#merlins been watching arthur from the veil for a while

[justaz]

i've had this au idea for a while and have tried writing it but i don't get far into it before abandoning it so ill post it in case someone else wants to write it or take some inspiration from it or what have you. s4ep1/2 au.

merlin uses his magic to just latch arthur's feet to the ground as well as lancelot's when he sees him creeping towards the veil. merlin turns to face them as he walks backwards, revealing his gold eyes and magic to arthur which barely registers in his mind as he understands what merlin's doing and Panics. he's yelling and almost begging and demanding merlin to get back here you idiot. i'm the king you listen to me

and merlin just smiles and is like when have i ever listened to you? and steps into the veil, sacrificing himself and closing it. with his death, his magic releases arthur and lancelot who are just like. what the fuck. and grief-stricken. and angry. anyways they go back to camelot and lancelot stays with gwen and they mourn together. gwaine is. a wreck. the knights are all grieving. arthur is just. gone. like. he closes himself in his chambers for like two weeks. he doesn't sleep, he doesn't eat, he can barely function. anyways merlin watches him from the veil as a spirit, he watches all of them and is a little guilty about causing them so much grief and heart ache but he rather them be sad and alive than dead so he doesn't regret it that much

magic lore i made up - since merlin gave his life in an exchange, he gets to remain conscious and aware within the veil. the other spirits that roam around are focused on whatever's keeping them there (and keeping them from moving on to the afterlife). there's a lot of sorcerers in camelot who are angry and crying because they were executed by uther - their heads cut off, their bodies charred, or their necks bent at odd angles. they wander around calling for justice. anyways ygraine's life was also taken in an exchange so what i'm saying is ygraine and merlin best friends arc.

they both watch over arthur with worry and then one day arthur just storms out of his chambers and down to the library and buries himself in books, searching desperately for a way to bring merlin back. with how little he's eating and sleeping, arthur ends up passing out and has a nightmare. merlin reaches out on instinct wishing to comfort him and ends up getting pulled into his dreams, only with his intention being to comfort, his arrival shifts the dream from a nightmare into something a lot more pleasant - merlin and arthur together and alive and...courting? it looks like? arthur leans in to kiss him but the dream dissipates right before their lips meet.

anyways, that happens a few times with a few different dreams as arthur searches for a way to open the veil again and bring merlin back. i have two different endings for this though. one is, since merlin is emrys and immortal, after some time the cailleach comes back and is like "immortal asshole. i took some of your eternal life force but you're still immortal but the veil is still sealed. i can't keep someone who still has all this life. get out." and just pushes him out of the veil and into his body again. OR arthur finds a way to bargain with the cailleach and sees his mother with merlin and bada bing bada boom (i forgot to add that arthur at some point finds out about his uncles treachery lmao) trades agravaine's life for ygraine's and then his father's (he can't stand to see his father wasting away and sees this peaceful death as mercy) for merlin's. and he gets his mom and bf best friend manservant back.

after everything settles down, arthur finally has time to focus on merlin's magic but with the trauma of almost losing him, he finds he really can't care about it and just repeals the ban to keep from even thinking about executing him so merlin will never be in danger again. ygraine is also happy about this bc i hc she had a little bit of magic. she learned from her gf nimueh. bonus hc bc i feel like it - ygraine and uther were married and loved each other, yes, but ygraine took nimueh as her consort and uther took balinor as his consort.

okay thats all. if anyone actually writes this or anything similar to it, it'd love to read it. pls tag me or dm me <3

[mademoiselle-xingyoi]

Attention Needed!

Secret Kiss with Knight

Merlin x Reader

Summary : Merlin is too busy making a potion for King Arthur and you aren’t having any of it.

Word Count : 894 words

Type of fanfiction : Fluff

tw : mention of Lancelot…  needy Merlin (not intimately) 

You laid on your bed and watched from afar as Merlin brewed together a potion for Arthur. He’d been tasked with watching over you as you had, once again, fell going up the stairs because of the sheer lack of balance the woman you switched bodies with had. 

Though your leg felt completely fine now! It’d been a while, and it didn’t hurt much to begin with. You could walk just fine without experiencing pain. But with Merlin ever being persistent, he told you to rest. After some time… it got quite boring not being able to do anything while Merlin did whatever magic things he was doing.

“Merlinnnn…” You called, hoping to get his attention.

The only response was a quiet and questioning hum. Not even a look or glance. Or a single movement directed towards you! That frustrated you as he’d paid no mind to you at all this entire time. Wasn’t he supposed to be your lover?!

Getting up from the comfort of the soft sheets, you walked to Merlin. Peering over his shoulder, you saw him mixing things together. You also noticed how he shied away from how close you were standing to him. But he was wearing his veil, covering his face like usual.

“Why do you still wear that around me? You don’t need to.” You reached up a tucked some hair behind his ear, resulting in him shying away. Again.

“I-I prefer wearing it.” He claimed, his hands now, shakily, working. 

“But I’ve seen you without it so many times! We’re also lovers, right Merlin? Doesn’t it get in your way a lot?”

He didn’t say anything back as he was apparently trying to ignore you in favor of his work instead.

You pouted, becoming upset as it felt like he just simply didn’t want you around right now.

You huffed as you turned towards the door to leave. “Fine. I’m sure Lancelot will keep me company.” Despite saying that, the queen’s secret rendezvous man was the last person you wanted to keep you company.

“No.” Suddenly, Merlin spoke up, clearly not happy about what you said. Or he was jealous.

Looking over your shoulder, you could see he finally put his work down and was facing you. “A-Ah! H-He, I-I…” He stammered, looking away and back at his things. Since he turned away, he didn’t see you start approaching him again. “H-He wouldn’t be good company for you…”

Without warning, you gently pulled his veil off his face, with him protesting after. You couldn’t care that much as you tossed it onto your bed. Cupping his pretty face after, you looked into his eyes. Merlin’s face was almost like a tomato as he started tearing up, like usual.

“You’re so cute Merlin. You know that?” He brought the back of his hand up to cover his mouth as he looked away. You brushed away the tears building up in his eyes and wrapped your arms around his neck, laying your head on his shoulder. With how your bodies were so close together, his face only get redder.

You started planting small kisses to his upper neck and under his jawline, making him squirm. Trailing up further, you kissed all over his face. Leaving just one part that was covered by him. Gently pulling his hand away, you look him in the eyes again. You wait and watch him, making sure he was fine with this and that you weren’t making him uncomfortable. 

When you saw no signs of said feelings, you pulled him closer and kissed him deeply. Savoring the moment and the satisfaction of finally getting what you wanted. You entangled your hand into his hair—a color akin to that of beautiful snow—and brought him closer once again.

Unexpectedly, he wrapped his arms around you. His hands coming around to cross into an ‘x’ over your back. If there had somehow been even a sliver of a space between you two, there definitely wasn’t one now. Your bodies now pressed fully against each other as you kept deeply kissing one another.

You pulled away a moment later, planting a kiss to his cheek and stepping back. With a playful smirk, you spoke. “Well, my ankle is getting tired and I’m sure you still have your magical things to work on.” You started making your way back to your bed when you felt him grab your wrist and turn you around swiftly. 

Merlin tightly wrapped his left arm around your waist and used his right hand to pull you in, his fingers catching in your hair. One of your hands rested on his upper arm, and the other on his shoulder. A few seconds later, he pulled back and rested his forehead against yours, albeit being flustered.

“Merlin?” You muttered, feeling your heart start picking up in pace. “King Arthur can wait. He doesn’t like the potions anyways.” He muttered back quickly, for once looking into your eyes without wavering. Smirking playfully again, you whispered to him. “You were supposed to have been watching over me anyways. I’m getting what I’m due.”

Through the night, you two lavished in the soft affection and closeness you offered the other. Ultimately, you slept in the arms of the man you loved, who cherished you just as much.

And Merlin learned that it’s nicer to postpone work for you.

[thatgaywizardoverthere]

Okay but how satisfying is it to imagine that Uther was such a magic-hating twat in his first life that the triple goddess was just like “oh hell nah” and reincarnated him as Giles from Buffy, the mentor and supporter of magicky kids

[arthursknight]

the common variation of the "arthur comes back" trope is that he emerges from avalon, fog headed and confused, and countless time has passed, and the only thing that makes sense is merlin.

but.

imagine an awake arthur. arthur, who enters the realm of avalon with a hand clamped tight over his eyes, refusing to watch as his friends mourn. arthur, who bangs against the walls of the veil, who slams his shoulder into invisible barriers, who reaches for his sword that won't pierce through. "i have to go back," he says. it's like no one hears him, in this liminal space, where nothing is familiar and all he can see is a technicolour hellscape that is life without him.

arthur, who watches the years pass, and his friends grow old, and die, but never forget. who watches his kingdom grow and diminish, suffer and sing.

but then there's merlin, who only grows old when he wants to. there's merlin, who doesn't die, even when it's well past the time he should. and as the familiar faces of his loves fade away, he clings to that. and watches.

watches as merlin grows his magic, and learns, and reaches into the core of the universe to pull out more beauty than arthur has ever known. watches as merlin tells his story, over and over and over and over, and watches as the light never fades from his eyes when he tells it.

and there are parts arthur has trouble watching. those years where merlin pleads at the lake's edge. give him back to me. take me to him. make me forget. each iteration hurts in different ways, and arthur finds himself slamming his shoulder against the veil again, gasping for breath he doesn't need.

and worse yet, somehow. merlin falling in love, doomed from the start. merlin watching as everyone he believes in and seeks comfort in grows old and dies. he slowly stops telling the stories, and arthur screams his voice hoarse-- or imagine he does-- trying to get him to hear, i'm still here, i'm still here.

but centuries pass and he comes to learn that merlin never forgets him. faces fade and he changes towns, villages, cities, but he keeps waiting, hoping.

and arthur watches the world fall apart and stitch itself back together again, often at the behest of his sorcerer. and his magic grows more and more subtle, but it's still there, never leaving him.

arthur never leaves him, either.

somewhere in the liminal, he realizes what he's known all along, the steady thrum of love beneath his chest. and it drives him mad for a while, and there's the sword through the veil again.

but he's doomed to wait, and finally, finally, finally--

he's spitting up vile, murky water, his legs a newborn stag's, and he's looking up into the blue eyes he's been watching for so many aching centuries.

"well," merlin laughs. "took you long enough."

"you," he'll reply, whether his voice is ready or not, "have no idea."

[semperbucky]

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

favorite character(s)- 🍋

favorite quote(s) from a fandom- 🍐

favorite costume/outfit: 🍇

favorite finale episode: 🍓

aaa tysm!!!!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[whenyouhearthedoorcreak]

Fuck it, I wrote the goddamn essay

I'm far too invested in this series so heres my far overthought essay on Merlin as a Shakespearean Tragedy

Okay this is just a rough outline of what I want to talk about, but the basic premise is that merlinBBC lines up to be a perfect Shakespearean tragedy (ST)

The nine points of a ST ~

The Tragic Hero ~ Arthur is The tragic hero but Merlin also fits into it on a more personal level. Arthur is a man of great presence and station he fights all the monsters and dies in the end, He has this great destiny that lays heavy on his shoulders and he unknowingly drives the plot for most of the show (I just realised how much of this show Arthur just doesn’t know about? Like the entire plot is happening behind him and he’s just having a sword fight (sub thought, that is exactly how I would frame this if I directed a play of Merlin))

Good Vs Evil ~ Morgana sort of handles this all on her own? She is presented as the moral compass of the show and is then slowly manipulated into a position of villain although there is a more complex look at this being represented by merlin gwen and morgause but that would take an awfully long time to explain

Fatal Flaw ~ typically this is given to the Tragic Hero™ but because Merlin and Arthur sort of split the spotlight this is applied mainly to Merlin. Merlin is deeply and unshakingly loyal to Arthur and while this is initially and somewhat veiled as loyalty to his destiny and the future he’s fighting for, it’s easily evident from his actions in “the sins of a father” that he is quickly becoming more loyal to Arthur than magic and chooses Arthurs well being over the fate of magic kind.

Tragic Waste ~ this is the idea that the hero will die before completing all he could do, and if that doesn’t sound like Arthur then we didn’ watch the same show.

