A King with No Title

A New Era

Merlin trails behind Arthur as he walks toward the banquet hall prepared to greet his esteemed guests and be seated by his Queen during the ceremony. Guinevere had insisted upon fools and entertainers for the guests and herself at the banquet, although she was not particularly fond of the larger celebrations, she had felt the losses faced in battle and the new changes to be made to the kingdom would bring sorrow to the hearts of many in Camelot so therefore she must do her best to quell their sadness. As a good Queen would…

Arthur had not wanted to refuse his Queen and thought he would have been rather unable to. As both Merlin and Arthur arrived at the hall, they saw the tables spread with lavish décor and the candles flickered violently as the freshly burned wicks took shape. Merlin excused himself from Arthur’s presence at that point, deciding it would be better to remain in the King’s good graces by making himself scarce.

As Merlin travelled to the other side of the room, he was intercepted by Guinevere. “Are you ready Merlin? To be presented as Emrys?” She asked looking at his outfit and looking doubtful. Part of her trusted that this would all go as planned but the other part of her dreaded Merlin being discovered and then shamed by all of Camelot for being so well hidden. He would immediately be marketed as an untrustworthy man and people would demand his head. Not now because he was a sorcerer, but he appeared to be deceitful.

“Gaius has prepared me an outfit and a potion, so I am able to alter easily. Tonight, I will be both Merlin and Emrys. Or hopefully anyway.” Merlin said and Gwen could not help but smile at his oddly charming demeanor when he was like that, so quietly confident. It did fill Gwen with some hope that everything would follow through as planned. Arthur’s announcements, the introduction of Emrys, the food to then be followed by the entertainment.

Guinevere walked towards Arthur who was waiting to greet the guests that will soon be entering. As the guests started to trail in, one after another, wearing all manner of fancy clothing, bright colours sewn together with golden and silver threads. When the room began to fill and the noise was at its peak Merlin thought it best to make his exit, to change his attire and his appearance. He had been seen by enough people, after all.

Arthur did find himself thinking to the shared encounter with Merlin from only a while before. Why had he touched his back like that? He was used to banter with Merlin, not seeing a different side of him, not feeling sorry for him as he played numerous jokes at his expense. Although he had found himself only capable of pity in that moment realizing how much pain it must have brought for Merlin, spending all those years feeling as if he could not confide in his friends for fear of death. Although he had always been harsh to Merlin, there had never been any true malice behind his words. But would he, especially in his earlier days, have had Merlin executed? He had doubted himself in that moment more than he had done in years.

Merlin changed into the old rags Gaius had set aside from him. Merlin did hate these clothes so much, they were overly itchy and painful to wear, he was always left with irritated skin, he could have sworn Gaius made them this uncomfortable in order to punish merlin for his reckless use with magic, especially in his earlier years of using the spell. It had not failed in front of other’s yet, so it was a small worry for Merlin.

As the guests began to quiet Merlin heard Arthur start to gather an audience, his voice was proud as he addressed the court and his subjects. The knights lined the walls of the hall, and two stood at the door on guard for potential intruders. This was merely the beginning of something new for Merlin. Everyone fell silent after his first words, he went on to explain the deal that had been struck, how he believed that in the best interest of Camelot people were to remain just and fair, accepting a new way of life. Leaving out the intricacies that would only bring doubt upon his decision and him as a rule, to say it was struck to prevent his death could be perceived as selfishness, not a trait Camelot would respect in their young King. He invited in the Sidhe’s ruler, who had come to witness Arthur appoint someone to the court, believing it would potentially be himself.

“As part of our deal we must appoint a magical being to the court.” This caused an uproar in the hall, people bursting into hushed disapproval and fear. “Quiet.” Arthur demanded, and his subjects fell silent again and looked back towards the King, who was remaining completely professional even though his mind was a blur. Full of doubt and fear himself, “A sorcerer aided us in our last battle, and deserves the honour and respect of this kingdom. For surely, without him, more would have perished that day.” Arthur said going quieter near the end. The Sidhe’s ruler became very flustered and slightly angry knowing that Arthur did plan to appoint someone other than him to the court. Whereas, Merlin could not help but feel honoured. Although he knew this was a form of propaganda to get the subjects on his side, but he could not help but hear Arthur’s words as a genuine thanks. “This sorcerer goes by the name of Emrys. Please, Emrys, join us.” Arthur looked to the large doorway. Knowing Merlin would take this as an opportunity to be flamboyant.

Merlin disguised as his older self, walked into the room, a large wooden staff in his hand and slamming it to the floor with each step making a noise that echoed through the silent hall. One of the guests, decided this was some form of joke, “Sire, you can not expect us to believe this old doddering man is a sorcerer.”

“And I cannot believe you’re a noble, but if you wish to be seated, I will prove myself to you.” Merlin said, his voice making the guest shrink down in awkwardness. Merlin decided this was going to be a show, he decided it would also be a memorable experience for Arthur. Using the flames from the candles dancing around the room, he formed them and their embers into a large dragon made of fire in the middle of the hall, it flew in its spot. Merlin looked at Arthur, who looked in awe at the dragon, but with a hint of sadness in his eyes, as he realised how Merlin must have felt the first time he had made a dragon from the flames. The fear he must have felt to prove himself. Now here it was on display for all, the beauty that magic could bring with it but also the fierce power and destruction it could hold.

The dragon formed into a small whirlwind of flame before Merlin made it disperse, taking the positions upon the candles once more. The small crowd were in shock and awe unable to speak after what they had just been witnesses to. The Sidhe’s ruler even looked a bit taken aback by the display he had just seen. He decided then to make his leave, giving thanks to the King for not denying his requests.

‘Emrys’ then also made his leave and told the King he would be nearby if ever he was needed. Merlin walked out of the room and took off the awful clothing, before drinking the blue potion Gaius had prepared for him so he could return to his younger state. After that he heard the commotion of dishes and cutlery as the servers began to prepare the dishes to take through to the party. This provided a perfect cover for where Merlin had been, he could simply grab a jug full of wine and walk in to serve the King with no questions asked, it was a good thing Merlin did have the cover of manservant and no considerably more important role in the court. Too many questions would be asked otherwise.

The night danced on with entertainers from jugglers to people playing with knives and fire, t was quite the spectacle, Gwen had outdone herself. Merlin went to offer Guinevere some wine after she had only drunk water for the night, it was unusual, but Merlin did not want to further question her and so retreated to a more discreet corner. When a knife thrower had finished his act, Gwen stood, drawing the attention of the entire hall with her, leaving a baffled Arthur sat beside her.

She raised her drink and a silence fell over the room, “Friends and esteemed guests, tonight marks a new era in our history as we open our gates to magic. We have lost heavily, but tonight we celebrate our victories and treasure our memories.” She paused and looked down at Arthur, “And we allow more into our life, we are soon to have an heir.” A smile of both shock and joy spread across Arthur’s face, trying to hold back further excitement, he stood taking his Queen’s hand in his own.

“Join us, as we raise our drinks to celebrate our new lives and the new life soon to be with us.” Arthur said, “To Camelot.” He yelled, and a chorus of voices followed soon after. Merlin could do little more than stare on at the scene developing in front of him. He could not be anything other than shocked he wanted to be happy and join the congratulations but his mind felt like it had been set alight.