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!

185. Chapter 187

This chapter is dedicated to Jacquelyn, who wanted to see some of the other knights trying to pull a specific prank on Merlin, only Arthur was the one that ended up caught in it instead. So I hope they like the way that I went about it

;p

X

Arthur Pendragon, for probably the first time in the last week alone, found that he was eager to get away from his young consort. It wasn't because Arthur no longer found the other boy to be this endless fascination, for him to peel apart until he learned everything there was to know about him, everything he'd been refusing to knowledge before his entire world had tipped itself sideways. But it wasn't the time for those things right now. Arthur needed to put aside any kind of desire that he had, and leave Merlin to himself. Because Merlin wanted to be …in the cells…with Lancelot. He hated his room so much, the room that he had originally given to him, that his consort would rather be shoved into a room so small, that Arthur's seen closets be bigger. A room that had literal bars on the windows to keep people from climbing out in search of that little stretch of sun poking through…it made Arthur want to hit something. Just so he could feel as the pain broke his knuckles apart and split them down the middle.

But it wasn't Merlin he wanted to hit.

He wasn't even tempted to give into his old ways, something that had came so easy to him only a few weeks ago.

But so much had happened in so little time…he had first learned that Merlin, his sweet little Merlin that could apparently create the most flawless forgeries with those delicate things he called his fingers, was a sweet little virgin. Arthur had been forced to admit how wrong he was, that Lancelot hadn't even tried to touch Merlin inappropriately. Arthur had seen Merlin drunk, when he was both belligerent and happy off his gourd, until there was no sense or reason left for Arthur to understand. He had to bring Merlin home, the boy giggling and drunk and trustingly sweet, carrying him up those old stairs that could've killed him if he had fallen down them in his drunken state. Arthur had to listen to Merlin, as he rolled about in his bed without his pants covering his pale legs, talk on and on about how much better of a husband Lancelot would've been than him…and right when Arthur had been ready to admit Lancelot wasn't as horrible as he'd been thinking he was.

And now all this forgery business has came out, and all Arthur needed to do was get Merlin to his bedroom. Far away from Arthur and anything he might've witnessed when Arthur decided to take his fist to the wall. Again and again and again, because of how stupidly reckless Merlin had been. Entangling himself in such ugly business. If Merlin hadn't been Consort, Arthur would've never been able to convince his father to investigate the situation more, and Merlin would not have been able to wait in the comfort of his chambers. No matter how the other boy hated it…was it the way it was decorated? The mattress on the bed? The color of the blankets? The bareness of the wardrobe? Would he like some kind of rug on the floor, so that the stones wouldn't freeze his feet whenever he woke up in the morning?

The questions were endless, but Arthur already knew that none of them would be something he got the answer to tonight. Or probably any other night. Merlin would probably make a run for his uncle's the second he got released…he just hoped he wouldn't get ran over in the crossfire. Or maybe he would've wanted to get ran over in the crossfire. Pain inflicted on him by Merlin himself, started to sound pretty good. Like a relief on wounds that wouldn't be healed when he finally took his fists to one of the nearby walls that would be far out of Merlin's hearing range. Them finally reaching the staircase that led to the Royal Suites was almost a godsend to Arthur, who truly wanted to get Merlin away from the problems he had gotten himself into. Knight Gregory was already stationed by the foot of the stairs, and nodded his head to them in greeting, not speaking in a typical way for the knight. Arthur hardly acknowledged him, knowing that the other man must've already heard the embarrassing news.

(Did you hear? That new knight, yeah, the one that everybody was celebrating just last knight…HE'S A PEASANT! Did you hear? He managed to trick our very own prince! Yeah! Prince Arthur didn't have a clue! I don't understand how the prince didn't see Lancelot for the fraud that he was! A peasant can't just walk up to our prince and declare himself a noble and not be called out for it! King Uther was able to sniff him out in a heartbeat! How can we trust Arthur as our leader if he was able to be tricked so easily! I bet it's that consort of his…he's got Arthur so twisted, he can never see the truth even when it's hitting him in the face again and again and again.)

Arthur noted, as he took the stakes two at a time, that Merlin was now starting to lag behind…he was obviously dreading going to that room. And it pained the prince, even though he knew it was necessary. But approaching Merlin's room had Arthur stopping for an entirely different reason than just being there…the prince felt a cold chill going down his spine and encircling the bones. There's something wrong here, something wasn't right, and it made the hair along the back of Arthur's neck start to stand on end. He hardly noted Merlin when the other boy walked straight into him, having not noticed Arthur pausing in front of his door until he was forced too.

"Hey, what are you doing-"

Merlin started to snap at Arthur, his agitation with the situation rearing up its ugly head, even though he should've been grateful for how his punishment is going, considering how much worse it could've been. But Arthur hissed at him over his shoulder, not wanting Merlin's voice to rouse any suspicion in anybody who might be listening for when they were coming. Merlin seemed to take note of something actually being wrong, because he thankfully fell silent, hovering behind Arthur's shoulder to see what was going on. Arthur could feel the heat of his body against his side, Arthur being the only thing keeping the other boy from being attacked.

…Merlin's door was already open.

Merlin's door hadn't been opened since the day Merlin decided to leave for his uncle's home. Arthur hadn't even allowed the cleaning servants to dust out the place, which he hadn't thought about until now, because he was paranoid that one of them could note the lack of personal belongings. And there wasn't any reason for Arthur to go in there, not since it was barren without Merlin there to fill up the empty spaces. So, there wasn't any reason for that door to be open right now…not unless there was something nefarious was going on. Maybe the person or persons who are responsible, had broken into the room when all the knights had been on high alert, looking across the kingdom for Lancelot. And if they did, Arthur highly doubted it was to give Merlin a gift basket or something else that might be considered innocent. One usually didn't break into the room of a highly important figure, unless they were planning something.

They might even still be in there,

Arthur waited a few moments, just to make sure whoever hiding inside had not heard them coming. But there was silence on the inside, no sign of the horrible intruder threatening his consort. Arthur glanced over his shoulder just to make sure Merlin was still there, even though he already knew he would be, his side a blistering hot mess from Merlin trying to get a better look inside. The door is only opened a crack though, as if they tried to close it but didn't care enough to bother making sure it clicked shut behind them…they must have been either really cocky about not getting caught, or they were just stupid enough to think they would get away unnoticed. Either way though, both Merlin and the prince neared closer to the door…most people would've stepped back and waited for Arthur to handle the situation. Even without Arthur carrying a weapon, he was still clearly the better fighter, and would be able to handle himself against any planned attack better than a civilian like Merlin would have.

But not Merlin.

Never Merlin.

Ready to throw himself head first into the danger.

Arthur thought it was stupid before his world had turned on its head.

And he still thought it was stupid, even after everything that's gone down.

But Merlin's lack of self-preservation was something Arthur could address at a later time, should the day come where his consort would begin trusting him. At the moment though, there were bigger fish to fry. And Arthur didn't hesitate to come into the room hard and heavy. He screamed out a loud 'HEY!" as he gave a mighty kick against the middle of the door. The door flew open hard enough to slam itself against the wall, and Arthur threw himself into the doorway, with his hands up. Ready to beat the ever loving shit out of the moron that thought they could encroach on Merlin's privacy.

SMASH!

CRASH!

BANG!

YELLING!

Arthur wasn't entirely sure what had happened at first. One second, he'd been ready to murder the first person he saw within Merlin's chambers. And then in the next second, Arthur found himself being the one on the ground. Not from a punch to the face that Arthur should've blocked with ease. But instead, due to a surprise attack that came from above him, leaving him on his bottom, with a silver bucket rolling on its side by his foot. Arthur wasn't entirely sure what he was seeing, but his skull was pounding where the full weight had came down on his head. And there was so much red…everywhere. Arthur had got doused with whatever red liquid had been inside of the bucket, it drizzled down him in waves. Staining his tunic in its awful red shade, and he could feel it soaking in his hair, and feel it sliding down his neck and disappearing beneath his clothes until it felt like there wasn't a single part of him that wasn't coated with all the red slime.

It smelt worse than it looked.

There was a muffled sound of skin slapping against skin, and Arthur looked at his consort over his shoulder. Merlin was standing in the doorway, with one of his hands holding him up against the doorframe, and the other pressed tightly against his lips to hide them away. His eyes were wide, staring at Arthur sitting in the red mystery gunk, and his shoulders were shaking…Arthur may've sworn Merlin was about to start crying. Until he recognized something he rarely ever got to see in Merlin's eyes…mirth. Pure, unadulterated amusement at Arthur's full expanse. It stumped Arthur for a second there, not entirely sure if what he was seeing was real, or if the hit on his head was starting to make him start to see things that weren't really there. But he had to know…he had to know if the other boy was…was laughing at him behind that hand of his.

