Gwen quickly hid her shocked face when she saw Merlin coming out of Arthur's bed chambers in the middle of the night. His hair expertly mussed. His clothes in disarray. Everyone knew what it meant to be Arthur's servant. There hadn't been a single servant who hadn't succumbed to the prince's charms.
When Morgana woke up, Gwen told her what she saw.
"Another one bites the dust," Morgana responded. "I really thought Merlin would hold out longer. There's such antagonism between them."
"So I get that new hairbrush of yours since I won the bet?" Gwen asked excitedly.
"Of course." Morgana smiled and handed it to her maid.
Morgana looked like the cat that ate the canary. She was in Arthur's chambers. "A little bird told me you are enjoying Merlin's charms."
Arthur set his paper down and looked at her, his brow furrowed. "What ever do you mean?"
Morgana giggled. "You know exactly what I mean." Then in her usual way, she sauntered off, leaving Arthur to debate the meaning of her words.
"You seem really cheery today, Merlin," Gwen said. She'd run into him in the hall while carrying her lady's laundry basket.
"I'm alive, the birds are singing." He grinned at her. "Arthur hasn't thrown anything at me yet today."
"I want to talk to you about something delicate." She indicated a deserted hallway where they wouldn't be overheard. Gwen decided it was best to not beat around the bush. "Sometimes the nobler classes enjoy favorites. There are a lot of nice gifts that come with it from being a…" She hesitated, not wanting to continue.
Merlin looked at her quizzically.
"A bed warmer," Gwen said so quietly that Merlin almost didn't hear her.
Merlin's eyes widened. He replied in a shocked tone: "Whose bed do you think I've warmed? Gwen, I have standards!"
"It's alright, Merlin. No one thinks less of you. He is handsome. He's the future king. He has prowess."
"I haven't! Arthur and I aren't-" Merlin sputtered.
Gwen looked at him knowingly with understanding in her eyes.
Arthur was getting tired of Morgana's knowing smiles and looks in Arthur's direction whenever she saw him. He was getting really fed up with her smiles getting bigger whenever she saw Arthur and Merlin together. It was starting to make him really grumpy.
"This is my breakfast..." Arthur let the oatmeal plop off his spoon and back into the bowl. "You've really been off your game, Merlin." Noticing the lack of response, Arthur said more forcefully: "MERLIN."
Merlin wasn't paying attention, but staring out the window. His conversation with Gwen had bothered him. What if Arthur did try and take him to bed? How would he feel about that? A well flung spoonful of oatmeal woke him from his thoughts.
"Gwen, I'm not sure Arthur and Merlin are… you know."
"I think you might be right." Worry covered the maid's features.
"They stare at each other all the damn time." Frankly, the eye sex was getting a little old. You just didn't want to see that while you ate your dinner. So was the whole sacrificing themselves for each other bit. It was getting really annoying. Even Uther was starting to comment on it.
"Milady, language!" Morgana did have a point though. Gwen, at her lady's behest, had been watching Merlin. But apart from that one time, Merlin had slept in his own bed in Gaius' chambers. Gwen was wringing her hands. "What should we do? I don't want Merlin getting hurt. Arthur has a reputation."
That reputation was a heartbreaker. Although it was nice to be a bed warmer while it lasted; you enjoyed many comforts and special treatment. Arthur's bed warmers were always short lived. Morgana had watched many a servant try to worm their way up to higher ranks only to be dropped by Arthur. Neither woman wanted to see Merlin get hurt, but they were also tired of the ridiculous amount of eyesex the two were having.
"I think we should give the boys a little push to see their real feelings for each other." Morgana smiled malevolently and Gwen shuddered. Her mistress was absolutely evil.
"Lord Bedivere, it's so good to see you." Morgana gave him a brilliant smile. Sir Bedivere was very handsome with golden curls and blue eyes. He reminded Morgana of Arthur a little bit.
He bowed deeply. "Milady, it's good to see you."
