Evermore

by kitsuneshadow47

Young Merlin, the eldest of a poor family, begins to see life differently after meeting Arthur, a prince who's moved into his neighborhood for the summer and happy with the material luxuries his parents give him. The story of a new, undying friendship.

5. Chapter 5: The Green Rose

Evermore

Chapter 5: The Green Rose

Characters~ Arthur & Merlin

Disclaimer~ Yeah—don't own Merlin in any way, shape, or form. (Arthur does XD)

Warnings~ young prince!Arthur and young poor!Merlin, some OOC because they're kids, and fluffy slash/boys' love ~wO

Music on My Mind~ Secret Garden by MADOKA (don't own—yes, it's the song for Latios and Latias in that movie "Pokemon Heroes." Thought it fit here too, though. XD)

Notes from the KIT-chan~

This chapter ended up a lot longer than it was supposed to be...but I guess that's ok...? XD Oh well—haven't updated in a while anyway. =w="; Blame the viruses that somehow infected my computer since then. It's getting fixed though, so I'm using a different one. :P

Otherwise, not much to say right now, but enjoy~ :D

.::.*~K. Shadow~*.::.

~o~

That night, Merlin had gone home, exhausted from all the fun he'd had with his new friends earlier that day, but he had yet to run out of words as he'd told his mother in immense detail of the adventure he'd had that evening with Arthur and Morgana—from playing with shiny, remote-control cars to learning how to read and write for the first time...

"It was wonderful, Mother!" the raven had exclaimed, beaming at Hunith that instant.

At that moment, Mrs. Emrys had chuckled softly as she opened the front door to their home, leaving her eldest son to greet the rest of his brothers and sisters, who had been eagerly waiting for his return.

"Brother! Brother!" they'd begun to cry with delight, as they gathered around him to give him their warm embraces.

But Hunith had smiled upon seeing this, and let out a sigh, gesturing to the stairwell. "Time for bed, little ones—it's way past your bedtime. Big Brother can tell you all about his day tomorrow morning when breakfast comes around," she laughed.

In that instant, the children's faces fell, a few of them pouting slightly. "Aww..."

With that, she couldn't help but chuckle again before finally leading them up the stairs to their bedrooms, glancing back at Merlin with a distinct look that signalled him to get ready for bed, too.

At that moment, the raven grinned at his mother, then waited until they were out of sight before he'd run up to his own room.

~o~

However, for some reason Merlin couldn't sleep that night, for he'd been too busy thinking about Arthur in the back of his mind, wondering curiously what they'd do together the next day.

And so he lay there, staring aimlessly at the ceiling, smiling as the events of that evening reoccurred to him once more. Then he let out a sigh and closed his eyes, turning to pull the sheets over his shoulder before rolling over on his side.

Today was just...amazing, he'd thought quietly to himself before finally drifting off into slumber.

But it hadn't been more than a second when he'd suddenly heard a familiar chuckle coming from his window and immediately got up to none other than Kilgarrah perched patiently on the windowsill.

"Well, well," the emerald reptile had begun with a shrewd, interested grin. "Somebody here looks like they rather enjoyed themselves today...was it quite life-changing to you, boy?"

Merlin laughed in response, shuffling closer to the big lizard next to him. "Well, I'd definitely say it was."

At this, Kilgarrah grinned, his amber eyes glimmering with amusement. "I see...so does that mean that you're finally getting along well with the Once and Future King-to-be?"

The raven beamed back and nodded once. "Yeah—I guess I am," he replied contentedly, smiling at him. "I mean...Arthur wasn't as bad as I thought he was, really—but that was after I actually got to know him."

In that instant, the great reptile laughed and nodded his head in approval. "That's rather pleasant to hear. You have done well, Merlin."

The nine-year-old chuckled.

Kilgarrah smirked, then looked at the latter with wise eyes. "And now that the two of you have befriended each other for the best, all that will remain now is for you to teach the young prince, little by little, how to handle the important decisions that he will face in the future when he is king and you ultimately become his personal adviser."

In that instant, the raven held his breath and stared back at the reptile with wide eyes. "What?"

His forehead wrinkled in incredulity. "You'rekidding. Now what do you mean by 'important decisions'? Isn't being at his side already enough for you?"

The green lizard raised an eyebrow. "Well, Merlin—does there seem to be a problem?"

The raven's cheeks flushed slightly, his expression flustered with disbelief. "You can't expect someone like me to teach him how to be a king, just like that! I'm only nine years old, for goodness sake!"

At that moment, the reptile grinned amusedly, looking at Merlin with a clever expression on his face. "Young warlock, calm yourself. This particular goal should not be that difficult to achieve that it is out of reach."

Merlin exhaled sharply and gazed intently at Kilgarrah. "Arthur is my best friend. I already care for him that much as it is!"

At this, Kilgarrah's golden eyes only shimmered more with curiosity.

In just seconds, the raven recoiled from the last statement he'd said, putting his hand over his mouth in disbelief as he had not meant to say those words out loud.

"Wait—I..." he began to mutter dazedly.

In that instant, the green reptile laughed heartily at him, then gave a big sigh. "Merlin," he finally spoke, in a softer, milder tone.

The latter was silent.

Kilgarrah closed his eyes and nodded once. "I see. Your attachment to the Pendragon has indeed grown stronger compared to our last encounter. That proves already just how powerful the two of you will be together in the near future when it is your time," he murmured quietly. "But all of that will not be fulfilled, that is if Arthur cannot even understand the very people he will lead."

At that moment, Merlin stirred and looked up at the lizard with innocent eyes. "What in the world do you mean by that? Have you seen him charm my mother and sisters every time he comes to my house?"

The reptile sighed and opened his eyes to look at the raven with a serious expression on his face. "Looks aren't always everything, Merlin. Inside is what matters the most. You should have experienced that at least once when you were with the Prince himself."

At this, the nine-year-old bit his lip, then winced as he remembered the genuine conversation they'd had just earlier that night before parting ways. "Well, I..."

Kilgarrah paused before speaking again. "It is a wonder and a privilege that Arthur is able to communicate with you so freely, since he, in short, cannot do such things with any of those outside of his own personal bubble, especially his father and his acquaintances. Consider this the very reason why you must be the one to find a way to teach him how to do the same with his people and help him to feel comfortable around them as he is now able to do so easily with you," he finished prominently.

In that instant, Merlin winced and lowered his head, puzzled as to how he would be able to accomplish such a task. "But..." he responded in a hushed whisper. "...but what can I do?" He paused, pursing his lips. "I'm not as charming as he is...and I'm terrible when I try to start conversations with people I don't even know—even if it's just small, meaningless banter. I mean...it's already bad enough that everyone I actually do talk to is out of town right now..."

At that moment, Kilgarrah grinned and intensified his gaze on the raven. "But you need not worry about that, young warlock. After all, is it not true that you will have the Prince of Wales, an already popular figure himself, at your disposal every step of the way, from the moment the next crack of dawn arrives?"

The raven's eyes widened inquisitively.

But the lizard had only gone on to chuckle. "I am definitely sure to the utmost that in your near future, that numerous opportunities shall be given to you soon—very soon," he laughed.

And with that said, Kilgarrah had suddenly disappeared from the windowsill, fading into the shadows of the night as mysteriously as he had done before.

At this, Merlin did nothing but raise an eyebrow, as it was futile to ask any more questions. He let out a sigh before laying back in his bed and instead turned over and over in his mind the wise but unfathomable words the great reptile had spoken to him.

