"When are you going to tell me why you suddenly decided to do this?" Merlin questioned, dragging a chest into the middle of the room while Arthur glanced up at him from where he was knelt on the floor going through another.
"I'm the prince, Merlin, I don't have to answer to you."
Narrowing his eyes suspiciously, the boy dropped to the ground and began to sort through the various items that filled the old chest. "Why didn't you tell the king about what's up here?"
"Why didn't you tell Gaius?" The prince shot back, the lack of a decent retort keeping the warlock quiet as the two stared at one another before returning to their individual searches.
Merlin had been surprised when Arthur directed his servant up into the tower that morning, but he certainly wasn't bothered by it. He'd been trying to find the time to return since learning it had once belonged to a Court Sorcerer, but between the tournament and the assassination attempt and Morgana's kidnapping, one thing after another had left him without the time.
Pulling out a stack of dusty tomes and setting them off to his left, Merlin carefully lifted out a large glass bowl that was partially stained in a deep crimson hue. Grimacing at the thought of what might have caused the coloring, the warlock sat it with the books and peered curiously into the chest.
"What are you wanting to find?" He asked, reaching into one corner and pulling out a loose stack of parchment that had messy scrawls filling the pages.
"Nothing in particular, I just want to know what's here." The prince murmured distractedly, the clattering of glass sounding as the boy glanced over the stack of crates and boxes that separated them. He didn't bother trying to pry for more information though, instead letting a comfortable silence fall over them as he sifted absentmindedly through the yellowed parchment.
Merlin couldn't deny the shock he'd felt when he'd first learned that Arthur had never told the king of what the tower contained, and even more so when he'd discovered it was done purposely. Part of him wanted to believe that it was a good sign, that the man wanted to learn more of the magic that had once been used in aiding Camelot rather than destroying it, but he couldn't help but be wary for both his, and Morgana's, sake.
Regardless of the reasons, the two had been searching through the belongings of the tower's previous owner for the better part of an hour and the amount of chests and crates still vastly outnumbered the one's they'd already gone through, most of which having contained old equipment and weathered books that Merlin had already decided to further investigate at another time.
Leaning back against one of the heavier crates, the boy pushed the loose parchment away and came to a thin leatherbound book that was torn and frayed along the edges. Without even opening it he could see that the pages were old, the edges cracking at the smallest touch, and he was debating whether or not he should try to open it when he heard a questioning voice nearby.
"What is this?" Looking up, Merlin carefully put the book down and sat forward, craning his neck to see the blond around the items piled up between them. In the prince's hand was a glass bottle, rounded at the bottom with a neck that thinned as it neared the top. Unlike the rest of the equipment they had found, there was a yellow liquid that sloshed around that was held safely inside with a cork wedged into the opening.
"No idea." The boy shrugged, pushing himself up and leaning over the chest to see it better.
"It looks about as old as everything else here." Arthur noted, lifting the glass higher as the warlock strained to get closer. An action that, had he thought it all the way through, he might not have done.
Merlin felt it a moment before it happened, though it was too late to stop it, his body already in motion as the sole of his boot slid on the stack of parchment he'd set aside and he was falling forwards, hands flailing as he tried to land anywhere except for the array of glass items that Arthur had pulled out. And to his credit, he did manage to avoid it.
Instead, his knee bumped against a crate and he staggered to the side, his shoulder knocking into Arthur's as the two collided and tumbled to the floor in a tangled heap of arms and legs. The bottle the prince had been holding was caught between them and as they rolled Merlin felt it shatter, the boy hissing as shards of glass poked into his skin and he felt moisture splashing across his tunic.
"Merlin!" Arthur yelled, a hand smacking against the servant's arm that was pinning the royal down.
"Sorry!" Tumbling off the blond and scrambling to his feet, he offered a hand to his friend that was quickly swatted away.
"Look what you've done, you clumsy oaf!" Arthur scowled, showing off his sleeve that was torn at the cuff and soaked in the liquid from the vial.
"It could have been worse?" Merlin offered sheepishly, looking down at his hand and the front of his own tunic. While he'd been splashed down the front of his chest, a few shards of glass were embedded in his palm and drawing dots of blood to the surface.
"Worse? Does your nose not work, this smell is atrocious! And on top of that, now I'm bleeding." As Arthur held his arm away with a grimace, the warlock spotted a streak of blood across his arm where a larger fragment had cut into him.
"The smell isn't any worse than the stables." The boy shrugged, wincing as he began to pick the glass from his palm and pressed a finger over the offending scrapes in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
"Unlike you, I don't go around wishing to smell of my horses." Arthur grit out, finally pushing himself up and carefully brushing what remained of the shattered glass off of him. "What could that have possibly been, anyway?" He complained, kicking the fragments into a small pile as Merlin glanced around them warily.
"I'm not really sure.." He said slowly, catching the royal's eyes as they too darted around the tower.
"You don't think it was some sort of potion, do you?"
"It might have been?" Merlin winced as the man glowered at him.
"Well, you'd better hope that it wasn't." Arthur snapped, jabbing a finger into the boy's chest.
"I'm sure it was just some brewed herbs of some sort."
"It was bright yellow, Merlin."
"Perhaps it was just very old?" He suggested, looking back to his tunic and scrunching his nose up at the smell.
"You're an idiot."
"We seem fine at least, except for a couple of scratches, so if it were some sort of potion wouldn't we see some sort of ill effect?" He reasoned, following after the prince as he stepped over the objects littered across the floor and headed for the door.
"How should I know? I've never had such a thing spilled on me before."
"Maybe the stench is just the worst of it." Pulling at his tunic again Merlin stopped, staring down at his front where a large patch had previously been wet but was suddenly bone dry.
"What are you doing?" Arthur demanded, stopping a few paces away and openly staring at the servant as if he'd lost his mind.
"Your sleeve."
"What?"
"Check your sleeve." Stepping closer, Merlin didn't bother waiting for the royal to do as he said, instead grabbing his arm and holding it out to find his tunic dry as well.
"Wasn't that wet a moment ago?" Arthur asked quietly as Merlin let go of the prince just as he drew in a sharp breath. "I swear to you Merlin, if this ends badly I will throw you into the dungeons until you're grey."
"Well, that's a bit much, isn't it?" Huffing at him in annoyance, Arthur moved away and slammed the door shut behind them before making his way down the stairwell with the warlock trailing behind. "Should we tell someone what happened?" Merlin asked, lifting his palm and carefully prodding at the stinging cuts.
"Tell who? And how exactly would we even go about that?"
"Gaius might know something, about what it was or what it might have done." He offered, stepping to the side as they walked into a corridor and a passing guard bowed.
"You didn't tell Gaius about the tower, remember? And if we admit to knowing what's up there and keeping it to ourselves, he's going to have a lot of questions. Questions that neither of us want to answer." Arthur frowned, his voice low and irritated as Merlin quickened his pace to walk beside him.
"I know, but if something has happened because of what was in that, then—"
"You said it yourself, we both seem to be fine. Even that awful stench has gone away. So, whatever's happened can't be that bad."
"But—"
"Merlin." Stopping abruptly and facing him, Arthur met his startled stare with a firm one of his own. "We will wait and see if anything has happened before we make any decisions, is that understood?"
With a small bow of his head, Merlin nodded. "Yes, Sire."
"Good." Turning away from him and continuing on their way, they rounded a corner just as a servant rounded the one ahead of them, a look of relief falling on the young man's face as he approached the two.
"My Lord, King Uther has requested that you dine with him this evening."
"I'll be there." Arthur answered distractedly, his reply causing the servant's puzzled gaze to shift to him before he was turning to Merlin.
When the young man did not move or speak again, the warlock exchanged his own look of confusion with his friend. "I'll.. I'll be there too?" With a stiff bow, the servant slipped around them and disappeared down the opposite hall as the both of them turned to watch him go.
"Did he just—"
"Bow to me?" Merlin finished, barely nodding his head. "I think he might have."
"That was odd." Arthur murmured, nudging the boy's arm and motioning for him to follow as the warlock shook off the strange behavior and continued after the prince. "I'm going to want to change before I do anything else today. Even if the stench and the stain have vanished, I don't want any trace left of what happened, so make sure you wash this well and mend the sleeve." He instructed as they turned another corner and Morgana appeared in front of them.
"Hello, Merlin. Arthur." With a smile and a small nod to the both of them, the king's ward passed, and the warlock paused, twisting his head around to watch as she walked off.
