Merlin sighed as he paced in front of Arthur's fireplace. He'd been waiting for the git to get back from the family dinner the King had insisted on having with the Prince and Morgana every week. He paused to tend to the fire. It was early spring, so the castle still had a slight chill in the air. Finally, after what felt like ages, which was probably only twenty minutes or so, Arthur entered the room. Merlin sighed in relief and went to go get the Prince's nightclothes while the man made his way to sit on the edge of his bed for a moment.

"How was it?" Merlin asked as he turned back to the bed. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Still stiff as ever, though thankfully Father and Morgana didn't get into an argument this time," Arthur stood up, letting Merlin's thin fingers pull at his day clothes. "I see you haven't paced a hole into the floor yet."

Merlin paused to frown at Arthur before pulling the nightclothes onto the man. "Yes, well. I can't sit still is all."

"Father did ask if we could go on patrol starting tomorrow," Arthur commented. Merlin looked up.

"Who's coming with us?" Merlin asked. Arthur smirked.

"I convinced him it would be more efficient for just us and Leon to go."

Merlin looked up at the man hopefully. "Do you think it would be okay for me to be a girl some of the time?"

"Of course, Merlin, that's why I convinced him to just have us and Leon go. It will only be for a few days, just a short patrol," Arthur rolled his eyes. Merlin couldn't keep the grin off his face for the rest of the night.

~O~

The next day, Merlin had made sure the three horses were ready with enough rations for a week. Taking into consideration that Prince and knight loved to hunt for dinner when they could. If they came across a big enough river or lake, Merlin could even cook fish for one night. Just as the sun was cresting over the horizon, Merlin was heading back into the castle to pick up breakfast for Arthur. He nicked another roll and threw it onto the tray when the cook wasn't looking and ran out the door before she could notice it was gone.

"Rise and shine, my lord!" Merlin pulled back the curtains to let the weak sunlight filter through. He heard a small groan from the bed before Arthur pulled himself up from the bed and rubbed at his eyes.

"At least it's not you're usual 'Up and at 'em, lazy daisy,'" he yawned as he stood and made his way to the table. Merlin took the extra roll and broke off a small piece to pop into his mouth before heading to get Arthur's clothes ready for the day.

"How'd you sleep?" he asked, noticing the fire had gone out in the night. It didn't seem too cold though.

"Fine," Arthur replied after he swallowed his food. "Does Cook know you stole from her again?"

"Nope, and I'd like to keep it that way," Merlin gave one of his mischievous grins as he headed to clean the fireplace out now that the clothes were laid out in the bed. They stayed in silence as Arthur ate and Merlin went around the room cleaning small things before they left. Merlin was antsy as they made their way to the horses. Leon was already waiting for them.

"Good morning, my lord," the knight bowed slightly to Arthur. "Good morning, Merlin."

"Good morning!" Merlin gave a bright and cheery grin before they all mounted the horses. Merlin reached down to stroke his mare's neck. He whispered to her. "Are you ready, girl?"

The horse snorted, rearing her head back slightly in greeting before starting after Arthur and Leon's stallions. Merlin gave a grin to the knights watching the gates as they passed, getting a small smile and head nod from both of them.

"Are you friends with everyone?" Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Arthur," Merlin stuck his tongue out at the Prince. "Not everyone is a royal prat."

"Ha ha, funny," Arthur scowled slightly, shaking his head. He turned to Leon. "Do you see what I have to put up with from him?"

"I'm sure it's not all one-sided, sire," Leon gave a small grin of his own. Arthur groaned.

"Don't take his side on this!" the man whined. "That's not fair!"

Merlin only laughed as the duo slowed to a stop now that they were out of Camelot's view. Arthur looked back at Merlin, who also stopped.

"Are you changing this time? Or staying in that stupid neckerchief?" he asked. Merlin gave a softer smile.

"I do have a dress if you don't mind."

"We're close enough to Camelot to not run into too much trouble travelling with a lady," Leon commented. Merlin smiled as he got off the mare and quickly pulled a cotton dress with some small clothes out of his pack and disappeared into the trees.

"Don't go too far, Merlin!" Arthur called out. Merlin rolled his eyes.

"I'm right here, still," he called back as he hung his clothes on a branch. "Just out of sight."

Merlin closed his eyes and pulled his magic to the surface. He'd done this so many times now that it felt natural. His hair lengthened to the middle of his back and curled slightly, and his hips and thighs filled out a bit more. His height shortened a few inches and his chest swelled a bit. Merlin was a huge lady, but she did have some curves to her and some chest. Morgana was bigger than her in that area, for sure. She stood, simply enjoying the change for a moment. She was now completely female, parts down below as well.

Quickly, she pulled off her male clothes and folded them. She placed them on the log beside her and pulled her small clothes on before pulling the cotton dress on. It wasn't a fancy dress. Arthur had bought it for her specifically for when they were out riding like this. He had been appalled when he had learned she had changed to a female and didn't have proper female clothes to wear.

