Mostly because dead people don't talk back

3: Candour

Once again, Merlin was caught in the middle of strange happenings by Lancelot nonetheless.

It happened to be in the midst of an arduous week that Lancelot, following the knowledge of Merlin's more extreme excursions was bestowed upon him, followed the sight of blue and a red kerchief around a bend in corridors.

Oh. And, alas, Lance's soul could comprehend what was happening, but did he want to? They (as in friends to those in secrecy) never do.

The manservant cursed as Lance stooped in front of him. "Uhh..." Merlin mentally searched for an answer.

"Uh?" Lancelot copied. He directed to continue.

"This isn't.." Merlin gestured with a hand to the body dragged on the floor. He'd been dragging it. There was no one else in the corridor. It was exactly what it looked like.

"You kill for the king. That's all. Okay— need help with that?" What a blunt statement that he was not going back on. No, Lancelot decided Merlin was a bit too vague and...laughably enigmatic to be talking any other way.

He didn't want to ask for information for fear of anything worse plaguing his dear friend's life.

"Look ahead."

Lance checked the next room and gave him a nod. They moved on until an alcove. He looked out and ducked back in. A shake of his head let Merlin know. "Hold. Two women and their lady are about to pass by."

Wait they did. A bit more awkward silence continued between them, too casual to ignore now.

"Who exactly is this, anyway?" The knight inquired Merlin as they shuffled along.

This shamble continued until Merlin gestured to a slightly unusual servant's passage. It looked only used by one and on occasion. Oh, Merlin knew the castle better than anyone, and he knew why now.

"Sir Wystan Huffe of Essetir, who had been trying to kill," a corner came about, and they had to shift the body...multiple times. "Either Arthur or one of the knights."

Once out another entry, Lance found they were near the knights' quarters.

"He's here publicly for negotiations in some trade... thing, and I suppose I declined him." They'd stopped before a hallway as a door opened with a creak around the bend. Someone was around the corner.

"Ah, so you've become a politician then?" He whispered jokes.

Merlin hadn't moved to check who had walked into the hall but laughed at what his friend said. "Perhaps. It seems I have more jobs every day." He then continued to trip and fall into the hall where Leon had stopped and turned to see the commotion.

Lancelot held his breath and the body from falling into view, which was rather difficult as he was a full-grown man— and a royal at that.

"Merlin! You alright there?" Leon held out a hand to help. Merlin waved the hand away and dusted off his legs. Of course, it was Leon. He was, after all, the one knight Merlin believed capable of both sending him to a pyre and hiding him from the king if the wind blew which way.

"I'm good. I'm good, Leon. Thank you." From where Lance stood [wobbling and struggling to hold the body so upright], he did not see but could visualize the broad smile Merlin had on. He was so pure.

"Always falling, are you Merlin?" The knight persisted in checking in on the manservant. Merlin felt horrible for how long he left Lance holding the body.

"Quite! Such a clumsy person that I am, I always seem to have bruises."

"I hope your plight lessens. No one deserves to be falling every day!" Oh, Merlin adored Leon's mother-henning, but he was struggling not to look back at the knight around the corner for worry of being caught. "Good day then, Merlin."

"Good day, Sir Leon." He took a casual stride away from Leon as the noble continued toward his destination, then leaped back to Lance as soon as footsteps faded away. Merlin took some weight from his friend and carried on their journey to rid of the body.

The most dangerous part had not even arrived yet, and Merlin had already decided it to be a risky day.

Rather than going a long way around where the guards and knights took food and breaks from duty, Merlin chose to go through it with Lance's help. It would be faster, after all.

With their last room before the gathering of knights, Lancelot entered first. Oh, but the day had another good thing in store: Gwaine ran right into the back of the manservant as they entered the hideaway room.

Merlin began hiding the body with his own, but Gwaine just peered at the duo and what mischief was happening and nodded.

"I'll be the distraction then?"

With not an explanation, Gwaine rushed back into the gathering.

All they heard was Gwaine in the other room saying, "I may or may not have cut Arthur's hair." Then, a chair or two scraped, and the duo around the bend had to hold in laughter. "Uhm..yeah. You lot know the princess will be after me. Anyone who is wanting death, by the king himself, stays here. Everyone else, run!"

They heard scrambling, and Merlin and Lance held back laughter from being brought out until all the stomping disappeared. Once their burst of giggling and wheezing ended, the duo rushed across the room, into a passage leading to a courtyard, and then near the forest.

Without any trouble, they made it past the ramparts into the woods, and the only thing they looked for was patrol.

Gwaine must've looped around again as he joined in their merry jaunt by the edge of the forest. "I made another distraction-" he huffed, "-and I actually ended up cutting Arthur's hair, so I decided it be best to lay low out here with you."

Ah. That is why they had made it out of the castle with no more trouble. Gwaine had actually gotten into some.

Merlin would have to fix the haircut later.

A hole dug, a body buried, and a cluster of rocks on top made a grave.

The trio called it a day, then Gwaine said Merlin owed him a pint for his work. "I owe you a pint? You're joking!"

Lancelot just sighed. "I'll be buying then?"