I just wonder how all of this will end... the raven pondered to himself flatly before closing his eyes.

Arthur...

~o~

The next morning, Merlin had found himself waking up much earlier than usual, for the conversation he'd had with Kilgarrah had never ceased to leave his mind. More importantly, he could—or would not, settle for the memory to slip away, as there had been important details the green lizard had mentioned to him that he knew himself should not be forgotten.

Though the last few words that had been said that night were still quite an enigma...

The raven groaned and sat up in his bed, then left to meet his brothers and sisters downstairs.

~o~

Everyone was sitting together at the kitchen table, as Hunith's shift had been moved to a later time. They had been eating breakfast that dawn, leftovers salvaged from the previous day.

Merlin sighed as he made his way down the last step and walked over to take his seat next to Molly, listening to the small conversations his younger siblings were having with each other.

"Hahaha—Maddie! That's not how you eat your bread!"

In that instant, the raven couldn't help but chuckle as he dug into the plate in front of him to grab his own piece of toast.

~o~

It wasn't until after a while when Molly had finally tapped him on the shoulder, breaking him away from his train of thought.

"Something bothering you, Brother?" the brunette had asked kindly, in her sweet but concerned tone.

There was a pause.

At that moment, the raven let out a small exhale before looking back at his younger sister with a reassuring smile. "I'm fine," he replied calmly.

Molly looked at him for a minute, then nodded once and shifted her gaze back to her empty plate before getting up from her seat to bring it over to the kitchen sink.

As soon as her back was turned, Merlin let out a sigh and lowered his head slightly to close his eyes, relieved that she had not seen through his mask of emotion.

After all, she had been the smartest of them all and the most understanding, to top it off...but still. It was a risk to let her know about what was really on his mind that instant...more so, about what was going to be in store for him alone...

For a minute, the clamouring of his younger siblings had gradually lowered down to soft murmuring in his mind, as he continued to turn over his situation over and over again in his head—of how he would have to get Arthur to somehow connect with his people in the outside world in addition to his responsibility to literally help him...and when the "opportunity" would arrive, as Kilgarrah had so shrewdly foretold.

...but why in the world did he have to be so vague all the time?

The raven slowly shook his head, then raised his arm to grab his piece of toast and took a small bite out of it. At that moment, it would have seemed like he would have been sitting in that position forever.

Though that hadn't been until all of a sudden when he'd heard Diana's innocent voice from out of the blue, alone from across the table, and slightly stirred as he snapped back to reality, managing to overhear the conversation his younger sister was presently having with their beloved mother that instant.

"Mummy! Mummy, please! Could we go outside to-day?" the little one spoke sweetly that instant, beaming up at Hunith with twinkling eyes.

At that moment, Merlin raised his head from the kitchen table to watch his mother chuckle and pat his sister's head.

"Why of course you can, Diana. Isn't the backyard already where you and Annie play hide-and-seek all the time?"

In that instant, the little brunette giggled, her cheeks flushing slightly. "No! Mum, I don't mean that outside!"

Hunith smiled, raising an eyebrow, before reaching her arm over the latter's shoulder to pick up her empty plate. "Oh? Then where, my dear one?" she responded with a warm expression on her face.

That moment, Annie started to laugh herself, cutting in with a voice just as gleeful as her sister's. "She wants to take a stroll through town, Mummy! I want to go with her, too!"

In that instant, Merlin watched as his mother let out a small laugh, stroking her daughter's hair lovingly. "Is that so?" she replied amusedly, shifting her gaze from one sister to the next. "But why go there today, of all places and times, darlings? Is something special going on in town?"

Diana giggled and reached into her pocket in response, pulling out and unfolding what looked like a slightly wrinkled poster from one of the fences outside. "Of course there is!" she beamed, eagerly handing Hunith the piece of paper in her hand.

With that, Mrs. Emrys sighed, taking the poster from the latter's small hand, and peered down to read what it said.

At the same time, Annie started to giggle again, excitedly waving her hands in the air. "There's a festival going on later this evening, Mummy! They're already setting up for it right now!"

Suddenly, Merlin noticed Molly stiffen slightly by the sink, her face blank and morose for a second. The raven stared curiously at the brunette, then turned back to see his mother nod interestedly.

"Ah...the Festival of the Green Rose, is it?" Hunith murmured rhetorically.

But still his sisters answered cheerfully. "Uh-huh!" they replied in unison.

In that instant, Molly's fingers had clenched a bit, then relaxed soon after that before she'd managed to let out a small sigh.

Their mother had pondered carefully on the matter before glancing up to look at her children. "I see—so it's already that time of year...the days do go by quickly."

At that moment, her eldest son knotted his eyebrows together in contemplation, then nodded once to himself as he gradually began to understand that this had obviously been the opportunity that Kilgarrah had spoken of that previous night.

He listened as his sisters and even his brothers proceeded to their mother with such bright, innocent faces.

"Can we go, Mum?" Diana asked, Annie shifting close up next to her with puppy-dog eyes. "PLEEEAAASSSEEE?"

"Well..." Hunith began in a quite motherly tone.

But that was when everyone else had begun to join in.

"Can I come, too?" another had asked that instant.

"What about me?"

Then you had little Caleb.

"Me too! I really wanna go!" one giggled.

Helen.

Pretty soon, everyone but Merlin and Molly had gathered around their loving mother with imploring expressions on their faces, continuing to plead earnestly to her.

"PLEASE?" they beseeched her.

At that point, Hunith couldn't help but chuckle at her children, then let out a sigh and looked at them with a firm but fair and decisive face.

"All right, all right," she replied that instant, her voice warm. But then she paused for a second to take a deep breath. "But on one condition, little ones," she added with a smile.

"What's that?" Annie asked, staring expectantly at her mother.

With that, Hunith had laughed, then shifted her gaze over towards her eldest son, seated across the table with his arms folded below his chin.

"If Big Brother Merlin decides to come along with you, then you can all go to the Festival of the Green Rose," she added, grinning proudly.

Immediately, the raven gulped as all eyes now began to rest imploringly on him, those guilt-free puppy-dog stares coming from each and every one of them.

"Er...me?" he managed to utter that instant, darting his eyes from one sibling to the next.

"Well..."

~o~

To have been very truthful in that situation, it hadn't been like Merlin didn't want to go to the Festival of the Green Rose later that evening to have fun with his younger siblings. After all, he had been more than excited for the certain occasion to finally arrive.

After all, the story of the Green Rose itself had indeed been very precious to the raven, as it had been for each and every one of his brothers and sisters, and had meant the world to him for years, though he could just vaguely remember why. Either way, he really did want to go that afternoon, despite how limited they were in money to buy snacks and tickets for rides in the town square.

However...there had only been one other factor that hindered his immediate agreement to the matter—and that was none other than the Prince of Wales himself.

Would Arthur concur to come along with the lot of them into a crowded area that would probably consist of maybe...a hundred other people that they didn't even know? Or better yet...would his own siblings, Molly and the others, want him to?

In general, they probably would—Arthur was already that close to them anyway. But the problem was if the blonde himself didn't agree.

What if he wasn't comfortable with being surrounded by people he didn'tknow, just like Kilgarrah had said? And what if he was left with no other choice but to leave him stranded at his own house, alone with no one else to play with than Morgana?

Arthur certainly wouldn't be too pleased with him on that, although Morgana, knowing how happy-go-lucky and sociable she was, would probably want to go to the festival with them as well...

Good heavens, Merlin thought to himself before sighing and putting his head down.

