First Day

Marayna woke slowly to the feel of someone running their hand up and down her back, taking a moment to run a hand through her hair at times. She smiled, snuggling closer, burying her face into the warm neck beside her, "This dress is not very comfortable to sleep in," she murmured, blinking her eyes open to smile at Arthur.

"Yes…" he gave her a sheepish grin, "Sorry about that," he glanced down at where they were lying, on his bed…both still in their clothes from the night before, him in all his ceremonial attire, her in the white gown for their wedding.

Their wedding.

He felt himself starting to beam at that, it was…not at all what he'd expected would happen when Elena arrived. When his father had hinted at the girl being his wife, he'd refused, he hadn't wanted a thing to do with her. But Marayna…she'd been right, he had a duty to Camelot and a responsibility to his people, so he'd proposed properly. He was quite sure the only reason he'd been able to do it was that he'd imagined proposing to Marayna…and even that hadn't helped much. Getting to the point where the wedding WAS happening…he felt like he was being crushed, like he couldn't breathe, like there was a cold vice around his heart that just kept twisting more and more and…he couldn't do it. He couldn't marry Elena.

And then his father, of all people, revealed the entire thing was just an orchestrated ploy, a test…one with the best possible reward he could think of. He truly hadn't been expecting the result he'd gotten, more so he'd been completely convinced his father would disown him for such a glaring disobedience. He'd actually asked his father why he'd insisted Marayna and he wed right then, instead of courting her as was proper. His father had, quite surprisingly (as he'd thought they'd been more discreet than they apparently were), that he'd already been courting the girl for years now, hadn't he, in a way? And...there was a more political move behind having the wedding when it was, so suddenly. Well, two reasons. The first was that Uther was well aware of how Elena was, her nature, how others would react to her. She was...FAR worse than Marayna was, in a more disgusting manner than a confident outspokenness and disregard for propriety. To force the court to endure her...they'd be grateful for anyone who wasn't Elena (he hoped). And, failing to inspire that sentiment, his TRUE reason for insisting on the sudden wedding.

He wanted the court, the people, the kingdom, to see that HE, the King, supported the union, that he was the man behind it. He wanted it known that Marayna had his approval. If Arthur had waited till after he'd died to wed the girl...there would be an upheavel from the more rigid nobles, the stricter elders of his council. They would find fault with her more so than now, without HIM there to defend his son's choices. No one could argue with the king, if he felt the girl was acceptable for his son...she was. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Where his son's desires after he'd passed would be subject to question...at the moment, HIS word was law.

Arthur had been a bit shocked, though, to find that Elena and Godwyn had been a part of it from the start. Though he'd later found out that Elena's entire demeanor and actions before the wedding were NOT a ruse, she had, in fact, been genuinely clumsy and disgusting. He really had thought she was faking though, especially after the wedding where she'd been very poised and polite and just…different. Though, if he were being honest, he hardly noticed as he was far too taken with his wife.

His wife.

God he was never going to get used to that, Marayna was his wife now, she'd accepted his offer to marry him, she HAD married him. He could never thank his father enough for it. Marayna had told him, amidst a slow waltz-like dance in the middle of the hall, what his father had said to her that made her change her mind. It as something he had implied and told her over and over for years now, that she was just…perfect the way she was but he could understand why his father's words affected her more. Uther was the most critical man on the planet, the most dedicated to the preservation and prosperity of Camelot. For HIM to believe she'd be a good queen…for him to be able to look past every excuse she'd used to try and not marry him for fear of what it would mean for him…then there was really no reason not to be with him. And he was infinitely grateful that she'd finally given in.

Marayna reached out and touched his cheek, "I don't think I've ever seen you drink that much," she remarked. Normally she wouldn't ever let him or Merlin drink the way they had last night, but…it was a special occasion and she could admit she had laughed her head off at Drunk-Arthur. Merlin was a very happy drunk, very affectionate but to everyone (Morgana, she was sure, was certainly enjoying Merlin's words and attention), Arthur…was a very touchy drunk, he hardly let her go, seemed fixated on her. She loved the affection, she loved that…that they could be open about it now. They'd tried in the past, to make it less noticeable, but they hardly had the control that Merlin and Morgana had. They knew a few people were aware or at least could guess where their affections lied. She'd all but admitted it to Uther and, to be able to take Arthur's hand or steal a kiss or share a sweet look with him and have to not worry about someone catching them…it made last night all the more amazing.

