A/N: My reviewers are awesome. That's all I have to say. I'm just wearing a massive grin and thinking how amazing you all are. Thus, the early update. bubzchoc, thanks! CGO7, update! I'm liking the Mergana too... Honestly, I didn't expect it to become as intergal in the plot as I have decidedly made it... Distressed Clover, lol... Camille is based on someone that I know though her character, from the original legend, was a sorceress who bewitched Arthur into making her his bride... She may return, I haven't decided. IndiaMoore, More is here. Thanks :) mrlnfan, soon... very soon... HonourProject yeah, that happened. But it's okay! I'm ignoring them and still replying on the story. Thanks for the review! gorgeousangel, I've started planting the seeds for the ArthurGwen one... They have more of history and while I sort of made Morgana and Merlin be 'love at first sight' I'm making Gwen and Arthur's relationship a bit more, 'You get on my nerves but I like you' - Gwen and 'Who the hell do you think you are, but you're kind of cut' - Arthur. More dynamics, I guess... :) There are clear signs they're friends but they don't like each other yet. Like I wrote in the last chapter, they hardly interact with no one else around. High Serpent King, Arnold will play a bigger part in the next adventure... Did I ever mention that? That's I've broken these up into adventures in my head... Probably should have... Mediatrix, Yeah, the funniest part of it all is that they've read all of this story but they've never review before so... huh. It was strange. But it's cool, I ignored it. Thanks for the review!

Behold some emotional Arthur moments and uh... sorry for the time jump:

The Winning's of the Year

After a particularly long and harsh day of being a manservant to Arthur, Merlin crashed into his bed and snuggled up into his blankets, closing his eyes.

In the last eight months since the Prince's birthday and learning his 'destiny', he'd kept Arthur and what felt like half of Camelot safe from bandits, poisonings, angry neighbouring kingdoms, bandits, a crazy sorcerer who wanted to kill Gaius, a possessed child, bandits, some sort of troll and oh yes – did he mention the bandits?

Apparently, whenever Arthur rode out of Camelot, a beacon that no one could see but Bandits, flew up into the air and Merlin was forced to run and duck as he knocked out as many of the attackers as he could with magic without Arthur or any of the knights realising. And because he usually hid in bushes whilst doing as such, Arthur had taken up calling him a girl and a handmaiden.

But he took it. He took it because the prospect of having such a destiny excited him, even if it did wear him to the bone.

There had been non-stressful times too. He, Gwen and Morgana often escaped the castle together and would climb trees and play silly games and there was that awkward month where his voice changed and Arthur couldn't stop laughing at him and the week where Arthur had a horrible flu and Merlin discovered there was a particular cover Arthur used only when he was ill like a comforter which left Merlin laughing at the prince. That was until, of course, a goblet struck Merlin in the back of the head.

He had the night off because Arthur was having dinner with his father and Cedric was attending them with Gwen and Helena and he wasn't needed.

So instead he decided to take a nap, curling his arms under his pillow and burying his head deep into the down until he had pretty much smothered himself. He was just drifting off into the most brilliant land of sleep when a loud knock to the door of Gaius' chambers pulled him from slumber into a semi-awake state where he could hear what was going on but not react to it.

The door the physician's chambers opened as Gaius said, "Come in."

"Gaius," it was the voice of Terrin, the Master of House. There was a secondary noise of metal jangling but Merlin thought nothing of it. "Congratulations, Physician."

"On what?" Gaius asked, shock in his accent.

"You won the betting pool."

"The what pool?"

"You placed one gold coin on your ward lasting as Prince Arthur's manservant for over a year. No one else bet anywhere close to that and many bet on when he would be fired. You won the entire pot, my friend."

Merlin sat bolt up, waking as he remembered. Today was exactly one year since he had started his employment with Arthur. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

Quickly scrambling out of bed, Merlin fell in a tangled heap on the ground with his covers. He heaved himself up anyway, threw himself at the doors and pushed through to see Terrin standing there, white hair sparse and all over the place on his shiny head and blue eyes shining manically, holding a large bucket of gold crowns. His mouth fell open as he realised practically everyone in Camelot must have placed a bet. Was Arthur really that bad with his servants?

"Don't you remember Gaius?" Merlin interrupted, before Terrin could say anything more. Both men looked up at him in shock. "You laughed and said you'd put a single coin on the year. You made me deliver it in a letter to Terrin and only told me of it later. Remember?" he said, trying to beseech his guardian into covering for him.

