Wedding vowes

Arthur: I would die for you

Merlin: I would kill for you

Arthur: I would wage wars for you

Merlin: I would kill millions to be with you

Arthur: I would challenge the gods to be with you

Merlin: I would over throw the Gods and become their new ruler just for you

Arthur: I would sacrifice-

The rest of Camelot, whispering: What the actual fuc-

There was literally a prophecy about them, you know. They were destined to be together.

I love these two idiots

“You look like a startled stoat.” - Arthur Pendragon to Merlin, 3x05: The Crystal Cave

He says it as an insult, and Merlin reacts like it’s an insult. I have to say, it’s a pretty shit insult considering what a stoat is.

This is was a stoat looks like to those who don’t know:

Yes Arthur, you roasted him so good! He’s clearly so ugly and stupid looking for you to compare him to this disgusting creature! Just look at how hideous it is!

ADDITION FROM LOOKING AT REBLOGS/COMMENTS: I have been blessed with the perfect pictures to compare Merlin and the stoat. Behold!

“You know what you’re like without food.”

help, i just got slapped in the face with the existence of WILL. be still my beating heart as i write an essay on this man, will of ealdor

firstly, i adore the silent and implicit trust hidden in the first joke that introduces will’s character. like merlin’s been aware his whole life that if his secret is ever found out, he will be hunted down and persecuted, but here comes will with a jab that they both inherently understand is a joke in the macabre style only true friends can lovingly master. the smile they share almost immediately gives me ned stark and robert baratheon meeting again in the courtyard of winterfell in season one of got. there’s also something so normal in their interaction that speaks of a familiarity borne from their equal status and years of friendship. i know merlin’s friends in camelot tend to skew to the non-royal/non-noble, but when you tally it up, those closest to merlin often hold some title that’s greater than merlin’s role as arthur’s servant. gwaine is a knight implied to be of noble blood; lancelot, percival, and elyan are also knighted and esteemed members of arthur’s court; gwen is the lady morgana’s maid and close companion long before she is ever queen; gaius is a physician and long time member of camelot’s court; morgana before her betrayal is literally uther’s ward. i feel like when placed among them all, merlin has a tendency to fade into the background offscreen. obviously the audience knows how important merlin is to the overall story given how much of the storyline focuses on him, and the characters regularly acknowledge merlin’s importance to them or arthur, but all of them still regard merlin as merlin the servant from camelot and few of them are privy to the plots we as the audience see firsthand. and even when they acknowledge him for his merits, his role as arthur’s close friend and confidante takes precedence. look at leon’s reaction in the later seasons when merlin is bewitched by morgana. merlin literally makes a comment about plotting to kill arthur and leon barely even blinks before quipping back, “driving you mad isn’t he?” or something along those lines. except for a few instances with even fewer characters, they never get a chance to know him as merlin the sorcerer from ealdor.

will does! and more than that, he got to know merlin as he is without arthur. we all hype up their status as magical soulmates but damn if i wasnt living for how jealous of arthur will seemed to be in this episode. call me crazy, but it makes me desperately headcanon a realistic past in ealdor for merlin, full of hardship and strife, but never without it’s moments of happiness. furthermore, will’s lone appearance in season one shines some real light on the unfairness of the fate that has been bestowed on meelin. the moment that will points out why he’s been so obstinate with arthur really strikes a deep chord. sure it could be just jealousy, but more compellingly, i choose to read it as a deep sense of care for merlin. everyone merlin has met within camelot, (or reunited with in the case of his own mother) has continually pushed him closer and closer to arthur. will presents a crucial exception. he knows exactly who merlin was before camelot, and who merlin is completely separate from arthur.

will is staunchly in merlin’s corner, and that position allows him to identify a key characteristic of merlin’s series’ long arc: his complete devotion to arthur. will even points it out himself: merlin could singlehandedly defend their home if he just used the full extent of his power. merlin doesn’t, and actively chooses not to because of his desire to stay close to arthur. it’s such a small moment, but i think it demonstrates how much of merlin’s decisions become motivated by his desire to stay close to arthur and to always put arthur first, even at a detrimental cost to himself. merlin understands and readily accepts arthur as his destiny, but this acceptance does not come about independently, instantly, or of merlin’s own volition. it does so eventually, but initially merlin sticks by arthur’s side because of the encouragement of everyone around him. “arthur needs you, merlin” or “arthur is your destiny, merlin” or “arthur is a good man, merlin. he has the potential to be a great king, he just needs the right people, merlin.” its codependent as hell.

sure, merlin originally does not tell arthur about his magic because they do not know each other and as far as merlin knows revealing his magic would lead to his death, but eventually the reasoning changes and becomes so focused on doing what’s best for arthur. merlin can’t tell arthur because then arthur would have to kill him and then who would look after arthur or ensure his fate? merlin can’t tell arthur because if arthur chooses to defy uther’s law, merlin is then forcing arthur to turn against his father and how could he look after arthur then? merlin can’t tell arthur because another betrayal from magic would ruin everything and truthfully, he wonders how would arthur react? merlin comes to fear what his magic might do to arthur and what it’s reveal might mean for his place in camelot more than the laws of camelot and their verdicts.

by this logic, merlin is a magical solar system orbiting entirely around the celestial body known as arthur pendragon. eventually merlin cared more about his relationship with arthur and what arthur thought about him than his own life. in retrospect, it’s so sad that will died so early on, because it strips merlin of a person solely in his corner. will’s death is the first in the series’ long pattern of loss that merlin endures and that eventually comes to define him because people either find out about his magic and their knowledge is directly tested against his loyalty to arthur, or he cannot allow them to know about his magic because it will unravel his relationship with arthur.

