Royal Pain in the Posterior

[Arthur Pendragon]

He was stammering like an idiot, clearly trying to talk his way out of his comment. This man did not think before he spoke, its what made him such an idiot. Arthur kept glaring at him. "Merlin," he began, emphasizing the word. "Shut up." This would be the first of many times he would use this phrase, spoken in this tone, held with this same amount of annoyance. Was he always going to be like this? Or was he going to learn from his previous stupid actions how to be less stupid? Was that even possible? Really though. How incompetent was he.

He rolled his eyes as his servants not so subtle attempt to change the subject. "Here, take a closer look," he said as he pushed Merlin towards the wall, hoping his face hit it. And with that action, turned around and began walking forward again, expecting Merlin to follow. If he didn't, well, he would just have one more reason to yell at him; one more thing to get mad at him for.

[Omg, don't apologize! It was HILARIOUS! sorry mine is short too ]

[pie]

Merlin gave a small little smile of apology when Arthur told him to shut up, and instantly did so. True, he didn't like to be told to shut up, but hey... it was better than most things that could have happened as a repercussion! He got the feeling that he would be hearing those three words a lot throughout the times ahead of him... He wasn't so sure that that was a good thing...

"Hey!" he exclaimed when Arthur pushed him towards the wall. He managed to deflect the face-first hit, but being so surprised at the action, he still smacked the side of his head into the wall. Stumbling backwards and rubbing his head, he grumbled to himself but didn't give an irritated response in return. When Arthur turned around and began walking again, Merlin was tempted to just walk away. He wished that he knew enough magic to turn the Prince into a toad...

Following behind him, instead of remaining silent like he had been told to, he said, "I didn't mean it as a threat, you know. Just that you're the Prince, people are going to try to kill you. You're going to have to be careful, or you might make the wrong enemy, or might not recognize them as an enemy at all. Just saying." Really, he felt that he should explain his earlier comment so that Arthur didn't think that Merlin was threatening him or anything...

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur was glad that he had caught a glimpse of Merlin's reaction to Arthur's push. He had hit the wall. Perfect! He continued to walk forward, not turning around to check if Merlin was alright, or if he was bleeding, or anything. He would deal with him if he was unconscious but his rambling eliminated this possibility and Arthur was assured that the idiot would survive. Listening to his words, he knew they were true. There had already been numerous attempts on Arthur's life, and as Merlin had said, it was to be expected as a Prince. A lot was a stake. There were many others who may want the throne and if Arthur was dead, there would be no other heir to Camelot. It would cause war, destruction throughout the kingdom and once his father's reign would have been brought to an end, it would have ended the Pendragon reign overall.

But, these were not things that he would tell his servant. As far as he knew, he was a moron, even if he spoke the truth. After all, Merlin's words were proven already. There had been a very recent attempt on the Prince's life . . . but it had not been to gain control of the kingdom. It had been revenge on Uther to make him feel as that woman felt. Strange way of doing it too. One could not predict magic. It came when you least expected it.

"Oh really?" He asked in a completely exaggerated shocked voice, as his next words were dripping with sarcasm. "You don't say! Well thank you for warning me. I don't know what I would have done otherwise, since I have only been Prince for my entire life and have clearly never realized how many enemies may want me dead." Arthur held back rolling his eyes again, or pushing Merlin for the second time. Instead, he would just keep walking until they got to the next area that Merlin needed to familiarize himself with.

[pie]

Merlin, rubbing the side of his head from where he hit the wall, walked in silence right behind Arthur, letting him take the lead. He really didn't get the Prince! At some points in time -- or perhaps he was just imagining it... -- he had seemed like a totally likable person. The next, he was the biggest prat on the planet! Really, what was with this guy?! He was a very strange man...