At that moment, Molly had walked over and calmly put her hand on his shoulder. "Come now, Merlin, at least give them this one..."

No response.

Then finally, Hunith spoke again before the raven raised his head up from the table to listen.

"Why, you could even bring Arthur along with you, too. Now wouldn't that be a nice idea?"

In that instant, Merlin's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open in disbelief. "I beg your pardon, Mother? Bring him to a festival? But he's not—"

"I think that's a great idea, Mum," Molly cut in with a smile, glancing briefly at her older brother. "That way, we'll all be there this evening, and we won't have to worry about leaving anyone behind..." she went on, lightly prodding Merlin from beside.

"I'm sure he'd love it, too," Hunith added, staring directly at Merlin with a grin. "After all, the last time I checked, it is his first visit here in Camelot, since the King just decided to bring his family along for this summer. And that way, the two of you would still get to spend more time together."

At that moment, the raven opened his mouth to speak, his cheeks flushing a slight pink. "Well, I—" he paused for a minute before continuing, then sighed. "...all right. I'll do it," he replied humbly before getting up from his seat to leave the room. "But it's only if he says yes, so I'll ask him as soon as I get dressed."

"Make sure he does say yes!" Diana cried gleefully, her siblings agreeing in unison.

With that, Merlin let out a sharp exhale and made his way up the steps.

Don't push it, he replied in his mind.

~o~

(That evening...)

"NO. Absolutely not," Arthur cut in, just after the raven had finished his question.

In that instant, Merlin sputtered with a flustered expression, looking back at the blonde with eyes of disbelief. "But why?" he asked immediately.

At that moment, the Prince sighed, turning his back to the latter with his arms crossed over his chest. "Because. I don't wantto," he replied in a firm, stubborn tone. "I refuse."

Morgana's eyes had widened that minute, the Duchess following relentlessly after him. "But cousin! It'll be fun!" she had whined, tugging on his red sleeve. "There's no need for you to be such a killjoy!"

"I would if there weren't that many people," Arthur responded curtly. "For all we know, some of Father's friends could be out there as well, observing us while incognito. It's too risky—you know that," he finished, slowly shaking his head.

In that instant, Morgana pouted, scowling at the older blonde before finally backing away from him. "You are so unfair!" she huffed, before leaning over to sit down on one of the chairs beside them.

Before long, Merlin had put his hand to his forehead and sighed, closing his eyes. As expected from His Royal Prat-ness... he thought hopelessly at that moment. But then he opened his eyes again and began to approach Arthur from behind, his face just inches from the back of his rigid shoulder.

After another long minute's worth of silence, he lowered his eyes almost shyly before bringing himself to shift his left arm over slightly just enough to grab the blonde's finger.

In that instant, he'd noticed the Prince's breath still for just a moment, and then went on to speak just above a hushed murmur.

"All right...I know what you're thinking," the raven began in a soft whisper, holding the other's finger gingerly. "And I understand what you mean. But...who cares?"

At that moment, Arthur tensed in front of his best friend as he'd heard what he'd said that second.

But then Merlin had sighed, going to explain the rest in a calm voice. "Even though there'll probably be a whole bunch of other people out there in the town square, it'll still just be us having our own fun," he continued, with pleading eyes. "I promise."

In that instant, the blonde met the other's gaze, his eyes softening as well as he listened.

Likewise, the raven chuckled softly, beaming at the latter. "Look. I'm not telling you to act all fake and plastic out there in the town square like with the forced impressions you say you always have to pull around your father's friends," he laughed lightly. "I'm just saying that this is your life, and you shouldn't just let everyone else butt into your priorities and try to go ruin your fun. I mean...you are going to rule over them someday—"

He stopped mid-sentence immediately after Arthur's gaze had suddenly grown intent, then chuckled nervously and went on in a smoother tone.

"Here's what I'm trying to get at here, so hear me out," he sighed. "They may be expecting the son of the mighty Uther Pendragon to take hold of the throne someday as the responsible Once and Future King of Wales, but...half of them probably don't even know who you even look like or are as a person now, am I right?"

"Merlin's got a point," Morgana called from the back with a sly smile on her face.

At that moment, the raven briefly glanced over his shoulder to return her grin for her genuine support, then turned back to face his troubled best friend.

"Come on. Relax outside of your house for once—and I don't mean running away from your destiny, like you did the first time around you met me," Merlin chuckled.

In that instant, the blonde smirked, lightly elbowing the young raven. "Shut up."

Merlin laughed in response. "Anyway—there's the rest of what I have to say. No one out there really knows you as a person...you said that yourself. So why not take this chance to start small and get to know at least some people here in Camelot?"

Arthur held his breath.

But Merlin only went on. "After all...this town's already pretty tiny and everyone around here might as well be family to one another..."

"Are you saying you know everyone around here?" the blonde cut in, amazed and dubious for a second.

At that moment, the young raven chuckled sheepishly, briefly scratching the back of his head for a minute. "No, I don't mean we're that close..."

Morgana couldn't help but laugh from behind.

Merlin sighed. "Look. All that I'm saying here is that we should just go outside for once later this evening with my brothers and sisters and Morgana and everyone else to have some fun over at this one festival that only occurs what, once every year like Christmas?" he spoke again. "If there are people there that like you, then all right—they like you. But if there are others there that hate you anyway, then fine—they hate you."

He held his breath as he watched the blonde's mouth press into a straight line on his face, then exhaled sharply and looked him in the eyes. "Nobody's perfect in this world, Arthur—not even you. I'm not even perfect myself—I'm a whole lot less than that, so if you're still telling me that you're not going to go out there to help me babysit my younger siblings, who have to this hour have been counting on you to come with them to the Festival of the Green Rose, then so help me, I don't know what else to do other than beat myself to a pulp—"

Immediately, Arthur grabbed the latter's wrists in mock concern and laughed out loud. "All right, all right—we wouldn't want that now, Merlin."

In that instant, the raven was silent, and the blonde lowered his eyes, taking a deep breath.

"I'll go with you this afternoon," he replied just above a hushed whisper.

There was a long pause soon after that.

Then Merlin couldn't help but smile like an idiot, nodding once to Arthur with delighted eyes.

"Oh, thank you, thank you!" he exclaimed quite enthusiastically.

At that, the blonde couldn't help but raise a curious eyebrow at the other's reaction.

The raven beamed once more at the prince, then opened his mouth to speak again "You won't regret it. I promise you that," he added, immediately letting go of the other hands to make his way towards the front door with well-intention in informing his siblings.

At the same time, Morgana had eagerly gotten up from her seat in glee.

But Arthur had only sighed and rolled his eyes at both of them.

"I better not!" he shouted halfway across the hall as his best friend stepped out onto the front porch.

And with that, Merlin couldn't help but grin smugly before closing the door behind him.

~o~

A few hours later, they were all set and ready to go, Hunith and Ygraine personally escorting their children out onto the sidewalk and reminding them how the youngest of them needed to be in bed by curfew.

"Be careful!" Hunith had called, waving to the children as they left.

"But have fun!" Ygraine had added, waving to them as well.

In that instant, both Arthur and Merlin had met each other's gazes and started to laugh.

~o~

Within minutes, the group had made it the town square, where balloons were afloat all around and festive music was playing.

Indeed, the townspeople of Camelot had intended to make this Festival of the Green Rose the best one of them all.

Likewise Merlin looked around the square and marvelled at all the people in costume around him, along with the rides and snack stands that surrounded the lot of them as well.

