#no citizen of camelot is innocent in morganas eyes

[firefly-fez]

As a proud promoter of ‘Morgana was right all along, actually’ rhetoric I would like to reblog this with my support and clarify what I mean

Like, yes. She was evil. She became evil. She lost a desire for justice and became fixated on vengeance and cruelty.

The reason she lost her desire for justice is so… beautiful? To me?

It’s just. She stops being obedient, stops listening to authority. The virtues of obedience depend entirely on the virtues of the authority one is obedient to, and in Morgana’s case, authority is unjust and cruel, so she’s justified to disobey. She tries to go to people that she trusts for help, telling Gaius about her dreams, but he lies to her. He literally gaslights her about her own magic, and to a lesser degree, so does Merlin. So she doesn’t listen to anyone around her. She doesn’t have support, doesn’t have community, she feels so alone and terrified that she jumps at the first chance to connect with someone who tells her the truth about her magic - Morgause. She’s so alone and isolated and desperate to not feel like she’s crazy that she’s so vulnerable and it’s the perfect recipe for someone to take advantage of her, and that’s exactly what Morgause does. She wants to bring Uther down, but she doesn’t really hnderstand what she’s doing when she is made the vessel for the curse upon Camelot, she’s alone and afraid and by some force of mercy, Merlin is helpful and kind so she trusts him… and he poisons her. He didn’t have another choice, not really. But everything she trusted failed her. She stops trusting anybody but herself. There’s no one to tell her when she’s gone too far, not anymore. Arthur has accountability around him when he makes a mistake, and that drives him to make amends when he kills out of cruelty or vengeance. Morgana doesn’t. She was persecuted in Camelot and abandoned by Gaius and made an outcast in the only home she’d ever known. She goes too far when she tries to have Uthur killed after Gwen’s father is executed and at first, she is repentant when she sees Uther’s remorse. But Uther’s mercy is fickle and few, and Morgana’s mercy to him dies alongside his mercy to others. The next time she tries to have him killed she doesn’t regret it. At first, it’s just Uther she hates. When she learns her parentage, that she has a claim to the throne of Camelot, it’s a turning point for her. She sees Camelot as rightfully hers. With so much denied to her, so much of her own safety and security denied to her, the perception of Camelot as rightfully hers changes her. She turns against Gwen as a threat to something that she, Morgana, deserves. By this point, it’s all hatred and revenge fuelling Morgana.

Arthur is a good man, but he wasn’t always. He used to be arrogant prat who killed sorcerers on his father’s orders. He saw sorcerers persecuted and stood by and watched. He turned a blind eye to suffering time and time again out of a desire to prove his worth to his father. People stood by Arthur and supported him and that helped him to change for the better.

(Merlin made mistakes, too, but he had support from people who knew who he was from the start. Lancelot and Freya knew his identity as a sorcerer and validated it, and Gaius was a moral support who understood his magic that he had from day one.)

No one did that for Morgana.

It just makes so much sense that she was driven to hatred.

Her emotional character arc is just…. *chefs kiss*

Morgana conquered Camelot twice and declared herself Queen. And what she did after that?

She killed innocent civilians. She burned their crops. She let their children starve. She tortured and killed the Knights. She tortured Gwaine by forcing him to fight for her own amusement. And then she tried to help magic users like her! ah no, she didn’t lol

I mean, i love Morgana because she’s a good villain and Katie is freaking amazing, but DON’T TELL ME she was fighting for freedom and justice 😭 Don’t tell me she was fighting for her people. She didn’t care about them.  As someone said in another post “Morgana’s quest was personal vengeance disguised as revolution”. She wanted vengeance and power, she wasn’t doing all this horrible things for revolution and for a change. Mordred KNEW she was bad, but he joined her because at some point he had something to avenge himself.

Just because you sympathize with an antagonist or villain, doesn’t mean they aren’t an antagonist or villain^^“ Morgana had good intentions in season 1 and 2, but after that? Nope!

