#chillbunnie | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

seyaryminamoto · 7 years

Text

The Magical Bodyguard - Chapter 1 - Mergana

A slightly late birthday present for the lovely, wonderful @chillbunnie!

So far rated T, no idea if that’s going to change in the next installments xD

Hope you enjoy! :D

The detonation was unavoidable. The bomb had been carefully planted, perfectly hidden amongst the countless gifts her admirers had sent to her. How had security allowed such a breach? Had someone snuck in later, placed the detonating device amid the flowers and fled before he could be caught?

… Was it an inside job?

The possibilities were endless, and there was no safe passage through the horrifying thriller her life was becoming after this. Not when she had to fear for her life and her son’s in this way.

She had noticed the bomb around thirty seconds before it exploded, which gave her the opportunity to escape unharmed. She couldn’t stop thinking about it, regardless of how many people came by to tell her she needed to relax, to rest, to eat, to do something other than sit where she did, her arms surrounding Mordred, her eyes lost in the horizon.

There was nothing more precious for her than the lives of those she loved. She had to make sure her son would be safe, that her touring team would be alright as well… so there was only one alternative to ensure their protection: there was only one place she could turn to now.

The life of a famous movie star was luxurious and blissful, even if it also brought disconnect from your loved ones. But Arthur thoroughly enjoyed the hard work that went into acting his best in every scene, into promoting his films and into interacting positively with his fans to keep them interested in him.

Yet the pressures of such fame also caught with him, along with the negative consequences for it: he was never alone anymore, no matter if he wanted to be. His agent would be in contact with him constantly, his assistants would chase after him all day ensuring he had everything he could want, and the worst of them all, his bodyguard, would always clumsily cause more trouble than he was worth whenever he had nothing to do.

Arthur had many expectations when he had contacted Gaius Security and been told a bodyguard would be assigned to him: his first thought was that it would be a man two heads taller than him, with a perfectly neat haircut, muscular and broad-shouldered, dressed in a black suit, with a white shirt and a black tie, and perhaps with those dark sunglasses that the agents from Men in Black wore. Then he thought maybe it would be a beautiful woman, but deadly, who would pass unnoticed and nobody would suspect her to be his bodyguard until she proved her prowess in aikido, judo, karate, kung fu, and whatever sorts of martial arts a bodyguard would know.

The last thing he would have expected would be a lanky guy, more or less his height, with outstanding ears, an innocent face paired with a mat of black hair that he probably had cut himself. He was awkward, he was talkative, he was everything a bodyguard shouldn’t be. Arthur had tested his fighting skills to find them utterly lacking, and he was appalled upon hearing he didn’t even have a single gun on him, let alone did he know how to use them.

Yet he was told by Gaius that this bodyguard, Merlin, was one of his very best employees. He promised him that, by the time something bad was about to happen, Merlin would be able to sort it out long before Arthur even realized he’d been in danger.

The promise hadn’t held up entirely, for Arthur noticed the threats quite often, yet miraculously all sort of coincidental things seemed to happen whenever Merlin was around. On one occasion rain had started pouring while they were outside, and Merlin suddenly pulled out an umbrella seemingly out of nowhere. Arthur was positive he wasn’t carrying one before, but Merlin insisted that he was. On another occasion, during a game of poker where Arthur had put in a bet far heftier than he should have, Merlin bumped the table by mistake, apologized profusely, and after that, the cards Arthur had been holding were suddenly better than they’d been through the entire game.

Such small feats carried on happening ever since he hired Merlin: a fire in the kitchen got out of control by Arthur’s carelessness, and as soon as Merlin was there, the threat had been quenched. When Arthur forgot his car keys, Merlin somehow had them with him – which had led Arthur to accuse him of taking them to mess with him, yet he knew he had forgotten to take them in the first place. Too many odd things happened around Merlin, and Arthur wasn’t sure what was what anymore: all he knew for certain was that his life was indeed in less danger of any kind whenever Merlin was around, even if he failed to understand why.

So when he received a call from his sister’s assistant, asking him for Gaius’s agency’s number, Arthur knew just what to do.

“Everything is alright, Morgana. You’re safe here,” said Gwen, smiling and patting her friend’s shoulder reassuringly.

Morgana sighed and shook her head, her gaze drifting towards where Mordred was sitting, playing with a videogame console. He was aware of the dangers they were in: Morgana had never been one to hide serious matters from her son, and with a potential murderer and stalker on the loose, she wasn’t going to take any risks by keeping Mordred uninformed. He had taken it well, though he was playing some unusually violent games right now. She wondered if he considered that training in case they were ever in danger again.

“It’s my home. I should be safe,” she agreed with Gwen. “But… but don’t you think it’s far too suspicious? How could they get through Morgause’s security checks? I mean…”

“Oh, please. You don’t suspect your sister, do you?” said Gwen, sitting next to her. Morgana shook her head.

“Not her. But her husband… he’s never liked me,” she said, looking at Gwen meaningfully. Gwen grimaced.

