Sorry about the previous chapter, I noticed some fibs after uploading it so I fixed it now. Nothing big, but it works better now.
Chapter 8
"Somebody might see", Merlin pretended to struggle, though it was obvious he didn't really care.
"Whoever might see us, has seen a lot worse." Gwaine's reply was muffled because he was busy sinking his teeth in Merlin's neck. "You taste good."
Merlin closed his eyes and thanked the heavens for his good fortune. As usual, however, Merlin stopped Gwaine before things got too heated for him. Fighting all his natural instincts he pushed Gwaine away. "I think that's enough for today. But. Thank you."
"You really don't have to thank me ever time I pleasure you." Gwaine took great pride in making Merlin blush with embarrassment. It was a question of choosing the right words, really.
Merlin started cleaning the chambers, while Gwaine stared at him. It still didn't sit right with him, having Merlin serve him, but the boy had insisted on them playing their parts. Merlin seemed to have plenty of experience in the area of secret keeping. Gwaine hadn't yet found the courage to ask him why that was.
"Haven't seen Oliver around lately. Have you?" Merlin asked, unaware of Gwaine's thoughts.
"He spends most of his time training with the knights. We spar every once in a while, but that's about it."
"Makes sense, I suppose, that's why he's here, isn't it?"
"I guess. What do you think that thing with him and Percival was?"
"Maybe Oliver's here without his father's knowledge. Should we tell Arthur?"
"No. We don't know anything for certain yet, and most importantly, he's a friend."
"But Arthur deserves to know if he has a potential war at his hands."
"War?"
Merlin used his 'international politics for dummies'-voice to narrate the hypothetical outcome. "Oliver happens to get killed training with us, his father blames us and declares war, Camelot is destroyed. The end."
"Well, when you put it like that.."
"Exactly." Merlin had crossed his arms, waiting for Gwaine to continue. He would always take the kingdom's, or more precisely Arthur's side when it came down to it. Gwaine didn't know what to think about that particular feature of his personality.
"If we tell Arthur of our suspicions, he'll throw Oliver out of Camelot and that's the end of his dream."
"One man's dream against the lives of two nations. Besides, he could be a knight in his father's court. Why did he come to us?" His words were uncharacteristically cold.
Gwaine looked at him, worried. "That doesn't sound like the Merlin I know."
"These are bigger matters than what we used to have." Merlin face grew stiff, reminding Gwaine of Arthur's now-a-days permanent expression of worry and doubt. Gwaine reached out to take Merlin by the hand, turning his frown into a smile and Gwaine gladly saw him return to his usual self.
"Let's investigate the matter further, and then make our decision. I'll ask Oliver about his father, to see if we're really in trouble or not."
"Alright", Merlin agreed and pressed a small peck on Gwaine's lips. He then resumed cleaning the chambers, while Gwaine left to go look for Oliver.
After Merlin had become Gwaine's servant, Oliver had found himself more often alone than with Gwaine, which differed greatly from his first few weeks in Camelot. During that time Gwaine had shown him around Camelot and they had hardly spent a moment apart. Now-a-days Gwaine was busy with his new knightly duties which included finding a wife (Oliver had nearly suffocated when Gwaine had told him of Arthur's plan over diner. A man as unorganized as Gwaine marrying a noble woman? Right..). Oliver wasn't hurt by this new development. They still saw each other often, if not for anything else then because they lived together. Regardless, Oliver needed to find something else to occupy his time with, which lead to him spending increasing amounts of time training with the knights.
On one such occasion:
Elyan, who was very much like his sister whom Oliver had also gotten to know, had agreed to train him after he had finished his duties for the day. They let the tips of their swords touch to mark the beginning of the match (and also to signify that the match in question wasn't an official one) and then began to look for weak spots on the other's defense.
