“A Clever Plan..because If Harry Here And His Friend Ron Hadn’t Discovered This Book, Why–Ginny

you mentioned in one of your merlin hcs about how his magic doesn't like being repressed and at times it gets to be really bad and i was like wondering,,, if you would please write something on it-

Ohhhhhhh yeah, yeah! Here ya go:

Merlin knew it was going to bad the second he saw his hand. Black and blistered with a worrying amount of stiffness to it. He swallowed, looking around desperately for a bandage while internally reassuring himself this time would be no different than others.

...it was a lie. It shouldn’t have been, but it was. Merlin could argue that he had dealt with his, uh, issues by himself for years. Well, maybe not years. His mother had always been there. Then there was Gaius... and then Lancelot.

And now nobody. His mother was in Ealdor, Gaius safely tucked away in his quarters, and Lancelot...

He wasn’t going to think about Lancelot right now.

The point was that it was an inopportune time for his body to revolt while out in the middle of the woods with limited medical supplies and absolutely no moral support. He took a long breath. It would be fine. He would be fine. Perhaps he could just wait until everyone was asleep and -

“Merlin!”

Completely, totally, utterly fine.

“I already fed the horses,” Merlin said, hastily wrapping his hand. “And took care of dinner.” He added. Arthur barely looked up from where he was skinning a rabbit, eyes somewhere between distracted and thoughtful.

“Have you - what did you do?” He interrupted himself with a nod towards Merlin’s hand. “You didn’t fall over again did you?” He snorted. Merlin gave what he hoped to be a playful glare.

“I cut it on your - ah,” He gasped, falling forward a bit. Leon appeared from nowhere to steady him. “Javelins.” He managed and another sharp tug of pain radiated through his body. He felt it twist in his chest, moving down his arms and towards his stomach. He tried not to cry out. “Um,” He began. Leon was saying something. “I... might just need to lay down. Tired. Just tired.” He said, giving a shaky laugh. Elyan’s face appeared.

“Merlin?” He asked and the pain momentarily ebbed away. It was then he realized he was surrounded by bewildered knights. “Are you-?”

“Yeah,” he said quickly, “I was just... working late with Gaius last night. Might need a quick nap is all.” He said. Gwaine was staring at him oddly, lips pressed into a thin line as he looked him up and down. “Is that okay?” He asked, turning to Arthur.

“Yeah, go ahead.” He said, waving him away with a note of exasperation, “I’m not sure why I don’t plan for your poor health.” He said lightly though there was a slight purse to his lips. Merlin gave a sneer in return, but it felt a little weak as he stumbled towards the cot he has thrown by the fire.

Then the world turned white... and Lancelot was there.

“Am I dead?” He mumbled, trying to sit up only for a wave of pain to hit, confirming that he was still very much alive. “Ah... no.” He whispered and a hand was on his shoulder while the rest of the world dissolved into whispers.

“Hey. Merlin, what’s happening?” Lancelot asked. Part of the weight on him disappeared. Thank God. He didn’t have to do this alone.

“Again. Shouldn’t have waited.” He mumbled and Lancelot frowned, rubbing the side of his arm consolingly. “Too tired to get rid of it.” He yawned.

“Okay,” Lancelot said, “Let’s fix it. Um, what do we do?” He asked. Merlin gave a sharp jerk as another burning pain jolted through him. There was an irony there to be sure. If he got caught using magic... he burned. If he didn’t use magic.. he still burned.

“What... what you normally do.” Merlin hissed and Lancelot reached forward to wipe some sweat from his brow. “Please. Knife?” He asked. Lancelot winced.

“Knife? What does he mean knife-”

“-what it said!”

“Why didn’t you say something earlier? We should have-”

“-even know what’s causing this.”

Merlin let out a soft whimper and the noise went silent. Right. He turned and reached for his pack blindly, ignoring the burning in his arms growing more and more demanding.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” Lancelot said. Though to who was unclear. Merlin’s brain felt too fuzzy to sort it out. “When he came back with Merlin after the dorocha he gave me the letter. I didn’t know what it was, but my guess is he was talking about whatever this is-”

“Knife.” Merlin said, a bit impatiently. He was so stupid. How could he let it get this bad? Lancelot normally reminded him, but Lancelot was...

He was right here, wasn’t he?