“Cendred? Well… isn’t this taking it a bit too far?” she asked. “I mean, if you don’t like a relative you just try not to talk with them much. He would have to be a genuine madman to want to hurt you this badly.”

“I don’t know if he is or isn’t,” said Morgana. “All I know is… that I have no idea who to trust.”

“Well, you can trust me,” said Gwen, reaching for Morgana’s hand. “And you certainly can trust Arthur, too. He said he had just the man for this job. Someone who’ll make sure no true harm ever comes to you.”

Morgana gave Gwen a weak smile and nodded. Despite everything, she knew that was true. There were a few people in her life that she knew wouldn’t hurt her, and amongst them were Arthur and Gwen. She knew no one as kind-hearted as Gwen, and her brother, thick-headed as he might be, had his heart in the right place. He would help her for certain.

Or at least, that was what she thought until she met the fabled bodyguard Arthur had gotten for her.

They arrived only half an hour later, on Arthur’s sports car. Gwen made sure to open the door for them while Morgana ushered Mordred to tidy up, since they would have visits. Mordred obeyed promptly, but before they could go greet Arthur, he hugged Morgana tightly.

“What is it, Mordred?” she asked, smiling kindly. He sighed.

“We will be fine,” said Mordred, lifting his gaze towards her. She raised an eyebrow.

“Is that a statement or a question, dear?” she asked, cupping his face. Mordred smiled a little, in the way he’d only smile at his mother.

“You’ll see,” he said, before releasing her and sprinting off to the house’s vestibule, the green hood of his favorite sweater swaying behind him.

Morgana stared after him with curiosity before following him, wondering what did her enigmatic child realize that she had yet to understand. Mordred had always been a mysterious young man, but well-behaved, silent and gentle-mannered. Somehow she always felt he was one step ahead of her, remarkably intelligent as he was. She wouldn’t have had it any other way: all parents loved to see their children outdo them, after all.

She heard Arthur greeting Mordred, and she smiled as she stepped into the vestibule. Her brother beamed upon seeing her, spreading his arms to envelop her in a hug.

“Morgana!” he said, hugging her tighter than usual. She patted his back and smiled reassuringly.

“I’m fine, Arthur. Truly,” she said. He didn’t let go yet, though.

“I made sure to come here as soon as I had a chance,” he said, pulling away, his hands still on her shoulders. “When Gwen told me, I… I really was scared for a moment. But you’re too smart for those bastards to get you, aren’t you?”

“I would certainly hope to be,” said Morgana, smiling gently at him. “Thank you, Arthur. We were shaken up, but it’s all fine now. I’m glad you could come.”

“We really ought to live closer to each other,” he said, jokingly. “It would have taken us less time to get here if we did…”

“Surely,” said Morgana, still smiling until she noticed Mordred and Gwen were distracted with someone else in the room.

He was tall, lanky, with dark hair and an easy smile. Mordred was looking at him with his bright eyes peeled, while Gwen eyed the dark-haired stranger with curiosity. And the stranger eventually brought his eyes up to Morgana’s, his smile waning slightly as he caught sight of her.

“Ah, I should probably introduce you,” said Arthur, smiling after an uneasy silence took the room while Morgana studied the new arrival with confusion. “Morgana, this is Merlin.”

“Why… nice to meet you, Merlin,” said Morgana. The smile came back at full force as he approached, extending a hand towards her.

He shook her hand powerfully at first, but he softened his touch soon, as he swallowed hard nervously. Morgana was quick to suspect he wasn’t someone who interacted with women often.

“I-I… nice to meet you too. Morgana,” he said, with a gentle voice. She couldn’t help but smile as she looked at him, releasing his hand.

“Who might you be, though?” she said, before glancing at her brother. “Arthur, didn’t you tell Gwen you’d bring your bodyguard? I thought…”

“You’ve just shaken hands with him, Morgana,” said Arthur, with an amused smirk. “That loser is my bodyguard.”

Merlin bit his lip and shot a glare at Arthur’s cocky smirk.

“Thank you. Always glad to hear you appreciate my services,” he said. Arthur laughed under his breath while Morgana stared at Merlin with completely different eyes now.

“Y-you’re the… you?” she asked, eyeing him up and down. “I… I mean, no offense, but I really expected something very different from this.”

“Oh, you don’t know half of it,” said Arthur, placing a hand on her shoulder. “He’s no good in martial arts, heck, I’ve given him a couple of beatings when I’ve tried to train with him! And he’s also useless with a gun, can’t even hold, let alone load one, and…”

“What? How is he a bodyguard if he’s…?” said Morgana, looking at Arthur in disbelief. “Is this a joke, Arthur? Because as much as I appreciate the effort, I’m really not in the mood for something like this. I need a professional, I’m apparently in mortal peril, and this is who you bring to help me?”

“Morgana, you have no idea just how effective this man is,” said Arthur, moving towards Merlin and clasping his shoulder. “You’ve never seen a bodyguard quite like him, I’m sure. He’s such a magnet for bad things that all of them will happen to him instead of you. Believe me, I’ve been in many bad situations and somehow he manages to keep everything under control, beats me how. I know he doesn’t look the part, but he’s certainly trustworthy.”

