Hi everyone ;P So I'm Luka Knight and I am happy to say that this is my first ever fan fiction that I ever wrote. Usually I favor the good old fashion pen and crisp piece of paper so getting it all typed up felt like a real accomplishment after almost a year of twisting and molding the story line. It's a Merthur and mpreg fic so if you're not a fan turn back now. Anyway here it is, and I apologize for any mistake that I may have missed.

A Misunderstanding

"Hi Merlin."

"Good morning Morgana."

Slam!
"What was that?"

"Oh sorry; I'm doing wash right now so I've got you on speakerphone."

"That's alright…so…have you heard from Arthur yet?"

"No...Morgana I'm scared. It's been almost a week already what if something has happened to him."

"Well he may be my brother but I say the hell with me."

"Morgana!"

"Merlin!"

"God I should have never asked him if he was cheating on me." He says choking back a sudden sob.

"You had every right to ask Merlin. After those boxers you found in his car and that message on the answering machine."

"..."

"Merlin."

"..."

"Merlin..."

"..."

"MERLIN!"

"Sorry."

"Are you alright?"

"Yes. I'm fine." He says weakly.

"You don't sound fine...are you still feeling sick?"

"It's nothing...I'm just a little dizzy is all."

"I thought you were feeling better last night?"

"I was, I was fine last night but this morning it felt like someone took a bat to my stomach and I kind of...throw up."

"How long have you been like this?"

"I don't know. About a week or two before Arthur disappeared on me."

"Did you tell him about this?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"..."

"Merlin." She felt the panic building up in her chest again.

"Merlin." She said a bit louder.

"Morgana." Merlin sounded like he was in pain.

"Morgana, please can you come here?"

"What's wrong?"

"I don't feel right please Morgana I'm scared."

"I'll be right there you just hold on okay!"

She runs a stop sign and two red lights on her way to the country side manner Merlin and her brother called home while debating if she should call for a ambulates. She pulls into the drive way just as Gwen is stepping out of her car.

"Hi Morgana."

"Gwen!" The fear in her voice spoke volumes.

"What's wrong?"

"Merlin, quickly we need to see if he's alright!" Both girls bolt for the front door and pound against it relentlessly.

"Merlin, Merlin it's me. It's Morgana and Gwen's here too...Merlin...can you hear me?"

"Merlin please open the door!" Both pound on the door and yell as loud as they can but are given no response.

"Do you think he's taken himself to the hospital?"

"No...no I don't think so Gwen...he's scared but he wouldn't risk driving the way he is right now."

Desperate for answers Gwen digs her cellphone out of her bag and scrolls down her contact list to Merlin's name. She waits and as it begins to ring they hear his phone go off from somewhere inside.

"Merlin...Merlin let us in!" Morgana yells as loud as her voice would let her but again is given no response. His phone rings for almost a full minute before going to voice mail and by than their desperate.

"Find the hide-a-key. It's got to be around here somewhere, Arthur always leaves it in the most obvious place." After a bit a searching Gwen finds the key under a river rock in the garden. Both race back to the door and throw it open the second it's unlocked. The site inside is shocking. Cloths litter the whole floor going all the way up the stairs. The words Merlin had said earlier echo in Morgana's mind.

"I'm doing wash right now."

She looks up to the top of the stairs and feels her heart go numb in her chest as Merlin's slender and unmoving form comes into view laying at the top of the stairs and for a moment they fear he is dead. For a long while they try to wake him while also trying to do so as gently as possible. His eyes flicker open slowly and they breathe a sigh of relief.

"...Morgana...Gwen..."

He's suddenly hit with the realization that he's lying on the floor and slowly brings himself to his feet. For a moment they all just look at each other. Gwen wants to know what in the world is going on and Morgana only wants Merlin to agree to see a doctor but both will have to wait because Merlin suddenly runs into the restroom and his body heaves and jerks over the bowl violently. After they all sit in the kitchen and he seems perfectly fine, like it never happened but that doesn't stop the girls from falling to pieces in their minds.

"Merlin what exactly happened to you?"

"I'm not sure Gwen...I just...didn't feel right and the next thing I know I'm on the floor looking up at the two of you." He says before biting into a raw carrot he'd covered in honey.

"Merlin I thought you hated carrots?"

"I do but for some reason I've just been craving them."

"With honey?"

