I absolutely loved this. The original tore my heart to shreds and this one stomps on the pieces. I loved that Arthur recognized that he could do nothing to make Merlin feel better (well he could if he knew but he doesn't). Loved that Merlin was so distant to him, kept looking over at the courtyard which only ratchets up the anxiety.

Loved this line especially...

If Merlin doesn’t trust him after this long it’s unlikely he ever will.

Because it just makes the whole situation that much sadder.

Thank you so much and feel free to continue to visit this universe. I want to fix them so badly!