#morgana redemption

[onceandfutureclotpoll]

Title: Metamorphose

Author: clotpolesonly

Rating: Teen and up Audiences

Summary: When Merlin falls into bed with Arthur, he doesn't expect for to wake up alone. He doesn't expect Arthur to give him the cold shoulder either, but there is something else he expects even less which forces him out of the kingdom for over a year. He returns to find a traitor in the court, an army on the way, and a love he'd thought all but lost waiting for him with open arms.

[captainfairygodmother]

Not gonna lie, this was all I could think of every time Sofia showed up

[princess-of-morkva]

genuinely need a dark-ish!morgwen fic where morgana decides to trust gwen a little more and tries to win her over to her side, the topic of gwen's father's unjust death by magic laws is explored and gwen gets to actually see the process of morgana's change and go through it with her. where maybe not at first, but gradually gwen begins to feel torn between her loyalty to camelot and arthur and her compassion for morgana and all who are unjustly persecuted and her personal resentment for uther she tried her best to bury deep down. where morgana takes over the crown in s3 finale and gwen understands why. but she also sees how morgana's judgement is clouded by her anger and resentment for uther and how she begins to blame all of camelot for the faults of it's king and gwen tries to make her see sense. and maybe morgana handles it all a little bit better and the shooting at townspeople doesn't occur. and when morgana is gone gwen misses her more than she resents her, because for all of her faults, deep down, gwen understands. and she sees how morgana's actions steer from reason and feel more like a cornered animal lashing out than some evil masterplan. and when they meet again, a swords crossed, neither has it in them to truly land a strike. and gwen knows that morgana is injured, and her army scattered, and she probably laying somewhere bleeding all by herself and she knows she changed, and this is not the same morgana she knew, and still she can't simply let it go. she goes into the woods at night, and she finds morgana there, weak and unconscious and in the moment she doesn't seem like a dangerous sorceress but a girl who used to cringe in her sleep and wake at night crying from terror and whom gwen used to hold tightly for hours, sweet whispered words and kisses to her hair and in that instant gwen knows. that she is going to stay with her and care for her because nobody else will. because she needs morgana back, and she may not be the same as she knew, but deep down, it's her.

[snirtsnirkarts]

His name? Well, actually their names. Anyways I had this really fun idea and my own take on the “What would happen if you tried to take Merlin’s magic away” or whatever yknow. Well this is one of my fun takes. I thought it’d be very funny if it kinda split Merlin from his magic and kinda split his personality into two different people. Yknow like that one Phineas and Fred eps where Candice splits into two and one wants to bust the boys and the other is obsessed with Jeremy. Essentially that. Or like any classic cartoon troupe like that.

Emrys is the embodiment of the word “Stressed”, Merlin is cluelessly fearless. Emrys is an excellent liar, Merlin wouldn’t be able to lie if his life depended on it(it does). Emrys is rather agile, Merlin is so clumsy and accident prone he may get himself killed just by walking around. Both still have the sass, but Emrys’ is better timed with his to make them hit the hardest and Merlin only speaks in insults.

Anywho, the concept is that Merlin goes back to the first instance he died, which I decided he’s fallen out of a tree one night while sneaking out to play with Will. And one of the only way Merlin and Emrys become one again is if Merlin goes through all of the times he died. Luckily it doesn’t switch until Merlin fully heals from the last death, and Merlin sustained quite a few injuries that take some time to heal from his first. So before he goes to his next death, the poisoned chaise, Emrys has to find the flower, and then will hunt to find The Cup of Life. That’s because some of his deaths are impossible to cure, and with The Cup of Life, Emrys could speed up the process. But having to do all of that all at the same time as, making sure Merlin doesn’t get himself killed, protecting Arthur, and having to deal with a mini Dragon who just wants to play with her lord. All while Morgana is trying to find out where her dragon has gone off to.

Also Emry’s outfit is fully inspired by an outfit @/druid-boy-punk drew Merlin in check out their stuff it’s really good.

[daisymintt]

Morgana: [about Merlin] My brother was right, he does get Grinchy around the holidays.

Merlin: Grinch is gonna go get more wine.

