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Fic: The Wolf and the Phoenix (5a/7)
Title: The Wolf and the Phoenix (5a/7)
Author: dk323
Rating: PG-13
Word count: ~ 8,731
Characters/Pairings: Merlin/Arthur
Spoilers: Story is now considered an AU after 2x04, Lancelot and Guinevere. There will be references to later episodes, but some characters aren’t aware of certain things as they should be if I were following current show canon.
Most notably, Merlin doesn’t know about Dragonlords or that his father is one. So if that throws you off, then the AU nature of the fic is the reason why.
Disclaimer: The show Merlin is property of the BBC. The “His Dark Materials” books are property of Philip Pullman. No money is being made.
Summary:
In another world where everyone has daemons, Arthur is an exiled prince for saving Merlin from the King's blind crusade against magic. With Excalibur and magic on their side, Arthur and Merlin escape to a different world when the King's men catch up to them.
It's not the danger, but a damning prophecy that'll put their strong bond to the ultimate test.
A/N: A His Dark Materials crossover/fusion where Arthur and Merlin both have daemons. A daemon is a person’s soul that exists outside of one’s body in animal form. A daemon can speak as well. Further notes on daemons in Chapter 1.
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4
Chapter 5:
The Return Home
~ * ~
“I think that was the best sleep I’ve ever had,” Merlin remarked as he stretched in bed.
Switching to her phoenix look, Zlota flapped her wings, flying briefly to exercise her expansive scarlet gold wings. Then she landed on the empty space beside Merlin on the bed. The space that had been occupied by Arthur.
The daemon noted a bit worriedly, “Arthur’s not here, Merlin. And I don’t see Excalibur either. He must have taken it. He wouldn’t leave without notice like that,” she acknowledged.
Merlin agreed with her. Arthur wouldn’t be one to leave him stuck in another world without at least telling Merlin he was doing that. After all, Arthur was the only one who could handle Excalibur, the sole means they had to moving between worlds. Did that mean someone -- or maybe more than one person -- had taken Arthur by force during the night? And had prevented Merlin from waking up?
But then the questions helping to drive his worry over Arthur sort of quieted, became unimportant to Merlin. He felt pleasantly calm. Arthur was fine, he was sure. The thing he was now most concerned about was how would he leave the Shadow World? Without Arthur and Excalibur…
“I don’t like the idea of being stuck here indefinitely,” Merlin said out loud with a resigned sigh.
Zlota asked him if he could mentally communicate with Arthur. Merlin attempted to, but he had hit a wall – the kind of wall he expected if the other person was presently in another world. Merlin couldn’t speak to him even mind-to-mind now.
So Arthur was not in the Shadow World anymore. Was he back in the daemon-less world?
“Arthur’s in another world. I’m not sure which one, but we can’t get to it either way,” Merlin said with a shrug.
Zlota flew off with a, “Maybe there’s something in this world that could help us,” she said hopefully.
She exited the room with a smooth glide of her wings. After he dressed and collected his things into his pack to take with him, Merlin was ready to go. He followed Zlota out of the room.
The mist-filled space Merlin entered didn’t resemble another room. Only the room he and Arthur had departed from in the non-daemon world would be replicated. This vacant area was itching to be manipulated into something with character, with definition. A grand hall? A practical workspace? Or maybe another bedchamber? Well, at least Merlin’s magic was vying to do some designing with a magical flourish.
Merlin smiled as he felt his magic flowing inside of him, sparking a bit as it tried to persuade him to conjure something big and magnificent.
Apparently his magic wasn’t fond of dull spaces and wished to rectify the problem. But with just a hint of reluctance, Merlin suppressed his magic. This wasn’t the time for redecorating.
Up ahead of him, Merlin spotted a small glowing button. The strange button was about level to his waist. There was no solid wall that the button should have been attached to. The button seemed to simply float in place with nothing but grey mist supporting the device.
Zlota was looking at it, and she perched on Merlin’s shoulder when he approached her.
Observing the button more closely, Merlin saw a picture of a phoenix emblazoned on it.
“Maybe you have to press it. It could be our way out of this world,” Zlota suggested.
“But what world would we be going back to?” Merlin wondered.
“The daemon-less one we left? I hope?” Zlota sounded as uncertain as Merlin felt.
Merlin bit his lip. “It better be. I’d like to avoid returning to our world,” he declared.
Zlota left his shoulder, and before Merlin could stop her, she put her beak on the button and pressed it.
“Hey, Zlota!” Merlin exclaimed, not too happy about her sudden act. “What--”
“We might as well try it out. And the button has a phoenix on it, so clearly that’s a sign for me to press it,” Zlota said mischievously.
Merlin’s reply was delayed as a window opening out into another world appeared before them.
“If we enter this world, how do we make sure that this opening gets closed? Arthur seals it in with his fingers, but--” Merlin paused, contemplating what to do.
“I want to see this world first,” Zlota decided. “Come on. If there’s a button in this world, then there must be one in the other world that closes the opening,” he reasoned out.
Merlin shrugged. “All right. Hopefully that’ll be the case. I swear if this is our world and we have to deal with Uther…” he trailed off, the threat of danger quite clear to the both of them.
With a little trepidation, Merlin -- with Zlota flying beside him --stepped into the other world.
To his relief, he did find a similar phoenix button on the other side. This time, he pressed it and the opening from the Shadow World closed. Merlin knew from Arthur’s dealing with Excalibur how important it was to keep the openings between worlds sealed after you stepped into one. It was like making sure you cleaned your room after making a mess.
Merlin wondered if the button would appear again when he needed to return to the Shadow World. If – when – Arthur returned, he’d be expecting them in that world. But Merlin knew Arthur would understand the need to leave the dreary, dull Shadow World when an opportunity to do so presented itself.
He would deal with that issue later, Merlin decided. For now, he’d find out what world they were in.
He found himself in a clearing with a small lake nearby. The forest air was welcoming and just what Merlin needed now. The leaves of the trees swayed gently in the breeze. He felt like he was in a paradise.
A wave of relief swept through him, this one bigger than before, when he sighted a little blonde girl walking in their direction.
She didn’t have the daemon. Thank the gods, Merlin thought. Maybe he had just returned to the non-daemon world he and Arthur had been spending time in?
“Hello,” Merlin greeted her. Zlota returned to his shoulder and she observed the girl with peaked interest.
The blonde girl turned her head toward Merlin at his voice. She smiled at him.
“Oh hi,” the girl said amicably. Merlin was struck by how trusting she seemed. A girl that young, wandering in the forest? Where were her parents? Then the girl’s attention was drawn to Zlota.
“What a very pretty bird you have,” she complimented, looking quite impressed. Zlota preened at the acknowledgement, standing up taller and making sure her scarlet and gold feathers were immaculate. “Could I touch – is it a male or a female?” She asked.
Merlin was uneasy. It just wasn’t right for another person to touch another’s daemon (well, there were the exceptions of course, but the general rule was still an unspoken understanding in his daemon world). He recalled the terrible pain he had felt when one of Uther’s men had gotten a hold of Zlota. Not something he wanted to experience again.
Of course, this little girl didn’t know about any of that.
“Thank you. My bird is a female. She’s a phoenix, in fact. But I’m sorry -- you can’t touch her. She’s very particular about others doing that. I’m Myrddin, by the way. What is your name?”
Merlin thought it would be safest for him to go under a false name. If this was the non-daemon world, then it would raise questions if there were two Merlins about.
The girl looked a bit disappointed at being refused, but she quickly shook it off as she was given an opening to talk about herself. “My name is Alice. I’m seven and--” She paused, biting her lip, worried about something, before she ventured, “A phoenix is a magical creature, isn’t it? You’re not anti-magic, right?” Alice asked him.
Merlin chuckled. Him? Anti-magic? That would be the day. “No, no. I’m far from anti-magic. Is this because of Camelot? The magic ban?”
Alice nodded. “Camelot is half a day’s ride from here. I was always told to keep my father’s true nature a secret. That the King would go after him if he was found out. But I suppose if you have a magic phoenix, then I can tell you that I’m the daughter of a Dragonlord,” she said proudly.
Merlin hadn’t heard of Dragonlords, but it definitely sounded impressive. Possibly Dragonlords were sorcerers who dealt primarily with dragons?
She continued, “I was searching for dragons, you see… my cousins keep telling me that King Uther killed all the dragons except for the one he keeps locked up… but he can’t have killed all of them, right?” She asked him earnestly. “It’d be horrible if that lone dragon was the last of his kin. I can’t imagine,” Alice breathed out, looking so sad about it.
Merlin was a bit alarmed when Alice’s eyes glistened, tears starting to form.
“Alice, Alice…oh no, please don’t,” Merlin said to her gently. Zlota flew off his shoulder and landed on the ground near him. She looked sympathetic for the girl.
Tears were streaming silently down the girl’s face. Merlin went over to her and embraced her.
“Where are your parents, Alice?” Merlin asked her quietly.
“They died a year ago,” she told him sadly. “My cousins have been taking care of me. They don’t understand. So I’m running away…to look for dragons. It’s what my father would have wanted, I know it.”
“I’m sure your cousins love you. You should give them a chance,” Merlin said to her quietly.
Alice gave a small shake of her head and sniffled.
“Hey,” Merlin coaxed. “Do you want to see something?”
“What?” Alice asked, her eyes a bit red and her cheeks tear-stained.
Merlin’s eye lit golden as he conjured a little red dragon with yellow-gold eyes. The dragon was made out of wood, though the eyes were little pieces of gold.
The girl smiled softly, taking the gift he offered her.
“Thank you,” she said sincerely.
“Think of it as a good luck charm. Maybe you’ll find a dragon, you never know,” Merlin told her, tapping her on the nose lightly. He smiled at her.
The girl grinned back and hugged him, the dragon toy clutched in one hand as she did so.
Then Alice told him that she had to go, but Merlin didn’t feel right in letting her be on her own. He offered to help her out, but Alice assured him with a bright smile that she would be all right. That she was sure she would find a dragon soon and that everything would be okay.
Not wanting to argue with a little girl, Merlin decided to let her go on her way. Still, he made sure to put some protection spells on her, the words spoken silently so as not to draw Alice’s attention.
He wished her well, and she departed. Merlin felt touched to see the girl looking at his conjured wooden dragon with interest as she walked away.
Merlin bet that if that girl ever happened to meet Kilgharrah, the dragon Merlin had dealt with in the past, then she would be put off by dragons for life. Unless she liked grumpy dragons who liked to give out mostly unhelpful advice in cryptic wording that made Merlin’s head ache.
Then again, he hoped that if other dragons did exist that they’d have more agreeable temperaments. And after all, with Kilgharrah being locked up for so long, then of course that accounted for his behavior.
He should find a way to release the dragon…whenever he returned to his world, which would preferably be when Uther’s cold, dead body was underground. And only then would he agree to return with Arthur.
But for now, Merlin decided to find something to eat. This meant he’d probably have to hunt for rabbit or something. A necessary evil he mused resignedly.
At least he had bread, cheese, fruit and water in his pack. The daemon-less Merlin had helpfully given him and Arthur some food the other day.
