bunnysworldTitle: Black
Rating: PG
Pairing: Merlin/Arthur
Warnings: language
Word count: 408
Prompt: Puzzle
Summary: Arthur gave Merlin a jigsaw puzzle
Author’s notes: Not beta’d. Yay! What else is new? And yes, this jigsaw puzzle does exist.
“What’s that?“ Gwaine looked over to where Arthur lounged on the couch, fiddling with a small piece of something, turning it over and over again.
“The last piece of Merlin’s jigsaw puzzle.” Arthur grinned and held it up.
Gwaine threw Merlin a look, but he was too busy focusing on the jigsaw puzzle in front of him, just as he had been the entire Sunday afternoon. “He will hate you.”
“He already hates me.” Arthur scrambled up. “I gave him the ‘asshole jigsaw puzzle from hell’ as he calls it.”
“A jigsaw puzzle from hell? What’s wrong with it?”
“Nothing. It’s just all black and none of the pieces are alike.” Arthur chuckled.
Gwaine blinked, then frowned, then grinned widely. “You did not!”
“I did. It came in the mail yesterday. He’d been talking about it for so long, I had to get it.”
“So…there is no nice picture on it?”
“No, it’s just black.”
“And each piece has an individual shape?”
“How else would you know which belongs where?” Arthur wasn’t big on jigsaw puzzles and he did not understand Merlin’s obsession with them, but if it made Merlin happy…
“And why exactly did you snatch one piece away?”
Arthur smirked. “Because when he starts looking for it, I know he’s finally done and when I ‘find’ it, I usually get a nice reward.”
“You’re such a hero.”
“That gets the fair lad in the end.”
Gwaine laughed and got up. “And you think he doesn’t know?” He grabbed his empty mug to carry it back to the kitchen.
“Of course he knows,” Merlin said, his eyes still fixed on the jigsaw puzzle in front of him. “But he likes his hero and lets him believe it’s a reward he gets.” He held out his hand, still not looking at the others. “Final piece, please.”
“You’re done?” Arthur’s face lit up as he jumped up to hand Merlin the piece.
“Yup.” Merlin put the piece in and looked at the jigsaw puzzle on the table.
Arthur nuzzled into his neck. “Well done…so…what do I get for saving that last piece for you.”
Merlin still didn’t look up. “I think this time you should be punished.”
“Punished?” Arthur pulled back. “What for?”
“Keeping the last piece from me and getting this monstrosity for me in the first place.”
Arthur shrugged. “I think I can live with that.” He grinned and pulled Merlin up and over to their bedroom.