First of all, I'd like to thank shweet_heart for beta-reading this fanfic twice for me and for being such an awesome and fast beta! :D And for coming up with the title too :D This fanfic was written for Merlin Canon Fest 2017 on LiveJournal, and can also be found on AO3 in the Merlin Canon 2017 collection. I hope you'll enjoy the fanfic, happy reading! :)
This fanfic is based on 2x01 The Curse of Cornelius Sigan.
Summary: This is a story about a prince, who finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. And then, before he knows it, there's an ancient sorcerer's soul inside his own body, controlling him and doing things that he would never do. Not to his people, to his city... not to Merlin. But it seems that the sorcerer, Cornelius Sigan, has other plans. Exposing Arthur's feelings to Merlin to get him out of the way, is just one of them. And all this time, Arthur is trapped inside, screaming for someone to hear him. But no one does. Not even Merlin.
Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.
A PRINCE'S HEART
...
This was one of the rarest moments of Arthur Pendragon's life - a moment when he had to admit (only to himself, though) that Merlin had actually been right this whole time. Yes, Cedric seemed like a good servant, but all that effort? That was only to get rid of Merlin and steal Arthur's keys. Keys that Arthur had been entrusted to guard because one of them unlocked a chamber full of gold, and emeralds, and other valuable objects that Cedric was already on his way to steal.
Arthur couldn't believe it. How could he have let this happen? Trust a complete stranger over his own servant? Yes, Merlin was idiotic most of the time (and he was the clotpole here, not Arthur), but that didn't matter now because he was right and Arthur was wrong. (It was so hard just acknowledging that.)
As he was rushing through the halls of Camelot down to the vaults, he attempted to come up with an apology for Merlin, but he'd probably never say it out loud anyway.
It wasn't a surprise when Arthur found out that all the guards on the way down had been put to sleep. Thankfully, whatever Cedric had used to knock them out was already gone, and Arthur gripped his sword tighter, slowing down as he neared the door to the newly discovered vault.
Merlin would have probably laughed at him now. Arthur was still in his sleeping clothes after all, and he clutched the sword so tightly that he worried Cedric might actually hear it.
But when he looked through the open door, Cedric was oblivious to him and only interested in the gemstones. Specifically, the biggest and brightest one in the tomb – the blue heart. He was holding it in his hands when Arthur finally made himself known and stepped through the door.
"Put the jewel down immediately and turn around, Cedric. Slowly. "
Cedric tensed and did as he was told. When Arthur could finally see his face, for some reason Cedric looked apologetic. But Arthur knew the truth now and could see right through his mask. "I'm so sorry, my lord!" Cedric took a step closer, but Arthur stopped him with his sword at his throat.
"Put the jewel down," he told him slowly. "I will not repeat myself."
And yet, Cedric did nothing. "I would have never dared steal from you, my lord!" he squealed. It was almost funny how hard he tried to make Arthur believe he wasn't the bad guy here. "I have been threatened!" he said, his eyes glancing at the blade in front of him. "It was your servant, Merlin!"
Arthur couldn't even believe how pathetic that lie was. Why on earth did Cedric think he'd ever believe that Merlin, of all people, would persuade Cedric to steal the jewel? Merlin wasn't even capable of stealing Arthur's socks, and he had to wash them daily.
"You can't expect me to believe that." Arthur frowned.
"He saw the jewel first, didn't he?" Cedric tried. And okay, that was true, and Arthur didn't even know where Cedric heard that from (the tavern was probably to blame), but it didn't change the fact that Merlin wouldn't steal from him or his father. "He told me that he didn't want you to know it was him, so he found me and made me do this for him so he could stay by your side longer and stea-"
"Cedric, this is the last time," Arthur growled. "Put the jewel down, or-"
Thump.
Cedric jumped as Arthur took another step closer, and, scared of the sword, he loosened his grip on the blue heart, causing it to fall on the ground. As he stepped back, he accidentally set off the trap that had already killed one man, and an arrow shot through his head sooner than Arthur could even realize what was happening.
Arthur blinked , slowly, and after he had recovered from the sudden death of his now former servant, his eyes wandered down to the jewel. Thankfully, the ground was covered in sand and the heart hadn't shattered, but as Arthur unsheathed his sword, he could have sworn he heard something.
As if someone was whispering.
"Hello?" He turned around, but the guards were still unconscious. He pursed his lips as he shook his head. He must have imagined it then.
He bent down to get the jewel and noticed a bag so full of diamonds that they fell out through the opening onto the ground. Arthur shook his head again. How could he have ever believed such a liar? How could he have let Cedric take care of him for an entire evening? He'd even made Merlin go back home! That boy was probably sulking right now, although he'd looked pretty upset after Arthur released him from his duties. He really shouldn't have done that; Merlin didn't deserve it.