"Ah…" he replied cautiously, looking between Terrin and Merlin. "I remember now. I must have forgotten in my old age. I have won all of that?"

"Yes, you have." Terrin chuckled. "Four hundred ninety-two crowns, Physician. You should be proud."

Gaius shot Merlin a withering look. "Proud indeed. Thank you Terrin. If you would mind leaving the winnings here…" Terrin did and soon after taking a potion to help him with his sore arthritic fingers, he left.

When the door closed behind the Master of House, the silence the physician and his ward were plunged into was deafening. Gaius wandered around his chambers for a little while, still tending to his potions and Merlin stood there, staring at him, shivering slightly in fear. "G-Gaius?"

The physician ignored him.

Merlin didn't know what to do. He went to move, but Gaius turned his head sharply and indicated he should stay exactly where he was. Soon after, Gaius went out into the hallway and returned moments later, pleased to find Merlin hadn't budged an inch.

He realised what Gaius must have done when he'd left, when Arthur arrived looking confused. As he was allowed into the chambers, he spotted Merlin and then the gold coins. He turned back to Merlin in shock and was about to ask where the gold came from when Gaius said clearly, "Sit. Both of you."

Merlin wanted to warn Arthur, he really did, but he was petrified of what would happen if he opened his mouth. He had never seen Gaius so angry. They sat on either side of the bench, Gaius hovering over them. "What's– "

"Silence." Gaius shut Arthur up quick smart then, picked up the bucket and dumped it on the table between them. "Now, I want you both to explain to me why I shouldn't go straight to Uther and tell him what you two have done. I'm sure he'd have a thing or two to say about rigging the gambling pool in Camelot in your favour."

Arthur looked at the gold then back at Merlin, understanding. "Gaius–" he started.

"You know Arthur, I thought you may have grown and matured over the last year. I thought that Merlin had a good influence on you and for the first time, I saw the man you might become." Gaius glared at him. "But to know you only let Merlin into your life for monetary purposes."

"It wasn't like that!" he defended.

"And Merlin!" Gaius turned his harsh look to his ward, interrupting whatever the Prince was about to say. "I thought you gaining a job with Arthur was for selfless reasons. To assist me to have enough to raise you. What had you planned to do with all of this gold?"

Merlin gaped. "I wouldn't have kept it all. I would have sent some home and given you the rest!"

"Do either of you understand why I am angry?" Gaius demanded.

Both boys shook their heads and Gaius narrowed his eyes. "Both of you are too young to understand this, but now if anyone was to find out about this, everything you two had done together and for each other will be tainted. Everyone will think you did it for the gold and maybe, you'll start casting doubt on each other and that trust and will be gone. Even I now believe that this last year has been entirely for this." He nodded accusingly at the bucket.

Merlin and Arthur caught each other's eyes across the table and winced. Did he only keep me around for the gold? Merlin thought with a small frown and at the same time he saw all of Arthur's insecurities flash over his eyes as he watched Merlin. "I didn't." Merlin said quickly to Gaius. "I became his manservant because we needed to money, yes but… only enough to live. The bet was just an extra. A bonus."

"A bonus for a price of your friendship." Gaius snapped.

"No!" Merlin insisted, looking back at Arthur. "It wasn't like that. I'm not like that."

Arthur stared resolutely down his nose at the table then back to the coins. "We'll get rid of them." Arthur said. "All of them. Is that enough Gaius?"

"It depends, sire. Is it enough for you?" Gaius turned on his heel and left them to their own devices, Merlin and Arthur sitting in the room staring at each other with the coins between them.

"Arthur, I didn't… it wasn't the money." Merlin repeated.

Shaking his head, Arthur waved his hand dismissively. "I know that. But Gaius is right. We can't… we can't take this. This… all that gold is there because people thought we'd kill each other." He sighed and glanced at the gold longingly, despite his words.

Merlin stared at the bucket for a moment and thought of what Arthur had said. For a moment he thought of what he could do with all of the coins. He needed new clothes and couldn't get Gwen to keep letting out all of his shirts. He could buy himself a proper blade sharpener for his dagger, Arthur's sword sharpener much too large for the small blade and maybe even those nice boots he'd seen.

But the longer he stared at the gold, and the more replayed Arthur's words in his head, the more he hated the sight of them all. People had betted against Arthur and Merlin. They thought they would fail. Each of those gold coins, bar one – the one they deposited – were from people wishing ill for them. "What if…" he looked to Arthur. "What if we split it between everyone?" he asked.

