Author: LadyFromPoland

Disclaimer: I don't own "Merlin". It is a TV show which belongs to BBC.

Warning: SLASH

English is not my mother language.

First of all, I want to thank you for all your amazing reviews. They really keep me going. However, I'm not sure when I update the next chapter. It can last more than a week but I will do everything to give it to you before New Year. It's all caused by one-shot story that is in my mind and doesn't want to let go. It's going to be Merlin/Gwaine slash with light hint of Merlin/Arthur. I just realised that there's few M/G slash fics and that guys really deserve more attention.

Now read!


Dearest to his heart

Chapter 3

"The trip"

Arthur didn't want to admit it but he was quite excited about the trip. It could be a nice moment of pleasurable rest.

When the king was running down the stairs to meet Merlin, Lady Miranda stopped him.

"Where are you going, my lord?" she asked him sweetly. "You're in such a rush. Has something happened?"

The blonde was a bit confused. His mind was already out of Camelot. "I'm going for a horse ride," he answered quickly.

"A ride!" Miranda sighed. "It sounds so nice. I'd love to..."

"I'm sorry, my lady, but I need to hurry up." Arthur glanced at her apologetically. "Merlin's already waiting for me." Then he ran downstairs.

The woman could not believe in what had just happened. Arthur went for a horse ride with a sorcerer and left her in the castle.

"Merlin..." Miranda hissed. She knew that it all was his fault. She couldn't understand why that boy, because he hardly looked like a man, had such an effect on the young king. They seemed to be very close and the princess didn't like it at all.

She decided to ask Kiara to get as many information about the Court Magician as she could. It could be useful in the battle of Arthur's attention and heart.

oOoOo

Merlin and Arthur were galloping through the forest. They felt the wind in their hair and the fresh, cold air in their lungs. It all felt so good.

"What's our destination?" the blonde asked his friend for the hundredth time.

"You'll see soon," Merlin promised him but didn't say any detail. "You won't regret."

Arthur shook his head with resignation. He had to trust Merlin's assessment as he usually did. He only hoped that the warlock didn't lie telling him that he was going to find out soon.

Suddenly Merlin stopped his horse. He had become a quite good rider as for such a naturally clumsy person. It, of course, had taken him much more time than it should have.

The younger man turned his head towards the blonde. "We're really close," he said, smiling. "I come there sometimes... when I just want to wonder... It's a very nice place and I thought that it was very egoistic to have it only for my own. That's why I want to share it with you."

"You're sometimes such a girl," Arthur mumbled but he was truly curious.

Merlin rolled his eyes but didn't say anything about girl thing. He got used to that insult from his friend's mouth.

"We need to leave horses here," the sorcerer told the blonde after a while and they both slid off the horses. Soon the animals were tied to the trees.

"Where are we going now?" Arthur asked, gazing around.

"Just follow me," Merlin said quite calmly. "Try to be silent. If you are, you'll see the true beauty of the place."

The blonde couldn't help rolling his eyes. "You are the clumsiest person the Camelot has ever known," he reminded the warlock. "Not me."

"Arthur..." the younger man hissed. "Come on."

The king listened to his friend and followed him quietly. The trees and bushes grew densely there. At night it could look scary but in daytime the light forced its way through the branches, creating a lovely effect.

Suddenly Merlin stopped and turned around to face his friend. "We're close to that place now," he whispered.

"Then what are you waiting for?" the fair haired man asked a bit curiously.

"For you." The sorcerer sighed. "You really need to be calm and quiet."

Arthur took a deep breath. "I am," he said finally.

Merlin smiled in his adorable way. "Then let's go." His moves became slower and more careful. It was so not like Merlin and the king was a bit impressed.

Abruptly Arthur noticed that there were less and less trees and bushes. He saw a light ahead them and he knew that they soon would step into a clearing or something like that.