“How…?” said Morgana, looking at Merlin in confusion. He smiled apologetically.

“He’s not doing the best he can to plead my case,” he said, chuckling. “But I do have a better track record than you’d think. You can ask Gaius if you’d like, he’s my boss. No harm has ever come to anyone I’ve been assigned to.”

“Are you maybe… talented with computers, then?” Morgana asked, raising an eyebrow. “Do you excel in cybersecurity?”

“I certainly have a knack for it, yes,” said Merlin, smiling again. Somehow seeing him grin was comforting, even though Morgana wasn’t sure she should feel comfortable at all. “I will make certain to update all your security protocols, install new ones…”

“He also has a knack for staying up all night, he’s a great watchman,” said Arthur, beaming. “So, what do you say, Morgana? Is he good enough for you?”

Morgana breathed deeply and looked at Merlin with uncertainty. Everything about him looked unfavorable, she certainly didn’t feel comfortable by working with a bodyguard who had next to no physical talents… but there was something about his warm smile that made her want to say yes, even if she wasn’t sure it’d be wise, or safe. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to focus and think of Mordred’s safety. As much as she wanted to trust Arthur, he wasn’t the shrewdest man she knew, far from it. She doubted he meant any harm, but he might not understand the gravity of the situation completely.

“Arthur, I…” she said, turning to look at her brother, but she felt a hand clasping hers.

She lowered her gaze to find Mordred looking at her with his bright blue eyes. It was always hard to read what Mordred was trying to say when he acted like this, but he still gave Morgana pause. Somehow, it seemed he wanted her to accept Merlin. Why, though?

“Mordred?” she said. The boy bit his lip nervously.

“I trust Uncle Arthur,” he said. Morgana raised her eyebrow, ready to say something to counter Mordred’s words, but she found she couldn’t find any of her own. “I… I think he can help us.

Morgana looked at Merlin again, with curiosity and confusion now, her lips parted. He stared at her with uncertainty before smiling a little more enthusiastically. She huffed.

“Really, then?” she said, caressing Mordred’s hair. “Well… if you really think so, Mordred, I suppose we can give this a try. But if it doesn’t pay off, I’ll be holding you responsible, Arthur, and you only.”

Merlin smiled and Arthur snorted before shaking his head.

“None of that, there’s no way this will backfire on you, sis!” he said, waving a hand carelessly.

“I understand this may not be the most comfortable situation…” said Merlin, looking at Morgana earnestly. “But I promise I won’t let any harm come to you or Mordred. You have my word.”

Morgana’s instinctive response was to doubt Merlin’s promise, but she berated herself mentally for doing so. She smiled warmly at him and nodded, holding back from telling him that others had promised to never hurt her before, and yet they had gone back on their word after burying dagger after dagger in her back. The scars still hurt.

Arthur offered to give Gwen a ride home, since he had to head out for an appointment at some talk show, and Morgana, Mordred and Merlin saw them off with smiles. Gwen hugged Morgana tightly, promising her that everything would go well. Morgana only nodded and smiled too, surrounding her friend with her arms and telling her to be patient with her brother. Gwen sighed as Morgana laughed, and she waved while sitting on the front seat, while Arthur drove away from the house while focusing fully on the road.

“Well… I suppose you’ll need a tour?” said Morgana, raising her eyebrows and looking at Merlin. “Mordred, would you like to show him around?”

“I will,” said Mordred, nodding and looking at Merlin. “If you want to update all security protocols we should start right away.”

“Ah, so you know your way around technologies?” Merlin asked, smiling. Mordred nodded.

“I wrote in some modifications into our codes already,” he said. “If you’d like to see…”

“Sure thing,” said Merlin, smiling before looking at Morgana. “I’ll get down to business right away, then.”

“Please do,” she said, smiling back.

Morgana watched them go and sighed once they were upstairs. Had she had a leave of her senses, or keeping Merlin around was a better idea than she thought? Somehow she had the feeling Arthur had set them up for matchmaking rather than because he genuinely worried for his sister’s safety… but she held her thoughts back and shook her head. She had to trust Arthur. If she couldn’t even trust her own family, who would she trust at all?

He inspected the house in its entirety, leaving no room unexplored, no place unchecked. Mordred led him through the halls, watching him with his large eyes through it all. It hardly gave Merlin the chance to do everything he had planned to, but he guessed he’d wait to set up his security protocols properly once they boy had turned in.

For some reason, Mordred seemed very interested in him. Merlin briefly wondered if it was that he didn’t have many adult male figures in his life… though for all he knew, the boy was simply sharper than most. Perhaps he could sense something in Merlin that Merlin often hid from everyone…

“Have you helped your mother configure the security cameras?” Merlin asked, as Mordred showed him the monitors where they kept tabs on them. The young boy nodded.

“I’m sure you’ll know just how to operate them, Emrys,” he said. Merlin’s eyes widened and he looked at Mordred in surprise.

“What did you just…?”

His jaw dropped as Mordred smiled and laughed softly.

