When Arthur opened the back door to let the dogs out, Gwaine was typically, well, Gwaine-like. He trotted across the decking - that Arthur had carefully covered with grit the night before - and the little dog's tail wagged as he looked at the drifts across the garden. Then of course, with a loud yap, Gwaine took a flying leap down the steps and into the four inches of snow on Arthur's lawn. Arthur smirked as Gwaine bounded across the snow. Percival went to the end of the decking, and put his front paws on the lowest step, and he sniffed the snow suspiciously. Weirdly, he then bit into it, sneezing as some went up his nose. Shaking his head, his entire body convulsing as he gave loud whooshing sounds, Percival backed up, rump dropping. Putting his hot chocolate on the nearby table, Arthur took Percival's collar, eased his coat cuff over his wrist and brushed across Percival's nose. The dog shook his head again, and pulled against Arthur's grip. He let him go and Percival glared at him and then tentatively eased his way back towards the snow.
Gwaine, still yapping manically, bounded back the way he had come and started running up a drift, then fell into it as his weight became too much for the light powdery snow. Arthur, feet safely ensconced in his wellies, went and fished him out, putting him back in a shallower section. Gwaine shook himself and darted off again, leaping across the garden.
Leon sat down on the decking and watched the other dogs. Lancelot trotted down and walked onto the lawn, and went to the far end to cock his leg on the tree.
"Come on Merlin," Arthur said. It made him wonder, again, if whoever had dumped Merlin had driven him from some distance as he stared curiously at the snow, as if he had never seen anything like it before. Like Percival had done, Merlin's front paws were on the lowest step, and he sniffed at the snow. He looked up at a manically behaving Gwaine, who was clearly demonstrating that the snow was entirely safe, and required rolling in at that precise second.
"You had better not have found any fox shit," Arthur told him. It was a constant source of irritation to him, the foxes that passed through the garden, as the dogs went berserk if they stayed to long, or came too close to the house.
Merlin delicately lifted one paw and put it on the snow, pulling back and putting it back on the step. His ears shifted back and forth and his nose lowered to assess the situation. Then very carefully, almost studiously, one paw lowered into the snow, then Merlin put his other front paw down. Gwaine bounded up to him, tail wagging, snow sliding off his fur. They bumped noses and then the little terrier bounded off again, and Merlin, tail wagging, ran after him.
Arthur sipped his hot chocolate and watched them. Percival still lingered on the steps.
"I'll only dry you," Arthur told him. Percival cocked his ear at Arthur and then slowly put his foot into the snow. Gwaine barged across towards him, Merlin in tow, and Percival bounded into the snow, running after Gwaine. Merlin trotted over to Arthur, sniffing around him, and experimentally chewing the top of his wellies. Arthur extracted his left foot back away from Merlin.
"What are you doing, you dafty?"
Gwaine ran over and crashed into his other leg, sprawling at Arthur's feet, panting happily.
"And you are a maniac," Arthur informed. "You must have been dropped on your head as a puppy."
Gwaine rolled over Arthur's foot, and dived off between his legs, jumping up into a bush, sending a shower of snow everywhere. Merlin watched him curiously. Gwaine yapped and leapt about trying to catch the falling snow in his mouth. Arthur giggled as he watched him. Merlin trotted about, sniffing at the paw prints he made, tail wagging as he investigated. Arthur put his mug onto the nearest post and reached down to pick up a handful of snow, moulding it into to a ball and then he lobbed it across the lawn.
Lancelot went darting after it, Gwaine hot on his heels. Leon continued to sniff around the snow, looking up as the two dogs followed the snowball, snuffing around in confusion as the snowball fell apart.
Merlin bounded after them, then he turned around and ran back to Arthur who petted his head gently. Merlin licked his hand, tail wagging.
"I think we should play out," Arthur decided.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxX
To save issues Arthur left the dogs outside, fed them and himself out on the decking, and then gathered everything he needed. Then, on their leads, he took them out of the side gate and walked down the road. A few of the neighbours were out scraping their cars and driveways clear of snow. The day itself seemed nice, the clouds had separated and the sun's rays managed to peek through. The neighbour's little girl crowed with delight when she saw the dogs and Arthur slowed them up, letting Lancelot and Gwaine get ahead, as the two that didn't mind children and their anarchic fussing. Lancelot sat down and panted happily as the little girl ran her hand over his head and down his back.
"Good dog!" she told him firmly.
"Yes, he is," Arthur agreed. Gwaine inched forward, tail wagging. Arthur watched him cringe under the heavy pats, but Gwaine never reacted adversely, letting the little girl tangle her fingers into his hair. Gwaine had bad quirks, but Arthur never argued with his good ones.
