Afk Merlin - Blog Posts

[AFK Journey] An old drawing I’m still proud of, my boy Lorsan and a sketch of big sis Lyca yelling at him to go to bed.

One of my favorite sketches I’ve ever done to this day.

AFK arena art for the competition

New cover!

The Fall Festival Fable

  "If I ruin my makeup right now, I blame it on you." Merlin tipped his head back, his fingers curling into Sinbad's hand. 

  Leave it up to Merlin to care about his makeup first, and feelings second.

  - Chapter 5: A Pebble & a Mountain, The Fall Festival Fable.

First illustration for this fanfic, done! ദ്ദി ༎ຶ‿༎ຶ ) Please read it lol

"A Star Reborn" Part 1 & 2

Summary: Magister Merlin reappears after being gone for a decade, and is immedtely thrust into a task- to put out the fire in Ryeham and find the arsonist at fault. Coupled with memory loss, fainting, and a sickening sense of deja vu, it's no easy task!

Note: This an intro to my version of Merlin before I post other stuff. This is also available to read on AO3, I have the exact same username as here! It might be easier to read there.

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Part 1- You're Finally Awake! (2700 words)

  It was the third time that Magister Merlin had vanished for years and then reappeared in the Mystical House.

  It had happened in the early morning. Dolly was only waking up, while Hammie had been studying locating spells all night and was busy finalizing one. Chippy had gone off into Ryeham.

  Hammie went into the Magister's room every so often to retrieve his research, but at times, she went in just to sit on his bed and stare at the wall. Some nights she thought she heard his voice.

  For the past ten years, she had hoped Magister Merlin would return after having vanished for the fourth time. 

  Twenty years ago he had left Ryeham to travel all over the world. 

  Thirty, he had woken up for the third time thirty years ago, after disappearing for even more than... how long? Hammie couldn't quite remember. It must've been decades. 

  She had a hard time keeping up with the dates. Keeping a journal helped with that. 

  All she knew for certain was that she missed Merlin to a degree she hadn't thought possible. It never got easier waiting for him. It was like a constant state of withdrawal.

  But when a thud came from Merlin's room, no one was in it.

  Dolly and Hammie entered it with broom and staff raised. Red flashed in the dark, and a burning smell lingered in the room; it was warm and deep like a wildfire. 

  And on the table, Merlin laid his head, his glasses askew and his horns not poking out from his hair. He was dressed suspiciously plainly, there was no way he would've dawned something like that on his own. He had a penchant for eccentric fashion.

  His iconic hat, which originated the tradition of mage hats, sat next to him. The branch sprouting from its top and most of the tassels that once hung off of it were missing, leaving three red tassels behind, and three Esperian coins on the other side, each hanging by a red thread. Red thread was a charm and warded off evil. 

  The lack of embellishments on the hat left it puny, and the warm magic that the Magister radiated was weak. 

  At least Hammie wouldn't need that locating spell anymore. Instead, she'd begin working on a memory recovery spell the next night...

  Hammie rushed to him, checking for any injuries, and finding none, she sighed in relief. Her sigh made Merlin stir. His hair, once floor-length, ended at his waist. Hammie would need time to get used to his new look.

  "Magister Merlin? Magister, please wake up," Dolly called, hovering over the Magister like a lamp over a book. 

  "Mirael... be quiet, my dear, I am rather busy," he mumbled. Dolly blanched. Besides having red hair, Dolly was not Mirael or anything like her. Mirael was Merlin's student in the past. Hammie wasn't much fond of her. The girl was troublesome.

  Merlin raised his head, his lips downturned and brows drawn into a knot above his barely-ajar eyes. His voice, that strange androgynous tenor, was raspy and stilted from sleep. "Did I not tell you... to stop playing with fire?"

  Hammie was awestruck. She knew she'd see her Magister again. Yet, it felt unreal, like the being before her was not the Magister, but a mirage, an oasis in the desert she'd been treading for a decade. 

  She didn't expect to see the Magister like this, depleted, perplexed, and mumbling to himself like an old man. She should've expected it. 

  "Hey, Magister. You're finally awake!" Hammie squealed, reaching up to grab Merlin's arm. 

