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legends-of-time · 10 months ago

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Amelia’s Story (BBC Merlin Story)

Chapter 25: The Witchfinder

Masterlist

Anne's POV

Anne had not very reluctantly agreed to join Merlin in the woods collecting firewood in the forest. She cannot help but want to spend time with him despite nothing seeming to happen between them. Though she cannot be imagining things as she remembers Amelia smirking at her when she asked if she could go to the forest to help Merlin.

Why Anne I never knew you were so interested in firewood.

It is not her typical job as, unlike Arthur, Amelia does not make her do any of the more menial jobs if she does not have to.

Anne is clearly too caught up in her thoughts as she turns and notices that Merlin is no longer behind her. She frowns. Where could he have gone?

Suddenly a woman, Cathryn, collides with her. "Oooff!" Anne exclaims.

"Oh, Anne, thank goodness!" Cathryn cries. "We need to see the King!"

She begins pulling her arm but Anne stops her. "Wait, Cathryn! Cathryn! What is it? What is wrong?"

"The smoke! The smoke was alive, I tell you." Anne feels a sinking feeling in her stomach. "It took the shape of a running horse! There's sorcery here! We must tell the King!"

Anne looks behind her to see a distraught Merlin as well as others who had been in the forest gathering around them. She realises there is no use in trying to keep this quiet and lets Cathryn drag her to the King.

——

They are in the Throne room, in front of the Court. Arthur leans on the back of the chair from behind, Uther standing in front of his throne and Morgana and Amelia sitting on his left.

Anne is forced to stand by Cathryn due to the woman's relentless begging, so she stands there in the centre of the room as Cathryn explains what she saw.

"It was sorcery you saw, and you're certain of it?" Uther more demands than questions.

"Yes, Sire."

Anne sees Amelia is looking at her in concern but she is too panicked to take any comfort from Amelia's empathy. Anne can only think of what Merlin and Gaius' faces look like at this time as they stand behind her.

"And you swear this before your King?"

"I swear it."

"Perhaps your eyes deceived you, a trick of the light," Arthur suggests.

"The smoke was alive, I tell you. I feared for my life." Cathryn insists.

"I thank you for bringing this to my attention. Your loyalty will not go unrewarded." Uther says.

"Thank you, Sire."

A Knight escorts her out. Anne takes the opportunity to dart to Gwen's side, who holds her hand comfortingly, not knowing the true reason for Anne's panic.

"It cannot continue." Uther states.

"I will hunt down those responsible, Father. I promise they will not escape unpunished." Arthur says.

"No. Stronger methods are called for. Send for the Witchfinder." Courtiers gasp. Anne sees Amelia frowning as if trying to think about or remember something while Morgana looks terrified. Who is the Witchfinder? It does not sound good.

"Sire, is it necessary to resort to such measures?" Gaius asks.

"The Witchfinder is a trusted ally, Gaius. His help will be invaluable."

"Of course," Gaius says though he does not look happy.

——

Amelia's POV

The Court disbands after Uther's announcement. Amelia, despite wanting to look at her notes for anything, follows the rest of the gang, Anne, Gaius and Merlin, into Gaius' Chambers.

"How many times, Merlin?! How many times must I drive it into that thick skull of yours that your magic is a secret to be guarded with your life?! What were you thinking?!" Gaius rants as he storms into the room with the rest of them trailing after him.

"You have really done it now Merlin," Amelia says, rubbing her head. She feels a headache coming on.

"I... I wasn't thinking." Merlin splutters.

"Well think, boy, think!" Gaius shouts.

"M-maybe shouting isn't helping?" Anne says, looking panicked. Amelia doesn't blame her, Gaius is proper angry but then again he has every right to be.

"It was just a bit of fun." Merlin defends.

"In a public place!" Amelia exclaims.

"It was magic and it was seen. And you!" Gaius points at Anne. The girl's eyes widen fearfully. "Should have stopped him!"

"He left my sight! How could I?" Anne defends.

"It's not her fault!" Merlin exclaims and Anne sends him a small smile of thanks. "And you're right. I'm sorry."

"You must hide the book. Anything that can connect you to sorcery in any way." Gaius says, now sounding calmer.

"What? Now?"

"Yes, now, Merlin. The man that Uther has sent for, I know him." Gaius states.

"The Witchfinder?" Anne asks.

"Hmm, some know him by that name. I know him as Aredian. He is a force to be reckoned with." Gaius warns.

"But I'm not a witch. Look. No dress or anything." Merlin jokes but he is met with silence.

"I'll get the book." Merlin mumbles.

——

This is not good, so not good. Her notes warn her of the Witchfinder; a man who actually seems to be able to identify the actual Sorcerers but fakes evidence to catch them. She wishes she could know how they stop him but irritably her notes do not say nor who he goes after though she knows that she, Morgana, Merlin, Anne and maybe Gaius are all at risk.

Morgana asks Amelia and Anne to join her and Gwen in the former's Chambers. Amelia goes without question, she knows that Morgana is worried about the arrival of this Witchfinder and Amelia doesn't blame her.

They watch from Morgana's window as Aredian shows up in the Square at night with a large horse-drawn cage. A Guard, Patrick, approaches him.

"Is that him?" Anne whispers as if the man might hear them.

"Yes." Morgana murmurs.

"What's that cage for?" Gwen asks.

"Probably best not to think about it," Amelia replies quietly.

Aredian then looks up at the window. They gasp and step away from the window in fear.

——

By the next day, Aredian has already begun his work and interviews Cathryn and then Merlin as she had named him as a witness but Anne has not needed to be interviewed as she had not seen the magic itself.

Before long Aredian has more witnesses, which he presents before the Court in the Throne room.

"Speak, do not be afraid," Aredian commands the woman on the far right.

"I... I was drawing water from the well, Sire, when I saw them: faces in the water. Terrible faces, like people who were drowned, screaming. Screaming." The woman whimpers.

"Mmmh." Aredian puts a comforting hand on the woman's shoulder though Amelia wonders how comforting it really is. He moves to the next woman. "Tell them what you saw."

"A goblin dancing on the coals. it was dancing in the flames, and it spoke, Sire. My heart near stopped for fear of it." This next woman is calmer but still sounds fearful.

"As you've heard, My Lord, the incident in the woods was only the beginning, hmm?" Aredian speaks as he walks over to the next woman, nudging her to speak.

"There was a Sorcerer, Sire, in the Square. There were creatures jumping right out of his mouth." The woman says.

"And what manner of creature?"

"Toads, Sire. Great green, slimy things as big as your fist." The woman cries.

"The Sorcerer laughs in your face. Even now magic flourishes on the streets of Camelot." Aredian announces.

"I can scarcely believe it," Uther mutters in shock.

"Yet it is the truth, My Lord. Fortunately, I've utilised every facet of my craft to bring this matter to a swift resolution." Aredian answers. The Court gasps. Amelia latches onto Morgana's hand and clings to it with Morgana doing the same with equal strength.

"The Sorcerer? You have a suspect?"

"Oh, I do, My Lord. I regret to say, they stand among us in this very room." Amelia's breath hitches in panic while Morgana's is heavier. Aredian turns to the Court. "My methods are infallible, my findings incontestable! The facts point to one person and one person alone: the boy, Merlin!"

Amelia lets out a huge breath that it was not her or Morgana but is then filled with a new panic.

Arthur's doubtful voice cuts through the tension as Amelia sees others look around in disbelief. "Merlin? You can't be serious."

"This is outrageous! You have no evidence!" Gaius exclaims.

"The tools of magic cannot be hidden from me. I am certain that a thorough search of the boy's Chamber will deliver us all we need." Aredian continues, unaffected by the reception to his accusation.

"Merlin?" Uther utters.

"I have nothing to hide from him." Merlin declares.

"Very well. Guards, restrain the boy. Let the search begin." Two Guards pull Merlin out of the room.

——

An amulet of enchantment is found in Gaius' Chambers but to save his ward, Gaius takes the blame and declares it is his, freeing Merlin and getting himself chucked into the Dungeons. Amelia knows, due to her notes, that the amulet is just a ploy by Aredian but she knows there's no point in saying anything until they can counteract anything Aredian throws at them.

Aredian's 'interrogation' of Gaius begins. Amelia worries about how ruthless this man is and inconsiderate he probably is concerning Gaius' age.

Kilgharrah provides no help other than not to do anything self-sacrificing when Merlin goes to see him.

Amelia worries that Gaius' treatments for her and Morgana will soon come up causing them to fall under suspicion. Then a Guard arrives to lead her to Aredian's Dungeon Chambers.

She passes Gaius' Cell. Their eyes catch and Amelia sees that he is worse for wear. This doesn't help the terror rising up inside her.

As Amelia is seated, she can't help but get even more terrified as Aredian walks around behind her, picking up and fiddling with different chains as he speaks, "There's no need to be concerned, My Lady. I won't detain you long. There's just a small detail I wish to clarify." He sits behind the desk that is in front of her. "Now, it's true, is it not, that you have received treatment for nightmares?"

Amelia clears her thoughts, trying to stay calm. "I feel like I should tell you this, I do apologise, but I had an accident to do with my head a couple of years ago. My memory is not what it was." She can't help but notice her voice is a little shaky.

"That is no problem, I'm sure you'll do your best." Aredian dismisses. "But you do receive treatment?"

Amelia nods, not wanting to speak this time so as not to reveal everything. Aredian notes this down.

"And it was Gaius, the Court Physician, who administered these treatments? These potions?" Aredian probes.

"Yes." She says but realises that she had barely made a sound.

"I'm sorry, could you speak up?" Aredian then waves his hand in the direction of his ear and makes a slight laugh.

"Yes." Amelia sounds louder. Aredian writes something.

"Thank you. Now, you may go."

Amelia smiles in relief and gets up to leave.

Aredian's voice stops her from walking too far. "You don't happen to know what was in these potions, I suppose?"

"Oh, no," Amelia says with a smile now feeling better than before.

"No. No, of course not. You're not a Physician, after all." Aredian jokes and Amelia lets out a slight laugh in response. She continues walking but he stops her again. "So, for all you know, these potions could have been magical, your dreams the product of an enchanted elixir."

"Oh, I had these dreams before Gaius started treating me." Amelia quickly explains, not wanting to throw Gaius under the bus.

"But these dreams, have they got better or worse since Gaius began treating you?"

Amelia doesn't want to tell the truth as it will look bad for Gaius but she doesn't want to lie as she'll probably be caught and what good will that do. "They haven't gotten better."

"As I thought. Thank you. You've been most helpful."

Amelia nods and leaves feeling probably more anxious than she did before. She passes Morgana on her way out and tries to give the other woman her best smile but she knows it probably doesn't work looking at Morgana's face.

——

Aredian throws Gaius to his knees before the Court. Amelia, from her usual spot in Morgana's left, winces at the sight of the man who looks near the end of his tether.

"Confess! Confess!" Aredian harshly demands. Amelia sees Merlin trying his best not to cry and Anne holding onto his arm to either restrain or comfort him, she doesn't know.

"I... I am a Sorcerer, Sire." Gaius gasps. "I am responsible for conjuring the smoke. I'm guilty of practicing magic in Camelot, the goblin, the faces in the well, I... I am the Sorcerer who conjured the toad from his mouth."

"You've betrayed me, Gaius." Uther declares, standing. "Betrayed your friends. And above all, you've betrayed yourself. By the laws of Camelot, I must sentence you to death."

Amelia gapes at him in shock. How can he believe this?!

"The Sorcerer will be purged of his magic by means of fire! He shall be burnt at the stake tomorrow at dawn! Bear witness and heed this lesson!" Aredian announces. Guards drag Gaius out of the room.

Merlin charges at Aredian. "You're a liar." He cries. Arthur gets up and restrains him, dragging him from the room.

"Guards!" Uther calls.

"You're a liar!"

"I'll deal with this," Arthur says.

——

The pyre is being built in the Square for Gaius to burn on tomorrow but it seems Aredian is not finished as he pulls Morgana into an interrogation. Amelia knows he'll probably come for her next. She finds Gwen and Anne and they hurry to Gaius' Chambers where Merlin will be.

They burst in and find the person they are looking for.

"Merlin?!" Anne cries. "He won't let go! He won't stop!"

"What happened?" Merlin questions urgently.

"The Witchfinder's questioning Morgana again. Maybe me next." Amelia explains. "We're worried, Merlin. She's close to breaking point."

"Yeah, that's what he does." Merlin paces as he thinks out loud. "He breaks you down and in the end, you confess whether you're guilty or not."

"What do you mean?" Gwen asks.

Amelia looks at them hopefully. Finally, they are getting somewhere.

"Are you saying Gaius was set up?" Anne asks.

"Yes. Aredian planted that amulet." Merlin realises.

"But why would he do such a thing?" Gwen questions.

"Aredian is paid to catch Sorcerers. Maybe he doesn't care whether someone is guilty or not. Maybe he gets confessions by lying, by planting evidence, just as long as he gets a confession, he gets his money."

"But even if this is true, what can we do without proof?" Gwen wonders.

"Get some." Amelia declares. Merlin turns and bolts out of the room.

Anne huffs. "I'll go after him." She runs out of the room.

"Sweet, are they not?" Amelia remarks to Gwen. The woman laughs but doesn't disagree.

——

Anne's POV

Running after Merlin ends with Anne colliding into his back.

"Ooof." He exclaims.

"Sorry!" Anne blushes as she looks down to the floor.

"Um... it's okay." Anne looks up at him and he gives her a reassuring smile. "Come on." Anne grins back and follows.

They enter Aredian's Guest Chambers and begin snooping around. Merlin almost knocks something on the desk, causing a loud clatter noise.

"Merlin!" Anne hisses, her earlier embarrassment forgotten.

"Sorry!"

They lift up bits of paper and pillows, not finding anything until Merlin attempts to open the cupboard. But it is locked so Merlin whispers, "Tospringe."

Merlin's spell unlocks a cupboard and they find flower petals. Merlin picks some up, they stare at it but then hear someone coming

Anne quickly remakes the bed with a spell. "Dæfte þæt bedd."

They then dart under the bed to hide. Anne tries not to think about how close they are as Aredian enters. The man's movements slow as he walks over to the cupboard, which Anne realises they left unlocked. Aredian then yanks back a curtain. He then moves to stand right in front of the bed. Anne holds her breath, fearing he might hear it. She breathes a sigh of relief once Aredian walks out of the room.

——

Amelia's POV

Anne and Merlin return with a petal they had found in Aredian's Chambers and soon all four of them begin sifting through Gaius' books to try and find anything on it. While this isn't fun, Amelia feels pleased that they are one step further into stopping the Witchfinder.

"This is hopeless!" Gwen exclaims in frustration.

"We have to keep going." Anne insists.

"She's right," Merlin says.

"We don't even know if this flower means anything." Gwen points out.

"No we don't, but we cannot give up." Amelia insists.

"Here. Belladonna." Merlin suddenly says pointing at a page. They all hurry over to have a look.

""For the alleviation of ulcers, allergies, and muscular inflammation..."" Gwen reads. "This is hopeless."

"No, wait." Amelia pushes forward to read another part. "Listen, "Under certain conditions, a tincture of the flower can produce hallucinations.""

"So?"

Anne scoffs. "Aredian's witnesses. It wasn't magic they were seeing, it was visions."

"It makes sense, if he's faking the evidence." Gwen realises. "But how can we prove it?"

"No, Aredian's too clever to have given the tincture to them directly. The witnesses, they must've got it from someone else." Merlin says.

"They could've been getting it from anyone!" Amelia whines.

"Is there anything, anything at all that these people had in common?" Merlin wonders.

"They were all women?" Anne suggests.

"No, that doesn't tell us anything." Merlin dismisses.

"Yes, it does. What's the one thing only women would buy?" Gwen prompts. "Things to make them look beautiful."

Oh.

They all run out of the room with Gwen leading.

——

Gwen leads them through the Lower Town until they reach the Apothecary and knocks on the door.

An older man steps out. "Gwen? Anne? My Lady?" They step inside.

"Do you sell a tincture of Belladonna?" Gwen immediately asks.

"What's this all about?" The Apothecary wonders.

"Please, it's important." Anne insists.

The Apothecary blinks at them surprised but turns to search through his shelves. "Well, I, I think I've got some somewhere, but what you'd be wanting with eye drops in the middle of the night, I really don't want to know."

"Eye drops," Amelia mutters. That's how!

"Yes. Women use them to make their eyes more beautiful." The Apothecary explains, showing them the bottles.

"Where did you get this?" Merlin demands.

"Well, my usual suppliers." Comes the claim.

"So you did not get it from someone else?" Anne questions.

"Of course I'm sure. If it's all the same to you, I'd like to get some sleep." The Apothecary replies.

"It was Aredian who gave you the Belladonna, wasn't it?" Gwen states more than asks.

"Don't know what you're talking about." The Apothecary dismisses fearfully.

"But you know that Gaius is going to be executed tomorrow, don't you?" Merlin probes.

