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#because like... Gwaine starts dating them a week later.
lovable-bastard · 10 months
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BBC MERLIN HC
(hc's below the cut)
Pre-Purge
Hunith and Gaius are related, Gaius was born to a noble mum and dad, while Hunith was born to a peasant mum and noble dad. Gaius finds out that his father had another child (he found out when his dad was dying) and after sometime found Hunith and took her under his wing (like Merlin)
Igraine and Balinor met when they were teens (14-16)
Hunith hates, and I mean hates Uther
Hunith was born, raised and lived in Camelot for most of her life, only leaving 4 years before the purge
Gaius (as a kid) hated most of the noble kids
Balinor and Uther have a Gwaine and Arthur kind of relationship, but this time they actually hate each other
Igraine and Nimueh definitely dated for a while
To me Igraine & Nimueh have a Merlin & Arthur relationship if Arthur knew about Merlin's magic
Constantine III (Uther's dad) is the Arthur Weasley of the non-magical world
People think Uther and Balinor fucked at least once
Gaius had to deal with two generations of dumb gay ( + token straight) people
Gaius has always been the "old man"
Igraine is the second child (Agravaine is the oldest and Tristan is the youngest)
Hunith is besties with Gwen's mum
Balinor, Igraine and Nimueh the chaos trio of their generation
They also talk shit about everybody else
Hunith is very confused why Igraine likes her so much
Meanwhile Igraine kind of forms a crush on her and fully shows it
Balinor fell first and harder
Hunith is just as sassy as Merlin, Igraine and Balinor love her for that
I just had a realization that Hunith, Igraine and Balinor are just the love triangle of Gwaine, Merlin and Arthur
Like I already knew that I saw them like Gwaine, Merlin and Arthur, but not to this extent!!!!
Everyone had a crush on Hunith (can't blame them)
Igraine runs off on a daily basis (with Balinor and Nimueh, of course)
Balinor is more closer to the knights of Camelot than Uther is
Igraine is a gremlin child
Uther cheated on Igraine to have an heir, but got Morgana instead (Igraine and Morgana's dad don't know about this)
Igraine loves horse riding and getting away from the overwhelming castle life
Igraine never loved Uther, she liked him, thought he was a good person, but her heart always thought about her ex-husband (Gorlois)
Post-purge
(before the show started)
The longest time a servant stayed in Arthur's service was 3 months (they were on a mission, that's the only reason he didn't fire him then)
The norm for a person staying in Arthur's service is 1-4 weeks
Morgana the first week when she came to Camelot to live full time didn't come out of her chambers
Merlin one day just changed his bio s€x over night because he didn't like it
Hunith got gray hairs because of Merlin and Will, mostly Merlin
Merlin has been followed home by many animals (he wants to keep them, but Hunith says no, Merlin cried)
When Arthur came out to Uther (as in he told Uther he felt like a boy and asked if that was normal) Uther was overjoyed. He told everyone that Nimueh turned Arthur into a girl as revenge and he (Arthur) should be treated as a prince.
Leon has always been a babysitter for Arthur and Morgana
Uther hid every painting of Igraine because it hurt to much to look at her and store them in an unused room
Geoffrey hid every magical book, item, everything in a hidden room behind a bookcase that Uther had no idea about
Gaius helped a lot
Gaius also for a long time didn't stop doing magic, only 9 years later he fully stopped
Gaius tried to bring Hunith back to Camelot because she told him how much things have gotten worse
(during the purge) Magical people who wanted revenge for what Uther was doing strated attacking Camelot and during it someone lit the castle ablaze, thankfully it was only a small part of the castle, a part of the castle that Arthur was in. When Balinor saw what was happening (he was there to save whoever he could) ran into the burning castle and saved Arthur. He quickly after found Gaius and gave him Arthur. Till this day no one other than Gaius and Balinor know about what happened
Morgana saw Gwen one day, picked her up and has not put her down ever since
(During the show)
Merlin and Morgana gossip
Merlin has a new found hatred of poetry and the tavern
Gwaine has somehow removed almost all the doors off their hinges while drunk
Merlin gets all the sacrifices that the druids give him
Merlin: Hey, Gaius do you want beef for breakfast...and lunch...and dinner?
Gaius: Why do you ask-
Cow, dead laying in the middle of the room:
Gaius, deadpan: Why...?
Merlin, just as done with this: I don't fucking know...
He once woke up with two dead kids near his bed
That was a fun morning
Uther kind of likes Merlin, he thinks he would be a fantastic jester (it's a complement)
Lancelot goes along with everything Merlin does, so does Gwaine, but he thinks it's just for shits' n' gigs'
Merlin has seen things while being in Arthur's service, mostly Arthur doing ego shattering, pride reducing things
Leon and Merlin are the dad and mum of the group, I will die on this hill
Merlin can hide his emotions the best, not because of the fighting, but because Kilgharrah will just randomly start singing
When Merlin can't use his magic over a long period of time he gets the magic version of overstimulated
Everything feels like it's on fire, the lights are to bright, the noise is too much, you get the gist
Merlin takes the children out for an "adventure", when in reality it's him bringing them away from the latest burning for both the kids and himself
However there are times where he knows the kids know, just something in their eyes disappears
Those times he sits with them and let's them cry it all out
The noble kids adore Merlin because of how physically affectionate he is (thank hunith) and he shows them love so freely
As well as the peasant kids, every child see's Merlin as a brother/uncle/father/ect.
Gwen is the oldest, Elyan is the youngest
Gwaine has met Hunith while traveling (after he met Merlin) and absolutely adores her
Since magic is everything, especially in nature, Merlin is kind of mother nature
Merlin has always been able to hunt (since it wouldn't make sense for him not to) and he doesn't hate it
He does like it don't get me wrong, but he knows it's essential for survival
Merlin just doesn't like it when they hunt animals for sport
Merlin and Arthur have this deep understanding that scares both of them sometimes
Arthur fell first, but Merlin fell harder
Arthur has a crush on Merlin since s1/e4
And Merlin has a crush on Arthur since s2
Merlin grew his hair out one time and Arthur "band" him from cutting it
Merlin loves kids and is great with them, but doesn't know if he wants to have any
(post the show)
Merlin came back to Camelot, but did leave a few months after (he needed some space), but after two years (filled with letters) he came back with his mother
The gang (or what's left of it) found out that Leon's immortal. They all freaked out
When Gaius died, Merlin didn't come out of his chambers for weeks
Same goes to his mother
After Gaius retired Merlin became the physician
Everyone didn't know why Merlin didn't become the court warlock, but Gwen knew. He didn't tell her, but she just knew why
Gwen re-married for political reasons and after a while the gang excepted him, not fully, but mostly
After everyone died Leon and Merlin left Camelot and started traveling since they could never do it (merlin being poorer then poor and leon being a knight)
They became very close and considered each other their life partner (platonic)
When Leon and Merlin have a fight they just leave. No note. Nothing.
At first it scared them, but now they know their safe and they'll come back
Leon and Merlin call each other "grandpa"
They fucking hate it, but they will not stop
They also probably got married for tax or something
Like no romance, strictly platonic.
Just for some added benefits
When thing get rough (mentally) they just sit somewhere and hold each other, quietly, rubbing their thumbs over each others hand/arms/legs, play with each others hair. Just be there for the other
Merlin grew his hair out and will not cut it
There are periods of time he looks like a hermit and when he does Leon full on sword fights him into cutting his hair
He does eventually cut it, but it's still longer then normal
They definitely have a whole other language (think the whistling between merlin and arthur)
They travelled the the world together
They have been known as the forest wizard and knight (they find it fun)
Modern era
(pre-Arthur revival)
(post-Arthurs resurrection)
The first movie Merlin showed him was the Monty python and The Holy Grail and Disney's version of the story
Arthur despise both of them (mostly Disney's one)
Arthur definitely gets panic attacks and anxiety attacks
Merlin is always there to help him and comfort him
Same goes the other way around, but Arthur isn't that good at ✨emotions ✨
Merlin has an EpiPen on him at all times just in case
Arthur wears clothes that look like his old clothes, but they are made with modern fabrics (he does have normal clothes but only wears them when he has to)
Merlin is a ball of stress
Arthur is also a ball of stress but for completely different reasons
Merlin and Leon probably has a shit ton of money
Arthur fears going to sleep afraid he's not going to wake up (someone else's idea and i can't find them so i could give credit!!!!!!!!!)
Merlin has a ginger cat that he calls ginger
He just found him on a rainy day when ginger was a kitten and help them out
Now he kind of lives there
He's half indore cat, half outdoor cat
And he's an asshole
Leon is happy Arthur's back, but he's not happy that the tension and the staring is back
(That's it for now)
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rainbowvamp · 3 years
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Merlin and Lancelot are sitting on a log or something, holding hands.
Gwaine sees them, comes to sit by Lancelot, takes his hand.
Merlin and Lancelot look at him like “What are you doing?”
Gwaine: “What? I thought this was something we were just doing.”
It’s not, but Lancelot and Merlin have a little silent conversation, shrug, and now, this is just something they do now.
A month later Gwaine realizes they’re dating and flips out and everyone laughs.
But they keep doing the hand holding thing because it’s nice. 
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Who is the best and worst at pranks ?
(Headcanon Masterlist) (Full Masterlist)
Oh I have been WAITING for this!! It’s been in my inbox for a while but I finally came up with what I believe is an incredible idea! :D
EDIT: PART 2 (only read after you read this :D)
Arthur... doesn’t prank. It’s far too undignified and immature. Meaning he’s terrible at it and just doesn’t want to make a fool of himself so he doesn’t bother.
Percival and Elyan pull the occasional prank, but they’re usually nothing major or incredible, just stupid little jokes like hiding Gwaine’s hairbrush or sending Lancelot mysterious summons to the other side of the castle just to watch him make the trek. Harmless little things that get a bit of a giggle and don’t last longer than five minutes or take that long to plan.
Lancelot and Leon don’t prank very often, like once a year maybe, but when they go, they go BIG. Because they know that they’ll never get the blame. Part of the fun is sitting back and laughing as Gwaine or Merlin gets the blame for an hour after before they own up. Neither of them tend to prank Arthur because they’re too boring and Noble or whatever, but the others are fair game.
Mordred doesn’t really prank people, but he’s definitely the person that gets pranked the most. At least he is when he first starts, but he’s so naïve and earnest it wears off pretty quickly.
Gwen may pull the occasional joke on Merlin or Elyan, but they’re normally just private little pranks that don’t really go anywhere and that no one else really sees or is aware of. It’s sweet, really, she doesn’t want to upset or embarrass anyone.
Morgana pranks Arthur and Arthur only, and whilst he knows it’s her, he’ll NEVER prove it, and can never accuse her. She covers her tracks far too well.
Now. Gwaine. We all know he’s a master prankster. Sometimes it’s little jokes, sand in someone’s bed or stealing all their left shoes or a bucket of water above a door. However, he sometimes goes nuclear. He once, somehow, without ANYONE noticing, filled Arthur’s chambers with live chickens. He spent an hour in the stocks every day for two weeks for that, and he still didn’t tell anyone how he did it. He put something in Leon’s wash things and he had green hair for a month. He got the phrase “it be like that sometimes” tattooed on Elyan’s arsecheek without him noticing for a solid week. He unscrewed about thirty randomly chosen doors in the castle one night and just... left them leaning against the wall next to the doorway. He sewed “hot piece of ass” onto Percival’s cloak. He just... really goes for it, ya know?
However. The best prank to date was executed by Merlin. And it still sometimes catches Arthur off guard years later. He had Gaius, Gwen, Morgana, and a few servants and guards as accomplices, but other than that, this was a prank played on EVERYONE. He planned this several months in advance, and it included bribing a child with a worrying amount of candy and pocket change. What he did, dear readers, is convince all of his friends that he was married, and had a child, and that somehow they hadn’t noticed. 
It started with Arthur rocking up in the physician’s chambers for the first time in months, asking Gaius where Merlin is. (Merlin had made sure to be on time and not missing for a solid 6 months, so that Arthur would have no reason to go looking for him). Gaius’ response? “I haven’t had need of him today Sire, so he’s likely at home if he’s not with you.” “Home?? Does he not live in that little room over there?” *eyebrow raise* “You mean my storage closet? He moved out of there months ago, Sire, he and Vera saved up for years for a bigger house in the lower town.” “Vera?!” “I’m surprised he didn’t give you the address. Here.” and he hands over a little piece of parchment with an address on it and shoos him out quickly so he can’t ask any more questions. Anyway. Arthur goes to the little house, the door is answered by a woman who takes one look at Arthur and calls inside “Merls! The King is here for you, love.” Arthur is too flabbergasted to say anything, but he overhears Merlin saying something like “See you later honey, be good for ma.” but is so shocked he doesn’t really process it. Merlin comes out and kisses the woman on the cheek but shuts the door behind him quickly and basically speed walks up to the castle like nothing is amiss. Arthur eventually kicks his brain in gear and asks wtf is going on, Merlin plays dumb for a while before stopping and incredulously asking “Arthur... you are aware that I’m married, and have been for several years, right?!” Anyway it takes a few more minutes of conversation but eventually Arthur can’t deny that... there was a women in that house who was definitely Merlin’s wife.
He manages to find a moment alone with the knights to explain, and basically all of them go “??” except Lancelot who catches on really quickly, and though he acts shocked, he knows exactly what’s going on. Anyway, they’re all sure it’s a prank or a mistake or Arthur was just sleep deprived, until they all overhear tactically placed conversations had by servants/guards/Gwen+Morgana about “Merlin’s family” and their house and the marriage and things, until they can’t deny it any longer. ANYWAY!! They’re just getting over their bafflement, and starting to feel guilty that they hadn’t know, when said women shows up on the training ground with a little girl, maybe about 2 years old, on her hip. Merlin grins really widely and kneels down and the little girl runs to him really loudly yelling “Daddy!” and giggling, and Merlin picks her up and spins her around and laughs with her. He completely ignores the others’ gaping as he wonders over to the woman and says hello and kisses her cheek and has a cute little conversation with her about dinner and how late home he was going to be and what “little miss” is getting up to today.
Anyway, this goes on for a few days, Merlin keeps it going just long enough for the others to come to terms with “Holy shit, Merlin has a whole ass life outside of us, a life which includes a wife called Vera and an adorable daughter called Merrion and a pet dog called Orion and we didn’t know about it, we’re terrible friends.”, then Merlin sits them all down, laughs for ten minutes before he even manages to say anything, and then wheezes out “You’re all so stupid” before bursting into hysterics again. Gwen steps in and explains and they’re all so embarrassed but also very amused. “Vera” is a friend of his that works in a part of the castle that Merlin KNOWS none of the knights have ever been (or at least not been often enough to recognise her) and the kid IS her kid, and was bribed with candy and various other things to call Merlin Daddy for a couple of days instead of Uncle Merlin.