"What is it now?" The prince questioned, his voice nagging as Merlin frowned.
"She nodded to you first, then to me."
"I'm the prince, Merlin, obviously people are going to acknowledge me before my servant."
"Yeah, I know, but she said my name first, not yours."
"So? She got confused, it certainly happens to you enough." Arthur scoffed, waving off his concern as the boy jogged to catch up to him.
"Don't you think something seems off?"
"Is this another one of those feelings you get?"
"Arthur, I'm serious, something doesn't feel right."
"You're just being paranoid." The royal sighed, turning his head and eyeing the boy. "We're fine. If anything, people are reacting strangely because you're acting odd."
With his shoulders slouching, Merlin said nothing more and tried to push away the weight that had settled in his stomach.
"Ah, Merlin!" Glancing over his shoulder, the two slowed as Gaius caught up to them, a bag filled with potions and salves hanging off his shoulder. "I'm afraid some of the knights returned from patrol with a bad reaction after encountering some plants out in the forest. I'll need you to fetch some herbs later on, so I don't run out." Neither of the boys spoke, only able to stare as the physician went on, speaking directly to Arthur.
"Wait," The prince uttered, lifting a hand and eyeing the elder. "You're telling me to fetch herbs?"
"As opposed to the other person living under my care, yes Merlin, I am."
The blond's head swiveled around to gape at the warlock, though all the servant could do was shake his head in shock. "Just to be clear, you're asking him to gather the herbs for you?" Merlin reiterated slowly, pointing at Arthur as Gaius' brows drew together and he was looking between the both of them.
"Yes, after he's finished with his work for you of course, Sire." He nodded as Merlin's eyes grew wide and his mouth fell partially open. "Is something the matter? You're both acting rather strangely."
"No! No, it-it's fine, we're fine." The boy spoke quickly, cutting his eyes to the prince who was still staring hard at the physician.
"Alright then. I'll get a list together for you." His guardian spoke, reaching out and patting the royal's arm while tipping his head respectfully in Merlin's direction before he walked past them down the hall.
"Did he just—"
"Yeah."
"No." Arthur mumbled, shaking his head back and forth. "No, no! No." Grabbing the boy's arm, the prince pulled him through the corridor and down the next before he was pushing the warlock inside his chambers and slamming the door behind them. "What the hell was that?"
"How should I know?" Merlin shook his head as the royal stormed towards the opposite wall and faced a mirror.
"I still look like me. Don't I look like me?"
"Yes!" The servant assured, stepping up behind him and catching his own reflection looking back.
"Then why did Gaius speak to me as if I were you?"
Merlin's mind raced as he stepped away, his fingers prodding again at his scraped hand. "I think.. I think maybe that potion may have done more than we thought."
"That's not possible, Merlin! We look exactly the same as we did before!"
"We do to us," The boy began, tilting his head as he tried to think back. "But maybe the problem isn't that we look any different, but that other people are seeing us as different."
"That makes no sense." Arthur snapped, stalking away from him and across the room. "I know what's going on." He suddenly declared, clicking his fingers at the boy. "They're trying to make a joke."
"A joke?"
"Yes! They think they're being clever, funny, but they're not."
"Honestly, Arthur, I don't think anyone would be brave enough to try and joke with you." Merlin said dryly, leaning back against the prince's desk as the blond narrowed his eyes at him.
"What? That's absurd! I know how to—I can take a joke!"
"Really?" The boy quirked a brow in question. "What about the dye?"
"The dye—that wasn't a joke that was cruel. I was stained blue for nearly a week! No one took me seriously."
"I just don't think anyone would try and joke about something like this." The servant shrugged, dragging his fingers along the back of his neck. "Besides, Gaius wouldn't get involved with such a thing even if that were the case. Which means—"
"Which means it's magic." Arthur sighed, slumping back against the wall and glaring at his servant. "This is your fault."
"My fault?"
"Yes! You're the one who spilled the damn thing all over us."
"I tripped, and you were the one holding it who let it fall, so—"
"You're blaming me?"
"Yes! No! No? I was just.. what?" Arthur's eyes rolled at the boy as Merlin struggled to finish. "I was just—what are we going to do about this?"
"We'll just have to go back to the tower. There were so many books and notes there, there has to be something about that vial we found. After all, it was one of the only things that even had anything left in it."
"At what point do we ask for help?" Merlin asked cautiously.
"We don't. Not until we've exhausted all other sources." The prince spoke firmly, his tone leaving no room for argument even though the warlock had more than a few. He could already feel Gaius' disapproval at not telling him what happened or about the tower, especially with the prince being involved, but then again he wasn't sure how he would manage to tell his guardian without Arthur finding out.
Why was he so intent on keeping the tower a secret? He knew why he wanted it left alone, what with it being his only connection to the sorcerer that had once resided in Camelot free from the fear of being executed for what they practiced, but why was Arthur? He wasn't granted long to ponder it though, a sharp knock echoing through the room as the prince called out an allowance for the person to enter.
One of the younger servants stepped inside and looked around before their gaze settled on Merlin. "Sire, the knights are waiting on the field."
"Damn, I forgot about training." Arthur cursed as a hand rose and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'll be there in a moment." He answered as the servant's confused stare shifted to the royal before he was looking back to Merlin.
"Oh, right. I'll uhm, I'll be there. As well. I-In a moment." He stuttered as the servant nodded once, ducking back out the door as Merlin's eyes drifted to the prince. "We have to get to the tower."
"No, you have to get to training."
"What?" Merlin gaped, staring at the man who rolled his eyes at his outburst.
"No one can know what's happened Merlin, so until we sort all of this out, you get to play prince for a day."
"You cannot be serious."
"Unfortunately, I am. You'd just better not disgrace me while you're at it."
"Do you remember what happened the last time I tried to train?"
Squinting in thought, Arthur's head bobbed. "You ended up with a bloody nose if I recall."
"And you want me to go out and fight, while also pretending to be you?" Merlin stared as the prince clamped a hand on the boy's shoulder and steered him towards the door.
"Of course not, Merlin, they would know something was wrong right away just by the way you hold a sword. No, you're not going to fight. But I can't just not show up either, so you've got to make an appearance, and have Leon take over the training for today."
"You swear?"
"What are you, a child? Yes, Merlin, I swear." The blond promised as the warlock swallowed back another argument. He trusted him, so if Arthur said he wasn't going to have to fight, then he believed him.
The Prince of Camelot was a liar.
"Would you calm down?" Arthur chided in his ear. "You're making me antsy, and I don't even get nervous."
"You swore to me." Merlin scowled, turning a reproachful stare towards his friend.
"You act as though I knew this would happen." The prince retorted, scrunching up his nose in distaste as he looked the boy over. "It's too loose."
"Of course it's too loose," Merlin grumbled, looking down at the armor he'd struggled into. "It doesn't fit."
"Perhaps if you worked to be more than skin and bone you'd actually have some muscle to fill it out." Arthur commented, batting the boy's hand away as he tried to fidget with one of the straps, instead making the adjustments himself.
"What, like you? Sure that's all just muscle?"
"And what is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing, Sire." Merlin quickly shook his head, the jab at the blond only making him feel minutely better as he looked across the field in dismay.
"There, that should hold."
"Should?"
"Relax, Merlin, just remember what I taught you." The prince encouraged as the warlock spotted Leon striding onto the grounds.
"All I remember you teaching me is how to take a hit. Several strong, painful hits."
"You take the blade, you hold it up, and you strike. It's really self-explanatory." Arthur sighed, holding up the sword as the boy frowned.
"My problem isn't the striking, my problem is when the other person is striking."
"Then you block. Which again, self-explanatory." The prince stated, offering him a far too chipper grin as he patted him on the back. "Try not to hurt yourself."
They'd come out to do just as Arthur had said before, to hand off the training to Leon, but then Uther had come by and the prince was shoving the boy onto the field before he could object. "Just one fight." The man had murmured, keeping his eyes on his father while Merlin pulled on the armor. "You can manage just one, can't you?" And though the warlock completely disagreed with his capability of holding his own against a knight, he still found himself striding out to meet Leon with Arthur's sword in hand.
A piece of him wondered briefly if it was too late to ask the Great Dragon to find another sorcerer, one better suited for the royal Pendragon's demands, but as wary blue eyes skirted across the edge of the field and found Arthur nodding encouragingly, the boy resigned to trying his best.
