Hey! Sorry for slightly late update. I had to take my calc final before writing, then I had to actually write half the chapter- which took me hours because I'm a scatterbrain and my family was apparently conspiring to distract me, haha. Anyway, then the internet went out, so I obviously couldn't post until it came back. But it's all good now! I hope you enjoy this next installment. There's an arc-length story forming in my head that would- chronologically- happen before this one, but since I don't have many details ready, and I don't want to give away too much, I decided to veer away from referencing its events even though it has every right to be referenced in this chapter.
Have you ever lost your child in a public place? I don't have a child of my own, but I've lost track of my little sister once or twice and it was a scary thing!

Lost

Merlin carried his little boy in the crook of his arm, happy to simply be with him. Rowan was old enough now to walk beside him if so desired, but Merlin wanted to carry him, and Rowan was content to allow it. Opportunities to spend this sort of time so close to his father were unfortunately few.

Merlin was running a few errands in the lower town that day and had thought that it would be nice to take Rowan along with him. He carried a basket that would hold whatever goods he needed to pick up in the arm that was not occupied with the young boy.

As they passed the fruit stands, Merlin decided to stop and inspect some of the produce. He mostly wanted to see if Rowan was interested in any of it. As it turned out, he was. Merlin indulgently dropped approved pieces of fruit into his basket and paid the corresponding shopkeepers, many of whom readily fawned over Rowan. When Merlin got caught up in conversation with one of the sellers, Rowan began to get restless and squirmed in Merlin's arm until the man relented and set him on the ground. Merlin animatedly conversed until another customer appeared to steal the owner's dialogue, and Merlin returned his attentions to the fruit before him.

"Rowan, what do you think of this one?" he turned to the boy, holding the fruit for him to inspect.

Only to realize— Rowan was not there.

Merlin's brain and body both paused in shock and confusion. Rowan was not where he had left him. He checked his other side; Rowan was not there, either.

"Rowan?" Merlin asked the empty space.

There was no answer. Merlin felt his hands and knees begin to tremble as he looked behind the fruit stand. He scanned up and down the street. He could not see Rowan. He had lost him!

Merlin barely had the sense to drop the fruit back into the seller's basket before he ran into the street. He searched left and right, calling Rowan's name as he jogged up the road. Merlin kept repeating to himself that the boy could not have gotten far. The mantra was hardly reassuring. Merlin did not think he quite managed to keep the fear out of his voice, but that objective was quickly losing its importance. Where was Rowan? Had someone picked him up? Had he been somehow hurt?

Merlin took a deep breath. Maybe Rowan had realized they were separated and returned to the fruit stand where they were last together. Merlin turned and hustled back to his starting point, but Rowan was still nowhere to be found.

"Have you seen Rowan?" he asked the shopkeeper, not particularly caring that he probably sounded rather pathetic, "I can't find him."

The owner shook his head, briefly looking apologetic but apparently feeling apathetic towards the situation as he did not offer any assistance or comfort. Merlin was ignorant of that, caught up as he was in his own, growing panic.

Should he try to use magic to find him? Would people notice if he did? Merlin quickly decided it was too risky in the highly public area. He had gotten away with such magic in front of people before— in front of Arthur, no less— but there were just too many people around now, and he was not thinking clearly.

He called Rowan's name again, gritting his teeth while he continued the search. He was not entirely sure if he was pushing people or not, was not sure if he looked as frantic as he felt. Above all, he was not sure where his baby was, and that simple fact took precedence over any other concern in his mind.

Having craned his neck to the side, Merlin did not realize that he was about to make unintentional, full-body contact with a knight of Camelot before it happened. When he ran straight into the other man, he let out a surprised noise somewhere between a gasp and a shout and would have fallen to the ground if the knight had not had the reflexes and courtesy to grab his arms and steady him.

"Alright there, Merlin?" the familiar voice of Sir Percival met his ears.

Merlin shook his head, "I can't find Rowan! He was right next to me and I looked away for a moment and…"

Percival quickly analyzed Merlin's state before drawing slightly away and declaring, "Don't worry; I'll help you find him."

It was only the urgency of the situation that kept Merlin from dissolving into tears when the reality of it all started crushing his lungs. He was grateful that Percival was going to help, but it did not mean a lot, materially speaking. They separated and Merlin continued swinging his head back and forth as he swept down the street. He called Rowan's name every few moments; he distantly heard Percival doing the same.

At last, Merlin spied a small boy down an alley and cried out, "Rowan!"

The boy did not respond, but Merlin felt quite sure that it was his boy, nonetheless. He scurried into the alley. The child was crouched over a patch of mud, pressing pictures into the ground, making tiny sculptures, and generally making a mess of his hands, face, and clothes. That was, of course, of little matter at the moment. Merlin dropped to his knees and skidded to a halt just next to the boy so that he could confirm beyond any doubt that it was indeed his Rowan, then grasped him in a tight embrace.

"Rowan, where have you been? I've been searching all over for you!"

"Jus' playin'," Rowan mumbled innocently into Merlin's chest.

Merlin squeezed him a little bit more, "You scared me; I thought you were lost."

Rowan tentatively responded, "Sorry."

Merlin broke his desperate hug so that he could look his boy in the face as he earnestly stated, "Don't run off like that, Rowan. I get really worried when I don't know where you are."

In lieu of a verbal answer, Rowan wrapped his arms around Merlin's neck so that the warlock could return to carrying him. Merlin pulled himself to his feet, his little boy safely nestled in his arms. He could feel the cold mud rubbing onto his own neck and he just knew that it would be all over his jacket soon if not already, but he did not have the heart to complain about it.

"Come on, then, we'd best tell Percival that you're not lost."

Merlin walked back out of the alley. He easily spotted Percival's red cape and made his way over to the knight. Percival turned when Merlin called his name, and he smiled when he saw Rowan situated at Merlin's side.

"I see you found Rowan," he stated as he closed the distance between them.

"Luckily," Merlin breathed, proceeding to get mud smeared on his face by affectionately rubbing his cheek against Rowan's.

Percival gave a hearty laugh upon seeing Merlin's new blemish and generously wiped it away with his glove.

"Thanks," Merlin smiled sheepishly, "and thank you for helping me search for him."

"Of course, Merlin," Percival ruffled Rowan's fluffy hair with a grin, and the boy responded with a pleased giggle.

Merlin clutched Rowan a little closer. He was so relieved that nothing had happened to him. He did not want to live through any experience like this ever again. At the very least, he did not have to do it often. It had taken this long for the boy to run off unattended, and Merlin felt reasonably sure that Rowan would at least try not to cause a repeat performance. Merlin would certainly try. He was determined that he would not lose Rowan through any act of carelessness. In fact, he was determined that he would not lose Rowan at all.

He was much too precious to be lost.