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Merlin began the call before he was out of the trees, his pain his only known companion. "O drakon, I ácíege on unc nú mín woruldfréond, æledléoma bryne, harké tó mé! Mín fæderencyn! Kilghárráh!"

The words roared out of him, not understood by his unknown audience, but the anguish in them was apparent. Indifferent to his surroundings, he stumbled over his own feet, barely catching himself before he fell. He bent over, hands gripping his knees, shoulders heaving, but whether this was from exertion or distress Arthur did not know. They all waited. It was quiet and still, with only the harsh sound of Merlin's breathing breaking the silence in the clearing.

A short time later, the huge beast soared down from the grey sky, sending a gust of wind through the trees as he landed. Arthur could see Merlin make a visible effort to regain his composure, taking a deep, shuddering breath and straightening his shoulders as the dragon landed in front of him.

"Your heart is troubled, Merlin."

Merlin wondered if that were true. Sometimes his heart felt numb, a great deadened lump in his chest. Or was it a raging ball of fire consuming him? He couldn't tell, neither or both, he didn't know. He ignored the comment and said absently, "Arthur is asking questions, it's unusual. He never asks." A sudden thought occurred to him and he frowned and looked behind him, back into the trees. "Was I followed here?"

"You could use your own gifts to find out."

Merlin grumbled predictably, "You know I can't do that when you're nearby, I've tried it before, all I get is a dragon-sized headache for days, you're like a big lump of magical interference, I can't sense anything." He asked again, "Now, is anyone nearby, will you be seen?"

The dragon looked directly at the spot where the three men were hiding, and said thoughtfully, "What passes here tonight is foretold, Merlin. You may continue without fear."

Reassured, Merlin seemed to accept that, and nodded, crossing his arms over his chest. He began to pace up and down, the long grass flexing beneath his feet. The dragon waited patiently.

When Merlin finally spoke his voice was low and measured, controlled. "Kilgharrah, I don't really know, why I called you, tonight. But you ... you are a creature of magic, perhaps the last of your kind. Do you ever feel ... overwhelming loneliness ... for the companionship of those who know and accept your true nature?"

The dragon considered the question. "Merlin, in temperament and disposition, dragons are solitary creatures. We have never been reliant on the company of our kin; the truth is quite the opposite. You ask me this, I know, as you fear the reaction of the young Pendragon when he uncovers what has been hiding in in the light. But what you fail to understand, is that such discovery is necessary in order to forge the path for the time of Emrys and the Once and Future King. That time is fast approaching, young warlock. There is no stopping it."

That wasn't what he wanted to hear, but he feared it was true. There was a long silence, and Merlin rubbed at his eyes with the palms of his hands. He was tense. "Yes. The Fisher King too, told me such. He said the new time is dawning, the time of the Once and Future King."

Then dropping his arms, and looking directly at the dragon, Merlin said a tight voice, "It is happening too quickly, and I am not prepared for it! It is too much responsibility, too much!" His control was slipping again, but it couldn't, he could never be weak. He sunk to the ground in front of the dragon and dropped his head in his hands, clenching his fists, trying desperately not to give in to this failing.

Sitting on the cold, damp earth, he rocked slowly back and forth, but it didn't help, nothing could, nothing did, not anymore. His skin felt tight, he wondered if he might explode from the knowledge, the expectations, and from the torment of it all. "Kilgharrah, I am not enough for this task that is expected of me! You must know it!"

"Merlin ..." the dragon's voice was kind.

Impatiently Merlin scrubbed at his eyes. "I could barely defeat Morgause this time, she almost triumphed! There have been too many times when she's almost won, or some other threat has almost defeated us, when Arthur has come close to death, or Camelot nearly fallen."

Unable to sit still, he stood up unsteadily, pacing erratically back and forth on the damp grass, his voice a harsh monotone, barely in check. "My judgement is poor, the consequences of my mistakes are great, and people continue to suffer because of it. I cannot protect Arthur properly. My defensive magic is nothing but instinctual, my understanding of it is weak, and what I can do is extremely limited as I must remain in the shadows. My healing magic is patchy at best; Arthur nearly died because I couldn't cure a simple arrow wound, twice! And when Arthur finds out, about me, which he will, one day, because Morgana will know soon, he will never, ever, accept me for what I am. Or what I can do. Or what I have done."