Conflict ~ the corruption of merlins and morgana from morgause and Killgarah is the real core conflict of this show, if those two characters had never been there none of this would ever have happened. While i would agree that they could have done it better the main theme of this shows conflicts in manipulation,

Dichotomy of villainy ~ we are left by the end of this show unable to really take a side because everything felt preventable, for this reason morgana’s death and Merlins victory still feels mostly hollow

Supernatural element ~ I feel like this is fairly self evident

Ambiguity of poetic justice ~ “good will always triumph and evil will always suffer” is the simple moral code that most writing goes by, however a ST subverts this, often having its good characters commit acts of moral ambiguity and the hero inevitably fails or dies in the process. This is doen in MerlinBBC with Merlin never fulfilling his destiny and Arthur never repealing the ban on magic. We can suppose given Gwen's scene during the battle of camlann that she will most likely repeal the ban on magic and raise merlin to the title of Court Sorcerer as is vaguely hinted towards given his position in her coronation scene.

Comic relief ~ STs aren’t all sorrow and hannes acts, they have their fair share of jokes and funny moments. We can see that in some of the more joky episodes, but also in things like That tavern scene.

The last piece of this tragic puzzle is the most obvious, the five seasons of Merlin are the five acts of a Shakespeare play. I've made a handy chart to understand what I mean. Because it's a t because its a tv show and therefore worried about viewers returning the act structures isn’t broken up perfectly, but it still fits fairly well. The thing that leaves people bitter about the end of this show, I think, is because they expected the show to settle, to find a rest in its ending, what we got instead was a camelot that (while still having a trusted monarch) was still in turmoil, and a shot of merli alone and sad 1500 years in the future still waiting for arthur.

What happened with merlin is that we never got the finally, “everything will be okay” moment and so we are left wanting

The themes of Merlin are a dichotomy of Peace and Equality Vs corruption and manipulation, this is displayed through the main characters of Merlin, Arthur, and Morgana, with each being manipulated and corrupted by Killgarrah, Uther, and Morgause respectively. This is shown best through the use of Forked Path. (which I weirdly can’t find any articles or anything for? Which is odd given how popular it is but anyway) the Forked Path happens anytime the characters are presented with two strict choices without much wiggle room, both of which could end badly in the long run but must nonetheless be chosen between. This is very clear with season two's story arc between merlin and morgana, in which merlin must either kill his friend to prevent a possible future, or let her win and risk the demise of albion. Merlin attempts to avoid this, temporarily disabling Morgana from enacting her plans and the like, but in the end he is forced to choose. Arthur is continuously presented with the problem of whether to trust and show mercy to magic. Morgana is presented with either killing Uther and freeing magic, or running from camelot and lending to the further persecution of the druids. The thing you might notice is that these are all linching on Merlin and whether or not he tells the truth, his silence provides false dichotomies for the other characters. This is the manipulation I mentioned earlier. Merlin is led to believe again and again that he Must commit acts against his morals to save Arthur and therefore Albion. But as no fan will hesitate to point out, he never really had to. This is a show of the trope of Self Fulfilling Destiny that's found in all tragedies since ancient greece. Merlin’s attempts to stop morgana directly lead to their conflict, his keeping his magic a secret to protect arthur ultimately leads to arthur's death (having only met “evil” sorcerers arthur never repealed the ban and so mordred sides with morgana). If Merlin had followed his own heart then all would have worked out well, but instead we see Killgarrahs manipulation stop merlin from acting in camelots best interest.

[onlyfreds]

Yours Forever | F.W.

Title: Yours Forever

Requested: Yes/No

Summary: It’s been a year since the war. Fred decides that he is ready for a new chapter in his life.

A/N: This is for @theweasleysredhair​‘s 9k writing challenge. Prompt #9 (You should just marry me) and #15 (You remembered) and the song “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars

Lyrics are in italics

Part 2

--

“You ready?” I asked my boyfriend, Fred, as I walked down the stairs of our flat.

My boyfriend turned to face me, “Gorgeous as always love.” He said with a small smirk.

He then picked up his jacket from the table, then he offered me his arm, “Ready to go on our date love?”

I giggled as I took it, “Always.”

--

After eating at the restaurant, we were sitting in a nearby park, watching the stars.

“It’s amazing isn’t it.” I suddenly said.

Fred looked at me, “What is?”

“6 years of dating and two near death experiences. And we’re still standing strong.” I contemplated. It’s been a year since the war. Fred would’ve been crushed by a wall if I hadn’t pushed him out of the way in time and I would’ve died if Fred hadn’t blocked the killing curse that a deatheater shot at me.

After receiving no reply, I looked over at Fred, his eyes were glazed, his mind was a million miles away.

“What are you thinking?” I asked softly.

He diverted his gaze back to me, before standing up and helping me do the same.

“Freddie, you’re worrying me.” I said as I placed my right hand on his cheek.

He gave me a small smile, “You think it’s amazing that we’re still standing strong after all these years?”

I gave him a confused look, “Of course I do, Freddie.”

“Then you should just marry me.” He said, as he got down on one knee.

“What?”

He pulled out a small box with a diamond ring inside, “Y/N, you are the most amazing and gorgeous person I’ve ever met. I honestly wouldn’t be here without you. I want to live my life to the fullest and I want you to be my side while I do it. You had me under your spell the minute I laid eyes on you, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I could never imagine my life without you and I could never see my future without you in it. So, will you marry me?”

My hand flew to my mouth as tears started to cloud my vision, “Yes! Yes Fred! I will marry you!”

“I love you.” He said as he slipped the ring on my finger.

“I love you too.” I said as he leaned forward and kissed me under the stars.

 6 months later

Since Ginny and Hermione helped with the wedding preparations and like Hermione, I was muggle-born, they agreed to keep some muggle traditions like the bride and groom not seeing each other until the wedding day.

As the rehearsal dinner ended, Fred was more clingy than usual.

“Do we have to be apart?” Fred whined as he hugged me from behind.

I chuckled, “It’s tradition Freddie. Besides, it’s just one night. Tomorrow, we’re getting married.”

He placed his head in the crook of my neck, “Can’t wait to finally call you Mrs. Weasley.”

But that little moment was interrupted when George yelled, “We have to go Freddie. Ginny already whacked me on the head, I don’t want to wait for Hermione to do the same.”

Fred and I laughed at his twin’s predicament.

“Just a second.” Fred yelled back before turning to me, “Can I have one last kiss.”

I gave him a confused look, “One last kiss?”

“As an unmarried couple.”

I smiled as I leaned forward and kissed him.

“I can’t wait to see you walk down the aisle.” He said.

I giggled, “And I can’t wait to see you at the end of the aisle.”

“Fred!” George yelled, “Hermione is going to whack me on the head if you don’t get your arse here in 2 minutes!”

“See you tomorrow princess!” Fred said with a small wink as he ran off to his twin.

 The Big Day

I looked at myself in the mirror, admiring how perfect my dress was. It was literally my dream dress. It was sleeveless and lace is scattered along the outfit. And the veil was topped off with a small tiara.

“You look beautiful.” Hermione said as she entered the room.

“Thank you, Mione.” I said, giving her a small smile.

Ginny then dashed into the room, “Oh my gosh.” She gasped, “Fred is going to cry.”

“Are you sure you want to marry my brother?” She joked. “Because I can make the perfect distraction while you slip out the front door.”

We laughed as Hermione playfully smacked Ginny’s arm.

I shook my head, “I’m fine Ginny. I have never been more sure of anything in my life.”

“Well then,” Hermione said, “We wouldn’t want to keep your soon to be husband waiting then.”

Our wedding was taking place at the Burrow just like Bill and Fleur’s wedding.

Molly was waiting for us by the opening of the tent.

“You look so gorgeous, dear.” Molly said as she gave me a hug.

“Thank you, Molly.” I grinned.

“Molly,” I said, tentatively.

“Yes dear?”

“Thank you so much for helping out but can I ask one more favor?”

“Of course, dear, it is your wedding day.”

“Can Arthur be the one to walk me down the aisle?” I asked. To say that I didn’t get along with my parents was the understatement of the century. Since they wanted a boy, they were “disappointed” to say the least. And it only made matters worse when I attended Hogwarts. They disowned me the moment I came home for the summer after my first year. The minute the twins knew about my situation, the Weasleys took me in faster than you could say, “The Burrow”.

Tears started to well up in Molly’s eyes, “Of course dear.”

She then called Arthur as the ceremony started.

“Thank you.” Arthur said as he took his place beside me, “for making my son so happy.”

I smiled, “If there’s anyone I should be thanking Arthur, it’s you and Molly. Thank you for raising the son who would complete me and make me happy.”

Molly was trying to hold back tears as she hugged me tightly, “My baby boy is all grown up now and I’m glad that he found someone so perfect.”

“Molly.” I said with a small smile, “Stop, you’re going to make me cry.”

The three of us chuckled as Molly handed me the bouquet.

I started to walk down the aisle.

Ginny was right, Fred had to turn around to hide his tears.

When we arrived at the altar Fred smiled as he said, “Hey gorgeous, is that the earrings you wore when we had our first kiss.”

I grinned, “You remembered.”

He chuckled, “Of course I do. I remember every memory we have.”

The ceremony then started.

Then it was time for the vows. I went first.

“Fred Weasley. My best friend, my partner in crime, my everything, my lover, and in just a few minutes time: The man I’ll spend the rest of forever with. I didn’t know what made me fell in love with him in the first place. Was it his dazzling eyes? Or his charming smile? It could even be his overall personality.” I stated, making everyone chuckled.

“I always thought that love means going through immense pain or having your heart broken into millions of pieces or just full of regrets, basically. But Fred proved me wrong. He never made me go through pain, he never broke my heart, and I never have a single regret when it came to loving him.” I continued, making my fiancé smile.

“He always manages to make me smile. As cliché as it sounds, he is the ray of sunshine that shines through my darkest days. He has given me so much love and care over the years and I promise that I’ll always give you the more than what you deserve. I promise that I’ll always prank with you. I promise that I’ll always be by your side no matter what.” I said as I slipped the ring onto his finger.

“Your sister asked me if I was sure about my decision to marry you.” The group laughed as Ginny gave us a guilty smile. I turned back to Fred, not trying to hold back the tears anymore, “I told her that, I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. If I lived a thousand lives, then I would choose you a thousand times. Loving you isn’t just a feeling, it’s an adventure. An adventure I’ll take with you even in the afterlife.”

At this point, it was obvious that Fred was trying to hold back tears but he still had his vows to say.

“Y/N L/N, how do I begin to describe her? The most amazing, the most gorgeous, the hottest girl I’ve ever laid eyes on. The moment I saw you, I knew that you were the one I was going to marry. I knew that you were the one I was going to start a family with. I knew that you were the one I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I found, and still find, every part of you attractive. From the sparkle of mischief in your eyes to your wonderful laugh. Even the way how you could wear a bucket of red paint and yell at me for hitting the wrong target.” I blushed as he tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ear.

“Honestly, I would be lost without you. You are the part of my life that I can never live without. You have always been by my side. Through the ups and downs, the laughs and the frowns, the good ideas and the bad ones, the successful pranks and the less successful ones. You supported the joke shop the minute we pitched the idea to you. You’ve stayed with me through those late nights of brainstorming. And you willingly dropped out of school to open up the joke shop with us.” Molly gave a playful glare to Fred, causing everyone to was present to laugh.

“I would’ve died if you hadn’t saved me. I wouldn’t be standing here today, marrying the woman I love. Merlin, I don’t even know how I got you date me in the first place, let alone marry me. But I thank my lucky stars that I got you to say ‘yes’. I am the luckiest man in the world, because I can call you mine. I promise that I’ll always be with you, even in the afterlife. You complete me.” He said as he placed the ring on my finger, “Nothing else can complete me but you.” He finished, openly crying.

“With the power invested in me. I now pronounce you, husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride.” The minister smiled.

Fred pulled me into his arms and kissed me passionately, finally sealing the deal.

--

Later at the Reception

The party was in full swing. It actually reminded me of the parties we would have at the Gryffindor common room. So, it meant that we still knew how to throw a party. We already threw the bouquet and the garter, Hermione and Ron catching them respectively.

