A Bucket List

Merlin is dying of an unknown terminal illness that even his magic cannot cure. Arthur had him devise a bucket list and is very enthusiastic to help him complete every single thing on the list, no matter how hard or how stupid it may be. EVENTUAL MERxTHUR and crippling angst towards the end of the story.

Subtle merthur in this chapter


Chapter 3

Arthur looked down a the bucket list presented to him. Completing this list is definitely going to be tricky. Merlin is already dying and yet this list may just cut both his and Arthur's life short. Attempting to steal in Markarth would cost Arthur his freedom to pass through that kingdom and depending on the mood of the King, he may either be attacked by the guards or thrown into jail immediately. Furthermore, Centurions are very tricky to steal as they are incredibly heavy. Worse than this, killing the leader of the dark brotherhood is too risky. A large group of highly trained assassins against the prince and a very sick servant boy? 'I don't think so!'

"Uhm. Merlin, can you please reconsider the dark brotherhood leader's murder? Because firstly, I don't want to get killed. And secondly, you're ill." Arthur claimed.

Merlin thought about that one for a brief second before crossing it out and writing a replacement goal:

Learn how to play the lute.

Arthur chuckled. "Are you serious? That is just as unrealistic as the previous one!"

Merlin's bottom lip protruded in a pout. "Well its either killing the dark brotherhood or me learning how to woo people with the lute."

Arthur exhaled loudly. "Eh. Fine" he finally concluded. "To start us off, lets do the really easy ones first like...the edamame one. There are some left over from yesterday."

Arthur left the room and quickly grabbed a bowlful of the edamame beans. He returned quickly, plunged the spoon into the bowl and lifted a spoonful of beans and fed Merlin. Merlin chewed the beans slowly, savoring the flavor of each bean.

"Well? What do you think?" Arthur asked.

Merlin gulped down the first spoonful quickly. "Wow thats good!"

Arthur spoon fed him more of the edamame, Merlin slowly struggling to continue eating. The boy began to have problems swallowing, and his jaws began to ache. Then, Merlin felt the food rise up from his stomach to his mouth. He leaned to the side of the bed, grabbed the bucket beneath the bed and threw up the contents of his stomach while Arthur rubbed circles on Merlin's back. He looked at his poor servant in pity. Once Merlin had finished, Arthur wiped the boy's mouth with his own sleeve.

"Merlin, how are you ever going to regain back all the weight you've lost if you can't keep your food down?"

Merlin shrugged. He honestly has no idea. He knows that there is a slim chance of him getting better so he might as well stop trying to regain the weight.

"I don't really have a choice in that sadly." Merlin said.

Arthur decided that maybe feeding him large quantities of food was not a good option at the moment if the boy were to throw it back up. But at least that was one thing off Merlin's bucket list.

A few other of Merlin's goals contained eating other sorts of food he had never tried. Arthur made sure to bring up a platter filled with everything on that list that Merlin wanted to try, in small portions this time to prevent upheaval. Merlin's personal favorite is now the pigeon pie, although it looks completely unappealing. After a very satisfying meal with no throw ups, Merlin finally got up from his bed.

"Well that was 15 things off the bucket list. now we are down to 35." Merlin happily proclaims, stretching his arms up to crack his back.

"Yes, I didn't know you were so food oriented. It's only midnoon as well." Arthur said, glad to see Merlin finally standing up and looking a bit less poorly than last night.

"Actually, to be honest, I feel so much better now. I can feel the energy inside me just waiting to come out! Let's ride for Markarth right this moment!"

Arthur then jolted up from his seated position.

"What? No way, we haven't even prepared our things. I doubt my father would let me go at such short notice and neither would Gaius let you especially with your condition. Can't you wait until tomorrow?" Arthur disproved.

"Oh don't be such a killjoy! I'm dying and I must see this city on a cliff before I die...and the centurion."

Merlin then quickly grabbed a satchel. He began to sort out clothes for the journey and took a handful of the medicine Gaius had fashioned out for him. Afterall, he wanted to make sure that he could enjoy this experience without any technical difficulties. Merlin then paused a bit and looked at the prince.