  The only thing that mattered was that her favorite person in the world was finally back. 

  Where the fuck am I?   Was not a graceful thought to have upon waking up from what felt like being murdered. 

  Looking around, he was met with a dim, warm room made largely of dark wood and furnished with it. Everything oozed luxury. 

  The second thing he thought was Who are you? as a white hamster pulled on his arm. Some redhead, perhaps a maid, was gawking at him. 

  "Do I know you?" he said, creaky as an old door. He hadn't spoken in ages. 

  "Magister Merlin, it's me, your familiar, Hammie! Your second familiar, Chippy, went to Ryeham. And that's Dolly. She takes care of the Mystical House," said the hamster. 

  A talking hamster seemed entirely normal to him. 

  "I am Magister Merlin?"    

  "You're Magister Merlin Starhawk, a renowned mage known across the world! Everyone knows who you are." The hamster, Hammie, stepped back, her eyes, like two blueberries, looking up at him with much hope. 

  It hit him who he was. Yes, he was a mage, and a good one at that, and his name was Merlin, and Magister was a magely, esteemed title. Starhawk was a surname. 

  With each new trigger, a memory hit him. Hammie and Chippy were his familiars that he created, Hammie a mage, Chippy a knight.  He didn't know how exactly he got them but Merlin had had them for... forever. 

  Dolly had been in the Mystical House for a while, too, and the House itself could move on account of being an enchanted house sitting upon... some creature. 

  "Why does it seem like this has happened before?" Merlin pressed his fingers into his forehead in an attempt to wring the headache out of his skull. 

  "Because it has. We can explain things later- do you need anything? Water, perhaps?" 

Merlin nodded. Dolly scuttered off. 

  Hammie walked to the window, her walk a little funny on account of her small legs. She gasped. Anxiety sparked in Merlin's chest, cold and common; he was anxious often. 

  "There's smoke coming from Ryeham! And you know what they say about smoke," Hammie said. 

  "Where there is smoke there is a fool smoking a pipe inside my house?" Merlin joked, not thinking before speaking. His body didn't feel entirely his. The joke felt oddly personal- someone had done that more than once, but he couldn't remember who. 

  "... You certainly have a way with words, Magister. I'm just glad you're here. But no, where there's smoke, there's fire! Chippy might be there. We should check on him." 

  Merlin rose from his chair and immediately dropped as fuzz overtook his vision and hearing. It sounded like he was underwater. 

  For a moment, his every sense was shut off. Dolly caught him, and he had not felt the impact of hitting the floor, which he certainly had. Pain radiated in his legs.

  "I think I fainted," Merlin muttered. His head was ready to burst from pressure. When he was sitting, the pressure and fuzz ebbed enough for him to be coherent. 

  Deja vu prickled at his fingertips and permeated the air. Everything from the way he fell to the way Hammie rushed to him felt like it had happened before. It left his stomach hollow, saddling him with the strangest sensations he couldn't pinpoint, not in his body or mind.

  "You've had issues with fainting before. It has never been this bad." Hammie tipped her little head up at him.

  Dolly brought water just in time. 

  "Let me get ready, and then we can retrieve Chippy." 

  Merlin stared at his face reflected in the mirror in the bathroom attached to his bedroom. 

  He was gaunt in the cheeks, his face passing for thirty or so, with not many scars or wrinkles. His face had a few off-colored marks. He picked his skin, didn't he? 

  His eyes were yellow like a hawk's. Was that the reason for his name? 

  His eyes were harrowingly tired, the stark black brows above nothing like his silver hair, and his silver hair nothing like his relatively youthful appearance. When pulled and released it it bounced back into a loose curl. Such a texture was bothersome to upkeep and often ended up nest-like. 

  That explained the endless bottles on the wall-mounted shelves and stained bathtub. Alchemical and potion knowledge often translated to chemical knowledge. The number of potions and ingredients in his bathroom would impress any alchemist.

  Not much about himself bothered Merlin. His shorter height, marked as "165" centimeters on the wall (did he leave that in case he forgot?), was advantageous, and his lean build was surprisingly muscular for a mage, acquired from years of carrying the world on his back. 

