Disclaimer: Don't own them. Never have. Never will. Remain hopeful though.
A/N: No connections to my other stories; many of the Knights who interact here do not even cross paths elsewhere. Thoughts are in italics. I started this while we were being pummeled with snow where I am and, after watching it snow for almost three straight days, I began thinking…
Arthur sighed and gazed outside forlornly. The fort was blanketed in snow, providing a stark contrast for the red of the Roman cloaks. At least the Sarmatians were a bit less conspicuous with their choices of brown or green. Sighing again, Arthur leaned back in his chair. It had been snowing non-stop for three days now. Sure, there had been some periods where the snow fall had been lighter than others, but it had been a fairly steady downfall…or at least he thought it had. At times the wind had picked up fiercely, making it difficult to see even the closest parapet, much less distinguish if the snow was falling or blowing. Either way, he supposed it did not matter much. There was snow on the ground and lots of it, making travel difficult and an attack on foot nearly impossible. If his opponents had cavalry, Arthur would have thought twice before halving the guard shifts, but on foot…judging by the difficulty even some of the Knights were having navigating the snow, Arthur felt quite comfortable that Merlin and his Woads were not having it any easier.
*************
Gawain sighed and swatted at the big, white flakes that continued to fall. He remembered snow from home, but never recalled it snowing this much or for this long, contrary to what Agravaine insisted. Though, he supposed that since Agravaine was the resident far-northerner, it could be possible that snow like this happened in Sarmatia…in some gods forsaken remote place. Snorting, the big blonde rose from the small seat and stretched. He wasn't certain what possessed him to take guard duty when Arthur had asked. Maybe it had been the thought of being cooped up too closely with his brothers for, gods only knew how long until the snows stopped. It could be worse, he reminded himself, though at the moment I am not sure how… Casting a glance at Arthur's window (Why won't he just cancel all guard duty? Can't he see there is no way the Woads are going to attack anything in this weather?), Gawain brushed the new fallen snow from the stool and sat down, kicking at flakes and hoping his relief didn't get stuck in a snow drift en route.
*************
The tavern was bustling. With all the snow, no one really had much to do – except drink – and that was perfectly fine by Vanora's figuring. It meant the mead was flowing, the girls were working and money was being made. At least enough to cover the amount of mead Bors is ingesting, she hoped quietly. Bors and the other Knights had been drinking, gaming and wenching almost continuously since the snow started and Arthur had, in effect, shut down fort operations. They were beginning to get restless, and why Arthur couldn't see this as well, she wasn't quite certain. Restless men quickly became irritable men, which Vanora knew only led to trouble. Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she resolved to go talk to the esteemed Roman Commander as soon as she got a break. And hopefully before anything or anyone gets broke…
*************
Arthur strode toward the Great Hall…well, actually, he picked his way slowly and carefully through the snow drifts. How is it some of the Knights bound through these with ease? I am barely able to lift my knees high enough to avoid having snow fill my boots with every step… Turning the corner, he was thankful that the small half-covered passageway had managed to avoid collecting large deposits of snow. He was able to stomp the snow from his boots and shake it out of his hair before entering. Inside, Jols had seen to the Knights being assembled, the fires being stoked and even set out some food and drink. Clapping his hands to get the blood flowing back through them, Arthur made his way to his seat, ignoring curious looks. He picked up his cup, watching the liquid within swirl, wondering at how much it resembled churning river waters in springtime…when the snows melt…
"Arthur…?" The faraway look in Arthur's eyes had been un-nerving and though Kay wasn't altogether certain he wanted to know what was behind it, he knew it was better to just get on with the discussions.
Arthur tore his gaze away from his cup and surveyed the Knights. This was the largest and most formidable group the fort had ever housed. They are a fine group of Knights… Lifting his chin slightly, he cleared his throat.
"A toast."
The Knights rose as one and lifted their cups, slightly puzzled at what they could possibly be toasting. When Arthur did not continue, their puzzlement grew; Kay loudly cleared his throat to try to get Arthur on-track.
"As I was saying…a toast to the fine weather we are having. Without it we would be out slogging through rain and snow and wind, chasing some hapless group of Woads or another. This fine weather has insured that we have stayed close to warm fires, warm meals and warm beds, so I do believe a toast is in order. To the weather!"
The Knights nodded and raised their cups higher, trading smiles and winks.
