As the three of them hurried down the hall towards the council room, Gwen began to giggle. She was walking ahead of Arthur and Merlin, who looked at each other in confusion. "Gwen?" Arthur said uncertainly.

Gwen looked back at them, then laughed again. She slowed and fell into step with them, Merlin on her left and Arthur on her right. She smiled, "I suppose it's just..." she laughed again. She glanced around and when she found they were alone, lowered her voice. "It's just strange, finding you two together."

Arthur frowned and looked around quickly, ensuring no one heard. He looked back at Gwen. "I know." was all he said. It was all Merlin would have thought to say as well, what did one say at a time like this?

But Gwen shook her head. "No, it's strange because," she said in a hushed voice, "I have kissed both of you. Admittedly, not when I was married, but I have kissed each of you, and now I find you two together." She laughed again and began to walk more quickly.

Arthur's head wiped around, looking at him with disbelieve across his face. Merlin raised his hands defensively. "It was one time." he said, "I was dying."

Arthur shook his, a smile starting to form on his face. Then he quickly realized that he was doing and turned back, looking ahead, eyes forwards and expression unreadable. "I suppose that is odd." he said, speeding up slightly as they reached the council room.

He and Gwen entered first, the guards opening the door for them. Merlin trailed behind slightly. Those within the room clapped politely as they entered, all standing. Merlin saw the knights all sitting around the table, noting Gwaine and Percival, along with Leon and Elyan. Arthur waved, then bade they sit. He helped Gwen first, then took his spot next to her. He addressed them all and then they dove right in to battle strategies and how best to meet Morgana on the battlefield.

After a while, Gwen leaned over to Arthur, whispering something in his ear. Arthur nodded and Gwen rose, begging they excuse her for a moment and left the table. She turned to Merlin and motioned for him to follow her. Arthur looked confused at that, but when Merlin glanced over to him, he simply shrugged.

Merlin followed Gwen from the room. They said nothing as Gwen guided him to an unused guest room. Once inside, Gwen checked to ensure no one was around and that they were alone. Once the door was shut tight, she turned to him. At this moment, she looked every bit the queen she was, posture perfect, chin up and eyes looking intently at Merlin.

Merlin looked back at her gravely. She gave him a sad smile. "You are my friend Merlin, I have always been able to come to you for help. You are also," she said, stepping forwards slightly, "the worst liar I have ever met." Merlin couldn't help but smile at that. Gwen continued, her serious tone returning. "I have done Arthur wrong in the past so I am the last person to judge him, but..." she gazed off slightly, then snapped her attention back to Merlin. "Tell it to me true," she said, "am I a fool for believing this story?"

Merlin blinked twice, thinking over everything in his head. He and Arthur had told her everything that had happened. "Gwen, I promise you we aren't lying." Merlin said.

Gwen nodded. "I believe what happened with that... man..." she said, slightly awkwardly, then pushed through. "But I want to know if there was anything that had happened before you two left on this journey."

Merlin almost laughed, but after seeing the serious expression on Gwen's face he stopped himself. "Never. We didn't even mean for it to happen. It wasn't supposed to." he said the last part almost desperately. Gwen was his friend, someone he had made a connection to when he first entered Camelot. He had helped raise her up and defend her honour, even when she couldn't.

Gwen smiled and put her hand on his upper arm, rubbing it slightly. "You knew what you were getting yourself into when you left on this journey, didn't you?"

Instead of answering, Merlin just looked away. He knew the things she must think of him. He wasn't surprised when Gwen sighed and stopped rubbing his arm. It was her words that surprised him. "You are a good person, Merlin."

Merlin looked at her with what could have only been a look of disbelief across his face, because Gwen laughed. "You are," she insisted, "and you and Arthur have always shared a bond. I'm surprised it took you this long for anything to transpire between the two of you."

Merlin's jaw dropped. He had never thought that anyone had ever been able to pick up on his affections for his King, especially because he himself had buried them deep so he wouldn't do anything foolish.

Gwen reached up and pulled Merlin down into a hug, and he could do nothing but return the gesture. When they pulled back, Gwen looked up at him, still holding him by the shoulders. "No more secrets, alright?"

