#BBC Merlin fanfic

[thenerdyindividual]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Merlin (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Gwaine/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Gwaine/Merlin (Merlin), Gwaine/Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin) Characters: Merlin (Merlin), Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Gwaine (Merlin) Additional Tags: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Curses, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Pining Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Not Actually Unrequited Love, Snow and Ice, Merlin's Magic Revealed (Merlin), Gwaine Knows About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), POV Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Winter, Sad Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Lonely Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Polyamory Summary:

Winter has struck Camelot hard. Entire villages are disappearing beneath the snow, and the castle is perpetually freezing. In an attempt to beat the cold, Arthur seeks out Merlin hoping for someone to share his bed at night. To his great embarrassment, he stumbles across Merlin and Gwaine already quite cozy together.

Arthur is desperate to stop feeling lonely, and makes a deal. If only he could figure out why he has this perpetual cold feeling in his chest.

[tansyuduri]

Art by @kairennart for "Treat Me Warmly"

Arthur returned to the bed and pulled Merlin close to him. Then he looked away. 

“Have to stay close for warmth,” Arthur stumbled over the words, likely due to the cold, his tone almost apologetic. Merlin had to reassure him! 

“It’s fine. I enjoy it.” The words came tumbling out of Merlin's mouth before he could stop them. He wanted to hit himself and started screaming internally. WHY HAD HE SAID THAT!?

Arthur froze, turning his head so his eyes met Merlin's. Then his blue eyes narrowed. “Wait, you enjoy it? You enjoy me holding you?”

Merlin panicked. “No! I didn't mean– I mean, yes, but no! It doesn't have to mean anything, and yes... no… I… enjoy the warmth… I mean you holding me is a bonus! NO! I mean, I don’t enjoy it at all! I mean…”

“I enjoy it too,” Arthur mumbled as he held Merlin against him. A grin started to form on his face. “So, stop rambling.”

“I mean, we never have to talk about or, or do anything about it. I mean, not that there is anything to do anything about. I mean…” Merlin broke off as Arthur’s words registered. “You enjoy it too?” he stammered in disbelief. 

“Yes, Merlin.” Arthur looked at him and sighed.

Fic found here

[nononsensesblog]

New concepts of Merlin’s magical abilities I would love to see in fanfics and headcanons:

1. Any person who drinks a bit of Merlin’s blood gains the ability to use magic. The show states magic is learned, people study for years to learn how to practice magic, only some people are born with a natural aptitude towards it. By drinking Merlin’s blood anyone can suddenly use magic, even if they never studied it before, but they’ll still have to learn how to control it.

2. Merlin can’t die by drowning, he can breathe under water for a longer time than an average human, but if water gets inside his lungs and he can’t breathe he will go into a dormant state until his lungs are cleared again, it could be hours, days or years (or centuries), he will always regain consciousness once he can breathe again.

3. Merlin can only be killed by weapons forged by magic or by the complete destruction of his body (like burning), if there’s even the smallest possibility of his body being healed, it will heal. Merlin does die from other common factors, but he comes back again. For example, if he’s given a deadly poison or stabbed by a common weapon, his heart will stop and he’ll die, then in a few minutes his heart will restart and he’ll live again. But every time he dies and revives, he’s a little less himself, like some parts are chipped away.

4. Merlin can build resistance to poison. Once he comes in contact with a certain poison he’ll become immune to it’s effects. Based on the previous concept, once Merlin learns he won’t permanently die from poison, he starts experimenting with various ones, his heart stops but he eventually comes back to life and heals from it’s effects, from then on he’ll be unaffected by it if he ever comes in contact with the poison again.

5. Merlin can enter the mind of animals at will, perceive the world through their senses and control their actions (like warging from ASOIAF). For example, while camping outside, he could enter the mind of a owl during the night and keep watch through it’s eyes while his actual body rests.

If anyone has other concepts and headcanons about Merlin’s magic and/or immortality I would love to know them too! Also english is not my first language, sorry if there’s any mistakes.