"Yeah well you should have seen me yesterday. I ate nothing but vanilla custard and fish fingers all day."

"Oh now that is just gross!' Than Morgana cuts in.

"Merlin exactly how long have you been having these strange craving?"

"I'd say about a week or two."

"So around the same time you started to feel sick."

"...Yes...now that I think about it that's about the same time." Merlin really didn't like it when Morgana gave him that creepy smile, and he really, really didn't like it when she took Gwen into the living room to talk privately but he hated it when Gwen left.

"Where'd Gwen go?"

"She just went to pick something up for me."

Merlin throws up three more times before she returned a half hour later with a brown paper bag from the pharmacy back in town. She handed it over to Morgana who set it down in front of Merlin. After a while he gathered up the courage to open it and pulled out a little blue box than feels his cheeks turn hot as he begins to regret it.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no you...you can't be serious."

"I'm very serious."

"Well I'm not so you're wasting your time."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I'm sure Morgana. Arthur and I...we're...we're always so careful."

"Well sometimes careful isn't careful enough."

"Morgana!"

"Merlin please if you're so sure than take the damn test and prove me wrong." He sits there completely dumbstruck and blushing a deep red before snatching up the box and locking himself in the down stairs bathroom. He sits on the counter, reads the directions on the back of the box, and then starts to wait what he is sure will be the longest five minutes of his life. By the end of the first minute a queasy feeling return to his body and he can't take it anymore. He snatches up the test and puts the cap back on than goes out into the living room where Morgana and Gwen are waiting for him.

"So Merlin...am I going to be an aunt or aren't I?" He looks at the test in his hands and then the clock on the wall.

"We'll find out in about four minutes." He sits between them on the couch all three with a constant watch on the clock till Gwen breaks the silence.

"Merlin, are you afraid?"

"A little."

"What's to be afraid of?"

"What if Arthur doesn't come back."

"Merlin..."

"Morgana it's been six days. He hasn't called, he won't answer my calls or yours or any ones...I don't think I can do this by myself..."

"...you'll have us."

"Thanks Gwen."

They sit and comfort him as they wait and when the final minute ends he just stares at the test. If he really is pregnant then there will be a green positive sign in the test window but if he isn't than there will be a red negative sign. He closes his eyes tight and pops off the cap opening his eyes slowly.

"Positive...I'm pregnant."

The room is silent and though the girls are quietly celebrating they still notice the hint of fear in their friend's eyes. He walks up and down the room for almost an hour before sitting back down. Gwen is quiet whole time and Morgana is fiddling with the box the test came in.

"So...how far along do you think you are?"

"One, two month maybe more if the cravings have already started." His phone rings and he's so distracted that he doesn't even check to see who it is before answering.

"Hello."

"Merlin."

"Arthur!" Merlin jumps straight up happier than he'd been in days.

"God, Arthur where are you? I've been freaking out all week."

"I know. I'm so sorry. I know leaving in the middle of the night was weird and wrong but I had something really important to do and it just couldn't wait."

"What could have been so important?"

"You'll see when I get back."

"When are you coming home?"

"Soon...are you okay? You sound tired."

"Yeah...yes I'm fine. No I'm better than that I'm amazing."

"Well you certainly sound amazing."

"Yes, yes I am. In fact I um...I have something to tell you." He says beaming at his friends on the couch who are now quietly cheering him on.

"Really...what is it?"

"Well Arthur I um...I'm pregnant...We're going to have a baby."

"..."

"Arthur...well say something." The line is quiet and Merlin thinks that Arthur is still in shock and that any moment he'll hear him jumping for joy but instead he hears the line go dead.

"What did he say?"

"..."

"Merlin, what did he say?"

"Nothing...he didn't say anything."

"What do you mean?"

"...He hung up on me!" He falls onto his knees and lets loose the tears he'd been fighting back during the week like he hadn't been in the state of joy he was only seconds ago.

"He hung up on me...He doesn't want me anymore...He doesn't want our baby!"

He drifts into an uncontrollable sadness and no matter how he tries the tears seem to have no end. The girls try to comfort him but found all they can do is hold him and wipe his tears away and be there for him when it all causes his stomach to twist and he's bent over the toilet again vomiting violently. As night falls Merlin is struck by a sudden weakness and quickly is taken by sleep. In the doorway they watch over him and scan their minds for an answer to it all.

