Chapter 1
Initially, Arthur Pendragon didn't put much thought into his proposal. It seemed simple to him - he wanted to marry Guinevere and so he would ask her.
The day he planned to ask her, however, his manservant George informed him that Guinevere herself was waiting outside and needed his urgent assistance. It was unlike Gwen to make such a request and Arthur got ready as swiftly as he could.
"I'm sorry to wake you so early," she greeted him as he stepped outside. "It's a friend of mine, Mary. She and her husband need help."
She led him to the Council Chamber, explaining as she went, "They live in Longstead in the Fiore Mountains. Their village has been blighted by some kind of... sickness."
Arthur noted her hesitation. "Sickness?"
"Perhaps it's best if Mary explains it herself."
Mary leapt to her feet as soon as the King entered, dipping into a hasty curtsy. "Sire."
"Please, sit down," Arthur instructed kindly. "Guinevere mentioned a sickness in your village?"
Mary perched on the very edge of her seat, nervous in the presence of royalty. "It has already taken three healthy men. My husband, John, he found one of them who died. A young, strong man called Aldref. When John found him he said he felt... a presence. An evil in the air."
"Sorcery?"
"Yes, Sire. I heard tell of your new Court Sorcerer and I thought... perhaps..." She lost her nerve then, shaking her head. "Forgive me. I have no right to bring such a small matter before the King."
"Not at all," he reassured her. "It's my responsibility to protect the people of this kingdom, whoever they may be."
"You'll help us?"
In answer, Arthur turned to a guard stationed in the corner of the room. "Fetch Lord Merlin and bring him here. Tell him it's urgent."
He was disappointed that his proposal to Gwen would have to wait, but the delay was worth it to see her so pleased with him.
Merlin and Gwen left for Longstead immediately. Initially Arthur suggested they take a contingent of knights with them, but Merlin laughed him off.
"What can they do that I couldn't?"
Given that it wasn't even a week ago that Merlin had used his magic to cause an earthquake under the palace, Arthur couldn't really argue with that one. He did persuade both Merlin and Gwen to take weapons, however, and was very smug upon their return to learn the magical beast which had caused the sickness in Longstead - the so-called Lamia - had been slain by Gwen's sword.
"Since when did you become this fearless hero?" he asked once she and Merlin had finished telling the tale.
"Well, maybe you just didn't notice before."
"You were equal to any knight of Camelot. I'm proud of you."
She beamed at him and his heart started pounding. This was it. The moment he would ask her. He leant in for a kiss, already imagining the words he would speak afterwards, imagining what her response might be-
"Ahem."
The lovestruck couple sprang apart, embarrassed, having entirely forgotten that Merlin was still there. He looked distinctly uncomfortable.
"Did you two want a minute alone or..?"
That evening, Arthur struggled to sleep. He had nearly proposed on a whim - and in front of Merlin of all people. Was that really the memory he wanted Guinevere to have of what should be one of the best moments of her life? Something so undeniably mundane?
Perhaps, he considered, he had undertaken this too lightly. Guinevere was an extraordinary person - she deserved an extraordinary proposal.
"So you want me to... what, exactly?"
It was the evening after Merlin and Gwen's return from Longstead, and Arthur had requested dinner alone with his Court Sorcerer. Officially this was to catch up on matters of court, but in reality he was enlisting Merlin's assistance in his plans to propose.
"When she says yes-"
"If she says yes."
Arthur drilled him with a hard stare. "She will say yes."
"Alright, alright, when she says yes... You want me to cast a spell. Doing what exactly?"
"Something special."
"Right. But what does something special mean?"
"The sort of thing you'd do at feasts or celebrations. Bright lights or butterflies... Or like when you covered the whole castle in flowers! That was quite spectacular."
"I don't really remember that..."
"Well, whatever it is," Arthur insisted impatiently. "Just... something special, alright?"
Merlin hesitated. "I'm still confused."
Arthur groaned. "What is so confusing?"
"How am I going to know?"
"Know what?"
"When she says yes?"
"You'll see it."
Merlin frowned. "I thought you said you were going to do it out on your balcony?"
"That's right."
"So... I'll be on the balcony too?"
"Of course not! You'll be with everyone else, out in the Courtyard."
Merlin's frown deepened. "Everyone else?"
"The knights, the council, the serving staff," Arthur listed off. "You and Gaius, any townspeople who wish to attend... What?"
Merlin's jaw had dropped open. "N- nothing I just... Aren't proposals usually just meant to be, well, two people? Maximum?"
Arthur sniffed. "Not necessarily. My father proposed to my mother at a tournament he had just won."
"And she... liked that, did she?"
"Guinevere deserves something special," Arthur growled. "And I plan to give it to her. Will you help me or not?"
