After dating for some time, the time for meeting Merlin's son has come
Yes, there will be mistakes, grammar or others, Sorry for that :)
Also I do not own Merlin or any of the characters there, this amazing piece of art belongs to BBC ;)
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"Merlin, are you sure that it's not too soon?" Arthur asked with obvious worries while walking beside Merlin.
Merlin looked at his boyfriend and chuckled, not because he would want to make fun of him, but because Arthur was really cute when he was nervous.
"We've been together for nearly 6 months Art... definitely not too soon, trust me" Merlin assured him and gave him quick peck on a cheek.
"B-but... what if he... will not like me?" Arthur asked desperately.
"He will. I like you so there is a chance that genetic will do its magic... he is my son after all..." Merlin tried to calm his over worried boyfriend down.
Merlin fully understood why is Arthur nervous about meeting Mordred. Arthur never claimed to be good with children, and he was worried that if he will mess up with the boy, he will lose Merlin as well.
"Arthur..." Merlin started seriously when he saw that Arthur is nervous more and more.
"Mordred knows about you, I've told him about you... and I know that kids can be a scary... well, let's say obstacle to conquer, but I am more than sure that you two will be ok"
Arthur looked at his boyfriend and bit his lower lip, something he does when he is nervous
"But I don't know how to talk to kids... or act around them actually... you know that our family never was really..." Arthur started.
"I know Arthur" Merlin nodded "But... you're actually willing to meet my son, and more importantly you are accepting his existence in my life, which means I lot to me. You remember when I was telling you about Cenred right?"
Arthur nodded, Cenred was a guy Merlin was dating... well more like sleeping with. Cender had no interest in meeting Mordred at all, which was something he somehow managed to fail to tell Merlin just to get him in the bed. Any time Merlin suggested that Cenred and Mordred might get to know each other, Cenred was coming up with excuses for not meeting the kid and when he decided that he had Merlin long enough he ended things with Merlin with not really nice farewell message "Good luck with finding someone that would want to stick around with someone with a kid". Merlin was heartbroken of course because when Cenred wanted to be, he was very charming, so he fooled Merlin well.
Morgana, Merlin's ex girlfriend and also the mother of Mordred, was more than just little bit angry that Cenred could have been such an ass to Merlin. She and Merlin maybe dated only for a short period of time, but two things were made from that relationship.
First one was Mordred. When Merlin did find out that Morgana is pregnant, which was not long after they ended their relationship because they both felt like it just isn't working for them, he assured Morgana that he more than just wants to help with raising up the baby and Morgana was not trying to stop him from it in any way.
The second thing was their friendship. They did not think that getting back together just because of the baby is a good idea, but that doesn't mean that they were not there for each other if they needed it. Some people might not end up being close friends after a relationship, but that does not apply to Merlin and Morgana.
"So just that you are actually worried about what Mordred will think about you means that you actually care... also you don't mind when I am talking about him and you are not trying to change the subject when I do" Merlin was determinate to make Arthur realize that he doesn't have to worry as much as he does.
Arthur nodded and took Merlin's hand in his to help himself calm down.
"But... and I am not kidding, Mordred will probably... no not probably, sooner or later he will for sure ask you a lot of questions to make sure you're good for and to me" Merlin realized
"What? Really?" Arthur asked
"Oh yeah, you should have seen what Leon went through... I actually felt quite sorry for that guy when Morgie was telling me about how Mordred was making sure that his mom is with a good man and not some crook" Merlin said with a smile.
"Great..." Arthur mumbled and started to panic again.
"Don't worry Arthur... let me tell you a secret... Mordred actually kinda likes you already "
"Really? What makes you so sure?"
"He noticed that I am happier since we started to hang out, and said that and I quote That bloke is probably not a total douchebag, when he makes you smile like that end of the quote"
Arthur laughed aloud at hearing that
"But I really don't recommend you to tell Mordred that you know about this, you might ruin his quiet a prideful side by knowing about it"
"Like father like son then? Arthur chuckled
"I think that this is something me and Morgana can split the credits for" Merlin smirked
Yes Arthur can totally confirm that. He met Morgana a few times, and she is quite a scary woman to be honest. She also had some questions for Arthur to make sure that Merlin will not end up on her sofa with broken heart again. Luckily for Arthur Morgana was pleased with the answers she got.
"Should... I mean should I get him some present or something? I mean... is it a normal thing to do or will it be weird?" Arthur asked when they were passing by a toy shop.
"It would not be weird, but don't try to buy him, it will not work I can tell you that" Merlin replied
"He really is a mini version of you isn't he?"
"What do you m..."
"Merlin... come on, it took ages for you to let me pay for your dinner or for a ticket to the cinema" Arthur reminded him and Merlin chuckled
"Alright, alright, I admit I don't like to own someone, but... it got better didn't it?" Merlin smiled at Arthur who smiled back at him
"So... can we go inside and take a look if they might have something good then? Please?" Arthur asked and pointed at the toy shop.
Merlin chuckle, and nodded. He was really impressed how much Arthur is trying to make a good impression on Mordred, and he was happy that Arthur is because it showed that he really cares about this thing.
They entered the shop and started to look around what is where.
"Ohhh plushies!" Merlin said excitedly and almost run to the shelf with the plushies.
Arthur laughed a bit and followed his boyfriend.
"I am suppose to pick something for Mordred, not for you Merlin" he reminded him lovingly while watching Merlin cuddle with some of the softer plushies
"Yeah... good luck... but he is not into plushies that much. He has a bunny that can not be replaced so... better pick something else... oh look a panda, that's cute!" Merlin was talking while going through the plushies and when he noticed a cute panda he immediately picked it up and showed it to Arthur... in case Arthur somehow overlook this adorable animal.