"The moment I see that bastard brother of mine I'm going to kill him."

"Not if I kill him first."

"God, how did this happen?"

"I don't know...I mean it doesn't make any sense. How could he? How could he just leave Merlin like that? It's one thing to cheat on him but Merlin told him that they are going to have a baby and he just hung up."

"I'm definitely going to kill him."

"...What do we do now?"

"I don't know Gwen." Two calls and Lance and Owen are over to drop off their overnight bags.

"Let us get this straight. Arthur leaves, than Merlin tells him he's pregnant and Arthur just hangs up on him?"

"Yeah."

"That doesn't sound like Arthur."

"He wouldn't do this, especially not to Merlin."

"That's what we thought to but you had to be there. You should have seen his face. He was crushed."

"How is he?"

"He is scared out of his mind."

"Well he has the right to be."

"Is there anything we can do?"

"Nothing really except help us stay strong so we can help Merlin stay strong." The girls stay the night and Lance and Owen go back home. In the morning Merlin isn't in his room and Morgana finds him in the study looking through a phone book.

"Hello...I um...my name is um...Merlin Emrys...I um... was hoping to make an appointment...well when is the earliest you can see me...today...yeah I can make it today, what time?...so in an hour...okay. Yes I'll be there. Thank you."

"Merlin what was that about?" He'd been so sure that both his friends were still sleeping so when Morgana stepped into his line of view there was no time to hide his surprise and dropped the phone before he could return it to its stand.

"Morgana...I...I was just..."

"Were you just making an appointment with the abortion clinic?"

"Morgana..."

"Merlin tell the truth...did you make an appointment at the abortion clinic?"

"...Yes."

"Why!"

"I already told you Morgana...I can't do this alone."

"And Gwen and I already told you we would be here for you."

"You don't understand...I can't...I can't do it, not without Arthur...I need him Morgana, I need him there with me when our baby comes."

"No you don't!"

"Yes, I do. I need him."

"Don't you at least think you should take some more time to think on it before you do anything rash?"

"I have thought it through Morgana...It's the only way."

"Are you sure this is what you want?"

He sinks into the chair and sobs tears falling from his innocent blue eyes. He looks so much like a child right than...someone without hope and no place else to turn. His throat is tight and hot so he nods in response. They sit for a while till he's pulled himself together and can speak without crying.

"I really should be getting ready...my appointment is in less than an hour." Quickly he showers, changes into some fresh clothes, grabs his keys and heads for the door.

"Merlin." He freezes at the door when he hears Morgana call out to him.

"I really hope you know what you're doing."

"So do I."

She listens as the door closes softly behind him; he gets into his car and drives down dirt path. Later she goes into the kitchen and to put the kettle on for some tea drifting lost in thought. Merlin was one of her dearest friends. He'd always been so happy go lucky, so spirited, and free in nature but in the past week he'd become a hopeless empty shell of the boy he'd once been. He was broken.

Slam!

She turns in her seat at the sound of a car door slamming. Perhaps it's Merlin. He's changed his mind and wants to have the baby after all. She darts into the living room when she hears the knob turning and as the tall blond figure steps through the door dumping his bags on the floor she trades her hope for unforgiving rage.

"Hey Morgana your here early."

"Arthur..." She can't seem to say anything else.

"Is Merlin awake yet or is his little ass still in bed?"

"Arthur!"

"What?" She couldn't take it anymore. In two strides she crossed the dist.-ants between them and hit him across the face with an open palm.

"What the hell was that for?"

"Where have you been?"

"I told Merlin yesterday that I had something important to do."

"Why haven't you answered any of our calls?"

"I forgot my phone in my car at the airport."

"Airport...God Arthur where the hell did you go?"

"I went to see mother's grave."

"...You went all the way back to Britain?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I needed to talk to her." By this point all the noise had woken Gwen up and the second she hears Arthur's voice she runs down stairs and smacks him across the face.

"I haven't even been home two minute so why the hell is everybody smacking me?"

"Do you have any idea the sort of hell Merlin's been living in since you left?"

"Well with the way you two are acting I think I can imagine."

"That's not funny Arthur. You left him in the middle of the night, no note, no warning, he just woke up and you were gone."

"I know Gwen, I know it was wrong and I was going to call him as soon as I got off the plane but I forgot my phone."

"Plane...Oh let me guess. You and your not so secret other boyfriend went on vacation while Merlin was left here to fall apart."

