Merlin AU - Meet me by the seaside.
This, Arthur expected: never to speak to his father again; cold silences, and ocean-wide distances the only things they ever agreed on. This, he did not expect: for Uther to leave him everything he owned in his will.
What Arthur discovers in the small town by the sea where once cosmopolitan Uther lived, are traces of a calm, quiet, even joyous man, who was in love with sailing and nothing like the estranged father he used to know. Curious, and with a strange need to reconnect to a man he had cast out of his life, Arthur stays.
At the local marina he meets Merlin who takes care of the boats and docks, and seems to know everything about the sea, about the town, about how they live one against the other. When Arthur finds out that Merlin has no home and sleeps in his car or in the boat house, Arthur makes him an offer: a room in his cottage in exchange for sailing lessons.
Slowly Arthur understands—it’s the deep blue of the ocean and the salty wind and sharp cries of the seagulls. It’s Merlin and Arthur and how they wrap their fingers around ropes and wood, and the way they laugh loud and bright as the sails catch the wind and they both glide, glide, fast and relentless. It’s the sea, the creaking docks, and the rolling green hills. It’s Merlin and the crashing waves and the way they both collide with Arthur and how he never wants it to stop.
Merlin Circus AU » Pendragon Circus was a sight practically every child dreamed of seeing. Every young boy would come to see the daring Arthur preform stunts and risk his life. The young girls would stare in awe at the lithe acrobat Morgana. And who didn’t love the talented Gwen’s tricks with the animals? But when the ringmaster, Uther Pendragon, decides to bring aboard a young and talented magician named Merlin, he seems to steal everyone’s breath away, especially Arthur. Amidst impossible performances, unbelievable illusions, and secret love, it’s a show you can’t miss.
lines for victorian!merthur :) the ~final version will be colored, but i’m really pleased with the just-lines version so i’m posting it because, well, that’s what this blog is for :3
also: reminder that there’s free international shipping at my society6 shop till may 12 when you go through this link!
There should be a picture of Merlin and Gauis with a caption that says: “This Is Love Too.”
(although WHY it’s such an unpopular opinion is completely beyond me)
It seems like everyone is pretty much convinced that after Arthur dies Merlin leaves and never comes back to Camelot, and I’m just like
NooooonoOOoOOoOoooo…oooo………o………….
(made rebloggable on request. I’m sorry if it’s not 100% that coherent, I’m in quite a bit of pain right now, and typing one-handed mostly so I appologize for any mistakes, etc.)
______
I think the fandom is being really unfair to Merlin and his strength when lots of people are all ‘Merlin never went back to Camelot’ ‘Merlin was depressed and lonely waiting for Arthur’ etc.
I think it’s a disservice to the character.
I think Merlin would have gone back to Camelot. Because there are people there that he loves deeply. Especially Gaius. And yeah, maybe it’d take a while. Maybe he’d go back to Ealdor first, stay with his mom, mourn. But I think he’d go back. He’d want to be there and be able to tell Gwen what happened to Arthur. (One could argue that if Percival ever made it to Avalon’s lake, then Merlin could have told him and Percival would have related the news but yeah).
Mostly, I don’t think Merlin could live with himself if he left Gaius alone. I think people underestimate the love between them. Beside Arthur and his mom, Gaius is the most important person in Merlin’s life, and the only one in Camelot that ever truly knew aout him.
And yeah, I think there would always be a part of him that’d wait for Arthur, but I think with time he’d learn to live again. And there would always be that part of him bruised by loss, heavy with it, but he’d live again, love again. He’d learn more about magic (maybe even help Gwen as I’m sure after all that happened she’d lift the ban on magic), he’d maybe train with the Druids. He’s hardly the only immortal magical creature in the world. He’d have companions for a while. He’d travel, make discoveries, learn, fall in love. And maybe there would be periods where the wait would get heavier, harder to bear, since that’s pretty normal, and immortality is not an easy thing to go through, seeing all the people, and things you love, change and die. I think that immortality itslef would be harder to bear than Arthur’s death, but that the promise of a return would give purpose and drive and reason for it.
Merlin has always needed purpose, that’s why he embraced this whole destiny thing without much of a blink. I think, after grieving, he’d channel all his energy into a new purpose. Of course it’d take time. The last ten years of his life have been dedicated to this one dream, this one man, this one idea, and now it’s gone. He’d feel pretty useless, an purposeless, add to that the shame of thinking he has failed his destiny. The guilt. I think he could find some kind of balance eventually. He’s strong. He’s brave. He’s not much of a coward, and he cares.
I think it’s unfair to think that Merlin cannot be Merlin without Arthur. He might not feel 100% complete without him, but I think he could still be happy. He could find what it means to be himself, for himself as well, and not for another.
ETA: If anything he’d want to be ready for Arthur’s return. Which would mean training his magic, learning about it, learning about the world, the people etc. You can’t do that if you hide yourself forever. Also, GAIUS. Merlin would go back to at least see Gaius one more time.
Die if I must, let my bones turn to dust. I’m the Lord of the lake and I don’t want to leave. All who sail off the coast ever more will remember the tale of the ghost on the shore.
Merlin Alternate Universe - t h e p a i n t e r
For years Arthur searched for his muse. The one person who was worth the paint, worth the hundreds of etches and fine brushes. For years people visited his chambers. Noblemen would bring their daughters, begging Arthur to paint their soft features and round faces. The maids would bustle through his chamber, lingering near the windows, letting light caress their smiles. But the painter turned his visitors all down, all but one. The one who stumbled in his chambers one day by pure accident and kept coming back ever since;
“Your cheekbones are- they are- they catch the light very well. They are quite captivating.”
“Are they?”
“Oh yeah.”
artists!AUs for the win!
artist! Arthur:
