Chapter 29
Christmas Eve was a wonderful day. Arthur and Merlin spent it together, eating and sharing gifts. What they considered their family, or the thirteen people and three dogs which included all the adults who owned Albion, their children and Mary, were all meeting up on actual Christmas so the individual families were spending private time together the day before instead. And that was all because Merlin and Arthur were going to Ireland for the New Year which was when the group would usually get together to celebrate through the holidays. So instead of spending New Year together, they were spending Christmas together. It felt wrong not to celebrate something important all together.
Merlin was completely cleared from his injuries and back at work full time. The police were fairly sure they'd found all of the men involved in the assault and interviews were taking place to find out more. Merlin was getting calls regularly to request his story again or ask a very specific question. But they'd all appear in court in the New Year so they weren't particularly worried.
Merlin's book was coming along brilliantly. Arthur was so proud of him. He'd read it multiple times and everything was written so beautifully. It scanned amazingly, it was structured amazingly, it was overall just an amazing piece of work. The only thing he was struggling with was an ending. His life wasn't over, he was still alive, there were still things happening to him. He'd written about all his experiences. Losing family members, dealing with rough family history, getting through horrible, horrible things. Things including illness or injury or loved one's illness or injury. He'd explained what it had felt like, what his thought processes had been through it all in a way that made such perfect sense. So how did he wrap it up?
"How did we fall asleep like this?" Arthur groaned in the morning when they woke up in a very peculiar position and both very naked.
Merlin realised he was looking at the world upside down so turned over but found himself lying across Arthur horizontally, the base of Merlin's spine pressed against Arthur's belly button. "I have no idea."
Arthur lifted him and repositioned them both so they were spooning. Merlin looked over his shoulder and kissed Arthur, "Happy Christmas."
"Happy Christmas, gorgeous."
When Arthur woke up again, Killi and Aithusa had hopped onto the bed with them and Merlin was snoring softly. Arthur chuckled affectionately and watched Merlin for a while, cherishing the peacefulness of his expression. Then he gently pinched Merlin's nose and laughed as he snorted, snuffled and jumped awake.
"You've never snored before," Arthur teased gently.
"You do it all the time," Merlin retorted, "Like a hippo."
"A hippo?"
"Loud and makes the whole bed vibrate."
Arthur laughed, "Come on, we need a shower. Then we need to get going."
"Any chance we could have a particularly long and steamy shower?"
Arthur began kissing Merlin's shoulders, neck and jaw. He hummed happily, "I think so."
They ended up having to have two showers because once they'd finished their first, they got out and got completely distracted by the temptations of each other's nakedness. Caught up in affections and their previous actions of the morning, they fell onto the bed, kissing each other so deeply it almost looked like they were eating each other and skin touching as much skin as it could find.
"Well," Arthur said as they got dressed after washing again, "Now that we are clean and-" he paused, "Refreshed," he decided, "You want breakfast?"
They met all their friends at their favourite beach for a long walk. And then, to make a change to how they normally did things, they went to Camelot where they'd booked a private room to have Christmas lunch. They'd done as they always did with their staff- made sure they had plenty of fair days off through the holidays so they could celebrate whichever holiday it was they needed to celebrate, given them a pay rise and sent a little gift. They did feel a little bit guilty about asking their own staff to serve them on Christmas Day but they paid at least twice as much as their meal had actually cost and some of them went down to the kitchens to help with the dishes. It felt wrong not to.
After they'd eaten, they returned to Arthur's and Merlin's, played some board games and relaxed until the evening when they had a few sandwiches then huddled around the fire outside with hot chocolate and marshmallows. There was a little bit of a scare at one point when Eira started to get clingy to Gwaine and he recognised what was going to happen immediately. As subtly as he could so as not to frighten the other children, he carried Eira inside. Merlin excused himself and followed.
They just managed to get into the bathroom when Eira started convulsing and vomiting. Gwaine cursed and put her down on her side while Merlin ran to get a glass of water. He could hear Killi barking outside and he smiled. Trust his heroic dog to know something was wrong.
"It's just because she's tired, over-excited and eaten too much unhealthy stuff," Gwaine said when Merlin came back, "We were expecting it." Eira was sitting up against him as he leaned against the bath with his arm around her. Merlin handed him the water and then started clear the vomit up.
"Don't worry," Merlin said, "It's ok."