"Are you ready, Sire?" Leon questioned, forcing the boy's attention back on him as he gripped the sword tightly, feeling several people watching them as he tried to swallow past the lump forming in his throat.
"Just focus on the fight, nothing else matters." Arthur had said, which was all well and good for him, but he wasn't the one about to fight with an experienced knight with almost no knowledge of his own.
"Sire?" Leon asked again, taking a step closer as Merlin straightened his shoulders and nodded.
"Of course." He answered gruffly, trying his best to imitate what Arthur sounded like as he lifted the blade. He'd watched the prince fight on several occasions, and he'd had to take the brunt of his hits on even more, but the armor he was wearing was too bulky, the blade too heavy, and Merlin had no illusions of a skill he didn't possess. And yet, despite the likeliness of a pathetic and no doubt embarrassing defeat, the warlock lifted his sword in time to block the first blow that came from the knight.
A sense of pride surged through the boy at the small miracle, but the moment didn't last long, Leon lunging immediately into another strike that Merlin had to stumble to the side in an effort to dodge. There was a pause in the knight's step at the action, no doubt confused as to why the prince would be on the defensive rather than hitting back, but it was all the warlock could do to focus on not being struck.
Twisting the blade awkwardly in his hand, he made to strike only for the man to easily block before his sword struck the boy in the side. Staggering back under the weight of the blow, Merlin drew in a sharp breath and grit his teeth, steadying himself as he felt every eye on the field watching him.
If he were fighting as himself, the boy had no doubt that Leon would go easy on him, allowing openings to present themselves and encouraging him to take it easy as he learned. However, Arthur was the best of the knights, trained and skilled in combat and not at all as clumsy with a weapon as the warlock was, so he knew there was no chance at any slack being given whatsoever.
The next strike from Leon was followed by two more, all of which the boy fought to block. And he managed, with the first two at least. The third hit against his shoulder and nearly forced him to the ground, pain shooting through his arm as he stumbled again and glanced to where Arthur was standing and grimacing at their fight.
Looking back to the knight, Merlin couldn't stop himself from wincing at the approach of the man's sword that promised a pain similar to the last, so the boy did the only thing that came naturally to him. Turning his head away, the warlock's eyes shifted color and the knight's blade swung too wide, forcing Leon to stagger forward to regain his footing from the forced mistake.
Taking the opportunity, Merlin swung as hard and as fast as he could, almost breaking out into a grin as he struck the man with the flat of his sword and sent the knight stumbling back. Whether or not what he did technically counted as cheating he wasn't sure, but Arthur always spoke of playing to one's strengths and magic was the warlock's strength.
Glancing again to the prince at the edge of the field, he found Arthur looking on in shock, and what the boy hoped was even a flicker of pride. Unfortunately, his brief moment of glory was all the distraction that Leon needed. Unlike Merlin who was lucky to have gotten a hit in, the knight was able to recover instantly and moved to strike at the boy's unguarded right side.
Moving quickly to block it, the feint was clear a second too late, the man twisting around and striking him instead on the left. A crackle of pain shot through him as the hilt of the knight's sword connected with his jaw, jarring the boy and sending him sprawling to the ground. The weapon fell from Merlin's grasp as he went down hard, barely managing to bite back a groan as Arthur jogged towards them.
"My Lord, are you alright? I had thought you were going to block it." Leon was apologizing, hovering over the boy as Merlin lifted a hand to his throbbing chin.
"He's fine." Arthur interrupted, kneeling beside the warlock and looking him over. His eyes widened a fraction as the boy's hand lowered, blood smeared across his palm and dripping down his chin from a split in his lip as Merlin grimaced. "You're done." The prince murmured beside him, grabbing hold of his arm and hoisting him up. "You have to say something." Arthur hissed in his ear as Merlin cleared his throat, pain like fire dancing behind his eyes as he met the knight's confused and worried stare.
"Uh.. good work." He spoke, offering the knight a small nod.
"Are you sure you're—"
"He's fine. Just, having an off day." Arthur interrupted, tugging at the boy's arm as Merlin nodded again while wiping the blood from his face. There was murmuring as they walked off the field, and no sooner were they out of earshot did the prince begin to grumble.
"I'm sorry." Merlin spoke the moment they stepped inside the armory and the blond's hand had fallen from his arm. "I really did try." Dropping onto one of the benches, the warlock leaned back carefully, wincing at the aches brought on by the fight.
"I know." Arthur sighed, folding his arms over his chest while the boy began to wriggle out of the armor. "Actually, I was surprised you got a hit in at all. How did you manage that? You couldn't even get close to me when I tried training you."
"Oh, uh.. must've been luck, I guess?" He shrugged with a nervous smile, his eyes flickering briefly to the prince before he was pulling off the rest of the bulky armor.
"Well, it's a shame that luck couldn't have done anything more. It's a good thing my father walked away before he saw what a mess that all was."
"I told you I wasn't cut out for this." Merlin mumbled, slouching down and wrapping an arm protectively around his side.
"Unfortunately for the both of us Merlin, you have to be." Arthur snapped, glaring at his servant who wiped away a fresh streak of blood.
"Or we could tell someone, what happened was an accident."
"Accident or not, I'm your prince and it's your job to do as I say."
"You're not the prince right now." Merlin pointed out, carefully touching the split in his lip with the tip of his tongue as the blond glowered at him.
"Merlin—"
"Arthur?" Both boys fell silent as Leon stepped into the room, his gaze shifting from Merlin to Arthur and back again in concern. "Sire, is everything alright? Things felt a bit.. different out there."
"Everything is fine." Merlin assured. "Just fine. I'm fine." Standing up and throwing his arms out in show, the tip of his boot kicked into a piece of the armor he'd taken off and sent it clattering across the floor as he stumbled back, knocking into another piece that skittered off in the other direction as Leon's brows knit closer together.
"I think he just needs to eat something." Arthur cut in, reaching out and grabbing Merlin's arm in a tight grip before ushering him towards the door. "Take over the knight's training, Leon, you already know all the drills." The prince instructed over his shoulder as the knight's shocked stare caused Merlin to pause.
"Yeah, yes, what he said." He called, feeling the royal tug at him again as he made a hand motion similar to those Arthur often made before the two were hurrying out the door and away from the knight.
"You're making me look like a fool." The blond complained the moment they were out in the hall.
"I am?" Merlin nearly scoffed, rubbing his fingers over his arm where he'd been grabbed as Arthur turned and poked a finger at him.
"You're around me constantly, this shouldn't be so difficult for you."
"No, but I haven't trained for years in being a prat." The boy shot back before the disapproving look from the prince had him ducking his head.
"There you are!" Their bickering came to a halt as Merlin looked over his shoulder and spotted Gaius walking towards them, the bag over his shoulder partially full and indicating that he was still in the midst of his rounds. No doubt the guards that had needed tending to had set him further back than usual, and the small scrap of parchment he held in his hand was sure to be the list of herbs he needed to fetch. Or rather, that Arthur needed to. "I'm glad I caught up to you—Sire, are you alright?" His sentence took a sudden turn as worried eyes looked over his ward.
"Yes, Gaius, I'm fine." The boy smiled faintly in reassurance, mindful not to strain the split any further after the bleeding had finally seemed to stop. "What was it that you needed?" His mind was racing, an idea that shouldn't be brewing taking over every other thought as he watched his guardian turn towards Arthur.
"I have that list of herbs I need gathered." He explained, holding the parchment out to the prince who backed a step away.
"Actually, Gaius, I was just about to—"
"Find you." Merlin interrupted, the idea blossoming into an outright action as he fought to keep the grin off his face.
"I was?"
"He was! He can actually fetch those herbs for you. Right now." Merlin nodded, cutting his eyes towards his friend and finding a hateful glare that promised a number of unspeakable punishments that would befall him later.
"Really? Good, then here you are, Merlin. Try not to smash them, alright?" He instructed, passing the page to the reluctant prince while the warlock clasped his hands behind his back.
"He'll get right on it, Gaius."
"Yes, I will." Arthur's voice was tight as he spoke, the elder's eyes shifting between the two before he bowed at his ward and turned away, starting up a stairwell as the blond's fist connected with the servant's shoulder.
"Ow! What was that for?" Merlin protested, gripping his arm with a frown as Arthur scowled.
"What was that for? What do you think that was for! Why would you tell him that?"
