Gwen didn't hear much of what Arthur said after the first sentence.

He stormed into their chambers and asked if she'd like to help him prepare breakfast for Merlin, Gaius, and themselves. He then explained that the physician had a lot to deal with after the battle, and his assistant, of course, needed to focus on a different kind of work right now. He wanted to do something nice for them, and not by doing them favors as the king, which required no actual effort on his side. After all, they both put immense work into his wellbeing and got little in return. As he said, he finally fully understood what she told him all those years back, when he was staying at her house.

But, like we said, the queen heard little of his explanation. His idea was enough for her to feel like she'd never loved him more. And, instead of listening, she thought that thankfully, he didn't die at Camlann, but he seemed to have left behind a part of himself, a part of Uther in himself. For years, she had been watching his transformation from an arrogant prince to a worthy, good-hearted king who… well, displayed humbleness at times. But never before had the change been so noticeable. And even though his entitlement didn't bother her so much anymore, nothing could please her more. It was not only how she always wanted her husband to be, but also how she wished for her friends to be treated, and what kind of person she wanted to rule the land.

"-And I think we could all use a nice meal together… Guinevere, are you even listening to me?" Arthur asked impatiently, finally noticing his wife's distant look.

She gave him a quick kiss and told him to give her fifteen minutes before they go.


In the last few days, people in the palace had a lot to talk about, but up until the previous morning, not enough to find joy in. Perhaps, what they craved now was someone lightening the mood a little. Apparently, their king and queen were ready to take that responsibility upon themselves. Quite possibly, when they walked into the kitchens and announced they would need space to prepare breakfast, they caused the biggest sensation the place had ever seen. And one that was going to be talked about for months, at least.

"It's actually a little like using a sword. The opponent isn't very dynamic, but I'm enjoying it," observed Arthur and Gwen giggled. She was the one in charge, for obvious reasons, and she made him do the chopping. As usual, she guessed right what would suit him most.


"Merlin!" said Gwen cheerfully, as Arthur was helping their friend out of his room. "We weren't sure if you would be hungry, but the food we prepared is light, I hope it will be alright for you."

The warlock froze in his tracks and stood in the middle of the chambers, staring at the sight before him. If it wasn't for Arthur, he would probably fall down, and not because he still felt weak. Space was rearranged a little, as there was too much food to fit on their regular eating table, and they had to temporarily clean one of Gaius's benches. The physician was sitting at it, looking like he didn't quite know what to do with himself. And who did Gwen mean when she said we prepared?

"You both look confused. It is meant for eating," laughed Arthur, as he and Merlin finally joined Gaius and Guinevere at the improvised table.

"Hang on, I am busy figuring out if I'm awake," mumbled Merlin, with Gaius muttering something that sounded like "Aren't we all."

"You are asking for trouble. I'm sitting next to you, and I could easily help you with that," joked the king. "But really, you are both awake, and it's the least we could do."

"I am grateful, but you didn't have to. I hardly did anything, I am just pleased that everything unfolded the way it did," replied Gaius, tentatively putting food on his plate.

"Gaius, if you weren't here, I'd probably spend my life happy that the broom sweeps the floor for me, and not do much else," Merlin looked at him sternly. "Not that I don't agree it's strange."

"You are both strange," joined in Gwen, putting down her goblet. "There are no two people in this palace who are more deserving of being served breakfast, but also no one who is worse at taking a compliment."

Merlin chewed on his fruit and said, "I'm sorry, some things are just hard to get used to. But it's strange in a good way. I think."

"It better be, you should have seen the faces of those working in the kitchens when Arthur was chopping the vegetables," replied Gwen, giggling.

The warlock spat out what was in his mouth, and Gaius almost choked.

"What? I didn't poison it, Merlin," said Arthur, exasperated.

"No, I know, just… thank you."

"If that's your thank you, it's the rudest I've ever got," laughed the king. "But you're welcome."


"Are you alright?" asked Gaius, looking at Merlin's stupid face after the king and the queen left, not before insisting on cleaning after the breakfast. Before the warlock could answer, he added, "Am I alright?"

