#merthur brought me back

[justaz]

thinking about arthur who has crazy quick reflexes and is a relatively light sleeper who woke up to the sound of someone in his room, saw merlin crouched down messing with his keys, and softly asking “whatre you doing?…before breakfast?”

[tinyavenuesailor]

I don’t bother to include Merlin and Arthur living on a farmhouse together cause I know we all want that 😭

[samwinchestermydude]

My Supernatural Journey I guess

I actually did go into spn fully expecting to ship Destiel. I came into SPN after watching Merlin, and I had often seen Merthur (my beloved) and Destiel likened together. I barely knew anything about Sam. I only found out that Sam existed because I saw that he was being shipped with his brother on the Ao3 ships polls last year. I didn't know if Sam was important or not because I hadn't seen much content about him. So I ended up calling him the hippie brother mentally.

The only things I thought I knew about Supernatural was that it had some religious stuff in it, Destiel was canon apparently, there were demons and stuff, and John really hated. My impression on Spn was this horror show that was featured this really tough macho dudes but the show was supposedly kind of gay??

I also followed this one person way back for discussing this one video game. They were an ex-supernatural fan way back but left because they found discourse surrounding destiel to be to exhausting. They also used to be a big Sam fan and shipped wincest. I like found the latter to be like really weird back then but man the tides have turned.

So I turned on the Spn pilot with my mom in the same room one day out of sheer boredom. Back then I was still considering Spn as that tumblr show. And then the rest was history, and I lost countless hours of my life obsessing over the show.

So first of all, I only saw one brief glance at Sam before voting for merthur in the wincest vs merthur poll (I'd have probably voted for wincest now lol) so I didn't really know who he was. To me initially he just looked like the 2nd big, gruff dude with long hair. And then I found out that the sweetest looking boy with the floppiest bangs was that guy, Sam.

Also I thought Dean was the younger brother for some reason before watching the show (Probably because Jackles just doesn't age lol). So I was really surprised to see that the little kid in the opening scene was Dean and that the baby was Sam. Oh and I was totally predicting that John died actually in the opening scene and that something else was pretending to be their father lol.

I think I fell in love with the show right away. There was just something really believable and palpable about the brother's estrangement and relationship from the start and I just wanted to see how it developed. S1 is just filled with great horror episodes, and I started watching around October so it was just perfect timing.

So Things that Ended Up Suprising Me the Most/Other Things

I actually ended up really liking John in s1. JDM was just stellar in his all scenes and brought an emotional and sincere side to John. He's tough for sure but he doesn't hide his feelings about his boys. Like you can see the tears in his eyes when they reunite. Also his speech about how he wants Sam and Dean to have normal lives and how he's tired and so broken up after seeing all his friends being killed by meg never fails to hit hard. Do I think John was a good father. No. But he did care about his boys truly. And while I do understand Fandom's widespread dislike of John it is disheartening to see him reduced to this unfeeling caricature. John's problem wasn't that he felt too little; it was that he felt to much and he never really properly managed it and it ended up hurting the his boys.

I thought Meg and Sam would maybe end up being a thing and was like :(((( (because I just liked the bros being by themselves even though I wasn't a wincest shipper at the time lol) but I was also like go Sam if thats what you want ig? Lmao Idk I just wanted Sam to be happy even back then. Anyways thank god that never happened.

Me falling in love with Sam.

Dean. I always saw a lot about him but never found myself to interested in him as all I saw was Destiel content with him. But I ended up falling in love with his character so hard in Devil's trap. When he begs John not to kill him :(((((((((. I think Devil's trap is one of my favorite episodes for Dean. It's when I started to understand him and his loyalty to his family really touched me.

1x22 was also the episode that convinced me SPN was going to be a insane show. Like what a season finale. I feel so bad for the fans who had to wait to watch s2. I actually jumped up and said it ends like that?! The car scared me so bad.

Around s2 I set my foot in the wincest fandom. Back then I thought you guys were scary but in a good way. But I was also getting really into the codependency at the time so I found myself starting to seek wincest out because well you guys just get it. And then Dean sold his soul for Sam and I looked up wincest fic for the first time with the intent to read fic about wincest. Before it was reading wincest fic despite the wincest and then well all hell blew loose (sorry I just had to).

First wincest fic I read: half the man i used to be by dollylux. I wasn't exactly a wincest shipper then. But I thought it was fucked up and strangely fitting to Sam and Dean's relationship and fucked up lives. It was probably the fic that got me into wincest.

I had a bit of an internal rule I set for myself back then where I could only read Wincest fics that were about them being in a fucked and toxic relationship because I felt bad reading fics about an incest ship. So I guess in my mind it cancelled out because then I thought then I wasn't romanticizing the incest lol. Idgaf now. I read anything about Sam/Dean if it's good.

When You're Not Here by raziella was the 2nd wincest fic I read. I read it because it's pretty much gen but it does have some wincest leanings. It's a really good fic.

I gave up Destiel even before s4. It was around in S3 after seeing Sam slowly go insane that I realized I wanted nothing more than the two brothers together.

I just realized that even if Destiel was canon or not nothing could be as important to Dean than Sam was and vice versa for Sam.

I actually was anxious about s4 because I didn't want the show to change that much and drift from the focus on the brothers.

S4 and s5 were really difficult to go through for me. I thought they were great television but it was too painful. I felt horrible seeing what happened to the brothers and how they drifted apart.

S4 Sam hair was probably my favorite.

[shanastoryteller]

Happy Halloween! 🎃 no specific prompt but i’d love some merthur

a continuation of 1

Uther shakes himself out of his stupor and shoots upright, shoving the woman – Ygraine – onto the floor. “Who are you? What trickery is this?”

“Um, ow?” she says pointedly, leaning back onto her hands. “What’s gotten into you?”

“Seize her!” Uther shouts, turning his back to her. “Take her to the dungeon!”

A couple of the younger knights step forward. The older ones haven’t moved.

Ygraine’s eyes narrow and she snaps, “Halt.”

They all freeze. Merlin isn’t even moving and he still finds himself holding his breath. Arthur sounds like that sometimes.

“I am your king!” Uther roars. “Obey me! Seize her!”

She pushes herself to her feet, brushing invisible dust off her skirt as she levels an acerbic glare at Uther. “The potion must have addled your brain if you think my own knights are going to move against me. What’s wrong? Where is Gaius? We need to get you sorted out before you start shouting nonsense in the street.”

“The knights are not yours!” Uther shouts. He can’t seem to bring himself to look directly at her, so he’s shouting at the space to her left.

