#leon morgana and arthur were definitely best friends and siblings

[onceandfuturewarlqck]

leon wonders when merlin had started to become friend, family, more than servant, more than arthur's, but his (theirs, gwaine's smiles said, was screamed by gwen's hugs, lancelot's quiet hushes. theirs.)

leon had grown up with morgana and arthur, and being a few years older than them he had taken on the role as the older brother.

it had been easy.

it was leon morgana arthur, never separated, holding each other's hands and backs.

thick as thieves, always together, and leon took the role of protecting arthur, and then he became a knight and he swore an oath to uther but mostly to the prince.

he looked at his friend brother prince king and he swore.

because leon would protect arthur no matter what.

and life goes on, in a way, and people grow, like they're supposed to do, and things change, and leon's days are filled with patrols and trainings and aching limbs and orders to follow.

it leavea him aching.

then.

then this boy comes in, all limbs and no muscles and even less brain cause he has to be at the very least a fool to pick a fight with arthur, of all people.

and leon watches, because he is a knight, no matter that the prince is being an asshole and a bully.

(which he wasn't as a kid. he was sweet and nice and shy and kind, and leon would always remember the way he used to shake when there were thunders, hiding himself under the covers; he would never forget the soft smiles he would give him, the time he had cried because morgana had fallen down and scraped his knees, the concentrated look when he wanted to comfort her but didnt know how to actually do it. arthur had been a sweet child, but he also was uther's son, and he wanted to make him proud.)

(and then the raid happened and arthur spiraled and closed himself and not even leon can reach for him anymore.

you're too far away, he wants to cry.

he offers his arm, but arthur turns around everytime.)

(leon nowdays wonders if arthur the kid is forever dead, sacrificed to arthur the son. it shouldn't sadden him, but it does. he thinks, leon morgana arthur, but now it's leon, and morgana, and arthur, with all those empty spaces, all looking at different walls.)

the gangly boy is lost and gone within the day.

until he saves arthur's life and becomes his manservant, that's it, and now leon has to spend all the time watching as this boy, merlin, keeps threatening the prince, calling him a prat, insulting him?

leon thinks he hit the head and he is in some other alternative universe because there is no way that this servant can act like that, without any sense of proprierty, almost friendly, with the crown prince without facing some punishment.

but arthur doesn't send him away. he talks back, jokes with him, and something slowly begins to melt in his prince. something blooms into spring again, weak and tentative, but it's there.

(and maybe leon is jealous, because when was the last time that he and arthur had joked like that? they used to run across the castle, hiding from maids. morgana would convince arthur to pull pranks, and arthur would drag leon along, and the three of them would laugh and play all day.

they used to spend nights huddled together, talking about everything, dreaming about the future. arthur would talk about slaying monsters and being a hero, and morgana would roll her eyes and say that leon was way more hero-like. leon would blush and say that he would defend them both from evil. he would later trip on the sheets and arthur would laugh at him while helping him up, before softly asking him if he was alright, corcern painting his eyes, and morgana would call him "my knight" with a cheeky smile, but they were happy.)

(now they talk less and leon calls arthur "sire" and "my prince" and all these titles, and he has forgotten how arthur's name tastes like in his mouth. and here he is, merlin, a servant, calling arthur a prat, a clotpole,  a dollophead, calling him arthur.)

leon doesn't know how to deal with merlin.

then merlin follows arthur into danger.

and again.

and again.

merlin is dead set onto going with arthur everywhere. merlin drinks poison for arthur. merlin jumps in front of bandits for arthur. merlin will do everything for arthur.

and once, leon tells him he shouldnt do this, he is just a servant, it is not his job to protect the prince.

and merlin gives him this long weird look and he purses his lips and leon doesnt know how to interpret all this, and says, you're right, its not a servant's job, and leaves it at it.

and he goes with them to the next quest anyway, which confuses leon even more.

it's not until one day merlin pushes leon out of a bandit's way, almost getting skewered by a blade, that he finally understands.