"That has nothing to do with me."

"Look buddy," Amelia says drawing his attention, "it has everything to do with you!"

Anne speaks up then, "Aredian's witnesses saw visions produced by the Belladonna in these eye drops! If we can prove this, we have a chance of saving Gaius."

The Apothecary sighs. "He forced me to sell it. He, he said he'd kill me if I said anything to anyone."

"It was him? It was Aredian?" Gwen looks for confirmation.

"Yes, it was him."

They all let out various thank yous as they leave.

——

Merlin grabs the tincture and Belladonna petals. "That's it. We've got everything we need."

"But is it enough?" Gwen wonders.

"We've got a witness as well. Surely that's enough?" Merlin replies.

"It's still just our word against Aredian's!" Gwen insists.

"Gwen, we don't have a choice! By dawn tomorrow Gaius will be dead." Anne says desperately.

"She's right, we've only got one chance at this," Amelia admits. "We've got to give Uther something he cannot deny cause even he will not listen to me. We need something not even Aredian can talk his way out of."

Merlin nods. "I'll be as quick as I can. Anne do not follow!" He runs out of the room.

"Might as well," Amelia says. "God knows what he's up to." The other two women laugh.

The sun has risen by the time Merlin returns.

"Where have you been?" Amelia exclaims.

"It's done. Everything's in place." Merlin tells them.

"But it's too late! Gaius has already left the Dungeons!" Anne points out to him.

"Then... then we'll have to delay the execution," Merlin suggests.

"How?" Gwen asks.

"Arthur. I'll speak to Arthur." Merlin answers.

"No. Leave Arthur to me." Gwen insists. They run out of the room to the Main Square.

——

The crowd is already gathered around the pyre when they arrive and Aredian is dragging Gaius to it. They push and shove through the crowd to get to Arthur who is standing in the inner circle surrounding the pyre.

Amelia stops with Anne and Merlin beside her once they get close enough to the pyre while Gwen pushes further forward to get to Arthur. Amelia can't hear what they are saying and watches them anxiously as Gaius is tied to the stake.

"Come on Arthur. Come on." She murmurs to herself.

Aredian lights the torch and brings it over to the pyre and begins to lower it to light the pyre.

"Wait!" Arthur suddenly shouts. Amelia breathes a sigh of relief.

——

Merlin stands in front of the Court in the Throne room as he presents the evidence they had found.

"Sire, the witnesses saw nothing but hallucinations induced by the Belladonna in these eye drops." Merlin hands one over to Uther who's standing with Aredian next to him. Amelia gives Merlin a smile of encouragement from her seat next to Morgana.

"And you bought this Belladonna from this man?" Uther gestures to the Apothecary. The earlier three witnesses all nod.

"Where did you get it from?" Uther asks. The Apothecary looks around anxiously. "Don't be afraid, no harm will come to you here."

"The Witchfinder. He gave them to me." The man confesses. The Court mutters in shock.

"Did he tell you what it was for?"

"No. Only that if I did not sell it, he'd have me burnt at the stake." Similar muttering arise again.

"How do you answer to these accusations?" Uther questions Aredian.

"They're absurd. The boy has clearly concocted these lies in the hope of saving his master." Aredian defends.

"Then you won't mind if we search your Chamber, will you?" Merlin quips.

"Silence!" Uther shouts. "You have no authority here!"

"Father... let's settle this once and for all." Arthur walks off the platform to stand by Merlin. Amelia notices a look shared between him and Gwen and she smiles to herself. "If what Merlin says is wrong, he must bear the consequences. But if there is some truth in what he says..."

"I have nothing to hide." Aredian declares.

——

Amelia, Aredian, Merlin, Arthur, Uther, and Morgana watch the Guards upend Aredian's Chambers.

"You're wasting your time." Said man says.

"The cupboard over there." Arthur orders. A Guard opens it and dozens of amulets drop out, and a stash of Belladonna tincture is inside. Wow, Merlin has been busy.

"These things don't belong to me!" Aredian exclaims as he walks over to the cupboard and kicks the amulets. "This is a trick!" He coughs while Arthur draws his sword as Aredian walks toward them. "That boy plots against me!" Aredian chokes and uses the table to hold himself up. He tries to clear his throat and spits out a toad. Amelia gapes at the sight in disgust.

"Sorcerer!" Uther cries and draws his sword, Guards behind him joining in.

Aredian then grabs a dagger and, before any of them can react, Morgana as well and holds the dagger towards the rest of them when they try to step forward.

"Aredian, think carefully about what you're doing. You will never escape from Camelot alive." Uther warns.

Aredian holds the dagger nearer Morgana's throat. Amelia watches with wide eyes wishing she can do something or at least have her dagger but annoyingly she has left it in her room. "I will if you value the life of your ward. Hmm?"

The handle of the dagger heats up then and Aredian drops it, freeing Morgana, who runs into Amelia's arms. Amelia looks back as she holds onto Morgana and raises an eyebrow at Merlin, who shrugs very innocently.

Aredian stumbles backwards gripping onto his burnt hand and trips backwards over a box causing him to fall out the window. Amelia hears his screams as he falls and cringes when she hears the thump of a body hitting the ground and the screams abruptly cutting off.

Classic villain death.

——

A/N: Please leave comments on how you're enjoying this story and what you think.

#bbc merlin #merlin

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arcanespillo · 1 year ago

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i love this, hear me out, my hcs are =

lancelot is an aries sun, leo rising, pisces moon.

merlin is a scorpio moon, virgo rising, i'm unsure about his sun but cancer doesn't sound bad, even though he looks like a gemini to me, maybe an aquarius? i think it's something fun and light, a balance to the "dark" coded placements i'm sure he has

gwen is a gemini sun, libra rising capricorn moon.

morgana is an aquarius sun and rising with a scorpio moon and mars in cancer. heavy on the 8th house, maybe an 8th house stellium, she has a lot of scorpio and aqua for sure.

and lastly, because he's my favorite alright, arthur, a little bit more analysis on him, man.. i think he's a cancer moon (mommy's boy, loves his people, sensitive, takes on other people's problems as if they were his) and a sag rising, because of his big smile and overall body and also because he's soo so moody, also sagittarius risings are known to have horse vibes and i think he does, not in a bad way though, i'm a sag rising too, and for his sun hmmmm, i think he could be a taurus to be honest, like looking at stereotypes tauruses are lazy but determined, stubborn, touchy, very loyal !i think he has libra AND leo placements for sure, maybe his mercurys in leo.. i also think he has a pisces mars cos he gets so teary eyed.. i will probably change my mind from time to time about all of this but that's what i think right now, sorry if it's all wonky nonsense but i'd have to check my astrology notes stuff to assign them stuff in a coherent-linear-way that makes some sense

I don't know shit about astrology but merlin is a cancer pass it on

#i could give each of them a whole chart #thats what i like about merlin the characters are so good #except i wish they showed us more of arthurs and morganas inside monologues but well the shows called merlin for a reason #astrology hcs #bbc merlin #thanks riri this was so fun #i knoooe there are other characters but yeeeaa #whatev #uther is very scorpio and capricorn coded #gaius s very virgo coded #virgo and cancer *#merlins mom s a pisces #arthurs mom a CANCER every placement in cancer every single one of them #morgana and uther have a lot of placements in common #morgana and MERLIN have a lot of placements in common #morgause s a virgo sun #kilgarrah s a taurus #mordred my sweet angel girlfriend i think he's a sag sun + heavy scorpio + heavy aries

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bitsandbobsofwriting · 3 years ago

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Camlann, except no one is being held back by stupid destinies;

Merlin manages to keep Morgana and Mordred on the side of the light, which has a few rather influential knock-on effects.

Morgause leads her army onto the barren fields of Camlann, her hair and eyes wild, but her sword and focus sharp. Opposite stands her traitor sister’s half brother, the Boy-King of Camelot, surrounded by his precious knights. Today, they would all die, she would make certain of that.

Arthur struggles to keep his hands from trembling, he’s well aware that this battle will likely be his, and subsequently Camelot’s, downfall, but his nerves are settled slightly by Merlin’s comforting presence at his side. Which he feels immensely guilty at.

He’d done his best to urge Merlin to run, to take Gwen and Gaius and maybe even Morgana, to go to Ealdor to pick up his mother and run even further, just in case. Merlin had refused of course; Gwen and Morgana had squawked at Arthur’s stupid chivalry and planted their feet firmly in the throne room, a symbolic last line of defence, and Gaius rolled his eyes and reaffirmed that he would be in the infirmary tent, as planned.

He’d given his men his speech and they all seemed content to die for the cause, for one last desperate attempt to keep their home safe, but that didn’t stop the freezing claw of guilt from shredding Arthur’s lungs every time he took a breath. They were just waiting now. For someone to make the first move, for Morgause to get a little closer, for someone to send a messenger.

Arthur’s broken from his stare when a warm, soft, steady hand takes his gently. His head whips to the side to see Merlin, stood without armour (oh, how The King despaired) staring at him with a slight frown. A frown, Arthur thinks, that should be much deeper, and much more afraid. He’s grateful it isn’t. He’s not sure he could cope with seeing Merlin scared:

“Arthur, if... if I knew a way to win this, once and for all, with not a drop of Camelot blood spilt... would you let me?”

It takes Arthur a few moments to process what Merlin had said, on account of his brain focusing on how grateful he is to hear his voice and feel the warmth of his hand instead of actually listening to him speak, but when he does, he copies his servant’s frown, though his is slightly more confused. He doesn’t let go of Merlin’s hand as he responds, instead tightening his grip:

“What on Earth are you talking about?”

Merlin gulps and looks away briefly, a look of guilt if Arthur ever saw one, but he finds he doesn’t really care. They’re all about to die, he’d forgive Merlin anything:

“If I could win this battle, and the war, right here, right now. Would you let me?-”

At Arthur’s continued perplexed look, Merlin rolls his eyes and huffs, smirking slightly as he adds on:

“-Just humour me.”

Arthur gulps, glancing towards the slowly advancing army before once again squeezing Merlin’s hand and looking back at him:

“It would... depend on the consequences, I suppose. Would you get hurt?”

Merlin shakes his head, then stops, and tilts it sideways as though he’s considering something he’d really rather not think about. He can’t meet Arthur’s gaze as he responds:

“I... might need a few hours to rest, afterwards, but any... long term consequences would depend on your reaction.”

Arthur recoils slightly at that, frown deepening as he shakes his head, completely oblivious to the keen listening ears of his six most loyal knights, and another, hidden towards the back of the group. If he’d turned to see them, Arthur would’ve noticed the blank looks of steely determination on Lancelot and Mordred’s faces:

“Well we would never have to worry about that. I... I could never see you hurt, Merlin.”

The King’s voice cracks as he mentions Merlin getting hurt, and the servant’s gaze softens, knowing that Arthur was thinking of their inevitable demise, creeping closer and closer. He squeezes his hand, giving him a soft smile as his other hand lifts up to rest on his shoulder; his question comes out soft and pleading:

“Do you trust me?”

Arthur has to use all of his self control not to yell his answer across Camlann:

“More than anyone.”

Merlin smiles sadly and steps back, dropping both of his still-steady hands to his sides; Arthur feels the gap between them more heavily than he feels the armour on his back. Merlin goes to turn away without another word, but before he can take even one step, a figure is pushing through to the front, gripping his wrist and pulling him back:

“I’m coming too.”

Arthur’s eyes go comically large as he hears Morgana’s voice come from under the hood. He steps forward to rip it down, and she only spares him an annoyed glance before she’s back to staring purposefully at Merlin. A gasp goes up around the group from all bar two, and Mordred dismounts his horse, walking forward to be in line with Morgana. The three of them entirely ignore Arthur’s outraged words:

“Morgana, what the hell are you doing here? You need to be safe at the castle, you’re meant to take the crown what the hell are you doing here?!”

Merlin meets Morgana’s determined glare with a resigned one of his own:

“No, this is my-”

Mordred interrupts him, his voice strong in a way that Arthur had never heard from the youngest knight before:

“No. No, it’s not. You’re not just fighting for Camelot, Merlin, you’re fighting or us, for our people.”

Merlin looks like he wants to argue, but Morgana crosses her arms and holds her head high as she speaks:

“You’re making a stand and you have no right to stop us from doing the same. This is bigger than you, bigger than all three of us, this is our fight just as much as it is yours.”

Merlin can only hold their stare for so long before he sighs and looks to the floor, entirely oblivious to the knights panicking (bar Lancelot, of course). He looks up with a small, relaxed smile on his face, and if Arthur weren’t so preoccupied with the fact that Morgana was definitely not supposed to be here, he would’ve found Merlin’s almost-nonchalance calming. The servant holds both his hands out:

“Together?”

Mordred grins widely, taking one of Merlin’s wrists as he responds confidently:

“For Camelot.”

Morgana does the same, a sudden wind whipping her hair behind her wildly:

“For our people.”

Without another moment’s of hesitation, Merlin turns and marches towards Morgause and her army. His steps are purposeful and strong, and Arthur can’t bring himself to stop him, no matter how desperately his brain is screaming at him. Morgana turns to him with a not-quite-cruel smirk:

“This has been a long time coming, brother. Enjoy the show.”

Arthur can only blink in surprise as she turns and walks towards Merlin. Mordred looks to him next, though the young knight’s smile is a lot softer, a lot more pitying:

“You should consider yourself lucky, Arthur,-”

Arthur barely registers the use of his first name:

“-my Lord gave up his throne in favour of serving you, buried his crown in favour of polishing yours.”

Arthur shakes his head slightly, his voice quiet and confused and strained as he asks:

“Your Lord?”

Mordred looks to Merlin, still marching across the seemingly never-ending field, with an awed smile; his voice is quiet and holds notes of what almost sound like worship:

“He’s more than you know.”

Before Arthur can respond, Merlin and Morgana stop, turning to look at Mordred expectantly. Merlin stares blankly, his brows slightly furrowed, but Morgana sports a wild grin as she yells back:

“I though you wanted to join in on the fun, Mordred?”

The young knight grins in response, turning to Arthur and giving him one last short bow as he cheerfully says, not a trace of worry in his voice:

“Lady Morgana is right My Lord, enjoy the show.”

He turns away quickly, jogging to catch up with the other two before anyone can say anything. Gwaine is the first to react, jumping off his horse and starting forward, to catch up with them, to pull them back, to ask them what the fuck was going on, but Lance quickly lands behind him, grabbing his shoulder:

“Wait, don’t. You trust them right?-”

He casts his gaze around the others, all looking slightly confused but mostly panicked as they dismount their horses. Mordred, Merlin, and Morgana make their journey to the centre of the field, but Lancelot’s eyes focuses on Arthur:

“-You said you trusted him, so just... this is what he does, Arthur. Please, just trust him, everything’s going to be ok.”

Arthur is desperate to question his knight, to demand that he explain what’s going on and give up anything, everything he knows, but before he can say anything, Elyan gasps and points somewhere beyond their friends. The whole army seems to resume their earlier jitters as Morgause differentiates herself from her soldiers.

The three magic users spread out slightly as they come to a stop, Mordred on the left, Morgana on the right, and Merlin, of course, in the middle.

A storm seems to be fast approaching and the loud wind makes hearing each other difficult, but they don’t need words to speak, and Mordred’s question echoes in Merlin’s head as all of their gazes focus on Morgause stepping forward:

“Are the other two coming?”

The Warlock nods, tapping his finger to his temple briefly as he replies:

“I called for them hours ago, they’re almost-”

Arthur is distracted from all that’s in front of him when a desperate and terrified voice screeches out from the back of his army:

“DRAGONS!!”

He, and all the other knights, whip their heads around in panic, only to see exactly what had been yelled about. The Dragon that Arthur had supposedly killed years ago is flying towards them like a hurricane, golden scales shining bright even in the shadows of the approaching storm. Next to him flies a much smaller dragon, pure white and clearly young, unstable in the air but still graceful, still terrifying.

Arthur’s heart sinks even impossibly further as they both fly straight over them, aiming for the other side of the field. If Morgause had two Dragons at her beck and call somehow, there was no hope, no matter what ridiculous plan Merlin had. Arthur felt the tears fill his eyes, but he didn’t let them fall. If this was to end in fire, then he’d sprint to Merlin, just so he could see him, hold his hands, beg him for a smile, one last time.

Lancelot holds him back with a hand on his shoulder and a soft smile:

“I know this doesn’t make sense, but just... trust him.”

He turns back to Merlin just to see the great beasts land in front of them, almost acting as a barrier between the three of them and the opposing army.

“-Took you long enough.”

Kilgharrah does his best imitation of rolled eyes before dipping his head in a bow:

“Where would you like us, young Warlock?”

