Title: At First Sight

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Summary: Morgana and Merlin explain their relationship to Arthur and Gwen... but mostly Arthur, since he's Morgana's older brother. The way he found out about them didn't help whatsoever. MERGANA!

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A/N: Hello! I'm back for now! This is another peace offering for leaving for so long. I feel horrible for leaving so many of my fics unfinished, so I wrote this one-shot to apologize for taking so long. Anyway, I hope you all like it. Although, fair warning, the writing here starts out light and finishes out sappy. Sorry if you're not into the sap. It does contain some smut though! Also, make sure to read the note at the end of this fic. Thank you for reading and please review!

-McDiggin'It

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Morgana shuts her eyes as she tries her best not to moan out loud. Gwen is just in the other room studying, and she didn't want to disturb her. Easier said than done though when Merlin has his head between her thighs and his tongue sliding between her sopping wet folds. She bites her lip hard as her fingers spear into Merlin's hair. Her legs are beginning to shake, and her inner muscles are clenching to signal the closeness of the undoubtedly powerful orgasm that's about to hit her.

She braces herself, sweat on her brow as her eyes begin to roll into the back of her head. She wants so badly to cry out, to release the moan of pleasure she's holding on to, but Gwen will hear. Just as the tattletale signs of climax are beginning to manifest, Merlin suddenly stops, kissing her clit once before crawling up to her from beneath the blanket laying over him and her lower half.

Morgana swears colorfully at the deprivation, ready to slap Merlin for teasing her so cruelly, but then there's a knock on the door, and she only has a split second to see the doorknob on her door slowly turn.

Merlin hadn't heard a thing, his face (slick with her juices) just emerging from under the blanket over her stomach, and then getting shoved right back under the blanket by Morgana's hand in his face as the door swings open.

Morgana thanks her lucky stars that Merlin had actually stopped moving as she pulls her legs up, and lets her knees mask the lump that is his body under the blanket.

"Morgana, your brother is here."

Morgana tries her very best not to widen her eyes at the news. She plays it off quite well, asking, "Why is he here?"

Gwen raises her eyebrows at her. "Didn't we agree that we'd all go out for dinner tonight?"

Morgana inwardly curses, moving her knee in to smack against Merlin's ear for not reminding her that they're supposed to be at dinner tonight.

She nearly jumps when she feels Merlin's teeth against her inner thigh, nipping lightly. She quickly plays it off with a cough. "Oh, right... well, okay. I'll be right out."

Gwen nods and smiles, turning to leave, but then stopping and turning back. "Oh wait." She says excitedly.

Morgana resists the urge to groan out loud, instead going for a sharp intake of breath when Merlin's tongue laps roughly against her nether lips. She shudders, then freezes and pretends to shiver. "It's a little chilly in here, isn't it?"

Gwen's eyebrows furrow at her. "You're sweating, and it's like 80 degrees in here."

Morgana laughs nervously as Merlin suddenly sucks at her clit. She tries to squeeze his head between her thighs, but it doesn't stop him. Oh, I'm going to kill him when Gwen leaves! She silently vows.

"Anyways," Gwen begins back up. "I saw this cute little Italian restaurant not far from here. They just opened up there two weeks ago and my friend from work told me that their Risotto is to-die-for...".

Morgana stops listening then, biting her lip when Merlin starts kissing her mound, slowly inching his lips down to her wet center.

"... wondering if you guys would be down to try it out. But if not, then we ca—".

"Oh fuck!" Morgana nearly jumps out of her bed when Merlin suddenly inserts two fingers inside her weeping slit whilst sucking vigorously on her bundle of nerves. She freezes again at the look of surprise on Gwen's face, and she rapidly moves her foot in to poke into Merlin's side.

"Are you okay?" Gwen asks worriedly as she walks further into the room. "You don't look very—".

"Fine!" Morgana shouts, then bites her lip both in pleasure and embarrassment. "I'm fine." She gasps as Merlin begins pumping his fingers into her. "I'm just feEEELING OH MY— errr— I'm just really excited about Risotto." She's nearly out of breath at this point, staring at Gwen with eyes glazed over.

Gwen had stopped when Morgana had suddenly shouted 'Fine!', not sure if her friend was okay or not. "Morgana, you look like your having a stroke. Are you sure you're—".

