Chapter 2: In Which Sir Gwaine and Maid Merlin Enjoy A Night Out On The Town, Although Not For the Reason the Other Thinks

It was almost sunset by the time Gwaine found himself waiting by the entrance to the lower town for Merlin, the next day. He stretched a bit, muscles a bit sore from what had been a particularly brutal training session with Arthur, but an amputated leg would not have been able to keep him from seeing Merlin today.

"Gwaine!" called a voice through the crowd. Gwaine grinned when he saw Merlin fighting her way through the throng of people, face flushed from the effort.

"Merlin!" He called back to her, but she had already seen him. She stopped right in front of him, smiling.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Of course, princess," he smirked, offering her his arm. Merlin smiled wider, if that were even possible, and looped her elbow through his, remembering the day in the market where he had cornered her and jokingly called her a princess and offered her flowers.

"It's a shame we couldn't come earlier," Merlin noted. "Arthur wouldn't give me the morning off. Apparently I had to be at the council meeting with him, even though he wouldn't give me a real reason as to why. Personally, I think he feels that if he has to be tortured with all of those boring reports, I should be, too."

Merlin pulled a face.

"You do his laundry and clean out his chamber pot," Gwaine said with a grimace. "Aren't you tortured enough?"

"I suppose," Merlin said. Gwaine was surprised at her reluctance. It wasn't often that she missed up on a chance to insult Arthur. Then she said, "But he's tortured every time he looks in the mirror, so I suppose it all balances out."

Gwaine let out a bark of laughter, attracting the attention of quite a few villagers. If Merlin cared, she didn't say anything. She was far too busy looking around them with a child-like wonder.

He and Merlin were making their way through the first part of the festival, consisting of stalls selling clothing, jewelry, and food. The sun was slowly fading, taking with it much of the warmth of the spring day, leaving what looked to be a crisp, cool night. The smell of food filled the air and the crowd was abuzz with excitement.

Gwaine looked down at Merlin, whose attention had been caught by a stall not far from them. Before Gwaine had a chance to protest, she had dashed off for a closer look. He frowned, not liking how empty his side felt without her next to it, before following and thanking any god that would listen that none of his fellow knights knew what went on his head some of the time.

Merlin had never seemed like the type to like markets. At least, not the sort of markets that the other noblewomen spent their time in, simpering over the latest fashions and trends. That had been Gwaine's opinion. Still, she seemed completely focused on a pair of delicate pink earrings that Gwaine could honestly never see her wearing.

"What do you think?" she turned to him. He raised an eyebrow, not sure how to tell her that he thought they did not suit her in the least.

"For you?" He asked hesitantly.

Merlin shook her head. "For Gwen."

"Gwen?"

"It's her birthday soon," Merlin explained, and suddenly everything made a bit more sense. "I wanted to get her something nice. Do you think she'll like them?"

Gwaine couldn't help but admit to himself that the earrings would look quite nice on their queen. He had seen plenty of jewelry and plenty of clothing on plenty of women (and helped them take most of it off, later) to know what looked good and what did not. The earrings' pale color would flatter Gwen's dark skin nicely.

But instead of telling this to Merlin and making her suspicious of his old nighttime habits (hardly the time to bring it up), he simply said, "You know her better than I."

Merlin nodded, satisfied, and turned to the merchant, ready to haggle the price down. Gwaine decided to leave her to it for a moment, browsing the stalls in search of food. Training had left him starving and he could do with a bite- preferable something quick, preferably an apple.

"I think I have what you're looking for," cackled a voice to Gwaine's left. Gwaine turned and saw an old woman standing behind a stall selling jewelry. The woman looked frail and ancient, and was stooped slightly, looking as though she were weighed down by the sheer volume of the velvet robes she had draped on.

"I seriously doubt that," he said politely.

"So you aren't looking for some pretty baubles, then?" the woman asked.

Gwaine shook his head. "Actually, I was looking for an apple."

"You know not what you seek!" the old lady declared wildly.

