pat. fyi
everything i do in life: youtried.jpg
{i've got troubled thoughts and a self-esteem to match, what a catch}
things i made | useful tags
I blog and she forgets her pants.
but omg ilu.
also, everyone needs to read that hacker au. FOR THE LOVE OF EVERYTHING THAT IS HOLY, GO AND READ IT [x]
and since we’re reccing fics that have ruined lives, how about one where enjolras is an independent presidential candidate and grantaire is a jaded nobel price-winning journalist assigned to shadow their campaign? sounds good? GO HERE NOW PLEASE AND THANK YOU
![Dear Arthur by iamee [x]
Dear Merlin, Do you know what they say about coincidence and fate? I’ve never believed in something like that. There’s no evidence either way… But I do believe in human stupidity. Let me tell you a story about two people. One of them is a terrible liar. He stood there on a summer day, watching somebody else fall in love for the very first time. He had a hard time to breathe around that person, for the following years. He witnessed a kiss and even if he was supposed to laugh, because he was young (and that’s what you do) he just stared and it was another beginning. He said goodbye when he was fourteen and he did it again when he was twenty-four, and each and every time it meant something more, and the unspoken words were still hanging on his lips when he got small and smaller in the driving mirror or vanished at the crowded airport. He was smiling so many times, but seldom if ever it reached his eyes. He could be caught looking at that person, but he never said a word. He tried to be happy for everybody else, but he never tried to be happy for himself. The other one is an idiot. A stupid, blind, bloody idiot. He should have seen all these things, he should have listened to the words between the lines, he should have known that this wasn’t everything. He should have realised that the truth was right in front of his eyes, but he didn’t. However, they have something in common. They share ten years and every little dream. Hopes and letdowns and all these little things defining life. And both of them fail at happiness. PS: They also say the saddest song in the world is every single one they play, whenever a story comes to an end… Arthur](http://24.media.tumblr.com/56ec42ce676eb0bb66c5185209d8f5c5/tumblr_mkw0avLfeq1qzuog0o1_500.png)
Dear Arthur by iamee [x]
Dear Merlin,
Do you know what they say about coincidence and fate? I’ve never believed in something like that. There’s no evidence either way…
But I do believe in human stupidity.
Let me tell you a story about two people.
Sometimes we see other people in their individual colours, too.
And lately, all I’m seeing is red. [x]
The king has returned: A Merlin/Arthur reincarnation fic rec list
Old Love, But In Shapes That Renew And Renew Forever by leopardwrites
People accept that an old man might live alone. People accept that he might have lost the greatest love he has ever known.
we have the chance to turn the pages over by HalfFizzbin
It doesn’t take Merlin long to figure out that he doesn’t age the same as everyone else.
Hold My Heart Until it Beats by ingberry
Arthur dies and waits for Albion to need him again. But most of all he waits for Merlin.
Firsts For Everything by bevinkathryn
Sometimes, people seem to forget, in all this fighting for equal rights, that ‘gay couples’ are just ‘couples’. Merlin and Arthur, and a first-time hundreds of lives in the making.
As a forgotten continent by ca_te
Destiny sometimes plays tricks…Merlin and Arthur are born again as brothers. They have been strongly connected since when they were kids, but at a certain point, when they both are teens, something shifts in the balance of their relationship. How will they cope with it? And what will happen when Merlin starts to understand that the recurrent dreams that he has been having since when he was a child are something more than simple dreams? Will they manage to truly find each other in this new lifetime?
So sorry it took a while to get to this. D:
Anyway, there are loads of magic reveal fics around so I’ll link you to other recs that focus on it. But I’ll give you a few of my favourites too.
fuckyeahmerthurfanfic’s The Disir Medicine List (magic reveal/fluff rec list)
fuckyeahmerlinfanfic is brimming with magic reveal recs. See:
And for my favourites!
A Binding Contract | modern AU. Merlin’s one of those kids who’s ‘slipped through the nets’ - had a tough life, been homeless, etc. and is always being manipulated by people who don’t care about his interests.
The Sorcerer and the King | Canon AU — Merlin’s death is only the beginning; with no-one to protect the kingdom, Camelot falls to an enemy sorcerer and Arthur is forced to serve in the court that he once ruled. When an escape attempt goes horribly wrong, Arthur is rescued by someone he never expected to see again — and it’s their destiny to put things right.
Crown of the Summer Court | “The king sent me to get you,” Merlin said, with a tone that implied strongly that he wasn’t rolling his eyes where Arthur could see, but just wait until his back was turned. “He said you’re to get changed into formal clothes and meet him in the Great Hall, there’s a delegation coming from the Summer Court.”
Arcane Asylum | modern prison AU. Uther is the notorious warden of a prison for magic users. When Nimeuh frames Arthur for a magical crime, he’s sent down for it. Being pretty, blonde and the hated warden’s son makes him a prime target and everyone wants to make him their prison bitch. Luckily he catches the eye of mysterious topdog!Merlin who takes him under his wing.
