Sorry this is so late. Many other things have got in the way. I've really enjoyed writing this though and hope you do too!

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Chapter 17; Merry Christmas, my Friend.

Rose couldn't remember the last time she had celebrated Christmas. She'd forgotten the smell of mulled wine and mince pies, of holly and roasting apples. The joy of gifts and the giving of presents, of seeing a happy face and smiling people, of a dusting of snow and everyone round the fire. Of the rush to rip the crisp paper off, and the sheer happiness that everyone felt, the fact that everything for one day could be forgotten, that for one day things could be different. The large meal, and the bits that always got burnt, the feeling of over eating and fullness. The singing of songs and the telling of stories and no work. The mistletoe, the laughter, the remembrance of a birth, the excitement of waking up and the content felt when falling asleep.

Rose didn't think she had properly felt it since she'd lost her parents, there had been a couple of years she'd spent in others company, in a odd village or with a group of travellers, and then there had been the bitterly cold days spent alone trying to scavenge enough wood for a small fire. She hadn't received Christmas gifts since her parents had given her them, she hadn't eaten a hearty meal without feeling guilty for such a long time. She hadn't felt home since she'd been forced to leave her childhood house and go on the run, she hadn't felt such happiness in such a long time and now finally in Camelot she did. She felt happy, she had family and friends; she had presents stacked at the bottom of her bed and the knowledge of no work, rest and a beautiful meal to come. She had, after so long, what she'd dreamt of, what she had reminded herself of when the wind whipped her face and she was alone in the middle of woods or in a cave.

She felt tears drop to the linen she was snuggled under; she quickly wiped them away but more appeared. She had waited for this moment for ten years, the happiness of a new family but the knowledge that she wouldn't open her door and be greeted by her parents' faces. She looked to her left and saw Merlin stirring and waking up and remembered the loss and sheer worry she had felt when she thought she may never see his face again. She remembered the comfort she had felt in his arms when her had returned, his laugh and his smile. She grinned at him as he shook his head, and spotted his gifts. He leaped to pick them up and then climbed up onto the bed. He threw Rose hers and then decided that they would be opening them now.

They picked two similar sized packages and counted down before tearing the paper off.

Merlin looked at his book and marvelled at the smooth leather cover, running his palm over it he smiled and opened the front cover where a letter fell out. Looking in front him he saw Rose with a similar book, but with a lighter leather cover and holding her own letter in a hand. With looks of confusement and wondering on their faces they both opened the letters which had their names written on the front.

The books and letters were from Gaius;

To my dear Merlin, the letter read,

You have little idea how much you have come to mean to me, I know that at times keeping your secret has been hard and frustrating so I give you this book, and I give Rose a similar one, to write of all you see and do.

A merry Christmas,

Gaius.

Merlin smiled and untied the two strings that locked the book up; on opening the first page he saw an inscription in Gaius' hand;

For future discoveries.

Merlin smiled at Rose as they carefully laid the books aside and began to open the other presents that were laid on the bed.

Gwen stripped the bed and bundled the linen into a pile by her feet. She took the clean, neatly folded sheets and began to remake Arthur's bed. The young Prince had gone to breakfast with his father and Morgana and Gwen had been instructed to clean and remake both beds before the young people returned to their rooms after eating. She had decided to deal with Morgana's first as if in the event of not being able to complete both she would rather run into Arthur than Morgana. The pair had barely spoken for days now, Morgana's answers were clipped and short, and she dismissed her from her room and told her to not worry her for the rest of the day. Gwen knew that Morgana was at times stressed and easily upset but it was unlike her to be so mean. After all they had gone through so much together and had become friends instead of servant and mistress.

Gwen knew she had risked her friendship with Rose when she had done what she had done but she had not expected either of them to know, indeed Rose continued to act seemingly normal as if she knew nothing and why should they? Nothing had happened yet and neither of them could have been told a thing. Yet Morgana did seem decidedly off, Gwen supposed it was nearing Christmas and Morgana was reminded of the fact her parents were not here to celebrate it with her, and perhaps she read to much into things. She had had to be on her guard as of late, and she felt she couldn't live without dear anymore. If she had known the trouble this would have caused her, the hurt, the constant guilt, the knowledge that she was to blame then she wouldn't have done it. The money was dirty, tainted, but Uther had told her she was doing the right thing, a good thing. She had told him that she was in no position to spy, that she was both Morgana and Rose's friend but he had not taken no for an answer, he had told her she would receive greater money, more than she could wish for. That was true. She had received vast sums of money and was richer than she had ever been before or ever imagined to be.