[nikryptid]

hey guys can you watch horse morgana for me im cooking

[inloveanddepth]

i am completely normal about how snow moon morgana & varus' splash arts are of the same scene from different perspectives

[dialux]

I’ve spent the past couple weeks enmeshed in Merlin ALLLLLLLL over again, but rather than simply reading fic/looking at art, I went back to source material and watched half the tv show which was a) an excellent decision, everyone’s fucking gorg, b) an excellent decision, the show’s actually so good, c) a HORRIBLE decision, because now I have opinions on what the show should have been.

So! Without further ado: Enjoy Dia’s Merlin Plotline (For Five Seasons).

Season One: Pretty much the same as canon. Merlin learns about Nimueh, who is the primary antagonist, and we get to know all the characters we know and love. The season ends with Merlin returning from defeating Nimueh, entirely certain that he cannot/must not ever reveal his magic to anyone in Camelot.

Season Two: ALSO pretty much the same. But this time, when Merlin and Arthur go to the crystal cave, Arthur learns about Merlin’s magic- and Morgana’s. Shaken and distrusting, Arthur returns to Camelot to confront his father, but before he can, Morgause attacks. Arthur goes with Merlin to Kilgarrah’s cave and offers to ease his sentence if he tells them how to defeat the undead. Kilgarrah refuses, furious that Merlin dared to bring a Pendragon to him, but tells them that the only way for Arthur to survive is to kill his own kin. Arthur goes to Gaius to ask for help, where Gaius tells him that Morgana is his sister. Arthur refuses to kill her and Merlin defends him, but Gaius drugs them both and then poisons Morgana. In the aftermath, Morgause and her army disappear with Morgana, Uther is severely weakened by Morgana’s departure and starts passing many of his duties onto Arthur’s shoulders, and Arthur tells Gaius that his position is forfeit in the royal household. Because Merlin supported Arthur’s decision not to kill Morgana- and was drugged himself by Gaius- they build a tentative accord between each other, and he remains as Arthur’s manservant.

Season Three: Arthur and Merlin have reached a shaky balance with respect to Merlin’s magic, though there are still hiccups. They keep searching for Morgana, though without much hope; Gaius is training a few apprentices to be his successors. Arthur is, functionally, regent, and courting Gwen. The first half of the season is Arthur and Merlin settling into their new roles, with Arthur learning more about magic and Merlin supporting Arthur in his expanded duties. About halfway through the season, Morgana returns to Camelot, and her miraculous survival seems to rejuvenate Uther, who takes back many of his responsibilities. Arthur and Merlin still believe Morgana can be redeemed, but their methods of doing so are not immediately effective. Arthur clashes repeatedly with his father, unwilling to be as passive as in the past. This culminates in Arthur deciding his father’s imprisonment of Kilgarrah is unjust, and trying to identify the last surviving dragonlord to keep Camelot safe even after Kilgarrah is freed; Merlin later tells him that it’s his father, and they set out to find him. When they return from their quest, they learn that Morgause has attacked again, aided surreptitiously by Morgana, and the only way to beat back this army of the dead is through dragonfire. Merlin releases Kilgarrah and Morgause is defeated. But Kilgarrah then turns on Camelot and brings down half the castle, trying to reach Uther; Merlin, in full view of the court, commands him to stop. Uther demands Merlin be burned alive for sorcery. Arthur refuses, citing Merlin’s choice to protect Camelot rather than let the dragon destroy it, but Uther refuses to heed him. Arthur, Merlin, and Gwen flee from Camelot that very night.

