It felt weird to return to Camelot. In some ways it felt completely different, but at the same time it was almost uncomfortably familiar. Just like those first few days when he'd been taken in, Douxie was confined to the tower. He didn't mind it so much. He was nervous and somewhat restless, because he still wasn't sure if this was going to work, and he could feel his magic lying just under the surface, ready to come out and protect him.
It seemed like every day he got overwhelmed or just a little too startled and his magic would flare out. Nothing disastrous had happened, and Merlin assured him that this was all perfectly normal and to be expected, but Douxie didn't think that King Arthur would be nearly as understandable.
Douxie felt a little awkward and uncomfortable being kept away like this, like a small child, but it was also a little reassuring. Up in the tower he didn't have to worry about the knights or Arthur. Douxie didn't feel in danger, and there was a much lower chance of his magic getting loose and causing trouble in the rest of the castle.
The main problem that Douxie had with being confined to the tower was that the only ones allowed up there were him, Merlin, and Archie. Douxie hadn't seen Morgana since he'd gotten back. He'd heard her, several times. Morgana would come up to the tower once or twice a day to try to see Douxie, but Merlin wouldn't let her through the door. The two Master Magicians would start arguing and shouting, and Douxie was always the topic of discussion.
While Merlin wasn't mad at Douxie for running off, he was absolutely furious with Morgana for enabling him. Morgana on the other hand frequently accused Merlin of hurting Douxie, abusing him, even, and she didn't think that the older wizard had any right to bring Douxie back. It was weird to hear them argue so often about him, but after several days Douxie stopped being bothered by it.
Though Douxie missed Morgana, and he hoped that both of the Master Wizards would calm down soon, he was always relieved when she left. Merlin had been putting more effort into trying to be patient and understanding to Douxie, but he never tried harder than he did after his confrontations with Morgana.
Merlin was an incredibly proud wizard. He didn't want to do anything that would prove Morgana right. So without fail as soon as Morgana left Merlin began to give Douxie a magic lesson, and the apprentice enjoyed every second of it. Merlin seemed uncomfortable with teaching Douxie new spells, but magic was more than just spells. It was potions, history, and culture, and Douxie was fascinated by this brand new world.
Douxie had helped Merlin to gather and organize potion ingredients, and he'd provided assistance when it came to making potions and magic tools, but he'd never been allowed the freedom to brew a potion all by himself. It was thrilling, made Douxie feel powerful and completely in control, and Merlin was right there behind him to provide emergency assistance if the brew was about to blow up, or if Douxie asked for help.
He had been so proud the first time he'd been completely successful with his potion, and that feeling had gotten even better when Merlin had acknowledged his work and progress. It wasn't often that Merlin handed out compliments, and this one felt special. Like most people, Douxie didn't know how to read.
All of Merlin's texts and spellbooks were in Old English and Latin. Merlin had been trying to teach Douxie how to read them, but the progress was incredibly slow. The only reason he could understand the books at all was because Archie could read about half the words and Douxie could use the accompanying pictures and context clues to get a vague idea. It wasn't a perfect process, but Douxie was getting better.
While Douxie was given a lot more personal attention from Merlin than he had before, the Master Wizard still had work to attend to. For at least a few hours every day Douxie and Archie were left alone in the tower. It was during this time that Douxie tidied up the workshop. Merlin had been so patient with him since he'd come back, and though Douxie didn't think that it would last he didn't want to do anything that would end it prematurely.
Merlin was never gone from the tower for more than four or five hours, so Douxie was confused and a little worried when his Master still wasn't back after sundown, even though he had left before midday. Douxie knew that Merlin was just fine and there probably wasn't any emergency, but after several days of things being really predictable, it was odd for things to suddenly change without any explanation.
Douxie was trying to study one of the spellbooks when Merlin finally returned to the castle. Douxie tossed the book aside a little too carelessly and got to his feet. "Master,"
"Hisirdoux," Merlin gave him one of his small, rare smiles. Despite being gone all day Merlin didn't look tired or annoyed. He seemed incredibly content, and it was a nice change. "I believe that I have found a solution to your little control problem."
"Really?" Douxie was a little shocked, though he really shouldn't be. He knew that once Merlin got started on something he didn't easily give it up, and he'd been working hard to find a way to properly train Douxie. "How?"
Merlin gestured for Douxie to follow him to his bedchambers, which were connected to the workshop, just like Douxie's was. Merlin's room was much larger than Douxie's was full of all kinds of cursed objects and forbidden books that Merlin hadn't wanted him to be around. Douxie was curious about everything, but he kept his gaze forward and stayed at Merlin's side.
Douxie's master led him to a table with a chick metal and stone cuff sitting on it. At first glance Douxie didn't think there was anything unusual about it, in fact, it looked nearly identical to a cuff that he regularly wore himself, but then he saw the symbols on it. Those were runes. Curious, Douxie reached out towards the cuff, and when Merlin didn't stop him he picked it up. He felt some of Merlin's magic flowing through it. The magic was subtle, but incredibly powerful.