With a stab of relief, his hand curled around the handle of the knife in his bag. Good. Good, he could start then. There was a yelp when he brought it out and suddenly a hand was covering his.

“Let me, okay?” Lancelot said. Merlin flopped to the ground. That was good. He was too tired anyways. An angry buzz followed, “I trust Lancelot, okay?! Even if he is dead.” Lancelot snapped. Merlin frowned in confusion, but the burning held his attention more than the voice. Something touched his arm and he felt his sleeve roll up. Silence followed.

“Holy shit.”

That didn’t... that didn’t sound like Lance... but... he took a deep breath, thoughts wandering. He could imagine how his arms must look by now. Blackened with purple and brown like bruises that covered every inch of skin. He held out his arm impatiently. Nothing happened at first, but then something soft touched him and he could feel the very tip of the knife go in.

Thank God. The release was pretty instant. He glanced over to see black blood trickling down. It wasn’t nearly as deep or long as he normally went with - Lancelot was hesitating for whatever reason - but it worked. The pain began to ebb away as panicked noises rose around him. Lancelot went to the other side to for his other arm.

“Okay, now... um, give me that bottle.” Lancelot said. Merlin groaned. He didn’t want to grab anything. He wanted to sleep. “No,” Lance said, perhaps reading his mind. “Stay awake, Merlin. Drink this.” He said and Merlin opened his mouth. Right. Drinking. Important. He ignored the cuts and grabbed whatever was offered, downing the liquid. It was blessedly cold. The burning subsided even more as he took a few more gulps.

“Thank you.” He murmured. A hand was running through his hair. “Better.” He said. He wasn’t done yet though. Not... not yet. Lancelot would already know that though.

“...hey, um. Merlin? Do you have to go alone?”

Or maybe he didn’t.

“Yeah,” he said and sat up. The world spun. “Yeah. I got it. Stay... stay with the others. Just in case, okay? It only takes a bit.” He promised and staggered up. Hands steadied him.

“I don’t like this at all.” Someone said. Merlin shook his head, trying to focus on the ground in front of him. “Someone needs to go with him. What’s he even doing? I don’t-”

“I don’t mean to be mean... but do any of you seriously think you are closer to Merlin than Lancelot was to question this?” Lancelot said quietly. There was a low murmur. “Merlin,” he said and stepped in front of him. For a moment his form shifted... shifted and... he looked different... “Hey. Don’t take too long, okay?” he said. He nodded. He never took too long. Too many things could happen.

Leaving behind what sounded like a swarm of bees, he walked out deeper into the forest. He wasn’t sure how far he made it, but his body seemed to determine it was far enough because he fell - gagging a bit as he did so - before letting go. It felt kind of like breaking to the surface of water and breathing deeply. The world stop spinning and everything seemed to snap into place all at once. The burning turned into a warmth that burst from his chest to the fingers. He breathed again and this time when he looked around he could see a field of flowers and vines surrounding him.

He smiled a bit. Then he reached out and let his magic burst forth once more, growing a small tree and allowing it to sprout. He stayed out for a few more minutes, growing plants and making butterflies until he couldn’t think of anything other than sleep. He rubbed his eyes, standing up to grimace at the remaining blood on his arms - oddly black like he had smeared ink all over him. After washing it off in a nearby stream he walked back to the camp.

“Merlin!”

Wait. Lancelot was dead. He hadn’t...

With rising panic, he turned to see Gwaine watching him curiously. A few of the other knights were also awake, looking towards the rising sun as they each packed and readied the horses. Arthur paused in looking at his satchel.

Shit, shit, shit-

Elyan put a hand on Arthur’s arm and whispered something to him. Arthur frowned, but gave a small nod before turning away. Merlin wasn’t sure what that meant so he looked back at Gwaine with what he hoped wasn’t guilty eyes.

“You good?” He asked, walking up to him. He grabbed Merlin’s arms to look at them solemnly.

“Um, yes.” Merlin answered and rubbed the back of his neck, “What... exactly happened?” He asked. Gwaine grimaced before digging into his pocket.

“Well, you scared the shit out of everyone mainly. You were kind of like a zombie. Called us Lancelot a few times. You know, typical stuff that would freak people out.” He reasoned and pulled out a piece of parchment. “Luckily, I had instructions.” He explained. Merlin frowned but accepted it. The page looked worn - ink slightly dulled over time but still legible despite being hastily written.