[princess-of-morkva]

i've seen multiple times people complain about how unnatural morgana's behaviour is in season 3 and onwards, how bbc turned her into a "smirking villain.

i wanna talk about it. the smirking.

first of all, i absolutely love the smirking, but that just may be myself.

what i really wanna talk about is morgana's development.

let's try to see things from her s3 perspective:

she discovered that she has magic, which led to constant fear and anxiety (not good for mental health); she had one single person to whom she could talk about it; this person betrays her and for seemingly no reason (do you actually believe morgause told her the truth? i very much doubt it), poisons her;

she gets rescued by her newfound sister who is also magical;

she lives with her for an entire year (which gives morgause a lot of time and space to plant and nourish any thoughts abd ideas; she's clearly manipulative - this much was pretty obvious even in the series - i absolutely believe she used the tactic "we are alone against the world, morgana, i am the only one who actually cares for you, i know better" and probably a lot of guilt tripping about how she was raised by pendragons any time morgana had doubts about her methods (i should write about it separately, there's a lot of things i want to mention)

and now about smirking.

personally, i believe she is doing it to reassure herself. every time she begins to doubt, she would need to remind herself "you are in the right, it's justified". and smiling for personal reassurance is a very common, unconscious reaction.

remember how she walks out of the throne room in s3e1, giving her first evil smirk in camera? right after she and uther embraced. you can't tell me it did not remind her of other good moments with him, of the warm feelings she held for him. of that time when she planned his death and then decided against it in s1.

and of course she needs to remind herself of how now it's different. she is planning to overthrow him and she will - there is no need for this feelings and memories, uther is a bloody tyrant, she has her sister now.

and i can write such explanations for every single time. (maybe i will)

generally, i think she is lying to herself a lot, forsing down feelings and memories, more and more with every line she crosses - summoning undead army, where she causes direct harm to camelot's citizens for the first time; giving arthur the phoenix eye - where she finally extends uther's guilt on arthur fully in her mind; staging the discovery gwen's relationship with arthur - where she causes direct harm to gwen, her friend and wholly innocent person. and so on. she doesn't allow herself to doubt, to reflect on her actions, pushing everything down, lest she drowns in regret.

it would drive any person mad.

(i will do another post for s4 and s5 especially)

[tinyavenuesailor]

Arthur’s Perspective

One thing I think we don’t talk about often is Arthur’s perspective in the show.  I’ve seen quite a few stories of Arthur having an extremely negative reaction to Merlin’s magic reveal. I think some fans tend to begrudge Arthur for his prejudice against magic. Understandably because when we are watching Merlin, we are seeing everything from Merlin’s perspective. We see the injustice and the fear people and creatures of magic have to endure. So, I get it but as viewers we know the whole story. Arthur and frankly 99% of Camelot don’t.

Let’s slow down and really take this in Arthur’s shoes. Arthur had been raised on the idea that it was a sorcerer that murdered his mother and had to listen to his father preaching about the evil of magic since he was old enough to understand people.

If that wasn’t enough 80% of the sorcerers that Arthur run into have tried to end his life.

Then he had to watch a Great Dragon burn and destroy the homes and lives of innocent citizens of Camelot.

And let’s not forget Morgana, someone Arthur loves and cherishes, goes missing for a year, returns, betrays him, voices her hatred for him and how she blames him for everything, practically gleams at the idea of ending his life and also reveals that she’s his sister and now has magic - which Arthur has been taught corrupts people.

Then the Disir sort of try to blackmail Arthur with a death sentence if he doesn’t free magic and bow down to the Triple Goddess. 

So yeah I get why Arthur may not be so ready to jump on this magic train when almost every encounter he had with magic had almost gotten him, the people he loves or the people in Camelot killed.

And if you’re thinking, well magic has saved Arthur and Camelot asses multiple times. Yes, but they don’t know that.

Arthur doesn’t know his mother died because his parents didn’t heed the warnings of the High Priestess. He doesn’t know that every sorcerer that comes for his life and Camelot is doing so in vengeance of Uther’s misguided rage. Doesn’t know that Morgana had to live in fear of her life of her powers. Doesn’t know that Merlin is going around saving Camelot and his ass like its a full-time job.