Gwaine blinked and took a step towards her. "Pardon?"

The woman waved him closer. "Yes, yes, come here. Anna can show you what you need. An apple? Fie! That won't win you a girl's heart!"

"What girl?" Gwaine demanded, suddenly apprehensive.

"This is what you need," the woman (Anna, apparently) said triumphantly. She held out a necklace for him, which he took out of pure reflex.

He looked at it. "It's very pretty."

Gwaine wasn't really sure how else to tell her (without hurting her feelings, since Merlin probably wouldn't appreciate it if he made an old woman cry on their first date (first date with Merlin, first date with Merlin, he was on a first date with Merlin)) that the necklace looked nothing like an apple: shaped like an upside down triangle, with curly gold bits at the corners, the design pointed inward at a shiny, blue-grey, stone in the center.

"The shield design will protect the wearer from evil," Anna's voice floated over to him. "And the moonstone is said to arouse tender passions in lovers and give them the power to read the future. Perfect, no?"

Gwaine looked down at the necklace, then back up at the old lady, who was watching him, then back down, then up again.

"What a load of rubbish," he said bluntly.

The woman deflated and grinned at him ruefully. When she spoke, her voice was much more normal and far less cackling. "I knew you were a smart man. What gave it away?"

"Nothing," Gwaine admitted. "I don't believe in superstition."

"Hm," the woman hummed, removing one of the veils she was wearing and wiping her brow with it. It may have been a cool night, but she still must have been sweltering in the clothing, Gwaine assumed.

"How'd you know about the girl?"

Anna snorted. "Handsome man like you? There's always a girl."

Gwaine laughed. He liked this woman. Then he looked back down at the necklace, fingering it a bit in his hands. The material was good- nice and sturdy, and the chain looked durable. It really was quite pretty, in a simple way.

"I wasn't making any of it up," Anna offered, taking a swig of something in a flask. Gwaine had a feeling that it wasn't water, and had to resist the urge to ask her for a swig. His nerves were killing him. "All that nonsense about the stone and the shield and whatnot? Ancient lore says its all true, if you believe in that hocus-pocus."

"And you don't?"

"Of course not," she snorted, before plastering on a mysterious smile for a young girl that was walking by.

"Then why all of the-" Gwaine waved his hand in front of the stall.

"Theatrics?" Anna supplied. "Helps with business. Most of the lot here love a good bit of mystery and magic, sorcery being outlawed and all. Makes 'em feel like they're living dangerously. Idiots."

Gwaine tried not to smile wider.

"Gwaine?"

Gwaine looked over his shoulder to see that Merlin had finished bartering for the earrings and was now looking for him. Quickly, before she could see, he fished into his pocket and pulled out some money, placing it in front of Anna, and quickly put the necklace away.

He bid goodbye to the woman with a nod and walked over to Merlin, who was looking around confusedly, her back to him.

"Hello, princess," poking her slightly in the ribs. She jumped higher than Gwaine had ever seen, and when she turned to face him, her face was set in a deep scowl, as opposed to its usual smile.

"Don't do that!" Merlin ordered, slapping his hands away.

He held his hands up in surrender and smirked. "I make no promises."

"Of course you don't," Merlin said wryly.

"Do you have Gwen's gift, then?" Gwaine asked. Merlin patted her pocket and nodded, smiling proudly at herself now.

"I think she'll really like them."

"I think she'd like anything that you go her, Merlin," Gwaine pointed out, knowing well enough of their queen's sweet disposition.

Apparently, this was the right thing to say, since Merlin cheerfully linked her arm with his again and tugged him forward. "C'mon, then! Let's find you some food and go watch the shows!"

"How'd you know I was hungry?" Gwaine asked incredulously.

"You're always hungry," Merlin said easily, looking around for a food maker's stall. They passed Anna's stall quickly, but not quickly enough for Gwaine to miss her giving him a thumbs up and a cheeky grin.

