With Your Blessing

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur felt an odd sort of nervousness as he made his way down the hall toward one of the knight's chambers. While he was often a confident man, there was usually just one particular subject that could make him feel easily frazzled, insecure and flustered: Guinevère. It was both in a wonderful way, as if he was a young man desperately in love. But it also had its more intense moments, just as what had happened in the recent past. He had banished her, yet they were reunited in Ealdor. And then with everything that had happened, they had not had the chance to talk. The castle was finally settling down, with Morgana and Helios' men gone, so Arthur knew that chance to talk to her would soon come.

But there was someone else he wished to talk to first, and that was Elyan. Not only was he of course her brother, but Arthur considered him his own brother too. To hear what the torture he had endured made Arthur feel terrible. For he knew it was his fault, and he knew that Elyan's loyalty was what made him suffer for so long. So the main purpose to see him was to ensure he was recovering well. Though Gaius had assured him of such, Arthur would feel far better seeing it himself rather, especially since he didn't even know until they retook control of the castle if Elyan, Gwaine, Gaius and the others were still alive. Arthur was all too relieved that they were, for he doubted he could endure the loss of either man. Realizing he was now standing outside Elyan's door, Arthur reached into his pocket to look at the ring that he had given Guinevère for their first engagement.

Isolde's death had opened his eyes to so much. Despite everything that happened between then, Arthur knew that Guinevère loved him. And he of course loved her. That was all that mattered. Taking a deep breath, he tucked the ring back in his pocket and knocked on the door before slowly opening it. "Elyan?" he questioned, in a tone that was not loud enough to wake him if he was resting, but loud enough to be heard if he was awake. Noticing he was, Arthur continued. "Am I disturbing you?" He further asked, not wanting to impose if Elyan did not feel strong enough for company. After all the man had gone through, it would be understandable. But alas, if Elyan was one thing it was strong and resilient.

_{Setting: In Elyan's chambers
Time of Day: Morning
Timeline: Near the end of Sword In The Stone II
Tag: Elyan}

[cherryblossom131]

Relief; that was the first thing he felt when he'd realised Arthur had taken back the castle. Before happiness, before any sense of duty, he had an overwhelming feeling of relief. After enduring Morgana's torture it had been all he could bare to feel. He'd been mostly worried about Gaius, after all he wasn't exactly the youngest of them and the strain of sitting in a cell, starving must have been very difficult for him. But after visiting him, Gaius assured Elyan he was fine and waved it away, instead setting to work on Elyan's recovery. That hadn't been quite as easy as Elyan had anticipated. Gaius told him the nathair snakes had left some of their venom inside Elyan's body which had to be removed immediately. That had been a painful process that left Elyan feeling weak again, but at least he was alive and well.

Gwen had taken care of him of course, and generally helped around the castle despite the fact that she was still technically banished. But she'd helped take back the castle, so didn't that count for something? After speaking with her, she'd told him of her plan to leave should Arthur wish it. He didn't want to lose his sister again especially after being so close to death himself. Elyan knew Arthur could be stubborn, but in this case, he would be too. He hadn't fought hard enough to keep Gwen last time and he certainly wouldn't be making that same mistake again. He sat up from his chair at his desk when he heard his name called. It was Arthur, just the man he'd been wanting to see. "No, not at all. Please, come in." He was a little weak but still a lot better. "I'm glad you came, I've actually been meaning to talk to you," he started, suddenly feeling nervous. What was he supposed to say exactly? "Concerning my sister," he continued raising his eyebrows slightly. He hoped Arthur understood.

[Arthur Pendragon]

Arthur felt relieved to hear that he was not disturbing his friend . . . yet at the same time, knew that Elyan was far too kind to ever tell him otherwise. Still, Arthur was glad it was due to Elyan's nature rather than an obligation to not deny their king. He'd always rather be seen as a man and a friend in front of his knights, rather than their sovereign. He felt he somewhat succeeded with that. "Thank you," Arthur said, approaching Elyan and pulling out a chair to sit on as Elyan continued to speak. He knew it should come as no surprise that Guinevère's name was mentioned so quickly in their conversation. Apart from seeing how Elyan was recovering, Guinevère was the other topic that Arthur had to discuss with him. So in a way, he was grateful that Elyan brought it up. For the time of her banishment, Arthur refused to hear her name, and none of the men dared speak it. Except for Merlin . . . but even then, it was not well received.

"I came to speak of the very subject as well," Arthur confirmed. Knowing that it was an awkward subject indeed, he wished to relieve Elyan's mind as quickly as possible. If anyone deserved to first hear of Guinevère's banishment being lifted, it was her brother. He paused for a moment, quickly contemplating how best to phrase his words. "I do not intend to force her to leave." He didn't want to use the word banishment for even while that had been what it was, now with having fully forgiven her . . . the word sounded too harsh in Arthur's mind. "Her home is here, with her family." With her brother of blood and her other brothers of heart and . . . with him. For if she would have him, Arthur wished to make her his wife. The other subject that he needed to discuss with Elyan. But, one thing at a time.