Well, this has been hanging around for a little while and it's not exactly my best work ever, but I thought I would publish it anyway. For those who are waiting on the last chapter of my other fic Unexpected meetings I am sorry it's taking so long, I can't seem to get it right. However I have high hopes it will be up within the next week or so. Hopefully this will make up a little for the wait.
Disclaimer: If I owned Merlin we definitely would have had some golden age of Camelot stuff and a very different ending :)
Hope you enjoy
"They're here again Jake." Louise muttered to her friend and co-worker as she opened the doors to the museum.
Her friend looked up from the welcome desk behind which he was standing "Who?"
"You know…" She waved her hand vaguely "them. What are the news calling them… that Arthurian cult thing."
"Those weirdos who just stare at the sword?" Jake came out from behind the desk and glanced at the group who had settled near the rock "They don't do any harm. I've talked to them a few times, they seem friendly enough."
"They're still strange." Louise shuddered "And they seem more excitable today."
Jake just shrugged "Come on, the first lot of tourists are arriving." He said, turning away.
Louise cast one more glance through the door, her eyes falling on the rock and the glistening sword that was embedded in to it.
She bit her lip, her mind on the sword. Today marked twenty years to the day when the sword had been discovered.
At first it had been thought a hoax. A sword in a stone? Who would believe that to be real? But opinions had changed rather quickly.
Archaeologists had believed there had been some sort of settlement in the area and had gained permission to excavate the hillside.
It had been five days in to the seven day dig when a student had unearthed the pommel, causing an excited stir to go through the diggers. They had found a few bits and pieces but the thought that they had possibly discovered part of a sword made the whole dig worth while.
Digging continued as they tried to extract what they thought was just the pommel from the earth, excitement growing as the realised that it was not just the pommel, but an entire hilt.
By the time the cross guard had been unearthed all other parts of the dig had been temporarily halted, everyone much more interested in watching the dig going on round the hilt.
The archaeologist leading the dig, one Frank Benson, almost fainted when they realised that hilt seemed to be attached to a blade, a blade they discovered was still perfectly sharp, despite being buried.
He did faint however, when on the second day of concentrating on the sword, they hit rock and an curious student decided to clean the blade they had already revealed more thoroughly, to find letters and symbols drawn in to the blade.
By that time, various news papers and stations had taken an interest in the dig, and in the sword, and the whispers of the sword being King Arthur's started.
When attempts failed to remove it from the rock it was embedded in, they found themselves digging out the rock, or rather, they found themselves digging a hollow out of the hillside, as the rock point blank refused to be moved, despite the various ways they tried to shift it from its resting place.
The rumours grew.
They had no more luck with the sword. Repeated attempts to remove it failed. When hammer and chisel made no difference to the rock, they tried drills, pneumatic ones, with drill bits tipped with diamond, the hardest substance known to man.
The drill bit shattered. The rock remained undamaged.
The rumour grew further and people stared to gather.
A couple of people grew desperate to remove the sword. They attempted to use dynamite to damage the rock.
The crater surrounding the sword in the stone took four days to fill, but still the sword and stone stood unchanging.
They built a museum next to it dealing in the Arthurian legends and started to let people try and pull it from the stone.
People came from far and wide. Cameras were set up, just in case someone succeeded, but no one ever did.
Even the royal family all came and attempted to pull the sword from the stone. After all, only the true king is supposed to be able to remove it, and the royal family had been, well, the royal family for a very long time. It had been broadcast live on tv and the nation watched as one by one they failed to pull the sword from the stone.
Louise had been the one assigned to monitoring the stone, making sure that the queue remained orderly and that everyone had a set amount of time to with the sword, when she had first seen the skinny, black haired boy who was to be the first of those who became known as the Arthurian cult. That had been three months ago.
He had stood in the queue like everyone else, and when he had stepped up to the stone she had said her usual spiel, up to three minutes to pull the sword, take pictures etc, before it was the next persons turn. She had hit the timer and glanced up at the boy, who had just stood there.
When a minute had gone by, her curiosity got the better of her "Aren't you going to try and pull it?" she had asked
The boys blue eyed gaze had left the sword and he had laughed softly "My role was never to rule, but to guide and protect. The sword is not mine to take."