Gwaine smiled at him gratefully and then watched Eira closely. She was staring into space, her eyes unfocused and rolling in her head while tapped all her fingers against her thumbs on each hand repetitively. Merlin glanced at Gwaine.
"It's another seizure," Gwaine explained, "A focal seizure. It happens sometimes after a fit. She's ok." He kissed the top of Eira's head.
"Do you want me to get Percy?"
"No, it's fine. But could you get her pyjamas, please?"
"Of course."
Gwaine, Percival, Eira, Lancelot, Gwen and Will were all staying overnight with Merlin and Arthur so had bags with them containing pyjamas and spare clothes. Merlin, however, wasn't expecting to find Will rummaging through Eira's backpack.
"Hey, what you looking for?" he asked gently.
"Comfy clothes for Eira and Mr Cookie," Will said, "Can I give her a cuddle?"
"I'm sure she'd like that once she's got some comfy clothes on. What have you picked out for her?"
Will held up a pair of leggings and a little fluffy jumper.
"Good job, little man," Merlin took them off him, "Why don't you find Mr Cookie and when you come back, I'm sure Eira would love that cuddle?"
"Ok."
Will had known pretty much everything since Eira had been diagnosed. They were best friends and in the same year at school. He was determined to look after her and always stuck up for her at school. It was completely adorable.
"Here you go," Merlin took the clothes into the bathroom and held them up to show Eira, "Will got them for you, I think he has a future as a fashion designer, what do you think?"
She giggled a little bit, "No."
Merlin laughed too, "Are you going to wear them anyway?"
Eira reached out for them. Merlin left the room and went back outside to join everyone. Somehow he managed to convey a full message to Percival with a single nod and a little smile. Percival looked extremely relieved and went back to sipping on his beer. Merlin cuddled up underneath the same blanket Arthur was wrapped in and rested against him, looking at the stars.
"We need to get going," Elyan said apologetically, "We promised Mary's mum we'd see her before tomorrow."
They said their goodbyes to everyone and left quietly. Inside the house, on one of the sofas in the living room, Will and Eira were asleep and cuddled together. Someone went in every so often to check on them and eventually Belle and Luke joined them too. Vilia and Aithusa had taken guard on the living room floor with them, probably deciding it was too cold outside. The adults all stayed outside, chatting and drinking and nodding off one-by-one until only Merlin, Lance and Gwaine were left awake. Gwaine was sitting on the floor with Killi, leaning against the bench and watching the flames as they danced. Lancelot had one arm around Gwen and one around Morgana while both the girls' soft breaths tickled his jumper. Merlin was still in the same position he'd been in earlier, pressed up against Arthur and staring at the stars.
"If Lance and I had a wrestling match right now would you declare the winner your best bro?" Gwaine asked thoughtfully.
"No violence on Christmas," Merlin responded.
"Ok. If we had a thumb war?"
"Would it shut you up if I pronounced you my best bro but Lance my best friend?"
"Maybe. But that doesn't make sense. Bro is a sub-category of friend so I can't be above him on one list and below him on another."
"I don't mind stepping down if it really upsets you this much," Lancelot offered.
"No that's not the same. I didn't earn it."
"Ok, well why don't you make the rules of being a 'bro' different so you can be first?"
"Cheating is no way to get to a result."
"And bugging me until I change my mind is?"
"I'm asking you how I'd go about earning a higher status so I can improve."
"Be more like me," Lancelot teased, "Then you might have a chance."
"I won't be like you," Gwaine declared, "I'll be better than you."
"You could totally abuse this power over him," Lancelot said to Merlin, "He'd do anything for you."
"Yeah, Gwaine could you go make me a cup of tea?"
"I'm your bro, not your slave."
"Worth a try," Merlin shrugged, "So you're not going to spend all night sucking up to me?"
"No. I will your respect another way."
"You have my respect, Gwaine," Merlin said.
"Not as much as Lance, though."
"Are you genuinely upset about this?" Merlin asked, "It started as a joke, you know, I don't actually-"
"I know. I'm just continuing the joke."
"Ok," Merlin smiled, "What time is it?"
"Quarter past eight. We need to get the kids up and let them run out of energy before bed. Otherwise they'll wake up at an ungodly hour and annoy us tomorrow."
Merlin and Lance chuckled.
Morgana and her family left at around nine and everyone else took that opportunity to go inside and warm up. Eira and Will sat in the kitchen with Arthur and Merlin while they washed up a few dishes. Lance, Gwen, Gwaine and Percy were sitting in the living room with a film on the tv.
