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!

56. Chapter 56

"I cannot believe that people have the nerve to call you a lady." Arthur tutted at her, voice gruff but far too casual for what she had just witnessed, like he was trying to hard to ignore what had just happened. "Does father know that you use that kind of language?"

It had been drilled into Arthur's head from an early age that it was unbecoming of a prince to use such foul language. A prince was meant to have a very extensive vocabulary, meaning that there was no need for Arthur to use the same words that-shudders-the common folk often use. Which was why Merlin was such a bad influence on him, as he has caught those words coming out of his mouth more than once in Merlin's presence. It appeared that Lady Morgana was also being influenced by this strange boy in their lives.

"Forget about Uther." Morgana exclaimed as her hair bobbed around her face as she was moving her head quite energetically. She did not hero worship Uther nearly as much as his son did. She often thought Uther was wrong, and needed to be told that his punishments were often too cruel or heavy handed, and now she was wondering if Arthur was going to be following the same path. Lady Morgana waved an arm out behind her to the closed door, "Are you really not going to tell me what just happened?"

Morgana had just watched Gregory, the man that often guarded the hall that lead to their rooms when it was needed, dragging another Knight that was vaguely familiar out. And she had seen Arthur delivering a harsh sentence to him. Not harsh in the terms of physical, even if the jail time would probably be pretty rough when the other prisoners discovered he was a knight, but harsh when it came to the matter of public opinion. Knight Charles would not be getting back into his armor unscathed.

"I'm just handling a change in position, this Knight Charles has done a disservice to the royal family and needed to be punished." The prince answered her without giving her any real details on the matter. Call Arthur as many things as you wanted to. He was a spoiled boy who got his fun out of picking on people that was less than he was. He could be seen as self-centered, and took his anger out on whoever was nearest when being a prince started to become to much for him. He hid it well though, even if he could often be seen tapping his fingers under the safety of his cloak to hide his nerves. Like before he went out to one of the biggest fights he'd been in, one that he may not survive.

A prince wasn't allowed to be nervous. That was just a fact. Arthur wasn't allowed to be nervous, or worried, or confused, or shaken, or scared about anything.

But he had been all of those things in just the past hour. He knew he'd be nervous later on when he ultimately saw Merlin again, he knew he'd be forced to apologize for accusing him of lying. He could swallow his pride enough to admit that he may have been wrong with this matter. He had been worried, because he had no idea if Valiant was at the stadium and waiting for him, or if he was planning to find Merlin later on and finish what he started. He had been confused, because it had baffled him to have Knight Charles literally confess to his transgressions-the moron-and the whole ugly truth had came spilling out. He had been scared because, if Merlin had been telling the truth about the assault, then had he also told the truth about the snakes? And he had been shaken because if he had been...then Arthur was going to be fighting a magic user. While Arthur had been trained and taught what to do if he ever came up against a sorcerer within a battle, he had never actually had to fight one himself.

It was strange, mysterious, and terrifying all at once. Like a child fighting the boogeyman in the shadows. Something you thought was there but never had to actually face yourself.

So yes, while Arthur was all of these things mixed into one, there was one thing that nobody would have been able to say about him. That he didn't take care of his own. Even if he didn't particularly like Merlin, it was still his duty to take care of him because Merlin was under his protection. And okay, maybe he still didn't like Merlin but...Arthur found it difficult in this moment to outright hate him. Not like he had earlier when Arthur had been shouting at him, accusing him of being petty and jealous right after the council meeting.

God, Arthur had hated him so much in that moment. Had almost wanted to kill him just so he wouldn't cause him anymore trouble. It was definitely a little less hatred now that the truth had came to light.

"And what, may I ask, did he do to you?" She asked. Morgana had seen Arthur throwing the people who annoyed him into the stocks just for crossing his path. It was vile and very cruel. She supposed Merlin was only safe from that because of his new royal status, he couldn't exactly be seen throwing Camelot's new consort into the stocks. But she'd rarely seen Arthur throw someone into the cells for more than a night, so Knight Charles must have done something really bad for Arthur to push it into two months.

Arthur gave her an irritated look and Morgana gave him one back. The prince gave a heavy sigh and brought a hand up to run it roughly through the top of his hair. He knew Morgana well enough to know it was best to just give in when she got that stubborn look on her face. It often meant Arthur better tell her what was going on or she would find other means on getting the truth. Usually something that may humiliate Arthur, like bringing this up to Uther out of the blue during dinner and giving Arthur no time to think of a proper response. It left him to flounder in front of his father as he tried to explain his actions and why what he did had been the best course of action.

"...It involves Merlin." Arthur said gruffly but he didn't give her anymore details than what was needed. He wasn't about to get into all of that with Morgana. The only person that really needed to know was Merlin, and that was only so Arthur could reassure him that nobody else was going to be allowed up to their hall. Security was definitely going to be tightened up after this catastrophe.

"...Oh." Morgana said as her shoulders started to sag. Her voice had sounded soft and quiet as she thought of the boy. He who had stood in her dream and looked-even if she couldn't hear it herself-to be screaming as Arthur had been taken from this mortal world. She felt an uneasy shiver erupt down her spine at being forced to remember it. The screaming would have been a sharp contrast to that day in the bleachers, the day Merlin had seen Arthur on the field with another's favor. It was on that day he had been quiet, frighteningly so. And then Merlin had seemed to be somewhere in the middle during the council meeting. Quiet enough for Arthur to talk, only to scream out as Arthur was being talked down to. And she wanted to help him, which was why she'd had came down here in the first place, to demand to know what Arthur thought he was doing. It was clear he wasn't taking care of Merlin like one should their honored consort, especially a royal consort.

"Is this going to be one of our talks?" Arthur asked gruffly, giving Morgana a once over. He didn't like the way she was looking at him, as if she was carefully thinking over what to say to him before she actually said it. It was made to make him feel uneasy, as if this wouldn't be a conversation he wanted to be apart of. It made him want Charles to be back here as it wouldn't be nearly as awkward to go through with it and slit the Knight's throat.

By 'one of our talks' Arthur was talking about how either Morgana or himself ended up in the other's room when something was going on. To talk without the pressures of having to be presented as a royal, where they would be able to just relax even as they fussed, almost more like commoners than dignified royals. It had been a while since they had a good talk, the last one was probably just before Arthur had married. When Morgana had teased and prodded at him in that room off the the side about how she had met Merlin and knew all about him before Arthur-thought-he had.

This feeling in the air kind of felt like that.

Morgana bucked up her nerves and nodded her head firmly, putting aside everything for the real reason she had came here. "You do know that it is." Morgana said, her hair falling down her back thickly as she strode across the room towards him. "It's going to be about Merlin." And all the things Arthur had done to the poor boy since he had arrived inside their city.

Arthur's face creased in frustration, and he brought a hand up to rub his palm harshly on the center of his forehead. "When is it not about him?" He asked gruffly. Everything had been about Merlin since the day the boy had arrived and flipped his world off it's axis in the worse and inconvenient ways.

His father forcing him to make time for the brat (not a liar but still a brat-he thought) by dragging him to one of his training sessions. Then he was being dressed in his armor with the boy's clumsy fingers, and then Merlin was everywhere he turned throughout the actual tourney. Every fight he was in had Merlin in the crowd watching and screaming for other men to win, in between fights had Merlin dare to show up to talk to him. The meet and greet that drove Arthur insane because Merlin was showing more interest in Valiant then in him-had he really been interested, or had he seen something unsettling in Valiant even before the man had attacked him. The boy always barging into his rooms uninvited, usually to tell him things he didn't want to hear (Valiant attacked me, I've brought you a snakehead I got straight from Valiant's magic shield, how dare you switch my favor, please Arthur don't go out there and fight). And throughout it all, Merlin had acted the exact opposite of a real proper consort (he was brash, borderline rude, called Arthur out on it when he thought he was doing something dumb). He had just about taken the life of one of his knight's for the boy to feel safe inside the castle. And he now had Morgana in his face, was there ever going to be a day where Arthur had peace, to be able to go throughout his day without Merlin somehow mucking it up.

He doubted it.

