Author Note: Hey everyone. I'm not sure when I'll next be able to update after this for a little while...I've got a few things that need sorting out, etc, so I may be able to post another chapter soon, I may not...it depends. So anyways, here's a longer chapter for you all, to keep you going until then.

Enjoy :)

...

The marketplace was so vibrant and colourful, full of the hustle and bustle of people going about their daily business or simply browsing the various stalls, much like Guinevere and Dante were now doing. Tamina had excused herself a few hours ago, stating that she still had chores to complete in the Citadel, and leaving the Queen and Lady alone together. This had allowed them plenty of time to chat, and the more Gwen found out about Dante, the more she respected the girl.

And Dante didn't always lie to her either. Sometimes she actually told Gwen the truth, which was quite refreshing for a girl who's whole life up until then had been one constant lie. Besides, Gwen had no idea what was the truth and what wasn't, and she had no reason to suspect anything, either.

Had she known better, she would have realised, for example, that the fact Dante was engaged to Gwaine when she was sixteen - not a lie.

The fact she'd been Lot's slave for eight years - HUGE lie. She'd been his slave for a week, nothing more. And even then, it had been arranged between the pair of them, to add to her cover story. He'd let her go after 'roughing her up a bit' first, actually using real shackles to create the marks on her wrists, to add to the illusion.

Dante had also starved herself on purpose for the duration of that week, only eating when she'd felt faint, to add to her 'weakened' state when she'd finally stumbled into Camelot.

And when Lot had 'released' her, he'd actually sent dogs after her, forcing her to actually run for her life...the bastard. THAT hadn't been part of the plan, and she'd made a mental note to get revenge on him one day for it. The falling off of his horse hadn't been part of the plan either, but had made her story believable, never-the-less.

And then there was the little coup he'd performed at Arthur's feast. That hadn't been planned and had been as much a surprise to Dante as to everyone else!

However, thinking back on it now, Dante realised that he probably wouldn't have told her anyway, because her reaction had been the most important part of the whole plan. She'd needed to act natural, in order to be believable, so keeping the plan from her had ensured completely natural behaviour, on her part.

"So, what do you think of this one?" Gwen asked now, as she held a stunning piece of sapphire silk up to herself to imitate a dress, then twirled about in it for a moment. Dante quickly snapped from her thoughts, and grinned.

"It's beautiful, Majesty," she nodded. "Though I believe yellow may be more your colour."

"Yellow?" Gwen repeated thoughtfully, placing the silk back on the stall and hunting through the various swathes of material for anything yellow. Eventually she found a piece of satin cloth that was probably best described as canary yellow. "What about this?"

"Much better," Dante grinned. "Yellow is definitely more your colour, Milady."

"And what about you, Lady Dante? What is your colour?" Gwen asked as she handed over a small pouch of coins in exchange for the material. A guard stepped forwards, seemingly from nowhere to take it for her, reminding Dante that they were never alone, and after quickly giving him instructions to deliver the yellow satin to a particular dressmaker in the lower town, she turned back to hear Dante's answer.

"I don't know, exactly," she shrugged, rummaging through the materials herself. "Blue, perhaps. Or purple. I'm not really sure."

"Morgana always favoured blues and purples," Gwen sighed sadly. "Though she had her fair share of green, red and ivory too..."

"You miss her, don't you," Dante noted as she handed over another pouch of coins for the blue silk that Gwen had picked earlier.

"She was my best friend for many years," Gwen nodded. This was the first time she'd openly spoken about her former mistress to anyone since Morgana's second attempt to claim the throne, and she had no idea why she was telling Dante all this now. But for some reason, she found herself inexplicably trusting the girl.

"I don't understand what I did to make her hate me so much."

"You married Arthur," Dante stated simply as she picked up a strip of sapphire ribbon, twiddled it in her hands for a moment, then fished out another few coins, handing them over in exchange.

"Yes but, she hated me long before that," Gwen pointed out, and Dante shrugged.

"Perhaps it was always your destiny to marry Arthur, and Morgana knew this? She was a seer, was she not?" Dante shrugged, and Gwen thought about this for a moment. And the more she thought about it, the more it made sense.

"How do you know so much about her?" she asked after a moment, and Dante froze. How the hell would she explain her way out of this one?

"It's mostly rumours," she tried eventually, but Gwen wasn't going for it.

"No...you speak about her as if you knew her personally."

"I...met her once or twice..." Dante hesitated, thinking on the spot. "When I was younger. My father and Gorloise had...a few, ah...well I don't know. Meetings, I guess you'd call them. Something to do with the politics of Essetir and Camelot anyway. While our fathers talked, Morgana and I would sneak out to the fields behind my house and sit in the apple orchard together. Only once or twice, though. She didn't join her father often when he came to the meetings."