Though it hadn't maybe more than ten minutes before Arthur had finally bothered to ask what these celebrations had been set up for in its mere purpose.

"So...what is the Green Rose?" the blonde had questioned as they strolled past a bunch of balloons before glancing over at a man dressed in motley shooting colourful confetti into the air. "Is it supposed to be a symbol of some sort? What's it being 'celebrated' for, anyway?"

At that, Molly had finally taken that chance to look back and meet the Prince's gaze with her bright, robin's-egg-blue eyes. "Oh, there's a story behind it that makes it special. One that everyone here in Camelot knows by heart actually, since it's how this town was founded in the first place," she replied in as-a-matter-of-fact tone and smiled. "But it is kind of a symbol as well..."

As his sister went on to explain the specific matter to the curious blonde, Merlin chuckled softly as Arthur's attention had all of a sudden focused so closely to the words the brunette was saying with delight, and in doing so, at the same time he couldn't help but remember the very story of the Green Rose in his head, which he had indeed known well since he was a child, and the tale had been passed on for generations in his family.

Although at first, when his mother had told it to him, he had first thought of it as no more than a myth...

And at that moment, as the raven had gradually begun to sink deep into reverie, the words coming out of his sister's mouth had echoed in the midst of his mind, almost overlapping with thoughts of his own.

~o~

"Long ago, when Camelot was just a small village, it hadn't been as peaceful and carefree like you see right now in the square," Molly began. "It was filled with nothing but war and hatred...starvation...and disease, which ultimately had been the worst, considering it had been the main cause of death among the people," she continued. Then she looked up at the sky and shifted her gaze back in front where the townspeople were rejoicing and having what seemed to be truly the times of their lives.

For a moment, her eyes had grown sad, and she had winced, lowering her stare briefly, before continuing in a more solemn, hushed voice. "Before the whole town had been sick, and everyone was dying because of the plague that had been spreading," the brunette had narrated. "It was tragic compared to any other crises the land had faced, considering how their ruler had been corrupt in heart and soul and nobody got along with each other, always fighting and harming each other like animals at each other's necks. For most, if one had been living along that time, it was almost as if all hope had been lost within Camelot since it had always been raining in the village and someone was always hungry or calling for help, only to be answered by nothing but cries of battle or rebukes of discontent and abuse."

There was a long pause, then her voice had grown soft for a minute.

"But then one day a pair of travellers from a land outside had arrived by horse in the midst of their adventure to the poverty-stricken land marred by all-out war—an elder hermit accompanied by his son, who had been an apprentice to his father as a future blacksmith." Molly's breath wavered slightly. "Though in reality, only he and his father had known in fact that he himself had actually been a powerful dragonlord sorcerer-in-training with important potential, stealthily keeping his magic hidden from the world until the time came for him to use it to help mankind."

The Prince's mouth twitched a little in amusement.

"It had been, perhaps, no more than a coincidence that the boy and his father had ended up in a land such as that, and they had taken their surroundings into just as good consideration as the other previous towns they had stayed in the past, settling along the outskirts of the village in a small but comfortable shack and minding their own business with somewhat of respect to the hostile villagers in the local vicinity. However, the hermit's son himself, during the day where he had continued to train outside of his home, had soon come to observe in lucid thought the corruption of the village he had been facing, what with thieves looting numerous shops and windows being broken by countless rebels out of no more than anger, soon later realising just how much Camelot had truly needed help."

"And so when the time came that the war in the village and caught on to the very area he had lived in, ultimately killing the old hermit himself in cold, tainted blood, the dragonlord apprentice had finally taken that chance to step forward bravely, confronting each and every one of the villagers with an iron fist."

"'Why must you all fight like animals!' he had cried out to them in anger, his gaze unyielding towards the same thieves whom he had caught stealing from the local shop. Then he had taken a deep breath, closing his eyes to make the atmosphere around them a bit less stressful in order to make more of a difference. After that, the apprentice had stood up straight in front of all them, stomping once on the very ground that he was standing on and continuing in a booming voice, pointing blatantly at the many things that were wrong with the town and what should be done to make it right."

"Soon, the villagers had stopped to listen to him, dropping their weapons and taking each and every one of his words into consideration, and later realised just how corrupt the place that they had once dared to call home had really become. It was a while before all had come to heed the apprentice's words, later praising him and bowing down to the shrewd aura that he had impressed upon every one of them. Huh—for a moment, it had almost even seemed that the unnecessary war that they had been having for so long would finally come to a direct end and hopefully lead to a new era of peace."

"But unfortunately, Camelot's ruler had still been corrupt and heartless, and in addition, among the townspeople that stood in the apprentice's presence to listen to the speech he had given, resided numerous of the King's subjects, who had, immediately after the young newcomer's announcement, rushed over to the throne room of the castle they lived in and disseminated every detail of the news to the villainous ruler himself. Within days, the apprentice had been arrested by the King's guards and thrown into the dungeons located underground in the castle's darkest chambers, without any food or water to provide him with at the same time."

Arthur's eyes had widened in disbelief.

Molly had let out a sigh, then went on to continue the story. "For an instant, it had seemed to the poor apprentice, for the first time in his life, that all hope had indeed been lost. And in addition to that, he had felt nothing but remorse and hatred towards the villagers of Camelot, for murdering his beloved father in broad daylight and so ignorantly allowing their sadistic ruler to come and take him away to be tortured like a mad savage trying to overthrow their King instead of as the good-hearted newcomer that they had all seen him in truth. In just days, more of the townspeople had gotten sick, and they had all blamed the apprentice for it. The fighting among them had also commenced after that, leaving the dragonlord apprentice with no choice but to have the whole town destroyed by the Great Dragon he knew himself that he had waiting hidden at his disposal. However...it had not been until a night later that he had reconsidered his decision for Camelot's fate."

The blonde's face became rigid. "What happened?"

At this, the brunette found herself looking straight into the latter's blue eyes.

"That night...he had been visited out of the blue by someone he alone had not expected—the Crown Prince of Camelot himself," she spoke.

In that instant, Arthur had swallowed deeply before taking a deep breath and exhaling sharply. "Proceed."

At that moment, Molly nodded once and went on to speak some more, clearing her throat.

"The Prince of Camelot alone had indeed been the opposite of the King. His heart was pure, and he treated everyone he knew with kind respect, including the apprentice himself—which had ultimately been the reason why he had changed his mind," the brunette continued. "For upon meeting the apprentice, the Prince had given him nothing more than his kindness, slipping him small meals every chance he could behind the King's back and even staying to talk to him when either of them were feeling lonely. After all, both had shared one thing that had only made them truly understand each other: the painful experience of their father being taken away before their very eyes."

At this, the blonde's breath had hitched before he had briefly glanced over to see his raven-haired friend gazing longingly up at the sky, his mind deep in reverie. Then he turned to listen to the brunette narrate the rest of the apprentice's story.

Molly had sighed for a moment, then continued to speak. "After a while, the prince and apprentice had become fast friends, despite their differences in class. They had helped each other whenever one of them needed it and cared for one another till the very end."

In that instant, Helen had run over to catch her older sister in an eager embrace and looked up to smile at her.

"The end?" the little one had asked.

In response, Molly had laughed, picking her up from the ground. "Yes, Helen, you silly goose. The very end," she replied.

That moment, the Prince had tensed up just a bit upon hearing the brunette's words. "What—did either of them die?" he asked curiously.