"Fuck!" Morgana curses wildly as her eyes shut tightly and her fingers clench the sheets. Merlin was now lapping up her wetness, swirling his tongue inside her on every other swipe of his tongue. Her eyes snap open as she remembers that Gwen's still in the room. "I mean, I'm sorry Gwen. I don't feel so— so— so— oh fuck—JESUS CHRIST!" She screams as her back arches up off the bed.

Gwen is now at her side, holding onto Morgana's arm with one hand and resting the back of her other hand over her friend's forehead. "Morgana! Are you okay?"

Arthur bursts into the room, eyes wide with worry and fear. "What's going on?" He asks in concern for his sister. He'd heard the cries from the living room. "Morgana, are you—".

"Oh for fuck's sake!" Morgana shrieks a moments later, glaring at her brother and her friend. "What are you, my parents?!"

"Morgana!" Arthur cries defensively. "We're just worried about you! Why are are you shouting?" He asks exasperatedly. "I could hear you from the living room!"

Morgana feels a puff of air against her hot, throbbing center, and she knows Merlin's laughing whilst still eating her out. Oh she's going to do more than kill him when this is over! "It's nothing!" She silently curses when her voice breaks. "I'm—."

"Wait a minute." Arthur says abruptly, eyes narrowed at something at the foot of Morgana's bed.

In the back of Morgana's mind, she knows that Arthur has just realized or seen something that could give away her 6 month long relationship with Merlin, but she doesn't care. She's so close, Merlin's mouth is so hot, and she knows that Merlin was not about to stop. He was going to make her come in front of her best friend and brother. Probably to get revenge for when she had sucked him off while he was on a video conference with his boss and co-workers last week.

"Is that— are those Merlin's shoes?"

Both Morgana and Merlin freeze, Morgana's eyes finally looking properly at her brother. "Errr— What?"

"Merlin's shoes." He walks forward and pulls out Merlin's shoes that he wore earlier. "Why are they under your bed?"

Gwen looks suspiciously at Morgana, then at Arthur, and then back at Morgana... or more precisely, at Morgana's blanketed knees. "That reminds me." She says as she looks at Arthur. "Where's Merlin? I thought you were coming over together."

Arthur frowns and shrugs. "He said something about work and that he'll meet me here."

"Strange." Gwen says matter-of-factly as she slowly turns her head towards Morgana. "Because he told me that he has this whole weekend off."

"What?" Arthur asks bewilderedly.

"That is strange." Morgana tries to play along. The room was beginning to smell like sex, and it's much more noticeable now that all four of them are in there. "Well," She says with a shrug. "I guess he'll be here later. If you'll both excuse me, I'm going to change." She looks at the two expectantly.

Arthur is still staring at Merlin's shoes, and Gwen's eyebrows are shooting up on her forehead as her eyes flicker between the shoes, Morgana, and her still-blanketed knees. Morgana has to take a deep breath to keep herself from hurling the lamp on her nightstand at Gwen and Arthur. Just a few more strokes of Merlin's talented tongue and she can finally get some sweet fucking release!

She can feel Merlin breathing heavily against her sex, probably suffocating under the blanket from the lack of air. She almost feels bad... almost.

"Yeah." Gwen suddenly mutters. "We'll be out in the liv—".

"Wait, no." Arthur interrupts. "Morgana, you haven't answered why Merlin's shoes are under your bed."

Morgana wasn't even listening anymore, having become distracted by Merlin's mouth once again, when he continued his ministrations while Gwen and Arthur talked. So close! She closes her eyes, inhaling deeply as her knees begin to shake again.

"Morgana." Arthur calls confusedly. He looks at Gwen as she tries to pull him out of the room. "Why is she making that weird face?" He asks.

"I think she needs to be alone right now." Gwen says urgently.

Morgana could feel it building. She just doesn't give a fuck anymore. Merlin has been teasing her all day, refusing to let her come, bringing her to the edge and then letting her fall right back down, and now with her stupid brother and friend interrupting her climax— fuck it. She's done.

"Morgana, what—".

Morgana screams in frustration when Merlin pulls away from her again. She abruptly straightens her legs, pulls the blanket up just enough to pull Merlin up and out from under it by his sweat-drenched hair, and then yelling at Arthur. "Merlin's shoes are under my bed because Merlin has been between my legs since this morning!"

Arthur's eyes nearly pop out of their sockets at the sight of his best friend and flatmate, smiling at him from on top of his sister.

Merlin inhales deeply and shakes his head. "Had you asked anymore questions, I would've died under this blanket."

