Note: I do not own Merlin (but I gladly would). Furthermore, I do not know much about the English political system. I tried to stay semi-factual, but the only knowledge I have is whatever pops up on google. If I've made any grievously large errors don't hesitate to correct me! I would've picked a different profession for Arthur, but since he's the king in legends, I figured a political role would be the best fit in an AU. Also, the street names/places are mostly fictional. Pardon my lack of geographical knowledge of the UK.
Arthur Pendragon was the 10th wealthiest man in England, the most eligible-and handsome-bachelor in the country, and this year's favorite to win the election for the office of Prime Minister. And he was exhausted. He had just finished up solving a particularly difficult problem in his campaign, and all he wanted to do was go home, have a drink, and lie down.
Arthur's family was entrenched in the British political system. Arthur's too-many-greats grandfather was actually royalty. However, over the years the gene pool widened out and Arthur lost count in what "number" he was in line for the throne. It didn't matter to him though, since he figured his miniscule amount of royal blood didn't allow him anymore of a chance to secure the throne than that of someone who was 100% a commoner. Arthur's grandfather had been the prime minister, and his father, Uther, was involved in international politics through the wildly successful Pendragon Industries he pioneered. It specialized in military strategies and weapons, and boasted to have some of the greatest minds of this generation employed under its wing. Many countries sought Uther Pendragon's vast military knowledge, and through these means the Pendragons increased their already large fortune.
However, although he was fabulously wealthy, Arthur preferred to take modest means of transportations from point A to point B. In this case, that meant taking the tube home. As he stepped out into the cool evening air from his office the ghost of a smile was on his face. He was exhausted, yes, but it had been a productive day. He had gained several points over his opponent, Lance DuLac in the polls, and was quite pleased. As he walked to the tube few people recognized him.
'They never did', Arthur humorously thought. Although his face was plastered over every square inch of London, people rarely expected Arthur to be the type of man who would be walking around on the street. In fact, when someone recognized him, they typically thought he just bore a "similar resemblance" to the Arthur from the posters.
Once he reached the tube station and boarded, Arthur sat down and closed his eyes. He needed to clear his head from any thoughts about work. Instead, he wanted to concentrate on the lovely new intern at his work-what was her name?
'Perhaps Vivian', Arthur finally concluded. Her beautiful long blonde hair, grey-green eyes, ivory skin, and otheranatomy was on Arthur's mind as the train screeched to a stop with a jolt. Arthur's eyes flew open with the doors as people scurried out and into the transportation device.
He noticed that in the recent influx of people, there were now more people who stood up than sat down. As the tube started moving again, the sudden lurch sent one of the people standing tumbling down into his lap.
The first thing Arthur noticed about her was probably not the best part of her body to be acquainted with a complete female stranger. However he couldn't help it since the girl tried to stop herself from falling, but only ended up making the landing more awkward. It's not to say that she was showing an indecent amount of skin-far from it, as she was bundled up against the harsh winter weather. But she had still landed with her chest in his face and her chair as his lap.
After the initial shock of being so close to an intimate part of the female body, he looked up to see her face a healthy shade of scarlet which contrasted beautifully with her dark sun-kissed skin.
"I'm soterribly sorry!" she said, as she practically leapt off of him.
Arthur only laughed and said, "No worries-"
"Guinevere Leodegrance. But most people call me Gwen."
"No worries Guinevere," Arthur said with a smile.
For indeed, he mused, if anyone could've fallen into his lap no one more lovely could've done it. Thoughts of the blonde-haired intern quickly fled his mind and were replaced with images of the angel in front of him. She had dark curls which were messily pinned up into a resemblance of what could've been a neat bun at one point in the day. However, most of her hair, and head, were covered up by the lavender colored beanie she wore upon her head. She wore a long pea coat which matched the shade of her hat, and had a cream colored plaid pattern on it. She wore light brown leggings with cream legwarmers and soft brown boots along with a milk chocolate colored scarf which was neatly tucked into her jacket. As he checked her out, he noticed that she had a very large, yet fashionable, satchel that seemed to weigh as much as she did. Or, at least as far as he could tell since what he assumed was a very light frame underneath all of her layers. Furthermore, she held a large pile of books, files, and miscellaneous papers in her arms along with a mug of coffee.
