The Pauper, The Prince, and his Princess

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur had successful managed to sneak out of the castle. He told a few guards that he was going on a hunting trip, and luckily, they complied with his insistence that he would go alone. Not that they could do too much about it. And his father could not object because he was . . . well, he had to respect Arthur's desire to get out of the castle for a little while; considering recent events. He had inspected himself in the mirror before leaving, wanting to look presentable -- as always -- for tonight would prove to be an interesting one indeed. Dinner with Guinevère . . . but also Merlin. He had never been alone, with the two of them, with Merlin being conscious of his affections for her. He would torture his man servant if he made even one joke or sarcastic remark.

When he was finally ready, and felt he could leave without being followed, he went to the stable, got his horse, and rode out into the woods. . . sort of. He tied horse up in a place that would be easy to find, and then returned to Camelot on foot. He pulled up his hood on his cloak, to conceal his face and thus prevent others from recognizing him. What would they say about the prince skulking about in the city at this time.

The darkness was his friend in this case and managed to arrive at Guinevère's with no suspicion. He lightly knocked on the door, keeping his head low and his hood up. At least until he was inside.

_{Setting: Guinevère's house
Time of Day: Late at night
Timeline: Sometime after Beauty and the Beast II, the next day
Tag: Guinevère and Merlin Caradoc}

[Guinevère]

Would he really come?

Guinevère had spent the better part of the day, serving Morgana, and the better part of her free time cleaning her small house. Everything had to be perfect and for two reasons. One, was for Merlin. He had really saved the day this time for he had not only warned everyone that the queen was a troll but helped break the cruse she held over the king. Thus he saved the king, the kingdom and Arthur all in one swift move. So tonight was in his honor.

Would he really come?

The other reason was because Guinevère had asked Arthur to come and join them. After a small about of pleading he had agreed to try. She hoped he would join them; though she had warned him Merlin was NOT his servant tonight. There would be no fetch this, and do that for Merlin tonight. Guinevère was sitting the table for three when she heard the faint knock at her door. Merlin had a bad habit was just walking right into room, she she thought---hoped it was the prince.

Had he really came?

She hurried tot he door and pulled it open, so he could slip in and then she shut it once he was in. "You came." She stated the obvious, but with a very pleased and excited tone in her voice. It was as if he had given her diamonds or gold, but he had only given her himself for the night. "I had feared you might not be able to slip away."

[pie]

How could Merlin resist Gwen's invitation to have dinner at her house? She was his friend, one of his best friends, and he would be loath to refuse her offer! The only downfall? Arthur was going to be there. Not that that was much of a downfall, but Merlin would be afraid to even say anything lest he make the Prince angry because they were with Gwen. He hoped that that, however, would make him less likely to be angry. Didn't mean he wouldn't kill him afterwards, though!

Merlin had finished up all of his chores, those from Arthur, and those from Gaius. He had done them in a rush so he could get to Gwen's on time. Usually he still wouldn't be done. In fact, he had finished them so fast, that he even broke something in Arthur's room... he tossed it out the window. Hopefully no one -- at least him! -- found it! After his chores, he had freshened up so he was presentable at least, and bid Gaius a farewell before running out as fast as he could... just in case he had some other chore he wanted him to do!

So now, he was walking up to Gwen's house casually, but when he got to the door, he stopped. Yes, he would have actually knocked for once, to be polite, but he heard voices. Gwen's, obviously talking to Arthur. So, curiously but not wanting to interrupt, he leaned against the door with his ear carefully, even put his hand on the doorknob. He was very likely to fall if someone opened the door!

[Arthur Pendragon]

Seeing her reaction made it all worth it. She seemed so happy to see him, and so all the worry about slipping away and such, vanished. Tonight, it would be about her. Oh yeah, and Merlin. Who was not here yet. Arthur went inside, closing the door behind him. He then proceeded to lower the hood from his head. "It would be rather rude of me not to come, after the hostess was generous enough to extend an invitation," he said in a bit of a joking tone. Tonight, was not going to be dramatic. He would make it a relaxed atmosphere, lacking any sort of tension. With Merlin there though, Arthur would also be a lot more reserved in his words to Gwen. He would not be an intimate with her, or emotionally speak so openly.