If her unimpressed look is anything to go by, it doesn’t have the same affect. “If not mine, then whose? You may have led them, but I trained them.”

“Mine,” Arthur croaks, then swallows before he continues, “The knights are mine.”

Ygraine turns towards his voice, her mouth already open but she slowly closes it as she looks at him. She crosses the room in several long strides and Merlin wants to move away but at the same time he can’t bring himself to leave Arthur’s side. What if she really is a trick, or an illusion, or something else sent here to hurt Arthur?

He looks ahead, blue eyes wide and face pale, but unlike his father he can’t seem to take his eyes off of her. She reaches out, cupping Arthur’s face in her palm, then turns back to Uther. All her ire is seemingly forgotten, a grin stretching across her face. “We have a son? I thought that – oh, but look at him, Uther!” She turns back to Arthur, tucking his hair behind his ear and then resting her hand on his shoulder. “What a strong, handsome young man you are – and you say you lead the knights now? You must have bested me if I’m letting you do that!”

Oh, no. Merlin hopes she’s a trick.

“It must be a Nimueh’s mistake if I’ve been brought forward in time,” she says, shifting to slip her arm into Arthur’s, who lets her, who’s still not saying anything and is still looking at her. “We’ll have to figure out how to send me back.” Her smile is so bright, and it’s Arthur’s smile, the same smile that made Merlin fall in love with him. “I’ve got a son to go have.”

Uther is looking at her again, his mouth pressed together, but he’s not ordering her to the dungeon anymore.

“Well?” Ygraine prompts. “Where’s Nimueh? We better call all of Camelot’s sorcerers for this, actually. I didn’t even know time travel was possible.”

Leon coughs, taking a tentative step forward, and says, “Um, ma’am – er, your majesty, there are no sorcerers in Camelot.”

She scoffs. “Don’t be ridiculous. What’s Camelot without sorcerers? You might as well build a lake without fish.”

Oh, damn. There are no sorcerers in Camelot, but it’s going to take a sorcerer to send her home. Because if they don’t, Arthur will never be born.

Fuck.

[iamafictionfreak]

TIS THE SEASON TO BE MERTHUR!

Just... Look at them!

I miss everything about this show. Even the very bad CGI and the weak-ass plot points/armour/conveniences/contrivances.

One Christmas Eve, almost 11 years ago, the entire Merlin fandom was butchered into tiny little distraught pieces. It didn’t matter if your favourite character was Merlin or Morgana, Gaius or Gwen. The showrunners held no qualms in destroying your dreams for Gwaine or Perce. The writers did not hold back in their aim to crucify the smile on your face, to forever turn it upside down. No ship was spared. All hopes for the show to finally commit to their original intent, to bring peace between peoples, to save Albion, to allow Merlin his freedom and Arthur the truth, was brought to a bitter, fatalistic end.

Not that I need to repeat this to you, you know what happened, but it’s worth reiterating that this travesty occurred… on Christmas Eve.

CHRISTMAS. EVE.

Christmas Eve.

The night before Christmas, the night before the day where all rules are broken and we can frolic like children around a decorated tree filled with twinkling lights, our collective hearts were shredded.

This event (once we recovered a tiny bit from the shock) gave birth to a plethora of astonishingly well written, poignant, devastating, hilarious fanfictions that had helped nurse our wounds, for nothing could TRULY heal (except a follow-up season with the original characters, come ON BBC) us.

After nearly 11 years of watching these brilliant entries grow, I never thought I’d jump on this bandwagon and write my own fic.

But I've had a few very shit years, as have many people around the world, and I started to wonder as we do when we want to prove magic can still happen.

My brain decided that it wanted my hands to write the most indulgent, likely over done fic in existence for the fandom. This thought stuck with me throughout the year – I was being STALKED by myself – and wouldn’t leave me the hell alone. This hasn’t happened in a long while.

Still… you’ll eyeroll at the idea. It's so OBVIOUS, I'm embarrassed by myself.

What if Arthur discovered Merlin’s magic from the get-go, from episode 1?

WAIT. Hear me out…

So, Merlin saves Arthur for the first time and Arthur SEES. He sees his eyes glow.

He knows he should tell his father, but his instincts are screaming at him. Honour is at stake. This stranger saved his life. How could he reward it with an execution? So, a chance needs to be given, doesn’t it? A chance for Merlin to give up magic forever and live a life of goodness, to turn away from evil and serve Arthur…

Except Arthur can’t help but wonder. About Magic, about Merlin and magic, about the law and all the whys attached and his place within this chain.

But he also can’t trust this peasant who cavorts with the devil, practices wickedness but smiles like a child and offers compassion to everyone. Someone so duplicitous must be dangerous… except Merlin’s an actual idiot! And it’s getting really difficult to keep his guard up.

But isn’t that how sorcerers work? They twist the mind with pleasing ideas, they tempt and coerce, they manipulate.

And slowly, Arthur finds himself being manipulated too. For how could he ever want to trust this man- but he does. He does.

And we’ve never been allowed to see Merlin deal with a S1 Arthur who’s in the ‘know’. Who’s forcing him to keep it secret, who’s threatening him with trial by fire, a young Arthur who’s ignorant, arrogant and so desperate to understand what he cannot trust.

Then there's the layers, royalty versus peasantry, friendship versus alliances, goals versus ideals.

I want to write a fic where this trust is built from the ground up. One of the things about the show that made it impossible for me to let it go is that the ‘relationship’ between Arthur and Merlin fits exactly zero categories, yet all of them.

Master and servant.

Friends

Family

Allies

Enemies

Romantic ideals

Platonic soulmates

Absolute Soulmates

I could go on. And it's one of those rare shows where the writing would be given more oomph if the males leads had dared cross a line or two.

Realistically, they weren't even friends. They were master and servant who'd become a little co-dependant. Arthur could never admit to anything more because of his station, but would he have been able to being completely himself around Merlin if he'd known the truth? We never see Arthur truly be himself. He wasn't allowed to be, not even with his wife. There was always a wall - it was how he was raised and any attempt to develop was killed by plot.

We never saw Merlin completely free, not with a single person. He started happy and healthy and innocent. A liar. He ended up bitter and terrified and angry and alone. Still a liar.

What would he have become if there'd been one person he could truly trust- not Gaius. Not a man already broken and brainwashed by his own self. A victim of the system just as much as he perpetuated the hate and completely unaware of the trap he lived in.

Many of the characters in the show have the versatility and potential to be written a trillion different ways, is it any wonder that fics continue to be written?

