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“I quit.”
“What?”
“I quit.” Merlin dropped the brush he was holding and turned to walk out the door.
Arthur blinked. “You— you can’t do that.”
“Yes, I can. Watch me.” Merlin opened the door.
Arthur scowled. “No, you can’t. You can’t just say ‘I quit’ and walk out the door.”
Merlin glared at him. “I quit,” he said and walked out the door.
“Merlin!” Arthur jumped up from his desk to run after him but slipped over the wet floor where Merlin was scrubbing and fell. “MERLIN!”
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“Hey, Merlin,” Lancelot smiled in greeting when Merlin entered the armory. “You here to polish Arthur’s armor?”
“No,” Merlin said simply.
“Oh. Do you need his sword then?”
“No,” Merlin said again.
“Does he need his shield?” Gwaine asked. “I swear, he better not. I hate shield practice. Hardly any action there.”
“No. I’m not here to get any of Arthur’s things.”
The knights looked at each other. “Then… why are you here?” Merlin hated being in the armory. He said so himself often, complaining about the everlasting smell of sweat that never left the rooms.
Merlin shrugged. “Can’t I visit my friends whenever I want?”
“Yes, but you’re with Arthur most of the time,” Percival pointed out. “So it’s a little unusual to see you here without him and without a reason that doesn’t have anything to do with him.”
Merlin scowled. “Well, you’re going to have to get used to it soon because I quit.”
The knights blinked. “You what?” Gwaine asked.
“I quit,” Merlin repeated.
“You what?” Elyan asked.
“I quit.”
“You what?” Lancelot asked.
Merlin’s scowl deepened. “I quit.”
“You what?” Leon asked.
“I think I’ve repeated myself enough.”
The knights exchanged glances again, this time in horror. This could not be good.
“Why…” Lancelot cleared his throat. “Why did you quit?”
“Because he was being a prat.” He shrugged.
“So… what are you doing now?” Gwaine asked.
Merlin mused. “I should be looking for a new job, I suppose. Being Gaius’ apprentice is sort of a consequence of living with him than a job.” He narrowed his eyes at them. “Would any of you consider hiring me?” he suddenly asked.
The air turned awkward as the knights looked at one another in discomfort. “Uh, I really don’t know what I would do with a personal servant,” Elyan rubbed the back of his head nervously.
“It’s more to do with spiting Arthur than having a job.”
“I really don’t have any need of a servant,” Lancelot said with an uneasy smile.
“Especially having you as a servant,” Gwaine added. “I see you more as a friend than just a servant.”
Merlin flung his arms up. “See? This is the acknowledgement I wanted. How much effort does it take to just say that?” He rolled his eyes.
Leon pursed his lips. “Well, how long will you be willing to offer your services?” he asked.
“You seriously can’t be considering it,” Percival said incredulously.
“Why not?” Merlin argued. “I’m happy to be Leon’s temporary servant. Although,” he turned to him, “just pretend it’s a permanent thing to Arthur.”
“How temporary is it?”
Merlin hummed. “Let’s say… a week? Maybe two? He was being extra pratty lately.”
Leon nodded and smiled. “It’s done. What will you be doing then?”
“Well, what do you usually tell the staff to do?”
“Not much,” he admitted. “I don’t have a set servant. The castle staff just do favors here and there. Sometimes bringing food after training or setting up the occasional bath, taking messages, all that.”
“Don’t you also have a squire?” Percival asked.
“Not anymore. Little Alymere has now become Sir Alymere,” he said proudly.
“Aww,” Merlin cooed. “Okay, I’ll just carry out whatever I do for Arthur with you.”
“What do you do for Arthur?” Gwaine suddenly asked.
Merlin sighed. “Way too much.”
That night, Leon showed Merlin around his room and introduced him to his schedule to familiarise himself with Leon's routine. Then Merlin listed the chores he usually did for Arthur.
"That is…" Leon fumbled around for words. "A lot."