[mumble-muse]

Choosing Merlin’s full name for your modern au fic alignment chart

(insp)

[many-gay-magpies]

hello dead boy detectives fandom and bbc merlin fandom. i know there is a decent overlap between the two out there because i am either followed by or have followed several blogs myself that post about both merlin and dead boy detectives, so hopefully this finds its target audience. anyway a little while ago i became obsessed with the idea of merlin and kashi being besties, so i started writing a thing, and i don’t know if or WHEN i’ll finish the thing but i don’t want it to stay hidden until then so i am posting the incomplete and very unpolished version to tumblr. and who knows maybe if people like it that will give me the motivation to rewatch some merlin and actually finish it

anyways without further ado. here’s 1000 words of merlin engaging in (fairly mild) shenanigans in port townsend

—

There was a cat sitting on a rock.

Port Townsend had quite a lot of cats, Merlin had discovered. There had been at least one in sight at all times since he’d arrived in the small coastal town. This cat was regarding him with an expression that might have been called scrutinizing, had it been made by any face other than a cat’s. That is to say, it looked rather like cats typically do, which is scrutinizing as it is.

“Hello,” said Merlin, just to be polite. He had a bit of time before Kashi’s host—Angie, he’d said her name was—came to the surface, after all, and he was in the mood for a spot of conversation.

“Oh, great, it’s another o’ you English twats,” said the cat. “The hell are you doin’ here?”

“I’m visiting an old friend,” said Merlin. “We meet for tea every so often, to catch up. This’ll be my first time seeing his new place. I won’t be staying long.”

The cat settled further onto the rock, folding all four of its legs underneath its body. Its tail flicked lightly before curling around its haunches.

“Good,” it said. “Hopefully you won’t cause as much trouble as those two dead little shits from a couple months back. Brits, I tell ya—ain’t good for nothin’. The Cat King’s still hung up on the stuffy little asshole.”

Merlin hummed. “Huh. I don’t think I’ve met a king of cats before. What’s he like?” He’d met a number of kings in his times, including, quite recently, the King of Dreams—but that number had never included a king of Cats.

“None o’ your fuckin’ business,” said the cat. “Hold on—who are you, anyway? You don’t smell human, and you’re not dead.”

“I’m Merlin,” said Merlin. He thought it sticking his hand out for a shake, then thought better of it. “Pleased to meet you.”

The cat snorted. “What, like the wizard?”

“Warlock, actually,” said Merlin. “But yes.”

The cat opened its mouth to speak again, but was interrupted by a whispered voice floating up from the shore.

Arthur’s voice.

“Merlin,” he called, his voice sounding exactly as it always had when Merlin did something far too stupid and risky for a servant, and he had to hide his worry under blankets of annoyance. “Merlin, are you there?”

“Fuckin’ Christ, again?” The cat grumbled. “There wadn’t even no storm last night!”

Merlin cleared his throat, shaking loose the small lump that had grown there at the sound. Kashi had warned him about Angie’s hunting techniques, so he’d known what to expect, but it was still something of a shock to hear in person.

“I think that’s my ride,” Merlin said. He turned to the cat and gave a little wave. “I’ll be off, then. Thanks for chatting with me!”

“Wha—hey!!” The cat exclaimed as Merlin turned and headed for the cliff. “No—Oi, stop that! Don’t—oh, brother…”

Merlin leaned over the stone barrier to peer down into the water, where a large light was pulsing visibly just below the surface. As he watched, his phone began to ring in his jeans pocket. He was still watching when he brought it up to his ear to answer.

“Hello, my friend!” Crackled Kashi’s enthusiastic voice from the end of the line.

Merlin squinted against the rays of sunlight lancing off the water.

“Is that you down there, Kashi?”

“Yes, it is me. And this is Angie! Say, hello, Angie!”

