Merlin/Arthur | Mature | No Archive Warnings Apply | Word Count: 500
Merlin/Arthur | Mature | No Archive Warnings Apply | Word Count: 500
Emotional Hurt/Comfort | Survival | Injury Recovery
For @merlinmicrofic with the prompt "starting over"
Merlin and Arthur find refuge in a small broken down cottage
☾ ☾ ☾
Before Arthur knew what was happening, his hand was on the hilt of his sword. He almost evicted Merlin from the mildewed thing they called a bed.
Cold hands found his neck, his face in the dark. “It’s just thunder, Arthur.”
He lay back down and Merlin lay on his chest. Their hearts slowed together. The rain on the broken roof went on.
“I’ll work out the spell, I promise.”
Gone, for now, were Merlin’s entreaties for Arthur to return to Camelot. They would face whatever came next together.
Arthur drifted, until water dropped down on his forehead. He groaned.
Arthur strode across the small, disused field, carrying a hare by its ears. It was dusk and ahead of him was their temporary salvation, a little lopsided cottage, with a field of its own taking root on what was left of the roof.
When he let himself inside Merlin was there to greet him, making no secret of the fact he had been peering anxiously though the little window.
“I caught a hare,” Arthur told him.
Merlin grimaced but nodded. “I heard it screaming.”
They needed more than the meagre meals they had made of fried hazel catkins and cleavers.
Merlin was making use of a sturdy ash rod they had found while they were still running, the burns on the outside of Merlin’s right leg and his feet were still healing and the tightened skin gave him a limp. But he was dispelling any illusions Arthur had of his frailty, advancing on him now like a storm.
Arthur dropped the rusted hoe he’d been using.
“I told you! There’s no use in planting when we’ll just have to run again!”
“Your spell...”
“There’s no spell!”
“There could be if-”
“If I try? You do it, if it’s so easy!”
The ground was uneven here in the green wood. Merlin told him that this place had been used by a charcoal maker, he had no doubt that the earth here had once smoked hellishly. He checked their traps. The woods went on. But where was Merlin? Where did he leave him? Feelings of temporary safety, images of holding Merlin in a suntrap somewhere fled from him. He panicked, called his name.
Then an answer. “-thur! Arthur!”
He saw him, ran, caught him.
“Arthur! I’m sorry, I'm sorry,” he soothed, then he grinned. “My spell worked a little too well, then?”
Their little shelter was golden with the morning sun and so, just for a moment, were Merlin’s eyes. Arthur found he couldn’t let go of his hands, feeling they might just fall to their knees in relief otherwise. They were safe, anyone who tried to find them now would be gently guided away.
“Promise me this isn’t forever, Arthur,” Merlin beseeched quietly. “Promise me we’ll return and you’ll be king.”
“We will return, when the time is right, when you’re healed and we have a plan.” He pulled him close. “Until then…”
“Until then…” Merlin’s eyes fell to Arthur's lips.
More Posts from Mightybog and Others
the secret to life is to always use more spinach and less rice than you think you’ll need
There's a lot of pros to this, in my opinion:
Soup and blankets for me.
I have little magic at my disposal, therefore I am capable of less.
Pushing myself may result in even more magical exhaustion.
There are tried and tested things I can do to work through it or help prevent getting into this state, e.g. breathing, music, walking, finding a crystal cave or something.
Gives me permission, where possible, to temporarily expend less magic (take annual leave, ask for help with my tasks).
That's it, I'm reframing my anxiety, burnout and brainfog as magical exhaustion.
Merlin Missing Scenes Weirdness
I re-watched the Labyrinth of Gedref episode with a friend last night and I'm obsessed with the weirdness potential of the missing scenes...
Arthur and the knights saw off the unicorn's horn while an upset Merlin looks on and idk, they leave the body behind in the woods? Seems like a waste but I guess taxidermy hadn't been invented yet.
Merlin actively ignores the rat problem.
Uther and Arthur leave Camelot to go stare at a barden field together.
Merlin spends time trying to find that really specific turn sand into water spell.
Gaius collects Merlin's bath water lol.
The rat goes to town on some tasty prince boot.
The single, anachronistic cherry tomato that Arthur leaves on his plate is eaten by the rat, probably.
Merlin straight up kills the rat, carries it around the castle, skins, cuts up and stews it for Arthur.
Gwen commits kitchen thievery under the dreaded Cook's nose. Maybe she finds Merlin there stewing the rat.
Merlin runs around the woods in circles or else he's kept out by some kind magical barrier while Arthur fights the fake thief.
Gaius catches two beetles for his and Merlin's dinner.
Uther congratulates himself that he's convinced his son to be a cartoon villain, just like his papa.
Merlin manages to impart to Arthur the conversation he had with Anhora out in the woods and it somehow goes well. Does he explain why tf he was out there alone? Gathering herbs might not be believable with all that's going on with the crops...
The vines in the labyrinth deposit Merlin onto the beach. Also Anhora ties him up.
Arthur wakes up on the beach. Just when he thinks he might have reached the afterlife Merlin appears and kisses him chews him out for being a stupid, self-sacrificing clotpole.
Merlin and Arthur learn to get along again on their long horse ride back.
The crops randomly grow back in an afternoon and somehow, in a kingdom where magic is outlawed and generally regarded with fear and suspicion, this is treated as Totally Fine and Normal, Actually™
Our Japanese class found it funny that in common terminology "food" isn't very distinguished from specifically "rice" until it was pointed out to us that in English "meal" is "loose roughly ground grain"
Ahhhh @mythandmagic!! I am shook, humbled, thankful, amazed, all the things!! Look at them! This is so perfect, the way they look, the stars 😭❤️?! THANK YOU for this and for all of your lovely comments on Ao3!
please Please PLEASE everyone go read Like Every Tree Stands on Its Own by @mightybog it is phenomenal and has deliciously altered my brain chemistry. AND there's a sequel in the works which is sure to be just as marvelous and heartwrenching and beautiful as the first.
Seriously, I have been rotating this story for days, even made some picrews about it (courtesy of ElenaA's Kiss Crew, beloved).
Anyway, please go read and kudos and comment and show her some love because she deserves it.
Merlin: I won't say "I told you so." Merlin, 0.2 seconds later: I told you so.
reblog to give the person you reblogged from the strength to complete The Task™
you are not unloveable you are just sad and a little bit angry. let’s go have some soup
In a land of boop and a time of boop boop booooop
for the @merlinmicrofic prompt "nightfall": Merlin/Lancelot, G, major character death, 100 words, AO3 link dedicated to the most lovely @thefollow-spot, inspired by her drabble "Untitled" (Dusk) midnight
This is how you'll grieve – in quietness.
Behind closed eyelids is where now he lives, in dreams, it is not merely night that falls but memories, like rockslide, and you're trapped, but oh what sweet suffocation it is.
He gifted you his nights, he held your secret in his palm, you might've given him your heart as well, and he would've kept it safe.
The veil looked at you and blinked and he was gone, and you think, did he have regrets? You recognised then love as his undoing, and hope he knew of yours.
This is how you'll remember.
-
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She/Her | 31 | Herbal Tea EnthusiastInterested in: hurt/comfort, fairytale retellings and folkloreCurrently down an Arthurian rabbitholeLeMightyWorrier on Ao3
296 posts