Gwen looked at the ring on her finger, still slightly amazed that it was there and that it was so delicate and unobtrusive. When Arthur had taken her hand across the table at Annis' Bed and Breakfast, told her that he couldn't imagine life without her and asked her to marry him, she had expected one of those huge, over-the-top pieces of jewellery the royal family seemed to prefer. She much preferred the one Arthur picked out.

"Are you ready?" Arthur walked into the bedroom, fussing with his cuffs. Over the past few months, she'd seen him in his formal tuxedo so many times, yet it never failed to take her by surprise just how handsome he was. He looked up, his eye gleaming with appreciation. "You look gorgeous. How about we just skip the party altogether?"

With a smile, Gwen slipped her arm through his. "It's probably bad form to miss your own engagement party."

Arthur groaned. "At least I get to show everyone who my wonderful wife-to-be is."

"The Vine leaked the news of our engagement weeks ago. No one is going to be surprised."

"They'll be surprised to see you in a dress," he laughed then deftly dodged her kick, before kissing her. "Come on. We need to get there before my dad. It's protocol."

She'd walked with Arthur to the ballroom many times before, accompanying him to the many parties he had to attend, but this time, she was nervous. Her fingers dug into Arthur's arm as she tried to keep her breathing steady.

"Hey," said Arthur just as they approached the door to the ballroom, turning to face her. "I love you. Thank you for doing this."

The doors opened and Gwen saw the huge crowd gathered to see them. She gripped Arthur's arm. Then she noticed Elena and Vivian waving frantically, Vivian bouncing up and down. Next to them stood Elyan and Mithian, both with huge smiles on their faces. She smiled at them as Arthur led her into the room.

Several hours later, the whole group of them were ensconced in Arthur's living room. Arthur, Merlin, Morgana and Elyan were hanging around the bar, drinking and laughing, while she sat with her friends at the sofa, surrounded by piles and piles of gifts.

"So, which of the many palaces is the king giving you two? And when are you moving?"

Gwen closed her eyes and leaned back into the sofa. Her uncomfortable heels were kicked off and she tucked her feet under her. "Who knows? Arthur will deal with the move. It's not like he has anything else to do."

"I heard that!" Breaking away from Merlin and Elyan, Arthur walked over to Gwen and kissed the top of her head. "Don't believe a word she says about me not working. I work very hard looking after her."

Gwen tilted her head up to smile at Arthur. "That, I can't argue with."

"And parties are hard work too," he said as he walked back to the bar.

"Is he still working with Albion Hearts?" asked Mithian.

"He does, on and off. He's their patron." Gwen smiled. "Don't worry about us. He's not hugely ambitious but that's probably hard to be when you're prince. I'm fine with it now."

When they first started dating, Gwen pushed him to do more with his life and it was one of the various things that led to heated quarrels, Arthur convinced that she didn't think he was good enough and Gwen upset that he was so laidback. It took time, but Gwen learned to accept that her prince would never be the driven, ambitious kind of man she once thought she would marry. She still loved him so much, it was bordering on ridiculous.

"There's a lot to be said for having a house husband. Plus he does have his official duties to do," said Gwen.

"I want a house husband too," said Elena, her cheeks pink from all the wine she'd downed.

Vivian gave her a light shove. "That's not happening. You're stuck with me."

Elena curled her arms around Vivian. "That's alright. I like you."

"Are Merlin and Morgana together?" asked Mithian.

"If you ask him in front of Arthur, he'd say yes. But he's not exactly interested in a relationship with anyone. He just does it to annoy Arthur, who is very amusing when he's annoyed. Don't tell him I told you," said Gwen as her eyes drifted to Arthur, who was scowling at Merlin.

Mithian smiled as she put her glass of wine down. "I'm just glad you're happy and that you're still working."

"Me too," said Gwen. "It's been pretty good."

It was the wee hours of the morning when everyone left the palace, and Gwen was already half asleep on her aching feet.

"That wasn't too bad," said Arthur as he pulled off his shirt. "My dad behaved. He even praised you in his speech and no one got embarrassingly drunk."

"Hmmm," said Gwen as she crawled into the bed, pulling the quilt over her. She buried her face in the pillow and closed her eyes. Arthur prodded at her and she opened her eyes. "Go away."

"You can't sleep in that dress."

"Watch me," she muttered and closed her eyes again.

Arthur tugged at her dress. "Come on. Let's take off your dress. You'll regret it if you don't."

"No."

For the next few minutes, Gwen felt Arthur tug and push her, eventually removing the dress from her. Then his fingers worked on her hair, loosening the fancy bun.

"Make up?" he asked, his lips brushing her ear.

She pushed him away, then felt him laugh against her. His arms came around her and she was tucked into his embrace.

She dreamt of many things, most of them she couldn't remember the next morning. But she remembered dreaming of Arthur, of the cat she was planning to get, her brother and friends and her business. And it was all perfect.

~ fin ~

AN: Thanks for reading all the way through!