A loud, almost thunderous roar shook the sound, sending waves clawing at the sandy shore below.

“Hi, Angie,” Merlin shouted down to the creature. Then he waved. He doubted she could see him, but it didn’t hurt to be polite.

To Kashi, he asked, “How should I get in? Should I teleport?”

“Best not,” said Kashi. “Your style of teleportation might upset her stomach. Just jump down! She will catch you. Being swallowed is not the most pleasant feeling, but I’ve asked her not to chew on you.”

“Yeah, I’ve been swallowed before,” said Merlin, thinking back to a very particular instance with a giant snake in the Andes mountains. That was the time he discovered he could bounce back from being fully digested—although digging himself out of a pellet of giant snake dung after his body reformed inside it had not been fun.

“Are you there, Merlin?”

Merlin shuddered and shook his head to clear it of the discomfiting deja vu. “Yeah—yep. I’ll be right down. I just jump in?”

“Exactly, yes,” said Kashi. “It is not a far drop, so you should be fine.”

“Right,” said Merlin. “Well, see you in a minute, then.”

“Looking forward to it!”

Merlin hung up and deftly tucked the phone back into his pocket. Then, he climbed up onto the stone wall, and—after ensuring there was no one around to be traumatized by what it would seem like he was doing—performed an exquisite swan dive into the water.

Being swallowed was about as pleasant a feeling as Merlin remembered it being. That is to say, he felt rather how he imagined toothpaste being squeezed out of the tube might feel, had it possessed any of the five senses or been in any way alive. This time, though, he did not have to endure the process of being digested—which had taken nearly a month, given that Merlin’s first time being swallowed had been by a gigantic snake—and was instead spat out onto the floor of a large, warmly-lit cavern, drenched to the bone and coated in fish mucus.

A step up from being digested by a snake, all things considered.

“Eugh,” said Merlin.

It was then, of course, that Kashi appeared, stooping down and offering Merlin a hand to pull himself up with. Merlin took it and thanked him.

“Welcome in, welcome in!” Kashi said, grinning widely. “Sorry about the mess. I tried to clean up a bit before you came, but things got thrown around in the journey to the surface. Speaking of—“ he raised a finger, and the ground beneath Merlin’s feet—which was disturbingly hard and dry for being the stomach of a fish—began to shake. “—she seems to be going back to the bottom now. Come, sit, so you don’t lose your feet!”

“Nice place you’ve got,” Merlin said, allowing Kashi to lead him across the quaking floor to a small table near the back. “Definitely the best-furnished stomach I’ve ever been in.”

“Yes, it’s very nice,” Kashi agreed.

[dryadalisliv]

“I’m- I’m immortal?” Merlin whispers.

“Yes, young warlock” The dragon says “and you will live many life times waiting for your Once and Future King”

Merlin looks out at the lake, at the little boat slowly floating further and further away, and with it Arthur.

“I don’t want it” The warlock yells, choking down a sob “I DON’T WANT IT” he screams

“THIS WAS NOT MY DESTINY!” He cries “This.. This was not my destiny” the wavering whisper is nearly not audible.

“You told me-“ Merlin points a finger up at Kilgharrah, eyes dark with rage and sorrow “You told me my destiny was to protect him! You told me he would bring about The Golden Age of Albion!”

“Indeed I did, young Emry-“

“Don’t you dare call me that ever again!” The warlock interrupts.

“I did” Kilgharrah continues as if undisturbed “And one day you will reunite with your king, at Albions greatest need, and the Golden Age will rise”

“No” Merlin murmurs “No, I don’t want it. Let me follow him. I don’t want it. I don’t want it! I DONT WANT IT!” He begs and screams.

“I’m sorry young man, this was not how I would have intended it either.”

Merlin looks away from the dragon, trying to gain control of himself; blinking rapidly and taking deep breaths.

“You said man. But am I even that? What am I exactly?”

Kilgharrah looks down at him fondly.

