Sorry for the wait, but I've been working on some of my other stories. For example, that Tarot story I talked about is up, and is called 'Staff, Sword, Cup and Coin.'
This chapter is a little humour, but I have kinda run out of those now. I shall try to write more, but I ain't making any promises. All I have left is dark stuff and heart-warming stuff. Therefore, if you're happy and you know it, don't read the next chapter! It may bring you down. The one after next will be cute, though. Also, the last one here is kind of a continuation of 'When was love ever easy?' from chapter 6. I hadn't ever thought of continuing it, but sarajm put the idea in my head.
Holy moly! So many revieeeewwws….. =O Thanks to everybody! But special thanks to (deep breath) sarajm, the electric phantom, FireChildSlytherin5, Alia Inverse, Kitty O, Pagen Godess, Arnia, 9wolf, Yukka Sam, krissystvs, rawr52 and pamy for reviewing, alerting and favouriting!
Enjoy!
Merlin stalked through the corridors of Camelot, surveying the eerie scene.
One day. He was gone for one day, and some evil sorcerer had snuck into Camelot and turned everyone into ice sculptures. So it was up to Merlin to save the day and get no credit once again. Lucky him.
He had already tried melting the ice with fire. While blasting a frozen Arthur with an inferno had been amazingly good stress relief, he hadn't made a dent in the ice. Which meant he was now on a hunt for a sorcerer/vessel, so he could stop him/her/it.
Why did Camelot have to be so bloody huge? Merlin, having his own secrets to hide, was quite familiar with the various hidey-holes and secret passages the castle had to offer, and although they had saved his life more times than he cared to count, they were a double-edged sword. A malicious magic-user could be hiding anywhere, and Merlin needed to find them before they implemented the second stage of their strange plan. What do you do after frostifying your enemies?
His somewhat rambling ruminations were interrupted by a faint clatter from inside a cupboard. The warlock softly approached the mysterious cubby-hole, magic at the ready. His heart hammered in anticipation of conflict. He slowly reached out, grabbed the handle…and whipped back the door.
"George?"
"Merlin!"
The warlock gazed, dumbfounded, at the trembling manservant. Of all the people to escape the sorcerer's frosty revenge…
"What happened?"
George flinched, as if expecting Merlin to attack him. Clearing his throat with a small 'ahem' he began.
"Well, I was in the armoury, polishing some brass…"
Merlin couldn't stop his eyes glazing over from the memories of a dreary week under this man's instruction.
"…when I heard a most peculiar voice. I went to investigate, but before I opened the door, which was ajar, I spied something most worrying through the crack…"
Merlin resisted the urge to tell George to get to the point.
"…There was a strange man – scruffy sort, I'd never seen his like before – standing in front of one of the maids. Lily, I think it was. But he…said some words and waved his hands and…poor Lily was covered in ice."
George seemed pretty shaken, and looked down as if ashamed.
"I know I'm not very brave. When he turned towards the door I hid behind one of the shields. After he once again left I relocated to the cupboard and I've been here ever since."
Merlin clapped him on the shoulder, hoping to encourage him.
"Don't worry. You stay here; I'll deal with our visitor, okay?"
"No!"
George looked just as surprised by his outburst as Merlin. The manservant never raised his voice.
"I'll…I'll come with you."
Merlin cursed inwardly. If the manservant accompanied him, it would be that much harder to keep his magic secret. On the other hand, the poor guy was quaking fit to bust. Evidently, his offer of assistance came as much out of fear of being alone as a desire to redeem himself. The warlock nodded.
"Alright. Let's find us a sorcerer!"
So Merlin and George set off on an adventure. The warlock determined, the manservant wishing he'd stayed in his cupboard.
Arthur was bemused by Merlin's refusal to be named Court Sorcerer. Merlin, however, had his reasons.
"Look, there have been plenty of times were being underestimated has saved my life. I'd kinda like to keep the advantage. I can keep being your manservant, saving your fat backside from the shadows."
Merlin ducked the incoming goblet.
Merlin surreptitiously refolded one of the shirts Gwaine had already done. The warlock did enjoy his visits, but he wished the Knight didn't feel obligated to help with his chores. Gwaine would make a terrible servant.
"Merlin, you got something on your shirt, mate."
Merlin, looking down, tutted. Arthur needed to stop holding training sessions right after rainstorms; they made the field too muddy. And slippery. The warlock had slipped and fallen while setting up targets and now part of his tunic was covered in dried mud. He pulled it off, reaching for a clean one, when Gwaine's next question stopped him short.
"What is that?"
Merlin froze, cursing. Gwaine must have seen the Druid tattoo. Their leader, Iseldir, had offered Merlin a place as an honorary member, and the warlock had accepted. He knew it was mainly a political move, giving them a stronger claim on his loyalty if they ever needed it, but Merlin had been honoured nonetheless. The mark was made on his left shoulder blade.
But one careless mistake later and Merlin now risked being discovered. He waited anxiously for Gwaine's accusations, tensing up. He almost fell over when the Knight clapped him amicably on the back.
"So you got drunk and woke up with a tattoo, huh? I've been there, mate."
Merlin hoped his sigh wasn't too audible. Gwaine obviously hadn't recognised it as a druid tattoo. He smiled awkwardly, hoping to come off as embarrassed rather than relieved.
"You won't tell anyone, will you?"
Gwaine shook his head, heading out the door. He paused to call back.
"Maybe, next time, don't get a druid mark, yeah? You know how the Princess gets around magic."
The Knight didn't see Merlin's gobsmacked expression before he left.
Elyan had finally found a girl who seemed to like him for something other than his Knighthood. Now it was just the matter of approaching her. He had tried already, but one smile from her was enough to have him gaping like a fish for three minutes and forgetting everything he was going to say. His blank mind scrambled for something – anything – to say. It settled upon:
"Ff…f-fahf."
"What are y-"
"I have to go!"
He quickly marched in the opposite direction, wanting to put as much distance between himself and the confused girl as possible. He then decided to turn to his fellow Knights for help.
Gwaine, who had the most experience, just ended boasting about the various girls he'd charmed. Leon, who knew a lot about the workings of the court, gave a list of confusing customs that did very little to calm Elyan's nerves. Percival just shrugged, claiming the female mind was a mystery to him. Arthur, who was the only one with a steady girlfriend, muttered about it 'just happening' before getting a strange dreamy look on his face.
A somewhat down-hearted Elyan went to the armoury to fetch his sword for practise, sighing loudly.
"Got a problem?"
Elyan looked up to find Merlin polishing Arthur's breastplate. The servant raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Anything I can help with?"
The Knight decided he might as well try, and told Merlin of his predicament. The servant smiled kindly once he was finished.
"You don't need any fancy tricks. Leave that stuff to Gwaine. Just be yourself. Then you know that she likes you for you, not some line."
"Being myself? You sure that'll work?"
Merlin's smile seemed a little sad. His reply was said almost to himself.
"It worked for me."
Then the shadow on his face passed, and he clapped Elyan on the shoulder.
"Well? What are you standing around talking to me for? Go get her!"
Elyan thanked him and left, resolving to talk to Merlin about his cryptic reply later. Merlin went back to polishing, the gleam on the armour reminding him of the play of light on the surface of a lake.
Aw, a little Merlin/Freya at the end there. ^_^
George is one of my favourite characters! I do want to expand that first one, and have Merlin and George going on an adventure to save Camelot. Anybody else wanna see that?
Thanks for reading!