Morgana glares at the side of her boyfriend's head and abruptly lifts a hand to smack him in the back of his sweaty head. Merlin turns his head and smirks at her. "Love you too."

"What the fuck?!" Arthur screeches. "What— Merlin— you— when did—".

Morgana huffs loudly and rolls her eyes. "Merlin and I have been secretly dating for the past 6 months, Arthur..." she trails off and looks at Merlin quizzically. "... well actually, we've been secretly— doing things together for much longer than that."

"Doing things?!" Arthur bellows incredulously. "How? How much longer?!"

Merlin shrugs as he climbs off of Morgana and sits beside her on her bed, facing Gwen and Arthur. "About 17 months now?"

"18 months." Morgana corrects with a grin.

Arthur sputters as he tries to wrap his head around the fact that his best friend has been shagging his sister for a year and a half, and he had never known. He then looks at Gwen, who he's surprised to see smiling. "You knew about them?" He asks with narrowed eyes, feeling betrayed.

Gwen scoffs. "I literally just figured it out today."

"What?" Arthur asks incredulously. "When?"

Gwen rolls her eyes at her boyfriend. "Oh come on, Arthur. Merlin's shoes, lying to you about working, Morgana looking like she's having an aneurysm, the shouting, the sweat on her forehead, and even the fact that her knees were literally up while there are still two, long leg-shaped lumps under her blanket!"

Arthur shakes his head in disbelief. "I can't believe you guys have been lying to us this whole time!" He glares at Merlin in particular. "And you! You're my best friend! How could you defile my sister!"

Morgana rolls her eyes again at her brother's overreaction. "This is exactly why we lied and never told you about us, Arthur! Because you'd make a big deal out of it. And Merlin didn't defile me!" She shrieks at Arthur. "We equally defiled each other." She smirks at Merlin and winks.

Arthur feels sick to his stomach, not to mention dizzy and in need of a barf bag. "I— I can't." He shakes his head.

Gwen grabs his arm and pulls him with her. "Come on then." She says soothingly as she leads him out the door and then turns back to smile apologetically at her friends before finally shutting the door.

Merlin bites his lip, turning to ask Morgana a question, but suddenly getting a face full of slim fingers, pushing him back down between her legs. "Mmph!" He grunts as Morgana closes her legs around his head and holds him there.

"Shut up and make me come, Merlin or I swear to God, I will— Oh fuck!"

Merlin didn't need to hear the end of her sentence. Whatever she was threatening him with was surely going to be bad. He shuts her up before she could threaten him with no sex for a week. It's her favorite threat, but it never really takes much for her to cave.

Morgana bites her lip hard as Merlin pumps two fingers, and then three into her. His talented mouth latches onto her clit, immediately wiping any anger from her mind. She moans loudly, throwing caution to the wind as the tattletale signs of a powerful orgasm approaches. He'd teased her mercilessly all day long, so she knows that this one was going to last a while.

Clenching her sheets with her hands, she lets out a cry of pleasure as her inner muscles clench, her toes curl, her eyes roll into the back of her head, and her back arches off her bed. Her orgasm hits her so hard, she nearly forgets how to breathe as her body convulses.

Merlin grins against her as he watches her juices flow out of her like succulent cream from a bowl. A very beautiful bowl. He gives her a few moments to come down before he begins lapping up her juices and cleaning her up. She always enjoys when he does that.

Just in the living room, Arthur pants dramatically as he tries to figure out what to do about his best friend dating and shagging his sister.

Gwen rubs his arm gently. "I think you're more upset about them not telling us rather than that your best friend is dating your sister."

Arthur blinks rapidly at her. "Why would you think that?"

Gwen shrugs as she leans forward to place a quick kiss to the corner of his mouth. "Because you haven't killed Merlin yet. Because deep down inside, you know that there is no other man you can trust with your sisters life and heart."

Arthur stares at her for a long moment, slowly taking in the meaning of her words. He knows that Merlin would never hurt Morgana. He's loyal, kind, polite, loving, caring, and always so bloody chipper all the time. If anyone is going to take good care of his sister, it's Merlin. He knows no other man who is more loyal and dependable than him. And he's the brother he never got. He finally deflates as he lets out a shaky breath. Gwen is right. "You're right." He says softly, then cringes and swears loudly when a loud, feminine moan is heard floating from Morgana's room. "And we should probably get the hell out of here. I'll text them and tell them where to meet us when they're done—". He pauses abruptly and shudders in disgust. "—defiling each other."

