[Merlin] First Day Out (PG, 4545words)
Title: First Day Out
Fandom: Merlin (BBC)
Character/Pairing(s): Merlin, Aithusa (Kilgharrah, Gaius, Arthur, Percival)
Rating: PG (4545 words)
Warning: SPOILERS FOR 4x04! If you don't know who Aithusa is, don't read? UNBETA'D. Just cuteness. Because I needed cuteness.
Summary: Dragon hatchlings require more attention than people would suspect.
It took less than five days before Merlin ended up back at the clearing where this time, Kilgharrah was the one pacing about waiting for him rather than the other way around.
“I thought you would have been busy taking care of Aithusa,” Merlin commented, allowing the words to announce his presence even as he tried to disguise his worry behind the pleasure that came with that name. With the dark events of the previous months, Aithusa’s hatching was a pleasure to think about. He wouldn’t have left the baby dragon alone except for the fact that he knew it would be best for Kilgharrah to take him, because despite Arthur’s ascension to the throne, Camelot was still dangerous and dragons needed to be free. And Aithusa would never have been free with him.
Kilgharrah looked up, displeasure evident. “Young warlock,” he greeted with a nod of his head, his pacing coming to a stop. “It is because of the hatchling that I have sought you.”
Merlin frowned. “What happened? Is he sick? Is there something wrong?”
There was a moment of silence as the large dragon’s tail twitched in a manner that was unlike him, belaying the sombre atmosphere.
“He has...” Kilgharrah raised his head to look away from Merlin. “Managed to sneak out.”
Merlin’s first thought was of disbelief, because he had never been able to escape the Great Dragon, but a five-day old hatching managed to do something he couldn’t? Surely Kilgharrah would have bugged the poor hatchling in his sleep enough to make him go home, as he had managed to summon Merlin’s presence so many times. His second thought, though, was much more worrisome.
“Sneak out?” He echoed, drawing the dragon’s attention again. “But-- he can’t! What if a hunter finds him?” He paused at the thought. “What if one of the forest animals tries to eat him?”
Because last Merlin had seen the white dragon, he had been tiny enough to curl up on his shoulder and squeak a steady stream of happy noises into his ear and gesture happily, still too young to speak or even fly. And then he had nearly fallen off Merlin’s shoulder it was lucky Merlin caught him as the tiny dragon rolling into a ball and then flailing delicate wings in protest to its own precarious balance.
“He has passed the forests,” Kilgharrah said matter-of-fact. “And I know exactly where he is. Except...”
Merlin waited.
“You may want to look for him in Camelot.” The words were filled with exasperation. “He has gone looking for you.”
***
A few hours later found Merlin back in Camelot, panicked and searching through his spell book to find something, anything, that would help him track down a baby dragon before Aithusa was caught or trampled or eaten or-- the potential dangers grew more and more wild in his mind. Gaius had helped as well, just as frantic as he was until he had to leave for his morning rounds when the sun arose, stating that he had the full intent on questioning all of Camelot about whether they had seen a strange white winged creature around... as subtly as possible, of course.
It was just as well that Arthur was used to Merlin being late with his breakfast in the mornings, seeing as Merlin had no intention of leaving for his own chores until he had milked every minute of searching for the young dragon. It would have been easier if Aithusa was old enough to recognize speech, but Kilgharrah had told him the hatchling was so young that he was mostly like a human babe-- hardier than one and with better instincts, but it would take time before Aithusa would recognize even the dragon tongue.
“Aithusa,” Merlin tried anyway, frustrated at his own inability to track the white dragon down. He fisted the pages in his hands, eyes closed and calling. “Drakon.”
Silence.
He opened his eyes, dejected. Of course that wouldn’t have worked. It wasn’t as if Aithusa would sudden appear in front of him or something, and--
A squeak, and a tap. There were scratching noises that startled Merlin before he looked up at the window of the physician’s quarters to see the tip of what looked like a white wing before it flailed and scrambled at the stone edge, releasing another squeak.
He jumped up, nearly knocking his book to the ground as he ran for the stairs, throwing the window open and scooping the tiny dragon inside, eyes wide as he took in just how high the window was. There was no way Aithusa could have flown with his delicate wings, which meant the little dragon had climbed all the way up the stone tower.
“You--!” Merlin could barely acknowledge the happy sounds coming from the dragon in his arms, slightly larger than he remembered, now nearly the size of a small cat. “You shouldn’t do that! You could have fallen!”
The small white dragon squirmed in his arms, looking entirely nonplussed from the reprimand and curled a thin white tail around Merlin’s forearm with a content huff; butted his head against Merlin’s chest.
Of course. Of course he wouldn’t understand the dangers of being in Camelot, the dangers of falling to his death. Merlin couldn’t help his relieved smile, tightening his hold on Aithusa as if to reassure himself that the dragon was there and safe when he had been in such danger just be being in the castle.
“I’m taking you to Kilgharrah.” Merlin told him,and watched as Aithusa raised his head curiously, blue eyes uncomprehending. “Tonight. You need to stay with him, little one. It’s dangerous in Camelot and I can’t take care of you.”
Not to mention, Merlin was quite sure that he wasn’t supposed to take care of Aithusa, no matter how much he wanted to keep the dragon safe. Dragons should be free, should be uninfluenced by humans... even Dragonlords, if he could manage it.
