Merlin fanfic - It's Time to Begin - chapter two - It's Not Fair
Chapter two - It’s Not Fair
Arthur woke the next morning with a loud groaning upon remembering the night before. He quickly dressed in a white tunic, brown breeches, and his old brown boots. He quickly made his way to Morgana’s room, and when he was let into her room and started talking without any pleasantries.
“I don’t even want to be part of his personal guard! I certainly don’t want to teach him!” Arthur said in frustration to Morgana slumping into one of the chairs around the small table that held Morgana’s breakfast.
Morgana was dress in a soft purple dress, and her hair was down
“Watch it! He is like a brother to me. I understand you didn’t get off on the right foot. Also when did Nimueh say you had to train him? In any case, you will grow close with him now. And I have no doubt that you will become friends because of it,” Morgana said a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.
Gwen stopped folding long enough to look at Arthur, she shook her head, “Merlin is the sweetest person you’ll ever meet, and you made fun of him! He does have a right you know!”
“I know that! But he is abysmal. I’m sure you’ve seen him,” Arthur whined leaning his head back to look at the ceiling, “Even Leon said as much!”
“I have, but I’d never say anything. Merlin is trying his hardest!” Gwen said indignantly, her skin darkening in what Arthur knew must be anger. Everyone was on team Merlin.
“Gwen give him a break. He’s a poor uncultured country boy,” Morgana sighed dramatically and draped herself elegantly over her chair.
“Hey!” Arthur cried offended, “I get I was rude. But he was just as rude back!”
Morgana snorted, “Of that I am doubtful. I am sure he was snippy; he hates being wrong about something and he extra hates the fact that he just isn’t getting the moves.”
“He glared at me and called me a ‘prat’,” Arthur imitated Merlin using a high-pitched voice full of sarcasm, “So I showed him what I could do.”
Gwen sighed loudly, “You pushed him, and then you showed him up. That was rude, and you should apologize.”
Arthur groaned letting his head drop back against the chair with an audible ‘thud’,
“Ow.”
Morgana let out traitorous cackles.
--
“Gaius…” Merlin whined, “I don’t want him to teach me! He’s a-… a prat! He’s a stupid, arrogant, mean, dollophead!”
Gaius sighed deeply.
“I’m sorry Merlin, but Nimueh’s decision is final. She feels like it would be good for you. You’ve never had anyone that really challenged you.”
“You challenge me!” Merlin cried indignantly, and turned a page in the book in front of him.
“I do not. You know as well as I do that your magic is much stronger and easier to come to you than I could ever even dream of achieving,” Gaius said looking at Merlin out of the corner of his eye.
“That’s not true! You know loads more than I do. You know spells, and potions, and… meditation!” Merlin protested immediately, if a bit weakly.
“Which is why I’m teaching you those things; however, you will always be more powerful and wield more control than I ever will.”
Merlin looked at the older man sadly.
“I’m sorry,” Merlin said drawing his legs up and wrapping his arms around them. Suddenly his problems didn’t seem all that important. He couldn’t imagine his magic any other way than how it was.
Gaius laughed giving his full attention to Merlin, “I didn’t say those things to make you feel bad. I am content with what I have accomplished. I am proud to be your teacher. You have always been a source of pride for me. I want to help you grow to the man I know you can become. However you have to have people in your life that challenge you both physically and emotionally. You have lived a life mostly free of people that challenge you. You don’t like that he doesn’t seem to like you. It is understandable;
“You have inspired most that meet you to protect you. You are a slight young man with almost no sense of wrong in people. It is a weakness; whether you see it as such or not. I hope that this Sir Arthur will be able to help you curb that immediate reaction of trust in you.”
Merlin sighed loudly, “He’s stupid and I hate him,” and angrily flipped the next page, without really reading the previous.
Gaius guffawed loudly at that perfectly childish statement. Sometimes Gaius forgot just how young Merlin was.
