 6: A Night's Outing

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This one's for the lonely, the ones who seek and find, only to be let down time after time. This one's for the torn down, the experts at the fall, come on friends get up now, you're not alone at all.

It comes and goes in waves, ah, ah, ah.

This is for the ones who stand, for the ones who try again, for the ones who try again, for the ones who need a hand, for the ones who think they can.

It comes and goes in waves, ah, ah, ah.

-Greg Laswell, 'Comes and Goes'

After racing past blurred trees, spots of grey moonlight flashing against the riders before they moved onto the next pool of whitish-grey beams, Guinevere slowed, breathless and yet energized by their fast pace. Merlin quickly came up beside her, their horses' flanks brushing against each other.

He felt his smile grew as she threw him her own brilliant grin. "Gwen, this is ridiculous! Will you tell me where we're going?"

Guinevere laughed, curly brown hair bobbing with the horses' gait. "No," she answered simply. Merlin just gave her an exasperated look and Gwen finally-well, partially-caved. "We're almost there."

"You know, I think it could be a bit questionable for a queen to sneak out of the castle in the middle of the night with another man," Merlin teased light-heartedly.

Gwen's laugh rang out with genuine mirth and more than a hint of love and fondness showed in her eye. "Not if they knew it was you, Merlin. You are a brother to me, everyone knows it."

Merlin's heart pricked with affection for her-–whether it was his own, or this future version, she would never change-and he was reminded of their strong friendship. He would gladly give his life for her, and he knew it was the same way: Gwen would gladly give her life for his. Not that he would let that happen, but it defined, was a testament to the strength of their friendship.

"Besides," she continued, this time humorously, "I made sure we weren't followed. No one knows we're out here."

"Not even Arthur?"

"Not even Arthur."

Merlin smirked. "Gwen, I'm surprised at you."

"What?"

"Sneaking out in the middle of the night, not telling anyone where you're at, or where you're going-"

"Well, Arthur usually knows, I just did tell him I was going out tonight."

"You do this often?"

"Often enough."

Merlin scrunched his eyebrows in confusion and slight concern. "Gwen, why?"

Guinevere gave him a reassuring smile. "It's alright, Merlin. I don't get into any trouble. It's just good to get out of the castle every once in a while; when things get too big. Arthur usually knows, just not tonight's outing. I thought it would be good to get you out of the castle for a little while. No pressures."

What she didn't tell him was that Gaius and Gwaine both knew: she kept that to herself. She would tell him later, after they'd done what she planned to do. But Merlin himself was grateful. In truth, he'd been dying to get out of the castle, to get some fresh air, but he was kind of nervous to even leave his room for fear of having to face someone. But as much as he had wanted to be alone, Gwen's company was helping.

"Alright, so where are we going on 'tonight's outing?'"

Gwen just gave him a teasing smile, not answering, as she pulled the reins, making her horse stop and whinny. Merlin pulled his beside hers and dismounted, pulling his jacket closer to protect himself from the brisk night air. He was glad Gwen had tossed him his brown jacket before they'd left. Merlin walked around his brown mare and met Gwen just as she tied her horse to a strong branch. He did the same with his reins.

"Ready?" she asked as a mist of white cloud escaped into the air from her mouth, only proving how cold it was outside.

"Um, no?"

Guinevere laughed. "Good." She walked away from him, knowing he would follow, and disappeared in thick foliage.

Merlin jogged to catch up to his friend, grey neckerchief bouncing until he could slow down. Gwen threw him a grin just as they entered the clearing and then Merlin wanted to kick himself. He'd been talking with Guinevere the whole time, not even paying attention as he rode down the familiar path towards the clearing where he'd always met Kilgharrah.

"Gwen, what're we doing here?"

She gave him a look, one between mischief and tenderness. "Call them."

Merlin gave her a look of confusion. "What?"

"Call them," she repeated softly. "They're waiting."

"Who?"

Gwen rolled her eyes, amusement gracing her features as she laughed. "The dragons."