Arthur has every reason to hate magic considering how its wrecked his life but he doesn’t. Arthur never shows any real resentment to magic, more caution from being conditioned to hate magic. He always say ‘Magic corrupts’ but those aren’t his words, they’re his father’s. Because if he does believe magic only serves to corrupt why does he give people with magic fair trials? Why  doesn’t he actively hunt sorcerers unless they are a threat to Camelot’s safety? 

Then we see these moments where we can see Arthur is open-minded, that deep down some part of him always doubted his father’s teachings. Where he’s ready for someone to show him that magic can be more than destruction but he never gets that validation. 

*cough* There can be no place for magic in Camelot *cough*

I’m not blaming Merlin, Morgana or any other sorcerers. I fully understand why Merlin hid, why Morgana mental health deteriorated and why other sorcerers sought to destroy Camelot, except the Disir - I have my personal reservation on them.

I’m just emphasizing with Arthur’s point of view, everyone expects you to one day open your eyes and make magic legal but no one wants to sit down and show you the beautiful things magic can do. Like if y’all wanted magic in Camelot that bad did no one think to actually talk to Arthur about magic after he became King, he’s a prat yes but he’s not beyond reason.

Merlin had his fears yes, but, Gaius has a history with magic and knows of the atrocities of the Purge and is an advisor to Arthur. Gwen is Queen of Camelot and has no ill-will towards magic. Leon, one of Arthur’s trusted knights was saved by the Druids using magic. We all know Lancelot and Gwaine have no qualms with magic.

Did it really never occur to Gaius that Arthur had a right to know of the origins of his birth and would have maybe sparked a movement to help restore magic to Camelot and fix the damage the Purge had caused to the magical community. 

This is what really hurt me because I feel Arthur would have wholeheartedly accepted magic. In fact, I think he could have come to love it. In one day, Arthur entire stance on magic changed - albeit he was dying but it only took one person Arthur trusted to change his views on magic.

And it’s sad to think that Arthur still died with only half the story. Yeah, he knows Merlin has magic but he’ll never know why Morgana became the way she did. He’ll never know the real reason behind the Purge. Hell, he doesn’t even know he’s apart of this whole big prophecy.

Honestly, people could throw shade on Arthur for not legalizing magic sooner but I don’t think he was given a fair fighting chance. What is a man supposed to do when he only has 100 pieces out of a 1000-piece puzzle.

[pen-your-dragons]

Don’t know if it would be a blessing or a curse, but I would love to see a spin-off to BBC Merlin about Uther’s reign BEFORE the magic ban and during the first years of the purge.

Like it would be completely heartbreaking watching this young king loosing the love of his life due to his own hubris and then going mad, turning on all of his friends.

His relationship with Gaius (like come on, Uther let him live and work as the castle’s physician even though he was once a magic user, the TRUST), they were probably as close to each other as Arthur and Merlin.

Him turning on Nimueh and Balinor, both of which I always assumed he had a friendship with before the beginning of the purge. Manipulating his friend into helping him capture the last dragon alive, only to chain it up and then said friend having to flee the city.

And we would all know how it would end, but the interactions between the characters, the betrayal of a close friend, the heartbreak, there’s just so much potential.

Camelot’s transition into a hostile kingdom, where part of its citizens have to hide who they are. The first innocents being burned and the reaction of Uther’s friends, knowing they could be the next.

The absolute horror of watching burning people on the pyre turning into something so common that no one bats an eye at it anymore.

