Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin. All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. No copyright infringement is intended.

A/N - Sorry this has not been beta'd so sorry for any mistakes

Warnings:

This is set after season 3 so beware spoilers for everything up until now. Also this is not entirely canon and I have used A LOT of poetic license here as this is my version of what could happen next.

Chapter 3

Gwen was putting the rest of her things away, when she suddenly remembered that Merlin had said Arthur would be coming to see her later. She felt nervous about Arthur coming to see her. She was struggling with all the changes and she wasn't sure she was in any fit state to see Arthur as well.

Maybe a cool wash and a change of clothes would make her feel better. Thinking about changing into one of her new dresses made her feel even more nervous.

"No, she reasoned with herself, "I should be enjoying this." Gwen went to the cupboard and looked at the dresses. She touched the fabric of each one, again thinking about how sumptuous the fabric was. She chose one of the dresses Arthur had given her, a pale pink dress with beautiful beading on the bodice. She remembered that on their picnic together last year, he had complimented the colour on her. Gwen took the dress and placed it over the top of her screen. Then went into her wash room to strip down and wash herself over with cool water. After she had finished, she ducked behind the screen and put on the new dress. The feel as she put it on was amazing, the cloth was so fine and it fit like a second skin. To think that Arthur had chosen these dresses for her, made her smile once again.

As she emerged she turned to the full length mirror and admired the dress. It was immaculate, the detail and the fit was perfect. But what was even more surprising to her, was that as she looked at herself, she thought that she looked beautiful in the dress. It was amazing to think that she was staring at herself, and she started to feel a bit silly and went back to admiring the dress. Gwen didn't think she had ever worn anything so beautiful, and she was sure that this wasn't even the most striking out of all the dresses. She felt incredibly spoilt and wanted to hug herself with happiness. She went and sat at the dressing table, to redo her hair and make up her face. She wouldn't normally make as much effort but the thought of Arthur coming to see her, made her heart thunder in her chest and she felt like she needed all the help she could get.

Once she had finished, she pottered around tidying things up and wondered if Arthur really was coming. She didn't want to leave her room just yet, in case he did turn up but she was feeling fidgety with nothing to do. So she went to the window which looked out over one of the paths down to the village. She guessed that as it was around mid afternoon, that Arthur would have finished his training by now. As she stood there, she suddenly felt very lonely and wondered if it was too soon to send someone to fetch Merlin for her. However, as soon as she thought about it, she then felt daft for thinking she could call on Merlin whenever she liked as she realised that he would be helping Arthur now. It was part of the usual routine that once Arthur had finished his training, he would go straight to his room to bathe. This thought brought another blush to Gwen's cheeks and she tried to think of something else to occupy herself.

What was she going to do with herself now that she did not have any duties to attend to. She tried to think of what Morgana had done in her spare time and realised she would probably have very little do to occupy herself. Perhaps she could help in the village in some way. As she was immersed in these thoughts she jumped as a loud knock sounded on her door. Her heart started thundering in her chest in anticipation.

Gwen tried to compose herself, she put her hands together in front of her and turned from the window. "Come in," she called, in what she hoped was a confident voice.

The door opened and there he was.

Arthur pushed the door open and walked in, with his normal and rather arrogant smirk on his face. Gwen knew this was usually a cover to hide his real feelings, and as his eyes met hers, the façade dropped. He had entered the room and his eyes had immediately gone to Gwen standing by the window. The sun was starting to come down behind her through the window so that she was framed in the golden light. It was as if his eyes were drinking her in, and as he looked at her, he realised she was wearing the pink dress he'd had made for her and felt absurdly pleased with this. She looked so beautiful that he actually forgot to speak.

Gwen watched him come in and then suddenly stop as he saw her. He just looked at her for several long seconds and Gwen couldn't help feeling incredibly self-conscious. Why was he just staring. She felt herself flush all over, as his eyes seemed to take in every part of her.

"Uh uhm" she coughed gently after a few moments as Arthur still hadn't said anything or even come any further into the room.

"Errr," he started but still couldn't seem to form any real words. He was bowled over by how stunning she looked and he seemed glued in place whilst he tried to pull himself together.

Gwen came forward slightly, feeling even more anxious, but someone had to say something. She looked down and brushed her hands over her hips "Thank you" she said, "You really shouldn't have been so generous, but thank you for all of the dresses. They are beautiful."

Now that she had spoken, he realised he had to say something. He took a step further into the room, leaving the door slightly ajar, so as to remind himself not to do anything rash.

He cleared his throat and said gently "You look beautiful." he flushed as he said the words, almost as much as Gwen did when she heard them. Arthur cleared this throat again. "And you are more than welcome. I, well, I didn't want you to feel uncomfortable in the castle and when Elyan said you were having new dresses made, I thought something like this might help." He shrugged as he finished and looked away from her for a moment, to try and collect himself.

"Well that was very thoughtful of you"

"If you need anything, anything at all, please just ask." he said sincerely.

"Of course," she replied carefully.

"So, how are you finding everything." he said vaguely, still staring intently at her.

Gwen pulled a dubious face, "I'm not really sure. It all just feels so strange and I have no idea what to do with myself."

Arthur loved her candidness and chuckled slightly. "Well, there was one more thing I wanted to, I suppose, give to you." he said almost sheepishly.

Gwen's mind started to race at the thought of what he could mean.

Arthur took another step forward, "I thought you might need some help, and more likely some company whilst you're getting used to being here. So I thought you might want to take on a maidservant." he watched her carefully as he said this. He didn't want to offend her in anyway and wasn't sure if she would take up his offer. "It's all been arranged with the household steward so if you would like to, just go speak with him, whenever you're ready."

Gwen was astounded by the fact that Arthur had put so much thought into her wellbeing, and that he had seemed almost nervous in suggesting that she take on a maidservant.

"Th Thank you" Gwen managed to stammer, "I, I really do appreciate everything." she opened her hands in a vague gesture trying to convey how she felt.

He stepped forward again, and took one of her hands tenderly into his, "Again, you're welcome, Guinevere." he looked deep into her eyes. He wanted to kiss her so much. Gwen almost shuddered with longing when he said her name. Arthur had a way of almost caressing each syllable. Realising that this could get out of hand. Gwen squeezed his hand gently and let go. "Perhaps a maidservant would be a prudent idea," she said with a gentle laugh. Arthur understood her meaning immediately, thinking that a maidservant / chaperone was definitely a sensible idea, but not actually what he wanted.

"Yes," he agreed with a smile playing on his lips. He took a deep breath "Right, well, I'll leave you to finish getting settled. Perhaps I'll see you after dinner?"

"Perhaps, my lord" Gwen was unsure of what she would be able to do if Elyan had other plans.

Arthur went to the door, turning briefly, he said "You really do look beautiful in that dress." then as he made his way out he said "Good day to you, my lady" and shut the door.

Gwen flushed with pleasure once again and went to sit on the edge of her bed.