Arthur started to accepting that Merlin will not be much of a help while he's playing with the plushies, but he still could not suppress the smile on his face while watching his boyfriend. He decided to leave Merlin to play with the toys and try to find something on his own then.
He was almost sure that when Merlin was talking about his son, Merlin said that the kid is really into knights and swords and this type of fantasy world. Something Arthur can relate to actually because when he was little he was obsessed with this as well... and what would you expect from a kid named Arthur, right?
After walking around the shop for a few minutes Arthur noticed that there are some books as well, he went to take a look at what books they have here. While browsing, he managed to find a book with fantasy stories about Kings, knights, bandits, dragons and more stuff like that... he was trying to remember if Merlin ever mentioned that Mordred likes to read about knights as well as playing at them.
He decided that it might be the best if he just asks Merlin, so he took the book and went back to Merlin who was, unsurprisingly where Arthur left him, still paying all the attention to the plushies.
"Does Mordred like books?" he asked. Merlin looked at him
"Arthur? You're back already?" he asked surprised
"I was gone for 2 hours Merlin" Arthur said with serious expression, but when he saw Merlin "Are you f*cking kidding me?!" expression he bursted into laughter
"You prat" Merlin chuckled and shook his head
"Anyway... what do you think Merlin?" Arthur asked more seriously and uncertainly showed him the book
"How did you know that he likes knights?" Merlin asked surprised when he took the book in hand and saw what the book is about
"You were telling me about it" Arthur told him
Merlin looked at his boyfriend with admiration and could not help himself and had to kiss him. The thought that Arthur not just did not stop Merlin from talking about his son, but actually paid attention to what Merlin was saying really meant a lot to Merlin, more than Arthur probably can ever know.
Arthur happily smiled while kissing Merlin, but then he remembered that they are in a public place and surrounded by plushies, so he gently ended the kiss
"So? What do you think?" Arthur asked about the book
"Think about what?" Merlin asked still cough up in the previous kissing moment
"About the book honey"
"What book?"
"The one you're holding in your hand... focus Merlin you're embarrassing me in front of the plushies" Arthur said almost seriously
Merlin blushed little bit, but still had to laugh. He took a proper look at the book because Arthur is really trying here, so he wants to help him as much as he can obviously. Mordred likes to read, which is encouraged by both Merlin and Morgana, so a book is not a total fail as a gift. Merlin was sure that a book about knights is most likely something Mordred will like, he was just trying to remember if he or Morgana did not give him this one already. He was looking at the cover of the book and was sure that Mordred does not have this one yet.
"I think that it's perfect Arthur, really" Merlin assured him which made Arthur smile happily
"Great. Let's go then" Arthur nodded and took the book back. He noticed that one of the plushies, fluffy and very soft looking unicorn to be specific, is still in Merlin's hand
"Merlin?" Arthur raised an eyebrow in a question
Merlin did not say anything, but he grabbed the unicorn little bit tighter, clearly showing that he will not give up on it without a fight.
"Merlin... we are not *Merlin used puppy look... it's super effective* getting out of this shop without that unicorn" Arthur tried to, but then he thought "What the hell, why not"
The room was suddenly brighter because of the big smile on Merlin's face
Arthur took the unicorn from Merlin and went to pay for it and the book.
"So, how old that little rascal of yours is?" the nice lady behind the cash register asked while she was putting the unicorn and the book in a paper bag for Arthur
"He's 34" Arthur smirked little bit and looked at Merlin who rolled his eyes
"Please ignore him, he's an idiot" Merlin said to the cashier who was trying to suppress the giggle.
"Not very nice of you to talk about me like that Merls" Arthur said with a very fake hurt in his voice
"Maybe not nice, but totally accurate" Merlin replied calmly. The cashier who was still very amused by Merlin's and Arthur's little banter finished the packing and handed Arthur the bag
"It'll be 50£ sir"
Arthur paid up and then they left the store.
"So Morgana will bring Mordred over to your place? Or are we picking him up at hers?" Arthur asked while walking beside Merlin, holding his hand
"She said she will bring him to mine" Merlin replied
"Great" Arthur nodded. He was still nervous about actually meeting the kid, but at the same time Merlin will be there with them, and he trust that his boyfriend will make sure that Arthur will not do anything incredibly stupid
Merlin's phone started to ring in his pocket, so he quickly reached for it
"Ha... speak of the devil" Merlin smirked when he looked at the display and answered the call
Arthur figured out that it's Morgana who calls him and chuckled a bit.
"Hey Morgana, what's up?... oh.... really? ... Yeah, sure it's no problem... yes, I am sure it isn't... Me and Arthur are nearby your apartment right now anyway so it's really not a problem... Yes I know I am amazing... but you wanted to say that right? haha... ok see you in a bit, bye" Merlin ended the call and put the phone back in his pocket
"Morgana has some emergency in her company, so she really needs to go there to deal with it as soon as possible. There for she is not able to bring Mordred to my place as we agreed, so we have to pick him up at hers. I mean she asked if I would be ok with picking him up there, but if I would not then she will of course stay true to her word and bring him. But why not help her out when I can right? And we are not that far from her place anyway" He told Arthur.
"Oh..." Arthur nodded. Him finally meeting Mordred will be sooner than he thought as it seems.
"Is that ok? You don't have to come with me... you can go and wait in my apartment if you want to" Merlin suggested
"No, it's ok. As long as you are there too it will be ok" Arthur shock his head and smiled at Merlin.
