Previously in The 12 Days of Christmas

Merlin to Janine, chapter 4

"Okay wait, wait Janine come to Christmas dinner then you can see how it really is."

"I don't know bye."

Janine disconnected and Merlin sat there staring at the wall. He had just invited Janine, which also include her husband and two kids to Christmas dinner. Not to mention the fact that Janine and Gwen were still not on speaking terms.


7th Day of Christmas

Morgana sat her purse down on the table and seated herself on the metal bench. She shivered a bit making Gwen glad that she was wearing a longer coat. Morgana was wearing a short black zip up that was probably warmer than it looked, black leggings and stretch gloves. Her dark hair was in one long ponytail and she wore no make-up. A perfect outfit for ice skating. The surprise had been Arthur wearing a nearly identical outfit and both of them bring their own ice skates.

"Where's Arthur and Merlin?"

"Getting hot apple cider," Gwen nodded in the direction of the food vendor where Merlin and Arthur stood at the back of a longish line.

"Oh good," Morgana blew on her hands to warm them.

"You and Arthur looked good out there."

Damned good for an outdoor rink where most of the skaters could only go round and round and a trick consisted of skating backwards. Merlin had watched the brother and sister skate together and grumbled in her ear about rich people, their fancy skates and matching outfits. Gwen had simply laughed and tried to help him keep his balance.

"Thanks," Morgana smiled brightly. "We hadn't skated together in so long, I'm surprised we were able to sync up on anything." She shrugged. "Muscle memory I guess."

"Why'd you two quit?" Gwen asked.

"Mom, she wanted Arthur to do something else, something more," she paused searching for a word, "appropriate. Of course now we know she just didn't think it was manly enough. Plus we weren't medal good anyway." Morgana shrugged again.

Guinevere studied the other woman a moment. She seemed so calm, so unaffected. My brother and I used to ice skate but my Mother stopped it because she thought my brother was gay. That was what Morgana had just told her and then shrugged as if it were nothing.

"I don't want to get into a conversation about Mom though," Morgana pulled a make-up bag out of her purse. "Let's talk about something else."

A cool breeze blew off the lake carrying a hint of snow and the fragrance of popcorn from the street vendors in Millennium park.

"Oh-okay."

Gwen let her eyes drift over the park taking in the skaters, the tourist, and the lavender tinted twilight glow that streetlights, gray sky, white clouds and Christmas lights cast over everything. Her dark eyes glanced over the gleaming metal bean reflecting Michigan Avenue and the evening sky. She tried and failed to think of topics that would not lead back to Igraine but nothing came to mind.

"How is the Christmas jewelry doing?"

"Very well actually," Gwen smiled. "Remember the vintage test pieces I told you about?"

Morgana nodded even as she put on her trademark red lipstick.

"They are doing really well. As a matter of fact, we're going to do more of them for the 90th anniversary." Gwen pulled out her iPhone and showed Morgana pictures of some of the designs she had in mind. The designs weren't exactly vintage, they were her own, inspired by pieces her great-grandfather had made.

"These are amazing, Gwen!" Morgana grinned and danced in her seat with excitement. "You have to make one exclusively for me. I swear I'll wear it to all the best parties this spring."

"That is a deal," Gwen agreed. Morgana was something of a trendsetter in wealthy Chicago circles. The last time Gwen had made her friend a piece of jewelry she'd sold the design to a high end manufacturer and had been able to pay off all of her student loan debt.

"Let me tell you what your brother did?"

"Oh no, what now?" Morgana rolled her eyes.

"It's a good thing." Gwen grinned and pulled up the marketing campaign that Arthur had created.

"Oh?" Morgana looked through the website mock-up. "You two, really are, a great team."

"Thanks." Gwen said.

"I'm sort of jealous actually."

"What?" Gwen looked at her friend in bafflement.

"The way your business is going and you both seem so happy."

"You have money don't you Morgs," Gwen leaned forward hands clasped together on the metal table. "Can't you do like Arthur and quit?"

"Quit! Now? No." Morgana looked at her as if she'd grown another head."I'm the head of Pendragon Real Estate marketing now, on the fast track to CEO, if I quit now Mom will definitely disinherit me."

