A BBC Merlin winter holiday fic/art/fanworks fest. on Livejournal | AO3 collection To submit fanworks or for questions on things like rules and posting, email [email protected].
winterknights is a prompt based holiday fest for the Merlin fandom! Use any winter or holiday themed idea to create fic, traditional art (pencil, painting, digital etc.), photo manipulations/other graphics, handmade crafts, podfic, fanmixes, and more! To spread festive Merlin cheer for all to see/hear! ❄️
2025 Schedule
Prompting Opens: Monday, September 15
Signups: Saturday, October 11
Check-in/Drafts Due: Monday, November 24 - Sunday, November 30
Final Entry & Headers Due: Saturday, December 6
Posting Starts: Saturday, December 13
❄ Fest Info ❄
❄ Prompting Post: Now Closed ❄
❄ Sign-Ups: NOW OPEN ❄
❄ Fest Prompts ( airtable | spreadsheet ) ❄
❄ Submission Info for 2025 ❄
❄ Promo Banners ❄
It’s time for our final masterlist and reveals for the 2025 WinterKnights fest!
Thank you to everyone who participated and supported the fest by showing your love through comments and kudos! If you haven’t made it through all the fantastic works yet, it’s never too late! Feedback is always appreciated. 💗
For those who decided to be anonymous your work in the AO3 Collection has been revealed, and you may now cross-post your entries anywhere you please with your name attached.
Thank you all for another wonderful WinterKnights!
Please see our 2025 masterlist under the cut!
ART
• Kingmakeronpaper created Bridging the Gap - General - Merlin & Arthur
o Many years before Merlin and Arthur met, tension throughout the kingdoms finally began to ease as the first Yule celebration since the Great Purge began taking place across Albion. Arthur and Merlin celebrated miles apart and completely unaware of each other, but destiny still found a way to bridge the gap.
• Flowerparrish created [Podfic] Of Holidays and Horrible Timing - General - Leon/Gwaine/Morgana; Arthur/Gwen/Lancelot/Merlin
o Yule preparations are well underway, but snowy weather means a few very important people are delayed in returning home from a mission.
Those waiting in Camelot try, and fail, not to worry.
• QuinnOliver created On One Knee - General - Merlin/Arthur
o Arthur gets on one knee….
• WanderPods created [Podfic] Forged and Enchanted - General - Arthur/Gwen
o (Podfic)- On a peaceful Yule night, Gwen and Merlin hand out some gifts.
• shana_rose created Ticking Clock - General - Merlin/Arthur
o This New Year’s Eve, Arthur is determined to kiss Merlin at midnight.
ART & FIC
• TrebleMaker07 created Get That Cursed Thing Away From Me! [Mood Board & Fic] - Teen and Up - Merlin/Arthur
o Arthur gets jealous after he sees Gwaine kiss Merlin. He makes it his life purpose to be the one to kiss Merlin instead.
Cue silly shenanigans where mistletoe is involved.
FIC
• schweet_heart created all this, and love too, will ruin us - Mature - Merlin/Arthur
o It’s the first Christmas after his father’s death, and Arthur is spending the holidays in Ealdor, visiting an old university friend for the first time in years. With his father gone and his sister unreachable, he isn’t expecting much joy from the festive season, but it turns out this might just be the beginning of something wonderful after all.
• mischel created And the Snow Reveals Our Hearts - Teen and Up - Merlin/Arthur
o Life in Camelot has been hard after Morgana’s betrayal, but when new snow covers the fields and the castle halls get a little too stuffy, Merlin convinces Arthur to go on a trip to unwind in the wintry beauty. Little does he know that since it’s the Winter Solstice, his magic is significantly weakened, leaving him with no protection when bandits attack them. Worse, a snowstorm arrives, cutting them away from Camelot and any proper medical equipment.
• Go2Sleep created And the Snow will Fall Again - Teen and Up - No Pairing
o Of all things Arthur might have expected from Gaius to be doing, he does not expect to find him in a part of the forest that his father has forbidden them from going to, kneeling before a grave in a setting he’s never seen. And everyone in Camelot knows, that if something remains invisible, it is probably better off not being seen.
But when what he sees tells him truths about his mother, and the purge of magic he had followed at his father’s command, and offers him a shot at setting the wrongs of his father right, and perhaps bringing a small part of his mother’s spirit back to the kingdom she had helped to build, Arthur cannot look away.
Magic in Camelot is a crime worse than high treason. But snow falls, and Winter is kind, and Arthur knows this is the right thing to do, at any cost it may demand.
