The door swings shut behind Them with a heavy clang. It echoes off the walls of the narrow pass, but fades all too quick, leaving the two men stuck in a heavy silence. The muted clipping of their horses hooves against the path seem to grow louder as both try to find something to say.

"So, uh," starts Arthur, "mind telling me what that was about back there?" he gestures back toward the gate as it disappears behind a curve.

"That was a gate." Merlin answers while staring straight ahead.

"No not that you idiot," Arthur nearly shouts, "I meant your greatest fear. Care to explain?"

"Nah I'm good." Merlin says, eyes still glued to the path ahead.

Arthur huffs in frustration and glares daggers at the back of the other man's head. When Merlin doesn't turn to acknowledge his sulking he decides to be a bit more drastic. He spurs his horse forward and turns sharply in front of merlin, creating a man/horse barracade, and effectively blocking his servants path. Merlin stops his horse, but continues to ignore Arthur, looking past him at the path.

"I want answers Merlin." He states authoritatively, "What's been going on with you? What are you hiding from me?"

"The cold must be getting to you Arthur," Merlin answers evenly, ignoring Arthur's attempts at intimidation. He seems to have lost the energy to pretend to cower. "You're imagining problems where there aren't any. I'm completely fine, are you?"

"Funny Merlin, but I'm afraid the cold had had no effect on me. You however, I'm not so sure. Last night I got up to investigate a clicking noise, do you know what it was?" he pauses for a moment before pushing ahead once more, "it was your teeth knocking together because you didn't pack yourself a proper bedroll. That's not all I noticed though. You look like you haven't slept in days. Why might that be?"

"Because I haven't properly slept in days." Merlin answers honestly.

"Well why not?" Arthur asks, confused.

"Between you and Gaius there's plenty to do. Now if that's all I believe we have men to rescue, so if you would kindly remove your horse from the middle of the path, that would be great."

"Sorry Merlin, but I can't do that. Not until I have answers. I know I let you off in time to get enough sleep because I let you go before I go to bed myself, and I often don't send you off with more than two chores for the night. I also know that Gaius, a physician, would not knowingly sleep deprive his ward, so what is it you're not telling me?"

"Arthur let me through." Merlin says coldly.

"No Merlin. That's not all. I've heard from the other knights that you've been avoiding them. You haven't spoken with Leon in more than a week, not even a hello in the halls. You look like death itself. I know you're not eating properly. You stare off into space randomly and I have to nearly shout to get you out of it. You've been trying to hide the fact that you're stumbling like a sick man every time you walk a few yards, and in this trip alone you've fallen asleep on your horse, forgotten your own bedroll, fallen in a stream, and tried to hide all of it. Now, I know something is going on with you. I just want to know what."

"No you don't Arthur. Now, let. Me. Pass." Merlin pleads.

"Merlin, as your king, I comman-"

"You what?!" Merlin shouts, interrupting Arthur's rant about his rank. "You command me!? Is that how it is now? I want to keep something to myself and mind my own buisness, but you can't handle that can you? Why do you feel a need to control EVERYTHING!? This is my life, and that means it's my business. Just because you're king doesn't mean that I can't have that."

"Merlin I'm worried about you." Arthur says, a bit cautious after Merlin's outburst. "I'm your friend."

"Friends don't command each other. Friends don't force friends to clean and polish their armour. Friends most definitely are not a king and his manservant. I am your manservant, nothing more. You are my lord, whom I will serve, but what we have cannot be called friendship. Perhaps if we were both different people, then maybe it could be that way, but it isn't. Now, please sire, let me pass."

"Merlin a manservant is no use to me dead. I need to know what's going on because it's tearing you apart. Please Merlin."

Merlin looks Arthur square in the eye for a long moment. Then he gets off his horse and sets off, up the steep slopes of the mountain pass with nothing but the clothes on his back.

"Merlin?" the king asks in confusion, "Merlin where are you going?"

He receives no answer and Merlin just continues to climb. Ignoring his pleas, until he reaches the top and disappears from Arthur's sight.