He hurried to his room and set the dragon down on his bed amidst squawking protests before rummaging around for the remnants of breakfast with Gaius (which mostly consisted of dried fruits and porridge. What did baby dragons eat, anyway? He had way too much to learn if he wanted to keep Aithusa alive) and depositing that on the bed in front of the dragon, watching in relief as he sniffed at it curiously and then tentatively pushed his snout inside the bowl.
“Stay here, okay? You can’t leave here. At all. I’ll tell Gaius to look after you when he gets back, but...” Merlin trailed off, almost wishing now that Aithusa understood enough to obey him.
“Aithusa.” At this, the white dragon looked up and cooed, recognising his own name. Merlin held down a hand, hoping to emphasize his words through gestures. “Stay here.”
The dragon tilted his head for a moment in confusion, but then settled down on the blankets, circling around twice before he ducked down and wiggled against the unmade bed, eyes still staring up at Merlin.
After a few seconds and Aithusa staying in one spot, Merlin allowed a smile. “Good.”
He backed up slowly to make sure that the dragon would stay there, and then breathed a sigh of relief when Aithusa stayed there even as he stepped down the stairs, although the blue eyes followed his steps the entire time. He makes sure to close the door to his room, and then hurries to write a note for Gaius about how they had a ‘guest’ who would need care while he was gone.
And then he scrambled to run off to the kitchens to fetch Arthur’s breakfast.
***
Merlin planned on making as many trips as possible back to his room through the day, really, because he couldn’t stand the worry about Aithusa and the need to make sure he knew exactly where the white dragon was at all times. He had run back when taking the remains of Arthur’s breakfast back to the kitchens, just a quick stop to see Aithusa asleep atop his blankets, the bowl of porridge upturned on his bed all but empty, and the dried fruits gone.
He closed the door quietly behind himself and met Gaius’s accusing look sheepishly, barely managing to murmur out a weak apology before he had to leave again to accompany Arthur’s rounds with the knights, planning another visit after that before he had to start on his cleaning.
So it wasn’t his fault when Arthur demanded a bath after his rounds and after he got particularly mud splattered in training and then continued to nag at him to hurry it up as midwinter was approaching and it was cold and couldn’t he move any faster than that?
After five trips down to the kitchens, each time coming back up to the king’s chambers with two hot pails of water, Merlin felt like his knees and back were about to give out just to spite him for the abuse. He had one more trip to go in order to fill up the tub, but by then all the water he had previously carried up would already be cold. It was a really good thing he was used to hiding heating spells on the tub by now... he had no idea how other servants managed to keep the bathwater hot, especially in the winter.
At least, he thought wearily, the days were as short as they were cold. A few more hours and it would be dark, and he would beg off with an excuse of helping Gaius with some experiment or another, and hopefully be able to carry Aithusa safely outside the gates of Camelot and deliver him back to Kilgharrah.
Lancelot would have helped, Merlin couldn’t help but think as he sludged along. Lancelot would have been enamoured with Aithusa and would have run himself ragged through the castle to look after the little dragon and distract others from seeing him. It wasn’t a surprising thought to Merlin, but he was still hit by how much he missed the knight.
A cooing sound startled him as he was pouring the water into Arthur’s bathtub and he jerked his head to see Aithusa perched delicately at the edge of the brass tub, wings spread wide and bustling to keep his balance. The dragon straightened at Merlin’s attention, looking all too pleased with himself before he finally lost his balance and fell... straight into the tub of water.
“Aithusa!” Merlin hissed, quickly scooping up the dragon (second time in the day) as the hatchling squeaked and coughed, flapping useless wings and getting Merlin’s clothing wet. The warlock darted his head around to make sure he was alone in the room (Arthur was much too busy to wait for Merlin to draw a bath, so instead had left to get other things done until he was sure Merlin was finished before he would come back), before running fingers down the curve of the little dragon’s neck to soothe his squeaking.
“How did you manage to find me? Never mind, how did you manage to sneak away from Gaius?”
And how in the world had no one managed to notice that there had been a dragon wandering the halls? Merlin was sure that if anyone had seen Aithusa, the warning bells would have been ringing by now and there would have been mass panic over the rumours of a dragon, even if the dragon was smaller than the castle’s cats at the moment.
There was no answer from the dragon with the exception of cooing noises as tiny claws dug into his jacket and attempted to climb up onto his shoulders, the pale body curling around Merlin’s neck as he had not a week ago, wings outstretched and tail twisting in pleasure. Droplets of water (cold now) were running down the back of Merlin’s shirt, making him shiver.
Merlin raised a hand, letting the white dragon butt against his fingers. “Not really fair that you can find me any time, but I can’t seem to find you.”
It wasn’t that he expected a coherent answer from the dragon, or even an answer at all, but Aithusa looked all too pleased at the words, moving to rub his head against Merlin’s face, claws digging tighter on his shoulders.
“Merlin!”
The chamber doors slammed open, and Merlin quickly grabbed at the white dragon and shoved him into one of the empty buckets as gently as possible, wincing as claws scraped against his skin, drawing blood. Arthur stormed in, looking irritated until he glimpsed Merlin and his expression blanked.
“Are you drawing my bath or did you get into a losing fight with my tub?”
“Just tripped!” Merlin responded quickly, pulling at both buckets and getting up, making sure to duck around Arthur with the bucket containing Aithusa on the other side of his body. “I’m almost finished, just got one more trip to go so I’ll hurry up so you won’t have to wait in the cold and everything so bye!”
His voice got louder and louder as the nonsensical sentence went on, trying to cover Aithusa’s indignant squeaks until he was finally out the door and just gave a bewildered Arthur a harried grin before racing down the corridors.
