A/N: This is my first foray into the AU verse of Merlin. For those of you reading my other fic, something terrible happened to my external so I'm trying to recover the last two chapters. It might take a little time before it's updated depending on whether or not I can recover my files.
Disclaimer: I own nothing and am not affiliated with BBCs Merlin in. No copyright infringement is intended.
Boys Want Everything: Chapter 1
They met at a London summer camp when they were sixteen. Arthur had managed to convince his father that he did not need to stay home all summer and learn more about what it meant to be one of England's top barristers appointed to the Queen's Counsel. To be honest, Arthur heard enough about that side of his father's life when he was home. Uther Pendragon had been grooming his son for a career at the Pendragon Legal Firm since before Arthur had been born and Arthur wanted just a short period where he did not have to think about his future career.
While Arthur was pleased not to be home listening to his father argue with his foster sister Morgana on the ethics involving members of a new case or some international controversy, he was a little disgusted with having been sent to an educational camp. Arthur has hoped to go to football camp or some other day camp where he would be able to have fun with boys his own age and forget briefly about the Pendragon name and fortune. His father had other ideas – Arthur would get ahead in his studies and meet young men from good families. Already attending a prestigious public school, Arthur sighed and put on a good face for his fellow camp goers.
It was during his second day at camp in a course on human anatomy that Arthur first noticed the dark-haired, poorly dressed boy doodling in his notebook. The boy sat one row over and one desk ahead of his so Arthur had a pretty good view of the spaceship beginning to take over the boy's notebook. Arthur rolled his eyes at the immature drawing while secretly wishing he had the gall to ignore the teacher and focus on something more fun. However, when the instructor called on the day dreaming boy, whose accent was unmistakably Irish, to define the musculoskeletal system his answer ("the system of muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones, joints, and other tissues that move the body and make sure it stays together") made it clear that he had been paying attention. Smiling secretly at the slightly shocked look on the instructor's face, the boy started adding aliens standing outside of his spaceship.
"Very good, Master Emrys," said the middle-aged instructor, Mr. Spencer, frowning at the pale boy who was now busily adding blaster guns to the aliens' hands.
The boy muttered something that sounded vaguely like, "Just 'Merlin' will do, Sir" under his breath as Mr. Spencer began to discuss the musculoskeletal system in more detail.
Arthur frowned at Merlin. Clearly the boy did not know how to behave properly in society or understand the respect that was to be given to authority figures. For a moment Arthur imagined what it would be like to ignore Uther when he gave one of his longwinded speeches on duty. Knowing that his father would probably never let him attend any kind of extracurricular event again in his life if he ever appeared to be less than courteous, Arthur ignored Merlin Emrys's continued doodling and focused on the rest of the lesson.
"Football, Arthur?" Leon asked on the way out of the classroom for their lunch break. Luckily there was a double free period after lunch that allowed the boys to get their energy out and have fun before their parents collected them at the end of the day. Some of the boys boarded but as Arthur would be returning to Eton in September, along with Leon and a few of the other boys at the summer camp, Uther wanted Arthur to be in their London home as often as possible before that time.
"Of course," Arthur replied. He was looking at the back of Merlin's unkempt head and wondering what the boy was doing at a posh summer camp like theirs. Pushing thoughts of the strange boy out of his mind, Arthur bypassed the lunch quad and headed straight for the football pitch.
During half time Arthur went to find his friend Gwaine, who had taken a bad kick to the shins and left the field limping. Gwaine hadn't seemed to out of sorts, however, so Arthur wanted to see if he could convince their best player to come back to the field. He found Gwaine sitting under a tree with, Arthur was slightly startled to see, the pale Irish boy Merlin Emrys. They appeared to be enjoying each other's company as Gwaine had his head thrown back in laughter at something Merlin had said.
"Hello," Arthur said cordially to Merlin before asking Gwaine if he was going to get off his arse and come back to play.
"Not right now," Gwaine said with a shrug. "Sit down."
Arthur remained standing. "You going to come back to the match at all?" he asked. He tried not to growl at Merlin who was watching him with something akin to annoyance in his startlingly blue eyes.
"Sorry, mate," Gwaine said with a smile. "I think I'm just going to have a break. I'll catch you up later, yeah?"
