Merlin fic: The first reincarnation was peculiar, to say the least
Title: The first reincarnation was peculiar, to say the least
Author: dk323
Rating: PG
Characters/Pairings: Arthur/Merlin (pining), Merlin/Gwen (friendship), mention of Arthur/Gwen, Morgana
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: The show Merlin is property of the BBC.
Summary: Arthur finds Merlin during his first reincarnation, but he certainly wasn’t expecting this. Then again, Gwen has been reincarnated as a…well, Arthur begins to wonder if fate has a sense of humor after all.
~ * ~
His stepsister Morgana still possessed a frighteningly uncanny knack of making Arthur feel like a right idiot. It was somewhat comforting - in the way it really wasn’t - that Morgana was the same as always. If she hadn’t been the headstrong, assertive sister who he did not so fondly (except when maybe Arthur did, just a little, not that he’d admit it, certainly not) recall; then the Once and Future King of Camelot would have seriously considered that something had gone wrong with the Seer of Camelot’s reincarnation.
So it was little surprise that somehow, somehow, Morgana had convinced him to cat-or really, kitten-sit for her while she was out on a date. She was rising through the ranks at the fashion magazine she worked at. It wouldn’t be long before Morgana would be chief editor at the magazine - if she had anything to say about it, of course. Every red-blooded male, it seemed, was gunning to get a date with her. Arthur thought all the men she had gone out with were complete tossers, but like Morgana ever listened to him. And honestly, she probably didn’t need a bloke anyway. Arthur pitied the man who tried pursuing her with wedding bells in mind. Morgana wasn’t the type for committed relationships, footloose and fancy-free and all that.
While an absentee father in Uther might have been the cause of Morgana’s disinterest in commitment, Arthur didn’t believe that was the source of his dismal love life, or whatever there was left of it.
Arthur tried to date and pursue something resembling a steady relationship, but there was Sophia, Vivian…and really, what was he thinking dating them? He remembered his original life in Camelot and yet, he still went after the wrong women knowing full well how those two names did not equal long-lasting relationships. Arthur fervently took the position that it was not his fault - it just happened that way, like his original life almost playing out in the 21st century.
Fate was a cruel, dark-humored mistress, he had to admit because it was ridiculous that still, 1500 years, give or take, later, Arthur was facing the same frustrating pitfalls of love.
And not even Guinevere had been reincarnated, which would have helped Arthur feel less like a hopeless case when it came to love. He had hoped that she would have been reincarnated what with Morgana being around. Surely Gwen would follow after her? What bothered Arthur most was that Merlin hadn’t been reincarnated as far as he knew.
Really, it made no sense. Merlin was a bloody wizard, a magician, and still, he had not been reincarnated? Well, yet, at least. And that’s where Arthur didn’t get it.
Couldn’t Merlin have the courtesy of being reincarnated at the same time as Arthur instead of forcing the blond to live a life wondering where the hell his erstwhile Court Sorcerer was? There was no good explanation for Merlin leaving him alone like this.
He had only grudgingly agreed to kitten-sitting for Morgana because otherwise, his Saturday evening would have been spent fruitlessly searching the Internet for any birth announcements for one Merlin Emrys.
Arthur had been unsuccessful and he was reaching the point where he figured he should give up. Maybe Merlin would be born years from now when Arthur would be an old man - with a perfect head of hair, thank you - and Arthur would end up whacking him with a cane for making him wait that long.
And so here he was, taking care of Guinevere, Morgana’s calico kitten. Arthur was positive that Morgana had purposefully named her newly adopted kitten such a name so as to gain some sort of pleasure from Arthur’s “are you bloody kidding me?” reaction to it. Because his sister was considerate like that.
He did admit that Morgana did quickly come to adore her new kitten. In the end, Arthur was not surprised that Morgana had named the kitten after her former maidservant turned Queen. Their friendship remained strong during the days of Arthur’s reign.
Arthur had all of that running through his mind in addition to his memories of the days of Camelot. Unfortunately, in his almost three decades of life; he still hadn’t gained a firm handle on shifting between his Camelot memories and those of his current life. The whole matter gave him a right headache most of the time.
All that said, Arthur certainly was not expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen that Saturday evening.