Arthur frowned, not understanding so Merlin went on. "Gaius needs new equipment and better ingredients and all this new stuff… that'll be sixty gold coins for everything, at the least. Gwen doesn't have new boots after hers were worn out for the winter. Five gold coins…"

Catching on Arthur said, "What about Elyan? His cloak is in shambles."

"A descent one is about seven coins. And… and my mother and Will don't have much."

"We'll send them fifty a piece." Arthur grinned. "That way, neither of us the money. Everyone else does. Everyone who believed in us."

Merlin smirked. "Elyan and Morgana both have coins in there, you know."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "I also remember Leon mentioning something under his breath about three months."

They took a quill and paper and started dividing up the coins and in the end, managed to keep twenty for themselves. "I have a new sword to buy and you need clothes." Arthur said sternly. "It would be rather foolish of us not to use some for ourselves."

"What if… what if I buy you the sword and you buy me the clothes." Merlin said and Arthur shrugged.

"If it makes you feel better." But Merlin noticed it made Arthur feel better too. They found leathers around the place and divided coins into different leathers and bound them into pouches with small labels on each.

When they had finished, it was almost time for Arthur to return to his chambers for sleep and his dinner when Merlin asked, "What now?"

Arthur shrugged. "You go to the kitchens and bring me my food?"

Merlin shook his head. "No. Not that… And you just had dinner! But that's not the point… I don't have to be your manservant anymore. You can fire me now."

For a few seconds, Arthur didn't get it but then blinked in surprise. "Wait… No. I'm not firing you."

"Arthur, face it. Last time your chambers were properly cleaned was when I got hit over the head by bandits and George took over my duties for the day."

"Please." Arthur stuck his hand up. "Don't remind me." The days had tortured Arthur, listening to George and his jokes about brass and his general perky and attentiveness scared the living daylights out of him.

"But… what now?" Merlin asked, tilting his head to the side.

Another few seconds passed as Arthur glared at Merlin like he was crazy. "You idiot, do you know how long it takes to train a half-descent manservant?"

Merlin leant forward conspiratorially. "I'm not even half-descent."

Arthur snorted. "Exactly. But no one else I know can pretend they know what they're doing half as well as you do and I'm much too busy to even bother."

"Busy sleeping in council meetings and having me forge your signature?"

"I told you to stop mentioning that."

The next morning the markets were open and Merlin set out to wake Arthur up extra early – or right on time, but seeing as Merlin always woke the prince late, it was early for him. When he saw Merlin bouncing up on his feet Arthur cuffed him over the head. "Stop looking so jittery. We're doing the right thing, but you don't have to look so damn happy about it."

Merlin rolled his eyes.

Arthur pulled his cloak on so no one would recognise him and they went around the markets after sending a sealed bag and letter to Ealdor with a very confused Leon as the messenger.

By the end of the afternoon Gwen was staring at a new pair of boots and a doll for her collection, Elyan had a cloak, Morgana had a new necklace, Gaius recieved an entire set of specialised equipment for his potion brewing, Mary the Cook received a new set of pots, they found Cedric some a fancy new polishing oil for his strangely vast collection, some new gloves for Leon, a hairpin for Helena, some coins for the stable boys, Merlin, new clothes and Arthur, a new sword, the two splitting up for a time to buy those things for the other.

When they returned to meet each other and exchange their purchases, Merlin looked at his in awe at the quality of the clothes and even saw the new boots he had wanted. His jaw gaped at that as he knew the boots on their own were nine crowns, made of finer quality.

"Arthur, how much did you spend?" Merlin asked warily.

Arthur looked up form his admiring of his new short sword and shrugged, not really paying attention. "Twenty-crown."

Merlin scoffed, looking at his new jerkin. Merlin had never had a jerkin. He just wore a tunic, not able to afford much more than that. "Arthur…" he groaned. "How much did you really spend?"

"I didn't use any extra money from the winnings." he said, glaring at Merlin. When that seemed to pain his young servant more, Arthur sighed. "Look," Arthur finally tore his eyes away from his new sword and said, "I can't have you die from the cold and if you keep complaining, I'll take it all back and buy myself a new sword."

He wouldn't, even if Merlin did keep complaining but it wasn't the point. "Arthur, I can't afford to pay you back."

"Think of it as an early birthday gift then. Look, there's even a stupid neckerchief." Arthur swung the sword around and peered at Merlin's face as he pulled out a blue-grey neckerchief to add to his collection. "Come on, I want to try this out. You said Gwen's father made it."

