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It was one of those lazy afternoons when for once the mage didn’t have anything on, and so she found herself in the boar’s hat relaxing at a table with the other sins. Ban was currently arm wrestling Diane with King cheering her on, Gowther was reading and Merlin found herself quite content to just sit next to Escanor and observe. That is, until Ban started cheating by stealing Diane’s strength causing the giant to get upset.
“Ban stop cheating, that isn’t fair” wailed Diane. “Fight me properly”
“Ban stop stealing Diane’s strength before I cancel your powers” demanded Merlin, taking a sip from her drink.
“A real man knows that cheating is shameful, especially towards a lady” Escanor added in his rumbly day voice.
“Whatever mum and dad” Ban tsked before turning back to his arm wrestle, though noticeably without cheating this time. The mage rolled her eyes but smiled internally at the spluttering she could hear coming from the lion next to her.
“What?” coughed Escanor, clearly taken by surprise. Merlin, however, wasn’t at all fazed. She often felt like she and the lion were the only two adults out of the seven deadly sins.
“I believe he called you mum and dad, although clearly you are too young to be such Escanor, so I can only conclude that he means it in a sexual way” Gowther hadn’t looked up from his book during his explanation, but had to at the sudden choking and horrified exclamations sounding.
“Ew gross Gowther” choked Ban, being entirely too overdramatic for Merlin’s tastes. It was clearly just a mistake on the goat’s part and really if anyone should be disgusted by the notion it would be her and Escanor. Speaking of the lion…
“Whilst I cannot blame you for being attracted to the two sexiest people in this room, I’d rather you keep your sexual fantasies to yourself” droned Escanor and Merlin couldn’t help the snort that escaped her, causing the lion to turn to her with a wink at which point she let her laughter flow freely.
At the wink King and Diane, who had been staring at the man in shock, realised he was joking and burst into laughter too, after which even Ban had to laugh because it was pretty funny. Gowther just looked around at them all in confusion.
“Was I mistaken in my earlier deduction?” the goat asked and Merlin, feeling sorry for him, turned to him with a smile.
“I think Ban was insinuating that Escanor and myself were acting like his parents when we reprimanded him for cheating” she explained, causing the goat to ponder this new information.
“Does that make you my parents as well?” Merlin was slightly shocked by the goat’s question, not sure where the idea had come from despite the goat clearly thinking hard about this.
“What makes you say that?” Asked the mage
“Well” pondered Gowther. “The both of you are always kind to me. You explain my mistakes to me and encourage me to keep trying. You’re also firm with me if I do something bad. From what I’ve read these are all qualities that parents should possess”
Merlin blinked in surprise and looked at Escanor who looked just as shocked as she felt.
“Not to mention you literally dress me” Grinned Diane
“And you’re always kicking me out of bed” Added King
“You’re also by far the least immature of the sins” Piped up Gowther, which was met by a number of complaints from his companions and a muttered “That’s not saying much” from Merlin.
“So I guess that makes you parents to all of us” declared Gowther and the mage really wasn’t sure what to make of that although Escanor seemed happy enough.
“I guess it does” chortled the lion and Merlin couldn’t help the eye roll that followed, but her smile was there if you happened to look closely enough. She was fond of her fellow sins after all.
At that moment Meliodas finally appeared, popping up and putting an arm around Merlin and Escanor with a “Sate, sate, sate. How are my two favourite parents?!” His shit eating grin did not inspire confidence.
“What do you want?” the mage glared although the captain seemed rather unfazed.
“I need the two of you to act like a couple for me” he grinned and Merlin didn’t need to look at Escanor to know he was blushing, she’d probably be blushing herself if she wasn’t suspicious.
“Why?” she demanded and if anything the captain’s grin widened, that was not a good sign.
“It’s for a job” he replied vaguely, annoying Merlin with his lack of answers.
“You will explain this job in full or you can look elsewhere” She commanded and that wiped the grin off his face.
