Chapter Text
Assumptions.
Assumptions, assumptions, assumptions.
Arthur had just about had enough of them. Why couldn’t two men - who had known and cared about each other for years - innocently sleep in the same bed without anyone raising some eyebrows? Merlin was just lying there. There was clearly nothing scandalous going on. Now, granted, that might not have been the case several hours ago, but that was between him, the bed, and Merlin...And the table. And the desk. And - not the point.
The point was that Guinevere didn’t need to drop the plate of food she was carrying when she entered the room.
"I - I am so sorry!” She stuttered out as the plate clattered to the floor with a crash, letting food spill everywhere. "Um, I just - I hadn’t seen Merlin this morning so I thought he forgot your breakfast-" she said, words tripping over one another as she went. "I’ll get another. Two! I’ll get two." She managed, eyes flicking to where Merlin was still very much asleep as Arthur merely stared blankly at her. "...bye." She decided and exited. Fast. Too fast. Fast enough that the door almost immediately reopened so that his father could peer inside.
"Arthur?" He frowned "Is everything alrig-" he started and then stopped when his eyes fell on the bed. There were several beats of silence. Arthur had hoped he might just leave. Except no. Because that would be too easy. The king shuffled inside, wordlessly moving towards the bed with outrage etching deeper and deeper into his expression until he was practically hovering over where Merlin was (still) miraculously sleeping. No wonder he could never get Arthur up on time. Maybe the reason he couldn’t die is because he went into brief stints of death whenever he fell asleep.
"...Father." He greeted. Uther ignored him. "Good morning." He tried again. Nothing. "He was working late last night. It seemed like a good idea to -“
Merlin must have chosen this moment to open his eyes because Arthur was almost immediately knocked off of the bed as Merlin scrambled away, yelling in alarm.
"Holy mother of - no!" He shouted and, upon realizing he was practically on top of Arthur, scrambled in the other direction. “No! Why? No." He decided and looked at Uther “Why?!"
"Have we tried having you drawn and quartered?" Uther asked calmly. Arthur choked.
"Absolutely not. You’re not doing that." He began but Merlin was looking at him with wary consideration before giving a meager shrug.
“Worth a shot, I guess."
"No-" Arthur started, voice rising. Uther held out a hand. To his horror, Merlin accepted it without hesitation, being yanked unceremoniously from the bed as Arthur tried to find words to express his concern. "Merlin." He ended up with and grabbed the other man’s arm, pulling him back. "You are not getting drawn and quartered. We’re not doing that." He said firmly. Merlin nodded.
"Oh. Okay."
"You are." His father said flatly "I’m the king. I command it. Let’s go."
"Alright." Merlin said and went to move after him. Arthur tugged back.
"You’re my servant. You don’t answer to him. Sit back down."
"Fine." Merlin frowned and his father made a noise of irritation before snapping his fingers and gesturing towards the door. Merlin got up again.
"No." Arthur spit out and glared at the both of them. Merlin stared at him before turning to look at Uther and then turning back to the prince.
"....you’re kind of putting me in a tough spot here, Arthur."
"Are you kidding me?"
The whole thing hadn’t been ideal. A bout of sickness had hit the kingdom and among the first and severely infected had been his father. Merlin, being the kind and forgiving soul he was, had offered to heal the man. Arthur was all for it. His father...Was not.
"I would rather die... Because I can at least do that properly.” He added with a scowl towards Merlin who seemed to bow his head in apology at such an accusation. "If this sickness takes me then perhaps my spirit is ready to guide you as king."
"Father, please. He’s already healed everyone else." Arthur tried and Uther gaped.
"You let him use magic on my citizens?!" He shouted and burst into a fit of weak coughs. "How dare-" he tried and coughed again "-you expose them-" More coughing. Merlin bit his lip and got him some water. After a couple gulps he started back up again. "Thank you. You have broken the law!” He shouted, though to Merlin or Arthur was unclear. "He may not be able to die, but are we completely disregarding morality to give way to easy solutions? What did saving those lives cost?" He demanded. Merlin shrugged.