"Excuse me?" Morgana asked as she looked at him. The lady didn't have nearly as many problems with Merlin as the prince did. She actually found him to be quite pleasant to be in the company of. And she didn't approve of the way Arthur had sounded just now, as if he was about to dismiss her-her! As if she was a common trollop that he held no interest for.

Arthur shook his head before giving Morgana his full attention, "Nothing, nothing. Just tell me, what did he do this time?" And he would wonder rather or not he had the time to clean up this latest mess before he went out there and took Valiant's head away from his body.

Morgana clenched her fists into the folds of her skirts and pursed her lips at him, "Merlin hasn't done anything," she stopped before correcting herself. "That I know of. But you on the other hand, have done plenty." And it was truly disgusting for her to know Merlin was being wasted on someone like Arthur. He didn't even know how to treat most people with a speck of common decency, why would she have believed he'd be different towards his own consort?

"Me?!" Arthur exclaimed in disbelief as he'd whipped his head back up to look at her with boggled eyes. "What on earth have I possibly done!" All he'd been doing was trying to fix everything! He'd shielded Merlin's virginity away from his father, had done everything to keep the truth hidden so his innocence would not be taken in such a vile and forceful way, it wasn't like Arthur had been entirely looking forward to it so this worked for him. And he'd just started working on the solutions to fix the problems going on in the castle so that he would be safe. And okay, so he had called him a liar and petty, accused him of making it all up to get back at Arthur by practically flashing their marital problems in front of the castle...Arthur had clearly been wrong about all of that but...semantics!

Morgana shook her head with the mild look of disgust on her features. She shouldn't be forced to force feed Arthur what he had done wrong. He should know already!" "I had been hoping that if given a little bit of time, you'd be able to see how wrong you've been." She said coldly. She'd been hoping that Arthur'd be able to work things out for himself, it was the only reason she hadn't approached him that first night. But now she could see that he wasn't going to. If anything, her dream had pushed her to make this confrontation now instead of waiting till her still shimmering anger had died down some.

Arthur blinked at Morgana with a truly dumb founded expression on his face at her cold tone. It reminded him uncomfortably of when Merlin had been in his room, voice as cold as ice when he said he'd never give Arthur a gift after he had lost his neckerchief. Arthur had still been unable to find the blasted thing, had even torn his room apart at one point trying to find it just so Merlin would stop irritating him about it. He couldn't irritate him if he had it back, right? It would be like the entire thing had never happened. Merlin had never given it to him, so Arthur had never felt compelled to switch it. Then they could all just move on with their bloody lives...that hadn't gone over to well since it felt as if it had 'poofed' into thin air at this point. "You're talking to me as if you dislike me, Morgana." Arthur pointed out, hoping she just hadn't noticed the cold tone she had overtaken.

But if anything, him pointing it out just made her go even colder, her eyes sharpening in on him in a very unfamiliar way. She was usually so warm and giving, heartfelt and maybe even mildly innocent-although nowhere near as innocent as Uther thought she was. "Maybe you should really think on why that is, Arthur. Why would I talk to you like this?" The lady in question scowled are him, her ruby painted lips turning downward.

Arthur scowled just as equally, feeling as if he was the butt of some great cosmic joke right about now. "You sound like Merlin did." Arthur couldn't help but bring him up, muttering this under his breath with irritation. With all of the things he'd done (hiding Merlin's virginity and having Charles arrested-none of the things the boy actually knew about) you would think he would show Arthur just a little bit more respect.

"Good." Morgana said sharply, her dress was swishing around her ankles as she started to slowly pace in front of him. "At least I know he isn't going to take any of your crap either." That would be good for Arthur, Morgana was thinking in her mind. Somebody who wasn't going to take any of this crap from him. The prince needed somebody with a firm hand, or at least somebody with a quick tongue. He'd have never survived if he'd been forced into marrying one of those airheads that flocked around his royal status. That was what drew Merlin to Morgana in the first place. Other then the stray 'm'lady' (always teasing) or sire towards Arthur (always mocking) he was able to talk to them as if they were normal people. That could be seen as a very rare thing indeed. Even among nobles, one was always talked with carefully for fear that if they said the wrong thing, they could ruin the fragile alliances forged between their families. It was exhausting.

Arthur straightened out his shoulders at this as he glared at Morgana in front of him. He didn't appreciate being talked down to, nor did he appreciate the insinuation that Merlin would always talk to him so rudely, even if he had done something wrong. It wasn't Merlin's place to tell him! But when had that stopped him? "You clearly want to tell me something Morgana, so go ahead and spit it out." He'd had just about enough of these guessing games. He got enough of them on the daily from Merlin where he was in a constant struggle to figure out what he was thinking or what he was going to do next. He didn't need this from Morgana as well.

"Alright, I'll 'spit it out' as you so eloquently said!" Morgana exclaimed loudly, as she then spun around harshly to face him, her dress swished madly around her ankles. "The favor Arthur, I am here because of the favor!" Well, she was here for a long of reasons. She'd wanted to see Arthur, to talk to him, after the awful dream she had. It hadn't been just enough to watch him from her window. She had needed to see him in front of her. But while she had him alone for the first time since the awful day he switched favors on Merlin, it was the perfect moment to get on with it. She wasn't going to allow another moment to go by with her not defending Merlin. It was clear Arthur wasn't going to do it...she thought about the man Arthur had just arrested in Merlin's name...okay. So Arthur would defend him, but she was the one that was going to defend the boy from Arthur himself. Since Arthur clearly had no idea what he was doing.

Arthur looked at her surprised, the way her raven locks were bouncing wildly around her face almost made her look crazed, her words practically spewing out of her mouth. "You've heard about?" Arthur asked. Oh god, had the boy been sprouting off at people about what a horrible husband Arthur was? Who else had to told? Did his father realize yet that Arthur had shown him a false favor and claimed it came from Merlin, just to hide the fact that he was wearing someone else's. Putting them and the entire kingdom at risk if Merlin made a claim that Arthur was cheating on him. "Did Merlin tell you?"

Morgana scoffed at him as if this question was somehow the ridiculous one, "He didn't have to tell me." She snapped, making Arthur feel as if he had done something very wrong indeed if this was the reaction he was getting from Morgana. It made Arthur wonder what was so special about Merlin, that Morgana would actually turn her ire onto him. "I was already there when it happened." Morgana crossed her arms under her chest, making her breasts push out some but Arthur didn't notice for once. Sometimes he wondered if he had a mild interest in her. And other times, like now, she sounded too much like a bossy older sister for him to take her seriously. "You know, Merlin wasn't even going to give you his favor at all. He didn't think that you would have accepted it."

Arthur's mouth dropped open a little with this newfound fact. He was torn between being offended that Merlin didn't want to give him his favor-despite it probably saving him a lot of grief if he hadn't-and outraged that he was being told this at all. As if Morgana was trying to taunt him with his information, "Then why did he..." he trailed off, not wanting to finish his sentence. Why had Merlin decided to go through with it? Surely he had considered he might do exactly what he ended up doing.

It turns out that he didn't have to ask her at all. Morgana already had the answer coming out of her mouth before he had even finished his trailed off question. "Gwen and I ended up talking him into it." As if it was no big deal she and her handmaiden had put their own selves into Arthur's personal life.

Arthur felt outrage flood through him mixed with his own disbelief, "Why would you do that?" He exclaimed, thinking how easier it all would have been if he hadn't been dealing with that favor on top of it. He wouldn't have had Merlin all up in his face about it, and he wouldn't have had to lie to his father about it. He had been lying a lot, he noticed. He had ever since Merlin had shown up and ruined his life.

"I was hoping that you could be happy in your marriage." Morgana said, huffing and looking at Arthur as if it was somehow his fault that he wasn't. Morgana remembered when she had found herself in Arthur's room not long after he found out the news. The two of them had been horrified, each one wondering who the lucky 'man' was going to be. Arthur had been freaking out because of the man part, it was something else though that had the lady concerned. She was sad for Arthur knowing it was a shock to him, but she also hoped that this man wasn't going to be similar to all of the gold diggers that threw themselves at the prince with no dignity, acting more as if they were more like harlots than actual ladies with family honor they had to uphold. And to hear that he was a peasant, she had expected this mystery man to make himself at home inside the castle and start acting as if he owned the joint. But no, that clearly wasn't the case with Merlin. Despite Arthur's disinterest in the boy, she had hoped that they could find their own way together. With a little push from herself and Gwen of course. In her opinion, Merlin wasn't a bad boy to be tied to, not when one considered all of the floozies that could have taken his place instead. "Apparently, I was wrong." Morgana finished.

