Room 325, Saturday Morning

[bigdamndestiny]

Merlin didn't remember last year with the children. Well, he did, but he was trying very hard to repress it, so...

He didn't remember.

So, he clinging to Arthur not unlike some sort of aquatic creature. Because it was comfortable for him at least.

[For the guy and any spawn who show up]]

Comments

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

Later that morning, Rosemary slipped away from the kitchen where her mother, her mother's friend, and her mother's friends kids were handwavily having pancakes to try to find her father.

"Dad?" she called, tapping at the door that, somehow, felt the most right. "Are you in there?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin froze again, mid cleaning the room. Because one child clearly wasn't enough.

"...hello?"

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

Rosemary decided that counted as an invitation. "Hi!" she said again, walking in as if this was all completely normal. "Are you cleaning? Can I help? I already helped Mom make pancakes, but that's okay."

She looked around the room. "Uncle Arthur lives here too?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"This is... Uncle Arthur's room. Actually." Don't ask, don't ask, don't ask. "Mom?"

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

"Mom," Rosemary confirmed, then furrowed her brow and looked puzzled until things slipped slightly into place. "Is this like the thing she was telling Des about, about how you don't remember everything right now 'cause we aren't born yet?"

She seemed unphased by that, but she did have two magic users for parents.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"That would be it exactly," Merlin admitted. "It's been one of those days here, it seems."

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, Mom talks about how they happened a lot here. But I don't get what's different, 'cause where we live is weird too," Rosemary said. "Um. I'm Rosemary. I'm 10. Mom's name is Tara."

She perked up a little at the 'one of those days'. "Do I have brothers and sisters or something?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Tara? Wasn't she...

He just attracted lesbians, it seemed.

"A brother," Merlin replied quickly. "Somehow one Arthur and I had."

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

"Maybe you have surr'gate mothers in way back then," Rosemary suggested. (Lesbian mothers were, apparently, a font of information on alternate ways to reproduce.) "Can I meet him?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"When he comes back with Arthur, perhaps!" Then Merlin remembered the last time kids met. "Er, try to be kind to him?"

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

Rosemary looked confused. "Sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

... yes, she was one of those kids.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

She really, really was.

"Would you like to help clean?" Oh, that was a bad idea.

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

"I wouldn't mind," Rosemary said, looking around the room.

"What can I do? I'm not s'posed to touch Uncle Arthur's stuff usually. Can I use magic?"

Dad would sometimes let her, for things like this. Mom was persnickety.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"...you have magic?" Merlin, don't be so excited. "Like your mother or like me?"

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

"Kind of like both of you?" Rosemary said with a little shrug. "I can do some little stuff without thinking about it the way you can, but Mom's teaching me her way and I'm getting better. I can do charms and stuff now."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Very good! How about... you help pick up some of the clothing?"

A beat.

"Stay away from the bed, though. He's... very particular about it."

Yes.

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

Rosemary looked at Merlin askance for a fraction of a moment. She might have had an idea what kind of relationship her dad and Uncle Arthur had, but if he wanted to make excuses to keep her away from the bed --

Ew. Not that she'd say that.

"No problem," she said breezily, and started gesturing, gathering the clothes into a neat pile through telekinesis. "What are you going to do?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"You're very good at that," Merlin replied, very, very carefully shoving anything incriminating under the blanket on the bed. "I'll take care of the rest, yeah?"

[wee-n-majik.livejournal.com]

"Okay!" Rosemary said, beaming from the compliment as she went about her work.

She was going to give everybody diabetes any day.