• rangerjedi67 created Chill of Winter, Warmth of Love - General - Leon/Gwaine
o Gwaine hates the cold.
• diaryofatrekker created the hunters and the hunted - Explicit - Merlin/Arthur
o In the depths of winter, Arthur and Merlin set off after missing knights.
• little_dhampir created Ice Ice Percy - Teen and Up - Gwaine/Percival
o Percy, a primary school teacher, needs to learn how to ice skate so he can supervise a class excursion. Good thing he’s dating an ice hockey player.
• Astrarosebud created It’s Only Just Begun - General - Merlin/Arthur
o Merlin expects the usual Pendragon-Emrys Christmas: dodgy decorations, festive coffee, and Arthur being an insufferable prat. What he doesn’t expect is that Arthur would obey their no presents rule. On Christmas!
• BeBraveDearHeart created I’ve Been Known To Sell My Soul For Less - Teen and Up - Gwaine/Merlin
o “Gwaine…”
“Mm?”
“Tell me this isn’t just some Christmas spirit thing you’re doing to make yourself feel better.”
“I’m not festive enough to do much of anything in the name of Christmas spirit. Especially not setting an alarm at 6am when I don’t have to.
• thesongistheriver created Let Your Heart Be Light with Me - Explicit - Merlin/Arthur
o All Arthur wanted was to celebrate a real Christmas, for once.
He wasn’t expecting Merlin. Or for it all to be a little big magic.
• CheesyBug6 created Lovelight - Explicit - Leon/Uther
o It’s snowy and cold in London as Leon settles into his roles as Arthur’s playmate and Uther’s paramour.
• Astrarosebud created Of Festive Customs - General - Merlin/Arthur
o As the Yule approaches Merlin hatches a plan to get Arthur to kiss him under the mistletoe. There’s just one flaw in his scheme: Arthur has no idea what mistletoe means.
• shana_rose created A Peaceful Silence - General - Merlin/Arthur
o When Merlin gets hurt while looking for greenery for the castle, it’s up to Arthur to take care of him while they are snowed in out in the forest.
CheesyBug6 created A Pendragon Family Christmas - Explicit - Leon/Uther, Mithian/Morgana, Arthur/Gwen
o Uther takes his family and Leon on a Christmas trip to Lapland.
• diaryofatrekker created a ritual for every occasion - Explicit - Merlin/Arthur
o Merlin intervenes to save Arthur from druids who want his help with a ritual for a new year’s blessing.
• diaryofatrekker created salt vs sugar - General - Merlin/Arthur
o It’s Arthur’s first Christmas since his father disowned him.
• shana_rose created A Smile Brighter than the Sun - General - Merlin/Arthur
o After a night of drinking with the knights, Merlin wakes up in an unusual place.
• skatesfullofsunshine created A Solstice Surprise - Teen and Up - Arthur/Gwen/Merlin
o Merlin and Gwen are cuddling in their bed on the eve of the Winter Solstice, when their husband Arthur arrives home from a long journey at last, to their surprise and delight.
• tari_sue created Son-In-Law Material - Teen and Up - Merlin/Arthur
o Arthur can think of better things to do with his precious days off than to spend Christmas with his father, sister, and his sister’s fiancé – especially when said fiancé turns out to be the bloke he’s been trying to ask out for the last four months…
• skatesfullofsunshine created Warmed By Love - Teen and Up - Arthur/Gwen/Merlin
o Merlin is finishing up working on part of Gwen’s winter solstice present, when their husband, King Arthur, arrives home. Teasing and fluff ensues.
WINTERKNIGHTS 2025 - Mixed Anonymous and Not Anonymous Masterlist
Thank you to everyone that participated in this year's WinterKnights fest!
The mixed Anonymous & Non-Anonymous Masterlist is under the cut below.
Please continue to enjoy these wonderful works and share your work with the creators! Reveals for the people who chose to be anonymous this year will be going up in a few days.
ART
• Kingmakeronpaper created Bridging the Gap - General - Merlin & Arthur
o Many years before Merlin and Arthur met, tension throughout the kingdoms finally began to ease as the first Yule celebration since the Great Purge began taking place across Albion. Arthur and Merlin celebrated miles apart and completely unaware of each other, but destiny still found a way to bridge the gap.
• Flowerparrish created [Podfic] Of Holidays and Horrible Timing - General - Leon/Gwaine/Morgana; Arthur/Gwen/Lancelot/Merlin
o Yule preparations are well underway, but snowy weather means a few very important people are delayed in returning home from a mission.
Those waiting in Camelot try, and fail, not to worry.