When he about to take off his cloak he heard a noise directly outside. His guard immediately went up, and he swiftly pulled his sword out its sheath from under his cloak. He pulled Gwen back, and moved in front of her, slowly creeping towards the door. It only took a couple of steps really, as her place was not that big to begin with. He slowly brought his hand to the door, and quickly opened it, seeing Merlin fall inwards on the other end. Arthur looked down at him, with a 'you're an idiot' expression on his face. What was he doing out there, lurking around?! He then just rolled his eyes as he began to put the sword back. "Merlin." He said, using that typical Arthur tone, placing emphasis on each letter. He was about to walk away, when he remembered . . . he was to treat Merlin decently tonight. So instead of leaving him on the ground, he offered his hand to help him up.

[Guinevère]

"And you know better then to be rude." She teased him back, before smiling and then biting her bottom lip in pleasure of him coming. She was referring to when he had lived with her for three days and she had ended up yelling at him, and telling him how rude he was being. Then he had lied and claimed to cook her dinner; before and assassin had tired to kill him. The memory of that first kiss was still one that made her blush, and her heart skip . . .

Her heart skipped again when he pulled his sword, and then pulled her back. She had not heard whatever made him react so, but her hands came up as it to hold on to him, when he moved her. When Merlin fell in, she rushed forward to help him up; while walking around Arthur's held out hand. "Merlin!" She said, her tone very unlike the Prince's. "Are you alright?! Did you hurt your self?!" She hoped so, it would not do a tall for the guest of honor, to be hurt!

Merlin reminded her of her brother at times, for both Elyan and him tended to follow their hearts and that lead them into trouble. However, when your back was to a wall, they would come to your aid. Elyan was missing, of sorts, but she still loved him.

[pie]

In all honesty, Merlin hadn't expected to get caught. Really. But, it appeared that he had alerted them, at least Arthur, with the slight scuffling of his feet on the ground. The Prince seemed to be perceptive like that. So, one could imagine his surprise when all of a sudden there was no wall supporting him and he was falling towards the ground. He winced a little at the impact, even gave a small groan, before looking up at Arthur with a sheepish grin. Well, he had rightfully made a fool of himself. He didn't pay any heed to the tone, just continued to grin, as he was rather used to that tone by now.

Him offering him his hand though... now that surprised Merlin. He wasn't sure whether to take it and let him help him up, or to ignore it and get up himself. You never knew what kind of evil plans went through that man's head!! So when Gwen came over, he was much more obliged to let her help him up than Arthur. He trusted her. Not that he didn't trust Arthur, of course, he just trusted Gwen more in the aspect of not pushing him back down or letting him fall again.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you, Gwen," he said with a cheery smile, avoiding Arthur's gaze. He didn't want to know if the Prince was glaring at him or not.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Well, that was the last time Arthur did something nice for Merlin. He had thought his gesture of offering his hand had been so grand -- but that was what one got when it was an action that should be assumed, and not made such a big deal about. Arthur had not considered that it should be a natural, instinctive reaction; he had actually debated on whether he should do it or not. And instead, Merlin helped himself up, and Guinevère hurried over to assist him. She was clearly more worried about the fact than he had been. The idiot was fine though; but he supposed that was what made Guinevère such a caring woman; her obvious concern for others.

Arthur just stood there, watching the two of them, completely hiding his discomfort when he thought about the fact that the two of them had once kissed. It was not jealously this time that the Prince felt . . . it was . . . just disturbance over the thought that Merlin had kissed a woman that Arthur loved. If he did that now of course, Arthur would have his head. But he knew he would not. And that was why Arthur had no concern over it . . but rather, was just plain disturbed. "What were you doing out there?" He asked, wondering how Merlin had managed to stumble in, unless he had tripped on something outside.

[Guinevère]

Gwen used her hands to bat a little of the dirt from the floor off of Merlin's shirt. The same one he wore every single day it seemed. Really, she ought make him a shirt; or try to get Arthur to buy him another one. Merlin wore the same clothing every single day.

When Arthur asked what Merlin was doing out there, Guinevère looked up at him with a knowing smile. Arthur and Merlin had a special relationship; while Guinevère might not think it was completely normal she knew both men respected each other and would do anything for the other. "He was coming here, to join us for supper." She reminded Arthur, trying to make sure the mood stayed light and friendly, "Merlin saved the kingdom."

But she was not above teasing Merlin; "Doors just are a bit tricky for him. He never did learn to knock." She gave him a friendly pat on his arm before walking away to make sure everything on the table was perfect before her guest sat down.