The money had been useful, very; it had been spent and melted. The gold had been melted and the silver used to purchase the strongest metal available. She had worked hard, if she was not sleeping in the palace or working or decorating then she was at home hammering away, she had found all her father's tools and equipment. She had smelt his smell and reminded herself of him, she had been her father's daughter once more. She had felt at home. She had banged and crashed, hammered and weighed, worked until her hands were calloused and her forehead was dripping with sweat, until her face was dirty and her feet sore. It had been worth it though.

She slotted the pillows into their cases and plumped them until they were large and comfy. She arranged the linen sheet and stretched them across the bed; she laid the warm quilt on top and tucked it in to the sides of the grand wooden bed. She tied the canopy curtains to the posts with ribbon and smoothed out any creases on the bed. She sighed, her work was done. Almost. She reached down on the floor and picked up the gift she had carried, hidden amongst the sheets of clean linen. She smiled and laid it done on the clean bed. She bent down and gathered all the used linen in her arms and made her way to the door. Opening it she turned to look at her masterpiece. Not for the first time she imagined the young prince falling asleep into at night, laying his head on the pillows she had plumped and slipping under the quilt she had spread. Content, she slipped out of the door and closed it behind her.

Walking down the corridor, she heard footsteps, heavy but not large, a young man's; determined but not rushed, paced but not slow. Turning the corner she saw him. Goosebumps ran up her arm and they weren't due to the cold. The hairs on the back of her neck stuck up straight, she felt her cheeks warm and blush, and cursed them for doing so, her mind raced wondering if her hair was still as neat as when she had left her house this morning, whether her dress looked presentable and then remembering linen covered it up anyway. She commanded her mouth to stop grinning and instead wear a small smile, she felt her hands grow sweaty and was then glad the linen could mop it up. She then realised her eyes were darting everywhere and she did not know where to look. It was at this point she realised her footsteps were the only ones she now heard. She looked up and into Arthur's face. He eyes probably popped out of her face and he smiled at her and she grinned madly back. She needed to keep her mouth in check. She needed to keep her emotions in check.

She remembered her position and curtsied. Arthur laughed.

"You do not need to do that, Gwen."

He'd said her name. She felt her heart beat a little faster and wondered whether it was alright.

"It is a sign of respect, your highness."

"In that case," Arthur bowed deeply "My lady."

Arthur cursed inwardly as he saw Gwen's uncomfortableness at his action; he was trying to show her. Why was he having such difficulty in this? She was a woman, and everyone knew he'd spoken to many of them in his time, but this was Gwen. Not just some random girl, she was a woman, not a visiting princess, she was beautiful without dresses made of gold silk and velvet. She was striking without necklaces, jewels and cloaks of ermine. She was charming without elaborate headpieces and intricate hair designs, she was more than that. She was a woman with very little but yet so much, with no material wealth but with compassion in abundance. She had no maid or servant and yet her dress looked stunning and her curls framed her face with perfection.

But she was a maid and he was a Prince. She was a mere step away from him and yet it felt like leagues. She was perfect and yet forbidden, wrong. She was everything Arthur wanted but exactly what he couldn't have. She was… she was Gwen.

The young Prince smiled, and cleared his throat.

"Merry Christmas, Guinevere."

"Merry Christmas, my l- Arthur."

So they passed each other. A maid and a prince. Both with feelings, hidden and concealed, both so similar and yet so different. Physically close and yet world's apart. Two people of the legend they did not yet know. King Arthur and Queen Guinevere one day, the Prince and maid Gwen for now.

Gaius looked suspiciously at the lumpy package. His eyes turned to the two young people in front of him who were smiling madly. He shook his head slightly, Merlin was a bad influence on Rose; he had turned her into a cheeky, young lady full to the brim of magic. He had to smile though, the pair made him feel happy, happier than he had in years even if they caused him constant worry.

