A/N- So I wrote this like two years ago. This is a repost from AO3, because I finally wrote out a sequel.
Glitz and Glamour
"So, you're the new fellow then?" said Merlin sizing up the other man, who shot him a nervous look, that still managed to seem somewhat haughty.
"George Matthews" he said holding out his hand "pleased to meet you..." he trailed off
"Merlin Emrys, 's PA" said the raven haired man with a grin as he shook the other man's hand. He noticed George start, and stifled a chuckle.
George couldn't help comparing himself to the man in front of him. While he was dressed in a smart black button-down, dark grey trousers and his best formal shoes, Merlin was wearing a pair of worn, grey jeans, a dark blue jumper (with a red neckerchief. George tried to repress a shudder), a pair of ratty old trainers. George sniffed. It didn't exactly scream professionalism. He strained up when he realized that Merlin seemed to be sizing him up again.
Merlin gave George a considering look. "Have you ever done any work with a film crew before?"
"I've worked with the accounting department."
Merlin struggled not to laugh "I think you're going to find a bit different here on the production side of things, mate."
"I don't see how. It's basically the same thing isn't it?"
"Oh?" Merlin raised an eyebrow.
"Well yeah, you know, keep your head down, do what you're told, and report to the brass at the end of the week."
Merlin pursed his lips, and George felt like he'd failed some sort of test.
"What do you know about Arthur Pendragon and Morgana Le Fey?" Merlin asked
George blinked at the sudden change of topic, before answering "They hate each other, everyone knows that, it's in the papers nearly once a week!"
The other man let out a loud laugh, before saying "you'd better come with me" and leading a bemused George down the corridor to a door marked "STAFF" in bold black lettering. Merlin opened the door, walking into the empty room, George following close behind.
There was a fridge in one corner, next to which was counter. On top of the counter were a microwave, a coffee machine, and an electric kettle. Above the counter were four wooden cupboards. Scattered around room were plush sofas and easy-chairs, arranged in small, sociable circles, with a small table in the middle. Merlin walked over to the fridge while George stood awkwardly at the door. He rummaged a bit, before emerging with a can of coca-cola "d'you want one?" he asked.
"Erm, okay"
Merlin picked up another can and flopped on to the nearest sofa. George stayed by the door.
"You can sit down, I don't bite" said Merlin, gesturing to the seat next to him. George took the offered seat, and the drink which was handed to him.
"The staff lounge" said Merlin, gesturing to the room in general "every set worker's safehaven. The actors get their trailers, we get this. No matter where we're shooting, there's always a staff lounge. Mainly we sit, eat, and bitch about the talent." Merlin grinned. George nodded, unsure how to respond. "There are three rules to the staff lounge. One," he lifted up a finger "anything in the fridge or cupboards that doesn't have your name on it is communal. Two," he lifted another finger "if you finish the coffee or tea, it's your responsibility to buy more. Three," He raised a third finger "and this is the most important, whatever happens in the staff lounge stays in the staff lounge."
"Okay..."
"You're wondering what this has to do with Arthur-" he stopped "Oh don't give me that look, I've been working for him for nearly five years now, and after all of the stuff I've done for him, the least he can do is let me use is his fist name." He grinned "He told me so himself, in a fit of rather uncharacteristic good humor"
George nodded slowly; apparently employee-boss relationships were a little different on set.
"Anyway, you were wondering what all of this had to do with Arthur and Morgana." He took a small sip of his coke. "Rule number one of being a techie, George, actually, scratch that, rule number one of life, never believe a word that is printed in the tabloids. Ninety nine percent of the time, their 'inside scoop' is either made up, manipulated, or both."
"So and Fey don't hate each other?"
"Well I wouldn't say they got off on the right foot..."
"She is a wicked, evil, scheming, harpy!" hissed Arthur nearly tearing off his jacket before throwing it at Merlin, who just barely managed to catch it.
"I take it the party didn't go as well as you'd hoped?"
