I'm trying to stay ahead on updates… but I'll be gone in a few days for a family trip. I'll write a ton of chapters though, and post them all when I get back. Keep doing what you're doing and stay awesome!

Merlin wasn't sure how he'd fallen asleep, but one moment he'd been contemplating when Arthur would arrive and the next he was being shaken awake by the very same person.

"Get up, Merlin… come on you idiot, we didn't come all this way to find you dead!"

"It's good to know you didn't forget about me." He let out a cough. Arthur stood up quickly, alarm etched all over his face. Merlin was certain he looked a lot worse than he felt. His eye really hurt, but his suspicions were confirmed when Arthur sucked in a breath.

"Good god Merlin, what happened to you?"

Merlin stood slowly. "Oh… you know, just… interrogations…"

He fell silent at that. "I am sorry, my friend."

Merlin peered quizzically at him. "What for?"

"For not coming sooner. I thought her men would outmatch us… but it appears she knew about our plan to attack. This place was abandoned when we arrived."

"Well at least we know she's scared of you."

"Hmph. I wonder if that truly is the case." Arthur turned, and Merlin saw another knight standing in the doorway.

"Gwaine," he said, beaming.

"Come on, Merlin. Let's get you out of here."

Merlin felt as though a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Just the prospect of being back in Camelot with his friends again had caused a few tears to well up. "I… I…"
Just then, a loud squawk interrupted him. All three heads turned to the slit in the wall, where the shadow of a bird could be seen hopping around in a frenzy.

"It's just a raven," said Gwaine quickly. The sound had spooked all of them, but it was Merlin who felt the most unnerved.

From now on, Morgana would be keeping a very close eye on him.

He followed Arthur and Gwaine out into the hallway. The other prisoners had been freed as well, and Merlin saw the knights who had been captured lining up to greet their king. One stepped forward. "We are grateful for this, Arthur. We all thought we were dead men walking."

"I apologize for waiting. I should have come here straightaway. Had I known that Morgana would flee, you would not have been kept here for so long." He turned his gaze to the knights. "We will make for Camelot. Let's get these men home!"

A cheer rose among them, and the crowd that burst through Ismere's gates was alive with the thrill of freedom.

…

Into the night, they stopped and a campfire was made. The knights had taken turns walking beside and riding the horses, but everyone was exhausted and looking forward to their return home.

Merlin sat beside the fire and took off his boots. His feet were blistered from wearing them for so long, but he didn't care.

He closed his eyes and leaned back, beginning to nod off, when he felt huge footsteps approaching him.

"Percival?" he asked without opening his eyes.

"Good to see you again," came the booming reply.

Merlin chuckled. "It's been a while, friend."

"I've got something for you." Something landed next to him. "Gwaine told me to bring it along, in case you needed it."

He sat up to inspect the object. "My bag! Thank you."

"Personally, I thought you were dead already. But I'm glad you're not. Otherwise, I would have lugged it all the way here for nothing." The huge man's grin belied his words.

Merlin creased his brow suddenly, unable to remember if his spellbook had been inside the bag. "You didn't happen to look inside, did you?"

To his relief, Percival laughed. "Who, me? I wouldn't do that. Unless of course, you have something to hide?"

"Of course not!"

Percival laughed again. "You let yourself get riled up to easy. I was only teasing. Anyway, I'm glad you're okay."

"Me too."

The big man walked away. Merlin had been slapped on the back so many times and given so much attention that he felt like it was his birthday. He'd also been presented with a few small gifts (On top of which, Arthur had given him a chestplate to polish with the promise of more waiting for him at Camelot), but his bag was the real finish to the near-perfect day. Quickly, he opened it and felt for the false bottom he'd sewn in. Sure enough, his spellbook was still hidden there.

He could remember that he'd begun taking the book along with him because of the increase of magical attacks. He'd already learned every spell by heart, but simply having the book gave him a sense of comfort. It did have a glamour placed upon it which concealed its true cover from prying eyes, and instead identified it as an herb-gathering guide, but he could sense that it had worn off.

On the day he'd been captured by Morgana, he'd brought it along. It had been a normal border patrol exercise, with Arthur showing some new recruits around. Nothing went wrong until about midday, when a crossbow bolt shot from nowhere began a surprise attack. Merlin had retreated to let the knights fight off the intruders, and to assist magically from afar. What he hadn't expected were the attackers waiting for him.