***
It would figure, really, that he would run nearly head-on into Perceval on his way back to find Gaius (and maybe somehow magic Aithusa into staying in one place-- where he was supposed to be). The taller knight had a habit of helping those around the castle in need of help, and many scullery maids had taken advantage of his kind demeanour, smiling at him whenever he volunteered to take some of their heavier tasks.
It had started a trend with the rest of the knights, who had started to help around as well when they realized that being held in high regards with the servants meant better food, hotter water, and a warmer room and cleaner bed at the end of the day.
“Drawing a bath for the king?” Perceval said kindly as he steadied Merlin from falling over. The man was built like a wall, and running straight into him meant more damage to Merlin than to the knight. Aithusa was surprisingly silent on the matter of being bumped like that.
“I, uh-- no. Yes?” Merlin shook the daze from his head. “What? Sorry.”
Perceval just grinned at the familiar response (and Merlin was really going to have to work on his speeches if everyone had gotten used to his flustered manner), and then nodded at the empty pails. Luckily, Merlin still had the sense to hide the one with Aithusa in it behind his back slightly.
“Oh, that.” Merlin flushed. “Uh, just about done, really.”
“Let me help.” Perceval took the pail in front, and Merlin had to back up half a step to keep the other pail out of sight when the knight gave him an expectant look.
“That’s--” He couldn’t bring it within himself to refuse, not when it would cause suspicion and when Perceval was genuinely trying to help. Merlin was quite aware the other knights actively went out of their way to help him after Samhein and what happened with Lancelot (especially when Lancelot had been the one to go out of his way to help Merlin before, if only for a little bit each day so that Merlin could rant to him about things he needed to get off his chest or confide to him his magical progress), and he had accepted the help gracefully enough before that refusing it now would be... strange. “Actually, I was going to stop drop off to my room first to change.”
He gestured to his still damp (and slightly ripped at the shoulders) clothing with an embarrassed smile. The tall knight blinked as he finally took in Merlin’s dishevelled appearance, expression changing to one of concern.
“What happened?”
“Just slipped.” He tried to use one hand to mime a fall that hadn’t happened, but was believable enough considering Arthur ranted often about Merlin’s clumsiness (one that, Merlin had wanted to point out, he had pretty much gotten over a year ago. Or at the very least, he had gotten a lot better!). “Must have... caught on something?”
He had never been very good about lying when it didn’t concern lives, but Perceval seemed willing enough to let it go. But he looked suspicious as Merlin tensed when the scratching sounds started.
Not now, not now! Merlin thought frantically as he could feel the single pail in his hands shift as Aithusa tried to find his way out.
“Do you hear that?”
“Must be rats!” Merlin blurted, and then tried to inch past the knight, making sure to keep his back out of sight at all times. He nearly winced at the explanation, but then thought it was probably a better excuse than woodworms. “I’ll, uh, talk to someone about that. Yeah. Right after I get changed.”
Somehow, Percival didn’t look very convinced.
He gave one more nervous smile before he dropped his pretences and hurried away, turning around and wrapping both arms around the empty (except for a dragon) pail of water. Merlin tried not to breathe a sigh of relief at Aithusa’s silence until he had made his way down to Gaius’s rooms and shut the door behind him.
The moment the door was closed, he slid down to sit with his back against the wood, looking into the pail to see a pair of expectant eyes.
“You,” he accused. “Are far too much trouble.”
Aithusa stretched his neck and cooed.
“Merlin!”
He looked up to see Gaius walking toward him, holding onto a vial and looking as if he had been in the middle of brewing.
“You found him? Good.” The physician looked far too stressed. “I was going to find you and inform you that he had disappeared, but he caught me off guard and I couldn’t leave this potion.”
“He’s the one who found me, actually.” By now, Aithusa had his claws raised expectantly as Merlin reached into the pail to pull him out gently, the dragon clinging on to his jacket again, squeaking and butting his head against Merlin’s chest happily. “I can’t go out right now-- he’s just going to follow me!”
Merlin wasn’t even sure how Aithusa managed it.
Gaius looked disapproving, but nodded his agreement. “I’ll be needing you here for the rest of the day, then. I’ll send a guard to inform the king.”
Merlin slumped. "Arthur's expecting me, though. I kind of ran off in the middle of drawing his bath."
Gaius sighed. "I'll inform him I have a patient I need your help with, then. And that this area should be quarantined until the next day."
"Wouldn't someone think that there was an epidemic if you do that?" Merlin asked, curious even as Aithusa protested and butted for his attention against his chin. Merlin stroked his scales absentmindedly.
"Not if only one person falls ill." Gaius informed him, and set about making the area look as if it was in use, at the very least. "Then it has not yet spread to anyone else, and is contained enough to not inspire worry. It has happened often enough, after all. With all diseases, it is better to be safe than to be sorry when you don't catch it in time."
It all seemed very sensible, except for the nagging part of his mind that was protesting how Aithusa was not an illness. Instead, Merlin got up again, this time abandoning the pail to carry the white dragon, talking to him. "One day, little one, you'll be able to see all of Camelot without danger. You're going to be the dawn of a new age; the light of the sun. Then you won't have to hide anymore. You'll be free."
He cut off awkwardly at the end, not entirely sure whether he was making that promise to Aithusa or to himself any more. For himself, it didn't seem very likely. Not with Arthur's currently attitudes toward magic. But he carried on when Aithusa let out a warble of concern, wings drifting downward in sadness.
