Away From It All for Rachel
Title: Away From It All
Recipient: Rachel
Author: Shadowspun
Rating: G
Pairing: Arthur/Gwen
Summary: Arthur needs to get away from it all, but it doesn't go as he planned. Good thing Merlin and Gwen are there to go behind his back and fix things.
Warnings: None
Word Count: 1989
Author's Note: Dear Rachel, I hope you like this one. It's been a while since I've written any fiction, so I hope it's good.
Thanks, also, to the mods for arranging the fest. You rock!
Merlin stood behind Arthur’s chair, keeping his face completely immobile. Arthur was fuming. He wasn’t even trying to hide it. Merlin was, to be perfectly honest, enjoying the scene that was playing itself out in front of him.
“Are you saying that you won’t be able to pay the taxes again this year, Lord Rancin?”
“My king, I am sorry, but the harvest wasn’t what we anticipated and the mine is getting played out.”
“I see.” Arthur held out a hand to stop the toad from speaking further. He picked up a piece of paper that he had prepared on the desk and referred to it. “Lord Rancin, in the last ten years, you have paid your taxes precisely twice. During my father’s reign, you also claimed the mines were getting played out.”
“Well-”
“You have also had terrible harvests each year. It makes me wonder if you are a capable enough steward for your lands and people. I will allow you to not pay your taxes this year, but next year you will be paying your taxes. Also, I expect a viable plan from you to improve your harvest on this desk in a week or I will appoint an overseer for your lands. You are dismissed.”
As the pale lord spluttered, Merlin escorted him out and closed the door, grinning. “That was brilliant.”
Arthur glowered.
“Oh, come on, Arthur, you enjoyed the look on his face, admit it.”
Arthur sighed, then his mouth quirked a bit at the corner. “I did.” He shuffled a few more papers before he threw himself out of his chair and stalked over to the window. It was a lovely Autumn morning, warm and bright. The changing leaves on the trees provided spots of color that tried to brighten his restless mood, but failed miserably.
Merlin looked over at him from the desk he’d vacated, papers in his hands. “You need a break.”
“Merlin, I’m busy. We have the harvest festival to plan and too many other lords petitioning to not pay their damned taxes.” Arthur stayed where he was, staring out at the forest beyond the walls of Camelot.
Merlin tidied the papers into their piles, important items on top of the others. He read one paper and shrugged, shifting it under a few other documents. “The seneschal has handled the harvest festival for over a decade. He knows what to do. It never changes. You’re really useless there.”
Arthur turned and glared at Merlin. “Thank you, Merlin.”
Merlin looked up from the papers and grinned at him. “You’re welcome.”
“I have some value when it comes to the petitioners at least.”
“I say you just do the same to them as you did to Lord Rancin. Strange that they can’t afford to pay their taxes but they can dress themselves and their families in finery to show off at court during the season.”
Arthur nodded. “Very strange. I don’t know why my father put up with it. He never explained that to me while he was teaching me.”
“Well, it doesn’t seem like he sat you down and walked you through all of his thoughts. I think he thought he had more time,” Merlin replied gently. “Now they just have to get used to things being done differently. Including paying their taxes.”
The door opened quietly and Gwen walked in. The scowl on Arthur’s face cleared up and he smiled at the sight of his wife. Gwen joined him at the window and clasped the hand he reached out to her. “Arthur.”
“Guinevere.”
Merlin rolled his eyes at the couple. “I’m leaving. Gwen, convince him to take a break. He’s insisting he’s indispensable again, which is untrue, of course.”
“Merlin, go away.” Gwen smiled sweetly as she twined her arms around Arthur.
Merlin bowed to her as he left. “As you wish, your majesty.” As he left he heard Arthur grumble something about Merlin’s disrespect.
***
Merlin was elbow deep in cleaning pots for Gaius when the door opened to the workroom. He didn’t look up as he called out, “Gaius is out but I can be right with you.”
Gwen chuckled. “So you escape Arthur’s clutches and go straight into Gaius’? You just can’t win, can you?”