She didn't want Arthur to be living in misery his entire life, and unwanted husbands tend to do just that. She also didn't want Merlin to live pining after somebody who didn't want him. Was it really so awful that she had hope that the two could find some kind of common ground. She supposed though, that she had underestimated just how hard Arthur would be willing to go to cling onto his fragile heterosexuality.

"Of course you were wrong!" Arthur found himself blustering as he shook his head at her. He couldn't believe she had the notion in her mind, had she been filling Merlin's head up with these notions? Was that why Merlin had fallen in love for him so quickly...oh, wait. All of the things Merlin had told him had been true-about the assault, and had most likely been telling the truth about the snakes as well-so it made sense that Merlin was telling the truth as well when he said he didn't love Arthur. He really had made a mess out of things, Arthur thought annoyingly. It wasn't often he found himself admitting that he was wrong, even in the safety of his own mind. Seeing that the Lady was now looking at him, Arthur quickly told her why he and Merlin wouldn't have a real marriage. "That boy is a peasant," he said as he nodded his head in self assurance. "Nothing more than a commoner."

Even if that commoner seemed to be entirely uncommon in nature. With his uncommon way of telling Arthur the exact thing he didn't want to hear, but also being the exact thing he needed to hear. But that little odd trait in his personality didn't negate that he wasn't what Arthur needed in his life. As a peasant, Merlin would just never be able to understand the complexities of his royal life. He wouldn't ever be able to understand the policies and the regulations and how important it was for someone like Arthur to get everything right so their kingdom can thrive. Even if Merlin did manage to learn these things, even if he were to somehow learn how to blend easily among nobility, he would always have a disadvantage by being born a commoner. If he could 'walk the walk' and 'talk the talk', he would still always be different. And Arthur did not need someone who was different, he did need someone who could understand all of the pressures he was under. Because they themselves were under a similar pressure.

"So is most of the city." Morgana said, as she didn't believe Merlin being born common was a reasonable answer as to not give the boy a chance. There was a reason they were called 'commoners'. They were common, as in they were everywhere. There could be at least one hundred commoners to every one noble, give or take. It was one of the many reasons that nobles were treated differently then common folk, and even why they were nicknamed blue bloods. Because they were different-because they held all the power. But Morgana could assure Arthur that despite the ridiculous way they were called that, their blood was as red as any commoner. As red as Merlin's would be.

Arthur rolled his eyes at that, fully aware of Morgana's ridiculous trait of treating these common folk as if they were the same as a noble, but they weren't. They would never have to negotiate a good trade with a nearby kingdom, nor would they have to ever smile and put on an act of gentry even while they talked to someone completely undesirable that one had to wonder how he had been born a 'blue blood' at all. "And what would you have suggested I done?" He asked the lady with a mocking gesture of his hand towards her. "Pretend that I was thrilled for the favor, and start acting as if I was in love with him?"

As if that wouldn't have sent him the wrong message. Arthur had already vowed to never do something that he thought could be taken the wrong way again. No more throwing him against tables or walls and pinning him there, no more giving him overheated kisses to the back of his hand just to prove that he could do it much better than the clown that had did it before him.

"No, of course not." Morgana said, sighing heavily as she brought her hands up to rest on her hips. Even if she had kinda pushed the boy at him, tried to force them together in some way, she knew that pretending to love someone would have only made things so much worse when the truth finally came out. One couldn't keep something like that up for long. It was only a matter of time before Merlin would have started wondering why Arthur was shying away from his touch. Why Arthur didn't want to kiss him, or why they'd only ever went to royal functions together. He would wonder why Arthur's version of a date was to take Merlin to the village, while they were accompanied by those friends Arthur hung out with so that it wouldn't 'feel' like a date. Why Arthur spent the entire time laughing with them, and mocking the very same townspeople that Merlin came from in a way. No, things would have turned out very badly if Arthur had tried to go about it that way. But still... "The least your could have done was explain it to him properly. It would not have hurt you to wear the cloth the one time and then explain to him afterwards that you didn't think an actual relationship was going to work."

There was no reason to mince words. The lady knew full well that they had only been married because of the contract, and they were alone. There was no reason to pretend any differently, to act as if the two had been married for love. Morgana personally thought the whole thing was ridiculous, but at least Merlin wasn't that bad a match. Now if only she could get Arthur to see that.

Arthur snorted at her words, as if trying to explain anything to Merlin would have been the ridiculous action. "As if he would have been okay with just that. I did what I had to do to make him see reason." And Merlin will be better off for it, Arthur thought stubbornly. He maybe mad about it now, may be angry that Arthur had acted as rashly as he did, but he would get over it in time. He would even forgive and forget as time wore on that Arthur had been the one to lose his neckerchief. The nerve of the boy though, to actually ask for it back... that one still got to Arthur.

Morgana scoffed at that, a sound low in her throat to show her disbelief, "You don't have to sound so proud of that." She said as she glared at him, the eyeliner around her eyes making it more noticeable. Arthur had made it sound as if Merlin should be thankful, as if he should be indebted to Arthur for showing him a curtesy by switching it with another. It was truly a disgusting trait of manhood, and it showed Arthur's complete lack of empathy for Merlin's own situation. "He's your consort, so the least you can do is treat him just a little more softly than you do now."

Stop treating him as if he's a bother, Morgana was thinking to herself. Stop treating Merlin as if he was nothing more than a pest that he couldn't wait to get rid of. Stop treating him as if he wasn't going through the same kind of difficulties and problems that Arthur was going through himself. Both of their lives had been uprooted by this marriage, and as usual Arthur was convinced that he was the only one going through these changes.

"He's not a girl!" Arthur scoffed, throwing out his hands in frustration. He may have thought the one-and only-good thing about being in a marriage to a man was he no longer had to be 'gentle'. He wouldn't have to be careful on how he held her, consumed with worry that her much smaller body would be crushed by his own. He didn't have to be careful about how he spoke, making sure each word he'd said was fit for a lady's ears, instead of the sarcastic or downright mean quips that he would give Merlin. He didn't have to worry for her safety...no, scratch that. Merlin, man and all, still forced Arthur into worrying over his safety. Arthur huffed at that and turned his head away to mutter under his breath, "No matter how much he acts like one." With the way he was always complaining, whining just because Arthur refused to entertain anything to do with him. The prince turned back to the lady before asking, "Did he send you down here to talk to me on his behalf?" He'd half demanded to know.

It would be just like Merlin, to talk about their marital problems and get Morgana involved in it all. Just what he needed right now, when he should be spending his last hour or so before he went to fight, thinking of what should be done about Valiant. In other words, what he should use in terms of strategy so that Arthur could gut him.

"Of course he didn't!" Morgana snapped as she shook her head, her hair flying wildly just before they settled down over her shoulders. "He doesn't even know that I'm here, I didn't exactly stop to talk to him long enough. As he has apparently been spending his days trying to save your unworthy hide." Morgana hadn't seen hair nor hide of Merlin since Arthur had done the dreaded 'favor incident' as it would now be known as. She had thought he was mourning a lost crush, and was giving him a little bit of time and privacy to compose himself. She knew that she wouldn't want anybody to see her in such a state. It was only with the council meeting did she realize Merlin hadn't been mourning at all, he had been too busy trying to save Arthur's life afterwards...not many people would have gotten themselves involved after what Arthur had done to them. Even without the favor in the equation, most people still wouldn't have bothered to get involved, thinking it to not be their place to get involved within the matters of nobility or the royal family. Merlin clearly wasn't like other commoners, and it baffled her that Arthur was so blind as to see this.

