Summary: Detective Chief Inspector Arthur Pendragon returns to work after his mandatory vacation and is bombarded with changes. He's not a fan of change, except for maybe the tea he drinks due to Gwen. BBC Luther inspired.

Author's Note: This is the sequel to The Taste of Freedom. Read that before you continue. Or don't. Do what you want.

The Feel of Change

Arthur slouched in the deep cushion chair of his therapist's office. If he wasn't so anxious to leave, he wouldn't mind sitting in it for a little longer. He threw a quick glance at the clock and saw he had just five more minutes.

Dr. Annis Caerleon rolled her chair back behind her desk, put her elbows on the surface, and folded her hands under her chin. "I don't know about you, but I've greatly enjoyed spending our last session in silence."

Arthur had known her since the day he joined the force, and she's helped on many of his cases. They were on a first name basis, but the moment he sat in her chair, she was in his head, not helping him get into others. In this room she was Dr. Caerleon, and she was great at her job.

Shrugging, Arthur slipped deeper into the couch. He probably looked childish, but he stopped caring after she got him to open the emotional floodgates in their second session. "I think I've run out of things to say, Doc."

"My door is always open if you want to talk more. But is there anyone you can still talk to casually? Guinevere, maybe."

He had mentioned Gwen in the first session, having to describe their experience. Dr. Caerleon made it her mission to ask about her ever since. She'd go from asking how his sister was doing to how Gwen was. Even a, "Gwen seems to know a lot about tea. Could you ask her for some recommendations for me?"

Two minutes left and Dr. Caerleon managed to sneak in another suggestion. "Do you know if she has anyone to speak to? She can come see me. Or you even. It would benefit you both to actually talk about it."

"We don't discuss it," Arthur said curtly. He sat up, parting ways with the chair. He'd miss it more than their conversations. "I'll see you around, Annis."

Annis gave him a true smile, proving she wasn't still dissecting him. "I hope your day back to work is a good one."

On the first day of his mandatory vacation, Arthur went for a walk and bought groceries. On the elevator back up to his apartment he decided that he didn't want to take an elevator anymore. He contacted his realtor friend and put a bid on a house before he put away the groceries.

He moved in before the month was over, and it only took three steps to get inside his home now. Arthur kicked a box out of his way and flopped down on the couch. It was a new couch and very comfortable.

When he first walked into Annis' office, he had hoped there'd be one of those long, fancy couches he could lay on while she tried to pry into his head. The chair was nice though, and he thought about asking where she got it from. He despised being forced to do therapy, but he had to admit that talking everything out kept him from going mad. Plus, Morgana was going to lose her bet as long as he didn't snap in these last few days of his vacation.

The doorbell rang.

Arthur groaned. He had been a second away from kicking off his pants. Maybe they'd go away if I don't move, he thought.

The doorbell went off again.

One more minute, he prayed. One more minute and they'll go away.

"I know you're in there, detective!" Arthur heard Gwen yell from the other side of the door, causing him to get up in surprise. "Your car's in the driveway!"

Arthur opened the door to see her looking very displeased. Then he realized that he never told her he moved. "Uh, hi?" he said hesitantly.

He caught the annoyed twitch in her right eye. "That's all you have to say?" Gwen glared.

"How'd you find me?" he asked in humor.

Gwen shoved a brown paper bag at him, and she let herself in. "Morgana just so happened to mention your new place. How could you not even tell your own sister you were moving until the actual day?" She looked around. "And why would you move everything yourself? It must've been a pain."

"It helped me clear my head." Arthur looked into the bag. It was a bottle of whiskey. "This, on the other hand, will not."

"So how's therapy?"

"Morgana told you about that, too?"

Gwen sat on the couch and tested out the new cushions with a light bounce. "Just another tidbit of information that slipped out."

"She thinks I'll talk to you about it," Arthur stated. "My shrink thinks so as well."

"Aw, you talk about me?" Gwen smiled.

"Well you were there so…" he mumbled, and brought his attention back to the whiskey.

Gwen sighed. "I can't tell Morgana and Freya things. I'm afraid I'd lose their friendship if I do." She pulled her phone out her pocket. It was vibrating. She ignored it, putting it back in her coat and taking it off. "So, are you going to open that bottle or what?"

Arthur went into the kitchen and brought back two mugs. "I broke the good glasses in the move," he said with a sheepish grin.

The night and the booze had gotten away from them. Arthur had no idea when he fell asleep, and didn't care to figure it out. All he could do was stare blankly at the ceiling until all his senses came back to him. He tried to get movement in his legs, but Gwen's limbs were tangled with his.

She was very still, and Arthur's heart began to pound. "Guinevere?" Nothing. "Guinevere!" he said more forceful and gave her a shake.

"I'm not dead," Gwen grumbled with a frown on her face from the abrupt awakening.

"Just dead weight," Arthur winced at the stiffness in his leg. "Why are you still here?"

"Well, I was in no condition to drive home, and you were in no condition to drive me home. And I could've called a cab, but then my car would've been left here and I'd have to come back and bother you some more. Consider it me doing you a favor." Gwen made an exaggerated stretch, and then snuggled up to him. "I thought about leaving in the middle of the night when I woke up, but you make a very comfortable pillow. Loud. But comfortable."

"Loud?"

"You snore."

"I don't—" Before Arthur could finish arguing, he remembered the position they were in and removed Gwen's arms from around him. He slipped out from under her, and when he went to glance back down at her, he caught a glimpse of more leg than he anticipated and quickly looked away. "So, where you going out, or did you dress up just for me?" He risked a look and saw her dress rightfully adjusted and she was fixing her hair.

Gwen smiled up at him. "Don't flatter yourself. I had a date."

"'Had' as in you had the date and then came here, or you were supposed to go and stood him up?"

"I was early and your place was on the way to the restaurant. And so was a liquor store. I thought I'd get you a housewarming gift," she explained.

"Guys don't enjoy being stood up, either, you know," Arthur grunted, sitting back down next to her because his body was protesting gravity. "How are you feeling? Because I feel like shit. Your date probably does, too, the poor lad."

Gwen blatantly ignored that last bit, and quit fiddling with her hair out of hangover induced frustration. "Have you unpacked a coffee machine?"

"No," Arthur said. "But there's tea."

A/N: What happened between the time the whiskey was opened and when they woke up will be discussed. Don't worry!

And I can't help but mention Arthur's snoring in like every full length fic lol (I don't think I did it in part one though)

And like The Taste of Freedom feel free to suggest situations/shenanigans (not romantic) that maybe I can throw in this too! I still have a few suggestions from it that I held off on to add in this as well.

Thanks for reading! I hope you stick around!