He smiled at his friend. “He and Geoffrey are studying a new herbal one of the merchants brought. Apparently it has some new recipes for headache medicines that they’re both interested in. I told him I’d finish cleaning these for him since I was at loose ends.”
“Well, I wanted to steal you. Arthur and I want to go on a picnic, but he’s insisting it be kept secret. No escort. Obviously, that won’t work, but we’re just not going to tell Arthur about that.”
“Let me guess, out the secret tunnels and I’ll have the horses ready for you two?”
“Yes, please, Merlin. And will you tell one of the knights?”
“How about I tell Gwaine and you tell Elyan. Arthur won’t think anything of you talking to your brother.”
Gwen smiled. “Sounds like a plan. Do me a favor and stash my sword on the saddle, too, will you?”
“I’ll make sure both of us have them. I may not be as good as either of you, but I can hold off your basic bandit.” Merlin put the pot he had finished scrubbing as he talked to the side and wiped off his hands. “You and I both know Audrey won’t be fooled. She’ll know something is up.”
Gwe shrugged, “I know. Arthur still doesn’t understand how servants work and think. Maybe by the time he’s fifty, he’ll figure out that the world isn’t actually run by the nobles.”
Merlin snorted. “Fat chance of that. Maybe he should take a turn as a footman one week. For a feast, even. That’ll teach him.”
Merlin and Gwen looked at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter at the image of Arthur serving at a feast. They left Gaius’ workroom arm in arm before splitting off to accomplish their super-sneaky plan.
***
The plan went off without a hitch. Merlin stood outside the exit to the secret escape tunnel that he and Arthur had used to smuggle out Mordred as a child. He held the reins of two horses, with his nibbling on grass a little ways off. Arthur simply glared at Merlin’s horse and shook his head, accepting the fact that he and Gwen were not going to be completely alone without a word.
Merlin handed the reins to Arthur, “I stashed a picnic lunch at that grove by the stream to the east. I figured it was a nice place, and that huge oak tree’s leaves are turning some very lovely colors right now. Quite romantic.”
“It would be very romantic if we were alone.”
Gwen kissed Arthur briefly before he helped her into the saddle. “Arthur, you know as well as I that we can’t be completely alone. Sneaking out is risky enough.”
Arthur grimaced. It wasn’t often that he willingly neglected his duties or took a risk like this, but he needed the break. As much as he enjoyed the company of Merlin, even if he would never really admit it to the man, he had been looking forward to time completely alone with his wife. No distractions, no responsibilities, no demands on either of their time. He sometimes missed the time when he had just been the Crown Prince, and was able to go off when he liked.
After he mounted his own horse, he pointed it towards the stream Merlin had prepared for them. Before he could start riding, he saw a goshawk stoop on some prey in front of them. He breathed in a lungful of fresh air and smiled. Reaching out to clasp one of Gwen’s hands, he brought it up to his lips for a brief kiss.
“Shall we go?”
Gwen smiled. “Yes, let’s.”
***
Merlin tried his best to give the couple some space. He sat across the clearing against a gnarled tree after he served them, reading a book on herbal cures to pass the time while he nibbled on one of Audrey’s honey rolls. He tried to listen to everything around him but their conversation. Occasionally he caught the faint sound of metal clinking, but it came from where he had left Gwaine and Elyan earlier, so he wasn’t worried about it.
Gwaine was surprisingly good about this. Maybe he just liked the fact that Arthur had cut loose for once.
As he let his senses just roam, he heard another clink of metal, this time from the other side of the clearing. There were no guards that way. He stood and moved toward the horses quickly. Gwen and Arthur looked up at the sudden movement.
Arthur listened and stood himself, pulling Gwen up as he did. He kept his ear trained on the area the sound came from as he herded her toward the horses. Merlin pulled the two swords he’d stashed on his saddle and handed one to Gwen. Arthur pulled his own from the belt strapped to his waist. The three waited for a moment before Arthur turned to Gwen and helped her into the saddle.
He turned to Merlin, “Get her out of here.”