With a sigh, Arthur reached for the blue jewel and stood up again, wanting to return it to the stone coffin. He never got the opportunity. As soon as he picked it up, the whispering started again. Arthur frowned, looking at the beautiful stone more closely, but by the time he realized something was wrong, it was already too late.
The blue colour disappeared from the diamond in the form of a strange smoke, leaving the stone transparent in Arthur's hand. Within seconds, the smoke made its way into Arthur's mouth and nose, making him lose his consciousness almost immediately.
His eyes turned black and a sly smirk appeared on his face. This was no longer Arthur Pendragon inside.
xoXÖXox
That same moment, in another part of the castle, Arthur's manservant was soundly asleep in his bed. The night was dark and Merlin had left his window open to let the pleasantly cool air inside. It had taken him a while to fall asleep. After everything Cedric had done to him, after the way Arthur had looked at him when he dismissed him for the day... it was no wonder that Merlin was feeling down.
But thankfully, he was oblivious to his pain and dreaming about better days with Arthur.
Not for long though.
He heard a raven's caw, and with that sound and a sense of strong magic, he woke up and sat up in his bed.
"Gaius!" Merlin called when he realized what happened. Someone must have used very strong magic in Camelot. Someone so powerful that Merlin was able to pick up on it and wake up from his slumber.
"Gaius!" he called again as he got out of his bed and left his little room.
The old physician was just opening his eyes, squinting up at Merlin as the young boy strode over to him with an unsettled expression.
"What's the matter?" Gaius asked as he slowly sat up in his bed.
"Someone used magic in Camelot!" Merlin told him hurriedly.
"Someone other than you?"
"Obviously." Merlin rolled his eyes. "Gaius, this is serious. It was strong, I felt it in my sleep and woke up."
Gaius frowned at him. "Do you think there's someone powerful in Camelot?"
"Yes." Merlin nodded. "We need to do something. They could hurt Arthur or the king, or destroy Camelot!" Merlin's eyes widened as he realized what this meant. He immediately started walking towards the door. That finally got Gaius out of bed with a silent groan.
"Where are you going, Merlin?" Gaius asked the boy, who turned back to him as he stopped in front of the main door.
"To tell the king." Merlin shrugged. Gaius only raised his eyebrow. "Or I could tell Arthur?" Merlin suggested an alternative as he realized the king wouldn't listen to a servant.
"And what would you tell them?" the physician asked Merlin. When he gave no answer, Gaius continued, "Merlin, for all we know, it could have been some sorcerer only passing through the city or-"
"But-"
"Ah." Gaius stopped him as he raised his hand. Merlin pursed his lips and allowed Gaius to finish his sentence. "It's past midnight," he reminded him. "And we can't go to the king, or Arthur," he nodded to let Merlin know that he heard his suggestion, "because we have nothing to tell them. We cannot just pretend we're acting on our instincts, they wouldn't believe me or you. And I'm sure there is more than one sorcerer hiding in Camelot. There can't only be one idiot brave or stupid enough to take shelter here."
Merlin smiled softly at that, but his smile quickly turned into a frown. "But it was strong magic, Gaius," he repeated. "I know there are more powerful sorcerers in the world, but I've never felt one this powerful before. What if it's Corneliu-"
The warning bells cut Merlin off and when he looked at Gaius, his face clearly said See? I told you so. For which Gaius only gave him another raised eyebrow and a frown.
xoXÖXox
Merlin watched as Arthur and Uther left the tomb and turned to Gaius with a hopeless expression. It really was no surprise that someone had managed to get inside the tomb and tried to steal the treasure. Merlin had woken up only half an hour ago, and now they were standing in the tomb with a mystery on their hands.
Gaius bent down and picked up something that was hidden behind the coffin. Merlin frowned when he noticed what it was. The blue heart stone – only it was no longer blue. The soul of Cornelius Sigan was gone, and now there was a powerful sorcerer walking free in Camelot.
"Merlin," Gaius said as he looked at the crystal in his hand again. "Whoever did this got more than he bargained for."
Merlin nodded. "I don't understand how they got in. The gate's not even damaged," he added as he glanced at the gate behind him.
"They must have used the key," Gaius pointed out, but to Merlin this entire situation got even more confusing.
"Arthur's got the only key," he told Gaius with a frown. There was no way Arthur would lose that, right?
"Where does he keep it?" Gaius raised his eyebrow at him.
"On his belt with the others." Merlin shrugged.
"Does he ever take it off?"
"Only when he's asleep, he keeps it next to his bed," Merlin told him.
"Who had access to his chambers last night?"
"Just me..." Merlin answered naturally. There was no one else who would... oh. "And Cedric." Merlin closed his eyes in regret and then opened them again, looking up at Gaius. Of course it was Cedric. Who else could it have been?