The only qualm she had was that Arthur had gotten so smashed in his revelry that she'd needed Leon's help to drag the prince back to their chamber (oh…that would take a while to get used to, THEIR chambers) and deposit Arthur on the bed. The prince though, in his drunken state, had maintained his fixation and hadn't let go of her arm, taking her down with him much like when Gaius had drugged him to stop him fighting Tristan. She'd ended up half pinned beneath him, Leon trying his best to cover his chuckles at the predicament and offering to help heft Arthur up to free her. She'd just waved him off and said she was rather comfortable. Leon had left them to their own devices…which wasn't really much of anything. The moment Arthur's head hit the pillow he was out, which meant their wedding night bliss would likely have to be postponed. She had no issue with that, she just…to be honest, she was a bit nervous about that part. She'd spent her life never ever thinking she'd get married, so she hadn't thought on what came after. Even after learning she was destined (and seemed to have fulfill) to be queen…she STILL hadn't actually thought she'd marry Arthur so now…she didn't know what to do.

She was a little grateful that they'd just slept last night. She'd been…so worried and scared and excited she was just completely exhausted by the end of it and she really just wanted to sleep, which she'd gotten. They'd shifted in the night, ending up curled against each other and that had been a lovely way to wake up.

"I was happy, I wanted to celebrate," he shrugged, not even seeming to feel the hangover she was sure HAD to be pounding away in his head, he was just smiling at her, seeming at ease with his life, "I've…" he hesitated a moment, "I've never fallen asleep that happy before, not in my entire life."

Marayna blinked at that and smiled softly at him, moving her hand from his cheek to lightly stroke his face, tracing it, her eyes roving over him, taking in every feature, "Well get used to it," she murmured, "You're going to be falling asleep, AND waking up like that for a very long time."

He let out a small laugh as he took her hand, stopping her tracing but holding it, "And how long will that be?" he pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.

Marayna's gaze turned thoughtful, her words serious, "For as long as you'll have me."

And…that was the part that terrified her. Most people would assume that would be to the end of one of their lives. And it was true, Arthur was it for her, but…the part about the end, that could be literally any moment for her. There was one…rather LARGE secret she hadn't told him yet, about her, about her magic. She'd always planned to, somewhere in the back of her mind, she'd thought, if she really DID marry him, that she'd have told him about her magic first, that he'd have asked her to marry him knowing everything about her. That hadn't happened.

She was selfish too, she knew. She should have told Arthur about her magic before he married her, that was…entirely too much of a secret to keep from her husband. And it killed her that he STILL didn't now but…she'd done it, she'd made her choice to marry him without telling him. She could argue in her head there wasn't time between Uther offering her what was likely her one opportunity to marry Arthur (before whatever had possessed the king to agree to a barren, bastard, servant/peasant marrying his only son and heir passed). And that was it, she'd STILL taken that chance.

She knew why though. She knew what the most likely situation would be if Arthur or Uther found out about her magic…something she knew Arthur at least needed to know. And…she was dreading it, she was terrified of it, she didn't want it to happen so badly that if she could find some way to remove her magic she probably would have taken it she was that scared of what would happen. She just…wanted a few days, she just wanted at least a moment with Arthur as her husband, before he learned the truth and…well, bad things happened.

She just wanted a moment of happiness with him before the inevitable fallout that would come.

And she knew it would come quite soon, she could feel it.

"To the end of my life then," Arthur decided.

Marayna was silent though, thinking much the same, 'or to the end of hers.'

Arthur kissed the back of her hand once more and sighed, "I must go though…"

"Why?" she frowned.

"Elena and Godwyn will be leaving soon, I was to see them off at the end of their stay," he remarked, though she could tell by the sound of his voice that that was the LAST thing he wanted to do.

"It's the day after your wedding though," she reminded him, "Surely they can't expect you to be there."

"After all Elena and Godwyn have done to see this happen," he squeezed her hand, "I owe them this pleasantry."

She sighed, "Can I lie in a bit longer?" she asked, "The bed is warm and…bigger than any I've ever lain in."

He chuckled and leaned in, kissing her forehead, "Of course, it was your wedding night too," he wiggled his eyebrows at her as she rolled her eyes. He laughed and got up, looking down at himself, "Suppose I can't expect Merlin this morning," he winced, imaging the hangover the boy would be sporting, "No bother," her remarked, quite jovially if Marayna had to describe it…wedded bliss suited him if he wasn't about to shout at her brother for 'shirking duties' which…reminded her of something.

