"Arthur," Merlin tapped his blanket-clad shoulder gently, knowing this would be enough to rouse him out in the wilds, "It's your shift."
Awake immediately, he shed the blanket, and stepped over the slumbering bodies to do a circuit of camp, his alertness a far cry from his usual bleary-eyed grumbles in the citadel. Seeing him act this protectively over his knights was one of the things that had convinced Merlin that maybe the dragon had the right idea about Arthur after all. He may complain about the odd load of paperwork, and occasionally give her an obscene amount of chores just so he wasn't the only one snowed under, but he took his responsibility as Prince seriously.
Merlin unrolled her bed spread carefully so she'd get it straight the first time. She didn't want to wake Sir Leon, or any of the other nights, whose sleep patterns were interrupted enough by the night watch.
There were only six knights accompanying Arthur on the border patrol, so the circuit grounds immediately surrounding their small camp didn't take long. By the time Merlin's eyes had slipped away from the stars as sleep began to overtake her, Arthur was back. So she noticed when a weight fell on top of her, and tucked under her feet so she couldn't kick off the blanket as she was prone to in her sleep. She noticed, and she smiled, mumbling her thanks without opening her eyes so he wouldn't try to abort the thoughtful gesture in a fit of embarrassment.
"Go to sleep, Merlin," Arthur ordered, a touch of awkwardness in his tone at being caught.
She complied.
2 (very) short updates!