"You're the one who said we're keeping this to ourselves, and that we can't draw attention to it by acting any different than we normally would. I do what Gaius asks of me, which does include gathering herbs when he need them for his work." The warlock reasoned, dropping his hand as the prince's lips pressed tightly together.
"Don't use my own words against me, Merlin." He snapped, turning away and throwing his hands up. "Fine! Let's go and get them then."
"Actually, I thought I'd go up to the tower, see if I can find any answers."
"Oh no you don't. You're going to gather herbs, just like you told Gaius you would." The man declared, catching hold of his arm in another iron grip.
"But—"
"Come on, don't want to keep him waiting!"
"Somehow this doesn't seem fair." Merlin muttered, setting a few stems off to the side.
"What's not fair about it?"
"If I have to pretend to be you, shouldn't you have to pretend to be me?"
"And what, dig about in the dirt for some roots?" The prince laughed as if the very idea were unthinkable. "Really, I don't know why you complain, this is rather nice."
Glancing over his shoulder at the royal as he leaned back on the log of a fallen tree, the warlock frowned and dug his fingers deeper into the earth to get around one of the roots. "You could at least help a little, Sire."
"You know what Merlin, you're right, I could." Pausing, the boy looked over in surprise as the prince stretched out a hand and plucked a flower from the ground before he was offering it out to him. "There, I helped."
Blinking once, the servant took the flower and drew in a short breath. "Arthur, this isn't even on his list."
"Isn't it? Alright then." Leaning down, he plucked something else and held it out to the boy as Merlin stared.
"That's just a blade of grass. You just grabbed grass."
"You wanted me to help, so I'm helping." The blond shrugged, an all too innocent look plastered across his face as the boy turned away and stood, venturing deeper into the forest. "Do you not want my help anymore?" Arthur called after him, the laughter in his voice only further irritating him as Merlin knelt to the ground again.
"No, Arthur, I'm fine. Thank you." He answered tersely.
"You're welcome!"
Dropping his head, the boy rubbed at his eyes before he returned to his work, gathering together a decent pile of leaves and roots and plants that Gaius had requested. By the time he returned to where he'd left Arthur, Merlin found the prince comfortably stretched out across the log, his arms beneath his head and his eyes closed.
"Finished already?" The blond asked, tilting his head as the boy pursed his lips.
"Yeah, I'm done." He muttered, dropping the pile on the ground next to the royal before he was retrieving the satchel they'd grabbed earlier and began carefully stacking them inside.
"It's quite nice out here, relaxing and peaceful."
"When you're not working I'm sure it is."
"Are you insinuating something, Merlin?"
"Wouldn't dare, Sire."
Stifling a yawn, Arthur pushed himself up and reached for the bag, taking it from his servant's hands and peering inside. "Is that enough? Doesn't look like much."
"He can only use so much at a time, why do you think I fetch them so often?"
"If this is all, then let's go. We have other things to be worrying about." Rising from his perch, Arthur started back towards the citadel with Merlin right behind.
Brushing the dirt from his fingers and rubbing a hand absentmindedly over his shoulder that was still aching from the fight, the warlock spotted a woman walking near the tree line with a basket in hand. "Gwen!" Lifting a hand and waving, Merlin grinned as the startled maid looked up and stared before she was tentatively lifting her own in return.
"Stop!" Arthur hissed, lunging back towards his servant before he was freezing, watching as Gwen began picking her way over the uneven ground towards them. Standing up straighter and clutching the satchel tightly, the prince nodded in the girl's direction once she'd stopped in front of them. "Guinevere."
"My Lord." She spoke respectfully to Merlin with a small tip of her head before she was smiling warmly at Arthur. "Merlin."
"What are you doing out here?" The boy asked, looking down as Gwen lifted her basket to show off a colorful variety of flowers she'd collected.
"I had some time to spare, so I thought I'd brighten up Morgana's room." Even though she was speaking to him, Gwen wouldn't meet the boy's eye, instead looking over at where Arthur stood beside him. "What are you two doing?"
"Collecting herbs." Merlin declared, finally managing to capture the maid's attention as surprised eyes met his.
"Really?"
"Yes, I'm teaching him." Arthur blurted, clearing his throat and holding the satchel up for her to see. "Gaius needed them and it's honest work, and well, he wanted to be of use."
"You offered to help?" The smile Gwen wore softened, and Merlin's eyes cut to Arthur, finding the prince studying the girl intently before the warlock was looking back and nodding his head in response.
"Yeah, honest work, like he said. Course I don't know a flower from a weed, so it's been a bit difficult."
"He's being modest, of course." Arthur interjected, his tone sounding dangerously close to a warning as Gwen looked at the blond with a furrowed brow before directing her attention back to Merlin.
"Are you alright? You look like you've been bleeding."
Merlin reached for his lip only to stop halfway, a sudden sheepish smile appearing. "Oh, yeah! No, I'm fine, Leon just, you know, got a good hit in is all." He stammered out the explanation as Arthur scoffed beside him.
"More than one." He'd said it quietly, but there was no doubt that Gwen had heard, a look of surprise darting over her face as the blond hurried to correct himself. "I just mean that Leon is a very good knight who fights very well." The two boys exchanged a glance before they were looking to Gwen.
"Well, I'm glad you're alright." She said earnestly, looking up at Merlin and pulling her basket closer. "I ought to be getting back."
"Bye, Gwen." Merlin smiled again as Arthur shifted next to him.
"Goodbye, Guinevere."
Dark eyes studied the two of them a moment longer before she was tipping her head and walking away, her skirts brushing over the foliage as she went.
Once she was several paces away, Arthur's hand smacked into the back of Merlin's head, causing the boy to pull away with a hiss of pain. "Why do you keep hitting me?"
"Are you capable of thinking anything through?" He insulted as Merlin rubbed the back of his head with a frown.
"I was just saying hello to Gwen, what's wrong with that?" When the man didn't respond, the warlock narrowed his eyes at him. "Things did seem strained though. Did something happen between the two of you?"
"Of course not, don't be stupid." The prince scoffed loudly, though the man had suddenly taken on a defensive posture, folding his arms across his chest and refusing to look at the boy.
"Well, it certainly seemed like things were tense." He commented as the royal shoved the satchel into his arms and glared at him before he was turning and stalking back to the citadel without another word.
Hurrying to catch up to him, Merlin looked off to where Gwen had gone and frowned in thought. He'd noticed the odd behavior between the two of them in the time since the tournament, but he'd never questioned it until now. Had Arthur done something when staying with her? He should've known better than to ask such a favor of the girl, but they'd been desperate, and he didn't think the prince could ruin things between them that quickly. Of course, he really couldn't underestimate the man, Merlin knew above anyone just how frustrating the blond could be.
Walking through the corridors of the citadel, the warlock spotted Gaius leaving one of the rooms as he nudged the prince and the two were hurrying to catch up with the man. "Here you are." Arthur presented the bag proudly, shoving the satchel into the elder's surprised arms.
"Why are you giving this to me? Take it with you when you return home." Pushing the bag back into Arthur's hands, Gaius looked him over with an odd expression. "And hurry back when you've finished with your duties this evening, I've a bit of cataloging that needs done." He spoke, giving the prince another bewildered look before he was turning away and Arthur was motioning for the warlock to do something.
"Uhm, actually, Gaius." Merlin called out, causing the elder to pause and look back at him as the boy racked his brain for an excuse. "I need, Merlin's help with.. uh.. paperwork this evening. It will probably take some time so.." He trailed off as his guardian narrowed his eyes.
"Of course, Sire. His service to you comes first." Nodding his head, Gaius looked to the prince and stared for a long moment. "The cataloging can wait." Bowing his head at his ward, the physician stepped away again as Merlin turned and began to put as much distance between the two of them as he could.
"Paperwork? That was the best that you could come up with?"
"He wouldn't have believed me regardless of what I said, so it's not as if it really matters."
"He seemed to believe you just fine."
"You saw the way he looked at you when I said that didn't you? He knows something is wrong, he just isn't questioning it because he thinks you're the one who made the excuse for me. I mean you. I mean.. this is confusing." Rubbing at his temples, Arthur shoved the bag back at Merlin as the boy sighed. "We need to figure out how to be better versions of, well, us."
"That shouldn't be too hard. All I have to do is act like a complete idiot."
