It was a sunny day in early spring and Arthur and Merlin went for a ride in the woods. The birds were out and so were the flowers. All the trees have there leaves and are covered in blossoms and the smell is in the air. Merlin smiled at the scenery; he loved nature.

"Hurry up Merlin!" Arthur shouted from in front. The early spring sun beamed down on him and made his golden hair glow like a halo. Merlin's heart skipped a beat at the site. He egged on his horse to catch up with Authurs horse.

"What's the hurry we're just out for a nice ride?" he said

"Yes Merlin but you're very slow" said Arthur in that princely voice of his.

"Because I am not a master horseider I spent my days doing WORK, not playing with ponies" remarked Merlin smirking

"You'd thikn if you spend all you're time working you'd be better at your job and not such an incompentat buffoon!" Arthur retorted.

"You'd think you wouldn't be such a clotpole" Merlin muttered.

"I heard that!" Arthur shouted. Suddenly the horses read up and whinnied in distress. The careless hoof of one of the horses had disturbed a snake snoozing in the sun and it had reared it's head up threateningly. Arthur struggled to keep his horse under control, but Merlin slipped from the saddle and crashed to the ground with a sickening crunch that echoed in Arthur's ears long after he had heard it.

"Merlin!" Arthur cried. He lept from the back of his chestnut mare: Degore. In one swift movement Aurthur brandished his sword from its scabbard and sliced the serpent's head clean of it's body. It fell in the disitant bushes with a soft plop.

"Merlin!" he repeated, concern spilling into his voice like a goblet overflowing with wine. He fell to his knees beside his manservents body, prostate on the ground, his eyes were closed, his body limp, his head was turned away, Arthur could not see if he even breathed. Arthur gripped the buttery leather of his leather riding gloves between his teeth and tore them off first one and then eth other.

"Merlin!" he said once more in an urgent whisper as his eyes roamed over the dark haired mans body checkig for injury. He placed his hand on his delicately boned shoulder and gave a gentle shake which was met with no response. He moved his hand up and ran his thumb along Merlin's ethereal cheekbone in a gentle carress his marble white skin was as cold as alabastar. His eyelids finally fluttered at his touch before falling still again. Arthur's hand moved up until his fingers were entertwined with Merlin's raven locks. Aurthur felt his heart drop through his stomach and plummet to the floor as his fingers found a tacky wetness in the fragile mans scalp.

"Oh no..." he whispered sadly his eyes were blue oceans of unshed tears. Merlin's hair was matted with blood that was idly seeping from a gash in his hair. Due to his time spent on the battlefield Arthur had seen many types of wounds and he knew that a head injury such as this was very serious and he must get Merlin to Gaius as quicklt as possible.

Arthur mounted his horse with merlin in front of him held close to his chest. He felt cold and Arthur tried to warm him up with his body heat. They set of in the direction of Camolot at a gallop.

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Arthur bust into Gaius's house carrying Merlin bridal style between his arms. Gaius jumped at the enormous crash of te door.

"Gaius help me!" Arthurs voice boomed all around the small chamber. Gais saw Merlin in Arthurs arms and audibyl gasped.

"Whatever happened sire?" he said looking worried and frowning in concern.

"He was thrown from his horse in the forest, there was a snake in the undergrowth and his horse became spooked" Aurthur explained quickly and laid Merlin on the table that Gaius had cleared for him. Gaius examined the matted mess of Merlin's hair probing gently at the wound as he did so. He looked grave and concerned.

"Is the snake dead?" asked Gais.

"Yes it is slain, I killed it." Arthur confirmed.

"Very good sire" said gaius. He stood up. He got a bowl of water and a small cloth and began to dab Merlin's injury.

"Well he be okay Gaius?" Arthur said frowning. Arthur didn't wnat to show it to Gaius but since he had watched his manservant fall from his saddle his mind had been a torrent of emotion...it was tearing itself apart with the fear that he may have lost the one person who understood him, who didn't treat him like prince, but just as a man, and hearing the harsh crash of bone hitting rock as merlin fell, and seeing him lying lifeless, had made Arthur realise, with a sickening jolt, like being hit by lightning, that he needed the man.

"This wound is most severe. He must be kept warm and be looked after. He may not survive the night but if he does he will make a full recovery" Gaius explained. Arthur was stricken. There was only one thing he could think to do.

"I will tend to him" Aurthur declared.

"But sire!" Gais exclaimed.

"No Gaius, I will look after him, I am responsible" Arthur stated firmly. Gaius frowned the nodded. Arthur pulled up a chair next to the bed and took the moistened cloth from him and continued to bathe Merlin's wound.

For hours he sat there in the growing darkeness watching like a hawk for any sign of life. In the distance darkness outside he heard a bell toll onimously thrice, the somber tones echoing throught the cold dark corridors. An owl cooed in the courtyard. Merlin loved owls, Arthur thought, his thoughts again being drawn to the man before him.

"Oh Merlin, please wake up, you have to wake up, I don't know what I would do without you" Aurthur sighed and brushed his fingers across Merlin's forehead, gently brushing his hair away from his eyes. It was getting too long.

"Actually I'd proabbly have a better servant. One who could make a good breakfast. And clean my chambers properly" Arthur smiled slightly , but the smile did not reach his eyes, brimming with tears. The soft candlelight flickered causing the deep shadows on Merlin's face to dance. His almosy transparent skin glowed gold in the attendant light.

"...But they could never mean as much to me as you do" Arthur was surprised by the strength of his feeling, when he had seen Merlin's face as he fell from his horse he had looked so terrified, Arthur wanted to reach across the void between them and save him.

"Even though you're annoying, and insubordinate, and lazy, and cheeky, and funny, and..." he trailed off, unsure. 'Beautiful' he had thought, but that was absurd, Merlin wasn't beautiful, he was...otherworldly, with his porcelain skin and cheekbones sharp enough to cut crystatl glass and long sooty eyelashes and soft whorls of oversized ears, which Arthur had thought ungainly at first but now held an endearing charm.

"And beautiful," Aruther finished, whispering it out loud as he grasped the unconscious man's hand, "and you need to wake up now because I don't know what I'd do without you" His eyes were captured by Merlin's lips- usually so rosy and full of life but pale and languid now- and as he imagined Merlin's boyish smile his heart skipped a beat.

"And I love you." He murmurder, his voice breaking in a sob as the tears escaped from his eye. He leaned forward to place a kiss on those lips that enchanted him.

As Arthur pulled back he noticed Merlin's eyelids where open. Arthur tried to shuffle back in shock, but Merlin's hand had crept to the back of his neck to hold him in place. Their faces just inches apart.

"I heard that." Merlin smiled that beautiful boyish smile that Arthur had just been thinking about.

"You herd that?" came Arthur's nervous reply, he was already thinking of ways to explain his actions away.

"Yes" Merlin was blushing slightly now. "You're never that nice to me when I'm awake."

"Ah." Responded Arthur, lost for words as he treid to pull away gently. His heart was in his mouth.

"And I love you too... clotpole." Grinned Merlin as he pulled him down for a porper kiss.