arthur fusses over merlin, pretending not to care, but his eyes lingers too much, and his hands are shaky, and merlin laughs at him and calls him a mother hen, which makes the prince pout. then the prince looks at leon and asks him if he is okay, and the concern is still there, it has never aged away, and leon is breathless and can only nod, and stare at merlin.

merlin stares back.

merlin was right, it's not a servant's job to risk their own life like this.

but merlin is not just a servant. he is their friend.

and leon thanks him, and merlin just shrugs him off, but there's a blush on his cheeks. then arthur calls for merlin, the moment broken and so many unsaid words piling in leon's mouth. merlin goes to aid the prince, leaving with an apologetic smile. he watches them as they joke around together and he watches as arthur's touch seems to hover on merlin's shoulder.

and leon understands.

(he thinks about how he has really failed. not as a knight, but as a friend. because leon had sworn to protect arthur but he had forgotten that, sometimes, what one needs protection from are not sorcerers or bandits or gigantic beasts. sometimes people need protection from themselves. and sometimes you don't protect someone with a sword, sometimes you do that with a kind word, a pulled prank or a gentle hand.)

merlin is always at arthur's side, at their side. and leon swears a second oath, one night, when the younger boy is lying too still on the ground, pained gasps rattling out of his lips as the fever rises together with infection.

arthur is asleep, next to him, he hasn't left merlin, and there is a furrow on his forehead he wishes to smother.

(arthur, sweet loving arthur, with scratches on his hands, and dirt on his cheeks, always full of love and nowhere to place it. looking for a father to give it, for someone to treasure it.

arthur and his bleeding heart.

merlin had stumbled his way in, with all his stubborness and loud loyalty and blinding affection, and without knowing it, arthur had placed that same heart in merlin's caring hands.

and merlin will die before any harm comes to it.)

(he does a good job at that, leon muses. merlin is too good for them all.)

you protect us all, he thinks, taking in the shaky figure, the flimsy blanket hiding the scar covered chest, but those scars are burnt on leon's mind and he doesn't need to see them to know they are there.

because merlin was never supposed to have scars.

friendship, a voice sighs in his mind.

you protect us all, but who protects you?

and leon kneels, in the middle of the night, between trees and sleeping knights, with merlin's shudders and the rustling of the wind, he kneels for the second time in his life, and he swears.

"to merlin of ealdor," he promises.

to merlin of camelot.

servant friend and brother.

[bitsandbobsofwriting]

twins part three, oh my gosh!!!!!! just, the way you handled Merlin and Hunith!! i love that at first Merlin just basically took his anger out on her, then later came to the realisation of what he said and then they reconciled. and i love how he specifically stated Arthur still comes first even if Hunith and Gaius are family.

that bit with Merlin and Morgana realising they're siblings is literally perfect. it was so on point hahahahaha! and Leon and Gwen laughing about how dumb their friends can be sometimes was fantastic

also, Arthur being absolutely distraught about Gwaine being in the line for the throne because he's in a relationship with Merlin was hilarious, oh my gosh

it was so so so so amazing!!!!!!!

(Referencing This Fic)

I love you anoooonnn!!!!!!

I wanted to push the idea that like... Hunith and Gaius were definitely in the wrong, Merlin had EVERY right to be angry, and like Arthur said, he would've been well within his rights to never want to talk to them again. BUT at the end of the day... he loves them, and they did what they thought was best even if they didn't think it through properly, so forgiveness, or at least beginning on the road to forgiveness, is the best for everyone involved. Also I definitely wanted to add a little Hunith-adopts-Arthur moment, just to make my pathetic little found-family loving heart happy <3

Everyone in Camelot has been cursed with dummy thicc dummy brain disease😔. Except Leon and Gwen, who are just dummy thicc.

