Merlin and Arthur entered the dining room. It was huge, mostly decorated in brown / orange marble and huge mirrors above the two fireplaces on the longest side of the room.

Arthur took Merlin to his place and then sat down beside him at the head of the table. While the waiters brought in the dishes, the blond smiled and patted his hand, but Merlin wasn't paying special attention to him because he was still shocked by what he had seen in the dungeons, not only for his friends, but also because he was sure he had seen Cenred, his ex-boyfriend, and Arthur's sister in a cell ... were they food as well?

Merlin shrugged at the idea and his attention returned to the present when a golden goblet was placed in front of him, containing some red liquid, too dark to be wine.

A shiver ran through his back and he looked at Arthur.

"What's this?"

Arthur smiled tightly, "Drink"

"No, first tell me what this stuff is!" Merlin demanded.

Arthur looked him straight in the eyes before answering, "It's wine mixed with human blood ... Drink it!"

Merlin's eyes widened, "I'll never do that!" He said indignantly and disgusted, "Why should I do that?"

"For the baby... it will be a vampire, so it will need blood to develop healthy"

"The baby is growing very well even without me drinking blood! Didn't you notice how big I am?! I'm a whale!" Merlin pointed to his huge stomach, too swollen to be only six months old.

"This is where you're wrong, love. You are big not because the child is well developed, but because there are two fetuses in there, maybe three, I cannot determinate it for sure"

Merlin stiffed, shocked, "What? ... Three?" He did not know what to think.

Arthur nodded, "Two for sure. If there is a third child, its heartbeat too slow to distinguish it from the others'. If you had drunk human blood from the beginning of the pregnancy, we would not have this problem, since the children would have developed fully"

Now Merlin was scared, "They're fine, aren't they? They don't risk to ... to... die, right?"

"I don't know, but for sure you are not helping them with your stubbornness" He pointed to the glass again, "Drink ... It's not too late yet"

Merlin swallowed, a mix of disgust and horror lodged in his heart. The idea of drinking human blood disgusted him, but for the sake of his children - children, he still couldn't believe that there was more than one - he would do this and more without hesitation.

He took the glass and stared at it, and after only a few seconds of reluctance and hesitation, swallowed its contents in a couple of sips.

The iron taste of the blood was far too distinguishable, and not even the best wine in the world had managed to hide it. Yet, Merlin could not deny that it was not as horrible as he had thought - perhaps it was because he was a Hunter, hence a descendant of vampires - and could already sense the joy of his children at receiving such delicacy.

They began to kick happily, and Merlin knew no better feeling.

Arthur had been looking at Merlin all the time and could not avoid the smug smirk when he noticed the expression of bliss on the brunet's face while he drank and his eyes shining a little red all the while. The blood didn't help only his children, but also aimed to awaken the brunet's vampire lineage.

Arthur wanted Merlin to become a vampire like him, so they would both be immortal. They would be together forever, ruling the world.

The Prince of darkness and his Consort ... and their heirs.

Arthur couldn't wait, but in order to achieve that he had to bribe the boy's soul first, so that the darkness would invade him... And their children were already helping him.

They were already pure evil and lived in Merlin's body and now that they would receive human blood regularly, they would become even stronger. Merlin had no way to escape his fate. He was being attacked from inside and outside at the same time.

Arthur noticed how Merlin's lips were red. A bit of blood was flowing from one corner, and before Arthur could say anything about it, the brunet's tongue had already caught it, tasting it with gusto.

Arthur could feel his pupils dilate at that sight - Oh he couldn't wait to immerse himself with Merlin in a pool of blood and drink it together - and also another part of his body was 'dilating', but it was not still the moment for that.

"Are you hungry?" Arthur asked.

Merlin was about to reply that it was obvious that he was hungry since he hadn't eaten anything yet, but then stopped. He frowned. He was not hungry. On the other hand, he felt quite full.

"No, I'm not" Merlin had to admit, perplexed.

"Good"

Arthur was pleased. Vampires are never hungry, only of blood and sex, of course. Merlin was doing well.

The vampire stood up and offered his hand to the brunet, "Would you do me the honor of accompanying me on a walk in the park under the moonlight?"

Merlin rolled his eyes, "Do I have a choice?" He stood up, ignoring the hand.

Arthur chuckled. He loved his beloved's stubbornness.

00000

They arrived in the gardens and Merlin was fascinated by it. It was huge with a large lake in the middle, kissed by the full moonlight. The lawn, an emerald green, was well cut and covered the whole area like a soft carpet. On the edge, there were apples trees, with juicy red, yellow and green apples hanging from them. Weeping willows soaked their branches in the lake. Everything was then embellished with low bushes, full of colorful flowers, especially roses.

But what fascinated Merlin the most was the fact that the whole garden seemed to shine, as if illuminated by neon lights.