  And carrying oversized hamsters. 

  The only things besides his magically bound chest that he found disagreeable were his ears, as short as a human's and pointed. He ran a finger along them and down to his three earrings. He could move his ears well. On his forehead were two imperceptible bumps where horns would eventually grow. 

  What was he? Some sort of... 

  Hammie knocked on the door, and he asked her what he was. 

  A treesprite and a human, apparently. He couldn't for the life of him recall his parents despite Hammie's words. It seemed that not all of his memory fell into place so easily.

  Merlin concluded that he was a strange creature in every way possible and impossible. 

  He put on a glamor to hide his ears and horns. He knew that these traits of his must be hidden from others. 

  And while he was on it, he threw in a disguise. Being the most known mage in the world must have meant that everyone would recognize him. 

  That would be a bother, wouldn't it? He put on some actual clothes that weren't the pitiful tunic he woke up in, putting on some robe that was magely enough. 

  He put on his hat, and the final addition to his outfit was to change his eyes to an ocean blue, and his long, grey hair to be short and pink. The two gold bands on his hair didn't want to budge, so he was forced to leave them.

  The only thing of his that remained was his hat and the wiseness in his eyes. 

  Ryeham was gorgeous...

  Except for the putrid smog. 

  Finding a hamster familiar wasn't that hard. He was the only non-human around, the cream plume on his helmet bobbing around like a question mark, begging to be caught by a cat. 

  "Magister Merlin!" He shouted, his mouth falling open. "You're back! I can't believe it!" 

  "Trust me, I am as shocked as you are, Chippy. We're here because of the smoke." Hammie kept up with Merlin easily. Granted, Merlin was walking at the speed of a turtle with a limp.

  "There's a big fire up ahead," Chippy pointed behind himself. The surrounding houses were backlit by orange.

  "We came just in time, then." 

  When they reached the fire, there were troops with stars on their shields. Merlin somehow found that worthwhile to notice. 

  In the center of the group stood a large, familiar man. He had a brunette beard and shortly cropped hair that had begun to grey.

  They were surrounded by fire elementals, and Merlin didn't know how he knew that. That's how it was going to be, nothing was going to make sense to him, all the information that went into him an absurd soup in his brain, sloshing around, whatever was left of his previous memories deep down in that soup.

  What Merlin did know was that he had to help. It was another decision he made without a second thought, leaping into battle by casting a shield on himself and his familiars and raining down stars onto the fire elementals. They sizzled as magic zipped through them. 

  The biggest man yelled "Everyone! Go search for survivors, and leave this to me!" to the troops. Judging by his stature and demeanor, he must've been a commander of some kind. 

  The troops scattered. Merlin's familiars provided much-needed support to him as he was casting spells with mere flourishes of his hand while the soldiers hacked through elementals. 

  There were more throughout the village, but they weren't around long before Merlin snuffed them out. 

  The commander turned to Merlin. 

  "Magister?" he asked, blinking like he was sure he was hallucinating, or seeing a ghost, a possibility with how pale Merlin was. 

  Merlin went stiff.

  "You're back. I wouldn't have recognized you without Chippy or that hat of yours. Where have you been all these years? Ah, you can tell me later. How about you dispel your disguise so I can see my old friend again?"

  Merlin had no idea who this man was, and his warm, welcoming tone and open arms confused the abyss out of Merlin. He pursed his lips in silence. 

  "I regret to inform you that he's forgotten everything like the other times we told you about. He doesn't remember who you are," Chippy said, wiping at his eyes.

  "I have not a clue." Merlin shrugged. The fire was dying down. The screams? Not so much. The village would've been beautiful with its golden fields and cozy houses if not for the ruckus and impending doom.

  "I see, Chippy. That's why you're so surprised to see me. I'm happy to reintroduce myself." The man had kind eyes despite his imposing nature. Merlin didn't like looking people in the eyes, but with him, it wasn't uncomfortable. 

  "I am Hogan, the former leader of the Heroic Order of the Lightbearer Empire and the current magistrate of Holistone." 

  Merlin felt that deja vu upon hearing Holistone . He tried to grab the memory, but it sank quicker than he could reach out. He'd need a stronger trigger to remember what that was. Perhaps a town? 

