#idk how i feel about magic. would merlin still have it or not idk

[23and05]

If I was to write a Merlin season 6/spin off, it'd look like this:

Firstly it's set now. Merlin has been moving around different places when he grows out of them (i.e. needs to move on because he's immortal) he's currently working in a library and that's where he meets 'Arthur'. Oh he'd also have an Irish accent because one of the worst things BBC Merlin did was not allow Colin to keep his accent.

I picture him having a different name so when 'Arthur' catches him staring and Merlin introduces himself using his real name 'Arthur' is confused because that's not the name on his badge. Merlin says he feels like he knows 'Arthur' and it turns out to be a reincarnation type thing. Does that make sense ??? So it is Arthur, but he doesn't know it, cue Merlin having to draw the memories out of him.

I feel like a cute detail could be Arthur had a child who's flown the nest so there's loads of pictures of them together in his flat.

Other details, Merlin freaks out waking up for the first time in Arthur's bed.

They go skinning dipping in the lake of Avalon, because Merlin says its where he comes when he's overwhelmed, it's like his little spot. Arthur maybe remembers here ? Or at least feels something. Like a pull, something like that ??

The series would end with a pull back shot of some piece of art in a museum/gallery of merlin and Arthur (idk if one exists, there is surely some of king Arthur, but you get the gist) where we see merlin ans arthur holding hands stood in front of it.

There are so many song potentials, but I feel like ii hands ii heaven by Beyoncé playing in the background when they first remeet would be so perfect. Just catching the end of the song where 'I've been waiting my whole life, for you and I' is sung in stunning harmonies.

[nerdyfangirlingbooks]

I've had a stupid merlin au idea stuck in my head for days now and I know I'll never get around to writing it the way I want it written but I kinda wanna try anyway even though I am 100% of the target audience

[justaz]

need post magic reveal/ban repeal where magic is free and everyone grows in their knowledge of just what magic is and how it works etc, etc. merlin (isn't one for bragging about his powers) doesn't really mention much about his magic so people just assume he has enough to get by with like chores but not enough to catch the ire of uther EXCEPT for gauis, lancelot, and arthur bc gaius and lancelot have known about him for years and know what he's capable of and arthur sat merlin down and demanded all the stories so arthur knows he'd be a formidable opponent but he doesn't really get it yk? so he's like "yeah merlin has magic and he's capable of defending himself and camelot so he's probably on the more powerful end of the spectrum like every other sorcerer who is powerful"

and then i need merlin to be Different. like noticeably different. like idk a sorcerer is like trying out to be court sorcerer (bc merlin doesn't want another job dammit arthur give it morgana or someone-) and they perform this elaborate spell that captivates merlin and he starts asking all these questions and the sorcerer is like "yeah it's super difficult, it took me months to get it right and it takes years for some others-" and they cut themselves off bc merlin was just like "i wanna try" and does it perfectly first try. the sorcerer is seething.

camelot is hit with a heatwave and everyone is suffering and arthur is just like "morgana can you make it rain or something? it's too hot to breathe." and morgana is just like "no you idiot i can't just bend nature to my will. it doesn't like that." and merlin finally arrives with waterskins full of nice, cold, refreshing drink that the knights are frothing at the mouth to get. arthur complains again and morgana huffs and merlin is like "has he been like that this whole time?" and morgana nods with a groan and merlin laughs before going "i can try something" and leaves before anyone can say anything and arthur looks at morgana and is like "i thought you said nature doesn't like to be controlled?" and she's like "it doesn't" and then they all chase after merlin but he's chilling in the courtyard with his eyes closed, not even chanting, and then the sky starts to darken as black clouds roll in, the temperature plummets and then...snow begins to fall. in july. they all end up having a snowball fight.

a power hungry sorcerer comes along and is like "emrys....he's perfect....just what i need...teehee" and casts some spell over merlin and begins to siphon his magic and his power and merlin feels waves of his magic flood through the connection and into the sorcerer and like he's a mix of panic and concern bc yeah this mf is taking his magic but they're taking his magic. merlin tries to bargain or talk them down while the knights and arthur try to attack but the sorcerer keeps pushing them back and ignores merlin and is like "i want power, i want your power" blah blah blah monologue time and they swing another wave of magic out at the knights and knock many out while killing some and merlin is just like "ok no that's all folks thanks" and starts to push his own magic through the connection. the sorcerer has this wild gleam in their eyes and they feel more and more power fill them and it's like a high until it gets too much and they frantically try to sever the connection and their telling merlin to stop but merlin is just like "i thought you wanted my power? i'm giving it to you" and continues to flood the sorcerer with his magic until gold begins to trace their skin and they idk explode or smth and then all the magic flies back into merlin and he flexes his hands. unnamed knights 3, 6, 22, 53, and 55 still died so it's a tragedy.

a bunch of sorcerers are entertaining at a feast (kind of like the trickler) and they cast illusions all around the room that look real enough (unless you look too closely or touch it bc they are somewhat see through and your hand would pass right through them) and it's a fun and joyous night. later that week, the knights bring it up during their break while training and merlin is like "sure, what illusion should i cast?" and after some back and forth, he settles on the illusion of a dragon. it's around the size and age of aithusa bc that's all he has to go off of and it's gold since he took inspiration from the pendragon crest all around the area. it jumps around and flaps it's wings to get some air and it's all fine and dandy until elyan goes to poke his hand through it's ribs but meets physical scales and he jumps up into percival's arms. merlin looks closer and is like "oh. its real. whoops." and leon is like "whoops?? you make a real life dragon and all you have to say is whoops?" and merlin shrugs and is like "it was an accident" and leon about keels over from a heart attack "an accident? how do you accidentally-" the dragon is considered a gift from magic to camelot and helps further heal the wounds of uther's purge.

idk just like merlin being casually the most powerful sorcerer to walk the earth and unnerving people just by how little he seems to care about his shows of power but they're all like "well he's just doing all these small things that don't harm anyone and he doesn't even seem to realize just how powerful he is so what can ya do?" and they leave it be and make peace with merlin being Like That. and then camelot/arthur is attacked or smth idk and then everyone gets to see exactly how powerful and dangerous merlin is

[iris-black13]

In honour of Merlin trending for literally no reason today, I would like to share my theories that I came up with during my recent rewatch. (I'm only up to season 3 right now so there really aren't that many theories yet.)

1. Merlin and Arthur 100% fell in love with each other in season 1, but they aren't aware of it at all.

2. Merlin is so gay. I'm not sure if he knows it or not, but Merlin is not attracted to women. Every time he's seemed interested in a woman, it's because she's been a powerful sorceress or a magical creature. Speaking of Freya; his only real female love interest, what he loves about her is that he sees himself in her. He feels a sense of kinship towards her as someone who is trapped and hunted for something out of her control. I don't think he feels any actual romantic love for her. He loves her, sure. But I think he's confusing romantic love for something else. (But idk I could be wrong.)

3. I don't think the Morgana we got back after her disappearance is the same Morgana we had pre S2E12. I think she probably died and came back wrong. In fact, I think she's a shade. Because otherwise the personality difference is too drastic. Her relationship with Gwen for instance. It makes sense if she didn't forgive Merlin for what he did, but why is she so mean to Gwen?? Gwen was her best friend and maybe even her first love? Morgana was never classist before season 3, but afterwards she acts like Gwen is lesser than and it just doesn't make sense. Anyway that's my in-universe explanation for her terrible shift in character.