“You’re him, aren’t you? The hacker,” he said. Merlin gawked at him in disbelief.

“How would you know that… that I’m a hacker if you hardly know me? I’m a-a… a bodyguard,” said Merlin, with an uneasy smile. Mordred laughed again.

“But your mind is full of codes and magic words, Emrys. It is you, I’m sure. I could sense you were a magic user, even through the internet,” said Mordred. “Your abilities had to be aided by…”

“What are you… what are you talking about?” he said. Mordred sighed

You can’t hide who you really are from me, Emrys.

Merlin’s eyes widened at the voice inside his head. Mordred’s smile gained a quality of mischief to it.

“You… you have magic,” Merlin said, kneeling before Mordred, his mouth agape. “You’re…”

“I’m a magic user too, though I haven’t learned much,” Mordred admitted. “But I knew right away you were one, too. A glimpse inside your mind showed me…”

“Do you do this often? Looking inside other people’s heads without them noticing?” said Merlin, raising his eyebrows. Mordred bit his lip.

“Sometimes,” said Mordred. Merlin smiled, to his astonishment. Mordred had expected him to berate him instead.

“Then you’ll be my most valuable assistant in this case, Mordred,” said Merlin, standing upright again. “Truth is… I’ll certainly need your talents. I don’t know how to look inside other people’s minds, but if you can…”

“You think I might discover whoever is attacking my mother?” Mordred asked. Merlin nodded.

“You’re a smart boy. I’m sure you noticed, just as I did as soon as I heard of the situation, that the perpetrator…”

“… Is within my mother’s closest circles,” said Mordred. “It has to be. But… I don’t know who it is.”

“I take it her assistant, Gwen, is clear from suspicion?” said Merlin. Mordred nodded.

“She loves my mother,” he said. “As do I. And Uncle Arthur, too. Mother is…”

“A wonderful woman, or so I hear,” said Merlin, smiling. “Arthur often spoke about her fondly, though in the way siblings speak of each other, of course. But he said she has too kind a heart for her own good. She keeps donating her winnings to charity, doesn’t she?”

“She wanted to start one, too,” said Mordred. “Aunt Morgause wasn’t too happy about it…”

“Aunt who?” said Merlin.

“Morgause. Didn’t Uncle Arthur speak about her?” Mordred asked. “She’s my mother’s older sister. Well, half-sister. Just like Uncle Arthur.”

“He didn’t speak much about her, no,” said Merlin, frowning slightly. “Very well, I suppose I’ll have to ask you to keep an eye on everyone your mother interacts with. People don’t guard their thoughts, since they’re not aware that magic is real… so you shouldn’t have it too hard to find whoever has targeted your mother. Though I do have to ask… why would someone target her at all? Does she have any enemies you know of? Perhaps she stole some other woman’s boyfriend or…?”

“No, she didn’t…” said Mordred, laughing softly under his breath. Merlin raised his eyebrows.

“Well, it was just an idea,” said Merlin, smiling too. “She has no current partner, then? I mean, in romance. I… I just mean, a boyfriend. Lover. Fiancé…?”

“No, she doesn’t,” said Mordred, smiling. “And she thought you were cute, but I don’t think she’s ready for a relationship yet.”

“What? Now, hold it there, I wasn’t implying… she thinks I’m cute?” said Merlin, his eyes widening. “Does she really, now?”

“That’s all I’m going to say,” said Mordred, laughing softly. “Is there anything else you need to see? I… I was in the middle of a game, so…”

“Oh, please, don’t let me keep you. I have all I need,” said Merlin. “I’ll just set up magic wards all over the place and… say, your mother doesn’t know about your magic, does she?”

“No, of course not,” Mordred shook his head. “But…”

“Yes?” said Merlin, raising his eyebrows. Mordred bit his lip.

“I’m not too sure, but I think… I think she may have magic of her own, too,” he said. Merlin whistled with interest.

“What do you mean?”

“She has trouble sleeping,” said Mordred. “Nightmares. And sometimes she swears they… they came true. But she always dismisses them later, so I’m not sure…”

“Can’t you tell if someone’s magical just by looking at their minds?” Merlin asked. Mordred shrugged.

“Maybe, but… I’ve never learned how to find magic in people’s minds,” he admitted. “I… I could use a good master.”

“I’d offer, but that’s an art I don’t know much of,” Merlin said, with a weak smile. “But I could speak with Gaius. He’s quite knowledgeable about magic, and might know just what your kind of magic is, Mordred.”

“I… I’d like that,” said Mordred, smiling. “Thanks, Emrys.”

“Don’t mention it. Seriously,” said Merlin, raising his eyebrows. Mordred’s smile widened as he turned and made his way back to his videogame console.

Merlin inspected the house again, setting up some magical wards right away, but hoping to set up the more sophisticated ones when both Morgana and Mordred were asleep. Some of them were far too complicated to weave quickly, and he would focus better once his two charges were adrift in peaceful slumber. For now, though, he had to take care of the part that was most nerve-wrecking: getting all the information he needed from Morgana herself.

