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Gwaine was almost starting to enjoy himself with this woman. Well, he would be enjoying himself even more if this woman would just stop being so bloody stubborn. He wondered when she was going to give up this little act. After all, hardly anyone was truly capable of resisting him in the end anyway. Well, at least he finally had her name, and that was something. It had been far too much effort just to get this far, and Gwaine hoped he would have a little more success in his later flirtations. “Millie is a beautiful name.” He said with a gentle smile, taking a sip of his ale. He hadn’t come across a woman called Millie before, which was surprising as Gwaine really had been all across Albion, “Is it short for something, or is that what your mother named you?” He was taking a bit of a risk by asking about family, mainly because woman in taverns never had the happiest of family upbringings. If they had then they wouldn’t be in a tavern on their own and that was the long and short of it.

An exchange of names might have seemed fair to Millie, but that wasn’t the way Gwaine usually played this game. Most women sought to give him nicknames, or gave him a bit more of a reason to stay. Millie seemed sure of herself in some ways, but it wasn’t incredibly encouraging from Gwaine’s perspective. Oh well, perhaps he could improve matters. “My name is Gwaine, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” He didn’t need to say he was a knight of Camelot, because that was just part of him, it wasn’t what defined him, “I haven’t seen you in this part of the world before, are you new to Camelot?”

Well, Gwaine was glad to see that Griff hadn’t lost his sense of humour, what with his wife screaming in the room next to them both. He couldn’t help but give a small chuckle, and he nodded at his friend, he did after all have a valid point. Well, he would have a valid point if he was talking to anyone other than him. “I fail to see how she could resist me.” Of course Gwaine’s ego was not being reined in at all in his matter. Why shouldn’t Caitrin find him attractive? He shrugged, but he couldn’t help but grin anyway, “And plus, she likes you, so...” He just chuckled and took a step back so that Griff couldn’t injure him. He hadn’t ever seen much of the Lady in question, aside from when she was with Griff of course. Gwaine never usually bothered them at feasts, and they always seemed to leave them early anyway. It just amused Gwaine, if that was what love was then perhaps he did need a wife. He did like the idea of someone warming his bed night after night.

It did amuse Gwaine that Griff always seemed able to speak confidently about what he wanted, but it would very rarely become a reality. For example, he already knew he wouldn’t be able to get his way with calling their son, if he had a son that was of course. He was quickly getting an appreciation that Caitrin was probably the more dominant in their relationship. Well, the fact Griff hadn’t thought of names wasn’t incredibly helpful was it? Though Gwaine suspected he wouldn’t be in this situation for quite some time, he guessed that he would have at least thought of some names. He hoped so anyway. This could be a way of distracting Griff though, as he could now actually hear the woman screaming. Urgh. He hoped that wasn’t going to last long, it made Gwaine feel slightly queasy. The best way to experience this situation was in the tavern, but he doubted that Griff would go for that. Anyway, he was getting off topic, “You could always name them Gwaine.” He pointed out with a chuckle, “Go on, give me some names, it’s not like we’re going anywhere.” Perhaps it would take Griff’s mind off the immediate issue, which was the fact that Caitrin was in labour. He might even calm down. It was a long shot, but still.

Childbirth was not something Gwaine had encountered before, and when he woke up this morning he wasn’t expecting to be experiencing it tonight. Well, he was only a bystander, but still. Women just seemed to complain about childbirth all the time, and he’d often jested with them, telling them there was nothing to complain about. However, listening to Griff’s wife now, he was certain that it actually did hurt. Griff’s words pulled him out of his thoughts though, which was welcomed. He found himself smiling, the first time he had met Griff he would have thought he’d never been in this situation with him. After all, Gwaine had been the one telling Griff to just get over his wife, and to sort his life out. He felt quite guilty now looking back on it. “Well, this is a happier occasion than last time.” He pointed out, running a hand over his face. Though women were lost in childbed, they weren’t thinking about that now. Griff would soon have a baby, and his wife would be fine. “I know you love your wife anyway, so y’know, anything I can do to help.” He shifted slightly and ran his hand through his hair, “What are friends for anyway?”

Gwaine wasn’t impressed that hi s words weren’t being received with the effect he wanted them to have. Overall it was incredibly disappointing, and Gwaine was now just struggling to decide what to say next to the woman. Was she really worth the effort? There were many other women in here he could occupy his time with, and they would appreciate it so much more than this woman. Then again, she was posing him a challenge, and Gwaine did love a good challenge. However, there was only so much Gwaine would be able to take before admitting defeat and finding himself another woman to charm. Again she was being very regal and proper about his charms; was she sure she wasn’t a Lady? “Well I have seen enough to assure you that it is the truth.” He grinned at her, he was running out of ideas really.

