His Love

Chapter 14

It was some days later that Arthur and Merlin took a stroll to the lower town. Merlin had been restless and driving Arthur mad with his cravings for rosemary roast chicken and nettle pudding until he had insisted on a trip to the lower town market place to procure them. The sun was shining down on the market place as the pair wove their way through the bustle of the afternoon crowd. They both loved how freely they could walk around the market as Merlin had cast a spell to disguise his pregnant belly and the two of them also. To the shoppers they just looked like anyone else, two peasants out for a merry time in the sun. They had had to do this after Athru had refused outright to simply wear peasant clothes, something which had amused Merlin no end.

The breeze was soft in the azure sky and birds flew on it, their songs adding to Merlin's feelings of peace and contentment at finally leaving the castle. The rosmary roast chicken and nettle puddding was eaten with glee by Merlin and many disparaging comments from Arthur. The pair walked on, though through the market when something occured to Merlin that he had been meaning to speak to his husband about.

"Oh, Arthur, I just remembered, I keep waking up in the night and you aren't there!" gasped Merlin as he remembered.

"You must be dreaming, I don't get up at night" scoffed Arthur in denile. He looked confused at Merlin's claim.

"Not even to use the privy?" queired Merlin only half joking.

"Nope, I sleept like a log the whole night though. You must be dreaming." Arthur was insisted. He had no memory of waking up in the nights his hunsbad mention.

"Oh, ok. It feels so real though, I get so scaredy..." Merlin muttered delicately, trailing off in embarrassment at his being caught at worrying over nothing. He knew that Arthur was very protective of him but he was just as progective of Arthur and their impending son. He paused and then he continued.

"I...I am scared...I'm scared o-of you leaving m-me!" he finally admitted. It felt like a betrayl of Athru.

"Merlin. I'd never leave you. Not for one moment or one reason. Not even to use the privvy" Arhtur reassured him, Merlin knew this really and felt bad for not trsting his husbad. The corner of his mouth turned up slighty at Arthur's attempt to joke.

"Oh Arthur!" signed Merlin and they kissed in sight of everyone in the market, though through their magical disgise no one knew that it was them that they were seeing. It was nice to be this open and free: even though they were wed it was difficult for Arthur to go anywhere subtley as he would be seen and noticed by everyone and treated as the Crown prince, which he was ,instead of a normal person. But like this they could go wherever they wanted without anyone noticing, and they just bended in, as one of the other townspeaple might. Arthur kissed Merlin again, smiling attractively into it.

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That night, Merlin awoken again, this time by a strange sound in the darkness, a noise that didn't fit with the usual nighttime ambiance of Camelot, a shourt of shuffling, right there in the room with him. At first he froze, but worry for his husband took over and soon he was sliding his hand across the bed to wear Arthur lay – or didn't lay, as the bed was warm but Arthur was missing. Just as he was persuading that he was still asleep a movemnet by the window caught Merlin's eyes. It was the window that was always open when Arthur was gone in the night. It was open, and Arthur stood in front of it, out lined in gossamer silver by the light of the moon, unmoving and still. Despite his concern, Merlin could not help but notice that he was beautiful, he smiled to himself at the thought of Arthur's reaction to being call something so girly.

"Arthur?" Merin said rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and sitting up in bed propped up with one arm. Arthur did not answer and Merlin frowned. Maybe he was sleep walking? Merlin didn't know. He swung hes feet out of bed to go and invesstigate, padding towards the other man across the cold stone floor but then suddenly in one fluid movement Arthur grasped the side of the window and pulled himself up into the frame.

"Arthur!" Merlin cried, stood quickly and strode over to the window where Arthur was but before his long legs could reach him, Arthur had flung himself out the window.

"Aurthur!!" Merlin screamed reaching after his husband but clawing uselessly at the air. His entre body went cold and numb with shock in an instant and he fought to keep himself from throwing up. All was lost. Just earlier that very same day Arthur had said- had promised- that he'd never leave Merlin. And now... He was pulled from his thoughts by the thunderous beating of wings as a collossal red dragon rose into the air before him. It's armoured scales were the size of dinner plates and shone with all the shades of red that Merlin could imagine, from crimson and scarlet to cerise to cheery and burgundy. Even in the darkness it's scales glittered an shone with an unreal light as if lit from within by a burning flame. He gasped and stepped back in shock as the beast beat it's wings and disappeared into the night with a woosh of hot hair from the beat of it's massive wings.

In the stillness of the dark he came back to his senses and remembered Arthur. He staggered back to the window and looked down to the ground below, he braced himself for what he knew we was going to see and looked to the courtyard below, hoping against hope that his husband had survived the fall. But where he expected to see Arthur's shattered and broken body their was nothing but cibblestones. Arthur had dissappeared into the darkness along with the mysteriuous dragon. Merlin's knees gave way in relief and he slipped into the inky black unconsciousness of a dead faint.