He began to carefully unwrap the gift they had presented him with after their breakfast of Christmas porridge, Merlin had stolen berries and honey from the palace kitchens and begrudgingly Gaius had added the thieved ingredients to his pot. The paper had been bound using an enchantment which at the time Merlin thought a great idea but as he watched Gaius struggle to unwrap the gift reconsidered. Gaius sighed and looked up at the young warlock.

"Merlin, must you really use magic so often?"

Merlin grinned his infamous smile and with a mutter of unheard words under his breath the paper folded away and fell to ribbons revealing a hand knitted scarf. Gaius picked up the garment, which was well knitted with love and felt how soft it was, instinctively he wrapped it round his neck and felt instantly soothed. Ordinarily he would have thought it was just a very nice scarf however judging by the people from who he had received the present he guessed something else was at work here. He raised his eyebrows and waited for an explanation.

Eventually Merlin conceded.

"We wanted to give you something useful and we noticed how much you hate the extreme weather, so we decided to make you this. Much more personal than something off a stall I think you'll agree. Rose knitted it --"

"You can knit?" Gaius asked, interrupting Merlin.

Rose smiled and nodded and Merlin picked up his story.

"Yes, she learnt it on her travels, and then we found a soothing spell in the books. Well, we may have adapted it slightly, see now your scarf works in the summer too!"

"I beg your pardon?"

Rose leapt in "Well Merlin said the heat of the summer didn't make you happy either, so both extremes are taken care of."

Merlin nodded "In the cold the scarf soothes you with warmth and in the summer it soothes you with coolness."

"Indeed, and may I ask how you know it works in the summer?"

"Ah, well that's the adaptation to the spell, so we're not quite sure if it does."

"We did try and create a sauna in our room to test it…" Rose began.

"It didn't really work out though" Merlin finished.

Both youngsters looked at their guardian sheepishly. "Merry Christmas?!".

Morgana looked at her new gown from Uther, it was a midnight blue, with gold trimmings, the long sleeves had velvet cuffs and the skirts had many layers that gave a satisfying swish whenever she moved. It was beautiful and wonderfully made of course but she felt strange in it. She felt as if she did not deserve this elegance and status, she was as guilty as Rose in Uther's eyes and yet Uther had not acted differently to her in the least. She would rather he would act soon, get it over with, rather than this torture, this cat and mouse game. Eventually he would act. The time and place was to be decided, she didn't want to leave Camelot in case something happened to Rose while she was gone, or in case Uther planned something for her once she'd left. She couldn't stay in her room all day though else she'd go mad. She knew the price they'd pay for their sorcery; death. The capital punishment.

Unless, unless Uther did not trust Gwen's judgement, unless he did not believe her and this was why he acted so very normally, why he had not yet made a stand. Perhaps they were safe, but believing you are safe and knowing you are are two very different things. Morgana knew that if they walked around with the mentality that they were safe then they would most definitely slip up. Perhaps that is what Uther wanted. An act for everyone to see so nobody could question his judgement, his sentence and his axe. All the possibilities made Morgana's head ache, her temples throbbed and her eyes felt sore. This was what it was like knowing you faced death, suddenly everything was all the more prominent, she knew that if her gift was discovered that she would die, that Uther could and most likely would sentence her, she supposed she had wished that he would be dead and Arthur in his place by the time her gift became too great to conceal.

Rose had changed that, Rose had made her appreciate her gift, encourage it rather than fear it. Not that she blamed her friend, Rose had taught her more in a few months than she thought she'd learnt in years. With Rose she felt an odd sense of safety, ironic considering that together they seemed to have put themselves in danger's path. She remembered back to the first time they had spoke, when they had so quickly and so easily struck up a friendship and formed that bond. Morgana remembered feeling uneasy about it then but dismissing her feelings, the guilt of keeping Rose in Camelot resurfaced now. She should have let her go before but she felt she had been selfish, she had kept her where she could be harmed and now they would most likely pay the ultimate price.