  "We were friends for years before you disappeared. I hoped one day you'd return. I'd love to chat, but this is no time for idly standing by. Look at these fire elementals." 

  Hogan gestured to the the elementals appearing ahead of them. Merlin frowned.

  "They don't belong in Ryeham. How could they just appear out of nowhere?" 

  "They must have been summoned, perhaps by a mage," Merlin blurted out. 

  "It seems my instincts were right... This fire was no accident." 

  "An accident of this scale would lend itself to something truly improbable. It may be the doing of an arsonist, mage or not," Merlin said. 

  They went ahead, Merlin continuing to put out the fire elementals as they went until they reached the houses where the fire had started. Their tops were blackened and hollow, the fire emanating a suffocating heat, turning half the village into an oven. 

  "It began on the roof," Merlin said to himself. The roofs were hay and wooden. It was easy to start a fire in such a place. 

  The goal of putting out the fire was delayed by a hoard of bandits arriving from the other side. They were all rugged and clad in messily cobbled-together armor, a rushed job, or just a cheap one. 

  They might've thought cornering them into the fire was a good tactic. 

  Yet, their faces grew harrowed when Merlin threw fire at them. 

  Merlin put out the flames that might've spread. There was no chance of the affected homes being saved- they were engulfed in the fire, and so he let them burn.

  More bandits came in from all directions, surrounding the villagers, who were forced to hide behind fences and in the houses they could reach without having a bow and arrow pointed at them. Merlin's heart beat feverishly. 

  The amount of bandits greatly outnumbered the troops. 

  When the fight turned against Merlin, he thought it over. That would be a pitifully foolish end to a life that had essentially just begun. How had he gotten into so much trouble after only coming to? Was it always going to be so? 

  Someone to his left hit a bandit's sword right out of his hand. The person's speed and agility were immaculate, and with them, the fight went quicker and better than expected. 

  Merlin could finally work his magic with finesse and not haphazardly throw fire. 

  Was it an effective tactic? Certainly. But it was like throwing rocks as opposed to shooting arrows. 

  When it was over, and the bandits had retreated in fear of the mage who could envelop them in vines and the swordsman who moved like a shadow, Merlin could see who had fought at his side. 

  The sight was a pleasant surprise.

Part 2- Bad Things Happen in Good Towns (2600 words)

  "Valen! You just got here now?" Hogan snapped. "Were you deep in your cups again?" 

  Merlin would've thanked "Valen" for salvaging the situation if Merlin wasn't stunned and catching his breath as though he had run for his life. Had his body always been so fragile? 

  "That's not fair... I ran into a bunch of fire elementals on my way here. Those guys were really annoying," Valen said. His voice was light, bright, and aloof.

  "Anyway, looks pretty grim here... I didn't expect the fire to be this big. This is not normal, General." He didn't spare Merlin a glance, while Merlin stared at the guy intensely enough to start another fire. 

  He had umber hair with a similar hair texture to Merlin, a dueling scar on his left cheek, and his eyes were lavender purple. The top of Merlin's head reached his shoulders, and Merlin had to tilt his head up to see his face and not his smooth neck, exposed from a white shirt and framed by fur. 

  He did not know this man and felt no familiarity or deja vu towards him; the lack of such feelings was refreshing. He wasn't bad to look at with the red reflecting off the side of his face like a dramatic sunset. 

  The image of a fierce warrior did not particularly match Valen's demeanor, but the muscularity of his arms gave his profession away. 

  "That's right! We think it's arson. The culprit is likely a mage!" Chippy piped up. 

  Valen leaned down to Chippy like one would to a child. 

  "Whoa! A talking hamster. You're a familiar, aren't you?" He smiled, the corners of his mouth not quite lining up. 

  "In that case, this gentleman with the General must be a mage. I've gotta say picking a hamster as your familiar is rather... unique." 

  Merlin did not want to be acknowledged in such a way. He turned his gaze to the man's belt, bristling, detecting a hint of mocking in his tone. Merlin knew the decision to have Hammie and Chippy as his familiars was a personal one. 

