hello again! I had sudden inspiration, so I stayed up to upload it :P
disclaimer: i dont own merlin
summary: During a bad partol, Gwaine's thoughts turn to a certain manservant...
Gwaine's Thoughts
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Gwaine sighed with irritation. This patrol was lasting longer than he had anticipated. He was cold, tired and his backside was killing him from sitting on a saddle for too long. He just wanted to get this over and done with so he could go and drown the sorrows of his bruised buttocks in the tavern. The thought of a cold tankard of mead perked him up some, but the perk was brief as he heard a clap of thunder, followed by a downpour of rain.
Glaring up at the sky, he addressed the older knight next to him. "Leon, please can we call it a day?" He was beyond fed up now; he didn't care if a part of the forest wasn't checked. Even though he didn't care, it didn't mean the other knights agreed. "What's the matter Gwaine? Don't want to get your lovely locks wet?" Percival mocked from behind him. Gwaine threw him a glare and received a response from Leon, "We are going to finish this patrol, like usual Gwaine. It's only a little rain." Just as Leon finished his sentence, another clap of thunder shattered the air. "Little rain, my ass," Gwaine grumbled.
Gwaine drifted into thought to distract him from his current situation. His thoughts fell on a certain manservant he hadn't seen in a while. It would be okay if Merlin was here. They would trade jokes and stories that would annoy the others, but they would love and find hilarious. Time flies with Merlin, and the troublesome patrol would pass by like it was only a few moments. Gwaine wondered why Merlin couldn't come on patrols. Then he remembered and winced. It was a while ago now, but the memory was as clear as day, like it was only yesterday…
Merlin went along on a patrol about five months ago. Merlin, Arthur and the knight's of the Round Table went on the eastern patrol through the forest. It was usually quiet and so Arthur took it to get away from the reports that confined him to his room for hours at a time, bringing Merlin along for entertainment, as he put it.
It started off as a usual patrol, Merlin and Arthur bickered between themselves as the knights listened in amusement. Gwaine was, at first, struck by how blunt Merlin was to the royal, and even more struck that Arthur actually encouraged it. But he was now used to it and found it hilarious when the servant came out with insults like 'dollop-head'.
Suddenly, there was a snap of a twig. Everything seemed to stop. The patrol, the forest noises, even time seemed to slow. Then the shouts started. Bandits came from all around them. Behind bushes and from trees. Some even came riding up on horses. They had completely surrounded them. Gwaine couldn't remember most of the fight, as one victory blended into another, and the fights seemed to slow as more and more enemies fell. When there were very few left, Gwaine thought the worst was over and he could relax some.
Then he heard it.
A cry of pain. Form a horribly familiar voice. He turned to see Merlin fall to the floor; an arrow in his back.
It turned out that he had shoved Arthur out of the way before he could get shot, resulting in his injury. They had got Merlin back to Gaius in the nick of time. Infection hadn't set in but he had lost a lot of blood. He was unconscious for days, Arthur never leaving his side once. He blamed himself for his injury, begging for Merlin's forgiveness, which inevitably came. Merlin was back to work now, but Arthur was still watching him like a hawk, never letting him go out alone and constantly asking about his health.
Gwaine's train of thought deepened as they rode along the forest path. This was not the first time Merlin had done something stupid to save others. It was uncomfortably often that he was found injured or sick saving someone else's skin. He would hardly ever have a good excuse for it either. The boy was strangely cryptic when it came to explanations. Such selflessness was rare sight to see in any man. Gwaine had met many men, and none of them would willingly give themselves up to pain and suffering like Merlin would so often. Gwaine had always thought that it was what a man does that determines who he was, not his birth fights.
So he saw Merlin as one of the greats.
A man with the courage to do what Merlin did daily; have a servant's workload, but still have time to smile and talk to passersby and be at the bottom of society, but still have the honor that would put most nobleman to shame. Gwaine had never met a man like Merlin. And by God, was he happy he had the honor to.
"Gwaine, are you in there?"
Gwaine snapped out of his thoughts to see that Elyan had rode up next to him. "We said that we're going back. Didn't you hear us?" Elyan looked at him questionably.
"Sorry," Gwaine smiled, "I was just thinking"
"Oh no," Percival smirked, "don't think too hard, you might hurt yourself!"
Gwaine glared at Percival once again as her turned his horse. "Always the butt…" he muttered to himself.
Speaking of butts, his was now throbbing and begged for a softer surface than a horse's saddle. He kicked his horses' sides and sped up through the rain.
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ahh Gwaine, you and your poor butt :P
please review :) x
dante the badger