It wouldn’t be nerve-wrecking if only Arthur’s half-sister wasn’t the striking beauty she was. He had gawked at her like an idiot, he was sure, and she had been so kind as to not make a big deal out of it. Only… she certainly must have thought him to be an idiot. And she probably thought Arthur was one, too, for bringing Merlin to her. Surely she thought he was incompetent… but hopefully he would prove her wrong in due time.

That she might have magic startled him, though. Arthur was utterly devoid of any magical abilities, so Merlin had assumed his sister would be the same. But prophetic dreams were an unequivocal sign of magic…

He found her in the kitchen, taking care of dinner. He raised his eyebrows and stepped in as silently as he could, twisting his hands nervously behind his back as he gazed around the luxurious kitchen with amazement.

“Isn’t it strange for a high-profile singer like yourself to cook your own meals?” he asked, startling Morgana a little.

“What? No, of course not,” said Morgana, with a skeptical smile. “A lot of celebrities cook their own meals.”

“Not your brother, he doesn’t,” said Merlin, smiling and approaching her. “He has a personal cook, visits every two days to prepare anything he may need. And if he runs out of meals, he forces me to cook and then complains because I’m no good at it.”

“Arthur just loves having anything to complain about. Don’t mind him,” said Morgana, with a friendly smile. “So… how was the house? Found any security flops anywhere?”

“Actually, it’s very well protected as it is,” said Merlin, nodding. “I will probably spend all night updating drivers and softwares for your protocols, yes, but I’d say you’ll have no cause for concern in this house. It’s… everything else that’s worrisome.”

“You mean once I go back to touring? Or maybe even when I’m just heading to the studio?” Morgana asked. Merlin swallowed hard.

“Honestly, anything is a possible hazard, at least, from what I know,” he said. “And I don’t know much, so… do you have any suspects?”

“Why, other than anyone?” said Morgana, raising her eyebrows. “A lot of people have access to my backstage, far more than there should. Technicians, musicians, managers, agents, you name it. It’s impossible to narrow down which one of them could have brought the bomb…”

“Do you think they hired someone to do it, then?” Merlin asked. “Told them to set it up amongst your gifts, paid them a load of cash for it…”

“I… I don’t know, truth be told,” said Morgana, shaking her head. “But I did think that… that it can’t be an actual fan. Every gift that’s brought backstage for me is thoroughly inspected. It had to be responsibility of someone else, whoever it was. But what’s worse is…”

“Is?” said Merlin, as Morgana fell silent before releasing her breath with resignation.

“I’ve received death threats for some time now,” she said. Merlin’s eyes widened. “I paid them no mind, Morgause said some people send such messages to celebrities all the time, so…”

“Your sister, right?” said Merlin. Morgana nodded. “Is she… someone you trust?”

“What? Oh, you don’t honestly believe my own sister would…?” said Morgana, looking at him skeptically. Merlin flinched and raised his hands apologetically.

“Sorry, sorry. I’m just not sure where she fits in all this,” said Merlin. “Arthur hardly talks about her, and…”

“They’ve never gotten along,” said Morgana. “She’s my sister from my mother’s side, he’s my brother from my father’s side… it’s complicated, really. Even though we’ve all known about each other since we were young, I was the one who interacted with both of them. They were both very different people, always have been, and Morgause… well, she’s not exactly fond of Arthur because of some immature things he did to her when we were children. They’re slightly incompatible, in regards of personality…”

“Yet you’re close to the two of them, aren’t you?” said Merlin. Morgana nodded.

“I seem to have the exact traits to share with Morgause to get along with her, and the attitude required to deal with Arthur’s foolishness effectively,” she said, smiling. “I know Arthur is thick-headed, but he has a good heart, deep under all those layers of obnoxiousness…”

“Don’t I know it” said Merlin, chuckling. Morgana smiled apologetically.

“I’m sorry if he’s been too harsh on you. I know he has a knack for acting like some stuck-up prince, especially since he’s a movie star now…” she said. Merlin waved a hand carelessly.

“No need to worry. I work with Arthur, and as long as I do my job, everything will be fine,” he said. Morgana raised her eyebrows.

“So you don’t mind so much that he introduces you by saying you’re a loser?” she asked. Merlin laughed nervously.

“I can’t quite say I like it… but there’s probably more truth to that than I’d like to admit,” he said, with an apologetic smile. “For a bodyguard I may be far too clumsy for most people’s tastes.”

“Huh. Odd that you’d be able to serve in this line of work in spite of that,” said Morgana, raising her eyebrows. He chuckled.

“I manage,” he said. “So, who do you suspect? According to what I understand, and seeing how Mordred as well came to that conclusion, I figure you know that…”

“The attacker should be no stranger to me, yes,” said Morgana. “You had asked if I had any specific suspects, right?”

Merlin nodded and Morgana bit her lip as she carried on stirring the stew she was cooking. Her reluctance to answer that question with further detail made Merlin crook an eyebrow.

