Merlin slipped into his now-familiar seat at the Round Table, brushing a bit of dust off the ancient stone seat as he sat down. Glancing around, he couldn't help but be amazed at how far the little group around the table had come in a few short months. Mordred sat across the table, laughing at something Gwaine had just said. Leon, Elyan, and Percival were not-so-subtly playing cards as they waited for the king and queen. And, most surprisingly of all, Lancelot no longer sat alone, but had Elaine at his side. A month or so after the elections, the knight had brought his request to let her in on their secret, which the group had unanimously decided to grant. To everyone's surprise, the little artist had taken the news quite well. After the initial shock, which was to be expected, it had only taken a brief display of magic from Merlin and Mordred to convince her that there was a whole different world that she had just become a part of. Today was the first meeting of the Round Table since she had become one of them, so it was her first day in the citadel. Now she sat, in the extra seat Merlin had magicked up for her, gazing at everything around her with the wonder and thoughtful eye of an artist.
Finally, Arthur and Gwen entered the room, causing all the others to quickly rise before they all sat down together. Unfortunately, this was not a particularly interesting meeting. They met as often as they could manage, just to keep tabs on what was going on and continue to ensure their efforts were all coordinated. Arthur had risen to a post in the cabinet, as an undersecretary in the ministry of defense, courtesy of some old, very powerful friends of his family's. Although he had been initially reluctant to accept, Gwen and Merlin convinced him that gaining a foothold, however slight, was a good thing for achieving their goals of actually having some effect on caring for the people of the land. Oddly enough, the position suited him (although the king in him was impatient at the relative lowliness of his work and influence) and he was rapidly becoming quite popular within their party.
As the king brought up the various dull points of discussion, the knights struggled to pay attention. Gwaine was just about to nod off when a slight movement caught his eye- Mordred, shifting awkwardly in his seat. Suddenly, the young knight's body tensed up, and Gwaine could tell he was fighting to stay as still as possible. Unluckily for Mordred, Arthur had noticed him too.
"Mordred? Are you alright?" he asked. Mordred gritted his teeth and turned a small smile to the blond man.
"Yes, milord. Just a little cramp from the other day. Don't worry, Arthur, go on," he replied. Shrugging, Arthur returned to the matters at hand, but Gwaine noticed another slight movement, this time from the warlock at Arthur's right hand. For a fleeting moment, Gwaine was sure he saw a smirk flash across his friend's face before returning to pretending to pay attention. What's that about? he wondered.
After the meeting ended and everyone was milling about before they left, Gwaine grabbed Merlin's arm as he passed.
"All right, Merlin, spill. What in God's name were you doing back there that had young Mordred so tense?" he asked. "And don't deny it- I saw you smirking when Arthur called him on it, and I'm certain a little prank is something your magic could easily handle. So...what did you do?" The knight was surprised to see a slow, almost naughty grin spread across the warlock's face.
"I've told you magic users can communicate with their minds, right? Well, Mordred and I discovered that, for magic users who are personally close, like friends or family-"
"Or lovers," Gwaine interrupted with a grin.
"Or lovers," Merlin agreed with only a slight blush before continuing, "that the telepathy can extend beyond just words. One can project images, sensory feelings, sometimes emotions, memories, all of that, to share with the person on the other end of the telepathic bond. And the receiving person will see or hear or feel whatever is being sent- and, a memory, for instance, would come across even stronger if the memory is shared by them both." Gwaine still didn't understand, his brow creasing in confusion as Merlin's smirk only widened. "Oh, come on, Gwaine. You of all people should figure this out. What shared, sensory memory could I possibly have made Mordred experience that would make him react like that?" Finally, Gwaine understood, blushing at first, then guffawing and clapping his old friend on the back. Just then, Mordred passed by the two of them.
"See you at home, then, Merlin?" he asked, smiling sweetly. Merlin nodded, trying to hold back his laughter. As his lover turned to walk away, he heard his voice echo in his head, in a sweet and dangerous tone like poisoned honey. You're going to pay for that one, Emrys.
"Mordred!" Merlin exclaimed, gasping for breath. With a wicked smirk and a mischievous spark dancing in his eyes, Mordred rolled off him and flopped on his side to face the other man.
"Told you I'd make you pay for earlier, now didn't I?" he asked, the exertions of moments before lingering in the dark gleam still noticeable in his clear blue eyes. Merlin rolled his eyes before reaching out to push a damp curl out of the younger man's face.
"You certainly did," he admitted. Both shifted to curl into a more comfortable position for sleeping.
"Merlin?" Mordred asked into his lover's hair.
"Hm?"
"Do you still feel, I dunno, a bit odd?" he asked, a worried look creasing his young face. Merlin twisted to look at him.
"Yeah," he admitted. "You?" Mordred nodded.
"Even more so."
A week later, a lovely church was hosting the surprisingly small (though not so surprisingly for those who knew the couple) wedding. Despite his family's wealth and prominence, Arthur insisted (and Gwen agreed) that they act like any other couple and have a moderate, elegant ceremony.