“You’re no fun Merlin” pouted the captain as he finally took his arms off the pair and went to sit next to Ban. “The job is simple” he started, glancing at each of the sins but keeping his eyes mostly on the boar and lion. “There are rumours of an underground syndicate in Wyvern and we have been tasked with apprehending the individuals involved. To do this, we will need to gather information and in this instance the best way to do that is to have two people go undercover as a married couple who just moved to the area”
“Why us?” the mage asked, thinking the captain’s plan sounded suspicious, mostly because it was actually a logical plan that had come from Meliodas…
“I don’t think anyone would ever believe you and Ban are a couple, you’d probably murder him in his sleep the first night. And as for the rest of us, we all look too young by human standards”
Merlin stared at him, Meliodas stared back, she couldn’t see anything that made her doubt him. “I guess that makes sense…” she agreed causing the captain’s face to split back into his grin.
“Excellent, then I guess the three of you can start preparations immediately” he beamed.
“The three of us?” questioned Escanor and Merlin glared, there was always a twist.
“Well of course” smirked Meliodas. “What married couple at your age wouldn’t have a child?”
“What child” Merlin questioned through gritted teeth, she could feel a headache coming on.
There was a shout of “Surprise” from behind her and she couldn’t help the smile that blossomed on her face.
“Hello Arthur” she smiled but didn’t turn around to face him, causing the boy to pout but merrily skip over and pull up his own seat in-between the mage and the lion. “Meliodas you cannot simply steal Arthur from Camelot to help out in your crazy schemes, he has important work to do”
“But muuuuuuuuuuumm” whined Arthur and Merlin couldn’t help but snap her eyes to him, she would not find that pout and mischievous eyes combo adorable…. She would not…Besides, it wasn’t even the first time he’d called her mother, although the first had been an accident a long time ago. Hearing him deliberately say it now, even if just part of Meliodas’s scheme, filled her with a warmth she wasn’t sure she was entitled to feeling.
“Listen to your mother” commanded Escanor and that definitely did things to the mage’s insides she wasn’t prepared for, or entirely understood. She also wasn’t certain but it seemed like Escanor enjoyed implying that Arthur was her son a little too much…
“Yes dad” smirked Arthur, sticking his tongue out at the lion and Merlin swore poor Escanor was going to have a heart attack.
“Way to get in character everyone” clapped Meliodas, causing Arthur to beam with pride, Escanor to shyly scratch the back of his head and Merlin to glare more.
“I was serious about wasting Arthur’s time” Merlin intoned. “How long are you expecting this to take?”
“Sate, sate, sate” pondered Meliodas. “Undercover missions are unpredictable so it’s impossible to say, however if it takes too long you can always send Arthur off to ‘work as an apprentice’ or ‘to his aunts’ or something” Merlin nodded thoughtfully but Arthur whirled to her with sad eyes.
“But I don’t want to leave” he whimpered, tears in his eyes.
She watched as Escanor’s eyes softened and groaned realising that whatever was to come, she was going to have to be the strict parent… no change there. “Arthur stop that, we are not undercover yet so there’s no need for you to start now”
The tears in the boy’s eyes vanished and his grin was back in an instant.
“That was amazing Arthur!” exclaimed Diane, wiping away her own tears at Arthur’s emotional plea.
“Thanks!” the boy beamed. “I’ve been practising”
“The real question” leered Ban. “Is whether the two love birds can keep up with your acting”
All eyes flew to land on Merlin and Escanor.
“What do you mean?” Enquired Escanor, Merlin really didn’t like the looks they were being given.
“Well…” smirked Ban. “You need to pretend to be married, and not just married, you have a kid together. So Escanor blushing at any little contact isn’t going to be believable” The lion’s blush from that statement alone was probably his reddest to date thought the mage, but it did prove Ban’s point.
“Also Merlin” grinned Meliodas. “You’re going to need to be more forward with your affections, you need to show that you love your husband and child”
“Not every family is loving” stated the mage, refusing to think back to her own family, or even most of the sin’s families from what she knew.
“No” agreed Meliodas. “But the ones who fly under the radar and aren’t gossiped about are. Public displays of affection make people uncomfortable, you can use that to your advantage”
Merlin grumbled internally but knew it made sense.
“So why don’t you practise here with us” grinned Ban and the mage glared daggers into him.