"Well, Arthur, are you going to sit this one out? Or will you join me on my first and last journey to Markarth?"

Arthur found it hard to reject.

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"Merlin! Remember, drink this vial in the morning and this one in the evening. This will hopefully stop the dizziness you feel. And this green one is for fatigue. It's basically provides you with an energy burst if you feel tired during the day. Oh! And this bright blue one is for your night sweats and..."

All Merlin could do was nod and nod at everything Gaius says. He had run through all the vials he had to drink and by now, has sorted which one is which. He had to drink six vials in total each day. So, one satchel contained his medicine and the other contained personal belongings. Gaius even made extra precautions and enchanted a silver ring for Merlin to wear which is connected to Arthur's current silver ring so whenever Merlin is in trouble, Arthur would sense it and on instinct, rush towards him. Like a tracking device, if you will.

Once Arthur had returned from packing his own items, he alerted Merlin it was time to leave. Merlin and Arthur said their goodbyes to Gaius and left on their journey to Markarth.

The route taken was longer in comparison to last year's journey to Southampton. But Merlin knew this would all be worth it as Markarth (aka. the city of stone) is apparently a very pretty kingdom, hidden away from the others. Very few visit due to its distance being far from all of the other kingdoms but then again, he had thought it would be a waste not visiting after all the things he had heard about it. It was said that it belonged to the dwarves who were responsible for the creation of centurions and other technologically advanced devices. These centurions were programmed to protect the kingdom from outsiders so it would definitely be a difficult task to steal one. Although, Merlin's reason as to why he must steal a centurion is because he had always wanted to take apart the model and figure out how the dwarves had managed to create these. Also, he wanted to reprogram the centurion to carry out other functions like cooking and cleaning, polishing armor so that he doesn't have to, piggyback rides and all sorts of other things.

The journey took three weeks with minimal stop bys at an inn. Markarth was guarded by a gigantic golden gate door, polished to perfection. The two could see their reflections on it. Two of the kingdom's guards approached the pair.

"Arthur Pendragon? We have anticipated your arrival." one of the guards says.

Arthur, once again, is surprised at how they had known. "How in the world-"

"Courier." the other guard quickly replies. "Don't worry, we will open the gates for you, as long as you tell us why exactly you come to this place. Our leader has heard of your name but had never expected you to actually visit one day."

Arthur stuttered for an answer that wasn't 'We need to steal a centurion.'

"We..uhh...on a commission!" he quickly gasped.

Merlin just bobbed his head up awkwardly as if to agree.

The guards looked puzzled. "What type of commission?"

Merlin thought he should come up with something instead of letting Arthur do all the talking.

"Well, it's not serious at all. We just need to purchase a few dresses for Lady Morgana as she had always wanted Markarth's signature golden gowns. Also, I hear that your kingdom is swarming with centurions?"

Arthur facepalmed himself. 'Ohh that was very subtle, Merlin.' he thought to himself.

The guards looked at each other. "We wouldn't say swarming. They were placed in the mines under the city so you don't have to worry about them attacking you. They've remained dormant for some time now so it is a possibility that they ran out of power."

"Ohh...I see." Merlin rubbed his chin with his index finger, proud that he managed to squeeze so much information with very little efforts. After a few extra moments of awkward silences, the guards let the pair into the city.

"Arthur Pendragon, don't be too surprised if no one knows you. The townsfolk have heard very little of Camelot so if anyone becomes too brash towards you, you report it to our Jarl and he will deal with them." the guard warned.

The Golden Gates finally opened, both in anticipation of what to expect.

The golden gate door revealed a beautiful, shining paradise. The entire kingdom was built on a cliff where two waterfalls fell from the very top of where their leader lives down to the very centre of the kingdom keeping the wells brimming with fresh water. The market stalls were heavily stocked with meat produce and vegetables, probably enough to feed everyone in the kingdom 4 times a day. Large stones were carved to create the housing instead of the use of wooden planks like in Camelot. The kingdom wasn't crowded nor was it empty either. The very top of the cliffs were accented with small clouds, as the bottom of the waterfalls were decorated with a miniature rainbow.

The pair stared at this glowing kingdom in awe.

