I don’t know if i hallucinated this but i swear earlier seasons Bradley said something about hoping Arthur realises Merlin has magic on his own.

And i wish, i wish, that had been the case.

That Arthur, knocked out, bleeding, injured, awakes too early and sees Merlin, eyes golden and angry, bending the power of the earth in raw wrath and fury towards their enemy.

And Arthur is bloody fucking terrified. But Merlin screams ‘not him, never him, never Arthur’ and the earth shakes and… Arthur can’t even remember what poor soul or creature had thrown him from his horse, certainly not now their body is torn apart by Merlin’s words and his flaming gaze.

Of course Arthur is terrified. Is he hallucinating? Is this some malevolent vision? His head throbs and he can taste blood in his mouth and he can see Merlin, Merlin his incompetent and clumsy and funny and innocent and soft and gentle manservant who wakes Arthur with a brilliant smile and some drivel about lazy daisies, stood like a deep and dark and threatening shadow over what was left of a once-body.

Arthur’s breath comes in short gasps and tears prick his eyes. Panic. And Merlin turns to him as he clamps his eyes shut against the image of Merlin dripping with death and anger. But deep within his shattering mind a small voice whispers to him. The voice is soft and gentle, blonde curls and kind eyes and patient hands cupping his cheek. She reminds him of each time Merlin has looked at him with pure, unadulterated devotion - his eyes deep and blue, a tiny ring of gold-green swirling around his pupils. How each time Arthur’s lain on the brink of death, and Merlin has never left his side, tending to his wounds with such tenderness that Arthur has never felt before. How it was in Arthur’s name that Merlin’s magic, Merlin’s magic, raged.

Another voice, thick and real and worried, breaks through the soft whisper of Ygraine.

Arthur felt shaking hands - how could they be so gentle when moments before it was from them that such unbridled power was released - stroke his matted and sweat-soaked hair, wiping the blood Arthur felt trickle down his cheek away. Arthur forces open his eyes, meeting Merlin’s as the gold fades to the deep familiar ocean-blue.

Did Merlin know Arthur had seen? How much blood had soaked Merlin’s hands when Arthur had lain unconscious, how many victories has Merlin won in Arthur’s name?

And deep within Arthur’s heart he knows he is safe in this sorcerer’s hands. Knows in fact he’d choose these hands over anyone else’s.

But Arthur can’t say the words just yet. He can’t admit to himself that the man he loves is made from that which he hates. Hated. Has been taught to hate. A new wound has been torn in him, one not made of blood and flesh. Because if Merlin is magic, how can magic be evil.

So Arthur lets Merlin’s hands and Merlin’s words and Merlin’s soft smiles wash over him. He feigns ignorance of what he saw.

But he watches. His wounds sit quietly: clean and placid from Merlin’s assiduous care. His face is washed from blood and grime by Merlin, who had fussed and worried as he went. Now he watches. He notices the damp wood Merlin had collected whilst the rain has fallen burst into eager flames within seconds of Merlin’s attentive hands and wonders how he never noticed before.

When they return to Camelot, limping but alive, Arthur notices the stone-deep warmth that graces his chambers. Where his room should be chilled and still from his absence instead there’s a soft and humble feeling of life suffused throughout, and Arthur realises with a small, private smile it is the same feeling that radiates from Merlin.

The lessening part of him argues he should recoil. For why is he rejoicing at feeling the touch of a sorcerer all around him. But Arthur argues back. He’s felt the saccharin, sticky grip of dark, evil magic masquerading as sweet ladies or sycophantic servants. He remembered the groggy, aching return to his own mind after Sofia had dragged him under her spell. Merlin’s gentle, joyous presence is worlds away. His magic may be hidden from Arthur, but Merlin’s grinning insults and blatant disregard for any sort of protocol meant any fears for further hidden motive besides self preservation withered immediately.

Arthur keeps watching. He notices now the shine his armour has, beyond what weary hands and cloth could ever achieve. He notices, or rather feels, when Percival’s muscled arm brings down the practice sword and Arthur - his mind worlds away - notices too late, yet the ensuing bruise is not angry and mottled but timid and quickly fades, even though ordinary chainmail would never have warded off such a blow. He notices Merlin’s unbridled joy when the two of them leave Camelot for the forest. He notices the bird that lands on Merlin’s shoulder, the whispered smiles Merlin exchanges with the creature. He notices the grass grow a little taller beneath Merlin’s feet, the way the trees bend to him as if they’re greeting a long lost friend.