They quickly found a fruit vendor (Gwaine liked to say that it because of his superb sense of smell, but, in truth, they'd probably still be wandering around if Merlin hadn't stopped to ask somebody) and Gwaine was happily munching on his apple when they stopped to watch a street performer who was beckoning them in.

Set up on a small platform, surrounded and lit up by torches, the man was small, older, and had black hair that was so slicked back it looked as though it had been glued to his head. If Gwaine had thought Anna's robes over-the-top, they had nothing on this man.

"Gather round," the middle-aged man crowed. "Yes, gather round, and feast your eyes on an illusion so amazing that you will- you will be amazed," he faltered towards the end.

"He's setting himself up for failure," Gwaine commented, taking another bite of his apple.

Merlin snorted, behind her hand, trying to hid her laugh with a cough. The man (Bedwyr the Magnificent, apparently) noticed though, and glared for a split second, before smiling grandly at the gathered crowd once again.

The show began well. He performed a small number of simple illusions, which the crowd seemed to enjoy. Gwaine wasn't paying a large amount of attention to him, if he were honest with himself. He was too busy watching Merlin, who was clearly enjoying herself, and congratulating himself on his idea to bring her here.

"For my next trick," Bedwyr declared, as a flock of doves disappeared into smoke, "I will need a volunteer from the audience."

He made a grand show of looking around the audience carefully, but Gwaine had an awful feeling in the pit of his stomach that told him exactly who Bedwyr was going to pick. Bedwyr's eyes settled on him and he made a face as Bedwyr said, "You! Yes, you, the pretty lady in blue!"

Gwaine let out a sigh of relief, as he was neither a lady or in blue (although some might argue that he was pretty).

"You! In the neckerchief!"

Gwaine almost choked on his apple. There was only one girl he knew who wore neckerchiefs-

Merlin was apparently as surprised as he was. She looked down at the cloth she wore around her neck and touched it, as if to make sure it was real, and then looked up at Bedwyr and pointed at herself. "Me?"

Bedwyr nodded and walked over to her. Butting Gwaine out of the way, Bedwyr placed his arm around Merlin's shoulder and lead her forward (Gwaine resisted the urge to run him through with his sword, even though he was sure Arthur would understand and his sentence would be minimal).

"No need to be so modest-?"

"Merlin," Merlin said politely.

"A lovely name for a lovely girl," Bedwyr said smoothly, making Merlin blush. Gwaine narrowed his eyes, filled with an irrational jealousy stemming from the absurd thought that only he (and maybe Arthur, he grudgingly admitted) was allowed to make Merlin blush like that. One of Bedwyr's assistants brought out a large, brown box and stood it upright, opening up several panels in the front. "Now, Merlin. If you don't mind, please climb into the box. There you go!"

Merlin had hopped into the box and fit herself inside. For anybody else, it might have been a tight squeeze, but Merlin had always been on the small side. She made herself comfortable and then waved at Gwaine. He smiled tensely back.

Something about Bedwyr was off. The little man irked him, so he watched suspiciously as Bedwyr shut Merlin up in the box, until only her face remained.

"Alright in there, Merlin?"

Merlin clearly tried to nod, but wasn't able to because of the box, so instead opted for a muffled, "Yes."

"I'm going to close this panel, now. It'll be dark and cramped. If you need to be let out, tap three times on the side of the box, alright? Can you do that now?"

Merlin did and Bedwyr nodded, closing the final panel of the box, locking the clasp with a little gold key, as he had done with all of the other panels. Merlin was completely out of sight and locked inside.

"Now, this is nothing more than a normal, wooden box!"

The assistants spun the box around a few times, showing it off form all angles. Bedwyr leaned against it and smirked. "However, on the count of three, I will make Merlin disappear! Please count!"

The crowd, clearly excited, began to chant with him, as he waved his hands up and down, eyes closed as though concentrating. Gwaine looked around him, and then back at Bedwyr, and resisted the urge to roll his eyes, instead keeping them fixed on the box.

"One, two, three!"