It would also be a great parallel of father/daughter, like Morgana x Arthur/Merlin/Gwen (who were once her friends) and Uther x Gaius/Balinor/Nimueh (who I always assumed were his group of friends when he was about Arthur’s age)

[etfuturus]

❛ magic is not good or evil. is a knife evil? only if the wielder is. ❜

❛ a knife is a weapon, if someone is wielding it as such. evil or otherwise. is it not? ❜  arthur knows more about weapons than he’d like; has led the knights since he was practically still a child, has seen good men taken by the fog and bloodlust of battle and turned monstrous. magic is— magic. it is what it is. he’s never hated it like his father did — not just for its own sake, not out of some misplaced blame. but he knows the danger of the sword; is still learning, the hard way, what magic can do in the hands of someone wielding it as a weapon. 

kara and her people have every right to be angry. arthur has been… trying, he thinks, his best. trying to balance bringing magic back to camelot, opening its doors to the old ways again — with morgana. that’s the crux of it. she has every right to be angry, too, with camelot and uther and arthur and god knows who else — but arthur’s seen what her revenge looks like, exacted against the citizens of camelot. innocent people who had no hand in what their father did to her. he has a responsibility to them, magical or otherwise; he’s well into a dark thought, that this will never be accomplished in his lifetime. 

❛ i don’t believe magic is evil. or even that it’s a weapon, all the time. ❜  these years have been exhausting, an uphill battle on all sides. arthur has no answer that will satisfy kara, and he knows it.  ❛ but i can’t change everyone’s minds, all at once. ❜  for a brief moment, arthur closes his eyes, then opens them again, decision made. 

❛ what would you suggest i do? i think i have some idea of what you think i shouldn’t. ❜

MEME  ||  @bndruidh

[generallynerdy]

Our Little Secret Part 4 (Merlin & Child!Reader)

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Summary: Morgana’s betrayal is revealed when Cenred wages war on Camelot. Between escaping her own home and betraying old friends, (Y/N) comes to realise what her purpose in Camelot is beyond learning magic.

Key: (Y/N) - your name

Warnings: violence, imprisonment, executions, some good old fashioned murder

Word Count: 1,839

Note: i big want to die i’m at a competition with @coolestuncle (gay uncle korbyn)

(Y/N) prided herself on being able to hide her magic from the most powerful and brightest people in Camelot. It was times like these, however, that she questioned whether hiding her magic was a good thing.

She was not yet a woman when Cenred’s men threatened the walls of Camelot. In fact, she was barely a child, though nearing her teenage years. She had gained years of knowledge from Merlin and Gaius as she aged, becoming more confident in her magical abilities. As it turned out, she had a knack for it. She was getting so used to having her abilities that it took every ounce of self control not to try defending Camelot with them.

(Y/N) was in Morgana’s chambers with Gwen the night before. She stared anxiously out the window while Spot whimpered at her feet. Reaching down to pet him, she heard Morgana enter.

Dread filled her at the sight of the king’s ward. Merlin had warned the girl all about how wicked Morgana truly was, how she tried to take the throne at every turn. This was no doubt one of her plans with Morgause. Unfortunately, this one seemed to be working.

She spoke as she entered. “Gwen?”

“Is it true they attack at dawn?” Said woman asked shakily.

“I’m afraid so,” Morgana said, faking anguish.

Spite filled (Y/N) at her words. Barely a girl with only magic and a hidden dagger in her ragged dress, she wanted to rip the lady of Camelot to pieces.

Yet, at the thought, she grew sorrowful. Morgana had been her friend once. She had taken care of her, given her quarters in the palace. She spent days alongside the girl, doing everything and nothing at all-- whatever they pleased. When had Morgana changed? (Y/N) couldn’t remember the exact moment.

“And no word from Arthur?”

“Nothing.”

Gwen shook her head. “Then all is lost. We will be massacred, every last one of us.”

“Not everyone has to die,” Morgana almost scoffed.

(Y/N) raised her head, eyes wide. Morgana was perhaps revealing herself to Gwen at this very moment.

Gwen also seemed to process the strange words. “What do you mean not everyone?”

“Those that defy them,” Morgana said as she walked toward Gwen. “Those that choose to fight, they will surely die. Those who do not resist, those that choose to welcome change, they will have a future here. Everyone has a choice, Gwen.”

The servant girl looked almost terrified and (Y/N) couldn’t blame her. However, she managed to swallow back shock and nodded. “You know I have always been loyal to you, Morgana. And I always will be.”

“Then have no fear,” Morgana said, taking her hands in hers with a smile. “No harm will come to you. I can promise you that.”

