fic: Safe and Sound (2/?)
Title: Safe and sound
Author: mina93
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Arthur/Merlin
Warnings/Spoilers: For the Hunger Games series
Summary: The rules of the Hunger Games are simple. In punishment for the magical uprising, each of the eight districts must provide two young people called tributes to participate. The sixteen tributes will be imprisoned in a vast outdoor arena that could contain anything The competitors must fight to the death. the last tribute standing wins.
People silently signed in, looking around, trying to locate their friends and family. Arthur has to sign in a different place than Morgana and the girl is scared, but Arthur reassures her that everything will be fine and after she has signed in, he helps her find a safe place to stand, he sighs a breath of relief when he finds Mithian in the crowd.
She smiles at him, understanding his worry and taking Morgana’s hand, to help her find a good place to stand. Mithian was a couple of years older than Morgana, and would therefor stand closer to the front than her.
Arthur hugs Morgana, strokes her hair, telling her that he will play prince and princess with her when they get home. He knows they are too big to playing it, that life is too difficult, but Morgana likes the memories of the game, how she had actually been able to beat Arthur and knocking the stick/sword out of his hand when she’d only been seven. Arthur swore it had never happened.
He kisses the top of her head and walks over to where the other boys are standing, finding Leon in the crowd and taking a deep breath as he stands behind him to him. They used to only be categorized into ages, but now they were hoarded off into groups based on gender as well.
“Nervous, Penny?” Leon asked over his shoulder and Arthur gave him a death glare.
Family and friends are starting to form around them, everyone trying to get a good look at the stage. The clock strikes and the mayor, Mithian’s father walks up onto the podium, only stopping for a brief second to frown at the empty chair next to Elena.
He holds the same speech he held last year, and every year before then. The history of Albion. The glorious battles and the horrible, magical storms that used to roar this land before it became Albion. Some said it was just a legend, that Albion had always been Albion and always would be. He told about Camelot, the heart of it all that had led the land into peace and prosperity.
Then the Great Purge came, the Dark days, when the sorcerers, seers and others with magic had rebelled against the Capitol and others had soon joined, it was said that those with magic had put the people under their spell. After the war, magic had disappeared, and new laws were passed to sentence anyone with magic to death, and the Hunger Games were created as a reminder that the purge and the days of magic never would be again.
Suddenly the speech was over, and Elena had taken the stage “Happy hunger games! And may the odds be forever in your favor!” She said, way too enthusiastic. No one could understand how she could be happy about sending children to their deaths for entertainment. Arthur used to think there was certain sadness in her eyes though. Now he knew better. Arthur had told him that he should always stay human, no matter how much he hated the world. It had broken his heart.
Suddenly she was drawing a name, the reaping had started. Was he going to get picked? Was Leon going to get picked? He closed his eyes, tried to concentrate, not knowing what to do.
She read the name aloud, it wasn’t his own. It wasn't Leon's. It was Morgana Pendragon.
Arthur felt like he couldn’t breathe, had he heard wrong? Her name was only in there once. One time, when he was younger, he had gone to the lake and his foot had got caught in something and dragged him under, he hadn’t been able breathe, and he thought he was going to die. It was the same feeling he had now. Back then, he couldn’t have been more than ten years old, something had saved him. He remembered blacking out and when he had woken up, he was in his mother’s bed. Leon had found him on the shore of the lake, spluttering water everywhere before he had lost consciousness again. Arthur thought Leon had been the one to save him, he swore he didn’t. Morgana had only been around six, but she had said that a guardian angel was looking over him.
This time though, no one was saving him, no one could refill his lungs with air. The odds had been in her favor, it hadn’t helped. Morgana was walking towards the stage, how much time had passed? She looked terrified.
“Morgana!” He yells, not even thinking. “Morgana!”
He reaches her just before she’s about to walk up onto the stage, he drags her arm almost painfully and tugs her behind himself. “I volunteer!” he shouts, it’s desperate and his voice cracks “I volunteer as tribute!”
There are gasps, and murmurs and high pitched squeals. Arthur doesn’t care. Only stares up at the people on the stage. It had been a very long time since someone had volunteered.
“Great!” Elena says, but there’s still some shock in her eyes. Arthur can see it.
“Come on up.” The mayor says stiffly.