Finding herself near her jewellery box, curiosity seized her and Morgana could not help but open the drawer and retrieve her mother's pendant. The sapphire matched her dress, not perfect but Morgan liked the slight clash of blues. She opened the clasp and lead the two ends up behind her neck, reconnected she dropped them and felt the jewel burn her chest where it lay beautifully framed by her dress' neckline. It was not an excruciating pain, and the longer it stayed there the less severe it felt, but none the less there was a dull burn and Morgana supposed it would remind her of her guilt. She could not forget with her mother's prized piece of jewellery round her neck. She could not forget her gifts, though a moment rarely passed when she did, she could not forget that her parents most likely had little idea of who she truly was, she could not forget that they had placed her in Uther's care, made her his ward, she would not forget that he would most likely sentence her to death and she would never forget that she would almost definitely die next to her beloved friend and that she could have possibly prevented it all.

Morgana thought of all this when Arthur came into the room.

He had knocked lightly on the door but she had not heard him so he had entered anyway.

He coughed lightly to warn her of his presence so she would not jump when he spoke.

She turned at the sound of his throat clearing and her eyes blazed in a way he did not think he had seen them do so before. She looked scared, fearful but fearless at the same time; she looked half possessed but confident and strong.

She noticed he held something in his hand.

"Morgana, I…"

Suddenly he felt very nervous.

"I wanted to thank you for your gift."

Her gift? What was he speaking about? She had given him a pot of armour polish at breakfast as a joke and he had laughed and thanked her then. Then he brought what he was holding in front of him, she recognised the shape of a sword, fear took hold of her.

"I found this on my bed when I returned after breakfast; I assumed it was your gift."

The panicked look left Morgana's eyes as she realised Arthur was here as a friend and ally.

"No, it is not from me. Sorry."

Arthur nodded "Ok, no worries, it's just wonderful craftsmanship that's all, I guessed only you could afford such work."

"Sorry to disappoint but you have received all my gifts. Well, all but one but that is a surprise!"

"You know I hate surprises."

"Uther made me promise."

With the mention of his father's name, Arthur decided to hunt that very man down and demand to know what this mysterious gift was.

"Merry Christmas, Morgana." He called as he left the room in a hurry.

"Merry Christmas, Arthur." She whispered.

It may be Christmas but she did not feel very merry.

Rose flinched at the knock on the door. Merlin looked at her worryingly but decided that the knock was rather loud and therefore perhaps a little worrying and out of the blue. Nevertheless he made a mental note to ask her if she was ok later.

Arthur's head popped round the door.

"Arthur! A merry Christmas to you!"

"Thank you Merlin, a merry Christmas to you as well, and to Rose and Gaius also." He said nodding in their directions.

"Wait, we have presents for you!"

"Merlin, every year I tell you not to bother."

"Yes, I know, and every year I ignore you."

Arthur tutted and shook his head in a way Merlin had seen many times.

"Besides this year it's different, it's from me and Rose."

Merlin presented the prince with a lumpy package wrapped in brown paper and tied with a string, tucked into the string was a sprig of holly, and Arthur smiled as he put the gift onto a nearby table with a clash.

"Merlin, what is in here?"

"If I tell you that kind of defeats the idea."

Arthur tore open the present, after carefully laying the holly down, and saw a pair of gauntlets.

"This is very generous. Thank you, both of you."

Merlin smiled at Rose, to Arthur they were just simple gauntlets, but little did he know they were enchanted with a protection spell, meaning Arthur's hands were fully protected. Well, at least the pair hoped they were, Rose had drawn a line under trying it out, she had sustained enough scars to the hands during her stay in Camelot, and she didn't need another.

Arthur tried them on for size and was delighted with their perfect fit. Taking them off and wrapping them carefully back in the paper, he smiled.

"Is this from you two too then?" he said drawing his new sword.

Merlin and Rose stepped back as the prince brandished the beautiful shining sword before him.

"No, we thought they gauntlets were enough." Merlin stated frankly.

"Oh. Well thank you for them, I just wondered…"

"Surely you can't have already forgotten who your gifts are from, you should make a list, Arthur."

"Thanks for the suggestion, Merlin."

Merlin smiled happily, oblivious to the sarcasm.

Rose was collecting water, albeit very, very cold water, from the pump when she saw Arthur again.

He was a top a grand, grey stallion. Its mane beautifully combed and laid down one side, its tail swinging from side to side. His hooves, beautifully clean and a sharp slate black against the pure white of the hair.

"Nice horse." She remarked as Arthur leapt down from the saddle.

"It was a gift from my father and Morgana."

"A very nice gift. Sort of puts our gauntlets to shame."