[pie]

Merlin smiled a little at Gwen thankfully as she wiped some of the dirt off of his shirt. And then, at the Prince's words, Merlin looked around nervously, with an air of innocence, as if he had no idea what Arthur was talking about when he questioned what he was doing out there. When Gwen answered, Merlin looked back at him and nodded, smiling, forcing his nervousness to disappear. "What Gwen said, I was coming here." Because that was the truth. It just wasn't what he was exactly doing outside that made him fall so easily when Arthur pulled open the door.

He wanted to protest when Gwen claimed that doors were tricky for him and that he never learned to knock. That wasn't true! Kinda! Okay, it was. He didn't recall the last time he actually knocked on Gwen's door. He usually burst or walked right in, as if he didn't seem to realize that it was courteous to actually knock. But he knew that she was teasing, and so couldn't stop grinning.

He'd give Arthur an I-didn't-do-anything look before walking further into the small home and coming up beside Gwen. "Thanks for inviting me, Gwen," he said sincerely and politely.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Merlin saved the kingdom . . . by killing the Prince! Arthur felt it best to leave this small thing out. She knew what had to be done, as Arthur had already explained it to her. But still. His tone would change when he spoke to Guinevère in private, and when Merlin was present. He spoke to both of them in a very different manner, so it would be difficult tonight to find that balance. He could not mock Merlin too seriously, and he could not express his affections to Guinevère too openly. Hmmm. Tonight was going to be more difficult than he thought.

And Merlin was taking full advantage of that fact. He wanted to smack that cheeky grin off his face, as he knew he could get away with things tonight. But Arthur remained completely composed. Calm. Cool. Collected. This would work. He would make tonight peaceful . . . for Guinevère's sake. He suppressed a glare towards Merlin and just casually looked at the two of them. "Yes, she was kind enough to extend an invitation to you." Yes, he singled out the fact that Merlin was here . . . that she had been kind to give HIM an invitation. Not Arthur, Merlin. And that he should appreciate it.

[Guinevère]

Guinevère shook her head softly at the boys' playful bickering. She knew they were fond of each other even if they did not behave as such. It was the only reason that Gwen did not give them a play order to behave. "Tonight you are the guest of honor, Merlin. You should sit and let me take care of everything." She encouraged, not wanting Merlin to start trying to do his job and do something for Arthur. "Tonight you do no work!"

She took three plates out of the cupboard, and started putting them on the table. Two on one side and one on the other. She wasn't sure who would sit where; but she would let her guest pick their seats and she would take the open one. It would let everyone sit where they wanted to sit; giving them all peace of mind.

She turned and got three cups out and began fully sitting the table quickly. "I hope your hungry. I made your favorite." She looked up at Arthur, silently for a moment before giving him a smile. She was so glad he came, but did not want to make a big deal out of it while Merlin was here. After a few long seconds she looked away and finished the table.

(¯`v´¯)
.`·.¸.·´ ♥
¸.·´¸.·´¨) ¸.·*¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´ .·´ ¸¸.·¨¯`·.♥

[pie]

Merlin knew that Arthur wouldn't want to do anything to upset or disappoint Gwen tonight, and that for that reason alone, he would purposely try his best to be nicer to him than usual. And Gwen's words only brought a smirk across his face as he looked at Arthur. "Guest of honor," he repeated cheekily, purposely pushing it. Still, he didn't like the thought of letting Gwen do everything while he sat back.

When Gwen wasn't looking, he flashed Arthur another grin -- even stuck his tongue out playfully -- and walked further into the house. As Gwen set the table, Merlin decided to take the seat that sat opposite from the other two. Let Arthur and Gwen sit next to each other, they were, after all, in love with each other, and Merlin did everything he could to encourage that. And would do everything he could to give them all the time they could get together, as no one was suppose to know about them.

He wanted to help her set the table, but knew that she would insist that he didn't, as she had already done, and so, sat down where he had chosen. "My favorite?" he asked, sitting up a little taller to try and see as his grin returned. And again, it only increased when he noticed her smile at Arthur. He turned away, respectfully pretending to not have noticed as he examined his nails.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Guest of honor? Well, that was an interesting way of putting it. Truth be told, Arthur didn't mind in the least bit. He found himself beginning to enjoy this sort of simplicity. He had learned so much when staying with Guinevère during the jousting tournament, and right now . . . the three of them -- apart from the slight awkwardness of this being the first time they were in such close quarters for casual purposes -- together, was rather relaxing. Although it did make Arthur wish it could be more of a frequent occurrence instead of a one time thing. Well, that though was tossed when Merlin stuck his tongue out at him.