Arthur set down a bowl of milk for Morgana’s kitten. And then he pet Guinevere briefly, the kitten purring in gratitude at the touch before she tucked into her meal.
The scratching at the front door came not long after Arthur started in on his own supper.
Puzzled, Arthur ignored the sound…
..until he heard the scratching sound yet again.
…and then it became persistent.
It would not stop.
Arthur gave a long sigh and he decided to check out what the source was. As he reached the front door, that’s when the whining began. Apparently the creature was not going to leave any time soon.
He opened the door to find a small, black puppy at his front door.
“Are you hungry? Is that why you won’t leave me alone?” Arthur asked the pup.
Ending his whine, the puppy sat down and simply looked up at him with earnest blue eyes.
The blond gave the dog a discerning look, unsure what to make of him.
Arthur didn’t notice that Guinevere had followed after him until she was by his side, her head tilted a bit as if she were pondering the puppy before her as well.
Arthur waved his hand at the puppy, gesturing for him to shoo, to go away.
But the puppy stayed, still with the earnest, almost pleading look in his eyes. It was a pathetic, sad expression and Arthur knew then that he would feel like a bastard if he denied the puppy. The puppy resumed his whining and held out his paw toward Arthur. Guinevere started meowing pitifully, whether in sympathy for the puppy or because of something else, Arthur didn’t know, but he could not take two creatures whining at him so pathetically without him trying to make them feel better.
“All right, come on in,” Arthur decided and he moved aside to show he was allowing the puppy inside the house.
Ceasing his whine, the black pup happily complied with his tail wagging excitedly.
Arthur was surprised when Guinevere began licking the puppy’s face in clear affection. The kitten hadn’t met this pup before, had she? It was rather strange for a kitten to immediately take to a puppy like this, wasn’t it?
For his part, the black puppy was receptive to the calico kitten’s sudden burst of affection. Soon, the puppy and kitten were playing with each other - pawing one another and rolling around in some game that only made sense to dogs and cats.
Arthur didn’t know what to do…this whole thing was so sudden and peculiar and what would Morgana think about her kitten’s out of the blue attachment to a puppy of all creatures?
After Arthur gave the puppy something to eat and drink, he was startled when he saw the dog’s eyes fleetingly flash gold.
Was he just seeing things? When he saw it for the first time, Arthur decided that his relentless search for Merlin’s reincarnation was resulting in his imagination going into overdrive. Of course he would be desperate to find some sign, some hint of Merlin in every corner - no matter if it was in a black puppy…surely, Merlin couldn’t have… no…not possible.
But then when Guinevere and the puppy -- her new best friend apparently -- were sitting facing each other in a strange staring game, Arthur saw the small pup’s blue eyes flash gold again.
The puppy turned to look up at Arthur, his eyes staying gold for a long moment this time.
Arthur stared at the black puppy.
“Merlin?” He uttered in complete disbelief.
The puppy tilted his head to the right, as if confused by what Arthur had said.
Oh, great - Arthur thought…maybe the puppy was a reincarnated Merlin, but the puppy didn’t know himself yet who he was. Maybe the dog had just known that Arthur lived here and that he wanted to see him?
Or Merlin the puppy was completely messing with Arthur and pretending not to know. Arthur wasn’t sure either way.
But then, the blond came to another conclusion…if Merlin had been reincarnated as a puppy - and it wasn’t unheard of, right? That humans were reincarnated as animals in their next life? - then was Morgana’s kitten truly Guinevere reincarnated as well?
It would explain the affection between the puppy and kitten.
Merlin, because really that’s the only name Arthur could give the pup now, went to him and Arthur bent down so that he could pet him, scratching behind his floppy ears.
Merlin barked cheerfully and he proceeded to lick Arthur’s hand when it came before his mouth.
Welcome to my life, Arthur mused.
Reincarnation worked in strange ways and he only hoped that in the next life, Merlin and Guinevere would be human.
But for now, Arthur decided it was only right to adopt Merlin the puppy…after all, Guinevere would probably be upset if she didn’t have her puppy friend around.
He idly wondered what Morgana would think about Merlin being a puppy and how appropriate the name for her kitten was - but Morgana being Morgana, Arthur did not doubt his sister had suspected already.
