A/N: Hello everyone! I know it's way too late, especially since it's the second chapter, but I have been really busy with work, still that isn't really a good enough excuse. So the second chapter, there isn't much I'm going to say about it, only that I want to say that this isn't going to be a Merthur story, just friendship between the two of them. I hope you will enjoy it and if you want then leave a review.

xxx

Arthur gapped as he heard Merlin's words, this man was Morgana's fiancé? His sister is getting married?... it was then that realization struck him. 'W-where's she?'

The raven didn't look at him as he again brushed slowly over the metal around his finger, searching for something as several tears ran over his cheeks. 'She... She worked with me in the lab, it's how we met...' His eyes shifted for a moment to Arthur's and the blond could see the pain in those big blue eyes. 'She never told you about me?... I mean, I know what happened between her and your father, but I thought that she would have told you, I know that she cared for you.'

Now it was Arthur's turn to look away at the thought of his sister and the woman's hard words. It had been three years since he last saw his sister, just hours after she and their father got into a big fight. Morgana had always wanted to become a doctor, but Uther wanted her to work in his company and eventually she had ran, escaping the life that both actually didn't want, but he had always been too much of an coward to do anything. In those three years they had talked just several times, but... she never talked about having a man in her life. 'She's dead, isn't she?' It wasn't really a question, he already knew the answer.

'Yes.' Merlin's voice answered as it was filled with pain and guilt. 'Last month... Back then we were with the six of us and we went out to search for food, I was the only one that survived. Morgana...' He tightened his fists. 'She was bitten and... she begged me to kill her... and I did it.' The last was nothing more than a whisper.

Without even realising it Arthur embraced the raven, trying to comfort him. Merlin silently cried in his shoulder as Arthur brushed his back. The blond bit his lip as he stared down at that black mob of hair, somehow he wanted to protect this man, maybe because of Morgana or because he was one of the few still alive, but what he was certain about was that it just felt right.

xxx

Arthur sat in the corner as he watched Merlin work, there wasn't really anything he could do. All Merlin's talk about scientific stuff just made him feel dizzy, he never understood all that scientific stuff. He would probably just blow something up if he would help the raven. A small smirk spread over his lips as he remember his second year in high school, he had indeed almost blown up the lab. His lab partner, a girl name Vivian, had almost killed him when she lost her eyebrows in the explosion.

He turned back to the present and stared at Merlin. He had been with Merlin for almost a week and he enjoyed his stay with the younger man, he had felt far better than he had been for the past two months, not that it could have become any worse. He and Merlin had gone out to search for food only once now and they were running low on it, he sighed as he knew they soon had to go out again.

But for now he had other things to worry about as he heard the low rumbling of his stomach. Arthur groaned as he stood up, walking towards the raven as he asked. 'Shall I grab us something to eat.'

The scientist looked startled up from his work and big blue eyes looked at him. 'Uhh... no, thank you. I'm not hungry.'

Arthur rolled with his eyes, Merlin definitely had to take better care of himself. With a quick movement he threw a startled raven over his shoulder, again wondering how the smaller man could be this light. 'You weren't given an option.' He dragged the struggling Merlin towards the kitchen before planting him on one of the chairs. 'So we have canned beans... or canned beans.' The last saying with a sigh as he was just sick of the taste of beans.

He quickly prepared the meal before placing one of the two bowls in front of a offended looking Merlin. 'I said that I wasn't hungry.' Merlin replied as he crossed his arms.

Arthur glared at him. 'That's what you said yesterday!' They fell silent, but Merlin eventually gave in and both started their meal in silence. It was Arthur that broke the silence again. 'How's the progress?'

Merlin let his spoon fall down in the bowl as he shook his head. 'I'm not sure... there's just something that I just don't understand.' A frustrated sigh left his lips and Arthur could only nod.

He hung back into the chair. 'We have to go down to town again, we only have enough food for three more days. I think that I saw a supermarket on my way here, I will see if there's still some food left there.' Arthur bit his lip. 'I will go alone, you just go further with your work.'

Merlin straightened himself in the chair as his eyes grew wide. 'I'm not going to let you go out alone!'

The blond shook his head. 'It will be saver when I go on my own, the fewer the better.'

'But still-.'

'No.' Arthur responded. 'You can better go on with your work, I will be fine.' He gave Merlin a slight reassuring smile, not that it meant he was really sure of himself. 'I will leave in an hour.' Merlin pouted slightly as he nodded that he understood.