"Tell me about it," Merlin huffed.
They negotiated on the things Merlin could do and Leon insisted that he dress himself, privately surprised that the king needed help putting on a shirt.
Merlin had already gone to the steward and let him know of the new arrangement, and the steward, who had been conditioned to Merlin's antics over the years, had just rolled with it.
When all the negotiations were over, Merlin and Leon shook on it and exchanged a nod.
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"So…" Arthur approached Leon in the training grounds the next morning. "I heard you hired Merlin now."
"Yes," Leon nodded in confirmation. "He was looking for a new job and asked me so I was only happy to help out."
Arthur hummed, examining a mace. He swung it around testily then turned to Leon and smirked. "So how was your morning?"
Leon's face lit up. "It was quite honestly one of the best mornings I've ever had!" And it was.
Merlin had opened the curtains in a way where the light wasn’t piercing his eyes but gently warming his face. The aroma of a good, hot breakfast was also there as a pleasant incentive to get out of bed. The fireplace had a small fire started before he woke up to drive away the morning chill. Merlin had provided a bowl of water, heated to a blissful lukewarm temperature to wash his face with, then immediately followed by a soft towel.
Then Merlin had gone through his to-do list for the day, broken up and prioritized tasks and spoke with people beforehand for some minor postponements and now Leon was ahead of schedule.
As Leon relayed everything to Arthur with wide gestures and multiple gratitudes sprinkled throughout the rant, Arthur’s eyebrow twitched more and more. He was no doubt recalling Merlin’s routine of flinging his bedcovers off with him still on the bed, stuffing his breakfast directly into his face and pushing him around his own room to get ready before he was late.
Finally, Arthur looked away, an almost-pout on his face. “Good for you,” he said gruffly before walking off.
He ignored him for the rest of training, much to Leon’s confusion.
When Merlin appeared during the knight’s training break with sugared and cool lemon water instead of normal water, he drew not only Arthur’s eye but the rest of the knights too.
“Merlin,” Leon sighed, staring at the glass (thankfully it was a glass, not a goblet). “Tone it down a little please.”
“Why?” Merlin asked, his eye on Arthur. “It’s working on Arthur. Plus, you’re getting all these benefits.”
“You’re making the knights hold grudges against me,” Leon said, giving up and taking the extremely inviting cold drink and glugging it, driving out the heat and exhaustion.
“Besides,” he handed the glass back, “I don’t want benefits at the cost of your health. You’ve barely started being my manservant and I’ve talked to a couple other servants and Cook and they’ve all said how much you’ve already overworked yourself this morning. Gaius said you were up at five.”
Merlin swiveled around to face him.
“Five!”
Merlin smiled, a warm feeling tingling down his spine. “Thank you, Leon,” he said quietly, touched. “Arthur never bothers noticing that.”
Leon shook his head. “I know he has changed from the arrogant-headed prince he was before—”
Merlin sniggered.
“—but you can’t take a part of his personality out completely.”
“He doesn’t do it with other servants,” Merlin mumbled.
“That’s because other servants aren’t you,” Leon answered, putting a light hand on his shoulder. “You are more than just a servant to Arthur, and he takes you for granted in a way someone would take a… a…” He struggled, eyes darting to and fro to find a good comparison. “A blocked nose!” he finally declared triumphantly.
Merlin looked amused. “A blocked nose?”
“Yes, you don’t notice that you’re breathing until your nose is blocked. Which is when everything seems miserable and you wish for the block to go away and your normal breathing to return. It’s the same with you and Arthur.”
Merlin shuffled his feet, considering Leon’s words.
“When you’re not there, Merlin, Arthur falls apart,” Leon said gently. “Anyone can see that.”
Merlin watched as Arthur threw a dagger with perfect precision and had it land on the target. That just seemed to anger him more and the king stomped over and started yelling at the target as he pulled the dagger out, then fell on his ass.
Merlin grinned at the absurd sight. “I guess so,” he said. “But I’m still not giving up until he apologizes.”