Merlin rolled his own blue eyes: she didn't have to sound so exasperating. While he was confused as to why she wanted him to call the dragons, he did as he was bid and slowly tilted his head backwards, gazing at the moon before letting his loud call echo around the clearing. Beside him, he sensed Guinevere shiver, but if it was from the cold or from the aura of power surrounding him, Merlin didn't know.

After he'd finished his call, he sat down in the long grass. Guinevere sat beside him and ran the long blades of grass between her fingertips, both content to wait patiently for the coming dragons. Something suddenly itched at Merlin's thoughts.

"Gwen?"

"Hm?"

"What…" he turned to fully look her in the face. "What did you mean by 'they're waiting?' How would you know that?"

Guinevere gave him a sidelong look, peering into his face as if looking for something. "Well, it's kind of hard to explain."

Merlin narrowed his eyes in amusement, 'story of my life' rolling through his head. "Try me."

Gwen smirked. "Well, in short, Aithusa and I kind of have this… connection."

"Connection? What… like mine?"

The queen-–though you wouldn't know it now-let out a short laugh. "No, nothing like your Dragonlord connection, Merlin. Just… telepathically. I should actually thank you for it."

"Me?" Merlin was sure his confusion at the whole situation showed on his face.

"Remember…" Guinevere paused, gazing sightlessly at the moon as she gathered her thoughts. "Remember, after your magic was revealed, you gave each of us a bit of your magic, tucking it away in case of emergencies? Well, after you… disappeared, Aithusa and Kilgharrah came looking for you after they couldn't sense you, and we decided that with your absence-we didn't know how long it would be-we would need a way to contact them if need be. I volunteered for something Kilgharrah explained, and it sort of… drew out and connected that little bit of Dragonlord magic in me-–thanks to you-to Aithusa."

Merlin blinked, now utterly bewildered but couldn't help his lip twitch at Guinevere's rambling. "What?"

Gwen rolled her eyes and lay back in the grass. "I can talk to Aithusa telepathically anytime I want, even ask him to come here. I cannot command them as you could, but I guess it's the same principal. Kilgharrah said so, anyhow."

Merlin gave up and lay back in the grass next to her. "So, why didn't you ask them to come now?"

Guinevere turned her head, her chocolate eyes boring into Merlin's and a soft and yet sad, sincere look passed over her face before she turned back towards the shinning moon. "They wanted to hear your call. It's been a long time."

Merlin felt that guilty sick feeling in his stomach again. "I'm sorry."

Gwen gave him a small smile. "Don't be. It's not your fault."

The warlock just sighed and put his hands behind his head, that sick feeling still there, but quieted a little as he closed his eyes.

"Merlin?"

"Hm?"

He almost missed the slight sadness in her voice. "Do you… like it here? So far?"

Merlin opened his eyes to find her's on his face. "I… guess so."

"But you don't want to stay."

It didn't sound like a question. But then again, Gwen always could see right through him.

Merlin opened his mouth, but closed it again when he couldn't find the words he wanted to say.

Guinevere's shoulder brushed against her friends. "It's alright Merlin." She bit her lip. "I wouldn't want to stay where I didn't belong either."

Merlin felt another pang of sickness. "Gwen." He waited until her face met his till he spoke again. "It's not… it's just… I don't know, something feels off. And I think I really do need to get back to my own time. It's not you… or anyone else, it's just…"

This time Gwen gave him a more genuine smile, but still sad, as she squeezed his hand. "It's okay. I understand. Why don't you talk about it with Kilgharrah? Gaius was thinking about starting research tomorrow morning. You should have seen him," she laughed genuinely, "thinking doesn't even cover it. He looked excited to be going through books to find how this all happened."

Merlin smiled back, picturing the elderly man doing just that. Gaius had always loved doing research, solving problems, mysteries. He laughed out loud, "He doesn't change."

Guinevere laughed with him before it dissolved into a companionable silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

They only had to wait five more minutes before the dragons covered the main part of the moon, casting large and shaky shadows over the large field. Merlin almost had to do a double-take as they landed, one next to the other, at the differences. His stomach jumped as he scrutinized the pair of dragons.