Well, I wanted to explore a slow burn development of trust, with Arthur learning how wrong he was, how much he’s trampled on, and all about the seemingly normal peasant boy who meant more to the world than Arthur could possibly understand. What would they have become if they’d been given the time, hm?

When they were young - yes, I'm going there - wild and free.

What of Morgana, what if she could have trusted? What if she could have understood? Would it have turned out differently? Would she have still become the other side of Uther's coin?

Would Merlin still have ended up alone?

There’s lots more I wanted to touch upon, it’s a big what if, but that’ll have to wait for another post.

I’m writing a 5 part prologue that occurs between episode 1 and 2. I’m hoping to release it for Christmas and then take the time to write the rest of the season.

Unless… you guys think it’s a waste of time? Let me know.

In the meantime, I’m STILL SUFFERING (fucking show) and it's making me write, write, write!

(gifs not mine)

[earlgreyinpajamas]

merthur fic recs: pining!merlin

1. i was fixed on your hand of gold by intothefirewego             

“My father wishes to host a dinner for Lady Mithian and her father. They have arranged a marriage.” Arthur’s mouth barely moved.

 Merlin’s body ran hot. Then cold.

And then, nothing.

It was always going to happen. Merlin knew it was always going to happen, but the sudden, agonizing reminder almost brought Merlin to his knees.

---

Regency Era!AU

~~~

the emotional damage this fic gave me is insane

2. Sticks and Stones by schweet_heart

When Arthur breaks his wrist on the day before an important tournament, it falls to Merlin to tend to him while Gaius is away, and he can only hope that his ridiculous attraction to the prat will go unnoticed. (Un)fortunately for him, however, Arthur has other plans; plans which apparently involve driving Merlin crazy, and possibly even conquering his heart.

