A Marriage that Started a Legend

by IJustShowedUp

Follows canon but with my own arranged marriage spin on it. What happens when Hunith makes a mistake and is forced on the run with her infant son? What happens when Camelot knights find her twenty years later? What happens when Arthur learns he's betrothed to a peasant boy? Will Merlin be able to stand among royalty? Will these two different boys survive each other? Review!

4. The Dragon’s Call

While Merlin was checking out his bed and Arthur was heading into the lower town followed by his manservant Morris and the giant target, Leon had spent this entire time debriefing his king on how they had retrieved Merlin.

"-and that was when our informant told us the exact location of Hunith and her son, Merlin." The knight finally finished, bowing to his king.

King Uther was sitting on his throne, listening attentively. He scowled at the sound of Hunith's name. He would never forgive that woman for making him send his best knights to track her and her wayward son down. He still couldn't believe that Hunith actually thought that she could escape him.

True, she had managed twenty years, but that was only because Uther hadn't realized yet that she had taken her boy and ran for it. He had no doubt that she would have been found eventually once word got back to him that she was long gone which was why he had sent his best knights after her.

Now everything was back on track. Sure, it was a year later than he had originally planned but it had all worked out in the end. He had the boy in his home. His mother should be happy that he had let her live in her little village after what she had done. He let his knights believe that he was just being merciful but you never know when you might need a bargaining chip. If the boy ever got to out of line, his mother could be an excellent incentive to get the peasant to do what he was told.

The wedding was moving forward and would be happening soon. It wouldn't be extravagant or anything special, the upcoming festival would actually be more important. This wedding itself would be thrown together last minute. Uther had long decided that there was no point in going all out for it.

It was only his son's arranged marriage, not anything of real importance. They would all bite their tongue's and get this over with. Then they could call it a day. Arthur would continue doing his duties as the prince and Uther would keep the boy out of the way by keeping him busy with his royal studies.

That way, he might not be a total embarrassment in front of the other nobles. Once word got around that Arthur had been married, others would actually want to meet him. Arthur's marriage would be even more noteworthy considering they wouldn't be able to hide for long that his bride was actually a man.

Uther could grudgingly admit to himself that he couldn't hide the fact that Merlin was a boy. Even with his slight frame and soft features, he obviously couldn't reasonably pass as a woman. Uther had briefly considered putting the boy in a dress but had scratched that idea as soon as it had come.

Since he couldn't hide this marriage forever, or that Arthur was wed to a man, maybe he could hide that the boy was a peasant. Surely that couldn't be to hard to do.

But then he had actually met the boy.

He would be an embarrassment as he was now. Hopefully with enough training, he may be passable. He doubted it but hey, he'd seen stranger things in his life. Hopefully this Merlin could be taught how to behave more like a noble and less like a peasant. At least enough where the other nobles would believe it...as long as he didn't spend to much time with them.

Maybe after some time, they could erase the whole...peasant...air that seemed to cling to him. He would have to send his personal tailors to tend to the boy now that he was here. The tailors could get his size right, now that he could be measured

"Sire?" Leon said cautiously, still bowing. His king hadn't said anything as he had finished his debriefing.

King Uther snapped out of his thoughts, finally giving his attention back to the loyal knight. "Ah, yes, excellent!" He said, pleased with how the debriefing had gone. Everything seemed to have gone smoothly on his knights mission, or as smooth as it could be considering the circumstances.

The boy should be in his new rooms now and as much as he loathed giving the boy the chambers that had once belonged to his late wife, he had always known that it would be resided in again someday.

Leon finally straightened up from his bowed over position, "Was there anything else you needed to know, sire?" He sounded normal but the knight could feel the exhaustion weighing him down in his very bones. He hadn't been home in a year, he was eager to get back to his rooms and rest in his own bed.

Uther had his elbow resting on the arm of his chair and had the back of one of his fingers rubbing the top of his lip in thought. "Yes," he finally said before going quiet.

Leon waited in silence for his king to continue.

"What is your assessment of the boy?" Uther finally asked. Leon was one of his best soldiers and had actually spent a significant amount of time with the peasant. He may be able to offer more of an insight on this Merlin that the king couldn't have gotten from their brief meeting.

Leon looked startled for a minute, "My...assessment? On Merlin?" He finally asked, not understanding what exactly the king was asking of him.

"Yes." Uther said firmly. "Do you believe that Merlin has what it takes to rule alongside my son? Or will my son have to take all of the responsibilities as king upon himself." Ygraine had been a huge help when he had first became king. She was able to give him a confident to talk to that weren't his council, someone that had helped him when he didn't know what he was doing or simply to just help him carry the burden that would weigh down on a young, newly crowned king.

Arthur probably wouldn't have any of that though. Not if Merlin just proved to be a waste of space taking up a spot in his kingdom. A spot that should have been filled by someone a little more qualified than an average peasant boy.

Leon thought for a minute. From the first moment he had met the boy, through their three day journey through the forest, and all the way up till he had been taken away by the servant to his new rooms. He definitely wasn't what he had been expecting when thinking of someone who would share the throne someday. He was just a kid really, didn't know much about the world. But could he be taught? That was the big question.

Arthur had been trained to take the throne since the day that he was born. Most of his time growing up had been taken up with lessons and training and attending council meetings once he was old enough. Things had gotten looser for the prince now that he was grown. He didn't have to spend all of his time in his lessons since he'd completely most of them. When he wasn't doing the odd duty that he had to as a prince, he was able to do other things that interested him.

But Merlin had never had a single royal lesson in his life. He wasn't even sure if the boy could read, most peasants couldn't. Not because they weren't smart enough to learn, they just didn't have the resources to do so. Especially considering they spent most of their time working to make ends meet, there was no point in learning how to read.

If they had to teach Merlin how to read, it would be even longer before anybody could determine if he was able to stand beside Arthur. Or if he would just be someone standing behind the prince during important functions but offering no real input like many of the nobleman's daughters when they married.

Most women were taught not to meddle in her husband's affairs and spent their time gossiping with the other ladies then actually helping her husband maintain what was his. Although there was an odd lady here or there that was better suited for being the one in charge than her husband but was often pushed aside because of the simple fact that she had been born female.

Merlin wasn't a girl though.

The people may have higher expectations for him. It didn't matter that he was a peasant with absolutely no experience. Being married to the prince gave him some expectations that he may not be able to meet.

Plus, there was that panic attack at Hunith's when he had been told of his upcoming marriage. But Leon wouldn't mention that to the king. It would most likely be considered a sign of weakness and Merlin would have enough problems without people thinking he was weak as well. As long as it was just the once and it didn't come back and start impacting how he could help rule a kingdom.

"Leon?" The king asked when he was taking to long to answer.

Leon looked up startled before finally giving his honest report, "Honestly, sire? I am unsure. He's just a kid, a peasant one at that. He doesn't know how to rule or anything dealing with the responsibilities of being royal."

Leon thought back to when Merlin had argued with Tristian on their journey to Camelot. About how peasants had just as many problems as nobles did. While nobles were working to keep their land safe, the peasants were working to get food. "He is...strong willed, I believe." That was the best word that he could think of. "He's seems to be a good kid but it's a little soon to decide if he can rule. It's...possible that he could learn under the right instructions. There really is no telling, given the short time he's been here."

Uther looked contemplative at his assessment before nodding. "Very well, Leon. I guess this is only something that time will be able to tell us. You're dismissed."

Leon bowed to his king one last time before stepping out. As he did, a guard walked passed him into the throne room.

"Sire." The guard said after the doors had shut behind Leon.

Uther looked up from where he was thinking over the precarious situation that he had found himself in. "Yes? What is it?"

The guard quickly bowed, "The executioner is ready and the prisoner is being secured."

Uther nodded. Just because Balinor's boy had arrived today, hadn't meant that he had forgotten about the execution prepared for today. "Of course. Have the prisoner brought out to the courtyard. Everybody shall witness the punishment for his crimes."

The guard bowed, "Yes sire." He said before quickly leaving the throne room and heading to the dungeons.