Elyan let Oliver begin the attack: he took his position as a teacher seriously and he figured the best way to learn is to let the student make mistakes. Unfortunately, he had underestimated Oliver's skills when the boy had asked for his help. The boy swung his sword against his in an obvious fashion, then quickly slid the blade under Elyan's sword, nearing his neck. Elyan moved his sword to block the potentially fatal attack, but Oliver grabbed his cross-guard and pushed it to Elyan's left side, captivating his hands and leaving Oliver just enough room to place his own sword on Elyan's neck. They awoke from the heat of battle when they heard clapping, and saw Lancelot a few feet away from them. "For a first match, not bad. However, I think Elyan can do better." He motioned Elyan to join him and he whispered something to his ear. Oliver waited for them to come back to him. "I'm not a knight, so I don't belong to your secret club, is that it?" "I just gave Elyan a tip. I'll give you one too if you ask nicely." Lancelot flashed him a smile that was a bit too bright to be completely sincere. "Now, try again."
Oliver attacked first this time around, too, but Elyan had already experienced his tricks first hand, and didn't fall for them twice. Instead, he locked Oliver in a death grip, pushing his sword against Oliver's. With brute force he forced Oliver to kneel on the ground. Oliver gave up and Elyan let go, looking sincerely regretful as Oliver's shoulders slunk in defeat, whereas Lancelot wasn't sorry at all. "As I suspected. You have skill, but without strength, it means nothing when you have to face an opponent in real life."
Oliver looked ashamed and couldn't face either one of them. "Thank you for the lesson, sir Elyan", he finally said and started walking towards the castle. Elyan followed him, as he was no longer needed.
"Yes, see you tomorrow Elyan. Hey, Oliver, where do you think you are going?" Lancelot ran to catch up with Oliver, who turned around when he heard his name called. Elyan patted Oliver sympathetically on the shoulder before passing him and heading home. Lancelot reached Oliver and repeated his previous question.
"Home to pack. I'll never be a knight."
"Well, not with that attitude.."
"You said it yourself, I'm useless."
"I didn't say you were useless, I said you lack strength."
"What's the difference?"
"If you were useless, you couldn't train to become stronger." Lancelot motioned him to follow him. They stopped walking when Lancelot found a relatively bump-free location. "Now, watch me." He laid down on the ground on his stomach and placed his hands sturdily on the ground. He lowered himself down and then pushed himself up by only using his arms. He repeated the same thing ten times, then got up and turned to Oliver. "Try doing that once."
"Just once? How weak do you take me for?" Oliver asked him.
"Get to it then."
Oliver tried. He really did. His original plan was to outshine Lancelot by doing what he had done and then some, but when he had lowered himself down and his body seemed to weigh a ton, he could scarcely bring himself up again, and when he did, he collapsed from fatigue.
"Well done." Lancelot tapped him on the back. Even though he had failed his original plan and his wrists were killing him, it felt good to have Lancelot praise him. Strangely, despite how small the victory had been, it felt like his biggest accomplishment to date.
"Now what?"
"We wait a moment, and then you go again. This time, you make two of those."
"I can't." Oliver was far from a perfectionist, but admitting he couldn't do something wounded his pride, however small, nonetheless.
"Oh, yes you can, and I'm staying with you until you prove me right." Lancelot offered him some water. "Drink up, and try again."
Gwaine had hardly stepped out the door when he saw Lancelot approaching him, carrying something heavy thrown on his shoulder. "When he wakes up, tell him that he should let his arms rest for a day. I'll come see him day after tomorrow", Lancelot said while giving his baggage, now recognized as Oliver, to Gwaine. He waved Gwaine goodbye and left, whistling a tune Gwaine recognized but whose name he didn't quite remember just then. Gwaine glanced at Oliver to find him soundly sleeping. "What the.."
When Oliver awoke the next morning, he felt better than he'd ever felt before. He stretched his arms and legs, and Merlin stepped into his room. "Good, you're awake. Breakfast is served."
Oliver joined Gwaine and Merlin at the table and started eating. Gwaine and Merlin stared at him, then each other. Merlin pushed Gwaine. Go ahead, he whispered. "What's going on?" Oliver asked.
