Inspired by Kitty O's profile, where she wrote under a section titled "HOW TO SURVIVE THE MERLIN FANDOM" the sentence "We ship anyone with anyone and everyone with everyone, and let's be honest, over here, they don't even need to be animate. Arthur/Tree and Gwapple. (Yeah, I hope we're kidding too.)" Being the upstanding fangirl that I am, I took her up on that challenge. This is the (unfortunate) result.

(Oh yeah and I don't own Merlin or whatever. It's probably a good thing too)

ENJOY.

It was love the first time he set eyes on her.

She was strong, tall, and oh so proud. Arthur knew there had to be something wrong with him. There must have been something clouding his judgment. This was so wrong. But it was so right.

Within the first moments of being in her presence, all he wanted to do was hold her close and tell her how he felt.

But he couldn't. Not with Merlin and all these other people around.

But he couldn't help himself. The others were busy anyways.

Slowly, he made his way over to her. She said nothing. She didn't even budge. He had seen others like her before but never so exquisite.

He was getting nervous. His palms were sweaty and he couldn't think of anything to say. He decided to go a more direct approach. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her, waiting for a response.

Nothing.

Did this mean she accepted his advances? Inside, Arthur was dancing and leaping for joy, though on the outside he decided to remain cool, calm, and collected. He rested his head against her and she made no effort to deter him.

But her silence started to worry him.

Afraid that something might be wrong with his stately beauty, he gently tapped her.

Nothing.

He did it again, but once again the response was the same.

Arthur quickly pushed away the thoughts and disappointment that poisoned his mind.

Whatever kind of problems they faced, they would work through them. A little thing like silence would not keep them apart. No, at that moment, they were the only two in the world. Arthur almost didn't even notice Merlin until he was right next to him. Merlin looked at Arthur expectantly. He might have said something. Arthur wasn't quite sure, but nonetheless he knew. It was time to go. Reluctantly, he pulled away from her...

...but not before whispering his undying affection and swearing his heart would always belong to his beloved tree.

I REGRET NOTHING.