"What is this?" Douxie asked.
"It's rather complicated," Merlin said. He held his hands out and Douxie handed the cuff over. Merlin took Douxie's left hand, though he was careful of the still healing injury, and replaced Douxie's current cuff with this new one.. Douxie shuddered as he felt a sudden disconnect from his magic. It was still there, but it almost felt like a metal fence was now separating Douxie from it. Douxie gave Merlin a wounded and slightly betrayed look.
"A-an inhibitor cuff?" Douxie had heard of these. Some parents of magical children got them to block off their child's magic so they wouldn't be in danger. Douxie had even helped a wizard or two inhibit their own magic, but he'd never been even remotely interested in using one for himself. He liked his magic, and Douxie didn't appreciate being separated from it, especially against his will.
"Not exactly," Merlin said. He tapped a finger on the cuff. "I'm assuming you know what these symbols are." They looked similar to runes, but Douxie knew that most of the symbols weren't actually traditional Nordic runes. Still, he recognized them.
"They're magic sigils," Douxie said. "My mother told me about these symbols when I was little. She said they were both Nordic and Irish." Douxie only knew what these symbols meant because as soon as he had started to show his magic his mother had used these symbols to explain his new powers.
"Indeed," Merlin nodded. "Try to use one of those symbols to cast a spell."
"Uh-" Douxie looked at the runes. They each meant different things, and when combined with each other they could mean something completely different. Douxie decided to do something simple, since he wasn't entirely sure what he was doing at all. Douxie found the symbol that he recognized as the one for fire and pressed down on it. All of the symbols and accents on the cuff glowed blue and Douxie suddenly felt magic escape through. It was warm and wild, just like fire, and Douxie was able to effortlessly summon a flame.
"H-how?" Douxie stared at the flame. He still felt the cuff suppressing his magic, but he had no issue summoning or maintaining the simple spell.
"Think of the runes as keys," Merlin said. "The cuff locks away your magic, which should help contain any further outbursts or accidents, but should you want to use your magic-"
"I just use the runes," Douxie grinned slightly and closed his fist around the fire, putting it out. He spun the runes on the cuff and stopped on the protection rune. He pulled out his magic to make a barrier. "This is incredible."
"The blocking spell around the cuff is only at half strength." Merlin said, and he looked just as pleased as Douxie felt. "In case there's an emergency, you should be able to push past the cuff without too much issue."
Douxie laughed slightly as he spun the runes, stopping at the runes of air and joy. He wanted to try something. Douxie held out his hand and attempted the calming spell he had struggled with. He was surprised and ecstatic to see it actually work. Not only did this cuff help restrain his magic when he didn't want it to come out, but it made it easier to focus on his power when he needed it.
"T-thank you, Master," Douxie said quietly. He hadn't known that this could of thing could be done with magic. "It feels great."
"I'm glad you feel that way," Merlin said. "Morgana was worried that you would feel patronized."
"Not at all," Douxie shook his head. "Wait, you talked to Morgana about this?" Douxie didn't know that Morgana and Merlin were ready to have a normal conversation with each other.
"I was inspired by her," Merlin said. "When Morgana first started to practice dark magic she would have recurring nightmares. An old friend of hers gave her a magic bracelet that kept unwanted dreams at bay."
"Well, I really appreciate this," Douxie said. He already felt more comfortable with his magic. He looked at all the runes. He wanted to experiment with them and find out just what he could do. "Can you show me a few new spells?" Douxie was confident that he could handle them this time.
Merlin sighed and frowned in slight irritation, but his eyes were almost sparkling with excitement and energy that Douxie didn't often see from him. "If we must." His frown fell away and he gave Douxie a small smile. "Come along. I have a few spells in mind." Merlin put his hands behind his back and made his way back to the workshop. Douxie rubbed his cuff fondly as he followed his Master.
Douxie had always looked forward to learning more about magic, but he hadn't been this excited to learn from Merlin since he had first been taken in. It was thrilling, felt like a brand new beginning, and Douxie was looking forward to seeing where this would lead him.
A/N: I know that Douxie has his cuff with runes before he meets Merlin, but I would think that kind of control would need some powerful magic infused in the cuff, and it didn't make much sense for Douxie to make it himself.
I was also trying to think of why Douxie would rely so much on the cuff/bracer when we don't see any other wizards use that kind of thing. Having it inhibit/help Douxie focus his magic just made the most sense to me.
Seriously though, why is Douxie (to my knowledge) the only one who uses runes and has a familiar? It's not that unusual for these kinds of things to be used by magic users, but it is in this show. Also, Douxie doesn't really use spoken magic all that often (though I guess that's what the runes are for).