Gaius had told him to at least try and get along with the Prince... But that was impossible if Arthur didn't give him anything to respond politely to! He actually wouldn't mind getting along with him if it made his life easier, but it seemed that that would never happen in his entire existence! The man was just too stubborn! And seemed intent on tormenting him for the rest of his miserable life! Then there came the other problem that the Great Dragon had informed him of: His destiny was to protect the man and help him unite Albion and bring magic back to Camelot?! The man absolutely detested him from what Merlin could tell! How was that ever suppose to happen?!

He frowned at the back of Arthur's head when he spoke. Of course, another sarcastic remark, what did he expect? If he had another pair of pants at hand, he would throw them at him again! In another feeble attempt to start a decent conversation with the Prince, he said, "You know what I think your problem is? You're afraid to open up." He gave a small nod to add to his matter-of-fact tone. "Yep, definitely you're afraid to open up and trust people. You've been raised by just your father," or so he thought, seeing as he never heard of a queen in Camelot, "and don't have that kind of bond with someone. Instead, you want to keep everything bottled up. It's not good for you, you know? Keeping your emotions locked up? If you just loosened up a little, you might actually have some friends."

[Arthur Pendragon]

Really? Really?! It took all of Arthur's strength not to something more drastic than just push him into a wall. He has had men arrested for less than that . . . oh wait, thats right, Merlin had already been arrested! AND thrown in the stocks. What more could he do to punish him, apart from making him his servant. It would all have to come out through his duties for he just kept pushing it and pushing it. No matter if there were truth in his words, as there always seemed to be. It was things that Arthur did not want to hear, especially coming from him.

He paused when they reached the stairs, standing at the top of them, and looking right at Merlin as he began to speak. "And you know what your problem is? You don't know how to shut up!" He was not raising his voice, but he spoke with obvious irritation as his expression stated these emotions to. It seemed his face would forever remain as a glare when looking at Merlin. The subject of his mother -- though it was not directly brought up -- was a sore spot for Arthur. He was releived that Merlin did not make any mention of her, but rather, phrasing it in such a way to explain why he supposedly bottled up all his emotions. It was true. Arthur had been raised to suppress his feelings, as he and his father did not have an overly emotional relationship. They love for each other was proven through actions, not words.

Emotions were a King's weakness. To have a soft spot for everyone and everything would not allow you to make the hard decisions you needed to make, and that was Arthur's greatest struggle right now. He could not sacrifice the life of one to save many; he kept trying to save them all, when he knew that one day, he would not have any guidance or an example to follow. One day, he would be King, and he would have to be the one to make those decisions and deal with the consequences of them, taking responsibility for them. He could not do this yet, and that was a huge part of the reason he was not yet ready to be king. Now to actually admit all this to Merlin was unthinkable. "I'm not afraid," he mumbled defensively, refusing to admit anything related to what he might fear. "But you know, you're right. I really shouldn't keep my feelings bottled up, I should express them. It is after all as you said, the most healthy thing to do." He knew exactly who he was going to take his emotions out on.

"So let me start by saying what I'm feeling." He paused, as if he was thinking deeply about his answe r. . . when really, it was just a false pensive state. He knew precisely how he was feeling. "I'm feeling, very annoyed right now." He revealed, knowing he had made no secret of that, but he said it in an unusually calm voice, as if he was really taking Merlin's advice. "Any suggestions as how to release this annoyance?" Though he knew exactly where they had been standing all along, he acted as if this was the first time he had realized they were by the steps.

"After you," he motioned to Merlin, for him to be the one to descend the steps first. By connecting what he said, reading into his sarcasm and actual disregard for Merlin's advice, one may assume that Merlin would be his outlet for his frustrations, and that there was a way he was planning to release them by letting Merlin go down the stairs first. Whether Merlin picked up on this or not, it did not matter to Arthur. He could be perceptive enough to do so, and would be no surprise, but he would just wait and see what happened.

[pie]

He knew that he had annoyed the Prince the second he told him that he didn't know how to shut up. But it was in his nature. He wanted to open up some kind of relationship between the two of them -- it would make his life a hell of a lot easier if he did -- despite how much he didn't like the man's attitude. Where he was much more open to sharing his emotions, it was obvious that Arthur Pendragon was not. And it seemed that he would never be able to get along with the Prince.

