Aithusa tested her wings in the bright sunshine. She soared and dipped and soared again, joy blossoming in her chest. She felt whole. She was light as a feather. She cried out and her roar was loud and booming.

Her throat felt strange, like something was trying to get out. She circled above the men below, her eyes drawn to the two, Emrys and the Pendragon, the one who spared her life, and the one who'd summoned Kilgharrah to heal her. The one who'd set magic free, and the other who was magic. And both of them, Morgana hated. Morgana in whom Aithusa had put so much hope and trust.

Morgana. Aithusa searched the field for her, and couldn't see her.

The dragon squeezed her eyes shut. A great tug of war pulled at her chest and she roared above the battle field. And as she circled, a resolve came to her. She knew what she had to do. She turned around and flew west.

The Caerleon castle faded behind her, and she dropped lower over thick forest, her eyes scanning the canopy. At last she saw it, a twisted oak at the edge of a small clearing. She hovered in the air above it and lowered herself down. She was thrilled with her new agility and power. In the clearing, she walked steadily to the moss covered stone hut, and with one flap of her wings, she lifted herself on top of its roof. Her claws grasped the edge and with all her might she flapped her wings and pulled.

The stone and wood groaned and gave way, and the entire roof came off. Underneath, huddled on the stone floor and chained with the iron manacles, Mordred lay with his hands barely able to shield his head from the falling debris.

Aithusa roared and with her front claws ripped the fallen roof in half. Hanging from it, the oozing mandrake roots were thrown about like little hanging corpses.

When the debris cleared, Mordred lowered his arms and looked up. His eyes hurt from the sudden invasion of light. He squinted at the white dragon. It was stalking towards him, its fangs bared.

Mordred had passed the night in near agony. The shield the druids taught him had protected him, but he was losing strength. But he would choose to die ripped apart by a dragon any day than suffer another minute under the influence of mandrake. He flinched and closed his eyes once more, but Aithusa's teeth gripped the chains that held him and ripped them out of the floor. Mordred stumbled to his feet.

"You are free," the dragon spoke, her voice between and hiss and a roar. Aithusa felt her first words scorch through her throat, and they were true for Mordred, and they were also true for herself. "Come," she said to him.

Mordred stumbled towards her. The broken chains dangled from his wrists and ankles. He touched his hand to Aithusa's head, and in a flash, he knew he was safe. The dragon lowered her head and Modred scrambled atop her back.

"Oh, gods," he gasped as Aithusa lifted them effortlessly into the air.

...

Merlin, Arthur, Gwaine and Percival had left the western field and rejoined the main army where it had retreated south of the castle. They'd taken Alator's body with them to be given proper burial. The castle siege gate was up and those of Annis' armies that remained inside had sealed the citadel against invasion.

However, little effort on the Saxons' part was directed towards it. Since daylight had come, they had pushed forward at Camelot and Caerleon armies' backs, maintaining their advantage as the others retreated.

With Arthur and Merlin both missing, Leon with Elyan by his side did his best to hold his own and defend the newly gained point of advantage, the hill just south of the castle. But the men were tired. They had been fighting through the night with no relief, and slowly they were losing ground.

It had been hard to tell the Saxons' numbers the previous night while they attacked from under the cover of the forest. Now they swarmed out on the open countryside in great numbers. Sir Leon fought to keep the soldier's spirits high.

And suddenly Arthur was at his side, and with him Merlin still disguised as Emrys, and Gwaine and Percival, and Leon gave a great shout of joy.

"Sire!" he cried. "You are a sight for sore eyes!"

With renewed spirit they fought back the enemy.

A sharp cry in the sky made Merlin look up. Above them circled once more Aithusa. The knights pulled into formation to defend against her attack, and archers armed their crossbows, but Merlin held them back.

"Wait!" he said. He couldn't be quite sure, but he thought he saw something on her back.

Aithusa circled lower and lower, and finally she swooped down. She landed before Merlin. She shuffled closer, and tucked her wings about her. Mordred slid down her side and stumbled forward into the arms of his fellow knights.

"Dragonlord," Aithusa spoke to Merlin, her voice a harsh whisper. She bowed her head to the ground.

Arthur embraced Mordred. "Are you alright?"

"Morgana had me abducted, Sire. She held me in a hut not far from here." He glanced at Merlin. "She hoped to bend my mind with mandrake."

"How do we know that she did not succeed?" Merlin asked skeptically. "How do we know that you are not here to kill Arthur?" He pointed his staff at Mordred's chest. He had to be sure.

Aithusa stepped forward towards Mordred. "His mind is his own," the dragon rumbled.