Aithusa was no hatchling anymore. His alabaster wings were wide, not that you could tell as they folded against his body, which, in itself, was probably about the size of the Rising Sun Inn. His pale scales glinted off-white in the moonlight and his brilliant blue-grey eyes were speckled with a still-maturing gold. And while he was still no match for Kilgharrah's immense size, even after twelve years, he had certainly grown into a large, formidable dragon.

Kilgharrah himself looked much the same: gold colored scales and even brighter eyes, the color of magic. He looked exactly the same, maybe a bit bigger, but still. His sparkling flaxen colored eyes that practically glowed in the night held that mysterious, deep seated wisdom that-–as far as Merlin knew-only Kilgharrah and Gaius could ever possess.

His presence seemed to calm Merlin down immensely. Maybe it was just having that presence that Merlin knew would never change, or if it was the deep connection they shared, much deeper than the connection he held with Aithusa, having been the first dragon Merlin had ever connected to with his powers. Merlin took a deep breath through his nose, feeling almost completely at ease for the first time he'd arrived.

"Young warlock," Kilgharrah's deep voice pierced the air, his voice affectionate as he bent his neck towards Merlin. "It is good to hear your call again."

Merlin gave him a jovial smile. "Nice to see you too, Kilgharrah."

Kilgharrah nuzzled him a bit with his nose, smiling with a loving twinkle in his eye, and yet a teasing tone in his voice. "Twelve years is a long time, young one."

Merlin nodded, his smile lessening slightly as he laid a hand on Kilgharrah's snout.

"Don't worry," Kilgharrah continued, "we'll speak later."

Now Aithusa stepped forward, bending his own neck and pushed Merlin lightly in the chest, Merlin almost losing his balance before he regained his footing.

"Merlin, I missed you," Aithusa said. His voice had dropped a few timbres, but that ever-dragonlike youth still laced it.

And even though it only seemed like a day since he'd first introduced Aithusa to Camelot in the first place, Merlin could truthfully say, "I missed you too."

Guinevere stepped forward and ran her hand across Aithusa's neck, the young dragon leaning into the touch. Merlin smirked at their obvious closeness. He and Kilgharrah shared a look, Kilgharrah's one of meaning and his own one of piqued curiosity and fondness.

"Ready?" Guinevere asked Aithusa.

Merlin scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. "Ready for what?"

Kilgharrah's voice answered him. "Guinevere did not tell you?"

Merlin scoffed. "She wouldn't even say where she was taking me."

"Gwen," Aithusa scolded.

Guinevere laughed. "Sorry, I couldn't resist."

Merlin just rolled his eyes. "So what didn't she tell me?"

"We're going to fly," Guinevere chirped happily. "Me and Aithusa, you and Kilgharrah."

"Really?" The surprise and skepticism in Merlin's voice was evident. Kilgharrah didn't really like anyone riding on him and Merlin even recalled the memory of Kilgharrah telling him that he 'wasn't a horse.'

"Yes, Merlin," Kilgharrah answered. "Guinevere thought we might get a moment alone to talk."

"You want to talk in the air?"

Kilgharrah narrowed his eyes, spreading his thoughts towards his Dragonlord. Through their connection, Merlin could hear the amusement and affection in Kilgharrah's deep voice. "Telepathically, obviously."

Merlin laughed.

Knowing she'd missed something, Guinevere just climbed up in Aithusa's back, Aithusa craning his neck as she grabbed onto the ridges that grew on his back, matching his still-growing alabaster horns that decorated his head. She shifted in her seat, and Merlin couldn't help but think that she looked like she belonged there, riding a dragon.

Kilgharrah bent down his own long neck, and Merlin, smiling excitingly, climbed onto Kilgharrah's head, holding onto the large horn he always did when he rode the golden dragon and before he knew it, they were airborne.