Gwen laughs as she nods and grabs their coats from the hall.

…

When the couple finally arrive at the restaurant, Morgana takes a hold of Merlin's hand in hers as they approach Gwen and Arthur's table. She watches her brothers face for any red blotches of anger or unusual paleness, but she's genuinely surprised to find him smiling… normally. Granted, he's smiling at Gwen, but still. She'd been expecting him to be standing at the door with an axe in hand or something of the sort.

Growing up, he had always been the overbearing, overprotective big brother. She literally could not date anyone without Arthur making death threats or starting a fight. It's usually the latter. So to see him look so calm, not even looking their way as they stop in front of their table, is a little unnerving for Morgana. Taking their seats, she looks expectantly at Arthur.

"Okay." Morgana says immediately. "We're here." She braces herself for the inevitable glare from her brother, but instead, she gets a gesture for her and Merlin to sit down.

"What took you guys so long—". Arthur begins, then abruptly cuts himself off. "No don't answer that." he says quickly and makes a face at Gwen. Gwen just laughs.

"So…" Morgana says with a sigh. "What will it be?"

"What will what be?" Arthur asks confusedly.

Morgana looks at him, then at Merlin, then back. "You know… your annoying older brother routine."

Arthur merely looks at his best friend again, then at his sister, and shrugs nonchalantly. "No routine… I'm over it."

"Over what?" Merlin asks curiously.

Morgana smiles at Merlin and explains. "Arthur used to do this thing when we were growing up, where he would threaten any guy who had an interest in me, with bodily harm or death."

Merlin's eyebrows shoot up on his forehead. "You're joking."

Morgana shakes her head. "I'm so serious... it was embarrassing!"

"Hey! You always attracted assholes!" Arthur deadpans.

"Hey!" Merlin exclaims defensively. "I'm not an asshole."

Arthur raises his eyebrows and gives him a pointed look. "Why do you think I'm not threatening to murder you in your sleep?"

Merlin squints at Arthur curiously. "Wait... you— you're not angry?"

Arthur sighs and shakes his head. "I would like nothing more than to punch you in your dumb face... but, my sister is a grown woman, capable of making her own decisions—".

"Where was this attitude a few years ago?" Morgana grumbles.

"Well if you hadn't dated a bunch of idiots and assholes a few years ago, I would've had this attitude."

Merlin grins at Arthur, almost beaming. "So you're really okay with this?"

Arthur shrugs. "You're my best friend, Merlin... and despite what you think, I actually admire you for your loyalty, kindness, and wit. If it had been any other guy in Morgana's bed today, I would've strangled him with my bare hands without hesitation... but Gwen helped me realize that you're not as annoying as I think you are, and that you're actually the only man in this world who I trust with my life... what's more if I trust you with my sister?"

Both Merlin and Morgana stare at Arthur with unblinking eyes, filled with interest and relief. Morgana couldn't believe that her brother was actually saying sane things.

She looks at Gwen and asks in a loud whisper, "Did he fall and hit his head on something hard on your way here?"

Gwen snickers softly as Arthur huffs.

"I'm trying to be serious here, Morgana."

"What she means is," Merlin interrupts. He smiles at his best friend. "Thank you, Arthur."

Morgana nods in agreement and smiles at her brother. "Yes... Thank you. I would've ignored you anyway if you had tried to stop me from dating Merlin, but I'm glad that I won't have to... and also," she looks down, feeling a tad bit embarrassed and awkward. "I'm— we're both sorry that you had to find out about us the way you did."

Arthur shrugs again and sighs heavily. "Perhaps it was for the best... I mean it was disgusting and scarring, but at least now I won't hurl when I see you guys kiss in public. Also, if it had been left up to the both of you, there's no telling when I would've ended up finding out, if ever."

Morgana laughs, rolling her eyes at Arthur. "We were going to tell you soon. We just wanted to be a hundred percent sure that we wanted this."

Gwen smiles at her friends. She leans forward, asking curiously. "So, are you?"

"Are we what?" Merlin asks.

"Sure about this." Gwen adds.

Morgana and Merlin exchange a look of mutual agreement before turning to nod at their friends. Morgana is the one to speak first.

"We are... about a month ago, we talked about our relationship and where we wanted it to go... we both agreed that we wanted things to be serious, and that we were going to finally tell you."

Arthur makes an odd face while Gwen frowns. The blonde man raises an eyebrow at his sister. "So why didn't you tell us a month ago?"