Merlin grins, allowing Aithusa to push her head into his hands as he answers:

“I want you somewhere off to the side looking vaguely threatening. Only intervene if you have to, I don’t want the Camelot knights getting twitchy and skewering you, you’re an old man after all, I’m not sure you could take it.-”

Morgana laughs aloud and Mordred snorts behind his hand, but Kilgharrah just rolls his eyes again, giving another bow that this time somehow seems sarcastic before clomping off to the side, prowling up and down the edge of the field and huffing the occasional puffs of smoke in the opposition’s direction. Merlin looks down to Aithusa next, scratching her chin and using a much softer voice:

“Go watch over Arthur, keep him safe but don’t let him or any of the others hurt you, I’m sure Lance will explain. Try to stay out of the fighting and don’t let Morgause get anywhere near Arthur or the knights, you understand?”

The creature purrs and nods, stepping around her master and beginning an impossibly fast sprint towards Arthur.

Arthur stares with wide eyes at the gathering in the middle of the field, letting out a deep breath when the Great Dragon bows down to Merlin’s confident stance. The smaller creature bounds to him as he... exchanges words with the beasts, and all Arthur can do is stare as his brain argues over which emotion should be at the forefront. Fear? Confusion? Betrayal? Some kind of guilt? Pride, maybe?

Lancelot definitely looks proud, worried, but proud, and Arthur spares him a questioning glance; before he can say anything, Leon lets out a quiet yelp, pointing across the field and drawing his sword on instinct. Arthur whips his head around to see the white Dragon speeding towards them, eyes bright, teeth bared, and sharp claws ripping up the ground with every step.

He draws his own sword, panic clawing at his gut, but before he can step forward in some pointless attempt to protect his men, Lancelot pulls him back again, stepping in between Arthur and the approaching Dragon with a placating hand held out to each of them; his voice comes out quickly and desperate:

“No, no, she’s on our side, don’t hurt her. Merlin sent her here to protect us, don’t hurt her.”

Arthur stares between them with a mix of blood-curdling fear and endless confusion. But he trusts Merlin, and he trusts Lancelot, so much to Leon’s displeasure he lowers his sword, though he doesn’t sheath it, not yet.

The Dragon finally reaches them, coming to a skidding stop a few feet away. Arthur’s fear is overpowered by confusion, and an odd fondness in the back of his mind, when the creature almost topples over in it’s haste. She purrs loudly, and even Leon appears to relax slightly, even more so when she dips her head in what appears to be a bow to Arthur, before turning her attention to Lancelot and pushing her face into his hands.

The other knights all start forward on instinct, but when Lance lets out a low chuckle and begins... scratching the creature’s chin?? They step back again, watching as the Dragon begins purring even louder, almost bowling Lancelot over as it rubs it’s scaled body across his legs. It’s... acting like a cat...

Gwaine coughs very deliberately and Lancelot looks up with a blush, biting his lip before saying, his words awkward and stilted:

“Uh... guys, this is Aithusa, she’s... a Dragon. She can’t speak yet, but-”

Percival makes a confused noise in the back of his throat, shaking his head with wide eyes as he asks incredulously:

“Dragons are meant to be able to speak??”

Lancelot grimaces, but nods, but before he can say anything, Morgause’s crazed voice echoes over the field, and their attention is drawn back to the face off between Merlin, Morgana, Mordred, and the enemy.

“You can not beat me, not even with your precious pets!!”

The gang can hear Kilgharrah’s low growl at the insult and the sound vibrates across the ground and up into their very bones, even with the distance between them. Aithusa tenses in response, eyes narrowed and teeth bared as she detects the anger and insult swarming in her Kin, but Merlin holds a hand out to the Great Dragon, and both creatures relax as he monotonously responds:

“I’m giving you one chance, Morgause, do not send your followers to a pointless death.”

His tone is even and confident, his back straight, his head held high, and Arthur wonders how he’d never noticed Merlin’s obvious power before. Despite speaking normally, his voice is heard by everyone, even over the howling wind.

The knights can see Morgause’s hands shaking in her rage, her eyes wide and bright golden as she screeches her response, her anger showing through clearly:

“I am no coward!! You are nothing but a servant, a child soldier, and a pampered princess! What hope do you have against me?! I am a High Priestess, you are nothing!!!”

Merlin lowers his head, nodding slightly in resigned sadness. His muttered words, once again, somehow seem to echo across the field, and Arthur recoils at the grief in his tone:

“So be it.”

He slowly lifts his arm, holding it at a forty-five degree angle from the ground, his fingers splayed wide, and Elyan gasps, pointing wordlessly to the lightening dancing between his fingertips. Gwaine lets out a boisterous laugh, grinning as he realises with sudden clarity that Merlin is about to kick ass in a major way.

Arthur just gapes, struggling to process what was happening even as Gwaine whoops and Lancelot smiles proudly. The other knights are also staring, varying levels of confusion, awe, and happiness on their faces.

From where they’re standing, they can see Mordred and Morgana get into a fighting stance, though neither of them draw the swords they have hanging from their hips. Morgause lets out an ear piercing screech, this one wordless, giving the distinct impression that her mind had snapped under the weight of her fury. Her army begins their march forwards as she hurls a fireball the size of a horse straight for Merlin, but he simply twists his wrist sharply forwards. A bolt of lightening rips down from the sky, intercepting the fireball and forcing it to the ground where it explodes in a miniature storm of silver sparks and golden flames.

Morgause screams again, her and her army speeding up in their approach as Merlin gives some sort of unseen command. All of a sudden, Mordred gives a small leap forward, planting his feet firmly as he thrusts his hands towards the ground before ripping them up again; with the movement, the ground at his feet explodes, vines and rocks and roots bursting from the field in a sharp line heading straight for the army. Morgana, at the same time, swirls her arms gracefully around her head, a few sparks of fire lighting up in the darkness as if from the friction between her hands and the air. She brings her arms down again, completing the elegant flow, stepping forward as she blows harshly into her cupped hands. A great, hot fire bursts forth, huge and angry and writhing as it shoots towards the enemy.

A few feeble counter attacks are thrown from Morgause and the sorcerers she has in her ranks, but ultimately, the army can only look on in horror at their approaching deaths. After a few moments of Merlin staring proudly at Mordred and Morgana’s handy work as it rips apart the first few hundred soldiers, he takes his own step forward, raising his arm to the sky. Lightening dances between just his fingertips at first, then down his arm, then all over his body; he connects to the flashes in the sky, and he glows brighter and brighter until he thrusts both arms forward. A tornado of flashing, crackling light shoots out from his hands, striking down thousands of soldiers. Shards of lightening jump from enemy to enemy, leaving none untouched by magic, each being struck down by Mordred’s earth, Morgana’s fire, or Merlin’s sky.

The Camelot army can only stare on in shock and horror as the enemy is wiped out in minutes, screams of those being buried alive, burned as if on pyres, or fried from the inside out reverberating across the field. Arthur’s mouth hangs open, his eyes wide and frozen on Merlin as he conducts lightening as if it were what he was born to do. Something deep in Arthur’s soul tells him that this is what he was born to do.

Aithusa’s protection isn’t required; none of the enemy soldiers get within ten metres of Merlin and his pupils, let alone Arthur and the other knights, but she patrols the front edge of Camelot’s army regardless, nudging back those that step too far forward (everyone was too focused on The King’s manservant, knight, and half sister being... well... Godlike, to care about the fact that a Dragon was using her snout to gently push people around), always with one eye on Arthur, just like her master had asked.

Within minutes, the field goes almost silent; the only sounds to be heard are the gentle crackling of still-smouldering bodies, and the deep breaths of Morgause, Mordred, Morgana, and Arthur. Merlin seems entirely unbothered, his stance still strong and powerful where Mordred and Morgana sag slightly from the exertion.

Morgause falls to her knees, tears on her cheeks as she finally realises the power that she’s up against; Merlin tilts his head slightly before clicking his fingers. The four of them disappear in clouds of deep black smoke and Arthur struggles to stop himself from yelping and falling back when they reappear in front of him.

Morgause is still kneeling, Merlin in front of her with a blank expression on his face. Morgana stands to the side, her face an odd mix of sorrowfully defeated—Morgause was her sister after all—and vindictively victorious. Mordred stands at her shoulder, looking a lot more tired but still managing to stay upright as he gazes upon the scene with well put together indifference. Aithusa bounds over to be stood at her master’s side, and even Kilgharrah joins them, standing behind Aithusa a way’s off.

Morgause finally speaks through her deep breathing, staring up at Merlin in desperation:

“Who are you?”

Merlin just tilts his head and frowns slightly, crouching down to place a soft hand on her shoulder:

“Who do you think?”

Morgause sags even further, her tears streaming down her face as she almost whispers, her voice cracking:

“Emrys.”

Merlin nods slowly, looking to Arthur for the first time since the whole ordeal started. Arthur is taken aback at the shining gold of his eyes, but holds his gaze, gulping and waiting for his servant (?) to make the first move:

“Your orders, My Lord?”

Arthur takes a deep breath, looking first down at Morgause, who is staring at the floor blankly, then to Mordred and Morgana, who raise eyebrows at him, then Lancelot, who shrugs, and finally the other knights, who stare at him with wide eyes, waiting for his answer just as Merlin is. His hands clench at his side, but he looks back to the dark-haired man, his face determined and his voice strong:

“Your suggestion?”

Lancelot nods approvingly at Arthur’s obvious show of trust; the question is more than just a question, it’s a display that The King is treating Merlin like an advisor, asking for his counsel and trusting his allegiance in front of a crowd. Merlin smiles slightly, tightening his grip on Morgause’s shoulder, not that she notices:

“I’m not overly fond of execution, but we don’t have dungeons strong enough to hold her long term, and too many have suffered at her hand.”

Arthur nods, though he sheathes his sword. He takes a deep breath before his next instruction, knowing that this is... delicate, and important; a turning point in his Kingdom’s history:

“Make it merciful.”

Merlin holds in his proud smile and Morgause only has time to gasp quietly as his hand moves from her shoulder to her forehead. Her eyes roll back and she collapses to the floor, dead before she even hits the ground.

The Warlock spares the dead witch a quick, pitying glance, and the grief in his eyes, even after all she had done, is endearing, reminding everyone around them of the compassion Merlin is capable of. He stands quickly, but is careful not to make any of his moves too sudden, stepping away from the body and towards Arthur. His stance is strong once again, allowing some before unseen authority, confidence, power to shine through; Mordred and Morgana take their places either side of them, and even Aithusa sits up, tall and proud, as Kilgharrah edges forward slightly.

This is Merlin, showing off his army, presenting it to his King, offering it up for judgment. An army consisting of himself, his two apprentices, and two Dragons; not large, but likely the most powerful the land has ever known, and ever will know.

Arthur gulps, but meets Merlin’s golden gaze. The atmosphere is thick and charged and The King couldn’t pinpoint whether it was from the residual lightening still jumping between Merlin’s fingers, or the sheer power that was just displayed, seemingly effortlessly. He glances over the Warlock’s shoulder at the carnage behind him and can’t help but take a deep, fortifying breath. Merlin tilts his head, glancing at the massacre for just a moment before looking back with an almost repentant smile:

“I apologise for the theatrics,-”

He’s interrupted by Morgana’s whispered murmur of “I don’t, that was brilliant.” but ignores her:

“-but I can... fix that. If you like?”

Arthur frowns slightly, confused and so far out of his comfort zone that he doesn’t even want to hazard a guess at what Merlin might be implying. He feels a mould grow spontaneously in his gut, a horror with spores that spread throughout his bloodstream as he realises that... he doesn’t really know anything about magic, about how it works, about how Merlin is offering to use it. It had yet to occur to him to be afraid of Merlin, but the sudden realisation that he’d been persecuting his servant’s people with no real understanding of his own former hatred was... jarring.

The Warlock sees Arthur’s hesitation, widening his reassuring smile slightly as he repeats an earlier question, from a time that felt as though it had come years before, but was really only minutes. The discrepancy in timelines between Arthur’s head and the real world does not alter the King’s answer

“Do you trust me?”

“More than anyone.”

Merlin closes his eyes, holding his hands out to the side slightly as he lets out a deep breath. The storm, which Arthur and the knights had become entirely oblivious of despite it’s ruinous thunder and blinding flashes of lightening, quickly dissipates; blue sky and bright sun peek through the fading clouds. A gold shimmer ripples out across the ground from Merlin’s feet, spreading backwards like a wave over sand, turning pebbles and leaving the beach clean and fresh in it’s wake. The ground clears, bodies sinking into nothingness and fires being smothered by magic, even Morgause disappears into the dirt.

Arthur absentmindedly thinks that that could be seen as honorary or disgracing; he supposes it depends on what type of person you were before the end of your life. Merlin would see being entombed within the Earth itself as a blessing, he somehow thinks that Morgause, with her God complex and inflated feelings of infallibility, would find it... demeaning.

Merlin sags his head slightly, and when Arthur’s brain comes back into focus, mostly prompted by the gasping and widespread whispers of the uneasy army behind him, he sees that the barren fields of Camlann, soaked with blood and scorched by lightening, no longer exist. In their place was a vast meadow, bright with the colours of spring and summer; untameable wildflowers stood tall and crimson butterflies were the only reminders of the bloodshed that had watered this paradise before them.

Arthur feels the smile on his face before he had even made the conscious decision to smile, but he decides that today, of all days, he doesn’t mind accidentally wearing his heart on his sleeve. Trust Merlin to do something as unspeakable as rip an army to shreds with lightening, and then apologise for his dramatics by creating heaven on earth.

The King sighs before shaking his head slightly, letting out a short, disbelieving laugh. He can feel the sun on his skin, and his smile grows with the knowledge that the heat warming his cheeks was entirely unnatural for this time of year; Merlin really was pulling out all of the stops.

“You’re a gift to this world, Merlin.”

His voice comes out softly, as if he were afraid of ruining the peace, though he only adds to it; The King finally turns to his Warlock again and almost stumbles back at the immeasurable devotion shining from his now-blue-again eyes. His whispered response carries on the wind as if he were a part of it, and Arthur wonders just how much of this world Merlin has touched, just how much of this universe Merlin has created, extended himself to. Did the wind exist before Merlin? Did the sun? Did butterflies, or lightening, or the colour gold have any space in this universe before Merlin willed it? Gaius’ thick books say they have an answer, but Arthur thinks they might be lying:

“A gift to you, Arthur, only to you.”

THE END!

I’ve been looking forward to writing this one for a while, so I hope y’all liked it!! I LOVE writing BAMF!Merlin, (and BAMF!Mordred/Morgana as well so) :D

Same as always, you wanna extend it/write it properly/remix it, then that’s fine, but drop me message before hand and credit/tag me!! :)

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jasminedragonart · 2 years ago

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Please I need mooooooreeee!!

📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓

Okay, so this one is a BBC Merlin fic that I've kind of gotten inspiration from to make this original work I want to make about an exiled prince.

So, during the Catrina era (my favourite episode in the entire show) Arthur gets banished, not just stripped of his title.

Merlin is nowhere to be seen because he's in hiding, meaning Arthur, for the first time probably ever, is on his own. Uther doesn't snap out of his enchantment in time, nothing, Arthur is actually banished. All he has is some unbranded armour, his sword, his horse and some money Gaius sneaked out for him.

Arthur doesn't know what to do with himself. He ends up staying in the woods for weeks, but all too quickly his shiny armour attracts bandits. The first one he fought off. By the fifth? Arthur's tired, he's wounded, he doesn't have anywhere to go or anyone to go to. Other kings would kill him just to get one over on Uther, Arthur has a lot of enemies and he doesn't actually have many friends. His only friend is probably Merlin who, he hopes, is back in Ealdor. He ends up going there, except Merlin, idiot that he is, didn't hear about the banishment yet and is hiding in Camelot. Arthur gets a bed at least, and something to eat before helping Hunith around her home wondering where Merlin is.

He knows he can't stay there forever. To begin with, he knows more than one person would figure he'd go find Merlin's mother if he ever needed somewhere to stay. Hunith asks if he really has nowhere to go, no one on his mother's side he could ask for help, which is when Arthur remembers his mother's side of the family.

He goes to Tintagel, only it's not like the Tintagel in the show. In this one it's more like the myths. Ygraine was married before Uther, Arthur knows this. Arthur also knows that Uther says he liberated Ygraine from her home because they were in love, they'd been meeting in secret and that she was thrilled to be taken away and saved.

When he gets to Tintagel he still sees the bodies from the battle. No one had bothered to clean up. Things were exactly as his father had left them. Arthur finds men, women, even children, slain in the halls. His first day there, he spends it burying and burning the people there.

The next day he does the same. Then the next until he finds himself wondering how on earth his father could just leave them here. Where was the honour in this.

A month in, Arthur finds records. His mother was originally married to a distant cousin of the family. He's thrilled he has something of her to read, to know about her. But the more he reads the more confused he gets. The records say she was happy, that they were planning for a baby. Arthur even finds the crib. He finds so much care his mother put into everything. He even finds some of his mother's writings saying she was happy. He knows that his mother could just be saying this, maybe she didn't want to get caught out by writing something down like a secret affair with Uther. But the more he looks, the more confused he gets.