"Don't worry Arthur. You, Mordred and everything else will be just fine, promise" Merlin assured him and Arthur actually started to believe that.
Few minutes later they entered the apartment building where Morgana and Leon live, they got in the elevator and then stopped at Morgana's door.
Merlin knocked and rang the door bell
"Come in Merlin, it's open" Morgana shouted from the other side of the door
Merlin and Arthur opened the door and entered.
They caught a glimpse of Morgana who just disappeared in the other room. She looked like she is fully focused on the preparations for her exit to work.
"Dad!" a little blue-eyed boy ran out of the corridor to greed his father, because he heard the door bell.
"Hey buddy" Merlin greeted his son and with a big smile on his face immediately picked him up in a tight hug.
Mordred of course began to complain that he is too big for this, but with a smile on his face he hugged his father back none less.
"Exactly, you're growing so fast I would not be able to do this for much longer... just let your old man enjoy it while he still can" Merlin laughed and then put Mordred back down.
Arthur was still standing at the door. He was not sure how to introduce himself. He was silently watching Merlin's interaction with his son. His father was never a family man, the business came first no matter what, so Arthur's closest family was probably their butler George, and although George was great in many things just messing around with someone was not one of them. While thinking about his own childhood Arthur began to feel anxious again about if this is a good idea.
Merlin as if he was someone able to sense Arthur's anxiety turned around and looked at him.
"Mordred, I'd like to introduce you someone" Merlin said and pointed at Arthur
"This is Arthur" he added.
"Hi" Arthur said and waved at the kid
"Arthur, this is Mordred" Merlin continued at the introductions. Mordred looked at Arthur and slightly nodded in agreement
"Damn... Merlin can you came here please!" Morgana's voice came from the other room and Merlin knew that this is the tone of her voice that does not take no for an answer, so he quickly went there.
Arthur was watching with an absolute betrayal and horror how Merlin is leaving the room, leaving Arthur alone with a child... a child he was suppose to make a good impression on top of that.
"So you're the guy my dad's dating now?" Mordred asked directly.
"Yes, yes that's me" Arthur nodded.
"And I hope you and I will get along" Arthur added... "oh God, did it sound like I treat? I feel like it did..." Arthur thought horrified
"Me to" Mordred nodded and smiled at Arthur who quickly smiled in return.
"I mean, my dad likes you a lot... he actually started to sing when he's in the shower again..." Mordred added and Arthur chuckled
"The only problem is that he can not sing"
Arthur had to laugh when Mordred said that. He began to feel better at the kid's presence
"Tell me about it" Arthur nodded and Mordred chuckled
"I've heard that you like knights" Arthur began and Mordred nodded
"I've got you something, but you don't have to take it if you don't want to" Arthur said and took the book from the bag
Mordred went closer and took the book
"Thanks Arthur" Mordred smiled, and he genuinely looked happy about it.
"What's left in that bag?" Mordred asked curiously
"Your dad was not willing to leave the store without it" Arthur said and showed Mordred the plushie unicorn which made Mordred laughed, but he nodded like "Yeah, not surprised by that"
"You know... so far you look like a really cool guy" Mordred started with a smile
"Thanks Mo..." Arthur began
"But I would not hurt my dad if I were you... just saying" Mordred continued and his smile disappeared from his face, Arthur did not doubt that the boy is deadly seriously. And he did not blame him at all, because Merlin is undoubtedly an amazing dad so Mordred wants to protect him as much as he can.
"Don't worry, I would not dream of doing so" Arthur said seriously
"Good" Mordred nodded and his smile returned on his face
"Well... that was not totally creepy at all" Arthur thought, happy that he probably passed Mordred's little test
"I liked knights when I was little as well" Arthur started, hoping to maintain this happy smiling Mordred rather than the scary one.
"Really?" Mordred asked with interest
"Yeah, I was making swords and shields and daggers out of a cardboard all the time, because..." He wanted to tell that the reason was because his dad did not think running around with a fake weapon is something meaninful, so he would never bought Arthur any of the toy weapons from the toy shops. So Arthur was secretly making them out of cardboard. And frankly Arthur had fun with both playing with the weapons and also with the making them, because he could try new styles of them or different colors. And with more he made the better they looked and Arthur was getting really better and better at drawing until he found out that drawing is something he's not just enjoys very much, but he is good at.
Quickly after that he decided that art will be his living. His father of course wouldn't hear about it. He already planned out Arthur's future. Future where Arthur wears suits and follows Uther on his every step around his company building and one day takes over that company himself. Arthur could not imagine anything more boring but no matter how old Arthur was any attempt of having conversation about it with his father ended almost as soon as it started with the same words "We are not going to discuss this Arthur, I've already planned out everything so don't be stupid" Plans Arthur clearly had no saying in. But Arthur did not follow his father's plans at all. After a trip to Los Angeles when he was 16 two things had happened.
1. Arthur got his first tattoo.
and
2. Arthur fell in love with tattoo art and promised himself that no matter what, he will not give up on becoming a tattoo artist.
Uther of course did not take this announcement very well... he told Arthur to immediately leave his house and do not come back until he learns to respect his father. Arthur did what Uther told him and left got on a bus and left the town.
Luckily Arthur had some money he managed to save, so he did not have to start with literally nothing. And selling his art kept his financial situation in green numbers quite easily actually. He was not living anywhere near in the conditions he was growing up in, but he did not mind that at all. As long as he had his apprenticeship in a local tattoo shop where he could work on getting his license and learning all he could about tattooing he was quite happy with his living conditions. Arthur's tutor was one of the guys that was willing to show you how to become a great tattooer if you were working hard and were listening to what he's telling you, something Arthur had no problem with. In the same shop Arthur also met the tutor's son Gwain that was a year older than Arthur.