The silence was broken a moment later as Gaius patted Merlin on the arm consolingly. "That day will come. You just have to keep working for it."
"Right." Merlin breathed, and attempted a smile for both his mentor and his charge. He looked back to the blue eyes of the baby dragon and leaned forward, Aithusa meeting him halfway as he bumped his snout against Merlin's nose. "But not right now. Right now, you've got to stay out of Camelot and follow what Kilgharrah says. You have to work on growing up, all right?"
He wasn't sure if the white dragon could understand that or not yet, but it felt like it when Aithusa nodded enthusiastically, his entire body shaking with the force of the motion.
Merlin's smile turned more genuine. "Okay, then. Let's get you some food, and then we'll wait it out until nightfall. After that, you have to go back home."
Aithusa only crooned in response.
***
Arthur had sent the guard whom Gaius had given the message back with a grumble, carrying his words that Merlin would have to make up for everything he hadn't done the next day instead, but with assurances that he would ensure the physician's quarters not be disturbed for the night.
Gaius managed to make more porridge at the fireplace, which Aithusa ate more than half of, but Merlin was happily ready to concede most of his share just to watch the little dragon chase after each morsel. For the rest of the day, Aithusa was content to stay in the room, climbing onto furniture or following Merlin around raising his front claws up toward him to be picked up, and then scrambling to the edge of some height and jumping off, flapping his thin wings furiously in attempts to stay up in the air.
None of the attempts were successful, but at least Aithusa was slowly learn to fall without injuring himself.
And as night fell, Merlin managed to tuck Aithusa in his bag, padding the sides with extra clothing so that the little dragon wouldn't be jostled, and then wore his extra coat to ward against the chill weather, tucking his hands into his coat as he snuck out of Camelot and onto the familiar path that led to the clearing where he usually met Kilgharrah.
The Great Dragon was still there, waiting for him with gold eyes glinting.
"You were right." Merlin said in greeting. "He snuck into Camelot."
There was a protesting squeak from his bag, and he had to dig deep in order to scoop the white dragon out when Aithusa realized he was being handed over to Kilgharrah again, struggling against Merlin for the first time.
Kilgharrah held his nose close enough to the ground to be at chest level with Merlin, which was where the little dragon scrambled to be, digging his claws into Merlin's clothes and refusing to let go.
"Child," Kilgharrah rumbled, and Aithusa squeaked, hiding his head under a wing. Merlin couldn't help but smile at that. "You're far too young to be wandering off on your own. You must have patience. You will see Merlin again."
"You'll be sick of me," Merlin added helpfully. "With how much you'll see me. Ask Kilgharrah. I'm sure he can tell you all about it."
"Indeed." Came Kilgharrah's amused response, leaning close enough that Merlin could easily feel the warmth of his breath. "There are a great many things I have to teach you. When you learn it all, then you will be able to assist Merlin in a great many ways."
The thin white wing lowered a little bit, just enough for blue eyes to peer over and a questioning squawk to be heard.
Kilgharrah chuckled. "That you will."
Merlin glanced between the two dragons questioningly. "...You can understand him?"
The Great Dragon's smile was wide and unmistakeable. "He does not yet speak in words, but his thoughts are clear."
At that statement, Aithusa crooned, once again trying to climb onto Merlin's shoulder, although this time the warlock stopped him by stroking a finger down his neck, halting the dragon pre-emptively and the little dragon ended up laying his head against Merlin's chest instead, limp and pliant while being petted. Kilgharrah huffed a laugh at that, his breath warm and welcoming in the cold night. They stayed there like that for a few minutes, drawing in the warmth before Merlin reluctantly handed the white dragon over, trying his best to ignore the pitiful squeaking.
"Goodbye." He whispered, with one last lingering pat. "I'll see you again. Listen to Kilgharrah?"
“And do not wander off.” Kilgharrah said, stern. “You are very young and inexperienced. It would not do to have me chasing you about just because you felt the need to fly yourself into danger.”
The small dragon took a moment to flap his wings in protest before being interrupted by a yawn, one big enough that it nearly toppled him backward had Kilgharrah not caught him carefully with a claw.
Merlin can’t stop smiling. With all the things that had been going on lately... from Lancelot’s death to Uther’s death and Arthur’s declaration of hate for all things magical, Aithusa’s presence was a breath of fresh air. No matter how much he wanted the white dragon’s future to be as free and uninfluenced by the whims of mankind, he knew that he also wanted a part of the dragon’s life.
They were connected somehow, not just because they were dragon and Dragonlord.
“Merlin.”
This time, Merlin leaned up to look at the Great Dragon, whose attention was as focused as ever on him.
Kilgharrah smiled. “You will see him again. I do not think the young one would allow himself to be separated from you for long.”
Merlin flushed slightly. Had his thoughts truly been that obvious?
“You are the one who named him, young warlock.” Kilgharrah continued, turning his attention toward Aithusa, who had fallen silent in what looked like an effort to follow the conversation. “The two of you will always share something special.”
Merlin let out a breathy laugh. “...Yeah.”
He crouched down and gave more smile for Aithusa, reaching out a hand for one more rub over the warm neck as the white dragon cooed.
“I’ll see you soon, Aithusa.”
***
...Funny enough, Merlin thought somewhat grumpily a week later in the hours before sunrise, having been awoken from his sleep by an excited squeak and enthusiastic scratching against his window, he hadn’t expected it to be that soon.
...I should stop forever. But that episode was just taunting me for potential cuteness. Now I will go back to my smutty holiday fic 'cause I need to finish that before I start NaNo.
