This fanfiction takes place during the second season somewhere in between Beauty and the Beast: Part 2; Episode 6 and The Witchfinder; episode 7.
Hello every one! So this is a gift for Socks7 this was originally intended to be a short one-shot but well it turned into this…Next chapter I`ll post it next Saturday so hope you like it!
"So, what are we doing again?" Merlin trailed behind Arthur as he stalked through the hallway. "We are making sure that everything is ready for the competition."
"Competition?"
"Yes, Merlin. I know some words are beyond your comprehension but, I`m sure you know this one." Merlin rolled his eyes at Arthur. "What`s it about?" Arthur raised an eyebrow at him as he looked over his shoulder at Merlin. "I mean like, spares, crossbows, la-"
And just as Merlin had started with his endless mentioning of weapons, Arthur stopped on his tracks to look at him. "Have you been listening to anything I have been saying to you at this same hour for the past week?"
Merlin made a thinking gesture as if he were searching through his memories for an answer to that. "Mmm, no. I don`t think so... I don`t know if this has gone past you but I have been helping Gaius! And you are the one that kept talking anyways even though you knew I was helping Gaius make a tonic for Clarine`s brother. Which I may remind you it took us a week to make, no thanks to you."
Arthur frowned. "Who's Clarine?"
"She is new in the kitchen staff." Merlin spat in disbelieve." I thought it had been you who-"
"So, let me get this straight." Arthur cut Merlin of not caring a bit about the glare Merlin was giving him. "You have been ignoring everything I have been saying for the past week during the time you were with Gaius?" He said pointing an accusing finger at him.
Merlin nodded hesitantly. "Yeah, I don`t see why it would make that much of a difference since you were mostly just repeating the usual."
"And what is the usual exactly." Arthur arched an eyebrow up at him. "You know. The ridiculously long list of things you tell me to do using as an excuse the fact that I`m your servant just to bully me."
"I don`t bully you, Merlin. It's called: doing your job." He said as they started walking down the hall again.
Merlin
"Archery?" Merlin repeated incredulously. "Yes, Merlin archery." Arthur repeated after him. "Seriously how hard is it for you to get things?"
"And anyone can participate?" Arthur raised an eyebrow at him. "You are not planning on participating, are you?"
Merlin shook his head instantly. "Of course not." Hell there was nothing in this world that was keeping him away from it.
"Because of all the things you are good at Merlin-" Arthur said sarcastically. "archery isn`t and can't be one of them, you have to be coordinated, have patience."
'Well, I certainly have a lot of daily practice at being patient with you.' Merlin thought.
"and...I'm sure that one of the requirements to be a good archer is to 'not be a stumbling idiot'."
"Gee, thanks..." Merlin said sarcastically. "It`s just that from all the things you train your knights to do, archery is not one of them."
"Yeah well I tried to, but they were worse than hopeless." Arthur shuddered at a past memory.
"So, are you hoping to find someone that might not suck at it?" Merlin asked. "Not really." Arthur admitted. "It was father's idea of entertaining King Bayard; tough if there is a knight that is willing to participate and is good at it then, that is bonus. He might even be able to help me train the others if there is any hope left for them."
"You don't answer my question, so can anyone participate?"
"Yeah, you just have to register your name and that`s it and like usual there is a price for the winner." Merlin waited for Arthur to tell him what the price was but he stopped there and said no more. Merlin giving up on the un-given answer asked: "So, what`s the price?"
"A bag with gold and...a kiss from Morgana." Merlin gave Arthur a look. "Well Arthur, good luck at finding someone competent in that sea of drooling fools." Arthur smacked Merlin in the head.
Merlin
Despite what he had told Arthur, Merlin wanted to compete. Not for the money not for the kiss; in fact he wasn't even headed in that direction, he had sorted all that out since he had first kissed Will in Ealdor all those years ago. Weird as it was his mother knew before him and that had been since, well always...
He had never really found out when or how she had found out actually... which talking about it knowing before himself, would have been sort of creepy if she hadn't been his mother. But then again all mothers had those sort of weird super natural powers when it came to their children and he wasn`t talking about magic...
He wanted to compete to test himself and his abilities.
He had never been good at anything that hadn't involved magic and when he found a bow and arrow hidden away in their house he had felt so drawn in by it that he had taken them and had gone to the forest. Just to give it a shot.
And he shot and failed then again, and again, and again... he was crap at it but he wasn`t about to give up. Strange as it was he felt an odd familiarity with it that he couldn't describe or could ever begin to put into words and so since that night he had practiced, practiced and practiced and well he had continued to suck at it for the first 3 months but as time went by he had gotten better and better at it until he had been flawless.
