A King with No Title

And here we are

Years had passed for Merlin and everything was new and just as messy as it was when he was living in times where magic was outlawed. Although magic wasn't outlawed necessarily, it was made into a joke, it wasn't real for many, merely a joke and a bit of fun. A children's entertainment tool a lot of the time. The terms, 'Warlock', 'Witch', 'Wizard' and others were merely used in fairy tales, and often also in history lessons; the teachings of how people much like himself were murdered, and innocents along with them. They of course believe that all those persecuted during the witch craze were innocent, because real magic only exists in fairytales. Merlin, of course, knew this wasn't true. Some people that died truly did practice dark magic, or they possessed magic but were innocent of the accused crime. People see the whole thing as delusional.

Merlin had never really grown old, he had kept his younger state for the most part, only changing to look older when people were meeting his "family" in passing conversation, for he had to come across as a normal person, with a family and a backstory. If he had told people he was an immortal sorcerer, he would have probably received psychiatric attention. Now, in 2018, he had very few people he interacted with, he would have an odd fling and small bits of fun but never anything long term. People would notice if he just never died, it's why he never had family or long-term friends. It was difficult, after all, he could never get attached to people and he couldn't allow them to get attached to him.

His longest lasting relationship was his most current, but he knew it was going to end soon, he was bored, and well, he wasn't happy either. At the beginning, these flings made him happy but as the relationship went on, happiness would fade because the end of the relationship was inevitable. He didn't want to keep living the boring on-off life, he had travelled all over, learnt so many things, but now for the most part he remained in the UK. With the remains of Camelot, they had been inhabited by numerous royals over the years before being entirely abandoned so everyone had assumed, they were nothing more than old royal quarters. Unbeknownst to the rest of the world, these truly were the ruins of a castle that once housed the King Arthur of legend.

Merlin did wish that he wasn't just a legend, sometimes he would wonder had it all really happened, but the magic and the old relics he still had told him it was definite. Albion no longer existed, so it seemed impossible to Merlin that Arthur would ever return to him.

"Morning, beautiful." Merlin hears a voice beside him that stirred him from his sleep. A thumb wiped across his cheek and he leaned into the warmth. "You were crying again. Am I really that bad to be around?" There was a joking in his tone as he spoke, though there was an underlying concern for him.

Merlin grabbed his hand and kissed the palm, "Of course not." He opens his eyes and looks up at his boyfriend, his blond hair neatly cut, short at the sides but messily neat on the top. Merlin envied how nicely it sat. He envied the blue of his eyes, that just seemed so much brighter in the morning. It was a beautiful sight to wake up to. However, he often found himself wishing it was another pair of blue eyes he was looking at.

He rubs the sleep from his eyes, before placing a kiss on his boyfriend's forehead. He had met Alex at a bar in London, in mid/late 2017. Although he rarely visited London he was going for a small event, where hundreds of private gardens were opened to public viewing. He wasn't sure why he was interested but he went anyway, he did always find some comfort in nature.

"Lost in thought again." Alex states, before standing up, the sheets falling off his half naked body. His upper half being perfectly toned, just enough muscle that it didn't look wrong on his frame. "Now get up, or you'll be late for work."

"I own the place, I decide when it opens, I can technically never be late." Merlin laughs under his covers. "But I do have to do tours today, so I will get up. Not because you told." Merlin throws the covers off himself before being dove on and kissed by Alex. "Don't give me more reasons to stay in bed." Merlin pushes him off, so he rolled onto the floor with a thump.
"Rude." Alex says standing up and brushing himself off before walking out of room, disregarding Merlin's cheeky smile. Merlin grabs some clothes from one of his drawers before taking a quick shower, brushing his teeth and changing. He went downstairs in his house, towel still over his shoulders, so his wet hair didn't mark his shirt.