Gwaine laid the situation out to him. "We heard your conversation with Percival. We think you are here against your father's wishes, and if that is the case, Merlin will squeal to Arthur about you so fast it will make everybody's head spin." Merlin elbowed him at that last remark, but he knew Gwaine was right.
Oliver, feeling a little ambushed, considered his options. Option 1: tell the truth and accept the consequences. Option 2: kill Merlin and convince Gwaine not to tell Arthur. Option 3: convince Merlin not to tell Arthur. Why does convince Merlin only come after kill Merlin? What is wrong with me? He briefly wondered. He then settled on Option 4: tell half of the truth and see what happens.
"As you know, my father is king. However, he has been blessed with four sons and four daughters, so what I do is rather irrelevant when it comes to our kingdom. I'm the youngest therefore I have no chance of getting to the throne. I came to Camelot to see what I could make of myself."
"If you get hurt, your father will declare war on Camelot, especially when he didn't even know you were here to begin with." Oliver winced: Merlin wasn't going to let him get away that easily.
"What if I send word to my father, explaining my whereabouts and saying that I am well?" He would never actually send the letter, but Merlin didn't need to know that.
"I think it's best if you return to your father and explain to him in person what you are doing here", Merlin's answer once again torpedoed Oliver's hopes.
Oliver's final, however desperate, attempt to save himself: "The road to my father's kingdom travels through the Perilous lands, and I don't think I need to tell you how dangerous it is to-"
"Been there-", Gwaine interrupted him.
"-Done that", Merlin finished. They smiled to each other as if remembering a good experience. "We'll make it a diplomatic mission and suggest it to Arthur. I'm sure he'll agree to let us go, he'd want to avoid any problems with the neighboring kingdoms."
"When do we leave?" Gwaine seemed ready to go that instant. He hadn't left Camelot since he'd been knighted. His natural instinct to travel hadn't been extinguished, simply put on hold.
"Not yet. I'll talk to Arthur about it tonight, we'll see when he says it's okay."
"Perfect, isn't it?" Gwaine literally beamed and glanced at Oliver, inviting him to share his sentiment. Oliver smiled nervously. Crud.
As they had agreed earlier, when night fell, Merlin went to see Arthur. "Are you busy?"
"I thought you said it was me who was going to beg for you to come back", Arthur ignored his question and gave him a crooked smile. "I have much to do, but I'd be glad to think about something else for a while. What is it?"
"It turns out that Oliver's father, the king, doesn't know that he's here. In order to prevent any problems, we thought it might be best if he were to personally explain to his father what he is doing in Camelot. It's too dangerous for him to go alone, so-"
"-I should send some knights to go with him?" Arthur interrupted him, eyeing Merlin with an indecipherable expression on his face. "Alright."
"Really?"
"If we can prevent a potential crisis, I vote we do it. Why are you so surprised?"
"I didn't expect this to be so..easy."
"Do you have any suggestions on who should accompany him there?"
This was the last straw for Merlin. "Seriously, are you alright? You don't even sound like Arthur. Who are you?"
Arthur threw his arms in the air, frustrated. "I have to act as king while my father is unwell. It comes with responsibilities. You presented me with a problem and a solution, I think your solution is valid. Names?"
"Well, Gwaine wants to go, so I'll go with him."
"Sure. He has previous experience of the Perilous lands. As do you. Though that never happened." Arthur frowned and pointed his forefinger humorously at Merlin, to make sure he would never tell anyone about Merlin and Gwaine accompanying him there, reminding Merlin more of the good old Arthur. "Right."
"Who else?"
"I don't know. How many do we need?"
"I'd say three knights should suffice. So far we only have one."
Merlin had an idea. "Percival!"
"I think you mean sir Percival", Arthur corrected him.
Merlin ignored him. "He's Oliver's cousin, apparently. Maybe he can help reason with Oliver's father."
"Excellent. And the last one?"
"I can't think of any."
"I think Lancelot should accompany you, as he is the best knight I have. It will look good to have him as a diplomatic envoy."
