#modern merlin

[that-nerd-who-writes-fanfiction]

I got to thinking about mythology and folklore (to absolutely no one’s surprise) and my brain came back to Merlin (also entirely unsurprising)

Merlin would probably know the origins of a lot of myths, right? It’d probably make for some interesting conversations when Arthur gets back.

Arthur, reading about myths and legends: Hey why are unicorns said to be mythical?

Merlin: You shot one and Anhora nearly poisoned you to fix it. I wasn’t about to let it happen again.

—

Arthur: Did you know there’s a monster in Lock Ness?

Merlin: she is not a monster! Aithusa is a total sweetheart. It’s not her fault everyone got grumpy about the existence of dragons.

—

Arthur: Did you know about all the missing shipwrecks here?

Merlin: the first few stories were warnings. I can’t stop people wondering into gateways to other realms. It’s their own stupidity.

—

There’s definitely others but I need sleep.

[tiredcowboyy]

I cant stop thinking ab the idea of merlin one day post s5, where they all survived, becoming really secretive and protective of his room and not telling anyone at all whats inside. Not even gaius. He even gets a lock installed and whenever anybody asks he brushes it off with jokes like “its to stop arthur from finding me” or smth.

he also unrelatedly really hates any talk of destiny, going to war, and anytime morgana mentions her fear of her magic turning her merlin slightly freaks out.

That is until one day gaius manages to catch merlin off guard while hes rushing between the main room and his bedroom and walks in.

Only to see a whole bunch of stuff that hes never seen before.

Merlin freaks out, tries to play it off as some weird experiments and stuff hes been collecting but gaius can feel it, somethings different about these items, not wrong but not right. Not really magic either.

It takes 3 weeks of gaius pestering him before merlin breaks and explains to him that he IS A TIME TRAVELER. after the battle of camlan as we know it that lead to arthurs death, merlin did wait, he really did, but in the year 2020 when arthur didnt return for yet another global crisis, merlin broke and did spell upon spell until he figured out how throw himself back in time.

And holy shit did it work well. He managed to come back just at the perfect time to change everything that needed to be done to assure that everyone lives happily and safely, and when he realises hes done it, he decides to stay in this time. See his friends and family grow old as they should have. See arthur rule as he should have. Live the life he has been craving to go back to for centuries now.

Until a month in he realises how old everything is. Sure merlin can survive without his phone and stuff but theres a few things he really misses. Like his slippers, his potato peeler, his favourite hoodie, and especially his favourite tea flavours.

So once in a while he allowed himself to go back to the modern day and bring one thing back. He started with a scented candle, because candles exist in camelot and having one here shouldn’t mess up time right? Then moved onto a herbal tea that he knows if he traveled past the boarders he may be able to find similar ingredients.

Then he brings a new release of his favourite book series because he cant help it and realises small things like that dont change time.

And so thats what he’s been hiding away in his room, all of his modern day stuff. Ranging from trinkets hes collected over his life to his favourite scarf to his stuffed lion that he won at a fair in the 80s. He doesn’t go back often, only when his tea runs out or he really needs something, he tries to limit it he really does.

It takes gaius another 4 weeks to wrap his head around it all. Another 2 weeks after that to touch merlins stuffed lion thinking it may attack him at any moment.

He makes gaius promise to not tell a soul, offering him tea bags as payment. They have a nice system from then on, gaius would try a new flavour of tea everytime merlin returned, once in a while he would also bring a modern day snack (gaius yelled when he first tried salt and vinegar crisps).

A yell which led to leon finding out. And so a cycle began.

[calebauer]

rise and shine !!! ☀️

[counting-stars-gayly]

Thinking about how, for Merlin, the events of the show happened so long ago that he can’t possibly remember much, and the memories he does still have are probably vague. So when Arthur returns, with everything far more fresh in his mind, he probably keeps referencing events that Merlin has forgotten or is confused about, and it breaks both their hearts.

[onceandfuturelesbian]

it’s giving modern merthur

[h50europe]

MERTHUR - Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, but falling in love with you was beyond my control

[thefabledpheasant]

Do you think if Arthur found out that Merlin had an entire show named after him he’d be a prat about it?