After he left, Uther left his chair, straightening up his clothes as he did so. He would need to head up several floors to reach the balcony that overlooked the courtyard. It was where he usually stood when giving royal announcements. That reminded him, he needed to announce to the people as well of their prince's upcoming marriage. What better time than after the execution? He could kill two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.

Down, deep in the bowels of Camelot was the dungeons. It wasn't a good place to be, being that was where they held their prisoners. If you were down there, odds were that you could be facing your own execution, depending on what the crimes were.

It was damp and cold and was made completely out of rough stone with sharp edges. The only thing in each cell was a pile of loose hay thrown into a corner as a makeshift place to lay if you were in there overnight.

The windows at the top of each cell had thick, sturdy bars covering them. You were lucky if you could get a glint of sunlight to shine through. The cell doors creaked whenever they opened or closed and were made of steel. Almost impossible to open if you didn't have the key to them, which was only held by whichever guard happened to be in charge of prisoner duty that day.

Which was why Thomas James Collins, was watching the head guard so closely. The guard was standing on the wall across from his cell, waiting for the other guard to return and tell him that the king had approved on bringing him out for his execution.

The keys were hanging from the man's belt but Thomas had no way of actually grabbing them. He briefly considered a levitation spell but knew that it was no use. The guard knew that he was a sorcerer, he was way more cautious than he usually would have been against any other prisoner.

That was actually why he was here in the first place. This was his punishment for his crime, using sorcery. His mother was a good sorceress, not the strongest out there, but acceptable. She had amulets and charms, and knew her way around a few good spells. She had taught him everything that she knew. It wasn't much but it was more than what other people knew.

Thomas was also more like his father who had died during the original Great Purge. Like his father, he didn't have much of an affinity for the magical side of sorcery. He knew a few smaller things, just enough to be classified as a sorcerer. He was more adapt at mixing potions than actually casting spells. He didn't have enough power to actually cast most spells but he did know how to charm something. He wasn't even powerful enough for his eyes to shift to gold like more powerful magic users could.

That was why levitating the keys wouldn't have worked. Not only was the guard keeping a close eye on him, but even if he wasn't, Thomas would never be able to get the keys to him. They would probably float for a few seconds towards him, wobble some in the air, before dropping to the ground with a loud clang of metal. He would have been so magically exhausted that he wouldn't have been able to make them move again for several days. By then, he would already be dead, executed for his crimes.

His mother had always warned him to never use magic outside their home. But Thomas was a grown man in his thirties. He may still live at home with his mother, having never married for fear that his bride would be unable to accept their magic, but he was all grown. He had thought that he knew better by now, knew what he was doing.

It turned out that he didn't know anything at all.

Their garden had been dying and nothing they were doing could fix it. They didn't have much money to buy food in the marketplace. His mother and him had only survived all of these years because of the vegetables they were able to grow. It wasn't much so they couldn't sell it for some coin but it had kept them mostly fed through the many years.

Until the garden had started to die a few months ago.

They had tried every planting technique they knew of to get it to grow again. They had even asked several of the neighbors if they knew of something that they hadn't tried yet.

But nothing worked.

So Thomas had finally came to the conclusion that if ordinary skills wouldn't work, maybe extraordinary would. He hadn't told his mother what he was doing. He knew that she wouldn't approve, would probably wallop him upside the head if she knew what he was planning.

He had made a poultice.

Nothing fancy or especially powerful, he only had access to certain herbs. Hopefully though, they would be enough to give his garden a ...gentle nudge to get growing again. He buried the glowing ball in his garden and all he had to do was wait for it to give his garden life.

His mother would never have to know and they could eat again. They had spent what last coin they had that afternoon to get dinner. Now, they wouldn't have to worry about going hungry for a little while longer.

He hadn't known that his vile neighbor had been watching from his windows next door. Or that his neighbor had reported him to the king the very next morning, almost as if he couldn't wait to tell the king. The neighbor was terrified of magic but that wasn't the reason he had went to the king.

He had used this opportunity as a way to get rid of Thomas, having hated the boy since they were young children. Mainly because Thomas had his mother around to take care of him and the neighbor's mother had run off with the old baker just after he was born.

It was just petty jealousy that had gotten out of hand. And now because of it, one man had sentenced another to his death.

Thomas James Collins would never know the reason why his garden had been dying. Nor would he know the reason that he had ultimately decided on using the poultice. Nobody would ever learn the truth.

That all of this was because of one man being unable to control his jealousy.

The neighbor had gone into a fit of jealous rage, which he was prone to do every few years, even long after he had grown into adulthood. He couldn't stand the sight of the Collin's blossoming garden that kept them fed so that they didn't need to use their coins for food. Not when he had tried to make his own garden. Only he had no idea what he was doing and had pretty much ruined what little yard he had.

So this neighbor had decided that if he couldn't get a garden going, then it wasn't right that Thomas got to have one.

So every night for month's before Thomas would be arrested, the neighbor had snuck into their yard and poisoned the plants. It was a slow poisoning, something that had to work its way into the ground for many months before it was deemed uninhabitable. Nothing would be able to grow on that patch of land. Nobody would ever suspect that it was a poisoning, let along something that the neighbor had done.

The neighbor wasn't a sorcerer, he was just an ordinary man.

He had never even suspected that Thomas was a sorcerer all this time. Not until he had peered out his window to check on the process of the garden next door and saw Thomas planting his poultice, the ball giving off an eerie glow.

That was when his inspiration struck. He was first in line the next morning, warning the king of the evil sorcerer that he had seen living in the house next door to his. He may have over exaggerated a bit but no matter, the knights would dig up the garden and find the poultice.

Afterwards, he would hurry home and watch from his windows with a gleeful smile when the soldiers descended upon the house. Thomas would be dragged from his home in shackles. His mother was in the marketplace that afternoon, looking for work.

She would be to late to help him.

Nobody would be the wiser that this one man had ruined an entire family.

Thomas James Collins looked up as the door that led into the dungeons swung open. Another guard entered the room, not sparing the prisoner a glance. He spoke to the guard that was keeping watch on him, not even trying to lower his voice to keep their conversation private.

"The king is ready for the execution to proceed."

Thomas could feel his hands shaking. He was so cold down here, he wasn't even wearing his shoes. The knights hadn't allowed him to grab them before he was being dragged from his home. He hadn't even known why he was being arrested until they had gotten to the castle and he was locked in the dungeons.

The knight nodding, looking bored with the proceedings. This was just one more execution to him. Afterwards, the people would celebrate because one more sorcerer was dead and couldn't harm their kingdom anymore by its mere existence.

Thomas watched, his throat dry. He tried to swallow but couldn't actually manage to do it because of how dry his throat was. The keys that he had been so focused on jingled as the guard stepped up to his cell doors.

The guard untied them from his belt before unlocking his cell and stepping inside. The other guard watched from the doorway, a cautious hand on his blade in case the prisoner tried something and had to be exterminated before they even made it outside to the executioner.

Thomas tried to press himself up tightly against the stone corner he was trying to hide himself in. Not that there was really any place to hide. Even if he had tried burying himself in the straw so that they couldn't see him and made them think he escaped, it wouldn't have been enough. The straw was such a little amount that it wouldn't have been able to cover his quivering body.

Thomas gave a choked off cry when the guard grabbed him roughly by his elbow, dragging him to his feet.

"Silence!" The guard barked at him harshly, trying to drag him out of the cell.

Thomas gave another cry as he was jerked back, tears brimming his eyes from the pain. His hands were chained to the wall behind him, cold shackles locked around his wrists, holding them together. There wasn't even enough slack in the chain hooking him to the wall for him to walk to the cell doors, let alone out of it.

The guard gave a huff of annoyance as if Thomas was being ridiculous for crying out. The guard finally used the key to unlock the chain, leaving him in just the shackles.

Thomas's legs were shaking and he could barely walk on his own. He was practically dragged out of the cell, the guard's firm grip on his elbow tightening as if he would run. He wouldn't have been able to run even if he had tried. He was to weak, to shaken. He was literally helpless to do anything as the second guard stepped up to his other side. He took his other elbow and the guards literally dragged the sorcerer up the stairs towards the courtyard where his public execution would be taken place.

