Hello there.. Sorry for the huge delay, yet again. I've been incredibly busy lately.. But today I've barricaded my door and am doing what I want for a change. Hah! Thus, no more delays! Here is the final chapter of The Blood Potion! Hope you enjoy! PMs and Reviews are encouraged and even more appreciated!

A MASSIVE THANKS to Ddiwerth for taking the time in her already insanely busy life to Beta this for me! This is for you, sis! You rock!

Enjoy~!

.*.

"Are you sure about this?" Arthur asked uneasily, for the umpteenth time, looking at his knight. He trusted the man with his own life, and he knew there was no way around what was about to happen, but he couldn't help asking.

"Believe me, if you had slept as much outdoors as I have.. Let's just say, I've had my fair share of it." Gwaine grumbled. "More than I care to remember." His words weren't backed up by his usually buoyant attitude. He looked up at his king after a moment, and held his glance a bit longer. „He knows what he's doing.." he said in a low tone. Partly because he thought it was what the man wanted to hear, partly because he wanted to believe it too.

They were all tense and in a hurry.

"Found it!" A young knight was running towards them with a bundle of plants, and he sank to his knees as soon as he reached the fireplace. He urgently picked the small leaves to prepare something out of them in a small mortar, all the while stealing glances to the side. He already had a myriad of roots and berries around him, and Merlin's physician's basket was laying open next to him, with various vials and bottles of different colours and contents.

Arthur could only look on, feeling irritated - and as much as he hated to admit, rather useless. He rubbed his eyes and his forehead, and pinched the bridge of his nose; a headachewasbuilding with a force, and Gods know, he really didn't need it right now.

He turned to look over their source of worry. Right where Percival was crouching, there was a blanket rolled out and a shivering body was lying on it.

Arthur turned back again to look at his two knights by the fireplace.

The younger one was still fiddling with the herbs and mortar, and occasionally mumbling something to himself, - repeating herb names and recipes and such, so he said; - and while it made the king tense, he knew better than to vent and let his frustration get the better of him. He was their best bet at this moment, even if it made Arthur feel just a bit uneasy.

He peered at Gwaine instead, and swallowed as the knight was holding a freshly sharpened knife to the fire. He felt himself getting more nervous, just looking at the thing; but he had to agree it had served its purposes well, and it would come in handy again, if everything went as planned.

The man dipped the blade in a herby liquid again, letting it hiss for a moment, and then held it to the flames once more, following the instructions of the young knight. „That makes it three times, mate," he said, and the younger knight looked up at him for a moment, then nodded. „Almost ready.."

It felt like hours had passed, but the sun had barely moved since they got to the clearing. There was no time to run for a physician and get help; yet they needed help, and urgently, and for all his knowledge and training, Arthur had to rely on his trust in his men.

"Alright.. that should do it," Gwaine said with unusual soberness, rousing the king from his own thoughts. The young knight looked up as well. He nodded again, vigorously bashing some odd shaped berries into a pulp in the mortar and mixing it with the rest of the green mash. The next moment however, they all turned to the sudden sounds coming from the blanket.

The body tensed, arched, and after a slight whimper and a horrible, guttural cough, blood seeped from his mouth. Arthur was next to him in an instant.

"Merlin!"

As Percival turned him onto his side more blood escaped from his mouth, and he continued to shake and cough; huffing in-between and moaning incomprehensible words through chattering teeth.

"Don't move him!" Gwaine yelled.

"He'll suffocate if we don't!" the king hissed, all attention on his manservant's tense form, curled on the ground. Merlin didn't wake, not really; as he hadn't woken the other times he'd had a fit. He would just groan and squirm with agony. Sometimes he would speak and even open his eyes, but never quite got out of it; other times he would just whimper; and there was a time when he.. Arthur shook his head. No time to think about that now.

Once the coughing and retching stopped, they turned him back to lay on his back and Arthur noted that he was looking worse with each passing minute.