They embraced and out of Morgana’s eyesight, Gwen glanced at (Y/N), who shook her head violently. They shared a knowing look, one that made a silent promise that they were not loyal to Morgana from that moment on. Gwen was just keeping the both of them safe. (Y/N) knew that.

Gazing out the window, (Y/N) pet her mutt calmingly. When a shooting star careened from the sky, she closed her eyes and wished more than anything that Merlin and Arthur would return soon to save them.

(Y/N) watched from the balcony in terror from behind Gwen. The servant girl had tried to shove her back so she couldn’t see, but the girl refused to heed her instruction. She could not draw her eyes away from Sir Leon and the other knights in the square, all lined up with crossbows pointed at their chests.

“I will give you one more chance to pledge your allegiance to me!” Morgana cried from the very balcony (Y/N) and Gwen stood upon.

Looking up, Sir Leon gave her a sickly stubborn smile. He glanced left and saw (Y/N), likely noticing the redness of her face and the wetness of her eyes, which could be seen from miles away. He gave her a small nod, turning the smile into a genuinely proud one.

(Y/N) let out a sob, which Gwen coughed over to keep Morgana and her guards from hearing, before burying her face in Guinevere’s dress.

“Long live the king!” Sir Leon shouted. The other knights echoed his cry.

“Perhaps this will help you change your mind,” Morgana spat, raising and dropping her hand to motion for the crossbows.

(Y/N) looked away, but had to raise her head again when she heard the screams of innocent people. As she looked out upon the square, she soon realised that Morgana had turned the crossbows against the citizens of Camelot, not Sir Leon and the knights.

“NO!”

Sir Leon’s scream echoed against the walls of the buildings surrounding the square, reaching the ears of (Y/N) and making her shake.

Please, she begged whatever god was out there. Save us.

For though she wished it beyond measure, she could not rescue Camelot all on her own.

“We haven’t got time to waste,” Gwen said, letting Sir Leon into the house. She passed him one of her dresses and motioned for (Y/N) to get Spot.

Sir Leon took one look at the dress and flushed red. “You-- you can’t be serious.”

“Just hurry,” she huffed. “Every guard in Camelot will be looking for you. They won’t be looking for two women courtiers, a little girl, and a dog.”

(Y/N) could not help giggling at Leon’s dilemma as she wrapped a leash of rope around Spot’s neck in order to keep him close. Gwen had suggested he stay, but (Y/N) was worried Morgana would take revenge on the mutt when she discovered their betrayal.

Once Sir Leon was ready, they rushed out of Camelot and into the woods, following his directions to where he thought Arthur would be hiding.

When they finally made it to the hidden entrance, they were greeted by two swords out of nowhere. A man in armour grabbed Guinevere while two others appeared out of a nook in the side of the natural wall. She gasped, but the man let go of her for a split second.

“Guinevere!” He exclaimed, taking her in his embrace.

It was Arthur, Merlin, and Gwaine, (Y/N) realised.

“(Y/N), thank God,” Merlin sighed and crushed the girl in a hug, making her laugh slightly. “And Spot,” he added, glancing at the dog and giving him a pat on the head.

As soon as Merlin let her go, (Y/N) was greeted by Gwaine, who tilted his head at her. “Is that (Y/N)?”

“Gwaine!” She exclaimed, grinning up at him.

“No, it can’t be,” he said instantly, using his hand to measure her height. “You’re too old to be (Y/N).”

She huffed. “You’re too old to be alive.”

He gave a hearty laugh and hugged her, lifting her into the air as Spot barked at them joyfully. It had been a good while since (Y/N) had seen good old Gwaine. In fact, she barely remembered what he looked like outside of his silky long hair that she always loved to braid.

In the distance, a voice interrupted their little reunion. “We’ve been found! They’re almost upon us!”

Despite being joyful to see Elyan, (Y/N) rushed to help the others gather their things and get out. Though it seemed for a second they would be saved, Morgana’s men were right behind them. If things didn’t change soon, they wouldn’t live to see tomorrow.

