Canal Boat Summer (Merthur Fanfic)

Toddler Trouble

Merlin Emrys chewed anxiously on end of his pen, until the plastic split into a spider's web of white cracks. Waving his hand over it, the cracks filled up again, and the pen was renewed to shiny, new plastic. He flicked through his paper, rechecking his answers, then his eyed darted up to the clock hanging on the far wall. It was three o'clock, and the exam had started later than anticipated, so there was three minutes left. A Level Biology wasn't the hardest, but it wasn't a breeze either, and Merlin needed a good result if he was going to get into his university of choice. True, he could have cheated, but what was the point? He contemplated looking back, to see if Gwen had finished, but he didn't want to be caught by a hawk-eyed examiner. His best friend was probably staring into space, anyway, lost in a terrific daydream. She'd always been away with the fairies, had Gwen, she had a fantasy world, all packed inside her curly head, all colourful fables and witty rhymes. Merlin felt more comfortable clinging to facts and figures, the truth rather than fiction. He had always found it ironic that, until recently, his truth had been nothing but fiction to her.

The last three minutes seemed to last a lifetime, but at last they were released from the hall, into the fresh, warm air of a brand new summer. Merlin slipped off his blazer, and stuffed it into his shoulder bag; he wouldn't be needing that again. Gwen pulled hers off too, but began to tie it around her waist as her handbag wasn't quite big enough to capacitate it. Merlin snatched it off of her and pulled the bottom slightly. Nothing seemed to happen at first, until she unzipped it and found that her blazer now tucked nicely into the top. They walked with their arms around each other through the milling crowds and out of the school gates. From there they trekked up the hill to the footpath by the old canal. The two friends leapt over the stile with ease and wore down the dusty walkway as they ambled slowly home.

The canal wasn't often used anymore, not apart from a few slick painted barges in reds, blues, yellows, greens and blacks. There were places for fishing further along, where Gwen's father liked to spend his lazy Sunday afternoons. But the barge-dwellers ruled the canal. Most were holiday homes, in a way, owned by retired couples, or being rented to the younger generation wanting to try something a bit different. They were either moored there or passing through. Others were the pride and joy of a few locals, painting them and spending long weekends just floating a few miles up and down the canal. Very few were actually permanently lived in, and even those moved on every month or so. Only one barge stayed long enough for it's inhabitants to become part of the community.

The Du Lacs were a young, slightly alternative, family of three. Each was dark haired and beautiful. The father, Lancelot, had a shop in the town, full of the most exotic and unusual treasures. His hair was mid-length with a slight curl, his eyes were as dark as his locks and he had a thin line of stubble on his sun-kissed face. He was so strikingly attractive that Merlin would have tried it on with him if Lance wasn't straight. The mother, Morgana, was an artist, and a very good one at that. She had hair that was almost black but her skin was pale, her cheeks were rosy and her eyes were bottle-green. Often when Merlin and Gwen passed she would be swirling paint onto her easel with a wriggling toddler on her knee. His name was Mordred and he was the spitting image of his mother, all except for two sky blue eyes- unlike those belonging to either of his parents- that peered out from under his wavy fringe. He liked to chase the ducks, making fat little grabby hands as he waddled towards them, giggling and chirping with glee. Gwen always cooed and aw-ed at the little boy and Merlin ruffled his hair as they passed. The Du Lacs had lived on their red and black canal boat since before Mordred was born and almost everyone who lived in Ealdor and Avalon and between adored them.

That day as they passed Morgana was drying bedding on the roof of the barge and Mordred, having abandoned assisting her, was cocooned in a damp pillowcase and swinging his podgy legs off the edge. His mother grinned at Merlin and Gwen, who smiled and waved back. Morgana called out to greet the teenagers and so they wandered over to the water's edge to engage in conversation. The older girl looked flustered and a little panicked.