Title: Stepmother?
Author: QueenKordeilia
Rating: T
Pairing (s): Merlin/Morgana Uther/Catrina Arthur/Guinevere Leon/Morgana
Spoilers: For S2. 2.05 and 2.06.
Summary: AU. Morgana and Arthur find themselves with a new 'addition' to their family.
Disclaimer: See chapter one.
A/N: Hey faithful readers! Chapter three. Thanks to whitecrossgirl for the reviews!
Step mother? - Truth
The next morning, Morgana was stuck between two options: ignoring Merlin or confronting him. If she confronted him, he would probably worm his way out of it, telling Morgana that he wasn't a sorcerer at all. If she ignored him, he might question and pester her about her silence. But at least he'd know that he hurt her. She still couldn't believe that he had magic all along and didn't think to tell her about it when she discovered her own magic. That's what hurt the most. She hardly got any time around him anyway, as he was a servant and she was a Princess. Sadly, being in the 21st century didn't change the King's mind on friendships with servants. So she understood why Arthur and Gwen kept their relationship a secret, because their father wouldn't approve of his son and his daughter's maidservant. Or his daughter and his son's manservant.
Yes, she had feelings for Merlin. That was the reason she broke up with Leon. Gwen was the only one who understood; she left Lancelot because of her affections for Arthur. But Morgana scolded her, saying she was mad for leaving such a gentleman for Arthur. Ironic, given the fact that Arthur was a Prince and therefore higher than a mere gentleman in society.
"Merlin, how could you do this to me?" Morgana asked herself.
"Arthur... is your family okay?" Merlin asked randomly, during a (most disapproved of by the King) trip to the pub with his best male friends.
"Princess' family is mucked up... just like him Merrrrlin," Gwaine slurred, already hitting the legal limit.
"My family's just fine," Arthur replied, throwing Gwaine a scathing look.
"Umm, is the King okay?" Merlin queried nervously, purposely avoiding mentioning Morgana.
"Yes," Arthur answered. Loads of people, including Merlin and Morgana thought he was stupid but he wasn't. "You can ask about Morgana you know."
Gwaine immediately smirked. "Why would I want to do that?" Arthur raised his eyebrow.
"The Gauis move," Gwaine chirped. Merlin sighed.
"Her Highness has been avoiding me..." he confessed.
"Highness? And how come you call me 'Pratness?'" Arthur whined, slightly drunk. Gwaine giggled like a girl.
"She's nice and... you're not," Merlin responded.
"How long has she been avoiding you?" Gwaine asked. His friends stared at him in shock, surprised that he was still following the conversation after so many drinks.
"Umm, she didn't talk to me this morning," Merlin replied, looking at the floor. Gwaine and Arthur burst out laughing. Most of the customers in the pub turned around, wondering why Prince Arthur and Sir Gwaine were howling and roarin with laughter. And why their close friend and royal servant had his eyes cast downward, uncomfortably.
"Merlin, Merlin, Merlin..." Gwaine trailed off, howling.
"Should you be drinking that much?" Merlin asked.
"Hey, I'm safely below the limit," Gwaine defended himself.
"No, you're safely below YOUR limit, not the legal one!" Merlin argued.
"Stop changing the subject. Merlin, you are such a girl. Just because my dear baby sister didn't talk to you for one morning-"
"A few hours," Gwaine corrected.
"Thanks, a few hours, you get all heart broken!"
"We knew you had the hots for her..." Gwaine started.
"But really, this is just desperate!" Arthur finished.
Merlin was walking through the castle when he saw Morgana approaching from the other end of the hall. She glanced his way for a few seconds, frowning and then turned back in the direction she came from.
"Princess Morgana! Wait up!" he yelled. Nearby people, both servants and nobles, gave him weird looks. Some even shot him disapproving scowls. Great. He was going to get the lecture on 'his affections for Princess Morgana' from the pratty Prince again. Of course, he did have feelings for her, but he didn't need Arthur going round telling everyone. The mere thought of the King finding out made him shiver in his boots. He followed her until she reached a dead end.
"Move Merlin!" she demanded, not even attempting to hide her sudden hatred for him. He didn't, in fact, he almost had her pushed up against the wall. She didn't even know how she ended up in a dead end anyways, this was her home; she knew every nook and cranny.
"Morgana, what did I do?" he asked gently. She couldn't look up, because she knew that if she did, she'd fall in love with him all over again.
"You don't know?" she scoffed, still looking down. He was confused now. One, because he had no idea what he had done and two, because she seemed reluctant to look at him. "When were you planning to tell me? You should have, because this secret relates to me!" Merlin froze. Which secret? His magic? Or the other secret? Which probably wasn't a secret anymore due to Gwaine being a huge blabbermouth...
"Which secret Morgana? Because I have two secrets..." Merlin trailed off, gazing at her beautiful face and blushing. "Both relating to you." Morgana finally looked up and saw that now he was interested in his feet and... blushing. Two secrets? Both relating to her. One was his magic, the other... she didn't know. He looked up and she cracked. His eyes, his cheekbones, his neckerchief, his hair... everything about him made her forgive him instantly. And she hated herself for it. They just stared at each other until one of them spoke.
"Merlin... please tell me the truth," she requested, taking his hands in her own and pulling him closer. Her back hit the cold, smooth wall behind her. Merlin gulped, at being so close to her.
"Morgana, you'll hate me," he protested in a hoarse voice.
"I could never hate you, Merlin," she replied, putting her ams on his shoulders.
"I have magic." He was expecting a slap, a punch, a kick. He thought she would kill him, but instead, she kissed him. He couldn't believe it! Princess Morgana had initiated a kiss between them, she kissed him! He closed his eyes as her hands went behind his neck, pulling him even closer. He snaked his arms around her waist, kissing her back. They didn't know how long it lasted but it felt amazing. When they pulled away, he pressed his forehead against hers.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, a bit angry. Sure, having magic wasn't a huge crime anymore, it was just frowned upon, like smoking.
"Because I didn't know you'd react like this." They smiled, foreheads still pressed together, both feeling as happy as can be. "And there goes my other secret... I like you, Morgana."
"I like you too, Merlin," she confessed, before he kissed her. She finally knew all his secrets and he had found out that she had feelings for him. What they didn't know though, was that a figure was standing in the hallway, having witnessed the whole thing.
A/N: Yes, I know this chapter was way off topic. Next chapter, I'll return to the them dealing with the troll. So dun, dun, dun... who do you think the mysterious figure is?