Merlin finds him there with Leon in tow. Leon was the one who suggested they try Tintagel, he remembered Arthur saying he would like to visit at one point. Leon tells Arthur that things have grown worse in Camelot, that Catrina is a troll, a literal troll, and is extorting the people so much that they can't even afford to live anymore. She's literally having people executed if they can't pay, and Uther is letting her do it. Leon begs him to come back, but Arthur's conflicted now. He doesn't want to be executed by coming home, but he also doesn't want his people to suffer. He tells Leon to get Morgana and Gaius, anyone, to see if they can find a way to change his father's mind because he literally can't help.

Leon goes, Merlin stays. Arthur shows Merlin what he's found, the two of them making plans to go to Agravaine and see what the truth was. Agravaine lives with his ailing father in their own kingdom (Pretty sure Ygraine was a princess of a kingdom in the myths). Arthur meets his grandfather for the first time. A man who still believes in magic and the good it can bring. Agravaine does too. He's not the slimy guy we see in Merlin either because Arthur, despite being Uther's son, came to them instead of following canon events and basically becoming Uther 2.0.

Arthur learns that his mother was happy. That Uther had spied her from afar. That they'd never even met before Uther raided her home and took her prisoner. Tristan and Agravaine had tried to get her back, but by the time they'd got there Uther had married her.

Arthur has a bit of an existential crisis. Eventually he asks for sanctuary, Arthur's grandfather granting it because while he is Uther's son, he's also Ygraine's and he loved his daughter deeply.

While they're there, Arthur slowly gets used to magic. Enough that he catches Merlin doing it one day. He figures Merlin has asked for someone to teach him a few tricks. He isn't angry, and Merlin, going along with the lie, agrees. Merlin slowly starts showing more and more magic around Arthur. Arthur learns more about his mother, about her life before his father got to her. He learns about Nimueh and Balinor, and that it was Ygraine who knew of these people, not as enemies but as friends.

Arthur slowly starts to find his identity again. He fights more in his mother's name than his father's, fighting in tourneys and helping Agravaine protect their kingdom. He learns from Agravaine the laws that help keep magic in line and eventually becomes heir there, after Agravaine.

Then the Saxon's come. They start raiding southern the coasts, taking villages and small towns. Arthur helps Agravaine fight them off, but all of them know if they don't band together they stand no chance. Arthur decides to go to the druids first. He offers them sanctuary within whatever kingdom I decided to give Ygraine's Father's lands. They agree and help Arthur and Agravaine hold off the Saxons.

Kingdoms start falling to the Saxon rule. Arthur knows more must be done, they need to start working together, all of them. So he starts going to different kingdoms. He beseeches them and, after a lot of negotiating and apologising, they agree to come to a sit down. The only one Arthur doesn't go to is Camelot- literally can't because he's been banished.

At this sit down, they all plan and execute an attack on the saxon's reclaiming a good portion of their land. With this proving effective they do it again, and again.

I wasn't sure how the story would go from here, but the end goal was that Arthur would take over Camelot- either by Uther's death or usurping him- and become high king like he is in the legends.

#merlin #fanfic #writing #ask

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epic-sorcerer · 4 years ago

Text

Queer imagery in BBC Merlin

Content warning: kink/fetish, fisting in particular but I show I big image containing a long list of different kinks, homophobia, dom/sub dynamics, sex

Merlin is shown wearing a purple tunic in s4, despite the fact he is a servant and purple(especially with such saturation) was extremely expensive bc purple dye was so hard to make. Gwen also has a light purple dress(or maybe 2? It’s hard to tell). Even though it’s definitely lighter than Merlins tunic, it’s still expensive.

it was illegal for peasants to wear expensive fabrics because of the Sumptuary Law. Basically it makes sure that lower class people are not fashionable. However, BBC Merlin doesn’t seam to care about that law, considering Merlins other bright clothing so take this was a grain of salt.

Basically what I’m trying to say is that there’s no way they could have gotten their hands on these clothes without the help of nobles. Gwen might have, because she works with clothing and could have easily mixed blue and red dye together. Merlin probably not have because he’s never shown to be particularly materialistic or interested much in fashion, despite his bright clothes. Bright Purple would have been much, much harder to get.

It makes the most sense for Merlin and possibly Gwen too to have been gifted such expensive clothing by a noble for being a good servant. I’d imagine Arthur would be the one to give Merlin the tunic and morgana the dresses.

Why does this matter? Lavender(and also purple in general) was considered a queer color starting in the 19th century. Queer men especially were said to possess a “streak of lavender” and a serge of homophobia at the time was often referred to as the “Lavender Scare.” Purple and lavender is still used now to symbolize queerness.

Since Merlin is a modern interpretation of Arthurian myths, it would be perfectly plausible that this symbol was on purpose. Merlin/Arthur and Gwen/Morgana are both extremely popular ships and they are both shown to have a very deep form of trust(Gwen/Morgana being at the beginning of the show). Arthur and Morgana gifting Merlin and Gwen purple clothing could be show them they accept their queerness and/or signaling their own queer attraction to them.

Now, this next symbolism concerns only Merlin/Arthur.

Merlin is shown to have three neckerchiefs.

Navy blue, red, and light grey. Why does this matter? Well, let’s take a look at something called the handkerchief code, also known as the hanky code or “flagging.”

This code has its origins all the way back in time during the Wild West in the USA, but got more popular during the late 20th century in USA and UK gay bars. This code was used mainly by queer men and some nonbinary people to signal to other queers what they wanted sexually. While typically worn in people’s back pockets, a handkerchief could also be worn around one��s neck to show they are a versatile and experienced.

According to this code, Merlin is into;

Red: fisting and getting fisted. This color was hard to get an exact shade from, but the second best option was dark red for double fisting which is honestly so similar I’m not sure if it really matters much.

Light grey: stone topping and getting fucked by a stone top

Navy blue: fucking and being fucked anally

For any one wanting to make their own interpretations of Merlins neckerchief colors(the lighting makes it hard to tell the exact ones) have a look at this handy chart

Not only that, but Arthur is seen wearing a favour on his left arm in s3 ep 4.

What’s a favour? It’s a fabric strip of affection commonly given by maidens to knights before a tournament as a symbol of good luck. It’s often a very important scarf, hankcerchlif , towel, really any bit of cloth that can be tied around someone’s arm. This is also a popular trope in historical media for a female love interest to give a favour to a male one to show chemistry between them.

Regardless of your stance on Merlins gender identity, you have to admit how commonly Merlin is shown to be gender nonconforming(GNC) or otherwise be associated with “womanly” qualities. Especially in a society so heteronormative, the only “pure” option for a knight receiving a romantic gesture would have it be from a woman. If the token was from a queer man, it would also out the noble and cause lots of horrific chaos and destroy both of their reputations.

Even if it was common for women to give knights favours, queer men still existed and with that came romantic gestures—this time hopefully more secret.

Even though the favour on Arthur’s arm doesn’t look exactly like Merlin’s neckerchief, Merlin was the only person to speak with him while preparing for the tournament. Also, the original theorist who I linked in my sources also pointed out that Merlins neckerchief looks lopsided. Almost like Merlin tore off a bit of it and hastily tied it back on.

Although this theory is definitely flawed, it doesn’t matter. Arthur is still wearing a red handkerchief on his left arm. But what does that tell us exactly?

Regardless of wether or not it was Merlin’s, the red is the same shade and also implies Arthur is also into fisting. What about the placement? Sicne it’s on his left, it shows that he is a top/dom, meaning that he prefers to be the one fisting. Since it is worn around his upper arm, it shows that he is simply into the fetish, compared to what other placements mean. In another source, it shows taht upper arm means switch, but because Arthur is wearing it on his left it wouldn’t really make sense for him to signal being a “top-switch” compared to being a top and having the fetish in general.

If you look closely, you can see a different colored stripe on the favour. It’s hard to tell exactly what the color is, it could be yellow, gold, orange, etc. because the color is so dubious, I’ll just leave y’all with a list of color meanings that may apply to Arthur’s favour.

YELLOW: pisser/watersports kink

YELLOW, Pale: spitter/spit kink

MUSTARD: Has 8+ inch dick

GOLD: two looking for one

ORANGE: anything anytime

Also, it’s important to bring up what many in thsi fandom refer to as the “fisting scene.” Where Arthur threatens Merlin by showing him his gloved fist and pulling a bit at the glove.

youtube

In the blooper, you can see Merlin’s actor(Colin Morgan) breaking character and giggling as Arthur shows him his fist. Many in the fandom agree that this was a clear innuendo for fisting, and it is very well possible.

Merlin is shown hitting Arthur and saying he was just doing some horse play, but still indirectly convincing Arthur that he needs to teach Merlin a lesson. This is actually a common act in BDSM sex, where the submissive person purposely angers the dominant into punishing them in a way that somehow involves sex or fetish play.

If you look closely, you can see Merlin is wearing at kinky red fisting handkerchief, showing Merlin is perfectly capable of being a submissive fistee. Also, the hanky code also includes other symbols such as latex or rubber gloves that, surprise surprise, also mean fisting. Although it’s more likely Arthur’s gloves where made of leather, it can still further be interpreted as a fisting symbol if you want. Either way, Arthur’s favour still holds water as he is undoubtedly the dom in this situation.

Also, Merlin is very impulsive and a madlad. Tell me he wouldn’t wear his secret fetish symbols infrount of stuck up, Roman Catholics who are none the wiser. He’d probably think it’s hilarious which is probably why he wears them almost everyday. Merlin loves playfully misbehaving(and is also a brat sometimes) so it makes sense for him to have some dangerous fun.

Now, you may be asking. Why does this matter? At the end of the day, it probably wasn’t intentional. Well, there is alwyas room for doupt BUT I do have some ferther proof. One of the co writers of BBC Merlin—Johnny Capps—actually won a Stone Wall Award. You know, an award named after a core part of queer culture?

The award’s website and Wikipedia page say they give the award for art that describes the LGBT experience well. While I am unsure why or what Capps made to be nominated, it still shows he is very much in touch with queer culture. Capp himself even said at an interview about Merlin, “... in the end, deep, deep down it’s about sexuality and things you just can’t tackle head-on.”

Well, what says more about sexuality than the main characters fist fucking each other? That’s a lot of sexuality. While I am unsure of Capp’s age, he does look to be about middle age and it would make sense for him to know about a code popularized in a 70s to 90s. Especially for someone who has made multiple queer oriented stories in his life time.

Sources:

Why is purple considered the color of royalty?

Sumptuary law

How lavender became a symbol of LGBTQ resistance

How Lavender Became a Symbol of LGBTQ Resistance(part 2)

flagging opinicus rampant

Handkerchief code

DO YOU KNOW THE HANKY CODE?

Picspam: The Red Favour (Proof of Arthur Wearing Merlin's Favour in 3x04)

Five medieval love tokens

The Lady's Favour

Hanky codes

Nominees for Stonewall Awards announced

Merlin series 5 spoiler-free launch report

Pls reblog I spent hours on this /np 😭👊

#tw kink mention #tw sex talk #tw eye strain #tw homophobia #tw queerphobia #research essay #long post #Merlin #bbc Merlin #Merlin bbc #merthur #merlin/arthur #gwen/morgana #morgwen

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sehnsuchts-trunken · 3 years ago

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Hi yes I just discovered that you write for Merlin so obviously, here I am bc that’s one of the best series I’ve ever seen!!

Do you have any headcanons for what it would be like to date Morgana?

(Wholeheartedly agree on Morgana and Gwaine being some of the best characters)

absolutely omg! gwaine and morgana are without a doubt the best characters, even though i do really love a lot of others too; we’ve talked about it already, but it just has to be said that the writers did a damn good job with character creation

- Because there’s no way, like, absolutely no way, that Uther would let Morgana date, of course there’s a lot of sneaking. Stolen kisses here and there, only spending actual time together by night, excuses to see each other whenever possible. And Morgana’s a pretty good actress, so you can be sure that as long as you don’t let anything slip, the two of you will be in this kind of stage for quite a while. Like, Morgana is a ton smarter and sneakier than Arthur “hey yeah let me take Gwen out to the forest where everyone riding by could spot us” Pendragon.

- Depending on what role you play in court, whether you’re a knight or a servant or perhaps even the mysterious princess that’s visiting Camelot for a year to study, the time you spend together will differ and the ways you do as well. Does it make sense to be seen together often? And far more important: Who can you trust with this kind of information? Because no matter how careful you may be, Gwen will notice, and it’s only a matter of time until Gaius and Merlin do and maybe even Arthur stumbles upon you. After all these are people who won’t be feeding your little secret to Uther, but if you were to try and hide it from them, you’d have to be even sneakier, and personally I don’t think that’s worth it.

- Morgana in a relationship is a kind of “all or nothing” type. Which isn’t to say that there’s not careful, trippy first few dates, blazing red cheeks caused by embarrassment and moments of uncertainty; but the second you’re actually, fully committed, she would die for you. And she wouldn’t only die for you, because in some aspects she’s a lot different from her brother, no, she’d kill for you and probably bring down whole empires for you, and I mean that’s not the worst either.

- She likes things that are a little more unconventional. You know how for her birthday, Arthur gifts her a dagger instead of, say, jewels? Honestly I doubt that he does that because it was his idea, but because Morgana has reacted poorly to presents in the past that were more “suited” for ladies of court. She’s not the type of girl who’s gonna swoon over a bouquet of roses and a bunch of chocolates. She enjoys some more thought out things, not only in presents but in date ideas, in everything. If you take her out to race her on her beloved horse she will absolutely treasure that much more than if you were to dine with her. Not that she doesn’t like that, of course she enjoys just spending time together, but sometimes she needs to know that there’s actually a bit of deeper thinking behind stuff.

- Despite all that I just said, she does adore stupid traditions, like mistletoes for example. Days and things you can laugh about but still appreciate, that’s her kind of thing. Genuinely do not know if they have Christmas in Camelot, probably don’t, but if they do then she will love the Christmas trees, she’ll love to decorate them and decorate them with you. (They’d also all be brought in with a huge pot and all their roots intact so that they could be planted outside once more, Morgana certainly would not let Arthur kill twenty trees just so that Camelot could look nice)

- Whatever you do or want to do, she’s there to support you. She always has your back. No matter what and no matter against whom, she will absolutely be by your side to defend you. We’ve seen the strong loyalty between her and Morgause, and she would definitely also show this loyalty to a significant other.

okay i actually think this is all i can come up with rn,, hope you enjoyed them though!

#morgana #morgana le fay #morgana pendragon #merlin #merlin morgana #bbc merlin #bbc merlin headcanons #morgana headcanons #morgana pendragon headcanons

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sneakyboymerlin · 3 years ago

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Hi!!! Do you have any like. Hcs or thoughts on that one gwaine scene in a servant of two masters, where he looks like such a sad puppy bc possessed!merlin was mean to him? Do you think they ever talk about it? Especially since well. Merlin doesn’t REMEMBER anything in between morgana showing him the snake and Gaius later telling him he was trying to kill Arthur- I just. It hurts my heart, that sad Gwaine look, and the fact that in the very best episode he is right there helping Merlin look for Gaius

Oh I have many, many thoughts.

First, it’s vital to remember that we did not actually see the complete scene when they first reunite because part of the script was cut. Find the missing parts here. It seems to continue from the lines “You know what I like about Merlin? He never expects any praise. All these things he does, just for the good of doing them…” This can be considered fully canon, despite being absent from the final cut, because Gwaine refers to Merlin as “Bog Man” later on.

We may not see Gwaine’s full reaction after Merlin reappears, but Arthur and Gwaine only brought two horses on the rescue mission, so it can be inferred that Merlin rode back with Gwaine (which may explain why he didn’t make any successful attempts on Arthur’s life until they returned to Camelot).

One other factor to keep in mind: Gaius, Gwen, and Arthur each approach Merlin from the perspective that, having been in the hands of bandits for days, he is currently processing a traumatizing experience (truer than they know). It can be inferred that Gwaine is no different here, even if his approach seems to be. I’ve said it once before, but Gwaine—like everyone else—likely attributes Merlin’s newfound attitude to his recent trauma.

Based on that information, it’s safe to say that Gwaine could have responded in one of two ways:

He didn’t take Merlin’s emotional lashing-out personally because Merlin had only just returned from being held hostage by bandits.

He did take it personally because he believes that’s how Merlin really thinks of him—maybe Merlin just doesn’t want to pretend right now.

In any case, he probably never brought it up, just accepted the treatment because… it’s Merlin.

If we look at how Merlin snaps at Gwaine in the following episode, but miraculously does not deter Gwaine in his anger, it seems that Gwaine is handling the hurt with grace, choosing not to apprehend Merlin out of understanding for his feelings.

Regardless, he doesn’t seem to believe that Merlin actually dislikes him and even argues for his own usefulness. But he may also feel that he needs to repair whatever’s broken in their relationship, and perhaps he only sees his worth as far as he can be of some benefit to Merlin.

