Chapter Text
It had been a beautiful, wonderful morning.
Merlin had woken up with the sun tickling his face and the fresh smell of morning dew. The air had been fresher, the sun warmer, and everything had been so nice.
Even Arthur had woken up in an alright mood for once, or as alright as the royal prat could get in the morning. "Morning, sire!" Merlin sang, pulling the covers down to the prince's heels. He got grumbles in response—no pillows or bedpans thrown, though!
Perhaps they could take a day off today? Enjoy the sun, walk through the gardens, oh, he'd love to talk to Gwen some more about the last book they read! There were so many possibilities for a wonderful day like this, and Merlin couldn't help but preen at all the ideas.
"You're in an awfully good mood," Arthur grumbles from somewhere behind him. The bed shifts with a soft creak, then a pause. Merlin is sure that the prince is rubbing the sleep out of his eyes; he can picture him jawning while rubbing his calloused hands across his face in an attempt to chase the sleep away. When he hears the patting of feet against the cool floor, he turns, breakfast ready to go.
With quite an impressed look, Arthur sits down, "On time, and you have my breakfast? Are you ill?" The little dig flew off of Merlin like water off a duck's back. "Can I not be in a good mood?" He turns away from the prince, rather keeping busy with choosing the prince’s clothes for the day, than looking at the idiot's face. "It's nice being in a good mood, you should try it sometime!"
That did earn him his first thrown object of the day, a glass, quite common, and just as always, Merlin expertly evades it.
"Hurry up!" He yips, "I want to get out into the sun." Arthur gave him a little unimpressed look, but ate just a little bit faster for his friend's sake.
"Merlin, you're almost skipping down the hallway. Stop it, you're not a girl." Arthur snarls playfully, grinning as the man's head snaps towards him.
A crooked grin disturbs the serenity he’d been radiating just a bit earlier. "Even as a girl, I'm more man than you'll ever be."
And like he always did, Arthur pounced, sending Merlin running down the hallway. The castle filled itself with laughter and shouting as the two raced towards the field.
Arthur is gaining, slowly, but he is closing in.
Merlin can run quite fast; he has to with a prince like Arthur, but his stamina isn't that good. Arthur is used to running for long periods; he's able to conserve his energy in a way that’s honestly impressive. Not that Merlin would ever tell the prince that.
Just as Arthur was inches from grabbing onto his servant's red tunic, Gwaine came into sight. "Gwaine!" Merlin yelps like a kicked puppy, skidding to a stop to hide behind the man.
"Bullying Merlin, are we, sire?" The knight quips, tightening one of the straps of his armour.
From behind the metal, Merlin can see Arthur's shoulders sag, eyes hardening just a little as he looks at his knight, "I'm teaching him a lesson." As serious as he tried to be, the little smile pulling at the corner of his lips betrayed him.
"A lesson, you say." As if it were the most interesting thing Gwaine has ever heard, he nods, head bobbing along uselessly and Merlin wonders if he's already had something to drink.
"Let's start!!" Leon calls from further back, only putting on the necessary parts of his armour because of the heat. The knights gather, and Merlin picks a spot in the grass at the side of the training grounds.
He is truly enjoying himself.
While the knights spar, he polishes Arthur's armour, or at least the part that he isn't using at the moment. The hot sun warms him from the inside out, and the repetitive movement is easy enough to filter out.
After a few minutes, Gwen joins. She sits herself down next to him with an easy sigh. They now finally have the time to talk about the book that he lent her.
As she gushes about the characters and the plot, her fingers weave beautiful flowers into a crown. It's easy and nice, and these are the days that Merlin loves. The idea of it passing almost physically hurts. He'd like more days like this, days where he didn't have to go after insane sorcerers or ghosts or whatever beast threatened Camelot this time around.
"Merlin!"
And just like that, in the blink of an eye, the day took a slight downturn.
"We're going hunting!"
It's as if he can see the day slowly slip down a slippery slope… He hates hunting. With a passion.
Why today of all days?
"NOW, MERLIN!"
Dammit.
The moment they left the gates, Merlin had decided for himself he wouldn't let this ruin his day. Though the annoyance showed on his face anyway.
"Merlin, are you alright?"
He managed to send Leon, who came up to ride beside him, and Arthur, a quick nod and the flash of a smile "Yeah, just tired." It didn't sound convincing at all. It hadn’t been if Leon's raised eyebrows were anything to go by.
