Hello Everyone! I'm Back With Another Merlin Au! I Hope You All Enjoy! :D

Hey, which one of you leaked my search history?!

sexy knights. sexy wounded knights. sexy wounded weary knights. sexy wounded weary knights in the rain. sexy wounded weary knights in the rain pledging their loyalty to you.

Here's a continuation of my "Arthur becomes Emrys's familiar" au since that's what won the poll!

You can find part one of this au here!

A quick recap if you didn't see my previous post: the basics of this au are that Arthur performed a ritual with the help of the druids to lift a curse that was placed on Camelot by Morgana, but in doing so, he bound himself to Emrys, the god of magic, as his familiar and servant. Because of this, Arthur can now physically see Merlin's magic as strands of golden dust and can hear messages telepathically given to him by Merlin. Merlin, meanwhile, tried to stop Arthur from performing the ritual and is now just desperately trying to keep his magic a secret from Arthur, who misinterprets the magic he sees swirling around Merlin as a threat from Emrys to keep him complacent.

Alright, now that I've finished the recap, onto the new stuff!

After Arthur spent a few months in Camelot under Emrys's control and seeing the threat of magic everywhere around him, he felt like he was on the verge of a mental breakdown. Emrys still hadn't even told him what his plans for Arthur were, which led Arthur to believe that the god no doubt had some heinous plan that would be torturous for Arthur. After all, what other plan could the god of magic have for the king of the land that had eradicated his worshippers for decades besides pain and death?

The longer Arthur waited for Emrys to reveal anything about his plans or to give Arthur some terrible order that would set in motion Camelot's downfall, the more nervous and paranoid Arthur became. Because did it seem like the buzzing in his head was getting louder each day, or was that his imagination? Was Emrys slowly taking control of his mind without Arthur even knowing?!

All Arthur knew for certain was that Emrys wanted him alive to do his bidding. Now that Arthur could see Emrys's magic, he could see how the golden dust strengthened his armor, enhanced his weapons, and attacked his enemies. On certain occasions, it even protected Arthur's loved ones.

(Arthur swore that he was never as close to a heart attack as he was when he saw those golden strands of light bind themselves around Guinevere and roughly pull her from her chair. Arthur had thought for a terrible moment that Emrys had found some fault to punish Arthur for, and the horrible god was taking it out on his wife. However, Arthur was relieved beyond words when he saw an arrow hit the back of Guinevere's chair, where she had been sitting only a second before. Emrys wasn't punishing him through Guinevere, he was saving Arthur's wife. Why would he do that though? Did the god also need Guinevere alive for his plans?)

Merlin had also been acting strangely after the ritual. Arthur could see that Emrys's magic curled itself tightly around Merlin, like a large snake poised to strangle its prey. Arthur knew that this was a ever-present threat from Emrys, that if Arthur took one step out of line or disobeyed in any way, Merlin would be the one suffering for it.

Since the ritual, Merlin had been even more fidgety than usual, if that was even possible. It was like something was causing him an unusual amount of anxiety. Arthur just knew that Merlin's constant state of discomfort was because of the magic surrounding him, perhaps Merlin could sense the danger that was always around, even if the other man couldn't see it? Still, Arthur didn't want to tell Merlin about the magic constantly surrounding him, it would give poor Merlin a heart attack! His loyal manservant always looked scared, just for a split second, when magic was even mentioned, and Arthur didn't want to give Merlin the fright of his life by telling him that he was now being targeted by the god of magic because of Arthur's actions.

Emrys truly was a wily and devious god! Of course the nefarious god of magic wouldn't put Arthur's burden on Arthur's shoulders alone. No, it was the way of magic that it targeted the innocent, threatening people that had nothing to do with the ritual in the first place! This curse was Arthur's to bear alone, but of course Emrys would not abide by that!

Arthur tried to keep his cursing out of the god in his own thoughts to a minimum, just in case Emrys could hear his thoughts, which was entirely plausible given their mental connection. Eventually, it all becomes too much for Arthur. He fears that he'll be ultimately used as a tool to aid Emrys in the destruction of Camelot, so he makes plans to secretly give the crown to Gwen and resign all of his power. He still has to physically stay in Camelot, who knows what evil Emrys would rain down upon the kingdom if he realized that his pawn had left, but at the very least Emrys couldn't manipulate Arthur into ruining Camelot of Arthur wasn't in charge of Camelot.

