A/N: Quick heads up- I might be uploading twice in a day for a few days next week because I'm going away the week after and won't have wifi. Hopefully double uploads might make up for a week without any.

Chapter 17

No one would be over until late in the morning, so Merlin and Arthur slept in, unaware of when Hunith and Freya left and waking up properly when Morgana rang the doorbell. Arthur groaned and opened his eyes. He was sure the doorbell had rung at least five times and now his phone was buzzing.

"Morgana," he groaned down the phone, shuffling away from Merlin who rolled over.

"Open the door, Arthur. We've been here half an hour."

"You have keys, don't you?"

"Yeah. At home. I didn't fancy breaking into my brother's house on Christmas."

"It's not Christmas," Arthur grumbled.

He forced himself out of bed, told Merlin he'd be back in a second and stumbled down the stairs to let his sister in.

"You look like you just woke up," she said.

"I did," Arthur yawned.

"It's nearly midday."

"It's also Christmas."

"Where's Merlin?" Leon asked.

"Asleep," Arthur rubbed his eyes, "I need to get him up."

"I'll do it," Morgana offered, "You get showered and ready. You have guests coming over."

While Arthur got himself looking presentable, Morgana made her way to the master bedroom. She sat on the edge of the bed and shook his shoulder gently, "Merlin," he called gently, "It's time to get up, now."

Merlin groaned tiredly and shook his head.

"I know," Morgana said, "But everyone's coming over to see you soon and you need to be up."

"Arthur?"

"He's just having a shower. You don't mind if I help, do you? What is it today?" she consulted the little exercise chart on the wall and, once she'd convinced Merlin to get up, slowly went through them with him.

Arthur came in just as they were finishing, "Gwen, Lance and Elyan are here," said, "Good day or bad day?"

"Bad day."

'Good day, bad day,' was the system the group used when referring to Merlin's mood and health. As time had gone on, good days were becoming much more regular. On these days, he's be happy, excited and optimistic. He'd get through all his exercises and stretches without complaint, would go out with Arthur and walk all the way with his crutches and make everything much easier for his friends.

Bad days were much more difficult to deal with. There were generally two types of bad day. One being when he was tired, sleepy and clingy. He wouldn't want to get up, practically had other people do his exercise routines for him. Then he'd spend the rest of the day napping on the sofa, reluctant to eat and not wanting to let go of Arthur for anything. The other type of bad day was when he'd get upset and anxious. Everything would scare him, he'd spend the day crying and shouting. They all hated those days the most.

Arthur sighed, "Has he done everything?"

"Most of it."

"That's good enough. Ugh, I should have realised. Letting him sleep longer makes him worse and he wore himself out from the excitement. Come on Merlin. Let's have some breakfast. Or lunch. Whatever."

Arthur had to carry Merlin to the stairs where he found that Merlin was being so uncooperative, there was no way he could get him downstairs safely by himself and loaded him into the stair lift instead. Merlin was asleep before the lift had stopped at the bottom and Arthur sighed in frustration.

"Don't worry," Morgana said, "Gwaine will cheer him up."

"He had such a good day yesterday," Arthur said as they took Merlin into the front room.

Gwen look up happily when they entered and then her eyes softened, "Bad day?"

Arthur nodded, "Bad day," he confirmed.

"I'll sit with him," Gwen offered.

Arthur deposited Merlin onto the sofa next to Gwen and allowed her to try and get him up. When Gwaine arrived with Percival, he put all his efforts into cheering Merlin up so when they all settled to open each other's presents, Merlin was at least slightly happier.

Later that afternoon while, Lancelot was taking Merlin out for a walk, Arthur talked to Morgana.

"Have you heard from father?" she asked.

"I texted him yesterday. But I haven't checked to see if he's replied."

"He invited me for dinner for New Year's," Morgana said, "I assume he did the same for you."

"Well if he has, I'm not going. I was going to invite everyone over again."

Morgana nodded and took a sip of her tea.

"Could you do me a favour?" Arthur asked, "Merlin has an appointment on the 29th. Could you take him?"

Morgana frowned, "Of course I can but, why?"

"I need to go to some adoption centres and find Merlin a dog as a New Year present."

Morgana smiled, "Of course. What are you going to tell him?"

"No idea. I'll think of something. Hopefully he won't be too upset."

"Well when you hand him a puppy two days later, I'm sure he'll forgive you."

