Chapter Text
The next morning he was woken up by someone rudely opening his window before he had the chance to get a proper rest. All hope that he might be able to sleep off last night's strange events was gone. He still had conflicting feelings about Arthur's sudden fondness of him, still had a pulsating headache and now he also had a confused Gaius staring up at him, no doubt about to assign him some chore he didn't have the physical or mental energy to do right now.
“Merlin!" The old man finally spoke, still staring at him with an oddly surprised expression. "What are you doing here? Are you feeling unwell?”
“Why does everyone keep asking me that?” He grumbled sleepily.
“Well, for one you are in the physician’s chambers,” Gaius replied with more sass than he was prepared to deal with at this time in the morning.
“I was just tired and thought I might enjoy the luxury of my own bed. Is that so wrong?”
“I think you’ll find that your bed is far more luxurious than that of my patient’s,” Gaius implied with a tone he couldn't quite read.
He had no idea what Gaius was talking about. This was the only bed he had ever owned and he had no intention of leaving it anytime soon.
“I’m perfectly comfortable here, thank you,” he said as he sank his head back into his pillow in a poor attempt to go back to sleep. But as Gaius moved closer to sit by his bedside, it was clear that wasn't going to happen any time soon.
“Well, since you’re already here, can I help you with any ailment? Or have you just come here to keep me from my work?”
And at that question Merlin finally sat up, reluctantly giving up on the idea of getting more sleep. As he took a better look at his old mentor, he was relieved to find that he was very much the same and he instantly felt himself relax as he answered, “Well, I do have an annoying headache, but I’m afraid you have no cure for my biggest problem.”
Gaius nodded slowly, clearly confused by his statement but still trying to be understanding.
“Oh, I see, and what is that problem exactly?" He asked empathetically. "Perhaps I may be able to offer some friendly advice.”
For a moment Merlin actually considered his offer. Gaius wasn't usually the first person he would go for advice on his situation with Arthur, but these were desperate times.
“I think Arthur’s going insane,” he said bluntly before he could regret it. After how brazen Arthur was being with his advances last night, there was no use being coy about his suspicions.
“Oh really?" Gaius asked in a slightly amused tone. He didn't seem to understand the gravity of the situation. "And what makes you think that? Did you two have a fight?”
Merlin didn't think to question why that was the first conclusion Gaius jumped to, but he did hesitate before telling him the full reason for his suspicions, unsure if he should really be sharing any of this with Gaius in the first place. But it's not like he had much of a choice. After all, if Arthur was actually enchanted, Gaius could be his only hope. So he decided to keep it as vague as he could.
“No, it’s the opposite," he began slightly riled, "He’s being extremely affectionate, too much so. It’s unbearable. I don’t know what’s gotten into him.”
And then, out of all the reactions Gaius could have had to that, he just laughed. Gaius blatantly laughed at the very justified reason for his distress and in that moment he couldn't feel more betrayed by his old mentor. Was everyone intent on mocking him today? Even Gaius?
“This is serious, Gaius," he snapped, crossing his arms in front of his chest like a petulant child. "Do you have any idea why he’s been acting like that? Perhaps it’s the effect of an enchantment or the symptom of some mental affliction? Whatever it is, it’s driving me insane.”
And, although that made him seize his fit of laughter, Gaius was still doing a poor job at hiding an amused smile when he finally answered him in a calm tone.
“Well, as I'm sure you're aware, there are a lot of good things happening in the prince’s life right now, he's about to make a big commitment. It’s only natural that he feels inclined to share his excitement with you.”
Suddenly he felt bad for not knowing what was happening in Arthur's life. He spent every minute of his day with him, he should know what was making him so happy. Had he won a big tournament? Maybe an important peace treaty had just been signed? Or perhaps…perhaps he had met someone new. His stomach suddenly clenched at that thought. That would explain what Gaius meant by big commitment. He always knew Arthur would eventually marry, but he had never stopped to consider how that would affect their relationship. He was hoping he would at least get to meet the girl before he made such a commitment, but when had Arthur ever informed him about his big decisions?
“Well, maybe he should keep that excitement to himself,” he said bitterly.
“I’m sure you two will work it out," Gaius replied absentmindedly as he searched through his medicine cabinet, apparently ready to move on from the subject. "Now, for your head,” he continued as he handed him a vial containing a transparent liquid, “this tonic should rid you of your headache.”
"Thanks," he took the vial with a half-hearted smile. This wasn't really the help he was needing right now, but he should know that Gaius had always been more of a physician than a counselor. He would just have to figure out what was going on with Arthur on his own.
