The King Has Returned . . . [Arwen]

[Guinevère]

Guinevère smiled when he kissed her, and was enjoying the moment until his hand moved away from her. Knowing what he was up too (not having forgotten the most common way they tried to distract each other from years ago) she moved her own ahdn out to try to stop him but soon enough he had the paper. "Arthur," She warmned him knowing she should at least warn him but he was already reading. "That we will use if the fire grows dull." She would agree but she wanted for her records. "If it makes you feel better I very undipomaticly told him no." And her letter had been much nicer then Gwaine's.

"Are there any more proposals for Anna I should be warned about?" Yes, but she didn't know how to tell him or how to move the papers aside so that he might not see them. "Or, proposals for you?" Her heart skipped a beat and she knew that while he was joking the letter from Bayard that she'd gotten once asking her to marry him had nearly caused her to faint. "None that I was tempted to accept, even for a moment."

Which meant there had been some. "There are a few for Anna, though none as . . . . worded . . . as the one from Estia. A few kings offering their daughters to Amaren, but all have been turned down. I explained that I will give my children the chance to find life and love on their own." She paused for a moment, "And the one letter to myself, was sent back a short letter where I explained that I could never marry another."

"You should not fear any son-in-laws yet." She teased trying not to have him thinking on Anna's marriage. "She still thinks she is marrying Merlin." A joke, and one she hoped that was funny.

[Arthur Pendragon]

He knew Guinevère would tell him no. They were both of the same understanding that they did not wish to commit their children to anyone without their consent. Arthur had not followed through with who he was meant to marry. Why deprive them of finding someone they loved? Granted, he was not going to let Anna marry anyone. The thought of so many proposals coming her way was unsettling. He hoped he was here to receive the next letter of proposal. He would have quite a few words to say in response. Or perhaps just a couple of words. His daughter was not going to marry anyone. The same went for Amaren of course. He was not going to commit him to some random princess that he'd never even met. His children were young and free to explore the world under their own terms. Not feel the restraint of being destined to marry someone for political purposes. Arthur would be a hypocrite if he enforced such an arranged marriage on his children. Besides, this was something both him and Guinevère agreed upon.

"She is not marrying anyone," he said with blunt casualness. So much so, that it didn't seem like a debatable subject. His little five year old girl, in the hands of another man? Never. EVER. Especially not Merlin. Of course he knew that when she grew older the crush would fade. But he could not even joke about it. The notion was far too disturbing. Especially since he was trying to avoid the subject of Merlin. For now anyway. He looked at her with a bit of curiosity, hoping he would not regret asking this question, but also felt the need to know who had tried to marry his wife. "Who sent a proposal to you?" He asked, knowing that it would be somewhere in the records, but hoped she would tell him. It would be important to know in terms of who their allies were. Or who were trying to become allies through the alliance of marriage. He wanted to ask more details about who had also sent them to Amaren and Anna, yet he was most curious about who had sent one to Guinevère. The mere thought enraging, but . . . it made sense for another to extend such a hand to a single queen.

[Guinevère]

"She is not marrying anyone," "Not for fifteen years or so, at least." She teased him, trying to help him adjust to the idea of the daughter he'd just learned of, and having men thinking of marrying her. "While other kings and queens have meet Amaren over the years no one has met Anna." She explained, "She's too young to be in the political world, so we've kept her from that. When you see kings refer to her as beautiful, and in other words know that he do not have a clue what she looks like. . . no one seeks your daughter, Arthur, they only wanted the alliance and that bit I kindly turned down."

"Who sent a proposal to you?" That one was a bit harder to answer, not because she didn't know but because she didn't want anything to cause rifts between him and people who he might need. Still, she would not lie to him. "Mercia." She told him, "Though, a few times over the years. The last one is on the desk over there where I and not sent yet another reply."

"He just sees it as a way to the land, and I know that. I have told him before on his visits that I would not remarry." She was trying to tell him what he wanted to know before he found out about Bayard's visits from another. She didn't want him caught off guard.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur was extremely relieved to hear that. He didn't doubt that Guinevère would protect their daughter, but it was just a comforting fact to her. That she had not been immersed in the political world. Nor would she. Amaren on the other hand, didn't have a choice. While he would try to ease the burdens and pressures as much as he could . . . he would have to be very well versed in politics. He knew it was one of Guinevère's concerns in having a son, and one of the many reasons he knew he had asked a lot from her in marrying him. And bearing the children they knew would come. "I never doubted you would protect her," he said with a soft smile, wanting her to know that. "We will continue to protect her from such a world. She is far too young and innocent to be exposed to it." Granted, she could be twenty years old and Arthur would still find her too young and innocent. She would forever remain so. And he would forever reject proposals from other kingdoms.

Arthur's soft smile suddenly slipped when he heard who had sent a marriage proposal to Guinevère. As if Bayard wasn't bad enough, she revealed that he had sent multiple proposals to her. He was harassing his wife?! Arthur looked at the papers in front of him, to calm his raging mind. He knew why Bayard would see a union in this way. He had coveted Camelot's lands for so long. It would have been different had it been someone else and they were trying to offer stability and protection. Arthur would still have been jealous. But he wouldn't have felt as infuriated as he did now. He knew Bayard. He knew his intentions weren't all that innocent. And he had not asked her once, but several times throughout the years. Pushing himself on her. Even . . . visiting her?! Arthur could feel the anger rising in him, wanting nothing more than to storm over to Mercia and confront him. To demand that he leave his family alone. That he was back, and he would never lay a finger on his land, or more importantly . . . his wife!