Arthur scowled at her because of this reminder, hating to admit that if he did live through this, he may actually owe Merlin his life...didn't he already, kind of? When Merlin dragged him out of the way on their wedding day before he could get struck in the chest by the dagger thrown at him from the witch that shown up. Arthur looked away from the lady with his lips thinned as he pressed them tightly together, it was just one more thing he didn't want to admit he owned Merlin for, "He didn't have to do it." He grumbled, making it sound as if he shouldn't be thankful because he didn't ask Merlin to save his life. He didn't ask the boy to risk being bitten by venomous snakes to bring him back the snakehead that may prove his claims. He didn't ask Merlin to go near Valiant's rooms when the man could be back at any moment, with ample time to actually assault him in the privacy of his own personal rooms. Therefore, he had no reason to be thankful...right?

Morgana scoffed at him herself, annoyed with Arthur's stubborn behavior. If anybody would be thankful for Merlin's actions, one would think it would be Arthur. "You're right, he did not have to do it." She told him quietly. "It would have been so easy for him to ignore it, to let everything play out how it was going to go. Nobody would have thought to question rather he knew of the events before they had happened. He would have gotten rid of you, as well as gained a throne. So the question is," Morgana lifted an eyebrow at him in an almost challenging way. "Why did he?"

Arthur stiffened at her observation, and he found a flush work it's way onto his face so quickly that he almost got a head rush from it. He didn't want to admit it, but Morgana had just struck a cord in him. It made him feel uncomfortable in his own skin as questions he hadn't considered started to erupt inside of his mind. Why had Merlin gone out of his way to try and save him? Why had he came to Arthur's room that night and begged him not to fight, right after Arthur had shouted at him about not needing anything of his after he had lost the neckerchief? Why had Merlin come to his room and brought with him the snakehead, not even a full day after Arthur had paraded himself around the stadium with a sheer purple handkerchief instead of a very bright red neckerchief. It didn't make a lick of sense to him. Who just went out of their own way to save the life of somebody who made it clear right from the beginning how much he'd hate him? Why had Merlin done it?

"And you know," Morgana drawled out, and she was now looking at Arthur slyly through her eyelashes. The prince was unable to relax at that point, the dread already pooling into his stomach by her expression alone. "I do believe that it's quite amazing, you mention that there is no possible way you could be open to Merlin simply because he's a peasant boy."

Arthur's jaw was hard and clenched, and he had a muscle jumping in his jaw as he did not know where Morgana was leading with all of this. "And?" He asked stiffly, his voice coming out all funny because of it.

Morgana gave the smallest hint of a smirk as she said-raising her head to look at him more fully, "I just find it interesting that you don't mention the reason you can't find an interest in him is because he's male."

They both knew that the only reason Arthur had been so against the idea of marriage in the first place was because of Merlin's male gender. Even if the firstborn child from that family had been a daughter instead, Arthur would not have reacted so violently as he had when he first learned of his upcoming nuptials. Then and even now, when he had gotten used to his male consort mucking all things up for him, a firstborn daughter would have been better than the son.

Arthur was stiff when he said, "You know that I don't like men. I was not just going to string him along for all of your amusements." Arthur also had better things to do then to play pretend with the one person in the kingdom that he shouldn't have to pretend with. Merlin knew exactly why they had been brought together, and now he knew that-despite that they were stuck together-they had no real noticeable future together.

Morgana sighed, and nodded even though she looked disappointed by this. Arthur, she knew, was unable to see pass his own nose some days. Just because he didn't like Merlin didn't mean that he had to go out of his way just to hurt the boy. "Well," she insisted still, "The least you could have done was turn him down gently. Or in literally any other way then you did."

She would have thought Arthur, raised as a gentleman and a leader, could have at least had some tact. She wasn't naive to think that she could have forced love between them. If Arthur really didn't like men, then that was the end of it. Arthur didn't like men. Period. It didn't mean he had to step all over Merlin just because he shown an interest. Morgana was sure Merlin would back off some, now that he knew Arthur wasn't interested. It wasn't like Merlin was the one trying to assault Arthur as Valiant had attempted to him.

Arthur looked away, refusing to admit that he may have started to feel a touch guilty about it, the kind of guilt that had been hid behind all his anger over everything else that was going on. "He shouldn't have tried in the first place." He insisted stubbornly, like a child who purposely refused to understand why they were being told something they had done was wrong.

Arthur was gonna make it up to him anyway. By taking out Valiant, because with the residue of anger still coursing through him that had been stalled by this conversation, he was a lot less terrified and a lot more pissed off. When Arthur brought Merlin Valiant's head on a platter, then thing's would fall into place. Merlin could let it go and stop looking at him with those doe eyes, as if everything was Arthur's fault. And Arthur could go back to ignoring him in peace, and act as if this entire week hadn't happened.

Morgana was looking at him now, with the same doe eyes that Merlin had worn on his face when Arthur had admitted he'd lost the favor. The lady saw the stubbornness in the prince and she frowned. She had always thought that he could be particularly thick headed on some days, but this attitude of his that had been developing since Merlin arrived was a new thing entirely. Or maybe it had always been there, and she just hadn't bothered to notice as she'd been too busy with her own life.

Morgana sighed before stepping up behind Arthur, making the prince stiffen up, "What are you doing?" He demanded, glaring at her over his shoulder with suspicion. Arthur did not know what she was doing, and wasn't to keen on finding out. Morgana had always made herself known when she had been displeased about something. And he had a feeling that things weren't quite over yet. She hadn't gotten the last word in, after all.

"Oh, don't get your knickers in a twist." The lady said, making Arthur think that he may have to start limiting the amount of time she had apparently been spending with Merlin without his supervision. "I'm just fixing this, apparently Morris didn't have the time to fix it properly."

Morgana had spotted a loose buckle on the back of Arthur's shoulder, coming looser as he moved. It probably would have dislodged the shoulder plate and fallen off in mid-battle if he'd gone out there and starting fighting in it. Arthur still looked at her with a bit of suspicion before he allowed her to get to work on the buckle.

"And I did use to help my own father with his armor, so I do know what I'm doing." Morgana said quietly as she placed her hands over the buckle. Her eye's dimmed a little as she remembered her parents who had died in a tragic carriage accident when she was just twelve years old. She had been lucky that her father and Uther were such good friends, she had considered herself quite a lucky young girl when the king offered to take her on as his ward. She may have ended up being a penniless beggar at her young age, and with nobody else to take her in. But lately, she did have her doubts, wondering if all of the stress and palace life was really worth it in the end.

Things were silent between them for just a moment, the only sound filling the room was the buckle as Morgana fiddled with it. Arthur felt it loosen up some as she redid the strap, and then tighten back up as she fixed it in the proper position, making for a much more comfortable fit.

It was only as Morgana was finishing up, her hands still resting on the back of Arthur's arm did she say, "That happened to be his first tournament, did you know that?" Arthur, who had relaxed under Morgana's ministrations was quick to stiffen up in surprise. "He was so excited to." Morgana said, really laying on the guilt trip thickly as she fiddled with nothing on his shoulder plate. "That first day of the tourney, sitting in the bleachers with Gwen and myself." Morgana's eyes went half lidded with her veiled disappointment. "But you just had to go and ruin it, didn't you? And all because everything has to be how Arthur Pendragon wants it to be, rather he hurts the ones closest to him or not."

Arthur hated to admit it, but her guilt trip was working. Morgana had always known how to play him to get exactly the reaction that she'd wanted. He hadn't known that it was Merlin's first tourney, he hadn't known that at all. He'd never forgot the first time he'd been able to come to a tourney-both the first time he had watched one at age six and declaring he was going to beat them all when he got big, and at age eighteen when he was actually able to participate in the fight itself and live up to the dreams of Little Arthur.

"How was I supposed to know that?" Arthur weakly defended himself. As if he could have made a decent excuse for why he had ruined a young boy's first tourney, something that all young men should be able to experience at one point or the other. Kind of like a right of passage...sort of.

Morgana blew up at him, making Arthur wince and duck his head at the ladies yell in his ear, "Of course you didn't know it!" She exclaimed, angrily. "You know nothing about him, not that you even bothered to try. But even you should have put the pieces together as he grew up in a small village in the middle of nowhere. Where on earth did you think he had the opportunity to go and see a tourney."