As usual, Merlin was right and Arthur didn't listen to him and dismissed his every attempt at making him see the truth. This time, Merlin hadn't known Cedric would become a powerful sorcerer overnight, but he had known the man was trying to get rid of him. And Merlin should have seen this coming.
"I have to tell Arthur," he muttered and this time didn't wait for Gaius's opinion.
xoXÖXox
It had been centuries since Cornelius Sigan had walked the Earth. Centuries since the king who had ordered his execution had died, together with everyone who'd ever wronged him. Only Camelot, the mighty castle that he himself had helped to build, was still standing. How come no one believed he existed, then? He had to change that. He could rule the world and all kings would be forced to bend the knee.
He smiled as he thought about that. The mirror he was staring at didn't look its cleanest, but he could still see his reflection. Merlin – the servant that he knew Arthur had – was lazy and clumsy and generally not the best servant at all. But Arthur had never considered firing him... as far as he could tell from what he knew from the prince's memories.
Possessing someone's body was useful, he realized. He looked like Arthur Pendragon and he had most of his memories. He wouldn't have to pretend long, though: the world needed a new leader. And he would start with this kingdom – today.
… After he'd changed clothes. He was still in Arthur's sleeping clothes after all. And he didn't even have a tunic.
Cornelius smiled at himself in the mirror and rearranged his blond hair a bit. When he turned around and saw the state of Arthur's chambers, he made a decision to scold Merlin as soon as he appeared.
As if Merlin knew he was thinking about him, the door burst open and the servant arrived. Cornelius raised an eyebrow as he looked at him. Did the boy not know how to knock at all?
"Arthur," Merlin said urgently, quickly walking over to him. "Cedric is possessed by an evil spirit!" he said. And yes, Cornelius might have been surprised at that, but he didn't let Merlin know. He only raised his eyebrow higher as he recalled who Cedric was from Arthur's memories.
"What?" He mimicked Arthur in the best way he could.
"He tried to steal the jewel, but it wasn't a jewel, it was a soul of an ancient sorcerer, Sigan," Merlin continued, looking very serious. Cornelius fought the urge to sigh. It had only been maybe an hour and someone already knew he was alive again? And why was it such a lousy servant?
"Merlin." Cornelius frowned a little bit as he looked Merlin in the eyes. "Have you been on the cider?" He needed to shut the boy up somehow. Killing him might not be the best idea, since there were guards in the hall and someone would surely find him sooner than he wanted. This wasn't like with the other man – Cedric. He'd found him dead on the floor of his own tomb and hidden him in the woods before he had the guards sound the warning bells.
"Please, listen to me." Merlin looked desperate to make the prince understand. "Camelot is in mortal danger. Sigan is using Cedric's body to take his revenge." Well, he had his facts right except one little thing – it wasn't Cedric that Cornelius was possessing.
He stepped closer to the boy, trying to get as much from Arthur's memories as he could, to know what to say and how to act around him. Merlin glanced down at his bare chest and waited for him to say something. "This nonsense isn't helping you keep your job," he said at last. But seriously, why did Arthur even keep this servant? He didn't knock, didn't address him appropriately and didn't even bother to do his job.
Why would the prince-
Oh.
Cedric's eyes widened slightly, but thankfully, Merlin didn't notice. He could feel how Arthur's body and mind reacted to the boy being so close. There was something in Arthur's memories, something deep inside, that Cornelius hadn't expected at all. A secret that no one else knew.
"You are not listening to me!" Merlin shouted at him, now so close to Cornelius that he couldn't help but swallow nervously. The servant needed to be silenced in the most discreet way possible; he couldn't just let him think the castle was in danger. Which, of course, it was, but Cornelius didn't want anyone to know that until he was ready to attack.
His eyes wandered down to Merlin's lips and then back to his blue eyes. He looked angry, but Sigan just had to risk that. He quickly leaned in and planted a brief kiss on Merlin's lips, pulling away as soon as he could.
And as he'd expected, Merlin was quiet, just like he wanted him to be. His eyes slowly opened as he stared up at Sigan, and then he smiled slightly. Wow, there really was something going on between them, wasn't there? Sigan sighed audibly and then tried to smile as reassuringly as he thought Arthur would be able to.
"Cedric is taken care of," he told Merlin quietly. "I've already sent my knights to look for him and they're doing that this very moment." He hoped that Merlin would accept it and walk away without doing anything... else.
He waited for any reaction and finally received a slow nod from the boy. "Arthur, I-"
"No." Cornelius stopped him. He really had no desire to talk about Arthur's feelings , although he already knew a lot – more than he wanted to know, actually. This was something only Merlin and Arthur needed to talk about, preferably after he conquered Camelot. But seeing that he really wanted to keep the prince's body and he hadn't noticed anyone more attractive in the castle yet, he doubted that would ever happen. "We'll talk about this later. Now... you are dismissed."
