Please see A/N at the end of the chapter, some of it is important
Merlin stood at the edge of the clearing. He knew it might be a while before the dragon appeared. He didn't mind, it gave him a chance to get his thoughts in order. There was a bolder right next to the tree line. It wasn't large, about hip high, the perfect height to sit or lean upon. It gave him a good view of the clearing while keeping him hidden at the edge…not that he expected anyone. Kilgharrah and cast a charm around the immediate area to make people feel wary - a sense of foreboding -when coming in or around the clearing. It made things much easier for their clandestine meetings.
Merlin looked around the clearing. A full moon was hanging in the sky, so bright that the trees cast shadows in the middle of the night. Nothing stirred in the clearing. It was peaceful.
He worried about the girl, Sabine. His instincts told him that she was of no danger. However, he could not ignore the fact that she had shown up so soon after Morgana and Morgause had been defeated.
He also wondered about the story that Horatius was telling them. Not really the story per se, but why neither Gaius nor Kilgharrah spoke of Balinor often. Even on those rare occasions, it was never to tell him stories. Gaius always seemed uncomfortable discussing it. He didn't think Gaius was hiding anything, he thought it was more likely that it made him morose to think about that period of time during The Purge.
Kilgharrah, on the other hand, was a dragon. Merlin had already figured out that dragons didn't think like humans. He knew the dragon did have emotions – the attack after his escape was proof of that. But he also had figured out that they didn't get too emotionally invested in humans. Dragons had keen analytical minds. For them the focus was to ensure destiny was achieved. Or, at least, that was how Kilgharrah was…he really didn't have other dragons to compare him by.
Merlin had only been there for five or ten minutes when he saw a shadow cross the moon, and heard the thwump, thwump, thwump of beating wings. He watched as the dragon came in for a landing. It was a light landing, but the ground still shook.
Merlin walked out to greet his kin. Kilgharrah lowered his head in a slight bow. "You called, young warlock?"
"I did" Merlin replied.
"Am I to assume Camelot is in great danger?" The dragon asked with a bit of humor coloring his voice.
Merlin answered in kind "What? I can't summon my Kin for a friendly chat? Perhaps I have missed you."
"Hardly, Merlin." The dragon deadpanned. "What is on your mind?"
"A druid woman named Sabine has come to Camelot. She intends to stay." Merlin paused a moment feeling a bit guilty for being so suspicious "I need to know if she is a danger to Arthur or Camelot."
"She is not" the dragon assured him, but said no more.
"But how can you be certain? You have to admit that it is suspicious that she shows up so soon after what happened with Morgana and Morgause." The warlock asked.
"She has her own destiny. It is a simple destiny, but her destiny all the same. You need not concern yourself with it." The dragon said with an air of finality. Before Merlin could ask any more questions, the dragon continued. "In truth, I thought you had called to ask me about the old man".
Merlin's follow up question stopped before it could pass his lips. His eyes widened as he took in what Kilgharrah had said. "Horatius? You knew him? I mean, other than him being a friend of my father?"
The dragon tilted his head and nodded once in confirmation. "As humans go, he is a good person. It shall be a sad day when he crosses the veil. He took care of your father after…"
"After Lucan was killed" Merlin finished for him after the dragon stalled mid-sentence.
Kilgharrah's eyes widened slightly. "He spoke of Lucan?"
At that moment, Merlin knew that he had been wrong about dragons not being close to humans emotionally. Although the only visible sign he saw was the widened eyes, he could feel a moment of grief rolling off the dragon and then through himself. It felt like a battering ram had hit his chest. It quickly subsided as the dragon apparently pulled his emotions back.
"He did. He spoke quite highly of him." Merlin answered as he sat down on the ground. The Dragon had also lowered himself to the ground, wrapping his tale around himself.
The dragon spoke again. "They were, what you humans call, 'close friends.' Horatius had met them when they first arrived. He befriended them immediately. His heart is a beacon of honor and compassion. His brain, however, is as shrewd as any dragon." Kilgharrah then smiled. "Lucan often said that Horatius was the only person he knew who could have a discussion with a dragon and not walk away with a headache."
Merlin snorted, but the dragon continued somewhat bemused. "I never really understood what he meant by that."
Merlin laughed, then covered his mouth when the dragon glared at him. "I am sure he must have meant it as a compliment." the warlock said in his most mollifying voice.
"No doubt." The dragon responded. "The man is quite intelligent. He sees things most others do not. Never underestimate him."
Merlin was quiet for a moment contemplating what the dragon said. Then his eyes widened as he gave a small gasp "You don't think he knows who I am, do you? I mean, that Balinor is my father?"
Kilgharrah was quiet for a moment as he mulled over what his dragonlord asked. "I do not know. Why is he in Camelot?"
"I thought you knew. You obviously know that he is there. I figured you would know why." The warlock answered back, almost in a teasing manner.
"That he is there, I know. Why he is there, I do not" The dragon answered back indignantly.
Merlin sighed. "Arthur commissioned him to make campaign rings for the new knights. Horatius came to deliver them. At some point, they began talking about Balinor. I don't know how they got on the subject though."