He could hear Guinevere's happy laughter somewhere on his right as the wind rushed through his hair, making his black mop fly backwards to clear his forehead. He squeezed his eyes shut as they adjusted to the rushing wind and took a deep breath as his lungs compensated with the lesser oxygen level. He didn't think he would ever get used to the initial butterflies and jump at take-off, but he would always relish that feeling of ecstasy and the thrilling, yet calming sensation of flight.

"Gwen?" Merlin called at the top of his lungs, and even then Merlin didn't think she'd be able to hear her.

"Yes?"

Merlin almost jumped as he heard Guinevere's voice in his head. "How?"

"I told you, thanks to you, I can speak telepathically. Aithusa's helped me develop it so I can reach out by myself."

"Um, alright? Are you ok?"

Merlin could feel Guinevere smile through their connection. "I'm fine. This is why I leave in the middle of the night after all."

He should have known.

"You alright?"

Merlin smiled as the wind brisk air chilled his ears. "I'm fine, thanks."

"You're welcome."

They stopped talking, both distracted by the scenery below them and around them. Dark-blue colored forests passed below them, the dragons shadow casting large patches of an even darker blue below them. Then, there was a beautiful lake, small waves shifting the colors of the water and Merlin knew it was the Lake of Avalon, the resting place of Freya and Lancelot. He felt Gwen's mind brush against his in comfort and then they were passing over more forests.

Above them, the moon shinned brighter than ever before and the stars twinkled against a deep blue sky, the only break being the purplish-red blurbs of galaxies above them. Then, on every side of them, the horizon was cut in two by the different shades of colors defining the grey-tipped mountains that was almost seemed painted against the sky.

Large cumulonimbus clouds lingered and soon enough they were entering them. Merlin felt drops of water cling to his hair and clothes as they cruised through the cloud. Several shinning beads gathered on Kilgharrah's flaxen scales and made them look an even more magnificent gold than they already were. He could hear Guinevere's laugh echoing in his head, which he quickly returned as they flew.

They flew through clear air before becoming engulfed in another large light-grey cloud and Merlin felt Kilgharrah bank right ever so slightly, but enough for Merlin to sense his connection to Guinevere wane slightly and to see Aithusa's pale body disappeared off to their left.

"Kilgharrah, why are we moving off from the others?" Merlin re-affirmed his hold on Kilgharrah's horn, feeling his hair flying.

He could sense Kilgharrah's amusement through their telepathic link, but also knew that amusement was underlined with concern, he didn't have to sense that to know.

"Merlin, it may have been twelve years, but I can still sense when something is troubling you. And I told you we'd speak."

Merlin felt his lip twitch and felt a rush of appreciation towards the Great Dragon. He always knew, even without their Dragonlord connection, when something was bothering Merlin. He'd certainly had enough practice from all the times Merlin had gone to him for help, but it meant even more that Kilgharrah was the one that had pointed it out.

And as if in confirmation, Merlin slouched against Kilgharrah's horn and, at Kilgharrah's questioning, told the dragon everything that had happened since… his yesterday, which was introducing Aithusa to Camelot.

"I don't know what to do Kilgharrah. I feel… as if I owe them all. I missed twelve years of their lives and I don't know how, or why… And I don't know how to get back."

Some part of Merlin's mind registered that he was rambling, but he couldn't stop. It felt good to finally be able to talk to someone about it and not have 'twelve years' ringing in his head with an arrow of sickness piercing his gut.

"I mean, I feel like I need to get back. This feels so… wrong. My magic feels like it's… tingling with… I don't even know how to describe it…"

The dragon beat his wings in the air a few times before soaring again, Kilgharrah's deep voice sounded in his mind, thoughtfulness added to it now. "You don't have to young one; I feel it myself, through you. It is strange indeed."

There was a pause before Merlin spoke again, a hint of desperation in his voice as he closed his eyes and pressed his forehead into Kilgharrah's horn. "So what do I do, Kilgharrah?"

