Archive of Our Own

Merlin’s mother had made it very clear to him what he should do when she sent him off to Camelot. He would be training with Giaus as a healer, something that he had always had an inclination toward anyway. She’d assured him that Gaius could help him control his magic and make sure he didn’t get into trouble with it as well. Merlin wasn’t to tell anyone he had magic, his mother was scared that he would be collared to keep him in line if someone found out. 

Camelot was, above all, one of the best places for an alpha warlock to be. In Essitir, the omega king would drag alphas off to his palace once they were old enough, claim them, and use them for their powers. Only his favourites were allowed to join him in his bed, but as his property, they were not allowed to take a lover. It was a cruel fate for any alpha, constantly wanting to please an omega who would never care for them. It was a fate that Merlin’s mother had feared him facing since he presented at twelve summers old. 

It was why, on the eve of his eighteenth summer, she sent him away to the bordering kingdom before Cenred’s men could show up in Elador to take him away. Camelot might have harsh laws around certain things. Alphas who were unmated were forbidden from any kind of magical study and an unmarked alpha who performed magic could find themselves collared in cold iron or burned for the digression. But, at least in Camelot Merlin could have a future. 

All Merlin really needed to do was to catch the interest of an omega. If he could have an omega’s mark then he would be free to practice his magic and live his life like any other alpha in Albion. It was a more hopeful future than what he would have in any other kingdom. Other than Essitir and Camelot, all other kingdoms executed alphas who had magic, mated or not, too afraid of what they could do. Camelot had done the same, once, but that had changed when the Queen had fallen for an alpha sorceress and had taken her as her mate, changing the law to allow mated magical alphas to live in peace. 

There had been a time, before the Roman conquest of the land, when alphas controlled Albion. They were physically stronger than omegas, they had instincts which caused them to want to fight and defend. They had seemed to be natural leaders. But then, things went downhill. Omegas started dying off. At one point alphas could overpower each other and turn them into omegas, but the ways of doing so were lost. Alphas were driven mad with need for omega mates, and would do anything to gain an omega’s attention. 

That’s when they’d flipped the script. Though omegas were the minority, because alphas needed them and would kill each other for their favour, they grew in power. Soon, the alpha-lead paradigm turned on its head. By the time the Romans came with their own omega-led customs, from the same decline, it only solidified omega power. When Roman occupation left, it left Albion as a country ruled by omegas. 

Queen Ygraine de Bois of Camelot was only the latest of a long line of omega rulers. But she had a true love for her mates. When she was young she had been arranged in marriage to a lord’s son named Uther Pendragon. The young alpha was ambitious, and her family had worried that if he was left to his own devices after he took a mate he would overturn Ygraine and place them on the throne. To stop such a thing from happening, they had decided that the princess herself would be his mate. Despite the political circumstances of their union, they came to love one another until Uther didn’t even bristle at the expectation that he would sit or kneel at his wife’s feet beside the throne. 

Then, when Ygraine was queen, before Arthur had been born, she had encountered Nimueh in the forests. She had been returning to the Isle of the Blessed, the only place at the time where an alpha witch could practice, and where the priestesses of the triple goddess were trained. She begged the queen to allow her to finish her journey home, but Ygraine was too caught in her beauty, too determined to have her, to do so. Instead, she brought the witch back to Camelot and claimed her, changing the laws when the claiming was over. 

Despite having two mates, Ygaine never could get pregnant. It was determined that though she had the seed for it, her womb was barren, expelling the pregnancy before it could grow into a child. Her second alpha was the one who provided the solution. Using magic she removed one of the eggs from Ygraine and placed it into her own womb. While female alphas could not usually carry, it was not because of the fact that their womb was lacking, but that they did not have any seed that could take, rather than give. She laid with Uther, and in the coming weeks the kingdom rejoiced when it was announced that she was pregnant. 

And so prince Arthur was born, son of Ygraine and both of her mates. If there was any doubt that the seed that had taken Uther’s was the queen's, it was disputed as the prince grew into the spitting image of his mother. There was even more rejoicing when Arthur presented omega when the time came. 

Merlin wasn’t aware of all of this history, but he knew enough about the royal family and laws of Camelot to know that it would be a safe space. His mother feared what him being collared would do to him, but she was certain that if it came to Merlin’s magic being exposed, the queen would be lenient enough on him, given that he was young and born with magic, something that she surely understood given who her second mate was. He was curious and nervous, but also excited as he entered the city, looking up at the castle that towered overhead. 