"Are you laughing at me, Merlin? Because I hate to tell you this, but it isn't very nice to laugh at somebody who's just done you a favor. Especially when I was only coming in here to protect your honor." Arthur started, not entirely sure if he was making the right move here, he always had to tread so carefully when it came to Merlin, never knowing exactly what was going to set him off. All Merlin did though, was quickly shake his head in denial, but the glowing brightness of his eyes told a completely different story. Usually, Arthur would've been pretty furious about the situation, demanding to know what he was covered in, why it had been situated above his consort's door, and who was going to be taking a little vacation to the prison cells. But with Merlin looking down at him like that, all those questions suddenly seemed so insignificant. Who the hell cared what was going on, when it got Merlin to look at Arthur as if he wasn't a beast trying to play at being a man. Arthur could even feel a smile starting to tug at his lips, "Alright, Merlin, I can see that you are dying to say something. I probably look pretty stupid right now, don't I? So, why don't you just go ahead and try hitting me with your best shot, alright. Promise, whatever you come up with will most likely be able to sum up this situation pretty good."

Arthur was positive that Merlin would absolutely rip into him, and it was going to make him feel even greater than his fist meeting a wall ever could. But the prince, regretfully, never got to hear the wonderful ripping down he would've gotten, because there was a sudden ruckus behind him. And all at once, the consort's amusement snapped out of him as if it was never there, and Arthur suddenly remembered very clearly that they might not be as alone as they'd been want to be. Still coated in absolute gunk, that was starting to dry along his skin like a rash that pulled and tugged at his skin, Arthur jumped back up to his feet, planting himself in front of Merlin as if he was a bull, something un-movable even against the toughest of foes. But the only thing Arthur saw, was two knights tumbling their way out of Merlin's wardrobe, where they had been clearly hiding, waiting around to see the show they had made. Only, it was not Merlin they had caught in their trap. It was their prince. And the two bumbling, idiotic knights practically threw themselves down at his feet.

"Sire! Prince Arthur! Please! I am so sorry that you got caught up in this! This wasn't how it was supposed to go! It was Merlin that was meant to walk in the room! You weren't supposed to be here, yet alone be the one that triggered the prank!" The knight on the left, one Arthur vaguely recognized but had not ever thought twice about, was blabbering on in a panic, visibly shaking in front of the royal. Arthur blinked.,prank…this was a prank…something in the prince ticked at the sound of that word. Some kind of switch in his head flipping…that was the exact same word Knights Julian and Bryon had used when they'd been trying to explain themselves before Arthur had them arrested. Pranks as far as Arthur was concerned, were things that were supposed to be funny. That was meant to bring humor at the expanse of somebody else. But pranks, when they were launched at his consort, weren't amusing. They weren't even harmless. It was always something dangerous, something demeaning, something meant to humiliate his consort in the worse way possible. Arthur could already feel it as his face grew steadily and steadily redder, a vein appearing near his temple as the knight continued to babble, "If it makes you feel better, sire, it's only pig's blood filling the bucket. The stench is probably going to cling for a few hours, but I'm sure it's nothing a scrub in your royal bath can't fix. It might stain the stones though, unless the servants can get it cleaned immediately-"

The knight seemed unaware of Arthur no longer listening, but the way he tried to make light of the situation only caused Arthur to feel as if the vein throbbing in his temple had just ruptured…pigs blood. These idiots had filled up an entire bucket with PIG'S BLOOD! They had then intentionally placed it above Merlin's door, with every intention of allowing such a heavy object smash alongside the fragility of Merlin's skull. They had shown complete disregard for the safety or well being of their consort, going so far as to squeeze inside of the wardrobe in order to enhance Merlin's humiliation…they were probably planning to jump out and laugh in Merlin's face as he stood there, looking as if he had just been stabbed a thousand times with the sheer amount of blood dripping all around him. Like something out of a horror play during Samhain's time. And anybody who knew a lick about his consort, knew he was probably one of the only men, noble, that didn't have a servant following him around. It meant the knight had only mentioned the servant for Arthur's benefit, because he thought the blond would be more worried about the state of the room then what could have been happening if Merlin had been alone. Would Merlin have called the servants and had them clean up this mess? Or would Merlin have rolled up his sleeves to do it himself. Would Merlin even be able to get it all up, dirtying himself as if went to work on his hands and knees, or would Merlin be reminded of this horrible moment every time he walked through that door, seeing the faded markings on the floor left behind.

"PIGS BLOOD! YOU ABSOLUTE FOOL! YOU TRIED TO DOUSE MY CONSORT IN PIGS BLOOD! DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY DISEASES COULD BE CARRIED IN A PIG! SICKNESSES THAT YOU COULD'VE PASSED ONTO MERLIN! THAT'S ABSOLUTELY SICK! YOU'RE BLOODY KNIGHTS! YOU SHOULD KNOW BETTER THAN TO TREAT YOIR CONSORT YHIS WAY!" Arthur bellowed, louder than his vocal cords felt like they could carry, but he had completely lost his temper, as he grabbed onto the talking knight by his tunic. Shaking him as roughly as he'd been able too, the blood pulsing through his veins making his face grow hotter under the strain. The knight was blabbering excuses that he couldn't hear, and the other knight was shrieking in terror as if he was the one that had just been assaulted via pig's blood. "WEREN'T ALL THE KNIGHTS SUPPOSED TO BE ON LOOK OUT DUTY FOR LANCELOT THIS MORNING! OR DID YOU JIST DECIDE IT WASN'T SOMETHING YOU COILD BE BOTHERED WITH! AND YOU DECIDED TO WASTE YOUR TIME WITH PREPARING THIS! NOT ONLY WERE YOU GOING ABOUT, SHIRKING YOUR DUTIES, BUT DIDN'T YOU HEAR ABOUT WHAT I DID TO THE LAST KNIGHTS THAT THOUGHT THEY COULD PULL SOMETHING AS HORRID AS THIS! OUT ON THE FIELDS WHERE I TORTURED FIVE RECRUITS, I SHOULD BLOODY WELL SLIT YOUR DAMN THROATS FOR PULLING THIS! AS I THOUGHT I MADE MYSELF PERFECTLY CLEAR THEN! MY CONSORT SHOULD BE TREATED WITH THE SAME DAMN RESPECT THAT YOU WOULD GOVE TO A ROYAL OF CAMELOT! WOULD YOU HAVE PUT A BUCKET LIKE THAT UP OVER MY DOOR! MY FATHER'S! OR IS IT JUST MERLIN THAT IS GOING TO GET ALL THIS SPECIAL TREATMENT!"

Arthur was completely and utterly fed up with his own men, his chosen, acting as if they were nothing more than barbarians. He had his own men launching full on assaults against Merlin, and he's had men treating him as if he was only a servant, and now there were these men…unable to see that Arthur wouldn't give a damn about the mess on the floor. The only thing he cared about would be the kind of impact such an assault would have left on his consort, so brittle and broken he had been not that long ago. Arthur could feel himself going into a blind rage, reaching his boiling point, he wanted to cause these men severe aches and pains. Something that would make what they just tried to do look as if it was child plays. And he reared back his arm before slamming his tight fist into the smaller knight's nose. He heard the satisfying crunch of something in it being broken, the man hitting the ground in a heap, unable to withstand the full force of an enraged prince. And the second knight, still sitting hunched on his knees looked up at Arthur with rounded eyes, but Arthur had warned them already!

He had warned the entire kingdom what he would do if he ever caught another member of his court harassing his consort. Back when he'd forced those new recruits to lick their own boots clean after deciding it was Merlin's job to do it for them…it wasn't his fault that these two didn't take him seriously. It wasn't his fault that there were still people out there like this, who had thought all he needed was time to cool off before they could resume tormenting his consort behind his back…and now look at how much this issue had festered! Where he could see no shame in his knights. Only shock that they were going to end up punished just as badly as the other knights had been. Blood pulsing strong in his veins, Arthur reared back his arm to deliver an even harder punch towards the second knight, but he was stopped in mid-swing by gangly arms wrapping string around the crook of his elbow, weighing him down. Arthur whipped his head around with a snarl on his lips, vaguely noticing Knight Gregory showing up in the doorway, drawn to the room by all the noise they were emitting. But it was Merlin who held his attention, staring sternly into Arthur's eyes with those cold blue orbs of his.