Like, “No, that makes sense. Why should my name be part of it? I’m only the king of Camelot that came back from the dead 1500 years later to save Albion 😒”

[lovable-bastard]

Imagine if Arthur took the soldier poet king quiz and got king

Arthur: Why do you want me to do this quiz?

Merlin: Why not?

Arthur:

Arthur: Alright.

*after taking the qiuz*

Arthur: wow. King. How surprising.

Arthur: *reads the description*

Arthur:

Arthur, tearing up:...oh.

[one-green-bean]

Some modern merthur christmas drawings i did for a friend of mine a while ago.

definitely the right season to post these even tho it’s summer here.

[thatonedudeinthecorner]

Arthur: so what do you do for work?

Merlin: I’m an actor

Arthur: I haven’t seen you in anything. What’ve you acted in? Shows? Movies?

Merlin: well, I’m acting right now as if there isn’t insane sexual tension between us

Arthur: what???

Merlin: what.

[that-nerd-who-writes-fanfiction]

Based on this post

Arthur when Merlin gets home from work: *runs up and hugs him without saying anything about it*

Merlin: *immediately drops everything in his hands and hugs back, not letting go and giving one of the best hugs of his life because it’s Arthur and he’s spent 1500 years loving him*

Arthur, after five or more minutes of bear hugging the man he’s in love with: (mutters) no homo.

Merlin, the immortal: *dies*

Merlin: *pulls away and pats Arthur’s shoulder in the most awkward “buddy” kind of way before walking into their flat and locking himself in his room to have an existential crisis/gay panic*

Things are awkward as hell, until Arthur asks Merlin if he can finally show him movies. Merlin goes to get his laptop and opens Google to find Netflix, seeing recent searches.

Merlin: Arthur?

Arthur: huh?

Merlin, dealing with what he can: why did you want to buy an archive?

Arthur: …is this magic? How-

Merlin: no, just technology again. You had search history on. I can um… see everything you’ve researched.

Arthur: everything..?

Merlin: everything…

Arthur: what did you say about um… oh right. Fuck.

Merlin: *smiles and pulls Arthur into a hug*

Arthur: Merlin? I- I thought…

Merlin: you are the most important thing in every universe, world, and realm to me, Arthur. 1500 years didn’t change that, and whatever comes next for us certainly won’t change it either. If there’s ever anything that you want to tell me, then I’ll be right here.

Arthur: *hugs back and hides his face, teary eyed, in Merlin’s neck*

Arthur, murmuring against Merlin’s neck: I’m bisexual.

Merlin: Thank you for telling me,

Arthur: And I’m in love with you.

Merlin, teary eyed and beaming: I love you too, Arthur. More than anything.

Arthur: Not in a no homo kind of way. In a, I’d marry you if I could kind of way…

Merlin: *laughs a little* I think you’ve got something else to research,

Arthur: what?

Merlin: *pulls the laptop to himself and types something before turning it around to Arthur*

Can I marry my best friend? (After I take him out on a date)

(He did that thing where you search one thing then type something else into the search bar without pressing go)

Arthur reads how its legal for men to get married then looks up at Merlin, he jumps on him and tackles him into a hug, laughing and crying happily. They watch heart stopper and Arthur starts playing rugby, they get a dog, date for three months before Arthur asks Merlin to marry him randomly one evening.

Merlin says yes, of course, so two days later when he gets in from work, Arthur hugs him, covers his eyes and leads him into their living room where he set up a full romance novel style proposal. He gets down on one knee with a really nice ring and gives a whole speech. (my aro ass can’t imagine what, but you know what I mean. It’s super cute and romantic)

Merlin says yes again and they get married soon after and live on a farm before both dying of old age after a long and happy life together.

Merlin spends the rest of their lives teasing Arthur about the “no homo” after their first hug thing.

Merlin also teaches Arthur about clearing search history and incognito, Arthur uses it exclusively for surprising Merlin because they’ve got no need for any secrets between them in this lifetime.

[tiredcowboyy]

the return of the two kings

It takes 1500 years for it to finally happen and its not in the way merlin thought it would. He thought Arthur would return, but when a man that looks exactly like arthur sits beside merlin in his political science class, well merlin realises that reincarnation wasn’t completely off the table.

