WHEN ARTHUR MET GUINEVERE

Summary: This is the story of how Arthur and Guinevere first met told as a modern fiction so there's a fair bit of AU and OOC. Multi chapters and rated T just in case. Elyan's back, rugby and Lancey (hey, that kinda rhymes)...Hope you all enjoy the next installment!

AN: Italics denote POV and Real Time is in normal font so I hope it doesn't get too confusing. Thank you wonderful alerters and reviewers - yes Halo, my apologies for the mini teaser...no immediate squee yet - it'll come though :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin or the characters but if I did...

Chapter 16: The One With (Some) Explanations

Just after Elyan arrives…

Gwen jumps up, happy because her big brother is back from his tour, standing in front of them, frowning as Arthur also manages to stand up, by some small miracle, relatively gracefully considering the amount of alcohol he had consumed and the lack of sleep he's had.

She takes two quick steps towards her brother, tears of joy smart her eyes as she reaches for him, and Elyan grabs her crushing her in a bear hug, momentarily forgetting the awkward situation one minute ago. By now Arthur is wearing his jacket and pauses to watch Gwen and her brother embrace, the joy on Gwen's face that he's back evident and he cannot help grinning too.

As Gwen and Elyan pull apart, the latter looks towards where Arthur is still standing quietly, and raising an eyebrow at Gwen, nods at him. Gwen quickly jumps in.

"Elyan, this is my friend Arthur. We met through Merlin – they're old friends. Arthur this is my older brother Elyan, back from Afghanistan". Biting her lip, she looks from Elyan to Arthur and hopes that it's enough for Elyan to be civil to Arthur.

It works and Elyan grins, extending his hand to Arthur who shakes it firmly and grins back.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Elyan. Guinevere has been really looking forward to your return" he offers warmly. Elyan nods and gestures towards his sister, smiling fondly at her, he puts his arm around her.

"Likewise Arthur. I'm sorry I didn't call Gwennie, I wanted to surprise you and I guess I did…Surprise!"

All three of them laugh at his lame joke and, feeling relieved the moment has passed Gwen hugs Elyan again. Arthur decides he will go and give them some family time so he touches Gwen's arm lightly and when she looks at him again, he motions to the door.

"Guinevere and Elyan, I'm gonna take off now and give you two a chance to catch up proper", he explains, picking up his bag and coat. Gwen tries to ignore the (relatively) tiny feeling of disappointment at the prospect of him leaving but knows he's giving her space to enjoy having her brother back so she smiles gratefully at him.

Elyan releases Gwen and nods at Arthur, looking more at ease now.

"Yeah, ok. Hey, no hard feelings about earlier eh mate? She's my baby sister…Just looking out for her is all, you know how it is?" he smiles apologetically at Arthur who shrugs good naturedly as Gwen shakes her head at her brother's overprotective thoughts.

"We always have a bit of a party whenever I come back – usually at Morgs' place since she has more space so she kindly offers. I don't know when it is 'cos I didn't tell Gwen and Morgs when I would be back, but hope we'll see you there? Anyway, I'm sure Gwen's told you about it already though since you all are…friends though eh?"

Gwen turns red and wishes (not for the first time) that her brother would've grown out of teasing her about guys by now.

Arthur can sense Gwen is now uncomfortable and simply nods, replying that he'd love to come and that he'll talk to her later and with that he leaves.

Elyan gives Gwen a mischievous grin and moves towards his bedroom as she shakes her head at him.

"Stop it El. How old are you again?"

"Stop what?" he gives her an expression not unlike the anything but innocent Siamese cats in 'Lady and The Tramp' (just after they had destroyed a whole room). Following him into the room she finds him already sprawled on top of his bed, so she sits on the edge and swats his leg. He chortles and scoots over making room for her to lie down next to him. They fall silent for a moment before he clears his throat.

"So…When do I start calling him brother in law?"

"Shut up El!"

"Ha ha ha! No seriously…You guys are just friends? Gwen, I always thought you were the smart one in this family but I gu-"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Gwen turns on her side to look up at her big brother who momentarily closes his eyes, then opens them making a face at her.

"You know what I mean. You have eyes…Although, if you say you're just friends then that's all good with me. You know how I am about guys sniffing around you..."

"El, I am not a car tire, please don't say that. Besides, Arthur Pendragon is my friend. That's it…Nothing else…"

Elyan is thoughtful now and frowning he looks down at her.

"Humour me Gwennie, why not more than friendship? Wait…Arthur Pendragon? As in Uther Pendragon's wonder boy? Holy sh-"

"Yeeeess! That's what I'm trying to say…As friends, maybe. Anything else would be too complicated…and we're too different", Gwen doesn't realise that the pensiveness comes through in her tone and Elyan's keen Army senses pick up on it immediately. Sitting up, he forces Gwen to do so too and face him.

"Well, I say screw all those divisions. If something is meant to be then it will be and Gwennie – you are a wonderful, beautiful person and I'm sure you'll make some guy the happiest man in the world one day. If they can't see all that then who needs them? You'll meet Mr. Right one day, you'll see."