“We are not some show for your entertainment” she growled. “I agree that it would be beneficial to practise before going on the mission but we shall do so on our own”
“So you’ll do the mission?” grinned Meliodas and admittedly Merlin wasn’t sure when she’d decided she was doing it either, but the hopeful look on Arthur’s face and the slight blush but longing look in Escanor’s eyes meant she didn’t have the heart to say no. She must be getting soft.
Instead of answering her captain she turned to the two next to her. “Come along Arthur, Escanor” she prompted, holding out her hand for Arthur who eagerly jumped up and grabbed it, giving her a toothy grin before forcibly grabbing Escanor’s hand as well and dragging them both out of the door.
“Well” grinned Meliodas as he watched them leave. “That went better than I thought it would”
Merlin stopped once they got outside and turned to the lion. “I’m sorry Escanor I never actually asked if you were ok with this” she realised.
“I will always do my best to help you and the captain” reassured Escanor and Merlin wished he would pay as much attention to his own interests as he did to theirs.
“Where are we going?” grinned Arthur, looking up at them in excitement and Merlin suddenly realised just how very young he actually was. He’d probably never had a casual family outing before, no wonder he looked like a kid in a candy shop stood between them.
“I was thinking of going for a picnic so we could practise out of public eyes first” Admitted the mage, summoning a picnic basket which the lion happily picked up. “And if that goes well then afterwards I thought we could stroll into town and do some sightseeing”
“Cool” grinned Arthur and started leading them towards the forest on the outskirts of town.
“You know” grinned Merlin. “You’re probably a little old to be holding your parents’ hands like this”
“Don’t care” Was Arthurs nonchalant reply and Merlin heard Escanor’s quiet chuckle from next to her. Their eyes caught and they shared a smile, both amused at their new son’s antics.
“Ooh silent eye communication” grinned Arthur up at them. “Very parent-y, good job!”
To Merlin’s horror she could feel the tips of her ears go pink and hoped her hair was covering them sufficiently. Escanor was apparently faring better than she as he turned to Arthur “Don’t tease your parents” the lion commanded before a mischievous glint entered his eye. “Or they may have to tease you back” at which point he scooped the lad up and started tickling him.
Arthur howled with laughter as he wriggled about, trying to get away from the man’s fingers. “Stop” he laughed, tears falling from laughing so hard. “Please. I’ll be good. Mum help!” He called, reaching towards Merlin.
“Sure” Merlin grinned but only joined in the tickling as Arthur cried “Noooooooooooooo”. They were all laughing when the adults deemed Arthur had learnt his lesson and finally put him down.
The boy stuck out his tongue before running ahead, still laughing.
“Arthur don’t go too far” called Merlin as she watched him disappear round a tree. His head poked round the other side of it with a “yes mum”, another tongue poke and then he disappeared again.
Merlin startled as she felt warm fingers gently stroke the back of her hand, looking down she watched as Escanor’s hand reached for her own before holding it gently in his grasp. She looked back up at the man in slight surprise, noticing the slight blush dusting his cheeks.
“I…..Is this ok?” He questioned, not actually looking at her as he scratched the back of his head.
“I’d say this is a normal gesture for a husband and wife” confirmed Merlin, squeezing his hand. His eyes met hers and she smiled, ignoring the slight flutter in her chest and the quiet giggles she could hear coming from behind the tree.
They continued walking, following the sound of Arthur’s calls.
“Acting as Arthur’s mother comes easily to you” The lion sin surmised, more of a statement than a question.
“I suppose because it’s in-line with the feelings I already have” admitted Merlin, she was confused by the lion’s surprise and pleasure from her statement. “Wasn’t it obvious?”
The lion chuckled, almost nervously although that didn’t make any sense. “I suppose it was” he agreed cryptically. She raised an eyebrow and was about to get him to admit his real thoughts when there was a splash from up ahead. They looked at each other in alarm and then took off sprinting towards the sound.
What they found was a large clearing with a river that Arthur had apparently made himself at home in, clothes and all.
“Here looks good” he grinned and Merlin couldn’t help the glare she sent him.
“Arthur” she snapped but didn’t really have more to say, especially when the grin dropped from his face at her tone.
