AN: So sorry it's been SO long! I wish I had more to give you but this short chapter will have to do. Unfortunately there are still times when Arthur really can be an idiot… the following chapter shows how…
Enjoy!
Merlin really was an odd character… and that was without his magic. It was at times like these that Arthur would remember that Merlin really was just a boy from a small unknown village. It was obvious the first day or two that he was infatuated with Lady Catrina. She was nice to him, nicer than a lot of the other nobles, Arthur had noticed, and every time she thanked him or paid him a compliment the boy blushed.
So when Arthur had found him outside his window with a broken mirror he hadn't been all that surprised. It was amazing that this boy had the power that Sigan had talked about before. Sometimes Arthur still didn't believe it.
He couldn't really be angry at Merlin though, truth was he was just glad to see the boy acting normally for once, without the weight of his magic and the worry of being found out on his shoulders. He did make sure, of course, that Merlin would never do it again.
And then all of the sudden his attitude had changed towards her. He was polite but seemed to watch her like a hawk. It was almost creepy, leading Arthur back to his assumption of Merlin being quite odd. Arthur wondered if Merlin had picked up on the fact that Arthur wasn't quite comfortable with the Lady Catrina and had started acting hostile towards her because of that.
But then he had come into Arthur's chambers and it was one of those moments when Arthur wondered if Merlin was going to finally tell him… it happened a lot actually but Arthur more and more found himself not getting his hopes as high.
So when Merlin walked in silently gaping like a fish and said, "Arthur, I'm going to tell you something." Arthur barely batted an eyelash. "It's not going to be easy." Arthur cast him a wary glance.
"Right." Encouraging him to go on, Merlin was acting strange to say the least, maybe…
"It concerns the Lady Catrina." Perhaps not then.
Arthur rolled his eyes. "You're not using my chambers to spy on her again."
"No. Trust me I saw everything I needed to see." Merlin said and Arthur couldn't help but smirk with his back turned.
"I'm sure you did." Arthur teased but not a lot of effort was put into the words.
"Arthur…" Merlin began again. "She's a troll."
Arthur started laughing as he turned around. That was it then. Merlin had picked up on Arthur's feelings towards Catrina and had started acting hostile towards her as well. Merlin had always been loyal it made sense and he was always saying things to cheer Arthur up even in a roundabout way. "She's not that bad." Arthur said.
"I'm being serious." Merlin said moving closer. "She is. She's an actual troll."
Funny as it was, enough was enough, if Uther heard this then Merlin would be in big trouble. "Merlin, I know what you're trying to do and I appreciate it, you're a true friend," Arthur said speaking quickly so Merlin couldn't interrupt, "but it's not about whether I like her or not. It's about what makes my father happy. When they announced the wedding today, I realized that Lady Catrina does just that, she makes him happy."
"Well, he won't be so damn happy when he finds out she's a fruit-munching monster!" Merlin couldn't seem to let this go.
"That's enough, Merlin." Arthur demanded.
"But—" Merlin protested.
"She's the future Queen of Camelot, whether you like it or not, so you better get used to it." Arthur said and strode away. Once out of sight though he shook his head, laughing at his ridiculous manservant.
AN: Arthur's such a dollop head (yes I know that word doesn't appear in the series until later but it still fits). It's been really fun trying to explain Arthur's behavior in all these episodes but sometimes it just comes down to the fact that Arthur is really a dunce, even if he doesn't think it.
Here's a piece of advice, if your magical friend tells you something about a magical creature, don't assume he's joking!
God bless!
