Supermerwholock One Shots

Merlin X Reader - Good Friend

"Arthur!" You were trying to convince your twin brother to let you train knights with him. "I need to know how to train them too! What if you're busy, or away? It's just one little training session!"
"Yes, but remember what father said after the last time it was 'just one little training session'?" he replied, sighing. "Didn't he tell you to keep Morgana company today?"
The both of you saw his manservant approach, but you weren't ready to drop this. "Well, yes. But Gwen is paid for that. And Morgana just sends me straight back to my quarters anyway."
Merlin was within earshot for the last part of your argument. "Who's getting sent back to their quarters?" he asked, as he reached the two of you.
"No one," you said, as Arthur said:
"(Y/n)."
"Well, which one, no one or lady (y/n)? Because last I checked lady (y/n) was not no one."
You smiled at Merlin's witty ramblings. Before you'd met Merlin, you hadn't properly smiled since you and Arthur were younger. You'd been allowed to wield a sword then.
"Don't you have suitors to decline, (y/n)?" Arthur asked, jabbing a low blow at your current lifestyle. Your father had decided that you were of age to marry. While being less strict in the idea than most kings, and letting you choose, you still had to choose and the remaining list was getting very short.
"That was harsh, my lord." While he sounded respectful, you'd also quickly learnt that Merlin didn't care for titles as much as others. Usually, when Merlin called your brother 'my lord', there was a hint of sarcasm in his tone.
"If I'm so dainty and vulnerable that I'm not allowed to even look at a sword, maybe you should have me escorted back to my chambers, to ensure no harm becomes of me!" You almost spat some of the words at your brother. He could be such an arrogant pig, sometimes.
He just smiled. "Merlin, it's your lucky day. You can miss out in being target practice today, by doing a more important job for me." His smile didn't reach his eyes, so you knew that he didn't like having to enforce this, either. "Escort my sister back to her chambers and make sure that she doesn't leave them until the allotted time for the end of training."
As you felt Merlin's hand gently hold your arm, you snarled your parting sentences, loud enough that only the three of you heard it. "You're supposed to be learning how to be a king, not a mindless bandit! Learn compassion, or risk losing everything we're working for!" Then, you willingly let Merlin guide you back to the castle.
As you both silently walked through the castle to your chambers, you stewed over what you had said, having immediately regretted it. When you were finally at your chambers, Merlin opened the door for you.
As soon as you were both in your chambers, you asked: "Is it really so much to ask? All I want to do is to know how to defend myself and how to teach his men to defend themselves. Is it such an impossible request to permit?"
Merlin seemed a little surprised at your sudden outburst. "Umm... Well, my lady, it's not really my place to say..."
"Merlin, calm down. You can speak frankly with me, it's only the two of us in here. Anyway, that's not what I wanted to ask."
"Uhm, what did you want to ask, lady (y/n)?"
"... I really regret saying that to Arthur. It's not his fault. Father would punish him more severely for allowing me to train than he would punish me for convincing him. Do you think Arthur knows that I didn't mean it?"
Merlin looked at you, a mixture of pity and understanding plaguing his face. "I'm sure Arthur understands, (y/n). You're his sister. He knows you'd never purposefully hurt his feelings." He paused, as if deliberating whether or not to say something. More often than not, when you've seen him wear that look, he has proceeded to tell you what he was deliberating. "Besides, you know just how sensitive his princess feelings are."
You immediately knew that he was aiming to make you laugh. It was all the better due to him having succeeded. He'd been in Camelot for roughly half of a year and already he knew exactly how to a) wind up your brother and b) make you laugh. Generally speaking, the two would go hand in hand.
"I'm sure he understands, (y/n). You were both pretty emotional and it is a sensitive topic."
"You're a good friend, Merlin," you replied, sighing and smiling. "Especially to Arthur. Mostly, he isn't very good with making friends. I'm glad he has you."
"You're welcome, my lady," he murmured. You thought, for a moment, that you could see him blushing, but decidedly, and resolutely, ignored it.
The conversation trailed after that, so you grabbed a book, a Latin text about a Greek man called Odysseus. You didn't really like Odysseus, but there were some good plot points.
After reading for a little while, you started to notice that Merlin was stood behind you, peering at the Latin. Eventually, he asked what you knew he was going to. "Can you read that?"
You took a strip of cloth and put it in at your current page, before closing the book and turning to face Merlin. He was mildly bemused, as if trying to work out your next move. You smiled. "Yes, I've been taught to read and understand Latin, why?"
"Oh, well, I was going to say that it looked like a jumble of letters to me, for the most part." Your smile broadened. Most people had the exact same reaction when seeing Latin for the first time. There was a pause for a couple of minutes, where neither of you spoke. "So, is it hard to learn?" Merlin asked.
You looked at him. "Well, it depends on the person." You looked around and lowered your voice to barely even a whisper. "I assume magic's the same." You looked at him pointedly and, before he could even react, you added: "I already know, Merlin. I've known for a while. My lips are sealed. All I want to know is if I'd be able to learn some."
"Well," he stuttered, "you'd probably be able to pick it up rather quickly. But," he hastily added, "you're the daughter of Uther Pendragon. It would be impossible to hide from him for long, and could get us both killed." You looked down. You should have known that he would say something like that. "How did you find out?"
You looked up at him as you replied. "Gwen. Don't blame her, though. I overheard her talking to you about it. I didn't hear what you said to her, because I shouldn't have been there in the first place. I did confront her about two weeks later. I said I wouldn't tell anyone else, but she already knew that I wouldn't, because you were still here."
You paused as you heard some footsteps outside your door.
Once you were reassured that whoever had been there was gone, you were interrupted by Merlin. "It's kind of sweet, (y/n)," he said. You looked at him, confused. "You called me a good friend to your brother, but haven't even realised just how good a friend you are to me. I completely trust you to be able to keep my secret. Until the ends of the earth."

A/N ~ I feel really bad because I haven't kept on top of this book recently (or the rest of my account, tbh) so to apologise, you get to have two parts tonight!!! As always, let me know what you think in the comments, vote if you like it enough and...
*Coughs to clear voice*
*Badly attempts Markiplier accent*
I will see YOU in the next one-shot...
Buh-bye!!!
😁😁😁