He lightly touched his stomach, feeling the roundness. There was no denying his current condition, no matter what shirt he might choose to wear and he'd had to put in several new notches in his belt in the past two months. He sighed as he cinched it shut, gasping in surprise as abruptly he felt Arthur grab him from behind and kiss his neck. "Not a good idea," he muttered. "My magic is kind of volatile right now."

"You'd never hurt me," Arthur told him, running his hands over Merlin's stomach in a loving caress. "Did you sleep well?"

"I miss being able to sleep on my stomach," he complained. "This is all your fault."

His husband had the gall to only laugh at him. "It's half yours, Merlin."

"…It's still all your fault."

"Are you going to come with me to court? You haven't been in a while," the king asked, changing the subject and lightly nipping at his ear.

He shifted in concern. "I was trying not to make it worse for you with the nobles."

The frown from Arthur could probably be felt all over the castle. "I've had it with their demands."

It had come down to threats now. At least two of the lords had threatened to break with Camelot and revolt if the child wasn't aborted and a third wanted the marriage annulled and Merlin burned for his sorcery and attempt to 'create an unnatural life'. Heavy pressure from the king had kept all the other lords in line and they had eventually fallen in beside Arthur. Unfortunately the three that were against them had the largest fiefdoms in the kingdom. If revolt wasn't a bad enough prospect, threatening to pull all the troops and the knights from their lands from Camelot's service was an added concern.

"I thought this would solve your problem, not create more."

"This isn't your fault," Arthur told him staunchly. "Now are you coming to court with me or not? I won't force you, but I do want to see you there. Let the other lords know what they're fighting for."

As if he could say no to that! Merlin sighed and nodded. "Fine, I'll come."

Arthur's arm wrapped around his waist and he led Merlin to the audience room. That second throne was still there, sitting almost like a monstrosity as it waited for him. He repressed another sigh and sat down, leaning back in it and not caring that it was not a kingly way of sitting in the least. In fact, he was almost sprawled in the seat and there were a few disapproving looks, but Arthur merely chuckled indulgently and took his seat. His hand reached out to rest over Merlin's before easing forward a bit more, as if he wasn't aware of what he was doing, and let his fingertips land on his rounded stomach.

Honestly, court bored Merlin to tears even as he desperately tried to pay attention. The younger lords that were around their age, perhaps a bit older, seemed the most relaxed of the nobles. There were three conspicuously empty seats and Arthur eyed them in contemplation. The conversation was dull until the doors opened and Leon entered with a grim look on his face.

"Sire, we have received an ultimatum from Lords Black, Chilton, and Harrow. They demand the child's death and the marriage annulled, or they will side with Camelot's enemies to destroy her."

Merlin felt a cold chill go down his spine and he quickly glanced at Arthur. The man was looking absolutely murderous and he stood slowly. "As King of Camelot, I strip them of their title and land. Do any of them have children?"

"Lord Harrow has a daughter, Elizabeth."

"Then all his lands will go to her and she will be the Lady Harrow." There were faint gasps in shock and Merlin's eyes widened. He had never heard from any history that any female in Camelot had attained such rank. "Make it understood to her that she will take her father's land, title, and rank, provided she swears fealty to the crown and supports Camelot."

"Against her own father?" someone asked.

"Yes. If she chooses to follow his path, then a steward will be appointed the land." He turned to his knights. "Lancelot, Lord Black's lands now belong to you."

Honestly, Merlin thought Lancelot's jaw might hit the floor. "Y-Yes, sire, but…are you sure?"

"He has no living relatives and you have earned those lands and title more than he ever did. You can choose your own steward of your lands to report to you in Camelot if you still wish to remain by my side."

"I do, sire."

"As for Lord Chilton…" He glanced at the other knights, but Merlin saw perceptible shakes of their heads. Arthur abruptly turned to him, making him blink in surprise. "I give Merlin the land."

"What? What do I know… What would I do with it?"

"Whatever you want, Merlin. I have no objection if you, for example, wanted to build a school there."

A school? What would he—Merlin's eyes grew wide as saucers as he realized just what Arthur was telling him. "A school for magic?"

"If that's what you want. Take care of those that still live there in their farms and livelihoods and they will support whatever you wish." Arthur smiled just a little. "His lands are bordered by mountains with plenty of caves." Merlin leaned over the table to see the map where Arthur was pointing. Chilton's lands were bordered by three other fiefdoms and backed by steep hills and mountain ranges, so while it wasn't exactly the heart of the kingdom, it would be one of the last to be affected by any sort of invasion.

"For practice. And other things." Like dragons. Merlin grinned in a delighted manner as prospects he had never remotely considered came to light. A haven for the druid people, home for Kilgharrah and Aithusa, and a school where people with magic like him could learn. It might be a bit far from the capital, but he could make it work.

"Will you accept it, Merlin?"

The idea that he would be a noble wasn't quite clicking with him, but then again, he had trouble thinking of himself as royalty after he'd married Arthur, and the weight of the responsibility was sitting heavily on him even then, but the possibilities of what he could accomplish negated any thought of not following through.

"Yes. Yes, absolutely!"

"Good. Leon, relay my commands. Black, Chilton, and Harrow are banished from my kingdom."

Leon bowed. "Yes, sire."

As court ended an hour later, Merlin waited until the room was empty except for the two of them before saying anything. "Won't this cause an uprising?"

