Merthur - The Blue Butterfly

Chapter 6 - A Few Whispered Words

"Because... because I don't know. They just are."

"I want to see one," Merlin suddenly says as he sets the book on the ground, "They look pretty."

The prince frowns, "I'm not catching one for you. The last time I caught a living creature you got mad at me."

Merlin chuckles, remembering the squirrel as he picks up another book from the stack beside him. "I'm not asking you to. Because I'm going to make one!" he exclaims proudly as he starts to flip through the book.

Arthur stares down at the boy in astonishment. "What do you mean?"

"There's a spell in one of the books you gave me that shows how to do it. I want to try. Can you tell me if it looks right?"

Arthur nods, then shuffles closer to the bars in hopes of getting a better look. Merlin smiles up at him, then, setting the spell book in his lap, reads off the incantation. His eyes glow gold and even now, having seen it almost everyday for three years, Arthur still finds himself captivated by those eyes. Finds himself staring for just a little too long each time.

Merlin frowns when nothing happens and so tries again. He cups his hands together, whispering the words once more and this time, when he unclasps his hands, there's a small critter in his palm. There's a wide grin on the warlock's face as he looks up at the prince, proud and happy as he releases the insect up into the sky. The butterfly flutters weakly up towards the grate, seeming to be unbalanced as it flies up towards the prince. Arthur holds out a finger, letting it land as he examines the insect. From far away it had looked somewhat like a butterfly, but now that he's up close he can see that it's almost nothing like the real thing. The wing shape looks crooked, hence the poor flying, and the colour is an ash grey. The creature looks sickly, and within a few seconds of landing it poofs away in a wisp of smoke.

"It was pretty good for a first attempt," Arthur reassures with a fake smile.

Merlin grumbles under his breath, able to detect the lie, then quickly turns his attention back on the book. He scans the words again before making another attempt. And another. And another. Each time the butterfly flutters up to the prince he finds it looking only slightly better than before. He tries his best to help, trying to describe an actual butterfly to him as best he can, but still the creature just never looks right.

"I'm sure you'll get it eventually," Arthur says, looking through the grate, "like you said, you just have to work hard."

Merlin puffs out his cheeks in frustration, arms crossed over his chest as he stares down at the book in his lap, not responding.

The prince frowns down at him, annoyed that Merlin's attention is being taken by something else. He looks around the dusty closet, finding a pillow he had brought once and throws it down at the boy, managing to hit him straight in the face. "Mer-lin!" he shouts, dragging out each syllable of the name, "pay attention to me!" He starts to kick his legs, acting like a child throwing a tantrum.

Merlin glares at him as he hugs the pillow to his chest, clearly even more annoyed now than before. "Don't your subjects already give you enough attention?"

Arthur frowns with his arms crossed over his chest. "They aren't the same. I want your attention!" The second the words are out of his mouth Arthur regrets them. He blushes a bright red and quickly buries his head in his hands, trying to hide his fluster.

"Why do you want my attention?" Merlin asks, the teasing tone gone from his voice as its replaced with genuine curiosity.

Arthur peeks through his fingers, face growing even redder as he mumbles, "because... it's fun to talk to you. And I'm always sad when I'm not with you."