"Wow.." Arthur managed to utter, his blue eyes dreaming out in the open.

"I know..."Merlin replied. If only Camelot were much more like this.

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"Welcome to Silver Blood Inn! Only 10 gold coins for a night!" the gruff hairy inkeeper behind the counter spoke.

"Hello sir. We actually need a room for at least a week if you don't mind." Arthur inquired.

"Oh, well I'll see what available rooms we have." The inkeeper rummaged through a pile of books, trying to find an available room.

Merlin meanwhile, eyed the place. In the indoors, the stone walls were coated in gold. Markarth sure is a wealthy kingdom. Merlin chugged on his water bottle, easing the light headedness.

"I'm sorry, sir. We only have a room with a single bed available. I deeply apologise as I know you were expecting something more extravagant for your honeymoon."

Merlin spat out his drink. Arthur choked on his own spit initiating violent coughing. The pairs' cheeks turned a bright red.

"Oh god no! We aren't like that!" Arthur spat. Then Arthur looked down at his hand and at Merlin's, both with a ring on the left ring finger. He mentally slapped himself.

The inkeeper nervous laughed at the pair in equal embarrassment, giving the key to the two.

"Uhm...right this way gentlemen."

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Dusk had arrived, the two boys were just getting ready for their first proper rest after three weeks of travelling.

"Okay, Merlin. Because you are ill, I'll let you sleep on the bed. But keep in mind that if you weren't it would've been you on the floor so don't feel too special." Arthur chucked a quilted blanket towards Merlin and a pillow.

"Aww thanks Arthur! 10/10 best future king ever!"

Arthur chuckled softly at his servants remark. He assigned himself to a spot next to Merlin's bed and set up his sleeping space. The ground was pure stone, so his back would be aching in the morning. It will be manageable though. Once the boys settled in, Arthur blew out the candle on the end table and snuggled himself deep into the blankets.

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Merlin's night was nearly restless. He would toss and turn on the bed, unable to feel comfortable. It wasn't the night sweats anymore as that symptom had slowly become non existent during the three weeks. Instead, it was the thought that his mortality is coming. In reality, he could leave the world at any moment, at any situation, it could be that night. That scared him senseless. Merlin's movements creaked the bed which woke Arthur up.

Arthur moaned and stretched his body. He got up and found it to still be dark outside.

"Arthur?"

The prince turned and found Merlin to still be awake, the moonlight hitting the servant's face making him look ghostly pale.

"Merlin? Why are you still awake?"

Merlin remained silent, conveying clearly enough with the tears from his eyes that the reality of the situation was finally coming to light.

"Oh no, Merlin. Don't cry!"

Arthur pulled of his shirt, being the only fabric other than the bedsheets that can wipe away his servants tears. He tossed it to Merlin. Merlin wiped his tears away with the prince's shirt. It reeked of musk but in a way, Merlin quite loved the smell.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't be crying." Merlin muttered in between wipes.

Arthur sighed in pity. He had never seen Merlin cry, not even once. The sight of his friend so distraught caused unsettling movements inside him. His heart ached with woe for the boy, his eyes slowly beginning to water but not enough so that they fall.

"What do you want me to do, Merlin?"

Merlin looked up at the prince, half his face hidden by the shirt the prince had handed over.

"Please sleep next to me."

Arthur felt hottness reaching his cheeks. He scratched his head in confusion.

"Are you sure about that?" Arthur double checked.

A small yes escaped Merlin's mouth. Arthur then tucked himself in bed with Merlin, feeling a bit awkward being at such close proximity AND shirtless next to Merlin. Thank god the single bed was large enough to fit them both in and with even just a few centimeters of space in between the two.

"You don't feel weird about this?" Arthur asked.

There was no answer.

Arthur panicked a little and grabbed Merlin's shoulder to face him, but thankfully, the young boy was already peacefully fast asleep.

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Thank you to everyone who are reviewing and following/favoriting! Please keep giving me reviews so I know what you all think and what I should improve on or add to the story :)) xx

Also, in the next chapter, I there will be lots of subtle MERHUR while on the quest to find a centurion. :))xxxxx

Le author