Our story took place in the beginning of the 1930's, in London, where one of the most exclusive cabarets in England could be found. The place itself wouldn't have been that successful if it wasn't for its owner – Arthur Pendragon, or as he was known to most people – The King.
Arthur was known to be arrogant and pretentious and somewhat intimidating, but that didn't stop him from getting all the attention from the women. With blond hair and mesmerizing blue eyes, Arthur could easily have any woman he laid his eyes on, except one. Guinevere, or Gwen as her friends called her, was the angelic voice of the cabaret. She was one of the reasons people from all around the country visited the cabaret. With olive skin and dark eyes anyone could get lost into, Arthur was one of the many that couldn't resist Guinevere's charm.
Although Arthur was very young when he opened the cabaret, and his father was against it (he thought it was a foolish decision, that he should invest all that money in something more worthy), Arthur always knew he was going to succeed. It was in his blood to be well known and successful and he knew it. The Pendragons had always been very influential in the upper class of the London society, and that gave Arthur all the confidence he needed in his life. But even with such confidence and a powerful last name, Arthur would be nowhere if it wasn't for the people around him, the ones who continuously supported him, through his ups and downs, and made sure he knew he was never alone. Not all had been so loyal to the King, though. Throughout the three years since the King's Cabaret had officially opened its doors to London, many wanted him gone.
CHAPTER 1: The Cabaret and the King
Arthur opened his eyes and found himself face to face with a woman he did not recognize. It took him several minutes to finally remember that her name was Jessica (or Julia?), the blonde lady from table 14 he had met last night at the cabaret. It was nothing
new for Arthur, to have a one night stand with a woman he had just met, as a matter of fact, it was starting to bore him. The whole thing was more like a daily routine, something he did just because he was used to it. He pushed the covers away and pulled on the trousers he found near his bed, he didn't care about showing up at the cabaret in the same clothes he had last night, no one was going to be there on a Saturday morning anyway. Only on rare occasions Arthur had to be at the cabaret on Saturdays, but lately he had a lot of paperwork to go through since the cabaret was attracting a bigger crowd more and more everyday.
When Arthur arrived at the cabaret, he didn't expect to find anyone there, which was why he had a surprised look on his face when he saw Guinevere accompanied by a young man– in his early twenties, Arthur assumed. Guinevere was singing a melody, one Arthur had heard already, the one she sang for the first time and left Arthur speechless. He hired her immediately, his instincts told him that she was going to make the cabaret even more visited; her voice and her looks were enough to draw anyone's attention.
When Guinevere arrived to the chorus of the song, the young man– who was playing on the piano– joined her and their voices collided into a beautiful, almost enchanting cadence. Arthur was once again left speechless, this time not because of Guinevere, but because of the mysterious man. His voice was just as good as Guinevere's, maybe even better. The man was dressed very simple, he was obviously not from London's upper class society. Arthur was still standing at the entrance of the cabaret after Guinevere and the mysterious man had stopped singing.
"Mr. Pendragon, my friend was just helping me rehearse for tonight's performance." Guinevere started apologizing when she noticed Arthur standing at the door. "We could leave if you'd like."
"That is alright, Guinevere." He replied once he had approached them. "I have work to do at the office, pretend I'm not here."
"This is my friend, Merlin Emrys." Guinevere spoke up when she realized Arthur had no intention of asking about the man standing next to her, who happened to be her childhood friend. "He's a singer as well." She added.
"I noticed." Arthur replied shortly before shaking the man's hand. "What brings you here Mr. Emrys?"
"I've been looking for a job for quite some time, sir." Merlin started. "Gwen told me you were looking for another singer, so I thought I would try my luck."
Arthur furrowed his eyebrows slightly, and analyzed him carefully. He was thin and bony; Arthur probably wouldn't even notice him in a room full of people. His raven hair was in complete contrast with his bright, blue eyes that were the only thing that drew Arthur's attention to him. With a new haircut and the smallest tuxedo size, the boy could look decent on stage next to Guinevere.