Merlin ducked away from a group of children as they went running around him, laughing and swatting at each other. He had to sway to the side to keep from being knocked over by them but didn’t mind. He smiled after the pups as they moved, his heart aching a bit. 

Will had teased him for being a romantic mess when they were younger, pushing Merlin into the local pond on more than one occasion when his thoughts wandered off to pups and families. Merlin had always known that it was unlikely that he would end up with a mate given how few and far between omegas were even now, after centuries of the new regime, and how those who did exist tended to prefer mates who had omega parents and came from noble lineage. Even a peasant omega could choose to marry a royal alpha if they wished to, since omegas were held in such high regard. But Merlin didn’t let that stop him from dreaming about it. 

Part of it was certainly the fact that until he got a mate he would be constantly fearful of his secret being revealed. If he was unmated then he could not do magic. Merlin dreamed a lot about being able to do magic freely, of being able to use it to help people. He thought about being a magical healer on more than one occasion when he cared for members of the village with what little skill he had. He thought that that would be a job that an omega mate would approve of. 

But that wasn’t the only reason he daydreamed about a mate, Merlin wanted pups. He’d loved the children in the village, caring for them, loving on them, for as long as he could remember. His mother had hoped, however unlikely– nearly impossible– that that meant that he would be an omega. An omega had never been born to a beta and an alpha, but according to the druids there had never been a warlock like Merlin before. When he’d presented alpha it was both expected and not. He’d cried when it happened, having wished desperately for the other. 

As an omega, Merlin could be certain he would have a family and pups of his own. He could be certain that he would be a mate and a mother. As an alpha, it was more likely than not that he would die alone. He might be with a beta, but Merlin had never liked girls, and a beta man could not give him what he desperately craved. He should have given up his dreams, but he had never been able to. 

He made his way through the market, ignoring the sweet smells of the crowd as he did. He could smell omega all through the air, and alpha as well. His instincts naturally picked up on the omega scents more, but he tried to ignore them. Chasing down an omega scent, no matter how sweet, would be an immediate order to the dungeons for him. Even if he didn’t touch the omega, he would be considered instinct-driven and dangerous. So he ignored any desire to do so. Luckily, it wasn’t that hard, since none of the scents appealed to him particularly strongly. 

A hand landed on his shoulder as he exited the market. He stumbled back a bit and came eye-to-eye with a beta man with long curly red hair. He was wearing chain mail and a red cloak. His nose was scrunched up, clearly taking in Merlin’s scent. While betas didn’t have their own scent, they had a keen sense of smell, and could pick up on others’ scents more easily. It was clear that this beta had picked up on his, and probably found it offensive. 

“You’re new here,” he noted. “And you’re an alpha.” 

An alpha coming newly into a town was definitely something that people showed suspicion toward. Merlin couldn’t even fault him for it. 

He rummaged into his pocket and pulled out the document that Gaius had sent to his mother in response to her letter telling him about Merlin’s interest in healing. It was signed with his signature and the seal of the court physician, marking it as official, and declared Merlin as his apprentice-to-be. 

“I am new,” he said. “But I’m not here to cause mischief.” He handed the letter to the knight who scanned it over, looking closely at the signature and seal. When he handed it back to him it was with a smile. 

“I’m Sir Leon,” he introduced himself. “First knight of Camelot, head of prince Arthur’s guard, I suspect that we will see each other again.” He shook hands with Merlin who grinned and returned the gesture, his shoulders slumping in relief. 

Some betas bore a dislike toward alphas, seeing themselves as better than them. He was glad to see that this knight didn’t. He seemed perfectly happy to befriend Merlin as long as he was here on proper business and wasn’t intending to cause trouble. 

“Do you think you could give me directions to the physician’s place? I am not exactly sure where I’m going.” 

The knight nodded, gesturing up toward the castle and walking him through where to go. 

“I would use the side entrance that passes through the fields on the west side of the castle, if I were you. Since it’s the middle of the day there will be a lot of people going in and out at the main gate but that entrance should be mostly clear, and is nearer to the physician’s tower.” 

Merlin thanked him enthusiastically, glad for the advice as he headed in the direction he’d said to go. A lot of his nerves had begun to settle now that he’d had his first interaction and it had gone well. Camelot had a beautiful capitol, and even though he was a strange alpha, most people who saw him acted more curious than disapproving to see him. 

