A/N: Sorry to anyone who is following my Fairy Tail Stories and ended up here. I've been on a bit of a Merlin kick, and have a major Merlin story coming up. This is just a little one shot I wrote at 3:00 am, so please forgive any glaring mistakes. Thanks for reading!
The music played and an air of merriment filled the hall as the feast raged on, but Arthur's heart wasn't in it. Sure, he managed to put on a convincing smile for the lords that were visiting, but those closest to him knew it was false. Everyone else at the feast was enjoying themselves (Gwaine in particular, who was on at least his sixth glass of wine and flirting openly with Lord Northrups daughter) except a certain servant whose eyes Arthur could feel boring a hole in the back of his head.
He felt a small stab of guilt for how he'd snapped at Merlin earlier. But it was the idiots own fault really. He should know better by now than to try and get Arthur to talk about his feelings.
And really, who could blame Arthur for being so irritable? On the last patrol they'd gone on, they had been attacked by bandits and forced to flee, leaving behind one of the newer squires who couldn't keep up. By the time they'd figured out who was missing and gone back for the boy, he'd been killed.
Suddenly the doors burst open, dragging him from his thoughts. A young woman with wild and unruly black curls glided into the room and the hall fell silent, the knights all grabbing for their swords in anticipation. Arthur could have sworn he heard Merlin groan.
The woman's eyes scanned the room before resting menacingly on the King.
"Arthur Pendragon." She spat, turning his name into an accusation. Arthur stood and looked regally down at the woman.
"Who are you? What do you want?" he asked, although by the hate and desperation in her eyes, he had a pretty good idea.
"I am a sorceress and the sister of the man you left for dead." She declared and all the guards and knights present drew their swords "What do I want? I want you to suffer the pain you have caused me!"
The knights lunged, but were tossed through the air and slammed into the far wall where they crumpled and did not rise. Furious, Arthur drew his sword and pointed it at the sorceress as slowly she approached him. She took her time, as if studying him, like a cat studies a mouse right before it pounced. A slight shift of movement behind him drew her gaze and Arthur didn't have to look to know that it was Merlin readying himself for a foolish attempt to protect his king. The sorceress eye's flicked back to Arthur with the tiniest smirk of triumph.
She was barely a foot away from the tip of his sword by this point, but showed no fear of the blade. Instead she spoke, in barely a whisper so that none but Arthur could hear.
"He was all I had. My little brother. I want you to know what that feels like, to loose someone so precious. Someone who it was your job to protect. So I'm not going to kill you, Arthur Pendragon. I'm going to take away the one who loves you, who looks up to you, who idolizes you. Your protector, the man who would die for you, who'd betrayed his own kind for you…"Her words confused the king, but at the same time filled him with an unexplainable terror.
She smirked in sadistic triumph.
"….I'm going to take your little brother."
From there things happened so fast, Arthur barely had time to process what was happening. The Sorceress said a word and a shockwave shattered all the glass in the hall, sending all those who were still conscious ducking for cover. With another word she brought her hands up and all of the glass shards lifted off the ground and pointed threateningly straight at Arthur. Suddenly the shards where flying toward him but he had barely time to react as a hand grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back.
And then Merlin was standing in front of him, a shimmering gold film shielded them both as the glass hit and bounced off. Arthurs jaw dropped open in shock, and he didn't hear the sorceress speak her next words, but he felt the sword in his hand suddenly grow hot and saw it glow with enchantment.
Merlin was still watching the sorceress, apparently waiting for her spell to show itself. He was giving her his undivided attention, which is why he didn't notice Arthurs cry of alarm. What he did notice was the sudden pain as Arthurs sword pierced him from behind.
Merlin glanced down at his chest and saw the tip of the sword poking through, covered in bright red blood. What was that doing there? He questioned mentally, then suddenly he understood. Arthur.
Arthur had stabbed him. Arthur had stabbed him after seeing Merlin use magic. Did this mean Arthur thought he was evil? Did he hate him? Did Arthur think Merlin was a monster?
There was a squelching sound as the sword was drawn out of his body. Merlin turned to look at Arthur, whose face showed nothing but pure shock.
He barely registered the sword in his hands. He just kept staring at Merlin as the meaning of what he had seen finally caught up with him.
"You're a sorcerer?" He whispered brokenly, and betrayal seared into his soul.
Merlin. A sorcerer. Merlin. The man he trusted more than anyone. Merlin. The one man he could always talk to. Merlin. His best friend. Merlin. A traitor. Merlin. A liar.
Merlin tried to speak, to say something to Arthur, but what came out was a spluttering cough of blood. He fell to the ground as his world started to go dark.
"A'th'r," He choked, calling out to him as the blood left him and pooled on the floor. "A'th'r" He pleaded. This wasn't right, it couldn't happen this way. He needed to explain, he had to make Arthur listen. He couldn't die with Arthur thinking he would betray him!
But neither could he live if Arthur truly thought he was a monster.
Arthur couldn't move as he stared at the boy at his feet. His first reaction was anger. Strong overpowering anger at what a fool he had been. What an idiot he was for trusting a sorcerer. God, Merlin must have spent hours laughing at him and his gullibility. His face unconsciously formed a sneer of disgust.
Merlin's last sight was Arthur looking down on him like that, totally disgusted, and his will to fight evaporated.