Fandom: Merlin (BBC)
Character/Pairing(s): Merlin, Aithusa (Kilgharrah, Gaius, Arthur, Percival)
Rating: PG (4545 words)
Warning: SPOILERS FOR 4x04! If you don't know who Aithusa is, don't read? UNBETA'D. Just cuteness. Because I needed cuteness.
Summary: Dragon hatchlings require more attention than people would suspect.
It took less than five days before Merlin ended up back at the clearing where this time, Kilgharrah was the one pacing about waiting for him rather than the other way around.
“I thought you would have been busy taking care of Aithusa,” Merlin commented, allowing the words to announce his presence even as he tried to disguise his worry behind the pleasure that came with that name. With the dark events of the previous months, Aithusa’s hatching was a pleasure to think about. He wouldn’t have left the baby dragon alone except for the fact that he knew it would be best for Kilgharrah to take him, because despite Arthur’s ascension to the throne, Camelot was still dangerous and dragons needed to be free. And Aithusa would never have been free with him.
Kilgharrah looked up, displeasure evident. “Young warlock,” he greeted with a nod of his head, his pacing coming to a stop. “It is because of the hatchling that I have sought you.”
Merlin frowned. “What happened? Is he sick? Is there something wrong?”
There was a moment of silence as the large dragon’s tail twitched in a manner that was unlike him, belaying the sombre atmosphere.
“He has...” Kilgharrah raised his head to look away from Merlin. “Managed to sneak out.”
Merlin’s first thought was of disbelief, because he had never been able to escape the Great Dragon, but a five-day old hatching managed to do something he couldn’t? Surely Kilgharrah would have bugged the poor hatchling in his sleep enough to make him go home, as he had managed to summon Merlin’s presence so many times. His second thought, though, was much more worrisome.
“Sneak out?” He echoed, drawing the dragon’s attention again. “But-- he can’t! What if a hunter finds him?” He paused at the thought. “What if one of the forest animals tries to eat him?”
Because last Merlin had seen the white dragon, he had been tiny enough to curl up on his shoulder and squeak a steady stream of happy noises into his ear and gesture happily, still too young to speak or even fly. And then he had nearly fallen off Merlin’s shoulder it was lucky Merlin caught him as the tiny dragon rolling into a ball and then flailing delicate wings in protest to its own precarious balance.
“He has passed the forests,” Kilgharrah said matter-of-fact. “And I know exactly where he is. Except...”
Merlin waited.
“You may want to look for him in Camelot.” The words were filled with exasperation. “He has gone looking for you.”
***
A few hours later found Merlin back in Camelot, panicked and searching through his spell book to find something, anything, that would help him track down a baby dragon before Aithusa was caught or trampled or eaten or-- the potential dangers grew more and more wild in his mind. Gaius had helped as well, just as frantic as he was until he had to leave for his morning rounds when the sun arose, stating that he had the full intent on questioning all of Camelot about whether they had seen a strange white winged creature around... as subtly as possible, of course.
It was just as well that Arthur was used to Merlin being late with his breakfast in the mornings, seeing as Merlin had no intention of leaving for his own chores until he had milked every minute of searching for the young dragon. It would have been easier if Aithusa was old enough to recognize speech, but Kilgharrah had told him the hatchling was so young that he was mostly like a human babe-- hardier than one and with better instincts, but it would take time before Aithusa would recognize even the dragon tongue.
“Aithusa,” Merlin tried anyway, frustrated at his own inability to track the white dragon down. He fisted the pages in his hands, eyes closed and calling. “Drakon.”
Silence.
He opened his eyes, dejected. Of course that wouldn’t have worked. It wasn’t as if Aithusa would sudden appear in front of him or something, and--
A squeak, and a tap. There were scratching noises that startled Merlin before he looked up at the window of the physician’s quarters to see the tip of what looked like a white wing before it flailed and scrambled at the stone edge, releasing another squeak.
He jumped up, nearly knocking his book to the ground as he ran for the stairs, throwing the window open and scooping the tiny dragon inside, eyes wide as he took in just how high the window was. There was no way Aithusa could have flown with his delicate wings, which meant the little dragon had climbed all the way up the stone tower.
“You--!” Merlin could barely acknowledge the happy sounds coming from the dragon in his arms, slightly larger than he remembered, now nearly the size of a small cat. “You shouldn’t do that! You could have fallen!”
The small white dragon squirmed in his arms, looking entirely nonplussed from the reprimand and curled a thin white tail around Merlin’s forearm with a content huff; butted his head against Merlin’s chest.
Of course. Of course he wouldn’t understand the dangers of being in Camelot, the dangers of falling to his death. Merlin couldn’t help his relieved smile, tightening his hold on Aithusa as if to reassure himself that the dragon was there and safe when he had been in such danger just be being in the castle.
“I’m taking you to Kilgharrah.” Merlin told him,and watched as Aithusa raised his head curiously, blue eyes uncomprehending. “Tonight. You need to stay with him, little one. It’s dangerous in Camelot and I can’t take care of you.”
Not to mention, Merlin was quite sure that he wasn’t supposed to take care of Aithusa, no matter how much he wanted to keep the dragon safe. Dragons should be free, should be uninfluenced by humans... even Dragonlords, if he could manage it.
He hurried to his room and set the dragon down on his bed amidst squawking protests before rummaging around for the remnants of breakfast with Gaius (which mostly consisted of dried fruits and porridge. What did baby dragons eat, anyway? He had way too much to learn if he wanted to keep Aithusa alive) and depositing that on the bed in front of the dragon, watching in relief as he sniffed at it curiously and then tentatively pushed his snout inside the bowl.