"I don't think so. You know, Gaius, I might have told you many times how I wished to be appreciated for who I am. But I didn't mean that the world had to turn upside down," answered Merlin, still looking as if someone hit him hard on the head.

"It is strange, I've never given much thought to what would happen after you reveal the truth, between you and Arthur. I mean, certainly, I did think about his initial reaction, but not beyond that," admitted the physician. "I suppose it's not only about that though."

"What do you mean?" asked Merlin, taking a sip of his tea.

"Well, how you saved him this time was quite special, I think he can sense it. I believe it would affect any friendship," explained Gaius. "Anyhow, it seems like you had a successful week. And for the first time, I'm not the only one who appreciates it."

The warlock looked at him and scratched his face, „" still can't believe it all happened. Telling the truth, killing Morgana, the circle. Did you even know that they existed?"

"Yes, at least in theory. I've never met anyone who participated in one," replied Gaius, going toward one of his shelves to look for Gwaine's medicine.

"You did, Kilgharrah was there, though he said it was his first time in many years," Merlin corrected him. "I can't believe it was the last time I saw him. But I shouldn't get into it now, my mind is only waiting to pick up on something depressing. What may interest you, there was also a forest keeper!"

Gaius turned around from his work. "It does, but what interests me most is that you are back, And right now, it looks like you are about to fall onto the table. You can lie down on my bed if it's boring up there," he said, gesturing at the warlock's room.


Three days later, Merlin felt much better. There were still ups and downs, which could be expected in the coming weeks, but he mostly recovered from the state he got into after saving Gwaine. One strange result of the latest events was him having plenty of free time. Arthur ended up giving him more than two days off and forced him into agreeing to it. Also, so far, neither the king nor anyone else managed to get themselves into trouble that would require urgent action. So, it was almost dull.

He considered helping Gaius, but the physician was running around the palace checking on people who were injured in the battle. At least, Gwaine was supposed to wake up soon, and Merlin hoped he would liven the place up a bit. For now, he decided to get busy learning new spells and settled down on his bed with one of his magic books.

Thankfully, he didn't have to hide them anymore, because no more than fifteen minutes later, Arthur marched through the door.

"Merlin, I've just run into Gaius, who said that sitting on your backside is not one of your talents. Wanna go to the training ground with us?" he asked.

"Do I get to be the target even on my day off?" retorted Merlin, smirking.

"Obviously, no, you will still only get to sit, just with a better view," explained the king. He was standing next to the bed and looking at him questioningly, waiting for his decision.

"Alright, I'll take it," agreed the warlock, putting down the book. Arthur sat down on the chair. He took a quick glance at what his friend was reading but quickly realized it probably wasn't up his alley. Then again, he couldn't deny being a little intrigued but five minutes weren't enough to satisfy that.

Just as he was about to observe that it seemed like not having to clean his chambers made Merlin more eager to clean the place, they heard a strange noise, as if someone stumbled onto the table and knocked down some of Gaius' vials and bottles. Before they could react, Arthur, whose chair was facing the door, saw Gwaine clumsily climbing up the stairs.

"You're both alive…" the knight whispered, leaning heavily against the doorframe.

"Gwaine! You're back! Awake!" exclaimed the warlock, as both him and Arthur rushed to their friend. Merlin was so overjoyed that he failed to notice he was only wearing one shoe.

"And of course, you couldn't stay in bed for five minutes," laughed the king, when they were leading him back there.

"I thought I heard you talking and I had to check," mumbled Gwaine, and Arthur and Merlin exchanged looks. Only now they realized what was likely going on in the knight's mind.

After Gwaine was back in bed, they were all silent for a while, which was uncommon for any situation that involved the three of them. The warlock scoured through the vials on one of the physician's tables and picked up one with purple liquid inside.

"Gaius should be back to check on you soon but drink this for the pain," he instructed with a smile.

Gwaine grimaced at the taste and coughed a bit. He gave himself another moment, taking a deep breath.

"I'm so sorry," he finally said, and they both saw the broken look in his eyes, and his lips trembling slightly.