  Memory loss and mysteries be damned, Merlin was ready to fight the pretty boy with his bare hands for Chippy and Hammie! Hogan reflected a similar disdain. 

  "I'd normally overlook your banter, Valen. But in front of this Magister, you'd better watch your words." 

  Valen was visibly taken aback. 

  "I've never seen the General so defensive. Well, great Magister, I'm Valen of the Heroic Order. How would you like me to address you?" 

  Merlin desperately searched for something to latch onto as a fake name while avoiding Valen's expectant gaze and perfect face.

  Smog? Devastated villager? Crying child? Glimmerblooms, no! His eyes were caught by a fox painted on one of the villager's houses. 

  "Magister Vulpin," Merlin stammered. He could've chosen a worse name. "Magister Smog" did have a certain ring to it, though.

  "Vulpin... Hm, an interesting name. I'll make sure to remember it." He offered a bow, and Merlin sighed in relief. "Forgive my rudeness earlier. I'll be sure to make it up to you once this fire has been dealt with."

  "Um, no... It's nothing." Merlin shook his head and flushed at his awkwardness. Every word was a tongue twister, and his tongue had become more twisted than a rope.

  The fire, having eaten the two houses, no longer crackled deafeningly, and the smog could begin to lift. The winds would sweep it away soon enough. But first, the winds carried chatter from the other side of the smoldering remains. 

  "Hogan, I shall go see what the hubbub is about, if you do not mind." Merlin folded his now pink hands into his sleeves. He should have worn something lighter. 

  "Go ahead, and take Valen with you. Just in case." 

  Valen's sour face showed he wasn't thrilled at the command.

  Behind the remains of the houses stood a woman with hair the same color as the flames. It reached her ankles. It must be uncomfortable to walk with that cape of hair trailing behind you, I cannot imagine having to take care of it, Merlin thought. 

  Her black dress was graceful, as black as soot, and she stood out from the villagers like Merlin did. She was not from Ryeham. 

  The familiarity that hit Merlin at the sight of her was strong enough to make him collapse. It was sickening.

  "Are you more interested in accusing me of starting the fire than being useful?" the woman with a hat shaped like Merlin's said. She had a star on her chest. She looked a bit like Merlin, and not in the way most mages did.

  Her floral perfume dominated over the charred stench. 

  "I saw ya casting a spell with m'own eyes!" a furious villager shouted. 

  "A spell to quench the fire, my dear. I'm just trying to help. You could be a little more grateful, you know." 

  "The Scarlet Sorceress is as beautiful as her fire is dangerous. That's what the rumors say..." The villager crossed his arms, a woman behind him standing with a pitchfork. As if a pitchfork could defend them against a mage. 

  "I'll take that as a compliment. If this was my fire, you would all be cinders by now." 

  Merlin could listen to her voice all day. Not like he wanted to. With the way she spoke to the villagers, she struck him as blunt and careless. 

  Merlin would never. Probably never, he wasn't quite sure yet. 

  "The Scarlet Sorceress?" Chippy squinted at her. "I've... heard of her!" 

  The sorceress ignored the insults from the villagers, her eyes flicking to Chippy. 

  And then, to Merlin. 

  They both shared a glance that wasn't their first, or even second, and then her eyes moved to his hat. Her gaze was striking along with her face. 

  "You're..." she said, her sky-blue eyes wide and her vermillion lips twisted. "Nevermind. You reminded me of someone. The cards were right, this morning is awful, and I should not have gone out." 

  She turned on her heel and stormed off, bellowing "I'm leaving, don't stop me." 

  A little boy with a stick and a bird on his head stopped her by blocking her way. Merlin debated slinking away while everyone was distracted. He had helped enough, no? The fire was gone... and he could find that knight again some other day.

  "You're not going anywhere, Scarlet Sorceress! All my wares are gone! I demand compensation!" he protested. 

  A fire flickered to life in her hand.

  "Get out of my way, young man. I'm not known for my patience." 

  "Don't you dare try to get away with this! I'll make sure you're held responsi-" 

  The sorceress put a hand to her ear and shushed the boy. 

  "Quiet. Something isn't right. The wind... it's suddenly loud."   

