The next morning, dawns cold and bright, sunlight filtering through the boughs of the greenery, and the tree tops. Birds sang a delicate tune from their twig nests. A lazy swallowed swope through the air, weaving its way through the motes of dust that swirled and waltzed their way through the airly morning shafts of snulight.
Merlin stretech out his long limbs, languidly in his and his lovers large bed. He glanced from the window and smiled lazily, expression turning less graftified when he reached out his pale and delicate hand to the other side of the bed, only to find it empty of the golden muslcar form he was reaching for. He sighed a nd pouted a little, knowing Arthur was always early to rise to get his morning abolitions out of the way before breakfast. Waking up more, Merlin could hear the other man pottering around in the bathroom, he idly hoped his blacksmith-prince would bring him breakfast in bed.
Arthur finished in the bathroom and paced back into their shard bedroom, small grey towel, slung low on his hips, and rivlets of water cascarding down the coulmn of his neck from his soaking hair. Merling gawked at him paplably, stunned at just how attarctive his partner was.
"Honestly Merlin, you'd think you were raise din abarn" Arthur said and pushed his jaw shut for him.
"Oo ou 'ant somm?" Merlin asked, around a mouthful the breakfast he'd magiked himself of smoked salmon, rye bread and strawberry jame.. Arthur scrunched his nose up in his distaste.
"No thanks. Honestly, Merlin, the things you eat. You're worse than a pregnant women." He griped, as Merlin stuck out his tongue in a cheeky response.
"Not that I'd go near that concoction of yours agin, but I've already eaten, and saddled the horses. Everyone's packed and ready to go, lazlybones." He said, pulling on clothes from where they weer scattered around the room from the night before and its activities.
"Come on" he threw Merlin's trousers and they hit him in the face narrowly avoividing his breakfast, which he quickly transported to the kitchen with a wave of his hand
"We need to get a move out." With an overdramatic groan Merlin pulled himself out of bed and dressed, then they both went outside to meet the others. At the summit of the rop ladder Gwaine was just lowering the last of their supplies to the ground using there pulley system.
"Top o' the morning to ya!" He said joyfully and grinned when Merlin glowered at his perkiness.
Merlin's a bit of a grumpy goose things morning, Arthur joked, Gwaine grinned wickedly in repsonse. Auddenly from below came Wills voice:
"Hurry up0 Merls we've got a world to save!" Merlin rolled his eyes and stepoped poff the endge of the tree house plaftrorm, using his magic to descend to the ground slowly.
"MERlin" Arthur sighed and climbed down after him, followed by Gwaine.
"Show off" Will scoffed at his friend. Lancelot, Gwen, Elyan, Will, Gwaine and Merlin and Arthur all mounted their hourse and set off through the early morning mists swirling arounf the legs of their mounts.
The squad had pushed hard through the day on their horses towards Northumbria, and had some to rest in a mossy clearing for the night, as the fire flickered and danced in the darkenss, moths circling as though drunk above it, Arthur stared pensively into its alluring flames. From a corner, came the sound of Will crooning the same song he'd been singing the whole day's ride, in nothing that resembled the correct tune. Arthur felt, rather than saw, Merlin's mishiveous smirk as a bolt of playful magic flew from his fingers hitting Merlin's childihood friend and causing him to yelp.
"Och, wit hae ye dun tae me nu" Will asked, indignant as the magic hit him in the throat and he gelt the familiar accent spell weave its way around his vocal chords. Gwen, who have never seen the affects of Merlin's accent spell, burst into a cackling peel of laughs, echoed by Gwaine and Eylan. The lightheartedness drew Arthur out of his bubble of thoughts and he cracked a small smile, Merlun watched him as his face transformed in the flickering orange of the fire's glow and smile too, as his heart flipped itself over in his chest at the sight of Arthur's lifting mood.
As the group ate the sausages Elyan had prepared for them, their friendly banter transmorphed into a serious discussion of tactics in the forest starlight.
"They'll believe you're Arthur. King Alfred will." Elyan assurd Arthur.
"Are you sure?" queried Arthur. Elyan sighed a little and sat up from where he was reclined against a mossy log.
"I spent nine months there, big brother, I've met the man. I'm sure." He exposited raising his eyebrow and his adopted brother like he shouldn't doubt his word. Arthur rolled his eyes in his blonde head.
"You've met the King of Northumberland?" Gwaine asked, wide eyeds and disbelieving.