"You know that isn't true!"

"Isn't it?"

"I would never do that to him!"

"Then explain...The boxers in your car and the message on the answering machine because it's not looking good for you."

"...Yes the boxers do belong to someone else and the message is from the same person but I'm not involved with them in anyway."

"And you expect us to believe that?"

"Yes!"

"So who is this guy?"

"...His name is Loren. I knew him briefly in high school and he worked here on the winery but I fired him when the other employees started to complain about him."

"And?"

"And a few weeks back I noticed that Merlin was acting strange, like he was sick. One night I woke up and I could hear him throwing up in the bathroom but he never said anything to me. I just guessed he didn't want me to worry. I went to the pharmacy to see if I could find something for his stomach and Loren must have seen me because he was waiting at my car when I came back."

"What did he say?"

"Well first he tried flirting, than he tried to touch me. Really it didn't surprise me seeing as most of the complaints about him were for sexual misconduct."

"So this guy was stalking you to try to get his job back?"

"Yeah pretty much."

"So you weren't cheating on him?"

"No, for God sakes how many times do I have to say it?" Morgana cuts back into the conversation.

"But then where have you been this whole time? You said you went to see Mother but it shouldn't have taken so long."

"I know...you see when Merlin asked me if I was seeing anyone else I was really angery at him but then I realized how bad things really looked and that if I'd just told him what was going on than it all could have been avoided. That's when I realized how much he is to me. I know Merlin and I have been together for four year now but it didn't hit me till than that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him...so I packed a bag, got on a flight, went to see mom, and get these." He says pulling a small blue velvet box from his pants pocket revealing two platinum rings.

"Mother's rings?"

"Yes...I knew she'd want him to have them. I saw Mother and picked the rings up from my safety depositeor box the same day I arrived, sent them away for some minor altercations and got them back on Thursday. I was support to be on a flight home on Friday but a storm grounded all the flights so I took a train to London to see if there were any flights coming this way. The train had a sattlelight phone on it, and that's how I was able to call him last night."

"But you hung up, why'd you hang up?"

"I didn't. The storm knocked the signal out before Merlin could tell me what was so amazing, now I have quite literally just gotten off a plane so stop dawdling and tell me where Merlin is before I lose my damn nerves." They're not listening anymore instead relieved that their friend won't be suffering and lonely anymore and that the innocent one in his belly wouldn't have to grow up thinking that Arthur abandon them. It's only after the happy little celebration that Morgana remembers Merlin's appointment at the clinic.

"Oh my god...Merlin doesn't know your back! We have to stop him!"

"What are you on about?" She digs her phone out of her bag and dials franticly.

"Morgana what's wrong?"

"Sssshhh. ssssshhhh. It's ringing...Merlin listen to me, you don't have to Arthurs ba...Damn it voicemail!"

"Morgana what's going on with you?"

"It's Merlin; we have to stop him before it's too late." She runs into the study and rips a page from the phone book.

"Stop him from what exactly?"

"Stop him from this!" She says slapping the page down on his chest.

"But...I don't understand...why would Merlin be going to an abortion clinic?"

"...Arthur."

"This is why he was so happy isn't it? This is what he wanted to tell me?"

"Yes."

"But if he was so happy why is he having an abortion! Why would he make this sort of choice without me? This is my child to; I have a right to be involved!"

"Arthur please you don't have all the facts, he thought you left him."

"...What?"

"He just woke up and you were gone and he saw you packed a bag. You didn't call and wouldn't answer any of his calls, he still doesn't know your home he doesn't know any of it...he tried to tell you he was pregnant last night when you called and when he thought you hung up on him he was crushed...He's scared Arthur...he didn't want to bear the child without you. He didn't want to be alone."

"Why didn't you try to talk him out of it? Why didn't you stop him?"

"I tried!"

"You should have tried harder!"

"Stop it!" Gwen says stepping between the two.

"Fighting isn't going to help us now! We need to find Merlin before he makes the biggest mistake of his life!" They all scramble into Arthur's car and he drives like a man possessed while the girls continue to try to get through to him but are sent to voicemail every time.

"Are you sure he's got his phone with him?"

"Yes, yes I saw it in his hand when he walked out the door."

"He's probably already in town, Arthur hurry. Drive faster!"

"Morgana doesn't Owen work down the street from the clinic?"