Morgana enjoyed Sir Bedivere's company because they spent most of their time gossiping and rating the knights of Camelot on a hotness scale of 1 to dragon fire hot. It didn't take long for Sir Bedivere to hone in on Merlin's beautiful eyes and sharp cheekbones.
"Damn," he said, staring at Merlin's backside as he walked past and Morgana smiled wickedly.
At the feast that night, Sir Bedivere was gushing over Merlin. He even sat the young warlock in his lap and Morgana happily watched Arthur's fury from the other side of the room.
Merlin squirmed uncomfortably. He was awkwardly sitting in the lap of a noble in front of the entire court. He'd much rather be mucking out the stables.
Arthur, finally fed up, marched over to Sir Bedivere and roughly grabbed Merlin by the arm, pulling him off the other man. Several people stopped their merrymaking and stared. But most were too drunk to notice the almost confrontation that happened next.
"Gwen, it's working a little too well!" Morgana hissed. She quickly walked over to Arthur and Sir Bedivere. "Now, boys," she purred. "Are we really going to fight over a servant?"
"Prince Arthur has insulted me."
"He's. My. Servant." Arthur poked Sir Bedivere with his finger as he spoke each word.
"Sir Bedivere, Arthur is a dollophead, but he's not wrong."
"I'll pay you for him. A chest of gold."
Merlin's eyes bulged out. Would Arthur sell him? Also a chest of gold was a lot of money to offer for a servant.
Arthur got right into Sir Bedivere's face. "Merlin is not for sale." Then he dragged his manservant up to his chambers.
"Why would you do that, Merlin?" Arthur asked once they were safely back in Arthur's chambers.
"Me!?" Merlin's voice came out very high pitched. "I'm a servant! I can't exactly fight back against a noble!"
"Right. I'll make a decree. No one is allowed to touch you except me." It took Arthur a second to realize what he'd said. "Not that I would… touch you, unless you-" Arthur licked his lips. …"Wanted me to."
Merlin turned as red as a knight's cloak. The room was suddenly very hot and stuffy. "I'll just fetch your clean laundry, sire." Merlin got out of that room as fast as he could.
"You're in a foul mood," Morgana said to Arthur over lunch the next day. "Is Sir Bedivere annoying you?"
Arthur glared at her.
"We all know how you are with servants. Use them and dump them. Merlin is no different," she said it nonchalantly, trying to rile him.
Arthur's brow furrowed. He knew he was being goaded and he hated it.
"Someone will come along and sweep Merlin off his feet. You better move fast," she said as she left.
"Merlin!" Arthur yelled. "Stupid bloody servant." Merlin could not be found anywhere. "Where is he!?" he marched into Morgana's chambers.
"Hunting with Sir Bedivere."
Arthur gaped at her. Then he composed himself and went to fetch his horse. How dare his servant go hunting with Sir Bedivere. It wasn't seemly!
"Arthur!" Merlin smiled happily when he saw Arthur. He'd decided Sir Bedivere, while a little handsy, wasn't such a bad bloke after all. Merlin was used to getting yelled at while on hunts, but Sir Bedivere treated him like an equal.
"Merlin," Arthur growled. He grabbed Merlin's arm. "Get on this horse now."
Merlin opened his mouth to speak, saw the blazing rage in Arthur's eyes, snapped his mouth shut and got on the horse. Sir Bedivere started to protest until Arthur shot him an angry look.
Back in Arthur's chambers, Merlin found himself defending Sir Bedivere. "He's not as bad as you think he is. He values my opinion."
"He just wants you to be a bed warmer, nothing more." Arthur's crankiness was at level 1000 now. He cursed Sir Bedivere. Why couldn't people leave his manservant alone. Merlin was his.
"Sir Bedivere has offered to pay for Merlin handsomely. I don't know what he sees in the klutz, but it's such an outrageous sum, we ought to consider it," Uther said.
"You want to sell my servant? Selling people is evil!" Arthur complained.
Uther waved his hand at his son dismissively. "I'm sure we'll find you a suitable replacement bed warmer."
"Merlin and I-aren't we aren't-" Arthur sputtered.
"Oh? Then all the more reason to get rid of him." Uther smiled. "It's settled."
