Day 6: Mistaken Identity
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Still working on Day 5, but it should hopefully be here soon!
Merlin:
“Your Majesty?” He doesn’t raise his head from perusing the requests from the lords (they’re all bullshit, really, and Charlie would be laughing at them), knowing that Uther will take care of it. Did he really become that lost in thought? Enough for at least two people to enter the room without him noticing? Ugh, Charlie would’ve warned him, but his son isn’t on his way back yet. He would’ve gotten an update, and maybe he’s still trying to hunt something, since he hasn’t been informed about that either. What if he was drugged again? No. He wasn’t. He wasn’t. “Sure he wasn’t,” Kennard whispers, mocking. “Do you really want to take that chance?” “He’s fine, Kennard,” he replies, even though it doesn’t do anything, only makes it worse. “What if there was someone waiting for the perfect time to strike?” The orc responds, persisting. “There wasn’t,” he snaps, but he doesn’t believe himself. “Um… Your Majesty?” The voice asks again, and he looks up, confused, wondering why Uther hadn’t said anything. It’s only the two of them in here, actually. A boy of about fifteen years old has just barely entered the room, staring at him nervously. His helmet is tucked under his arm, revealing short, curly reddish-brown hair, pale skin, and gray eyes. His nose is hooked, with a slight bump near the bridge of it. He’s clearly still going through puberty, since he’s all arms and legs and his face has a mild case of acne. Wait- he doesn’t think that he’s Uther, does he? “Do you require something?” He asks gently, because he’s still Uther’s advisor and can handle whatever the boy- a new knight, requests. “Yes, Your Majesty,” the boy begins, and he’s barely able to keep a neutral face now that he knows he really has been mistaken for the king. “I was wondering where I’m going to be stationed? The captain- David- told me to come see you.” He lets his amusement show and stands, not wanting to keep misleading the boy. The blood flowing as a result makes him immediately regret it, and he fights back a grimace. At least he isn’t having cramps. For now. “Well, there’s one problem with that. I’m not the king.” He holds out his hand to shake, smiling, and the boy doesn’t take it at first. “I’m Merlin Ambrosius, his advisor.” “I’m so sorry,” he whispers, voice gone, dismayed and mortified. “He told me to come here-” “No, it’s all right,” he murmurs, still gentle. “You’re in the right place. Uther’s just… off somewhere. He might be with his brother.” It’s not a lie, and even if it was, at least it might help the poor boy’s embarrassment. The boy nods, and fortunately his words seem to help. “I-” his voice cracks, and his face flushes, but he pretends not to notice as the boy finally shakes his hand, looking down at it. “I’m Egbert.” “It’s good to meet you, Egbert.” Worry for his son begins to return, constricting his chest, along with not knowing where Uther is. A wave of nausea suddenly hits him, and he curses his body, curses the king for not being here so he can stay in bed until Cleansing Tide lessens, wishes Charlie was here so he could curl against him in case cramps do come. “Why don’t you stay here?” He suggests, relieved when his voice doesn’t betray him (or maybe it did, and the boy didn’t notice or was too polite to say so). “I’ll see if I can find him.” Egbert nods, and he smiles down at him before stepping out, shutting the door behind him. He takes a deep breath, trying to fight back the nausea so he can find Uther and contact his son. He should sit down since he feels unsteady on his feet, but Charlie isn’t here to force him and he can’t keep Egbert waiting. “Sweetheart, how’s the hunting going?” He asks, beginning to walk through the hallway. “It took me a while, but I found a couple of deer,” his son replies a moment later, and he feels ready to crumple in relief since he knows that Uther’s fine. “I’ll be back soon.” “That’s good,” he murmurs, and something in his voice does betray him now, or it’s because Charlie knows him as well as he knows himself. “You were worried?” His child asks gently.
He nods, realizing that’s foolish a moment later because he isn’t able to be seen. “…I’m sorry. I know it’s irrational.” “It’s not.” Considering what we’ve been through, he doesn’t say, but they both know. “I’ll be back soon,” he repeats, trying to get both of their minds off the past. “How have you been?” “Nauseous.” Charlie croons in sympathy. “Any cramps?” “No, not yet, thankfully.” “That’s good. Are you lying down?” “No, I have to find Uther since he’s disappeared off the face of the world. There’s a new knight who needs to be stationed.” His son snorts. “Good luck with that. I love you.” “I love you too,” he whispers, heart warming. Their telepathic connection ends as he reaches the throne room, opening the doors after smiling at John and Noah. And fortunately, Uther is here, because he is not in the mood to go searching throughout the castle for him.
