We Are All Diamonds

Fanfiction
Title:	We Are All Diamonds
Author(s):	Footloose
Date(s):	17 August 2012
Length:	134,304 words
Genre:	slash fanfiction, Modern!AU (with magic)
Fandom:	Merlin
External Links:	We Are All Diamonds (AO3)
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We Are All Diamonds is a Merlin/Arthur Modern AU by Footloose. It was written for Paperlegends 2012.

Summary: "As the precocious heir of a diamond magnate and a famous designer, Arthur lived his entire life sheltered, protected, nurtured and spoiled. He always knew that he would have to step out from behind the scenes and into the limelight to run the family business some day, but he never expected that it would happen so soon or that he would encounter resistance from a board of directors who believe that his disability makes him unfit to lead. Merlin has stood on every stage in every city in the world, performing to critical acclaim, but after years of globetrotting, he's well and truly burnt out. He didn't quit -- he ran away from stardom, dropping to obscurity in the blink of an eye, forgotten, just another face in the crowd. He's aimless and without purpose until a friend asks him to fill in on a job. Neither Arthur nor Merlin are looking for salvation. They don't think there's any for them, that things are just too rotten, too far gone. But in the end, Arthur's quiet strength will be a balm to Merlin's broken soul, and it will be in Merlin's steadfast faith that Arthur finds courage."

ami_07 created a fanfic cover for the story. It' s aplain 'cover' without showing any of the characters in it. The background is dark and in the top right corner there are diamonds. The text reads: "a Merlin (TV) Fanfiction from the author of Loaded March series", followed by the author name and title of the story.

Recs and Reviews

Long, but very satisfying fic. One of the thing I liked best about this work was how Arthur’s deafness was described, and how he managed it, the different ways people sign and interpret things for him, and he relates to the world etc. It was really insightful and interesting. I loved how Merlin and Arthur find each other and help each other heal and grow and how they fall in love. There was both an urgency and a slow, steady rhythm to it all. It was lovely and wonderful in all of its details. It had a rich plot (broken and fearful opera singer angst and corporate overtaking and machinations mixed surprisingly well), full of character development, beautiful and achy. It made 130K pass very quickly. Very much worth the time.

I've said this before, I'll say it again, nothing compares with the pleasure of reading a piece of quality writing from an author who knows precisely what they're talking about. Well, very few things do. I felt uncomfortable at certain moments because of how close to the truth it hit sometimes, and I had flashbacks to the mineral shows I've been at or written about, which is not exactly the same thing, thank God, but it was too realistic not to feel it. Then of course there was Arthur, who wasn't heroic so much as was forced to be by the people who have no consideration or tact or desire to show those, by people who find themselves superior for reasons that should never qualify as such. Because sometimes it doesn't take ill will, just ignorance to hurt someone, and this story is a perfect advertisement of that.

The story of Merlin and Arthur here is the kind that makes you wonder about if people really want to be saved and what they're willing to do for it. And the universal truth that it's easier to be there for someone than to allow someone to be there for yourself. If Merlin and Arthur haven't met, I'd like to believe they would have found their way up eventually anyway, but considering where both of them started, it's hardly a given. It makes you appreciate how lucky they were even more.

I don't know. I have a lot of thoughts about it, but you should just read it really. It's compelling from the first word to the last.

I read this 134k thing of beauty over the span of a few hours in one sitting, and was moved to tears several times. For the uninitiated, Footloose is the author of the acclaimed Loaded March series, and I’ve also read Stop Watching and other of Footloose’s works in the past few months. They’re always incredibly gorgeous because of Footloose’s immense, utter talent when it comes to storytelling and characterisation (also attention to detail, good god!) and this story was no different.

If anything, it’s quite possibly one of the best pieces Footloose has ever written, in this reviewer’s humble opinion. The pacing and action were astounding, the research that went into Merlin’s classical music background as a countertenor and the diamond/jewellery empires intricate and detailed without being mentioned in an overbearing fashion in the story… to say nothing of the romantic tension, as usual, with the storyline and how all the characters grew, how conflicts were resolved, how the climaxes were woven into the story and highlighted.

This is one of those stories that shake you to the bone, that make you become completely immersed in the story’s universe for the few hours you get lost in the plot and the dialogue and writing, that make you feel.

One of those stories that leave you breathless.

it’s 4 in the morning and i’m not functioning. why isn’t anyone in the merlin fandom awake. why aren’t you all crying over the perfection that is Footloose? Why isnt’ there a shrine being built in her honor? [...] Seriously. This is beautiful. I will never not be impressed by her work. The world that she creates is so real, so imaginable. I feel like if i fly out to Canada, I’m going to find Merlin and Arthur signing madly away at each other, unaware of the world around them.

This was absolutely wonderful. Great characterization, interesting plot, and the Arthur/Merlin relationship was done beautifully. One of the best fics I’ve read in awhile. Written by the author of the Loaded March series. ModernAU with magic.