“I have wondered that for a long time as well. Some would call you Emrys, I myself call you Warlock, those close to you call you Merlin, but I think, yes I think that who you truly are is Arthur’s”

“I don’t understand”

The dragon gives a sad smile.

“Yes, I don’t think Arthur did either.”

[georgies-ftts]

so what would youse say if i told youse i was writing a merthur fic where merlin gets cursed to obey every order he’s given and at first he’s confused as to why he can’t control his body but then it gets worse as he’s given more orders and it begins to cause him pain that worsens to extreme agony so when a visiting noble (arsehole) starts giving him orders just to be a twat it’s gets incredibly angsty and very comforting at the end…..?

[personaje-fics]

you keep watching my eyes

Merlin/Arthur Pendragon. 1.100 words. General Audiences. AO3.

…….

"Come on, attack me as if you mean it."

Merlin adjusts his footing into a defensive posture, expecting his taunt to rise something in Arthur. It does. Apart from his words, his eyes are heavy on Arthur’s, his lips red and smug, his hands clenching and unclenching, ready to cast.

A soft breeze ruffles his hair. Arthur swings his sword.

Their weapons clash with a piercing sound, the force of it sends a thrill down Arthur’s arms. He laughs with exhilaration and swings again.

Little are the times when they can escape from their duties. It happened more often when Merlin was his servant, but since Arthur named him court sorcerer they never seem to have time for themselves, even though they still spend most of their days together.

That's why Arthur decided to tell Merlin to go to the stables that morning, and without explanation, he threw him the reins of his horse.

Merlin didn't complain, so he took it as a win.

The travel through the forest was surprisingly swift and uneventful. The gallop of the horses blended with the singing of birds above them, and blooming flowers announced the coming of spring. In the middle of all that nature, Arthur watched Merlin admire the landscape, and longed.

They arrived at a clearing covered in daisies, ate some of the food Arthur had brought and talked about the latest court gossip they knew. Then, when the silence grew too comfortable, Arthur had the marvellous idea of duelling, him with his sword and Merlin with his magic. The idea turned out not to be so marvellous, because he is, as expected, losing.

Merlin fends off every single one of his blows with magic. Arthur has never had more fun sparring.

“Is that all you’ve got?” Merlin taunts him, and, all right, he’d have more fun if Merlin didn’t spend half of the time mocking him.

"I'm trying here," Arthur does not whine, because kings don't whine.

"What? Is this too hard for the best warrior of Albion?"

Arthur gives him a smirk,

"You think I'm a good warrior?"

Merlin rolls his eyes and attacks again with the one-handed staff he had conjured. His eyes shine golden, like a sunset but better. Arthur gets a good few hits, trying to get closer to him. 

Arthur swings to his right, leaving his left open, and Merlin hits him with a beam of magic that sends him to the ground, landing on a bunch of daisies.

"You keep watching my eyes," Merlin points as he offers him a hand, "which is a good way of getting yourself killed."

Arthur takes the hand and gets up. He is closer to Merlin than he intended, but neither steps away. There, face to face, breathing the same air, Arthur pretends to be calm and with a grin says,

"What? Trying to kill me often?"

Merlin looks at him with something resembling fondness, but that might be exasperation. Then he puts his hand on Arthur's shoulder and gently pushes him, creating a distance between them Arthur never wants to be there.

"One last time?" Merlin asks. Arthur nods and grabs his sword from the ground.

He swings first, to Merlin's right, the sword bouncing off a golden magic shield. Merlin moves his hand down, and magic forms the vague shape of a sword that looks less solid than Arthur knows it is.

Merlin is not holding his weapon; it hovers in the air above his hand, and though it gives him agility and speed, it lacks firmness. Arthur strikes it, stepping towards Merlin, who steps back. Merlin swings, meeting Arthur's sword once, twice. He steps back again and slowly circles Arthur. He is careful to fully face Merlin at all times, though that is something he doesn’t need much practice on.