"You were in such a great mood earlier!" Elyan trotted up next to them, concerned eyes running over Merlin.
"I'm okay, really, I just don't like hunting all that much, killing for sport is just..."
The men nod along as if it were a universal truth, suddenly —very conveniently— forgetting all of the times they’d begged Arthur to go for another hunt.
The prince in question doesn’t spare him a look, only a quick glance over his shoulder. "Don't be so dramatic, Merlin."
The raven-haired scoffs high and childish, pulling at the reins so he falls into a slow pace beside Percival "I'll ride with Percy, he's much nicer than you are!"
The knights snicker, Percy's face turns a deep crimson, and Arthur looks close to murderous.
"Merlin is swear--!"
"No, I like Percy better!" He's laying it on extra thick, and he knows it "Perce, do you need a manservant? I'm resigning, so I'll need a new master."
And oh, does that set something off in Arthur. His head snaps around so quickly that Merlin's sure he heard his neck klick "Mer—"
Percy answers immediately, "Of course, Merls!" and now Percy receives the deadglares that had previously belonged to Merlin. After the initial shock of the sudden compliment, the giant decided that this was a fun way to pass the time. "I would love to have you as my servant!"
More snickers erupt from the people around them, and Percy glows with pride.
"I swear to fucking god Merlin!" Arthur breezes. But like the absolute child Merlin is, he turns his head away. Chin up and away, nose scrunched into lines, and arms tightly crossed over each other.
"Merlin!"
Arthur can't take it. Each time Merlin pulls the ignoring trick, the prince breaks within a day.
The first time it had happened, it was because Arthur killed a rabbit on a hunt. A rabbit that Merlin had apparently taken a liking to. For three days straight, his manservant had ignored him. Not only that, when he did speak, it was all “Yes, your majesty”, “Of course, my prince”, and it had driven Arthur up the fucking wall.
Merlin wonders how long it would take this time around. They should start making bets; he could actually earn some extra money with this. He’s sure Gwaine would like to help him with that!
With a hopeless sigh, Arthur gives in, "Okay, okay, we'll only hunt whatever we need, and no rabbits." And as if there hadn't just been a thundercloud rumbling above Merlin's head, his face clears up like an early spring day. Cheeks round as he laughs, and everything is easy.
Arthur likes it when it's easy. He likes days like this. Days he could hunt with his knights, where they could talk about mundane things, enjoy the sun and live like normal people for a little bit.
Even with Merlin being a bit of a brat, he wouldn't want to change this day ever; it's perfect. And, he does keep his promise. By the time the sun had started going down, they caught a deer and a pheasant, enough to feed all of them.
Even then, Merlin couldn't help but sag a bit at the look of the dead deer, but he quickly shrugged it off and started making their food.
As Merlin cut away at the carcasses and started on the broth, the knights had taken it upon themselves to start setting up camp.
It wasn't hard work; they could do it fairly quickly, quick enough that Elyan and Leon went to scope out the surrounding woods and for Percy and Gwaine to seek the berries Merlin requested for his stew.
Arthur just sat down, not far from Merlin, eyes studying the man as he cut the meat and sliced the vegetables he brought.
"What?"
Arthur’s eyes flicker up to meet a blue pair; he hadn't realised he'd been staring...
With growing redness on his cheeks, he averts his gaze away from Merlin's long black lashes and stunning blue eyes "Nothing, just... curious."
The raven-haired chuckles. "Is that amusing to you?" There is no heat behind the words, "Since when are you interested in me making food?"
Arthur had to bite down on his lip not to spill his guts right there. In reality, if the servant had asked whether he cared about him. Full stop. Arthur would've told him he always has. But that might just be too sentimental.
"Merls!" There is only one person who that loud voice can belong to, and indeed, from in between the bushes, Gwaine stumbles ungracefully onto the campground "We've got your berries!" He adds, showing off the cape he and Percy filled with delicious dark berries.
"Thanks, Gwaine! Could you wash them, please?" He asks, nodding to some water he cooked earlier.
Percy intercepts the semi-hot water quickly. "I'll do it." Perhaps a good idea, having Gwaine around hot things might be a hazard.
"Everything is clear." From behind them, two more knights appear.
"That already smells great, Merlin!" Elyan is next to them in a second, hungrily glancing over the edge of the pot.
