A/N - I hope everyone had a lovely holiday.

I had to break this chapter into two parts because it was prohibitively large. The second half is getting there. I just have to work out a tricky dream sequence. Those always take so many re-writes! LOL.
Due to the action taken by the administration here at FFN I now have a major writing project that has to be fit in. Check my profile for details. Thanks for your supportive comments. I do love reading them.

Chapter Seventeen

Merlin didn't sleep long after Arthur left to meet Leon and the other knights. Gaius had just finished packing up his kit to go and see the members of the court who required his services, but wanted to check on Merlin first. The boy was tossing his head back and forth, and mumbling under his breath. Just as the physician sat down next to him, Merlin's eyes flew open, and he had a look of panic on his face.

"Calm down, Merlin. Everything's fine." Gaius soothed. It only took a moment for the young warlock to relax and slow his breathing. He looked around the chamber and asked, "Where's Arthur? Wasn't he was just here?"

"Arthur was here a little while ago. You dozed off a bit after he left. How are you feeling?"

Merlin hurt everywhere, but his arm was particularly painful. His head felt like it was stuffed full of wool, and every muscle in his body ached as though he had been through the most rigorous workout of his life. "I've felt better," he said, as he tried to sit up. "I'm parched. Can I get some water?"

Gaius helped him to sit upright, and shoved a few bundled blankets and the extra pillow behind Merlin's back to help support him before handing him a small cup of water. Once Merlin had finished of the cup and handed it back, Gaius decided it was time to find out what Merlin remembered.

"What happened, Merlin?" he asked, simply.

Merlin seemed confused by the question. "Didn't Arthur say that he told you everything?"

Whether or not Merlin was picking up Gaius' own knack for answering a direct question indirectly or was genuinely confused by the query was anyone's guess, but that didn't stop the physician from pursuing the matter.

"Yes, he told me what happened from his perspective, but as you well know that is not always the clearest picture of the events as they unfolded."

"I'm afraid in this case it probably is. I don't remember much after a certain point."

Gaius waited to see if the boy would continue, but when he didn't the old man prodded further. "Maybe you'd better start from the beginning then."

Merlin seemed to hesitate which surprised Gaius a little. "What's the matter?"

Merlin glanced down at his hands and looked nervous which completely confounded the physician, but he waited patiently.

"This wasn't actually a hunting trip, Gaius."

Merlin looked up into his mentor's eyes possibly wondering if he would see reproach, but was met by a completely non-plussed expression.

"I didn't mean to lie to you about it, so don't be upset. It's just that Arthur figured it would be better if both you and the King thought that we were going on a hunting trip. Uther would never approve of the trip if he knew its true purpose."

Gaius understood now why Merlin was nervous about revealing that he had told him a small fib. The lie about Freya was still fresh in both of their hearts. Merlin's mysterious non-description of the reason for the trip, however, caused the seeds of a deeper concern to touch his senses.

"Merlin," he said in a cautious but firm voice. "I think you had better tell me what this is all about."

"Arthur could tell that I've been upset lately. The other night when I finished my duties, instead of coming straight home, I just sat down on the floor in the antechamber thinking about everything. He must have realized that I hadn't left, although I don't know how. I didn't make a sound. He came in after a time, sat down next to me, and asked what was wrong. Gaius he wouldn't let it go, you know how Arthur can be, how he can dig his heels in when he wants an answer. I finally told him how I felt. How I don't belong, not here, not in Ealdor, not anywhere.

"He decided that I needed a vacation so we were going to go on a trip. I asked him how that would be a vacation if he were coming, and he actually agreed to travel where ever I wanted to go as an equal. In his own words we were to be two people without rank or station, just traveling together."

This stunned Gaius. Arthur had failed to mention this when he had spoken to him earlier. "This was Arthur's idea; to travel as equals?" he asked, incredulously.

"I know, I can scarcely believe it myself. The trip was going quite nicely until he chose a particular place to camp."

"The lake," was all Gaius said, knowing the significance of the place for Merlin.

"It was hard to look out at that water and not be overwhelmed with everything. I didn't want to talk about it, but once again Arthur was like a hound on the scent. He wouldn't let it go until I told him about Freya. I didn't tell him who she really was, just her name and that she was someone very special to me. I can't believe that he got me to open up about so much. There were so many things I would never have dreamed of telling him, of all people. He makes a very effective interrogator."

Gaius nodded his head. "He would, and that is not a bad thing, at least not considering his position as head of the Knights of Camelot."

"I have to admit that I felt a lot better after I finally told him about it. It was like a burden was lifted from me. He couldn't understand, not really, but that didn't matter. He wanted to understand and that made all the difference."