Merlin clears his throat while Morgana blushes. She looks down, then at the corner of the table while she answers, "Because we wanted to have our privacy for a little while longer." She shrugs as if it's nothing.

Merlin grins to himself, knowing what that privacy entailed. Him. Morgana. Sex.

Arthur rolls his eyes at his sister and best friend. "Look, if you're going to start seeing each other, I'd appreciate it if you kept your public display of affections, private."

Morgana laughs. "We'll tone it down, but I make no promises. Merlin and I are still in that phase where we can't keep our hands off each other." She says as she runs a finger down Merlin's arm.

"Bloody how?!" Arthur asks in an incredulous whisper across their table. "You've been secretly shagging each other for well over a year now!"

Morgana merely shrugs. "What can I say? We're insanely attracted to each other."

"Clearly." Arthur says with a disgusted face. "Look, just... try not to be so bloody handsy in front of me. I like my eyeballs intact, thank you very much."

"We'll do our best." Merlin says with a smile. "However, just to be clear. You're completely fine with me dating your sister?"

Arthur narrows his eyes at Merlin. "I'm not a huge fan, but yes... as long as you don't hurt her, I'll promise not to strangle you in your sleep."

Merlin laughs at that. "If I hurt her, and trust me, I won't ever do that, she will strangle me before you even get the chance."

Arthur lets out a rumbling laugh as he nods his head up and down. "Oh I know. My threats to her previous suitors have always been empty. I know she can handle herself very well."

Morgana raises her eyebrows at her brother, before looking over at her boyfriend. "Are you guys done?" Merlin grins at her. "Now that we've established that my brother is okay with us, can we please, for the love of God, order some food?" She ignores Arthur's eye roll as she reaches a hand over to Merlin's lap and discreetly pinches his thigh. He jumps a little, giving her a questioning look. "Thanks to you and that delicious mouth of yours," Morgana continues softly only to him, "my appetite is through the roof, considering you kept me cuffed to my bed all day."

Arthur glares at the two. "Morgana, you have never been as quiet as you think you are. We bloody heard what you've just whispered to Merlin."

Morgana makes a show of pretending to think. "Hmmm... no, I'm definitely as good as I know I am, at being quiet. If I recall correctly, you were right outside Merlin's door last night when I was in there with him."

Merlin glares at her while Arthur looks like he's going to be sick. Gwen turns and grabs a passing waiter by the elbow.

"We're ready to order now." She tells the waiter.

...

After dinner, the two couples walk side by side to the little ice cream shop down the street. Arthur couldn't seem to get over the awkwardness of his sister and best friend being together, and Merlin notices. When they reach the ice cream shop, he asks Arthur for a word, letting the girls go inside and place their order for them.

Arthur looks at him expectantly before asking, "What's up?"

Merlin shrugs and nods towards him. "I was about to ask you the same thing."

Arthur immediately shakes his head. "Nothing. I'm fine."

"Are you?" Merlin asks skeptically.

Arthur is about to confirm that he is, but he pauses, thinking about the situation for a second. He finally lets out a loud, exhausted sigh. "No."

Merlin nods slowly. "I figured."

Arthur looks over at his best friend and shakes his head. "It's just— weird. You're my best friend, Merlin. Aside from Gwen, I think you're my only true friend. I trust you with everything. When I need something, I know you got my back. When I need to talk to someone, you're immediately the person I go to. Whenever I need advice, you're like the bloody King of good advice... and that's why I admire you so much. I don't say it often, but I do. You know all my secrets, and I trust you to always keep them safe..." he trails off as he lowers his gaze to the ground.

"But you're not sure if you can trust me with your little sister." Merlin states softly.

Arthur sighs again, looking up to look Merlin in the eye. "No. I know you really love her and care for her. Even before I found out tonight that you love her more than I originally thought."

Merlin smiles at that. "But?"

Arthur shrugs, "But Morgana is my little sister. We're only a year apart, but she's— she's still— little to me. She's the only good thing that came from my parents marriage. Aside from me, of course." He adds jokingly, before taking on a more serious attitude. He shakes his head slowly. "I've always been the one to protect her. Her big, annoying brother who likes to meddle in her life because he doesn't ever want to see her get hurt." He looks at Merlin from the corner of his eye as he tries not to turn red with embarrassment. "I just feel like I can no longer be there to protect her, now that you're— you know— with her."