Noticing his expression, Arthur took a step forward, whispering in his ear, "It's extraordinary what a little magic can do to life"

Merlin jumped and turned, surprised, "Your magic? Are you saying that you did all this?" Merlin could not believe it.

Arthur smiled at him softly and took his hand. He kissed it, then led Merlin to a wooden bench a few steps away from the lake shore.

"Yes, I did. Before I arrived, this garden was in ruins, covered with weeds, the lake of algae, and in general everything was dead. My predecessors never really cared for this place. But it matters to me. I want this castle to be our home, yours as much as mine. I want our children to grow up here and play in these gardens. I want to do romantic picnics here with you, alone or while our children are swimming in the lake. I want nothing more than that. Do you find it so hard to believe? You should see your face"

Merlin closed his mouth that had opened in the meantime. He could hardly believe that a monster like Arthur wanted something as simple and genuine as a beautiful garden for his children. And the thing that struck him straight to the heart was that it was what Merlin had always dreamed of for his future family as well. "How is it possible that your magic is able to create all this? It's evil!"

"Magic itself is neither good nor evil. It all depends on who uses it and for what. And in this case I decided to use it for life." Arthur lowered himself to take a flower, but as soon as his hand touched it, it immediately withered, becoming black and then ash. Arthur sighed, almost sad of the reaction. "Unfortunately, my body is only a bearer of death..."

With a movement of the wrist, Arthur created a bubble of magic that wrapped the ashes, which returned to be the beautiful red rose that was before. He levitated it to Merlin, who accepted it with pleasure, fascinated by the contradictory nature of the vampire: bearer of death and life at the same time.

"If you cannot touch the plants without killing them, how can you take care of this garden? Do you do everything with magic?"

Arthur smiled, "No. I simply do not do everything myself"

At those words, many colored fairies appeared from the bushes, covering the flowers and the trees with magical dust that immediately invigorated them, making them shine with life.

Two of them created a wreath of flowers and deposited it on Merlin's head, giggling like little girls when he gifted them with one of his most brilliant smiles as thanks. Then his eyes softened further as the fairies went to embrace Arthur, the one who had given them a safe place to live, protected from the outside world and the Hunters. They and the mermaids were on the verge of extinction, but Arthur had saved them.

His children moved into his womb, also fascinated by their dad.

Merlin blinked. Fascinated? No, he did not find Arthur charming and adorable at the moment. Absolutely not!

Arthur looked at Merlin and smiled at his obvious expression. The fairies were doing a splendid job in painting Arthur as a sort of angel, when in reality he was the usual demon, who had imprisoned these fairies, threatening that if they didn't serve him, he would give them to the Hunters.

Arthur caressed Merlin's cheek, "You're beautiful, my elf"

Merlin blushed under Arthur's intense gaze, "I'm not beautiful"

"Yes, you are. You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen. I always thought that, from the first moment I saw you, when we were in kindergarten and you saved me from those bullies... a pure diamond… you are very precious to me, Merlin, more than you could ever imagine" Arthur's eyes were wet with emotion. He loved Merlin so much.

Merlin's throat closed. "Do you remember that time in kindergarten?"

"I remember every moment, every second, of my life with you, even if very often you didn't even know I was there. I was silently by your side at your every step. I suffered when you suffered. I laughed when you laughed ... loving you with every fiber of my being. It has always been that way and always will be. Not even the darkness that made me what I am now managed to scratch my love for you, even if it tried, I assure you"

Merlin didn't know what to say. No one had ever loved him like that and now that he thought about it, even in the most desperate moments, he had never really felt alone. There was always that little boy by his side, a constant in the changes of life, which at a certain point, before all this, had also stolen his heart.

The brunet took the rose and put it in Arthur's coat pocket, so that it wouldn't touch the blond's skin.

Arthur looked at him surprised by that gesture and Merlin gave him a shy smile.

"I don't believe your body is a bearer of death. After all, with that body, you created life" Merlin said, caressing his belly.

Arthur smiled, "That, honey, was love. A love that can also defeat death" and kissed him.

00000

After being in the gardens for another hour enjoying the moonlight and the soothing sound of the lake water, Arthur and Merlin returned to the castle and Arthur took Merlin to their bedroom - well it was actually the vampire's, but obviously he would never allowed his beloved to sleep even a millimeter away from him, let alone another room.

He immediately noticed Merlin stiffening at the sight of the large carved wooden door. Already abandoned the sense of serenity that the garden had infused in him, now he was remembering the situation in which he was: prisoner of a vampire, his children's father.

Merlin began to point his feet, but before he could completely resist, Arthur grabbed his shoulders and looked at him straight in the eyes.

"Hey Hey, love, calm down. Everything is all right. I could never hurt you. You know that. I love you"

As he spoke, the blond dragged him by the hand into the room and gently pushed him onto the bed. Arthur's gentle voice had completely relaxed him and made him docile.