Merlin could feel the comfort and consolation projected to him through their connection. Many wouldn't think so, but Kilgharrah did indeed care deeply for the young man. Merlin was the first friend he'd had in twenty years when he'd first found his cave, his prison below Camelot. Merlin was the one who'd saved him from his own pool of self-loathing after not being able to save his kin, even forgiving Kilgharrah after he, out of blind selfishness, manipulated the boy for his own release.

And then he'd set him free, not only from those biting chains that Uther had, ironically, made with magic, but from himself. Yes, he'd been wrong to take his revenge on Camelot, but it had been that release of built up rage and fury that had allowed him to return to the peaceful, wise dragon he'd been before the Purge. And then their connection had only gotten stronger when Merlin –even in the most horrific circumstances- became a Dragonlord himself, confronting Kilgharrah with that same raw pain that the dragon felt himself at the loss of his kin, meeting him with understanding. Their connection was almost like that father/son relationship Merlin had with Gaius, but Merlin felt like he could be more open with Kilgharrah, not having to hide things that would make people like Gaius worry.

"Do not fear, old friend, we will find the solution to this. As for what to do, as the young queen mentioned, find out as much as you can about his event. I shall speak to the druids tomorrow to see if maybe they have knowledge of such an event. I am sorry, Merlin, that I cannot help you more."

Merlin knew he was sincere, and even though Kilgharrah hadn't really given him a clear direction of what to do –whether to work on getting back to his own time, or to adjust to the change and stay- Merlin felt his mind calm considerably. "No, thank you."

Kilgharrah nodded, not that Merlin could see it and Merlin felt him bank further to his left, crossing over a landscape Merlin had already seen. Merlin could feel his eyes beginning to droop and yawned for the first time that night. They'd had to have been out nearly two hours by now, and as Kilgharrah descended into the familiar clearing, Merlin was slightly surprised to see it empty as he climbed off of the dragon's neck.

"Where are the others?"

Kilgharrah smirked, settling himself down in the clearing with his belly flattening the green grass and head resting in his forepaws, tail curling around his side as he spoke aloud. "I'm sure they'll be back soon. Come, rest."

Kilgharrah blew a low fire over his forepaws, heating them so that as Merlin, taking the hint, settled down next to them, they were warm enough to fight off the brisk cold that pierced the night air.

Merlin leaned his head against a large golden scale, relishing the goose bumps that crawled on his skin at the welcome change of heat, his mind at ease for the first time that night. And soon enough though, he felt a gentle hand on his arm, shaking him awake –when had he fallen asleep?- and he opened his weary blue eyes to soft brown ones, a small and understanding smile gracing his Queen's lips.

His voice was rough as he spoke through his exhaustion. "Gwen?"

Said person giggled and grabbed his shoulder and elbow, helping him to his feet. "You fell asleep, Merlin."

Merlin rubbed his eyes and ran a hand through his raven black hair. "What time is it?"

"About three in the morning," Kilgharrah answered and Merlin, having forgotten about the dragon, snapped his head up to see the caring golden eyes of the dragon looking at him from where his head still rested next to his paws.

Guinevere laid her hand on Merlin's arm. "We need to get back."

Merlin nodded, saying quick goodbyes to both Aithusa and Kilgharrah before the Great Dragon's voice sounded in his head.

"Meet me here in three days time young one. I should have found something to help us by then."

Merlin turned around from when he'd been walking away with Guinevere and nodded. Gwen, knowing she'd missed something, didn't press but slipped her hand in Merlin's at the saddened look on his face.

"It would have taken a considerable amount of power to travel through time, if that is what it is, so look for powerful sorcerers."

With that, both dragons took off, leaving Merlin and Guinevere to walk back to where they had tied their horses. Leaves crunched underneath their feet and Guinevere gave Merlin a glance before looking forward again.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Merlin, startled from his secret thoughts, blinked. "What?"

"Whatever's troubling you? Please, Merlin, I know you too well not to have noticed."

In the darkness, Merlin couldn't see any of the signs of ageing he'd seen from Gwen earlier, maybe that was why he answered more genuinely than before. "I'm just not sure if I should stay. My magic is almost… warning me. It's all tingly and… odd."

