The next day found them all sleep deprived and irritable, but the morning passed without incident, and they all went about their usual duties around the castle, careful not to stray too far from the comforting shelter of the outer walls. Morgana had been assigned dinner duty, to which she grudgingly agreed, and had sent Merlin out to collect herbs for her stew with a smirk, a large wicker basket, and a half-sarcastic warning to stay close to the castle. Merlin had a sneaking suspicion that she had only sent him on such a useless mission because she was jealous that he had gotten out of cooking the night after Valiant died.
He crunched his way noisily through the undergrowth despite his best efforts, glancing nervously about him any time he snapped a twig or tripped and cried out involuntarily. Trying to pick herbs while looking at the surrounding trees was no easy feat, and Merlin could have sworn that the wild sage was going out of its way to cling to the dirt. Straightening and risking a quick glance into the basket looped over his arm, Merlin frowned. He still hadn't come across any thyme, and would have to venture deeper into the forest to find it. Sighing, he resolved that he could always use his magic as long as he was outside the view of the citadel, and crept deeper into the trees. Morgana was not one to be kept waiting.
After only a couple minutes, Merlin was relieved to see several sprigs of the herb in question poking up through the roots of a nearby shrub, and hurriedly stuffed them into the basket with the rest of the greenery. Jogging back the way he came, Merlin became uncomfortably aware of the silence that had fallen over the forest. He stopped in his tracks. There was no chattering of squirrels, no birdsong; it seemed that he was the only living thing for miles around. Hair prickling along the back of his neck, Merlin slowly turned around to find nothing unusual lurking in the shadows behind him. Yet he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.
A breeze rustled through the branches, and Merlin was about to turn around and continue his trek back to the castle, full-out running this time, when an indistinct mass of wings and claws barreled through the air straight towards his unprotected chest, letting out an earsplitting shriek. His mind utterly blank, Merlin instinctively reached out a hand in a futile attempt to stop the talons from slicing through his bare skin like parchment, screwing his eyes shut. He registered a clang of claws on steel and a startled squawk before realizing that miraculously, the pain wasn't coming.
Merlin's eyes flew open just in time to see a dark-haired boy brandishing a sword menacingly at a large, lion-like creature with wings. Where had he seen such a creature before? Releasing one last screech of rage and frustration, the beast launched itself into the air and disappeared above the forest canopy, the other tribute turning slowly to meet Merlin's startled gaze.
"Lancelot!?"
The tribute in question allowed himself a wistful smile. "Hello Merlin."
"But…" Merlin fumbled for the words to say what he wanted. "Thanks… err… but why exactly did you save me?"
The smile fell abruptly from Lancelot's face. "You stood up for Helen when I didn't have the courage to. And for that, I believed I owed you something. Consider the debt repaid."
Merlin could only stare at the other boy in shock.
"Besides, that griffon is a nasty blighter. It's been flying overhead for hours now."
A griffon! Merlin know he'd seen it before somewhere. He could picture now in his mind's eye the pages in Gaius's book that had warned of the perils of being hunted by such a creature. He swallowed thickly, only too aware of his close encounter. "You certainly don't owe me anything, but I know I owe you my life. Why don't you come back to the castle with me? You'll be safer there if the griffon comes back, and I'm sure-"
Lancelot tensed suddenly as a familiar voice thundered through the trees. "Merlin! Where are you? What's going on? We heard the screeching, and-"Arthur stepped into the clearing, stopping short when he saw Lancelot's unfamiliar figure. He drew his sword with a whisper of steel and pointed it towards the boys. "Explain."
"He saved my life, Arthur."
A/N: Ha ha, only a day late! :P I should have learned by know with all the Fanfiction I've read not to promise updates within a certain timespan. Oh well, here it is. Seems like Merlin or Arthur running through the forest to save the other is becoming quite the pattern here, hmm? This one kind of took me in another direction from what I originally planned, which was going to be a bit closer to canon, but I like this better. :)