Gwaine, the first line read.

I hope that, for once in your life, you listened to me when I asked you to wait until you returned to Camelot to read this. Also, do us all a favor and keep this on hand. You may have a lot of questions, but I need you to trust me on this one particular topic. The topic being Merlin.

There are many things that are kept strictly between Merlin and me. Seeing as you’re his best friend and I’ll soon be dead... I think I should let you in on one of those things. I can’t explain everything - I would never betray his trust completely - but I do know him well and know he isn’t someone to particularly seek out help. At least once a month (sometimes more) Merlin gets... sick. Really sick. His skin bruises from his chest to his fingertips, his blood becomes black and burns him from the inside, and mind is completely out of working order. It’s a unique condition that could kill him if he waits too long to deal with it.

Expect him to wait too long to deal with it.

When it inevitably happens, the first thing you need to do is (very) carefully bleed him out a bit. It’ll clear his head a bit to do what he needs to get done. Honey and crushed peppermint with yarrow also helps. Ask Gaius (and only Gaius) to make you some to have on hand. Say I asked you to get it and he’ll know what you mean.

Now - and this is the most important part - when he is conscious enough to deal with the rest himself do not follow him. It’s strange, I know. Consider this a dying wish of sorts. Leave him alone and make sure nobody else goes after him. No matter how bad he may seem or how worried you are... just make sure he gets twenty minutes to himself.

Lastly, to Merlin... when this happens, I know Gwaine will probably hand you this letter as an explanation for how he knew how to help out. Hi. It’s me. Hopefully, I haven’t given away too much of what you were concerned about. If I may offer you some advice... just accept some help. Maybe let Gwaine in on everything. Or don’t. That’s up to you. Just try your best not to do this completely alone. There’s really no reason for it.

Good luck,

Lancelot

Merlin stared. He blinked a few times. Then reread it... and reread again. Slowly, he looked up at Gwaine. There was a long pause before Gwaine gave a small wave.

“So... I won’t ask questions,” he said and grimaced in the direction of the others, “Leon is too polite to ask. Elyan is too smart to ask. Percival... well,” he smiled fondly, “Percival is also too polite to ask. Arthur though?” He said and gave a slight shrug. “Yeah. You should have seen his face at the black blood.”

Merlin paused.

“I... have a blood disorder.” He said slowly. Gwaine looked at him. “Thank you though. Um, sorry Lancelot stuck you with that-”

“Are you kidding?” Gwaine snorted and reached up to put a hand on his shoulder, “Him calling me your best friend was the best. I couldn’t show anyone this letter for so long!” He snorted and squeezed tightly, “And I’m glad I could help you. Even if I’m wildly confused and pretty sure you’re cursed rather than dealing with a blood disorder.” He said and let go. “And don’t worry, I’ll keep Arthur off your - oh, hey.” He said when Merlin shoved his hand off and pulled him into a hug. “Nice.” He decided. Merlin snorted.

“Thank you,” he repeated more genuine this time. “I... one day I’ll explain it all to you.” He said a bit slower. Gwaine shrugged.

“Whatever you want. Just try not to die and I’ll be happy.”

Merlin wasn’t sure what he expected. Dear or alive... his friends somehow kept looking out for him.

morgana: merlin’s a lover, not a fighter

merlin, who just took down a whole army with barely a glance: i’m a what?

Arthur: We both look very handsome tonight. Merlin: You know, if you'd just said that I looked handsome, I would have said, "So do you." Arthur: I couldn't take that chance.

For people upset at the defenders of tomorrow

Chill it’s just an au that people are having fun with.

It’s no more “disrespectful” than any other au a fan has made. Like we gonna be mad at the coffee shop au’s next?The mermaid au’s?

You really out here thinking we could make a multimillion dollar animated reboot show?

You can fight us all

I'd very much like to punch a feminist.