"When do we leave?"
"In a few weeks. Before that, we have festivities to organize."
"Right. For the wife hunt." Merlin chuckled at the thought of some of the knights trying to dance with their potential wives.
"Nobody seems too excited about that", Arthur frowned. Merlin tried to comfort him. "You meant well."
Arthur nodded and took a deep sigh, then broke the moment. "Run along now. I have things to attend to, and you have your new master to care for."
Merlin left Arthur's chambers feeling worried that Arthur had had to assume leadership too early for his years. As much as Merlin had disagreed with Uther's way of ruling his kingdom, Arthur had had the time to amuse himself. Wonder if he even has the time to see Gwen these days. Nostalgically, he gently tapped Arthur's door before heading to Gwaine's chambers.
As he had promised, Lancelot returned two days later. "Are you here to torture me again?" Oliver asked him. "Indeed I am.", Lancelot replied mock-politely and turned to Gwaine and took a bow. "Dear sir, may I please take your ward out for some pain and recreation?" His mocking tone of voice contradicted his seemingly courteous words.
"Just bring him back in one piece", Gwaine agreed and laughed at Oliver's horrified expression. "You loved it the last time around, don't lie to him."
"I don't think I can do it again."
"That's where you're wrong. Let's go." Lancelot motioned him towards the door and waited for the younger man to go through it before he followed him, or at least tried to, until Gwaine stopped him. "What exactly are you doing to him? You brought him back unconscious the last time. You're not really going to hurt him, are you?"
"Your suspicions wound me, my friend. I didn't even touch him. He did it all to himself." Lancelot released himself from Gwaine's grip. "Don't worry, I think this time Oliver can walk back on his own. Besides, this is an excellent opportunity for you and Merlin to spend some quality time together."
Gwaine blinked. Lancelot smiled at his baffled expression and hurried after Oliver. When he was gone, Gwaine closed the door and turned to Merlin. "Did you tell him or does he just know whenever two people get together?"
"I never said anything, he just guessed, so I'm guessing the latter."
"Maybe he's a sorcerer", Gwaine joked. "He has visions or something to that effect. I should tell Arthur on him. Maybe I could get to win a tournament for once. After that first one it has been nothing but Lancelot, Lancelot and who else but Lancelot!" He gave a satisfied yawn and laid down on his bed.
Merlin was surprised. He sat next to Gwaine on the bed. "You're jealous of Lancelot winning all the competitions?"
"Not really. It suits him, being a knight I mean. I'm more of a dark horse when it comes to knighthood, but him, it's in his blood. Ironic isn't it? Considering our backgrounds I mean. I guess that just goes to show you what I've been saying all along: having a noble family doesn't make you noble yourself."
Gwaine had only been joking when he had brought up sorcerers, but it struck a chord with Merlin. He should've stayed quiet, but he couldn't. "Do you think it's right what Uther's been doing to the people with magic?"
He observed Gwaine's puzzled expression. "Yes and no. I think Uther has killed hundreds of innocents in the name of fighting magic and his way of dealing with magic users borders on insane, but there are dangerous people out there, and magic is certainly a force to be reckoned with. I've met some people with magic. Some were nice, some tried to kill me. No news there. I've even worked with sorcerers, but they weren't exactly the most reliable sort of people."
Merlin knew he would only hurt himself by continuing, but he asked anyway. "Would you ever truly trust a sorcerer?"
Gwaine, blissfully oblivious of his lover's internal anguish, smacked his lips thoughtfully. "No, I suppose not. Of course, one can never know what will happen in the future, but if I think right now..No, I don't think so." He finally noticed Merlin's face. The boy's expression..he looked like somebody had died just then. He pulled him in his arms to comfort him. "Don't worry, I'm never going to let a sorcerer hurt you."
Merlin fought back the tears and forced his tone to sound cheerful. "Like you'd win against someone like Morgana." Gwaine tickled him in revenge, and then settled to cuddle him. Merlin held on to the man like it was the last time he would ever get to hold him.