"Stop it."

Merlin was strict, not an ounce of emotion coming from his voice…this would usually be the time that Arthur started crowing. Because Merlin was touching him, he was holding onto Arthur's arm as if it was something he did all of the damn time, not leaning away from him like he usually did, behaving as if Arthur had some kind of contagious disease that was going to kill him. Arthur erased the look on his face immediately, because snarling at Merlin wasn't something acceptable. Anybody else, yes. But Merlin….Merlin was a scoundrel who liked to delve into criminal activities, but Arthur didn't want to treat him as if he was an actual criminal. But he could still feel the well of frustration inching its way up his throat, torn between wanting to put an end to all this madness with his knights and doing what Merlin had said. But then again…he was already pretty damn pissed with what Merlin's been involving himself in, so why shouldn't he say something? First, the forgery and breaking laws and codes for a stranger, and now stopping Arthur from seeking retribution against people that wanted to hurt him?

"Merlin, these people intended to douse you with pig's blood. They went and purposely found one of the pigs, maybe even one from the Royal pigs pen out back, and carved it up. They then proceeded to drain the blood from the thing, and filled up this bucket until it was over spilling with the stuff. They then went and carried the bucket across the entire castle, managed to get into your room while all the guards were around looking for YOUR imposter, and then they had to wait around for you to show up." Arthur spoke plainly and clear, the muscles in the bicep Merlin was holding onto bunching and loosening, anxious to return to beating the shit out of these utter disgraces. And Merlin holding him back is not helping him, especially as Arthur could see some of the blood coating him was starting to leak onto where Merlin was touching him. Leaving a red splotch here and there on his blue tunic…Arthur didn't want something so dirty to even be near Merlin. And the little splotches only made him want to start kicking the men until he could feel their ribs breaking beneath the blows…how pissed was Arthur going to be if their little trick had actually worked? If Arthur hadn't been the one to notice the door opened when it shouldn't be, and had let the other boy enter the room first? "Sure, something like this probably isn't something that would kill you, but it could have! That bucket could've hit you hard enough to knock you out, you could've had bleeding in your brain and died right here on the floor. And even if you only got this stuff on you, they still wanted to see you humiliated! I should bloody well have them on the execution's block after pulling such a stunt! I-"

Arthur had only wanted Merlin to understand how severe this crime was, how badly it could've gone if anything else had happened then the way it did. The other boy NEEDED TO KNOW that Arthur was bloody well here, whether that's to defend his honor from a bunch of overzealous boys that somehow thought they were better, or drag his arse out of the line of fire when he goes and does something so epically stupid that it should've landed MERLIN on the chopping block. He was here…for anything that Merlin needed. And maybe he was trying to overcompensate here, but Arthur had already fucked up so many times…the only thing he could do was make it right. But Merlin simply shook his head and stopped Arthur in mid-sentence, clearly not wanting to hear anything more on what these men had been planning on. And the steps they had taken to have a damn good show at his consort's expense.

"I already know exactly what they are, Arthur. I know they aren't anybody that is important, and I know they are small minded men who need to do something like this to make themselves feel as if they are important. But this…pig's blood isn't exactly the worse thing that I've had to deal with on my own and honestly, it's the least of my concerns right now." Merlin said bluntly, steely eyed. Arthur felt his lips twisting into something ugly…yeah, perhaps the pigs blood was not as bad as say…the assassination attempt Bryon and Julian had tried pulling on him earlier this week. But Merlin shouldn't HAVE to deal with problems like this on his own…that was why Arthur was here. To make sure everybody else could keep a decent distance away from Merlin's person, to make sure people were treating him with the same respect his position should've automatically given him. "I'm more worried about Lancelot, and finding out exactly what's going to happen to him once the king had decided his fate. Maybe if you can find that out, then great. But yelling at these two in my new cell is only wasting my time trying to figure out what I'm going to do if…if Uther decides execution."

Arthur's heart clenched up tight…okay, sure, Merlin had been the one that got himself in this whole situation with Lancelot. But how…how could Merlin have just brushed off what was right in front of him so easily? How could he want to ignore the entire thing, as if the pig's blood and the knights attempted assault was just…nothing. Was the other boy really so concerned about Lancelot, that the rest of the world just faded into the background? But perhaps Merlin had a right to worry about Lancelot…Arthur didn't have the heart to tell him that the king probably WOULD execute Lancelot. Arthur hadn't been kidding about the seriousness of Lancelot's crime, or how Merlin's position was the only thing to save him from sharing the same fate. Arthur would give it a few days at most, before he saw the execution's block being built back up in the very center of the courtyard, where everybody would be able to see what such criminal acts could get them. Arthur was only sorry Lancelot had to be the one to pay the price for it, but…it was preferable, when Arthur thought about Merlin being in the same position Lancelot was in now.

Lancelot was…he was a stranger from far out of Camelot's inner city, nothing more than a man that had gotten in well over his head. And entirely unlike any peasant Arthur had ever known. Perhaps that was why the prince had started to find himself not disliking Lancelot as much as he had before, now that he's not blinded by believing the man spent his nights in his consort's bed…he was a stark reminder of Merlin. Somebody willing to stand up and fight for what he believed in, somebody who saw Arthur's royalty and decided to snub his nose at it as if Arthur was just like any other man. Perhaps in another life, if there'd been more time…maybe he and Lancelot could've even been friends. But that wasn't possible with the life Arthur had, and Lancelot's situation was making Merlin upset, and that made Arthur upset, and he just really wanted to go and scream at Lancelot for allowing Merlin to befriend him. When he KNEW all the risks that had came with this fool's mission the two of them had came up with. How could Lancelot have gotten close to Merlin, when he KNEW he would end up leaving Merlin alone when he was inevitably found out?

"Merlin, I can't just let these two get away with this, and I can't just give them a warning because then everything else I've done will look meaningless. I told people that I wasn't going to allow this kind of stuff to keep happening to you, so what will it look like if I let the first people who start something, go without being properly punished?" Arthur asked of Merlin, wanting the consort frown…that only made Arthur more and more upset. Merlin had been laughing earlier, or perhaps not actually laughing. But he had been amused, the pain of the last hour being forgotten in that moment. And now…now it was like it'd never been there at all. Arthur should rip those bloody knights apart for making the other boy drop the one sober half-smile Arthur had ever managed to get out of him, and he should march down to the cells while he was at it and let Lancelot have a piece of his mind. Demand to know what he had been doing, toying around with Merlin when death and separation was the only card in his future. "I don't think I have to tell you what others will do. Now, unless I've somehow gone and missed something, you haven't been having the same issues that you've been having with the knights. If I release them with a warning, it'll be like suddenly announcing open season on you. Other knights won't fear the consequences, because they'll think I'm nothing but talk, and they'll get away with nothing but a single slap on the wrist. Now, I know you can think of a million different kinds of words to call me, but I'm not all talk. When I say something, I do my best to keep to my word. Please, tell me you understand why I can't allow these beast to go unpunished."

Arthur watched as Merlin's frown grew deeper, and he watched as the other boy looked back down at the sniveling messes that were left from the two men in front of them. The one Arthur had punched had his nose steadily growing to a deep purple shade, and it looked as if the prince had knocked a few screws loose, as the second knight was the one holding up the first. Blubbering about as if HE was the one being placed on death row, which wasn't an entirely bad idea in Arthur's book. But Arthur had left the ball rolling in Merlin's court, and Merlin was getting the final say in how this was handled. But by god, the blond hoped Merlin had the same sense he usually exhibited at the best of moments. It would kill Arthur to see these men walking out of here, and it would kill him if he suddenly had an onslaught of different attacks he had to deal with once the word got out. Arthur would probably need to…it wouldn't be fun, considering he was trying to do this whole 'be better by Merlin,' thing…but he would most likely need to start going behind Merlin's back. Finding the threats before they could launch their 'prank', and ending the problem with a few strong jabs from his knife. Silent and quick, taken care of and disposed of before Merlin knew it was even happening. Because damn it, Arthur wasn't going to stand back and watch his kingdom fall into chaos just because Merlin chose THIS to be what he was stubborn about.

"…I don't care what you do with them. Just do it outside of my chambers."

