Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Merlin felt like his head was going to explode any minute now.

Merlin had a massive migraine that didn't seem like it would be settled aside any time soon. Merlin had a high-pain tolerance but this affected him more significantly than anything he had experienced before and it worsened his ability to complete his daily chores causing Arthur to dismiss Merlin with a day off and a request from the court's physician to make a remedy for Merlin.

Merlin found Arthur's kind gesture very off-putting and strange; before he knew it, he was already in front of the physician's chambers.

"Ahem," the loud tone broke Merlin's train of thought causing him to flinch, stumble, and cling to the wall in just a matter of seconds.

His head rang and he immediately started rubbing his temples, trying to alleviate the pain.

"My word boy! you look worse than I thought!!" Gauis said horrified, Merlin was looking more like a ghost than a human, Gauis aided the boy into the room immediately.

"It's not that bad Gaius, I just need some rest then I'll be back on my feet in no time" Merlin sounded doubtful, He never thought a mere headache could affect him this badly. Was it a curse?

"It's bad if the prince personally requests a remedy, Merlin" Gaius said grimly. Merlin couldn't argue with that statement whatsoever nor did he have the energy to refute Gaius, so he nodded.

They both walked to the nearby table, two vials were already on the table. There was a dull blue vial that was glittering, looking ominous but alluring. And a black vial that looked more like tar than a remedy.

Merlin studied them, wondering what these potions held. He's never seen these potions during his stay in Camelot.

"I wish I could stay to take care of you, my boy. But Uther has requested my appearance." Gaius said bleakly, looking at Merlin worried. "Will you be alright while I'm gone?" Gaius said pensively.

Merlin looked up at him and smiled "Yes, Gaius. I'll be alright." giving a reassured response, Gauis smiled, pleased with the answer.

Gaius's smile fell, looking solemnly, and pointed at Merlin as if he was a child being scolded "That means you strictly go to your room and immediately to bed after you take the remedy, Physician orders". Merlin bit down the giggle begging to escape, Gaius knew him too well. He knew Merlin would try to finish some of his duties while being sick.

Gaius gave Merlin his well-known 'you better listen' raised eyebrow, Merlin smiled and gave him a reassuring nod.

Gaius sighed, closed his eyes, and put his hand down slowly.

He opened his eyes, grabbed his shoulder bag, and swung it onto his shoulder. 

He started making his way to the door and stopped to turn around, "Merlin, your remedy is the bl-" Merlin's ears rang causing him to wince.

When he finally regained his hearing again Gaius had already made his way out the door, leaving Merlin completely clueless of what remedy he was supposed to take.

He looked over at the two vials and contemplated which to take, he also noted that they were not labeled. 'Just great' Merlin thought.

After many minutes of contemplating and head-ringing. He decided to go for the safest-looking option and downed the blue vial, which tasted horribly.

Merlin closed his eyes and tried his best to not throw up the remedy he just took.

After a few minutes of clearing his head, Merlin got up from the table and made his way to his bed, bringing a book with him to read if he got bored and set it on his nightstand.

He knew his bed wasn't as comfy as Arthur's bed but as soon as he hit his pillows he was out like a rock, feeling his body relax in what seemed like years.

-The next day-

Merlin woke up from the sunlight emitting from his room. Feelin energized and lighter but his body felt strange.

He sat up, rubbing away the drowsiness from his eyes with his sleeve, and shifting to sit on the side of his bed.

His clothes felt rather huge today too but he ignored the thought and went onto his feet.

His braises (Pants) fell.

He looked down in horror at why he had apparently shrunk overnight but that wasn't exactly the worst part... To Merlin's shock, he saw his chest to see a woman's breast, and that his shirt was practically huge on him, it sagged from his shoulders, exposing his bare neck, all the way above his knees. He felt a breeze brush past his bare legs and how cold the floor felt.

He started shivering, shutting his mouth close to avoid his teeth chattering.

Merlin searched for the nearest reflective surface, his eyes falling onto a silver platter he was supposed to shine. He reached for it, still rubbing his arms for warmth.

He looked and was shocked at how much his appearance changed.

He had a slightly round face but still had high cheekbones, softer and paler skin, and Round blue eyes, His hair was curly and a mullet. He still had his fragile-looking frame. 

He also noticed that he got shorter, somewhat broad shoulders, and fitted arms, but still kept a small and frail frame, and... (average-sized boobs and something else is what he means essentially)

Merlin snapped out of his daze and a panic ensued, Merlin paced his room and was practically pulling his hair out, feeling overwhelmed. what happened?

He heard a knock on his door, his eyes snapping towards his door.

"Merlin, my boy. Are you awake? I'm coming in" It was Gaius's voice, sounding worried. Seems like he heard the racket inside Merlin's room.

The door opened and Gauis was staring at Merlin with his eyes, wide, "Oh...I didn't expect Merlin to have...company... Have you seen my apprentice anywhere?" He eyed the woman suspiciously not knowing it was Merlin standing in front of him, with only his shirt on.

His eyes then roamed around the room to see if Merlin was hiding somewhere. 

Merlin felt his face flush.

