Chapter 11
Leon finally succumbed to sleep, so only Merlin stayed up. He had to stay alert: Arthur's condition was rapidly deteriorating, and the young warlock had the stupid feeling the king would die if he so much as stopped looking at him for a second.
Merlin silently prayed Gaius would be there in the morning and was able to offer a remedy for Arthur. He didn't want to think of the alternative.
As the hours passed, though, Arthur's breathing started becoming more and more difficult, and the fact he had stopped shivering even when his fever was even higher than before was not a good sign. Feeling helpless, Merlin lifted Arthur's upper body to ease his breathing and he sat behind him, one leg at each side of the blond, so he could let him rest on his chest. Merlin could feel how high Arthur's temperature was, could feel the heat even through their clothes. Merlin brought his hand to Arthur's forehead and stroke the soaked hair, trying to relieve some of the pain in his heart with familiar gestures.
When the morning came, the knights found Merlin still awake, silently supporting Arthur against his chest. They were so still that for a moment they feared Arthur had passed away during the night, but they were relieved to see he was still breathing when they got closer to them.
"Merlin" Gwaine said, crutching at his side, "you've been here all night, like this?"
Merlin's only answer was to nod. He was tired, frustrated, devastated. The last thing he felt was like talking, even if he knew Gwaine was only being his friend and trying to help.
"You should take a break" Gwaine insisted.
"I can't. Arthur needs me" Merlin answered, not having any intention of letting Arthur out of his sight.
"We'll take care of him while you rest" Percival suggested, also worried about his friend.
"His breathing has gone more laboured in the past hour. He needs to be kept sitting so he can breathe easier"
"Merlin, I can hold him for a while" Gwaine offered.
"Yeah, I don't think even he can do it wrong" Percival lightly joked.
"No, I'll hold him" Merlin declined the offer.
"Merlin, you need to rest" Gwaine insisted, more serious. "Otherwise, you'll end up sick too"
"I'll rest when I know he is going to be alright. Until then, I will take care of him"
"Alright, as you wish. Just... let us know if you change your opinion"
"I won't" he answered firmly, but he immediately regretted and tried to soften the tone; after all, they were only trying to help. "But thank you"
**********
Arthur showed no sign of waking up in the next hours, nor much changed in his condition. Merlin thought that was a good sign, though, for at least he was not getting worse. Not that he could get much worse before he... He didn't let himself finish that thought, as he had to believe Gaius would be able to make everything alright, as he usually did.
Nobody tried to relieve Merlin again in the task of taking care of Arthur, or even holding him upright, because they knew it would be futile and their tries just seemed to annoy Merlin more than they helped. So they just contented themselves with staying close to the couple, in case they were needed.
Finally, around midday, Gaius and the two knights that were escorting him arrived to their camp. Merlin's shoulders sagged with relief and hope now the old man was there; he would know what to do. He just had to.
