Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin or any of its characters.
A/N: Just a little one-shot that popped into my head. I felt like it was kind of sad after I reread it. Well, enjoy! Please read and review.
Arthur wasn't sure what he had expected to see when he stormed into Merlin's room, but this certainly wasn't it. There was something very different- very wrong. He wasn't sure if it was the way his servant sat, slumped over in the window sill, his gaze never lifting off the floor. It could have been that. Or maybe it was tear tracks that the young man hastily wiped away with the back of his sleeve.
Arthur could easily imagine Merlin upset- angry at him for acting without thinking, or disappointed, or aggravated over a lengthy list of chores. But he could not imagine him seriously upset. He never wanted to see the other cry. He never thought Merlin could be depressed, and despondent the way he looked know- he was always cheerful. Always hopeful, even when things looked bleak he was there with a reassuring word. He was not supposed to be closed in on himself with a restless mind.
It may have been that. But the oddity of Merlin's melancholy was overshadowed by another oddity. Arthur's gaze wandered from Merlin's face to his open palm, therein sitting three small, red berries- strawberries. Vaguely, Arthur heard himself inquire as to what he was doing, looking so heartbroken. He supposed he made some sort of joke to break the tension, but it hadn't elicited so much as a smile from his manservant. Merlin instead moved from his perch, shuffling past Arthur and out the door, murmuring some sort of apology for being late, and for Arthur having to come get him. But Arthur heard none of it. Instead he watched, trying his hardest to understand, and feeling a pain in his chest that was compassion for his friend, though he would later deny it. He let his servant pass by, and slowly turned back with a last gaze at the window sill. He looked at the three strawberries.
It wasn't until later that night, when Arthur was lying awake in thought, that he finally realized what was so wrong about the scene he had witnessed.
Strawberries were not growing this time of year.