Was he disappointed? In all truth, yes, in fact, he was. It seemed that this would be something he would fail in. If it was his destiny to help Arthur, than he at least wanted to do it as a friend. The Great Dragon had to have been wrong, though. There was no way that he could be the right person! He just kept making a worse impression, how in the world would he ever make it so that Arthur would want his help in anything? He couldn't even get a response that didn't cause the Prince to get angry! Everything he said made it worse and worse!

He sighed, then, and looked down at his feet miserably, ignoring the stairs that they had just come to a second before. "Sorry, sire," he mumbled. This was impossible! He tried to be emotionless, and the Prince pissed him off in turn. He tried to be friendly, and he pissed the Prince off. He tried to start a conversation or replied with what he was actually thinking and he still pissed the Prince off! There was just no winning with him, was there?!

He then cast a curious glance up at the Prince when he spoke again. Wait... Arthur was now being friendly? Something was extremely wrong with this picture! There was no way that his words had first sparked irritation, and then somehow made the Prince become calm and sincere. He had to be lying. Yes, that had to be it! But than what was he really planning? He gave no hint as to what he was thinking, or intended. Should Merlin trust him? Probably not. Would he? He wasn't exactly sure you could call it trust.

"Really?" he asked in response to Arthur's words. It came out in a tone of nonchalance, as if he didn't notice anything at all. After all, there was always a slight chance Arthur was sincere... Slight... However, in fact, to himself, the question had come out in a confused state. "Annoyance?" Of course, when wasn't he annoyed? "Well, you could um... talk about it?" he suggested, afraid of where such a conversation may lead...

When Arthur motioned for him to go down the stairs first, seeming as if he hadn't noticed they were at the stairs, Merlin really did give him a curious stare. That couldn't be right. Arthur was a stubborn prat! There was no way he would let a servant go ahead of him, a Prince! But he didn't see a choice in the matter, so he didn't complain and began to walk down the stairs, mumbling a quiet, "Thank you," as he passed.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Talk about it? No. Arthur did not want to talk about it at all. Even though he had heard Merlin's words -- and acknlowdged them -- did not mean he was going to abide by them. He still regarded Merlin as a clumsy oaf who was his inferior in every way. Little did he know how much this impression of his servant would change in the weeks to come, but for now, Arthur did not hold him in the highest regard. But then there was that small issue of him having saved his life. Damn it. That was Merlin's only redeeming quality in the Prince's eyes. That he had quick reflexes; that he had managed to get Arthur out of the way before the blade struck his face, resulting in immediate death. Merlin, would always have that hold on the Prince, whether Arthur admitted it to himself and others, or not. He knew it, and he could not deny it.

But still . . . Arthur did not want to engage in a conversation about his deep rooted emotions. He was a man of action, and therefore, he would allow his actions to express what he was feeling. In this case, it was annoyance. So how would he show this? Well it certainly had something to do with the fact that he was allowing Merlin to be the first to descend the steps. He did not say anything in response to Merlin questioning the emotion Arthur had said he was experiencing, nor did he comment on Merlin's further encouragement to discuss it.

When Merlin began to walk down the stairs, Arthur slowly followed and when Merlin was only a couple of steps ahead of him, Arthur pushed him. Because the stairs were a bit winding -- unless Merlin really was the extreme of clumsy -- he would not fall down all the way, as Arthur had timed it as such so that Merlin would would hit the wall first, breaking the fall, and therefore only tripping down a couple of the steps. Further more, Arthur did not use an excessive amount of force, knowing how frail the man was. Either way, he would be amused by watching him trip blunderingly.

[pie]

Merlin kept his gaze locked ahead of him. Arthur didn't want to discuss his emotions, it was apparent. But he had appeared as if he was going to, so he had something planned, and it probably wasn't a good thing for him. He forced himself to appear as if nothing was wrong, but inside he felt as if his death was ahead of him. He took several deep breaths in those few seconds of starting to walk down the stairs.