“Sometimes I forget how young you are Merlin,” Gaius said, “You always act so old.”
“I do not!” Merlin spluttered shocked at Gaius’ words.
Gaius smiled gleefully at Merlin, “You are a young man, and yet you spend most of your time with an old man and his dusty books.”
“I try to never be around Geoffrey!”
Gaius laughed long and loudly, “Merlin you are good for an old man, but now off with you. Go run in the fields. Be young a while yet.”
Merlin sighed, “I’m supposed to be at the training field.”
Gaius grinned, “Then go. I’m sure your personal guard will not be please with you being late.”
Merlin groaned with resignation, but obediently left the room.
--Three weeks Later--
Merlin glared up at Arthur.
“You know you don’t have to knock me over every time,” Merlin grumbled.
“If you are face with a real opponent they aren’t going to wait for you to be ready. They are also certainly not going to stop from dumping you on your arse. They also won’t wait for you to be late,” Arthur said with a smirk waiting for Merlin to get back to his feet.
“Yeah well it’s unnecessary! You are supposed to be helping me; but I haven’t learned a thing! I just end up on my back!” Merlin growled throwing his sword away from himself and rolling back to his feet.
“You’ll need your sword,” Arthur said calmly pointing his sword to Merlin’s.
“I don’t, because I’m not staying here to be insulted!” Merlin said stalking off to the weaponry.
The other Knights were glaring at him. Everyone was one Merlin’s side!
Arthur groaned loudly.
He stooped to grab Merlin forgotten sword before he raced off after him.
“Wait!” Arthur yelled after Merlin.
“No!” Merlin called back over his shoulder.
“Yeah well, I hate you!” Merlin yelled loudly, shoving Arthur firmly.
“Well you’re abso-bloody-lutely impossible. You don’t listen, and you certainly don’t do as told!” Arthur growled, aggressively stepping back into Merlin’s personal space.
Merlin stumbled backwards, and again headed for the weaponry without looking back.
“Merlin!” Arthur yelled after his retreating back.
Merlin disappeared into the castle quickly, and Arthur tailed him quickly.
Merlin stopped in the amoury and started shedding his gloves, and chainmail.
“You can’t just runaway!” Arthur said when he entered the room, and he slammed the door shut aggressively.
“You shut it! I am trying! You are just not trying to help me properly! You are just talking like I should know what to do! How do you even know? You grew up in a tiny village! You know nothing about anything!” Merlin cried, Stepping into Arthur’s personal space.
“I know a whole hell of a lot more than you do about anything Knightwise. I trained in my tiny village with someone who had been part of the Knights! I trained every day after I tended to the fields, feed the animals, and helped with whatever else needed doing. Then I would go and train!” Arthur said shoving Merlin after each statement until he was pressed against the far wall.
Merlin panicked feeling trapped.
“So you think that I have never worked eh? You think that I haven’t? Well I have news for you!” Merlin ground out jabbing his finger repeatedly into Arthur’s shoulder, “Since I can remember I’ve been taught how to control, and master my powers. I’m powerful, or so I’m told. But I have no idea; I have no idea how to access even the majority of my powers. I can feel them under my skin. But still I have to work at it. And I help to train the Mages that defend us. Every day I do that. Then I come down to the Knights training fields and I try. But my body just doesn’t get it. And you, you, you just talk and talk. But you aren’t saying anything! You’re just pushing! You’re not helping!”
Arthur stepped back head dropping. He felt shame coil in his stomach. He wasn’t helping, he was just harming it based on the fact that he didn’t like Merlin. There was just some about him that rubbed Arthur the wrong way.
Or, said a traitorous voice in his head, he’s just not rubbing what Arthur wanted him to rub.
Arthur groaned quietly. He shook his head to clear away the unwanted thought.
“I’m… sorry… You’re right Your Highness. I wasn’t helping. I wasn’t thinking,” He said softly, not looking at Merlin.