Then came our first dance as husband and wife. But, like always, Fred had something up his sleeve.

I gave my husband a confused look when George announced that he had a “little surprise”.

Music started to play as Fred winked and said, “You’ll see.”

To everyone’s surprise, he started to sing.

Oh, her eyes, her eyes Make the stars look like they're not shinin' Her hair, her hair Falls perfectly without her tryin' She's so beautiful and I tell her everyday

Yeah, I know, I know When I compliment her, she won't believe me And it's so, it's so Sad to think that she don't see what I see But every time she asks me, "Do I look okay?" I say

He then took my hand and spun me around as he continued,

When I see your face There's not a thing that I would change 'Cause you're amazing Just the way you are And when you smile The whole world stops and stares for a while 'Cause girl, you're amazing Just the way you are Yeah

He traced my bottom lip with his thumb as I giggled.

Her lips, her lips I could kiss them all day if she'd let me Her laugh, her laugh She hates, but I think it's so sexy She's so beautiful and I tell her everyday Oh, you know, you know You know I'd never ask you to change

He placed a small peck on my lips before continuing.

If perfect's what you're searchin' for, then just stay the same So don't even bother askin' if you look okay You know I'll say

When I see your face There's not a thing that I would change 'Cause you're amazing Just the way you are And when you smile The whole world stops and stares for a while 'Cause girl, you're amazing Just the way you are

I placed my hands on his shoulders as he swayed me on the spot.

The way you are The way you are Girl, you're amazing Just the way you are

When I see your face There's not a thing that I would change 'Cause you're amazing Just the way you are And when you smile The whole world stops and stares for a while 'Cause girl, you're amazing Just the way you are Yeah

 “Since when did you learn to sing?” I asked.

 He smirked, “Only for you. Love.”

--

Bonus:

 Soon enough, the reception was soon over. We were trying to help Molly clean up.

She waved us off, “We can handle this. Just go.”

Fred smirked, “Time to go to our own reception then.”

After bidding goodbye to his family, we apparated to the hotel we were staying in before going to our honeymoon.

I yelped as Fred scooped me up bridal style and carried me to our room.

“Mrs. Weasley, I guarantee you’re going to have the best night of your life.”

[rainbowvamp]

Enchanted

Happy Mercelot week my loves! Enjoy a Cinderella love at first sight au. Featuring Merlin in a pretty outfit and infatuated Lancelot!

@mercelotweek fill for "beauty"

——

Merlin looks down at the bit of fabric in his hands. He’s never tried to alter an object this way. He’d cut a bit of Camelot red from one of the cloaks Arthur had sent to be re-hemmed and was just… looking at it. It was washed, but still obviously worn, fraying in places, no matter how he’d tried to mend it. He hadn’t been particularly keen on the red, but it was the only thing he’d had on hand. He certainly wasn’t going to risk any of his own clothes for something that might not work.

Merlin had altered himself before, sure, but he’d gotten stuck that way as often as he’d done it. A mask couldn’t exactly drink a potion and return to it’s original form. So, he had to be very careful and meticulous when he crafted this spell.

The white of his party clothes was incredible, striking, really, compared to all the other clothes he’d ever worn. Cast offs, surely, but they were beautiful. Morgana or even Gwen might know if they were even still in style, but it was meant to be a bit of a lark, this party. Both for him and the other guests in attendance. The others would be in costumes fashioned from older clothing, or clothing made costume by masks. It was supposed to be fun, light hearted, this party, but here Merlin is, overthinking something as simple as a mask.

He murmurs a spell of his own creation and the scrap of fabric, crumpled and pinned to generally resemble a mask, became something gorgeous before his eyes. The fabric was thinner, almost like lace in weight, but stayed stiff in his hand like it had been over starched. The pins had become fine, metallic dots over the eye holes, and the ribbon he’d use to secure it was almost silk like.

It was beautiful, but Merlin could feel the tenuous nature of the spell. It wouldn’t last forever. It might not even last the night. He could feel the threads of magic holding it delicately in this shape, but ready to break apart at any moment.

Well, he’d just have to make his trip to the party short so he wouldn’t risk being found out. These things usually went so far into the night it became morning, but he’d probably have until midnight before the spell wore off and risked exposing him.

If anyone found out a Servant was mingling with these Nobles, he’d be in the stocks for a week. Maybe worse.

Guinevere, who is his dearest friend and closest confidant, has agreed to help him with his hair for tonight, so he sneaks off to Morgana’s rooms, the lady already down at the party, to get her help, mask already in place, just in case anyone should see him.

The palace feels different when he walks around in clothes that belong to a nobleman. The servants he passes bow respectfully, and it makes him uneasy. How can people stand this? He felt so terrible, watching people avert their eyes and how their heads like he or anyone else had any right to their humility.

In Morgana’s rooms, Gwen adjusts his coat and combs his hair back in a way he didn’t think would suit him, but he ends up liking. He tries once more to convince her to come with him, to just steal one of Morgana’s old dresses and wear a veil, but she’s convinced she’ll be found out, and isn’t willing to risk it.

Merlin has no such qualms, and has vowed to take her involvement with this little scheme to the grave. Or the stocks.

“You look wonderful,” She says when she finally lays her brush down. “You’ll be the belle of the ball.”

Merlin rolled his eyes, “Haha, Guinevere. I just want to see how the other half lives for a night. You’re sure you won’t come?”

And now she rolls her eyes. “The lady Morgan and I are much closer than you and Arthur. She’d notice me, even with a mask. Maybe the next one.”

He smiles softly at her. “Definitely the next one. Besides, you’ll still be there. You’ll just have to endure less of the idle dithering of nobles.”

She giggles, “Merlin, you can’t talk about them like that.”

“I can talk about them however I like dressed like this,” He tugged his collar a bit to show off and that set her off again. She covered her mouth to keep their presence hidden and swatted at him.

“Okay, you’ve made your point. Now go, before it’s over.”

“Love you,” he kissed her cheek and she returned the gesture.

“Please don’t get yourself killed.” Which was as good as an I love you too from Gwen.

“No promises. I did try to fight the prince my first day here.”

—-

Merlin takes a second glass of mead in less than half an hour from a passing try. He knows this will be a terrible idea, but he cannot, to save his own life, stand this lot while sober any longer.

Occasionally one of the nobles will smile and greet him, ask him who he is, but for the most part, people are interested in socializing with those they already know, and the few who approach him are obviously uninterested in him as much as they are interested in the connections he might be able to make them.

“I’m dying out here,” he murmurs to Gwen when she’s pauses briefly to grab another tray to pass around lady Morgana’s table.

“I’m so sorry. You poor dear.” She smirks and he smiles back at her.

“Your turn next.”

“Mhmm, after all the fun you’re having, I can’t wait.”

He laughed as she left and his spirits were lifted for the first time all night. He took a final sip of his mead and left it on a table, deciding to try his luck on the dance floor at the same moment that a set of deep brown eyes caught him from across the room.

“Caught” was not an exaggeration. The smoldering, desirous look in the eyes that looked like they might have been looking at him for a while held him like a man entranced. His breath caught in his throat as the man started to make his way toward him.

He was in chain mail, a knight in a cloak that was unmistakably Camelot red. It wasn’t unlike the cloak he’d cut his mask from.

At the reminder, Merlin focused briefly on his mask, whose transformed state was tenuous. It would last a while longer, maybe an hour, maybe longer.

The determined way the knight walked toward him, through the onlookers, partygoers and celebrators was almost overwhelming. No one tonight had looked so intently upon him. He wasn’t sure how to handle it.

His feet seemed to decide how to handle it for him. Thick dark hair that begged to be tugged at and a mouth made for kissing, it drew him in like so few things ever had. Even with the black mask obscuring his face, Merlin can tell he must be beautiful. The cut of his jaw is too perfect for him not to be.

Merlin is stunned by the time they meet, standing obnoxiously still in the middle of the dance floor. The knight bows to him, and while servants bowing to him had made him uncomfortable, this feels formal, and somehow honorable. He holds out his hand when the knight starts to stand, thinking they might shake, but instead Lancelot takes the offered hand and kisses the back of it, eyes trained on Merlin the entire time.

He is grateful for the cover of the mask, with the way that he can feel the blush forming high on his cheek. He wouldn’t want to embarrass himself in front of a knight.

“Hello, My Lord. I am Sir Lancelot.”

Lancelot. He’s heard Arthur speak of him, in passing. An excellent fighter, perhaps as good as the Prince himself. As he stands, Sir Lancelot smiles at him, and Merlin about melts as his stomach flutters and he stands tall, just about eye level with him.

“Hello, Sir Lancelot.” The words are breathier than he means to be, and if Lancelot notices, he gives no indication.

With the slightest bow he asks, “May I have this dance?”

Merlin had been about to dance on his own anyway. Only, Merlin’s never danced any of these formal noble dances, only remembers celebrations in Ealdor, and in the lower town. He isn’t sure of the steps, but Lancelot still hasn’t dropped his hand, and his mouth seems to speak with the same ungiven authority his feet had moved him with.

“Certainly.”

Lancelot takes Merlin’s other hand to place it on his shoulder, and takes Merlin at the waist. It’s what everyone else seems to be doing, and he’s grateful that Lancelot says nothing when they’re pulled so close their chests are nearly flush.

Lancelot starts to move, but Merlin can’t keep time, keeps stumbling over his feet, and Lancelot’s. “I’m afraid I’m not much of a dancer.” Merlin laughs, afraid Lancelot will simply leave, but the man’s returning smile tells another story.

“That’s alright. Just stop thinking so hard about it. I’ll lead.” He pauses briefly to adjust his grip on Merlin’s waist and then Merlin feels the gentle push of the hand there, urging him to move back, forth, left, right, turn, in time with the music. Between Lancelot’s easy leading, and the way his eyes seem to never leave Merlin’s, it’s easy to feel like they are the only two people here, the only ones that matter.

Merlin finds the rhythm eventually, and the gentle coaxing on his hip becomes obsolete. He still misses the feel of Lancelot’s hand in his when they’re suddenly unclasped and grabbing Merlin by the waist, to spin him around with the flourish as the dance came to an end. He laughs, and the answering twinkle in Lancelot’s eyes speaks volumes for how he’s enjoyed himself.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Lancelot asked, and Merlin smiles, letting the knight take his hand and kiss it again.

“I’d say it was the best dance I’ve ever had. Thank you, Sir Lancelot.”

“I aim to please.” Another song started up, and Lancelot raised an eyebrow. “I’m afraid this one is a group dance. Unless you fancy a half dozen partners and more steps than you can count, we might sit this one out.”

Merlin laughed, “I certainly don’t want that. Get a drink with me?” Merlin doesn’t need another drink, but he is parched.

When Lancelot offers his elbow to Merlin, he almost rolls his eyes, but can’t help the grin it illicits. “Such a gentleman.” He smiles, and Lancelot returns it. They take a seat at a nearby table, long since unoccupied in favor of the dancing.

Lancelot serves him mead before a servant can, highly unusual for a knight, as Merlin is well aware. “Thank you,” he waits for Lancelot to serve his own glass and clinks them together before taking a healthy sip from his. The warmth of the joy of Lancelot and the mead mix together, leaving him feeling heady and relaxed.

“I’m afraid I don’t know your name. Is that terrible?” Lancelot asked, and Merlin laughed in response.

“Few would. I’m hardly a common attendee of these sorts of things. I’m Emerys of Ealdor.”

“Such a beautiful name, for a beautiful man,” Lancelot gestured for a servant to bring the tray they were holding, and thanked him graciously as he served both Merlin and himself honey cakes. “I’m afraid I’ve never heard of Ealdor. Is it far from here?”

“Yes. I don’t see it much, anymore. It’s in Essetir, and it is not exactly safe to pass between the two lands. I haven’t been home in many years.”

Lancelot frowned. “I’m sorry to hear that. I too can not return home. I know how lonely that can be.”

Merlin smiled sadly. “Yes. But I do make friends wherever I go, and that helps.”

“I hope perhaps I may one day be counted among them?” Lancelot raies and eyebrow and Merlin’s besotted.

“Easily. So you do not come from Camelot?”

“No. I was a wonderer for a long time, learning sword craft to become a knight of Camelot, one of the noblest lands I know of.”