“There’s… well, my sister’s husband has never been fond of me,” she said. “His name is Cendred. He’s a businessman, thinks all celebrities are frivolous and whatnot. I honestly don’t know why my sister married him, I doubt they’re even in love… well, I doubt she is. Maybe he does love her, I don’t know…”

“Why do you think he’s not fond of you? Just because of his reservations towards celebrities?” he asked. Morgana shrugged.

“Not sure. Maybe it’s also because I don’t go overboard in spending my money and donate lots of it…”

“Well, I think that’s wonderful of you,” said Merlin, smiling. “There are so many people in need in this world, and you do your best to help them because you have the means to do it. A lot of people wouldn’t do that…”

“Yes, and Cendred is one of them,” said Morgana. “He believes that, if people can’t make connections and earn their money on their own, they deserve to starve, pretty much. We’ve had several arguments over it, and… well, Morgause always tries to mediate between us, but I can see she agrees with him, on some level. She’s always been driven and ambitious, so she thinks I should enjoy the rewards for my hard work instead of, well, wasting it, the way they see it.”

“It’s too bad they see it that way,” said Merlin, frowning. “You’re very noble, helping others the way you do.”

“If I were in their place, I’d like for someone to give me a hand, too,” said Morgana, smiling. “It’s just a matter of empathy, I suppose.”

“Yes, surely,” said Merlin, grinning back. “I think they’re both wrong to dismiss what you do, Morgana. You’re wise not to listen to what they may say.”

“Thanks, though sometimes I think I’m not so wise,” she said, laughing softly. “Else I guess I could avoid these threats and attempts on my life, right?”

“It could be that someone wants to turn you into some sort of martyr,” said Merlin, thoughtful. “Don’t know why they would want to, but it wouldn’t be unheard of. Sometimes fans are… well, driven to madness by the object of their devotion.”

“I doubt a fan did this, Merlin…”

“But the death threats may not be linked to this attempt on your life,” said Merlin, raising his eyebrows. “How did you come by those threats, if I may?”

“Through… fanmail, yes,” said Morgana, nodding and frowning. “Then you think there could be two people trying to kill me?”

“Well, it could also be the same one, trying to scare you through the letters to mislead you,” said Merlin. “But if it weren’t…”

“I honestly don’t understand,” said Morgana, rubbing her forehead with her fingertips. “I… I don’t know why they’d do this. But…”

“But?” said Merlin, leaning closer as she dropped her voice.

Morgana seemed to be about to say something, but she shook her head and smiled warmly at him instead.

“Nothing, really. I was just… thinking nonsense,” she said, widening her eyes and checking the stew again. “Can you fetch me the plates? They’re on the cupboard…”

Merlin nodded and tried to follow her indications, clumsily opening several cabinets instead of the one she had pointed at. She had been distracted by the stew before noticing he had left all the small doors open. She raised an eyebrow.

“That cupboard,” she said, pointing at it again. Merlin blushed and smiled.

“Oh. That one,” he said, following her finger this time around. Morgana couldn’t help but smile with uncertainty.

“Careful, take the smaller ones at the top of the pile if you…” she said, as Merlin struggled to pull them out.

“How many should I take? Three? Fo-ouch!”

After lifting a couple of plates momentarily, Merlin had lost his grip on them while asking Morgana his question, and they had fallen on his fingers, squeezing them against the plates on the rest of the pile. He withdrew his hand and rubbed his sore fingertips, looking at Morgana apologetically.

“Oops,” he said. Morgana snorted and shook her head.

“You really are that clumsy, huh?” she said, approaching to take the plates herself after turning off the stove. “I guess I’m lucky you didn’t break them.”

“I have broken some of Arthur’s, he always rages at me for it,” he replied, chuckling.

He carried on smiling, though he grew slightly nervous at being in such close proximity with Morgana once she came for the plates herself. Merlin swallowed hard and took a step back, uncertain if she would want to be that close to him. Surely she wouldn’t, they had only just met and so far, he was sure he hadn’t made much of an impression on her…

“Well, I certainly won’t rage, but I’d rather you don’t break anything either way,” she said, smiling and raising her eyebrows. “A bodyguard should keep me safe instead of putting me in danger of, say, stepping on shards of broken plates.”

Merlin bit his lip and failed to hold back a smile, his cheeks flushed, his eyes avoiding hers. Morgana only smiled fondly and returned to the stove.

“You can call Mordred, we should be dining soon,” she said. Merlin nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes, yes, I… I’ll do that,” he said, smiling and rushing out of the kitchen, leaving behind a grinning Morgana.

It was odd that she would smile so much, but she wasn’t doing it just to be polite, she realized. She genuinely felt like smiling around Merlin, even if she couldn’t quite pinpoint why. After having spent days on end wallowing in misery and fear, having him around actually served to appease her worries. Why, though? Indeed, he was clumsy, and certainly a good listener, but how was it so easy to feel safe when, according to Arthur, Merlin had no impressive talents to speak of?

