Disclaimer: I own nothing, blah blah blah.

Pairing: Arthur/Merlin

WARNINGS: This chapter has explicit sex! Sex between two men! PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE M RATING. If you are underage, or don't like it, please leave now! Ye be warned! Also slash and language.

A/N Thanks again for the reviews, it's great hearing theories and everyone's opinions on what's happening! There's a break from the plot this chapter, but you'll see why. I make no apologies )

Cellmate

Chapter 5 - Cold Comfort

"Mordred?" Merlin cried, choking slightly on his own spit, the very name sending shivers down his spine. "How? When?"

"While you were in the medical bay," Arthur replied automatically, scraping his hands against the sides of his face. The skin stained red momentarily, before fading back to a sickly white. "I came back from showing you there and everyone was talking about it."

Merlin opened his mouth uselessly for a moment, shut it again, before finally croaking, "What happened?"

"He was hit on the back of the head on his way to dinner - by some sort of weapon," the blond hissed, letting out a frustrated cry and beginning to pace the room. He looked tired and dishevelled, his hair in disarray and his eyes slightly blood-shot, his movements sharp and almost a little bit crazed. "He has head trauma, or so people are saying."

Merlin did not reply, unwilling to say or do anything that would aggravate his cellmate further. He stood and watched Arthur storm about the room, running his hands through his hair and cursing fluently - feeling as though he'd just entered a room with a ticking time bomb, ready to explode.

"And if he's not in the medical bay," Arthur continued, in a strange sort of ramble, like he was speaking to himself rather than Merlin, "It means it was serious enough for them to take him straight to hospital." The thought only seemed to distress him further, and he lashed out - kicking their metal bin across the room, until it clanged loudly against the opposite wall and rolled back under the bunk-bed.

Merlin jumped at the sound but remained where he was, working to keep his voice calm and even in his own mounting concern. "That must have been where Gwen was going," he said, causing Arthur to look up at him in surprise, as though he'd completely forgotten he was there. "She got paged just before I left."

"I can't believe it," Arthur muttered, stopping abruptly in the middle of the room. "The little fucker. He failed to get you, so he went straight for Lancelot."

Merlin assumed he was talking about Mordred, but how had the druid even had time? It didn't even make sense. "Didn't Morgana tell him to go back to his room?" he pointed out.

Arthur rolled his eyes, the gesture seemingly instinctive, despite his mounting rage. "Yeah, like they were going to listen to that!" he snapped.

Merlin shrugged and opened his mouth uncertainly, struggling to find something to say - torn between staying to comfort his roommate and backing swiftly out of the cell. With the blond so on edge he was beginning to worry for his own safety, but leaving the room and potentially running into Mordred wasn't really any safer a plan. And so he chose the lesser of the two evils and seated himself on the edge of Arthur's bed, counting on the blond being too preoccupied with bitching about Mordred to care.

"So, did they catch him?" he asked after a moment, in his softest voice, not wanting to startle Arthur with any sudden movements.

"No." The blond stopped, his face contorting, and let out a rather shaky breath. "But that's just typical."

Merlin was sure the blond was making a reference to his mother's death, but said nothing, knowing it would be far wiser to feign obliviousness. If Arthur ever found out he knew the intimate details of his family life, he'd probably be smothered to death in his sleep - or worse, handed over to Mordred on a silver platter.

"And he couldn't even take Lancelot on face to face," the blond continued, clenching his fists so tight his knuckles turned white with the strain. His voice was clipped and bitter, almost bursting with suppressed emotion. "He hit him from behind. Mordred is many things, but I never had him pegged as a coward."

Merlin nodded in agreement, mind flashing back to the corridor where the druids had attacked him eariler that day. Arthur was right - Mordred certainly hadn't looked like the type to be easily intimidated.

"I should of come straight back," Arthur continued, either not noticing or choosing to ignore Merlin's private musings. "Then I would have been with him."

Merlin nodded again, completely baffled as to where Arthur monologue was going, but unable to say anything remotely helpful in reply. He was far out of his element here, and he was at a loss at what he could say or do. He didn't want to risk making things worse.

