Fic: I imagine the gods saying, We will make it up to you. (Merlin) (Slash)

[hells_half_acre]

Title: I imagine the gods saying, We will make it up to you
Fandom: Merlin
Word Count: 22,841
Genre: Slash
Rating: hand jobs
Pairing: Arthur/Merlin
Spoilers: Entire series.
Beta: mymuseandi
Note: Title is from "I Imagine the Gods" by Jack Gilbert. It's a very nice poem.
Note#2: I don't write slash often, so... hopefully it is okay.

Summary: Arthur returns to find an old friend, a new world, and a second chance.
(My canon-compliant happy ending for Merlin)

Link to AO3

(Note: I'm only posting this one on AO3, because I don't belong to any LJ Merlin communities, and I don't think very many of my flist watches Merlin... however, if you want to leave me feedback here on LJ, you are more then welcome to! Just comment on this post.)

Comments

[lelaro.livejournal.com]

this fic made me cry when i got to the tree part

I always love how cannon compliant you are and how those characters evolve in a way that makes complete sense when you write it! Arthur finding his way in the 21st century with merlins help is completely amazing!

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Awww, thank you so much! :)

I'm so happy you liked it!

[et-tu-lj.livejournal.com]

loved this.

Reading your Merlin stuff always makes me happier than the show ever did. lol

I love the way you got them together, and Arthur's comment about how he could ignore the attraction before because there was always something hidden between them. Though I much prefer slash in most fandoms, for Merlin it always bothered me. I can see the chemistry, but the lie at the basis of everything is just a bad place to start a relationship from. Fics that reveal that lie take it so irreparably far from canon that they don't fit into the world any more, so most fandom responses just didn't work for me. I love the way you've answered those problems in this fic, and leaving room for his love for Gwen too.

Great job.

[et-tu-lj.livejournal.com]

Also, when watching His Last Vow this season, when Mycroft talks about brotherly compassion and what happened to "the other one," my friend and I immediately turned to each other and went "Oh god! What did he do to Merlin?!" You have a way of taking things I never would have imagined and making them so real that they become part of my head canon thereafter.

/random aside

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Awww... this warms the cookies of my heart.

And, just as a random aside to further cement my fics as your headcanons:

Personally, I think Mycroft has made it look to the government as though his family has disowned Merlin. Perhaps at Merlin's request or manipulation... Uther, I believe, had something against Mycroft, Mycroft being 14 years older than Merlin, had plenty of time to somehow piss off Arthur's father long before Merlin and Arthur met at Uni. In order to be Arthur's friend and secret second in command, Merlin has to look as though he's been disowned, and therefore also has nothing but animosity towards his family. Meanwhile, of course, Merlin loves everyone in his family except Mycroft, because yeah, they have a horrible relationship.

So, basically, everyone thinks that Mycroft kicked Merlin out of the family and prevented him from accessing whatever money keeps Sherlock afloat and Mycroft in that fancy house. Since Merlin hides his genius, people probably believe it's because Merlin isn't intelligent enough to be of any use to Mycroft. Meanwhile, it's because Merlin's intelligent enough to know that being underestimated is to his advantage. So, basically, Mycroft and Merlin have both learned how to turn their horrible relationship into an advantage when it comes to deceiving their employers and manipulating people into giving them what they want.

:)

[et-tu-lj.livejournal.com]

Brilliant, but I think it needs a fic to firmly cement it in my mind.

;D

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I write Merlin stuff because I want to be happier than the show made me. So, I'm glad I can share that therapy. ;)

And thanks so much for your kind words about how I wrote the relationship forming. I agree with you - I like slash in the Merlin fandom, but I can only read it if I turn off that part of my brain that wants realism/canon... and unfortunately I can't turn off that part of my brain when I write. :P

[et-tu-lj.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's a hard fandom to love, but so easy to want to love. I gave up, and every time you write something I'm tempted to pick it back up just to get to the point where you've set them. Then I decide why be frustrated all over again when I can just skip straight to the catharsis? I like your version so much better anyway. :)