Disclaimer: If I owned Merlin, well, we'd have quite a few more brass jokes from George
Authors Note: You know what makes me laugh? Most of the reviews for Chapter 3 dealt with George. I have a feeling you guys care more about George than Merlin or Arthur. Well, you'd be happy to know that George will be safe from Uther's rage. Thanks for all of the support :D
(To RavenclawMerlinFan: I'm impressed that you caught the appearance differences. Unfortunately, if the George here looked like the George in the Merlin episode, he wouldn't have been a very good Arthur double. However, I assure you he is the same George, and you will hear brass jokes in the future :D)
"My Lord?"
Uther glanced up from the maps that were spread across the table. He smiled at the sight of one of his knights. "Ah, Sir Leon. Can I help you?"
The knight glanced around at the surrounding nobles and advisors, hesitating before speaking. "May I have a word with you, Sire? I have something important to discuss. Though, it would probably be best, Your Highness, if we spoke undisturbed."
Uther merely nodded, and the others left the room immediately. They each bowed politely to their king while giving the knight curious looks. When the last noble had finished his stalling and finally left, Uther looked pointedly at Sir Leon.
"I hope my son hasn't sent you here to argue the case for that manservant. This better have nothing to do with the assassins."
Sir Leon paled, trying to find the right words to day. "Forgive me, Sire, but this does involve the assassins." The king instantly stiffened. "However, I am not here to plead for Prince Arthur's manservant." The knight was quick to try to explain." I," Sir Leon paused "support your decision to arrest the manservant for the safety of Prince Arthur."
This calmed the king, and he looked at the knight expectantly. "Go on," he pressed.
I can't believe they're making me lie to my king. Sir Leon internally cursed his fondness for the imprisoned manservant. "I fear that your son may try to escape from his room and break the boy out of prison. There is nothing wrong with Camelot's guards. They are the finest in the Five Kingdoms. But…"
"But what?"
"Well," Sir Leon made a face. "They tend to sometimes be…outwitted." The knight paused again, unsure if he should add the "often" into his admission as well. He decided to leave it to the king's imagination to determine the brilliance of his guards, and continued to please his own case. "If Arthur was to escape, he could easily incapacitate the guards by the boy's cell and free him from prison."
This rattled the king slightly. He too knew how unreliable Camelot's finest could be when it came to guarding anything. "What are you suggesting, Sir Leon?"
"The prince's safety is the most important thing to me. I would like to replace the guards temporarily with some of my most loyal knights. If Arthur tries to free Mer—ah, the manservant, they will prevent him from doing so without causing major injury. Once this assassin situation has blown over, or once Arthur finally sees your wisdom, we can return the usual guards back to their posts."
Uther mulled this over, head bouncing as he thought. "It is a very good plan, Sir Leon. You shall have complete control over the guarding of the lower prisons."
"Thank you, Sire."
The king smiled at his knight. "No, thank you, Sir Leon, for having my son's interests as a top priority. I know I can trust you. You are one of my most loyal knights."
Sir Leon forced a weak smile on his face. "Thank you, My Lord."
This is definitely not worth that one drink Gwaine promised. He owes me the entire tavern.
In all honesty, Arthur felt bad for George. His knuckles were sore from punching the replacement servant, so the prince bet the boy was going to have a hell of a headache when he woke up. He turned back to a slightly shocked Gaius.
"That was the plan…right?"
The physician blinked and tried not to smile. "I was going to give him a sedative, but this was just as efficient, if not a bit crude."
"Well, we didn't have time to wait for it to set in." Arthur shrugged and picked the boy up. With a grunt, he heaved him onto the bed. The prince tried to cover up as much of the boy's thin form with the heavy blanket. If someone had entered his room for a brief moment just to check on the prince, they would be completely fooled into believing the sleeping young man in the bed was Prince Arthur.
"No, we don't." Gaius murmured. Then in a louder voice, he started calling out various substances that "his servant" would have to collect. "The prince has a severe cold and a slight fever. You must go fetch me some wormwood, powdered oak bark, and the essence of gaiaberries."
"Gaiaberries?" Arthur mouthed, slipping on the emerald cloak that the unfortunate replacement had brought with him.
Gaius shrugged. "They won't know what it does."
Another thought struck the boy. "If you know what this assassin plans on poisoning Merlin with, can you create an antidote? Just in case we don't make it in time?"
The court physician's face was grave. "The moment Merlin's lips touch the poison, it'll be too late, I fear."