“Stay here, okay? You can’t leave here. At all. I’ll tell Gaius to look after you when he gets back, but...” Merlin trailed off, almost wishing now that Aithusa understood enough to obey him.
“Aithusa.” At this, the white dragon looked up and cooed, recognising his own name. Merlin held down a hand, hoping to emphasize his words through gestures. “Stay here.”
The dragon tilted his head for a moment in confusion, but then settled down on the blankets, circling around twice before he ducked down and wiggled against the unmade bed, eyes still staring up at Merlin.
After a few seconds and Aithusa staying in one spot, Merlin allowed a smile. “Good.”
He backed up slowly to make sure that the dragon would stay there, and then breathed a sigh of relief when Aithusa stayed there even as he stepped down the stairs, although the blue eyes followed his steps the entire time. He makes sure to close the door to his room, and then hurries to write a note for Gaius about how they had a ‘guest’ who would need care while he was gone.
And then he scrambled to run off to the kitchens to fetch Arthur’s breakfast.
***
Merlin planned on making as many trips as possible back to his room through the day, really, because he couldn’t stand the worry about Aithusa and the need to make sure he knew exactly where the white dragon was at all times. He had run back when taking the remains of Arthur’s breakfast back to the kitchens, just a quick stop to see Aithusa asleep atop his blankets, the bowl of porridge upturned on his bed all but empty, and the dried fruits gone.
He closed the door quietly behind himself and met Gaius’s accusing look sheepishly, barely managing to murmur out a weak apology before he had to leave again to accompany Arthur’s rounds with the knights, planning another visit after that before he had to start on his cleaning.
So it wasn’t his fault when Arthur demanded a bath after his rounds and after he got particularly mud splattered in training and then continued to nag at him to hurry it up as midwinter was approaching and it was cold and couldn’t he move any faster than that?
After five trips down to the kitchens, each time coming back up to the king’s chambers with two hot pails of water, Merlin felt like his knees and back were about to give out just to spite him for the abuse. He had one more trip to go in order to fill up the tub, but by then all the water he had previously carried up would already be cold. It was a really good thing he was used to hiding heating spells on the tub by now... he had no idea how other servants managed to keep the bathwater hot, especially in the winter.
At least, he thought wearily, the days were as short as they were cold. A few more hours and it would be dark, and he would beg off with an excuse of helping Gaius with some experiment or another, and hopefully be able to carry Aithusa safely outside the gates of Camelot and deliver him back to Kilgharrah.
Lancelot would have helped, Merlin couldn’t help but think as he sludged along. Lancelot would have been enamoured with Aithusa and would have run himself ragged through the castle to look after the little dragon and distract others from seeing him. It wasn’t a surprising thought to Merlin, but he was still hit by how much he missed the knight.
A cooing sound startled him as he was pouring the water into Arthur’s bathtub and he jerked his head to see Aithusa perched delicately at the edge of the brass tub, wings spread wide and bustling to keep his balance. The dragon straightened at Merlin’s attention, looking all too pleased with himself before he finally lost his balance and fell... straight into the tub of water.
“Aithusa!” Merlin hissed, quickly scooping up the dragon (second time in the day) as the hatchling squeaked and coughed, flapping useless wings and getting Merlin’s clothing wet. The warlock darted his head around to make sure he was alone in the room (Arthur was much too busy to wait for Merlin to draw a bath, so instead had left to get other things done until he was sure Merlin was finished before he would come back), before running fingers down the curve of the little dragon’s neck to soothe his squeaking.
“How did you manage to find me? Never mind, how did you manage to sneak away from Gaius?”
And how in the world had no one managed to notice that there had been a dragon wandering the halls? Merlin was sure that if anyone had seen Aithusa, the warning bells would have been ringing by now and there would have been mass panic over the rumours of a dragon, even if the dragon was smaller than the castle’s cats at the moment.
There was no answer from the dragon with the exception of cooing noises as tiny claws dug into his jacket and attempted to climb up onto his shoulders, the pale body curling around Merlin’s neck as he had not a week ago, wings outstretched and tail twisting in pleasure. Droplets of water (cold now) were running down the back of Merlin’s shirt, making him shiver.
Merlin raised a hand, letting the white dragon butt against his fingers. “Not really fair that you can find me any time, but I can’t seem to find you.”
It wasn’t that he expected a coherent answer from the dragon, or even an answer at all, but Aithusa looked all too pleased at the words, moving to rub his head against Merlin’s face, claws digging tighter on his shoulders.
“Merlin!”
The chamber doors slammed open, and Merlin quickly grabbed at the white dragon and shoved him into one of the empty buckets as gently as possible, wincing as claws scraped against his skin, drawing blood. Arthur stormed in, looking irritated until he glimpsed Merlin and his expression blanked.
“Are you drawing my bath or did you get into a losing fight with my tub?”
“Just tripped!” Merlin responded quickly, pulling at both buckets and getting up, making sure to duck around Arthur with the bucket containing Aithusa on the other side of his body. “I’m almost finished, just got one more trip to go so I’ll hurry up so you won’t have to wait in the cold and everything so bye!”
His voice got louder and louder as the nonsensical sentence went on, trying to cover Aithusa’s indignant squeaks until he was finally out the door and just gave a bewildered Arthur a harried grin before racing down the corridors.