"Arthur?" she called, watching as he pulled off his cape, his chainmail, took his sword belt off to remove everything except his tunic and trousers, clearly intending to go the day just like that.

"Yes?" he looked at her as he put the belt back on.

She offered him a smiled, "After you see them off…there's something I need to talk to you about."

"And so it begins," he joked, winking at her, "Anything you want Mara, it's yours," he smiled, adding, "Princess," with an exaggerated bow before he stepped out of the room.

She waited a beat till she was sure he was gone, "I want you to make my brother a Lord."

~8~

Marayna was in…quite the predicament come her actually getting out of the bed and standing in the middle of the room in her wedding gown…only to realize…she had NO idea what to do now. She had not thought this through in the rush to get ready for her surprise wedding and she was just becoming aware of the fact that she didn't have any clothes in Arthur's room, that would have been very improper and now she was stuck.

And she was also starting to realize…she was going to have to wear gowns now wasn't she? Not just her normal, simple dresses, but…regal attire? Urg, maybe she should have said no. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair before she realized yet another thing…a bit of a delayed reaction though…that Geoffrey (and Arthur) had called her princess. She knew she wasn't really the princess till she'd been coronated like Arthur, made it official and whatnot, but it seemed like people considered her already the princess upon marrying Arthur…and if she WAS the new princess of Camelot…

She could 'order' that her dresses be simpler than she was sure Arthur would insist. She could make sure, she could actually have a say in what she wore now. That was…nice. But that didn't solve her current problem of not being able to leave the room except in her wedding gown and…it was precious. It was Arthur's mother's…it made her sad that her own mother hadn't been there for her wedding but…no one knew if it would even happen, if Arthur would stand up to his father or wed Elena. There had been nothing saying that she would even agree to wed Arthur! She was already planning to ask Arthur if he would mind going to Ealdor again, perhaps experiencing a small wedding there, a little taste of what the marriages in her village were like. She really did want her mother and Mordred to see her get married. Even if it was a 'second' wedding, she wanted them to be able to experience it and she wanted Arthur to see the simplicity of a marriage in Ealdor.

Still…what to do? She knew she couldn't leave the room in her gown. But that didn't mean she could leave the room in her underdress. She was well aware that a 'princess' walking around in her knickers was probably NOT a good thing to do. Arthur had ample tunics she could use, but no leggings and that was almost as bad as being in her knickers.

She let out a long sigh and moved to sit on the bed, about to call out to Merlin or Morgana and ask them if they might bring her one of her old gowns, that would be less improper than her other options…when the door opened and a young girl with red hair entered, dressed in the typical outfit for a servant.

"Oh!" the girl gasped, before dipping into a half-bow, half-curtsy, "My Lady, I apologize, I did not know you were in here!"

Marayna blinked and frowned, looking over her shoulder for a second and back to the girl, "Morgana's in her chambers."

The girl stared at her a moment, flushing, "I…I believe so, ma'am."

"Ma'am?" Marayna nearly choked at that.

"Would you prefer princess?" the girl asked quickly, fearing she'd offended the new princess, "Um…majesty?" she offered, seeing Marayna staring at her, "My Lady are you alright?"

"I'm not a lady," Marayna remarked automatically and the girl shifted, not sure how to counter that without coming across too forward with the now-noblewoman.

"You are prince Arthur's wife though," the girl mumbled.

Marayna nearly smacked herself for that, that…really would take her a very long time to get used to. To go from being nearly nothing to those around her, invisible in every way, to someone others were stuttering and shifting around and worrying about offending was jarring, "You know me…but I'm afraid I don't know who you are," she admitted, "Sorry."

"It is not your fault at all my Lady," the girl said quickly, "I am Marian," she gave another semi-curtsy.

"That's a lovely name," Marayna offered, "But um…why exactly are you here though? Isn't Merlin Arthur's servant?" at least till she got the chance to speak to him.

"Yes, ma'…"

"Rayna," she cut in, "Please, I…I'm just Marayna, call me Rayna."

"Yes…Rayna," Marian swallowed hard at that, seeming not comfortable at all with being so familiar with the woman, "I've been assigned as your maidservant."

Marayna blinked, then blinked again, and one more time, "…you're joking."