Moving forward, did they ever talk about what Merlin said while possessed? My guess is, no. Merlin and Gwaine’s dynamic in the event of Gaius’ kidnapping is emotionally consistent with where they left off in the prior episode. Gwaine’s act of camaraderie has been harshly rejected by Merlin, and Merlin feels some rejection himself when Gwaine and the knights try to kill him (while he’s disguised lol) in the woods.

So really, those two interactions are the starting point that they’re coming from when Merlin walks in to see that Gwaine’s been waiting to see him. It makes sense if Gwaine doesn’t know the real reason for why Merlin was harsh with him, and it further explains Merlin’s assumption that Gwaine isn’t going to believe him (besides the fact that he’s just been basically accused of treason for telling the truth). Merlin and Gwaine both feel like there’s a distance between them, but for entirely different reasons. It’s ultimately due to this major miscommunication.

Besides their self-inflicted self-isolation habits, there’s another reason they probably didn’t talk about it. If Gwaine never brought it up, then Merlin has no way of knowing that it’s hanging in the air between them, since he has no memory of his time under the enchantment. He also wouldn’t be able to tell Gwaine the full truth without potentially revealing that it was him in the woods, not an actual assassin, but who’s to say what lie he might’ve told Gwen? She didn’t seem to know what Merlin had to do to get rid of the Fomorrah, so what he tells Gwaine of the incident is up in the air I guess.

If you want an answer, I would say that if they did talk about it, it was after they rescued Gaius, not before. In all honesty, I don’t believe it happened in canon. But whether their relationship ever fully recovers (at least in that margin of time) is difficult to gauge. Even if those events continued to stand between them for the rest of their friendship, it didn’t stop them from caring about each other or trying to fix it. And that is in and of itself a sure sign of their bond :-)

#this is so inspiring a fic lmao #I can feel it taking over my grubby little fingers #Merlin and Gwaine just… talking #mmm delicious #merlin emrys #sir gwaine #mergwaine #merwaine #bbc merlin #enchanted!merlin #fomorrah!merlin #fomorlin #murderlin #mine #long post for ts

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semperbucky · 2 years ago

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HEWWO you gotta tell me this, and it's more important than the ACTUAL questions: but does the following make a good fruit salad?

favorite character(s)- 🍋

favorite quote(s) from a fandom- 🍐

favorite costume/outfit: 🍇

favorite finale episode: 🍓

aaa tysm!!!!

first & foremost (the most important question): i think these would make a p good fruit salad! maybe have the lemon be included as lemon juice instead of slices & that fruit salad would be tasty af

(full disclosure i have so many blorbos rotating around in my head at any given moment these are less 'favorites' & more 'the ones that are in my head the most' but i guess that's kind of what favorites are? but i digress) (also apologies for any formatting weirdness - i'm on mobile & never get asks so i have no idea what i'm doing lol)

🍋 favorite character(s): bucky barnes has my whole entire heart (hence the blog name) but i also adore geralt & jaskier from the witcher, entrapta & scorpia from she-ra, basically every character from m*a*s*h (except frank) especially radar, jack (& bitty) from omgcp, & cullen, alistair, dorian, fenris, & josephine from dragon age. i've also been watching a stupid amount of cr recently (trying to catch up on campaign 1 so the references in campaign 3 make more sense - got up to ep72 so far) so i could go through my favorite character from each campaign? it'd probably have to be keyleth (is she endearingly awkward? yes. could she kill me with one look? also yes), caleb (liam o'brien tears my heart out once again), & imogen (we stan a horse girl w terrifying moon powers & a fun scary girlfriend). there's approximately a million more & i've definitely left some out but those are the ones that are popping into my head rn.

🍐 favorite quote(s) from a fandom: the funny thing is that for someone who prides themselves on their brain consisting mostly of quotes/references, i'm drawing an absolute blank. maybe it's a contextual thing? like you have to say the right words in the right order before the quote part of my brain kicks in or something. "'til the end of the line" comes to mind bc of what it represents & everything they've been through together (we gleefully ignore the last bit of endgame). or "it's love that makes people." (alternatively: "life needs things to live.") if you want something even cheesier, i met hayley atwell in london a few years ago & asked her to write "have courage & be kind" on a piece of paper & i plan on getting it tattooed on me somewhere when i finally get the courage to spend money on non-essential things lol

🍇 favorite costume/outfit: it's so basic but i very distinctly remember being entranced by arthur's everyday look from bbc merlin?? like just the simple red shirt & leather pants w the boots & a jacket sometimes. looked so comfy. maybe it was just thinly veiled gender envy disguised as appreciation for the outfit lol. & any time they put morgana in green or her witchy outfit i just 😍

🍓 favorite finale episode: idk if this refers to a season finale or a series finale, so we're gonna pick series finale. i don't usually like finale episodes of any variety bc they mean something is ending, but there are a few that end with just the right amount of closure to make it satisfying. the one that comes to mind rn is the finale of exandria unlimited: calamity (yeah it's not a tv show but it's still a "series" so it counts). brennan lee mulligan is a godsdamned fantastic dm & the whole cast knocked it out of the fuckin park. it hurt like a motherfucker but it was so beautifully done & it was the best tragic but hopeful ending to a series i've seen in a while, possibly ever.

thank you again! hope u are having a lovely day 😊

#semperbucky #asked & answered #that awkward moment when you realize you have so many fandoms picking a 'favorite' becomes near impossible

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botanicallyinclinednerd · 4 years ago

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Moments that highlight the dynamic between Gwaine and Arthur:

3x04: Arthur and Gwaine’s first interaction is Gwaine strolling up commenting on the pickle Arthur and Merlin have found themselves in and Arthur replying "You should get out of here while you have the chance," and Gwaine saying "you're probably right," taking a drink, and then decking a guy. What a first impression.

3x04: Gwaine charging the guy who pulled a knife on Arthur defenseless on the floor. Arthur is concerned for Gwaine. Gwaine is put on Arthur's horse for transport back to Camelot (he's like a sack of potatoes its very funny)

3x04: Arthur is grateful to Gwaine for saving his life and tells Gaius "he's to be given anything he needs"

3x04: As soon as he learns that the man who's life he saved was Prince Arthur, Gwaine’s reaction is an eye roll and "If I'd known who he was, I probably wouldn't have." And he is le doubtful that Arthur is a good man.

3x04: Arthur asks Merlin how Gwaine is

3x04: Arthur pissed about the bar tab that Gwaine amassed. The 4 dozen pickled eggs in particular piss him off.

3x04: "Arthur is a thoroughbred little braggat" Gwaine is outraged Arthur is making them clean the shoes for the entire army.

3x04: Arthur vouching for Gwaine with Uther "I can vouch that he has a noble heart" and asks he be shown clemency. Arthur insists that Gwaine is a good man.

3x04: Gwaine tells Merlin to look after Arthur who is in danger. Gwaine says about Arthur, "Maybe that one's worth dying for, eh?" :(

3x04: Gwaine saving Arthur’s life by entering the melee and slaying the imposter knights

3x04: Arthur laughing when he sees that Gwaine was the knight who saved him. "I should have known. No one fights like you do."

3x04: Arthur is disappointed over Uther being stubborn over banishing Gwaine from Camelot. Gwaine sees this and assures him he doesn't need to explain himself.

3x04: Gwaine agrees that Arthur is a noble man and is greatful he stood up for Gwaine.

3x08: Gwaine rolling his eyes at Arthur when they meet up

3x08: After Arthur pulls out the stone and a bunch of bugs spill out, Gwaine slaps Arthur on the back and tells him "Well go on then. Don't be such a princess" (the first use of princess!) And he reminds Arthur that is is his quest. Arthur makes eye contact with Gwaine and does that thing with his glove

3x08: Gwaine comments that maybe he will be able to go back to Camelot one day "When Camelot gets itself a half decent king" and Arthur is amused but it an exasperated begrudging way. "Be careful. He is my father."

3x08: As he rides away, Arthur tells Gwaine he will remember what he did and he gives a little wave

3x12: When Gwaine recognizes Arthur and Merlin in the pit he approaches and puts a hand on Arthur's shoulder. Arthur reacts with hostility until he recognizes Gwaine and asks what he's doing there. Arthur seems distantly amused and Gwaines answer "nothings changed there then" and Gwaine lightly smacks Arthur on the chest and Arthur doesnt seem upset by this.

3x12: the reveal of Gwaine as the champion is a golden moment

3x12: Arthur and Gwaine fighting. "Take it easy will you?" "Its gotta look real, hasn't it?" Gwaines face here is hilarious and it gets me every time. Arthur gets annoyed and starts righting more earnestly. And then they roll around on the ground sticking hands in each other's faces. Neither dumb ass had a plan.

3x12: as they are crawling away from the fire, there is a frame where Arthur has a hand on Gwaines lower back/ ass. Does this contribute to their dynamic? Probably not really, but I figured someone would appreciate this moment

3x12: Arthur being evasive on why they were there and Gwaine pushing to find out why

3x12: Gwaine goads Arthur about how he should tell Gwaine where the thing they are looking for is since Arthur couldn't kill him if he wanted to. Arthur raises to the challenge, pushing into him with his arm a bit as they walk "yeah? Try me" and Gwaine is amused. "I already did. Back in the arena. I had you bang to rights did I not?" (Gwaine you were on the bottom of that floor fight, just saying) and the two of them continue to bicker back and forth in the manner of two kids going "did not" "did so!" Over and over until Merlin cuts them off.

3x12: Gwaine sees Arthur struggling to open an door and pulls Arthur back by the arm "here let me" and kicks the door in.

3x13: Arthur is amused by Gwaines agreement to help him retake Camelot "I think we've no chance. But I wouldn't miss it for the world"

3x13: Arthur knights Gwaine (who lowkey looks like he has some internal conflict going on)

4x02: Arthur complaining about Gwaine’s constant chatter "You're quiet" "thats what happens after three days listening to Gwaine"

4x02: Arthur's reaction to Gwaine pissing off the bees

4x02: Gwaine arguing with Arthur about taking the cave tunnels

4x02: Arthur calling Gwaine a fool for killing the Wilddeoren as they hunt in packs

4x05: Gwaine along with the other knights going to Arthur to reiterate that they would gladly die for him.

4x06: Gwaine going with Arthur to look for Merlin and Arthur's reaction is to tell Gwen (who didn't want him to go alone) "you've condemned me to a day of mindless chatter"

4x06: Gwaine talking Arthurs ear off, talking up Merlin

4x12: Gwaine is surprised by Arthur agreeing to leave Camelot but he rolls with it.

5x01: Arthur is determined to find and rescue Gwaine and his other missing men. He will not leave them behind.

5x02: When Arthur and Merlin find Gwaine, Arthur comments "Trust you not to be doing any work" and Gwaine slaps Arthur on his armor saying its about time for a rescue.

5x02: Arthur supporting a still healing Gwaine as they run from Aithusa

5x05: Gwaine getting offended on Arthur's behalf by the disir's words and gets blasted back for his efforts.

5x06: Gwaine lightening the mood a bit when he also agrees to go to the dark tower saying he was built for that moment. Arthur smiles a bit

5x07: Gwaine promises Merlin he will stay close to Arthur and do what ever he had to to protect him

5x10: Arthur catching Gwaines helmet and instead of giving it back to Gwaine, who had his hand out and smiling politely, Arthur tosses it to Percival. Gwaine looks fed up.

5x13: Gwaine tells Morgana he would rather die than tell her where Arthur is.

#merlin #bbc merlin #sir gwaine #Gwaine #arthur pendragon #character dynamics #i was going to add a final bullet point but i decided to be nice #liv talks merlin

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rainbowvamp · 3 years ago

Text

Alone Too Young

The first installment in my Princess Bride AU. Today we meet our first protagonists, Gwen and Elyan (playing the parts of Valerie and Inigo respectively). Wednesday, we get the rest of their origin story, and Friday we start with the Princess Bride Retelling Proper (Morgana/Lancelot for the main pairing).

Warnings for semi-graphic depictions of murder (Thomas's) and blood. Also semi graphic depiction of injury (Broken ankle), and mentions of death and burial rituals. Implied threat of sexual assault.

Teen and Up Audiences Advised.

Summary: It was supposed to be a day like any other day. Except the king came early for his commissioned sword, and slayed their father before left, leaving Gwen and Elyan orphans.

Word Count: 3,859

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/32975395

For Protagonists: Albion Party 2021 (❤️Red Team Rulez💋)

---

It’s just like any other day, really. Father is in his smithy, creating a sword. Elyan is there, helping him, and Gwen is in the kitchen, preserving the ripe spring fruit for winter and fall. Her mother had taught her to do this, when she was still very young, and when mother had died, the kind woman down the road had helped her perfect the craft. Most of the household chores had fallen to Gwen in her mother’s absence, while Elyan had tried to apprentice under his father and her father had to work even harder at the forge to buy pre-made clothes, since Gwen couldn’t sew nearly as fast as her mother and she and Elyan were both at the age where they outgrew clothes quickly

Gwen had heard father telling Elyan that this sword will be his master work. That it is the most beautiful thing he has ever created, and it will fetch a good price, keep them fed through the winter when firewood is harder to find, and buy them both nice warm clothes that they won’t have time to grow out of.

The King himself has commissioned the sword, he hears them whisper in the quietest tones late at night, while Gwen attends to her sewing, trying desperately to make enough clothes, and patch and resize what she can salvage. King Uther will be there at the end of the week to pick it up, coming himself to inspect the craftsmanship. It’s a high honor. Tomorrow Gwen is meant to begin preparing the house for royalty.

Only… a very fancy looking party is coming down the road, past her house, towards her father’s smithy. The clatter of chainmail and swords, the clop of hooves and the creak of carriage wheels passes her by, and she is worried, because there was no word that anyone noble would be passing through their little village. And the knights are all dressed in an unmistakable Pendragon Red.

Gwen leaves her jam, covers the fruit with a towel so the flies and bugs can’t get to it, and she dresses hurriedly, not even putting her hair in a nice braid before donning her cap and making for her father’s forge, taking the shortcut that she knows by heart after years of being sent to give her father, and now Elyan lunch, dinner, and water.

“It’s not ready.” She mutters to herself as she goes as quickly as she dares in her nicest dress. “It’s not ready. Father will be so embarrassed.”

She slips into the forge through the back door, and can already hear the King’s party coming.

“Gwen,” her father says, voice high and mouth smiling. “What a lovely surprise. Is the jam-making going well?”

“No.” She shakes her head and tries to pull herself together, heart racing and breath weak from having come as fast as she had to try and outrun their horses. “No, father. The King! I saw his party coming this way. He passed by the house not long ago. Where is his sword?” She is quick, frantic as she speaks. Her heart is racing, her head turning side to side, looking for any sign of the sword her father has spent weeks and weeks making.

“The King? He’s not due till next week.” Father’s voice mirrors her now, as he looks toward Elyan. “Give my that sword, son. It’s not ready, but I can polish it up before he gets here.”

“Hurry, please.” Gwen says, frantic, as Tom is looking for his polishing materials. Maybe it’s the clopping of hooves she hears, or maybe it’s the racing of her own heart, getting louder and louder. King Uther is not known to be patient or forgiving. She is terrified of what might happen if he is displeased in any way. Could he take the forge? Kill her father?

No. No, she couldn’t think like that. She just couldn’t. It would only make things worse, to think like that.

“Elyan, take your sister home. I don’t want either of you here for this.”

“Father, no!” Elyan begins to protest, and Gwen goes to do the same, but Tom’s gaze becomes hard, his mouth set in a firm line that quiets them both.

“I said, take your sister home. I’ll see you both for dinner.”

No you won’t. Gwen’s terrible thought replies, but she pushes it down, pushes it back. Because she won’t believe it. She won’t. Her father will be fine. He crafts the finest swords in all of Camelot, and even if the sword isn’t finished, it is still beautiful, and sharp, and the king will not be disappointed in it. Of course he won’t be.

So then why does the thought feel so much like a lie.

Her brother takes her arm and leads her out with much more authority than he had any right to. He is smaller than her by an inch, though he will catch up to her soon. Guinevere is only fourteen, he only fifteen, sixteen come winter, but mother had predicted that she would grow faster than he would, leaving Elyan to catch up when he was older. Soon he would, she is sure of it.

They dash through the trees, but Elyan stops when he catches a glimpse of the King’s riding party. Gwen stops too, forboding and dread weighing her down to the spot.

“You go ahead. I’m going back with father.” Elyan tells her, and she glares.

“No, we both go home or we both go to the forge.” Gwen hardens her features, standing her ground like Mother always taught her to, and Elyan glared back at her, a battle of wits ensuing.

Eventually, Elyan sighs, defeated. “We’re wasting time. Come on. But you’re to stay outside and out of sight, and if you think they might start looking around, you run back home, do you understand? Men like that, they aren’t kind to women below their station.”

She swallows hard. She knows what he means, and what she is risking, but she will not leave her father alone, and neither will Elyan.