Merlin looked shocked at him. He never thought that Arthur would admit that he was wrong. It made Merlin want to try to mend this.
“Arthur…” Merlin paused, “Can we start over? Can you actually teach me?”
“Yeah,” Arthur replied, “Yeah we can.”
--
Merlin entered his room and slammed the door behind him. He leaned against the door and took a deep breath. This was not looking up.
“Problem?” Arthur asked from one of the chairs at Merlin’s breakfast table.
Merlin startled violently.
“What have I told you about looking in a room before just deciding you can let your guard down?” Arthur asked with a small frown.
“To not do it?” Merlin asked the expression of innocence on his face.
“So? The Stewardess unwilling to bend on my room?” Arthur guessed.
“No. She says you have to have the adjoining room, as I don’t have a manservant, and you don’t want to be in the actual hall it makes sense; but I didn’t want you to be there. I’ve talked to Nimueh, and she feels that it would better for us to work through our differences…” Merlin sighed dropping, flat, onto his bed.
“Why?” Arthur groaned.
“‘Because, you will be working closely with each other, and will learn to deal with each other. Merlin, you’ve been unable to learn from anyone else. You and Arthur are stuck.’” Merlin imitated Nimueh in an exaggeratedly high pitched voice; He threw his arms over his face to muffle his groan.
“So we’re stuck,” Arthur exhaled letting his neck roll to look at Merlin’s long legs dangling off the side of the bed.
“Yes… Yes we are,” Merlin said, sitting up.
“Well then, we’ll start for real tomorrow,” Arthur said, “The sooner you learn, the sooner I’ll be able to stay in another room.”
“Tomorrow?” Merlin asked apprehension filling his voice.
“Tomorrow, before you have to be with Gaius. Before breakfast,” Arthur said confidently.
“Don’t I get a say in this?” Merlin asked narrowing his eyes at Arthur.
“Nope!” Arthur replied cheerfully.
Arthur jumped up smiling brightly. He had in all planned out.
“We’ll start with a run before breakfast. You’ll eat, and then go see Gaius, Then you do whatever you need to do with the Mages,” Arthur said quickly rubbing his hands together.
“You should probably come over to the Mages trainings. The Knights are supposed to start training with the Mages. You know dodging, figuring out how to defend against magic,” Merlin cut in, stemming the flow of words that sounded more and more like he was going to have even less free time than usual, “And the Mages are supposed to start training in hand-to-hand combat.”
“That’s a good idea! Us not magic folk do need to be able to defend against it! Did you think of that Your Highness?” Arthur asked with a smile, “Also are you trying to set the example?”
Merlin blushed hotly, “It’s Merlin, and yeah. I did. Leon thought that the Mages should also be taught in combat like I am too. But we haven’t actually started to do it yet. And yes, I am the example.”
Arthur chuckled lightly, and rolled his head back to face the ceiling, so he missed the pillow that was flung his way.
“Hey!” He cried out.
Merlin laughed loudly, and Arthur decided that he liked that sound.
--
Arthur knocked on Merlin’s door before entering the room without waiting.
“Raise and Shine!” He called throwing open the curtains smiling. He did like the mornings. Maybe, in a different life, he wouldn’t be so keen on them. Maybe if he were the pampered Prince. But he was a farmer’s son.
Merlin grumbled from the bed and pulled the covers over his head.
“None of that! Come on it’s time to get up. We’re going for a run before you have to get down with Gaius. We have to pulled up your stamina,” Arthur said quickly making his way over to the bed and pulling the blankets back from Merlin roughly.
Merlin whined tiredly curling in on himself. He pulled his slightly sheer, white, night shift over his bare legs.
Arthur froze gaze fixed on Merlin’s pale, bare, legs peeking out from his night shift.
Arthur coughed quickly to compose himself, “None of that either. Come on Merrrrlin! It’s time to get up. You have to get dressed, and I’ve rediscovered you don’t have a manservant. So I’m going to help you get dressed this morning. Because I’m sure you’re going to be incredibly slow about it!”