"What was she like as a child?" Gwen asked, intrigued, and believing this to be the actual truth. Dante shrugged, seeing an easy way out of the conversation now, thankfully.

"To be honest, I can't remember. It was a long time ago, and a lot's happened to the both of us since then. I'm sure not even she'd recognize herself if she looked back now."

"No, I'm sure she wouldn't," Gwen agreed sadly. And before she could press Dante for any more information, Merlin happened to suddenly appear, seemingly from nowhere, unknowingly saving Dante in the process.

"Arthur's looking for you," he said quietly to Gwen. "Would you like me to escort you back to the castle?"

"I can manage, Merlin. But thank you anyway," Gwen gave him one of her usual friendly smiles, and he found himself smiling back. Then he turned to Dante as Gwen excused herself.

"Lady Dante? May I walk with you instead, perhaps?"

"Of course," she agreed, though she wasn't quite able to fathom WHY he'd want to walk with her.

"I...ah...I wanted to see how you were getting on," he said after a moment of awkward silence, the pair of them walking side by side.

"How very sweet of you," she replied, still unsure why he was walking with her. Surely he couldn't be accompanying her just to find out how she was 'getting on' with life in the castle?

But apparently he was. Based on the fact he was staring at her as if waiting for an answer, that was.

"Everything's fine," she told him, and for once this wasn't a lie.

"Good," he nodded. "That's...good."

They lapsed into silence again, and eventually Dante could stand it no more. "Merlin?"

"Mmmm?" He looked at her then, and she raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you really walking with me?"

"I was just...making sure you're alright," he said quickly. A little too quickly.

"Liar," she replied good-naturedly, and he blushed, realising he'd been caught out.

Then he groaned.

"It's Gwaine's fault," he groaned eventually as they stopped before the gatehouse leading to the courtyard.

"What's he done now?" she sighed, choosing not to be offended by the fact that Merlin was not accompanying her because he merely wanted to, but because Gwaine was apparently making him.

"Well earlier on...after your little stunt in the training grounds...he...erm...he made a bet with the other knights that..." Merlin broke off then, his cheeks turning an even brighter shade of red.

"That...?" Dante prompted curiously.

"I can't say," he said at last, turning quickly to walk in the other direction. But she caught his arm and forced him to turn back.

"Merlin? What is it?"

"No, please...I don't want you to think badly about anyone. Just because of a silly bet."

"If it's just a silly bet, then what's the problem?" She asked, leaning against a nearby stone pillar and folding her arms across her chest - such a casual pose that it threw Merlin completely off guard.

He held his hands clasped firmly behind his back, bouncing up and down slightly on the balls of his feet, and he refused to make eye contact with her, looking down at the floor instead.

When he didn't immediately answer either, she raised both eyebrows this time. "Well, if you won't tell me, I'll just have to find out from Gwaine what's going on."

"No!" Merlin started quickly, his eyes snapping up to meet hers.

"Then tell me," she said gently. "You can trust me, Merlin."

That was when he melted under her gaze and spilled everything, babbling so quickly that Dante was only just able to keep up. Even then, she had to take a few moments to actually process his words, and Merlin blushed again, looking back down to his boots.

"So, let me get this straight," she said eventually, moving away from the pillar to pace in front of him a little. "Gwaine made a bet with the knights? He offered ten gold coins to whoever could win a kiss from me first?" Merlin's nod confirmed she was on the right track.

"And then he offered you ten gold coins to make sure that none of the other knights beat him to it, so that he would win the bet?"

Again, Merlin nodded.

"And it was only the knights who were involved in the bet? Nobody else?"

"Well...Gwaine never technically specified WHO was involved...it just happened to be whoever near him at the time," Merlin shrugged.

"And who was near him?"

"Well Gwaine, obviously, but also Percival, Elyan, Tristan..."

"And you?"

"And me."

He glanced up then and saw the mischievous glint in her eyes. And suddenly he felt very weak at the knees.

She started off into the courtyard, spotted Gwaine, Percival, Elyan and Tristan returning from the training grounds over the opposite side, and grinned.

"Gwaine!" He heard her calling out. "I've got something to show you!"

"Oh really, My Lady? And what is that?"

Uh-oh, Merlin thought as she looked back at him, where he had remained hovering in the gateway.

"Merlin, would you come here a second?"

