"Come on, Arthur," Merlin laughs, "Just try it, it'll be fun! I promise."
"I highly doubt it," Arthur says, "It looks childish."
Merlin rolls his eyes with an exasperated sigh. "It's fun for fun people. You know, people who don't have their posh heads stuck up their arses."
Arthur huffs in indignation and looks out over the land. They're standing at the top of a hill, ankle-deep in freshly fallen snow that blankets the ground in every direction.
"Look at how it is out there!" Merlin encourages, nudging Arthur's jacket-covered shoulder with the sled in his hands. "This is the perfect time to go sledding! The snow is fresh and fluffy!" He kicks snow in Arthur's direction just to prove his point. Arthur looks around and indeed, last night's snowfall has yet to be disturbed, the only marks being a pair of footprints leading to where they stand now.
"Just go," Merlin insists, thrusting the bright red plastic sled at Arthur.
"You do it," he says hurriedly, scrambling to push the sled away so that it ends up flopping on the ground between them.
"You've lived a sad life, Arthur Pendragon," Merlin says, sadly shaking his head. "I can't believe you've never gone sledding before. I truly pity you."
"Yes, you've said as much before," Arthur says impatiently. Merlin rolls his eyes, still shaking his head as he moves to sit down.
"You had such a deprived childhood," Merlin laments as he situates himself on the narrow plastic. "It's a terrible thing, to have been so rich and important that you couldn't appreciate something as simple as rushing down a hill in the winter."
"You look ridiculous," Arthur tells him, ignoring Merlin's comments. He gestures to Merlin's boots sticking out in front of him, his mitten-clad hands gripping the rope. Merlin sticks out his tongue before scooting forward, jerking his hips until the sled gains speed.
Arthur can hear Merlin's joyful and probably over-dramatized yelling all the way down the hill, leaving a single straight line in the snow behind him. He slows to a stop at the bottom of the slope, and Arthur watches Merlin roll off the sled and lie in the snow. He wrinkles his brow as he watches Merlin wave his arms and legs around before getting up to scramble back up the hill, one arm grasping the sled, the other flailing about at his side as he fights for balance in the snow. Arthur can't help the fond smile that grew on his lips at the sight.
Merlin's breathless by the time he makes it up, his face flushed and split in a wide, happy grin.
"That was fun, was it?" Arthur asks, reaching a hand up to brush snow out of Merlin's messy hair, and then raising an eyebrow when Merlin hands him the rope of the sled.
"I made a snow angel," Merlin says, pointing behind him. "You should try it too."
"You're more of a five-year-old than an actual five-year-old, you know that right?"
"Oh, shut it." Merlin swats Arthur in the arm. "Go on then." He nods to the sled on the ground. For a second Arthur is too distracted to reply, entranced by the light sparkling in Merlin's blue eyes and his flushed cheeks. He's luminescent in the harsh white light of the snow, and Arthur has to blink rapidly in order to bring himself back into the moment.
"Well?" Merlin asks. Arthur sighs. It did look fun, he has to admit.
"I'll go with you," Merlin offers.
"Is that so?" Arthur says, and Merlin nods.
"Sure! Get on!" he pushes Arthur's shoulder, forcing him to sit down at the front of the sled.
"This is ridiculous," Arthur mutters, his legs sticking out awkwardly in front of him.
"Shut up," Merlin says, getting on the sled behind him. He sits pressed right up against Arthur's back, his feet hooking on either side of Arthur's hips, hands resting snugly around Arthur's front.
"Ready?" He asks, giving Arthur a light squeeze. Arthur nods, and Merlin uses one hand to push them off until the sled gains momentum and starts speeding down the hill.
Merlin whoops the whole way down, but Arthur is quiet, screwing his eyes shut against the wind rushing at his face. His hair ruffles back as the sled gains momentum, going faster and faster as they moved through the cold air.
By the time they reach the bottom a smile has bloomed on Arthur's face, which might have less to do with the sledding and more to do with the warm body clutching at him from behind.
When the sled comes to a complete stop, Merlin laughs and tugs Arthur to the side so that they fall in a heap on the snow, ice crystals lightly dusting their faces.
"So," Merlin says, situating himself so that he's lying on top of Arthur, his legs on either side of him, "How was your first sledding experience?"
Arthur pretends to think about it. "It has it's benefits, I suppose," he admits, winding his arms around Merlin's waist, getting as close as possible despite the many layers of material separating them.
"Good," Merlin says, grinning and planting a kiss on the tip of Arthur's nose. "Because we're going to be doing this for the rest of the afternoon."
"Oh come on," Arthur protests, causing Merlin's grin to grow.
"Shut up and enjoy it," he says, pecking Arthur's lips before standing up. "If you're good we can go home early for hot chocolate."
"Is that all we can get?"
"Of course not, you perv," Merlin replies cheekily, waggling his eyebrows. "Now come on, let's go again."
With that he turns to trudge up the hill. Arthur sighs, watching Merlin go with an almost overwhelming sense of affection before getting up and following him, grabbing the sled on the way.