ONLY FOR YOU // Merlin/Merthur Oneshots

Nightmares

Arthur was being held back. People were holding his arms, preventing him from running forwards.

But he had to.

They had his Merlin.

"You fought valiantly, King Arthur Pendragon. You tried to keep us from taking your kingdom, and yet, even as you are held here, your kingdom in ruins, you still fight," a man said, in armor so dark it seemed to draw in the light.

"Let him go. Kill me, but don't hurt Merlin," Arthur snarled, not responding to what the man had said.

"Oh, Merlin? This one?" The man motioned to his knights, and they hauled Merlin forwards. He was limp, struggling to stand, but he had to rely on the men holding him. He was obviously injured, looking up at Arthur with eyes full of sadness.

"Let. Him. Go."

"No, I don't think I will. You care about this servant a lot, don't you?" The man in the dark armor seemed thoughtful, tapping the hilt of his sword.

"Yes, which is why you're going to let him go. You can do anything you want with me, but he has to be safe."

"Impressive. Willing to give your life for a servant? That's not something I often hear from a royal. No, I have a much better idea," the man chuckled, motioning again to his knights. One that was just standing to the side walked over, standing behind Merlin and unsheathing his sword.

"I know just what will break your spirit."

"No. No!" Arthur screamed.

<<+>>

And then he woke up. Tears rolling down his face, a scream tearing from his throat. "Merlin!"

He started shaking, tangled in his sheets and shoving himself up, back slamming into the headboard of his bed. His fingers pulled at his hair as he sobbed, fear racing through his body.

It was just a dream. Just a dream. A nightmare.

Footsteps thumped outside his chambers, then the door was thrown open by said manservant, Merlin, who looked scared, eyes darting around frantically, before focusing on Arthur. He relaxed slightly, but his mouth twisted into a concerned frown as he walked over.

"Arthur? Are you all right?" He asked, stopping by the side of the bed, then was caught off guard by the king spinning and wrapping his arms around him, nearly pulling him onto the bed.

"Woah— Arthur! What happened?" Merlin said with a strange voice change as his knee slammed into the wooden frame of the bed, struggling to stay balanced and not fall on top of Arthur. He awkwardly patted the king's back, shifting around to try and not have his knee pressing painfully into the frame.

"Camelot— Fell— Merlin don't leave me," Arthur choked out, tightening his grip as Merlin shifted around, not wanting him to leave. He couldn't leave him, not when he had just seen him get run through with a sword, the life fading from his eyes.

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm not leaving," Merlin comforted, still attempting to loosen Arthur's grip that was squeezing his ribs rather uncomfortably. Eventually he managed to shuffle onto the bed, oh his knees because Arthur was determined to never let him go, face pressed into his chest.

"Can't lose you." Arthur pulled away ever so slightly, looking up at Merlin with teary eyes. "Never lose you."

"You're fine, Arthur. Everything's fine, so you need to calm down," Merlin murmured, rubbing his back in an attempt to stop the tears. In fact, that's exactly what he wanted to do, so he extracted an arm from Arthur's hold and wiped the tears away.

"But it was— So real... I lost you, and I— I can't love knowing that may one day happen," Arthur struggled through his words, not really knowing what he was saying. He pulled Merlin forwards, falling back onto the headboard.

Merlin gasped quietly, face flushing a little bit as he was pulled on top of Arthur, who still refused to let him go. "Arthur please— I'm right here," he said, rolling to the side. Luckily, Arthur let him, still holding on and turning, the both of them sitting against the headboard.

"Arthur. You have to talk to me. I don't know how to comfort you since you won't tell me what's wrong," Merlin murmured, petting Arthur's hair. He was concerned about what his friend had seen, what could make him be like this.

"You... I saw you die. I saw them kill you. They wanted to b-- to break me, so they killed you," Arthur managed to choke out, somehow clinging tighter to Merlin.

"Arthur," Merlin sighed, shifting so it was more comfortable for them to rest, holding Arthur against his chest. "It was just a nightmare. Don't worry about it."

"B-- But I don't want to lose you. I don't want to have dreams like that! I-- I don't want to go back to sleep..." Arthur whined, yet he relaxed into Merlin.

"It was just a nightmare, Arthur," Merlin repeated, growing slightly exasperated. He continued to pet the king's hair and rub his back. Luckily, the tears had stopped, and he was just sniffling quietly.

"Don't leave me. Stay here?" Arthur asked quietly, blinking at Merlin. He seemed desperate, shaking slightly. In fact, he had never stopped shaking ever since Merlin came into the room.

"Yes, I'll stay here if you'll calm down," Merlin had to resist chuckling. He was confused as to why Arthur cared so much, freaking out about a simple nightmare in which he died.

"Thank you." Arthur curled closer to Merlin as hey both settled down, heads on the pillows.

"Arthur... Why did the nightmare scare you so much?" Merlin asked after a few moments of quiet.

"Because I love you. I couldn't bear to lose you," Arthur whispered, but he seemed more calm now.

"... You... Love me?" Merlin repeated, not quite sure he understood. Then again, he had heard Arthur perfectly fine, he just didn't believe it. Maybe his brain was addled, or he was in shock or something.

"Yes. I love you, Merlin," Arthur said, his voice quiet, yet firm. He was telling the truth, and didn't really know what would happen because of it.

"I... Love you too, Arthur. Oh god-- Please don't be in shock or something. I want this to be real," Merlin said, then his voice dropped to a whisper, and he tilted his head up, looking away from Arthur.

"It's real, Merlin. Because that nightmare finally showed me that I couldn't bear to lose you," Arthur said, finally letting go of Merlin to hold his hands, pressing a light kiss to the knuckles.

That finally made Merlin look down, into Arthur's eyes. All he saw was left over fear, but mainly love. Love and devotion, to him. His brain still told him that this couldn't be possible, but his heart was fluttering wildly, bursting with emotion. He leaned closer to Arthur, who did the same. 

Eventually their lips were pressed lightly to each other, barely touching, yet it was a kiss nonetheless. It only lasted for a few brief moments, a promise to each other, a promise that they had a future, together, never to be without each other.

<< thank you for reading! i just wanted to do this little blurb based on an actual dream i had, so it's pretty short but i hope you enjoyed! >>