Arthur and Merlin sat on Arthur's bed, much like they had when they were kids, talking about pure nonsense. Neither had been able to sleep because of all the noise the digging was causing. They didn't have many chances to talk this much because of all the duties Arthur had to attend to and, though they appreciated being able to spend time together, both would have much rather been asleep.
Merlin couldn't help but jump slightly when a loud boom echoed throughout the castle. "Honestly! What possessed Uther to order the men to work all night?" he snapped.
"I have no idea," Arthur sighed. "He must be deaf or something. I mean, how else could he be getting any sleep?"
"I wish I was deaf," Merlin grumbled, causing Arthur to laugh.
"Oh but that would take away the… fun of not getting any sleep for days on end!" Arthur replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice.
"It should be illegal to have this much fun," Merlin agreed.
Arthur frowned slightly. "Listen."
Merlin heard it too. Or rather, he didn't. He didn't hear anything.
"It's… quiet…" Merlin whispered, worried.
"Too quiet," Arthur agreed.
"Maybe Uther was sick of the noise?" Merlin suggested, but he didn't really believe it; Uther was far too suborn. He'd rather suffer the noise and lack of sleep then admit it was a bad idea to have the men working all night.
"Impossible," Arthur muttered, then froze when the warning bells started ringing.
A feeling of dread rose up inside Merlin as he locked eyes with Arthur. Both instinctively knew it had something to do with the mines below Camelot, so both hurried down; it would be a waste of time going to Uther first.
They had just entered the tunnels when a stream of men shoved past them, screaming.
"Well, we're in the right place!" said Merlin, grinning slightly.
"I had no idea," Arthur snapped back playfully.
They hurried through the tunnels until they saw a strange opening. Arthur peered inside, followed by Merlin, and they found what appeared to be an ancient crypt filled with jewels and a stone tomb in the center.
"I wonder what scared them off," Merlin mumbled.
He spotted a figure kneeling next to the tomb. Arthur approached the man slowly.
Something about the room felt wrong to Merlin, and his gaze swept over to a strange blue heart shaped stone set in the middle of the tomb.
"Hello?" Arthur asked, causing Merlin to tear his gaze away from the strange stone. When the man didn't respond Arthur touched his shoulder. The man fell sideways to the floor.
Merlin gasped when he saw the man's face: deathly pale, his features etched into a look of pure horror.
"I think I have your answer, Merlin," Arthur whispered, sounding just as horror struck as Merlin felt.
"How do you think he died, Gaius?" Arthur asked, kneeing next to the man. Merlin looked over at Gaius and saw that he too was entranced by the strange stone.
"Any idea whose tomb this is?" Merlin asked, snapping Gaius out of his thoughts.
"None," Gaius replied.
"Think it might be cursed?" Merlin glanced at the dead man.
Gaius didn't respond as he stepped towards the tomb. Merlin saw the stone sink down and an arrow shot flew from the beak of a seemingly ornamental bird statue. Without thinking about it, Merlin sent a gold plate flying, knocking the arrow of its course.
"You just saved my life!" Gaius gasped. "Thank you!"
Merlin gaped at the bird.
"Looks like we've found something you're good at!" Arthur grinned.
Merlin ignored the comment, and let the plate drop when he heard Uther approaching. The plate rolled to the King's feet. Uther raised an eyebrow, glancing at Merlin who looked away, embarrassed. Merlin knew that Uther thought he was stupid sometimes, and everyone knew he was clumsy, but he still hated seeing the look of disappointment on his guardian's face whenever he messed up.
"This is quite a find," Uther commented, looking around the room and taking in all the gold that was piled inside. "See, Gaius, I was right; there is treasure to be found under Camelot. Whose tomb is this?" Uther's eyes wandered to the strange blue jewel. "Gaius?"
"I will have to look into it, Sire," Gaius replied.
Uther had already started to leave when he noticed the crumpled body lying on the floor.
"How did he die?" The way he said it made Merlin's blood boil; it was like he didn't even care!
Merlin looked over at Arthur who slowly shook his head. Merlin could see the fury in his eyes but remained silent.
"He seems to have unwittingly triggered a trap," Gaius replied.