• QuinnOliver created On One Knee - General - Merlin/Arthur
o Arthur gets on one knee....
• WanderPods created [Podfic] Forged and Enchanted - General - Arthur/Gwen
o (Podfic)- On a peaceful Yule night, Gwen and Merlin hand out some gifts.
• shana_rose created Ticking Clock - General - Merlin/Arthur
o This New Year's Eve, Arthur is determined to kiss Merlin at midnight.
ART & FIC
• ??? created Get That Cursed Thing Away From Me! [Mood Board & Fic] - Teen and Up - Merlin/Arthur
o Arthur gets jealous after he sees Gwaine kiss Merlin. He makes it his life purpose to be the one to kiss Merlin instead.
Cue silly shenanigans where mistletoe is involved.
FIC
• schweet_heart created all this, and love too, will ruin us - Mature - Merlin/Arthur
o It's the first Christmas after his father's death, and Arthur is spending the holidays in Ealdor, visiting an old university friend for the first time in years. With his father gone and his sister unreachable, he isn't expecting much joy from the festive season, but it turns out this might just be the beginning of something wonderful after all.
• mischel created And the Snow Reveals Our Hearts - Teen and Up - Merlin/Arthur
o Life in Camelot has been hard after Morgana's betrayal, but when new snow covers the fields and the castle halls get a little too stuffy, Merlin convinces Arthur to go on a trip to unwind in the wintry beauty. Little does he know that since it's the Winter Solstice, his magic is significantly weakened, leaving him with no protection when bandits attack them. Worse, a snowstorm arrives, cutting them away from Camelot and any proper medical equipment.
• Go2Sleep created And the Snow will Fall Again - Teen and Up - No Pairing
o Of all things Arthur might have expected from Gaius to be doing, he does not expect to find him in a part of the forest that his father has forbidden them from going to, kneeling before a grave in a setting he's never seen. And everyone in Camelot knows, that if something remains invisible, it is probably better off not being seen.
But when what he sees tells him truths about his mother, and the purge of magic he had followed at his father's command, and offers him a shot at setting the wrongs of his father right, and perhaps bringing a small part of his mother's spirit back to the kingdom she had helped to build, Arthur cannot look away.
Magic in Camelot is a crime worse than high treason. But snow falls, and Winter is kind, and Arthur knows this is the right thing to do, at any cost it may demand.
• rangerjedi67 created Chill of Winter, Warmth of Love - General - Leon/Gwaine
o Gwaine hates the cold.
• diaryofatrekker created the hunters and the hunted - Explicit - Merlin/Arthur
o In the depths of winter, Arthur and Merlin set off after missing knights.
• little_dhampir created Ice Ice Percy - Teen and Up - Gwaine/Percival
o Percy, a primary school teacher, needs to learn how to ice skate so he can supervise a class excursion. Good thing he's dating an ice hockey player.
• Astrarosebud created It's Only Just Begun - General - Merlin/Arthur
o Merlin expects the usual Pendragon-Emrys Christmas: dodgy decorations, festive coffee, and Arthur being an insufferable prat. What he doesn't expect is that Arthur would obey their no presents rule. On Christmas!
• BeBraveDearHeart created I've Been Known To Sell My Soul For Less - Teen and Up - Gwaine/Merlin
o "Gwaine..."
"Mm?"
"Tell me this isn't just some Christmas spirit thing you're doing to make yourself feel better."
"I'm not festive enough to do much of anything in the name of Christmas spirit. Especially not setting an alarm at 6am when I don't have to.
• thesongistheriver created Let Your Heart Be Light with Me - Explicit - Merlin/Arthur
o All Arthur wanted was to celebrate a real Christmas, for once.
He wasn't expecting Merlin. Or for it all to be a little big magic.
• CheesyBug6 created Lovelight - Explicit - Leon/Uther
o It's snowy and cold in London as Leon settles into his roles as Arthur's playmate and Uther's paramour.
• Astrarosebud created Of Festive Customs - General - Merlin/Arthur
o As the Yule approaches Merlin hatches a plan to get Arthur to kiss him under the mistletoe. There's just one flaw in his scheme: Arthur has no idea what mistletoe means.
• shana_rose created A Peaceful Silence - General - Merlin/Arthur
o When Merlin gets hurt while looking for greenery for the castle, it's up to Arthur to take care of him while they are snowed in out in the forest.
CheesyBug6 created A Pendragon Family Christmas - Explicit - Leon/Uther, Mithian/Morgana, Arthur/Gwen
o Uther takes his family and Leon on a Christmas trip to Lapland.