They race back, just barely making it to the forge as the King himself bursts through the door, loud and rude. They watch through the window, obscured by bushes and the curtain father uses to keep bugs out.

“Tom, smith, it is good to see you! I hope I am not too early.”

“Of course he’s too early.” Elyan muttered from their perch at the window, glaring at the king in a way that would be treasonous if he saw. Gwen doesn’t blame him. She’s sure her own gaze is not particularly favorable to the king just now.

“Of course not, your Majesty. I’m just finishing polishing it up, if you don’t mind waiting a moment.” Gwen can hear the tenseness in her father’s usually easy-going voice. The fear in it that the King is probably used to, maybe even delights in by the way his eyes light up.

“Excellent. I’ve heard nothing but good things this about your work. I expect the result to be excellent.”

“I endeavor to please, Sire.” Tom continues polishing the sword as the king looks around the smithy, walks casually, hands behind his back, and examines the walls lined with tools and swords and horse shoes.

“This is beautiful.” King Uther said, picking something up off a table that Gwen can’t see. “I should like it as well.”

“Thank you sire. I was actually making it for my daughter. Her coming of age is soon, but I would be happy to make another just like it, better even.” Tom is smiling, but Gwen can see the insincerity in it, the sweat beads forming at his temple are not just from the heat of the forge.

“No, I won’t be back this way for some time. I’d like this one. Make your daughter another.”

Elyan starts to stand and Gwen grabs his arm, clawing her nails into it and leveling her hardest glare at him. Their father was a competent man, and they would leave him to do what needed doing.

“The metal is from my late wife’s wedding ring, Sire. I would prefer not to part with it, if I could.” His voice is soft, pleading, begging the King to understand, but King Uther is heartless and the whole kingdom knows it.

“Hmm.” Uther carelessly drops whatever it is he is holding onto the table, the clatter making Gwen flinch even as Elyan grips the window seal like he would like to jump through it and give the King a piece of his mind. “Enough of that then. The sword.”

“Here, Sire.” Tom’s voice is soft with relief that Gwen can feel in her chest, a knot unwinding ever so slightly, that will not be fully undone until the whole thing is over and the King is gone.

“Excellent.” The King takes the sword an examines it, head and hand turning this way and that to admire the work her father had done. “That’s 100, isn’t it?”

Tom is quiet for a moment, eyes widening. “Um, Sire, I believe we agreed to 1000.”

“He can’t be serious. Father worked for months on that sword.” Elyan seethes beside her and Gwen finds her own anger is rising, even above the anxiety. She can’t see this ending well.

“1000?” The King scoffs, “What does a peasant need 1000 for all at once? 100. Take the money or you shall get nothing at all.”

“Sire, with all due respect, I can’t take less than 1000. The materials alone are worth more than 100. That handle is inlaid with real gold, precious stones. I have a family to feed, Your Majesty.” Tom’s tone is raising, higher pitched, pleading, not yet angry like Elyan so obviously is beside her. She keeps hold of his arm, not to keep him in line, but to keep herself grounded. This cannot end well for them. It will not.

“I don’t believe I asked about your family, smith.” King Uther adjusts his grip on the sword and places the tip at their father’s breast both, just beside his heart. “Be lucky I offer you 100.”

“Sire, please.” Tom is looking around frantically for anything he can use to defend himself, and his eyes catch on something just beside Gwen. When Gwen follows their path she realizes that he is looking at Elyan. Whether he has always known they were there or just discovered them is unclear, but Gwen read the words on Tom’s lips clear as words straight from a book. “Don’t.” Her father tells Elyan, and Gwen grips her brother’s arm, but it is too late. He is racing around the building, toward the door, and Gwen can’t stop him. She’s wary for her own safety, and her father had begged him not to.

Elyan doesn’t see their father’s death, because he is running around to the door, but Gwen sees it. She has to hold her hands to her mouth to keep a scream from escaping. She has never seen a sword pierce a human before. She’s never seen anything killed before today, so to have the first death she witnesses be her father’s is more than she can bear. She collapses into the bush outside the smithy window, the gurgling sound of her father’s final breaths creeping out the window, but soon covered by Elyan’s roaring yells of “father!”

Their father won’t survive. Elyan won’t survive. What will they do? What will she do? Her limbs are stiff and her lungs are empty, refusing to fill themselves. She hears the clashing of sword, and her brother’s grunts of pain. She is still crying, sobbing, even, but she holds her hands so hard to her face that she thinks maybe she’ll have bruises across her lips afterward. It hurts. Everything hurts.

She hates King Uther. Hates him with a fiery passion, but that is nothing compared to the sorrow welling inside her. Her father is dead. Her brother is dead.

She hears hooves on hard dirty road, the king giving orders to leave, and only then can she gather enough sense to crawl out of the bushes and around the smith to see what damage has been done.

Her eyes are so wet with tears that she can’t see anything but red. Red that turns deep black where there is too much blood pooled of the smithy’s dirt floor. She can hear her father’s choking, gurgling breaths and she collapses again, sobbing. She doesn’t know how to save a stabbed man. The nearest doctor is two villages away. She can’t help him. She can’t save.

“Guinevere.” Elyan’s croaking voice calls to her and she sobs harder, curling in on herself and holding her knees.

“Elyan!” She wails, “Father!” She hates King Uther. She hates him. She hopes he gets caught in a hideous fire, burns alive and has hot metal searing his flesh in his final moments. She hopes he suffers. She hopes he dies.

“Guinevere!” Elyan yells louder, though nowhere near his full strength. “Help me.”

She forces her shoulders to still and her sobs to quiet, wipes at her eyes with her sleeves. Her hand is wet, wetter and stickier than tears would leave it, and when she has cleared the tears from her eyes she sees that she has put her hand in blood. Elyan’s blood most likely. She’s enthralled by it, can’t move anymore, knowing that the king has spilt both her father’s and brother’s blood. She’s only able to move again when Elyan calls her name.

She crawls to him, ignoring the blood staining the worn blue fabric of her mother’s handed down dress, still the finest dress she owned. It was too big for her, and the fabric would have dragged through the blood even if she’d bad the strength to stand, which she didn’t.

She dropped again beside her brother, who laid in the dirt, too weak even to move his head. His foot lays at an odd angle, and his face is bleeding. There is so much blood Gwen thinks he might die too.

“I will-“ Elyan starts to say, but he winces with the pain of his injuries, “I will avenge our father, Guinevere. I will keep you safe.” He reaches up and touches the blood streak on Gwen’s face, brushes it away with the sleeve of his own shirt. She brings her hand up to hold his, tears still tracking down her cheeks and making both their sleeves wet. There father is silent beside them.

“You have to live.” She pleads. Looking over at their father, whose eyes are glassy, wide open, chest unmoving.

“I will. He laid no killing blows. He thought me younger than I am.” Elyan swallowed hard and Gwen squeezes his hand, walking on her knees to take the pitcher of water from the counter and bring it down to the ground with them. She has to help him sit up, and move him to rest against father’s work table before he can drink. He tries not to show how much he’s hurt, but Gwen can see it in the way he tries so hard not to move his left leg, and grits his teeth harder with every motion.

“Elyan, what are we to do?” She whispered once he’d drunk what little water was in the pitcher.

He doesn’t speak for a long while, and Gwen starts to cry silently again, her eyes settling on the wall farthest from where her father lay dead, unwilling to look upon his body again.

“You have to go fetch the doctor, or my foot won’t heal right. I’ll be of no use to you if I can’t walk.” Elyan grit his teeth as he adjusted himself against the table, trying to get more comfortable. “Once he’s finished with me, I doubt we’ll have much money left. I’ll find some odd jobs in the villages, see if there’s a widow needs firewood or something of the like. I’ll keep the forge going at night, prove to people that I’m as competent as father.”

Gwen nods and swallows hard. “The fruit will be bad by the time I get back with the doctor.” It’s the only thing she can think.

“Damn the jam, Guinevere. We’ll make due without.” Elyan’s voice is dismissive, angry, but she knows it’s not aimed at her. Even so she feels herself shrink, frightened by him.

“I’m sorry.” Is all she can think to say. She is sorry that their father is dead. Sorry she can’t think of anything but the jam. Sorry that she didn’t… what, stab the King? If Elyan couldn’t lay a hand on him, what hope did she have? Guinevere was never trained with a sword. She would make Elyan train her now.

That thought centered her as she stumbled to her feet. “I’m going to get the Doctor. I’ll see if The Henricks will let me borrow their horse.”

“Don’t ask them. Their son has eyes for you. Ask the Tailors, down the way. The mother has a soft spot for you.”

Gwen nods, pulling her scarf closer around herself. “She’s always been good to us.” She had taught Gwen to make jam. And to sew, and all the best household remedies and cleaning tricks. Surely they’d spare her a horse.

“She has.” Elyan nods and his eyes focus once again on their father’s dead body. She knows that’s where he is looking, but she doesn’t dare look herself. She’s only just stopped crying and she can’t afford to lose it again. She has to bring a physician back, for Elyan.

“Hurry back,” Elyan says to her on her way out the door and she nods at him, eyes steely and determined. When she passes people and they see the blood on her knees and the tears still glistening her eyes, they put two and two together. None of them stop her or ask her questions, but they leave a trail of gossip in her wake.

She ignores them.

—

The physician sees to Elyan quickly, who’s been moved to their house by a neighbor with a cart and kindness in their heart. Elyan is laid up on their father’s bed, rather than the cot they usually shared, to try and keep some of the pressure off his ankle.

The physician had given her something to help his pain, and showed her how to change the dressings on his wounds. She had taken all the instructions in stride, committing them to memory and never once glancing towards the fruit still sitting on the kitchen table, waiting to be cooked and jellied.

“You’re a very lucky young man.” The physician says as he’s packing up his things. Gwen can’t fathom how anyone could apply the word “lucky” to their situation. “The King has killed boys younger than you for smaller slights. If he had, your sister might be left all alone, and where would she be then?”

Elyan bites his tongue, and Gwen does too. They both know how lucky they are Elyan isn’t dead, but their father is, and they are still too young to be alone like this. It’s cruel of him to torment Elyan so.

Gwen sees the physician out the door, and gives him most of their money as he goes. She doesn’t know what they’ll do when the few coins they have run out, but she will just have to think of something until Elyan is on his feet again.

“Father still needs to be buried.” Elyan said as the sun begins to set. Today had seemed so ordinary only hours ago, but now it feels upside down and there’s nothing she can do about it.

Gwen nods as she tries her best to save the fruit that was left. It would cost too much to waste it now. “The Tailor’s son has offered to come first thing in the morning and help me dig.”

Elyan nods as well, but doesn’t look at her. It must be weighing on him that he can’t dig the grave himself. Guinevere remembers how at just ten years old, Elyan had insisted on helping father dig mother’s grave. Guinevere had braided flowers into a crown for her. Father had told her not to touch mother, but Gwen had always been a stubborn child, and she had snuck over to her mother’s shrouded body, moved the shroud from her face, and placed the crown on her head.

Her mother was cold, stiff, like a doll made of corn husks, but more solid. It felt strange to touch the body and find it completely stiff. The neck wouldn’t give even an inch so she could put the crown all the way around her head, so Gwen had just rested the crown askew, and replaced the shroud. Her father had caught her, yelled at her to step back. Mother had been very sick for a long time. It wouldn’t do for Gwen die as well, now that all of Mother’s duties were hers.

Mother had told her once, that she’d run a home one day. This was probably not how she meant it.

After placing the crown, Gwen had gone inside to finish the day’s chores. It was all she could do. Playing didn’t feel right, and people kept coming to the door, saying how sorry they were and asking when they would bury mother. Gwen fielded these questions as best she could, and finds herself fielding the same ones late into the evening as word of Tom’s slaughter at the hands of the king, and Elyan’s injury, spread through the village. A few of the village men bring Tom’s body to the main house, to keep it safe for the night. Gwen tells them thank you, and when they offer to help during the burial tomorrow, Gwen gladly accepts it.

“You’re too young for this.” Elyan said, with a single candle burning down on the kitchen table and Gwen laid out on the cot by her brother’s side, unwilling to go more than a few feet from him.

In the dark of the night, Gwen feels another set of tears start, and she leaves them, lets them soak the hard pillow beneath her head. “We’re both too young for this. But we’ll make it.”

“Yes, we will.”

When Gwen looks up at Elyan, his eyes are focused over her, probably on the shrouded body of their father. There will be a stink in the house by morning. There was with mother. They will have to take they father outside as soon as someone comes by in the morning, and someone will have to guard his body from wild animals while they dig. Gwen thinks Elyan should do this. It would make him feel useful. Even when mother died, Elyan had tried to be jovial, but he is nothing by sad and serious now. She can’t say she expects him to smile, but they’ve barely spoken all day except to make plans. Gwen lets the tears keep flowing late into the night, and she barely sleeps for the grief.

#albionparty21 #redteamrulez #Elyan #sir elyan #gwen #gwen pendragon #lysa's pbau #pbau #pbau proper #<<<the tag I'll use for just the story #Tell me what you think I'm so excited to finally get to post this #pbau au proper

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yitan · 3 years ago

Text

Thoughts of Arcadia

Some base ground before I start:

- I have experience the emotional rollercoaster that is the Tales of Arcadia series from start to finish (three shows/six season + movie) in the literal timespan that is last week. - I have a lot of thoughts and emotions on this subject now, MANY more than I thought I would when I began S1E1. I will just find myself thinking on them. A lot. - This is not me sharing all my thoughts as many have not had enough time to brew in my head. This one however has sat in my mind the longest. - I don’t really know anywhere else I could express my thoughts on this. So congrats Tumblr.

ATTENTION! If you plan to watch this show or have not completed it do NOT read past this point. I am unpacking an emotional thought train and will be including spoilers to the series!

Okay I need to voice a piece about Troll Jim. I’ve had just about this full week to see this fandom and already am aware that is a divisive subject. I’m still going to keep speaking though.

Firstly, I do understand why Jim was returned to human at the end of Wizards - The writers for the movie had already decided most of the scene’s were going to be in the day, and can’t have the main character getting killed by the set. - They also wanted Jim’s narrative to be how powerless he is without the amulet, and that argument doesn’t hold as strong when characters as big as Aaarrrgghh can smack him around without him feeling anything and he is able to outpace a horse.

That said it felt wasted. Yes Jim personally shows more relief at being human, However. - All of Jim’s friends continued to love him after he turned into Troll Jim. Blinky, Aaarrrgghh, Toby, his mother Barbara. - Claire continues to love him and is even still willing to be affectionate in public with him in this new form. - The only person who doesn’t love the new Jim is Jim. And while yes he had a very forceful voice in Merlin pushing for his transformation, all Merlin did was put the potion in Jim’s hand. Jim made the bath and set up the potion and got into the bath all by himself.

It was stated by Aaron Waltke that Troll Jim can’t take his armor off because the armor knows he doesn’t feel safe and is trying to protect him. - Troll Jim fights Angor Rot & Gunmar in a two on one and walks away with a single scratch. His two biggest enemies prior to Morgana’s awakening - He does this while also internally fighting his own discomforts about himself - In the six to seven months in cannon that we see Troll Jim we never see him without the armor on. - In six to seven months this man never felt safe in his own skin

Imagine how powerful a Troll Jim who had learned to love himself would be.

Side bar: They could have been creative and respun a running gag in the series. -Barbara’s cooking is canonically terrible. -Troll Jim can’t enjoy the superb meals he is skilled at making. - But now his mom’s cooking tastes amazing! - We could have had home scene’s where their both in the kitchen, him cooking for her and her cooking for him. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN CUTE!

Now, don’t complain about a story beat if you can’t suggest an alternative. Here’s my thought on how the character could have been salvaged.

Merlin stated there was no way to undo the transformation. - However Wizards takes effort to explain the Merlin doesn’t trust shadow magic and thus does not know a great deal about it. - Claire saves Jim at the end of Wizards from being turned to stone and is a user of shadow magic. -We also have it confirmed in lore that Morgana used shadow magic to make the first changelings. As well that her changelings did not require an infant familiar. -That is something Gunmar had to do after she was sealed away. Since he did not have her level of power.

Both sides of the which Jim discussion could have won with the simple introduction of Changeling Jim. Literally just regular Jim and Half-Troll Jim but he can now switch between them at will. - Changelings can eat normal food, like Jim misses. - They can blend into society, so Jim can live his life again. -They do not share the troll weakness to sunlight. Even though Nomura(the writers) somehow forgot that in the movie. -Also it is shown that they don’t live forever, the oldest confirmed changeling we have is estimated at 125 years old. -I’m willing to bet that while they can outlive an average human, it’s not by much. I’m basing this on the fact that everyone is cool with Barbara’s and Walt’s relationship and doesn’t ask questions.

Now this still allows Jim to get back the things he missed the most and keeps the character development of his transformation. Win-win, really.