Merlin nodded. Together, they left the room and proceeded back towards the council room. Once there, they found people piling out of the room in a hurried fashion. Arthur was standing, observing the crowd. He found them with his eyes and made his way over to them, face stony. "Is everything alright?" he asked.

Gwen smiled and nodded, taking Arthur's arm. "Of course. What did we miss?" she asked.

She and Arthur took the lead, with Merlin following behind him as he usually did. When Gwen realized that he was further behind, she pulled back, her and Arthur waiting for him. Slightly shocked, Merlin hurried to walk next to them.

Arthur dove into a shorter version of what was spoken about earlier.

. . .

That whole day was a buzz of activity, preparations were made, people milled about, all hurrying to ensure everything was ready. Reinforcements from further parts of Camelot were pouring into the castle walls, all prepared and accounted for. Troops were set up into battalions, and squires helped ready their masters for battle.

Arthur assigned a long list of things for Merlin to accomplish, and for once he was grateful for George's assistance. They divided up the tasks, and Merlin ended up having most of his keep him moderately close to his King.

Every once in a while, Arthur would pass by him and run his bare fingers along whatever bare skin he could find of Merlin's. Merlin could feel all his anxiety and worry pouring through their bonds, and in their briefest of touches, Merlin tried to send his most reassuring thoughts and feelings through to the King. And Merlin knew everything would be fine, because he would keep Arthur safe.

. . .

The next morning came and Merlin almost didn't want to wake Arthur. Gwen and the King laid together on the bed and Merlin couldn't help but feel a little unhappy at this, but he pushed all possessive feelings back and laid his hand on Arthur's shoulder to rouse him from his sleep.

Merlin paused for a moment, feeling just how peaceful Arthur felt at that moment. He knew that later he would feel anything but this. Arthur always felt responsible for the deaths of his people, even if he had tried his best to prevent it.

Arthur woke himself, it seemed. That, or he felt Merlin's presence. Either way, Arthur awoke and rolled over to face Merlin, first frowning slightly, then sitting up. He glanced back at Gwen, who was still sleeping soundly, then reached up and pulled Merlin down into a rough kiss. Merlin couldn't help but kiss him back. It felt as if they were meant for each other, but even though it felt right, Merlin knew it was wrong. And so did Arthur, despite his more excited state.

Arthur sighed and let him go. "The things I wish I could do to you right now..." he murmured.

Merlin looked away. "We shouldn't." he mumbled.

Arthur nodded. "And we won't. But after all this is over..." he said, trailing his fingers down Merlin's hand, showing him just what he wanted to do to him. Merlin shivered, marvelling at how well Arthur had adjusted to this bond that had formed between them.

Arthur let go of his hand then. "It seems I am forced to, since Gaius has found nothing."

Merlin didn't want to show just how much that hurt him, so he turned and went over to wake Gwen. Gwen smiled as Merlin shook her lightly, waking easily. The two of them went to go eat breakfast, going over the plan for the day one last time. Merlin set out all of Arthur's armour, ensuring it was all there one last time.

After they finished eating, Gwen left to go bathe and dress, while Merlin set about dressing the King. He tried his best not to touch Arthur, but when he did, he found the King's occupied, distant and thinking of the upcoming battle.

Once Merlin finished, he stepped back and looked at Arthur, making sure everything was on properly and nothing was missing. Arthur moved around a bit, checking to ensure nothing was too tight and nodded his approval. "Thank you Merlin." he said.

Merlin nodded. "I will prepare your horse and then ready mine." he said, already stepping away from the King. Arthur looked pained for a second, making Merlin stop. "What is it?" he asked worriedly.

Arthur looked down, fiddling with a strap on his arm. "You are needed with Gaius, to help tend to the wounded."

Merlin blanched. "That can't be. I am needed at your side. What if something were to happen? Sire, there are other people who could help Gaius better than I." Merlin said.

But it wasn't Arthur who answered him. "You and I will be working together in the medical tent. It is what Gaius has requested." Gwen said, looking sad.

Arthur nodded as Gwen joined him. "You still haven't fully healed. This is where you will be most useful."