Persistent was a nice word, Gwaine quite liked that label. It made him sound like he was consistent and took the greatest care in his charms. He did take great care with how he charmed women, but she was probably giving him a little less justice than he would have liked. He was persistent because she was beautiful and she seemed like fun, not just because she had been the first person to catch his eye. He doubted she would believe that though, but he wasn’t going to waste his energy with persuading her. “And what if I don’t want to charm just any barmaid tonight? Would you believe me?” He doubted she would.

Now that was a interesting question and Gwaine released her hand and just sat back in his seat. Did he really want to waste his time on her? Then again, it would be a shame to waste such an opportunity, if she didn’t want to spend time with him then she would leave, he was sure of that much. “Just grace me with your company, and I will drink as a happy man tonight.”

Gwaine was already realising that women in Camelot were quite stubborn and protective of their virtues. Here was him thinking that he had just been unlucky when Gwen had rejected his advances, but no, since making the kingdom his home he had found that this was the norm rather than the exception. What was it about the woman round here that made them just so adamant to reject all of his advances as much as they possibly could? Gwaine didn’t let it faze him much though, all women put up defences to make it look as if they weren’t too easy, and that they were playing hard to get. It was quite amusing really, but it wasn’t anything that Gwaine hadn’t seen, or dealt with before. Perhaps the woman thought that he was just a young knight who had just been unleashed on society. How wrong that perception was.

It did bore him sometimes when women just repeated things back to him, denying all his words. Again, he didn’t let it show because if he looked bored then it would give the woman more of a reason to leave. Gwaine took a sip from his ale, “Then the world is a cruel place indeed, your beauty outshines the women at court.” It was true, some of the women at court were really not worth his time. A lot of the ones that were, were either too stuck up for their own good or they were already taken. He had been ready to sample the little red headed beauty he’d heard so much about, until he’d realised she was engaged to one of his best friends. Gwaine had limits, surprisingly. His friends women were off limits, and while he would still jest with women like Gwen, he would never dream of laying a finger on them. He had to stay in Camelot now, and he’d rather not make enemies in his first few months here.

Now she was winking, what was it with this woman? She should either deny him or accept him, it was unfair to confuse him by taking the middle ground. As she got up to leave, Gwaine quickly grabbed her hand, but tried as tenderly as he could. Running his fingers over her knuckles he just smiled at her, “You are rather defensive, aren’t you my Lady?” He was going to continue to wind her up in this respect, “Please, do not condemn me to a night of solitude.”

The fact that Camelot was now Gwaine’s home was still a fairly new concept to him. He wasn’t quite sure what to think of the situation most of the time. Sometimes he felt like running away again, to the life he had once known and loved. But then the greater part of him wanted to stay here, with his friends, and to protect the citizens of Camelot. He didn’t have any particular loyalties to the kingdom, as such, but he was loyal to Arthur, and he would always have that loyalty. Gwaine never tried to make out like he was the same as the other Camelotian knights, he was from a different kingdom and a different background, and he wasn’t ashamed of that. Iwan for one kept turning his nose up at him, but Gwaine didn’t care about any of that; why should he? The only thing which had bothered Gwaine in his immediate move to Camelot had been whether he could find a good ale to drown out the pains and aches of another hard day of training. He had found a rather interesting establishment called The Rising Sun. He had become quite the local there over the past few months, and a favourite with most of the barmaids.

Pushing the door open, the landlord greeted him in his usual friendly manner. That was one thing which always struck Gwaine, the people of Camelot always seemed so happy. Even when they were under attack from this creature and that, or an army, or whatever, they still seemed to just get on with their business. Then again, Gwaine supposed if Camelot stopped everytime it were in a crisis then nothing would ever get done. Pressing his lips together, Gwaine set to work on the closest, prettiest barmaid he could set his sights on. She was blonde, and blushed every time he winked at her. Eventually he did prise a free ale out of her, and the promise of something else should he wish it. Feeling like he had already done quite well out of his evening, Gwaine looked around him for some other amusement.

It was then he spotted a young woman sat at the back of the tavern, she seemed lost in her thoughts poor thing. Gwaine smiled into his ale and strode confidently over to her. He hadn’t seen her at all, and that surprised him if she was of Camelotian birth, as her beauty really was astounding. She looked like she belonged up at the castle, feasting with royalty rather than at the bottom of the food chain, with the men who used ale to solve their problems. “Forgive me for interrupting your thoughts my Lady, but your beauty is so enchanting I am surprised not every man in the room has offered you proposals of affection.” Hmm, maybe that was a bit much, but oh well. He didn’t even know she was a lady, she probably wasn’t but there you go. Gwaine was known for being a charmer after all.