The question kept coursing through her mind as they ate, and again she was filled with that sense of comfort and ease as she watched Merlin and Mordred discussing videogames and internet jokes, from what she understood. Mordred looked uncharacteristically happy, which naturally made Morgana happy too. Even if Merlin ended up proving to be incompetent somehow, at least Mordred had found a new friend. He had a hard time getting along with children his age, shy and withdrawn as he usually was, so seeing him discuss his passions with such excitement filled Morgana with utmost relief.

She set up a room for Merlin after dinner was finished, and Mordred and Merlin took to doing the dishes together. Their blooming friendship was quite sweet, she thought, so she gave them time to themselves while she prepared Merlin’s bed. Only, it didn’t seem he planned to use it.

“So you’ll stay up all night?” she asked, raising her eyebrows once she let him know his room was done. He smiled apologetically.

“I intend to make sure nothing will happen, Morgana. Don’t fret, I’ll be alright,” he said. She bit her lip.

“I wouldn’t fret, I suppose, but… you do realize you need to be in perfect shape if you intend to protect us properly, right?”

“Oh, certainly,” said Merlin, smiling.

“Then make good use of that bed once in a while, alright?” she said, with a more commanding voice than she intended. Merlin laughed softly under his breath. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, just… you reminded me of Arthur a bit,” he said.

“Why, I should probably be insulted by that,” said Morgana, smirking. Merlin chuckled.

“I don’t mean it in a bad way,” he said. “It’s only… he talks in that tone too, sometimes. Only, it’s usually to tell me to do things for him instead of to take care of myself.”

“Well, my brother tends to be imposing that way, but you might find I’m not quite like him in those regards,” said Morgana, smiling gently now. “Have a good night, whether you sleep at all or not, Merlin.”

“T-thanks. You too,” he said, smiling back and fighting down the urge to blush. Morgana’s smile widened as she left to her own room, leaving Merlin to stare after her.

There was no denying she was beautiful, quite possibly the most beautiful woman he had ever seen up close. It was unexpected for one as lovely to the eyes to be kindhearted too. Merlin was certainly grateful to work with someone so pleasant this time around.

Why would anyone want to harm a woman like her, though? The question kept rolling through his mind, and he had no idea how to answer it. He didn’t understand why anyone would be as cruel as to think a woman like her should die. If murder could ever be justified in regards of who deserved it and who didn’t, he was dead-certain Morgana would be the latter every time.

Yet someone disagreed, or, at worst, two people did. She certainly had it right, it might just be one person who acted through two different means, but it could also be two different people altogether. They had to prepare for the worst case scenario, whatever it may be.

Merlin continued to set up all his security protocols through the night, but even though he built more and more cybersecurity walls, what he was really working on were protective spells. He crafted spell after spell, ensuring he’d know whenever something came too close to the house, creating a charm that would induce sickness to anyone who might walk in uninvited, amongst other things. He was in the process of building a final layer of security, around Morgana’s bedroom specifically, when he heard something unexpected inside her room.

He drew up the footage of the camera that Morgana herself had planted on her bedroom, in case any assailant tried to sneak inside it somehow. There was nobody else inside, or else his other spells would have alerted him… but she was restless. She was twitching in bed, and suddenly she sat up with a start, breathing heavily. Merlin frowned: what was that about? A nightmare? It looked far too intense for just that…

He bit his lip and closed the window. As much as it worried him, it wasn’t his business to pry into her sleeping patterns. He needed to respect her personal space or else she’d be affronted, no doubt.

But just as he finished crafting the defensive spell, the door to the bedroom swung open. He guessed Morgana was off to a midnight bathroom break, or maybe to get some water… for some reason he felt his stomach knotting up with nervousness. Why should he be nervous? It wasn’t as though she’d come talk to him, or to ask anything else from him…

“You… you haven’t gone to bed?”

Her voice startled him, her question made him jump and turn to her, his nervous smile on his face as he struggled to stay composed. She sure was beautiful in that long nightgown of hers…

“I was just… still working on the cybersecurity,” he said, smiling as confidently as he could. “Setting up better protocols, lots of them… and what about you? Why are you awake…?”

“I… I couldn’t sleep,” Morgana said, biting her lip and approaching him. Merlin blushed as she made to sit next to him. “What sort of protocols were you setting up?”

“Oh, it’s all long and tedious to explain,” he said, smiling still. “I’m sure if you heard it you’d fall asleep right back… so maybe I should explain, then?”

“I’d rather not fall asleep again, at least not right now,” Morgana confessed. Merlin stared at her in confusion.

“Was it… a nightmare?” he dared ask, guessing as much from the footage he had watched. Morgana sighed and nodded briskly, as though she didn’t want to discuss the matter. “Well… it’s gone now, right? You’re awake, everything’s fine, see?”

“Y-you don’t understand,” she said, smiling while biting her lip. Her eyes avoided his. “It’s not fine. It’s not about… about what’s happening right now. My nightmares… ah, you’ll think I’m crazy.”

“I will?” Merlin asked, raising his eyebrows. “Try me. You might find I’m… well, a little more open-minded than most people.”

“Open minded with esoteric matters?” Morgana asked, staring at him matter-of-factly. To her surprise, Merlin smiled.

“Especially with esoteric matters,” he said. She swallowed hard.