“One of?” Merlin asked, and he’s honestly curious. He’s used to the way the knights talk about Camelot, like it is perfect, the most wonderful place to live with the most impressive king.

“The King is very noble. He has a heart for the people not all Kings can boast.”

“But?” Merlin pushes, and Lancelot smiles uneasily.

“But not all of the people of Camelot belong in the King’s heart. It is not always my desire to carry out the laws against magic users, if they’ve done no wrong. But I am always loyal to my king.” He took a sip of his mead, pulling gently on the collar of his shirt.

Merlin didn’t know what it felt like to fall in love, but he thought perhaps this might be it. Like falling and being overwhelmed, and wanting nothing more to steal away with someone who appeared perfect in every way.

“I must say I agree.” He said, and Lancelot visibly relaxed. “But like you, I have no ill will toward the King. He does what he believes to be right, and that is all any man can be asked to do.” And perhaps one day he would see that he was not right. Merlin could only hope.

“Yes. Will you be in Camelot long, after the festival?” The question is so obviously probing that Merlin feels a bit of glee at it, even as his heart sinks, because he can’t have this man. Lancelot is a knight of Camelot, and Merlin is a servant.

“I’m afraid not. I leave tonight,” Merlin smiled wanly, and Lancelot’s face mirrors him.

“There’s no possibility of your plans being changed?”

“No. I’m expected somewhere tomorrow. We’ll have to ride through the night to get there.” This is the first true lie Merlin has told all night, and it aches to say. Lancelot cares for magic users, and he’s kind, and he didn’t ask Merlin what connections he had or how he might be helpful to him. He just wanted to have a dance and talk.

He looks away and meets Gwen’s eyes, somewhere over Lancelot’s shoulders. She looks so sad, and he knows he must look the same.

“When might you be back? In Camelot, I mean?”

“I can’t say. It’s only coincidence that brought me here tonight.” This at least, is true. Merlin never could’ve come to this party if not for Gwen coincidentally finding the discarded clothing in the closer of a long disgraced nobleman. The fact that they happened to fit Merlin was also happenstance, and if not for that, he’d never be here. With an hour of Gwen’s help, she’d been able to tailor them nearly to perfect, and he was loathe to admit he looked quite good.

“That is a shame. We must enjoy tonight then.”

“Yes, we must.”

The song changed and Merlin took as delicate a bite as he could manage of his honey cake before taking Lancelot’s hand. “Teach me to dance some more, you’re fantastic at it.”

This brought a smile to Lancelot’s face. “It would be an honor, my lord.”

They take to the dance floor. This dance, whatever it is, is far more complicated than the last one, and Lancelot also stumbles through it occasionally, which makes Merlin feel just a bit better.

“We’ve nearly got it!” Merlin laughed when the music ended, and Lancelot bowed to him again. Merlin is about to ask him for another one when a tall figure suddenly approaches them.

“Mind if I cut in?” Says another knight of Camelot, this one completely disregarding the dresscode and lacking a mask. His long hair came to his shoulder and Merlin would’ve found him incredibly attractive if it weren’t for the fact Lancelot was already the center of his night.

Merlin bows goodbye to Lancelot, thinking this knight has come for his equal, he certainly wouldn’t be the only knight to do so, but then he sees the hard edge of Lancelot’s eyes and is a bit confused.

“My Lord.” The new knight says, and takes Merlin’s hand, sweeping him away from Lancelot without waiting for so much as a “by your leave.”

“I’m Sir Gwaine. You’re a pretty thing,” the knight says, and Merlin doesn’t find this compliment as positive as Lancelot’s.

“I’m sorry if I have no desire to be called an object.” He said stiffly, and Gwaine laughed.

“You’ve got nerve. Lancelot must like that.” Merlin was swept up and turned, his hands barley having time to grip Gwaine’s shoulders and stabilize himself as he was lifted into the air. “I’m sorry to intrude. Sir Lancelot is one of my dearest friends, and a bit of teasing always does him good. Can you see him?” He leaned in to whisper these last words in his ear and Merlin’s eyes start searching the floor for Lancelot.

He’s not on the dance floor, but is watching them with a deep intensity from the spot where they’d sat and ate the song before. “You’ve upset him.”

“Well, you didn’t have to accept.” The man smiled, and Merlin scowled.

“I thought you were asking for Lancelot, not me. Besides, you didn’t give me time to either accept or deny. Just carried me off like some sort of brute.”

“My apologies.” But nothing about his tone seemed apologetic. “However, when Lancelot gets his hands back on you, I think you might just thank me for my little intervention.”

Merlin’s barely following along with whatever steps, but he’s starting to fume. “What is this? Some sort of joke? Do you find that appropriate?”

“I meant no harm,” He smiled, “I swear.” They turned and for a second his eyes focused over Merlin’s shoulder and he grimaced. “But I’m afraid I may have gone too far. I’m going to get it in training tomorrow.” He focused on Merlin again to grin. “But I’m sure I’ll be able to handle it.” The song ended and Merlin just barely put up with a peck on his hand. Before he can pull away, Gwaine holds his hand tight, and Merlin freezes. “Lancelot hasn’t looked this happy for a very long time. I hope you don’t mean to dash his heart.”

Merlin is shocked at the insinuation. “I’ve only just met him. There are no hearts involved.”

“Mmm, you haven’t known Lancelot as long as I have. I assure you, there are.” He made Merlin take his arm and lead him back to the table where Lancelot was sitting. There was a blond knight standing beside him now, leaning in and murmuring something in his ear. “He falls so quick it’s a marvel he’s ever on his feet. But he’s loyal. I wouldn’t want him to get the wrong idea if you mean to disappear.”

“What do you mean?” Merlin asked, stiffening, and Gwaine shrugged.

“I’ve never seen you before. Neither has anyone else I’ve asked. You’re passing through. Who’s to say how you got an invitation, but you’re not likely to return if you’re making no move to introduce yourself to everyone here. I’ve been a wanderer, I know the signs of someone who only intends to stay one night. If you’ve no intention to stay, I wish you’d leave him be.”

“It’s complicated,” Merlin said voice still tense.

“Everything is. My word stands.” They arrive at the table and Lancelot stands, pulling out Merlin’s chair for him, glaring at Gwaine.

“I’m sorry, I’m afraid I couldn’t get enough of our new friend. But he’s all yours now, Lancelot.”

Merlin takes a seat and is relieved for Gwaine to go. Lancelot looks him over like he’s afraid he might’ve been mauled. “Are you alright? I know Gwaine tends to be a bit… forward.”

Merlin laughed, a bit uncomfortable now after what Gwaine’d said. “I’m alright. He wasn’t too forward. Just a bit blunt.”

“Yes, he’s like that.” Merlin followed Lancelot’s gaze to Gwaine, and hoped that Lancelot did beat Gwaine on the training field tomorrow.

The honey cake he’d left is still there, and so he takes another bite. Things like this were so rarely afforded to him he had to force himself not to scarf it down. The cake was soft and crumbled easily in his mouth, giving way to a sweet, delicate flavor. The soft sigh of pleasure from the taste of it all drew Lancelot’s gaze briefly to his lips, and Merlin felt his face heat. “I don’t usually indulge.” He said, as way of explanation, and Lancelot smiled.

“I’m glad you’ve given yourself the pleasure tonight. Camelot’s kitchens are famous.”

“I can see why.” He says, taking another bite of the delicious cake.

“Perhaps they might entice you back.” Lancelot says with a hopeful look, and Merlin swallows.

“Perhaps.” He’s starting to think that maybe this is no good anymore. He’s playing with this man’s heart, pretending to be someone he is not. As much fun as this is, and much as he’s possibly developing a crushing love for Lancelot, this is wrong. They could never be, simply by the virtue of Merlin’s station.

A clock, somewhere far off, strikes and he jumpsin his seat. He checks the magic holding his mask and finds it worryingly close to breaking. He can’t let his face be seen here.

Luckily, he has a readymade excuse.

“Hell.” He murmurs, putting down the cake and being careful to use the napkin to clean his fingers. Had to keep up this act of nobility, no matter how much he’d rather lick the crumbs from his fingers. “I have to go.” He drops the napkin down and pushes his chair back, throwing Lancelot an apologetic look that is more genuine that Merlin meant it to be.

“What? It’s only midnight. Please.” He takes Merlin’s hand as he stands, stopping him from going any further.

“I have to go. My carriage will be waiting. I was suppose to be there ten minutes ago.” Merlin tugs on his hand, but Lancelot holds it, doesn’t let it go.

“Please, I can’t- It’s too soon.” His pleading hurts Merlin, but now that his anxiety has taken over, he knows it’s just a matter of time before the mask becomes a scrap of cloth and falls from his face.

“I’m sorry. I have to go.” He pulls his hand out of Lancelot’s and rushes as much as he dares to the door.

Sir Gwaine blocks his path just as he gets to the door. “Leaving so soon? Can’t I tempt you for another dance?” Merlin can’t read his face, is too worried to even think about trying.

When he looks behind him and sees Lancelot coming for them, he starts to truly panic. He can’t afford a delay.

He turns his face away from Gwaine and mutters a spell to drop a nearby server’s tray. This distracts Gwaine just long enough for Merlin to slip past him and out of the great hall.

He can hear Lancelot coming, calling after him, but he dare not look back. He mutters a second spell to slam the ballroom doors. This will serve both to slow Lancelot’s progress and hide which way Merlin goes goes.

And considering he’s going deeper into, rather than out of, the castle, it’s very important no one sees his retreat.

He slips through the halls, hearing Lancelot’s cries echo and then disappear as he goes toward the castle door, looking for him.

He’ll never find him.

Merlin swipes uselessly at his prickling eyes. He hadn’t wanted to leave Lancelot, but after what Gwaine had said, he couldn’t stay in good conscience. He swallowed hard to try and keep himself collected, and finally ducked into Gaius’ rooms, gracefully empty.

As soon as the door was closed he felt his magic break and the mask become a scrap of fabric. Camelot-red fell into his lap, and he stared at it, thinking of what might have been, and let himself cry.

[night-faye]

Merlin + "dont ask" please

Ask and ye shall receive! :D

Lancelot frowned as he looked at Merlin, his brows furrowed. There were too many questions in his head, filling up all the empty space and fighting the more important things for dominance.

Just as they were now, actually. He hissed as a burning sensation ripped across his arm, and jerked his head down at it to see Gaius pull away a slightly damp cloth.

Gaius lifted an unimpressed eyebrow at him. “I did warn you, sir Lancelot.”

“Sorry, Gaius. I must’ve been-”

“Distracted? Yes, you seem to be distracted quite a lot these days.” The old man said, his lips twisting into a wry smile, a glint of amusement in his eyes. Lancelot quirked a small smile of his own at him, and shrugged his shoulders.

“There’s just… A lot that I’m thinking about.”

Gaius hummed, and went back to treating the slash across his arm, the one he’d gotten because he was, of course, distracted while he was training.

And when you’re matched up against Gwaine, you can’t falter for even a moment, because he’ll take it and twist it into a victory, or at the very least a step towards it that you can’t get back.

He gave Gaius a smile as the physician wrapped his arm, before he patted Lancelot’s shoulder and stood up. “I’ve other patients to attend to, Merlin, I assume you’ll be fine to finish the restocking?”

Merlin looked up from the herb table, where he was half bent over it and pouring something that was ground up and a pale green. “Of course, Gaius.” He smiled, nodding.

Gaius nodded back, and picked up his medicine bag, slinging it over his shoulder as he left.

Lancelot watched as he went, before taking a deep breath and biting his lip, turning back to look at Merlin.

He released his lip, and swallowed. “Merlin…?” He asked, hating how hesitant he sounded, but… He needed this.

“Yes?” Merlin called, half distracted as he returned to his task.

“About the… About when I first came back from the veil, when I was a sh-”

Merlin had frozen, his face twisting into something dark, and his voice sharp as he cut Lancelot off.

“Don’t ask.”

Lancelot’s eyes widened, taken aback, and straightened up slightly. “But, Merlin, I-”

“I don’t want to talk about it, Lancelot!” Merlin shouted, slamming the measuring equipment on the table and looking up at him, his gaze hard and steely, like a sword, digging into Lancelot’s very being.