Merlin felt betrayed. "But-"

"But nothing, Merlin. It's already been decided. And George has taken care of my horse, so you can now go to Gaius and see if he needs any help with any last minute preparations."

Merlin swallowed anything else he was going to say and bowed stiffly.

. . .

It was clear when the fighting began. Arthur and the greater part of his army had ridden off to meet Morgana on the field. Instantly, wounded soldiers started filling the medical tent. Mostly it was women and older men helping, along with himself, Gwen and Gaius making their way around to treat those who needed it most.

Merlin kept his mind occupied on his work, but also made sure to ask how it was doing out there whenever he could. One soldier told him of the army that had met them, and how it wasn't as fearsome or as large as they'd feared.

Another agreed with the first soldier, adding that he thought it was because Morgana thought they would all be too weak to require a larger army to overcome the starving soldiers of Camelot. The first soldier agreed with him and went as far as to thank Merlin, being a higher ranking knight and knowing the story he and Arthur had set.

This news brought hope to Merlin's heart, even making him smile a little. Camelot did stand a chance. The sounds of battle rang in the distance, a clanging of metal on metal and shouting. Screams echoed across the field, and Gwen and Merlin exchanged a look.

Gwen looked worried, but she tried smiling and continued tending to the soldier in front of her, so Merlin did the same. He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but he kept his mind busy by moving from soldier to soldier, helping as best as he could and getting Gaius when he couldn't.

Merlin was in the middle of bandaging a gaping wound on the leg of a soldier when there was a commotion outside, and the tent flaps were torn back. Both Merlin and Gwen's heads whipped around, looking to see who it was being carried into the tent. Merlin's heart tripled in speed and he watched as Leon and Percival helped carry a limp body draped in Camelot's red accompanied by the Pendragon sigil.

Gaius hurried over and Merlin tried to finish wrapping the wound as fast as he could to go find out who it was. His view of the body was obstructed by all the moving bodies in the room. It couldn't be Arthur, Merlin thought, he would have somehow felt if it were Arthur who had been wounded such as this.

Merlin finished and stood, but caught Gaius' look of pity and regret. A great weight settled in Merlin's stomach as he walked over, almost reluctantly, to the bed on which Leon and Percy were laying down the body.

He saw the limp individual laying on the cot, the face blocked by Percy's great form. Once Percival saw Merlin, he gave him a sad look and moved over. Merlin let out a shuddering breath and dropped to his knees next to the form of his friend.

Gwaine cracked an eye open and let out a quiet laugh, then wince in pain and stopped. "Nothing to worry about." he breathed.

Merlin smiled and gently put his hand on the place where blood seeped out from a spot between Gwaine's heart and shoulder. "What have you gotten yourself into now?" Merlin said, trying to keep not only the worry from his voice, but also the relief. Arthur was still out there, fighting.

Gaius went to work lifting the chain mail up and inspecting the wound. He poked and moved some fabric around then looked at Gwaine sternly. "No more speaking."

Gwaine smiled cheekily. "Yes sir."

Merlin put his hand on Gwaine's good shoulder lightly and looked across the room, finding Gwen's equally relieved eyes. She nodded once and returned to her work.

Merlin stood and looked over at the other two knights. "What happened?" he asked.

Leon looked at Percival, who nodded. Leon excused himself and left the tent, while Percival informed them off what was happening outside. "Morgana sent a couple battalions of soldiers to attack us from the front. We rode out to meet them, and just as we were finishing up, we received word that a larger force was coming up through the back way."

Merlin nodded. "The gate is much smaller back there, so gaining entrance would be harder, making it a less likely target, therefore, less well guarded."

Percy nodded. Gwaine moaned next to them, making him pause, then he continued. "Yes, so Arthur sent most of the men to go meet them, keeping only a thousand or so with him to finish up that fight."

Merlin nodded, but Percival continued. "Then, as we were going to join the rest of them in battle, around three thousand men appeared, continuing their strike on the front gates."

Merlin gaped. "That means that it's three against one and Arthur is out there now?"

Percival looked grim. "I need to get back," he told him "take care of Gwaine."