“What?” he pouted turning from the glaring mage to the lion.
“Oh don’t worry, she’s just grumpy that you scared her” smiled the lion which meant that he was suddenly the one on the receiving end of the glare.
“I’m annoyed that his clothes are all soaked and he’ll catch a cold once he gets out” she argued but for once Escanor seemed unfazed by her ire.
“So change him into some trunks and hang his clothes on that tree” the lion shrugged. “They’ll be dry by the time he gets out, especially if you use magic”
She glared harder. “We’re meant to be a normal family”
“There’s no one here” he smiled at her “Let the kid have his fun”
“Or what?” she demanded, mostly due to the uncomfortable fluttering she’d felt in her stomach at his going toe to toe with her. Assertive Escanor was a weakness of hers it seemed.
She blinked as suddenly there were strong arms around her, the world was moving, and then she was very wet. It took her a second to work out what had happened as she blinked water out of her eyes. She was shocked to realise that the lion had scooped her up and jumped into the river with her. She was still held within his arms as she turned her astonished stare towards him, deliberately ignoring Arthur’s whoops and laughter.
“It would appear I got a little too into my character” said Escanor slowly, whether he was trying not to breakdown in apologies or laugh at her shocked expression she wouldn’t like to bet. Her eyes narrowed and Escanor found himself being dunked back under the water as Merlin went to fly off. Unfortunately for the mage he was rather fast and grabbed her foot as he fell, dragging her back down with him. From there is escalated into all-out war with Merlin and Escanor focusing on drenching the other and Arthur assisting whoever he felt like in a given moment. Laughter filled the air and the mage had to admit that she hadn’t felt this carefree in a long time.
Eventually Arthur flopped onto his back, floating on the water. “I’m exhausted” he grinned.
Merlin, who had been clambering on Escanor’s back in another attempt at knocking him over/escaping his attacks, went limp, resting her head on his shoulder.
“I’m wet” she grumbled against his back as the lion moved his hands behind him in order to help hold her up.
“My apologise my lady” Escanor apologised, although he didn’t sound very sorry, possibly due to being able to feel Merlin’s grin on his shoulder.
Merlin snapped her fingers and suddenly Escanor and Arthur found themselves in trunks, which Escanor would have found far more comfortable if he didn’t suddenly feel so much of Merlin’s skin pressed up against his back and her bare things in his hands and around his waist. Merlin grinned harder as she felt the lion’s body heat up, bringing a beautiful warmth to her tired, cold muscles. She almost purred as she cuddled closer, causing the heat to rack up a couple of notches. The thought that Escanor would make a wonderful bed companion in winter briefly entered her mind before she shoved the thought away, instead realising that she should probably stop teasing the poor lion and stealing his warmth.
The mage teleported back on land and got to work laying out the picnic items. It was still warm out and now that she was mostly dry, thanks to Escanor, it was a lovely temperature so she didn’t feel the need to change back out of the bikini she was in just yet.
“Food will be ready soon boys” she called and Escanor allowed a few calming breathes before turning to Arthur. The boy was grinning at him mischievously… that did not bode well.
“Can I ride on your back dad?” the boy grinned and Escanor was pretty sure it was a trap but, well, Merlin looked over with a smile and he couldn’t really say no. Not after he’d realised that Arthur was basically her kid and therefore practically an extension of Merlin herself.
Escanor nodded and before he knew it Arthur had swam over and swung himself up onto his back.
“To shore!” called Arthur and Escanor couldn’t help but smile as he started walking back into the shallows. He was about ankle deep when Arthur piped up again, in a much quieter voice.
“Now, I need you to turn and face mum..” Escanor promptly turned to face Merlin and almost passed out at the sight that greeted him “ ‘s ass” finished Arthur with a grin. Heat once more flooded the lion at the sight of Merlin bent over in front of him and he heard the boy coo as he too warmed himself on the big man’s back.
Merlin’s call of “Arthur stop teasing your father” really didn’t help any, in fact it made him heat up more much to Arthur’s delight.
“Oh like you didn’t do the same thing” sassed Arthur, sticking out his tongue for good measure.