"No ma…Rayna," Marian shook her head, "I was just assigned moments ago and rushed to…" she held up her arms where Marayna could see a small bit of fabric folded in it, a red gown of sorts…a gown she was hoping was NOT as fancy as she thought it might be. She could recognize a bit of Gwen's handiwork in the stitching though and hoped it wouldn't be anything too over the top.

Marayna stood up and held up her hands, shaking her head, "I don't need a maidservant, sorry," she added quickly, "I…I can take care of myself."

Marian blinked, "But…I was assigned as your personal servant…"

"And I WAS a servant," she reminded the girl as gently as possible, "I dressed myself and bathed myself and tended to my hair just fine for more than 4 years," she reached out and slowly took the dress from Marian, "Please…um…extend my apologies to whoever assigned you to me?" she offered, not sure if that was a good way to phrase it or not, "But I don't now, nor will I likely ever need a maidservant."

Marian blinked once more, seemingly startled that the girl, a noble, was refusing a servant, that she wanted to care for herself. But Marayna was right, she HAD been a servant, she'd done all that and more when she had been, she'd dressed and cleaned and mucked out stables…just because she was married to Arthur, it wasn't like she was going to forget how to do that and turn into a simpering lady who needed help with everything. Even Morgana didn't force Gwen to do everything for her, merely help lace up some complicated dresses or help pin her hair when she couldn't see behind her.

"Ma'am," Marian gave her a quick bow/curtsy and turned to leave.

"It's Rayna!" she called after the girl, before sighing, looking up as a piece of hair fell in front of her face and blew it away before turning to step behind the changing screen and dressing herself as she always had.

~8~

"Gwen!" Marayna smiled as she ran into Gwen and Morgana walking in the corridors, on her way to try and find Merlin, wanting to check on him and his hangover. She didn't doubt that Morgana could have healed him when he woke, but then again, the woman might just be a tiny bit evil and let Merlin suffer with it as punishment for consuming as much alcohol as he had. She knew if Arthur had shown signs of a hangover like that she'd have let him suffer the consequences.

"Rayna," Gwen greeted, rushing to hug Marayna, not caring about the somewhat startled looks a few passing nobles and servants were giving at the display, even more so when Marayna tightly hugged her back.

"Morgana," she smiled, moving to hug the noblewoman as well.

"I think you mean sister," Morgana whispered to her as she gave her a squeeze and let go, stepping back to look at her, "You look lovely."

"Oh, yes, thank you," Marayna glanced down at her dress.

After having put it on and seen herself in Arthur's mirror, she was even more sure that the gown had been sewn by Gwen. It was a simple gown, compare to what she saw other 'noblewomen' wearing. It was red, like many outfits found in Camelot…she expected she'd be made to wear red even more now that she was technically princess (though she supposed it would make for even more of a pleasant shock to Arthur whenever she wore his 'favorite' shade of blue)…and very fitted on the top, with a crisscrossing gold thread as the corset, the sleeves were fitted and went to her elbows, a small scrap of gold fabric creating a sort of fringe on the edge of it, a small semi-billowing sleeve effect. Her skirt flowed out but there was parted in the middle, like an upside down V, with gold fabric beneath, a dark gold that mixed well with the dark red of the dress. It was very simple and yet…seemed elegant and regal at the same time.

Gwen was a genius.

"I love it, thank you Gwen," she looked at the girl, who seemed startled for only a moment that Marayna had known before waving her off.

"It was a wedding present," she explained, "From Morgana and I. I did the sewing, Morgana bought the fabric and designed it…"

"You KNEW?" Marayna looked at Morgana shocked that the girl had seen the wedding coming and hadn't warned her or Merlin.

"No," Morgana laughed, "Rayna, we've had that dress hidden way for YEARS."

Marayna blinked, "Sorry?"

Morgana smiled, "I told you I had a dream of you as queen yes?" Marayna nodded, "For you to be queen you had to have married Arthur at one point and, even having just met you Rayna, I could tell you'd not be interested in the sorts of dresses women of the court favor. I asked Gwen to help."

Marayna nodded, that made more sense. With the way Morgana got about things like that, if she HAD had a dream more recently, Merlin would have certainly known, "Well, thank you both then. If not for you, I'd be walking around the halls in my knickers!"

She'd probably said that last part a bit too loudly given how a passing pair of ladies stopped and shot her a glare before they stuck up their noses and walked on, the three of them falling quieter at that action. It had been…mixed reactions from the court last night. After the joy of seeing their prince wed, his legacy more locked, the chance of an heir in the future (poor them, not knowing the truth) had faded…the court seemed to realize just WHO he'd married, what he'd married.