None of them EVER live it down, but it becomes legendary. Vera and Merlin occasionally still obnoxiously call each other WIFE and HUSBAND when they pass each other. He never does another big prank again, but everyone is constantly on edge, expecting Merlin to surprise them with shit like “Yeah, I’m actually Cenred’s son” or “It’s my fiftieth birthday next week gang! Can’t believe how well my moisturising routine works!” but he never does. Everytime he says something mildly difficult to believe, it takes them a while to trust him, and even then...
Anyway, the whole ordeal took a lot of work, but it  was so worth it.
~
Let me know what you think!! If anyone wants to write this up please do, just let me know beforehand and tag me!!
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pencildragons · 3 years
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some assorted merlin headcanons:
word has it around camelot that merlin's favourite food is blueberries. this is incorrect. his favourite food is blackberries. he is deathly allergic to blueberries.
arthur found this out the hard way
that bracelet he wears in season 1?? gwen gave it to him. i don’t CARE that they’d known each for like 2 days gwen immediately saw this man and though he Will Be My Friend and then made him a friendship bracelet and nobody stopped her (i love u dork)
in ealdor the Thing He Is Known For is falling into ponds. that’s it. ‘oh who’s that?’ ‘that? that’s merlin. he falls into ponds.’
he almost set Will on fire as a child and will teased him mercilessly to his death about it. off-scene moments before death bitch literally made a joke abt at least he wasn’t set on fire and merlin strangled him then and there.
he can freaking shape shift. like man, how cool is that?? his shape of choice is an EAGLE rather than a merlin, but. the thing is. the way he figured out he could shapeshift was he sneezed one day and suddenly he was a goldfish
GODDAMN my man loves lancelot. he’s the og lancelot fan. he started the lancelot appreciation club and literally the entire round table, gwen, and a couple of randoms off the street are part of it. it’s a great hit. ironically, lancelot doesn’t know it exists.
he made gwaine a Bag of Holding but it’s just for apples. all that’s in the bag is apples, all the way down. gwaine proposed to him on the spot when he got it
he’s left handed BUT arthur taught him to use a sword with his right hand which is why he’s not,,,, fantastic (also because my man just Isn’t Good With Swords) BUT elyan sees him cutting some stuff up one day, yknow. with his left hand. and Realises and as a fellow leftie decides to train him and confuse the HELL out of everyone the next time merlin’s part of training
it works
oh! he was born on samhain, which does play into the fact that he’s immortal, because usually babies born on samhain die,,,, but he didn’t
this did lead to a lot of people being suspicious of he and his mother as he grew up
he didn’t do a lot to help this, admittedly
so y’know how babies can’t really control their limbs when their young?? yeah well merlin couldn’t control his magic
kid would just start spinning and shit right out of his cradle while hunith was having people over for dinner which was. interesting
his entire eyeball was completely golden until he was about 8. it used to freak ppl out so he just. stopped making eye contact
when he’s REALLY angry his eyes just start changing colour,,,,,
there is a Reason why he doesn’t get angry very much
lancelot saw it once and he was Shook forever
gwaine saw it and Immediately decided that it was the coolest thing
he is waiting for the day that merlin cracks because that will be the day that Shit Goes Down
in the 15th century merlin will discover coffee. a caffeinated merlin is a merlin that the world is not ready for
you know how he can speak to dragons? well that extends to all reptiles now. one day a snake starts talking to him and he just shrugs and rolls with it. whatever. this is normal
this is Not Normal
poor arthur walks in on him one day to find him fucking hissing at a twenty-foot python
he and gwen are at the very top of camelot’s rumour mill. they see everything. they hear everything. they know everything. they can also control it >:)
one day merlin’s had enough of arthur and goes to complain in the kitchens
arthur the next day: merlin WHY did i just get called in front of my father on allegations of being in love with a statue??
merlin, pouring a potion of itching into his bath: .....i really couldn’t say, sire
this continues for a while until arthur catches on
in retaliation he writes a letter to hunith detailing all the dumb things her son has gotten up to over the years
the effect is devestating
(as in: merlin doesn’t speak to him for a week)
my man can SEW. his mother was a seamstress and taught him how to make clothes to sell at market the next village over
he loves embroidery, and he also helps gwen out sometimes and they gossip
his magic acts up a lot when he’s sick or tired
this includes turning the sky green and wine into soup
at the same time
while at a banquet
arthur just wants to know why there’s soup in his goblet
he’s,,,,,, really uncomfortable with the druids’ worship of him, bc they see him as akin to a god and their savour and post-camlann they’re going ‘oh mighty emrys the rule of the pendragons has passed onto the once and future queen finally magic can be freed’ and he just loses it
too bad gwaine didn’t get to see it
or anything else, ever
he and morgana pretended to court for a while just so they could absolute SCANADALISE uther, and also to make arthur jealous. they fake-eloped at one point and uther charged merlin with high treason
he got charged with high treason a lot actually, and not just in camelot. he is now a wanted criminal in four different kingdoms
losing morgana (the first time after the poisoning) absolutely DESTROYED him and he became rlly recluse until she came back, which started the descent into who he becomes in s4/5
he is Small and Angry and he will throw hands with Literally Everyone
merlin is no longer allowed swords in public
he’s also tone-deaf but thinks he’s not, and it drives arthur, who’s very musical, absolutely INSANE
he gets his hands on the medieval equivalent of a kazoo and has stopped two bandit attacks and three assassination attempts to date with the ~Power Of Annoyance~
one of those assassination attempts took place during a council meeting and merlin just whips out his kazoo and starts playing
he gets charged with high treason again for that
he is TERRIBLE with plants and kills every single of one of them
he once woke arthur up by climbing through the window on the 9th floor of the castle or whatever and rattling the window pane until arthur woke up and nearly tried to kill him because he thought he was an intruder
he has tried to consume rocks but elyan stopped him
idk i just love him, i’ll probably do some more of others later ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Been thinking about what Mordred's life in Camelot would've been like if Merlin didn't hate him and then thought about how if Morgana was around she would probably always give him her favor at every tournament (until he married) and the other knights would tease him for that so have a broad outline for a Beloved Characters Dont Turn Evil AU
Morgana discovers her magic and Merlin swears to her that he'll protect her. He comforts her when she's scared and Merlin begs Gaius to share his knowledge and suspicions about Morgana to Morgana herself. One night Morgana bursts into their quarters in hysterics, waking them up, screaming and sobbing, and it feels like Merlin's hug is the only thing holding her together but its not enough. Glass starts shattering, candles flare, chandeliers fall to the ground. Gaius decides at this point not telling her will do considerable more harm than not, to both herself and others. They stay up through the night. Gaius speaking and Morgana asking questions, Merlin with a supportive hand on Morgana's shoulder. At one point Morgana tearfully asks the question Merlin asked Gaius long ago, "am i a monster?". They all fall asleep at the table, and that morning when Gwen arrives to wake Morgana only to find her absent with her blankets thrown over the bed and several things knocked over she runs and alerts the guards. The guards initiate lockdown and the commotion reaches Uther and wakes Arthur (Merlin is once again late), and they proceed to fear she was kidnapped right under their noses without anyone knowing. Arthur runs down to get Merlin so he can prepare him for the day only to open the door to find the three of them asleep on the table.
Later Merlin organizes for Morgana to learn more than Gaius can tell her from the Druids, but she intends to stay the night at least, if not then significantly longer (anywhere from a week to several months), and they have no good excuse for her to use that would allow her to leave without Gwen and guards. They come up with some very convoluted plan, which does not end up in the raid that occurred in canon, and when Gwen catches her sneaking back she lies and says she wanted to check up on Mordred (who she did run into), to see if he was with the Druid encampment that was rumored to be nearby (which he was). She didn't learn nearly as much as she hoped in those few hours, but they at least pointed her in a direction.
Morgause comes to town, and leaves Morgana her bracelet. After discovering it stops her visions Morgana takes it to Gaius, who reveals it was enchanted and looks similar to the one Lady Vivienne used to wear. Morgana states Morgause got it from her mother, but that Lady Vivienne was Morgana's mother and wonders how the bracelet ever got to Morgause. Gaius says there was a rumor that Lady Vivienne had a baby that displayed a affinity for magic, but Gorlois told Uther their baby had died before they even named her. Gaius reveals that the baby was smuggled out of Camelot and given to the High Priestesses, and Morgause might very well be that baby. Morgana begins to long for a connection with Morgause, to meet the sister she never knew of and recover something of her dead parents. When she begins secretly meeting Morgause, she tells Merlin and then asks him to come with her when she begins receiving lessons from her. Morgause tries to convince them that killing Uther is the right thing to do, but Merlin keeps reassuring Morgana that all they need to do is convince Arthur to change the law for when he is king, and he's not ready to do that now so theres no use in killing Uther before he's ready, and that she does love Uther and Uther does love her and would try to "fix" her well before he ordered her death. Morgause still wants him dead, to rush the prophecy of magic's return. Them sneaking out every few nights cements the idea that Morgana and Merlin are secretly dating in castle gossip.
Im not sure what happens with Morgause, but i think she would still take Camelot at some point and she would spare Morgana and by extension Merlin. Morgana and Merlin make sure to get Arthur out (and Merlin probably goes with him) because they dont trust Morgause to not kill him. Morgause reveals her heritage (and makes Morgana a Princess and her Heir) despite claiming the throne for people of magic and not the House of Gorlois, and the knowledge that Vivienne and one of her daughters were sorceresses leads Uther to believe he can not save Morgana from magic that is likely in her blood and THAT is what breaks his mental state. Morgana's real heritage is revealed soon after, with Uther informing Gaius that Morgana being a Princess is actually within her birth rights. Morgause continues Morgana's training because at some point Morgana has to become a High Priestess because canon. That or Morgause switches sides (this is a Beloved Characters Dont Go Evil AU might as well make it No Beloved Characters Are Evil AU) and she trains Morgana later after Arthur is a established King.
Morgause is overthrown and the Round Table formed. Arthur as well as several people in the castle know of or suspect Morgana of being a sorceress but he refuses to banish her, first believing it to have been out of her control (forced by Morgause) and later learning that her nightmares had been magic all along (how could he punish her for something he knows she had tried to get rid of for over a decade?). Perhaps he lets her keep the title of Princess, having always seen her as a sister (and someone who is compassionate for the people in a way royalty should be) and armed with the new knowledge of her being his actual sister. Everyone expects Regent Arthur to crack down on magic, its what Uther would have done and what the people want, so he does. Morgana becomes a advocate for magic, as she had been for Arthur in private as a Prince, and it scares people in the castle. They believe her to be working with Morgause, despite her arguments being for individuals' wellbeing and how punishments fuels hatred for Camelot. Several attempts are made on her life, many stopped by Merlin and Gwen and sometimes Lancelot. Arthur often "asks" Merlin for his opinion on magic and with Morgana's voice being public he feels okay with being straight with Arthur on what he thinks. Uther dies same as he did in canon: protecting Arthur from a assassination.
Mordred becomes a Knight because canon. Morgana is ecstatic to see him again and acts like a mother who hasn't seen her child in ages when she first sees him. Merlin has learned you often make the enemies that are destined to kill you (ex. trying to stop Morgana's visions from coming true) so he ignores Kilgharrah and doesn't hate Mordred (he is always wary though). Mordred alternates between childlike eagerness around the knights and following Merlin around while hero worshiping him (no one can figure out why. Their best guess is that Morgana is a mutual friend). In the beginning he kept messing up his name (calling him "Merlin" is just weird) and they often talk in their heads and therefore just stare at each other which has led to two conflicting rumors: theyre in love or they hate each other. Morgana often invites him to dinner, and when they dine with Arthur they easily slip into mind-talking (because chewing) and Arthur is convinced that they're making fun of him every time they do it. He protects Arthur when Merlin can't, often runs off to do side quests Merlin needs to do but cant get away to do, and often tags along with Merlin on his quests. Being able to share the knowledge of his destiny since Lancelot died (if he dies in this AU) relaxes Merlin's caution and allows him to be emotionally closer to him. Mordred enjoys being around Merlin and Morgana not just because he's Emrys and she's Morgana, but because they are the closest thing to home he has: they know what he is, they understand (bits) of his culture and make it possible for Mordred to share it with them, their individual magic sings strong enough to remind him of when he lived surrounded by it. He quickly grows to love them so very much and no one understands WHY. The knights tease him about it, and Morgana forcing Arthur to take Mordred on certain missions he isnt qualified for "so he can learn" does not help. Gwaine and Percival were planning to convince him that he couldnt compete in a tournament without a lady's favor because he's the rookie and his panicked look greatly amuses them only to find Morgana giving him her's before kissing his cheek. They were relentless after that, alternating between "lady's favors dont count if they're from your mom," "Mordred has a girlfriend," and whatever the medieval version of affectionately calling him "Bambi" is. Morgana sits in the stand's throne (since Arthur is competing) or besides it if Gwen is queen, and she flashes a smile at him when he comes out (Gwen too. He's a sweet kid with a baby face, of course he's one of her favorites. He also reminds her of Merlin when she first met him: kind, awkward, cute). This settles Mordred's nerves but has the unfortunate side effect of increased teasing. Merlin doesn't let it go to far, he never does, and gives them a distraction before running back to Arthur.
And then magic is brought back to the land and Morgana continues the work of the High Priestesses and helps the rebuilding efforts and they're still adventures and problems, but everyone Lives Happily Ever After
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wtfisgoingonanymore · 3 years
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Birthdays In Camelot
Sooooooooo three of my very good and very dear friends had their birthday and I wanted to do something for them. I know this isn’t much, but 1. I am dead inside and school continues to kill me, and 2. …yeah. I’m dead inside. I just wanted to dedicate a little something to you three amazing beautiful perfect angels because you guys are some of the best people ever and you’re always so kind and nice to me. I wanted to return the favor somehow someway. I probablyyyy should’ve made three separate ones for each of you, but I have multiple papers to finish up for next week. I’ll try and do better next time, but for now this is all I have.
So!!! in the spirit of @gayfirebender @thatone-nerdygirl and @junemo10 , this is for you.
Birthdays:
Birthdays are a big thing for Merlin. When he was in Ealdor, he and his mother didn’t really have enough money to celebrate in a big way.
It was usually a slightly better porridge or a new tunic if they were REALLY lucky.
So when Merlin started earning his wages, he immediately looked for the best present he could ever get his mother and then he one upped it the next year
It started out with a delicious meal stolen from the royal cook herself and worked it’s way up to a dress that looked simple enough for a peasant but felt like it was made for a queen
Having ties to Arthur sure helped that out
SO! because of Merlin’s love for birthdays, you know he goes all out for all his friends
It makes Percival so. soft. whenever Merlin skips to him on his birthday and gives him a present
His favorite, by far, is when Merlin gave him an amazing little tree that he takes care off very well. (It’s a magical bonzai.)
Elyan is excited for his birthday cause Merlin gave him the best gifts. His favorite is definitely the new armor design that Merlin drew up based on different knights from different kingdoms. Elyan made it and uses it for himself and himself only.