"If I hadn't been stood in the medical bay bickering with you, I would have been there. It wouldn't of happened," Arthur snapped, addressing Merlin directly for the first time in minutes. He was looking at him with increasingly narrowed eyes, cheeks flushed in anger and brow furrowing.

After a moment, Merlin blanched. "Oh, you are not going to blame this on me?"

Arthur blinked slightly and frowned, eyebrows creasing in confusion. "No," he replied, sounding shocked that Merlin had jumped to such a conclusion. "Why would I blame it on you? It's not your fault Morgana ordered me to take you to the medical bay." He clamped his hands onto his temple and shook his head, his voice pained. "I'm the one who should have left straight away!"

"Oh," Merlin mouthed, thrown. Arthur was blaming himself? It was hardly his fault Mordred was a twisted and cowardly psychopath.

There was a brief pause before Arthur let out a frustrated, "Arghh!" and threw himself back onto his bed, pulling on fistfuls of hair and ignoring Merlin's presence there completely. He was inches away from where Merlin was sat cross-legged, flat on his back and hands covering his face, his breath coming out in short, sharp pants - so close Merlin could actually hear them.

He squeaked, but didn't dare move, hoping that if he remained still Arthur wouldn't notice he was there.

"And nobody will tell me anything," the blond muttered, voice muffled behind his hands, sounding so wrecked that for one horrifying moment Merlin thought he was crying.

"That's…horrible," his cellmate replied uncomfortably, starting to shuffle slowly off the bed. He was very aware that he was in Arthur's personal space, so close they could be touching, and honestly, the thought scared him a bit. His own feelings were scaring him a bit.

Before he could move more than a few inches, however, Arthur flung out his arm and grabbed his wrist, causing Merlin's heart to jump into his throat. He pulled Merlin back towards him, keeping him rooted to the spot, all while gazing steadfastly at the ceiling.

"And they said they can't punish Mordred without proof," Arthur continued, obviously still needing someone to rant to and unwilling to let his outlet escape.

Merlin nodded and decided to take Arthur's hint to stay where he was, watching his cellmate's slight breakdown with wide, round eyes. He struggled to find something adequate to say, so settled on the obvious, placing his hand on Arthur's arm comfortingly - his grip soft and hesistant, ready to jump back at the slightest reaction. "I'm sure Lancelot will be ok. And Mordred will get what he deserves…eventually."

The blond let out a disbelieving laugh, before his expression twisted and clouded once more. He looked at the hand squeezing his arm with raised eyebrows, his gaze surprised and almost questioning, causing Merlin to remove it hastily.

"Sorry," he spluttered, just as Arthur grabbed the top of his shirt and pulled him down towards him.

Merlin wasn't able to let out anything other than a small 'oomph', before Arthur's lips collided with his own. He flailed his arms in surprise, momentarily grateful that his cellmate's eyes were closed and unable to see his floundering reaction.

Arthur's lips were just as he'd imagined them, soft and yeilding, opening willingly just as soon as Merlin made to respond. He knew it was a bad idea - his mind was practically screaming at him to stop - but Arthur was kissing him, and it felt so amazing, he just couldn't bring himself to pull away. Unable to refuse such a mouth-watering invitation, Merlin swept his tongue past Arthur's parted lips, delving deeply into his mouth. The blond let out a small contented noise (that seemed strange and uncharacteristic) and responded eagerly, the kisses quickly becoming desperate and sloppy - their tongues meeting in a wet embrace, which caused Merlin to choke in surprise and work to keep his breathing constant.

Arthur's hand swept up his back, pulling him closer, until Merlin was practically on top of him. Their chests were pressed flush against each other, and they could feel each others hearts pounding erratically against their ribcages.

Merlin knew that he would regret it in the morning, but he couldn't bring himself to stop, Arthur's mouth hot and wet against his, his body muscled and warm. He slid his hands over his cellmate's chest with far more confidence than he felt, taking in the tense muscles and golden skin with an delighted moan.

Arthur bucked up to his touch, eager, earnest and oh so responsive.