"No no, I shall wear them with pride when the next tournament comes around." He announced as Rose walked up to his new prized horse.

"May I?" she asked, lifting a hand out.

"Of course you can!"

Smiling Rose put her bucket of water on the ground and stroked the stallions head, down the length of his face and laughed as it blew warm air into her face. The next thing she knew she was on top of it sitting in the saddle.

"Arthur!"

"Sorry, couldn't resist you looked too happy."

She couldn't keep up her appearance of annoyance and instead leaned forward to pat the stallion's neck.

"What have you called him?" She asked smoothing the mane.

"I don't name my horses…"

Rose looked at Arthur, surprised. "Why not?"

"Father says a horse is an animal, a stallion for riding and fighting a mare for breeding and working. Naming them attaches you to them. Shouldn't get too close to them."

"You want to name him."

"How do you know that?"

"Because you sounded miserable when you told me that your father said they were just animals. Go on pick a name."

"I don't know, you pick, you're sitting on him."

"Fine… Merlin!"

"No! I am not naming my horse after my friend."

Rose smiled.

"Why are you smiling?"

"You called him your friend, not your servant."

Arthur looked at her dubiously "Are you going to tell him that?"

"Not if you don't want me to."

"Don't, he might try and hug me."

Rose laughed and then realized that Arthur had grabbed onto the pommel of the saddle.

"Move back please." He asked politely.

"What are you doing?"

"Well it's my horse and I'd like to take you on a ride if that's alright missy."

"But my water…"

"I'll buy you another bucket if someone steals it; take it as my gift in return for my gauntlets."

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise."

Arthur rode them into a beautiful clearing. Rose gasped as she saw it; the trees surrounded a beautifully stilled lake that looked too freezing to contemplate entering. It was gorgeous. The emerald green of the fir trees, next to the calm aquamarine of the water and the atmosphere was almost intoxicating, it was magical. Rose memorized it all. It felt special.

She wasn't aware of Arthur demounting the horse until she heard his soft laugh.

"You look transfixed, Rose."

She felt very silly but still enchanted by this beautiful landscape before her. Arthur helped her off the horse, and they walked a little way to sit down.

"Fancy a swim?" He joked and Rose laughed in response.

"Have you ever?"

Arthur nodded "I prefer to just sit here though. Sometimes when it all gets a bit much, I come here and just…be."

Rose smiled.

"You think that's funny." He remarked.

"No," she shook her head, she hadn't been mockingly smiling "I just think its funny, you have the whole of Camelot and yet you spend your time all alone by a lake. It's very… picturesque."

"There's something about it."

"I know."

They sat in silence for a while. Companionable silence, it was all very peaceful.

Arthur broke the silence.

"Rose, you know Gwen."

"I do indeed."

He paused for a while before asking "What do you…think of her?"

Rose picked her words carefully "She was kind to me when I first arrived…"

"Yes, but do you think that --"

Rose didn't think she had seen Arthur lost for words before, to be truthful she found the sight quite amusing and endearing.

"Arthur if you are asking me whether I think Gwen has feelings for you then yes, I believe she cares for you in a way that others do not."

"Right. Of course, not that I was insinuating, nothing could ever happen and I wasn't…"

"Why couldn't it?"

"Because of who we are, I am a prince and she is a maid, our status, my father would never allow it."

"Arthur, I thought you had realised by now that your father isn't the be all and end all."

Arthur laughed. "You've never been one for protocol have you Rose?"

She smiled at him, it was like the start of their friendship all again, only now they knew each other, it was a mutual, easy understanding, a deeper friendship, and yes, accepted it wasn't exactly…ordinary, or normal. A young girl traveller and a king to be, but somehow it just worked, it just fitted.

"Why do I feel like something is drawing to a close?"

"Maybe it's something in the air" Rose said

"Or the water." He joked.

They sat for a moment smiling.

"It's not the end Arthur, it's only the beginning."

So the pair looked at the lake for a while longer. Eventually returning to the stallion Arthur refused to reveal the name of though Rose had her suspicions it really was Merlin, and arrived at Camelot in time for a beautiful feast, where they met their friends and everyone ate, drank and danced the night away. The moment of the lake was never forgotten, and though it was the beginning of something, it was also almost the end; the end was drawing near.