"It is not settled at all. I refuse to sell my servant to that prick!"
"Think on it for a few days, Arthur." Then he dismissed his son.
"Why are you standing outside Arthur's rooms?" Gwen asked Merlin the next morning.
Merlin was biting his nails. "Mostly, I'm scared to go in there. Arthur is in a bad mood. Sir Bedivere…" Merlin swallowed. "Wants to buy me. I can't leave Arthur. Now Uther is demanding Arthur let me go."
"I'm sure that won't happen, Merlin. Arthur cares for you too much."
"Really? Then why out of all the servants he's ever had has he never taken me to bed. Not that I'm saying I want him to-" Merlin flushed, realizing how he sounded.
"Just go in there, tell him how you feel!" Then Gwen shoved Merlin at the door just as Arthur was opening it. Merlin tripped and laid sprawled on the floor, staring up at Arthur. Arthur had his arms crossed and his face looked as angry as a thundercloud. Merlin looked back to see if Gwen was behind him, but she'd flown the chicken coop.
"What are you doing?"
"Umm, checking for woodworms?"
Arthur glared at him.
"I, uh, came to talk to you." Merlin stood up, dusting off his pants as he did so.
"Come in." Arthur plopped down on his fancy chair, his arms still crossed and his eyes pointedly not looking at Merlin. He glared at the wall like losing his servant was all its fault.
"I…" Merlin licked his lips. "I wanted to say that if it were up to me, I want to stay here with you."
"'Sir Bedivere treats me like an equal,'" Arthur said, mocking Merlin's previous words on the ride back to Camelot.
"That's true, but-" How could he say the words in his heart? Arthur might be a prat, but dammit, he was Merlin's prat. He couldn't imagine being without him. He couldn't imagine caring for someone the way he cared for Arthur. He knew that he would miss the way Arthur would sometimes wake up in a spot of his own drool. He knew he would miss the way he threw shoes at him. He knew he would miss hearing that inflection on the first syllable of his name. Merlin could feel tears stinging his eyes.
Arthur's face softened when he saw those tears. Goddammit, he thought.
"Why have you never taken me to bed?" Merlin blurted out.
Arthur stiffened at that. (In more ways than one, tee hee).
"Everyone thinks we're buggering. Apparently you have a reputation, but you've never taken me to bed."
"Oh." Arthur squirmed in his seat. "That's not-"
There was a knock at the door and both men jumped like they'd been doing something inappropriate. It was Sir Leon. "Your father wishes to see you immediately."
Merlin hastily fetched Arthur's jacket so he'd look presentable at court.
When they got to the throne room, Sir Bedivere was standing before Uther on the throne.
"Arthur, I'm glad you could join us." Uther smiled. "Sir Bedivere has offered two chests of gold for your manservant."
Merlin's eyes almost popped out of his head. Two chests of gold!?
"Father, I've already told you. Merlin will remain in my service." Arthur offered his father a tight smile, but his eyes were blazing with rage.
"I am the King. Sir Bedivere's offer has been accepted."
"Like hell it has." Arthur threw down his glove in front of Sir Bedivere. "I challenge you, Sir Bedivere, for my manservant."
Merlin almost choked on his own spit.
"Arthur, what the hell is the meaning of this?" Uther looked furious.
Arthur ignored his father and met Sir Bedivere's eyes. "Do you accept the challenge?"
Sir Bedivere bowed. "I do, my Lord." He smiled.
If anyone heard little squeals of delight from Morgana and Gwen's corner, no one commented on it.
"Arthur, you really don't have to do this."
Arthur had been practicing for the last hour and a half.
Arthur spun on his heel. His face was just inches away from Merlin's. "If you hadn't used your-your-" Arthur struggled to find the right word. "Charms on Sir Bedivere, I wouldn't have had to challenge him."
"My what!?" Merlin gaped at him.
"Ugh! Your smiles, being kind, always listening. Those charms! Us nobles can't handle it. We're all so repressed." Arthur clenched his fist.