He clutched his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking. His world was fracturing, the cracks were intensifying, and he couldn't do a thing to stop it. Soon it would all be shattered in a thousand jagged shards, beyond any hope of repair. It would all be gone, and he'd be more alone than he'd ever been.

"Merlin." The dragon was silent for a long moment and then said with concern, "You cannot escape your destiny, neither you, nor the young Pendragon. Your power is great, but most of it is yet untapped. Regardless, you will prevail. Trust yourself, you know more than you allow yourself to believe. But to have the total sum of all knowledge within you now, would be too much for even someone of your great strength to handle."

Merlin didn't respond, he didn't want to, he couldn't. He didn't want to think, to feel, to know, it all bought too much pain.

The dragon exhaled, steam rising from his snout and disappearing into the crisp, night air. "The time long prophesised, is fast approaching. You and the young Prince are two halves of a whole, neither can be complete without the other, the last dichotomy. The time is very near, for him to discover the truth about that which you have always concealed. You cannot escape your fate."

The great beast looked pointedly into the trees, directly at the place the three men were hiding. "However, the young Prince has more courage than you give him credit for. Your burdens are to share. His strength will be yours. There are others too, who are a part of the destiny you share. Two have known your truth for some time and another suspected from the day he met you."

There was another long silence, and the tremors shaking Merlin's thin frame gradually eased. Eventually he looked up again at the dragon. " Who is the third?" The dragon was silent. "Lancelot is not Arthur, Kilgharrah, and even he knows very little, I would not burden him with it all. And I cannot believe you. I will not tell Arthur about the magic, I can't. I'll only start letting my guard down when there are no more reasons to keep it up."

"That," said the dragon, "may be sooner than you think."

Merlin shook his head in rejection. "And what of Freya, Kilgharrah? She told me how to save Camelot and Albion, she gave me back the sword. Yet she is dead. Was it her magic that bought her back, or that of the Fisher King, or was it more? I do not understand how it can be." He didn't try to hide the tears in his eyes. "Tell me, will I ever see her again?"

"I wish I had some words to comfort you, Merlin. Your pain over her troubles me. But I cannot give you the answers you seek, I do not have them."

Merlin wiped at his nose, and his voice betrayed his distress. "It was my fault, she died, Kilgharrah, she came between me and this destiny. And I let it happen, I put her first, I would have walked away from it all to be with her. But destiny trapped me back." He tried not to sound bitter, but the tears escaped again, he let them. "Her death was my punishment for straying from the path, it was my fault, mine alone. But why, why did it have to be like that? Why, Kilgharrah? Tell me!"

The dragon stretched his long neck out, his head within a handspan of Merlin. He said gently, "I'm sorry, my young friend. I do not like to see you suffering."

Merlin reached out and touched the dragon's bumpy scales, stroking them absently. Kilgharrah was warm, like the fire inside him. He bent his head and rested it against the dragon's snout, closing his eyes, his back to Arthur. His hand continued to move slowly over the dragon's scales, the movement seemed to soothe him, and eventually after some time, the tension in his shoulders eased. The dragon exhaled, and then Merlin stepped back, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly, though his eyes still looked sad.

"You've been eating cattle again, haven't you Kilgharrah? I can smell them on your breath, well cooked too, huh?" The dragon looked down at him but didn't speak, Merlin smoothed his hand in unhurried, circular movements over the dragon. "I hope that wasn't around Camelot or any of the neighbouring kingdoms, you know I'll get in trouble for it if you're seen."

"I am ever vigilant, Merlin." He raised his head, Merlin's hand dropped away. "I know you seek a distraction from your pain, but know this: the more you care, the stronger you will be. And I advise you again, you must allow yourself to trust when it is requested by one who is worthy of it. Destiny did not bind you to your prince without reason."

"Alright, alright!" It came out roughly with a hint of impatience, and Merlin cleared his throat. Shoulders hunched, he began to pace again with weary steps. "I don't want to discuss it further." He sighed. "I need to concentrate on Arthur and Albion. I must put aside my own concerns and focus on what must be done. Morgana will be back soon, very soon. When she was biding her time in Camelot before she overthrew Uther, she would not risk using her magic openly. But now she has nothing to lose. I have told Arthur of her magic but I am afraid I will not be able to protect him without exposing my own abilities."

