Merthur One-shots

Rain's Quite A Lovely Thing

Summary: Arthur had been trying to court Merlin for ages but the man just didn’t seem to be able to take a hint.

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The great king is only as good as his court. Arthur was the greatest of his time for one reason and one reason only. For he had Merlin by his side. The great wizard himself, who could make the sky turn green and the world tilt off its axis. The most incredible magic user to exist, to ever exist and ever will.

However, no matter how great a man Merlin was, he was still undoubtedly a fool. The biggest idiot to ever walk the world. Here be dragons was a lie, here be Merlin’s intelligence made more sense. Arthur had been trying to court him for the past year and all he got from the brunette was, “Aren’t you betrothal, sire?”

He was not. And frankly, never will be. Women, queens, and princesses, even common ladies were the farthest from his interest. Not to say they were bad in any way. No. Never, he would never think of such a thing. Arthur loved the woman in his life dearly. It was just that men had always been the one to peak his interest. Merlin especially.

When he had first realized he had fallen for his servant, he was ready to leap off from a castle turret. Merlin, off all people. He could just not believe that that man could have possibly won his heart. Off all the men in his life, it just had to be his Merlin. Not his Merlin, per say-

Arthur only meant he would be happy if he had fallen head over heels for one of his knights. Now they were worth his affections. They were strong, loyal, compassionate, and most importantly, they made his heart skip a beat with just one look. Though, if he had to be honest with himself, Merlin took his breath away.

Dear god, Arthur was in, in love with Merlin.

How would he ever meet his servant’s eyes again? How was he supposed to court the man for over a year just to have him meet his eyes and say, “Aren’t you betrothal, sire?” Like that would matter. Like Arthur would care about something as mundane as an arranged marriage when Merlin could build cities with a flick of his hand. His possible arranged marriages be damned, Arthur wanted Merlin’s affections and Merlin’s affections only.

The only question was how.

Arthur had done everything. For months! And yet, Merlin was still not taking the bait and spending the rest of his life with Arthur. What did he have to do to win Merlin over before it was too late? What did he need to do? Slay a dragon? Protect his city? Venture off on an elaborate quest to find some dumb item that only he could find? At this point the king was ready to do anything at the top of a hat.

“Have you actually told him, you liked him?”

“Of course, I ha-”

He had not.

“Merlin!” Arthur yelled to his servant the very next morning when he came in to tend to the king.

“Has the cat finally returned your tongue, sire?” Merlin greeted with a slight grin to his lips. Not that Arthur had been staring at his lips.

“I would hardly call myself quiet, Merlin.”

Merlin walked over to his bedside, laying a new set of clothes over a chair. His hands expertly moved so as to not leave a single wrinkle to his clothes. Now Arthur was staring. He couldn’t help but notice how much care Merlin took with everything he did. Except properly walking that is.

“At least you’re aware.”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing you and your silent nature need to worry about,” Merlin grinned at him.

“You can’t make fun of me, Merlin. I’m a king,” Arthur replied without the usual bite.

The man must have noticed by some sort of magic because he turned to face Arthur. Arthur will never get used to the look he gave him. “Are you running a fever, sire?”

“A fever- Of course I’m not running a fever, Merlin. What’s gotten into you? Thinking I had a fever.” Merlin didn’t look convinced, leaning forward and laying a cool hand onto his forehead. Arthur could practically feel himself heat up at the brief contact that was for purely medical reasons. He was going insane.

“You’re quite warm. I better have Gaius make you some medicine,” Merlin went on, retracting his gentle hand from Arthur’s face. “Stay put. I’ll be right back.” He turned to leave.

“Merlin wait-” Before Arthur knew it he had Merlin’s arm in his hand. When did Merlin become so muscular? Perhaps lugging around Arthur’s equipment had something to do with that.

“For what, sire?” Merlin looked down to the hand on his arm. He almost seemed annoyed at this for whatever reason. “Do you want me to undress you to your bare bottom as well?” the wizard asked, blunt as the day he was born.

Arthur blushed at that, his face heating up farther. “N-no,” even he sounded unsure to his own ears. “I just want you to stay with me….” he trailed off, thinking of some sort of excuse. “Until my fever lessens of course. Camelot needs a king and if he dies of a sickness, then it would be on you, Merlin.” Arthur nodded to himself. “It's best if you stay here…. With me.”

Merlin rolled his eyes, as if knowingly. “Yes, sire. Whatever you wish.” His eyes then glanced back down to Arthur’s hand. Instantly the king removed his hand as if Merlin’s skin had burned him. Though, Arthur would give just about anything to be burned by Merlin’s touch. The kingdom be damned.

“Do you want me in your bed as well?” That certainly caught Arthur’s attention.

“Wh-what?!”

“Do you want more blankets, sire? You still look feverish,” Merlin explained in a calculating manner, peering down on Arthur.

“Uh- Yes…. That would be nice,” Arthur regained his composure, “Though you should have already brought them over.” Arthur shuffled back into his bed, tugging Merlin by the sleeve alone with him. “Really, Merlin, do I have to tell you how to do everything?” He indicated with his eyes towards the pillows supporting his back.

With a sigh Merlin fluffed them. “May I go back to my other duties?”

“Actually, I’ve changed my mind.” Another eye roll. “Stay.” Arthur patted the space next to him on his bed. “I want to have a word or two with you.”

Merlin sat down comfortably next to Arthur, his arm outstretched to stabilize himself. He was awfully close to Arthur. He did not mind this. “What would you like to talk about?” This was said with a softer tone, as if Merlin was worried about Arthur.

“I-” The king’s heart skipped a beat. All the air left his lungs. “I love….”

“You love?”

“I love the rain! That’s how I got sick. You know this, Merlin. I just rained yesterday,” Arthur laughed forcibly. “My knights and I were training from sunrise to sunset. It would make sense that I eventually got sick. As much as I act invincible, I’m only human.”

Merlin watched his forced expressions with interest. A number of emotions flashed across his eyes, but the one that stood out the most to Arthur was what seemed like disappointment. What could Merlin possibly be disappointed about? Arthur was the one who failed his confession.

“You are only human, sire.”

By TheSleepyOne on ao3