Unsatisfied with the pace, he grasped at Merlin's shirt, separating their mouths with a small 'pop'. His eyes were bright and gleaming, lips red and bruised, creating an image Merlin knew he would be wanking over for years to come.

He ran his hands through increasingly damp blond hair and heard Arthur purr softly in reply, apparently unable to stop himself, mouth curving into a breathy smile that was so uncharacteristic, Merlin's breath caught in his throat. He let out a desperate moan he instantly wished he could take back and licked his lips, attempting to reconnect their mouths in a kiss.

Arthur however, had other ideas. He turned his head to the side, evading Merlin's mouth and turning his attention back to his clothing. He gave his cellmate's shirt a frantic pull, so Merlin had little choice but to sit up and wriggle quickly out of his top.

But before he could even bring himself to be self-conscious, Arthur's mouth descended down his neck, sucking and nipping at the skin. He'd pulled himself up onto his forearms, slanting his lips over Merlin's collarbone and biting savagely on the bone there.

Merlin jumped, but brought his hands up to Arthur's head, tilting back his neck and holding him in place. It felt strange to be so authoritative, especially with Arthur, but he made no complaint, only pushing himself back onto the bed and bringing Merlin with him.

The angle was awkward and position uncomfortable, but it was not unusual for Merlin, who couldn't remember any of his previous fumblings (not that he'd had many) being anything but extremely awkward. Arthur on the other hand, let out a frustrated moan, his grip tightening on Merlin's arms painfully.

He surged upwards and caught Merlin by surprise, using the quick momentum to flip their positions.

Before Merlin could even blink, he was flat on his back with Arthur above him, lips still connected with the soft curve of his neck.

Merlin let out a small cry of shock, dimly noting that he shouldn't really be so surprised - he hadn't imagined that Arthur would want to relinquish control to anyone, not even in the bedroom.

The new position also meant he had proper access to Arthur's clothing, which he attempted to dispose of as quickly as possible. He'd seen his cellmate's naked skin before (mostly from perving from afar), and he wanted nothing more than to touch it, just like he'd imagined.

The blond seemed to anticipate his needs, for a second later, he sat back up and peeled his shirt swiftly off his body. If Merlin had been breathing at that point, he would of stopped, as the blond was all toned and bronzed above him, ready and willing. The top of his tanned chest was flushed in arousal, his tight muscles flexed with every movement and his hair was in complete disarray, falling about his face in such a mess that it really shouldn't have been so sexy.

Merlin momentarily forgot that Arthur was a man who could probably snap him in half without even breaking a sweat, a man who had stabbed two people, and a man who had slept with everything with a pulse. This was the man that had saved him from Mordred, had refrained from beating him, and who was worried for his friend.

Mind set with a new determination, Merlin pulled the blond back towards him, pressing his naked chest flush against his own. Arthur's eyebrows flew up in surprise, but he didn't resist, allowing his cellmate to explore his chest with tentative fingers, following the trail of hair that led towards his groin.

He bucked his hips, grinding their arousals together and throwing back his head.

Merlin took the gesture as an invitation and brought his mouth to Arthur's neck, licking the salty skin and delving his tongue deep into the hollow of his collarbone. The blond grinned and thrust his hips, only to receive a snap nip of teeth in return.

Arthur jumped and recoiled slightly, expression morphing into anger so quickly Merlin could barely register the change. "No marks," he snapped, causing his cellmate to blink back at him in surprise.

Merlin nodded dutifully, unable to do anything else, but frowned, for Arthur had left marks all over his neck, and yet he wasn't allowed to do the same.

Before he could voice any sort of protest, however, the blond spoke again, tone no longer angry, but disconcertingly impersonal. "Turn over."

Still reeling from the abrupt change in atmosphere, Merlin did as he was told, rolling onto his stomach, where he could feel Arthur's mouth breathing unevenly down his neck. He felt his cellmate's lips kiss his shoulder blade softly and he relaxed once more, although the fact he could no longer see his lover's face was strangely unnerving. He wanted to see Arthur's face when they had sex - contorting in ecstasy, honest and open for the first time. But he was being stupid, because of course the blond would never allow it. He'd never be vulnerable like that.

