Epilogue
Five years. It's been five years since merlin left the hospital on the eve of Arthur's wedding.
Morgana was sitting outside of Gaius's office, cursing Merlin's need to go in alone. Every year for the past five years, Morgana has had to play the same role. She only hoped that this was the last time.
She looked up as Merlin stepped out of the office and shook Gaius's hand with a grim look on his face.
Morgana felt her breath hitch with fear. "It's back isn't it? Don't try to spare me, just come right out and say it," Morgana said. She could feel fear rise up. They had been so close to Merlin being considered cured. So close. There was no actual cure for cancer, but five years in remission and he was considered cured. This didn't mean his cancer would never come back, but it was unlikely.
"Bad news," Merlin said glumly. Morgana took a deep breath. "My results came back completely normal. I'm going to be here for a long, long time to bother you."
Morgana couldn't help but return Merlin's infectious smile. "You're okay?" Morgana asked, just to confirm.
"I'm okay," Merlin promised her.
Morgana launched herself at Merlin and hugged him close to her. Merlin held her soothingly, kissing her hair and telling her everything was fine.
Merlin took a step back from her several minutes later. "Morgana?" Merlin asked hesitantly.
"Yes?" Morgana asked curiously.
"Do you remember five years ago when we were standing in my bedroom here? I told you that I made a deal with God. If he put me into remission, I would stop being a coward and finally kiss you," Merlin said. He had a strange look in his eyes.
"How could I forget?" Morgana asked amused. "I saw a different side of you that day."
Merlin chuckled. "Well, I made another deal with god a few days ago. I told him if my results came back clear, I would stop being a coward and do something I was too scared to do otherwise," Merlin told her with a sigh.
"You're not going sky diving are you? I know you mentioned that once, five years ago, but I honestly thought you were joking and..." Morgana's voice trailed off as she watched Merlin slide down to one knee. "Merlin...What are you doing?"
"Being brave," Merlin told her. "Morgana Pendragon. You have been there for me at my weakest moments. You have never once turned your back on me. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" After Morgana was staring at Merlin shocked for several minutes, Merlin began to lose confidence.
"Keep in mind that I have cancer and if you say no, everyone will think you're a heartless bitch," Merlin said in a joking voice. He had to joke, because that was the only way he could hide how upset he was that Morgana didn't say yes yet and didn't look like she was going to.
Little did he know that Morgana's mind was working faster than her body. In her head, she had already said yes. She was trying to figure out who she wanted to invite to her wedding. She was trying to figure out what she wanted her wedding dress to look like. She was figuring out what kind of cake she wanted at the reception.
In fact, Morgana probably wouldn't have realized that she hadn't said anything yet if it weren't for Merlin's embarrassed rambling. "It's okay if you don't say yes, I would just really like it if you said something," Merlin asked hopelessly.
Morgana snapped out of her haze. "Yes," she whispered. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"
"Yes?" Merlin confirmed.
"Yes," Morgana agreed.
This time, Merlin was the one to pull her close to him. He bent down slightly and pressed their lips together. The kiss soon picked up. Merlin never wanted this moment to end.
"Hey! I've got young children here," a voice warned.
Merlin and Morgana broke apart, both very red in the face.
"What are you doing here?" Morgana asked.
"I just wanted to support my best friend as he proposed to his girlfriend of five years," Arthur said innocently.
"You told him?" Morgana asked. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised."
"Who do you think was the mastermind behind this proposal?" Arthur asked.
"Merlin," Morgana answered instantly.
"Fair enough, but I was there to support him," Arthur hold her.
Morgana rolled her eyes. "Speaking of little children, where are the little devils?" She asked affectionately, looking around.
As if on cue, a little boy came running towards them, followed by Gwen who was carrying their ten month old daughter, Freya. Merlin still gets choked up sometimes when he thinks about her name.