"But-"
"Just go. Get some rest." Sigan tried to smile at him softly, hoping that that was something Arthur would do in this situation. "I have work to do," he added and turned away from him, sitting down at the table. He didn't look up at the servant anymore, but he knew Merlin stayed in the room for a few extra seconds before he slowly retreated to the door and closed it behind himself.
Cornelius groaned in disgust and quickly wiped his lips with his sleeve. He never wanted to do that again. But he wouldn't have to. Because starting this dawn, the world would have a new leader. The most powerful sorcerer to ever live. He smirked as he stood up and looked out of the window.
It was time to take a stroll through the castle... and find a new hairstyle.
He had work to do after all.
xoXÖXox
Merlin didn't even realize he had walked all the way back home until he closed the door to Gaius' chambers and leaned against it, closing his eyes. He couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. There was literally nothing else on his mind; that kiss was all that existed for him right now. After all those months he'd spent longing for Arthur... to know that Arthur felt the same was so liberating. He didn't have to hide it anymore...
"Merlin? Merlin!" He heard Gaius' familiar voice and his eyes snapped open. He hadn't heard a word Gaius said; he hadn't even realized he was talking to him...
He cleared his throat. "Yeah?"
"How did it go?" Gaius asked, his eyebrow raised as usual.
Merlin couldn't help but smile as he thought about how it went. "It went great." He grinned but tried to hide it by biting his lips.
Gaius' eyebrow only rose higher. "And by great you mean that Arthur believed you and is now searching for Cornelius Sigan?"
"Hm?" Merlin looked up, again catching himself not listening. He got lost thinking about that kiss and what it meant for the future.
When he saw that Gaius was frowning though, he cleared his throat and walked away from the door, sitting down on the bench. He put his elbows on the table and smiled. "Arthur said his knights are already searching for Cedric."
"Does he know he's the sorcerer?" Gaius repeated his question.
"Oh yeah, definitely." Merlin smiled. "Cedric's taken care of."
"He'd better be." Gaius frowned at him. "But Arthur won't be able to defeat Cornelius on his own, you know that."
"Uh uh." Merlin nodded.
"Merlin, are you listening to me?" Gaius asked, really suspicious that there was something wrong with his ward. "You seem a bit too happy about this situation."
"I'm not." Merlin quickly frowned. Before Gaius could say anything else, he stood up again. "I just... I think I'll go to sleep." He nodded as he walked over to his door. It was still the middle of the night after all, and knowing that Arthur was safe and not angry with him anymore should make falling asleep easier this time. "You should get some sleep too." Merlin paused as he turned to Gaius. The physician was obviously tired.
"You're right." Gaius nodded and looked at his bed. Then he slowly stood up and smiled up at Merlin. "Good night."
"Good night, Gaius." Merlin returned the smile. Then he opened the door and disappeared behind it, getting into bed and covering himself with the blanket. He smiled as he closed his eyes. After what happened in Arthur's chambers between them... he knew his dreams would be even better than before.
xoXÖXox
It wasn't even four hours later when the warning bells started ringing again. It woke Merlin up immediately, and it took him a second to realize where he was and what was probably happening. He hadn't been able to get much sleep.
He quickly rubbed his eyes and rushed to his window and looked outside, his eyes widening in horror. There were statues and gargoyles from the castle flying around the town, and Merlin couldn't see from that distance what they were doing in the streets, but it couldn't have been good judging by the screams.
"Merlin, he's here." Gaius opened the door and Merlin stepped away from the window to look at him.
"Cornelius Sigan is here." Merlin nodded. "And he's already attacked Camelot."
"I need to prepare the infirmary," Gaius informed him as he rushed back to his room to get the medical supplies he needed.
Merlin ran to his closet and quickly changed back into his regular clothes, running out of his room barely two minutes later. He headed for the door. "Merlin!" Gaius stopped him. When Merlin turned to him, Gaius pursed his lips, worry written all over his face. "Be careful."
Merlin only nodded in response.
xoXÖXox
Merlin ran out of the castle as fast as he could – the Great Dragon had just given him knowledge with which he should be powerful enough to defeat Cornelius Sigan. Hopefully. It was only matter of time before the knights would have to hide inside-
Too late.
Merlin walked into the courtyard and saw that it was already empty. No knights – well, not living ones at least – and only a few more citizens lying around. The place was cold because the sun had not yet risen and a strange white fog was everywhere, clouding Merlin's vision. He couldn't tell whether the rest of the knights were still somewhere behind the gate where they could see him if he got closer, or if they were all gone. But he had to risk it.
He had to risk exposing his magic, which he didn't really want to think about at this moment. But he was doing it for Camelot, for his friends and Gaius and for Arthur... who'd been missing ever since the attack started. Merlin couldn't find him with his knights, nor with Uther or anyone else. He really hoped he was all right, but his first priority was to defeat Cornelius right here and now. If Arthur really was in danger, it must have been the sorcerer who had taken him.