The blonde wanted to tell Merlin once again that he was such a girl but then they reached their destination. All what Arthur could do was gazing around, admiring the beauty of that place. He saw a calm lake surrendered by large and old but absolutely beautiful willows. That place just didn't fit the whole forest. The wood was wild, green and totally ordinary. The landscape in front of two men was shining with millions shades of colours. Not only green but also blue, gold, red and much, much more. The wild flowers didn't seem wild at all. They were a part of the lake and the willows. Without them that place wouldn't have been the same.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Merlin asked, grinning stupidly. "I often come here when I need to think about something important or when I just need to relax."

Arthur came up to the lakeside and soaked his hand in the water. It was warmer than he'd been thinking. Warmer than it should have been.

"That place seems to be magical," the king finally said. "Have you had a hand in it, Merlin?" he asked.

"No." The warlock shook his head. "It looked exactly the same when I found it."

The fair haired man looked at his friend. "And how did you find it?"

Merlin smiled sheepishly. "I was just wondering. You know... I was a bit confused. I wondered about telling you about my gift. It was not easy to decide." He sighed lightly. "And then I came here and saw that calmness... It soothed my nerves and made me think that everything could end well."

"And it did," Arthur said quietly.

The sorcerer looked down. "Yes..." he mumbled, though he knew that there were things that just couldn't end in the way he dreamt. "Since that day I've been coming here," Merlin added after a while. "It helps me hoping that no matter what, there is always some light."

The blonde didn't say anything. He listened to his friend and watched that place. He understood Merlin's point of view.

"You're the only person that I've showed this place to," the warlock said suddenly. He somehow wanted the prat to feel special. He wanted the prat to understand how dear he was to his heart. Merlin was not brave enough to confess all the things he was hiding.

Arthur was truly surprised. Not about the fact but by the confession and the way his friend had admitted that. The thought of asking Merlin why he chose him crossed the young king's mind, but the blonde quickly decided not to ruin that moment.

There was a long silence between that two men. It was a bit mystical and it scared Arthur. He was used to Merlin's babbling, not to something like that.

"Come on," Arthur said abruptly.

The sorcerer looked at his king and saw as he started taking his shirt off.

"What are you doing?" Merlin asked, trying to ignore his stupid heart.

The fair haired man rolled his eyes. "As for such a great warlock you are quite dense. I am stripping down," he said very slowly and clearly.

"I can see that," the sorcerer murmured. "I just wonder what's the reason."

"I'm going to make a use of being here and take a bathe in the lake," Arthur informed his friend, smirking. "And you're going to follow me," he added after a while, seeing that Merlin didn't even stir.

The sorcerer was only able to stare at his king.

"Hurry up, Merlin!" Arthur called. He wore only his breeches now. "We don't have all day!"

Merlin was not sure what to do. The poor warlock was partly amazed and partly ashamed. When he didn't do and didn't say anything, the blonde came up to him and slowly pulled his shirt off. It felt very good to have Arthur so close, to feel king's touch and have his attention.

"Water is warm," the ruler of Camelot assured Merlin. "It'll be fine."

The sorcerer nodded slowly and eventually smiled. Then he finished stripping himself down to the breeches. He felt a light wind what made him shiver a little bit but it was still pleasurable.

"What are you waiting for?" Arthur asked. He was already in the water. "Come here."

Merlin rolled his eyes but eventually went into the water, smiling like a child who got his favourite toy.

"It's really nice," the warlock spoke when he stood by his king's side. The water reached to their waists already.

"I told you!" Arthur said in his royal, annoying manner. "Do as your king recommend and you won't regret."

Merlin laughed lightly. "Remember that coming here was my idea," he said.

"However I was merciful enough and I agreed. If I wasn't there, you wouldn't come into the water... you would be bored actually!"

"Prat," the dark haired man mumbled and splashed his friend.

"I am your king and you should show me some respect!" Arthur wanted it to sound threatening but it didn't. He decided to splash Merlin instead, what made the warlock giggle. "How dare you laugh at me? Do you now that I can sentence you to death?"

"You wouldn't dare! Who would protect your royal backside then?" Merlin teased.