In that instant, Molly paused, then lowered her eyes for just a second before meeting the blonde's gaze. "No...but I should say one of them almost did," she responded in an unwavering tone. Then she continued after taking a deep breath, looking out into the crowd before them.

"You see...the King had not been the prince's father," she spoke, her tone faltering slightly. "The truth was that he had only been his uncle, older brother to the prince's father. And he had merely taken the prince into his care after his father's death, assuming the deceased King's former role only to be brainwashed and corrupted with power," Molly spat out.

"However, what the prince had never known even at that point...was how his uncle had been the one who had murdered his own father in cold blood the night he died, and that even then to that day he had been planning to get rid of him as well, so that he would be the only one to rule over Camelot," the brunette continued with a frown. "Though the apprentice had found this out himself from one of the King's guards and...tried to tell the prince about it the next day. But unfortunately..." Molly sighed.

"What happened?" Arthur asked apprehensively.

"...he didn't believe him," the brunette murmured, closing her eyes. "And what was worse, they'd gotten into a fight with each other and ended up staying away from one another's sight in the days after that. The apprentice had once again lost all hope of keeping his new friendship with the Prince of Camelot, in addition to finally getting out of that wretched dungeon once and for all. However..."

"However?" Helen cut in inquisitively.

Molly gave a small smile before putting her little sister down to rejoin her with the others. She sighed. "However...it did eventually come to a point where the King really did try to kill the prince."

In that instant, the Pendragon's eyes had widened. "What..."

"One day the prince had eventually begun to fall sick to the plague that was spreading, starting off with a mere fever in the beginning of one week. The fool had taken advantage of that moment to have the latter's meals poisoned with overdoses of the 'medicine' that he was taking mixed with a bunch of other stuff heaven knows he had up his sleeve," the brunette spoke coldly. "And only then to the point of death did the poor prince finally come to believe the truth that his best friend had been trying to tell him from the very start. But it was too late, for there had been nothing he could have done about his uncle at that point...except pay a debt to the apprentice that he'd been willing to account for from the very moment the two of them had become friends."

"What did he do?" Arthur asked.

"He called over one of his trusted servants the night preceding his death...and sent him down to the apprentice's imprisonment with a spare set of keys he'd had hidden that whole time, to free his best friend from that dungeon once and for all," Molly replied with a grin. "From the very start, the prince had known himself that the apprentice had not, in any way, shape, or form, brought any harm to the village of Camelot and was indeed innocent of all blame brought on him by his uncle and the townspeople. It had only been that he had just been waiting for the right time to set his best friend free to go home, to get away from the hostile, warring environment he was trapped in that moment. And so the servant came and went, liberating the apprentice from his captivity and leaving him the chance to exit the village before anyone would realise his disappearance. But after he had ultimately heard about the danger his best friend was in at the same time...the apprentice could not have brought himself to leave just yet."

The blonde's eyes softened. "So..."

"So the dragonlord apprentice himself had gone up to the prince's room in the high tower, horrified to find his best friend pale-faced and cold in his bed, dying as the minutes had passed, for one as pure-hearted as he had been should not have deserved to suffer such a terrible fate as that," Molly replied. "It was only then that the apprentice's own heart had changed...towards Camelot and the world as he knew it. Instead he had helped the dying prince...by saving his life in return for the kindness that he had given him in the beginning. There the young sorcerer had used his magic to produce a remedy that no one else in the world could have realised could be one so real...the green rose itself," the brunette murmured.

"Ah," Arthur replied, nodding once in agreement. "I see..."

Molly nodded back. "Exactly. It is said that the green rose was no more than a symbol of mythology, existent only in the heavens above. But through magic, the apprentice had made it real, indeed, and used it to cure the prince of his sickness." She paused briefly. "And so he had saved his best friend, leaving him asleep in his room as he eventually crept out of the castle unseen, departing from Camelot on the Great Dragon he would have used to destroy it in the first place. But instead the apprentice had saved it, leaving more green roses to simultaneously begin to grow in the paths of the village behind him and curing all of the townspeople living in it of the plague. After that, the war inside Camelot had finally stopped, and the village was brought into an era of peace, assuming the tranquil, carefree setting that we see here today."

"But what about the prince?" the Pendragon cut in. "The King? Did he find out that his friend..."

At that moment, Molly shrugged. "Sadly, I don't know. But the prince had, however, slain his uncle afterwards and eventually assumed his true role as a kind and just king for Camelot. Though to this day, neither he nor his successors have been heard of ever since this village became part of England...oh well. But that's the story."

"And the green roses?" Arthur added curiously. "Do such flowers grow here to this day?"

The brunette slowly shook her head, frowning. "No, I'm afraid not. Ever since the fighting in Camelot had ended, they all just disappeared since no one needed them anymore. I wish they were still here though—I would have loved to collect them anyway." She sighed, looking up at the clouds above her. "You know...they actually say that now you can only find the green rose up in the sky, growing evermore in front of the gates of heaven where the apprentice's father resides in. And if one does find such a rose today and gives it to the person they really care about the most like the apprentice with the prince, it'll do wonders for him or her, depending on what the person is in need of that moment," Molly pondered. "But then again...that could be a myth as well—I don't really know. I've never seen it happen before."

In that instant, the Prince of Wales contemplated deep in thought, gazing up in the same direction as Merlin's sister was looking—at the purple-ish clouds in the orange sapphire evening sky over them. Then he closed his eyes and sighed, glancing over to see his own best friend taking care of the rest of his many siblings surrounding him with personal questions.

"Brother, can we go on that ride?" Annie asked him that minute, tugging on the raven's sleeve.

At that moment, Merlin turned around to pat her head with a small smile. "Sure, hold on—I just have to—"

"Brother, I want to play that game!"

He sighed, looking over at Harry. "All right—just hold on a second—"

"MERLIN!" another cried.

In that instant, Arthur couldn't help but chuckle as he watched his best friend fumble aimlessly from sibling to sibling, as if he were a mother goose of the sort trying to tend to each and every one her little goslings.

At that, the blonde had smiled amusedly before finally bringing himself to approach the raven with well intention of helping him when it was possible and broke away from his train of thought.

But as soon as the prince was within three feet of the largely packed group of small children, he had already found himself lost in knowing what to do to assist his poor friend who'd had his hands full, for Merlin's siblings had not only been loud and excited at the time but had also been chock full of energy as well, the majority of them running about like runaway animals from the zoo.

It was only when he had seen a small break in the commotion that he had ultimately found his chance to help Merlin in that situation—when two of the youngest sisters could be seen isolated just outside of the cluster, standing in front of a nearby snack stand.

At that moment, Arthur had swallowed deeply for a minute before coming over to approach Merlin's small siblings.

~o~

"Annie, can we get that?" the one with red hair asked imploringly that instant.

At that moment, the Pendragon paused briefly to see her pointing at a steaming funnel cake with red juicy strawberries sitting on the countertop of the stand. Then he shifted his gaze to see the other sister shake her head at the little redhead.

"No, Maddie, we can't—we don't have the money," Annie had replied.

In response, Maddie had pouted at her older sister, stomping her feet insistently. "But that's not fair...I want it..." the latter had whined, almost bursting into tears.

In that instant, Arthur had sighed, his eyes softening as he reached into his pocket to take out the allowance his mother had decided to refill that morning and courteously took two dollars out to spare for the treat that the crying redhead had been begging for so much...

And with that, the blonde had raised his gaze to face the snack stand before them, then stepped forward to place his money on the counter by the cash register and opened his mouth to ask for the strawberry funnel cake sitting next to him.