“Now, you should really be going. As much as I like your visits, I fear your mother would never forgive me if you showed up late to the celebrations because you were cooped up in here with me.”
Merlin was already about to leave, but he was caught off guard by the mention of his mother. “My mother is here in Camelot?”
“Of course, she wouldn’t miss the celebrations,” Gaius said as if that was a given.
It must be some celebration, if it warranted his mother coming all the way from Ealdor. Had Camelot struck an agreement with Cenred? Was Ealdor under their jurisdiction now? It seemed unlikely, but then again not as unlikely as his mother being here without something terrible having happened. His questions were only starting to build up, but Gaius had all but shooed him away at that point. Still, he was happy that he would get to see his mother and that she was here to enjoy herself rather than to deliver him bad news.
After his conversation with Gaius, Merlin felt compelled to ditch his duties and go see his mother right away, but he figured Arthur wouldn’t be in such a forgiving mood if he showed up late again this morning. He knew Arthur was always more cranky before he had his breakfast, so he made sure to swing by the kitchens to grab it before asking him for the day off to spend time with his mother. Perhaps there he might also get a clue as to what these big celebrations actually were.
“Oh, my Lord!" The wide-eyed cook exclaimed as soon as he walked in. "What are you doing here?”
What was it with people today? Everywhere he went, he always seemed to be in the wrong place.
“I’m here to pick up the prince's breakfast as usual,” he stated matter of factly. He came here to pick up Arthur's breakfast every morning. Surely, she should be expecting him by now. Though he was late, so it was more of an early lunch than a breakfast at this point.
“Oh, so you’re treating your prince to some breakfast in bed," one of the kitchen maids chimed in with a cheerful smile, "How sweet!”
“Yes...," he agreed hesitantly, "Can I have it now?”
Merlin didn’t understand what all the fuss was about, after all he had been doing it for years. And his breakfast was only served in bed because Arthur was too lazy to get out of bed early, even when food was involved.
“Of course. It's coming right up," the cook replied in a nicer tone than the one she usually addressed him with.
Since he was already there and everyone seemed to be in such high spirits, he figured he might as well try to find out what these celebrations were all about. After all, no one knew more about the ins and outs of the castle than the kitchen maids.
"So, what are we celebrating today? Must be quite the occasion, huh?" He commented with one of the kitchen maids after noticing the array of mouth-watering dishes they were surrounded by.
"You don't know?" The girl answered in a giddy tone as she glanced at the others with a playful grin.
Merlin shook his head cluelessly. Was he supposed to know?
The answer to that was apparently obvious, seeing as the girl immediately turned around to giggle along with the other kitchen maids.
"Girls!," the cook scolded them, "Don't worry, I'm sure your prince will tell you soon enough. Here's his breakfast. I made sure to pack some extra sweets for you to share.” He had never seen the cook be so nice to him before, neither had she previously acknowledged that he often ate from Arthur's tray, but he knew better than to shy away from her good graces, so he gladly took up her offer and set out to go on his way.
“Oh, and don’t forget to add some flowers as well," another girl chimed in, placing some flowers on his tray before he had the chance to leave. "Here, I just picked these up, you can take them to him if you want.” She was being so sweet that he simply couldn't refuse her, so he kindly accepted her offer. She was likely an admirer of Arthur, simply wishing to send her well wishes to the prince.
“Why thank you, that's very nice of you," he replied somewhat overwhelmed by all their kindness, "I’ll make sure he gets these.” He wasn’t sure why they were indulging him so much, but he was just happy that they were so cheerful to see him.
As nice as they were, his prolonged stop by the kitchens had delayed his plans to meet Arthur in his best mood and he was sure to be grouchy by now. So he balanced the overly composed breakfast tray with one hand and reached for the door with the other, preparing himself for the worst as he entered the room. But as he opened the door to Arthur's chambers, he was in for a surprise. Not only was Arthur already dressed, but he was also being served breakfast by a servant whose clothes looked remarkably similar to his.
At first he thought it was just a twisted prank at his expense but, as he went through last night's events once more, another possibility rose to mind - he was being sacked. But, whether it was because of his faulty yet loyal years of service to him or because Arthur wanted the nature of their relationship to change, that didn't matter as much to him right now. If he was being replaced, Arthur should at least have had the courtesy of telling him instead of acting all nice and hiring somebody else for the job behind his back. He didn't deserve to find out like this.
