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The loud shouting was hard to miss even as Merlin followed his king through the halls as he prattled on and on about Merlin's never ending list of chores- - sure, that was on him when he insisted he still tended to Arthur just as he did when he was still officially his manservant, on top of his apprenticeship to Gaius, and his new duties as Court Sorcerer, so really. Merlin was all to blame whenever he complained about having too much on his plate. But now that the ban on magic had been lifted, he was able to freely use his magic for his other chores-- and the surprise on Arthur's face whenever he chanced upon him in his chambers using magic to scrub the floors, dust his shelves, and fold his clean laundry was a sight Merlin would forever hold dear in his heart.
Ever since Merlin had spoken with Mordred and ironed out the warlock's wariness, the young druid knight had accepted his apologies and had pledged his allegiance to Merlin and Arthur, and that he would protect Camelot and her people, and uphold the utmost respect in performing magic so as not to tarnish it any further. He even tested his luck by hugging the Court Sorcerer and was pleasantly shocked to find him hugging back. (Of course, the moment was broken by Arthur, the utter prat, when he walked into the room, and immediately stepped back out, shouting a "For the love of god, lock your doors!" before storming away to train.)
So really. They shouldn’t have been all too surprised to find their kingdom's finest knights standing with brooms between their knees as they waited in line for Mordred to cast a spell on them to lift them up from the ground. The knights that were already in the sky were jerking in different directions, as if to steer the brooms to take them onwards.
"What in the world is going on here?" Arthur's commanding -and not to mention ridiculously funny tone he used whenever he was confused and angry, but still wanted to join in whatever nonsense he walked right into- voice boomed, and in his surprise, Mordred pulled his magic back, and the knights in the sky fell from the sky with the same grace as fledgling birds on their first try at flying.
Ah.
"Your Majesty!" Mordred squeaked, frantically hiding his hands behind his back. "Nothing, it was, nothing! We weren't doing anything!" He added, obviously lying. The fallen knights behind him groaned in pain as they rubbed their behinds, and Arthur only had to nod towards Merlin to get the idea that he should check them out. He walked over to the lot on the ground and clicked his tongue as he shook his head--a sure sign of his disapproval.
Even under much duress, the seasoned knights never cowed in front of their king--until now, that is. They all looked bashful, and looked away from Arthur's glare. Even Gwaine was much more interested in looking at the practice dummy they'd all but decimated earlier than face Arthur.
With no one to catch his eye for a grand litany of scolding, Arthur ended up heaving a sigh, then pinched the bridge of his nose. He made one final glance at Mordred -who looked very much like a child who had just gotten told off by his parents- he pointed at Merlin, who had the misfortune of glancing back towards him to make a quick report regarding the knights' injuries.
"What's wrong with him?" He asked the warlock, nodding towards Mordred, who was hiding himself using Percival's cape. "I'm telling you, Mer lin, he gets it from your side." Arthur concluded, shaking his head. Confused, Merlin stood from where he was crouching to face the king. "Excuse me, but what are you talking about? My side? Is that another way of saying it's because we both have magic?" He scoffed, and crossed his arms in front of him.
The surrounding knights winced at the words exchanged, but didn't interfere, knowing full well never to come between their spats. "Mordred's not even our son," Merlin added with a snort, before turning back to check on the next knight who was one of the recent additions to the cavalry and looked all too enraptured with the conversation, then worried about the swelling in his ankle.
He's all but turned away, but he could feel the disappointment in his sigh. "I know," was all he said before he snapped back into attention and ordered the non-injured knights to prepare for training, but pulled Mordred aside for a private chat.
Let's just say that later that night, the knights have all but teased Merlin and Mordred, and joked how Merlin's "husband" would be fuming if he returned drunk with their "son".