He was drenched in sweat, face puffy, black hair sticking to his clammy forehead, visibly shivering, in waves; sometimes as strong as shakes other times subsiding to mere trembles, barely noticeable. There was almost no colour in his face, and that was now even more contrasted by the angry red blood dirtying the side of his mouth and cheek. Eyes closed, yet rolling, making it obvious that he was seeing nightmares.

"What's taking so long?!" Arthur bellowed, not even turning towards the camp fire, instead wiping the blood off his servant's cheek. He didn't want to think how long the man would be able to last. Time was pressing and all he could do was wait. He cursed under his breath. If only they had noticed it sooner! If only..

Just then, Gwaine appeared next to him, and he knelt down without a word. The young knight settled on the servant's other side, setting the mortar and a cup down next to him, and Arthur could have sworn the cup looked like the dark liquid in it was boiling and bubbling inside, despite it never being close to the flames.

The scruffy knight grabbed the flask from his side, and took a great gulp out of it, sending an apologetic glance towards the king. – Arthur suspected Gwaine rarely kept water in his water-flask. He then paused and took a breath, quickly thinking through what he was about to do.

"'Should.. get him to bite down on something.. " Gwaine said with a grim face, his complexion also a little pale, sparing only a quick glimpse for each of them, then his eyes became fixed on Merlin's torn trousers; specifically where it was ripped and pulled open at his right thigh, a belt firmly tied around it, just above the seeping bite-mark of a snake. "And you're going to have to hold him down.. " he added, though it was unnecessary.

He poured some of the flask's contents on the wound, and placed a hand on his friend, then only waited but a moment until they all got ready and took a firm grip of the lying form.

Gwaine leaned close with the knife, and the next minute they did their best to ignore the stench of burnt flesh, the shrieks of pain and thrashing as they held down the servant and did what had to be done.

.*.

He woke. He was in the forest. The myriad of smells and constant birdsong gave it away sooner than he caught a glimpse of it, and it was all very strong and vivid, as if his sense of smell had intensified for some reason. Something nearby stank horribly, the rest was probably animals and the woods. It was all very intense.

Alright.. So it's a forest this time.. –Merlin refused to get his hopes up.

He had a wet cloth on his forehead, which had slipped a little over his eyes. He clumsily lifted his hand and found the cloth to remove it, but he still couldn't see a thing.

It was dark. His eyes were aching with it.

He wondered if he was in a cave, or whether it was night-time; and if so, where were all the stars and the moon? Even in the darkest night he could usually make out some vague shapes, but this time there was nothing.

There were noises and ruffling in the background; bird sounds in the distance; low voices and horses huffing. He could smell fire and heard the wood crackling in the flames, yet he saw nothing of it.

He was starting to panic before the thought even took shape in his mind.

He'd gone blind!

„Merlin?" Someone asked, and it just prompted him to bolt.

His eyes went wide from trying to find whoever was talking to him. He attempted to get up, but was hit by horrible nausea and felt incredibly disoriented, as if the ground was moving under him. He was clawing the soil for fear of being thrown off the very earth he was lying on. His thigh felt torn and on fire and he couldn't help but let out a yelp when he moved it. His muscles ached and the sweat that covered him was cold and uncomfortable; the blanket over him seemed to weigh him down even more. It was painful and uncomfortable, no matter how he moved. His stomach was doing somersaults and threatened to get rid of its contents.

„Merlin!" A hand reached him and squeezed his shoulder. „Calm down.." It didn't feel threatening, but it still frightened him, and he tried to shake it off and pull away. Howwashe going to defend himself against all the weird things if he couldn't even see what was coming?

„St..ayawwway..!" His voice sounded foreign to his own ears; like something caught between a gasp and a crumpling piece of parchment.

„Merlin!" Arthur's voice called out to him again, and the hand moved to his chest, effectively pinning him down. He grabbed the kings' wrist and tried to push him off, but his attempts had no effect. He heard footsteps and voices and felt terrified of whatever was approaching him. He gave the hand another tug, but it didn't move. He noted to himself that he was probably not in the best of strength, and was already panting and exhausted from the struggle, thus he stopped fidgeting, but held on to Arthur. It felt real. It felt strangely real.