Gwaine was unnaturally cautious. He didn’t intend to stay in these woods for very long, mainly because there were more unfriendly faces here than he had encountered in his years of travelling. These weren’t the kind of men who would take your coin purse and then leave you with a few bruises. No, these were the brutal sort, who would drag you by your manhood through the forests to the nearest Lord if they thought it would bring them any worthy income. So far Gwaine had evaded all of the men, and he wasn’t proud of himself, but he wasn’t dead yet, so that was something. At the moment he was just stuck up a tree, his cloak wrapped around his shoulders and his hood drawn up. There was an eerie mist around the forest this morning, which was quite atmospheric. It meant he was hidden the further up he was up the tree, so he was safe for now. However, he was getting thirsty, so he would have to move eventually, and at any rate, he didn’t want to be in this forest forever, so he wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible and back into civilisation.

Casually, his hand tightened and relaxed against the hilt of his sword. He was sure he would be able to take any man who came at him, but this wasn’t the kind of fighting that he was used to, these men didn’t care, it was like they had no fear. Gwaine would be stupid if he ever said that he wasn’t afraid, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t handle it. He couldn’t say he had faced worse, but if he survived this then he would probably face worse. If he got out of this bloody forest the first thing he would be after would be an ale and a woman, preferably petite and brunette; yes, that would do nicely. No one would believe this tale, he bet. He felt a bit stupid, what with him being stuck up a tree, but he felt safe here, and that was a rare feeling in this setting.

Eventually, Gwaine heard footsteps coming in his direction, but he didn’t even flinch. Moving would mean he could be spotted, even by an untrained eye, so he just held his breath, and looked down at the figure through the mist and fog. He could see a cloaked figure, no doubt one of the savages that lived in this woods was out to get him, he wouldn’t be surprised if he’d been tracked. Gwaine had just climbed up this tree late last night, thinking it would give him some sort of protection. He prayed the figure would just go, but it seemed like whoever it was was just lingering there, and Gwaine breathed out slowly, and carefully. He was going to have to get rid of whoever it was, and quickly. Gwaine still hoped to get out of this wood alive.

Silently, he climbed down the tree, feeling a little weird as his feet finally hit the ground again. He didn’t make a sound, he’d got rather good at that when his life was threatened. He drew up to the person, who had his back to him. Typical really, they never saw it coming. Gwaine raised his sword to the persons back and poked it to them, “Don’t scream, just tell me, what is your business in this wood?” If he shouted or screamed then Gwaine knew what to do. He wouldn’t kill him, he’d just knock him out; even Gwaine wasn’t that heartless.

Gwaine clinked his tankard with Percival’s before proceeding to drink from it. The amount of female attention he was getting tonight really was disappointing, and he would be lying if he had said that he was incredibly pleased with how things were going at the moment. Everyone seemed to be ogling over the new slab of meat, and forgetting the regular which was very disheartening in a way. Gwaine would have to try again soon, when Percival wasn’t here, that would do wonders for Gwaine’s self esteem, then he would have all the women simply eating out of the palm of his hand. It was an amusing thought, and one that kept him going somewhat as he continued to drink.

It was clear that Percival was more versed in this game than he had let onto initially. Gwaine was almost impressed; almost. There was another woman here now who appeared to only have eyes for Percival. Gwaine pulled a slight face but quickly reprimanded himself, he wasn’t jealous, why would he be jealous? If he were jealous then he would show it, and he certainly wasn’t. Coughing slightly, he continued to drink, and laughed as the woman walked off, leaving Percival utterly bewildered, “I’m not sure, maybe she’s gone to get some air.” He winked at his friend but soon enough the woman was back with more ale. This night was turning out to be better than Gwaine had hoped for after all. He couldn’t ever refuse a free ale. “I’m sure she appreciates the shirt.” Gwaine snorted into his ale, and continued to drink.

Gwaine was going to protest, and insist that they stayed for at least another five pints, but he realised how tired he was as well. They had been on guard for hours after all, and they did have training tomorrow afternoon and Gwaine wanted to get some sleep to work off his hangover before he was expected to face his fellow brothers with a sword. He had been beaten black and blue more times than he could remember because he had been hungover. It never stopped him drinking of course, and it never would. “Fine, but don’t expect me to carry you up to the castle” Even if Gwaine wasn’t mostly drunk, he wouldn’t have had a cat in hells chance at being able to help his friend anywhere. Percival was much taller than he was, and Gwaine doubted he had the strength to drag him back to the castle if he got any drunker. Perhaps leaving now was a good idea. He could always sneak some ale from the kitchens if he was still itching for a drink in his chambers. Polishing off his drink, he turned to his fellow brother and stretched out slightly. “Shall we go then?” Before the barmaid made him a better offer.