4. This is the most important one. Merlin doesn't realize he's in love with Arthur until some time shortly before the season 2 finale. Before the finale, Merlin is happy to cheer on the romance between Arthur and Gwen. Two of his best friends fell in love! Why wouldn't he be happy? Even if they think there's no future for their relationship, he's more than happy to help them get together because Merlin believes in loving who you want to love.

Now, I could go on about how falling in love with Gwen is basically Arthur's way of expressing his repressed feelings for Merlin since Gwen and Merlin are of the same social standing and since Gwen is a woman he can experience the love he could have had with Merlin if it was allowed, but I won't do that. This ain't about him. What's important is that Merlin, in the season 2 finale- knows he's in love with Arthur, and that Arthur can't love him back. After the finale, he's still happy to help his friends in their affections for each other, but his bright goofy smile is gone. It's replaced with this melancholy smile and a hesitant voice.

I'm so serious right now. If you don't believe me, just go rewatch seasons 2 and 3 and see the shift in his demeanor yourself. He actively avoids them when they're interacting in season 3. In- I think it was the changeling episode, at the end, Arthur and Merlin walk into a hallway at the bottom of the staircase. They both see Gwen on the staircase, and when Arthur starts up the stairs, Merlin immediately leaves. It's not a "I'll give them their space" moment. It's a "I can't be here right now" kind of moment. He doesn't even try to stick around to protect Arthur on their date in the episode where Morgana frames Gwen for witchcraft. (and don't even get me started on that episode of my god.) Normally, he would stick around in the shadows to make sure nothing goes wrong and they aren't attacked or anything. It's weird that he doesn't try to stick around!

And oh my God. There are so many moments where Colin Morgan's acting just makes my heart ache. In the crystal caves, Merlin trying to banter with an unconscious Arthur while trying desperately to heal him makes me want to cry. And any time he's encouraging Gwen to follow her heart and be with Arthur just makes me ache. In the "...you still have feelings for him." And the "you like him. He likes you. Isn't that all that really matters?" I just can't.

Honestly, I could go on, but this post is already wordy enough. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk.

[merlins-strawberriesandroses]

I’m not very articulate unfortunately but now that I’ve made this sideblog I wanted to get some thoughts out. I do see the logic when folks say that Arthur mostly experienced bad things in regards to magic, so it makes sense why he was wary of it/didn’t alter the laws since he didn’t know about Merlin’s guardian angel tendencies/etc. BUT. If we’re going with the magic is a queer metaphor (or just using it as one of many real life parallels) then I got to say. If you’re homophobic or your dad’s a queerphobic/bigoted politician who sanctions their murder and you haven’t explicitly said oh yeah I really don’t agree with that. Then queer people will probably not go out of their way to be kind to you while also letting you know they’re queer. They’re going to be wary and many will be antagonistic, and if there are queer people in your life they’ll probably keep mum because saying anything risks their life/security, and even freedom, in a way that’s distinct and sometimes worse than the restriction of freedom the closet imposes. 

In the same vein I feel like well if magic was banned in Camelot, and we know that even innocent people using it for, idk, healing a cut, got persecuted, then why would magic users be tripping over themselves to explicitly show Arthur how they’re using “good” magic. It’d put them in danger! Even if they were being helpful they’d not be telling Arthur they were being magically helpful (on account of the tyrant father’s laws still existing). Only sorcerers who are about to Revenge it Up (or power-grab it up) will likely be found out as sorcerers (on account of the occasional monologue and gold flashing eyes as they try to stab u).

Arthur just couldn’t have realistically seen an equivalently diverse number of people doing benevolent magic as long as all magic, no exceptions, was technically still illegal. (Though he does see some instances of ‘good’ magic!)

And about magical people close to Arthur not telling him for so long (Merlin, Morgs), I think they had many understandable reasons. At one point if you live long enough in a place where various parts of your identity can be legally prosecuted, or are liable to be socially persecuted, it’s physically hard to even get the words out. From personal experience the fear is just very encompassing, and it sucks to think that you very likely have to bear agression or worse if you want to let people you care about know. Plus, for Merlin I imagine a part of the situation was that telling Arthur would risk their closeness, which is pretty important to his ability to protect him. And Merlin believes that if he protects Arthur, the prophecy dictates at some point in the future magic will be legalized (which it does become, but it’s mentioned so briefly at the end. Could we not have had a happier ending??) :( I have a lot of other thoughts on this specific topic that I’ve tearfully jotted down over the years about how I understand why Merlin didn’t tell his friends (I’m less tearful about it now haha I was just Going Through It back then), but I fear I’ll still be incomprehensible and even more rambly, so I’ll avoid doing that right now. ANYWAY sorry for the ramble. I just made this sideblog and realized I can share some of the things that have been rolling around in my mind for years. Okay now I’m gonna go back to being in denial over the ending :) 

[rene-hl-trashcan]

Anger Has Never Looked So Good

Fandom: Hogwarts Legacy (Video Game) Relationships: Cariad x Riz (MC x MC) Summary : Cariad's little scheme got her into trouble with her boyfriend. But all is according to plan. Notes : Because @starryslytherin0 and I have been brainrotting about this for days (only 2 days actually) and we are too far gone with this ship by now. 💀 Warnings : No beta cuz I die like Ranrok's Loyalists. Also, it is still unfinished because I accidentally posted this (mayhaps in my sleep idk but it was in DRAFTS before I zonked out 💀) AIGHT BABES I DON'T SLEEP AND IT'S FINISHED NOW. There's a bit of spicy scenes in there but nothing too much methinks. Just a heads up.

"What are you doing?"

Startled, Cariad nearly smothered the glowing communication ball with her own skirts, desperate to silence Sylvan who was still chattering from the other side. Thankfully, she had opted for the pillow instead, which did a decent job silencing the ball from exposing her crime.

But, it was already too late, no? Riz had sensed the ancient magic from the communication ball, and who knew how long he had been listening?

The cat is obviously out of the bag, but how far has it escaped?

How much did Riz manage to listen to?

Cariad was just about to gauge how deep in trouble she was in, only to whip her head in urgent panic in the direction of the smothered communication ball just as Sylvan's muffled voice came through;

"By the way, thanks for the idea, Cariad. Ieva and I had lots and lots of fantastic time together."

Sylvan's slurty chuckle which followed after that comment was a harbinger of doom for both him and Cariad.

Cariad could feel the temperature drop around her; the chills of ominous prospect made her tremble.

Why would Sylvan word it like that? Poppy was with him and Ieva. The three of them were having fun touring the world but Sylvan made it sound like it was just him and Ieva gallivanting the world together in some form of romantic escapade.

And with that suggestive tone plus slurty chuckle? The menace completely overdid his role.

Sometimes, Cariad couldn't help but worry that Sylvan's thirst for challenge and penchant for getting into trouble will get him killed someday.

Though now was not the time to worry about someone else.

"Carrie?"

Oh, Merlin.

Cariad shivered the moment the intimate nickname brushed down the length of her neck. It was so unfair. The two simple syllables fanned down her neck, followed with presses of soft lips—all of which were enough to get her knees weak. Again, she tried to gauge how deep in trouble she was in, not knowing whether to be terrified or delighted when realising that her boyfriend's breathing was calm and measured right there against the nape of her neck, the heat of his measured breaths sending shivers down her spine for each of his exhale.

"Princess?"

Oh for the love of Deathly Hallows.

His voice.

Cariad shuddered and resisted the urge to whine.

It was far softer than his usual voice, far gentler too and by the love of Merlin, it somehow got deeper.

Cariad hadn't ever expected that standing straight and calm could be such a Herculean effort.