“Ah, Merlin! There you are!" Arthur jumped out of his seat to greet him at the door. "I was worried sick when you didn’t return last night."
He came in prepared to tell him off, but Arthur's reaction caught him off guard. Was he supposed to return last night?
Merlin didn’t mean to worry him, he had no idea Arthur was expecting him to return. For a moment he almost felt guilty for leaving him waiting, but then he stopped himself. No, he was mad and he would not be swayed by Arthur's new lovey-dovey approach. Arthur was being ridiculous and he was going to hear of it.
"What's this?" He asked pointedly, looking between him and the man currently pouring him a glass of water.
"Err…breakfast?" Arthur seemed genuinely confused at the question, though he couldn't tell if he was being deliberately obtuse or if he had somehow dismissed the presence of his poorly disguised replacement.
He also couldn't help but notice that, despite the delicious-looking display in front of him and Arthur's insistence that he was having breakfast, most of the food remained untouched as if he was waiting for someone to share it with, which for some reason only riled him up more because Arthur never shared his food.
"Look, I know this is the second time I'm late this week, but this is getting ridiculous-"
But he couldn't get more than a few words of his rant in before Arthur was awfully close to him.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I know how much you like to bring me breakfast," he whispered as he pressed a soft kiss to his cheek.
And once again, his brain stopped working for just as long as it took him to register what Arthur had just said.
"I don't-" He attempted to retort back, but then he trailed off. It was really hard to stay mad at Arthur when he kept fussing all over him like that. "Like is a bit of an overstatement."
But Arthur dismissed his weak retort, instead focusing on fondly inspecting the tray for himself.
"Aww, and you even brought me flowers," Arthur observed with a warm grin.
"Those are not-" He gave up. He couldn't deny that it did look like he was bringing him flowers, even if he was subtly tricked into doing so.
"Thanks, I really appreciate it," Arthur mumbled as he swiftly took the tray off his hands. And now he was thanking him? If he still had any doubt, now he was sure there was definitely something wrong with Arthur. "But you shouldn't even be carrying all that after last night. Tell me, how are you feeling today?"
But before he had the chance to answer, Arthur's soft hand returned to his forehead as it had done the night before and Merlin could instantly feel all his built up anger melt away.
"I'm fine. I just…don't like seeing food go to waste," he mumbled weakly, giving up on his pointless outrage.
"You're right. It would be a shame for it to go to waste. Come, have a sit," Arthur said as he gestured to the chair next to him.
"Really?" He asked, just to be sure. It could be a trick offer coming from Arthur, though he had to admit that he was rather hungry.
"Yeah. I'm not going to eat all this by myself, am I?" He asked, making it seem like he was doing him a big favour just by sitting with him and sharing in his food.
He didn't know what had prompted Arthur to share his breakfast with him this morning, but he took it as a peace offering. He supposed it wouldn't hurt to eat some of the bread and grapes off his tray. After all, he usually took food from Arthur's tray anyway, he just wasn't used to doing it right in front of him.
But Arthur must have been feeling overly generous that morning, because he quickly passed him some sausages and sweet rolls from his own plate as well. He was halfway through one of the sweet rolls when Arthur broke through their blissful silence, “Tell me, how is your head?"
“Better,” he mumbled out as he happily finished his roll and wiped some of the sugar off his mouth. Indeed, his headache had gotten better after he took Gaius' tonic. “Gaius gave me a tonic to help with my headache,” he reassured him.
“I’m glad,” he replied warmly, his lips slowly curling into a pleased smile. “Now, you must be quick to dress. They’ll be calling for us at any moment now.”
“What for?” He asked genuinely clueless.
“The banquet, of course.”
“Right." The mysterious banquet everyone seemed to know about but him. "Won’t these do?” Merlin asked, gesturing to the clothes he was wearing.
“I’m afraid those won’t do,” Arthur replied as he scrunched up his nose.
“What’s wrong with my regular clothes?” He asked defensively, ashamed to be slightly offended at that.
“You’ll just have to wear something a bit more suitable for the occasion," he answered politely. "Here, I took the liberty of picking out something else for you,” Arthur said proudly as he led him towards the closet.
But Merlin knew better than to trust Arthur's sudden interest in his clothing. In fact, Merlin knew exactly what that meant and he was already dreading the ridiculous outfit Arthur would make him wear this time. It was a stupid prank and one he had already done before, though it seemed more in line with something the Arthur he knew would pull. He only hoped that Arthur would be more clever than to pull the same trick twice.
