REGICIDE ➳ MERTHUR

chapter two

hello again! here's chapter two! 

WARNING: There is non-sexual choking in this chapter. Also a little bit of mature content. If such things bother you I would advise you not to read them. 

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When Merlin arrived in his chambers that night, he was surprised to find Arthur already there, sitting at the desk. He was paging through some of the paperwork Merlin had done earlier, and he looked as if he was so deeply analyzing it that he hadn't noticed Merlin come in. When he walked up to the desk, Arthur finally glanced at him, immediately putting the papers back into the initial piles. It was difficult, as he had scattered them all over the top area of the desk to read them, so he was scrambling to remember where he'd put them. Merlin chuckled, snapping a finger and watching as the parchments stacked themselves correctly on the sides of his desk. Arthur looked up at him.

"You're... relegating more food to the citizens of the lower town? How? The stores have only ever held enough-,"

"It's magic, Arthur. Magic lets us make sure no one starves, that everyone can eat in excess if they want to because we'll always have a prosperous yield." Merlin smiled, just a slight stretch of his lips, hoping Arthur understood that he was trying to do good, to make the peoples' lives better.

"Oh." Arthur said, a blank look on his face, before clearing his throat. "Alright then, get on with it. I want to know everything."

Merlin sat opposite Arthur, suppressing the urge to say, "You can't address me like that," even though he knew it would have brought him great joy. The way they sat, their new roles didn't seem to fit. Merlin, with his fancy robes in the chair facing the desk, and Arthur in a casual tunic and trousers sitting at the desk as if he were in charge. It resembled their old lives too much for Merlin's comfort. He took a breath, looking at Arthur's face and finding an expression of impatience.

"I've had magic since I was born, you already know. So, when I came to Camelot, I had to hide it from you and everyone else. Do you know what's it's like to hide away an aspect of yourself, one that you can't control, from everyone you know and love on fear of death if found?" Merlin said, before continuing. A short glance at Arthur's face told him he was wary, but still listening. "I did this to protect all of the innocent people who would have been killed by Uther during the rest of his reign. This includes Morgana... except there's something you don't know about Morgana." Merlin looked at Arthur, straight into his eyes. "She's Uther's daughter, and your half-sister."

At first, Arthur's jaw went slack, taking in the information presented with shock. He couldn't believe it, Merlin knew, but it was the truth and he needed to know. He deserved to know. Then, his hands clenched into fists and he gritted his teeth.

"You're lying! You're a sorcerer!" Arthur proclaimed, as if Merlin's magic was an explanation for why everything he said was a lie. "That would mean that... she's heir to the throne... you must be lying!"

"No, I'm not. You can talk to Morgana about it when you see her. Your father sired her as a bastard, and it was why he would never have let her have the throne." Merlin floated a pitcher and a chalice over to the desk from across the room, pouring himself some water. Arthur's shock, at this point, had leveled to furrowing his eyebrows at Merlin while thinking about what he had said. "Shall I continue?" Merlin asked, after taking a sip from the cup. Arthur shot him a dirty look, scrunching up his nose the slightest bit, but nodded.