“But I do!” Lancelot shouted back as he stood, he couldn’t help it. He wasn’t one to yell, really, not like this, but- “Merlin, I have no idea what I did during those days, and I’ve accepted the lost time from when I was with Morgana, I know there’s no way of getting that back, but- But you, and Arthur, and the rest, you all know what happened once I got here, and I don’t. Do you have any idea how terrifying that is?”

He took in Merlin’s face, and how the anger on it seemed to crack down the middle, devastation pouring onto his face like a waterfall, and Lancelot’s heart twisted at the sight, but now that he’s started he finds that he can’t stop.

“Sometimes Gwen looks at me like- I don’t even know, but it’s different, like she doesn’t fully trust me, anymore. And Arthur, sometimes I think he hates me, a little, and then he shakes himself and he looks like he hates himself for it. And the other knights, they always look… Fuck, Merlin.” Lancelot breathed, digging his fingers into his hair. “Even you trust me less. You’ve stopped coming to me about things, and then you try and hide it, but I know you, I can tell. And I just-”

He breathed, and raked his fingers down his face, before pressing his hands together in front of his lips and meeting Merlin’s eyes once more.

“What did I do when I was a shade, Merlin? Please.”

Merlin closed his eyes, and curled his fingers into his palms, knuckles pressed against the top of the table, and he looked the other way.

And he told Lancelot everything.

Posted on AO3 - Here

Prompt list - Here

[merlinbingo]

Aaand last but not least, rounding off the February round up: all the M/M fills created over the month, sorted by ship and then by rating.

Take a look, take heed of the tags/warnings/ratings (including those where the creator has decided to use the 'Not rated' and 'Choose not to use archive warnings' options - these works could contain anything at all, so please practice self-care when deciding whether or not to click on that link!) and make sure you leave these wonderful creators some love!

Elyan/Gwaine

You are enough by donttouchtheneednoggle Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: Deep in the midst of all manner of chaos, Elyan and Gwaine find each other.

Elyan/Percival

Meet the polycule by donttouchtheneednoggle Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: We got to see Percival meeting one member of the round table, but what about the rest?

Knights of the sewing circle by donttouchtheneednoggle Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Everyone keeps stealing Elyan's hoodie. And really, what is Camelot's pettiest knight supposed to do?

Gwaine/Percival

Rule Breaker by vampdocx Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Gwaine knows Percy is into it. He just isn’t sure if Percy is into it right now, when Gwaine is half-hard in his friend’s hot tub because Percy called him a slut.

Merlin/Gwaine

untitled by merlinsprat Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: gifset :)

A Little While Longer by SneakyBoyMerlin Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: Merlin is kidnapped, and Gwaine is the one who finds him.

Merlin/Lancelot

Who are the Sinners Among Us? by archaeologist_d Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: Love takes and takes and takes and they keep loving anyway. Or how Merlin and Lancelot deal with Arthur’s marriage to Gwen.

Merlin/Mordred

Dragonlords Grow Horns?! by fxndom-hoe Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Mordred finds out something about Dragonlords.

Merlin/Arthur

Merlin's Princess Bride by fxndom-hoe Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: A retelling of The Princess Bride in which Merlin uses magic to save Prince Arthur from his kidnappers and prevent King Uther from forcing him into marriage.

Where Did You Go by QueenoftheBritons Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin enters the veil to secure it, but the memory of him is erased as a result.

no use crying over skimmed milk by heartsocold Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: There was no need to cry. It’s just, he supposed, that this was the straw that broke the camel’s back. His entire week was awful - absolutely terrible - and this was just the thing that pushed him over the edge.

Fresh Flowers by schweet_heart Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: After dealing with Edwin and ensuring the king's recovery, Merlin takes care of a small personal matter.

Baby, it's cold outside by Stardustwrites17 Rating: General audiences Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: In which Merlin cares too much about others (and too little about himself), Arthur is a good prince and he's hopelessly in love with his servant.

The Dolma Deception by archaeologist_d Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Arthur finds the Dolma’s ratty outfit in Merlin’s room. Merlin is a crap liar about it.

Excalibur Reborne by archaeologist_d Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin might be teaching Arthurian legend—he’d lived it after all, but when one of his students finds Excalibur, it raises more questions than answers.

Wrapped Up In You by tehfanglyfish Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Not long after Freya’s death, the first in a series of mysterious packages appeared in Merlin’s room. Though they all contained ornate dresses sewn from material so fine that they befitted a queen rather than a servant, his name was clearly written on the accompanying tags. Over the years, whenever Merlin faced great triumph or great tragedy, the dresses kept arriving. The sender, though, remained a mystery, until one night when Merlin learned the truth of who had given them, a revelation that led to Merlin sharing secrets of his own.

Etemenanki by esmerod Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin is taken as a child and brought to Camelot where he's locked up in a tower. He meets the prince, and destiny takes its inevitable course, as it always does.

Just a stupid Thing Teenagers Do (Nobody moves, nobody gets hurt) by lea_ndra/ Leandra/ nuttersinc Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: It's Christmas and Merlin's boyfriend comes to an uncomfortable realisation after family dinner.

Excalibur Reborne - chapter 2 by archaeologist_d Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin might be teaching Arthurian legend—he’d lived it after all, but when one of his students finds Excalibur, it raises more questions than answers.

Slipping through my fingers (all that time) by Stardustwrites17 Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: On her deathbed, Magic let's Ygraine watch her son grow up, to be the king Albion needs. More than that, she's assured Arthur will be happy and loved.

Sleeping Beauty by archaeologist_d Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Rescuing Arthur from the curse of eternal sleep should have been a piece of cake, but kissing him to break said curse? That was a step too far.

Excalibur Reborne by archaeologist_d Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin might be teaching Arthurian legend—he’d lived it after all, but when one of his students finds Excalibur, it raises more questions than answers.

Excalibur Reborne by archaeologist_d Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin might be teaching Arthurian legend—he’d lived it after all, but when one of his students finds Excalibur, it raises more questions than answers.

Suit Up by evaelisaa Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin is joining Arthur to a Pendragon corporate event for the first time, but he doesn’t own a suit, so Arthur makes him wear one of his.

Tell me every terrible thing you ever did (and let me love you anyway) by Stardustwrites17 Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: In which a witch-hunt takes place in Camelot, Arthur worries for Merlin's safety and Merlin worries for his secrets.

The Road to Knighthood by evaelisaa Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: Merlin is about to get knighted when Lancelot barges into the antechamber where Merlin is getting ready with the news that Guinevere got kidnapped.

No Hands Had Ever Been So Gentle, Nor So Deadly by queerofthedagger Rating: Teen Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Arthur's kidnapped. Of course, Merlin comes to find him, but getting Arthur out might've been the easiest part.

In Dreams by mornmeril Rating: Mature Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Arthur remembers on a Sunday, but Merlin isn't here. His dreams may yet lead Arthur to him.

Intricacies of Love (Or A Lack Thereof) by @gwen-cheers-me-up (tumblr), OwlsWithFins (ao3) Rating: Mature Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: Arthur confesses his love for Merlin and is deeply confused by Merlin's response. To everyone's chagrin, he seems quite intent on staying that way.

The Knighting by J_Gun_i Rating: Mature Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: After long last, Merlin finally get to be knighted. Not much could go wrong anymore, right?

Arthur Pendragon Is Not A Wizard by tehfanglyfish Rating: Mature Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Merlin and Arthur watch Cherry Magic, leading to several unexpected revelations.

The round mirror by YouKeepMeRight Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: "I've bought you a gift." Arthur stopped humming along with the song on the radio and turned his head towards the driver’s seat.

no better love by TheDragon Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: Wherein Arthur falls victim to yet another love potion, except this time, it has him setting his sights on Merlin.

Duty Beyond Knighthood by evaelisaa Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: No archive warnings apply Summary: It’s the first evening where Merlin is a knight, but because of a deal he made with Arthur, Merlin is still the one who has to help the king get ready for bed.

Less Than Greek by Blake Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: The whole Valentine’s Day gift thing is meant to be a joke.

The Spies have It. by archaeologist_d Rating: Explicit Ao3 warnings: Choose not to use archive warnings Summary: The spies sent to bring about Camelot’s downfall weren’t exactly expecting Merlin locked up in the stocks and Arthur busy behind him. Oh, my.

[sallowhillshq]

EVENT 002: my bloody valentine CLUE DROP 003: suspect information

official suspect list:  abby anderson, adrian tepes,  armitage hux, baz grimm-pitch, link faron, michael langdon, sam giddings, victor zsasz

trigger warning for this clue drop: various criminal activities mentioned, such as murder. 

This wasn’t the worst this day could go. There could be multiple bodies across multiple streets, or all of Market Street could be blown to bits of cobblestone and wiring. They had been lucky, incredibly lucky, to only end up with one tiny, fairly contained disaster. Yet Armes was doubting how long they could continue to contain this disaster, with the clamoring of upset townsfolk directly outside her office window. 

Soon, this would no longer be her problem. Soon, this would entirely become  Ms. Kane and Ms. Brown’s problem. Armes would let them do the job they were created for as she dealt with the more clandestine issues of the town that required her direct supervision. 

Speaking of Ms. Kane and Ms. Brown,  the two sat in her office now.   They were professional,  clearly.   If they thought they could hide their training,  they were clearly mistaken.  Which is why they would be perfect for taking over the disaster.

“I’ve created a starting point of sorts, for our suspects,” Armes passed two identical lists to her newly crowned investigators. “Those I didn’t see at the dance who have violent proclivities in their pasts.”

“Arthur didn’t do it. He wouldn’t- get off me, Kate-” The blonde one, Ms. Brown, shrugged off Ms. Kane’s hand that had been placed lightly on her shoulder. “I get he had to do some bad shit in his past. Trust me, I get it. But he was a king in a time people were killing each other left and right for fun. He’s not like that anymore.”

“He was what?”  Ms. Kane interrupted her younger companion.

“A king, Kate. I thought I told you?”

“This is the first time I’m hearing about this,  but we can talk about it later.”

It seems, Ms. Brown is in trouble with her elder. 

“And anyways,” Ms. Brown’s face turned smug in a way Armes had only seen cats look before. “Arthur was passed out on our couch this morning with Merlin on top of him. I bet they haven’t moved, if you want to go check.”

“Ah, no. I’ll take your word for it. Arthur Pendragon is no longer a suspect,” Armes slashed through his name with red ink. “Abby Anderson, then?”

“I ran into her in the park recently.  If she did this,  it wasn’t her intent but rather her instinct protecting her.  I say we check,  but if it was her - we proceed gently,” Ms. Kane said.   An intelligent response.   They’ll be good for the investigation.  

“Seconded! And same with Sam Giddings. She’s kinda rough around the edges but I know her friend and it wouldn’t be because of any maliciousness,” Ms. Brown practically shrieked. 

Armes was starting to wish this list was far smaller, just so Ms. Brown could leave her office sooner. She was too old to be dealing with overgrown teenagers like this. 

“For our local vampires, every single one is a suspect. We haven’t had the best of luck with them, I’m sure you both remember how Halloween turned out,” Armes fixed them both with a look that had sent her best researchers running for the hills. Best to strike the fear of the gods into them, especially the young one. 

“It’s hard to forget,” Ms. Kane muttered under her breath.

“Baz Grimm-Pitch and Adrian Tepes are the two vampires we should look out for, they both have people in town willing to lie for them,” Armes continued. 

Ms. Brown, as always, decided to chime in at an inopportune moment. “Isn’t Adrian Tepes the weird guy who lives in a creepy log cabin out in the woods?” 

“No, Mr. Tepes lives in a castle out in the woods,” Armes said. “Link Faron is the one in the log cabin, who is also on our list. He has a violent history, starting at as young as ten years of age. Slaughter, trauma-”

“I don’t think we need his entire resume, Ms. Sallow,”  Ms. Kane interjected.   I suppose I’ll forgive it this once.

Ms. Brown made a small “oh” sound, suddenly very interested in the sheet of paper in her hands. Good. Perhaps now the blonde would allow them all to carry on with the investigation uninterrupted.”

“Armitage Hux.  Sounds like a rogue name, but who is he?”  Ms. Kane,  good with moving the conversation along clearly.

“A trouble-maker,” Armes had no patience for those of Mr. Hux’s background. She’d seen the effect his kind had on the world and was not keen to see one of them wreck havoc on her town. 

