Merlin waits and waits and waits for Arthur's return. He watches the centuries drag by, and remains there faithfully waiting for Arthur's return. He begins to lose hope, but still he remains. Eventually, when his friends and family are but a dim memory, when he can no longer connect his life with that distant prophecy, when he can no longer convince himself he has a purpose worth living for, he makes up his mind. He isn't going to take anymore of this.
He makes the plan. He takes care of what he needs to. He resigns from his job, sells his assets - or, the ones he can bear to part with, and he leaves the rest with a friend. He gets what he needs, and makes the trip to Avalon. He's doing it peacefully. An overdose, and some painkillers to be sure, and he'll just go to sleep for the last time by the shores of Avalon. A weight seems to lift off his shoulders in the days leading up, and he finds himself looking forward to it.
He sits by the lakeside in the early dawn, holding the drugs in his hand and staring at the water. Finally, once he thinks that he's done with this world forever, he raises them to his mouth, ready to be done with it.
And Arthur staggers up from the lake, sopping wet and shivering. Merlin, staring in disbelief, can only lurch to his feet before Arthur is on him. Arthur envelops him in a hug, pressing his face down into Merlin's neck. His armour is freezing, and the water on his clothes is soaking into his own garments, but Merlin can't be bothered to care. They stand there, clinging to each silently, before Merlin speaks into Arthur's bedraggled blond hair.
"Why?" he asks, voice breaking. "Why now?"
Arthur pulls back, staring at him with tears in his eyes. "The world can't lose you," he says. "The world can't lose magic. I - Merlin, I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I've been - I've watched you. You're so brave and you've done so well and I'm so sorry you had to get to here before I could come back and-"
"You fucking clotpole," Merlin interrupts him, pulling him back and squeezing him to his chest. "You f-fucking prat "
Arthur doesn't respond, simply burying his head in Merlin's neck again and squeezing back. And as they stand there, the sun rises, and Merlin lets himself think, for the first time in centuries, that things will be okay. He certainly has words he wants to say to the universe about the fact that it was somehow necessary for him to want to kill himself for Arthur to come back - many, firm words - but that's okay. He can do that later. Right now, he's holding a shivering Arthur in his arms, and he'll savour it as much as he can.
