1 - 20 of 1,014 Works in Arthur Pendragon Returns (Merlin)
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Merlin has lived a hundred lives. A healer. A chef. An architect. A man lost in the quiet rhythm of the world.
In the year 2025, he works at a small art museum, curating an exhibit of Arthurian legends. The paintings unsigned, half-forgotten are more than historical curiosities. They are memories. His own. Each brushstroke a thread tied to a man he can’t afford to forget.
But even memory fades. After fifteen centuries of waiting, Merlin’s grasp on the past begins to blur until a stranger walks in. A young man with familiar eyes.
But the question was, was it really Arthur returned ? Or just another echo — a face that haunts every lifetime?
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away from the feeling of being alone (bless the telephone) by slayspeare
Fandoms: Merlin (TV)
24 Oct 2025
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And just when Merlin seriously considered for the first time that maybe it was all in vain, a man came back out of that lake, shivering and cold but alive.
But it wasn’t Arthur Pendragon that came back.
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WHUMPTOBER 2025:
No. 24: Came Back Wrong | Amnesia
Series
- Part 5 of Slayspeare's Whumptober 2025
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Merlin has been wandering for centuries. Waiting for the exact, unknown time that Arthur shall rise again.
He becomes a lady of King Henry VIII.
He meets Robin Hood and they share a fondness that once reminded him of a certain Prince.
He bumps into Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder General, more times than he would like, dying a different death each time.
But he always comes back.
He falls in love and, in turn, becomes a father, a grandfather, and a lonely old man still waiting, waiting, waiting.But this is Matty's story - Merlin's granddaughter. And the ghost of Arthur follows her everywhere.
This fic is completed, so don't worry about me not updating it. All in due time :)
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Merlin has lived many lifetimes since Camelot fell. These days, the world knows him as EMRYS, a reclusive yet world-reknown musician whose songs ache with grief and memory. Yet, away from the cameras, he is only a man in mourning. His hope dimming as his magic left him bit by bit.
But one day, it comes rushing back, bringing with it a new sense of hope.
After 1500 years, Arthur was waking.
Arthur, for his part, also grieves the sharp loss of the world he knew. But he has never been one to run away from a challenge. Even when that challenge includes adapting to the 21st century and the new tender affection between himself and the man who had never left his side.
Or...
One in which Merlin is Hozier (and a few others) and Arthur is perpetually confused (and absolutely smitten).
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How many futures is the Once And Future King promised? How many times could you watch your friend die?
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Harry Potter and the Battle of Excalibur by ExcaliburStuckInMyStoneHeart
Fandoms: Merlin (TV), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
21 Oct 2025
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This is the last part in a three-part series!
After the death of Dumbledore, the wizarding world feels like it's in shambles, but beneath the surface, the light is moving forward, gathering up their weapons and people preparing for the big battle. Merlin gathers his old friends together to search for Death’s EarthBound items.
While Harry is hunting for Horcruxes, new friends will be found and old ones remembered. It's a battle against who becomes stronger before the final battle commences. Will it be Morgana and Voldemort, or will it be Merlin and Harry Potter? Only time will tell…
Book 3
Series
- Part 3 of A Techno Mage
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It has been more than two thousand years since Arthur's death in Camelot. Magic no longer exists in this new age and yet dark creatures have emerged and destroyed human civilization. Only those who can fight or hide can survive in this new world where modern weapons are ineffective against beasts.
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The Once and Future King has returned to protect his kingdom, accompanied by his most loyal knights - and Merlin, of course. Together they will have to solve the mystery of where the creatures have come from and how to defeat them. In the meantime, Arthur will have to learn to come to terms with feelings for his former manservant that he thought he'd managed to bury. It would be a lot easier if he could figure out what Merlin was hiding from him...again.
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Nothing stays unchanged after 1500 years, much less Arthur’s mother’s sigil.