It hit him that since he had mysteriously turned into a woman people would get the wrong idea.

A woman in the bed of the physician's apprentice with basically nothing on except from said 'Apprentices' Shirt.

His cheeks, the tip of his ears, and the back of his neck became bright red. He shook away the thought, trying to compose himself. Which seemed to be failing, judging by Gaius's obvious glance. 

Merlin inched closer and was practically yelling, "Gauis it's me!! It's Merlin!!" His voice was high-pitched and serious. Merlin sounded exasperated "I don't know how this happened!"

Gaius looked at Merlin as if he was mad but his face turned white.

He turned towards the table in the other room, focusing on the black vial still there.

He turned back to Merlin with wide eyes and looked him from head to toe.

"MERLIN!?" Gaius said loudly, his face still as white as snow. "Merlin is that you?!"

Gaius rushed to the boy and put his hands on Merlin's cheeks, scanning for remnants of his pupil. Gaius had many questions that flooded his mind, his hands softly caressing Merlin's cheek.

But even though Gaius wanted to deny the fact that somehow this woman was Merlin, he couldn't deny that he could feel the powerful flow of magic tingling against his skin. His face softened, his eyes looking at Merlin. This was indeed his apprentice... Merlin...

Gaius wanted to speak, opening his mouth.

"MERLIN!!" A loud voice boomed from the hallway, startling Merlin and Gaius. It was Arthur. Making his way to the physician's quarters.

Gaius became worried and turned to Merlin, moving quickly and ushering him, "Hide!" Gaius said in a hushed tone. "MERLIN!!" The prince roared. Sounding quite annoyed.

Merlin quickly went into his room and closed the door. His eyes roamed for a hiding spot, but no luck.

So he just jumped into his bed and wrapped himself in his sheets. Oh, how he wished to just be buried in a hole right now.

Chapter Text

-Arthur's Pov-

Merlin woke up the prince how he usually does, with that annoying dopey smile on his face, and his eyes pretty much filled with ideas on taunting Arthur. But none of that was seen that morning.

The room was awfully quiet as Arthur ate his breakfast whilst "reading" reports but Arthur couldn't help but throw a few glances at Merlin who was busying himself with folding Arthur's socks, waiting for him to say something. But nothing came. This made Arthur really uncomfortable with the loud silence. 

Merlin had noticeable dark circles and was constantly rubbing his temples, giving only short-worded answers back to Arthur. It was especially concerning when Merlin didn't make his usual cheeky remarks on Arthur's insults. Merlin was practically a living mess at the moment, his balance was off more than usual, It seemed like Merlin couldn't hear what Arthur was saying, and Merlin looked absolutely ghastly. Was Merlin sick?

Arthur had a busy and important schedule today and was not going to let Merlin go along with him if he was almost one step away from dropping dead. "Merlin" Arthur said in a stern tone. Merlin heard It and looked at him with curiosity, eyes fully on Arthur and waiting for him to say something. Arthur stared into those eyes, searching for ways to lift Merlin's burdens "Arthur?" Merlin said causing Arthur to snap out of his zoned-out state. He cleared his throat, to cover up the fact that he was NOT staring at his manservant in that way, At all!

"I notice that you are underperforming your tasks worse than usual, Merlin." He said with a stern tone, locking eyes with Merlin. Merlin gave him a small grin "Well, sire. Imagine if you were to work under a prat with a huge ego for a year. You'd get pretty sick of it too." Merlin smirked at his cheeky remark. 

Arthur bit back a smile, and pointed a finger at Merlin, "That's treason, Merlin" Trying to be serious, Merlin chuckled and returned to his work, once again rubbing his temples. 'Okay now this is getting out of hand' Arthur said in his head deeply concerned about Merlin's health. "Anyways, Merlin. Since you are rather slow today in more ways than one" Merlin gave him a displeased side eye, causing Arthur to smile deviously.

"How about you take the day off today, Merlin?" He said in a composed tone, watching what Merlin's reaction might be.

Merlin looked at Arthur as if he had said the most stupid suggestion he had ever heard. 'Rude' Arthur's expression said. But his mouth hung open as he tried to find the right words to say. 'How cute'... Which Arthur DID NOT think at all!!

Merlin took a deep breath, "What do you mean by that, sire?" Merlin said stiffly, his demeanor was almost identical to George’s. Arthur hated when Merlin addressed him that way when it was just the two of them joking around per usual. 

Arthur sighed and replied with a more calm tone, “What I mean is. That I am dismissing you for the day.” He looked at Merlin with genuine concern, “What about my daily chores and today’s schedule?” Merlin said and looked at Arthur, worried as if he was going to get hurt if he left. Arthur sometimes wondered why Merlin’s eyes spoke more than his words, truly conveying what he wants to say.

He found himself staring again in his eyes and quickly looked to the floor. Why were Merlin's eyes so enchanting to look at? 

He cleared his throat again, “I can have George take over your tasks today. And I will not take a no for an answer, Merlin” He said composed, Merlin wanted to say that he was fine but Arthur raised his hand, not wanting to hear another complaint, and Merlin obeyed. He really hated how dull George was but couldn’t complain about how efficient and hard-working George was compared to Merlin.