No thank you. He wanted to turn and run, but something made his feet move in the opposite direction, towards her instead of away from her. Stopping beside her, he saw the four knights gather close by.

And then he was being grabbed by the collar and pulled down until his lips locked with Dante's.

The sensible thing, he supposed as he heard four simultaneous gasps, would be to push her away. Unfortunately, what he actually did was kiss her back, one of his hands tangling into her dark hair whilst the other lingered on her side, touching her just enough for her to feel its warmth. She, in turn, wrapped her arms about his neck to pull him in closer.

It was a very good kiss, he had to admit.

Really quite an excellent one, if he was being totally honest.

When they parted, he couldn't help the stupid grin that appeared on his face then. His lips still tingled from the pressure of hers, and the look on Gwaine's face, in particular, was priceless.

"There's twenty gold coins for you," she muttered in his ear, on the pretence of giving him another quick peck on the cheek. "Use them wisely."

Then she turned and vanished into the castle.

Not only had Merlin's cheeks now turned brilliant red, but his ears had too. This didn't stop him from holding his hand out, palm upturned, however, as Gwaine stormed up to confront him.

Gwaine's mouth was still hanging just inches from the floor, and the look would have been quick comical, if Merlin's heart hadn't been pounding out such a frantic beat that it almost threatened to pound its way right out of his chest.

"Twenty gold, please," he squeaked, still unable to get his voice working properly from the shock.

"Twenty?" Gwaine exclaimed. "No way, the bet was for ten!"

"You bet the winner ten gold coins, and you offered me another ten to ensure that Percival, Elyan and Tristan did not beat you to it," Merlin grinned. "My name was never mentioned in the list of people who could not beat you."

Gwaine floundered then, his mouth opening and closing several times but no sound coming out.

The other knights, laughing madly at Gwaine's epic failure, passed the pair and continued on into the castle, and as Percival passed he clapped Merlin on the back. Merlin staggered forwards a few paces, laughing along with them as Gwaine very, VERY reluctantly pulled a small pouch from his belt. It jingled with the sounds of coins, and wordlessly, he tossed it in Merlin's direction, before storming off after his fellow knights, cursing under his breath.

Merlin laughed again, tossing the bag delightedly in the air and catching it a few times, hearing the satisfying clink of gold pieces clashing together inside the leather. Then he tied the bag to his belt and continued on with his daily chores, a spring in his step and a smug grin on his face that nothing could remove, for the rest of the day.

...

Arthur noticed this continued good mood of his servant later that evening, and couldn't help but comment, as Merlin collected the clothes that needed washing and the armour that needed polishing.

"You're annoyingly happy this evening, Merlin."

"I should be," Merlin replied from behind the huge mound of clothes.

"Oh really? And why should you be?"

"Because I've got the gold to pay back the debt on your tab from the Inn."

"Oh have you really? And how did you come about the fifteen coins, Merlin?" Arthur asked suspiciously as he lounged on his bed, arms behind his head casually.

"I won a bet," Merlin grinned round the mountain in his arms.

"And what bet was this?"

"One that Gwaine made."

"Merlin, you're being very vague! Was this bet exactly legal?"

"Oh absolutely!"

"And what did it involve?"

There was a long pause.

"Merlin?"

Another long pause.

"Merlin!"

Still no answer.

"Merlin, if you don't tell me, I'll have you put in the stocks for a week."

"I kissed Lady Dante."

Arthur sat bolt upright. "You kissed Dante?"

"No!" Merlin defended quickly. "Well, yes...I mean...SHE kissed ME!"

"And you got paid for it!"

"Yup," Merlin beamed. There was a chinking sound as a small leather pouch dropped onto the table, seemingly of its own accord.

Arthur leapt to his feet, hurried over and snatched up the pouch, emptying the contents into his hand.

"Unbelievable," he laughed, counting out fifteen gold coins and shaking his head in disbelief. "You know Merlin, just when I think you can't surprise me anymore..."

"Oh I have a few surprises up my sleeve," the servant grinned, and Arthur got the feeling there was something Merlin wasn't telling him.

"Oh yes? And what would that be?"

Before Merlin could reply however, there was a sound of swords clashing, from the courtyard below, and both men hurried to the window, fearing the Citadel was under attack. But if that was the case, then why had no alarm been raised?

This was explained moments later when they saw Gwaine fighting someone who looked suspiciously familiar. Someone with long brown hair, tied back with a black strip of leather.

Someone wearing a chainmail shirt that was far too big, breaches and leather boots, and who was also currently wielding a pair of short swords.

"Speak of the devil," Arthur frowned. "What on earth is she doing?"