Come what may..

He reached up to his eyes with one hand, with a morbid idea to check if they were still there. All seemed right, besides the pain, he just ..

"I.. I.. can't see.." he croaked and there was silence. He squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again, but it made no difference.

The hand pulled away from his chest and he felt a swish of air on his face. He guessed the king was waving a hand in front of him. He blinked, but his eyes were sightless and the darkness remained.

"What now?" He heard Arthur's voice turning towards someone and there was nervous fidgeting. The warlock sensed someone approach and lean closer before touching his face. The cold fingers pulled his eyelids apart and the unknown owner looked into his eyes for a little longer then the warlock felt comfortable with. He heard fingers snap at his left ear, then the same noise on the other side of his head, and he tried to look what it was. He felt his eyes move, but he didn't see anything.

"I'm.." The young man cleared his throat, before he continued. "I believe it's only temporary.." He spoke softly, almost fearfully, and Merlin thought he had recognised him somehow.

"It's quite rare." A voice sounding like Leon spoke from the side. "But I have heard of blindness occurring after a snake bite.."

They were silent and stunned for a moment.

Snake bite..?

"At least you're alive, mate.." Gwaine spoke up from somewhere above him, and a hand squeezed his shoulder. There was a murmur, but the servant closed his eyes. It hurt less than to keep them open. Whatever would happen would happen, whether he could see it coming or not. But.. snake bite? What snake bite..?

Merlin slowly started to realise what this could mean, clumsily putting the pieces together, but before he could speak up or even ask if he really was awake, the king's voice intruded. "You should get some more rest.." The servant's eyes shot open at that.

"No..!" Merlin shook his head and attempted to sit up again, even though the movement made white flashes dance in front for his eyes and he was aching horribly all over. "I don't.. want to.." Going back to sleep was the last thing on his mind, and he fought the hands on him, tried to shrug off the grips on his arms, the whole time embarrassingly aware that he wasn't actually putting up a serious fight. They had him back on the ground in no time.

He waited, almost expecting something to attack, for Morgana's cooing voice to sound, to find himself in a strange place with someone or something staring uncomfortably, or something about to crawl out and devour him from an impossible place. But nothing like that happened.

"You still need rest, you idiot.." Arthur spoke, part irate, part worried, and the warlock felt his strong palm on his chest, right above his hammering heart, holding him to the ground. Merlin gripped his wrist and tried to remove it again, for fear of giving away how frightened he felt, but he was out of breath even before the struggle began and he felt like he was going to cry. He already felt his eyes getting wet and even breathing was making him dizzy.

Arthur must have sensed his distress, because the next moment the hand disappeared from his chest and Merlin felt the callused palms on either side of his face, and from the warm gush of air he guessed the king had leant close to him as well, probably looking into his unseeing eyes.

"You are alive and you will get through this," he said firmly, as if giving an order to a knight. "You need to rest now. I need you to recover."

Merlin nodded slightly, speechless at the king's concern, but determined to stay wide awake, blind or not. However, he started to notice something. One of the hands on him was warmer than the others; much warmer, almost uncomfortably hot, and the heat was spreading and it was gripping his ankle and it was soothing and frightening at the same time, and he could have sworn he heard chanting.

I don't want to go back to sleep.. He wanted to say, but he slowly drifted off. Head tilted slightly to the side and the rugged blanket on the hard wood felt like the most comfortable thing he had ever laid his head on to rest. Fear only lasted but a glimpse, and he was deep in a dark and dreamless sleep.

.*.

Forrest.. again.Merlin noted absentmindedly.

He was shivering and tried to pull the blanket tighter around himself, though he was certain he didn't accomplish much of it, it only seemed to cover his torso and he felt chilled and wet. There was a cloth over his eyes and forehead again, smelling of something herbal, and this time he hoped to see where he was, as upon removing it, he could see some dim lights and motion around him. His vision was very blurry, but clearing slowly.