Zlota flew overhead, keeping a sharp eye out for prey as Merlin walked the forest floor. He ate some of the bread he had with him, and thought it’d be nice to take a dip in the lake after his breakfast.
~ * ~
Arthur was grateful that food appeared on the table closest to the door. He was beginning to feel hungry. He did worry that the food may be poisoned, but his hunger won out. So he tucked into his breakfast – one plate full of some sausages and bread and another platter filled with assorted fruit. A goblet of water was provided as well, and Arthur was a bit disappointed that it wasn’t honeyed mead or ale.
“Should we be this trusting?” Krola debated. “Eating and drinking what our captors provide for us? What if that drink is poison?”
Arthur shrugged. A sense of calm settled over him. “It tastes like water to me. Not that water has any sort of distinguishable taste to it.”
“Well it’s too late now if you’ve drunk it,” Krola intimated, frowning at him.
“And I’m still alive, so there’s that,” he quipped with a wink.
Krola gave him a look.
Not long after he finished eating, Arthur heard a knock at the door.
He exchanged glances with Krola. They would finally get some answers now.
Unsure who or what to expect, Arthur went to open the door. But then he remembered that the door was locked from the inside.
Arthur stopped short as a result. Well, at least the person was courteous enough to give him notice that they were there instead of barging in without a word.
“You can come in,” Arthur said loudly, not sure how to properly approach this peculiar situation.
Usually he’d be wasting away in the dungeons at this point during past capture attempts, kept hostage for ransom. Considering the lavish state of his room, Arthur didn’t believe he was being held for monetary gain this time.
The door opened to reveal a blond man with dark brown eyes. He had on a white shirt that opened narrowly at his chest as well as fitted black breeches.
He was Arthur’s age, though he wondered if the blond could be younger. He seemed like someone a woman might be inclined to mother because he was thin in that way that made you want to give him extra helpings of food. Sort of like with Merlin, who clearly had trouble eating enough. Though their time in exile certainly didn’t help in the getting enough to eat issue – the not getting caught problem, of course, took higher priority.
Anyway, at least the man didn’t have Merlin’s unfortunately big ears (not that Arthur disliked Merlin’s ears, but still…they were ridiculously big). The young man was handsome, he supposed, not astonishingly so; but just enough to stir interest. Not that Arthur was remotely interested in the stranger who was most likely involved in his capture – certainly not endearing him to Arthur. Besides, he had Merlin. He didn’t need anyone else.
Arthur thought that the man gave off a quiet yet undeniably perceptive vibe. Instead of feeling completely unnerved by this stranger’s notably discerning gaze, Arthur still was rather calm. Nothing to worry or get overanxious about, he decided.
The mystery man gave him a small smile saying hello and introducing himself as Blakeney. He was an advisor to the King of Camelot. And that this was, in fact, the World of Magic; so this was another Camelot Arthur had never been to before. And by the look of his given room, this Camelot was much better off than even his world’s Camelot.
Arthur waved his hand at the man, directing him to sit down at the table. Arthur sat down across from him. Krola sat down by Arthur, settling her head on Arthur’s thigh and gently prodding him to stroke her head. To ease her wariness over their current predicament. Arthur rested his hand on her head, stroking her, without argument.
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” Blakeney began smoothly. “You don’t need to worry about your friend. He is safe and unharmed. We left him in the world we took you from. We also have provided your friend with an alternative way to travel to the non-daemon world. We’re aware of your exiled status in your world, so we avoided sending him into danger there. I would imagine neither of you like to stay in the Shadow World for too long.”
“Yes, you’re right about that. The less time spent in that world the better. But how can I know you’re telling me the truth? About Merlin? And why did you take me? What do you need me for?” Arthur demanded to know.
He was admittedly bursting with curiosity about what they needed him for.
“I am telling the truth,” Blakeney said simply.
Arthur couldn’t help but believe him. He wasn’t sure why. He just did.
“All right. What do you need with me?”
“We only need your help,” he told Arthur, making it sound like it was such an effortless request.
It certainly didn’t feel like the request warranted his being taken into another world without his consent.
Blakeney pressed on with his explanation. “This world, unlike most other worlds, is aware of the existence of the other worlds. We know about your daemon world, for example, and that’s why we kept your wolf-daemon with you--” and at that, Krola thanked him in a slightly condescending tone, that it was nice that otherworlders took on the extra task of learning about other worlds.
Arthur quieted his daemon. She was still tense, he knew. He patted her on the head, assuring her it would be okay.
Blakeney didn’t appear to be bothered by it and continued to speak, “As you can expect, we have modes of travel to go from one world to another. We even have gatekeepers for each kingdom – to monitor the comings and goings of our population. Because of this awareness of other worlds, we feel that we have a duty to insure the welfare of the other worlds. Someone has to do it after all,” Blakeney said reasonably.
Arthur nodded, understanding. “So you need my help with what exactly?”
“We want to stop the darkness from spreading to the other worlds. If the darkness overwhelms every world, then everyone will be miserable. It would be the end of all worlds. And my world, this World of Magic, is fully invested in preventing this darkness, this evil from bringing about the apocalypse. Luckily, you are just the person to help us with this fight.”
“But how?” Arthur wondered, hoping he would get a clarification.
Blakeney gave him a half-smile. “You will help us. It’s that simple. You’re helping a good cause. That’s most important in the end,” he advised Arthur.
Arthur decided that the other man was right. He would be helping a good cause. It didn’t matter how he would help, just that Arthur would be able to assist in some manner.
“I can take you to see the King now. I imagine you’d be interested in seeing him?”
Arthur nodded, but then wondered, “Who is the King of Camelot here? I’m aware that another world carries alternate versions of the people I know – the non-daemon world. Is this World of Magic the same?”
“Yes, this world does have alternates of those you know. But judging by the frown on your face, you didn’t want to hear that, did you?”
“I could use a break from meeting other versions of the same people. There has to be a limit,” Arthur said tiredly.
“Don’t worry,” Blakeney reassured him. “You will only be mostly dealing with one person – that is, the King – who may look familiar to you. You won’t be overwhelmed by people who look like copies of those you know.
“So the King – he’s an alternate?”
“Yes,” Blakeney confirmed.
“If this is the World of Magic, who would be a likely candidate to rule a magical kingdom?” Arthur pondered aloud.
“Someone with big ears,” Krola spoke up, sounding amused.
Arthur felt the need to hit his head against the wall. Seriously? Could it be that this magic-dominated Camelot could be ruled by another Merlin?
The non-daemon world he could deal with a little better because at least the Arthur and Merlin were in positions not different from his own world.
But in the World of Magic, Arthur would definitely need to get accustomed to the idea of Merlin being King…
“Is it Merlin?”
Blakeney confirmed his guess with a nod. And Arthur knew that his Merlin would love it even more here with his other self being king. Hopefully not too much though. After all, Arthur couldn’t be without Merlin. Though this world seemed pleasant, he himself couldn’t imagine residing in a world where he wasn’t King of Camelot. It would be a hard thing to reconcile.
Despite the temptation Merlin would face to remain forever in the World of Magic, Arthur trusted in his bond with Merlin. In the end, Merlin would choose to stay with him in the Camelot of the daemon world – with Arthur as King if all went well.
~ * ~
The walls in the hallway were surprisingly white instead of golden, though there were pictures of dragons adorning the walls. And each dragon had a burst of fire coming from its mouth with the next dragon a few feet away from the previous dragon.
Not just that, but there were actual small dragons walking or flying in the corridor. Fortunately not many dragons were in the hallway so it wasn’t overwhelming, but certainly Arthur was amazed at all the dragons just in the castle. After all, his world had only the one dragon. He didn’t even know how many dragons there had been in existence before his father had killed them.
The passageway was wide enough that both men could walk side by side in relative ease. There was room for a third person, but it seemed that the dragons made that gap their own as they walked one after another. And the dragons – whether walking or in flight – were generally good about not colliding into people or getting in the way. Arthur thought that a system of order had definitely been established to allow dragons and humans to live together peacefully. At least the small, more manageably-sized dragons – Arthur didn’t think the big dragons would be as easy to co-exist with. The best option was to leave them outside.
Fairies had taken up residence in floating flowers, which smoothly maneuvered themselves to accommodate any flying dragons. The brightly-colored flowers went along at a relatively unhurried pace near the corridor’s high ceiling. From their flowers, some fairies peered at the pair in curiosity and others waved at Blakeney, who waved back at them and greeted some of the fairies.
“Dragons come in all shapes and sizes here,” Blakeney told Arthur. “I imagine you’re only familiar with large green dragons?”
“Yes.”
“We have those too. They are the classical look that dragons have. It’s not a surprise you’d have such dragons in your world. They are quite common.”
“My father killed all the dragons except for one in my world.”
The dragons in the hallway all stared at Arthur as if he had gravely displeased them with his words. Krola was on the defensive, ready to growl, but Arthur asked her to calm herself.
“I’m er—I’m really sorry,” Arthur apologized hurriedly. “That was only my father. I like – love dragons,” he continued, trying his best to persuade them that he was pro-dragon.
He tried not to dwell on the absurdity of convincing little dragons to like him – maybe most of these dragons were in fact very young dragons? So he was at the mercy of baby dragons. Welcome to a new world, he muttered to himself wryly.
“If I had been able to, I would have done my best to keep the dragons alive,” Arthur finished sincerely, smiling at them. He worried the smile came out more as a grimace.
The dragons turned their attention away from him, apparently satisfied with his response.
“As you saw, it is best to avoid speaking about what your father did to the dragons,” Blakeney suggested to him. “Especially around our dragons.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind,” Arthur said drily.
Then a dark-haired woman in a golden dress approached them. Arthur almost couldn’t believe she was real, as she may just have been the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He reluctantly had to admit that even Morgana couldn’t quite beat this woman in beauty.
But what startled him the most was the lady’s purple eyes. Arthur wasn’t sure he was seeing it right. Could her eyes truly be purple? Maybe they were just a funny shade of blue or violet…
The woman stopped before the pair, smiling at the both of them. She kissed Blakeney softly on the lips. Turning her attention to Arthur, she said, “Well hello. You must be the guest – Arthur? And this is your wolf-daemon?” She asked, peering at the white wolf.
Krola wagged her tail, happier now, which was a nice change from her earlier behavior. Arthur thought that she was as taken in by the woman’s beauty as he was. There was just something about the woman that put Arthur in a good mood.
Arthur nodded. “Yes to both. Her name is Krolewska, but I call her Krola most of the time. It’s good to meet you.”
“Arthur, this is Morgan -- the woman I’m with,” Blakeney introduced.
Morgan leaned toward Arthur and he caught a pleasant whiff of her sweet-smelling perfume. Arthur was nearly intoxicated by it, and wished he could stay in this relaxed state forever.
She said to him conspiratorially, “You know my mother is an enchantress. She used to seduce men, sleep with them, and sometimes she even slit their throats before they awoke. The tragedy of it is now I don’t know who my father is. So many choices, you know?” Morgan said sadly with a long, dramatic sigh.
