"Young warlock" The dragon hailed to the broken figure before him. "It is good to see you. But I must say, you have looked better."
Merlin let out a little snort of agreement.
"Oh gods, it talks." Gwaine swore, then turned to Percival "Did you know dragons' could talk?"
Percival shushed him.
Arthur gulped and peeled his fingers away from the hilt of his sword. He mustered up all of his training as king and took a step forward.
"Great dragon." He addressed the creature confidently. It took more effort than it should have to swallow his pride and spit out the words. "We require your…..assistance."
Because there was no way in hell he was going to use the word help. Not with the beast that had slaughtered his men. Who had terrorized his people. Whose flames had burned his city. If it had been anyone but Merlin, anyone else, he would never have been there. He wouldn't have taken his hand from his sword until it was buried deep in the creatures' heart.
But this was Merlin, and humbling himself before the symbol of everything his father opposed was the least he could do to. He would walk through the fires of hell and back if it would make Merlin whole again.
The dragon tilted his head to the side and peered at the King, only just noticing him and the others. It drew up to its full height and towered over Arthur, narrowing its eyes wrathfully.
"And so, all is finally revealed." The dragons wizened voice taunted. "You know what he is?"
Arthur glanced over at Merlin, before looking back at the dragon and nodding soberly.
"And are you responsible for his current state?" it snapped.
Arthur's hands clinched into fists at his side. He knew what the dragon was thinking; that he personally had hurt Merlin. That he was the one who had beaten him and chained him up, as some sort of twisted punishment for being a sorcerer. It was the kind of thing his father would have done.
And just like that Arthur's anger dissolved. Because really, had what he done been so different? He may not have physically been the one to hurt Merlin, but he was the one who was ultimately responsible. He never should have let him leave his sight.
"He rescued me." Merlin interjected earnestly, interrupting the creature's death glare. "They all did."
The dragon looked at them appraisingly, but no longer had the steely glint in his eyes.
"The collar on his neck" Arthur said, bringing the conversation back to the reason they were there. "We can't get it off, it seems to be sealed with some sort of magic."
The dragon lowered its gigantic head down to Merlin's level and hissed angrily.
"This is an abomination! Who dared to place such a restraint on my kin?"
"It doesn't matter!" The king snapped. "Can you get it off him or not!?"
He was nervous and anxious and at his wits end. He had managed to hold himself together so far, but was quickly losing control. More than anything he just wanted the damn thing off of Merlin already and to have him back in Camelot where he belonged. Being judged by a dragon wasn't really helping his stress levels.
The creature regarded him coldly for a few minutes before stating in an equally cold voice;
"Stand back."
The king and the knights scurried backwards while Merlin rolled his eyes. Between Arthur and Kilgharrah the melodrama was at an all-time high.
The dragon opened its mouth revealing long sharp teeth. It breathed a fiery mist on the sorcerer, which had Arthur yelling and sprinting toward the flames. A thousand murderous thoughts ran through his head in the second it took him to reach Merlin, all the while cursing the dragon and its treacherous ways. They had trusted it and now it was trying to burn Merlin to a crisp!
Except when he slid into the dirt at Merlin's side he did not find the burnt corpse he was expecting. Instead Merlin was looking at him with wide eyes, a sense of relief on his face. The collar hung off his neck, broken and hinged. Arthur snatched it off of his manservant and tossed it as far away from them as he could, finally rid of the bloody thing. His hands then turned to roam over Merlin, checking him for any hidden damage.
But what he found was signs that the warlocks' wounds had begun to heal. They weren't completely erased, more like the natural healing process had been accelerated several weeks. The infection was gone and his legs were well on the way to mending.
"Incredible." Arthur breathed, looking at the result of the dragons' magic.
Merlin grinned at him. Arthur Pendragon praising the work of magic, a dragon's magic no less, was something he never would have thought possible. He turned to Kilgharrah.
"Thank you." He said sincerely, and managed to hoist himself up onto his wobbly legs (despite Arthur's squeak of protest).
"Yes, umm. Thank you." The king also told the dragon equally as sincere, but a little awkward.
"There is very little I would not do to help the young warlock, but your words prove you are indeed vastly different from Uther." Kilgharrah told the king, totally ignoring Merlin. "There was a time when I doubted if his devotion to you was returned, but this meeting has convinced me otherwise."
"That's not what you told me." Merlin muttered bitterly. He was again ignored.
"Make sure no such harm ever befalls him again." The dragon commanded Arthur. "For it is your destiny to protect him as much as it is his to protect you. Only with you both, Emrys and the Once and Future King, will Albion and peace prevail."
"I understand." Arthur said. And he did. When Merlin had been lost to him he had been miserable, the absence perforating his every thought and keeping him from being the best king he could be. Only with Merlin at his side was he able to be the kind of King that Camelot deserved.