Merlin, having spent ten years convincing Arthur that he's a great king and will lead Camelot into the golden age as its king, hearing that Arthur is planning on abdicating the throne in order to foil Emrys's plans: YOU FUCKING WHAT?!

Merlin, during all of this, has been using his connection with Arthur as sparingly as possible. He knows how much of a toll this who "familiar" thing has been for Arthur, and he wants to make it as small of a burden as possible, only giving Arthur life-saving and non-invasive commands.

But Merlin absolutely will NOT allow Arthur to give up his throne, to throw away their destiny, over a threat that isn't even really a threat! So, with a heavy heart, Merlin decides to use his "Emrys voice" to give Arthur a stern talking-to.

Merlin was hoping for his mental lecture to come off as a parent gently guiding a child away from making a terrible mistake, but on Arthur's end, he has a pissed off and sleep deprived deity shouting at full blast inside his mind about "abandoning his destiny" and "not trusting in fate".

For Arthur, it's the most terrifying thing he's ever experienced, and he can see the golden threads around Merlin flashing brightly around him when his manservant comes to wake him the next morning. Arthur gets the message: he has displeased Emrys, and Emrys is only going to give him one warning before Merlin bears the punishment for Arthur's disobedience. And however much Arthur wants to ensure that Camelot is protected from Emrys's plots, he cannot lose Merlin. So, Arthur calls off his plans to abdicate, in accordance with Emrys's commands.

(Arthur hates it like nothing else in the world. Not even following Uther's orders made rage and frustration flare up in his chest as it did now. Emrys knew exactly where to apply pressure to make Arthur break, and the villainous god had done exactly that.)

However, Arthur's attempt at abdication and Emrys's subsequent rage still did not answer Arthur's question: what plans did Emrys have for him? For what purpose did the evil god need Arthur alive and on the throne for?

Arthur wouldn't get any answers until the next battle against Morgana. Arthur's army was poised to battle against Morgana's Saxon hoarde in the morning, but Arthur couldn't get any sleep. Arthur knew that it was imperative for him to lead from the front lines as a strong and noble king, fighting alongside his loyal knights. However, Arthur couldn't shake the doubts rising in his mind. He was the familiar to the god of magic now, how did he know that he would not be forced by Emrys to betray Camelot in the heat of battle? Surely Emrys would be favoring Morgana in this battle?

So, in the privacy of his tent, Arthur knelt down and prayed for the first time since the ritual. Arthur had tried every other possible way of communicating with Emrys, but their mental connection either seemed to be one-sided or Emrys was ignoring all of mental messages for him. However, Arthur knew that Emrys couldn't possibly resist hearing what made a Pendragon so desperate that he would humiliate himself in such a way to the god of magic.

That night before the battle, Arthur prayed for Emrys to please help him protect his home and his knights. Arthur told Emrys that regardless of Emrys's feelings toward Arthur, his knights were good men who deserved to live to see another sunrise. Arthur begged for Camelot's innocent citizens to be spared from Morgana's wrath.

To Arthur's shock, he heard Emrys respond through their bond. His voice was softer than Arthur had ever heard it. In fact, the voice was so soft and gentle, Arthur swore that it sounded like Merlin's voice for a split second: I will be with you.

Arthur felt only slightly comforted by that. It could have been a sly trick from Emrys to get Arthur to lower his guard before the battle, but for some reason, Arthur didn't think that it was.

During the battle itself, Arthur is surrounded by complete chaos. At one point, he surrounded by at least eight enemies, having been cut off from his knights. He readies himself to either cut down his opponents or go down fighting when, all of a sudden, the strings of golden dust that had been knocking enemy soldiers off their feet rushed towards Arthur. Arthur braced himself, but when the light touched Arthur, it simple diffused itself into his skin, like it did at the end of the ritual that landed Arthur in this whole mess.

However, this time, the golden light that clung onto Arthur's skin didn't simply fade. Instead, it grew brighter and brighter, nearly forcing Arthur to close his eyes against the luminosity of it! After the light had grown to a blinding glow, it flew off of Arthur's skin with a blast, violently knocking away any Saxons that it hit. When Arthur's sight cleared and he looked around, he could see that all of Morgana's front lines, encompassing at least a thousand fully-armed Saxons, had been decimated by the blast.