Leon was very surprised to get a gift from Merlin. It was long long ago when Arthur was still prince and they barely spoke at all.
He was surprised to catch him in his room- setting down a basket full of large bottles.
Merlin was a blushing embarrassed mess at being caught. He and Leon had never had a proper conversation since before that.
He stuttered his way to explain that he knew Leon was constantly aching from past battle wounds, so he made large batches of Gaius’ special salves and potions for Leon to use. That is objectively the best gift Merlin ever got for him because of the memory that came with it.
However, Merlin setting him up on a date with George will soon be the best one yet.
Gwen is a pouty baby because “Merlin! You didn’t have to get me anything! I’m already happy with our friendship.”
She accepts the gifts anyway. Her favorite is definitely the specially made and designed family seal that is dedicated to her father. She cried so much and keeps it with her all the time
Gwaine. Ohhhhh Gwaine. His gifts started out fun, you know? A pint of mead, Finally being able to take Merlin out for a pint, A fully paid night of drinking. Those sort of stuff
But then Merlin goes and starts writing him all these long ass letters. All these letters that talk about how much Merlin appreciates him and how great of a person he is
And Gwaine never fails to ugly cry on those letters. He keeps them all in a special box- it remains his most prized possession.
Lancelot counted himself lucky. With Magic now an available option, Merlin gave Lancelot the best of the best presents from day one of their friendship.
His absolute favorite present, however, is the magichand made knight’s armor, outfit, and sword that Merlin made for him after becoming a knight. It was enchanted too because obviously
Gaius, like Lancelot, got some of the best gifts ever with the help of magic.
Merlin gave him tons of very exotic and new herbs and plants to work with. He’d summon them from a land far away just for Gaius and then plant them somewhere, so he’d have more.
But the best one by far is the new equipment Merlin got for him. Each and everyone had words painted or etched onto it: “Best Father Figure” “Best Physcian” “Best Mentor”. It was nice little reminders that touched Gaius’ heart constantly
Before Morgana left, Merlin’s gift to her were not at all the exquisite gifts that she normally got. No, it was much much better.
Merlin always gave her a peasant’s dress and snuck her out to explore the lower town with him. They’d buy little random trinkets and food and then go out to play and eat in a forest clearing far away from the tyranny and the hate and the duties of royalty.
She didn’t realize until later on that those were the best presents because Merlin always took her to a place where magic was most alive and beautiful and calming and thriving.
Arthur’s birthday was always a tricky one for Merlin. This was his other half and the man he was kinda a little bit very in love with- it had to be perfect.
But in the end, it didn’t really take much thinking at all. This was his other half and the man he was very much in love after all.
Arthur would never be able to decide what his favorite gift from Merlin was. Anything that man gave him, he absolutely loved with all his heart
He didn’t know if it was the refurbished painting of his mother or the tiny farm that was set up for the both of them when they needed a break or maybe all the necklaces and letters and bracelets and tunics Merlin crafted especially for him.
He does know which one he takes especially good care of- even more so than his farm and painting. The most precious gift Merlin has ever given him: His magical heart.
And so obviously, Merlin had to have the best birthday of them all. While everyone got him nice gifts too, they had to give him the best one after a very stressful and bumpy magic and love revealing year.
Normally, it would’ve been a feast. Arthur knew that was definitely not the case. This was Merlin- he wanted it small and intimate.
They set up the nice round table dinner with just their group of friends.
Merlin was already crying when they brought them there.
After eating, they’d all give their gifts to him one by one. Just seeing his friends line up made Merlin cry with appreciation again. Arthur made him sit on the throne for this one.
Percival grinned wide as he gave Merlin pots of the most beautiful flowers and herbs that would typically be needed in potion making.
Elyan was practically bouncing off the walls as he presented a staff he made alongside the druids.
Gwen had to shove Elyan out of the way to present the very special hand made outfits she made for him- fit for royalty.
Leon smiled and chuckled as he gave him the exact same potions and salves Merlin gave to him that first time because now he knew that Merlin needed it too.
Gwaine smirked and stuck his tongue out as he went out and brought back Hunith with him. While they were greeting each other, he slipped his very long and more tear-inducing letter with the rest of Merlin’s gift.
Gaius smiled as he gave Merlin a key. A key to his new magical workshop that Gaius and his very bad back worked on. Later on, Merlin would cry in there as he read all the labels Gaius put everywhere: “Best Son” “Best Warlock” “Best Student” “My Best Merlin.”
Arthur was nervous ash he walked up to Merlin. He tried to speak three times before sighing in defeat. He handed him a scroll that officially declared the magic ban lifted.
Merlin was sobbing at that point. He didn’t know how it could get any better really.
Except that Morgana burst in with a gust of wind in a true dramatic fashion.
Everyone was on defense immediately as they turned to face her.
They all let out different gasps and choked sobs when they were not faced with a wild haired all black outfit Morgana, but with a Morgana in a peasant dress, a basket in hand full of knickknacks and food, and tears in her eyes.
Later on in the night when Merlin slipped into Arthur’s arms, he got his final greatest present.
Ygraine’s ring and four words.
“Will you marry me?”
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lit-in-thy-heart · 3 years
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I'm so excited you've jouned in!!! 💕
You owe Merwaine some happiness after your VERY angsty episode analyses so I would love those two and Sleepy hug please!! 😍
@little-ligi i hope this makes up for the angst!!! thank you for sending a prompt and have merlin and gwaine falling asleep together when with the knights and arthur on a trip thing (unspecified) between s4 and s5 💕
once again, under the cut because this is the longest one yet...
Rearranging his cloak so it provided greater coverage from the brisk wind, Gwaine glanced over at the group who were gradually drifting off amongst the fallen foliage. Despite the undiluted thoughts that inevitably streamed through his head when on watch, Gwaine relished the uninterrupted opportunity to softly observe Merlin without having the eyes of the other knights on him. If he had an apple for every time one of them – usually Percival or Arthur, despite Elyan’s quiet requests for them to shut up – had called him out for supposedly undressing Merlin with his eyes, he would certainly have a bushel of them by now. Granted, Gwaine sometimes did have the habit of mentally undressing Merlin with his eyes when he looked at him, but more often than not the knight was simply gazing in wonder at how such a beautiful being had chosen to devote his life to Gwaine of all people.
Merlin had been out of his sight for the past couple of hours, having accompanied Elyan to retrieve firewood, but Gwaine knew that they were both exchanging new spells that they’d learnt over the past few weeks. Elyan had told Gwaine about his magic before Gwaine had even had his suspicions about Merlin confirmed. Or, rather, Gwaine had stumbled in on Elyan, when the call of nature had echoed in his head on the night they had first met, and had witnessed him throwing all five of Gwaine’s knives without touching a single one. Gwaine had been more bothered by the fact that he hadn’t even noticed that his knives were missing than by the fact that Elyan was a sorcerer. And then, several weeks later, after Merlin had confessed to Gwaine on the night they had found themselves in bed together after an evening in the tavern, Gwaine had told both Elyan and Merlin to meet him in the Darkling Woods, greeted them with the statement that they both had magic, and had left them to it. Although he forced his unwavering support onto Merlin at every given opportunity, Gwaine knew the value of having someone close who knew precisely the struggles being faced, and he was grateful that Merlin had that in Elyan, and vice versa.
With a smile, Gwaine’s gaze slid over to Merlin, cocooned in a blanket and laughing at some remark that Elyan had sleepily murmured, and he settled himself against a tree trunk, moving his eyes back to the space in front of him as he withdrew his sword and positioned it across torso, the point of the blade hovering dangerously close to his neck. It was probably best that he was keeping watch alone, so he wouldn’t get distracted by talking to someone – but it also meant that there was nobody to check him when his attention slid, as it always did, to Merlin. He squinted up at the sky, seeking out the moon. At least he wasn’t expected to keep watch all night. Not that there was much need. Perhaps it was somewhat of an invincibility complex but, ever since donning the cloak bearing Camelot’s emblem, Gwaine had felt untouchable. Almost. The cloak hadn’t made Lancelot untouchable. Setting his jaw, Gwaine took a deep breath and focused on the lazy wave of the leaves opposite, on the stars splattered across the deep canvas of the sky like a bloodstain, on the soft melody of the wind.
‘Come on, now, Gwaine, you know full well how hot you look when you hold a sword like that.’
Perhaps Gwaine, who had not noticed Merlin – Merlin, of all people – approach, had not been the best choice for watch. He looked up with the smile that always graced his lips whenever the warlock was near, eyes dropping with Merlin’s body as he settled himself next to him. ‘I am by no means opposed to making out right here, right now.’
To satiate his desire, Merlin scattered a trail of kisses along his hairline. ‘I don’t think the others would appreciate it.’
‘Mm, you’re probably right there,’ Gwaine murmured, his fingers tracing Merlin’s face. ‘And you should sleep.’
‘I’m okay.’
Gwaine’s hands found the shadowed purple beneath Merlin’s eyes and he fixed him with a look. ‘I know that you haven’t slept properly for the past two weeks. I can see it written all over your face.’
Scowling, Merlin pushed his hand away. ‘Well that’s rude.’
‘But not a lie.’
Expression softening, Merlin wrapped the blanket tighter around his body.‘That’s because you’ve been on night patrol for the past two weeks and haven’t slept next to me.’
‘I don’t enjoy it.’
‘No, but at least you get to talk to Elyan. I’m left alone with the ceiling and my thoughts, and you know how much I hate that.’ Realising how he sounded, Merlin leaned closer into Gwaine. ‘I’m not trying to guilt-trip you. I know full well there’s nothing you can do about it.’
Just as Merlin knew that, Gwaine knew full well that he shouldn’t do what his arm had already started to do but, noticing Merlin’s poorly-concealed shivers, he set down his sword and drew Merlin in so the warlock was resting his head in Gwaine’s chest. Then, kissing the top of his head, Gwaine pushed him away as swiftly as he’d pulled him in. ‘Go to bed, love. If you fall asleep here then your neck will not be thanking you in the morning.’
Looking up, Merlin held his gaze for several moments. With a sigh, he lifted his head and kissed Gwaine on the mouth before reluctantly standing and stumbling back to the makeshift camp. Gwaine watched as he settled himself at a slight distance from the other knights and Arthur, his back turned. The flickering embers cast subtle shadows across Merlin’s back and Gwaine’s gaze remained turned towards him for several moments more before he forced his eyes to travel away from the warlock’s form. Gwaine didn’t need to see it to know how it moulded to his palms when they were alone.
When around other people, Merlin always seemed to skirt around Gwaine, always leaving at least several inches between their bodies, as if afraid of causing Gwaine to shatter as a mirage if he made even the slightest contact with his skin. Gwaine had started wearing gloves more frequently in the hopes that Merlin would be more liberal in brushing against him then, but it had all been to no avail. Then Gwaine had continued to wear gloves anyway, just so that his bare hands wouldn’t have the nerves numbed by grazing surfaces before they reached out for Merlin’s skin. The result was a warm tingle that, to some, would be more of a scald, but Gwaine savoured every moment that his skin was set alight by Merlin. Having a particular skill with fire spells also helped him not feel the agony of burning so much, too.
When they were alone, though, Merlin was the one to remove Gwaine’s gloves and, every time his fingers skimmed the bones in Gwaine’s hand, the knight had to focus so as not to release skittering flames in Merlin’s direction. There seemed to be a ritual with Merlin when they were alone. The warlock would gently draw the gloves from Gwaine’s skin, toss them to one side, and then dedicate a substantial amount of time to tracing the marks on the knight’s hands, no matter how many times his fingers had already followed the cellular paths that day.
First, he always looked for new scalds or burns, disregarding Gwaine’s protests that they didn’t hurt in the same way that their ancestors had when he had first started learning magic, skimming his fingers over the marks as if the touch formed a mental note to treat them at a later date. After assessing the damage, Merlin’s lips always trailed behind his touch, silently reassuring each of Gwaine’s imperfections that they were so wonderfully loved and successfully sending shivers up Gwaine’s spine. Though those shivers always were abruptly severed when Merlin’s touch made its way to the thick scar just below the fold of skin between his right thumb and forefinger. Merlin had never once pushed him for more information about his childhood amongst bandits, but there was always a part of Gwaine that worried Merlin would one day get sick of the sight of the small branded letter, not quite concealed by the path the knife had taken so long ago, and would abandon him to the abyss he had been lost in before meeting the warlock.
But that hadn’t happened yet.
After studying Gwaine’s hands, Merlin then moved to stripping him of his knighthood and it was a death that Gwaine would gladly watch again and again if it was at Merlin’s hands. The chainmail was cast aside, the cloak thrown over a chair, and the sword noisily skimmed the floor until Gwaine was stood in only a shirt and his trousers, equal to Merlin. The only armour Gwaine had ever wanted covering him, since that day at the tavern, was Merlin’s hands. Arthur hadn’t really given him an opportunity to turn down the knighthood and, even if he had, there was always the possibility – in Gwaine’s mind, at least – that Arthur would have been offended enough to maintain his banishment, and then Gwaine never would have seen Merlin again. Being a knight did have its advantages, though: Gwaine never went hungry, nor did he have to sleep with one eye open, and he had been getting into fewer and fewer brawls over the years. Though that last one was perceived as more of an advantage in Leon’s eyes, who had always been the one to drag him out of any frays and then let him cool off in the cells on the odd occasion. Even when that had happened, though, Merlin had always slipped in and spent the night with Gwaine, heating his body up to unnatural temperatures to keep Gwaine warm. The first few times that had happened, Gwaine had been terrified that Merlin would spontaneously combust, but Merlin had frequently assured him that such a trick was not possible.
So they would stand there, facing one another in silence, Gwaine’s materialistic armour strewn across the room, and then Gwaine would take Merlin gently in his hands, tracing segments of the form he knew so well, and then their souls would fuse together with their lips.
 
When the stars had shifted substantially, Gwaine hauled himself from his position and shook out his legs in the vain attempt to rid himself of the cramp in his limbs, slowly advancing towards Leon’s form. He gently prodded him awake, instinctively lunging backwards as the reflexive swipe came from the blankets, and held out his arms to receive said blankets when a thickened voice quietly called out his name. 
Turning around, Gwaine could just make out Merlin’s hands stretching out in a half-hearted wave in the heavy darkness and, telling Leon to forget about the blankets, picked his way through the sleeping knights, guided by the dropping syllables of his name. By the time he reached Merlin, the warlock’s hands had fallen to the ground and, smiling fondly, Gwaine hastily stripped down to his gambeson and slid into the nest Merlin had made.
There were significantly more blankets than Merlin should have had – not that Gwaine was complaining – and Merlin drowsily pushed several layers towards him, turning around to face Gwaine. His eyes flickered in the darkness as his hand fell against Gwaine’s chest and, from the point where Merlin touched him, the knight could feel a comforting heat pushing into him like a blade. Gwaine realised he probably should have tied back his hair so Merlin didn’t accidentally try to eat it in his sleep, but he was too comfortable to do that. With a smile, Gwaine encircled the warlock with his arms and rested his mouth against Merlin’s forehead as his eyes closed.