"I fear that may be true."

"Then there is no way out of this for me. My truth will be my downfall." He covered his face with his hands, head bent, anguished. Another lengthy silence. "She will go after them all, Arthur, Gaius, Gwen, Lancelot, Gwaine, all the Knights, every last one." He wiped his eyes roughly, dragging the sleeve of his shirt across his face. "Then I have no choice, I cannot risk them, it will be done. But the personal cost is great, Kilgharrah."

The dragon acknowledged this with a nod, and waited. Merlin swallowed and took several deep breaths in an attempt to regain his control. "I have... considered this situation for some time. There is much to be done, I must become more skilled. I need to know more defensive magic, but I cannot practice, not properly." His mouth twisted. "Not without exposing myself but that will not matter much longer."

Kilgharrah offered, "Then practice on me."

"Won't that hurt?"

"Merlin! You may be powerful but your magic will not injure me!"

Merlin grimaced. "I didn't mean you!"

The dragon was amused despite himself. "Of course. But we will need several days. There is much to learn."

"I don't have the time. I don't know when Morgana will attack so I can't be away from Arthur for more than a few hours. We'll do it now."

"Now? Here?" The dragon was doubtful. He glanced into the undergrowth.

"Yes. There's not much room but it will have to do. I'm sick of thinking about everything and I need a distraction."

Merlin paced back and forth again, unable to keep still. "I'll shield the entire clearing so we don't damage the trees, and screen the top so we're not visible from Camelot." He stretched his arms out to his sides, the palms of his hands up, and his eyes glowed.

Silent, Merlin turned in a circle and reached out to the sky, he tipped his head back and the gold in his eyes darkened and flashed like a strike of lightening, momentarily lighting up the entire clearing, banishing the night and bringing back the day for an instant. When the light disappeared, the shield was visible as a muted glow around the edges of the field, endless tiny sparkles of gold covered by a lid of starless, grey moonlight.

Merlin stopped, taking a few deep, calming breaths and pinching the bridge of his nose. He closed his eyes for a long moment, head down. "Now try to not dig up the grass too much, we must leave no trace of your presence."

"You should not do this if you cannot concentrate, young warlock. It is too dangerous."

Merlin ignored the advice. "Alright, my defensive magic is weak because I have to conceal it so I do not use it often, so it's never anything big. Morgause was able to hit me in the back because I was careless, and she almost knocked me out. I want you use your fire on me while I shield, I need to be able to do it instantly without fail, always."

"Are you certain you wish to do this, Merlin? If I hurt you the healing process my take some time."

"It must be done. Now!"

A blast of fire shot from the dragon's mouth towards Merlin. But just as it engulfed him he vanished then re-appeared immediately on the opposite side of the clearing, not far from where the men were concealed.

Arthur's mouth dropped open as the blood rushed from his head, he staggered and almost fell over Lancelot, he felt dizzy, almost faint. How had Merlin ...? How was that possible? He'd ... he had moved too fast for him to see. Beside him, Gwaine cursed low and fluently under his breath. Lancelot didn't make a sound, whether that was because he was still bound and gagged and couldn't, or was too shocked, Arthur didn't know. Guiltily, he bent over and unbuckled the belt binding Lancelot's wrists, and the Knight took the gag out of his mouth and shot a furious glare Arthur's way.

Merlin held up both hands, waving them at the dragon. "Stop, that didn't work, I couldn't maintain the shield. Too hot."

Kilgharrah twisted his long neck around towards him, curious. "What did you do, when you moved? Did you slow time, or speed it up?"

"Neither. I stepped outside of the time that binds the earth and into one of my own making, so I had as long as I wanted to get out of the way. If I'd merely slowed time, or sped it up, you may have been able to follow me, am I correct?"

The dragon regarded him intently. "Young warlock, time was still an infant in her cradle when I first began to fly around this earth. I have never heard of any man nor beast, nor creature of magic, who was capable of creating a new time, let alone one specific to them and them alone, Merlin."

Merlin frowned. "So you're saying that's unusual?"

Kilgharrah snorted and answered flatly, "Yes. How did you do it? You didn't incant, I would have heard you. And your eyes barely glowed, Merlin. It didn't look like it took much power."

