Merthur One-shots

Sing Me Something Brave From Your Month

Summary: When Arthur rescued an old woman from a village mob, he expected to be thanked, not cursed. Now he has seven days to hear seven uncomfortable truths or everyone he's ever known will forget him. Can Arthur make it in time? And will he find the courage to share an uncomfortable truth of his own?

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No good deed went unpunished.

Arthur could have been hailed a hero for rescuing the old woman from the pyre the village council had placed her on. He could have been lauded a reformer for rejecting their blanket accusation of sorcery as justification for her death.

Instead, he found himself cursed.

All Arthur had wanted was a day alone with Merlin, away from the demands and distractions of court. Of course Merlin had whined when Arthur proposed a hunting trip, grumbled even more when they set out, but that was to be expected.

If the truth was told, Arthur secretly enjoyed listening to Merlin's complaints. They provided a welcome sense of normalcy in the midst of all the changes that had come when Arthur ascended the throne a year earlier. Diplomats and courtiers might now spend their days groveling in his presence, but Merlin would never mince his words for the king.

All had gone well enough until a woman's voice rang out through the trees, a scream that could only mean trouble.

Though Arthur managed to save her from the village mob, there was nothing that could be done for the toll time had taken on the elderly woman's body. They set up camp and Merlin tried to tend to her, but all he could do was offer comfort rather than a cure.

"Arthur Pendragon." Saying his name brought on a coughing fit.

"Easy," he said. "Don't speak. You need to rest so you can build up your strength."

"My days are done," she replied, "but you showed me kindness and I wish to do the same for you. Take this."

She held out a shaking hand, clutching a strange horn.

"Thank you." The gift was unusual, but Arthur accepted it with grace. "You're very thoughtful."

The woman choked out a ragged laugh. "You may soon change your mind, as I have one more gift in store for you."

She closed her eyes and began muttering words so softly that Arthur couldn't hear her. The woman fell silent and for a split second, Arthur wondered if perhaps she'd died. Then she sat up, eyes ablaze as golden energy flowed from her outstretched hands.

"Arthur, look out!"

Merlin's cry came too late, the energy colliding with Arthur's body. All his nerves fired at its warmth.

"What have you done to me?"

"Cursed you," she said. "Or blessed you. It remains to be seen."

"I don't understand."

"The spell I cast on you cannot be undone with sorcery, not even by those who possess the most powerful magic." Her eyes lingered briefly on Merlin before returning to Arthur. "You have seven days, Arthur Pendragon, to hear seven truths. These truths will not be comfortable, some may even be painful, but they must be heard. If you don't run from them, if you hold them in your heart and learn from them, then you will set yourself on the right path."