"I was kind of tired-“
"AN UNWORTHY TRADE!"
"Really? My energy is worth more than peoples’ lives? I didn’t think you cared-"
"Quiet." Uther snapped and rubbed a hand over his face "Can someone - Leon, please." He called and from outside the room, Leon popped in. "Sir Leon, please take him outside and try hanging him again." He said and Merlin groaned.
"It won’t work!" He whined and pinched the bridge of his nose “At least let me see if I’m more vulnerable to magical attacks. Arthur’s sword can kill literally anything."
“I will not condone the use of magic.”
“Even to kill me?!”
“Merlin, come on." Leon sighed, putting a placating hand on his arm. Arthur turned to look at him and the man gave a subtle shake of the head. His father had been... Not of the clearest state of mind lately. This was mainly because he had spent every waking moment trying to a) kill Merlin and b) “fix” Morgana. Arthur appreciated neither.
At the very least people were aware of both their magic now and getting used to the idea of having them around without attacking them. At least within the castle. Outside was a different story but it made Arthur feel better to have his knights privy to knowledge in order to better defend Morgana and Merlin.
With that being said, there had been a subtle shift in power. Knights and guards seemed to wait for Arthur’s orders first or wait until he nodded his approval before carrying out anything his father doled out. There were whispers of pushing him towards regency...But Arthur wasn’t sure he was ready to do that to his father.
Not that hadn’t taken advantage of the situation. Already he had knighted Gwaine. Lancelot and Elyan were next as soon as he distracted his father long enough to knight commoners.
"Please let him heal you." Arthur said when the door closed again. "Or, maybe Morgana? Would that be better?”
"Morgana doesn’t have magic anymore." He argued vehemently. Arthur looked at him. “Ask Merlin. He agreed."
Merlin probably said nothing of the sort, but he doubted it mattered. As it was, Morgana was probably going to be annoyed enough to just come in here and heal him with her magic out of sheer pettiness.
The amazing thing was that she actually didn’t need to. His father seemed to have recovered three days later with sheer willpower. It really was amazing all things considered.
"Did you sneak some sort of potion in his food?" Arthur asked as Merlin collapsed on top of his bed, stealing one of the pillows to bury his face in.
“I really didn’t. Was going to, but then he got better." Merlin said, voice muffled so that Arthur had to lean in to hear. "Now he’s being an ass about it." He added with a wrinkled nose "You two are so much alike." He grumbled as he lifted his head to glare at Arthur.
"Thanks."
"Now he’s telling me to hand over the people I healed so that he can burn them." Merlin added with a sigh. "I’m too old for this."
"You’re younger than I am.”
"Then you are definitely too old for this." Merlin groused and lightly went to hit Arthur as he perched himself on the edge of the bed. "Thank you for not letting him kill everyone."
"Thank you for not letting him die." Arthur shrugged. Even if Merlin didn’t save his father this time around, Arthur knew had done so on many other occasions. Honestly, he wouldn’t blame him for wanting Uther dead himself. Merlin only smiled brightly at him.
"...but you should know something."
Dear God.
"What?" Arthur asked warily as the other man sat up with a forlorn expression.
"I absolutely am going to tell him I healed him. You can’t stop me. Morgana has agreed to support this story. Gwaine plans on being there to rub it in. I will not allow him to heal in peace." He said with a small nod. Arthur opened his mouth. Well...Eh. Whatever.
"Sure."
"I also plan on telling him I’ve healed him from something everyday when he wakes up."
"No."
Arthur....Was a little frustrated. Very frustrated. Incredibly frustrated. Overall not having a great time right now. You would think that now he was officially regent life would be easier, right? Wrong.
Merlin was sitting at a table, glowering at the man directly across from him as Arthur sat at the head of the table, looking between the two warily.
"Merlin..." He tried, voice soft and reassuring. Merlin shook his head. "Be reasonable."
"You are being unreasonable." He replied snidely and shook his head "It’s fine. Backup is on the way." He decided and Arthur ran a hand over his face. What the Hell did that mean?
This was tragically answered when the doors opened to reveal his father waiting outside. Merlin sat up and pointed at the other side of the table.
