a queen for camelot

Outline:

1. keep yourself alive

• Merlin’s magic is exposed and Uther sentences him to death; with the help of gaius and Arthur he escapes to the white mountains (they want him to go to Caerleon but he fervently refuses bc he “needs” to be near Arthur)

2. doing all right

• merlin in hiding, Arthur keeps sending knights to check on him while Uther keeps raging about finding and killing him, Uther falls ill

3. great king rat

• The death of Uther; Arthurs feelings are complex, he feels guilty for having complex feelings and he really really misses Merlin

4. my fairy king

• Arthur is crowned king and declares that the prejudice of his father will not define his rule—magic users will no longer be hunted, punished, or killed for simply existing; they will only be beholden to the law as every other citizen is—to do no harm to others.
• Merlin is appointed court sorcerer and begins working towards reparations for all magical practitioners and beings

5. liar

• Merlin and Arthur dance around their feelings, god would they just fucking kiss already? Everyone else already sees that they’re clearly in love
• Obvi they’re fighting bc they’re both absolute block heads

6. the night comes down

• THEY FINALLY FUCK

7. modern times rock n roll

• An attack on Camelot in the wake of Uthers death as king (blah blah) believes that Arthur’s brand new reign makes Camelot weak
• gives everyone the chance to see the power of Merthur

8. son and daughter

• In which the gender binary can suck ass at Merthurs court, because when a young girl wants to become a knight, merlin will be DAMNED if she doesnt get to

9. jesus

• In which a missionary comes to Camelot but they already have a miracle worker and send him packing
• in which we all collectively get to heal a little from our religious trauma

10. seven seas of rhye

• In which they finally stop tip toeing around their feelings and become Official Lovers & rulers

keep yourself alive

The cell smelled foul: that is to say, like every combination of rotten and disgusting filth. Merlin perched on the edge of the stone seat that was carved out of the wall, and tried not to touch anything.

He’d been in this cell in Uther’s dungeon for the better part of two days. He was hungry (they hadn’t fed him), exhausted (he refused to sleep here), but worst of all—he was afraid. Not of the death sentence Uther had handed to him, or of the diseases he was definitely contracting from his current situation. He was afraid that Arthur would never speak to him again. He was afraid that Arthur would go against his father and end up hurt. He was afraid of Arthur’s hatred. Most of all, he was afraid of Arthur’s indifference: that Arthur didn’t care at all, and Merlin would never see that stupid handsome face again before he was carted off to whatever death Uther had imagined for him.

He probably could have used his magic to escape, but where would he go without Arthur? His life’s purpose was tied irrevocably to Arthur’s. And any escape he made would guarantee that Uther would give Arthur the job of hauling him back dead or alive. If he managed to escape it could also make Gaius suspect, because who else would have helped him? So he perched, in a dark and nasty cell, and waited for whatever was to come.

Arthur found it insulting really, that Merlin didn’t expect that it was him who’d be coming. The accusation of Merlin’s sorcery took him by surprise merely because he’s put in quite a lot of work into covering up Merlin’s idiocy. His father is blinded by prejudice against magic; all he sees is the truth he creates, so it’s not hard to pass off truths Arthur creates for him as his own.

He’d spent the past 36 hours torn ragged between distracting his father in order to prolong the stay of Merlin’s execution, and getting Gaius and Gwen to help him plan and prepare for Merlin’s escape. How Merlin was constantly saving others, he couldn’t fathom, because this was fucking exhuasting. Currently, he was eating dinner, at a very long table, across from his father. The tension passing between them was as taut as the lines of a ship, and fraying fast.

“Arthur. Have we finally gotten the attack on our westerly side under control?”

“Yes, my king. We still have no idea why Gedwin would decide to suddenly attack us, but we have pushed his forces into retreat.” Arthur knew why they had attaked—he’d begged Gedwin, who’d been shocked to hear the words from Arthur’s mouth, as he wasn’t prone to begging anyone for anything. He’d made up an excuse about needing to distract the northern usurper Fromm, who declared himself king up there, and was constantly plotting against Camelot; Arthur claimed he needed to distract Fromm so his spies could complete their mission safely. But Gedwin wasn’t convinced or buying it, he wanted to hear it from Uther. So Arthur had begged. Gedwin relented and attacked with promises from the prince that there would be no fatal wounds.

“Yes. Quite odd that he would suddenly attack, seeing that we just met peaceably to re-negotatiate our trade deal for the fall crops.” Uther’s suspicion of everone was especially dangerour right now, and Arthur was sure, even as his son, that he wasn’t exempt from it.

He took a bite of some peas, though he hated peas. Merlin wouldn’t have ordered peas for dinner, he thought. Merlin is in the dungeons of course, so he hadn’t put in requests or checked on what was being served for dinner.

“My King, a few knights were wounded earlier today, and I’d like to check on them with your leave to do so. May I excuse myself?” The news of injured knights seemed to wake Uther from his hateful ruminations.

“Yes, yes. Take care of your men, Arthur. We shall speak later.” He continued cutting his ham.

“Yes Lord King.” Arthur was already pushing out his chair and backing away towards the door.

“And Arthur?” Arthur turned to look at his father’s face again; it looked worn and haggard with the weight of all his conspiracies and paranoias, “Don’t dissapoint me again anytime soon.”

Arthur answered with a bow that saw his chest parallel to the rich mosaic tiles of the floor. Then he swished his cape behind him as the guards opened the door for him and he passed into the long expanse that connected the king’s great hall to the rest of the castle.

doing all right

Merlin was almost asleep when he heard the shuffling in the brush coming from several paces away. He was summoning his magic when the dying glow of his fire illumiated Gwaine’s irritated face, mired in exhaustion.

“Gwaine! What are you doing back? You look absolutely awful.” Merlin’s voice had a hint of chuckle in it, but Gwaine clearly didn’t appreciate his good humoredness. “You were here just this morning dropping all this off!” Merlin gestured to his veritable bounty of fruits, vegetables, and meats.

great king rat

Arthur had just finally found the peace of rest when the knocker to his chambers was rang several times in quick succession, and then the door was opened and someone was slipping in to wake him.

“My lord, it’s your father, come quickly—he will be gone soon.” The yell in Arthur’s throat died  as he jolted from bed and sprinted towards his father’s chambers, grabbing a robe on the way past his door. (those hooks were a good idea, Merlin really was a genius from time to time) He slowed as he approached the chambers of the king, the large oak doors standing open, Gaius at his father’s side, administering something before walking away and nodding to Arthur as he left to stand in the hall. Arthur passed through his father’s sitting room, and private dining table to the bed room, with a large four poster bed frame and expensive drapery hanging across it.