Night Before
Merlin quickly worked, packing up his supplies for the trip they were about to go on, his hands grabbing for the herbs Gaius would most likely need, and the concotions that were most frequently used in the case of treating diseases. He made sure to focus, so as not to allow his fingers to trip up, and once he was in his own room, he waved a hand, packing his bags with magic, knowing that if Gaius came in he'd be in plenty of trouble for being so careless. He couldn't bring himself to care all that much though when he wanted to rush to get to Arthur's chambers. It had only been hours since he'd last seen him and he shouldn't have felt so desperate to get to him when it hadn't been that long. However, he couldn't help himself. It felt like every minute he spent away something was missing, it was a continuous nagging in the back of his mind that he wasn't where he was supposed to be. He wasn't sure if this was natural or not, but a lot of things weren't exactly normal regarding Merlin's life.
He ran into Gaius's quarters and quickly ate a brief dinner, before shooting out the door and racing down the hall. He stopped in the kitchen, grabbing Arthur's tray of food, and just barely missed being swatted by Cook for stealing so much food that morning. He shouted a quick 'sorry' and raced up the stairs towards Arthur's chambers. He knew Arthur would probably be a little angry with him, considering the fact he'd basically teamed up against him to make sure Gwen and he could go along with them, but he hoped it wouldn't put too big of a damper on things. He swung open the doors, grinning as he passed the threshold, hurrying forward and placing the food tray down, trying to catch his breath.