Rolling his eyes, Merlin pulled the satchel over his shoulder and let out a soft hum. "And I suppose I just have to be as arrogant and pompous as possible."
"I am neither arrogant nor pompous, Merlin." Arthur scowled as the boy moved out of the way of a passing guard.
"Of course you're not."
"I'm not."
"That's what I said, Sire." He shrugged, catching the dirty look the man sent his way as he hurried ahead of the blond.
"Merlin, get back here! Merlin!"
"I can't do this." Merlin shook his head vehemently as Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.
"Merlin."
"Can we go back to the knights? I think I'd rather be hit again."
"Merlin!" Arthur snapped, eyeing his servant in irritation as the boy glanced up warily from where he sat at the prince's table. "It's just dinner, it's not a war meeting."
"That might be better." The boy muttered, running his hands through his hair as the prince paced beside the table.
"I've already told you, you'll go in and you'll speak very little to minimize any suspicion, then you'll come down with a headache or something and you'll take any early night. That's it."
"Your father hates me, Arthur."
"No, he doesn't, he's just constantly irritated by you, there's a difference."
"That's not any better." His servant grumbled, leaning back and tipping his head to watch the blond as Arthur stopped beside his desk.
As much as he hated to admit it, Merlin had a point. Blundering through training and gathering the herbs for Gaius hadn't been too difficult, although talking to Gwen had certainly been the most stressful, and he couldn't ignore the stiff way his servant moved after the fight with Leon, but dinner with his father was going to be much harder to get away with.
Then again, he couldn't cancel, such a thing would cause the king to suspect something was wrong and cause him to question why his son had been acting so strangely all day. Out of the two options, having Merlin dine with his father was the less damning one, though that really came down to how the boy acted around the king.
"Besides, it's not just me we have to worry about, it's you too." The servant's voice drew the prince from his thoughts as Arthur looked up at him, blue eyes narrowing at the boy.
"What do you mean how I'll do?"
"With serving." Merlin answered simply, as if those two words weren't the most amusing thing he'd said all day.
"I'm not serving anyone, Merlin, where did you get a ridiculous idea like that?" Arthur laughed, the very notion unbelievable as the boy just stared.
"You're me."
"So?"
"So, I'm your servant, I'll be expected to serve. Or rather, you will."
The laugh died on the man's lips as he tried to figure out if the other was joking or not. When his expression remained annoyingly sober, Arthur shook his head. "No. We'll find someone else to do it."
"Won't the king think it's strange that I'm not there?"
"Of course not, we'll tell him that you're doing something else. Or I am. You know what I mean!"
"Arthur," Sitting up, Merlin rested his hands on the table and leaned closer. "I'm almost always at your side, there wouldn't be a good enough excuse as to why I'm not there after he's seen me with you all day."
"Well I'm not going to serve my own father, Merlin. I'm the crown prince! I don't serve, I'm served to."
Rising from his seat, Merlin only shrugged while he pushed the chain back against the table. "If you don't want a lot of questions, I don't think there's much of a choice. Besides, wouldn't you rather be there to make sure I don't say something I'm not supposed to rather than risk leaving me alone with the king?"
Opening his mouth to object, all that came out was a curse, the logic in the boy's statement infuriating. "Fine. But this will never be spoken of again, is that clear?"
"I sort of figured that everything that happened today would never be spoken of again." He said, and there, there was that ridiculous smirk on his face that only further aggravated the man. "Shall we practice how to serve then?" Oh, and he was enjoying himself, wasn't he?
Scowling, Arthur waved him away. "It's serving plates, it's not that difficult."
"But you've never done it before; what if you do it wrong?"
"You put the plate down and you keep the drinks filled. Honestly, if you think that's hard than you're more of idiot than I thought." He huffed as Merlin shrugged again, a ghost of a smile on his lips as he ducked his head and turned for the door.
"Then I suppose we ought to go, shouldn't we?"
"It's not difficult, Merlin." He reiterated as they left his chambers.
"If you say so."
"I do!"
"Alright."
Scowling at the back of the boy's head, the two made their way through the citadel before Merlin paused, gesturing down a different corridor. "The kitchen is that way." He pointed, eyeing the prince as Arthur straightened his shoulders.
"Try not to act like a complete fool around my father." He muttered, turning away and hearing a laugh behind him before it was quickly masked by a cough.
The prince didn't often stop by the kitchen, at least not since he was a child, but he didn't remember it ever being so cramped and busy before. "There you are, Merlin!" A voice shouted at him over the noise and Arthur turned, spotting a young man weaving around the crowd to get to him with a wide grin set on his face.
"Heard about the last minute dinner, have to say I'm glad I'm not the one serving it!" He was talking fast, a hand falling heavy on the royal's shoulder as the man realized he recognized him but was ashamed to admit that he didn't know his name. "So, what's going on with you and the prince? Everyone's been saying that you're both acting strange. Well, stranger than usual!" A barking laugh left him, and Arthur fought the urge to pull away, the servant moving closer as the kitchen staff continued to bustle around them.
He wasn't a fool, he'd known that the way they were acting was going to be noticed by some, but he hadn't expected so many people to be talking about it. And what exactly did he mean by 'stranger than usual'? "Nothing is going on, just the normal routine." Arthur finally spoke, forcing a tight smile onto his face as the servant pulled his hand away. Curse Merlin and his jovial nature.
"Whatever you say, Merlin. Listen, Cook's on a rampage again, I guess Rosette dropped one of the desserts she'd prepared for tonight, so be on the lookout alright? Last thing you need is another fight with her." Patting his back in a farewell after hearing someone shout, the servant stepped away while the blond looked around the room in surprise. Did Merlin usually get into fights with the cook? That was news to him. Although he got the sense that there were a few things that the boy failed to bring up whenever they were together.
Unsurety fell over the prince after the servant left as he looked around the room in bewilderment, women moving back and forth around him as he moved towards one of the walls, trying to keep out of the way until he figured out what he was doing.
"Merlin."
Looking to his left, one of the assistants caught his eye with a smile and gestured towards two plates of food as the man moved closer, his stomach voicing a sound of complaint as he carefully picked them up and fought to make his way out of the room and to the dining hall.
His father's voice was the first thing that greeted him when he arrived, and the prince paused briefly in the doorway as he looked inside. His father was speaking of the court he'd held the day before, no doubt going over the details regarding the extra guards that would make their rounds in an effort to keep the druids from reaching Morgana again. And Merlin, well, he looked as if his life were being threatened. The boy sat rigid in his chair with his mouth clamped shut and his hands tightened into fists that rested tensely in his lap as the prince rolled his eyes and strode into the room.
In an easy motion he set a plate in front of his father before he sat Merlin's down, catching the boy's relieved eye with a glare. "Relax." He mouthed, the silent order forcing some of the tension out of the servant's shoulders before Arthur began filling their goblets.
"How was training?" The king questioned, reaching for his drink as the blond stepped away and stood partially behind the man, watching as Merlin froze.
"It went.. well." His words were quiet and strained, and Arthur had half a mind to dump the pitcher he held onto the boy just so he'd have an excuse to get him away. "H-How was.. how did your other meetings go? Father."
The prince couldn't stop himself from grimacing at the awkward question, thankful at least that his father only nodded while eating a bite of his food. "Rather well, we settled on a good deal of things."
Silence washed over the room and Merlin looked desperately at where Arthur stood as the prince made a motion for him to eat. Looking down at his plate like the command was going to hurt him, the boy hesitantly picked up a grape and popped it into his mouth as the blond made a show of rolling his eyes again.
"How has Sir Elecard's training been going?" The king spoke up as Merlin's hand froze above his plate.
"Oh, it's gone.." Turning to the prince, Arthur nodded his head a couple of times as the boy looked back to Uther. "Well. It's gone well."
"Good. And what of Sir Nolan?"
"Sir Nolan.. uh.. w-well.."
Lifting his hand, Arthur made a swinging motion that the boy furrowed his brows at. "Sword." The man mouthed, making the motion again.
"Oh! Right, he is, he's uh, his sword work is improving. From before. Which is good." Merlin nodded for extra effect, and as the king leaned forwards Arthur knew all too well the look he was giving despite only seeing the back of his head.
"What is wrong with you today? And what happened to your face?" Uther demanded, a narrowed gaze no doubt staring hard at the boy who was barely maintaining eye contact.
"Oh, it's nothing. Leon merely got a lucky strike in." The answer that left the boy was impossibly smooth, to the point that the prince openly stared at the boy in shock.