Merlin looked as though he wanted to say something more, but perhaps sensed that his king was in no mood. He shrugged helplessly and answered,
"I'm at your disposal."
Unfortunately, Arthur's plan fell apart not long after it was conceived. A letter arrived after dinner that evening, bought by an urgent messenger from the Kingdom of Gawant.
King Godwyn, Gawant's ruler, had fallen gravely ill. Recent issues with his heart, which had prevented him attending the recent Summit between the Five Kingdoms, had already left him weak and now he had contracted a new sickness. His physicians were at a loss. As a last resort, his daughter Elena wrote and begged for Merlin's help. Astride Kilgharrah, he could get there quicker than any other sorcerer whose assistance they might seek.
"I could delay..." Merlin suggested as he looked the letter over in Arthur's chambers. "Leave tomorrow afternoon after the proposal?"
But Arthur shook his head. "What if the delay costs Godwyn his life? Guinevere would never forgive me. Indeed, I could never forgive myself."
Merlin left almost immediately, stopping only long enough to pack a few essentials.
"And this," Arthur proffered a sword. "Don't forget what happened with the Lamia. You won't have Guinevere to save your backside this time."
Merlin looked exasperated, but took the sword and added it to one of his bags, which he flung onto Kilgharrah's back.
The dragon looked reproachful, "I am not a horse, Merlin." He turned his copper-eyed gaze upon Arthur. "You I must endeavour to meet under less dire circumstances, my Lord."
"We must," Arthur agreed wholeheartedly. The only time he had met Kilgharrah previous to this was when Merlin was practically on death's door. "Perhaps you can attend my wedding celebration in some capacity?"
"It would be an honour."
Merlin hoisted himself up into position between the dragon's large spikes. "I'm sorry about the proposal, Arthur. For what it's worth, I think Gwen would much prefer something more intimate."
"Perhaps you're right." Arthur stepped back to give room for Kilgharrah to take flight. "Safe travels, Merlin."
"I expect to see a ring on Gwen's finger by the time I get back!"
With that encouraging sentiment, he and Kilgharrah launched into the sky, briefly silhouetted by the moon before disappearing altogether into the velvety dark night.
Taking Merlin's advice to heart, Arthur invited Gwen to dinner the next evening - just the two of them. As she entered the room, her eyes gleamed in the light of the hundred or so candles spread carefully around the space.
"Oh Arthur, this is beautiful..."
"Your dinner awaits."
He led her to the dining table. She smiled when she saw it was set with a meal of roast chicken, remembering the last time they had shared such a meal.
"Before you ask, no I didn't make that." He took his own seat, wondering if she could sense his nervousness. "I'm afraid I still haven't learnt to cook since our first dinner together. I do hope I've gotten better at knowing what to say to someone I care about, though. Guinevere, will-"
Crash!
Arthur's chambers trembled. He and Gwen exchanged a panicked glance, then rushed to his window to see what had caused the commotion.
"Aithusa?"
The baby dragon was huddled in the courtyard, her white scales almost luminescent in the pale starlight. She wailed pitifully.
"Af-urrr?"
Arthur recognised the strangled attempt at his name and turned apologetically to Gwen. "I think Merlin sent her."
And Gwen, ever understanding and completely unaware of what he had been on the verge of asking, just smiled and said, "Then let's go find out why."
Dear Arthur,
I hope this letter has reached you swiftly and safely. Aithusa is still young, but she can go fast when she needs to and I thought you should know as soon as possible - King Godwyn is dead.
The affliction that claimed his life runs rampant through both palace and city, laying low even the strongest of Gawant's knights. With his weakened heart, Godwyn never stood a chance - he passed away in the early hours of this morning.
Elena refused to leave his bedside the entire time he was ill and unfortunately her dedication means that she too has fallen sick. I have sent words to the Druids to come and assist the townspeople with their healing magic, but I would be grateful if you could spare Gaius too. I believe his input will prove invaluable in facing this epidemic.
I'll send word if there's any change. Otherwise, please try your best not to die while I'm away?
Merlin
P.S. Have you asked you-know-who you-know-what yet?
Dear Merlin,
I am deeply sorry to hear of King Godwyn's passing. Please give my deepest condolences to Queen Elena. Her father was a great man and a good friend to Camelot. He will be missed by all who knew him.
Unfortunately, Gaius left yesterday for the Northern border, to help treat an outbreak of pox. In his stead I have sent Gilli, laden down with a huge and varied selection of Gaius's books and potions, who I hope will provide the assistance you need.
No, I haven't asked Guinevere yet. My last attempt was rudely interrupted by a dragon slamming head first into my window, which dampened the mood somewhat. On that note, if you do intend to continue sending post in this manner, can you at least teach Aithusa some basic coordination?
