AN: I don't know where this really came from. I was just...casually watching videos on YouTube and then this idea happened and...damn I hate these moods sometimes.
At any rate, I hope you enjoy.
Everyone in Camelot knew just how bad an idea it was to insult Merlin around the Knights. Everyone, it seems, except for Arthur.
There was an informal training session going on, and Merlin had to admit he was exhausted. His sleep had been fractured recently due to nightmares that he couldn't make heads or tails of, so all he really wanted was to be dismissed for the day so he could try to actually rest.
But he refused to complain, because he knew it could be much worse.
However, when he stumbled while Arthur was having him try to hold up a shield and let him practice as warm up, Arthur stopped swinging and gave the servant an unamused look. "Honestly, Merlin, could you be any more useless?"
It was far from the first time this jab had been thrown, and honestly, he knew Arthur meant no harm by it, so he didn't deign it with a response.
However, as fate would have it, the knights had just arrived and heard and before Merlin could brush it off with an easy smile, Gwaine had spoken up.
"What did you just call him?"
Merlin felt the color drain from his face when he saw just how unhappy the knights were with their King.
Arthur, however, seemed not to notice what could be very really danger. In fact, he repeated exactly what he'd said and Merlin almost wanted to do everyone wanting him dead a favor, just so that the world didn't have to suffer due to the sheer stupidity Arthur seemed to possess in this moment.
Just before Gwaine could speak, though, Merlin spoke up, giving him a look. "It's fine, Gwaine. No harm done,"
It didn't make them happier, but it made sure no fight broke out, and that was enough.
Over the next few weeks, Arthur seemed to realize that maybe he had made a mistake, insulting the servant in front of his knights so often. Now that he was paying attention, his knights all seemed taken with Merlin. He had a natural wit, as much as Arthur was loathe to admit it.
Still, he couldn't understand why they'd reacted so poorly this last time. They'd heard him throw jabs at Merlin and laughed, even joined in, before. So what had changed?
Then a thought struck him. Could Merlin believe all those jabs to be true?
He decided to ask around about it, and found he didn't like the answer.
He couldn't very well bring it up with Merlin, though. So instead, he started slowly trying to undo some of the damage those jabs had caused.
It took a while before Merlin realized what was going on, and when he did, the first thing he did was ask the knights if they'd said something.
Percival had given him a smile as he answered. "He asked, we couldn't very well lie to him, could we?"
Merlin looked extremely annoyed by this, but he said nothing.
"I take it he's been trying to make up for it?" Leon asked curiously.
Merlin nodded. "He has. It's...strange. I have to admit, I prefer him calling me names and being a completely prat. At least then, we could talk without him trying to avoid saying something out of fear of upsetting me,"
Luckily for him, this was overheard by the King himself, and as of that day, things slowly went back to normal, though Arthur still had moments where he'd make sure that Merlin knew he was only kidding around.
Merlin, for what it was worth, chose to ignore these few moments and throw back his normal insults, allowing them to continue about as normal.
There. I wasn't sure how to write this, but I had to. The idea wasn't going to leave me alone until I did.
If you have anything you'd like for me to write...let me know, I guess.
Until next time,
Sky.