Gwen showed him to the door he saw her disappear into yesterday. It was locked so he knew he needed to get the spare key before leaving. Once inside, Merlin realized why it was locked. Bottles of old wine and another side that was completely refrigerated held unlabeled bottles of dark red wine. Some looked half empty while others looked full.
"As you are aware, Arthur is a Vampire. He requires blood, but he doesn't take from the vein. He hasn't since the day he was turned so he gets these bottles sent to him by an anonymous friend. Your job is to grab a wine glass, one of the bottles and bring it up to him." She explained.
Merlin was amazed, but something bothered him. "So he wasn't born a Vampire?" Merlin asked.
Gwen shook her head, turning to face him. "When his family turned a blind eye to a public execution, a raging Sorcerer decided to get revenge. It was Arthur's father that decided not to help the boy who was executed, but because he passed away due to sickness, the sorcerer decided to curse Arthur. Turning him into a Vampire. A slave to the moon and not being able to look at anyone. Since his family turned their gaze away, the sorcerer felt it was fitting to make anyone who looks into his eyes faint. Almost as if they died themselves. On a full moon,though, it can kill a human." Gwen finished, leaning against the counter.
Merlin knitted his eyebrows, still trying to wrap his head around it. "The last time the sorcerers used this trick was in the 1800's when they started the war, right?" Merlin asked, now getting intrigued in the story.
Gwen nodded, running a hand through her curly locks. "Correct. Sorcerers and Warlocks found a way to turn humans into monsters. They made an army. People were scared and the Magic users were fueled by that fear, thinking they were the powerful beings. Some magic users felt it was taking it to far and went to some of the most powerful households, presenting a solution." She pointed at the same mark Merlin had on her arm. "These Symbols. Back then, if you were granted this mark it meant you would fight in the war. It was almost like a medal. As the war progressed, humans ended up gaining numbers and the Magic users backed off. Now these markings over the years have been taken for granted. The story of them were tainted now that they are just symbols of a household servant rather than a soldier." Gwen explained, rolling her sleeve back down.
"Wow, I didn't know that. I used to read a lot in college but I never really knew the extent of the war. Most people seemed to have blocked it from their minds." Merlin said.
Gwen snorted. "Its because they want to be ignorant. A lot of people don't know what's going on in the shadows, but here, since Arthur is involved in a lot of the details , you tend to know more." Gwen reached for one of the glasses from off the shelf and grabbing a tray. She didn't get farther than that when Merlin decided to proceed with his questions.
"What does Arthur do, if you don't mind me asking."
Gwen sighed, turning back to face him. "He is one of the high council members. That meeting you went to, servants are strictly forbidden to enter. That's why you stayed out in the hall if I presume correctly." Merlin nodded, confirming it. She continued. "Thought so. There are five highly valued council members. Kilgharrah is the highest, then Arthur, Morgana, Gaius and Morgause. They are the ones who come up with plans on how to deal with the imminent threat."
Merlin cut her off, confused. "Threat?"
Gwen nodded. "There have been an increasing number of Vampires. The magic users are staying out of the picture, as if not to get caught. Arthur Goes on missions to deal with these clans that magic users have created for these Vampires. It's the reason most of his manservants quit." Gwen jokes. "But no matter how many times he goes on missions, his hate for the magic users is astonishing." She explained, turning back to the counter and grabbing for a bottle of wine, before reaching for more glasses.
"He hates magic users?" Merlin asked. That part bothered him considering he was a magic user himself. Being a creature of magic, Arthur must have felt his energy, so why would he employ him?
"He thinks they are selfish dicks and considering one turned him into what he is, I'd say he deserves to hate them." She explained before picking the tray up. "Come on, help me take this to the dining room." She asked. Merlin nodded, opening the door for her as they made their way to the dining room. There sat Gwaine, Lancelot and three other men he hadn't met before. They were playing poker on the table, surprising Merlin.
Lancelot perked up when he saw Gwen and Merlin enter the room, his face lit up. "Merlin! Good of you to join us." Lancelot got up and walked over to them, shaking Merlins hand but pecking Gwen on the lips. Merlin was a bit shocked at that considering one of the golden rules Gwaine explained on his first day was that dating other servants was strictly forbidden.
"You brought us wine? You shouldn't have, doll." Gwaine chuckled, placing his cards down.
Gwen chuckled, placing the tray on an epty dresser. "Thought for game day you would fancy a drink." She explained, placing the wine glasses on the tables.
Merlin clasped his hands together behind his back,looking at the table. The ones he hadn't met before seemed to be sharing an interest in him. Merlin cleared his throat, bowing his head. "I haven't seen you three before, but my name is Merlin." He straightened up seeing the beefier servant smirking.
"No need to be so formal around us, Merlin." He said, standing up from the chair, caring his cards with him as he held out a hand in front of him. Merlin hesitated, but gripped it tight, shaking. "My name is Percival. I'm the newest member of this serving staff." He explains.
Merlin nods, dropping his hand, watching Percival go back to his seat. The blonde night waved a gloved hand his way. "Im Leon. One of the oldest servants here."
The dark skinned servant pointed at Gwen, a side smirk on his face. "I am Elyan, Gwens brother. We started around the same time. Nice to meet a new face, seeing the same ones around here can get dreadfully boring." Elyan teased.
Merlin couldn't help a smile appear on his face. "Thanks… I guess." He says, looking over at Gwen who was pouring wine into the last glass. She turned to meet Merlins eyes, a small smile on her face.
"What?" She asked playfully.
Merlin gulped, pointing at Lancelot who had returned to his seat. "I don't mean to pry, but are you and Lancelot… a thing?"
Gwen laughed. "Politely said, Merlin." She looked over at Lancelot who had his attention on Gwaine. "We are. We have been for almost 4 years now."
"Gwaine said that dating other servants was forbidden… does Master know?" Merlin asked.
Gwen nodded, leaning against the dresser, looking at Lancelot longingly. "4 years ago, Lancelot was a new servant. I was trying to show him around and teach him what to do. When we bumped into each other on the way to a staff meeting, I blushed. Lance seemed to notice it and he reached for a purple lilac from the flower pot directly behind me. Holding it out he said "A beautiful flower for a stunning lady." and I fell for him that instant." She looked at Merlin with a soft smile. "We dated for almost 6 months undetected but when Master found out, he was mad, but didn't deny it. He told us we were the exception because we made such a beautiful pair. Master may be cold, but hes not heartless." Gwen explained, turning back around and grabbing some glasses, walking them over to the table.
Merlin smiled, walking over to grab the other glasses and helped Gwen pass them out. Hearing about a soft side to Arthur made him not feel so suffocated in his position. The only thing that seemed to scare him was the fact Arthur hated Magic users and he was one. If his magic got out, what would happen to him? He needed this job to pay off the people he owed. He tried to save his mother, but he didn't have the money. He borrowed from some shady people and now he was in debt big time and they weren't the nicest people in the world. Losing this job wasn't and option so now he needed to keep his magic on the downlow as much as possible. It was for his own good.