He wouldn't have to wait long before he felt Arthur push him. The Prince's amusement would surely come as Merlin tripped down the stairs clumsily, practically flailing with his arms to try and grab the railing. Thankfully the Prince hadn't pushed him so that he would fall down all of the winding stairs. He smacked into the wall hard and the force knocked him backwards, causing him to fall. Luckily he didn't tumble down the stairs, although from the throbbing in his head and lower half of his body, he felt that he mind as well have.

He shot a glare at Arthur, once more rubbing the side of his head. "You're just... impossible, aren't you? I'm definitely positive that when you become king, your subjects will just adore you." He stood up carefully, holding onto the railing and not moving. He didn't want to get close to Arthur.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur laughed as he watched Merlin fumble down. Arthur had imagined it in his head, but it was so much funnier to actually witness such a thing. It was not the lightest fall either. The hard wall would surely cause some pain from the impact, and seeing Merlin rub his head was a clear indication that it had. Arthur took a few steps down, following the flailing servant, and once he regained his balance, Arthur was only a step or two higher than him. He remained in this position, as a symbolic action, to show that he was superior and that he was his boss. Oh and that this much should be clear to what seemed like a very clueless, incompetent fool. "You're right; expressing my emotions did make me feel better," he commented, still chuckling at what he had just seen.

And that was when Merlin began to mouth off again. But not only that, he had -- whether he realized it or not -- struck a nerve in the prince. When it came to what kind of king Arthur would be, well, Arthur was already very insecure about that. He would never admit just how terrified he was of being a good king to the people; one that they deserved. Would they remain loyal to him? Would they turn against him if they did not agree with his policies and actions? He would be making decisions that influenced an entire kingdom. His father was the ultimate authority right now, but eventually that authority figure would be Arthur.

So for Merlin to sarcastically comment on his capabilities as king . . . only enraged Arthur even more. His laughter abruptly stopped, and he leaned forward a bit, as he was still on the higher steps. His expression transformed -- once again -- into an intense glare as he used his strength to refrain from doing something more drastic to the servant who had already fallen victim to a fall at Arthur's hands. "You really don't learn Merlin, do you?" He asked in a serious toned voice. He was still trying to get a hold of just how big the magnitude of what Merlin had said was. He was not about to let the comment slide though, that much was for certain.

[pie]

Merlin stared up at Arthur, who stood only a few steps above him, laughing. He just wanted to... Ugh! The Prince's arrogance just disgusted Merlin! Just because he was a Prince, what made him think that he could bully people around? One day those people would be his subjects, he would be their king! How could bullying them insure that they would trust him when he grew older? When he took up the mantle of king?

He knew he would want a king he could trust, not a king that felt he was so superior to his people that he could literally bully them! And right now, that was all that Merlin saw in him. He wasn't aware of the Prince's inner turmoil and fear about how he would be as king. He did not realize the magnitude of the weight of responsibility that rested on Arthur's shoulders. Perhaps if he did, than he wouldn't be getting so angry at the Prince.

When Arthur stopped laughing at his his comment, Merlin gulped. Yep, there he went again, pissing the Prince off. His glare melted into a slightly frightened one, and he bit his lower lip when he leaned closer. In response to that movement, Merlin leaned backwards a little, using the rail as support so he didn't fall backwards. The Prince's words made him begin to stutter for a second before he said the first thing that came to mind, "You bully the people! One day you'll lord over them, they don't want a tyrant! Y-You have to be more compassionate, sire." The title, this time, did not come out as sarcastic. Nor was it added because he felt the need to be respectful. One could say it just... naturally slipped out.

[Arthur Pendragon]

A tyrant? A tyrant?! Had just called him a tyrant?! Arthur could feel himself boiling over with more annoyance for this servant than he ever had before. Who knew one man could irritate him so much over the course of a few days. He stood by what he said about him the second time he met him; that there was something about him. That something was proving to be a very negative thing and Arthur was going to have his head for his insolence. Well, he wouldn't really kill him. He was not THAT angry with him, though the imaginative thought of it was certainly appealing.