“Oh, Morgan likes to tease,” Blakeney said in slight exasperation though he smiled quietly at Morgan. He was clearly pleased to see her. “Don’t listen to her. While her mother’s an enchantress, there are good and bad enchantresses here.”
“And my mother’s a very, very good enchantress,” Morgan emphasized with a widening smile.
“How can you be a good enchantress?” Arthur wondered since from past knowledge, enchantresses were always best avoided.
“They help people to relax when they’re tense,” she spoke with a hint of pride in her voice. “The not so good enchantresses abuse that ability and prefer to gain power. My mother isn’t like that. I chose to become a dancer myself, but I still try to stay true to my mother’s heritage. Family is most important after all.”
“Yes. I would agree,” Arthur said.
Merlin was his true family if not in blood then in spirit. And then Morgana who he had grown up with, and who had been like a sister to him. For Morgana to choose to die over the worse fate of being controlled by his vengeful father was a terrible tragedy. It made Arthur hate his father even more.
Of course there was Gwen too, but it hurt Arthur to think about her. He fervently hoped that his good friend was all right. Family carried a different meaning for him these days, but the strength of that loving bond still held fast.
Morgan smiled at Arthur appreciatively. After whispering something in Blakeney’s ear and kissing him on the cheek, she declared that she had to go.
“Goodbye Blakeney, Arthur. It was nice to meet you,” she said to them before she went off down the corridor in the opposite direction.
“How did you two meet?” Arthur asked conversationally, though he was curious to find out the answer.
“Six months ago, she was here at Camelot to perform a few dances. I bumped into her in a hallway. It was a bit embarrassing as you can imagine. Morgan was the one who pursued me more than I her. I’m not that good with…you know, I’m just not good with women,” Blakeney admitted, rubbing the back of his head and shrugging. “And I probably would’ve been happy to never get married, but Morgan came along and—well, I think she may be the one.”
Arthur didn’t press him on further details since it was more of a womanly matter to chatter on about beloveds and gossip about who was with whom. And Blakeney seemed to be more the quiet type, not one to divulge everything.
So Arthur changed tact. “Are Morgan’s eyes really purple?” He wondered. He felt a tad ridiculous for asking, but he was interested in knowing the truth.
Blakeney looked relieved for the change of topic. He chuckled softly. “Yes, they are. A lot of people ask her that. You’re not the first.”
“I’m glad I saved her from the same old question,” Arthur remarked, smiling.
“On the contrary, Morgan’ll probably be disappointed now that you didn’t ask. She likes to tell interesting stories about why her eyes are purple. Each story more fantastical than the last. She’s good at that,” Blakeney told him.
A dancer, a storyteller and maybe an enchantress too… certainly, this Morgan was an intriguing woman, Arthur thought. Morgana would have liked her and at the very least, the pair could have struck up a conversation about their similar names.
~ * ~
Merlin felt like he was being watched. He had been swimming in the lake for almost half an hour now, but due to his uneasiness, he decided to stop. Was there someone at the shore?
“Zlota?” Merlin called.
The daemon was flying not far away and she came not long after he had beckoned her.
“There’s a boy who looks like you on shore…” Zlota told him. She sounded thoroughly intrigued.
Merlin was startled. “What?”
Could it be another version of him that had come here from another world? What if it was the same world that Arthur had mysteriously gone to? After all, that world appeared to have other means of interworld travel that wasn’t limited to Excalibur. It was possible.
Zlota prodded him to swim to the edge of the lake so Merlin could see the stranger for himself.
Shortly, Merlin reached the shore and Zlota’s account was confirmed.
A boy – who couldn’t be more than ten – was at the shore. He was standing next to Merlin’s discarded clothes and his pack. And yes, Zlota was right. The boy did eerily resemble Merlin when he had been a boy. Zlota changed to her more spy-fitting form of a firefly and settled in Merlin’s hair to observe the curious boy.
The boy appeared startled when Merlin was nearer to him and his undivided attention was on the child.
“Hi there. Are you all right?” Merlin asked him.
The boy bit his lip and started backing away.
“No, wait. Please. I want to know if you’re from a different world. You look like me -- well, when I was your age. Can you speak? If you can’t, that’s all right. I’m not going to hurt you,” Merlin assured the boy.
“Yes. I’m from another world,” the boy answered simply. He looked like he wanted to say more, but he didn't.
“Okay. I’m not from this world either…so I guess we’re both otherworlders in a foreign world you could say,” Merlin concluded.
The boy smiled.
“I’m going to come out of the water now… I need to put my clothes back on.”
The boy shrugged, and Merlin hoped that the boy wouldn’t be tempted to run off on him. At least for now, the child seemed somewhat interested in staying. Merlin was wondering how much he could learn about this boy.
Merlin emerged from the lake, and he dried himself off with a silent spell. He quickly dressed himself.
“I should introduce myself – I’m Merlin. And you are?”
“An orphan. I’m an orphan.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Merlin said sympathetically. “Are you all on your own?”
“No, not now. I’ve been lucky,” the boy informed him happily.
“Do you have a name? How do I address you?”
After a long moment, the boy replied to him, “Gwydion. That’s my name.”
“If Gwydion was your name, you wouldn’t take so long to think of it. You look like me. You have to see that. Your name is really Merlin, isn’t it?”
“I also like Gawen. I think that name sounds good,” Gwydion, the orphan -- whoever he truly was -- contemplated idly, completely ignoring Merlin. “I should go,” Gwydion then declared.
Merlin saw ahead of him a robed figure of a man with his hood up. The stranger’s appearance was not unlike how the Druids dressed. He was too far off for Merlin to get a definite description of him. And it looked like the man’s face was shadowed anyway.
“Goodbye!” Gwydion said to him before he rushed to meet the hooded figure.
Merlin watched as the hooded man – the boy’s guardian, he assumed? – wrapped his arm around the boy’s shoulders securely. The boy hugged the man, clinging to him. The man squeezed the boy’s shoulders, returning the affection, and then the pair of them disappeared in a magical display of dark clouds and lightning.
So that’s what Gwydion meant by being lucky. Despite his parents being deceased, apparently, at least the boy had that mysterious person taking care of him.
Though on second thought, the mysterious, concealed nature of the hooded figure didn’t leave Merlin all that comforted.
Yes, the boy seemed to appreciate the man, but who was that man in the first place? The man who was looking after another version of Merlin himself? No matter what the boy had told him, Merlin couldn’t ignore his instinct that this Gwydion was really him from another world. He couldn’t let go of that conviction. Zlota agreed with his belief. There was little doubt in her mind that the strange boy was truly an alternate version of Merlin.
Merlin wished his curiosity could be sated. He doubted he would see either of those two otherworldly people again. So he was left with only his questions.
~ * ~
When Arthur and Blakeney arrived at the king’s study, the king wasn’t there. This hallway leading up to the study was devoid of dragons. Though near the study entrance, there were a few very small – the size of mice – dragons playing with each other with one or two breathing fire every so often.
“He should be here soon,” Blakeney indicated.
“Are we going to wait outside the room then?”
“Unless you want to meet Kilgharrah. He’s in the study now as he usually is. The king’s dragon can be a little anxious around strangers. It’s best not to surprise him.”
“Right, of course,” Arthur said with a sigh.
So this King Merlin had his own dragon. In this magic world, that made sense. Clearly this world had an abundance of dragons. Maybe even as many dragons as there were people?
A few minutes passed before the king was seen coming down the corridor. The first thing that Arthur noticed was different about him was the king’s trimmed beard. It made the man look more mature, he supposed, and older. Though from his young face, Arthur didn’t think the king was that much older than his Merlin.
As he approached them, Arthur took in the king’s attire – certainly expected of a king and as far as can be from what his Merlin wore.
King Merlin had on a deep blue shirt and black breeches.
A necklace with the kingdom’s coat of arms circled his neck and a ring with a fire-colored stone was on one hand. Golden bracelets, some with dragon and phoenix designs on them, were on both wrists. There was no crown on his head.
“Hello. It’s good to meet you properly now,” King Merlin greeted Arthur.
“Yes. I agree.”
“I know in your world that your Merlin was your servant,” the king noted. “But I assume you know for formality’s sake that you should address me as ‘Your Majesty’ or the associated titles, as you prefer.”
“Yes, I understand. It is admittedly startling to see another version of Merlin. You resemble him so well. Except for the beard though. Merlin doesn’t have one.”
The king laughed, amused by his comment. His blue eyes twinkled. “I admit myself that I’m not quite sure if I like this beard or not. I’m trying it out, you see. What do you think?” He asked of Arthur.
“I personally like you without it,” Blakeney spoke up.
“I would have to agree, but I think it may grow on me, Your Majesty,” Arthur decided, choosing to be diplomatic about it.
“Well thank you, but there’s no need to lie to me. I could tell you were only being polite. But no matter,” the king shrugged it off with a small smile.
Then he reached up to take something off from his head. Arthur was surprised to see that it was a very small black dragon the size of a mouse in his hand. The dragon’s dark color had blended in well with the king’s black hair. The king held out the dragon to Blakeney.
“Blakeney, could you take this dragon and return it to the black dragon sanctuary? The little creature landed on my head and fell asleep.”
Blakeney nodded and he gently took the still fast asleep dragon from the other man. King Merlin dismissed him and after inclining his head at Arthur in goodbye, Blakeney left them.
A blue and silver light shot past Arthur.
“What was that?” He asked as he stepped aside so as not to get hit by the light.
The king waved his hand. “Oh that’s just Archimedes, my phoenix. Archimedes! Come here please,” he commanded of him.
The stream of blue-silver light turned around and once it reached the king, it settled on his shoulder. Arthur watched in astonishment as the light transformed into a beautiful dark blue phoenix with silver-tipped wings and eerie silver eyes.
“My Merlin’s daemon is a phoenix. Her name is Zlota. But she’s a scarlet gold one. Is yours a male?”
The king nodded as the phoenix, Archimedes, ruffled his feathers looking as proud as Merlin’s Zlota did on occasion when she wished to show off.
“Ah yes. How interesting isn’t it how some things are similar in different worlds?” The king mused. “Though in my world, only royalty and nobility may have phoenixes. But we do offer phoenix eggs as gifts to well-deserving people. So to keep a phoenix is not an entirely exclusive affair. Still, they prefer to live away from humans. Fortunately, phoenixes are not completely against being partnered with them if they are good people.”
Arthur nodded, understanding. He could see Zlota being just fine on her own. Well, if she wasn’t a daemon and simply just a phoenix. The nature of being a daemon didn’t allow Zlota to live apart from Merlin after all.
They entered the study after King Merlin apologetically informed the little dragons that Kilgharrah didn’t want their company at the moment. That the dragon was in one of his moods.
The king beckoned Arthur to come inside the study first. Arthur did so with a little trepidation due to the dragon being in the room.