"Please, sit down," Arthur insisted as he began to stand.
Guinevere merely turned a deeper shade of scarlet-something Arthur personally thought was impossible, and quickly rebuffed him with a hurried, "No thanks."
"Really," Arthur said, "I insist. You've got a lot in your arms, and I merely have this."
He gestured to his laptop bag, and gestured his now vacated seat to Guinevere.
"No, really, I'm fine. The next stop is mine," she muttered, not wanting to cause a scene.
Arthur's eyebrows raised in surprise. He said, "Really? How fortunate, for mine is too. Please let me make amends for causing you embarrassment and help you carry your things for as long as our paths align."
Guinevere raised her eyebrows as she snorted and said, "Honestly, how many girls do you use that line on? It wasn't even your fault, since the train is the cause of this…mess."
Arthur laughed. She wasn't as demure as he initially perceived.
"I promise you, I don't make a habit of picking up random girls," he said. 'Although that was actually only a half-truth' Arthur thought. Although it was true now, he had "made his rounds" so to speak when he was younger, and his reputation stayed with his buddies who he often went out with. Now, although the "player" reputation lingered, he actually hadn't been with a girl for quite some time. Sure, there was the odd beauty here and there for a much needed date for a social function, but nothing more than that. Moreover, this girl was physically a knock-out. 'And', Arthur noted, 'there seemed to be something more to her.'
Guinevere looked at him suspiciously. Yet there was something about the man's eyes which compelled her to believe him. 'Not to mention,' Gwen thought, 'his rugged good looks.' It had hardly escaped her notice-especially when she landed straight into his lap. She could already tell from the brief interaction she had with him that he had a six-pack, firm chest, and a light tan. These traits, coupled with his strong jaw, golden hair, and dazzling baby blues, made him the epitome of what Gwen supposed the definition of "drop-dead gorgeously handsome" would be. However, she was not foolish. She didn't even know the man's name!
"I would love to accept your chivalrous offer, but I don't even know your name," was the best "smooth and cool" reply Gwen could come up with. Even as she spoke she was proud of herself. Normally she was a stuttering fool in front of people she didn't know well-especially extremely good-looking men.
Arthur raised his eyebrows once more in amusement as an inner battle took over in his mind. On one hand, he felt stupid for not mentioning his name earlier and wanted to spit it out quickly in hopes of her agreeing. After all, there was not much time left before they had to stop, and this may be the last time he ever saw the beautiful Guinevere. On the other hand, however, Arthur didn't wish to tell her his name. As beautiful and intriguing as she seemed from the brief interaction they had, he didn't want her to treat him as "The Arthur Pendragon". In the end, his eagerness to get to know her better won out. He figured that she would eventually solve his "oh so mysterious" identity even if he never told her and they parted ways. And he dearly did notwant to part ways with her.
"Arthur Pendragon," he said, as the train again lurched to a stop.
Gwen couldn't hear him over the screeching breaks, but she saw his mouth moving. And, since he replied, she decided to take him up on his offer. After all, it really didn't matter if they were strangers. It's not as if she expected to meet this Adonis again. 'Even if they did,' Gwen thought, 'I can always say I don't remember his name, or didn't hear it. Then at least I would have an excuse, even if it was embarrassing, to talk this handsome man again!'
Arthur smiled, and all traces of his previous exhaustion fled. He quickly took up the copious amount of documents she held in her hands, the proffered seat quickly forgotten, as he led the way out of the doors.
As they walked out into the open air the street lights turned on. The swarms of people which generally littered the area increased as rush hour was nigh.
"Where are you headed?" Arthur asked politely.
Gwen took out a phone after a few minutes of rummaging through her large vacuum of a purse. After quickly typing in an address, which she hid from Arthur, she found the directions to her home.
"Up to Townsend, then I'll make a right," Gwen said. Then, with a more apologetic tone, she quickly added, "Sorry, I'm new to this district. So I don't know my way around much. And I would've asked someone for help, it's not like I'm above that-not that I couldn't ask you since you live around here. I mean I think you do-that's not to say that I know. I mean, I figured that I have this fancy phone why not use it? Wait-I mean…. I mean, I just moved here a few days ago." She finished her ramblings lamely.
