Just when he was about to give up and leave, Merlin felt the phone in his pocket vibrating and pulled it out, seeing an unfamiliar number on the screen. "Hello?"

Hearing Merlin's voice was almost enough to make Arthur believe that everything was going to be alright. Things were bad--very, very bad--and he saw no hope of ever being free to be with Merlin again. "They let me make one phone call," he said shakily. "Merlin, another body was found last night. The authorities... they think I did it, and... they arrested me on the way to our new house."

Watching from the window in his upstairs office which overlooked the bar, Mordred folded his arms and smiled. Everything was proceeding according to plan, and soon, it would be time to introduce himself to Merlin. He started for the door--impeccably dressed in an expensive suit--and headed down toward the floor to mingle with the customers for what seemed like the first time in ages.

"Oh, god... I saw posters up and..." Merlin half-stumbled over to the nearest chair and sank into it. "Have they set bail?" He had nothing, no way to make it happen, but the guards were fallible. He could find a way to get them safely out of the jail, and then they could run. They'd have to run. The thoughts swirled through Merlin's head almost too quickly for him to catch hold of a single one as he waited for Arthur's response as if it really mattered. He was oblivious to the murmur of the crowd as the club's handsome manager wove his way through the people.

"It's a million dollars," Arthur replied, defeated. He could easily raise the funds from his myriad bank accounts, but once they became known to the authorities, they would surely freeze his finances. The fact of the matter was that Arthur didn't want to be freed. If he was killing indiscriminately, then he had no business being set loose on the streets. Indeed, his first instinct when confronted by the police was to rip them to shreds. "Merlin, I want you to forget about me. There's nothing you can do, and I don't want you dragged into this. Just remember I love you, and I always will." Unable to talk anymore, Arthur hung up the phone.

Mordred, seizing his opportunity, approached the bar and fixed Merlin with his piercing gaze. "I don't think we've been properly introduced," he started, exuding warm friendliness. "I'm Mr.Reddorm, and you must be Merlin... right?"

Merlin was utterly flustered at being addressed. He looked up at the man with tear-filled eyes only to realize why the name was familiar. "Oh... yes. I... sorry..." He clambered off the barstool and tried to keep himself from crying. That wasn't exactly the right way to make a first impression. "Sorry about being late and... there's... my..." What was Arthur? Not just a friend, certainly. A lover, yes. A boyfriend? Partner? He had no idea. //Nothing, if he had his way,// Merlin thought, swallowing hard around the lump in his throat. "A friend's in trouble. I'm a bit of a mess just at the moment."

"Please don't apologize," Mordred replied, waving a dismissive hand. "I'm sorry to hear about your friend, and I'm even sorrier to see one of my employees in such a state." He urged Merlin to retake his seat, while occupying the empty bar stool beside him. "Now, why don't you tell me what's going on. You look as if you could use someone to listen, and if you're willing, I'll try my best to help." Merlin had not changed in all the passing centuries. He was exactly as Mordred remembered him. But he showed no recognition to alert the other man. Instead he continued to be warm and welcoming, allowing Merlin to fall into his trap.

Utterly oblivious to the man's calculating gaze, Merlin couldn't help but give in. He needed someone to confide in, after all, and it was impossible to say no to the opportunity. "My friend... he's more than that, actually, it's just a little new," //oddly enough,// Merlin thought, "and... he... he was arrested." Merlin knew that if he was going to tell the story, he needed to be honest. The man was his boss and, from what he'd gathered from the rumor mill, a rather influential mover and shaker in the vampire world even beyond that. //Maybe he can help?// The thought lit a new flame of hope within Merlin, and he felt himself calming slightly and speaking more clearly and easily. "Someone was found dead in the neighborhood, and they think he did it. He didn't," Merlin added hurriedly, "but it's a bit... uh, a bit hard to prove, and the bail's absolutely massive, and..." Things had changed a lot, and Merlin had never had any reason to have any involvement with the law or how it worked in anything but the most cursory midnight-Law-&-Order-marathon sort of a sense.

Mordred nodded, seemingly listening intently as Merlin poured out his woes. "Your friend," he started carefully. "I take it he is a vampire? If so, there may be something I can do to help. But first..." Sliding off the barstool, he reached out to Merlin with a friendly hand and urged him to join him. "Would you allow me to take you to see him? While you're visiting, I can find out what I can about your friend's predicament." He noted the other man's quizzical expression over his actions. "You're wondering why I'm being so generous, aren't you?" Mordred smiled, explaining, "I happen to care about my employees, and if you're so certain that your friend isn't responsible, then that is good enough for me."

Merlin looked stunned, but hadn't it been what he wanted? Of course it had. He'd been praying that the man would offer some assistance, he simply hadn't expected it to be so hands on. "O-of course. Yes. Thank you! Are you sure?" Merlin was on his feet already, wanting to head out the door immediately. He wanted Arthur the hell out of jail. He wanted him safe. "Anything at all you can do would be amazing. He wouldn't do this. I know him. I've known him a long time."