As said an hour later they stood at by the front door. Arthur looked nervously out of the window as he searched the area for the undead before he turned back to Merlin. 'I will be back soon.'

The raven grinned at him as he pulled him in a quick hug before releasing the blond with a slight blush on his cheeks. 'You have to come back, you may be a big prat, but it isn't like I have a lot of choice when it comes down to company.' A slight smirk left his lips before Merlin pushed something in his hands. 'For when you come back.'

Arthur stared for a moment at the key in his hands, it was something small, but it felt so big, especially now that the world had come to an end. 'Thanks, I will be back soon.'

He quickly made his way outside, his bat clutched in one hand as he led the motor with his other hand, while one of Merlin's guns was put away in a holster on his side. He was ready.

xxx

Arthur smashed the head of the last zombie that blocked his way towards the supermarket. He quickly got inside, the keys still in the engine as it would give him a quick way out. The blond took a quick breath as he made his way inside, a fast glance told him that there weren't any of 'them' inside.

He coughed slightly as he smelled the rotten fruits and vegetables and he eyed the food. Once he wouldn't have thought twice about throwing food away, but now... now he couldn't believe that he had done something like that, something so stupid. A sigh left his lips and he quickly ran towards the canned food.

He eyed the rows, he wasn't the first one here. The shelves were half empty and Arthur quickly threw a couple of cans in his bag, filling it up till he could barely zip up the zipper.

Just as he stood up he heard a loud growl and his head snapped around, eyeing an undead on the other side of the shelves. The zombie ran into the shelve, causing it to tip over and Arthur was barely able to jump away before he trapped himself beneath the metal structure. He reached for his bat, his fingers touching the wood as he lunged for the undead, breaking the skull.

He gave the undead just a mere glance before his head snapped around, searching for other zombies, one more stood on the other side of the store, but it clearly hadn't noticed Arthur yet and he decided to leave it on that. He quickly threw the bag over his shoulder and made his way outside and immediately his eyes narrowed themselves, at least thirty zombies walked over the parking lot. It was almost as if the appeared out of nowhere and he knew he didn't had much time to decide his next move.

Not that he got a chance to decide what to do as the sound of screams filled his ears, but they weren't filled with fear, they were screams of a pure wicked joy. He quickly kneeled down, hiding away as he heard a car come towards him, something felt so wrong.

A SUV came into view and it was a group of at least nine men that rode on it, all of them were screaming and yelling as they shot the dead coming towards them, clearly enjoying themselves.

They may have been survivors, living, but that didn't mean he felt safe enough to show himself, somehow he feared they would kill him even when he was still alive.

So he stayed quiet till they disappeared from his few, even then he waited another two minutes before standing up. At least they cleared the parking lot for him, there were only two more undead roaming in his eyesight, but both still far enough that he didn't need to handle them.

He quickly started the engine, driving off as he kept an eye out for the men. He definitely didn't want to encounter them again. Luckily he had to go the other way.

The ride back was a quiet one, Arthur would almost say to quiet, and it was the same when he came back at the lab, there wasn't any zombie in sight. Not that he was going to take any risk and he quickly made his way to the door as pulled the key out of his pocket, he smiled softly as he stared at the little piece of metal in his hands before he opened the door.

He parked the motor in the hallway before making his way inside and went towards the lab where Merlin was probably still working on the cure. His hand tightened slightly around the strap of his backpack knowing that it contained a couple of days worth of food.

But the smile soon fell as he walked into the room, Merlin wasn't there. Instead the room looked like a total chaos, papers everywhere and glass vials lay broken on the floor. He dropped the bag, fearing the worst and called out for Merlin.

There were a few completely silent seconds before he got an answer, but the words weren't filled with fear, instead they sounded shocked, but at the same time filled with joy, happiness. 'I'm here.' The words came from the kitchen and he quickly made his way there.

Merlin sat at the table, his head in his hands as he stared at a little piece of paper in front of him. 'Are you alright?' Arthur's voice was filled with concern.

The younger man's blue eyes snapped up, staring confused at him as Merlin heard the sound of Arthur's voice. 'Uhh... yeah, why wouldn't I be?' It was then that the raven's eyes grew wide and he jumped up, throwing his arms around Arthur. 'I did it!'

'You did what?'

Merlin beamed a wide smile up at him. 'I found the cure.'