The first thing he spotted was the crown of trees, towering over him. Then carefully turning his head to the side, he saw the myriad of branches and greenery, and large masses of dark and brown colours moving about, which he soon recognised to be their horses grazing. A few more blinks and he could just about make out the saddles and shapes of bags and straps. Slowly glancing to his right he spotted someone wearing chainmail, crouched down by the fire, observing something sizzling that smelled like meat. The flames were bright and hazy, and he found it beautiful, though too intense to look at for long. He squeezed his eyes shut and turned away slightly.

He stirred and tried to sit up but realized he was too weak, not even able to hold his head up longer than a few moment. Eventually, his struggle ended in a groan and sank back onto the ground, his head propped up against a log under the blanket he was lying on.

The person in front of him picked his head up at the sounds, and on seeing the servant awake a smile grew on his face.

"Merlin!" He scurried closer to him. "How are you feeling?"

"Been.. better." He mumbled and just stared at the king. His mouth felt incredibly dry. "D..id we.. win?.." he asked and saw the king furrow his brows for a second before he replied.

"Yes, we won, Merlin.." His voice sounded a little confused, and the servant wanted to say more, but simply couldn't find enough breath in himself to say it. Instead he blinked a few more times, willing his eyesight to clear.

"Can you see?"

"Blurry.. but yes.."

Arthur's grin just grew and he sighed in relief. „Good.. good.." He patted his head in a clumsy way.

"He's awake?" Gwaine stepped into his vision, and Merlin couldn't help but feel an uneasy déjà-vu.

"You gave us quite the scare," the king said, unaware of the pang growing in the young man. Everything seemed eerily familiar for some reason.

"Wha'.. hap…p'ned..?" He asked carefully, and decided to give sitting up a try again, or at least pushing himself up on his elbows to get a better look at his surroundings, but dizziness made him reconsider. "Ough.." He squeezed his eyes shut and became still, willing it to pass.

"Easy.." Arthur kept a hand on his shoulder.

„This might help, mate.." Gwaine spoke, and the servant felt them pulling him then something soft and bundled was pushed under his nape. It wasn't like sitting up, but it did lift him enough so he could see better as he rested against it.

„Am I glad to see you," the man said with a grin.

"We found the snake, or rather you did, as it bit you," Arthur said, motioning to his servant's thigh. Merlin peered at the tight bandage around his limb, and noted it to be the source of the pain he'd been feeling. He touched the cloth carefully. It felt tender, even under the layers of bandage, and some blood still seeped through it. He noticed his hands were equally dirty.

Slowly things started to make sense, but he still wasn't fully convinced. Yet things seemed so distant from this moment..all that he'd seen and experienced. This moment seemed so very different.

He had read somewhere that a dream might just be seconds in the brain, despite the dreamer thinking it was much longer. If everything was a dream.. when did it all begin..? Merlin was deep in thought, trying to figure out the events.

"We weren't sure whether to move you or not," Arthur continued, as he brought a flask up to his servant's mouth and urged him to drink. Merlin instinctively flinched and tried to turn away; his uneasiness growing with each word and dreading that everything was just about to be repeated.

"It's just water.." Gwaine said, furrowing his brows.

"Noh.." The servant turned his head to the side and squeezed his lips tight.

"You need to drink, Merlin.." the king spoke again, a little fright and frustration rising in him. He was confused at the man's behaviour, but then something clicked. He held the servant's stare, then he took a few glugs himself to show it really was only water.

The warlock eyed him for another moment, then finally accepted the drink, realizing after the first few sips how thirsty he really was.

"Slow down.." The blonde had to pull the flask away a few times. The servant caught his breath and clumsily wiped his mouth, satisfied beyond anything he could express. He had felt so thirsty all along..

„I'm awake..? Really awake..?"

Arthur was taken aback by the question. Catching his knight's eyes, he saw the man felt the same way, but then he recalled the thrashing and mumbling, and figured his servant must have had some horrible nightmares to be so relieved to be awake.

"Yes Merlin, you are.." He felt sorry for him. So much so that he felt uncertain whether to tease him about sleeping on the job. Banter felt a little out of place.