Arthur stood alone, still separated from his men, and looked all around him with awe and horror in equal amounts. He could still feel the golden light on his skin, a slight tingling sensation that made the hair on his arms raise. Did... did Arthur just perform magic?! Had he blasted away all of those soldiers?!

Oh god, this was Emrys's plan all along, wasn't it! To turn Arthur into some power-hungry sorcerer corrupted by magic!

As Arthur's panic worked its way deeper into his chest and up his throat, Emrys spoke to him once more: That was my doing, Arthur, not yours.

With hysteria still gripping his chest, Arthur tilted his head to the heavens and shouted: "Give me more of an explanation than that for once you bastard! I need answers!"

And, shockingly, Emrys responded to him: I merely used you as a conduit for my magic. I was channeling my power through you. Be at ease, young king, for you are no sorcerer.

(Merlin, hidden nearby, mentally gives himself a pat on the back for both sounding sufficiently god-like and successfully channeling his magic through Arthur to make it drastically more powerful for the first time, since he was saving that particular ability for a real emergency, like that Arthur getting surrounded by angry Saxons. He'd wanted to avoid freaking Arthur out with that ability, but he'd take a panicked Arthur over a dead Arthur any day.)

After they return to Camelot victorious, Arthur is morose once more. How can his loves ones even be safe when they're in the room with him if Emrys could turn him into a living magical weapon at a moment's notice?!

(And one time skip and a dramatic magic reveal later, followed by a tense and emotional confrontation between Merlin and Arthur, Arthur would be pissed beyond words that he'd been made into a servant FOR HIS OWN DAMNED SERVANT!

Once Arthur works through his anger towards Merlin, he realizes that the whole ridiculous situation does make for some fun banter though.

And if Merlin's able to save Arthur from a fatal wound after Camlann thanks to their magical connection, then the prophecy would just say that they were truly two sides of the same coin: each a king and a servant to the other.)

Phew! That was a long post! Well, I hope that everyone enjoyed this au idea! I'll see you all again soon!

And, as always, thank you so much for reading through my ramblings! :D

Day 13 (officially day 15): Grimoire

This is a bit rushed, cause I am severely lacking in time right now, but whatever. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Also if I’m not replying to comments, my apologies. I’ve tried, but it doesn’t seem to work a lot of the time. I’ll reply as soon as it works again.

Thanks for tagging me @cinnabon-sweetroll-tiramisu! Here's mine!

No pressure tags! @guiltyscarlet @justaz @theroundbartable @larluce @247merthur, and anyone else who wants to join in!

show me your beautiful self this tuesday night 🤍

Magic, mischief, and blackmail!

Oh, 2025 is going to be fun, isn't it? :)

Witchcraft, Wisdom, Death...

Ok, since you guys liked my last silly Merlin au idea, here's another one! :D

I think that the Knights of Medhir should have come back in some way. They're so versatile as villains, and supposedly any sorcerer powerful enough to awaken them could control them.

Combine their versatility in the story with my saltiness that Merlin never really got any minions despite Morgana getting, like, four whole armies, and I think there's a fun little au in there!

So, I'm imagining around season 4 the knights of the round table plus Merlin and Arthur are on a quest, but there's some sudden bad weather, so they need to seek shelter. However, the only shelter around is the ruins of Idirsholas, much to Arthur and Merlin’s discomfort. However, they’re reassured by the fact that the knights of Medhir are long gone after Morgause's failed invasion.

Let's say that Merlin was injured by a bandit’s blade, giving him a shallow but bleeding cut on his arm. They were able to bandage it with some cloth, but it was still bleeding a bit. As the knights and Merlin prepare their camp for the night, Merlin lights a campfire for them in the courtyard, put as he leans over the firepit, his bandage comes loose a bit, causing some of his blood to spill onto the fire. He thinks nothing of it as he rebandages his arm and starts cooking dinner.

Meanwhile, in the crypt underneath the ruins, the Knights of Medhir have been awakened by a powerful sorcerer lighting a fire in the castle, and then got a massive power-up thanks to being awakened by a blood sacrifice by Emrys himself!