"I will be sure that he fully understands your answer," Arthur said in a firm voice. Which was a no. And if that took Arthur approaching him in his kingdom, then so be it. He would add it to his list of places to attend tomorrow. He didn't trust Bayard. But he knew that he would honor their treaty. He just didn't like hearing that he was trying to push himself on his family. Whether he was here or not, he should not have kept trying to push her into a marriage. "His harassment will come to an end." Something else that he would make sure of. That he would not dare send another proposal to her. Then again, no one would once they realized that her true husband had returned. Whether from the dead or not, he was here and no one else, not Bayard, or the king of Escetia or any other person . . . will have claim to his family.

[Guinevère]

"I will be sure that he fully understands your answer," That did not sound pleasant but at the same time, she was glad to have him here. If that meant that he wanted to tell men that he thought were rivals to go away then she would let him. Even though she had never for even the smallest of moments though about the offer longer then it took to write the words of dismissal down.

She could never marry another, for in her heart, mind and soul there was only one who could be in her life the way a husband should. That was Arthur. Only ever Arthur. "His harassment will come to an end." That did not sound pleasant either. "Harassment is a rather harsh word. He was not rude, not forceful just . . . politely persistent." That sounded better! She was trying to make sure he knew nothing happened. " . . . . You are the only man I could ever have in my life, in my heart and in my bed Arthur. I do hope you know that. That never for even a second did I want another." Only him. "And I am more then glad I felt that way, now that you are in my arms."

[Arthur Pendragon]

Politely persistent? He knew she was trying to minimize it, but Arthur was not going to ease his anger toward the man. "I know Bayard," he said in a low voice. "I know how he must have pursued the issue." Pushed and pursued. Because he wanted Camelot. And to think, that he would use Guinevère to get it?! Sickening. Arthur wanted to invite him to Anna's birthday, if only to show him that he'd returned. And then to speak to him in private about the small issue of how many times he had asked his wife to marry him. Of course the thought was just brewing in Arthur's mind. He didn't know if he would actually go through with it. When she began to explain that he was the only man she could ever have in his life, his expression softened and he met her eyes once more. "I never doubted your loyalty, nor that you loved me," he told her, certain of that. When she told him so many times that she loved him, he of course believed her. Just as she said that she loved him above anyone else.

"I know that things would have been easier for you and the children if you had accepted a proposal." Guinevère, not the children. Because they would obviously have to wait so many years for their children's to be wed. But with Guinevère, it would have been something more immediate. "Perhaps not Bayard, but anyone else's." Because Bayard had only one thing on his mind: greed. "Had I returned and . . . " Found another man in her bed. "Saw that you were with another, I would not have blamed you." He would have understood completely. "But I am so grateful that you were not." He knew that made him so completely selfish. To feel happiness and relief in her denying others, even though it would have given her the children protection and security, and strengthened the kingdom. "I am so appreciative of the sacrifice you made." To remain loyal to him even though he was not here to be with her.

[Guinevère]

Guinevère hoped that whatever happened between him and Bayard did not cause the kingdom more damage then she had already done. With Estia on the edge of marching in, the last thing they needed was to unit Mercia against them--though she did not doubt in Arthur's ability to handle anything and everything. She was just glad he was here to stay, and they could handle everything together.

He spoke of finding her with another man and him understanding. "You'd understand?" She asked, knowing that he might not have calmed down long enough for anyone to explain. She had the feeling that he'd had killed the man long before anyone could explain what was happening. "Are you saying you'd have been calm enough to sit everyone down and explain?" She was teasing him, and ended it with a kiss, and not even a small one. A almost suggestive one. Not pushing on his self control, but enough to show him that there would never EVER be another man in her life.

[Arthur Pendragon]

"Are you saying you'd have been calm enough to sit everyone down and explain?" Well, when she put it that way, he supposed not. Deep down, he would have understood, but that didn't mean he would have been calm about if it he'd sneaked into their room, gone onto the bed, only to fall on another man who was holding his wife. Thankfully, any thoughts of jealousy and anger at this mental image were alleviated when she kissed him. He felt his body relax, as his hands moved along her sides, just to add further intimacy to this already intimate embrace. Part of him wished he could just push her on her back and take her in front of the fire. The other part of him was rational enough to know that their children were just on the other side of the room. While he let the kiss linger, and build in calm passion, it was the thought that it could not lead to anything else that slowly caused him to pull away. As if reminding himself. Though his lips just ended up going to her cheek as he answered her somewhat rhetorical question.

"Well, there would have been a good possibility I'd have been a tad hostile toward him," he said, jokingly minimizing the 'tad hostile' bit. In actuality, he would have tried to kill him. His hand pushed her hair back and his lips found her upper neck. The thought of her being with another man was maddening, so found the need to keep her close to him; to be possessive of her. He wanted everyone to know that he was back, and that she was his. "But I wouldn't have blamed you." Because she would have been doing what she felt would have given her and the kingdom stability. His lips gently moved along her neck, as his arms wrapped tightly around her. "I'm just thankful that such was not the case. That I found you in bed." Alone. His words held a strong playful suggestiveness to them, knowing that he should probably get back to work yet could not tear his lips from her right now.

[Guinevère]

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