Fic: Masked Epilogue
Epilogue
“Merlin, I’m going through caffeine withdrawl. Go and get me coffee.”
“You’re not allowed to have coffee yet and you know it,” Merlin says, looking up from his notebook. Arthur is sitting up in his hospital bed, still looking pale. He is still weak and is under strict orders to move around as little as possible, which means that he has to compensate for his confinement by making Merlin’s life a living hell.
And honestly, Merlin wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s still on the weak side himself, so sitting at Arthur’s side and putting up with the litany of complaints is preferable to trying to run around after him. It’s also preferable to listening to the lectures that he got upon awaking: one from his mum, which was largely crying and hugging him in between yelling at him, and he had forgotten how scary she was when she was mad; one from Gaius that consisted of many Eyebrows of Doom and in depth examinations of what he had done and why exactly it was so stupid; a combined one from Will and Freya, who had both crossed their arms and glared at him and thoroughly called him an idiot; and finally a joint one from Sentinel, who looked wane but healthy enough, and Fisher, who was nursing a nasty cut to his side, given to him by Siren and her sword.
This last lecture is still ringing in his mind, because it began as the expected you’re an idiot, don’t ever do that again and ended...well, it ended with something he never could have seen coming, with Fisher, touching a hand lightly to the place on his side where his wound was, and then looking at him seriously. “I’m retiring, Warlock.”
“What?”
Fisher had sighed. “I’m getting too old for this kind of life. Too weak, too slow. If Paladin and Rose hadn’t shown up that night, I don’t think I would be here. And I should have known that, should have insisted that we go in with more than just the four of us.”
“That was my call,” Merlin protested, and for some reason Fisher smiles half-heartedly.
“You’re right, Warlock. It was your call. Which is why, when I retire, I want you to take over as leader.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” He said. “What about Sen?” he had asked, looking at the older man, who shook his head.
“No. I’m no leader, Merlin. You are.”
“No I’m not! What--what about Paladin? Or Sunny? Or Rapier?”
Fisher smiled fully then. “Can you imagine if Sunny or Rapier were in charge and Star and Sabre weren’t? The sibling rivalries there make it impossible. And Paladin would be an excellent leader. But his loyalty is already to you, and he won’t take a position over you. This decision has already been put before the other Knights, and they all agree.”
“So, I don’t really have a choice in this, do I?”
“No,” Sentinel said, grinning.
“Merlin, are you listening to me at all?” Arthur demands loudly, shaking him from his thoughts.
“Nope,” he replies, grinning cheekily.
Arthur glares. “You’re supposed to be nice to me. I’m hurt.”
“You’ve been playing that card for a week, mate. It’s not going to work on me anymore.”
“I should fire you,” Arthur says grumpily.
“As if you could survive without me.”
“You’re not that important, Merlin,” Arthur says, and Merlin grins.
If only he knew.
THE END OMG