“He works for the Research Center, correct?” Ms. Kane asked,  though it seemed like she already knew the answer to that and was satisfied with it.

“Yes. One of the few there I could never get a handle on.” 

Armes let her eyes trail down the list again. If it were up to her, none of them would even be in Sallow Hills. They were all trouble-makers, even the two in front of her. Pulled from their different worlds to be a direct cause of Armes’ migraines. She had her own issues to deal with, with the original townspeople. Until her researchers discovered the secret to the barrier, Armes was slated to deal with all of the newcomers and all the disasters they brought with them. 

“And Damien Thorn? Why is he clumped together with Michael Langdon and Lucifer Morningstar?” Ms. Brown asked, voice finally at a reasonable volume. 

“Lucifer, while an annoyance, I doubt would pull something like this.  He’s smarter than leaving a dead body where anyone could see,” Ms. Kane said.

“While Mr. Morningstar is a hindrance at his worst, we can’t deny the… demonic parentage of the former two. And how that parentage may be Mr. Morningstar,” Armes coughed. She never did like talking about their kind either. 

“You’re kidding right? The actual Antichrist exists and there might just be two of them walking around?! Was anyone going to say anything about that?” And there it was, Ms. Brown back to her usual, screeching volume. “And you think Damien Thorn, the same Damien Thorn who was cleaning up broken beer bottles in the Community Center, is one of them? I don’t think he would even kill a fly with his own life on the line.”

“We can take Mr. Thorn off if it upsets you so dearly. Mr. Morningstar too, however I fear he may take that as an insult.” Pick your battles, Armes. 

“Well I agree with the Langdon kid.  He looks like the cult type.”  The way it was bit out by Ms. Kane,  Armes suspected there was some … resentment between the vigilante and cults.  Ms. Brown nodded along,  clearly also having some experience with cult things.

“If he didn’t want us to think he was a cult leader, he wouldn’t look so much like a cult leader.” Such a bitter statement, for one as young as Ms. Brown. “And with how specific some of the vic’s wounds are, it could be an initiation killing.” 

Oh joy, a cult. This would have never happened had all the newcomers not been here.  Cults! In her town!

“Speaking of cults,” Ms. Brown piped up again. “The Winchester guy, doesn’t he feel a little ex-culty to you? Very secretive, ‘we protect our own’, and the sheer amount of supposedly hidden weapons I’ve seen them carry. I don’t know, they seem like cult members.”

“I’ve seen him, Sam?, at the library.  He seems focused on that - and on the head librarian Will.   Troubled past, maybe, but not the ‘murder right now’ type,” Ms. Kane added in.  “But didn’t he hang around at Zsasz’s shop?”

“He did, which doesn’t help him in the slightest. Victor Zsasz was actually one of the first I put on that list, along with Michael Myers. Along with Oswald Cobblepot, all of them are-”

“It’s not Oswald!” And now Ms. Brown was standing, hands slammed down on Armes’ desk. There was a hostility to her, one that Armes found she did not like one bit. “He doesn’t even remember Gotham, there’s no way he could still remember how to be a professional killer. I can’t believe you would try and bring up a past he doesn’t even know about against him!”

Was this depth coming from Ms. Brown? The blonde was holding back tears, face contorted into something twisted and tense. It was clear she had a history with Mr. Cobblepot, a familial bond even. Armes had struck a nerve that ran deep. She was about to speak, but decided that a thinly veiled, scathing remark was not the proper response. 

“We’re taking the Bird off the list.  Michael - he’s done nothing more than creep some people out around town.  And you have here that the fingerprints were cut off.  Do you think he knew how to do that?”  Ms. Kane stopped the younger one from going off again,  which was a blessing really.

“Take Oswald off. Or Kate and I leave. Have fun figuring out how to deal with a potential serial killer on your own,” Ms. Brown said through gritted teeth. 

Armes gave a sigh that spoke of her long, long years of life. Hand reaching to scratch out two more names in brilliant red ink, she couldn’t believe she was bending before someone who was only a few years out of childhood. 

“Mr. Cobblepot and Mr. Myers are off. Are we done here, or is there going to be another tantrum over a criminal?” 

Ms. Kane stood at that,  tucking her list into a case she had brought with her.  “I think we’re done, Ms. Sallow.  And I’d prefer if you not insult either of us if you want us to help you.  Steph, ready?”

Armes watched as Ms. Brown gathered up the crime scene photographs and suspect lists into a folder, eyes hard. Daring Armes to pick a fight. What a child. Armes waved the two off, watching as the younger closed her office door with a slam that rattled the hinges. If those two were ever in her office again, it would be too soon. 

Her hands reorganized the mess littering her desk, reaching out for the latest report on the barrier. Finally, she could focus on the issues plaguing the real townspeople.

[coinofstone]

For this two part episode, I'm combining both parts in one post. Unfortunately there's no commentary track on these so it's just the episodes I'm commenting on.

2x05 Beauty and the Beast pt 1

Merlin complaining about nothing interesting ever happens is the most OOC thing he's ever said

Nothing like a damsel in distress to blind a man to reason. I mean except Gaius. He's instantly distrustful of this bish. But even MERlin falls for her shit at first.

Uther flirts with the Lady Catrina at dinner and Arthur's completely disgusted while Morgana has the most devious, knowing grin on her face. It seems implied that there's an age gap between Uther and Catrina, the way he talks of her as a child.

Sarah Parrish is absolutely wonderful. Her performance puts everyone else in this series to shame.

Imagine finding a ride before breakfast charming. That sounds like my nightmare. Fully dressed and on a horse BEFORE coffee? No thank you.

The Lady Catrina's bed hadn't been slept in but her bedspread was changed 😂

I really love the way her hair is done. It's like, they used part of her hair from the front to act as a loose hair tie at the back, giving you freedom from hair being in your face without actually having to have your hair up. I wish I knew how to do that.

It looks like there's a headband in there too. I should get headbands.

There's a reeeeeally strange cut in that scene. Not sure what happened there. But it seems like Merlin is testing the waters to see if Arthur is receptive to suspicion of Catrina, but ultimately Arthur seems to dislike her without any sense of questioning her identity or motives.

Gaius trying to plant seeds of doubt in Uther's mind but he still gets yelled at 😂

How come every time Arthur 'catches' Merlin supposedly pining after a lady he threatens Merlin's life?

So, Gaius warning Uther that his new girl is a literal troll, and Uther refusing to hear it and instead responding with a thinly veiled threat - is that like the 'guy' equivalent of what women do when one of them finds a dude with a giant red flag planted on his skull that she somehow can't see, and all her girls try to warn her but she ignores it and possibly becomes a little hostile even, until the one doing the warning says 'fine but don't come crying to me when he breaks your heart'?

It's a very bad idea to watch this while eating. Just, fyi.

It bothers me that we're never really told what kind of creature Jonas is.

Arthur is excruciatingly stupid in this episode. Merlin isn't the brightest he's ever been either.

Gaius doesn't go looking for Merlin after he didn't come home at night? Arthur doesn't raise any kind of suspicion when Merlin's not there to help him get dressed for his father's wedding? Idk it's a stretch.

Merlin sliding into the hall ten seconds too late was undoubtedly the best possible outcome. If he'd interrupted the ceremony how was that going to go? There's literally no way that doesn't end with him in the dungeon, unless Uther orders him killed immediately on the spot.

2x06 Beauty and the Beast pt 2

Uther being super horny for his wedding night consummation is gross. I love Tony but bruh you're supposed to be all dignified and shit have some self respect.

It's strange to me that Catrina sets up a whole plot to blame Merlin for stealing, when she could've just as easily outed him as a sorcerer.

Arthur knowingly and willfully misleading his men so he could get to Merlin first and warn him, so Merlin could escape 🥺🥺🥺🥺

Yet Merlin still never trusts Arthur enough to reveal his magic. Arthur literally TELLS him he doesn't care if Merlin was guilty or not, he just wants him to escape before he gets caught and captured. He's DIRECTLY going against Uther, actively sabotaging the manhunt, assisting Merlin in spite of Uther's orders ... again. But still, Merlin doesn't have enough faith in him to trust him with who he really is 🥺🥺🥺🥺

Dumbasses

Remind me again why Merlin and Gaius didn't bother to involve Gwen or Morgana in their plot? At all? Did they just forget that these characters exist? I think they each had one line in the first part.

Merlin's such a baby tasting the potions for comparison.

And why is he hiding in the cupboard when there's a back door right behind him?

Catrina is literally the new GOP.

Gorgeous framing with Uther standing on the dais and Arthur looking up at him while saying all he's ever tried to do is make him proud. Arthur looking up at Uther's larger than life visage is really just, everything.

Morgana and Arthur following Uther chasing after Catrina 😂 they just want the gosssssss also noticing now that Arthur didn't bother to get dressed up for the ceremony.

Camelot really has the most incompetent guards in the history of ever.

🚨inappropriate thirst moment🚨 right in the top corner of the screen when Arthur cones around the corner, all smolder and billowing jacket, stalking up on the scene. Have mercy.

Arthur: "You're a troll!"

Catrina: 😨😲

Me: 😂😂😂😂😂

Uther:

The TRUE best kiss in this show:

I know I've said the superior het ship is Gwen/Lancelot but I'm amending that - the truly superior ship is Uther/Troll, but I don't know that an interspecies ship can be classified as het, so they hold dual titles.

Yes, I'm taking photographs of my television and cropping them. Yes it's at a weird angle. No I'm not sorry.

That council meeting to try and make sure Uther realizes he's married a troll is literally what I imagine Melania's bachelorette party was like.

Khilgarrah's laughter is everything.

I love that Arthur never replaced Merlin with a substitute servant even though he thought he left Camelot. Just left his chambers in a mess. Then he gets super angry at the thought of Merlin hiding under his bed... like he's afraid Merlin might've witnessed something while under there? Hmmmm?

Can I just point out Camelot's most wanted fugitive is literally in the room with nobody even noticing.

The aborted hug! Poor Merlin. He deserved a hug. Great moment.

[fuwafuwamedb]

Raised by a Fou Pt 7 (Hakuno, Arthur)

Previous Parts: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six

_____

She wasn’t… ah… She wasn’t sure how she’d gotten to this point.

Hakuno felt her face warm a bit as Arthur held her hand, speaking to the room in that calm and collected manner of his.

Actually, she knew full well what had happened.

Her eyes drifted to the handmaidens nearby, watching Guinevere happily sit amongst them, a handful of fake freckles and a ratty veil covering her hair. She looked pretty unrecognizable, considering how much of the face paint she had used to change how her face looked.

They’d- no, she’d drank.

They’d talked about Sir Lancelot and King Arthur.

She’d mentioned, just for a moment, that the king was handsome. That hadn’t been a lie. He was tall and radiant, kind and reserved. He dealt with Merlin’s antics too, which, from her experience, was a feat in and of itself.

The woman had purred that the king seemed to fancy her. She’d talked about looks and signs of interest.

And then Guinevere had somehow swayed her into dressing up and playing as her while the woman herself dressed like a handservant.

Arthur had known immediately, his face pinkening a bit as he’d had no choice but to take her hand and lead her to the main throne in the audience chamber.

They’d settled into the two seats, with Arthur calling for the meetings to begin.

Then, Hakuno had sobered up.

Thank god, Hakuno thought to herself, although she wished the liquor had at least seen her through these meetings.

Her eyes drifted to the king nearby. Noting the strong jaw and the fine lines of his face. His green eyes seemed to gleam in pride when someone would praise him. When there was trouble, his brows furrowed and his lips thinned.

His boyish features with his golden hair made him almost seem like an angel…

Maybe I’m still drunk.

She closed her eyes, forcing herself to think clearly.

Guinevere had merely talked enough nonsense into her head that, now that she was tired and still coming back from a drunken state, she was finding Arthur to be celestial.

“Is something amiss?”

Hakuno opened her eyes in time to find her hand being lifted.

Those lips she’d been watching a bit too carefully pressed against the back of her hand. Those green eyes seemed to stare straight to the depths of her soul.

“If you would like, my lady, we can end things early today. There are not too many left to meet with. Sir Gawain and Agravaine could assist them.”