Arthur nodded somberly. "I have to go now," he said as he walked quickly to the door. He wrapped a hand around the handle, but lingered at the door for a moment longer. He had snuck out of his rooms many times against his father's wishes, but never before had the method ever been so blatant. He'd hate to find out what his father would do to him if he was caught. More people than just Merlin would be in danger of their lives. Mentioning the manservant's name gave Arthur a slight burst of courage. If Merlin's gone to fight dragons with me without even wearing armor, I can slip past a few guards. Everything was a competition to Arthur, and he had to be braver than his manservant. Silently praying for luck, Arthur tugged on the door, shuffled out with his head down, and successfully made it past the guards.
They didn't even look up from their card game! Arthur internally crowed. Still not throwing off his disguise as Gaius's new apprentice, he walked for a minute towards the physician's chambers in case someone was following him. When he deemed the coast was clear, he retraced his steps and hurried as fast as he could towards the prison cell that they were keeping his best friend in.
No one had yet to tell Gwaine the preferred method of killing of the second assassin. In fact, no one had even told him about the second assassin. That little piece of crucial information had been lost in the shuffle between the prince's house imprisonment, Merlin's capture, and the new line up of guards.
"I suppose I have the right to torture you if you don't tell me what I want, huh?"
Merlin glanced up at the grinning man standing in front of his cell. If he was shocked to see him, he didn't show it. The boy was still trying to figure out whether or not if it was best to try to escape or remain in the prison. It was unlikely that an assassin would want to risk breaking into a guarded prison full of knights. Merlin wasn't sure how it exactly happened, but when Uther arrested him, he ended up putting Merlin in, what the warlock thought, the safest spot in Camelot. Someone had apparently neglected to tell the intended victim as well about the soon to be visiting assassin.
"Gwaine," Elyan hissed from his spot at the guards' table. "You shouldn't be talking to 'the prisoner!' The King is already suspicious of Prince Arthur. What will he think when he catches you 'chattering' with Merlin?"
Gwaine frowned. "You're taking the joy of this job away from me, Elyan." He glanced to the bulky man sitting beside Elyan. "Do you agree with him, Perc?"
Percival nodded.
"Fine," Gwaine sighed. He shrugged a "what are ya going to do" shrug at the imprisoned manservant before sauntering back to the table. Merlin wondered if it would be considered "antagonizing the jailer" if he thanked the other two for getting the jokester knight away from him. Clearly that was all this was to Gwaine. A big, gigantic joke. Probably since he isn't in jail, waiting to be killed by an assassin.
When Gwaine finally reached the table, there was the heavy sound of a slamming door above them. Someone was coming. Merlin perked up, hoping it was someone with news regarding the assassins. Based from the polite murmurs of Elyan, and the silence from Percival (which wasn't really surprising though), Merlin assumed it most likely wasn't Prince Arthur. However, it was Gwaine's reaction that completely proved that it wasn't Arthur at the door. The man actually sounded pleased to have the visitor in his company. Then it really isn't Arthur. The warlock could barely make out the hushed conversation the four people were having. It sounded like their visitor was trying to deny Gwaine something in a light voice. When it became clear that Gwaine wasn't going to get whatever he wanted, the knight became a bit sullen.
"Dinner time, Merly!" he called in an annoyed voice. Merlin wasn't sure if he was imagining it or not when he heard a lewd comment under the breath of the carefree knight. He was fairly certain though it was Gwaine who grunted when, most likely, Elyan elbowed him in the gut.
The serving girl poked her face around the corner tentatively. She was tiny, but Merlin could tell she was a bit older than him. "I've brought your meal," she murmured, glancing down at her shoes every so often. Merlin looked at the tray and nearly felt his jaw drop to the floor. What was piled on the plated was much more than any prisoner could ever dream about. The palace chef had even been nice enough to include a small goblet of some dark liquid that Merlin assumed was wine. This made the boy a bit suspicious, but the loud grumbling that erupted from his stomach chased away all doubt. I haven't eaten since this morning. It was well into the night already.
The girl smiled at his stomach's reaction to the food. However, the smile didn't quite reach her gray eyes. Merlin noticed this, her chilly expression making him a bit more cautious. He thanked her with his own forced smile and accepted the food. "This looks…nice."
When he took the plate and goblet from her grasp, the girl's frosty face faded into a relived look. "I'm so glad you like it," the girl gushed in high tones. "I was so worried that it wasn't acceptable." Her face looked so sweet and innocent that Merlin instantly chastised himself for ever doubting her sincerity.
