Ancient Help (A Harry Potter and Merlin Crossover)

Chapter Seventeen: Of Picnics and Mothers

Merlin released a silent yawn as he opened Arthur's door, ready for a new day.

The said Prince was surprisingly awake, deeply contemplating on his desk. When his manservant came, he looked up and frowned, conflicting emotions running through his face.

"You're up early," Merlin pointed out, disbelieving. He walked towards Arthur's bed and started fixing it. From his seat, Arthur shifted so that he would be looking directly at the young warlock. Merlin, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow at his thoughtful face.

"I've been thinking," Arthur started, slowly standing up from his seat and pacing. Merlin now had stopped fixing his bed and straightened up, looking intently at Arthur. He seemed seriously deep in thought, which was always quite alarming to Merlin.

But then, to his surprise, Arthur stopped right at his window and looked outside, a small, fond smile growing on his lips. "I haven't properly spent some of my time with Guinevere before."

His manservant looked at him with wide eyes. "Like a date?" he asked. When Arthur mindlessly nodded and continued to stare outside his window, he laughed. "Such enchantment in your eyes, sire." The Prince turned to him and glared, prompting him to calm himself down. "Yes, a date. How about a picnic? I'm sure Gwen will love that."

Arthur pursed his lips, thinking, before slowly nodding his head. "It's not exactly a bad idea," he said, raising an eyebrow at Merlin. "Who knew you could come up with good suggestions after all."

Merlin stared, unsure of how to take his comment.

"Go bring some flowers to Guinevere or something," Arthur said, waving a dismissive hand.

His manservant eagerly nodded his head. If he finished this task, he was sure Arthur would dismiss him so that he could have some private moment with the maidservant.

"Oh, and Merlin," the Prince said, stopping him from his walk. Merlin turned around and looked back at him questioningly. "I want you to stand guard. You may not know this, but perhaps there would be magical beasts lurking around."

A protesting scowl grew on Merlin's face. "But sire..."

"Of course you can bring Hermione, if you like," Arthur then added, a knowing smirk on his face.

That had stopped him from his protest. Merlin slowly closed his mouth, blushed up until his ears, and nodded.

"As what I've thought," the Prince said, rolling his eyes at his obviousness. "Now, off you go. I'm going to visit my father first before I prepare for this."

Once again, his manservant nodded and left his room.

__________

"Hold on," Hermione exclaimed, closing the door and stepping outside. "Really?"

Gwen laughed and instantly hooked with Hermione's arm as they strolled towards the castle. "Yes," she answered back, followed by a soft sigh. "Ridiculous, I guess, but during the first few weeks of Merlin's arrival, I actually had this small crush on him. I'm not really sure if he noticed."

The brunette looked beside her friend in surprise. 'That was new,' she thought. She never expected that the future Queen Guinevere used to have this crush on the future legendary warlock Merlin. Thinking about it, she thought it was slightly silly, almost laughable. She could not imagine Gwen stammering nervously in front of Merlin, just like how she sometimes acted when Arthur was in the vicinity.

"Well, I'm sure that had passed now," Hermione said, prompting Gwen to grin.

"Oh, of course," she said flippantly, waving her hand dismissively. "And besides..." She innocently smiled at Hermione. "I'm sure his affections are else - "