Advent Challenge - modern era + canon links
Fandom: Merlin (modern au)
Day 15
Pairing:
Title: Haze
Author: self
Rating:17+ (some violence, nudity, brief non-con)
Disclaimer: don't own these characters
Summary: He knows these images are actual memories, despite the disjointed passage of time associated with dreams.
He lived through these events once then had to relive them verbally until he simply could not speak of it. His mother must never know.
Haze
The most menacing senior boy looms over Merlin, held by two other seniors so he leans forward on his knees in front of the animal in pristine school uniform. He sees Will from the corner of his eye, duct taped to a chair with squiggles all over his face and hands. Merlin hopes his Quest will be Blackboard too. It's certainly one of the milder ones he's heard of.
"Streak." Animal pronounces. Only the two holding Merlin laugh. The other seniors in this group are stunned.
"Come off it, Streak has never been allocated. It's a gag," one protests, his words tainted with impending dread. Merlin struggles against his captors and receives a kick that cauks his thigh.
"Not anymore. This one is perfect for the Quest." Animal's expression terrifies Merlin further.
"Why would you make us all see that scrawny thing naked?"
"You're supposed to punish Pity Boy, not us!"
"Enough. Who is King?"
"You are Sire," the Knights of Medhir reply as one.
"Precisely. The creature's Quest is set. Trickler, read out its instructions."
Trickler removes the only index card that gleams white among a box of tattered, use-stained peers. Merlin makes up his mind after step 1. There is no way he is doing this. His determination grows with each step. What Punishment could possibly be worse than this?
"Before the King asks whether you accept or decline to undertake your Quest you may ask him one question."
Merlin knows there is only one question to ask, and that it is not Are you Satan or merely the product of a failed cross-species coupling?
"If I refuse?"
"You will become my free period and lunchtime concubine. And I mean..."
"I know what it means," Merlin interrupts through gritted teeth. That has to be the worst punishment for anything. Serial killers get off lighter than that.
The previous protestor speaks out again. "Pendragon is not going to ..."
"Pendragon is not going to know. None of those Prefects loyal to Pendragon are going to know because if Pity Boy tells a single soul, not only will he be feeling my cock up his arse every day until graduation but he will be able to see it all on video. So Pity Boy, dost thou accept thy Quest?"
Merlin looks King, Animal, whatever his true name is in the eye.
"Yes."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The second storey windows are higher when you're balanced on the ledge of one with your naked arse pressed desperately against the glass behind you.
It's cold and windy. It is so cold his willy has shrunk to a nub. On the whole he considers this a blessing as now it can't be whipped about by the stinging wind. As if this isn't humiliating enough, right?
He hears the blind shoot up behind him. Crap, now for the next stage.
Merlin has to edge across the window ledges, bum against the glass, in a race against the teacher opening the blinds. If he makes it to the final window without Mr Monmouth spotting him he wins immunity from the Knights of Medhir and some sort of trophy. If he's spotted he has to claim full responsibility or become a reluctant porn star.
It's all lose.
He thinks he's made it and climbs through the window in the next classroom opened for him by the Knights of Medhir before he began. Merlin leaps to the floor with a grin - and then the lights go on.
"Would you care to explain yourself young man?" Mr Monmouth asks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He sits miserably in front of the Dean's office. They're going to make him wear The Hat and cane his arse in front of the school like they did with Will, like they do to every boy caught fulfilling a Quest as well as other miscreants. As if the school hasn't seen enough of Merlin's arse already.
He wishes that Prefect would stop trying to talk to him. He's got to be a spy for Animal, luring Merlin into confessing why he really did it so Animal can... Merlin wants to vomit. He notices the name on the Prefect's badge and tells him where to go.
"Piss off Pendragon you Prefect Poofter!" Hang on, Pendragon? "Sorry. I thought, you're not one of them are you? The Knights of Medhir?"
Pendragon's eyes flash with anger and his face tightens. Beneath Merlin's fear runs a thought of 'Wow!'
"Tell me all of it, I mean all of it. My friends and I can't stop them if I don't know all the facts."
Merlin does because there's something so familiar about him.
The Dean summons Merlin into his office but Pendragon keeps Merlin in his seat by placing a firm yet compassionate hand on his shoulder.
"I'll talk to him first. Don't breathe a word to anyone else."
The wait is broken by raised voices from behind the door.
"You cannot seriously condone the continuation of this behaviour!"
"You forget yourself Pendragon. You are a Prefect, nothing more. Your father may be a member of the School Board but he is not Chair. Detention during lunch today ought to help you remember your place. One more word and I will issue a suspension."
"Sorry, Merlin is it? We may have started a war Merlin, but you won't be fighting it on your own."
Pendragon turns a baleful glare to the Dean as he calls for Merlin again. Merlin can't be sure, but he likes to think the Dean flinches a bit...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Merlin's arse stings.
The Hat falls off again.
"Five more," the Dean announces and the cane whips across Merlin's buttocks with a crack. Then a voice echoes angrily through the hall followed by quick, steady, military precise footsteps toward the stage.
Pendragon's words are lost in this particular version of the dream because Merlin's attention is focussed on his face. Those eyes of blue fire burn into the Dean, who has chosen to issue Merlin's caning himself. His posture is straight and poised to fight as he confronts not only the Dean but the entire system for allowing these hazings to continue and for punishing the victims instead of the perpetrators.
The Hat is taken off Merlin's head.
"Go," Pendragon says quietly before putting The Hat on his own head, dropping his trousers and assuming the position in Merlin's place.
Merlin pulls his school trousers back up, it hurts. It hurts just to let the fabric touch his skin. How many lashings did he get before his hero intervened?
The pain cannot distract Merlin's attention from the sight before him. Pendragon doesn't look at him, or at the other students gathered in the hall to watch but at the back wall. He doesn't flinch or bow his head. When he's made his point he says "Enough", tosses The Hat onto the table, pulls up his pants as if nothing out of the ordinary occurred and walks out of the hall to almost unanimous applause.
Merlin is in love.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Will has been beaten with folders and Merlin is tied to a desk as Animal rapes him again.
His hero was expelled a week ago.
No-one can save him now.
He gets through it without screaming by thinking it's happening differently, with somebody else behind him, somebody who cares. Another senior with golden hair and blue eyes, the summer sky personified.
He's appalled that he can even imagine such a thing while this is happening to him.
Merlin vomits and it spills all over the desk and down the sides.
Animal pulls back, disgusted.
Merlin laughs hysterically.
And the riot begins...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Merlin reaches beside him, hoping there's a girl there so he can obliterate it all again.