“I’ll also send word to Gaius to make a remedy for you after you help me write my speech for later tonight” He made his way to the door and opened it, telling the guards to have a servant send word to Gaius to make a remedy for headaches and for George to aide Arthur. 

He closed the door and turned to Merlin who was already at his desk with parchment paper, waiting for Arthur like a puppy, ‘Adorable’... Maybe he needs a remedy for himself too cause he was thinking the strangest things today. He shook away his thoughts and made his way to Merlin.

-30 minutes later-

George came in as Merlin had finished Arthur’s talk. Arthur nodded to Merlin that he was excused for the day, Merlin gave a small smile to Arthur and then to George, who miraculously gave a smile back. This set off something Arthur can't describe along with the question; "Since when the hell did they get close?" Arthur thought. But before he could ask Merlin, Merlin bowed and left without another word, And George moved Before he could ask, cleaning his room and aiding him for the day. This irritated Arthur but he decided he should let this slide since today is busy.

-Council meetings-

Arthur went through the most excruciating and slowest day he’s ever had in his life! He thought that Merlin’s presence could be easily replaced but he was dead wrong. He thought of Merlin and even glanced to where he should have been standing, trying to not sleep, only to find George standing stiff under his eye.

Arthur also noticed a lot of servants eyeing George and searching for something, or rather someone...

Arthur couldn't help but find the thought that other servants were fretful about Merlin's absence, very irritating...

-Training-

The only thing that helped him pass the time and distract him from a 'certain' manservant, was his training with the knights. 

Gwaine was sitting underneath a tree with Elyan after they finished training, snacking on an apple he snagged from the kitchen. Lancelot and Percival were practicing with the new recruits, while Arthur and Leon were observing them in the tree shade.

“Sire, If I may ask” Leon still looked ahead at the group, and Arthur nodded, granting him permission to speak freely. Leon gave a nod of gratitude, continuing on with what he wanted to say, “Where is Merlin?” Leon asked with no hesitation, Arthur didn’t want to think of Merlin’s absence but the knights deserved to know, especially since they all seemed to notice Merlin's sudden disappearance.

He inhaled through his nose and let out what he wanted to say without concerning his most loyal knight, “I gave Merlin a day off” He said calm and collected. A scoff was heard behind Arthur and Leon, “You. Gave Merlin. A day off?” Gwaine said in a surprised tone, sitting up to the news, making it seem that Arthur worked Merlin to the bone. Which isn’t true!

“Is he ill or something?” Elyan said concerned. Arthur was surprised to see Elyan concerned, He took a deep breath in and responded, “He had a headache that interfered with his duties, so I gave him the day off. I asked Gaius to make him a remedy” Arthur conceded, still looking ahead at the group. The three knights widen their eyes, staring at Arthur who didn’t return the gaze, they had hardly seen Merlin get ill, so this was quite a shock. 

They all fell into silence. Arthur, Elyan, and Leon looked ahead at the group in the field, the sound of swords clanging, while Gwaine had his eyes on the castle, debating on running right now to see how Merlin was.

The rest of the evening went on with loud silence, only the sound of the swords clanging to be heard.

-Nightfall-

Arthur was making his way down the hall to his chambers, George following behind, when he was stopped by his strong-minded sister and Gwen, "Arthur" She said, with an eyebrow raised, which was not as impressive as Gaius's. Arthur responded the same, curious what she wants, "Morgana".

She looked behind Arthur, eyeing George who had his head down. "I see Merlin isn't aiding you..." She said with curiosity. Arthur didn't know what Merlin's relationship was with his half-sister but whatever it was, he won't let them be anything more than friends. He was just looking after his sister that was all... 

Arthur cleared his throat, "I gave him the day off" he said crossing his arms, Morgana scoffed. "Did you really now?" Morgana said jokingly, copying Arthur's movement. "Well, Morgana. Merlin's ill" Arthur said solemnly, Morgana and Gwen's eyes widened and they both turned to exchange a glance. This made Arthur curious and somewhat angry.

Morgana turned back to face Arthur, "Where is he?" Morgana said serious, but a sense of worry was still in her tone. Arthur felt himself getting more and more annoyed at this. "He's with Gaius. Resting" Arthur said, 'Hopefully' Arthur continued the last word in his thoughts. Morgana looked relieved and sighed. 'Strange...'  Arthur said in his thought. They continued talking about the council meeting and an upcoming visit of a royal family, in a nearby kingdom. Then they departed for the night.

Arthur and George made it into Arthur's chambers, George started dressing Arthur into his night clothes. Arthur surprisingly missed Merlin's insistence touching on straightening unknown creases on his clothes. Arthur had dismissed George after getting ready for bed.

He climbed into bed and stared at the canopy up ahead of him. Just him and his thoughts remained, with the sound of the crackling fire.

He fell asleep at how quiet it was, "not at all" hoping Merlin would wake him up tomorrow.

-The Next Day-

Arthur woke up earlier than intended as if waiting for a 'certain' someone. But was greeted by George instead who brought in his breakfast, “I’m sorry Geroge but I didn’t send for you” making it clear he was expecting Merlin to aide him today.