So, the Camelot knights settle in and sleep, while the knight of Medhir are waking up more powerful than ever before. However, their new master hasn't given them any commands yet, so they're just... standing around. For now.

The next day, the knights of the round table pack up and leave, heading back to Camelot. The knights of Medhir can sense their new master getting further away, but they still don't have any orders, so they stay put.

After a couple days, the knights return to Camelot, just in time for a big tournament! Of course, with a big tournament, there's a bunch of rude and downright awful noble knights that show up and make Merlin's life miserable by treating him like dirt behind Arthur's back. One in particular throws a goblet at Merlin's head, and not playfully like Arthur does, and it strikes Merlin's head, giving him a small cut and making him bleed.

The knights of Medhir, sensing that their new master is hurt and hopping onto their demonic horses: We ride at dawn bitches!

So, a couple days into the tournament, the knights of Medhir crash the party! But strangely enough, they only attack a group of non-Camelot knights, even killing a few before they suddenly stop their attack. Then, the knights of Medhir make their way into the castle's courtyard and await their master's next commands, as still as statues.

Arthur, Merlin, and the knights of the round table are scrambling to find out what sorcerer summoned these knights, for what purpose, and why were those foreign knights targeted? Merlin in particular is pulling his hair out over this because the last thing he needs right now is another power-hungry sorcerer trying to take over Camelot!

What's the most confusing is why the knights are just... standing in the middle of the courtyard, unmoving. The Camelot knights try to take this opportunity to destroy the knights of Medhir, but nothing works. They try stabbing them, beheading them, drowning them, even setting them on fire, but nothing could destroy the undead knights. The knights of Medhir just stand there, unmoving.

The Camelot knights, after trying and failing to destroy the knights of Medhir for the twentieth time: They're just standing there... menacingly!

Merlin's also tried a bunch of spells to get rid of them, but nothing's working. It's like his magic refuses to destroy the knights! (Because his magic is now connected to the knights, but he doesn't know that.)

After a while, everyone just sorta accepts that the knights of Medhir are apparently just going to be creepy permanent statues in the courtyard, and life goes on. That is, until another assassin sneaks into Camelot trying to kill the king and Merlin's trying to secretly catch them, but is out in public, so he can't rely on his magic.

All of a sudden, and to everyone's horror, the knights are moving again! The knights of Medhir tear through the castle, thankfully not hurting anyone, but not letting anyone get in their way. They eventually make their way into the throne room, where the assassin is about to strike at Arthur. They brutally murder the assassin (whom only Merlin knew about) in front of the entire court and then march back out into the courtyard, going still once again.

And that's when Merlin realizes it: he's the sorcerer who summoned the knights! And now he apparently has them under his command.

Cue Merlin's life getting a hell of a lot easier.

I feel like this could go in a pretty humorous direction, with Merlin trying desperately to hide the fact that the knights are under his control, but he keeps needing to them save his friends (and himself).

But then Arthur sees Merlin and Gwen being constantly protected by the knights of Medhir, and comes to his own horrifying (and incorrect) conclusion that he himself may be the one commanding them, as they seem to be prioritizing their safety (since Arthur doesn't see them saving his life), which is what Arthur does himself. So Arthur thinks that the knights tearing apart people who hurt Merlin or Gwen is the knights acting on his own darkest impulses, and which makes him very uncomfortable.

I think that there's lots of potential here!

Thanks for reading through my rambling! :D

Thank you @rays-of-gold and everyone who got me to 10000 reblogs!

Holy crap 10,000's a lot of reblogs! Thank you all so, so much!!

I think this might be the best post of mine to reach this milestone with lol! It really sums up the entire vibe of this blog!

Thank you all so much, virtual hugs for all of you!!!

Now they get to be on a hot dog roller together! :)

I love Gwaine so much! He's so 🥺 when it comes to Merlin and it gets me every time! 😭

If no merwaine then explain this

Hello everyone! I've just updated my "Eldritch god Merlin befriends a very long-suffering Leon" fic on ao3! If you like my writing over here, I would highly recommend checking out my fic!

Me, a Merlin fan, seeing the gnomes/wizards vs knights trend on instagram: