Title: Even Then
Author: elirwen
Pairing: Merlin/Arthur
Genre: mpreg, hurt/comfort, omega!verse
Word Count: ~800
Rating: PG
Warnings: mpreg
Summary:
“You have no proof,” Arthur yells.
“I have a trustworthy witness,” Uther says, his stare cold and uncaring.
“You can’t do this,” Arthur shouts in his father’s face. “Merlin’s innocent.”
“Escort the prince to his chambers,” Uther says to the guards.
“She’s lying to you,” Arthur yells as the guards drag him from the throne room.

Read @ ao3
“You have no proof,” Arthur yells.

“I have a trustworthy witness,” Uther says, his stare cold and uncaring.

“You can’t do this,” Arthur shouts in his father’s face. “Merlin’s innocent.”

“Escort the prince to his chambers,” Uther says to the guards.

“She’s lying to you,” Arthur yells as the guards drag him from the throne room.


~x~


Two days earlier

“I’m telling you, she’s evil.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Just because she likes my father doesn’t mean she’s evil.”

“Don’t you think it’s weird that he’s falling for her so easily?”

“Trust me, she’ll never be more than a heat partner.”


~x~


One day earlier

“Therefore I announce our bonding ceremony.”

Arthur can only gape at his father who seems to have eyes only for his future mate.


~x~


“She’s controlling him,” Merlin whispers into Arthur’s ear as they watch Arthur’s most loyal knights, their closest friends, being escorted out of the city.

“But how?” Arthur whispers back.

“I’m not sure yet.


~x~


An hour earlier

“The boy has magic. He tried to kill me with a ball of fire, but he missed,” Lady Catrina says, pointing at a patch of scorched wall.


~x~


Present time

“Light the pyre,” Uther orders and three torches are lowered to the wood.

Merlin’s uselessly pulling at the enchanted ropes, his magic trapped by them, making an escape impossible.

“No,” Merlin mutters, smoke filling his nostrils and making him cough.

He pulls harder at the ropes.

“No, please, no,” he pleads. “I’m with child, please.”

The words don’t break through the fog of Uther’s enchantment, as they didn’t in all the times he said, screamed, whispered them in past hours.

He’s starting to feel the heat. It’s getting closer, inch by inch. Tears are streaming down his face, fear and smoke induced. He can’t hear past a dull roar in his ears, panic settling in. His wrists are rubbed raw, blood wetting his palms. His stomach is cramping.

He can’t breathe.

More smoke. The pyre wobbles under him. Something cold and wet wraps around his body. His hands are free and he falls forward into someone’s chest.

He can’t breathe.

He’s dragged away from the scorching heat of the flames. Tears are obscuring his vision and he’s unable to focus on the voice speaking.

He can’t breathe.


~x~


Escaping through the window, he finds his knights in the forest outside of the city walls. They don’t have time for a thorough planning and they still don’t know how to break the enchantment. Killing Catrina seems like their only option.

Arthur runs through the crowd and onto the pyre, wet blanket shielding him from flames. He wraps the other one around Merlin and quickly cuts through the ropes. Merlin slumps against him, dead weight as he drags him away.

“How could you?” Arthur yells. “You wanted to take him away from me. He’s my mate. He’s carrying my child.”

He knows Uther won’t care, the enchantment won’t let him. But he doesn’t need to convince him. He’s just a distraction. He trusts his knights to do what needs to be done.

“Of all the people, you should know how it hurts to lose one’s mate. It tore you apart and still you’d do the same to me!”

Merlin’s gasps for air are getting quicker, his hands are clawing at Arthur’s back desperately, his knees are buckling.


~x~


It’s all a blur from there. Arthur doesn’t see what happens up at the balcony, concentrating on helping Merlin breathe again.

Merlin is sobbing and trembling in his arms, but no longer suffocating and Arthur feels the tight fear in his chest loosen a bit. Uther is watching the whole scene with confusion on his face. Their plan must have worked.

Nobody stops him when he lifts Merlin in his arms and heads towards their chambers.


~x~


For each whimper, Arthur presses tender kisses to Merlin’s skin, for each sob he murmurs loving words into his ear. He doesn’t move his hand away from where it’s resting on Merlin’s belly, convincing Merlin’s body to hold onto the tiny life that’s growing there.


~x~


“Merlin is strong and stubborn. He won’t let go and his magic won’t either,” Gaius says, laying a comforting hand on Arthur’s shoulder.

Arthur nods, not trusting his voice at the moment and goes back to watching over his sleeping mate.


~x~


“I hope you know it was all Catrina’s influence. I admit I’ve never been very pleased by your choice of a mate, but I’d never let you suffer the same fate as mine.”

“Even if he truly was a sorcerer?”

Arthur knows he’s treading on a thin ice, but he needs to know.

“Even then,” Uther says after a moment of hesitation.

Arthur believes him.