“Kilgharrah,” the king said warningly as the black dragon proceeded to growl at Arthur. Krola growled back at the other creature, baring her sharp teeth in challenge. But at least the king’s dragon made no move to attack Arthur, though the creature’s golden eyes flashed in threat. The dragon was the size of one horse and half of another one – a little bigger than that of the dragon rider’s – Will’s – golden-streaked dragon Arthur had seen earlier.
“He won’t hurt you, I assure you,” the king told Arthur. His phoenix, Archimedes, settled on his perch that was near the desk. “Sit down, sit down,” he asked of Arthur amicably.
The king waved his hand at the big gilded desk with a glass front. Against one side of the room, bookshelves held a vast array of books. The floor was snow white with painted golden, silver and blue dragons adding color to the floor’s blank canvas. An arched opening to a wide outdoor balcony was behind the king’s desk.
Arthur sat down at the desk while the king persuaded Kilgharrah to go to the balcony instead of glaring at Arthur the whole time.
The dragon grudgingly agreed and disappeared in a display of black and golden light. He reappeared on the balcony.
King Merlin sighed as he sat down at the desk across from Arthur.
“Kilgharrah is a guard dragon, and a black dragon to boot. Such dragons can be very protective of their human partners, I would say. If you happen to get on Kilgharrah’s bad side, your fate will surely not be a pleasant one. But don’t worry. I’ll make sure he’s on his best behavior while you’re here. Isn’t that right, Kilgharrah?”
“I am not a child,” the dragon protested petulantly from the balcony, puffing out a burst of fire from his mouth. “He’s an otherworlder. Can’t be trusted,” he remarked gruffly.
The king shook his head. “Nevermind. Just pretend he isn’t there,” he advised Arthur.
Arthur thought that was rather hard to do considering the large size of the dragon and how his golden eyes kept looking at Arthur like the dragon was waiting for the right moment to strike and rip him to shreds.
But Arthur tried his best. At least he had Krola with him. She sat beside him, ever alert and her silver eyes surveying the room and, of course, the dragon.
“I’m curious: did you ever touch your Merlin’s daemon?” asked the king in mild interest. “I understand it’s a taboo to do such a thing, but aren’t you two close?”
“Yes, we are. But no. I have never touched Zlota. Merlin said I couldn’t -- that he’d be in pain.”
“Even after the both of you have established a strong bond? Shouldn’t you and your Merlin easily be able to touch one another’s daemons?”
“Merlin touched Krola a few times in the past. I wasn’t uncomfortable. Why are you asking me this?” Arthur wondered in slight irritation. He was perplexed by the question about Merlin’s daemon.
The king shrugged. “I just find it sad that you two are so close and you can’t touch Merlin’s daemon as you should. Doesn’t that upset you? To know he will be in pain if you touch his daemon? Have you tried?”
Arthur shook his head. “No, of course not. If Merlin was sure he’d be pained by it, then the last thing I would do is subject him to that. I didn’t want to test the idea. I just went by Merlin’s word. That was enough for me,” he said firmly.
“Perhaps you should ask him if there was any particular reason for why he’d find it painful. Surely there must be a good reason. Your close bond with him should be enough to allow this touching free of hurt, shouldn’t it?”
“Do you think he’s keeping a secret from me? Is that it?” Arthur concluded.
“Maybe. It’s your choice to ask or not, but you at least have to be curious about it. If your bond with him is strong, then I have no doubt your Merlin will confide the truth to you if you inquire it of him.”
“All right…okay, I’ll ask him,” Arthur decided a bit hesitantly. Now that it was on his mind, he was curious about why he couldn’t easily touch Zlota without Merlin being in pain.
“Very good. Now I need to let you know that you’ll be speaking in the hall to an audience. I only want you to tell them about the world you came from, what you have gone through. Everyone is interested in hearing what life was like for you in your world. I hope you wouldn’t mind satisfying their curiosity?”
“But why? Why do you want me to give my life story to strangers?” Arthur demanded, uneasy about the odd request.
“Simply put, the more you know about someone, the more comfortable you feel around them. That’s why I’m asking you to do this. You are our guest after all, and we seek only to know more about you,” the king explained smoothly.
“You took me without my consent… I thought I was a prisoner,” Arthur admitted frankly, his tone coated in accusation.
“I do truly apologize for bringing you here without your permission, but we didn’t think you’d agree to being separated from your Merlin. So we acted accordingly. Despite the questionable method of your taking, my intent was not to treat you like a common prisoner. Your role in fighting this great battle is very important. It would be wrong of me to treat you like a criminal.”
“But I don’t know exactly what that role is,” Arthur said slowly.
“No, but you shouldn’t worry about it. Are you worried?”
“No,” Arthur said promptly and then he put the concern out of his mind. Like Blakeney had said, it wasn’t as important as simply knowing that he was helping a good cause.
King Merlin had little more to say to him after that and soon they prepared to leave. The king put on a dark jacket over his shirt. At his back, he donned a cape that had the dragon and phoenix sigil blazing out of the material’s darkness. As he put a golden crown on his head, he assured his dragon that he’d be fine without him. And that if he needed Kilgharrah to light a fire – said with a teasing smile – then the dragon would know.
Arthur sincerely thought Kilgharrah wanted to “light a fire” in a room where Arthur was the sole occupant.
Charming dragon, really. For his part, Arthur was more than ready to depart from the study. At least he wouldn’t have the dragon’s piercing gaze set upon him any longer.
~ * ~
Merlin returned to Camelot late that afternoon. When he arrived in the other Merlin’s chambers, he found his alternate self smiling. But upon seeing that Merlin was in the room, the non-daemon Merlin frowned a little and possibly appeared worried as well.
“Hi. Is there anything wrong?” Merlin asked his other self in concern.
The other Merlin shook his head quickly, smiling again to prove his point. “No, no,” he reassured Merlin. “Where were you? And where’s Arthur?” He inquired.
Merlin shrugged. “We decided to spend the day apart from each other. Can’t go wrong with a break, right? Arthur and I planned to see each other again by this evening. That’s all,” Merlin lied with a small smile.
He didn’t want to bring his other self into the strangeness surrounding Arthur’s disappearance.
His alternate self raised his eyebrow. He seemed to not buy a word of Merlin’s explanation. “I don’t believe you,” the other Merlin told him flatly, crossing his arms against his chest.
The non-daemon Merlin didn’t look happy.
Merlin sighed. He didn’t wish to get into an argument with another version of himself. But he also didn’t much fancy getting the other man involved in this mess – whatever was going on. Sometimes the more one knew, the more danger they put themselves in. His other self would be safer to be blissfully uninvolved.
“I had a feeling you’d say that. But that’s all I’m going to tell you. I’m sorry,” Merlin finished sincerely, hoping his apology would be satisfactory.
His alternate self frowned. He sat down on his narrow bed. “If there’s anything you or Arthur need help with, I’d be more than willing--” his other self offered.
Merlin sat down in the chair near the bed. Zlota perched herself on the back of the chair, her luminous golden eyes ever watchful.
Merlin reached out and grasped the other man’s hand. “Thank you for the offer, but really, you’ve been a great help. What would make me happy is that you will form a strong bond of your own with your Arthur. That one day, the right day, he will know who you truly are.”
The other Merlin smiled brilliantly then. “He knows. Arthur knows about my magic. And he’s all right with it. At least I think he is. I’m nearly sure there won’t be guards arresting me come tomorrow morning.” He shrugged, appearing rather unconcerned.
Merlin was surprised yet happy for his alternate self as well. “Congratulations,” he praised him, smiling back at him. “You didn’t accidentally reveal yourself, did you?”
“No, no. I was doing my best to be careful. Arthur was the one who brought it up. We were – well, more like Arthur – hunting and I got hurt. It was only a small cut. I stumbled over a fallen branch, I think, and my hand got scratched and bled a little. It wasn’t anything worth making a fuss about. But Arthur stunned me when he took my wounded hand and he said, ‘You’re a sorcerer, Merlin, you can heal it, can’t you?’ And after I finished gaping…er…you can imagine I didn’t know how to react or what to say. Or whether I should’ve made a good run for it.”
“I felt the same way when my Arthur cornered me and persuaded me to just tell him about my magic. I’m guessing by the fact you’re still alive that Arthur assured you that he would accept you and your magic?” Merlin assumed.
The other Merlin nodded. “Yes, and he sounded sincere, so I think, I hope, that will bode well for me. And that I’ll survive the rest of the week with no execution planned at the end of it.”
“I wish you the best. You know your Arthur better than me. Don’t doubt your judgment. It should be fine,” Merlin advised him with a smile.
“I’ll try,” he said. Then hesitantly, his other self changed the subject. His expression shifted to a somber one. “There’s something else too – some bad news for you. The Morgana of my world has Seen bits of the future. She told me what she Saw, Merlin. She said that you would meet a blonde girl, and give her a good luck charm. This little girl would be kidnapped by a dragon. And then you would meet the lucky orphan who brings unlucky tidings for you. If you met him, then it is a warning to you.”
“A warning that trouble will come my way, I’m assuming?”
The other Merlin nodded reluctantly. “Yes. I thought it was mad. I didn’t believe her…a girl kidnapped by a dragon? That’s strange even for me.”
“I don’t know about that…but I have met a blonde girl and I gave her a dragon carving as a good luck charm. She was searching for dragons…”
“Then she must have found one who could talk most likely. You can easily persuade someone to do something if you say the right words. Do you have a talking dragon in your world who gives you cryptic advice?” the other Merlin asked.
“Yes,” Merlin confirmed with a small groan.
The daemon-less Merlin smiled. “So you understand how frustrating that dragon is.”
“Unfortunately,” said Merlin resignedly. Then he hesitantly admitted, “I met a boy too. He resembled me when I was about ten. He said he was a lucky orphan… but--”
“Maybe you should be more careful now,” the daemon-less Merlin advised, looking especially concerned now that Merlin confirmed meeting a lucky orphan.
Merlin nodded. Of course he felt uneasy about a vision that didn’t bode well for him. Caution was the best action to take now. He decided that he’d certainly feel better about the odd situation when Arthur returned. Merlin was sure he would come back to him.
~ * ~
Final part of Chapter 5
Author: dk323
Rating: PG-13
Word count: ~ 8,731
Characters/Pairings: Merlin/Arthur
Spoilers: Story is now considered an AU after 2x04, Lancelot and Guinevere. There will be references to later episodes, but some characters aren’t aware of certain things as they should be if I were following current show canon.
Most notably, Merlin doesn’t know about Dragonlords or that his father is one. So if that throws you off, then the AU nature of the fic is the reason why.
Disclaimer: The show Merlin is property of the BBC. The “His Dark Materials” books are property of Philip Pullman. No money is being made.
Summary:
In another world where everyone has daemons, Arthur is an exiled prince for saving Merlin from the King's blind crusade against magic. With Excalibur and magic on their side, Arthur and Merlin escape to a different world when the King's men catch up to them.
It's not the danger, but a damning prophecy that'll put their strong bond to the ultimate test.
A/N: A His Dark Materials crossover/fusion where Arthur and Merlin both have daemons. A daemon is a person’s soul that exists outside of one’s body in animal form. A daemon can speak as well. Further notes on daemons in Chapter 1.
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4
Chapter 5:
The Return Home
~ * ~
“I think that was the best sleep I’ve ever had,” Merlin remarked as he stretched in bed.
Switching to her phoenix look, Zlota flapped her wings, flying briefly to exercise her expansive scarlet gold wings. Then she landed on the empty space beside Merlin on the bed. The space that had been occupied by Arthur.
The daemon noted a bit worriedly, “Arthur’s not here, Merlin. And I don’t see Excalibur either. He must have taken it. He wouldn’t leave without notice like that,” she acknowledged.
Merlin agreed with her. Arthur wouldn’t be one to leave him stuck in another world without at least telling Merlin he was doing that. After all, Arthur was the only one who could handle Excalibur, the sole means they had to moving between worlds. Did that mean someone -- or maybe more than one person -- had taken Arthur by force during the night? And had prevented Merlin from waking up?
But then the questions helping to drive his worry over Arthur sort of quieted, became unimportant to Merlin. He felt pleasantly calm. Arthur was fine, he was sure. The thing he was now most concerned about was how would he leave the Shadow World? Without Arthur and Excalibur…
“I don’t like the idea of being stuck here indefinitely,” Merlin said out loud with a resigned sigh.
Zlota asked him if he could mentally communicate with Arthur. Merlin attempted to, but he had hit a wall – the kind of wall he expected if the other person was presently in another world. Merlin couldn’t speak to him even mind-to-mind now.
So Arthur was not in the Shadow World anymore. Was he back in the daemon-less world?
“Arthur’s in another world. I’m not sure which one, but we can’t get to it either way,” Merlin said with a shrug.
Zlota flew off with a, “Maybe there’s something in this world that could help us,” she said hopefully.
She exited the room with a smooth glide of her wings. After he dressed and collected his things into his pack to take with him, Merlin was ready to go. He followed Zlota out of the room.
The mist-filled space Merlin entered didn’t resemble another room. Only the room he and Arthur had departed from in the non-daemon world would be replicated. This vacant area was itching to be manipulated into something with character, with definition. A grand hall? A practical workspace? Or maybe another bedchamber? Well, at least Merlin’s magic was vying to do some designing with a magical flourish.
Merlin smiled as he felt his magic flowing inside of him, sparking a bit as it tried to persuade him to conjure something big and magnificent.
Apparently his magic wasn’t fond of dull spaces and wished to rectify the problem. But with just a hint of reluctance, Merlin suppressed his magic. This wasn’t the time for redecorating.
Up ahead of him, Merlin spotted a small glowing button. The strange button was about level to his waist. There was no solid wall that the button should have been attached to. The button seemed to simply float in place with nothing but grey mist supporting the device.
Zlota was looking at it, and she perched on Merlin’s shoulder when he approached her.
Observing the button more closely, Merlin saw a picture of a phoenix emblazoned on it.
“Maybe you have to press it. It could be our way out of this world,” Zlota suggested.
“But what world would we be going back to?” Merlin wondered.
“The daemon-less one we left? I hope?” Zlota sounded as uncertain as Merlin felt.
Merlin bit his lip. “It better be. I’d like to avoid returning to our world,” he declared.
Zlota left his shoulder, and before Merlin could stop her, she put her beak on the button and pressed it.
“Hey, Zlota!” Merlin exclaimed, not too happy about her sudden act. “What--”
“We might as well try it out. And the button has a phoenix on it, so clearly that’s a sign for me to press it,” Zlota said mischievously.
Merlin’s reply was delayed as a window opening out into another world appeared before them.
“If we enter this world, how do we make sure that this opening gets closed? Arthur seals it in with his fingers, but--” Merlin paused, contemplating what to do.
“I want to see this world first,” Zlota decided. “Come on. If there’s a button in this world, then there must be one in the other world that closes the opening,” he reasoned out.
Merlin shrugged. “All right. Hopefully that’ll be the case. I swear if this is our world and we have to deal with Uther…” he trailed off, the threat of danger quite clear to the both of them.
With a little trepidation, Merlin -- with Zlota flying beside him --stepped into the other world.
To his relief, he did find a similar phoenix button on the other side. This time, he pressed it and the opening from the Shadow World closed. Merlin knew from Arthur’s dealing with Excalibur how important it was to keep the openings between worlds sealed after you stepped into one. It was like making sure you cleaned your room after making a mess.
Merlin wondered if the button would appear again when he needed to return to the Shadow World. If – when – Arthur returned, he’d be expecting them in that world. But Merlin knew Arthur would understand the need to leave the dreary, dull Shadow World when an opportunity to do so presented itself.
He would deal with that issue later, Merlin decided. For now, he’d find out what world they were in.
He found himself in a clearing with a small lake nearby. The forest air was welcoming and just what Merlin needed now. The leaves of the trees swayed gently in the breeze. He felt like he was in a paradise.
A wave of relief swept through him, this one bigger than before, when he sighted a little blonde girl walking in their direction.
She didn’t have the daemon. Thank the gods, Merlin thought. Maybe he had just returned to the non-daemon world he and Arthur had been spending time in?
“Hello,” Merlin greeted her. Zlota returned to his shoulder and she observed the girl with peaked interest.
The blonde girl turned her head toward Merlin at his voice. She smiled at him.
“Oh hi,” the girl said amicably. Merlin was struck by how trusting she seemed. A girl that young, wandering in the forest? Where were her parents? Then the girl’s attention was drawn to Zlota.
“What a very pretty bird you have,” she complimented, looking quite impressed. Zlota preened at the acknowledgement, standing up taller and making sure her scarlet and gold feathers were immaculate. “Could I touch – is it a male or a female?” She asked.
Merlin was uneasy. It just wasn’t right for another person to touch another’s daemon (well, there were the exceptions of course, but the general rule was still an unspoken understanding in his daemon world). He recalled the terrible pain he had felt when one of Uther’s men had gotten a hold of Zlota. Not something he wanted to experience again.
Of course, this little girl didn’t know about any of that.
“Thank you. My bird is a female. She’s a phoenix, in fact. But I’m sorry -- you can’t touch her. She’s very particular about others doing that. I’m Myrddin, by the way. What is your name?”
Merlin thought it would be safest for him to go under a false name. If this was the non-daemon world, then it would raise questions if there were two Merlins about.
The girl looked a bit disappointed at being refused, but she quickly shook it off as she was given an opening to talk about herself. “My name is Alice. I’m seven and--” She paused, biting her lip, worried about something, before she ventured, “A phoenix is a magical creature, isn’t it? You’re not anti-magic, right?” Alice asked him.
Merlin chuckled. Him? Anti-magic? That would be the day. “No, no. I’m far from anti-magic. Is this because of Camelot? The magic ban?”
Alice nodded. “Camelot is half a day’s ride from here. I was always told to keep my father’s true nature a secret. That the King would go after him if he was found out. But I suppose if you have a magic phoenix, then I can tell you that I’m the daughter of a Dragonlord,” she said proudly.
Merlin hadn’t heard of Dragonlords, but it definitely sounded impressive. Possibly Dragonlords were sorcerers who dealt primarily with dragons?
She continued, “I was searching for dragons, you see… my cousins keep telling me that King Uther killed all the dragons except for the one he keeps locked up… but he can’t have killed all of them, right?” She asked him earnestly. “It’d be horrible if that lone dragon was the last of his kin. I can’t imagine,” Alice breathed out, looking so sad about it.
Merlin was a bit alarmed when Alice’s eyes glistened, tears starting to form.
“Alice, Alice…oh no, please don’t,” Merlin said to her gently. Zlota flew off his shoulder and landed on the ground near him. She looked sympathetic for the girl.
Tears were streaming silently down the girl’s face. Merlin went over to her and embraced her.
“Where are your parents, Alice?” Merlin asked her quietly.
“They died a year ago,” she told him sadly. “My cousins have been taking care of me. They don’t understand. So I’m running away…to look for dragons. It’s what my father would have wanted, I know it.”
“I’m sure your cousins love you. You should give them a chance,” Merlin said to her quietly.
Alice gave a small shake of her head and sniffled.
“Hey,” Merlin coaxed. “Do you want to see something?”
“What?” Alice asked, her eyes a bit red and her cheeks tear-stained.
Merlin’s eye lit golden as he conjured a little red dragon with yellow-gold eyes. The dragon was made out of wood, though the eyes were little pieces of gold.
The girl smiled softly, taking the gift he offered her.
“Thank you,” she said sincerely.
“Think of it as a good luck charm. Maybe you’ll find a dragon, you never know,” Merlin told her, tapping her on the nose lightly. He smiled at her.
The girl grinned back and hugged him, the dragon toy clutched in one hand as she did so.
Then Alice told him that she had to go, but Merlin didn’t feel right in letting her be on her own. He offered to help her out, but Alice assured him with a bright smile that she would be all right. That she was sure she would find a dragon soon and that everything would be okay.
Not wanting to argue with a little girl, Merlin decided to let her go on her way. Still, he made sure to put some protection spells on her, the words spoken silently so as not to draw Alice’s attention.
He wished her well, and she departed. Merlin felt touched to see the girl looking at his conjured wooden dragon with interest as she walked away.
Merlin bet that if that girl ever happened to meet Kilgharrah, the dragon Merlin had dealt with in the past, then she would be put off by dragons for life. Unless she liked grumpy dragons who liked to give out mostly unhelpful advice in cryptic wording that made Merlin’s head ache.
Then again, he hoped that if other dragons did exist that they’d have more agreeable temperaments. And after all, with Kilgharrah being locked up for so long, then of course that accounted for his behavior.
He should find a way to release the dragon…whenever he returned to his world, which would preferably be when Uther’s cold, dead body was underground. And only then would he agree to return with Arthur.
But for now, Merlin decided to find something to eat. This meant he’d probably have to hunt for rabbit or something. A necessary evil he mused resignedly.
At least he had bread, cheese, fruit and water in his pack. The daemon-less Merlin had helpfully given him and Arthur some food the other day.
Zlota flew overhead, keeping a sharp eye out for prey as Merlin walked the forest floor. He ate some of the bread he had with him, and thought it’d be nice to take a dip in the lake after his breakfast.
~ * ~
Arthur was grateful that food appeared on the table closest to the door. He was beginning to feel hungry. He did worry that the food may be poisoned, but his hunger won out. So he tucked into his breakfast – one plate full of some sausages and bread and another platter filled with assorted fruit. A goblet of water was provided as well, and Arthur was a bit disappointed that it wasn’t honeyed mead or ale.
“Should we be this trusting?” Krola debated. “Eating and drinking what our captors provide for us? What if that drink is poison?”
Arthur shrugged. A sense of calm settled over him. “It tastes like water to me. Not that water has any sort of distinguishable taste to it.”
“Well it’s too late now if you’ve drunk it,” Krola intimated, frowning at him.
“And I’m still alive, so there’s that,” he quipped with a wink.
Krola gave him a look.
Not long after he finished eating, Arthur heard a knock at the door.
He exchanged glances with Krola. They would finally get some answers now.
Unsure who or what to expect, Arthur went to open the door. But then he remembered that the door was locked from the inside.
