Merthur One Shots

Guardian Angel

Date Published: February 19th, 2023
Word Count: 3913
A/N: I don't know which of the writers thought it was a good idea for Merlin to canonically be referred to as Arthur's "guardian angel" but this is their fault lol (he's called that by Uther in 1x13 when Arthur wakes up after being bitten by the questing beast)

The first time Arthur's life was saved inexplicably he was thirteen years old. He couldn't remember much of it. His memories were blurry and full of holes.

He'd been out riding, alone even though his father hadn't approved. He knew he'd been following a river before his horse had been startled by something. It had reared, throwing him from the saddle and into the water. Arthur vaguely recalled being tossed by its currents into rocks.

Everything was a blur, both from his injuries and from the murky waters preventing him from seeing what was happening. The edges of his vision had been growing black. Arthur had been sure he was going to die when he lost consciousness.

In the darkness of his mind, he thought he had felt someone's presence. A pair of hands had grasped his own. The feeling of floating accompanied them, as though he was being pulled up. Arthur remembered warmth had flooded his body and the sensation of a hand on his cheek, holding it gently. In the moment, he had thought he was dying, maybe being brought to the afterlife with his mother.

However, Arthur had made it to the shore. He coughed and sputtered as water forced itself out of his lungs. He remembered a Camelot patrol finding him. Evidently, he'd been out for hours and his father had been sending extra search parties to find him. Arthur had told them what happened when Gaius looked over him. Both of them had been confused as to how he'd survived based on his version events. The young prince had tried to mention the strange things he experienced, but the king had dismissed them immediately, scolding him for his behavior.

Gaius had given him a strange look and raised his eyebrow, but simply waved it off as his mind trying to protect him from the trauma. Arthur had shrugged it off and accepted it as a hallucination. He supposed he had just been lucky that the river had pushed him onto the shore.

The prince never forgot about it though. He couldn't if he wanted to. Sometimes he would be reminded of the memory by a warm feeling that would wash over him. There were dreams where he relived that day, but he saw the blurry hands reach out to him. He was wise not to bring it up though, fearing that his father might think he was crazy or enchanted. Part of him wanted to ask Gaius, but it was such a rare occurrence that he thought it was a coincidence.

It was when he was nineteen that Arthur became certain it wasn't.

~~~

Arthur looked around the banquet hall. It was filled with people in fine dress. They sat at the long tables, chatting over the bountiful feast and wine his father had requested. It was a celebration after all. As the king had been saying all day, they had enjoyed almost twenty years of freedom from the evil of magic. Arthur wasn't entirely sure if he agreed with the idea of all magic being evil, but he smiled anyway.

He was talking to Morgana when his father gained the attention of the room. As soon as his speech began, he rolled his eyes.

Fortunately, it was brief, and the king returned to his seat after introducing Lady Helen. The music started, filling the banquet hall with its sweet sound. Arthur took a moment to look at the woman. She seemed elegant in the way she moved.

When she began singing, goosebumps started forming on Arthur's arms. Her voice was smooth and soothing. He couldn't help but smile a little bit as he relaxed against his chair. Her voice was a warm blanket falling over him. Arthur's eyes slipped closed. He was at peace in the darkness of his mind. He felt safe and tired. However, a tingle shot up his spine; something was wrong.