Obeisance
| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Obeisance |
| Author(s): | casspeach |
| Date(s): | 24 March 2009 |
| Length: | 5,801 words |
| Genre: | slash fanfiction |
| Fandom: | Merlin |
| External Links: | Obeisance (AO3) Obeisance (LiveJournal) Obeisance (podbook) |
 podfic cover by cybel | |
Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Obeisance is a Merlin/Arthur story by casspeach (5,801 words). The story was written for merlin_flashfic's knee-walking challenge.
Summary: It's not that Arthur won't share his toys, just that he expects to get them back undamaged.
merlin_finders summary: "Merlin is ordered to wait on some visiting nobleman, while Arthur is away (I can't remember where he is). This nobleman, however, dislikes Merlins attitude and decides to teach him a lesson, resulting in a lot of pain for Merlin - I remember that especially his knees get hurt and though Merlin tries to hide all this from Arthur, he - naturally - figures it out and lets Merlin soak in his bathtub to clean the wounds."[1]
The story is an example of protective!Arthur. A visiting noble abuses Merlin, Arthur finds out about it and deals with the noble.
rhi cauldrie podficced the story and it's available at the Audiofic Archive. The podfic is 37:21 min long.
Recs and Reviews
I love this protective Arthur, and Merlin trying (abysmally) to pretend it isn't a big deal. There's a lovely back-and-forth here with the characters -- the good-natured humour mixed in between the serious moments was a pleasure! The token-kiss was just perfect too; you seem to hit just the right balance of Arthur's denial.[2]
This could have been a wonderful read in its own right with just the hurt/comfort aspect of Merlin's wounds, but the exchange of tokens added that little extra something to really warm the cockles of a reader's heart!! I can't tell you how delightful it was reading a wonderfully done possessive!Arthur in his perspective! I especially loved how you characterized the two here: yes Merlin is Arthur's manservant and Arthur fought for his honor to protect what was his, but Merlin was not just a damsel in distress. Adding that bit of uncertainly on Arthur's part about their relationship and having Merlin give just as good as he got was AAAHHHHH~ XD[4]
This trope is one I like a lot–knight-in-shining-armour Arthur. Good old hurt/comfort. I reread this one a lot, so that says something.[5]
Protective/Possessive Arthur, legitimately perfect merthur banter, a healthy dose of hurt/comfort and a dash of sweetness. What more could I ask for?Arthur is characterized so well, the entire fic is in his POV and benefits from that in my opinion, and for such a short fic you really get a strong sense of every aspect of his and Merlin’s relationship.
I really love how this author expertly balances the dark matter of Merlin’s abuse with humor and light lines that made me genuinely laugh. Some of Arthur’s lines in this fic are true standouts.[6]
References
- ^ gomenace in merlin_finders. Specific Fic and General rec search, 26 December 2010. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ i_claudia. Comment, 25 March 2009. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ lip_stick_love. Comment, 25 March 2009. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ Yehram. Comment, 06 November 2010. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ "Dec 31, 2013 Tumblr post". Archived from the original on 2023-05-23.
- ^ "May 20, 2017 Tumblr post". Archived from the original on 2023-05-23.