"Ah – I know you're a bit…strange sometimes, but I would never expect any of…" he waved his hand about, "…this."

Merlin heard the voice; it seemed very familiar, too familiar for his liking, and he froze completely. He couldn't turn to look, but he just knew Arthur was standing right behind him.

"I…err…I…" Merlin mumbled, his face turning red in shame. "Arthur, I didn't mean to -"

"You don't have to explain," Arthur interrupted him. "Just carry on with what you were doing. Or something. And don't forget about your chores."

"Yeah – I will, I guess. And I won't forget," Merlin said, staring at his feet.

Arthur decided that he had spoken enough about the matter, and turned around to walk to the door. He stopped when Merlin spoke again.

"Arthur?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you tell?"

A silence fell. Arthur needed to think about this for a second. If anyone found out, Merlin would die, one way or another. Arthur himself may be a prat – according to his loyal manservant anyway – but somewhere deep inside, he still had a heart. And that heart couldn't let Merlin die, however small it was. He didn't want to say Merlin was actually his friend, but he couldn't let him die.

"No," he finally answered.

"To anyone?"

"Not to anyone."

Merlin was able to move again; now that the prince had ensured him it was going to be okay, and he truly believed Arthur wasn't going to tell.

When Merlin turned to look at the prince, the door had closed. Arthur had already left, leaving Merlin alone in his room. Which was a mess of course. Even with his magic Merlin hadn't been able to keep it tidy and clean.

His ears still red with shame, he picked up a lost scarf and laid it on his bed. He mumbled something which even he couldn't make out, and turned to sit. He placed his face in his hands and sighed. Oooh, the shame!

Arthur didn't want to stay inside, so he had taken his hunting equipment and rode into the forest. The stable boy seemed surprised when the prince had come alone and asked for only one horse. Arthur usually rode out with that manservant of his, who looked like he would fall of his horse the moment he stepped on. Somehow, that servant hadn't come along, but prince Arthur seemed fine with that. It confused the stable boy a little.

"If my father asks, tell him I went hunting," the prince said to him in a monotone voice as he rode away.

Arthur wasn't able to think when he was in the castle. In Camelot, people were everywhere and there wasn't a place where he could be completely alone. Anywhere he was, there was always the chance of anyone walking in and disturbing his thoughts.

However, in the forest there were hardly any people. They were either too scared to go or just didn't have time to. After hunting between the trees for more or less a dozen of year, Arthur knew exactly the place where he could go to think. Nobody would find him and he could think about what had happened in Merlin's room. But while he was riding his horse towards the forest, he tried to keep the thoughts away.

People were still walking along the road with him and some of them even stared at him. It made him feel exposed, and he tried to shake the feeling by lifting his chin up in the air, showing them how proud he was. Arthur really hoped the villagers weren't able to read his problems of his face – that would be terrible. If there was a secret, it didn't stay a secret for very long, given the fact the villagers where known to gossip a lot.

Soon, he managed to reach the trees without much hassle. He continued ignoring the people, even when they started pointing at him. His 'secret lair' (which he liked to call it) wasn't far ahead; in just a moment he was going to be able to get the thoughts in his mind arranged.

Arthur led his horse through the forest, and stepped off when they reached a hill which was covered with trees and leaves.

"Stay here," Arthur said to the horse, stroking the animal's nose. Then he turned and walked around the hill, until he found a heap of branches. The last time he had been here, he had made a sort of door to keep unwanted visitors away. The door was just a few branches, tied together and covered with plants. From a couple of feet away it looked like common ivy, in disarray with twigs and other pieces of wood.
With his feet, Arthur shoved it out of the way: a dark hole appeared, big enough to stand in and wide enough to bring a huge tree with him if he wished.

But he did bring a torch, and lit it quickly. He entered the dark tunnel, holding the flaming torch in one hand and keeping his other against the stony wall to help him find his way.
The tunnel led deeper and deeper into the side of the hill and eventually ended in a big open space. It was as big as the main hall in the castle of Camelot, where his father always held his audiences with guests and other people. The ceiling was too high up to be seen, but Arthur could see everything that was closer to the floor. Stalagmites were rising up from the ground everywhere, creating the cavern a dangerous feel. He had to be careful not to step in a pool of water, which was dripping from above his head and soaking his boots.

Arthur didn't have time to admire the bats flying above him, and walked straight up to the only dry place in the cave. He slumped down onto the floor, his back resting against a dry-ish piece of moss. The moment he sat, the thoughts broke out of their cages and rampaged through his mind. Why hadn't Merlin told him about this? Why had he kept it hidden from him for so long? Arthur closed his eyes and hid his face in his hands. Why did he feel so betrayed by his manservant? Betrayed, but at the same time angry. He couldn't stand it that Merlin hadn't told him before. And there was also worry creeping around inside him. What would happen if anyone found out about it?

When his mind had calmed down a bit, Arthur was able to start with the most important concept.
"Merlin is a s-…he can…a s-…a s-…" he couldn't even say it out loud, not to mention say it in his mind. "Ssss…ssss…" the unfinished words echoed around him, making him feel even more stupid for not being able to speak them.

I didn't want to ruin the beginning, so my little speech-thingy is at the end for once. I know this part seemed very serious, but please stay with me for the next chapters!
And -for the hundredth time- I want to thank MagicbyMerlin for being my inspiration.
Reviews are always very welcome, even when there not.