//Yes, I know...// "The Authority might be able to help," Mordred offered, tipping his head to the other bartender. It was a signal for him to take over for Merlin. Leading him outside to the parking lot and toward his Bugatti Veyron, he opened the passenger door for Merlin before sliding behind the wheel of his luxurious sports car. "If you're right, and your friend was not responsible, then I'm not about to sit around and watch an innocent vampire being wrongly persecuted." As much as he relished the idea of trapping Arthur, he would have to take action in order to prevent the locals from hurling him into the sunlight. He had far too many plans for anything to go wrong now. Arriving at the police station, there were groups holdings signs outside declaring the evil of the undead. They were led by a tall, stern-looking blond woman wielding a bullhorn. "Go on inside and see if you can visit your friend," Mordred urged. "I'll make some calls and see what I can do."

Merlin snapped himself out of taking in the signs, the chanting. The whole thing was disgusting. "I will. Thank you." It took awhile before the guards were willing to play along. Obviously they were more in line with the crowd outside. After a bit of pressing, Merlin did manage to get one younger man to tell him the circumstances of the man's death. //Last night...// Merlin felt his spirits lifting at once. Arthur had been in bed with him during the window they gave for the man's death. Once he was finally allowed to go to the holding cell - Arthur was being kept separate from the rest of the population "for their safety" - Merlin all but pressed himself against the bars, wanting to be as close as possible. "Arthur!" He felt nervous fear fluttering in his stomach. The former king had made it very clear on the phone what he wanted, but Merlin knew that he'd been lying. //At least I hope he was.//

Arthur hated the way in which he thrilled at the sound of Merlin's voice. It gave him hope, and made him believe that everything was going to be alright. But that was a lie. He was behind bars. Accused of a crime he couldn't remember committing. There was no chance of him being freed, let alone surviving another night. "Merlin," he lifted his head, unable to meet the sorcerer's eyes. "What are you doing here? I told you not to come." In a hushed voice he added with urgency, "These people are out for blood. And they're going to think you had something to do with that man's death."

Merlin shook his head, though Arthur made a good point. He wasn't doing much for his own reputation. "What does it matter? If things don't go well... we run. Together. I can get you out of here." That wasn't an issue in the slightest, "And then we go." Thankfully the authorities were still iffy on how to deal with vampires except to be reactionary and frightened. It had made the judicial system a mess and led to nearly equal groups of radicals like Sue Sylvester and touchy feely types who wanted a perfect coexistence that would probably never happen. "The manager's here, he's talking with the police. He's got a lot of influence here. It might help. Arthur, please, it... honestly, it isn't that bad. Compared to the things we've already survived, it's nothing."

"Merlin, I killed someone--again." How could he make his lover understand? "I can't keep doing this." Why he was suddenly consumed with the bloodlust he'd longed restrained was a mystery to Arthur. But he could not bear the guilt of taking innocent lives. Even if it meant forfeiting his own, as well as the happiness he had found with Merlin. "You've got to forget about me. Forget, and get the hell out of this town." He rested his shaggy blond hand against the cruel iron bars. "I can face the True Death knowing that you're safe," he added, totally defeated.

"No!" The word came out louder than he'd intended, and Merlin's next words were a hissing whisper, "You're being ridiculous. Even if... even if something happened, it just means we need to be more careful. It doesn't mean..." The sorcerer's voice broke, and he reached through the bars, just barely able to touch Arthur's forehead, his hair, stroking as best he could with the awkward restraint. "I'm not going to lose you. Not after all this time... these years... I won't."

"Merlin..." Arthur started, only to falter beneath his lover's gentle caress. He could see that any protest would fall upon deaf ears. Just like the old days, Merlin was determined not to abandon him even at the risk of his own life. //How could I have been so blind not to see that he truly loved me?// Arthur silently pondered. "I don't want anything to happen to you," he said pleadingly. "These people are scared, and they want someone to pay for the attacks." Reaching through the bars, he held tightly to Merlin's hand. "If we were back in Camelot, I could order you to go. But, you'd just disobey me, wouldn't you?"

"I'm terrible at following orders," Merlin agreed, a hint of a smile finally lighting his face. "I can protect the both of us. I won't let anyone hurt you. I never did, and I have no intention of starting now." Saving Arthur's life was a full time occupation, and it was one that Merlin didn't mind in the slightest taking on. "Maybe the manager will be able to figure something out. I don't see how you could've done this, Arthur. You were with me unless you've forgotten so quickly. This... it may've happened once accidentally, but... it isn't you."

Arthur refused to believe that he wasn't responsible. The authorities had given him the gruesome details of the victim's demise, which sounded all too familiar. As far as he was concerned, he was guilty as sin. "No, I haven't forgotten that we were together," the vampire murmured. "But... What if I sneaked out when you went to sleep? And I just don't remember..." Arthur lifted his eyes again, pale and haunted. "It could have happened that way, Merlin." Outside the shouting of the protestors grew louder. It wouldn't have surprised Arthur in the least if broke into the jail and hauled him into the sun themselves.

"It could have," Merlin allowed, adding just as steadily, "but it didn't. Do you remember what you were like afterward, Arthur? The last time? You were so out of it that you came into the bar covered in blood. That's why this is happening. I don't think you would've managed getting cleaned up, getting the blood out of your clothes and getting home and back into the closet in a half an hour and without me noticing. You want to punish yourself for what happened before, but you didn't do this."

Before Arthur could protest further, the door behind Merlin opened and a burly-looking cop with a ruddy face entered the room. The vampire tensed, certain that this was the moment of his True Death. Holding a large ring of keys, the officer announced, "Looks like you've got friends in high places." He unlocked the cell door, wearing an expression of great reluctance.