Gaius smiled, feeling pleased that Arthur had been able to relieve some of Merlin's sadness. The suffering that the young man had endured had not gone unnoticed by the old physician, but there was nothing more he could do that to offer his own moral support.

"After we left the camp by the lake we moved off toward the Cliffs of Essotier. I had never seen them. We ended up racing which in turn ended in me getting wet."

Gaius once again raised his eyebrows. Arthur didn't say anything about Merlin getting wet due to a race. "What kind of race?"

"A horse race."

"You raced Arthur on horseback? Merlin, Arthur is an expert rider. You didn't stand a chance against him. How did you end up getting wet?"

"I came over a rise too quickly to stop. Arthur did try to tell me, but I didn't hear him and even if I did, I doubt I could have. The horse stopped though, which sent me flying over the top of its head and over a cliff into a watering hole. Now before you get all excited, I was fine. The water was freezing, but I wasn't hurt."

Gaius looked stunned.

"Let me guess, he didn't mention that either." Merlin said, with a slight smile.

"As I said, his perspective does not always tell the whole story. Please continue."

"Honestly that is where things get a bit fuzzy for me. Everything I remember after that is fragmented, like pieces of a puzzle that don't fit together. I have an odd disjointed memory of a woman and a severely injured man, but I cannot figure out where the memory comes from or even if it is a memory. I seem to remember a tall and imposing figure who emanated power, but like the woman I have no reference for where that memory comes from. There is one memory that is very clear but I can't remember what happened before it or after it."

Gaius leaned forward. "And what is that memory?"

"I remember a deer. It doesn't feel like a dream, it feels like a real memory, but I don't know where the deer was or what happened after it walked up to me and I was petting it. I do know that I remember pain, lots of pain, and a feeling of suffocation. Those feelings are somehow connected to the deer, but that makes no sense.

"I also have a strong sense of fire and rain, and a dream like place filled with fog and voices. That feels more like a dream, but real at the same time. The feeling that is strongest is the sense of Arthur being in grave danger."

Gaius could tell that Merlin was fading quickly. His voice was growing hoarse and his eyelids were drooping. He re-filled the cup with water and handed it back to Merlin who winced sharply as he automatically reached for the cup with his injured arm. He switched arms immediately but the pain remained etched in his face.

"Merlin the deer was quite real. Arthur told me about it. He watched as a wild deer walked right up to you and allowed you to touch it. It was then that you were shot with a poisoned arrow. Sometimes hunters in the out lying villages will poison the arrows they use to ensure a kill even if the shot was less than perfect. The practice is outlawed in Camelot because it is so dangerous. The poison is what made you feel as though you were suffocating. The fire and rain is easily explained by the raging fever you suffered and the water that Arthur used to wipe down your brow.

"You spoke of a tall imposing figure. From the perspective of someone lying on the ground bleeding from a serious wound, and burning up with fever I am very sure that Arthur seemed like a very tall and imposing figure. The rest you can take down to delirium. The sense that Arthur was in danger was equally true. You were both attacked by a group of bandits that have been plaguing the borderlands for the past few weeks. The fact that Cenred's men also attacked made that sense of danger increase dramatically, and you yourself said that you used magic right in front of Arthur in an attempt to even up the odds. All in all you were both very lucky."

Gaius got up and after a few moments brought back another vial of pain medication. "Here, drink this. It will help with the pain."

Merlin obliged without complaint, which was evidence enough for Gaius as to the level of pain he was enduring. After getting him to drink a little more water the physician helped him to get more comfortable and pulled the thin blanket up around his shoulders. The young man was asleep before Gaius had even finished putting his supplies away.

Knowing full well that Merlin would continue to sleep after a second dose of pain and fever medication, Gaius gathered his herbal remedies and made his rounds of the court. The aging physician had a lot to think about as he moved from one courtier's chambers to another tending to the inconsequential complaints of the pampered elite in Camelot.

Merlin's account of the events leading up to the hunting accident mostly mirrored what Arthur had told him, but it was what happened after that had Gaius thinking so long and hard about the events of the past few days.

The fact that Arthur had been allowed to speak to a druid council of elders had rocked Gaius to his foundation. The druid people had always been very secretive even when magic was openly practiced throughout the realm. The fact that they had allowed an outsider into a council session when many of their own people were forbidden to attend such a gathering drove home to the court physician how serious the situation had become. It was a terrible chance these people took, especially given the fact that Arthur was the Crowned Prince of a kingdom that has outlawed any form of magic.