"Oh, well, maybe It will get better." Gwen said hopefully.

She sniffed. "I don't like managing people. I'm not good at it. I want to sell quality costume jewelry or fashion or something."

"You've only been doing it since Kay left, just a few months. Think of it as a challenge, take some management classes."

Morgana pursed her lips and looked at her as if she were deluded.

"Event planning would be much more fun, maybe Arthur will hire me." Morgana pouted a moment. "What's taking them so long anyway?"

"Line's moving slow," Gwen said causally. They were standing closer to one and other now gloved hands nearly touching. Arthur's fingers brushed Merlin's. For a moment their hands intermingled and then Merlin shoved his hands in his pockets. Gwen frowned.

"You've been keeping an eye on them, all this time." Morgana said with a wicked smirk.

She shrugged.

"How is it?" Morgana leaned forward. "How is it, two guys? You look happy, satisfied."

"Morgana!" Gwen stared at her aghast.

"That's not what I'm asking. I mean are you happy with both of them? Having to share them with each other?"

Gwen smiled a slow sort of secretive smile. "Yeah I am. You have to be careful it can be easy to leave someone out. Ya' know third wheel, three's a crowd but it's really good."

"S'okay now I am asking. Do you," Morgana glanced around a moment, "recommend it? Is it really satisfying?"

The other woman waggled her eyebrows lasciviously and Gwen groaned.

"I don't want details." Morgana said throwing up her hands. "I just figure, you're really well taken care of in that department."

Gwen bit the inside of her jaw thinking about what she wanted to say if anything. Her mother always told her if a woman was serious about her relationship she did not share the intimate details.

"If you're healthy, you'll be really well satisfied, that's all I'm saying." Gwen said.

Morgana started to grin and Gwen felt a little laugh well up.

"Before we get silly, I need a favor."Morgana said.

"What's up?"

"Can I come over for Christmas dinner?"

"Christmas dinner?" Gwen stalled her answer.

"Yes." The other woman looked at her with wide helpless eyes. "You know I always have dinner with Stella and her family. Well Stella is dating Roland now and she's bringing him to dinner."

"The heifer," Gwen said and frowned in distaste.

"I know. I can't go over there for Christmas dinner, now and you know Mom and Dad's Christmas plans are already made they won't be able to get tickets for me."Morgana pleaded. "Can I please eat with you guys?"

Gwen sighed thinking. She liked Morgana and she wanted to support her but this dinner…

"You're dating my brother and I love your parents."

"And Merlin?" Gwen probed.

"He's a nice enough I guess." Morgana rolled her eyes. "You may have forgiven him but you're my friend and Arthur cheated on you with him."

Gwen took a deep breath and told herself to be patient. She'd met Morgana one winter break when Arthur had brought her home for the holidays. Morgs had still been a high school senior at the time and had been thrilled to meet her. Apparently Arthur had been telling his baby sister all sorts of good things about this girl he'd met.

Uther had been warm and pleasant, Igraine had been both outrageous yet somehow tolerable, showing her ignorance in the occasional remark. Arthur had tried to calmly and patiently correct his mother but Morgana all of seventeen years old and full of idealism and high school passions and had loudly confronted her mother's behavior. It hadn't worked of course but it had been a good start to their friendship.


"Congratulations on being the first person in your family to graduate from college dear." Igraine smiled.

Arthur's eyes had bugged and he'd coughed choking on his food. Guinevere instinctively patted him on his back. Arthur had warned her about his Mom but this sort of thing was always a shock.

"Mom that's racist," seventeen year old Morgana declared!

"What?" Igraine had looked puzzled. "What's racist?"

"Oh my god Mom, did you ask, Gwen if she was the first in her family to go to college?" Morgana asked.

"No."

"Okay, so assuming that Gwen is the first person in her family to graduate college, just because she is black, is racist," the girl said the last word with horrified emphasis.

"That's not okay Mom. Why would you assume that?" Arthur said as he'd recovered.

"Well because she's black and they don't get to go to college," Igraine looked directly at her. "I just wanted to compliment you Gwen."

