Um... you know the usual excuses for not updating in a timely manner. School, love life, family, work, etc.
"What is what?" Merlin asked, hoping he had guessed incorrectly about what Arthur was referring to.
"That..." Arthur shook out his arm. "Itching!"
"Itching?" Maybe Merlin had guessed wrong. One could always hope.
"Yes! It feels like my blood is itching."
"Are you sure?" Merlin stared, mouth slightly ajar. He vaguely realized, now that Arthur mentioned it, sensing magic did feel itchy. But how could Arthur possibly feel magic? Merlin knew the answer, but it didn't want to make sense in his head.
"Don't tell me you can't feel it. I know you have to be feeling it too."
"I, uh, didn't think you would be able to feel it." Merlin almost slapped himself. He shouldn't have said that. So far they had each felt the other's every discomfort. Arthur would have no reason to think anything uncomfortable could be exempted from the connection spell. Merlin, however, had assumed that since Arthur didn't have magic, none of the magical sensations would crossover.
Arthur stared in confused scrutiny, his eyebrows dipping down his nose. "You mean to tell me," he finally spoke, "that this itching is normal to you?"
"Yes. No," Merlin backpeddled. A good story wasn't immediately presenting itself. "Not exactly." He paused, taking a moment to confirm to himself the lie he was about to use. "You see, I have a rare blood condition."
"A rare blood condition?" Arthur repeated.
"It's completely harmless," Merlin assured quickly. "It just... causes a bit of discomfort."
Arthur looked aside, giving a moment for thought. Just accept the story, Merlin thought.
"Is there a reason it's more concentrated on this side?" Arthur asked, pointing to left.
Merlin immediately glanced down at the left side of his body. The magical pulse wasn't coming from that direction. If Arthur was sensing magic through Merlin, then why was he saying that the itchy blood was coming from the left, the opposite direction? Oh. Merlin then realized that Arthur wasn't suddenly able to feel magic. He was only able to feel the discomfort that it entailed. Merlin and Arthur were each feeling concentrated itchy blood on the right sides of their bodies. However, since they were facing one another, the sensation would appear to come from opposite directions.
Taking notice of Arthur's impatient almost-glare, Merlin answered, "No idea."
Thankfully, Arthur was willing to let up a little on having Merlin babysat that night. Sort of. Merlin still had guards, but at least they were posted outside of Gaius's chambers instead of inside Merlin's room. Arthur said that he was willing to let Merlin sleep in peace as long as he didn't put a toe out of line.
Never before had sneaking out sounded so appealing. Not only did Merlin have a good reason for going covert tonight—the magical pulses were still vibrating his blood—but he also wanted to leave in order to spite Arthur. The idea of leaving the castle and returning without the prat's knowledge gave Merlin a slight thrill.
The perfect image was only cracked by one detail: Merlin's life was now far too tightly attached to Arthur's life. Investigating whatever was causing the flood of magical energy was potentially dangerous. On one hand, Merlin thought it best he figure out how to sever the bonding enchantment first. On the other, he couldn't be sure just how serious the consequences of leaving unattended the source of the "itching blood" were without investigation.
After much uneasy contemplation, poking at dinner, and discussion at Gaius's urging, Merlin settled on postponing his reconnaissance. He would first break the enchantment which was now making Merlin rudely aware that Arthur had bashed his shin into something. The warlock dutifully studied his magic book. Having researched to the point of exhaustion the night before, he had already ruled out a sizable portion of the spells. Merlin was certain they weren't dealing with each other's emotions, seeing what the other was seeing, nor inheriting one another's skills and abilities.
Inconveniently, he couldn't easily dismiss many of the possibilities on account of the ambiguous phrasings. One spell mentioned a side effect of a "mild increase in earwax production." Exactly how mild was mild? Was this "mild increase" even noticeable, or was the author making the predicament of this spell sound more gentle than it really was? Merlin didn't even keep track of how much earwax he normally produced to begin with! Short of asking Arthur if he had noticed a change in his ears, Merlin couldn't think of a way to rule out the possibility of the spell.
To make matters worse, Merlin couldn't just test out the counter-curses until he found the right one. Many of the consequences for choosing incorrectly were undesirable to say the least: madness, death, or—in the case of the earwax spell—earwax spilling profusely out of their ears for the rest of their lives.
Like he had the night before, the warlock fell asleep on his book.
Gaius hadn't been home since that morning. A recent breakout of measles had held his attention throughout the day. Now, Gaius intended on replenishing his supplies and then finding Merlin. The boy had been awake for scarcely a minute that morning before rushing out the door. He had elatedly proclaimed that he could break the connection between him and Arthur. In his excitement he wouldn't give Gaius any details before running off.
The old physician pushed open his chamber door and doddered in. To his surprise, he saw a mess. A greater and different mess than he was accustomed to. A mattress—Merlin's mattress?—was on the floor with one end covering the first few steps leading to Merlin's room. Gaius moved closer to the stairs. A blanket and some clothes and herbs were strewn all over the steps. The blanket and clothes were definitely Merlin's.
"Merlin?" Gaius called.
In response, a soft moan emitted from the upstairs.
Gaius with difficulty pushed the mattress aside. He called for Merlin again. This time he wasn't answered. He apprehended the blocked up stairs before making his way up. His old, creaky bones made clambering around the obstacles arduous. When he finally reached the top and opened the door, he almost fell backward.
In the middle of the floor Merlin was shirtless and curled into a fetal position. A pillow was pinned around his head by the floor and one hand. His other hand clamped his nose shut. The mattress and the herbs which normally adorned his room were gone. And the wardrobe was wide open and empty.
"Merlin!" Gaius exclaimed. "Are you alright!"
"Urgh," Merlin moaned. "Not so loud."
"What's wrong?" Gaius lowered his voice, but not by much.
Merlin shifted his head to look at Gaius. "You need a bath," he mumbled.
"Merlin!" Gaius was shocked and slightly affronted.
"Sorry," Merlin whispered. "I didn't mean to. It's just that everyone needs a bath. Everything needs a bath. Soap needs a bath." Merlin curled tighter. "I need a bath. Arthur needs a bath. Actually, Arthur really needs a bath. Do you know how repulsive he smells? I think his stench might rival the trolls."
"Merlin," Gaius cut across the unhelpful ramblings, "what happened?"
"Oh, that."
"Yes."
"Ah, I, uh," Merlin grimaced. "It was an accident."
"What did you do?" Gaius asked firmly.
"Made it so I can hear and smell more... things."
"You heightened your senses?"
"And Arthur's."
Gaius felt his jaw drop. "Merlin!" Gaius bellowed. Merlin winced. The old man lowered his voice as he continued, "What were you thinking? Do you realize how dangerous what you have done is?"
"I was trying to take that spell off," the pathetic looking warlock explained. "And this is the consequence of being wrong. It didn't sound so bad when I was reading about it. Better senses for a week... I don't think I could take a whole week of this, Gaius."
"What spell did you use? Perhaps there's an antidote. And if there isn't, you might deserve of week of this anyway," the physician admonished. "I'm not sure Arthur does, but you certainly do."
"There's an antidote," Merlin assured. "I tried to make it, but... Gaius, it smelled so bad. I nearly fainted."
Gaius sighed, "Show me where to find it."
We swear that Merlin's mistake has importance. It's not just to drag the story out. We needed a segue before the plot could progress. It'll make sense.
Please review. Like? Dislike? Confused? Constructive criticism is always welcome.