Merlin only got a glare in response.
"Dare I ask exactly what happened?"
"You were there, you saw."
"Actually, I was chatting with her PA, Gwen. Lovely girl. We've got plans for coffee on Saturday."
Arthur growled "The polar opposite of her boss."
"What happened Arthur?"
"I was talking to her; we were having a perfectly decent chat, when she starts to get angry with me. Then she gets this look in her eye, and trips that bitch, Sophia as she passes by, making her spill her drink all over me. So of course she gets all simpering, and tries to mop me up. Hah! Molest me more like. When I finally get her to stop, Morgana's gone, and I have to spend the rest of the night keeping Sophia from touching my arse."
Merlin spared him about ten seconds of sympathy before saying "Arthur, when you were having your 'perfectly decent chat' you weren't being a prat, were you?"
"Watch yourself Merlin, I'm your boss."
"You're also a prat, they're not mutually exclusive. But you didn't answer my question."
"I- I don't think so" but Arthur's guilty expression was a dead giveaway. Merlin raised his eyebrow at him.
"Oh shut up" muttered Arthur, throwing a cushion at his head.
The picture of Arthur and Sophia on the cover of every magazine in the shops the next day didn't do much to improve his mood.
"So they do hate each other?" said George confused
"Well, at the time, they... severely disliked each other."
George looked unconvinced, and Merlin sighed,
"Look, Arthur can be a royal prat sometimes, and Morgana is easily offended, has a sharp tongue and an even sharper mind. Neither of them left a good impression on the other. It was a bit of a Cold war after that, and Gwen and I were caught right in the middle.
There was a coffee shop on Oxford Street, nestled cozily between a bookshop and bakery, that very few people knew about. Merlin and Gwen happened to be two of those very few people.
"This is getting a bit ridiculous Merlin" said Gwen as she took a sip of her cappuccino, "I mean it's gotten to the point that even we can't be seen together without some paper or the other accusing one of us of 'betrayal'."
"I know" he replied, unwrapping the biscuit that had come with his tea "I half expect them to forbid us from seeing each other"
Gwen giggled "You make us sound like Romeo and Juliet"
Merlin laughed "Oh, we are, except, you know, we both play for the other team, have massive crushes on our respective bosses, and will, hopefully, come out of this ordeal alive and well. But other than that, we're exactly like Romeo and Juliet"
Gwen choked on her coffee, before smacking him on the arm. "You're insane"
"Ah, but you love me" he replied, raising his teacup in a mock toast "to Romeo and Juliet. May our story end on a much happier note" Gwen solemnly raised her glass in return and said "to Romeo and Juliet" before throwing her head back and laughing.
"Wait, you're gay?"
"Really, that's all you got from this story?"
"Sorry, you caught me by surprise"
Merlin sighed "Yes I'm gay, and so's Gwen. It's not exactly a secret. Well, among the film crew anyway."
"Okay." George took a moment to digest this new information
"Look, it's not going to be a problem, is it?"
"No of course not!" said George, putting every ounce of sincerity he possibly could into his voice. He understood why Merlin would be worried; there was a lot of prejudice in the world.
Merlin nodded.
"Okay, so you and your friend Gwen are both gay and you both have a thing for-"
"Rule number three George, that information never leaves this room. Understand?"
"Yeah...so...about this Cold War..."
"Right, so there was a sort of Cold War going on between the two, and that's when the media started to get involved."
"Arthur Pendragon and Morgan Le Fey, the ongoing battle, see page 2 for the inside story" read Merlin as he entered Arthur's trailer.
Arthur groaned "Why can't the bloody press mind their own bloody business for once?"
"You're an actor Arthur, you should be used to it by now." said Merlin, flipping to page two, and scanning it quickly. If there was any lasting damage, he would have to send it to Gaius, the head of the PR department.
Arthur seemed to be on the same train of thought, because he asked "Anything to write to Gaius about?"