Arthur blinked, glancing at the cop incredulously. "Wait, what are you talking about?"

"You're free to go," the officer replied, obviously not liking the idea in the least.

Merlin, ignoring the officer's annoyance, grinned as the door swung open. He didn't waste a moment throwing his arms around Arthur's neck and holding him close. The cop obviously didn't like them anyway, so he had no problem with adding another potential layer to the man's distaste. He withdrew to a more appropriate distance soon enough but couldn't stop smiling. Merlin caught the look that the cop was giving them and tried to sober, but he felt too great a sense of relief to really manage it. "C'mon, we should go thank him."

The police officer barred their way as the pair started to leave. "I think it might be better if you take the back exit," he advised, throwing a knowing glance over his shoulder. The mob continued to surround the front of the building, and it would be safer for all concerned if the vampire were released unseen. Arthur understood the cop's meaning, even if he was still reeling from the idea of being freed. He nodded, and reaching for Merlin's hand, drew his lover toward the door. Along the way, he was greeted with harsh stares from the other officers. But Arthur ignored them, focusing instead on getting Merlin safely away.

Vowing to thank his manager later, Merlin kept his arm around Arthur's waist and didn't bother worrying about what the people around them thought. He didn't care. He cared that they were together and Arthur was, for the moment, safe. "We should go to the house," Merlin whispered quietly. "People have seen us coming and going from my place, but no one knows it. We'll be... be safer there. I can go and get my things later, or maybe have someone from the bar pick them up." That might be best. Then neither of them would need to exit their safe haven until public opinion quieted a bit. The protesters hadn't found the back exit or were avoiding it because the press wouldn't see them there, and Merlin breathed a sigh of relief at the discovery.

Arthur nodded, moving along with Merlin's direction like a puppet on a string. He was too stunned over his sudden freedom to do little else. Just who was his mysterious benefactor? And how had he managed what Arthur had considered an impossible feat in what seemed like no time at all? These thoughts continued to race through the vampire's mind as he and Merlin hurried toward their new home. It was some distance away from the police station, and by the time they arrived, Arthur had managed to regain the power of speech. "I can't believe this," he confessed, drawing Merlin in closer. "I thought for sure I was finished, but now..." He shook his shaggy blond head. "This can't last, can it? They'll find someway to drag me back in, won't they?"

"No," Merlin answered firmly. "They aren't taking you anywhere." There was something almost dangerous, an edge to the words and a hardness in his eyes as he spoke them. "We'll run if we have to, but they aren't taking you. Not people like that. They wouldn't listen to the truth, just to power." Arthur hadn't been freed because he was innocent - though Merlin knew that he was - he'd been freed because he had the right sort of a friend pulling for him. The sorcerer swallowed hard and tried not think of how things might have gone if he had needed to free Arthur in a less political manner. The streets were becoming less familiar, but he remembered the route more or less and did his part to hurry along. The sooner they were safe inside, the better he'd feel. Slipping his arm from Arthur's waist, Merlin instead took the vampire's hand and gave it a warm squeeze. "We're in this together. I keep telling you."

Arthur relented, too drained to protest or think of ways he might be torn away from Merlin again. "Alright, I know," he replied, leaning into his lover. "I'm not about to start another fight. At least not tonight." His shoulders slumped, and he found it an almighty effort to keep going. "But, what are we going to do about tomorrow? You trust me, and your faith means so much to me. But I don't trust myself." Arthur glanced up into Merlin's eyes, his own gaze bordering on desperate. "You might have to find a way to make sure I don't go out."

"I think I can come up with one or two ways." Merlin hadn't intended the comment to be entirely lascivious, but he couldn't help it. The memory of Arthur's hands on his body and the man's lips against his own were enough to get his heart beating faster. "Think I could come up with a few ways that might make us forget we ever meant to leave the house to start with, actually." He thanked whatever powers might be watching over them that they were at the house and waited impatiently for Arthur to open the door. "Think we might have enough time before the sun comes up for me to give you a preview if you like."

"Merlin, you are incorrigible," Arthur replied, fishing out the key the police officers had been too wary to take off his person. "And I wouldn't have you any other way." He opened the door, and was pleased to find that the furniture he'd ordered had already been delivered. Strangely, it already looked and felt like home. Although Arthur decided that had more to do with Merlin's presence than the decor. Once they were safely inside, he pulled the sorcerer close to him once again. "I hope you like it," he murmured, nuzzling Merlin's throat. "I didn't even give you a chance to help me pick everything out."

"You're better at it anyway." He had never been one to care much about his environment save that it was comfortable and mostly clean. Arthur had a taste for something nicer, for the finer things he hadn't ever even seen until he began to serve the prince at court. "You saw where I've been living. Besides, the only part I care about is whether you're here." Turning in the man's arms, Merlin wrapped his own around Arthur's neck, the decor entirely forgotten. "So which piece of furniture are we going to break in first?"

Despite his worries over being hauled off to prison again, Arthur was indeed in the mood to celebrate. And he couldn't think of a better way than to indulge himself in Merlin. "After spending better part of the night in a filthy cell, I could use a shower," the vampire replied. "How does that sound to you?" Not waiting for a reply, Arthur's mouth swooped in and claimed the sorcerer's. Then, he was moving. Backing Merlin down the hall, into their bedroom, and the en suite bathroom. His hands roamed restlessly all over Merlin, tugging at his clothes in an effort to feel warm, bare flesh beneath his fingers.