'Stupid!' she thought, 'why would I tell a complete stranger this? And I thought that I was done with rambling! Especially in front of someone as sexy as him...' However, her self-deprecating rant came to an end with the sound of Arthur's deep guffaw.
"Guinevere, it's ok," he extracted a free arm from underneath her papers to kindly pat her on the arm as he finished his sentiment, "You don't need to explain yourself to use your own phone."
Although Arthur wouldn't admit it, but he loved her ramblings. He was curious about how he could already use the word "love" to describe how he felt about her-even if it was just a little aspect of her personality. He hadn't even been with Guinevere for an hour, yet it felt...right. He loved that she cared enough about his opinions and feelings to attempt to explain herself to him. Even if it was what to her was a complete stranger's feelings.
"You know, I also make a right at Townsend," Arthur said casually. He tried not to sound too ecstatic about the chance to spend more time with her.
"Oh?" Gwen said, "Well after that I'm off to the Red District. You know, the one sort of by that really rich neighborhood…what is it called? Albion Heights or something"
Here, Arthur shifted slightly, feeling uncomfortable for he did not know if Guinevere would approve or disapprove of the fact that he lived there. In the "really rich neighborhood" of Albion Heights. It was here that Arthur realized that he already sought her approval. 'Idiot,' he thought, 'you've just met her! And now you're already thinking about her opinion like it's the law!'
Gwen could sense the shift in the atmosphere. It was almost tangible as the handsome blonde man brooded. She quickly thought over what she said that could change his demeanor and nearly slapped herself in the face.
'Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean…I mean if you live in the Heights it wasn't supposed to be an offence. Erm, I've never been over there you know! I just know their general direction. Unless you don't live there, of course. In which case nevermind. Maybe you just know someone who lives there…I mean, not that I'm trying to pry…erm,' here Guinevere paused. They had been so wrapped up in the other's presence and the conversation that they didn't realize they had already turned right at Townsend, and reached the part of George St. which separated the two neighborhoods. That is, until they hadreached it.
Arthur softly let out a breath he had unconsciously been holding once he realized she didn't mind the area he lived in. In fact, she was nearly tripping over herself in an attempt to apologize for her perceived offence! This woman was far different from the confident woman he met on the tube, but yet somehow he could tell that it was still her. This was just another side of her personality he was seeing. He was fascinated. He wondered how many other sides she had to her, and hoped to find out more.
He smiled, "It's alright Guinevere." Then he quickly rushed out, "But would you terribly mind if I walked you to your door?" He looked to the ground sheepishly.
Guinevere blushed, although Arthur couldn't tell in the faint light. It was a sweet gesture from him, but she knew what her roommate would think if she showed up with this handsome stranger at her door. And something told her that her brother would most definitely not approve.
"Actually, I wouldn't," she said. Here he looked up with hope filling his eyes. Gwen could see them even in the faint light, and sadly, but quickly added, "But my roommate would definitelymind."
"Ah," was all Arthur could say. He knew it was too good to hope that this beautiful angel didn't have a boyfriend.
"Oh," Gwen's eyes got round as she realized what he thought, "No no, you misunderstood me. My roommate-he's my brother." She then tacked on, as an afterthought, "He helps with the rent."
"Well then in that case, here's my card," Arthur said. He quickly pulled out a business card and pen and scribbled a telephone number on the back, saying, "That's my personal line, if you want it. Thank you for allowing a complete stranger to help you home. Although I hope you don't think of me as a stranger anymore."
And with that, he gently gave her back her belongings, although with a hint of hesitation since he didn't want her carrying the heavy items again. Then, unexpectedly, he quickly swooped down and brushed her cheek with a light, chaste kiss.
"Good night Guinevere Leodegrance," were his final parting words.
As Arthur walked away towards the Heights, and Guinevere towards the Red District, the only thing which was on her mind was the feeling of his lips on her cheek. The feeling consumed her; it was as if her skin was aflame. However, as she reached her door and took out her key, reality came smashing through her sensations. The harsh reality of, "How come I don't feel this when Lance kisses me?'
To be continued