"Druid." He said simply and Uther blinked. "He’s a druid, your majesty. Do something."
"This seems unnecessary." Mordred muttered and Merlin shot him a withering glare.
"He’s a druid and he’s supposed to kill Arthur."
"I’m not going to kill Arthur!”
“I’ve heard that before...From people who’ve tried to kill Arthur." Merlin shot back and turned to the king "Sire, I need your help. Your son won’t let me kill him." He said, throwing up his hands as if Arthur restraining Merlin’s murderous tendencies was a mere nuisance.
"I see." Uther said and pulled out a chair next to Merlin. He looked over at Arthur. "Why won’t you let him kill him?"
“I - he hasn’t done anything wrong!"
"He’s a druid," Uther reasoned “And is supposed to kill you."
"Exactly. Yes. Thank you." Merlin said, snapping his fingers "I knew you would understand."
"Arthur. Your servant has finally gained common sense and you don’t reward it?" Uther frowned as Arthur buried his face in his hands "The boy makes valid points."
"I have a point-"
"No, Mordred. You have no points." Merlin interrupted.
“You helped me rescue him as a child!" Arthur tried and Uther muttered something under his breath. Merlin merely huffed at the accusation, giving a wary shrug.
"He wasn’t of killing age. Now he’s a more morally acceptable killing age."
"Morally acceptable?" Arthur spluttered while Uther waved a hand in disapproval.
"Any age is a morally acceptable killing age if the person is dangerous enough." He said and Mordred stared blankly at the pair before turning to look at Arthur.
"We’re not going to kill you over something a dragon said." He tried to reassure him. At this, his father paused in patting Merlin on the back to stare.
"....a dragon?" He repeated and looked at Merlin "Kilgharrah?" He asked and immediately Merlin gave a sort of weak hum as he looked away. "Don’t lie. Is the dragon the one telling you that this boy will kill my son?"
"I mean, I forget where I heard it. The whole thing is kind of hazy-"
"Don’t lie."
"Fine! Kilgharrah told me!" Merlin snapped and crossed his arms over his chest "But-"
"Good God. What have I told you about listening to dragons? They are liars! Filled with magic and deceit...Just like you." Uther added under his breath "I cannot take his words to heart...And look at this boy. He is weak. Both in mind and body." He snorted, gesturing to an offended looking Mordred "Him kill my son? Maybe if he cut his hair so he could actually see." He snorted and Merlin took a long breath.
"Still a druid." He tried and Uther wrinkled his nose.
"Very true...But I understand my son has...Unfortunately made peace with his kind. It does kill me to see him ruin my kingdom slowly but surely, it’s true...But I was aware of that when I agreed to let him be regent. I will let him fail without interference as evil and corruption take root in my own home." His father said, pinning Arthur with a heated glare.
"...thank you, father." Arthur said dryly and smiled at Mordred. "See? No reason to kill."
"I...I needed your bloodlust one time. Just one." Merlin frowned, turning to him. "What is this? You respect differences in opinion now? You just...Are okay with common decency? Who are you?" He demanded. Mordred leaned over.
"My lord, while I appreciate all of this, I must admit I feel a little unsafe."
"I’m getting old, you ignorant child. You stop caring about good and evil when you reach my years." Uther shot back and Arthur could only pat Mordred’s arm and offer an apologetic smile in response.
"Excuses. I would have never expected this from you." Merlin said and Arthur cleared his throat. "Fine. He can live. Whatever. But when he kills you, I’m not going to be sympathetic to anyone in this room." He snapped. Arthur turned to Mordred and smiled.
"See? We figured it out."
"Did we though?"
"Merlin.” Morgana said as she opened the door to Arthur’s room and snapped it shut with a snap “Please stop."
“Stop what? When? Where are you?" Arthur said, spinning to find Merlin. He waved.
“I’m fine, Arthur.” He frowned. Arthur only glared. Nobody could blame him for being anxious. His father spent his free time trying to kill him and Merlin always bloody let him. Logically, he knew none of it really hurt him or could kill him, but there still felt like a risk he didn’t like was hanging precariously over them. Like, there might be a second or two where Merlin’s immortality disappeared and BAM! No more servant/warlock. Only Morgana seemed to understand the level of stress he went through.
