Merlin was getting ready to leave when Arthur walked into his quarters and stopped dead. The contents of the room had obviously changed since Gaius passed, since it was now the workshop of the Court Sorcerer, not the Court Physician. There were a lot of things that Merlin had owned for a long time that Arthur had never seen before, like the staff of the Sidhe and the two new dragon eggs and amulets and totems. There were sorcerer's books strewn about and a mixture of aging powder sat in a bowl on the table.

"This is…" Arthur muttered, not seeming to know how to finish.

"This is what I do," Merlin said. "My job."

Arthur came forward, looking at the Crystal of Neahtid. "So this crystal came from the Crystal Caves?" Arthur inquired. Merlin nodded. "Then if you have this here, why are you going to the caves?"

"I know it seems silly," Merlin said, turning away from Arthur to pack up more things for the trip. "But there's something about being in those caves… I'm more likely to see something, and when I do see, I see more. Not to mention they're beautiful."

"So we're just wasting time so you can go sight-seeing?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Yes, of course, Arthur, that's it. And you don't have to go if it's such a 'waste of time'," he added. He finally turned around and jumped with Arthur was only half a foot behind him. "Damn it, Arthur," he hissed.

Arthur smirked at him. "I like that look on your face," he mentioned. "Alarmed and aroused at the same time."

"Who's aroused?" Merlin asked quietly, even as Arthur was pressed ridiculously close to him.

Arthur continued to smile knowingly at him, but then backed away. "Sorry, sorry," he murmured. "Must have been a mistake."

Merlin took in a breath as quietly as he could before saying, "Alright, time to go."

Gwen was in her room when there was a knock at the door. "Come in!"

The door opened and Arthur popped his head in, smiling awkwardly. He opened it all the way and had a backpack on, ready for his journey.

"Oh, Arthur, hello," Gwen said, standing.

Arthur looked a little nervous, and Gwen had a feeling she knew what was on his mind. Instead of speaking, he stood there and looked at his feet for a long time. Gwen actually took pity on him after a minute and decided to take a guess at what he wanted to discuss.

"How was spending the day with Merlin?"

She could see him swallow hard. "You know. The usual. Merlin's a lazy idiot."

"We both know that's not what you really think."

Arthur met her eyes, seeming to consider for the first time that she might already know what he wanted to say. Did he think she was stupid enough to never have noticed the way the two of them looked at each other?

"What do I really think then?" Arthur asked.

Gwen was quiet, worried about speaking out of turn. She knew she was queen and didn't have to worry about that type of thing, not really, but Arthur still demanded respect, even when he looked childishly nervous and uncomfortable.

"Please, Guinevere, speak your mind. Don't spare my feelings," Arthur said.

Gwen hesitated for another second. Then, "I think you're in love with him."

Arthur's eyes widened. "Love? I don't know about that…"

"Whatever you say," Gwen said, looking back to her parchment. She saw out of the corner of her eye as Arthur came farther into the room, standing in front of her desk. She finally looked up. "Arthur, I know you have feelings for him. I always knew."

"I didn't even know," Arthur retorted.

"A woman knows these things," she said. Arthur nodded, and again, Gwen took pity on the look on his face. "It's okay," she said. "I don't want you to feel guilty. I know things are different now. I am happy to have had time to be with you, but that time is over. I understand." It still made her throat choke up, but she realised as she said it that she meant it.

Then Arthur met her eyes in a more serious way. Then, he said carefully, "I'm glad you feel that way, because I also don't want you to feel guilty."

"Why would I feel guilty?" Gwen asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"Oh, I don't know. But if, hypothetically, you were with someone else… I understand too."

Before she could respond, he was out the door.

Had Arthur come to give his blessing for her to be with…

Realising that he had, a subconscious smile found her lips.

Arthur couldn't even describe how weird it was for Merlin to not be stupid and useless. Arthur saw Merlin using magic before he died, right at the end, to keep him safe, but Arthur had been dying and unable to fight at the time. Now, while Arthur was in perfect health, he expected Merlin to go back to being a sack of potatoes… but he had been very, very wrong.