  Merlin knew exactly what she meant. There was a hiss in the air, a hiss that became booming as a whirlwind of a wind elemental formed in the ruins of the house. 

  Merlin didn't envy whoever owned the house. 

  Normal attacks didn't harm the elemental, and the woman's fire only strengthened it. 

  Merlin knew that that was no way to deal with such a creature. So, he began drawing up as much magic as he could to seal the elemental away.

  Amid the sealing spell, he turned to the Sorceress, her eyes even wider than when she first saw him, with a sadness in that blue. With each push of his magic pressure and fuzz built in his head and eyes.

  "Do I... know you?" he asked weakly just as the fuzz overwhelmed his senses, sending him under a blanket of nothingness. 

  He'd taken out himself along with the elemental. He didn't even get to hear the woman respond. 

  He knew that they'd meet again. 

  Merlin screamed at the sight of Valen, not because he was scary, but because waking up in some man's arms was incredibly concerning. He had only met Valen a bit ago. What business did Valen have embracing Merlin?! 

  "Calm down! Calm down! Oh, Dura, I think I'm deaf now," he plugged his ear. Merlin scampered away. 

  He blushed bright red when he realized he had fallen off some bench near a windmill. The grass and surrounding area were ruddy, carrying a fresh, non-smog-filled scent of soil and hay.

  "I... I apologize. You startled me. Where am I?" Merlin stayed on the ground for fear of messing up more than he already had or fainting. Farmers in the fields were already looking at him funny.

  "We're still in Ryeham, I was told to take you here after you fainted. How are you feeling?" 

  His face showed genuine concern. 

  Take him here? Valen carried Merlin here? Oh dear. Those arms of his weren't just for show.

  Merlin got off the ground, dusting himself off. His legs were wobbly as he plopped down next to Valen to not eat some dirt for breakfast. 

  "I am... fine, I suppose. Are you worried?" 

  He raised a full brow. "You defeated that huge wind elemental alone, but you fainted before I could applaud." Merlin huffed a laugh. "Anyone with a heart would worry about you." 

  "You passed out for a while. General Hogan and his men returned to Holistone. He ordered me to stay here and look after you." 

  That Hogan cares about me, huh? I wonder what I did with him in the past. 

  " Before he left, he told me to make sure that when you woke up, your memory was alright. What a strange request... Do you often forget things?" 

  Merlin shrugged. "I do not remember if this has happened before. It possibly has, but I remember everything that just happened. There was that redheaded woman..." 

  "The suspect, Mirael. She's been taken to Holistone for questioning. You're a Magister, so perhaps you've heard of her, or maybe you know her, because she rushed to you when you passed out. She was identified as the culprit by young master Rowan." 

  "Rowan?" Who was that? Ugh, he would have to ask that tens of times in the days to come.

  "That kid with the huge bag and the duck on his head. He's Rowan, the second son of the wealthiest man in the Empire and head of the Mithril Consortium. General Hogan took him for questioning, too." 

   "Do you know Mirael?" Valen leaned on his fist. 

  "Potentially. Possibly. Probably." She sure knew Merlin. And when he asked, he passed out just after. 

  "Don't take this the wrong way, but you're a strange one, Magister Vulpin." 

  Merlin sighed. That was undeniable. Being called a fake name felt strange, but, guess what, familiar.

  Chippy and Hammie had returned from walking circles across the windmill, running up to the Magister and clambering to get up on the bench. Only Hammie managed as Chippy's armor was too heavy. 

  "Magister! You're conscious again." 

  "Chippy checked the village. It's free of bandits and elementals of any kind," Hammie reassured Merlin was a pat on his leg. 

  "The General is waiting for us in Holistone. We should go meet him if you feel better!" Chippy hauled his sword over his shoulder. 

  Merlin hummed to distract from how long it took him to answer. "We can set off now." 

  "There might be enemies on the road, Magister Vulpin. I'll go with you." Valen rose, standing pompously. 

  Merlin decided that he liked Valen. Despite the slightly mocking tone in his voice and that undercurrent of high-society pompousness, the deja vu plaguing Merlin disappeared around Valen, putting the mage at ease. 

  The hamsters reflected that attitude. That was a good omen. 