Merlin nodded as Percival took off. The other soldiers would be all the way at the other side of the city by now. It was a long way from where Arthur and his men were being attacked at this very moment, and it was possible it would be too late by the time they reached their King. Merlin crouched down and looked at Gaius. "I have to go." Merlin said.

Gaius looked like he was going to argue, but instead nodded. Merlin grabbed Gwaine's fallen sword and weaved his way through all the cots and people who were milling about. It would take mere minutes for Merlin to reach the spot where he would find Arthur.

Merlin ran faster than he had ever ran, clutching the borrowed sword for dear life. It wasn't difficult to find the battle, all he had to do was follow the screams and the smell of blood. And blood there was. As Merlin stepped onto the battlefield, bodies and blood pooled all around him. People lay piled on top of one another, organs and flesh already attracting flies.

Merlin pulled his handkerchief up over his nose to block out the smell and looked around for any sign of Arthur. When he didn't see him, he feared he would have to look through the bodies, but sure enough, he spotted his King.

Arthur stood surrounded by enemies, two attacking from the front and one sneaking up from behind. Merlin muttered a spell through the cloth that covered his mouth and raised his bad hand slightly, causing the man attacking from behind to trip and impale himself on the sword of one of his fallen brothers, killing him instantly. Arthur stabbed the other from under his helmet in a space where it didn't quite meet his chest piece. The other man, seeing that he wouldn't be able to take Arthur by himself, turned and ran.

Merlin sprinted over to Arthur, almost getting himself killed when Arthur mistook him for an enemy and took a swing at him. He laughed when he realized who it was and hugged him quickly. "It's good to see you." Arthur said.

"I thought you might need a hand." Merlin said.

"You probably shouldn't be out here." Arthur warned as two enemy soldier began to charge them.

Merlin nodded. "Probably, but I can't let you have all the glory."

Arthur laughed and they dove into battle together. Or, Arthur did. Mostly Merlin muttered spells under his breath, causing his foes to trip and usually ended up killing themselves through various means.

After about an hour of this, Arthur turned to him at the first break they got and laughed breathlessly. "You got all the easy ones," he exclaimed, "there is no glory in that."

Merlin laughed, somewhat nervously. "I'll take what I can get. I'd rather keep my life then be bathed in glory in death."

Arthur laughed. "I supposed that is true."

Around them, knights and soldiers of Camelot were regrouping themselves, stumbling over bodies of both sides which laid in heaps at every step. Arthur turned to face his men. Tired faces surrounded him, only about five hundred men remaining.

In front of them, a fresh battalion of men came marching towards them. Arthur raised up his sword. "We are tired," he yelled, catching the attention of some of his men, "we are few," he said, now holding all of their attention. Percy and Leon were amongst the haggard faces. "but we will not be defeated!" Arthur yelled. The men cheered. "For Camelot!" Arthur cried. "For Camelot!" his men replied and charged.

Arthur and Merlin stayed behind, and Arthur grabbed Merlin's bare wrist. His gloves were missing, but Merlin wasn't really thinking of that then.

I need you to run to the other side of the city, and deliver the message that the other messengers seemed to have failed to send. Arthur said in his mind. We need help here.

Merlin hesitated, then nodded. I won't fail. Merlin replied.

Arthur nodded. A warning cry sounded and Merlin and Arthur looked up to see a storm of arrows rain down on them. There was nowhere they could hide and no shields on hand to protect themselves.

Everything seemed to slow in Merlin's eyes. He looked up at the arrows coming straight for them and then to Arthur's stunned face. Merlin looked back up to the arrows and raised his hand, as if to protect himself, but a spell sounded from within his mind, and he remembered thinking, today is not that day.

The arrows rained down on them, but every single one missed. Merlin checked himself over quickly, then turned to Arthur, who was staring at him in disbelief.

Merlin frowned, then his jaw dropped as he realized what he had done. Arthur still gripped his wrist tightly. It was you, came a thought from Arthur's mind. Then he jerked his hand back and their connection was broken.

AN- I am sorry about how long it took to write and post. I had so much trouble writing this chapter, it actually took my three nights to complete it, when it usually only take one. It's been a rough couple of weeks, and I was so happy to be able to sit down and write again. Hope you enjoy. ^w^