It’s easy to lose yourself in the slow dance that is fighting. Paying attention to every little one of your opponent's movements, and pointedly not looking at his eyes. Merlin raises his sword, and Arthur meets him there. Then, he lowers them both with a swift movement, and takes advantage of the lack of obstacles between them to tackle Merlin with his shoulder.

Because that is something Merlin has not yet learned. Your weapon is only an extension of yourself, and you must fight like you dance: with your whole body.

He lands on top of Merlin with a thud, and grinning, he says,

"I think I win."

Just after he speaks he realises how breathy his voice is, how his panting is less controlled than he thought it was. He notices how Merlin's chest moves against his own.

He rolls off him before their closeness makes him do something stupid, because this is something he has yet not learned: He can’t just tackle Merlin and expect to feel normal when they touch. He settles on his back, grass tickling his neck and forearms.

"You win," Merlin breathes. He then gets himself comfortable on the ground and closes his eyes. 

Sunlight filters through the tree leaves and paints Merlin with light, and Arthur wants to trace every inch of his face with his fingertips. The curve of his lips, his nose, his cheekbones. He wishes he could have the peace to see him like this every day, forever. 

"I can feel you watching me," Merlin whispers. 

"I don't know what you're talking about," he whispers back.

Merlin's lips stretch into a smile. He turns his face towards Arthur and opens his eyes. Arthur does not have the strength to look away.

Merlin props himself on an elbow, and looking down at Arthur, haloed by the afternoon light, says,

"Hi."

"Hi," Arthur answers, unsure how to react and what to do as Merlin brings a hand to his cheek, and, ever so slowly, leans down.

When their lips touch, it’s like the sun meeting the horizon. Arthur never wants to let go. He wraps his arms around Merlin, who climbs onto his lap without breaking the kiss.

Arthur lets his hands travel to Merlin's neck, then lower to whatever warmth they can find. He can feel one of Merlin’s hands on his chest, where his heart threatens to escape from his ribcage.

"I think I win, now," Merlin murmurs against his lips.

Arthur can only manage a "hm?", his mind fuzzy.

"I'm on top of you. I win."

Arthur huffs.

"That's cheating."

"According to who?" He can feel Merlin's smile against his.

"Me." He runs his fingers over Merlin's cheek, his chin, his jaw. It feels better than he would have ever imagined. "Now stop talking."

[quotidian-oblivion]

Leon & Merlin fic!

Summary:

Merlin flung his arms up. “See? This is the acknowledgement I wanted. How much effort does it take to just say that?” He rolled his eyes. Leon pursed his lips. “Well, how long will you be willing to offer your services?” he asked. “You seriously can’t be considering it,” Percival said incredulously. “Why not?” Merlin argued. “I’m happy to be Leon’s temporary servant. Although,” he turned to him, “just pretend it’s a permanent thing to Arthur.” OR Merlin becomes Leon's servant to spite Arthur.

Forgot to inform tumblr XD so here ye go!

[themaidenofwords]

Not to rant about my own fic but I'm gonna.

We've all thought about the partial deity of Merlin's role as Emrys. Is he immortal in the aging sense alone? Can he be killed and he simply comes back? Or does he not die at all?

I think it's more complicated than that.

Merlin is no more invulnerable than his magic can heal. He can die just like everyone else. But there's something tethering him to Camelot and life himself that won't let him stay dead.

Two sides of the same coin. Inextricably bound and forever tethered to one another. The coin spins and all you can see is two lives blending into one.

Arthur lives as long as Merlin lives and Merlin cannot die until Arthur's work is finished.

Are they cherished and protected by destiny or are these two men (just children when they first met) being dragged by fate by a noose around their necks? Destiny can be a curse as much as a blessing and the real horror comes into play when Merlin finds that he can't. Stay. Dead.