Unfortunately for her, his hands did not made the simple task of standing easy for her. His left hand—so much larger than hers—held her wrist in a shackling grip while his other hand rested over her stomach.

She has always loved it when he did that, and like the absurdly indulgent boyfriend Riz is, he would spoil her, giving her everything that he knew would send her floating to that blissful happy place. The simple act usually sent butterflies fluttering up her stomach, making her all giggly and blushing at the comforting touch.

However, that comforting touch was now laced with anger. His long fingers dug gently into the soft flesh of her stomach, uncaring of the layers of fabric—never enough force to hurt but oh did it made her tensed up and bit back a moan—and Cariad only have herself to blame for suggesting this little scheme.

Riz loved his niece to death—that was a well-known fact in their little circle. Ieva was the only family member he spared from the execution he personally orchestrated; and he has been raising her ever since, taking the role of a guardian, parental figure, and caregiver for Ieva when he was at the tender age of 7.

Sylvan practically kidnapping Ieva for a world tour, all the while leaving misleading notes and clues alluding to something more happening between him and the girl was a one-way ticket of enraging Riz.

It's reasonable. No father figure would be pleased if their trusted best friend kidnapped their daughter without much notice, especially combined with misleading notes alluding to the two of them eloping just to add to the simmering displeased ire.

Cariad and Riz have been tracking Sylvan, Ieva and Poppy (but Riz didn't know about Poppy, no no no no Cariad made sure her mouth was sealed shut) for weeks now and the notes Sylvan left have grown more and more outrageously suggestive and misleading, which ended up agitating Riz more and more.

Cariad felt utterly guilty for upsetting him, but by the love of Merlin, fury was good on him. He has always been this unshakeable, immoveable force. His composure was unfaltering even in the most tricky situation. It's hard to get Riz angry but when he did...

Oh, it was utterly delicious.

That's the reason she is the one who suggested and orchestrated this scheme. Cariad was the one who tentatively asked if Sylvan knew any way to get Riz agitated, to burn his cool composure into simmering ire that will bath Cariad in his silent fury.

And Sylvan, being the one who is always up for dangerous shenanigans, has instantly decided to persuade Ieva for an impromptu world trip, essentially kidnapping the sheltered girl from her protective guardian.

Initially, it had felt like win-win situation.

Ieva finally got to see the world that Riz was too busy to show her. The previous time the travelling trio checked in, the girl was having a blast trying out food and playing dress-ups with all the nice pretty clothes Sylvan kept buying her. She was chattering on and on about how fun the whole trip was, how well-connected Sylvan was that the guy has friends in literally almost every country they had visited, speaking their tongue nearly as fluent as the locals, all of which were happy to invite the travelling trio to experience their colourful variety of cultures. Ieva has lamented very briefly on how she wished her uncle could take a break and go on trips like this too.

As for the chaperons, Sylvan and Poppy got to indulge in their own little escapade, even with Ieva in tow. They were having a blast of their own too, especially with how giggly Ieva had been as she recounted what she had observed from her chaperons.

And Cariad?

She got her boyfriend angry just as she wanted him to be. Oh, she would apologise to him later, maybe accept whatever punishment he deemed fit because she has been such a bad girl upsetting him like this, but how else could she get him angry? He has the patience of a saint behind that devilishly handsome look. Cariad could pull the most annoying thing that would get other people ticked off but Riz would simply smile and brush a kiss over her cheeks, indulgently permissive and gentle, even if he had to reprimand her on her actions.

But Cariad desired him to get angry.

She craved the way his voice kept getting lower and growlier the more angry and agitated he became. His natural voice was so pleasantly deep and husky, but when it was tainted with anger? It was both feral yet so chillingly calm. Each syllable that he uttered was a caress that sent shivers down Cariad's spine, stoking her lust to this inferno that settled hotly in her stomach, keeping her knees weaks and trembling, thighs buckling together in her desperation to at least to be able to remain standing.

"Would you care to explain yourself, my sweet love?"

This time Cariad couldn't stop the whimper escaping her lips. Not when he was breathing hotly right to her ear, his hand that was gripping her wrist tightened with such a force she wished he would've left bruises while his other hand on her stomach shifted so that he was practically palming her lower belly in such a way she wished he would've gone a bit lower and gave her what she needed.

"I—" Cariad tried to explain, because naughty as she was for upsetting him like this, she also is always his good girl.

But, that has become increasingly harder now.

"—were involved in my niece's kidnapping, yes I can tell that much, sweetheart," he cut her off, practically growling right against her ears, his anger dripped from each word and her thighs instantly buckled as she moaned.

There was a brief startled pause, as if Riz was taken off guard by her reaction but she could feel him so intimately with the way the whole length of his body was pressed up against her much smaller one. Her needs taken over as she whined again, arching her hips to chase his palm that was right there at her lower belly, wishing for that hand to just move a little bit lower.

It was both endearing and torturous when he so carefully and tentatively trailed his hand lower, as if he was unsure he had permission to touch her there but Cariad is his to do to his heart's content. Yes, he had made her promise when they first started dating to let him know if she doesn't want to be touched and right now...

Right now, that was not that case.

It was sweet and endearing of him to set aside his anger in favour of her boundaries. But, the tentative care was nothing but the firewood to her burning lust and Cariad immediately whined again, spreading her thighs as much as she possibly could without her legs collapsing, wanting him to take her, to punish her for being his naughty girl.

There was a brief moment of inaction that made Cariad worry that he would back out—perhaps the stunt she pulled had crossed his line and he was hurt enough to not forgive her for it—but the words that she wanted to utter were forcefully wrung out of her throat in an incoherent moan as his hand finally, finally took possession of her cunt, and she could do nothing but to keep her thighs open wide—as wide as at the soaked panties at her mid-thighs would allow her—her chest arching out when he jerked her up by the wrist to keep her standing straight.

"You filthy needy little schemer," he growled, gentle and calm despite how obvious it was that he was getting angrier—his voice went deeper than she thought was humanely possible.

"Riz, I—" her words melted to a pathetic needy moan, her thighs buckling together to lock his hand in place, gasping as she tried to form a coherent apology. "Sorry—"

Her apology melted to a mess of moans and whimpers, one that it seemed he did not care to accept. He released her wrist just long enough to manoeuver her to the wall, hand then was back shackling her wrists, pinning her up the wall all while keeping his other hand inside her, wringing moans after moans from her throat.

Cariad arched her chest, sweat already dampening the white fabric enough to hint the outline of her bra.

"Sorry—" she tried again, grinding down to take more of his long fingers, whimpering when she was stopped from doing so by the hand that was pinning her up the wall.

In fact, he easily pulled her higher to his eye-level so that she ended up on her tip-toes, dripping on his palm as she tried to grind to his fingers to fill her empty quivering quim.

"A little too hungry for punishment, aren't you?"

He punctuated that growl with a quick brush of his knuckles over her drenched slit and she had immediately tried to keep him there, thighs buckling despite the slight pain from the strain on her shoulders from being suspended like that.

"Riz, I'm sorry—"

But he stopped her incoming apology with a kiss—his fury burned her with lust and she couldn't help but do nothing and accept his fury, let her lips be bitten red and bruised, moaning in grief when she was left clenching around nothing as his hand moved to her chest, paying attention to each breast with bruising feral touch he has never shown her before.

This was different from their usual love-making.

He indulged in his anger and Cariad loved every single second of it.

Because even while being rough and punishing, he still cares for her. A soft press of apologetic kiss over her red bruised lips. Gentle circles being rubbed over the forming bruise on her wrists. A slow loving lick over each bitemark he left on her tender breasts.

He was rough and angry yet still so loving and caring.