"You think Mordred here is going to kill me?" Arthur exclaimed. "Well, there's only one way to find out and put your fears to rest." Saying that, Arthur tossed Excalibur, hilt forward, towards Mordred. Startled, Mordred stepped up to catch it. The chains around his wrists rattled. Arthur held his hands out at his side, and raised an eyebrow with a small smile. They stood close together, in the circle of the waiting knights.

Merlin held his breath.

Mordred smiled and gently held out the sword with both hands. Still holding it up, he knelt before Arthur.

"Sire," he said, and Arthur received Excalibur back from him.

The Disir had declared Arthur's doom lifted. Accepting that Mordred was telling the truth, Merlin held out his hand and in a blink, the iron chains that Mordred carried on his wrists and ankles snapped off. Mordred nodded to him in gratitude.

"And Morgana?" Merlin asked.

"She is no longer here," Aithusa rumbled, and her eyes reflected disappointment and regret. "The tide has turned."

"So, now that we got you back, can you fight?" Gwaine asked Mordred, clapping a hand on his shoulder.

"I can!"

Gwaine tossed him another sword. "Then let's go fight!" he cried. "I don't know about you, but I miss home."

"For Camelot!" Arthur cried and they followed him back into the fray.

With the knights at their side, Arthur and Merlin, shoulder to shoulder, opened a path into the enemy lines.

"I can get used to this," Arthur yelled.

"What? Gory battles?"

"No. Your magic."

"I thought you said I had no natural talents."

"Perhaps I was wrong."

"I'm sorry, what did you say? It's rather loud around here. I didn't catch that."

Arthur laughed. "I said I was wrong, you idiot!"

"Yeah, I thought so."

"Quit grinning, Merlin."

...

The road home was the longest Merlin had ever experienced. Emrys had left and soon after the battle and Merlin had feigned galloping back from Camelot to rejoin the returning army.

"Have I missed anything?" he asked the others, and they laughed and embraced him. Gwaine and Percival had finally filled Elyan in and then had to listen to their friend's complaints for being kept in the dark this long.

"I wish you didn't have to be two people, Merlin," Arthur said to him on the last day of their return trip. Camelot's towers were already visible on the horizon.

"I wish that too. But it is a small price to pay, and perhaps not for much longer. I have everything else I could possibly want."

"There was something the dragon said, Merlin," Arthur said after a while. "Something about you choosing to turn back and travel a different path. What was that about?"

Merlin glanced around nervously. He wasn't sure he wanted to have this conversation here and now, but the knights were a bit ahead of them and Gaius' cart a few meters back, and the rest of the army behind him. They rode on an open plain. There was no one around to overhear.

"Merlin?"

"I don't want to hold back any more secrets from you Arthur," Merlin started hesitantly. "Things didn't always end the way they did today."

Arthur watched him silently, something in Merlin's tone and the tense way his hands gripped the reins gave him pause.

"What do you mean?"

And Merlin started telling him the story of the original encounter with the Disir, the battle of Camlann, Mordred's betrayal, and Arthur's own death. He told him of the time after when he lingered in grief, and of finding Bri and the magic cauldron pool that let him return to, as Kilgharrah had put it, another path.

When he was finished, he turned to look at Arthur and found him parchment white. He saw him swallow hard. Their eyes met and held. Arthur swallowed again and looked ahead towards the horizon where the towers of Camelot rose into view in the golden light of evening.

When Arthur finally spoke, his voice was thick with emotion. "Merlin, I owe you so much more than I ever imagined. You saved me and you saved Camelot. You made all this possible," he said, nodding his head towards their home.

"It was you, Arthur," Merlin said with a smile. "You are the one who saved Camelot. All this time, I watched Mordred, agonized over his coming betrayal. I tried to save you from pitfalls without telling you what you were up against, without giving you the choice to save yourself. You're the one that saved the day, Arthur! You freed magic. You saved the dragon's life."

"I would have never made those choices without what you've taught me, Merlin," Arthur said shaking his head. "I would not be the man I am now without your counsel and without your friendship."

As the Camelot's citadel came fully into view before them, Merlin felt his heart full to bursting. They said no more words. No words were needed.

Their home was close and ahead of them they heard Sir Gwaine give a merry shout and spur his horse forward at a gallop. The knights' laughter rang out and they too picked up their pace.

"I'll race you!" Arthur shouted, his horse springing forward. And laughing, Merlin followed him close behind. When they entered the lower town they had to slow a little for the streets were lined with people waiting to greet them. Shouts of "Long Live the King" rose among them, and Arthur, despite his impatience to be home to Guinevere, smiled and waved and did his duty.

