CHAPTER 2 : A STRANGER STILL IN THEIR MIDST
As soon as Merlin walked into their chambers, he knew that something was bothering Arthur as he was pacing across the room in which he primarily worked. They had no plans to entertain and it would just be the two of them for supper.
Arthur looked up and said, "How's Gaius?"
"Doing well, he wanted me to stay for supper but I told him we were having a special evening alone." He noticed Arthur's face when he mentioned the word alone and said, "Has something come up, are we going to be having others dine with us?"
"No! We'll be alone, come to the fire. I had Thomas light it as the room seemed chilly. Merlin, I think we might have a slight problem on our hands."
Merlin smiled, "Nothing I'm sure that you won't be able to fix." He slipped onto the seat beside him and ran his fingers down his cheek.
"Merlin, stop that and listen to me! It might be a little more troublesome. Leon came to see me as one of Guildwood's knights who extended his visit here has been asking some rather personal questions about the two of us…indirectly that is. Carreg is serving as this man's manservant and through Thomas some of the questions this Richworth has been asking got back to Humphrey. I will be seeing him and Carreg tomorrow."
"I know that chap very competent and his wife Lizzie sometimes runs messages for Gaius. Don't think he'd be the type to make up stories. He usually works with the elderly non-married knights doesn't he?"
"Yes, anyway, until we get to the bottom of this, I think that maybe you should be seen less with me and the knights in public."
"But I have nothing to hide!"
Arthur looked at him and smiled, he picked up his hand and raising it to his lips said, "Oh yes, I think you do!"
Merlin looked suprised, "Oh, that!"
Sometimes he forgot that his and Arthur's relationship would be frowned upon and would never be accepted by the majority of people in the castle. In their eyes, he was the king's manservant and as such over the years had become friendly with all of Arthur's closest knights as a trusted and competent friend. The fact that Arthur also has a manservant called Thomas was explained by the fact that he was after all the King and if he felt that he needed two manservants that was his prerogative. If there had been a queen of Camelot she would have been expected to have a variety of maidservants and ladies-in-waiting.
Arthur had already thought about that and had decided that Merlin would be safer sleeping somewhere else. It would be better to take precautions now until this visitor left. He knew Merlin would put up a fight but he said calmly, "I think that for the immediate future until we get this mess sorted out, you should return to the chambers I had as Crown Prince."
"...and if I refuse?"
"Merlin, I'm The King you can't refuse if I command you!"
"I can and I will...remember that night at supper, when you insisted that I sit opposite you as I was too touchy-feely sitting next to you?"
Arthur grinned, remember he did… "Well, I couldn't concentrate on my meal?"
"Lucky, for you that I have long legs and extremely dexterous toes!"
Shaking his head and laughing, Arthur continued more seriously, "Merlin, these circumstances are slightly different, we are not surrounded by our knights in the hunting lodge. We are possibly dealing with someone who is seeking information which might be used against the kingdom. Merlin, you do realise that my life would end if you were taken away from me."
"Well, I wouldn't be thrilled either..."
"That's not exactly the answer which I had expected. Wouldn't you be heart-broken if we were separated?"
"Of course, I would…it would be a problem, I would certainly be kicked out of these chambers, shame really as I am very happy here. I'd have to find a new job, mind you, probably Gaius would be willing to take, me back."
He seemed to think before adding, "Then again, Gawaine has always said that he would be happy to look after me...!" He smiled sweetly at Arthur.
"Forget about Gawaine!" Arthur stood up, "I'm talking about us, do I mean so little to you that all you worry about is losing your bed, having to find a job, moving in with Gaius and hooking up with Gawaine?"
He walked across the room and stood looking into the fire. What was happening? He loved Merlin, he woke up knowing that he would be beside him through the day. Each day, every meeting and every meal was made more bearable because he knew that he was nearby and then there were those special times when they were alone and Merlin showed him just how much he really loved him...
Or he thought he did!
Merlin looked at Arthur's back, he marvelled that he could recognise him anywhere by his outline. Then he smiled remembering the day, two knights had been walking ahead of him down a corridor, he was returning to the Throne Room as there was a meeting scheduled with Uther.
He realised that one was Arthur or so he thought, he sped up and as they stopped and glanced around, he ducked into a doorway planning to jump out and surprise him but to his horror, it was two other knights and he had to stay hidden as they also sneaked into a doorway still within his sight. He stayed there until they had finished showing how much they felt for the other.
He'd closed his eyes and put his hands over his ears but he still couldn't block out the accelerated breathing and the moans. He could feel the blood pulsing in his veins and he had thought, 'Goodness, I've become an unintentional Peeping Tom!' Then he had seen the funny side of it and had to keep his hand over his mouth to stifle his giggles.