George set down Arthur’s breakfast on his table, “I was told by Gaius to aid you again for today, sire. Gaius said that Merlin would feel the effects of major drowsiness in the morning.” George responded. Arthur’s eyes widen. ‘How strong did Gaius make the remedy?’ Arthur thought, displeased that it wasn’t Gaius who told him about the after-effects. 

Arthur didn’t believe that something was actually wrong with Merlin. So he went out of his door, pacing faster than his usual pace, nodding to the servants, and closing in on the physician’s chambers quickly. He yelled Merlin’s name to make his presence known. As he was nearing the door to the physician’s chambers, he heard whispers and a door closing quickly behind the physician’s door, ‘Who was Gaius talking to?’ This made Arthur genuinely curious. But focused on why he was even here in the first place. 

He barged through the doors and looked around for Gaius. Gaius turned to him quickly, standing in front of Merlin's door, forming a sweat. ‘Strange’ Arthur thought.

Arthur inched closer to Gaius, still at arm's length, “Where’s Merlin, Gaius?”  Arthur commanded, Gaius put on a faint smile, “He’s in his room still feeling ill at the moment, si-” Both Arthur and Gaius heard rustling in Merlin’s door. Arthur was starting to think that Gaius was covering for Merlin so he could be a lazy arse.

He was debating putting Merlin in the stocks again or a night in the dungeon, for being lazy.

He straighten his back and looked at Gaius with authoritative eyes, “Move, Gaius” His tone was icy but Gaius was reluctant to move away from the door. “Should I remind you of who I am, Gaius?” His tone sounded threatening, and Gaius hesitated.

Gaius let out a sigh and moved away from the door, looking worried. Arthur gave Gaius a nod for his submission.

Arthur walked to the door and banged on the door, “Merlin!! Are you in there?!” His voice raised, waiting for a response but was met with dead silence. Arthur started to get annoyed at the silence and burst through the door, “Get out of bed, you useless manservant!” He strode over to Merlin’s bed, Gaius had his arms flailing, looking distressed.

Arthur made it to the bed and pulled off the covers… His eyes widened, shocked to see the last thing he ever expected to see in Merlin’s bed…

Chapter Text

Arthur’s eyes widen to see the last thing that he would ever expect in Merlin’s bed… 

It was a woman… 

A woman in Merlin’s shirt, in his bed…

Arthur felt his blood boil, his knuckles turning white as he clenched Merlin's sheet tightly. Still staring at the woman coldly.

He gave Merlin the day off because Arthur thought Merlin was supposedly 'sick'. Instead, he finds a woman warming his bed while Merlin was nowhere to be found. Was Merlin actually sick or did he pretend to be sick to get a quick shag?

“Where’s Merlin?” Arthur said indignantly, still eying the woman head to toe. The woman stared at Arthur, and Arthur stared back at the trembling woman, who was uttering inaudible sounds.

'Did she know how to speak’ Arthur said rudely In his head.

She was quite the beauty. She had a frail frame, Pale skin, Big round azure eyes, Long eyelashes, and a tousled curly mullet that was hovering above her shoulders. But she looked indecent, Merlin's shirt barely covered her shoulders and her legs.

’So this is Merlin’s type of woman…’ The thought made Arthur irritated that Merlin had found a beautiful girl to bed. He shook the thought away and focused back on the woman with red-brimmed eyes. 

For some reason, she held the same familiar gaze close to Merlin's. It was uncanny that both this woman and Merlin had the same eye color.

A sudden voice broke Arthur’s (Unnecessary) hateful gaze, “S- She’s Merlin’s sister, Sire!” Gaius said quickly. Arthur and the woman turned to face the physician, Gaius seemed to have a sweat forming on his brow, looking at Arthur with wide eyes.

Arthur found the idea of Merlin having a sibling unlikely because Merlin told Arthur that he was an only child, besides who let's their sister sleep in their bed with nothing on but their shirt? Not unless there was some incest going about... which wasn't uncommon in their day and age...

Arthur responded in a resolved tone, “Merlin doesn’t have siblings, Gauis”.

Silence ensued in the room.

Gaius opened his mouth once again after a few seconds but was cut off by a high-pitched and calm voice. “Gaius…Don’t…” Both Arthur and Gaius flicked their gaze back to the woman. ‘So she does talk.’ Arthur said ever so rudely in his head. Both men waiting to hear what she wanted to say.

She took a deep breath and continued in a calm voice, “Arthur…” looking at him.

Arthur’s eyes widen as the woman referred to him by his first name. The only people who called him by his first name were his father, Morgana, Gwen, the knights of the round table, and Merlin.

“It’s me, Arthur…” The woman said calmly. Her blue eyes still held the familiarity Merlin’s eyes had. But Arthur still looked at her with caution, quite puzzled as to what she meant.

The woman rolled her eyes and continued, “It’s Merlin, Arthur” She said sternly, not faltering.

Arthur’s eyes widened. After a few minutes, he barked out a laugh, not believing a word the woman just said, and turned to Gaius to see if he was hearing this correctly.