"You know I love you, don't you, Merlin?" Arthur was still staring at him.

As hypnotized, he replied, "Of course I know"

Arthur smiled, "Then sleep well, my love ..." He leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead, "…sleep and let my love cradle you and protect you"

Merlin smiled sweetly and closed his eyes. Soon, he was asleep.

Arthur didn't move and admired him for a few minutes, caressing his cheeks and outlining his lips with his thumb. He would never tire of looking at him and analyzing every inch of his body, even if by now, after years of obsessive crush, he knew it almost more than his own.

Merlin was perfect. Even his ears were. Arthur loved to nibble at them. He did it and when Merlin sniffed in annoyance in his sleep, he chuckled happily, entranced by such a lovely sight.

Then he lay down on his side next to Merlin and began to caress his extended belly with reverence, feeling an immense sense of protection and love for the lives inside.

He lowered his face and whispered, "How's it going in there, my little ones?"

Merlin suddenly opened his eyes wide. They were red. But when he spoke, his voice was not his and wasn't even one. It was a mix between that of a little boy and that of a little girl.

"We are fine, father"

Arthur smiled, pleased with the strength his son and his daughter were showing, managing to communicate with him even before they were born.

"I am to understand that you enjoyed the blood and that you are doing very well"

"Yes, daddy. We love it. It makes us stronger….stronger than papa's strange blood. That always stops us from speaking, from growing"

Arthur nodded, "I know, my darlings…his hunter blood is strong, but not for long. I'll keep giving him human blood, for you and for him…"

"We want papa to be like us"

"Soon, he will be. His vampire soul is awaking. But we need to keep helping each other. Darkness will prevail if we continue to attack his goodness…me from outside, you from inside"

"Yes, daddy. We are doing our best. We stopped the bad man with long hair from taking papa"

"You mean Gwaine?"

"Yes. He wanted papa. But he is yours. He is ours"

"You have done great, dears. No one is going to take your papa away. I won't allow it. NEVER"

The children laughed, "We trust you, daddy. You are the best"

Arthur laughed, but then frowned slightly when he remembered something. "My loves, is there a brother or a sister in there with you?"

"Yes, he is here, but he is weak. There is something wrong with him"

Arthur's heart jumped with joy at the thought there was another child – his and Merlin's – another miracle and proof of their love. But when his mind caught up with the last part, he frowned, worried.

"Wrong? What's wrong with him?"

"We don't know"

"Is he dying?" Arthur asked with a heavy heart.

"No… he is just different, but fine…"

For now that was enough…He would try to find out more once the child was born.

The children, still using Merlin's body, yawned. "We are sleepy, daddy"

Arthur's gaze softened. For the first time he wasn't looking at the brunet with lust, but with such a love that only a father smitten with his children could show.

"Of course, my soul. Sweet dreams. I love you" He kissed Merlin's belly.

"We love you too, daddy…night"

With that, Merlin's eyes closed and he fell back to sleep. Soon after, Arthur followed him with a satisfied smile.

The next evening, Merlin woke fresher than ever. He hadn't slept so well in months. Maybe it was due to the fact that Arthur hadn't demanded any sexual acts from him the previous night.

As usual his first thought once awake went to his children and he started to caress his belly, frowning slightly when he realized his babies were still sleeping.

"How strange" He thought. Usually they awoke with him.

He shrugged. For some reason they must have tired themselves more than usual. Then he noticed he was alone in the king size bed. However he didn't remained alone for long.

The doors of the room opened and there was Arthur in all his glory, who smiled when he notice his beloved awake.

"Love, did you sleep well?"

Merlin nodded. "Strangely yes. Usually the children keep me awake most of the night, but now they seem very quite"

Arthur smirked, knowing very well why his babies were still asleep.

"Well, appreciate this moment of peace as long as it lasts …come on, lazy daisy, come here and join me for breakfast"

Only then the brunet noticed the table full of what it looked like delicious food. Feeling hungry, he got up from bed and walked to the wooden table.

They started to eat and Merlin noticed that he wasn't that hungry for food, despite the fact he was starving.

Soon Arthur presented him the famous golden goblet containing human blood.

Merlin grimaced, and was about to refuse but Arthur's next words stopped him.

"Think about the children's wellbeing, Merlin, and that of the people you love that are still locked in the dungeons, and about the consequences they will face should you displease me"

Merlin tightened his lips, feeling a strong dislike for Arthur once again at remembering his friends' fate by his hand.

Still showing all his anger, Merlin took the goblet and, while never taking his eyes off Arthur's, he drank. Immediately his children awoke and his eyes turned red for a second.

Merlin frowned and looked at Arthur, "Why was I angry at you? I don't remember"

Arthur smirked evilly.