It made Cariad whimper, arching into him with a needy high-pitched whine.

"Inside—" she managed a soft plea, confident that her indulgent boyfriend would immediately yield to her request, giving her what she wants as he always did.

Riz halted and pulled back from her neck, wiping his lips with the back of his free hand, adding more fuel to Cariad's desperate lust when the action did nothing but smeared his cheek with her juices.

"Oh, love," he purred.

And Cariad trembled—in fear, want or silent pleas, even she did not know—whimpering just as he continued;

"What makes you think you're getting anything tonight?"

THE END

P/s : Somewhere in the background, if she was not too shell-shocked from his refusal to indulge her, Cariad would have heard a muffled amused cackle and a soft beep of the line finally disconnecting. Sylvan didn't hang up cuz that boy is always curious and has no shame.💀

[thenerdyalien]

26 3

First of all, thank you so much for the ask! I've been wanting to participate in one of these Merlin ask games for a while <3

26. Post Merlin Headcanons?

Alright, while I usually like to believe that Merlin never returned to Camelot after Camlann (for angst reasons), I still think that Merlin would have come back (if not for Arthur, at least for Gwen and Gaius). He wouldn't return right away, but some months after Gwen's coronation (maybe after hearing some news of Camelot or how Gwen is doing as queen), and he and Gwen would bond again over their shared grief for Arthur and become a strong unit of platonic besties ruling over Camelot. Merlin would help Gwen lift the magic ban and maybe even help her raise Arthur's kid if she had gotten pregnant in the aftermath of Camlann...idk I just think it would be cute and together they wouldn't feel so lonely after Arthur's death.

In fact, I may or may not have a fic with that exact premise sitting in my drafts right now 👀

3. Villain you think deserved another chance.

Does Morgana count? Because I will forever be a Morgana apologist (up until Season 4 at least) and I really believe she deserved a better villian arc in the show (not just being reduced to a smirking villian). And what's frustrating about the writing in the show is that the pieces for that arc were already there in S1-S2, but the writers just wanted to speed-up her villian arc and ended up butchering her character in the process. But, even after everything, i still think she deserved some sort of redemption (at least in relation to the way she treated Arthur and Gwen). I mean, they didn't even have to do much, they could have just borrowed that storyline from the legends where Morgana is the one to go on the boat with him at the end and guides him to Avalon to heal before his time to return. It was all right there!!

Sorry if this is super long, apparently I had a lot of thoughts about this 😅

[spacehostilityy]

NNT Rewatch s2ep1-6

(This was written weeks ago but was in my queue. I am moving back to my college town Saturday so busy days are to come but now I have things to procrastinate 😈)

So YAYAYAY time for season 2 (my fave season overall) !! I’ve rewatched this one before, so i actually remember some of this lol

Ban: I quit

Meliodas: your face is the only joke we can handle

HE GOT HIS ASS DAMN

i love both of diane’s orange fits, but s1 leotard hits different

i have thots abt the introduction of power levels that will be told beneath the cut

i mean it’s all very dragon ball (which i love, but in a very different way). I feel like they are just better executed in manga format, because saying the numbers out loud just kinda breaks up the flow of dialogue and action. Plus the numbers never stay accurate since the characters are always powering up and nakaba lowkey just stops using them at one point. so like assault mode!Meliodas has a power of 142,000. BUT he defeats enemies with powers higher than that and is shown to gain even more power. But this is the highest number we have for him. Overall, theyre clunky, not updated enough to be accurate, and just kinda cheesy :/ I feel like plot could have been added to justify and explain the eye of Balor (AKA Drole if i remember correctly) but it’s just used as an excuse to quantify the characters’ strength since this season is mainly focused on physical and emotional growth, as seen by the Ishtar Arc (one of my fave arcs hehe)

merlin’s friendship with hawk is actually so cute tho

so Meliodas’s beginner stats (still missing his powers) are magic 400, strength 960, spirit 2010. The way I see it, his insane spirit strength could mean one of two things: bitch is just hella determined in his quest to end their curses and protect his friends (likely) or merlin taking away his power only affects his strength and magic since spirit has to do with your mind (also likely) anyway what do y’all think?

how the fuck is gowther’s strength 500??? The average person who can lift 50-100 lbs has a strength of 30. HOW IN THE FUCK?? IS GOWTHER SECRETLY SWOLE????

Meliodas being like “no idk who the ten shadows could be haha” when he and merlin literally formed the sins to fight them and HE WAS THE LEADER OF THE 10 COMMANDMENTS is so funny like so tru king lie to their faces

the first thing Zeldris says is “3000 years... please tell me that he’s still alive” which tells me two things: 1) he doesn’t know about Meliodas’s curse, which could explain why estarossa kills him when he’s just going to come back a rival to the throne of the demon king and 2) the listed life expectancy of 1000 years for demons is probably not accurate lol

maybe it’s driven down due to number of battle deaths like the mortality rate of the middle ages lol

we are introduced to a demon who hopes mel is alive, shares a voice actor, AND HAS THE SAME FACE yeah the brother coding is very thick

AJSDBJKBHJEBFNWKFH YESSS THIS IS MY ALL TIME FAVE INTRO SONG AND ANIMATION

ban’s refusal to get jericho’s name right makes me laugh every time

Jericho: is scared and runs to Ban

Ban: 🤨 yeah. i don’t remember asking you to grab my arm🙄

im sorry but king rlly was a bad fairy king like mans didnt even know the forest was there 😭 its ok tho i love that for him

King hating Ban at first bc he “killed elaine and destroyed the fairy kings forest” only for Ban to pull THE BIGGEST uno reverse on him will never not be funny

wait does that mean ban is technically the 4th fairy king and king is both the 3rd and the 5th bc that would be rlly funny and does happen quite a bit historically

I love how as much as a smug asshole Ban is, he’s not rubbing it in King’s face and is showing him he’s still his friend

so if Gil is Margaret’s guard and Griamore is Veronica’s, does that mean Howzer was Elizabeth’s ?? bc that would be so fucking funny

Helbram got King’s ass with “and you’re short”

KASBDFNJBSDKF HE LOOKS SO GOOFY😭

MY BABYGIRLS ARE HEREEEE

Best girls Melascula and Derieri fr

i love that they said slader is gay, how can we let the audience know and then gave him the smoothest, gayest voice imaginable

merlin calling og gowther a great magician when we know he was the one to train her is actually so sad, i want to give baby merlin a hug

slader is hot, thanks for coming to the ted talk

how the fuck does he walk like this tho??

is there a reason i just don’t remember why they never really bring up albions again or do they just ~disappear~ conveniently from the story lol

So the whole concept of sacred treasures is really cool to me because they are clearly something unique to the Sins, despite all of the sacred treasures being very different and made of different materials. I mean Gowther’s is straight up made of light Still, them having weapons that serve as a constant and grow with them as they become more powerful is just a neat concept to me. I just wish we could have seen Ban use Courechouse more than just a few episodes. There really isn’t a plot reason he couldn’t have had it beforehand.