But Gaius looked down with his head low. This made Arthur’s eyes widen more, He turned back to the woman in the bed, staring her up and down. She looked offended that Arthur laughed at his confession, her mouth pursed into a thin line. Arthur returned a shocked reaction back, while looking at Gaius for confirmation, pointing at the woman. Gaius let out a sigh and nodded with a frown proving it was true.

“m-...Merlin?” Arthur said, astonished, looking Merlin up and down once more, meeting the striking midnight eyes again as if it was dragging him into the deep blue ocean. His gaze softened, loosening his tense posture, looking into the woman's soul.

They stared into each other’s eyes as if they haven’t seen each other in years. The loud silence was all that was there. Only the noise of slow breathing was to be heard. It felt like it was just them at the moment.

At that moment, Arthur came to terms with what was just said...

His annoying, stupid, and loyal manservant had suddenly turned into a woman...

Chapter Text

Merlin was staring at Arthur, noticing that Arthur became less tense after locking eyes with him.

They stayed like that for what seemed like days, just staring into each other’s souls.

Merlin’s eyes were gleaming, giving a relieved smile. Arthur then realized it was indeed Merlin. His useless Manservant.

“Ahem,” Gaius’s voice broke the silence in the room, startling Merlin and Arthur back into reality.

“How are we going to go about all this-” Gaius waved his hand towards Merlin. Merlin looked offended being referred to as ‘this’, “, sire?” Gaius continued, Merlin looked at Arthur who furrowed his eyebrows and crossed his arms, thinking.

Now that was a sight Merlin didn’t think he would ever see.

Merlin let out a small giggle but Arthur shot him a glance to shut him up. He raised his hands in abidance, a grin on his face.

Arthur turned to Gaius, “What happened for Mer-lin to be like 'this'? ” Arthur said, copying Gaius’s hand gesture, Merlin scoffed at the action, and Arthur gave him a smug smile. But faced Gaius again for an answer.

Gaius inhales through his nose and locked eyes with Arthur, "It seems Merlin took the potion that was sent to us by an unknown person." Merlin and Arthur’s eyes widen at the revelation.

Merlin looked to the floor, thinking about which remedy he drank. He then recalled what he had drank, receiving a slight pang.

It seems his headache still won’t leave him alone. Leaving him to him rubbing his temples again.

”You mean the blue one?" Merlin said, moving forward slightly on the bed, his shirt going lower and hanging off his shoulder now.

In the corner of his eyes, he saw a pink tint on Arthur's face. 'Strange…' Merlin thought but chose to ignore it and focused on Gaius, egging him to continue.

Gaius continued, "Yes the blue one, Merlin. But I strictly told you to take the black one, did I not? " Gaius said, irritated, Arthur turned to face both of them, his glance on Merlin's, Waiting for him to come up with a good excuse.

Merlin sighed, his bare shoulders going down into his oversized shirt. “My headache worsened and caused a high-pitched ringing, making me unable to hear at all. Besides you left before I could ask again, so I went with the safest-looking option” Merlin said, content with his answer.

Without even realizing it, Merlin was rubbing his temples, trying to soothe his headache.

“Arthur, could you grab the black vial on the table?” Gaius said, noticing that Merlin’s headache remained.

Arthur obliged and made his way out the door, quickly coming back with the black vial in hand, and handing it to Merlin.

Merlin did not want to drink the ghastly thing, what if it was going to kill him?

Before he could say he was fine he received a threatening glare from both Arthur and Gaius. Just great.

He took a deep breath, uncorked the bottle, and downed the thing like he was drinking ale, receiving a bitter taste.

He winced and made probably the stupidest expression he's ever made. Why does Gaius make the most disgusting potions? Merlin will never know the answer.

Merlin composed himself, knowing the two men were staring at him, debating whether to laugh or just keep quiet. He opened his eyes, looking down and fiddling with the empty vial in his hands. They were small.

It became really quiet.

The two stared at Merlin tracing the vial, "Do you know why the potion was sent, Gaius?" Merlin looked up, the two men became startled, it was as if they were staring at a statue, not knowing it could move or speak.

Merlin looked down, still tracing and fidgeting with the vial.

Gaius had composed himself in the corner of Merlin's eye, speaking slowly, "No. I do not. But… " he said, continuing, "It was sent to Arthur under the guise of a noble…"

Time stopped at that moment and Merlin seized his fidgeting, he looked up to face Gaius, his eyes wide, Arthur doing the same.

After receiving the shocking news, He let out a sigh, glad that it was him that got the potion first. Although Merlin couldn't help but find the idea of Arthur turning into a woman funny.

"Is there a cure, Gaius?" Arthur said hesitantly, sounding composed. But Merlin knows that there is a twinge of concern in that tone. Merlin always knows how to read Arthur, more than anyone as a matter of fact.

Merlin looked at Arthur, then looked at Gaius as if he were a porcelain doll.

"I've been looking into it, sire"

"Good"

They continued their conversation, still sorting out how this situation even happened.

Although Merlin seemed to have his head in the clouds, he was observing. Listening to every detail that Gaius was saying, how yesterday a mysterious package arrived and how he went to Uther to report this unknown gift.