Gwain somehow quickly became his best friend and also roommate. Gwaine liked art and wanted to pursue career of a tattoo artist just like his father and like Arthur, but more importantly Gwaine never dwell on Arthur's past, where he came from or why Arthur never goes home on holidays and things like that. They just talked about anything and everything that was not this and neither of them minded. Of course that in some time Gwaine did find out about Arthur's dad and how "ungrateful" Arthur is. It all happened on Arthur's birthday when him and Gwaine were celebrating, which Gwaine insisted they have to and alcohol loosen up Arthur's tongue quite a lot. Arthur was little bit worried that Gwaine might start to act differently, but his best friend did not let him down and his behavior did not change in the slightest.
When him and Gwaine got their tattoo licenses they traveled around the world for a few years to get as much experience in tattooing as possible and also to earn enough money to open their own tattoo shop. Gwaine's father offered them little financial help for the starter, but the boys refused with wanting to try it on their own first and Gwain's father absolutely understood that, but he still made sure to make clear that the boys will frequently check in and let him know that they are ok and alive, Gwaine was his son so of course the man wanted to know that his son is alright, and Arthur became for the older man almost as close as own son too. When they had enough money the next step of their plan was to find a place where to open the shop.
While looking for the perfect town where to set their little dream Gwaine jokingly suggested that when they have the prince Arthur they might as well name the shop Avalon which of course made Arthur laugh, but then they both looked at each other and had to admit that the name does not sound bad.
Not long after that they were opening the Tattoo shop Avalon in New York and Arthur was sure that there is nothing he could possible be missing in his life, Arthur was sure of it for the few next months. He was however proved wrong the second guess who walked in their tattoo shop and Arthur find out that maybe he is missing something... or someone to be honest. Merlin Emrys who decided that it's about the time to get his first tattoo.
While talking about what tattoo Merlin might want to get Arthur managed to extract some informations about him, which was not exactly difficult because Merlin is not really a person that needs too much encouragement to talk. Arthur did find out for example that Merlin just opened a tea shop few block away and that he is totally terrified because he's worried that this little idea of his will be a complete fail. Arthur without oversharing too much details told Merlin how he got into tattooing and told him that even if the tea shop will not work, at least Merlin is trying something he really wants to and that's all that matters which made Merlin feel less nervous.
When Merlin was loosing all hope for picking a tattoo he would want, which Arthur assured him is absolutely normal and some people even leave and came back few times before they settle down for one image, Merlin saw Celtic knot he really liked. Arthur nodded and told him that this knot symbolizes family that information made it very easy for Merlin to know that this is the tattoo he will be leaving with.
Arthur was never a tea person but Merlin was a good enough motivation to visit the tea shop. He was trying to play it cool and said that he was just checking on Merlin's tattoo, which made Merlin smile. Yeah... Arthur was not fooling anyone, he could see that. Arthur was confident, or maybe just really hoped, that Merlin likes Arthur as well, so he decided that asking him on a date might not be the worst idea.
The moment Arthur asked him out Merlin became serious, and even though he only knew him briefly Arthur could tell is not typical for Merlin, consider that even while getting the tattoo Merlin chose to joke to get through the pain.
"Arthur... you need to know something. I am a dad... I have a son" Merlin told him and Arthur of course should have seen this coming, why would someone like Merlin be single?
"I... yeah of course you have someone" Arthur nodded and tried to smile
"No Arthur" Merlin said quickly
"I am single... me and her are not together, but... the reason why I am telling you that is that if you want just...I don't know what exactly you... if you want just something casual then I can not do that... not again" Merlin tried to explain, the last part was almost too silent for Arthur to hear it.
Arthur understood what Merlin is trying to say, but he had a feeling that even if Merlin would have 5 kids Arthur would still want to be with him, he did not know why, and frankly he did not care, he just knew it. He assured Merlin that he accepts that Merlin's son will come first no matter what, but he does not want anything casual, so he would still like to take Merlin on a date if Merlin would be willing and Merlin with a smile agreed. The next 6 months or some Arthur only heard stories about Mordred while spending time with Merlin. Arthur assured Merlin that he wants to meet his son, but he also told him about how his childhood and his relationship with his father looked like, so he really did not know how to deal with kids. Merlin understood and made sure to not force Arthur into anything because he really could see that Arthur is being honest about wanting to meet Mordred and also he saw that Arthur is interested in Mordred and while Merlin was talking about him he actually asked about stuff and not just listened and waited for Merlin to change the topic. And now Arthur is actually standing in the same room as the kid, talking about knights and their weapons.
"Really? That sounds awesome" Mordred said
"Yeah, it was fun" Arthur nodded
"Could we make some when we get home?" Mordred asked immediately
"You would want to?" Arthur asked
"Totally"
"Well... if there is a cardboard at home then I don't see why not" Arthur did not see why him and Mordred can not do that when they get home
"Yes!" Mordred and Arthur laughed a bit. He had feeling that he maybe is not doing that bad with Mordred after all
"Thank you, Merlin" Morgana who just entered the room with Merlin following her thanked him
"No problem Morgie" Merlin nodded
Arthur raised an eyebrow in a question about what had happened back there
"Morgana's dress got stucked, and she needed help out with that" Merlin explained
"Sure" Arthur nodded and had to bit his lip to prevent laughing about how neither Merlin or Morgana are not even considering thinking about this as about something weird
"Don't worry Arthur. Merlin is all yours to deal with" Morgana assured him and Arthur chuckled
"Hey... don't say it as if dating me was some sort of chore ok?" Merlin tried to sound at least little bit seriously but totally failed.
"Mom, look what Arthur got me" Mordred ran to his mom to show her his new book
"Amazing. Very impressive Arthur" Morgana nodded after she took a look at the book
"And I am not the only one who's got a new thing to play with" Mordred said and with a smirk that was very impressive copy of his mother's one looked at his dad
"Oh... what did Merlin made you buy for him?" Morgana raised an eyebrow in amusement and looked at Arthur
"Noth..." Merlin tried to prevent spreading that information
"Plushie unicorn" Mordred happily shared with his mom and at the same moment Arthur took the toy out of the bag to show it to Morgana
Merlin started to feel like Mordred and Arthur are maybe getting along more than he would like to, consider that they are clearly teaming up against him
"Cute" Morgana chuckled and looked at Merlin
"Did you name that thing yet?" she asked
"Isn't your company totally collapsing or something like that?" he reminded her friendly with intention to distract her from his new toy.
Which worked because Morgana quickly checked her watch
"Luckily for you, you're right, so I'll have to tease you about that thing all I want later" Morgana smiled at him
"Mordred go get your stuff ok?" she looked at her son who quickly nodded and ran into his bedroom for the things he will be taking with him
"How bad is it?" Arthur asked
"You have no idea, she is unsufer..." Merlin started
"Merlin... I was actually asking about Morgana's work. You deserve all the teasing that will come... and not just from your lovely ex, I can promise you that" Arthur interrupted him, clearly very amused. Morgana laughed as well
"Not that bad, but I really have to go there" Morgana who was still very amused by Merlin suffering told Arthur who nodded
"Leon is there already I guess" Arthur said
"No, sadly he is in Italy because of business so it's all up to me... poor little me right?" Morgana said
"Doubt that" Merlin mumbled and managed to move out of Morgana's way when she tried to hit his arm
"Please Arthur, be a dear and take a very good care of my ex boyfriend" Morgana asked Arthur
"Don't worry... he will not have a moment of peace I can assure you of that" Arthur smirked knowing exactly what was Morgana thinking about
"Excellent" Morgana smiled in delight
"Unbelievable... why can't you two be like any normal ex and current partner of someone and... you know hate each other?" Merlin started to complain which made Morgana and Arthur chuckle of course
Mordred came back with his backback where he had his things.
"Come here Mordred" Morgana immediately demanded a hug before they leave of course. No matter what emergency is at her company her son is always on first place.
"Be a good boy and listen to daddy ok?" Morgana told him while they were still hugging
"Sure thing, you don't have to tell me that" Mordred replied
"I know. Ok, me or Leon will pick you up from your dad's apartment next week, but I am sure I'll see you before that" She told her son who nodded. Again nothing new. Unless there is some change of planes or some special event Mordred is spending one week with his mom and Leon and the next with his dad and so on. But they are often visiting each other or just run into each other in the town, which is not that difficult consider that they live in the same town.
Morgana unhugged her son and gave him a kiss on his cheek.
Morgana gave a quick hug to Merlin and said bye to Arthur then the men and the boy left the apartment.
"Dad do you have any cardboard at home?" Mordred asked while they were walking home
"Why?" Merlin wanted to know
"It's a secret dad... so do you?"
"Ehm... I am not sure..." Merlin was trying to remember
"There is the empty box after the shelf that we did not toss out yet" Arthur remembered
"Oh yeah, that's right" Merlin remembered and nodded
"Will that do?" Mordred asked and looked at Arthur
Merlin began to suspect that something is going on, something he obviously has no idea what it is
"Yes, it'll be perfect for it" Arthur confirmed
"What is going on you two?" Merlin asked
"Arthur promised me that we can make swords from the card board" Mordred shared their plans with his dad
"Oh..." Merlin said and looked at Arthur
"If... if it's ok of course" Arthur quickly realized that it might be a good thing to ask Merlin as a father if he has not any problems with this activity
"Of course it's ok Arthur" Merlin smiled at him and gave his a quick peck on his cheek
He could not be more happy about this. He knew that Arthur is stressing himself about meeting Mordred without any reason. But still, them having something to do together already is something even Merlin did not see coming... not this quick anyway.
They were passing by a shop with art supplies
"Merlin could we stop here real quick? We might need some paints for that... acrylic might be the best and I don't think you have that at home" Arthur asked and explained
"Sure... you know what, why don't you take Mordred with you and I'll go to the grocery over there to get some supplies for me to craft the dinner from for you two knights?" Merlin replied and made Arthur chuckle
"Ok, sounds like a plan then" Arthur nodded and their already little group did split in two. Arthur and Mordred went get the paints and Merlin the food.
After 10ish minutes they all met again and Arthur without chance for any protests took Merlin's bag with the stuff he bought in the grocery
"You two got everything you will need to?" Merlin asked
"Yes, we put it in the bag with your unicorn" Mordred nodded and Merlin nodded as well
"Ok then. Let's go home then, shall we?" Merlin gestured towards their home, and they all began to walk in that direction.
When they walked in the apartment Mordred immediately ran in his room calling for Arthur to follow him, so they can start.
"I'll be right there" Arthur assured him while putting the grocery bag on the kitchen island for Merlin
"Have fun love" Merlin smiled at him
"I think I will have" Arthur smiled back
"Just make sure that Mordred is wearing something he can get dirty when you'll be doing with the paint ok?" Merlin told him
"Oh... yeah that's a good idea" Arthur nodded.
"Good think you're here, I didn't even consider doing this" Arthur smiled at Merlin
"Well... these are just the things you'll learn while being a dad... you'll get there don't worry" Merlin assured
Arthur took the cardboard box and went in Mordred's room
"Ok, we can start, let's take it on the floor ok? So we have more space" Arthur said and pointed on the floor
"Great... this one looks cool" Mordred nodded and pointed at a picture of a sword at one of his books about knights
"Good idea, a reference will make it way easier" Arthur smiled at Mordred and placed the book where they can see it.
"Oh... before I forgot. Your dad told me to tell you to put on clothes you can get dirty when we will work with the paint" Arthur remembered while he was looking for any reference for what he might make, because he doesn't want to just sit here while he can create something as well, he decided that he will make a dagger, and he managed to find a picture he really liked.
Mordred changed his shirt as well and went to sit down on the floor next to Arthur
"Ok... so you'll start with drawing the shape of the sword on the cardboard, obviously. You wanna do it by yourself or do you want me to help you out with it?" Arthur asked
"I'll try to do it myself and see how it'll go" Mordred said immediately
"Of course" Arthur nodded and after he cut the box on the rectangles, two big enough for Mordred's sword and some smaller but still big enough for Arthur's dagger they started to draw.
"So... do you know what colors you wanna use yet?" Arthur asked while they were both drawing.
"I was thinking maybe green. Dad's favorite" Mordred replied calmly
Arthur stopped at drawing and looked up to look at the boy, who was still drawing as if nothing weird had happened
"I thought that Merlin's favorite color is blue" Arthur said. He could see Mordred's little smirk
"Are you really testing my knowledge about your dad right now?" Arthur asked little bit impressed by this sneaky move
"Relax Arthur... you got it right" Mordred chuckle and looked at him but then got back to work
Arthur shock his head and got back to work as well. He realized that now when Mordred is alone with Arthur he would want to use the moment to make sure that his dad is not with the wrong guy. He was confident in his knowledge about his boyfriend, but just to be sure he began to mentally listing Merlin's favorite and just to be sure not favorite things. He was low key curious about what would Mordred do if Arthur said the wrong color, but he was glad that he did say the correct one.
"So, you got any other questions for me then?" Arthur asked
"You bet... but it's better when you don't expect them isn't?" Mordred replied
"I... can't say I agree with that" Arthur mumbled, but Mordred heard him and looked up
"You aren't nervous, are you? I mean... you don't have a reason to be... am I right?" Mordred asked him and tilted his head to one side as if he was trying to read Arthur's mind.
"No... I am not nervous" Arthur said quickly and Mordred nodded and started to draw again
"Merlin... Arthur wants Merlin in the room, the kid will kill him if he will give him the wrong answer" Arthur decided and was glad that they're making the weapons out of cardboard and not something really deadly.
"What do you think my dad is going to name the unicorn?" Mordred asked, and Arthur knew that it was a trick question... he just did not know how yet... but it is, it has to be.
"Ehm... I have no idea Merlin is coming up with the weirdest names... " Arthur replied
"Yeah, like the name of his dragon plushie" Mordred nodded. Ah... there we go, Arthur knew where this is going.
"I forget wha..." Mordred started the "I forgot the name, help me out here" tactic
"Yeah, I am sure you suddenly forgot the name... strange huh?" Arthur chuckled
"It's a mystery" Mordred shrugged his shoulders
"It's Kilgharrah, detective. Two "R". He got it from his parents when he was little because he was a weird kid who considered teddy bears dangerous, because by his logic who would willingly went to sleep with a bear right?"
Arthur's version (that was totally true) of how Merlin got the dragon made Mordred laugh.
"Correct" he confirmed and Arthur tried to suppress the proud smile about how awesome boyfriend he is.
"Who's my dad's best friend" Mordred asked
"Will" Arthur did not even have to think about this one
"Correct again" Mordred nodded
"What about my best friend?" Mordred asked clearly not expecting Arthur to know the answer to that
"Kara" Arthur said without thinking about it as well
Mordred did not even try to hide the surprise.
"How can..." he wanted to ask
"Your dad talks about you a lot when you're at your mom's" Arthur explained to him
"And you actually listen to him?" Mordred asked still little bit shocked which made Arthur laugh a bit
"Well... yeah, of course I do" Arthur nodded which made Mordred smile. Arthur had a feeling that he's not doing that bad.
"There are still more questions right?" Arthur stated rather than asked
"Few more" Mordred nodded
"Very well... ask then" Arthur gestured for the interrogation to continue
"Dad said you're a tattoo artist" Mordred started
"That's right"
"It's cool actually... you always wanted to do that?" Mordred asked
"Yeah... I think that you can say that" Arthur nodded
"How will you turn this into a control question about you dad?" Arthur asked
"I am just chatting" Merlin calmed him down
"Sure... you know... don't say that to your mom, but I am totally getting flashbacks of some conversions I had with her" Arthur mumbled and Mordred laughed little bit
"You scared of her?" he asked
"You've met her, do you really have to ask that?" Arthur raised an eyebrow and Mordred chuckled
"It's ok... Leon is scared of her too" Mordred nodded
"Yeah, I don't blame him." Arthur thought
"Black or green? What's dad's favorite tea?" Mordred decided that the break from the interrogation is over
"Gr... wait... neither, it's white tea" Arthur luckily realized that Mordred was kind enough to provide him with a question with two options which were both wrong.
"Nice" Mordred admitted
"Any fruit tea he likes?" Mordred asked
"Yes... it's... " Arthur started, but then he paused. Of course that Merlin had favorite fruit tea, but Arthur was not sure which fruit it is... something red... or orange, he was sure of it... come on Arthur you know this, he was trying to make himself remember.
"Yes, it's what Arthur?" Mordred looked up from the cardboard. Arthur swallowed nervously and his brain was in flash speed going thought all the possible and even some impossible options. Then... out of nowhere the answer just appeared in his mind
"Mango" he blurted out
"Are you sure?" Mordred asked him with a serious expression
"Hell no" Arthur thought
"Yes, absolutely" he said aloud
Mordred was silent for a few, very long, second, but then a smile appeared on his face
"Impressive" He nodded and Arthur let out a short laugh full of relief because he really was not sure at all about this answer.
"So how that sword of yours is going?" Arthur asked
"Not as good as the dagger" Mordred admitted while looking at the dagger Arthur was working on
"Any tips how to make it look better?" Mordred asked and Arthur moved closer. Mordred handed him his pencil and Arthur began to improving Mordred's drawing that was not bad, but it was obvious that drawing is not something the kid is doing very often.
"Have you though about something decorative on the pommel and the handle?" Arthur asked while drawing
"Ehm... I think that wolf would look good, but you would have to be the one who would draw it there" Mordred told him
"I can do that if you want to" Arthur nodded
"Cool" Mordred smiled at hearing that
"Maybe just a wolf's head on the pommel might look good, what do you think?" Arthur suggested
"Sounds good"
"Ok. Do you want to do the pommel in the circle shape and the head would be in it, or the pommel in the wolf's head shape?" Arthur asked
"Circle and the head in it" Mordred said
"Alright" Arthur nodded and got to work
"Wow... you're really good at it" Mordred said while he was watching Arthur drawing
"Thanks" Arthur smiled while drawing
"How do you know what the wolf looks like? I mean you did not look at any picture or anything" Mordred asked
"Well... wolf is one of the things people really like to get as tattoos, so I am quite familiar with drawing this animal" Arthur explained
"What else they are getting?" Mordred wanted to know
"Ehm... dragons, snakes, daggers, skulls, flowers... roses the most I think... " Arthur was listing some things
"And you've got all of these?" Mordred asked and Arthur chuckled
"No, not all of these... well. I have a dagger with a snake around it..." and put down the pencil and rolled up his left sleeve to show Mordred the black and white dagger wrapped up with snake on his forearm.
"Then I have a phoenix in trash polka style on my shoulder" he continued pointed at his left shoulder and then pulled down his hoodie to show this one to Mordred as well
"Why phoenix?" Mordred asked
"I guess I like the... that sometimes the best thing is to just start completely all over... you know like when he burns down to ash so he can be reborn out of it" Arthur explained and Mordred nodded
"Then tribal tattoo that goes from here..." Arthur pointed at his right side of the chest
"...to my shoulder-blade and all the way down to my wrist" he rolled up his other sleeve and pulled down his hoodie to show a little bit of the tribal tattoo on his chest
"This one looks really dope" Mordred said and Arthur chuckled
"Thanks. My best friend designed it and also tattooed it, so I'll tell him your review on it ok?" he said
"Did he do all of them?" Mordred asked
"Nope. The dagger with the snake was tattooed by my tutor and it's also his design. I designed the phoenix and it was done by a guy in Liverpool while me and my friend were traveling"
"Cool. Which one was your first one?" Mordred asked
"The arrow one on my calf" Arthur said and showed it to Mordred
"How old were you?"
"16"
"But if you'll ever get an idea of getting a tattoo at that age I'll deny that we ever had this conversation" Arthur quickly added and Mordred laughed and Arthur quickly joined him.
He took picked up the pencil and quickly finished the sword.
"Ok, now we will cut out two shapes and glue them together" Arthur told him the next step
"To make it firmer I guess?" Mordred said and Arthur nodded
"Do you have a knife in here?" Arthur asked and Mordred looked at him as if wondering if he's joking
"What?" Arthur asked
"Oh right... I presume that a knife is not something you should have in here right?" he realized and Mordred laughed and nodded
"I'll go get one from the kitchen" the boy said and stood up
"Thanks, ask your dad if he could give you the retractable knife" Arthur managed to say before Mordred ran out of the room
"Ok" Mordred said and then quickly left the room to get the knife.
"Knife... you idiot" Arthur facepalmed himself but still had to chuckle, he still has to learn one or two things about what's normal and what's not with kids he guess.
Mordred came back few seconds later with the retractable knife which he handed over to Arthur. Arthur cut out the dagger and the sword, Mordred got the glue, and they glued the shapes together.
"Ok, now the painting. I presume that the gray and the silver for the blades right?" Arthur looked at the boy
"Both colors?" Mordred asked
"Yeah, we can mix them and combine them to make it as realistic as possible" Arthur nodded
"Do you think maybe you could do it?" Mordred asked him
"Yeah" Arthur nodded and reached for the paints and the brushes. The sword and the dagger quickly started to look less and less like made of cardboard.
"It looks fantastic" Mordred smiled while looking at the sword blade and the pommel that Arthur painted so it looked like a metal as well
"Yep. So now the handles. Have some color in mind for the sword? I was thinking red for the dagger to be honest" Arthur said while he was already getting ready the red for paint
"I think brown... to make it look like a leather? Leather might look good... do you think you could do that? To make it look like a leather" Mordred wondered
"Yeah. You know what, you start with painting the handle of the sword brown and I can finish the details, you ok with that?" Arthur suggested and Mordred nodded and got to work.
Arthur painted the handle of the dagger red and made it look like leather, because Mordred was right leather texture is looking good. When Mordred finished the painting of the sword's handle to brown Arthur did the details on it as well.
"It looks really awesome" Mordred said and Arthur smiled at him.
"It doesn't look bad. Let's leave it few minutes for the paint to dry" he said and Mordred nodded
"Do you like cats or dogs?" Mordred asked
"Why?" Arthur asked
"I am just curious... maybe you could talk dad into getting a dog you know..." Mordred suggested
"Even though he prefers cats?" Arthur smirked
"Damn... you really know everything about him" Mordred smiled
"You bet I do" Arthur nodded confidently
They spend some time with just talking while waiting for the paint on the cardboard to dry and then Mordred took the sword and the dagger that Arthur handed him and together left the room.
They entered the living room/the kitchen. Merlin was in the kitchen part fully focusing on the cooking but when he heard them walk in he turned around and smiled at them.
"Hey, wow it looks really amazing" Merlin noticed the sword and the dagger in Mordred's hands
"Right?" Mordred smiled made a few batter moves with his sword
Arthur with a smile on his face went to Merlin and gave his a quick kiss on the cheek
"All I need now is a quest to accomplish... as a proper knight you know" Said Mordred who was on the other side of the room still fully occupied with the sword
"Maybe saving a damsel in distress huh?" Arthur suggested and Merlin who was trying to reach something on the shelf that was little bit too high for him chuckled
"But there is not any" Mordred pointed out
"Really? I beg to disagree, come here" He said and Mordred quickly went to him.
"We can assist a damsel in distress with the horrors of too high shelves" Arthur which made Mordred laugh. Merlin made perfect "how dare you?" expression but still was trying to suppress the amusement
Arthur lifted Mordred up so the boy could now reach the item Merlin's cooking master piece without question depended on.
"There you go dad" Mordred passed the thing to his father and when Arthur put him back down ran away to fight imaginary monsters
"Thank you" Merlin managed to call after him
"A damsel in distress huh?" Merlin raised an eyebrow and began to focus on the cooking again
"Yes my love... but my damsel in distress" Arthur confirmed and went to hug Merlin from behind, but he was still making sure to not get in the way of Merlin's cooking
Merlin chuckled and just shook his head in amusement
"So... how it went?" Merlin asked about the crafting session. Arthur who was still more or less recovering from Mordred's interrogation something whined and hugged Merlin tighter which made Merlin chuckle
"That bad huh?" he asked
"I was put through Merlin trivia" Arthur confessed which made Merlin laughed a bit
"How did you do?" Merlin wanted to know
"I knew everything of course... from your favorite color to your favorite teas..." Arthur bragged
"Well done Arthur" Merlin nodded and smiled when Arthur laid his head on Merlin's shoulder
"I even nailed the dragon plushie question" he remembered
"You got Kilgharrah's name right?" Merlin asked surprised but with a smile
"Babe I got the whole story how you got him right" Arthur announced
"Really?" Merlin asked
"Of course. You can hardly forget a story about how someone was terrified of his teddy bear when he was little" Arthur smirked
"Hey! That's so not how it happened" Merlin of course immediately began to disagree with Arthur's version.
"Ehm... sure love" Arthur nodded and tried to sound seriously
"No one normal would go to sleep with a bea... Arthur stop laughing" Merlin could feel Arthur laughing while he was being hugged by him
"I just love that you thought... ok bears, too dangerous, what about dragons? Yeah dragons are ok" Arthur was saying with more and more laughter and Merlin had really hard time to not join him and not starting to laugh as well.
"Shut up you prat" Merlin mumbled now laughing as well
"Never, you would grow bored" Arthur declined and Merlin could not argue with that.
"So... you got the test about me... anything else?" Merlin wanted to know when they finished laughing... more or less.
"Ehm... I think that then we were just talking... Mordred was asking about my tattoos" Arthur was trying to remember what they were talking about and Merlin nodded and made "Alright, go on" sound.
"Aaand... I think that's about it actually" Arthur shrugged his shoulders.
"See? I told you that you're worrying without any reason" Merlin finished what he was doing, so he could turn around and face Arthur which Arthur immediately took advantage of and kissed him. Merlin as almost every time when Arthur kisses him automatically smiled.
"I admit that maybe Mordred and I might not become the mortal enemies as I was once worried we might" Arthur said and Merlin laughed
"I had no idea that you were thinking it might go that bad" Merlin said and stroked his cheek
"I've seen movies about this... you know stepparents and the kids and all... " Arthur said seriously... so seriously that Merlin had to bite his bottom lip to prevent the laughed because he could see that Arthur is obviously joking
"Maybe you should stay away from family comedies, they're clearly way too scary for you to watch" he advised him and Arthur chuckled
"But... I totally get why Mordred wants to make sure that I am not some scumbag... I mean you're really great dad so it makes sense that he wants to look after you" Arthur said more seriously but still with a smile on his face. Merlin just leaned closer and kissed him.
The oven made a sound that was informing Merlin that its content is ready to be served
"The food is ready. Go find sir Mordred and tell him that his next quest is to wash his hands... and you can totally join him in this quest" Merlin told Arthur
"But I don't have a weapon, so I am no able to participate in any quests" Arthur said and Merlin just chuckled
"Well then... Mordred will have two quests in one. Wash his hands and protect the damsel in distress" Merlin smirked and shoved Arthur in the direction of Mordred's room
"Nice try Merlin, but I think that we both know who the damsel in distress in here is" Arthur said while walking to go get Mordred
"Yeah... you" Merlin said immediately
"Nope" Arthur said over his shoulder and disappeared in the hallway. Merlin shook his head and laughed a bit. He could not be more happy about how Arthur's and Mordred's first meeting turned out to be like. He was more than sure that Arthur is not as hopeless with kids as he thinks so seeing that Merlin was absolutely right was really amazing.
