Here is chapter three. It isn't that good in my opinion, but here it is!
Disclaimer: Merlin is not mine :((
Chapter three.
Merlin looked at the paper, but the words were once again too small to read, and no matter what they did, the words wouldn't get larger. A knock sounded at the door, and the brothers looked at each other.
"hide the wand." Gwaine said, gently shoving Merlin towards the stairs,
"hide the paper!" Merlin called back as he ran to his room. Gwaine slipped the paper into his pocket and opened the door.
He smiled, "hello Arthur." he said with a mock bow.
Arthur looked inside worriedly, "i heard Gaius yell. Is everything alright in here?" he asked.
Gwaine chuckled, "yup. Merlin is just fine." he said teasingly, and Arthur glared,
"i meant is Gaius alright?" he asked, and Gwaine nodded,
"he was just yelling in his sleep from a nightmare, but is fine." he lied. He felt guilty, but he knew it was a necessity. Not only was it his secret, but it was Merlins, and he knew that Merlin didn't want anyone else to know for the time being, since Arthur would ask how the didn't know till now, and that would be a problem. Just then, Merlin bounded down the stiars,
"yes Arthur?" he asked seeing who was talking to Gwaine, and Gwaine stepped aside.
"nothing. I need to go to a meeting. Father has requested my presence there, but i wanted to make sure Gaius was okay." he said, turning and walking off quickly. Gwaine watched him go,
"that was close." he muttered closing the door.
Merlin nodded, "thanks for lying to him about it." he said.
Gwaine shrugged, "its your secret too." he said simply.
"i can see it now. You two are for sure related." Gaius said suddenly, making the two jump. A vase exploded, and Gwaine looked at Gaius apologetically,
"sorry. You startled me." he said, and Gaius nodded,
"alright, but try to contain your magic. Your a knight, and some enemy's will take you by surprise. We don't want Arthur finding out that way." he warned, and the two shrugged,
"when Gwaine is in a battle, he is fine. Its in between that's he a wreck." Merlin reminded, and Gaius chuckled.
Gwaine glared, "i resent that comment." he said, and Merlin shrugged,
"resent it or not, its the truth." he said, dodging Gwaine.
"settle down! If you two want to fight, go outside and do it! Don't tear up my study!" Gaius exclaimed, and the two dashed out the door. Gaius chuckled, "don't hurt anyone! Or anything for that matter." he called out.
"we won't!" came the two replies, before running footsteps were heard down the hall.
The pair ran outside, and into the courtyard. "i will catch you, and you will pay Merlin!" Gwaine called from a few feet away.
Merlin smirked, "i'd like to see you try." he called back. He suddenly tripped over something, and Gwaine stood above him grinning triumphantly.
"what is the meaning of this?" said Leon from behind, followed by all the knights of the Round Table. Gwaine glared at Merlin for a second.
"Squirt insulted me." he said simply, and Merlin sent him a glare that could wilt flowers.
"my name is not squirt!" he exclaimed
Gwaine grinned, "wart then." he said, and the others chuckled.
Gwaine reached out a hand to help him up, and Merlin grabbed his forearm, pulling him down.
"see if i ever help you again!" he exclaimed, and Merlin laughed. He got up, and Gwaine scrambled up as well, lunging for him. Merlin jumped aside, but not enough. Gwaine caught his arm, and the two tumbled to the ground.
Gwaine pinned him easily, "there. revenge." he said with a grin as the two got up. The knights stood, watching the two with amused looks as they ran around. Arthur suddenly appeared, and everyone froze, looking at him.
He looked at them, "what?" he wondered innocently. They all shrugged, and continued what they were doing. Arthur join the knights in watching the two, before he calmly turned to Leon.
"you know, maybe you should join them. You could use some exercise." he said, the laughter in his eyes said he was teasing, but the words were enough to make Leon charge the Prince.
Percival turned to Lancelot, "and i have to admit, you are a little weak." he said with a grin, dodging Lancelot effortlessly.
Elyan decided to join Lancelot in a effort to get Percival, and soon, all of them were running around, chasing each other, until Uther walked out. Everyone froze in their places, their gaze glued on him.
