Lancelot had been dreaming of this day for most of his life and now here he was, finally making the journey to Camelot - the kingdom where the best and bravest knights resided. And if he proved his worth, maybe he would soon be joining them.
It had been a long walk and now that he could see the castle in the distance through the trees, he could feel the nerves butterflying inside his stomach. He had been trying to force his hopes down during the entire walk but it was no use, his life's ambitions had been leading him to this moment and today he would finally discover if he was to be successful.
The noise of the browning leaves crunching underfoot was interrupted by an unnatural squawk echoing through the forest. He had heard his fair share of bird calls during the hours long trek but this piercing screech was the first to set his hair standing on end.
The flash of red running through the trees was the first thing that caught his eye, but the giant creature that seemed to be chasing it very quickly became his only focus. It had the face and claws of an eagle but it definitely wasn't a bird. Impossibly large and frighteningly fast, this creature was seconds away from killing the poor, defenceless young man cowering underneath it.
His feet were moving before a plan had even begun to form in his mind, his hand reaching to effortlessly pull the sword out of his belt as he ran towards the beast. As he reached closer, he could clearly see that the creature was distracted, much to his luck as this allowed him to strike its side with an element of surprise.
All surprise was lost however as his sword shattered easily upon contact. The metal splintered into pieces, flying off in different directions and failing to inflict so much as a scratch against the creature's tough hide. It was more than enough to gain the creature's attention though as it screeched loudly and whipped its head round to see what had dared to attack him.
Lancelot's heart almost stopped as he realised just how huge the creature was up close. Its golden eyes were wild and angry and its beak was probably bigger than Lancelot's own head. He barely had a second to think before he dropped what was left of his sword and ran in the opposite direction.
He felt bad for the poor man he had left lying there on the leaves, but he would be no use to the man if he was dead. He ran as fast as his feet would allow, his breath catching in his throat as he almost lost his footing stumbling over a tree root jutting out of the ground. The floor was practically vibrating with every thumping step the creature took and with such a big stride Lancelot was well aware the creature would be on him in an instant, but still he didn't dare look back.
Just up ahead he could see a fallen tree laying amongst the bushes and he forced his feet to move just a little bit quicker, the screeching behind him propelling him forward. He almost stumbled again as his feet hit the bark of the tree in an inelegant attempt to vault over it and the rough landing against the soil certainly did the bottom of his back no favours, but the sight of the creature jumping over his head and into the air had him grinning through the pain.
He stayed pressed against the tree for a few moments, praying that the creature wouldn't turn around in the air and come back down for another try. When he looked to be in luck he let his head fall back to rest against the tree, his breath coming out in heaves as a sudden nervous laughter forced itself out.
He had prepared himself for all manner of challenges that he might encounter in Camelot. Facing up against knights more skilled than him? Being shown up and failing in front of the Prince? Being turned away before he had even had a chance to try? Yes, yes and yes.
But saving someone from a giant mismatched bird creature? Definitely not.
Using the tree for support, he pushed himself off the ground, his back twinging slightly as he reached full height. He looked up one last time to ensure that the creature definitely wasn't going to make a reappearance and, noting the blue sky was clear of any terrifying beasts, he climbed over the tree and ran back to the spot he had last seen the man.
Lancelot clearly hadn't run very far during his daring escape because it took less than a minute to reach the clearing where the man was now trying to sit up and very obviously struggling to do so. He watched as Lancelot approached, wincing as he pressed a hand to his stomach but still he continued to push himself upright.
"Here, let me help." Lancelot offered as he supported the man's arm and gently pulled him to sitting. The man gritted his teeth around a pain-filled groan and Lancelot couldn't tell if the paleness of his face resembled his usual complexion or not.
"Oh god that hurts." The man mumbled as he lifted his hand allowing Lancelot to see a slowly growing bloodstain seeping into the fabric. It was impossible to tell how bad the wound actually was without seeing it but any kind of injury made by that creature was bound to be painful.
The man squeezed his eyes shut and took a breath before groaning again, though this one seemed to be more out of frustration than pain. As he pressed his hand against his stomach and glanced over at Lancelot, almost as if registering that there was actually a presence beside him.
