Merlin (TV BBC) - Febuwhump 2024 / Mini Fic Challenge

Day 8: "Why Won't It Stop?"

"Arthur," Merlin sighed, batting away Arthur's hand, but it just came straight back to hovering over his side. "Arthur, would you just leave it." It was just a scratch; he did not need Arthur fussing over him like he was doing.

"If you would let me look at it, then I just might," Arthur replied, his voice a little mocking but still filled with concern.

Merlin rolled his eyes. Touched, but seriously, Arthur could be way too over-protective over nothing sometimes. "Really. And who between the two of us was a physician's apprentice for many years and a warlock who knows healing magic since he was a babe, hmm?" Merlin snarked, narrowing his gaze at Arthur beside him.

This hunt was like any other and had every intention to be a peaceful trip to cool off from royal life for the pair of them, but it ended up with them fighting off bandits and Merlin narrowly missing an arrow to the stomach. It was just a scratch and it didn't hurt, so he hadn't bothered trying to heal it. He was too tired from fighting with his magic and protecting Arthur anyway.

Arthur hmphed and marched on ahead of Merlin further into the forest; Merlin smiled victoriously from winning that little spat in the making. He loved riling Arthur up, but he liked it even more when he came out of it in the right and Arthur moping because he wouldn't accept that he was in the wrong.

Cheerfully, Merlin jogged to catch up with his husband, but the sudden jolting made his side bloom with agonising pain. It ripped the air out of his lungs, and his skin around the scratch burned as if flames were licking away at him. His knees buckled, his view of Arthur's retreating form becoming blurred, and a strangled cry escaped his throat. His other hand reached out and Arthur must have heard because he was holding Merlin within seconds.

"Merlin? What's going on? What's happening?!"

Merlin's mouth opened to reply but all he could do was gasp; unable to utter a single comprehensible word. He stared into Arthur's wide eyes as his hands shakily grasped at his side. Arthur saw this and went to lift his tunic, but that was when the blood started to show.

"You said it was just a scratch!" Arthur shrieked as he uncovered the so-called scratch to reveal Merlin's side punctured and flooding with blood.

Merlin's fingers started to grow cold, his whole body in fact. He trembled and still couldn't get his mouth to work. Arthur ripped off Merlin's neckerchief and pressed it hard to the wound, but it did nothing to stanch the flow of blood.

"It won't stop! Why won't it stop?!"

Arthur, too, was trembling, holding Merlin impossibly close. He caught Merlin's gaze again and saw them starting to glaze over.

"No! Don't you dare! Don't go where I can'tfollow! Remember? You promised!"