Arthur supposed he had never thought of that before. To him, seeing a tourney was just an everyday occurrence. Well, not everyday but something that happened several times a year at least. What exactly did people do for fun if they lived to far away to see a tourney?

Morgana continued to fuss at him, getting more and more agitated as she did so, "And if you did know, would that have stopped you from doing what you did?" And of course she had to turn this back onto the favor, when he had thought they were finally done. He kind of wished he had just 'sucked it up' as she had said, if only so this conversation wouldn't have happened.

"Of course I would have!" Arthur protested as she stepped away from him, but Arthur had a bit of niggling doubt that he really would have. He didn't like being put on the spot like this, being treated as if he was the bad guy in this situation. Valiant was the bad guy around here!

"Really Arthur?" Morgana asked as she lifted an unimpressed eyebrow at him. "Are you sure about that?" She had seen right through him in an instant. She knew that Arthur would have gone down the exact same path even if he had known he was ruining this moment for Merlin. But since when did Arthur care when it didn't involve his own feelings.

Arthur looked away.

Morgana scoffed and walked passed him and her blue dress trailed out behind her as she reached the table off to the side. The one he had all of his equipment on before Morris had dressed him. Morgana reached down and she picked up the silver helmet still resting off to the side. She held it out to him, a huffing kind of expression on her face.

Arthur looked at it unsure, not knowing if this is like the trick she used to do when they had been little that she'd grown out of over time. It was when she would go to hand him stuff, he'll reach out to take it, and then snatch it away from him just before he could take it. It kinda felt like that, but the longer he'd stood there staring at it, the less it started to feel as some kind of trick. Maybe this was Morgana trying to give him a peace offering? For how rudely she had been as she had lectured him for his actions. Yeah, that had to be it. She was just giving him a peace offering.

Arthur gave her a grateful smile, because at least Morgana knew she had overstepped the line by lecturing him like she was his father, and the lady just arched an eyebrow at him. Arthur started to reach out, putting each hand on either side of his helmet to take it from her, "Thank..."

"So, who was she?" Morgana demanded of him, her hands clamped around the helmet so that he couldn't just take it from her.

"...Huh?" Arthur asked blankly, blinking at her in dumb confusion. Who was she? Who was who? And what did some girl have to do with Morgana giving him his helme...oh, fuc-

"The girl you decided was worth more than your own husband?" Morgana asked with a sneer in her voice. "The one who gave you the other favor. Is she one or your flavor's of the month?" Making it sound as if Arthur was some kind of harlot who switched women on a daily basis when she knew full well that the only woman that accompanied him more often than not was Morgana herself, before he was married and now had a 'standard partner' to take to said events.

Arthur's lips twisted into a nasty snarl at this before he all but snatched his helmet out of her hands, he should have known this was some kind of trick, "She's somebody that you'll never meet." He said boldly. He doubted he would ever run into Lady Clarissa again anyway. She had served her purpose and given him what he needed at the time. But everything that came after most definitely wasn't worth it.

Arthur turned sharply on his heel and started stomping towards the door, irritably stuffing his helmet under his arm. He was done with this, done being looked at as if he was vile, as if he was dumb for focusing on his own wants instead of the whims of his consort.

"Arthur." Morgana called after him just as he reached the door. And the only reason he had stopped at all was because of the way she'd sounded when she said his name. All soft and had there been a touch of fear to it? He found himself turning around to face her, frowning at her.

Morgana bit down on her lip, feeling a little guilty when she had seen Arthur storming off. Not guilty because of what she'd said, Arthur needed a proper trashing every now and then but she still felt guilty. She had tried to push it to the back of her mind, act as if it had never happened or as if it was just her imagination and her own fears getting the best of her. But her earlier dream lingered in her mind, in this way that she couldn't quite shake. It felt as if her own heart was frozen in her chest, and she knew she couldn't allow Arthur to leave this room with her last words to him being so scornful.

...What if she never saw him after today? But that was just ridiculous. It was a dream, small pieces of her subconscious that should just be pushed aside and thought of no longer. It still didn't stop the small crease of worry that formed in between her brows.

"Just...be careful." She said, and feeling as if it came out weak. Not at all nonchalant like she'd been going for. But what else was she to do? Beg him not to go out and fight, and all because she had a dream? She'd be laughed at. Arthur would not deny this match, if only because his father expected him to go out there and to win. He'd never go against that just because Morgana was letting her own worries get the best of her.

Arthur nodded once, sharp and sure. Then he looked towards the door, as if he was about to leave-to go to his death? Or to win? But at the last second, he looked back to Morgana instead. "Morgana," he spoke up and cleared his throat, sounding very awkward. "About Merlin..."

Arthur trailed off with that statement. He was not able to get what he wanted out with the proper words. Did he want to tell her he really was sorry Merlin's first tourney had been just one big flop. Did he want to tell her that he'd torn his room apart for the neckerchief so he could give it back? That Lady Clarissa meant nothing to him in the way she insinuated. No, it was none of those things.

"Tell me," Arthur hesitated before going on anyway. "You've gotten close with Merlin, haven't you? You're friends?" Because Arthur was unable to keep a close eye on Merlin as the fight was going on. He obviously couldn't leave the boy on his own, he found trouble anywhere he went. And since the whole thing with Knight Charles, Arthur wasn't exactly all that eager to trust the knights with this kind of responsibility. Morgana may be the only one he could trust with this while he was out of commission.

Morgana frowned at him, clearly not getting why he was asking her this, "Of course we are." She said huffing. "You would know this if you bothered to show a mediocre of attention in what your own consort is doing with his time."

"I don't have time for that." Arthur said a little to urgently, waving his hand around in front of him as if to say she was wasting time. He really should be on his way to the field right about now, but he stopped to make a special time for this. "Merlin is usually the one that's been getting me dressed nowadays."

Morgana nodded like this was an obvious fact to her, "Because of the consort tradition." The lady answered simply. She was talking of how it was tradition for consort's to help their husband's into their armor if they were knights. An outdated tradition in her opinion, she sure wouldn't be helping a man in getting himself dressed up for a fight. Not unless she wanted something from him in return.

"Right." Arthur continued on as if she hadn't interrupted him. "But he didn't show up today." Which was both a relief as well as an annoyance. What if Merlin had been in the room as Knight Charles was brought him, if he had witnessed Arthur punishing the Knight on his behalf? What if Morgana had came bursting in like she had and started to give him grief right in front of the boy. Can you say awkward? But at the same time...he didn't know where Merlin was. And that was worrisome.

Morgana rolled her eyes at him, bringing her hands to rest on her hips as she scoffed, "I do hope you know why he wouldn't." She said as she pointed out the obvious. Merlin didn't strike her as the type to ignore what Arthur had done and carry on like normal. Especially not come and dress him as if they were doing a special couple's moment that was meant to be enjoyed. It was most definitely a mood killer when one brought the favor into it all.

"Morgana, I don't have time for this." Arthur hissed at her, even when he felt a pang inside of his chest. Morgana was wrong. Merlin was not the type of person to let a favor get in his way when things needed to be done. He had came and gotten Arthur, hadn't he? Brought him the head of a snake to prove Valiant was committing treachery right after he had the favors switched. Had came to him even after Arthur had kicked him out to plead for him to back out of this fight before it ended up killing him. Merlin hadn't shown up for a reason, he could see that now. He just hoped that it was for a more mundane reason, like he had overslept. Instead of something that was a lot more sinister. "Listen," Arthur tried again. "I need you to do something for me."

Despite the verbal tongue lashing she had just given him, Arthur truly thought that the Lady was his best option.

Morgana just crossed her arms defensively over her chest, and pursed her lips at him, not looking very thrilled to be doing anything for him. "And why would I do anything for you?" She asked. After what he had done to Merlin, Arthur should be happy that she had not done much worse than lash into him in a verbal manner. She could think of a dozen of other things she could have done off the top of her head. He should most definitely not be asking her for favors.

Arthur looked surprisingly serious, enough that it caught Morgana off guard when his eyes met her. He reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, as if trying to implore just how serious this all was. "Because it involves his safety."

Arthur didn't say specifically who he was talking about, but Morgana also didn't need to ask. It was clear to her that they were still discussing Merlin, for what other 'him' could there be.