Merlin was still staring at Arthur with an unhappy look on his face, making the handsome young blond boy want to punch Merlin for some reason. Instead Arthur just shrugged and said, "Alright, well, if you want to come back, you can." He chose to ignore asking Merlin to play. Anyone who drew spaceships and aliens during anatomy was clearly not meant to play football. Besides, Arthur told himself as he jogged back to his friends, Merlin would probably trip over his own feet and lose them the match due to his gangly limbs. Arthur had noticed that the dark haired boy seemed to be unsettlingly clumsy.
When he was almost out of earshot, Arthur heard Merlin say loudly to Gwaine, "He cared more about winning the match than about your leg. What a selfish prat."
Arthur glowered and almost turned to shout something back at Merlin when he heard Gwaine's shout of laughter and simply ran faster to the football field.
After nearly a week of camp Arthur was sitting with Leon and a few other friends at lunch. Seeing Gwaine enter the lunch quad, Leon waved him over and Gwaine settled himself next to Arthur. The group chatted briefly about some of the girls they had seen at the female camp on the other side of campus when Gwaine motioned for Merlin to join them.
Arthur had to keep from groaning. "Why do you like him?" he managed to spit out before Merlin approached their table, eyeing the tear in Merlin's jeans with distaste.
Gwaine looked mildly surprised at Arthur's clear dislike of Merlin. "He's cool."
Arthur was about to state that he could think of things that were a lot cooler and more interesting, such as that pretty girl who had smiled at him from the sidelines of the football field the day before, when Merlin came over to their table.
"Hi, Merlin," Leon said, clearly happy with Merlin joining them and shifting slightly to make room for him. Arthur remembered that Leon and Gwaine were both boarders at the summer camp and felt slightly betrayed that they spent time with Merlin after Arthur went home.
Merlin looked at Arthur briefly as if checking to make sure joining them was alright and when Arthur simply took an aggressive bite of his sandwich, Merlin grinned and plopped himself down.
"You're quite good at football," Merlin told Arthur cheerfully.
Arthur rolled his eyes as if to say, "Of course I am" but said outwardly, "I noticed you don't join us."
Merlin shrugged. "I don't really fancy it."
"Of course you don't," Arthur muttered, taking another aggressive bite of his lunch.
"What does that mean?" Merlin asked, raising his eyebrows. "Not everyone is such an accomplished athletic showoff. Others are quite good at using our brains and…"
"I'm not stupid just because I'm good at football, you idiot," Arthur interrupted. "I'm at school at Eton."
"So is Leon," Merlin replied, "and he's not a self-centered clot."
"Don't you dare…" Arthur started but Gwaine cut him off with an annoyed, "Give it a rest!"
Merlin smiled slightly at Gwaine and went back to his lunch.
Clearly attempting to make peace, Leon said to Arthur, "What are you doing this weekend?"
"Nothing, most likely. Father is going to Paris tomorrow and won't be back until Tuesday." He looked curiously at Leon. "Why? It's not like you can come over, you'll never get permission."
"See if you can't stay on as a boarder this weekend," Leon encouraged, looking to Gwaine for support.
Gwaine looked at Merlin who quirked his mouth in what appeared to be an amused smile, before telling Arthur that it would be fun. "Merlin's had a brilliant idea."
Arthur scoffed. "Is that right?"
Gwaine leaned closer to Arthur, a huge grin on his face. "We're going to break into the girls' camp."
Arthur was unable to get his father to agree to let him stay at the camp in Leon's room as a boarder for the weekend, ("It's indecent for you to share a bed with another boy" Uther had told him even when Arthur argued that he would likely be sleeping on the floor "Pendragons do not sleep on the floor like a common pet!") so he was looking forward to Monday to see if the plan had worked. When he arrived at camp he found Gwaine, Leon, and Merlin sitting together under a tree.
"Well?" he asked when they didn't start talking.
Gwaine grinned broadly. "Perfect time, mate." He nodded his head towards Merlin. "Right good with the girls. That pretty blonde, the one who comes to the football matches, snogged him!"
Merlin looked slightly embarrassed but he smiled shakily at Arthur.
Arthur looked impressed. While he had been eyeing the blonde girl in question he had known it was unlikely he would ever get a chance. It was more interesting than he would like to admit to know that Merlin had gotten a kiss with her. "Was she any good?"