~~~

pining and oblivious is how i like my merlins

3. The Substitute by Clea2011                

Merlin gets the evening off, and makes good use of Arthur's absence.  Unfortunately, Arthur comes back early.

~~~

i– i suffered

[teefscrubz]

NEW MERTHUR AU ALERT !!!

Sure, for a couple hundred years of immortality, Merlin was able to occupy himself with a variety of hobbies, people and experiences, but nowadays (as in, the past few thousand years) he's just been so....well, bored.

Having a good year or two is nothing but a blip when spanned across thousands of years of depression and loneliness, after all.

But recently, Merlin has found a new past time—Something he never before considered, not really finding much interest in such a boisterous activity, and yet here he is, a professional in the field.

Illegal street racing.

Here Merlin was, glorious wind in his hair, earphones blasting music as he swerved a corner, his sleek red car (proudly named 'Excalibur', because who was Merlin if not a creature of habit?) smoothly sailing the roads with ease, leant back comfortably in his seat with the windows down. Sure, the air was cold, but it felt so damn good on his face. It always did.

It reminded him of riding horses back in Camelot. The open road; Merlin missed being able to venture as far as he wanted across wooded land. Not that Arthur ever let him, of course.

Merlin is brought back to the race at hand when he crosses the finish line, twisting the wheel and letting Excalibur skid to a stop. He climbs out, preparing to bow as per usual; he expects to be greeted by the usual roar of applause—Merlin insists he never uses magic to win a race, but the recognition does feel damn good. Even if racing was starting to lose the adrenaline filled fun for him by now.

Except the crowds aren't cheering for him. Instead, he turns to see a car already waiting for him; impossible, Merlin ALWAYS wins, after all. He's had too much practice.

But there is a flash of blonde hair climbing out of the battered old black car, a tattered thing that surely couldn't have won against him and yet somehow escaped even his attention. Merlin's eyes follow as the blonde man rises to his full height, turning with a bright grin and waving to the cheering crowds, only for his smile to fade when his gaze lands on Merlin.

Merlin feels winded, a ludicrous laugh of surprise tearing from his chest.

"Emrys," The blonde man smirks, making his way forwards to offer a hand, "I'm a big fan. Honoured to have beaten you today—The name's Arthur Pendragon. The crowds call me the King."

"You clotpole." Merlin chuckles, ignoring Arthur's hand out of disbelief. "You absolute prat. You're back."

"It appears so. Err—Back from where?"

Gods, he's just as stupidly handsome as he was the day they fought at Camlann. Finally, Arthur has risen. Finally, Merlin smiles.

[h50europe]

Merthur - Merlin always wondered how it would be to have Arthur back in his life. Now that he was, it was much harder to rekindle their love than they thought. Both felt like anchorless ships in a stormy sea.

Merlin couldn't say what it was. The fear of losing Arthur again? Trust issues? Or, all those centuries, he'd been roaming the earth alone?

And Arthur wasn't sure how to approach his friend. He barely remembered what had happened and what had brought him back. Arthur couldn't believe it when Merlin told him about their final days together and how much time had passed. His memory was jumbled. He was clawing at the bits and pieces that appeared in his mind. But one thing he was sure of. The love he'd felt for Merlin and the special bond they had. But was it enough to pick up from where they left off?

Arthur tried to find the right words since he and Merlin had met two days ago. What were the right words? Are there even words to describe what he felt for his mate? Or would everything he said sound meaningless, anyway?

What sounded better? Trust me, all I want is to be with you. I love your flaws, laughs, smile, tears, mistakes, errors, nagging and lies. Despite everything, I just want to be with you again.

Or: I’m sorry about everything I never told you, the missed occasions, and the moments I let you down. Regarding second chances, I don’t deserve them, but I still beg—forgive me.

[bellybounce]

Feedist Kinktober Day 2 - Royalty

Merthur weight gain for Day 2 of the Feedist Kinktober by @fatguarddog

*this isn't too kink based, and is more of a discovery of weight gain more than anything as I'm considering beefing it out into a multi-chapter fic in the future, so for now you just get soft bellies and loving boyfriends

Siren Song/Royalty

Despite Uther’s all consuming belief that magic was evil, it was actually the one thing that brought peace to Camelot. Once Athur had been crowned King Arthur of Camelot and openly declared his courtship to his consort, Merlin,  the ban magic had been lifted, a domino effect began. With it now safe for  magic users to enter the walls, Camelot found itself allying with a new set of Kingdoms it had previously shunned, and magic users would travel from far and wide to train under Merlin as the newly appointed Court Sorcerer. This, in turn, led to peace and protection for the Kingdom, as there were less magical enemies out for revenge, and also the knowledge that their powerful magical army would thwart any storming attacks. 

As King, he was expected to spend his days with the council, reviewing treaties and finances, rather than dedicating hours a day to his training. Still the figurehead for the Knights, a King simply leads the most fearful of battles, and leaves most other physical tasks to his knights. This expectation, on top of the fact that the peace had left the knights with a lack of battles or danger approaching Camelot's walls, meant Arthur rarely exercised. 

As King of a peaceful and welcoming land, with an ever growing number of allies, Arthur instead spent a lot of his time feasting on banquets held in someone or anothers honour, or snacking as he reviewed council papers, stuffing his face to keep the boredom at bay.

Somewhere along the line, this also had an effect on King Arthur’s waistline. 

Arthur sat down on the edge of the bed with a huff, the bed bouncing under his weight, almost mockingly. He ran a hand through his hair before leaning himself back on his hands, body stretched out before him. He ran a hand over his chest, feeling the softness of his once toned pecs that were now shelved by the curvage of his stomach that had begun to round outwards. 

“Merlin,” Arthur called to the man pottering about the other side of the bedchamber, “have I gotten fat?”

Merlin’s head whipped around to look at him, mouth slightly gaped. “Um, why do you ask, my love?”

“My tailor- he had to take out my tunic for next month's gala during today's fitting - by quite a lot.” As he spoke he stroked his stomach. 

Merlin knew he had gained weight, had watched him this past year filling out as he gorged on pork pies and roasted lamb and rich buttery pastry. He could see the layer of fat pillowing his lover’s cheeks, giving him a soft double chin if he looked downwards. He had catalogued how his back seemed to widen over time, running his fingers over the small rolls that had begun to form as they made love. He felt the changes to his stomach when they hugged, going from toned muscle pressing against him to a small swollen gut that jutted out  over his waistband. 

His hesitating silence answered Arthur’s question, as he let out a whiny “Merlin!” before throwing himself backwards onto the bed. This was a mistake as it allowed his stomach to mountain upwards and, now that he was addressing the problem, Arthur couldn’t ignore that half his line of sight was now obscured by his ball of a belly.

“Okay, so maybe you’ve gained a bit of-” Arthur squeaked in protest -”okay a lot of weight, but you’re still handsome to me.” Merlin rounded the bed, leaning against one of the bedposts. From here he could see the full expanse of his stomach, could see how it mounded out a good 7 or 8 inches high into the air. 

“How have I not noticed? That tunic was only a year old but I could barely pull it down over this thing!” Arthur gave his stomach a pat, sending it rippling and Merlin had to bite his lip as a shiver washed over him. “All my other clothes fit!”

