The morning came none too soon, the light casting through the lace curtains directly onto his closed eyelids, waking him up. Arthur groaned, stretching in bed before stepping over to the window and looking down the hill at the expanse of farmland and the field of blue forget-me-nots. His heart swirled in his chest, and he felt himself smile upon noticing Emrys already out drudging through what looked like an onion patch with Alice.
He changed clothes and rolled up his sleeves, Leon stopping him with a laugh in the kitchen, "And where do you think you're going, young man?"
Arthur blinked, suddenly reminded of admonishing from his school days, and unsure how to answer, "Was going to go help Emrys... I guess?"
Leon smiled, "Have breakfast first, I had put on a kettle. He would be very upset to find out that you didn't eat before you tried to work outside. No matter the weather, the sun is brutal for farm work."
Arthur nodded, glancing out the window to Emrys, "A quick breakfast..." his voice drifted thoughtfully, "Sure. Thank you for your hospitality."
"Gladly," he insisted, his eyes watching Emrys out the window as the boy smiled and chatted with Alice. "Emrys is a very sweet kid. I'm sure you know that. He always spoke to our family through letters, to stay informed about the land and all of us. I used to read his letters as a boy, you know- the ones he had sent to my mother and grandfather."
Leon got a wispy tone to his voice, tapping his finger thoughtfully on the table, "My grandfather was the first to own the land, then my mother died quite young and the legacy was passed on to me. It's such an odd concept, I see Emrys the exactly same way my grandfather had- although with shorter hair, and no facial hair to boot. He seems to be a lot less stiff over the years, a sign of the times I suppose. People, in general, were quite tactful back then."
The kettle whistled and Leon spoke as he stood, then readied the tea, he set a plate of food in front of Arthur, "Emrys used to be very reserved in his early letters. Closed off... formal, you know? But he seemed to get lonely if I were to wager a guess. He wrote more often- once or twice a week, in fact- and when my mother died... he was very kind in his condolences.
"He opened up more about himself and his experiences. It was, admittedly, not much of a shock to find out he was an immortal wizard" he laughed, wiggling his fingers in a spooky gesture, pouring a mug of tea for both of them. "Since he was corresponding for so long, though, he would have been long dead by then if he wasn't. I was in my twenties when my mother passed, and with so many sisters it was up to me to work the farm with my father. We had a few vagrant workers over the years, but none really stuck around more than a couple of years. Eventually, when our daughter passed... we couldn't bear to have another child, she had been so young... The days pass so quickly and also so slowly here, it's hard to explain to a city person like you."
"No, I understand." Arthur insisted, taking another bite of his food, "My vacation excursions to the lake house my parents owned had a very similar sentiment attached to them."
"Well, anyway, he really seems to enjoy your company. He wrote to us about you once or twice before he came here, we insisted we didn't need him just yet but I suppose he needed the time away." Leon shrugged, sliding the mug over to Arthur who readily gulped it down.
"More like he needed away from me for a while." Arthur half shrugged, digging at his food, "Not that I blame him, really. I needed the time too, I think. It was all a lot to take in."
"Finding out you're King Arthur and you used to date an immortal-wizard-guy is a pretty big deal," Leon laughed.
"It seems you know more about all this than I thought you did." Arthur laughed awkwardly to himself, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and nearing the end of his meal. "Not that I mind. I'm sure it makes things easier on Emrys to not hide it from you."
"The boy can't hide a needle in a haystack," Leon groaned. "Any attempts he makes are embarrassing for everyone involved."
"He is good at avoiding though," Arthur admits. "His dodging and selective truths were a force to be reckoned with. With that, he basically hid it from me until he didn't want to anymore."
"I suppose my wife is a good combatant of that. She looks demure, but she is very good about weaseling information out of anyone, despite their wishes." Leon laughed, scratching his face with an embarrassed grin. "Hell, we probably wouldn't be married if not for her perceptiveness. I was quite shy about my affections, but she wasn't having any of it."
Arthur smiles to himself, eyes looking over to Emrys who was taking a break, sitting against the barn with his legs sprawled out as he chatted with Alice who fanned herself with her hat.
"I'd better get on," Leon smiled brightly, filling a couple of glasses with lemonade. "They asked me to stay in until you woke up. It's uncomfortable enough to wake in an unfamiliar house, after all, without knowing where one keeps the jam or butter. See you out there, don't worry about your plate. I'll see to it later."
Leon left through the back door, heading to the two with the glasses who thanked him before greedily drinking down the lemonade.
Arthur finished his plate and rinsed it before setting it in the sink. He looked at his socks, clean enough to feel comfortable doing a little snooping. He had only seen the back half of the house: the kitchen, dining room, a guest bedroom, and a bathroom. He wondered what the living room looked like.
He took his tea with him, smiling as he sipped. The living room was as cozy as he imagined- with plaid couches and a worn, leather ottoman in a corner which housed a few antique stuffed animals.
He sat gingerly on the couch, sinking in, and wondered what he planned on doing from now on. Suddenly, it occurred to him that he should alert his dogsitter-slash-best friend Morri he was perhaps staying a little longer than anticipated. His cellphone was unlikely to get service this far out.
He picked up the landline on the end table to his side, dialing the number.
"Uh, hullo?" Morrison responded, sounding unsure.
"It's Arthur."
"Ah, didn't recognize the number. How goes it?" Morri asked, a smile evident through his voice.
"I found him- I found Emrys. It was crazy chance!" Arthur laughed to himself, still giddy over it.
"Was it?" Morri sounded amused, "I somehow doubt that."
"Anyway, I'll be here longer than I planned. Maybe the whole holiday, I'm not sure."
"Going that well already? When's the wedding?"
"Oh shut up you clod." A door open and shut, Emrys peeking around the corner with a wave. "That's Emrys, I'll keep you updated. Tell Wade and Finn hello for me."
"Will do. Tell him to visit sometime, or call. Finn and I want to have a wrap session about all the things we've remembered." Morri asked, "Talk to you soon."
"Yep," Arthur responded, hanging up. "Emrys, I was just about to join you all."
"Just wanted to check on you," Emrys smiled meekly. "I'm going to the orchard, want to help me? We'll finish in half the time, maybe even before lunchtime."
"Sure," Arthur stood, grunting from the plush chair trying to suck him in as he stood. "I was hoping we would have some time alone."
Emrys blushed some, trying to play it off with a cough, "We will be, I promised Leon and Alice I would always work the crops farther from the house. It'll be nice to have the company."
Arthur followed behind, taking a baseball cap offered by Emrys to shield his face from the sun. Each carrying a large basket, Arthur wondered if he would ever spit out what he wanted to say. He laid it all out there, quite thickly in fact, the night before but there was one thing he just wasn't ready to admit yet.
"So, how should we go about this?" Arthur tried, "This getting to know each other. You know my taste in music, movies, and furniture too- thanks to the time spent at my house- what do you want to know about me?"
"If you were to only be able to save one possession in your home from a fire, assuming Wade was safe of course and weight was no issue, what would you prioritize?" Emrys asked, readying the ladders against a pair of trees so they could work side-by-side.
Arthur closed his eyes and thought about it a moment, he couldn't think of a single thing off the top of his head. He opened his eyes and exhaled sharply, "I don't really know, I never really get attached to objects, I prefer to feel attached to people."
The answer shocked Emrys, but he buckled down and climbed the ladder to pull an apple from the tree, "Think about it, and get back to me."
Arthur went silent, following Emrys's lead, and began plucking ripe apples from his own tree. After a few moments, Emrys spoke up, "Mine is my diary. I've sparsely recorded, but the few things I did were important to me and I don't want to forget them."
It was at this point Arthur remembered he was speaking to someone who had lived much longer than he had in one consecutive lifetime.
He laughed to himself as an answer came to him, "I thought of something. There's this polaroid," he waited for an acknowledgment from Emrys, who watched him silently in response. "Anyway, I'm sure I have it hidden away in one of my old yearbooks somewhere. It's of my parents and me on one of our trips to the lake house, one of the last ones we really were on good terms. We were having a picnic and mom asked someone nearby to take a picture. It's a pleasant memory, I'd like to have it as something to hold on to."
"That's a nice answer," Emrys noted, going back to work. "No stopping, though. If you want to talk, do it while you pluck apples. I don't want to be out here all day."
Arthur rolled his eyes playfully and went back to pulling the apples from the tree, "Got it, boss."
Their morning passed with pleasant conversation and something akin to bonding, trying to remedy personal knowledge severely lacking between them. Walking back towards the house, both dripping in sweat, carried their baskets at their side.
"Arthur, may I ask you something?" Emrys asked, not looking at him.
"Sure, what is it?"
"How is your head? I left before you were truly healed so, I worried about it a lot." Emrys seemed like he actually wanted to ask something else but chickened out.
"I feel fine," Arthur shrugged, "Nothing to report. I missed the company, but as much as I hated being away from you, I needed time to come to terms with what I was feeling. I needed to be sure what I was feeling was me, not residual past-life mumbo-jumbo. I would watch something, read something, even eat something, and wished I could share it with you. I always hoped when I found you again, if I found you again, that I could eventually share those things with you."
"Quite romantic of you," Emrys smiled reservedly, "Though I admit, I had similar feelings. Of course, it had residual feelings mixed in, but you just seemed so different from all the other versions of you before. I can't put my finger on it, but something about you ended my eternal cycle. There is something immensely special about that."
"How do you know it had anything to do with me? You said it yourself, your magic was dwindling over time. Maybe it was a coincidence." Arthur asked, adjusting the basket on his hip.
"I used to practice magic, I have met so many versions of you, I don't believe in coincidence. Maybe, if anything, it was just my last chance. The universe telling me as long as I can save you from death once, my fate is sealed- king or not. I have done my duty, and now I may live for myself."
"I am happy for you," Arthur smiled sadly, "You seem much happier now."
"You help that immensely, ask Leon or Alice, I was mopey my first few weeks. Even up until I saw you, I felt something was missing. It was just a matter if you ever found me, I admit part of me hoped you found me sooner rather than later."
"I like seeing you smile," Arthur stepped closer to Emrys as they walked, the two cresting the hill toward the house. "I would consider it a blessing to be the cause of it."
"Are you always this cheesy, or is this a mood you're in?" Emrys laughed, blush dark and splotchy, he tried hard to hide how many butterflies he felt in his chest.
"I would recite poetry for you, but sometimes I stutter when I read from a page."
"That's endearing."
"My stutter?"
"That you can read," Emrys laughed, running ahead with his basket as fast as he could with the heavy load.
Arthur laughed, tearing after him.
Their night ended with a pleasant dinner, pleasant parting words before bed, and Arthur dreaming desperately of telling Emrys and letting it out into the air. He did not want to put a timeline on it but knew it would be best for it to be a parting confession. He wished that he didn't have to say it at all, but it was tearing him apart to keep it to himself. He dreaded their day of parting, for it would be a day of truth.
The day came sooner than expected. He woke up before dawn, nerves tearing into his chest. He slipped out of the house as quietly as he could in hopes of watching the sunrise alone. He sat between the fields of forget-me-nots and watched the horizon. He felt tears sting his eyes, but he steadied his breathing and tried to hope for the best.
He hated the idea of going back to that house- going to work his life away, a few friends, and a dog to keep him company. He worried if he left, part of his soul would be left behind. He loved Emrys, he knew that now. The days spent with him, the domesticity that formed, even simple tasks like doing the dishes together felt less of a chore.
Admittedly, he would miss the countryside too, it's beauty and simplicity. He would even miss Leon and Alice who slowly began to feel like the grandparents he never knew. It pained him to spirit away without Emrys, but he couldn't bring Emrys away to his life in the city. They would have each other, but both would be unhappy.
He gingerly plucked a few flowers and twirled them around his fingers, he looked across the way to the hill which was once Camelot and he felt the air deflate from his lungs. He hummed to himself a melancholy tune, fiddling with the flowers in his hands as he waited for sunrise.
Sunrise came, and with it, a sense of relief. He knew that what he had to do required courage, a great margin of it masqueraded foolishness, and he inhaled the scent of the country air and felt like no matter what happened, everything would be okay.
Emrys woke up soon after sunrise, and finding no one up and about in the house thought to check on Arthur. Emrys didn't see him in bed and his thoughts went to the worst, bolting out the back door at full speed without care to close it behind him. However, if he had lingered a moment longer in Arthur's room, he might have noticed his things were still there and he didn't leave without a goodbye, as Emrys had feared.
Running into the yard he saw Arthur sitting among the flowers and his heart finally began to slow, "You're still here..." Emrys walked out to Arthur and sat beside him, trying to read the complex expression he wore, "I thought you left."
"I couldn't leave without saying goodbye." Arthur smiled weakly, "I've been sitting out here a long time and I honestly don't know if I can say goodbye to you ever again."
"Ar-" Emrys was silenced by Arthur's hands on each side of his face, pulling him into a kiss.
Emrys closed his eyes and melted into it, scooting closer beside him and putting his hands on Arthur's shoulders. The two stopped to breathe and Arthur had an unmistakable look of resolve on his face.
"Hire me."
"What?" Emrys responded, dumbfounded, as the moment seemed to be shattered in an instant.
"I will leave everything in London, well except my dog of course, if you let me stay here I will work harder than I ever have. I will never have to be away from you again and you can have help around the farm. We can have a better chance. Please Emrys, please... say yes."
The man once known as Merlin felt himself torn between two truths, he knew he wanted Arthur to stay more than anything because he wanted things to work but the other truth lied in the fact that Arthur would be abandoning nearly everything for him. "No, you can't. You can't leave your job, your friends-"
"I hate my job," Arthur laughed, "It pays my bills, do you like I want to work in an office the rest of my life? Besides, you seem to forget we are in a century now where phones exist, planes exist, trains also exist, I will have no trouble staying in contact with Morri and Finn. Besides, I'm sure they would think it's fun to help around the farm on seasonal holidays. You and Wade are it for me, my parents aren't that far away and if I don't work in an office things are more flexible to visit anyway. The only way you can talk me out of this is saying you don't want me here."
"I want you here," Emrys smiled, laughing as he crushed Arthur in a hug that sent him sprawling on his back. "I really do."
"Now if you could kindly get off you'll ruin your present," Arthur laughed, pushing Emrys off him who cocked his head in confusion.
Arthur pulled from beside him, which had gotten tousled in the fall, a flower crown made out of forget-me-nots. Emrys couldn't hold in the laugh that escaped his lips, but he blushed happily as Arthur set the lopsided thing on his head.
"I'm afraid I didn't get you anything," Emrys smiled sheepishly. "Perhaps you'll take a token of my gratitude?"
Emrys leaned forward and gently cupped Arthur's face in his hand and kissed him.
Unbeknownst to the two, the husband and wife were awake and gushing over the two over breakfast.
"Those boys sure are sappy," Leon grinned, taking a sip of his tea.
"Oh, let them have their fun, we were much more wild at their age." Alice smiled knowingly, "I suppose we'll be setting up Emrys's bedroom for two quite soon."
"He mentioned Arthur has a dog, a big one." Leon laughed, closing the curtains on the two boys necking in the field.
"Lovely, we'll have someone to keep the squirrels away. How soon can he move in?" She giggled, sighing wistfully. "They're going to be so happy together, I just know it."
Leon grunted in affirmation, reaching out to hold his wife's hand, "We all will. It'll be nice to have young blood in the house again."
"Just you hope they don't get too overzealous and acquire a little bundle of joy," she smiled.
"Hopefully I go deaf before then," he laughed, earning a playful slap on the arm from his wife.
Soon, the boys walked in, hand-in-hand to announce the news before Alice shooed them off to go on together and make arrangements. They packed up Arthur's few sentiments of CDs, movies, his electronics, and momentos and moved with Wade to the cottage within a couple of weeks. Morri and Finn arrived soon after to visit.
All was good. Merlin had saved his Arthur, and forever aside they would stay. They would learn, live, love, and grow old together. Neither would be alone, in this life or the next.
The End