Arthur wanted to insult him, tell him to shut up -- even though he didn't technically say anything -- . . . but he could not. He bit his tongue and would get his revenge later. He knew however that Merlin was going to play this up, so Arthur would just have to brace himself.He remained silent for the most, though he did notice the beautiful smile that Guinevère came him and allowed the look to linger . . . before remembering that Merlin was here. He looked away and took his position at the table, sitting down on one of the seats and had to look a far less beautiful smile: Merlin's. This was when Arthur took the opportunity to give him a subtle, warning glare.

He wanted to say something sarcastic to him. Something along the lines of 'stop asking stupid questions'. But he once again, held himself back. It was not hard for a man who didn't talk all too much to begin with to compose himself . . . but there was such a natural tendency to insult Merlin. And such a natural tendency to be affection towards Guinevère. It was going to be a difficult balance indeed. "As long as its not rat stew, since that's one of Merlin's favorites as well." Arthur joked, keeping a light mood in the air. Everything else, every complication with this very dinner . . . would be left outside.

[Guinevère]

Guinevère looked back at the table with a slightly confused expression on her face at Arthur's words but did not say anything about the rat. She had learned that they often had inside jokes that she either would not approve of or would not understand, she did not ask for explanations. Either Arthur would be making Merlin do extra work, and calling it fun; or Merlin would be using his sharp wit and calling it payback.

Men were such mysterious creatures.

Why they pretended to know nothing of women was beyond her. Women were simple, with men there was so many things going on with them. She picked up the plates and moved to sit them on the table. She hoped Merlin would be pleased with the meal. Ad servants, she might not be able to afford much but she was not hurting for coins as others were. She was able to fix a good meal for them tonight.

(¯`v´¯)
.`·.¸.·´
¸.·´¸.·´¨) ¸.·*¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´ .·´ ¸¸.·¨¯`·.♥

[pie]

Merlin noticed fully Arthur's warning glare. Did he let Arthur know that he saw? Yes, he grinned innocently. Did it bother him? Nope, not at all! Arthur wouldn't dare do anything while Gwen was in the same room, so he felt perfectly safe! And his casual demeanor would show it. He wasn't going to worry himself until after the dinner and when they left. Yes, then he would worry about Arthur murdering him. But until then, everything was a-okay! As long as he didn't push it too much and make Arthur snap, of course. That would be a bad thing, yes it would! Besides, he didn't want to completely ruin the friendly mood of this dinner. He was indeed grateful that Gwen had invited him over also.

And than Arthur brought up the rat stew! Yuck, that disgusting stew was awful! But it wasn't his favorite! Not at all! "Ah, but at least I hadn't thought it was tasty," he said, once more grinning, even chuckling this time. He knew Gwen most likely had no clue what they were talking about, and wasn't sure if she exactly wanted to know what they were talking about. It was indeed an awful stew. But, Arthur had wanted him to get rid of that rat! And he had!

When Gwen sat the food down on the table, Merlin smiled at her, taking a deep breath to smell it. It, on the other hand, did smell delicious, and he was sure it tasted the same! "It smells wonderful, Gwen," he said, but otherwise didn't touch it. Should he wait? Should he start eating? Hm... questions, questions...

[ I think we said it was chicken, lol ]

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur wanted to throw something at Merlin . . . but managed to resist the urge. He would over compensate for it later, and drop it for now. He wasn't going to argue with his idiot servant or talk about things that Gwen more than likely would not understand. He already felt odd enough being in this situation, finding himself more reserved around her when Merlin was present. It was slightly uncomfortable, and yet he wished it was not. Considering that the two people he was very close to were in this room, he wished things were more relaxed. But for him at least, they were not. But Merlin and Guinevère seemed to be entirely at ease. This sort of dinner was probably more common for them than it was for him. He was used to sitting at a grand table, and yet, found himself enjoying these quaint meals in the comfort of her home far more.

When the food was set down, Arthur stood up and walked over to her seat, pulling out the chair for her. It was a small gesture, but she was not just a servant any more to him. She was the woman he loved and so he would treat her with the proper respect . . . the respect that she deserved to be treated with. Even this small gesture felt odd to do in front of Merlin, but he concealed any sense of that awkwardness. It would only ruin the mood if he acted or vocalized how strange this felt.