"Stop, Gwaine," quickly replied Merlin, rubbing the knight's shoulder. "We don't care. We are all here, and we are just happy to have you back."

"And Merlin killed Morgana, so apart from you getting hurt, it all ended well," added Arthur, perching on the other side of the bed.

Gwaine looked at them, slightly shocked, and briefly scratched his head.

"Not that I ever doubted you, friend, but… you killed Morgana?" he asked. Even though there was mostly disbelief, or surprise, in his voice, it also betrayed something else, something that came as a surprise even to him. On the one hand, the thought was a little ridiculous. But on the other, it sounded very right, though he couldn't quite determine why.

"Well, Gwaine. I suppose it's high time to tell you what you missed," announced Arthur. It might have been problematic to figure out how to break out the story to everyone in the palace, and both Gaius and he thought it was better to wait a while longer. But telling his closest knights was the fun part. "For once, something may manage to make you speechless."

And so Merlin told him about his magic, at last. How often he yearned for that moment, mainly after Lancelot died. But he didn't want to put him in a difficult situation, so he kept quiet, all those years.

Gwaine indeed didn't know what to say. At first, he wanted to burst out laughing. It was hilarious that Merlin pulled that off without any of them finding out, deceiving everyone, including Uther. Then again, he cared for his friend, and it was far less amusing that he had to do it. He knew him well enough to realize how hard it must have been to lie. Not to mention all those things he was forced to deal with, all by himself. To make it worse, unfortunately, Gwaine was aware of his own big mouth, which he sometimes used to dismiss magic. And it wasn't even like he stood firmly against it, he just didn't give it enough thought.

It had never been easy for Merlin to anticipate anyone's reaction to his secret. Naturally, telling Gwaine seemed like a picnic compared to revealing it to Arthur. But whoever it was, even Will, he couldn't help feeling anxious. And frankly, right now, the knight's expression wasn't dropping any clues. At first, he looked amused, but then his face turned much more solemn, and later even sad. What did it all mean?

He didn't find out right away, as Gwaine literally didn't say a word. Perhaps it would be better if he did, but he got so buried in his thoughts, he forgot that he was supposed to. Arthur was astonished, even if he foretold it, he didn't really envision Gwaine taking longer than Leon to react. As the silence was getting uncomfortably loud, he joined in and recounted what happened since Camlann.

Eventually, Gwaine shook off some his confusion. "Thanks, Merlin. For healing me, and for all the other things too-" he started. It was evident that he intended to say more, but again, nothing came out.

The warlock became worried that his friend didn't take it that well and was holding back from speaking his mind.

"I'm sorry, Merlin, I'm not quiet because I'm not alright with it," Gwaine quickly assured, after seeing the look on his face. Both the king and the warlock let out a sigh of relief. The former, for obvious reasons, and the latter because he knew from his own example how painful it would be for Merlin if it went the other way.

"I think it's great you stayed all those years and put up with everything, even Uther," he looked apologetically at Arthur, but the king nodded subtly, signaling his acceptance. "From what I've seen, there aren't many who would do that. I just got sad that you were alone in this, and felt stupid for saying dumb things about magic sometimes."


"Merlin, you are not a servant at this dinner."

"I'm sorry, sire, it's hard to break the habit."

"Of course, now you are calling me that. And there's no one person here who would take it seriously."

Everyone laughed as Merlin joined them at the table. With the king's servant being temporarily off his duties, they all missed the pair's constant banter. Well, to be fair, Merlin's time off wasn't exactly effective in separating them, but still, they did fight less when there was no armor to polish. Though there might have been a couple other reasons for that too.

It had been about two weeks since Gwaine woke up. As soon as he recovered enough and Merlin's symptoms and nightmares lessened a bit, the queen thought that after everything they had been through, they deserved to celebrate. Together with the king, they decided that it wasn't yet the time for large feasts. After all, those always had an air of formality about them. And what they all could do with was letting off some steam and being able to talk about everything openly, while enjoying a meal with friends.

So, there were only seven of them, counting Merlin who tried to disguise himself as one of the servants for a brief moment. Eventually, he found his place at the table filled with different kinds of meat and fruit, with servants going around, offering soup and wine.