***
It would figure, really, that he would run nearly head-on into Perceval on his way back to find Gaius (and maybe somehow magic Aithusa into staying in one place-- where he was supposed to be). The taller knight had a habit of helping those around the castle in need of help, and many scullery maids had taken advantage of his kind demeanour, smiling at him whenever he volunteered to take some of their heavier tasks.
It had started a trend with the rest of the knights, who had started to help around as well when they realized that being held in high regards with the servants meant better food, hotter water, and a warmer room and cleaner bed at the end of the day.
“Drawing a bath for the king?” Perceval said kindly as he steadied Merlin from falling over. The man was built like a wall, and running straight into him meant more damage to Merlin than to the knight. Aithusa was surprisingly silent on the matter of being bumped like that.
“I, uh-- no. Yes?” Merlin shook the daze from his head. “What? Sorry.”
Perceval just grinned at the familiar response (and Merlin was really going to have to work on his speeches if everyone had gotten used to his flustered manner), and then nodded at the empty pails. Luckily, Merlin still had the sense to hide the one with Aithusa in it behind his back slightly.
“Oh, that.” Merlin flushed. “Uh, just about done, really.”
“Let me help.” Perceval took the pail in front, and Merlin had to back up half a step to keep the other pail out of sight when the knight gave him an expectant look.
“That’s--” He couldn’t bring it within himself to refuse, not when it would cause suspicion and when Perceval was genuinely trying to help. Merlin was quite aware the other knights actively went out of their way to help him after Samhein and what happened with Lancelot (especially when Lancelot had been the one to go out of his way to help Merlin before, if only for a little bit each day so that Merlin could rant to him about things he needed to get off his chest or confide to him his magical progress), and he had accepted the help gracefully enough before that refusing it now would be... strange. “Actually, I was going to stop drop off to my room first to change.”
He gestured to his still damp (and slightly ripped at the shoulders) clothing with an embarrassed smile. The tall knight blinked as he finally took in Merlin’s dishevelled appearance, expression changing to one of concern.
“What happened?”
“Just slipped.” He tried to use one hand to mime a fall that hadn’t happened, but was believable enough considering Arthur ranted often about Merlin’s clumsiness (one that, Merlin had wanted to point out, he had pretty much gotten over a year ago. Or at the very least, he had gotten a lot better!). “Must have... caught on something?”
He had never been very good about lying when it didn’t concern lives, but Perceval seemed willing enough to let it go. But he looked suspicious as Merlin tensed when the scratching sounds started.
Not now, not now! Merlin thought frantically as he could feel the single pail in his hands shift as Aithusa tried to find his way out.
“Do you hear that?”
“Must be rats!” Merlin blurted, and then tried to inch past the knight, making sure to keep his back out of sight at all times. He nearly winced at the explanation, but then thought it was probably a better excuse than woodworms. “I’ll, uh, talk to someone about that. Yeah. Right after I get changed.”
Somehow, Percival didn’t look very convinced.
He gave one more nervous smile before he dropped his pretences and hurried away, turning around and wrapping both arms around the empty (except for a dragon) pail of water. Merlin tried not to breathe a sigh of relief at Aithusa’s silence until he had made his way down to Gaius’s rooms and shut the door behind him.
The moment the door was closed, he slid down to sit with his back against the wood, looking into the pail to see a pair of expectant eyes.
“You,” he accused. “Are far too much trouble.”
Aithusa stretched his neck and cooed.
“Merlin!”
He looked up to see Gaius walking toward him, holding onto a vial and looking as if he had been in the middle of brewing.
“You found him? Good.” The physician looked far too stressed. “I was going to find you and inform you that he had disappeared, but he caught me off guard and I couldn’t leave this potion.”
“He’s the one who found me, actually.” By now, Aithusa had his claws raised expectantly as Merlin reached into the pail to pull him out gently, the dragon clinging on to his jacket again, squeaking and butting his head against Merlin’s chest happily. “I can’t go out right now-- he’s just going to follow me!”
Merlin wasn’t even sure how Aithusa managed it.
Gaius looked disapproving, but nodded his agreement. “I’ll be needing you here for the rest of the day, then. I’ll send a guard to inform the king.”
Merlin slumped. "Arthur's expecting me, though. I kind of ran off in the middle of drawing his bath."
Gaius sighed. "I'll inform him I have a patient I need your help with, then. And that this area should be quarantined until the next day."
"Wouldn't someone think that there was an epidemic if you do that?" Merlin asked, curious even as Aithusa protested and butted for his attention against his chin. Merlin stroked his scales absentmindedly.
"Not if only one person falls ill." Gaius informed him, and set about making the area look as if it was in use, at the very least. "Then it has not yet spread to anyone else, and is contained enough to not inspire worry. It has happened often enough, after all. With all diseases, it is better to be safe than to be sorry when you don't catch it in time."
It all seemed very sensible, except for the nagging part of his mind that was protesting how Aithusa was not an illness. Instead, Merlin got up again, this time abandoning the pail to carry the white dragon, talking to him. "One day, little one, you'll be able to see all of Camelot without danger. You're going to be the dawn of a new age; the light of the sun. Then you won't have to hide anymore. You'll be free."
He cut off awkwardly at the end, not entirely sure whether he was making that promise to Aithusa or to himself any more. For himself, it didn't seem very likely. Not with Arthur's currently attitudes toward magic. But he carried on when Aithusa let out a warble of concern, wings drifting downward in sadness.
The silence was broken a moment later as Gaius patted Merlin on the arm consolingly. "That day will come. You just have to keep working for it."