“Would you two stop using me as a human radiator” grumbled Escanor as he continued his way onto land with Arthur still snuggled against the warmth of his back.
“It’s not our fault you’re so hot” the boar winked as she walked over and then snuggled herself against his chest as he once again ignited from heat at her comment. The lion would be seriously annoyed but, well, he was incredibly hot, he couldn’t deny that. And Merlin was all snuggled against his chest and his pretend son was snuggled against his back and, well, it was probably the most contact he’d had in this form, ever. So he simply shook his head before snaking an arm out from under the boy to curl around Merlin’s back and just enjoyed the moment.
It was Arthur’s stomach that interrupted them with an almighty growl that caused all three to chuckle. “Food time” called Arthur as he jumped down from Escanor’s back and ran over to see what was on offer.
Merlin was slower in extracting herself, pulling back just enough to give him a warm smile and he couldn’t help but smile back.
“You know” called Arthur from where he was helping himself to the sausage rolls. “Most parents would be kissing about now” he taunted, his voice muffled through the food.
“Most children wouldn’t be encouraging their parents to kiss in front of them” responded Merlin as she finally stepped away from a newly blushing Escanor and over to the picnic blanket. “And don’t talk with your mouth full” she admonished.
Arthur swallowed before grinning. “Most children haven’t had to grow up hearing all about how great Escanor is” Merlin tried to cover her blush with a glare, and was proud that she was successful.
“Your ears are red” grinned Arthur and now the glare was far more real and deadly.
“Stop teasing your mother” reprimanded Escanor, finally joining them on the blanket. “And pass me a sausage roll before you devour them all yourself”
The three continued to chat mildly as they ate, Arthur filling them in on his current duties before demanding to hear all about past missions from the sins. Escanor was surprised to find that clearly Merlin had already told Arthur most of their stories, but the boy seemed to appreciate hearing them again from Escanor’s point of view.
“It’s getting late” mused Merlin as she realised that Escanor’s size indicated early evening was approaching. She thought maybe it was a tad odd that she could tell the time based off of Escanor’s body but shrugged it off.
Arthur seemed to deflate in sadness before perking himself back up. “Well then why don’t I head back to the boar hat and you two can practise non-blushing parental contact” he smirked, causing both sins to flush a bright red and cough nervously.
Arthur winked before turning and taking off in a run which promptly pulled Merlin from her thoughts. “Arthur, clothes!” she called after him and he stopped long enough for Merlin to click her fingers and change him back out of the trunks and into his normal attire before waving and running off again.
The two sins sat quietly for a while, each avoiding eye contact and trying to work out what to say. Surprisingly it was Escanor to find words first.
“We could follow him back” the lion offered quietly. “If you want to”
The mage considered this. She wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted. She was a little worried about Arthur but he was old enough to find his way back without help. But if she stayed then that would mean touching Escanor, under a married guise, which meant kissing him. She willed her face to not become any reader than it already was. She couldn’t understand why she was so flushed, it was just kissing, she’d done it countless times over the years without meaning. And it was just Escanor, the man she trusted with her life on a regular basis. So why did putting the two together suddenly make her feel so nervous and shy. She wasn’t sure but she knew she hated the feeling and so she stubbornly leant forward and captured Escanor’s lips with her own in a simple but hard kiss.
She pulled back and then froze at the look of shock on Escanor’s face, her eyes widening as she realised what she had just done in her fit of self-annoyance. Her face turned beat red as she attempted to stutter out apologies.
“It’s fine” assured Escanor, clearly trying his best not to stutter too. “I just wasn’t expecting it, that’s all” he assured her and Merlin’s eyes softened at his care for her.
“Maybe you’d like to initiate this time” Merlin murmured, still coloured a lovely red as her heart refused to slow to a normal beat. Her breath caught as Escanor glanced at her lips before moving his hand to cup the side of her head as he slowly moved their lips together.
This time the kiss was slow and cautious, but with each passing moment the lion seemed to find more courage and started deepening the kiss. Electricity shot straight to her toes, causing them to curl as Escanor’s tongue flicked out to meet her own.