Arthur stopped short as a result. Well, at least the person was courteous enough to give him notice that they were there instead of barging in without a word.
“You can come in,” Arthur said loudly, not sure how to properly approach this peculiar situation.
Usually he’d be wasting away in the dungeons at this point during past capture attempts, kept hostage for ransom. Considering the lavish state of his room, Arthur didn’t believe he was being held for monetary gain this time.
The door opened to reveal a blond man with dark brown eyes. He had on a white shirt that opened narrowly at his chest as well as fitted black breeches.
He was Arthur’s age, though he wondered if the blond could be younger. He seemed like someone a woman might be inclined to mother because he was thin in that way that made you want to give him extra helpings of food. Sort of like with Merlin, who clearly had trouble eating enough. Though their time in exile certainly didn’t help in the getting enough to eat issue – the not getting caught problem, of course, took higher priority.
Anyway, at least the man didn’t have Merlin’s unfortunately big ears (not that Arthur disliked Merlin’s ears, but still…they were ridiculously big). The young man was handsome, he supposed, not astonishingly so; but just enough to stir interest. Not that Arthur was remotely interested in the stranger who was most likely involved in his capture – certainly not endearing him to Arthur. Besides, he had Merlin. He didn’t need anyone else.
Arthur thought that the man gave off a quiet yet undeniably perceptive vibe. Instead of feeling completely unnerved by this stranger’s notably discerning gaze, Arthur still was rather calm. Nothing to worry or get overanxious about, he decided.
The mystery man gave him a small smile saying hello and introducing himself as Blakeney. He was an advisor to the King of Camelot. And that this was, in fact, the World of Magic; so this was another Camelot Arthur had never been to before. And by the look of his given room, this Camelot was much better off than even his world’s Camelot.
Arthur waved his hand at the man, directing him to sit down at the table. Arthur sat down across from him. Krola sat down by Arthur, settling her head on Arthur’s thigh and gently prodding him to stroke her head. To ease her wariness over their current predicament. Arthur rested his hand on her head, stroking her, without argument.
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” Blakeney began smoothly. “You don’t need to worry about your friend. He is safe and unharmed. We left him in the world we took you from. We also have provided your friend with an alternative way to travel to the non-daemon world. We’re aware of your exiled status in your world, so we avoided sending him into danger there. I would imagine neither of you like to stay in the Shadow World for too long.”
“Yes, you’re right about that. The less time spent in that world the better. But how can I know you’re telling me the truth? About Merlin? And why did you take me? What do you need me for?” Arthur demanded to know.
He was admittedly bursting with curiosity about what they needed him for.
“I am telling the truth,” Blakeney said simply.
Arthur couldn’t help but believe him. He wasn’t sure why. He just did.
“All right. What do you need with me?”
“We only need your help,” he told Arthur, making it sound like it was such an effortless request.
It certainly didn’t feel like the request warranted his being taken into another world without his consent.
Blakeney pressed on with his explanation. “This world, unlike most other worlds, is aware of the existence of the other worlds. We know about your daemon world, for example, and that’s why we kept your wolf-daemon with you--” and at that, Krola thanked him in a slightly condescending tone, that it was nice that otherworlders took on the extra task of learning about other worlds.
Arthur quieted his daemon. She was still tense, he knew. He patted her on the head, assuring her it would be okay.
Blakeney didn’t appear to be bothered by it and continued to speak, “As you can expect, we have modes of travel to go from one world to another. We even have gatekeepers for each kingdom – to monitor the comings and goings of our population. Because of this awareness of other worlds, we feel that we have a duty to insure the welfare of the other worlds. Someone has to do it after all,” Blakeney said reasonably.
Arthur nodded, understanding. “So you need my help with what exactly?”
“We want to stop the darkness from spreading to the other worlds. If the darkness overwhelms every world, then everyone will be miserable. It would be the end of all worlds. And my world, this World of Magic, is fully invested in preventing this darkness, this evil from bringing about the apocalypse. Luckily, you are just the person to help us with this fight.”
“But how?” Arthur wondered, hoping he would get a clarification.
Blakeney gave him a half-smile. “You will help us. It’s that simple. You’re helping a good cause. That’s most important in the end,” he advised Arthur.
Arthur decided that the other man was right. He would be helping a good cause. It didn’t matter how he would help, just that Arthur would be able to assist in some manner.
“I can take you to see the King now. I imagine you’d be interested in seeing him?”
Arthur nodded, but then wondered, “Who is the King of Camelot here? I’m aware that another world carries alternate versions of the people I know – the non-daemon world. Is this World of Magic the same?”
“Yes, this world does have alternates of those you know. But judging by the frown on your face, you didn’t want to hear that, did you?”
“I could use a break from meeting other versions of the same people. There has to be a limit,” Arthur said tiredly.
“Don’t worry,” Blakeney reassured him. “You will only be mostly dealing with one person – that is, the King – who may look familiar to you. You won’t be overwhelmed by people who look like copies of those you know.
“So the King – he’s an alternate?”
“Yes,” Blakeney confirmed.
“If this is the World of Magic, who would be a likely candidate to rule a magical kingdom?” Arthur pondered aloud.
“Someone with big ears,” Krola spoke up, sounding amused.
Arthur felt the need to hit his head against the wall. Seriously? Could it be that this magic-dominated Camelot could be ruled by another Merlin?
The non-daemon world he could deal with a little better because at least the Arthur and Merlin were in positions not different from his own world.
But in the World of Magic, Arthur would definitely need to get accustomed to the idea of Merlin being King…
“Is it Merlin?”
Blakeney confirmed his guess with a nod. And Arthur knew that his Merlin would love it even more here with his other self being king. Hopefully not too much though. After all, Arthur couldn’t be without Merlin. Though this world seemed pleasant, he himself couldn’t imagine residing in a world where he wasn’t King of Camelot. It would be a hard thing to reconcile.
Despite the temptation Merlin would face to remain forever in the World of Magic, Arthur trusted in his bond with Merlin. In the end, Merlin would choose to stay with him in the Camelot of the daemon world – with Arthur as King if all went well.
~ * ~
The walls in the hallway were surprisingly white instead of golden, though there were pictures of dragons adorning the walls. And each dragon had a burst of fire coming from its mouth with the next dragon a few feet away from the previous dragon.
Not just that, but there were actual small dragons walking or flying in the corridor. Fortunately not many dragons were in the hallway so it wasn’t overwhelming, but certainly Arthur was amazed at all the dragons just in the castle. After all, his world had only the one dragon. He didn’t even know how many dragons there had been in existence before his father had killed them.
The passageway was wide enough that both men could walk side by side in relative ease. There was room for a third person, but it seemed that the dragons made that gap their own as they walked one after another. And the dragons – whether walking or in flight – were generally good about not colliding into people or getting in the way. Arthur thought that a system of order had definitely been established to allow dragons and humans to live together peacefully. At least the small, more manageably-sized dragons – Arthur didn’t think the big dragons would be as easy to co-exist with. The best option was to leave them outside.
Fairies had taken up residence in floating flowers, which smoothly maneuvered themselves to accommodate any flying dragons. The brightly-colored flowers went along at a relatively unhurried pace near the corridor’s high ceiling. From their flowers, some fairies peered at the pair in curiosity and others waved at Blakeney, who waved back at them and greeted some of the fairies.
“Dragons come in all shapes and sizes here,” Blakeney told Arthur. “I imagine you’re only familiar with large green dragons?”
“Yes.”
“We have those too. They are the classical look that dragons have. It’s not a surprise you’d have such dragons in your world. They are quite common.”
“My father killed all the dragons except for one in my world.”
The dragons in the hallway all stared at Arthur as if he had gravely displeased them with his words. Krola was on the defensive, ready to growl, but Arthur asked her to calm herself.
“I’m er—I’m really sorry,” Arthur apologized hurriedly. “That was only my father. I like – love dragons,” he continued, trying his best to persuade them that he was pro-dragon.
He tried not to dwell on the absurdity of convincing little dragons to like him – maybe most of these dragons were in fact very young dragons? So he was at the mercy of baby dragons. Welcome to a new world, he muttered to himself wryly.
“If I had been able to, I would have done my best to keep the dragons alive,” Arthur finished sincerely, smiling at them. He worried the smile came out more as a grimace.
The dragons turned their attention away from him, apparently satisfied with his response.
“As you saw, it is best to avoid speaking about what your father did to the dragons,” Blakeney suggested to him. “Especially around our dragons.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind,” Arthur said drily.
Then a dark-haired woman in a golden dress approached them. Arthur almost couldn’t believe she was real, as she may just have been the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He reluctantly had to admit that even Morgana couldn’t quite beat this woman in beauty.
But what startled him the most was the lady’s purple eyes. Arthur wasn’t sure he was seeing it right. Could her eyes truly be purple? Maybe they were just a funny shade of blue or violet…
The woman stopped before the pair, smiling at the both of them. She kissed Blakeney softly on the lips. Turning her attention to Arthur, she said, “Well hello. You must be the guest – Arthur? And this is your wolf-daemon?” She asked, peering at the white wolf.
Krola wagged her tail, happier now, which was a nice change from her earlier behavior. Arthur thought that she was as taken in by the woman’s beauty as he was. There was just something about the woman that put Arthur in a good mood.
Arthur nodded. “Yes to both. Her name is Krolewska, but I call her Krola most of the time. It’s good to meet you.”
“Arthur, this is Morgan -- the woman I’m with,” Blakeney introduced.
Morgan leaned toward Arthur and he caught a pleasant whiff of her sweet-smelling perfume. Arthur was nearly intoxicated by it, and wished he could stay in this relaxed state forever.
She said to him conspiratorially, “You know my mother is an enchantress. She used to seduce men, sleep with them, and sometimes she even slit their throats before they awoke. The tragedy of it is now I don’t know who my father is. So many choices, you know?” Morgan said sadly with a long, dramatic sigh.
“Oh, Morgan likes to tease,” Blakeney said in slight exasperation though he smiled quietly at Morgan. He was clearly pleased to see her. “Don’t listen to her. While her mother’s an enchantress, there are good and bad enchantresses here.”
“And my mother’s a very, very good enchantress,” Morgan emphasized with a widening smile.
“How can you be a good enchantress?” Arthur wondered since from past knowledge, enchantresses were always best avoided.
“They help people to relax when they’re tense,” she spoke with a hint of pride in her voice. “The not so good enchantresses abuse that ability and prefer to gain power. My mother isn’t like that. I chose to become a dancer myself, but I still try to stay true to my mother’s heritage. Family is most important after all.”
“Yes. I would agree,” Arthur said.
Merlin was his true family if not in blood then in spirit. And then Morgana who he had grown up with, and who had been like a sister to him. For Morgana to choose to die over the worse fate of being controlled by his vengeful father was a terrible tragedy. It made Arthur hate his father even more.
Of course there was Gwen too, but it hurt Arthur to think about her. He fervently hoped that his good friend was all right. Family carried a different meaning for him these days, but the strength of that loving bond still held fast.
