Merlyn's Last Dream

The Changeling P2

As much as Merlyn enjoyed her quiet trips into the woods, seeking herbs for Gaius as she trekked between the trees, she often grew impatient as she searched, the task a little mindless for her taste. Then again, polishing Arthur's armour wasn't exactly stimulating.

Having plucked the last sprig of rosemary, the witch tucked the plant into a pocket of her bag, looking up just in time to see Grunhilda shuffling purposefully out of sight. Feeling understandably suspicious, Merlyn chose to follow her, keeping her distance until she arrived at a small pond. Honestly, she didn't know what she'd been expecting: Grunhilda didn't seem like the type to be sneaking around the mildly dangerous forests, but it certainly wasn't for the fellow servant to be crouching by the stagnant water, surrounded by the buzzing of flies. A flicker of movement caught her eye so, frowning slightly, she let her irises flicker gold, time slowing so that she could focus on the scene before her. Grunhilda opened her mouth, a long purple tongue snapping from between her lips, catching a fly with the tip. As she swallowed it with a growl, Merlyn had to forcibly close her mouth, which had previously been agape in horror, turning to run back towards the city, trying to comprehend what she'd seen. One thing was for sure: Grunhilda certainly wasn't human.

~

"I've seen some strange tongues in my time. Maybe she was suffering from an infection." Gaius suggested after Merlyn recounted her time in the forest, somehow trying to justify Grunhilda's foot-long tongue. The witch would freely admit that she was no physician, but, as far as she was aware, no illness could cause such an infliction.

"Was it discolored?" Gaius inquired, as if that was the main issue.

"Discoloured? Yes." Merlyn nodded emphatically.

"Brown?"

"Purple." the witch corrected, shivering slightly. "And long..." She gestured a rough length with her hands, watching as Gaius' eyebrows shot up his forehead.

"That's not an infection." he stated, as if Merlyn had been even remotely convinced by that explanation.

"No. It's magic. Some sort of magical creature has infiltrated Lord Godwyn's household. The question is why?" she drummed her fingers on the tabletop, looking around the room as if the answer would appear on one of Gaius' dusty shelves.

The physician shrugged. "I don't know. But I have a feeling we should probably find out."

~

Merlyn had to tend to Arthur, so Gaius thought he'd try his hand at snooping. As he searched through Elena's jewellery box, he felt a newfound respect for his ward. She'd spent many a time rummaging through the chambers of those she considered suspicious and often seemed to find something of use. As he fingered through the trinkets on the dressing table, he realised that he hadn't a clue what he should be looking for.

Sighing deeply, he turned to leave the room when, as he moved passed the bed, something caught his eye. Tucked under a pillow was a small, black pouch filled with a sort of dust which fell to the floor as Gaius picked it up. Before he could examine it further, the physician heard loud humming from the other side of the door and, quickly shoving the poultice back under the pillow. He stepped away from the bed, trying to look as innocent as possible.

Grunhilda stepped into the room, oddly appearing utterly unsurprised at his sudden appearance.

"Can I help you? Something you need perhaps?" she questioned, staring at him unblinkingly. How he'd ever thought her human he didn't know.

He had to think quickly. "I wanted to inquire whether Princess Elena would like... a perfume concocting? Essence of lavender perhaps?"

"Oh, that's a very bad excuse." Grunhilda sniffed. Gaius felt his old heart creak to a stop.