Merlin nodded and turned to mount his own horse. Before he could do more than get a foot in the stirrup, a group of men burst from the trees, yelling as they attacked.
Gwen turned her mount to face the men and held her sword ready. Merlin held his own sword as Arthur called out, “Gwen, get out of here!”
Some more jingling came from behind Merlin as Gwaine and Elyan burst out of the trees behind them, their own swords ready. Arthur looked shocked for half a second, but quickly recovered as the bandits bore down on him and he, Merlin, Gwen, and the knights took on the group that had mistakenly anticipated an easy fight.
***
The group that rode back into the castle was a bit bedraggled from the fight, but there were no injuries for Gaius to treat. Gwaine pulled off to grab a few other knights to dispose of the bodies they left behind, while Elyan went to report to Leon about the encounter. The First Knight needed to know if there were bandits this close to the castle.
Merlin followed Arthur and Gwen up to their quarters after sending the horses off with the stableman.
“So which of you planned the guards?” Arthur tried to look stern but Merlin could tell he wasn’t angry with anyone but himself.
Gwen and Merlin looked at each other and shrugged. “Both of us.”
Arthur grimaced. He took Gwen’s hand and held it. “I am sorry I put you at risk, my love.”
“Arthur, everything was fine.”
“If we had been truly alone-”
Gwen kissed him quickly to shut him up. “You never would have allowed anything to happen to me. We both know that.”
“I almost-”
“So now we know that we at least need Merlin and one guard next time we try to escape the castle for a few moments. A lesson learned. All is well.”
Arthur smiled dazedly. “You are not going to let me wallow in misery, are you?”
Gwen reached up and tucked his hair back a bit. “No. I am going to ask Merlin to get you a hot bath, and I am going to ask my maid to do the same. We are going to soak away the stress of the afternoon, and then we will have a lovely dinner by ourselves. No servants. Tomorrow we can worry about business.”
She kissed him gently before turning to the door, touching Merlin on the arm before she left.
“Well, I guess I have my orders. Excuse me, Arthur.” Merlin left Arthur standing in the middle of his quarters with the tiny smile still on his face.
Recipient: Rachel
Author: Shadowspun
Rating: G
Pairing: Arthur/Gwen
Summary: Arthur needs to get away from it all, but it doesn't go as he planned. Good thing Merlin and Gwen are there to go behind his back and fix things.
Warnings: None
Word Count: 1989
Author's Note: Dear Rachel, I hope you like this one. It's been a while since I've written any fiction, so I hope it's good.
Thanks, also, to the mods for arranging the fest. You rock!
Merlin stood behind Arthur’s chair, keeping his face completely immobile. Arthur was fuming. He wasn’t even trying to hide it. Merlin was, to be perfectly honest, enjoying the scene that was playing itself out in front of him.
“Are you saying that you won’t be able to pay the taxes again this year, Lord Rancin?”
“My king, I am sorry, but the harvest wasn’t what we anticipated and the mine is getting played out.”
“I see.” Arthur held out a hand to stop the toad from speaking further. He picked up a piece of paper that he had prepared on the desk and referred to it. “Lord Rancin, in the last ten years, you have paid your taxes precisely twice. During my father’s reign, you also claimed the mines were getting played out.”
“Well-”
“You have also had terrible harvests each year. It makes me wonder if you are a capable enough steward for your lands and people. I will allow you to not pay your taxes this year, but next year you will be paying your taxes. Also, I expect a viable plan from you to improve your harvest on this desk in a week or I will appoint an overseer for your lands. You are dismissed.”
As the pale lord spluttered, Merlin escorted him out and closed the door, grinning. “That was brilliant.”
Arthur glowered.
“Oh, come on, Arthur, you enjoyed the look on his face, admit it.”
Arthur sighed, then his mouth quirked a bit at the corner. “I did.” He shuffled a few more papers before he threw himself out of his chair and stalked over to the window. It was a lovely Autumn morning, warm and bright. The changing leaves on the trees provided spots of color that tried to brighten his restless mood, but failed miserably.
Merlin looked over at him from the desk he’d vacated, papers in his hands. “You need a break.”