And like... Arthur is glad Merlin has Gwaine. He's actually pretty attached to Gwaine himself. But we all have friends that we love, but wouldn't trust to water our plants whilst we went away for the weekend... let alone successfully run an entire Kingdom😅

~

I LOVE you anon, getting these messages are the highlights of my day!! I love when people notice/talk about specific things, makes my heart do the happy emote :)

~

My Ko-Fi, pls consider donating!!

[thegeminisage]

5 headcanons for Arthur, Merlin, Morgana, and Gwen

ANON I LOVE YOU thank u

im doing these in reverse order bc i wanna save the best 4 last

GWEN:

i think she genuinely enjoys taking care of people. it’s a role she’s forced into a lot - she takes care of her dad, elyan, morgana, uther, even merlin and arthur once in awhile, even HUNITH - but i think she’s the kind of person who finds genuine fulfillment in doing that kind of thing (she picked FLOWERS for morgana just because), and if she hadn’t been the blacksmith’s daughter she would have made a fine apprentice to gaius herself

she’s a better rider than you. and arthur. and elyan. and morgana. and everybody

we never hear word one about gwen’s mom but i like to imagine she died just before gwen and morgana met (which i’m assuming happened shortly after morgana came to camelot) - and gwen, who had just lost a mother, could easily sympathize with morgana, who had just lost a father and was somewhere new and unfamiliar - and that’s why they became such fast friends

gwen is probably a few years older than morgana - i like to think she was morgana’s maidservant from the start, but i don’t think they would have let her be a maidservant to the king’s ward at age 10, so maybe she’s 3ish years older - not so much older she strays into big sister territory, but old enough to do the job required of her

nobody among the knights/guards really knew what to make of gwen or arthur’s feelings for gwen because she’s ??? just a serving girl ??? like they didn’t dislike her exactly and they respected arthur’s choice for the most part but they also didn’t know anything about her and couldn’t see why the fuck arthur would make such a stir over her when it would be so much easier not to. this changes 100% after gwen’s shenanigans with smuggling leon out of camelot; leon comes back singing her praises like ok ok i GET HER now y’all ain’t gonna believe how she got me outta that cell and on leon’s word (and because she’s elyan’s brother and he’s a knight now too) everybody else warms up to her too

MORGANA:

this is practically canon but she’s a lesbian, obviously. gwen was the first girl she had a crush on

this isn’t a headcanon exactly but i wish bbc merlin had had a better budget because you know who deserved a black cat familiar? morgana. like, aithusa made a wonderful foil to merlin’s relationship w/ kilgarrah and i would not wish aithusa’s fate on any creature let alone some poor innocent cat, but also, the IMAGERY...it could have been so good

this is also sort of canon but i think she dresses expressively, hence the goth look after she goes evil. @dellesayah​ & i joke about her “evil girl eyeliner” in season 3 but honestly look the way the girl wears 100% black in s4 and s5 i think the eyeliner was her own private expression of her inner angry goth post-poisoning when she still had to be wearing those colorful dresses to fool everybody into thinking she was the same good girl morgana in s3

same age as arthur. idk why most fics have her being older - tho i admit her being older but still not being able to inherit the crown is a VALID source of her rage - but if she was born w/ magic is makes the most sense for her to have been born after the purge started, aka after arthur. i guess it depends on when you think uther cheated on his wife lol. but i never really thought of morgana and arthur as having like an older/younger sibling thing - to me they were more like twins, so definitely within a year of his age, whether it’s slightly older or younger depends on how you feel that day i guess

wintertime birthday. i think arthur has a summertime birthday (more on that below) so it makes her a nice balance to him in that way

