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regulusrules · 1 year

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You know what's so special about this scene aside from its destructive irony?

It's that Arthur is addressing Merlin as if he was his knight for real, acknowledging all the times Merlin stood by his side so fearlessly (something we rarely got: thanks bbc writers). At this point, Arthur began to see Merlin as his 𝘬𝘪𝘯 not just his servant, and for a prince who grew up never knowing how to express admiration, he could only voice it in terms of honour.

Which takes us to another point actually; why did Arthur never really knight him? In 3×12? Or when he became king?

At first I shrugged it as the writers' fault (as with everything) because they were always so inconsistent specifically with Arthur's characterization. But while writing to you I swear my solemn oaths, a different lense just popped in front of my eyes and nested in my soul and brain.

Arthur wanted to protect Merlin from himself.

Let's be real; these two had zero point zero self-saving instincts. They blatantly expressed how they would live and die for each other. They fought on who to do it literally every episode when Arthur was not robbed of making that choice. But elevating Merlin's status would've strained their relationship. How?

Because it labels their unwavering loyalty to each other. It solidifies that they were merely just master-servant, not the earthshaking combination they were. It threatens to erase how Arthur always viewed Merlin as his pillar of strength, because if he knights Merlin he could no longer favour him and his companionship over the rest.

Also, knighting Merlin would have required for Arthur to first accept the fact that it's Merlin's duty to be there with Arthur, not because Merlin wants that any longer. Being given everything on a silver platter from the start only for Merlin to be the only one who denied him this narrative and was real with him, this is something Arthur could never let go of.

Lastly, knighting Merlin would have involved Arthur making peace with the fact that Merlin is OBLIGATED to die for him, and I don't think he could've ever accepted that. Even if he always took Merlin with him everywhere, he did it because he always believed he had Merlin's back and that he'll be there to protect him. This reciprocation of loyalty is so important to Arthur that if he ever knighted Merlin it would completely overthrow their little status quo they created for the two of them only.

So there is no denying the fact that Arthur really always saw strength and bravery in Merlin that surpasses any knight, but he never acted on knighting Merlin because he never wanted to put him in that position.

#merlin #they were in love my lord #they just didn't know how to say it #arthur pendragon #bbc merlin #merlin thoughts #merlin x arthur #merlin bbc #need a knight merlin au fic rec rn #merlinbbc #arthur and merlin #protective arthur #to you i swear my solemn oaths #merlin fic #bbc arthur #the adventures of merlin #merlin emrys #LJ metas #regulusrules metas

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