A servant.

There seemed to be a small divide between the court once they'd recalled that. A few looked at her with derision, as though she should be sleeping with the pigs instead of a prince, they saw her as just a servant, a low-born, scheming woman who was going to bring Camelot to ruin with how uneducated she was. She was more afraid of proving them right than anything (besides her magic) because she had honestly feared the same. A few more, though, seemed to be pleased that Arthur had selected her, whether it was because she made him happy or because it meant that their prince was the sort who could look past status to see the value of a person and their life, she didn't know. But she was grateful for them, for the ones who were just happy Arthur had wed and that he appeared happy with his new wife.

"Ignore them," Gwen murmured to her.

She nodded, but…she knew they'd all probably hate her when they found out she married the prince knowing she was barren. They'd look past the fact that Arthur AND Uther knew beforehand and just see HER fault in it, she knew, but…till that day came, she was just going to try her best to keep things as light as possible. Maybe one day she'd be able to prove herself to the women of the court.

~8~

Marayna was starting to grow steadily more annoyed as the day went on…the servants, the other servants, were acting so…weird. She'd smile at them and nod at them and wave at them…and they'd stare at her with wide eyes before quickly dropping into a half-curtsy/bow and then scamper off. She'd been afraid of that, that she'd start to be seen differently by the servants, by the peasants, just because she'd married Arthur. She still was the same person, she hadn't changed that much. She was still Marayna, the clumsy, mouthy girl who was as likely to slap you upside the head as to fire a sarcastic comeback. She was still her…just…with a different title and in a slightly better gown.

She really hated that because quite a few of the servants she considered to be good friends of hers and now they could hardly meet her eye. She was alarmed at how much they seemed to think she'd change, that SHE, of all people, would suddenly start to adhere to the rules and terms of propriety! It was ridiculous, it was laughable. Clearly Uther had given his blessing for this, and if UTHER, KNOWING what she was like, was allowing his son to marry her…he certainly knew what the kingdom would be getting into with her beside Arthur. Uther knew full well what she was like and that she likely wouldn't change…so why couldn't the rest of the servants see it?

It was quite the role reversal really, Uther was usually the blind one where the servants saw everything.

She jumped back suddenly as a door to Gaius's chambers opened before her just as she reached them, and Merlin stepped out, "Merlin!" she gasped, half-launching herself into his arms and hugging him tightly.

Merlin laughed at that, "Don't tell me I have to rescue you from Arthur already," he joked, squeezing her firmly before setting her down.

"Would I have to rescue you from Morgana?" she countered with a teasing smile.

"Alright, alright," he chuckled, holding up his hands in surrender, "So how's married life?"

"Weird," she said instantly, "I just…" she let out a breath, starting to walk with her brother down the halls, "I never thought…and now I…I'm just…"

Merlin reached out and took her hand, "I know," he murmured, understanding completely.

His magic had always been…more frequent and obvious than hers, even as children when they tried harder to hide it. It always snuck out of him, more 'odd' things happened around him than her. HE had been called 'demon child,' 'devil spawn,' and a plethora of other names more than she had. It had left little hope in his heart that he'd find a woman who would love him. But unlike his sister, he still had some sort of hope left…and then he'd found Morgana and…it STILL felt like a dream to him, to have someone like her love him. It was why he was both looking forward to, and dreading, marrying her. He couldn't wait to, with everything he was he wanted to take Morgana as his wife but…at the same time, there was one thing holding him back from seeing it happen or wanting to see it happen.

It, surprisingly, had nothing to do with status or magic or anything Marayna had been afraid of with Arthur, Morgana wasn't to be Queen, there was less pressure on her than Arthur so they didn't worry about his more than inferior status compared to her. No…it was more that…he knew what sort of bond marriage could form and…

"What's wrong?" Marayna stopped, putting a hand on his arm to still him and turn him to face her as well, "Merlin?"

Merlin sighed, "I…I just…marrying Morgana…"

"You're not having second thoughts are you?" she frowned, if he was…that was NOT what she expected at all.

"No!" he nearly shouted, "Not at all, I love her and I want to marry her more than anything but…"

"But what?" Merlin was quiet, "Merlin, you can tell me," she squeezed his arm, "Please, I've already been treated differently by nearly everyone, please don't do that to me too."