Merlin smiles at his best friend. It's a rarity, seeing and hearing Arthur Pendragon with deep, open emotions. But he'd always known that the man was just a big old softie. "Arthur, I'm not going to pick her up and move her halfway around the world where you can never see her again." He chuckles softly. "And I'm not going to stop you from protecting her. You're her brother and I'd protect her just as much as you would. That doesn't mean you should stop protecting her. Extra protection for her means a sounder mind for the both of us." He notices the worried look on Arthur's face begin to melt slowly away. "And I get it." He adds softly. "She's your baby sister and it feels like I'm sort of taking her away from you."

Arthur nods slowly. "I'm just used to being on the other side of her relationships. I'm always looking in, skeptical and always hating whatever idiot she's dating. I'm the one who steps in and fights for her. But now that it's you and not some guy I hate, I— I'm—".

"You're not sure of how to handle that." Merlin finishes with a smile.

Arthur nods again. "I know she loves you. I saw it tonight while we were having dinner. She kept looking over at you with this look on her face that I've never seen before except for one time."

Merlin raises an eyebrow at him. "What time was that?"

Arthur smiles at him. "When I first introduced her to you."

Merlin's eyebrows shoot up his forehead as he glances back inside the shop at Morgana, laughing at something Gwen was pointing at.

"I'm not saying she was in love with you the moment she met you. That's something you'll have to ask her." Arthur begins. "... but I can tell you this. Morgana has never looked at anyone else the way she looks at you." He laughs softly and shakes his head her again. "I didn't see it before, always thinking that she was sticking to her no-dating rule after her last relationship... but I see it now." He raises a hand and pats his friend on the shoulder. "She loves you."

Merlin couldn't help the smile that grew rapidly on his face. His chest warms at those words. He boldly looks at his best friend and replies. "I love her too... more than I ever thought possible."

"I know." Arthur grins. "As much as you know my secrets, I know yours too. I know that you have never fully committed to a relationship because you thought it a waste of time to be with someone you're not a hundred percent sure you love."

Merlin throws his head back in laughter. He is right. "Yes... Morgana is the only girl that I've been a hundred percent sure of loving. I've loved her for over a year now..." he looks seriously at Arthur. "I would've never continued a relationship with her if I didn't already know that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her."

Arthur lets out a deep, relieved sigh. "Good... because if you decide later on to break up with her, best friend or not, I will kick your ass."

Merlin laughs, nodding his head up and down. "I won't." He says, just as the girls come back out, holding a cup of ice cream in each hand.

"You won't what?" Morgana asks curiously as she hands him his cup of vanilla ice cream.

Merlin smiles lovingly at her. "I won't ever break up with you." He says cheekily.

Morgana raises her eyebrows at him, before turning her eyes to glare at her brother. "I leave you with my boyfriend for two minutes and he's already talking about breaking up with me!" She stomps her foot petulantly.

Arthur rolls his eyes. "Oh, don't be so dramatic."

Merlin chuckles and quickly jumps in to save Arthur from Morgana's wrath. "Arthur was actually just saying that he would kill me if I ever break up with you."

Arthur nods gratefully at him. Morgana raises a brow, skeptically eyeing her brother. She squints at him for a second before inhaling deeply and turning to look at Gwen. "Seriously, Gwen. Are you sure he didn't fall and hit his head somewhere?"

Arthur groans loudly as Gwen and Merlin erupt with laughter.

After having their desserts, the couples slowly make their way back to the two cars they came in. Morgana kisses Merlin firmly on the lips before asking to have a moment alone to speak with her brother. Merlin smiles, nodding to her, before walking over to Gwen and throwing an arm over her shoulder.

"Gwen, did I ever tell you about the time when Arthur cried because he thought you were leaving him?"

Gwen's eyes widen as she looks up at her friend. "He did what now?"

Merlin chuckles softly as he leads her away so that Arthur and Morgana could have their private talk. "Yup. It was about a year ago...".

Morgana smiles as she tucks an arm around her brother's, and leans her head against his shoulder as they trail slowly behind their respective partners.

They enjoy the silence for a few moments before she finally decides to say something. She starts with the obvious. "I really love him." She says softly.

Arthur doesn't say anything for a moment, only smiling as he nods. "I know."

"And he loves me... way more than I deserve."

He smiles. "I know that too. I love you, but you really don't deserve him." He jokes.

She nudges his side with her elbow. "You're supposed to be my brother, not his."