‘I missed you.’
‘I missed you, too,’ Merlin murmured.
Gwaine frowned, one eye cracking open. ‘You were asleep. You couldn’t have missed me.’
There was a pause. ‘You know I wasn’t exaggerating when I said I couldn’t sleep properly without you next to me, right?’
‘I did not.’ Gwaine waited until he felt five of Merlin’s exhalations drape themselves around his throat before speaking again. ‘Whatever did you do before I came into your life?’
‘Had a decent night’s sleep, because I wasn’t aware of your existence and consequently didn’t have to constantly worry about preserving it.’ Merlin shifted against him, hands crawling under Gwaine’s shirt and settling themselves on his stomach. ‘It’s so strange to think that we didn’t even know that the other existed. That we had no idea that one day we would be right here, in this moment.’
Merlin, when tired, always became philosophical. And usually when Gwaine was tired he couldn’t make head or tail of what his significant other was saying, but perhaps the cool night air had cleared his head more than ale usually did. ‘I think I prefer it that way,’ Gwaine murmured. ‘If we’d known that the other was out there, then I think we would have spent all our lives searching. We would have pinned our entire existence on the other person and that’s...That just doesn’t feel right. Not that I’m saying I don’t love you.’
‘No, no, I know...I know what you mean,’ yawned Merlin, pushing his head into Gwaine’s chest.
Tightening his arms around Merlin, Gwaine listened to the rhythm of the warlock’s breathing pattern, trying to match his own to it, and gently kissed the top of his head. There was a slight mumble, and something that might have resembled an ‘I love you’ and Gwaine murmured it back, just in case. It had been too long since the two of them had drifted off together, wrapped in one another’s beings, and Gwaine would forever bind himself to the soft form that was quite literally touching his heart.
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beautifultypewriter · 3 years
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Sir Leon Fluff Alphabet
Requested: Yes / by my other fav @taletime and a couple of anons
Warnings: None
Full credit to whoever created this template (I still don’t actually know who that is). Gif credit to the owner. Also, I changed the prompt for letter Q from quaint to quickstep.
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A = Attractive (What do they find attractive about the other?)
Your kind nature is everything to Leon. The way that you’ll drop everything to help your friends and family whenever they need you, the way you’ll go out of your way to help a stranger, the way you treat animals, it all is so beautiful to Leon. He thinks you’re an amazing person and he’s so happy to be able to know you and to call you his.
B = Baby (Do they want a family? Why/Why not?)
Leon wants 10 babies with you. He loves you so much and there is nothing he wants more than to start a family with you. He wants to teach his children how to ride horses and how to shoot crossbows. He wants to sit around the dinner table, looking at all their smiling faces, and holding his youngest on his lap. The house is so full of love and everything is wonderful because the two of you take such good care of your children.
C = Cuddle (How do they cuddle?)
Leon is big. He takes up a lot of space, so you usually end up curled into him. He loves to be the big spoon, so you often lay together, your back against his chest and his arms wrapped around you. The two of you often fall asleep like this and wake up in the exact same position the next morning. Most of your cuddling takes place at night as the two of you are trying to fall asleep, but if one of you has a bad day then cuddling is definitely a go to in order to lift the other’s spirits. Leon also really loves to come up behind you and wrap his arms around you while you’re working on something around the house and just cuddle you for a minute before he has to go out for his rounds.
D = Dates (What are dates with them like?)
Dates with Leon are always intimate and special. He likes to bring you outside of Camelot’s walls and set up a picnic for the two of you. He does all the preparations on his own, wanting to make everything special. The two of you will spend hours laying on the blanket after you’ve eaten, just talking and looking at the clouds. Leon tells you his favorite stories and the two of you talk about the future until the sun starts to set. Then the two of you ride slowly back to Camelot, not wanting the night to end.
E = Everything (You are my ____ (e.g. my life, my world…))
One and only
You are the first person that Leon has ever been in love with. You are the only one who has ever made him feel what he feels for you and it’s the most wonderful feeling. He knows that you’re it for him and he couldn’t ask for anything more.
F = Feelings (When did they know they were in love?)
Leon knew he was in love with you when the two of you went to watch the sunset together for the first time. You had surprised him that evening by meeting him after his rounds with a large picnic basket in your hands and a blanket thrown over your arm. With few words exchanged, you led Leon out to a spot high on one of the castle walls. You spread the blanket out and the two of you sat down. You ate and talked quietly as the sun fell to the horizon. The glow of the sunset bounced off your profile as you watched it. Leon stared at you, completely captivated by the glow of your skin and the only thought in his mind was that he wanted to watch every sunset after this with you.
G = Gentle (Are they gentle? If so, how?)
A gentle giant. Leon is a sweetheart who is always gentle with you. His movements are always slow and purposeful. His touch is light and careful. As a knight, Leon is capable of many things, but he would never bring those things to you. He always takes care when he’s with you, holding you close to him and running his fingers lightly over your skin. Yes, Leon is very gentle.
H = Hands (How do they like to hold hands?)
Leon is not big on holding hands when the two of you are out and about. He prefers to loop his arm with yours and walk around the market or through the garden like that. He does however really love to hold your hand when the two of you are sitting together. Sometimes he doesn’t even realize that he’s doing it, his hand just automatically reaches for yours when the two of you sit together on a bench or when you sit at the table for meals. When the two of you sit outside on a nice day, he likes to hold one of your hands in both of his as he faces you, listening to you talk about your day or about some plans for the future. And he traces his thumbs over your knuckles.
I = Impression (What was their first impression?)
Leon’s first impression of you was that you had to be of noble blood. You were too unbelievably perfect to have not been raised by nobility. The way you moved had him captivated and he was sure that you had spent your childhood in etiquette lessons in order to achieve such grace and such a sense of easiness.  
J = Jealousy (Do they get jealous?)
No. Leon is pretty secure in your relationship and he doesn’t get threatened by other people getting close to you. He knows that you’re friendly and he knows that you have an aura that people really like, so you always get wrapped up in easy conversations with people wherever the two of you go. Leon has no problem with that. It’s actually one of the things he loves most about you. He may join in on a conversation, but it’s not as a way to assert dominance or possession, it’s because he genuinely wants to be near you and be part of the conversation. If you’re out at the tavern and he notices that someone is getting too close and you’re uncomfortable then he’ll intervene, making sure that the person leaves you alone.
K = Kiss (How do they kiss? Who initiated the first kiss?)
Leon’s kisses are so soft and full of love. He’s very gentle when it comes to you and that translates in his kisses.
You initiated the first kiss. Leon is so very sweet, and he would never want to rush you or make you feel uncomfortable, so he takes things very slow. Honestly, you were starting to get a bit impatient and while you loved the cheek kisses, you were ready for something more. Your plan had been to sit him down and talk about how he could speed some things up, but as soon as he smiled at you, you were pushing yourself up and pressing your lips against his. He was shocked at first, but he melted into you as your hands pressed against his chest and his own hands fell to your waist. When you pulled away, you smiled at him and told him to feel free to return the favor whenever he pleased, and he did… quite often.
L = Love (Who says ‘I love you’ first?)
He does. It was one of those nights where the two of you were still cuddled up in the grass after having watched the sunset together. Leon had a night shift and he only had a few minutes before he had to get going, but he was finding it difficult to leave you. The words kept getting caught in his throat, he could feel them there, wanting to get out, but he was nervous about saying them. You had pulled away from him, standing and shaking him from his thoughts. He had given you a confused look and you giggled as you told him that he was about to be late. He smiled up at you, grasping your hand in his, “I don’t care. Not when I’m with the one I love.” Your eyes widened and he nodded, “I love you, Y/N.” He gently pulled you back to the ground and wrapped his arms around you, pressing a kiss to your head. You smiled again, saying that you loved him too.
M = Memory (What’s their favourite memory together?)
The other knights, Arthur, Gwen, and Merlin are Leon’s family. He cares deeply for them and it’s important to him that everyone get along. His favorite memory is of the first time you met everyone at the tavern. Leon was supposed to spend the night with you, but the others were pestering him to come down to the tavern for a drink or two. He had made up excuses, but Percival told him to just bring you along, an idea that Gwaine immediately latched onto, claiming that he was dying to meet the one who had captured Sir Leon’s heart. Leon had little choice, so when he met up with you, he asked if you wanted to head down to the tavern. You agreed and as you stepped into the dim lighting, you were bombarded by men in red cloaks. You had handled it well, fielding each question with a smile. Gwen and Merlin had been more tame and you clicked with them instantly. Leon watched you drink and laugh with his friends and later when he walked you home, you told him about how you had such a great time that you wanted to do it again. It was such a wonderful and warm night where his two worlds collided so perfectly.
N = Nickel (Do they spoil? Do they buy the person they love everything?)
Leon loves to give you gifts, but they’re always small things likes flowers or pretty rocks that he finds. Whenever he has to leave Camelot for a special mission, you can expect some kind of gift upon his return. He always says the same thing when he presents you with said gift, “It reminded me of you.” And then he hands you a beautiful flower or a carved piece of wood. You cherish every gift he gives you and you have a special box where you keep them all.
O = Orange (What colour reminds them of their other half?)
Forest Green
You are tranquil and relaxing. You are the forest outside the walls of the kingdom. You are everywhere he goes when he can’t be next to you. You bring a balance and harmony to Leon’s life that he hadn’t realized he had been missing.
P = Pet names (What pet names do they use?)
Leon calls you’ honey’ because you’re just so sweet. When he returns home, he kisses your forehead, mumbling, “Hello, honey.” You love when he calls you ‘honey’ and part of you wishes he would do it in public more, but he usually keeps pet names private. He once made the mistake of calling you ‘honey’ in front of the other knights and Gwaine teased him mercilessly for a week.
Q = Quickstep (How do they feel about dancing?)
Leon is not the most graceful dancer, but it doesn’t stop him from spinning you around the floor at a feast. He likes doing the traditional dances with you even if he stumbles a bit because that just makes it more fun. You giggle at him and he grins back at you. As much as he loves this funny dancing, he loves slow dancing even more. He’s a bit more coordinated when the movements slow down, and they aren’t so choreographed. He also really loves having you close to him as you sway back and forth.
R = Rainy Day (What do they like to do on a rainy day?)
Rain doesn’t stop the Knights of Camelot. Leon still has to do his rounds even if he’d rather be curled up with you in bed, so he leaves that morning with a kiss to your forehead. You know that he’s going to be a bit grumpy and probably a little wet when he returns. You stoke the fire, making sure the room is nice and warm for him and you run to the kitchens to get some food and a nice warm drink for him. When Leon stumbles into the room, his hair wet and his clothes practically soaked through, you’re quick to push him behind the privacy screen and throw some dry clothes at him. He changes quickly before joining you in bed. The two of you sit close together while he eats and drinks. You ask him about his rounds, and he tells you about all the mundane things that happened. He thanks you for the food and drink and for being so good to him. The two of you spend the rest of the day curled up together.
S = Sad (How do they cheer themselves/others up?)
When Leon is sad, he likes to talk things out. He prefers sitting in a quiet place and talking about what’s troubling him and he loves when you give him advice or tell him a story to help him feel better. When you’re sad, the first thing Leon does is hug you. He wraps you up in his arms and kisses the top of your head. Then he offers to take you on a walk and as the two of you stroll along together, he picks every beautiful flower he sees and gives it to you until you’ve got a whole bouquet and a smile on your face.
T = Talking (What do they like to talk about?)
Leon loves to talk with you. A lot of the time the two of you spend together is spent talking about anything and everything. The two of you talk about the past and you talk about the future. Leon loves to hear about your childhood because he feels like he’s learning about what contributed to the person you are today, and he loves that. You beg him to tell you all his most daring stories and he blushes a bit, but he obliges, telling you about the most intense quests he’s been on with Arthur and the other knights.
U = Unencumbered (What helps them relax?)
Long walks. Leon likes to move, so he finds that walking is a big comfort to him. If he’s worked up or stressed about something, he’ll often say he’s going for a walk and then go through the market place or outside the walls and just stroll through the forest for a few hours. If you’re around when he leaves then you’ll join him. He loves it when you do because the added comfort of your presence helps him relax further.
V = Vaunt (What do they like to show off? What are they proud of?)
Leon doesn’t show off. It’s just not who he is, it’s not something he’s ever felt the need to do. He knows his skills and that’s good enough for him. He doesn’t need to go around bragging about them. When you ask him why he doesn’t ever try to show off at tournaments or trainings, he says it’s because that sort of behavior is not very becoming of a knight. Then you point out that Arthur shows off all the time and his only answer is that Arthur is the prince. You shake your head and decide not to bring up the other knights, instead choosing to tell Leon that you find his humble attitude endearing. He blushes and decides that he really likes your compliments, though he won’t say it out loud.
W = Wedding (When, how, where do they propose?)
When the time finally comes to pop the question, Leon takes you on a walk through the gardens in Camelot. He takes your arm with his and the two of you stand close together as you walk through the flowers and the trees. Leon points out the most beautiful flowers and says that they remind him of you. At some point your feet get tired, so Leon leads you over to one of the stone benches and the two of you sit together. His hand reaches for yours and he holds it tightly. Then he stares right into your eyes, tells you that he loves you, and asks you to marry him. You’re silent for a moment as he continues, telling you that you are the most wonderful person in the world and he wouldn’t survive a day without you and you cut him off with a kiss, nodding and mumbling ‘yes’ against his lips.  
X = Xylophone (What’s their song?)
This Kiss – Faith Hill
This song is so light and lovely that it perfectly captures your relationship with Leon. Every moment the two of you share is beautiful. When he presses his lips to yours, warmth blooms in your chest and you get this fuzzy feeling in your entire body. There’s a certain magic when the two of you kiss that sometimes you feel as if you’re floating. It’s just the way he loves you.
Y = Yes (Do they ever think of getting married/proposing?)
Most definitely. Leon is a family man and part of starting his own family is finding that special person to marry. Then he met you and everything seemed to fall into place. It didn’t take long for Leon to figure out that he wanted to marry you. He knew that he couldn’t just jump right into it though and he had to court you properly and give you time. Which he had no problem doing. Leon would wait a thousand years for you.
Z = Zebra (If they wanted a pet, what would they get?)
Leon isn’t really interested in pets. He knows the two of you are busy and you probably wouldn’t have enough time to take care of a pet. He does get you a horse though because he thinks horses are valuable companions and he thinks you should have one.
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mimiswitchywrites · 3 years
Text
Not A Burden: Chapter 7
TW: SH references, attempted s****de and references, child/s***al a**se references (not graphic but enough that could be triggering).
Master list or read on AO3
1.8k words
If you want to be tagged for updates, message me or comment!