Confident hands descended the planes of his back, massaging his skin and reigniting his waning arousal. He gave out a throaty moan, unable to stop himself, which caused Arthur to grin gleefully against his neck.

"Lift your hips," he ordered after several minutes, hands tucked suggestively under the waist-band of Merlin's trousers. His voice was still impassive, but considerably more throaty, leading Merlin to believe the blond was just as aroused as he was. The thought sent tingles down his spine and he responded instantly, feeling Arthur begin to wriggle his pants slowly down his hips.

He felt the cold air hit his ass and he winced, just as Arthur's teeth snapped at the skin.

"You just bit me!" Merlin cried, sounding completely breathless, even to his own ears.

"So I did," Arthur replied, sounding amused.

He smoothed his hands over the newly exposed skin to quiet Merlin's protests, caressing the inside of his thighs and curve of his ass. After a moment of exploration, his fingers dipped experimentally into the tight ring of muscle, causing Merlin to buck violently, let out a cry and fist the bedcovers in his quaking hands.

"You've done this before, yes?" Arthur asked casually, pushing a finger fully inside.

"Uh-hmm…" Merlin moaned, which was about as much confirmation as the blond was going to get. He had done it before, a few times in fact, but had never particularly enjoyed the whole thing. But then again, he'd never been as aroused as he was with Arthur, cock already throbbing and leaking with pre-cum.

"Good," the blond replied, pressing his chest against Merlin's back and pumping his finger. "Because I hate going slow."

Merlin was glad his face was pressed against the bedcovers and his voice muffled, because the groan he gave in response was rather embarrassing. He bucked his hips up from the bed and impaled himself further on Arthur's finger, one thrust away from fucking himself on his cellmate's hand.

Arthur let out a long breath against his shoulder, evidently aroused by his eagerness. He rewarded him by inserting another finger, using them to scissor Merlin's tight muscle further apart.

Merlin rocked back against his hand and grinded his cock into the bed for double the sensation. His breath was harsh and erratic, sweat dripping off his back and down his forehead. He felt the pleasure tightening in the pit of his stomach and quickened his pace, knowing that it was soon going to be over before it had even really begun, but unable to bring himself to care.

Arthur however, seemed to have realised the same thing. He was grinding himself rhythmically against Merlin's back as he thrust his fingers, before he cursed and stopped abruptly. He pressed a wet kiss against Merlin's neck and removed his hand, causing his cellmate to groan pathetically in response, only seconds away from release.

"Not yet," Arthur commanded, as though Merlin could stop himself climaxing.

Merlin could hear the shuffle of clothes behind him and knew that the blond must have been shedding his pants, but he couldn't quite bring himself to raise his head. He waited for his cellmate's comforting warmth to press back against him, and it became immediately obvious that the blond was very naked, and very, very hard. There was a small ripping sound, and then a condom wrapper floated past Merlin's head, as he dimly wondered where Arthur had got them from, and whether to be jealous that the blond was so obviously prepared.

"You're going to have to get up for this," Arthur breathed, clutching at Merlin's hips and attempting to drag them upwards.

He complied with difficulty, raising himself up on his knees and shaking arms, bracing himself on all fours. He hung his head weakly, feeling Arthur's naked skin pressed against his sweaty back, and his arousal pushed against the cleft of his ass. Unable to form any coherent words, he merely wiggled his hips, signalling to Arthur what he wanted.

The blond squeezed his hips in response, lining his cock with Merlin's ass and pushing slowly inside.

Merlin let out a small 'oh', the thrust throwing him forward slightly, thighs trembling and body jerking.

Suddenly he remembered why he hadn't ever enjoyed anal sex in the past. It felt alien and uncomfortable, as though his body was being forced to do things it really wasn't capable of. He fought to keep himself from collapsing in a heap, feeling Arthur impale himself fully to the hilt, until his thighs were pressed tightly against his ass.

The blond stopped as soon as he was fully inside, his hands gripping painfully at Merlin's hips. "Fuck," he choked, breathing ragged against Merlin's neck, his damp hair sticking to the other man's spine.

