A/N: Sorry, this took a bit longer to write than I had planned! I was busy with things, I had to re-write some parts I wasn't happy with, and confession- I'm addicted to The Mentalist, and watched a couple episodes when I should have been writing! I'm still planning on writing a short story at some point about the first time Merlin was the Dolma in my storyline, but I'm not great at short stories so we'll see how that goes.

Thank you again to everyone who read this story! I am very honored you would take the time to read all of it. Extra thanks if you reviewed, favorited, and/or followed it! I've been working on my original fantasy fiction for a while, but if you'd like to see me write more fanfiction, let me know and I'll be more motivated to write more on here!

Disclaimer: If you have not figured it out, I do not own Merlin.

Epilogue

It had been six months since Morgana's defeat, and Arthur's world had taken a drastic change. All of Camelot had changed. He walked through the large doors, and headed towards his throne; however, it was not his throne any longer. A man in flowing black robes, with a golden staff sat where Arthur once had- it was Emrys. In six month he seemed to have aged years. He had a beard, and his eyes were fierce. Magic was now legal of course, and Emrys kept Arthur around as his servant. Arthur slowly approached the throne.

"Have you finished with your chores Arthur? Is all my laundry clean? Are the stables mucked out?" Emrys asked in a condescending voice.

"Yes Merlin, I did everything you asked," Arthur said begrudgingly.

"Arthur, what have I told you about calling me Merlin? Merlin was an act. My name is Emrys, King Emrys, and if you cannot remember that, I shall have to put you in the stocks," Emrys said. "As it is, maybe this will help you remember." Emrys stepped down off his throne, and Arthur took a warry step back. He was not afraid of Emrys, but the man could be intimidating.

"Stay still Arthur, stop being such a baby," Emrys said, then pulled an object out from behind his back. It was a pillow, and King Emrys proceeded to hit Arthur in the face with the pillow. This was ridiculous, completely outrageous!

"Merlin, stop! Ok, you win, Emrys! Emrys stop!" Arthur said as he sat up. Looking around he saw that he was in his bed, and Merlin was staring at him with an amused expression.

"Really Arthur, I'll be sure to tell your enemies that the best way to get you to surrender is not to use a sword, but a pillow," Merlin said mocking Arthur. Arthur responded by throwing the offending pillow back at Merlin.

"I was having a bad dream. You should really stop waking me up in the morning. Why don't we give that responsibility to George like we did some of your other duties," Arthur said.

"Are you kidding me? I doubt George could wake you when you are sleeping like that," Merlin said with a laugh, then turned serious. "Was I in your dream? You called me Emrys." Merlin said, sounding concerned.

"Do not worry about it Merlin. It was just a dream. We have more important things to do today, like celebrating six months of peace, and some ceremony involving you, if I remember correctly," Arthur said. And here Merlin frowned again. Arthur knew he was not excited about the public ceremony.

"Why don't you just post a proclamation about it? I don't see why so many people have to be there," Merlin said.

"Merlin, are you nervous?" Arthur jibed. Merlin just glared at him and raised a pillow threatenly.

"I am up, no need to get violent. I never knew warlocks were so touchy," Arthur said to which Merlin rolled his eyes. Arthur could smell the breakfast sitting on the table. George must have dropped it off while Merlin was trying to wake Arthur up. Arthur quickly seated himself at the table and started devouring the food. The ceremony was in an hour, and he needed to get moving.

Merlin's morning had been uneventful. He performed his normal duties of getting Arthur up and ready for the day, then he had gone back to his new chambers and put on his ceremonial robes. The robes were a deep burgundy with gold trim, including the pendragon crest in gold threads over his heart. They also seemed slightly longer than his normal red robes he had been wearing lately. 'I know I'm going to trip during the ceremony, and Arthur will never let me forget it' he lamented.

It was time to go to the ceremony. Merlin took a deep breath to steady his nerves; there really was nothing to be worried about. He headed to the great hall and found Arthur and Gwen waiting for him at the side entrance.

"Decided to show, I see," Arthur said.

"Arthur, stop giving Merlin such a hard time. He's not used to being the center of attention, like you are" Gwen said.

"It's ok Gwen. It would feel even stranger if Arthur wasn't giving me a hard time," Merlin said. Arthur was about to reply, when the side door opened. He was actually very grateful his friends had distracted him from thinking about the ceremony. News had spread quickly, and many people knew Merlin had magic now, but formally announcing it and his new position made the hairs on his arm stand up. It went against the secrecy that had been ingrained into him regarding his magic since he was born.

Merlin hestited walking into the hall. 'Who is supposed to go first anyways?' Arthur, in typical Arthur fashion, gave him a little shove into the hall. Merlin walked quickly, using all of his concentration to not trip. Arthur had at least told him where he was to stand so he made his way to the steps in front of the throne. He glanced up, noticed the hundreds of people crowded into the room staring at him, and quickly turned back to face Arthur. The knights were standing in the front, off to the side. Gwaine caught his eye and gave him a reassuring smile, and Merlin smiled back.

Arthur stood in front of him and said something formal, but Merlin was having trouble focusing. He really should start paying attention. Arthur was going to ask him something, and it would be embarrassing if he didn't have an answer.