The tightness in Arthur's chest loosened, and even Merlin letting go of his arm and stepping back to allow Arthur to take full rein of the situation, didn't stop the almost bloodthirsty smirk from appearing on Arthur's lips. Yes, even Merlin could see how suicidal it would've been, all but announcing Arthur not having the bite to stand behind his words. People would have been stumbling all over themselves to be the one to 'do Merlin in' on 'behalf of the prince.' But none of that was going to happen. Because Arthur had the other's permission to 'go do whatever he wanted with them.' And Arthur wasted no time, getting down to it as he started barking orders at Knight Gregory, who had been silently waiting on the prince's orders.

"I want you to take these men down to the courtyard. I have a little show that I want to put on for the people, that they might just be interested in seeing. Get a post set up out there though, I want to see them tied to it back to back, they won't be getting out of this public display for a few hours to come. I want you to get a few of the other knights down there as well, since I can't waste any of my time on the length of this punishment, so they will need to take over when I set away. Oh, but also get some of the serving girls up here as well. I want that stain taking out of my consort's floor before it has time to set, and so help me, this punishment will seem like daisy's compared to what I'll do next if I return and realize there's nothing that can be done about the stain. I won't have that floor sullied when my consort is trying to sleep."

What Arthur liked best about Gregory, was that he didn't often ask questions or demand answers about what Arthur was doing. He usually just did what he was told, and didn't worry about the little details that made up what it was that they were doing. And true enough, Gregory simply nodded and grabbed onto the back of the two knight's tunics and started dragging them out the door on their backsides. The two were crying out, begging for mercy and forgiveness and pleading for their lives, not knowing what Arthur had planned, not knowing if today was going to be their last day on earth…their fear was delicious. It was a nectar Arthur didn't know he needed in life, giving him a job and a purpose to needed to make his life meaningful. Sure, people would argue that Arthur is a prince, his life already had more meaning that most people did. But this was next level purpose…something that was just for Arthur. Not for Camelot's one and only heir.

Protecting Merlin was what he wanted to live for.

Even when he was pulling stupid stunts.

X

Merlin Pendragon, after a few hours of sitting around his Royal suite, could do nothing more than pace back and forth with reckless abandonment. He's been feeling like a caged animal ever since Arthur had left, following behind Gregory as he dragged those two other knights out. Merlin didn't know what was going to happen to those two, but to be honest, he couldn't find it in himself to even care about it. Out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes. And thinking about those two were hardly going to get him out of this room unseen. And trust him, he has came up with a thousand plans, but not one that Merlin could've put to use. And he didn't even know what he would do once he actually got out of the room, it wasn't like he could just bust Lancelot out of the cells and go along on his merry way. They'd be caught for sure…

Merlin's only had two visitors since he'd been left alone, one had been a group of cleaning girls that had been sent to get the blood stains off of the floor. The girls had spent half the time sending him curious looks and giggling amongst themselves, and then looked horrified when Merlin had offered his assistance after spending too long standing awkwardly on the wall just watching them do their work. Needless to say, he hadn't offered his help again, and he had been left with his room smelling like fresh lemons from the cleaning supplies. Then his second visitor that had shown up had been a knight, Knight Justin actually, to let Merlin know that he and his partner would be stationed outside the door to keep him safe during the duration of his punishment. But Merlin knew what the truth was…Justin and his partner Charles, was there to make sure he was kept where he was supposed to be and didn't run off or nothing. He might be in his room, but it was no different than the cells keeping Lancelot prisoner…

Merlin forced a frustrated sound out of his mouth, his mounting agitation was spurning him on as he harshly kicked as hard as he could against the wooden bedpost of his bed. He kicked it hard enough, it would've left a dent if it wasn't so solidly built. But seeing as it was, the only thing that Merlin accomplished was bruising his toes. A string of curses, more violent and ugly than the ones he said before it, spewed out of his mount in a ray of colorful vocabulary. What stupidity was that damn bed made out of, Merlin thought, before he was falling back on the bed in question, his arms splayed out somewhere above his head. The bed was so long, Merlin couldn't even touch the other side, and he closed his eyes shut tightly. Trying to drown out where he was…

It had been several months since the last time Merlin had been inside his room and it hadn't changed a single bit during that timeframe. It was still extremely large, far more spacious and leaving Merlin with no hope of ever possessing enough possessions to fill it. The wardrobe pushed along the wall still held the fancy golden frame mirror perched on the inside of the door, and the shelves on the wall still didn't have a single book placed on it. His desk pushed under the large stain glass windows overlooking the courtyard still carried nothing of importance. A few spare pieces of parchment, but completely unusable as far as Merlin could tell. He didn't have anything to write, and nobody that he could write too, and no way of even getting a letter out of here. The worse part was the bed though…it was too soft. It felt like he was going to sink right through the mattress like one big fluffy cloud…maybe lying down on the floor would've made him more comfortable…

The smell though, wasn't doing anything to help relieve the headache trying to drill a hole through his skull. The lemon of the cleaner was overpowering, and it was starting to mix with the meal he'd left sitting on his windowsill…Knight Justin had brought it up for him at some point. An array of fruits and cheeses for him to snack on throughout the day while he waited for dinner, but Merlin didn't think he had touched the damn thing since he set it down. Gaius would be disappointed with him, turning down food, but Merlin was pretty sure that the food was only here on Arthur's orders. He was sure nobody else would've remembered to make sure he was fed; and Merlin could remember how weird Arthur had been during the celebrations the night before, about his food. Hell, that was probably the only real clear thing Merlin remembered from that party, but it had certainly left an impression. And Merlin didn't want to…feed into his husband's strange obsession with him. Even if he had to go hungry until he got out of here.

But jumping from his window, the only place that wasn't guarded, was starting to look more and more tempting as the hours passed without any word on just what was going on outside these walls. But here he was, being selfish again…he had a nice thing going in here, even if he bloody hated it. But things were probably so much worse for Lancelot…Merlin opened his eyes and stared up at his ceiling with unseeing eyes. Maybe Arthur had been right about how stupid Merlin had been, he should've never convinced Lancelot to do all of this. It was Lancelot that was going to pay the prince now, and Merlin was stuck in here as he had been the day he'd been married. No friends, no family, nobody who's willing to lend a hand to somebody unwanted. Merlin could feel himself as he started to slip back into that depressive mindset that had held him captive for so long, and powerless to stop it. Could feel himself starting to slip down into that warm, safe place he always retreated too when things started to become a bit too much for him. It had been so long since he had to go that deep, but it came to him naturally, as if no time had passed him by.

As if his apparent recovery these last few weeks had been nothing more than a mirage, a bandage to make himself feel better until he needed to find that safe place in his head again. Where nothing could hurt him, where the choices and decisions he made couldn't hurt anybody else, where he couldn't drag others into schemes that would only get them killed in the end. And leave Merlin just as alone as ever, watching with no life or emotion in his face, giving up on the world around him while others begged for him to come back to them. But the phantom voices of Morgana, and Gwen, and Gaius, and the way they'd beg for him to get out of bed during his more depressed episodes, seemed so far off to him. As if Merlin was underwater, the encasing water covering his ears and muffling the sounds of the people screaming at him from the shore. Lancelot was there as well now, but Merlin feared he wouldn't be for long. Why would he bother sticking around when Merlin hadn't been able to keep his promise…Lancelot had been looking to Merlin to make his dreams come true. And Merlin had only managed to grant him knighthood for a single night…

If Merlin figured a way out of this, if Merlin could fight his way through all the darkness threatening to swallow him whole, he didn't see how or why the man would ever want to see him again. It would probably be best for Lancelot to try running as far away from Merlin as he possibly could, if only to save himself before Merlin tempted the fates in a way they couldn't step back from…hell. It was probably too late for that though. Lancelot wasn't getting out of his cell in any nearby future, and Merlin certainly wasn't leaving the suites until the king remembered he was still there…there was a knock on the door. Merlin gave a short blink up at the ceiling, but other than that, Merlin didn't acknowledge the sound. At least not until there was a second knock, a bit more firmer than the last one had been. Merlin blinked again, a tiny bit of awareness creeping into his eyes, and then his door swung open without prompting.

Merlin sat up on the edge of the bed so fast, he was pretty sure his head had started to swim from it. Black danced in the corner of his eyes before the fog in his head abetted away somewhat, so Merlin could see the tall figure in his doorway. An ominous figure, one that inspired fear from those who knew the pain that came to people like him from people wearing armor bearing the gold crest of Camelot. It took far too long for Merlin to realize the knight standing in his doorway was Charles, and it took even longer to realize he wasn't here just to drag Merlin by his hair or something back to the king's throne room. Charles looked quite disgruntled to be there, probably thought himself too good to be put on 'Merlin watching duty', but the larger man grudgingly stepped off to the side. Revealing a much smaller figure standing right behind him, one that was so achingly familiar that it made Merlin's heart leap into his throat. He almost jumped off the bed to embrace her, but something held him back…maybe it's because of the way Charles was glaring at them, watching their interactions with a stern eye that said he'd run straight to the king if he saw something he deemed 'inappropriate' for a serving girl and a consort to behave towards the other.

