There was a legend, of a boy with hair as black as the darkest night, eyes as blue as the deepest ocean that glowed a fierce gold and skin so pale it would rival the starkness of freshly fallen snow. The thing about this legend that made it so unique, was that this boy has wings the same shade of his hair, traced with flowing trails of shimmering gold. Arthur had always loved this story in particular. The idea of having wings and flying like a bird to escape was very alluring, but he never mentioned so to anyone because of the ban on magic his father had put into place. It made him sad that there was a ban on everything magical, because he really really wanted to meet this boy with raven wings and blue eyes.
And to his surprise, he did. He didn't know about the wings that the boy carried though. The rest of the tale was true to every word, His black hair, the deep blue eyes, and the very pale skin. The two things that didn't match up were that his eyes were supposed to glow gold and that he was supposed to have massive wings. This boy was puzzling, and Arthur enjoyed a good puzzle. When Uther made this boy his manservant, he was more than ecstatic to have this beautiful creature so close to him every day.
Merlin was his name. Beautiful name, Merlin. He was staying with Gaius and came everyday to do his duty as manservant to the crown prince. They took up a sort of routine. Merlin would do the buckles on Arthur's armor and Arthur would watch every one of Merlin's smooth movements, until he tripped over his own feet. But he never fell. Arthur was always there to catch him. Having his wings wrapped in bandages is a downside, as it takes away from his natural balance. It's why he's so clumsy all the time. No matter though, having Arthur's arms around his slight frame, even with the bandages padding it up a bit, is quite nice.
Merlin's life has been difficult. It was bad enough when hunith had to keep him locked up as a small child because he couldn't control his magic then. He would just send candles and things flying when he got upset or he would make bunnies out of dust when he wanted to play. She was scared the other children in the village would tease and pick on him for being different and if the whole town knew they would try to kill her precious merlin for being a sorcerer, or at least a creature of magic. That's why when Will found out she was furious.
-cue flashback-
He and merlin had been playing tag at night and merlin figured if he hid is a hollow tree stump and covered himself in his wings, will wouldn't be able to see him at all. He had forgotten about the golden veins running through some of the feathers. Will had seen the golden shimmer and decided to go and check it out. When he reached out to touch the shimmering golden stripes, they were soft and he heard a muffled squeak from under the mass of black and gold. Will was frightened and stepped back getting ready to run, but he was frozen to the spot when he saw a small 12 year old merlin stand up and shake his wings. When he realized Will was right there, he was terrified. His eyes were huge and he was shaking with fear when will walked up to him and reached out a hand towards the wing. Merlin jerked his wing away and started to slowly back up until his back hit a giant oak tree and he was trapped.
"W-will…. Please don't touch them." Merlin was like a rabbit, scared and shaking
The moment Will's hand was back at his side, merlin let out a breath he was unaware that he was holding. His wings folded against him, almost like a partial shield. Will could only stand in wonder and stare at the beautiful wings that were coming from his best friend's shoulders.
"Merlin, you're shaking like a naked boy in December. What's wrong?"
"Y-you don't hate me?"
"No! how could anyone hate something so beautiful?!"
Merlin blushed at that and his wings curled around himself, trying to hide behind his wings. It was this moment merlin's mother arrived. She was furious, but once will explained she was not as angry.
-end flashback-