When Merlin Went Missing [COMPLETED]

CHAPTER FOUR

Arthur and Gwaine waited another day before riding back to Camelot. By the time they returned the sun was starting to dip below the tree lines and there was a chill in the air, making Arthur remove his cloak to wrap around Merlin, who had been placed on his horse. 

Merlin was sitting on the horse in front of Arthur, despite being asleep still, and to keep him upright Arthur had one hand on the reins while the other was holding him. Gwaine found that pretty funny and did not hesitate to wolf-whistle in their direction.

The moment they rode through the gates, Merlin was rushed to his room by two Knights Gaius had been ordering around. Arthur had to return to his bedchambers and work his way through the paperwork that had piled up in his vacancy. 

Even as he forced himself to write with his feathered quill he couldn't stop worrying for his injured friend. Gwaine filled in the other Knights about all they had missed (which wasn't much) and to keep his mind off his Merlin.

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Arthur had given up on trying to do his work almost immediately, he couldn't stop worrying about him. Every time he tried to pick up his quill his mind would always return to the pale faced Merlin limp in his arms. Eventually he gave up and made his way down to where his close friend was being healed.

He ignored the looks of sympathy from passing people, the news of Merlin must of spread quickly knowing how much the staff loved to gossip. Many of them must of seen Merlin being taken to Gaius and told anyone who would listen.

The door to the room was slightly ajar, Gaius had forgotten to close it in his hurry, and Arthur pushed it forward. He was almost too scared to look but he knew he had to otherwise he'd regret it.

He forced himself to step into the room and was greeted with the sight of Merlin laying on the table, motionless. Luckily he was closer to his normal skin tone, no longer a sickly grey, with his shirt removed. Gaius had bandaged his wound, not even taking a second glance at the sea of scars littered over the boys torso. It was almost like he had seen them before.

Arthur hadn't been spotted so he composed himself, walked towards them and tried to seem strong "Gaius? How is he?"

"Ah Sire, he's doing fine. The wound has been stitched up and I've added some healing balm made from a mixture of herbs. He'll be back on his feet in no time." Gaius looked optimistically at his king as he tidied away various jars containing who knows what.

"Do you have any idea how he got so many scars? I've never seen them before in my life." Arthur scowled and eyed what looked like the deepest of the scars.

Gaius paused for a moment, his hand hovering above one of the crushing bowls, trying to think of a non-incriminating answer to give "You have many enemies M'Lord, Merlin has to unfortunately deal with a great amount of them. He's had to learn how to fight while working for you, the scars are permanent reminders of what happens if he hadn't." He spoke slowly, cleaning his work space at the same pace.

"My God," Arthur muttered under his breath, shaking his head. How had he never of noticed before? What happened on those times Merlin disappeared? What happened to the people that took him? "Why did he never tell me this himself?"

"I asked him that once myself, he didn't want to give you more to worry about. He said you had enough on your plate, what with training and your kingly duties." Gaius gave a faint smile towards the unconscious boy. Arthur couldn't of disagreed more, he always had time for Merlin.

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

It was late in the day, things were running smoothly in the castle despite Arthur being nowhere to be found. Only the knights knew where he was, even though they hadn't been told. The king was by the bedside of Merlin, escaping his duties as the leader of Camelot, watching over his servant.

Gaius had left not too long ago to gather some herbs, his resources running low, and asked Arthur to watch Merlin in case he awoke. He confided in his king that whenever Merlin sleeps he is plagued by nightmares and could wake up from fear. It was best for someone to be there when he did.

Within an hour of the elderly man leaving, Merlin started to shake and Arthur immediately recognized his state from when he had been passed out in the woods. Unsure of what to do, he took Merlin's hand in his own and prayed that he'd be alright.

When the trouble passed, Merlin started to stir. At first his head moved, then he weakly gripped Arthur's hand back and eventually his eyelids fluttered open. Arthur dropped his hand, allowing Merlin to slowly sit up. He brushed his sleeve along his forehead, wiping away the beads of sweat, and blinked.

His vision cleared, no longer blurry, and he spotted Arthur sitting by his bead, worry etched on his face "What the-" The events of the days passed came back to Merlin "Oh."

"Are you okay, you gave us all quiet the scare back there." Arthur tried to smile but the concern for his friend rushed back.

"I'm fine, I guess." He shrugged, not sure what to say. Arthur never knew about the scars he hid under long sleeve shirts and neckerchiefs. No one did, apart from Gaius, and he liked it that way. 

Arthur sighed "Listen, Merlin, I don't expect you to talk about everything. You don't have to," He paused "Just promise me you won't go dying before me." A smile played on Merlin's lips. 

"No promises."

A/N

[PUBLISHED 19/04/2019]

That's all folks! All parts of this short story have been published and once this is out it will be marked as completed. Thank you for reading, for 53 reads (as of writing this) and for everything.

For the last time in this book, I'll sign off.

-Beccy