It wasn't that big a deal anymore, nobody (Arthur) fussed at him about being friends with Gwen, but Merlin still didn't like being watched as if some man on a power kick thought he had any say in his relationship. Gwen didn't seem to have the same problem, as she quietly stepped in the room, but Gwen also did not quite look like herself. Merlin didn't know what it was, his eyes narrowing on her slim form…physically, she looked the same as ever. Wearing her yellow colored dress, her brown curls piled into a short ponytail along the top of her head and some bits falling out to frame around her face. Her dainty hands had a small plate, one that Merlin eyed, because surely not enough time had done passed him by that he would be given another plate of food already. He even chanced a glance out the window, but yeah…the sun was only just reaching for the center of the sky….he would probably estimate it being somewhere around mid-day. It had only been a few hours since his imprisonment, just as Merlin'd expected.

"Good afternoon, Consort Merlin. I know that you are probably hungry after you've been in here for quite some time. I'm usually working underneath Lady Morgana, but today she has no need of me, and I've been helping fill in down in the kitchens. So I hope you don't mind if I'm the one bringing you your meal instead of one of the other girls, Consort Merlin." Gwen said, with this painfully strained wording, giving Merlin a short curtsy just as she would if she'd been serving actual royalty, and not seeing her best friend for the first time since all of this went down. Merlin could only imagine how fast this latest incident of his had spread, but that was beside the point. Why was Gwen talking like that? As if they were mere acquaintances…Merlin was bloody thrilled to see the familiar face! Didn't Gwen feel the same? "Forgive me if I'm intruding or overstepping in anyway, Consort Merlin, but I managed to get the matron of the kitchens to fill your plate up with all your favorite foods, just something to help make you feel better after such a rough day. There's ribs smothered in cream, and we've got baby corn, and rolls freshly baked…I hope that you enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed prepping it."

Merlin still didn't say a word as Gwen passed him by, watching with this heavy stare as Gwen placed the plate down on the edge of his desk. The meal looked to be exactly as she said it was, and Merlin's stomach had started turning from the new smell wreaking havoc on his senses. There was not one single thing in the plate that Merlin could've said was his 'favorite food', and hell, it looked as if only the corn and the bread was edible. But only just, because they seemed to have the same heavy cream that was on the ribs, poured on top of them as well. The cream looked as if it would be too rich for his stomach to take eating, his meal portions may have gotten bigger during the last few weeks, but Merlin was still mostly sticking to his 'safe foods.' Fruits mostly, but usually broken up by some kind of plain bread. Meat was something he could eat, but it's mostly been unseasoned and as plain as it could be, to keep himself from throwing it back up. But Gwen knew about Merlin's eating habits, and what he was able to safely eat, almost better than he knew it himself. So he didn't understand what she was doing…unless…unless the food was only a ruse! Just a way for Gwen to get into his room…it was mad! But it made perfect sense to the consort, for he could see no explanation to what was going on. And he was almost thankful when Justin, not Charles who kept giving them the stink eye, reached past his partner and closed the door to give him and Gwen some privacy. The reaction was almost immediately, and Merlin could barely blink before he was starting to swallow small bits of brown curls after Gwen had launched herself at him to wrap her arms around his shoulders.

"Oh, MERLIN! This is absolutely awful! This is horrible! I don't know what to do about any of this! Morgana and I were absolutely beside ourselves when we'd been given word on what was happening. Oooh, I had to tell Morgana what my part in all of this was, and I just knew I had to come see you! Morgana doesn't know if she can stop Uther from doing anything crazy, but Lancelot's in jail and I couldn't just stay in her room waiting to hear what was going to happen next." Gwen rambled in a mad panic, what little composer she'd been holding onto as they were being watched completely gone now that it was just her and Merlin seeking comfort with the other. Gwen pulled back away from him, though she kept her arms locked around his shoulders, and that was when Merlin realized why she had been looking off to him. Her eyes were completely rimmed with a vivid red…she'd been crying. Heavily too, from the looks of it. And Merlin could feel his heart aching…he had put that look on her face. Because he'd been so overzealous about doing something right for a change with Lancelot, that he'd completely ignored all the signs telling him this was going to end badly. "I just keep thinking over and over again about what I should do…should I go down to the cells and visit Lancelot? Should I wait and see what happens? What do I do if he's brought to execution, and I never get too…never get to see him again. I even keep wondering if I should go to Uther myself, and admit I had a hand in all of this as well, just so I can spend a few days in the cells with Lancelot. It's got to be better than being up here without him, right? I mean, Lancelot would not have been able to last as long as he did if I hadn't made his uniform, so it's only right I also be punished like the two of you are. I-"

Merlin felt his heart seizing in his chest, and for one terrifying moment, he was having a flashback. Rewatching the scene from two months ago playing before his very eyes, of when he saw Gwen being the one dragged down the hall, with her feet falling behind her because she wasn't fast enough to keep up with the guards that had arrested her for witchcraft. That couldn't happen again, Merlin was almost down to his last shred of sanity with what was happening with their new friend. But watching Gwen be carted back down to the cells, knowing just how much it had traumatized her the last time it had happened, he felt as if it'd be enough to finally break him. No…he couldn't let that happen. Merlin was not sure what he could do about Lancelot while he was also locked away, but there was at least one thing he could do….he could stop Gwen from making a major mistake. Lancelot would want him to stop her from joining him, Lancelot would probably thank him for not letting Gwen share in their pain. Not while she was clearly running on fumes, and thinking desperately instead of smart. The slim consort twisted himself around in her arms, so he could grasp tightly onto her arms instead, tugging at her sharply to get her attention..

"No! You absolutely can't! Under no circumstances are you to go to Uther and admit to anything, do you understand me Gwen? Uther cannot know that you have had any part of this, he will see you just as guilty in committing fraud as he is seeing Lancelot and will see me. I'm asking as your friend Gwen, let this be something that is kept secret!" Merlin practically pleaded, terror striking at his heart harder and faster than the first time. He had just seen Lancelot being pulled away, he could not stand to see the same happening to Gwen again. He could only handle so much at one time. But Gwen was looking up at him, eyes large and wide and the warm brown shade nearly filling up the entire white of her eyes. He hadn't scared her, but it was clear that she was startled by Merlin and his sudden behavior. Merlin swallowed hard, relaxing his grip somewhat on her arms so that he wasn't squeezing her so tightly…like Arthur used to do on him whenever he thought Merlin was 'acting up.' It sobered him up some, and resulted in Merlin speaking in a softer tone, "Just think about Lancelot and the things he would want in all of this. Do you really think he'd be happy to see you being carted down there with him? Lancelot cares about you. I know you have not known each other for long, but he genuinely cares for you. And I think he'd rather be alone, than subject you to having the same fate that he will. Lancelot with be…distraught. Don't make what could be his final days, end like this."

Gwen continued to look up at Merlin with her wide doe like eyes, and Merlin is not sure he actually got through to her. But then, he watched as her eyes were filling up with tears, the watery drops starting to streak down her face far more fast than they should be. Gwen released a loud sob, nearly hiccuping from the aching in her chest. And Gwen threw herself at Merlin, her hands wrapping all around his shoulders, her face falling against his chest. Within seconds, Gwen had caused large wet patches to form on Merlin's tunic, but Merlin hardly even noticed them. He simply wrapped his arms around her shaking body, before he guided them both down onto the floor beside his bed. Gwen curled her legs up underneath her, and she cried until she couldn't cry no more. While Merlin was thinking of ways to fix this, thinking of ways that would allow the girl to see the true knight of Camelot one last time, while running his hand through her thick curls, offering her what little comfort he could give her dueling these troubling times.

X

Several hours had passed since Guinevere left Merlin behind in his room after she had managed to cry herself to sleep in his arms, and the night had already fallen over the castle. But she wasn't crying anymore…she didn't know if she'd simply cried herself out, or if she was just tired of being the girl who could do nothing more than cry when faced with her problems. But it was only because of Merlin that she was being given an opportunity to do something she hadn't thought about when she'd been overcame by her sorrow. She was going to see Lancelot, visit him in the cells rather than joining him in the one next to it. She didn't know why she didn't think of visiting before, but perhaps she still had a few lingering doubts after her time in the cells. She wasn't as terrified as she'd been during the first few weeks after she'd been arrested for witchcraft, but it still left a thrumming in her blood to be cautious about what she was planning to do now.