He sighed, "I just…worry."

"About what?"

"About us."

"Merlin you and Morgana will be happy," she tried to tell him, but he held up a hand.

"No, not Morgana and I…um…YOU and I," he admitted.

"I'm not quite sure I'm following," she said bluntly.

He ran a hand down his face at that, but he knew his own thoughts were so jumbled he couldn't blame her for not reading his mind about this, "If Morgana and I wed…she'll be my wife."

"Yes," Marayna nodded slowly, "I got that part. What's wrong about that?"

"Nothing," he continued, "It's just…a marriage to Morgana is…another step farther away from YOU. You're already Arthur's wife and..." he let out a frustrated breath, knowing that made no sense, "Aya…you had to have noticed the…distance between us lately?"

Her eyes widened slightly, more in realization than surprise, "A bit," she conceded.

He reached out and took her hand, "I just worry that, with your marriage to Arthur and, one day, my own to Morgana...that we'll look at each other and find a chasm between us. We were so close Aya, SO close and then we came to Camelot and…and we're keeping secrets from each other and arguing over overgrown lizards and…and spending more time with other people than each other, and now you're someone else's WIFE instead of just my sister," he swallowed hard, hating how he was bringing up her marriage, the thing that made her so happy last night, but...he hadn't had any time to prepare himself for the wedding and it just felt like...like Arthur was taking his sister away from him, "I miss you Aya."

Marayna's expression softened, "Murry," she used her playful nickname for him, letting him know what she was about to say would be hard to hear but that she had to say it now, "We've grown a little apart, yes," she agreed, "But…that's only because of the people around us," she smiled, "In Ealdor, we only really had each other, and mother, to look out for us. We had to rely on each other, trust each other more, because the only one who was going to protect us…was the other person, right?"

"Right…" he began slowly.

"But here, in Camelot…there are SO many people who care about us just as much as we did each other then in Ealdor," she continued, "Morgana and Gwen and Gaius and even Arthur…they love us, they'd give their lives for us. We…we haven't had many people care for us and it's only right we care for them too. We may be distant, but…it'll never be a chasm, and if it is…it'll be filled with the people that keep us connected even then, the people who love us and care about us."

"You really think it's that?" Merlin asked in a quiet voice, revealing how truly vulnerable and disheartened he'd been to think that it was them NOT caring about each other that was driving them apart. That…maybe they were losing love for each other to put towards Arthur and Morgana.

"Love is infinite Merlin," she counted his thoughts first, "You will ALWAYS be my brother, you will always be the only one who understands what it was like to grow up in Ealdor and hiding magic. You will always be my hero, my best friend, and…you will always be one of the two most important men in my life. No matter whatever distance there may be, you will ALWAYS be my brother."

Merlin smiled at that, feeling a little foolish to worry that something like them drifting apart might happen, not ever, their bond might be stretched, but it wasn't broken.

"You're one of the two most important women in my life as well Aya," he stepped closer to give her a hug, "I don't know where I'd be without you," he whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

She smiled, the two of them just standing there, hugging, her dressed as a noblewoman and him a servant as others meandered past them, and they didn't care what stares they got.

They were siblings always and forever, nothing would change that.

~8~

"I thought I might find you here," Arthur remarked as he stepped onto the battlements and made his way across them to where Marayna was standing, just looking out at Camelot, at the courtyard and market and the villagers.

"Did you?" she murmured.

"Well, when you weren't in our room waiting for me to ravish you," he joked, moving behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder, "Or in the physician's chambers, or Morgana's rooms, or the Main Hall or library or armory or stables or…"

"You really checked ALL those places?" she turned her head to look at him.

He shrugged, "I was worried about you," he admitted, "I'd been told that you refused the maid I'd sent to tend to you. Did she insult you?"

"Not her personally," she remarked, "The idea of her thought…" she sighed, almost able to feel Arthur's confusion without seeing it, "Arthur," she stepped away, turning to face him but holding his hands in hers, "I've been a servant for nearly 5 years and overnight became a princess," she shook her head, "I won't suddenly become dainty and prim, I won't faint or swoon at the sight of blood, and I'm not an invalid. I have taken care of myself all my life. I've dressed and bathed and done everything on my own. I really…would prefer NOT to have a maid."

Arthur nodded through that, listening, taking stock of her words, but he frowned at the last part, "I just wanted to give you someone to help take care of you."