"Yes. I won a fighting tournament, against the best of his knights- the mountain of a man known as Percival and Leon, his head knight, the most experienced fighter in all the lands. The prize was a banquet with Alfred and his daughter, Rachel, and this doublet, he gestured to his doublet, made of richa nd supple leater, with a sutle encrest of the Northumbrian flag. Gwaine laughed throatily:
"His daughter?" he asked, implications in his voice and a wiggle in his eyebrow. Elyan just grinned and shooked his head before continuing:
"King Alfred told me that he knows that Arthur is alive, the Druids wouldn't have killed him. Alferd believes in Arthur's great destiny." He saud.
"And if not we'll persuade him!" exclaimed Merlin with a flash of magic, brimming with confidence in his lover.
"I have heard that Alfred is a wise and just king" Lancelut contributed calming the tone of the conversation. "I am sure we can convince him our cause is just and true."
"Och!" said Will.
"See, Will agrees!" gushed Gwen, proud of her soulmate's noblness. All of a sudden, Merlin let out a huge yawn, stretching his long limbs he stood up, looking at Arthur and then around at the group.
"Bed?" he suggested. Theere was a mummer of agreement from the camp, in recognition for the long day and the exhaustion of the crew. They all shuffled off to their various bed around the camp, and after a small argument between Gwaine and Will about who got to sleep clooser to the fire; they all settlled down to seep. As Merlin drifted off to the sound of Elyan's snoring and the rhythimic gush of Arthur breath on his neck, he though idly about the future. That might his dreams were full of dragons and kings.
The next day found them riding agan through forested woodland, though distinctly different to the woods around camelot. The floors were carpeted with ferms and was much flatter: unlike the deep crevises and mossy ground of the Darkling woods.
It was around midmorning, the sun creeping it's way to it's summit, when the peace of the woods they were riding were disturbed by a cry; Elyan's horse had spooked and r eared, sending him splattering to thr ground in a huge pile of mud.
"Elyan!" Arthur yelled in concern for his adpoted brother. He lept from the saddle of his horse to help, but Elyan ws already getting up, unhurt but very muddy.
"I really hope my soulmate is willing to put themselve through this for me" Elyan grumbled as he picked himself up from the mud and scowled at hid friens laughing at him from atop their steeds.
"I'm sorry" Merlin said between giggles and flashed his eyes at Elyan. It seemed that the spell was stronger than he expected, because no only was all of the mud removed from the muddy man, but also all the hair from his head.
"WOW okay I know I needed a hairut but your taking it a bit far!" Elyan laughed at his rubbed his head.
"I'm sorry! Merling cringed " I was only meant to clean you off! Do you want it back?" He offered holding up his hand.
"No fear! I don't want to be turned into a donkey by accident" He laugh and climbed back on his horse.
"I know it's Uther's spell but I hate not being able to control my magic properly" Merlin signed and ojbected to Arthur, who had cambered back on his horse. He reached over to rub between his shoulder blades comforttingly, and was happily pleased that Merlin lelanig into his touch.
"I know, it won't be too long until we can get this sort. Once we have allies we can march on Camelot." Arthur tried to inject s much confidence as he could into his voice, altrhough everyone knew he didn't have a freaking clue what he was doing. Merlin smiled at him all the same in appreciate.
"So Elyan, who is your soulmate?" He called out to the now-hairless man to change the subject.
"The most beautiful girl in the world!" He replied, beaming widely at thr thought.
"He's never met them." Arthur said pointedly with a raise eyebrow and smirk.
"Och!" said Will.
"Might not even be a girl!" Gwen called from where she rode side saddle alongside Lancelot.
"But she's beutiful, I know it! She's called Cynig De Vice and she is the most perfect and charming maiden in the whole universe!" Elyan was unabashed by his siblisngs teasing and climbed back onto his horse.
"And when she sings the Birds sing along with her!" Gwen added, jokingly.
"Forest animals gather at her feet to hear her talk!" Arthur announced with a big grin as they resumed their steady pavce through the woods.
"She is adored by even the most foul creature" Elyan joined in, used to this reaction from his family.
"What, Will?" Gwaine quipped
"Oi! You canny talk ye ugly tood!" Will cried brashly and throw an apple core which he had been eating at him, but Gwaine dodge it nimbly. laughing.
"Alright Gwaine whose yours then" Elyan asked with a smirk.
"It's me." There was an uproar from the group, everyon calling him a liar and a coward: none of them believed him.
"Prove it!" Merlin yelled.
"As if he needs to you can see how in love hi is with himself!" Elyan put in and the sound of the groups raucus laugh followed them deep into the lush green forest.