"Magic has been legal in Camelot for two months now. As I said at the time, there is no evil in magic, just in the hearts of men who would wield it. The reason I was confident in making magic legal was because I knew I had someone at my side who could determine and judge when magic was being used as a force for good and when it is not. Most of you know Merlin, but he is also known as Emrys, and I would like you to see that side of my friend tonight," and here Arthur gave Merlin the signal.

He couldn't believe Arthur wanted him to perform magic in front of all these people, and he had argued against it, but Arthur had won the argument. Arthur had also wanted to make magic legal as soon as they returned from defeating Morgana, but Merlin had argued the people needed some time to adjust, and they should reach out to magic users within their kingdom, especially the druids to get input on the new laws. The new laws had gone over well, with only a few complaints, but the people were not used to large displays of magic in front of them.

Merlin turned to face his audience, and quickly closed his eyes and raised his staff. He did not need it, but Arthur said it made him look formidable to those that did not have magic, and it fooled those that had magic into thinking he needed it to perform powerful spells.

"Ifthai nightario celestia dara can ignighta lan starianata!" Merlin yelled. The words were for show. He did not need a verbal incantation with the staff to focus his power. Saying something that sounded impressive had been Merlin's idea. Arthur tried to understand magic, but he still had a million misconceptions about how it worked.

The whole room went dark, and people gasped. It did not stay dark for long. Soon lights appeared dancing onto the ceiling, twirling and unearthly beautiful. In the glow, Merlin could see people's faces turning from fear to awe and delight. Merlin had made a replica of the night sky in broad daylight. He could not help the grin that spread across his face, and he sent some miniature comets to create flares of multicolored light dancing across his sky.

"Now, you are just showing off," Arthur whispered to him, but he was smiling as well. Merlin let everyone enjoy the night sky for a little longer before slowly making it fade away, and people blinked, re-adjusting to the sun's rays shining through the windows. The knights started clapping in appreciation, and the whole room joined in. Merlin nodded in acknowledgment, then turned back to Arthur, trying not to blush. He really was not used to being the center of attention.

"Merlin defeated Morgana. He has helped bring peace to this kingdom. He has saved my life and saved Camelot countless times. In honor of that, I would like to present him with the formal position of Court Sorcerer of Camelot. Kneel Merlin," Arthur said. Merlin quickly knelt.

"This medallion is a symbol of my friendship with Merlin and his position at court," Arthur said, slipping a ribbon with a large engraved gold circle around Merlin's neck. "And this key to the vaults is a symbol of my complete trust in Emrys," said Arthur as he handed Merlin the key. Merlin's mouth dropped open. He hadn't expected Arthur to give him the key. He now had access to all of the magical artifacts beneath the castle. It made sense for him to be in charge of those artifacts, but it was a huge sign of faith on Arthur's part.

"Thank you for your trust in me," Merlin finally managed to stammer out.

"Merlin, do you swear to protect Camelot and her king with all of your magic, only using it to protect those who need it, and as a force for good," Arthur said.

"I swear it. I swear my loyalty to you, Arthur, and to Camelot. I will never lift a finger against it, or seek power for myself. I will serve you until my dying breath," Merlin said. It was Arthur's turn to be rendered speechless, but being king, he recovered quickly.

"Your loyalty is valued, and we offer our gratitude for all you have done and continue to do for us. Rise Merlin, Court Sorcerer of Camelot!" Arthur proclaimed. Merlin stood and turned to face the audience. There was wild applause, even louder than the last round. Merlin bowed his head to the people, then left through the side entrance. Arthur said something else to his people, then followed Merlin out. Merlin waited until Arthur caught up. They stared at each other for a moment, then Merlin broke out in laughter, and Arthur smiled.

"You don't have to threaten me with the stocks anymore," Merlin said.

"Oh, really? Why is that?" Arthur said.

"Just threaten one of those ceremonies again, and I'll behave. I promise!" Merlin said. Arthur laughed, amused at Merlin.

"I will, but hopefully it will not come to that. I expect better behavior from my court sorcerer," Arthur said.

"Right. I will do my best, but someone has to make sure your head doesn't get too big," Merlin said, causing Arthur to roll his eyes. Then looked at him seriously, "Thank you, for giving me the key Arthur."

"It makes sense for you to have it, and I do completely trust you Merlin. I have been raised my whole life to think magic is evil, that I cannot trust those who wield it, and then other sorcerer's, including Morgana, came along and proved to me that sorcerers were out to harm Camelot, and they could not be trusted. And then I learned you had magic, and you proved all my misconceptions wrong. I still have prejudiced thoughts against magic users sometimes, but I want that to change. I want you to help me change this kingdom. Thank you for being someone I can trust Emrys," Arthur said, and he said it with warmth, not fear. Merlin reached forward and gave him a brief hug. Arthur rolled his eyes at Merlin again.

"Thank you Arthur. You won't regret it," Merlin said. The two men smiled at each other, then made their way back to Arthur's chambers. They had a lot more to do to bring peace to Albion, but together, Merlin knew they could. The Once and Future King would bring peace and safety to all of the land. Camelot was no longer a place of fear. The king trusted Emrys and all the people now trusted their king.