Sprinting through a small ravine in the rock formation, (Y/N) was almost dragged along by Gwaine, who dutifully took her hand to keep her close.

A massive boulder fell from above, blocking Morgana’s men off from them, though none of them knew where it came from. A voice shouted for them to look out, but no one recognised who it was.

“Who’s that?” Arthur asked, bewildered.

“Don’t know,” Gwaine grinned devilishly. “But I’m liking him already.”

Two figures appeared over the edge of the rock formation and (Y/N) gasped at the sight of one. “Lancelot!”

They regrouped away from the rocks, where they came face to face with Lancelot and a new friend, who looked like a giant compared to the rest of them. (Y/N) let go of Gwaine’s hand to hug Lancelot, who took her affection gladly.

“(Y/N)! You’ve grown,” he noted.

Just quiet enough so only the two of them could hear, she whispered; “So has my magic!”

“I believe it,” he laughed. He then gestured to the giant beside him. “This is Percival. Percival, this is (Y/N).”

Percival waved awkwardly at the girl, who smiled up at him sweetly. She gestured to her dog, who had followed her from Gwaine’s side. “That’s Spot.”

“Nice to meet you, Spot,” Percival said, looking down at the dog, who barked in response.

(Y/N) laughed and looked at Lancelot. “I like him already!”

The journey to the castle Arthur spoke of was a long one, but it was worth it for a safe place to stay. (Y/N) sat by the fire with Spot and Gaius, watching curiously as the others surveyed the area.

However, Arthur soon beckoned them all to join him at a round table in the middle of the room. He gave a beautiful speech as they all looked up at him with shining eyes before standing, offering to join in his quest to save his father. Each spoke a word, making goosebumps appear on (Y/N)’s arms as she realised how valuable each person at this table was to her.

“If you need an old man…” Gaius said.

“Or a girl and her dog!” (Y/N) spoke cheerily from her own chair they had given her. Spot barked loyally.

They all laughed and once Merlin, the last man to stand, was on his feet, Arthur thanked them in his own special way.

As (Y/N) watched his sword touch each of the men’s shoulders, knighting them, she felt her heart swell. It was then that she knew what she wanted to do with her life outside of learning magic. She wanted to fight for Camelot, for Arthur, for Merlin, and all their friends. She wanted to be a knight.

“Ew,” (Y/N) whined, looking toward the other side of the dusty old castle room.

“Hm?” Gwaine hummed at her disgust.

She pointed a finger toward where she was looking. The newly knighted man followed her gaze, eyes landing on Arthur and Gwen, whose lips were interlocked passionately.

Gwaine faked a gag. “Ew is right.”

“I think it’s sweet,” Percival muttered mutinously.

“No, they’re right,” Elyan piped up. “It’s disgusting.”

Leon scoffed. “You’re biased.”

“Oh, you’re all so negative,” Gaius tsked. “It’s very sweet.”

Spot whined at them, probably disappointed at the lack of attention towards him.

“HAH! Spot says it’s gross!” (Y/N) announced, pointing repeatedly at her dog. “That’s majority!”

Merlin Tags: @pearlll09

Part 5

Masterlist

[baritonechick]

Your Saviour

Merlin x Reader

Backstory: You are in the King’s Ward and are like a sibling to Arthur and Morgana.

Word Count: 1.7k+ words

-

The excruciating pain of the beast’s wound was enough to make you fall to the ground.

“Y/n!” 

You could hear the shouts of a female voice edging closer and closer to you. Your vision was starting to dim; the last thing you could see were the locks of a brown haired girl. 

-

Gaius was flipping through the pages of an old lore book when the front door burst open. In came Arthur with Y/n in his arms. Morgana followed closely behind, a look of worry and grief troubling her face. 

Y/n seemed to be unconscious, limbs numbly flailing as Arthur places you down on a cleared table. 

“What happened?” Gaius quickly asks, checking for any noticeable injuries until his eyes land on the gash below your knee.

Morgana steps toward your body, eyes tearing up.

“We were out in the forest when a wolf came out of nowhere and clawed Y/n.”

Gaius shouts for Merlin just as the young boy stumbles into the main room from his bedroom. 

“What do you-” Merlin’s eyes flit down to your body and he stops dead in his tracks, “Oh god.”

Merlin held feelings for you for the longest time. You being in the King’s Ward had stopped any of his advances, however.

Gaius ushers Morgana and Arthur out to alert Uther, whilst Merlin examines the cut on your leg. 

“What was it that did this?” The sorcerer questions quietly, unsure if it was something of magic or not. 

“Morgana said it was a wolf, but tonight’s a full moon and Y/n isn’t waking up.”

Merlin raises a concerned eyebrow, “Are you saying that it was a werewolf, Gaius?”

Gaius rushes to a stack of books, finds the one he wants and tosses it to Merlin. The boy stumbles back as a result of the book’s heaviness but balances himself.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Now, you need to find the spell to reverse it. I’ve seen this before,” Gaius mutters, “Quickly, before Uther comes.”

The old man then starts finding things to clean the gash. He comes upon a wrap of gauze and a damp cloth. Gaius makes quick work of removing any dirt and debris from the wound before wrapping it in a couple layers of the bandages.

Merlin focuses on the book in his hands, mumbling a short incantation to flip through the pages at twice the rate of a normal person. His search stops about halfway through on a page about injuries inflicted by werewolves.

With the spell’s words on his lips, Merlin’s eyes flash a bright orange. They slowly fade away, and you haven’t woken up.

The door once again crashes open, this time, Uther entering with Morgana and Arthur not far behind.

Just as the king’s gaze falls onto your form, you jolt up, breathing heavily.

“Dear god,” Uther whispers, hurrying to your side and wrapping his arms around you. 

You sigh, eyes tearing up as you return the king’s embrace. Your vision travels over to the dark-haired man off to the side. You and Merlin make eye contact and it seems you come to an agreement. 

Uther’s hold gently releases as Gaius assures the three royals that you will be okay with more treatment and rest.

“I will inform you when she is well enough to return to her chambers, but for now, I need to keep her under my supervision as the wound heals.”

Uther nods, placing a hand on your shoulder. You lay yours on top of his and smile up at him.

“I’ll be fine, my lord.” 

He nods, shares a thankful glance with Gaius and then leads Morgana and Arthur outside.

You take a moment to relax with your royal family no longer hovering over your shoulder. You love them, but sometimes it’s just too much. Your injury wasn’t major and you are alive; there’s nothing to worry over.

You make an attempt to clear your throat, turning to Gaius.

“Thank you so much, Gaius.”

Gaius nods, pausing as he reaches for a bottle full of blue liquid.

“Actually,” the physician hides a smile, “It ‘twas Merlin that healed you. You should be thanking him.”

The news doesn’t surprise you all that much. You know that Merlin is a skilled sorcerer and a whiz with treating people much like Gaius. The servant had entrusted you with his secret soon after you’d witnessed him healing a hurt Arthur. 

Your focus gently falls onto the quiet boy in the corner.

“Thank you, Merlin. I am forever in your debt.”

Merlin’s eyes widen and he grins lightly.

“It was nothing, milady. I’d do it a hundred times over if it meant saving you.”

You roll your eyes at the use of ‘milady’. You’d told the servant many a times that he was to address you by Y/n.

The pain of the injury ebbs deeply in your thigh as you shift off of it. You hiss slightly of the throbbing, causing a worried look from Merlin. You brush it off, motioning for him not to be concerned.

“You’ve taught him well, Gaius. Anyways, what is this about me having to stay here?” 

Gaius, who’d been tidying random bottles and potions, raises an eyebrow and turns to you. The old man glances down at the bandage on your leg, which the wound has since started to bleed through.

“Ah, yes. It was a werewolf that clawed you, my dear. I want to watch for any side effects,” Gaius lets out an exasperated yawn, clamping a hand over his mouth, “Merlin, can you change the bandages on her leg? I have important things to do in the morning and need to rest. Show her where she will be sleeping, as well.”