“Go ’way,” Merlin whined again, and pulled a pillow to cover his head and tried to curl tighter in on himself.
“Up, up, up!” Arthur said, roughly jostling Merlin.
“You i’possib,” Merlin muttered straightening his legs out and turning over. Then he curled back into a ball.
“Yep!” Arthur said brightly.
Arthur pulled gently at one of Merlin’s ankles.
“Nooo!” Merlin groaned, pulling in vain against Arthur’s grip.
Arthur laughed, “Come on! Up!”
Merlin groaned loudly and rolled into a sitting position, “Fine!”
Merlin sat up sleepily rubbing his eyes.
Arthur would never admit it, but Merlin was adorable like that. His hair was messy, and he looked so sour about the morning. Arthur quickly turned away from Merlin.
“Get a hold of yourself Arthur!” He muttered to himself angrily. He wasn’t allowed to ogle the Prince of Camelot.
“What was that?” Merlin yawned as he spoke, so it came out garbled, and it took Arthur a moment to decipher.
“Nothing, you’re imagining things.” Arthur said dismissively.
He quickly dove for Merlin’s closet, and tried his best to dislodge the sight of Merlin’s bare legs by occupying his mind with picking out Merlin’s clothes for the day.
--
By the time the two reached the training fields, Merlin was flushed bright pink and panting heavily, and Arthur was lightly pinked and laughing at Merlin.
“Come on, I’ve been going easy on you. Who knew the Prince of Camelot had such little stamina?” Arthur mocked, taking on a completely befuddled look.
Merlin glared halfheartedly at Arthur much too tired to do more than that. He sat defiantly on the ground, and pulled off his red neckerchief and dabbed at his glowing face.
Arthur laughed brightly at Merlin’s antics and gripped Merlin’s shoulder jostling him softly.
Merlin flushed hotly at the feel of Arthur’s hand firmly on his shoulder.
He was surprised when Arthur dropped gracefully into a squat, so they were eye to eye.
“Come on, Merrrrlinn,” Arthur purred huskily, leaning close to Merlin, “You still have things to do.”
Merlin gulped around a thick knot in his throat. He wouldn’t admit it, but Arthur touching him did something to Merlin.
Merlin glared at Arthur tenfold, both for making him uncomfortable and putting him through a torture test.
“What do I need to do?” Merlin groused, he didn’t want to run anymore.
Arthur looked at Merlin, slightly astonished that he had managed to forget.
“You haven’t eaten,” Arthur ticked a finger, “Gaius is expecting you,” another tick, “You have to train with your Mages,” another tick, “And finally you have to train with me.”
Merlin groaned and flopped heavily onto his back, his arms spread wide, “No. I want to go back to sleep.”
Arthur laughed loudly, “I don’t think that is going to happen. You should go change and see Gaius, then do whatever it is you do with your Mages.”
“They’re not mine. Nimueh initiated them,” Merlin grumbled under his breath, scowling, more at the thought of doing anything other than flopping on his bed and sleeping longer, than at his tasks.
Merlin closed his eyes.
“Nope!” Arthur crowed smugly, and gently kicked Merlin’s side, “You are not allowed to go back to sleep. I can’t believe I broke you.”
Merlin whined, but opened his eyes.
“I hate you,” he muttered without heat, glaring up at Arthur.
Arthur actually looked kind of breathtaking above Merlin. The sun was behind him to give him an ethereal glow, his hair shone golden, and his face was smiling charmingly at Merlin. He didn’t actually know if Arthur could turn off his flirt setting.
--
Merlin’s morning drew to a close at long last. While Merlin and the other Mages were put through their paces by Nimueh, Arthur trained with the Knights in the other field. Merlin wasn’t entirely sure where he went when Merlin was Gaius. But he didn’t think he waited outside the chamber, like a proper guard was supposed to. But he was finally freed.