Merlin glanced down at the plate, suddenly conscious of how much food was on it. "Would you like some? I know us servants don't get that much to eat." He smiled warmly at her.
The girl shook her head. The cold expression returned to her face, but only for a moment. "No!" She smiled at him. "I would be in so much trouble if they found out I accepted food from you. It is all yours to eat, Merlin." Instead of sticking around to watch the boy eat, she excused herself quickly and left immediately. As her light footsteps faded away, Merlin could hear the polite goodbye from Elyan and the sullen grumble from Gwaine. He had no idea what the young woman could have done to upset his friend, and he wasn't quite sure he wanted to know. The young warlock looked down at the goblet of the dark liquid in his hand. He probably wanted some of this, and she refused to let him have it. The boy smirked. That didn't seem too far of a possibility. Merlin sloshed the nearly black liquid around in the silver cup, wondering what possibly could have been inside of it.
Well, only one way to find out. He raised the goblet to his lips.
Arthur was amazed how well his disguise was working. Not even a single guard had stopped him in his path. He had a feeling that the reason Gaius had been so late was because he had first paraded his new apprentice around the castle for a bit so all of the guards would become familiar with him.
Gaius is certainly more devious than we give him credit for, Arthur repeated in his head. I must be careful to not get on the man's bad side.
Arthur had wanted to take the most direct route to the prisons where he was certain they were holding Merlin, but he couldn't out of fear that he was being followed. He had just got to the door of the prison when another thought struck him.
What if my father didn't listen to Sir Leon? Bursting in on armed guards, who were under strict orders from the king, would not make the situation any easier on him or Merlin. It would only make his father angrier, and Arthur dreaded to think what the king would do his friend. Arthur chewed the inside of his lip as he tried to think about this rationally.
Surely Sir Leon was able to convince my father. If he hadn't been able to, he would have found a way to let me know. No one had been to his room since he was imprisoned. The guards refused to let anyone but Gaius in his chambers, so he had no idea if Sir Leon had tried to talk to him or not.
Footsteps on the other side of the door caused the boy to jump back. The door creaked open, and a girl with an empty serving tray slipped out. The two stared at each other, and Arthur froze. He wasn't sure what the girl would do. If she threatened to turn him in, he didn't want to think about what he would do to stop her. Instead of shriek or run away, the girl did something odd.
She smirked at the prince. The seemingly out-of-place expression caused Arthur's gut to twist painfully. "Sire," she bowed slightly, the triumphant smirk morphing on her face until it became a content, catlike smile. She turned to go, but Arthur's hand shot out and grabbed her upper arm. Her tray clattered to the ground.
There's something wrong about her. "Wait!"
Still not afraid, the young woman spun around and launched a flying kick at Arthur's head. Arthur pushed the girl away and released his grip on her arm as he raised his own to arms to block the attack. Her foot was surprisingly forceful, sending shudders up Arthur's arms as they absorbed the impact. Arthur lowered his arms, searching for the girl. Suddenly she was underneath him, knocking his legs out from under him with another painful kick. Arthur felt the breath leave his body as he hit the stone floor like a pound of bricks. A weight was on his chest, making it even harder to breath. He looked up blearily to see a tiny fist poised directly over his trachea.
"Sire," that smirk was really starting to make Arthur mad. He glared at her, cursing his own stupidity. Of course she was the assassin. How could you have been so stupid?! He struggled to free himself, but the girl strategically placed her light weight in spots that pinned Arthur to the floor as effectively as any chain. I have to get to Merlin. She's delayed me for too long.
Arthur went still for a moment, conserving all of his energy. Then he surged up, catching the assassin by surprise and knocking her off of him. She landed on her feet a yard or so away, already crouched into another attack position. She narrowed her eyes, the satisfied smirk completely wiped from her face. Although he really wanted to continue to fight her and heal his broken pride of being beaten by a girl (though, he wasn't sure that even if he was capable of defeating her, if beating up the tiny woman would mend his reputation, vicious assassin or not), Arthur had bigger problems to worry about. The girl seemed to understand this. She smiled sweetly as she stepped back. Her distraction should have kept the prince away from her intended target long enough for the foolish boy to drink the poison. Now she had to return and report her success to her employers.