Merlin's words replayed in Arthur's head. A bully, a tyrant. And on top of it all, he was attempting to tell him how to rule his people?! No. This was just unacceptable. "Do not presume that you know anything about what it takes to rule a kingdom, to be a king!" His voice was extremely stern, serious and firm, and he slightly raised the volume of it. He sounded like his father, as Uther said that to the Prince many a times. He was constantly reminded when he disagreed with his father's decisions, that he would not know what it takes to be king. That he could not make the difficult decisions. That he did not have the strength for it. At least the King obviously had the right of saying such things . . . but Merlin? A servant? This deeply upset Arthur and he was not sure he could just stand around here, and not react angrily to Merlin's words.

So Arthur did something he did not ordinarily do; he began to walk away. He brushed past Merlin. This time, he did not care if the idiot followed him or not. He did this to avoid doing something else. He said nothing to Merlin, he just walked angrily, quickening his pace, indifferent as to whether Merlin would be stumbling behind him. He did this, because Merlin had saved his life. He had arrested men for saying less, but Merlin . . . Merlin had been lucky. Arthur owed him, he was indebted to him, and that was the sole reason he walked away before doing something more drastic.

[pie]

Arthur's words seemed like a blow to Merlin's face. He had no comment to respond to Arthur's words. He couldn't even manage to stutter out something stupid. Arthur was right, Merlin didn't know what it took to be a king or to rule a kingdom. Though he did understand that a king had a responsibility to his people... and that... sometimes that forced you to sacrifice their trust to protect them... Oops...

The Prince's words brought about a gravity to Merlin's view on him. It really did bother him, didn't it? Was he really afraid of what kind of king he would grow up to be and become? His eyes fell from the Prince to the floor, almost as if an apology, even if at this moment, he couldn't voice one. He couldn't test his voice. Merlin expected some other kind of anger in response to his words, but when none came, he looked back up -- only to see the Prince brush past him without another word.

He stood standing there a moment, his eyes wide. Had Arthur just... ignored him? Merlin was shocked, and didn't know what to do. All he did know was that he couldn't leave the situation like this. He also didn't know if he was suppose to follow or not. So Merlin turned around after a brief pause and followed behind him, making sure to match his pace but remain a little ways behind him.

"Arthur!" he exclaimed. Than, coming to the conclusion that he shouldn't call him by that, said, "Sire! I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean it that way! I... I just wanted to help!" He paused, then added in a softer voice, "I didn't mean to make it worse!" Though he did. Damn him and his mouth!

[Arthur Pendragon]

Had he just called him Arthur?! Though a quick correction of the word followed the casual first name comment, the already irritated Arthur just grew even more annoyed. He did not slow down, even though he heard Merlin behind him, rambling on and on, making apologies for his words. Did Arthur take these apologies into consideration? He would. Eventually. But not right now. While he had no intention of relieving Merlin from his duties, he still felt like he was going to do something rather violent if he kept pushing his buttons.

He kept walking, not turning around or even acknowledging Merlin's presence or apologetic -- seemingly sincere -- comments. Arthur needed to beat something . . . other than Merlin. And thats when he decided what would be their next destination: the armory. Arthur said no such thing though. He walked in angry silence. Allowing himself to regain control of his emotions, and compose himself once again. It was ironic; that just moments ago, Merlin had been telling him to express his feelings, and now he was withholding them for the benefit of his servant . . . so that he would not KILL him!

He continued to quietly storm forward. Passing all the knights, all the servants, not acknowledging a single ones presence. He was not even giving a tour anymore. He did not stop to point out all the important rooms. He did not pause to allow Merlin to soak in his surroundings. He just kept going, until he reached the armory. He stood in the door way, and for the first time in the entire walk here, he turned to look at Merlin. "I do not need your help," he said, still in an angry tone. "Next time, don't do me any favors," he added as he turned to enter room filled with weapons, shields, armor, and everything else that a knight required.