Moving forward this also allows the plot continue without any major changes. While still improving on it. - Jim can still go through an arc of self doubt. - Not because he’s powerless with out the amulet, but because he’s not longer sure if the amulet would chose him anymore. - According to Aaron Waltke, in lore the amulet would never chose a changeling because they are stereotyped as being two-faced. - Jim gets the new amulet and it doesn’t work, so now he thinks he’s unworthy. - Once the Excalibur stone is placed in the amulet it works again proving that Jim is The Troll Hunter regardless of the changes he’s gone through. - It gives a spin on Jim’s continued arc without having to literally set him back in character development.

Jim is an amazing character, and I loved watching him grow through this series. Troll Jim is a wonderful element to that, both narratively and visually. I want to see this series continue past the movie and maybe possibly reexamine the plots like this which felt like they were cut off more for time than resolution.

I clicked that first episode because I was feeling depressed among other things, and was not prepared for how invested I was going to get in this series. I’m here now and I want to see more. If your here, thank you for hearing my thoughts. It feels good to verbalize the things this series has made me feel.

#tales of arcadia #trollhunters #wizards #ToA #RotT #rise of the titans #jim lake jr #Troll Jim #Changeling #toa wizards #toa trollhunters #Troll #aaron waltke

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thebisexualdogdad · 4 years ago

Note

Arthur's younger brother dating Gwaine ?

Co written with @inhumanshadows

· Arthur loved the idea of his little brother being with Gwaine, there was no one he trusted more than his knights

· But Arthur made sure Gwaine knew if he ever hurt you he'd have him thrown in a cell

· The classic overprotective big brother speech

· Morgana was in a similar boat but she said her piece much more calmly than Arthur

· Arthur doesn't let you come to swords training anymore because you distract Gwaine and almost got him pierced by Leon

· You settle for watching from a window in the castle

· “Wouldn’t you rather be down closer to the field to watch your knight train?” Morgana asks

· “Arthur thinks I’ll distract him from training.”

· "You do have a way of charming him off of his feet... And out of his pants"

· "Oh hush Morgana, like you haven't had your way with Guinevere while she's supposed to be working"

· "Fair enough"

· “And let’s not forget our dear older brother has definitely charmed the pants off of Merlin.”

“And he thinks no one knows.”

· Merlin peaking his head around the corner

· "Did i hear my name?"

· Both you and Morgana "nope!"

· Uther on the other hand is not quite as supportive of your relationship

· Granted you don’t give a horses ass. You just chalk it up to Uther being a scared asshole

· You also don’t care cause you’re happy with Gwaine

· Uther will roll his eyes whenever he sees you together so you kiss Gwaine just to make your father mad

· And of course Arthur has yelled at Uther multiple times for not being supportive of you

· You know have chats with Morgana about stupid Uther in her chambers

· “He’s just an old fart. And he’s scared of things he doesn’t understand.”

· "If only he knew all three of his children were as he puts it, sinners"

· "Arthur will come out on his own terms and when Guinevere is ready so will i"

· Gwaine ended up proposing to you when Uther tried forcing you into a marriage with a princess from another kingdom

· Uther was all “I will not stand for this!”

· And you told him that you didn’t give a fuck and if he really loved you he would rather see you happy

· Arthur and Morgana are so proud of you

· Meanwhile Uther looks like he’s ready to have a heart attack

· By the time the wedding comes around it's the biggest news in Camelot

· Everyone attends and Uther still hasn't completely come around but he's compliant enough to at least give a nice toast to you and your new husband

· Arthur is on the verge of bawling his eyes out while Morgana pats his shoulder

· “I know Arthur... our little brother is growing up.”

· “I just can’t believe he got married before I did!” Arthur sniffles

· "Well maybe if you just asked Merlin for his hand already" she says with a side eye

· "Don't start with me Morgana"

· Gwaine takes you on a honeymoon to a town on the coast

· You guys have a small cabin to yourselves and pretty much spend time in bed or on the beach

· Gwaine of course makes an awful “swords crossing” joke the first night

· "I married a dork"

· "Well you're stuck with me now love"

· "Shut up and take me to bed my dear husband"

· “As you wish... husband.” Ans Gwaine has the biggest grin ever on his face

· When you return to Camelot everyone is cheering for the newly wed couple which makes you tear up

· Gwaine wipes the tear from your eye before you both walk hand in hand back to the Palace

· Gwaine is still super romantic even after courting you

· He'll bring you flowers for no reason, make you breakfast in bed and shine your armour and sword without you asking

· You of course try and do the same for him and he loves it

· Gwaine also offers to give you extra sword training after everyone is gone

· Which really means he’s horny and wants to fuck

· Percival once walked in on you guys getting busy in the armory and just sighed and turn around

· Arthur was also on his way in but Percival calmly stopped "you don't want to go in there"

· “Don’t tell me they’re...” Arthur sighs

· “‘Fraid so your majesty. Didn’t know Y/N could dominate so well...”

· Arthur makes a gagging noise. “Well best leave them alone...”

· As happy as Arthur is to see you happy he is not so happy with the amount of times he's heard you guys having sex when he walked by your bedroom chambers

· He momentarily wonders if it’s cause similar scenarios may have happened with him and Merlin, but quickly brushes it off

· He does however ask Merlin if he knows a soundproofing spell

· And of course Merlin thinks it’s for them. “You think we’re too loud? Or do you have some fun stuff in mind?”

· "Not for us! Well maybe for us but I meant Y/N and Gwaine... You might as well do Morgana's room too, Guinevere has been staying the night quite often recently"

· “Ah... yeah. Um should be easy enough. I’ll just need time to do some research

· “Thank you Merlin.”

· When Gwaine gets hurt in combat you always play doctor until he gets better

· It’s a lot of cuddling and making sure he doesn’t try and move and reopen his wounds

· He'll tell you he's fine and then wince when he tries to get up

· "Alright tough guy I'm ordering you to bedrest for another two weeks"

· “Darling you can’t be serious...”

· “Wanna make it three?”

·"No dear"

· "That's what i thought"

· You smiled and tucked him into bed

· “Rest now.”

#merlin imagine #gwaine imagine #gwaine x reader #sir gwaine imagine #sir gwaine x reader #x male reader #headcanons #co write #inhumanshadows

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gaybarbiegirl · 2 years ago

Note

retj for the fandom ask and obviously you get to differenciate the character by 2010 retj or italian retj <33 or if it's not enough characters you can take french musicals as a whole it Works

Let's go girl!! I'll try to stick to retj as much as possible here but if I feel like there's an item that fits another musical better we're making a little switch

Blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most)

Italian Mercutio my beloved!! You know I absolutely love him girl!! His energy is spot on, and his personality, sluttiness and little crush on Romeo were amazing. I couldn't focus on anything else whenever he was on screen because he just stole the show that hard, and the fact that he managed to make me cry laugh AND almost scream with excitement AND to break my heart in just one single scene still has me in awe. He's the absolute best, Shakespeare wishes he wrote him <3

Scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped)

Italian Romeo my wholesome dumbass boy!! He was so so sweet and I mean so was Juliet, but maybe because he got more focus as a character I feel like specifically his little crush on Juliet could really nail down that energy of a sweet, innocent first love that never should have ended this way. He was very cute and earnest and very naive and oblivious too and it just makes for a very lovable mix.

Scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave)

I'm going with Benvolio for this one. I totally understand why he's the least popular of the main characters and ends up a little forgotten, he really doesn't have the big personalities of Mercutio and Tybalt or the intense dramatic storylines of Romeo and Juliet, but he's still a very good voice of reason character to have around and the official braincell holder of the group. AND he sings the saddest song in the entire musical that I also absolutely love so you know, I really appreciate what he adds to the story.

Glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week)

Sorry to break away from retj but Leia from La Légende du Roi Arthur my beloved!!! I swear this character is so funny because I mean really she does fuck all the entire musical and she's still my favorite. Like she stands around Morgana and Guinevere pretty often, she does little evil grins at the audience while the other villains are doing the action part, at one point she picks a handkerchief off the ground and then places it back on the ground a few cm to the left...................... and yet. It's the power of being a hot goth dancer I guess.

Poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave)

Girl you know how this goes if you said pathetic fave you said italian Tybalt absolutely <3 little loser emo kid who has a wolf inside him and it's himself, what else could I ask for here?

Horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason)

Can I just say Tybalt again 😭 though to shake things up I'm going with 2010 Tybalt this time, and I mean judging by what we saw in the musical at every minor inconvenience this guy goes on a long musical soliloquy about how his parents didn't love him where the chorus is just him repeating his own name so. Yeah I'm in for a fun time here.

Eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell)

Girl I genuinely have no clue I don't think there were any musical characters yet that I've hated this much.

Thank you so much for the ask!!!

#let's go finally taking the time to clear up my inbox #also you gotta love how this is just retj feat. leia #but i mean it's what she deserves #thank you for the ask girl love youu <33 #and i love getting the chance to talk about our little musicals

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bitsandbobsofwriting · 4 years ago

Text

Magic is legal, Arthur knows The Truth and Merlin is... shit at explaining things:

Arthur demands a trip to visit the Druids, who are far more qualified than Merlin, so they can explain this whole... destiny thing.

I’ve written a lot of angst and Hurt!Merlin recently, so I just wanted to write something short and sweet and fluffy :)

SO.

Magic has been legalised, Merlin is Court Sorcerer, all the knights are alive and happy, Morgana is good, and the only thing Arthur has to worry about right now is what the hell to do about the rapidly growing crush he has on his BestFriend™.

After the dust had settled, Merlin had tried to sit Arthur down and tell him the whole story; all about Emrys, and the prophecies, and destiny. The King already knew about Merlin’s magic, and roughly how powerful he is, but that’s it.

But Merlin went so long barely mentioning it at all, not even to Gaius or Morgana or Lancelot, that he’s still not entirely sure what to say. Years of hiding and lying and trying desperately not to think about it, mean his brain now blanks when he tries to explain it.

After far too long of Arthur looking on confusedly whilst Merlin rambled on about dragons and coins and mental links and names, The Court Sorcerer gave up, and decided to just not bother.

Arthur, of course, decided that giving up was stupid, and made the executive decision that they would just go to the Druids, and someone who actual knew what they were talking about could explain it thoroughly. Maybe even allow Arthur to read the original prophecies.

Plus, it turned out that Initiating a Golden Age took quite a lot of work, so neither of them had had a chance to leave the city for weeks. They could do with the fresh air. And if Arthur saw it as a good chance to be properly alone with Merlin for more than half a candle mark? No one else needed to know, least of all Merlin.

It was a pleasant journey through the woods. The silences comfortable, and the conversations easy and filled with smiles.

Magic had only been legalised for about a fortnight, and after over twenty years of fear, magic users were still understandably cautious, meaning the closest Druid camp was still a two days ride away.

But that wasn’t a problem. With Merlin now able to use his magic openly, and therefor more able to defend his King, he found he was far less anxious about the trip outside the city than he would’ve been before. And if his good mood bled into the environment around them? Well... it was spring... surely no one would notice the extra flowers and abundance of butterflies?

(Arthur definitely noticed. But Merlin was still... wary, of performing sorcery openly, in fear of scaring the people who had been sucked in by two decades of propaganda and fear-mongering. Meaning Arthur sure as shit wasn’t going to point it out, in case Merlin stopped.)

It was around noon, and the sun was shining down on them when Merlin pulled his horse to a stop. He dismounts effortlessly, and hands a confused Arthur his reins. At Arthur’s raised eyebrow, Merlin sighs and speaks quietly:

“The camp is about two minutes further on but... the change in the law was only recent, and...-”

He bites his lip and looks away, worrying Arthur slightly, before continuing:

“-well, chainmail and red capes still make them a little nervous. I’ve already warned their leader that we’re coming-”

He taps his temple briefly:

“-but I should go ahead and explain properly.”

Arthur nods in understanding, and gives Merlin a comforting smile:

“I completely understand, Merlin. How long do you want me to wait, or will you come back to get me?”

Merlin returns his smile, before saying:

“Just wait ten minutes then follow me, straight down the path. Bring the horses, there’ll be somewhere to tie them there. You shouldn’t run into any trouble this close to a camp, but you do have a track-record so-”

Merlin laughs at Arthur’s indignant expression, but continues before he can interrupt him:

“-if you do, just yell. We won’t be too far away, we’ll hear you.”

Arthur rolls his eyes fondly and shoos Merlin away. The Warlock laughs as he turns and continues down the path on foot. Just before he disappears behind a large bush, he turns around again, a slightly concerned expression on his face:

“I might look a bit... different? But don’t mention it, they’re quite fond of me... uh... dressing the part.”

Arthur huffs out a laugh before saying:

“I’m sure I won’t forget what you look like in ten minutes, Merlin. Go.”

Merlin hums thoughtfully, and turns back around, disappearing into the trees and leaving Arthur to his thoughts.

After a few moments, he removes his cloak, tucking it into a saddlebag. He also, after only a little hesitation, removes his sword, strapping it to his saddle. It was still visible and easily within reach, but not so threateningly on display at his hip.

He was entering these people’s home, after personally wielding the sharp edge of their persecution for almost a decade; the least he could do was make them as comfortable as possible.

He hadn’t mentioned it to anyone, not even Merlin, but he had a feeling that this meet was going to end up being about more than the prophecies. Peace had been harboured, magic had been legalised, but like Merlin had pointed out, things were still a little tense. This meeting was a way to show the Druids that Arthur meant it, that his whole heart was behind this change. The he was not his father.

Arthur was a little nervous (not that he’d ever admit that), this was important. Not just to him and the kingdom, but to Merlin personally. He had to get this right. One of the only things that Arthur had managed to get out of Merlin, to do with the whole destiny thing, was that it was finished. It was done.

If Arthur messes this up, not only will it ruin the peace they had been working so hard for... then Merlin might leave. He has no reason to stay after-all, he’s done his job. So Arthur has to get this right, has to impress everyone, now more than ever, because if he fails and the Druids all leave Camelot, then Merlin would leave with them.

And that thought was... unbearable.

He counts down the minutes, getting more and more tense. He tried to distract himself by thinking about what Merlin had said, “dressing the part” what does that even mean?

But it doesn’t work. Soon enough his brain is throwing thought after paranoid thought at him, about all the possible ways Merlin could tell Arthur he hated him, and leave forever and ever.

Arthur rubbed his eyes harshly, muttering to himself about how he really should’ve accepted the “relaxing tea” Gaius had offered him before they left. Other than Merlin, the old physician is the only one who ever seems to know what he needs in the moment, Arthur should definitely learn to listen to him more.

He finally reaches zero in his mental countdown, and sighs before standing from where he’d sat on a fallen log. He’d allowed the horses to wander a bit but they were trained to stay close by, so he has no problem gathering their reins again and leading them slowly down the path Merlin had followed.

All Druid camps were different. Some moved around constantly, some stayed fairly still. Some were huge, acres large with hundreds of people, others were small, only ten people or so. Some were occupied by mostly the sick and elderly, others were full of the young and adventurous, and others were family orientated.

And of course it was rare, according to Gaius, that someone would stay in the same camp their whole life. The Druids were a nomadic people, always shifting, drifting, wandering. Following a constantly tugging thread in their hearts, going where nature beckoned them.

According to Merlin, this specific camp was pretty small (around twenty adults) but it was also a fairly familial group, meaning lots of children. And if that didn’t make Arthur nervous (it definitely did) then nothing would.

Arthur didn’t have much experience with children, and definitely had no concept of how to act around them, especially Druid children.

After about a minute of walking, Arthur could hear loud laughter and quiet conversations floating through the trees. He slowed his pace; trying to appear unthreatening and friendly, or to delay the inevitable, he’s not quite sure.

He finally breaks through the treeline to see that... no one is even looking in his direction.

It was the middle of the day, so the camp was busy, people milling about everywhere, most of the tents open, various jobs getting done throughout the clearing.

But what immediately drew Arthur’s eye, was the source of the laughter.

The King looked across the clearing to see Merlin, in a whole new wardrobe, and a whole new light.

The man had changed from his simple travellers clothes (basically the clothes he’d worn as a manservant, just a bit newer and cleaner.) into a loose, white, lace up shirt (sleeves rolled up, which Arthur absolutely did NOT find himself staring at, thank you very much.) paired with slim black trousers.

But what was most striking, was the deep blue cloak billowing behind him, and the silver crown on his head. It was delicate, as if forged with vines and leaves and feathers, but it was oh so Merlin.

Arthur stayed at the edge of the clearing, glad that no one had noticed him; allowing him to stare in reverence at his best friend.

He was surrounded by young children, all laughing joyously as his eyes glowed golden and he waved his hands around. He needn’t mutter spells as he smiled widely, willing butterflies and bees to manifest in the air around him.

One of the younger children held his arms in the air and made grabbing motions with his hands. Merlin bent over and pulled him up into the air without a moment of hesitation, spinning him around on the spot (much to the kid’s enjoyment, who giggled outrageously), before settling him on his hip.