Arthur laughed, "I can't believe he's having a bad day. He was so excited to see you all yesterday. It's my fault. I shouldn't have let him sleep in so long when he was upset last night."

"He was upset?"

"About Will. He got through the day alright but as soon as everything stopped, it became too much."

"It's not your fault, Arthur. We can take him out for a walk together before we see you for New Years."

"He'd like that."

"It's not been the best Christmas for either of you, has it?"

"It could have been worse," Arthur admitted, "But it wasn't great."

"Don't worry. It'll get better."

Merlin seemed a lot happier by the time be got back with Lancelot. He was still a bit drowsy and wanted to do nothing but cuddle Arthur, but he was a lot more cheerful and seemed to have realised that his friends were all over to see him. They all sat in the garden around Arthur's firepit and drank some warm mulled wine, ignoring the slight drops of rain. Then, Morgana handed out slices of her Christmas cake.

"Who's up for a walk the day after tomorrow?" Leon asked as they settled in the dining room.

Merlin looked up excitedly, "Can we?"

"Why don't we go somewhere different?" Gwen proposed.

"Like where?"

"There are lots of nice national park with cafes and things to see around here."

The quickly planned a day trip to a park near them in some woodlands around the ruins of an old castle and ate dinner together.

"Could I talk to you all about something?" Arthur asked as he dished out from pudding for everyone, "I know you all must be eager to get back to some kind of work It's been quite a long time. But, erm, well I'm not going to be returning to my father's chain of hotels for work. I don't agree with how he runs his business. But my father has spent his life raising me to own a hotel chain. For that reason, I would like to set up my own with your help. Every single one of you will be guaranteed a job both helping create the hotel and then later on within them. You have invaluable skills which I cannot ignore. Is anyone interested?"

"I think it's a great idea," Leon said, "You always managed Camelot well but I could see you wanted more. I for one would be honoured to help you."

"I agree," Morgana nodded, "I never liked how our father treated his staff or how he ran his hotels."

"I can't quite figure out what my 'invaluable skill' is," Gwaine said, "But working for you has given me a life. And I'm not going to get left behind while the rest of my friends create the best hotel business in the world."

"I was alone before I came to Camelot," Percival said, "And now I have a family. I wouldn't leave that family for the world."

"I agree with Percival," Elyan nodded, "I'd love to help you, Arthur."

Gwen and Lance shared a look, nodded at each other and turned to Arthur, "There's no one we would rather work for."

"With," Arthur corrected, "You'll be working with me, not for me." He smiled, "I can't imagine my life without any of you. I've almost forgotten what it was like. I don't want to move on from that. Oh, erm, one more thing. I want out hotels to be accessible to everyone."

Merlin looked up at Arthur. He hadn't mentioned that before.

"So, no crappy lifts that will always be broken, nothing that's only accessible by stairs or difficult to get to. We should have rooms on the ground floor which are at the same standard to everywhere else for people who can't get upstairs. We'll have feeding and water stations for guide dogs, door numbers written in braille, handles on all the walls to hold on to. I want everyone, no matter what their background, to be able to stay and not have to worry about how they'll get around."

"Arthur," Gwen said, "You don't even need to point that out."

Later that night, once everyone had left, Arthur and Merlin were lying in bed together reading when Merlin put his book down and said, "What you said at dinner about making the hotel suitable for everyone, that was really thoughtful."

Arthur shook his head, "I've realised recently that wherever we go, everyone just assumes that people will be able to get in and out and not have their experience affected. And the places that do have facilities for the disabled make it seem like it's a faff to sort out. Like on buses- for anyone with a wheelchair or buggy to get on, they have to wait while the driver gets a ramp out. And at swimming pools- if someone can't get in by themselves, they need a member of staff to come over and help lower them in. In cafes and restaurants, none of the tables already have a space left for a wheelchair. Someone has to come and physically move a chair away and then just put it in the corner awkwardly where it's in the way. How is that fair? To have ordinary people stared at and waiting around just because they want to do something they're perfectly entitled to do. How is making them seem like an inconvenience to others even remotely right?"

Merlin looked up at Arthur, his eyes filled with love and pride.

"My father would spend thousands on getting bathrooms redone because the tiles on the walls were out of fashion or the baths were a few years old. But not one of his hotels had a ramp to get up the steps into the foyer. None of them had hand rails anywhere except by the stairs. There was no way of getting into the pool unless you could jump in yourself and climb out again later. The key cards and handles on the doors were small and fiddly as if everyone can manage to use them both properly. And no one ever stopped to think things needed to be changed."