“Merlin, I’m busy. We have the harvest festival to plan and too many other lords petitioning to not pay their damned taxes.” Arthur stayed where he was, staring out at the forest beyond the walls of Camelot.
Merlin tidied the papers into their piles, important items on top of the others. He read one paper and shrugged, shifting it under a few other documents. “The seneschal has handled the harvest festival for over a decade. He knows what to do. It never changes. You’re really useless there.”
Arthur turned and glared at Merlin. “Thank you, Merlin.”
Merlin looked up from the papers and grinned at him. “You’re welcome.”
“I have some value when it comes to the petitioners at least.”
“I say you just do the same to them as you did to Lord Rancin. Strange that they can’t afford to pay their taxes but they can dress themselves and their families in finery to show off at court during the season.”
Arthur nodded. “Very strange. I don’t know why my father put up with it. He never explained that to me while he was teaching me.”
“Well, it doesn’t seem like he sat you down and walked you through all of his thoughts. I think he thought he had more time,” Merlin replied gently. “Now they just have to get used to things being done differently. Including paying their taxes.”
The door opened quietly and Gwen walked in. The scowl on Arthur’s face cleared up and he smiled at the sight of his wife. Gwen joined him at the window and clasped the hand he reached out to her. “Arthur.”
“Guinevere.”
Merlin rolled his eyes at the couple. “I’m leaving. Gwen, convince him to take a break. He’s insisting he’s indispensable again, which is untrue, of course.”
“Merlin, go away.” Gwen smiled sweetly as she twined her arms around Arthur.
Merlin bowed to her as he left. “As you wish, your majesty.” As he left he heard Arthur grumble something about Merlin’s disrespect.
***
Merlin was elbow deep in cleaning pots for Gaius when the door opened to the workroom. He didn’t look up as he called out, “Gaius is out but I can be right with you.”
Gwen chuckled. “So you escape Arthur’s clutches and go straight into Gaius’? You just can’t win, can you?”
He smiled at his friend. “He and Geoffrey are studying a new herbal one of the merchants brought. Apparently it has some new recipes for headache medicines that they’re both interested in. I told him I’d finish cleaning these for him since I was at loose ends.”
“Well, I wanted to steal you. Arthur and I want to go on a picnic, but he’s insisting it be kept secret. No escort. Obviously, that won’t work, but we’re just not going to tell Arthur about that.”
“Let me guess, out the secret tunnels and I’ll have the horses ready for you two?”
“Yes, please, Merlin. And will you tell one of the knights?”
“How about I tell Gwaine and you tell Elyan. Arthur won’t think anything of you talking to your brother.”
Gwen smiled. “Sounds like a plan. Do me a favor and stash my sword on the saddle, too, will you?”
“I’ll make sure both of us have them. I may not be as good as either of you, but I can hold off your basic bandit.” Merlin put the pot he had finished scrubbing as he talked to the side and wiped off his hands. “You and I both know Audrey won’t be fooled. She’ll know something is up.”
Gwe shrugged, “I know. Arthur still doesn’t understand how servants work and think. Maybe by the time he’s fifty, he’ll figure out that the world isn’t actually run by the nobles.”
Merlin snorted. “Fat chance of that. Maybe he should take a turn as a footman one week. For a feast, even. That’ll teach him.”
Merlin and Gwen looked at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter at the image of Arthur serving at a feast. They left Gaius’ workroom arm in arm before splitting off to accomplish their super-sneaky plan.
***
The plan went off without a hitch. Merlin stood outside the exit to the secret escape tunnel that he and Arthur had used to smuggle out Mordred as a child. He held the reins of two horses, with his nibbling on grass a little ways off. Arthur simply glared at Merlin’s horse and shook his head, accepting the fact that he and Gwen were not going to be completely alone without a word.
Merlin handed the reins to Arthur, “I stashed a picnic lunch at that grove by the stream to the east. I figured it was a nice place, and that huge oak tree’s leaves are turning some very lovely colors right now. Quite romantic.”
“It would be very romantic if we were alone.”