“Didn’t expect you to. Just tone things down a little and give yourself a break. I have training till noon, so go ahead and take some time for yourself.”
Merlin smiled gratefully at Leon. “Thank you, Leon. I’ll make sure Cook gives you one of her sweet cakes for lunch.”
As he dashed off though, neither of them realized that the other knights were listening in on their conversation.
Noticing the the beyond exceptional treatment Leon was getting from Merlin the Clumsy and Idiotic Manservant who had proved himself to be quite competent, the other knights started to seek him out.
“Never knew that fool had it in him,” said Sir Edward.
“He was never a fool, Edward,” Sir Alymere said. “I was a squire to Sir Leon and every time Merlin appeared, he always treated him with respect. The entire inner Round Table does. The king too, he often took his manservant’s advice on important things such as war and matters of the state.”
“I’ve heard about it too,” Sir Harrington added. “Though it is hard to believe.”
“I think,” Sir Galahad mused, “If we were to start being nice to him… perhaps… perhaps he could give some of us those benefits too.”
“What are you talking about?” Sir Edward inquired.
“Think about it. Merlin quit being King Arthur’s manservant, so that must mean that he’s up for grabs.”
Realization dawned on all of them and their faces cleared, heads perking up with interest.
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Over the course of the next week, Merlin was the prime and first-string servant in all of Camelot.
He polished Leon’s armor so well that it shone more than Arthur’s ever did.
He sharpened his blade to be so sharp that it cut through the training dummy in just five strikes.
He brought Leon small feasts and multiple-course meals (in which he and Leon both sat down to eat together).
He drew a bath for Leon every second day and it was the perfect temperature (though that was the only thing that wasn’t different to Arthur’s treatment).
News somehow spread like wildfire through servants and nobles alike.
The steward hesitantly approached Merlin to ask if he wanted a raise (which Merlin gladly accepted, happy to be able to send more money to his mother and help Gaius procure food for the two of them). The younger servants nipped at his sleeves, asking for advice and autographs since he was so popular. The other older servants either gave him side-eyes or awed looks.
Then, one day, Merlin was stopped by a lord, who secretly wanted that fabled hot bath, and asked him to be his servant, offering a hefty pay. It was still lower than what Arthur gave him (though Merlin never boasted about it, so not many people knew. Which, if they did, would have realized that despite experiences just how much the king valued his servant), so Merlin pulled a face and said, “No,” then walked away, leaving behind a horrified lord who had just been told no to his face for the first time.
Then two knights who used to make fun of him approached him, using sickeningly polite tones to ask for some of the sweetened lemon water. “Sorry, it’s for my master,” Merlin replied.
“We’ll hire you then,” they offered.
Merlin raised an amused eyebrow in such a perfect Gaius style that the two knights rescinded their offer and walked away with their heads hung.
A lady approached him once while he was fetching Leon’s dinner and made the same offer of being her servant.
Merlin stared at her in disbelief.
The lady huffed. “You’re quite handsome for a servant. Surely it will be an honor serving me.”
“I don’t think I like the job that comes with being a maid, thanks,” Merlin replied shortly before scampering off in the direction of Leon’s rooms.
Though the requests were annoying, they were perfect for setting Arthur’s teeth on edge, so with Gwen’s and (surprisingly) George’s help, Merlin made sure word of these requests went to Arthur’s ear. And indeed, it grated Arthur greatly. But he still refused to apologize. So Merlin continued trailing after Leon (who was treating him more as a friend than a servant, which only fueled Merlin’s desire to go through extremities just for him).
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On the fifth day of being Leon’s servant, a magical creature attacked Camelot.
Peasants and common folk approached the king with reports of it approaching their children and old people at night and making them gravely ill. Gaius’s hands were so full that Merlin had to cut down on his time with Leon to help him (and also find a spell to get rid of the creature).