"What do you mean?" Morgana asked him as her arms loosened from where they had been crossed over her chest. Her eyebrows were creased with worry and concern, wondering what had Arthur so worried. Because if there was something he was worrying about over his big fight that was coming up, then it had to be something else far more important.

"When you go out to the stadiums," Arthur said. "I need you to look out for Merlin." If he hadn't shown up to help Arthur dress, then he would just have to hope that the boy was going to keep his word and show up during the tournament itself. Arthur still had a match to win after all, and Merlin still had to be the one in the stands screaming his name instead of his opponents. "Just keep an eye on him, and to make sure that he doesn't get...unwelcomed company."

Arthur once again didn't need to mention a name for Morgana to get his meaning. Arthur was worried because he thought Valiant was still going to do something to Merlin. He was disregarding that he was about to go out and fight to the death, because he was to worried about Merlin.

Morgana felt a slow curl of a grin forming on her face. Maybe Arthur wasn't so awful after all. Not if he was putting Merlin's needs and safety above his own.

Arthur clearly saw this and gave her a deep scowl as he jerked his hand away from where it rested on her shoulder, "Not a word." He'd told her, flushing because he knew exactly what she was thinking. It had to be the exact opposite of what she thought. Because this was just Arthur doing his due diligence and making sure the citizens in his city were safe from rape and assault.

"I didn't say anything." Morgana said as she held up her hands in surrender. She was still looking far too amused, but she knew better than to push Arthur. She didn't want him to retreat and do something that would cause more hurt for Merlin when he ultimately did something stupid because Morgana dared to make the suggestion that there might just be something forming between them. This small thing that Arthur didn't even acknowledge. "I must know though, why not just call for some of the guards. They could have Merlin in a secure location in a heartbeat."

Arthur shook his head at that immediately as he didn't even entertain the idea. "I'm not so into trusting the guards at the moment." He grumbled under his breath. He didn't trust on rather or not one of the guards may try to do the same to Merlin that Valiant wanted. Or if they may share the same views as the Knight Charles, and put Merlin in a potentially awful and dangerous situation. No, Morgana would be the better person for the job he had inside his mind.

Morgana frowned but nodded her head with agreement, "Alright Arthur." She agreed with him. "But you didn't have to ask. Gwen and I always have Merlin sit with us. I'll keep close watch on him, so don't worry about it. What you need to be worried about is Valiant." She arched an eyebrow at him as she reminded him where the real concern was.

Morgana was more than willing to keep her eyes on Merlin. But Merlin's assailant wasn't going to be in the stands trying to assault him again. He was going to be out on the field as he tried to kill Arthur...she could only hope that Arthur was able to kill him before he could succeed.

Arthur ran his hand through his bangs and over the top of his head with some deep and rooted frustrations, "I know." He said in a very gruff tone. He shouldn't be so worried as he would have his eye's on Valiant at all times. It wasn't like Valiant would have the chance to wonder off mid-battle. It would still make him more comfortable if he had a second pair of eyes on Merlin himself. The boy was always where he wasn't supposed to be. He would be the one to get himself into trouble.

Morgana frowned at him, seeing things she may have missed before. The anxiousness on his features, the weariness in his eyes, there was this crease of concern formed inbetween his brows. Concern for himself, or a concern for Merlin was the question.

"Arthur," Morgana said slowly, knowing that not all was right with Arthur. "You do know what you're doing, don't you?" Because as far as she could see, it looked as if Arthur may be going out into this fight blind. Did he have any idea what kind of strategy he would go for to combat against Valiant's skills? She hated to admit it-only due to this situation in particular, otherwise she would have loved to load it over Arthur that someone was better than him-but Valiant was actually pretty good with his sword. She'd watched all of his fights along with Arthur's. The two looked as if they were evenly matched at least. The fight could easily go either away. Valiant or Arthur. Arthur or Valiant. And she was scared that, just as she'd dreamed it, it would be the prince that would end up on his back.

Arthur didn't answer her. He just gave her a look, the kind that said-of course I don't know what I'm doing but I'm not going to be admitting it to you either. Arthur readjusted the helmet under his arm and put his hand on the door behind him, "I suppose I'll see you at the feast." But it sounded as if Arthur was just kidding himself, as if he didn't believe himself on rather or not he'll live long enough for him to make it to the feast. Morgana didn't know if he was trying to convince himself, or was just trying to make her feel better.

Morgana watched, feeling a brim of tears as they started to form in her eyes. As furious as she could be at Arthur, as much as some days she wondered what it would be like to live in a 'Arthur-free' world, she could admit that she was scared to know what that kind of life would be like. Arthur going away on some kind of extended trip was one thing, giving her the break away from him. Arthur dead under the dirt and knowing she'd never see him again for as long as she lived herself...was quite another thing entirely.

Morgana looked up, blinking back her tears in a rapid motion when Arthur poked his head in the room. "Morgana." He said quickly, looking back at her with a deep frown. The frown that got deeper when he saw the expression she was wearing.

Morgana cleared her throat, her dress trailing after her as she walked across the room and set her hand on the doorframe, "What is it?" Acting as if everything was normal.

Arthur hesitated for a minute as he bit down on his lip before he said, "Don't tell Merlin I told you to keep an eye on him." Arthur could feel his own embarrassment when he actually said the words out loud. Arthur didn't want to go giving Merlin anymore ideas that he might care more than he actually did.

Morgana hoped that her eyelashes weren't wet enough for Arthur to tell that she'd been about to start crying. Her smile was just a little more wobbly then it had been before, but she forced it just the same. "You do know there is no shame in admitting you care for him. You usually don't get so angry unless there's a real reason to be." She remembered seeing the look of rage on Arthur's face when she'd forcibly entered the room, when his sword had been at the knight's throat. Before it vanished as he tried to hide it when he realized it was her who had entered. "There's nothing wrong with saying you've grown attached to him in such a short amount of time."

Merlin had only been in their lives for about two weeks at this point. And it was quite odd to imagine a life where he wasn't apart of it at some point. She wasn't ashamed to admit that she quite liked Merlin's company. He was funny and witty and always grinning, except for when Arthur was involved. But she didn't blame him to much for that. She supposed she wouldn't smile either if she was married to Arthur. If only Merlin could see him now.

Arthur scoffed at her though, "Just because I want him alive doesn't mean I care anymore then I did an hour ago." Before he had found out Merlin had been telling the truth all this time. His feelings hadn't changed in the least, he just knew now that the boy wasn't a liar.

Besides, if anybody was going to hurt Merlin, it was going to be him. Just in a not touching kind of way. The complete opposite of what Valiant had been going.

Arthur left after that, heading towards where the stadium was located. His steps were sure and confident, masking the nerves growing in his stomach. The anxiety that may have been enough to cripple a lesser man the closer he got. But there was this one sure fact that had grown in his mind until it literally pounded on his temples.

He had a Knight to kill.

X

It wasn't long after Arthur had left Morgana's side did he found himself in the room meant for the knight's-the knight's quarters. He had walked through a crowd of supporters, many of his people screaming and cheering for him as they formed a pathway for him to walk. He had guards stretched along on either side of the pathway to keep his screaming fans from being able to touch him. Which many tried to do, stretching out their arms over the guards to try and just get a brush of their fingers on him, as if what made him a prince would fall onto them like a contagious disease. But the good thing had been that nobody was big enough to actually push past the guards and try to swam him.

The quiet of the knight's quarters was able to give him a sense of peace and finality. It was still quite loud because he could hear the roar of the crowd from this room, could see them even when he peeked out the door. But they weren't able to see him from the position of the door and how high the bleachers were. At least now he didn't have to look like the prince they were all expecting him to be. He could freak out all he wanted, without anybody able to dismiss him as a weak fool.

So why wasn't he freaking out? Oh, he most definitely was on the inside but one wouldn't be able to see on the outside. He had sort of this hardness built around him, not a shred of emotion able to escape the hard facade that he wore with pride.