He came to the path that the knight had told him to go on, looping down away from the castle and through a few residential streets before finding another broader road, this one without many people on it, and heading back in the direction of the looming structure. 

He was almost to the castle when he came across them, and him. 

A young man in the same red that the knight had been wearing was standing amongst a group of people, throwing knives. He was graceful and precise, the blades thudding into the wood of his target in a rhythmic pattern, but that wasn’t what was the issue. The issue was that the target was not just a free-standing wooden target, but instead was a shield which was being held up by a cowering young man who flinched every time the knives thudded home. 

“What are you doing?” Merlin asked, shocked by the sight of it. This was the kind of thing that alphas were stereotyped for, bullying betas and hurting those around them for their own pleasure. It was the very reason so many kingdoms had such restrictive laws around what they could and could not do. Merlin couldn’t help the way he growled after he called the other out, anger at the sight of the display and all that it represented burning through him like fire. 

The man turned toward Merlin, his friends around him eventually following the motion. He tilted his head to the side as he studied him, a smirk appearing on his face. He was attractive, Merlin could admit that. He had straight blond hair that was just long enough to stick out behind his neck. His lips were pouty and soft like a stereotypical omega’s, and his nose was aquiline and sharp. He had a finely cut jaw and sun-kissed skin. Merlin shook that thought off though as he glared into his arrogant eyes. 

He tossed one of the knives in his hand into the air, catching it when it came back down. “What, want a try?” the man teased. 

Merlin growled again. “This is the kind of behavior that gets alphas treated the way we are. You knot-heads act like brutes and throw yourselves around and belittle those you see as below you,” he snarled, barring his teeth at the man, feet planted on the ground, posturing for a fight. 

The man glanced over at the beta still hiding behind the shield. 

“Morris, you’re dismissed,” he ordered, then looked back at Merlin with a glint in his eyes. He brushed his hand through the air, gesturing for his friends to get behind him as he took a step closer to Merlin. He was looking him up and down with an expression that seemed to be hungry. 

“I could take you apart with one blow, peasant,” he told him, sneering, showing off his own fangs as he did so, as though there was any wonder that he was an alpha given his attitude. Of course, an omega would also have mating fangs, but Merlin was certain this man was no omega. 

“I could take you apart with less,” Merlin snarled, not even caring to be aware of how that could sound, how it could imply something his mother had told him to keep close to his chest. 

The man chuckled, it rumbled in his chest, the sound making Merlin shudder. The tension in the air was violent, but there was something else, layered underneath it. It made Merlin’s skin crawl. 

“Do you know who I am?” he asked. 

“A prat,” Merlin said with a smirk. 

The other man snarled, showing off both of his teeth. Merlin felt a jitter run through his body. He knew that this man had to be a noble, there was no way that a peasant would be dressed the way he was. But he didn’t care. Merlin wanted a fight. 

“Run,” the man ordered, his voice was different-sounding. It sent a shudder down Merlin’s spine. Though he would usually ignore an order like that, this time he couldn’t. It was a challenge, and he was certain of it. 

He turned on his heel and took off down the road behind him. He’d dropped his pack next to him as he did, aware that it would be cumbersome if he tried to carry it with him. He could hear the footsteps of the man behind him, heavy and approaching, right on Merlin’s tail. Unlike him, he had not been walking across the country for the last few days and seemed to be in better shape. 

Merlin had to use his size to his advantage. He slid between two cars and then squeezed his way between two houses that were pushed together, heading off in the direction of the fields. He might be in the middle of a chase, which ignited all of his alpha instincts and made his head swim, but he was smarter than running into the middle of a town while having an alpha duel. 

Not that this felt like an alpha duel. 

A long time ago it was the alpha that chased the omega. They would catch them and take them as their mate, sometimes even when the omega told them not to. When things began to flip and omegas took over society, that changed. There were so few omegas that it was now them who chased alphas. The alpha’s desire to overpower meant that it was hard to get them to surrender, and if an alpha wouldn’t surrender, then the omega could not take them as their mate. Over the hundreds of years of this order, the alpha instincts started to develop a desire for the chase in the other direction. Alphas still got a thrill out of chasing down omegas, but being chased would instigate thoughts of mating. 