"Did you speak with Kilgharrah about it?"

Merlin nodded. "He said he'd going to speak with the druids about it and that we should just find out as much as we could about it. He said we'd take it from there. But, I don't know…"

Gwen nodded, but Merlin couldn't see the forced smile on her lips, he could only hear the sincerity in her voice. "Merlin, it doesn't matter what you decide; you'll still be my best friend. If your magic is… warning you, then maybe you should listen to it."

In truth, maybe she was relieved. After the report that Leon had brought back, Guinevere wasn't sure Merlin should be anywhere near Camelot. Morgana had been relatively quiet the past few years, but the news of Merlin's return seemed to unseat the already unstable woman. Gwen thought that maybe Mordred was the reason for her resent silence, but they all knew it couldn't last: she was coming back.

Even Gaius had agreed that maybe it was best to get Merlin out of Camelot. And where else would he be safer than twelve years in the past? The downside was that it would feel like she was losing her best friend… again. Because that's what it was. They'd lose Merlin again.

Guinevere felt a hot tear slide down her cheek just as her nostrils flared and quickly brushed it aside as Merlin thanked her for understanding. Just then, they reached the horses and untied them in silence, mounting them just the same.

Gwen pulled on the reins and angled her steed towards the path that would take them towards Camelot, Merlin following a few paces behind, to her left. He missed the second tear slide down Guinevere's cheek and her hasty wipe of her eye and she resisted a sniffle. She pulled herself together just as Merlin came up beside her, inspecting her face.

"What's wrong?" Maybe he hadn't missed it.

Guinevere gave him a forced smile-both saw it-and shook her head. "Nothing."

"Guinevere." Merlin never used her full name. It was always 'Gwen.'

"Merlin," her voice cracked and Merlin grabbed her hand. "Gaius said…" she swallowed, "that if choose to leave, if we find a way to get you back, we probably won't see you again."

Merlin bowed his head, his voice low. "Gwen, I don't know what's going on, or what's going to happen, and I can't make any promises but…"

A small smile pulled at Guinevere's lips. "It's alright, Merlin, I understand." There was a moment's pause at Gwen gathered her thoughts. "Why don't we just see how it goes?"

Merlin nodded, smirking.

The rest of the ride back to Camelot was peaceful. A soft breeze whistled through the thick forest and Merlin shivered, longing for the warmth of his bed, Guinevere seemed unperturbed by the chilly air, but Merlin surmised that she must have been at least partially accustomed to it since she'd been out here more often to ride Aithusa.

As the tall white-washed walls of Camelot grew as the rode beside them, Merlin glanced at Guinevere with a curious, yet amused glint in his eyes. "So, how often do you sneak out of the castle, my lady?"

Guinevere huffed a short laugh, her sadness washed out by the smile lighting Merlin's face. It always worked; Merlin's smile. Whether it was for Guinevere, or Arthur, or Gaius, or even a random person in the street, Merlin's bright smile would give even Gaius' remedies a run for their money.

"Not as often as I like, actually. Maybe once a week if I can get away, and I do usually tell Arthur when I'm going."

"And tonight?"

"Well, it was special. Besides, Gaius and Gwaine know anyway."

Merlin grinned. "Of course they do."

Just as they reached the stables, both dismounted and lead their horses into their stales respectively. They talked and joked and laughed about nothing, feeding and watering their horses. By the time they were done, a deep purple lined the horizon and both knew they only had a few short hours until the sun was fully up.

Merlin walked Guinevere to her room before giving her a goodnight hug. With a yawn, Gwen disappeared into her room, closing the door behind her. Merlin grinned and covered his own mouth as he yawned, ignoring the stare of a passing guard.

After what seemed like forever, he arrived at his own room. He ran his hand through his black hair as he opened the door, shutting it quietly behind him and not even bothering to change his clothing as he flopped into bed. He closed his eyes and almost as soon as he did so, he fell into an uneasy, dream filled sleep. Though Merlin didn't know if it could be called dream filled, as much as nightmare… or memory filled nightmare.

