Self Portrait, 50 Years From Now (idealized)

Reblog if you think it’s okay to platonically say “I Love You” to your friends

my three favourite genders of podcast protag: Can Never Do Anything Wrong Ever™, Oh God They Do So Much Wrong And I Hope They Get Worse™, and Miserable Wet Cat Begrudgingly Discovers Friendship™

For most witches, it is often appropriate to blend the spoken charm with certain physical rites of folk magic. These are usually understood within the two pillars of what we call simulacra and contagia. The first of these refers to an object that represents something else. . . . Contagion, however works differently, spreading its influence slowly and regularly by proximity to the target of the charm. . . . For the witch who desires to pair well-established folk magical methods alongside the work of incantation, any of the following methods would be more than appropriate . . .

from The Witch's Art of Incantation; Spoken Charms, Spells, & Curses in Folk Witchcraft by Roger J. Horne

for the @merlinmicrofic prompts Home, Desperate measures and "You wouldn't."

Merlin & Arthur, Gen, 3 x 100 words, Major character death, AO3 link

for @mightybog

A heavy soul, a hopeful man

Their world is in crisis. It aches for its saviour.

“Emrys,” the Disir call.

He despises them. He comes anyway. There's kinship in being the last of the old ones.

“It's time." One steps forward, in her hand a coin.

“What,” he scoffs, “is it my turn to suffer your judgment?”

“We offer a chance. The time of the Once and Future King is nigh. You know it, you yourself have assembled his court.”

It's true. He's found them, souls reborn. The knights. Guinevere.

She flicks the coin into the air. “His rest in Avalon is over. Bring him home.”

The coin spins and spins, reaches its zenith, plummets down.

“Heads or tails?” He remains silent. “That's right, there is no answer. It is both and neither, a mere matter of perspective.”

“Save your riddles.”

“Two sides of a coin, inseparable. One up, one down. It will take all your magic to bring him back, every last bit of you.”

A pause.

“I will die?”

A look of pity, unwanted. “We'll lend you strength. You have three months.”

Its days numbered, his heart beats faster, rebellious. Desperate times. There's no choice. He bends his knee and picks up the coin.

Arthur returned is his every joy. He teaches him about the new world, laughs at him trying to operate a microwave, watches him discover ice cream - looming catastrophe momentarily dismissed.

Blissful ignorance can't last; his magic's gone, he's fading. Confession - now or never.

“No, you wouldn't, please don't-”

“You will have the others. You know the way. You don't need me anymore.”

“I will always-”

“Don't. Please.”

The day dwindles. Miniscule waves disturb the third full moon's reflection on the inky black lake waters. Merlin sits by its shore, Arthur's arm around his shoulders, and, for the last time, waits.

this was going to be a normal lancelot edit but it suddenly turned into a compilation of him having just one braincell 😭

That's it, I'm reframing my anxiety, burnout and brainfog as magical exhaustion.

the lady of the lake

4x06 || 5x05

Damn I love this!

I can imagine older Arthur just being everything that his young self secretly wanted and needed, a supportive parent, a wise advisor, a role model.

Older Arthur would say things that would totally disarm young Arthur at first like, "you're doing the right thing," "I'm with you every step of the way" and "you look just like your mother."

In strategy meetings he'd use his experience saying, "the ground is too steep here," "you're vulnerable to ambush there," "never, and I repeat, never go near Camlann."

While he might have to step aside to let his young self learn those valuable lessons that were hard-earned, he might spare him from others, slowly helping him to realise the consequences of keeping up his father's war against magic (revenge, the death of innocents).

When young Arthur realises who this uncle really was, it helps him love and trust himself.

Meanwhile Merlin is relieved because the guilty crush he had on Arthur's uncle is in fact a not-so-guilty crush on the man he's in love with.

Golden Age King Arthur accidentally gets sent back in time to the beginning of his reign. While making his way to Camelot hoping to find Merlin and figure out how to get back to his own time he runs into Agravaine making his own way to Camelot for the first time. Knowing he was a traitor working for Morgana in his own timeline, Arthur kills him and decides to take his place. No one had seen Agravaine since Ygraine's death, there were no portraits of him in the castle, and Arthur's premature greying hair has to be good for something other than Merlin calling him a silver fox. He can pass as his own uncle and be the caring advisor that young him deserved damn it!