Arthur peeked out the doorway again and he looked out across the field. The stadium was filling up quickly, nearly the entire city shown up to watch this fight. To watch Arthur die or to watch him walk out in victory was the real question, but Arthur brushed it aside as he scanned the crowd with his eye's. The people were many and all seemed to blur together in one way or the other. He could see his father sitting in his seat, grinning and laughing with one of the knights as he ate something out of a golden bowl. As if this was just another day at the tourney for everybody to enjoy, as if his son's life wasn't at stake this time.

Arthur supposed he deserved that. Even if Merlin hadn't lied, he'd still disappointed his father with his actions in front of the entirety of the council. He should have poked his own holes in Merlin's story, if only so he could give solid facts that proved Merlin was telling the truth so that his father wouldn't have been able to dismiss the claims so easily. He took in a deep breath, smelling the stink of sweat and peasant as so many of them mingled in one place. He wouldn't fault his father for not showing concern, for not caring that his only son was fighting to the death. Uther had no doubt had to do damage control to explain away Arthur's behavior, and to savage what was left of his reputation. Uther had his own problems to worry about, he didn't need to be worried about Arthur on top of that.

Arthur could handle this on his own, he would be able to handle this on his own. He had got this situation out of hand because he hadn't handled things with more 'delicate gloves' then he had used at the council meeting. But if he had known then what he knew now, he'd probably would have snuck into Valiant's own room afterward and slit his throat in his bed.

And speaking of Valiant, Arthur had yet to see him. The room was eerily quiet as he was the only one in it. Not even the other knights in the tourney were here, they were all in one of the front rows-slapping and clapping each other on the shoulders as they gathered to watch the finals. As one of the finalist, Arthur had gotten the room to himself. Well, almost to himself. Valiant was supposed to be here with him, waiting to be called out onto the field after everybody had settled down.

It was very concerning, unsettling actually. It was making him wonder if he should have listened to Morgana and gotten the guards involved. He could have sent them to gather Merlin, to keep him under guard protection until Arthur had handled this situation. Merlin wasn't in the crowd either. He could see that Gwen was settled down in the usual spot and she was looking around. Morgana had yet to join her, she probably hadn't made it to the stadium quite yet. But Merlin wasn't there as well.

No Valiant. And no Merlin. That couldn't be a good sign. It was making an itch form under his skin, and he started to tap his fingers on the side of his thigh. Maybe he should call on Knight Gregory, and have him go and locate Merlin for him. Have him brought to the stand where he could see him for himself before he put his entire focus on the fight and left him in Morgana's hands.

...maybe he should just go look for Merlin on his own. It would probably take far to long for Gregory to get down here, or for whoever he sent to go get him to find the Knight. And he really didn't like the fact that Valiant still was not here. If he was on his way, then he'd be cutting it real close. But what if he wasn't on his way at all? Maybe Valiant was looking at this finale as a distraction. With the whole of the city here to watch the tourney, Valiant would have ample time to do whatever he'd wanted to Merlin before enough time would have passed by to suggest a search party go out.

It started out as something small, the prickle that seemed to form under his skin. It wasn't an itch, it was something much deeper than that and seemed to be growing straight into his bones. The more seconds that passed by him without Valiant in the picture, the more he couldn't control his raging thoughts.

Was Merlin up in his bed chambers, and was he preparing himself for the day? Preparing to come and watch Arthur's fight just as he'd had the night before. Was he preparing to leave only to find his path blocked by Valiant showing up. Had Merlin been backed into his room without an escape route, and had the Knight locked themselves in. Even if the guards, who were all currently down here in the stadium, were up there and had taken note of this, it would still take a few minutes to get Merlin's door broken down. The door was made out of solid oak, it would take more than a sharp kick or two to get it open. And by then, who knows what kind of damage he would have been able to inflict on Merlin. The boy was small, he couldn't even defend his own self against Arthur. How would he fair against an opponent that was thicker than he was?

Or maybe a different scenario completely had happened. Maybe Merlin had cheerily been walking down the stone pathway on his way to the tourney-because damn it, Merlin had promised he'd come here and watch-but maybe something had happened. Maybe the Knight Valiant had seen Merlin coming up the road and had just enough time to hide before the boy saw him. And then just when Merlin was walking past, Valiant had snatched him up and dragged him behind a market stall or in the bushes somewhere off the beaten path. He'd clamped his hand over Merlin's mouth so that he wouldn't be able to scream even as he worked the boy's pants down his slim hips.

That prickling sensation that had been under his skin seemed to grow worse as he had not a thing to distract him from his thoughts as they grew more and more awful.

Was Merlin currently struggling to get a much heavier and more skilled man off of his small body? Was Merlin kicking and screaming but being no match for a man who would easily be able to sit on his legs to minimize any of his fight. Was Valiant ignoring the small fists as they pelted against his back, to busy to notice them as he tried to get to his prize?

Was Merlin confused as the dickens as to what was happening, or why Valiant was trying so hard-or easy depending on the kind of fight Merlin was giving him-to get him to take his pants off. Was Valiant touching him right now, trying to force his horrible private part through a small ring of muscles that had never experienced said thing going in before.

All while Arthur was standing here waiting for an opponent who may never come. Because said opponent was currently feasting himself, gouging himself, on the flesh of somebody's who did not belong to him. Was Arthur still just standing here while he had no idea if his stupid little consort was safely oversleeping in his bed, or was being assaulted in the back alley somewhere-hidden and unnoticed by any stragglers that were running late for the tourney.

"...Fuck it." Arthur cursed as he realized what he had to do. There was no way he could just sit here and wait for the answers to fall right into his lap. He couldn't sit here and wait for the announcer to make a declaration that the match had been won by Arthur because the other knight hadn't shown up which meant that he'd won by default.

That prickling under his skin seemed to make his blood suddenly feel as if it were inflamed. It was his blood that boiled so harshly under his skin that one may have seen his face start to turn a blistering red.

Arthur abandoned his post, spinning sharply on his heel and started storming across the length of the room. Knight Justin would be waiting on the other side of the curtain, now having to do his duty alone until a new guard was given Charles spot as a replacement. But he wasn't interested in Justin, nor did Arthur stop to care what the young Knight would be thinking when he saw Arthur throwing himself threw the curtains and started to run down the hall so that he could find Merlin.

Arthur had barely reached the curtain door when it was flung open, stopping him in his tracks. Arthur stopped, and the blood boiling in his veins suddenly seemed to uptick in a sharp direction. A snarl formed on his lips in an instant, and his hand fell down to rest on the handle of his sword strapped to his side.

Valiant had just shown up, and he looked at Arthur with a raised eyebrow and mocking amusement. His eye's seemed to linger on the threatening position Arthur's hand was in. As if Arthur wasn't going to wait for the fight at all, and was planning on attacking Valiant right here in the Knight's Quarters, like just a bunch of uncivilized people. Like commoners.

"Are you going somewhere, Arthur?" Valiant asked as he returned his eye's up to Arthur's face. Looking far too calm for someone who knew exactly what he'd done to earn Arthur's ire.

Arthur supposed he should be grateful that Valiant had finally shown up. Because if he was here, then that meant he hadn't gone off to try and force himself into the unwilling. But there was just something about Valiant's voice that grated on his nerves. All smug with a touch of false innocence, as if he had never done any wrong in the world. As if Arthur didn't now know that any vile spewed from Valiant's filthy tongue was nothing less than a falsehood.

Arthur's lip curled up in disgust as he was careful to watch Valiant's every move, "Not at all." He answered him, he had no reason to leave now that he knew Valiant was here. It meant that Merlin was safe. He still felt his grip tightening on the handle of his blade so hard that his hand literally shook from his anger. Valiant looked down at the hand in question, shooting him a vile looking smirk.

Arthur had to take a few steps back, if only to allow Valiant to step fully into the room. The Knight dropped the curtain behind himself as he entered, before casually walking passed Arthur as if he had all the time in the world.

And Arthur watched him.

He watched for any hint of movement that may show Valiant was about to attack him, waiting for the actual fight be damned. He'd waited to see if Valiant would give off any indication that he knew Arthur knew the truth. Surely he wouldn't be nearly so cocky if he knew Arthur was about to-forgo his own sword-and rip the other man's head right off his body. And still, Arthur's hand shook with an unbridled rage as it took everything he'd had to not shove his blade into Valiant while the man's back was turned to him. It took all that he had to not carve the man up as if he were cattle, only for them to be found later on with it looking as if Arthur had just bathed in the other man's blood. It would be extremely satisfying. Oh god, would it have been so very satisfying. But still, Arthur didn't move quite yet as he watched and waiting for the man's next move to determine his own.

