Pati pt.3

Hello, hope you are having a good day.

"A few days at the most." Balinor sighed. "The more encouraging we are, the better."

Then Merlin started coughing. Balinor went to him and helped him sit up. Blood dripped out of his mouth.

"Give me the tea on the table." Balinor ordered. Arthur grabbed it and handed it to Balinor. Balinor put the cup against Merlin's blue lips. "Drink this, Merlin. It will help." Merlin drank the tea. "Good boy. Drink all of it."

When Merlin finished drinking the tea, Balinor laid him down. Merlin whimpered painfully.

"He's so thin." Arthur gasped.

"I know. Keep him awake while I get some broth for him." Balinor answered. Balinor went to get the broth while Arthur kept Merlin awake.

"Open your eyes, Merlin."

Merlin opened his eyes.

"Talk to me. Tell me how you feel." Arthur suggested. Merlin shook his head and then touched his throat. "Does it hurt?" Merlin shook his head then started gagging. Arthur helped Merlin sit up while Gwaine grabbed a bucket and put it under Merlin's head. Merlin puked painfully for a few minutes. When he was done, he leaned against Arthur. "Don't fall asleep. You need to eat some broth."

Gwaine took the bucket away while Arthur laid Merlin down. Merlin moaned and shook his head. Balinor came over with the broth. They managed to get Merlin to drink a little broth but he couldn't drink anymore than that.

"Come on, Merlin. You need to get some food in your stomach." Balinor sighed. Merlin didn't open his mouth. They forced Merlin to drink some more. When he had finally finished the bowl, he fell asleep.

"Will he be ok?" Arthur wondered.

"That will help him get some nutrients. He needs it. I'm going to use my magic and see if something's wrong n his body. There's some food at the table. Go eat something."

Arthur went to drink the wine. When he did, he gagged.

"Balinor, something's in this wine." Arthur said. Balinor came over and drank a bit.

"That's practically poison. No wonder Merlin can't use his magic. His body is under attack from this stuff." Balinor answered.

"What is it?"

"It's what sorcerers call poison. One sip and they can't use their magic for an hour. This wine is not wine."

"It is but they put a lot of this herb mixture in it. I don't know what it is." Deagal explained.

"It can vary. Even I don't know." Balinor sighed. Then he went to Merlin. "How much has he had?"

"I don't know."

"His body might be addicted to it. We have to get it out of his body. I'll need help making teas to help him get it out of his body. If it doesn't help, we might have to give him more yarrow and that will raise his fever."

The three made teas for Merlin to drink. Gwaine came in and noticed that Merlin's chest wasn't rising and falling and that he wasn't wheezing.

"Balinor, something's wrong." Gwaine warned. Balinor came over.

"He's alive but he can't breathe on his own anymore. I have my magic back. I can use it to help him breathe." Balinor explained. So he did. Merlin started wheezing again and Balinor sighed. H put his hand on Merlin's forehead. "He's burning up from the pneumonia."

"Can we give him something?"

"He has a poultice. I used magic to make it work quickly and help him more. I need to make another."

Balinor made a poultice and put it on Merlin's lungs. Merlin's breathing got better. Balinor smiled and kissed Merlin's forehead.

"Please, don't die. You need to keep fighting." Balinor whispered. He held Merlin's hand and Merlin squeezed his hand. "Keep squeezing, Merlin. Can you open your eyes."

Merlin opened his eyes but closed then quickly. He whimpered painfully.

"Head." Merlin whimpered weakly. Balinor grabbed a balm and put it on Merlin's forehead.

"Is that better?" Balinor asked. Merlin opened his eyes and nodded. "You've been poisoned. We're going to make you better but it's not going to be fun." Merlin nodded. "Do you want to drink some? It will help your magic." Merlin nodded. "Ok."

Balinor went and grabbed one of the teas. He went to Merlin and got him to drink some of it.

"You're going to be very tired but this is going to make you vomit a lot. I need a bucket of water and an empty one. Quickly." Balinor explained. Deagal did as he was told. When he came back in, Balinor was helping Merlin sit up so that he didn't choke. He gave Balinor the empty bucket. "After this, I want to give him a bath. It will make him feel better."

"I'll get it ready." Deagal answered. Balinor took an empty cup and filled it with water. He got Merlin to drink some. Merlin drank a cup of water before he puked everything in his stomach. Merlin grabbed Balinor's arm and squeezed as the pain inside him got worse. Balinor encouraged him and comforted Merlin. When it was over, Merlin was dry heaving. Balinor had been holding him and gently laid Merlin down. Tears and sweat covered Merlin's pale face.

"You did a good job. Let's get you cleaned up."

"Weak." Merlin breathlessly panted.

"I know." Balinor whispered.

"The water's ready." Deagal said. Balinor picked Merlin up and carried him to the tub. He put him in and Deagal poured the water into the tub. Balinor cleaned Merlin up.

"Grab the lavender."

Deagal grabbed the lavender and gave it to Balinor. Balinor put it in the water and could feel Merlin calm down at the scent.

"Does that help?" Balinor asked. Merlin nodded. When Balinor was done cleaning Merlin, He got Merlin out and put him in bed. He treated and bandaged Merlin's wounds as Merlin fell asleep. When Bainor was done, he turned to the knights and Arthur. "It's been a long day. Go get some rest."

"We can watch over him. You should rest first." Elyan suggested.

"I don't think I'll be able to. He's my son. I can't leave him."

"I'll stay and help. The others can rest."

"Ok."

Everyone but Elyan and Balinor went to get some rest.

"What should we do?" Elyan asked.

"Do whatever we can to help him recover. The night is going to be hard for him. He'll need help." Balinor sighed.

TBC