The room was too warm.

The room was far too small. She was pretty sure they could have been outside and she would have felt like the world was closing in around her with him that close to her. He was more stunning than a well-made fire on a winter night in Avalon.

“Y-your people are important,” Hakuno murmured to him, her voice sounding weak even to her own ears. “Let’s help them.”

A smile like Arthur’s had no right to exist. The poor state of her heart was critical now as it pounded violently in her chest.

“You are ever selfless,” he told her. “…All things considered, let us talk privately once we have finished with the people. There are… details of our future plans that I would like to discuss with you.”

She needed one of Merlin’s portals between places.

The audience in the room was murmuring excitedly to one another.

[hall-of-merlin2]

Magic, Monsters and Merthur - 1x03 - (Magic)

Been a while, hasn’t it?

Alright so I totally forgot to post the two other parts for this episode. I just put so much into the Merthur part that I... kind of got sick? Blergh, that was awful.

Magic is way more fun! A little recap.

Two prophecies for the world, we got the bad timeline. Magic is a living Being that blessed humans, but humans didn’t like that it didn’t give them god-like powers over all of nature, so they made their own blessings purely out of spite and they fought something that shouldn’t even be fight-able, or even like... physical, and won.

What the Episodes taught us.

1x01 - Teleportation is a thing, but is apparently complicated. Veil spells - covering ones form with a look that deceives human eyes, but not the world. Dragons were so fancy they re-purposed Druidspeak to turn it into Dragonspeak - a similarly echo-y way of communication. Imagine snapping your fingers to a tune and doing magic at the same time. A dream scenario, but nothing to confirm such an amazing possibility. Merlin is resistant to sleep magic, or in other words, enchantment magic (Stuff that puts people under a spell, different from amulets that put people under a spell.). Amulets can be shattered - they can break under a certain amount of force applied and the spells they were keeping alive break at the same time. Quite a useful way to render a sorcerer harmless.

1x02 - Human lives are not higher than those of animals - I refuse to accept anything else, and I made up a whole theory of how the Cup of Life doesn’t take lives, just life-force, which every living being has, to continue my theory. Which means that any life is worth another’s life, even a flower’s, and making dead material into living things is a trend that just keeps going.

Let’s see what bullshit the afanc can do!

<_><_><_>

<_><_><_>

00:40

(Wow thanks subtitles…)

Anyway if you’ve heard it, then you know it’s similar to what Merlin used to revive stone. So it’s the same spell with little variations depending on what material you’re using.

Apparently, I WAS A GODDAMN FOOL FOR THINKING THAT.

I was going to somehow find the spell that Nimueh used here and then put it through a translator to see what it meant, but some very dedicated people on the wiki have already done that for me.

Yes, there is a Merlin Wiki, there’s a wiki for everything but I was just shocked how much information it held on everything…

And… The only difference is Nimueh calls the afanc “ancient” or “old” and Merlin just skips that and tells the stone to wake up already (as you do).

It WOULD have been fun if there was ONE spell that made DEAD material ALIVE, but it CHANGED based on what MATERIAL you USED.

But no. Clay is more ancient than stone. That’s all.

*Writes this down on “Reasons I’m adding to the magic”*

<_><_><_>

01:45

Those rocks look familiar.

Because of that… not even fact, I used to think that Nimueh was just hiding out in one of Camelot’s deepest caves, very far away so no one could find her. Dumb idea, but imagine how many creatures would reside in these caves if they really were that large? Unending magical creatures attacks from somewhere underneath Camelot and the knights having to storm some “stronghold” of the creatures – that’s a whole episode!

<_><_><_>

16:36

Yeah… I’m not gonna try to explain how the hell healing spells work. Mostly because… I’m not sure the sorcerers know themselves.

Are there magical herbs at all? Or are simple herbs given better healing qualities through the use of magic? Are the herbs there as a placebo and healing magic doesn’t need anything but the incantations that all other magic needs?

There is one type of healing magic that I CAN explain, but that’s… Oh boy that’s in another season, and only relevant there.

But does any of this matter, really? Should we just accept that spells are spells and leave it at that?

I wanna leave it at that. It’s way more fun just thinking of what ways those spells can be used.

(I know that the whole point of this part of the re-watch is to try and fill in the gaps that the show left, but... Spells and what they do have always been iffy for me. I don’t like them, I don’t even know why. I like “silent” spells, or magic that you can do without speaking, I actually have no good reason for why I like that more and hate spoken spells and spells with rituals and specific materials.

Oh wait I did say why I hate them... But who read that rant anyway?

Not me, apparently.)

<_><_><_>

33:25

Oh no this line spiraled yet another theory.

This is taken from my “Too many reasons to hate Kilgharrah”, a book that I’m not sure when I’ll release since paper is scarce.

(I also think that everything Kilgharrah does is to somehow manipulate Merlin and get him to trust him.)

(Oh and assuming innocent and meaning-nothing lines have actually incredible meaning and are definitely hiding something is… The basis of this whole theory, I’m only staying in-character.)

***

Kilgharrah already knew of the afanc before Merlin came to him. Yes, you could say that Merlin hadn’t come to him before, so his advice on how to defeat it isn’t just another attempt to get the warlock to rely on him, but how did Kilgharrah know? If the dungeon he’s trapped in is connected to the other dungeons and the one Nimueh is doing her thing in, and the chain is long enough for him to reach and see her, why didn’t he call Merlin the moment he found out? A creature of his knowledge knows what the afanc does and he knows Camelot is in grave danger, what was he waiting for? For someone important to Merlin to die? Was he just petty and thought that half of Camelot getting destroyed was funny? What if it would have deterred Merlin further from him, make him leave Camelot, did this lizard really not think of that? Did he want Nimueh’s plan to succeed? Does Kilgharrah feel any kind of attachment to Nimueh? She is of the Old Religion. Maybe he feels that they are kin and he doesn’t wish for her plan to fail.

And if this has nothing to do with Nimueh at all and he doesn’t even know she still exists, then what reason would he have to withhold information? If he felt the afanc moving through the water, why didn’t call to Merlin and warn him? No excuse.

But when Merlin comes by, he has no choice. He tells him how to beat the afanc, but says nothing about Nimueh. He probably knows that she’s smart and she will see what Merlin is capable of and… who knows what she’ll attempt next.

Kilgharrah is willing to bet she doesn’t want to kill Merlin.

(ALSO MERLIN COULD HAVE KILLED THE AFANC HIMSELF, BUT OF COURSE, LET’S TRY TO HAMMER HOME THE IDEA THAT HIM AND ARTHUR ARE SUPPOSED TO BE WORKING TOGETHER EVEN MORE SO MERLIN COMES TO TERMS WITH THE IDEA THAT HE HAS TO BE A SERVANT ALL HIS LIFE.)

***

That bit about Nimueh being of the Old Religion and Kilgharrah sort of… being an accomplice of hers, it…

It made me think that the dragons and the Old Religion used to be connected.

And with how Kilgharrah manipulates Merlin and then how Nimueh is a slave to prophecies – that’s probably because the dragon told her of the prophecies.

I think that the dragons used to rule over the members of the Old Religion.

Why not, right> Dragons are powerful, they’re knowledgeable, why not turn a few puny humans to their side? It would help to know more things, and it would stroke their egos just a bit more.

I’ve literally no basis for this idea, but knowing that Dragonlords exist, it makes you think.

Why would dragons allow/need humans to speak to them? I honestly don’t think that Dragonlords are natural. Commanding dragons? Humans? What about eggs hatching? Why the fuck couldn’t an egg just… hatch like all other eggs do? How is a dragon’s soul equal to a human’s – the two don’t even have similar magic among them! Their bodies decay differently, their thinking is different, how can the two’s souls be considered brothers if the human part of the soul retains no memories of past reincarnations? It’s like it’s a new soul, and the thing that’s actually passed down after death (HOW COULD IT BE A SOUL THAT’S PASSED DOWN IF A PERSON WAS PERFECTLY FIND WITHOUT THIS QUESTIONABLE GIFT UP UNTIL THEIR FATHER DIED?) is just a type of magic. A very specific type of magic, that’s coded to only be passed down this way, and to work in the way that it’s described – a dragon’s soul is felt like that of a sibling’s.

I think… I think that Dragonlords were a thing created by the Old Religion sometime after dragons tried to rule over them. This caused the tables to turn, and suddenly the Old Religion had knowledge of the Draconic prophecies, which Nimueh actually seems to follow.

This is far-fetched, obviously. The two prophecy sets were far-fetched. But I’m nothing if not a stubborn believer in going big or going home.

And oh boy the documents of text for each episode each have like… 5k+ words. It doesn’t count the screencaps, otherwise, the character number would be in the hundred thousands.

I am not even halfway of going big.

<_><_><_>

35:25

So the afanc is a beast born of clay, needs considerable power to be conjured, and we all know Merlin has enough power to do that so the stone-resurrecting is not ooc. Exudes some sort of toxic waste from its body that drains the life force of everything that has any (which is everything, apart from non-organic stuff – includes glass, stone, rock that formed incredibly long ago and leather, etc.), but it takes a few days for it to finish what it starts in the first burst of draining. It is defeated by using fire and wind, the two of the four base elements the afanc isn’t made out of.

(We never heard of elements again though. There are some fire spells, but if this type of effective-against-one-weak-against-another thing is going on, then certain alchemy is conducted every time you cast these spells. Water extinguishes fire, fire eats up wind(oxygen), wind… erodes? Earth?, earth… Yeah no, it’s the other way around. Water extinguishes fire, fire scorches earth, earth… takes over wind? Doesn’t leave space for it to move? And air just carries water around so the little droplets get separated and can’t form something stronger. Yeah, that sounds better.

The other way around is empowering then, I guess. Or… making different elements? Wind picks up the earth, making it more impactful in the air current,  earth… turns into… lava… because of the heat? Fire… makes water vapor? And water… gets inbetween the air and also makes it more impactful? I don’t know… NOT ENOUGH INFO DAMMIT. AND THAT’S SAYING SOMETHING SINCE I’VE SPUN AN ENTIRE NEW UNIVERSE FROM LIKE 2 EPISODES OF THIS SHIT. THIS IS DISAPPOINTING LEVELS OF LOW INFO.)

<_><_><_>

The Merthur

The Monster

[suescamander]

Cost of the Crown

The stars are very beautiful, above the palace walls,

They shine with equal splendour, still above far humbler halls.

I watch them from my window, but their bright entrancing glow,

Reminds me of the freedom I gave up so long ago.

Arthur stood at the window of his chambers, staring up to the night sky, illuminated only by the bright glow of the stars.

He used to love the stars. When he was still the prince rather than king. But now... Now they made him feel melancholic. They reminded him of nights spend outside, watching the stars, not worrying about anything more than how to improve his fighting skills. They reminded him of moonlight kisses, of happy smiles, being happy in general. They reminded him of how it felt, not having to worry about everything, not having to mourn death and misery.

He still loved the stars, they were beautiful after all. If only they wouldn't bring memories crashing down, memories to compare with how he felt now. Memories who made him crave to turn back time, longing for that much easier life he had.

The Royal circlet of bright gold rests lightly on my brow,

I once thought only of the rights this circlet would endow.

But once I took the crown, to which I had been schooled and bred,

I found it heavy on the heart, though light upon the head.

There was a glimmer visible from his bedside table. Arthur practically felt the light pressure his crown usually put on his head. It wasn't heavy. Not this one at least, it was his daily one, not the big ceremonial crown. And even that one was manageable. Especially if one was used to it. And that he was.

That crown also reminded him of his earlier days. But, opposing to the familiar glow of the stars, his crown brought back memories of how foolish he had been. How arrogant. What a prat he had been, entitled by his, well, title as prince of Camelot. He was lucky, having found someone to show him his bratty behaviour. But still - he had looked forward to being crowned. Once again he wished for the ability to turn back time. To prepare his younger self for the pain that would shadow his coronation, the pain and loss that was about to come.

Although I am the head of state, in truth I am the least,

The true Queen knows her people fed, before she sits to feast.

The good Queen knows her people safe, before she takes her rest,

Thinks twice and thrice and yet again, before she makes request.

For they are all my children,all, that I swore to defend,

It is my duty to become both Queen and trusted friend.