"Uncle Arthur?" Eira asked.
"Yes, honey?"
"Where's everyone sleeping?"
"We haven't figured it out, yet."
"Can Will and I have a sleepover?"
"You want to sleep in the same room?"
"Yes, please."
"Ok, we'll see what we can do."
In the end and after many arguments, it was decided that Will and Eira could sleep in what was usually the twins' rooms when they stayed, Gwen and Lancelot would stay in the spare room and Gwaine and Percival were going to use the main room. Which all meant that Merlin and Arthur would be on the sofa downstairs. Which is what had caused the issues.
"It's your house, you're entitled to your own bed!" they'd protested.
"You're our guests, you deserve to sleep somewhere comfortable," Arthur had retorted.
"It's your room, we can't kick you out!"
"We're not letting you sleep on the sofa! What would you do if we were staying at yours, where would you make us sleep?"
There had been several minutes of intense glaring before Gwaine looked ready to drop the subject. "Fine. But only because Merlin doesn't look like he has the energy to get upstairs."
Arthur glanced at his husband. Merlin was stroking Aithusa lazily, eyes drooping, face clearly exhausted and hand gradually slowing.
"I blame you," Merlin yawned to Arthur when everyone had gone to bed.
"Blame me for what?"
"Me being this tired."
"Ok," Arthur tucked the blanket around them, "Why are you blaming me and not your multiple, life-long health conditions for you being tired?"
"Because you made me have sex with you this morning. Twice."
Arthur snorted, "I didn't make you do anything."
"You convinced me though. And it was…"
"Amazing? Brilliant and exhilarating?"
"I was going to say exhausting."
"Because it was so brilliant?"
"Sure."
"You're not sick, are you?"
"No."
"Ok, good."
Merlin smiled and rolled over so his and Arthur's faces were mere millimetres apart. "We need to pack."
"I know. We also have two days before we're leaving. That's plenty of time to pack."
"But we're at work for both of those days, all of those days to make up for having the past two days off."
"Everyone had the past two days off. Everyone also worked harder before the break so we wouldn't be swamped when we got back. We'll have loads of time to pack."
"Ok."
"Why do you get so talkative when you're so tired?"
"I can't help it. My mind gets buzzy when I'm tired."
Arthur rolled his eyes and pressed their noses together. "We have our best conversations when you're half asleep."
Merlin smiled and kissed Arthur, "I love you."
"Love you. Goodnight, gorgeous."
The next two days at work were completely chaotic. Someone had made the suggestion to bring the kids with them instead of finding child-care. They'd all been in the office before at weekends or days of school. But never all at the same time at Christmas. They were excitable, loud and distracting. They also made the dogs- who sat in the office perfectly every day without issue- excitable, loud and distracting.
In the end they had to split them all up so Will was downstairs with Eoghan, Eira stayed in the office, Belle was in the kitchen and Luke was with Ari at the desk upstairs.
Merlin and Arthur spent all their time at home packing and getting organised to go to Ireland. They were going in the plane which was a rare choice but they thought it'd be easiest. The weather was meant to be awful over the time they were there and the last thing they wanted was for it to be unsafe to drive or them to get stranded in a hotel again. Of course, there was a large chance their flight would be delayed or even cancelled but it was much safer.
The day they were due to go started of clear and bright. They got to the airport happy that it was unlikely for them to be delayed. Boarding was easy and Merlin took a while to reassure Arthur and calm him down as he was already starting to feel queasy with nerves.
For the first half hour, everything was as smooth as they could hope for. Arthur had his eyes squeezed shut and was jiggling his knee up and down constantly but he wasn't sick or nauseous. But then, a series of announcements came over the speakers that shook them to the bone.
"It's the pilot here, just letting you know we'll be passing near a storm in approximately four minutes, there is likely to be some turbulence but it's nothing to worry about."
Merlin took Arthur's hand and squeezed it tightly after seeing his husband's reaction. He'd squirmed in his seat and clenched his jaw.
A few minutes later, the pilot spoke again, "Hi, folks, just an update, we'll be gaining a bit of altitude to avoid the worst of the storm. Prepare for your ears to pop."
Arthur began shaking and turned green in the face. Ignoring the seatbelt sign which strictly said to stay seated, Merlin undid his and shuffled closer to Arthur, wrapping his arm around him and holding him close.
And somehow, the next few messages probably weren't meant for the cabin to hear. Either he'd left the intercom on accidentally or something had gone wrong because the whole plane could very clearly hear the pilot speaking to the ground control down below.
"I have to get above it! If the pressure drops, so do the masks and I can get us over the storm at high altitudes."
"You'll only have ten minutes!"
"Can I do it? You've got the maps and the meteorologists, you know how fast I'm going, you can do the maths. Can I get over the storm before the oxygen runs out?"
There was a pause. The entire cabin was silent in terror and anticipation. One of the flight attendants had slipped into the front, probably to inform the pilot that everything he was saying could be heard. But before the message had been conveyed, there was a response from control, "You can do it in nine and a half. But there are too many risks. Turn around, come back."
"We can't land anywhere, there are storms all over England. I have to get through it."
"You could kill all your passengers! I'm telling you, turn the plane arou-"
The sound cut off and the passengers waited fearfully to find out what was going to happen. It was clear from what they'd heard what was going on. To get through the storm without crashing the plane, the pilot wanted to fly above it. Fly too high and pressure would drop, leaving them with ten minutes of oxygen supplied through the masks before they all died. The only other option would be to turn and go back but from the sounds of it they could be circling for days before finding somewhere clear to land.
Seconds later and the plane started to rumble and shake as it was battered by wind and rain. Arthur groaned into Merlin's shoulder and began breathing heavily. "I'm going to be sick," he gasped.
"You can't get up, it's not safe."
"Water?" he asked weakly.
Merlin grabbed a bottle and opened it for him, "Here."
Arthur sipped on it shakily as the turbulence worsened. The plane tiled upwards and everyone gasped. Clearly the pilot had made his decision. Get up above the storm before they got to the worst of it. Rain was hammering against the windows as if trying to break it.
They continued to climb and climb and were all starting to feel a little bit woozy.
"Me-Merlin," Arthur breathed out.
Merlin buried his hand in Arthur's hair and massaged his scalp to soothe him, "It'll be alright."
"I'm gonna-" Arthur's weight all fell against Merlin who immediately panicked. He pushed Arthur so he was leaning against the chair, head lolling to one side. His face was a horrible colour and he was sweating all over. Merlin turned to get the attention of a flight attendant but there was mass distraction as hundreds of oxygen masks fell from the ceiling.
Merlin swore and battled with Arthur's mask to get it on him safely.
"Secure your own masks first, ladies and gentlemen, help others afterwards!"
Merlin ignored it and focused on Arthur. When he finally managed to get the mask over his husband's mouth and nose, he sighed in relief and forced his own on. The plane straightened and Merlin glanced out the window. The sky around them was white and misty and the visibility was low. There was still rain streaming against the windows but not nearly as violently. But as soon as he looked down, his heart sank. There was a dense layer of black swirling clouds. Much like in a movie, every so often it would glow electric yellow as lightning struck. And it stretched in every direction as far as he could see.
"Arthur," Merlin cried out through his mask so the sound came out muffled, "Arthur, wake up. Please, honey, please, wake up." He put his hand on Arthur's cheek and stroked his thumb against his skin, "Please. Wake up. It'll be alright, we just have to get over the storm."
Merlin curled up against him and hugged him tightly, "Arthur," he sobbed, "I don't know what to do when you're sick. You deserve for me to look after you. But I don't know how to."
He tried to breathe evenly and steadily but it was getting difficult.
For five minutes he sat, clinging onto Arthur and begging for him to wake up and speak. Then he started feeling a little light-headed and dizzy.
"No. No, no, no, not until you're alright," he looked at Arthur and slapped his cheek firmly, "Arthur!"
He looked around the plane and could see other people paling and looking terrified. The oxygen was running out.
Merlin took a deep breath and quickly lifted the mask to kiss Arthur. "I love you," he croaked out before snapping the mask back.
He fought for as long as he could. Even when he was gasping for the last tiny scraps of air, he forced his eyes to stay open and his hand to stay tightly in Arthur's. He hadn't looked out the window again since the first time. He didn't want to know how far away they were from safety- the storm could still be stretching out for miles. Or, perhaps worse, they could be close. Close enough to see clear sky but just too far away to reach it before death reached them. Merlin had decided it was nicer not knowing.
As his eyes rolled up in his head and he slumped down in his seat, Merlin made sure he'd laced his fingers tightly with Arthur's so they wouldn't come apart.