Season Four: On their way out of Camelot, Arthur, Merlin, and Gwen are chased down by a furious Morgana, who insists on joining them. The four of them spend the season living, alternately, as vagabonds, mercenaries, and hedge knights; they meet up with Lancelot, Gwaine, Elyan, Percival, etc. The season is full of Merlin learning magic (hatching dragons!) through a variety of sources, wandering Albion, and understanding all that has been lost since Uther’s Purge. Arthur and Morgana learn the difficulties of being a commoner and Arthur gains a new understanding of Gwen; Gwen, however, starts to have second thoughts about her relationship with Arthur now that Lancelot is back in the picture. Arthur’s uncle Agravaine comes to join their party, but Merlin and Morgana immediately suspect him as working on Uther’s behalf. This culminates in Agravaine finally revealing that Morgause is not dead but has partnered with King Odin and promised him Camelot; they have been slowly poisoning Uther since Arthur left to weaken Camelot’s defenses. Arthur and his band of knights- and the army Merlin, Morgana, and Gwen have spent the season gathering- return to Camelot to save Uther. But they are too late. Arthur returns to Uther freshly buried, a kingdom in disarray, and his own people distrusting the army he brings home. To bring them all together, Merlin tells the people to go to Lake Avalon, where he asks Freya to part the waters; a sword is revealed to be embedded within the stone. Arthur pulls Excalibur out of the stone, gains his confidence and inspires his people, and kills Morgause.

Season Five [First Half]: Having defeated Odin, Arthur has established Camelot as a place for magic to thrive and shine. Merlin hears of magic-users in Essetir being taken as slaves by the king, and insists that they must try to stop it. Merlin and Gwaine go to Lot’s kingdom in disguise and accidentally perform a coup; Merlin rules in Arthur’s name before Arthur comes to claim the lands as his own. In Essetir, he meets Mordred, who was captured by slavers after fleeing Camelot. Though uneasy, Merlin takes him under his wing and trains him, both in magic and, through Gwaine, in combat. Meanwhile, Caerleon, fearing Camelot’s growing military might, attempts to attack Arthur, but is repelled; Morgana then names him as High King on the battlefield, and all four kingdoms kneel to him. The tensions between Lancelot, Gwen’s, and Arthur grow daily, but the growing needs of Camelot mean they can none of them address them properly until Lancelot decides to go and help rule Essetir instead of standing in Gwen’s and Arthur’s way. Arthur and Gwen decide they should get married, and she is crowned as High Queen over Albion. Morgana is officially named Arthur’s heir.

Season Five [Second Half]: In the second half of the season, there’s a time jump. Mordred is a knight and a sorcerer, and all of Albion is at peace. Merlin is now the established court sorcerer and physician; Arthur’s knights are all acting as regents in various fiefdoms across Albion. Magic is a force for good and evil; Merlin has built schools for learning and pockets of entirely magical villages have cropped up. But Morgana’s dreams are uneasy, and when she tells Merlin, the two of them go to the crystal cave to get some more clarity. On the way back, they stop in Essetir, just in time to save Lancelot from an assassination attempt, though Merlin has to put him in a coma. Against Arthur’s advice, Gwen goes to Gaius and learns of a magical object called the Holy Grail, which could relieve all wounds and turn a life immortal. As High Queen, Gwen then issues a challenge to all of Albion for the Holy Grail, promising riches beyond all imagining. Arthur and his knights, called to by honor, go on the quest. Merlin returns from Essetir with Lancelot’s body and tells Gwen the Holy Grail is nothing other than the Old Religion’s Cup of Life, but it has been destroyed by the Druids when they learned of Morgause’s intent to steal it. Mordred then tells them that the Druids didn’t destroy it, but hid it instead, in a place with many magical trials; Merlin, and Mordred head out to overcome them. On the way there, they meet Arthur and his knights, and they join forces. Mordred is compelled by a vision on the way there and stabs Arthur with Excalibur; Merlin manages to grab the cup and come back, but Arthur refuses to take the water, instead insisting Merlin give the water to Lancelot. Merlin takes Arthur’s body to Avalon, where Freya, Morgause, and Ygraine are there to receive him. They bury him with honor and send Merlin off with the knowledge that Arthur will rise again. Merlin returns to Camelot with the Cup of Life and revives Lancelot. Gwen has exiled herself to a monastery to repent for her mistakes, but Lancelot tells Merlin that he will go after her, though the choice will be hers in the end. Morgana is crowned queen. Merlin serves as her advisor, but at the end of her reign, he retires to Avalon, where Arthur lies still, and places the entire lake under an enchantment, set to be broken only in the time of Albion’s greatest need.

[foiblepnoteworthy]

Ugh I write exactly 1 Merlin fic a year but the years almost over and there's nothing 😭head mostly empty ugh

[thekingofthenameless]

It’s Morgana’s turn!