"However…"
At this the Knights let out a groan. They should have known it was too easy, Arthur toasting the weather and all the warmth they'd been able to enjoy. It should have been their first clue that it was too good to last.
Arthur motioned for them to sit, to which they willingly complied, certain that their idle time was about to come to a screeching halt.
"However, the fort cannot continue on this way. Day-to-day operations have ceased and I cannot allow this to go on. Guard duty will continue on reduced shifts…"
"Yes…because snowflakes are such dangerous adversaries…"
The entire room went silent and every set of eyes went to Gawain, who was picking at the table top while continuing to grumble about the dangerous snowflakes. When Gawain remained oblivious, Agravaine reached over and smacked him, pointing toward Arthur. Gawain stopped grumbling instantly and ducked his head until a curtain of hair concealed his increasing redness.
"As I was saying – guard duty will continue on reduced shifts," Arthur paused and looked at Gawain who shifted uncomfortably but kept silent, "and will be assigned to Roman guards." He smiled slightly at the confused looks. "The Sarmatian Knights will be occupied with snow relocation."
"Snow relocation?" Bedwyr looked around the room, receiving confirmation that every other Sarmatian was as leery of this as he.
"Snow shoveling." Tristran provided disinterestedly, eyes never losing focus on the apple he was coring.
Arthur nodded. "Yes. Snow shoveling." He raised his hands to quell the rumbles that were starting. "Jols has plenty of shovels and, honestly, I thought it would be better than forcing all of you to rotate through guard duty." I'm sure Gawain would confirm this, with as vehemently as he was bitching about his ass falling asleep during his report…
"A lil' cold air, a lil' snow… Will make my Van's stew all the tastier…an' provide me a good reason to get that woman into bed sooner!" Bors laughed and clapped Dagonet on the shoulder. "Les' go, cousin. We've a mess of snow ta' clear."
*************
Arthur smiled as he strode outside. Well, took a couple steps gingerly while trying to avoid slipping and falling on his ass was more accurate. He spotted Vanora a short distance away, and returned her wave and smile. I wonder if I ought to warn her of Bors' plans for later… Shrugging, Arthur decided it was better to let her and Bors work that out amongst themselves, without his input.
Snow removal was going much better than he'd anticipated. The Knights had retrieved shovels from Jols, broken into groups and were quickly cutting paths through the dense white. I'm not entirely certain, but I think they're having…fun. Shaking his head, Arthur looked around for Dagonet. Spotting the burly Knight, he slowly picked his way toward him, a grimace etched on his face as fresh snow dumped into his boots.
Seeing his commander struggling through the snow, Dagonet patted Bors on the shoulder, motioning toward Arthur. Bors nodded and waved the younger off, returning to the rhythm of shoveling.
Dagonet snickered as he approached Arthur. You would think that, after all this time… Dagonet could not continue and merely shook his head. Sometimes he wondered a great deal about Arthur and on those days, he found he drank – heavily. As Dag drew closer, Arthur looked up and smiled sheepishly. The two conversed for a bit, smiling and laughing at Arthur's plight, before Dagonet pointed Arthur toward the far side of the fort. Arthur sighed and hung his head. It was precisely what Arthur had feared; Dag insisted he was not the right person to help…that person was shoveling snow on the far side of the fort. "But," as Dagonet had brightly injected, "at least you won't have to worry about the entire fort watching…"
Arthur schlepped off, growling at the snow as it continued to fall and fill his boots. At one point, he was forced to stop when he took a step and though his foot moved forward, his boot remained firmly planted in the snow bank. Freeing the boot, Arthur decided to take the opportunity to empty both boots of accumulated snow. He heard the shouts from behind him in Sarmatian and snorted. At least the Knights are enjoying this…what had Gawain called it during his report? Arthur could not recall and scowled deeper, furrowing his brow and struggling with his boots.
"Like some help?" The amused question was accompanied by an extended hand.
Arthur closed his eyes and sighed, realizing the shouting in Sarmatian had been to get Agravaine's attention, to alert him of Arthur's approach. And here I am sitting in a snow bank with my boot in hand…
"Put your boot on and I'll help you up." Agravaine had stopped laughing.