"Uncle Merlin!" The boy screamed as he ran towards Merlin. Merlin scooped him up and spun him around so he was shrieking wildly.
"No hi Aunt Morgana?" Morgana asked jokingly.
The little boy hid his face in Merlin's shirt. "Hey, it's okay," Merlin said soothingly. The little boy refused to unhide his head. "Hey, Elian. Aunt Morgana has candy for you."
Elian immediately picked his head up and looked at Morgana hopefully. Morgana chuckled as she looked around in her purse, trying to find candy. Elian was like that with everyone. The only way he warmed up to someone was if they gave them candy. With one exception. Merlin.
Arthur always jokes that it was meant to be that way. Merlin was just meant to be best friends with Arthur's children. Arthur's first son was named after Gwen's late brother. He had died in a car accident the year before she started high school.
When Morgana held out her hands, Elian eagerly went to her, sucking on the candy Morgana gave him.
Merlin smiled. His life just couldn't get any better.
Merlin was proven wrong, exactly one year later, when Morgana was walking down the aisle towards him. When she got to him, he took her hand and he had no intention of letting go. Merlin couldn't figure out how anyone getting married would ever be able to pay attention to the priest. If Morgana's hold on his hand hadn't tightened, he probably wouldn't have realized that they were supposed to recite vows. Merlin and Morgana had decided they would write their own vows.
Merlin went first. "Morgana, six years ago, I made a deal with God. I told him if he made me better, I would do something I was normally too cowardly to do. That's how I stand before you today, ready to make you my wife," Merlin told her.
"Merlin, if you had told me seven years ago when I first met you that I would be in love with you and would be willing to marry you, I would have told you, you were crazy. But then I got to know you, and I fell in love with you. Everything I learned about you made me love you more. That's how I came to stand before you, willing to become your wife," Morgana said. There were tears in her eyes and she wasn't even trying to hide it. She never thought it was possible to be this happy. They turned to the priest. The priest still had to ask them if they wanted to get married. He was just going to do it without the in sickness and in health mumbo jumbo.
"Do you Morgana Pendragon take Merlin Emrys to be your lawfully wedded husband?" The priest asked her.
"I do," Morgana promised.
"And do you Merlin Emrys take Morgana Pendragon to be your lawfully wedded wife?" The priest asked.
"I do," Merlin promised.
"Then by the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride," the priest declared.
Merlin carefully wiped away the tears Morgana had shed before he pressed his lips to hers. The church erupted with cheers, but Merlin couldn't make himself pay attention to his guests. He was faintly aware of Arthur and Gwen pushing him and Morgana down the aisle, but he really couldn't take his eyes off his beautiful wife. Life really couldn't get any better than this.
Merlin was once again proven wrong just four months later. Merlin had just gotten back from medical school and he was literally ready to fall asleep. It was his third year of medical school and he had to hope it would get easier from here.
His hopes of going back to their little house to sleep, were crushed when he walked in and saw Morgana sitting at the kitchen table eating a pint of ice cream. Something was wrong. Merlin braced himself, ready to be told that something was wrong with Arthur or that Morgana had gotten fired from her job.
Morgana worked as a fashion consultant for an online company and she loved every minute of it. Her office was right around the corner from their house which was extremely convenient for them.
"Morgana, what's wrong?" Merlin asked her anxiously.
"Nothing's wrong," she told him sincerely. "Something's right. Very, very right."
"Er… then what's right?" Merlin asked her confused.
Morgana stared at her pint of ice cream for a very long time. "I'm pregnant," Morgana blurted out.
Merlin stared at her shocked and then in the next moment, he had wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. "That's great!" He said excitedly. "I'm going to be a father. You're going to be a mother. We're going to be parents!"
"You're… you're not upset?" Morgana asked surprised. "What happened to the whole no babies until I'm out of medical school thing?"
Merlin shrugged. "I'll only have one year left when the baby is born. Close enough," he told her.