Slowly, magic - or at least Merlin’s magic - loses the rotten, sharp edge Uther had imposed. Arthur begins to yearn to see the flames of the fire burning in his room reflected once more in Merlin’s eye. Still he can’t quite bring the words lingering in his throat up to his lips. Guilt begins to fester. Arthur remembers the years of Uther’s reign, how the screams of burning sorcerers - some of them so young, so young - had echoed through the cold stones of Camelot. He remembers now Merlin’s pale face and wide eyes, ghosted with tears Arthur knew not what for. He knows now.

And so when his knights bring him talk of a druid camp away to the south, Arthur stands tall, facing the court, and tells them to leave it be. That there will be no more raids (not that he had issued any since his ascension to the throne, but no formal proclamation had thus far been made). He tells himself privately he will end the ban on magic. He will forge a Camelot where Merlin will not live in fear, in a half life. The faces staring back are curious, some wary. But the one meeting Arthur’s steady gaze, wide-eyed with a shocked, gentle, proud, smile and slightly trembling hands gripping the wind jug, is that which Arthur cares about. He gives a slight nod. Too subtle for anyone else to notice, but as obvious and clear to Merlin as it ever could be, the two of them long since having needed words to communicate.

Merlin has a lot of questions. Naturally. They tumble from him as Arthur undresses behind the screen. And Arthur knows now that he’s ready. Merlin has magic. Merlin is magic. And Merlin is good. Deeply good. The words don’t quiver and cower in his throat.

And I wish Arthur had then told him. Had taken a deep breath and met Merlin’s gaze and told him he knew. That he had been scared. But he had trusted. Trusts. Loves.

We deserved Merlin fighting beside Arthur, raw devotion and power and fierce, fierce love.

Merlin goes home for a little while, determined to enjoy a well-earned vacation;

Camelot immediately falls apart, with the sole exceptions of Guinevere and Gaius.

Keep reading

So here is a strange idea I had,

So Merlin is Immortal, he can't stay dead, but he does get killed throughout the show in his bid to protect Arthur.

Here's my AU idea:

Every time Merlin dies, a piece of his memories dies with him.

This doesn't affect him much, as he doesn't die often in the beginning, but as time goes on and he gets more desperate to protect Arthur, he becomes more reckless, not realising his lucky escapes after being knocked out was due to him being dead and the perpetrators leaving his corpse.

After all, dead men tell no tales, usually.

With each death, he loses a memory and he wouldn't have noticed, but Arthur does.

Arthur would mention at one point or another about this or that and Merlin wouldn't be able to recall it.

It at first annoys him and makes him point out about Merlin's low intelligence. But as time goes on, he gets concerned when Merlin can't remember certain people or events.

He brings up the time Merlin cried for the Dragonlord.

It happens occasionally as time goes on and Arthur starts to consult Gaius about Merlin's memories.

Then I can see Merlin being outed as a sorcerer to Uther when Arthur is gone on some diplomatic mission. Uther wouldn't think twice before sentencing Merlin to death. Only he won't die.

He dies and dies in many different ways. Uther desperate to get rid of Merlin who he sees as the embodiment of his fears (if only he knew 😅).

Merlins deaths happen so many times, that by the time Arthur returns 2 weeks later, and storms the dungeons angry and confused, he was met with a sight he'll never forget.

It hits him harder than any fist or magic ever could.

And that's all I've got. Tell me what you think, what happens next?

Till next time fellow dreamers~! ✨

Omfg I was working on an amnisia fic forever ago that never got finished, but the outline for the second half would work for this!

Basically, Merlin has zero memory of anything, just this... Need to protect that he doesn't understand. In this case, he would also/instead have this constant feeling of pain that he just wants to stop. So Arthur convinces him to go on a quest to find his missing memories, even if they don't know to where.

So they head to the druids to find answers, and eventually get directions to the crystal cave. To help, they get a crystal that can store Merlin's memories when they get there, so Merlin's mind isn't overwhelmed.

Only throughout the course of their journey, Merlin instinctively protects Arthur, even if it means injury to himself (or in this case more death). Which is when they discover that the crystal they got can trap the memories Merlin would have lost in it when he dies. So they keep going, and eventually reach the cave, but they get attacked, either by Knights Uther sent after them, or by bandits.

Either way, the crystal holding Merlins recently lost memories gets taken, and Merlin completely shuts down. Can't remember anything. It leaves him as sort of an empty shell with just magic inside. Depending on how you interpret his magic and immortality, it could leave Merlin as just the avatar of magic, a primordial being, basically a god, Emrys. Which is how I like to do it.

So then, the magic/Emrys takes over, handles the battle, and wins and turns to Arthur. Reaches out, touches Arthur's face. Arthur is of course surprised, because Merlins eyes are glowing gold constantly, and his touch feels like the warms of a fireplace, even in the outside chill.

Arthur: Merlin?...

Emrys: not quite, love.

Arthur, sputtering: wha-?! What do you mean?