"To deter grave robbers," Arthur added.
"There is plenty in here people would want to steal," Uther agreed. "Have the tomb sealed. Guarding it is your responsibility, Arthur."
Uther glanced over at Arthur, who replied calmly, "Yes, father."
Merlin could tell Arthur was tired of having all the hard work thrown at him, but he also knew the Prince would take it without complaint. That was his job, after all.
Merlin and Evan walked into the courtyard and watched as Arthur got on his horse, and promptly fell off of it when his saddle turned over. The horse galloped off and Merlin frowned slightly when Arthur started yelling at the poor stable boy.
"Would you like me to get it done properly sire?" a man asked, walking up to Arthur with the reigns to the escaped horse.
"Thank you," Arthur replied stiffly.
"It's an honor to help serve the prince." The man smiled.
Merlin rolled his eyes, and grinned slightly when Evan grumbled, "Boot licker."
"No kidding," Merlin agreed. Something about that man didn't sit right with him; there was something shifty about his manner.
"Allow me the honor of brushing your clothes down, Sire," the man continued as he pulled out a brush and started cleaning Arthur's clothes. Merlin could tell Arthur was fighting the urge to roll his eyes as the man brushed him down.
"What's your name?" Arthur asked.
"Cedric," the man replied. "I've come to Camelot in search for work."
Merlin had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. Merlin whirled around when Uther replied,
"You can come with us, we're short decent servants." Merlin frowned when Uther looked pointedly at the stable boy before turning to Cedric.
"I'm so sorry," Evan whispered to Merlin as he helped Merlin saddle his horse.
"Shoot me now," Merlin agreed as Cedric got down on his hands and knees so Uther could use him to get into his saddle.
"Uther would have me hanged," Evan apologized.
"Your point?" Merlin teased causing Evan to smirk slightly. As much as Merlin didn't want to, Uther was forcing Merlin to go with them on the patrol to 'see what it's like'. Merlin secretly thought it was so Uther could keep a close eye on him, but he couldn't be sure.
Later, Merlin tried not to complain as the group rode through the forest. It was sweltering out and Merlin was sweating like crazy, he felt ever worse for Arthur and the knights who had to wear their full armor as well. Arthur signaled the group to stop when he heard a strange rustling noise and signaled one of his men to hand him a spear as he got off of his horse. Merlin dismounted just as giant boar started charging at them. Arthur flung the spear, which the boar easily knocked out of the air. The Prince stumbled back and the boar ran at them.
Merlin rolled his eyes when he saw Cedric dive behind a tree, cowering. He noticed one of the knight's discarded spears and whispered a spell, sending it flying at the boar. The spear buried itself deeply into the boar, killing it instantly. The boar collapsed right in front of Arthur.
"Who threw that?" Arthur's gaze swept across the group, finally meeting Merlin's.
Merlin started to nod when Cedric loudly coughed and Uther asked,
"Was it you?" Arthur and Merlin both looked over at Cedric who shrugged before nodding his head.
"You just saved my sons life!" Uther exclaimed.
Merlin stared at Cedric, disbelief written plainly across his face. How could Uther believe Cedric the coward did that? Merlin looked over at Arthur who was frowning as well. Merlin knew Arthur wanted to tell Uther that Merlin had thrown the spear, but Uther knew Merlin wasn't holding a spear, while Cedric had been, and both wanted to avoid the awkward questions that would arrise if they did tell Uther the truth.
"It was nothing, Sire," Cedric assured rolling his shoulders.
"I am forever indebted to you," Uther replied. "You must be rewarded!"
"No…" Cedric replied slowly, "I couldn't possibly."
Merlin instantly knew that Cedric was just playing Uther, trying to get something from him. But what he wasn't sure what.
"Come on," Uther encouraged. "What do you wish for?"
"I desire only one thing sire," Cedric began.
"Anything," Uther replied.
"A position in the royal household," Cedric replied.
"Consider it done." Uther assured causing Arthur to grimace slightly, Merlin knew this wouldn't end well.
End Notes
What a boot licker! Arthur knows what Merln did but still has to put up with him... what will happen?