Morgan smiled at Arthur appreciatively. After whispering something in Blakeney’s ear and kissing him on the cheek, she declared that she had to go.
“Goodbye Blakeney, Arthur. It was nice to meet you,” she said to them before she went off down the corridor in the opposite direction.
“How did you two meet?” Arthur asked conversationally, though he was curious to find out the answer.
“Six months ago, she was here at Camelot to perform a few dances. I bumped into her in a hallway. It was a bit embarrassing as you can imagine. Morgan was the one who pursued me more than I her. I’m not that good with…you know, I’m just not good with women,” Blakeney admitted, rubbing the back of his head and shrugging. “And I probably would’ve been happy to never get married, but Morgan came along and—well, I think she may be the one.”
Arthur didn’t press him on further details since it was more of a womanly matter to chatter on about beloveds and gossip about who was with whom. And Blakeney seemed to be more the quiet type, not one to divulge everything.
So Arthur changed tact. “Are Morgan’s eyes really purple?” He wondered. He felt a tad ridiculous for asking, but he was interested in knowing the truth.
Blakeney looked relieved for the change of topic. He chuckled softly. “Yes, they are. A lot of people ask her that. You’re not the first.”
“I’m glad I saved her from the same old question,” Arthur remarked, smiling.
“On the contrary, Morgan’ll probably be disappointed now that you didn’t ask. She likes to tell interesting stories about why her eyes are purple. Each story more fantastical than the last. She’s good at that,” Blakeney told him.
A dancer, a storyteller and maybe an enchantress too… certainly, this Morgan was an intriguing woman, Arthur thought. Morgana would have liked her and at the very least, the pair could have struck up a conversation about their similar names.
~ * ~
Merlin felt like he was being watched. He had been swimming in the lake for almost half an hour now, but due to his uneasiness, he decided to stop. Was there someone at the shore?
“Zlota?” Merlin called.
The daemon was flying not far away and she came not long after he had beckoned her.
“There’s a boy who looks like you on shore…” Zlota told him. She sounded thoroughly intrigued.
Merlin was startled. “What?”
Could it be another version of him that had come here from another world? What if it was the same world that Arthur had mysteriously gone to? After all, that world appeared to have other means of interworld travel that wasn’t limited to Excalibur. It was possible.
Zlota prodded him to swim to the edge of the lake so Merlin could see the stranger for himself.
Shortly, Merlin reached the shore and Zlota’s account was confirmed.
A boy – who couldn’t be more than ten – was at the shore. He was standing next to Merlin’s discarded clothes and his pack. And yes, Zlota was right. The boy did eerily resemble Merlin when he had been a boy. Zlota changed to her more spy-fitting form of a firefly and settled in Merlin’s hair to observe the curious boy.
The boy appeared startled when Merlin was nearer to him and his undivided attention was on the child.
“Hi there. Are you all right?” Merlin asked him.
The boy bit his lip and started backing away.
“No, wait. Please. I want to know if you’re from a different world. You look like me -- well, when I was your age. Can you speak? If you can’t, that’s all right. I’m not going to hurt you,” Merlin assured the boy.
“Yes. I’m from another world,” the boy answered simply. He looked like he wanted to say more, but he didn't.
“Okay. I’m not from this world either…so I guess we’re both otherworlders in a foreign world you could say,” Merlin concluded.
The boy smiled.
“I’m going to come out of the water now… I need to put my clothes back on.”
The boy shrugged, and Merlin hoped that the boy wouldn’t be tempted to run off on him. At least for now, the child seemed somewhat interested in staying. Merlin was wondering how much he could learn about this boy.
Merlin emerged from the lake, and he dried himself off with a silent spell. He quickly dressed himself.
“I should introduce myself – I’m Merlin. And you are?”
“An orphan. I’m an orphan.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Merlin said sympathetically. “Are you all on your own?”
“No, not now. I’ve been lucky,” the boy informed him happily.
“Do you have a name? How do I address you?”
After a long moment, the boy replied to him, “Gwydion. That’s my name.”
“If Gwydion was your name, you wouldn’t take so long to think of it. You look like me. You have to see that. Your name is really Merlin, isn’t it?”
“I also like Gawen. I think that name sounds good,” Gwydion, the orphan -- whoever he truly was -- contemplated idly, completely ignoring Merlin. “I should go,” Gwydion then declared.
Merlin saw ahead of him a robed figure of a man with his hood up. The stranger’s appearance was not unlike how the Druids dressed. He was too far off for Merlin to get a definite description of him. And it looked like the man’s face was shadowed anyway.
“Goodbye!” Gwydion said to him before he rushed to meet the hooded figure.
Merlin watched as the hooded man – the boy’s guardian, he assumed? – wrapped his arm around the boy’s shoulders securely. The boy hugged the man, clinging to him. The man squeezed the boy’s shoulders, returning the affection, and then the pair of them disappeared in a magical display of dark clouds and lightning.
So that’s what Gwydion meant by being lucky. Despite his parents being deceased, apparently, at least the boy had that mysterious person taking care of him.
Though on second thought, the mysterious, concealed nature of the hooded figure didn’t leave Merlin all that comforted.
Yes, the boy seemed to appreciate the man, but who was that man in the first place? The man who was looking after another version of Merlin himself? No matter what the boy had told him, Merlin couldn’t ignore his instinct that this Gwydion was really him from another world. He couldn’t let go of that conviction. Zlota agreed with his belief. There was little doubt in her mind that the strange boy was truly an alternate version of Merlin.
Merlin wished his curiosity could be sated. He doubted he would see either of those two otherworldly people again. So he was left with only his questions.
~ * ~
When Arthur and Blakeney arrived at the king’s study, the king wasn’t there. This hallway leading up to the study was devoid of dragons. Though near the study entrance, there were a few very small – the size of mice – dragons playing with each other with one or two breathing fire every so often.
“He should be here soon,” Blakeney indicated.
“Are we going to wait outside the room then?”
“Unless you want to meet Kilgharrah. He’s in the study now as he usually is. The king’s dragon can be a little anxious around strangers. It’s best not to surprise him.”
“Right, of course,” Arthur said with a sigh.
So this King Merlin had his own dragon. In this magic world, that made sense. Clearly this world had an abundance of dragons. Maybe even as many dragons as there were people?
A few minutes passed before the king was seen coming down the corridor. The first thing that Arthur noticed was different about him was the king’s trimmed beard. It made the man look more mature, he supposed, and older. Though from his young face, Arthur didn’t think the king was that much older than his Merlin.
As he approached them, Arthur took in the king’s attire – certainly expected of a king and as far as can be from what his Merlin wore.
King Merlin had on a deep blue shirt and black breeches.
A necklace with the kingdom’s coat of arms circled his neck and a ring with a fire-colored stone was on one hand. Golden bracelets, some with dragon and phoenix designs on them, were on both wrists. There was no crown on his head.
“Hello. It’s good to meet you properly now,” King Merlin greeted Arthur.
“Yes. I agree.”
“I know in your world that your Merlin was your servant,” the king noted. “But I assume you know for formality’s sake that you should address me as ‘Your Majesty’ or the associated titles, as you prefer.”
“Yes, I understand. It is admittedly startling to see another version of Merlin. You resemble him so well. Except for the beard though. Merlin doesn’t have one.”
The king laughed, amused by his comment. His blue eyes twinkled. “I admit myself that I’m not quite sure if I like this beard or not. I’m trying it out, you see. What do you think?” He asked of Arthur.
“I personally like you without it,” Blakeney spoke up.
“I would have to agree, but I think it may grow on me, Your Majesty,” Arthur decided, choosing to be diplomatic about it.
“Well thank you, but there’s no need to lie to me. I could tell you were only being polite. But no matter,” the king shrugged it off with a small smile.
Then he reached up to take something off from his head. Arthur was surprised to see that it was a very small black dragon the size of a mouse in his hand. The dragon’s dark color had blended in well with the king’s black hair. The king held out the dragon to Blakeney.
“Blakeney, could you take this dragon and return it to the black dragon sanctuary? The little creature landed on my head and fell asleep.”
Blakeney nodded and he gently took the still fast asleep dragon from the other man. King Merlin dismissed him and after inclining his head at Arthur in goodbye, Blakeney left them.
A blue and silver light shot past Arthur.
“What was that?” He asked as he stepped aside so as not to get hit by the light.
The king waved his hand. “Oh that’s just Archimedes, my phoenix. Archimedes! Come here please,” he commanded of him.
The stream of blue-silver light turned around and once it reached the king, it settled on his shoulder. Arthur watched in astonishment as the light transformed into a beautiful dark blue phoenix with silver-tipped wings and eerie silver eyes.
“My Merlin’s daemon is a phoenix. Her name is Zlota. But she’s a scarlet gold one. Is yours a male?”
The king nodded as the phoenix, Archimedes, ruffled his feathers looking as proud as Merlin’s Zlota did on occasion when she wished to show off.
“Ah yes. How interesting isn’t it how some things are similar in different worlds?” The king mused. “Though in my world, only royalty and nobility may have phoenixes. But we do offer phoenix eggs as gifts to well-deserving people. So to keep a phoenix is not an entirely exclusive affair. Still, they prefer to live away from humans. Fortunately, phoenixes are not completely against being partnered with them if they are good people.”
Arthur nodded, understanding. He could see Zlota being just fine on her own. Well, if she wasn’t a daemon and simply just a phoenix. The nature of being a daemon didn’t allow Zlota to live apart from Merlin after all.
They entered the study after King Merlin apologetically informed the little dragons that Kilgharrah didn’t want their company at the moment. That the dragon was in one of his moods.
The king beckoned Arthur to come inside the study first. Arthur did so with a little trepidation due to the dragon being in the room.
“Kilgharrah,” the king said warningly as the black dragon proceeded to growl at Arthur. Krola growled back at the other creature, baring her sharp teeth in challenge. But at least the king’s dragon made no move to attack Arthur, though the creature’s golden eyes flashed in threat. The dragon was the size of one horse and half of another one – a little bigger than that of the dragon rider’s – Will’s – golden-streaked dragon Arthur had seen earlier.
“He won’t hurt you, I assure you,” the king told Arthur. His phoenix, Archimedes, settled on his perch that was near the desk. “Sit down, sit down,” he asked of Arthur amicably.
The king waved his hand at the big gilded desk with a glass front. Against one side of the room, bookshelves held a vast array of books. The floor was snow white with painted golden, silver and blue dragons adding color to the floor’s blank canvas. An arched opening to a wide outdoor balcony was behind the king’s desk.
Arthur sat down at the desk while the king persuaded Kilgharrah to go to the balcony instead of glaring at Arthur the whole time.
The dragon grudgingly agreed and disappeared in a display of black and golden light. He reappeared on the balcony.
King Merlin sighed as he sat down at the desk across from Arthur.
“Kilgharrah is a guard dragon, and a black dragon to boot. Such dragons can be very protective of their human partners, I would say. If you happen to get on Kilgharrah’s bad side, your fate will surely not be a pleasant one. But don’t worry. I’ll make sure he’s on his best behavior while you’re here. Isn’t that right, Kilgharrah?”