"I'm okay." He tried to come off as reassuring but it was nowhere near as convincing as he probably would have liked it to have been.
Lancelot grinned at his efforts though, genuinely in awe at the bravery this man probably didn't even realise he was displaying. "Really? Because you don't seem okay."
The man huffed out a laugh and began to push himself off the ground, only succeeding as Lancelot, frowning at the sight of him, helped him to his feet. "I just need to get back to Camelot, then I'll be fine."
He didn't look in any fit state to be walking three steps in front of him, let alone the remainder of the journey to Camelot and there was no way Lancelot was going to let him struggle alone. Wordlessly, he lifted the man's right arm and draped it over his shoulder, his other hand moving to hold the man's waist.
The man looked at him in bewilderment, but his small, pained smile conveyed a great deal of gratitude. Lancelot could feel him tense slightly as he glanced down at the hand covering his stomach before quickly giving a short nod in confirmation that he was ready to walk.
They barely made it out of the clearing before the man suddenly stumbled to a dead stop. "Wait!" The sudden exclamation stopped Lancelot in his tracks. Was something wrong? Had Lancelot hurt him?
The man glanced around at the trees to the left of them before turning back with a guiltily look. "My mushrooms."
Lancelot blinked, confused. That was the last thing he had expected the man to say. "Mushrooms?"
"Just over there." He tilted his head to gesture towards a cluster of trees. "My basket. I dropped it when that creature came after me and Gaius said he needed the mushrooms today."
Lancelot laughed softly as he easily changed their direction and began walking towards the basket he could now see laying on the ground just up ahead. Whoever this man was he was clearly very dedicated to his work. "Gaius?"
"The court physician." The man nodded, gritting his teeth as Lancelot let go momentarily, leaving him to stand without support. The basket was laying on its side, no doubt having been dropped in a hurry, with the freshly picked mushrooms scattered across the leaves. Lancelot felt his knees pop as he crouched down to hurriedly re-fill the basket before looping the woven handles over his arm and moving back to help hold up the man once again.
"Thanks." The man spoke, his voice pained as they continued on their journey. "I'm Merlin, by the way."
"Lancelot." He replied warmly and reaffirmed his grip on the hand hanging over his shoulder.
Merlin could have sworn he hadn't wandered that far from the castle when he had set off on Gaius' errand and yet a good half hour later, he and Lancelot were still walking.
Well, walking is putting it rather optimistically. His side was aching terribly, the wound pulling uncomfortably every few steps and he could feel that Lancelot was taking more and more of his weight every time he stumbled or failed to hold back a grimace. It was pure luck that Lancelot had been there in the forest at the right time and now the man's steady chatter was the one thing that was keeping Merlin grounded and focused on something other than the blood still soaking through the fabric of his shirt.
And as further luck would have it, the towering castle walls could be seen up ahead and just in time too, Merlin wasn't sure how much long he would be able to keep going.
"I'm not naive enough to think they'll just let me join as easy as that. But it would be a dream come true." Lancelot continued with his rambling. He'd noticed that Merlin had gone quiet again, his face paling further the longer they walked, and so was doing his best to keep him distracted.
"But why Camelot?" Merlin asked in return. "There are plenty of other armies, ones that probably wouldn't require you to travel so far."
"True, but Camelot's knights are unparalleled. Their skill, their bravery, to join their ranks would be an unbelievable privilege. And to be led by Prince Arthur, I mean- that would be an honour!"
Merlin couldn't hold back a snort at that comment. Even through the haze of pain that was taking most of his concentration, he still couldn't take any honourable talk of Arthur that seriously. Fair enough, Arthur was a decent knight and to anyone else his princely qualities would be viewed as admirable, but Merlin had been his servant for long enough now and his only view of Arthur was the babbling idiot who was incapable of dressing himself.
You wouldn't be that impressed if you were the one washing his undergarments is what he would have said if a wave of pain hadn't shot through his side at that very moment, halting him in his tracks and leaving him gasping for breath.
"Merlin, we need to stop." Lancelot's tone gave no room for arguments, yet Merlin, with his pale face and gritted teeth still had the nerve to shake his head. It wasn't the first time he had suggested they take a break but this time he was insistent.
