Waking, Arthur reached out an arm, feeling for Guinevere. When it was obvious she was no longer in his bed, he opened his eyes, hoping to see her somewhere in his room. But it was empty. Surely she hadn't returned to Acirith. As dread pooled in his stomach, he jumped out of bed and pulled on his coat.

"Merlin!"

Had she changed her mind in the middle of the night?

"Merlin!" His manservant was missing as well. Arthur stalked to the door and flung it open. "Merlin!" Where's Guinevere?"

Merlin came running down the corridor, stopping just in front of Arthur. Bent over, he huffed. "She's in her room. You probably scared her away with your snoring."

"Shut up. Has she had breakfast?"

"Mary is preparing her breakfast. I would have yours if you weren't yelling at me."

"I'll have breakfast with Guinevere." Tugging his coat tighter around him, Arthur made his way to Guinevere's room.

He knocked, his heart pounding as the fear that Guinevere had changed her mind wouldn't stop playing in his mind. He heard movement, then the door finally opened and Guinevere looked up at him. The smile on her face immediately put him at ease.

"Good morning," she said, pulling the door open, he assumed, as an invitation to enter.

Arthur took a step in and noticed that breakfast was already laid out on her table. "If you don't mind, I thought I would take breakfast with you."

Her eyebrows lifted, but she continued to smile. "Of course."

"If you're worried, I'd eat all your food, Merlin is bringing my breakfast over."

That made her laugh and Arthur couldn't stop the warmth that spread through him. He sat at the table, then gestured for her to sit next to him. She shook her head, a smile playing on her lips, then took a seat.

"Why didn't you stay the night?"

Her hand reached for a bread roll. "I did. I only came back here this morning." Amusement flickered in her eyes. "Did you miss me?"

"You know I did," he grumbled. He'd spent the whole of last night baring his heart to her and she still had to ask. Her only response was to smile at him. He suspected she was teasing him but he felt far too raw to respond appropriately. Instead, he frowned and slouched into his chair.

Just at that moment, Merlin walked in, carrying Arthur's breakfast. AA smirk was on his face although he kept his silence as he laid out Arthur's plate. Arthur felt even more annoyed when Merlin and Guinevere exchanged smiles.

"What are your plans today?" asked Guinevere a few minutes into the breakfast.

"I was hoping to be able to speak more to your brother."

"Ah." Guinevere put a piece of bread into her mouth.

Arthur looked at her. That single sound held a lot of meaning. "AYou two weren't close? You practically begged me to save him."

"I love him. He is family." She looked at the table and her finger made patterns on the rough wood. "But –"

Reaching out, he covered her hand with his. "But he's frustrating to deal with?"

She nodded with a sigh.

"Morgana is the same. I love her – she's like a sister to me – but she's so frustrating. She's constantly butting heads with father. I'm not saying that father is always right, but her way of confrontation doesn't achieve anything, except to anger him. Then, she leaves me to pick up the pieces."

"Elyan isn't confrontational. He's more likely to run away." Pushing her plate away, Guinevere sighed again. "He doesn't want to be king, so he disappeared. He only came back when he ran out of money. Then, when father became sick, he ran away again. Now, he's back. He expects me to be there for him. Yet he's never there when I need him."

He ran his thumb across the back of her hand. "We have each other now," he said quietly.

She turned her hand over, slipping her fingers between his. "I'd like that."

Elyan was pacing when Guinevere entered his room. She tried to temper the instinctive resentment that rose in her. She loved Elyan but his refusal to take on his responsibilities had only made things more difficult for her and her father.

"I thought you were leaving," he said petulantly. "Can't you get Camelot to remove the guards?"

"Don't you think that Camelot has a good reason to keep an eye on you?" Shutting the door, she turned to face him. "Arthur wants to speak with you."

"So Camelot is going to protect me?" He flung himself onto the bed. "That's the plan?"

"Yes. In exchange for information on Morgause." Guinevere settled herself on the bed next to him. "Arthur is going to come by in a while to talk to you."

Elyan nodded. "So, you're the princess of Camelot now. The largest kingdom in Albion. How does it feel?"

"Overwhelming sometimes. But I'm glad I managed to secure Acirith's defense."

"By selling yourself?"

Guinevere glared at him. "I had little choice, Elyan. You weren't around and father is very ill. With Camelot's protection, there's less to worry about. Besides, it's not that bad, being married to Arthur."

"That's not the impression I got in Acirith."

"We were having a bit of a quarrel then. We've sorted that out." Memories of her in bed with Arthur the night before as they sorted out their quarrel made heat rush to her cheeks and she turned away from Elyan. "What have you been up to in the last few months?"

Slowly, Elyan revealed how he'd been traveling, disguised as a mercenary. He talked of adventures and all the fascinating places he'd been to and it was hard for Guinevere not to feel a pang of jealousy. In her younger days, she'd wanted to see the world as well.

"And in which of these places did you meet Morgause?" Arthur stepped into the room, crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame.

Elyan hopped off the bed immediately. "Arthur. I hope that you've been taking care of my sister."

"For someone who's been gone for the past five months, you're hardly in the position to play big brother," huffed Guinevere as she stood as well. "I'm going to my room.

Arthur caught her arm as she brushed past him, tugging her so she stood in front of him. The lines of his face softened and he leaned down to kiss her. "Are you alright?"

She nodded. "I'll let you talk to Elyan in private."

"I'll see you later."

She was mending some of Arthur's shirts – it was true that Merlin's sewing skills left much to be desired – when she heard footsteps, then Arthur's knock on her door. He didn't look particularly pleased when she opened it, and her heart sank.

"What is it?"