I’d never, ever hurt a lady but I’d be happy to punch a feminist. It’d bring me great joy.

why is the most relatable teenager in this book the alien

thebestlaurenmontgomery: I’m cutting it close for SDCC announcements this year, but we’ll be doing our #voltronlegendarydefender panel tomorrow, July 20th, 10:15-11:15am in room 6BCF. Come see me, @jds_77@bex_tk @rhysiedarby @jeremyshada and the first time appearance of Josh Hamilton our story editor. We’ll also be doing a signing the following day where you can get an exclusive poster that continues the parade of Voltron characters from previous con signing posters! That’ll be from 11-12 in Autograph Alley 05.

i also keep a bag of chopped onion in the freezer, but i wouldn’t make fucking risotto

JKR is once again attacking a woman of colour

In Chile we didn’t nonviolently defeat Pinochet: he decided to step down. Yes, we got to vote for whether we wanted him to stay on power or not, and the “no” won. However, had he wanted to stay in power he would have. He became dictator by fucking bombing the presidential house and killing anyone that disagreed with him, don’t think he couldn’t have done it again. But by “stepping down” he could live the rest of his life as a free man, with the income of an ex-president added to everything he stole, what he was paid by the USA, and whatever he got from allowing narcos to do whatever they wanted.

He wasn’t arrested after we returned to democracy. And when he was finally arrested, it wasn’t even done by us; the order was issued by Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón for the causes of genocide, terrorism and torture, when Pinochet was in London for medical reasons, almost 10 years after stepping down. How humiliating is that? That the murderer of our people had to be arrested in a different continent, because nobody was brave enough to do so in the land he abused?

So no, I don’t believe nonviolent struggle can defeat a dictator. For at least one of the examples quoted didn’t involve much “defeating”, but the dictator deciding to abide by democracy for once. And it took 17 years of dictatorship, 200 000 people in exile, the torture of 28 459 (denounced), 2125 deaths and 1102 missing people (in a country that had less than 9 million people). Do you want that “peaceful way” for your country?

Waging Nonviolence

Can nonviolent struggle defeat a dictator? This database emphatically says yes

The Global Nonviolent Action Database details some 40 cases of mass movements overcoming tyrants through strategic nonviolent campaigns.

"With Donald Trump set to take office after a fear-mongering campaign that reignited concerns about his desire to become a dictator, a reasonable question comes up: Can nonviolent struggle defeat a tyrant?

There are many great resources that answer this question, but the one that’s been on my mind lately is the Global Nonviolent Action Database, or GNAD, built by the Peace Studies department at Swarthmore College. Freely accessible to the public, this database — which launched under my direction in 2011 — contains over 1,400 cases of nonviolent struggle from over a hundred countries, with more cases continually being added by student researchers.  

At quick glance, the database details at least 40 cases of dictators who were overthrown by the use of nonviolent struggle, dating back to 1920. These cases — which include some of the largest nations in the world, spanning Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America — contradict the widespread assumption that a dictator can only be overcome by violence. What’s more, in each of these cases, the dictator had the desire to stay, and possessed violent means for defense. Ultimately, though, they just couldn’t overcome the power of mass nonviolent struggle.  

In a number of countries, the dictator had been embedded for years at the time they were pushed out. Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, for example, had ruled for over 29 years. In the 1990s, citizens usually whispered his name for fear of reprisal. Mubarak legalized a “state of emergency,” which meant censorship, expanded police powers and limits on the news media. Later, he “loosened” his rule, putting only 10 times as many police as the number of protesters at each demonstration.  

The GNAD case study describes how Egyptians grew their democracy movement despite repression, and finally won in 2011. However, gaining a measure of freedom doesn’t guarantee keeping it. As Egypt has shown in the years since, continued vigilance is needed, as is pro-active campaigning to deepen the degree of freedom won.  

Some countries repeated the feat of nonviolently deposing a ruler: In Chile, the people nonviolently threw out a dictator in 1931 and then deposed a new dictator in 1988. South Koreans also did it twice, once in 1960 and again in 1987. (They also just stopped their current president from seizing dictatorial powers, but that’s not yet in the database.)  

In each case people had to act without knowing what the reprisals would be...

It’s striking that in many of the cases I looked at, the movement avoided merely symbolic marches and rallies and instead focused on tactics that impose a cost on the regime. As Donald Trump wrestles to bring the armed forces under his control, for example, I can imagine picketing army recruiting offices with signs, “Don’t join a dictator’s army.”  

Another important takeaway: Occasional actions that simply protest a particular policy or egregious action aren’t enough. They may relieve an individual’s conscience for a moment, but, ultimately, episodic actions, even large ones, don’t assert enough power. Over and over, the Global Nonviolent Action Database shows that positive results come from a series of escalating, connected actions called a campaign...