Imagine being stuck -- waiting-- for thousands of years for the other side of your coin to return or for the tether to finally break so you can finally finally rest. An ache in your bones and a desperate longing to be something more than what fate has dictated. You don't get to be a person without him, and you also can't stop waiting for him to come back.

Imagine if your best friend (not ignoring the ship but to each their own interpretation) returned and all you could think about was the chance that maybe you could close your eyes and not have to open them again. Day after day after day. A hundred lifetimes lived. And you've been waiting so long to be whole again if only so you could properly break.

[thenerdyindividual]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Merlin (TV) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Merlin (Merlin), Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Gaius (Merlin), Gwen (Merlin), Uther Pendragon (Merlin) Additional Tags: Canon Compliant, Spells & Enchantments, Post-Season/Series 02, Prince Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), King Uther Pendragon (Merlin), Crack, Crack Treated Seriously Summary:

Someone is out to destabilize Camelot again. Their plot of choice? A love potion. But what happens when a love potion meant for Arthur ends up being taken by Uther instead? A lot of embarrassing things, that's what.

Merlin must race against the clock to free Uther from enchantment before Merlin himself becomes Arthur's step-father.

[tansyuduri]

Art by @kairennart for chapter 17 of Our Stars Still Shine Together Arthur came back to pain and the sound of Merlin screaming as if his soul was ripping apart, in a voice that was quickly growing more and more hoarse.  

He was being clutched to his warlock, with his face pressed against Merlin’s chest as Merlin rocked back and forth.

Arthur shifted his head, looking up into tear-brightened blue eyes filled with a barely sane, anguished look. Alarm shot through him. Instantly he knew he had made the right choice, but then, that had never been in doubt. 

“Merlin.” Arthur raised a hand up to the warlock's cheek hoping he was not too late. “Merlin!”

The screaming broke off with a choking sob. His warlock looked down at him, the crazed look fading as his eyes grew wide. Sobs wracked his body and he leaned down pressing his forehead to Arthur’s. Their noses touched.

“Arthur.” Merlin whispered in a hoarse, broken voice. “Arthur… Arthur.” He repeated the name over and over again. A hand moved to the side of the king's head, caressing it gently. Long fingers pressing into sunkissed hair. “Arthur…” 

Arthur himself be held gently against his warlock’s chest. Their heads pressed together, as Arthur embraced the feel of Merlin touching him as opposed to the pain. Merlin’s free hand was wandering over every inch of him it could touch without letting him go, as though reassuring the warlock. “Arthur.” His name again and again on Merlin's tongue as though the man was caressing the very idea of it.  “Arthur.” Merlin was trembling.

Arthur reached up to entwine his own fingers with curling back hair. “Do me a favor?”

“Anything.” Merlin’s voice was horse and cracked as he spoke, his warm breath brushed against Arthur's face.

“Don’t let go of me.” The king told him.

Read it here

[sam-blackbird]

Someone on the internet proposed a fanfic prompt about BBC Merlin, where one day, the tavern will burn, and so next time Merlin pretend he was at the tavern, Arthur is like: “no but seriously, where were you?” (He’s worried) 

But I can’t find that person anymore and it annoy me very much. 

Btw, because of Gaius, Merlin looks like an alcoholic.

[hagstoned]

How about a Shutter Island style present day AU where Merlin is sent to investigate a psychiatric facility housing residents who believe they are the reincarnations of Arthur, Gwen, the Knights etc. Whilst there the residents act as if they know him and he starts to get vivid flashbacks to an apparent past life. Ultimately it turns out that he is the one being treated in the facility, and the staff allow him to play out a fantasy of finding his reincarnated king to help him bear the grief and trauma of his “immortality”…

*throws idea into the wild like breadcrumbs to feed any hungry fic writers passing through*

[camelots-daffodil]

I love when Merlin trends randomly bc it justifies my unhealthy and continuing obsession with this silly lil show

[dryadalisliv]

“Pppff i dont have the energy to write this essay”

“-Anyway” *writes a 10k words long fanfiction about gay people*