Sorry about the looong wait everyone! (especially Princess Eilonwy – I'm really really sorry you had to be so reduced… at least it bumped up my review number! Anyway, here's the next chapter. We haven't forgotten this story! Merric comes into this chapter… the REAL Merric! There's some nice rowing in here… and a bit of blood and gore.
We don't own the characters. We own the depressing story we put them in.
Chapter twelve: Meeting Merric"So you say that Joren talked about Merric?" Kel asked, just keeping up with Neal's brisk stride.
Neal nodded, but did not say anything. He stopped at Merric's door. He knocked, and both of them waited anxiously for an answer.
"Coming!" came Merric's voice from inside.
The door opened and Merric stood, smiling. "Hello!" he saw the glum expressions on his friends' faces and his smile faded. "What's with the long faces?"
Neal opened his mouth to protest about the comment when Kel spoke.
"Merric, we wanted to talk to you about something. About… Joren."
Merric raised an eyebrow. "Yes?" he asked.
Kel didn't say anything for a moment, then, "Has he ever…" Kel's face contorted into various expressions.
"Ever raped me?" contributed Merric, smiling.
Neal's jaw dropped open and Kel chocked. "Um… no, but has he ever made a move on you?"
"Well…" said Merric thoughtfully, "he handed me a sponge without scowling at me once. Does that count?"
Neal exchanged a glance with Kel. "No, I meant more… suggestively… like he's… interested in you."
Merric's face darkened. "Oh. That. Well, I hoped no-one would bring it up, but I sort of made a move on him once."
"Whoa!" cried Neal, "Hold on, you made a move on him?"
Merric nodded glumly. "We were both drunk, and I sort of kissed him… but I regretted it immediately after I sobered."
Kel's jaw dropped open this time. "Um…" she said when she regained her voice, "So he's been… onto you ever since?"
Merric grimaced. "He's really annoying… He said to me once that if he died before I did, he would do anything to bring me to him."
Neal waved a hand at Merric. "Hello? Why didn't you tell us this before?"
Merric shrugged. "I was embarrassed, and besides, Joren does so it didn't matter anymore."
Neal took a chop and his hand. "Bingo!"
"What?" asked Kel.
"Joren likes Merric!"
Everyone, including the mice in their holes looked at Neal.
"We already established that," Kel whispered, trying to let him down gently.
"But…" Kel continued, "Why did he take Cleon?"
"Joren took Cleon?" exclaimed Merric jealously. It looked like he did have some sort of attraction towards Joren after all.
Kel shot him a look. "Let's think logically. What do Cleon and Merric have in common?"
All three tapped their heads with a finger. They looked like three head-tapping people.
"I've got it!" shouted Neal, jumping up, "Two plus two is four! If Joren took Cleon than that means Merric is still here! We can't get Cleon back until we send off Merric - don't look at me like that! - and we can't send off Merric unless he's… dead!" Neal grinned fiendishly and picked up a dagger.
"No!" wailed Kel, grabbing Neal's arm. The mice all shook their heads.
Neal sat down abruptly and sobbed. "But I want my son back!"
Kel squatted down next to him and patted him on the back awkwardly. "See what trouble this is causing him?" she asked Merric, her eyes full of grief.
Merric squirmed uncomfortably. He felt obliged to offer some help. However, he didn't want to. "Why do I have to do anything?" he whined.
Kel stood up, furious. "NOBODY DEMANDED YOU TO PARTICIPATE!" she yelled, "We just thought that you would be kind enough to help out!"
Merric shrugged. "That's basically forcing it onto me.
Neal stood up. "Merric of Hollyrose," he said, voice shaking, "If it wasn't for your 'drunken antics', Joren would not be pining after you. If it weren't for your pretty-boy admirer, Cleon would still be here. If it wasn't for you, I would still have my son!"
Merric rolled his eyes. "O-Kay!" he huffed and stomped to the table. He picked a knife and plunged the blade into his left shoulder.
"Merric!" cried Kel, "What are you doing?"
Merric winced as blood stained his shirt. "Can't. You. See?" he said through gritted teeth, "I'm . Getting. Your. Son. Back."
"And you can't even do that right." Neal muttered.
"What?" asked Merric.
"Nothing, nothing."
"No, I think you were talking to me. As a dead man, I believe it is a symbol of respect to tell me exactly what you were saying.
"I said you couldn't even do that right!" shouted Neal. "Don't you know that your heart is in your ribcage, not your shoulder?"
"Wee I'm so sorry I'm not the son of a healer, would you like to try?"
"Yes I would!" Neal grabbed the knife off Merric.
"STOP IT!" Kel screamed and held the two of them away from each other. For a moment each of them felt as if they were looking on the scene as an outsider - three friends, torn apart by the harsh workings of evil men, men who weren't even alive.
"Why is this happening?" Kel asked, breaking the silence.
Neal and Merric continued to glare at each other. Finally Merric grabbed the knife back off Neal, stuck it back into the wound and left the room.
Two seconds later there was a cry, followed by a thump.
Kel glanced at Neal who continued staring at the spot where Merric had been moments earlier. "You're not going to go find out what happened, are you?"
Neal pushed past Kel and stalked out of the room, not taking any notice of where Merric was or how he was.
Kel shook her head and walked out of the room also. Merric was lying on the floor of the corridor, the knife still in his shoulder, evidently after having walked into a wall.
She looked down the corridor and saw Neal marching towards his room. As he got closer, his steps landed harder. He went inside without glancing back once and slammed the door shut.
Kel sighed. She peeled back Merric's shirt and saw the wound had turned darkish and was beginning to swell and emit pus.
"Come on Merric," she said aloud and proceeded to drag her unconscious friend to her room. Leaving him in his own room wasn't really an option as it stank of mice faeces.
When they finally arrived in Kel's room, she closed the door and dragged him, head and shoulders first, onto her bed.
She sighed again. "Oh Merric," she said, wiping the sweat of his brow, "I'm so sorry…"
How was that chapter, eh? Don't worry, there's more! And we will see more Cleon and Joren action… but it might not be nice. Next chapter is still the 'live world', but it will get emotional and possibly angsty…
If any of you would like to read more slash involving Joren, I would suggest Fairy Tale by Kitori. It's a great story!
By the way… who are your favourite characters in this story so far? (I'd say we're about halfway through) Edgy wedgy really likes Roger (in this story, not in general...) and so do I, but I think Alex is cooler. I think it's because, in my opinion, Alex is the least OOC…