A/N: Here's a little angst chapter for you.

Setting: During season 2 (anytime after Morgana finds out about her magic)

Description: A few knights from out of town don't like the way Merlin treats the prince/other nobles. So they decided to take it upon themselves to handle it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin or it's characters.

Guinevere hummed quietly to herself as she walked through the lower town. Lady Morgana's birthday was quickly approaching, and Gwen felt as if she deserved something special. Her gaze trailed up and down the jewelry, disappointment creeping up in her. She was never going to find a decent gift!

All thoughts of her predicament left her mind when Gwen heard a sharp, yet familiar shout come from behind one of the run down homes. Her curiosity got the better of her, and Gwen went to investigate. As she rounded the corner cautiously, the sight before her nearly made her cry out.

Merlin was on the ground, curled up in a ball to protect himself from the sharp blows of two knights.

"How dare you treat us like that?" One of the men hissed. A horrible looking scar trailed down from his forehead to his lips. "You are just a lowly servant! You have no right to speak to us as if you were equal." The knight who hadn't said anything grabbed Merlin by the collar of his shirt, lifting him off the ground. He pulled out a small knife, a wicked gleam in his eye.

That was when Gwen could take it no longer.

"Stop!" She yelled, running forward. She grabbed the hand that held the knife, holding onto it with all her might. "You leave him alone!" The scarred knight chuckled at Gwen's efforts. She whimpered when he clasped onto her wrist, squeezing tight.

"And just what are you going to do about it?" He spat. Gwen glared at him, refusing to back down. Merlin opened his mouth to tell Gwen to stay out of it, but could only give a shuddering cough.

"I am the Lady Morgana's maid." There was fire in the girl's eyes. "If you do not let me and my friend go, I will go straight to her and tell her what you've done." The knight gave her a sneer, before finally letting go. Gwen sighed in relief as the pressure on her wrist was gone. The knight who had remained silent this whole time dropped Merlin unceremoniously to the ground, and followed his friend away. Merlin moaned, rolling slightly to face Gwen.

"Thank you." He muttered. Gwen winced at the bruises spreading over his body.

"What happened?" She asked, her voice a whisper. Gently, she helped him up, pulling his arm so it would rest around her shoulders. As they walked back to Gaius, Merlin recounted what had happened.

"-and because I didn't bow whenever they walked in, they thought I was being disrespectful." Merlin let out a dry chuckle that slowly faded into a cough, then a moan. "But what set them off is when I called Arthur a prat. Apparently, I shouldn't even speak to the Prince, let alone insult him."

"But Arthur- though he'd never admit it- enjoys your banter!" Gwen pointed out. Finally, they had arrived at their destination. Gwen pushes the door open, revealing a surprised Gaius.

"Well someone ought to tell them that." Merlin joked.

"What happened to you?!" Gaius rushed forward, and assisted Gwen in getting Merlin to a bed.

"He was attacked by-"

"It's nothing, Gaius." Gwen stared as Merlin cut off her explanation. Gaius raised an eyebrow at the two, but said nothing, instead moving to get some salve for the bruises forming all over Merlin's body.

"Why won't you tell him?" Gwen hissed as soon as Gaius had moved away.

"What's he going to do about it?" Merlin whispered back. "Tell Uther? Who would the king believe? Two servants, or two knights?" Gwen, as much as she hated to admit, knew Merlin was right. The king valued to word of his knights far too much to believe a simple servant.

Suddenly, Merlin grabbed Gwen's wrist, examining it. The woman grit her teeth as a flash of pain came from the area.

"You're hurt." Merlin said quietly.

"It's nothing!" She assured him. "We need to get you fixed up." Merlin reluctantly complied, lying back.


"-and Sir John is a delight to be around. I really do hope he stays in Camelot for much longer this time." Morgana gushed, running a brush through her hair. Gwen smiled and nodded distractedly as she remade the bed. "Gwen?"

"Yes, my lady?"

"Is something wrong?" Morgana's tone was concerned. Gwen hesitated, debating with herself.

