By Strength and by Virtue
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| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | By Strength and by Virtue |
| Author(s): | casspeach |
| Date(s): | 12 April 2009 |
| Length: | 9,632 words |
| Genre: | slash fanfiction |
| Fandom: | Merlin |
| External Links: | By Strength and by Virtue (AO3) By Strength and by Virtue (LiveJournal) |
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By Strength and by Virtue is a Merlin/Arthur story by casspeach (9,632 words). The story was written for merlin_flashfic's 'make them do it' challenge - magical creature, in this case, rather than aliens. Despite all that happens, Arthur doesn't find out about Merlin's magic.
Summary: It starts, as these things often do, with a delegation of women.
Recs and Reviews
"When Arthur runs afoul of a water creature that lures men to their deaths, Merlin intervenes. Unfortunately, this does not work quite as well as planned. In most Aliens Made Them Do It type stories, the dubcon nature of the sex is usually smoothed over or completely ignored, because either the characters were already secretly in love, powerful aphrodisiacs were used, and/or because they were already being intimate. And that's fine -- given a choice between dubcon or not having dubcon, I'll usually pick the latter. That said, it's nice to occasionally read a fic that really considers what it means to have two people forced to have sex. It's not all roses and rainbows. I do have to say that the ending to this fic is a bit rushed, but that's a minor quibble next to the fascinating exploration of Arthur's psyche as he is betrayed by his own body.[1]
"I particularly liked the way you handled what happened at the lake so that it is revealed later, in bits and pieces. That worked so well in moving the story forward. I also really liked the portrayal of Arthur - his noble nature warring against the enchantment and failing. That's poignant and hot and his self-loathing over it was very affecting. Plus, more awesome - bondage and a happy ending."[2]
"I'm really impressed by the way you've kept the canon voices intact and managed to segue neatly from mood to mood keeping some humour in what is essentially a horrible situation. Love their mutual protectiveness - and Merlin is absolutely terrifying in his casual closing statement. Also like the way the sex is never presented as (emotionally) satisfying and I imagine that when they do finally get together (again) there's going to have to be a certain amount of careful negotiation over what's gone before."[3]
"Also, Arthur not liking the way some nobles take advantage and judging himself every bit as harshly despite magical influence. But I think what I like best is how all this magic and sex and emotional crap is going on but the boys are still themselves, still trying to do right by their positions and each other, and still arguing over what makes a good leader and where Arthur's responsibilities come into that. Because I think what gets them through all the weird crap they have to deal with is that they don't lose that connection."[4]
References
- ^ jane_elliot in epic_recs. By Strength and Virtue by Casspeach (NC-17), 01 December 2010. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ zelda_zee . Comment, 13 April 2009. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ stealingpennies. Comment, 14 April 2009. (Accessed 26 December 2010)
- ^ neierathima. Comment, 12 July 2009. (Accessed 26 December 2010)