For the first time he felt like he was actually good at something by himself and not just his magic.
He felt that he knew something else than hiding and he felt free at the fact that he didn`t really had to hide it. But as odd as it may sound he wanted to keep his ability yet again another secret because he had noticed that whenever he tried to approach the subject his mother dodged it as if her life depended on it.
Then his mother found out; it wasn't pretty. She took both things away and she had been so mad at the moment she had burned them his 15 year old self hadn't understood why she would do such a thing but maybe it and to do a lot more with his father than with himself and maybe that was a story for another time.
He still went out to the forest at night after that incident when he couldn't sleep. Then one night when he reached his usual spot there in the forest; bandits... They usually didn't went this way they never got past beyond the beginnings of the forest and this was way out of their usual travels way; there were only about 5 of them but nonetheless they had a chained boy with them.
Flashback:
He was starting to panic he had no idea of what to do. They were all around the fire laughing and drinking, the air reeked of beer their horses not that far of and if he wasn`t mistaken there would be more bandits on their way.
He tried to be as quiet as he could jumping from tree to tree with his magic helping him float from one to another. It was stupid he knew that, but he wasn`t about to let them sell this guy on a slave traders market. The guy looked like he was starving but he was looking a bit better than most he had seen in the past he couldn't have been with them longer than a week perhaps or maybe a few days, once he looked closer he noticed a few healing bruises in the older guys arms and neck. He looked about 2 years older than him. Then again Merlin looked younger than most people his age.
A twig twisted in the tree and snapped under his foot. "Fuck!" He cursed under his breath. Lucky for him the slave traders hadn't noticed but their prisoner had, he looked up to the trees and his eyes lingered for a while at the spot where Merlin had been but then his gaze fell again and Merlin let out a sigh of relief. He may not be one of them but he did not wanted to be spotted before taking action. He still had no idea of what to do and then he felt an ache trough his veins and his magic calling out to him.
Like it was calling his name. It purred under his skin and before he knew what he was doing his hand was stretched out and he held a bow. And suddenly he felt something in his back he reached back with his hands and hesitated when his hand encountered the feathers in the back of the arrows. He felt it, under the touch of it they were made out of raw magic. Something he hadn't felt before and it suddenly felt so right to have it that he had no idea how he could have missed it before.
Without any second thoughts he took one under his fingers and aimed from the top of the trees. And he shot it, not a sound was made and no cry of pain came from the man that that fell softly to the ground and just when one of the others saw him on the floor he fell to as an arrow hit him on the back. It was so quiet no-one would ever had guessed they were being attacked and then the other one came down and another one and when only one last man was left Merlin knew what he had done was right, he had been right from the beginning...He climbed down from the tree and fell to the ground gracefully, looking at the confused yet scared expression in the man's face. "You work for Valtar...don't you?"
This man's boss had killed his father, had killed a 100 more others and that man was someone Merlin did never want to see again.
The man only managed to scoff and say. "Why should I tell you anything?"
Merlin was well aware that the man was confused, that he had no idea what was keeping him in place but Merlin knew very well that expression and feeling, it was fear. When he saw him reaching out for his sword Merlin took and arrow and shot it at him striking it straight in his chest. One of these days the chest one of his arrows would be piercing would be Valtars. He had been lost in his own thoughts and hadn't noticed the other guy still chained looking up at him from where he was sitting awed struck.
Merlin looked down at him and their eyes locked for a minute there, before the other guy shifted his gaze. Merlin walked over and did not miss the other guy's blush crossing his face as he reached for the keys that idiotically enough where just behind the guy. He opened both of the locks that chained around the guys wrist and ankles and when he had finished unlocking them he threw him a water skin that he had seen beside the keys. The guy grasped it.
"There is food in one of the bags to your left. Bye now." Merlin turned on his heel. But just before he was about to leave the other guy called out to him. "Wait!" Merlin sighed but turned around either way. When he did he was startled at the man's approach he was closer than he thought he would. "Thank you for, um..."
"No, problem." Merlin was about to turn again when. "My name is Galahad prince of Mercia." Merlin stared at the man for a moment and then of course it all made sense that's why they had kidnapped him or whatever. After all his father had not been just a man. "Well good to meet you Galahad." Merlin did not know how to treat a prince at all but thought it unimportant at the moment and resumed to leaving. "That`s it?" Merlin stopped once again looking over his shoulder. "What`s, what it?"
"You are just going to leave?" Galahad stared at Merlin incredulously.