But because the creature was small, sprite-like and exceedingly slippery, he kept escaping and sending Merlin and Gaius back to square one to find it and vanquish it. At least his magic was protecting him from getting sick. Gaius too still had a small residue of magic keeping the creature’s sickness at bay, though it was a brittle and temporary cure.
The creature escaping led to Merlin giving odd excuses to Leon in order to find it. Fortunately, Leon just went with it. It surprised Merlin at first before he reminded himself that Leon wasn’t Arthur, so he blithely took it.
Finally, after combing through yet another entire shelf of books, Merlin found a way to catch and kill it. He set out that night with a small piece of mistletoe, a cloth bag and a spell ready on his tongue.
Coincidentally, Leon had just finished his guard shift. The knight was returning to his chambers when he spotted Merlin walking out of the gates with a big brown bag slung on his shoulder.
Must be collecting more herbs to treat the ill, Leon thought to himself. Well, that bag looked quite big and Merlin, being the scrawny guy he was, could probably use some help. So Leon followed him out.
One thing he discovered was that Merlin was quick. Those herbs must be an emergency.
Jogging to catch up, Leon didn’t see Arthur in the dark until he bumped into him.
“Sire! I’m terribly sorry.”
“It’s alright, Leon,” Arthur waved him away.
Leon had truthfully expected the king to start resenting him for taking Merlin, but it had turned out that he didn’t need to worry at all. Arthur was a good and righteous man. He didn’t hold grudges against those who hadn’t directly wronged him. At times like these, Leon was proud to serve under him as the First Knight.
“Are you following Merlin?” Arthur asked. “So you’ve noticed him sneak out suspiciously too?”
Leon tilted his head inquisitively. “No… I just thought he might need some help gathering the herbs Gaius has requested.”
Arthur blinked at him. “Herbs?”
“Yes? For the sick people flooding the court physician’s chambers?”
Arthur blinked again. “And you… were going to help him? Not follow him?”
Leon shook his head. “That would mean that I’m showing my own employee that I don’t trust him. Moreover, by helping him I’m strengthening the bond between us not just as master and servant, but as friends.”
Arthur stared.
“Have you never helped him with any of his minor duties, sire?”
Arthur shuffled awkwardly. “I.. didn’t have the time…”
Suddenly, a high-pitched squeak like a pig’s but multiplied by pitch wailed through the air.
“That’s the creature!” Leon exclaimed.
“Merlin!” Arthur shouted and was already off running.
The two cut across the forest, swords drawn, ready to defend poor, defenseless Merlin at the creature’s mercy.
When they arrived at the tiny clearing, the pixie-like creature as small as a palm’s length was zipping here and there around Merlin’s head. Merlin was jerking around, trying to keep it in his eyesight and catching it with his brown sack.
“Merlin, look out!” Arthur yelled, darting forward and pushing him back.
Leon traveled through the trees to sneak up behind the creature.
“Arthur?” Merlin gasped with panic. “What are you doing here?!”
“Saving your sorry butt it seems.”
“No! Get out of here! It’ll catch you!”
“I can say the same for you,” Arthur said indignantly, eyes on the zooming creature, still planted in front of Merlin. “What were you thinking sneaking off into the forest alone and without a weapon to collect herbs?”
Merlin didn’t reply. Mainly because he caught Leon slowly sneaking up behind the creature who was now watching Arthur and Merlin bicker with interest. He raised his sword, hoping to slice it in one stroke when it suddenly turned and charged at him.
“Leon!” Arthur and Merlin both shouted.
Leon fell to the ground, the air rushing out of his lungs at the impact.
The creature spat golden shimmering powder at him and he rolled to dodge it.
The creature was faster and eventually, Leon was backed up against a tree, the creature readying to spew its golden dust at him.
Without warning, like magic, Merlin appeared and jumped over the creature with his sack open, successfully trapping it.
He quickly closed the sack, but the creature still zipped around, trying to escape. Merlin fell over but thankfully managed to keep hold of the sack. He curled into himself, away from both Arthur and Leon’s vision, crushed the mistletoe in his palm and whispered a spell.