"Right." Merlin breathed, and attempted a smile for both his mentor and his charge. He looked back to the blue eyes of the baby dragon and leaned forward, Aithusa meeting him halfway as he bumped his snout against Merlin's nose. "But not right now. Right now, you've got to stay out of Camelot and follow what Kilgharrah says. You have to work on growing up, all right?"
He wasn't sure if the white dragon could understand that or not yet, but it felt like it when Aithusa nodded enthusiastically, his entire body shaking with the force of the motion.
Merlin's smile turned more genuine. "Okay, then. Let's get you some food, and then we'll wait it out until nightfall. After that, you have to go back home."
Aithusa only crooned in response.
***
Arthur had sent the guard whom Gaius had given the message back with a grumble, carrying his words that Merlin would have to make up for everything he hadn't done the next day instead, but with assurances that he would ensure the physician's quarters not be disturbed for the night.
Gaius managed to make more porridge at the fireplace, which Aithusa ate more than half of, but Merlin was happily ready to concede most of his share just to watch the little dragon chase after each morsel. For the rest of the day, Aithusa was content to stay in the room, climbing onto furniture or following Merlin around raising his front claws up toward him to be picked up, and then scrambling to the edge of some height and jumping off, flapping his thin wings furiously in attempts to stay up in the air.
None of the attempts were successful, but at least Aithusa was slowly learn to fall without injuring himself.
And as night fell, Merlin managed to tuck Aithusa in his bag, padding the sides with extra clothing so that the little dragon wouldn't be jostled, and then wore his extra coat to ward against the chill weather, tucking his hands into his coat as he snuck out of Camelot and onto the familiar path that led to the clearing where he usually met Kilgharrah.
The Great Dragon was still there, waiting for him with gold eyes glinting.
"You were right." Merlin said in greeting. "He snuck into Camelot."
There was a protesting squeak from his bag, and he had to dig deep in order to scoop the white dragon out when Aithusa realized he was being handed over to Kilgharrah again, struggling against Merlin for the first time.
Kilgharrah held his nose close enough to the ground to be at chest level with Merlin, which was where the little dragon scrambled to be, digging his claws into Merlin's clothes and refusing to let go.
"Child," Kilgharrah rumbled, and Aithusa squeaked, hiding his head under a wing. Merlin couldn't help but smile at that. "You're far too young to be wandering off on your own. You must have patience. You will see Merlin again."
"You'll be sick of me," Merlin added helpfully. "With how much you'll see me. Ask Kilgharrah. I'm sure he can tell you all about it."
"Indeed." Came Kilgharrah's amused response, leaning close enough that Merlin could easily feel the warmth of his breath. "There are a great many things I have to teach you. When you learn it all, then you will be able to assist Merlin in a great many ways."
The thin white wing lowered a little bit, just enough for blue eyes to peer over and a questioning squawk to be heard.
Kilgharrah chuckled. "That you will."
Merlin glanced between the two dragons questioningly. "...You can understand him?"
The Great Dragon's smile was wide and unmistakeable. "He does not yet speak in words, but his thoughts are clear."
At that statement, Aithusa crooned, once again trying to climb onto Merlin's shoulder, although this time the warlock stopped him by stroking a finger down his neck, halting the dragon pre-emptively and the little dragon ended up laying his head against Merlin's chest instead, limp and pliant while being petted. Kilgharrah huffed a laugh at that, his breath warm and welcoming in the cold night. They stayed there like that for a few minutes, drawing in the warmth before Merlin reluctantly handed the white dragon over, trying his best to ignore the pitiful squeaking.
"Goodbye." He whispered, with one last lingering pat. "I'll see you again. Listen to Kilgharrah?"
“And do not wander off.” Kilgharrah said, stern. “You are very young and inexperienced. It would not do to have me chasing you about just because you felt the need to fly yourself into danger.”
The small dragon took a moment to flap his wings in protest before being interrupted by a yawn, one big enough that it nearly toppled him backward had Kilgharrah not caught him carefully with a claw.
Merlin can’t stop smiling. With all the things that had been going on lately... from Lancelot’s death to Uther’s death and Arthur’s declaration of hate for all things magical, Aithusa’s presence was a breath of fresh air. No matter how much he wanted the white dragon’s future to be as free and uninfluenced by the whims of mankind, he knew that he also wanted a part of the dragon’s life.
They were connected somehow, not just because they were dragon and Dragonlord.
“Merlin.”
This time, Merlin leaned up to look at the Great Dragon, whose attention was as focused as ever on him.
Kilgharrah smiled. “You will see him again. I do not think the young one would allow himself to be separated from you for long.”
Merlin flushed slightly. Had his thoughts truly been that obvious?
“You are the one who named him, young warlock.” Kilgharrah continued, turning his attention toward Aithusa, who had fallen silent in what looked like an effort to follow the conversation. “The two of you will always share something special.”
Merlin let out a breathy laugh. “...Yeah.”
He crouched down and gave more smile for Aithusa, reaching out a hand for one more rub over the warm neck as the white dragon cooed.
“I’ll see you soon, Aithusa.”
***
...Funny enough, Merlin thought somewhat grumpily a week later in the hours before sunrise, having been awoken from his sleep by an excited squeak and enthusiastic scratching against his window, he hadn’t expected it to be that soon.
...I should stop forever. But that episode was just taunting me for potential cuteness. Now I will go back to my smutty holiday fic 'cause I need to finish that before I start NaNo.