It was quite a thing to instigate a chase between two alphas. It usually wasn’t done. And the way that the other had said it, the way he’d growled it with his inner animal in charge was everything Merlin’s instincts needed to believe that there was an omega after him. 

He’d finally started to get a lead, making his way into the grass fields around the castle, when his foot caught on something. He slammed into the ground, grass and dirt digging at his hands. His magic would usually tell him if something was in front of him or around him to worry about, but it hadn't, not this time, because he’d been suppressing it for weeks in the lead up to coming to Camelot. He pulled himself back to his feet, ignoring the ache in his wrists and ankle and began to run again. Except, his fall had slowed him down enough. 

Arms wrapped around his waist and he was tugged to the ground. The grass wrapped around him as he was pressed down. He fought against the weight on top of him as the man climbed over his back, wrapping his thighs around Merlin’s hips, grabbing the back of his neck and shoving his face into the dirt. He tried to buck and struggle, spitting up dirt as his head was turned to the side so he could breathe. 

Something wet was soaking into his trousers from his arse. He didn’t think his butt had hit the ground, but that was the only thing he could think of to explain it, even though his chest barely felt any wetness. As he caught his breath, the sweet scent of an omega tickled his nose and the roof of his mouth. The scent of apples and bonfire and clear river water surrounded him. He felt his cock twitch in his pants. It hadn’t been soft since the chase started, but now it was really showing interest. 

A hand moved up the back of his neck, burrowing in his hair and tugging his head to the side. His neck was barred, his scent gland exposed. He tried to buck the man over him off of him, feeling all kinds of confusing emotions. The omega scent wasn’t making anything easier. 

A tongue lapped across Merlin’s scent gland and he writhed, hips twitching. The man over him shifted, pressing his own hips to Merlin’s, his wet breaches meeting the small of his back where his shirt had ridden up when he was pressed down. 

The man above him was wet along his groyne, wet in the tell-tale place where an omegan cunt was rested. Merlin whimpered when he realised it, moaning as the omega over him rocked into his body, rubbing his arousal against him. He went pliant under him, body turning into jelly. 

“You really didn’t have any idea, did you?” he asked, grabbing a handful of Merlin’s hair again and turning his head up to look at him. His eyes were gleaming pale omega green, the pupils swallowing up the blue of his iris with arousal. There was a dribble of saliva running across his lips which he licked up with his tongue at the corner of his mouth. 

Merlin whimpered. He’d never been this close to an omega before. The other man’s scent flooding with arousal did not make the situation any easier. The fact that he’d just been caught after a chase sent a strange hope dancing in his gut alongside the heat of his own desire. 

The omega let go of him and Merlin let out a breathy keen as he did. He wanted him to come back. He could see the wetness on the man’s thighs. Even if he wouldn’t mate Merlin it was torture to do that to him and leave. Merlin had never wanted to knot someone more than he did this omega at this moment. 

“Roll over,” he ordered when he was on his feet. 

Merlin obeyed immediately, leaning his head back and showing his throat for him. He was extremely aware of how his cock throbbed and tented in the front of his trousers, straining against the fabric and the ties on them. The omega reach down and squeezed him, making Merlin moan and writhe. 

“I’ve never been growled at like that before, alpha,” the man told him. “And I’ve got to say, it was incredibly hot.” He started untying Merlin’s laces. The alpha laid still, heart pounding in his chest in anticipation. As soon as the laces were united his cock jumped out, fully hard and purpling at the tip from need, pre-cum trickling down and pooling on the top of his forming knot. 

The omega shoved his own bottoms down past his knees, exposing his leaking cocklet and his oozing cunt. He reached a hand back and shoved his fingers into himself, moaning as he fucked his hole open. Each time he moved his cunt squelched, slick flying around him, some of it dribbling on Merlin’s thighs and cock. He wanted nothing more than for the omega to come over toward him and do the same over his face, to flick his wet heat all over his mouth, to mark him with his scent. 

The omega pulled his hand out after a few minutes, groaning as he did. Three of his fingers were coated with slick and dripping. 

He moved forward, dropping to his knees over Merlin’s hips, shifting down to press his chest against Merlin as he pushed his wet fingers between his lips. Immediately, the alpha sucked on the offering, moaning and lapping at the sweet slick as it rolled across his tongue, sucking on the omega’s fingers as hard as he could. 