"I'm hoping not," Arthur told him, bracing his hands on the table and staring at the map. "By stripping them of their nobility they won't have the power to order any soldiers to do anything. They might be able to find people that are discontented with my rule, but I'm hoping not many and that less than half will be warriors. Even if the three lords unite those they find willing to side with them in their lands, unless it's the entirety of those that live there, they wouldn't be able to successfully mount an attack. They could be disarmed with a minimum of bloodshed."

"And if they leave to one of your enemies?"

"Then they leave. In all honesty, that's what I'd prefer. Most of those that would stand against me would have little sympathy for them and unless they could prove themselves of great use, would likely not get very far in starting a war. None of them are warriors even in their prime and they do not know as much as they think they do of Camelot's secrets that they could barter for something else."

Merlin stood up and came up behind the king, looking over his shoulder at the map, but he didn't really think Arthur was seeing it so much as something in his mind. "Is there anything I can do?"

"I know how much you want the answer to be yes, but not really, Merlin. This is gambling not on magic or swords, but on how people feel. I have either done enough by my people to have them stand at my side, or I failed. This will be a judgment on me as king, nothing more and nothing less."

"If you're right, then we don't need to worry."

Arthur snorted, finally lifting his head to look at him. "You never doubt, do you?"

"Doubt what?"

"That I'm a good king."

"Never," he said honestly, letting his husband see his conviction in his eyes. "I knew you would be a good king before you were king."

Arthur's arm slowly snaked around his waist, pulling him close, and Merlin melted into the kisses. "If you keep praising me, I might soon start to have an ego."

"Like you don't have one already," Merlin half-complained with a smile.

"Careful, I'll put you in the stocks again."

"You wouldn't and you know it."

"And why wouldn't I?"

"Because if I'm in the stocks, you can't get what you need from me." Merlin winked with a grin.

Arthur's eyes darkened in delight and he began to smirk. "Oh, I don't know. You would be bent over…"

There was the sound of someone clearing their throat as Merlin began to contemplate throne sex and he sighed a bit. "Sorry, Gaius is waiting for me."

"Helping him today?"

"Yes, and he's going to check me out."

Arthur gave him a contemplative look before turning to the physician standing quietly in the doorway. "Gaius, can you do your exam here?"

What Merlin called The Eyebrow rose. It could convey so many things: disapproval, surprise, and this time it was intrigued. "I can. I'm assuming it's because you want to see to his health?"

"I hardly think that dignifies an answer."

Gaius actually smiled a bit as he came around the table near the thrones. Merlin sat up on the tabletop. "You're quite protective, sire."

"I've treated Merlin as I always have."

Merlin shared a glance with Gaius, and The Eyebrow stated its disbelief. Arthur had become downright overprotective since he'd conceived and that had been saying something. He didn't mention it though, instead sitting still for Gaius' exam. Both his mentor and his husband had insisted on it every two weeks or so and Merlin found that it was pointless to argue. They'd tie him to a chair if they had to, as he had very unhappily found out the first time he'd tried putting them off.

He watched Arthur as Gaius announced that he was healthy and then moved to check on the baby. "Is your stomach still tender, Merlin?"

"Yeah. Not worse than when it started, but not better either."

"I don't expect it will get better until after you give birth." Gaius prodded him as gently as he could before he stepped back a bit. "I see no problems yet, but I have to warn you both: I think this is a very fragile situation. If any trauma happens to Merlin's stomach, I would be willing to say in my medical opinion that he will lose the baby. I would highly recommend that any heavy physical activity be kept to a minimum and Merlin should not be leaving Camelot for any reason until after the baby is born."

"Gaius, I'm fine!" Merlin protested.

"You're underestimating the amount of stress you're putting your body under, Merlin. You may not feel it now, you're only in your fourth month, but soon you will. The more the baby grows, the more delicate your condition. You may be the greatest sorcerer to walk this world, but you have asked your body to do something it was not designed for. It has done as you asked, but don't ask it to do more. If you lose the baby because you were not careful enough, you may never have the opportunity again."

Merlin wanted to argue more, but one glance at Arthur's serious and slightly stricken face, and he knew there was no point. While he was stubborn, it would get him nowhere with his husband. Arthur would lock him in a room as many times as necessary even if Merlin could merely unlock the doors with his magic.

Nor could he deny that Gaius' words put a bit of fear in his mind. He didn't want to lose their child, or risk that he could never have another. He found himself putting his hand on his stomach, biting his lip in worry. He owed it to the life he carried to be more careful. While he could play with his own life, confident that he could survive and take care of himself, he couldn't play with the child's, just as he couldn't play with Arthur's. There was no risk worth that. If their safety depended on his own, then he would do anything possible to make sure that he was all right.

"Fine. No leaving Camelot and lifting heavy things."

"And if you're going to be intimate, be careful."

Merlin blushed. "Gaius! I'm not that fragile!"

Gaius finally smiled a little. "I suppose not, at least right now, and I doubt any warnings I give in that regard would be followed."

Arthur shifted next to him and Merlin felt a bit of dread go down his spine as he finally spoke for the first time since the exam had started. "If that's the case, then perhaps we should—"

"If you're about say that we should stop having sex entirely, my baby won't have a father because I'll kill him."

"Merlin—"

"Gaius!" he practically begged.

Gaius looked between the two and said, "You don't need to go to such extreme lengths, Your Majesty. Such activities can be considered stress-relieving, which I'm sure Merlin would appreciate. Just keep an appropriate amount of caution and consider your surroundings and you should be fine."

Arthur glanced between them, but he finally relented, trusting the physician's judgment. "Very well. Merlin, I'll see you tonight."

Merlin slid off the table to follow his mentor and help him with what he needed, but he smiled brightly at Arthur. "It's a date!"