Merlin groaned into the other man's mouth as their bodies pressed together, came apart, then crashed into one another again along their route. He didn't know the layout of the room or much else, but it didn't matter. Arthur was leading them, and even without the man being able to see, Merlin trusted him entirely. A few bruises would be worth it to be intimate with him again. He reached out, groping for the shower and finding the knobs. Frustrated, Merlin finally turned his head to set the temperature before sealing his mouth to Arthur's again with an audible moan.

Arthur had not realized just how desperately he needed Merlin until that moment. His near brush with the True Death hit home, and he kissed the sorcerer with an intense passion that would have left him breathless if he'd still been mortal. He was only vaguely aware of the shower starting, of the hot, steady water raining down. Arthur's focus, his entire world, was centered on the beautiful man in his arms. Their tongues tangled, settling in for a heated duel as he urged Merlin beneath the spray, clothes and all.

The damp fabric was instantly sealed to the man's skin, and though it was an annoyance, Merlin couldn't bear parting his body from Arthur's long enough to get rid of it. Instead he wrapped himself thoroughly around the vampire and fell back against the tiled wall. The slick fabric collided with the wet surface and only Arthur's grip kept him from losing his footing entirely. If his lips hadn't been otherwise engaged, Merlin might have pointed out that he was desperate, that he needed Arthur more than he'd ever needed anything else.

Finding the fact that he and merely were only separated by the wet cloth plastered to their skin highly erotic, Arthur cradled the back of Merlin's head as he thoroughly devoured his lover's sweet, panting mouth. Their bodies writhed together, and the vampire found it near-impossible to control his desire after his brush with the True Death tonight. His other hand roaming down to cup Merlin's ass, the vampire surged forward and groaned against those soft, rapidly swelling lips as their trapped arousals ground together. "You know," he gasped, staring into the sorcerer's eyes, "I can easily cum like this..."

Merlin nodded his mute agreement and grabbed Arthur's ass for maximum friction. "Y'can if you want to," he answered, voice light and almost sweet before he purred, "as long as you're ready for me to get you hard again. Before day comes, I want you inside me." They'd been together only once, and Merlin already felt the ache for more like a drug running through his veins. He'd been waiting centuries. They both had been. Now all of that want and love and need were overwhelming.

"Oh, I don't think that will be a problem," Arthur growled, his fangs flashing in the steamy water spraying down on them. Although he had no lust for blood, he could not control his baser vampire instincts around Merlin. Thankfully, his lover did not seem to mind and there wasn't the slightest hint of fear in Merlin's eyes. Groaning deep in his throat, Arthur surged against the sorcerer. Achingly hard and feverishly aroused, he tensed and shuddered with each resonant throb of Merlin's hard bulge grinding against his own. Their lips met again, and Arthur clawed mindlessly at the other man's wet clothing as the mutual thrusting of their hips grew ever more heated.

Merlin's hips stuttered and bucked, mindless and wordless and loving every second of it. Tearing his lips from Arthur's, he ordered, "Cum for me. Cum for me, Arthur." Just the idea brought him to the edge. Merlin gasped against the man's damp neck. His teeth scraped hard over the flesh in an unintentional mimicry of feeding. It was a needy expression of how badly he wanted the other man and how Arthur drove him to a perfect state of distraction. No horror or worry in the world could touch him so long as they had each other.

Arthur's hips rolled, and an intense tremor of ecstasy quaked through his undead frame. He clutched desperately at Merlin, barring his throat in an open invitation for more attention. His neck was a particular hot spot for him, and not many knew of his weakness. Lusty groans erupted from his lips as his thrusts grew even more desperate. "Merlin... m'close... please... more..." Surrounded by a curtain of steamy water, the vampire relished the feel of his lover's hot, hard body writhing against him. Finally, the pleasure reached its peak and Arthur spilled over within the tight confines of his soaking wet jeans.

Merlin felt the bucking, heard the soft sound of pleasure that was so much like a sigh as Arthur came. Just that sound and the feeling of Arthur's body against his own got him there. Merlin gasped and the sound echoed in the small bathroom while he moved in uncontrollable spasms against his lover. Taking Arthur's invitation, his teeth latched themselves onto the pale expanse of vampire's neck. It wasn't enough to break the skin, but it was enough to leave angry red marks as Merlin's hips moved of their own accord.

Arthur cried out from the bite, not out of pain but pure, unbridled ecstasy. He shivered all over, nearly finding himself in the grip of another wrenching orgasm. Merlin's effect on him was potent, and it made the vampire wild. He tugged Merlin's head back, kissing with a ravenous passion that was almost frightening. Then, he was clawing at the sorcerer's soaking wet clothes, shredding them from his body without a second thought. Arthur tossed them out of the shower along with his own, which he ripped off just as carelessly. "I promised, I'm not finished yet," he groaned, swarming all over Merlin beneath the hot spray of water.

"I know," Merlin agreed, grateful just the same to find that Arthur's hunger didn't seem to have diminished in the slightest. He let the vampire take the lead without any hesitation. They had always trusted one another. Even before they'd like each other, there had been a sort of bond that went well beneath the surface and defied all logic. Now for the first time Merlin felt complete as they reveled in being together. No change and no span of years could destroy what held them together. It was bigger than either of them. Water rolled over his skin and clouded his vision as Merlin shifted to find some part of the other man to kiss and touch and taste.

