Chapter 11

No Title?


After an awkward bowling night, with Arthur and Gwen trying to avoid each other's eyes (their friends couldn't help but notice the "chemical tension" between them), they each departed to their separate sleepovers; boys went to Arthur's bedroom while the girls went to Morgana's.

The next morning, Gwen woke up feeling perfectly energized but a little bit hungry. She decided to cook herself some breakfast.

When she went down to the kitchen, she noticed how bare and quiet it was since the members of the staff weren't bustling around. 'They mus still be asleep.' She grabbed a bowl, grabbed two eggs and started to whisk, unaware that another sleepless soul had joined her.

"Making scrambled eggs now?"

Gwen jumped but relaxed once she saw who it was. "Aren't you supposed to be asleep?" Gwen asked.

"Couldn't really sleep. You know how it is when you are sharing a room with 5 guys."

"The snoring was that bad?"

"Gwaine is the worst!" exclaimed Arthur. He sometimes regretted inviting Gwaine because of his loud snores. The only time Gwaine was ever quiet was when they were nine and when they awoke, they found Gwaine sucking his thumb.

Gwen laughed, accidentally spilling some of the egg in the bowl on Arthur's shirt. Her face morphed into one of shock. "I'm sorry!" she exclaimed.

"It's alright." Arthur discretely put his hand in a bag of flour.

"Are you sure?" Gwen asked.

"Yes. Because I can do this!" He then flicked some flour at her face. Gwen was surprised but immediately her face turned into one of mischief. "Oh it's war!" she declared. She started throwing cheese at Arthur's face while he retaliated by throwing meat at her.

In time, the kitchen was a mess with cheese and meat littering the floor and Arthur & Gwen covered with food. "Well, that was rather...fun." Arthur wiped a strip of cheese from his cheek.

"Yeah. It reminds me of the good old days." Gwen sighed with wistfully as she wiped some meat from her ear.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when I was younger, there were times when I would go to the kitchen to make myself something to eat. Elyan would usually be there. We would make each other's snacks. I'd make him tuna sandwich while he'd make me scrambled eggs. Then, we decided to make breakfast for our parents. We ended up getting in to a food fight after I 'accidentally' flicked flour on his face." She smiled although it wasn't her usual bright smile.

"You really miss him, don't you?" said Arthur. She nodded her head in response.

"Do you miss Lilliana?" Gwen asked cautiously, hoping to not offend him.

"Yes. I miss our snowball fights. I miss her kindness. I even miss her fighting with Morgana." He locked eyes with Gwen. They understood their mutual experiences. They missed Elyan & Lilliana but now, they were making happy memories. Memories that might help lose the pain.

"We never would've me if it wasn't for them," Gwen admitted.

"That's one thing I am happy about," replied Arthur.


After cleaning up the mes they made in the kitchen, Gwen went upstairs to her room and showered off the remains of food that clung to her face. She changed into a fresh blue blouse and jeans. She then went downstairs to check on her niece and nephew.

As she entered Aida's room, she noticed that the room looked like it was in a complete and total chaos. Pillows and blankets were strewn all over the floor, the dolls had been pulled out of their shelves and had been piled up onto the bed. Drawers and the big chest had been tipped over with the contents strewn all over the floor.

"Aida?" Gwen called worriedly. Her niece stepped out of the bathroom wearing a nightgown and a put down expression. "What's wrong, sweetie?" Gwen rushed over to her little niece, engulfing her in a hug.

"S-s-Sand-d-d-d-dra's g-gone!" Aida whimpered, rubbing her eyes, which were red from crying.

"Oh don't worry, sweetie. We'll look for your doll but first, we need to get you dressed." Gwen ushered her niece to get dressed quickly.


It had been an hour and they still hadn't found Sandra. They had enlisted the help of Morgana, Vanessa, and Merlin (who surprisingly had a soft spot for kids) yet they still couldn't find her. As she approached Uther's study to check if it might have been somewhere around that place, she could hear voices.

"What are you doing, Father?" she heard Arthur ask.

"I'm just going over the guest list for the ball. All your friends have been invited," Uther replied.

Gwen crept quietly towards the door, which was slightly ajar, and peeked through the crack. She saw Uther hunched over a small paper that must have been the guest list while Arthur stood beside the desk, hands behind his back.

"I heard that you didn't attend the lunch with Vivian. Why was that?" Uther sent a questioning glare at Arthur.

"I was teaching Guinevere how to waltz." Gwen noticed how red his cheeks looked. 'Why is he blushing?'

"Ah," Uther said nonchalantly but a small smirk crossed his face. He ran his pen down the list of names until he stopped at one. "Do we have to invite her?" Uther complained. Gwen felt her stomach drop.

"Let me guess. You don't want her there because she has no title." Arthur raised his eyebrows at his father.

"Well, not just that. She has obscenely crass behavior." Gwen's eyes blurred with tears. Crass behavior? She had good manners. Well, maybe except the time when she complained to Uther about the lack of Christmas spirit.

"I don't suppose we can un-invite her," Arthur suggested.

"No, it's too late. Let's just hope she is not an embarrassment to us, that's all," Uther concluded. Gwen's mind started to spin out of control. She just wanted everyone to be happy. It hurt to think that Uther thought of her like this after she tried to help him get along with Aida and Rowan. But what hurt the most was when it was coming from Arthur. She couldn't grasp the notion that he didn't feel the same way that she did about him. Especially after that moment they shared in the kitchen...

"Guinevere?" Arthur asked as he stepped out of his father's study. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh." Gwen immediately tried to blink back the tears that were threatening to spill through. "I was just looking for Aida's doll?"

"Which one?"

"Sandra."

"May I help you look?"

"Sure."


After a half hour of more searching, the group finally decided to call it quits and sent the butlers looking for it. Aida, though, didn't want to give up so she just decided to help look for it with the servants.

Arthur immediately went to his private gym, hoping to get a little privacy. He kicked ball after ball, never failing to hit the goal each time. A few of the servants had watched him yet he didn't mind.

"It's nice to see him playing football again," Anna remarked.

"I wonder what got him to start again?" her husband wondered.

"You mean whom," Anna remarked knowingly. She knew of the growing romance between Arthur and Gwen. Everyone in the castle knew except the two lovebirds themselves.

Suddenly, Fredrick burst through the door. He put his hands on his knees and tried to steady his breathing. Arthur stopped his practice at once.

"What is it, Fredrick?" Arthur asked.

"I don't mean to interrupt sir but I found her." He then showed Arthur the missing doll.


Arthur knocked his door, his heart beating wildly. He may have been just returning the doll, but still, it's Guinevere. The door opened and Gwen's face peeked out, looking rather sad. She looked like she had been crying.

"Are you alright?" Arthur asked, concerned.

"I'm alright." Gwen smiled the best way she can.

"Here. I came to give you this." He handed Sandra over to Gwen.

"Thanks. Is that all?"

"There's one more thing."

"What is it?"

"Cook can't decide on shrimp quiche or salmon."

"What do you want?"

"Oh. Shrimp quiche."

"There you go."

"Are you alright with shrimp?"

"Sure."

Arthur walked away, feeling rather cheerful. Gwen, on the other hand, watched him leave, her heart breaking a little bit more.