Room 407, Friday Morning

[bigdamndestiny]

After coming in later last night from Canada, Merlin had only been up for one thing. Sleeping in his own damned bed. Oh, how he missed it while being away...

Having someone to share it with was also rather nice, if you asked him. Someone Francine shaped was extra nice. It may have also helped that Arthur was safely on the other side of the room and not fighting anymore bloody demons.

Everything was right with the world.

...give him a moment to notice some things.

[[For the two there. Mwahahaha]]

Comments

[thatsamilkshake]

"Mrrrf?" Morning person, yes, but Francine was quite happy to spend part of that morning being half-asleep and snuggling. And patting hair again. "Morning, Chewie."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"...'good morning, Chewie'?" Merlin asked quietly. And then had to pause because that clearly could not have been his voice. "Francine?"

Oh god.

"Arthur?!"

[bitchprince]

"Yes, it's me," Arthur snapped, in his female voice which to some level of innate satisfaction was at least low and slightly on the growly end of things. He veered up in bed.

... He was lucky he'd worn his night shirt to bed. "Oh, come on! This is ridiculous!" he implored.

Of the island.

[thatsamilkshake]

Well, that woke Francine up. You know, the fact that the growly voice was coming from the other bed. Which meant... She opened one eye slowly, then the other, to see whose hair she was patting.

"...ELLA?" Oh yeah, there was some jumping back and flailing now.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Who is Ella?" Merlin asked, at least keeping his same accent, even if the voice was higher and much more feminine. He looked to Arthur and--Arthur needed more than a nightshirt.

Yes.

Um.

[bitchprince]

Yes, well, give him a moment to come to that conclusion.

Arthur rather violently swung his head to look at the both of them and -- "Oh, it's got you, too."

There was that slowness setting in.

And a couple of very creative medieval curses. Partly in Welsh.

[thatsamilkshake]

That wasn't Katchoo either. And not just because Katchoo didn't speak Welsh. And that wasn't Ella even if she looked like her.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" That'd be Francine backed up against the wall and working her way up to a flail that was almost PEOPLE DON'T HAVE HOOVES level.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Um." Merlin looked from Arthur to Francine. "I think we're girls."

STUNNING CONCLUSION, MERLIN.

[bitchprince]

Which might explain why Arthur was staring straight at him.

"No, Merlin," he ground out, "That had completely escaped my notice. Where do you get such wisdom?"

[thatsamilkshake]

Comprehension in three...two....one...

"Merlin?" Headswivel. "Arthur?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin shot Arthur an absolutely foul look. "She was confused." The 'you ass' was all in the tone.

"It's okay, Francine. We're just... um... I'm sure it'll pass?"

Hopefully.

[bitchprince]

"This better not have anything to do with those demons," Arthur bitched. Any minute now, the panic was going to hit.

[thatsamilkshake]

Francine scrubbed at her face, oddly less instinctively OMG boys and my hair is a mess now that they...weren't.

"This happened before. If it's that, it'll go away."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"It has?" Oh god, that was a terrifying thought.

[bitchprince]

"...How long ago? It really will go away?"

Beat. Beat. Wait for that panic at--

"Oh god, if I stay like this, no one will ever take me seriously!"

[thatsamilkshake]

"Last year. It went away the next day."

Beat for normal people.

Beat for Francine.

"...Gee, thanks."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"He means back home," Merlin said, trying to keep the peace.

[bitchprince]

"I can't lead the men if I'm a woman," Arthur said. It wasn't a bitch, it was sheer flail-headed desperate panic. "My father might... lock me up in a tower and pass off Morgana as his heir!"

[thatsamilkshake]

Francine blinked at him. "You have noticed Morgana's a woman too, right?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Yes, but everyone knows her to be a girl. Arthur is... not."

[bitchprince]

To put it mildly.

"And my men won't follow me into battle when I'm looking like this," Arthur had to point out again. "It's-- humiliating."

[thatsamilkshake]

Francine sighed, because frankly that still hurt, thanks, but did not throw another verbal acknowledgment of that his way, because, well. She'd be flipping out if she was a boy, too.

"Just relax, both of you. You're not going to be stuck this way."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin looked down at his chest, poking a few times there. Interesting. "How long again?"

[bitchprince]

"Please tell us so I can retreat to my room," Arthur groaned, yanking the pillow over his head.

[thatsamilkshake]

"People woke up normal--" That word sounded odd, now. "--the next day, when this happened before." Francine eyed Merlin's pokery with a bit of a wince. "Katchoo was a boy." And boy, was that a memory that swam up on her like a shark.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"You're leaving?"

[bitchprince]

"Much as I enjoy Cal's bed," Arthur muttered, "I have to go to class."

Even if he really didn't want to TA in this form. Did they have a 'sorry, I'm the wrong gender, it's humiliating, please turn me back' escape card for this kind of thing?

Which would explain why he sounded like he was going to be sick.

[thatsamilkshake]

They did. It was called 'ditching class.'

"You could always pretend to be sick," Francine said helpfully. Even Goody Two Shoes girls had some failings. Especially when the words 'pot brownies' were involved, for example.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Yes! You could... stay here." And hide with Merlin. It would totally be fun. They could braid each other's hair and everything.

[bitchprince]

"I'll go to my room, get ready for class," Arthur said, slowly, "...have Morgana get me something to wear and then, after class, I'll go to my room and stay there until this blows over."

Oh, god. Please let it blow over.

After a beat, he added, "The both of you, of course, are invited to come by if you feel the need."

[thatsamilkshake]

"I could find you--" No. Boobs or not, Morgana was the right choice. Arthur did not have child-bearing hips. She swiveled to look at Merlin. "Um. Maybe something of Katchoo's?"

Just not the jeans, unless he wanted capris.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin looked away from Arthur, tense for a moment before forcing himself to relax. "...if she wouldn't mind."

[bitchprince]

"Might be useful."

Arthur was not tugging any blankets up over himself, nope.

[thatsamilkshake]

"Not ... so much in the way of dresses," Francine said, for some reason apologetically, to Merlin. Hey, it was what girls from their time wore, right? "But shirts I can do."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Shirts are good!" Dresses would be too strange.

[bitchprince]

"Get Merlin dressed without tripping him up, will you?" Arthur implored.

... His mind had gone to dresses immediately.

[thatsamilkshake]

"...Pants are also good," Francine said just in case it wasn't clear that girls, you know. Wore those. A shirt without pants would not be good. "You just might have to stick with your own for that. Katchoo's would be too short and mine. Um."

Merlin did not have hips. To speak of. Even as a girl.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

He so---didn't.

"My trousers are fine," Merlin said, looking away toward the cupboard.

[thatsamilkshake]

They just usually have more in them and I totally didn't think that. And also Ella was a very pretty girl and apparently I have to be in bed with her to notice and I totally didn't think that either.

"...I'll... just go get that shirt now!"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"...alright," Merlin said slowly. He automatically leaned over to press a quick kiss to her lips, missing just a bit on the way there. His thoughts were on having boobs, alright! Focus was hard.

[thatsamilkshake]

Francine pulled back far too quickly and stared for a second, then gave him -- her -- erf, flail! -- a nervous smile and scrambled off the bed.

Her thoughts were kind of on him having boobs too, for what it was worth.

"I'll, um, be back soon!"

Aaaand out the door.