"Hmmm... according to this you and Morgana were secretly married when you both were nineteen. It didn't last long, but the 'residual resentment' is what's fueling the current fight."
Arthur spluttered "What! Give me that!" he grabbed the paper from Merlin's hand, reading the article for himself. "Sodding hell! We met at a party! Three months ago!"
"They quote an anonymous source" said Merlin
"Meaning they made it up on the spot when no new information came in" filled in Arthur "I think I might go and bang my head on that wall over there."
"I'm going to take this moment to remind you that your face is your job and suggest you go kick a football at a tree or terrorize some newbies instead. Next I'm going to go and talk to Gaius and try to figure out how to fix this. Finally, I'm going to call Gwen and make plans for drinks tonight, because I'm ninety-nine point nine percent sure she's in the same boat." said Merlin, before he stomped out of the trailer, muttering under his breath.
"'Residual resentment'?"
"Yeah, not some of their best work. It took two weeks to sort out that mess."
"Well at least you had your friend Gwen. Like you said, she was in the same boat."
"Yeah, Gwen is the best. Arthur adores her funnily enough, and Morgana never seemed to mind me. You know, the first time I actually met her, Morgana, was three days after we cleared up the whole 'secret marriage' scandal."
"Really?"
"Yeah, it was at a party, a fundraiser or something..."
The party was extravagant, even by celebrity standards, and Merlin stood uncomfortably in a corner, two champagne flutes in hand, keeping an eye out for Gwen. He'd just spotted her talking to Arthur, a slightly terrified look on her face, when he heard a cool voice behind him.
"You must be Merlin" said Morgana
" Fey, erm"
"Morgana, please."
Merlin made a slightly strangled noise, which Morgana graciously ignored in favor of plucking one champagne flute out of Merlin's hand.
"Thank you, I was getting a bit parched"
Merlin opened his mouth to protest, but decided against it.
"Umm, so what brings you to my corner Ms le- erm, Morgana?"
She smiled indulgently "Oh, I just thought I'd introduce myself, make sure you're not corrupting my precious PA."
"What! I would never. Besides, Gwen may look all sweet and helpless but she can stand up for herself and-" he stopped, noticing the smile on her face "and you're teasing me aren't you?"
"To an extent, I do want to make sure you and Gwen are... neutral parties. Well, as neutral as you can get anyway. Don't worry Arthur's doing the same. He's not an idiot."
Merlin squared his shoulders and took a deep breath "Look, whatever's going on between you and Arthur, Gwen and I are friends, and neither of us want this to ruin our friendship." It took a lot of self-control not to break eye contact.
Morgana grinned "Oh, I like you! Don't worry dear; I'll keep the two of you out of it, work permitting of course."
"Of course"
"I wasn't finished. I'll leave you two out of it, as long as Arthur does."
And with that she walked away regally.
Merlin slumped against a wall, and sought out Gwen. She looked as harried as he felt. He caught her eye, and silently raised his glass. She shot him a weak smile in return.
"God, she sounds..."
"Yeah."
"I mean-"
"Yeah. She's a lot less terrifying now, although it might just be because I've gotten used to her."
"You talk as though you've had ample time to get to know her."
"George, think back, how long ago did the tensions between Pendragon and Le Fey begging to come out in the papers"
"Um... about a year and a half ago."
"Their cold war ended six months after it started, and honestly, Gwen and I had seen it coming for a while"
"What?"
"They started to get along a bit better. Morgana learned to put up with Arthur's prattishness, and Arthur began to appreciate Morgana's wit. They weren't best friends, but they were getting somewhere."
"But-"
Merlin rubbed the back of his neck and absentmindedly crushed his now empty can of coca-cola. "Remember the Gwaine and Percival incident?"