Merlin blushed but didn't look away. "Not bad."
Arthur grinned. "Good for you, mate."
After that, Arthur stopped blatantly ignoring Merlin and came to enjoy the odd boy who had moved from Northern Ireland to Ealdor, ("It's a little village in Berkshire, near Eton actually" Merlin said) two years ago. Arthur learned from Gwaine that Merlin and his mother had moved to Ealdor to live with his mother's uncle, a chemist in the village, and that he was attending their London summer camp on a scholarship.
"He's bloody brilliant," Gwaine had told Arthur when he mentioned the scholarship. Arthur decided that the scholarship helped explain why Merlin looked so unkempt – if he couldn't afford the cost of attending the camp, his mum likely couldn't afford to buy him new clothes on a regular basis.
When Arthur asked Merlin why he and his mother had moved from Ireland he looked uncomfortable. "Mum wanted a change of pace," he'd said after a long moment, clearly not wanting to go any deeper into the topic. "Uncle Gaius offered to let us stay with him."
"Do you like it?" Arthur questioned, curious about his new friend. He's found over the last few weeks that he quite enjoyed Merlin's company and the two had grown rather close. Arthur was now as likely to be found playing football with Leon and Gwaine as he was walking around the campus chatting with Merlin.
"Ealdor's fine," Merlin answered. "Mum's happy." He paused for a moment before adding, "You'll be back at Eton soon, it's not too far, and maybe you can visit on weekends."
Arthur thought that the likelihood of this was very slim; especially when his father learned that Arthur's latest friend was an extremely poor Irish boy, but he didn't want to ruin the picture this made and just smiled.
As the summer came to a close, Arthur and Merlin found themselves daydreaming about Arthur visiting during the weekends more and more. It was always Merlin who brought this topic up and even though Arthur had said more than once for Merlin to "shut up" or "stop being stupid", Merlin kept suggesting it.
"I didn't like you at first," Merlin said to Arthur seriously on the last day of camp.
"You like me now?" Arthur asked, raising an eyebrow and looking impossibly pleased with himself.
"No," Merlin replied though his mouth was twitching to hide a smile, "I still think you're an impossible prat. A royal pain in the arse, actually."
Arthur laughed. No one had ever spoken to him the way Merlin did and while he still found it infuriating and insulting that his new friend could be so disrespectful, he also found it a little appealing. There was something to be said for challenging the unspoken social rules that typically dictated Arthur's life.
"You're an idiot, Merlin."
Arthur had been back at Eton for a few months before he finally had time to himself for a visit with Merlin. He and Merlin had spoken over the telephone and via the Internet but they hadn't seen each other since August and it was nearly December.
"Fencing was cancelled this Saturday and everything else is finished after lunch," Arthur explained to Merlin over the phone. "I'm tired of studying for exams. Would you like to come up to the school at half one and we can go into town or something?"
"Sure," Merlin answered. "I'll get mum to drop me off. It's not too far and she should be home."
"Right," Arthur said. "I'll meet you by the Chapel."
Merlin's mother Hunith was delighted to bring Merlin to visit Arthur at Eton. She had heard a lot about the young heir to the Pendragon estate but had privately thought that the friendship was over when the boys finished with summer camp, despite Merlin's claim that Arthur promised to visit with him on weekends. She dropped him off early, giving Merlin enough time to find his way to the Chapel without his mother embarrassing him ("I don't mind if you come meet him, Mum!" Merlin had protested though he was secretly relieved his mother stayed in the car).
"Ring when you want me to come get you," Hunith advised her son when he was exiting the car. "I'm going to Mrs. Davis's for tea around three so if I don't pick up make sure you ring Gaius."
"I will," Merlin replied and shut the door. He waved once to his mother before hurrying to find Arthur.
Arthur spotted Merlin before Merlin spotted him. It wasn't difficult to pick his friend out of the other boys milling about due to his loping gait and mismatched clothes. Arthur went a little rigid and felt indignant at how some of the boys snickered at Merlin's faded, torn jeans and slightly baggy striped t-shirt, a messenger bag thrown over his shoulder. He made fun of Merlin's clothes but it wasn't out of a misplaced sense of superiority (at least not now that he knew Merlin), it was because he knew Merlin didn't care how he looked and Arthur liked to dress well.