Merlin stepped away from the pillars on the edge of the courtyard and ran to the middle of it, looking up at the sky. He could hear the monsters, but he could not see them.
Until one of them flew right above the castle and noticed him, flying closer. Oh no, Merlin thought as the beast neared him. It was much bigger than he'd thought. It had wings and claws and a giant head and it was all black. Much bigger than the gargoyles. Merlin clenched the crystal heart in his hand and prepared for the attack.
The monster let out a hideous scream. Just as it was about to cut its claws deep into Merlin's chest without stopping, the young warlock reached out his other hand and shouted, " Astrice! "
With another growl, the monster shattered into pieces like the stone that it once had been.
As Merlin quickly turned around to see if anyone had seen him use magic, a dark figure was becoming visible in the white fog. Merlin narrowed his eyes as he looked at it. Then his frown turned into a smile when he saw the blond hair.
"Arthur! You're all right!" Merlin smiled as he took a few steps forward, but then he stopped abruptly when the person left the fog behind. There was something wrong with Arthur – his hair was combed back and instead of his armour, he was wearing a huge black coat with black feathers on his shoulders.
This was not Arthur.
"No," Merlin whispered as his smile turned into a frown again. He should have stayed with the prince, made sure he was all right. He should have been there, right at Arthur's side, like he'd always been. Then this wouldn't have happened.
"Who would have believed it?" Cornelius Sigan in Arthur's body smirked as he looked at him. The smirk was not friendly at all. "You, a sorcerer. And a powerful one."
Merlin really hoped that Arthur wouldn't remember any of this. That would be the end of his job.
"I won't let you hurt him!" Merlin told him, trying to be strong. It was horrible to see Arthur like this, especially after what happened in his chambers... which wasn't Arthur, was it? It was just Cornelius Sigan, playing with his feelings.
"You needn't worry, Merlin." Cornelius looked down at Arthur's body and his smirk got bigger. "I'm really liking it in here. I'm the prince of Camelot and there's only one person standing in my way. The king. Once he's dead, I can take over the throne and make this kingdom better."
"I won't let you do that," Merlin frowned.
"You won't be able to stop me." Sigan smiled at him almost sympathetically. When he didn't say anything else, Merlin swallowed and took a deep breath.
"So it wasn't real... was it?" he asked. He didn't want to sound broken, but he probably did.
"You mean that little thing that happened in the prince's- my chambers?" He corrected himself in the middle of the sentence with another annoying smirk. "It wasn't," he answered simply. "None of it. I could easily see how you felt and I needed to shut you up, that was all."
Merlin looked down for a few seconds, trying to put himself together. There were so many emotions battling inside him that he didn't even know what to do. Arthur was possessed by an ancient sorcerer who had come back from the dead to destroy Camelot, and he'd been possessing him long enough to see that Merlin was in love with him and to use that to keep him away from his plans. And now he wanted to keep Arthur's body and continue destroying everything that Merlin called home.
Anger welled up in him and he looked at the sorcerer again. He didn't know if Arthur would be okay after he attempted to get Cornelius out of his body, but he was prepared to do anything to make sure he was. Even another trip to the Isle of the Blessed.
"I have a question for you, Merlin," Sigan said. "Why?" he asked. "Why do you care about him so much, when he doesn't even deserve it?"
"He does." Merlin frowned. Arthur was a good person, even if he was a giant clotpole most of the time and didn't appreciate what Merlin was doing for him.
"He treats you like a slave," Cornelius continued.
"That's not true." Merlin defended Arthur. It was so hard to look into Arthur's eyes as he was saying that, knowing that it was not Arthur at all but instead the enemy. He could never see an enemy in Arthur.
"He cast you aside without a moment's thought."
"That doesn't matter," Merlin told him. It really didn't. Protecting Arthur was his destiny, and he was proud of that. He wouldn't change a thing.
"But it must hurt so much to be so put upon, so overlooked, when all the while you have such power and are in love with him." Sigan wasn't smiling anymore. Something in his eyes changed. "You're young, Merlin. Look inside yourself. You have yet to discover your true power. I can help you. Think, Merlin. To have the world appreciate your greatness. He does not deserve your love or your loyalty!"
"I don't want the world!" Merlin shouted at him. He didn't want the world on its knees. He wanted Arthur. That was all he'd ever wanted, ever since he became his servant. And he would much rather suffer at Arthur's side, never experiencing what it was like to kiss him again and only having his friendship, than have people be scared of him.
"Together we can rule over this land, Merlin," Cornelius pressed again.
"No!" Merlin shouted. "I will never join you! I will never rule the world with an evil lord like you!"
Sigan frowned and his eyes became much darker – Arthur's eyes. And Merlin grew sadder. He had never wanted to see Arthur like this.