• diaryofatrekker created a ritual for every occasion - Explicit - Merlin/Arthur
o Merlin intervenes to save Arthur from druids who want his help with a ritual for a new year's blessing.
• diaryofatrekker created salt vs sugar - General - Merlin/Arthur
o It's Arthur's first Christmas since his father disowned him.
• shana_rose created A Smile Brighter than the Sun - General - Merlin/Arthur
o After a night of drinking with the knights, Merlin wakes up in an unusual place.
• skatesfullofsunshine created A Solstice Surprise - Teen and Up - Arthur/Gwen/Merlin
o Merlin and Gwen are cuddling in their bed on the eve of the Winter Solstice, when their husband Arthur arrives home from a long journey at last, to their surprise and delight.
• tari_sue created Son-In-Law Material - Teen and Up - Merlin/Arthur
o Arthur can think of better things to do with his precious days off than to spend Christmas with his father, sister, and his sister's fiancé – especially when said fiancé turns out to be the bloke he's been trying to ask out for the last four months…
• skatesfullofsunshine created Warmed By Love - Teen and Up - Arthur/Gwen/Merlin
o Merlin is finishing up working on part of Gwen's winter solstice present, when their husband, King Arthur, arrives home. Teasing and fluff ensues.
Title: Son-In-Law Material
Author: tari_sue
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur
Prompt: none
Word Count: 17,966 words
Rating: Teen and Up
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Thanks to Cam and Clea for the beta!
Summary: Arthur can think of better things to do with his precious days off than to spend Christmas with his father, sister, and his sister's fiancé – especially when said fiancé turns out to be the bloke he's been trying to ask out for the last four months…
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/76937501/chapters/201368006
Title: all this, and love too, will ruin us
Author: schweet_heart
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur
Prompt: N/A
Word Count: 6,875 words
Rating: Mature
Contains : POV character is dealing with caretaker guilt and grief after the loss of a parent.
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Thank you so much to the mods for hosting this fest, and to Excited_Insomniac and BeBraveDearHeart for their betaing and Brit-picking assistance
Summary: It's the first Christmas after his father's death, and Arthur is spending the holidays in Ealdor, visiting an old university friend for the first time in years. With his father gone and his sister unreachable, he isn't expecting much joy from the festive season, but it turns out this might just be the beginning of something wonderful after all.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75716196
Title: And the Snow will Fall Again
Author: Go2Sleep
Pairing(s): None
Prompt: Winter spirit Merlin
Word Count/Art Medium: 10,323 words
Rating: Teen and Up
Contains (Highlight to view): *Descriptions of death? Uther.*
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Thanks to the mods for organizing, and to my lovely beta reader for all her hard work!!!
Summary: Of all things Arthur might have expected from Gaius to be doing, he does not expect to find him in a part of the forest that his father has forbidden them from going to, kneeling before a grave in a setting he's never seen. And everyone in Camelot knows, that if something remains invisible, it is probably better off not being seen.
But when what he sees tells him truths about his mother, and the purge of magic he had followed at his father's command, and offers him a shot at setting the wrongs of his father right, and perhaps bringing a small part of his mother's spirit back to the kingdom she had helped to build, Arthur cannot look away.
Magic in Camelot is a crime worse than high treason. But snow falls, and Winter is kind, and Arthur knows this is the right thing to do, at any cost it may demand.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75755236
Title: A Peaceful Silence
Author: shana_rose
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur
Prompt: #18
Word Count: 1,271 words
Rating: Teen and Up
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: When Merlin gets hurt while looking for greenery for the castle, it's up to Arthur to take care of him while they are snowed in out in the forest.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75836571
Title: salt vs sugar
Author: diaryofatrekker
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
Prompt: Baking some Christmas cookies, or Christmas dinner together. Can be a total disaster, or a pinterest worthy success! PLUS Merlin and Arthur spend Christmas on the other side of the world for once (i.e. in New Zealand or Australia)
Word Count: 2,206 words
Rating: General
Contains: discussion of family estrangement, mention of cancer
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: thank you to pendr_gon for the beta! I proceeded to then substantially revise the fic again. All mistakes are mine.
Summary: It's Arthur's first Christmas since his father disowned him.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/74733391
Title: Ticking Clock
Artist: Shana_Rose
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur
Prompt: 24
Art Medium: Moodboard
Rating: General
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Thank you to the mods for this wonderful event!