"Excuse me—"

"What are you doing?" a voice behind him interrupted immediately.

At that moment, Arthur stiffened where he was, whirling around to see Merlin standing right in front of him with an expression of disbelief.

For a minute, he had been at a loss for words and merely lowered his eyes, away from the startled raven. "Oh, Merlin—I was just..."

Before he could even think of how to finish that sentence, the nine-year-old had already started to laugh at him.

"You prat—you do notice the long line that's already been here standing next to you waiting for their turn?"

In that instant, the blonde raised his head up to meet his gaze with confused eyes. "Line?" he'd asked in a perplexed tone before glancing over his shoulder to see the rest of the customers in a single file position. "What do you mean, line?"

"What is this?" he'd added shortly after, scratching the back of his head.

Merlin had only laughed again, putting his hand on the other's shoulder. "It's where you have to wait to get your food," he chuckled. "There's a reason these people has been standing here for so long, you know."

At that moment, Arthur had raised an eyebrow in puzzlement, exchanging glances between the line and his friend. "But why do they have to wait in the first place?" the blonde had asked. "Can't they just get what they want and go?"

"You're not used to any of this, are you?" the raven answered in response.

"No," the Pendragon replied, shaking his head.

In that instant, Merlin sighed, staring into the latter's eyes. "Arthur...Camelot's a whole lot different than Buckingham Palace—you're living in the common world now."

Arthur mused, gazing dubiously at his best friend. But before long, the line behind him had finally disappeared, and the two had turned around to face the cashier.

"What can I get you, dears?" the woman at the stand asked politely.

At that moment, the blonde had paused to glance at the raven inquisitively, and with that, Merlin had nodded once with a smile.

"See? Now it's your turn," he laughed.

In that instant, the prince gibingly rolled his eyes at him, then shifted his gaze to ask for Maddie's funnel cake.

"Here you go," the woman had beamed, cheerfully handing the pastry to him before taking his money.

Arthur had courteously smiled back in response, then turned without hesitation to offer the treat to the young redhead behind them, who'd sniffled before shyly taking it from his hands.

At this, Merlin's eyes had widened with surprise as he watched the unexpected exchange happen between the two that instant.

Annie had giggled at her little sister as she kept her timid gaze on the blonde before them. "What do you say?" she inquired, mildly prodding Maddie by the shoulders.

"Th-thank you..." the latter had mumbled.

In that instant, the raven had held his breath for a second before finally shifting his eyes over to meet Arthur's warm gaze.

~o~

Later that evening, the children had spent most of their time catching rides on the merry-go-rounds and mini coasters in addition to strolling around under the dim sunset and playing games for prizes like stuffed animals and such.

It wasn't until afterwards before night was about to fall that everyone had calmed down enough to wait for the fireworks.

At that moment, Merlin had been helping one of his mother's close friends pack up her stand for the night, while Arthur had been standing not far from where he was, carefully observing the honoured statue of the hooded apprentice in the middle of the square.

"New friend, Merlin?" Mrs. Andrews had asked.

The raven had held his breath in that instant, turning around to face Hunith's friend. "Yeah," he exhaled tentatively in response, glancing back to catch another look at the Pendragon. Then he sighed and smiled wryly at the young blonde behind him. "...he's the Prince of Wales, actually," Merlin had added as-a-matter-of-fact.

But Mrs. Andrews had only laughed at him and blushed as he stared out in Arthur's direction. "I'm sure he is," she replied with a titter. "He's quite handsome for his age."

At that moment, Merlin couldn't help but pull an awkward expression on his face as he heard the other's comment. "Yeah..." he began hesitantly before turning to meet up again with the rest of his siblings. "Well, it was nice seeing you," the raven finished with a polite goodbye.

At this, Mrs. Andrews grinned and waved back at him as he grabbed Arthur's arm and nervously led him away from the statue.

~o~

"Give it back!"

But as the two boys had reached the edge of the square, they were horrified to see three older children surrounding Diana and Helen, a tall but stout boy tormenting the two of them at that moment.

In an instant, Diana could be seen jumping up and down, reaching helplessly for her doll in the leader's outstretched hand up in the air.

"Let her go!" Helen cried out at him, stomping her feet while the other two bullies jeered.

Only when one of them had decided to push Diana down did Merlin instinctively rush over in front of his sisters to protect them from the bullies in front of them. And in less than a second, as soon as the raven had finally reached them, the leader had relentlessly punched him across the face and sent him falling to the ground.

"Merlin!" his siblings had cried, the rest of them only a few feet away, Morgana and Molly the only ones present to hold them back from the fight.

But before any of the bullies could land another hit on Merlin, Arthur had quickly stepped in the space between them and stood in front of his fallen friend with an intent expression on his face.

"Leave him alone," the blonde had spoken in a dangerous voice. "Now."

"And who do you think you are, runt?" the leader spat out with a sneer.

In that instant, Merlin had stirred and raised his head to see the prince protecting him ever so bravely with a valiant scowl on his face much intended for the bullies that were standing before them. At first, he had opened his mouth to say something to the blonde but then closed it shortly after that as his eyes had widened upon the unexpected sight.

"Arthur..." the raven's voice had come out in a hushed murmur as he darted his eyes over to the three boys out in front of them.

But the Pendragon had only narrowed his eyes more at the leader as he'd begun to gibe sardonically at him.

"Huh," he'd scoffed at Arthur, boldly crossing his arms over his chest before raising an eyebrow. "You know what? I don't I've even seen the likes of you around here, kid. You mind if I show you a lesson now on what goes around here at this dump, outsider?" he chortled.

At this, the blonde had only intensified his glare on the latter, condescendingly raising his head at the bully not so much in spite of himself.

Only then did one of the leader's lackeys take the time to bother whispering into his boss's ear, cautiously glancing over at the dragon emblem embroidered in gold on the prince's shirt.

"I wouldn't mess with him too much if I were you..." the subordinate had murmured warily to his friend. "Look at his clothes. Obviously that kid's from that royal family..."

At that moment, the leader's eyes had widened with amazement, and he'd looked at Arthur with a quite devious smile. "So I see...the Prince of Wales, are you?"

In that instant, Merlin had held his breath and carefully shifted his gaze up at the composed prince.

Arthur had huffed at the bully in response, turning away from the other with a frown on his face. "And what if I am, scum?" he'd spat out in a cool, collected tone. "Shouldn't that mean you get the idea by now?"

But the leader had only scoffed at the blonde, sarcastically putting his hand to his chest in mock fear. "Oh, do I?" he drawled, mocking away at him some more. "Sure, you think you can act all tough when you've got so much cash in your pockets...pshh—what are you gonna do, runt? Get your daddy to go get his guards to come throw me in the dungeon?"

At that moment, the raven had noticed something break in the blonde's aplomb and looked anxiously at him as the bullies began to laugh derisively at him.

"Daddy's little boy...daddy's little boy..."

Soon, Arthur's expression became reluctant and grim. "Shut up..." he murmured, clenching his fists at them that instant.

But the boys only teased him even more, jeering at him with smug smirks on their faces and sticking their tongues out at him.

At that point, the blonde had growled at them, his countenance rigid with anger, and moved forward to grab the leader by his shirt collar. "I'll make you sorry you said that," he shot back coldly.

"Oh, I'm so scared," he'd taunted in response. "Why don't you just go back to Buckingham Palace where nobody else can come hurt you?"

There was a long pause.

Then a thump was heard, and Arthur had crumpled to the ground a foot away from where Merlin was sitting.