Many floors up, Uther stepped out onto his balcony, smiling as he saw his people milling around. Everything was going according to schedule. The executioner's platform had been set up right in the middle of the courtyard for everyone to see. As much as he hated making his citizens watch, he knew that he had to.

They had to have the consequences for using magic drilled into their thick skulls. That way nobody could say that they hadn't been warned if they were caught using enchantments. Just like the man that they were executing today. Honestly, using magic to make all the gardens of the neighbors around him die which could have led that entire street to starving.

Or, at least that's what he thought the man had done, as told to him by one of the people in that neighborhood.

Uther watched the courtyard as his people gathered around. Everyone had stopped what they were doing to form a loose half-circle around the execution's platform. Nobody was fool enough to walk away, lest they be accused of sorcery next for standing out in the crowd.

Uther kept his head raised high, smiling as the sun shined brightly down on him. Today was a beautiful day. It was not only perfect for an execution, but also for a wedding announcement.

Uther paid no attention to two of his guards that were standing just behind him to watch the proceedings. They were assigned as today's personal bodyguards, to protect him if anything happened. Not that he was actually expecting anything to happen. This was a very ordinary execution. It was just a precaution. A king could never be to careful, especially when there was still magic all around them. No matter how hard he tried to banish it from his kingdom, it always seemed to find a way in.

Making good people do wicked things. Magic corrupted, it destroyed, he had learned that lesson all to well. He had to teach it to his people as well. It had been rough those first few years after the executions started but now, after twenty years, it had finally sunk into the heads of his people.

There had been hundreds of executions that first year. Now there was only one every now and then like this Thomas fella. Magic was dying in his kingdom and he couldn't be happier about it.

In her rooms, in the same hallway that Merlin was now residing in, Morgana got up from her vanity. She had been carefully braiding her hair. It had grown into a mess throughout the day and needed to be redone. It wouldn't do for the king's ward to go around with messy hair.

Usually her handmaiden Gwen took care of it for her. The handmaiden could fix it to where it wouldn't fall loose during the day. Morgana didn't have much practice fixing her own hair, it was Gwen's job to keep up with her needs. Like changing her linens, helping her dress, fixing her hair, washing her clothes. Anything and everything Morgana needed, it was Gwen's job to see to.

But Gwen was away at the moment, down in the laundry room handling Morgana's dirty dresses. So Morgana was pretty much on her own for the moment, not that she minded. Some alone time was exactly what she needed sometimes.

Not that she didn't like Gwen. No, it was quite the opposite actually. The other girl was her best friend in this place, her closest confidant. Morgana knew that other people wouldn't approve of such a close friendship between someone with her lineage and a servant but she didn't care about such things.

Gwen had a way of treating her with respect because of her station and yet, treating her like a friend as well. That was exactly what Morgana had needed when she had first arrived when she was twelve. A friend more than a servant. That was why she had requested a handmaiden closer to her age than the other available servants who were mostly old ladies.

That was when Gwen had been brought to serve her. It had been almost ten years since that day.

Morgana looked up as she heard some kind of ruckus going on outside of her windows. Frowning, she placed her hairbrush down on her vanity, running her hands through her hair. She left it loose, falling down her back for right now. Morgana stood up and brushed out the wrinkles that had formed in the blue dress that she had just changed into.

Then she walked across her room to her windows. Morgana peeked out but couldn't really see anything through the decorative glass. She fiddled with the lock for a second before pushing the window open. It swung out like a door.

Morgana stood in her window, looking down at the courtyard with a frown. The execution platform was set up and the executioner was waiting on top of it. He wore his dark hood and was holding his ax over his shoulder, waiting for the prisoner. He only wore the hood because nobody but the king actually knew who he was. Nobody wanted to go around known as the guy that chopped the heads off of the prisoners.

She scowled in disgust. With Arthur's upcoming marriage, Morgana had all but completely forgotten about the poor man being sentenced to his death. Uther had gone on about how he was a sorcerer and that was why he was to be executed. But Morgana had heard rumors that the poor man had only been caught because he was trying to feed his family. She knew that magic was evil, she understood that very well. But still...the man had only been trying to provide his home with food. Food that Morgana took for granted because she had always had it. She would never understand what it was like to go hungry and be desperate.

Even though it was a horrible situation that disgusted her to her very core, Morgana couldn't stop herself from watching. Somebody had to watch who wasn't going to cheer at the end.

Just a few rooms down, Merlin tossed his pillow back towards the head of the bed. It was useless. He just couldn't understand how these nobles could sleep on something so soft. The pillow flopped over, now looking awkward since it wasn't aligned with all of the other pillows. But he paid it no mind, jumping off the bed.

Merlin glanced around his room, wondering what he should do now. Was he just supposed to stay in here? Would they say something if he decided to leave his room for a bit and go exploring.

He was just getting married. It wasn't like he was a prisoner. With those thoughts in mind, he started walking towards the door. He had just gotten there when he heard something going on from outside.

Merlin frowned, looking back towards his windows. Maybe he had found something to keep his interest and he hadn't even had to leave his room.

Merlin hurried across the room to his windows. It took him a minute of playing with the unfamiliar lock before he finally managed to get it to slide open. And then he pushed his window out and sat down on the window sill, trying to see what was going on. The window he was at wasn't particularly large. He could probably squeeze through it if he had to but it would be a tight fit. Not to mention the three lengths of floors before he hit the ground.

Those random thoughts left Merlin as what was happening in the courtyard captured his attention. There was some kind of wooden platform set up and a crowd was forming around it. He could see several guards surrounding it. Some were blowing horns while others were playing drums. That was what had gotten his attention from way up here. All of the instruments suddenly going off.

Merlin looked down at it all curiously. Was this some kind of party? He didn't know what it was. But Merlin's curious look started to dim into a frown of confusion as he saw two more guards. They were dragging another man dressed in peasant clothing up the stairs of the platform and to the man that was standing up on top of it.

"Let this serve as a lesson to all." Merlin heard someone saying. He leaned out his window, trying to see them but almost fell out for his troubles. So he quickly scooted back in, lest he fall out.

The voice speaking was most definitely Uther. Merlin would recognize it anywhere, now that he'd met the man. The man that could have him killed. He would never be able to forget his harsh tone when he was asking him if he had magic.

Uther continued talking, "This man, Thomas James Collins, is judged guilty of conspiring to use enchantments and magic."

Merlin felt his heart stutter in his chest as he paled. His throat suddenly felt very dry. This man...he was just like him. The man down there had magic, magic just like Merlin did. Oh god, it could be him on that platform next, being punished simply because he was born different.

"I, Uther Pendragon, have decreed that such practices are banned on penalty of death."

Merlin knew that, of course he did. His mother did make sure to tell him during her story before he'd left. But it was the first time he realized just how serious she had been. Now, now he was actually seeing it. Hearing about it was completely different from witnessing it.

He could feel his hands start to shake and he had to grip hard onto the stones around the window to force them to stop.

"I pride myself as a fair and just king but for the crime of sorcery, there is but one sentence that I can pass."

Merlin watched in growing horror, a lump in his throat that just wouldn't go away no matter how much he tried to swallow. It was all to much, watching as the guards forced this man down to his knees before his head was placed on top of the chopping block.

It wasn't fair, none of this was fair.

On the executioner's platform, Thomas was shaking. He tried to jerk away but the guards held a death grip on him, pinning him down. His eyes flickered in every direction, hoping that somebody would stop this. That somebody would come forward and put an end to this cruelty. But nobody did and Thomas felt the acute loneliness hit him.

He had never had any friends. His mother was always worried that he would let something about them slip when he was a child. By the time he was grown, it just felt to odd trying to make friends.

His mother was literally all he had and he didn't even know where she was right now.

Thomas couldn't even close his eyes to brace for the upcoming pain. He was in no way prepared when the executioner raised his ax.

Watching from his window, Merlin couldn't even close his eyes, to focused on the scene happening in the courtyard. Nothing could have dragged his eyes away from the horrifying scene below.

And then it happened.

The executioner brought the ax down on top of the man's neck.

