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Merlin was in the armory polishing the royal prats armor before training when three knights walked in to grab their armor.
"Your Prince Arthurs manservant right?" One of the knights asked, twirling his sword around like he was at some circus.
"Yes." Merlin kept his head down, not wanting to engage with the knights as they were some of Uther's original knights who were the most stuck up of the bunch.
"Well I don't like the way you behave around the King so you better back off and be a good little servant like you're supposed to." The stuck up knight replied.
"Yes sir." Merlin replied, if only to appease the knights while he got his work done. He had no intention of following their orders.
Honestly, if they really had a problem they should have talked to him about it sooner as he had been working with Arthur for over 5 years now.
Shortly after that intriguing conversation the knights left and Merlin finally brought Arthur his training gear.
"Merlin where have you been?" Arthur snapped tapping his foot impatiently. "I had to get dressed myself this morning."
"You see sire," Merlin responded with a sarcastic bow, "I was busy polishing your armor. Glad to know your capable of dressing yourself prat."
Arthur spluttered and looked at Merlin indignantly. "I am perfectly capable of dressing myself idiot."
"Yes I can see that." Merlin responded, his eye brow raised like Guais and his eyebrow of doom.
"Just help me get into my armor already, we are going to training and then we are going on a hunt."
Merlin visibly deflated at the mention of a hunt while still managing to do his job. "A hunt? And what excuse do you have this time for killing innocent animals that mean you no harm?"
"It's fun." Arthur replied. "Now come on Merlin we have a training practice to get too."
The way there, Merlin bantered with Arthur trading nicknames like prat, dollap-head, and idiot to name a few.
Unfortunately, the same knights from earlier had seen and were not happy with the servants behavior.
They also had a plan to get him to follow their orders for real this time. Since talking didn't work, they would move to some... bloodier techniques.
All throughout training they knights watched as Merlin laughed at his Master every time he made a mistake.
They got angrier and angrier and were about to attack him right there, other knights present or not but then training ended and Arthur announced the hunting trip and the knights that would be accompanying him.
The knights smirked when Arthur said their names, their plan already coming into fruition.
Later while there were hunting, Arthur told his knights to spread out and track some game.
The knights kept their eye on Merlin and stayed close so they would be ready when their opportunity arrived.
And arrive it did. Merlin and Arthur started arguing over something and Arthur snapped, shouting at Merlin to go back to the campsite and wait for them to finish.
The three knights snuck away, following Merlin back to camp. They watched as he flopped down and started sobbing.
"You are such a useless servant even Arthur doesn't want you." One of the knights taunted as they walked out of the trees and into the clearing.
Merlin's head snapped up in shock as he stared at the fast approaching knights.
"We warned you to stop acting like Arthur's friend and now you're going to pay the price for disregarding our orders."
The two knights who weren't talking grabbed Merlin and forced him on his knees in front of the other knight.
"You are such a useless, pathetic, nobody, servant." With each word the knight kicked and punched Merlin who sat there unable to move.
He knew he shouldn't let the words get to him but Arthur had said such similar words merely two minutes ago.
"You're such an idiot Merlin! God you really are useless. Just go back to camp I don't want to hear it."
The knight kept throwing insults and punches but Merlin was lost in his own mind.
He barely felt the physical pain but the mental pain was almost too much to bear.
Where the knight said, "useless, pathetic, and nobody." His mind said, "selfish, idiot, and monster."
He tried to ignore the insults coming from his own mind but he couldn't. He just sat there, barely present and he was attacked physically, emotionally, and mentally.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the knights finished their "fun" and when back to killing animals instead of him.
Meanwhile, Arthur was feeling guilty for the words he said to Merlin and decided to head back to the camp and apologize while his knights finished up hunting.
When Arthur got back to the camp he was shocked beyond belief that his manservant, no his friend, was lying in a ball on the ground curled in on himself and sobbing. Hysterically.
"Who did this to you Merlin?" Arthur asked, gently guiding his friend into a sitting position.
"Arthur?" Merlin looked up hopefully before looking back down at his feet. "Why would you care?"
"Because you're my friend Merlin, even if I don't always tell you. And I'm sorry for the things I said earlier, I should never have taken my frustration out on you."
Merlin looked back up and into Arthurs eyes as fresh tears slid down his cheeks, these ones from happiness as opposed to the earlier tears born of sadness.
"It was three of your knights." Merlin quietly whispered, looking like he wanted to curl in on himself again.
"They did this?" Arthur asked gently, his anger slowly rising inside.
Merlin nodded, trembling like the leaves that surrounded them.
"I'll take care of it." Arthur promised, standing up. "I'll send the knights of the roundtable back to keep you company while I go deal with them."
Arthur started to leave but stopped when hd heard Merlin's voice. "Thank you Arthur for being such a good friend."
Arthur smiled, half out of happiness that his friend felt so highly of him and half out of sadness from the way his voice was barely kept from cracking.
"You too clot-pole." Arthur responded.
"Hey thats my word." Merlin quipped back, starting to return to his normal self.
"And it suits you perfectly."