Arthur's actions were more languid than this time, but no less heated. He devoured Merlin's panting mouth all over again, one hand cradling the back of his lover's head, while the other cupped that magnificent ass. Their bodies married and writhed together in an erotic dance beneath the steamy spray raining down upon them. Nearly losing Merlin again had had a profound effect on Arthur. He realized that instead of embracing the True Death because of his actions, he wanted to fight against it. Leaving Merlin alone, or being torn away from him, was something he just couldn't accept... no matter what he might have done to deserve the punishment. "Love you," he murmured between fervent kisses. "Never going to let you go."

The words brought tears to Merlin's eyes. He held Arthur tighter as the languor of the aftermath fell from his limbs. He'd been waiting to hear those words from the moment they began to confess their real feelings. All along Arthur had still been holding back, still acting like he had one foot out the door, ready to bail as soon as things got anymore complicated. Now Merlin knew that his lover was as invested as he was. "'Bout time," he murmured with a hint of a smile. "I love you so much. I always have. I'll run to the ends of the earth with you if it's what we have to do."

"I love you, too," Arthur replied, his words deeply heartfelt and his throat clotted with emotion. "I don't know how you've put up with me all this time, but I'm thankful you can look past my many faults." Chief among them was his propensity for being bull-headed. That was something that had not diminished ever since his long ago days as prince of Camelot. Of course, it seemed that Merlin loved him for even that particular trait. "I've been a fool, haven't I?" More kisses beneath the shower, and then Arthur licked at Merlin's mouth. "There's so much I need to make up for, isn't there?"

Merlin couldn't help but smile into the kiss. "Just a few. Think we can manage it, though. We have a long, long time." Merlin's arms tightened around the man's neck, and he whispered, "Since you do have to start somewhere, let's go to bed. I want you to make love to me properly." He rested his forehead against Arthur's, still smiling at the sheer joy of being in the man's arms. "I think we've both earned it."

You're right, we have," Arthur agreed, shutting off the water without losing contact with Merlin. Effortlessly, he carried the sorcerer's beautiful glistening, flushed body from the shower. It was of no consequence that they were both soaking wet--that was easily cleaned up--all that mattered was that he and Merlin were together. Arthur kissed him all the way to the bed, where he gently deposited his precious bundle on the mattress. Wasting no time, the vampires was draping his body over the sorcerer's, and moaning as their bodies melded together. "I love you, Merlin," he reaffirmed, stroking his cheek. "I promise I'm never going to let you go again."

"I wouldn't let you," Merlin answered with a trace of a smile. He wasn't going to be set aside or pushed away ever again. They needed one another too much. Long, pale limbs twined around Arthur's body as if he couldn't manage to get close enough. "I'm going to spend the rest of my life right here. Well, not necessarily this bed, but... I think you get the picture." Stretching his neck up, Merlin stole a sweet, soft kiss. "You won't be rid of me that easily. Should know that by now." They'd found each other against time and all odds. There was a reason for it, a logic of some strange sort in the whole thing.

Arthur groaned into the kiss, "I know that now. Took a while, but it finally got through this old noggin of mine." He smiled, caressing Merlin's beautiful face with a sense of tender reverence. "There's something I want you to do for me," he murmured, nuzzling his lover's gloriously swollen mouth with his own. "Drink..." Arthur pierced his own throat with his fingernails, drawing blood which trickled free from the wound. "Please, Merlin... taste me..." Although he did not trust himself enough to feed from Merlin, the vampire yearned for the sorcerer to have him as completely as possible.

Merlin hesitated for a moment. He'd heard that vampire blood could be rather intoxicating, but he'd never had any desire to test the theory. And yet there was no way he could deny the look on Arthur's face and the pleading in his voice. Slowly he nodded and then stretched his head up, licking his throat and tasting the fluid leaking from the wound. It wasn't as bad as he'd expected. Arthur's blood tasted odd, strangely sweet and heady. It reminded him of wine more than it did of blood, and Merlin heard a moan before he even realized that the sound had escaped his own throat.

Arthur shivered at the contact, relishing the feeling of Merlin's warm, wet tongue across the fresh wound. Then, he heard what was music to his ears: Merlin moaning in ecstasy. "Yes," he urged in a soft hissing tone. "Drink, Merlin... taste me..." Writhing against his lover, the vampire cradled the back of the sorcerer's head as he lost himself in the erotic act of being fed upon. Arthur reached between their bodies with his free hand, grasping both their renewed lengths together, and stroking them in tandem. The dual stimulation left him an aching, shuddering wreck.

When Merlin surfaced again to breathe, the sound was shaky and desperate as he clung to Arthur. "Need you inside me... now, Arthur, please..." He stretched out a hand and the drawer of the nightstand flashed open, his eyes flaring gold in the dim light of the room. Thankfully what he wanted was there already - it seemed he wasn't the only one who'd been planning to properly christen the house. Long fingers closed around the bottle of lube as soon as it got close enough, and Merlin pressed it into Arthur's hand even though it meant him letting go of them both. "Now," he insisted again.

