A/N: Yep, Merlin still isn't mine.
Merlin
The forest was cold and silent when they set off. Merlin shivered, rubbing one hand on his arm in an attempt to keep himself warm, but paused when the Prince frowned at him - Arthur didn't seem at all affected by the temperature. Sighing, Merlin urged his horse to go forward and caught up with his king.
"So, where is it that we're going?" Merlin asked, looking around the forest. Arthur noticed his nervous glance and smirked.
"What, are you afraid?"
"No!"
"You are such a girl, Merlin." Arthur rolled his eyes. "And if I told you, I'd have to kill you."
With a sigh, Merlin gave up - when Arthur got like this, there was no convincing him otherwise. "Then at least tell me why we had to leave in the middle of the night."
Arthur paused, as if he was considering telling him, then, "No."
Exhasperated, Merlin glared at the Crown Prince until his eyes were tired, and he settled on riding quietly through the forest.
Merlin was no idiot - he'd heard stories of the bandits that were here, and he had a sinking feeling that their mission had something to do with them. But surely he isn't that stupid, Merlin thought, surveying the land in front of his horse, There's no way we could fight them on our own. But the problem was, Arthur could be that stupid - Merlin just had to hope he wasn't riding towards his own death.
Suddenly, Arthur raised a hand; his signal to be quiet. As if I wasn't already. Merlin looked around, trying to see what the Prince could - but all Merlin saw were trees.
With a roar, bandits swarmed them. Cursing, Merlin watched as Arthur jumped off his horse and began to fight his way through the men. "Don't just sit there, Merlin!" The Prince yelled, "Fight!"
Just as Merlin was about to respond, an arrow whizzed past his ear. He leaned away, barely missing the sharp point, but fell off his horse as he ducked. "Oof." He landed on the hard ground, waiting for the air to come back to his lungs. He probably would have stayed like that forever, had he not heard the swish of a sword and feet running towards him.
Merlin forced himself to get up, eyes meeting that of the bandit running at him. There wasn't any time for a spell - his eyes glowed as the bandit soared through the air and landed against a tree. Quickly, he grabbed the sword of one of the bandits that Arthur had slayed, throwing himself into the fray. Where's Arthur? He thought, panicked, as the bandit in front of him found his sword glowing, melting in his hands. He couldn't see the prince anywhere. He was just about to slice through the bandit in front of him, when-
"Put down your sword, boy." Merlin slowly turned around, dreading what he knew he would see.
He put his sword on the ground, shaking his head - because in front of him, forced to the ground with a sword at his neck, was Arthur.
Crown Prince of Camelot.
Arthur
The forest was quiet - too quiet.
Next to him, he could hear Merlin's mare, anxious as she tread through the silent trees. She could obviously sense the trouble - he patted the neck of his horse, who'd began to paw the ground, as if he was trying to tell his rider something.
Arthur raised a hand and heard Merlin's horse come to a stop. His eyes surveyed the trees - someone was out there. Slowly, he drew his sword, preparing to fight.
He whipped his head around to the sound of a battle cry and saw more than twenty armed men running from the forest.
Bandits.
Cursing, he threw himself off of his horse and turned, his sword smacking into the first bandit that ran towards him.
"Don't just sit there, Merlin!" He cried out, for his manservant - afraid of the fight? - was still sitting on his horse as if waiting for an order. "Fight!" But he didn't let himself concentrate on Merlin for long; two bandits were running towards him and if he didn't want to get killed, he'd have to let Merlin fend for himself.
The first bandit let out a surprised cry as Arthur's blade sliced down his stomach and he fell to his knees. He parried the strikes from the other man, smacking the butt of his sword against his temple and didn't wait to see what happened as the bandit sank to the ground. He stood, and spat saliva and blood - he'd bitten his tongue.
Slowly, Arthur made his way through the wave of men - he was a Prince, damnit, he wasn't going to be beaten by untrained rogues - and was in the middle of blocking hits from a tall man when he felt it. His blood ran cold as he turned around to stare at the sword trained at his neck.
"Well, what do we have here?" The leader chuckled, tracing his sword across Arthur's face. "The Prince of Camelot?" Two men came from behind him, grabbing his arms and forcing him to the ground. "What's a wee thing like you doing out here?" Snarling, Arthur threw himself at the laughing man, but it was no use - he couldn't free his hands. "Oh, don't worry-" His toothy grin made Arthur sweat, "We'll be real kind to you. I know someone who's been looking for you."
There was only one person Arthur could think of, and his eyes widened at the thought. He tried to break away once more, almost wrenching his arms out of their sockets as he struggled to escape. The words of the leader brought him back to the fight.
"Put your sword down, boy." Arthur looked up, murder in his eyes, to see Merlin dropping his sword to the ground, staring back at him.
With a cry, the bandits ran towards them, and suddenly, everything went black.
A/N: Well, what do you think? Don't worry, I have great things (laughs) in store for our dear friends. Any guesses at who they'll be taken to? Please please please review! It really makes my day to see what you guys think. :3
I'll update again soon!