He pulled back gently, resting his forehead against hers as he tried to regain control of his breathing, the mage doing the same on her end. Kissing Escanor hadn’t felt like anything she’d experienced before and she wondered if it was just a one-time thing because it was new or because it was Escanor who was the one doing the kissing. She figured there was only one way to find out…
“Looks like we’re still blushing” she murmured. “Guess we’ll have to keep practising” She couldn’t stop her smile from turning a little mischievous as she said it and was delighted to see Escanor’s smile mimic it.
“That would be the responsible thing to do” he agreed, before pulling her back in for another lengthy kiss.
Arthur, who had been spying on them from behind a tree, decided he probably didn’t want to see anymore. Instead he almost skipped back to the boar hat, excitedly letting Meliodas know that their plan had gone as intended.
Arthur, Meliodas and Ban were sat playing cards by the time Merlin and Escanor showed back up at the boar’s hat.
“Well, well, well” Grinned Meliodas. “Look who finally decided to show up”
“Leaving your child unattended so the two of you could be alone, shocking” added Ban, giving them a smirk but feeling disappointed when neither the boar nor lion reacted.
“Did you get to feel Merlin’s boobs?” leered the captain and that definitely caused a blush to grace the lion’s cheeks although not as much as they were expecting.
“Is that a blush Escanor?” beamed Ban, happy to finally have a reaction. “My, my, what have you two been up to?”
“Why don’t you see for yourselves” interrupted Merlin and before Ban and Meliodas had time to blink Merlin had clicked her fingers and they disappeared from sight.
“Where did you send them” grinned Arthur as Escanor tried to settle his blush and Merlin tried to calm her irritation.
“The river” she shrugged, although her eyes finally showed a hint of the mischief she was feeling.
Arthur burst out laughing, wiping tears from his eyes at the thought of Meliodas and Ban, soaked through and incredibly confused. “Well” he beamed as his laughter finally subsided. “I guess I’d better be heading back to Camelot” he looked sad at the prospect.
“What about the mission?” asked Merlin, hoping to cheer him up but if anything the boy just looked more upset and a little nervous.
“There never was a mission” spoke Escanor suddenly. “Was there?” His voice was resigned, having experienced this kind of nonsense from his fellow sins before, but Merlin was absolutely furious.
“I’ll kill him” muttered Merlin, as her fury almost seemed to form a physical presence around her causing Arthur to recoil in despair.
“I’m so sorry” he wailed, tears falling from his eyes at how furious his mentor and mother figure was. “Meliodas asked me to play your son for a day and it just sounded so much fun that I said yes. And then when he told me the rest of the plan I thought it would make you happy, and I just wanted to see you smile and to spend time with you and…” It was surprisingly Escanor who stopped the boy’s hysterics, having come over and hugged him from behind.
“Be calm Arthur” he soothed. “She’s not angry at you” he promised and Merlin snapped out from her rage at the realisation that she’d been scaring the child. “We have no doubt that Meliodas was the one behind this and he will be punished accordingly”
“But” argued Arthur but Escanor shushed him.
“Regardless of his reasoning it is cruel to play with people in this way, lying to them to force them into situations isn’t ok. You understand that right?” Escanor explained seriously.
“I understand sir” nodded Arthur as he sniffled quietly and Escanor found himself feeling almost disappointed at the use of ‘sir’.
“Never-the-less” the lion continued with a smile. “I had a lot of fun being your father today” the boy looked up at him shyly before a small smile appeared on his face.
“Really?” he asked and Escanor wondered where the boisterous, overly confident boy from earlier had gone.
“Really” he confirmed, crouching down to ruffle the boy’s hair. “It was a true honour”
Arthur beamed before jumping up to hug the man, sending them both falling backwards onto the floor and giggling amongst themselves. Escanor heard a slight chuckle and looked up to see Merlin watching, a soft look on her face causing the man to flush.
“I think your mother is feeling left out” smiled Escanor as Arthur looked over at the mage, clearly still feeling a tad uncertain as to how she was really feeling. But Merlin simply smiled and opened her arms and Arthur scrambled to his feet, grinning as he ran to give her a hug.