She stared at him in confusion "So why come? Do you want a picture or something?" She looked for a camera even as the boy shook his head
"I just wanted to see it. I have been waiting a long time for the King to return, the uncovering of the sword means that time is near. I wanted to make sure I was close by when the King comes to claim what is his." She had gaped at him, a strange feeling washing over her, causing her to feel unsettled.
Then the timer had beeped, informing them that his time was over and the spell that seemed to be over her was broken. The boy gave her a blinding grin and a wave before walking away, a "See you around" thrown over his shoulder.
He had been there every day since then. He didn't come up to the sword again but sat nearby, watching the crowds. Louise found the whole thing unsettling.
Things had remained like that until a month ago.
Louise had once again been monitoring the crowds round the sword. The day had been hot and busy and she was looking forward to the end of her shift.
She had motioned the next visitor up, a young man who gave her a small bow and a cheeky grin. She smiled back, eyeing him up. He looked to be a year or two older than her, making him twenty three/ twenty four. He was handsome and he winked at her as she gave her usual spiel.
He nodded in understanding, standing for a moment before slowly circling the sword, though he did not touch it. He came to a stop, a grin spreading across his face as he stared at the weapon.
"It's really his." He muttered "It's all real." Then he laughed and Louise felt unease spread through her once more.
"Aren't you going to try and pull it?" She smiled, though it felt slightly false "A nice strong guy like you…"
The man laughed again but did not reach out to touch the sword "It's not mine sweetheart. It belongs to the princess and I'm sure he'll be along to claim it before long."
She groaned softly, ignoring the mans quizzical look, motioning him away as the buzzer sounded. He turned then froze and she glanced in his direction to see what had stopped him.
The black haired boy was standing there. "Gwaine"
The mans face lit up then he was striding forward "Well look who it is." He laughed as he pulled the boy in to a bear hug. "It's great to see you Merlin."
Louise sat there frozen at the sound of the boys name, that unsettling feeling growing even as the two men moved away from the stone. It just had to be something he named himself, right? However she saw that 'Gwaine' joined 'Merlin' in his daily vigil.
Over that month more people joined 'Merlin' and 'Gwaine', each coming to see the sword, though refusing to touch it, each visit unnerving to Louise, and each being greeted as if they were old friends.
There was a big bear of a man, a pair of dark skinned siblings, one of them being the only female who joined the group, a tanned young man with dark eyes and finally a shaggy haired man who appeared to be slightly older than the rest of the group but was never the less greeted with the same enthusiasm as the others had been.
As each new person had turned up the sense of excitement and anticipation around the group had grown, and with the twenty year anniversary of the swords discovery upon them, Louise was sure something was going to happen. She could almost sense something stirring the air.
However as the day wore on Louise started to think her fears were ungrounded. Handing over the timer to one of her co-workers she was relieved her shift with the sword was over. She had been so sure something was going to happen.
She smiled at Jake as he came towards her, holding up a packet of sandwiches
"Time to eat?" he asked and she nodded, he passed her the sandwiches and led her over to sit in the shade of the nearby trees.
She smiled at him in thanks, her mind still a little preoccupied.
Jake nudged her "You're not still worried 'bout that load of crazy's are you?"
She glanced at him "I know it's stupid, I just feel like something is going to happen that's all."
Jake scanned the crowd in front of them, quickly locating the group sitting in their usual place a short distance away from the masses, and not that far away from them.
Jake motioned towards them "Honestly they seem harmless even if they are a little whacky."
Louise shook her head "As long as no more of them show up."
Jake laughed, nudging her and pointing "I don't think you're going to be granted that wish love, that bloke is heading towards them with a rather determined look in his eye."
Louise looked towards where her friend was pointing just in time to hear a joyous scream ring across the field and to see the young woman of the group fling herself at the new comer.
The blonde haired young man hugged her back tightly and Louise realised the woman had started sobbing. The woman then pulled back slightly and Jake snorted with laughter as she slapped the blonde, who looked at her incredulously. Behind the couple the men had started laughing but the woman ignored them as she threw herself back at the man, kissing him full on the mouth.
The couple breaking apart again seemed to be the signal for the rest to move forward, greeting the newcomer with enthusiastic hugs and slaps on the back.
Only 'Merlin' hung back, watching the reunion with a wide grin but slightly wary eyes.
The rest of the group seemed to realise because they fell silent, moving aside so the blonde was now facing the black haired man.