"Leon?"
"I've had a bit of an off day." Merlin nodded, his eyes flickering back to Arthur as Uther suddenly turned, glaring at his son as the prince straightened, forcing a neutral mask into place under his father's scrutiny until the king turned back to the table.
"So it would seem."
The evening continued with Merlin occasionally picking at his plate and Uther watching the boy while several heavy bouts of silence that were barely interspersed by sparse conversation left Arthur standing back in agony waiting for the meal to be done.
The longest stretch of silence finally came to an end as the king set his goblet down with less care than usual and heaved a sigh. "I suggest that you take an early night, Arthur, and perhaps tomorrow you'll be more yourself."
"I would love to be myself tomorrow." The boy answered immediately, glancing up and nodding fervently. "But uhm, yes, I will. Goodnight, uh, Father." The halted way he spoke would have finally driven the prince mad had it not been for the fact that Merlin was standing and making his way to door.
Beginning to follow after him, the king cleared his throat loudly behind them. "Where are you going?" Both boys froze, each glancing over their shoulder as Uther's cold gaze settled on Arthur. "Clean this mess up."
Rising from his own chair and turning away, Arthur looking to Merlin in shock as the boy barely shrugged, though his lips were curling up into a smirk that betrayed the innocent nature he was trying to convey. Gritting his teeth, the royal started back to the table, a list of curses and the worst chores he could think of simultaneously running through his mind as he began to clear the dishes.
With his back braced against the wall and his arms folded over his chest, Merlin worked to keep an annoyed expression on his face as he waited for his friend. He didn't get how Arthur managed to look irritated all the time, he was exhausted just trying.
Tilting his head back with a sigh, Merlin closed his eyes and listened to the sounds emanating from the kitchen. He was more tired than usual, his body still ached from the fight with Leon, and his nerves were shot after his dinner with the king. He'd considered going straight to the tower and letting Arthur meet him there, but he found himself waiting all the same.
Opening his eyes and kicking the heel of his boot against the wall, he reached up and tugged at the collar of his tunic and watched as a passing servant bowed in his direction. What were people seeing when they looked at him? Obviously they saw Arthur, that was painfully clear, but was he dressed like him as well or was he in his own clothes? Did he still sound like himself?
The entire ordeal had been frustrating for them both, but Merlin did wonder about the potion and its original intended use. It had to have been created by someone powerful, and the prospect of finding out more about the Court Sorcerer was exciting. A list began to form inside the boy's mind as he thought of what else he wanted to look at, at what questions he wanted to ask, until he spotted Arthur stepping out into the corridor with an expression that was nothing less than hostile.
"What took you so long?" Merlin asked, pushing away from the wall and hurrying to catch up to the prince as the blond stormed through the hall, furious blue eyes glaring daggers at the boy as he waved his hands defensively. "No, no that was a genuine question, you were gone a long time."
"Does no one realize that you're my servant?" Arthur demanded, turning a corner with his hands balled into fists as Merlin's brows knit together.
"What are you—"
"I went to do one job and I was told to do five others. That's ridiculous! No wonder you're late all the time, you're busy doing everyone else's work on top of your own!" The prince was ranting, a scowl carved deep in his face, but the warlock could hardly get over his shock enough to process it. Was Arthur actually acknowledging how hard he worked? "The only person you should be working for aside from myself is Gaius." The blond continued angrily, turning another corner and starting up the stairwell that led to the tower.
"Hard work, isn't it?" The boy asked with a smirk as the royal turned his scowl on him.
"Shut up, Merlin."
Biting his tongue to keep his laughter at bay, they walked into the room where the whole mess had begun. Pieces of broken glass still littered the floor, and the items they'd been pulling out of the chests were cluttering the space.
"What exactly are we looking for?" Merlin asked, kneeling beside a crate and selecting a small stack of assorted books and loose parchment.
"Anything about that potion, anything about what might have happened or how long it's meant to last. I'm tired of this, it's one thing to fight in a tournament without taking the credit, it's another to go about serving my own father his meal." Arthur was still fuming as he snatched up a pile of books and joined the boy near the towering window as they sat together, using the moonlight to see the texts written throughout.
Several minutes passed in silence with nothing more than the turning of pages before the prince was scoffing, the noise drawing the warlock from his own reading as the blond held up the journal he had. "Whoever this sorcerer was, they claim that they can tame a wolf with a mere enchantment."
"Sounds possible." Merlin answered distractedly, looking to his own book again before he froze, glancing back up to find the prince's gaze on him.
"And how would you know that?"
"Well, I mean, with magic I just assume a lot of things are easy."
The man's hard stare remained on him for a few seconds more before he was turning the journal back around and sighing. "Magic is trouble in all areas it seems."
Letting out a slow breath, the warlock looked back to the book he was reading and swallowed thickly. He hadn't made it very far into the writings scattered around them, but almost all of them appeared to be journals, and the few tomes that were there had several entries crossed out with notes written along the sides.
Whoever the Court Sorcerer had been, they had been experimenting with different types of magic. A few spells he recognized were written in the front of the book he held, but the further in he got, the more it was clear the sorcerer had spent hours taking apart the words and studying them, combining various spells together, and completely changing entire sections. Merlin wasn't sure if it was even possible, or safe, but the more he read the more intrigued he was at how powerful the sorcerer had to have been to attempt such a thing.
"I've got nothing." Arthur complained after nearly two hours of searching, the prince falling onto his back against the floor and tossing the final book he'd grabbed aside.
"We've barely gone through any of what's here." Merlin pointed out, his eyes still skimming over the messy scrawl as Arthur grumbled.
"It's not as if either of us even understand what they're talking about on these pages. I don't know what I expected to find."
Lowering the journal and looking at his friend, Merlin stretched his arms above his head and stifled a yawn. "Maybe the potion will wear off given time."
"But we have no proof of that, and I cannot take another day of people thinking that I'm you."
"It's difficult, isn't it?" The boy smirked, leaning against the wall as Arthur's foot kicked against his shin.
"Hardly. I just can't bear the thought of you ruining my name any further."
"You wouldn't last one day actually doing everything that I do." The warlock countered as the royal sat up.
"Merlin, I could easily do your job, the problem is that you can't do mine."
Shifting to lean back on his hands, the boy's fingers brushed against the stack of parchment he'd pulled out hours before. "I simply don't have any interest to." He retorted, pulling the stack closer and glancing down at the first few pages.
"It's not that there's no interest, it's that—"
"I found it." Merlin cut him off, sitting up straight and snatching a page from the stack.
Arthur moved closer to the boy at his declaration, leaning over his shoulder to see as the servant scanned his eyes over the page. Just like all the others it was filled with messily scrawled notes and ideas, though a small sketch of the bottle they'd found was in the top corner and a few scribbles beneath contained notes on the effects.
"It doesn't even last a day, we should be fine by morning." Merlin spoke with a relieved sigh at the first part of the text as Arthur's shoulder pressed against his. "Look, it mentions that it's for disguises, and that it works when you mix it with the blood of the person you want to resemble." Lifting his hand where the small scratches were a shade darker than his palm, Arthur frowned beside him.
"But we both bled, so—"
"So we sort of, swapped, rather than taking on the appearance of one or another. They called it a sort of illusion spell, by mixing the blood with the potion you appear exactly as the person you took the blood from. Unless you injure yourself while disguised, I suppose." He shrugged, gesturing towards his mouth.
"Who would bother with such a strange potion in the first place?"
"I think it's rather clever actually." The boy admitted, capturing his friend's attention. "If you're trying to sneak in somewhere for instance, a regular disguise will only get you so far. But if you're able to look and sound like someone who belongs where you're going, it grants you the chance to go unnoticed for that period of time." Silence followed his statement, and he was beginning to regret speaking up at all when the prince pulled away from him and pushed himself to his feet.
"You continue to baffle me, Merlin."
"What?"
"You have these moments of clarity, like you're smarter than you look." Turning away from the warlock, Arthur shook his head. "It's a shame they never last."
Rolling his eyes at the added insult, Merlin dropped the page and scrambled up to follow the prince out of the room, pulling the door shut behind him while making a mental note to retrieve some of the journals to go over in his own time. "So, what are we going to do now?"
"You said it yourself, it should wear off by morning." Arthur waved a hand flippantly as they made their way back to the man's room.