After some time, the king noticed that the warlock refused for his goblet to be refilled several times in a row and eyed him suspiciously, surprised by his cautious attitude.

"Merlin, for someone who spent so much time in the tavern-" he started, and almost blushed when another realization of his gullibility dawned on him. "-Oh. Were you ever actually in the tavern?"

Merlin laughed. "Sometimes, when I was looking for Gwaine. But it was mostly Gaius trying to humiliate me more."

"A good thing then that Gaius has never embarrassed himself in the tavern," suggested Leon, thinking back to the time when the physician, possessed by a goblin, spat beer in his face, which almost ended in a duel.

"Show an old man some respect, sir Leon," joked Gaius. "You know it wasn't really me."

Gwen and Arthur exchanged brief looks, sensing the approaching danger. Someone dared to talk about the week that never happened, one that definitely didn't involve any farts or donkey ears.

"Hang on, can anyone tell us the whole story?" pleaded Gwaine, gesturing at Percival and himself, who weren't in Camelot around that time. As could be expected, unlike Merlin, he wasn't holding back when it came to wine.

It was hard to tell if the warlock didn't notice threatening looks on the king and queen's faces, or if he conveniently chose not to. "Well, Gaius was possessed by a goblin and played tricks on everyone. He made Uther go bald, he spat beer in Leon's face and gave him warts, got me thrown into dungeons for sorcery-" he paused for a moment, realizing the last one was actually lawful.

"Merlin, don't you dare finish," warned him Arthur, and the warlock looked at Gwaine and Percival, and breathed "I'll tell you later." Then, he decided to quietly pretend to focus on the piece of meat on his plate. The memory of farts and donkey ears was just too good to let go of it so quickly.


"Alright, I want to say something, before Gwaine passes out," the king announced, raising from his chair. He looked around the table. "No, I'm sorry, Gwaine. I've just noticed that, to my surprise, Leon outdid you this time."

Everyone but Leon chuckled, with Gwaine and Percival murmuring cheerfully to each other. Arthur assessed the situation correctly, which was, to say the least, an unexpected development. Not to say that Leon wasn't more gracious in his current state than many when at their best. Or, that even if he was drunker than Gwaine on that particular occasion, he could compete with his fellow knight's most significant achievements, like flying across tables or making twenty new friends and several mortal enemies in less than half an hour. Still, there was no way around it. Right now, sir Leon, who they hardly ever saw doing as much as slouching a little, was the only one at the table who couldn't sit straight anymore. Not that anybody would blame him. After all, they did have a lot to celebrate, and there weren't many people who loved Camelot more or rejoiced more in her victories.

"Anyway," Arthur started again, and the chatter, as well as the clattering of cutlery, plates and goblets, ceased. "Some years ago, just after becoming king, I had a moment of stupidity. I told Merlin that I'm now king and I don't need anyone to share my burden. That foolish idea was only with me for a brief moment. But now, more than ever, I realize how much I've needed each of you, and how you've never failed me. A lot has happened, we lost those we loved, we were turned against each other, often divided by those who I wrongly trusted. But you always found your way back."

He paused for a moment, taking another glance at everyone. "And I couldn't be more grateful that you are all here now, that we reached this happy moment together. So, I think that if ever there was a time to compete with Gwaine, Leon chose the right one," he finished with a joke and raised his goblet.


I'm very grateful to all of you who keep reading the story, and especially those who took time to review.

Mersan123, I'm a little conflicted on whether Merlin pushed them but I'll PM you about this, as it may be a bit chaotic :) Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the chapter!

Vanvdreamer, yes, I feel that after all those years, it's about time for their friendship to finally mature. Thanks!

Gingeraffealene, that's what I missed so much in the show, time for everyone to process things together, which is why I'm giving them that. So they don't all develop some serious PTSD :) Thank you!

I'm not sure, maybe I'll update again before/during holiday (it's quite likely) but just in case, here's the promised light chapter that I hope fits the mood. The next two chapters (well, mainly the latter but there will be hints in the next one too) will set the tone for new adventures and what they will revolve around :)