Merlin faded in and out of sleep. He worried he would fall into a deep sleep and not wake up in time for his normal duties, but he found himself waking up fully to the sound of the birds announcing the sun rise. He sat up and winced. He felt even worse than before. Now that his body had a chance to cool down and the damage had a chance to sink in, he felt even worse. In fact he almost felt a little nauseous.

Why the hell did people do that willingly? Then again… he did enjoy hearing Arthur make those sounds… and he did enjoy the way the other held him so close. Maybe it wasn't that bad but… all he could think about was the fact that Uther would know. That those guards knew. He couldn't shake the way they looked at him out of his mind.

He forced himself out of bed and became fully aware that he smelled completely of Arthur. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath of his clothes, which carried the scent of the soap from the bath. He felt heat rising to his face and sighed. There was no point hiding away in his room. He had his duties to start. He wasn't about to get fired for not doing his job after going through all that the day before.

The morning smelled of burning logs and fresh hey. It came in cold snaps to the face, the temperatures dropping now that winter was almost upon them. Merlin wanted to walk fast to get his body temperature up, but he was too sore to do so comfortably. He simply hoped the chill wouldn't cling so much once the sun had fully risen.

Standing outside Arthur's door, no guards present, Merlin took a minute to take a deep breath before going in.

"Rise and shine!" He said brightly. It was easy to fake since he said the same thing every day. He placed Arthur's breakfast down and moved to open the curtains.

He turned to see Arthur, his back to him, still asleep. He came over and reached down to shake his shoulders.

"Come on, your breakfast will get cold and then you'll complain." Merlin insisted. Arthur opened his eyes and everything clicked into place.

"Fine." Arthur complained, getting out of bed and going to grab his breakfast. Merlin assembled the other's armour for training while Arthur ate. Arthur would send the random criticism his way and Merlin would apologise and flounder to fix his mistake. Everything was back to normal between them. As if nothing had happened.

If Merlin didn't actually feel it, he'd be wondering if maybe he had dreamed the entire thing. Training went without a hitch. Everything seemed completely back to normal. Merlin almost began to forget about what happened the night before. He went about his duties as usual, as did Arthur. As sun began to set, tension returned to Merlin's body.

Surely once was enough, right? He wasn't brave enough to flat out ask. At the sound of the guards arriving to stand outside the door, Merlin looked up to find Arthur staring at him.

"Is that… all you need, sire?" Merlin asked, holding the basket of dirty clothes against his chest.

"Merlin… are you feeling alright? After last night?" Arthur asked and Merlin looked down, feeling the heat on his face.

"Yep, fine, completely fine." He lied. What else was there to say? Arthur was the prince and he was a servant. If he was asking how he was, it wasn't because he actually cared. Well, maybe with Arthur he actually cared, but Merlin wasn't used to burdening Arthur with his feelings.

"I'm sorry, this is all my fault." Arthur said as he moved to the bed, pulling off his shirt and tossing it carelessly to the side. Merlin rolled his eyes at that, picking it up and tossing it in the basket. "How could I have done something like that? I don't even like lady Vivian." Arthur said and Merlin felt guilt eating him inside once more. He tried not to even think about Gwen. It was, after all, she who Arthur truly loved.

Merlin put the basket down and took a deep breath looking at Arthur. "Arthur… the truth is… this wasn't your fault." He said.

Arthur narrowed his eyes at him. "Why? What do you know?" He asked.

Merlin chose his next words carefully. "Well… some of the visiting nobles were not too keen on the treaty being signed… they had a love enchantment placed on both of you hoping for war between both territories." Merlin said.

Arthur stared at him for a long time. "If that is true, why was my father not made aware of it?" He demanded.

"Last time I tried to accuse a visiting noble without proof, I drank poison." Merlin said.

"So, none of this was my fault?" Arthur asked.

"Of course not, Arthur. You're the noblest man I've ever met. You would never intentionally cause any dishonour on anyone." Merlin said. That look he sent Merlin made Merlin want nothing more than to reassure the prince. He looked so guilty. He smiled softly. "Will that be all, sire?"

"…It's cold tonight, Merlin."

"Shall I get more firewood sire?" He asked.

"You should get in bed with me." Arthur said simply and Merlin tried not to go tense. He nodded and left the laundry basket to the side before taking off everything except his trousers, crawling into the bed, feeling unsure all over again. He glanced at Arthur, who was just staring at the pattern of the top blanket.

"Anything else, sire?" Merlin asked. It was the not knowing what Arthur would do that made him nervous. At least if it was clear-cut he could prepare himself mentally. Were there any other things that people did in bed other than what they'd already done? He wasn't even sure.