With his body dragging by the time they were inside the prince's chambers, the warlock stayed close to the door, already dreaming about returning home. "I'll be glad to put this day behind me." Arthur sighed as he fell back onto his bed, his arms stretched out over his head as Merlin covered a yawn he could no longer control.
"Do you require anything else before I go?" He questioned, praying that the answer was no so that he too could collapse into bed.
"You can't."
"I can't what?"
"Go home."
Blinking, Merlin shook his head, not sure he heard him correctly. "I don't understand."
"What's Gaius going to think if he sees me walking in and deciding to spend the night? What's anyone going to think?" The prince scoffed as the boy rubbed at his eyes.
"Then you go."
"And have people wondering why I'm leaving the physician's chambers so early in the morning? Come on, Merlin, use your head."
"Well then what do you propose I do if I can't go home? I'm exhausted, Arthur."
"You'll just have to sleep here." The man gestured, tilting his head and staring at him as Merlin looked around.
"Where, exactly?"
"There's a perfectly good floor, and if you do your job like you're supposed to, it will be clean enough for you to sleep on."
"You cannot be serious." The warlock gaped, looking down at the floor that promised to be freezing.
"It's not my fault that this happened."
"Well, it's not my fault either."
"You're the one who tripped."
Merlin's shoulders sagged as he watched the prince get more settled on his bed, his arms resting on his chest as the boy sighed, begrudgingly accepting his fate. "Can I at least have a pillow?"
"Of course, Merlin, I'm not cruel." Without another word the prince grabbed one of his pillows and threw it hard at his servant, pelting him in the face as the boy staggered back and the pillow fell to his feet.
"Yes, you're so gracious, My Lord." He grumbled, eyeing the royal as he reached for the pillow while the man laughed. He had half a mind to throw it back, but a piece of him suspected that if he did then there was less of a chance that it would be given back, and he had no desire to sleep on the floor with no padding at all.
Walking over to a spot near where the fire burned and promised to be the warmest, Merlin was about to lie down when a knock sounded at the door. Looking up in surprise, the warlock met the prince's widened gaze just as a voice spoke from the hall.
"Arthur? Are you in there?"
Arthur waved his hands back and forth at the boy while shaking his head, only the action was futile as another knock sounded before the door began to open.
"Bed." Merlin mouthed, the prince furrowing his brows in response before he seemed to understand, the man suddenly rolling to the side and falling to the floor beside the bed and out of sight.
"Arthur?"
Turning back around, Merlin met Morgana's concerned eyes as the door fully opened, the pillow he held gripped tightly as he plastered on a smile. "Morgana, hello. What are you doing here?"
"I came by to see if you were alright. You've been acting strange all day, and then no one could find you all evening."
"I was just busy. With paperwork." He lied, his heart beating faster as the girl took a step closer and stared at him doubtfully.
"Paperwork?"
"Yes, loads."
"Has Merlin been helping you with that paperwork?"
"A bit, why do you ask?"
"Because that's him on the floor, isn't it?" Peering around the boy, Morgana looked towards the bed as Arthur sat up, a weak smile of his own seeming oddly out of place.
"Right, of course, well you see.. he's uhm.. he's well.."
"Cleaning under the bed." Arthur declared, holding up one of his socks and smiling even wider. "I don't do it as often as I should, and Arthur deserves my very best work."
A small frown pulled down the boy's lips as he glanced at his friend, his fingers digging into the pillow he held as Morgana's eyes drifted back to his. "Arthur, what's going on? You don't really expect for me to believe you've been doing paperwork this whole time, do you?"
"It's the truth." The boy said firmly, lifting a hand up as he began walking towards the door while trying to usher her with him. "And we've still got a lot to do, but thanks for checking on us. Me. Checking on me. Goodnight, Morgana."
"But—"
"Goodnight!" Arthur called, still crouched by the bed as the woman tried to object.
"I'll talk to you tomorrow." Merlin promised her, practically shoving the king's ward out the door before he was closing it tightly and falling back against it with a heavy breath. Looking up at his friend, Arthur's head fell, all traces of the forced cheer gone from his face.
Pushing off the door and walking towards the bed, Merlin sat heavily on one side as Arthur fell onto his back on the other, neither of the boys uttering a word for a few moments. "Why do so many people have to notice when you're not yourself?" Merlin finally asked, the pillow resting on his lap as he turned and looked at the prince whose eyes had closed.
"Because I'm royalty, and anything other than strength and a sense of calm is concerning to others." He remarked dryly, opening his eyes and looking up at the servant with a blank expression. "I'm serious about under the bed, Merlin. It's filthy under there."
"I'll take care of it tomorrow." He promised as the prince shifted and nudged his knee against the boy's side.
"Get on the floor, you're taking up all of my space."
"I can't." Merlin shook his head, turning more until his back was leaning against the headboard.
"Really? And why can't you?"
"What if someone else comes in? How would you explain Prince Arthur sleeping on the floor?"
A beat of silence passed as they stared at one another, the warlock's brow raised in question before Arthur's leg pulled away and he rolled his eyes. "Fine. But don't you dare fall asleep."
Smiling at the small victory, Merlin settled back and folded his arms on top of the pillow as he stared across the room at the fire. "Arthur?"
"What?"
"Why are you keeping the tower a secret?" He'd asked before, but the prince had refused to answer, something that the boy expected again, only instead of a snarky retort the man merely sighed.
"Because I want answers." He muttered, blue hues lifting to the canopy above them.
"Answers to what?"
"I don't really know." A quiet laugh left the blond, his hands slipping beneath his head as he crossed his ankles and tapped one boot against the other. "I'm not foolish, I understand the risk of allowing anything magical within the borders, even something as trivial as books. But at some point there was a sorcerer that worked here, possibly even under my father's reign. I want to know what happened, and why."
Keeping quiet, Merlin turned his head towards the prince as he spoke, though the man's gaze was still set firmly above them. "I was raised to believe that magic is evil and to be wary of the dangers it possesses, but this tower indicates that someone in Camelot once trusted magic enough to grant someone a high position in the court, and I'd like to find out who it was."
"Will you ever tell your father about it?" Merlin questioned softly, finally getting the blond's attention as the royal's head tipped and his eyes found his servant's.
"I'll have to. It's going to be hard enough to admit that I came across the tower, the last thing I need is for him to discover it on his own and find out that I've known it was there for some time." Looking away, Merlin pulled his arms apart and stared down at his hands, one finger picking at the nail on another. "What about you? Why didn't you tell Gaius?"
Refusing to meet the man's eye, the warlock smiled sheepishly. "I suppose.. I was just being selfish."
"Selfish?' Arthur laughed, sitting up on his hands and turning a bewildered look on him. "How is keeping the tower a secret selfish?"
"Have you noticed that it's the only place in the entire citadel that no one ever goes to? It's quiet, calm. If I told Gaius about it, he'd tell the king, then it would be used for something else." Of course, that wasn't all of it. The truth was that he felt a connection to the tower, to the things that were carefully packed and hidden away inside. There was so much knowledge in its walls, so much that he could learn from. But most of all it was proof of a Court Sorcerer that a king had trusted, and just knowing that had created a constant well of hope in the boy for a future where such a thing might be possible again. "So, selfish, like I said." He laughed weakly as Arthur scoffed.
"That's not selfish, Merlin." The prince stated, looking at the boy with a contemplative gaze. "Completely ridiculous, yes, but not selfish." The warlock smiled at that, a true smile that showed off his teeth as the blond smirked, falling back again and stretching his arms above him.
"What are you going to do if you can't find the answers that you're looking for?" Sliding down a bit while speaking, Merlin cautiously drew one leg onto the bed, afraid of being kicked off if he drew too much attention to himself.
"I don't know. I don't even know if there are answers there, like I said."
"You could try asking the king."
"My father would never discuss anything of the sort with me, you ought to know that."
"It's worth trying, isn't it?" The boy pushed only for the prince to scowl at the ceiling.
"Would you?"
Blinking, Merlin looked away and scratched at his cheek. "No."
"Exactly." Closing his eyes, Arthur dropped an arm over his face and sighed. "It doesn't matter anyway. I know this whole thing is ridiculous, just look at what happened."
"No it isn't." Merlin objected immediately, half sitting up as he hurried to continue. "You're allowed to question what you were taught. If it turns out to be true, or if you find reasons to doubt, then that's your path to take, your right to find." Glancing to the fire, the warlock felt an ache in his chest. "The king can only do so much to prepare you for when you will rule. Some things you have to decide for yourself. And whether magic is one of those things is also up to you." And he hoped, oh how he hoped that he would find the fault in Uther's blatantly biased nature towards anything even resembling magic.