He used one hand to support the kid’s weight (when did Merlin get so strong??), and used the other to summon flowers around the feet of the rest of the children.

A fond smile spread across Arthur’s face as he saw them run around exuberantly, gathering the flowers in chubby hands to present to parents and siblings and friends.

Arthur laughed softly as he saw Merlin reply enthusiastically to something that the boy on his hip had said, and a second later, the child had a butterfly perched on the end of his nose.

Arthur is broken from his concentration, jumping a foot in the air when a soft hand lands on his shoulder from behind.

He whips his head around, just about managing to stop himself from yelping and reaching for where his sword usually is at his hip.

He calms his breathing as his eyes find the friendly face of a Druid, an amused smile on his face. Arthur returns his smile, a tad shakily, suddenly feeling the nerves again, and nods his head respectfully.

The man keeps his hand on Arthur’s shoulder, but looks towards Merlin in the clearing, before softly saying:

“He’s quite something, your Emrys, isn’t he?”

Arthur gulps, also looking back at Merlin as he replies with a chuckle that was only slightly forced:

“He’s more yours than mine, especially like this, but yes, he is something special.”

The Druid laughs disbelievingly, and Arthur turns to look, a confused expression on his face as he listens to his reply:

“Definitely not. He’s always belonged to you more than he’s belonged to us-”

He stops laughing to look at Arthur, eyes sparkling with friendly mirth as he continues:

“-prophecy or no, he had a... well... a pre-carved place among the Druids, but he still chose to carve his own space by your side. I think that speaks volumes about where he truly belongs, or at least where he wants to belong, don’t you?”

Arthur doesn’t really have a response to that as he stares at the man with barely concealed bafflement, but luckily, before the silence stretches too long, the Druid gestures to the clearing:

“Come. Everyone is excited to meet you, though I warn you, the children in this camp can be rather energetic, as you’ve already seen.”

Arthur gulps and nods, following him into the centre of the camp.

Everyone’s attention is quickly caught by The King’s presence, and someone comes over to wordlessly take the horse’s reins from him.

The adults bow their heads slightly in respect, giving him soft smiles, and the children fidget on the spot, wide grins on their faces as they whisper conspiratorially to each other.

The boy in Merlin’s arms wiggles, and he gets put down. He rushes over to Arthur, grabbing his hand with a toothy grin and dragging him over to Merlin and the other children.

Merlin hides a laugh behind his hand as Arthur’s eyes widen, and his face goes pale. He thought this was going to be meetings and serious discussions and apologies, not playing with children!! What do children even like?! Swords?? Can he talk to them about swords??! Druids are pacifists right? So probably not??

He gets pulled down to crouch, and the children crowd him, all babbling at once, wildly showing him flowers and butterflies.

Merlin laughs at his bewildered fear for a few moments, before he crouches next to Arthur and holds his hands up, saying loudly:

“Alright, alright, you lot. Remember what I said?”

The children still, and a chorus of “Yes Lord Emrys” resounds from the group. With that, they stay silent, but still grin widely and bounce on the spot in excitement.

Arthur gives Merlin a stressed, but grateful smile, before looking back to the children. He takes a deep breath, before smiling at them, and saying:

“My name’s Arthur. Thank you for having me, I appreciate your hospitality.”

Merlin snorts at his overly formal tone, and has to stop himself laughing at the shock and fear on Arthur’s face when one of the younger ones loudly asks:

“What’s hosp-ee-tal-it-ee?”

Arthur furrows his brows, but luckily one of the teenagers steps in, quietly saying:

“It’s when someone comes into your home, and you’re nice to them.”

Arthur smiles and nods, and Merlin chuckles in amusement.

Thankfully (for Arthur) Merlin then stands and announces to the children that it’s lunch time, and to get washed up. They all rush off, and Arthur lets out a breath as he stands.

Merlin holds in yet another laugh, but tilts his head in confusion as Arthur’s gaze is once again drawn to the crown that rests on Merlin’s unruly hair.

Merlin flushes slightly when he realises what Arthur is looking at, looking to the floor and mumbling:

“You have no idea how long I’ve been trying to get them to just call me Merlin, but then they presented me with this a few months ago and I could hardly say no, could I?”

Arthur nods as Merlin looks up again, meeting his gaze. There’s a soft smile on his face, one that Merlin isn’t quite sure what to make of as he quietly replies:

“Hmm. Looks good on you.”

Merlin makes a surprised noise and his eyes go wide, the flush on his cheeks deepening as Arthur laughs gently at him.

Arthur puts his hand on Merlin’s shoulder, his thumb brushing against the skin of his neck in a way that was slightly more than friendly, but Merlin doesn’t pull away, so Arthur leaves his hand there as he looks around the bustling camp.

His smile falls into something more sad, and Merlin frowns at him curiously:

“Arthur? What is it?”

Arthur shakes his head slightly, not looking back at Merlin as he replies, almost whispering:

“Nothing. It’s just, last time I was this far into a Druid camp... I did terrible things. Look at this place, how could I ever have believed that magic was evil? It’s beautiful here.”

Merlin’s frown deepens, but before he can reply, a small hand tugs at Arthur’s sleeve, and the two of them look down suddenly to see one of the boys from before. He wore a confused expression, and whispered, as if he knew this was meant to be a secret conversation:

“What terrible things did you do, Mr King Sir?”

Merlin takes in a quiet gasp and widens his eyes, but before he can tell him off or lie, Arthur squeezes his shoulder, and crouches down in front of the child.

Arthur gives the boy a smile, and takes his hands, quietly saying:

“Well. When I was young, I was taught some things that are wrong, I didn’t question them, and because of that I did some really bad things. I thought I was being a good person, but actually I was being a bad person because I didn’t do my own research, and I didn’t know any better. But then I started learning how to be better, and now I do everything in my power to be an actual good person.-”

Arthur looks up at Merlin with a small smile on his face, before looking back down to the boy, who is hanging on to his every word:

“-Your Emrys is helping me with that. You see, he’s the best person I’ve ever met, and he’s helping me be more like him.”

Arthur resists the urge to look back at Merlin as he feels a firm, but shaky hand on his back, and instead looks at the child as he thinks over Arthur’s words. His face breaks into a grin, and Arthur returns the smile as the boy says:

“He’s the best isn’t he? I wanna be like him when I grow up!”

Arthur ruffles his hair, and replies quietly:

“Yeah kid, me too.”

The boy gives him a toothy grin, before running off once again, and Arthur lets out yet another breath he had been holding before standing up.

Merlin’s hand remains on his shoulder, and Arthur regrets meeting his gaze the moment he turns his head. But he also can’t rip his eyes away from the teary expression of awe and bewildered happiness on his face.

Merlin lets out a gentle laugh at Arthur’s apprehensive face before shaking his head, and looking back at him once again, this time amusement on his face:

“The best person you’ve ever met, huh?”

Arthur rolls his eyes and blushes deeply, pushing Merlin’s hand off his shoulder as he mumbles a flustered:

“Shut up, Merlin. I could hardly tell him the truth, could I?”

Merlin hums thoughtfully and replies with laughter in his voice:

“Hmm. That makes more sense, of course.”

Without waiting for Arthur’s reply, he grabs the King’s wrist and drags him towards a large tent in the corner of the clearing. Inside were two tables, one large, and one smaller and lower, both surrounded by benches.

Merlin directed them to bowls in the corner so they could wash their hands, before they sit at the larger of the two tables. Everyone over the ages of about fourteen joins them, the younger ones going to the smaller table.

Food appears, covering the surface, summoned from the cooking pots outside and the various food stores around the camp. Arthur tries to keep the wonderment off his face, but knows he failed miserably when he hears Merlin chuckle beside him. He punches Merlin’s leg under the table playfully, but that only makes him laugh harder.

He quietens when the man sat opposite Arthur stands:

“Today we have two honoured guests, our Lord Emrys, and the Once and Future King Arthur. We share our home, our food, and our welcome, for as long as they wish to stay. We raise our goblets to you, My Lords.”

At that, he raises his cup in the air, everyone else in the tent following him. Merlin smiles and nods at him, raising his own cup, and Arthur nervously copies his movements, comforted by Merlin’s reassuring hand on his knee.

With that, the Druid sits down, and conversation breaks out around the tent as everyone begins to eat.

Merlin handles most of the discussions, talking to everyone as if they were life long friends. Arthur is grateful for that, he answers any questions sent his way, asking a few polite ones in return, but Druid culture is so different to life in the city and Arthur doesn’t really know what he should be talking about.

Thankfully, the meal passes quickly, and after another announcement from the man Arthur now presumed was the leader here, the crowd dispersed, everything being cleared away with magic.

Not every Druid practiced sorcery, but they were clearly in a magic-heavy camp; Arthur could see it plain as day, everywhere he looked.

Merlin once again took Arthur’s wrist, leading him out into the sun. Usually, Arthur hated being led places, especially by the hand, but he found he didn’t quite mind it today. Whether it was because they were in Merlin’s domain, and Merlin was King here, or because of how nervous he was, or because of some other reason entirely, Arthur wasn’t sure, and frankly, he didn’t want to think too deeply about it.

This time, Merlin led them to another, smaller tent.

It had several comfortable looking chairs around a smallish circular table, which was covered in scrolls and parchments and old-looking books.

A few seconds later, they were joined by the Druid leader; he smiled softly at them and gestured for them to sit at the table. Merlin and Arthur sat next to each other, and the Druid kindly pretended not to notice them shuffling the chairs closer together.

The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur, Arthur having lost his nerves fairly early in the conversation. Maybe that had something to do with the fact that official meetings were his specialty, or maybe it was because Merlin’s hand once again found his knee, but stayed there this time. Who knows.

The Druid had introduced himself, and once more welcomed Arthur to the camp, before launching into explanations of the prophecies and destinies, and everyone’s roles in them.

Merlin knew most if it, and looked especially proud of himself when the Druid described in wonder how Merlin had changed the very fates of the Lady Morgana, Sir Mordred, and Arthur himself.

Arthur was definitely taken aback at that. Whilst Merlin had prattled on, making no sense, about his and Arthur’s destinies, he had never mentioned anyone else, and Arthur becomes increasingly glad he came here to sort it all out.

There were some bits that not even Merlin knew though. He wasn’t aware that the other knights, Guinevere, and Gaius featured in a few of the newer prophecies, and the Druid had an amused smile on his face when he admitted that he’d thought Merlin would have figured that out.

Arthur did laugh at him at that, and Merlin flushed before telling him:

“Shut up, or I’ll tell the others you said I was the best person you’ve ever met, and they’ll never let you live it down.”

Arthur narrows his eyes, and the Druid continues look at them in amusement as they bicker.

The meeting comes to an end just before dark, and Arthur thanks the Druid profusely, for welcoming him, and taking the time to go through everything thoroughly.

Another meal is had in the large tent, but when they leave this time, the clearing has been completely emptied. A large bonfire roars in the middle, and logs surround it, providing seating for everyone.

The evening is full of stories and music and magic, and Arthur once again finds himself wondering just how he thought any of this could be evil.

Even Merlin stands to lead a song. He moves around the clearing with yet another child sat sat on his hip, giggling as Merlin spins her around.

Arthur is surprised to learn that Merlin has a good voice, and stares in wonderment as he leads the melody as if it was what he was born to do. The rest of the Druids clap along, joining in loudly and harmonising and playing instruments in time with the tune.

When the song comes to a close, the crowd burst into cheers as Merlin looks back to Arthur, breathing deeply and cheeks flushed. The Warlock smiles widely as he settles the child back in her mother’s lap before walking back over to his seat, next to Arthur.

Arthur returns his wide grin with a soft smile of his own, and as the music continues around them, Merlin tilts his face in happy confusion:

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Arthur just shakes his head slightly, smiling slightly wider as he responds without missing a beat:

“You’re beautiful like this. And you have an exceptional voice.”

Merlin flushes in surprise and looks to his lap, quietly muttering:

“I wouldn’t know about that...”

Arthur doesn’t look away, huffing out a laugh before replying:

“I mean it, Merlin. You just look... happy. Like you belong here.-”

He does look away here, staring into the fire with a thoughtful, but slightly mournful look on his face as Merlin peers up at him, curious. Arthur continues, even quieter, before Merlin can question him:

“-You know, I wouldn’t be angry if you wanted to stay. Here, I mean. I know magic is legal in Camelot now, but you belong somewhere like this. I would never begrudge you a home like this Merlin.”

Merlin laughs quietly, and takes Arthur’s hand, holding it in his lap like it’s something precious (it is, at least it is to Merlin). Arthur looks back at him in surprise, but doesn’t pull away as Merlin replies, still smiling:

“Home isn’t a place, Arthur, and the Druids know that better than anyone. Home is... home is wherever the people you love are. You are my people, Arthur, you and the knights and Gwen and Morgana and Gaius. My home is wherever you are. No matter my magic or title or destiny; my home will always be where you are.”

Arthur doesn’t let the tears in his eyes fall, but he does squeeze Merlin’s hand, giving him a tender smile that's returned without hesitation.

With the exchanging of smiles that any onlooker would describe as loving, the conversation comes to an easy close, and they spend the rest of the evening hand in hand, smiling fondly at the antics around them.

It’s late when the festivities come to an end, and Arthur and Merlin are exhausted, struggling to hold back yawns as they’re shown to a tent that had been set up for them.

Their bags had been removed from the horses and left in there, and the floor was covered in various blankets and pillows. There was a small trunk, for them to store anything they wished to unpack, and a few candles were lit, filling the room with a soft golden light and pleasant smells.

Merlin charms the tent to be soundproof so they don’t have to worry about noise (he may be openly able to use magic, but the idiot was still rather clumsy, and prone to accidental bangs and crashes), before removing his crown carefully. His cloak and boots follow shortly, and they all go neatly into the trunk, before he starts organising a spot to sleep.

After a few minutes, he realises that Arthur hasn’t moved from his space by the entrance, and Merlin turns around to look at him questioningly. Arthur’s eyebrows are furrowed, and he looks deep in thought as he stares at the floor, fiddling with the hem of his tunic.

Merlin walks over, concerned, and takes one of Arthur’s hands into his own. Arthur looks up at him suddenly, broken free of his thoughts, and Merlin raises an eyebrow at him as he strokes his thumb across The King’s knuckles:

“What’s wrong, Arthur?”

Arthur looks into Merlin’s eyes searchingly, but seems to find what he’s looking for after only a moment, and smiles. Merlin tilts his head to prompt him, and Arthur takes his other hand, before softly speaking:

“You know, I used to find the idea of falling in love frightening.-”

Merlin takes in a subtle deep breath, but Arthur doesn’t notice as he shakes his head, huffing out a gentle laugh before continuing, looking somewhere over Merlin’s shoulder:

“-The possibility that someone could have that much control over me; that I would willingly give another person dominion over my heart, my soul, my... everything, was terrifying to me. But I find I’m not scared anymore.-”

He looks back at Merlin’s shocked face. Arthur looks an odd mix of disbelieving, and happy beyond words as he continues, confident that what he’s saying is right, for the first time in a long time:

“-Because it’s you, Merlin. It’s always been you. And how could I possibly find falling in love with you anything other than beautiful?”

Merlin gulps, seemingly searching Arthur’s face for any hint of a lie. When he finds nothing but sincerity, he launches himself forward, almost knocking Arthur to the floor.

He wraps his arms around the blonde’s shoulders tightly, burying a hand in his hair, and his face in the crook of his neck. Arthur huffs out a laugh as he wraps his arms around Merlin’s waist, running a soft hand up and down his back.

At Merlin’s muttered:

“I love you, Arthur, more than anything is this world. My magic, my everything, belongs to you.”

Arthur pulls back, smiling. He leans forward pressing his forehead against Merlin’s, and cups his cheek softly with his hand. They stare into the blue of each other’s eyes for a moment, not in any hurry to move the moment along, Arthur running his thumb over Merlin’s cheekbone, and Merlin carding his fingers through Arthur’s hair.

Arthur takes a deep breath, before whispering, so quietly it’s a miracle Merlin hears him:

“Can I kiss you?”

Merlin nods infinitesimally, and the two of them lean forward, meeting in the middle in a soft kiss that could only be described as tender, and full of love.

If the stars shine brighter, and the wind blows warmer, and the animals of the dark seem happier that night... well... it was spring... surely no one would notice (Arthur definitely noticed, but he sure as shit wasn’t going to point it out, in case Merlin stopped).

THE END!!

This is the first one I’ve written in aaaaages that didn’t involve a dizzy/exhausted/sick Merlin so... yay me?

I just really wanted to write something fluffy, where there were no high stakes. No huge battles, or angsty confessions or anything like that, just a soft love story.

I genuinely got no clue what I’ll write next. I do have a few drafts and ideas floating around, but let me know if you’re after anything specific, I live to please :)

Like always, you wanna write this up properly with paragraphs and fleshed out stuff, go for it, credit and tag me :)

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