Merlin sighed and closed his eyes, though uncertainty was still nagging at him. It all seemed too familiar, as if he had lived the moment before, and he was fearing falling back into the nightmare.. He needed to test it, and to be certain that what he saw was real.

'Do you know of my magic?' Merlin nearly blurted out, but luckily he realized in time that that wouldn't be too wise a move. "I.. don't remem..ber anything.. of what had happened.." he said instead. It felt like the safer thing to say.

"It's alright. You just rest now," Arthur said uncomfortably. He still remembered quite vividly.

„It wasn't all that interesting, mate." Gwaine pitched in, an unspoken agreement forming between the two, that if the servant couldn't recall what had happened, maybe it was for the better not to remind him of it.

„It's getting dark. We will ride back to Camelot in the morning, so you better rest up."

Merlin slowly nodded. He didn't really want to fall asleep, though he was feeling overwhelmed by fatigue.

"Mrg.. Morgana.." He swallowed hard.

"What?"

"I.. saw.. dreamt with.. Morgana," he panted.

„I've sent some of the men to scout, but there is no sign of her."

Well.. that sounded about right.

"And Lancelot..?" he asked, looking around, even trying to lift his head, though his eyes still found it hard to focus.

Arthur was confused.

"Where's Lancelot..?" he asked again weakly.

The king looked on with furrowed brows, then sadness settled on his features.

"Merlin.. Lancelot's dead. He's been dead for years.."

The warlock looked at him blankly for a moment, then as comprehension caught up with him, he nodded then closed his eyes, and the blonde man just looked on; wondering what could be going on in his mind. He glanced at Gwaine, but the scruffy knight seemed just as clueless, and decided to busy himself with getting more wood on the fire instead.

Arthur concluded that it must be due to the delusion that his servant would ask such a question. He took the cloth off his forehead; waving it around a bit to make it cool, while he pressed his hand against his skin, noting to himself that the servant was still feverish.

In reality, Merlin was relieved for his escape from the dream, yet sad about his friend. It reminded him of a decision that was taken out of his hands, and a situation that could have had a different outcome, if only he'd been stronger and more vigilant; if only he'd have taken a different path.. his failure wouldnt have cost him so dearly.

He must have dosed off, as the next time he woke was to the sound of footsteps.

"Here's the water.." a familiar hushed voice said, and the manservant opened his eyes in a flash to see Mordred standing next to the king.

"Merlin!" he exclaimed cheerfully, once he noticed the warlock looking at him, and quickly knelt beside him.

The dark haired man just looked at the druid, his expression blank and eyes wide, and he still seemed dazed from fever, but his thoughts were far from it.

So Mordred is still alive.. of course he is. Merlin felt a little dissapointed and silly for thinking the threat was all gone with the dream. He was suddenly reminded of the tiresome details of his reality. It was all nothing but a dream, and the druid boy is still alive.. that means the threat is still present.. the prophecy is still there.

However at that moment, said druid boy was very happy to see him awake.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like the dead.." The warlock exhaled and they all couldn't help but let out a little chuckle.

"You can thank Mordred you are not! Luckily he knew what plants to pick to fight the poison."

"Hey!" Gwaine cut in.

"Oh yes, Gwaine helped too."

"Thank you.." Merlin mumbled, and wondered how the image of the knight biting his thigh fitted in with him helping, but he decided not to mention anything, nor to think about it too much.

„I also rounded up the horses, so you will be happy to know there's nothing in the way for us to be getting back to Camelot," Gwaine continued. His enthusiasm was a little forced, but welcomed nonetheless. „I even found your Toscano, Merlin. He was standing around near a spring of fresh water. Smart horse that."

„Well, one of them has to be.." Arthur pitched in with a grin, and Merlin just gave him a lopsided grimace.

„Still smarter than you.." He mumbled.

All of it was a dream..

.*.

"I was really scared we'd lost you," Mordred said in a low voice, as he fiddled with the bandage on the warlock's thigh in the light of the campfire. The raven-haired man winced at one point, when the young druid pulled the bandage too tight.