Gwen kissed Arthur briefly before he helped her into the saddle. “Arthur, you know as well as I that we can’t be completely alone. Sneaking out is risky enough.”
Arthur grimaced. It wasn’t often that he willingly neglected his duties or took a risk like this, but he needed the break. As much as he enjoyed the company of Merlin, even if he would never really admit it to the man, he had been looking forward to time completely alone with his wife. No distractions, no responsibilities, no demands on either of their time. He sometimes missed the time when he had just been the Crown Prince, and was able to go off when he liked.
After he mounted his own horse, he pointed it towards the stream Merlin had prepared for them. Before he could start riding, he saw a goshawk stoop on some prey in front of them. He breathed in a lungful of fresh air and smiled. Reaching out to clasp one of Gwen’s hands, he brought it up to his lips for a brief kiss.
“Shall we go?”
Gwen smiled. “Yes, let’s.”
***
Merlin tried his best to give the couple some space. He sat across the clearing against a gnarled tree after he served them, reading a book on herbal cures to pass the time while he nibbled on one of Audrey’s honey rolls. He tried to listen to everything around him but their conversation. Occasionally he caught the faint sound of metal clinking, but it came from where he had left Gwaine and Elyan earlier, so he wasn’t worried about it.
Gwaine was surprisingly good about this. Maybe he just liked the fact that Arthur had cut loose for once.
As he let his senses just roam, he heard another clink of metal, this time from the other side of the clearing. There were no guards that way. He stood and moved toward the horses quickly. Gwen and Arthur looked up at the sudden movement.
Arthur listened and stood himself, pulling Gwen up as he did. He kept his ear trained on the area the sound came from as he herded her toward the horses. Merlin pulled the two swords he’d stashed on his saddle and handed one to Gwen. Arthur pulled his own from the belt strapped to his waist. The three waited for a moment before Arthur turned to Gwen and helped her into the saddle.
He turned to Merlin, “Get her out of here.”
Merlin nodded and turned to mount his own horse. Before he could do more than get a foot in the stirrup, a group of men burst from the trees, yelling as they attacked.
Gwen turned her mount to face the men and held her sword ready. Merlin held his own sword as Arthur called out, “Gwen, get out of here!”
Some more jingling came from behind Merlin as Gwaine and Elyan burst out of the trees behind them, their own swords ready. Arthur looked shocked for half a second, but quickly recovered as the bandits bore down on him and he, Merlin, Gwen, and the knights took on the group that had mistakenly anticipated an easy fight.
***
The group that rode back into the castle was a bit bedraggled from the fight, but there were no injuries for Gaius to treat. Gwaine pulled off to grab a few other knights to dispose of the bodies they left behind, while Elyan went to report to Leon about the encounter. The First Knight needed to know if there were bandits this close to the castle.
Merlin followed Arthur and Gwen up to their quarters after sending the horses off with the stableman.
“So which of you planned the guards?” Arthur tried to look stern but Merlin could tell he wasn’t angry with anyone but himself.
Gwen and Merlin looked at each other and shrugged. “Both of us.”
Arthur grimaced. He took Gwen’s hand and held it. “I am sorry I put you at risk, my love.”
“Arthur, everything was fine.”
“If we had been truly alone-”
Gwen kissed him quickly to shut him up. “You never would have allowed anything to happen to me. We both know that.”
“I almost-”
“So now we know that we at least need Merlin and one guard next time we try to escape the castle for a few moments. A lesson learned. All is well.”
Arthur smiled dazedly. “You are not going to let me wallow in misery, are you?”
Gwen reached up and tucked his hair back a bit. “No. I am going to ask Merlin to get you a hot bath, and I am going to ask my maid to do the same. We are going to soak away the stress of the afternoon, and then we will have a lovely dinner by ourselves. No servants. Tomorrow we can worry about business.”
She kissed him gently before turning to the door, touching Merlin on the arm before she left.
“Well, I guess I have my orders. Excuse me, Arthur.” Merlin left Arthur standing in the middle of his quarters with the tiny smile still on his face.