One more chapter tomorrow and then a week or so of hiatus while I sort some life stuff out
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Merlin had been dreaming about a certain sandy haired royal for the last few weeks and he couldn’t figure out if he loved it or hated it. It made serving him far harder than it needed to be as all he could think about was the way dream Arthur had pinned him to his desk as he cleared it or how dream Arthur would give him the day off so they could go to the market together and how real Arthur would never do something like that. Real Arthur could barely look at him, let alone want to go out in public with him like that. On the other hand, dream Arthur was really fucking hot, and Merlin enjoyed that. He knew he could never have real Arthur, so it made him happy to at least have a version of him at night.
Was that sad? Maybe a little.
But, regardless of his feelings towards these dreams, he did not appreciate them being interrupted. Especially not by his frantic father-figure. Especially not when Dream Arthur had just got onto his knees and was beginning to undo the ties on Merlin’s breaches…
Gaius was rather insistent that Merlin wake up and help him find Miriam who, he guessed as he hadn’t really been listening properly, had vanished. He threw on yesterday’s clothes, too tired to look presentable, and made his way into the main chamber where, unsurprisingly, the spare cot was empty. He sighed, giving into the fact that he wouldn’t be getting anymore sleep, and ran out the door to ask the guards at the bottom of the stairs if they had seen her. Well, tried to run. Instead, he ended up inches from headbutting Miriam and, Lancelot? The latter of which seemed to be leaning in for a kiss that the former looked as if she really didn’t want to partake in.
He heard Gaius sigh from inside the room and settle down to get started on the days work. After letting the poor girl hurry inside and close the door behind her, Merlin decided to have some fun (it was only fair after such a rude start to the morning which Lancelot had played his part in.)
He started with a raised eyebrow, something he was getting far better at after being on the receiving end of Gaius’ for so long. The love-struck knight stuttered, trying to form a feeble defence.
“You know, out of all the knights, I thought you were the most responsible. Kidnapping a sick, defenceless young maiden? Whatever would the king say?” He bit his tongue to keep from laughing at Lancelot’s reddening face. He cracked, snorting unceremoniously and slapping the man’s arm in the hopes of getting him to lighten up a little.
“Relax, my friend, I don’t tell Arthur of every person his knights sneak off with – I would be there for years on Gwaine alone.” Lancelot finally let out a small laugh, still hot with embarrassment.
“I apologise if we worried you, I meant to have her back before you woke but we got… distracted.” He drifted off, thinking about how beautiful the shadows her lashes had cast on her cheeks as they watched the stars were.
“Distracted?” Merlin gave him a look that said: ‘you-know-how-much-that-sounds-like-you-took-a-tumble-in-the-hay-right?’ and, for the umpteenth time that morning, Lancelot turned beet red. He cleared his throat, scratching the back of his neck and stumbling over No’s and That’s Not What I Meant’s.
Merlin could only shake his head at his friend, once again clamping his mouth shut to avoid laughing at him. He loved Lancelot like a brother, but the poor man was helpless, sometimes. He shoved the man gently, finally telling him to leave and get some sleep before training started in a few hours. The flushed knight (who, Merlin observed, matched the red of Camelot’s banner remarkably) made his way down the stairs, playing the night over and over, in his head.
It had not ended quite as he would have liked but gods be dammed, it was one of the best meals Lancelot had ever had. His free hand (the other still holding the picnic basket) ghosted over his lips, imagining how hers would have felt pressed against them.
--
Merlin entered the chambers, hopping into his room to prepare himself for his day with the king. Arthur would be holding a council meeting that afternoon so Merlin had to brush up on the topic (they would be discussing solidifying more roads between Camelot and its villages to help with trade, he was falling asleep just thinking about it) and he still needed to wash off the sweat from his dreams the previous night.
He made his way down to the kitchens first, parchments about the roads under his arm, and gathered the King’s breakfast, and an extra roll and sausage for himself. He overheard Cook muttering about how she needed more hands around and that one of her ‘good for nothing’ staff had stolen the excess that was meant to go to the dogs. He kept that in mind and made his way up to the Royal Chambers, nearly tripping over on one of the many staircases, only just keeping all the food on it’s platter.
Nodding to the guards on watch, he opened the door with his elbow and shuffled in backwards, knocking over the chair that was dangerously left in the doorway. Arthur moaned from his bed (a sound that Merlin knew he would end up replaying that evening once Miriam and Gaius were asleep) and pulled his pillow over his face. After dropping the breakfast on the table, Merlin made his way to the curtains, pulling them open.
“Up and at ‘em, time to brighten the Lords’ day with your cute little face” Merlin intended to say this with a sarcastic lilt but, distracted by those mouth-watering abs, failed to.
Arthur slowly pulled the pillow from his face, a look of confusion on his features as he watched his pitiful manservant watch him in some sort of daze. The pillow went flying from his hands, bashing Merlin back to reality.
Why must such a prat be so beautiful, he pondered as he gathered the Kings clothes for the day. He chose the tighter white shirt which he knew would be soaked after training later. He blushed at the thought, hiding a grin as he rummaged through the cupboard.
Arthur groaned, bringing his hands up to his face and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. If Merlin had to wake him up each morning, why couldn’t it be something nice like with a kiss or his long fingers adventuring? Was that truly so much to ask? Well, to fantasise about – Arthur knew there was no way he could actually ask for that. Merlin could say no or tell someone which would lead to a civil war or him overthrowing or, even worse, he could say yes and then Arthur would be the one that had to say no to prevent the aforementioned civil war or overthrowing. Arthur quite liked his head being attached to his body, but he knew it was unlikely to stay that was if his people discovered that he had certain inclinations towards men. Merlin was incapable when it came to keeping secrets and one as big as sleeping with the king was too much of a risk.
Arthur groaned again, finally rolling out of bed and allowing Merlin to help him into his clothes. He picked at his food, giving the leftovers to Merlin because gods knew he didn’t eat enough. The boy looked exhausted and sat on the trunk at the end of Arthurs bed as he devoured a sausage (don’t you dare go there, Arthur).
Pushing out from his chair, Arthur leant back against the table, so they were facing each other.
“What’s got you so tired? Sneaking off to the whore house in the dead of night?” Gods, he hoped that wasn’t it. He didn’t like how jealousy bubbled in his chest at the thought. Merlin’s brows shot up, practically jumping off his head, and he choked on the bread roll that he had tried devouring in a single bite. The boy turned red as he struggled to breath and Arthur, being the gallant knight that he was, hit him on the back, dislodging the food and perhaps a vertebra or two. His hand lingered longer than it should have, rubbing a few gentle circles before dropping to his side.
Finally getting air into his lungs, Merlin responded, “Took me forever to get to sleep and then I dreamt all night and didn’t get any proper rest and then, before the sun had even risen, Gaius woke me to say that Miriam had gone missing.” At that, Arthur straightened, worrying about the girl. Merlin noticed the way his eyebrows furrowed, and eyes drifted to the door and so added, “she was okay, she snuck off with Lancelot on a date or something. He said they got ‘distracted’.” Merlin wiggled his eyebrows at this, and Arthur’s head tipped back, laughing.
“I was hoping they would return at a decent hour, I’m sorry they caused you to lose sleep. Because, well you know, you’re terrible at your job when you’re tired?” A sloppy attempt at his usual façade but Arthur was busy focusing on the purple bags under Merlin’s eyes. He wanted to rub the pad of his thumb over them, cupping his face. The boy really should sleep more. He would get a great night’s rest in a bed like Arthurs (especially after their activities exhausted him). Arthur turned away from Merlin, forcing himself to get his thoughts under control.
“Wait,” said Merlin, finally catching up, “you knew about this?”
Arthur paused to think about his answer. Should he not have known? He hadn’t meant to, but he’d bumped into Miriam and they had a particularly useful conversation which he was sure Merlin would be proud of. “Yes?”
“Are you asking me that?” Merlin’s lipped curled at the ends and Arthur’s heart fluttered.
“I knew, yes. I found Miriam looking out at the courtyard in a brooding stance that would put even my father to shame. We talked and I think things are mostly resolved between us. Turned out she was only up there as she got lost trying to find Lancelot, so I lead her down to him and they went off. Looked like he had a basket, so I believe they had some sort of late-night picnic. It seemed sweet, really.” He muttered the last part, craving the opportunity to take Merlin on a picnic – late-night or otherwise.
Merlin hopped off the trunk (with the grace of a drunk, new-born, calf) and closed the distance between the pair, tentatively placing his hand on his master’s bicep. “I am glad you talked; I know you were struggling with the idea of doing so.” Arthur turned his head to look at Merlin. He loved the soft blue ocean that coloured his eyes and, had they been anywhere else, been anyone else, he would spend days looking into them. But he was the King, Merlin was his servant, and Camelot was no place for such things.
“Don’t be such a girls petticoat, Merlin.” They both ignored the break in Arthur’s voice.
“Prat.” Merlin offered in response.
Arthur watched out the window as Merlin cleared their breakfast up and tidied the mess Arthur had somehow managed to create between his dismissal and waking the clot pole up. There was a comfortable silence between the two that they had mastered over the half decade of knowing each other. At some point, Arthur turned to watch his manservant as he flittered about the room, sweeping clothes under the bed with his foot and wiping shapes into the table as he cleaned it. He truly was terrible at his job and yet Arthur didn’t think he had ever been matched with someone so well.
None of his previous servants would tolerate questions such as: “So, what were you dreaming about that kept you from resting so?” Merlin stopped in his tracks (bent over the bed, arse in the air, as he put the duvet back in its place. Arthur had to bite his knuckles to avoid doing anything he would regret.) He straightened and Arthur swore he could see a blush forming.
“Nothing really, I mean, I don’t remember. Dreams are so hard to remember and all that, right? I don’t remember. Uh,” he cleared his throat, “why?” A pause, “What did you dream about, sire?”
His previous servants most certainly wouldn’t ask something like that.
“You know what, I think I have training to lead now. We should go.” He nodded to himself, Merlin mimicking – still red – and the pair swept out of the room.
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ivaleelovesmerlin · 4 years
Text
Happy birthday, Rou!
I hope you’ve had a wonderful day!  And I hope this year is full of awesomeness- just like you!  Here’s a little birthday story for you! <3
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*******
Morgana leaned into Arthur’s office, trying to seem cool and casual.  “Hey!  If you don’t have plans for Saturday night, I’d like to take you out to dinner to celebrate your birthday.”
Looking up from his computer, Arthur narrowed his eyes.  “What, are you planning a surprise party for me, or something?”
Damn it, Merlin!  Morgana knew he wouldn’t be able to keep from hinting to Arthur about the party.  Inwardly, she began planning her revenge on Arthur’s best mate, but aloud she simply said, “Oh, did you want a party?  I thought we were too old for that sort of thing.”  She tilted her head as if she were considering Arthur’s request.  “I mean, it’s kind of last minute, but I might be able to scrape together a few people for a party.”
Arthur was still looking at her with an all-knowing smirk on his face.  “Uh huh.”
She ignored his smug tone.  “Who do you want me to invite?  Gwen and Lance?  Merlin, of course.  Are you still dating that annoying Vivian?”
“No, I broke up with her weeks ago.”
“Thank goodness.” Morgana heaved a sigh of relief, though she already knew Arthur wasn’t with Vivian anymore.  She had asked Gwen if she had to invite her to the surprise party.  “Assuming no one has plans already, that’ll be six of us.  Is that enough to call it a party, or should I ask one or two more?”
“I don’t know.  Maybe—“
Morgana held up one hand and cut him off.  “Anyone but Gwaine.”
Rolling his eyes, Arthur sighed.  “What do you have against Gwaine?”
“Are you kidding?  He flirts with anything with a pulse!”
“You afraid he’ll be too busy flirting with the waiter and he won’t flirt with you?”
Now Morgana rolled her eyes.  “No, he’ll flirt with the waiter and me and you and Gwen and Lance and--”
“Fine.  Leave Gwaine out.  We’ve only been mates for fifteen years, but I’m sure he’ll understand.”
Morgana pursed her lips.  Actually this might work out fine.  She should let Arthur think she would host a party, and have him invite all his friends, but she would tell most of them to say they couldn’t make it.  Then he’d be surprised when everyone showed up.
“Whatever, Arthur.  Invite whoever you want.  Tell them to meet at the Slanted Anchor on Saturday night at 8, and I’ll pay.”  She whirled around to leave, muttering just loud enough so Arthur could hear her, “I’m Arthur.  I’m 33 years old.  I want my big sister to throw me a birthday party.”
Then Morgana whipped out her phone and started sending texts telling people to turn her brother down.
  *******
“He knows what you’re doing, you know.” Merlin flopped into the chair opposite Morgana’s desk later that day.
“Who?”
“Ar-thuur,” Merlin drew out the name as if she should have known who he was talking about.  “He knows you told everyone to say no to him, so he’ll be surprised when they show up anyway.”
Morgana swiveled her chair to face Merlin.  “Well, yeah.  Because you told him about the surprise party already.”
“I didn’t tell him,” Merlin said, widening his eyes with an overly innocent look.  “He’s fairly clever, you know.  And your little scheme is pretty basic, as far as surprise parties go.”
Excuse me?  Morgana glared at Big Mouth Merlin who couldn’t keep a secret if his life depended on it, and decided on a new plan right then and there.
  ******
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  *******
Saturday morning, Gwen, Lance, Gwaine, Percy, Leon, Elyan and Elena joined Morgana in Arthur’s living room.  As guests arrived in their pajamas, everyone crept around, whispering excitedly about surprising Arthur.
“Morgana,” Gwaine said quietly.  “Are you sure Arthur won’t come out here in his underpants?  Or naked?”
She shook that image right out of her head.  “No, ever since the fire alarm went off one night when we were little, he sleeps in proper old man pajamas.  He doesn’t want to have to run into the street in nothing but his Spider man pants ever again.”
Gwen leaned in to whisper, “I can vouch for that.  When we were together, he slept in full pajamas every single night.  It was super cute.”  She grinned.
Gwaine snorted and moved on to talk to Leon and Percy, but Gwen nudged closer to Morgana.  “Are you sure it was okay not to invite Merlin?  He’s Arthur’s best mate.  I feel bad leaving him out of the party.”
Morgana felt a slight twinge.  She’d been feeling a little guilty about her decision to exclude Merlin, but she really wanted the party to be a surprise.  So she shook her head.  “No, he can’t keep a secret.  I’ll treat him and Arthur to dinner later, like we originally planned.  It’ll be fine.  Arthur can tell him all about how shocked he was to wake up to a party in his flat.”
Gwen looked dubious, but just shrugged and went along.
“Okay, listen up,” Morgana whispered to the group as soon as everyone had arrived.  “I’m going to go out and ring the doorbell.  You all find a place to hide, and as soon as his bedroom door opens, we’ll all pop out and shout Surprise.”