Kilgharrah thought for a few moments before responding. "It is possible that he might suspect. However, seeing as your own father knew not of your existence, I don't see how he could have gained such knowledge."
Merlin calmed at that, letting out a sigh of relief. Then the dragon continued.
"Still, be on your guard. Horatius is known to spin yarns for the love of telling a story. Other times, he does so to share information or to teach. However, he also is known to watch his audience and gain information from them by how they respond." The dragon paused for a moment, then continued. "Be that as it may, even if he were to know who and what you are, I do not believe he would betray your secret without good cause."
Merlin jumped to his feet and started pacing. "How can you be sure? He is good friends with Uther. He is one of the few who Arthur and Gaius have allowed to visit him."
"Calm yourself young warlock. Horatius' wife was a Druid. He would not place you in undue danger. He was even responsible for talking Uther into keeping your mentor in Camelot under the guise of needing someone who knew about magic. Of course the Physician had to swear he would never perform magic again and swear fealty." The dragon growled out the last sentence.
Merlin looked at the dragon warily. He knew that Kilgharrah had little love for Gaius and considered him all but a traitor, but it aggravated the young man. "By Gaius staying there, he was able to help others escape. My father being one of them! It is not your place to judge him."
"He did not save enough!" The dragon retorted angrily as tendrils of smoke escaped his nostrils.
Merlin put his hands on his hips and huffed out angrily. "This is not why we are here! But I will say this; he is the one that has taught me. He is the one that has taken care of me and my injuries. He is the one who has accepted me. So I will thank you not to speak of him with ill regard!"
The dragon and his dragonlord looked away from each other and were quiet for some minutes until both had reigned in their anger.
Finally, Merlin sighed and ran his hands over his face. "Look, I know you and Gaius have your differences, but he is a good man. He is like a father to me."
Kilgharrah gave a little smile. "I know this. And I must admit that if were not for the Physician, your father would have never escaped. Had he not escaped, you, yourself, would never have been born."
The two finally looked at each other and their short argument was all but forgotten. "So…" the warlock began. "I believe we were speaking of Horatius…."
"As I said before, I believe you have nothing to fear of him." The dragon repeated. "However, again repeating myself, stay on your guard. But listen to what he has to say."
Merlin nodded his head. He knew that the discussion about Horatius was at an end. He still had questions about the girl. "Well, since we have Horatius covered, I wanted to ask you some more about the Druid girl…"
"What about her?" The dragon asked.
"You said she has a destiny? The warlock responded.
Kilgharrah sighed. "Yes, it is a simple destiny, yet an important one. She is to marry into the house of Leodegrance. She will then produce offspring that will….."
Merlin interrupted "But Leodegrance's kingdom is Cameliard! She is in Camelot."
"And do you know of no one in Camelot who has ties to Cameliard?" The dragon asked amused.
Merlin stood there confused for a moment until understanding struck him. His eyes widened while his mouth dropped open. Then after a moment he burst into laughter. "Leon?" he asked through fits of laughter. "Leon the loyal? Leon the First Knight of a kingdom that persecutes those with magic? Leon who has probably never broken a rule in his life? That Leon is going to marry a Druid girl who has magic?...Oh, this I have got to see!"
"Merlin!" The Great Dragon admonished.
"Sorry, but it's funny" The young warlock answered back after controlling his laughter.
The dragon sighed, not understanding the human sense of humor. "Their pairing is important, Merlin. She will soften the knight's heart towards magic, but even more importantly, in the future, a descendant of theirs will help you restore a destiny that has gone wrong."
Merlin was no longer laughing. "What destiny that has gone wrong?"
"I do not know" The Dragon answered. "I am not privy to that prophecy. The events shall occur long after I am no longer part of this world. All that I know is what I learned from Horatius wife before she died. You shall befriend this decedent and help his group defeat a great evil. In turn, they will help you defeat your greatest enemy."
"Morgana?" Merlin all but whispered, his mouth having gone dry.
"I do not know. I was not given this knowledge." The great dragon said sadly.
"But it is my destiny to protect Arthur. It must have something to do with her." The warlock responded back with certainty.
Kilgharrah sighed. "Merlin, yes, it is your destiny to protect Arthur. But you are also Emrys. You have more than just one destiny. You are destined to do many things in your life. Some include the Once and Future King. Others do not."
Merlin stared at the dragon horrified. "What do you mean other destinies? Isn't the one enough? No. Just NO!" He turned his back to the dragon and stomped away several yards and sat on the hard ground.
"Merlin" Kilgharrah called softly. When the young man did not move, he called again. "Merlin, turn around"
"No!" came the reply.
"You are acting like a petulant child" the dragon retorted.
Merlin slowly turned around, tear tracks staining his face. "It's not fair. Why don't I have a right to live my life free of destinies?"
Kilgharrah laughed. "All of us have a destiny, young warlock. It is just some are less burdensome than others."
The young man wiped his eyes with the arm of his jacket. "So what is this other destiny?"
"That, I do not know. I have told you all I know on the subject. The Ancient ones knew, but they did not find it necessary to share their knowledge with me. Now, they are lost to the Long Sleep." The dragon responded. It was evident in his voice that he had been unhappy to be refused the knowledge that he sought, and saddened at the loss of those who held it.