Eventually, Leon suffered an ear rub and then Arthur moved them on. Gwaine tried to run into every snow drift he saw, and Arthur used the extendable lead to control his enthusiasm. The rest of them knew the route to the park and it was rare that Arthur took them all in one go, and he had never brought Merlin. As they reached the gate all of them started to mill about, bumping each other and prancing about. Gwaine yapped excitedly at the council worker shovelling grit onto the paths, which Gwaine then sniffed and Arthur yanked him back before he could lick at it. Gwaine yelped, then yapped at someone valiantly trying to take a morning jog.
Arthur hoisted the lot of them off the pathways and went through the park, on the grass as much out of everyone's way as he could. However, where he usually went had a slight incline and clearly a few schools had announced themselves closed, and some hadn't as children were playing in the snow and Arthur saw a group of teenage boys in their uniform and thick coats messing about nearby, reluctantly on their way to school.
Gwaine barked at them in a self-important way. They turned to look, but as he was on a lead and Arthur had control of him, they eventually ignored him. Gwaine yapped and then turned. Arthur looked at the slightly busy slope and the quiet area beyond that. There were no bylaws preventing loose dogs, but Arthur didn't want them in the way. He moved over to the area nearby the trees and he started to unleash them.
"Gwaine!" he yelled the moment he released him and Gwaine ran at the youths. Gwaine paused and ran back pausing to bark at someone else diligently jogging through the snow, who took no notice of the manic terrier.
"People are mad," Arthur informed Merlin as he trotted at his side. Merlin looked up, ears twitching, and his tail wagged gently. Arthur lobbed a snowball, which Percival, Leon and Lancelot went running after. Arthur kept going, keeping an eye on all of them as they ran about. Gwaine careered around into snow drifts, darting about in excitement.
Eventually, Gwaine's startled yelp made him turn again; he watched the little dog flailing in a drift, and two little girls on a sledge crying in shock. For a moment Arthur presumed that they had crashed into him. Gwaine tried to get himself out of the drift, Arthur went to help him, looking him over at the same time. Gwaine wriggled and yapped in a way that told Arthur he had nothing wrong with him. Arthur put him down and tried to look him over again, which was the moment that Gwaine decided that Arthur was the most wonderful person he had ever met in his entire life and hurled himself on him, tail wagging, licking at his hands and face.
"All right, for heaven's sake."
Each dog then decided that they didn't want to be left out, and all of them responded, fussing around Arthur. The two girls inched forward.
"He's fine, nothing to worry about," he assured them through a sea of dogs.
"I probably shouldn't have let them go down the slope with him in the sledge," someone announced. Arthur presumed the girl's father. He shrugged.
"He seems fine." Arthur said. And Gwaine clearly felt no adverse affect as he jumped back into the plastic sledge and waited, tail wagging, eyes darting around.
"Just a bit up the slope, don't go to far." the father advised. The little girls took the string and started to pull. Gwaine sat down but didn't jump out. Arthur rolled his eyes, and slowly stood up. The dogs dispersed a little, helped by Arthur throwing a few snowballs for them. The group of boys, who were clearly avoiding school watched with amusement, and threw a few snowballs of their own. The dogs darted around them chasing the snow, much to the boy's amusement. As they were doing no harm Arthur let them get on with it, it saved him keeping the dogs busy.
He watched as the two girls went down the slope again, more sedately than previously, he guessed. The girl at the front, held tightly to Gwaine sat in front of her, not that the dog looked the least bit daunted by the whole procedure. As they reached the end of the slope, this time slowly coming to a halt Gwaine was panting, ears pricked and utterly happy looking. The girl's clambered out again and started to pull Gwaine along.
"He's cheating," Arthur informed Merlin. Merlin stared up at him and then looked around. "Come on Merlin."
Arthur walked along, with Merlin trotting at his side. Arthur paused and moved to stand in front of Merlin.
"Sit, Merlin."
Merlin plonked his bottom down. Ears up, tail slightly still. Arthur held out his hand.
"Say hello."
Looking very serious. Merlin's face always seem serious. He lifted his paw and gently placed it in Arthur's hand.
"Good boy." Arthur released the paw and let him settle. He backed up a little. Merlin's bottom lifted, and Arthur held up his hand. "Stay Merlin. Sit. Sit down."
Arthur felt conscious of the fact that Lancelot had joined in. Sitting down next to him, listening attentively. Arthur backed up a little further. Merlin appeared to look increasingly concerned by the situation. However, Arthur stayed firm, kept telling Merlin to stay and got at least ten metres away. Then he relented.
"Come on then Merlin."
Merlin bounded towards him, so did Lancelot. Gwaine, yapping, jumped off the sledge and shot across the snow. Merlin reached him first, having darted from his position. Arthur crouched down and rubbed Merlin's head in both hands. Merlin snuggled as close as he could, as if that short separation had been agony for him. Lancelot also snuffled around Arthur, probing at the top pocket of his jacket. And Gwaine again, hurled himself on Arthur as if he was the best person he had ever met in his entire life.