The omega moved his other hand down and wrapped it around Merlin’s shaft, making him buck into it as his knot began to swell some more. He was looking back at it as he worked, admiring the view. “You’re so big,” he groaned, clearly pleased with this fact. 

He shifted down and Merlin let go of the fingers with a pop as a gasp was punched out of his lungs. He could feel the head of his sex being guided into the soft folds of the man above him. He was being taken by the omega. The head pushed in, spreading him the last few centimeters until he could enter, and then popping inside. It punched a whine out of his gut as his eyes rolled back in pleasure. 

“Yeah,” the omega panted, seemingly as lost in this as Merlin is. “Yeah, that’s so good.” 

He lowered himself down onto the other, bracing his hands on Merlin’s stomach as he shifted his hips. He fucked himself on Merlin, his cunt squeezing around him as he bounced in perfect little movements, his hips shifting in circles. Merlin was shaking, digging his fingers into the dirt and grass as he grunted out in pleasure. He could feel drool dribbling down his chin, but he didn’t care. He’d imagined having an omega so many times, but nothing in his imaginings could ever have prepared him for this. This was everything. 

As the omega continued to fuck himself on Merlin he could feel his knot growing. He was staring up at the mating fangs that gleamed in the other man’s mouth as he tilted his head back for a very pleased moan and upped his tempo. Merlin fumbled at his hips, holding onto the omega as he moved himself, whining in the back of his throat, deep and pleased and desperate. 

The omega locked eyes with his. For the first time he saw their true colour, a bright, beautiful blue. 

“Please,” Merlin whimpered. 

“Don’t, uh, worry, ah, yeah, yeah, yeeeeeess. Oh. Perfect,” he grinned, moving in a way that made sure Merlin hit him in the same spot with each thrust, pointing the alpha’s cock toward his front, making his cocklet jump with each thrust. “I can, ah… feel… oh. So good. Hmmm. Gonna take your– oht, knot. So deep. Mine. My ah– aaa– alpha.” 

Merlin shuddered at the promise. He shifted his hips up to meet the omega’s pace, dissolving into the sound of the other’s pleasure. His knot began to tease at the edge of his opening, and Merlin shifted up a bit more with his hips at each thrust, feeling as part of the knot pushed in and then slid back out. Until, finally, it pushed in and when Arthur pulled up, it tugged. 

They both gasped. The omega pushed himself down hard into Merlin, pulling a grunt out of the alpha as the full length of his cock pushed in and his knot filled the other’s hole. The omega leaned down over him, grabbing his neck in his teeth and squeezing hard. Merlin cried out as his skin broke at the same time that the cunt pressed down on him and his knot popped, spilling his seed into the man over him. 

His own orgasm prompted the omega to have his as well. He shook over him, moaning softly as he spilled from his cocklet and squeezed his pussy around the knot. 

He slumped down after he felt it, panting into Merlin’s throat. “Yeah,” he said, sounding blissed out as he did. “Yeah, you’re so good at breeding. You’re… gonna make… so many pups.” 

His eyes shuttered closed and he started to fall asleep on the alpha’s chest. 

Merlin’s hips jumped as he kept cumming inside of him, his head spinning at what had just happened. Now that it was done, the reality of the situation he found himself in came to him in full force. He was mated. He was mated to the prick who had been throwing knives at a beta. Except, he was an omega, and that changed a bit of the scene in Merlin’s head, and he didn’t know if it was just his instincts now that this man was his mate, or if Merlin was thinking about the fact that he was strong and skilled and an omega. 

Merlin had a mate. Merlin was laying in the grass, tied into an omega who had just bit him. His head felt floaty as he took that in. So much had changed with just this moment. Merlin wasn’t an unmated alpha who needed to hide his magic, now he was a mated alpha, he could be openly a warlock and no one would be able to do anything to him unless he broke the law with his magic. Merlin’s dream of having pups and a family would get to come true. Everything would be as he’d only ever let himself dream. 

The omega on top of him nuzzled against his throat in his sleep and Merlin moved his hand to pet though his hair. 

This changed other things though too. Merlin belonged to this omega now. This man could have Merlin chained to his bed to be nothing more than his pleasure toy. He could prevent him from ever seeing his mother again. He could forbid him from seeing Giaus. His display with the knives meant that even though he was an omega, this man could be ruthless. Who knew what he would expect of Merlin. 