"Stop tormenting Uther," the witch in question clarified. "I can see the joy in it, of course, but you’re taking it too far." She said, pointing a finger at him. Arthur frowned before turning to glance at him. Merlin wasn’t really malicious, but then again. Magic. Who knows?
"What did you do?" He asked and Merlin sighed, putting down a plate of food on the table.
"...every once in awhile I pretend to actually be dead when he tries to kill me. Then I pop back up to scare him." He admitted and shook his head “He murdered people. Hundreds of people. I think scaring him is fine."
"Yes, but Gwen is in the dungeons again because of it." Morgana pointed out “He’s going to try to execute her at dawn." She added and looked at Arthur who rolled his eyes. Time to free her then. Merlin did look apologetic. Though between Morgana and Arthur… He seemed to know there was no real danger. Only nuisances.
“As an apology I’ll let him try beheading me again.” Merlin nodded with a forlorn expression. Arthur tried to count in his head. Morgana said that was helpful in staying calm.
It didn’t work.
“No. You’re not. Just… No.” He said, unable to find words to articulate his frustration. “No.” He repeated. Merlin frowned.
“He won’t accept my apology otherwise. He never does unless includes beheading me.”
“Morgana?” Arthur asked loudly and the ward sighed before walking over to grab Merlin’s arm and drag him over towards the door.
“Do you remember,” She began, leading him away “What we talked about before? About how you getting beheaded might upset people?” She asked, very patiently. Arthur wasn’t sure how she did it.
“But I won’t die.”
“It’s the principle of the thing. Come on, we can talk about what Gwen was telling me she saw a few weeks ago."
"But does he know?"
Arthur froze. It had been months since he had eavesdropped on a conversation between his father and Merlin, but then again it had been many more months since they had been alone together. Slowly, he took a few steps back.
"I hope not."
"This is a serious concern, your majesty. Please." Merlin threw back with a heaving sigh. Oh boy. Arthur looked around. He could see Morgana walking around but considering she was just as juvenile as he was...No concern there. He merely put a finger to his lips before gesturing towards the door. Immediately she nodded and shuffled next to him so they could both lean in.
"I am deeply, deeply against the relationship and would have killed you for it long ago if I could. Why would I help you?" His father said flatly. Morgana frowned before looking at Arthur who shrugged. “I also hate you and will find a way to kill you." He added as an afterthought.
"I’m not asking for your help. I’m asking for your opinion. You know Arthur well. Does he know?"
There was a pause.
".. .Probably not."
"Goddamnit." Merlin groaned and Arthur turned to Morgana who had started grinning. What did she know? He tried to search for an answer but she only scoffed.
"It’s for the best. He’s a prince of a proud bloodline. You’re a filthy bastard sorcerer who was bred from a demon and a wench."
"....my father was a dragonlord and if you insult my mother again I will use magic to turn your hair pink." Merlin said flatly and sat down. "This is a disaster. I thought the hard part would be the flirting. This is worse." He groaned and Arthur frowned. Wait...
“I agree. This is worse. Give up." Uther told him flatly.
"Do I say something? Do I just...Hope he figures out? Maybe I can get Gwaine to ask. I suppose I haven’t properly asked-"
Wait a fucking minute.
“Hey!" Arthur shouted, ignoring Morgana’s rising laughter. He pounded the door. "I know that we’re dating you idiot!"
Silence greeted him. Well, silence aside from Morgana practically crying as she grabbed a passing Gwen to drag her over to the mess.
"He’s eavesdropping on us." Uther noted, completely deadpan.
"That’s rude. Why didn’t you raise him better?" Merlin answered. Neither of them opened the door which just seemed to rub salt into the wound as Arthur scowled at the piece of wood separating them.
"He wasn’t like this until he met you."