"So be it," Sigan told him fiercely. "If you will not join me, I will become you and your power will be harnessed to my will."
Merlin's eyes widened. This was the moment he had been waiting for. He needed to get Cornelius back into the crystal, and this was how it was going to happen. All Merlin needed to do was use the knowledge Kilgharrah had given him.
Arthur frowned and his mouth opened. He started coughing, and it looked as if he was choking – it took all Merlin's will not to run to him and help. He had to wait for the right moment. When blue smoke started coming out of Arthur's mouth and his body fell to the ground, Merlin knew it was going to be soon.
He watched as the soul of Cornelius Sigan slowly crawled its way to Merlin's feet and then up his legs. This was the moment.
"Ic þín sáwol hér beléac, abide þæt ic þé álíese! " He spoke in the language of the Old Religion as the blue soul entered his mouth and nose.
Something shifted inside of him and he gasped. Then he fell to the ground and started shaking, the world turning black to the sound of a raven cawing.
xoXÖXox
When Arthur finally woke up, the first thing he noticed was how much his head hurt. He groaned in pain and covered his face with his hands, but the pain was still there, until it eventually dulled into a painless throbbing.
With a sigh, he opened his eyes and stared up at the dark blue sky. The air around him was cold. And there was some strange white fog around him, but he tried not to think about that. Thinking might cause more headache and he really didn't want that to get any stronger. But he couldn't just lie there forever, wondering why his head hurt like hell and how he'd gotten to the courtyard in the middle of the night, which was why he took a deep breath a few minutes later and with another groan, he sat up.
The first thing he registered was more fog and an eerie silence. The courtyard was full of dead bodies, both knights and citizens. Arthur frowned as he tried to remember what happened – he couldn't have just slept through all of it, right? He was in the courtyard as well after all.
It was only after he turned around and spotted a familiar figure lying on the ground that he got some answers. With one look at Merlin's unconscious body, everything came back to him, along with even more pain.
Cedric, the tomb, the blue crystal heart, almost sacking Merlin and then regretting it all evening without saying anything, letting Cedric take care of him instead of Merlin, and then... realizing his key was gone, running down to the tomb, finding the unconscious guards and Cedric trying to convince him it was all Merlin's plan to steal the blue heart.
Arthur grabbed his head and closed his eyes, eventually glancing at Merlin again and noticing the blue crystal heart was in his hand.
No, Arthur thought with a sad frown. Merlin would never-
More memories flooded his mind – someone else was in control of his body. He lied to his father about not knowing who stole the crystal when in reality... it was Cornelius Sigan. It was him. Arthur had been screaming for somebody to hear him for so long and... no one did. Not even Merlin. Until the moment he lost consciousness as Sigan was leaving his body, he'd been watching everything that the sorcerer did. And he felt awful about it.
His eyes wandered back to Merlin's body. He was still, but thankfully he was breathing, Arthur could see that. "Merlin?" he called. No response.
He remembered everything that happened. He knew Cornelius used him to attack Camelot and to... he'd used Merlin. He'd kissed him and then lied and told him Arthur didn't care. That was almost as horrible as the thought of Camelot falling to a sorcerer. Not to mention that...
Merlin had magic.
Arthur took a deep breath and slowly stood up, looking down at his servant and best friend. There were so many things he wanted to say and so many things he'd rather keep a secret. He had never wanted Merlin to find out he was in love with him like this. The way he'd imagined it, they'd be together in his chambers or in a forest and the right moment would come and it would just happen. He'd tell him and then feel ashamed because he had been certain Merlin didn't care about him the same way. But now? What was he supposed to do? He couldn't possibly let him think Cornelius was telling the truth, that Arthur didn't care. But was he ready to tell Merlin the truth?
And could he accept Merlin's magic? He'd always known that there was something different about Merlin, something he couldn't quite figure out. He'd never thought it would be this though. Merlin had been lying to him for over a year! He still was. He probably didn't know that Arthur remembered anything from the time he was possessed.
But Merlin had defeated Cornelius Sigan. He'd seen him with his own two eyes; he knew it had happened. So Merlin couldn't be evil, right? There was no way he'd want to destroy Camelot when he'd just saved it and refused to join Cornelius.
Arthur sighed and closed his eyes briefly, trying to decide what to do. When did destiny decide he'd fall in love with a liar? With someone who didn't even trust him enough to tell him who he really was? Why did the love he felt overpower the anger?
Finally, he walked over to Merlin and knelt down beside him. "Me-" He cleared his throat and tried again. "Merlin?" But the idiot was still not moving. Arthur bit his lower lip and frowned, deciding that the best thing to do was what he always did. He shoved Merlin's shoulder, repeating louder, "Merlin!"