Merlin picked at the lint on one of Arthur's coats. He really felt like crying, but he still had work for another couple of hours and then he had to make sure Arthur got up early for combat. He decided that after this conversation he'd go to the mop closet for a quick cry. "I didn't mean- I didn't mean it." He sniffed.
Arthur sighed when he realized what an ass he was being. "I'm sorry, Merlin. I just-" Arthur swallowed thickly as he tried to squish down the bubble of emotion that threatened to engulf him. He didn't do feelings. "I know you didn't mean to, I know you were just being you. I would never want you to change. I want you to always be you."
Merlin sniffed and looked away, blinking back tears.
Why am I so rubbish at this? Arthur thought to himself. "You're dismissed until the morning."
"What? No. I want to stay the night with you." Merlin turned bright red when he realized what he had said.
Arthur was grateful that the armor was holding up his legs or he would've fallen down. Merlin couldn't just go around saying stuff like that. Arthur's heart couldn't take it. "Please, go get some rest."
Merlin looked like he was about to say something else, thought better of it, then left without another word.
It was a miserably sunny day Merlin thought as he was out on the green watching Arthur and Sir Bedivere getting ready to spar. The crowd buzzed with excitement and Merlin wondered how many people knew that the two were fighting over a servant.
Gwen looked at her friend with concern in her eyes. "Arthur will win. He's the best in the kingdom."
Merlin nodded and tried to smile, but it came out more like a grimace. He could not believe that Arthur was fighting for him.
The match started well enough until Sir Bedivere flung Arthur's sword away. Merlin felt queasy at the sight. What if Arthur actually died over this? Nobles were stupid. Since he didn't have his sword, Arthur used his shield to try and dent in the other man's head.
"That was aggressive." Gwen cringed.
Finally Arthur swept Sir Bedivere's off his feet, causing him to fall heavily to the ground. Arthur raised his sword and pointed it at Sir Bedivere's throat.
"Do you yield?"
Sir Bedivere could only nod.
The crowd went wild with Merlin cheering the loudest of all.
"You fought well," Merlin said. He was undoing the one million straps of Arthur's armor. Arthur was sitting down, enjoying some cold ale.
Arthur was in high spirits. He'd won. Merlin was his and no one was going to ever challenge that again.
Merlin's hands lingered a little too long on Arthur's shoulders. Arthur reached up a hand to hold Merlin's hand on his right shoulder and Merlin almost gasped. Arthur was beautiful when he was in his post battle sweaty mess. He loved the way his hair stuck to his forehead after the heat of battle, the way his body glistened.
"Art-"
"Mer-" they both spoke at the same time.
They laughed.
"You go first," Arthur said.
"Thank you."
"No, Merlin, thank you. You've made me a better man. You've helped me see what my people need. You're always there when I need you." He looked at his servant with adoration in his eyes.
Merlin could feel tears in his eyes. Damn allergies, he thought.
"I owe you an apology, Merlin. I haven't been myself lately and I've been really rude to you. About the bedwarmer thing…"
Merlin turned scarlet.
"It's true. I have a reputation. I-" Arthur fidgeted with the ring on his hand. "It's not that I don't want to take you to bed, but I didn't think you wanted to and I would never force anyone to do something they didn't want. I know someone in my position has a lot of power and knowing you, you would just go with it. I didn't want that… I wanted you to want it enough to take it."
"Arthur," Merlin said breathlessly. He could feel his love swelling in his heart. "I want to."
Arthur turned to face him. Merlin bent down and gently kissed him. In the next second, Arthur had pulled his manservant down so that he was on top of him. He kissed him insistently, running his tongue along Merlin's bottom lip until the other man whimpered and opened up to him. Together in a tangle of limbs they fell down on the bed and did not get up for a long time.
Morgana and Gwen gave each other knowing looks as they saw Merlin and Arthur emerge from the tent, both of them on legs that were a little wobbly and with hair that was mussed.
"I think our work here is done. We can tell Sir Bedivere to go home now."
Uther walked up to the two women. "I see I lost the bet." He laughed and handed Morgana a pouch of gold coins and walked off.