He couldn't wait to get Arthur alone to tell him what had happened. For years to come, one of them just had to say, "See you in the corridor?" and the other would crack up laughing. They were so immature in those days, they knew so little about the world they actually lived in.
He came back to the present and Arthur's saying, "Do all the hours that we have spent together mean nothing?"
Merlin's face fell, he walked over and put his arm around Arthur's shoulder, nuzzling into his hair and brushing his teeth along the shell of his ear. He felt Arthur shudder against him, "Arthur, that's a bit harsh. You know how I feel about you. However, the only time that we can guarantee to be together is once any dinner guests have left; the doors are all barred and we can be ourselves."
Arthur said matter of factly, "The presence of any of our close friends has never dampened your obvious attraction for me. What was it Gawaine said one evening, 'For heaven's sake, Merlin, my father always used to mention about it being time to put the cat out when he wanted guests to take their leave; however you, make it apparent that you want Arthur to yourself forget about the proverbial cat!' Do you remember?"
Smiling Merlin said quietly, "But, they had been here for hours and I was certain Gawaine was going to drink us dry and then expect to be put up for the night."
Arthur then laughed, "Not to worry, as in a pinch we could have had one of the guards escort him to his own chamber. For the time being, it needs to be obvious to anyone snooping around, that you have separate living quarters especially for this knight's benefit."
"I'd rather stay in the Tower Room."
"You could but if you move officially into the tower room then it will no longer be a place which we keep secret as an escape from the castle life. I really would prefer to keep it a secret. Apart from us, only Gaius knows about it. I would hate it to become just another location where the king could be found when needed. Gawaine would be asking if he could use it to entertain one of his lady friends and I'm sure that Spenser would be shocked that we had kept our hideaway a secret from Simon and him."
"Maybe it would be better if I left the castle for a little while. I could go to visit my mother and stay there until she is ready to return to Camelot for the winter months."
"Oh, no you don't, I don't want to be without you until the snow falls, I want you by me during the day untouchable and beguiling and beside me during the night tantalising, within reach and satisfying."
"Sounds good, and I'll make sure that you have a nice pair of warm slippers so you can creep to be with me during the night, wherever it is that you intend to banish me…"
Arthur said, slipping his arm around Merlin's waist, "The King does not go to his paramour, the paramour in question visits his king."
Suddenly, Arthur stood up, knocking himself on the side of the head with the heel of his hand saying, "I've got it! I've solved the problem. Follow me!" Grabbing Merlin's hand, he dragged him further into the Royal Suite past their own bedchamber to the chamber across from the solar which his mother would have occupied when she had lived with his father.
The room had been left as a bedchamber but it was never used just occasionally aired by the servants. He escorted Merlin across the room to another door.
Merlin smiled as he remembered The Maids' Staircase…! To facilitate her majesty's maids' access, there was a staircase leading to the Queen's chamber from the floor below. Usually the doors at the top of the stairs would have been barred by the maid-servant who was on duty overnight in the Queen's suite and the door at the bottom of the staircase would be locked by whomever was sleeping in the lower chamber.
As a queen hadn't been in residence for years the chamber on the lower floor had to their knowledge remained vacant.
"Tonight, you will sleep here and tomorrow, after I have seen Humphrey, if it is deemed advisable to move you, you will in the interim consider the lower chamber yours. Of course, I don't expect you to sleep there…!" Arthur said, pulling him toward him by his belt which soon dropped to the floor.
-0-0-
Merlin lay cuddled into Arthur's warmth. He realised that sleeping alone in the castle would have seemed strange. The only real time they spent apart was when they were on an outing which included knights beyond their immediate group, even then their bedrolls were never too far apart as after all, one of Merlin's jobs was to protect the king.
He wakes up conscious of someone in the room having a conversation with Arthur. He finds himself actually standing near the window and yet Arthur is not alone in the bed. He smiles, it's probably Treva come to visit. Sometimes as a special treat, he arrives early with Randall and is allowed to clamber into bed and have breakfast with Arthur.
The conversation gets more heated and then he realises that the second voice belongs to an adult not a child. His is irrationally jealous and approaches the bed ready to do injury to the person with Arthur.
He sees the blue cloak draped over a chair and recognises the colours as belonging to the Duke of Guildwood's knights. Why would Arthur be entertaining a guest at night in his bedchamber, let alone in his bed?
Merlin listens carefully and makes out his name as Arthur says, "Merlin and I have been lovers since our early twenties, but I'm bored with him…time for a change!" He feels shocked and hurt, so he launches himself into the air to attack this usurper and falls on him…"
Merlin woke up on the floor with Arthur peeking over the edge of the bed at him. "Merlin, what in heaven's name are you doing down there? You woke me saying, '…you'll never have him!' and then you disappeared over the edge of the bed. You're going to get your death of cold down there. Come on be a good boy and get back into bed, I've just had a brilliant idea…"