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A/N: This episode I guess I could say was alright, but Arthur made me a little upset with how easily he let go of Gwen, so I sat there thinking to myself, 'what would he have done, had Gwen decided to move on? Nothing serious, but she just decided to take up a past offer...' I mean seriously, he leaves beacause he listens to his posionous wart of an Uncle, and then he doesn't even tell her the truth, he just tells her that she's not 'Aproppriate'. Then he has the nerve to try and give her some flowers that he picked up off the side of the road! Like that was supposed to make it better. I will admit though, that the kiss that follwed was the thier best yet, and that the smug face Arthur made was to die for...But thats beside the point! He still made me angry, so this is my revenge...
Just because Arthur had ended things with her, doesn't mean that she didn't stop worrying about him. Guinevere had recieved news earlier that day, that the battle against Cameliard, had been reduced to a challenge between two chosen champions. Arthur of course had chosen himself, and his opponent was said to be a man too large to be completely human.
She grew even more anxious as she heard Elyan recount how Arthur had almost been trumped by the man, but had somehow managed to succeed as victor. Listening to her brother made her want to assure that all was well with Arthur, she needed to see with her own eyes. So grabbed a pitcher on her way to his chambers, and proceeded with a light knock on his thick wooden door.
Arthur was reclining on his bed, both mulling over the past few days events, and thinking to himself how to fix them. He had been lucky with the battle, very lucky indeed. He can't imagine what he would have done had the Queen of Cameliard denied his request, the bloody battle would have commenced as planned. He was grateful that he had been allowed a second chance, and a decision that he finally felt was right.
His predicament with Guinevere, however, was a horse of a completely different color...
Guinevere made her way into the chambers after him lazily bid her to enter. She walked in with her head down, defeating the purpose of checking on him. She had her mind set to place the pitcher on the table by his bedside table, and leave just as easy as she came.
"Ah, Gwen."
"Sire." She responded politiley. She reached her destination, but stopped when she saw him make haste to get out of bed. He stood, a bundle of lavender seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
"These, " He thrust them in her direction, " are for you." She watched as several of them wilted pathetically. "They're not much I know. I picked them up on the side of the road." She took the flowers thinking that is was truly the thought that counted. The fact that he had picked them himself made them all the more special.
"Thank you Sire, I don't know what they're for." Gwen said twirling them about in her hand. Flowers were usually something given to a significant other, someone Arthur had virtually told Gwen she was no longer.
"They're to say I'm sorry Guinevere." He said. Pity, he probably thought she needed it after his trip to her little home a few days previous. It was the last thing she needed. Her situation was only to be expected after all.
"You don't have to apologize, I understand things have to be the way they are." She told him, before taking a few deep breaths to calm frantically growing nerves.
Arthur looked at her a moment. " A good king should respect the traditions of the past, as my father did."
"I know that." She said, was it necessarry to state the obvious, especially when it was a painful part of obviousness.
"A good king, should also be true to himself." He took a small step. " And do what he sees fit." He took but another step. "And be seen with those who he cares for." His final step lead him to stand but a few feet away from her. His point was made. He was sorry, he realized his mistakes, and he wanted to make amends.
"Even if they're not...appropriate?" She had to ask, to make sure. He took another step, and pulled her body flush against his. His cerulean eyes ablaze with a passion she had never seen on his handsome features before. He kissed her then, short, and oh so very sweet. Gwen felt her eye lids flutter. She gazed at his face, he was wearing this look of not so hidden smugness, he looked rather pleased with himself. It was a look she had never have the pleasure of seeing, and it had the oddest effect on her person.
"Does that answer your question?" He asked, the looked still plastered on his face.
Two could play at this game. She stared back into his eyes, hers the color of molten chocolate.
"It's a start." She said smartly. A small smile graced the corners of her mouth before Arthur pulled her back into another kiss, with this one she almost felt her bones turn to jelly. She was truly weak at the knees. To think she had thought about moving on, she didn't want to dwell too much on the possibility of not having Arthur. To the extent that she had accepted a request from Rowland, the kitchen chef.
Rowland, oh no...
"Oh dear." she said breaking them apart.
"Oh dear?" He asked.
"Oh dear." Gwen repeated.
"'Oh dear, what?" He asked skeptically.
"Rowland." She said simply.
"Rowland, who is Rowland?"
"The chef form the kitchens." She replied.