As they entered the castle courtyard, Arthur spotted Guinevere waiting at the bottom of the steps and he dismounted and ran towards her. She met him half way and they embraced and kissed, Arthur full of the new-found knowledge of that other timeline that Merlin had averted, where he had never returned to Guinevere. The knights cheered and Gwaine whistled suggestively.

"Now that's a royal welcome!" he called out, and the others laughed. Percival slapped him on the back. Merlin grinned.

Gaius had pulled up and out of the main doors and down the steps came Bri and hugged him.

Merlin, dismounting and leading his horse towards them, wondered if not a royal welcome, perhaps he might also get a hug. He came to a stop beside them and stood there awkwardly.

"Welcome home Merlin," Bri said, a bright smile on her face. She made no move to hug him, but held out her hand, and Merlin took it.

"What is that?" they heard Gwaine exclaim. "You call that a welcome? Want me to come over there and show you how it's done?"

Embarrassed, Bri let go of Merlin's hand and looked away. Merlin shot a look towards Gwaine who grimaced and shook his head, and whether it was in remorse or in disappointment, Merlin couldn't tell.

"When you have all refreshed yourselves from your journey," Guinevere's voice rang out, "you are all expected to dinner in the great hall."

The knights cheered again.

"Oh, succulent roasted pig with golden potatoes," sighed Percival, and Mordred who was standing beside him, closed his eyes, swallowed.

"I'll eat anything," he said.

"Flaky chicken pie!" said Gwaine licking his lips. "And a pint of ale."

"Gods, a bath!" grumbled Sir Leon and the others laughed.

"Yeah, Gwaine!" Elyan said slapping him on the back. "A bath!"

"Is that a hint?"

"Just sayin'."

Merlin turned to Arthur.

"I'll take the horses away and come help you," Merlin said.

Still holding Guinevere to him with one arm, Arthur turned and placed his hand on Merlin's shoulder. "No, Merlin. One of the guards can do that. And Guinevere's maid will see to my bath and clothes. Go rest up. You've certainly earned it. I'll see you at dinner. You're going to sit and eat with us. All of us. Gaius! Bri!"

"Sire," Gaius smiled and bowed deeply.

"But Arthur," Merlin hissed so that others won't hear him, "I'm still your manservant. I'm supposed to come and help you. Won't it look odd..."

"Just one evening, Merlin," Arthur said. "Besides, I want some time with my wife."

"Oh," Merlin said, cheeks flaming. "Right!"

Carrying things back from the cart to Gaius' rooms, Merlin and Bri walked in silence. Gaius had gone in ahead of them. Unsure and tongue tied, Merlin stole side looks towards Bri's profile as she walked beside him and found her inscrutable as ever. Had she meant what she'd said when they parted in Caerleon, or did she want that forgotten? Should he have hugged and maybe kissed her earlier in the courtyard, like Gwaine said? Darn, Gwaine, perhaps he was right! Perhaps she now thought that he didn't really ...

"I can hear you thinking furiously Merlin," she teased stopping a few feet outside the door.

The light was dim in the hallway where they stood. Her face was half in shadow, but she looked good, so good. Merlin wished he could just stand there looking at her.

"I'm ... that is," Merlin tried without being able to put together a coherent thought.

"I really am glad you are back, Merlin," she said earnestly. "I may not have shown it, down in the courtyard with the others..."

"You thought you'd be too obvious?" he asked and she gave him a lopsided smile.

"Something like that."

"I don't mind obvious," he said and mentally kicked himself for saying something so stupid.

"Then I suppose you wouldn't mind this." And she leaned across the short distance between them and touched her lips to his. They were cool against his own and soft, and Merlin felt a bolt shoot right through him. He was so startled he just stood there stiffly.

"Or maybe you do mind?" she said, pulling back, looking unsure.

"Oh, no, I certainly do not." He dropped Gaius' medicine bags to the floor and put both his arms around her waist, drawing her close. She looked so surprised, so unguarded, that he felt his doubts and shyness evaporating. "I'm sorry, could you do that again? I'm not sure I understood your meaning." He grinned at her.

"I'd say you're a little thick if you didn't get that," she answered tartly, but she was smiling.

He kissed her properly then, and her arms came around his neck, and he was still kissing her when Gaius came out of his rooms and stopped short in his tracks.

"I said to bring the bags in, the both of you," Gaius exclaimed, "not drop them on the floor by the door!"

"Sorry Gaius," Merlin muttered sheepishly as he and Bri reluctantly broke apart. They picked up the dropped bags and rushed beyond him into his rooms.

Back in the hallway, Gaius chuckled quietly to himself.