"You're really excited about this aren't you?" Morgana asked.
Merlin nodded eagerly. "I've got to call Arthur!" Merlin said, looking through his bad frantically to find his cell phone.
Morgana groaned. "You and Arthur gossip like old ladies," she complained jokingly. It didn't really upset her. She loved that Merlin had a friend like Arthur.
Merlin stuck his tongue out at her childishly and called Arthur. He didn't even wait for Arthur to say hello. "MORGANA IS PREGNANT!" Merlin screamed excitedly. "Hello?" His smile turned into a small frown. "He hung up on me."
"Probably because you just screamed into the phone," Morgana pointed out.
Merlin was about to say something back when he was interrupted by a knock on the door. "Who could that be?" He asked confused as he went to open the door.
Morgana rolled her eyes. She knew exactly who it would be. Sure enough, ten seconds later, Gwen's squeal filled the room. "Congratulations! Where's Morgana?" Gwen asked. She hugged Merlin and then looked at him expectantly.
"Kitchen," Merlin told her.
"Congratulations man," Arthur told him, giving him a man hug.
"Thanks," Merlin said with a grin.
"YOU'RE PREGNANT TOO?" He heard Morgana screech from the kitchen.
Arthur chuckled. "There goes my news," he said amused.
Merlin shook his head. "You're going to be one of those freaky people that have twenty kids, aren't you?" He asked jokingly.
Arthur shook his head. "Me and Gwen want a big family, but not that big," he told Merlin. "Besides it's only our third child."
"Yeah. And you're only twenty four," Merlin pointed out.
"Well, like I said before, I want a big family," Arthur repeated.
"I think I might want a big family too. How do I break that to Morgana?" Merlin asked.
"You don't. You just hope for a lot of happy accidents," Arthur joked.
Merlin and Arthur chuckled. Merlin was excited to start this new chapter of his life.
Seven months later, Arthur and Merlin were standing by the half wall that separates the kitchen and the living room. Morgana and Gwen were sitting in the kitchen with pints of ice cream balanced on their swollen stomachs. Merlin had to admit, when Morgana had started to blow up like she had swallowed a planet, he was concerned. But he got over it quickly. Morgana was beautiful, even if she was pregnant. They were complaining about how their husbands don't understand the pains of being pregnant. Well Gwen was complaining. Morgana was bragging.
Apparently Arthur refused to do anything for Gwen after midnight. Whereas, Merlin was the poster boy for star husband. When Morgana woke him up at 3:00 am and begged him to get her pickles and vanilla ice cream, Merlin didn't hesitate to jump out of bed and do it, something to which Morgana appreciated to no end.
"You're making me look bad," Arthur whispered as they watched Gwen and Morgana eat.
"I can't help it. The second she asks me to do something, I want to do it. For our baby," Merlin explained.
"Wait until you're on your third kid," Arthur pointed out. "You won't be this eager."
"Every child me and Morgana have will be a miracle," Merlin said. "I'm not supposed to be able to have children. Most cancer patients that get chemo become infertile. I'm one of the rare ones that didn't."
Arthur looked at Merlin shocked, but it explained why Merlin and Morgana had been so excited when they found out she was pregnant.
"Merlin!" Morgana called.
Morgana immediately had his undivided attention. "Yes dear?" He asked her.
"Oreos?" She asked, batting her eyelashes.
Merlin chuckled. "Anything else?" He asked.
She shook her head. "Just oreos," she told him.
"Gwen, would you like anything?" Merlin asked her.
"Look at that. He's being polite. And considering my poor pregnant feelings," Gwen said loudly in Arthur's direction. "Yes, I would like… hmmm…"
"Peanut butter!" Morgana added. "Oreos and peanut butter!"
"Ooh. That sounds lovely," Gwen agreed.
"If you think of anything else you want, call me and let me know," Merlin said. He kissed Gwen's cheek and then gave Morgana a short kiss.