"Yeah. He was worse." Merlin said and there was the clicking of footsteps before the door squeaked open to reveal a very grim face. "Hello, Arthur. Do you make a habit of listening in on private conversations?" He asked. Arthur turned to Morgana slowly. There was a silent debate for a moment before they seemed to reach the mutual agreement that they would continue the trend of never telling them that Merlin and Uther had not had a single private conversation ever between Morgana and Arthur’s spying.
"This felt like it needed my intervention." He answered slowly. Merlin sighed and then. Just. He just closed the door. Right in his face. Leaving Arthur to splutter indignantly at the audacity - the disrespect!
"Good news. He knows we’re dating so we got that squared away." Merlin said and Arthur let his head fall onto the door in pure agony.
“...there aren’t many instances where I might wish for my own son to be stupid. However, in this moment, I must say I wish he had missed the signs."
"Well if it makes you feel any better you can still consider him stupid for dating a sorcerer."
"Trust me, I do."
These two were going to kill him one day. Arthur just knew it.
Arthur becoming more comfortable with magic unfortunately did not rid him of all magical enemies. His father took this as definitive proof of the depravity of sorcery while Merlin argued adamantly the situation was nuanced.
All Arthur knew for certain was that he didn’t deserve to die like this.
The curse was that even though his body was pretty much all but dead, his mind was well enough to see most of what was happening. Like a silent ghost. He couldn’t speak but he could still walk throughout the room and look around. It was strange to stand over one’s body, trying to figure out what was happening as others panicked around the room.
“And you’re sure this will work?”
“I think it has to,” Merlin said warily as he tapped the table between them. “I’ve done my research. It… It has to.” He repeated and looked over at Arthur with exhausted eyes. “And hey. This should finally kill me. Sort of.” He shrugged and at Uther’s frown gave a weak smile. “It will kill my body. But, according to the druids, my magic can’t be killed so it… It might be like I disperse? Exist without a physical form? I’m not really sure.” He bit his lip. He looked nervous. Arthur hated it.
“And…The cup. You’re sure it will take your life? Nobody else’s?” Uther prompted, nodding to the silver goblet between them. Arthur scowled. If he could he would yell and shout and hit things to get their attention, but his spirit seemed unable to fully express his outrage at the situation.
“I enchanted it so that the person who drinks after Arthur will be the life taken.” Merlin reassured him. “So we give the water to him and then I’ll drink it.” He said. Silence followed. “You know, I never got to thank you.” Merlin said suddenly.
“For?”
“I know you don’t agree with how Arthur has ruled this far… I know you could be more difficult. You haven’t.” He noted and Arthur sighed. It was true, of course, but he didn’t like listening to this as if Merlin was running out of time. His father pursed his lips, fingers tapping on the table for a few moments before answering.
“I think…There was a point where I would have tried to fix it. Sometimes its tempting. I could kill the commoner knights. Find a way to send raids against the druids. Break the bridge he’s created between nobility and peasants.” He sniffed and his fingers seemed to twitch at the idea of it before shaking his head. “But it would be all for nothing because in the end I still can’t kill you and we both know it was your manipulative, conniving ways that brought any of it to fruition anyways.” He dismissed. Merlin rolled his eyes.
“Arthur makes his own decisions.”
“They would have been very different if he never met you.” His father pointed out. Merlin hummed at that but didn’t answer. Instead he just tilted his head, eyes flicking the king up and down for a moment.
“And when I’m gone? Will you try again?” He asked and shook his head “You can’t. It will break his heart. And Morgana’s-”
“Don’t talk back.” Uther told him with much less malice than usual. Merlin sighed. “And go say goodbye to Morgana. She will be upset when she has learned of your demise.” He added sharply and fixed Merlin with hard eyes. “You were planning on saying goodbye, correct?”
“I…Honestly thought it might be easier to-“
“You may be a horrifyingly evil and deceptive creature of magic - and I can’t change that - but I will not allow a coward to walk my halls.” Uther told him flatly. Merlin squawked a bit at that, muttering under his breath that he was no such thing. Arthur frowned as he watched his father pin him with a look. Something was off.