"Here's a thought," she smirked, "YOU do it."

"What?" he started laughing, "We already tried that experiment of me being a servant and…"

"No," she cut in gently, "I mean…instead of a maid helping lace up my dress or take it off…why don't YOU do it. We are married now Arthur, we are…a partnership. You can't just leave responsibilities that goes with it to other people. You take care of me…and I'll take care of you."

"Instead of Merlin?" Arthur guessed.

"I'd also like to talk to you about him, but first…what do you think about my idea?" she waited a moment, letting him ponder it, "If it helps, I'd love the chance to be the only one who gets to rip a shirt off you at the end of the day and…"

"I think…" this time ARTHUR cut in, "I think that is a wonderful idea," he smiled at her, touching her cheek, "I…I don't actually trust anyone else but Merlin to take care of you and treat you the way you deserve."

"And how's that?" she smiled wider.

"Like a princess," he whispered, leaning into kiss her.

Marayna reached out to touch his cheek, holding him there and pulling him back in when he paused for breath, the longer she could keep him kissing, the more easy he'd be to persuade that a certain servant ought to at least be a lord.

After all, wasn't it weird that one woman was a princess, and her brother was a servant? It made no sense and, if Uther wanted to pass her off as a noblewoman, as she guessed he might given the lessons from Morgana...it would raise too many questions to introduce the prince's manservant as her brother. With her new arrangement with Arthur, she could handle the waking and dressing him and tending to him in other ways...he really didn't need a personal manservant any more than she needed a personal maidservant. Not to mention...her brother was special, she wouldn't mind if he had an extra little title too. Apparently she wasn't going to marry KING Arthur as she'd originally thought.

If she had the title of 'Princess,' well, it was only fair her brother also have another title. And, if this little kissing moment didn't work to convince him...well, she was rather determined to see her 'wedding night' happen and she was quite sure she could convince Arthur to agree to what she wanted after she'd seen to that. No matter what though, she would see her brother's status elevated.

Lord Merlin had a nice ring to it.

A/N: I'm SO glad you guys enjoyed the last chapter :) I'm really glad I could surprise you with the wedding ^-^ I literally squealed and did a happy dance when I opened my reviews to do the notes and saw how much you guys enjoyed it :') We got a little more here about the reactions of others to the wedding, there'll be bits of it popping up in future chapters as well and...we'll also find out if Marayna's successful in getting Merlin another title of his own :)

Also, to anyone who's interested, I'll be posting a new Doctor Who series in a few minutes, Losing Hope ;) It starts in Series 4 with the Sontarans and features a rather...angry and bitter Time Lady }:)

Some notes on reviews...

I noticed the full name yup ;) I feel the same, lol, I'll be writing and go 'Mara walked to the table' and be like, that's not Arthur's POV, backspace lol :)

Oh Uther, if he ever finds out about the magic, I almost don't want to even try to imagine his reaction O.O

Yup, Elena and Godwyn knew about the test ;) I think a few nobles probably were shippers, just very good about not letting on about it :) I can say that Uther will find out about the engagement of Merlin and Morgana, but I won't say when, so I can't say if he'll do the same for Morgana }:) And thanks! I'm really glad you're enjoying it so far ^-^

Lol, no wedding night chapter, sorry! I tend to stay away from lemons/limes/intimate scenes like that. Even though they're fictional characters, I feel like moments like that are meant to be private and behind closed doors. I wouldn't want someone writing about me doing something like that for the world to see, I don't think Marayna would want people to know either :)

I can say that the twist with Morgana being good and Morgause won't involve Urry, but we WILL see him again ;)

Yup, Merlin was the one who was worried. I feel like, being her big brother, being so close to her and having the bond they do, for the marriage to be sprung so quickly, with so little time to prepare for it, it would hit him harder, the happiness and the pain, like...his sister's being taken away from him, she's not just his sister anymore but Arthur's wife :(

I was debating putting Hunith and Mordred in, but I feel like Uther wouldn't be able to get her there in time and to ask her to Camelot only for it not to happen would be a waste to him :( That and Mordred can't enter Camelot without being executed and Hunith has sort of taken to him and, I think, would want to protect him from Uther. But Marayna is determined to do a little Ealdor wedding to make up for that ;) As for Marayna's servant...gotta love Artie ;)

I think the Hope is a lovely name, I'm not quite sure it fits as a sort of title, but then again, the Angel lol ;)