"No, nothing is wrong. I'm perfectly fine!" She said with a smile. Morgana remained unconvinced, but turned back to her mirror. "Now, what was it you were saying about this Sir John?"

"He only just returned to Camelot. Apparently he was in a horrible accident." Gwen gave a noncommittal sound in response, drawing another suspicious glance from Morgana. "But he seems so kind. I think I've taken a liking to him. Even with that terrifying scar on his face." Morgana jumped when a shattering sound came from behind her. Gwen stood frozen, the broken remains of a vase lying at her feet. "Gwen?" The king's ward hurried over to her servant's side. "What's wrong?" Gwen seemed to frightened.

"Nothing." Gwen said, shaking her head. "I- I just don't think you should expect so much from this knight, is all." Morgana gave her maid confused look.

"Gwen, you're shaking!" She said with dismay. She reached out to grasp the other woman's hands, but nearly yelped in shock when Gwen flinched at the touch and jerked away. Gently, Morgana grabbed her hands again, inspecting them. Her eyes widened as she noticed the large bruise on her wrist. "When did this happen?" She demanded. Gwen but her lip. "Tell me, now!"

"I was in the market, searching for a present for you." She began hesitantly. "I heard someone cry out in pain, and when I went to investigate, I found- I found-" Gwen took a deep breath, calming her nerves. Morgana waited patiently. "I found two men attacking Merlin. When I tried to stop them, one grabbed my wrist, and did this." A flash of righteous fury flashed across Morgana's face.

"Is Merlin alright?"

"He will be. I took him to Gaius." Morgana sighed in relief.

"I want to know who did this to the two of you. Now." Gwen averted her gaze, unsure of what to do. "Gwen, please."

"It was two knights!" Gwen blurted out. Morgana watched expectantly, wanting names. "It was... Sir John, and another knight I had never seen before." Any bit of respect Morgana had held for the knight died instantly. "Merlin didn't want to tell anyone, since he is only a servant, he didn't think anyone would believe him." Morgana stood there for a moment in silence, before coming to a decision.

"We're going to help Merlin."

"How?"

"By getting Arthur's help."

"Merlin! Focus!" Arthur's shouts rang out across the training yard as Morgana headed towards him. Everyone practically scurried out of the path of the king's ward. The prince turned to see Morgana and Gwen headed towards him, and called out for everyone to take a break. "Is there anything I can help you with Morgana?" He asked when the two women had reached him.

"Yes. I need to speak with you." Arthur nodded, opening his mouth for Merlin to follow him. "Alone." The tone of Morgana's voice made the prince agree without question.


"What?!" Morgana and Gwen quickly shushed the prince. They had just finished telling him about what had happened.

"You can't just shout it out and let the whole of Camelot know!" Morgana berated.

"Well, why not?" Arthur's expression revealed just how angry he was. "No knight should behave in that manner! They attacked my servant, and a woman!" The prince turned to leave his chambers,

"I know that, but you can't just-" the door slammed open, and Arthur was off. Morgana sighed, rushing after him, with Gwen on her heels. They found themselves following Arthur all the way to Gaius's chambers.

"Is Merlin in here?" Arthur demanded, swinging the door open. Gaius jumped in surprise, before recovering his composure.

"No, sire. He's not."

"Good. I need you to tell me what injuries Merlin sustained." Gaius raise an eyebrow at the prince's request, but complied.

"He had major bruising all over his chest and stomach, two cracked ribs, a mild concussion, and a sprained wrist." Arthur's eyes widened.

"Then why on earth did he come to work today?" Gaius shrugged slightly, at a loss for words. What he didn't say was that Merlin came to work fairly often with those types of injuries. But the old physician couldn't tell Arthur that.

"I have no idea." The physician stated, not knowing what else to say. Morgana placed a hand on Arthur's shoulder.

"We need to catch them. To stop them from ever doing something like this again." Arthur nodded, turning to leave. "Where are you going?"

"To do something I've never done before." He called back over his shoulder.

"Which is?"

"Give Merlin the day off!"

Part Two coming soon!