"You're doing it again." Turning, Merlin found the prince staring up at him, curious blue hues peeking out from under his arm as he studied the boy beside him.
"Doing what?"
"Who are you, Merlin, really?"
Leaning back in surprise, the boy's heart began to beat faster as he barely shook his head. "I'm-I'm nobody, I'm just.. me."
"You say the strangest things sometimes, behave in a way that I've never seen. I'll think I've got you figured out, then you'll say something like that and suddenly I'm not quite sure anymore."
"I guess I'm just different." Merlin offered, the serious tone Arthur carried surprising him as the man's arm shifted to fully cover his face again.
"If I hadn't watched you trip over nothing yesterday and nearly pitch into the fire, I might be inclined to believe you." The prince snorted, a small smile curling his lips as the warlock let himself relax, one foot propped on the bed and the other moving back and forth along the floor.
"You know what I can't believe? That you actually let this whole thing play out as it did. I mean, you served me dinner."
"Shut up, Merlin."
"We should document this, show the people that their prince is capable of acting like a normal human."
"Go to sleep, Merlin." Arthur grumbled, his body tensing.
"But Sire, you told me not to fall asleep."
"Merlin!" One of the man's pillows flew towards the boy, nearly knocking him to the floor as he smothered his laughter and turned onto his side, hearing the prince's mutterings behind him. There were few times when he could feel Arthur letting go, when his usual gruff demeanor fell and gave way to someone who could just enjoy a moment without feeling the weight of judgement behind it, and there was a piece of the warlock that took pride in getting to be someone who got to see that side of him.
He'd noticed a change in the prince when he'd competed in the tournament, the sheer fact that he'd turned down the praise a miracle in itself, but he'd noticed it in other ways as well. Maybe keeping the tower and what happened to them a secret could've been prevented had they gone to Gaius for help, but perhaps this was an opening for Arthur to learn that not all magic was to be feared. He didn't need to be alright with it right away, he just needed to see that not all of it was evil, that would be enough for Merlin for the time being.
Blinking hazily, the warlock let himself indulge in the thought, in imaging a future where Arthur would be king, and their destinies would be fulfilled. A future where magic would return to the land, a future where Arthur would be the greatest ruler in Albion, and a future where maybe Merlin would have a part in it all as something more than just a servant.
"Gwen!" Jolting at the sound of her name being shouted, the maid turned and spotted Morgana leaning around the door to her chambers, waving frantically to get her attention.
"My Lady, are you alright?" She asked, hurrying to her side.
"You must come with me right now." The woman urged, her hand taking hold of Gwen's and pulling her with her through the halls as the girl struggled to keep up until Morgana came to a stop in front of a door. Or more importantly, in front of Prince Arthur's door.
The girl was only half listening to the woman beside her as her mind drifted to the day before when she'd stumbled upon Arthur and Merlin. They had been acting rather odd, especially the prince, and she'd spent the rest of her day wondering why. Rumors had spread quickly among the staff, speaking of how both of the men were far from their usual selves, but no one had been able to find them the previous evening, and she hadn't seen Merlin like she often did when she'd gone to wake Morgana.
"—I offered."
"What?" Gwen blinked, realizing too late that she'd missed most of what the other was saying as Morgana sighed and squeezed her hand.
"I said that Arthur never turned up for breakfast, and Uther was going to send a servant to fetch him, he said he'd been acting differently since yesterday, but I offered instead because he's right, something was definitely going on that they didn't want anyone to know about."
"They, being—"
"Arthur and Merlin." The woman nodded fervently, her hair flying around her face. "Only when I came and knocked, he didn't answer. Of course, I didn't knock loud, but I did knock."
"Morgana.."
"So, I opened the door and.. well, you just have to see for yourself." The maid began to object as the king's ward pushed the door open a fraction, the words dying on her lips as Gwen was suddenly leaning forward, unable to contain her curiosity as she peered into the room. She wasn't quite sure what she'd been expecting, but what she was looking at was the furthest thing from it.
Gwen was used to seeing Merlin and Arthur in the same room, but not exactly in such a state. The prince was stretched across one side of his bed on his stomach with a pillow over his head while one of his arms hung over the side. But then there was Merlin, who instead of trying to wake the man from his slumber, was actually asleep beside him. With his back to the blond, the servant was facing them, his hair smushed into the pillows and his body curled in on himself while the brown jacket he often wore was draped over his shoulders.
"I-I don't understand." Gwen whispered, glancing up at Morgana who shrugged beside her.
"I've no clue what happened. They said they were working on paperwork last night, so I don't think Merlin ever went home. But I never thought I'd see Arthur being this kind."
Leaning against the doorframe, Gwen felt a smile begin to rise as she shook her head. Arthur was kinder than Morgana gave him credit for, though even she had to admit she was surprised at the situation. What had worn them out to the point that they'd collapsed in such a way? Neither were in their bedclothes, and each even still had their boots on.
"We should leave them, they're obviously exhausted." The maid murmured, reaching out to close the door just as Merlin shifted, groggy blue eyes opening and meeting her frozen stare.
He blinked once, then twice, and suddenly his eyes were widening as he bolted upright, his jacket falling into his lap before he turned, looking to Arthur and showing off the way his hair had become an unruly mess on the one side. The boy said something unintelligible to the prince as he shoved a hand against the man's arm before he climbed, or rather stumbled, off the bed. Arthur sat up next, slower and with a sleep laden expression, and Gwen felt her cheeks warm in embarrassment at having been caught looking in on the two of them.
"You're late for breakfast with the king." Morgana announced, the teasing smile she proudly wore indicative to her lack of shame as Arthur's face morphed into one of hesitation before he was glancing to his servant.
Merlin began to speak again, the low tone notable though his words were not, and it was followed by a small shrug and what almost appeared to be a look of relief from the prince.
"Did we interrupt something?" Morgana questioned loudly, obviously enjoying herself as the dark haired boy whirled around, his jacket gripped tightly in hand, and offered a sheepish grin.
"N-No, we just worked late last night, and I guess I must've dozed off."
The sound of Arthur's hand connecting with the back of Merlin's head followed immediately after his hurried explanation, and the boy turned to look at the prince with a pout as the man climbed swiftly from his bed and straightened his tunic. "And after I deliberately told you not to fall asleep."
"You did. He did." Merlin nodded, looking back to the girls.
"I think I hear Gaius calling for you." Arthur muttered behind the boy, giving him a small push as the servant began tugging his jacket back on and snatched up a satchel that was sitting on the table.
"I think I do as well." Moving to the door, Merlin skirted around the two girls, his eyes glued to the floor as he murmured a soft apology and hurried into the hall.
Daring another look into the room, Gwen watched as the blond ran his fingers through his hair and regarded the two of them with a calm demeanor. "Apologize to my father if you will, I'll be there shortly."
"I'm sure he'll understand," Morgana tilted her head, and the maid noted the mischievous look in her eye. "What with all the paperwork you had to do." Turning away with a grin, the woman stepped back from the door as Arthur glanced to the side, the mask he often wore fading with a flush of red that brightened his cheeks.
Murmuring a quiet apology of her own, Gwen quickly closed the door and looked to Morgana who seemed all too proud of herself. "What was that about?"
"It's probably best not to ask, you know how the two of them are. Come on." Morgana laughed, looping her arm through Gwen's and pulling her through the corridor once more.
A/N
This is the longest chapter I've written for anything ever but I'm kind of majorly obsessed with this. I had this written and saved for a while because I'd decided it didn't fit well enough with the stories or the characters, but then I read through it a few days ago and decided I loved it too much not to share. Plus, it actually opens up into the stories that will come with the tower, so win-win!
I hope you guys enjoyed this.. whatever this is. My next chapter will take longer to come out, so I hope this is enough to tide you until then! I would love to hear from you, so leave me a comment!
Also, as a side note because I was too excited not to share, I ended up joining a Merlin group on Facebook, and offhandedly made a comment on a post I made that I wrote about these two, and after asking for my handle someone freaking RECOGNIZED this story. I'm not kidding when I say I screamed for a solid minute, it literally made my ENTIRE day and honestly my life too. But ANYWAY thanks for reading!