Merlin bit his lip. "It doesn't take much power, Kilgharrah. It's everyday magic, easy. I've been able to do it since I was seven or eight. I don't know how, I made it up." He stopped at looked up at the dragon, their practice session forgotten for the moment. "But I need to be careful with it, too. Once, when I was younger, and my control of it was poor, I accidentally went back too far by several hundred years. It was terrifying, Ealdor wasn't even there then, there were no people, it was just a dark forest. I scared myself so much it took me a few days to calm down enough to get back." He shivered at the memory, then half smiled. "I did get in a lot of trouble for that. But you didn't answer my question, if I'd only slowed down the earth's time, or sped it up, could you have followed me?"

"You speak very casually of advanced magic, young warlock. Only the most powerful can slow down or speed up time, and only then with much planning and complex incantations, and because of that it is not magic used in reaction to a threat. Yet you speak of it as such. Could I have followed you? Perhaps, for a while. But there would not be many who could."

Merlin looked up at him, crossing his arms over his body. "There is one more thing I have not told you. When creating my own time, I discovered while in it, I can move forward in the time of the earth. I tried that too, as a child, but will never do so again. It is more terrifying than the powers of the crystal, though the images are less distinct. The crystals show individual futures, this was very general. I saw buildings that stretched to the sky, creatures that flew in the air with men controlling them inside, and long dark lines all over the earth that stretched from horizon to horizon. I was there in that time, only once, as a child, and I almost could not find my way back, the threads guiding me were so thin. Was it the future of this land, Kilgharrah?"

The dragon was troubled. "Yes."

Merlin looked expectantly at him, but Kilgharrah was silent. "Don't worry, I stay mainly within the earth's time now, give or take a few hours here and there. And I don't do it all that much, because of the side-effects."

"What side-effects, young warlock?"

Merlin smiled at him. "It's a choice, you see, as to who gets the headache after I return. If I move into the time I create, the ripple effects when I return to the earth's boundaries seem to cause a headache in everyone in the near vicinity. I've thought of shielding people before I go to stop it but I haven't had much opportunity to try it out, and it seems a little mean to experiment and perhaps cause unnecessary pain."

He continued, "And the opposite is true if I slow down or speed up the earth's time, if I've taken too long sometimes when I return a migraine can completely incapacitate me. I was counting on you being a dragon to not feel discomfort, so I chose to move into my own time and save myself pain. It does mean I need to be careful what sort of time I use though, if I need to change it to protect Arthur. It's much easier he's not close by."

"You are full of surprises tonight, Merlin."

Merlin shrugged. "I didn't know. I haven't properly discussed it with Gaius recently, he doesn't like it when I play around too much with magic, he worries too much that I'll be discovered."

He thought again for a moment, grateful to be side-tracked. "I think changes to time may be related to teleporting magic, I've seen Morgause teleport but I can't do that, I wasn't in the frame of mind to remember her incantation when she did it."

That was the time he'd poisoned Morgana, and despite the necessity, he still grieved for what he'd done. She wasn't fully evil then and he'd known it. His capability for ruthlessness, his ability to mercilessly kill someone who was a friend, even if it was to save all Camelot, was something that still disturbed him. It changed how he thought of himself, he hadn't known until then he was capable of such cold-blooded brutality in order to serve his purpose and protect what he must. He knew of Kilgharrah's hate for Morgana, and wondered if the dragon's motives had been pure when he'd told him there was no other way. He should have found another way. He wondered if his own actions, his treatment of her, had shaped her into the person she was now. He feared they had.

The recollection sobered him again. The dragon was watching him. "Kilgharrah, none of that matters right now. I can shield this clearing easily so the magic doesn't escape, but I can't shield defensively very well, and such shielding is meant to be fairly basic to master. I need to be able to shield myself, and Arthur, and anyone else Morgana may target. We need to keep on with this. You'd better tell me if you start to get a headache. Don't stop until I say. Now go!"

Back to business, a flash of fire and Merlin vanished and reappeared, and another and another. Arthur felt dazed by what he was witnessing. It seemed completely incredible. Was this person who darted across the field, who could offhandedly discuss the pros and cons of changing time, and moving independently of it, really Merlin? Gwaine mumbled something incoherent beside him, but Arthur took no notice, all his attention was on Merlin.