Everything went exactly to plan.  Morgana rang the doorbell.  And when Arthur opened his bedroom door, they jumped out and shouted, surprising him so much, he almost dropped to the floor.  The biggest surprise, however, came when Merlin followed Arthur out of his bedroom.  Wearing nothing but underpants.
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The aftermath of Merlin snapping, and yelling at Arthur in the middle of the forest;
Arthur pushes for change, the gang takes bets on when Merthur will happen, and someone, somewhere, is grumpy.
Part 2 of Merlin’s Angry Outburst. 
Part 1   Part 3   Part 4   Part 5
Once Arthur has a first draft of the repeal, the first people he brings in on it (with Merlin’s approval, of course) are the 5 knights, Gwen, Gaius, and Morgana.
(Morgana, who later that evening comes back to Arthur's chamber in tears (Merlin is also there) to reveal her magic, and thank him for not being Uther.) 
All of them enthusiastically agree, after only a little conversation.
Elyan and Leon are the most... dubious, but only because of the practical factor, they don't disagree with the actual repeal.
After months of the gang working in secret, they reveal their best draft to the council. At least half the council are new members that Arthur appointed, the rest are left over from Uther’s time.
They argue back and forth for a while, half vs half. A few of the older members, who were around before the purge, slowly start changing their minds.
In the end, it takes them maybe a month to get a majority, and Arthur overrules the remaining opposition. He is King after all, technically, he doesn’t even have to have a council.
Days after the agreement is reached, Arthur goes out personally to collect a few specific Druids, who had been waiting just outside the border for the go ahead.
It takes maybe another month to go through all the laws thoroughly, changing and editing and altering what needs to be altered. With the help of Arthur's close advisors on the political aspects, and the help of the Druids, Merlin, and Gaius, on the magical aspects (what should be allowed freely, what should be monitored, and what should remain fully banned).
The city celebrates when the announcement is made, they all loved the new King anyway, and had been overjoyed with the drop in executions, and deliberate ignoring of small instances of magic.
After a feast to celebrate the new found freedom among the people, the gang gathers once more, in private, and Merlin tells a shortened version of the story he'd told Arthur all those months ago.
None of them are that surprised (Gaius, Morgana, and Lancelot already knew, of course).
If they hadn't suspected Merlin of being a sorcerer before this whole thing started (Leon, Gwaine, and Gwen definitely suspected) , then they had certainly begun to in the last few months. They cheer when Merlin finishes telling them "just how often I've saved your oblivious arses" .
They cheer even louder when Arthur announces that he would be made court sorcerer, and it would be made official in a ceremony before the week ended.
There are no cheers when Morgana stands.
Curious eyes land on her, probably due to how terrified she looks, but the small encouraging nods and little smiles she gets from her brother (her Brother), Merlin, and Gwen, give her the strength she needs to tell everyone of her magic as well.
They see she is frightened, they imagine how difficult it must have been, being at first Uther’s ward, and then his daughter. They smile gently, and she receives hugs a plenty. Once all the congratulations are out of the way, she sits back down next to Gwen, still shaky and full of adrenaline, but happy.
She spends the remainder of the group’s quiet celebrations with her hand gripped in Gwen's under the table.
(Read this how you want, I personally envision it as the start of something)
So the days draw on, Merlin is announced Court Sorcerer, Arthur hires another manservant and gives Merlin a large set of chambers in the same hallways as Arthur's, complete with all the books on magic Arthur can find, and several of the magical artefacts that had previously been kept locked away (Merlin and Arthur are the only ones who are able to gain access to the room, something magicky I guess).
(No one mentions that that corridor is supposed to be for royalty only. Leon figures they're bound to realise that they're in love with each other any day now, and then Merlin will practically be royalty anyway so... might as well cut out the middle bit of having to shuffle chambers again later on).
The kingdom is prospering, and for months after the initial announcement, and implementations of the new laws, sorcerers and nobles from all over Albion, visit Camelot, to give congratulations to the King.
They give gifts and provide knowledge.
The Druids, however, are a slightly different story.
The ones who had been helping with the paperwork, had been... odd(?) around Merlin. But they respected his wish to keep all of that under wraps, or at least until it was announced publicly.
Arthur and Gaius know the whole Emrys story. Lancelot and Morgana know bits of it... but other than that... as far as anyone is concerned, the newly promoted Court Sorcerer is just another wizard.
The new Druids entering the kingdom are paying brief respects to the Forever King (I mean... at this point, he's still only King of Camelot... which is what he was before the magic ban repeal), before staring in reverence at the Court Sorcerer stood by his side.
They respect his wishes to keep the worshipping and gift giving to a minimum, though they still come to him for requests of miracles and ask him to perform druid ceremonies (blessings and name-givings and weddings and funerals (though they prefer to call them celebrations of life, rather than commiserations of death) and such).
Merlin can only brush off so many displays of such awe before the rest of The Gang demands to know what’s up, at which point he has to come clean about the whole... “Most Powerful Warlock To Ever Walk The Earth” thing.
Much to Merlin’s chagrin (and everyone else's amusement) the Druids still insist on calling him Emrys. The stubborn ones sometimes even go for "My Lord Emrys", which gets them a scowl from Merlin (and barely concealed laughter from everyone else).
Maybe... later on... when Morgana is more comfortable with her magic, after a few months practicing with Merlin (with a supportive Gwen Always at her side) , she is announced as the Court Seer.
Merlin had never had much luck with prophetic visions, but once Morgana’s fear died down, once she learned to let it flow, and breathe through it, the visions come easier, and kinder.
She stops seeing only visions of doom, and worst case scenarios, instead she has dreams of the many paths the future may take.
She does not panic when a path seems grim and dark, for she has a King and a Warlock and Gwen, by her side. Always. And they work through the future together.
So the ban has been repealed officially for around 6 months.
Arthur is a couple months away from completing his second year as King. And he and Merlin are still beating around the bush.
The betting pool for when they’ll finally get together has been growing bigger and bigger. Practically the whole castle is in on it now, with Gwen and Morgana as the ring leaders. Whoever wins... will be very lucky.
(It's Leon in the end, he pays attention, and he know what his boys are like. But he's a noble and has no need for the money, he pays for a few rounds of drinks and donates the rest to one of children's homes in the lower town).
But the war comes first.
~
Camelot has been prospering, and has many supporters throughout Albion, but one of the kingdoms, it doesn't matter which, you decide, does NOT like this.
Scouts and small patrols have been needling Camelot’s borders for months now, and Arthur and his Council (and Inner Council) have been making quiet preparations. They know that some sort of... something, is coming soon.
Especially when Morgana begins to dream of battles and blood and lightening.
They prepare for, and expect, a full scale war, but they hope for some negotiations and a peace treaty with the opposition.
Their hopes are dashed, when a messenger is escorted into the throne room, wearing The Opposition’s colours, with a letter.
Said letter is an angry rebuttal of everything Camelot stands for, full of accusations of abandoning tradition, and spitting in the face of great leaders, of which this soft boy-king should NOT be counted as. 
At the end, there was an official declaration of war.
The messenger boy was obviously scared to death, and once Arthur read the P.S, which invited Arthur to torture and/or execute him to the whatever extent he wants, he understood why. Without any hesitation, he offers the boy a job in the stables, a new wardrobe of clothes, and a servant’s bed in the castle.
After the official council meeting on the matter, setting up war committees, laying out contingency plans, organising the distribution of emergency evacuation plans, and discussing potential aid that could be requested from allies, Arthur pulls the gang together, for their own meeting.
“We knew this was coming, and there is no need to panic yet. Our outer borders are well patrolled, and we’re still getting up to date reports. The city walls hold strong, but I want to send out patrols to warn the villages of what’s coming. Start closer to the border, and work our way in. Leon?”
“My Lord, I have teams prepared for exactly that already, I just need to give the word and they’ll go.”
“Good. Morgana, I need you to try and keep focusing your visions, if we have even a small idea of how they might try to initiate the first battle, it’ll be a huge advantage.”
“Me and Merlin have been practising some new techniques to control where and when I can see, we’ll write everything down, and ask the Druids if they’ve seen anything as well.”
Arthur holds in a smile at the confidence in her voice. He is unendingly proud of how far his sister had come, and made a mental note to tell her that when all this was over.
“Brilliant, keep me in the loop. Gwen, when we’re done here, go and let the forgery know, the Royal Household will pay them extra to push out as much long range ammunition as they can. Arrows and crossbow bolts, we need as many as they can produce.” Gwen nods, and Arthur finally looks towards Merlin:
“And Merlin, I need you to be ready. Don’t wear yourself out too much in the next few weeks, I need you in good condition, if we’re to win this with minimal casualties-”
He glances over at Morgana before he continues:
“If the two of you could also ask the Druids if they have any volunteer healers. Make sure they know they aren’t obligated to come, but any help in the infirmaries would be greatly appreciated.” Morgana nods once more, as does Merlin, before he speaks:
“There’s a camp a couple hours ride outside the city at the moment, we’ll head out at first light-” He pauses and closes his eyes for a second, tilting his head, before looking to Morgana:
“They’re expecting us.”
Arthur addresses the room again:
“Right. I think that’s all for now, anyone have anything to add?”
Gaius responds after a moment:
“My Lord, if I could make a request for a few servants to help me set up supplies for the infirmary? Extensive preparations will need to be made to ensure that I have all I’ll need. Preferably people with rough herbal knowledge, if at all possible.”
Arthur nods straight away, responding:
“Yes, of course, I’ll ask the Housekeeper and the Steward who they can spare this evening, and they’ll be ready for you in the morning. Anything else?” At the silence in the room, Arthur tells everyone to get to work.
Leon marches straight down to the training grounds (Lancelot, Gwaine, Percival, and Elyan following him) to ring the summoning bell and inform the knights of the developments, and their tasks.
Gwen heads straight to the forgery (her and Elyan still oversee work there, but they have employees (and a few trainees) to run it) to give the Kings order.
Gaius shuffles out, and makes his way back to his quarters, already making mental lists of ingredients needed, and work to be done.
Arthur, Morgana, and Merlin are left, the royal siblings thinking to themselves, and Merlin thinking to someone else. Arthur contemplates that the whole mental link thing he had going on with the Druids was extremely useful.
Both his and Morgana’s thoughts were interrupted by Merlin huffing, and clenching his fists as he opens his eyes, obviously unhappy with whatever was said:
“Merlin?” From Morgana has the Court Sorcerer looking up from scowling at the table. He replies after wiping the frown off his face:
“Oh, it’s fine. They just made a... stupid suggestion is all. Don’t worry about it.”
“Stupid? Doesn’t sound like the Druids. What was it?”
Merlin looks mildly uncomfortable at that, and replies slowly:
“It... doesn’t matter. I’ll tell you another time. It’s late, you should practice some meditation and head to sleep, no potions tonight. And remember to keep some parchment and a quill by your bed, so you can scribble down anything you see-”
Merlin stands abruptly and heads towards the door:
“-I’m going to check the wards on the outer wall, and push a little more energy into the wells. I’ll see you both bright an early.” With that, Merlin heads out the room swiftly.
Arthur looks to his sister questioningly, but she shrugs as she responds:
“Who knows. “I’ll tell you later” means he doesn’t want you to know, OR he’s hoping I’ll forget because he doesn’t want either of us to know. He’s right though, I should meditate for a while-”
Morgana stands at this:
“- hopefully I’ll see you before we head off, if not, I suppose it’ll be dinner in the evening. Good night, brother.” Morgana leaves the room gracefully, heading in the direction of her chambers.
Arthur thinks for only a moment, before rushing off, catching up with Merlin as he readied his horse, preparing for the journey to the outer walls:
“I’ll come with you. I find I quite enjoy watching you do magic, and to be perfectly honest, I could do with some fresh air to help me think.”
Arthur pretends to ignore the slight blush that dusts Merlin’s cheeks, and readies his own horse. The two of them ride out of the stables and make the journey down the cobbled roads in comfortable silence, side by side.
They take their time on the journey, and the 15 minutes of companionable silence is finally broken by Arthur, who looks at Merlin curiously, as he says:
“So what did they suggest?”
Merlin looks up sharply at that, broken from his deep train of thought as he dumbly replies “What?”
“The Druids. What was the stupid suggestion?” Merlin’s eyes widen at that, and he blushes once more as he looks determinedly forward:
“Oh. That. I told you, it doesn’t-”
“Merlin...”
“Oh fine! They suggested that I... that I forge a mental link with you. Like the one I have with them.” The sorcerer purses his lips at that, and continues to avoid Arthur’s gaze:
“You can do that? Well... would it be such a bad idea? I mean we aren’t going to be able to meet and discuss things as often as I’d like through this whole ordeal. AND you’re basically the Kingdom’s powerhouse, I’m sort of relying on your magical know-how here. Surely it wouldn’t be a bad thing? For us to be able to converse across the battle fields?” 
Arthur, in an effort to not be hurt, reminds himself that he doesn’t know all that much about magic, and it very well could be a stupid suggestion, instead of one that Merlin is just personally opposed to.
Merlin, in response, looks to Arthur in great shock, before sighing and looking down to his horses mane:
“It.... is possible. And fairly easy, technically. But it would be painful, AND permanent. I wouldn’t be able to undo it after we won. And a temporary connection takes far too much energy to maintain, even for a short time. I just figured you wouldn’t want me in your head for the rest of our lives.” He tries to inject a little humour into his words, but it falls flat, and he just seems sad.
Arthur pretends he doesn’t notice however, and responds quickly:
“How painful are we talking? I mean I’ve been hurt pretty badly before. And... how exactly does it work? Would we be able to read each other’s mind constantly, without the other knowing? Or what?”
Merlin raises his eyebrows in shock at that, and his answer comes out slowly as he looks at Arthur:
“Like... a really bad headache? Imagine the hardest you’ve ever been hit, without passing out. It would last for a few minutes after the connection is initially forged, but would fade slowly over the next day or so. And no. Once the connection is established we wouldn’t be in each other’s head all the time, we would just be able to sort of... project our voices to one another. Other thoughts would be safe, even if you were thinking about me, I wouldn’t hear it unless you were thinking to me... if that makes sense.” 
By the end of his explanation, he’s looking nervously at the King, who is deep in thought:
“Hmm. Ok. I... only if you agree but... it might not be a bad idea. Even after the war is over. There have definitely been times where I’ve needed your opinion on something but you’ve been elsewhere, or we’ve been in the presence of someone else. Of course we’ve been fine so far, if you don’t want to, but-”
Merlin interrupts him, speaking quickly:
“I’m fine with it. I agree, it would be useful. So... I can bring what we need back from the camp tomorrow?”
Arthur nods firmly:
“Yes. The sooner the better, we can do it tomorrow evening, if that’s enough time for you?” Merlin once again looks shocked at this, as Arthur stares at him:
“Oh! Yeah, Yes. That’s fine. Like I said, it’s not particularly difficult, and I can ask Gaius to prepare us something for the pain during the day. Are you... are you sure? It is Permanent.”
Arthur rolls his eyes and huffs:
“Yes, you said that already Merlin. Are you sure?”