“I… I don’t mean horoscope things, if that’s what you thought,” she said. Merlin laughed.

“I didn’t think you meant that” he said, typing a few more codes into the computer.

“How do you feel about… about prophetic dreams, then?” Morgana asked. Merlin frowned and looked at her.

“I feel that they’re something rare, but also… somewhat terrifying, I’ll say,” he whispered. “Have you seen your future?”

“I… I don’t know. Maybe,” said Morgana, shrugging. “I… I never told anyone but I saw the bomb. I… I saw that explosion before it happened. It’s why I knew where it’d happen, when… why I could escape when I realized the dream was coming true.”

“You got everyone to safety,” said Merlin, raising his eyebrows with amazement. “That’s incredible. But… did you see something else in your dream now?”

“I did,” she said, swallowing hard. “I didn’t see myself in the nightmare about the bomb. But in this one I… I was there. I saw how the man just… raised the gun at me. Then he fired and… and I woke up.”

“A man?” Merlin asked, turning to her and as good as forgetting the computer before him. “What sort of man? Anyone you knew?”

“No, he was a stranger,” said Morgana, shaking her head.

“What did he look like?” Merlin asked. Morgana opened her mouth, waiting for a good description to roll out instinctively, but none did.

“I don’t know, he wasn’t very unique-looking, I guess,” she said. “In his fifties, maybe? Round-faced, angry-looking… but cold-blooded, too. His head was mostly bald.”

“And you’ve never met him before?” Merlin asked again, sighing. Morgana looked at him in confusion.

“Do you believe that was a real vision, Merlin? That I… that I saw the man who’s trying to kill me?”

“Maybe,” he said, biting his lip and staring at her pointedly. “Have you always had these sorts of nightmares?”

Mordred had already told him so earlier, of course, but Merlin wanted to check for himself that the boy’s story was right. Naturally, Morgana nodded.

“Well, yes, but… not always this vivid. Not always about my personal life,” she said. “I’ve had dreams about catastrophic happenings before they happen, but it’s usually not related to me. Still, it’s about things I can’t control or stop… like tsunamis, earthquakes, mass shootings…”

“Always violent things?” Merlin asked. Morgana sighed.

“Are you psychoanalyzing me?” she asked. He smiled.

“No, I’m only curious. If you want a more psychoanalytical take on what your subconscious is saying, though…” he said, somewhat playfully. “I think your mind is protecting you, somehow. It’s a self-protecting technique, so to say…”

“Okay?” said Morgana, raising an eyebrow. “But how come can I do that when most people can’t? I can’t remember anyone else claiming to foresee misfortune the way I do.”

“It is rare, but… perhaps you have a talent you’d never imagined,” he said. She sighed.

“Well, sometimes I’d rather not have it. It’s not that I wanted to die in that explosion, but… I do lose too much sleep because of these nightmares.”

“Of course,” said Merlin, looking at her sympathetically. “And after what you’d seen in your dreams, you don’t want to go to sleep again in fear of seeing the same things…”

“Yes,” she whispered. He sighed.

“Well, you can stay up with me, if you’d like,” he said, smiling. “Maybe sitting here will help soothe you?

“Won’t you go to sleep sometime soon, though?” Morgana asked. Merlin shrugged.

“Not too soon, though. I have a few last things to tweak,” he said, focusing on the computer again.

Morgana sighed and dropped against the couch’s backrest, closing her eyes despite herself. The memory of that gun, that face, seemed burned into her retinas. Fortunately, it meant she’d be able to recognize the man if she ever came across him.

Merlin continued to work, but he started mouthing and whispering things Morgana didn’t quite understand as he did. She opened her eyes to stare at him, wondering if it was some other language. It certainly sounded like it.

“What did you… what are you saying?” she whispered. He turned and smiled.

“Just reciting some foreign mantras. Nothing serious,” he said, appeasing her. She nodded.

“Alright, then.”

But as time passed by sleep stopped eluding her, and she succumbed to it easily, her head tilted sideways as she rested on the couch. Merlin sighed and turned once his sleeping spell worked, and he gazed at her wistfully. She was so beautiful, but so broken-hearted, too. She had seen much grief as it was, and he felt a powerful urge to look after her.

So he lifted a hand to her forehead, and forced himself to recall the right words. Once he recited them, the tension she still seemed to suffer from disappeared. Her eyes relaxed, as did the rest of her body. Merlin had to catch her before she toppled sideways.

“Alright… off to bed we go,” he said, sliding an arm under her knees and lifting her.

He carried her back to her room gently, laying her amid the soft sheets. He tucked a strand of her hair away from her face, and he gazed at her placid sleeping figure. He wasn’t sure his spell would last long, but hopefully it would keep the worst nightmares at bay. She was too young to suffer as she had.

“Good night, Morgana” he said, with one more smile before standing up to leave the room.

The image of the man and the gun in his hand did not torment her anymore through the night.

#mergana #merlin #morgana #bbc merlin #it should have at least 2 more chapters #Morgause should show up in the next one :D

21 notes · View notes