"Well it isn`t like I can do much here and you obviously know how to defend yourself you are a prince after all. You have a few bruises but you are not going to die and they do not need much treatment judging by the look of them since I`m going to a assume they knew that if they wanted to get some money out of kidnapping a prince after all you are worth more money alive than dead. You have horse's food and water. You probably know this place since it is not that far away from Mercia; I should probably tell you are about to cross to Cenred`s kingdom but other than that you are as useless to me as I am to you. Fancy meeting you but in a few hours the sun rises and I need to be back."
"Don`t you want a reward or something?" Merlin stared at him for moment. This guy was probably used to people fighting over his attention, acknowledgment and to people reclaiming rewards for 'favors' they did for him. He probably didn`t even know what having a friend was..."No." He smiled in spite himself. "I`m Merlin by the way."
Galahad stared at him with a mixture of fascination, and confusion. "What were you doing out here, Merlin?" Merlin sighed of course..."I always come out here at night, I know this place like the back of my hand." He smiled. "Night." That time round he did left and never saw the dirty blonde, pale, green eyed prince again and to be honest he hoped he never would.
"Shit." He cursed as realization hit him that was a bit unlucky of him. Then again Merlin had only seen the prince once and that had been over 6 to 7 years ago there was no way the guy could recognize him or even acknowledge him at that. There probably wasn`t anything to worry about...
"Merlin!" Gaius stormed into the room and as soon as his eyes laid on him Gaius gave him a knowing look. "Yes?" He asked warily looking up from the book he had been reading not long ago before he had been lost in his thoughts. "I hope you are not planning on doing it." Merlin gave him his most innocent look. "What are you talking about?"
Gaius arched his eyebrow. "Merlin," He sighed. "you know very well that when you came to Camelot you were supposed to keep a low profile and since you came here that's the least you have been doing. You are the prince's manservant and the cause of that is you saving him; I think that's enough attention-"
"But-"
"No, that wasn`t that long ago. If you just happen to out of nowhere be able to use a weapon-"
"Then what?! It`s just a harmless competition!"
"Merlin-"
"No! I am-"
Gaius sighed in frustration. "I know you will be doing it regardless of what I tell you; you wouldn't be Merlin if you didn't. I just want you to at least put on a disguise." Gaius gave him a look and after what seemed like a staring contest Merlin smiled at him. "Thank you! Than you, thank you, thank you!" Gaius smiled back. "Don`t say it yet. If they find out is you, I can`t guarantee you, you will get out of it alive."
"What do you mean? What would they possibly-"
"Merlin, you came into Camelot and not 3 days after you save Arthur and become his manservant and lets not leave out the fact that you have changed him in to a better person he values your opinions above all others he trusts you with his life, in fact I think he trusts you more than he has anyone before and everyone knows this. It is very hard to miss and not to leave out the fact that he defied his father to save you-
"Stop!" Merlin really did not want to hear what came next. "First of all he is still a prat," Gaius arched up his left eyebrow...again. "just that less pratish, he obviously doesn't care about what I think and he made it very clear that we cannot be friends and as for him defying his father part he just felt that it would be unjust to let the man who saved him to die and there is no more to it than that." Gaius looked like he wanted to say something but whatever it was he chose not to. "But, the king and others wouldn't look at it that way. Uther is very protective of him and if he thinks you are a threat he will not hesitate to kill you."
"You think they would think me an assassin?"
"More or less." He nodded. "That's ridiculous!" Merlin frowned.
"And I believe Arthur would think the same, so for the sake of it all Merlin, don't get caught."
Merlin
"Merlin!" Arthur called from where he was standing in the training field. "Give me my sword!" Merlin was about to do so when he heard a voice from behind him. "What? Are you too good to do something that below you and simple as picking up a sword? I bet you don't even know how to dress up by yourself without someone else helping you."
Merlin had heard that voice before. Just that when he had it had been a frightened one this one sounded too playful and cocky to be it, just that it was...and that was "just great"
"And I'm sure you don`t even train your knights judging by how pale you look." Arthur snapped back. "If a kingdom where ever to attack you, you wouldn't even survive the first 2 hours of it."
"Well, I suppose you would not be nice enough to hold a little fight against each other to see who's right?" Galahad picked the sword beside him and pointed it at the other prince direction. "Merlin, my sword." Arthur commanded with an extended hand.
"Merlin?" Galahad murmured puzzled to himself. Where had he heard that name before? It was something very important, someone important...but it had been buried so deep inside his mind he couldn't remember. Then as the servant went up to the prince and turned around Galahad took a look at the servants face. Of course how could he forget?
Merlin was just hoping he wouldn't be remembered and there he was staring at the prince's face. He had definitely been remembered no one would give him that kind of look otherwise.
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