“I’m sorry” Arthur whispered as he hugged her tighter.
“I know” smiled Merlin whilst stroking his hair. “Next time you want to spend the day with us, just ask”
“How about next week?” asked Arthur shyly as he pulled back, hopeful eyes shining up at her.
“As long as you have all your duties done and war hasn’t broken out I don’t see why not” Merlin smiled and the joy that broke out in Arthur’s eyes melted her heart.
“Ok you can send me back now” He grinned. “See you next week” he skipped back a few steps and waved at them both as Merlin teleported him back to his room.
“That boy is going to ruin my reputation as a cold-hearted bitch” moaned Merlin but her eyes were still far too warm to sound truly annoyed.
“Please, one only need look in your eyes to know that reputation is nonsense Merlin-San” smiled Escanor and her stomach jumped again. It had been doing that a lot today and the mage wasn’t sure she was ready for the reason.
“Thank you Escanor” Merlin said sweetly, touched by how able he was to see through her. “And thank you for today, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Arthur so happy and carefree”
“He’s a good kid” admitted Escanor with a smile. “I imagine much of that was your influence” he added causing the mage to blush prettily at the complement.
“You give me far too much credit” Merlin insisted, trying to tame the blush
“And you don’t give yourself enough, so I guess it evens out nicely” reasoned the lion and Merlin wondered how on earth she deserved such a wonderful man.
At that moment there was a commotion near the entrance and Escanor turned to see two sopping wet figures opening the door. Ban seemed peeved with his “that wasn’t funny Merlin” whilst Meliodas seemed in good spirits still. However the moment they both attempted to walk through the door there was an alarmed shout as they both suddenly vanished again.
Escanor turned back to Merlin with a raised eyebrow.
“I’ve set it up so that every time they try and walk through that door they’ll be sent back to the lake” shrugged Merlin in explanation. “I figured it was a fitting punishment”
“Not that I disagree” cautioned the lion “But are you sure Ban was involved?”
The mage shrugged again “No, but I have no doubt that he’s done something that deserves this”
Escanor grinned at her “I can think of a few things” he agreed.
Both sins quieted as their minds travelled back over the events of the day.
“You know” began Escanor, tentatively. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile as much as you did today” and what a smile it had been, she was always beautiful but that serene smile had made her breath taking. His hands were already itching to immortalise it on paper.
“I can’t remember the last time I was this happy” admitted the mage, and whilst she was surprised she’d said the thought aloud she knew it was true. In fact, she wasn’t entirely sure she’d ever been this happy, but that seemed like a rather depressing sentiment so she ignored it.
“It suits you” smiled Escanor and she was certain she didn’t deserve the kindness he was showing her. “You should hang out with Arthur more often” How this wonderful man could remain so ignorant to the affect he had on her was bewildering, but then again it was probably her own fault for never correcting his assumption. She was tempted to ignore it again but after all the joy she’d had today she figured she owed it to him to admit the truth.
“Arthur wasn’t the only one there” she allowed coyly, she was slightly annoyed that she wasn’t brave enough to admit outright the happiness he’d brought her, but it was a start. It didn’t seem to matter anyway since Escanor’s eyes widened slightly in surprise and there was definitely a look of wonder held within his gaze, mixed in with something that could have been hope…
“In that case” said Escanor slowly, clearly being careful with his words and watching her expression closely. “Perhaps you and I could, I mean if it would make you happy, perhaps we should, do it again, some time?”
“I would like that” agreed Merlin and the look of joy that crossed the lion’s face made her add. “In fact, the night is still young. Why don’t we go for a walk around town as we had planned”
“MERLIN” they were interrupted by Ban’s roar as he once again appeared in the doorway along with Meliodas. “Stop being such a b…” he was cut off the moment he stormed through the doorway as he disappeared again.
“Now, now, Merlin” placated Meliodas from outside. “You two seem happy, surely that’s the main thing” he implored before he too vanished the moment he stepped through the door frame.
“I think a walk around town sounds lovely” smiled Escanor, a slight blush on his face as he offered her his arm. “My lady” he enticed and Merlin couldn’t help the small blush and smile as she took it.