Merlin felt his body slowly adjusting and let out a small sigh of relief, finding the feeling of Arthur so deep inside him quite intimate and not altogether unpleasant, just as long as he wasn't moving.

But inevitably, Arthur slowly began to thrust, drawing himself back out and pounding back in. Merlin choked back a cry and leaned back on the blond for support, feeling his lips brush softly against his neck.

It took a few minutes, but Merlin soon found himself moving automatically with his cellmate's rhythm, pushing him deeper inside, finding a spot that made him tremble uncontrollably.

He moaned instinctively, and found himself muttering, "More."

He wasn't even sure why he wanted more. It was still mostly painful and invasive, just like he remembered, but he still found himself rocking eagerly back against Arthur's thrusts, wanting it harder, faster and deeper.

And Arthur seemed to be all to eager to comply; when he said he didn't like going slow, he hadn't been joking. He was pounding into Merlin's ass without restraint, using one hand to brace them against the headboard and the other to keep Merlin's slackened body in place. His breathing was coming out in short pants and his body was slick with sweat. He evidently wasn't far from his own release.

Wanting them to come together, he brought his hand from Merlin's hip to his cock and grasped it firmly. Merlin bucked instinctively, letting out a groan as he felt the addictive burn mingle with bursts of pleasure. His stomach tightened and he felt it coming only a second before it happened, his climax exploding behind his eyes and over his cellmate's hand.

His muscles contracted around Arthur's cock, causing the blond groan loudly and bite Merlin's neck, bringing him to his own release, deep inside his cellmate's body.

Merlin went slack against Arthur's chest, riding out his blinding orgasm and unable to stop himself collapsing; the blond let him fall, boneless and exhausted onto the bed.

He was covered in sweat and cum but just couldn't find the energy to move, only vaguely registering Arthur's collapse beside him. He shuffled back into the warm body weakly, letting out a contented sigh as he felt Arthur's laboured breath on the back of his neck.

They led there for a number of minutes, the cell growing dark around them, their breathing evening and bodies cooling. Merlin was so shattered he found his eyes drifting shut, his limbs heavy and heart thumping, slowly returning to its normal speed. But just as soon as he was slipping slowly off into unconsciousness, he felt Arthur shift, climbing over him and out of the bed.

Merlin's eyes snapped back open, but he remained still and silent, watching Arthur's figure moving in the dark.

The blond got to his feet and moved towards the stairs of the bunk, climbing up onto Merlin's bed and laying on top of it.

Merlin lay blinking in Arthur's bed, feeling his heart sink swiftly through the floor. He knew that he shouldn't of expected anything less, but he felt disappointed nevertheless. The post-orgasm high he'd been experiencing quickly melted away, leaving him feeling hurt and strangely confused.

He heard Arthur shifting above him and tried to will himself asleep, but his mind was wide awake now, turning the evening's activities over in his head. He listened to his cellmate's uneven breathing and knew he wasn't asleep either, but the thought brought him little comfort.

He buried his head in a pillow that smelt of sweat and sex, and tried to wipe all thoughts of Arthur from his mind.

He wasn't very successful.

"You have to help me!" Merlin cried the next morning, flinging himself down at the cafeteria table without actually getting any breakfast. He was in full-on crisis mode, desperate enough that he was actually going to Will for help - useless though he may be.

Will raised his eyebrows but carried on eating, replying through a mouthful of Frosties. "Where were you yesterday evening?" he asked, ignoring Merlin's plea completely.

"Don't even get me started," Merlin moaned, banging his head on the table, and hoping that he could just knock himself out. He deserved it, for being so blindingly naive. "I'm such an idiot!"

His friend nodded and said nothing, obviously in complete agreement, which did nothing to help Merlin's mood.

He glared.

"What?" Will yelped after an uncomfortable moment, looking thrown by his friend's dark mood and black stare. He waved his hands up in the air and fixed his friend with both innocent and accusing eyes. "Don't blame whatever's happened with Arthur on me!"

Merlin blinked, thrown, and croaked, "How'd you know this is about Arthur?"