“I am not a child,” the dragon protested petulantly from the balcony, puffing out a burst of fire from his mouth. “He’s an otherworlder. Can’t be trusted,” he remarked gruffly.
The king shook his head. “Nevermind. Just pretend he isn’t there,” he advised Arthur.
Arthur thought that was rather hard to do considering the large size of the dragon and how his golden eyes kept looking at Arthur like the dragon was waiting for the right moment to strike and rip him to shreds.
But Arthur tried his best. At least he had Krola with him. She sat beside him, ever alert and her silver eyes surveying the room and, of course, the dragon.
“I’m curious: did you ever touch your Merlin’s daemon?” asked the king in mild interest. “I understand it’s a taboo to do such a thing, but aren’t you two close?”
“Yes, we are. But no. I have never touched Zlota. Merlin said I couldn’t -- that he’d be in pain.”
“Even after the both of you have established a strong bond? Shouldn’t you and your Merlin easily be able to touch one another’s daemons?”
“Merlin touched Krola a few times in the past. I wasn’t uncomfortable. Why are you asking me this?” Arthur wondered in slight irritation. He was perplexed by the question about Merlin’s daemon.
The king shrugged. “I just find it sad that you two are so close and you can’t touch Merlin’s daemon as you should. Doesn’t that upset you? To know he will be in pain if you touch his daemon? Have you tried?”
Arthur shook his head. “No, of course not. If Merlin was sure he’d be pained by it, then the last thing I would do is subject him to that. I didn’t want to test the idea. I just went by Merlin’s word. That was enough for me,” he said firmly.
“Perhaps you should ask him if there was any particular reason for why he’d find it painful. Surely there must be a good reason. Your close bond with him should be enough to allow this touching free of hurt, shouldn’t it?”
“Do you think he’s keeping a secret from me? Is that it?” Arthur concluded.
“Maybe. It’s your choice to ask or not, but you at least have to be curious about it. If your bond with him is strong, then I have no doubt your Merlin will confide the truth to you if you inquire it of him.”
“All right…okay, I’ll ask him,” Arthur decided a bit hesitantly. Now that it was on his mind, he was curious about why he couldn’t easily touch Zlota without Merlin being in pain.
“Very good. Now I need to let you know that you’ll be speaking in the hall to an audience. I only want you to tell them about the world you came from, what you have gone through. Everyone is interested in hearing what life was like for you in your world. I hope you wouldn’t mind satisfying their curiosity?”
“But why? Why do you want me to give my life story to strangers?” Arthur demanded, uneasy about the odd request.
“Simply put, the more you know about someone, the more comfortable you feel around them. That’s why I’m asking you to do this. You are our guest after all, and we seek only to know more about you,” the king explained smoothly.
“You took me without my consent… I thought I was a prisoner,” Arthur admitted frankly, his tone coated in accusation.
“I do truly apologize for bringing you here without your permission, but we didn’t think you’d agree to being separated from your Merlin. So we acted accordingly. Despite the questionable method of your taking, my intent was not to treat you like a common prisoner. Your role in fighting this great battle is very important. It would be wrong of me to treat you like a criminal.”
“But I don’t know exactly what that role is,” Arthur said slowly.
“No, but you shouldn’t worry about it. Are you worried?”
“No,” Arthur said promptly and then he put the concern out of his mind. Like Blakeney had said, it wasn’t as important as simply knowing that he was helping a good cause.
King Merlin had little more to say to him after that and soon they prepared to leave. The king put on a dark jacket over his shirt. At his back, he donned a cape that had the dragon and phoenix sigil blazing out of the material’s darkness. As he put a golden crown on his head, he assured his dragon that he’d be fine without him. And that if he needed Kilgharrah to light a fire – said with a teasing smile – then the dragon would know.
Arthur sincerely thought Kilgharrah wanted to “light a fire” in a room where Arthur was the sole occupant.
Charming dragon, really. For his part, Arthur was more than ready to depart from the study. At least he wouldn’t have the dragon’s piercing gaze set upon him any longer.
~ * ~
Merlin returned to Camelot late that afternoon. When he arrived in the other Merlin’s chambers, he found his alternate self smiling. But upon seeing that Merlin was in the room, the non-daemon Merlin frowned a little and possibly appeared worried as well.
“Hi. Is there anything wrong?” Merlin asked his other self in concern.
The other Merlin shook his head quickly, smiling again to prove his point. “No, no,” he reassured Merlin. “Where were you? And where’s Arthur?” He inquired.
Merlin shrugged. “We decided to spend the day apart from each other. Can’t go wrong with a break, right? Arthur and I planned to see each other again by this evening. That’s all,” Merlin lied with a small smile.
He didn’t want to bring his other self into the strangeness surrounding Arthur’s disappearance.
His alternate self raised his eyebrow. He seemed to not buy a word of Merlin’s explanation. “I don’t believe you,” the other Merlin told him flatly, crossing his arms against his chest.
The non-daemon Merlin didn’t look happy.
Merlin sighed. He didn’t wish to get into an argument with another version of himself. But he also didn’t much fancy getting the other man involved in this mess – whatever was going on. Sometimes the more one knew, the more danger they put themselves in. His other self would be safer to be blissfully uninvolved.
“I had a feeling you’d say that. But that’s all I’m going to tell you. I’m sorry,” Merlin finished sincerely, hoping his apology would be satisfactory.
His alternate self frowned. He sat down on his narrow bed. “If there’s anything you or Arthur need help with, I’d be more than willing--” his other self offered.
Merlin sat down in the chair near the bed. Zlota perched herself on the back of the chair, her luminous golden eyes ever watchful.
Merlin reached out and grasped the other man’s hand. “Thank you for the offer, but really, you’ve been a great help. What would make me happy is that you will form a strong bond of your own with your Arthur. That one day, the right day, he will know who you truly are.”
The other Merlin smiled brilliantly then. “He knows. Arthur knows about my magic. And he’s all right with it. At least I think he is. I’m nearly sure there won’t be guards arresting me come tomorrow morning.” He shrugged, appearing rather unconcerned.
Merlin was surprised yet happy for his alternate self as well. “Congratulations,” he praised him, smiling back at him. “You didn’t accidentally reveal yourself, did you?”
“No, no. I was doing my best to be careful. Arthur was the one who brought it up. We were – well, more like Arthur – hunting and I got hurt. It was only a small cut. I stumbled over a fallen branch, I think, and my hand got scratched and bled a little. It wasn’t anything worth making a fuss about. But Arthur stunned me when he took my wounded hand and he said, ‘You’re a sorcerer, Merlin, you can heal it, can’t you?’ And after I finished gaping…er…you can imagine I didn’t know how to react or what to say. Or whether I should’ve made a good run for it.”
“I felt the same way when my Arthur cornered me and persuaded me to just tell him about my magic. I’m guessing by the fact you’re still alive that Arthur assured you that he would accept you and your magic?” Merlin assumed.
The other Merlin nodded. “Yes, and he sounded sincere, so I think, I hope, that will bode well for me. And that I’ll survive the rest of the week with no execution planned at the end of it.”
“I wish you the best. You know your Arthur better than me. Don’t doubt your judgment. It should be fine,” Merlin advised him with a smile.
“I’ll try,” he said. Then hesitantly, his other self changed the subject. His expression shifted to a somber one. “There’s something else too – some bad news for you. The Morgana of my world has Seen bits of the future. She told me what she Saw, Merlin. She said that you would meet a blonde girl, and give her a good luck charm. This little girl would be kidnapped by a dragon. And then you would meet the lucky orphan who brings unlucky tidings for you. If you met him, then it is a warning to you.”
“A warning that trouble will come my way, I’m assuming?”
The other Merlin nodded reluctantly. “Yes. I thought it was mad. I didn’t believe her…a girl kidnapped by a dragon? That’s strange even for me.”
“I don’t know about that…but I have met a blonde girl and I gave her a dragon carving as a good luck charm. She was searching for dragons…”
“Then she must have found one who could talk most likely. You can easily persuade someone to do something if you say the right words. Do you have a talking dragon in your world who gives you cryptic advice?” the other Merlin asked.
“Yes,” Merlin confirmed with a small groan.
The daemon-less Merlin smiled. “So you understand how frustrating that dragon is.”
“Unfortunately,” said Merlin resignedly. Then he hesitantly admitted, “I met a boy too. He resembled me when I was about ten. He said he was a lucky orphan… but--”
“Maybe you should be more careful now,” the daemon-less Merlin advised, looking especially concerned now that Merlin confirmed meeting a lucky orphan.
Merlin nodded. Of course he felt uneasy about a vision that didn’t bode well for him. Caution was the best action to take now. He decided that he’d certainly feel better about the odd situation when Arthur returned. Merlin was sure he would come back to him.
~ * ~
Final part of Chapter 5
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at least Merlin's magic was vying to do something with a magical flourish .....Stop making me want the campy modern AU where Arthur and Merlin open up a magical interior decorating business.
Lol, Zlota pushing the magical floating button. I bet Arthur feels like a badass when he uses Excalibur to cut between worlds, and I'd love to see Merlin just come up beside him and press a button with a smirk. "Whaa--? MERLIN!" LOL
Ugh, the scene with Merlin and Alice is so cute. Conjuring the dragon figure and tapping her on the nose! Merlin should def. interact with more children on the show, you know it would be adorable.
Man, do I love Arthur and Krola conversations. <3
BLAKENEY'S IN DA HOUSE! :D The idea of gatekeepers is so cool, love it.
I could use a break from meeting other versions of the same people. There has to be a limit," Arthur said tiredly. LOLOLOL In your fic? NEVER!! :D
Arthur's internal response (and Krola's comment, lol) to Arthur being King of alternate Camelot is priceless. And omg, the descriptions of this dragon-friendly world are amazing, especially the tiny dragons flying in the hallways. Just tell me Toothless is out there somewhere. :)
"My father killed all the dragons except one" CUE INCREDIBLY AWKWARD SILENCE FROM DRAGONS LOLOLOL ARTHUR YOU ARE GOLDEN ALWAYS
Morgan is the coolest. And Morgan/Blakeney? Boy, do I ship THAT. Please give them all the blond, violet-eyed, badass babies in the world?
So interested to see where the Gwydion storyline goes. ~So mysterious~
I love your description of (beardy!) King!Merlin, and I find it wonderfully in-character for him that he doesn't wear a crown.
BEARD CONVERSATION *DEAD* Ahhh this entire scene! From the description of the room to the ~teensy dragon on Merlin's head~ to grumpy Kilgharrah to the discussion of daemon-touching, it's just so, so good.
Arthur sincerely thought Kilgharrah wanted to "light a fire" in a room where Arthur was the sole occupant. FAVORITE. <3
I adore the completely non-climatic story of Arthur telling Merlin to just heal his wound because he's a sorceror for godsakes'. Smart, exasperted Arthur and godsmacked Merlin are some of my favorite versions of them.
Oooh, the prophecy coming together! And Gwydion and Alice! Cannot wait to get home to read the conclusion!