Summary: This New Year's Eve, Arthur is determined to kiss Merlin at midnight.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75042646
Title: A Pendragon Family Christmas
Author: CheesyBug6
Pairing(s): Leon/Uther Pendragon, Mithian/Morgana, Gwen/Arthur Pendragon
Word Count/Art Medium: 18,000 words
Rating: Explicit
Contains (Highlight to view): *Infertility, IVF, age difference.*
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: Uther takes his family and Leon on a Christmas trip to Lapland.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75246371/chapters/196669511
Title: Bridging the Gap
Author/Artist: Kingmakeronpaper
Pairing(s): Merlin & Arthur
Prompt: Baby Arthur's first Yule/Baby Merlin's first Yule
Art Medium: Digital Art, Comic
Rating: General
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: The prompts said Baby Merlin and Baby Arthur and I ended up going slightly older with Merlin about three and Arthur about six but it's still their first Yule celebration so I hope it still counts! Also, Shout out to my children for posing for reference photos!
Summary: Many years before Merlin and Arthur met, tension throughout the kingdoms finally began to ease as the first Yule celebration since the Great Purge began taking place across Albion. Arthur and Merlin celebrated miles apart and completely unaware of each other, but destiny still found a way to bridge the gap.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75637526
Title: Ice Ice Percy
Author: little_dhampir
Pairing(s): Gwaine/Percival
Prompt: Gwaine teaching Percy how to ice skate (I can't find the prompt anymore)
Word Count: 1,508 words
Rating: Teen and Up
Contains: Ice Skating & Fluff
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Yay Fluff! And ice hockey players XD
Thanks to my beta for added a shitload of commas (among other things) and thanks to the mods :)
Summary: Percy, a primary school teacher, needs to learn how to ice skate so he can supervise a class excursion. Good thing he's dating an ice hockey player.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75171391
Title: Of Festive Customs
Author: Astrarosebud
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur, minor/background/mentioned Gwaine/Percival, Gwen/Lancelot, Morgana/Leon
Prompt: “You really thought I wouldn’t notice you've been putting mistletoe up around the castle? If you wanted me to kiss you, MERlin, you could have just asked.”
Word Count: 2,060 words
Rating: General
Contains: Fluff, Minor/background relationships, Oblivious Arthur.
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Thanks to the Winter Knights for running this fest, and thank you to the person who submitted this prompt it was so fun to work with.
Summary: As the Yule approaches Merlin hatches a plan to get Arthur to kiss him under the mistletoe. There's just one flaw in his scheme: Arthur has no idea what mistletoe means.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/74783176
Title: [Podfic] Forged and Enchanted
Artist: WanderPods
Pairing(s): Arthur/Gwen
Prompt: none
Art Medium: podfic
Rating: General
Notes: Thanks to s0mmerspr0ssen for having podfic permission
Summary: (Podfic)- On a peaceful Yule night, Gwen and Merlin hand out some gifts.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75159816
Title: On One Knee
Artist: QuinnOliver
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
Prompt: Merlin wakes up disappointed that Arthur seems to have forgotten his birthday until....
Art Medium: Digital, MediBang Paint
Rating: General
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Special thanks to my beta @allatonceornothing (ao3)/@247merthur (Tumblr) for their words of encouragement.
Summary: Arthur gets on one knee....
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/74815121
Title: And the Snow Reveals Our Hearts
Author: Mischel
Pairing(s): Merlin/Arthur
Prompt: "merthur, canon au, hurt comfort. the winter solstice is the one day of the year where magic is the weakest. and it's just merlin's luck that arthur has chosen to go on patrol today. during the patrol they get attacked and merlin gets hurt, and then a snow storm comes up as well and snows them in. please show me some caring arthur and knights :)"
Word Count: 10,901 words
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Contains: Minor violence.
Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: This is my first WinterKnights fic! So I'm excited to post 🥰 Big thanks goes to Leigh for beta-reading this for me, thank you! 💖
Summary: Life in Camelot has been hard after Morgana's betrayal, but when new snow covers the fields and the castle halls get a little too stuffy, Merlin convinces Arthur to go on a trip to unwind in the wintry beauty. Little does he know that since it's the Winter Solstice, his magic is significantly weakened, leaving him with no protection when bandits attack them. Worse, a snowstorm arrives, cutting them away from Camelot and any proper medical equipment.
Now, it is up to Arthur and the knights to save Merlin and make sure he stays warm.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75667901
Title: Chill of Winter, Warmth of Love
Author: RangerJedi67
Pairing(s): Leon/Gwaine
Prompt: “Canon era, one of the knights having bad memories about winter/snow/cold temperatures and getting comforted"
Word Count: 1,440 words
Rating: General
Contains: No warnings
Summary: Gwaine hates the cold.
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75032001
