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Merlin was vibrating with bad contained anger.
How dare he ?
“Merlin!”
Gwen's voice stopped him from his furious walk, his eyes heating up when the other Omega got close enough to him.
"How are you? You look so angry!” Gwen ran a hand through his hair, trying to reassure him with her omega hormones.
Merlin tilted his head, allowing the girl to comb his wavy hair.
“It's not… Arthur doesn't even listen to me!” Merlin exclaimed. “I'm trying to make him understand that Sophia is a danger and he… ignores me.”
“Ah…” Gwen suddenly smiled. “There's something you need to know. Now you're old enough to hear it.”
"What are you talking about?" Merlin tilted his head, feeling slightly frightened by the smile Gwen was wearing. There was a reason why the gentle omega servant and the fearsome noble alpha were so close, and it wasn't because they were servant and master.
“It's called sweet persuasion.” Gwen whispered, as if she were sharing a huge secret with Merlin.
“Sweet persuasion?” Merlin asked, feeling slightly confused.
"Yes." Gwen nodded, sitting Merlin down by the window and starting to fix his hair, strengthening their pack bond. “You see, we Omegas don't have many advantages, but if there's one thing an Alpha can't resist, it's an Omega who appreciates them.”
“And what should I do?” Merlin asked again, still feeling unconvinced, but ready to do anything to protect Arthur.
“You see,” Gwen smiled, leaning in conspiratorially. “Alphas love to feel strong and useful, they love to feel like they have protected their omega.”
“But Arthur is not my Alpha.” Merlin protested, confused.
“But you're the Omega he spends the most time with, and it's obvious he feels protective of you, just like Morgana does of me.” Gwen smiled. “Give him some compliments, tell him that you need him to feel protected, and you'll see that he'll forget about any Sophia and focus only on you.”
Merlin murmured. It wasn't a bad idea. “Well, I'll try.”
"Let me know how it goes." Gwen smiled, before giving him a kiss on the forehead and fluttering off to her other duties.
Merlin, however, went in search of Arthur.
“Oh, Merlin…” The Alpha was looking down at his papers. “Nice of you to arrive, have you…”
Merlin sniffed, and Arthur immediately put down the paper he was reading to look at his manservant.
"What's going on with you?" Arthur asked, carefully examining the Omega's body for any injuries.
“I…” Merlin rubbed his eyes, looking away suddenly shy. "Nothing."
"It isn’t ‘nothing’." Arthur contested, standing up and approaching the boy. “You're clearly feeling bad about something! What happened?"
Merlin's gaze rested for a second on the amulet that Sophia had given to Arthur. He still had some time before the girl (was she a girl or a creature of some kind?) worked her magic against the prince.
“I… It's stupid.” Merlin murmured.
Arthur stepped in front of Merlin, grabbing his shoulders. “It's not stupid. Now, tell me."
“I was scared…” Merlin bit his lower lip, causing his blue eyes to fill with unshed tears. “And I… I was so scared .”
Arthur's Alpha felt his protectiveness rising, as did his need to protect his Omega.
He squeezed him, trying to reassure him with some Alpha pheromones.
Merlin took a deep breath, before saying, his voice still weak. “I meant no disrespect to Lady Sophia, it's just that I was afraid-” Merlin sniffed again, his eyes deceptively watery, “-and I knew you would be the best protection, because you are brave and skilled, and I …”
“Shh.” Arthur murmured, trying to reassure the Omega, his Alpha preening himself at the thought of having impressed and reassured the Omega. “I'm with you now.”
“Promise?” Merlin whispered, staring with his big, wide eyes at Arthur.
"You have my word." Arthur nodded.
(Sophia and her father disappeared soon after Merlin grabbed the locket she made and destroyed it. Then, the Omega went to chase the two Sidhe, but that's a story for another time.)