The Student Prince | (a must-read for any m/a fans!!!) A Modern day Merlin AU set at the University of St Andrews, featuring teetotal kickboxers, secret wizards, magnificent bodyguards of various genders, irate fairies, imprisoned dragons, crumbling gothic architecture, arrogant princes, adorable engineering students, stolen gold, magical doorways, attempted assassination, drunken students, shaving foam fights, embarrassing mornings after, The Hammer Dance, duty, responsibility, friendship and true love…
Three Tasks | Arthur is the Royal Arbiter for Suitable Suitors’ Disputes. He (and his trusty companion, the golden-dragon-tasselled hat) alone can determine who is fit to woo royal servants and other assorted courtiers in Uther’s court. (In light of the preceding sentence, the following may not appear to be a truthful statement, but: not as cracky as that makes it sound. Really.)
The Tournament of All Magicks | Merlin was flattered to be invited to compete in a magical tournament to crown the sorcery champion of Albion. Accepting the invitation probably wasn’t his brightest idea.
Till the End of Today | How do you spend the last day of the world? Also known as The One Where Merlin Prevents the Apocalypse Because He Wants to Go Out for Dinner.
Non-magic reveal related fics— one of my favourite tropes is modern monarchy au. I made a rec list ages ago here.
There are loads and loads of m/a fics out there that I love and there will be no end to it if I attempt to list them all down. Anyway, hopefully this helped and that you’ll find something you’d like to read. :D
It is rare that I actually take the time to sit down and make fic recs for many different reasons. Mostly being that I am perpetually lazy but also because there is already an abundance of fic recs posted in every corner of the Internet that I’m afraid mine will just be redundant. There is also the fear that I may not justify the beauty of a work; I may not be eloquent enough to articulate well all the asdfghjkl feels and thoughts. (Most usually I am just reduced to a key smashing mess, that’s why)
But then sometimes you come across a fic that just hits all the right buttons and leaves you just a bit breathless and feeling out of sorts (in a good way) that you just have to write about it, get it out of your system. To try. So I’m afraid this fic rec is also partially self-indulgent (among other things).
OH GOD I TALK TOO MUCH.
Moving on.
Stanislavsky Never Said Anything About Frocks (by lamardeuse)
Bradley James/Colin Morgan ; BBC Merlin RPF ; rating: explicit
While still at drama school, Colin comes to London for an important audition and gets more than he bargained for.
“You’ve got my lipstick on you,” Bradley husked, and Colin went hot all over. He caught Bradley’s hand in his, then licked the tip of Bradley’s thumb before sucking it into his mouth, and Christ, he’d never even done anything like that with a girl. Bradley’s fingers stroked over Colin’s chin, then firmed, tugging him closer, but Colin stopped him with a hand on his chest and pulled Bradley’s thumb free.
“How about we do this without the costume, yeah?” he murmured, and bugger, he still didn’t know what the fuck was going on, but he didn’t much care any longer.
Bradley looked at him, really looked at him then, and Colin thought that maybe he knew what he was doing after all. “Yeah, okay,” he rasped, the low sound going right to Colin’s cock. “I might need some help getting out of it, though.”
Rebel Rebel (You’ve Torn Your Dress) (by Nympha_Alba)
Bradley James/Colin Morgan ; BBC Merlin RPF ; rating: explicit
The knowledge that Colin is in London makes Bradley jittery and unfocused, and he’s never unfocused so he doesn’t know what this is all about.
Bradley doesn’t usually imagine things when he’s off stage, but obviously the connection he felt with Colin was a product of his imagination; the way things had slotted into place inside him when Colin had caught his wrist and stroked the pulse point with his thumb. Something this strong must be mutual, Bradley had thought, and it’s astonishingly painful to find he’s been mistaken.
The sun is brighter and the days are longer, and there’s nowhere to hide. Bradley had no idea spring could be so relentless.
The first is the original fic and the second is a sequel to it written by a different author (duh!). The first part is fun and sexy, and even a bit cracky whilst the second fic feels more like a punch to the gut with the angst. Both pieces are well-written and the plots excellently thought out. And what’s amazing to me is that these two work so well together, seamless almost. It’s as if they were written by one author and yet there is still that distinction between the two that makes them unique.
I love the characterisation. Bradley is insecure underneath all the bravado and self-assurance. Colin is hesitant, typical of those just having found out something big about themselves. There is a certain darkness to him as well.
Basically, these fics left me clutching at my chest and dry sobbing just a little bit at how wonderful they are. (And to those like me who are on Team Happy Ending, rest assured that after all the heart-wrenching and delicious angst, our boys will have their happy ever after).
In his head, Arthur makes a list of things he thinks he might love about Gwen – the arch of her spine; her veracity; her hands pressing against his shoulders – after the second time. He files it next to the litany of things about Merlin he’s never said he adores.
And Under Day-Old Sheets [x]
This is one of the fics I return to over and over again. I love the author’s writing style; it’s quiet and gut-wrenching. Her words hit the right nerves that will make you hurt and hope at the same time. The resolution to the story is realistic, and yet it still holds a certain happy/hopeful ending quality to it. (It’s Arthur/Merlin endgame, for those in doubt)