Arthur grins down at her. "You're my flesh and blood, Morgana... and while I do love Merlin like a brother, I'll always love you more." He goes quiet for a few moments before stopping and turning to look directly at Morgana. "We grew up together. I watched you become this amazing, independent, strong, selfless woman, and yet, I still see the tiny little sister who used to come crying to me about a scraped knee. I taught you how to ride a bike, how to tie your shoes, how to swim, how to fight and defend yourself from assholes... and now that I know for sure that you've found someone who will love you more than I do, it's— it kind of feels like I'm losing you."

Morgana smiles up at her older brother, remembering all the times they used to fight over the T.V remote, and when he used to annoy the living hell out of her for always being meddlesome and overprotective. Despite all of that, they've always been close. He was the big brother who took on the job of their father in raising her because their father was never really there for them. He certainly was never there for Arthur. Arthur had to learn everything on his own. He had to learn how to take care of his sister on top of taking care of himself. He had to be the strong one when he didn't even know how. She shakes her head as she steps towards him and pulls him into a hug.

Arthur immediately wraps his sister in his arms, propping his chin up on the top of her head. "What's this for?" He asks curiously.

Morgana smiles into his shoulder as tears begin to well up in her eyes. "For being the best big, overprotective brother a girl could ever ask for." She says shakily. "You didn't have to, but you always took care of me. You practically raised me... and for that, I will always be grateful." She pulls away slowly and offers him a watery smile. "Thank you, Arthur... and you could never lose me. I'll always be your annoying little sister."

He chuckles softly with a shake of his head. "And here I thought I forgot to teach you how to say 'thank you'." He jokes.

Morgana laughs at that, punching him in the shoulder as they turn to continue walking. Merlin and Gwen were several yards ahead, laughing about something. Morgana smiles as Merlin throws his head back in laughter as Gwen smacks him playfully on the arm. She looks up at her brother as he watches their partners with a smile on his face. "You know Merlin as well as I do, Arthur. He's different from anyone I've ever dated. He's— he's everything my past boyfriend's were not. And he makes me feel like I'm the only girl in the world... like I could do no wrong, when I know that I could do a hell of a lot more than that. He's the kindest, most selfless, and most patient man I have ever met." She laughs softly and shakes her head as she continues watching Merlin with a smile on her face. "Even when I was an outright bitch to him, he still treated me with respect and kindness."

Arthur raises an eyebrow at his sister. "Why were you a bitch to him?"

Morgana laughs as her face turns red, remembering why and when she was angry with Merlin. "He refused my advances at first. Told me that he couldn't sleep with his best friends sister, so naturally, it pissed me off that he would dare to say no to me." She smiles sheepishly.

Arthur stares at her with his eyebrows still raised in disbelief. "You tried to seduce him?"

Morgana rolls her eyes at her brother. "No. I thought we had a mutual attraction, so I kissed him one night at his surprise birthday party a few weeks after you introduced me to him. He kissed me back at first and I was sure we were going to do a lot more than that, but then he stopped and told me that he couldn't sleep with me because I was your little sister and he respected me too much to do that to me."

"And that didn't sit well with you." Arthur states knowingly.

"No it didn't." Morgana agrees. "He's the first guy to ever say no to me... and it hurt, honestly. I couldn't believe how attracted I was to him, and how he didn't seem to feel the same way. So I treated him horribly to combat my embarrassment and pain over his rejection."

Arthur looks curiously at her and asks, "So what changed?"

She smiles. "Me... I noticed that no matter how horribly I treated him, he never once retaliated, or treated me any differently. He always remained calm, collected, and kind. I eventually got over my anger at his rejection and started getting to know him... and I finally realized how perfect he was... so I asked him out." She shrugs as if it's nothing, but Arthur's eyes are wide.

"Wait, you asked him out? Not the other way around?"

Morgana nods proudly. "I never thought I'd ever ask a guy out. The fact that he respected me to the point of stopping me from doing something I might regret, told me that he cared a hell of a lot more than any guy I had ever been with... any other guy wouldn't have cared about who the hell I was."

Arthur chuckles at that. "That's Merlin... always so bloody caring and careful."

Morgana nods as she looks up at her brother. "That's why I can't ever lose him... with the exception of you and Gwen, he's the only person who has ever really loved me."

