( once and future king. )

[medievals]

an arthur pendragon open post

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[medievals]

[ birthdays aren't something arthur is particularly fond of anymore. after the events of last year ... he'd rather not acknowledge the anniversary of his birth at all. unfortunately, being the king that he is, and having the court that he does, it isn't easily forgotten or overlooked. he shouldn't expect any less, the attempts in the days prior to liven his spirits, the efforts of the knights to rouse him with sword and joust alike. it just won't be the same, not without his father. there's a integral part of arthur missing from the day now, and it's a part of him he'll never get back. isn't it his fault, despite what everyone tries to reassure him? his father was wounded protecting him because he failed to protect himself -- how much had he had to drink that night? he can't remember -- and his father died because he resorted to the likes of sorcery. there's nothing he can do to change that. he may be his father's son, but he isn't his father. he never will be. ]

[ he does expect, of course, that merlin will be as useless as always, whether it's the anniversary of his birth or not. there's part of arthur that feels comforted by this, because at least some things never change. it isn't anything he would ever admit, but he's glad to have at least one constant in his life -- one constant annoyance, one constant bumbling fool he can't seem to get rid of (and, honestly, wouldn't want to; no one really compares to merlin, somehow). arthur might find him charming if he weren't such an idiot all the time -- or, maybe, his complete lack of any skills whatsoever is charming in a way that no one else could ever pull off. if merlin were, indeed, anyone else, arthur would have fired him ages ago. and yet ... merlin is merlin, and so he remains, a loyal friend, a lazy servant, predictable as always but still sometimes surprising, in ways that make arthur question if there is actually more to merlin than he lets on. ]

[ the light of the sun leaks into arthur's bedroom unwanted. he can hear the bustle of preparation for the day's celebration from outside the window. he protests the sun, the excitement, the general existence of merlin anywhere near him. perhaps, he manages to protest the whole morning away, as if it knows exactly how much arthur dislikes it. the afternoon, he fears, will be worse, and far more torturous than having to put up with merlin all morning -- but merlin insists there's something gravely important to be seen in the woods and that only arthur should see it. arthur can't imagine what merlin is possibly going on about, but he follows mostly out of curiosity and a desperate need to get away from the castle and the overwhelming attention he'd be sure to receive there. let them have their fun in his name, let them celebrate their king in his absence. arthur would rather they be merry without him than be miserable with him. ]

[ it isn't long before arthur questions if merlin even knows where they're going, impatient and unsatisfied by the lack of anything interesting or even vaguely out of place. the woods are as they always are, if not quieter today as if to pay respects to the king before him, despite the bloodshed and misery their boughs have seen, the many lives felled on their roots. arthur nearly refuses when merlin tells him to close his eyes -- what thing of grave importance would require his eyes to be closed before seeing it? and why should he do anything merlin says when merlin never does anything he says? -- but eventually he sighs and complies, allowing merlin to direct him from behind, just this once. he makes to certain to insist it won't ever happen again. ]

[ they stop, and arthur can't tell where they are. his eyes open. he stares, slightly baffled, slightly touched, mostly suspicious. ] Merlin. [ it sounds accusatory, as it usually does when something is merlin's fault (which is usually always). he can't quite make out what this whole thing is supposed to be, the set up of some kind of picnic in the middle of a clearing overlooking a lake. merlin couldn't have possibly... ] What -- [ he gestures in front of him ] -- is this? [ he might look impressed if he wasn't too busy looking disturbed. ]