"Excuse me; I have to go to the bathroom." Gwen got up from the table and hurried out of the room.

"Gwen's parents met in college,Mom!" She heard Arthur shout as she left.

She'd gone into the bathroom and had a seat on the toilet just to take a few breaths and think. Not long after, Morgana had come to the bathroom door asking if she really needed the bathroom.

Gwen had let her in, she liked the feisty teen already.

"He,y sorry about my Mom," Morgana said sitting down on the edge of the bath tub. "She can be such a bitch."

"Don't call your Mom a bitch." Gwen said automatically.

"But she was so…" The younger girl had looked at her helplessly.

Gwen looked at Morgana and saw green eyes flaring with adolescent intensity, eagerness and that familiar concern that seventeen year-old girls have with being liked.

"She is still your Mom. Stand up to her when she is wrong, but don't ever call your own mother that, and don't let anyone else do it either."

Morgana had looked at her for a long time before nodding.


Guinevere took a deep breath.

"Morgs, this is the last time I'm going to say these three things to you. Arthur and I were completely broken up when he and Merlin started seeing each other, Merlin thought he was in a monogamous relationship with Arthur and I didn't know Arthur was going out with Merlin for that matter but technically," and she said it with great emphasis, "technically Arthur cheated on Merlin with me. Arthur messed up. If you want to be mad at someone, be mad at Arthur like everybody else, but Merlin was not at fault here."

"You really think he didn't know?"

"We've been over this Morgana. If you're coming to my house for Christmas dinner you have to respect both of my men, and their relationship with each other."

"I've been nicer to him recently but you're my friend." Morgana looked at her beseechingly.

"Morgana," Gwen clasped her friend's hands across the table. "I love the fact that you're on my side and want to support me but that means supporting Merlin too. I don't want to have to talk about this again."

Green eyes held brown and Morgana eventually nodded.

"Well I am starting to like him," Morgana admitted.

"Good."

"He's funny and he's nice."

"Mhmm."

"And I promise to behave at Christmas," Morgana pleaded.

Gwen smiled and sat back.

"I have to think about it."

"Gwen-"

"I'm not answering you today," Gwen said.

"But Gwen I just-"

"No, not today." Gwen smiled brightly as Merlin and Arthur approached with popcorn, cookies and four cups of hot apple cider. They set the snacks down on the table each of them leaning down to give Guinevere a quick kiss on the cheek before settling down. Merlin sat next to Gwen and Arthur next to Morgana.

"Anything interesting happen while we were gone?" Arthur asked and started munching on the popcorn.

"You weren't gone that long," Morgana said.

"Right I feel like we went away on safari." Merlin complained and Gwen couldn't help but laugh.

"Popcorn," Morgana extended the carton to Merlin but not before shooting a glance at Gwen.

"Thanks."Merlin said and helped himself.

Gwen sighed she wanted to invite Morgana, she loved Morgana. At one point they had nearly been sisters, perhaps they still would be. But this dinner, more than anything was about impressing her dad. Her dad had come to trust Merlin and still liked him. If Morgana was there and still hostile towards Merlin it would probably exacerbate things; still no one deserved to be alone on Christmas. She'd have to talk it over with Arthur and Merlin but most likely they would agree to give Morgana a chance. Then she'd let Morgana stew a bit to make sure she appreciated the invite.

Mentally she tallied up their guest list, her parents, Elyan and Hunith, including the three of them that made for a total of seven. With Balinor and Morgana added that gave them a total of nine. Gwen considered the numbers for a moment. Debating about whether or not they should get anything more. After a moment she decided against itm they'd planned a dinner for eleven, even with Morgana and Balinor they'd be fine.

"Watcha ya' thinking about?" Merlin asked for her ears alone, while Morgana and Arthur relived their glory days as childhood pair skaters.

"Just how perfect our Christmas dinner is gonna be." Gwen said with a smile.


A/N- So this has gone way past Christmas obviously, sigh but we're more than half way done now, thanks everyone for your continued readership and comments. Next time I plan a Christmas fic I'll start it right after Thanksgiving.