Pressing a scorching kiss to Merlin's beautifully swollen mouth, Arthur groaned at the taste of his own blood spicing those soft lips. He held tightly to the bottle of lubricant as he swiped his tongue down Merlin's throat, onto his chest, and over his flat tummy. Upending the sorcerer by drawing his legs up and back, Arthur dove between his legs and disappeared between those peerless mounds of flesh. He feasted upon Merlin's enticing little opening, while--at the same time--blindly pouring a generous amount of fluid on his fingers. Fairly growling, the vampire speared his way inside, tasting and licking until he eventually withdrew and replaced his tongue with one slick digit.

Merlin's hips jerked upward at the stimulation, and he let out a mewling sound of gratitude as Arthur finally began to stretch him. It wouldn't ever be enough until they were as close together as humanly possible, but he felt more complete already with the blond's finger pressing into him. "Yes," he whispered softly, lips parted and eyes unfocused. He showed not the slightest hesitation or discomfort about being splayed open in front of Arthur, sweetly pliant and waiting as patiently as possible instead.

Arthur's questing finger worked its own brand of magic on Merlin's body. And the vampire marveled at the way in the sorcerer eagerly accepted his invading digit. He licked his lips, his gaze burning with passion as he focused on the sight of that perfect little rosebud stretching around him. It wasn't enough to touch and caress him, Arthur also needed to taste him. He licked all over Merlin's heaving balls, which hung low between his legs. "So lovely, so mine," he purred, swiping his tongue over the other man's straining length.

"Always was," Merlin answered, coming back to himself enough to manage the words despite the fact that he could barely think or do anything but watch Arthur. He'd never seen anything as sexy as the way the man watched him. It was a look he'd been dying to see on the former king's face almost since they'd met. The tension that had spent years coiling between them remained but now there was an outlet. They could touch and taste and explore exactly the way they wanted to. "Always will be."

"Always," Arthur agreed, crooking his finger and brushing that special little spot deep inside of Merlin. The effect was instantaneous, and the vampire watched in rapt awe as the sorcerer came unraveled before his lust-darkened gaze. Arthur licked his lips, then swooped between Merlin's trembling legs again, only this time taking his lover's beautiful cock deep inside of his eager mouth. He nursed greedily, lovingly, while marrying a second digit to the first, and stretching Merlin open that much more. His fingers worked diligently, caressing those silky, tender walls, and drinking down the sweet honey forming at the tip of the other man's aching length.

Merlin shuddered as he opened up to the ministrations of the other man's fingers. The dual sensation of Arthur's cool lips wrapped around him probably would have meant cumming on the spot if they hadn't already relieved some tension in the shower. "Just... god, go slow because... you are far, far too good at this." He had no intention of asking where Arthur had picked the skills up over the years. He didn't want to think about who else might have shared the man's bed or why. The only thing that mattered was that they'd found one another. No one would ever come between them again.

"Oh, I could never rush with you, beautiful," Arthur reassured his flushed and writhing lover. Merlin never looked more enticing than when he was like this, his alabaster skin warm and covered in a light sheen of sweat, and his limbs flailing in wanton ecstasy. The moans and whimpers spilling from the sorcerer's pillow-soft lips were like music to the vampire's ears. And the fact the he alone was responsible for those sounds thrilled him to his core. How his hunger remained in check was nothing short of miraculous, but Arthur didn't question it. Instead, he remained grateful that there was no danger of him harming Merlin. Easing another finger into the other man's sweet little ass, he marveled over the way Merlin welcomed and embraced his questing digits. Another dollop of pre-cum caught his attention, and he flicked his cool tongue over the swollen tip of Merlin's cock to chase after it.

Merlin hissed something absolutely pornographic that was perfect considering he'd never been worked over by anyone with the same skill Arthur showed. Though he wasn't exactly loud in bed most of the time, the man drew something different out in him. Merlin couldn't help groaning and gasping, couldn't help rocking his hips wantonly as Arthur fingered him. He panted at the thought of the former ruler's cock following soon and how good it would feel to cling to him through another climax, to cum with their bodies joined together perfectly. Whatever time they had before the sun rose again Merlin intended to spend lost in one another.

Although Arthur yearned to prolong Merlin's delicious agony, it wasn't long before he eased a second digit alongside the other. That silky passage opened up to him beautifully, accepting his questing digits in a heated embrace. "You are so lovely," he purred, nuzzling the sorcerer's overheated length. "How did I ever manage to hold myself back from taking you for so long?" His gaze filled with sexual hunger, he drank in the expressions of wanton pleasure etching themselves across Merlin's gorgeous face. It was everything he'd ever longed for laid out before him, and Arthur ravenously feasted upon the banquet of desire. He crooked his fingers, languidly twisting them deep inside of his lover.

Merlin's body twisted with the motion, hips bucking, eyes falling closed, mouth dropping open. "Never have to hold back... ever... ever..." If Arthur wanted to spend the rest of their mutual lives together wrapped up in bed and learning every way they could drive one another to the brink of pleasurable insanity, he would have consented in a second. With all the years they'd lost, he would never say no to another moment together. Merlin was thankful that Arthur had left off licking him for a moment because his fingers alone were almost overwhelmingly pleasurable.