Stay safe, idiot,
Arthur
The following week unfolded in a flurry of letters, with Aithusa becoming a familiar fixture in the castle courtyard. Often Arthur would glance up from writing a reply in his chambers and spot the white dragon through the window, preening under the attention of curious townspeople who had come to see her up close. Fortunately she had suffered no more mishaps since that first delivery, and seemed quite proud in her role of messenger.
Merlin's letters mainly carried news of Gawant and Queen Elena's health, but every so often he would refer to Arthur's imminent proposal. His suggestions ranged from helpful - you could ask her somewhere outside the palace so you don't get interrupted - to just plain ridiculous - what if you serenade her afterwards?
Slowly, Merlin's letters grew more positive. Queen Elena grew stronger every day whilst the druids, with assistance from Gilli, combined magic and medicine to help the townspeople. Suitably reassured, Arthur put his attention back on Guinevere; perhaps proposing outside the palace was not such a bad idea...
They left early in the morning, taking a picnic basket into the forest. Arthur set a blanket down and he and Gwen laid upon it, listening to the gentle flow of the stream beside them.
"Do you still dream of running away and becoming a farmer?"
He smiled at the memory of that particular conversation, which had taken place before he was king - what felt like a million years ago. "Less and less every day, now I have you by my side."
She raised herself up onto her elbows so he could see her smirk. "Is that the real reason? Or is it because now Merlin's not your servant, you don't have someone to toil away in the fields for you?"
"Not at all. Now I know he has magic, he'll be able to do even more work."
Arthur's hand drifted to his pocket and closed around the small band of metal that lay there. He had procured the ring the day before, following detailed consultation with Gwen's brother Elyan, who had cast it in their father's forge.
"Guinevere-"
"Oh!" Gwen pointed to the sky. "Is that Merlin?"
Arthur resisted the urge to groan aloud. There, skimming high above the tops of the forest trees, was Kilgharrah's familiar silhouette. Merlin's last letter had said he would be back in Camelot soon - but of course soon had to be the exact moment Arthur planned to propose.
His frustration soon turned to panic, however, for a distant figure had just fallen off the dragon and was now hurtling towards the ground.
"Merlin!"
As they galloped back to the castle, neither Arthur or Gwen spoke what they feared aloud - that they had just seen their dearest friend plummet to his death. With each pound of his horse's hooves upon the forest floor, Arthur's mind resounded with desperate attempts at reassurance.
He's a dragonlord. He's magic. He's stronger than he looks. He'll be fine.
The sight that met them in the Courtyard was an unexpected one. To the left, Kilgharrah, hunched shamefully in on himself so that he looked smaller than Arthur had ever seen him. To the right, Aithusa, who limped agitatedly in small circles, mewling in apparent distress. Between them both, doing his best to examine Aithusa's front left foot and looking remarkably well for a man who had just fallen hundreds of feet through the air, Merlin.
Arthur dismounted his horse and hurried to his Court Sorcerer's side. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Merlin answered absent-mindedly, focused on his examination of Aithusa. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"He is not fine," Kilgharrah grumbled from above. "I should have noticed something was amiss..."
"Oh shush. Aithusa, I think this is just a bad sprain..."
"H... uuurt...s..."
"She caught me when I fell off Kilgharrah's back." Merlin patted the young dragon's neck consolingly. "But the extra weight meant her landing wasn't as... uh... graceful as it could have been."
Aithusa hissed at that and Merlin chuckled.
"But Merlin," Gwen asked, looking as bemused as Arthur felt. "Why did you fall off Kilgharrah's back in the first place?"
"He is ill," Kilgharrah announced gravely. "The same sickness he was treating in Gawant."
"I'm just a little dizzy," Merlin dismissed. "It's been a busy time."
"Merlin," Arthur warned. "It is unbecoming for a king to order his court sorcerer to his chambers, but I will do it if I have to."
Merlin rolled his eyes. "Fine. But you're making a fuss out of nothing."
As he departed for his chambers, a storm cloud appeared overhead and started to drizzle. Another proposal plan scuppered, Arthur thought glumly to himself, and escorted Gwen inside.
The storm grew worse. Shrieking wind whistled through the castle and shook the windows in their frames, whilst outside rain poured and thunder rumbled. It was really quite spectacular and Arthur found himself mesmerised by the flashes of lightning outside his window.
Young King. Kilgharrah's voice echoed in Arthur's mind, making him jump. How is Merlin?
"Uh..." Arthur was not used to this method of communication, and hoped that speaking aloud was enough for the dragon to hear him. "Resting, in his chambers."
There is magic in this storm. Merlin's magic.
Before Arthur had the chance to even consider a reply to that enigmatic statement, there was a knock at his door.
"Enter!"
It was George, looking very worried. "Sire, Guinevere has sent me to summon you to Lord Merlin's chambers. He is ill, my lord."