"Maybe it is for the better. If I don't know what it is, then I won't worry about it until after it is done." The warlock smiled. "Sometimes ignorance is bliss, especially when there is nothing you can do about it."
"You are growing wise, young warlock" The dragon said with an air of pride.
"Kilgharrah, you mentioned Horatius' wife. How did she know?" the young man inquired.
"In the last few years of her life, she was gifted with the Sight. As she grew ill, her visions became stronger because she was too weak to hold them back. Towards the end, Horatius brought her to me. He was desperate, he wanted me to heal her. I told him that I could not. Her time was soon to be upon her. But I did agree to try to ease her pain. She allowed me into her visions." The dragon then sighed. "The visions she shared with me, I did not understand. I can see why they were driving her insane.
"I was able to, temporarily, remove her physical pain caused by her disease and calm her mind of the visions. She would still have the visions, but would be able to separate them from reality and attempt to decipher them. Her pain would return eventually, so I imparted the knowledge of a spell to help her control it."
Merlin smiled up at the dragon. "So you do have a heart."
The dragon grumbled. "Even I am not immune to compassion when faced with such pain as she had."
The warlock scrunched up his brow in question for a moment. "When did he bring her to you? I thought she died not long after Nimueh…but you were still under the Castle then."
The dragon nodded. "That is true."
Merlin's eyes got wide. "He snuck her into Camelot?!"
"People do things when they are desperate. You, of all people should know that." The dragon eyed Merlin knowingly.
"Yeah, well…" Merlin blushed. "Sometime you have to do what you have to do. I am glad they got in and out without being caught."
Both dragonlord and dragon looked around as they heard a dog baying in the distance. Merlin stood up and winced as his sore ribs were making themselves known again. "I guess that's our signal to get going. Thank you for talking to me."
"I always talk to you, young warlock" the dragon huffed.
"I know, but usually it is a few sentences of riddles or of warning, then you fly off. Thank you for sticking around and answering my questions…even though I now have more questions than answers. But at least I know that Arthur is safe….And that Leon…." Merlin quickly covered his mouth before a giggle could escape. "Well, that Leon will find happiness."
"Until we meet again, Merlin" And with that the Great Dragon unfurled his wings and rose in the air.
Merlin walked back to the tree line. He looked up in the sky but no longer saw the great beast. He winced again as the pain in his ribs started to get worse. Had it been four hours since she did the spell? Merlin looked up at the moon and figured that it probably had been, especially since he had walked much more slowly to the glade. He patted his pockets and found the draught that Gaius had made earlier. Merlin really didn't want to take the foul concoction. He sighed, he knew it was better to take it now than to wait until the pain was unbearable, so he unstopped the vial and downed it with one go. He quickly grabbed his waterskin and washed the nasty taste down.
Merlin made his way slowly through the forest, sending tendrils of his magic out to make sure he was alone before whispering "Leoht" to call a light. He made better time now that he could better see where he was walking. He doused his light when he realized he was coming up on the main path back to the castle. He once again sent out tendrils of his magic to assure that no one was near. He pulled himself behind a tree when he sensed a group nearing. He glanced out and saw the glow of torchlight and heard hoofbeats of horses trotting at a leisurely gait. He leaned back into the trees and stood still when he saw the horses rounding the bend coming towards him. As they came even, Merlin saw that it was the extra patrol that Arthur had ordered after the attack on Sabine. The patrol moved on with no one noticing the manservant standing like a shadow in the trees.
After the patrol was sufficiently far away, Merlin stepped out on the path and headed towards the castle.
After sneaking back into the lower town, he stayed in the shadows as usual. He passed by the tavern and looked in through one of the windows. Gwaine and Percival were still there, but it looked as they were preparing to leave. Merlin shook his head in amusement. They would not be enjoying training tomorrow. He headed on towards his quarters, breathing a sigh of relief that none of the guards were patrolling in that area. He turned the corner to climb up the stairs to his room when a hand shot out and grabbed his arm. Merlin turned indignantly to demand what the person was doing. The retort died on his lips.
"Arthur! Um, what are you doing out at this time of night?" Merlin asked the very aggravated looking Prince.
AUTHORS NOTES: Please read. especially #2, it is important.
1. As some of you know, I injured my hand not long after I completed chapter 11. I've been in some sort of brace thingy since then. The doc changed out the brace a couple of weeks back and said I could type (albeit for only 10 or 15 minutes at a time). Well, that didn't work out because it hurt like a SOB. But finally, I am back to typing. So I hope you enjoy this chapter
2. This is important: Chapter 12 (this chapter) is filled with a considerable amount of foreshadowing that will NOT be resolved in this story. LET ME SAY THIS AGAIN! This chapter has a lot of foreshadowing that WILL NOT be resolved in this story. It is there to give some hints to the Merlin/HP crossover that will be written at a later date.
3. The next update will probably be in two weeks. Right now, everything is dependent on how my hand is doing. If it is feeling better, maybe the update will be sooner...but right now I am typing rather slowly.