It wouldn't be long before Merlin would be ready to take him fully. Although Arthur yearned to make love to the other man, he couldn't help prolonging the moment and his enjoyment of watching Merlin unraveling at the seams. He leaned forward, kissing and nibbling at the sorcerer's quivering thighs, while carefully avoiding that exquisite cock, which swelled to bursting. Tempting honey flowed copiously from the flaring tip, creating an erotic tableau which only intensified the vampire's growing sexual hunger. Once he was certain Merlin was ready, he eased a third finger inside and marveled over how his lover's body blossomed around him.

Merlin shuddered at the new penetration, his whole body rolling into the stimulation. It was amazing even if it wasn't enough, even if it only suggested how amazing the next step would be. When Merlin opened his eyes again to look down at Arthur, the pupils were blown so wide they looked black. "Not gonna be able to wait forever," he muttered as he fucked himself on those clever fingers. "I'm not going to cum until you're buried inside me... so you'd better get there soon."

Arthur chuckled lustily, "A servant dares order his prince?" He gave his fingers a wicked twist, and the vampire reveled in the ease with which he could manipulate Merlin's luscious body. "You'll have everything you want... soon. Just have a little more patience, love." Although Arthur was denied the pleasure of the rich scents wafting from that lithe frame, he knew how dangerously close to the edge Merlin had grown. With each calculated stroke of his digits, the fever within his lover intensified, and Arthur felt his own need heightening. "Now then, I think you're just about ready..."

"More than. Fuck, more than," Merlin panted. He knew how close he was, and honestly the few beats of a pause were a good thing. He knew that. Still Merlin wanted nothing more than for Arthur to slam home inside him and thrust until they both lost their minds with pleasure. He forced his eyes open and met Arthur's burning gaze. He could see the glint in the other man's bright eyes and knew that Arthur was enjoying every last second of making him crazy. "Gonna pay you back for this. You know that, don't you?"

"Are you now?" Arthur's tone, rough and playful, matched the wicked glint in his eyes. "Well, then..." He paused, visibly trembling as he slicked himself and draped himself over Merlin's gorgeous body. "...perhaps I should prolong the moment?" Having no intention of doing so, the vampire could not help teasing Merlin a little more. Arthur brushing the weeping tip of his bloated length against his lover's well-prepared opening. A whimper, followed by something akin to a growl as the sorcerer's eager rosebud responded in kind, twitching in an attempt to close around him.

So close and yet so far. Merlin groaned in frustration but was in no position to do anything to force the issue without getting his magic involved. He didn't want that. Even if it meant going mad, Merlin wanted Arthur to be the one in control. The vampire needed to trust himself, and he wouldn't until he realized that he was capable of being at the helm and still doing the right thing. That didn't stop Merlin from whining helplessly and bucking his hips upward. "Please..."

That's all it took. Arthur closed his hands around Merlin's wrists, gripping them gently but firmly. Then, he pressed forward... sinking himself completely into the delicious warmth of the sorcerer's aching body. Pleasure washed over him--intense and overwhelming--and the vampire recaptured Merlin's sweet, panting mouth in an all-consuming kiss filled with passion. He began to thrusts, his hips churning and pumping, driving his raging length deeper and deeper into the caressing folds of Merlin's tender passage. "Yes," he gasped against his lover's mouth. "Oh, Merlin..."

Merlin didn't try to free his hands despite an overwhelming desire to run his fingers through Arthur's hair or dig his nails into the man's back. Instead he let his hips do all the moving. They rose to meet Arthur's and his head fell back against the pillow again. That exposing his neck so wantonly might be a rather cruel temptation didn't occur to him. Merlin was lost in reacting to the feeling of being filled at last and the slow, perfect slide of Arthur's cock inside of his body.

Arthur's gaze focused on Merlin's delicate throat. Although the sorcerer had magically cloaked his scent, the vampire found himself sorely tempted by the pulsing vein in Merlin's neck. It seemed to call out to him, caressing his senses with its siren song. And yet, Arthur resisted. He would not allow himself to harm Merlin, even if his lover begged him to feed. Instead, he licked at nibbled at that glorious expanse of alabaster. Moaning uncontrollably, he drove into Merlin's clenching embrace, his hips churning, his cock spearing through the tender folds of his passage.

Though he hadn't ever liked the idea of being bitten, Merlin's neck was an extremely sensitive spot, and he let out a keening sound of pleasure as Arthur licked and nipped almost playfully at the skin instead. He was impressed by the man's restraint. He was more impressed by how amazing Arthur's cock felt as the man began to pick up speed. "There!" Merlin gasped as Arthur found a new angle that sent spots swimming in front of his eyes. "Arthur, again... there... please..." Desperation not politeness prompted the "please," and Merlin nearly gave up playing nice and tore his hands from Arthur's grip to clutch at his pistoning hips.

The force with which Merlin broke free from his his grasp left Arthur growling with another sharp flood of desire. Merlin's touch--feverish and demanding--fueled his lust, and the vampire found himself pumping harder, faster. His own hands roamed down, coursing over the sorcerer's trembling frame until he filled his palms with his lover's peerless ass. He cradled those firm, round moons, and drove into Merlin, hitting the very spot that had left him gasping for more. The passion they had worked up between them could have incinerated the bed to ashes. Arthur mauled the other man's throat, leaving marks without breaking the skin. Merlin belonged to him, and he wanted the whole world to know it.