“Oh, God, I'll have to wear the Ceremonial Robes of the servants of Camelot again, won’t I?” He sighed as he was already dreading the thought of having to wear that ridiculous hat again.
“No. What on earth are you talking about? There’s no such thing as an official ceremonial robe for our servants…” Arthur replied, looking awfully confused. That dollophead! He had gone through the trouble of commissioning him a tailored outfit made specially to embarrass him before the court and now he was pretending to not remember about it. But his frustration towards Arthur was quickly swept off by Arthur’s next line. “Besides, why would a prince wear the robes of a servant?”
Merlin nearly choked on his water.
“A prince?!” He blurted out, still recovering.
“A soon to be prince," Arthur clarified with a wide grin on his face, as if that made it any more reassuring. "Alright, I didn’t want to tell you until it was official, but your father finally approved of the match and my mother is already making sure all the necessary arrangements are in place."
“My father?” He must have misheard that. His father had been dead for more than two years now. And he was pretty sure Arthur's mother wasn't alive either.
“Yes, the Duke of Ealdor has come here personally to deliver the good news and start negotiating our alliance.”
Arthur kept saying words that didn't make any sense and he was pretty sure he was hallucinating at this point. Still, he tried his best to process what Arthur was saying to him.
The Duke…the Duke of Ealdor? But if that was true, if his father was really a Duke, then that would make him…Oh. Oh! So, that was why he was getting all those weird looks in the kitchens and in the hallways. It certainly explained Gaius' reaction to finding him sleeping on his regular bed. Though, he still couldn't fully make sense of his interactions with the kitchen maids.
It was only after a while that he realised he had tuned out what Arthur was happily blabbering about, in favour of processing all the senseless things he had said just moments ago. But as he finished something pulled him right in. "…We could be married within the month.”
"Married?!" Merlin's face instantly flushed burning red, panic rose in his chest and he was pretty sure he was close to hyperventilating at this point.
This couldn't be happening. This had to be some sort of dream, or some elaborate joke everyone was in on but him. But Arthur didn't seem anywhere near the punchline, instead he proceeded with the same genuine enthusiasm, apparently about their upcoming nuptials. He was pretty sure he was going mad, but he needed further proof. He quickly risked a look at his left hand and was shocked to find an engagement ring matching Arthur's in his ring finger. He could've swore it wasn't there just moments ago, it certainly wasn't there last morning.
“Yes. It’s exciting news, isn’t it? I’m going to be announcing it to the whole court this afternoon just before the feast.”
The whole court?! He couldn’t appear before the whole court. Not when his nerves were already on high alert and one wrong move could set off his magic, turning that into a whole different kind of party.
“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea,” he said warily as if he could somehow avoid it.
“Why not?” Arthur asked obliviously. He really didn't see it, did he? How insane this all was.
But Merlin could think of a million reasons not to, starting with 'Because we're not even courting, Arthur' and ending with 'Because I'm a bloody sorcerer, Arthur'. Though, he wasn't sure which one of those truths he was ready to break to him first.
“Well, what if…they don’t like me?” He asked weakly for lack of a better excuse.
But Arthur was just mildly amused by his concern, “Don’t be foolish, Merlin. Everybody likes you.”
Well, that was one way of approaching things. Though, Merlin was sure they wouldn’t find him so likeable if they knew him for who he really was. He imagined Uther especially wouldn't be particularly happy that his son was marrying a servant and a sorcerer of all people. But that didn't seem to be up for discussion, as Arthur kept urging him to get ready.
“Now you must dress. Everybody is waiting for us to hear the good news.”
He wasn't sure if it was because he was still in a state of shock or if it was the blow to the head he must have taken, but for some reason he thought it best to play along, just until he could gather some more clues as to what was actually going on.
“Alright, then. Where is this special outfit that seems to be the only one fitting for the occasion?” He asked in resignation, walking towards the closet.
But when Arthur opened the doors to the closet to proudly reveal what he was sure was some ridiculous garment designed specifically to humiliate him, he was shocked by what was actually inside. An elegant white tunic paired with a beautiful dark blue overcoat - it was all threaded with silver and gold at the seams and had an intriguing dragon emblem embroidered at the front - a work of tailoring so refined that it could be worn by a prince, or even a king.
“Arthur, I…I can’t wear this,” he mumbled shyly after gaping at it for an embarrassingly long time.