Gerheade being a bitch to Ban bc he’s a human makes literally no sense when we learn her backstory with Rou. Like NO sense at all lol

I honestly love that Meliodas destroyed the albion on his own. Like yes, he is my OP blorbo BUT he’s also supposed to be incredibly powerful in canon, which we haven’t seen him go all out with an enemy yet. Not only does he know all about albions (bc he’s a demon), but as leader of the 10 Commandments, he probably was on the controlling side of the golems. Then, as a member of Stigma, he fought against them. Not to mention, this is when he finally gets Lostvayne (the DEMON sword) back. This moment for me is when he gets to show off the perks of him being a powerful and high ranking demon. Might fuck around and do a full post later on Meliodas’s relationship to his own race and what/who he is lol

Ban screaming “you bitch!!” is... a wonderful experience

Yass king (hehehehe get it? bc his name is king? hehehe)

Galand petting Gloxinia is actually so cute lol

Merlin covering Arthur’s eyes 😭😭 she’s his mom fr

“its been a while meliodas” oop galand just let the Meliodas is 3000 years old cat out of the bag ehehe

(stay with me bc im about to get delusional) WAIT so galand says “to think that after all this time has passed youd still be in that form” in this essay i will prove that Meliodas looks like a young teenager because he essentially is biologically young for the demon race. Galand doesn’t know Mel was cursed, so he would think that he had aged in the past 3000 years. Plus, I think the demon king’s possession of Meliodas AND Zeldris can be (somewhat) compared to Sariel’s aging up of Solaseed. Anyway, i feel like this can support my hypothesis of Zeldris and Meliodas are just babies who will eventually look like adults. Also, I think them being super young just enhances the angst quite well.

everyone is fucking terrified of galand but hes just a silly foolish little fellow to me lol

ban and king being brothers-in-law makes my heart happy like theyre so cute

Ban threatening Gerheade and actually being pissed and serious has suddenly reminded me that if i saw a grown ass man who couldn’t die and was a 7 foot tall violent alcoholic i would be fucking terrified

like a demon 14 year old? creepy ig but not a 7 foot tall masochist with an 8 pack

I love how hard Diane always goes for the ones she loves, she’s just so devoted and passionate Best Girl tm behavior

*Merlin being incredibly confidant and nonchalant starting a proposition*

Meanwhile Merlin’s thoughts: SHIT SHIT I HAVE 10 SECONDS TO THINK BEFORE EVERYONE I LIKE DIES

Meliodas doing the same thing Hendy did by reattaching his fucking arms using Darkness and the sins still being like wait?? is Meliodas?? a... demon ??? 🤨

okay so we DO see him in this mode again. But what is it called? and why does he become no thots head empty? its not like he died. and even in assault mode, he has thoughts and emotions (when they’re not stuck in purgatory) 

Im ngl, i forgot everything about this episode entirely lol

obvi i hate that derieri died, but at least the souls she fucking ate got returned lol

do we think arthur has a tiny teenage gay crush on meliodas? Discuss.

(the answer is yes ehehe)

gowther walking around with his dang a lang swangin hehe

Gil crying in annoyance and defeat as griamore and howzer bicker is literally so hashtag real

HENDYYY MY BABYGIRL IS BACK BAYBAYYYY

very suddenly realized that Hendy’s probably only like in his 30s. Mans is just not that old

exactly 3 seconds after I had that though Howzer calls him old man LOLLL

i forgot about hendy’s childhood trauma. damn. thats actually rlly sad :/

look how cute he is tho 😭😭

hendy and dreyfus are in love. thanks for coming to another one of my ted talks

so do we think dreyfus is half druid (and zaratras is full) or zaratras is half druid? i mean they’re half brothers but only one is a called a druid sooo

IM SORRY BUT THIS IS THE FUNNIEST FUCKING SCREENSHOT ASDFFHSLDH elizabeth scandalized, meliodas accepting his fate, slader leaning in closer and blushing ITS JUST SO GOOD

The ass shot of Diane 🤨😑

Damn Idk how i never realized that all of them pretty much only call Meliodas captain. Merlin, Ban, and Elizabeth are the only ones who will call him Meliodas, but even merlin and ban typically go with captain.

“im a giant, why arent you afraid of me?” hes a fucking demon. lol

[like-sands-of-time]

All right heres the thing that's been bugging me since I watched season four.

I love morgana in season one. I find her introduction absolutely fascinating. She feels like a very important character, but we don't know how yet. I love that we see her picking fights with Uther from the first, for it to all culminate in her attempting to kill him by the first season finale, all in a way that is so believable and sympathetic to me (and Merlin) that I was honestly hoping Merlin would just, slip on one of those hills and watch her kill him, because we now know three characters who wouldnt mourn the loss of the king. Who are angry at him for the unforgivable things he's done even recently. At that point arthur is most willing to work with magic and common men, and morgana (with Merlin) have had a clear impact on his growth as a man. I love that.

I... Don't see the rest of the shows arc (s3 and on) as believable for who she was then. I'm sorry but either she was caring about the citizens of Camelot and their suffering, or it was all a lie, that doesn't go away just because you're angry at one guy. I'll leave that alone, it's for another time. BUT. even if they wanted to show that dragons have free will and could befriend who they wished, regardless of dragon blood, I still don't think the entirety of that season makes any sense.

Why would Merlin have hatched the egg right then if he wasn't willing or able to raise the hatchling? They said multiple times the egg would last. And if Kilgharrah wasn't willing to raise the egg why did he convince Merlin to do it. It what world would the characters of Kilgharrah and Merlin as we know them at this point just leave an infant dragon to do it's own thing anyway? Let alone go work with a sorceress they believe to be evil consumed. That.... Doesn't make sense. Not even in a tragic but realistic way, it just simply doesn't make sense to me. Merlin could have safely put the egg where Kilgharrah used to be imprisoned if no one visits there, or Kilgharrah could have found another cave or safe place to keep it. Those make sense. Hatching it only to both leave and forget about the child doesn't really make sense for either of them?

The writers wanted morgana to have a dragon ally, be an equal to Merlin visually in their ultimate fight, and I get it....... but make Aithusa choosing morgana make sense. Develop their relationship in any way..? And while we're at it make morgana trying repeatedly to kill Arthur make any sense because it the show I watched I never saw any reason for her to want anything other than 1) uther dead and 2) magic free in Camelot once more. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE. You can't have characters just Do Things because you want them to happen lmao that's not how people work.

This show loves to tell me instead of showing me. I know what they want me to think because they make it glaringly freaking obvious but I'm sorry .. you have to actually develop character arcs or relationships (whether it's between a dragon and the main villain, or Arthur and Guinevere, because sunbursts and cute music isn't doing anything for me lol. They didn't even develop lance either. She had two love interests shown to us and we just have to use our imagination I guess.

Idk, write morgana to be the darkest, cruellest, most insane bitch you want that's fine with me. It's all medieval fanfiction but ... It has to be plausible. Give me any reason at all why bbc morgana hated Arthur or Camelot or Gwen or anything. Do tragic, do.. "she was always meant to be against him" if you must, but also? It's all fanfiction so have morgana being Arthurs sorceress .. powerful just like Merlin but in her own way and they're both loyal to Arthur.

[weirdraccoon]

Fig’s reaction to Em-Sea’s PTSD? Maybe she got issues from the repository battle (fig did not die she saved him with her ancient magic and daddy fig lives it’s a cannon event he is alive😭).

Em-Se wakes up in a cold sweat every night and has a hard time falling back asleep. She tries to keep it from Fig as much as she can bcuz she doesn’t want him to know just how bad she’s struggling. She uses the glamour charm to hide the bags under her dark and bloodshot eyes, she’s pale and thin not eating, tired all the time.

Every time she hears a loud bang she thinks it’s a goblin camp trying to attack her or poachers trying to kill her. Shes constantly looking over her shoulder afraid that one of the knights she faced (idk wtf else they were) is sneaking up on her.

Em-Sea is really fucked up and one night she wakes up shaking and sweating, gets out of bed and falls to the floor from a really really bad nightmare so the girls in her dorm put her arms around their necks and take her to the infirmary. Kinda like the same scene where harry had the nightmare in OOTP and went to dumbledores office.

