Arthur sat with Guinevere on their thrones in front of the knights, nobles, court advisors, physician and a few servants. Leon stood to the right of his king. "The king has returned, the battle of Camlann is won, The witch Morgana is dead, Camelot shall be rebuilt stronger than ever before."
As Arthur looked proudly upon his people whilst listening to one of his most trusted knights, he noticed some movement in the corner of his eye, turning to see who it was he saw a pale young boy, whose face glistened with the sweat that incased it, enter through the servants door before leaning against the stone wall. The boy's eyes met his Kings, Arthur was concerned for the boy but Merlin simply smiled back to reassure his King that he was okay.
"Camelot has suffered much these past years, losing many knights and citizens, to a war brought about by magic" Leon continued, he of course still had no idea about the young warlock and all he had done for Camelot. Hearing this Merlin bowed his head almost as if he was ashamed of magic, but he wasn't, he was ashamed by the way magic had been used for evil. Noticing the sadness on his friend's face the King stood up quickly, causing Leon to stop talking and all the court to look at Arthur in confusion.
"I... I " the king began to stutter
"Is everything alright my lord?" Leon asked worriedly
Arthur looked to his Queen who smiled knowingly, then to Gaius who looked at Arthur with hope in his eyes, finally Arthur's gaze landed on Merlin, skinny, loyal, brave Merlin. The warlock looked up to his King, not fully aware of what was going on, Arthur smiled at his servant and nodded, causing Merlin to fix his posture and stand up right, still not fully understanding what was going on.
Clearing his throat Arthur spoke
"Whilst most of what sir Leon speaks of is true. These past few days away from Camelot, I found myself in the presence of an extraordinary man, his wisdom beyond his years, his bravery unquestionable and most of all his loyalty: unfathomable." The king now looked to Merlin "I thought that to be a strong kingdom, we must stick to our traditions, uphold our ancient values and fight for what our predecessors had fought for. I see now I was wrong." Turning back to face the court the king continued "To be the great kingdom we all want Camelot to be, we must look forward, we must forgive and conduct ourselves with empathy, dignity and compassion." Arthur now walked closer to the members go the court, raising his voice to carry the importance of his words. "Magic may have been the weapon used by our enemy at Camlann, but it was not the cause of this war. The war was caused by years of ignorance and fear. I stand before you today as King to tell you that this shall never happen again, no more lives will be lost due to arrogance, no innocent person will be persecuted for the sake of outdated beliefs, preparations are already taking place for the new Camelot, a place where everyone is free.Peace and prosperity will be brought to the land of Albion. Change is coming and we will welcome it gladly for we have lived in the shadows for far too long, It's time for us to step into the light."
The grand hall fell silent as their king finished his speech, Percival walked towards Arthur and stood to his left
"LONG LIVE THE KING!"
The room quickly erupted with the same words
"LONG LIVE THE KING!"
"LONG LIVE THE KING!"
Arthur smiled at the two final knights of the round table who now stood either side of him. Guinevere rose from her throne and stood beside her husband with a smile as wide the kings, for they both knew this was the real beginning of a prosperous and great kingdom. Gaius stood amongst the crowd, cheering with the other citizens of Camelot.
"LONG LIVE THE KING!"
"LONG LIVE THE KING!"
Practically synchronised, the four members of the round table turned their heads to the left, searching the crowd of servants for Merlin. Their eyes all landed on him, his eyes wide with happiness and his smile bigger than they had seen in a long time. But the boy was still as pale as a ghost, his face moist with sweat, and his smile, although big, held something false about it. This worried Arthur greatly, he would have to talk to Merlin later, to see if everything was okay, the king hadn't forgotten the way Merlin had acted when he got off the dragon or when Gaius had touched his shoulder. But for right now Arthur had to address issues of the court, a lot has happened in his days of absence. Though this was more of a formality considering he knew Gwen would have already taken care of everything and he trusted her completely.
~~~
"Well everything looks to be perfectly fine" the physician stood and walked away from Arthur back to his medical supplies and books which he had brought up to the kings chambers in order to examine him. "I'd say whatever that lake did to heal you, did its job splendidly" Gaius continued. Arthur was sat on his dark oak chair, taking his red tunic from the table and putting it back on.
"Indeed, I must say though Gaius, I haven't felt this good in years"
"Magic sure can be a blessing sometimes" the old man finished packing up his belongings.
"Do you think, it'll work?" Arthur cautiously asked whilst getting up from his seat
"Sire?" The physician replied unsure of what he was referring to
"Magic in Camelot, Do you think we can really all live in peace together?"
"Yes, I do" Gaius sounded sure of himself "Remember Arthur, magic is like a sword, neither good nor bad. It is wielded by man either as a source of destruction or as a protector of innocence. Whilst some magic may draw those to the dark, It is light magic which will always prevail. You must allow the light to flow through Camelot. If you do there shall be no more shadows for the darkness to hide, a time of peace will come, a time where man and sorcerer alike are celebrated for their differences, a time of the once and future king."
"You sound sure of this" Arthur felt somewhat more secure in his decision after hearing the old mans confidence in him.
"I and many others have waited a long time for the world you and Merlin will bring about, I believe in you just as Merlin has all these years." Gaius returned.
"This won't be a quick and easy change Gaius, even I still have my doubts"
"I know that" The physician bowed his head and walked towards the door, supplies in hand.
"Oh Gaius, have you seen Merlin? He was supposed to meet me in my chambers after my meeting with the council" Arthur interjected, before the old man could reach the door
"I'm afraid not sire" Gaius said solemnly, he too was worried about the young warlock.
"SIRE! SIRE!" A voice sounded from the hallway, suddenly a young red haired serving boy rushed through the doors "I'm sorry to interrupt sire"
"Its fine, what is it?" Arthur hastily replied
"It's your servant, Merlin"
YOU ARE READING
The Aftermath (Merlin)
Fanfiction*Sequel Out now* Kilgharrah may have told Merlin that nothing he could do would save the Once and Future King, but that doesn't mean he was right. The warlock takes things into his own hands when he revives Arthur at Avalon, but there are consequenc...