The dragon moved, fire flashed, and Merlin sped from one spot to another, too fast for Arthur's eyes to follow. Again he moved, and again. But the ninth time the pattern changed, when the dragon shot fire Merlin held up his hand, his eyes glowed and he whispered a single word, "Amundae!"

A ball of energy appeared around the warlock, the dragon's fire blazing harmlessly around it. Arthur could see Merlin starting to look like he was enjoying himself. "Actually, that shield was pretty easy after all." He waved his hand, his eyes glowed and the fire disappeared. The dragon coughed and looked annoyed. Now openly grinning, Merlin said, "Uh, sorry?"

"You are a better opponent than I first gave you credit for, young warlock."

As Merlin seemed more relaxed, Arthur's apprehension at this display grew. The dragon didn't look at all relaxed to him, the great beast seemed to grow in seriousness which Arthur did not think would bode well for Merlin.

"Alright. Now I'd like to try something with swords, I use them when I can in battle and no one ever notices. I didn't bring one with me, but I do have a dagger." He plucked a dagger from his belt and unsheathed it. "This will do. Ready?"

Another flare of gold and he tossed the weapon into the air. It spun around and sped faster than an arrow towards the dragon, too fast for Arthur to follow, stopping in mid-air in front of the beast's eyes. The dragon and Merlin exchanged glances and the dagger flew back, faster than before, Merlin's eyes glowed and the dagger shot to a stop, quivering in mid-air in front of him, inches from his face.

Merlin smiled slightly, a challenge, and then Arthur could see nothing but a blur of movement as the dagger shot back and forth repeatedly without striking either opponent, until with a rapid turn too fast to see, Merlin stepped to the side and caught the weapon with one hand easily. "Stalemate, Kilgharrah. Let's try again. This time make sure you shield yourself."

And it was on again, but this time Merlin darted around the clearing, vanishing and reappearing as the dagger zipped from one side to the other, and even Arthur could see the dragon was beginning to struggle to keep up with the warlock's quick movements. Then all of a sudden, eyes blazing, Merlin threw his hands up and shouted "Bídsteall!" and the dagger shot to a stop in front of the dragon and dropped to the ground.

Merlin tipped his head to one side and regarded the dragon cautiously. "Did I just penetrate your defences?"

"Not quite." The response was a bit petulant.

"Oh." A pause. "Do you want to continue? I'd like to go back to the using fire again, Morgause uses it, I want to see how long I can hold the shield and try some defensive magic on you at the same time."

"Your concern is misplaced, young warlock. Begin." And he shot a ball of fire again, but with a single word and a flicker of gold Merlin stopped it as easily as he had before.

From within the shield, Merlin spoke. "I'm going to see how long I can hold it. Do whatever you can to break through."

Again the dragon sent his flames, the fire burned and twisted, whipping around the shield, nudging and stabbing as it tried to find a weakness in the barrier. It reared up and arched down, surrounding and pressing, trying to find a way in.

"Hey, not near my feet! What did I say about the grass? You're not going to get through there anyway, the shield goes beneath the ground!"

The fire grew in intensity, fierce and aggressive, tongues of hell blazing, the heat radiating off and warming the entire clearing, an inferno around him.

Merlin smiled at the dragon again.

He yawned, and stretched.

Then he turned his back on the dragon, and scuffed the tip of his boot with deliberate nonchalance against the earth. "Come on Kilgharrah, are you really trying?"

The dragon crept closer, then with one quick movement he lurched up and swung a huge foreleg at the small figure on the ground in front of him. It was too much, Arthur knew what would happen, he'd seen it before and it meant death, he found himself recoiling in horror, the words ripped from him, "No, no! Merlin! No!"

Arthur was shoving Lancelot aside and tearing through the bushes before he realised the sound was coming from him. He saw Merlin twist in astonishment at the interruption, then freeze in sheer dread at the sight of the prince.

Then it all went to hell.

Still with me? Anyway if you've read thus far and want to know the old english then rough translations are:

"O drakon, I ácíege on unc nú mín woruldfréond, æledléoma bryne, harké tó mé! Mín fæderencyn! Kilghárráh!" OH DRAGON, I CALL ON YOU NOW MY FRIEND, FIRE BURNING, HARKEN TO ME! MY KIN! KILGHARRAH!

"Amundae!" PROTECT

"Bídsteall!" HALT