I'm sorry for how long this took but I hope you enjoy it any way! I do not own Merlin.
The Court Physician-Chapter 3
"What is this?" Arthur shouted. Merlin looked over from the stack of parchments he was organizing on the long table and looked over toward the irate king. He was holding out his Pauldron for Merlin to inspect.
"What is what, Sire?" Merlin considered how ridiculous he looked holding molded metal intended for his right shoulder; hadn't he finally learned how to put his armor on by himself yet? If not then why did Merlin waste so much time trying to teach him?
"This, you incompetent dolt! Look at the state of this armor; the metal is filthy and tarnished!" He gripped Merlin suddenly by the back of the neck and simultaneously pushed his head toward the metal and pushed the metal into Merlin's stomach. As soon as he could get out of the hold Merlin ripped himself away.
"Thank you, Sire, for that completely appropriate response to the marginally less than perfect armor!"
"Just look at the state of it Merlin!" Arthur both urged and threatened. Merlin let out a great sigh before lifting the shoulder piece up to review its latest polish. He frowned. "There, you see it don't you! It's horrible!"
"It is pretty b-"
"Well, what are you waiting for you moron? Take them back and polish them properly! I'll be laughed off the training field in these!" He shoved another armful of dingy metal into Merlin's thin arms.
"Yes. I will take them back to the armory, Sire, and ask them to be cleaned- properly."
"Ask?" Arthur questioned, preventing Merlin from escaping the room. "Since when do you pass off your work onto others? This is your responsibility Merlin, it always have been!"
Merlin had turned to face Arthur fully, so he could look the man square in the face. "Yes, it is- or was before you 'awarded' me the separate position as the court physician. I don't have time to waste scrubbing away at all hours of the night to ensure that you aren't 'laughed off the training field'. I have other work that needs doing, especially with the string of fevers that have been making their way across Camelot! So I gave the armor to a young serving boy who was thrilled to have the task and I spent last night brewing a supply of potions so large we could cure every man and woman that stepped foot in the castle yesterday."
Arthur was struck, unable to pull together a response. It was the same way he felt when Merlin would occasionally forget that he was an idiotic git and offer up sage advice no one else dared to give the young king. Except today he felt like the git. He truly hadn't noticed: under Merlin's eyes were deep, dark bruises. Come to think of it they had probably been there a while. He should have realized the strain he was putting on Merlin; there was no way he could be servant to the king and healer for all of Camelot at the same time.
While Arthur was deep within his own thoughts Merlin mistook his silence for skepticism and decided to dismiss himself before he said something he would come to regret. "I will have these returned shortly." He tilted his head down, just slightly, and turned away.
"Yes! Please do!" Arthur snapped out of his trance, "I mean. Wait, Merlin, don't worry- about the armor. Just leave it. I'll get someone to fix it. Just- go on. Finish your physician business." That wasn't what he meant to say. He wanted to promise Merlin that he would find someone to take over the majority of his lower responsibilities to free up some of his time that had-somehow- over the last few years become…valuable.
Merlin nodded once more, before exiting the room, still balancing the abundance of armor.
Arthur waited until he was out of the door before leaning up against his bedpost and scrubbing at his face in frustration. He sighed dropping his arm to his hip and used the other to propel himself away from the bed frame, "Damn it!"
Merlin rubbed his eyes. He just spent the last hour struggling to teach the young knave how to properly remove grime and polish armor. It wasn't a matter of dedication (the boy was terribly enthusiastic) but he was small and weak and, frankly, quite simple. Merlin could have competed the chore himself in a much shorter amount of time but knew he would be needing someone to do it quite often and decided now was as good a time as any to start training a—replacement?
He was nearly to the top of the stairs where his combined work and home rested when he heard Gwaine's bright voice, "Ah! There his is! I told you he would be along shortly now, didn't I?" Merlin looked to the door and saw the knight, an aging woman, and short statured group who he presumed to be the woman's multitude of children (the youngest of which seemed to be nearly asleep in Gwaine's arms. That was who he must have been addressing, Merlin concluded. The lad most likely had come down with the fever.
"Hello." He began. "I'm Merlin, please step inside, Madam." He set his shoulders, raised his chin, and widened his step as he went back to work. "Thank you, Gwaine." He said after the man laid the sickly child on the spare cot.
"Of course!" Gwaine smiled cheekily in a way that would be annoying if it was formed by anyone save Gwaine. "Do you need anything else then?"
"Oh, no. I'm fine." Merlin was shuffling around the contents of a basket near the door, "I know you have your own duties to attend to."