"I'm fine, we're almost there." Merlin gasped even as Lancelot led him over to the nearest tree and lowered him down to rest against it. The bark was rough against his back but it was nothing in comparison to the throbbing of his side. No matter how much his hand had been cramping, he hadn't dared lift it this entire time. The blood soaking his shirt was warm under his palm and he had learnt enough from Gaius to know that with an injury like it was best to keep pressure on it until it could be stitched.
But it was clear that Lancelot wanted to check it and, if Merlin was honest with himself, he did want to know how bad it looked before he was forced to face Gaius.
"I'm in no rush." Lancelot smiled encouragingly at him as he moved Merlin's hand away and slowly lifted his shirt. "And I think I'd prefer to get you there in one piece."
The gash looked awful. Merlin knew that he couldn't have been too bad - he never would have made it this far if it had cut him deeply or nicked any internal organs - but the dark blood still oozing out was somewhat concerning. It was a few inches wide, starting just away from his belly button and curling round towards his side with the skin around it worryingly red and inflamed. He hadn't exactly gotten the chance to observe the creature's talons - the giant face looming over him had been the priority at the time - but if the size of its body was anything to go by, its claws were undoubtedly unnaturally large too, so if anything, Merlin was probably lucky it hadn't caused more damage.
"Oh Gaius is going to kill me." He muttered as he closed his eyes and dropped his head back to meet the tree.
"If he's the court physician I'm hoping he'll be doing quite the opposite." Lancelot tried to keep his tone light and reassuring but he was having a hard time schooling his features. He hadn't seen many injuries up close before so he was left using Merlin's reaction to gauge how bad it was. The younger man didn't seem too concerned by it, more annoyed at its inconvenience than anything else, but still the fact that it was still bleeding was surely worrisome. He rolled the shirt back down and guided Merlin's blood-covered hand back into place. "Do you need me to do anything? Get anything for it?"
"There's no point, it would probably take longer to find any herbs I would need than it would to get to Gaius. Besides he knows a lot more than me anyway. I'd probably just make it worse." Merlin gave a lopsided grin as he spoke, head still leaning back as he felt the wind rustle through his hair. Now that he had actually seen the wound it suddenly felt like it was hurting way more than before, throbbing in an incessant rhythm that sent the pain radiating throughout his whole body.
He hadn't been lying though. Gaius was still in the process of teaching him the various properties of different herbs, what they looked like, what ones to mix together, what ailments they healed. He had never been the best student though, always getting distracted halfway through a lesson and struggling to retain what he had listened to. He wanted to get better at it though. He'd seen the way Gaius worked, admired his effortless skill and never-ending knowledge, and he longed for the day he would finally be even half as good as that.
But for now, a wound like this was best left to Gaius.
"I can carry you, if you like?" Lancelot offered innocently, not expecting Merlin's eyes to shoot open and stare at him like he had gone mad.
"Definitely not. I will not be manhandled through the lower town like a distressed maiden."
"I'm sure you'd make a great maiden."
Lancelot's grin was enough to get Merlin moving again as he used the tree to get himself back to standing, only letting go as Lancelot supported him again. "I'd never hear the end of it."
His side gave a sharp, stabbing pain as they starting walking again but he did his best to ignore it. The castle walls were in view and he could hold on until they made it inside.
Gaius was certainly going to be angry when they finally reached him - first for recklessly endangering himself and second for not collecting enough mushrooms - but surely the random attack of a giant magical creature would be a good enough excuse to not get berated. Arthur might even be generous and give him a few days off, though that may be wishful thinking.
As soon as he could though, he would definitely be having a word with Arthur about Lancelot. Merlin had seen Camelot's knights in action plenty of times. He had seen their training sessions with Arthur and watched them rally together as Uther sent them out on various missions. In Merlin's eyes, Lancelot had more than proven himself worthy today of fighting by Arthur's side.
He had, without hesitation, stepped in to help Merlin when the young warlock had needed it the most and that left a kind of debt that needed repaying. So as soon as he could walk straight without stumbling and blood was no longer ruining his shirt, that is exactly what Merlin planned to do.