I'm feeling out of sorts today so Imma take those feelings and put them in here, so: ANGST, my favorite (plus little comfort since you asked but just a tiny bit cause yeah)

"Are you sure you're all right?"

MC jumped at the voice behind her. Poppy was peering at her with a worried frown on her face. If MC didn't know better, she'd say the dark bags under her eyes were visible to the world. However, she knew better and had become a professional in glamouring spells and makeup. So, whatever had Poppy worried wasn't the sleepless night or nightmares MC was careful to hide.

"I'm good," she answered with a cheeky smirk. "Why are you asking?"

Poppy only side-eyed her and sat next to her. It was common for students to sit at different tables, mainly because everyone had friends or family in different houses. MC, especially, seemed to find a friend in all four houses even if she belonged to the one.

"Nothing," Poppy sighed when MC didn't crack.

Her happy mask was on full display and not even Fig knew MC had been having mental issues, and he knew everything about the girl. Truth was, MC's nightmares were often about the repository. Sometimes Fig died in there, other times she died, and other times Ranrok escaped and tore Hogwarts down with all her friends inside.

Less frequent nightmares starred Mr. Salomon Sallow dying under her wand. Or Sebastian dying under his uncle's wand. Or, the worst yet, Sebastian dying under her wand.

All in all, she didn't want to go to sleep anymore. She stopped sleeping in the dormitory, choosing to spend her nights in the Room of Requirement where no one would be aware of her cries or fears.

Not even Deek. The elf had left when it was clear she was ready to care for her animals, plants and potions by herself.

What. She was good at faking it.

So far, at least.

That day was particularly exhausting, and MC fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She didn't even take her tie off. Or her shoes.

And, when the nightmares came, they were more real than ever. First Sebastian killing his uncle only to be killed by Anne who then turned into Ranrok and killed Fig. Then Ranrok turned into a dragon and chased her all over the highlands.

She ran.

She ran as fast as she could. Her legs burned and her feet hurt. Her head was killing her.

"Finally, you silly girl," Ranrok purred, closer and closer. "Your power is mine, MC."

She could only cry out, however, no sound came out of her mouth. Ranrok's claws grabbed her arms and she trashed, trying to escape.

"MC," Ranrok chuckled. "MC, MC."

She started crying. She tried to yell. Scream for help. The castle was close maybe someone would hear.

"MC! Merlin. Aguanenti!"

MC spluttered and blinked. Blinked again. She was in the Defense Tower. How did she-?

Fig was staring at her with wide terrified eyes.

"I was late grading some essays," he explained uselessly. One of his hands was still grabbing MC's arms, where her nightmare had put Ranrok's claw. The other hand had his wand, aiming away from her but ready to stop her if she tried anything that could hurt her.

"I was-," MC trailed off.

I was so tired I forgot to take a dreamless potion. I was so tired I forgot to lock the Room.

"I'm so tired," she ended up confessing.

Her voice broke and tears began running down her face. Once she started, she couldn't seem to stop. She sobbed. She cried and cried and Fig pulled her into his arms, not caring that her runny nose and tears could ruin his robes.

"Oh, MC," he shushed, rocking her back and fort a little. "I'm so sorry."

For not noticing. For not offering help. For not helping when he knew how difficult it was for her to ask for help in the first place.

"I just wan'it to end," MC wailed between sobs. "All'of'it!"

Fig closed his eyes, pained to his soul at hearing such words with such heavy meaning coming out from a barely sixteen year old.

He could onlu hugged her tighter.

He'd make sure she knew she was not alone.

[karamazovim]

A personal pet peeve of mine is the take that Arthur’s mistake in 5x05 was trusting Merlin over his own better judgment, meanwhile Merlin was acting purely out of a desire to protect Arthur (as his friend) at the cost of any chance at magic going free.

Like, first of all, Arthur’s ‘better judgment’ was not telling him that magic should be free. That whole speech leading up to him asking Merlin what he should do was all about the harm magic has done and how it’s taken everything from him, and then at the end he tacks on “but idk maybe it’s not pure evil”. It’s a somewhat weak (from his perspective) rationalization for saving Mordred at the cost of “magic reigning in Camelot once again” - something he fears.

Could Merlin have convinced Arthur to accept the Disir’s deal? Maybe, maybe not. We’ve seen throughout the show- and even just in this episode- that Arthur takes Merlin’s advice to heart sometimes but also often dismisses it out of hand, or hears him out but still ultimately disagrees. Which is fine and normal, but it means that just saying “Merlin should have convinced him” ignores Arthur’s agency in making the decision.

I think it’s noteworthy that Merlin spends the majority of the episode before that point trying to get Arthur to take the Old Religion seriously. He warns him not to bring weapons into a sacred space. He points out that Osgar- a sorcerer- absolutely could have killed Arthur but chose not to. He smiles for the first time in three days when Arthur asks if he should take the Disir seriously and Merlin replies that he already is.

And speaking of Merlin’s goals: Obviously, his treatment of Mordred throughout this season is both deeply unfair and highly counterproductive; I’m not arguing that point. But I simply don’t understand the reading that it’s driven solely by his love for Arthur (whether romantic or platonic) and not at all his faith in their shared destiny. Because I don’t think that his feelings towards Arthur are extricable from Arthur’s prophesied role in bringing about the Golden Age and returning magic to the land.

I understand that “magic has no place in Camelot” is a very hard-line statement — one that undoubtedly sets back the pro-magic agenda. He didn’t have to do all that. But I still don’t necessarily believe this signals him “giving up” on ending magical oppression in the long term. He’s banking on the sequence of events the prophecies have supposedly laid out: [1] keep Arthur alive (by removing perceived threats), [2] show him tangible evidence that magic can be used for good (see: Dragoon, the Dolma, etc.), [3] Albion!!

Arguably the most significant part of that plan is that Arthur genuinely comes to believe in magic’s potential for good. Which is not what would be happening if he was forced to legalize it for Mordred’s sake. Doing it that way would provide very little security for magic users because [a] it could easily be undone (especially if Mordred did end up killing Arthur) and [b] it means Arthur would have very little incentive to actually enforce any new laws protecting sorcerers.

So, yeah, Merlin is a dick to Mordred. He loses out on chances to connect outside of a very few rare moments and repeatedly leaves him to fend for himself in dangerous situations. I hate that; I wish it didn’t have to be that way, even though it makes sense that the deeply traumatized and paranoid Merlin we see in S5 is making these calls.

But Merlin is not selfishly and single-handedly responsible for throwing away the lives of all his fellow oppressed magic-users out of blind love for Arthur Pendragon. He’s not innocent, and he’s certainly not without flaws, but he’s not That either.

[you-are-my-king-now-cariad]

I need motivation to write, so I’m sharing all my fic ideas with y’all-let me know which ones sound good so I have a reason to open Wattpad again and actually get started. I want to write, my brain just refuses to give the happy chemicals until I have an excuse to weave those words.

Fairly long timeskip, 4 years at minimum, and just kind of exploring how everything’s changed. (Also Willark would be 100% canon and I’d probably kill off Tor for my own enjoyment.) May or may not end with a ruby ring and our favorite Merlin on one knee.

Let’s take that fluffy energy and run with it-a mixed bag of scenes that are post-kiss and pre-Mageguard, in that perfect universe where there is occasionally time to relax. Inspiration drawn from several ‘what would they do if they had the time’ posts.