MERLIN:

the Most doting son ever. i imagine he had a few difficult teenage years (being a warlock and all) and that he still gets himself into trouble out of sheer stupidity sometimes but aside from that he was probably really well-behaved for the most part just because he didn’t wanna make his mama sad

autumn birthday, since we went there with morgana (to complete the quad in Balance, gwen’s would definitely have to be in the spring)

ok i know colin morgan had to like put on a nice “proper” english accent for the show because katie mcgrath didn’t have one but in my heart merlin sounds like a HICK (whatever the ye olde englishe/modern british version of hick sounds like, he’s it) and his accent only gets worse for all the time they’re at ealdor. like arthur THOUGHT it was bad he probably picked on merlin about it all the time but he had NO IDEA how bad it gets! none! and EVERYBODY in ealdor sounds like that except somehow EVEN WORSE! gwen and morgana think it’s UTTERLY charming but arthur is SO GLAD to get back to camelot and away from all that nonsense! and so then ok when they meet balinor in s2 (who speaks like a normal human being) he listens to merlin talk for 5 minutes and IMMEDIATELY knows exactly where the fuck he’s from. #hicksrepresent

merlin SAYS and BELIEVES he understands magic should only be used for great deeds blah blah blah but when he gets overworked and short on time, yeah, that armor’s gonna be polishing itself while he works on 4 other things at once - he just gets better at not being caught. it’s a great deed to keep arthur’s armor in peak condition, right? arthur says he’s a terrible servant but actually being magically aided he winds up being like...really good at his job, once he gets into the swing of it. he’s just fucking insubordinate always 24/7

*** ****** no i will not be taking constructive criticism

ARTHUR:

he knew they lied to him in 2.08. he always knew. canon evidence supports this in 4.03 he says “i lost both my parents to magic” listen to me he ALWAYS KNEW!!!

canon also semi-supports a summertime birthday - i read somewhere once that they made it a point to only show camelot in spring thru early fall so they didn’t have to explain why there wasn’t snow on the ground. arthur’s coming of age ceremony (which i assumed either followed or preceeded his birthday) was in the middle of season 1, which would have been mid or late summer, hence: arthur is a summer baby.

i really like the gay!arthur headcanon but i also think he and gwen have incredible chemistry and i really like their relationship so like...maybe gay with one genuine exception. also that boy EMBODIES internalized homophobia :( poor lad

fond of DOGS and sometimes HORSES but refuses to show it because that’s not very manly of him. he’s too into hunting to truly be an Animal Person but since you don’t hunt dogs or horses generally he has a very very secret soft spot

the writers didnt do this on purpose but in my heart i believe the reason he was willing to risk SO much to save mordred in 1.08 was because of what he did to that druid camp from 4.10......like at first yeah he tries to be hard-hearted about it & just do his fuckin job but i think once his conscience was tripped he couldn’t stand to see a druid kid die again under his watch for no good reason. he’d’ve never agreed otherwise, not even for a kid. he wouldn’t have ratted morgana out but he wouldn’t have helped her either

(send me a character & i’ll give you 5 headcanons)

[bitsandbobsofwriting]

OH MY GOD THAT PART TWO!!!!!!!! i love how everyone's honestly just so resigned to Camelot just being Like That™, that yeah, the news of the prince's long lost magical twin makes everyone surprised but, like, in a resigned way?? if that makes sense, hahaha. everybody is just expecting the unexpected by now, i imagine

Arthur handled the council beautifully, and i love how all the knights and Morgana and Gwen were just the Best Friends Ever, even when acting accordingly to the situation. and the teasing with the name was great!! Prince Myrrdin, hahaha, of course Merlin would find it odd! i can't imagine being called a nickname basically your whole life and then suddenly being called your name, and with Prince attached at that ksjdksjsksjs or My Lord hahahahaha!

now that Morgana has appeared i really crave some brother-sister bonding for them. also, i just really love how Arthur and Merlin are constantly calling each other brother???? and how Arthur is making effort to stop thinking of Merlin as a servant

Arthur assigning Merlin a lowkey guard is so on point, and so is him and Gwaine vowing to literally light everything on fire so that Merls is happy

and oh my gosh Merlin confronting Kilgharrah!!!!!! it was perfect! that dragon frustrates me so much sometimes, it was amazing to read Merlin going off on him like that! because yeah, how dare he go on and on about losing his kin and then denying Merlin his!

i can't wait for the next part, oh my gosh. you ended this one on such a note??????? wow. Hunith has no idea what she's just walked into. that conversation is probably going to be heartbreaking. i'm so excited!!!!