Gwaine had been expecting some sort of flash, or puff of smoke, but there was nothing. The crowd was clearly disappointed. Bedwyr, however, was not surprised. He just chuckled and walked over to the cover of the box and began to unlock it.

"You expected grandness and theatrics," Bedwyr said, as though scolding small children. "But a truly amazing trick needs nothing save itself to baffle the minds of the audience. Behold!"

Bedwyr whipped the panels of the box and revealed-

Merlin, standing there, looking perfectly innocent, holding the rabbit that Bedwyr had pulled from a hat earlier.

"What-?" Bedwyr was clearly at a loss for words. "How did you-? The rabbit-?"

"Brilliant trick," Merlin said, stepping out of the box and handing Bedwyr the rabbit. "You might want to feed him. He was nibbling on my tunic, so I think he's hungry."

Before Bedwyr could take the rabbit from her, Merlin nodded knowingly. "You're right. Best I take him. He's obviously a handful."

Merlin hopped down from the platform and walked over to a little girl who had been looking at the rabbit longingly. Gwaine watched as Merlin gave it her, the little girl's eyes filling with tears as Merlin explained how to hold it, what it ate, and how to care for it. Saying goodbye to the girl and her father (who seemed incredibly grateful since, as it turned out, it was the little girl's birthday, but he had no money to buy her a real present), Merlin headed over to Gwaine, who could feel his grin threatening to split his face in half.

"Ready to go?" she asked.

"Whenever you are, princess," Gwaine said. Merlin hummed in agreement and took his hand, pulling him away from the murmuring crowd.

"How did you do that, then?" Gwaine asked, once they were a ways away. Gwaine could hear Bedwyr calling another volunteer from the audience, ready to perform the trick again, his pride obviously hurt.

"He just wasn't very good, is all," Merlin shrugged. "I've definitely seen better."

"You like magic, then," Gwaine said.

Merlin's eyes twinkled with unsuppressed mirth. "You could say that."

Gwaine let go of her hand and took a quick step to stand in front of her, his own hand going quickly to his pocket. She stopped short, looking up at him, quickly baffled. "What are you up to now?"

"Nothing, nothing," Gwaine said, reaching up to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. "I was just wondering what was hiding behind your ear."

Gwaine let the pendant he had gotten her earlier drop from his hand, dangling from the chain, which was twined around his fingers. Merlin blinked, reaching behind her ear, and then, realizing what Gwaine must have done, she laughed.

"Gwaine-" Merlin began, about to say something, but then changed her mind. "Where'd you get that?"

"Saw it at a stall, earlier," he said, handing it to her. She looked at it, fingering the design. "Thought it was pretty and figured that you would suit each other."

Merlin's face was downturned, looking at the necklace in her hands, so he couldn't see it, but he could see the tips of her ears turn red, and smirked triumphantly. She looked back up at him and handed him the necklace.

"Help me get it on?" she asked, turning around and lifting her hair up and away from her neck.

Gwaine swallowed- she doesn't know what she's doing, she doesn't know what she's doing- and stepped towards her, and, taking the ends of the necklace and unclasping it, positioned the pendant around her neck. He tried to close it, but the clasp was small and Merlin's proximity was doing funny things to his heartbeat and breathing, and he accidentally jerked a bit too tightly.

He let out a curse, followed by an apologetic, "Sorry."

"It's alright," Merlin said, sounding completely unaffected. "Here. Just let me-"

Merlin took a step backwards, moving herself closer to him, pressing her back to his front. "Better?"

Gwaine had stopped breathing- stopped thinking, really. "Better" wasn't quite the word for it. Merlin was pushing his self-control to its limits. If it had been any other woman, Gwaine would have accused her of doing it on purpose, but this was Merlin, who was so incredibly oblivious to the looks men gave her that there was no way she was doing any of this consciously, which only made her more attractive, in Gwaine's eyes.

It was only years of training with a sword that kept Gwaine's hands from shaking as he once again tried to close the clasp of the necklace, and only the laughter of children that reminded Gwaine that he and Merlin were, as a matter of fact, in a public place.