"Because you've got Blondie on the brain," Will replied with a grin, shrugging his shoulders in a 'I'm so clever' sort of way. "You have since you arrived."

"I haven't…" Merlin protested, before dribbling off pathetically, recognising a lost argument. After what had happened the previous night, there was little point in denying it now.

"So, what happened?" Will asked tiredly, licking his spoon, his tone positively long-suffering.

"We…." Merlin paused, unsure of what to say. He wasn't particularly keen on telling Will what had happened, but didn't know what else to do. Maybe his friend would be able to shed some light on the situation and give some helpful advice. He didn't think he'd be able to stand his current situation with Arthur for much longer, especially if it continued in the same way as it had that morning, silent and embarrassingly awkward. "I had sex with Arthur."

Will blanched, throwing down his spoon and giving him a gleeful grin. "Well, finally!" he cried, clapping his hands together and looking worryingly interested. "How was it?"

"Good," Merlin muttered, while trying to push images of the previous night out of his mind. The last thing he needed to do was start daydreaming about it. Arthur had made it clear where he stood, when he'd got up and walked away.

"Hand-job or blowjob?"

Merlin gave Will an exasperated look, but had grown unsurprised by his friend's crude questioning. "Neither," he admitted quietly, as Will frowned in confusion. "We had sex."

"Like, actual sex?" Will said, looking surprisingly serious.

Merlin nodded slowly, and already dreading the answer, asked, "Uh, yeah….Why?"

"That's unusual for Arthur, that's why," his friend replied, turning in his seat to give the blond a searching look. "He must like the look of you."

Arthur was sat in his usual seat on the other side of the cafeteria, head bent and expression impassive, Lancelot's empty seat beside him glaringly noticeable. Even his usual posse appeared to be particularly on edge, all glaring in the druids direction and not speaking to each other.

Merlin heart jumped at the sight of the blond, so he looked back down, pushing the images of him gloriously naked from his mind.

"I take it he was top?" Will asked in his usual bluntness, causing Merlin to blush bright red and duck his head.

"Yeah."

"I was going to say…" his friend continued, raising his eyebrows. "If he was bottom, that would be unheard of."

Merlin let out a desperate cry and buried his head in his hands, glaring at the tabletop.

Will stared at him in confusion. "I don't know why you're so upset. You said it was good."

"I don't even know why I did it! I don't even like him half the time! But he was looking so broody and upset…and then he kissed me, and I just couldn't…I couldn't help myself!" Merlin spluttered, attempting to explain himself, even if it didn't quite make sense in his own mind. He wasn't even sure why he'd done it - apart from the fact that he was attracted to Arthur, and he'd wanted to. It was as simple as that.

"Nothing wrong with that," Will remarked. "Have your cake and eat it, my friend."

"But now he's ignoring me again!"

Will sighed, rolling his eyes. "Well, I did warn you! It's a one time thing with Arthur. What were you expecting? You'd have sex and then he'd be your boyfriend?"

Merlin said nothing.

"You did?" Will gasped, looking thoroughly exasperated.

"No," Merlin replied immediately, shaking his head and widening his eyes. "I'm not stupid. But maybe a part of me wanted that. I don't know. He's a prat. But I'm attracted to him. I know I'm an idiot."

"Yeah," Will nodded, picking up his bowl and emptying the milk into his mouth. "But now it's over with, you can forget it and get on with things. Isn't that what you wanted?"

Merlin gave a reluctant nod, but knew it was hardly going to be something he'd easily forget. He got to his feet and slunk over to the breakfast bar, for the first time since his arrival, feeling thoroughly miserable.

TBC...

A/N Lol, so this chapter was pretty much 4000 words of porn. The Lancelot thing still hasn't been addressed, neither has Mordred, but sexitimes makes up for it, RIGHT? XD

I hope it didn't seem too soon, or too random! Well, it was supposed to seem a bit random, cos it was a spare of the moment kind of thing, but you get my point...And I'm just going to be quiet now.

Hours to write, and only minutes to review, so please R&R! I want to hear what you think! :)