"Erm...Pass?" Merlin finally shrugged. "Maybe Gwaine annoyed her?"

"I don't know," Arthur replied, watching very carefully as the two figures came together, both wielding a pair of short swords now. Gwaine appeared to be saying something to Dante, and when they broke apart, it appeared that he was showing her how to make certain moves. "It looks like they're...training? I thought she said she could fight?"

"Maybe she's intimidated by your skill, Sire?" Merlin grinned, doubting this very much. But Arthur shrugged, his eyes never leaving the pair in the courtyard below.

"No...there's more to it than that..."

...

Three hours earlier...

"I can't believe you kissed him!" Gwaine roared as Dante walked casually down the corridor to her chambers.

"Why don't you say it a bit louder, Gwaine. I don't think the neighbouring kingdoms quite heard you," she retorted back, highly amused by his reaction. This was definitely the most fun she'd had since arriving in Camelot, and she had no intention of letting her fun end so soon.

Neither did Gwaine.

Even though it wasn't fun for him.

Not even a little bit.

"What were you thinking?"

"What's the big deal, Gwaine. It's not like I shared a bed with the guy...though even if I did, what would it matter to you?"

She opened the door to her chambers, stepped inside, closed it firmly in Gwaine's face, then stepped over to the window.

"Five...four...three..." she counted to herself quietly. "Two...one..."

BANG!

The door crashed inwards so forcefully that it rebounded off the wall behind it and slammed shut again. There came a long, loud string of very colourful curses, before it was thrown open again (though not as forcefully this time).

"YOU KISSED HIM!"

Dante rolled her eyes as he stormed in and slammed the door closed behind him. "Yes, I kissed Merlin. Honestly Gwaine, what is the big deal?"

"The big deal? Dante! You and me - "

"Are no longer together!" She snapped, her good mood changing in an instant as she spun on the spot to face him. Suddenly this was no longer fun and games anymore, but something else entirely.

"You made sure of that when you ran off to lord only knows where and left me to believe that you were DEAD!"

"Cailan told you I was alive, AND where I was going! You could have followed me! But no, you chose to stay with your precious father in your little country estate!"

"BECAUSE I HAD NO CHOICE!" She stormed over to him then, and he actually backed away a little. He'd never seen her this angry before - ever. He must have hit a nerve.

Or five.

"Everything's a choice. Everything we do. Grow up!" He retorted, fighting to get the argument back under his control before he lost it completely.

And that was when he backed into the ornamental vase, knocking it flying. It shattered across the floor with an ear splitting crack, but she didn't even acknowledge it as she pressed one finger firmly into his chest, forcing him to rock back on his heels.

"Everything's a choice?" She repeated incredulously. "Tell me Gwaine, what choice did I have, when Cailan was MURDERED, the day after he told me you were still alive? What choice did I, as the last surviving child of my father, ever have?"

"Cailan was...oh." This was news to Gwaine. He'd known for some time that Dante's elder brother had been killed, but he'd never known exactly when. Cailan was the only brother he'd ever known, because Dante's eldest brother Alistair had died before Dante's tenth birthday. And she hadn't met Gwaine until she was thirteen.

Suddenly feeling the anger, and the desire to argue flooding from him, he turned his back and stalked over to the fire, finding some welcome comfort in the dancing flames as he braced his hands against the brickwork over the mantle.

"I had no idea," he admitted eventually.

"Yeah, well...why would you. It's not exactly something I go round telling everyone, is it." He could hear a tremor in her voice then and cringed. Something was telling him to turn round, but he knew that if he did, he'd regret it. So he fought the urge and kept his back to her.

...

Outside in the hall, Elyan and Tristan pressed closer to the door, trying desperately to hear what was going on within.

If looks could kill, Gwaine would have been sent down for murdering Dante about a hundred times, by now. After storming away from a very smug looking Merlin in the courtyard, Gwaine had followed Dante right up to her chambers on the third floor. The shouting had started sometime around the second floor, and Elyan and Tristan had been eavesdropping ever since.

Gwaine was in a foul mood, but then it appeared that so was Dante. And that was one hell of a temper she had on her! Both men had physically leaped in fright when she'd raised her voice for the first time, and then there'd come the smashing sound of a vase - or some other equally fragile object.

Fearing for the safety of their friend, they'd been just about to charge into the room, when the arguing started up once more. At least neither Dante, nor Gwaine appeared to be hurt in any way, so the knights held back from breaking the door down, just yet...though Elyan did keep one hand over the handle, just in case.

Thunderous footsteps came pounding up the stairs and rounded the corner. The two knights stared at a squadron of guards who stared at them in return, Leon and Percival at the head, swords drawn.