They stared at each other for a few moments, before the blonde strode forward and pulled the other man in to a tight hug. When they pulled apart Louise saw they both had wet eyes.
They both stood a moment with their hands on each others shoulders before 'Merlin' finally pulled back, the group now forming a circle around the newcomer.
Then to Louise's shock, they all dropped to one knee, bowing their heads to the man that now stood in the centre of them.
"What on earth are they doing?" Jake spluttered beside her even as that sense that she had been feeling all day multiplied tenfold.
"They think he is their king." She muttered
"What?!"
She glanced at him impatiently "I told you Jake. None of them would touch the sword. They all claimed it belonged to their king who would claim it soon, and that black haired one called himself 'Merlin'. They think he is their king."
Jake snorted "What, do they think he will be able to pull the sword from the stone?" He laughed "Well they'll be disappointed then, won't they, because that sword hasn't moved for twenty years and it isn't going to now just because they pretend he's a king. Our real royalty couldn't pull it. It's not going to budge for him."
"I'm not so sure" She said softly as she watched the blonde move round the circle, touching each person on their bowed head. He ended with the woman, drawing her to her feet, before bidding the others to also rise.
Jake raised an eyebrow at her "Come on Louise, you don't seriously think that sword is going anywhere do you?" He shook his head "All they are going to do is make fools of themselves in front of the cameras, and in front of the crowd."
And indeed, the group had seemed to have drawn quite a crowd with their antics. Not that any of the group paid any attention to them.
Louise found herself getting to her feet, dragging Jake up with her, as she saw 'Merlin' nod towards the sword. The blonde nodded and the group moved forward, seemingly automatically falling in to formation. The blonde and young woman in the centre, 'Merlin' walking to the blondes other side. The other five men falling in to step around them, like guards.
Louise followed, the anticipation she had been feeling all day coming to a peak. She had known something was going to happen, had felt it in the air. She knew there was more to the strange group of friends than what Jake had ever believed, and now she was sure she was going to find out exactly what that was.
The crowd seemed to part for the group, no one moving or complaining as they ignored the queue for the stone, marching straight past those waiting.
Louise followed, unconsciously grasping her grumbling friends hand.
A hush seemed to fall over the crowd as the group stopped, forming a semi circle around the stone, standing between the crowd and the blonde who continued forward alone.
He stopped before the stone, standing for a couple of moments before he circled round so he was facing his friends. He laid a hand lightly on the pommel, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them again.
"I would be nervous to." She heard Jake mutter beside her "He's ended up with about eight hundred people standing here watching him, ready to see him fail like everyone else."
Louise hushed him "I don't think he'll fail." She murmured, her senses screaming at her that this was it, she was about to witness history.
Jake looked at her in disbelief but she shushed him again, her eyes fixed on the blonde.
She saw his eyes flick from face to face, before settling on that of 'Merlin' who stood directly opposite him.
"It's always been yours Arthur." She heard him say softly, and the king smiled, and blimey, he hadn't even pulled the sword yet and she was already calling him king, he smiled, his hand sliding from the pommel to grasp the hilt and with as much effort as pulling a knife from butter, he pulled the sword from the stone.
And although the crowd stood in stunned silence at the fact the impossible had happened, his friends had cheered and Merlin moved forwards, his hand outstretched and his eyes glowing gold and to the further amazement and disbelief of the crowd the kings clothing changed. The casual jeans and t-shirt morphed in to leather trousers and chainmail, a cloak of red with a golden crest hanging down his back and a scabbard at his side.
Merlin turned and as the rest of their friends moved forward towards their king, their clothing also changed, the woman to a purple dress laced with gold, fit for a queen, and the men in to the leather and chainmail of knights with swords at their sides.
She saw the one called Gwaine pause and draw sword from scabbard laughing excitedly as he swung it expertly.
Then the crowd gasped as with another wave of Merlins hand two golden crowns appeared from thin air above the heads of the king and his queen and they gently floated down to settle on the heads of the royals.
Once more the men dropped to one knee, Merlin, his own clothing also changed, joining them before one of the men shouted "Long Live The King!"
And as the crowd picked up the cheer Louise felt Jake squeeze her hand and heard him mutter "Well Damn."
So yeah, just a oneshot thats been in my head and on the computer for a while. Let me know what you think and if you spot any mistakes.
Hope you liked it :)