Time to ruin everyone’s lives with a Sel death and Bree pleading with her ancestors to let him in, please, do whatever magic you have to, I just need to see him again, I would do anything. Unsure if Order spirits/non-blood relatives could access Mediums in the same way, but I feel like if anyone can it would be Selwyn.

Alternative BM ending of Sel not fully succumbing-I don’t know exactly what would have to change but basically he finds out about Bree’s deal (which would still happen-in this case it’s probably something close to demanding protection/stopping the hunt for her friends, idk-) and… let’s just say Nick and William don’t do a very good job of explaining anything to a Very Emotionally Unstable cambion and it goes badly for everyone involved. Partially because there’s a lot of bloodlust once Sel learns it was Erebus that took her.

Traumafluff at an Order event-probably a Selection Gala a year or so after BM/Camlann, everyone having to pretend they haven’t seen their friends suffer at the hands of the Order, it’s very much ‘we murdered SO many demons look at us isn’t this so awesome’ so I’m sure all those traumatized teens won’t be at all upset… fortunately, it doesn’t last forever, and the physical manifestation of you’re safe here doesn’t leave her side.

Alice being Alice. Just oh my god, Matty, are you even trying to be subtle you keep running off with the damn incubus-do what you want but you don’t get to be surprised when I ask if you two are a thing now-

And that’s most of them. Again, lmk the one(s) that y’all are most interested in!

[mintedemrys]

The merlin and giaus parallel is so!!! Because it means that giaus never truly changed! He may talk about regrets he has about how he acted during the beginning of the purge but when he becomes a mentor to merlin he teaches merlin to act exactly the same way he did or pretty close, even when merlin did periodically speak out and say that he felt different (like coming clean to morgana about his magic so she wasn't alone) giaus made sure that merlin made the same mistakes he did because he never took the time to consider his loyalty to a king who tried to commit a genocide. It's just so wild to me because not only did giaus help turn his apprentice to a soldier who never strays from his king even when he know hes wrong, but giaus does this to the one person who's destined to bring magic back and act as a sort of protector to the magical community (as seen by how the druids treat him and the mythology around him). Gaius could never deal with the consequences of his actions, regardless of whatever reasons he took them for, and because of that he passed it down onto merlin and lead partially to his downfall. Idk I just think gaius is a really interesting look into a character who distances himself from his community who's being oppressed and how loyalty to your oppressor won't ever get you the freedom you want, especiallywhile theyre actively still opressing your community, like the person who actually does bring magic back was born into the working class!

*gestures furiously to all of this* ABSOLUTELY you are right and you should say it.

I have SO MANY feelings and thoughts about the way Gaius manipulates Merlin, seemingly unknowingly, all the time. Not only that, but he is also Merlin's biggest critic and doubter, despite everything Merlin has done and achieved in a remarkably short amount of time. I mean, Merlin was out there mastering forms of magic that Gaius claimed was "beyond anyone's ability" at least twice PER SEASON. And yet, Gaius was constantly, repeatedly saying "Oh I don't think you have the power for that, Merlin. I don't think you can do that, Merlin. You're not strong enough for that kind of magic, Merlin."

Like?????

But then, to others - notably to Arthur in 5x13, and to Alator in 4x07 - Gaius was calling him the most powerful sorcerer to have ever lived.

So clearly, Gaius believed somewhat in the prophecy, but he also made it as hard as possible for Merlin to actually achieve it, and to be entirely honest, I don't think Gaius wanted it to be fulfilled.

I think Gaius got comfortable with his job and his life in Camelot, denouncing magic until it was convenient, ignoring his community and his people until it mattered to him (see: Alice). Merlin's goals would have changed that, and I genuinely do not think Gaius wanted anything to change.

Look at the way Gaius insists, endlessly, that Arthur "isn't ready" for change, like becoming King or learning about Merlin's magic. Because Gaius isn't ready for a new king, nor is he ready to not be the only one to know about Merlin's magic. He's not ready to give up that small amount of control he has over Merlin by being his sole advisor (aside from Kilgharrah, but Gaius also warns Merlin frequently not to trust the word of a dragon blindly). He's not ready for magic to return to Camelot, because that would mean having to accept that the genocide against sorcerers was wrong, and I don't think Gaius actually believes that it was.

Again, he was a personal friend of Uther's, which means likely he was a personal friend of Ygraine's as well. We know from some small conversations in canon that Gaius did warn Uther of the consequences of creating life from magic, but I think Gaius fell very much into the same trap that Uther did after Ygraine died. They both turned their anger and their guilt out, towards magic and sorcerers, rather than inward and reflecting on their own failings. Gaius would have every reason to hate Uther for killing Ygraine, for putting Gaius's fiance on a list to be killed, for leaving Arthur motherless, but instead, Gaius gave up magic and turned his back on the magical community.

And to see that so neatly paralleled with Merlin and his relationship with Arthur, turning his own anger and guilt outward instead of reflecting on himself, joining in with Arthur's hate instead of standing up and putting an end to it when he undoubtedly has the power to do so.... it's just. Wow. Incredible.

[icharchivist]

Detail I found interesting but could def be me overthinking: in the very last scene they mention dead Albanorum soldiers when so far unless I missed something Feendrache never managed to kill a single of them (otherwise they would’ve discovered what those soldiers are since they only revealed their full form when pushed to their limits like what happened in that scene with lamorak)

So either wales and albanorum got attacked by a third party (Hibergreif?) or wales has something that gives it an advantage over the devilish knights (not enough of an advantage clearly…), maybe cath palug’s power? I can see grand Percy’s sword having the ability to cut through other fae beings but I feel like there were too many dead bodies for it to be ONLY Percy idk

Either way my most tldr opinion about this event is that the highs were high and the lows were very low lol ironically vane was the highlight for me glad to see him work through his emotions a bit

That's a good question yeah. tho i do think granblue can also be squirmish about showing our pure of hearts characters actually do murders on screen lmao

tbh i got the feeling that Wales was strategically attacked much more ruthlessly than Feendrache was, especially with how the army retreated right? It's possible that the soldiers sent to Feendrache are made to survive longer in order to mostly put pressure on the people and the King, since it wants Feendrache to crumble in and out (and if the others countries allied with Feendrache falls while Feendrache can't help because of the internal pressure, it will (hopefully) turn those countries against Feendrache as they'll be in the situation Hibergreif was when Feendrache betrayed it).

So i get the feeling that strategically, the army sent to Feendrache would be one that would endure a lot more blows, while the army sent in Wales would be one that is especially destructive but perhaps not as resistant

IF, as you point out, it's the same army, but i get the feeling that with the Albanorum's soliders turning into monsters, and how Merlin didn't want the return of Hibergreif announced, i think this isn't a real army, as in, it's made of monsters, not people, right? so i don't think there's really a distinction between Albanorum and Hibergreif right now.

Also honestly i feel like it's likely the soldiers come from experiments Merlin had made, since we know the Hybrids were unperfect, and yet once triggered the soliders turn into hybrid like creatures. An upgrade?

Lamorak worked with Merlin for a long time and he came to Wales to save his brothers. And he mentions he was nerfing himself in the raid battle, because his Harvin form isn't made for fighting.

The idea of Lamorak coming to save the day in Wales enough to save his brothers could justify this carnage from someone who knows Merlin's ways.

But i also have no doubt Percival and Aglovale showed no mercy. Where Vane instructed Feendrache to mostly do defense and just push the enemy away, Aglovale for instance Wouldn't Bother Ordering That.

But yes i do think Cath Palug may have been involved since he's supposed to come helping when Wales is in crisis.