Valiant was standing in the entranceway and looking out to see the full bleachers, the roar and uptick of the crowd as the entire city was here, brimming with life as they waited with baited excitement over the fight. Arthur was scowling at this, because none of them knew the truth. None of them would be able to just comprehend that this was going to be so much more than just a fight. This was going to be a fight to the death. Even if he'd been wrong this entire time and Valiant wasn't planning to actually try and kill him, Arthur knew that the games had turned. It wasn't he who should fear Valiant's ruthless nature. It was Valiant that should fear him. Because he knew that Merlin would never be safe as long as this man was allowed to roam free, no man would be safe as long as he walked. Arthur was not going to allow Valiant to leave with breathe still in his body.

Valiant spoke up just now, and Arthur barely heard it over the dim roaring of anger fueling him. "So," the Knight had said as his eyes was roaming over the crowd. Arthur started to wonder if he was looking for Merlin. And the only reason Arthur hadn't given in and carved out this man's eyes was because he knew Merlin wouldn't be found. He'd already looked himself. "This is it."

Arthur didn't move from where he stood, still watching Valiant with disgust shown clearly in his eye's. "This is it." Arthur agreed in a dull tone. This 'was' it. Arthur was going to go out there and fight. Arthur wasn't going to lose to this man because he had a job to do. Arthur was going to kill Valiant, and that was all there was to it.

There must have been something off about his voice, some kind of dark tone that was promising retribution, because the other man seemed to realize something. Valiant turned away from the crowd and looked at Arthur, half hidden in the shadows of the wall, it was clear that there was no secret this time. They both seemed to realize that the other knew, and they stood at attention, watching the other like some kind of showdown.

Arthur's rage fueled hand was still shaking on his blade, but Valiant hadn't even bothered to reach down and touch his own. It was almost like he didn't even see Arthur as any kind of threat to him. A low growl built up in the back of Arthur's throat as he realized there wasn't even a hint of surprise in Valiant's eyes that Arthur knew the truth. The man, if anything, looked more amused then he had before. As if he thought the whole thing was some kind of well-planned out and thoughtful sounding joke.

It made Arthur want to gut him like a fish, to treat him as the pig that he was. He deserved to be gutted, so deep and harshly that Arthur would slice straight up his belly with such force that all of his internal organs would be spilling out all over the floor at their feet. He would be dead before he hit the ground.

Valiant's smile grew as if he could read his thoughts and knew what Arthur was planning and he wasn't scared by it in the least. "I'm sorry it had to come to this." Valiant said in a mock tone of sincerity. And how had Arthur missed it before. This was how Valiant always talked, as if he knew something that nobody else in the room did. It was sickening. Arthur wondered if he talked to Merlin like this in the same way. And just how often had he taken his chance to torment his consort behind his back.

"No, you're not." Arthur said. Valiant wasn't a man who knew how to apologize, he wasn't a man that was capable of feeling guilty for his actions. Besides, trying to rape somebody was not something that one would be able to just 'apologize' for. And it wasn't something that Arthur would be so willing to forgive.

Valiant didn't take any offense to Arthur, he just shrugged as if he couldn't care less over any of this. It made Arthur want to take his blade and carve up Valiant's shoulder. Maybe carve PRINCE ARTHUR into the flesh so the body left behind would always have this dark reminder of who had ended it's life. Or maybe he should go bigger, and instead carve into it CONSORT MERLIN as a way of saying it was Merlin who had damned Valiant to the pits of hell. As a way of saying Merlin, the intended victim, was the reason Valiant's body would be food for the castle's hunting dogs.

But no. Arthur didn't want any part of Merlin to be a mark on the other man's body. He did not want to think of this moment years from now and see the roughly carved in name of his consort on such an unworthy body. Even just a carving of the consort's name would be enough to make Arthur wish he had really taken his time to show Valiant what one got when they upset the Prince of Camelot. No. What one got when they hurt the Consort of Camelot, right under Arthur's nose.

Valiant turned his back to Arthur, as if he was offering his shoulders as a sacrifice for the prince's blade. And Arthur's hand around his sword handle was literally itching for him to do something, for him to see the rivers of the rich blood that would run down Valiant's back as Arthur gave him what he deserved.

"You know," Valiant spoke as he went back to observing the townspeople, apparently he'd deemed Arthur as non-threatening. Arthur was going to have to show him that he had been wrong to dismiss him like that. "Your father and I have been talking some-" Arthur stiffened as he remembered his father had grown quite close to Valiant. How had Valiant managed to hoodwink everybody so easily? It was unfathomable to Arthur, now that he had finally had the sheet yanked off his eyes and could see Valiant for the monster that lived underneath his human skin. To see the wolf, wicked and cruel with jagged teeth to bite into innocent flesh and yellowing eyes that may glow in the moonlight as it feasted its sight on body parts that should be able to remain unseen outside of a marriage bed-the wolf that lurked like a prowler as it tried to lure innocents someplace where they would never be innocent again.

Arthur felt a tinge of pride burst in his chest as he considered something. That Merlin had been smart enough to ignore the snake as it tried to charm him away. Had been just quick enough to hide as the wolf prowled after him with plans to ruin him. Had actually been just brave enough to come seeking his help when he realized the creature-hidden behind the skin of a man and the false smile of a friend-was relentless and wouldn't give him up so easily.

But the pride was smothered out as soon as it arrived when Valiant continued on, "He has been relentless asking me to reconsider and move to the city permanently." Arthur could just see the coil of a smirk forming on this false man's face, for no man could ever act so cruel toward's another human. Even Arthur had never gone so far that it couldn't be fixed if he wanted it to be. "I think I might just take him up on his offer. I've grown quite a liking to it here."

Arthur didn't like the sound of that at all, his own father had invited this man to stay here in this kingdom. Where the false man would take his nightly pleasure out on the citizens of this kingdom...on Merlin. Arthur loved his father, and was proud to be his son, but that wasn't going to happen. Arthur would kill the Knight before he got the chance to 'move himself into the castle'.

"Do you seriously like our city?" Arthur asked in a voice that was just as mocking as Valiant portrayed his own to be. "Or do you just like our people?" An entire city of people where one was looked at like a respectable Knight, truth and honor and gallantry running right through his veins. Nobody but Merlin had seen the threat that lingered, waiting for the right moment to strike. And nobody would see him coming until his fangs was already buried in their throat.

Valiant just shrugged as if it didn't matter one way or the other. He waved his hand in a brief and dismissive motion, as if Arthur was being ridiculous. "I've already got ideas for how I'd want to decorate my room." He continued to talk, as if Arthur wasn't about to take out his blade and start carving off the vile, awful man's testicles. "Once I've moved into one of the more 'proper' rooms. I very well can't stay in the guest wing once I'm a permanent resident in the castle. And there is this one portrait I've seen that I would love to have brought to me and hung above my new bed. Maybe you have seen it as well? It's a simple thing really, but I do often find myself seeing the beauty in simple things-"

And then he was grinning at Arthur, the kind of grin that was all sharp teeth and vile for him to look at. Arthur had a feeling that the 'beauty in simple things' he was talking about was in reference to Merlin. And Arthur was left to wonder how long would it take for him to cut off a man's balls before they would get interrupted.

"It was a bowl of fruit." Valiant finished off with a flourish of his hand.

It took less than a second for Arthur to get what he meant. Now, far be it was there only one bowl of fruit painting in the castle. It was apparently the most sought out thing to paint in generation's past. But Arthur knew exactly which one he was talking about. Valiant had the nerve to taunt him like this, to shove this solid proof straight into his face.

The fruit painting that Arthur had almost knocked off the wall that morning he'd been waiting for Merlin just before the council meeting. The fruit painting that hung right across from Merlin's room. The painting of the fruit that could only be seen by a person who had actually been inside of the royal wing. The one wing that was 'supposed' to be inaccessible to anybody outside of those handpicked to be allowed inside.