You smile gratefully at the old man, “Goodnight, Gaius.”

He nods with his lips barely upturned. The man is almost like another father to you, just as Uther is.

Gaius retires to his chambers and you gaze hopefully at Merlin. The boy’s eyelids droop slightly, and you can tell your shenanigans had woken him up.

“You may go to bed, Merlin. I can handle this by myself.”

The brows furrow on the sorcerer’s forehead in determination as he sets out to grab the gauze where it had been left on the nearby desk. You knew Merlin was stubborn, but you didn’t think he was this stubborn.

“I can take care of myself,” you whisper, careful not to wake Gaius if he is sleeping. 

Merlin kneels to the floor in front of you and starts to peel off the bloodied cloth. His face appears very calm, soothing the jolt of pain from the injury being disturbed; you can’t help getting lost in the blue orbs of his eyes as he makes quick work of covering the exposed area.

The sorcerer’s fingers ghost over the skin just below your knee, tying the ends of the gauze together.

“There, now let’s get to bed, I’m exhausted,” he flashes you his signature cheesy grin, offering a hand to help you off of the table. You slowly slide off the wooden surface, noting how Merlin’s hand holds firmly onto yours even as he leads you to a room in the back.

Upon entering, you feel saddened that this is what all of Camelot’s lower-class citizens live like. 

The chamber (you assume it is Merlin’s) is very small compared to anything in the castle. Even the closets are bigger. There’s a bed in the middle, and a few books strewn about on each side, but other than that it is very bland.

“You can take the bed,” Merlin shoos you to lay down and starts to grab a few blankets from the floor. You watch as he spreads them out on the ground, reaching out a hand to stop him.

“You don’t have to sleep on the floor, Merlin. Here,” you pat the spot next to you.

Merlin has a terrified look on his face as if to warn you of the consequences.

“Oh, come now, Merlin. We aren’t teenagers. We can share a bed together.”

Merlin’s eyes suddenly glint with an unspoken boldness. He climbs onto the mattress alongside you, curling up under the covers. His back is pressed firmly against yours, his body heat radiating off of him and making you feel at home. 

“Goodnight, Y/n.”

Your cheeks turn a light shade of pink from the physical contact. In the time you’d realized your crush on Merlin, you never thought you would ever be in a bed with him.

“Goodnight, Merlin,” you sigh, snuggling into the blankets further.

-

The light of the morning sun practically blinds you, causing your eyes to dart open. The room is not yours and you panic for a split second before the realization of last night hits you.

You peer over your shoulder to find Merlin fast asleep. The sight has you smiling like a fool. What was it that attracted you to him?

Just as your thoughts begin to consume you, the door to the room creaks open. Your eyes widen in horror until you see Gaius’ head pop through the crack.

You dart your gaze to Merlin, to inform the old man that he is still sleeping. 

Gaius smiles, “I will tell Arthur that Merlin needs to watch over you today. I have errands to run.”

With that, the old man disappears.

You sigh, thankful that none of your family were the ones who’d entered. 

Merlin shifts against your side, lifting his head up to stare at the door questioningly. He turns to you, beaming with excitement.

“Did he really just say that? I have the day off?”

You chuckle, getting lost in the wild innocence of his being. His childish nature drew you in.

Without thinking, Merlin places his hands on your cheekbones and presses his puckered lips to yours. The move is surprising, but not unwanted. You return the affection, kissing him back and moving out from under the covers to straddle him. Yours hands wander precariously through his dark locks as his tug you further into him.

The moment feels like it lasts an eternity before you pull away (and you’d gladly spend another eternity kissing him).

“That was... unexpected, I must say,” you pipe up, removing your hands from the boy’s hair.

Merlin’s bright blue eyes twinkle with mischief and he smirks rather adorably. 

“I’ve always held a fondness for you, my lady,” he speaks softly, brushing his hand against your cheek.

It seems as though the attempts for him to call you a less formal title are of no use.

“And I for you, Merlin. Now let’s get out of bed, it’s already quite late.”