"The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be." - Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Merlyn is sent to Camelot and things get a bit tricky from there.
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Arthur decided to go on a hunting trip after three and a half weeks. Merlyn immediately pouted. She despised hunting, as Arthur was well aware, but didn't seem to mind. Every other hunt they'd gone on had ended in disaster or fatal risk, so why would this one be any different, she wondered?
Despite this, Arthur's motions were confident as he glided into the woodland, stealthy and quiet, with the full hunting group trailing behind him. Meryln remained by his side, carrying all of his equipment. She wasn't as quiet as the others, stumbling and dropping weapons as she went deeper.
It was not Merlyn's strong suit.
"Merlyn, spear," Arthur whispered quietly. Merlyn rolled her eyes and attempted to draw the spear from the pile, but instead dumped the hefty weapon at his feet. He gave her a face, the annoyed, pinched gaze he only reserved for his barely competent servant. "Do you have any natural, useful gifts, Merlyn?"
"Well, now that you think about it... ah! I'm not naturally rude or insensitive, unlike another man that I know," Merlyn responded pointedly, raising a brow in Arthur's direction.
"No. You're just naturally irritating," Arthur clarified. And annoying. He wasn't sure why Merlyn in her traveling attire was such a desirable appearance on her, but it was. He wished she wasn't at all attractive so he wouldn't have these inappropriate thoughts about her.
"Well, you... you are a clotpole," Merlyn hissed quietly.
Arthur rolled his eyes. "You've used that insult already, I'm afraid. Would you like some ice for that incredible burn of yours?"
"No, because that will just make the burn worse. Using cold water is more effective," Merlyn responded.
"Shut up, Merlyn," Arthur retorted and picked the spear up.
As they moved farther into the forest, loud, frightening growls rang through the dense trees and hazy environment. Arthur returned his gaze to his group and observed Merlyn flinch back slightly, his eyes flashing uncertainly toward the mist.
"It's probably more scared of you than you are of it," Arthur reassured quietly, and Merlyn nodded, grateful for the words of comfort.
Arthur signaled his knights to form a circle and cut whatever beast lay in the forest.
A enormous beast leapt from the shadows, with the body of a leopard and the head of a serpent. Merlyn exclaimed. The beast hissed furiously at them, causing the party to come to a halt and flee. Even when confronted with a potentially lethal beast, she discovered that her clumsiness had persisted until she arrived in a safe place.
Merlyn's foot got snagged on a tree and she fell to the ground, then turned to see how far away the beast was. Merlyn was frozen in terror. The beast was barely a few steps away, venom dripping from its ivory fangs, and Sir Bedivere had returned to save her, pulling her up from the filthy ground. When she was finally able to stand on her own, Arthur took her hand and dragged her away from the beast.