It first started as Merlin's mind clouded with blue-grey, frazzled clouds, images flashing in the clouds. Merlin once again felt that cold shiver down his spine that he felt when he entered the whirlwind that first brought him here, unconsciously snuggling further into the covers as he saw it in his mind.

Then came Arthur, Guinevere, the Knights, and Gaius, sitting in their thrones and standing against pillars, respectively, eyes wide and faces shocked. Some part of Merlin's mind connected these images to the images he saw in the crystal just before he came here. Gods, that felt like so long ago.

After that Merlin saw was himself and Kilgharrah in their meeting place, but he didn't recognize this one so guessed that this particular meeting hadn't happened yet. Then a view of Mordred again, the image sending more shivers down his spine.

"Merlin?"

Then his chest felt like it was being crushed and he screwed his eyes shut in protest of it. He felt his arms cradling a limp body and felt a hand on his shoulder. Merlin tried to shake it off as the image warped. His shoulder was shaken again and the clouds were slowly shaken away with it.

Merlin slowly, drowsily, peeled his eyes open to see a large pair of fretful, auburn brown eyes. He felt his glazed eyes flutter shut once more in exhaustion and Gwaine shook his shoulder once more.

"Merlin… mate."

Merlin opened his eyes to just slits, blue peeking out from red-rimmed eyes, and his voice crackly from sleep. "What, Gwaine?"

"Are you alright?"

It seemed like everyone was asking that question as of late.

"You looked like you were having a nightmare," Gwaine explained.

Might as well have been, Merlin mused silently. Unlike the first time he'd looked into the crystal, these images were burned into his mind. That feeling of weight was still heavy on his chest from the last image; stomach twisted with familiarity from the earlier two, and intertwined with a feeling of dread.

Though instead of just giving Gwaine a straight answer, Merlin sat up, with his friends' assistance-–because of it had been up to him, or just his body, or even just his mind, he would have crashed back onto the bed from the dizziness and queasiness he felt-and answered Gwaine cryptically: "Never look into a crystal."

Gwaine, his hand still on his friends' shoulders, gave him an odd and confused look, scrunching his eyebrow as his eyes showed an even deeper concern. Seeing it, Merlin felt a hint of guilt and added, "Never mind, it's nothing."

Gwaine raised one eyebrow higher than the other. "And as much as I don't believe that, we need to get going."

Merlin slowly pushed himself off the bed, taking a moment to gain his bearings. "Where?" He rubbed his eyes and stretched before splashing water on his face.

"Gaius' chambers."

Merlin walked over towards the wardrobe, pulling out a change of clothes –ones that didn't smell like dragons and horses- and went behind the changing screen. "Why?"

"Didn't Gwen tell you?"

Merlin, slipping fresh tunic over his bare chest, gave the changing screen a confused look before he remembered that Gaius and Gwaine both knew about his and Guinevere's little outing. "Um… maybe?"

He heard Gwaine laugh and-for heaven's sake-the crunch of an apple.

"Gaius wanted to start doing research this morning."

Merlin stepped out from behind the changing screen wearing brown trousers, a blue shirt, -sleeved rolled up to his elbow to show toned forearms-, and a red neckerchief. "Oh, right."

Gwaine rolled his eyes and laughed, walking towards the door and holding his apple in his hand. "Come on, sleepy head."

Merlin trailed tiredly behind him, hiding his frown that was created by that weight in his chest. He'd have to talk to Kilgharrah about that later. And while he followed Gwaine out the door, he mused about how he wasn't looking forward to reading all morning as much as he was to find out how this happened, and maybe if there was any way of getting home.

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Hope you guys liked it. :) I already have the next chapter written, but I think I'll wait a little while to try and get ahead a bit, and also so I know how this story is progressing. Thanks again!

Also, hope you liked the Gwen bit with how she has a connection with Aithusa... that'll be brought up more and expanded on later, don't worry, but I'd love to hear your comments on it.

Thanks for reading.