AN: My first attempt at writing romance. Let me know how I do. This will be seven chapters, all structured like this one, with one of the boys thinking about the other, all in third person, likely with very little dialouge. This one takes place during the first episode, but the rest will probably not give more than a light nod to any specific episode, and since it will turn into slash, it will obviously become AU at some point. I apologize for any mistakes.
Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin. I'm not even British.
No one would ever accuse Merlin of being good with first impressions. He'd strode up to Arthur with all the confidence in the world and it never once occurred to him that the boy being picked on would probably have not been putting up with the abuse he was getting unless the bully was someone who really shouldn't be trifled with.
He'd gone on to then be friendly towards Arthur, the very man he'd been standing up to. That had really stunned Arthur. It was strange enough for this boy to not have the faintest idea who he was, or to go up against a group of boys who were clearly much stronger and more powerful than he was, but then he was willing to be friends with him. Perhaps he had some sort of death wish.
Merlin had then continued with his oddness by being very much unimpressed with Arthur, even after being put in a vice-like grip with one arm pinned behind his back and being informed that he'd angered the crown prince of Camelot.
Arthur didn't like this strange boy.
The prince was amused to come across Merlin again so shortly afterwards. It was so rare for him to find anyone who would give him a hard time, especially some weakling, gawky peasant with no sense of self-preservation. It was rather fun to exchange insults with him.
He'd been annoyed but entertained when Merlin told him he could take him apart with less than one blow. Was the boy a complete imbecile?
Arthur would go to his grave swearing he'd been going easy on Merlin during their ensuing fight - he could hardly kill a peasant just for being an irritant, could he? - but he'd been stunned at how well Merlin had held his own. The boy couldn't even hold a mace properly but he'd been determined, at the very least. Arthur didn't know what had come over him though, he wasn't usually so clumsy.
He hadn't been planning on letting Merlin go after he was done teaching him his lesson. He really hadn't. But there was something about Merlin. He was clearly an idiot, there was no denying it, but maybe there was more to him than that. He did seem to have a lot of courage. Not as much as he did stupidity, but an awful lot nonetheless.
Arthur didn't like him, but he was just a tiny bit impressed by him.
He'd barely noticed Merlin at the feast. He'd been busy pretending to pay attention to his father's speech - really, what was the point of them? Nobody listened anyway - and then listening to their guest sing.
Arthur had thought for a moment that she had a lovely voice, then wondered why she had to sing in a foreign language, and then he'd been waking up covered in cobwebs.
Arthur had been more than a little bewildered by that. He couldn't imagine how he'd fallen asleep - he hadn't been that bored, had he? - and where the hell did all these cobwebs come from? There was an old woman pinned beneath the chandelier and Arthur couldn't decide if he was more confused by her presence - who was she? - or by the fact that the chandelier had fallen on top of her - surely it had been more securely attached to the ceiling than that?
He didn't have much time to wonder though, because the woman was pulling herself up as best she could, pulling a knife from her sleeve, and throwing it with truly remarkable aim for an old woman who was pinned down under a chandelier.
Even with all his years of knight training and his well-honed instincts and reflexes, Arthur had no time to move. Time seemed to slow as the blade spun towards him, relentlessly targeting his heart. He dimly felt hands on his shoulders, pulling him away and down until he was hitting the floor in a tangle of limbs with that insolent peasant that suddenly seemed to be showing up everywhere.
Arthur felt that he handled the entire thing rather well. People with less self-control would surely be much more panicked about being almost assassinated by some crazy old crone. He was pleased with himself, but he'd been quite unable to control his response when his father announced that Merlin was to be his new, personal manservant.
His protests had gone unnoticed by his father. He'd looked towards Merlin, who looked as thoroughly displeased about this idea as he felt, and they both turned away from each other in disgust.
Merlin had saved Arthur's life, but he didn't like him.