There is also the implication of Wales having done some darker magic before (re the mark on Dindrane) and they had made researches on the Otherworld (and i think it was hinted it was linked to Merlin too anyway) -- which probably gives them more of a destructive edge.

tldr is that i think the army sent to Wales was High On Attack/Low on Def while the Wales' tactic was merciless, compared to the army to Feendrache being Low On Attack/High On Def while the Feendrache's tactic was to push back and retreat but not kill.

And as for your comment, yeah i kinda agree. I really just am still aghast with the transitions on stuff that has been built up, it's pretty jarring, but the scenes that works work so well. I really did like Vane's scenes and you're right the emotionality was really there, tho personally i was much more focused on the kids for obvious reasons ahah. I do have some pet peeves regarding to the tropes that were added on more on a pattern level, but alas.

anyway! looking forward to see what exactly happened in Wales.

[rainbowsmagicandshit]

Merlin bonds pretty quickly with Arthur and ends up following him around the castle like a little duckling, and Arthur encourages it. He even goes so far as to pick little Merlin up when his tiny legs can’t quite keep up and settling him on his hip, bragging about how small Merlin is that he can carry him no problem with one arm. He takes kid Merlin everywhere, and when anyone tries to question why he’s bringing a literal small child to important, classified council meetings he replies by saying “it’s Merlin. He’s my manservant. He’s always come to these meetings with me.” The others still eye the king who has kid Merlin sitting in his lap with parchment and ink sprawled out in front of them so Merlin doesn’t get bored. There are little ink handprints and smudges on everyone’s paperwork that the king handed out. The one time someone complained that they couldn’t read the information because of this, merlin looked up with big tears and asked if he did something wrong. Arthur reassured Merlin that, “no, you did nothing wrong. He just has eye problems; it has nothing to do with your drawings.” And glared the man into submission and until he agrees it wasn’t Merlin’s fault. After that the council just compared each other’s handouts to try and make out what was under the childish doodles and handprints.

Yadda yadda yadda, middle stuff, idk…

Obviously the magical attacks on Arthur don’t stop just because Merlin got shrunk. What does change though is that there’s actually more???? Why? Because Merlin actually handled a lot of them before they became a problem. Now he can’t. So Arthur and the knights have to deal with them after they’ve become a problem. Little merlin keeps telling Arthur he has a bad feeling about something, and Arthur brushes it off as one of Merlin’s “funny feelings.” He’s right every time, and people are starting to wonder if Merlin might actually be on to something they don’t know about.

One time during one of these magic attacks, just as someone is about to land a blow or something on Arthur, Merlin screams just before Arthur can get hurt and his magic—responding to his emotions—sends the would be assassin flying out a tall castle window. Everyone is stunned like “did little merlin do that???” Arthur, amazed, kneels down before the little boy.

“Did you just save my life?”

“Of course,” Merlin answers, sniffling, scared tears still in his eyes. “Your my friend. I don’t you to get hurt. Don’t worry, Arthur, I’ll protect you.”

Arthur: 🥹🥹🥹🥹 “I’m not crying. Why I be crying. I’m just sweating from my eyes.”

I think that even with Merlin shrunk and his memories that age too, he still has a instinctual Protect Arthur as a part of him because of the whole prophecy thing. And, one the same note, their relationship and feelings for each other are also ingrained within Merlin despite him not remembering anything. Two sides of the same coin, two halves of the same whole, “A half cannot truly hate that which makes it whole” etc.

Their relationship, no matter the form, is a part of them.

While away from the castle, King Arthur + his round table knights + Merlin run into a sorcerer who attacks them. Fight ensues and the sorcerer flings a spell at Arthur but Merlin intercepts it and is hit in his stead. Right as the spell hits Merlin, one of the knights kills the sorcerer. Arthur screams Merlin’s name and looks down to where he lays sprawled on the forest floor before him and crouching down next to him. Except Merlin now seems smaller than he did a moment ago, now swimming in his clothes. When Merlin sits up, they all see that Merlin is now a little kid (4-7) and his memories are that age too. The sorcerer who did this can’t undo it or tell them how to bc they’re dead. The knights, but mostly Arthur—bc that’s his manservant, no matter how incompetent he may be, thank you very much—take care of a young Merlin. Merlin doesn’t know who any of them are and they need to figure out how to get him back to normal.

A magic reveal happens pretty quickly bc Merlin is super young and doesn’t know Camelot’s anti-magic laws and the danger associated with it. He might know not to use magic in front of strangers, but gets scared and freaks out and his magic react to his emotions. Arthur quickly realizing that magic can’t possibly be evil bc look at Merlin. He’s so young and has told them he’s always had magic, and Arthur refuses to believe Merlin could be born evil.

[sarascamander]

I love the fact that I HATE the "chosen one" trope where the main character is extremely special and is suddenly super powerful when they literally have no training or whatsoever and is one of a kind and aim to save the world because they're the only one who can. Like seriously I hate that kind of thing.

And Merlin is literally all of those things but he is literally one of my most favorite character of all time.

I think it is because while he is all in the above, 1) the magic system in BBC Merlin is literally shit, I'm sorry. I don't feel like it has any structure whatsoever. Merlin fanfiction's writer wrote a better magic system than the show. So I never really felt as if he was more special than any other magical user. I mean, there are some scenes where I was like "wow Merlin did THAT" like he was being a badass and powerful and it was told several times that he was special but overall I felt like he was on par with other magic users (but at the same time I really think he's more powerful? Like my thoughts always alternate between the two thoughts lmao + not to add that we are given little examples of what other magic users can do generally and more examples of "powerful" sorcerers. So I was like "oh Morgana/Morgause/etc can do that too."

Furthermore, Merlin's personality also really helps. Because he was such a sarcastic little sunshine that made his character so endearing and loveable. But at the same time we see how much he suffered and all the mistakes he made. How his character developed through the series is really heartbreaking to watch. Idk there's something about Merlin that is so damn loveable.

Anddd this series is from Merlin's perspective and I like to think that it was Merlin narrating the whole series. And despite "Emrys" and "most powerful sorcerers" being thrown at him, he still never thinks that he is any more special than anyone else or more powerful? He knows he can do some incredible stuff (like making an earthquake and holding back Morgana's magic, summoning a freaking goddess) but he treated that as if it was normal (insert Elle Wood's "What, is it hard?") so we as viewers also act as if it was a normal thing that he can do when it is actually not.

And the last dragonlord thing. Because of course Merlin's father is the last dragonlord. And in Merlin's perspective, this is actually quite an important thing because it's a duty he took seriously (protecting Aithusa's egg and all). But literally the only people to know he have this ability other than himself are Gaius and Kilgharrah 😭. So it wasn't really, gushed?

Okay I am burning down and while there are so many other factors I would like to conclude with, the reason why Merlin is different is because he wasn't put on a pedestal. Heroes like Harry Potter and Alina Starkov have the whole world looking at them. But Merlin's identity is hidden. Hell, even his greatest enemy didn't know who he really is. And yes, the druids depend on him to legalize magic and represent them but Merlin's whole focus in the show wasn't that. It was protecting Arthur.

Oh! And I would like to add the fact that Merlin actually fucked up in the show? Like he poisoned Morgana which is not only horrible but a fatal mistake. He chose Arthur instead of magic which led to Arthur's downfall. These are major life changing things that leave a huge impact and I kind of like (but at the same time i hate 😭) that Merlin is allowed to make mistakes and he can be selfish and he's imperfect yk. Not everything he does is right or for the sake of other people. And the fact that he paid for his mistakes!!

And it shows he's literally just a child who was manipulated and thrust into this huge responsibility he wasn't prepared for.