Merlin introduces himself on the 3rd class, the first two spent of him subtly studying arthur, his face, his mannerisms, trying to figure out if it was really him, though when he heard the voice and name any doubt was swept away.

From that point on they quickly grew as friends. Merlin wasnt really sure what to do, he was told arthur would return when the world needed him, but nothing about if he was reborn again with no memories of his past reign whatsoever.

It stresses merlin out for a while, he constantly was on edge for any world changing dangers, however after a while he just accepted that maybe there was no reason. Arthur was just born again and he should appreciate that.

They quickly grew close, becoming the best of friends and eventually roommates and merlin couldnt have been happier, content with have the blonde back in his life.

Until one day he gets this urge to walk near the lake of avalon again, something hes not felt like doing since he found arthur again. But he does, distantly thinking it was around this time of year he had lost his king all those years ago. So he goes, the sun still rising as he begins his usual route around the lake. He takes it in, smiling at how much life has changed since he last took this walk.

He was distracted so you cant blame him for how much he was caught off guard, really that wasnt his fault.

“Merlin?”

Despite what anyone who saw would say Merlin did not let out a scream.

He spins around and comes face to face with his best friend, his roommate, his destiny walking out of the lake soaking wet.

“Arthur? What are you doing here? And why are you in the lake? I-“

He pauses, the air ripped out of his lungs as he realises what hes actually looking at. Something was different. Something was wrong. Because this arthur wasnt wearing his usual jeans and jumper, his hair wasn’t slightly too long because hes been too busy with work to get it cut, he wasnt making some joke about merlins poor coffee making skills.

He was wearing chainmail and armour, a sword in his hand one that merlin hadnt seen since that day.

This wasnt the same arthur he left at home this morning, the same arthur who was too busy watching last nights football on catchup to make fun of merlin burning his toast, the same arthur who he has lived with for 6 years and thought was his arthur.

No, this was the same arthur that he held in his arms as he thanked him and took his final breath.

Merlin doesnt know what kind of sick game the world is playing on him but that doesnt matter,

Because now theres two Arthur Pendragons gracing this earth and merlin doesn’t think hes quite as cut out for this destiny thing as he thought he was.

[calebauer]

*me with a random persons horse at 2:14am*

[hannahhook7744]

Modern Merlin Scenario;

Arthur, having heard about it online: What's this Bermuda triangle—

Merlin, thinking Leon and Lancelot snitched: okay, I don't know who told you but before I tell you absolutely anything else about that, I need you to know that it was ALL Gwaine, Will, Gwen, and Elena's fault!

Arthur: What—

Gwen and Elena, in the background: I admit to nothing.

Gwaine, also in the background: Oh, are we talking about the—

Will, even further in the background: BULLSHIT! IT WAS YOUR IDEA—

Arthur, both terrified and exasperated: You know what? I don't want to know. Forget I asked.

Based on this post by @that-nerd-who-writes-fanfiction .

[onceandfuturelesbian]

modern established merthur fic where they both have had a bad day at work and one returns home to see the other just sitting on the couch

maybe he makes tea for both of them or smthn but they just slouch together and it’s basically like “you too?” “yeah”

n they just let themselves feel kinda miserable together and comfort and hold eachother

n it’s sweet and domestic and fluffy

[achillesuwu]

I'm not knowledgeable enough in other culture to write it but you know that post about how even when people aren't in our life anymore (for whatever reason) they are still "there"? How you eat certain food because an old friend of your liked it that way and showed it to you, how you listen to certain song because your neighbor's liked it. How you got the habit to drink in blues cup because your sibling drank in the red one etc?

Well, I think it would be very neat if instead of being typical British ™ immortal merlin was with a mosaic of culture because of the friends and lovers he met, with habit that he created along the years.

Merlin who make coffee because arthur want to try it but he makes it like Vietnamese like to do it.

Merlin who drink his tea like marrocan.

Merlin who took the habit to slap his things when he thinks it's time to get up and leaves like his German friend.

Merlin who make a old dish that can’t be found anywhere else because it disappeared with the Black Death.

Merlin who still like to eat his dish on bread, have a table beer when he eat and drink his wine with spices

Anyway I don't have any more ideas but if you do please share what you would think merlin would do!!