While Arthur and Gains were discussing what the potion was, Merlin shifted to sit on the side of his bed, aware that the room suddenly became quiet.

His feet hung over the edge, the vial still in hand, He felt naked. The clothes barely contained any warmth, making him shiver.

Arthur notices and is debating whether or not to do something about it, but Gaius beats him to it, "Merlin... " Gaius says far too quietly.

Merlin hums a reply, slowly lifting to see Gaius's face, still tracing the vial in his hand.

He continued, "Maybe we should do something about your… Ahem…" he says, pointing at his shirt.

Merlin looked down at his shirt, then to the floor. He could feel his cheeks and the back of his neck get hot with embarrassment but tried to compose himself.

He looks up at Gaius, and gives him a wry smile, "I think that would be wise, Gaius" adjusting the shirt to cover his shoulders. His voice sounded more smoother and higher than his normal low voice.

Arthur looked away, finding Merlin's ceiling rather interesting while Merlin eyed him out of curiosity.

“I could have Gwen tailor them for me” Merlin suggested.

The two nodded but Arthur stopped and asked, “How should we go about telling everyone about this?”.

“I think It’d be best if we told the truth. It’s not like I could go into hiding, now can I?” Merlin says determined, it’s not like they’ll treat him any differently… Right?

Chapter Text

Merlin passed out as soon as Arthur told him to take today off too and has been stuck in his room for two hours feeling like shit as the after-effects from the black tonic he took were setting in.

Knock knock

Someone was knocking on his door softly, probably to not wake him up

Merlin let out a grunt, rubbing his temples, “Ugh… Who is it?” He shifted in his bed, trying to find a comfy way to lie but his bed was just making his mood even more terrible.

He could hear whispers from behind his door after he spoke, “Um… Is it alright if we come in?” A voice he thinks might be Gwen or the baker's daughter. Maybe Joan? Wait, who’s Joan?

Merlin gave up on trying to figure out who it was and just hummed a reply. Granting them entry into his filthy room.

The door opened slowly, a curly-haired woman’s head popped from behind the door, scanning the room, and her eyes fell to Merlin’s bed.

Her eyes widened and she let out a peep as she saw Merlin in his bed. She quickly shut the door and whispered to someone else behind the door, while Merlin didn’t "eavesdrop" on the contents of the gossip... What? It’s not his fault, His door is as thin as parchment paper and it’s hard not to listen when it’s about you.

-Behind the door-

“I’m telling you, Morgana! There’s a woman in Merlin’s bed! A WOMAN!!” Gwen murmured loudly, Her eyes wide as a silver platter. 

Morgana rolled her eyes and found the idea of a woman in Merlin’s bed unlikely. “Please, Gwen. A woman? In Merlin’s bed?” Morgana crossed her arms, standing tall as she walked towards the handle of Merlin’s bedroom. Her hand lay on the door handle as she turned to face Gwen.

“Everyone in Camelot knows Merlin is too busy being the prince's lapdog. How on earth would he ever have the time to be with a woman? And for a quick shag too?” She shakes her head at the idea, finding it quite laughable.

-Back in Merlin’s room-

Merlin scoffs at Morgana’s assumption of him not being able to bed a girl (having no bitches lol).

He shifts himself on his bed to have him face the door as the handle gets pushed open, revealing Morgana in a pretty deep blue silk dress, her sleeves a layered transparency, and Gwen wearing a tan kirtle with a blue outer top and apron to match her lady as she looked at the woman in Merlin’s bed.

-Morgana’s and Gwen’s POVs-

Morgana was still looking at Gwen as the door swung out towards the wall and Gwen’s face turned red as she locked eyes with the woman who had a small smile on her face.

Morgana’s face fell as she saw Gwen blush like a tomato and turned to what she was staring intently at. She looks towards the bed and locks eyes with the woman as well, her face turning pale.

They both locked eyes at the mysterious woman who was smiling sweetly at them.

After a few minutes, Morgana’s confusion lessens and she’s able to speak again calmly, “W- Who are you?” She points a finger towards the woman in Merlin’s bed with curiosity. “And why are you in Merlin’s bed?” She continued with a dumbfounded tone as if she had found Kilgharrah under the castle.

The woman slowly sits up, her shirt still loose around his shoulders and gives them a small smile. They both become startled as she moves but soon turn red like a strawberry as their gaze falls to her shoulders.

Morgana looks away and finds Merlin’s floor rather enticing and Gwen is just absolutely starstruck as she looks at the beautiful woman before her.

The woman blushes slightly as she adjusts her clothes to cover his shoulders, her gaze still on them. 

“Gana… Gwen…” The woman looks at the two speaking in a soft and high-pitched voice, shifting her eyes to match the names with their eyes. Their eyes widen and Morgana tries to slowly reach the closest thing near them in need of protection.

She shakes her head but speaks slowly to them, “It’s me. It’s Merlin” She says with a worried smile on her face, her voice has a certain calming factor to them, especially her deep azure blue eyes that look like the night sky. Which oddly holds a familiarity to Merlin’s but hers were rather big since she had doe eyes.