He took a deep breath, closing his eyes and trying to ground himself. He couldn’t allow his mind to become lost in worry. He would wait to find out what was to come. He would celebrate the good things about being mated, and deal with the bad if they came up. For now, he wrapped his arms around his sleeping mate and let himself nod off himself. 

He woke up to jostling not long later. His knot had gone down and his mate was moving off of it carefully. He stumbled to his feet. Merlin watched as a trickle of cum rolled down the man’s thigh, leaking from his hole. He shuddered seeing it, aware that that was his own cum inside and leaking out of the man. It was a gorgeous sight to see. 

He pulled his pants up, leaning down facing away from Merlin as he did. The position gave the alpha a perfect few of his slick and cum coated vulva as he did so. Merlin shuddered in satisfaction, his alpha pleased to see how perfectly his mate was marked. 

He pulled his pants up and re-tied his laces, turning back toward Merlin and smiling with a wink. Merlin shifted up after him, closing his own breaches and climbing to his feet. He was very aware of the omega ejaculate that was staining his shirt and neckscarf as well as the mess of cum and slick that was spread across the crotch of his pants. With a wave of his hand he magicked himself into a better condition. 

His omega’s eyes gleamed with hunger when he saw Merlin’s magic. He was looking right into Merlin’s eyes, which the alpha was aware turned gold when he used his magic. The man licked his lips as he watched him. Merlin felt like he was thinking about eating him, he shuddered at the heat in his gaze, feeling dizzy. 

“And I thought you couldn’t get better,” the man purred, running his eyes down Merlin’s body and back up to his eyes. 

“Would you like me to clean you up too?” Merlin asked gently, shifting back and forth and bowing his head a bit to the omega. 

The man licked his lips again. “No, leave it.” 

Merlin shuddered at that. The omega must know how leaving that on himself affected an alpha’s instincts. Alphas wanted to mark, they wanted people to see that something was theirs. This omega was leaning into Merlin’s instinctual desires by letting the alpha’s cum stay, making him where everyone could see and smell it, even when given the opportunity not to. It was shocking, since most omegas wouldn’t “debase” themselves like that for an alpha. 

The omega grabbed Merlin’s waistband, tugging him forwards. He stumbled after him, his legs feeling a bit like jello. He’d never knotted someone before, and he hadn’t expected it to be both so invigorating and so exhausting. The omega walked with a bit of a limp in his gait, clearly still feeling the after-shock of having an alpha inside of him. 

“We need to present you to my mother,” the omega declared. 

He tugged Merlin against his side before letting him go and letting him trail after him. Merlin shifted as he walked after the omega, wondering if he should bring up the reason he was in Camelot and ask him if they could go tell his uncle what had happened and update him on the situation. The omega seemed pretty determined in his current path and Merlin didn’t want to upset him. 

When they entered the road and headed up toward the gate it was too a group of catcalls. The group of friends that had been with the omega when Merlin confronted him were all leaning against the castle walls, waiting for their return. Once they got closer one slapped his friend heartily on his back and hissed something near his face and he shoved him back on his ass, eyes gleaming. 

“Where’s my mate’s things?” he ordered the huddled group behind the one he’d knocked over. One man stepped out handing him over the bag that Merlin had dropped. By then the alpha was closer and could hear what was being said between the others. 

“How’d you end up with soiled trousers when he’s clean as can be?” the man asked, looking between the two of them. 

The omega glanced back at him with a grin. “Oh, don’t worry, he was just as messy when we were done, he just has some tricks, don’t you alpha?” he purred the last word in a way that made Merlin’s instincts leap forward to impress. He waved his hand in front of them, clearing the dirt stains off of the ass of the man who had finally found his feet again. 

“Oh.” 

Merlin found himself tugged along once the brief display was done, dragged into the castle. He followed after his mate as the man made his way through the crowds of people, all of them parting when they saw them coming, most of their gazes flicking down the omega’s body to the signs of what they had done, and then to Merlin who was a strange alpha walking behind him, a fresh bite mark on his neck. 

He followed his mate– who he was now completely certain was a noble– through the castle and to a pair of tall doors. He stopped outside, turning toward one of the guards. 

“Is my mother in a meeting?” he asked. 

The guard, who Merlin was surprised to smell was an alpha, was staring down at the omega’s soiled pants instead of answering. At the sight a growl rose up in Merlin’s throat unbidden, his inner alpha not enjoying someone looking at his mate like that. 