What was even more astounding, was the fact that this council of elders had revealed anything about the ancient druid prophecy involving Merlin and Arthur. It had taken Gaius some time after meeting Merlin to come to the realization that he might well be the warlock of that prophecy. Once he had come to understand that, he had worked tirelessly to keep Merlin safe and to teach him the importance of using his magic only for good.

Gaius knew that Uther had called a council meeting of his own, and as soon as a servant was sent to give him word that the session had concluded he was thankfully able to cut his visit with the Lady Cossett short.

"Apply this salve to the sores daily, my Lady. Also only use house shoes for the next two weeks and you should find some relief. I must now go and attend to the King."

The Lady Cossett had been trying to monopolize Gaius' time for the past few weeks with one ridiculous complaint after another. The latest complaint of painful corns on her feet was no exception. What the corns turned out to be were rough patches of dry irritated skin that developed from wearing shoes that were far too small for her pudgy appendages. Gaius would have simply given her the salve that he brought for the complaint and left except for the fact that the Lady had insisted that Gaius show her how to apply the salve that he had brought.

When Gaius shut the door to the Lady's chambers he turned to the servant who had come to fetch him and laid a hand on the young man's shoulder. "Thank you for your superlative timing, my boy. I don't think I could have stood another minute with those feet."

His comment earned him a snicker from the young servant before the boy was off on his next errand. Gaius gladly made his way through the castle to the King's chambers to deliver the medicine for his shoulder. When he entered, the King curtly dismissed his servant and fixed Gaius with a hard stare.

"I see you made quick work of Arthur's injuries. How serious were they?" the King wanted to know.

"Sire, the Prince required a few stitches, but it was nothing that he hasn't dealt with before. The wounds were clean, having been made by the sharp blades of the soldiers rather than the dirty blades carried by the bandits."

Uther took the vial of medicine and downed it in one as Gaius moved to examine the King's shoulder for his range of motion. "What makes you think the bandits had dirty blades, Gaius?"

"Merlin had a second wound to his injured arm; one that was not made by the poisoned arrow. That wound has become infected. It was sustained when one of the bandit's blades pierced him."

"I see; so Arthur was not injured by the bandits he fought? All of his injuries were due to Cenred's soldiers?" The King asked, in a tone that was far too calm for Gaius' liking.

"It would appear so, Sire."

Uther had nothing more to say on the matter and Gaius was happy enough to leave as soon as he was finished with the King. He needed to stop by the market place to pick up some more herbs before he returned to his chambers. He moved as quickly as he could feeling that time was working against him. Merlin would be waking up soon and he wanted to make sure he had some more blackthorn to give to him.

Grigor felt tense and he and Eryl rode through the gates of Camelot and into the lower town. He tried not to look at ever single guard and soldier that they past and avoided any eye contact whatsoever with the party of knights who rode out past them as they entered the main gates.

The fact that their mere presence was enough to get them both a death sentence made him exceedingly uncomfortable. Eryl, however, showed no signs at all of being edgy. The ancient seer smiled at the people they past and nodded respectfully to the knights as they rode past.

As vulnerable as Grigor felt being in Camelot, he had to admit that the place was wondrous. It was so vibrant and full of life, with children running this way and that through the throng of peasants, young maids walking through the streets with different size bundles in their arms, people laughing, busy vendors selling their wares, streets lined with all manner of shops and a huge beautiful castle overlooking all of it. After spending so many years living in isolation in the forest with Eryl, he was naturally drawn to the hustle and bustle of Camelot and could easily get lost exploring the city.

They made their way to the large marketplace which was very crowded forcing them to dismount and look for a livery to put the horses in. Grigor stepped over to Eryl and spoke quietly.

"What happens now, Eryl?"

The old seer turned sparkling eyes full of life to the young apprentice. "You will take this purse and get us a room at the Inn and a stable for the horses. I will go and speak to the court physician."

Grigor placed a restraining hand on Eryl's arm. "You intend to enter the main castle of Camelot alone? I think that is very unwise. Eryl, just wait for me to get the room and I'll go with you."

"No, Grigor, I know Gaius even if it has been many years. I will be quite all right. You tend to our needs here. Oh and pick us up something for dinner in the market place. I never have cared much for the food at these Inns."

Grigor wanted to protest more, but wasn't given the chance as Eryl turned away from the young man and strode off toward the castle. Grigor just shook his head, took the reins of the horses and lead them away toward the edge of the marketplace in search of the public stables.

TBC

A/N: This is an interesting note that my beta brought up. Her Oxford English Dictionary defined the word "superlative" as meaning irrelevant or unnecessary. My dictionary disagrees and she looked it up again in her Cambridge English Dictionary and it defined "superlative" to mean excellent or first class, which is how it is meant in this chapter. I thought that you might find that interesting.