“Fine. Right. I’ll… Say goodbye.” Merlin sighed and got up, letting the chair screech back as he stared forlornly at the cup in the middle of the table before shaking his head. “I’ll be right back.” He said and walked out of the room. The door shut with a click.
“What are you doing?” Arthur asked, but his voice couldn’t seem to enter the room. His father stared at his hands for a few moments before standing up and grabbing the cup. For a second he thought he might just toss it out of the window, but instead he walked to where Arthur was laying.
“Your insistence towards magic is deeply troubling.” Uther said to Arthur’s body. “Perhaps it would be smarter to let you die. You aren’t going to be the king I hoped you would be.” He sighed and looked over his shoulder at the door “…but if this is how you must rule then perhaps you need the moron. His loyalty at the very least is unparalleled.” He muttered and lifted the cup to Arthur’s lips. A strange coolness washed over him.
“Father-” He began and it was startling to hear the word weakly and barely leave his mouth from the bed. Uther pulled the cup away and Arthur felt his heart drop. “Wait. Don’t-”
“Still. If given the opportunity I would recommend you kill him whenever your need for him is done. Or at least try.” He mused and before Arthur could properly react, knocked back the rest of the water. “At least I can now do what I had always intended to do with magic.”
The world went black.
“…it’s true!”
“It is not .” Agravaine snapped from his seat at the table. Arthur sighed before fixing Merlin with a long look. The man only gave a weak shrug before setting unrelenting eyes on his apparent enemy. “Arthur, do something.” He demanded and Merlin made a choking sound.
“Who are you to tell the king what to do?” He asked, completely outraged for someone who also had the audacity to often tell the king what to do.
“I… Honestly don’t know how his magic works, Agravaine.” He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Perhaps he is telling the truth.” He said. Merlin smirked and gave a fierce nod.
“I refuse to believe it.” He said with a mere scoff. Merlin crossed his arms over his chest. “Your servant may be magic but he cannot talk to the dead.” He spit out. Arthur was inclined to agree, but wasn’t going to question Merlin. The man had many hidden talents. As it was, the man seemed to be on a rampage.
“Well,” He said and jutted out his chin “Our late king would like me to inform you that it is quite a lot for your simple mind to comprehend more than what is directly in front of your nose.”
“Merlin.” Arthur warned. Agravaine was turning a bright red - eyes practically bulging as he clenched his hands onto the table. Merlin threw his hands up.
“Your father said it! Not me!” He objected. Morgana, who had been sitting rather idly until this moment, rose her glass.
“It is something he would say.” She said because she was the kind of person to feed the fire. Agravaine’s lips curled, looking at her with utter betrayal before shoving back his chair and storming out of the room.
“My, my… Uther is right to say you look like a bat when you’re angry!” Merlin called and Arthur cleared his throat. “What?” He asked innocently and Arthur rose his eyebrows. “It’s what your father would have wanted, Arthur.”
“So you can’t talk to his ghost?”
“I’m not sure that’s relevant.”
Being king was...New. Uncomfortable. Definitely stressful. It had its perks, but there were times where Arthur deeply missed his father...Though the thought could rack him with guilt. Maybe that was why he tried to avoid visiting the lake he was laid to rest in. Still, on occasion he could only hope the world might forgive him for giving into the temptation.
“…Arthur doesn’t come often.”
He froze. That was Merlin’s voice. He frowned, looking around to find who the Hell he was talking to. The man was sprawled out on the bank, boots kicked off and new, very expensive noble clothes absolutely caked in mud. Arthur wasn’t really sure what he was doing so he just stood there for a couple seconds.
“It isn’t personal, I don’t think. Well. Maybe a little. It’s just kind of hard, you know? Now that he’s king people…Well, it didn’t do great things for your image. You’re the monster who murdered a bunch of people and he’s the hero that saved them all… Except nobody is going to understand the nuance of you being his father. If he openly misses you then people might panic and think he’s going to start doing things your way. Not that he’s ever said anything about it. That’s just my theory.” He was chattering, hands kneading into the ground beneath him thoughtfully. “But don’t worry. I’ll keep you updated… Though. There is something very serious we need to discuss, Uther.”