"Yes."

"Well call him than, tell him what's happening and maybe he can catch Merlin before he gets there." Owen is waiting there for them when the drive up.

"Owen, where's Merlin? Have you seen him yet?" Is the first thing out of Arthur's mouth.

"No, I ran down here the second Morgana called but so far nothing." After a long debate with the woman at the front desk they started to get only a few answers.

"I'm sorry honey but all I can really tell you is that your boyfriend made an appointment for this morning at 11:00 a.m. He signed in at 10:45a.m, and when the nurse came out for him he wasn't here anymore...if it means anything I really hope you find him"

Later they walk out of the clinic empty handed. Merlin hadn't gone through with it and for that they were thankful but they still had no idea where in the world he was and Arthur was becoming extremely restless as to the where about of his boyfriend and unborn child as he began to curse himself aloud.

"If I had been here when Merlin found out he was pregnant he'd have never have made the appointment here and we wouldn't be hacking our brains trying to find him!"

"Arthur please calm down."

"Excuse me Morgana nabe I didn't make myself clean. Merlin is missing!"

"We know, that's why we need to clame down and think. Where would he go?"

After a bit of debating they came up with a small list of places to check. Gwen would go back and see if he'd gone home and stay there in case he did, Morgana would go to the park, Lance and Owen would search the library, and Arthur would check the cyber cafe across the street where Merlin liked to video chat with his Mother and Grandfather. More than an hour later all found themselves disappointed as they began the return trip back to the clinic parking lot.

"Arthur just think. Is there anywhere else he would go?"

"No!" He practically screams into his phone.

"If not the library I'm sure he'd have been in the park by the pond. That's where he goes when he has a lot on his mind, I'd bet my..."

"Arthur?"

"..."

"Arthur...Hello are you still there?"

"I think I'd lose that bet."

"What?"

"I think I found him."

"What, where, where is he?"

The line goes dead and she calls the others to hurry and get to the parking lot. Arthur stays rooted where he stands staring at a red Prius, the only one in the whole lot. It has to be Merlin's. He walks closer and feels his heart exploded in his rib cage when the license plat comes into view. 'Emrys M.' Quickly he rounds to the front of the car for a clear view inside and feels himself relax at the sight of ebony hair and soft pale skin bent over the stirring wheel. His shoulders shake and he knows Merlin must be crying and wants to see him smiling so he knocks on the window and says.

"You know this is only one hour parking don't you?" Merlin's head snaps up and wipes the tears away.

"Oh...no I'm sorry I...I didn't know." He leans over to turn the key when he looks up to see who had been speaking to him and Arthur can't stop the smile that spreads on his face.

"Arthur!"

He yells after a few moments of utter shock before they embrace each other. He wraps his arms around Merlin tightly lifting him from the ground a good inch or two than remembering how extra fragile he was now loosens his grip returning him to the ground and instead places most, loving kisses on his lips.

"I missed you."

"Where did you go...I thought you'd left me?"

"No, no. I'd never do that, I'd never leave you."

Merlin clings to Arthur as he is hit by the realization of how close he'd come to destroying the unborn child inside him as he placed a hand over his stomachs flat surffes. This child was theirs; Arthur's and his. The purest and most passionate form of their love.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry Merlin. I never cheated on you. I would never do that to you. I love you."

"I know...I know Arthur I was just afraid...I thought that maybe you stopped loving me."

"No. No Merlin I love you. I've loved you since that day we met back in high school when you saved that kids head from the football I throw at him." Merlin laughs at the memory and then Arthur drops to one knee and pulls out the rings just as the rest of the search party returned.

"I don't want to live another day for the rest of my life without you...would you marry me?"

Morgana has to bite down on her knuckles to keep herself from yelling out 'say yes!' at the top of her lungs and spoiling their special moment so instead she takes pictures as Merlin whispers 'yes' and starts to kiss Arthur in a heated passion. It's only after the ring is on his finger that they notice they've had an audience for whole thing as Morgana continous to take her pictures. On the way back her brother and her soon to be brother in law sleep in the back seat Merlin wrapped protectively in Arthur's arms with one of his hands covering Merlin's stomach. Back at the manner the phone and answering machine go crazy with messages from friends and family giving congratulations thanks to a certain blonde's sister and her friend that can't keep their mouths shut.