“No, Arthur, please, please!” Morgana cries desperately “I had a terrible dream-“
“Shhh.” Arthur shushes her, he knows his sister is special, all though they pretended everything was normal and they never talked about it, he knew. “Let go of me.” He says roughly, knowing that the whole of the land will be seeing this. He can’t be represented as weak.
“This is just lovely, that was your sister, right?” Elena asked “Can’t let her take your throne now, can we? Let’s give him a round of applause!”
Everything is silent. Arthur stands motionlessly, trying to gather his thought, trying not to pass out. Suddenly one person, then another, then another presses their three middle fingers to their mouths and then up to him, as a sound of admiration, love and goodbye. Everyone in the crowd does it. Arthur feels like he actually cares, he cares for these people, but he doesn’t know why.
Arthur wants to cry when he catches Leon’s eyes, but then a very drunk Gwaine staggers onto the stage.
Gwaine is the only one alive from district 12 who’s still alive. He’s middle aged and his shoulder length hair is all over the place and he reeks of booze and sweat.
“I like this one,” he says and hooks an arm around Arthur’s shoulder and another one patting his stomach, looking him up and down “I think.”
Arthur turns his head to look at him, Gwaine grins. “I know I like him more than the bloody court, that’s for sure!” he says and the audience gasps, everyone knows that Camelot is watching.
There are these floating balls that catches everything and most people thinks they run by some kind of magic to let everyone see everything that happens during the Hunger games, showing the events in certain places, in a bright light across the land, no one ever says it so anyone can hear them though.
Gwaine then mumbles something Arthur doesn’t catch and falls right off the stage, and all eyes are on him. Arthur is grateful.
Elena makes a comment about excitement as Gwaine is carried away and then her hand dives into the bowl again, ready to pick the second tribute.
“Le-“ She starts and Arthur heart sinks before she coughs “I apologize, I thought it said, no, never mind, Merlin Emrys!” she shouts out.
Not Leon then, good, great, no, wait, Merlin? Arthur thinks and looks out into the crowd to see the scrawny boy make his way to the stage, his blue eyes showing nothing but worry and his black hair and pale skin reminds him slightly of Morgana.
Why him? Arthur remembered him, remembered the name, the odds were not in his favor today.
It was right after Morgana’s mother had died and they had taken her in, only that Arthur’s mother had been very affected by the whole thing, Arthur still didn’t understand why, they hadn’t been close. She had locked herself in their house, staring at the wall, not doing anything; Morgana had been a real sweetheart, helping out as best she could as such a small age. Arthur had just turned eight years old, and he had to take care of Morgana, wouldn’t let her end up in one of those orphanage homes.
Not after losing her mother, Morgana didn’t know her father either; Arthur would take care of her, only, he hadn’t learned how yet and his family was slowly starving to death. He was too young to get any food by putting his name in for the reaping.
When he had first met Merlin, the rain had been falling heavily and it was getting dark outside and Arthur was on his way home after failing at selling some old clothes. He had tried to sell the bow that Morgana had given him only a couple of weeks before, but she hadn’t let him.
The smell from the bakery had been overwhelming and he had almost fallen to his knees in pure desperation for something to eat, something to feed his family. The baker had come outside and told him to move or else he would have someone remove him. The boy, Merlin, had been standing behind him, only then, Arthur didn’t know his name.
Merlin’s mother was the baker’s girlfriend, if you could call her that. The man was horrible, but It kept them fed though and that was all that mattered.
Arthur had leaned against the apple tree by the pigs’ fence, ready to give up and die right there in the rain when he had heard shouting from inside and a noise he couldn’t place. Then the boy had come outside with two big loaves that had looked burnt.
“Throw them to the pigs!” The baker had yelled.
The boy ignored the voice completely and walked over to where Arthur was sitting, he then bent down and laid the bread down, right there in front of him without saying a word. His cheekbones were perfect, Arthur remembered thinking, but someone had hit him, probably the baker.
Arthur had always thought of Merlin as the boy who had saved his life, the boy who had saved his family, but he never knew why he had done it.
Arthur owed the boy his life and now they had to fight to the death. The mayor said some words and then Merlin reached out his hand, Arthur looked at it for a moment before taking it; he could swear that Merlin was smiling at him. Hopefully someone else would kill him so he wouldn’t have to.
