Finished my residency for school so I can write again. Since my program itself is a writing program, I might get distracted with my novel, but I'll try not to.

Merlin's mum would not let the whole romance thing go. She would disappear for a couple minutes, but then would be back again and probing about who it could be that he was flirting with all day. After all, she'd only heard him talk about Arthur in their recent talks on the phone, so she couldn't imagine who else Merlin had time to see. It still hadn't occurred to her that Arthur could be the one Merlin was talking to—and Merlin preferred it that way. Lance had come up, and a few other people he'd hardly seen lately, but never Arthur.

At this point, Merlin and Will were off to the side of the room, sitting silently. They'd been catching up for a lot of the day, but Merlin couldn't relay a word of it if someone asked (neither what Will said or what he himself babbled). Will surely noticed how distracted he was, but hadn't said anything about it. Merlin was grateful for that. Talking to his mother about his love life was unavoidable, but Will would be embarrassing. He'd rather not.

It wasn't quite noon when Arthur was texting him again.

Arthur: How did you even get to Ealdor?

Merlin was a little surprised at Arthur's consideration. He was very good at forgetting that Merlin didn't have a car.

Then he realised he had to think of a logical answer. He took a cab? An uncle picked him up?

"You look like you're thinking hard. Don't hurt yourself."

Merlin glanced over to Will with a smile. "My friend asked how I got here and I don't know how to respond."

Will mused for a moment. "Gaius brought you?"

"Yeah, I guess that works."

Merlin: Gaius dropped me off.

Arthur: You're positively cruel, making him shuttle you around like that.

Merlin: It was on his way to see his own family.

A flat out lie, but Arthur would never know that.

Arthur: So you're saying that you can't come back until he picks you up.

Merlin: Be patient, you git. It won't be that long.

Arthur didn't respond after that, and Merlin figured he got distracted by his family.

He was wrong.

Merlin got a response more than an hour later.

Arthur: I never imagined a town could be so small. I could probably be two minutes from your house no matter where I am.

Merlin gaped at it for a long moment before shooting up from his chair and darting outside, telling himself there was no way the text meant what he thought it did.

But there Arthur's car was, right down the street. Merlin sprinted for it, dignity be damned, and Arthur rolled down the window.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Merlin asked with a grin.

"I was bored," Arthur replied haughtily before saying, "Get in and I'll park."

Merlin did so, but started pestering Arthur the moment he did. "You know," Merlin said, "showing up places uninvited is rude."

"Is that so?" asked Arthur dully.

"What if my mother doesn't have room for you?"

"Then we'll be on our way."

"What if I want to stay?" Merlin retorted.

"Then you're a pain in my arse."

Merlin was smiling again. "I really wasn't going to be gone all day. I don't know why you came, but I'm glad to see you anyhow."

"I'm not here for you, I'm here for poor Gaius," Arthur assured him.

"Of course," Merlin agreed, but he was still grinning like a moron.

When Arthur was getting out of the car, he grabbed his present, which he had apparently brought with him.

"Oh, you brought that?"

"Well I do want to open it eventually," Arthur responded, pretending to be annoyed.

"Well then I won't make you wait much longer. But now you're here, so you'll have to meet my family."

"Not a problem. I'm great at public relations."

"Oh boy…" Merlin muttered, shaking his head as he brought Arthur inside.

As it turned out, Arthur really was good at 'public relations'. He was perfectly charming. Merlin's mother went out of her way to whisper that this seemed nothing like the man Merlin had been describing all this time. Merlin tried to explain that Arthur was a manipulative clot, but Mum wasn't buying it.

It took a couple minutes for them to be able to get away to another room (in this case, Merlin's childhood bedroom) so Arthur could open his present. Merlin thought it was funny that Arthur thought it was something that needed to be done in private. What did Arthur think Merlin would buy him?

Arthur quickly unwrapped it…

He looked down to it with pursed lips.

"Merlin!"

Merlin was already in the process of dying laughing, leaning on the bed.

Merlin's present for Arthur had been a book entitled How Not To Be A Prat.

"What, did you think I would get sentimental?" Merlin asked between chuckles.

"Well I did, so yes!"

Merlin stopped laughing, blinking. "You did? What's that mean?"

Arthur looked down. "Nothing."

Merlin stared for another long moment before he realised what Arthur had meant. "You got me a present?"

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Well, it's nothing huge or anything!" he said defensively. "I couldn't very well not get you something when you got me something. But now I regret it."

Merlin was grinning at Arthur, and eventually Arthur couldn't help but smile too, if only a little. "You can take the gift back if you'd like, but I'd like to know what it is. I can't imagine what you would get me."

"I didn't get you anything, really." Merlin wasn't comprehending and Arthur could tell. "Oh, fine, I'll just give it to you." He dug into his pocket and pulled something out, setting it in Merlin's hand.

Merlin lifted it. It was a key ring, which had two keys and a key chain.

Merlin just looked at Arthur for a long moment, no longer teasing him.

After a moment, Arthur explained. "The smaller one is for my house, and the other is for my car. I figure there's no reason to pretend we have any sort of privacy anymore, so I just… yeah."

Merlin didn't know why, but this felt significant. It was filling his chest with some light emotion as he stared at the keys.

Then he really paid attention to the key chain, which was a dragon. Merlin was surprised at the choice, to say the least.

"Why'd you choose this key chain?"

Arthur crossed his arms and then shrugged. "I don't really know. I know my father would be furious if he saw it, but… it felt right for you."

Merlin swallowed down the emotions that came with that statement. Like Arthur knew there was something strange about Merlin… and was okay with it.

He ended up saying: "Your father says magic is wrong."

"My father says a lot of things."

Merlin didn't know what that meant, but didn't ask.

"Well… thank you," Merlin said.

"You can… you know, borrow the car sometimes. If you want. So I don't have to drive out here to pick your free-loading arse up," he added.

Merlin smiled once more. "Thanks," he repeated.

Just then, Arthur's phone went off. Not with a text, which was how Arthur usually communicated with people.

It was his father, Merlin could tell by the formal look on his face.

It was short. Really short.

Arthur had the phone held to his now gaping face, seeming unable to move it. Merlin immediately became concerned.

"Arthur? Arthur, what's the matter?"

And then Arthur started grinning. "Merlin! It's Morgana! She's awake."

Merlin's stomach dropped into his arse.

Oh shit.