He left, dragging Arthur with him. "How do you do that?" Arthur asked incredulously.
"Do what?" Merlin asked obliviously.
"Act like you want to get them all that stuff," Arthur said.
"Because I do want to get them that stuff. I love Morgana. When she's upset, I'm upset. I do everything in my power to make sure she's not upset," Merlin explained.
"Oh that's good. I'm stealing that line next time Gwen tries to get me to sleep on the couch," Arthur said eagerly.
Arthur drove to the store, listening to Merlin gush about how excited he was to have a kid.
When they got to the store, Arthur was shocked when Merlin didn't just get oreos and peanut butter. He got marshmallows and ice cream and gummy bears.
"What are you doing?" Arthur asked him confused.
"I know my wife. Trust me," Merlin told him.
"Overachiever," Arthur grumbled.
"Prat," Merlin shot back.
Needless to say, when they got back, Morgana was overjoyed to see that Merlin had gotten extra food for her. Gwen kept shooting Arthur meaningful looks.
And less than a month later, Gwen went into labor. Her water had broken and the baby was born before the ambulance got to their house. Gwen had been home alone and immediately had called Morgana, who had hobbled to the living room where Merlin was reading and told him.
Merlin had sprinted to Gwen's house, knowing Morgana would rather be left behind.
When Merlin got there, Gwen was crying and clutching her stomach. Merlin had studied enough to know that this baby wanted out.
"Gwen, I know you're scared, but you have to trust me," Merlin told her. "The baby is coming and they might come before the ambulance gets here."
Gwen shrieked. "I'm going to kill Arthur," she growled.
"Gwen, look at me. Concentrate on the baby," Merlin told her. Mentally apologizing to Arthur, he hitched up Gwen's skirt and got ready to help Gwen give birth. "Push Gwen."
Morgana walked in and held Gwen's hand. Morgana was out of breath, but had a determined look on her face.
Gwen screamed and pushed. It only took about five minutes before the baby was born, screaming its tiny little head off.
Merlin jumped into action, knowing he only had a few minutes. After the most stressful couple of minutes of his life, Merlin had tied all the knots that needed to be ties. He could hear the sirens of the ambulance and he was grateful. He was fairly certain he did everything right, but he wanted to make sure.
Gwen and the baby were put in the ambulance. Merlin grabbed the baby bag he knew Gwen and Arthur had been preparing for weeks. He got Freya's car seat and carefully buckled her and Elian into the car. Merlin and Morgana drove behind the ambulance the entire way there. Morgana called Arthur from the car. Morgana didn't even get past 'your wife is in the hospital' before Arthur had hung up the phone, no doubt telling his boss he had to leave work early. It's not like he had any real work to do. He had no court cases this week, so he was just preparing for the following week.
When Merlin and Morgana got there, they gave the nurses strict orders to update them on Gwen and the baby's condition. They sat in the waiting room.
A couple minutes later a frantic looking Arthur burst in. "My wife. Guinevere Pendragon. Where is she?" Arthur asked frantically.
The nurses pointed him in the right direction. Merlin didn't bother calling out to him. He knew Arthur needed to be with Gwen right now. Eventually, Elian fell asleep, his head resting on Morgana's stomach. Morgana was soon to follow.
Arthur came out to the waiting room a few hours later, his eyes still red from crying. Merlin carefully shifting his sleeping wife and stood up. He was careful not to shake Freya who was still asleep in his arms. "What's wrong?" Merlin asked anxiously.
"You saved them," Arthur whispered. "If you hadn't known what to do, I could have lost my daughter and my wife."
"I just did what anyone would have done," Merlin told him.
"No Merlin. You did what only my best friend could have done. Thank you," Arthur told him.
Merlin felt the joy surge up in him. He was lucky to have a friend like Arthur. While there definitely have been things that threatened their friendship, they always made it through. They survived the test of friendship. And in the end, that's all that really matters to them.