How Merlin Should Have Ended

The Trial

The sun had set long ago, and the celebrations were coming to an end. Arthur couldn't believe the alcohol tolerance of these Catha. He felt sure the castle stores would still be depleted for many weeks to come; it was a small price to pay to gain such a powerful ally so effortlessly. Even if Merlin hadn't explained that he'd been allied with the Catha for many years now, Arthur felt sure he would have figured it out by just how easily this alliance was forged. Every one of their guests had taken him up on a bed for the night, though he knew most would be gone by midday. The one they'd chosen to stay behind was a woman named Finna. Unlike their overnight guests, Arthur had assigned her permanent chambers within the castle walls.

With all the arrangements settled, Arthur made his way to bed for the evening. Though tired, Arthur was quite pleased with how the banquet had gone. Camelot had a new and powerful ally to call on, which was never a bad thing, especially with Morgana still at large.

When he reached his chambers, Arthur found his wife already asleep. Moving quietly so as not to wake her, the king stripped off his fancy clothes and crawled into bed. With Gwen beside him and the blankets wrapped around him, sleep came almost instantly.

Arthur woke to the very familiar sound of Merlin's voice, along with the abrupt opening of the curtains. This had always been his servant's favourite way of waking him, but today, Arthur's hangover wasn't in the mood.

"I'm the king of Camelot," Arthur groaned. "If I want to sleep in, I'll sleep in."

"Ah, but where is the fun in that?" Merlin laughed.

Just then, Arthur had an idea. He sat up in bed and looked the warlock right in the eye. "Can magic cure hangovers?" he asked.

"Probably," Merlin shrugged. "But I've never tried it."

"Consider this an order from your king to learn how to magically cure hangovers," Arthur said as he forced himself out of bed.

Merlin laughed. He was standing there holding a clean set of clothes for Arthur like he had almost every morning since the day Uther had employed him.

"You know you don't have to do this anymore, right?" Arthur stated.

"Do what, sire?"

"Act like my servant," Arthur reminded him. "I promoted you, remember?"

"Being your servant feels normal," Merlin answered with a smile. "All this being an official warlock stuff is strange after an entire life of hiding."

Arthur couldn't even begin to imagine what it must have felt like for Merlin to hide so much of himself from everyone he knew for so long. Arthur suspected he'd never fully understand. The best he could hope for was to accept and support his friend. Understanding was beyond his grasp.

"Still, I could get someone else to do this kind of stuff if you want," Arthur continued.

"Nah," Merlin said again with a smile and a dismissive wave of his hand. "Besides, most of it is really easy with magic, and it's always fun to come up with annoying ways to wake you up in the morning."

Arthur narrowed his eyes. Warlock or not, he really should have more respect for a king. Then again, when had Merlin ever behaved like he was supposed to? Getting him to do as he was told had proven difficult enough.

"Hurry up and get out of bed," Merlin continued. "Or your wife won't leave you any breakfast."

It was true that Gwen hadn't been in the bed when he'd woken up. Arthur knew she'd been smart and hadn't had as much to drink at dinner last night as him, so her hangover probably wasn't nearly as bad as his. From what Merlin said, it sounded like she'd beaten him to breakfast as well.