George nodded, who didn't remember? Gwaine and Percival were London's hottest couple. Gwaine was a Jockey, Percival played Rugby professionally. They had what many of the tabloids called a perfect relationship. Then, everything changed. It was New Years Eve, and they'd both had a bit too much to drink. There was an accident, luckily a witness called the hospital as soon as she saw it happen, and they both survived, but it was touch and go for a while, and Percival's leg had to be amputated eventually.
"They were both really close to Gwaine and Percy, we all were actually, and the cold war only officially ended after they, or more specifically, Gwen and I, got that phone call..."
"Arthur, we have to go, it's an emergency." he said, pulling on his boss' shoulder, and he knew he must have looked like shit because Arthur came without complaint.
"What's the matter Merlin?" He asked when they were in private
"It's Gwaine and Percy, they're in the hospital"
The next 20 minutes were a blur for the both of them, because the next thing they knew, they were in the hospital. Arthur marched up to the receptionist's desk like a man possessed dragging Merlin behind him. "What's the condition of Gwaine Knightly and Percival Stone?" he all but shouted at the poor woman behind the desk. To her credit, she wasn't fazed in the least.
"They're in the ICU, room 106; you'll have to wait outside until the doctor gives you permission to enter. Hospital policy."
"Yes, yes, alright" said Arthur as he took off toward the room, as Merlin trailed behind, suddenly exhausted. When they stopped in front of the room, Merlin found his arms full of a sobbing Gwen. He held her close, whispering what he hoped were soothing words into her hair. Arthur and Morgana stared at each other, Arthur with fear etched clearly on his features, Morgana with tear tracks still shining on her cheeks. Then Arthur held out his arms, and Morgana all but collapsed into them. The war was over.
They didn't know how long they waited, it couldn't have been longer than an hour, but it felt like days until the doctor condescended to see them. He checked their IDs and information, before saying "You may go in, but two at a time only."
Their plea was unspoken, but it resounded throughout the silent room. It was a testament to how pathetic they looked, Arthur with his usually impeccable hair a blond bird's nest, Morgana with Mascara running down her face, and Merlin and Gwen practically holding each other up, that the doctor sighed and said "Oh, go on then"
There was something reassuring about hearing the beeping of the machines. It was concrete proof that their friends were alive. Merlin and Gwen disappeared to get coffee, and when they re-entered, each carrying two cups, they found Arthur pretending not to cry over his unconscious friends, and Morgana with her arm around him, head on his shoulder. They each placed a cup on the bedside table. Arthur and Morgana would have it when they were ready. Then Merlin turned to Gwen, soft smile on his face, and raised his cup in a silent toast. She followed suit, before they backed out of the room without disturbing their friends.
"So they don't hate each other."
"Not anymore, no."
They lapsed into silence. George played with the tab of his cola can.
"What was the point?"
"Of what?"
"Of telling me this story."
"I just wanted to show you that it's not the same thing."
"Huh?"
"'you know, keep your head down, do what you're told, and report to the brass at the end of the week.'"
"Ah"
"See, things are never that cut and dry here, especially if you're working directly with the talent. Everything is messy, complicated, and just shy of making any sense whatsoever. And half the time, you're following orders given to you on a whim. You have to be prepared for anything from an actor tantrum to a-"
"Cold war?"
Merlin grinned "Exactly"
"I suppose I have a lot to learn."
"Lesson number one, you need to get out of those clothes. You'll need something more comfortable. You're going to spend a lot of time running around in the beginning, passing messages."
"Did you?"
"I still do. What do you think being a PA means?"
George chuckled. He realized suddenly that, oddly enough, he liked Merlin.
"The costume department usually has spare clothes lying around, I'll see if they can lend you anything, come on"
They headed towards the door, tossing their cans in the wastepaper basket on the way out.
"Oh, Merlin?"
"Yeah?"
"If they stopped fighting after six months, why does the media still report on it over a year later?"
Merlin smirked "well, we have to keep ourselves entertained somehow, don't we?" he said tossing a wink at the bemused George before walking out of the door.
A/N- Hope you liked it, please leave a review.