She picked up her pile of male clothes and made her way back to the two waiting for her. She gave a soft smile to them when they paused their conversation for a moment. Arthur gave her a lopsided grin. "Feel better?"

"Yes, sire," she giggled as she pulled herself back up on the mare. "I haven't been able to change in about a month."

"I know," he gave a small laugh. He turned back to Leon as they continued to make their way down the path. "Have the new recruits seem a bit lazy or is it just me?"

"It's not just you, sire," Leon sighed, his eyes filtering back and forth every few moments before glancing back to Arthur. "Pellinn was also bragging about being stronger than most of the senior knights that are in your father's guard."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Arthur raised an eyebrow, also letting his eye sweep the area every few moments.

"It was only rumor for me until I heard him saying such things yesterday. I was going to tell you today," Leon shrugged. "You were busy with the King yesterday."

Arthur sighed. "I'll have to correct him when we get back if the senior knights don't do it themselves first."

Merlin listened to them speak about knights and recruits and things that had been happening around the castle as she followed them. Before long, the sun was not far from setting.

"Let's make camp," Arthur said. They veered off the path and into the woods, looking for a safe but open space for themselves and the horses. Once they found one, they all got to their feet. Merlin frowned as she wobbled a bit, hoping to get feeling in her legs soon.

"I'll prepare camp while you go hunting?" she suggested. Arthur looked back at her with a slight frown as he took his bow and quiver from his horse, Leon doing the same.

"You'll be fine on your own?" he asked. Merlin smiled as she rolled her eyes.

"Of course, I'll be fine on my own, dollophead. Go get something I can cook for dinner!" she laughed as she pushed the two men towards the tree line. Leon shook his head with an amused smile as Arthur grumbled under his breath.

"I'm not a dollophead," but he continued his way into the forest on silent feet. Merlin simply shook her head with a small giggle as she collected sticks and branches for the fire she would need. She collected a few bigger rocks that she could find in the tree line to put in a circle, along with one or two small logs she also found. They were a bit damp, but a bit of her magic had them dry enough to catch alight. She unpacked the bedrolls and blankets, getting them ready for all three of them. She took some of the bread she had packed for them, setting up the cooking fire to warm them up a bit.

It wasn't long before the men came back, each holding a rabbit. Merlin watched as they set them near the fire and she picked up some sticks she had already started preparing for them. She got the rabbits cooking as she handed each a good chunk of bread to start with.

"Thank you," Leon nodded to her with a grateful smile. Merlin gave him a grin back as she started eating her own smaller piece of bread. Arthur settled down on his bedroll, starting to take his armour off. He frowned.

"Merlin, could you get this tie for me? I can't seem to get it on my own," he huffed out in frustration. Merlin glanced over and let out a giggle as she popped the rest of her bread into her mouth. She turned the rabbits to make sure they wouldn't burn and made her way over to him. With a quick movement, Arthur was free of his armour. He breathed out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Merlin."

"You're welcome, Arthur," Merlin made her way back to the fire and put a few more sticks into it. "Leon, do you need help as well?"

The knight gave a sheepish grin. "It would be appreciated, yes."

Merlin rolled her eyes. "I hope you weren't planning on sleeping in it?"

"Of course not!" he exclaimed, looking a bit affronted. Merlin simply let out a small giggle as she started helping him out of his armour. She put it in a neat pile next to his bedroll. When she was done, she handed a rabbit to each man.

"Dinner's ready!"

Arthur rolled his eyes and ripped off a chunk for Merlin. "You're skinny enough as it is, you aren't having just bread."

"Yes, father," Merlin rolled her eyes, but took to the meat to eat it. Leon shook his head and ended up doing the same once Merlin was done with the chunk Arthur had given her. Merlin sighed, but ate that piece as well. "Do we want the fire going tonight or let it die out?"

"We can let it die out," Arthur shrugged, putting his stick into the fire once he was done with eating. He put the pile of bones next to the fire to dispose of in the morning, Leon doing the same. "Should be warm enough, especially since you packed the winter blankets."

"Are we doing watch, sire?" Leon asked. Arthur frowned in thought.

"I can cast a protection spell around the clearing if you want me to," Merlin offered. "So you can both sleep through the night."

Arthur nodded. "Would be a good idea. With only two of us for watch, we'd run a bit thin on sleep otherwise."

Leon nodded. Merlin stood and swept out her hands. Her eyes flashed gold and a visible shell formed over the clearing before it flashed out of sight.

They continued like this for a few days before starting to head back to the castle. Merlin was glad she had packed side rations for an entire week, as that's how long it took before they were to ride back into Camelot. The morning of that day, she pouted. She knew she would have to go back to being male. It's not that she didn't like being male, as it definitely had its perks, but being female was fun. Especially given that she didn't have to worry about a time of the month. Magic was wonderful like that.

~O~