"Made specially for you." Merlin winks, and Elyan just laughs, hand swatting at his friend. He settles down next to him, taking the berries from Percy to give them another quick wash, and maybe eat a few.
Soon after everything was finished, everyone found their place around the campfire.
Luckily, Leon has convinced Gwaine to take his socks off somewhere other than right beneath their noses, and Merlin gives him just a little bit more of the stew as a little thank you.
The evening is cooler, but still warm. By now, the chatter of the knights has quieted down, and the only thing remaining of the delicious food is a deep savoury smell that hangs in the air.
Maybe this day wasn't so bad after all…
Merlin wakes with a startled yelp. People are yelling, and metal clinks, and it takes his groggy mind a moment to catch up. The moment his vision unblurs, he realises they're in quite a situation.
Bandits...
Elyan is in front of him, feet slipping back in the moist earth as he blocks one of the bandits' swords from severing Merlin’s head clean from his shoulders. "Merls go hide!"
He scrambles upright, hurrying towards the first tree he can find. His eyes scan their camp; They are everywhere, Merlin almost can't see his friend through the swarm of attackers. Percy is mowing them aside to get to Gwaine, who is switching between three attackers at once. Arthur is cutting them down rather quickly, but Merlin sees the way his face constricts when a blow hits its mark.
So he does what he does best.
The wind blows past their ears, sending waves of sand into some of the bandits' eyes, and a tree branch falls and knocks three down at once. The knights push back, and it is looking pretty good.
Elyan finds his footing again, and Percy and Gwaine have teamed up just like Leon and Arthur, who are now standing back to back, matching grimaces pulling at their lips.
Just as he's about to lash out at the attackers, his body violently rocks foreward, pain shooting through the side of his face. His head spins as he tries to comprehend what's going on, he meets the gleaming dark eyes of a man. He has his face covered, but even then, Merlin can see the crows feed forming as he laughs.
Merlin reaches for his magic, but it feels so far away; everything spins, his throat constricts, and the horrified shrieks coming from his lips sound like that of a wounded animal.
Fuck fuck fuck...
As the sword makes its way down, a loud clang resounds, followed by a grunt and the ugly sound of a body falling to the ground.
"That was close." Gwaine is grinning down at him, hands already out to pull him up. Thank god! With a hearty laugh, he gives the man a quick hug. "Thank you, Gwaine, really."
A genuine smile pulls at the knight's lips "You're very welcome, Merlin."
And that's when he sees it. In the few seconds that he'd been talking to Gwaine, Leon had hit the ground.
He’s scrambling back, feet desperately kicking at his attackers. Where is Arthur??!!! Merlin's mind screams.
He doesn't see him; people are moving too fast, there's too much noise, too much clanging.
Until, somewhere hidden deep in the crowd, he sees it. A mop of golden hair. Arthur is mowing down one guy after another. Each one he strikes hits the floor with a sickening thud. Merlin never thought he'd be so glad to see Arthur murder people.
In a short, devastating moment, just as Arthur rushes to Leon, something moves behind him.
"Arthur!!!" Merlin screams, the last bits of magic pooling down. It's like warm water running down his legs. It's a horrible feeling, but nothing compared to the one curdling in his chest as he sees the gleaming metal shimmer behind his prince.
His magic pushes him foreward sending him barreling into everyone standing in his way. People are yelling; his name, Arthur’s name, there is clattering and shrieking, but all he can focus on is that bright light moving towards Arthur.
The cold metal disappears somewhere between his ribs, bones snapping as it turns and tears its way back out. The only thing he can think to do is grab towards the red spreading through the fabric of his shirt. You have to press down hard, he remembers someone telling him that once. So he does so, only for the warm liquid to escape through his fingers.
"Melrin, Merlin, look at me." Hands are on him, searching, pulling at his arms and hands, and he just shakes his head "N--o, pres-s-u-pressure." The words hitch and halt somewhere in his throat; instead, a wet bubbling sound filters into his ears.
"Hey, hey, look at me." After a few firm blinks to try and focus his vision again, he meets a bunch of worried eyes, but none look as horrified as—
"Ar-thr." His breath shudders, lungs constricting against the inside of his chest, and Merlin swears he might throw up. He lets go of the wound, fingers digging into the wet earth. Hands press down over the ragged opening.
"Ow ow." His head lolls to the side. He hates how tired and heavy he feels. He also hates the feeling of sand sticking between his fingers; it's probably because of all the blood... There's blood around him, in a puddle, slowly growing with the minute.