That gave him a little glow of pleasure. His dogs were always friendly to others, Gwaine especially. However, it was always Arthur they would eventually run to, and be most pleased to see. On the strength of that Arthur slowly stood up and unzipped his jacket. The three near him went still.
Percival, who had been chasing a stick the youths had been throwing, watched it fly again, caught what Arthur was doing thanks to Gwaine's excited yap, and ran off, ignoring the stick and charging over to Arthur. Leon, who had been happily snuffing about on his own also ran over.
"Sit down."
Arthur felt quite pleased as the dogs instantly did as they were told, much to the amusement of the audience.
"I wouldn't mind a dog," one of the schoolboys announced.
"Daddy, can we get a dog?" one of the little girls asked. Arthur handed out treats to each of his brood, who chomped happily, tails wagging.
"You'll have to feed them," Arthur said. The little girl nodded. "And walk them, and brush them, and pick up their poo."
She wrinkled her nose at that.
"And do it all every day, lots of times," Arthur warned her. Percival decided to be very helpful at this point by trotting away and squatting in the snow. Arthur, always prepared, reached into his pocket and pulled out a plastic bag.
"There you go."
"Eeww!" the girls grumbled. Arthur shrugged and went to gather up the mess, efficiently wrapping up the bag and popping it into the large pocket of his jacket, that he left aside to hold such deposits until as such time as he reached the dog mess bin. The little girl looked even more shocked at that.
"You can't leave it lying around," Arthur warned.
She grimaced again, now looking at the dogs rather fearfully. Her father looked rather amused by her reaction.
"You'll have to make do stroking other people's then."
Gwaine seemed to understand that. He finished his treat and went darting back to the girls, clambering into the sledge again.
"Gwaine, that is cheating," Arthur told him. The girls didn't seem to care, they pulled the sledge about with Gwaine happily sat on it. Arthur allowed him a few more minutes before he pulled out the leads to gather the dogs together. Merlin naturally first, and then he called the others. Gwaine being the last, eventually getting up from the sledge when he realised the others were getting a second treat.
Arthur organised them into their usual positions, said his goodbyes to the gathered crowd, and took the dogs the long way round, through the park and out of the entrance at the far side. Then he turned down the road to go home, quite happy with himself and the nice snow filled world, that seemed to make people nice to each other.
He paused, shifting all the leads to his left hand. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his mobile phone.
"Hi dad," Arthur said cheerily. The snow, or maybe the dogs in the snow, made him cheery.
"Why are you on social media?"
"Am I?"
"You are in the park, are you not?"
It was a weird bit of phrasing Arthur thought. But he didn't really care. The dogs panted, milling about and bumping into each other. He wedged the phone between his shoulder and jaw and used both hands to juggle the dogs about.
"Yes, I'm in the park, I took the dogs out in the snow. I am working from home today. I will work when I get home and do all my proper work."
"You should be careful about being seen!"
"I'm not a fucking hermit, dad. And people love my dogs. Gwaine played in a sledge, and I guess it was the group of skiving teenagers that filmed me."
"I don't care who 'Coolboyz' was."
Arthur smirked, at both the name and the way his father tried to interpret it off the computer.
"What are the dogs doing?" Arthur asked. The phone was ominously silent as Uther worked out how to deal with him.
"It is not seemly."
"Everything I do is not seemly to you," Arthur said, oddly confident. He had done well working at the office, and the staff liked him, and he listened to them. Or they liked him because he listened to them. Something of the sort. Merlin bumped against him and sat on his foot. Arthur looked down at him and pulled a face. Merlin's ears lifted curiously and he tilted his head in an endearing fashion.
"I took some time off this morning, on a day I would be working from home anyway, and I am now on my way home, to do my work and I will put a full day in. And if people have videoed me having a nice time in the park, good for them, my dogs were lovely and they still are. Gwaine!"
The terrier looked up at him and he slowly moved, easing his way back towards Merlin. Lancelot sat down, looking up at Arthur, over his shoulder, as if he reassure Arthur that he was entirely aware of Gwaine's shenanigans.
"You clearly cannot control them, if you are having to shout at them."
"Sorry, I think the phone was a bit near. That wasn't shouting; it's my stern 'Gwaine' voice, and he's the only one that needs it."
Gwaine looked up at him in an endearing fashion.
"He is, however, very good with children," Arthur added in his defence.
"The reports will need to be in mid-afternoon," Uther said, clearly having no other recourse, although Arthur knew the reports weren't needed until the end of the week, and he had plenty of time. He smirked to himself as is father hung up on him.
"Come on then. Let's go home, and have a look at you on the internet."
Reports, he decided, could wait.