Memory Jar

Chapter 17

A.N.:// Behold, the final chapter :)


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Down on the court yard, bodies lay scattered on the ground. The knights, both Camelot's and Mercia's men, died where they stood. Fighting each other, impaling each other.
And half of them didn't even know why.

How cruel battles are.
In a war, there is no winner.
You cannot end a war by fighting it.
Peace is neither the result, nor the solution of war.
Peace is a stop sign. Peace is merely a pause before rich people feel confident enough to be greedy again.

And maybe, the darkness that had settled over the world had pressed a button.
The whole world stopped. For just a few moments, the knights were too scared to fight. Too terrified to reside in anything but peace.

Some people, who one second ago had tried to stab each other, were now sharing shelter behind walls and open doors.
Because it was never a good sign when the entire world turned dark.

And then the Castle tower exploded in bluish light.
What a sight that must be. When shock wave after shock wave hits you. And you can suddenly feel feelings that are not your own.
Fear, sadness, pain. So much pain.
But also love. Love for magic. For Camelot. For Arthur. For Merlin.
Neither of the knights was connected enough to either of them to actually see the memories. But they could faintly feel what they had felt over the years.

There was shame. There was desperation. The whole world felt blue. And from the ground, forgetmenots started to grow.
Blue and golden they sprouted, like they wanted the world to remember that everything has a price.
That life brought only death. And death granted new life.

Arthur Pendragon could not see his knights. Could not feel what they felt.
But he already felt more than enough.
So much that his mind decided it needed to stop. That he would only feel numb now.
Because numbness was what he needed. He would explode with anger and fear and hatred otherwise. Like his father once did.

He barely noticed the relief he felt over Merlin's resurrection. And he knew that Merlin knew that.
After all, their souls were linked now. Because Merlin's soul had been contained in a jar that bore Arthur's memories as well as his own.
They had shared their jar. Their memories. Everything. Now they didn't share a soul. They were still two separate people. But they shared a bond. Stronger and more pressing than any other anyone has ever born witness to.

"Arthur?", Merlin didn't have to say it. Arthur could hear him in his mind. But Merlin said it anyway.
Because he knew that someone needed to say something, to get Arthur out of the dark hole he was currently trapped in.
After all, he just held the dead body of one of his honorary siblings in his arms.
Katie was dead. And she looked oh so peaceful.
There can be peace in war. It's in death.

Arthur cried. It wasn't even a held back kind of crying.
No I-need-to-look-strong-attempt at holding it in.
There was no I'm-too-resigned-to-feel-anything-so-I'm-literally-unable-to-cry kind of numbness.
Arthur was full on sobbing at the body in his arms.

He had forbidden her to visit Merlin and him in their hut on the other side of the lake. And they never visited her. Because they couldn't risk being found.
He had neglected his duties as her tutor. All they had done was write.
He had abandoned her too.
And he hadn't even apologized for calling her a monster.

He would never see her open curious eyes ever again. He would never see her grow up. He would never see her become the awesome witch she was destined to be.
This was all that was left of her. A body. And a legacy.
Flesh and bones and blood. Cooling in his arms. A lost and empty glance in her eyes. Determination.
And fear.