It had been Merlin who had suggested she go at night, when she'd wanted to visit him as soon as possible. Now that the castle was dark, and many people were returning to their quarters and home to rest after the eventful day, there were less people around to see her. As Merlin had said, she didn't want to go making anybody suspicious of her by being Lancelot's first and only visitor in the dungeons, he hadn't exactly been around long enough to make any friends that weren't her and Merlin. But Merlin had a point about his reasonings…most people would simply assume Gwen was saying goodbye to her lover. They had been seen in each other's company plenty during the celebrations, but it was not them Gwen had to convince, it was King Uther. The King would probably be suspicious of everybody during the next few days at best, and at worse, he might be paranoid and looking for somebody to share in his punishment of the knight. Luckily though, Uther seemed to have other things on his mind, beside wondering where the clothes that had made Lancelot look like a night actually came from.

Gwen tried to put those thoughts out of mind, her limbs already growing cold from the dungeons the deeper down the stairs she traveled, and she was sure to pull her traveling cloak tightly around her to preserve what little warmth that she was able to hold onto. She didn't usually wear her cloak, not unless it was the winter months and the cold had started to set in. But although it was only now reaching the end of the summer and fall would soon be settling in, the air outside was still crisp and warm. She was thankful she had grabbed it before she left her home though, considering the dungeons had a degree all of their own. And it served another purpose as well, casting a shadow across her face as she dragged the hood further down. If Uther asked whether or not anybody had visited Lancelot, the guard would only be able to give a non-description of a woman like figure. Keeping her identity was important, another way to make sure she stayed safe. Though she hardly thought safety was important, as she started to speed up the closer she got to the cells, just now reaching the last of the steps and starting off down the endless hallway.

She had to keep Merlin's words in mind to prevent herself from doing anything he might consider 'drastic.' Though her heart kept urging her forward, she was not going to be able to rest until she saw him. Until she knew that he was safe for the time being. Her heart felt so heavy, the separation ripping her apart till she wanted to break down all over again…how could Gwen feel so strongly for a man she'd met only a week ago? She didn't know, but she did know she was here and Lancelot was here and all of her preparations for the night seemed to go to waste when the single guard waved her through with hardly a word. She didn't question it, it had been ten hours since she had heard the news, and it's been too long since she had laid eyes on her man. The door closed behind her with a soft bang, and Gwen strode forward to where the first of the cells were located, she hardly even noticed she had made it to the cells without giving up to any leftover anxiety of fear this place brought for her. She only had eyes for her one and only…for Lancelot, and by god, there wasn't a more beautiful sight in all the world.

Ten hours in the cells hadn't done much damage to Lancelot, not like it had did during her first ten hours when it was her in the cells. But Lancelot looked as if he was as calm as could be, sitting back against the stone walls with his knee bent up and his arm slung over the top of it. His beautiful straight hair was just a little messy from his struggle with the guards, his olive skin making her want to press her nose against his cheek and breathed in his scent deeply, his kind brown eyes looking at her so confused and not at all as happy as she thought he would be. She almost questioned whether or not he was annoyed with her coming down here, maybe he didn't feel as strongly for her as she did for him and had no interest in her being possibly the last person that he saw. She was almost embarrassed, the short strings of humiliation starting to tangle around her heart, until she realized she was still wearing her hood. The relief made her shoulders slump, and she quickly corrected that by brushing her hood off her head as fast as she could so that he could see her in all her glory. Clumsiness and everything, as she stumbled her way to the bars.

"Lancelot."

Gwen practically breathed out the name, as if it was the only thing she'd ever need to say again in her life, wrapping her little fingers around the bars while fitting her head against the gap as best as she could. Lancelot's reaction was almost immediate once he recognized her, heard the sound of her voice, their only light was from the moon shining in through the gap that was the knight's window but it was enough to show the thrill on Lancelot's face. The other boy scrambled to his feet, and in two quick strides was he standing before her and circling his arm hands around the bars, his fingers overlapping around her own ones. Gwen smiled, the top of his forehead nearly brushing against her own as they stared deeply into the other's eyes. She knew it! She knew that Lancelot cared for her, just as she cared for him. She could see it in his eyes, the gentle way he held onto her fingers, as if she could disappear if he even dared to try and blink his eyes. She knew the pain of it, she could hardly take her eyes off of him as well. Each moment could very well be their last together, each single moment could very well be the ending of them. And Gwen had no intentions of wasting a single one of them.

"Guinevere, you have absolutely no idea how much I have been longing to see you, even if it's just one more time. Sitting here, I could only think of last night and what little we managed to see of each other…that one night wasn't nearly enough, though. God, I wish that we could have had a thousand nights just like it to see us through our days." Lancelot whispered, ever the romantic, he was so willing to throw himself into the deep end and give his everything…to her. It made Gwen blush, relieving the night before, where he had been so attentive to her every need. Bringing her non-alcoholic drinks and asking if he could put a hand on the small of her back before leading her elsewhere in the party, and never taking his eyes off of her even when there were noble ladies nearby just hoping to catch the eye of the newest member of their court. All of them were probably relieved now, that they hadn't been caught with Lancelot now that he had been outed as a peasant. God, even the way he called her 'Guinevere' was enough to make her body burst with warmth, warming up her chilled fingers till it was the only thing she could feel. But the mood in the air suddenly shifted in some way, as Lancelot suddenly seemed to remember something, which made his eyes go wide with worry. "Guinevere, what on earth are you doing here, the dungeons are the last place that you should be. With what you…what you told me of the last time you came down here…you went through so much when you were accused of being a witch. I don't want you to be scared."

Gwen didn't believe she could soften up more than she already was, and she's got her heart aching in an entirely new way than before. How…how could such a man like this exist, how could he even want to be with somebody like her? He was literally standing on deaths door, it was pretty much expected and they're all only waiting for the formality of Uther announcing it. But Lancelot looked as if he was more worried about HER, and her fears and her past trauma, and not thinking about himself at all. It was him they should be worrying about, as the inevitable was nearing them. But god, she only wanted to…she wanted to…she wanted to kiss this man. Share her first kiss with him, taste him as though she would need that taste to keep her company on the lonely night to come once he was no longer in this world. But Gwen wasn't the type to do such a thing on her own, and she averted her eyes shyly, a little grin playing on her lips.

"You don't have to worry about me, Lancelot. I don't think I'm as scared to be down here as o used to be. But I think…I think it's because of you that I'm able to come down here at all. I think that you…you make me feel braver than I have been in all my life." Gwen admitted, feeling her face becoming overheated from the power of her blush, she didn't think she had been so bold in all her life like she was with Lancelot. It wasn't a kiss, but her confession still made her heart feel like it was going crazy in her chest. This moment was bittersweet, but this was also all they had, perhaps the only thing they would ever have. "And really, did you think I wouldn't try and come down here to see you? That I would just leave you to your fate without even a single word? Lancelot, I care about you…so much more than I thought possible. I couldn't…I couldn't…" Lancelot's hand tightened around her fingers, and Gwen desperately wished there wasn't this bar there keeping them apart. She longed to be inside of his arms, to feel that warmth without obstacles stopping her. But Gwen cleared her throat and then shook her head, reminding herself of the second reason she had came all this was for. "And besides, I saw Merlin before I came down here. He wanted me to pass on a message since he can't come himself…he wanted to let you know he is okay. Arthur managed to cover for him, and he's being detained in the Royal Suites for the time being. Unless something changes, he'll probably only be in there for a few days before Uther releases him. A week at the most, at least he is hoping that's all it'll be. As long as Uther remains ignorant on how deeply his part in all of this ran.

Lancelot breathed out a sigh of relief, looking immensely grateful for the news Gwen had delivered onto him, and Gwen immediately knew that she wasn't the only thing that had been on Lancelot's mind since his arrest. Perhaps she was meant to be jealous, what girl wouldn't want to be the only thought to haunt a man as he faced certain death, but Gwen couldn't bring herself to be that type of girl. Gwen wasn't a jealous person by nature, she cherished what little thing she could get her hands on, and tried looking at life with a positivity that most just couldn't conjure up. Gwen was more than willing to share what tiny bit she had, even if that little bit was a place in Lancelot's heart. Maybe not if that part had belonged to another woman, but for Merlin…yeah. There was room enough for the both of them in Lancelot's heart. It was actually relieving to know that it was there. She hadn't been kidding all those days ago, when she had said that her and Merlin was a package deal. This relationship would've been over long before it started, if her lover didn't understand the importance that was Merlin Pendragon.