“I may or may not have used my magic to let them out a few times,” Merlin admitted. Arthur’s head shot up, resulting in an appearance of the collecting double chin. “I didn’t want you to worry! I used to watch you, Arthur. You’d obsess over your training, leave your dinner half finished and go to bed hungry to keep your “princely figure”. I wanted you to be carefree.” 

“Merlin, look at my stomach - no, gut! I can actually call it a gut! I could be halfway through a pregnancy if I didn’t know any better!” He pinched at the roll of fat on his side, and Merlin felt his cheeks flaming.

Merlin mounted the bed and straddled Arhur, perching himself on his thighs. He ran his hands under Arthur’s shirt, stroking the fleshy skin underneath, his fingers tracing stretch marks. “You’re a King now Arthur, you need to show everyone how big” - Merlin pushed the shirt up and peppered a kiss onto his belly - “and strong” - another kiss - “and wealthy” - another kiss - “their King is.” He rested his hands on top of Arthur’s gut, petting at it as if it was a kitten. 

“I have been sleeping better, going to bed with a full stomach,” Arthur admitted, his hands ghosting over Merlin’s. “Father always told me to slow down - said a Knight had to be lean and quick.”

“But you’re not a Knight anymore - you’re a King.” Merlin lay tugged at Arthur’s arms, pulling him upwards so that he was upright, his arms wrapping around Merlin’s slender waist. “A King who has worked hard to unite the Kingdoms and desires to be free.”

Merlin leant forward, grazing Arthur’s lips with his own. “Plus,” he added, “it’s very attractive, this new addition of yours.” Those words were accompanied by a loving stroke of the belly between them. 

“Oh, you like that do you,” Arthur grinned, pulling Merlin flush against him, squishing his stomach as Merlin let out an excited yelp. 

“Like you wouldn’t believe,” Merlin whispered. 

“Well, I suppose if a bit of weight here and there is the price I have to pay for delicious feasts and an adoring consort, then you better let out these clothes more often.” Arthur pulled Merlin in for a kiss, biting at his lip, “Now, how about I ring down to the kitchen and we can have a proper royal feast.”

Also avaliable on Ao3 if you could all go give it some love over there!

[fantasyinallforms]

kindly, can I please have a #12 for a little Merlin/Arthur smoochy moment *puppy eyes*

OK, well, this was a real exercise of my abilities. I adore Merlin. I watched it as it came out and watched the ending in real-time. It's one of those shows I always go back to and watch episodes of just to have on. That said while I ship Merlin and Arthur I have never written Merthur before.

You chose a kiss in grief, so I present to you my first ever toe dip into writing this ship. I do really hope you like it. ~~~~~

Merlin knocked on the king's chambers and listened carefully for a reply. He heard nothing, just as he had heard nothing at lunch nor this morning for breakfast. Arthur was not doing well. It has been one blow after another. First, his father, then Morgana, then Agravaine. It has taken its toll. How could it not? He balanced the bowl of soup and plate of chicken on one arm and opened the door.

“Sire? I have dinner.”

“I’m not hungry. You can take it back to the kitchens.” Arthur was sitting at his desk, a stack of untouched papers in front of him and large dark bags under his eyes. 

“You haven't eaten anything since dinner yesterday. If this is your version of weight loss, it really doesn't suit you.”     

“I don't have time for this, Merlin, really. Go.” Arthur had not bothered to look up at him once since he walked in. 

“Please, Arthur, I’m sure if you just have a bite you-”

“Merlin, I said, go!” Arthur stuck his hand out to point at the door without realizing how close he actually was. The bowl of soup tipped out of his hand, and when he instinctively tried to catch it, he scalded himself on the thick broth. He had anticipated Arthur taking a while to eat, so he asked the kitchen to make it extra hot so it could sit longer. Now that seemed like a very poor decision. He took in a sharp breath through his teeth and cradled his hands close to his chest. He looked up at Arthur. He was half out of his chair; one hand braced against the table, the other outstretched to him. His face did not seem to fit the situation at all. It was wide with grief, sorrow, and even fear. “Are you alright? I-I’m sorry -” 

“I’m fine sire. Let me just get this cleaned up.” He knelt to take care of the bowl and tried to ignore the growing pain, but Arthur's hand stopped him. 

“Stop. You’re not alright. That soup was near boiling.” He grabbed the napkin Merlin had brought with the food and wiped down his wrist and hands. Small blisters were already forming. “Go have Gaius tend to this.” He opened his mouth to protest. “And stop arguing. It’s no longer a request.” He stood on the other side of the door, confused and a little dejected. He did as his king commanded and returned to his home. Gaius greeted him, but when he saw his face, he nodded and motioned for him to sit down. Merlin explained what happened and let him cover his hands in aloe and wrap them. 

“You can't force this, Merlin. Grief and betrayal are heavy burdens on someone already carrying so much.” Gaius had him test his fingers before putting away his things. 

“I know! If anyone knows, I know! I want to help him! I-I want to be there for him! There was something between us before all of this, and now it seems like it’s all just vanished.” He ran his bandaged hands through his hair. There had been something before. He would never forget the taste of the king's lips on his. How his hands moved to the back of his head, holding him in place. How he made him promise not to get, himself killed when the castle had been attacked. He sat in bed that night wide awake. There was just something not right about Arthur's behavior lately that shook him. There was something he was blind to simmering right under the surface. 

He drifted off to sleep, and hours before the sun was up, there was banging on Gaius’s door. The door wasn't even open all the way before Gawain barged in. 

“Where’s Merlin? Merlin!” He had spotted him stepping out of his room. “Arthur. He’s refusing to see anyone, and he’s talking nonsense. You need to go see him. Calm him if you can.” 

“Nonsense? Nonsense how? Where is he?” He didn't even bother to grab his jacket before he fled out the door, leaving Gawain behind him. He found him in the council room, pacing the floor with a wild look on his face.

“Arthur?” he looked up sharply when he realized someone was in the room. “ Leave. I have no need for you.” 

“I’d beg to differ as you’re standing here in your night clothes, pacing like a madman.” He was determined not to let the comment of having no need for him sting him too harshly. It did, anyway. 

“You don't understand Merlin. I can't sleep, I can't eat, not until I figure out who’s next!” 

“You’re not making any sense! What’s next?”  

“NEXT TO BETRAY ME!” The bravado seemed to vanish from Arthur all at once as he braced himself against the table and hung his head. “I’ve lost my father, my sister, my uncle. Will it be one of my knights next, or worse, will they take everything dear I have left. Will they steal you away from me too?” Merlin’s eyes went wide at the confession. Arthur refused to meet his eyes. 

“You must know by now I would never betray you!” The words were true and false at the same time. He would never turn against Arthur, but the sheer knowledge of who and what he was would sting all the same.  

“Why not! I’ve dragged you through more perils than anyone! I’ve gotten you kidnapped, stabbed, poisoned. Your very position as my servant demands you put your life on the line for me, and I let you! Despite how much I-” He cut himself off and threw his fists into the table. “And last night, you were just trying to help, and I let my temper get the better of me. Now you’re hurt yet again, and it’s my doing.” Arthur crossed the room and gingerly lifted his arm to see the bandages. Those soft blue eyes held a storm of guilt and fear when their eyes met. Feelings that, as a man who had been crown-prince all his life, had learned to suppress. Arthur gently let his hand fall and caressed the side of his face. “Please tell me you won't betray me. Lie to me if you must, but I need to hear it.” 