"Your brother knows surprisingly little. Still, it is more than we had so I guess it isn't completely useless. He doesn't remember if Morgana was with Morgause."

Stepping towards him, she placed a hand on his arm. "How did he get tangled with Morgause?"

Arthur drew her closer, tucking her into a loose embrace. "By playing the hero in a small village that they were attacking. Ealdor."

"That's Merlin's village!"

"I know. I've already sent men out to see the damage. Your brother was living there for a while, then Morgause and her knights attacked. They knew who your brother was and captured him. And you know the rest of the story." She felt Arthur kiss the top of her head before stepping away.

"Did he say anything else?"

"He confirmed that Morgause has magic." Arthur rubbed his face. "I have no idea how we're going to go up against an enemy with magic, when we've banned it from out kingdom. Perhaps the only person with any clue how to deal with magic is Gaius."

Arthur was staring out of her window into the courtyard and Gwen went to stand next to him. The courtyard was bustling with activity. Life was going on as usual for all the people below and Guinevere envied them. Perhaps not knowing that war was looming was for the best. She felt Arthur slip her arm around her and she leaned into him.

"If they attacked Ealdor, but none of the other villages around, then there must be something in Ealdor."

Arthur nodded. "I can't imagine what."

"What will you do now?"

"I've sent men to Ealdor and to various other places Elyan mentioned they were at. Hopefully, we'll be able to find out what Cenred and Morgause are up to." He looked down at her. "There is already a unit of knights on their way to Acirith. Don't worry. Lancelot will be able to manage."

"Thank you," said Guinevere.

He cupped her face, his thumb rubbing across her cheek. "How do you feel about taking a break from all this war?"

Her curiosity piqued, she tilted her head. "What did you have in mind?"

Guinevere learned to ride as soon as she could walk. Then, she had been told to always tie her hair up. Now, as she urged her horse forward, her untied hair whipped against her face. And while it obscured her vision at times, she loved the feeling of freedom it gave her.

She also loved that she was ahead of Arthur.

It was a risk, but she turned back and stuck her tongue out at him. Just slightly behind her, she heard Arthur laugh, then yell at his horse to go faster.

"You cheated," she grumbled as Arthur helped her down from her horse. "If I had my horse –"

Arthur silenced her with a kiss. It was annoying how easily she succumbed to his touch but she twined her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss.

Merlin cleared his throat. "Shall I set up the picnic?"

With the stream bubbling next to them, birds chirping in the trees, the warm sun and a spread of delicious food, it was close to perfect. Her head was cradled in Arthur's lap, while Merlin sat by the side. She closed her eyes as Arthur and Merlin bantered about the merits of hunting – she didn't care either way – and let herself think about how different her life seemed now, from just a week ago when she was in Acirith and convinced that her marriage was in shambles.

She must have dozed off, because Arthur was caressing her cheek and calling her name.

"Tired? The horse riding must have exhausted you," he said, laughter in his voice.

Guinevere rolled her eyes and pushed herself off his lap. "I can beat you back to the castle."

Morgause was not easy to find and Elyan's vague descriptions didn't help. The patrols Arthur sent out over the next week came back empty handed every evening, which only served to increase his father's rage.

"This is hopeless. We've been sending out patrols for over a week. Her brother knows nothing and half your knights are still stationed in Acirith. I want you to withdraw the knights. The security of Camelot is more important than that of Acirith." Uther snapped at him after dismissing the council. "For all you know, your wife is lying to you again, diverting our attentions from what is really happening."

"She would not lie to me," he stated calmly.

"You've fallen for her," said Uther in disgust. "Now you're completely irrational. You need to stop thinking with your heart."

"This would never have happened if you didn't decide to force me to marry someone you thought was a traitor!"

"I thought? You know as well as I do she is a traitor and one of your duties was to keep her on a close leash! Not allow her to retain control over her own lands to do as she pleased and certainly not to allow her to have a say in your military plans!"

"I told you before, I don't believe she betrayed Camelot in the last war. And I won't continue to treat her like she did. And if you recall my men from Acirith, I will go there myself." Ignoring the anger on his father's face, he left the council chambers.

As he made his way to where his knights were training, hoping to work off some of his frustration, he noticed Isabella and Guinevere deep in conversation near the central fountain. A mix of fear and anxiety gripped him. He hadn't had much contact with Isabella since his marriage and any time they were in the same space, their interactions had been polite and distant. He had hoped she had gotten over not becoming princess but he wasn't sure. And with his relationship with Guinevere still new and fragile – he was painfully aware that she never said how she felt about him – he really didn't need Isabella upsetting Guinevere.

Clearly Guinevere didn't feel the same as she frowned at his intrusion but continued talking. "Arthur, I was just discussing how to rearrange the servants' duties with Isabella."

He nodded, wondering when the two of them started discussing such issues with each other.

"Anyway, Isabella was telling me more about the servants and so I've invited her to take charge of them and make the necessary arrangements. She knows them very well, much better than me."

Isabella laughed. "I grew up here. It's nothing special about knowing them."

"But you listen to them and you observe. Ask Arthur here if he knows why Kate and Maddy cannot work together anymore. He grew up here too."

This was probably the best time for him to leave. Smiling and ignoring Guinevere's jab at him, he waved goodbye and walked towards the training grounds.

"Sire!" One of the younger knights rushed up to him. "We have news!"

The news turned out to be that an outlying village in Acirith had been attacked by Morgause and her army. Rumours were that magic was once again involved. But more importantly, some survivors had reported that Lady Morgana had been with her.

AN: Thanks for the comments yet again. I love each and every one of them. :D Also, the next update may take a few days.