DISCLAIMER: I own nothing to do with "Merlin", the BBC or any Arthurian Legends. This is a work purely for fun and is completely non-profit making so please don't sue!

TIME AND TENDERNESS

Of course she had been attracted to him, any red-blooded woman in her right mind would be, but he had left Camelot and she had returned to her very plain, very ordinary life as maidservant to the King's ward, with only what-ifs and maybes to distract her from her daily chores. Over time, her thoughts of the dark and handsome knight faded to the back of her mind and images of another had gradually taken over. Blond, blue-eyed and completely unattainable for one such as herself.

Ever since that fateful morning of the Prince's secret tourney and then the subsequent kidnap and rescue from the Mercian barbarians including the reappearance then disappearance of Lancelot, Gwen's head and heart had been a whirl of conflicting emotions. That she loved Arthur with all her heart, there was no doubt, but it was a love that would be forbidden in the foreseeable future and possibly beyond. No amount of heartfelt kisses and meaningful looks would change the reality of their situation and neither of them could see a way out of it. If anything, the events involving the Lady Vivian had made clear to the servant girl that boundaries had to be laid and that she could no longer fool herself into believing that there could be a future for them as a couple.

Lancelot. Gwen's hands paused in their work of scrubbing the day's load of linen in the large washtub. A small wistful smile softly curved up her lips as she remembered how earnestly they had declared their feelings for each other, how she thought that they had been given another chance to be together. The smile was gone as quickly as it had appeared when she recalled how she had woken up from her brief slumber only to be told by Merlin that he had gone, leaving only a few words as solace for her. The love that Gwen felt for the humble knight had been stronger by virtue of the fact that he was attainable, there was no conflict of social class and moreover, he was free to be open about his feelings towards her. However, all that meant nothing now.

The heir to the throne of Camelot watched as the young woman stopped her work to lift a soap-sud covered hand to push a stray lock of dark curls behind her ear and stretch her back before returning to the laundry in the steaming tub. Arthur remembered clearly the touch of those hands on his face as she entreated him to return to her alive from his fight with King Olaf. To him, Gwen's fingers had been soft as silk on his skin despite the fact that they were work-roughened from years of toil.

He found himself doing that a lot lately, finding excuses so that he might be able to see her albeit from afar. Today, he told himself that he had to see about the state of his shirts, never mind that Merlin took great care with his clothing and there was no problem with any item of his laundry. Yesterday, he had decided that he would personally deliver to the kitchen a boar that he had hunted that morning. The day before that, it was high time that he had a proper tour of the lower town so that he could check on the well-being of Camelot's people (in truth, he hadn't seen Gwen all day and wanted to find her).

Arthur sighed and his blue eyes grew a shade darker as his emotions took over. Watching from afar was all he could do. Gwen had set her boundaries and now maintained a proper distance from him, never allowing her self to be closer to him than was necessary nor to spend longer in his company than was appropriate. He could feel her drawing away from him and there was little he could do about it without risking his father's wrath, not to mention the likely repercussions on his kingdom as a whole.

He was also aware that it was not he but another who was responsible for the faraway gaze that occasionally appeared on Gwen's face and it hurt him more than anything to know that he was not the only one who had a claim on her heart.

Leaning against the gate to the courtyard of the laundry-house, the young Prince considered turning to leave now that he had managed to glimpse the woman that he held so dear and had taught him so much about himself. However, Gwen caught the movement of his stirring in her peripheral vision and their eyes caught as she lifted her head to see properly. She felt her heart skip a beat then lowered her gaze and bowed her head as she turned and dipped a low curtsey to Arthur.

"My Lord."

NOTE: Sincere apologies for the cheesy title, had no idea what to call it and couldn't think of anything better.

Haven't written anything for ages so it's a bit of a slow starter.

Also, didn't really know where the story was/is going, it was just something I wanted to write down and I freely admit that there is no clear structure so please don't flame too much.

Other than that, I would like your opinions/reviews

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