“I’m loyal to you, Arthur, and everything I will ever do will be for you.” He couldn't bring himself to speak the lie even if a lie it truly wasn't. His answer seemed to be what Arthur was looking for. The hand moved from his arm to the back of his head as his other held him steady. Arthur’s lips were warm and kind before they turned desperate. It was like he needed to feel the life in Merlin to convince himself this was real. He let him take whatever he needed from him, happy to be in his arms. 

When Arthur released him, he was less manic but looked more exhausted. He nearly collapsed in a chair but didn't seem content to let Merlin out of arms reach just yet. He ran his hand down the length of his arm and brought the bandaged hand to his lips. 

“You must be stupid, Merlin, to keep running back to someone who keeps doing this to you. Someone who can't even kiss you in public.” There was humor in the self-deprecating joke, and he decided to take it for what it was. A step in the right direction.  

“Maybe one day you’ll change that.” 

And maybe one day you’ll forgive me for my betrayal.   

_________

Fun kissing prompt game to be found here!

[ambriel-angstwitch]

Wonderland through the lens of Merthur

Flashing lights and we Took a wrong turn and we Fell down a rabbit hole

Light is usually associated with goodness but when it’s flashing it can be blinding. Merlin became so caught up in his love for Arthur that he forgot about bringing magic back to Camelot. He made the wrong decisions in an attempt save Arthur and things got worse from there

You held on tight to me 'Cause nothing's as it seems And spinning out of control

Merlin was Arthur’s rock when Morgana betrayed him Merlin was there. When Gwen cheated on him Merlin was there. When making decisions Arthur turns to and holds tight to Merlin. When he doesn’t know who to trust and everything is falling apart he still has Merlin.

Didn't they tell us don't rush into things? Didn't you flash your green eyes at me? Haven't you heard what becomes of curious minds?

Ok so neither of them have green eyes but consider green eyes not literally but green as in go like a stoplight. While anyone around them would tell them that a relationship between the two of them would be a bad idea they both go ahead with it anyways. But the saying is curiosity killed the cat. Uther would be furious if he found out and Merlin could be dead if Arthur found out about his magic.

Didn't it all seem new and exciting? I felt your arms twisting around me I should have slept with one eye open at night

So the the word twisting is interesting because it invokes the imagery of being trapped so while the love is wonderful and exciting in some ways it’s also constricting. It keeps Merlin trapped in a kingdom that hates all he is, saving a king who would have him killed for it just because Uther’s death would cause him pain. Merlin needs to be on guard because of what he is.

We found wonderland You and I got lost in it And we pretended it could last forever We found wonderland You and I got lost in it And life was never worse but never better

Wonderland symbolizes how magical and exciting the relationship feels. But it can’t last forever. Merlin was a wonderful experience for Arthur, someone who saw him as a person not caring about his title. But Arthur was everything to Merlin, he was his purpose and made him happy but he also brought him so much pain, Merlin had to kill for him he had to risk his life for him, he watched the people he loved die after he met Arthur.

So we went on our way Too in love to think straight All alone or so it seemed But there were strangers watching And whispers turned to talking And talking turned to screams

People noticed how much Arthur and Merlin cared for eachother and they used it against them. Like Morgana and Agravaine targeting Merlin to use against Arthur even though they didn’t know about his magic.

I reached for you but you were gone. I knew I had to go back home

The first line is Merlin and the second line is Arthur when it comes to the finale. Merlin tried to save Arthur and he tried to hold him close but Arthur was already doomed. Arthur knew he wasn’t going to make it though that’s why he just asked for Merlin to hold him. He wanted their last moments to be love rather than anguish. He knew he had to go.

You searched the world for something else to make you feel like what we had And in the end in wonderland we both went mad

Merlin is left alone in the world just waiting for Arthur to come back, or at the very least something to give him purpose, someone to make him alive like Arthur did. In the end they both lost everything they were looking for. In the end their entire worldviews were shattered, Merlin wasn’t exactly who Arthur thought he was, Magic couldn’t be evil like he thought because Merlin was magic and Merlin lost his world.

[diana-bookfairchild]

People who say 'if Merlin were a girl, Merthur would totally be a thing!'. . .

Uh. . . You're wrong.

If Merlin was a girl, it's doubtful if 'she' would get the servant's position to the prince, and if 'she' did, there would be riots every thirty seconds about the way Arthur threw goblets at and shoved 'her' around and the way 'she' literally didn't have ANYTHING in 'her' life not about Arthur, and people screaming 'Abuse' and 'Unhealthy and Toxic!!'.

I'll leave it to you to decide if and why Male!Merlin should and doesn't get the same.

Also, if the main reason for shipping Merthur is 'they're destined!! Two sides of the same coin! Merlin would do anything for Arthur!! How can that not be romantic??', it's not just a complete lack of creativity, but also chock full of amatonormativity. Merlin having PLATONIC love for Arthur would also very much be enough to do all that he did for him. Let me remind you this is the guy who was perfectly willing to commit forgery, identity fraud and treason for Lancelot within a day of meeting him.

We have never ONCE seen Merlin try to throw a punch at Arthur after 1x01 or even toss one of the things thrown at him back at Arthur. Why the hell is that?? If this violence so normal for the friendship/romantic relationship these two share, why can't they show it on an equal basis at least once?

And the so oft quoted scene where Arthur apparently tells Gwen he'd leave her behind to go to a farm with Merlin. That ... is so not what happened. Arthur is confessing the dream he holds so close to himself to the girl he loves, and when Gwen laughs, questioning how someone like him would work hard, THEN Arthur says he'd take Merlin too - to do all the hard work while he lounged around. Then Gwen laughs and teases him back - because that is one thing they share in common, which was what brought them together, that both of their best friend is Merlin. Even when she later amusedly comments that maybe they can spend more time together when Arthur goes off to become a farmer, he just looks wistful, definitely not startled the way he would've if he were really having romantic fantasies about his manservant and best friend.

I'm not saying there aren't plenty good reasons to ship Merthur. Through everything, the two of them do genuinely love one another. And there is a sad general lack of queer relations in canon, which means fanon is the way to go.

But I AM saying that Merlin BBC ≠ Merthur.

It's perfectly fine to ship other ships, to see those relationships as the most important ones and best (to me), not bother about romantic relationships at all!!

[cocrante]

I would like to write something about merthur, even though I currently don't have any specific idea. But, once, many years ago, I had thought of a very random fanfiction set in modern times where Merlin was waiting for Arthur's return.

One day, while fetching water from the well, he felt a shiver and knew that Arthur had come back. A man stumbled into the clearing, swaying with each step and holding his head as if he had just woken up from a bad hangover. Merlin dropped the bucket and approached the figure before he could collapse. He brought him into the house, laying him on his bed, waiting for him to wake up. When the man opened his eyes, he was even more confused than before. He kept saying he didn't know who he was, had no memories, while Merlin knew everything about him, and helping him remember wouldn't be easy.

This is the only thing that has ever come to my mind about merthur, but I would like to write something easy because this would take me a lot of time, and I can't do that right now :c

[jakeonao3]

you try so loud to love me (I cannot seem to hear): merthur, 1k words

“He can never know I’m in love with him. Telling him I have magic is one thing but telling him I’m in love with him is out of the question.” Merlin said at the druid he was talking to in the woods just outside the castle.

After sorting out their problem – said problem being that the Once and Future King still didn’t know about Emrys being Merlin, about them not ruling Camelot together, and that had brought them here, to the druids wanting Merlin to confess his feelings towards Arthur to the man in question – so, more like problems, and by sorting out he means saying he’ll never tell him, the druids left Merlin in the clearing they were in.

As soon as the druids were out of sight and earshot, Merlin sighed and sat on the grass. He couldn’t tell Arthur he had magic, let alone that he loved him. Both of those things would end their friendship, and Merlin didn’t know what he would do without Arthur by his side. Without being able to protect him, even if he would never know about it.

The sound of leaves shuffling made him turn around only to see the man he was thinking about, Arthur. Arthur was there. Oh my Goddess, how long had he been there? How much did he hear?

Arthur walks up to him, and Merlin just stares at everything but him, praying to the Triple Goddess, the Disir and the Old Religion that Arthur didn’t hear a thing.

When he’s close to Merlin, Arthur says, “Merlin.” It doesn’t have that usual tone of fondness and exasperation it always does instead it seems to be partly angry and partly- Merlin doesn’t know.

Merlin finally looks up to his king, still sitting on the floor.

“Arthur, what are you doing here?” He tries for casual but knows he’s missed it by a mile. His breaths coming more rapidly now.

Arthur is still looking at him as he says, “I followed you because I wanted to know where you actually are when you and Gaius say you’re at the tavern.” A pause then, “I heard everything, Merlin.”

Merlin’s eyes widen before he stands up and tries to walk backwards to get away from him, breaths coming more and more shortly. He doesn’t even realize he’s talking saying I’m sorry all over again, apologizing for something out of his control, let it be the magic or the love, he didn’t choose any of it, it just happened.

“I’m sorry, I’ll leave. Please don’t kill me. I don’t want to die.” With tears in his eyes, he realizes that he couldn’t live with the thought of Arthur hating him and banishing him, so he says, “No wait, please kill me here, with your sword. I don’t want Gaius to see me burn, I don’t want to be banished, I can’t live with the thought of you hating me, so please, kill me now.” While he was saying all of this, he managed to get in front of Arthur, only inches separating them.

Arthur slowly lifted his hand and put it on Merlin’s cheek. “Merlin, you idiot.” He placed a small peck on his lips and then said, “I could never harm you, or banish you for that matter. I’m in love with you too. And for the magic, did you really think I didn’t know? I’m not that dense, you know?” Merlin gave him a skeptical look. “Are you not angry? About my magic, about me lying to you for all these years, about me being in love with you?” There was a pause where he thought back about what Arthur had just said. “Wait, you’re in love with me?” His eyes widened and Arthur took it as a good moment to place his lips on Merlin’s once again. This time Merlin kissed him back – after a second of shock – and what a joy that was. He had imagined kissing Arthur, but the fantasies were nothing compared to the real thing.

He was so caught up in the kiss that when Arthur pulled back, he chased him with his lips, getting out a moan from Arthur. Merlin liked it so much that he walked him back until his back was against a tree trunk.

At this point, they were making out like teenagers. Tongue sliding against tongue. Teeth biting on lips and so on.

This time it was Merlin who broke the kiss by putting his hand on Arthur’s chest and holding him there. Arthur was looking at him with so much love that he didn’t know how he never noticed it before. He placed one or two more kisses on Arthur’s lips just because he could, and finally stepped back.

“We should head home.” Arthur loved the idea of taking Merlin to bed and be his in all the possible ways, so he said exactly that. Merlin smiled at him and responded with “I’ll take good care if you, my love.”

And with that they headed back to Camelot hand in hand, happier than they’d ever been.

[rotisseries]

well now u have to explain ur beef w spirk to me

AKAJDHFJS OK. so back in march when EVERYONE was running poll tournaments, my lovely mutual @tallytals ran a sun and moon duo one, @sun-n-moon-showdown. spirk was one of the contestants (so was merthur btw jayme got mad when they lost), but, so was MY pick, MYYY submission, the CLEAR winner, joe and nicky from netflix original action movie the old guard. tals' poll accidentally got pretty popular, so naturally spirk starts sweeping it's polls, meanwhile I'm over there just fighting for the joenicky agenda, because they were not the most popular pairing involved, so I'm campaigning like crazy I'm reblogging their polls to MY poll tournament sideblog for more attention and I'm CALLING IN FAVORS. I'm hitting up more popular mutuals to ask them to rb the poll for me (hella. hi hella if you see this do you remember that) AND I sent an ask to this old guard blog that I knew was relatively popular in the fandom, THEY bring attention to it, SO NOW THIS FANDOM THAT HAS BEEN A LITTLE DRY FOR A FEW YEARS ARE ALL GOING NUTS FOR THIS POLL LIKE THE BAND GOT BACK TOGETHER FOR A REUNION TOUR. there was strategy involved in this. the blog was organizing people and telling them to go mass vote for the less popular pairings in the other polls so joe and nicky would have easy competition. we should've won. we deserved it. BUT. IN QUARTER FINALS. WE ARE UP AGAINST SPIRK. IT IS A HARROWING TWENTY-FOUR HOURS. MY BLOG WAS A WAR ZONE. IT IS SO SO SO CLOSE. LITERALLY NECK AND NECK. WE LOSE BY POINT. 10. POINT TEN!!! PERCENT!!! IT IS LITERALLY 49.2 to 50.8!! I COULD FUCKING KILL A MAN

AND WHAT MAKES THAT LOSS SO BRUTAL. SO GUTWRENCHING. IS THE SPIRK FANS DIDN'T EVEN TRY. THEY RODE THE COATTAILS OF POP CULTURE KNOWLEDGE TO THE END. JOE NICKY VOTERS. WE WERE OUT THERE QUOTING THE VAN SPEECH. FROM MEMORY. YOU ARE A CHILD. AN INFANT. YOUR MOCKING IS THUS INFANTILE THIS MAN IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND. HE'S MORE TO ME THAN YOU CAN DREAM. HE'S THE MOON WHEN I'M LOST IN DARKNESS AND WARMTH WHEN I SHIVER IN COLD AND HIS KISS STILL THRILLS ME EVEN AFTER A MILLENIA. HIS HEART OVERFLOWS WITH A KINDNESS OF WHICH THIS WORLD IS NOT WORTHY OF. I LOVE THIS MAN BEYOND MEASURE AND REASON. THIS MAN IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND. HE IS ALL AND HE'S MORE. <- QUOTE FROM JOE ABOUT NICKY. FUCKING INSANE. EXTRA INSANE THING I FOUND OUT FROM ALL THE PROPAGANDA!! THE MOON HAS EXTRA SYMBOLISM BECAUSE JOE IS MUSLIM!!! I DON'T REMEMBER THE SPECIFICS BUT IT WAS IMPORTANT!! AND THAT JUST SERVES MY POINT. JOENICKY VOTERS WERE BRINGING ACADEMIC TEXTS THEY WERE BRINGING COLLEGE LEVEL COURSEWORK AND WHAT DID SPIRK BRING??? "oh guys don't forget your fandom history!!" THIS!! IS NOT!! THE FUCKING!! FANDOM HISTORY POLL!! IT IS THE SUN AND MOON POLL!! BLUE AND YELLOW COLOR CODING DOES NOT A SUN AND MOON COUPLE MAKE!! THEY BROUGHT NO EFFORT NO PROPAGANDA THEY JUST THOUGHT THEY DESERVED TO WIN BECAUSE THEY ARE ENTITLED. AND THEN THEY DID. THEY WON QUARTER FINALS. AND SO NOW I WILL MAKE SURE TO VOTE AGAINST SPIRK IN EVERY POLL I EVER SEE. INCLUDING THE FUCKING FANDOM HISTORY ONES. THEY DESERVE NOTHING

[sweet-demiboi]

Hi there, can I request gwaine x ftm reader who is Arthur's brother, both gwaine and reader are married for 2-3 years and reader is pregnant for about 7-8 months by now. Reader and gwaine go to a small picnic near camelot after gwaine comes back from one of his knight jobs with Arthur, that's when reader tells gwaine about them having twins which has gwaine a little worried yet excited about it as gwaine leans in to kiss the reader the moment is ruined by bandits and gwaine is worried about reader but reader hits one of the bandits and grabs his sword helping gwaine fight "I can still fight gwaine" after defeating the bandits both of them ride back to camelot before reader goes to gaius to let him know that he was starting to feel weird when gauis leads him to readers chamber and let's him know because of the stress he might be going into labor.