[pie]

Merlin noticed that his apologies seemed to be going to waste, but he couldn't help it as he followed him. He sincerely was sorry. Perhaps his first impression on the Prince had been wrong. He knew nothing about him, and yet had marked him as a prat... Well, he was one, but perhaps not as much as he first thought. He sighed as he followed behind, glancing at his surroundings as they passed, trying to mark them in his memory, even if he had absolutely no idea what anything was.

His gaze was locked on the back of Arthur's head as they walked. And he couldn't help but wonder where they were going. He also couldn't help but wonder if he would always be at odds and ends with the Prince. Would they ever be friends? Or would they forever dislike each other? Merlin surely hoped not. He didn't think he could remain sane if he had to be Arthur's servant for the rest of his life and couldn't get along with him. He'd have to cut his own tongue off just so he didn't say something stupid every day!!!

When they finally stopped -- though Merlin still knew not where -- he lowered his gaze again as Arthur turned to face him, once more speaking in an angry voice. "Sorry," he mumbled again. "I just thought... never mind, it doesn't matter, obviously..." He looked back up to see Arthur heading into the room, and followed behind, looking around. It appeared to be an armory. He'd never really seen an armory before... So many weapons, and armor and shields... It was quite interesting.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur still ignored every apologetic word that Merlin said. He was too livid to accept them and move on from what he said. Instead, he would go back to what their initial task had been: familiarizing Merlin with his duties. This was one of them, and perhaps one of the most difficult if one did not know what they were doing. And that was the intended goal of Arthur. Instead of using Merlin as an outlet for his anger, he would do some training, and put Merlin through hell while doing so. It would be his subtle revenge on him, instead of just taking the hilt of his sword and beating him with it.

"Part of your duty will be dressing me in my armor," he informed him, not looking at Merlin while he spoke. It was not always necessary for him to look at his servant, though he had to listen . . .if he knew what was good for him. Arthur went over to where all of his armor was stored at kept. He began to pick up each, piece, carrying as many as he could. He walked over to the table and dumped all the various protective plates and covers onto the table. He then went back to get his chainmail robe. He proceeded to dump that onto the table. Then he just stood there.

"Begin." He was fully aware of the fact that he had not told Merlin where to begin, or how to begin, and unless he was experienced in knightly attire then Arthur hoped he did not know what to do or how to do it. Really, it would just give Arthur another reason to yell at him, insult him, criticize his inabilities, and then punish him.

[pie]

Apparently he would just have to ignore the fact that Arthur didn't want to comment on his apologies... Merlin watched as Arthur began to get all of his armor. So... he had to dress him in his armor? Wouldn't it just be easier for Arthur to do it himself and spare them of a headache? Well, he would have to try, even though... there was... "How much do you need to wear?!" he exclaimed, horrified by all of the armor the Prince dumped on the table. Really? "How can you even move in all of that?!" Just from looking at it, it seemed like it'd be an impossible task to move around in so many pieces of armor!

When Arthur told him to begin, he looked at the armor and stared at it... blankly. His mind seemed to come to a halt at the sight. Which went first? There was so much! "Um..." Just so he could make sure that it didn't seem he had absolutely no clue what he was doing whatsoever, he picked up what he thought would be logical to go on first -- the chainmail.

It was much heavier than he would have expected... "Uh... this goes on first." It sounded more like a question than a fact, because that was indeed what it was -- a question. The next problem came with what he was suppose to do with it. "It, uh... goes over your head?"

