10 Years of Merlin & Arthur - Day 4: Scenery/Locations

[fifty_fifty]

Title: Rub-A-Dub-Dub, Court Sorcerer in a Tub
Rating: Mature
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Character(s): Merlin, Arthur Pendragon
Word Count: 1525
Summary: “Merlin, you and I both know that water in the tub is stone cold. Surely you weren’t planning on presenting the King of Camelot with an ice bath? Heat it up.”

Merlin looked over at the door in confusion and reached down to picked up the buckets and started to make towards the door. Damn Arthur, now he had to go and haul another several dozen buckets of water up all those stairs, ensuring they actually were hot to begin with.

“Oh, stop running away and looking confused, Merlin. We both know you don’t need buckets.”

Merlin froze mid-step.

“Heat it up. I won’t ask again,” Arthur commanded.
Author’s Notes: Written for @merthurdaily‘s 10 Years of Merlin & Arthur celebration - Day 4: Scenery/Locations Also on AO3 here.

Merlin poured yet another bucket of water out into the wooden bath, cursing Arthur all the while for still sitting there at his desk. If only he had slipped out to see one of the Knights, or to go and check on the armoury as he often did whilst Merlin was preparing his bath. Then he wouldn’t be stuck here carting bucket after bucket of water from the kitchen to his chambers. But no, he just had to be sitting there, writing away at something. Probably a stupid law regarding the new grain stores that the council had been proposing.

At least Merlin didn’t have to hang around in the kitchen forever waiting for the water in the cauldron to heat. A whispered word when the water was in the tub would have it reaching the perfect temperature in an instant. But only if Arthur looked away or moved to the second room of his chambers. Maybe Merlin could get it heated when he went to undress behind his changing screen?

He paused, still holding the last bucket in his hand, the suggestion that Arthur go and get ready on the tip of his tongue.

“Go on then,” said Arthur.

Merlin turned at looked at him with surprise. “What do you mean?”

Arthur nodded at the bathtub. “I said, go on then.”

With a small frown Merlin looked between Arthur and the bathtub and then slowly started to pull off his jacket.

“As much as I’d enjoy watching you perform a striptease Merlin, I don’t think either of us would particularly enjoy a freezing cold bath.”

Merlin paused, mid-way through pulling his shirt off and part of him was thankful that Arthur couldn’t see the look of surprise on his face that Arthur would enjoy watching him undress, and the other part of him was acutely embarrassed that he’d mistaken what Arthur had meant with his head gesture with that. He hesitated before finishing tugging his shirt off of his head, figuring it was already inside out and so he would need to take it off first to put it back on properly anyway. He clutched it close to his chest to try and shield himself from Arthur’s gaze.

But Arthur carried on staring at him, his face calm and unreadable. Merlin gulped nervously. “I’m sorry, I don’t follow?”

Now Arthur looked annoyed. “Merlin, you and I both know that water in the tub is stone cold. Surely you weren’t planning on presenting the King of Camelot with an ice bath? Heat it up.”

Merlin glanced over at the door in confusion. He reached down to pick up the buckets and started to make towards the door. Damn Arthur. Now he had to go and haul another several dozen buckets of water up all those stairs, with the lovely addition of ensuring the water was actually hot to begin with. And he had the nerve to be annoyed at Merlin.

“Oh, stop running away and looking confused, Merlin. We both know you don’t need buckets.”

Merlin froze mid-step.

“Heat it up. I won’t ask again,” Arthur commanded.

Merlin bowed his head and stared at the floor, the tension in the air between them was palpable. There wasn’t a single sound that pervaded the room but the crackling of the logs in the fireplace. Merlin didn’t dare to turn and look at Arthur.

Finally, he heaved a sigh. “How long have you known?” he asked.

“Get in the bath Merlin,” Arthur told him.

Merlin turned and gave him a resigned look before walking over to the bath. He held a shaking hand over the bathwater.

“Onhǽte þá wæter,” he said, his voice trembling ever so slightly. Instantly steam rose up from the tub. Merlin glanced over at Arthur to see how he was taking it. Arthur stared at him, seemingly irritated as he drummed his fingers on the desk and nodded at the water once more.