Gwaine decided to leave the topic of the wedding to one side for a while, he suspected it would do nothing but hamper the mood for now. Anyway, he had a new task, of conveying Brynn to her home safely. He felt like it was his duty after all. He would speak to Brynn about her wedding when it was an actual event, and not just a little thing in both their imaginations. Gwaine supposed it wouldn’t be long, but still, he didn’t want to upset her anymore than he already had. He had obviously touched a sore spot with her earlier.

Gwaine couldn’t really remember being Gyrth’s age, it was before he had run away and he had vague memories of his family. He could remember his brothers, but his father was always a distant shade in his mind, sometimes he wondered how much of it was real, and how much of it was mere fiction in his mind. Maybe it was all fiction, maybe everything he had ever thought about his father was a lie. He had no idea in truth, and it wasn’t something he wanted to bring up now. Gwaine smiled down at Brynn, her brother had all the time in the world to decide what he wanted to do. For a boy so young it was probably unwise to put his eggs in one basket or so to speak. “Well whatever he chooses to do, as long as he is happy I am sure you, and your family will be proud of him.” He smiled at his friend, as he was sure his words were true. Wasn’t the most important thing to Gyrth anyway?

In truth, Gwaine knew very little about his friends wife, which was bad form for him. However, Gwaine hadn’t wanted to try any of his charm on her, mainly because he knew how much Griff had gone through to get to the point he was in now. He didn’t want to cause the man more problems. He had spoken to the woman of course, even if he hadn’t known she was from Mercia he would have known from her accent. “Yes, that’s her.” It was Catelyn wasn’t it? No, Caitrin? It was Caitrin, he was sure of it. Gwaine was never much use with names, and of course the Lady was beautiful, but he knew she was off limits. “She is incredibly different to you Brynn.” He mused, he had heard much gossip about the Lady Caitrin since his arrival, and he probably would have got on quite well in an intimate fashion if she weren’t married to one of his best friends. Even Gwaine had that much sense, “She had quite the reputation, but that was before she married of course.” He winked at Brynn, hoping she would catch his drift. He knew his friend was incredibly innocent, but she couldn’t be this naive surely? He found himself laughing at Brynn’s words, because Arthur would be less than impressed if he found out Gwaine’s actual motives to his wanting to visit Mercia. “Arthur would probably know my reasons before I even spoke.” He mused, as he supposed that Arthur was a man as well, and he probably knew of the Mercian’s reputation as well in that respect. He frowned slightly, in the past he’d never had to worry about offending anyone or having to ask someone if he could visit other kingdoms. He’d just gone and not cared about the consequences. Gwaine was getting an odd sense that Camelot was becoming his home, and though it was a good sensation, it was a daunting one as well.

Gwaine was still quite confused overall, if Elyan was going to drag him down here and bother him while he was trying to have a good time he was owed an explanation. He hoped this wouldn’t mean a premature end to their evening, but from the tone in Elyan’s voice, Gwaine quickly realised he might be underestimating the situation somewhat. He pressed his lips together, not sure how he should be reacting in this situation. He should probably be being more concerned than he actually was at the moment; that would be a start wouldn’t it? Gwaine’s eyes followed Elyan’s back to the man in question, he’d seen the man knocking around Camelot, though before now he’d never paid him much attention. Before now he’d never ha d a reason to give the man a second glance.

Again, Elyan was right, the man was the size of a monster. In a way, he was glad that it was Elyan in trouble with him and not him. Gwaine was hedging his bets that he could probably run away from the man though. He didn’t look that smart, or quick, so speed would probably be the way around him if it ever got that far. Hopefully it wouldn’t, but Gwaine could run, even with a belly through of ale. Gwaine listened to his friend, and far from feeling concerned, he felt more amused than anything. What was the point of being accused of having an affair with someone’s wife if he hadn’t actually done anything? That was just a waste of time in Gwaine’s opinion, “Was she beautiful?” he asked, missing the point of Elyan’s little rant completely. Gwaine had no idea that Elyan had been getting up to such antics, “Are you sure you didn’t do anything?” He winked at his friend, well aware that he wasn’t making the situation any better. He wouldn’t have guessed that Elyan would have got up to such antics, because situations like this were expected by Gwaine; not Elyan.