Huh. Arthur wasn’t really sure what to make of Merlin psychoanalyzing him in front of his dead father’s watery grave, but the usage of addressing him by his first name was also very interesting. Tilting his head, he leaned against a tree, letting the branches shield him from being too visible.
“Now…I know you aren’t going to like this, but I did want to do this properly so. Humor, alright? I feel like I know you well enough to guess your reaction anyways.” He snorted and took a long breath. “As I have informed you before, Arthur and I have escalated passed the friendship stage.” He said and paused. “Yes, I know you would try and kill me for it. And of course you’re upset. I’m evil and a sorcerer. It’s not my fault your son has trash taste. Take that up with him.” He said and shook his head “Will you let me finish?” He demanded.
…Maybe he should ask Gaius to take a look at him. Was this normal behavior?
“…yeah, yeah. I hear you. But listen. I’m thinking about escalating it even more . Don’t say anything!” He added quickly as Arthur almost tripped over nothing. “Now, obviously, there is more I should considering here. For example, Arthur might want to not be public about this. I am a servant and a sorcerer. Even though he’s clearly tolerable that’s a really big step from where we were and he’s already under a lot of scrutiny even if he is beloved… Not to mention I don’t really know where this would put me in the grand scheme of things. I… Do not want to be part of the royal family. Dear God. We would technically be related then. No offense, but if he says yes you are not invited to the wedding. Sorry.” He snorted and went quiet. “I guess… I don’t know. Weighing the pros and cons of it all. I really just want to marry him…and wanted to ask for your blessing.” There was a pause. “No? I should have guessed that. Worth a shot… I’m still going to ask him anyways, you know.”
Merlin rolled his shoulders back before sighing.
“Though I just got the feeling my proposal was ruined.” He sniffed and without turning around rose a hand in greeting. “Hi Arthur.”
Ah, shit.
“How did you know I was here?” He asked, figuring there was no point in denying his spying as he stepped out of the brush and over some wayward branches before joining him on the bank.
“I’m incredibly observant. You know, I was a spy for years before you found out about my magic.” He nodded and when Arthur looked down at him, smiled. “So observant, in fact, that I know you were privy to most of the conversations I had with your father.” He added and Arthur let his mouth drop.
“You… Knew?” He demanded and went ahead to sit down next to him. “You knew the entire time? Merlin, how-"
“Okay, I didn’t know. I knew Morgana was watching us and a few days ago she admitted you were watching too. I guess I’m not that observant after all.” He shrugged helplessly “Though neither are you so don’t say anything!” He added, pointing a finger against Arthur’s nose. Well. He would have never guessed he outlasted Morgana. That said something at least.
"I think you’re getting off topic. Didn’t you have something to ask me?" He asked. Merlin pursed his lips.
"...no. Don’t think so."
"What? But you just said-"
"Oh, it’s coming. You just don’t get to know when. Plus, I have more to discuss on the specifics with your father." He added, gesturing vaguely to the lake. "He’s very opinionated."
Arthur rolled his eyes. Idiot.
"You don’t say." He told him with a sigh. "What else do you have to discuss with him?"
"None of your business." Merlin sniffed and turned towards the water “He’s so nosy." He said and Arthur threw up his hands. "Would...You be okay with that though?" Merlin said, looking back to Arthur with a note of uncertainty. "If I did ask?"
"Hm... You might have to wait for that answer." Arthur said and turned away from him "Tell me, Father. What do you think?" He asked and paused "He says no."
"Well, he’s dead so he doesn’t actually get an opinion after all." Merlin said. Arthur snorted and grabbed his hand, tugging him up.
"Then why are we here? Come on. I have something to ask you."
"Don’t you even think about it-"
"Will..."
"No."
"You..."
"No."
"Please muck out the stables?" Arthur finished and Merlin stopped walking, causing Arthur to be pulled back a little. Merlin turned around to glare behind him.
"I can’t believe you left me to deal with this all by myself." He complained and at Arthur’s pout, grinned. "Don’t worry though. I promise I’ll do a good job without you."
Despite everything... Arthur was pretty sure his father could have accepted that.