Merlin caught sight of Arthur and gave a brief wave. When he reached Arthur, Merlin moved forward as if to give Arthur a hug and looked a little hurt when Arthur took a step back.
"Umm," Arthur began, casting a look at some of the boys who he had earlier overheard mocking Merlin's clothes. He'd almost hugged Merlin, he actually wanted to hug Merlin, but he was unsure of the closeness that would bring and was uncomfortable with other boys watching.
Merlin shrugged as if to say it didn't matter and he forced a smile. "I'm glad you finally had a free moment, I thought you'd forgotten me. Shut up here at Eton, lording over…"
"Merlin," Arthur warned, looking at his friend out of the corner of his eye and trying to maintain a serious expression as Merlin grinned.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you're still Prince Prat." Merlin continued happily, chuckling quietly at the expression on Arthur's face.
They began walking away from the Chapel, Arthur pointing out sights to Merlin that he thought the other might find interesting. After a few minutes of this, Merlin nudged Arthur slightly with his shoulder. "You don't have to play tour guide," Merlin informed him. "I'm not your father, I came here to see you, not get a tour of your stupid school."
"Eton's not stupid!" Arthur protested. He glared at Merlin who had started to snicker. "And I suppose your school is so wonderful?"
"It's fine," Merlin answered after a moment, trying to keep a smile on his face. He didn't particularly like the day school he attended. Some of the older boys bullied him and he only had one close friend, Will, the son of his mother's friend Mrs. Davis.
Arthur raised his eyebrow but Merlin was smiling so he just assumed that his friend didn't want to talk about school. Whenever they chatted over the phone, texted, or used the instant message service on the computer, Arthur talked about himself or about his family. He didn't stop to think about asking Merlin about Ealdor or why he sounded a little strained whenever Arthur teased him about being the strange Irish boy at in his school. Arthur was telling Merlin about Morgana's seventeenth birthday party when Merlin let out a little "Oh!" and stopped suddenly to rummage in his messenger bag.
"What are you doing?" Arthur demanded, apologizing to the two boys who had almost run into Merlin when he came to a halt.
"Hang on," Merlin said, continuing to rummage. After a moment he pulled out an envelope and offered it to Arthur. "This is for you."
Arthur took the card and motioned for Merlin to keep walking. He led Merlin to the river where the rowing team practiced and sat down on a nearby bench. "What's this for?"
"Just open it," Merlin said, rolling his eyes. He watched as Arthur tore open the envelope, the corners of Arthur's mouth lifting up in a smile when he saw the gaudy "Happy 17th Birthday!" card. "Open it," Merlin urged, trying to keep the anxiety out of his voice.
"I am." Arthur chuckled at Merlin's childlike excitement. When he opened the card, a small folded piece of paper fell out. Looking at it with interest, Arthur unfolded the paper to find a very well done pencil drawing of two boys. One of the boys looked very handsome and was dressed like a knight holding his sword aloft, the other boy was standing next to him with his arms crossed, a look of pleasure on his face that Arthur couldn't quite place.
"What do you think?" Merlin asked nervously. Arthur hadn't said anything and he was still staring at the drawing of the two boys, his face unreadable. "I know you like the stories of old battles and knights and swords and I just wanted to do something for us…I mean for you! So that you could think about us when…erm…I mean…" he stopped babbling before he said too much and looked at the river, wishing Arthur would say something.
"Shut up," Arthur ordered but there was no anger or bite in his voice, he sounded slightly amused. He couldn't tell Merlin how his breath hitched when he looked at the drawing or how Merlin's words made his stomach flip over a little. "I didn't know you could draw," Arthur said instead.
"Yeah, I like it," Merlin said lamely, feeling a little disappointed at Arthur's reaction. He hadn't expected Arthur to cry with thanks but he'd hoped for a little more of a reaction. "I'm sorry I missed your birthday in October."
Arthur waved his hand dismissively. His seventeenth birthday had been spent with his father, Morgana, and the rest of his family in London. None of his friends had attended. "I like the…" He waved the drawing around before folding it and tucking it back in the card.
"I know it's not anything like what your father got you," Merlin commented lightly, feeling stupid. His friend Will had been right; he shouldn't have given a drawing as a gift to the boy who had everything.
