Mountain Pass

Possibly only Sir Leon, who happened to know Arthur rather well, knew how furious the young man was. The visiting Duke of Badbury, brother to the monarch of the kingdom to the north, had just slammed Merlin violently into the wall. The dark-haired young man slid awkwardly to the floor, a whimper of pain escaping him.

"Clumsy Oaf," the duke said. "I suggest you have him beaten. That will teach him to drop the bags of his betters."

"Excellent suggestion," Arthur replied, silkily. "I'll take that under advisement." Arthur's hand strayed of its own volition to the sword at his side. Leon unobtrusively gripped the prince's wrist warningly. He positioned himself between Arthur's sword arm and the duke.

"Summon more servants to carry the duke's bags to the guest chambers," Leon ordered one of the guards. The man nodded and left.

The prince badly wanted to see if Merlin was hurt. Also, he wanted to plunge his sword into the duke's pompous, overfed body. He did neither. The stress of being denied both courses of action left him nearly vibrating with anger and frustration.

"Sire," Leon said, thinking fast. "Allow me to escort the duke to his chambers. You mustn't keep the king waiting."

"What? Oh, of course not. You're right." Arthur nodded to the duke and, turning on his heel, hurried down the long corridor in the other direction. At the first turn he ducked out of sight and waited for Sir Leon to escort the Duke of Badbury and his retinue out of the immediate vicinity. He gave it a couple of minutes then risked a peek around the corner. Merlin was still sitting slumped against the wall, a couple of guards standing uncertainly nearby. The prince sprinted back down the corridor and knelt by his servant. Merlin's head was down but he was conscious. Well, that was something, Arthur thought.

"Merlin?" The servant moved slightly but said nothing.

Oh crap, Arthur thought, he's hurt. The prince gently ran his hand down first one then the other of his servant's arms. "Is anything broken? Do you want me to send for Gaius?"

Merlin didn't answer for a moment, mentally checking out possible injury. "No," he mumbled. "I'll be okay."

Arthur put his hands under Merlin's arms and eased him into a more comfortable sitting position on the floor. The prince then slid down the wall and sat beside him, their shoulders touching, and there Sir Leon found them a short time later. The knight stood for a moment looking down at the pair of them, one blonde, one dark-haired, and smiled. The duke had no idea how close he'd come to dying.

"Think you can stand, Merlin?" Sir Leon asked.

"Yeah, I'm okay." Leon pulled the warlock to his feet. Arthur stood up also. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Have the knights left yet for the lower town?" the prince asked.

"They should be saddling up now, Sire," the knight replied.

"I'll join you as soon as I see Merlin back to his room."

With a nod, Sir Leon departed.

"I'll come with you," Merlin said. "I'm feeling much better."

"No need. We'll just be distributing surplus bags of grain and jars of cooking oil to the poorer families. Necessary but mundane."

Merlin saw no way Arthur could get into trouble so he left off arguing, forgetting for the moment that the prince and trouble had a natural affinity for each other. The warlock found himself relieved actually; he still felt a little shaken up. "All right. It sounds harmless enough."

"Merlin," Arthur said, with a sigh, "You're my servant, not my bodyguard."

"And yet I've had to save your life repeatedly," Merlin said, under his breath.

"I'm right here. I can hear you." Arthur pulled the warlock's left arm across his shoulder and slipped his own arm around the young man's waist.

"I can walk unaided, Arthur. I don't need help."

"Merlin?"

"Shut up?" Merlin guessed.

"Right."

Gaius was using a pestle and mortar to mash some herbs together when Arthur kicked the door open with one booted foot. The physician looked up, startled, to see the prince seemingly supporting the warlock. Arthur deposited Merlin on a bench. "See to it that Merlin is checked over carefully, Gaius," he said. The prince turned and hurried out.

Gaius and Merlin exchanged looks. "You can fill me in while I check you over," the physician said.

A bit later

"The duke is in Camelot to settle a long-standing dispute with Uther over some territory," Gaius explained. "Uther and the duke's brother, King Radnor, have been squabbling over this land for years. It lies north of here between the two kingdoms. It's in a particularly rugged mountainous region strewn with treacherous cliffs and ravines. This is the first time the two sides have decided to actually sit down together and try to work out a solution amicably.

"What's so valuable about this land?" Merlin asked, not understanding. "A gold mine, maybe?"

"No. Well, not that I know of. Its value lies in a crucial mountain pass. Whoever holds the pass can control and limit access between the two kingdoms."

"Well, that explains a lot," Merlin said. He thought for a moment. "But why didn't the king come himself instead of sending his brother?"

"I don't know," Gaius replied. "Busy with affairs of state, I suppose."