Oh.
And Arthur realises, that Merlin has only just discovered what is happening. He wishes it didn’t, but as the servant's eyes shoot up towards him in panic, he feels his heart tear. "Hey, shhh-- it'll be fine, we can fix this." He insists, arms scooping Merlin up with ease, "Leon, the horses w-we have to—"
Everyone stands there, eyes wide, faces drained of all colour and... tears?
"No, no, come on!" His voice shakes the forest floor, grip tightening on the boy in his arms, "No, come on, Merlin?" He pleads.
Arthur Pendragon never pleads…
"Please, Merlin, don't do this to me, please."
Merlin's head lolls to the side again, bloodshot eyes locking with Arthur's "I'm ok-a-." But as brave as he wants to be, his chin wobbles, lips pulling into a thin grimace, "Arthur I--"
"Shshs, don't talk, just keep your eyes open, Merlin, I beg of you."
With a soft nod, Merlin agrees, eyes blinking open ever so often in an attempt to stay alive. There's a soft crackle as he exhales, it tickles at his throat and leaves in a wet cough. He both feels and tastes the copper coating his lips.
Arthur is just shaking his head uselessly, fingers frantically trying to wipe the blood away.
"Arthur..." Gwaine is suddenly next to him, fingers tangled in Merlin's dark hair.
The only thing Merlin can think is ‘This feels nice.’
"Hey, Merls." His friend whispers, earning a little grin.
Between the gurgling and swallowing down the copper, he manages to ask his friend, "H-how-- bad?"
The grimace was telling enough apparently, because panic flashed across Merlin's sickly pale face once more, "L-Le--e--on?" He tries the oldest knight, hoping for another outcome, but as the rest of them gather around, he knows it's useless.
"N-no I have to--." He desperately pushes against Arthur, hoping to get himself up, bloody fingers sliding off the armour like butter through a hot pan. "—Pr-otect Arth—I can't please I-I." The sob rattles his lungs and pulls at his body with so much might that he feels more blood gush out.
"I-No it wasn't-t—the profecy—"
Elyan is crying, sobs rocking his body softly as he looks at his friend. "Shh, it's okay, Merlin, we're here." The world spins with dangerous speed around him, and he grabs onto Arthur as hard as he can.
"Merlin, please--" Arthur watches as his friend's eyes roll back into his head for a moment before snapping back with a certain determination and fear.
His lips part but Merlin’s words get cut of by the cold spasms running through his body. The only thing he feels is the warm blood running from his lips and the renr in his side. That and warm arms cradeling him.
"Shh, Melrin. I--... Merlin I--Look at me, please." He cards the dark locks off of the man's forehead, hoping to catch a last glimpse of those deep blue eyes.
"No,nonono, MERLIN!" He bellows, pawing at the man’s face in fear, "MERLIN!" The boy doesn't respond. His chest heaving short, quick gasps, darting eyes finally locking onto something far away. The hand that had once held so tightly onto Arthur limply slides down the stained armour.
Something shatters, something deep inside Arthur. Something he'll never be able to repair again...
The forest has gone eerily quiet. There are no birds singing; the trees bow over them as if they were giants lowering themselves to scoop them up between their fingers and crush them. The wind howls angrily, and big dark clouds roll in from the north.
"Sire, we have to--" Leon made the mistake of reaching out toward his king. Immediately regretting it the moment he meets his wide eyes, "Don't!" He snaps, pulling Merlin's body closer against his own, "Don't you dare take him away!"
Scared the king might grab his sword and cut Leon, Percy ushers the first knight back.
Arthur just sits there, hands never loosening their grip. And Gwaine want to help, wants to be reasonable for once and tell him that they have to get out of there, but he can't. The words are lost the moment he looks at Merlin, and instead, he cries.
He lets his legs give out beneath him and lets out the ugliest sob he's ever made. And he isn't alone... Of course he isn't..
Percy leans up against him, his own tears wetting his cheeks with a steady stream. Elyan is still hiccuping, breath erratic and unsteady, even Leon, their stoic first knight, sniffles pathetically.
Arthur just sits there, eyes miles away, while he slowly shakes his head, as if it would change what just happened.
They don't know how long they stayed there on the blood-soaked ground. Gwaine doesn't want to know. What he does know is that the sun is now high in the sky, and they have to get back.