And of my children high and low, from beggar to above,

The dearest are my Heralds, who return my care with love.

He always thought as king everything would go like he wanted it to. He thought he could do as he pleased. But he quickly had to learn that everything he did as king was for his people. He realized that his personal interests always came at last - hence why he waited so long to finally accept that his personal interests were the only thing that mattered in terms of his love life.

In hindsight he knew that he should have made the step earlier, for a happy king leads to a happy kingdom.

He glanced down at his left hand, catching sight of the shimmering silver decorating his finger. The slightest hint of a smile stole itself on his face, only to vanish a second later.

He got his happiness. Others didn't. He, as king, was supposed to ensure the safety of his people. He was supposed to make sure they were alright. It was more or less his job to enable all of them, no matter which social rank they hold, to live their life safely.

But most important to him were his knights. The people who stood with him. Who were his friends, his advisors. Who loved him.

The dearest are my Heralds, swift to spring to my command.

Who give me aid and fellowship, who always understand

That land and people first have needs that I may not deny.

So I must send my dearest friends to danger—and to die.

A friend, a love, a child—it matters not, I know indeed,

That I must sacrifice them all if there should be the need.

They know, and they forgive me—doing more than I require,

With willing minds and loving hearts go straight to grasp the fire.

His knights. His warriors, his insurance. The people who fought beside him, who died next to him. They understood the risks of being a knight. They understood that they might not return from one of the trips, but still came with him, still fought, still died. They understood that the well-being of Camelot was more important than a single life - or hundreds for that matter. His friends still stood beside him, and he might once have to send them to death. The dearest of his knights were the knights of the Round Table. The knights who went through so many dangers with him. And, oh lord, how many did he sent to ruin?

Lancelot. Sacrificed and later used to destroy Arthurs trust in Gwen, who he had been wanting to marry because she knew about him and his secrets. Arthur never wanted to cast her away. She was truly in love with Lance, but had been ready to cover as Arthurs wife. And because of that, her love was ripped away in the most cruel manner he could have imagined. He did not only lose Lancelot, the most loyal out of all of them, he also destroyed one of his dearest friends in the process because he wasn't brave enough to face his council about his love life.

Elyan. Another person dear to Gwen. Died trying to save his sister, who had been captured and tortured to hurt Arthur.

And at last - Gwaine and Percival. Gwaine - Merlins best friend, died because Morgana had tortured him to get go know their location. Died while trying to help Merlin save Arthur. Died believing he failed at it. And died, leaving Percival behind. They hadn't been official, though on the best way to it. Percival wasn't the same, still shocked, for it hadn't been a day since Gwaine passed away directly in front of him.

The worst part of it all, it had been Arthur who sent them, no, led them  in the missions that cost them their lives or loved ones. It had been Arthur who had doomed them.

These tears that burn my eyes are all the tears the Queen can't shed,

The tears I weep in silence as I mourn my Heralds dead.

Oh gods that dwell beyond the stars, if you can hear my cry—

And if you have compassion—let me send no more to die!

As Arthur stood there, gazing at the stars, re-living all the terrible things that happend to those close to him, tears welled up in his eyes. He spiralled into questions of what if? and tried to cope with everything, especially with the things happening the last days. A lot had happened - he almost died, hadn't it been for Merlin, he lost Gwaine and so many more in Camlann, and Arthur found himself doubting every single one of his decisions as king.

Could he have prevented Morgana from ripping the veil between the worlds to save Lance? Could he have protected Gwen from being kidnapped and tortured at the Black Tower? Could he have prevented Mordred from turning on him? Could he...

A quiet rustle shook him from his thoughts, followed by light tapping of bare feet on the cold stone floor. Arthur didn't turn around. "What are you doing out of bed? You need rest, you just survived being stabbed!" Arthur still didn't react. Arms went around his waist from behind, a chin came resting on his right shoulder. The king glanced down at the hands on his stomach, catching the sight of a thin silver band matching his. He still didn't say anything, but he put his hands on his spouse's, thankful of the constance he provided. His consort gave him a reassuring squeeze, and Arthur led out a sigh.

"It's just... It is my fault. Gwaine. Lance. Elyan. All the others." He finally failed to restrain the tears that threatened to spill out of his eyes, and his love was there to steady him. "Shh... It's alright. It's not your fault, Arthur." The king turned around. "It is, Merlin, and you know it! They're dead because of me. It's my fault, my guilt to carry. I send so many good people to die. It's... it's the Cost of the Crown, I think." The sorcerer, his husband, raised his hands to wipe away the tears. "You don't have to carry that weight alone, Arthur. You can share it with me. Just like we do with everything else." Arthur nodded slightly, though still doubting himself. "And please, Arthur, it's not your fault they died. They died for what they believed would grow to be the greatest kingdom to ever exist. They died to make sure you could fulfill your destiny. You can mourn them, you can weep over them, it's alright and simply human, but Arthur, I'm begging you, don't let what happened destroy you." Arthur rested his forehead against his husband's. "You're right. I'll try."

"Good. And now you're coming back to bed and won't move out there until I say so, because I don't want you catching an illness and dying of it, I didn't drag you through the forest for nothing, dear." Arthur let out a small chuckle and let himself be pulled back to the bed and tucked into the sheets, Merlin climbing in and drawing him close.

"Thank you, Merlin. I love you. I always will." Merlin snuggled up further into his chest. "I love you too. And Arthur?" "Hmm?" "It's alright to mourn and grief. You don't need to hide it. We all miss them. But doubting everything you did won't bring them back. It'll only hurt you, and that's the exact opposite of what they would want. Take all the time you need to cope. You can share the weight with my, Arthur. After all, I didn't become Crown Consort for nothing, now, did I?" Arthur draw Merlin even closer after that, pressing a kiss into his husband's hair. "No, you didn't. And I am beyond thankful for that."

[lawgoddess]

EDITION #2234 – MAY 22, 2020 

 Before commenting to the newsletter, please read the FAQ first. mxa_news is now cross-posting on tumblr at mxa-news.tumblr.com. Follow us there! News/Resources merlincastnews: BRADLEY JAMES: INTERVIEW WITH THE PODCAST DESTINY AND CHICKEN Challenges/Fests camelot_drabble: Prompt #413 Sign-ups! camelot_drabble: Prompt # 412 Masterlist! merlin_forever: Promoting Merlin Canon Fest Discussion/Meta merlin_forever: Merlin Re-watch Reminder: 1X11 - The Labyrinth of Gedref Fanart lesgrandtears: sometimes i feel i can hardly breathe everyone expects so much of me. raging-titan: merthur doodles maryluis: Do this Merlin, do that Merlin! zeramara: AU where everyone lives, Merlin can use magic freely, and they all lived happily ever after Multimedia MistbornHero: Podfic of Rescue Me by SlantedKnitting Fanfic: In Progress [M/A] USER: A Professional Relationship (1/?) (R) 1931 “No. Absolutely not,” Arthur stared at the man who not twenty minutes ago rear ended him. “You’re fired. Get out,” he stated simply as he made his way towards the elevators. Merlin gets a job at Pendragon Industries as an assistant to the Chairman's son, Arthur. They don't get off on the best foot. (Merthur Office AU). [M/A +] Impala_Cherry_Trickster: Together? (1/2) (NC-17) 1342 Gwaine's been mentoring Arthur on how to get Merlin into his bed, until things change quite suddenly. [M/A] schweet_heart: marginalia (1/3) (NC-17) 2898 He pushed open the door to his chambers. There, where he had left it, was his old oak bed, the hangings freshly cleaned and re-hung in preparation for his arrival; there was his desk, his dining table, the familiar worn-smooth stones of the hearth where a welcome fire was blazing. And there, standing with his back to the window, was his manservant, arms folded across his chest, leaning casually against the stonework as he waited for his king. Sometimes, the most important moments are the ones that happen in between battles. Or: Merlin and Arthur steer Camelot towards a Golden Age together.(Series: Part 205 of the Merlin Fic series) [M/A] Silur: Merlin - A Time Reversal (1/26) (G) 1112 Arthur closed his eyes and knew that his kingdom was safe. He knew that he could go without any grievances. What he didn't know was, what he would do, if he was ever to return. What diffrences could he make, if time was reversed? Maybe... Maybe some things wouldn't end like they had. Maybe he wanted some things to stay. Somebody to stay... "Hey." He turned around. "Come on, it's enough." "What?" "You've had your fun my friend." Fanfic: Complete [M/A] bunnysworld: Social Distancing (G) 619 Merlin and Arthur perfect social distancing. [M/A] open_spellbook: I found you at the back of some party, then later I found you in my heart... (NR) 607 Merlin finds Arthur by accident, after all those years of waiting Merlin should be over joyed, if it wasn't for the fact Arthur had no clue who he is and just desperately wants to make out with him… And if only poor Merlin wouldn't cry so much… (Series: Part 2 of the The places Merlin and Arthur went... (open for prompts!) series) [M/A] Gilli_ann: Announcement (G) 200 Prince Arthur and Merlin will face the world together for the first time as their engagement is announced. (Series: Part 3 of the Royal Wedding series) [M/A] Saturning: Sugar abomination with caffeine (NR) 1271 Another coffeeshop AU but in this one Arthur orders the worst drink imaginable and Merlin - the waiter - absolutely can’t take it. [M/A] CaesarWasntEmperor: I Can See the Fire in Your Eyes (G) 5080 The new king blinked, a slight frown settling, faint crinkles forming above the bridge of his nose, as his father finished, “the boy, your love, Merlin,” the phantom spat, “he has, is, magic. Destroy him, the one the Druids call Emrys, and you will wield a fear over magic we can only imagine.” “Merlin?” Arthur whispered. “Merlin has magic,” Uther reaffirmed, and Arthur was sure he saw flames burning in his eyes as he mentioned the name, as if memories of all those sent to burn passed across his mind in a flash. Uther, being able to see most things in his kingdom while in the afterlife, reveals Merlin's secret to Arthur before the new King leaves the veil. [M/A] TheAsexualofSpades: I promise (G) 2253 Merlin's been off the past few days. Arthur knows. The knights know. They just have to figure out why. Well, no. Arthur has to figure out why. The knights are making sure he knows that if it's his fault they won't be happy. (Series: Part 58 of the Quarantine Drabbles series) [M/A] tops: Lost Without You (G) 1865 Merlin has been waiting for centuries. Lonely and lost without his destiny. But something is different about today. Today, the lake stirs. [M/A] USERallthingsmagical: A Different Kind Of Experience (PG-13) 16448 Sequel to work experience. Merlin is pregnant again and Arthur is happy to share this one with him. [M/A] SwanFloatieKnight: Breakfast For Dragons (G) 358 It is just like Arthur to oversleep when he has to feed Aithusa. (Series: Part 13 of the Camelot Crack Ficlets series) [M/A] Krank: Safe and Sound (PG-13) 1947 Don't you dare look out your window, darling, everything's on fire With nothing left, Merlin uses everything he has to make Arthur comfortable. [M/A] bunnysworld: Social Distancing (G) 611 Merlin and Arthur perfect social distancing. Maybe they get a bit too good at it? [M/A] arthur_pendragon: you, where are you (G) 355 an edit of Merlin and Arthur, along with poems from each to the other. [M/A] Mischel: Stay. (G) 1989 Arthur and Morgana overhear Merlin's conversation with his mother, and after magic is used in the fight, they both realize that Merlin is a sorcerer. Despite not really wanting to, Arthur decides that Merlin should stay in Ealdor. Now it's Morgana's job to kick Arthur back to Ealdor to get their friend back. But that is not the only reason Arthur wants Merlin to stay with him. Set in the episode 1x10 The Moment of Truth. (Series: Part 10 of the Merlin Rewatch 2020 series) [M/A] musiclover57: Remembering (NR) 1251 Sequel to 2020. Arthur remembers, and he and Merlin talk. (Series: Part 2 of Endings and Beginnings) [M/A] Val_Creative: I Got You (And You Got Me) (PG-13) 1047 It’s already halfway through the day when Merlin’s foot pushes in the screen door. He never did learn to knock. [M/A] rowrowrowthatsme: Picnic (G) 724 Arthur is acting weird, and Merlin is determined to figure out why.