Merlin Oneshots

A Deal With Death

Hello my friends! I hope today was a good day for you! I don't know how this one'll turn out, but hopefully it's ok. Tell me what you think! Happy reading!!

It was the final battle. That was the only thing that kept Merlin going. Right now, he was running on spite and fury. He would win.

Morgana was getting weaker with every spell she cast. He would win. If he could postpone himself bleeding out long enough to defeat Morgana. She had managed to deal a mortal blow. He was going to die. There was no changing that. This would be the end of Merlin. He had to accomplish something in good life; so he refused to die before Morgana.

"Merlin. Just give up. I will end up defeating you and you know it. There is nothing you can do to change that." Her eyes shone with malice and hatred. She wanted him dead.

He couldn't even form a response, that's how weak he was. He just continued casting spells. He was not going to let Morgana win.

The battle was a great one. Morgana only lost due to an allusion that Merlin put up. It was Morgause- she was in her amour and talking to Morgana. Morgana's guards was down just long enough for Merlin to kill her.

It took too much effort. He was also dying. Just as the light left his eyes, Arthur showed up.

"MERLIN!" But, it was too late. He was gone. The king went up to his friend and closed his eyes. A storm started as Arthur carefully picked Merlin's lifeless body up and carried him to his horse.

The two were supposed to fight Morgana together. The plan was to have Arthur distract her while Merlin came up behind her and ran her through with excalibur. But, Merlin obviously had other plans.

Arthur rode back into Camelot with Merlin's mare behind him. The kingdom was celebrating. They didn't notice the body on the back of her late rider.

The knights ran to meet Arthur, joined by Gwen and Gaius. They were all smiling like mad men. Only Gwaine seemed to notice the absence of the warlock.

"Arthur, what did you do with Merlin?" His voice was weak, he already knew what had happened.

The mood of the group instantly changed. As soon as the usually drunk man pointed out that Merlin was missing, they all looked back at the mare that Merlin cared for so much.

"Arthur, where is Merlin?" Gaius asked with fear in his voice. When he received no response, he broke down.

"Arthur. Where. Is. Merlin. He's not- he's not gone, is he?" The words were spoken by the queen. And they were all it took for Arthur to begin crying.

"He- He didn't follow the plan. We were- we were supposed to catch her off-guard. But it didn't work. He got ahead of me and killed her himself. I- I couldn't stop him. I'm so sorry." And, as soon as the response left his mouth, the whole off the group began to cry. Weather it be a waterfall of tears or just one or two, they all cried for their lost friend.

Merlin had to watch it. In the afterlife, he was watching his family grieve over him.

"It's not really worth watching them. You can't see them again. Just come over and live with me for eternity." Came the harsh voice of Death. She had been trying to get Merlin to stop watching his friends and join her and his friends that he has lost over the years.

"I can't leave them. Can you send me back somehow?" He was desperate. He needed to be there to protect Arthur. To make Gwen laugh. To keep the knights in check. To keep Gaius company. He needed to be there.

Death though for a couple of seconds. "There is one way. You will be able to watch them and keep them safe. They will not be able to see you. There is no way that you can get into contact with them. You can become a ghost. A spirit. You will roam the land of the living. But you won't be there."

Without a second thought, Merlin accepted the offer. She only nodded in response. "I will ready the ceremony. It will be held at sunset today. Until then, go meet with those you have lost. I will alert you when it is time."

So, Merlin meet with his father, with Freya, with Lancelot, Will, and Elyan.

"Merlin, it's time." The boy hugged all that he would be leaving behind and followed Death.

The funeral was a great event. It was as big as a king's would be. The whole of Camelot came. They had all meet Merlin one way or another. There were lots of tears.

Merlin was back!

Almost.

He was a ghost.

But, he could keep doing the some of his jobs. Everybody was affected by his passing, it broke him to see how everyone acted without him there.

Gaius seemed to have aged ten years in the two days that Merlin had been dead. He was slower than ever in getting around. He was less patient with those that needed his help. Merlin tried to clean up his chambers. One day, Gaius would break a jar of something and the next, it would be gone.

Arthur spent most of his time on the training field. He had demolished training dummies by the hundreds. He refused to get another servant. His chambers were a mess. When he wasn't on the field, he was in his room by the window. He often stared off in the distance. Merlin tried to alert him somehow that he was still there. It was breaking his soul to see the king miss meals and lose sleep. He could make the king sleep for a short time, so that's what he did.

Gwen was trying to keep the kingdom standing. She appeared to be doing better than everyone else, but she was the same- if not worse. She would skip meals so that she could attend council meetings. She would avoid talking to others so that she would have no reason to cry. Her health was deteriorating. She was losing weight faster than anyone should have the right to. But, she was keeping the kingdom alive. Making treaties with other kingdoms so that they could have allies. Merlin made her sleep, too. When he did, he often finished paperwork for her. He used most of his magic to keep her going. The rest if it was used to keep everyone else alive, but he was most worked for her.

Gwaine didn't go to the tavern. He believed that Merlin deserved to be mourned instead of being forgotten. He took to doing the chores that Merlin would do. He did so good for so long. But, he broke one day. One of the servants said something that sounded so much like Merlin that he broke. He couldn't keep it together anymore. He broke. He went to the tavern. He stayed there for close to three weeks. The owner had promised him free ale after his knighting ceremony, so he drank his days away. He almost died. Merlin made sure he didn't, he used the remaining magic that he had to save his friend's life.

It stayed like this for a long time. Eventually, things got better. Gaius had less of a temper and sped up in his work. Arthur started attending council meetings again. He never got another servant, but he was doing better. His chambers were always clean anyways, somehow. Gwen got healthy and was a wonderful queen for Camelot. Gwaine got out of the tavern and sobered up. He still took care of Merlin's duties in the castle.

Sure, people still broke down when they saw his mare alone in her stall. They tried to ride her, but she was wild once again. He was always the only one that could ride her. Hell, he tamed her. Other things set them off, too. Like someone saying a certain thing. Or a certain combination of colors. The room that he once occupied was locked at all times.

And Merlin continued to fulfill his destiny as a ghost. He protected Arthur and brought about a new age of peace. He never let things get out of hand. He could do all these things because if a deal with Death.

1416 words

I hope you liked it! Tell me what you thought (it don't. I don't dictate your life) also, this book now has 3k reads!!!! What even is that?! Thank you so much!! I'm working on a long chapter for you guys, I have no idea when I'll get it done, but just know that I'm working on something.

Published: 2-24-20