Ficlet - Once & Future by Claddagh girl
Title: Once & Future
Rating: PG - no swears or sexy bits in this one (Unless you find being consumed by magic hot?)
Warnings/spoilers: None.
Disclaimer: I could cry with the pain caused by wishing the characters belonged to me. They don't, I'm just playing with their names and pretty faces.
Summary:
Modern AU with magic. M/A implied pairing.
A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, no wait, wrong fandom. A long time ago in the middle of the day when I'd had no sleep whatsoever and was as grouchy as a grouchy thing suffering from PMS, I had this vision of Arthur standing on a hill top, bare chested, low slung jeans and carrying a sword. It did things to my insides. ooh, it's doing it again now... I posted about it on my journal here because I wanted fic or fan art. Alas such a thing did not exist (to my knowledge) so I had to write/manip something myself. This is what came out. (IE I just found this on my hard drive having forgotten it existed so I thought I may as well post it right?) The manip isn't quite what I had in mind but Arthur is too pretty to let it go to waste.
Once & Future
Merlin huddled deeper into the dark confines of the heavy wool coat draped around his body and breathed deeply enjoying the last few blissful seconds of warmth and softness as he started to drift slowly back toward consciousness.
The sun was still fairly low in the sky but it was strong enough to paint the morning clouds with a multitude of vibrant pinks and oranges, the likes of which were only achievable by Mother Nature herself.
He smiled, feeling the gentle heat on his face, and lazily rearranged his long limbs to a more comfortable position within the cramped space. The front seat of the Porsche was no place for a man of his height to fall asleep in.
He slowly dropped his head to the right and opened one eye expecting to see Arthur's face pressed against the driver’s window, lips parted and snoring lightly. He wasn't there but Merlin was too tired and couldn't find the energy to be bothered by the fact.
They had been together for what felt like an eternity; the days of panic and sense of loss at not being joined at the hip throughout every moment of every day was long since forgotten. Their bond was strong enough, now, that they could still feel each other’s presence even if they were standing on opposite sides of the universe.
The last vestiges of sleep cleared from his head as Merlin checked his wristwatch. He cursed himself for sleeping late as he stumbled out of the car and closed the door securely behind him. The sound of it seemed too loud, almost rude, as its echo cut through the complete silence that hung around the base of the blunt hills where the car was parked.
He squirmed and stretched to his full height, arms raised high above his head, the movements made his body sing with relief. He yawned widely behind a hand and closed his eyes for a few seconds as he felt the familiar pull at his heart, guiding him towards the east. He knew Arthur hadn't gone far but he didn't want to miss this. The feeling of power tingled against his skin.
Merlin ran.
~ o O o ~
Arthur had never really understood the kind of magic that Merlin always talked about, the kind he could so easily pull from the earth and bend to his will. But now, for the first time in his long life, Arthur had an idea that this could very well be it. This is what raw power felt like, and he savored it.
Every nerve in his body thrummed in anticipation. The bones vibrated in his naked shoulders, and his lungs throbbed with each breath that filled his heaving chest where he stood knee deep in grass that whipped around his jeans and anchored him to the ground.
Lightening suddenly flashed through his veins and sent a crackle up his spine making him quiver with it. He let the feeling race through him and closed his eyes against the onslaught, letting it take his body and do as it pleased.
Arthur’s eyes glowed bright yellow as he held his arms wide and lifted his head towards the rising sun, felt its heat upon his cheeks before dark clouds of purple and sage rushed forwards as if he had pulled them up from the horizon himself. He smiled and closed his eyes, he could already feel every muscle in his body twitching with the need to act, the need to chase and capture, the need to conquer.
He laughed in complete satisfaction. This was going to be a good fight.
~o O o ~
Merlin reached the crest of the hill just as the sun choked and disappeared, swallowed behind the sudden appearance of a storm, and as the first few drops of rain fell across Arthur's skin. A smile that felt like rapture stretched his face as he took in the sight before him. Arthur was magnificent in his defiance of the magic.
A violent clap of thunder broke directly overhead splitting the sky in two and lighting up the earth with a flash that lasted barely a second before darkness fell once more. Arthur dropped to his knees, arched his back, and roared towards the heavens with all his might while the ground ripped open beneath him. Huge cracks tore away in every direction and a giant black rock erupted from directly under his feet. Another vicious roll of thunder broke the sky as Arthur continued to rage and the rock strained higher into the air carrying him beyond Merlin’s reach.
The ground shook beneath them. Merlin staggered and fell, his hands making contact with the earth and the power racing through it like rapids on a river. The force of the magic as it surged along its path towards Arthur was intoxicating in its strength but Merlin knew he couldn’t succumb to it. He had to stay focused, ready to protect Arthur should the need arise, but he was pretty sure it wouldn’t come to that. Arthur was strong, stronger now than he had ever been before and all because Merlin had taught him so very well.
Arthur’s time had come again and he was willing to tear the world apart to call Excalibur from the depths of a lake that now existed only in the heart of a myth.
Nothing less would be enough.
~ end ~
I'm sorry it just kind of stops at the end, it was kind of a train of thought thing and I didn't really have a plan or know what the hell was going on. If anyone thinks its interesting enough I may poke my muse with a stick and see if she wakes up.
Should I go check if my muse is still breathing?