The afternoon went on as such, with Merlin admiring his new clothes and Arthur calling together an impromptu training session with Elyan. Usually Leon was there too, but he was on his way to Ealdor so just the blacksmith's son came. Merlin watched them, never joining in on the sword fights himself but grinned. There was no way Arthur had just kept him around for the winnings.

Arthur caught him staring at grinning at one point and raised one eyebrow in confusion and got a sort of sceptical, 'What the hell are you looking at' expression that just made Merlin snort with laughter. "Stop smiling." Arthur ordered him and Merlin just laughed harder.

\o/

They had a little over a hundred crowns left by the end of their day and Arthur was surprised at how much they could spend on their friends when they put their mind to it. Then he thought about what he wanted to do with the rest of the money and was surprised that he hadn't thought of it first. "Merlin?" the manservant looked up from his work, lighting the candles in Arthur's room and smiled. "Can I have a hundred coins?"

Merlin frowned and asked, "What are you going to do with them?"

He didn't reply, swallowing stiffly. "Just a hundred. The rest you can keep for yourself."

"But we said–"

"It's not for me." he said. "I just, can't tell you who it is for."

Merlin stared at him but then a look of ultimate trust crossed his face. "Alright." he said, smiling. "You can take all of the rest. I don't want any."

With a roll of his eyes, Arthur said, "Merlin. Be smart. Take the rest and put it aside. Start saving money for yourself and stop sending everything to your mother."

Merlin blushed and looked away. "Who else is going to take care of her?"

"She has a hundred crowns now for herself and Will. I'm sure that'll be enough for a long while. Now you can go. Have the night off and do whatever it is you do."

He put down the taper and said, "There is a party in the lower tonight. Gwen and I are going together, if you wish to come."

Arthur shook his head, "Have fun."

It took hours for him to make sure everyone in the castle was asleep. The lower town was abuzz with festivities but he wasn't going down that far. If Arthur was to be seen… he didn't want to think of the consequences.

Because on one hand, it had been many years since the fight but on the other, Uther knew how to hold a grudge and when Arthur had asked for Kay to be in his patrol, the man had gone livid.

So it was in the middle of the night when Arthur left his chambers, black cloak over his shoulders, one hundred coins in his pocket. He went out into the upper town, where most of the knights with families were housed. The bachelors amongst them lived up in the castle, but even Leon's family lived down there, despite the knight having chambers in the lower castle.

He found his way to one house he was particularly familiar with and, after peering around, knocked on the door. When no one answered, he knocked louder and three minutes later, after a gruff, 'I'm coming' from inside, the door swung open.

And Arthur was affronted with a face he hadn't properly seen for years.

The disgraced Knight, Sir Ector had not changed one bit, or at least not to Arthur. He still limped the old injury he refused to talk about taking up much of his mobility in the recent years. He still had the same gruff brown beard, though it was wilder than what he remembered and his eyes still were a dazzling green. "Arthur?" he breathed.

With a quick nod, Arthur looked up and down the street. "Can I come in? I won't be longer than a minute."

Ector stepped aside and Arthur rushed inside, not wanting anyone his father might have put up to keep Arthur and Ector separated to see him. "You've grown."

Arthur nodded slowly. "People tend to do that."

Ector smiled proudly. "You barely came up to my waist last time I saw you."

"I was eight." he mumbled, looking at the compacted dirt beneath his feet with great interest. The fire blazed in the hearth and Arthur could see the door that led to Ector's room and the one where he and Kay used to sleep in as children.

His throat closed up and he fought of emotion. "Here." he swung his hand out and in it was the purse of coins. "For you."

After a moment, Ector took the bag and opened it. "Arthur, what is this?"

Arthur shrugged, already heading to the door. "My father won't give you your retirement as a Knight, but I can. I mean, it's no where near what you're owed but, it's something." He rested his hand on the door handle but Ector took his arm and dragged him back until he was standing right in front of him.

"Look at me." he ordered and Arthur refused, staring intently at Ector's chest and ignoring the rest. "Arthur." The command was one he remembered from a child. When he'd refused to do something or got into trouble, Ector said his name with a certain persuasive tone and Arthur was forced to do what he was told.

He looked up and stared at Ector. "Please, just take it?"

"I don't want you giving me your gold. And if your father was to ask you what happened to your allowance?"

"It's not my allowance." he insisted.

The elder man grew concerned. "Where did you get this from then?"