The creature froze and vibrated violently on the spot before exploding, throwing Merlin back two feet.
“Whoa,” Leon said, sitting up, dazed.
Arthur pulled him up and the two approached Merlin who was looking up at the sky, breathing heavily.
“You alright, Merlin?” Leon asked.
“Yep.”
Arthur and Leon both extended a hand.
Merlin looked at them both, eyebrow raising, before clasping both their hands and hauling himself up with their help.
“So the creature doesn’t like being trapped,” Leon commented.
“Yep.”
Leon smiled. “Thank you for saving my life, Merlin.”
Merlin grinned and shrugged. “It was part of my job when I was Arthur’s servant. So I suppose it’s part of my job to protect you since I serve you now.”
Arthur glared at him.
Leon resisted the urge to chuckle and ruffled the younger man’s hair.
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Two days later, Arthur stormed into Leon’s chambers, interrupting the breakfast Leon had just sat down to eat.
Arthur froze at the breakfast spread fit for a king, the soft, embroidered napkin on the knight’s lap, and the water with cucumber slices in it that Merlin was pouring for Leon.
Arthur shook his head firmly, then walked up to Merlin, grabbed his shoulders, and started begging. “I’m sorry. Okay? Please, Merlin, come back and return to my service. I can’t survive with only George there. I need you in my life, please.”
Merlin blinked at him, flushing red. He was quite honestly touched and a little more than surprised. “I— I— It’s— It’s up to Leon now,” he stuttered.
Leon looked at him, and— He actually looked reluctant. He liked having Merlin around.
Arthur turned to Leon. “Please, Leon,” he pleaded. “Please sack him and let him come back to me.”
Leon chewed on his bottom lip. “As long as you treat him well,” he permitted. “If not,” he faced Merlin, “you’re more than welcome to come back to my service.”
Merlin beamed and finished pouring his glass before putting down his pitcher.
Then he swiveled around and walked out of the chamber while rattling off all the duties and events Arthur had that day, somehow remembering them all. “Fine. If I’m back, then you have no time to lose. You have a poetry judging contest this evening which you need to give a small opening speech for, I can do that if you give me the afternoon off. You have to assess the recent squad of squires for training this morning. Before lunch, you have a meeting with the council and your uncle. After lunch, you have to check in with the steward about the recent report of the castle’s ongoings, you can also let him know that I’m back in your employment while you’re at it. I know you’ve already forgotten what you had to do this morning, so—”
There were a ridiculous number of items on the list already, but Arthur grinned merrily as he followed Merlin out through to the hallway.
Leon was still seated at the breakfast table.
He looked around at his comfortable room and the spread of breakfast.
Well… perhaps he could be late to training just this once. At least until the incense smell ran out. It would be a shameful pity to waste all these privileges since Merlin wasn’t here anymore. Better enjoy them while he could.
So Leon took a sip of the fresh water before digging into his breakfast.
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“I still don’t understand one thing, Merlin.”
“Hmm?” Merlin poked the needle through the boot.
“You woke Leon up with heaven’s blessings, why didn’t you… well…” He trailed off.
“Why don’t I wake you or give you the same treatment I did with Leon?” Merlin finished his sentence.
Arthur nodded.
Merlin put down his work and sighed. “First of all, being your servant means I get more chores than I do being a servant to a knight since you’re king. So I just don’t have the time and physical and mental capacity for the extra bits. And second,” he smirked. “Before you came, your previous servants used to get up three hours before you just so they could get you out of bed and ready in time since they didn’t want to wake the prince in the rude and forceful way. Tell me, how many times were you late to meetings and things then?”
Arthur’s eyes went wide in realization.
“Now, because of the tactics I built especially for you, you’re actually out of bed and on time for things.”
Arthur nodded slowly but caught himself and scowled, huffing. “Whatever.” He went back to his papers.
Merlin grinned and picked up his sewing.