Arthur didn't answer, instead he climbed on top of Merlin, settling between his legs and Merlin shuddered as he felt Arthur's hips pressing against his. "Are you sure this is alright, Merlin?" Arthur asked.

Merlin gulped. "I was born to serve you, Arthur." Merlin said softly. The response made Merlin feel a little dirty after he said it, and made Arthur look even guiltier. Maybe that's why Arthur chose to lean down and burry his face against Merlin's neck, to avoid looking into his eyes as Arthur began to grind up against him. The friction of their clothes made Merlin moan, feeling himself start to harden. Arthur held him tight and Merlin returned the embrace, holding him closer. This he liked. Holding Arthur close, being held in return, something pleasant building in his body and sweet sounds leaving both their mouths.

"Merlin…" Arthur whispered in his ear and Merlin felt his heart skip a beat and pressed his hips up against the prince. He wanted to kiss him. He remembered the passionate way Arthur kissed lady Vivian and it made a fire burn in Merlin's stomach. However, he couldn't. He was here to please Arthur, not the other way.

Arthur pulled back and started undoing their trousers. Merlin tensed as he saw Arthur reach for the oil.

"Turn around." He said and Merlin did as he was told, both of them avoiding eye-contact at all costs. Merlin held a pillow close to his chest as he got on his knees and closed his eyes tight. He shouldn't feel this humiliated! He was doing this to help Arthur. Uther was making them both do this. If only there weren't guards listening in at the door.

The oil helped, but he was still sore from yesterday and couldn't help himself crying out as Arthur filled him again. This time Arthur stopped and Merlin felt the other's thumbs caressing his back from where they held onto his hips. Merlin tried to focus on the tender act and slowly relaxed.

Arthur began to move against him and Merlin cried out again, leaning down to muffle his cries into the pillow. His sounds of pleasure again mingled with those of pain and he gripped the pillow harder. Muffling his cries he began to hear Arthur more clearly. He wasn't as loud as Merlin, but the small sounds he made caused a fire once more to burn in Merlin's body. The discomfort began to fade and as Merlin felt that little something building under his navel he cried out as Arthur increased the pace. Merlin could feel it. He was so close to reaching something. His magic began to thrum with excitement when once more Arthur tensed against him, holding him close, reaching that spot before Merlin and stopping his movements. Merlin whined as he felt the build up fade away and Arthur move back, collapsing beside him. Merlin shuddered as he too dropped onto his side, trying to slow down his racing heart.

"…Do you want me to go?" Merlin asked softly.

"No… it's cold. Stay." Arthur said and Merlin closed his eyes, bringing the blanket up to his shoulders, feeling drained and exhausted, falling asleep in seconds.

oOoOoOo

Merlin slept much better than the night before. He opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings in confusion. He felt Arthur's chest pressed against his back, his arm hanging around his waist. At some point in the night Arthur had pulled him into an embrace and Merlin felt his heart swell pleasantly, closing his eyes, enjoying the feeling of being held so intimately. He realised he shouldn't be thinking such things, specially since it was Arthur that was holding him, but he was feeling drained and was willing to take a little comfort from this.

Then he felt that Arthur was hard and he wished he'd left to get his breakfast already. "Merlin…" He whispered in his ear. Merlin pretended to be asleep. "Merlin." He called again, tracing his hand down his waist. Merlin had to use every measure of restraint in him to stop himself from pressing back against Arthur. He felt Arthur move away once he believed Merlin was still asleep.

Merlin felt himself relax as Arthur got out of bed to do something. When he woke up again, it was still dark outside and Arthur was back in bed, holding him close with his 'issue' resolved.

It was almost physically difficult to move away with how good it felt to be warm and safe in bed, but Merlin did just that, fixing his clothes and making his way to the door. The guards were gone and Merlin was left alone to contemplate how he was feeling. He was still sore, specially since he forced himself to walk normally.

First thing he did was drop off the laundry basket and headed for the kitchens. There was the usual gossip going on in the kitchen, probably about some maid or other. Only this time, the second Merlin walked in, everyone fell silent and Merlin froze looking up at everyone. The maids avoided his eyes, some hiding amusement, others disdain.

"Morning everyone." He said as he always did. They were always rather cold with him, considering he usurped a very high serving position out of nowhere and was mediocre at it at best in everyone else's eyes. But this was different. They would at least be usually polite to him. This time they ignored him and Merlin felt his mouth go dry. Did they know? That he was now doing such things with Arthur? "C-cook, is this the prince's breakfast?" Merlin asked, trying to act normal. The cook didn't send him her usual sneer. Instead she simply nodded at the set up tray and Merlin picked it up, glancing back at the other staff members, who watched him go without a single word. Merlin ignored the unpleasant feeling that began to settle in his chest as he focused on getting Arthur his breakfast.