Arthur swallowed. "It's… It's from a wager." When Ectors' eyes turned from concerned to disappointed Arthur said, "Gaius has already torn my head off and Merlin and I decided that instead of keep the money we'd share with everyone it and he sent a hundred gold coins to his mother and I'm trying to make things right with you. But I made him take the rest of the coins anyway." He blurted out in a tangent.

It didn't quite make sense but Ector didn't mind. He rested his hand on Arthur's shoulder and pressed the coins back into his hand. "There's nothing to make right with me, boy. You and I are right, do you understand me?"

"No." Arthur pushed the coins back. "We're right yes, but what my father did, isn't."

"It's not your job to take on your father's sins, Arthur." Ector said carefully.

"What did you do?" Arthur demanded. "What did you do that made my father hate you? Because he only ever trusted you to take care of me until he didn't and you were dishonoured and I could never see you again. You or Kay and… And I don't know what I did wrong." There was a slight crack in his voice but he refused to cry. He had cried too much as a child over this and he wasn't about to let it start again.

Taking Arthur's shoulders with either hand Ector leant forward and pressed his forehead against Arthur's and brought his hand up to cup his neck. "Listen to me, Arthur. It wasn't your fault. Your father and I had a fight. A big one about the way he was running the kingdom. I was no longer Court Advisor and I was out of line. It is my fault I lost my knighthood and I take the burden. You don't have to lift it for me. Do you understand?"

He didn't. But he tried.

So Arthur just nodded and stepped away from him. "Just… keep the money?" he asked.

Ector sighed and nodded, resting the bag on the table. "Arthur you can come to me anytime, you know that?"

"I don't want to get you into trouble." he said.

"Let me deal with your father. Trust me. I have known him many more years than I care to remember." Ector smiled and Arthur felt like he was a child again.

But the moment didn't last.

There was a bang from outside as a door shuddered and both men turned to stare but nothing came of it. It was just a reminder however on how much trouble they could both get in for disobeying Uther. "I should leave."

"Alright, Arthur." Ector patted his back. "Take care and visit if you can."

Arthur nodded in promise and then pulled his cloak over his head before heading up the road. As he reached the edge of the castle however, Arthur saw a man, much older than him, approaching. His hand went to his sword, but in his haste, he had forgotten to pack it.

In a recess close by he saw two more figures huddled away and he was about to shout for a guard when the hood of the man in front of him fell off. "Rowan?" he said in surprise.

The older man's face split open into a large grin, his deep brown eyes shining with glee and scruffy blonde hair falling over them. Rowan was Gaius's old apprentice, the man who had left in order to spend time with his family as his mother had died. But that had been over two years ago. A letter had come to tell them he was needed in his village and he would come when he could, but he never came. "Your highness. What are you doing out here so late?"

Arthur noticed the deep bruise over the ex-physician's apprentice's eye and ignored the question. "What happened to you?"

"Eh," Rowan shrugged. "Just a bruise. We road through the night. I uh, seek council with your father." Arthur flinched. It was no secret that out of all the people in Camelot, Uther had disliked Rowan the most and the feeling was somewhat mutual. There wasn't a individual reason why, but the apprentice and the king had always been particularly cold to each other.

Arthur looked warily over to the other figures and Rowan turned his head and whistled by pressing his fingers to his lips. From the shadows the two figures emerged, one man who looked much like Rowan and another young woman who was beaten black and blue and hanging off the boy. "So maybe it's more than a bruise." he commented lightly as Arthur gaped. "We need to warn your father. There is danger lurking on the edges of Camelot."

A/N: Remember that list on chapter fifteen? I'm going to reveal all the ones thus far, the ones not particularly important to my story right now and the obvious ones I'm rolling my eyes at and the original characters...

The baby – ?

The young plain girl – ? OC

Her betrothed - ?

Her brother – ? OC

The young child – ?

And his father – ? Sort of OC... He's mentioned in the show but never named or talked about much...

The long Dead King – The Fisher King

The Druid Girl – Freya

A knight – Sir Kay

And his father – Sir Ector

The serving girl – ? OC

The mistress – ? OC

The knight - ?

A man across time and space - ? - but obvious.

Another man - Rowan

His father – ?

His brother – ? (named next chapter)

A sonless king - Odin

The dead – Dorocha

The changelings – Princess Elena

A troll – Lady Katerina

A Goblin – The Goblin - Mentioned so far but not important... I just liked that episode

One old man – Balinor

And the woman – Hunith

Myth. won the competition so you can pick something for me to write about, as long as it includes no major character deaths. Just review or inbox me or something and I'll slot it in soon!