The two women's faces fall but look toward each other and then back to the mysterious woman, finding her words unbelievable and worrisome.

Gwen gains her composure and her gaze hardens towards the mysterious woman, “Where is Merlin?” She said in a fierce tone, ready to drag the woman across the floor.

The woman rolls her eyes (Which isn’t the smartest idea), which makes Gwen more enraged at the woman, “Where. Is. Merlin? I needn’t ask again.” Gwen’s gaze not faltering. Morgana stands still as she watches the woman with caution but can’t help how her skin tingles when she hears Gwen speak in such a tone.

“If you're Merlin, prove it. What is a secret I’ve only confided in Merlin?” Morgana spoke up in a threatening tone, Her gaze looking coldly at her as she shifted closer to Gwen to protect her in case the whore in Merlin’s bed did anything. If this is truly Merlin, she would say one of the two things; One, She has magic, and two….

The woman let out a small smirk causing the two to swallow hard and become more on edge. The woman sets her hands back and leans onto it as she sits on Merlin’s bed.

“Well…” She said in a playful tone, looking at the two women with a proud but teasingly twinkle in her eyes.

“Does Gwen know that you told me what’s going on between you two?” the woman said in a sly tone. 

Morgana’s eyebrows furrow as she looks confused, “What do you me-” She suddenly turns red when she realizes she went for the second secret while Gwen looks at Morgana with confusion...

Gwen’s eyes go back to the mysterious woman, still confused as to what Morgana told Merlin. “Pardon?” Her gaze is genuinely curious while Morgana swallows hard and avoids Gwen’s gaze.

The woman lets out a chuckle and pouts, “Did you not tell her what you told me, Gana?” She smiles while still holding that mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

Gwen starts to get irritated and looks towards Morgana, “What did you tell Merlin, Morgana!” She says sternly, Her gaze hardening once again.

Morgana is still avoiding her gaze.

Gwen feels so angry and betrayed as she stares at Morgana who is avoiding her questions. Her fist is clenched and tears begin to well in her eyes as she stares down to the floor.

“Gwen…” A pair of hands grabbed Gwen’s clenched fist and rubbed the top of her hand, the hand felt soft and silky.

Gwen looked up at the person holding her hand gently. It was the woman. Morgana flinched as the woman sent a death glare to her.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, love. Morgana told me about your relationship.” The woman smiled warmly while her other hand cupped Gwen’s face, rubbing circles on her cheekbones. 

Gwen’s eyes widened as she looked to Morgana who was still looking the other way. She looked back at the woman, worry coming over her. At this point, Gwen doesn't know if this is merely a jest that the woman and Morgana are pulling on her or if this woman is truly Merlin and knows about something going on between them.

She was about to speak up when the woman put her index finger on her mouth, trying to calm her down, “I wanted to tell you that I support you three strongly.” She said warmly with a small smile. Gwen’s eyes were still wide but slowly she felt relieved that this woman wouldn’t tell their secret. She also feels happy hearing that they accept them.

“Besides..” He eyed the two with the familiar twinkle in his eyes.

“Morgana better worship the ground you walk on daily for managing to receive your hand in secret.” She said in a cheeky grin, Morgana turned around and started sputtering with an offended look.

“She should be the one worshiping the ground I walk on!! I have many more suitors than her that are dying for my hand in marriage!” Morgana spat out, pointing to Gwen, her cheeks red as a rose.

“Like Arthur?” Merlin remarked with a grin. 

Morgana and Gwen’s eyes widened in horror as Merlin said that, finding it appalling. “ MERLIN!!” Morgana yelled in utter disgust, feeling like she might throw up.

“I’d rather kiss a hundred, no thousands of  trolls than marry Arthur!” She said with exaggeration, feeling herself about to throw up at the image of her on an altar with Arthur. Gwen was stuck between also hurling at the image or laughing at the idea of Morgana kissing a hundred trolls.

Merlin lets out a dramatic gasp, looking at Gwen as he walks behind her, “Since Morgana won’t worship the ground for you Gwen…” Merlin hugs her from behind, his face in Gwen’s hair, as he whispers into her ear loud enough for Morgana to hear. 

“How about you let me do the honor of doing it?” He said in a mischievous and playful tone, eyeing Morgana’s reaction as he moved his hands around Gwen’s waist.

Gwen’s eyes widen as she watches Merlin’s hands wrap around her, her face turning a deep shade of red. Morgana’s eyes turned hostile as she watched the scene unfold in front of her.

She grabs Gwen and holds her close as she glares at Merlin, “Touch her again Merlin and I'll run you through with a sword.” She growled out, her gaze hard on him. Gwen becomes more flustered and seems like she might overheat as she melts into Morgana’s arms and rests on her lady's breast.

Merlin raised his hands in surrender with a smile on his face, “Yes, Your Majesty. But don’t think for a second about hurting her, Gana. Or else” He says playfully but is deadly serious.

Morgana rolls her eyes and finds that unlikely, “ Never in a million years would I do that. And if I did so, I’d be out of my right mind,” She facetiously says, but her tone reassures Merlin that she is serious. He nods in acknowledging her tone.