Sorry if this too specific or non-specific and if you don't feel comfortable writing it, it's okay. Thank you ❤️

Thank you for the request, I personally loved the idea and I hope you like the outcome!

There is a hint of Merthur lol, hope that's okay, I put the process of labour in here as well (nothing too specific, but it's there), screams of pain from you and I already named the children, there is also a little "surprise" at the end :)

"Hello there, handsome!", Gwaine entered your chambers with a grin from ear to ear. You sat on your shared bed and threw him a unimpressed look "I look like a whale.", you said dryly while pointing to your stomach "A very handsome whale", your husband answered, walked around the bed and stole a kiss from your lips.

You started to smile "I missed you today" - "Oh, only today?", Gwaine asked with exaggerated hurt in his voice, you rolled your eyes but your smile deepened.

"You should do that more often", the knight suggested "The thing with your lips, curling up- there he is, the most handsome man on earth!", you laughed while Gwaine took off his armour.

"My prince, do you feel strong enough for going on a date with me?", he asked, taking both your hands in his. They were bigger than yours and warm. "What did you have in mind?", you wanted to know, not sure if your current state of pregnancy would allow it.

"It's a surprise.", you still looked unsure "A surprise involving food", he added "Let's go!", you got out of bed and your husband brought you over to the stables, where your and his horse were waiting already.

"How was training today?", you asked, already riding behind Gwaine towards the forest, it was perfect weather: mild temperatures and not too much sun, the sky was clouded and you knew it would look hilariously good when the sun would set.

"Bit harder than usual", he chuckled "Honestly, I think Arthur is a little mad at me for getting you pregnant. His fight towards me was.. rather aggressive." - "It's good for him though when I bear the heirs to the throne, Merlin can't get pregnant." Now the knight looked at you confused "Why would Arthur try to get Merlin pregnant? I mean, I know he still doesn't have a wife, but his servant?" You laughed "Dear, I love you but you really are inattentive sometimes. They are together" - "Oh"

When you arrived at a clearing you could see the set-up of a picknic: blankets on the floor, a few pillows, fruits, drinks, bread, meat, everything you could possibly desire. You turned to your husband who gave you a smile "This is very impressive. Thank you for setting it up, or letting a servant set it up.", Gwaine helped you off your horse and when you sat down.

"Are you good?", he asked "Yeah", your breathing was a little quicker than usual because of the slight exhaustion "I'm fine", you let your hand glide over your belly, then you both started to eat.

"Gwaine?", you asked after a while "Yes, my prince?" - "There's something I have to tell you", he gave you his listening-face "So, you know how I attended the appointment at Gaius' alone last time", he nodded "He told me something very exciting and slightly terrifying", now Gwaine looked worried "But it's nothing bad, my health won't be affected", you reassured him "We're going to have twins!"

"Whoa", Gwaine smiled "I didn't expect that" - "Me neither! How du you feel about it?", you asked "I'm very happy, but also a little concerned I mean two babies are more than one, we will have to get a second children's bed", you chuckled "I think that won't be such a big deal" Gwaine nodded, still smiling "I love you", he said "Thank you for telling me" You got a little closer to him "I love you too"

Right before you could kiss a scream startled both of you, it was bandits, running towards you with their swords out.

"(Y/N), get away from here!", Gwaine shouted, running to his horse to get his own sword. You got up from the ground and punched a burglar right in the face "I can still fight, Gwaine", you took the two daggers that had fallen out of the man's hands and protected yourself from the rest of bandits.

Gwaine got your back and after a few long minutes you had them all down, only a few scratches were what they had left. "Are you okay?", Gwaine asked worriedly "I am, are you" He nodded "Yeah, let's get you back to the castle, I want Gaius to check you"

Not being able to talk back, you got on your horse and rode directly to the doctor, a weird grumble in your stomach came with you. It made you a little nervous, it could be nothing, it could also be something bad though.

Luckily, Gaius was home and had some time o his hands. While he examined you, Gwaine was strolling through the doctor's chambers, taking a glance at you when you said something, or even just slightly winced.

"(Y/N) is fine, Gwaine", Gaius said after a while, your hsuband's relief couldn't be overlooked "Thanks, Gaius", he came towards you and took one of your hands, pressing a light kiss to your forehead.

"This could be the start of the labour, though", he added, your eyes went big "Now? Isn't that too early?" - "A little, but I have already seen healthy children being born after less time. I would suggest going to your room and relaxing, maybe even sleep a little. Drink much water" You nodded and let Gwaine escort you to your chambers.

When you arrived there you couldn't sleep, even though you laid down and in the middle of the night when the cramps in your stomach got worse, you woke up your husband "What is it?", he asked, blinking "Gwaine, get Gaius, I think labour has started."

Now, the knight was wide awake, already shouting for the guards to get the doctor. When Gaius arrived you were holding onto Gwaine's hand for dear life, the cramps had gotten even worse. The doctor confirmed your thoughts after a few check-ups on you.

He ordered the guard who had stayed in the room to get blankets, hot water and Gwen, then he threw the protesting Gwaine out of the room in only his night gown.

When Gwen arrived with everything they needed, the whole castle must've gotten waken up, because everywhere was light and voices, the other knights were already with Gwaine and after a while Arthur, as king and your brother, tried to get into the room:

"Gaius?"

"You cannot come in here, right now!", the older man answered "We need space and as much peace as possible!"

"I only want to make myself a quick picture, and I'm the king"

"Then the king shall fuck off!", you screamed at him in pain "Get out of here, you little bastard!"

Arthur had never walked faster out of a room than right now.

Luckily Gwen informed them of everything, it wasn't much, but now the knights knew, that everything was going according to plan. Your screams were telling them that it was hard and painful though.

Gwaine almost worried his ass off, but after seven hours it was quiet in tha castle again. That peace was only disturbed by light crying sounds, Gwen stepped out the door with a smile "You can come in, now"

Gwaine immediately rushed to your bed, where you laid, exhausted, sweaty, but with the biggest smile on your lips and two children in your arms. Gwaine looked at you three reverent and kneeled down beside you on the floor.

"Wow", he whispered "You're awesome", he said, which made you laugh weakly "Who do you want to hold?", you asked "Here we have Achilles", the child you had on your right arm "And Devan"

"They are both beautiful", he looked you in the eyes "Just as you", he kissed you softly after your laugh, then took Devan in his arms. "Devan means divine", you explained "Gaius told me. They are... a little special", your husband looked at you with confusion "They are neither boy nor girl. They are the third gender. I can show you a few ancient greek texts, they explain it quite well. Achilles' name is ancient greek, too."

Gwaine smiled "They are perfect" - "That they are indeed", you agreed.

You saw Arthur standing at the bottom of your bed, smiling at the children "I'm sorry for calling you bastard", you apologised "It's okay", your brother replied "I think you needed someone to canalise your pain with." You nodded.

Then your look fell back on your children and your husband, your little family, and you smiled.