Merlin nodded his head decidedly, and spoke confidently:
“Yes. You’re right, it’s not a bad idea. Come on, if we hurry, we’ll make it to the walls, and then to the main well, and then back to the castle, before dark.”
The pair of them hurry their horses, and after another 10 minutes of comfortable silence, they finally reach the City Gates.
The guards give a quick bow, and The King and The Court Sorcerer jump off their horses before handing the reigns to one of the Gate stablehands.
Arthur (and the guards) watch in barely concealed wonder as Merlin presses his hands against the rock of the wall, and closes his eyes.
The golden glow can still be seen from below his eyelids, and he hums slightly as he frowns in concentration, seeming to push into the wall.
Arthur sees a short of... sheen, ripple across the rock, and extend into the sky. Merlin steps back and nods, admiring his handy work:
“They’re holding strong, I’ve extended the height as well. Kilgharrah and Aithusa should be the only ones able to get over it without alerting me now, from the air at least-”
Merlin heads to retake his horse, Arthur following him, before he continues:
“Though I still want to check the tunnels again at some point in the next few days.”
“Of course. Relax Merlin, it’s barely begun, and the borders still hold strong. We’ve plenty of time before things kick off in any way.” He makes sure to speak quietly. A public announcement hasn’t been made yet, and it would be bad if rumours started spreading before The King had time to put together a proper disclosure.
Merlin nods distractedly, and urges his horse to go faster as he heads towards the main well, in the town square. It’s late, not long until sunset, so there shouldn’t be many, if any, people there. Arthur speaks again:
“Why are we visiting the well? I wasn’t aware of any problems?”
“There aren’t any, but once the announcement is made, and once the outer villages are told what’s happening, we’ll have hundreds, probably thousands, of people flock to the city for safety. I just want to make sure we’re prepared for such an influx, and boost our water levels a little.”
Arthur nods at his response, but doesn’t say anything. He chooses instead to admire the man Merlin had become. He held himself differently, more strong, confident in who he was. Just like he had back when he was still a manservant, he served Arthur, and his people, above and beyond his job description. Merlin took upon himself, not only the politics he was supposed to oversee, but the personal safety of both the King, and every Camelot citizen, and he did it all with an alarming amount of grace.
Arthur sometimes catches himself thinking that it was almost as if Merlin was built to be a king. He may not like the spotlight, but he was a protector, and leader, unlike anything Arthur had ever seen before.
“I don’t think I ever thanked you, Merlin. It feels like years ago now, that you yelled at me in a forest.” He says it with a grin, but Merlin flinches. He continues before The Sorcerer interrupts him though:
“Really Merlin. Thank you. You were right, I would’ve got there in the end, but it wasn’t fair for people to suffer in the mean time, and you took the fall in their place. You’re a hero to your people... and to me. You should be proud of your accomplishments, I know I am.” 
Arthur resists the urge to duck his head as Merlin looks at him in bewilderment, a definite flush on his cheeks as he replies:
“I... thank you, Arthur. I always had faith in you-” Merlin begins to grin before he continues:
“-and besides, someone had to knock you down a peg. Perhaps you should hire someone to take you into the forest and yell at you every once in a while.”
Arthur laughs at that, and Merlin tries to push down the blush as Arthur responds:
“Now Merlin, why on earth would I hire someone for such a job, when I already have you?”
Merlin chuckles as he answers:
“Yeah, and don’t you forget it, My Lord. Hold the horses, I’ll just be a minute.” With that, Arthur realises they’ve made it to the well, and dismounts as Merlin has, holding both of the horses reigns as he watches Merlin approach the well.
The Sorcerer crouches down, and once again closes his eyes in concentration as he presses his hands into the stone of the well. The glow is a little less bright this time, but Arthur admires it nonetheless.
Merlin finishes quickly, and gathers his horse from Arthur once more, nodding towards the castle.
Arthur follows as Merlin hurries towards the looming building. He wasn’t sure why he was in such a rush, but he only begins questions it when Merlin hurriedly hands the horses of to a stablehand, and continues to run up the castle steps.
Arthur can only just keep up with Merlin, not having the breath to ask him what’s wrong, before Merlin suddenly comes to a stop, catching his breath for a moment to go through a door leading to the highest balcony on the West of the castle:
“Merlin... what.... what are you-”
Merlin wordlessly interrupts The King as he points to the skyline, the sun only a few minutes away from touching the horizon.
There’s not a cloud in sight, and the sky is painted in oranges and pinks in front of them, bleeding into deep purples and blues behind the castle.
Merlin finally mutters, not looking away from the sunset:
“Call me a girl all you want Arthur, but nothing compares to this. It’s beautiful, I come to watch it whenever I’ve got the time.”
Arthur had only glanced briefly at the sunset before looking back at Merlin in wonder, a fond smile on his face (not that Merlin would notice).
He stares at the side of Merlin’s face, the orange sky making the gold in his eyes look even brighter, and the glare of the fading sun making his hair shine. A gentle breeze has Merlin shiver slightly, and Arthur’s smile widens as he responds, so quietly he’s not even sure if Merlin hears him:
“Hmm. Beautiful.” He doesn’t look away.
~
THIS IS COMPLETED! All 5 parts have been posted:)
If y’all want my thoughts on anything specific let me know✌️
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magicalmischel · 5 years
Text
From the Shadows, into the Light
a merthur fanfic written for the Merlin Memory Month 2019
prompt day 6 - prompts “sharing”, “distraught”, “from the shadow, in the light”
wordcount: 2538
SUMMARY:  Arthur and Merlin have been dating for a while, and when they travel with a big group of knights to check the borders of Camelot, rumours spread fast. Although some knights are happy for them, there are some who don't agree, and for this night, Merlin doesn't feel safe sleeping away from Arthur - so he doesn't, and when they wake up, everything is different and their secret is out. Aka the fic where Arthur publicly announces that he and Merlin are together!
also posted on FFN and AO3.
It had been a difficult day for Merlin. The day marked exactly four months since he and Arthur had decided to be together, and Merlin had hoped that Arthur would know that and that they would plan something special (like the last three times), like a trip outside, just the two of them, or a dinner. What he had not anticipated however, was that his duties as a king always came first and unfortunately for them, there had been reported sightings of enemy knights plotting something inside the Camelot borders. Which meant that whatever plans they had been preparing had to wait, and instead, they had to go investigate the issue to determine whether it was just rumours or a possible threat.
For the past two days, Merlin had been stuck to the back of his horse, riding right behind Arthur, with a group of about forty men behind them. Merlin had to behave like the manservant that he was the entire time, but thankfully, Gwaine, Percival, Elyan, Lancelot and Leon were there with them, so it wasn't completely boring the whole time.
It was getting dark and Merlin was becoming rather tired. They stopped a few moments later and Arthur ordered the knights to set up a camp for the night, and decided who would keep watch first. It was the middle of summer and the night was hot, so they didn't even bother bringing tents. Instead, each of them had their own bedroll to sleep on.
Merlin hopped off his horse and immediately felt his thighs. They hurt from so much riding around, but it wasn't as bad as it used to be when he first came to Camelot. Back then, even after only a few hour long hunting trip, he'd thought he'd never walk again.
"Merlin, feed the horses," Arthur ordered and didn't even look at him. Merlin frowned slightly in annoyance.
"Yes, sire," he mumbled, tying his own horse to a tree. Did Arthur completely forget what day it was? And what it meant for them? He glanced at his king and saw him already talking to his knights, probably devising a plan as they were nearing the borders.
Maybe.
But Arthur was a king, Merlin shouldn't hold that against him, he understood that it was a difficult job taking care of an entire kingdom. Still, he couldn't help but feel a little sad.
He fed his horse and then continued with all the horses of all the knights. Hopefully, it wouldn't take too long because Merlin was already fighting the urge to yawn every few minutes.
As he was nearing the last group of horses, he almost tripped over a root, but balanced it out and successfully reached the horses. There was a group of new knights standing nearby, not noticing him.
"And that Merlin."
Merlin looked up as he heard his name but soon realized that the knights were only talking about him in hushed voices. He was close enough to hear them, hidden behind the horses, and they probably didn't realize he could hear them.
"He's so incompetent, I can't understand for the world why the king is keeping him around."
Merlin frowned sadly. Usually, he was liked among the knights, but these three or four were new and had only been knighted about two weeks ago. Perhaps they didn't realize that he and Arthur were friends?
"Haven't you heard?" One of them looked at the others. "The king is only keeping him because they sleep together."
"Really?"
"Yeah, everyone knows it."
Merlin's cheeks reddened and his heart started beating faster.
"No wonder he drags the boy everywhere we go, he doesn't even have armour and we're heading for a potential fight!"
"I know, right?"
"If I were the king, I would have sacked Merlin a long time ago."
"He should get rid of him, yeah."
"I agree."
They laughed loudly. "He's so lazy, too!"
Merlin swallowed, fed the last horse and quickly fled the scene. He only stopped walking after he reached a thick tree, considerably far from the camping site and definitely out of sight and earshot of the knights.
He couldn't believe it. Did they really hate him? Could they even be trusted when they talked like that? They didn't seem bothered by the idea of anyone overhearing their conversation. What if they decided to get rid of him themselves one day?
Should Merlin really be here? They were right, he didn't even have armour, the only reason he was going was . . . Arthur.
"Merlin?"
Merlin opened his eyes and Arthur was staring back at him, looking worried.
"Are you okay?" he asked. "I'm sorry about today, I know it's a special day for us and I wish we could have stayed in Camelot or at least be alone out here, but I can't stop being the king."
Merlin smiled at him, nodding. "I know that, you don't have to apologise." He was still leaning against the tree rather suspiciously, so he cleared his throat and moved a step forward, trying to look confident.
But it had been a very long time since he last managed to hide anything from Arthur. The king gently touched his arm and repeated his question from before. "Are you okay, Merlin?"
Merlin nodded. "I will be."
"What happened?"
"It's nothing, it's just . . . " He hesitated for a moment, but then he sighed and realized that he was glad that Arthur was there with him right now. He could tell him anything after all. "As I was feeding the horses, I overheard some knights speaking ill of me and . . . . of our relationship."
Arthur's worried frown turned into an anxious one.
"Do they know about us?"
Merlin let out a breath. "According to them, everyone knows."
Arthur closed his eyes briefly, and Merlin knew exactly what he was thinking. They didn't want anyone to know about them, but if everyone already knew about them anyway-
"Should we even keep hiding it, then? If everyone knows?"
Merlin honestly didn't have an answer to that question. Were they ready to tell everyone? And even if they were, would it change anything? Some of the knights already hated him, so could it really get any worse? He was still Arthur's manservant, they couldn't hurt him, could they?
"Are we ready for that?"
Arthur shrugged. "I guess we won't know until . . . until we just know."
Merlin nodded. "Alright. We'll just . . . know when the moment comes. But for tonight . . . " He hesitated again.
Arthur took his hand and stepped closer. "What is it?"
Merlin looked up at him. "Can I spend the night next to you? I mean, I know we sleep like that most of the time anyway, but I was just thinking about the knights and what they said and-"
"Of course," Arthur interrupted him with a smile. "You'll prepare your bedroll right next to me tonight, and I'll tell Sir Leon with Gwaine and the others to sleep around us, just so that you feel safe."
Sometimes Merlin couldn't even believe how considerate Arthur could be when he really tried and cared about him.
"Thank you." He leaned closer to kiss Arthur briefly and Arthur returned the kiss, caressing Merlin's cheek with his gloved hand. When they parted, all worries were forgotten.
They made their way back to the camp, Merlin finishing a few extra chores around the horses and dinner, and Arthur telling his most trusted knights about what had been happening and how to arrange that night's bedrolls on the ground.
Before the evening was over and the forest was enveloped in darkness, Gwaine paid Merlin a visit.
"Don't worry, Merlin, we'll protect you tonight," Gwaine immediately informed him with a confident smile and a nod. "No harm will come to you."
"Thanks, Gwaine, I appreciate that."
Gwaine looked around briefly and then leaned closer, his voice silent. "You know, you could have told me about you and Arthur."
Merlin shrugged at him. "I figured you knew," he answered. "I mean, I heard that everyone knows at this point, but I thought you knew even before that."
Gwaine tilted his head, narrowing his eyes with a smile. "Yeah, I mean I've always known you two were together, but still." He put his hand on Merlin's shoulder. "I hope you know you can trust me, Merlin. With anything."
Merlin smiled at him and put his hand over his. "I know, thanks. I appreciate it."
Gwaine nodded and took a bite of an apple that he was holding, taking a step back. "Well, I'd better get back to Arthur and prepare for the night, then." He waved at Merlin. "Good night, mate."
"Good night."
The night quickly approached and before Merlin knew it, the sun was long gone and the knights were all preparing their bedrolls around four separate fires. Merlin was the last one to take his bedroll from his horse's back, and he hurriedly walked over to where Arthur was sitting on the ground.
When he approached the first of the fires, all the knights, his closest friends, greeted him with a smile. Merlin was glad that he was welcomed there. He unrolled his bedroll right next to Arthur who kept smiling at him, and wished a good night to everyone. He just hoped this would be a good night for him too.
As he lay down, so did Arthur. He was lying on his side, turned close to Merlin, and although Merlin might have been worried before, all his worries melted away as soon as he saw Arthur's warm smile directed right at him.
"Good night, Merlin," Arthur whispered.
"Good night, Arthur."
Some knight yawned loudly in the distance and they both laughed silently before they finally closed their eyes and drifted off.
The morning was very different from what they had both expected. First of all, they had not been the first to wake up, not by a long shot, second of all, they somehow managed to move even closer and were now sleeping practically on top of each other, just like they did when alone in Arthur's chambers.
To think that it was slightly embarrassing was an understatement.
Lancelot was the one to wake them up, but unfortunately, that happened when most of the knight had already stood up and noticed them and their unusual sleeping position.
"Merlin? Arthur, it's morning," he told them.
Merlin stirred, his head positioned on Arthur's chest, and Arthur hugged Merlin even closer before he opened his eyes. When he did, he reacted slowly, with caution.
"Merlin," he whispered, nudging Merlin a little until Merlin also opened his eyes. When he realized what was going on, he moved away quickly, almost making his head spin. He sat up on his own bedroll and stared at all the knights around them.
Arthur also sat up, now completely awake and aware of the awkward situation.
Merlin looked at Arthur, who looked at him too, and in that one moment, they both knew what this meant, what they were thinking about.
It was time.
They were ready.
And even if they weren't, they had to be now because there was no other choice at this point. Whereas before everyone had suspected, now everyone knew for sure. So why not make it official?
Arthur cleared his throat and stood up, holding his hand out to Merlin to help him get up. Merlin accepted his help and stood up next to Arthur, letting go of his hand again.
All the knights were awake now, and Arthur and Merlin had their utmost attention without even trying.