Now that he knew Morgana had planned the attack after she'd found out his magic, he couldn't help but fume in anger and disappointment. If he'd been more attentive on that day, maybe none of this would have happened.

No, he told himself. Morgana would still have fought to grant Merlin a place at her side, and if he hadn't done it willingly then she would have put him under the same enchantment as Gwen.

Gwaine sat next to him at the fire, but Merlin didn't notice the knight until he spoke up.

"You look so gloomy, Merlin. What's wrong? Miss your cell already?"

He sighed. "I just… have a lot to think about."

"Well, I came to tell you that there's a river nearby. You could do with a bath."

"Thanks." A bath didn't sound too bad. He'd been trying to put it out of his mind, but the way he smelled finally came back and hit him.

"I think we'll be the thankful ones, after you've gotten rid of that stench."

"If you had come sooner, I wouldn't smell so bad."

"Fine, you're right. Go take a bath anyway."

Merlin stood with a grin and left, weaving through the trees and listening for running water. He came across it sooner than he expected.

The river was fast moving and chilly, but still a welcome relief. He rolled up his clothes and left them on an embankment, watching the water around him swirl up with dirt.

He gingerly felt his eye, which was still raw, and saw from a blurry reflection that it had turned purple quickly. He could probably find herbs to stop the swelling, but he decided he'd let Gaius take care of it. Instead he watched the stars… and his tranquility became alarm at the sight of a small dragon circling overhead.

Dread settled in his stomach as he heard Gwaine's voice call from the bank. "You there, Merlin? Wanted to make sure you didn't get lost… as you have a propensity for that."

"Uh… yeah, I'm fine. You can head back to camp now…"

"You really are a girl, Merlin. What, too shy to-" he reached the bank and stumbled backward. "Behind you! It's the dragon!" He turned and bolted for the camp, yelling the entire way.

Aithusa hovered above the water, holding something in her mouth.

"Get out of here. Go!" shouted Merlin. He heard at least a dozen feet trampling the ground as the knights approached the river.

The dragon snorted, as though upset with Merlin for telling it to leave. It eyed him adamantly, then tossed something from its mouth and took flight above the treetops.

He caught it, having only enough time for a glance. He threw it into the bushes as a group of men reached the riverbank.

Arthur lowered his sword and said, annoyed, "It's only Merlin."

Gwaine hurried next to him, breathless. "The dragon was here… he saw it!"

Arthur gave Merlin a look. "Is this true?"

"I didn't see anything," he said quickly. He felt horribly exposed with everyone's eyes on him. "Do you mind?"

"This is no time for pranks, Gwaine." Arthur sheathed his sword. "Head back to camp."

"No, I saw it, I really did-"

"I think he's been through enough," said Arthur sternly.

Gwaine caught his glare. "Fine," he said, solemn.

The knights left- and not too quickly, in Merlin's opinion. Only Gwaine stayed.

"You saw it. I know you did." He sat down.

"Please, leave me alone."

"Why did you lie to him?"

"I didn't see anything!" he insisted.

"Well I'm not leaving until you tell the truth."

Merlin realized he might be stuck for a while.

After their staring contest dragged on for several minutes, Gwaine noticed Merlin's teeth beginning to chatter. "Fine, then. I'll believe you." He stood, but a look in his eyes told Merlin that this wasn't over.

As soon as he was gone, Merlin sprinted for the shore and dressed hurriedly. No one was going to let him live this down for a long time… and the ravens had certainly seen the entire thing.

A disturbing thought came to mind. If she can communicate telepathically with the birds, then would she-

No. It was too disconcerting to even think about.

Ears burning, he fished through the undergrowth and picked up what he'd thrown in the dirt. It was a book, but now that he'd had a closer look at the cover his heart sped up.

Had Morgana sent this?

No, she'd have sent a raven with a note beforehand… and there was no way she knew about his dragonlord abilities.

It was slim enough to stuff inside his jacket, which he did now. He had to hide it in his bag and find a place to study it at Camelot: without Arthur or Morgana finding out.

I guess this was a more lighthearted chapter, and we're not back in Camelot yet, but we will be next time! And the villain might not show up for a while, I was asking ahead of time. Thanks so much for your reviews on the idea, they were extremely helpful and constructive! This is gonna be awesome thanks to you guys!