[Arthur Pendragon]

Merlin not only was completely clueless as what to do -- which was not a great surprise to Arthur -- but he was also asking stupid questions. Well, they really weren't that stupid to someone who had not first hand dealt with this kind of armor, having to lift it and be used to wearing it. Arthur had been wearing it since he was a child; the weight rarely impacted it. He was far too used to it, as should any knight be. If they were not it would greatly affect their combat and would impair them, giving their opponent far too much of an advantage. This was not the obstacle Arthur faced in battle. The heaviness of the armor was normal, but to Merlin, it was not. And for that reason, Arthur would ridicule him for it.

"Enough to protect myself when I'm in combat," he said in an annoyed tone. It was as if he was speaking to a child. Then again, a child would perhaps be more qualified for this than him. "You really do ask the stupidest questions Merlin. Since you are not a knight, you don't have to concern yourself with such things. All you need to do, is be able to lift the armor without breaking your back." Arthur was only assuming that Merlin would struggle with lifting it, as he did not seem very well built. "If thats even possible," he mumbled, slightly rolling his eyes.

While Merlin stood there, clearly confused as what to start with, Arthur gave him a look. He looked at him like he was an idiot. Not just an idiot, the biggest idiot the world has ever produced. He waited, and waited, and waited -- well it was really not that long in actuality but Arthur drew it out to be longer than it actually was -- until he finally picked up the chain mail. FINALLY! Arthur let out an irritated sigh of impatience as he just stood there with it, saying something that sounded like a question, though Arthur had no intention of making Merlin's life easy by answering it. "Well, don't just stand there like an imbecile, put it on!" Though Arthur did not make the first move; he expected Merlin to do this and gave no indication of how to go about doing this.

[pie]

Merlin resisted shooting a glare at Arthur at the comment that he just had to be able to lift the armor without breaking his back. While it was heavy, he doubted he'd break his back! So he just stood gazing at the armor and said a small, "Of course," so it didn't seem like he was ignoring the Prince. He just had to figure out the armor once, and then he thought that, perhaps, he could get it all of the other times!

So when he finally picked up the chainmail, he assumed that his answer to his questions were right. Well... yeah, assumed. Arthur didn't answer, so who knew what was really suppose to go on first? Again, he wouldn't comment on the insult, and instead awkwardly lifted the armor above his head. Arthur wasn't going to make this easy, was he?

When he had it lifted above his head, he stumbled forward a little only to attempt to pull it down over Arthur's head and body. Yeah... that didn't work out quite well. Instead, he thought that he might have gotten the armor stuck. "Uh..." he tried to readjust it by yanking on it, not wanting to get yelled at for stopping, but it didn't want to go on right...

[Arthur Pendragon]

When Merlin proceeded to attempt to put the chain mail over his head, Arthur lifted his arms a bit, almost immediately noticing that the angle was all off and that it was going down a bit crooked. Before he could alter anything though, he felt it being pulled down. Merlin. That idiot! While deep down, Arthur really knew it wasn't actually the man's fault, he was not going to let him off easy. Unfortunately the metal in the chain mail was preventing him from being able to speak. The hard links were pressing strongly against his skin and to say that it was high uncomfortable was an understatement.

He started murmuring and moving around, trying to get it off him but it seemed firmly in place, and as stubborn as the Prince himself. Damn it! Arthur was getting increasingly frustrated and was motioning with whatever limited body movement he had, for Merlin to pull harder on the bottom. The idiot seriously lack strength but still! He did not have a choice because there was no way he was leaving the armory with the chain mail half stuck over his head.

[pie]

Merlin bit his lower lip and tried not to laugh as Arthur tried to get the chainmail off... without much success. When he started motioning, Merlin took it as a hint to keep pulling, and grabbed the bottom again and continued to tug it downwards. Yeah... this wasn't going to work. He tried pulling harder, but it wasn't going well. Then he got another idea. Instead of pulling down on it, why didn't he try to pull it off? It would be much easier, and perhaps it would save time...

"Uh..." he mumbled.

Letting go of the chainmail, Merlin reached to the top of it and began to pull it upwards, hoping that Arthur realized that he was trying to pull it off. Hopefully it would come off and not get it stuck even worse... Though he couldn't deny how amusing he found this all.