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“Where are you going?”
Arthur’s soul just about left his body. Morgana was worse than their father sometimes, truly, she couldn’t conceal the Pendragon blood that flowed in her veins.
She looked at the bottle of cologne on the sink. Then at the shirt Arthur was wearing. Arthur could only sigh as her whole face morphed into something he’s seen multiple times in the course of his life. Gods, he’s going to get teased to shreds.
“Are you taking your Merlin out again? Where?” There it went. Someone save him from the harpy his sister is.
“I’m meeting his mum.” Arthur shrugged, trying to stop his own hands from trembling.
The smirk on Morgana’s face grew bigger than the edges of the observable universe were. He could swear she already had the wedding bells playing in her mind and the maid of honor position in her hands. This wicked woman had set them up, and she was never letting Arthur forget it.
“Oh, Hunith?” Morgana reached over to mess up his hair. It looked…good like that actually. Not that he’d ever tell her that. “She’s literally the sweetest person ever. An actual angel on earth. Just chill the fuck out, you have nothing to worry about.”
Arthur’s trembling hands had refused to settle even now.
“What are you bringing her anyway?” Morgana leaned back against the door frame, watching him desperately try to straighten out that one strand of hair out of place.
Arthur shrugged, barely glancing at her. “I planned to pick up a gift basket or something on the way. Or a bottle of wine maybe.”
Morgana almost doubled over in hysterical laughter. That was..not great. Arthur went about as still as a statue.
She was still hiccuping and wiping tears when she spoke again. “You..are absolutely terrible at people, I swear, you’re the worst person at it, I don’t even know how you're still alive. You didn’t ask Merlin what she liked or anything?”
“Uhh…” Arthur glanced at himself in the mirror. “I wanted him to think that I knew what I was doing…”
Morgana softened just the slightest bit. “You know what you’ll do? Go fish out that clay mug you made at the ceramic workshop last year, the one with which you hate.”
Arthur turned tense as a woodboard up at that. That mug, it was absolutely horrible looking. He was sure a child could do a better job than him. Morgana surely was not suggesting gifting it to the woman who might become his mother-in-law.
But she didn’t finish there.
“You’ll go to the pharmacy by the roundabout, you know which one I mean. And you’ll get her chamomile tea, the loose, quality one, do you understand?” Morgana now was right in his face about it. Shit. ”Not the teabags, loose. Then ask for an active chilli cream, and buy the strongest one. Hunith loves to use it when she’s sore after her tennis lessons.”
Arthur wanted to protest just now. But Morgana was not having his objections, she rarely even let him object.
“And get the old newspaper that Uther forced you to take, use it as a wrapper after you put the cream and tea into the mug and tie it with the jute string. She’ll love it. The best son-in-law prize won immediately, I tell you.”
Arthur finally got to collect his thoughts and words. ”I’m not her son-in-law.” He protested meekly.
“Shut it. You basically are at this point.” Morgana slapped his back. “And don’t treat Hunith like an old, fragile lady. She could kick your ass when it comes to stamina. I made the mistake of playing tennis with her and everything hurt for two days after.”
Morgana had pushed him out of the bathroom with that advice of hers. “You look fine. Go get the gifts, MOVE.”
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Arthur fiddled with the wrapper of his gift in the passenger seat. He let Merlin drive, just for today, he felt too freaked out to do any good behind the wheel.
They stopped by a small cottage blending into the forest behind it with its mossy roof. It looked straight out of a fairytale, cozy and welcoming.
“This is where you grew up?” Arthur whispered in wonder, leaning over Merlin’s lap to get a better view of the house.
“Yeah.” Merlin smiled, reaching up to gently cup Arthur’s cheek. “What do you think? It’s no mansion.”
Arthur chuckled. “Better than any mansion. I want one of these for us.” He looked up at his love again with the softest of smiles.
This cottage, just by looking at it, felt like home. Like a place where love blooms and is shared freely. So unlike the sterile corners and lonely rooms of the house he grew up in.
Merlin kissed him before they got out of the car once, and took his hand then.
Hunith seemed to sense their presence, or may have just seen them, who knows, but just as Merlin was about to open the gate, she already was out of the cottage, grasping her boy into a hug with a grip comparable to a shoulder vice.
Arthur stood off a bit to the side, making sure not to come in between a mum and her boy. He’ll pretend it didn’t make something in his chest soar.
He didn’t come to until Merlin had disappeared out of his view and Hunith gently touched his arm.
“Are you okay, Arthur?” She smiled up at him, her eyes so soft. His whole body melted. Morgana and Merlin, they were right. He had nothing to worry about.
“Uh…yeah, yeah I am.” He gave her the best smile he could muster up.
Hunith nodded, gently squeezing his bicep. “Would you like a hug too?”
Oh, yes. Yes, please.
That was how he ended up in her arms, almost nodding off in the process. It was like she melted his whole nervous system into mush. Not that he’d mind.
Arthur would kill for her.