~ * ~
Sequel: A Dog's Life
Author: dk323
Rating: PG
Characters/Pairings: Arthur/Merlin (pining), Merlin/Gwen (friendship), mention of Arthur/Gwen, Morgana
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: The show Merlin is property of the BBC.
Summary: Arthur finds Merlin during his first reincarnation, but he certainly wasn’t expecting this. Then again, Gwen has been reincarnated as a…well, Arthur begins to wonder if fate has a sense of humor after all.
~ * ~
His stepsister Morgana still possessed a frighteningly uncanny knack of making Arthur feel like a right idiot. It was somewhat comforting - in the way it really wasn’t - that Morgana was the same as always. If she hadn’t been the headstrong, assertive sister who he did not so fondly (except when maybe Arthur did, just a little, not that he’d admit it, certainly not) recall; then the Once and Future King of Camelot would have seriously considered that something had gone wrong with the Seer of Camelot’s reincarnation.
So it was little surprise that somehow, somehow, Morgana had convinced him to cat-or really, kitten-sit for her while she was out on a date. She was rising through the ranks at the fashion magazine she worked at. It wouldn’t be long before Morgana would be chief editor at the magazine - if she had anything to say about it, of course. Every red-blooded male, it seemed, was gunning to get a date with her. Arthur thought all the men she had gone out with were complete tossers, but like Morgana ever listened to him. And honestly, she probably didn’t need a bloke anyway. Arthur pitied the man who tried pursuing her with wedding bells in mind. Morgana wasn’t the type for committed relationships, footloose and fancy-free and all that.
While an absentee father in Uther might have been the cause of Morgana’s disinterest in commitment, Arthur didn’t believe that was the source of his dismal love life, or whatever there was left of it.
Arthur tried to date and pursue something resembling a steady relationship, but there was Sophia, Vivian…and really, what was he thinking dating them? He remembered his original life in Camelot and yet, he still went after the wrong women knowing full well how those two names did not equal long-lasting relationships. Arthur fervently took the position that it was not his fault - it just happened that way, like his original life almost playing out in the 21st century.
Fate was a cruel, dark-humored mistress, he had to admit because it was ridiculous that still, 1500 years, give or take, later, Arthur was facing the same frustrating pitfalls of love.
And not even Guinevere had been reincarnated, which would have helped Arthur feel less like a hopeless case when it came to love. He had hoped that she would have been reincarnated what with Morgana being around. Surely Gwen would follow after her? What bothered Arthur most was that Merlin hadn’t been reincarnated as far as he knew.
Really, it made no sense. Merlin was a bloody wizard, a magician, and still, he had not been reincarnated? Well, yet, at least. And that’s where Arthur didn’t get it.
Couldn’t Merlin have the courtesy of being reincarnated at the same time as Arthur instead of forcing the blond to live a life wondering where the hell his erstwhile Court Sorcerer was? There was no good explanation for Merlin leaving him alone like this.
He had only grudgingly agreed to kitten-sitting for Morgana because otherwise, his Saturday evening would have been spent fruitlessly searching the Internet for any birth announcements for one Merlin Emrys.
Arthur had been unsuccessful and he was reaching the point where he figured he should give up. Maybe Merlin would be born years from now when Arthur would be an old man - with a perfect head of hair, thank you - and Arthur would end up whacking him with a cane for making him wait that long.
And so here he was, taking care of Guinevere, Morgana’s calico kitten. Arthur was positive that Morgana had purposefully named her newly adopted kitten such a name so as to gain some sort of pleasure from Arthur’s “are you bloody kidding me?” reaction to it. Because his sister was considerate like that.
He did admit that Morgana did quickly come to adore her new kitten. In the end, Arthur was not surprised that Morgana had named the kitten after her former maidservant turned Queen. Their friendship remained strong during the days of Arthur’s reign.
Arthur had all of that running through his mind in addition to his memories of the days of Camelot. Unfortunately, in his almost three decades of life; he still hadn’t gained a firm handle on shifting between his Camelot memories and those of his current life. The whole matter gave him a right headache most of the time.
All that said, Arthur certainly was not expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen that Saturday evening.
