Merthur - The Blue Butterfly

Chapter 6 - A Few Whispered Words

Arthur slumps against the wall, sliding his back down the stone until his butt hits the floor. He lets out a tired groan as he turns his head towards the grate where Merlin lives, catching a glimpse of the boy below reading as usual. He holds another book through the bars and its gently tugged from his grip, drifting down to where his friend sits without the boy so much as looking up. Merlin's really improved these past three years.

"Did your father work you too hard again?" he hears Merlin ask, having closed the book he was reading in favour of the new one.

Arthur just groans, slumping down even lower against the wall until his back is on the floor. "My arms are sore and my head hurts. Sir Galahad doesn't hold back even against a child," he complains.

"You said you wanted to be the best," Merlin reminds him as he starts flipping through the book, "it's expected that it'll be hard."

Arthur rolls over, turning onto his side. He peers through the bars, feeling that each time he looks the room seems to shrink, growing smaller and smaller. Trapping the boy in further. It's been a year now since he made his promise. A year and still he hasn't made any progress. He's searched the castle high and low, wandering into every room in the citadel even if his father had forbidden him from entering. Every nook and cranny has been throughly examined and yet there's not a single entrance to that room in sight. There have been numerous times where he's almost given up. But each time he heads back to the grate he finds his friend smiling at him and there he vows to get him out all over again. Today too. Today he vows that he'll find a way to save his friend.

"Merlin, you mentioned before that someone dropped off food and water for you every morning right?"

The warlock looks up, raising an eyebrow, "Yeah? And?"

"Is there anything else you can tell me?"

Merlin still seems confused but he answers anyways, "Well, I don't know much. I've honestly never seen them before. They just slip the food through this little panel opening on the door. They never say anything, never do anything else. Just drops off my meals. Though they do bring in new clothes for me. Once every half a year I think? They're never really nice clothes, but they're better than nothing." He lifts his arms up, showing the prince the rather uncomfortable looking tunic. 

Arthur frowns, "I'll get you something, but are you sure there's nothing else? Not any other hints or..."

Merlin thinks for a moment, "Sorry, there's nothing."

Arthur sighs, slouching back against the wall. Well there goes his one lead. He was hoping he could get something more out of the boy. Something that would help him locate this mysterious caretaker, but of course it couldn't be that easy. If it were he would have found Merlin by now. 

"Arthur?"

The prince rolls closer to the grate. "Did you need something?" he asks.

"What is this?" Merlin asks, walking closer to the grate and holding the book open to a page with the drawing of a butterfly.

Arthur squints, focusing his gaze on the drawing. "That? It's called a butterfly."

Merlin turns the book back around, staring with a look of awe at the critter on the page. "Butterfly? Is it food?"

Arthur laughs, "No you idiot. It's a bug. It flies around near the flowers. They usually come in all sorts of colours."

"Then why is it called a butterfly? What does it have to do with butter?"Merlin continues to ask, now turning the book upside down as though that would somehow help him answer the question.