"And why are you thinking about the chef from the kitchens at a time like this?" He wondered.
"I have to tell him...but i can't just call it off...hmmm." She said thinking to herself out loud.
"Guinevere, what are you on about?" Arthur wanted to know.
"Well, Rowland, from the kitchens, he uhh, well.."
"He what?" His hands that currently resided on her waist, tightened sigificantley.
"He really didn't do anything, I invited him for dinner." She said.
"Dinner where?"
"In my home of course."
"Alone?" He asked,
"Naturally." She replied.
"I don't like it." Arthur stated simply.
"I'm sorry to hear that, but I can't just tell him 'No, I've changed my mind'. It's very inconsiderate."
"Why did you accept in the first place?" He asked.
"It seemed like a good idea at the time, and he has been asking me for quite a while, I just never thought twice about it because I was in an 'arrangement' , with a certain Prince. When said Prince ended it, I finally gave in to Rowland." She nibbled on her bottom lip.
"So soon?" Arthur asked, and hurt expression played on the contuors of his face."Didn't you think how I'd feel about it.?"
"I did, but I thought you didn't want me anymore." She said quietley.
"Guinevere I wouldn't—"
"I know that now. I was too depressed to think about that. It isn't as though I'm getting any younger, many of my friends are my age and married, or on their way to being so. You have to understand Arthur. I always thought that this," She gestured between them, " was too good to be true." I didn't want to think of living my life as an old maid. You didn't want me, and Lancelot is no longer here. Rowland is the kind of man I would have spent my life with, had you and Lancelot not graced me with yourselves. A normal commoner man. I agreed with that in mind." She finished.
Arthur stared at her, feeling worse than he already did for making her feel this way. His sweet Gwen, he had broken her heart, and he was going to spend the rest of his life making it up to her.
"Guinevere, love, I am more sorry than you could possibly imagine." Arthur said, stroking away the tears Guinevere had subconsciously cried during her speech. Each one broke his own heart a little more, knowing that he was the cause of them.
"I know Arthur, but I brought Rowland along into this mess. It's not his fault, the least I could do is make him dinner."
"Trust me, I completely understand your reasoning, but I still don't like it." He said.
"I'm not asking you to like it, I'm telling you what I am going to do so that you don't conjure up anything with your over active imagination." She replied.
"You act as though I'm in the wrong." Arthur said quite incredulously.
"You are being selfish." Gwen said.
"I don't like to share." He said, his eyes suddenly acquiring a glint of possessiveness.
"They say sharing is caring." She said pulling out of his hold.
"Being an only child, I've never been fond of the sharing concept." Arthur said before pulling her back toward him. His subconscious gesture of his possession of her. "Besides, I don't even know this...Rowland." he said the name like he had a bad taste in his mouth.
"Which is precisely why you shouldn't judge him." She said.
"It's precisely why I shouldn't trust him." He palmed her face in his hand, his thumb gently gentley caressing the curve of her mouth. "I can't lose you Guinevere, you're too important to me."
"Arthur, you speak as if I'm going away." Gwen said quietly. A small bitter smile landed at corner of his lips.
"It's my biggest fear, that you may find someone else, someone less...difficult." He said equally as quiet.
"Oh Arthur, you shouldn't fear that." Gwen answered hugging him tightly.
"I know I shouldn't, but still, I can't not. As I said, you are very important to me."
"The dinner will be that of friendship, I will be sure to tell him that it is all I can offer." She assured him, wanting to ease his aching heart.
"Then I have no choice, but to accept this, I brought it upon myself after all." Arthur finally conceded. He perched his chin atop her head as she rested it on his chest. Her arms were still wrapped about him as his were around her.
Rowland Tlindum was definitely a rather handsome fellow. He was not born of nobility, but he carried himself with a level of confidence that would make those who did not know him think otherwise.
He was tall, perhaps a few inches taller than Arthur. He had pale skin, freckles, a kind smile, and eyes as green as the valleys of Albion.
Guinevere would be lying if she said that she didn't find him attractive, because by the gods he was, but her heart was taken by another.
There was a faint knock on heard at her door. Gwen glanced around her tiny little cottage making sure that everything was in place, she straightened a dish on the table, and grabbed her shawl before opening the door.
She smiled, "Rowland."...
A/N: How was that? Please review if you liked it, there will be a second chapter to this, but if I don't get enough reviews, I won't know if you liked it enough...