"Ah, thank you, Guinevere. That is excellent news! I've been waiting, trying to figure out if he was going to end up in a cell right next to me. I didn't know…I didn't know if Uther would figure out his part in all of this or not. I hoped that he wouldn't, but I feared I may have exceeded what little luck I might have had to get me this far." Lancelot murmured lowly under his breath, and shaking his head ruefully. Gwen nodded in agreement, torn between wanting to run a hand through those dark locks of Lancelot's and wanting to admit that she had been feeling the same. Luck only got a person so far, and they seemed to have been running on it these last few days. How the three of them had managed to get a week of time undetected was anybody's mystery, but it also didn't matter. This had all been pointless, with Lancelot in jail and Merlin locked away and she the only one left to travel between them. "The king kept asking me about who had made my forged noble seal, but I didn't tell him a thing, I feared what the King would do far worse to Camelot's Consort than he would to even me. And I, well forgive me if I don't go into anymore details. I worry that the walls might have ears. I've probably said too much as it is, there's no telling who might actually be listening in and trying to deduce for themselves who all played part in this lie."

Gwen swallowed nervously, Lancelot's concerns weren't entirely unfounded as he glanced around the hall of empty cells around them, prompting Gwen to do the same as if a listener might pop out of the woodwork. With how endless the room seemed to go, dozens and dozens of cells mostly filled with rats and old skeletons nobody bothered removing during the last Great War, it did feel as if somebody could be watching you. Gwen knew the feeling well, the paranoia of feeling like you're not alone. Questioning every crackle as if it was a footstep and not just the rats scurrying about a few cells over, swearing there's a sound that could've been somebody whispering only to realize it was nothing but the wind coming in through the window. Maybe Lancelot was just being paranoid, but he wasn't wrong either…they needed to be more careful about exactly how much they decided to reveal to each other. No more mentioning Merlin and the forged noble seal, because heaven forbid Uther got wind of it.

"There was only one guard at the door, there's usually two or even more, but it depends on the prisoner. I had two when I was in here for the most part, since they all thought I was a witch. But you're in here for fraud, no magic, so I have to guess that means they believe you aren't as much of a threat. Or at least, it makes them believe you have no way of breaking out of here." Gwen said, but it was still a ridiculous notion…people more afraid of what she would do if she managed to escape instead of Lancelot, a skilled swordsman. She would have laughed if the situation wasn't so dire, though Lancelot nodded, agreeing with her assessment. "Lancelot…" Gwen started, biting down on her lip and waiting till the taller man returned his gaze back down onto her. "…Merlin wants to…he wanted to tell you how sorry he is that this happened to you. Says it would've never happened if he hadn't pushed you into doing this…says he made you lie and everything-"

It was part of the message Merlin had wanted her to tell Lancelot, he had been insistent on her telling him while she was down here. Gwen had only agreed to do so reluctantly because of how insistent Merlin was. He truly believed that it was his fault for Lancelot being down here…Gwen hadn't agreed with that. Not one of those had sounded like Merlin at all. And sure, she didn't exactly know all the details about what had made them decide this route. But Merlin made it sound as if he had coerced Lancelot into this or something, and Gwen refused to believe such a thing. Lancelot shook his head, releasing a heavy breath out of his mouth, and reached through the bars to cup her keep. Gwen tilted some so that her flushed cheek could feel out his hand more firmly, his thumb going in a soft circle around his cheekbone.

"I should have known Merlin would be thinking such things, but he didn't make me do anything. I was fully aware of the consequences if I got caught, this was my decision to make. The choice was mine, right there from the start, from the moment Merlin presented that noble seal to me with my name engraved along the parchment. I could have turned him down, but I didn't. I allowed myself to hope, to give in so that I could get my foot in the door. And now…now I've got to face the punishment for my decision." Lancelot said softly, and Gwen felt it when the tears started brimming in her eyes. Everything was starting to sound so 'final', as if everything had been decided and the date for Lancelot's funeral was already set. It pretty much was, but was it so wrong for Gwen to hold onto her fragile little hope. As long as the announcement hadn't been made by the king yet…there was still every chance he would let Lancelot go with a different punishment. Lancelot caught her eye though, and brought a hand up so that it could catch the tear escaping onto the pad of his thumb. She closed her eyes as he tried taking away her pain with what little he could, speaking in this soft murmur that she had to strain her ears just to hear, "Gwen, please know…none of what brought me here today is something that I regret. If I could go back to redo this last week, I honestly think that I would make the same choices. I got to meet the consort, I got to see him as a real person instead of just a legend in the making. I got to train, however briefly, with some of the best knights this kingdom has to offer, test my skills against those who were destined to be part of the knights. I even got to fight the great Arthur himself, and was able to live my dream of being knighted. But you know what…all of those choices…it all led me straight to you. If I wasn't so dead set on becoming a knight, Merlin would have never brought me to you. We wouldn't have met, I wouldn't be carrying a favor from you on my person, I wouldn't have talked with you at the party most of the knight. I wouldn't have fallen for you, and not knowing this feeling inside my heart before I die…I couldn't imagine a worse fate. I think I would rather die than going my entire life without having you, however brief, in it."

Gwen couldn't stop herself…that was just the most romantic thing that she had ever heard in her entire life, and she broke down into sobs. Raising her hands to cover her face, sobbing again and again until she felt like she was heaving with each sob. God, she probably looked like a blotchy mess, her face covered with tears and her eyes red and she felt so gross, but Lancelot was looking at her as if she was the most beautiful thing on the planet. Shushing her softly as he tried wiping the tears from her dark cheeks as best as he could, and all she wished was for the bars separating them to be gone. None of this was fair! Not at all. Uther and his damn rules, deciding that good people like Lancelot were not meant to live in the kingdom. While leaving those who hurt others to roam around as if they were untouchable beasts. How could Lancelot be the one in trouble, when there were still people around like…like…like Arthur!

"Gwen…there is something that I want you to tell Merlin. Just in case…in case I never get the chance to see him again. If he's not released before…whatever is going to happen to me, I need to make sure that he knows this." Lancelot said, and Gwen nodded without question. She would do anything Lancelot asked of her right about now. If he wanted her to run through the castle screaming loud as she could, if he wanted her to go up to Uther and kick him as hard as she'd be able to in the shin…if he wanted a first and last bittersweet kiss. Who would Gwen be, if she denied a dying man his final request. "Could you just…tell him he doesn't need to be blaming himself. I don't want him to spend the next few months upset about what's happened. This week has probably been the best week I've had in my entire life. Let him know that for me, won't you…I really do not want to be mourned. I want the…happier times to be remembered. As that is what I'll be carrying with me when they take me out of here."

X

Merlin Pendragon picked at his breakfast the next morning, sitting at his desk, more than he actually ate any of it. It was a beautiful spread, filled with more fresh fruit than he could ever hope to eat, with a few spoonful of salted eggs, and even a few slices of bacon and a slice of toasts. He would have ate up the entire thing if he had been with his uncle, but…there was just something about this room that made Merlin feel as if his energy was being zapped from him. Or it could've been that Merlin had just spent an entire night thinking, and wasn't nowhere close enough to figuring out a solution to freeing Lancelot. Uther had all the proof he needed, there was no way for Merlin to…redirect the evidence to make it look like something else. There was no way for him to convince the king that an…execution was an excessive punishment for a crime that would've usually been met with an execution. Especially not since Uther hated him, and hadn't even came to see him once in the twenty hours he'd spent locked away in this room. Almost an entire day…

Arthur had tried to visit.

The prince had knocked on his door at some point early in the evening just the night before. Merlin hadn't exactly been feeling up for company, and he knew already that Arthur wasn't going to try helping him free Lancelot. He'd refused to help back when it was Gwen in the cells, and that was without the evidence they already had against Lancelot. So unless Arthur had a complete change in personality where he would risk the ire of his father to free a kind man, there's really no reason for Merlin to put himself through one of Arthur's fits again. He had been the one to put him in here too…it might've been under the orders of his father, but Merlin was still holding a grudge against him for it. He had sent Arthur away without opening the door, though Arthur had stayed long enough to speak through the door, letting Merlin know that the two knights that'd been in his room wasn't going to bother him ever again. And then he had walked off, Merlin had heard the prince's door opening and closing a minute later, and had heard him moving around next door.