"Oh how perfect. I've got a little niece or nephew on the way and a brother in law all in the same week. Can it get any better?" Morgana beams.

"It could be twins." Gwen says giving Merlin's stomach a little poke.

"Hold on now you know I can't be more than two or three months along and we're not going to know the baby's sex or if there's more than one in here till I'm at least four or five month along."

"Alright, alright we'll stop teasing but we get to come with you when you have your first ultra sound."

"Deal."

The months passed quickly and Merlin and Arthur were married in a small service in the garden with all their families and friends in attendant. When time for his first ultra sound came his mother also accompanied him along with Gwen and Morgana. After the doctor told him he was NOT having twins and that the baby was perfectly healthy he and Arthur decided just to get on Morgana's nerves that they would keep the baby's sex between them. By the time Merlin had ended his fifth month his baby bump began to show under his usually baggy shirts. By the sixth month the morning sickness was still pretty bad but not as bad as the food cravings. Onion rings and pudding cups, Apples with peanut butter and nacho cheese which is probably what made the morning sickness bad. Arthur often found himself worried so much about Merlin he gave himself terrible headaches because when Merlin was half way through his seventh month he didn't look near the end of his pregnancy at all. He'd remembered when Gwen was pregnant with her daughter and she'd looked ready to pop at five months but Merlin only looked like he was hiding a small pillow under his shirt. He didn't much care what the doctor said anymore because when the eighth month began to end the discomfort Merlin was in was becoming more and more noticeable though he never complained about it. His belly grow tighter and heavier as the days passed and their baby continued to kick at the walls of the womb that housed it. Late November had come and a winter storm had flooded the roads trapping the girls in the newlyweds' home. All inside slept soundly as the storm raged outside and it was than Merlin woke with a sudden sharp pain in his stomach finding himself in fever. Slowly he unwraps himself from Arthur's arms out of their bed and into the bathroom. With help from a few candles he looks into the mirror and sees the sweat dripping from his face. He splashes some cool water on his face and breaths deeply before another sharp pain hits him only far worse than before. His heart clutches as pain shots through him like jagged shards of glass being pushed into his stomach. Than something else, something icy, and wet between his thighs and dripping down his legs. He steps back and finds a bloody puddle of water as the pain returns tenfold and he realizes his water has broken and the baby is coming whether they're ready or not. He crawls back into the bedroom and tries to call out to Arthur but his voice comes out as a whisper. The contractions are far more painful than he'd thought they would be and knows they will get worse. He tries again to call Arthur but moans in pain as bloody water continues to seep out of him and screaming when the contractions start up again.

"Merlin!" Arthur shot up in bed waking into a nightmare. They hadn't planned on this. There was still a week till the due date and with the roads flooded he'd never get Merlin to a doctor. He kneels beside him and feels a chill run down his spine when he sees the blood tainted water spilling out of his groom.

"Arthur...Arthur... the baby...the baby is coming!" Quickly he scoops him off the floor and lays him back in the warmth of their bed, cradling him for a moment and thanking god that Gwen and Morgana has been stubborn and taken the mid wives classes.

"It okay; everything is going to be okay. Don't worry I'm going to go get Gwen and Morgana." He softly kisses Merlin's forehead and returns with both girls just as Merlin lets out another wild scream of pain while clutching to his stomach, tears streaming down his face and a growing puddle of blood staining the sheets.

"Arthur, we need towels, hot water, and ice quick."

He gathered what they needed while the girls changed Merlin into a long nightshirt and got him started on his breathing. The pain continued for hours as the contractions got closer but it is taking its toll on Merlin's body to the point of exhaustion. Arthur knows the chance of losing one of them is high in this situation but the chances of losing both are even higher. He begins to hate himself for putting his love through such pain and hopes Merlin would forgive him for it.

"Alright Merlin now I'm going to count to three and on three you need to push as hard as you can and don't stop till I tell you okay." He nods and breaths deeply as Arthur rub his belly softly in small circles.

"Alright one, two, three push!" He pushes and tries to be strong but the screams of pain seem to have minds of their own. His body trembles and dripped with sweat the sheets sticking to his blood soaked thighs as he continues to push.

"Okay. That's good. You're doing great." The tears flow like a river now as he leans into Arthurs comforting warmth and biting his lip as he feels their child moving slowly from his womb into the birth canal.

"Again just like before. Push as hard as you can." He nods again, pushes, feels the pain, screams, bleeds, but there is still much to be done.