"Goodbye, Sire." The title sounded like a vicious insult to the prince. It certainly didn't hold the same warmth that Merlin's impertinent teases did. The girl turned around and made a dash for the nearest hallway. Again, Arthur watched her go, his lost pride churning in his gut. However, he didn't dwell long on it. He grabbed the door handle, yanking it open, and practically running down the stairs. He didn't care if the guards were hostile or not—he had to stop Merlin from consuming whatever that wicked woman had tried to give him. Luckily, the hearty complaints of Gwaine filled his ears as he rushed down the horribly lengthy flight of stairs from the door to the prison cells.
Elyan was surprised to see the prince in such a hurry. "Sire?" He all but squawked, rising to bow quickly.
Gwaine was still complaining. "Would you believe it? That saucy little serving girl denied me, a knight of Camelot, a sip of whatever that ungrateful manservant was getting."
"It was for the prisoner," Percival added with an amused smile. The charming knight's outrage at being brushed off by the serving girl had been one of the funniest things he had seen that day.
"That doesn't mean I don't get some!"
Arthur finally reached the ground level. "Elyan," he addressed the only man who had seemed to notice his presence. "Where's Merlin?"
The knight pointed towards the first cell. "A serving girl came by a few moments ago. It was weird—she already knew where Merlin was, but I've never seen her before. And she had the biggest plate of food I've ever seen for a prisoner. Plus some dark wine, I think, that Gwa—"
Arthur wasn't listening. He was straining to hear any noise from the cell that Merlin was supposedly being held in. Finally, he reached the cell and was relieved to see Merlin was still alive. The boy hadn't noticed him yet; he was too absorbed in staring at the dark liquid inside the silver goblet. Arthur watched in slow motion as the boy shrugged and brought the cup to his lips. The prince lunged forward at the cell, shoving his entire arm through the tight iron bars, and knocking the goblet out of Merlin's hands. The silver cup flew from his grasp, some of the dark liquid spilling out as it spiraled through the air. It collided with the cold, stone wall with a loud clatter. The rest of the poison surged out as if the cup had exploded, splashing both boys slightly with the black liquid. The cup rolled away slowly from the wall, a large dent marring the once perfect goblet. A few drops of the poison dribbled lazily from the smashed rim. Arthur stuck his foot through the bars and gave the plate of food a solid kick. The plate turned over, all of the food spilling out, and Arthur stepped on a few of the deceivingly delicious morsels, just to be safe.
Merlin's expression changed more times that Arthur could count. It morphed from anger, to shock, back to anger, then into a messy cross between worry and shock. Unable to decide how he felt, Merlin settled for a loud "Arthur!"
"What?" Arthur was suddenly cross. Now that he had just saved his manservant's life and the boy looked fine, Arthur allowed himself to be a bit grumpy. He was still nursing an injured pride and an injured backside from his fight with the assassin. He decided to take out his bad mood on the manservant.
Merlin was also a bit peeved. "You just can't let me be, can you? That was perhaps the best meal I have seen for a long time. And it was mine!" The boy crossed his arms, staring mournfully at the squashed roll under Arthur's boot. He looked up at the prince and frowned. "What," Merlin paused to clear his throat, "are you even dong here anyway?" He cleared his throat again.
"I'm saving your pathetic backside," Arthur snapped. "That serving girl was an assassin. The food she gave you was poisonous."
Merlin coughed, eyes growing wide. "What?" he managed to choke out. He glanced at the dented goblet with a tight frown.
"She had stolen some deadly poisons from Gaius a few hours ago. He told me about it before springing me from my room." The prince also frowned as he looked closer at his pale manservant. "Are you alright, Merlin? You don't look so good." Arthur froze. "You didn't eat anything, did you?" he demanded.
The boy gave a shaky smile. "I may have tried a sip of the wine." He coughed again, giving Arthur a terrified look. The boy brought trembling hands to his throat, gasping loudly. The boy's pained, scared eyes met Arthur's equally terrified gaze.
"Merlin!" Arthur watching in horror as the boy's eyes rolled into the back of his head. Merlin's knees buckled, and Arthur reached through the bars, trying to catch his best friend before he hit the ground. However, the boy slipped through Arthur's grasp, collapsing to the cold, hard ground in a motionless heap.
As he watched his friend fall, Arthur was reminded painfully of the peace treaty with Bayard. Like it was back then, there was nothing he could do as his friend began to die on the stone floor.
Sir Leon, you scoundrel. Lying to your king. Shame on you. And why does Merlin always end up poisoned at the end of my chapters?!
(Extra points to you if you know what I'm talking about)
Thank you so much for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and alerting! I really, REALLY appreciate it :D