I didn’t really want to do anything to her face except make it, in my opinion a little less uncanny? I don’t know; she seems kind of off to me.

The screencaps are from the ToA wiki!

Her armor is a different story, though.

I'd been flip-flopping on whether I should redesign it or not, and @draal-the-deadly couldn't decide either, so when I got polls, I immediately made one about it.

All gold. Her helmet is way too large for my taste, and the top of it kind of looks like antlers. Not that it’s a bad thing, but with how large her helmet is it makes it look worse. The way it shows her face also looks weird to me.

Exact quote from the artbook: “With Morgana, because she is the ultimate villain, we needed a very strong design so we decided to give her a very specific color scheme for her magic—gold and yellow, mirroring the power of the sun.” -THE TEAM AT HEADLESS ANIMATION STUDIO.

The sun. Aka danger to the trolls. but they could have shown that better, you know?

So this concept art of Morgana also has a blue hand, instead of the green one she has canonically, right?

What if she had a blue hand instead? Maybe the Order makes her a green hand like canon, but the green reminds her of Merlin, who killed her. So she asks them if they could make it blue.

[pinbitch]

if they do make new merlin content, what do you want it to be?? a new season or a reboot?? modern merlin and arthur just appearing at the lake?? reincarnation?

deeply seggsy ask to just hit me with completely out of the blue bestie. but i must confess: the character i am least invested in in merlin is……..merlin. the characters i MUST see again would be gawain, morgana, and gwen

so i’d probably go for reincarnation of everyone in the modern day (or in the future! merlin IN SPACE) with old man merlin who has been living and waiting all that time. they’d be facing some threat which has caused them all to come back, and it would address the fact that the prophecy Was Not Fulfilled the first time

[makmakgoose]

Next to You (It’s the Rule)

Arthur and Merlin have a special relationship. They always have, even when they were prince and servant. While many question it when first noticing, eventually it becomes an understanding in Camelot—and even among some other countries—that where there is Arthur, there is Merlin. And, where there is Merlin, there is Arthur.

LINK

[lonelyrat15]

merlin spoilers so look away if for some reason you haven’t watched it yet but

I had never seen it until this november and i know i’m literally the last person in the world to hop on this long-departed train but i finally finished it today and I’m Sorry why did no one tell me the finale is literally fucking brokeback mountain why did they make this what were they thinking i don’t understand any of this what was the reason why did they ignore arthurian legend in order to make merlin a twink WHY DID THEY DO THAT???? what was their goal? why is the literal plot of this show that merlin was so sickeningly devoted to arthur that he’d rather save him than EVERY SINGLE MAGICAL PERSON IN CAMELOT??? AND WHY WAS HIS DESTINY TO PROTECT ARTHUR SO THAT HE’LL MAKE MAGIC LEGAL BUT THEN HE ENDS UP DYING BEFORE HE CAN EVEN DO THAT??? SO WAS MERLIN’S DESTINY PURELY TO BE IN GAY LOVE WITH ARTHUR????????? WHY DID THEY MAKE THIS

AND ANOTHER THING is this secret neoliberal propaganda because if the point is that they have to wait for LITERAL CENTURIES for arthur to return, then that means that morgana was fully right to have a revolution awpeofijawefpoawiejfwaepfoiawef also why on earth didn’t gwen make magic legal??????? idk maybe it’s incredible satire that just went over my head

why did they make this????1111!???

loved it tho i’ll probs rewatch

[sanctamater]

just realised amelia is a true winter which is why she serves cunt in jewel tones

[daisymintt]

Merlin: [about Morgana] We were very happy until we stopped courting and realized we hated each other. She hired one of my bodyguards to kill me, I blew up her car… typical divorce stuff.

[tendercoretroglodyke]

couldn't remember the plot of merlin at all so I read the wiki entry for morgana (literally detailed every action she's ever taken oh my god) and im suddenly remembering my disappointment throughout the show that she never got a redemption arc of ANY kind. they just kept pushing her to be evil with no real motivation in line with her character?? ik it's been 10 years since I watched the show but im kinda devastated lmao