"Push Merlin push!" He pushes but doesn't stop this time when Morgana tells him to; any strength still in him is fading fast: he must have to child now or it may die.

"The head I see the head and I perfect little patch of blond."

"Come on Merlin, I know you're tired, I know it hurts but you need to push." Arthur says wiping the sweat from his face and neck. Merlin squeezes Arthur's hand desperately and begins pushing again the once white sheets now stained a dark crimson as he fights to give their child life; feeling the tiny body inside him inching slowly through his pelvis.

"A little more, just a little more." He pushes again and then feels totally numb. Then there are a few moments of complete quiet before the room echoes with the cries of a new born child. Merlin falls back on Arthur ready to pass out and watches through the opening between his legs as the girl's wash his baby in a tub of warm water.

"Its' a boy." They say handing the child into Merlin's waiting arms.

"He's perfect." Arthur whispers still in joyful awe of him. He's tiny; hardly the size or weight of a small melon with deep ocean blue eyes looking curiously up at them, and hair so perftly blond its' almost white.

"Look at him...he is so small...though you certainly didn't feel so little." Merlin says laughing a bit.

"God look at him Arthur...Look at what we did...what we made together." Arthur bent forward and gave his son a kiss atop his head, than turns to Merlin and begins to kiss him tenderly. They were both alive and they were both safe; that was all he really wanted. Than Merlin pulls away his breath labored, the tears falling fast, and the screams of pain coming back tenfold.

"What's happening? Why does it hurt again?" Merlin's body shakes with pain as Gwen takes the baby from him so he can hold onto Arthur's hands again.

"Merlin, there's another, another baby Merlin you're having twins!" Morgana yells joyfully.

"Twins...but the doctor said that..."

"Oh forget the doctor Merlin; he's' an idiot. Now push, push!" He pushes but is so weak from blood loss he can't hold it for long. Still he pushes. He won't lose this one; not after the hell he went through to deliver their brother. He can't lose this one, he won't.

"You can do this, you can do this." Arthur whispers from behind him.

"You can do this." He says again and Merlin pushes with all the strength he has left and doesn't stop. Through the pain, tears, and screams when he feels like his body is being torn in two and his skin feels deathly, bitterly cold. It's quiet again and he watches as the child emerges from between his legs and is taken away to be cleaned.

"Another boy...you have two beautiful little son's."

"Why isn't he crying?"

Merlin asked weakly. It's than that everyone else notices how unnaturally quiet the boy is compared to his brother. Morgana spanks his bottom a bit in her arms and pokes at his stomach but when the child doesn't stir Merlin starts to break down in new found tears; fearing that in his effort to bear the boy he had given birth to a still born. In one finally attempt Morgana takes one of her nephews' tiny toes between her fingers and gives it a hard squeeze. He lets out a shriek and then begins to cry proving the stangth of his little lungs.

"Thank God." Merlin says before his world turned to darkness. When he wakes he finds himself in a hospital bed with Arthur sleeping beside him in an ugly green arm chair.

"Arthur...Arthur wake up!" He shakes him a bit and Arthur springs to life.

"Merlin, God you had me so worried!" Arthur says wrapping him tightly in his arms.

"How long have I been asleep for...Where are our babies?"

"Don't worry they're fine. Morgana, Gwen, and you mom are out walking around with them...you had us all really worried; it has been almost three days. The doctor's said you last a lot of blood and that you probably weren't going to wake up." The doors open and the girl's with Merlin's mother walking carrying the two new borns. Merlin opens up his arms for them and reserves them with hugs and a kiss on the cheek from his mom.

"Three days and they seem to have grown so much bigger."

"Yes well they're still a bit small...but that should change once you start feeding them properly and the nurses stop giving them that powder junk."

"Oh Merlin they don't even have names yet; what are you going to call them?" Merlin and Arthur smile at each other for a while.

"Well we were actually having a bit of trouble picking between two but seeing as we have two sons' we don't have to choose now."

"So what are you going to name them?"

The next day they all stood taking pictures of the two blue eyed, blond new borns through the nursery window. These were the moments Arthur and Merlin would never forget. Their son's: the puresed symbols of their love and proof of the passions they shared and would always share. Christopher and Tristan Pendragon.

Well there you go. Leave me a review and let me know what you thought. ;P XOXO