Emrys: I'm everything left that death cannot take. I am the magic that flows through these veins. And I always remember.

And thats how Arthur finds out that Merlin is in love with him. Or, his magic is at least. So Arthur, wanting to know everything, doesn't give the memory crystal back yet, and has Emrys tell him everything. Arthur learns about all that Merlin has kept secret, even able to see it, as Emrys pulls copies of the memories out of the crystals. Arthur learns about Nimueh, Balinor, Kilgarah...

In the end, Emrys tells Arthur that Merlin won't remember this conversation, as there's currently no Merlin left. And Arthur decides, before giving Merlin the crystal back, that he won't tell Merlin that he knows everything. That it's Merlin's right to share his story in his own time.

So Merlin comes to, sitting in the crystal cave, not entirely sure how he got there, with a clearly glowing magic crystal around his neck, and Arthur hugging him. And Merlin hugs back, listens to the barebones that Arthur tells him: Merlin's magic keeps him alive, even after death, but he loses his memories in the progress. The crystal stops that.

They make their way back home, coming up with a plan to depose Uther, and return magic to the land. Eventually, Merlin tells him everything, and Arthur just nods along, accepting every word, and thanking him for everything he's done.

OMG!!! ✨❤️💖❤️✨✨✨❤️💖❤️✨😍🤩😍

Absolutely BRILLIANT! I love this idea! This is definitely plausible and what my fangirl brain wants! ❤️✨

It kinda reminds me of Mob Phycho 100, with how Mob and Merlin's Powers were so powerful they have a sorta separate consciousness. And when the outer version of them is out, they come forth and take over.

Something something, a necromancer revived Camelot soldiers to take over the world. His biggest success is to revive King Arthur to make him his personal shield.

Then he tries to revive THE Merlin...

...

He doesn't know Merlin is still alive.

Married Merthur would be so unhinged imagine Merlin did something to annoy Arthur and the next time they host a ball or something Arthur would force a servant to recite all of Merlin’s titles:

Merlin entering the hall, late as usual

George after using a giant staff to quieten the crowd:

"High King Merlin Ambrosius Pendragon, Leader of the Druids and all the people of Albion, Emrys the long awaited most powerful warlock and sorcerer to ever walk the earth, Court Warlock and the Last Dragonlord, High Priest of the Old Religion, also known as Dragoon the Great and the Dolma and most importantly Protecter of the Once and Future King and his husband High King Arthur Pendragon"

Merlin would be so mad

Just imagine if Merlin does the same but using all the insults and names he calls Arthur by. Telling this to druid children who all recognises Arthur and having heard Camelot uses title. They use the same ones Merlin told them, like...

bradley james dying in historical dramas: a trilogy 

The Man who dies and dies again.

He'll raise one last time,

And know that one still waits.

Another day, a thousand lifetimes,

And now the time has come.

"Are you still my destiny?

Are we truly meant to be?

Merlin, do you still remember me?"

So I had this concept that i like to call

'Arthur as a YA Chosen One protagonist cliche'

Some time after the Purge started, little baby Arthur is stolen from his crib.

Maybe by Nimueh? Maybe she learns about the prophesy or simply acts on the Goddess's will as her Priestess.

So she leaves him somewhere to be brought up as an ordinary child. Maybe in some village. Maybe amongst druids, even.

That way, he grows up just like any other kid. He's not Arthur Pendragon, he's not a prince - he us just Arthur.

And when he is fourteen he finds a funny looking sword sticking out of a stone in the woods somewhere. And turns out he has some grand destiny and is actually the Kings son - but the King has gone mad and people are suffering, and it's now his responsibility to overthrow a father he just found out he had and become a King.

At fourteen.

And then some epic adventures happen and it all comes in three or five or something parts, each of them named 'Arthur Pendragon and the *insert major plot point of the book*'

('Arthur Pendragon and the Sword that got stuck' ; 'Arthur Pendragon and the Weird coin metaphor' ; 'Arthur Pendragon and the Mystery of a basement lizard')

Somewhere along the way he will find:

And together they have to defeat an evil king, some other bad guys, uncover some old secrets and save the world (!)

Somebody please write this, even as a crackfic this would be so perfect

Merlin characters but instead of stupid repressed young adults they're all stupid repressed hormonal teenagers on a world-saving quest percy jackson style

Cheesy power of friendship is absolutely mandatory btw

merlin x revolutionary girl utena　少女革命ウテナトレス

That’s literally my adolescence apocalypse

bonus

Medici x Merlin Art!

Honestly made this way back this year and forgot to finish it.

I still haven't seen the medici but read about it and looked up the very few crossover fanfics of it and Merlin. Loved them and Guliano.

It's not finish as there are details I haven't cleaned up yet, but...

What do you think?

Finished it.