(Referencing This Fic)

YAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY!! I'm glad you liked it so much anon!! I love you!!

Camelot really is just Like That™. Leon and Arthur both think that's just how life is, that batshit things happen all the time to everyone and it's normal. So does Merlin, to some extent, because he's never been in any other big cities, though he does know that most of the weird stuff happens because of destiny and all that. It took Percival, Elyan, Lance, and Gwaine a little while to adjust because... they've all travelled. And Camelot really is just.... different.

AND YES!!! I'm running with the idea that Arthur and Morgana know that they're siblings, which means that Morgana and Merlin are now siblings too!!! Such bonding!! That will DEFINITELY play a big role in the next part, because it hasn't really occurred to anyone yet, but someone (probably Morgana because let's be real, she's the smartest of the lot of them) will come to the sudden conclusion of "Holy Fuck. Merlin's my brother." and everyone will go😮

So the next part will definitely have both angsty and fluffy bits.

(And if y'all want sibling bonding, Morgana and Arthur have a really sweet sibling moment in #12)

~

I'm currently working on #12, and I may or may not be posting another sneak peek later today :D Part 3 to the Twin!AU will hopefully be out within two weeks, but no promises as I'm currently focusing on #12 and then something fluffy/funny, maybe #54, #57 (both funny) or #58 (fluffy) from This List, let me know which y'all would prefer!!

[imexperiencinggrowthgetoverit]

im not crying you are

leon wonders when merlin had started to become friend, family, more than servant, more than arthur's, but his (theirs, gwaine's smiles said, was screamed by gwen's hugs, lancelot's quiet hushes. theirs.)

leon had grown up with morgana and arthur, and being a few years older than them he had taken on the role as the older brother.

it had been easy.

it was leon morgana arthur, never separated, holding each other's hands and backs.

thick as thieves, always together, and leon took the role of protecting arthur, and then he became a knight and he swore an oath to uther but mostly to the prince.

he looked at his friend brother prince king and he swore.

because leon would protect arthur no matter what.

and life goes on, in a way, and people grow, like they're supposed to do, and things change, and leon's days are filled with patrols and trainings and aching limbs and orders to follow.

it leavea him aching.

then.

then this boy comes in, all limbs and no muscles and even less brain cause he has to be at the very least a fool to pick a fight with arthur, of all people.

and leon watches, because he is a knight, no matter that the prince is being an asshole and a bully.

(which he wasn't as a kid. he was sweet and nice and shy and kind, and leon would always remember the way he used to shake when there were thunders, hiding himself under the covers; he would never forget the soft smiles he would give him, the time he had cried because morgana had fallen down and scraped his knees, the concentrated look when he wanted to comfort her but didnt know how to actually do it. arthur had been a sweet child, but he also was uther's son, and he wanted to make him proud.)

(and then the raid happened and arthur spiraled and closed himself and not even leon can reach for him anymore.

you're too far away, he wants to cry.

he offers his arm, but arthur turns around everytime.)

(leon nowdays wonders if arthur the kid is forever dead, sacrificed to arthur the son. it shouldn't sadden him, but it does. he thinks, leon morgana arthur, but now it's leon, and morgana, and arthur, with all those empty spaces, all looking at different walls.)

the gangly boy is lost and gone within the day.

until he saves arthur's life and becomes his manservant, that's it, and now leon has to spend all the time watching as this boy, merlin, keeps threatening the prince, calling him a prat, insulting him?

leon thinks he hit the head and he is in some other alternative universe because there is no way that this servant can act like that, without any sense of proprierty, almost friendly, with the crown prince without facing some punishment.

but arthur doesn't send him away. he talks back, jokes with him, and something slowly begins to melt in his prince. something blooms into spring again, weak and tentative, but it's there.