Arthur snorted at the mention of his father. "Merlin, it's great." He smiled at Merlin, a real smile that touched his eyes and made him look even more handsome. "I really like it."
Merlin let out a sigh of relief he hadn't known he'd been holding and suddenly got to his feet. "Come on, I think you said something about going into town. I'd like to find something for my mum."
"Alright," Arthur said, getting to his feet. He handed the card back to Merlin. "Carry it for me. I don't have my rucksack."
Merlin rolled his eyes and put the card back in his bag.
A little after four Merlin rang his mother and asked her to pick him up around five at the same place she had dropped him off.
"If it weren't for my House dinner, I'd ask you to stay longer," Arthur said when Merlin finished talking to his mum.
"It's fine," Merlin answered with a shrug. His face suddenly brightened. "Maybe next time you could come see me! Mum wouldn't mind picking you up."
Arthur nodded. It would take a lot of effort to get his father to allow him to leave the school to stay with a friend. Especially if the friend he wanted to stay with was not one who attended Eton and instead belonged to a lower class family in a small village.
"Is Leon here for the weekend?" Merlin asked, not noticing Arthur's silence.
"Yeah, he's around," Arthur replied. He and Merlin were walking back towards the college so that they could meet Merlin's mum when she arrived in a little less than an hour.
"Oh," Merlin said. "Was he busy or something? I thought he might have caught up to us."
"I think he had plans with some of our other mates," Arthur lied, feeling guilty. He hadn't told Leon that Merlin was coming for the day because he'd wanted to spend time alone with Merlin. Arthur spent so much time with Leon and his other school friends that he'd wanted some time away from them. More specifically, he wanted time with Merlin. It was hard for him to remember how much he'd disliked this skinny, pale boy those first few weeks of summer camp. Merlin had become such a close friend in these last months that Arthur found himself missing Merlin; something he didn't even find himself feeling for his family.
Arthur and Merlin chatted often but Arthur noticed that he started wanting to call Merlin just to listen to his friend talk, not because he had anything of value to say. He'd tried telling himself that it was because Merlin was so far removed from Arthur's regular world that it was simply easier to talk to Merlin. This was partly true but Arthur knew there was more to it and he was afraid to explore that feeling too deeply.
"Well, maybe next time he'll come." Merlin's voice startled Arthur out of his thoughts.
"Huh?"
Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Were you even listening to me?"
"I never listen to you," Arthur joked, startling a laugh out of Merlin.
Arthur was able to meet up with Merlin once more before the Christmas holidays. Merlin hadn't really been free but he'd made up an excuse to get out of his plans with Will and asked his mother to drive him to Eton.
"You should have told Will the truth," Hunith scolded Merlin as they parked the car. Arthur was going to meet him in town and so Hunith had decided to stay and do some Christmas shopping while Merlin visited Arthur.
"He wouldn't have understood," Merlin grumbled as he got out of the car. He had mentioned Arthur to Will once and Will had told Merlin that people like Arthur were better off left alone. ("They use us, take everything we own, and then forget about us like we're rubbish," Will had scoffed.) Even though Merlin had protested that Arthur was his friend, Will had gotten so angry that Merlin never brought Arthur's name up again. If he got a text message from Arthur when he was spending time with Will, Merlin didn't mention who had sent it.
"He's just protective," Hunith soothed. "He knows it's hard for you at school."
"Mum!" Merlin protested, horrified. "Look, there's Arthur."
Arthur caught sight of Merlin getting out of the car and quickly walked over. It was a cold winter and Arthur had on a heavy coat, scarf, and gloves. Seeing Merlin in a patched coat and fraying scarf with no gloves made Arthur feel a little uncomfortable about his own nice clothes. He shoved those thoughts aside, there was nothing he could do about Merlin's family finances after all, and briefly wondered what it would be like to take Merlin's hand and hold it to keep it warm.
Embarrassed that he was having such thoughts, Arthur promptly offered his hand to Hunith. "It's nice to meet you."
Hunith smiled at Arthur and shook his hand. He was certainly a good-looking young man, she thought, with his blond hair, blue eyes, and warm complexion. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Arthur. Merlin talks about you all the time."
"Mum!" Merlin sputtered, looking mortified. He tried not to look at Arthur who was grinning shamelessly, as if he had just received a high compliment.
