(Since very many reviewers were noticing: YES, there's OOC in this chapter. Thanks for noticing. That's very good of you to notice. I hug you for noticing. But it's all right. All will be explained in due course, but YES, the OOC character is meant to be OOC. This is an explanation thing you must wait for because dang if the stupid characters aren't going to explain yet because that's in their nature and they keep secrets. Be calm. Have faith in shitty ff writers such as myself. ^_^)

THREE

"What?" Uther and Merlin spoke at the same time, turning to stare at Arthur, and Arthur sent Merlin a warning glare as Merlin gaped in shock.

"Personal assistant?" Uther continued, seemingly not noticing Merlin's own question. "You always seemed to despise the idea of taking one on whenever I brought it up. What brought about the change? And why this…poorly dressed boy, of all people?"

"Merlin is very capable, sir."

"Really?" Uther was looking at Merlin critically now, who was now bristling at Uther's dismissal. He'd met enough people throughout his lifetime who had walked all over him to know what type of human Uther was.

"Yes, sir, you see, he saved my life."

"Saved your life?" Uther exclaimed, coming around to stand in front of the desk as he began to really appraise Merlin, the "savior" of his son, still quite skeptically. "How on earth did he do that?"

"He's quite brave. He pushed me out of the way of a truck, risking his own life."

"And you hired him on those grounds? Of course that's a reason to give him some small reward, but hiring him on? And is a member of the populace fit for the job?"

"I don't want ‒" Merlin began, but Arthur interrupted. "I met him on the plane, Father. He's not a part of the populace, as you call them, but he lost his wallet with all his money at the airport."

"All right, Arthur. What's the boy's name?"

"Merlin."

"Ambrose," Merlin mumbled, unable to correct Arthur that yes, he was a part of the populace.

But quite suddenly, Uther's face was pure white.

"What? Did you say your name was Ambrose, boy?"

"I'm sorry, sir?" Merlin balked at the expression on the millionaire's face. Again that uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He should tell Uther he was correct in his hearing, but everything inside of Merlin was telling him to lie, this man could not hear his last name, for whatever reason, because something horrible would happen that was not supposed to happen.

"No, sir." He started out quietly, but cleared his throat and continued strongly, holding down the nerves of lying. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid you misheard. My name is Merlin Arrose."

Arthur was now sending him an odd look, and Uther still stared at Merlin as though he'd seen a ghost, but the color was faintly returning to the head of Pendragon Company's face. He nodded sharply, looking unnerved. "Very well," he wavered, exhaling shakily. "I shall see you at another time, Arthur. Get out, both of you. Get out, boy!"

Merlin beat a hasty retreat, Arthur not far behind. As the doors closed, Arthur turned and whapped Merlin over the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" Merlin demanded.

"What were you being such an idiot for?"

"Excuse me? You were the one being a prat!"

"A prat?!" Arthur exclaimed, his jaw dropping in incredulity. "What the hell, Merlin? I just saved your ass!"

"No, you didn't. You didn't even tell me anything about this and all of a sudden I'm your assistant? What if I didn't want the job, Arthur?"

"You didn't have anything and I gave you everything. You know how many people would kill to have this job? You should be thanking me!"

"I saved your life and you sign me up without asking for a job under Uther Pendragon? No offense, maybe he has money, but have you heard of your father's reputation, Arthur? I may have wanted a job, but a job where I'll actually be treated as something other than dirt under the shoes of my boss! I've worked more than enough of those jobs for a lifetime!" Merlin could hear the strangled tone his voice was taking, but he couldn't help it. "I've had so much shit happen to me over the past few years, but it's starting to come to a head. I…I can't."

Arthur was staring at him, looking slightly chastised. Finally he turned away, but then he turned back. "Listen, it's not under Uther. It's a job under me. You've got some family members with cash, don't you? A rich family, right? You're too young to have made it on your own. I'll just…I'll employ you until you can contact them." He looked uneasy, and after a long awkward pause, he met Merlin's eyes guiltily. "I mean, they don't say I'm bad with managing people, do they?"