Arthur took a deep breath and slowly reached out his hand for Merlin to take. Merlin stared at the hand, then glanced at all the knights around, but finally took it and held it tightly. He trusted Arthur, and if he thought that this was the perfect moment, then so be it.
"As most of you have probably already noticed," Arthur started, "Merlin and I don't have the usual relationship of a king and his servant. The most important aspect of such a relationship is loyalty and trust. But Merlin and I have more than that. Not only do I trust Merlin with my life and he trusts me with his. Not only is he the most loyal and trustworthy person I know, and in return, I am loyal to him. But we also love each other and always will." He paused for a moment, looking at the knights all around him and Merlin squeezed his hand in support. A smile returned to Arthur's face. "This is me telling you that Merlin is my manservant and also my chosen companion. And if anyone has a problem with that, they will have to find a new king to follow."
Merlin gasped softly, looking up at Arthur. Did Arthur really just risk his entire army, all his men, for him? Was he willing to lose all of them?
"Most of you have known Merlin for years," Arthur continued. "You've watched him carry out all my orders, follow me everywhere despite his lack of training in combat, and always have my back. He has never been anything but friendly towards you, and that's why I expect that there will be no problems with him being more than just a friend to me. But if there are any problems, if you find yourself hesitating in your loyalty to me, you're free to return to Camelot. I will not judge you, but I need knights that I trust, and I need to know that you trust me to lead you. So if no one has any questions-"
"How long have you been together?" Gwaine interrupted Arthur with a grin on his face.
Arthur turned to him and sighed. Of course, it would be Gwaine who interrupted him. "For four months."
He whistled.
Lancelot nudged him with his elbow so that he'd keep quiet.
Arthur turned back to his knights and finished his speech. "So without any further ado, eat your breakfast and get back on your horses. We are only a few hours away from the border."
There were a few whispers among the knights, but eventually, they all followed Arthur's orders.
Merlin and Arthur turned towards each other and briefly hugged, both relieved that there weren't any further problems with the knights and that they could safely continue travelling.
"Aw, look at them," Gwaine commented as they parted.
"Gwaine," Leon warned him.
"What? I'm just happy for them."
"It's okay," Merlin smiled at him. Then he smiled at all of them. "Thanks, everyone."
"You got it, Merlin."
"Yeah, you can always count on us," Percival added, and the rest of them nodded in agreement.
"Alright, so now that this is resolved," Arthur put his hands on his hips, "go on, get your horses and put out the fires, or we'll never make it to the border today."
Leon and Lancelot were the only ones who answered with "sire", but sooner or later, everyone left and so did Merlin and Arthur. They put their bedrolls back on the horses and in just a few minutes, left the camp behind. And this time, Merlin was riding right next to Arthur, leading the way with him.
*the end*
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authoratmidnight · 7 years
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Gonna ramble about these ocs for a bit, cause why not.
Helps me get things in order.
They’re ‘repurposed’ from an RP(which is, probably dead). And somehow I managed to create a functioning relationship for them(in RP canon they were, not initially on great terms). Also they’ve been plunked into a more modern setting(but still with magic and such)
Rambles under the cut
So uh, Kami and Razul. Kami’s an earth daemon, lotsa earth bender type abilities + plant manipulation as well an affinity for terrestrial animals(like, he can communicate with them/they’re just drawn to him and stuff like that).
Razul is a fire daemon, fire bending-esc abilities, fire doesn’t hurt him, affinity for fire element creatures(i.e dragons) and is basically walking space heater.
They initially met in highschool though they weren’t really close (in fact they were, kinda jerks to each other at first). And then one day Razul just, didn’t show up at school. And sure he was kinda of a slacker but he wasn’t someone to just cut class.
After like a week of him not being there Kami decided to check in on him(cause someone had to). Except he wasn’t at home, in fact his foster father hadn’t seen him for days (and didn’t even seem to care, Razul’s home life was kinda shitty).
Kami did eventually find him but it took a while. Razul was basically homeless, having runaway from home after a nasty fight with his foster family resulted in scalding water being splashed in his face and leaving a sizeable burn along one side of it(he’s very self conscious of it and Kami-and later his adopted son Gwain-is the only person who can get away with touching it). He ended up moving in with Kami(well, Kami took him in, his parents work a lot so he figured they probably wouldn’t notice Razul) which is pretty much when things started for them.
They’re just, casually affectionate with one another-Razul draping himself over Kami’s shoulders as he attempts to weasel attention out of him(or find out what he’s doing), failing that he just nuzzles against Kami’s neck b/c Kami is ticklish there. Falling asleep on the couch together, sharing a bed-Razul isn’t keen on being alone sometimes so just having someone that close by is a comfort. Kami doesn’t mind b/c he’s exceedingly warm(until he wakes up with an arm over him and has to get up but can’t move Razul and is kinda, stuck). You get the jist, they’re comfortable enough with one another that they have no problem being kinda touchy-feely with each other(to a degree).
They did attempt to tun it into a “dating” type relationship, except it it was a spectacular flop. It got about as far as a kiss when they realized the only thing they were feeling was awkward (Razul would eventually id as aroace and Kami as ace) because while they liked each other, they weren’t attracted to each other(and frankly, Razul would be happy to not have to kiss anyone again). It’s like, ‘I love you, but I’m not IN love with you; I love you but not, love-love’ After realizing the awkward feeling was mutual they just, dropped it and let things remain the way they were.
Which seems to have worked out for them.
Razul, technically dropped out of highschool, but eventually went back to finish up and graduate.
He lives with Kami, and Kami’s adopted son Gwain(a half fae (changeling) kid). Gwain calls him ‘uncle’(only Kami is ‘dad’)
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beautifultypewriter · 4 years
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Fooled Around and Fell in Love ~ Sir Gwaine
Requested: Yes / by Anonymous
Warnings: Needles (Reader is a tattoo artist) and mentions of blood
Word Count: 1,938 (I am so so sorry. This got so out of hand)
Pairing: Sir Gwaine x reader
Summary: It’s a modern AU! Percival takes Gwaine to his favorite tattoo artist so the man can get his first tattoo. Gwaine definitely did not count on the artist being this cute and he definitely did not count on catching real feelings.
A/N: This is a little bit inspired by Miranda Lambert’s cover of Fooled Around and Fell in Love (Originally by Elvin Bishop). I didn’t describe Gwaine’s tattoo because I really don’t know what he would get. Like I thought about it, but I couldn’t come up with anything.
You were at the front counter, working on a design for one of your clients while you waited for your next appointment. A regular of yours, Percival, was bringing in one of his buddies for his first tattoo. You always loved doing first tattoos because more often than not, you saw that person again and again. It was like once you got one, you caught some kind of tattoo fever. That’s how Percival became one of your regulars. He had come in for his first tattoo and you warned him about the fever, but he had only laughed and dismissed your claim. Then he was back at the shop a week later with an idea for his second tattoo and you were laughing out your ‘I told you so.’
 The bell above the door rang and you stopped what you were doing to look up at the two men who entered. The first you recognized as Percival, the same big smile on his face that he always had. The man behind him must have been his friend. This man was a bit shorter than Percival with long, dark hair and though he tried to hide it behind his smile, you could tell that he was a little bit nervous. Percival strolled over to the counter, leaned across it and kissed your cheek quickly.
 You smiled at him, “Hey, Perce.” He nodded to you and you looked behind him, holding your hand out to the other man, “Hi, I’m Y/N.”
 He stepped forward, taking your hand in his, “Gwaine.”
 You nodded, “Percival tells me that this is your first tattoo?”
 Gwaine nodded as he looked around the shop, “Yep.” He looked back at you, his eyes trailing down your body and back up again.
 He grinned at you as you nodded to the couches across the room, “Shall we?” Percival leaned against the counter as he pushed Gwaine towards the couch. You gave him a look, but he only smiled back. Grabbing your sketchbook and pencil, you made your way over to the couch, turning to a clean page and sitting beside Gwaine. You looked at him, “So what were you thinking?” Gwaine launched into all the details he wanted to put into his tattoo and where he wanted it. You nodded along as you made notes in your book and started some first sketches.
 When Gwaine was done speaking, he contented himself to just watch you as you worked. Your pencil scratched against the paper as you started a new design before quickly scratching it out and moving to an open space to start a third design. Gwaine watched you shake your head and start a new design, smiling when he noticed your tongue poke out slightly, your eyes squinted in concentration. Soon you had an entire page filled with various designs that all incorporated what Gwaine was looking for. You handed him the sketchbook, “What do you think? Anything jumping out at you?” He took the book from you, his eyes scanning every one of your designs, nodding at some and moving quickly over others.
 He pointed to one of the designs in the middle of the page, “Oh that’s it right there.”
 You looked over at the one he had chosen, “Yeah? Did you want to make any changes?”
 Gwaine shook his head as he handed you the book, “Nope, it’s perfect.” He grinned at you, leaning slightly closer to you. You leaned into him before quickly standing from the couch.
 “Great. I’ll get the stencil ready.” You heard Percival snort as you turned and headed back to the counter to gather your necessary supplies. The couch creaked as Gwaine stood to follow you. Smiling to yourself, you got started on the stencil. When you had finished, you looked up at the clock on the wall before turning to the two men, “Alright, so did you want to schedule an appointment to get this done or did you wanna do it right now?” You raised an eyebrow at Gwaine.
 He stared back, his own eyebrow quirking up, “I’ve got the time now.”
 You smiled as you grabbed the stencil and moved from behind the counter, “Perfect.” You motioned for Gwaine to follow you and led him to the back where several chairs were set up. You motioned to your chair and Gwaine sat down. Percival sat in a nearby chair and the two whispered quietly among themselves as you gathered everything you were going to need. Walking back to the pair, you nodded at Gwaine, “Alright, shirt off.”
 The man smirked at you, “In a rush to get my clothes off?”
 You smirked back, “Only so I can get you done and out of my shop.” Percival laughed and you winked at Gwaine. He only shook his head as he peeled his shirt off and folded it in his lap. You sat on your stool and wheeled yourself as close to Gwaine as you could get. You set the stencil on his chest and after a few adjustments, you were ready. Gwaine looked down at you as you fired up the tattoo gun and dipped it in the ink. Turning back, you looked up at him, “Ready, pretty boy?”
 He smirked at you, “Oh, so you think I’m pretty?”
 You placed your free hand on his chest as you leaned close to his body, “For now.” You glanced up at him, “You won’t be in a minute though.”
 He chuckled, “Why do you say that?”
 You smirked as you turned back to the task at hand, “No one ever is.” Then you pressed the needle to his skin, seeing him grimace out of the corner of your eye. Percival laughed loudly as you chuckled quietly to yourself. You followed every line with precision, occasionally getting more ink or stopping to wipe the excess and the blood off.
 Gwaine had insisted that it didn’t hurt, but you could see him wince every now and again and he looked more than relieved when you pulled back and announced that he was done. You bandaged him up and went through the care instructions with him, giving him the same package you gave to all your clients with written instructions, extra bandages, a bottle of antimicrobial soap, and a tube of anitbacterial ointment. You had even warned him about the tattoo fever, joking that you would see him again soon. After you settled up and made sure he had no other questions, you sent him on his way, sure he would be calling for another appointment soon.
 Sure enough, Gwaine had returned to the shop shortly after his first tattoo, but it was not for more ink. It was to flirt with you and to ask you on a date. You had been a bit hesitant about getting involved with him, but you figured one date wouldn’t hurt, so you agreed.
 You were wrong though. One date could hurt a lot and it currently did. You had thought that things had gone well, but it had been five days since what you thought was a wonderful night and you still hadn’t heard anything from Gwaine. Not even a single text. It seemed Gwaine had not shared in your feelings and that was hurting you more than you thought it would.
 The bell above the door rang and you looked up to see Percival walking up to the counter. You smiled at him, “Hey. Ready to finish that up?” You gestured to his arm and he nodded, following you into the back. He sat in the chair as you got everything ready. You worked in silence, concentrating on filling in the last of his large bicep tattoo.
 When you finished, Percival looked over your work, “Thanks, Y/N, this is really amazing.”
 You looked away from your tools, “Yeah, it came out really nice.” You smiled at him, “I’ll see you later?” He nodded and stood up, walking towards the front of the shop.
 Then he stopped and walked back over to you, “Actually, Y/N, can you do me a favor?”
 You looked up at him, “Sure, what do you need?”
 Percival sighed, “Don’t write Gwaine off yet.” Shaking your head, you scoffed. Percival held his hand out, “Please, just listen to me-”
 You turned away from him, “I don’t want to talk about Gwaine, Perce.” You finished cleaning your station and then just sat with your hands in your lap. You really didn’t want to talk about Gwaine and especially not with his best friend.
 Percival sighed, “Please, Y/N. He’s an idiot, but… just please.”
 You spun around to look at him, “My mind is open.” You held your arms out to the side as you sighed.
 Percival smiled, “Thank you.” He leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to your cheek before waving and leaving the shop. You went back to cleaning everything up, making sure all of the equipment was properly sanitized and everything was back in its place. At some point during your sweep of the shop, your coworkers called out their goodbyes and left.
 You were alone at the counter, working on a few sketches when you had some peace and quiet. Then the bell above the door rang. Strange, you thought you had locked it. Shaking your head, you looked up, “I’m sorry, but we’re closed for the day.” Your eyes met Gwaine’s and you frowned. He moved further into the shop, letting the door fall shut behind him.
 He smiled at you, “You have a minute to talk?” You grabbed all of your papers, pushing them into a messy pile and picking them up.
 You moved around the counter, heading for your bag, “Go on, I guess.” You refused to look at him as you packed up your stuff and slung your jacket over your shoulders.
 Gwaine sighed, “I’m sorry that I didn’t call you when I said I was going to.”
 You turned sharply, “Oh, you’re sorry?” You let out one humorless laugh, “Well that changes everything.”
 Gwaine looked down to his boots, “I know you’re upset, and I deserve all of what you want to dish out,” you nodded and he moved closer, “but I really am sorry and I’m not gonna stand here and give you excuses because there are no excuses for what I did. I’m just gonna say that I felt something real for you and I wasn’t prepared for it.” He looked up at you, “I handled it all wrong and I’m hoping against all hope that you’d be willing to give me a second chance even though I don’t deserve it.”
 You crossed your arms over your chest, staring at the nervous man in front of you, “No, you don’t.” He winced as he looked past you at the shop’s wall. You sighed, “I felt something real for you too, Gwaine.” His eyes snapped back to you, hope building in them. You sighed again, dropping your hands to your sides, “And it hurt when you blew me off.” His eyes turned sad again and he frowned. It was quiet for a few minutes as neither of you could look at the other. Finally, you stepped over to him and placed your hand on his arm, “I appreciate your apology and you’re forgiven.” Gwaine stared at your hand as a small smile broke out on his face. Your hand slid down to grip his and he looked at you. You smiled, “Do you want to go for a coffee?”
 He nodded, “Yes.” Your smile widened as you nodded to the door and the two of you left the shop.
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