"I don't mind. I could…stir something for you, or, grind -something-, or get you a drink." Merlin finally looked up from his rummaging and to the overly helpful man.
"No," he said suspiciously, "I'm fine. Trying to avoid training are you?" he quipped.
"What?" Gwaine held his hand to his heart, "I would never do such a thing!" He turned toward the crowd of children and winked. His antics were rewarded with a chorus of giggles and a tiny smile from Merlin- so distant from what his smile usually was. "Well then, I guess I'll be on my way if you're absolutely sure I can't be of any help…" He looked pointedly at Merlin who shook his head. "Humph," he let his shoulders drop, "Well, I'll see you later I guess." Though he couldn't hold his sad face as he exited and smiled at the children once more, who waved back to him.
After the door shut the grin dropped from Gwaine's face. Arthur was right to have sent him to check on Merlin; the man was struggling, more so than Gwaine had ever seen. Gwaine began his descent to the more frequented levels of the castle to seek the King and to confirm his suspicions.
Arthur hesitated once more when he reached the door at the end of the tower steps and cursed himself for his indecision. He thought about Gwaine's report of a distressed and exhausted Merlin. He should apologies and ask Merlin to forgive his insensitivity, he should reward him for his dedication to his new (and very important) position, he should let the man know that he is doing Gaius proud. He needed to, in fact… right now. He pushed his way into the circular room without so much as a short warning to the parties on the other side.
A short woman with stringy, brown hair gasped dramatically as the door slammed against the wall. Arthur froze as he took in the scene before him. "Sorry," he said finally, "I didn't mean to open the door like that- so fast- sorry Ma'am." He dipped his head slightly to the young woman and she began to frantically shake her head back in forth seemingly terrified that the king would apologies to her.
Arthur looked to Merlin, who was smirking like the time Arthur stepped in a horse apple last month. "Hey! Stop that, you look like a fool! Aren't you supposed to be working now?" Arthur spoke, though he stayed on the other side of the room to allow Merlin privacy with his patient.
"Yes, of course, Sire." He was still smirking, but at least he was facing the woman again. "Drink this again tonight and you should be better by the end of the week."
"Thank you, so much. I can't begin to thank you enough." The kind looking woman held one of the many vials Merlin had labored over last night. Her face was red, though from fever or embarrassment Arthur couldn't say.
"Ah!" Merlin smiled embarrassedly, "Yes you can. You paid me didn't you?"
"Well, yes," she relented, "But it is not quite a thank you."
"Buuuuut, that was." Merlin looked at her with soft victory.
"Yes, I guess it was." Her chin was now tucked almost completely to her chest. The poor thing, Arthur thought, intimidated by Merlin for God's sake.
"I hope to see you again, Ma'am. Although hopefully under happier circumstances."
Arthur held the door for the flustered woman as she shuffled out, smiling once at Merlin from beneath her bangs.
"Well," he began, "Now I see why you like your new job so well." Arthur strolled over to Merlin who was busying himself over his work table for the thousandth time today.
"Uh, because I'm good at it?" Merlin attempted to brag.
"No," Arthur said from directly behind the young physician, "because you can flirt with all the patients."
Merlin spun around, "I was not!"
"Really, because she seemed to think you were."
"I wasn't though." Merlin just shook his head again, relenting.
Arthur took a step back and looked around the disastrous room that Merlin had not had a moment to clean. "Anyway, you can be glad to know that you will have even more time to not flirt with patients as I have transferred all of your previous, man-servant, duties on." He rested his left wrist in his right fist and waited for Merlin to acknowledge this information.
Merlin looked over to him slowly, then to the small window on the far wall, and finally back to the king. "To who?"
"I'm sorry?" Arthur leaned toward the other man.
"Who have the other duties been transferred to?" He sounded almost mad.
Arthur shifted his weight and responded, "To many individuals; the responsibilities have been divided until I find a suitable replacement man-servant. "
"And how long will that be?" Arthur looked the tied man over: his chin up, his small chest wide as it could go.
"I don't know." Arthur started toward the door but stopped when his shoulder was even with Merlin's; both men facing opposite directions. Arthur clapped his hand on Merlin's shoulder hard, shaking the receiver significantly. "I just came to inform you that you'd been freed from those duties. Replacement could take a while though…" he hesitated, "the last once left quite a hole to be filled." And with that the king was out the door and down the stairs.
It wasn't technically an apology, but it would be enough for Merlin. No one had ever known or understood him as well as Merlin had. Arthur would never admit how much the loss of the company of his best friend weighed on him.
Thank you so much for reading!