Hello Friends! Another update, yay! Just wanted to give one last one before I go to my cottage (where there is no internet) for the next week. I will try to update using my IPad, by the chances of that happening are slim, very slim. So I thought I'd grace you guys with one more before I left.
Wisegirl6

Chapter 4 ~Bring Him Home

Arthur's walk slowed as he neared Gaius' chambers. He really didn't have any idea what he could say to the physician. He would undoubtedly be sad, distraught and worried, maybe he would even be mad at the King for not looking out for Merlin.

Arthur definitely blamed himself. He was a bloody idiot! Sending Merlin on all of those patrols, bringing him on dangerous quests, letting him fight in god-forsaken wars alongside him without so much as a scrap of armor or a weapon. It was a miracle he'd lasted this long.

Arthur took a deep breath. He had reached the physician's door. He had never wanted so much to run away from something. Battles, Sorcerers, Witches, monsters? He could face all of those things and more. But, having to tell the old physician that his ward had been captured by slave traders and was probably never going to be found? It made him shake in his boots.

But Arthur knew he could put this off for no longer. He raised his hand and pounded on the rough wood.

"Enter," came the quiet reply.

Arthur entered hesitantly to see the old man bent over his work table, pouring over a few large, dusty volumes. "Gaius," the King said solemnly.

The physician looked up curiously at Arthur. What would he be doing here? He didn't look injured and, unlike usual, Merlin certainly wasn't with him... "What's happened?" he asked, cutting straight to the point. Gaius did like to be frank when something was bothering him. "What's happened to Merlin?" Gaius could feel his heart dropping into his stomach at the expression on Arthur's face

"He's not dead," the King said quickly, sensing how worried Gaius had become in the short time. "He was still alive when I last saw him."

Arthur was overcome with deja vu, he remembered having the exact same conversation with Gaius a few years ago when Merlin was taken by mercenaries. But, Arthur knew that this was much more major than that. Death by mace was a much kinder fate than a life enslaved.

Gaius let out a breath, at least his boy was still alive. If Merlin was alive then he could fight and use magic to escape.

Arthur continued,"While we were on patrol men attacked us." He paused to regain his slipping composure. "They were slave traders."

The old man felt his world starting to crumble around him at Arthur's words. Merlin was like a son to him and he had no clue how he could possibly live without his constant trouble, complaints, and enthusiastic grins. "Are you going to look for him?" Gaius asked weakly, remembering a time years ago when Arthur had been frantic trying to find his manservant.

Arthur nodded solemnly. "I'll do whatever it takes to bring him back, Gaius," he said, resting a hand on the old man's shoulder. "I'll find him and bring those slavers to justice."

There was a strange determination that Gaius had never seen before on the young King's face.

The patrol was unsuccessful at tracking the slave traders for two weeks. Arthur spent those two weeks in a state of grim concentration; the king would only pause to sleep or eat when his knights insisted it. He didn't want to stop searching, Arthur had to find Merlin.

Like it or not, Merlin was Arthur's first real friend. He'd hadn't been lonely as a child, his father had made sure that there was always someone to keep the young prince company, but every child that Arthur encountered as a kid had always been hired to make sure that he was happy. Half of them had been almost like spies for his father to make sure that the Prince wasn't sneaking around and causing trouble. Many of them hadn't even like Arthur, they just liked the future King of Camelot. Merlin was the first ever person to actually make him feel like a human being, not like a spoiled Prince that he was.

He recalled when they'd first met: Arthur had been bullying his previous servant and Merlin had tried to put a stop to it. Then Arthur had retaliated by telling him that he was the crown prince of Camelot. Surprisingly, that hadn't changed Merlin's actions to him. The stupid boy had continued to go against him, using every available opportunity to make him feel inferior. It had been... almost refreshing for someone to talk to him like that, like they weren't pretending not to be walking on eggshells in order to get closer to the prince. Merlin had chosen his own means of becoming friends with Arthur.

Now Arthur felt like there was a part of him missing; Merlin had always been there, tagging along the entire time. It felt weird not to have his overly-loyal manservant beside him. He was bent on finding his friend, he was going to do whatever it took, even if it cost him his own life in the process.

Arthur remembered what Gaius had said to him just before he'd departed the physician's chambers. "Please, Arthur," he begged, putting as much emotion as he could into his words. "Please bring Merlin home." The old man had sounded so sad, so miserable that it broke the King's heart.

He's just nodded slowly, not trusting his mouth to work properly.

Now the words were bouncing around in his head, echoing thousands of times in his mind, "Bring Merlin home." Those words, that small sentence, had been engraved into Arthur's mind; they became the one thing he strived for, and he wouldn't stop trying until he'd reached that goal. No matter what price he'd have to pay.

Gwaine, of course, wasn't much better. Merlin had been his first real friend too. Before he was knighted, Gwaine barely stayed in the same place for more than three days (Providing that he hadn't been kicked out of the town's tavern yet). Merlin had been the first person to actually want him around, drunk troublemaker and all.

The knights that had decided to take part in this quest to save their friend (Gwaine, Elyan, Leon, Percival) were growing steadily more worried for their ruler's sanity. He seemed like a totally different person without Merlin there, he treated everyone with cold indifference, barely spoke, ate or slept, and kept to himself most of the time. The knights knew that they needed to find Merlin fast, before Arthur retreated any further into the depths of his mind and couldn't come out.

Okay, I hope you guys liked this chapter, 'cause it will be the newest one for a while. (That didn't really make sense. Whatever :(D)
THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS! Jeez you guys make me so happy, I absolutely LOVE getting feedback! :D

I also want everyone to go check out my new polls on my profile, because that will decide what story I'll do next! There's a Sherlock one, a few Merlins, and a Merlin and Doctor Who crossover. So yeah. please vote (you can choose two of them)

Wisegirl6