This time, the servant really did move and his eyes opened. Arthur gasped when he saw that they were black, but the colour disappeared within a second and Merlin blinked, his eyes blue again. Did Sigan do something to him? He wasn't possessing him, was he? The heart stone was blue again!
"Arthur?" Merlin asked, sounding a little unsure. When Arthur nodded and pursed his lips, Merlin's frown turned into a grin and he sat up and enveloped Arthur in a tight hug. Their first hug, Arthur realized as he awkwardly put his hands around the other man's shoulders. This was definitely his Merlin, not Sigan. The black eyes were gone, together with the soul, and back inside the stone heart. "I'm so glad you're okay!" Merlin mumbled into Arthur's neck, breathing in and smiling.
As if he remembered about their kiss at the same time as Arthur did, Merlin suddenly pulled away and looked at him with suspicion written all over his face. "What do you remember?" he asked carefully.
Arthur opened his mouth to answer, then closed it again. He remembered every second, but Merlin didn't know that yet. He didn't know that Arthur reciprocated his feelings, and he didn't know that Arthur now knew about his magic and was really not okay with it, but not sure what to do about it either (he couldn't tell Uther, could he? His father would hang Merlin the very next morning). Merlin didn't know a lot of things. And he needed to know them...
"Nothing," Arthur answered instead, already mentally slapping himself. How could he not tell Merlin everything he knew? How could he lie to him like this?
Was it because Merlin has been lying to him all this time? Or because of the relief he saw in Merlin's face after he pretended he didn't know what happened?
Arthur just needed some time to think about everything. Merlin's magic was one of the most important things he needed to find out more about.
"Cedric..." Arthur frowned as he slowly pulled away from Merlin further. "He... stole my keys. He wanted to steal the treasure."
"That's true." Merlin nodded. Then he slowly stood up, quickly hiding the blue crystal behind his back and clearly trying to not let Arthur see it. His face turned sad after that. "It was Cornelius Sigan, he possessed you and wanted to destro-"
"Merlin?" Arthur and Merlin both heard a voice coming from the gate through the slowly dissolving fog. When they turned around, all they could see besides the fog were the first rays of the rising sun. But then a person emerged from the shadows. It was Gaius.
"Gaius!" Merlin smiled and walked over to him, together with Arthur.
"Are you all right?" Gaius asked worriedly and Merlin nodded, turning to Arthur with a smile.
"Sire!" Gaius smiled at him. "Do you remember anything about what happened during the night?" the old man asked, raising his eyebrow.
"No," Arthur said with a new confidence, telling himself he'd confess to Gaius later and tell him the truth. "I don't know how I got here when the last thing I remember is discovering the broken gate to the tomb."
Gaius nodded. "You should probably come see me so I can check you over. After you see the king first. Everyone's been looking for you."
Arthur wanted to thank him, but before he could even open his mouth, Merlin returned to their usual type of conversations: "You should maybe consider looking into the mirror first though." He snickered, making both Arthur and Gaius pause.
Arthur frowned and looked at his shoulders, his eyes widening. He'd completely forgotten about the clothes! The black feathers on his shoulders were making him want to sneeze, now that he knew about them, and the black clothes and slick hair combed from the front to the back made him want to puke.
"Oh no." He frowned in disgust as he touched his hair and then quickly put his hand back, wiping it (unfortunately) into the feathers.
Gaius smiled slightly when he saw that. But Merlin started laughing without holding back, and for the first time in a few days, Arthur found a slight smile on his face as well.
Maybe he did need to think about Merlin's magic, but maybe (just maybe) he could try and forget about it, exchanging his anger for love and holding on to that as long as he could.
xoXÖXox
Two months later
"I told you so," Merlin coughed under his breath, making sure that Arthur heard everything he said. Again. Arthur only sighed and put down the papers that he was supposed to be reading and signing. Merlin probably didn't think that Arthur's signature was of any importance, but then again, Arthur wasn't terribly surprised by that.
"How many times will you remind me of the CS incident that we'd agreed not to talk about ever again?" Arthur huffed. The CS stood for Cornelius Sigan. It was one way of never having to say his name again.
"Until you finally admit that I was right about Cedric. He really just wanted to steal from you and yet you couldn't see that because you were and still are a clotpole." Merlin certainly didn't hold back.
Arthur sighed and rubbed his eyes. It was true. He still hadn't apologized to Merlin for not listening to him when he'd said Cedric was just trying to get rid of him. He still hadn't told him he remembered everything that Sigan did in his body, either. Because that meant he'd have to admit that the kiss was real and that he knew Merlin had magic.
And until today, he had thought he'd be okay with keeping it a secret. But as his eyes wandered to Merlin's backside, he slowly realized that might not be the case. Merlin was scrubbing the floor with a wet cloth and his back was facing Arthur. Which Merlin probably didn't think about as much as Arthur did.