He looked at them, and raised his eyebrows. "what is the meaning of this?" he asked, and Arthur, who the first to come to his senses, cleared his throat.
"well, we decided to run around, so if our horses ever ran away, we would be able to last long distances without getting tired." he said, and Uther nodded, excepting his son's reply.
"and why are you laughing?" he asked, looking at each of them.
Leon gulped, "insults." he said hesitantly. Uther looked shocked,
"insults are funny?" he exclaimed, and they all shrugged,
"no, but the other persons reaction is." Gwaine said, and Uther sighed, before continuing his walk through town. They all looked at each other, and burst out laughing.
"the look on his face!" Arthur manage to gasp out, and they all burst out laughing again.
"come on Squirt. Gaius sent us to get herbs, remember?" Gwaine reminded him, although Gaius didn't exactly say that. He was just making a excuse to go to the clearing in the forest.
Merlin glared at him, "i said not to call me that!" he exclaimed, and Gwaine chuckled.
"wart then."
"that either!"
"and who is going to stop me?" he asked grinning, "i'm your older brother, i can call you what i want." Gwaine added him silently, and Merlin glared.
"you know, Squirt is a good name for you Merlin, it points out your weakness, and how much younger you are." Arthur said thoughtfully, and the others chuckled.
"goodbye Squirt!" the group yelled after the two when they turned, and Merlin turned back to glare at them. They saw Gwaine lightly punch his shoulder, before running off laughing as Merlin tried to catch up.
"those two are a strange pair." Arthur commented as they walked back to the castle. And their lying to me about something. He thought thinking back to the guilty look that flashed across Gwaines face when he had told Arthur why Gaius yelled.
"arnofio" Gwaine whispered, and a small group of rocks started floating.
Merlin grinned,"your getting better." he said, and Gwaine smiled,
"i can do it wordlessly too, but sometimes that is unpredictable for me." he said, and Merlin nodded, going back to picking some herbs he knows Gaius is low on. Suddenly, Osvaldo and Forbes ran to them,
"Astrian is coming!" they cried joyfully, and the two brothers looked up equally happy to see the wise unicorn walking towards them from the opposite direction.
"hello my friends." he said to all of them, and Gwaine and Merlin hugged him. Why they didn't know, but the unicorn was their friend, so they didn't think much of it. Astrain rubbed noses with the colts,
"hello brothers." he said warmly, and Merlin looked at him in shock,
"the three of you are brothers?" he exclaimed.
Astrian chuckled,"half brothers. They are twins." he said, and Gwaine grinned.
Merlin sighed, "i sense this isn't just a visit to see how we are all doing. What is it, friend?" he asked, and Astrain looked at the two warlocks, suddenly serious.
"Nimueh is alive once again." he said, and Gwaine growled in a un-human way. Everyone looked at him in shock, Merlin looking more surprised then them all though.
"what?" he asked innocently, and Merlin patted him on the back,
"i think you are a dragonlord." he said, and Gwaine felt like fainting.
"why would you think that?" he asked.
Merlin chuckled, "for one, you sounded more like a dragon then a human when you growled, and secondly, our father was Balinor. He was the last dragonlord who escaped before Uther could kill him, and the gifts are passed from father to son." he explained, though Gwaine knew the last part.
Gwaine grinned, "cool." he said,
Merlin shrugged, "it does come in handy" he replied, then turned to Astrain who was speaking again.
"I think Nimueh is a better person though, so please, do not hurt her until it is confirmed that she is as evil as she once was." Astrian pleaded, and the two looked at him,
"why do you think she is good?" Merlin asked, curious.
"unicorns are the purest creature. I just have a hunch." Astrian said with a shrug,
Osvaldo and Forbes nodded,"so do we!" they said happily, then shook their head, Astrain doing the same, as if trying to get a pesky fly to go away.
"some newborns are causing trouble at home, and the mothers are yelling at me." he explained with a slight chuckle, "i must go." he added, and they nodded.
"good bye!" they all called as he disappeared in a flash of light.
"geez, how many types of transportation does he have?" Gwaine muttered. Osvaldo chuckled, "you'd be surprised." he said with a grin as they turned back.
