*grins*grins**grins**grins*grins**grins**grins*grins**grins**grins** *grins**grins*grins**grins**grins*grins**grins**grins*grins**grins**

*LAUGHS MANIACALLY (if that's a word?)**bows*

Okay. Wow. Just… wow. I ACTUALLY GOT A REVIEW! SIX, IN FACT! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and yes, I am sadistic, but I can be nice, right? RIGHT? Once again, thank you:

Gingerwolf96: First ever review! And I'm looking forward to writing the rest!

MerlinMorgana1579: Like I said before, yes I'm just the teensiest bit sadistic, but who isn't? *grins**grins**grins*

Alanna Dean Winchester: I don't know where the Alanna in your name comes from, but if it comes from the Song of the Lioness quartet, then YES. If not, then YES! As I might have indicated, I love your pseudonym, and your review! Thanks!

DwaejiTokki: I agree that this episode could have turned out much worse, but who doesn't want to change, even their favorite thing, just a little bit?

GraceLilly: Me too! I'm not entirely sure how this is going to turn out, but I hope it meets your standards, and evades your expectations!

zendog: Wonderfully nasty? Hmm… probably my favorite description of their behaviour! Thanks for your interest (if that even makes sense?)!

I literally spent all day smiling like an idiot because of you. I think my smile even rivaled MERLIN'S! I'm just incredibly happy right now. At the moment, I'm procrastinating doing my wordly (play on worldly, but not a real word, so… for an English grammar book, not the best choice.) wise, and I can think of nothing better to procrastinate with.

AMUSE YOURSELF! (I don't want to always say enjoy, so I'm trying a few things out.)

Gwen was still sitting by Elyan when the knights came back. None of them had bruises on their knuckles or scuffs on their shoes, so she assumed, well, hoped, that maybe Merlin had been spared a beating. That hope was soon dashed when she caught sight of the riding crop and whip, both bloodied and torn. She stood up to run to her obviously injured fried, but was stopped by a large hand on her forearm and a low growl.

"I wouldn't if I were you" Percival said, his teeth bared.

"But he's hurt!" she cried, "He's your friend!" she pleaded, though she knew the answer would not be one she liked.

The hand tightened, and Gwen let out a whimper of pain, knowing the spot would bruise. "I could never be friends with such filth" he spat out the word, the word that should never, never be used to describe Merlin. "And that wasn't a request".

Gwen sat down, all hope she had ever had in their situation gone, for she had seen the look of hatred in Percival's eyes, and the pride in his actions was clear. Gwen felt she might be sick.

Merlin had regained consciousness almost as soon as the knights had left, most likely due to his magic. He forced his magic back down, knowing that if any of his cuts were healed, the knights would be suspicious. Merlin's magic, though, was not one to be denied, and, by the time he had gotten it under control, he had thrown up twice. He rolled over, and simply lay there, completely exhausted. He sat up just in time to hear a loud, telltale "I could never be friends with such filth" coming from someone who sounded quite a bit like a certain large, muscled knight. Merlin had the urge to be sick; again.

Merlin quickly dragged/crawled to the river, and completely immersed his body, not even bothering with taking off his clothes. He couldn't really move his shoulder, anyway. As he sunk down so only his head and neck were showing, He realized that he was struggling to breathe. Damn he thought, knowing how much damage Percival's hands might have inflicted.

By the time he got back to Gwen, he was shivering, still bleeding, and numb. He supposed that at least this way it wouldn't be quite so painful. Gwen, a dutiful friend, had stayed up late to clean his wounds, even though it was long past the time when the knights, and she, usually went to bed.

"Thanks" was all he managed before slipping into a nightmare-filled sleep.

The next time there was trouble, a day had gone by without conflict, and Merlin's wounds had all but closed, a fact not helped by the infection that had undoubtedly set in, for lack of bandages. Well, for lack of bandages that the knights would let him us. That is to say, all his wounds were uncovered, his tattered shirt not helping matters.

The trouble began with, as all trouble nowadays seemed to, Lamia. They were riding, and Gwen simply questioned her

"So where do you come from?"

(The, the, Merlin knew he must remember) Lamia started wailing, shrieking even, as if she had just been horribly insulted. The knights jumped off their horses, and were by her side immediately. Gwaine walked up to Gwen, stopped but still seated atop her mount, and he pushed off out of the saddle, to the ground where she fell, hitting her head on a trunk on the way down.

Merlin jumped off of his own mount, and was by her side in an instant, blocking her subtly shifting form from the advancing knights.

"Hey there fellas, you don't really want to do this, do you. I mean, she is you're future queen."

When that did nothing to stop them, he ran up to Lamia, ad, knowing he would regret it, he slapped her. Hard. The knights all turned around, shocked, but their astonishment soon turned to anger, and they started advancing on him menacingly. Ok. Don't panic. It's for Gwen. And, when that didn't calm him down, he started backing up.

Now, we all know that Merlin doesn't have the best of Luck. But this really takes the cake. As he stumbled back, he, and isn't this just delightful, tripped.

That was when his thought range changed. Panic. Panic! PANIC! That was his last thought before the first hit came.

Guess what? I just figured out that because Gwen is the daughter of a blacksmith, her last name would be… SMITH! And that is MY last name! So, I make this chapter in honor of all the smiths out there!

-Notablacksmithsmith

Review please!