Chapter Text
Brent looked from the man sleeping on the couch to his friend, “David,” His voice was stressed, “Why is my history professor conked out on our couch?”
“Wait that’s your history professor? The possibly immortal Merlin with a huge fucking cat?”
“Yes! Now why is he here?”
“He’s like twenty-five max!”
“Remember the probably immortal bit?”
“I thought you were joking, and didn’t you say possibly?”
“He’s been teaching at our Hilda’s University since it was founded! People think he founded it so he could teach history the way he wants to. With no one trying to tell him what supposedly happened.”
“Supposedly?”
“Everyone’s pretty sure he only teaches about the things he lived through. It’s why the history classes are pretty specific to different times and places. There are morre classes then when Hilda’s was founded. Merlin’s students are now the other history teachers.”
“Wait, my history teacher is like sixty and your saying that twi-”
“Do not call the Professor that!”
“Right a skinny cute guy whose maybe twenty-five taught my sixty somethings years old professor?”
“If your teacher has a fire extinguisher with in reach of his desk, yes. Kilgharrah likes to visit Merlin’s former students.”
“What does a fire extinguisher have to do with this Killie person?”
“Not a person, the Professor’s cat’s name is Kilgharrah, and he can breath fire.”
“Your fucking with me. There is no way a cat breathes fire.”
“Remember my first day of our first semester?”
“When you demanded to know where the fire extinguisher was?”
“Kilgharrah set the Professor’s hat on fire half way through our first class. The Professor took the hat off and stomped on it until it went out, then put it back on. He didn’t even blink at the burn marks as he continued discussing the syllabus for the class.”
“And he’s a history professor?”
“A committed one. He’s committed to teaching history right.”
“Right? It’s history, it’s all in textbooks.”
“Have you looked at the author of any of your text books?”
“Yeah Ross-e-for-p Nilrem. Weird name so it stuck with me.”
“Flip both names back to front.”
“Uh, let me grab a pen.” Grabbing a pen David wrote the names and rewrote them, “Professor Merlin.”
“It makes him giggle when people try and pronounce it. There’s a reason people come here for doctorates and to learn Arthurian history and other history subjects with text books written under with that pseudonym.”
“Huh, if people think he might the be actually Merlin. Why is there a Merlin impersonation competition?”
“The Professor sort of judges it. Apparently who ever can get him to break down laughing the longest wins. Kilgharrah times it. So why is the Professor on our couch?”
“Uh, me and Darcy found him drinking at the Piss. He was telling a man, who tried to roofie him, that he’d never have an erection again, before passing out on the bar. I stepped in before the man could do anything and when George, he was working as the bartender, said he came in alone I said I’d take him back here to sleep the roofie off.”
“Wait what was he doing drinking in that crap hole?”
“Booze is cheap,” Merlin’s voice came from the couch, “Got kicked out of my latest apartment. Kilgharrah couldn’t keep his mouth shut and terrified another land lady. She tore up the rental agreement in front of me, said demons weren’t allowed on the lease. Ruddy bastard can’t keep his trap shut. At least he didn’t set of the fire alarm this time.”
Both young men jumped at Merlin’s voice, quickly turning to the couch where Merlin was now sitting up, and to Brent’s horror, holding his unedited history assignment.
“Huh,” Merlin flipped to another page, “This is really good, a few words are mixed up but Brent, you have dyslexia right?”
“Yes sir.”
“I go over this with every class, it’s Professor, one word, none of this sir nonsense. But I asked because this paper is really well done, and I’m going to give you extra credit for this.”
“Extra credit?”
“You mixed up the assignment, and as the information will be on the final I have to insist that you do the actual assignment. I’ll give you a week extension on the assignment as long as I can have this.” He held up the paper, “Very interesting read, I’ve only skimmed the first bit but I’m defiantly intrigued.”
Brent swore, the assignment had seemed odd but he hadn’t questioned it.
“Do you need two weeks? You can have them if you need them.”
“Uh, no Professor. One week will be enough.”
“Great, do you have any toast? I’ll pay you back later but I’m stuck sleeping in my office again. If only house upkeep wasn’t so annoying I’d buy one again, but a depressed single man and his cat do not need our own house. It never goes well.”
“Um, actually,” David sent Brent an apologetic look, “We’re down a housemate. Larry dropped out and rent is going to be tight with out a third person.”
Merlin cocked his head to the side, “Are you offering me the third spot?”
“You can definitely afford your portion of the rent as a history professor.”
Merlin gave him an assessing look, “My cat talks and occasionally breathes fire.”
“Brent didn’t mention the talking but as long as he doesn’t burn anything down or our things it would be fine.”
“He only burns my things. Instead of hair balls he hacks up a fire ball when ever he’s pissed at me. He didn’t take the dragon to cat change very well. He mostly goes for my clothes, as he won’t burn books or papers. I haven’t owned anything flammable besides clothes for at least the last decade.”
“Then I don’t see any problems. What about you Brent?”
Brent stared at his professor caught on how to answer.
Merlin smiled, “I’ll proof read both of your papers when you need it.”
“YES! Yes, I would love for you to take the third room!” He was willing to do a lot more than letting his history professor live with him to get someone to look over his dyslexic mess of papers.
“Awesome!” Merlin smiled, “This will be FUCK!”
All three men jumped as a large orange cat appeared on the sofa, “So this is to our newest dwelling? It smells better than the last. I tried to tell her to lay off on the candles.”
Merlin rubbed his face, “Brent, David, this is Kilgharrah, my talking cat slash dragon. Don’t ever take his advise.”
Kilgharrah gave them all a smile, “I’m sure we’ll all live together comfortably.”
“I’ll pay half of the rent for me and Kilgharrah. That should let you two save some money. If it’s still okay for us to stay now that you’ve meet Kilgharrah.”
Brent smiled nodding, lower rent and a proof reader, who cares about living a with a talking, fire breathing dragon-cat for that!