"N‒no." It really was too late for Merlin to correct the misconception that they shared the roots of money. But a job. He did need a job. Now, before he had to start sleeping on the street. And as much as he hated the idea of having to work for the tyrant of a company head that Uther was rumored to be, he didn't have the luxury of refusing.

"No, I'll…I'll do it."

"Thank God." Arthur sighed in relief. "Now. I'm beat. Go get my morning coffee, will you?"

Arthur's drink of choice sounded like some exotic cocktail with everything in it but actual alcohol. Halfway through, the sweating Merlin spotted a notepad and pen lying on a nearby desk and snatched them up to frantically scribble it all down. When Arthur finally got to the end, there was a long pause.

"Can you maybe repeat that?"

It was another ‒ on Arthur's end, terse ‒ ten minutes before Merlin was sure he'd gotten the whole thing down, and another fifteen before the taxi arrived. Finally, three quarters of an hour after first receiving Arthur's order, the new PA found himself standing in line at the coffee shop Arthur had impatiently directed him toward to get the first coffee Merlin had ever bought that didn't come in a cheap Styrofoam gas station cup.

The place had a large enough group of patrons occupying the large but cozily elegant place to tell Merlin that the amazing smelling shop was popular, but by the time he reached the counter, the brief rush of customers had stopped and he stood, the only one in line.

"So, what's your order, Angelface?" The male barista grinned, finishing drying a coffee mixer and tossing the towel onto the back sink, leaning over the counter toward Merlin. His dark, long hair fell from his beanie, and the collar of his white button up beneath his red sweater was undone, echoing the way his white and red sleeves were pushed up to his elbows, showcasing lightly muscled arms covered in beautiful tattoos.

"Angelface?" Merlin questioned, unable to keep his eyes off the vibrant designs creeping their way up the man's arms into his sleeves.

"Of course, Angelface. You got ink?"

"No," Merlin murmured, fumbling in his bag for the notepad, his eyes still on the whirl of a vine of sea foam.

"So you like your men inked, huh?"

Merlin dropped the notepad.

"Oh, c'mon, Angelface. Calm down. You can close the closet door if you want to burrow back into the farthest corner again. You don't seem the type to take your coffee as plain old black…are you?"

"W-what makes you think I'm gay?" Merlin stuttered.

The tattooed barista tapped his temple. "You have to develop some form of gaydar these days, Angelface, or you'll never get any. Luckily I'm open on the gender of my partners."

Seeing Merlin's still nervous expression, the tattooed man shrugged. "Hey, keep your heteronormativity if you'd like. But give me a call if you ever change your mind."

He reached for a marker from his apron pocket and grabbed Merlin's hand.

Before the dark haired boy knew it, a number was Sharpied onto his palm.

"I don't…" Merlin sighed, then bent to pick up the notepad and one of the bills Arthur had given him. "I…can you make this?"

The barista's eyebrows rose out of sight beneath his beanie. "Arthur Pendragon, huh?" he asked quietly. His eyes flicked up to Merlin and back again to the notepad as he set it down on the counter and started mixing the drink. "How'd you come to be ordering for the big bad boss's son?"

"Boss?"

"Pendragon Company owns us. And they're cheap with wages too. Not to mention the blatant homo-and-everything-else-phobia. Thank God Pendragon himself doesn't oversee us or I probably wouldn't have been hired." Suddenly he stopped, staring at Merlin's scarf. "Hang on. You're…"

His eyes snapped back up to Merlin's face, narrowing, and then widening. "I thought I'd seen you somewhere! Are you his new boyfriend?"

"Merlin!" Someone was grabbing Merlin's arm in an iron vice and suddenly he was spun to face an irate Arthur. "Where the hell have you been? I swear it's been almost an hour and you're just standing here with your head in the clouds!"

"Sorry, Pendragon. I was the one keeping your boyfriend. You have any tattoos? Because he seems to love mine." The barista's gaze rested on where Arthur still held Merlin's arm.

Arthur turned, noticing the barista for the first time. His eyes narrowed immediately, glittering with loathing.

"What was your name? Oh yes. Lancelot."

Lancelot smirked. "Arthur."

(I'm bad at updates. Apologies. I'm not done, just busy at the moment.)

(Also, reviews? My lifeblood and my only reason to continue this story. Thanks for them. You're all awesome.)