"We are looking for new singers indeed, female ones." Arthur pointed out.
"Mr. Pendragon, I have known Merlin my whole life, he is very good. He is honest and loyal, he won't disappoint you, I give you my word." Guinevere stated. "At least give him a chance to audition."
"He already did, just five minutes ago." Arthur replied before he turned around and headed to his office upstairs. "You will perform tonight with Guinevere, Mr. Emrys. Try not to disappoint her. She gave me her word, after all." He added before he disappeared into his office.
There were always a lot of people at the cabaret on a Saturday evening, but Merlin had never performed in front of so many people and his nerves were getting the best of him.
"Are you nervous?" He heard Gwen's voice behind him.
"Little bit, I suppose." Merlin muttered.
"Oh don't worry, I remember when I performed here for the first time three years ago…I was so nervous, my hands were shaking." She replied while doing the final touches of her make-up. "Even tonight, after all this time, I get nervous. But when I step on that stage, all of that goes away, you don't think about anything else but the emotions that the song gives you."
"Will Arthur be watching us perform?" Merlin asked.
"Probably. He spends every night at the cabaret, especially when there are performances." She replied.
"He doesn't like me very much, does he?"
"Arthur doesn't like anyone, you shouldn't take it personally." Guinevere replied quickly.
"Well, he seems to like you." Merlin turned around to face Gwen's reflection on the mirror. She quickly glanced at Merlin who was smirking slightly.
"That's nonsense, what would give you that impression?" She said, hoping Merlin didn't notice her flushed cheeks.
"Well, he did trust your words about me, it seemed like he values your opinion a lot. It's why he hired me." Merlin explained.
"Arthur hired you because he heard you sing, and he liked what he heard, remember that. If that wasn't the case, you wouldn't be in the backstage of the most exclusive cabaret in London, waiting to perform." Guinevere said, giving him a reassuring smile. "Speaking of which, we need to go on stage now." She managed to change the subject before Merlin had a chance to continue. "Are you ready to face London's upper class society?"
"Not at all, but let's go." Merlin replied.
When Guinevere and Merlin Emrys were introduced, both of them appeared on the stage only moments later. Guinevere looked stunningly, dressed in a gold, sparkly dress that caught the light and it looked like she was glowing. The mysterious young man next to her whose name no one knew, was dressed in a black tuxedo, his dark hair elegantly pushed away from his face which made him look mature and sophisticated. Arthur almost hadn't recognized him, he looked like one of them, a member of the upper class society.
Just as they had been rehearsing earlier that day, Merlin joined Guinevere at the chorus and left everyone at awe. Even the minor chatter that had filled the cabaret was now gone, it was like everyone were hypnotized by the angelic voice of the mysterious boy standing on the stage. Even Arthur, who had heard the boy sing earlier that day, was left with no words, and it was a very rare occasion for Arthur Pendragon to be left speechless. He always had something to say, he loved to criticize people, the only time he had a similar reaction before was when he heard Guinevere sing for the first time, but this—this was a completely new experience for him. While Arthur was completely enchanted by the boy, Merlin managed to shut off the entire crowd, it was like he was in his own little sphere, just like Gwen had told him.
"This boy, who is he?" Lancelot, an old friend of Arthur, asked.
"Merlin Emrys." Arthur replied, his eyes fixed on the stage. "a friend of Guinevere's"
"He is absolutely marvelous." Lancelot said, completely amazed by the boy. Lancelot visited the King's Cabaret very often, mainly because he knew he could always find Arthur there, but also because of Guinevere. Lancelot was just another man who couldn't resist the singer's charm.
"I've heard better." Arthur lied before he took a sip of the glass of whiskey sitting on the table in front of him. "Guinevere insisted that I should hire him, so I decided to give the boy a chance." He added. But even if it wasn't for Guinevere's instance, Arthur admitted to himself, he would've hired Merlin Emrys anyway. There was something about the boy, something he couldn't put his finger on, but Arthur was very interested in the boy—more than he would ever admit.