Merlin kissed Arthur passionately, "You're amazing."

"I'm not," Arthur said, "Because these things shouldn't have to be thought about. They shouldn't have to be fixed or changed. Getting up a set of stairs, taking a shower while standing up, being able to read a menu in a restaurant. Not everyone can do those things. And the people that can't are left suddenly being the centre of attention while someone else has to help them. Our hotels are not going to be like that. And people won't have to pay more because of it. And I'm sorry that it took something awful happening to you to make me realise that."

Merlin smiled, "I don't care. Because I'll tell you what- when I see anyone with a disability leaving one of your hotels with a smile on their face because they've enjoyed a stay there without feeling like they were inconvenient or getting in the way, the pain I've been through will feel like nothing. Even something as small as someone with autism being told they're allowed to take their therapy dog in with them or a deaf person being communicated with at the front desk when the receptionist is using sign language- they can make people's days. And you'll be responsible for that."

They sat cuddled together happily for a while, enjoying the peace and their company until Arthur said, "Do you mind if Morgana takes you to your next physio at the hospital?"

Merlin tried not to look too sad, "I suppose not. Where are you going?"

"There's something really important I have to do as a surprise for my favourite person in the world."

"Can't I come?"

"I'll say that again slower," Arthur laughed, "A surprise for my favourite person in the world."

"Oh. But Arthur you've already spoiled me rotten."

"I don't care. I really want to do this for you. But I promise I'll be back to take your mum to the airport. Morgana will look after you."

"I know," Merlin said almost sadly.

"I promise the surprise will make up for me not being there," Arthur said, kissing Merlin on the forehead gently, "You'll have to wait a couple of days to get it, though."

"Alright."

Arthur went to five adoptions centres to try and find the perfect puppy for Merlin. He met Labradors, Dalmatians, Alsatians, poodles, chihuahuas, shih tzus, Pomeranians, spaniels. Every type of dog you could imagine, Arthur had played with. But, once he was certain he'd found the right one. He'd then sorted out the paperwork, promised to pick the dog up in a couple of days, run to the shop to get everything he thought he'd need to start off with- he'd take Merlin shopping for the rest- and then rushed home so he could drive Hunith and Freya to the airport.

Merlin wanted to go with them, but he was still tired after Christmas and his physio session had been particularly difficult and required a lot of energy. Morgana was still helping him wash and get more comfortable when Arthur got home. Once Arthur had loaded Hunith and Freya's bags into the back of his car, he went upstairs to find Merlin. Morgana was helping him pull on a fluffy sock when Arthur opened the door.

"Come on, you. There're a few people downstairs you need to say goodbye to."

"Why won't you let me come? All I'd have to do is sit in a car and wave."

"Because, thanks to you buying everyone ten tonnes of Christmas presents, there's no space in the car for you."

"They're my family!"

"And you can't drive," Arthur said, "So unless you want to walk to the airport, you have to stay here."

Merlin frowned and stood up slowly, holding onto the wall for support. Morgana passed him his crutches and they made their way to the top of the stairs.

"Chairlift, carry or walk?" Arthur asked Merlin.

"Walk," Merlin said, placing his crutches on the first step and hopping down.

When they reached the bottom, Merlin hugged his mother, "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, sweetie. I love you."

"Love you too."

He waved goodbye to his family as Arthur drove off and then hobbled inside.

"Alright, squid. How about we do some cooking for dinner? Fancy that?"

Merlin nodded and went to find his wheelchair while Morgana went to get all the ingredients out and put them on the table so he could reach them to help. When he wheeled himself into the kitchen and rolled his sleeves up, Morgana was just fishing a bowl out of one of the cupboards.

They had a great time together making a pie for dinner and then a cake for pudding. Everything was completely covered in flour and eggs by the time they finished but miraculously they managed to clean up everything before Arthur got back. Well, mostly everything.

"What happened?" Arthur asked as he came in and saw Merlin and Morgana covered head to toe in cooking ingredients.

"We cooked dinner," Merlin said proudly.

"Merls, you've already had a bath today!" Arthur sighed as he took his coat off and sat down.

Merlin's face fell.

"Arthur!" Morgana scolded.

"Sorry," Arthur sighed, "Thank you for making dinner, Merlin."

"Are you alright?"