"I'm going to pop into some of the shops. You let me know when you're ready to leave and I'll come get you," Hunith said, waving goodbye to the two boys.
"All the time, eh?" Arthur asked, arching an eyebrow. "I didn't know you cared."
Merlin rolled his eyes. "I do talk about more important things. You're not all that's going on in my life."
Arthur chuckled. "Come on, let's have tea while your mum shops."
Merlin followed Arthur to a nearby coffee shop that was occupied with other Eton students as well as people on their lunch breaks or people taking refuge from the cold. They grabbed a table by the back wall after paying for their drinks.
"Leon's going to join us later," Arthur informed Merlin once they sat down. Leon had been angry when he found out Arthur had spent the day with Merlin two weeks before without informing him that Merlin was coming into town.
"Why didn't he just come down with you?" Merlin asked.
"His mum rang and I didn't want to be late," Arthur lied. He'd told Leon to come a little later so that he could talk to Merlin alone for a short time. He hadn't told Leon that was what he was doing because he didn't want Leon asking too many questions. To change the subject Arthur suddenly reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a thin package. "I have something for you."
"I don't have anything for you," Merlin whispered, looking ashamed. He didn't have any pocket money left after buying gifts for his mother and Uncle Gaius. Originally Merlin had planned on drawing another picture for Arthur but because Arthur hadn't seemed very excited about the first one, he'd decided against it. Never had he expected Arthur to give him anything. As much as Merlin liked his wealthy friend, Arthur didn't seem to think of others very often and Merlin had never thought of him as exceptionally generous.
"You don't give gifts because you expect something in return," Arthur snapped. In a slightly softer voice he said, "It's really nothing much. Think of it as a combined early Christmas and birthday gift."
Merlin took the thin package wondering what it could be.
"Well, open it," Arthur told him, looking both amused and slightly agitated.
Merlin obeyed, his eyes widening when he saw what was contained in the package. "Arthur, you shouldn't have bought this for me," Merlin said, when he finished unwrapping his gift. Arthur had given him a new; thirty-six piece artists drawing set that Merlin knew must have cost at least fifty quid. "Why would you do that?"
"I…erm, thought maybe you could make some more drawings," Arthur answered. He had put the drawing Merlin had given him for his birthday in a frame and hung it on the wall in his room. It was among his favorite gifts and he selfishly hoped Merlin would draw more for him.
"It's really nice. I wish I had something to give you." Merlin looked ashamed and Arthur felt his heart constrict.
Pushing those feelings away Arthur said a little gruffly, "Say 'thank you', Merlin."
"You really shouldn't have given this to me," Merlin scolded. He didn't know why he was protesting. He loved the gift and he wanted it so badly but something in him rebelled, he didn't like feeling as though he owed Arthur anything.
"Merlin, say 'thank you, Arthur, you're such a great mate'." Arthur was amused. He had given his other friends gifts for Christmas but the gift for Merlin was special, it was something he'd known his friend would really like. Although he didn't like to admit it, Arthur liked to make Merlin happy.
"You're such a dollop head!" Merlin said, starting to laugh.
"I'm a what?" Arthur demanded, trying to maintain a sense of dignity. "I don't believe that's a thank you. I don't even think that's a word!"
Merlin shook his head. "You shouldn't have gotten this for me if you only did it for thanks." He grinned slyly. "Dollop head."
Arthur rolled his eyes. "You're such an idiot sometimes, Merlin." He looked at the door as if to check for Leon but was trying to hide his disappointment. He knew he'd done a bad job conveying how much Merlin's first gift had meant to him and this was the only way he knew how to express those feelings.
Merlin put his hand gingerly on Arthur's wrist to pull Arthur's attention back to him. "Thank you."
Arthur tried desperately not to lick his lips as his mouth suddenly went dry. He looked down at where Merlin's hand was touching him and then met Merlin's eyes. In their blue depths Arthur could see the gratitude and love Merlin had for him. While Arthur knew Merlin's love was simply that of a friend, and not the kind of love Arthur thought he might feel for Merlin, it warmed him from the inside to know how much Merlin cared.
"Don't be stupid," Arthur muttered, pulling his arm back. "I'm glad you liked it.
Please let me know what you think! I really love hearing from everyone.