"Arthur!" the raven had cried as he watched the scene in horror.

The blonde groaned and sat up, rubbing his red cheek with his hand.

The three bullies scoffed at him again, gibing at him contemptuously where they were.

"Hahahaha...kid can't even defend himself..."

"Leave them alone!" Morgana cried that instant, wriggling in Molly's grasp as she struggled to hold her back. "We've done nothing to you!" she spat out at them indignantly.

"Oh, is that so?" the leader drawled, briefly shifting his gaze towards the Duchess of Edinburgh. "You've done everything to us, the lot of you," he continued, darting his eyes back at the prince with a scowl. "Acting all high and mighty when you're all so rich and you know the people you're ruling over's poor and in need every day...you guys know nothing compared to what us townsfolk have to go through all the time in this dump."

"That's not true!" the brunette shot back.

The boy huffed, looking away from them. "Please. Camelot—no, all of England is already a dump under that arrogant King Uther's rule...it's not like his kid is worthy to become king of this land one day, either," he spat out, directing his gaze towards the blonde.

At that moment, the prince had swallowed deep, his eyes bitter and pained.

Merlin's eyes had widened as he desperately reached over to reassure his best friend beside him.

But that was when the leader had unfortunately dealt the final blow to the very core of the Pendragon's heart. "To be frank, I already know that it'll be more than worse once this runt comes to rule over us, anyway."

The raven had held his breath.

In that instant, Arthur had sprung up to his feet and ran headlong out of the area they were standing in.

Immediately, Morgana had wrenched out of Molly's arms and began to chase after her older cousin.

"Arthur! Come back!"

At that moment, Merlin had quickly stood up beside the duchess and blocked her abruptly with an outstretched arm.

In an instant, she froze at the raven's sudden action and turned to glance down at him with worried eyes.

"Merlin..." Molly murmured softly.

But the young warlock had only swallowed and looked away from the latter.

"I'll get him," he spoke in a soft voice, taking a few steps forward. "Just...take everyone else home," he finished with a sigh, making his way out of the town square.

Though that hadn't been until the leader had begun to gibe behind his back, still laughing his big fat head off.

"See? I knew he wouldn't take it," he jeered with his pals over Merlin's shoulder that instant. "He's just a big fraidy-cat..."

Immediately, the raven had stopped in his tracks and whirled around to glare at the bullies with a resentful expression on his face. "Don't you dare talk about my friend that way," he shot back coldly.

At that moment, the three of them had stopped laughing and looked at him in mock fear.

"Well, well..." the leader snorted, stepping forward to meet Merlin's gaze. "Looks like the smaller shrimp's decided to take a stand here, too..." He gave an arrogant smirk, yanking the raven up by his shirt collar. "You know, just because that Prince Loser comes around to try and save that sorry behind of yours, doesn't mean you're better than any of us now..."

"Merlin!" little Helen cried in horror, fearfully reaching her arms out for her older brother.

In that instant, the bully chuckled sinisterly and began to raise a fist towards Merlin's cheek...

But unfortunately, he had only been too wrong to underestimate the capabilities of the young warlock that he was holding.

For before the leader could even land a hit on him, time had all of a sudden stopped right then and there, immobilizing the latter right in the position he was in along with the rest of the townspeople in the square, with the exception of Morgana and his siblings of course.

Immediately, the raven had wriggled himself free from his assailant's grasp and triumphantly stood in front of him with bright amber-golden eyes, a crafty smile slowly forming in his face.

At that moment, he'd begun to hear clapping from a few feet beside him and turned to see his siblings exclaiming with glee.

"Get him, Brother!" they cried that instant.

In response, Merlin had grinned cleverly at the little ones, catching a quick glance at Morgana's shocked expression as her eyes had widened tenfold with disbelief.

"Merlin...you're a..." the duchess murmured, taken aback at the sight.

But the raven had only laughed at the brunette, turning his head to focus his gaze on all three of the bullies until they were levitating no more than seven feet off the ground.

Immediately, their faces had grown fearful, their eyes frantically darting around in different directions.

And only then at the height of ten feet did Merlin finally decide to put them down...on a nearby tree, hanging from an outstretched branch by their underwear in a quite embarrassing position.

After that, his eyes had reverted back to their normal sapphire blue colour, and time had resumed once more as if nothing had happened, the townspeople continuing whatever it was they were doing before.

In an instant, his siblings were cheering for him, laughing and pointing fingers at the bullies that were now hanging by the uncomfortable tree wedgies they'd been given, snivelling and shrinking away from the raven as he victoriously walked past them.

"You won't tell anyone...will you, Morgana?" Merlin asked, a bit nervous as he turned to make his way down the path.

At this, the brunette had only laughed at him, glancing back over at the blubbering oafs. "Of course I promise I won't, but what can you say about them?" she giggled, pointing at the leader.

In response, the raven slowly shook his head, grinning at the three. "Pshh, don't worry—nobody here believes them, anyway. They're already known as big fat liars," he chuckled, turning to run after Arthur. "Just be sure to get out of here before anyone else sees," he called over his shoulder, rushing out of the square. "Arthur and I'll catch up with you all in no time."

"Okay!" the duchess replied, shifting over to help Molly lead the rest of the siblings in making their way back home.

With that, Merlin closed his eyes and sighed, trotting down the road in front of him.

Even before, during his first days in this town, he'd still known the paths around the square by heart, as most of them had led straight to the very neighbourhood his family had been living in. And recognising the trees surrounding the path that he'd just begun to pass, he'd known immediately that there had only been one way that his best friend could have taken that moment...

The one leading to that special river that he himself had found when he hadn't been any more than six years old.

"Arthur?" the raven called as he passed the slender reeds that continued to grow along the waterside.

And there he found the Prince of Wales himself, sitting by the bank with his knees curled up and head facing down, gazing sullenly at the murky waves flowing before him.

~o~

It was quiet except for the sound of the crickets chirping when Merlin went to sit down next to the blonde.

His mind had been deep in thought that moment, his eyes distant and dull. Then after a while, he'd sighed and murmured something that only the raven could have heard that instant...

"Are you all right, Merlin?" Arthur had whispered silently, slowly shifting his azure blue eyes over to where his friend was sitting.

Merlin had paused for a brief minute before letting out a soft exhale. "Yeah."

Silence.

Then the Pendragon had sighed again, burying his face in his palms. "They all laughed at me, didn't they? Even after I left?"

"...they didn't have any right to treat you like that," the raven replied softly.

The blonde exhaled sharply, raising his head to glare intently at the water. "But they had every right to go and judge me back there for who I was, Merlin!"

No response.

Arthur sucked in a gulp of air, then paused. "See...this is why I don't like going out in public all that much especially when I'm around people I don't even know..." He frowned, looking at his reflection in the water. Then he'd clenched his fists, his face rigid for just a second. "You have absolutely no idea how much I wanted to punch that kid so much back there when I couldn't..."

"Everyone's a critic," he muttered, throwing a rock into the river before putting a hand to his forehead. "Never again."

At that, the raven pressed his mouth into a tight line, clenching his fists over his knees. "No, they're not," he spat out in response, standing up on his feet next to the prince.

In that instant, Arthur's eyes had widened with surprise.

With this, Merlin was silent for a minute, then lowered his eyes and turned away from the latter, taking a deep breath.

"At least...not everyone is," he murmured softly.

Another long pause.

By that time, the blonde had already held his breath. He'd been quiet before he'd finally brought himself to face his best friend with a rigid expression on his face.