"I would find some idiot," Arthur couldn't help saying it. "Not as big as you, of course."

The sorcerer nudged his friend and they started the true water fight. They didn't feel any more as king and advisor. They were like two little boys. They really felt like children.

It was incredible. All the worries were left behind in Camelot. The time seemed to stop for a while and it was perfect.

The innocent laughters filled the peaceful place but they somehow fitted there. They became a part of that small land as if they always belonged there.

After some time Merlin and Arthur went out of the water, wet and tired, but first of all happy. They lay down on a ground, breathing in and out. The sun was pleasantly warming up their bodies.

The men remained silent for a while. The words weren't necessary. They weren't able to express the things that had happened.

Arthur let himself close the eyes. He looked so beautiful with his wet hair and bare chest. Merlin just couldn't help staring. Some part of him told him that it wasn't fair, that the prat was his friend and he shouldn't have taken such advantages. However there was also a part that tried to convince the first one that he wasn't doing anything wrong. It was just staring after all. The warlock didn't hurt anybody by taking a look.

"Arthur?" Merlin finally spoke up. He thought that it was time to come back to Camelot and trouble; and Lady Miranda of course.

The blonde didn't even stir.

"Arthur?" the dark haired man repeated, frowning a little bit. Just then he realised that the king was breathing slowly and steadily. It could only mean that he was sleeping. As a confirmation, Merlin heard Arthur's light snoring.

It was not for sure the most beautiful sound all over the world. However the warlock found it cute and lovely.

Merlin watched the king very carefully. He couldn't believe that Arthur was sleeping right in front of him, half-naked and so calm. The sorcerer felt so well. He had never supposed that he would have seen the prat like that.

The dark haired man wanted to stay like this forever. However that dream was too selfish to come true. He couldn't have Arthur only for himself. The king had his destiny, was meant to unite all the lands of Albion. Merlin's doom was to watch over the prat. The warlock was the part of Arthur's destiny but it was not the part that he wished to be. He knew that his heart was too involved in the whole destiny stuff. The problem was that he couldn't separate these two things.

Merlin moved closer to his friend and shook his royal shoulder. "Arthur..." he said quietly, wanting to wake Arthur up but not in a harsh way.

The other man knitted his brows and in a few seconds he opened his eyes. Arthur was a little bit confused. It took his a while to realise where he was. Where they both were.

"Was I sleeping?" the blonde murmured.

Merlin nodded his head with disbelieving smile. "You were snoring so I suppose that it was sleeping."

"I do not snore!" Arthur said quite firmly. He was always sensitive to that case.

"Of course not," the sorcerer mocked. "Anyway... I think that it's time for us."

Arthur looked up at the sky. The sun was much lower than the last time he glanced at it.

"You're right," the king said, standing up slowly. He looked around, seeking his clothes. Then Merlin murmured a short spell and the clothes landed in hands of their owners.

"Useful," the blonde mumbled. "Thank you."

Merlin felt a familiar warmth in his heart. It always happened when Arthur was thanking or praising him. The warlock knew that it was childish but he couldn't change that. He was eager for every good word that he could hear from his friend's lips. It felt almost as if he was loved romantically.

The men found the way to their horses very quickly. They didn't waste time for anything and simply started their way back. Once again that day Merlin didn't want something to come to an end. He loved the carefree conversation with Arthur when they were riding. It recalled sorcerer of times when he was a simple servant, a boy who was slowly falling for his master. It was as much painful as beautiful. It took him years to fully understand the meaning of love, to let himself call the feeling that he had been hiding in his heart.

"It was a nice day," Arthur told Merlin when the stable boy took their horses. "I haven't been feeling so well for ages."

The sorcerer smiled proudly. "Glad I could help," he said.

Arthur looked carefully at his friend. "Me too."

That words sounded a bit strange in Merlin's opinion. He wasn't sure what Arthur meant. However he didn't have a chance to ask. The king was already out of his reach, in the claws of lady Miranda.

Did you enjoy the chapter? I'm not really sure if it's good enough. Please, review!