(and maybe leon is jealous, because when was the last time that he and arthur had joked like that? they used to run across the castle, hiding from maids. morgana would convince arthur to pull pranks, and arthur would drag leon along, and the three of them would laugh and play all day.

they used to spend nights huddled together, talking about everything, dreaming about the future. arthur would talk about slaying monsters and being a hero, and morgana would roll her eyes and say that leon was way more hero-like. leon would blush and say that he would defend them both from evil. he would later trip on the sheets and arthur would laugh at him while helping him up, before softly asking him if he was alright, corcern painting his eyes, and morgana would call him "my knight" with a cheeky smile, but they were happy.)

(now they talk less and leon calls arthur "sire" and "my prince" and all these titles, and he has forgotten how arthur's name tastes like in his mouth. and here he is, merlin, a servant, calling arthur a prat, a clotpole,  a dollophead, calling him arthur.)

leon doesn't know how to deal with merlin.

then merlin follows arthur into danger.

and again.

and again.

merlin is dead set onto going with arthur everywhere. merlin drinks poison for arthur. merlin jumps in front of bandits for arthur. merlin will do everything for arthur.

and once, leon tells him he shouldnt do this, he is just a servant, it is not his job to protect the prince.

and merlin gives him this long weird look and he purses his lips and leon doesnt know how to interpret all this, and says, you're right, its not a servant's job, and leaves it at it.

and he goes with them to the next quest anyway, which confuses leon even more.

it's not until one day merlin pushes leon out of a bandit's way, almost getting skewered by a blade, that he finally understands.

arthur fusses over merlin, pretending not to care, but his eyes lingers too much, and his hands are shaky, and merlin laughs at him and calls him a mother hen, which makes the prince pout. then the prince looks at leon and asks him if he is okay, and the concern is still there, it has never aged away, and leon is breathless and can only nod, and stare at merlin.

merlin stares back.

merlin was right, it's not a servant's job to risk their own life like this.

but merlin is not just a servant. he is their friend.

and leon thanks him, and merlin just shrugs him off, but there's a blush on his cheeks. then arthur calls for merlin, the moment broken and so many unsaid words piling in leon's mouth. merlin goes to aid the prince, leaving with an apologetic smile. he watches them as they joke around together and he watches as arthur's touch seems to hover on merlin's shoulder.

and leon understands.

(he thinks about how he has really failed. not as a knight, but as a friend. because leon had sworn to protect arthur but he had forgotten that, sometimes, what one needs protection from are not sorcerers or bandits or gigantic beasts. sometimes people need protection from themselves. and sometimes you don't protect someone with a sword, sometimes you do that with a kind word, a pulled prank or a gentle hand.)

merlin is always at arthur's side, at their side. and leon swears a second oath, one night, when the younger boy is lying too still on the ground, pained gasps rattling out of his lips as the fever rises together with infection.

arthur is asleep, next to him, he hasn't left merlin, and there is a furrow on his forehead he wishes to smother.

(arthur, sweet loving arthur, with scratches on his hands, and dirt on his cheeks, always full of love and nowhere to place it. looking for a father to give it, for someone to treasure it.

arthur and his bleeding heart.

merlin had stumbled his way in, with all his stubborness and loud loyalty and blinding affection, and without knowing it, arthur had placed that same heart in merlin's caring hands.

and merlin will die before any harm comes to it.)

(he does a good job at that, leon muses. merlin is too good for them all.)

you protect us all, he thinks, taking in the shaky figure, the flimsy blanket hiding the scar covered chest, but those scars are burnt on leon's mind and he doesn't need to see them to know they are there.

because merlin was never supposed to have scars.

friendship, a voice sighs in his mind.

you protect us all, but who protects you?

and leon kneels, in the middle of the night, between trees and sleeping knights, with merlin's shudders and the rustling of the wind, he kneels for the second time in his life, and he swears.

"to merlin of ealdor," he promises.

to merlin of camelot.

servant friend and brother.