Author's Note: Hey again guys! Your favourite Merlin fanatic here! So, hope you like this chapter! Just a bit of a recovery chapter for Merlin and to see what happened after he passed out! So, without further ado, here we go! Oh and please review!

Chapter Fourteen

Merlin's first experience at being conscious was pain. First from his forearm and then from his throat. He didn't want to open his eyes just yet. He would wait for the pain to subside.

After at least a minute of waiting, Merlin decided the pain wasn't going to subside any time soon. He opened his eyes just to be half-blinded by the bright light streaming in through a nearby window. He felt sheets layered beneath him upon a thin mattress. A strangely familiar thin mattress. He let the brightness fade away and his eyes adjust to the light before looking round at his surroundings. He was lying in a bed. A familiar bed. In a small room. A familiar room. There was someone sitting next to his bed, looking down at him. Merlin stared up at the figure and waited for the details to come into focus. As soon as they did, Merlin recognised the scruffy blond hair, the bright blue eyes and the kind face. He had a large bandage wrapped around his shoulder and despite there being many layers to it, the crimson blood still showed through the material. Arthur's face was covered with concern.

"How do you feel?" Arthur asked worriedly.

"Painful," Merlin answered truthfully, the cut down his arm throbbing pain across his skin under the bandage. "What happened?"

"Don't you remember? Aeldred? Being a Vampire? You cutting yourself? Him biting you?" Arthur tried bewilderedly.

As he said it, the memories came flooding back, all in one. Then something hit Merlin, with an unpleasant jab.

"Am I a Vampire?" Merlin dared to ask. Arthur pressed his lips together and looked sombrely down at Merlin. Merlin's eyes widened a little as he read Arthur's expression.

"You were very nearly. But Gaius got to you just in time," Arthur admitted, watching Merlin sigh thankfully and lean back further into the pillow.

"No fangs?" Merlin joked.

"Nope, not even one," Arthur replied, taking a mirror from Merlin's bedside table and passing it to him.

Merlin brought it up too his eyes and looked into it. Merlin almost dropped the mirror in shock as he set his eyes upon his face. He was as pale as, well… Aeldred. His skin was almost transparent.

"Wh-why am I so pale?" Merlin asked bemusedly.

"Gaius said it's just a side effect of the Vampire venom leaving your system," Arthur replied reassuringly. Merlin looked back and raised his chin, looking at his neck. There were two small holes in his neck where Aeldred has sunk his fangs into his skin. A frozen trickle of dry blood was still dripping down his neck. Merlin then tilted the mirror back up to look back into his own eyes. As he took a last fleeting look at himself, he noticed that his eyes, instead of being light sky blue, were a dark azure colour.

"Why are my eyes that colour?" Merlin asked as he handed the mirror back.

"Another side effect Gaius said," Arthur informed, looking back down at Merlin.

Merlin looked up to the ceiling and stretched his fingers out. As he did, he felt something covering him. He frowned and pulled it off, examining it.

"Is this your jacket?" Merlin asked, frowning down at it. He had washed it enough times to recognise it.

"Well, yeah… Gaius said I shouldn't make you warmer than you already were but you suddenly started going cold so I thought I'd better cover you up. I thought you…" Arthur trailed off sheepishly. Merlin smiled thankfully. It warmed his insides to think that Arthur had cared for him like that, even when he himself was seriously injured.

"Thanks Arthur," Merlin said quietly and smiled.

Arthur returned the smile rather embarrassedly. There was a moment where they exchanged looks. "So what exactly happened after we… passed out?" Merlin asked, swiftly changing the subject.

"Well, we were all passed out next to each other in a load of blood so you can imagine what Gaius thought when he came looking for you later in the night. He knew that you had been bitten due to the…" He indicated the two marks on Merlin's neck. "So he got a few guards to carry us both up here. It was a close shave getting you that antidote in time but, it's worked," explained Arthur.

"So I guess I have him to thank. Wait a minute, he's not the only one. You were the one who killed Aeldred. You saved my life," Merlin exclaimed.

"Well, I'm not doing it again. Next time I find some guy in a long black cloak sinking his fangs into your neck you can fend for yourself," Arthur joked. Merlin rolled his eyes and laughed. They both laughed for a moment, ignoring the pain that their wounds were sending them, just enjoying the moment.

As they stopped, Gaius came through Merlin's door and smiled down at them both.

"Gaius!" Merlin exclaimed as he leaned in to embrace Gaius warmly.

"I'm guessing you're feeling better then," Gaius chuckled as he let Merlin go and beamed down at them both.

"Thanks to you," Merlin grinned, his smile reaching from ear to ear.

"You're just lucky I found you in time. If I had left you even a minute longer… Well, let's just be thankful that you're back," Gaius said. "Right, Arthur, I think you should stay here and rest for another couple of hours but then you can return to your chambers. I'm sure you'll be able to find a replacement servant until tomorrow, I don't think it would be a good idea for Merlin to leave just yet," Gaius advised. Arthur sighed and got up from Merlin's bedside.

"So you're going to leave me to the mercy of George then are you Merlin?" Asked Arthur sarcastically.

"'Fraid so," Merlin confessed.

"Great, better get ready for 24 hour harassment," moaned Arthur, leaving the room with a sigh. Merlin laughed to himself. He had to admit, he felt sorry for Arthur, George was unbearably dutiful. He loped off out of Merlin's bedroom and Merlin heard him flop down onto the makeshift bed that Gaius kept clear for any unanticipated casualties. Merlin could feel his own eyelids beginning to droop as he thought about the prospect of sleep.

"You'd better get some rest too Merlin," Gaius advised. Merlin nodded wearily and let his head drop into the pillow limply. He saw through closing eyes Gaius starting to head off towards the door, but even before Gaius had left the room, Merlin was already asleep with exhaustion.

It wasn't fun waking up the next morning. The pain was definitely greater. His neck was burning and his arm was stinging. But just lying there wouldn't do them any good. Tiredly, he ran his fingers through his hair but stopped when he felt something hard. It felt as if something wet and sticky had been soaked in his hair and dried, glued to his hair. He rubbed the substance in between his fingers and squinted down at the sticky stuff that had been clinging to his hair. It left a scarlet streak across his fingers. Blood. Dry blood. Sighing, he slowly swung himself out from underneath Arthur's jacket that had remained on top of him throughout the night. He staggered wearily over to his bedroom door and pulled it open, peering into the room beyond.

"Oh, morning Merlin. How're you feeling?" Gaius greeted cheerfully.

"Much better thanks, neck and arm are still hurting but hey, at least I'm not draining someone's veins," Merlin shrugged.

"Well you'd better hurry along. I'm sure Arthur will be needing your assistance after a whole day of George yesterday. By the way, what's that in your hair?"

"Oh, um, blood," Merlin dismissed and shuffled back into his room. He grabbed a blue shirt from the end of his bed and began to change, hoping that Arthur wouldn't be in too much of a bad mood after George.

Author's Note: Hey, never done an author's note down here before! Oh wow! Isn't it beautiful! Especially with this lovely blue button to brighten up both the boring white page and someone's day! And for those of you who didn't get the MASSIVE hint there… I would really like a few reviews if that's not too much trouble? Hehe, yeah, I would really appreciate it! Even if it's just nagging me to add another chapter or even telling me how bad you think my writing is! Well anyway, thanks for reading!