Gwen smiles her thanks and moves off the bed, ready to prepare some breakfast. Elyan watches her leaving the room.

"Gwennie, he seems like a good guy. Just so we're clear; if he hurts you, I will hunt him down though."

He stops when he sees the icy glare aimed his way and doubles over back onto his bed with laughter. This is too easy; his baby sister has got it bad and doesn't even know it.

Gwen's POV

No idea where El got all this weird boyfriend vibe from…Ok so we were sleeping on the couch – but nothing happened. That's right. Nothing. Nada. Not a thing. Gwen…No, don't ask me anything. It sounds like you're a little disappointed. Well you're wrong! You're wrong? No, you're wrong! Aren't we the same person? Oh whatever. Stop reading too much into it. Yay! My brother is back. Of course as annoying as he is, I can't get irritated with him. I missed El so much…Thank you God for bringing him home, safe and sound.

On Sunday at Pendragon Park…

"Gooo Reds! Come on ref! Are you blind? What sort of a call is that?" Merlin looks up to the stands where Gwen is now up on her feet shouting down to where the opposing team is ready to form a line out, while Morgana and Elena, sitting next to her, pretend not to know her. Grinning, he nods towards Arthur who is trying to move into position and follows Merlin's gaze, laughing as he marvels how loud her voice can be for such a petite person, especially when it comes to sports. He knows her well enough by now to know that she can be quite an ogre when it comes to her favourite sports and teams.

The PI Reds are in the finals and playing their rivals; the Glaxxon Knights for the top spot. With the match evenly tied at 15 all, Kelvin and his boys are trying to put some more points on the board within the last ten minutes. Arthur watches as Lancelot turns and waves up at Gwen before marching back out to the wings. He can't help scowling, but shrugs it off, trying to concentrate on the game, as he shouts to the boys to get into position.

After ten minutes of nail biting stuff, the PI fans are not disappointed when the Reds take the match with 20-15 at full time. Arthur is exhausted but pleased with the team's performance and shakes hands and cheers with the others as the fans come down to dance and celebrate with the victors. Turning, he spots Morgana, Leon, Gwen, and Elena coming over and watches as Gwen hugs Kelvin, Merlin, Gwaine, Percival, and Lancelot before running towards him, dark glossy curls bouncing and her dark eyes shining, as she laughs, throwing her hands up in the air with joy.

Arthur's POV

She is…beautiful…Arthur - you're such a loser. Why? You know why! My heart feels like its racing…Well, you could be experiencing the initial stages of cardiac arrest…Really? No stupid! Your heart's just going into overload because of Guinevere – d'uh! No it isn't! Ok then it's not… Is it?…You said it wasn't so…I don't want to argue with myself, I want to stop thinking of her like that! Oookay…now I'm creeping myself out. Golden opportunities and all that. What? You heard me. Yeah but I don't follow. Well it's your own train of thought so I can't help you any further. Fine don't then."

"Yay! We did it! Champions! You all played so well. I told you you'd be great Captain and - ", Gwen stops talking as Arthur lifts her up and swings her around while she squeals and protesting that he put her down. He laughs and (somewhat) reluctantly obliges. Once safely on the ground and not wanting to think about how nice it felt in his strong arms, she sticks her tongue out at him and punches him in the arm as he grins impishly down at her.

"Ouch! Watch the bruises will ya? Thanks for the support though Guinevere…You know I really just stood there, a bit of a shove and push now and then, and gave th-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know, you just 'gave orders, everyone else did the work'…You have grown modest with time haven't you Arthur Pendragon?" Gwen is teasing him now as they walk towards where their friends have congregated.

Merlin bats Morgana's hand away from the bruise above his left eye, knowing that Percy and Gwaine already have smirks on their faces and he knows that they will give him heaps about it later because his girlfriend was babying him in front of all of them. Finally convincing Morgana that he's fine, she goes to joins Elena at the coffee stand. Walking off the field, he notices Lancelot standing off to the side, apparently deep in thought, observing Arthur as he swings a laughing Gwen around in a circle, both of them oblivious of how it might look to a passerby. Or another person who might have thought they might have had a chance.

Lancelot nods at Merlin and sighs, somewhat sadly, still watching them. Merlin offers him a shrug and a kind smile.

"She's something else isn't she?" Lancelot's voice sounds longing.

"Yep, that she is."

"You know, I thought about asking her out – for coffee or something…But…Maybe, I'm too late? I know you're his best mate but…" he looks over at Merlin who theatrically shakes his head and Lancelot smiles again, before continuing.

"Does he…have feelings for her? I mean, like the more than the 'just friends' kind?" He watches Merlin who tries his best to keep his face neutral. The silence that follows is enough for Lancelot to nod slowly.