"It's alright, you know, if you can't do it," Merlin said, as Gwaine fumbled a bit more. "I'm sure you're more used to taking women's jewelry off, than putting it on."

Gwaine was so startled by this proclamation that he started, but apparently this was all that was needed, and the clasp fell into place, the necklace now secure. Merlin stepped away and Gwaine allowed himself to breathe again.

Merlin turned and must have seen an odd expression on his face, because she said, "I was only joking."

Gwaine forced himself to laugh. "I know you were. Now, what do you say to heading over to south end of the town. That's where I hear the acrobats will be."

"Acrobats?" Merlin asked. "Well, why didn't you say so? They're probably much better than some dodgy magician. Let's go!"

As Merlin had predicted, the acrobats were far more interesting than the magician. There were also jugglers, and dancers, and musicians, who, at one point, had their entire audience (including Merlin and Gwaine), dancing.

It wasn't until several hours later that Merlin and Gwaine stumbled home, leaning on each other, not drunk, but tipsy, and exhausted from the night's festivities.

"This was the best night ever," Merlin mumbled. Merlin had had less to drink than Gwaine, but was notorious for not being able to hold her alcohol. Gwaine, on the other hand, still felt perfectly fine, if not a bit lightheaded (although that might have to do with how well the night had gone).

"I thought so, too" Gwaine said, walking her into the home she shared with Gaius. When Gwaine saw that there was nobody there, he asked Merlin, "Where's Gauis?"

"There's a family in town with a grandfather who's sick," Merlin said. "Gaius is spending the night there to make sure he's alright."

"Let's get you to bed then," Gwaine said, leading her up the stairs. Merlin didn't say anything, but gripped his arm tighter and tried to burry her face in his shoulder, humming the song the musicians had played earlier that night.

Gwaine opened her bedroom door and deposited her in her bed (the same bed he had slept in when he first came to Camelot, he noted). Merlin sat up, apparently still somewhat capable of rational thought, and began to try and take off her shoes. She struggled with the laces and Gwaine, trying not to laugh at her, pushed her hands away and did it himself. Merlin leant against the wall and watched him.

"You're a good dancer," she muttered. Gwaine grinned at her and worked on the other shoe.

"That so?"

"Mhm," Merlin nodded sleepily. "Why don't you dance more?"

"Nobody to dance with," Gwaine shrugged, placing both shoes on the floor next to the bed. Merlin huffed slightly as she shuffled to lay down, grabbing her blanket and pulling it around herself.

"You've got me," Merlin muttered. Gwaine stood up and brushed off his hands.

"Do I?" He asked.

"'Course you do," Merlin slurred. "You're m' best friend. Thanks, by the way, for going wi' me today. I had fun hanging out, just you and me, like before. Only without getting into a fight or jumping off buildings. We should do it more- spending time together, I mean, not- not jumping off buildings."

"Y-yes," Gwaine stuttered, "We should."

Merlin smiled and mumbled, "G'night," before finally falling asleep. Gwaine let himself out of her room and shut the door. Then he braced his fist against the wall and hit his head with it, repeatedly.

Gwaine had always thought Merlin to be very smart (it was her, after all, who had realized that Lancelot wasn't really Lancelot when Gwen cheated with him, but instead a Shade conjured up by Morgana, and found the real Lancelot unconscious in a ditch), but right now he couldn't help but wonder how one girl could be so oblivious.

"...best friend."

"...hanging out..."

"...spending time together..."

Clearly, if Gwaine wanted Merlin to know how he felt about her, he was going to have to kick things up a notch. A necklace and a night at a festival was obviously not enough.

He left, deciding that he needed some sleep, or maybe another drink.

The next morning, when Leon innocently asked Gwaine how his night with Merlin had gone, Gwaine accidentally clobbered him hard over the head with flat of his sword.

AN: Oh, poor Gwaine. He just can't catch a break! Thanks so much for all the reviews! I really didn't expect it! So I thought I'd post this chapter a day early to say thanks! It's nice and long, too!

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