  "Although, you might not need my protection," Valen tossed his hair, smirking. "If you could handle that thing you can handle a little trouble. I've never seen magic like yours." 

  "Of course! The Magister is the Me-"

  "Yes, yes, thank you, Chippy," Merlin cut him off like an axe. "Even though I am capable, I do faint quite often, and it would be a travesty if I did not have someone to look out for me. Your help would be much appreciated, Sir Valen." 

  Valen's smug expression turned surprised by Merlin's politeness. He offered Merlin a hand, and he took it, getting up carefully. 

  "Do you always talk like that?" Valen asked.

  "Talk like what? I speak rather normally. Do you dislike it, Sir, or is it, perhaps, grating?" Merlin looked up at Valen. He laughed.

  "Nothing. I like it, sounds..." Valen was visibly holding back some comment in fear of offending Merlin, Merlin could tell by the way he pursed his lips and glanced away.

  "... Courtly?" 

  Merlin put his hands on his hips.

  "Are you afraid of me?" 

  Valen groaned. "Of General Hogan. He's never asked me to treat even the stuffiest of nobles so carefully, so I'm rightfully cautious. You must be a big deal." 

  "Do not fret, I do not bite." 

  Valen quirked a brow and flashed a grin. "Really?" 

  A wind picked up, allowing Merlin to divert from the topic. He cleared his throat. 

  "Is it cold, or is it just me?" Merlin hugged himself. 

  "It's not just you, Magister," Valen said as they passed by seemingly endless wheat fields. 

  "It is said that Merlin's ward has long protected Ryeham. It's the only reason that people can actually live here. 

  "But recently, Ryeham's been getting colder. It's almost snowed the past few days. We've come with the Magister to investigate this change in weather," Hammie explained. Valen listened intently. He was keeping his strides shorter to not leave Merlin in the dust. 

  Merlin, the Magister, had not been aware that he was there to investigate anything besides the fire. 

  "My apologies, Miss Hamster, I never got your name."

  "Yes, we should be introduced. You are Valen. I am Hammie." 

  "Are all your familiars hamsters, Magister?"

  Merlin had forgotten that he was part of the conversation. Processing that he had been spoken to, he owlishly turned his head to Valen. 

  "Yes," Merlin said, leaving no room for silly comments. 

  Hammie made the most intimidating face she could manage. 

  "Chippy told me that General Hogan ordered you to protect the Magister. You must know that serving the Magister is an honor,but it's no easy feat. I've got my eye on you. I hope you'll become a competent retainer." Hammie folded her hands skeptically, giving Valen a once-over.

  "Apologies again, but I have to correct you. I'm a knight, not someone's retainer ," Valen said with a hint of offense. "Protecting Magister Vulpin is just my current task. It's not a lifelong post."

  If he kept yapping in the wrong direction his current task might last only a few more moments before he takes a permanent vacation, Merlin thought. 

  "Unless... your Magister is someone like the great Merlin, then I may consider it." 

  Merlin's stomach was light, nearly empty, at the words. He couldn't say anything. Not a peep! Do not tell him who you are, Merlin! Do not fall for the trap! 

  "Did I hear that right? Well, the Magister is... OW!" Chippy flinched in pain. "Why did you step on my foot, Hammie?!" 

  Merlin said everything left unsaid when he side-eyed Chippy.

  "Oh, sorry... I got distracted and didn't see where I was going." Hammie fluttered her eyelashes. 

  "Once you've spent some time together, you'll realize that although the Magister isn't Merlin, he's just as powerful! He's... exactly like Merlin, but he's not," Hammie said, losing steam at the end. 

  Merlin grimaced. "You don't have to flatter me." And nearly give out my identity. I could have done that myself, you know. 

  Valen had already seen a sliver of what Merlin could do. With such displays, Merlin couldn't keep things under wraps for long. 

  "I'll have to wait and see." 

  So, they headed to Holistone, Valen eager to find out more about the mage and warm up from the uncharitable weather, Merlin set on figuring out the fire, restoring his memory, and proving himself to the knight; the hamsters were just happy to have their Magister back. 

  And the rest? The rest is history.

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Note: Thank you for reading!

Chippy is too cute for his own good

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