It all started with the bandits. Arthur heard them coming, and was just about to tell Merlin to hide behind a tree or something, when Merlin muttered some odd words, holding out his arms in the direction of the footsteps. Suddenly three men flew out of the bushes and fell into a pile, one on top of the other—rather comically, actually.

Merlin smiled and approached them.

"Do you need something?" he asked pleasantly.

They looked up at him with scowls, but said nothing. It took Arthur until then to get over his shock—Arthur hadn't even had time to take out his sword—and follow Merlin over.

"Well," Merlin said, "I can't really have you following us, so—"

Merlin waved his hand again, hissing something in that language again. Arthur was surprised to find that watching Merlin do his magic was actually a little… hot. He just looked so intense, and his voice was so low, and then his eyes would flash gold and somehow it made him really attractive.

Arthur bit his lip idly as the bandits all closed their eyes and began to snore and Merlin chanted again, making a huge pile of leaves fall onto the bandits so you couldn't see them unless you were paying attention.

"That should keep them here a while," Merlin said, looking over to Arthur for the first time. Then he looked confused. "What?" he asked defensively. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Instead of answering, Arthur came forward, smashing his lips into Merlin's while still walking forward until Merlin's back thudded against a tree. Arthur's tongue explored Merlin's mouth for a minute, and then he backed away, looking at Merlin intensely, who looked startled and unkempt in a most attractive way.

Merlin, who was breathing hard, looked like he was about to say something, but then he settled for giving Arthur that goofy grin of his.

"We should go," Arthur said gruffly, backing up. "We've wasted enough time with those bandits with your hocus pocus. I could've done that in half the time."

Merlin looked as if he might argue for a moment, but then rolled his eyes and they started to walk again.

Gwen felt like a child at how nervous her stomach was on her way to Lancelot's chambers. Honestly, it's not like she had never talked to him before.

But this was different. Because the guilt of Arthur wasn't there this time, and Gwen hadn't had a chance to talk to Lancelot with that weight gone in somewhere around ten years.

She knocked and Lancelot opened the door, his mouth opening and closing for a moment in his surprise to see her.

"Guinevere," he said, smiling nervously. "Do you need something?"

Gwen swallowed. "Can I come in?" she asked.

He looked at her more carefully now, as if only just realising that she was nervous.

"Of course, My Lady." He opened the door wider and she walked in the room, looking around.

"I just had an interesting conversation with Arthur," she said, not knowing how else to get to the point other than to just say it.

"Did you?" Lancelot asked.

"Yes. He told me he's fallen for… someone else." She decided at the last second not to say Merlin, but as she looked at Lancelot, it seemed recognition was there in his eyes.

"Are you alright?" Lancelot asked.

"Yes, actually," Gwen said, actually smiling a little. "I'm very good."

"Even with that news?"

"Arthur said it," she continued, "because he wanted me to know that I was allowed to do the same. Find someone else."

Lancelot finally seemed to understand where she was going with this, and his eyes widened. "He said this?"

"He did."

"No matter who it is?" he asked, coming closer.

She met his eyes. "I think he knows who I would choose," she said quietly.

Lancelot came another step closer, so he was within arms-length. "And you are sure of who you would choose?"

Gwen's lips twitched up. "There is a man, believe it or not, that I have loved for longer than I have loved Arthur. And he loved me first too." And it really was true. She'd been hiding it for so long... but she loved him. She really did.

Lancelot took this as invitation and reached his hand up, resting it on her face. The tingling in her skin was something she had dearly missed in her life for the past years, the simple touch from someone who adored you. She shut her eyes and leaned into the touch, and in the same moment, lips met her own.

Her eyes opened again and Lancelot looked sheepish and she found it endearing.

"Let's go for a ride," she said.

"To where?"

She was suddenly feeling playful. "Anywhere, as long as you're with me."

For the first time since she came in, he grinned. He took her hand. "Let's go," he replied.

Hope you're liking it so far! If so, let me know in a review! Thanks!

By the way, get ready for some smuttiness in the next chapter!