"Yeah well, that's kinda what I thought too. The last thing I want to do is come between them. More than anything, I want Gwen to be happy, and watching her with him I can tell…she is happy. This job…this opportunity is a dream come true and I want to succeed in this business and Arthur is a good man – and mentor. Hopefully, he realizes how wonderful Gwen is before its too late". He pats Merlin's shoulder and makes his way off the grounds. Merlin watches him go and then turns his attention to Arthur and Gwen who are all smiles and he listens as they're already making fun of Gwaine's suggestion about the celebration party for their victory to be a 'quiet one at the local pub'. Everyone knows Gwaine too well to buy that plan.

The next day, in the corner coffee shop…

Gwen hums along softly to the These Kids Wear Crown song "Jump start" as it plays on the café speakers while waiting in the long line. She is in a very good mood because Elyan announced to her and Morgana over dinner the other night that he has formally been discharged from the army and would be reentering the civilian world again after ten years in the armed forces. When Gwen had asked him about what he wanted to do for a job, he'd told her not to worry and ordered another round of margaritas for them and another whiskey for himself. She frowns, suddenly thinking about it again, knowing that she shouldn't worry too much. Elyan, while known for being the rebellious hot head, has always been resourceful and the important thing was that he was now back – for good. She is just worried he'll meet up with his old cronies…but she shrugs it off, knowing she has to give him the benefit of the doubt.

She is still musing over these thoughts when someone taps her shoulder. Turning around, she sees Lancelot standing behind her smiling. Returning his smile she moves to make room for him to join her.

"So…Maybe today's my lucky day and I can actually buy you that latte?" he jokes, brown eyes twinkling. Gwen blushes and laughs, nodding her consent.

Reaching the counter, Lancelot places their orders and while they wait they make small talk and Lancelot tells her about the after party for the rugby team in which they ended up going to six (not just the one) pubs, Gwaine 'accidentally' ended up in a fight with a burly bouncer over his wife – a pretty barmaid, and Merlin woke up under Arthur's dining room table the next morning, forgetting he had a 9 AM briefing before the CEO. Gwen is laughing so hard she almost spills her coffee as they make their way to a booth in the corner.

Sitting down Gwen notices that Lancelot is now quiet.

"So…Actually, I'm glad I ran into you today. I didn't get a chance to talk with you at the rugby match yesterday to tell you something".

Gwen moves forward, suddenly concerned.

"Oh? Sorry…Yeah, I went over to see Arthur and when we came over, Leon said you'd left already. Is everything ok?"

Lancelot smiles thoughtfully, nodding.

"It was fine. I could see you were busy with Arthur. I just wanted to tell you that I'm leaving soon."

"Leaving for Argentina? So soon? When?"

"I'm on the first flight out tomorrow actually. It's been a hectic two weeks, and I'm still trying to get my head around all the policies and what not. Gaius and Arthur tried to get me to stay another week, but it's time to put that talk into action you know? Do some real work…" They laugh at his last comment and Gwen reaches out to touch his arm affectionately.

"Well…PI has definitely got the right person to set up the company over there. You will do a great job I'm sure".

He looks up at her and shrugs, "I just don't want to let Arthur down – he put a lot on the line for me…What with his father and the Board…"

Gwen shakes her head, dark eyes warm with kindness, "I know you to be a person who believes in what they are doing, and is committed to the job. Arthur saw the same thing – if he can believe in you, then so should the rest of us".

Lancelot doesn't miss the way she says his name and the faraway look in her eyes as if she's thinking of him and he swallows away the brief bite of disappointment.

"You care very much for him don't you?" his question catches her off guard and she tries not to redden, instead, removing her hand from Lancelot's arm and shrugging, trying to sound blasé.

"Of course. I care very much for all my friends. Apart from my brother and an uncle who lives in New Zealand, you guys are the only family I have now."

He grins and draining his espresso cup, looks at his watch. Gwen knows he's now giving her one of his cryptic smiles and raises her eyebrows at him as they move towards the doors, but he says nothing, just smiles. They walk towards the PI building talking about the Latin American office and his time at headquarters until they reach the doors.

"Gwen...Thank you for being a good friend to me. If that is the type of relationship that you and I are destined to have, then I am truly thankful for it. Please take care of yourself – and Arthur too." Gwen is a bit confused by that last comment but she shrugs it off as she hugs him back tightly, wishing him a safe trip and asking him to email from time to time, then kisses his cheek before he moves towards the lifts to the seventh floor where he is meeting Merlin, Arthur and the others. Watching him leave, Gwen smiles, a bit sad that Lancelot is leaving, but happy that he is doing what he wants to do. Her phone buzzes and looking down, she sees a text from Morgana.

'U at wrk alredy? We doin El's party nxt Sat k? That's final. Call u afta shft. xoxM'

Gwen smiles to herself as she waves at the security guards and walks towards the locker rooms to change for her shift. A party sounded like a wonderful way to celebrate all the good things that are happening right now.

AN: Had the LMFAO song Party Rockers (the Benny Benassi remix is awesome) playing in my head when re-editing this chap so of course a party was inevitable somewhere down the line in my fic :) Thanks for taking the time to read, please review if you get a chance to. Stay tuned for the party and all the other stuff that comes in between :)