Merlin shuddered, his fingers moving over Arthur's flesh. It was cool but pleasant beneath his hands. One of them finally settled in the man's hair, clutching at the blond strands like a lifeline while his body drove upward to meet the punishing thrusts. "Yes... yes, like that... there..." The words continued to fall from his lips but even Merlin lost track of what he was saying. It didn't matter. The sounds were meant only to encourage Arthur not to stop. He couldn't let the man stop when every tiny movement pushed him that much closer to the edge of a truly epic release.

Arthur relished the tangling of Merlin's fingers in his hair, as he dropped his mouth further down and nursed on a succulent, firm nipple. Wildly he sucked and fucked and fondled Merlin's heated body. His fingers sank into the firm mounds of his lover's ass, writhing and thrusting, groaning and shivering with unbearable lust for him. Suddenly, he stopped clutching and groaning. He gazed deeply into the sorcerer's eyes, his thrusts slowing. Then, Arthur pressed forward hard with his dripping, aching length... kissing Merlin's sweet spot with the tip. He kissed him savagely, grinding and quickening his pumping hips, nearly losing control from the intense pleasure that gripped his undead body. "Cum with me, Merlin," the vampire groaned, "I'm so close..."

Dangerously close to the edge already, Merlin gave in the to the command without any hint of hesitation. His whole body bucked, his hips rising and then crashing down against Arthur's thick cock. "Oh, FUCK!" he cried out without any reservation into the stillness of the house. The sound of his heart pounding and the blood pumping through his veins filled Merlin's ears as he came in thick streams over his own stomach. The constant stimulation of his prostate alone had been enough to set the tidal wave off. "Let me feel you... Arthur, please, I need to... to feel you... inside me... please... cum for me, please..."

Nothing in this world or beyond could compare to the delicious sight of Merlin thrashing in ecstasy. Arthur reveled in the explosion of bliss, groaning heartily as his lover's beautiful cock swelled and erupted, painting his torso in pearls of his creamy essence. It drove the vampire nearly insane. And, as Merlin clenched around him and begged sweetly for his release, Arthur clung to him, roaring and growling on an uprush of sharp spasms. He cried out savagely, grimacing as an intense orgasm seized him. He buried his face in Merlin's smooth neck, realizing after a little while that bloody tears were sliding down his cheeks. He looked up and gazed at Merlin. Their mouths curved together in a slow, heart-wrenching kiss. "It's never been this way, never this way," Arthur moaned against Merlin's lips.

Merlin smiled at the words and kissed the man gently in return. "Nothing's supposed to be like this. Just... love." It sounded cheesy, and if Merlin had heard anyone else say something like it, he probably would have been choking on the desire to mock them. Instead he was overwhelmed by the fact that Arthur was so lost in the moment. There were tears in Merlin's eyes as well as he gazed up at the vampire. "Nothing else should be like this because it couldn't ever be like this with anyone but you."

"I love you, Merlin," Arthur whispered, tenderly kissing away the sorcerer's tears. "Whatever hell we've both been through to get here, it's all been worth it." Still trembling with the aftershocks of his violent release, the vampire whined like a wounded beast as his lips brushed Merlin's throat. Then, he was languidly moved down the length of his lover's body, his tongue lapping at the creamy essence painting Merlin's heaving torso. Warm and sweet, the taste exploded in his mouth and Arthur quickly became an addict. He found Merlin still beautifully hard, that perfect length pulsing and drooling all over his abdomen. Knowing how sensitive Merlin would be to further stimulation, Arthur took great care as he eased the blushing shaft between his lips, swallowing him down as he nursed him clean.

Merlin gasped and jolted off the bed, winding up propped up on his elbows to look dazedly down at the other man. "Oh, Arthur..." The man's head tipped back, and he threaded his fingers into Arthur's hair. It was too much, really, felt too good, but soon enough Merlin found himself thrusting shallowly into his lover's mouth. He let out a strangled whisper as a new wave of pleasure crashed down. Merlin's hips moved of their own volition as the dry climax left him shaking and falling back against the bed once more. Never in his long life had he experienced so much pleasure in so short a span of time, and he could hardly breathe. "S-stop... can't take anymore... Arthur, please... just..."

Arthur relented, smacking his lips and chuckling lustily, "You'll have to forgive me, my love. But you taste much too sweet for your own good." Indeed, he could have quite happily continued sucking Merlin dry for the rest of the night. Kissing his way back up the length of the sorcerer's body, Arthur rolled onto his side, propped his head up on one hand, and gazed tenderly at the man spread out before him. His fingers trailed over Merlin's chest, drawing invisible patterns over his nipples. "Tell me, are you hungry? You must be after all that."

Merlin gave a slight shake of his head. "I'll eat when the sun comes up. Right now I have you." Soon enough Arthur would sleep and he'd be alone for the daytime hours in the knowledge that his lover would wake only under the most extreme conditions. Instead of making any move to sleep or clean up, Merlin burrowed into Arthur's arms and encouraged him to get as close as possible. "I don't need anything but this for now."

Arthur smiled, embracing Merlin and pressing tender kisses to the top of his dark hair. "Neither do I. This is perfect." His hands splayed out across his lover's back, fingers drifting over the length of his spine. The simple act of cradling Merlin in his arms was probably the best chance Arthur ever had of knowing what Heaven felt like. Things were finally clicking into place, becoming solid and real instead of the vampire believing this was all some sort of dream. He and Merlin were together, as it was always meant to be.