He stretched leaving the training fields, he was very ready for a nap.
When he caught sight of Arthur, heading directly for him, his stomach dropped out. He stopped, hoping Arthur would bypass him entirely, but being the ever infuriating being that he was, obviously didn’t.
“No,” Merlin said glaring at Arthur. He was dressed in clean, not sweaty, clothes, and wanted to remain that way.
Arthur raised blonde brows at Merlin incredulously, “Yes.”
“Nuh-uh,” Merlin disagreed ferociously, shaking his head quickly to accentuate his words.
Arthur glared and put fists on his hips, “We’re going to do this, and then you are welcome to collapse whenever you like,” he said in a tone that brokered no argument.
Merlin glared at Arthur and mirrored his position.
“We’ll only work for an hour. Then I’ll escort you back to your room,” Arthur gritted out through clenched teeth.
Merlin glared for a moment longer, hoping to just get out of it entirely.
Deciding that he should take what he could get, he conceded, “Fine. But only an hour.”
“Even faster if you can do three moves.”
Merlin objected, “Then I’ll never get to go to sleep!”
Arthur laughed, relaxing his position, he said, “Get the moves or one hour. I won’t keep you her until you have them down. Quite frankly, I don’t want to be here until I’m old and grey!”
Merlin made a sound of offence, but Arthur continued talking;
“I think we’ve been trying with something that is just not your forte, Merrrlin,” Arthur said elongating the ‘r’, he smiled with an unusual amount of cheer.
“What?” Merlin asked askance, “I’ve been learning the moves for a sword! I can’t change now!”
“Yes, yes, you can,” Arthur said with a light laugh, “I’m in charge of your training now. Your delightful Stewardess has informed me that, that means I am allowed to do whatever to make you more proficient. So that means you are going to be doing what I say. Stay. I’ll be back.”
Merlin glared at Arthur’s retreating back.
Arthur returned quickly holding two, rather tall, staffs. One was a deep, dark, red, wood and the other a pale grey one. Arthur held them out with a proud smile to Merlin.
Merlin took the paler one from him with a skeptical frown. There was nothing terribly special about the staff, just a plain solid piece of cylindrical piece of wood.
“What exactly are we going to do with this?” Merlin asked turning the wood over trying to get a feel for the staff under his hands. It was light. Much lighter than the broad sword Merlin had been using.
“We fight. It’s similar to swords, but lighter and easier to handle. You are slight, and the swords are too heavy for you,” Arthur explained as he watched as Merlin studied the staff, “Keep hold of it. We’ll work with it for now.”
Merlin groaned, “But I’ve been working on the sword! And if we start with this I have to learn everything new, and you’re implying that we may switch again.”
Arthur sighed deeply, “Yes, and now you’ll learn something you might actually be able to do! Also it’s about finding what’s right for you. This is a backup for when you can’t use magic. We’ll also be training with a knife. But first I want to see how well any longer ranged weapon will work for you.”
Merlin exhaled forcefully, “Fine. But if I’m still awful, I’m going to blame you.”
“Fair enough,” Arthur said magnanimously, “Come on.”
Arthur turned his back on Merlin and drew him closer to where the Knights had been training.
Merlin noticed that most of the Knights had left.
“Where’d everyone go?” He asked, not really Arthur, but the pitch in general.
“Lunch. Also I thought you might be more relaxed if you didn’t have an audience, and in particular a very loud, clown-like audience member,” Arthur said, stopping when he came to a spot he liked enough. He turned to face Merlin with his staff at the ready.
“Huh…” Merlin grunted, and copied Arthur’s stance, though more tensely, “Do you know how to use a staff?”
“No. I’ve trained with broad swords, knives, crossbow, and hand-to-hand.”
“Great,” Merlin muttered.
“I heard that, and don’t think I don’t understand the basics. It’s pretty much like a really long wood sword.”
“Well let’s get started,” Merlin said with lots of false cheer.
tbc
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