Several days, or rather, nights, later, the two were sneaking their colts out. Astrian had told them that their horns, and powers were charged by the moon light, and tonight it was a full moon, on a clear night.
Perfect.
When they reached the clearing, Merlin murmured a few words, and the horns appeared. Osvaldo reared, and whinnied in joy, glad to be free, and when he did, the wind picked up slightly, some fallen branches seemed to dance, and a light appeared, not to mention the sudden display of shooting stars.
"did you just do magic?" Gwaine exclaimed, a little surprised, and the unicorn looked slightly nervous,
"yes, but i didn't mean to." he replied
Gwaine grinned, "i didn't expect you to get so much power, before you turned one." he said.
Osvaldo trotted around them, "a unicorn is born with magic, like you two are, but it doesn't get all of it until it is one. As does a unicorns talents. Apparently mine is nature, and light." he said, excitement in his voice.
Forbes nodded, "mine is shadows, and forest animals." he said as several bunnies came hopping towards them, and some owls land near by.
Merlin grinned, and reached out to pet a bunny, who willingly let him, and leaned into his touch.
A couple owls noticed the warlocks, and flew down, landing on his and Gwaine's shoulders, not one bit afraid. Not even when they got a unexpected visitor. Merlin looked up when he heard the sound of wings, and felt the wind pick.
Aithusa was flying towards them, and landed with a soft thud and a happy chirp when she saw her dragonlord. Merlin smiled, and ran to her.
"Aithusa!" he exclaimed. Aithusa made a strange purring sound when he rubbed her scales, and leaned into his touch.
Gwaine walked over, "so this is what happened to that dragon egg." he said thoughtfully, and Merlin nodded with a grin. Suddenly, the paper appeared in a bright light, and they all ran over to it, including the animals. Merlin gently picked it up, and Gwaine muttered a spell, making light appear so they could see it better.
"Mystical creatures, two of each, follow you around, watching over thee
A hidden treasure, that was thought gone, is hidden away, though the rode is long.
You are the key, of what is to be found. Though tread wisely, danger is always around."
Gwaine read aloud.
Merlin sighed, "well this proves a little more challenging." he said reading it over again.
"it could be talking about the unicorns." Gwaine suggested, but Merlin shook his head,
"it said creatures, though. Normally that means more then just one species." he said, and Gwaine knew he was right. Aithusa, who was about the size of a horse, chirped from behind them, and put her wings out, making chirping, and squeaking sounds, as if trying to tell them something, but not knowing how. She pointed to herself, but the brothers still had no idea what she was telling them.
She sighed, and stood up on her hind legs, and jumped, stretching her wings out as the wind caught them.
"good bye Aithusa." Merlin called to her as she flew up into the dark night sky, going home to the cave she shared with Kilgharah.
Gwaine turned, "we should get back." he said, and Merlin nodded. The forest animals followed them into the forest as they made their way back, returning home when they approached Camelots walls.
Gwaine made the unicorns horns disappear quickly, and they walked calmly past the guards, who ignored them after seeing who it was. When they reached the stable, Arthur walked over to them.
Merlin glanced at him,"what are you doing out here Arthur?" he asked, opening the stall door, letting the colts walk in. Arthur didn't reply, and the two looked at him, "what?" they both asked.
Arthur sighed, "you two are hiding something from me. What is it?" he asked.
Gwaine chuckled, "that is our little secret, dear little Prince." he teased walking off towards the castle. Merlin followed, and Arthur watched them.
"and whats that supposed to mean, annoying knight?" Arthur called, making the two chuckle,
"you'll find out sometime." came the reply's, and Arthur sighed again,
"well wasn't that helpful" he muttered to himself sarcastically as he walked into the castle a few minutes later.
i know it isn't that good, but i will try to do better in the next chapter! I am a little distracted because my brother and his girlfriend are home, and I got writers block for awhile :P. This just came to me randomly, so if anyone has ideas on something i could add, or change, then let me know! I am open to ideas! Thanks for all the reviews so far!
~cunning bird~
P.S.
I won't be updating this weekend, since my bro is home, and i don't get to see him often. A new chapter should be up on Monday, or Tuesday though!
Have a good weekend everyone! I know i will ;)