Arthur smiles widely at his sister. She's definitely a woman now. Grown up, mature, independent, strong, and capable of taking care of herself. She didn't need him anymore, and maybe that's why he feels sad. She had always relied on him to be there for her. And now that she has Merlin, she won't need him anymore. He pulls his sister into a one-armed side hug and kisses the top of her head. "Then I'm happy for the both of you, sis." He says genuinely. "Truly... A blind man could see how much you love each other."

Morgana grins. "You must be blind then because I've been in love with Merlin for over a year and you didn't even notice." She jokes.

Arthur chuckles. "Smartass."

...

As Morgana lays down next to him on her bed, Merlin can't help but watch her closely for the look Arthur was talking about earlier. He waits a moment as she scoots into his side, throwing an arm over his chest, a leg over his thighs, and inhaling deeply with a smile on her beautiful face. When she slowly opens her eyes to meet his gaze, he finally sees it.

It's a very simple look that you won't catch if you're used to looking at her. But he catches it now. And he knows he's seen it many times before, directed at him and only him. A beautiful, mesmerized and almost dazed look... like she's dreaming with her eyes open. Daydreaming.

His heartbeat increases as he stares back at her.

"I love you." He whispers softly.

Morgana smiles lovingly at him. She remembers when he first told her he loved her about a year ago. They weren't really labeled as a couple back then, kind of just secretly meeting to have breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and then occasionally sleeping together. He'd said it after six months. They weren't even doing anything special. She was just sitting across from him at her dinner table when he said it. 'I love you', he'd said it like it was the most natural thing in the world... like he'd said it many times before. And she'd immediately asked him how he knows. He'd shrugged and replied in an obvious tone. 'Because I can't love anyone else.'

"And I love you." Morgana finally whispers softly back to him. "More than you know."

He nods, leaning forward to kiss her gently. "How do you know?" He asks with a knowing smile. He'd known exactly what she was thinking about. The first time he'd said those words to her.

She smiles into his kiss. "Because I can't love anyone else."

He stares at her some more, his blues meeting her beautiful greens. "And when did you know?" He asks in a soft whisper.

She stares right back, letting herself drown in those deep blue pools. "The day I met you."

Merlin feels his heart swell with love for this wonderful, beautiful, talented, and independent woman. "Same." He whispers softly.

Morgana raises an eyebrow at him. "You don't have to lie, you know?"

He smiles and shakes his head. "You wore black, skinny jeans, a white t-shirt, a grey scarf, and you had your hair down. It was the middle of the day. You were staring at your phone when Arthur pointed at you and said, 'That's her right there.'. You looked up, you paused for a moment, and then you smiled so brightly that my heart literally skipped a beat. I never believed in love at first sight until that very moment."

Morgana's breath had caught in her throat at the perfect description of when they first saw each other... that pause he mentioned before she smiled at him that day, was when her heart had skipped a beat. It was instantaneous, the connection and attraction she had to him. She'd always believed in love at first sight, but never got to experience it until that day.

Tears well up in her eyes as she stares into his mesmerizing eyes. He doesn't know it, but the shade of blue in his eyes is her favorite color. Sky blue with a touch of ocean. An ocean she often finds herself sinking in. She opens her mouth, moving forward to brush her lips gently against his. She pulls away and whispers, "We must've either really wronged each other, or really loved each other in another life... because there is no way that the universe didn't intend for us to meet the way we did."

He smiles against her lips. "I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure I loved you in my past life."

Morgana laughs. "How would you know that?"

Merlin raises his eyebrows at her as if it were obvious. "Because I can't love anyone else."

Morgana laughs as she sits up to straddle his hips, leaning down and kissing him roughly. "You sir, are going to have to cool it with the smooth talk. Otherwise, neither of us are getting any sleep tonight."

Merlin laughs as well, leaning up to capture her lips again in another heated kiss. When he pulls away, he runs his hands up her thighs, and then stopping them at her hips. "Who the hell needs sleep?" he smirks, before flipping her over and swallowing her squeal of excitement with his mouth.

Several hours later, they finally turn out the lights, and fall slowly into a peaceful slumber with dreams of a very long and beautiful future together.

...

A/N: Soooo... I didn't intend for this fic to turn all sappy, but it did. I hope you all liked it anyway. Please leave a review if you did! I'll be updating The Agreement next! I know it's been a while, so this is another peace offering. Also, for those of you who are still following my other incomplete fics, leave a review on what fic you'd all like to be updated after The Agreement. Majority rules! Anyway, have a great week, stay safe, and remember to wash your hands. XO

-McDiggin'It