“No, sire,” the guard said, pulling his gaze away after he heard Merlin’s growl. “She has been seeing petitioners for the last half hour or so.” 

He nodded. “Well then, I’m sure a brief interruption wouldn’t cause too much of an issue. Opening the doors.” 

The guard nodded, bowing to the omega as he did so. Merlin followed after his mate into the room beyond, his arms going slack at his side as he looked up at the tall ceilings and the intricate stonework of the chamber beyond. He pulled his gaze back in front of him as everyone around them parted for his mate. 

They came in front of a throne. It was tall and well-made. In the centre of it sat a woman with long blond hair the same colour as Merlin’s mate’s, dressed in the same deep red. On the floor at her feet sat an alpha man wearing a heavy golden collar with a sigil hanging from it, and behind her back stood an alpha woman with long brown hair and a collar that was etched with fine runes. 

Collars were common on mated alphas. Unlike with unbonded alpha warlocks, the collars were made with fine metals instead of cold iron on nobles, and soft leather for commoners. It was also common for mated noble alphas to wear the sigil of their omega mate on the collar. Merlin’s hand rose up to rub against his neck as he was reminded of it, wondering faintly what kind of collar his omega would have made for him. 

He bowed immediately to the throne, recognising the queen of Camelot and her two consorts easily. He didn’t know enough etiquette to be sure how deeply he should bow or how exactly he should act, so he simply bent at the waist and kept his eyes on the floor. His mate, however, simply bowed his head until the queen waved her hand in dismissal. 

“Mother–” the omega beside him began and Merlin felt his knees give out in shock. 

Before he could hit the ground, he found arms wrapping around his chest and he was being lifted up to his feet, stabilized by Nimueh, Queen Ygraine’s second mate and the court sorcerer of Camelot. She held him up as he slowly grasped what had made him fall. 

Of all the things he had been imagining as they headed into the room, the omega who had claimed him addressing the queen as mother had not been among them. Queen Ygraine only had one child, the omega prince Arthur Pendragon, the heir to the throne and first knight of the land. Everyone in all of Albion had heard of Arthur, he was someone to be feared and revered, powerful and dangerous. Despite having been of mating age for two years, he’d yet to take a mate, though many alphas had tried to win his hand. 

Except now. Now the prince of Camelot was no longer unmated, and Merlin was his alpha. Now he understood why he’d sounded so disbelieving when he noted that Merlin hadn’t realised he was an omega. He didn’t just mean that Merlin didn’t know his designation, he was surprised that Merlin didn’t know who he was. 

He’d yelled at the crown prince of Camelot. The omega prince who had never been bested in a tournament, who was cunning and severe when he wanted to be. The prince who had been raised by the most powerful queen in all of Albion, the high priestess of the old religion, and a terrifying alpha lord who knew perfectly the ins and outs of war. 

Merlin felt like he was going to pass out. 

Arthur was talking, he couldn’t pay attention to the words. All they were were sounds, bubbling through his mind as he tried to make out the shapes of them but couldn’t. His head was ringing. He was staring at the fact that Arthur Pendragon was in the middle of the court of Camelot with Merlin’s cum staining his trousers and leaving wet trails down his legs. 

Will would kill Merlin if he found out about this. Though he wasn’t sure if it would be because he was mated to a noble, to a royal, or if it would be because he was jealous that he had accidentally earned the mark of the Prince Arthur. 

Nimueh shifted his body in her arms, looping his arm around her shoulders and leading him out of the hall as the queen and her son continued to speak. She set Merlin down inside one of the antechambers, grabbing a servant before coming back to him with a goblet. 

“Drink,” she said carefully, placing the cup in his hand. He took it from her, taking shallow sips from the whine as he did so. She watched him, her focus intense as she gazed down at him. He could see a gleam in her eyes, an excitement and awe, which he did not understand. 

The outer door to the antechamber opened. An older man with long white hair falling on either side of his face with loose, thin strands and wearing a tunic entered the room. He was carrying a satchel in one hand. Merlin felt like there was something familiar about him, though he wasn’t quite sure what. 

“What is the matter with the boy?” the man asked, setting the satchel down on the ground and bringing his hand up to his forehead. 

“I think it was just surprise,” Nimueh explained. “I don’t believe that our Arthur told him who exactly he was before he claimed him.” 