“Uther?” he asks, approaching the throne. The king is conversing with Aurelius, who’s standing beside him, making him right, if unintentionally. Both brothers smile at him, and he tries not to feel uncomfortable at their gazes. It’s only two people, not a crowd, and he’s fine. He’s fine. “What is it, Merlin?” Aurelius inquires, and Uther raises his brows at his brother. “Who’s the king here?” He teases, making Aurelius just grin at him. The exchange makes him smile a little, and some of his nervousness eases. If only the nausea could. “A new knight has arrived, and he needs to be stationed.” He doesn’t tell them about Egbert’s mistaken identity situation. The boy was already nervous enough, and he doesn’t need any more embarrassment on his first day here. “Ah, all right,” Uther responds, standing. “Would you like to come, Aurelius?” His brother shakes his head. “I had some reading I wanted to catch up on.” Uther nods, and the two separate as the king comes beside him. “Where’s Charlie?” Aurelius inquires before he leaves. He makes a noncommittal gesture. “Out hunting. He’ll be back soon.” “Are you all right, Merlin?” Uther asks a few minutes later as they walk through the halls, and he flinches, startled. “I’m… feeling slightly under the weather,” he answers after a moment. “But I’ll be fine in a few days.” Uther doesn’t prod, thankfully, seeming satisfied with his answer. Soon they reach the great hall, and he lets the king enter first. Egbert is admiring the windows, seeming fascinated by them; he probably hasn’t seen stained glass before. He doesn’t think the boy is nobility, because he’s never been seen in Camelot at the balls (that he remembers, anyway, he’ll have to ask Charlie about that), besides his general nervous demeanor since arriving (but maybe that’s just his personality). “Egbert,” he calls, and the boy turns without being startled unlike him. “This is His Majesty,” he continues, nodding at the man beside him. “He’ll get you sorted.” “Your Majesty,” Egbert says softly, averting his gaze and kneeling. Uther lets him kneel for what he thinks is far too long (but maybe he’s overthinking again) before he commands, “Rise.” The boy does, and Uther studies him for a moment before inquiring, “Did David tell you where you were going to be placed?” “No, Your Majesty. He told me to come see you first.” “You’re newly knighted, correct?” “Yes, Your Majesty.” He doesn’t hear what Uther says next since Charlie’s voice enters his mind. “I’m back. Where are you?” He asks, and his heart swells. “I’ll be outside the great hall.” “- Merlin, do you mind taking him?” The king questions, and he didn’t hear the first part, but it doesn’t really matter, since Egbert will be placed under David’s care, with the other new knights, anyhow. “Of course not.” This is perfect, actually. He can introduce Egbert to Charlie now and not have him be scared by a giant dragon later, and Charlie wouldn’t have to be on guard around a newcomer. Uther smiles and slips away; to do what, he doesn’t know, but hopefully nothing else will come up and they can both have a peaceful day. He smiles at Egbert, beginning to walk to the gatehouse, and after a moment the boy follows him.
He feels Charlie’s presence a moment before his son comes around the corner, eyes lighting up when he spots him. Egbert gasps from beside him, and maybe he should have warned him about having a dragon as a familiar. Charlie, thankfully, doesn’t run towards them, padding forward slowly once he spots Egbert (he probably would’ve done it anyway). “I’m presuming he’s the new knight?” He asks, stopping in front of them. “Egbert, this is Charlie- Charlemagne,” he says to the boy, indirectly answering his dragon’s question because Egbert looks like he’s divided between being awestruck and terrified and he does not want this to end badly. Fortunately, Egbert hasn’t reached for his sword, only standing still. “Charlemagne?” Egbert murmurs after an agonizingly long moment, staring at his son. “He’s… your familiar, isn’t he?” Far more than that, he thinks; he nods. “Yes, he is. Did you… know he’s a dragon?” He murmurs, curious. How much had Egbert been told about the two of them, if it all? The boy nods, terror fading, finally tearing his gaze away to refocus on him. “I didn’t expect him to be so big,” he says, chuckling, and they both relax at the same time. This was already going better than expected. Egbert takes a step closer to Charlie, an awestruck grin on his face. “Would he allow me to touch him?” His dragon looks above the boy to meet his gaze. He shrugs helpfully. “It’s your choice.” “Very helpful.” But his son bends his head, and Egbert reaches up to gently stroke his muzzle with his free hand; Charlie closes his eyes, leaning into the touch. “He’s beautiful,” the boy whispers, and his son purrs while he stares, halfway between joy and disbelief. Egbert lowers his hand after a few more moments of petting. Charlie promptly pads over to him, bumping his head against his chest and purring loudly. He rests his own head on his son’s muzzle, stroking his jaw, and just for a moment, he allows himself to close his eyes. They pull apart to find Egbert smiling, and it’s… strange, to see someone reacting to them like this, and he doubts Charlie knows what to do either. He does know that they’ll have a conversation about it later, but later means he doesn’t have to worry about it now. He clears his throat; his dragon moves to stand at his left side. “Is it true he can talk?” Egbert asks as all three of them continue to the gatehouse, and he looks at his son, who really seems blasé about the whole thing, maybe because the boy will find out sooner or later. “Yes,” Charlie responds without preamble, and he fights the urge to sigh because Egbert having such a good reaction this whole time doesn’t mean that it won’t change when a dragon can talk. But Egbert just grins, eyes bright with awe again. “That’s incredible.” It doesn’t take long for them to finish the journey; David is already there, waiting. “So you saw the king, Egbert?” “Yes, sir.” “All right. Well, you’ll be under my care with the other new knights,” the captain continues nonchalantly; Egbert seems confused again. “Wait… then why did I have to see His Majesty?” “Just a formality,” David laughs, patting his shoulder. “Let’s get you settled in.” He nods at both of them before steering Egbert away, and Egbert waves at them before disappearing around the corner. Charlie dips his head to nuzzle his shoulder, purring. “What now?” “Honestly, a nap sounds nice,” he murmurs, suddenly exhausted.
His son nods in agreement (and he thinks it’s because Charlie just wants him to sit the fuck down), purring softly. He reaches up to stroke his dragon’s shoulder, suddenly remembering how small he used to be. Charlie doesn’t see the nostalgia most likely on his face since he’d have to turn his head to look at him fully, but he wouldn’t tease him about it anyhow. It seems like ages before they finally reach their room, and he takes off his boots, barely undoing enough of the bedsheets for him to get in before he flops onto it. It isn’t dignified in the slightest, but Charlie doesn’t care, and no one else is around. His dragon jumps onto the bed, changing sizes briefly so he isn’t inconvenienced, shifting back after settling into his position, head laid against his chest and body stretched out. His pillow is cold, and Charlie is so, so warm and soft, the advantage of having a dragon as a cuddle partner, and as he falls asleep, hands on his son’s head, he thinks that life couldn’t be any more perfect.
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