Nervously, with his fingers fumbling, Merlin undid the knot holding up his breeches. He kicked off his boots and toed off his socks, then let his breeches fall around his ankles and stepped out of them. Then sucking in a breath, he slipped his small clothes off over his hips and stepped into the bathtub. He sat down in the water and waited. He knew that he didn’t have anything Arthur hadn’t seen before, indeed, they’d gone swimming in lakes and rivers when out on patrols or hunts or quests more times than Merlin could remember. But this time, it had been different. The feeling of Arthur’s eyes watching as he undressed had set his stomach rippling with nerves and flooded his body with heat even while he worried. Arthur knew. He knew.

Merlin pulled his knees up to his chest and hugged them, wondering what would happen next. Arthur had all the power here. Whatever happened was his choice. Merlin took several deep breaths trying to ready himself.

Behind him there was a scraping sound as Arthur pushed his chair back from his desk and Merlin felt himself tense as Arthur’s footsteps made their way across his chambers.

He heard a ruffling sound and startled a little when a hand reached around him with a cloth and Arthur dipped it into the water. He started to wash Merlin’s arm in a weird reversal of their usual roles.

“Ever since you decapitated that bandit even though you didn’t have a sword,” came Arthur’s voice next to his ear.

“Huh?” said Merlin, letting go of his legs. His mind was blank, struck dumb by the sudden turn of events and the close proximity of Arthur.

“You wanted to know how long I’ve known.”

“Oh. But—But that was ages ago.”

“I know. But I wasn’t completely sure then, whether or not my eyes were playing tricks on me,” Arthur continued. “I’d suspected you might before. But I told myself, no. Merlin couldn’t possibly have magic. He would have told me, he trusts me.”

“Arthur, I—”

“So I kept an eye on you.” Arthur carried on talking and Merlin swallowed uneasily, wondering exactly what, and how much, Arthur had seen. “You, Merlin, are a complete idiot without a single ounce of self-preservation,” he said lifting Merlin’s arm and rubbing soap across his chest and under his arm before rinsing it off. “Doing laundry with a wave of your hand. Mops dancing across the floor whilst you had your feet propped on my desk. Swords sharpening themselves in the armoury. My bathwater always, always the perfect temperature. To say nothing of all those fallen branches and swords getting hot and people tripping over nothing when I fight them. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice? That someone else wouldn’t notice?”

Arthur’s voice had grown hard and stony.

“I’m sorry,” Merlin offered with a small voice.

“Not. Good enough,” Arthur said. His hand slid down Merlin’s chest and down between his legs. Merlin gasped and started to feel blood heading south as Arthur wrapped calloused fingers around his cock. “You’re going to need to do something else for me. As an apology.”

Merlin bit back a groan and let his head fall back against Arthur’s chest. He looked up at him through barely opened eyes and said breathlessly, “Yeah?”

“Yeah, you are,” Arthur confirmed, his hand pumping in strong, firm strokes that had Merlin’s toes curling. Merlin’s head spun from the heat, the conversation and Arthur’s hand on his prick.

“What—Uh, what do you… do you need me to do?” Merlin panted.

Arthur rubbed his thumb over the head of Merlin’s cock and Merlin keened as his hips bucked up and up.

“A very important job,” Arthur said. “Though quite why I’m entrusting it to you, I don’t know. Gaius was the one who suggested it.”

“Oh—Ah—Gods, Arthur. Did you just—Did you just mention Gaius whilst you’re…” Merlin nodded at Arthur’s hand down between his legs. “Please, please don’t.”

Arthur pressed his lips against Merlin’s exposed neck. “Are you saying you don’t want the job?”

Merlin moaned his approval. “You’d have to offer it to me f-first.” He shivered from the scrape of Arthur’s stubble against his face.

“Be my court sorcerer,” Arthur said, kissing his way up from Merlin’s jaw to his ear.

Merlin shot upright, eyes wide open, water sloshing everywhere. “What did you just say?” he asked, twisting to face Arthur.

“I want you to be my court sorcerer, Merlin.”

Merlin stared at him, searching his king’s face to ensure he was serious. “Magic is banned in Camelot.”

“It won’t be from tomorrow. So do you want it or not? I’m not going to ask you again, Merlin. I do have some pride.”

Cupping Arthur’s face with his hands, a grin slowly spread across Merlin’s face as Arthur’s words started to sink in. “Yes,” he replied simply. “Always yes, Arthur.” And then Merlin kissed him.

When they finally parted Arthur smirked and got to his feet. He threw a dry cloth at Merlin’s face. “Dry yourself off, Merlin,” he told him as walked away, tugging his shirt over his head. “There’s a bed that needs your attention.”