A Slight Misunderstanding

Chapter 1 – That First Meeting, Part 1

Posted Aug 19, 2012

A/N So, I've been out of commission for a bit. Had to move. Had tons of training classes for work, took a trip to Pierrefonds and watched them film Merlin (great castle, I recommend the trip if you can do it), lost my job and was in the chorus of a community theater production of "The Mystery of Edwin Drood". Still don't have a stable computer connection set up in the house, but that's promised for Thursday, if the cable company can be believed (I'm still not convinced they have the order right this time!). Once that's up I should be in the mood to get back to the other stories.

In the interim, this story popped into my brain. Got to thinking about how Bradley has always said Arthur was misunderstood, and crossed that with the idea that Arthur couldn't be that stupid no to have noticed Merlin's magic all this time.

So, these are going to be a bunch of independent shorts of imagined off camera scenes depicting what still could be Arthur's side of the story of what's been going on in Camelot all these years. Probably not how TPTB are going to set up the reveal, but until they do, this version of events is still one of Shroeder's Kittens! This could still happen! (but probably won't)

I'll post things here when I think of them, but I really want to get on with my Doctor Who crossover and there's three other new epics sitting on my computer just waiting for life to settle down for me to get back to them and clean them up.

Enjoy!

Scop out

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From his perch amongst the Castle's roof-tops, Arthur had a good view of the newcomer locked in stocks in the courtyard below. He winced as one of the children tormenting the poor lad landed a bulls-eye with what must have been a particularly foul smelling rotten tomato. He could hear… what was his name again? Mer-something, let out a grunt that sounded exactly like a sound Arthur had made on one of his first hunting trips with his father, when, in his exuberance to retrieve his kill and present it to his father, he tripped over a branch and landed face first in a bush full of gaia-berries.

Arthur wasn't sure which was worse, the smell of the gaia-berries, or the look on his father's face when he'd finally managed to disentangle himself from the bush. Arthur had vowed from that day forward that he would never again trip in the woods… and he haddn't. Never again would he give his father cause to look at him that way.

And yet he had just an hour earlier. When he had first encountered the boy, Arthur had begged him as a trouble maker, a drifter come into town, bent on causing trouble because he couldn't accept his place amongst his betters. Granted he had been mucking around with some of his knights, but Arthur quickly returned to his official role as guardian of the city when it became apparent the lad wasn't going to back down, even after all the chances Arthur had given him.

As a stranger, the newcomer may not have recognized Arthur as the prince, but he should have at least held respect for the uniform of a Knight of Camelot. And he certainly had no business interrupting a training session Those were bad signs all ways round. Best thing to do was to get him off the streets and let him taste the dungeon's for a couple of days then have the guards see him out of the city with a strong suggestion not to return.

That was before he ran into Morgana in the hallway a half hour before that.

"Arthur Pendragon! What did you do to Gaius's ward!" Morgana stormed toward him, fuming the sort of steam she usually saved for his father.

"What? Who?" Arthur stared at her puzzled. "Gaius has a ward?"

"Yes," Morgana said as if it were obvious. "As hard as that man works around here he finally gets some help and you—"

"Morgana, slow down! I don't know what you're talking about! "Arthur insisted. "When did Gaius get a ward?"

"He arrived yesterday," Morgana growled, "and you'd know that if you spent of your time concerned with the matters of the palace instead of tormenting your servants to show off in front of your friends!" Morgana folded her arms and turned away from Arthur. "The poor man probably won't be able to talk the boy into staying after the welcome you've given him! I hope you're happy with yourself!"

"I didn't do anything!" Arthur insisted. "I don't even know what Gaius's ward looks li-" Arthur stopped in mid sentence. He closed his eyes and brought his fingers to the bridge of his nose. "Wait… let me guess. Tall, dark hair, blue eyes, on the gangly side?"

"You should have seen Gaius when I bumped into him just now. The man was frantic!" Morgana backed Arthur into the wall." He thought you were going to have the boy executed before I assured him you would do no such thing!" She emphasized her words by poking her index finger at Arthur's brest bone.

"Why would I have him executed?"

"I don't know! Why would you have him arrested?"

"It was just an arrest for public disturbance!"

"Don't give me that! I saw that public disturbance! Why did you have him arrested!"

"He…"Arthur hesitated before answered. "He called me an ass."

Morgana's eyes went wide with rage. "About time someone did!"

"In public!" Arthur added. "I don't care who he is, I can't let something like that go unanswered. I'm the Prince of Camelot."

"I'm sure that will be of great comfort to the man who birthed you and took care of your every ill since then." Morgana said and stormed off down the hallway.

"Where's Gaius now?" Arthur called after her.

"In the throne room with your father!" Morgana called, not looking back at him.

"Great!" Arthur said, and he stormed off toward the throne room. "Just great!"