"Sorry," he said apologetically, and looked up at him with a weak smile. "The snakewas magical; its poison enchanted. I used the herbs I told you about earlier, enchanting the tincture myself with the strongest healing spells I know. I'm sure Gaius will help more, but for now it's all Iwasable to do. Is there anything else I can do for you?" Mordred's anxious voice flooded into Merlin's battered conscience, and it made the warlock flinch at the sudden intrusion. It felt like the last thing he needed now was for someone else to intrude on his mind again, but looking at the younger knight he noticed his eyes reflected real worry.

"No.." Merlin blinked tiredly. "Thank you.."

"You're welcome, Emrys." He smiled. "After all, we can't bear to lose YOU."

Merlin was looking at him, pondering the decision he'd made so many years ago. Perhaps he should've let Mordred die. Perhaps he should've helped Morgana with her magic. Perhaps… perhaps all would be different. Maybe not quite like the dream he had, but who knew how things would've turned out, if he had taken heed of the great dragon; if he had chosen a different path on so many forks in the road he encountered.

He grew up; - but just what had he grown up to be..?

The druid was focused on mixing up some powder in a cup of water, and was oblivious to the warlock's scrutiny. He had insisted on checking the wound, and though unable to see very well in the evening, he at least could apply some more of the ointment and fresh bandages. He also made sure Merlin ate something and drank enough water, checking up on him regularly.

Maybe.. maybe he really was trying to help; maybe he did want to try and help Merlin and Arthur bring about the golden age of Albion, that so many prophecies spoke of. Maybe he did mean well, and all he wanted, like Merlin, was a little bit of appreciation and acceptance. A little bit of freedom to be who he was and live a peaceful life. But what of the warnings about him then? What of the words he heard so often about Mordred bringing on Arthur's doom..? The threats practically getting hammered into his conscience by Kilgharrah.

And who was he, Merlin, to decide the fate of so many.. wasn't that burden too much for one person to carry? Why didn't destinies ever leave room for decisions..? It just felt unfair..

"What is it?" The young knight took a glimpse of him then picked his head up in concern.

Merlin realized now that there were tears rolling down from the corners of his eyes. He clumsily lifted his hand and rubbed his eyes free of them.

"Just.. headache," he whispered hoarsely keeping his eyes closed, knowing the young druid was keeping a watch on him. He took a deep breath and tried to get some rest, knowing they would be on the move again soon.

Mordred looked on with worry; observing the warlock's features. It never occurred to the druid up until then just how tired and aged Merlin really looked.

.*.

The day started with a fresh morning, and none of them were more eager to get going than Merlin. He had soon realised, the more he came to his senses, what the smell around him was. The struggle had indeed been a struggle, which meant he couldn't control his bladder and other body functions. The knights had considerately avoided mentioning to him what was now dried on his trousers.

He spent a good amount of his energy wobbling to the spring to clean himself up as much as he could in the circumstances, with Toscano patiently in tow.

He ended up sitting against a tree, ready to pass out again. It was only his horse's nudging at his head, with lips flapping in an attempt to eat his hair, and Arthur's distant calls that made him grab the reins to pull himself up again.

Gwaine and Percival seemed to appear all of a sudden with flasks to fill, but the warlock had a feeling he'd never really been alone. He gave an appreciative smile and didnt say anything, however he didn't turn down the offer to help him get onto his horse. Even so, he was breathless and lightheaded by the time he sat up, and his wound was aching with renewed vigour. He was as ready as he would ever be to go home, and decided he would think about 'how to get off' when they got there.

They continued discussing the incident, patrol, bog, encounter, Morgana's snake and how it all became a dire situation that they could happily claim they survived.

"So apparently, as we came through the bushes, it latched itself onto your leg and bit you. I'm surprised you didn't notice though." Arthur finished retelling the events to fill in the blank parts for Merlin, while they were riding back to Camelot.

"What is it with snakes and that woman?" Gwaine grumbled.

Merlin let out a small scoff, and the knight was pleased he wore a half smile. Not quite the signature grin, but it was better than nothing.