The dragon tilted its head again and its nostrils twitched in what could have been taken for amusement. It looked almost like it was smiling, but before anyone could be sure it took off into the sky and quickly became a shadow vanishing into the distance.
"Can we go home now?" Leon said (because fully grown and senior knights do not whine).
Arthur snorted to cover a laugh and turned to the warlock beside him.
"What do you say Merlin, are you ready to go home?"
A wave of emotion struck him at the sound of the word. Home. Camelot. When he was banished, he had been sure it was a word he would never associate with the castle again. But now he was going home.
Unable to speak, he nodded.
They road into the citadel just as the sun was hitting high noon. Guinevere had seen them coming from the window and rushed down the steps to meet them. She didn't even notice the addition of Gili to their party, her gaze being monopolized by the first rider she saw. It was a sight her tired eyes rejoiced in.
"Arthur!" She breathed with relief as he dismounted. She threw her arms around him and buried her face in his neck, paying no heed to the discomfort of his chainmail. Then her eyes gravitated to Merlin, who Gwaine was easy down. He was still worse for the ware, his legs shaking and wincing with pain, but his smile was solid.
"Merlin." She whispered, hand flying to cover her mouth as she tentatively approached him.
"Hey Gwen." He grinned at her. Gwen's hand ghosted up and ran along his frame, but never touched him, like she was afraid of hurting him further. The closer she got, the more she could see the residual cuts and burns that hadn't healed completely. The sight brought tears to her eyes.
"Hey, Hey, don't do that." Merlin tutted. He stumbled toward her and embraced her before she could react and pull away.
It was like the flood gates had opened. Gwen hugged him back, clutching to him even tighter than she had Arthur.
"Umm, Gwen?" Merlin wheezed "Ouch!"
She let go of him hurriedly with an apology. Then Gaius came down the stairs accompanied by two guards, a stretcher between them. Gwen had barely left Merlin's arms when the physician replaced her.
"Oh, my boy."
"Ouch" Merlin said again from beneath the vice of the old man's arms. What followed was a bunch of fussing and hassle as Gaius and Gwaine helped him into the stretcher.
"Is he going to be alright?" Gwen asked Arthur as the stretcher was carried up the steps and away to Gaius's chamber.
"Yes." he told her confidently, his gaze lock on to the same target. "I'll make sure of it."
Gwen smiled at her husband and took his hand in hers, stoking the back of his hand with her thumb. Ever since Merlin left she'd felt constantly uneasy, as if his absence from the castle and their lives was a constant pressure weighing down on her chest. Now that he was back it was like she could breathe again. Looking at Arthur she realized her distress had been only partially due to missing her friend. She had missed Merlin something awful, but more to the point she had also missed Arthur as well. So much of who he was and the man she had fallen in love with came from his relationship with Merlin that Arthur just wasn't the same without Merlin at his side. It was good to have both of them back.
Arthur pulled her off to the side slightly and asked in hushed voice.
"Did you…..you know…..Did you get it…..?"
Gwen's smile turned into a smirk as she nodded, knowing exactly what he was asking.
"It's all written up and waiting on your writing desk for your signature and seal. I had Gaius and Geoffrey help me with the wording. They said it's fairly similar to the old laws that were in effect before the purge, so there is some precedence. You can make the formal announcement tomorrow morning."
"And the lords?" Arthur asked with a wince, expecting the worst. Nearly all of the council of lords had been steadfast supporters of his father, some since the days of the purge. He didn't expect them to accept the change in the law quietly.
"All of them have pledged to publicly support a repeal of the ban on magic and enforce the new laws in their districts."
"All of them?" Arthur gaped at her. "How on earth did you manage that?"
"If years of dealing with the thread merchants in the lower city has taught me anything, it's how to negotiate." She grinned at him smugly, then added with an afterthought "Oh, by the way, we have to invite Lord Erwin to eat with the court at least once a year from now on. And we owe Lord Stanford a cow."
"A cow?" Arthur scoffed. Gwen nodded and shot him the bewildered look she often did when members of the nobility did odd things she had trouble relating to.
Arthur laughed and stroked her cheek with his thumb.
"Guinevere, you are simply incredible." He grinned at her and placed a loving kiss on her temple.
"Are you going to tell him?" She asked.
"Not yet. He need some time to heal. His legs may never work as well as they did before." Arthur said sadly, guilt and empathy for the warlock eating him up inside. "I should go check on him."
"Go." Gwen commanded, wrapping her arms around his neck and drawing him in close until their faces were only a few inches away. "Make sure he's okay."
Arthur ran a hand down her dark brown locks.
"I love you." He murmured, making her giggle.
"And I you." She replied and kissed him, a long a deep kiss of glee and relief that their little family was once again whole.
A/N: Ok, all that's left is the epilog. Thank you guys so much for reading! it was really a lot of fun. Please feel free to review and tell me what you think!