"Er…we thought we heard…" Leon started.

Elyan and Tristan shook their heads in unison, as Percival joined them, pressing his ear to the door - tall enough that he could lean over the other two without much effort. Leon also joined them, sending the guards on their way. Grumbling to each other, the guards relented and went back down the hall to return to their posts.

"So what's going on?" Leon whispered as they all listened.

"Gwaine made a bet, it backfired and Dante got some sweet revenge. Now Gwaine doesn't like it, and things have got quite personal," Tristan hissed, afraid to make too much noise in case he alerted the room's two occupants, who were oddly silent.

"Do you think she killed him?" Elyan hissed after several long moments of silence.

"Of course not," Percival replied quietly. "Dante would never..." And then he thought about it. "Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to check?"

...

They stood in silence for a long while, their backs to one another, the tension so thick between them that it actually hurt. Or perhaps all the shouting had actually been what had hurt and he was only now feeling the effects?

Neither of them heard the door creak open ever so slightly, so that four anxious heads could peer in. Seeing that there was no carnage or grisly murder scene within the room, they backed out again, closing the door.

Gwaine and Dante were oblivious to the whole thirty seconds it took for this to occur.

"Dante," Gwaine sighed eventually, unable to stand the silence any longer.

"Don't," she said, her voice barely audible. And then he heard a sniff, and his shoulders sagged as a tidal wave of guilt crashed over him.

She was crying. He'd reduced her to tears.

For a woman as fiery and stubborn as Dante, tears were a rare thing indeed. She always turned to anger, and tears were as a last resort, when she really could not take it anymore.

"Dante," he groaned, finally turning round, feeling utterly wretched and horrible. Crossing the room in four strides, he took her by the shoulders - which were visibly trembling, he noticed - and turned her round to face him.

Despite her best efforts to hold back the tears, her cheeks were already streaked and shining in the light of a nearby candle.

She was biting her lower lip, which was also trembling, and her eyes were already beginning to turn red and puffy.

"I'm so sorry," he breathed, pulling her to him. She didn't resist and fell against his chest, sobbing uncontrollably, the tears falling thick and fast now. He said nothing more, and just held her close, feeling each sob that wracked her body. His chin rested on the top of her head, and she nestled herself into his familiar embrace, suddenly afraid to let him go. This all felt so familiar to her, and in this strange place, which still did not feel like a home to her just yet, familiarity was something she never realised she'd been craving until now.

"Why are you so mad?" he whispered, holding her even closer, if possible - suddenly afraid to let her go.

"All I wanted was for you to come home," she muttered into his chainmail. "Was that so much to ask?"

"You never wanted me, Dante. You were just afraid that your father would marry you off to someone else if I didn't return," he reminded her gently. "You were just scared. Marrying me would have been a mistake anyway, and you and I both know it."

"Are you saying you were saving me, by running away like that?" So she wasn't denying that she hadn't been in love with him back then? Should he have been offended or relieved by that? After all, if she'd been in love with him, he'd have no doubt broken her heart, and that was a thought he could not live with. So perhaps it was a good thing, then?

"Is it making you feel better?"

"No...yes...sort of..."

"Then see it like this. I was doing it for you, to protect you. You didn't need a husband, you needed a friend. And by leaving you as I did, I gave you the opportunity to find your freedom...of a kind..." Until you became a slave, he stopped himself from saying, just in time.

"I guess," she sniffed, her arms finally relaxing round his waist and allowing him to breathe a little easier.

"So...this whole silly argument...?"

"What argument?" She asked, forcing a smile as she finally pulled herself away from him, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand.

"Am I forgiven for running out on you?"

"Only if I'm forgiven for kissing Merlin."

Gwaine shrugged then, chuckling a little. "Ah, the poor guy deserves a bit of good fortune every now and then. Just don't make a habit of it."

"As if," she laughed, shaking her head. "I'm not a tart, Gwaine. Even a former slave has certain standards."

"Glad to hear it," he nodded, heading towards the door. Then a thought struck him as he reached for the handle (allowing the four eavesdropping knights time to escape down the corridor to safety).

"If you DID have a thing for Merlin - because he's actually a great guy when you get to know him - I wouldn't stand in the way, you know. In fact, I'd be happy for you both."

"Gwaine?"

"Mmmm?"

"Shut up."

He laughed properly then, seeing his old, familiar, brilliant Dante returning to replace the fragile, broken woman he'd been confronted with just minutes before.

"That's my girl," he grinned, finally leaving her alone with her thoughts.