"...Merlin," Arthur spoke just above a hushed whisper. "Don't tell me that you..."

The raven had stood tall and responded in an unwavering tone. "But I did, Arthur," he replied, swallowing deep. "I went and stood up to all three of them after you ran off."

Dead silence.

"...what? You did that...for me?"

At this, the prince had tensed, his eyes bulging as he stared into the river's depths. Then slowly, he'd opened his mouth and spoke in a reluctant voice.

"But...why?"

Merlin had stiffened for a moment, glancing over at his best friend as he continued to stare at his reflection in the murky waters before them. Then he paused just a second before finally turning away to look out into the horizon as the yellow-orange sun had begun to disappear in the near distance.

"Of course," the raven had replied quietly, his gaze intent and steadfast as evening's last breeze blew past the two of them that instant. He closed his eyes soon after that, lowering his eyes at that moment.

"Anything for you, Arthur," he'd breathed. "I mean...you are my friend after all."

At this, the blonde had held his breath once more, carefully turning his head to meet the latter's unyielding stare.

Merlin's eyes had been soft but brighter than the orange sapphire sky above them.

~o~

"You know...I used to come to this area a lot before when I was little."

"Really?" the prince replied, shifting his gaze towards the raven.

Merlin smiled at the memory for a moment, staring out into the riverbank. "It was when we'd just come here again for the first time after my father had come and left us. No one really paid attention to me much when my sisters came along, so I'd wandered off a lot every now and then." He chuckled slightly, picking up a smooth grey pebble beside him. "Though sometimes I'd think Father would be there to follow after me when the day was almost over, making sure I wasn't hurt or anything like that."

Arthur smirked upon hearing the latter's last few words.

But then his eyes had soon softened when he'd noticed something begin to break inside his best friend's serenity. He frowned as the raven winced and threw the stone into the water before him.

As Merlin had let out a sigh and turned to toss another pebble into the river's depths, the blonde calmly took the latter's wrist and held it gingerly beside him.

"I think you mean to throw it like this," Arthur whispered softly to him, carefully taking the raven's hand and lightly directing it so that the stone had skipped across right along the river surface.

At that moment, Merlin watched the pebble with awe and couldn't help but smile again as he met the Pendragon's gaze.

That instant, Arthur had laughed, grinning amusedly at his best friend. "I do wonder what happened back there when you said that you stood up to those three idiots."

"Let's just say I left them 'hanging' once I was through with them," the raven replied with a smug smile.

At this, the blonde raised an eyebrow. "Oh, is that so?" he asked curiously, scrutinizing his gaze on his best friend.

"Er...yeah," Merlin shot back, struggling to hide his reluctance. "Why, consider yourself lucky that you weren't even there!"

In an instant, the Prince of Wales had begun to laugh even louder, putting a hand to his chest as his face began to flush red.

"Really now? You do realize that I could take you apart with one blow?" he asked, superciliously placing his hand over on top of the raven's shoulder.

But in response, the young warlock couldn't help but smirk quite deviously at him. "Huh. I can take you apart with more than that," he shot back.

He laughed as Arthur looked at him with playful eyes, then began to chase him along the riverside until they both ended up falling on top of each other, out of breath with their faces just a few inches apart from each other.

Night had finally fallen as Merlin had absent-mindedly gazed over the Pendragon's shoulder to see the numerous stars in the sky scattered above them, though none had even compared to the prince's ocean blue eyes, glimmering under the moonlight.

Only when loud popping sounds were heard did the two finally sit up on the tall grass, to see giant bursts of bright lights illuminating the darkness of the night—the fireworks up in the sky that Camelot had promised in the finale for the Festival of the Green Rose.

"Whoa..." Arthur murmured, taken very much aback by the dazzling colours in the distance.

Merlin had done the same that instant, marvelling in awe as each of the fireworks shone for all of Camelot to see.

Though that hadn't been until a more magnificent beam of light gleamed up in the sky for just a split second.

"A shooting star!" the raven exclaimed at that moment, quickly pointing his hand up in the air towards the comet.

The blonde couldn't help but chuckle as his best friend closed his eyes.

"What did you wish for?" he asked amusedly.

Merlin was silent for a minute. "...nothing," he replied, opening his eyes to look at his friend. "I mean...it's not like I'm not already happy with what I have anyway."

At that, Arthur had nodded once in agreement, shifting his gaze towards the stars. "So I see..." he replied, glancing over at the young warlock with a smile. "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, and what is essential is invisible to the eye."

In that instant, the raven's eyes had widened as he'd come to recognise the words the blonde had just said. "That's..." he began.

"You know, I never did understand what that old fox meant by that phrase when I read the story for the first time," the prince murmured, staring up into the night sky. "I always wondered what it was for, and I'd never been able to understand the true meaning behind it..." he trailed off.

Then he paused to look at his best friend. "That is...until I met you," he finished.

At that moment, Merlin stiffened and turned to meet Arthur's gaze.

But before either of them had even realised it...their faces had been inches apart again—slowly moving closer...and closer...until they'd eventually found their lips softly pressed against one another's, the blonde tenderly holding the raven close for an instant as both had closed their eyes and let out small sighs.

Their first kiss...

~o~

By the end of that night, the two were just holding fingers, Merlin resting his head on the prince's shoulder with tired eyes.

After a while, the Pendragon yawned and turned to glance down at his best friend.

"Merlin?"

"Hm?"

"...I'm glad you're here."

"..."

"Stay that way, will you? Don't ever change."

Silence.

Then the raven raised his arms briefly to yawn himself and began to fall asleep on the blonde, his last few words no more than a hushed murmur...

"If there ever comes a time when we can't be together...keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever."

At that, Arthur had held his breath and looked at his best friend again, only to find him deep in slumber.

~o~

Later on, the prince had carried the young warlock home, just until they had finally reached their neighbourhood.

Only then did Merlin wake up to walk Arthur over to his doorstep.

"G'night," the raven mumbled drowsily.

Yawn. "Night."

With that, the two had parted ways, the raven left to cross the street on his own in the direction of his own humble abode.

But just as he had put reached over to place his hand on the doorknob, all of a sudden he had heard faint yelling coming from behind.

"Don't you give me that...!"

Immediately, the young warlock had tensed and quickly whirled around to see where the noise had been coming from, only to find himself staring at one of the windows to Arthur's mansion where he could have sworn he'd seen two silhouettes standing in front of one another as if they were having a spat of some sort that instant.

And was one of them...Arthur's father?

At that moment, Merlin had rubbed his eyes, squinting at the lighted window on the second floor.

But the second time he looked in that area...the shadows had disappeared.

After a while, the raven had sighed, lowering his eyes and reluctantly turning to open the front door.

Maybe I'm just imagining it...

With that, he slowly shook his head and stepped into the threshold of his home.

~o~

Music in My Mind~ Somewhere Only We Know by Keane (don't own)

Notes from the KIT-chan~

Review? ^^";

Sorry again it's so long, but I promise this will be short. =w=";

Just wanted to say Merlin's last words at the lake:

"If there ever comes a time when we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever."

came from a favourite quote of mine said by none other than Winnie the Pooh himself~ ;D (Don't own, but I do wanna see the movie. XD) Also, in the next chapter (that should be out in a while, hopefully... ^^";) Merlin and Arthur's friendship will be finally be put to the test, starting with that brief foreshadowing you obviously noticed at the end above... XDDD But yeah. ;D

Till then, loves~! =^w^=

.::.*~K. Shadow~*.::.