Arthur did as told and was relieved when Agravaine helped him out of the snow bank. They stood silently for a few moments, as Arthur tried to decide if this was indeed a good idea or not and Agravaine simply waited. Finally Arthur smiled and shook his head. He needed to learn to walk in deep snow without it filling his boots and if Agravaine was willing to teach him… Briefly explaining his plight, Arthur followed gratefully when Agravaine took a couple steps, explaining to Arthur foot and knee positioning. Moving forward and mimicking Agravaine's every step, Arthur wondered at how such a large man moved so easily without becoming bogged down in even the deepest snow drift.
Wild screams tore the air, causing both men to start slightly and reach for weapons that were not there.
What in all the bloody…there could not be a Woad war party on the loose…they…the front gates were completely snow blocked…there was no way…the guards would have sounded an alarm… Arthur's mind raced with thoughts. A glance at Agravaine told him he was not alone in his wonder. Other Knights were now grasping their shovels as makeshift weapons, readying themselves for whatever was coming down the path.
The first reaction Arthur registered was Bors. The big Knight's confused look gave way to laughter, which Dagonet quickly joined, letting his shovel slide through slackened hands. Arthur and Agravaine exchanged looks and began moving forward, curiosity aroused. Without warning, a clump of Knights came barreling down, plowing into Agravaine and sending him sprawling. Arthur had, remarkably, jumped clear and stood in shock as Bedwyr, Galahad, Gawain, Perceval, Dinadan, Gaheris, Gareth and Mouse lay tangled in the snow laughing and howling, except Agravaine, who had reluctantly ended up at the bottom of the pile.
Knowing Agravaine should start roaring any moment, Arthur moved back, bumping against the other Knights coming to witness the carnage. To everyone's horror, Mouse exited the pile and, grabbing an armful of snow, turned and shoved it as far down the back of Agravaine's tunic as possible, slapping the infuriated Knight on the back to pack the snow firmly down. This brought a howl from Bedwyr as he watched Agravaine's face contort against the snowy invasion. Gaheris and Gareth likewise began laughing and pointing at Agravaine, who knelt with eyes squeezed shut, mouth frozen open in mid-roar. Mouse wisely moved a few steps away, but when his questions to Agravaine about his condition went unanswered, he moved closer. Instantly Agravaine snapped out of his trance and grabbed Mouse's tunic with one hand, pulling him down into the snow while furiously scooping snow on top of him with his other hand. Galahad protested this and jumped onto Agravaine's back, sending the kneeling Knight face first into the snow. Gaheris and Gareth traded knowing looks and went after Galahad, prompting Gawain to take the Pup's side. Watching the wrestling match unfold, Bedwyr silently kept forming snowballs to his side, winking at no one in particular but thoroughly enjoying his own mischief. Once he had about fifteen snowballs, he scooped them up and stood, turning and throwing them at whomever he could hit. The unarmed Knights responded by scooping snow and flinging it in Bedwyr's general direction. Before Arthur knew what was happening, he was ducking snowballs and shovels full of snow as he struggled to make snowballs quickly enough. The Knights were yelling and cursing and laughing as they too ducked, dodged and flung snow at each other.
*************
Hours later, Arthur was resting alongside his Knights in the tavern before a well stoked fire. Wet clothing had been replaced with dry; bowls of steaming stew had been voraciously consumed and now warm mead was being poured and shared among brothers as they teased each other sleepily. Galahad had fared the worst, ending the afternoon buried to his chin in a drift. Now he was snoring lightly, wrapped in a thick blanket and snuggled against Gawain's shoulder. Mouse too was wrapped in a thick blanket having just narrowly avoided the same fate as Galahad. Bedwyr, the source of the afternoon's adventure, sat talking quietly with Kay, Perceval and Dinadan, every so often looking up to smile and wink, obviously very pleased with the outcome.
Soon the Knights were drifting off to their quarters. Arthur watched curiously, uncertain if Gawain was carrying Galahad and being assisted by Agravaine or if the Big Man was carrying them both. Vanora collected Bors, who amazingly did not protest when she took the tankard from his hands and shooed him off to their bed, promising to follow soon. As the final Knights exited, Vanora came and sat next to Arthur.
"It was a good thing you did today, Arthur."
"You too, Vanora. I am deeply appreciative."
The red-head looked at the Roman, feigning innocence. "I don't know whatever you're talking about."
Arthur rose and, looking around to be certain Bors was gone, he placed a kiss on Van's forehead. "For suggesting the snow shoveling. For knowing a snow fight would occur. For knowing…everything." At that he strode off, stretching slightly as he slowly worked his way down the freshly shoveled path to his quarters.