Merthur: A Short Adventure

A Small Village

3rd Person POV

Merlin woke up a few hours later, still dazed. Arthur had already packed everything up and was just waiting for him to wake up. "Ready to go now, sleepyhead?" He ruffled Merlin's hair.

"Mm.." Merlin yawned but flinched as his arm hit a low branch. "Where to now?" He got up with the assistance of Arthurs arm and tottered towards Arthurs horse. His horse had surely run home by now. Merlin slung himself over the saddle and Arthur sat behind him, his arms on either side of Merlin's body.

"Well, since we don't have much of a time limit on this mission, and you have been injured," He muttered, "I thought we should stay the night at the village thats on the way. The woman we found led me to it."

"It's not the one we are looking for?" Merlin shuffled around, trying to get comfortable on the thick leather beneath him.

"No, but it can't be far off." Arthur shook the reigns and they were off, cautiously going downhill towards the small village. 

Arthur POV

I found myself distracted as Merlin's body rubbed against mine every few steps, my arms kept him from falling off. He would most definitely do so without them. I had to cough to keep myself from making any ungodly noises during our ride. If only he hadn't lost his horse like a 'clotpole' whatever that means.

"So," Merlin questioned, "why did you come looking for me the other night?" He turned his head to look at me, "You could have easily waited until it was the morning."

"I simply couldn't bear not having someone to annoy." I snarked back at him. He almost seemed disappointed by my answer, quickly laughing it off and facing away from me. I gulped, a feeling of guilt washing over me, since when did I care so much about how my comments affect him? All the new questions coated my thoughts, questions about Merlin.

3rd Person POV

Arriving at the village, they were met with odd looks and excited banter from the few children roaming around. There were about 8 huts, all small and very similar in style. A few crop fields were scattered around the outskirts along with some chickens and goats. A child walked up to the pair, examining the newcomers.

The leader of the small village, who Arthur had handed the woman off to, came up to welcome them, "Hello again, what can we do for you?"

Arthur got off, holding out his arm to help Merlin down from the horse, "We would like to stay here for the night and require another horse which will be returned after no more than a few days." The man looked Merlin up and down, "You and your boyfriend can stay in my hut, there are some horses near the back of the village you can look at."

Arthur and Merlins faces turned a beet red, they looked at each other and back at the man, "We aren't together!" He laughed as Arthur struggled, "Merlin here is my servant." The leader gave another deep chuckle before nodding, "Sorry for the misunderstanding lads, unfortunately there is only one bed in my hut, is that alright?" He looked at the blood stains on Merlin's tattered clothes, "Your friend looks like he could use a good night's rest." 

Merlin POV

While Arthur took a look around the village, I unpacked some of our belongings in the hut and rolled out a sleeping mat on the huts floor. It was uncomfortable but would be better than the muddy grass in the forest. After I checked to make sure everything was normal, I went out to find where Arthur had gone off to.

I found him checking the saddles of the village horses near one of the other huts. I snuck up behind him, "Augh!" I jumped and shouted. He didn't jump, just turned slowly and gave me a strict look before he broke, a smirk appearing on his face.

"Do you think you can scare me like that?" He snickered, "Ill show you a scare!" He began to chase me around the field and we ended up collapsing in a patch of grass, staring up at the noon sky. I heard him taking a deep breath and turned to look at him, "Is something wrong sire?"

"It feels wrong to be having fun while the village east is being tormented by raiders and smugglers." He held his gloved hand to the sky, "Is it bad that I want to stay like this for a while?" It seemed like he realized he was being too open as he shot straight up and calmly stated, "We should review our plans."

Before I could stop him or respond, he was already off and I followed after his royal prat-ness.