The Gathering: The New Order of Merlin Book 1

79. The largest hugger

Merlin followed Jack out of the Gryffindor Tower, determined to not lose track of him again. Jack looked back at him and hesitated by the main stairway as if being followed spoiled his plans.

Merlin tried to look innocent. "Can I go with you? I don't want to be alone."

"Suit yourself," Jack said.

He led him to the courtyard and jumped over the steps with excitement. It was late afternoon and the grounds began to darken. Merlin fixed the scarf around his neck as a cold breeze reminded him that autumn in the highlands felt like winter everywhere else. He wished Jack had told him he was planning to go outside. School robes were not enough for this weather.

"Aren't you cold?" he asked.

Jack, who was only wearing a thin school uniform shirt and no shoes, stopped in the middle of the courtyard and stood with his back to him. "I have good cold tolerance."

"No kidding. So what are we doing here?"

Merlin wondered if the boy had assumed that Merlin would be bothered by the cold enough to leave, and that thought just made him all the more curious.

Jack stretched out his hand like he was waiting for someone to shake it. "Wanna see a cool magic trick?"

"Sure."

"I was planning to show you and Colin but..." The unfinished sentence hung in the air and was swept away by the wind. "It's a long shot. I don't know if there are any huggers here but I thought I'd give it a try."

Merlin heard him refer to this elusive animal before but still didn't know what it was. "Huggers?"

"Yeah." He still kept his arm out. It must have been sore by now. "I don't know exactly how it works, but if I wait patiently, one will come. It's like magic."

Jack fidgeted on the spot, seeing something in the darkness. And then, a dark shape flew right at them. Merlin stumbled back in instinctual response, tripped, and landed on his butt while the creature attached itself to Jack's hand.

Merlin couldn't believe his eyes. "It's a bat!"

Jack cradled the animal in his hands and cooed at it with awe. "It's the largest hugger I've ever seen!"

As if everything about this boy wasn't strange enough, now bats. The bat seemed to be very comfortable being held as if it was a pet. It climbed Jack's robes and licked his ear. He giggled and leaned away from the tickle. He took it back into his hands and pet the animal's brown fur. The bat raised its head to allow him to scratch the neck and opened its mouth slightly, giving it the appearance of grinning.

"It's kinda cute." Merlin was about to pet it but then noticed its sharp teeth and decided to keep his distance. "So, you have a thing for bats, huh?"

"They're amazing, aren't they? Unlike any other birds."

Merlin scratched his head. "They're not birds. They're mammals."

"Oh, even better."

Jack lifted his new friend up to Merlin to show it off. Merlin dared to bring his finger to it in a gesture of trust and a small pink tongue licked it. Animals were always attracted to his magic and trusted him easily, but even so, for a wild animal, it was very well-behaved.

"Why do you call them huggers?"

Jack shrugged, not taking his eyes off his little pet. "We didn't know what they were called so we invented a name." He babytalked to the little creature, "I think it fits you better, you little hugger."

"Why did it come to you?"

"I don't know, Merlin. They just do. If it doesn't make sense, it's probably magic, right?"