“Of course, you can. I had it made especially," Arthur replied, overly pleased with himself. But his pleased grin slowly faded as he started further inspecting his gift. "Unless you don’t like it, of course. What is it? Is it the fabric? The colour? I knew it!" He sighed in frustration. "I told the tailor I wanted it blue, but it certainly looks more like teal to me.”
“No, it’s not that, it’s…lovely," he assured him, trying his best to seem appreciative of his gift. "It’s just that…it’s fit for a prince, not for a-”
But before he could finish that thought, Arthur cupped his face with his hands and met his gaze with his own, blue eyes so piercing that it felt like they could see right into his soul.
“Hey, you are a prince to me…and soon you’ll be to everyone else," he whispered softly, "It’s only fitting that you’d dress like one today.”
In that moment Arthur's gaze was so filled with devotion, that he had to break away from it. He was too stunned to speak, to dress, or to do anything else really. The simple fact that Arthur had just referred to him as a prince without a hint of sarcasm was enough to send shivers down his spine. He was clearly not in his Camelot and this was definitely not his Arthur. He stood there like that for a while, but It only dawned on him how much time he had actually stayed frozen in place when an unfamiliar voice took his inability to move as helplessness.
“Can I be of assistance, my Lord?”
It took him a while to realise that the obedient servant that was now standing by the corner was addressing him. Him? A Lord? For all the times he had sarcastically addressed Arthur by that title, he would think that he was being mocked. But the poor servant was still wanting for his answer to proceed.
“No, thanks. I’m quite capable of dressing myself,” he said dryly as he reached for the ridiculously elaborate garment.
“Don’t be stubborn, Merlin. You’ve just injured your head. Allow George to help you,” Arthur scolded him as he gestured to the servant that was waiting on him earlier. George…even his name was dull.
But when Merlin failed to give him any further confirmation, Arthur nodded for him and the servant began lifting his tunic. He didn’t want to make that task more difficult for the poor servant than it had to be - he knew all too well how a servant’s job was hard enough without having to deal with arrogant nobles - so he reluctantly lifted his arms to allow him to slip his tunic right off. He felt like a child being dressed by his mother and he couldn’t imagine how Arthur had grown up used to that. But when the servant knelt to pull off his trousers, it felt too much like an invasion of privacy and he couldn't allow him to go on.
“Thank you, George. But I think I can take it from here,” he politely stepped away and moved behind the changing screen to put on his fancy noble pants.
He wanted to hate it, to resist the unfamiliar luxury of his new clothes, but he couldn't ignore the way the soft fabric comfortably hugged his skin. It was a perfect fit and for a moment he flustered at the thought that Arthur really had commissioned that clothing specially for him. But those feelings quickly faded, when he reminded himself that they weren't made for him but for some other version of him that was somehow willing to go along with all this madness. It was all the same to him, he just had to play along for a little while longer.
He was almost done when he came out of the changing screen, all that was left was lacing up his tunic and buttoning the cuffs of his sleeves. But that was proving to be a hard task in itself. Merlin had always thought that the clothes of nobles had too many complicated and unnecessary laces. Luckily, Arthur noticed, no, almost anticipated, his struggle and stepped in to help. Was it that obvious that he had never done that on himself before?
He couldn't help but ask, “How did you-”
But Arthur simply sent him a fond smile.
“You always struggle with your laces,” he replied as he lifted his eyes from his handy work to meet his own with an overwhelming softness.
It suddenly dawned on him how close Arthur was, how intimate that little ritual had become, and he could feel his cheeks blush at all the domestic intimacy of it. Was this how Arthur always felt each time he dressed him? He couldn't say but, as Arthur kept tenderly handling the finishing touches on his tunic, he couldn't help but wonder what other intricate rituals they shared in this strange world and if they always made him feel as fuzzy as he felt inside.
However, all the butterflies in his stomach were replaced by a swirl of nerves, when he remembered what he was actually dressing up for. “I don’t know if I can do this. Maybe I should skip it. I’m not a Prince, Arthur.”
“Don’t worry. I’m going to be by your side, like I always am," Arthur said warmly, unexpectedly reaching for his hand and locking their fingers together. It should feel odd, but there was something surprisingly reassuring about it. Their hands fit perfectly together as if they had been made to hold each other, and for a moment he wondered if there was more to the dragon's prophecies than he initially led on. "We just have to look as one.”
He could do that, he could pretend. After all, they were two sides of the same coin. It shouldn't be too hard for them to look as one just until he could figure out what was actually going on. He just hoped that everyone would be as convinced of their love as Arthur was.