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A new adventure (Mera) | Ninetales stared at its opponent, ready to fight. As Roserade attempted to confuse it again with the distraction of Razor Leaf, Ninetales simply used Protect, deflecting the leaves and the incoming attack. It didn't move, instead launching dark pulses after Roserade, then using Fire Spin to lock it in a smaller area. The intensity of the fire was amazing, boosted by the Sunny Day's effect, and Atem had to step back a bit to be able to think. "Ninetales, get in there and show it how a real fight is." He said. Ninetales jumped into its own fire spin, coming out glowing with power. And so a physical battle ensued, with Ninetales attempting to bite while Roserade continued to try distracting Ninetales. Finally, when it looked like it would get a hit, Ninetales exploded into a fiery burst of intense heat, using Overheat to simply overwhelm the grass type. When the dust settled, Ninetales looked tired, but Roserade had been knocked out, suffering from multiple burns caused by the intense heat."Challenger wins!" |
A new adventure (Mera) | Eva smiled. This was no battle for shieldon. That was too soon. She was up next. She took her place in the ring. Shieldon was still on the bleechers, now with Atem and ninetales. Eva released her blissey while cacnea was Gardenia's choice. "Alright, the rules are the same as before. Start." The referee said. "Flamethrower." Eva said. "Cacnea use drain punch." Gardenia said. Cacnea tried to dodge the flamethrower and get closer. But blissey adjusted her aim and hit cacnea. "Now use Ice punch." Eva said. "Drain punch." Gardenea said. Blissey however was far more agile then it looked. Both attacks missed. "Now use pin missile." Gardenia said. "Block with hidden power." Eva said. The balls of hidden power spun around blissey fast, creating a shield that locked out pin missile. "Now use ice punch." Eva ordered. "Pin missile." Gardenia ordered. "Substitute." Eva whispered. Pin missile hit substitute. The substitute disappead as soon as it hit the ground. The blissey came from the other side and launched an ice punch attack and cacea fell and passed out. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem took a seat up at the bleachers, and smiled at the Shieldon. "Well, here's how your new master fights." He said. He looked to Ninetales, who was also watching. He gently petted Ninetales, watching the fight quite happily. Blissey was an interesting one. It seemed to have quite a few tricks up its proverbial sleeves aside from the toughness that he knew them to possess. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Thank you blissey, you've been great." Eva said and blissey walked over to the bleechers to watch. With turtwig still out of commision she had to use another pok mon. Eva was amused to see Gardenia had a bulbasaur. Those would be rare in this region and she'd probably been looking for one for a while. She then decided to up the pressure for bulbasaur and released her venusaur. After Gardenia first seemed to fall in love with her pok mon she recovered and the match was on. "Bulbasaur vine whip." Gardenia ordered. "You too, then use leech seed." Eva said. With two vines venusaur stopped bulbasaurs vines and with four other it held the small pok mon in place until the moment leech seed hit. "Leech seed." Gardenia ordered. "Bullet seed." Eva replied. The leech seed was knocked back to bulbasaur by bullet seed and the little pok mon got hit too. "Sleep powder." Gardenia said. "Flash." Eva said. Venusaur launched flash and blinded by it bulbasaur missed with it's attack as a result. "Now use solar beam." Eva replied. "You two bulbasaur." Gardenia said. Bulbasaur launched first. Venusaur used vine whip to jump and dodge the attack on its own. At the same time the bright sunlight kept bulbasaur from seeing where the attack would come from. Solarbeam hit dead on and bulbasaur was out for the count. "Thank you venusaur." Eva said. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem laughed as the battle became Bulbusaur vs. Venusaur. Of course, Venusaur had quite an advantage in power, but there would probably be a loss of speed that would make it harder on the larger pokemon. The battle seemed rather evenly matched though, at least until Venusaur pulled a move that he'd never thought he'd see from such a large pokemon. He smiled. One more to go. |
A new adventure (Mera) | However when Gardenia released a tropius she recalled venusaur. Instead she released her gardevoir. And round three was on. "Alright tropius razor leaf." Gardenia ordered. "Teleport, then ice punch." Eva said. And before tropius or Gardenia could react gardevoir reappeared behind tropius and struck with an ice punch. But tropuis although somewhat hurt only got mad. "Now use twister." Gardenia ordered. "Again teleport, then future sight." Eva said. and although future sight wouldn't strike yet, it would soon. "Leaf storm." Gardenia ordered.. "Psychic." Eva replied to that and the storm was bent back to tropius who moved remarkably fast now. Eva realized that chlorophyll was active. "Alright now do hypnosis." Eva said. "Safeguard." Gardenia ordered, but Eva smiled at this. "Disable." Eva ordered and safeguard disappeared and the tropius started to look tired and fell asleep. Then future sight hit it full force. "Now finish it with dream eater." Eva said, but to her surprise Tropius had woken up. Gardenia was very happy with that though. "Now ominous wind." Gardenia ordered. Gardevoir tried to avoid but tropius adjusted its aim and gardevoir got hit. "Teleport then drain punch." Eva said. This time the attack came from below, but tropius bit in gardvoir's hand. "Now use bullet seed." Gardenia said. "Hypnosis." Eva ordered. Gardevoir endured the bullet seed while attacking with hypnosis. Tropius fell asleep again. "Dream eater." Eva said and that was the final blow. Tropius passed out. "Challenger wins." The referee said. Eva thanked gardevoir and recalled her. Gardenia handed her a badge. She walked over to the bleechers where Atem, blissey and shieldon were. "Well that was good, let's head to the pok mon center." Eva said and recalled blissey and shieldon. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem continued to watch, and smiled. "well, I must say, that was quite a fight." He said to Eva as she came by. He stood, not bothering to recall Ninetales. "THe pokemon center sounds good, I'm sure Dusknoir and Milotic would appreciate it." He said. He stretched a moment, then went to find the pokemon center. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Eva walked with him, leading them straight to it. She handed her gardevoir, venusaur and blissey over for a check up. "So do you have a plan on what to do for the first round in the next contest?" Eva asked him. They could go to hardhome city after floroma town. Point is they would have to visit at least ten contests for both get their five ribbons. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem shrugged. "I don't know. I might try something different, but if I do, it won't be that much different." He said. "Maybe I'll change the pokemon I use for round two." He said, nodding. That was probably a good idea, to help get some variety for his pokemon. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "You do realize that you can't use the same performance twice." Eva said. It since the jury memebers or at least two out of three would already have seen it they wouldn't be impressed. Eva would be using lucario in round two this time and shieldon in round one. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem nodded. "I know, and I most certainly will." He said. "But even so, a single pokemon is capable of more than just one trick." He said. Even so, he was thinking of using Milotic first this time, and probably Dusknoir for the second round. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "I don't doubt that. I think we should rest a bit and wait. Then train in the evening and get underway in the morning. One advantage of the pok mon center, you don't have to cook." Eva said. They would probably end up sharing a room. She put her stuf down and lied down on the bed. She thought about her first round with shieldon and how to pull that off. |
A new adventure (Mera) | He nodded. "Sounds like a plan. It's always nice when I don't need to use some berries... and speaking of which, I should get more since we're here... but I'll get those later." He said. He went with her and flopped onto the bed, stretching and relaxing. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Eva dozed off after a little while. It had been a while since she'd slept in a nice bed. She woke up about two hours later. She usually didn't fall asleep. She got her pok mon back and went to the market to fill her supplies. They didn't have to do everything together after all. She returned around dinner time and went to look for Atem in the small restaurant. "Hey." She said. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem took a quick nap as well, waking about an hour after he'd fallen asleep. He stretched, and quietly left to go get what he needed to get. He was glad they were in Floraroma, because lots of berries were around, both wild and harvested. He headed back to get dinner, and was only just ahead of Eva. He smiled to her. "Hello. Did you sleep well?" He asked simply, going to sit down. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Yes, what about you?" Eva then asked him and sat down across the table. When chansey brought Atem his dinner Eva ordered for herself. It was a simple but healthy meal. She ate her fill while thinking of how to use shieldon in the first round. The little one wasn't ready for battles yet, but a first round would be doable. That way she could get used to the crowd watching and performing in front of a audience. She wasn't sure what to say to Atem at this point. Two girls walked up to the table. "Hi handsome, we saw you in Jubilife city, you were great. She's not your girlfriend is she?" One of the girls said. The other elbowed her. "You don't just ask that sort of thing..." The other said. |
A new adventure (Mera) | He nodded to Eva's question. "A quick nap is always nice." He said to her, thanking the Chansey when his food came. He ate quietly, thinking as well. He wasn't too sure what he'd do with Shieldon yet. Perhaps he'd let it stay out more, and let it gain confidence from watching battles, then perhaps give it a try sometime. After all, learning some maneuvers helped a lot.His train of thought was broken after a bit. He'd completely missed what the first girl had said. "Sorry, could you repeat that?" He asked simply. |
A new adventure (Mera) | The girls looked dissappointed, however the one just repeated what she'd said before. "Hi handsome. We saw you in Jubilife city, you were great. The old lady isn't your girlfriend is she?" The girl asked. Eva ignored the comment, the girl talking to Atem was probably just mid teens. Eva so wanted to kick the girl's ass. Besides they weren't officially together but they had slept together. Rather then making a scene she wondered what Atem's answer would be. These two were just crazy fans. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "The 'old lady', as you said, happens to be my girlfriend." Atem said, his voice carrying a chill on it. Even though technically they weren't officially together, he felt close enough that she wouldn't mind. And besides, they'd insulted her. He was going to try making this as little of a scene as possible. He didn't say anything else, either waiting for a response or for them to leave. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "I know you didn't exactly invent the wheel little girl, but I think he wants you to leave. Take a hint and beat it." Eva said and grinned a little. "Who are you calling a little girl old lady." The girl replied. "You obviously. It's true I'm older then you, that means I can call you a little girl and from where I stand your parents didn't really teach you manners." Eva replied casually. Chansey looked at them when she put Eva's food down. Eva took a bite from her steak. "I'll make you change your tune in a pok mon battle. How about six on six." The girl replied. "Sure, after I finish my dinner." Eva replied without looking up. She was going to put this girl in her place. They had caught the attention of others and this fight would get quite the audience. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem shrugged. If it was a scene they wanted, they just got one. Challenging someone in the middle of a crowded area caught attention. "Until then, you can leave." He said simply. He wasn't going to let them harass Eva while she was eating, and he would bring out his pokemon if crowd control was needed. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "I'll see you on the battleground old lady." The girl said and headed towards the battleground behind the pok mon center. Gardenia was among the ones in the crowd. Eva finished her dinner, not rushing and ordering a nice dessert as well. After she was finished she got ready and walked to the battle field where the girl was bragging about her skills to the crowd. "So there you are, I thought you'd given up." The girl said. "And miss an opportunity to put you in your place? No way. Just because you challenged me doesn't mean I'll hurry my dinner little girl." Eva replied. "Stop calling me that." The girl replied. "If you stop calling me old lady." Eva replied casually while the girl was getting angry. Psychology was half the work. "Then what should I call you?" The girl replied. "My name is Eva McCoy. What should I call you?" Eva replied. "I'm Samantha." She said, getting a bit nevous since she now realized this was the girl who had beaten Atem. She looked so different she hadn't recognized her. "So six on six. You're the challenger so open the match." Eva replied. "My pleasure." The girl said and released a kirlia. "Lovely." Eva replied and called out her gardevoir. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem smiled, and had dessert with Eva as well. He was in no rush. If the girl was in a rush, that was just too damn bad."I'll bet you a dollar that you don't even go through half your team." He said playfully as they walked out to the battle. He stretched and went to sit by the sideline, letting out Shieldon to watch. Despite the pokemon's weight, he held it in his lap and let it watch.He watched the exchange, and noted the girl's expression change. She had obviously seen something she did, probably from the contest. He stretched, and then shrugged, letting out all six of his pokemon at once. They each took a comfortable seat to watch. Besides, it would be nice to give them a fresh breath of air. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Kirlia, psybeam." The girl ordered. Gardevoir dodged it gracefully. "Imprison." Eva ordered. The girl looked confused and the move hit, but didn't seem to do much damage. "If that's all you got. Kirlia psychic." The girl said, but the kirlia couldn't do it. "What's wrong?" The girl said. "You've never heard of imprison? It's a move that prevents your kirlia from using any moves gardevoir knows. Why else do you think I chose gardevoir over absol. Now gardevoir, use magical leaf." Eva replied. "Dodge it." The girl ordered, but gardevoir didn't allow that to happen. By spinning round in the center of the battlefield the leaves went all over and hit kirlia. "Teleport, then hypnosis." Eva ordered. "Get out of the way." The girl ordered. But when Kirlia turned around to turn gardevoir appeared in front of it and kirlia fell asleep. "Dream eater." Eva ordered and the sleeping pok mon was hit. Gardevoir repeated the move before Kirlia was knock out. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem knew exactly why Gardevoir was used. After all, Ninetales had the same strategy, and could shut down many fire types with Imprison. He watched with interest, and his pokemon watched as well. This was a good time to watch. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Alright umbreon it's your turn." The girl said after recalling kirlia. Then Eva recalled gardevoir and let absol out. She was planning to humiliate that girl. The girl got more frustrated while Eva was relaxed. "Quick attack then iron tail." The girl ordered. "Use iron tail as well." Eva ordered. Two iron tales collided in mid air. "Now sucker punch." Eva ordered and absol replied so fast the girl didn't get time to make a counter order and umbreon was hit, but got up and shook its head and looked annoyed. "Use dig." The girl said. "Jump, then razor wind." Eva ordered. Absol jumped up and launched a razor wind at the point it was standing moments ago and just when umbreon appeared it was hit. "Now use assurance." Eva ordered. "Dodge with quick attack." The girl ordered and only umbreon's tail caught the attacked, almost knocking it over, but avoiding the worst damage."Now use yawn." The girl ordered. "Water pulse." Eva replied and water pulse destroyed the yawn and drenched umbreon who was getting tired. "Quick attack, then shadow ball." The girl ordered. "Thunder wave." Eva replied. Absol hadn't moved and launched thunder wavee when shadow ball almost hit. It destroyed the shdow ball and although umbreon tried to dodge it it followed until it hit. Eva had taught absol to have complete control. Umbreon passed out. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem simply smiled. There was absolutely no hope for the girl. Pupitar seemed to be wanting to battle. He'd have to go find something to fight eventually. He knew from his pokedex that Pupitar could actually move, which was interesting, since it looked immobile.He smiled "Aw, Eva, don't utterly and completely crush her. Use Shieldon or something." He said, teasing her. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Who knows I might." Eva said. "OK hitmontop you're up." The girl said. Eva recalled absol. She knew she'd be in toruble if she didn't let lucario fight this one. She released her lucario instead. The girl looked at the lucario and gritted her teeth. "OK hitmontop combine drain punch and rapid spin." The girl said. "Lucario, psychic." Eva replied. Psychic stopped hitmontop and threw it hard into the ground. "Double team, then mach punch." The girl said. "Dig, then force palm." Eva replied and the mach punches missed since lucario was underground. It could easily sense the aura of the real one and dug up with a small hole next to it. only her front paw came through it and placed her palm against the smaller pok mon's head, then released the energy. The girl still hadn't seen it coming since it was getting dark. Lucario then came up and threw hitmontop into the air as a traditional dig was supposed to work. "Aura sphere." Eva ordered. "Twister." The girl ordered and twister destroyed the aura sphere. "Now use drain punch." The girl ordered. "Bone rush." Eva replied. Lucario dodged the drain punch while it was moving to swipe the pok mon off its feet and then strike hard four times, not giving hitmontop time to recover. "Rapid spin." The girl ordered. "Psychic." Eva replied and this time hitmontop didn't get up. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Lucario was definitely a good choice here. There was a type advantage, and the Lucario was fast in both mind and body. The attacks were almost brutal, but he smiled. "Very nice. Lucario is quite strong, I must say." He said to Eva. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "I know." Eva replied. The girl now released a swallot. Damn those were a pain in the ass always. Eva then released shieldon. It had a type advantage big time and was itching for a fight. "Alright stockpile." The girl said. "Fissure." Eva ordered. She had been amazed to find that move in little shieldon's arsenal. "Dodge it." The girl ordered. But shieldon was faster then the girl expected and persistant. The battle didn't last long, fissure had done its job. "Thank you shieldon." Eva said and pet the young pok mon. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem almost burst out laughing at how simply the girl's pokemon was defeated. Even the little shieldon, had no issue with it at all. He smiled. "Oh, this is just too funny." He said to Eva. "I guess even your least trained can crush her pokemon easily..." |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Alright slaking you're up." The girl said. This was a very strong pok mon and usually brought the girl a victory or two. Eva looked at it, it was indeed powerful. She told shieldon he was done and to take a seat by Atem's pok mon. She called out venusaur this time. This big guy needed a nap in Eva's oppinion. "Alright focus punch." The girl ordered. "Frenzy plant, then grasswhistle." Eva ordered. Going at it with physical power wasn't a good idea with a well trained slaking. "Dodge it." The girl said. But venusaur had great control over the frenzy plant and restrained slaking as it was getting angry. Venusaur started with grasswhistle. "Slaking uproar." The girl ordered. Damn the girl had done her homework. "Now use petal dance." Eva ordered. The frenzy plant still restrained slaking, but somewhere sduring the attack slaking freed itself. It was hit and mad. "Use yawn." The girl ordered. "Use razor leaf." Eva ordered. One simple razor leaf destroyed the bubble that slaking had released and the attack was gone. "Now use earthquake." Eva replied. It was venusaur's latest move and it had been a surprize for Eva too, but against slaking it would be great. Slaking lost its balance. "Sunny day, then solar beam." Eva ordered. "Focus punch." The girl said. "Dodge it." Eva replied and venusaur used it vines to jump high into the air while charging solarbeam, but slaking jumped too. Just as slaking was about to hit venusaur struck with the solarbeam. "Now sleep power." Eva ordered. Uproar had to have worn off by now. Slaking was still trying to get up when the sleep powder landed around him. But it held its breath and tried to move out of range. "Uproar." The girl ordered. Damn. Eva thought. "Now use flamethrower." The girl ordered. "Petal dance." Eva ordered. It stopped the flamethrower and pushed it back until slaking was hit. But this pok mon had great stamina while venusaur was getting tired. "Use body slam." The girl ordered. "Vine whip." Eva ordered and venusaur threw slaking away. "Leech seed." Eva ordered. It hit. Slaking roared at some of its energy was sucked away. "Now let's end it with hyper beam." The girl said. "Solarbeam." Eva ordered and the attacks clashed in mid air, but more energy was drawn from slaking and finally it passed out, so did venusaur. It was just too worn out from battling slaking. Eva recalled venusaur. "Thanks girl, you rest now." She said and waited for the girl's last pok mon. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem sat up a bit as he saw the Slaking. Now this was a pokemon that was strong. Too bad it really seemed to be the girl's only strong pokemon. Venusaur fought well, but the two were almost even in power, so it seemed to end in a draw. Eva was still ahead though, undoubtedly going to win. The girls still had one last pokemon. This would be interesting. |
A new adventure (Mera) | The girl now released a dugtrio. Eva already felt a headache coming on. Those were a pain in the ass. Blissey wouldn't be the best choice right now. Venusaur was down, absol might be able to do it, but she opted for lucario in spite of the fact it was weak against ground types. It was because of lucario's ability to do magnet rise. "Dugtrio, let's dig." The girl said. "Sense it's aura, stay away from it." Eva ordered. "Sand tomb." The girl ordered. And as the sand tomb was growing lucario had nowhere left to run or so it seemed. "Lucario magnet rise." Eva ordered. Just as lucario had begun to slide down she began to levitate. "Now vaccuum wave on the ground." Eva ordered. It struck fast and hard. Dugtrio which had tried to dig itself away was forced out of the ground. "Use aura sphere." Eva ordered. It hit before dugtrio landed and disappeared beneath the ground again. "Sandstorm." The girl ordered. "Psychic." Eva replied. The sandstorm was changed in form and sent after dugtrio underground which eventually appeared above ground again. "Again aura sphere." Eva said. It was a hit, but this dugtrio was quite strong and it disappeared again, but with lucario levitating its options were limited. "Stone edge." The girl ordered. "Defend with bone rush." Eva replied and the bone was spinning in front of lucario sending the small rocks flying away. "Use vaccuum wave on the ground ground again." Eva ordered. "Sucker punch." The girl replied and lucario was hit first, but it still launched the vaccuum wave against dugtrio which now landed knock out on the ground. Eva grinned. "Well done lucario, you were great." She said before recalling her pok mon. The girl was humiliated and angry, but her friend looked at Eva. "May I ask what your sixth pok mon is?" The other girl said. "It's blissey." Eva replied. "I can see why you won the jubilife contest. Sorry for my friends irrational and annoying behavior." The older of the two said. "No problem. She wasn't bad, her combos are good, just her choice of when to use them could improve." Eva replied. The girl looked at Eva. It seemed the young woman wasn't mad at her. The girls left and Eva walked up to Atem. "That was a nice battle. What do you think shieldon?" She asked the two shieldon. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem continued to watch. Dugtrio was another interesting one, definitely strong, but there was no way it could beat Lucario. As it finished, Atem stood, and recalled all of his pokemon except Dusknoir and Shieldon. He smiled at Eva. "Well, good job." He said. Shieldon seemed to be wiggling about happily, seeming to be just barely restraining itself from tackling Eva out of the excitement. "I think I got the hyper one." Atem said, laughing. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "It seems that way." Eva replied and pet both shieldon. "I think we should go to bed and leave early in the morning." Eva replied. They still had a long way to go to floroma town. The audience was now moving away again and Eva went to their room. She put blissey to work on her other pok mon while she got ready for bed. When she came back into the room she recalled her pok mon and went to sleep. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem nodded "That sounds good." He said, walking with Eva back to the room. He recalled Shieldon, but let Dusknoir stay out. Dusknoir always was more comfortable at night, and he made an amazing guard. "Night Eva." He said, going to sleep. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Good night." Eva said and dozed off fast. Two thiefs snuck into the room. They'd seen Eva battle and knew Atem was really good too. Their pok mon would be great to have or sell. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Of course, Dusknoir knew they were coming, and in the shadows of the room... it was in its domain. A single red eye appeared, and a strange wind gusted through the room, carrying haunting echoes on it. The Ominous Wind grew in intensity, and suddenly Dusknoir cackled loudly to alert Eva and Atem as it appeared next to one thief and attacked with Shadow Sneak. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Eva yawned and opened her eyes as she heard the cackle and then screams of two unfamiliar voices. The latter woke her up instantly and she got out of bed and turned on the light. "Thieves huh? Keep them here I'm calling the police." Eva said and took her pok gear out of her bag and called. She walked over to one of them and glared as he tried to reach for her pok balls. "You touch those and I'll personally see to it you'll wish you were dead." Eva said and then grabbed her pok balls. She let out gardevoir to give dusknoir some back up. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Between Dusknoir's trickery and Gardevior's power, the thieves were essentially rendered helpless. Atem glared at the two after waking up. "Fools." He said simply. He watched the thieves as Eva went to get the police. He checked for his pokemon, and found all of them. Luckily, Dusknoir had surprised them before they'd gotten anything. |
A new adventure (Mera) | They were arrested and taken away, Then Eva went back to bed, but this time she kept her pok balls much closer to her. She got a breakfast from chansey. They had a long way to go. She waited for Atem to finish. Then they'd be off to floroma town. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem sighed, and relaxed, getting a little bit more rest before they had to go. He didn't bother with breakfast, content to simply have some berries when they'd go. He let Ninetales out before resting, so that she could stretch.When they were ready, he sat up and yawned. "mmm, ready?" He asked. |
A new adventure (Mera) | A few days later they had arrived in Floroma town for the contest. The pok mon center was nice as always. They were approached by a news reported she recognised from TV. "Hi there. I'm looking for Wallace. Since it's his day off his whole staff won't tell me where he is." She said. "Good. It's his day off so leave him alone. It's obvious he doesn't want to be found." Eva replied and sighed. She needed to train some more and get some action. She walked into the woods for some training. He could follow and train with her or not. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem was glad to arrive in the town a few days later. It had been a rather uneventful trip, in all honesty, so having a new place to look around was much appreciated. He shrugged to the reporter, not knowing anything about it anyhow. He followed her into the woods, also deciding that some training would be nice. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Eva kept walking until she came across mist. Then she heard singing. She recognised it as from a milotic. She walked closer to it and within the mist she saw the milotic and a figure on a rock. Milotic saw her and dived under. The man jumped of the rock and she recognized him, Wallace. "Sorry if we bothered you." Eva said. "It's no problem Just please don't tell anyone where I am." He said. "Of course we won't." Eva said. "Thank you. May I ask why you're here?" He asked. "We were looking for a good spot to train for the Wallace cup." Eva replied. "So you're both participating. Wait you two were the finalists in the jubilife contest. I try to watch in the little free time I have. I'm looking forward to see you perform in the Wallace cup. Would you two maybe endulge me and show me some of your moves now?" He asked. |
A new adventure (Mera) | Atem looked around as they saw the mist and heard the singing. Well, that was interesting. It was obviously not natural mist, probably caused by the Milotic that they saw. Atem paused, and simply listened to Wallace. He smiled when he heard that Wallace knew of them. He looked at Eva. "Do you want to? I've no problem with showing him some moves." He said simply to Eva. |
A new adventure (Mera) | "Alright. Although I'm not sure what I going to do at the Wallace cup yet. How about we do a contest battle instead?" Eva asked. She was planning on using shieldon. In the training it had learned ice beam. The control was still a bit lacking though. But on ice that little pok mon would do great. Also using a rock type on a water field should get her extra points. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Camelot was cold.Merlin woke up shivering under the thin material of his blanket and he blinked up at the ceiling, residual images from his dreams still burning in his retina, and an unmistakable voice echoing in his ears no, echoing in hismind, like an insistent tug inside of his skull.Merlin.The warlock scowled it had been five days since he had tried to trade his own life to save Arthur's, five days since his mother had stumbled to the doorstep covered in sores and blisters and dying in his arms, and five days since he had lost his temper with the dragon for his deceit.Sitting up, Merlin pulled absently at the fraying stitching of his bed linens of course, Gaius now knew that he had been going to the dungeons regularly to speak to the dragon, and once the old physician had regained his strength after the ordeal with Nimueh, he had made sure to catch Merlin upside the head with a scroll for it. Merlin wasn't so sure that he had deserved it after all, how was he supposed to know that dragons did that sort of thing for fun?"It's not like there's a guide to this sort of thing." Merlin had protested, and Gaius' eyebrows had made an impressive journey in opposite directions, with one at mid forehead and the other obscuring the eye entirely and then he had dropped a massive tome down onto the table in front of him. It was the kind of book that was so large that it tended to collect dust while being read, and by the time one was finished, the first half was obscured by cobwebs."Yes there is." Gaius had replied casually, while Merlin peered at the spot between the book at the table, certain that there had been a candlestick there moments ago and wondering if it had been flattened completely.Gaius had made him read the whole thing in fact, he wasstillreading it and he could safely say that his knowledge of Magical and Mythological Creatures was now par none.He rubbed the heels of his palms into his eyes to fight off the grogginess.Merlin.He gritted his teeth and ignored it just the way he had done the last few days every night and every morning, he would be woken up by the sound of the dragon calling to him, callingforhim. If he paid attention to it, Merlin was sure that he could almost hear a note of worry, perhaps concern that he might live up to his angry promise to insure the dragon was never released from his dungeon prison.Of course, he wasn't certain he could prevent it either, but he could bluff for now, couldn't he? The dragon hadn't got out so far, after all it wasn't so farfetched.But the important part, Merlin had decided, was that everyone was fine and that no ones suspicions had been aroused. Arthur had survived as a result of the physician's miracle medical 'tincture', his mother had been saved by Gaius' selflessness, and Gaius had been saved because of Nimueh's sacrifice.Occasionally Merlin winced when he thought about the look that Nimueh had given him and the confidence that had been in her eyes she had been so certain that he was like her, that he should have somehow fallen into alignment with her twisted Old Religion. Somehow, she had been so sure.But he hadn't been thinking about all of the implications of it at the time, his eyes had kept drifting to the unmoving figure by the stone altar, the familiar blue robes and thinning white hair of his friend. Right then, all Merlin had been able to think about was Gaius, aboutgetting toGaius as though he might somehow be able to bring him back from death if he could just be near him so maybe he hadn't been thinking clearly. Maybe he had lost focus.Maybe he should have learned a stronger spell.He touched absently at the bandaging across his torso it had been a searing, plate sized burn, and Nimueh must have been under the impression it had finished him in fact, for a moment Merlin had thought the same thing but his legs had worked of their own accord and he'd found himself on his feet again. Even several days after the fact, Merlin wasn't certain what he had done, but it had been as though someone had turned off all of the light in his world and had left him standing in a vast black space nothing had existed there, save for a strange surge that had crept through him, cold and promising.And he couldn't deny the feeling of power that had rushed through him either the clouds had gathered and the sky had roiled and obeyed him as he took what the dark had offered and he had watched Nimueh dissappear in a violent burst of electricity that had left bits of her scattered across the grass.Initially he had felt nothing for what he had just done because he had made a desperate lunge for Gaius before the smoke had even cleared, and he'd pulled the old man into his arms with a desperation he couldn't recall feeling before. For a painfully long moment, Gaius was dead and nothing in the world could have soothed the sharp agony that Merlin had felt for the loss.And conversely, nothing could have matched his joy when Gaius began to breathe again, and they ended up laughing like idiots in the rainstorm, struck by the insanity of it all and the thrill of having survived it.It wasn't until later, when things had settled down and they had gotten their stories straight, it wasn't until Arthur was back on his feet and his mother had said her tearful goodbyes having made a full recovery that the gravity of the situation had finally hit him. He had sat carefully on his bed and considered what he had done, and while he was aware that his choices had been limited well, he had killed her, hadn't he? In fact, not just Nimueh he had been in Camelot for only a short time, scarcely a year serving as Arthur's manservant, and in that time he had ended the lives of four people. Directly, at least.Of course, all of them had been trying to kill Arthur, so at least there was that, but the knowledge that he had taken lives would occasionally sneak up on Merlin and blindside him at some ungodly hour, leave him shaken to his core. He had gone from being a farmhand in a tiny, distant village, barely able to figure out the functions of a world that consisted of a few dozen people, to being the Prince's personal servant and barely skirting death on a regular basis."Merlin?"Merlin let out a noise of frustration,"Will you shut up!" he hissed out, and then opened his eyes and nearly scurried back against the headboard because Gaius was standing at the foot of his bed, accosting him with a grizzled eyebrow. There was a stretch of silence, and then Merlin added, while pulling on a shirt, "Not not you."Slowly and with great purpose, Gaius turned his head left, turned his head right, turned in a full circle to survey the room, and then turned back to Merlin and rose the offending eyebrow to nearly hairline."I see." Gaius said finally for a moment he looked as though he might probe further, but he shook it off as he tended to do with the boy, "Breakfast is ready, Merlin, but at the rate you're going, you won't have time to eat the Prince wants to see you."Of course he did now that a few days had passed, Arthur had recovered enough to be on his feet though his colour was still a sickly sort of pallor he refused to hold still long enough to completely heal. He couldn't appear weak, after all and especially not to his father.Merlin stood and grimaced as the burnt skin pulled and twinged, but he fixed Gaius with one of his bright smiles,"Well, he can wait a few more minutes, can't he?" Merlin said, "After all, if it were an emergency "The eyebrow wiggled, and Merlin faltered,"He's standing in the other room right now, isn't he?" Merlin asked sourly, and Arthur's blonde head popped in, eyes shifting around the room before focusing on him he scowled at the warlock like the spoiled brat he was."Last I checked," Arthur said haughtily, "You weremyservant, and therefor you are to come whenIorder, not wheneveryoufeel like it.""I see you're feeling better." Merlin said."I've been better for days, you might have noticed if you'd been around to do your job." Arthur replied snippily it was an exaggeration, of course Merlin had been around, but he had gone a bit slower than he normally would have on account of the injury. An injury that, fortunately or not, no one but Gaius knew about after all, it was difficult to explain that sort of thing because Merlin knew that any mention of sorcery meant risking his head lobbed off. Ultimately, he much preferred dealing with the Prince's ribbings and a bit of pain over explaining to him or worse, the king why he couldn't do his job.He ended up going without breakfast he supposed it was his own fault for sleeping late and he trailed along beside Arthur, only half listening to the prince's airy insults as they moved towards the castle together.Merlin."Are you even listening to me?" Arthur asked sharply, and Merlin jerked his head up, "Honestly, you've been a complete flake these last few days.""No more than usual." Merlin countered, poorly, and Arthur raised one fine eyebrow at him."Anyways," Arthur said, "I had been told that the source of my healing was a "Arthur struggled with the word, aristocratic face twisting with the difficulty,"'Tincture'," he finished, "From some sort of plant.""Er," Merlin said, unclear on how he was meant to respond, so he just said: "Yes.""And this was some sort of miracle cure some ancient remedy, was it?" Arthur continued, and Merlin realized that the prince was staring at him as they walked, "Only, I'd thought it was Gaius, yet when I look into it, it turns out that you were the one who found it. Is this true, Merlin?"He didn't give Merlin a chance to reply,"How did you manage to conjure it?" Arthur asked seriously, and the wording drained some of the blood from Merlin's face which the prince was continuing to inspect, unblinking."I got lucky." Merlin finally got out, and Arthur's jaw shifted, lips pursed slightly for an instant, something like anger seemed to flicker over the prince's face, but it was quickly replaced by his usual cocky expression."That would have to be it." Arthur said arrogantly, walking with swagger as they moved up the staircase, "You're too much of an idiot to manage that sort of thing intentionally anyways."Merlin paused for an instant, raising his eyebrows,"Yes, sire." Merlin said finally, and trailed after him. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Bony, white, every knuckle distinguished under ropey skin, fingers like claws and like a line of hideous, chalky pearls. A long curve of blood, scarlet on old ochre, the smell of metal and gore mixing with the burnt air. The child was screaming, gurgling, fighting, but the old hag held on, white claws digging into the flesh of rosy, plump cheeks to muffle the screams, the dull knife working at the neck.The knife was its own monster, an extension of the crone and apart from her, rusted over orange and caked with a darker brown, the same color on the old stone altar, the same color that crusted along ancient, carved ridges in the surface. Years and years ago, before men like Uther Pendragon swept in and tried to girdle the Old Religion, this place had seenuse. That blood, layered up over more years than the Roman Empire had existed, spoke of eons of sacrifice. There were, however, no priests or priestesses here to watch over the act, just one old woman and one little boy.The child had stopped struggling now, just the barest dribble of blood oozing out over the metal. He couldn ??t have been more than four, just barely past the age where children were expected to survive and parents started thinking them of real members of the family that would stay with them for a long time. His dull blonde hair, the color of dirty wheat and dirty children, matted up where it touched the blood, darkening, just like her own shockingly white hair. The old woman stuck the knife deeper into skin, going after blood like dragging teeth along the skin of fruit for the last slivers of flesh, then dropped the child. His body fell, limp, a broken toy, garbage at the foot of the altar.Her first act would be to properly dispose of it, rites must be observed, but she was not priestess yet. Soon. So very soon. The magic called to her, more beautiful than birdsong and more insistent than a baby ??s cry, familiar and silky and dark like a lover ??s voice from bed. Power. Power should not be left alone. That nasty boy that had killed the last priestess, he had orphaned this island, attempted to disrupt a long line of magic and women that stretched back, weaving with the blood of the altar over years and years.Her second act, then, would be proper revenge for the old priestess. There were precious few of them around, even if she had gone a little mad at the end. But who wouldn ??t, with a mad king killing off everything that sneezed sparks?It was so lonely. She understood loneliness.She understood madness, too, but she was beyond that.Skeletal fingers smeared with blood reached out over the altar as her reedy voice sung an incantation older than even the idea of kings and war. Her voice rose with the wind that had picked up, unnatural for this time of day even on an island. The air took on that same burning smell, the one she had come across at first, and for a moment, she was afraid. But there was so much to gain, so little to lose, and after a life the magic owed her.There were rules, and every one of them had a greater price for disobeying than any method Pendragon could employ.They went above petty, human morality. Men liked to think that children were special, that they should be protected and fostered. And today, this child was. The old hag covered her face, the alter glowing too bright with a blue flame for her to keep her eyes on it. The spell was finished. Long strands of words had been woven, died with the child ??s blood, and even if she couldn ??t take up the previous priestess ?? position, she would have gotten something in return.There was the ??whoosh ?? of the fire being killed, then the wind died down suddenly, leaving behind a heavy silence. The woman stayed still, her dark brown robes and black hair settling around her, flayed of the dust of travel. For a moment, everything was still, unnaturally so, then the woman dropped her smooth, bloodied hands, shaking.And, for the price of a child, everything was right again. Everything was right again.Uther kept glancing to his side, couldn ??t help himself. Arthur was putting on a show for court, letting them know exactly how well their crown prince was. After all, fights over the crown were bloody for all, from the lowest peasant to the fattest noble in his gold cloth. And Arthur was so ? Solikeable, unlike his father. It didn ??t bother Uther that one day the golden haired youth drinking and eating and laughing near him would one day be given a peaceful kingdom that he could rule kindly and would, God willing, never know what it was like to make violent, disliked decisions nearly every week to keep it like that. In fact, it was the thing that kept him strong. Arthur would be a good king, a beloved king, able to do what was right and what was liked at the same time, where Uther had to choose between the two.And if Arthur had died ? if Gaius hadn ??t come through, and his only son had simply withered away and died, Uther would have, too. There would have been no crown prince and no king, because Arthur was his life in a way even Igraine hadn ??t been. So he stared, drinking the sight of Arthur laughing and Arthur smiling and Arthur flirting horribly with Morgana, because less than a week ago his boy had been lying in bed, sweating and pale. Uther had pulled his glove off and touched clammy flesh and had felt a heartbeat that was too soft for a young man like Arthur. His boy, who sometimes had his temper and wouldn ??t back down from a challenge, his pulse had been so faint, his breathing laboured and Gaius, Gaius had prepared him for dying. ??To make him comfortable, sire. ? The words echoed in his head, unable to be drowned out with noise and wine, and even that ridiculous red feather on Arthur ??s servant ??s head.Arthur ??s servant. Merlin. There was something not quite right with the boy.No. That was his paranoid mind talking. There was something fantastic about the boy, the way he looked at Arthur, the amazing loyalty. The way Gaius fawned over him, when the old man was just as wounded in trust as he was.Where had he gone when Arthur was ill? Uther hadn ??t thought to question it after all, his life, his very heart, had been laying on his deathbed. When the king blinked, he could still see the little pricks of candlelight, the vigil, to guide Arthur ??s soul away from his suffering body and into Paradise. Away from his father, who needed him more than angels did.But again, he ??d been distracted. Where had Merlin gone? And why had, when he disappeared and returned again, Arthur woken up? Uther did not believe in miracles, but he had been willing to accept just that one, just like Arthur ??s birth.That thought made him sit up a little straighter in his chair. Like Arthur ??s birth. That hadn ??t been a miracle. That had been... betrayal. A bargain he hadn ??t expected, a contract he wasn ??t fully given notice of. No, there weren ??t miracles. Something had happened. Gaius had suddenly produced a cure, out of thin air, when he had been preparing his king for the worst.Uther turned his head slightly, taking in the boy at the sides. He managed, somehow, to not stand out horribly, even with that silly feather that made him look more like some damaged bird of idiocy than a manservant. Morgana ??s made was there as well, the orphan whose father he had... Fool. Tonight was not a night to reflect on every mistake he had made in his life. Consorting with Nimueh and nearly losing Arthur were enough.His face was thoughtful as he considered the boy. He was attractive, in pieces. It was simply a matter of presentation, like several good fruits that simply did not go together. The ears, of course, were ridiculous and Uther knew very well they did nothing for his hearing. The hair was a common black, boring, nothing special and he certainly did nothing with it. He was tall, but not attractively so he never seemed to have filled out like most boys did, keeping the awkward, gangly limbs of adolescence. And he seemed to have no more brain than he did muscle.All and all, he was not a remarkable child. But there was something. Something that, once Uther caught sight of him, made him want to keep looking. It might have been, of course, too much wine, not enough sleep or food, and simple joy for anyone that was even tangentially related to his son ??s recovery . This was something different.The boy, made of pieces that didn ??t fit well together but were highlighted by that extraordinary loyalty. He had lovely eyes. Uther remembered that as he rested his chin on a gloved hand thoughtfully, his grey hair glinting gold and red in the happy, festive colors of the feast, the crown, as ever, sitting straight. When he had commanded his son ??s care into Merlin ??s hands, the boy had showed intelligence there and the love of a good man for his liege. Not Uther, but Arthur. He had meant to call him, to thank him, but he had forgotten after that all.And now he was being reminded of him. Perhaps Merlin had more involvement in his son ??s miraculous recovery than Gaius was letting on. But why? Gaius would not take credit for another man ??s work his place in Uther ??s castle was established, especially after that nasty episode with the burned boy. And hadn ??t Merlin been involved there. He remembered, very vaguely, touch of hands that weren ??t dry and lined, a soft voice.Pieces. A lot of little pieces, none of which made sense or were even distinguished apart , but together, they ? Well, there was something to be said for the whole. Something indeed. Morgana was still playing with her food, playing with Arthur and he was free to examine the serving boy. The way he met his eyes. He remembered that, too, when he had lied for Arthur. Uther had chalked it up to a rather nasty hit on the head or some high fever, but not after all this. Both Morgana and Arthur seemed to like the lad. They ??d even run off to help him, hadn ??t they? There was something very curious about a boy that had managed to wiggle his way into the hearts of his son, his ward and his closest friend. That love should have stuck out like that ridiculous red feather. Why hadn ??t he noticed before? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | There was nothing exceptional about the day as Merlin had come to realize, his life in Camelot had the tendency of fluctuating between being mind numblingly dull and utterly terrifying, separated only by moments of high velocity rotten fruit.Of course, he hadn't actually been strapped into the Pillory for a while now in fact, it had been a few weeks, so he was on something of a winning streak when it came to that. He wasn't sure it was something he should be so pleased about, but the warlock had the tendency of clinging to every sunny spot of optimism he encountered.The winning streak ended in every way, however, when Arthur presented him with the mascot's uniform. Again."You'll wear it tonight," Arthur confirmed as his servant grimaced at the sight of it the prince barely suppressed a smirk, "At my wake."Merlin's head jerked up, along with his eyebrows,"At your what?" Merlin asked, eyebrows dipping in the opposite direction, "But you aren't dead.""Your observational skills remain unmatched." Arthur said, rolling his head back to look down his nose at Merlin, "Father insisted on a banquet make sure everyone knows the bloodline is strong and all, but really, everyone there will be thinking the same thing that Ishouldbe dead."Merlin unconsciously hugged the uniform to his chest, but said nothing any other servant, Arthur noted, would have jabbered about how it wasn't true, that he would have survived and the people of the kingdom had faith he would pull through, but Merlin didn't try it. Most of the time he was a complete fool, but Arthur knew that at the very least he could rely on him for the truth and Merlin was a terrible liar anyways, he stuttered and turned the colour of his father's cape.Again, the prince watched Merlin with that strange, thoughtful expression, but the silence stretched on for too long, and Arthur finally lifted a shoulder and shrugged his face,"But I'm not." he finished, turning away from Merlin now, walking for the doorway and sticking an index finger up into the air, "I expect you to wear the hat this time, too. No taking it off because you saw a pretty girl, Merlin. This is a matter of celebration, life and death."Arthur left the warlock standing in the hallway with the pile of crimson material,"Right," Merlin said, and looked down miserably at the uniform, "Life or death."He spent most of the evening trying to keep the feathers out of his face the aggressively crimson glengarry had been adorned with a mass of red and green plumes that tilted into his nose and eyes every time he moved and left him twisting his face and sneezing. At one point the feather tipped into the side of his neck and caused the warlock to jerk so hard that he spilled some of the wine he had been pouring."What are you doing?" Arthur asked sharply, raising his hands up as though the droplets of wine were a flood threatening Camelot, "Clean this up, servant."Arthur put on a good show he could never have his subjects thinking he might like his manservant just a little. It was the Pendragon way somewhere in their history they had decided that emotion was something that happened to others, and their bloodline would have no part of it.Or at least, that was what they conveyed to the people Merlin knew better, having seen both of the Pendragons in particularly vulnerable states, and that included the King. The King, who wouldn't show love for his only son unless Arthur couldn't actually see it that type of aloofness was strange to Merlin, who had been raised on cuddles from his mum, who had called him her special boy but he wasn't about to mention it. And besides, he wasn't so sure the King ever got cuddles as a child, though he could have probably used them.He didn't move fast enough to clean up the wine, because Arthur took hold of his wrist and used the warlock's sleeve to absorb the alcohol, leaving the fabric sticking to his arm."Enjoy your drink," Arthur crowed, and laughed with his knights, giving Merlin what he was sure was meant to be a jovial whack on the back, but wound up being so forceful that it drove him forward a few inches and knocked his hat askew as he was turning to walk away. Staggering for a moment, Merlin stopped to straighten up, and as he stood there fussily re arranging the hat, he felt a strange tingle at the back of his neck for reasons he couldn't explain, he turned slowly on the spot, hands still holding up the plumes, and his eyes fixed directly onto the other side of the room.The King was looking at him.No, in fact, the King wasstaringat him there was no emotion that the warlock could associate with the man's expression right then, but the very fact that those eyes were fixed on him was cause for him to nearly swallow his tongue. Slowly, Merlin's hands moved away from the hat, away from his face, and dropped down to his sides as he looked directly into the eyes of the man who would kill him in an instant if he only knew the truth.And then, of course, he realized he was doing it and snapped his head off to the side, looking over at a wall and trying to seem casual but failing miserably as his eyes made to go in the opposite direction as the rest of him. He half turned his head back to Uther two more times before finally pulling his gaze away, fighting down the cold chill that was creeping along the surface of his skin.He tried to busy himself, tending to guests.Why was the king looking at him? As far as Merlin knew, he hadn't done anything wrong at least, he hadn't done anything wrong for a few days.Well, except the bit of magic he'd used yesterday to get a book down from a high shelf, since that sort of thing would get him killed if anyone had seen it, so that was sort of a wrongdoing by Camelot standards but the King couldn't have seen that.No, Merlin told himself everything was fine, the King probably wasn't even actually looking at him, he decided. He was probably staring off at something else, lost in thought the way he tended to do, and that was all. He hadn't seen anything, didn't suspect anything everything was fine. The King wasn't looking at him.The King definitely wasn't looking at him.In fact, he would bet that if he looked again, Uther would be staring at the same point on the wall, focusing intensely on it. Yes, that was it.Merlin smiled to himself, abusing his optimism for all it was worth, and he looked back up at the head table, and the smile froze in place, and faltered very slightly at the corners. The plumes of his hat made a long, slow journey down to his cheekbone again, and Merlin gave one absent minded breath to knock them away. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Uther found himself staring at the boy more and more as the night progressed.He hadn ??t had his fill of Arthur, certainly not, not when his son had been at death ??s door just five days ago, but he was distracted. When had this puzzle appeared in his court? The first time Uther ever remembered the boy was when he had saved his own son. How had he managed that? Uther had very few memories of that night outside of the cold whisper of webs down the back of his neck. A king was not supposed to be affected by the baser things, certainly not the heebie jeebies, but Uther had felt the ghosts of crawling things all over his skin for days afterwards. There had been one moment, safe in the privacy of his own rooms, his own manservant dismissed, where he had given into the urge to shake his limbs out in an attempt to dislodge the feeling of creepy crawlies slithering along his skin.After years at war, with lice and fleas and leeches, he had thought the mild dislike of insects would have been bitten, crawled and sucked out of him, but it seemed that being covered in enchanted spider webs was something completely different.His thoughts were becoming disjointed, rolling away in exhausted pieces. Uther felt a deep, lazy warmth in his chest, the kind most men would call security , as he watched his son. Arthur was certainly acting the part of a healthy heir he favoured neither arm though Uther was sure his injury must still make movement difficult, being no stranger to such wounds himself. ??We ??ll have similar scars ??, Uther thought absently, taking a sip of wine to hide the small smile on his lips as he watched Arthur and his knights crow over the clumsy, bright red of his servant. Boys would be boys, and Merlin certainly seemed a good sport to enjoy their light hearted bullying. An off balanced sport, but a good one none the less. Arthur had chosen his injured arm to land the smack on the boy and Uther wondered whom the display was for: him or the court? It wasn ??t just boy ??s fun. It was, as everything, a political gesture.For some reason, his eyes followed Arthur ??s manservant ??s movements, not his son ??s, though the image of a laughing prince was forefront in his vision. Ithadto have been the feathers, the hat was simply ridiculous and it was impossible for any man to ignore them, the only remains of whatever giant, absurd birds they had been taken from. Then again, he had seen much more in the costumes of some of the noble men and women, quite a few of whom publicized their wealth by the amount of absurd, gaudy details they could add to their costumes. Arthur must have taken their examples to heart when he dug deep to find a suitably stupid outfit for his servant. It left Uther thinking of how many birds were wandering about, bottoms naked, as members of his court strutted about in their ill gotten finery.He really needed to rest.Again, the boy met his eyes and all his thoughts were returned to their cold, careful places, clicking as each fell into place. From his seat, under the warm light of candles, some of which had been placed in colored glass holders to mimic a sunset, the boy ??s eyes were dark. Uther didn ??t look away. Merlin always met his eyes. Always. There was no proper lowering of his gaze along with his hands from that ridiculous hat, and that was strangely refreshing. Those eyes were honest there was nothing to hide in that head of his, no deep political secret, no plan to destroy him or even guilt from a petty theft. Refreshing. That was the word. A sign of respect had become the tool of his enemies. Arthur ??s servant met his eyes like Morgana did, like Gaius did when his king wasn ??t temperamental.It made him stare harder.No, that was probably the wine. Uther ??s appetite had yet to return, not when he still couldn ??t sleep at night where his mind was free to imagine a world where no tincture had been discovered, no miracle cure had brought his son back to him, and he was left with only Arthur ??s colourless corpse. Wine on an empty stomach was even more potent than usual, especially with warm lights and his son up and about only a few feet away. It was almost enough to cause him to let his guard down. Almost.The boy recovered, eventually, after two half starts, and continued his duties , but Uther still stared. Now he was no longer pondering the string of lucky coincidences that had happened since Merlin had arrived. He was smiling thinly, talking with Morgana but watching over her curly, dark haired head.She noticed, of course. Morgana ??s eyes were as sharp as her temper and Uther found there was little he could keep from his ward. She managed to glance back just as the boy had plastered that pained smile, looking for all the world that he had seen Medusa and got himself turned to stone while trying to talk her out of killing him. It was much the same look from when the youth had attempted to get out of a flogging, with only the movement of the feathers to destroy the image. She looked back at him with an expression that was somewhere between humor and a threat, an expression she alone could get away with. If anyone else had attempted it, Uther would have been very, very sore instead, he was only slightly guilty, but Morgana didn ??t need to know that. ??You aren ??t looking at Merlin, are you? ? she asked politely, a wide smile on her face. So maybe there was more humor than threat than he had thought. And though he might consider her to be one of the few friends he had and the daughter he had never had, it was certainly out of her place to notice where his wandering eyes landed. He chuckled softly, taking another sip of wine instead of answering, but after that Merlin wasn ??t alone in being observed.And she was less subtle than her king. Well, if she was going to play at that game. Uther leaned back a little, gesturing for his own attendant. The middle aged man was average in every way, from his balding scalp to his softening belly, though he had a keen sense of his liege ??s thoughts Uther could trust him to be discreet. He turned his grey head towards the servant, murmuring. Whatever he had said earned a sharp nod but not even a glance in Arthur ??s direction. Uther rested the fingers of his left, and whole, hand on base of his goblet, thinking as he traced the designs of the base. Through the gloves, he couldn ??t feel the fine metal work. After an appropriate amount of time, he glanced up, face void of any emotion besides a faint, magnanimous smile. Arthur was looking at him, staring hard and past his man ??s shoulder. Then, he remembered himself, answered and sent his father ??s servant away and gestured for Merlin.If Uther had been paying attention, he would have noticed the faint smile that danced on Morgana ??s lips as she looked down to her own cup. One love |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin felt as though he had been anchored to the spot at one point he even told himself that he should look away because staring was impolite, but he found himself encountering immense difficulty when it came to breaking eye contact with the King. He was sure there was a rule about this sort of thing, too, that it could be considered disrespectful the thought of winding up in the stocks again nearly had Merlin breaking the strange trance he had fallen under, but then then Morgana had turned round.A good sight gentler and much kinder than her mentor, Morgana affixed Merlin with her bright eyed gaze and left the warlock's eyes bouncing between the pair, worry beginning to dig a divet between his eyebrows.And it was when she turned away that Merlin finally managed to do the same he spun to face the opposite wall, not knowing what he was doing, just that focusing elsewhere was the best thing for him right then. Again, he aggressively forced his attentions onto the guests, and for several minutes he managed to immerse himself in his work of which there was plenty, as Camelot's wealthiest and most influential consistently managed to have no end of complaints and demands before he caught sight of the king's attendant speaking in low tones to Arthur.There was a long pause, and Merlin was unable to help noticing the way the prince turned to give his father one long, hard look and then Arthur turned to him, and crooked a beckoning finger. Merlin approached, and leaned down to hear the feather fell into Arthur's face and caused the prince to swat irritably at it."Yes? What is it?" Merlin asked, barely able to keep the anxiety from his voice. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Arthur poked the tip of his tongue behind his molars then forward along the bump of teeth, the last remains of a childhood habit that left him puffing out his cheeks in frustration when dealing with his father. Talking back even then had been forbidden, something that he had instilled in him since he could form the word ??no ??, but even that tick had earned a sound smack on the side of his head when the king caught him.Ah. Memories. ??The king wishes for you to attend to him tonight. ? The way Arthur said it was the same tone of voice he might have used if Uther ??s suggestion had been for him to pull on one of Morgana ??s more revealing dresses and dance in front of his knights. Damn him. Merlin was almost, almost a friend and his father had ? ??The only night, I wager. Once you manage to wrench his shoulder out of the socket with your clumsy fingers, he ??ll regret even having the idea, ? he added dismissively. His blonde head turned back to his father ??s for a moment, taking in the king. Unevenly colored eyes were moving between Morgana and Merlin, though heavy on the Merlin part and there was the slightest slouch to his father ??s shoulders that told him the man was the closest to relaxed he would ever be in public. Looked like he wasn ??t the only one enjoying his wake.A dangerous night for Merlin. What had Morgana said to start this sort of game? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | It wasn't what Merlin had been expecting suddenly he wished he was being sent to the Pillory, because if the order wasn't life threatening enough, Arthur's tone added to the sheer terror of it."Attend to him?" Merlin repeated stupidly he straightened up and glanced around the wide room until his eyes settled on the king's servant, and then he leaned in again, "But the kinghasa personal attendant."Arthur turned only slightly and raised a blonde eyebrow at him,"Are you refusing?" he asked, and his voice was lined with challenge and for an instant, Merlin thought, a touch of hope, though he couldn't say why.It was a fair question: was he refusing the king's request? Of course, it was only called a request as a matter of phrasing the truth was that no one in their right mind would actually try to turn it down, on account of the king's tendency to lob off heads and light fire to people on a regular basis. Merlin liked his head where it was, most of the time.Again, Merlin's eyes wandered to the head table, but this time it was only a sparing glance that had him grimacing and looking quickly back to the prince."No?" Merlin said finally, and Arthur simply nodded into his wine glass Merlin continued to watch him."Well?" Arthur asked."What?" Merlin asked, and the prince rolled his eyes dramatically before shoving his goblet out."Fill it." |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Uther knew he had lost in some way.The night was winding down, the purpose of the evening ??s festivities served. Arthur had presented himself, enjoyed himself and Uther had enjoyed watching his son be alive and well. For most of Camelot ??s elite, seeing their prince drinking and laughing at the best of them would be enough to put the whole horrible business of his almost death behind them.The father needed a little more. A distraction. Merlin was either terribly dim or terribly smart. He would figure that out himself, most likely with both him and the boy fully dressed, no matter what Arthur thought the purpose of his request was. After all, while sex was interesting, he was not a young man he knew there were better things to do with partners than simply tumble them.Perhaps that wasn ??t age. Uther had always been fond of cat and mouse games. Staring was just the beginning.He hadn ??t even needed to send Will away the man knew his wishes like they were the servant ??s own. Uther stood in his bedroom later that night, pouring himself a glass of water. Hopefully, Arthur had explained the request in simple enough words that his manservant wouldn ??t confuse what was being asked of him and end up mucking the stables. Though, he thought, snorting softly as he picked up the cup, the youth hadn ??t been pelted with rotten food lately. It was almost a shame. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin spent the rest of his evening desperately trying to keep his eyes averted, because even though the request had been a simple and straight forward one, the warlock's interacton with the king had been limited to the worst possible moments. Each time they had been in the same room, the king had either been raging, vying to have someone's head lobbed off, or was too relieved to actuallynoticehim, which Merlin had quite liked.Granted, on one occasion he had got a bit closer to the king than he might of liked to, but the presence of another sorcerer and his intention to effectively put an end to Uther Pendragon's reign via a flesh eating insect had made things a bit urgent. He could remember quite clearly how vulnerable the king had appeared right then, too dressed only in dark linens and motionless on the bed he had stopped looking like an angry, imperial statue and had started looking very human indeed.He had used magic then, right under the king's nose he had used it but even Gaius had conceeded it was the thing to do, because their options had rapidly run out. He had initially worried that the king might have remembered his voice speaking the spell or thought that he might open his eyes just in time to see Merlin's eyes flash gold and would sit up and strangle him to death right upon awakening but it never happened. In fact, the king seemed unaware that he had even been present at the time, and they had explained away the removal of the insect as being some medical method that Gaius had developed.The death of the sorcerer had been a bit easier to explain, of course, what with the axe in his face and all. No one had believed Merlin had done it, so both he and Gaius had explained it away as an unfortunate series of events that had begun with the warlock tripping and ended with Edwin getting a head full of sharpened metal.People had been much more willing to accept that version of the events, which was actually a little insulting, but as long as it kept people from getting suspicious, then Merlin could easily deal with a few blows to his ego because it kept the blows away from his neck.And save for a moment of clarity just before the king had been going to what he believed was his death when about to fight the black knight, Merlin had managed to keep the man from reallyseeinghim.And now, on what seemed to be a whim, he was asking Merlin to attend to him for an evening it was too out of place for him not to be nervous about it and the whole thing left the warlock wondering if he was walking into some sort of trap. Did the king suspect him?Gaius eyed him with slightly inebriated concern at the end of the party and placed a grizzled hand on his thin shoulder,"Just stay calm." Gaius said firmly, "And don't do anything "There was a long hesitation as the physician waved his hand vaguely and searched for the proper word he finished with a very succinct:" stupid."They weren't the most encouraging words and especially not when he was trudging alone up to the king's quarters still wearing the ridiculous mascot's uniform. Outside the door, he fidgeted for a moment and wondered if he was supposed to knock first he might look ridiculous if he did, but then he might also interrupt something and so he decided it would be for the best. He rapped his knuckles twice against the thick, solid, carved door and then heaved it open enough to slip inside so that was to say, he didn't need to open it much at all.Practically flattened up against the door, Merlin twisted his fingers into the hem of his tunic when he spotted the king, and he offered a brittle smile before he remembered to bow and after he forgot to downcast his eyes."Sire?" Merlin said, "I was told you requestedme?" |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Uther was currently going through his second cup of water, knowing that any sort of headache or malaise would turn his mood sour tomorrow, ruining what he considered was a good record with Morgana these last few days. Not that he particularly enjoyed his ward ??s ability to make him feel awful with one look, but he had killed her maid ??s father on such a weak reason and he had promised to try and avoid such things in the future. After Igraine and Morgana ??s own father and his dear friend, Gorlois, had died, there had been precious few willing to keep his temper in check. He was terribly grateful to her, his foster daughter who had managed to grow up into a beautiful and strong woman even under his care, but he couldn ??t help feeling a bit like a child when her brow furrowed at him.Kings, he was sure, should not feel browbeaten by their own wards.Nor tricked. He had seen a playful little curving Morgana ??s mouth as she spoke with her maid in hushed tones. The two of them, Morgana ??s girl attempting to be subtle and Morgana doing no such thing, had cast glances in his direction as he had left, and Uther was so certain that he was playing into some evil scheme of hers that he wanted to go over and shake her till it rattled out. Unfortunately, he had noreasonto. This was a game, no matter what, and harmless, he just hated secrets.The two knocks, quick in succession and practically swallowed up by the heavy wood of his door, pulled him out of his never ending, always futile attempt to understand the female brain. Uther turned his head over his shoulder to see a thin puff of red slipping into his room ah, Merlin. ??I did, ? he said simply, focusing back on his water, back straight and facing the boy. ??I never thanked you for promising to take care of Arthur, ? he added, starting simply. Uther was perhaps not the best gift giver, as his last major present to the boy had been to assign him to his own son and this time it seemed he was rewarding with his own company. He glanced back again, unable to fully ignore those feathers trailing from the boy ??s hat. ??Come here, boy, ? he said, voice gentler than ??kitten eating evil ?? but much worse than the sort mothers used on their ??special boys ??. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin stared.He stared because he was standing opposite to the king, had been in the room for over a minute, and he still had his head in place and as far as he could tell, the king wasn't preparing to set him on fire either.Though the man's back was facing him and there was a stiffness in his posture, there was no mistaking the words Uther Pendragon had justthankedhim.Suddenly Merlin felt as though the world had been flipped upside down because everything he knew about the king told him that this sort of thing just wasn't normal and that made Merlin just a little more paranoid about the whole thing.He was sure that he should respond somehow, that maybe he should tell the king that he lived to serve, or was doing his duty to Camelot some generic loyal subject statement, but he was unable to get the words out of his suddenly too tight throat. When Uther peered back at him, a strange, tiny squeaking noise escaped him there was a moment's hesitation, and then his feet began to move him forward as he carefully obeyed the king's surprisingly gentle command.He approached the way one might approach a very large and angry bear that was to say, with the full expectation that he was about to die a painful, messy death and seemed suddenly incapable of actually blinking.Merlin told himself this was ridiculous he shouldn't be so nervous, because because he was a warlock, wasn't he? He coulddo things.Of course, the consequences of using his magic on the king he didn't want to think about those, not just because of what it would mean for his own life, but what it would mean for Gaius, who had known what he was from the very beginning, who had beengroominghim to become a powerful sorcerer, going as far as providing him with text to do so. He couldn't risk Gaius.He edged as close as he would dare, stopping roughly two feet away from the king, eyes affixed on him and the hat tilting very slightly, feathers drooping forwards and ears sticking out ridiculously. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | It was the feathers that had started this whole mess. Arthur might give him a dirty look for inviting his manservant into his bedroom, but it was the boy ??s own fault. Those silly feathers combined with the servant ??s own big ears and bright, nervous smile triggered a predator response in Uther, something like dangling a large and exciting mouse in front of a cat.A mouse that was covered in feathers, gold thread and a smile that seemed like it would crack into a look of total horror at any moment.Really, what did Arthur expect?He seemed almost to circle Uther as he came near, footsteps light and hesitant as if he were expecting the king to pull out his sword and stab him where he stood, gaudy outfit and all.Uther set the goblet down gently, just the slightest sound of plain metal on wood as he turned. ??Oh, come now, boy, ? he scoffed, closing his eyes momentarily as his face scrunched up in a look of disbelief. ??I ??m not going to eat you. ? Not yet, at least.Gloved fingers, his left as always, reached out as he took a lazy step forward. The tips brushed along the drooping feather and Uther had the silliest urge to twist it like girls playing jump rope. The wine. ??This hat is too big for you. ? It seemed the damned thing was only hanging on not by a thread but by ears. The king kept his face mostly expressionless as he added, "It's fetching," though that wasn't quite the word he thought would apply to a bundle of red fabric and obnoxiously colored plumes. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | His own footsteps seemed remarkably loud in the otherwise silent room, and he could hear the slight shuffle of his shoe's heel every time he brought his right foot forward it made him feel clumsy, knowing that the king would be able to hear every footfall.He might have given the king a wide berth as he came around to him and didn't quite settle in front of him, but rather on an angle like some sort of strategic defense position though, really, Merlin was painfully aware of the fact that if the king chose to attack him, he would have little actual defense, save for the sort of defense where he ran very, very fast. He had seen the king fight before twice in fact, once in battle with the black knight, and once while rolling across the plains like an animal, fighting for his life against his potential assassin.It wasn't the sort of position Merlin ever wanted to find himself in, and would do his very best to keep himself out of it.He watched annoyance ghost across the king's face at his hesitancy and Merlin shuffled forward just a little more, unsure of what he was getting into. His eyes watched the king's gloved hand as it rose up towards him and leather encased fingers touched at one of the longest plumes, his expression disturbingly blank while Merlin's was an openly astonished one."Fetching?" Merlin repeated dumbly, because it wasn't exactly what he had thought when he had first seen the thing even after wearing it twice, he couldn't bring himself to associate that particular word with the glengarry. The only real possibility was that the king was having a laugh, so Merlin's brittle smile remained firmly in place,"The prince has unique taste, my lord." Merlin ventured, twisting at his own sleeve before adding with a touch of dryness, "And an unparalleled sense of humour." |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | If one had only seen Merlin ??s face, his wide eyed look of surprise and the slightly opened mouth, they might have assumed that Uther had suddenly turned into a pile of robed kittens or a blathering idiot, whichever was more absurd. One thin eyebrow arched as the boy parroted him, frightening him with the idea that the boy was just as stupid as he appeared to be most of the time and those moments of intelligence were accidental, that he kept his eyes level with the king ??s because he was too dim to do anything else.Because the boy was still looking at him, with those lovely blue eyes wide in his young face. It would be a shame if the boy was simply an idiot, because he liked to think that there was a bright light of intelligence sparking around in those eyes, not the frantic desperation of a complete fool. ??Yes, that he does, ? Uther agreed, favouring the boy with an honest smile in an attempt to make him spontaneously combust from nerves. Stupid or not, he could still have his fun. He pressed the tip of the feather along distinct and high cheekbones, reminded of his earlier musings on the boy ??s looks. Pretty in pieces, just the presentation as a whole was lacking. ??I ??m afraid it is his mother ??s. ? There was the ghost of pain in his heart, like the twinge of pain from his shoulder when the weather got too cold, at the mention of Arthur ??s mother, but the outfit was something Igraine would have approved of. Feathers, bright colors and a squirming child of course, it would have been her own or maybe her king if she could bully him into such things in private.Uther didn ??t want to think about how sadly easy it would have been for her to do such. He had been unable to deny her nothing.Instead, he stepped back, taking the hat with him. ??Tend to the fire, ? he said with nary a ??please ?? in earshot, examining the stolen hat thoughtfully. It had been a matter of safety, to remove the thing before Merlin started his work. The last thing he wanted was for the delightful thing to go up in flames.Oh, and Merlin, too. That would be bad. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | The king was smiling at him.Merlin's eyes went slightly glazed at the concept as a rule, the king didn't smile at much of anyone, for any reason. Even during the times where the king should by all rights be happy, he tended not to smile instead, he kept the same hard expression, kept the same stiff posture, and spoke in the same dry, indifferent tone. It was only in private, it seemed, that the king allowed himself to be human, save for the moment he had broken down in the town square with his dying son in his arms.That was an image Merlin wouldn't easily forget, because it had broken his already too tender heart.Though, Merlin decided, perhaps he simply wasn't observing closely enough the king's mention of his late wife had come with a slight creasing at the corners of his eyes, a movement that deepened the lines there and made him look just a little bit older.The king stepped away from him, dragging the hat along, and Merlin stood there for a moment looking stunned, his dark hair sticking up at strange angles after being mussed by the action then, when the order finally got through to him he moved to the fireplace and knelt at the hearth, down on one knee with the other long, gangly leg bent off to the side, only adding to the appearance of some bizarre and gawky crimson bird.The fire was lit, Merlin simply added to the tinder to make sure it stayed that way as he gazed into the flames and watched them grow, there came a distant whisper.Merlin.And it was so sudden that he jerked his head up and nearly connected it with the hearthstone, but steadied himself.Merlin.The dragon couldn't have picked a worse time Merlin did his best to put his mind back on where he was, but since he was in the same room as the king, that provided him with little comfort. Words slipped from him in an attempt to distract himself, and he didn't think about why he was saying them:"She must have been quite young, sire you as well." he said. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Oh, dear. It seemed the child had landed in front of the fire, looking like one of those long legged birds in Gaius ?? books. Ahstridge, or something, but he remembered them being distinctly sombered colored, not like this boy currently fighting with his fire.It had been a good idea to take the hat, Uther thought as he watched the poor boy nearly crack his head open on the stone. Fluff like that had would have gone up in a ball of flames, which might have cost the boy his pretty face or head, but would have given Uther a well needed chuckle.He stiffened, muscles taking on the rigidity they always did when Igraine entered the conversation, but instead of exploding he agreed evenly, ??That we were. ? Very young. And very stupid. To think that magic was a good thing, to be used to help ? Well, growing old came with knowledge, not just pain. His fingers traced along the spine of the longest feather, details lost to the gloves. ??Arthur ??s very much like her. ? Of which he was glad. She had a more even temper and a better idea of compassion than her husband.Sometimes, he still felt lost without her. ??Have you managed that fire yet, ? he asked, setting the hat down on the dark table. Unlike Merlin, Uther managed not to be swallowed up in the large spaces and heavy furniture. ??I would like to get ready for bed while it ??s still dark. ? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin prodded the flames with an intricate cast iron poker, shoving back errant coals before he rose fully, brushing his hands together and then rubbing at his cheek with the back of his hand, somehow managing to streak a thick line of soot across his cheekbone. He considered that Arthur must have been like his mother, because the similarities between him and his father seemed to end at the warrior's mentality, and divide when it came to things like compassion and anger management."Then she was an extraordinary person." Merlin said with painful earnesty as much of a brat as Arthur could be, he couldn't deny that he saw something promising in the prince, something strong and reliable, and it just needed to be cultured like a particularly touchy little plant he needed to be encouraged, was all. And Merlin was sure that he could be very encouraging.The sound of the king's dry remark had him turn around to face him again,"Yes, sire." Merlin said hurriedly, "It's done and still dark. My lord." |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Unfortunately, Uther had earned himself an outside conscience regarding his anger where Arthur had been lucky to have the bad example of his father to grow his own internal one. He doubted it sounded like Morgana she was capable of driving the boy up a wall in a different way than she did her guardian. One day, he hoped they'd be happily married he could think of no better way to honor Gorlios' memory than to make his daughter a queen of a peaceful and prosperous nation. The one he had helped build with his own sweat and voice and, finally, his own blood."Then she was an extraordinary person."Uther swallowed, his mouth having gone dry suddenly. Talk of Igraine should have sent him flying off into a dark rage the last time she had been mentioned had been connected to that nasty business with Nimueh and he still remembered his anger at seeing her again, hearing Gaius talk about that night. But he allowed it, because the youth seemed to mean no harm. ??Yes, ? he agreed softly, barely above a whisper. ??Very extraordinary. ? It was strangely sweet to hear the boy praising both his son and his wife in one breath, all without a hint of guile.And then, because Pendragon men did not believe in emotions, Uther nodded, the idea of thanking Merlin not even getting a half hearted run through his mind. ??Help me undress. ? He was already working at the right bracer but the left always gave him trouble. ??Make sure there is enough wood in the fire for it to last the night, then you may leave. ? Uther smiled thinly, imaging Arthur ??s face when he examined Merlin and found no traces of a not so secret tryst. Confusion, distrust and then a return to the normal, haughty look his son practiced as a companion to his own aloofness. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin rubbed his hand against his cheek again, and managed to smear some of the soot over the end of his nose, giving him the appearance of a particularly scrawny and undaunting warrior preparing for battle in crimson tights.The king's whispered reply was enough for Merlin to know that he should likely allow the subject to fade away and he did so before the next command came he had, of course, helped Arthur to dress and undress many times before, it simply came with the job and there had never been any real discomfort about it all, save for perhaps the very first time when he had nearly put Arthur's mail on backwards. This, of course, was completely different because well, he was dealing with the king, not Arthur.Again, he approached the king with caution and came around to his front his eyes dropped to the king's hands, and he noted the man had easily unclipped his right bracer, but his fingers seemed to be stumbling with the left. For an instant, there was a flicker of curiosity on Merlin's face as he observed and then reached out the remove the second cuff before his hands made a journey upwards to unfasten the loops that held his cape to his shoulders, and he pulled the material away with care that defied Merlin's normally fumbling movements.For an instant, his eyes went up to look at the king's face, and then dropped immediately back down even Merlin had to admit it was just a little too close for any sort of eye contact.Affixing his face into the blankest expression he could manage, he tried to focus only on what he was doing he opened the dark leather hide overcoat that the king favoured on colder days, beginning to move it down the man's shoulders and leaving him wondering precisely how many more layers he was going to encounter. While the king was tall, he was not particularlybig, and the gradual removal of layers of metal and leather was somewhat bizarre he had seen the king in only his bedclothes when he had taken ill but at the time he hadn't been able to put so much consideration into the impressive amount of undressing it had taken to get him that way.With the cape still hanging over one arm and the overcoat joining it, Merlin's hands moved down to the king's waist and began to open the buckle of his belt he noted then that the king's sword was absent from his hip, and that observation caused the warlock's eyes to shift to the table, where he spotted the shining blade, laid out within the king's reach.Not the best thing to observe right then, and Merlin found himself fumbling with the links on the belt for a long moment before he was able to open it. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | So it appeared that stupidity was not Merlin ??s problem. The boy was properly afraid of him, approaching him like he was a mad dog and the manservant had tied a piece of meat to his neck. It wasn ??t entirely fair Uther had never really done anything frightening to the boy, outside of put him in the stocks for a day, but that was good fun all around. Even through his undershirt, awkwardly long fingers were surprisingly warm and, for once, nearly graceful as he undid the bracer.His face was an open book, not that Uther had expected anything different, and the older man saw light up with a curiosity that only faded once he had moved onto his cape. Again, long, slender fingers plucked along the string, managing to not even choke him. Uther was almost proud, his head falling back to give the boy ??s hands room to work. Every once and awhile, he could feel the heat from agile fingers, a quiet sort of pleasure the boy was probably not aware of. Uther managed to keep his breathing slow and even.For poor Merlin, Uther took the time to drop his head again at the exact moment the youth had decided to look up. Wine, exhaustion and the promise of bed left his mismatched eyes half lidded as he watched the manservant. It was so lucky that the boy had appeared, had saved his son and caught his eye. With the recent events in Camelot, Uther ??s interest in affairs had dropped off, understandably, and it was nice to feel the warmth from an unfamiliar body. Especially one that had such lovely blue eyes, like Igraine ??s, but different. Sometimes, when the light hit them right, there were flecks of gold in them.And the smudge of soot that was currently invading Merlin ??s face was endearing.Removing the heavy leather layer left him in mail and a soft undershirt to keep from getting pinched. Uther glanced down and paused in removing his own gloves to see a rather ? Endearing was not the word he would use to describe what Merlin was doing now. The boy was focused on his belt, of all places, fingers suddenly clumsy again as he fiddled with the leather and metal. Uther stared for a moment, a shadow of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips, then continued stripping off his gloves, the left first, then the right, pulled off by one of the empty fingers. ??Trouble, boy? ? he asked lowly, resting a bare hand on dark hair. Merlin ??s scalp was warm against his scalp, slightly damp from the heat of the feast and the silly hat. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Blasted thing.Merlin's expression was one of complete concentration, eyebrows furrowed very slightly and bottom lip pulled between his teeth as he focused on unbuckling the belt the metal links catching and refusing to budge open. It shouldn't be so complicated, it was just a belt but the warlock had found that his fingers were suddenly no longer obeying him, and though he didn't want to admit it to himself, it was because of that instant where he had made eye contact with the king. Again.He couldn't be sure what it was, but something about the man's eyes caused a shock of cold to go down Merlin's spine, a strange sensation like icy nails trailing over his nerves that caused him to lose his concentration every time. It was a disturbing feeling that was being made more apparent by the current proximity.The chill increased when he heard the king's voice, speaking up suddenly after several long minutes of silence, and Merlin stiffened for a moment when a hand laced into his hair at the same time as the belt came loose, and it hung pointlessly in his hand as he lifted his head to look at the king from under his palm, blue eyes wide and startled."Only a brief hitch, sire," Merlin said weakly he could feel the king's fingers on his scalp and he found himself surprised that the man was warm but, well, of course he was warm, he was alive after all. Merlin was aware of the ridiculousness of the thought that the king should be ice cold, but he had simply never been able to associate heat with the man before, save for when the topic of his temper was presented.But this this was a little strange, wasn't it?Or maybe it was normal. Maybe Arthur was just strange he couldn't be sure, especially when it came to royalty.Of course, with the king's left hand on his head, Merlin found an earlier thought returning to him, undeterred by the discomfort of the situation or maybe due to the discomfort of the situation and his eyes dropped to Uther's other hand, the one that had been having difficulty unlatching the bracer.The fingers of Uther Pendragon's right hand were slightly warped looking, and all of them save for the thumb were the same length. It wasn't something that anyone would notice with the gloves on, but now it was very apparent, and Merlin's expression suddenly turned to one of utter fascination.Of course, he then realized how it must have looked with him staring and, more importantly, not doing his job so he forced his eyes back,"Wouldn't have known with how you handle a sword, sire," Merlin said, voice filled with a brittle sort of cheer as he tried desperately to keep his mind off of the fingers in his hair as a solution, he dropped down suddenly to a crouch in front of the king, simultaneously putting himself away from the hand and allowing him to begin unlacing the king's boots. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Uther snorted lightly at Merlin ??s response, tossing the gloves to the table near his sword. A hitch indeed. Perhaps the boy had realized why he had asked for him up until now, it seemed that Arthur ??s servant had never developed a proper idea of what one did with an adult body. Completely oblivious to that sort of charm until his king had rested his fingers in his hair.Of course, Uther had to fight the urge to put pressure on the boy ??s head, to pull him forward so the soot stained tip of his nose was pressed against his belt. He ??d scare the poor boy off, leave him blathering somewhere or, worse, going to Morgana or Arthur. Or Gaius. Or all three. Uther wasn ??t a man to let others tell him what to do but sometimes, when every person he held close was telling him not to do something and giving him dirty looks he did feel, well,influenced.So instead of forcing the other ??s nose just a little closer, he sighed, calloused fingers rubbing slow circles into Merlin ??s scalp. It was ? nice. Nice to touch for a bit, without the leather.And when he convinced the boy into his bed, it would be nice to touch without armor as well. He would just have to be very patient. Merlin seemed skittish. ??I use my left hand, mostly, ? Uther responded coolly, as if most men had deformities. It was a bad omen his nurse had told him often that he was paying for his father ??s sins and that was why his hand had come out like that. He wasn ??t entirely sure if that was the cause, since Gaius, dear Gaius and his love of science, had told him it was simply a part of nature, but it had been rather traumatic for him as a child. He still didn ??t like it.He did, however, like Merlin crouching in front of him. Uther closed his eyes for a moment, letting the boy ??s head slip out from under his fingers. Oh, yes. This was very nice. ??Perhaps you should try your knees, ? he offered, ever helpful. ??Keep you from falling over. ? His fingers itched to tangle in that dark hair again andyank, hard, but that was too aggressive for the first evening. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin managed to keep a very precarious sort of balance on the balls of his feet as he crouched in front of Uther, fingers working at the mass of criss crossing laces and buckles to loosen the dark leather boots he noted that the king even had armor on the tops of his feet, which he supposed was good if he ever dropped anything on them.Actually, Merlin had a good mind to get a pair of those made up for himself.Encountering a particularly resistent length of lacing, Merlin ducked his head to focus, and nearly bumped into the king's thigh he supposed the suggestion was a good one, and tilted himself forward onto his knees. Merlin looked up then, and offered a bright and somewhat sheepish smile, his hair mussed ridiculously blue eyes slid back to the mangled hand,"I use my left as well," Merlin said conversationally he looked back down, moving to the right foot now and beginning on the binding there he glanced up again, "An elderly woman back in the village always said it was a sign that the devil was talking through you if you favour your left hand. She would cross herself when I passed, sometimes."The smile grew just a little more, crinkling the corners of Merlin's eyes,"Of course, then I got trampled by her sows, sire, and she told me that the devil must have more self respect than that." |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | No, no proper understanding of what adult bodies were for at all. He could feel warmth even through the thick leather of his pants, glad, for a moment, that the servant hadn ??t managed to get his tousled hair stuck in the links of his mail. That would be just a little too close for him and in an awkward way he wouldn ??t enjoy.Uther found himself smiling thinly in response to the boy ??s own heartbreakingly open one. It was more of a smile than he generally gave to servants, the sort limited only towards free men. After all, the king didn ??t have the time to even notice most serving men and women until he had a need for them or they turned traitor. That he remembered Merlin ??s name at all was something he felt the boy should be grateful for."I am surprised," he said dryly, rubbing his wrists where the bracers had left a slight indention. "I would have thought it would be more difficult to get you on your knees."Talkative thing, though. His own attendant would have been finished by now without saying a word. Not that he was complaining, no, it was almost a pleasure to listen to him babble on. ??Yes, I heard much the same thing, ? he said gently, unsure if he was more attracted by the youth on his knees, his face flushed and his form still accented with the silly outfit Arthur had picked out for him, or if he enjoyed the oblivious smiles and chatter. It wasn ??t often that Uther got chattered at in fact, the last time it had happened, Morgana had been a very young girl. Sometime after that, she had found that she preferred the female company of her maid and Uther almost missed the inane gossip and stories.That was the problem of being king. He was expected to be above everyone at all times, if not by his subjects then by himself. There were a lot of little details of life he was never informed of. ??And Arthur? ? he asked, gesturing for Merlin to stand. He would take the boots off himself when he got to bed instead of subjecting his feet to the cold of stone floors. "He does treat you right?" he added, trying to hide the truth, that he knew little of Arthur's personal life and that he was sounding Merlin for more. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin's smile remained firmly in place as he looked up at Uther but there was a moment of stillness, a fraction of a second where his brows knitted in question at the king's remark before glancing down to his knees as though trying to figure out exactly what had brought it about. For a moment he considered asking if he had been somehow difficult, but then the king was smoothly moving on, leaving the warlock to puzzle over the comment as he rose again,"Yes sire." Merlin said carefully it wasn't untrue, really Arthur treated him decently sometimes, so he could say that meant the prince was treating him 'right' when he wasn't overworking him or beating him half to death out in the square so he could hone his sword fighting skills, of course. Merlin had taken the optimistic route on the matter anyways he hadn't died yet, he had decided, so he could only be getting stronger each time. Though already quite sure he could take him on in a battle of wits, Merlin held onto the hope that one day he would best the prince in a sword fight without the use of magic, of course.And sometimes, once he got past the obnoxiousness and self interest that constantly radiated from the fair haired prince, sometimes Arthur was even friendly. Sometimes they were even surprised by how well they got along, though neither of them really said anything about it, it had been quite clear on the day that the prince had appeared to help him defend his little village it wasn't something royalty did for a servant. It was, however, something that one did for a friend."He treats me well." Merlin added earnestly, trailing over to the fire once more to follow the second order he had been giving he carefully stacked the flame to keep it going for the night, and turned back to the king. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | ??I expected that, ? Uther said, voice warm with something that was like pleasure. Oh, he thought it was beneath him to be friends with a servant as his son seemed to be, his pride rarely took it , but he liked to hear that his boy was good, fair to his manservant. He ??d be a good king for peace times one day.Not yet, of course. Uther still had, for the sake of his son, a few good years in him left, to give him time to learn more and grow a little older. Youth was dangerous, youth and power more so.Mismatched eyes remained on the youth as he wandered over to the fire, his own clothes just as bright. Obnoxiously colored tights accented the slim muscles in his lanky limbs, and Uther enjoyed simply watching. The boy was a funny little thing, but Uther could see how Arthur had grown fond of him, why he had run off to help that little farming village outside their borders. It was hard not to like a young man that smiled like that, all in the eyes without even a hint of censure, even in front of the king. ??Mail, boy, ? he reminded gently, the fingers of his left hand tapping against the edge of the table. Oh, he could remove it himself easily, nothing like the bracer which gave him pause, but having the lad ??s fingers pluck along his torso would be a blessing in its own. He smiled again, that same thin, reserved thing that seemed to have no place in a face as lined and hard as his own. ??And then you are free to return to Gaius. ? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | It had, of course, occurred to Merlin before, how silly he must look wandering back and forth between the fire and the king especially while dressed in the gaudy crimson uniform but the warlock had long ago learned to take things in stride and had thus also learned the fine art of ignoring the niggling voice that was his pride. It was a simple and humble view on life that allowed Merlin to be repeatedly put into the pillory with a stupid grin on his face and to nod and accept it with good humour whenever sour words were thrown in his direction which seemed to happen more often in Camelot then it did in the village.Merlin returned to the king's side then and he reached out for the end links of the chainmail it had taken him a few tries to figure out how to maneuver the mail off of Arthur in the beginning, but after pinching his fingers in the loops enough times, he had learned a way to quickly remove the blasted thing. Gathering the edge onto his fingers, Merlin began to slide his hands up to lift the mail up and as he did so, it struck him that he could feel the king's torso against his knuckles and he found himself acknowledging how surprisingly solid the man was of course, the king was a warrior. It was a fact that Merlin had never forgotten, but it seemed more relevant right then when he could feel the decades of work through the thin material of the shirt underneath.He made it up to pectoral height before he met the king's eyes again he needed him to raise his arms, of course, to remove the chainmail, but making a request of the king seemed strange."Arms up, please, sire?" he tried, because really, he wasn't so clear on the rules for this sort of thing. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin ??s knuckles skimmed along his skin, causing him to close his eyes again. And, again, the boy had no idea of the effect he was having on the older man.It had been a very, very long time since he had the luxury of time.He was enjoying the light touches so much that he forgot to raise his arms for the dark haired boy currently and unknowingly making his muscles quiver. There was something to be said for slow, subtle touches, even if the other half had no idea of his pleasure. Ah, well. Uther ??s eyes fluttered open, taking in the boy ??s bright blue eyes and lifting his arms as asked.It was a shame, such a shame, that the young man didn ??t understand what Uther was hinting out in his smiles and his wandering fingers. Once the mail was off, the king acted more overtly interested. His long fingers, the ones that had been resting on the wood, traced along the boy ??s cheekbones while his hands were full of mail. A terrible shame he would have liked to make those pale lips the same color as his costume. ??I will ask for you again later in the week, ? he said, no sound of hesitation in his voice: after all, what the king said, happened, or heads rolled. Fingers calloused with too much use traced along the shell of one of those ridiculously huge ears and the king smiled. ??Do watch Arthur for me. I like to know he has a loyal set of hands and eyes, if not agile ones. ? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | At some point during the process, the king's eyes had fallen shut, and Merlin quietly regarded the other man for a long moment as he stood motionless with his chainmail up around his chest and the warlock had to admit, right then, he looked uncharacteristically peaceful. For a time, he wondered what the king was thinking about to bring about the placid expression, but then he was lifting his arms and allowing Merlin to clumsily finish the job of stripping away the chainmail. Like Arthur's, the mail felt heavy but the piece in his hands was dull looking, it no longer held the glimmering silver of recently made armor, but rather the grey hue of something careworn, something that had been around for a long time and had undergone abuse and foul weather.He wondered if the king had ever fought in the mail he was holding.Eyes were open again, and Merlin had just been sorting out the armor when he felt warmth on his face his eyes darted up and he discovered that the king's hand had reached for him, and fingertips were stroking down his cheekbone with great care."Sire?" Merlin asked, but if there was more to the question, it didn't make it out into the open instead, Merlin could only stare at the king because his voice failed him when the fingers moved to run over the ridges of his right ear, a motion that immediately had the warlock's eyes going just a touch too wide before he took a few steps back, nodding his head in stunned agreement."Yes sire. I'll " Merlin said, searching for words and only able to finish with a lame:" i'll do that."And then he was leaving the king's chambers as hastily as he could manage without actually running from him he moved through the castle grounds and into the spire where the castle's physician would undoubtedly be fast asleep by now, working off the effects of the celebration. Merlin managed to make it to his own quarters without knocking anything over and he sat down on the edge of his bed and stared grimly at the blank wall opposite him.The king had been touching him if he thought about it, he could still feel the fingertips against his ear, and it caused him to lean his head off to the side, rubbing the shell of his ear against his shoulder like he had a bad itch. He wasn't sure what had just happened, aside from that singular fact the king had been touching him, very gently, and telling him to watch Arthur. It left Merlin wondering what he had done or what he had missed, wondering if maybe there was some sort of code that he wasn't familiar with that the king had been trying to communicate to him.Or maybe he had been testing him, or trying to make him nervous? That was possible after all, wasn't it?Merlin frowned it wasn't a terribly common expression for him but he did it anyways and then laid back on his bed to stare at the ceiling instead, trying to work it out in his head.Unfortunately, he didn't get too far it was late and as it turned out, Merlin was far more tired than he had initially believed he fell asleep, red tights and all. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | The morning air was sharp in his nostrils, carrying the smell of grass and metal. It was a lovely, crisp autumn morning, the sort that was cold but not too cold, especially with layers of cloth and mail. Light from a sun that hadn ??t fully risen yet was diffuse, though that would change shortly. Arthur took a moment, arms akimbo, his gloved fists pressing into his hips, to take in the peaceful, beautiful morning, the way the training field was laid out in perfect order. One of his knights stepped past him, clapping a hand on his shoulder.Time to go wreak loud, sweaty chaos.There was something about being with a group of men that got into Arthur ??s skin. He wasn ??t quite sure what it was: he was just a little louder , puffed out his chest a little more and tortured the servants just a little more. It was all in good fun, at least, that ??s what he told himself after commanding Merlin to pull on mail and pick up a sword.Besides, after that time in the village, Merlin should be thanking him for giving him a few pointers. Unfortunately, those pointers usually came when he had the tip of his sword against his chest.Maybe that ??s where the name came from.He certainly wasn ??t holding a grudge, no, not at all, even if Merlin, who he thought was his friend , was keeping something from him. Arthur was a prince, above such petty things. And if Merlin found himself in armor instead of at the sidelines more often, well, it was just a matter of coincidence.And something about being with a group of men, all laughing and jostling each other, made him smile to his manservant. ??Merlin! ? he called, gesturing over with an apathetic flip of hand. ??You ??ll be helping me warm up. ? At the edge of his vision, he saw flash of red. That wasn ??t entirely surprising, being that red was one of the colors of Camelot ??s crest, but this one had a certain, familiar movement to it. Arthur turned his golden head that way, seeing, as he had expected, his father making his way down to the training grounds, and his smile spread. Perfect. Maybe if Merlin made a fool of himself , his father would give up on whatever he had planned for his friend.Arthur had a guess, a cold, skeletal thing that sent shivers down his spine, that whatever Merlin was keeping from him, he wanted to keep from the king. Putting the two together more often was a good way to get whatever he was hiding discovered. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin had seen it coming, of course Arthur tended to get a certain look on his face and a very particular tone to his voice on the days when he was eager to hit one thing with another thing. He had become used to the expression just as he had become used to being dragged out to the fields, armed, and told to move around a bit some days, the prince would bring along his men, and that generally meant that the warlock was going to be hit harder than usual. Something about being around the other knights caused Arthur's aggression to increase two fold and Merlin could only assume it was the urge to prove his worth, to make it clear why he would one day be directing them even royalty had low self esteem days, he supposed.Of course, that never eased the soreness that Merlin would inevitably feel the next day after being tossed around and battered by Arthur, but at the very least he was becoming more practised and familiar with the movements each time they did this he had come to memorize the other man's movements, the way he swung and held his sword, and the spots he favoured hitting. As a result, Merlin had begun to develop muscular reactions in an attempt to avoid each strike, and each time he was getting just a little closer to actually having it get called a battle, rather than a slaughter. He had yet to land a blow on the prince, but he held onto the idea that one day soon, he would manage to do so, and perhaps he would even earn a mite of respect from him in the process.Weighed down by the chainmail and looking vaguely like a man going to the chopping block, Merlin stepped forward from the line, but he had been expecting it anyways he didn't get put into armor just to stand around and watch, after all."Warm up is what we're calling it now, is it?" Merlin asked, tilting on his helmet and dragging his sword along the ground behind him as he stood out in front of Arthur he noted that the prince was temporarily distracted, and a quick look through the visor of the helmet told Merlin that the king was present, and he felt his stomach twist suddenly and strangely.He couldn't recall seeing the king during practise before but then, Arthur had to have gotten his aggression from somewhere, so it was only natural that the king would enjoy watching this sort of thing, especially if he had any sort of idea what kind of a fight it was going to be that was to say, the sort where the one side was pathetically skinny and utterly useless with a blade.He forced himself not to look at the king a second time, instead focusing on Arthur and grimly wondering if this meant the prince would hit him even harder. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Uther had come alone and crownless.Arthur would understand that gesture, must have, because it meant this wasn ??t quite a king and his subject ??s interaction, but father and son. The two were pretty poor at the latter, but the father tried. Sometimes. He himself had never quite learned how to be a good father and sometimes the young man in front of him, with the cocky smile that reminded him of his own when he was young, was a stranger.The need to prove himself, though, to his father, his king and his men, was not strange at all. That he could share with his son.That, and the joy of watching a seasoned fighter tear into a complete amateur.Uther leaned forward, his forearms against the old wood of the fence between spectators and fighters. His son was the center of attention on the verdant grass, laughing with his knights as his manservant stepped forward. The boy was a sapling, a spiney weed compared to his son and his knights, all ears and legs and awkward motion. Some dark, cruel thing in him, the part that never got a chance to see the light of day now that he no longer saw battle, chuckled in anticipation and he smiled, running the tip of his tongue along his teeth.A pleasure, indeed. ??Indeed. ? Arthur rolled his shoulders back, making sure his father could see exactly how healed he was after all, neither Pendragon wanted to show weakness. Uther himself would be horrified if Arthur should know that he had cried over him and, as far as he was aware, no one was foolish enough to mention the escapade. ??I figure you might have a better chance, Merlin. I ??m still a bit weak. ? He glanced back, catching Uther ??s eye. ??Maybe you ??ll last long enough that I won ??t have to stretch after this. ? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Though the king had said nothing, Merlin could still feel the man's presence like a cold chill that had set itself directly into his spine it left him straightening up more than usual, arching his shoulders in an attempt to shake off the feeling, but finding it refused to fade. The overall effect was that Merlin felt more uncomfortable with the situation than usual not only was he outmatched by a fighter with years more skill than he had after all, Merlin had been handling rakes and shovels when Arthur had been using bows and swords but the king was also present.He was, of course, there to watch Arthur that was what father's were meant to do, pay attention to their sons and share common interests, even if the common interest happened to be beating him half to stupidity.Merlin nearly sighed behind the helmet, but managed to hold it in as he watched Arthur roll his shoulder and prepare himself to begin the beating just as Merlin mentally prepared himself for the same thing he wasn't about to fool himself into believing that any physical preparation beforehand would make him any more capable of fighting Arthur. He would probably hurt himself trying to stretch out in chainmail anyways.The warlock's mind went through a series of possible responses in an instant, several of which were sarcastic or even mildly insulting, and it was followed up by a brief moment of considering his magic just so he could knock Arthur over once or twice and make it abundantly clear that he wasn't so useless as all that but they were all thoughts that he squashed before they could ever be considered being made a reality.So Merlin continued to follow Gaius' sound advice he didn't do anything stupid. Instead, he remained silent, standing at the ready or as ready as he could be, given his reedy form and inexperience with this sort of thing. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Slaughter was a wonderful name for what Arthur did to his manservant.The boy lasted maybe ten seconds, from Arthur ??s first move to on his back. He should have been on his back in the first few strikes, every one of them a perfect mix of power and grace , but Arthur had been toying with him, drawing the massacre out and only cutting the thread of battle when he was good and ready.For his part, Merlin did surprisingly well. Arthur hit hard: terrible, shocking blows that must have sent the energy up into the boy ??s arms to rattle the bones, but he hadn ??t dropped his sword. It wasn ??t fair, really. Not only did the boys differ so much in training but his son was a stronger, sturdier build. Watching his boy take down someone so totally was a good way for him to start his day. ??Good, Arthur, ? he said, a hint of something that was almost warm in his tone. The shade of affection made his son duck his golden head, hair so much like Igraine ??s brushing across his forehead. Arthur hadn ??t even broke a sweat. ??But you must be careful to not underestimate your opponent. Men like your manservant can be very fast, even for you. ? He rather thought the advice was given gently, but Arthur did that annoying little tic he had tried to beat out of him, chewing on his tongue as he bowed with a ??yes, sire ??. ??Perhaps you should join us, sire, ? he added, almost challenging, but not quite. Uther smiled, a thin, crooked thing. ??It would be good for us to see an older warrior fight. ? Almost a challenge. Any more, and Uther would have to bring him in line. Might have to, anyways. A certain amount of pride was allowed, no, necessary for a crown prince. But not towards the king. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin had known what was coming before it even began, so he prepared himself for the worst and decided the best thing he could do was try very, very hard not to drop his sword. He was, at least, successful in that endeavor as Arthur swung the sword with the brute strength that came from the very core of him the first one landed a solid strike to the arm, the next to the hip Merlin tried to move back with the blows, but his inexperience was his downfall because walking in armour wasbloody difficult.He managed to last for several more strikes, each one ringing against the chains and plates of armour and making his skull ache, but it was roughly the eighth hit when Merlin went down, because the sword struck against his chest and Merlin felt the weight of all of his own clothing, the chainmail, the armour, and the hit press up against the aching wound on his torso and sent him staggering from the sudden shock of pain. Another hit came after, and the world flipped and left Merlin laying in the grass, staring up at the sky.Well, he considered, at least it was a nice day out.He closed his eyes behind the helmet for a moment, privately sorting himself out beneath the metal, his chest was on fire, but everything else was moving and bending like it was supposed to, so all in all things had ended well.So far anyways.As the ringing went away, Merlin became aware that there was conversation going on around him and he lifted his head to find two generations of Pendragon's issuing challenges to eachother it wasn't a particularly comforting sight, especially since he was aware that Arthur was goading the King into taking his place.Well, it wasn't every day one got their ass kicked by two members of the royal family, so there was that.Despite his body urging him to do otherwise, Merlin pushed himself up off the ground and got to his feet behind the helmet there was a flash of white, indicating that, regardless of the scenario, the servant was still offering up a particularly sunny smile. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Arthur continued to stare at his father, both men ignoring the sound of movement behind the younger Pendragon. He could see, in the background, Arthur ??s servant getting himself up onto his feet, though the way he held his body told him the boy was hurt.Yes. Very different men, indeed. Neither father nor son would have given away their injury, not in front of others where it was a sign of weakness.And for that reason, Uther hopped over the fence, moving from spectator to actor, his cloak billowing out behind him in the crisp breeze of the early morning. ??Hand me your sword, boy, ? he said to Arthur, whose eyes widened. So he hadn ??t expected his father to take the bait. If the youth hadn ??t saved his son ??s life, he might have considered killing him, just to remind Arthur of how foolish it was to challenge a king. Even as s prince.One of the knights scrambled off to get a helmet and plate for his shoulder, but he stopped them with a chop of his hand, taking in the reedy form of Arthur ??s servant.The boy was still there, still in armor that didn ??t hang right on him. A complete amateur. ??At the ready, ? he said, one foot forward, holding his own sword out in his left hand, just like Merlin, the only two men he knew of that did so. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin had risen, unsure of what to expect though his mind threw in the image of Arthur suckerpunching him to the applause of the knights, the pi ce de r sistance of what had already been an outright slaughter but really, this was much worse than that. On top of it, the King refused armour with the full knowledge that there was no risk of Merlin actually landing a blow it would have been insulting if it hadn't been painfully true.The king took his sword into his left hand of course he did the image of Uther Pendragon's mangled hand came into his head, the fingers all strangely long and a little thin looking, especially bizarre on a man who made a point of never showing any sort of human trait, as long as he could help it.The warlock stood in fighting position and, like the king, favoured his left.Of course, Merlin had fought before he had met Arthur but training was a very loose term for what he had done in the village their weapons had consisted of what farm tools they had available at the time to defend themselves against bandits. The most Merlin could say for himself was that he was quick on his feet.Well, and he could make things blow up if he wanted.But he supposed it wasn't the sort of thing he should do right then, especially not while the king was in front of him and holding something terribly sharp. He just hoped Uther wouldn't aim for his neck.He prepared himself, knowing how hard Arthur hit, and that he had learned it all from his father.Just hold onto the sword. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Uther shifted his grip expertly, testing the balance of his son's sword. Good, very good in fact just as a prince's sword should be, but not perfect, not like the one he had fought with the day he took Arthur's place against that wraith. That sword had practically sang in his hand, even though he had allowed himself to fall out of practice . He had, of course, enquired after the sword a few days after the challenge, but it had disappeared, having been seen by no one other than himself and Gaius.And Merlin.That was right. Merlin had seen that sword, had been the one to present it to him. Another curious case that lead right to the young manThe youth did not respond verbally, but Uther could see the heavy resolution in his shoulders. It was just another Pendragon to throw him on his back. Arthur had stepped out of the way, a nasty expression on his face that fought with his more neutral prince's smugness. This was unexpected and his son honestly feared he'd hurt the servant.Perhaps he'd learn not to challenge his father next time. Uther never backed away, even from his own son. Uther nodded to the boy, taking in those bright blue eyes from the darkness of the helmet, then struck.He was not as fast as Arthur, not when he was twice his age and so much more careworn. His style was different, too, not as formalized, more given to feints and blows that walked the line of being almost illegal for dueling with honor. Unlike Arthur, after all, Uther had grown his own style in battle, in rain and mud and blood, without the benefits of being able to step back and take a rest when one was tired. The king pulled the sword to him and snapped his elbow out to catch the boy in the chin, his teeth gritted against the pain of old wounds.It was much less than ten seconds in. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | There had never been the chance for a real fight the king had taken the sword in hand and weighed it, judging the blade and the feel of it, twisting it in his grasp once or twice, and then turning to him. Merlin had been prepared to be hit hard of course, but then he had seen the look on the king's face it wasn't the playful expression of someone about to engage in a silly little practise fight, it wasn't the look of a man who would go easy because he was standing opposite to a sapling. No, it was the expression of a man who would treat every opponent the same: with extreme prejudice.Uther wasn't as fast as his son, of course, that came with age and there was a good chance he didn't get nearly as much practise as the younger Pendragon, but when his strike did come, it came in at an angle, and it struck so hard into Merlin's chest that it forced his breath out. It was followed quickly by a painful elbow to the jaw that snapped Merlin's head back and, for the second time, knocked him to the ground, his helmet tumbling off and rolling around to stop at Arthur's toe.Slightly dazed and bleeding from the mouth, Merlin took in a breath and mentally cursed Nimueh for having left a canonball sized hole in his chest for an instant he wished he could blow her up a second time, then regretted it. He lifted his head then, gave it a shake that made his hair stick out and propped himself up on his elbows and gave a lopsided grin complete with a bloodied lip because, well, he was alive wasn't he?And maybe knocked a little silly. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | There was no chance that the dark haired youth would get up from that last blow, but Uther stepped back into a position where his sword was facing his opponent again, just in case. Unlike Arthur, who could still play at fighting, Uther was a grown man that had seen many a man he thought down jump up and spring for his throat. After a few moments, with no sound other than the boy ??s breathing and Arthur ??s foot stopping his rolling helmet, the king thrust his sword into the ground dismissively.Something about the boy ??s face, the bloodied lip and mussed hair and that silly grin made that dark feeling from before twist in Uther. He wanted to lick the blood off, to taste metal on the tip of his tongue and hear the youth moan as he took him just as roughly as he had downed him.It was shaping up to be a good game.Arthur ??s eyes were down when he stalked over, taller than even his son. ??I do not want to see you engaging with an opponent that is less than your skill anymore, is that clear? ? he said, his face drawn. ??The day you become lazy is the day you allow some man to slip a blade into your chest. And I do not wish to replace you after all these years. ? ??Yes, sire. ? The response was low, but not petulant. Good. Arthur took a tongue lashing well respectfully, but not sullenly, not to lose the respect of his knights. Very good. Uther glanced over to his son ??s servant, feeling that nasty little shift in him again it had been a long time since he had given himself any sort of play and Merlin ??s odd, gawky looks were beginning to grow on him. Especially with those blue eyes and that bright little smile. ??Do send your servant to me, once you are done with him. ? Uther turned, cape swirling out behind him. He missed the ugly look that twisted his son ??s face for a moment, a worried expression that had him staring at the red of his father ??s back.Arthur was silent for a moment, then turned to his men. "Well," he addressed them. "What are you waiting for? We've got all day to practice. Let's go." He didn't even glance towards Merlin, as if he was sending his friend away to be executed and there was nothing he could do. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin watched the king plainly for a few moments his eyes didn't go to the sword in the man's hands, but to the man himself after all, the weapon was just a means to kill, intention could be viewed on the face. So he looked at the king, unflinching, but not a particularly bold expression either he was simply watching him.Then the sword went into the ground, and Merlin had to assume he was being dismissed or at least, that was the feeling he got, once the king had turned his back and Arthur had done the same. He could hear the prince responding to his father, respectful but with a sort of undertone that Merlin had come to recognize as one that came up nearly any time the subject of his father was brought up. There was familial love between them, but it was a strange and dark thing that seemed bizarre to Merlin but love nonetheless.After a moment, Merlin began to get himself back up on his feet, but it was a slow process as he tried to sort himself out in the armour which was currently creaking and sticking in some of the joints. Briefly, the warlock ended up on his front before he managed to gather himself up during the process, Merlin could feel the king's eyes on him, followed by the was it a request? A demand? Sometimes it was difficult to tell.He got himself up onto his feet as the king swept away, and he was about to speak, but then Arthur was doing the same, leaving Merlin a looking a bit put out."Right." Merlin said, nodding to himself as the prince headed off into the fields with his knights he scuffed his shoe against the dirt, "I'll just go then, shall I?" |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Arthur turned only his head the bare minimum to take in Merlin, giving him a haughty look as if he hadn ??t just been staring daggers into his father ??s back . ??You should, ? he said highly, smirking. ??You have got to make sure my rooms are clean, muck out the stables and change the bedclothes for something warmer before you see the king. I ??m tired of freezing my feet off at night. ? He sniffed. ??And for goddsakes ??, make sure you clean up some time today. You already smell like a stable. ? He certainly wasn ??t concerned. Not at all. And if he pushed himself harder that day, well, it was only coincidence.God help Merlin if his father stayed interested in the boy. Uther spent his day as he had spent most of the others. There were disputes from nobles, taxes to oversee, long winded speeches from men and women he cared little for. He received reports on the general state of affairs which were little different than the reports from yesterday.It was a good thing, no doubt about it, but some days he feared the monotony kill him.The king dropped his head, hands on the table as he leaned over. He was crownless again, finished for the day save for the never ending reading. Letters, complaints, new reports. One day, his eyes would fail him and that would be the reason he would have to give up the throne. Not death, not old age, but his eyes.He heard the footsteps before the person knocked. His hand was near the sword at the table, but he didn ??t reach for it, only looked up to see his visitor. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | The sidelong look that Arthur sent his way was cold it was a look he had been given by the prince before, but only when he had first met him and seeing it again was strangely stinging. Of course, it was quickly followed up by Arthur's usual laundry list and an insult for good measure before he was dismissed, but instead of heading directly to do the assigned tasks as he normally would he returned to Gaius' cottage. Having left his chainmail and armour back in storage neatly of course, he'd have to pick it all up, and the knights' later he trudged up the stairs feeling a great deal lighter, but aching significantly more than he had been earlier that day.Stepping into the cottage, Merlin made his way over to the enormous wooden table where Gaius always kept his stock of books and salves, and took a careful seat before he stripped off his shirt and began to unwind the bandaging across his chest. It took several laps around his torso, but when the material fell away, Merlin let out a hiss because a bit of skin came off with it and left him dropping his head into his hands.He followed Gaius' instructions with the wound the burn had gone deep enough to slough off skin earlier, and it had only been the physician's knowledge of medicine that had kept him from infection or worse he could still clearly remember the first time Gaius had seen the wound. The look on his uncle's face had been startling, because Gaius was a physician who had seen so much worse in his life, but something about the deep burn had given him a drawn look that had made Merlin feel just a little miserable at the time, so he'd taken to changing the bandages himself, much to the chagrin of Gaius who justly worried he might not do it correctly.He cleaned himself off Arthur had been right, he had already been in the stables earlier that day, and then tossed around on the ground for a bit, so he'd needed it and then applied the salve and bandages, dressed, and left the cottage ignoring the ache. As he stepped into the sunlight, the pain gradually subsided partly due to the cooling effect of the salve and he spent the rest of the daylight hours running the errands that the prince send him on. That day in particular, there seemed to be an endless number of them.It wasn't until quite late in the evening that Merlin finally finished ending the day with the pleasant job of cleaning up Arthur's room and it was only as he was stepping out of the prince's chambers that he remembered the last order of the evening, the one that had been uttered so casually, and followed by the toss of a cape.He was meant to tend to the king again, then, as he had been told he would at some point that week, he just hadn't thought it would be quite this soon and not just after having been thrown around by him.But he did as he was told and made his way towards the King's chambers like the night before, the warlock lingered outside of the door and mentally prepared himself before he knocked lightly. Also like the previous night, after opening the door a few inches, Merlin peered in carefully first and there would be the brief appearance of wide blue eyes from around the edge of the door before the rest of his reedy form followed. This time, lacking any red tights or armour, the servant was dressed only in his usual cottons, reds and blues and browns as he stood awkwardly in front of the king, fingers twisting together."Sire." he said, offering up a smile similar to the one on the field earlier that day, but he hesitated when it pulled on the break in his lip, and gently sucked on the cut for a moment, managing to still look terrifyingly cheery. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Blue eyes. Bright blue eyes.Uther straightened, returning the boy ??s smile with a thin one of his own. It was hard not to in the presence of those eyes: lovely, cheery things that seemed to contain not a shade of a care, even though he was currently standing in front of the man that had given him that colored chin and split lip. ??Ah, Merlin, ? he said warmly, as if he hadn ??t knocked him flat on his back earlier that day. His eyes flickered down to Merlin ??s mouth, watching him suck on his lip. Not tonight, but soon, he ??d do that himself. The lad ??s lip would probably be healed by then, of course, but Uther could always cause a little bleeding himself. His smile widened predatorily. ??Careful, or you will break the skin again, ? he rumbled, absentmindedly placing a smooth river stone on the papers. There would probably be more bruises, all over the boy ??s thin body, discolouring pale, smooth skin. Uther wanted to seek out every one, especially the ones he had made, and refresh the lad ??s memory of the pain.It really had been a long time since he ??d brought someone into his bed, hadn ??t it? ??I was afraid Arthur would keep you working late into the night. ? To keep you from me, he thought, but didn ??t add, not when his son would make that very clear to even Merlin in the coming days. ??I had a question for you. ? Uther gestured for Merlin to come near as he sat down in a heavy, wouldn ??t chair with a sigh. His short fight that morning had pulled the muscles in his wounded shoulder but he was too proud to go to Gaius for such a little thing. ??That sword you found for Arthur. The one you said Tom made. What ever happened to it? ? The king was slouched a little in his chair, his shoulders unevenly stiff. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | The king offered up another of those tight little smiles that he did once in a while, and it still managed to unnerve Merlin, partly because he found himself imagining fangs behind it even if he was unclear why. After all, he hadn't done anything to give the king a reason to prey upon him, though he frequently wracked his mind to see if maybe there was some detail he had missed and could never come up with anything.But being personally asked in by the king two nights in a row had him a little worried it left him wondering if maybe the king was just sensing there was something off about him. Maybe he was obvious. Maybe the king had found out about all of those other times, too, where he had been connected to strange things that had happened in Camelot.Maybe he needed to do a better job of convincing the king that he was a complete idiot.He was yanked out of his own head by the sound of the king's voice, surprisingly warm, and warning him not to open up the cut again Merlin became aware of what he was doing then, and also that he was currently tasting the metallic tang of blood, so he stopped. He felt the cool air on the cut, and then he realized how nervous he must look. He considered that only men who had a reason to be nervous would look nervous, but then he was sure the king was used to it, and everyone had secrets, didn't they?"It was a full day," Merlin admitted, but then added brightly, "But just enough to fill the daylight hours, sire."Of course, then came the movement of the king's hand, the beckoning of gloved fingers the firelight glimmered off the leather and Merlin again found himself approaching Uther Pendragon, just as careful as before, while the question was being asked.The sword the one that Merlin had strengthened with the dragon's fire, the one that had been forged specifically for Arthur. The one that the King had got his hands on, because he had been so insistent on taking his son's place.The one that Merlin had hurled into the lake.Of course, he couldn't tell the truth but he knew he couldn't lie either, he was terrible at it, and the King would see right through him."Sword?" Merlin asked, as dumbly as he could manage, one brow lowered it was a look of worry, but it could likely pass as confusion, and he stopped just out of arm's reach of the king, because that felt safe even if the man could probably still lunge faster than he could get started running, "Er. Yes. That one."Think, Merlin."It was put into storage after the fight, sire. In amongst the other blades." Merlin said steadily, because well, it was the truth, wasn't it? Just, a few hours after it had been put into storage, he took it to the lake. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Again the boy ??s voice was high with that impossible cheer. Uther did worry the lad was damaged in the head: he couldn ??t imagine that any man had that much good will in him. It was as odd as if Merlin had pulled on that hat and nothing else, danced a jig, then burst into flames.Not quite as funny, though.He watched the boy ??s face carefully, looking for some sign of deceit. Storage. It would have gone there, but it hadn ??t. Or perhaps it had, but someone had taken it, one of the guards or knights. Things in a castle as large as his went missing all the time. An absolute shame. That sword had been beautiful and now the maker was deceased, no longer able to create such blades. Uther ??s temper was costing him even now. ??I am afraid I have not found it again, ? he said, keeping the low, familiar tone. In his precense, Merlin was like a deer, skittish and ready to bolt at any moment. He had the urge to lure the boy in until he was close enough that the king could feel body heat again. ??And you? ? He asked, gesturing the boy closer with a lazy wave of his hand. There were none of his normal, sharp movements here, not when the fire was warm on his aching limbs and he had a new mouse to play with. ??Oh, come now, boy. I won ??t bite. ? Much. Not yet. ??I want to see your chin. ? The boy ??s jaw was coloring nicely, dark in firelight, just like his eyes. Nearly the same color now, where his shadow blocked out a little of the fire ??s glow. He bruised beautifully, Arthur ??s servant did. Uther wanted to reach out and run his fingers along the injured skin, but he pushed down the urge, fingers tapping along the sturdy wood of his armrest as he stretched his legs out with a groan. Much too old to play games like that with his son.Physical ones, at least. ??Arthur seems oddly fond of you. Has he invited you into his bed? ? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin was a little pleased with himself it had taken time, but he had been experimented with the lying thing, and had gradually found a way around it he didn't actually have to outright deceive anyone, he had learned. He just needed to tell the truth differently.And apparently it worked, because the king's odd eyes flicked over him, taking him in and examining him for any lies, but he came away only sounding vaguely dissappointed that he wouldn't be able to find the sword again. Merlin had, after all, made sure of that."I'm sure it's floating around somewhere, sire," Merlin said earnestly, and eyed the crooking fingers before he came closer, moving towards the king as he was asked he could feel his imagined radius of safety gradually getting smaller as he came within range of fingertips, then palms, and finally close enough that the king would be able to inspect him. Merlin hadn't looked in a mirror he generally didn't bother with them if he could help it but the soreness on his chin told him it was bruised.Again, his eyes watched the king, observed his movements he heard the gentle groan and watched the long legs stretch out and knew the king was aching from that morning's fight and it was so very human that it made Merlin smile just a little more. The expression managed to cling on for a few moments after the question came, and then it very slowly faded at the corners, and gradually sank further down until it was more of a grimace, with Merlin's eyes slowly widening.Invited him to his bed?Merlin rolled the question around in his head again and again, inspecting it from every possible angle to see if there was something he was missing, if perhaps he had managed to hear wrong, or perhaps he had misinterpreted it somehow. He considered that the king may have meant letting him into his chambers to clean but that seemed obvious. Really, there was only one thing the king could have meant by it, but Merlin didn't want to believe it was what he was being asked.Paler than normal, Merlin managed to get out:"Sire?" |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | As Merlin ??s safety radius shrunk, Uther felt himself grow very aware of the boy ??s proximity and took the time to examine him closely. His conclusion from the previous night hadn ??t changed: Merlin was an odd mix of things that might be pretty on a face they fit and things that simply did not flatter anyone.But those eyes. Uther couldn ??t bring himself to stop looking at them for any long period of time. Arthur ??s servant could have been hideous, covered in warts and open sores, and Uther would have still sought those eyes out. Fortunately for him, the entire package was ? Satisfying.And the way he spoke, so eager to please, made the king want to reach up with his gloved hands and tangle his fingers into the boy ??s hair, pull him down onto his knees, and do things to him that he would never breathe a word of in confession. The bloodied lip was making the urge stronger, nearly a need, because it had been so long since he had last touched someone. In fact, the last one, a young man older than Merlin but so much more timid, had died in that unfortunate plague.The king sat back, lacing his fingers in his lap, careful not to highlight the fact that half the fingers of one glove were nearly empty. He had always been careful to hide his deformities along with any other sign of weakness: to him, his right hand was like crying in front of his men or, worse, pulling a stunt like Arthur had when he was love sick. Merlin ??s beautiful eyes looked inward as if he really had no idea what his king meant, and Uther rolled his head to the side and smirked. ?? ??Into his bed ??, Merlin, ? he repeated, closing his eyes. The boy ??s confusion was nearly palatable, as if he didn ??t even think Arthur capable of sex. Uther was very aware how young men were and had cautioned his son from when his voice had first started to break. He would have no bastard grandson attempt to cause problems for the proper line. ??You are an attractive young man. I simply wish to know if my son has had you first. ? Mismatched eyes fluttered open then tracked up to Merlin ??s face, watching him."I am a jealous man, you know." If Merlin found Uther's pain humanizing, the man was completely human tonight. He shifted, shoulder in spasm, but he tensed the muscle so the boy would see no more than a brief tightening in his face. "I would hate to think he had his eyes on you first." |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin had imagined this meeting going several ways and roughly half of them had ended with his head detached from his shoulders while the rest were a mix of lighting fires, taking off the king's chainmail again, or being on fire. Of all the scenarios Merlin could have thought up and he had a very broad imagination, it came with the territory this particular one never, ever would have crossed his mind, not even in his most addled state.The king had sat back, closed his eyes he was repeating himself carefully, each word precise and striking like a hammer and Merlin even flinched it made him grateful that the king wasn't looking at the time.Of course, the warlock wasn't completely oblivious to that aspect of life. He had been told stories and given a very modest education regarding sex, told about the differences in girls and boys, how children were born, and how it was really quite natural just that he probably shouldn't ever do it unless he marries the girl first, and really only if he wants a son out of it. It had made sense to Merlin and he had never really asked about it much after that, though his mother would occasionally ask him questions about the nice girl on the other side of the village and whether he thought she was pretty, because she watched him when he wasn't looking. He had smiled and told his mum that she was probably looking at his ears.On occasion, however, Merlin would be caught by something perhaps the way a skirt would move, or how sunlight caught on blonde hair, but nothing he considered terribly significant they were about the same, he decided, as looking at the way water moved.It wasn't until later on that he learned from his friend, Will, that sometimes it wasn't just boys and girls it didn't seem odd to Merlin, it just hadn't ever occurred to him, quite simply because it was never really on his mind. Will had patted him on the back as he had a social revelation, and had carefully told him that he could always you know, experiment. It hadn't occurred to Merlin until a long time after, what Will had been getting at.That conversation came rushing back to Merlin right then, and he gaped at the king, cheeks going from ghostly pale to turning the colour of his own scarf in one sudden rush. Yes, the king was asking if he and Arthur were he couldn't even think it.And then there was the addition of that word, 'first' from the king 'if my son had you first', 'had his eyes on you first', as though there was a second, as though Merlin's eyebrows knitted in a gentle sort of worry no, he was sure he was getting something wrong. He had to be misinterpreting maybe he could pin this as an actual moment of stupidity on his part, rather than the fictional sort that he and Gaius often had to employ."He hasn't " Merlin stammered out, and blue eyes looked around the room, as though searching for something, any sort of clue as to what was going on, then they snapped back to the King, and eyebrows rose high. Attractive? Jealous?The words were blurted out, lined with a desperate sort of confusion that pleaded for an explanation other than the one in his head,"'Jealous', sire?" he asked, fingers clutching at the fringe on his scarf. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | For people of Uther ??s station , romance and marriage and intercourse were all very different from each other. The king had been lucky to love his wife, even though the two of them had been married before they had been given time to know each other. It was always luck in his mind, for that matter, because even though Igraine ??s loss left him aching every day, not having her in his life would have been the greatest punishment. She herself had a never dipping mood, much like Merlin ??s the only time, in fact, that her bright smile had ever waned was when she couldn ??t conceive the son Uther had craved.God, he had been selfish. If he had jus ??No. It was Nimueh ??s fault. She had tricked him, never letting him know that his wish could come with the cost of his beloved wife ??s life. He had paid the price and, twenty one years later, so had she.If he wanted just the ghost of his wife with him in bed, no one would fault him. But Uther would never acknowledge that every young man he had brought into bed had reminded him of Igraine in some fashion. That, like emotional displays, were simply things Pendragon men Did Not Do, capitol letters and all.So for him, this little game was merely sexual, and sex as far away from romance as possible. It had nothing to do with the fact that his bed was large and cold when he didn ??t have the dissolution of his kingdom due to foreign threats, his son ??s death or magic to occupy his mind. It was entirely about an attractive young man and his desire to bed him.Merlin ??s face had gone an unattractive shade of red that the boy managed to make aesthetically pleasing, his brow scrunched in worry. Even the stammering was attractive. It made Uther wonder ? but no, not at his age? Maybe. The way he responded, it seemed as if ? Was he so inexperienced? ??I am sure you know what the word means. ? Uther kept his eyes on Merlin, pinning him with his eyes an expression that said nothing less than ??you are not leaving my sight until we have finished this dreadfully embarrassing conversation or you have burned a hole through the stone floor due to your flush ??.Uther was an expert at talking in glances. ??If not Arthur, has any man had you? Or have you been with women? ? |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin appeared as though he was holding his breath while the king watched him his cheeks and ears were gradually going from bright red to an interesting shade of purple that made his eyes look fairly ridiculous, two enormous, shining blue things that looked as though they may very well pop out at any moment. No, this definitely wasn't how he had imagined the evening going he could feel his face and chest burning at the same time, and it wasn't a particularly pleasant sensation.He did finally take a breath it was unclear if he did so in order to answer the king or because he was about to pass out, but the expression of muted horror didn't fade the way the purple hue did.Merlin wasn't embarrassed of his inexperience he was embarrassed of the entire subject, though he wasn't so clear on why it may have had something to do with the unfamiliarity of someone directing that sort of attention to him. Merlin's eyes fell to the flagged stone floor, then back up to the king,"It was a small village." Merlin said weakly, by way of answering without having to actually answer after all, how did one go about explaining that it had never really occurred to them? It sounded odd, now that he actually had to talk about it. |
Don't Lose Your Head Over It: A Merlin RP (SevenxKawa) | Merlin ??s face turned a particularly odd color of purple, as if his bruise had suddenly decided to spread out and tint the boy ??s expressive face. Uther couldn ??t quite decide if Merlin looked more like he was drowning or ready to explode and he was ready to command the boy to breathe when he did just that, taking a deep, rattling breath that sounded like he was still drowning. ??Small villages still manage to have a few children every year. I am sure that someone told you where those plump babies come from. ? The king was smiling just a little wider now, actually showing teeth.None of which, for Merlin ??s information, were fangs. But something about the way he watched the boy, blinking very little, his head tilted up towards him, said that the fangs would have been a superfluous addition. ??I would not mind hearing that you have been with no one else, ? Uther said, sure that he recognized all the signs of a darling little virgin. Merlin ??s mother had shown up, not his father, to beg for help, so there must be no father. It explained the cheer and naivety if there was no man in the boy ??s life mothers liked to raise happy, healthy and stupid children, the sort that could survive in a village but not a city and who would faint if they ever were expected to perform.Innocence, good cheer and an inability to stop chattering. Merlin was perfect prey. ??In fact, I would find it to be quite ? ? The king paused, running the tip of his tongue against his molars, his own little twitch that he was very good at minimizing. ??A pleasure, ? he settled on. |
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