And just like that, Thomas James Collins was dead.

In the crowd of people watching, the neighbor who had done this to Thomas was the only one smiling. Finally, he could get some peace knowing that the man that had made his life miserable simply by existing, was no longer a problem.

The others in the crowd were recoiling back, looking stricken. There was just so much blood that it was sickening, spilling all over the place. It wasn't the execution that was the problem for many of them. Most of them had already seen dozens by this point. It was just the copper smell of blood that was permeating the air that made many of them step back.

Up in her window, Morgana looked away, feeling sick to her stomach. Thomas was just one more casualty in this horrid war against magic that Uther insisted on having.

A few windows down, Merlin fell back. He landed on his arse, hitting the ground hard as he scrambled away from the window, trying to erase the horrible scene from his memory. But it kept playing over and over again. Thomas having his head chopped off before the head rolled several feet away from the body.

He could feel the bile start to build up in his throat. Oh god, he was going to be sick. Was he having another panic attack? Like the one he had when his mother had told him of his upcoming marriage.

His heart was pounding in his ears, hammering against his rib cage like a jackrabbit. His entire body was shaking violently. He didn't stop scooting back until he had no choice but to stop when he violently hit the wall.

This, this wasn't happening. He was going to wake back up any minute and be in his sleeping roll by the hearth with his mother sleeping near him. This whole thing would be some really vivid fever dream. Maybe that was it! Maybe he had some kind of fever and was hallucinating this whole thing.

He put a shaking hand to his forehead as if to check but he couldn't tell. He was coated in a very thin layer of sweat. But this all certainly felt real. He couldn't be freaking out this much over something that wasn't real.

The scene started to play over again in his mind. Of Thomas being dragged up the stairs to the platform. Of Thomas being pinned down just before the executioner chopped off his head. Only this time, it wasn't Thomas that he saw. It was him.

He could see himself being pinned down to that platform. A mysterious figure would be standing over him to cut off his head. Only it wasn't the executioner. It was somebody else, some shadow figure that he couldn't really see the details to. He had a feeling that this person he was seeing was supposed to be Prince Arthur Pendragon.

But he hadn't met Arthur so all he could see was a mysterious figure whose face was hidden in the shadows. Even if Arthur wasn't the one that did the executions, it made sense that this one would be the exception. His own husband found as a sorcerer, of course he would be the one to finish him off.

He could feel his throat closing up again and he was gasping desperately for air. Tears brimmed his eyes, he couldn't breathe. Oh god, he couldn't breathe. Only there was no Leon this time to slap him out of it.

He was all alone. For the first time in his life, he was alone. His mother was days away from him, he couldn't just go to her and have her fix everything. It was just him in a kingdom full of people who wouldn't care, might even be pleased, to see his own execution. Would they chop his head off like they had Thomas? Or would they opt for the pyre instead.

The prince's own husband to be, a sorcerer. It would have to be a bigger event than Thomas' had been. And it would really drive the point home that nobody was exempt. If they would execute the prince's husband, then they would do it for anybody.

And make no mistake, Merlin knew just what a disadvantage he had. It didn't matter if the wedding really did go through, if he really was married to the prince of Camelot. He would still be a sorcerer, still have a target on his back. And still be executed if he was discovered.

This wasn't like the home that he had grown up in. Everybody back there knew that he was an oddball, that he was different. But they all just brushed it off as Merlin being Merlin. He didn't think that anybody actually had any suspicion that he was a sorcerer.

But the people here. They didn't know him. They might not just brush it off as Merlin being odd again. Maybe the people around here were better observant, could figure out what was so different about the stranger in their mist.

It would be all over for him. One little mistake, one little slip up and it would be his execution next. To be up there with all those faces staring up at him, strangers because he had not one friend here.

It was all just to much for him. He couldn't be here. Was it him or was the walls starting to close in on him? This room suddenly didn't seem as big as it was before.

Safe, he had to get somewhere safe.

Merlin scrambled to his feet, his heart in his throat. His hands were shaking so much that the handle was rattling from where he kept trying to get a good grip on it. After several moments of fighting with the door, he managed to get it open.

He only had it open a crack before he froze, awareness breaking through the panic. Now that the door was open, he could just see into the hallway. It wasn't much but it did make him feel as if the room wasn't spinning.

Where exactly was he going? He didn't know anybody around here, he didn't know this castle. Was he going to just run around the place in a full blown panic until somebody caught him?

Merlin quickly shut the door back at that thought. He turned his back to the door and leaned against it. He let his eyes flutter closed, leaning his head back until it thumped lightly against the door behind him. Merlin took several shaky breaths, trying to breathe normally now that the lump in his throat had eased some.

He was okay. He was going to be okay. Nobody knew that he was a sorcerer. Nobody had to know. Not Uther or Arthur or anybody else. There was no Arthur about to execute him because the prince didn't know him at all, let along know that he had magic.

All he had to do was keep pretending. He had done it for almost twenty years, surely he could survive a lifetime.

And really, wasn't a lifetime of hiding better than a young death.

Surely it had to be.

But honestly? Deep in the back of his mind where he didn't want to acknowledge it, Merlin didn't know if it was and that was what scared him the most. He had always thought that there was some kind of...light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. That he could meet somebody who he could tell all his secrets to.

But those childish dreams would have to be put away for the harsh reality that he had found himself in. He would never be able to tell anybody and that realization had been drilled into him by unfortunately witnessing the execution of another sorcerer.

Merlin let his eyes flutter open and his gaze connected with his still open window. He could hear the drums start to play again, making the people who had witnessed Thomas' death go quiet.

What was going on now? Another execution? A party where they now desecrated Thomas's corpse? He wouldn't put it past the citizens of Camelot to do something like that. As long as the victim was a sorcerer.

Merlin finally moved away from the door and cautiously made his way back to the window. He peeked out as if to make sure that there really wasn't another execution happening.

There wasn't. But Thomas' body was still laid out on the executioner's platform, his head several feet away. He could feel the bile start to rise in his throat again from the sight and he had to force himself to swallow it down before he threw up everywhere. He could see one of the knights picking the two separate pieces of the body and moving them to a wagon.

That was what had taken so long before the drums started to quiet everyone again. They had to wait for the knights to arrive who would be taking the body away. Merlin wondered if they would even give Thomas James Collins, a name he wouldn't soon forget, a proper funereal. Or if they were just going to throw him in a hole somewhere and light a match to get rid of the body forevermore.

Camelot probably thought that sorcerer's didn't deserve a final resting place. Didn't deserve to have somewhere that the people who knew him, loved him, would be able to visit.

The drums went silent and the crowd of people down below were so quiet that you probably could have heard a pin drop.

Uther was talking again. Merlin still couldn't see him from where the angle of his room was but he could hear him just fine. The king was making sure to project his voice so that those in the courtyard could hear him easily.

"When I came to this land, this kingdom was in chaos but with the people's help, magic was driven from the realm."

Merlin could feel his knees shaking but no, he had to get a grip. Nobody knew who he was or what he was. They were not about to come storming in through that door and drag him away for his own execution. And if he sat down on the windowsill so that he could stop his knees from knocking together, well, nobody was around to see.

"So I declare a festival to celebrate twenty years since the great dragon was captured and Camelot freed from the evil of sorcery."

Merlin swallowed hard. This was actually happening. First they executed a man and then they were celebrating it? Thomas' execution and the hundreds of others that had been before him. What kind of place was this where the people celebrated the death of somebody? It was a place that he didn't want to be.

More than anything did he wish that his mother was here. Maybe then he wouldn't be so alone in this scary new place. This place that executed people just for being different, for being like him.

"And along with our celebrations, I have an announcement to make." Uther was talking again. "On the night that we celebrate our twenty years of freedom, there will be something else to celebrate. On that night, my son, your prince, will be married."

Merlin went stiff in his seat. This was it, this was Uther announcing Merlin's upcoming marriage. On the night of the festival...he would have a husband. He would be a husband.

In her rooms, Morgana watched solemnly. The festival, it was so close. How would Arthur handle being married, especially so soon. It had been barely half a week since he had been told the news, it wouldn't even be a full week by the time that he was married.

Down below, the crowd was silent for far to long. Then they slowly started to mutter to each other in confusion. They hadn't known that Uther was planning his son's marriage yet, let along that his bride had already been decided on. That was something that would have spread around Camelot like wildfire. Everybody would had known who their future Queen to be was going to be within minutes of Uther's final decision.

One of the guards started to drum again, stopping their mumbling. But this drum beat was less solemn than the one that he did for the execution. This drummer was beating a celebratory song. And one by one, the other drummers started to follow. And then those with horns started to blow, increasing the noise.

One by one, the crowd of people started to cheer. They were whistling and clapping their hands and yelling. Their prince was to be married.

Merlin watched them solemnly from his window. Nobody seemed to care that this was an arranged marriage. That there was no everlasting love or happiness. Just two people forced to marry outside circumstances of not their own making.

It almost made him feel ill again. How could people celebrate this? Celebrate two people forced into a lifelong bond. Two strangers. Did the people realize that Merlin and Arthur had never even met before and they were already arranged to be married. That they hadn't even set the date or planned what kind of food or flowers would be served.

Would there even be flowers at their wedding?

Merlin didn't think that he would mind if there were. There was a field near Ealdor that they didn't use for the harvest but that was only because of the crazy amount of wildflowers that grew there.

Merlin doubted that there would be wildflowers at their wedding. He doubted it would be much of a wedding at all, being that it was happening the same night of this festival.

Uther really was just trying to get this over with. Get them married and tied together before anything could happen that would stop it.

"Let the celebrations begin!" Uther called out to his citizens who cheered again.

Merlin could barely contain his disgust, swallowing hard. How could those people cheer for something so horrible? How could people be happy that two people were being married against their will?

Everything was starting to hit him at once again. Having to leave home and then traveling here, meeting Uther and now being in his new room. All in the span of a few days and he still hadn't met Arthur yet. It was just to much to fast.

Merlin jumped off from where he was sitting on the window sill and reached out to close the window back. Maybe then, it would muffle out some of the crowd's cheering.

However, he didn't get the chance to close the window before the crowd below suddenly went silent. A dead and eerie silence that was far to sudden to be natural.

There was suddenly a wail of anguish, so horrible that it made chills go down his spine. Merlin's eyes scanned the crowd, a nervous frown on his face before he saw it. The people were backing away, making a semi-circle around one person.

She paid them no mind, stepping forward while looking up at where Uther was standing on his balcony. Her long white hair was like a rat's nest and she had papery skin full of wrinkles. The woman was wrapped in a dark cloak and she stared up at the king defiantly.

Merlin watched all of this confused. Who was this woman and why was everyone backing away from her as if they were suddenly terrified.

"There is only one evil in this land and it is not magic!" The woman wailed, eyes never straying from Uther. Everybody was frozen in fear, watching the old woman as if she would attack them at any minute. "It is you!"

The woman's name was Mary Collins and only a handful of people recognized her as Thomas's mother. Only the people that actually lived in their little neighborhood knew exactly who she was.

"With your hatred and your ignorance!" The woman continued.

Merlin slowly slid down onto his knees so that he was just peeking out his window. As if hoping that the woman wouldn't notice him and turn her ire onto him. Not that he actually had to worry about that, Mary Collins had eyes only for King Uther.

Mary Collins waved her arm behind her, gesturing to the executioner's platform. "You took my son!" Her voice cracked, anguish coating every word she spoke.

Merlin gasped, watching the scene before him. No wonder she was so angry. Thomas had been her son. He suddenly felt sorry for the poor woman. Losing your child, especially in such a pointless way...he couldn't even begin to imagine it.

Merlin was suddenly grateful that both him and Arthur were men. Imagine if one of them had been born a girl and they had children. He had no doubt that any child of his would have magic. What if Arthur didn't care and had their child executed as soon as he realized that it had magic. Would Uther stop to think if it was his own grandchild being put on the executioner's platform or would he be standing on his balcony, giving the executioner permission to finish the job.

He didn't want to believe that people could be so cruel to their own family. He was grateful that he didn't have to worry about children any time soon. At least not until an heir was needed and Arthur was given permission to cheat on him to conceive said child.

Merlin's face scrunched up in disgust. He almost wanted to slam his window closed and hide in his new bed just to pretend that none of this was happening.

But he didn't.

And not just because Mary Collins was talking again.

"And I promise you," Mary said firmly, voice stern and leaving everyone with no doubt of the truth in her words. "Before these celebrations are over, you will share my tears." There was a snarl in her features, promising retribution for what the king had done to her family.

Merlin didn't know what she could do. The whole thing was awful but what could one woman do against a king who had all of these knights roaming around, with a huge army that was at his disposal.

But Mary kept talking, "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth," her voice was hushed as she finished speaking but it was so quiet that everybody could hear her clearly. "A son for a son."

In her rooms, Morgana's eyes widened horrified. Arthur, where was Arthur? She knew he had stormed off but didn't know where he had disappeared to. He was out there somewhere and had no idea of the threat that had been made against him.

Not that it was the first time that Arthur was being targeted.

Morgana took a shaky breath, a hand to her chest, forcing her racing heart to calm down. That was right, Arthur had been targeted before. It came with the territory of being the prince. It wasn't often but sometimes somebody did make an attempt on the prince's life.

It wasn't the first and it wouldn't be the last.

Arthur would come home and their lives would go on as normal. Or as normal as it could be with the added addition of Arthur's husband being in the castle.

In his rooms, Merlin gasped startled. Had this woman just threatened Arthur's life? He couldn't have misunderstood, had he? No, there was no way to misunderstand the clear threat that Mary had in her voice.

She was planning on killing Arthur. She was planning to kill Arthur for his father having her son executed.

Now Merlin may not know Arthur and maybe he was as big of a jerk as Leon had told him about, but surely he didn't deserve to die. Especially for something that his father had done. How horrible could you be to wish death on someone?

He had been sympathetic for Mary. For her anger and grief because of the loss of her son. But after her threat, he was suddenly a lot less sympathetic for her.

"Seize her!" Uther suddenly commanded.

That seemed to spurn all of the knights into action. Several of them ran at her while more knights streamed from the castle in an attempt to stop her from leaving.

The knights had just reached her when Mary grabbed something around her neck, a talisman. She shouted something in the old tongue, something ancient that Merlin couldn't understand.

Then there was a whirlwind of dust that blew throughout the courtyard. The knights were flung to the ground from the sudden wind, ducking for cover as a dust storm encircled Mary Collins.

When it settled, Mary had long vanished.

The citizens all scattered, running and screaming. It was total chaos as they all ran for the safety of their own homes. As if Mary would arrive any second to kill them all for watching as her son was executed.

While all of the chaos below was happening, Uther turned to the two knights that were standing behind him, "Find my son. Make sure that he is aware of the situation."

The two knights bowed, "Yes, sire." And quickly hurried off to find the prince. Their first stop would be to check his room although they wouldn't find him there, being that he had already left the castle.

Meanwhile, Merlin quickly grabbed his window and slammed it shut, latching the window firmly. Not as if it would help much if Mary had attacked it personally. The way she had just made the dust appeared and then disappeared... 'I wonder if I could learn that.' The thought briefly crossed his mind before he shook it away.

He had just watched a man be executed, he couldn't really be thinking about learning more magic. Not that he even knew where to begin. He didn't know any sorcerer's that could teach him and any books that could have spells had been burned decades ago.

He knew now that they had all been burned in Uther's destruction of magic. Like his mother had said, Uther had did everything he could to destroy magic. From the magical creatures that crossed his path to any sorcerer that had been found and discovered.

But still, Merlin couldn't help but wonder if he could learn somehow to teleport like that. It could be a useful skill to have. Like what if he got captured next. Teleporting could give him a way out in case the worst happens.

But just as the thought started to solidify in his head, it was gone. His eyes had just landed on something. The letter for Gaius sitting on his bedside table.

Merlin's eyes drifted towards the windows where the guards were starting to return to the castle and then back at the letter.

Sure, Mary Collins was still out there but it wasn't like it was him that she was looking for. And sure, there were guards everywhere who would turn him in if they knew about him but hey, they didn't know that he was a sorcerer. And there was a possibility that he could run into Uther, but Merlin also wasn't a prisoner. Surely he could check out his new home some.

Really, what was the harm?

He would just keep his head down. Meet his Uncle Gaius, and then return later tonight. It seemed like a solid plan to him.

Before he could talk himself out of it, Merlin snatched up his letter, tucking it away inside his coat. Then he grabbed up his money pouch sitting right next to it and tucked it in another pocket. He had never bothered keeping his money on him before, his mother usually kept up with what little coin they had.

But his mother wasn't here and now it was his responsibility.

And Merlin didn't feel comfortable leaving what little coin he had in the middle of his room where just anybody could take it. He would need this money at some point, as little as it was.

Now that he was ready, Merlin headed to his door. He put his hand out, hesitating with his hand hovering over the handle. He thought about Mary and her threat against Arthur. He thought about possibly running into Uther again. He thought about somebody discovering that he was a sorcerer to.

But he shook it off.

He may have to be cautious but he couldn't live his entire life in fear. If he was going to live in Camelot than he had to get used to the place. He couldn't do that hiding away in his room.

What he could do right now though, was go and meet his uncle. Just like his mother wanted him to.

So, brushing off anymore worries or doubts he had, Merlin tugged open the door and stepped out into the hallway. He closed the door softly behind him, almost as if he was worried that somebody would notice him leaving and try to stop him.

But nobody did. Nobody did because he wasn't a prisoner.

When nobody came after him, shouting for him to stop or to return to his room, Merlin started down the hallway.

Down in the lower town, Arthur was just walking over the drawbridge that led to where the peasants had their shopping district. Morris was hurrying after him as fast as he could, still rolling the target.

Arthur stopped in the middle of the street, looking around as if deciding which direction he should go.

Morris had to come to a sudden halt, almost running the prince over in his haste to follow him.

Arthur gave him a look over his shoulder, scowling when he noticed Morris had almost rammed the large target into his backside. "You idiot, watch where you are going!" Arthur snapped.

Morris quickly bowed his head the best he could while still holding up the target. "Yes, sire. I'm sorry, sire." He sounded meek but inside, Morris was seething at the combination of his own stupidity and Arthur's rudeness.

Geez, how was he going to get the prince to marry him if he kept annoying him? Morris wanted to be king, practically craved what it would give him. And the only way to do it was to marry Arthur.

His nose wrinkled in disgust. Arthur was fun to look at, but that was pretty much all that he had going for him. And he could give Morris what he wanted and all of this would be worth it in the long run.

All of this humiliation and running around after a spoiled prince, it had to be worth it once he got his crown. Once he was the one in charge.

Arthur could do all the hard work of running the kingdom after Morris was done imputing whatever he wanted. Morris would have his fun bossing people around and then lay out enjoying the comforts that nobility had. He wouldn't have to work a day in his life. He'd be rich with hundreds of servants at his command.

The guards would answer to him. He would have servants to do his bidding. And Arthur was a brat but with those muscles, he could at least give Morris some entertainment in the bedroom before Morris got bored of him and decided to find other playmates.

All he had to do was get Arthur to fall desperately in love with him. So in love that it didn't matter that Morris was a boy and the prince had never had any inclination towards his own gender. So in love that Arthur, who everyone knew did whatever his dad told him, would go against his own father to marry him.

That would be the true test.

If Arthur was willing to go up against Uther for him, then Morris would know that he could get away with anything. He could even convince Arthur to go to war for him so that their kingdom could have more land then they already did.

They didn't really need more land but it would be fun. Sending all of those men out to battle, knowing that they would fight and die for their kingdom. And all the while, Morris could be safely behind their walls, sending out instructions of what to do next. It would be interesting to see how far people would go for him, to see their undying loyalty.

The very people that scorned him for being a lowly servant, now fighting under his command. Now wouldn't that be something else.

And Arthur would surely stand with his men and fight alongside them. Maybe he wouldn't return one day and Morris wouldn't have to put up with him any longer. Then he could let the council do all of the royal things that he didn't want to do or he felt like was beneath him.

Like visiting the townspeople.

If he could be the king, why waste his time with the vermin down in the lower town or the other villages that were scattered within Camelot's borders?

They would be lucky to see him wasting his time down here. In fact, the only time that he would be down here at all would be just so people outside those he saw everyday in the castle, could shower him with looks of admiration.

The servant who had become a king.

He could just imagine it now. Dressed in more finery than even Arthur did most days although make no mistake, even the simplest of Arthur's clothes would probably cost a peasant family a year's worth of food.

He would ride the best steed they had into the lower town. The townspeople would want to kiss his hands that would be adorned by each finger wearing a ring more expensive than the last. Just imagine the size of a ring that he could afford with the gold that Arthur had.

But he wouldn't let them. It didn't matter if he had once been a peasant himself. No filthy peasant would put their dirty hands on him. He would have risen above them and they would just be grateful that he was showering them with his mere presence.

He would polished Arthur's jewelry every fortnight. The prince barely wore any of it, maybe a ring here and there or maybe a necklace. Though he did mostly favor a black leather cord that had been fashioned into a necklace.

Morris would be polishing those pieces for hours to make them gleam. He would pass the time by putting them on when he was finished. The king would surely have his head if he knew a mere servant was playing with the prince's things when he should have been cleaning them. Arthur would probably throw him out on his backside if he knew.

But hey, what they didn't know wouldn't kill them, or him.

Besides, Arthur had so much finery. He wouldn't have noticed if one or two pieces went missing, especially since Morris was the one that took care in dressing him. He didn't even need to look in the small chest that kept his jewelry.

But Morris was smart, to smart to take something and wear it about where others could see. It wouldn't be long for another servant to question why Morris was wearing such an expensive ring on his finger.

He could always lie and say that Arthur had given it to him as a token of his affection for his favorite manservant. But one wrong, nosy servant. Or a noble noticing a servant, even one to the prince, wearing something so fine that he wouldn't have been able to afford it. The whole lie would come apart and he would be known as the fired manservant that had the audacity to steal from the prince.

Especially when manservant to the royal family was probably the best job a peasant could get. Not that Arthur was a peach to deal with but it was also the job that paid the most. Sure, Morris had to deal with Arthur throwing things, yelling at him, constantly being at his beck and call.

He wasn't paid nearly enough for dealing with Arthur at all, but it was a better pay compared to other jobs.

And this gig got him closer to the nobility. He was just an outsider watching them all but soon, soon it would be him that everyone was watching. He was sure of it.

He had worked for far to long and way to hard to stop now just because of something like Arthur's spoiled attitude. It would all be worth it in the end. When Arthur was showering him with expensive gifts because of how much he loved him.

Morris would have Arthur trained like a love sick dog by the end. He just had to wait for the perfect moment, for something that Morris could use to his advantage. Something that would make Arthur see him as more than just his lowly manservant.

All of this would be worth it when he sat on the throne, worshipped by all of his subjects. Then he could lounge around without a care in the world. He would be surrounded by gold, worshippers, and even a hot blonde headed prince in his bed.

Then he would send Arthur away and bring someone else to their bed whenever he wanted to try something different. And Arthur would be none the wiser, not that it mattered much if he did find out. By that point, Arthur would be so in love with him that he would forgive him instantly.

Arthur would completely worship him by the time that he was done with him.

Right now, Morris could see the townspeople they were passing the further into the lower town they went. He had to hide his disgust at these dirty people. It didn't matter that he was just like them. That he had come from a poor family with nothing.

He was better than them all. He was a manservant which was more than anything that they had accomplished. And he had plans, plans that would get him to the top.

There were several people that ducked their heads, hurrying passed Arthur. Not that the prince noticed. He was to busy strutting through the town like a proud peacock, with his head held high and a cocky smile on his face.

Arthur probably would have felt a lot worse if he had noticed some people walking a little faster to get passed him. Or avoiding his eyes, or ducking into a stall as to avoid him.

Arthur was the prince but everybody knew they didn't want to get on his bad side. They could be thrown in the dungeon overnight or tied to the stocks if Arthur thought a mis-worded comment was an insult.

What could be more humiliating than being mocked and embarrassed in front of the entire town by their own prince?

But there were several children in the crowd who would stop and gawk at them. They were to young to realize that the prince was spoiled and treated his peasant subjects like they were his own personal entertainment. They just thought that he was allowed to do anything he wanted because he was the prince, which was pretty much true.

If Morris had done half of the things Arthur had done, he would have been in the stocks faster than Arthur himself could grab something and throw it. And the blonde had a surprisingly accurate aim.

"Hey, Arthur!" Someone called out to them. Morris had to bite back a snarl. They should refer to the prince by his proper title if they were going to address him. Morris would make sure that everybody only talked to him with his proper title once he managed to trick Arthur into falling for him.

It was a good thing that he hadn't said anything though. Because the three men walking up to them were knights of Camelot. Therefore, they were a much higher station than Morris but also lower than Arthur.

These three were Arthur's best friends. The only ones he really hung out with. They all had the same arrogance that the prince did. The three walked up to the blonde with swagger in their steps, acting like they were hot stuff.

Morris busied himself with fixing a buckle on the back of the target. It was just a leather handhold that mostly only got used to carry it around before hanging it on a particularly thick branch so that it wouldn't break and fall.

"Hey guys!" Arthur laughed, his lips quirked into a half grin, looking far to cocky for his own good. He clasped his hands with one of the knights, leaning forward to hit each other on the back of the shoulder like guys did.

None of the four boys paid Morris any mind which was a good thing because he had just let a sneer of disgust briefly appear on his features before he went neutral again.

Arthur was a bully. Two of the other guys were just as bad but pretty much followed along with what Arthur and the last one did. They were followers who got their high by hanging off of the coattails of others.

The last one though. He was the cruelest out of all of the four. Maybe Arthur knew and just didn't care, maybe he didn't know at all. But the last one was more petty and got angrier than Arthur ever had over the littlest of things. He was real big on the peasants showing him the 'proper respect.' Even if that meant he had to teach it to them himself.

Morris had been on the receiving end a time of two. Nothing real serious because he was the prince's manservant so that did offer him a little more protection than the ordinary servant did. Morris couldn't exactly show up to work for the prince if he was covered in bruises.

It was actually a rare occurrence though that the knight actually hit someone and never in Arthur's immediate presence, to busy doing whatever it was that Arthur wanted when the prince was around. While Arthur humiliated people, he didn't usually go around hitting them.

The knight didn't actually waste his time beating up 'the help' as he called all peasants rather they worked in the castle or not, when he could be getting on Arthur's good side. Even a knight couldn't go around punching people. But he did ram his shoulder into them hard enough to knock them over. Or throw things aimed for their heads.

He got a kick out of giving them tasks that nobody could complete and then walking by all smug when the peasant was locked in the stocks for hours.

Morris couldn't wait till he was king. There was no doubt in his mind that it would happen. He thought that Arthur was weak-minded, that the prince would fall for his charms when he finally decided to lay it on thick.

After he was king, he would make all four of them, Arthur and his knights, grovel for his forgiveness. Grovel to him with their apologies for all of the shit that he had put up with the last several years. Morris would give the three knights that were Arthur's friends the worst jobs, the ones that no knight wanted to do but had to be done, send them on the deadliest mission with the hope that they wouldn't return. Then when he was done playing with them, he would strip them of their knighthood. It would be like crushing them under his heel.

And in between all of that, he would be entertaining himself with treating Arthur as his personal plaything.

Revenge would be sweet indeed when he was the boss.

"It was about time that you came out. We thought you would stay in your room forever." Said the meanest of the knight, the one that Arthur had clasped hands and hit on the shoulder with.

Arthur cocky smile briefly dimmed for a moment. That was right. Arthur had locked himself in his room for three days after his father had told him the news of his upcoming marriage. He had been to angry, taking his rage out on his possessions, to even contemplate being around other people.

Morris had been the only one to come in and that was only to bring him his food and then hurry out before Arthur got the chance to throw the tray at his head.

Morgana was the next to enter and that had only just been this morning. Arthur hadn't even realized that three days had passed until it hit him that this was the day his betrothed was to arrive in Camelot.

At that thought, Arthur glanced around wearily, paying no attention to the townspeople walking around them as if the group of boys wasn't blocking the entire path. It was like he was almost expecting to see Leon arriving, escorting his intended.

Then he would have to come clean about the whole thing. Morgana had been the only person that he had told. The last thing he wanted was to be reminded of the man that would be arriving today. He had come out here today just to forget, have some last minute fun before he was hitched. He felt ill again just thinking about what was to come, and right when he was starting to feel better.

Arthur gave his friends a very weak smile, "Well, you know, Markus. Being a prince takes up so much of my time." Despite being his only actual friends, none of the other knights realized how weak Arthur sounded.

The three boys laughed whole heartedly, nodding their heads as if any of them had any personal experience being a prince themselves.

"I hear that." Markus smirked, clapping a hand on Arthur's shoulder. "So, what were we going to do today?" Markus invited himself and the other two boys along, not even once asking.

Arthur actually would have preferred them not tagging along. He wasn't really interested in entertaining his friends right now.

But hey, maybe this was just what he needed. Not just some fun in messing with Morris but some fun with his boys.

So Arthur pushed any thoughts he had of his intended out of his mind. He would have his entire life tied down to that man. He only had a few days before the wedding, he could spend the next few hours with his boys.

And while Arthur knew that his intended was supposed to arrive today, he hoped that he wouldn't show. He hoped that something had happened on the road that had delayed their journey. He hoped that the boy never showed up and he could keep on living his life without this thorn in his side. Arthur vehemently pushed those thoughts away of his intended's upcoming arrival.

"Well," Arthur shot a look of disdain over his shoulder at Morris who was struggling to keep the target upright. "I actually would have been out here sooner but you know, good help is so hard to find." He sneered.

The three boys crackled as if Arthur had said something particularly witty, nodding their heads in agreement. None of them had personal manservants, they weren't important enough for that. But they did have the dozens of servants in the castle whose job it was to obey any of the knights.

"I was thinking of getting some target practice in." Arthur said proudly, giving a cocky grin. The two other knights nodded, grinning and laughing in agreement, just cutting up as if they were schoolboys instead of grown man.

Markus' smile didn't waver although inside, he was irritated. He had just spent two days training, he didn't want to do more training. What he really wanted was to go catch some tail. Girl or guy, it didn't matter to him. As long as he could have a few hours of 'fun' with them, begging him for more.

It would obviously be a peasant. In Markus' opinion, that was all that the peasants were good for. Giving him some entertainment. Rather that entertainment be by humiliating them or throwing down in between the sheets, he didn't care.

But Arthur had never been interested in getting down and dirty with the peasants. He was the prince, he needed to keep some kind of decorum. Besides, he had the daughters of nobles to keep him company the few times he had an itch to scratch.

With Arthur looking at him, his cocky grin wide, Markus forced an equally cocky grin on his face. If it was anyone else suggesting something that could be even similar to training, Markus would have laughed in their face and rammed his elbow into his side before leaving them behind while chortling about what a loser they were.

But this wasn't just anybody else. This was Arthur, prince of Camelot. The only way to be anyone around here was to get close to the prince. If Markus couldn't be the prince, then he would just have to be the prince's best friend, which he had been for the past several years. Ever since his father sent him here at the tender age of twelve to train as a knight, giving him the helpful advice of befriending those who had actual power.

And really, other than the king, who had more power than the prince.

So even if he hated the idea of throwing daggers when he could be doing something far more interesting, Markus agreed wholeheartedly. The last thing he wanted to do was suggest something else and Arthur turn it down.

What could be more humiliating? Especially in front of the two other knights that were always tagging along with him. Markus didn't really like them but they hung on his every word and pretty much hero worshiped him and Arthur, which was just what he wanted in friends.

It felt good to be on top.

Markus' eyes drifted over to the large target and Morris who had it propped up against his side in his effort to hold it up straight. The knight started to smirk as a thought crossed his mind. If Arthur wanted to practice some dagger throwing, he knew the perfect way to do it.

So smirking, Markus slung his arm around Arthur's shoulders, walking them deeper into the lower town. Their two lackeys were following behind them, laughing at nothing while shoving each other. Morris rolled the target, following after them as quick as he could, grunting because of the heavy weight.

"So Arthur," Markus started, smirk growing as the actual idea started forming in his mind. "I know you said that you wanted some target practice."

Arthur gave his buddy a curious look, raising his eyebrow, "Yeah."

Markus' smirk widened, "Well I believe that I have the perfect idea." He shot a look over to Morris who was to far back to really hear what was going on.

A sly grin slipped onto Arthur's face as he followed Markus' gaze back to Morris. "And what did you have in mind exactly?"

Markus leaned in and whispered his oh so brilliant plan to Arthur whose eyes lit up at the suggestion. When he was done, Markus leaned back looking proud of himself.

Arthur gave Markus a pleased smirk, "I was actually already planning on exactly that." Nothing made him feel more amused then giving his manservant a little humble humiliation. He shot a look over his shoulder towards Morris. Arthur was far to amused by seeing him struggling to catch up to them.

Markus' insides froze, a brief wave of irritation hitting him that Arthur had already thought of it. That annoyed him the most. No matter how genius or well thought out that Markus' plans were, Arthur always seemed to be one step ahead and he hated that. But he couldn't exactly throw something at the prince, or ram into him as he passed, or trip him on purpose, or spread vicious rumors about him, or defeat him in training so humiliatingly bad that he wouldn't want to show his face around. Not like he could around some of the lesser knights. The ones that wouldn't dare go complaining to Arthur about him, not since everyone knew that he was friends with him.

He had made sure of that from day one, that everyone knew that he and Arthur were tight, tighter than any of the other knights at least.

Markus hid his annoyance well, as he always did. Arthur was nothing special but he was a higher station than Markus could ever hope to be.

So all the knight did was clap his hands on Arthur's shoulder, crackling with laughter. "That's my boy!" He yelled loudly, cocky smirk on his face. The two lackeys following them crowed with laughter, even when they hadn't known what the other two were talking about. The two boys had been laughing and that was enough for the two lackeys.

Arthur straightened up, feeling proud of himself. What could be better than this? Hanging out with his three best friends, giving his manservant a little torment. This was the life, this was his life. And he wasn't about to let some mystery peasant man ruin that.

So Arthur all but forgot about his intended's impending arrival completely, to caught up in his friend's excitement to think about anything else.

Up in the castle, Merlin was wandering aimlessly around the hallways. He didn't really know where he was going. He had started out looking for Gaius but it was soon clear that he had no idea where he was going.

Did a castle really need to be so big?

It felt way to large to be reasonable but hey, what did he know about castles?

Merlin just kept walking, going down hallway after hallway. The relieving part of all of this was that nobody stopped him. The further in that he went, the more he kept expecting somebody to stop him, to come running after him and demand that he return to his room.

But nobody he passed by seem to even acknowledge that he was there. The few people that he had passed seemed way to busy to notice the new face in the castle.

He actually didn't see as many people as he would have expected. With a castle this size, he thought that he would have seen more people around. But maybe he didn't because the few he did see seemed pretty busy.

Servants would rush past him carrying things, as if they were running late to get something prepared. There was a servant carrying a vase of flowers. Another carrying a large basket with what looked like fresh linens or a table cloth. One was even carefully carrying a large bucket of fresh water that looked like it was far to heavy for the young servant girl who looked barely thirteen to be carrying.

Merlin stopped, about to offer her some help in carrying it. But he never got the chance to before she was gone, already rounding the corner.

So Merlin kept going, heading down a set of stairs this time. There were more people down here but they all seemed just as busy. Some servants were actively cleaning things, practically trying to make the hall shine.

Merlin tried not to gap as he passed by a serving boy. He was going to town on several porcelain candlesticks, polishing them so hard that they would no doubt shine by the time he was done.

Merlin had never seen porcelain before. It wasn't exactly something they needed in his village. Not something like that which could be sold for something that was more of a necessity. Like food or more cloth so that they would be warm for the upcoming harsh winter.

Merlin passed by several guards. Some walked straight passed him, not even giving him the briefest of a glance. He didn't realize it yet, but he was far to below them for them to even acknowledge him since he was obviously a peasant from the state of his clothes.

Merlin found himself going down another staircase so he was now at ground level. It looked just like it had when he had arrived. Tapestries and portraits were hanging on the wall, he passed by wide opened windows where the sun was streaming in.

There were a lot more people down here. Servants were running about, almost in a frenzy. He wondered briefly what was going on.

It never occurred to him that it could have been for his wedding.

He passed by a handful of guards but didn't dare approach them. These guards were standing posted in certain corners, standing guard along the walls as the servants worked around them.

They were stern face and serious. Merlin quickly hurried passed them even though they didn't recognize him from one peasant or another. He was just another face in the crowd to many of them, someone they didn't need to acknowledge.

It didn't take Merlin long to realize that he was lost.

Of course he was lost. He could have passed straight by his Uncle Gaius and wouldn't have known it at all, being that he had never met the guy. He also didn't know the layout of this place at all so how was he going to find the court physician?

Merlin stopped at the end of a hallway. It led into the middle of another hallway. "Where am I going?" He muttered to himself, looking down one end before turning and looking down the other side.

"Er...I guess I'll just try this way." Merlin muttered, picking a direction at random and heading down it. There were less people down this way and he could feel himself relaxing a little. He hadn't realized that he was so tense.

There were more people than he had been expecting. To suddenly go from a small village with a handful of people to a huge city with hundreds of people...it was astonishingly mind blowing.

And overwhelming. Extremely overwhelming actually. The hallway he was going down was practically empty so it made breathing easier. He wondered if he would ever get used to so many people or if he would ever be used to getting this anxious.

Maybe he should have stayed in his bed chambers but no. He wasn't going to spend his entire lifetime in his room. He would get used to it around here...he had to.

Merlin's eyes dropped to a vase sitting on a nearby decorative table against a wall that he was passing. It was an egg robin blue color with what looked like gold veins making decorative designs.

"Whoa, is that real?" Merlin asked himself, reaching out to touch it like a toddler who couldn't keep his hands to himself. It certainly looked like real gold but then again, he had never actually seen real gold before.

Of course, he pressed his finger a little to hard against the glass vase. He jerked away when it started to wobble off the table.

Merlin yelped, practically diving for it before it could tip over the edge. It took a minute of juggling with it before he finally had both hands wrapped tightly around the neck of it to prevent it from falling.

After a moment where he was entirely still, scared that it would still fall off if he even let out a breath, he finally gave a sign of relief, hanging his head for a moment. Then he cautiously edged it back to the center of the table, going slower than a snail in case he broke it anyway.

After it was back where it had been before he had ever touched it, Merlin cautiously let it go. He held in his breath as he watched it wobble for a moment but then sighed in relief when it settled into place.

"Okay Merlin, no more touching stuff." He muttered to himself, already knowing that he probably wouldn't be keeping that promise to himself. He had always been way to curious for his own good.

He was about to step away when he noticed something that he didn't think had been there before. A large crack on the base of the vase. It was barely noticeable but Merlin doubted that a place this fancy kept cracked decorations around. Even though it wasn't as big as he thought it was, it was like a huge neon sign to him.

How was he going to explain that he had barely even been here for a day and had already broken something.

He panicked, "No, no, no, no." He kept saying to himself, looking around frantic. But nobody was in this part of the castle.

So since nobody was around the see it, and he didn't trust himself to touch it again, his eyes flashed gold. The vase spun itself around so that the crack was facing the wall.

Merlin stepped back, inspecting what he could see for any more imperfections. There. Maybe somebody would find out about the crack, but unless someone moved it, nobody would notice just by passing it by.

Glancing around one last time just to make sure that nobody was around, he quickly hurried down the hallway, face starting to feel heated. At least there had been nobody around to see his sudden misfortune