"Least it's over." Leon said, rubbing his eyes.

"Yes, it's over.. For now," Merlin mumbled and gave off a heavy sigh. He made a mental note of how odd an experience horse riding was when one was feeling dizzy. His mind was still a little numb, and his brain banged uncomfortably against the inside of his skull at every bigger leap the horse took. He winced each time his thigh got jerked, but he was confident it was only getting better from there on.

The blood potion's taste was still all too vivid in his mouth, though that might have had something to do with the separate flask of concoction Mordred put in his hand to take a swig of, should he feel discomfort reaching unbearable levels while riding. Despite the fact that it was meant to help, every time he took a sip of it, he felt uncomfortably conscious of the careful glances the knights were giving him.

But he held onto the reins and sat as straight as he could in the saddle. Well, maybe 'sitting straight' was a bit of an exaggeration, but he did hold on to the leather band, and even if it was closer to slouched, it didn't seem like he was going to fall off any time soon. His vision and hearing were slowly clearing as well, thanks to Mordred's little 'quick fix potion'. He had to give him credit; the druid knight knew his way around herbs, and at that moment he was grateful.

The young man invaded his thoughts every now and again, asking if he needed anything or if he was feeling ill. Each time Merlin answered, trying his best to sound friendly, but knowing too well that he sounded anything but. Yet, Mordred was patient and understanding and put it down to Merlin being unwell.

They rode in silence and it gave Merlin time to think.

Morgana's spells were annoyingly accurate most of the time, so the warlock figured it out easily: there was no mistake, this time the attack was for him, not Arthur. Perhaps a little revenge for all the times he had pulled Arthur out of harm's way, and dodged Morgana's curses, and ensured her plans failed at the last minute. Or perhaps that time when he poisoned her; or killed her sister; or… Merlin smiled to himself bitterly. The list was long. And this time he came close.. really close. If it wasn't for Mordred and Gwaine.. He sighed and decided not to give it much thought, but he would have to be more careful and vigilant from now on..

However, for now, he just let his thoughts wander back to Camelot. His own bed, how Gaius was going to fuss over the wound and probably have him drink some horrible tasting potion, and how Gwen would mother him; telling him he should watch out more for himself. He smiled. He was glad they were going home. And he was glad his magic was still a secret. He would tell Arthur.. one day.

Lancelot came to mind, and as bad as it turned out, he was glad he got to see his lost friend once again, and Freya.. at least he got something out of it all.

"What were you dreaming about?" Arthur asked all of a sudden.

"Just.. rubbish," Merlin mumbled, staring at the path in front of him.

"Oh really? Because you were moaning at one point," the king said, trying to conceal a smirk.

Merlin glared ahead for a moment, until it dawned on him what he just heard. He picked his head up at Arthur in such a rush the sudden movement made his neck twitch, but all that seemed minor to the feeling of his ears burning. If that really was true, he had a pretty good hunch what he must've been dreaming at that time. Morgana's chamber..the bed.. Freya..

"No, I didn't." he barked quickly.

"Yes, yes you did," the king grinned and Gwaine snickered on his other side.

"I didn't.. It was a nightmare!"

Merlin looked at each of them in turn, by now his ears felt like they were on fire with embarrassment.

Damned be that wench.

"I'm pretty sure I wasn't moaning.."

But soon laughter ensued, and the others joined in.

"Arthur!" he snapped as the king urged his horse into a gallop. "Arthur!"

Merlin followed.

~The End~

.*.

And there you have it, folks~! I hope you enjoyed the read as much as I enjoyed writing it.. Please review, let me know what you think~ What you liked, didn't like, hated, loved, have guessed, were surprised about and so on and so on~ :) I love hearing from you~

And moving on.. Next update will be for 'Whispers at the Bottom of a Dry Well'; 'The Resemblance' is also in the works..~

.*.

Wee fun fact: I've recently read an article about Dolbadarn Film Horses.. Sound familiar? The beautiful creatures you've seen on the show are their horses~ And "Toscano" is the name of the horses that Colin rode around S04E01-02.