Arthur swallowed and closed his eyes again.
"You're right," he admitted, without looking at Merlin. He heard him though. He heard Merlin turn around and stand up and he knew he was looking at him. "You were right and I was wrong. About Cedric. I'm sorry." Arthur looked up at him and had to swallow again.
It hadn't been easy these past few weeks. He knew about Merlin's magic and he knew that Merlin was in love with him, too, but because of said magical abilities, he told himself he could never do anything about his feelings. He'd been watching Merlin as well. Paying more attention to what he did and how he did it, what he mumbled under his breath and what he talked about with Gaius when they thought he couldn't hear them.
For example, hard as it was to believe, he had seen Merlin perform all his servant duties without the usual high level of complaining when Arthur pretended to leave Camelot and instead stayed at Gwen's. Merlin had even lent him his clothes! And yes, they didn't smell their best, but it was something that Arthur appreciated, especially since he'd forgotten to ask Merlin for them and that idiot still had time to think about everything Arthur needed. He'd even stolen for him - when Arthur was being a clotpole again and decided that the best way to make amends with Gwen was to lie to her by having Merlin bring him food from the royal kitchen.
Merlin was still there by his side, working as a servant, even though he was a powerful sorcerer. Powerful enough to defeat CS, who had been thought to be the most powerful sorcerer ever to live. Only Arthur and Gaius knew better - the most powerful sorcerer was in Arthur's very own chambers. And he'd been scrubbing his floor only moments ago.
Long story short, it was a lot. And there was just as much that Arthur needed to confess to Merlin about.
"Are you all right?" Merlin asked. "I never thought you'd actually apologize, I wasn't even really counting on that," he admitted with a slight smile, but Arthur couldn't return the smile. "You look awful," Merlin added.
That brought a little smile to Arthur's lips. "Thanks." He rolled his eyes. When he looked back at Merlin, the boy was silent, probably waiting to hear what Arthur was going to say next. Their eyes locked and Arthur pursed his lips. "There is something else I wanted to talk about," he managed to say.
Another thing Arthur still couldn't quite understand was why Merlin didn't try to confess his feelings. Why did it always have to be Arthur who made the first move? But to be fair, Merlin must have been scared that Arthur would reject him. That was what Sigan had told him after all – that Arthur didn't love Merlin like Merlin loved him.
With a sigh, Arthur stood up and walked over to Merlin, who was still standing there, leaning slightly against the wall.
"What is it?" Merlin asked and chuckled nervously. "You look serious."
Arthur only nodded as he neared Merlin and then stopped in front of him. "I am," he said. Then he took a deep breath, still looking into Merlin's eyes, and said something he should have said a long time ago. "I know you have magic."
The reaction he received was almost hilarious. Merlin gulped, blinked, laughed nervously and then swallowed again, his eyes wandering from Arthur's eyes to his lips, to the floor. "Wh-what?" He smiled at him with a very not convincing confused frown. "W-what do you mean?"
"You heard me." Arthur sighed. "I know you have magic and I know you're using it to help me and to do chores sometimes," Merlin seemed to want to comment on that, but decided against it and closed his mouth again, "and I'm not as angry with you as I was when I found out," Arthur finished.
Merlin was silent for a long time, looking into Arthur's eyes and then keeping his eyes on the floor. When he finally spoke, it was quiet. "When did you find out?"
This was the question whose answer would lead to everything else that Arthur needed to tell his friend.
"I... I remember everything that happened while I was possessed by the sorcerer Sigan," Arthur answered.
The speed with which Merlin raised his head again and stared into Arthur's eyes was a little unexpected. His eyes were wide and glassy and he genuinely looked like he might pass out right there in front of Arthur.
"You do?" Merlin asked and then cleared his throat. His eyes wandered down to Arthur's lips again and he swallowed. "Th-that means... it means that- do you-"
"Yes," Arthur finished for him. And he was smiling . Yes, he was still not completely over the fact that Merlin had been lying to him for over a year, but as he looked at that idiot and saw his blue eyes and messy black hair, he couldn't help but forgive him.
When Merlin didn't dare answer and Arthur wasn't sure how else show Merlin what he meant, he finally leaned in and awkwardly brushed his lips against Merlin's. Then he pulled away immediately after, looking into Merlin's eyes hesitantly. But apparently, there was no room for hesitation. Because the next thing Merlin did was grin widely and pull Arthur close for another kiss, this time making sure it was longer.
The first time Arthur had done this was when he wasn't himself. It was an evil sorcerer who had exposed his feelings and used them against Merlin. But now? Everything was so much better. It finally felt real. And honestly, Arthur didn't know why he had waited so long.
Arthur had finally, properly and officially been kissed by his idiotic servant who liked to call him a clotpole. But from now on, Arthur decided, he didn't mind that one bit.
THE END
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the fanfic :)