"After all, love," Gwen had said one night as they discussed it (well, sort of), winding her hand through the gold hair she loved, "haven't we already done the big wedding thing?" As Arthur chuckled, she could feel his laughter reverberate through both their bodies.
"I suppose nothing can be quite as big as having an entire kingdom celebrating one's weddding," he teased. "Honestly, Guinevere, I couldn't care less. As long as you're at the end of that aisle, I don't care who's sitting along it or where it is."
And so it was that Arthur stood at the front of the church, Merlin at his side and Leon just a little further away, waiting nervously. Elaine entered, the maid of honor, followed by Sarah, Gwen's closest friend from school. As the music swelled, Merlin clapped a hand on Arthur's arm and gave him a reassuring smile. Arthur turned away to avoid the temptation to look at the sight he knew was drawing the attention of everyone else: his Guinevere, dressed all in white, walking towards him on Elyan's arm. Finally, he couldn't resist anymore and turned around moments before she arrived at his side. And the sight took his breath away. Gwen's sleeveless gown gleamed with lace, both modern and classic at once, and her veil held on with a small, sparkling tiara. She had obediently followed the old adage for brides: her dress was new, while the amethyst necklace she wore was older than anyone could imagine. She had borrowed the tiara from Elaine, and the knights had each given her a blue ribbon, which Mordred and Merlin had magically woven into a little patch and attached it to the underskirt of her gown. Smiling, Elyan kissed his sister's cheek, placed her hand in Arthur's, and went to stand off to the side as the king and queen once again vowed to love and honor each other all the days of their lives. As they sealed their vows with a kiss, the church broke into cheers- none louder than Merlin.
"And so you are bound once more, your lives and souls forever entwined. May you have much joy," Merlin concluded. With a flash of gold from his eyes, the thin golden thread of magic woven around Arthur and Gwen's joined hands flared brightly before fading to nothing. The group stood near the lake of Avalon, concluding a private ceremony just for the Round Table. Merlin had offered to perform a second ceremony after their "real" one, a more ancient ritual that would resemble their first wedding as well as elements of the Druids' powerful magical rites of binding. As they had earlier that day, the couple slid into each other's embrace, which deepened until Gwaine wolf-whistled. Breaking apart, Arthur and Gwen blushed slightly as they turned to accept their friends' congratulations. Each knight placed a kiss on Gwen's cheek: some grinning widely like Gwaine, others with brotherly devotion like Leon, and even Lancelot, who whispered in her ear, "We're both so happy now- I couldn't be more glad." Arthur shook each of their hands, but affectionately pulled Merlin into a quick hug and muttered his thanks for all that had been done. As they finally stood again, unconsciously moving into a rough circle, Merlin raised the cry, which the others quickly took up.
"Long live the King! Long live the Queen!"
Elaine tossed and turned in bed, having a hard time getting to sleep despite the reassuring presence of her beloved knight's arm around her slim waist. When she finally did doze off, her sleep was fraught with images ranging from the emotionally draining to the truly terrifying.
Flashes of the man who lay beside her, only in a different day and age. And he wasn't alone- in every scene, every moment, another familiar face appeared as well. It was like watching a love montage in a terrible movie, only this one wasn't just fiction. You'll always be second best, whispered the eerie and seductive voice that invariably accompanied these dreams. Why give your loyalty and your heart to one who will always belong to another, whose name will never be uttered without being paired with hers? More images flashed, now with many more familiar faces. The knights, laughing and cheerfully goofing off in a way that was utterly timeless. The king and queen, with the warlock just behind, sharing in feasts with their friends. In all these scenes, it was clear that this was a family, born out of bonds of shared battle, shared joys, and most of all, shared love. And you will always be the outsider, O Lily Maid, the voice murmured.
And as they always did, the dreams ended with a flashing series of images. A dark and eerie tower, smoke and flame on a battlefield, a gleaming city that looked so familiar in ash and ruin, a face that was cruel and beautiful all at once, and a river, a peaceful yet frightening river filled with the lilies she loved.
Waking with a start, she cried out, waking her bedmate. Gently, Lancelot reached over and wrapped her in his arms. Holding her close to his chest as he always did, the knight rubbed her back and stroked her long blonde hair, damp with the sweat from her nightmare, and whispered soothing words in her ear until she finally managed to drift back to a more peaceful sleep.
Lots going on in this chapter! I hope you all like Arthur and Gwen's wedding(s); I wanted to show it briefly but I couldn't imagine anything better than Gwen's coronation in 4x13 so I left it short and sweet. A little naughty humor courtesy of Merlin and Mordred- that's a moment I actually imagined way back when I started the story! And Elaine's dreams...Shout out again to starglen in this chapter for being my expert on all things British, especially helping keep my political plot thread accurate, and to TheAlienDoctor and Agana of the night for continued reviews! I know it's a lot to ask, but do you think you guys could get me to 100 reviews? As always, much love and gratitude to everyone!