The sorceress laughed, drawing Arthur's attention back to her.
"Now we're even." She cackled, giving him a wink. She said some more magic words and disappeared into a torment of black smoke, leaving no trace.
When she spoke, Arthur was suddenly reminded of her earlier words. I'm not going to kill you, Arthur Pendragon. I'm going to take away the one who loves you.
The one who loves you.
Arthur stared at the sword in his hand covered in Merlin's blood. No, it wasn't possible. Merlin was a sorcerer. He'd made a fool out of Arthur, he never cared about him.
Who looks up to you.
No.
Who idolizes you.
No!
Your protector.
She had attacked him, and Merlin had saved his life. He had done it with magic, but that didn't change the fact that if Merlin hadn't intervened, he would probably be dead right now. Arthur looked to Merlin, suddenly horrified.
The man who would die for you.
Merlin's eyes were glassed over and lifeless, in a way they should never be. Merlin drew in one more shaking breath, but then his chest was still.
Oh god, no!
Arthur dropped the sword with a clatter and collapsed onto his knees next to his servant.
"Merlin?" He choked out, every part of him shaking. Merlin didn't answer.
"Merlin!?" Arthur practically screamed. He reached out and cupped Merlin's head in his hands, shaking it lightly.
"No. Oh please no" He sobbed, breathing suddenly very difficult. He felt like he was choking, suffocating on the loss in front of him.
"Please, Merlin." The mighty king of Camelot begged, heedless of the court that stood watching "Please, no. Don't go. Don't leave me alone. Merlin. PLEASE."
Arthur brought his head down to meet Merlin's and pressed his forehead into the dead mans. He cleared his throat with a particularly violent sob, before pulling out his most commanding voice, the one Merlin liked to call his 'king' voice.
"Merlin. Don't do this. Don't die. Do you hear me? I'm giving you and order, Merlin…. Don't die."
He heard a sob from somewhere beside them and glanced over at their audience. Gwen had her hands pressed over her mouth trying to suppress her sobbing, but was unable to look away from the body or stop the tears streaming down her face. Percival had his eyes closed, as if not seeing would make the seen in front of him go away and Leon repetitively shook his head in denial. Gwaine had collapsed on to his knees on Merlin's other side. Arthur could see his hands shake as he cautiously reached over and pressed two fingers into Merlin's neck. Arthur knew he would find no pulse, but he couldn't stop the little thrill of hope that fluttered in his gut.
But then Gwaine shook his head and he lost it.
"NO!" He yelled grabbing Merlin's lifeless shoulders and shaking them hard. His head lulled back in a way that looked painful, so Arthur grabbed it and pressed the younger man's dark locks into his shoulder. He cradled him and rocked back and forth letting the tears fall freely.
"Don't die. Please, don't die." he whispered over and over again into Merlin's hair like the mantra would make it happen.
He didn't notice the sky outside growing darker as supernatural winds stirred and grew. Lightning struck somewhere close and thunder boomed after in. Rain started to pour where not 10 min earlier it had been a nice summers day. The lords and ladies of the court, everyone but those of the round table, fled the hall which seemed to be the epicenter of the strange storm.
"Come back, Merlin. Please come back." Arthur murmured one last time into his friend's dead ears.
"Arthur." Gwaine said in a spooked voice. The king looked up at him and saw that the knight's eyes were glued to Merlin's face. He followed his gaze, looking down into the other man's lifeless blue orbs and saw what he first thought was a trick of the light was. But then it happened again and the little spark of hope returned.
Small, ever so tiny flecks of golden light, like embers in a dark void, were slowly flashing beneath the sea of blue in Merlin's eyes. With each spark, the light grew brighter and brighter with quicker regularity.
"Merlin?" Arthur called cautiously. In response, Merlin's eyes suddenly flashed bright gold. There was a moment's pause before his chest expanded with a shudder and he was gasping for breath, his hands flailing wildly until they caught the sleeve of Arthur's tunic and grabbed on for dear life.
Arthur let out a choked laugh of relief and disbelief as he looked down at Merlin, breathing and eyes still glowing bright gold. The wound on his stomach and back was quickly closing up and disappearing as if it had never existed.
"Merlin?" Arthur called again, and this time his voice shook with barely concealed joy.
"Arthur? Do you hate me?" Merlin said, clenching his grip on Arthur's shirt even more tightly, "Please don't hate me Arthur! I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
Arthur collapsed Merlin into his chest, effectively smothering anything else he had to say. Arthur cradled his head into his shoulder and rocked back and forth methodically clinging to Merlin as much as Merlin clung to him.
"I don't hate you." He murmured, his voice breaking with emotion. "I don't hate you. Oh god, Merlin I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
After what seemed like both an eternity and far too short a time, Merlin finally pulled away so that he could look Arthur in the eye.
"I guess we have a lot to talk about, huh?" Merlin said, kind of stunned.
Arthur couldn't help but laugh a little, more out of manic relief than anything else.
"Yeah Merlin. I guess we do."
He then put his hands on either side of Merlin's face and pulled his head down so that their foreheads rested against each other. It was a gesture of solidarity and brotherhood that they both appreciated and understood the need for.
"Well, let no one ever say this kingdom is boring." Gwaine muttered.