-via Waging Nonviolence, January 8, 2025. Article continues below.

East Germany’s peaceful revolution

When East Germans began their revolt against the German Democratic Republic in 1988, they knew that their dictatorship of 43 years was backed by the Soviet Union, which might stage a deadly invasion. They nevertheless acted for freedom, which they gained and kept.

Researcher Hanna King tells us that East Germans began their successful campaign in January 1988 by taking a traditional annual memorial march and turning it into a full-scale demonstration for human rights and democracy. They followed up by taking advantage of a weekly prayer for peace at a church in Leipzig to organize rallies and protests. Lutheran pastors helped protect the organizers from retaliation and groups in other cities began to stage their own “Monday night demonstrations.”  

The few hundred initial protesters quickly became 70,000, then 120,000, then 320,000, all participating in the weekly demonstrations. Organizers published a pamphlet outlining their vision for a unified German democracy and turned it into a petition. Prisoners of conscience began hunger strikes in solidarity.

By November 1988, a million people gathered in East Berlin, chanting, singing and waving banners calling for the dictatorship’s end. The government, hoping to ease the pressure, announced the opening of the border to West Germany. Citizens took sledgehammers to the hated Berlin Wall and broke it down. Political officials resigned to protest the continued rigidity of the ruling party and the party itself disintegrated. By March 1990 — a bit over two years after the campaign was launched — the first multi-party, democratic elections were held.

Students lead the way in Pakistan

In Pakistan, it was university students (rather than religious clerics) who launched the 1968-69 uprising that forced Ayub Khan out of office after his decade as a dictator. Case researcher Aileen Eisenberg tells us that the campaign later required multiple sectors of society to join together to achieve critical mass, especially workers. 

It was the students, though, who took the initiative — and the initial risks. In 1968, they declared that the government’s declaration of a “decade of development” was a fraud, protesting nonviolently in major cities. They sang and marched to their own song called “The Decade of Sadness.” 

Police opened fire on one of the demonstrations, killing several students. In reaction the movement expanded, in numbers and demands. Boycotts grew, with masses of people refusing to pay the bus and railway fares on the government-run transportation system. Industrial workers joined the movement and practiced encirclement of factories and mills. An escalation of government repression followed, including more killings. 

As the campaign expanded from urban to rural parts of Pakistan, the movement’s songs and political theater thrived. Khan responded with more violence, which intensified the determination among a critical mass of Pakistanis that it was time for him to go.

After months of growing direct action met by repressive violence, the army decided its own reputation was being degraded by their orders from the president, and they demanded his resignation. He complied and an election was scheduled for 1970 — the first since Pakistan’s independence in 1947.

Why use nonviolent struggle?

The campaigns in East Germany and Pakistan are typical of all 40 cases in their lack of a pacifist ideology, although some individuals active in the movements had that foundation. What the cases do seem to have in common is that the organizers saw the strategic value of nonviolent action, since they were up against an opponent likely to use violent repression. Their commitment to nonviolence would then rally the masses to their side. 

That encourages me. There’s hardly time in the U.S. during Trump’s regime to convert enough people to an ideological commitment to nonviolence, but there is time to persuade people of the strategic value of a nonviolent discipline. 

It’s striking that in many of the cases I looked at, the movement avoided merely symbolic marches and rallies and instead focused on tactics that impose a cost on the regime. As Donald Trump wrestles to bring the armed forces under his control, for example, I can imagine picketing army recruiting offices with signs, “Don’t join a dictator’s army.”  

Another important takeaway: Occasional actions that simply protest a particular policy or egregious action aren’t enough. They may relieve an individual’s conscience for a moment, but, ultimately, episodic actions, even large ones, don’t assert enough power. Over and over, the Global Nonviolent Action Database shows that positive results come from a series of escalating, connected actions called a campaign — the importance of which is also outlined in my book “How We Win.”  

As research seminar students at Swarthmore continue to wade through history finding new cases, they are digging up details on struggles that go beyond democracy. The 1,400 already-published cases include campaigns for furthering environmental justice, racial and economic justice, and more. They are a resource for tactical ideas and strategy considerations, encouraging us to remember that even long-established dictators have been stopped by the power of nonviolent campaigns.

-via Waging Nonviolence, January 8, 2025.