He speaks to her using mind speak, “You better hold true to your words, Gana,” He says sternly as his gaze hardens.

Morgana’s demeanor falls into a state of tension after she stares at him wide-eyed, her mouth open before it closes due to her not managing to udder a word until she sends him a nod of compliance but is still rather uneasy as she holds her girlfriend. 

“Why don’t you say the same thing to her?” She motions to Gwen who has already melted into her touch, wanting an answer to her question. She understands that Merlin is very protective, but doesn’t she deserve that treatment too?

Merlin looks at Gwen with a warm smile and responds to Morgana, “Gwen’s my friend, I’m the one who is allowing your relationship” He lets out a small smirk, watching Morgana become enraged.

“THAT’S NOT FAIR!! I’M YOUR FRIEND TOO!” Her eyes glare toward Merlin, her nostrils flaring like a dragon wanting to burn him to a crisp.

Merlin just sends her a smirk, “I’ve known her longer than you,” Countering back her reason on why he cares for Gwen. He would treat them equally but in reality, Gwen is a gentle and innocent soul. So there’s no harm in being a bit harsh on Morgana since she is a naturally strong soul.

“Fair point…” Morgana resigns as she glances at Merlin. Merlin bows his head, happy to have won an argument against the infamous Morgana Pendragon.

Morgana scoffs and sends an annoyed glare to him, “Why did Arthur ask Gwen to see you anyway?” Morgana spoke out loud, eyeing Merlin curiously, shaking Gwen from her thoughts.

Merlin looks confused for a moment before remembering why he needs Gwen, “OH, YES! I wanted to ask if Gwen had any clothes that might fit me or if she could tailor my old ones to fit?” He asks a question as he spins slowly around in his giant shirt, gaining a little blush from Gwen and Morgana as they see how the shirt isn’t covering Merlin all too well.

“Merlin, stop twirling in your shirt!” Morgana shouts as if she were a mother yelling out to her child, Her gaze at the floor as she turns red again. Gwen’s cheeks turn red also as she stares at Merlin, stuttering.

Merlin’s eyes widen and he immediately stops, his cheeks, ears, and the back of his neck turning red with embarrassment. “Sorry…” He whispers out, quickly grabbing his blanket to cover himself up. “Still new to this…” He lets out a wry smile but deeply feels embarrassed.

Morgana rubs the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes, “We might also try to teach you how to act like a lady until your cu-” She stops and opens her eyes to look at Merlin, her hand just about to rub her temples as she meets Merlin’s gaze.

Her demeanor falls into a serious state, her tone genuine, “There is a cure, Right?” Her worry begins to harden her gaze, waiting for an answer.

Merlin smiles warmly that Morgana cares deeply about him, “Yes, or at least that’s what Gaius said…” Merlin says with a smile but is also curious to see if he'll be in this state for a while... Hopefully not...

Morgana lets out a sigh, relieved that there is a possible cure. She looks back to Merlin who is covered in his blanket, a grin on her face because she’ll never let this down.

“Let’s have Gwen measure you and then we'll proceed to see if you could either fit in my or Gwen's old garments.” Merlin looks at Morgana with a warm smile as he nods. Morgana sends a smile and looks to see if Gwen is alright again.

Gwen snaps out of her flustered state and nods her head, quickly going to grab her sewing supplies. 

Morgana turns to Merlin, her gaze locking into his, her eyes still and unmoving. Merlin sweats a little, going to sit on the bed cause he still felt like crap.

“How did you manage to turn into a woman?” Morgana raises an eyebrow, expecting an answer. Merlin stares at her and smiles fondly, glad she is worried for him.

“I drank the wrong potion that was meant to help with my headache yesterday.”

Merlin says casually, taking in his outer appearance as he plays with a curl, pulling it before he lets it go and it coils back. He’s surprised that he has curlier hair than he thought, his hair rather longer than he thought it would be as a woman.

Morgana stares at him with a relieved but frustrated look before she speaks up.

“Do you think I could help you?”

She asks softly, her tone curious and genuine. She treated Merlin like a brother ever since she revealed her magic to him. He was the only one who accepted her for being herself and she would do anything to protect him even though he flirts with Gwen to get a rise out of her but for some reason… Female Merlin is surprisingly more… charming…

She shakes her head of these thoughts as she stares at Merlin once more, seeing him have a small smile etched gently on his face before he speaks up.

“It’s alright, Gana. I can’t ask this much of you since you are still under training.” Merlin says with a soft nod, still getting used to how smooth and high-pitched his voice is with an accent that is certain he is from Elador.

“But-”

“That’s enough, Morgana.” He says firmly, not meaning to furrow his eyebrows which makes him look rather terrifying and angry but he quickly softens when he sees how Morgana is staring at him wide-eyed with shaky breath, her fingers clutching the fabric of her dress at the front as if she’s a scared child while being scolded.

But as she was about to speak up, Gwen came back with tape for measurement around her neck, a few old dresses, and a small wooden box that Merlin carved for her to store her sewing supplies.

And so, the fitting process begins… And Merlin realizes how hard it is to be a woman...