Merlin Imagines

Gwaine x Mermaid!Reader: Kindness

"As a symbol of our goodwill, I'd like to present you with an exotic gift captured a mere two weeks ago!" The drapes covering your tank were wrenched off, and you hissed at the sudden light. Gasps rose in the room and you glared out of the glass of your tank.

"What is that thing?" The King asked as he approached your enclosure.

"A mermaid, Your Majesty." Your captor explained. "They're quite abundant in our waters, but ones with this," He motioned to your gold and silver scales. "Colouration are quite rare."

"Thank you, Richard," The man told him. "It's an honour to be in possession of such a rare artifact." Your silver eyes flashed with anger. You were an artifact? A...possession? The man approached your tank. "And what are you called?" A surge of anger washed over you and you shot to the top of the tank. You pushed yourself up and sprayed water right into the man's face. The court gasped and a few men in red capes drew what appeared to be long metal sticks.

"You are in the presence of King Uther," The man said with a powerful voice. "And you will show the proper respect." You glared.

"You are not my king." Uther's face hardened.

"Arthur!" He barked. A man with blond hair stepped forward. "Take her tank and put it in the center of the training field." You looked at the snow falling outside and shivered. "Two days. No food. No water." Arthur looked at you, before sighing and turning back to Uther.

"Yes, Father." He looked over his shoulder. "Gwaine and Percival." Two men nodded and approached your tank. You pressed yourself to the bottom of your shallow tank. They each walked to one side of your tank and grabbed the handles, hefting your tank over their shoulders. You were taken out of the throne room and into the cold. They put you down in the snow, and the taller one left. The dark haired man stayed.

"I'm Gwaine," He told you. You crossed your arms and turned away from him. "What's your name?"

"Why do you care?" He chuckled.

"I make it my business to get on a first-name basis with every pretty girl I meet." You said nothing. He laughed again. "I'll try again tomorrow." You heard his footsteps retreat and then you remembered the temperature of your surroundings. You sighed and curled up as tight as you could to retain heat.

It's going to be a long night.

...

"Hey," Someone touched your shoulder, shaking you out of your sleep. "Wake up." You groaned and sat up as you shivered violently. "You gotta stay quiet." You looked up at Gwaine, who was wrapped up in warm clothes and holding a thick blanket in his arms.

"What do you want?" He smiled.

"I'm taking you inside for the night." You eyed him warily. He raised an eyebrow. "Would you rather stay out here?" You weighed your options, before nodding reluctantly. He smiled. "Good girl," He walked closer and crouched. He put the blanket down and reached his arms out. He easily reached an arm around your back, but hesitated at the sight of your tail.

"Never seen a mermaid before?" You asked sarcastically. He glared at you with a smirk.

"What do you think?" You found yourself smiling.

"Here," You said, and snapped your fingers and your tail began to tingle. Your tail slowly shifted until it became a glimmering silver skirt. Gwaine's eyes were the size of saucers. "Don't tell me you've never seen a skirt," You teased. He rolled his eyes and grabbed your legs, hoisting you out of the water. You shivered and instinctively pressed yourself closer to Gwaine. He gently set you down, wrapped you in the blanket and carried you inside. He quietly walked through the halls, checking around the corners until he stopped in front of a door. He quietly kicked it open with his foot and carried you inside. There was a small bed in the corner and a makeshift bed on the ground. He set you on the bed.

"Are you hungry?" he asked you as he took off his coat. You shrugged.

"A little," You admitted. He walked over to a wooden bowl and pulled out what looked like a shiny ball. He threw it to you and you caught it, turning it over in your hands. "What is it?" You asked.

"It's an apple," He grabbed another one and sat down next to you. He took a bite. "Try it." You hesitantly took a bite of the apple. It crunched in your mouth and the juice gushed out. You hummed in appreciation,

"It's good," You said before taking another bite. When you were finished you yawned sleepily and Gwaine smiled at you.

"Okay, miss mermaid, it's time for you to sleep." He got up, took the apple core from you, and gently pushed you down to lie on the bed. He tucked you in snugly and blew out the candle next to the bed.

"Where are you going to sleep?" He pointed to the makeshift bed on the ground. "No, I can't let you sleep on the ground!" You protested. He shrugged.

"Too bad; I'm sleeping here." He laid down and covered up to prove his point. "You sleep too. It's been a stressful day for you. And I'll have to wake you up early so Uther doesn't find out I brought you inside." You nodded, laid your head on the pillow, and fell asleep immediately.

...

You were gently shaken awake a few hours later. "Time to go," He said sadly. You nodded and stood up. He led you out the door and you crept back towards your tank, careful not to be seen. When you were both standing over your tank, you removed his cloak from your shoulders and passed it back to him.

"Thank you," You told him sincerely. "For everything."

"I'll be back tonight," He told you. You smiled, and slowly dipped your feet in the water, gasping at the frigid temperature. You slowly lowered yourself down, and when your legs were fully submerged, you snapped your fingers again. Your skirt morphed back into silver scales as you adjusted to the temperature. "You sure you'll be alright?" He crouched next to you.

"Half-fish." You told him. "Cold-blooded."

"What does that mean?"

"I adjust to temperatures easily. Now get inside before someone sees you!" You urged him. He smiled. He reached towards your face, but dropped his hand after a second thought. He stood up and walked away, but not before waving at you one last time. When he was gone, you sighed to yourself and sunk to the bottom of your tank.

It was quiet, for the most part. The occasional guard would walk by, but you were left to yourself. As the sun was setting, you spotted a lone figure carefully approaching your tank. You sat up as Gwaine held up a cloak. You snapped your fingers, your tail shifted, and you stood up. You took the cloak and wrapped it around yourself, relishing in the warmth it provided. Gwaine wrapped an arm around you and led you back to his room. He sat you on the bed and passed you another apple. As you ate, he sat down next to you. "Why do you do this?"

"What?"

"Why are you helping me?" You asked. "I'm just the shiny new toy." He was silent for a minute, before sighing.

"Because no one deserves to be treated like property, least of all you." You put your apple down.

"But you don't even know me."

"Do I have to?" He asked. "You were taken from your home, and you're on display every day. That's all I need to know." You felt tears welling. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked. You wiped your eyes hastily.

"It's nothing, I just—" You took a breath. "You're the first person to show me any kindness." You smiled shakily. "Thank you." He smiled back, and gently grabbed your hand. You stared at each other, and you both slowly leaned in. Before you could stop yourself, your lips gently brushed together. You both pulled back and looked at each other again. Then, Gwaine cupped the back of your head and pulled you in, more firmly this time. When you pulled back again, he smiled more brightly and leaned back, pulling you on top of his chest. He used his free arm to put out the candle and pull the covers over the two of you. He pressed a kiss to your forehead.

"Sleep," He murmured against your skin. You didn't need any more prompting and fell asleep, dreaming of what the future held in store for you.