Arthur nodded, "Just tired."

Merlin set his jaw, suddenly determined to look after Arthur all night.

"Thanks for doing physio with Merlin today, Morgana," Arthur said, "I appreciate it."

"Don't worry about it. I'll head off now. And Arthur, father's bugging me to get you to call him, so…"

Arthur groaned, "Alright. I'll do it tomorrow."

"Ok," Morgana kissed them both on the cheek and left, letting herself out.

"Whatever you have in the oven smells great, Merls," Arthur said, "Do you need me to get it out?"

"I'll do it."

Arthur looked at him in surprise.

"I want to do everything for you today. You're tired and stressed. So I'm going to look after you."

Arthur smiled at him, but said, "You're tired too."

"I'm always tired," Merlin pointed out, "And you always look after me."

He wheeled himself over to the oven and studied it carefully to figure out how he was going to get his pie out. Arthur stood up to help him but a quick scowl had him sitting back down reluctantly. Merlin was very much aware that Arthur was watching everything he was doing closely as he placed a thick chopping board on his lap, grabbed the oven gloves and opened the oven. Merlin carefully put the dish on the board, closed the oven and slowly wheeled back to the table which he and Morgana had set earlier.

Once the pie was safely on the table top, Merlin got a bottle of champagne out of the fridge and poured Arthur a glass, getting himself some water.

"You made this?" Arthur looked impressed.

Merlin nodded, "Leon sent Morgana a recipe."

"It looks amazing, Merls. I'm sorry I snapped at you."

They ate together happily and then Merlin collected the dishes, once again putting them safely on his knee. "Get in the hot tub," Merlin told Arthur, "I'll be out in a second."

"Are you sure?"

Merlin nodded, "Go on."

He quickly did the dishes, put a scoop of ice cream and a slice of cake on a plate and brought it out to Arthur. When he handed it to him, he looked around the edge of the tub, "You didn't bring your drink. You once told me that sitting with a glass of champagne in the hot tub at night was one of your favourite things. I can't bring it out, Arthur, not a full glass."

"It's alright," Arthur smiled at him, "Don't worry. I can't wait for you to be able to get in here with me, you know."

"A few more weeks," Merlin said, "How's the cake?"

"Amazing."

Merlin wheeled over so he was next to Arthur on the outside of the hot tub and they could twist around awkwardly to kiss each other. Arthur ran a hand through Merlin's hair, "I love you."

"Love you. How did your hunt for a surprise go?"

"You'll have to wait and see."

"Am I allowed a clue?"

"Nope," Arthur grinned and watched as Merlin rested his arms and chin on the side of the hot tub, "You look adorable."

Merlin looked up in surprise and Arthur's eyes widened, "Sorry. I- Well, I wasn't lying. You look gorgeous, I just-"

Merlin laughed, "You're cute when you're flustered."

Arthur blushed and turned away. He didn't realise that Merlin was moving around him until he felt hands on his shoulders, massaging his tense muscles.

"Oh, Merlin."

Merlin smirked and kissed the back of Arthur's neck so that he shivered. "I think I like it when you look after me," Arthur said.

"You think?"

"I'll know if you continue to look after me when we're upstairs in bed too," Arthur teased.

Merlin smiled, "If it'll make you feel better, who am I to say no?"

When Arthur had been in the hot tub for about an hour, he got out and went inside to find Merlin preparing them both cups of tea, "The tv's on," he said, "Go and choose something to watch."

Arthur wrapped a towel around himself and headed through to the front room to choose a film to watch. Merlin had turned all of the lamps on around the room so there was a soft, cozy glow and the Christmas tree still sparkled in the corner. He'd set up the sofa with piles of pillows and his favourite blanket. He came in a few seconds later with two mugs balanced on a tray on his lap. Arthur took the mugs off him and then picked Merlin up out of his wheelchair, sat down and placed him sideways across his lap like a baby.

Merlin wrapped his arms around Arthur's neck and nuzzled into his chest with a little sigh. Arthur felt his heart melt for about the thousandth time since he'd met Merlin. He kissed him on the cheek and whispered, "I definitely like it when you look after me."

Arthur couldn't wait to bring Merlin's puppy home. He knew Merlin would adore it and could just picture it snuggled up with them on the sofa on nights like these. The thought delighted him more than he could say. Arthur kept Merlin huddled in his arms throughout the film, not noticing when he became limp and heavy because he was asleep as well.