Arthur set down a bowl of milk for Morgana’s kitten. And then he pet Guinevere briefly, the kitten purring in gratitude at the touch before she tucked into her meal.
The scratching at the front door came not long after Arthur started in on his own supper.
Puzzled, Arthur ignored the sound…
..until he heard the scratching sound yet again.
…and then it became persistent.
It would not stop.
Arthur gave a long sigh and he decided to check out what the source was. As he reached the front door, that’s when the whining began. Apparently the creature was not going to leave any time soon.
He opened the door to find a small, black puppy at his front door.
“Are you hungry? Is that why you won’t leave me alone?” Arthur asked the pup.
Ending his whine, the puppy sat down and simply looked up at him with earnest blue eyes.
The blond gave the dog a discerning look, unsure what to make of him.
Arthur didn’t notice that Guinevere had followed after him until she was by his side, her head tilted a bit as if she were pondering the puppy before her as well.
Arthur waved his hand at the puppy, gesturing for him to shoo, to go away.
But the puppy stayed, still with the earnest, almost pleading look in his eyes. It was a pathetic, sad expression and Arthur knew then that he would feel like a bastard if he denied the puppy. The puppy resumed his whining and held out his paw toward Arthur. Guinevere started meowing pitifully, whether in sympathy for the puppy or because of something else, Arthur didn’t know, but he could not take two creatures whining at him so pathetically without him trying to make them feel better.
“All right, come on in,” Arthur decided and he moved aside to show he was allowing the puppy inside the house.
Ceasing his whine, the black pup happily complied with his tail wagging excitedly.
Arthur was surprised when Guinevere began licking the puppy’s face in clear affection. The kitten hadn’t met this pup before, had she? It was rather strange for a kitten to immediately take to a puppy like this, wasn’t it?
For his part, the black puppy was receptive to the calico kitten’s sudden burst of affection. Soon, the puppy and kitten were playing with each other - pawing one another and rolling around in some game that only made sense to dogs and cats.
Arthur didn’t know what to do…this whole thing was so sudden and peculiar and what would Morgana think about her kitten’s out of the blue attachment to a puppy of all creatures?
After Arthur gave the puppy something to eat and drink, he was startled when he saw the dog’s eyes fleetingly flash gold.
Was he just seeing things? When he saw it for the first time, Arthur decided that his relentless search for Merlin’s reincarnation was resulting in his imagination going into overdrive. Of course he would be desperate to find some sign, some hint of Merlin in every corner - no matter if it was in a black puppy…surely, Merlin couldn’t have… no…not possible.
But then when Guinevere and the puppy -- her new best friend apparently -- were sitting facing each other in a strange staring game, Arthur saw the small pup’s blue eyes flash gold again.
The puppy turned to look up at Arthur, his eyes staying gold for a long moment this time.
Arthur stared at the black puppy.
“Merlin?” He uttered in complete disbelief.
The puppy tilted his head to the right, as if confused by what Arthur had said.
Oh, great - Arthur thought…maybe the puppy was a reincarnated Merlin, but the puppy didn’t know himself yet who he was. Maybe the dog had just known that Arthur lived here and that he wanted to see him?
Or Merlin the puppy was completely messing with Arthur and pretending not to know. Arthur wasn’t sure either way.
But then, the blond came to another conclusion…if Merlin had been reincarnated as a puppy - and it wasn’t unheard of, right? That humans were reincarnated as animals in their next life? - then was Morgana’s kitten truly Guinevere reincarnated as well?
It would explain the affection between the puppy and kitten.
Merlin, because really that’s the only name Arthur could give the pup now, went to him and Arthur bent down so that he could pet him, scratching behind his floppy ears.
Merlin barked cheerfully and he proceeded to lick Arthur’s hand when it came before his mouth.
Welcome to my life, Arthur mused.
Reincarnation worked in strange ways and he only hoped that in the next life, Merlin and Guinevere would be human.
But for now, Arthur decided it was only right to adopt Merlin the puppy…after all, Guinevere would probably be upset if she didn’t have her puppy friend around.
He idly wondered what Morgana would think about Merlin being a puppy and how appropriate the name for her kitten was - but Morgana being Morgana, Arthur did not doubt his sister had suspected already.
~ * ~
Sequel: A Dog's Life