That had been enough for Merlin, who had sat in the corner of his room with his head tucked between his legs to starve off the incoming panic attack that had threatened to overtake him. Gwen had already long left him by now, and it felt as if his only option for company was Arthur, and the room had felt like it'd closing in on him…he had spent a few hours tapping his fingers along his knee to try keeping himself calm. One, two, three, four, five. One, two, three…till his heart had finally started to steady itself. Too much time in this room, too much time being stuck in the past and where he had came from, as if no time's past and he was still nothing more than 'Arthur's Unwanted Consort'. It continued to keep up on him, that feeling, throughout the entire night. He had woken up far more times than he cared to admit, jolting himself up in the bed with his breath ragged and unsure.

The night had been a bloody nightmare, and his regression hadn't ended, and it was why he kept pulling his breakfast apart instead of eating it. The sun that streamed in through the windows made things marginally better, but he could still feel the phantom chill of the night clinging onto his skin. Making him feel all hot and clammy and miserable, his stomach churning as he tried sneaking in a bite here and there even though he wasn't interested. Gaius was going to be so disappointed in him, knowing Merlin wanted to throw up what little he'd ate instead of diving in full force like he'd finally started allowing himself to do under the care of his uncle's supervision of his dietary. But he couldn't think of his uncle when he didn't know how long he was going to be in here…was every night going to be the same as the night before? Was he going to keep starving off his fears until he dropped because his body couldn't take it anymore? Was this all it took, a single night in this awful room, to knock him right back to the horrid darkness that stained his heart…his bedroom door flung open without a knock this time to announce their presence. Merlin almost had ended up with a heart attack right then and there, too frazzled and overstimulated to not react to the intruder in his midst, but luckily…he recognized the intruder.

"Uncle Gaius!"

Merlin couldn't have risen to his feet fast enough, the relief racing down along the base of his spine filling him up heart and soul. It hadn't even been a whole twenty four hours yet since he had last seen his uncle, but it still felt like it had been eons since they last saw each other the morning before, when Lancelot'd been taken away. That was what this room did to him, it made everything seem timeless. As if Merlin was stuck in place while the rest of the world was moving on without him. Which was why Merlin's eyes roamed over his uncle, trying his hardest to see if there were any signs of aging that said Merlin had really been in here for longer than a day. But Merlin couldn't see anything. His uncle is the same as ever, with his dark brown robes and straight white hair and thousands of wrinkles lining his old face. Gaius made a sight for sore eyes, that would be for damn sure, but Merlin couldn't think of anybody he would weather see.

"Merlin, I wanted to come as soon as I got the news last night, but King Uther thought you needed a night to 'think about what kind of friends you made', as he said when he saw fit to inform me himself that you were taken into custody for the time being. He wants to…elude how sorry he is that it's came to this, as he hopes it doesn't do anything to damage the relationship between our family and the throne." Gaius said, paraphrasing what the other had told him during his short visit to the physician's chamber, tutting under his breath and shaking his head as he strode forward. He had a heavy book tucked snugly underneath his arm, and he walked up to Merlin's desk before placing it along the edge of the tabletop. Merlin eyed it curiously, though it wouldn't be the first time Gaius had brought him some sort of book. Perhaps it would be something that would keep his mind off the trauma that seeped out of the walls of this room in never ending waves. "…Merlin…you are alright, aren't you? I understand being here is not want any of us wanted to happen, but you…you aren't looking the greatest right now. Are you running a fever? You didn't sleep, did you? And you haven't eaten your breakfast either. You know how I feel about you skipping meals-"

Gaius ranted at him for a few more minutes, eyeing Merlin with the keen eyes that came when somebody's a paced physician. He had already placed a hand on Merlin's forehead to check for fever, he was probably coated in a soft layer of sweat after his panic attack the night before, his face was probably shallow and pale as Gaius placed two fingers on Merlin's wrist to check how steady his heartbeat was. It was probably going a bit too fast, but Merlin didn't think of it being fast enough to actually cause damage, though it showed how much the consort knew when Gaius hummed under his breath looking dissatisfied. That was how Merlin found himself being pushed down onto his desk chair, and his goblet of water pressed into his hand firmly.

"Drink your water, nice and slow. And then I want you to try eating some more of your breakfast. Perhaps start with the fruit first and work your way up to the meats. Just take it one bite at a time should be enough to keep the nausea you may've been experiencing."

Most people probably would've been annoyed with their Uncle trying to be the mother hen in their lives, but Merlin actually didn't mind it. In fact, he relished in it. Knowing that somebody cared for him…it made more of a difference than Merlin would've thought it would. And he drunk his goblet, taking it slowly just as his uncle had instructed him too. Just taking it one step at a time…his drink first and then his meal, and he could marvel at the idea of Gaius being able to read him so well with only a glance. Not many people would have been able to realize Merlin was having serious problems just because he had skipped only a single meal. But most people weren't his uncle, and as Merlin swallowed down the last ship, he could feel the creeping self-doubt trying to break through his defenses…maybe his uncle shouldn't be here at all. Merlin had only caused the man disappointment. Gaius had warned him that they would get caught and it was going to lead to serious consequences, but Merlin had once again refused to listen. Forsaking his uncle's wisdom because he thought he knew far better than him. And now…now a good man, his friend, was going to pay for all those consequences while Merlin sat up here. Stuck in his ivory tower of nightmares.

"Uncle Gaius…I know that you probably want to tell me 'I told you so.'-"

Merlin started with a low murmur under his breath, lowering his goblet down to his lap, curling his hands around the rounded curves of the cup, playing along the ruby jewels encrusted into it with anxious gestures. He kept his head down so that his bangs fell into his eyes, ashamed of himself, and terrified of seeing the same disappointment reflecting in his uncle's eyes. All Merlin wanted to do was make Gaius proud, make him see Merlin wasn't as 'unwanted' as Camelot had made him feel. But he just kept screwing up, kept getting into things that were way over his head, and for the first time…he didn't know how he could go getting out of this one.

"Oh, Merlin. I have no wish to gloat. What's done is done, and we can hardly go back and change the past now. But here, I've been doing some research on a particular creature that I've came across during my readings. Weaknesses or habits, anything that can be used against it. And what I need from you, is just an identity check, to make sure I've got the right creature, since you've seen it in person." Gaius said, opening up the book he had placed on the edge of the desk, flipping through several pages. Merlin placed his goblet back down onto the table, still ignoring his food, and tilted his head to look as the flurry of the pages going by. Creatures big and small, beasts of all manner and shape and size, unlike anything Merlin had ever since with his own eyes. And okay, Merlin couldn't bust his best friend out of the prison cells, but he could surely do this one thing for Gaius. He could still, after all, remember the beast quite vividly if he closed his eyes, remembering the width of its wingspan and the heat of his breath and the roar echoing in his eardrums as it decided to kill him, "It took a fair bit of time just for me to find it though. It was when I was flipping through another book that it occurred to me…from your description, it was clear that it was no ordinary beast. And here I was, looking in ordinary books. I only started to make headway when I moved past that, and looked for books that were bout myths and legends. Creatures as old as time, but so rare or so hidden that it is hard pressed to find a soul today that could actually claim they saw one in real life. Now…here. Does this creature look familiar?"

Gaius finally stopped on the page he had been looking for, before turning the book around so that Merlin could see it right side up. Gaius hardly needed to do that at all, since Merlin had only needed a glimpse to recognize the sketch drawing etched onto the page. The consort's mouth fell open, his insides felt like they were shaking…he could remember being pressed against the harsh ground as the creature straddled him from above. Could remember the way it had struck out at Lancelot with its beak, its claws sharp and pointed like razor as they swung at Merlin's savior. Merlin didn't need to read the description to know what he was seeing was real, he didn't need to study it to determine if it was true or not, nor did he need to take a second guess. There was nothing in the world like this beast, it was completely unique, and Merlin thought it would be a long time before the beast escaped his mind.

"That's him, that's the monster."

Merlin's voice came out raspy and shaken, raising his head to meet his uncle's equally wide eyes. The confirmation had happened, and the two didn't seem to know what to do, now that they knew what was heading towards Camelot. Or…what was already there, the consort thought as his heart jerked itself up to his throat. Merlin's head whipped around to his window, where he could hear bells starting to ring. Loud and violent and echoing across the courtyard…a warning to the entire kingdom what was happening. A warning so that the civilians had a chance to escape, while the soldiers raced to access the situation. Warnings that sent spirals of cold down Merlin's spine…the beast…the griffin…he's able to hear the faint screams of the people coming from somewhere below…

It was here.