Previous chapter
Author: mina93
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Arthur/Merlin
Warnings/Spoilers: For the Hunger Games series
Summary: The rules of the Hunger Games are simple. In punishment for the magical uprising, each of the eight districts must provide two young people called tributes to participate. The sixteen tributes will be imprisoned in a vast outdoor arena that could contain anything The competitors must fight to the death. the last tribute standing wins.
People silently signed in, looking around, trying to locate their friends and family. Arthur has to sign in a different place than Morgana and the girl is scared, but Arthur reassures her that everything will be fine and after she has signed in, he helps her find a safe place to stand, he sighs a breath of relief when he finds Mithian in the crowd.
She smiles at him, understanding his worry and taking Morgana’s hand, to help her find a good place to stand. Mithian was a couple of years older than Morgana, and would therefor stand closer to the front than her.
Arthur hugs Morgana, strokes her hair, telling her that he will play prince and princess with her when they get home. He knows they are too big to playing it, that life is too difficult, but Morgana likes the memories of the game, how she had actually been able to beat Arthur and knocking the stick/sword out of his hand when she’d only been seven. Arthur swore it had never happened.
He kisses the top of her head and walks over to where the other boys are standing, finding Leon in the crowd and taking a deep breath as he stands behind him to him. They used to only be categorized into ages, but now they were hoarded off into groups based on gender as well.
“Nervous, Penny?” Leon asked over his shoulder and Arthur gave him a death glare.
Family and friends are starting to form around them, everyone trying to get a good look at the stage. The clock strikes and the mayor, Mithian’s father walks up onto the podium, only stopping for a brief second to frown at the empty chair next to Elena.
He holds the same speech he held last year, and every year before then. The history of Albion. The glorious battles and the horrible, magical storms that used to roar this land before it became Albion. Some said it was just a legend, that Albion had always been Albion and always would be. He told about Camelot, the heart of it all that had led the land into peace and prosperity.
Then the Great Purge came, the Dark days, when the sorcerers, seers and others with magic had rebelled against the Capitol and others had soon joined, it was said that those with magic had put the people under their spell. After the war, magic had disappeared, and new laws were passed to sentence anyone with magic to death, and the Hunger Games were created as a reminder that the purge and the days of magic never would be again.
Suddenly the speech was over, and Elena had taken the stage “Happy hunger games! And may the odds be forever in your favor!” She said, way too enthusiastic. No one could understand how she could be happy about sending children to their deaths for entertainment. Arthur used to think there was certain sadness in her eyes though. Now he knew better. Arthur had told him that he should always stay human, no matter how much he hated the world. It had broken his heart.
Suddenly she was drawing a name, the reaping had started. Was he going to get picked? Was Leon going to get picked? He closed his eyes, tried to concentrate, not knowing what to do.
She read the name aloud, it wasn’t his own. It wasn't Leon's. It was Morgana Pendragon.
Arthur felt like he couldn’t breathe, had he heard wrong? Her name was only in there once. One time, when he was younger, he had gone to the lake and his foot had got caught in something and dragged him under, he hadn’t been able breathe, and he thought he was going to die. It was the same feeling he had now. Back then, he couldn’t have been more than ten years old, something had saved him. He remembered blacking out and when he had woken up, he was in his mother’s bed. Leon had found him on the shore of the lake, spluttering water everywhere before he had lost consciousness again. Arthur thought Leon had been the one to save him, he swore he didn’t. Morgana had only been around six, but she had said that a guardian angel was looking over him.
This time though, no one was saving him, no one could refill his lungs with air. The odds had been in her favor, it hadn’t helped. Morgana was walking towards the stage, how much time had passed? She looked terrified.
“Morgana!” He yells, not even thinking. “Morgana!”
He reaches her just before she’s about to walk up onto the stage, he drags her arm almost painfully and tugs her behind himself. “I volunteer!” he shouts, it’s desperate and his voice cracks “I volunteer as tribute!”
There are gasps, and murmurs and high pitched squeals. Arthur doesn’t care. Only stares up at the people on the stage. It had been a very long time since someone had volunteered.
“Great!” Elena says, but there’s still some shock in her eyes. Arthur can see it.
“Come on up.” The mayor says stiffly.