Series
- Part 6 of Merlin fics
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The Once and Future King (Steve) by poisonapplecat
Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016), Merlin (TV)
19 Oct 2025
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"I think... I think they're all wrong. I think Merlin-- uh, wizard-Merlin was Arthur's advisor, sure, but... they must have been friends, too. I mean, Merlin would need to actually like Arthur to stick around a bunch of meathead knights, shitty love triangles, and deadly quests. More than just believing in the king, they’d need to be friends. So, yeah. I think they probably got on.”
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The new year has just rolled over into 1985 and closet-Arthurian-legend-nerd Steve Harrington is already so overwhelmed by the new gaggle of children hanging off of him and wheedling him into being their personal chauffeur that he’s entirely unprepared for the chaos the new student would bring into his life.
Merlin just wants to know why this guy feels so familiar. And why his magic drew him to Hawkins, Indiana of all places.
(Post-Season 2 AU for ST, modern reincarnation style for Merlin)
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For the Sleepless and the Dreamers by ShadowOfTheCowl
Fandoms: Merlin (TV), Super Sons (Comics), Batman (Comics), Superman (Comics), DCU (Comics)
18 Oct 2025
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Damian Wayne hasn’t been sleeping. Jon Kent can't stop dreaming.
Gotham breeds shadows. Metropolis shines with light. Between them, Damian and Jon start chasing ghosts they're only just starting to remember leaving behind.
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When Arthur returns after over one thousand years, he doesn't find Merlin waiting for him. What he does find, is a collision with a car.
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Another present-day Merthur fic, where Arthur returns!
*Not related to Once & Forever*
When Arthur reappears 1500 years later, both he and Merlin have to adjust to their new reality. But what happens when destiny tries to intervene? -
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After one thousand years, Merlin chooses himself.
At that exact moment, half a mile away, a hand breaks the surface of the lake.
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When Arthur closes his eyes and whispers his last goodbye, he is a king and husband. A warrior and diplomat. He is the last true great king of Albion and the one that brought war upon his lands.
When he opens his eyes, he is still all of those things.
But he doesn’t understand.
For one, he is back in his chambers. There is no Guinevere, and the servant that comes through the door is decidedly not Merlin. Arthur asks the lad if he’s dead. The lad fetches Gaius.
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one shot arthur character study spanning a few years - basically a what if arthur went back in time and got the chance to do it again but short n sweet:3 -
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The lake of Avalon has dried and the days of Camelot are long gone. Yet, what Merlin thought to have been just a sprinkle of rain ended up being much more than he bargained for.
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all along there was some invisible string (tying you to me) by orangemoons
Fandoms: Merlin (TV)
03 Oct 2025
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One hot summer evening, Arthur returns from Avalon. He and Merlin navigate the passage of time and their relationship as Arthur adjusts to a world he wasn’t around to build.
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There's Nothing More to be Done, Let's Have Some Supper by theDoctorisAutistic
Fandoms: Merlin (TV), Arthurian Mythology
03 Oct 2025
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The year is 1983, in a small Welsh village the great warlock Merlin lives with his eighteen year old daughter. Waiting always waiting for the return of the King Arthur.
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"I thought you were watching a volcano documentary." Merlin's voice is an octave or so higher than usual.
Series
- Part 1 of Kinktober 2025
- Language:
- English
- Words:
- 621
- Chapters:
- 1/1
- Kudos:
- 75
- Hits:
- 776
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Summary
After fifteen centuries, Arthur is finally reborn. But this new world is so large and so busy, so fast and unforgiving. How could someone blame Arthur for not noticing what he's missing?
It goes like this. Arthur comes back and Merlin is still waiting for him. Arthur comes back and… They don't find each other again.
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When Arthur returns to Merlin in 2025, both of them are ecstatic. Merlin helps Arthur getting used to the world by showing him everything.
Or:
Basically Merlin and Arthur being weird tourists around the world. Lots of fluff (no smut, sorry, but you can imagine it, though:D), nearly no angst, just a cute tooth-rottingly sweet story to comfort your soul.