Room 303, Tuesday Morning

[bitchprince]

Finding his manservant locked in the cupboard and screaming yesterday had not been Arthur's idea of a good time. He wanted some answers, and he'd let Merlin out the window for the time being to get them.

He sat down on his bed, and eyed his roommate's side of the room.

If this whole thing was what he feared it was, he and Leto were going to have to talk about boundaries.

[[ for the roomie, but anyone else is free to come in afterwards! door is closed ]]

Comments

[bitchprince]

"It may be your room, Leto," he said, sharply, "But he is my manservant, not yours. Tell me, did it even cross your mind to come to me before you decided to punish him?"

[future_sandworm]

"If you had been here, I would," Leto replied. "You were not, and I didn't have the time to go and find you." He muttered something inaudible. "I do not take kindly to having my personal belongings damaged."

[bitchprince]

"And I don't take kindly to you punishing my manservant," Arthur replied, eyes flashing. "If you have a problem, show the courtesy of taking it to me and I'll make sure appropriate measures are taken." Pause. "I apologise for the damage done to your belongings."

[future_sandworm]

Leto shot him a glare. "And what would you have done? Called him an idiot? He may be your manservant, but I don't see why he has to live in this room just because he managed to turn himself into a bird!"

[bitchprince]

"An issue you could have taken up with me prior to all of this," Arthur pointed out. He found himself growing annoyed, in much the way some of the younger knights sometimes annoyed him. "Rather than choosing to tell me about it after the fact. As I've said, appropriate measures would have been taken, and I can assure you insults are hardly what I'd consider appropriate."

He'd grown more distant, pulling himself up into a clear picture of authority without conscious effort. "My actions are partly responsible for his transformation," he continued, "I wasn't about to leave him in the cold. If that's been an inconvenience, I am responsible, and I am sorry, but it gives you no right to lay a hand on him."

[future_sandworm]

"I tried to be patient," Leto replied, sighing and leaning back in the chair. "But frankly, your manservant seems to dislike me and appearantly being a bird he seems to think he can get away with expressing it." He paused, added: "I may have acted rashly, but it was not meant as an insult to you."

[bitchprince]

"Then you should have told me," Arthur said, allowing some of the ice to slip back out of his bearing and vanish. "He and I will have words."

A pause. He sat back, himself.

"But if this happens again, I may have to ask your sister's assistance in helping me stuff you into the same cupboard. No offense."

[future_sandworm]

Leto was unable to hold back a laugh. He shook his head, wondering what Ghani would say to that. "I promise I will not lock Merlin in a cupboard again," he said.

[bitchprince]

"Good."

Well, that went more smoothly than he'd hoped. Next, he'd have to smack Merlin upside the head for this suicidal habit of taunting royalty that he had.

There were times even Arthur wasn't sure Merlin didn't actually have a mental affliction. This was one of them.

He leaned his back against the wall and eyed the window.

[future_sandworm]

Leto was sure he could come up with something else should Merlin prove troublesome again. Unfortunately threats didn't seem to work on the boy. Not even the fact that Leto knew what must be a quite big secret seemed to help.

He looked at Arthur, smiling. "Anything else?"

[bitchprince]

"I think that was about it for the morning," he said, expelling a sigh while he rolled a still-bruised shoulder carefully. "But let's not call anything, you might get into more trouble before noon."

[future_sandworm]

"Oh, I might?" Leto looked quite amused.

[bitchprince]

"Fair enough," Arthur replied, flagrantly shifting the emphasis from 'I' to 'might' in his mind, "You will."

[future_sandworm]

Leto spun a pen between his fingers. "Well, clearly I'm stupid or generous enough not to make sure you know you are in trouble for keeping an annoying bird-shaped manservent in our room. I will blame that on your good looks."

[bitchprince]

"I am incredibly good-looking," Arthur agreed, idly, "But I'll make sure he ceases to be a nuisance, you've got my word."

[future_sandworm]

"I will believe it when I see it," Leto replied. "And I find it interesting that your high opinion on my ability to cause trouble even surpasses my sister's. I should be flattered, I guess."

[bitchprince]

"So you should," he agreed, pressing a hand to his side to see how those bruises were faring. His expression twitched for a moment. Not quite gone yet. "I doubt her wardrobe has suffered as much as mine, so far."

[future_sandworm]

"Your wardrobe?"

Leto watched Arthur, wondering if a joke about those bruises would cause him to be in too much of trouble.

[bitchprince]

"No, Leto, I enjoy ink stains all over my favourite shirts." It was said without much malice, though. More amusement.

[future_sandworm]

"I'm sure it is fashionable somewhere. And if not, more easily fixed than having them torn by birds." He smiled at Arthur. "And how do you know I don't do that to my sister?"

He wouldn't. Not to Ghani. Now, to Irulan, it might be funny, when he thought about it.

[bitchprince]

"Your sister looks like she might kill anyone who tried with her bare hands," he said, "...also no offense."

So did Morgana, really.

[future_sandworm]

That was a very accurate observation. "None taken. It is a compliment, after all." He opened the ink jar and dipped the pen in it. "Is it that fight on Sunday that's still causing you pain?"

[bitchprince]

"Give it another day, and I'll be done with the worst of it," Arthur said, somewhat non-committally. He shifted for greater comfort. Training wouldn't be for another while. "Sir Minsc has a good punch on him."

[future_sandworm]

"He looks like he has," Leto replied, putting the pen to a clean sheet of paper. "I have painkillers."

[bitchprince]

Arthur shrugged, and squeezed his own shoulder to loosen it. "They're only a few bruises."

There was a point where his pride allowed for painkillers (hangovers being part of that point), but his injuries were not nearly that bad.