“No, Arthur, please, please!” Morgana cries desperately “I had a terrible dream-“
“Shhh.” Arthur shushes her, he knows his sister is special, all though they pretended everything was normal and they never talked about it, he knew. “Let go of me.” He says roughly, knowing that the whole of the land will be seeing this. He can’t be represented as weak.
“This is just lovely, that was your sister, right?” Elena asked “Can’t let her take your throne now, can we? Let’s give him a round of applause!”
Everything is silent. Arthur stands motionlessly, trying to gather his thought, trying not to pass out. Suddenly one person, then another, then another presses their three middle fingers to their mouths and then up to him, as a sound of admiration, love and goodbye. Everyone in the crowd does it. Arthur feels like he actually cares, he cares for these people, but he doesn’t know why.
Arthur wants to cry when he catches Leon’s eyes, but then a very drunk Gwaine staggers onto the stage.
Gwaine is the only one alive from district 12 who’s still alive. He’s middle aged and his shoulder length hair is all over the place and he reeks of booze and sweat.
“I like this one,” he says and hooks an arm around Arthur’s shoulder and another one patting his stomach, looking him up and down “I think.”
Arthur turns his head to look at him, Gwaine grins. “I know I like him more than the bloody court, that’s for sure!” he says and the audience gasps, everyone knows that Camelot is watching.
There are these floating balls that catches everything and most people thinks they run by some kind of magic to let everyone see everything that happens during the Hunger games, showing the events in certain places, in a bright light across the land, no one ever says it so anyone can hear them though.
Gwaine then mumbles something Arthur doesn’t catch and falls right off the stage, and all eyes are on him. Arthur is grateful.
Elena makes a comment about excitement as Gwaine is carried away and then her hand dives into the bowl again, ready to pick the second tribute.
“Le-“ She starts and Arthur heart sinks before she coughs “I apologize, I thought it said, no, never mind, Merlin Emrys!” she shouts out.
Not Leon then, good, great, no, wait, Merlin? Arthur thinks and looks out into the crowd to see the scrawny boy make his way to the stage, his blue eyes showing nothing but worry and his black hair and pale skin reminds him slightly of Morgana.
Why him? Arthur remembered him, remembered the name, the odds were not in his favor today.
It was right after Morgana’s mother had died and they had taken her in, only that Arthur’s mother had been very affected by the whole thing, Arthur still didn’t understand why, they hadn’t been close. She had locked herself in their house, staring at the wall, not doing anything; Morgana had been a real sweetheart, helping out as best she could as such a small age. Arthur had just turned eight years old, and he had to take care of Morgana, wouldn’t let her end up in one of those orphanage homes.
Not after losing her mother, Morgana didn’t know her father either; Arthur would take care of her, only, he hadn’t learned how yet and his family was slowly starving to death. He was too young to get any food by putting his name in for the reaping.
When he had first met Merlin, the rain had been falling heavily and it was getting dark outside and Arthur was on his way home after failing at selling some old clothes. He had tried to sell the bow that Morgana had given him only a couple of weeks before, but she hadn’t let him.
The smell from the bakery had been overwhelming and he had almost fallen to his knees in pure desperation for something to eat, something to feed his family. The baker had come outside and told him to move or else he would have someone remove him. The boy, Merlin, had been standing behind him, only then, Arthur didn’t know his name.
Merlin’s mother was the baker’s girlfriend, if you could call her that. The man was horrible, but It kept them fed though and that was all that mattered.
Arthur had leaned against the apple tree by the pigs’ fence, ready to give up and die right there in the rain when he had heard shouting from inside and a noise he couldn’t place. Then the boy had come outside with two big loaves that had looked burnt.
“Throw them to the pigs!” The baker had yelled.
The boy ignored the voice completely and walked over to where Arthur was sitting, he then bent down and laid the bread down, right there in front of him without saying a word. His cheekbones were perfect, Arthur remembered thinking, but someone had hit him, probably the baker.
Arthur had always thought of Merlin as the boy who had saved his life, the boy who had saved his family, but he never knew why he had done it.
Arthur owed the boy his life and now they had to fight to the death. The mayor said some words and then Merlin reached out his hand, Arthur looked at it for a moment before taking it; he could swear that Merlin was smiling at him. Hopefully someone else would kill him so he wouldn’t have to.
Previous chapter