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The first pale threads of dawn crept through the chamber windows, painting everything in soft gold. Merlin lay still, watching the light dance across Arthur's sleeping face, tracing the familiar lines he knew better than his own reflection. The prince's breathing was steady now, deep and peaceful, but Merlin could still feel the phantom weight of those terrible moments when each breath had been a struggle.
It had been three days since the ambush. Three days since Merlin had held Arthur's bleeding body in his arms, feeling his life slip away like water through cupped hands. The assassin's blade had found its mark just beneath Arthur's ribs, and for one heart-stopping moment, Merlin had been certain he was about to lose everything that mattered.
"Stay with me," he had whispered then, his magic flowing through his fingertips as he pressed his hands against the wound. "Please, Arthur. Stay with me."
The memory made his chest tighten even now. How close they had come to losing each other — not just Arthur's life, but this fragile, precious thing that had grown between them. All those years of hidden glances, of words left unspoken, of love buried beneath duty and fear. It had taken nearly losing Arthur to finally bridge the distance between them.
Merlin's fingers ghosted over the bandages still wrapped around Arthur's torso, careful not to wake him. The wound was healing well — better than well, thanks to Merlin's careful ministrations and perhaps a touch of magic Arthur pretended not to notice. But the fear lingered, cold and sharp in Merlin's chest.
"You're thinking too loudly," came Arthur's sleep-rough voice, startling Merlin from his reverie.
Blue eyes blinked open, immediately finding his. Arthur's hand came up to cup Merlin's cheek, thumb brushing over the worried crease between his brows.
"I can practically hear the wheels turning in that head of yours," Arthur murmured, shifting closer despite the obvious discomfort it caused. "What's troubling you?"
Merlin leaned into the touch, eyes falling closed. "Just... remembering. When I thought I might lose you."
Arthur's expression softened, understanding passing between them without need for more words. They had both been changed by those moments — by the desperate confessions whispered over blood-stained cloth, by the kisses that tasted of salt and fear and relief.
"You didn't lose me," Arthur said simply, drawing Merlin closer until they were sharing the same breath. "I'm right here."
"I know," Merlin whispered, but his voice caught slightly. "I know, but I keep thinking about what if—"
Arthur silenced him with a gentle kiss, soft and sure and tasting of morning light. When they parted, Arthur rested their foreheads together.
"No what-ifs," Arthur said firmly. "We're here. We're together. That's what matters."
Merlin nodded, feeling some of the tension leave his shoulders as Arthur's arms came around him, holding him close despite his injuries. They lay there in the growing light, wrapped around each other like they were afraid the other might disappear if they let go.
"I love you," Merlin breathed against Arthur's neck, the words still new enough to make his heart race.
Arthur's arms tightened around him. "And I love you. Always have, you impossible man. Always will."
Outside, Camelot was beginning to wake — servants hurrying through corridors, knights preparing for morning training, the bustle of another day beginning. But here in their chamber, time seemed suspended in amber light and quiet promises, in the simple miracle of being alive and being held.
Merlin pressed a soft kiss to the pulse point at Arthur's throat, feeling the steady beat beneath his lips. Alive. Safe. His.
The sunrise painted them in gold, and for the first time since the attack, Merlin allowed himself to simply be grateful for this moment, this man, this love that had somehow survived everything the world had thrown at them.
"Stay with me," he whispered, echoing those desperate words from three days ago.
But this time, Arthur smiled. "Always," he promised, and sealed it with another kiss as the dawn broke fully over Camelot.