The man frowned when she said that, moving down to look at the bite on Merlin’s neck, having him move his head to the side as he examined it. 

“Well, that is unexpected,” he noted. “I can’t say that anyone would have imagined that the prince would find a mate any time soon.” 

Merlin blinked a couple of times, trying to actually wrap his head around what was going on. “I’m just as surprised as you,” he admitted softly. 

“What did you do to get our boy’s attention?” Nimueh asked, her gaze shrewd as she studied him. Merlin shrugged. 

“I told him he should stop throwing knives at people.” 

The woman laughed, the sound melodic. “Arthur did always love it when someone was willing to challenge him.” 

“What is your name, my boy?” the man asked, looking at Merlin’s eyes as he did. He’d done something similar to those in shock to see if their pupils were behaving weirdly sometimes with his mother. 

“Merlin,” he said. 

The Physician gasped. “Hunith’s boy?” 

Merlin blinked a couple of times. He knew that Gaius was the court physician in Camelot, but he hadn’t imagined that a member of the court would be called for him like that. He guessed it would take him a bit to wrap his head around the fact that since he was mated to the crown prince, he was now, in fact, royalty. 

“Gaius?” 

The man stood up shaking his head. “Your mother did say that you were skilled in getting yourself into situations.” 

Merlin flushed but shook his head. “This isn’t my fault, Gaius. It was Arthur who–” 

“Ah, but who challenged him?” 

Merlin flushed and looked down at his own lap, pressing his face into his hands. His uncle was giving him a disapproving eyebrow as he stared down at where he was sitting. 

“You know his mother?” Nimueh asked. 

“Yes. Merlin is my niece's son. He was coming to Camelot to apprentice with me. It is partially my fault that we are in this situation, as the young men would never have run into each other if I hadn’t agreed to take him in.” 

“There’s nothing to apologise for, Gaius,” a woman’s voice said as the queen herself entered into the small chamber, Arthur right behind her. “If I had known that you had a nephew like Merlin I would have requested you have him brought here earlier.” 

Arthur came to stand behind where Merlin was sitting, placing his hands on the alpha’s shoulders and squeezing on them. He leaned down to breathe against his ear. “You know, I wasn’t fully convinced that you truly didn’t know who I was until you almost collapsed in there.” 

Merlin pressed his face into his hands in embarrassment and overwhelm. He didn’t know what to say or do about having the Queen of Camelot scrutinising him as her son touched him in such a familiar way. 

“Do you still wish to apprentice under Gaius?” the Queen asked Merlin. 

He lifted his face enough to nod before answering. “If I still can. Yes. I have always wanted to use my magic to help people, and I’ve had a calling toward healing for a while.” 

“What do you think of that, Arthur?” the queen asked. 

“I don’t see any reason why he can’t begin apprenticing with the physician after I’m pregnant.” 

Merlin felt himself becoming dizzy at that statement. The way the prince said it made it clear that him becoming pregnant was imminent. Arthur wanted to breed with him. He had mentioned something about Merlin making a lot of pups when they were knotted, but he had thought it was just dirty talk, praise for how it felt to be knotted by him. Now he knew that wasn’t the case. 

“Arthur wants to be recovered before next spring’s tourney,” the queen explained to Gaius. “I told him that as long as you thought it was safe, he could begin the process as soon as he would like.” 

Merlin was going to pass out. Arthur wanted to have his baby before next spring. In less than a year Merlin would be a father. In less than a year he wouldn’t have to watch longingly as pups ran through the city dreaming of his own, instead he would have a little pup giggling on his hip as he went to the market. 

The people around him continued to talk as his brain rolled over and over again inside of his head, focused on the fact that everything he had ever dreamed of was actively coming true. He felt like he was going to pass out. 

“I believe Merlin should lay down,” Gaius said, interrupting his thoughts with the use of his name. “He has had a long journey and a lot of excitement for one day.” 

“Of course,” Arthur said quickly, helping his mate to his feet and guiding him out of the room and down the halls. Merlin leaned in against him, eyes fluttering half-closed as they walked. 

When they got to the Prince’s room, he led the alpha over to the bed, helped him to lie down, and ran his hand through Merlin’s hair as he let him sleep. 

He fell asleep with a smile, sure that everything was going to be more than fine. 

Finis: ils vivent longtemps et joyeuse