will, freya, balinor, morgana, mordred, arthur.

also the fact that will covered for merlin’s use of magic in his last moments just adds to the tragedy AND the growing pile of moments merlin could have told arthur about his magic but didnt. and also the fact that will literally died to save arthur. like tell me that just doesn’t prove my point. tell me. will never stood a chance. tell me every aspect of merlin’s life does not get consumed by arthur pendragon.

i’m all for merthur being soulmates, but god the original series is rife with the unbalanced mess of merlin being wholeheartedly aware of arthur’s great potential and destiny leading to some intense devotion and faith that yes, arthur earns and pays back in full measure but can never fully reciprocate because he just does not know anything. by the triple goddess, it can get so toxic. i wish will had lived if just for that. and like the jealousy arthur gets whenever merlin has other people. because i 100% live for possessive arthur and protective merlin dynamics.

Arthur, you absolute dork. I see you making googoo eyes at your servants. ohhh, you complete loser look at you writing poetry for them, imagining your lives together, coming up with what if scenarios everytime you go tto bed, risking your life and the Crown for gwenivere and merlin

You're a loser!! the biggest lovesick loser in the whole kingdom

‘cause all of me loves all of you.

—for anon<3

when Arthur finally admits his feelings for Gwen to Merlin and says "my father would never let me marry her", and Merlin goes "you want to MARRY Gwen?!" like "shit, dude, I didn't realise it was this serious"

hmm ✨jealousy✨

jealousy is good, it’s great, but not possessive, no, no, I like jealousy I swear, and okay maybe sometimes possessive if it’s like a gay ship where they go through hell and back tahts fine whatever, but the real kicker, waht really gets me going is jealousy that looks pathetic UGHH THATS SO GOOD like if u write and find me a fic that has jealousy and the guy looks just simply pathetic well I think it’s love honest

and u know what

I don’t just mean begging like

So ur close? Are you gonna leave? Please don’t leave me I’m a losing loser who needs you. What does he do? Can I do that too? Pls love me, I need you, forgive me, pls pls pls, he’s scum, he doesn’t deserve u, maybe I don’t either but pls I love you more than anything if u left me I don’t know what I would do—

Though that’s chefs kiss what I also like tho is the body language that comes with it like

Frantic eyes, anxious hand wringing, so tense u can’t breathe, eyes tearing up, staring, light normal stalking, asking questions 24/7, seeking out physical affection, needing validation, watching helplessly, want to scream but can’t get enough air in ur lungs, anger but fear that’s even bigger, bc oh wow, ur so tiny in the face of all the feeling huh, ur in love now aren’t u doofus

U know what I mean

[After Merlin risks his life for Arthur again] Arthur: You absolute moron what were you thinking

Merlin, preparing for another scolding: All right let's have it

Arthur: Do you know how much you scared me

Merlin: Wait-

Arthur: You beautiful piece of human being do you really think I could bear to exist without you

Merlin: shit shit NOT LIKE THAT

bbc merlin - 02x07 The Witchfinder

there's no need to be doing all of this

"Why did you help us?" Merlin feels inclined to ask, peering at the shirtless man laying comfortably in his tiny bed.

He watches as Gwaine raises his arms to rest them behind his head, muscles flexing at the movement as a charming smile grows on his face, features chiseled in a way that Merlin was certain had people giving the man whatever he wanted, left right and centre.

"Well," Gwaine begins, "Your chances looked to be between slim and none."

Merlin hums in acknowledgement—trust Arthur to get them into all sorts of trouble. As Gwaine's eyes drag up and down his figure, examining the Warlock, Merlin finds himself remaining oddly relaxed.

"Guess I kinda liked the looks of those odds." He purrs, grinning triumphantly as Merlin laughs in response.

Arthur struggles to get on with Gwaine at first. The fourteen quarts of mead and three bottles of wine are only the beginning of his problems with the man, not to mention the snarky attitude that quite frankly raises some questions from chambermaids about how Arthur can tolerate his manservant but not his saviour. The blatant disrespect for the crown, too, is a problem.

But Arthur's biggest issue with Gwaine is the way the man won't stop bloody flirting. Chambermaids, cooks, servant's, stable boys, even Gwen! Annoying but tolerable, of course, until Arthur is forced to sit and listen to Merlin ramble about how great and dandy this valiant young rebel is, how handsome and strong and oh so funny he is. How clever and charming he is, the dashing trouble maker.

Arthur hopes polishing the battalion's boots will settle Gwaine down. Teach him that spending all his money is one thing, but distracting his idiot of a manservant is another.

Arthur isn't jealous though. Of course he isn't. When did he ever get jealous? It is completely, entirely normal to get irritated and worked up when your best friend bumbling manservant blushes and fawns over a man he's known for five bloody minutes.

Arthur isn't jealous.

Not at all.

Though he does wonder whether Merlin talks about him that way, too.

Hear me out. Arthur loved Merlin purely because he is who he is, he was so fond of him without knowing most of the reasons why he should be, but Merlins love for Arthur was always tainted by destiny, he wouldn't love him even half as much without knowledge of this invisible strings that tied him to Arthur, he did love him immensely, of course, but this love wasn't as pure and natural as Arthur's love for him

(ꈍᴗꈍ)♡

Merlin always jokes how big Arthur's head is.

One day Arthur get's mad and puts his crown on Merln'sto proof they have the same size.

They don't.

Merlin's head is much smaller. But the crown get's caught on the ears.

Arthur has never seen anything more adorable in hid life.