Author's notes: So this one is a short chapter. But it's mainly a filler and segue into a bigger issue. The next one will definitely be lengthier, by quite a bit. Some action and plot coming up. The chapter title comes from Nothing More's song I'll Be Ok. You should definitely listen to that one.

Merlin walked back to the castle after gathering a few herbs that Gaius was running low on -to verify his excuse- and into his chambers to bathe before fetching Arthur his dinner. He was feeling a lot better now that he resolved to come clean before Arthur legalized magic. He was still terrified, mind you, but he could deal with terrified. Hopeless was much more difficult to handle.

Walking through the halls this time amongst the general chaos that comes with dinnertime helped to soothe Merlin and prepare him for facing Arthur. It was ridiculous that he felt he had to face Arthur in the first place, but he'd manage. The noise, and focusing on not running into anyone, be it servant or knight, took most of his concentration and he arrived at the king's door feeling more relaxed than even before this mess began.

Bypassing knocking on the door, Merlin sauntered his way in, and placed the tray laden with meats, bread, cheeses, and a few vegetables on it on the table. He poured a goblet of wine for Arthur, and then moved to lean against the bedpost, looking at Arthur expectantly.

"You're feeling better. What did you do? Knock back a few at the tavern?" Arthur said mock affronted to see Merlin's cheerful disposition. He only said it that way to hide the fact that he was secretly pleased to see Merlin smiling again.

"No, Milord Prat, I did not. Those ways are behind me now. Gaius has only just repaid my debts. It would seem indecent to go and muck all that up right away," Merlin lied smoothly, which then made his smile falter for a second once he realized just how easy lying to Arthur came to him. He shook off the looming darkness and turned his smile up a notch, or seven, to cover up the slip. "Mucking out the stables does wonders for clearing the mind. You should try it sometime," this last bit Merlin threw at Arthur with a cheeky grin and a quick wriggle of his eyebrows.

As expected, Arthur scoffed, "Even if what you say is true, which I doubt, I would never muck out my own stables. That's what you get paid for," Arthur spoke as he made his way passed Merlin towards the table, he reached his hand out and ruffled Merlin's hair roughly, jostling him from his relaxed slump against the bedpost.

Merlin pushed Arthur's hand away with mock indignation, but had to turn his face to hide his grin. Even though his gloom had not lasted very long, it had been very effective at making Merlin feel like nothing would ever be the same again. This playfulness between he and Arthur strengthened his resolve to make up for all his wrongdoings.

Arthur lounged in his chair and dove into his food hungrily. "So, Geoffrey and I have found a way to amend the laws instead of repealing them, which would be too arduous, and cause a lot of backtracking."

Merlin stiffened. Well, his self-conscious is back in order it seems. He feels like shit again. For all Arthur's talk, Merlin had a teensy part of himself that believed that Arthur wouldn't go through with it. He should have known better than to underestimate King Arthur. He may have been a stubborn prince, but he was now a very determined king, and there was nothing standing in his way on his path to greatness. Not even laws could stop him, it seemed. Now it was all becoming official.

Unaware of Merlin's inner turmoil, Arthur continued,"I know my father did some horrible things, but he was not an evil man. His intentions may have started out pure, he just did not implement his actions correctly. So instead of doing away with his law, Geoffrey and I are working to change it to allow the practice of witchcraft, so long as no one is harmed in the process. Because my father was on the right track, magic was becoming a problem, but doing away with everything wasn't really the right idea. It got rid of things like healing, and helping crops grow, and saving people."

Merlin turned to look at Arthur with a bit of awe in his face. "Brilliant," he whispered, too low for Arthur's ears. Here was the man he vowed to stand beside for the rest of his life. In this simple moment where Arthur really wasn't doing anything spectacular, Merlin could see the best man to have ever walked the earth right in front of him. His lips quirked at the edges involuntarily, and a blush spread up from his neck, staining his cheeks.

Arthur did not see any of this, of course, because his back was turned to Merlin while he face his dinner, but then he turned in his seat to look at Merlin while he spoke. He continued to enlighten Merlin about the different amendments and exceptions that will be needed to the existing law, but Merlin only half listened as he mostly just watched Arthur talk. His face was mesmerizing when he was passionately speaking, Merlin realized. So animated and carefree. All his emotions just ran across his face unchecked, and it was breathtaking. Once he noticed that he had been staring at Arthur's mouth, he shook his head and turned to look at a flower arrangement. Then something Arthur said caught his attention.

"Wait, how long?" Merlin asked, voice pinched a bit. Surely he hadn't heard what he thought he just did.

"Everything should be final within a month or so. I told you, fixing the law is a lot easier than overturning it. Anyways…"

For the second time that night, Merlin's stomach dropped. He knew that a month was a long time away, and that he should have expected to tell Arthur that he was a sorcerer before then, but now that he had a definitive deadline, he felt like he was drowning, or that the walls were closing in, or both

.

Taking a few deep breaths to prevent an attack like last night's, Merlin walked towards Arthur to clear the table. Once finished, he went to the wardrobe to take out Arthur's night clothes, then turned down the covers on the bed. All this he did on autopilot so that he could focus on telling himself that he had more that enough time. It wasn't like he was telling Arthur that he had a terminal illness, and only had a month to live. At the end of this, they should both be alive and well, physically, mentally, and emotionally. All would be fine.

Merlin was able to sleep less fretfully that night. And when he woke, the next morning played out like nothing wrong had happened in the first place. Merlin knew he was making the right choice.