Chapter Text
The Orkney Princes were meant to be asleep, resting for the big day tomorrow. There would be a banquet, a feast, festivities and a formal introduction to the new King and they would all be on their very best behaviour. Which was why when Gareth complained "I'm too excited to sleep!" they decided they were done waiting, and who cared about other people's plans.
"We should wear disguises, pretend to be servants delivering his food!" Gareth bounced with excitement. "And no one will know until we whip off the disguises and reveal ourselves to the King and..."
"We don't need to," Agravaine cut him off. "We're Princes. No one can stop us from doing whatever we want."
"If mother hears though, she might," Gaheris added. "We can't let her find out. She has a reason for things being the way..."
Gawain just strode off in search of adventure and the others followed in his wake.
It was a poor adventure. Agravaine had been right. Once they slipped by their own family's entourage, slipping out the window and clambering down the castle wall, the rest of the castle guards just let them walk by.
"What if he's busy?" Gaheris asked.
"He won't too busy for us."
"What if..."
"Ssshhh," Gawain hushed them, finger to his lips, and then proceeded to sneak the rest of the way to the King's quarters. They got there and Gawain strode confidently to the door. "We're here to see our Uncle, the King."
"Is he expecting you?"
"Yes." Three princes stared the guard down, daring him to disagree.
The Guard looked at the Princes, outnumbered by children he did the only sensible thing. "Go ahead then." He opened the door and let them in.
Agravaine pushed in first, with Gawain stepping after, and Gaheris following up.
King Arthur blinked at them all from his bed, half-asleep. "Uh... um..."
"Uncle," Gawain's smile was infectious. "We came to see you."
King Arthur was dwarfed in that huge, lonely bed, and he looked so out of place.
"I'm Gawain, and this is Agravaine, Gaheris, and... well Gareth seems to have gotten himself lost but I'm sure he'll catch up."
Gareth had not gotten himself lost. He knew exactly where he was and that was on his own secret mission.
Arthur was not awake enough to deal with the force of the Orkney Lads.
"Budge up, it's cold out here." And without so much as a word from Arthur, the Princes all piled onto the bed, like puppies. There were cold feet, and squirming beneath the covers and suddenly his life wasn't anywhere near as empty as it had been.
"Amn't I meant to meet you tomorrow?" Arthur asked. "There's things planned."
"Yeah, but that's all formal, and Gaheris doesn't like crowds."
"I do..." Gaheris muttered in protest.
"And Agravaine's manners aren't the best."
"Hey!" Agravaine elbowed Gawain who laughed. "My manners are perfect."
"Perfectly awful."
"But really," Gawain continued. "You don't really get a chance to know someone at those big formal meetings. It's all politeness and manners and being on our best behaviours."
Gareth snuck in the door, a cloth full of goodies in his arms. "I got sweet-rolls! But I ate one." He clambered onto the bed after his brothers, wedging himself in against the King. "They're really good. Have you tried them? Hello KingArthur. I'm Gareth."
"Hello. Aren't they for the feast?"
"You're the King, you can feast whenever you want, and we're Princes, so so can we," Gareth smiled sweetly. "Try it. It's good."
"A king has responsibilities." Arthur sounded as if he was parroting someone elses words and not speaking his own.
"A sponsibility to grow big and tall by eating all the sweets," Gareth snatched one of the breads from beneath Agravaine's grasping hand and squashed it onto the King's face.
There was laughter. There were sweetened rolls eaten. There were so many crumbs in the bed.
"So did they really make you King just because you pulled a sword from a stone?" Agravaine blurted out.
"See. Atrocious manners," Gawain chided, fondly.
"It was more complicated than that," Arthur said. "Only the King could pull out the sword. It wasn't the person who pulled out the sword was the King."
"That's the same thing."
"Not really. Merlin can explain it better."
"But you did used to be a servant?" Agravaine said.
"Sort of, not really, um... Sir Ector was my foster father, and Sir Kay was my brother, and I was his squire and... I only found out my real father was King Uther after he was dead, and I pulled the sword from the stone."
"I totally could have pulled a sword from a stone," Agravaine said.
"I'd let you be King instead if you could," Arthur said.
"Hey, no," Gawain interrupted. "We're not here to become Kings."
"Why are you here then?" Arthur asked. "No one thinks I deserve the throne."
"Then change their minds," Agravaine said. "And beat up anyone who disagrees."
"I'll help," Gareth said. "We're going to be your Knights."
"Aren't you a bit young?"
"I'm going to be the youngest and best Knight ever," Gareth insisted.
"We're here to prove that you're Queen Ygraine's son," Gawain said. "Mother has a speech about it tomorrow, and she brought us in the hope you'd look like one of us."
"But I don't..."
Agravaine laughed. "Yeah, you got unlucky. You could have looked like me, but you got stuck being short like the pipsqueak, and ginger too."
"That's Mother's side of the family," Gawain said. "Father's the one that's tall, and dark. Our mother's mother has hair like fire."
"Mother." Arthur said, quietly. "Have you met her? Do you know where she is? Is she still alive?"
"Ask our mother, Queen Morgause, tomorrow. If anyone knows she will. But ask her in private, not in front of anyone else."
"Not even in front of you?"
"Oh we don't count for that," Gawain laughed. "We'll go on a quest with you to find her, if need be."
"If she's alive..."
"I'm sure our mother would have said if she was dead," Gawain reassured.
"I know I'm too old to want a mother, but..."
"Ppffft," Gareth said. "Can't be too old for that."
"So are you all spending the night?" Arthur stifled a yawn.
"Thought you'd never ask," Agravaine answered.
"We'll sneak out before dawn. No one will ever know we were here."
"Apart from the guards. And the kitchen staff. And anyone else who saw us."
"Like I said, no one will know."