Arthur stood on his balcony, a glass of his favourite Glenmorangie in one hand, looking out over the river. The lights of London gleamed dazzlingly bright before him, reflected in the Cimmerian depths of the Thames below him.

It had been a long day. His father had been even more detached than usual, remaining in his office for the entire working day and only barking orders down the telephone to those most essential to the running of Camelot PLC. Not that Arthur could blame him. For today was the eleventh of October, Morgana's birthday.

And then, after his late finish to an unpleasant day in the office, his girlfriend Gwen called him wanting to know if he'd go out for dinner with her. She'd sounded hurt when he refused, but Arthur really couldn't bring himself to care at that moment in time. He just wanted some peace and quiet that evening, away from prying eyes and awkward conversation.

Glancing at the luminous skyscrapers of Canary Wharf, Arthur wondered where Morgana was. For a second, he had an urge to whisper her name on to the wind, just to see if it gave him any indication of her whereabouts, or even just made him feel better. But he didn't. He was Arthur Pendragon, and he didn't indulge in childish fantasies.

Morgana had been gone for almost a year now. The day she left, Arthur had gone down to breakfast to find a letter on the table, propped up between a glass of orange juice and a bowl of crunchy nut cereal. The stark white envelope had his name on it in her thin, slanting handwriting. That was the last he had heard from her.

He had read that letter so many times that the words were engraved in his mind.

Dear Arthur, [It read]

I'm sorry to leave so suddenly, but I have to get out of London and I knew you'd try to change my mind if I told you about it.

Your father and I haven't seen eye to eye for a long time, and Morgause has offered me to stay with her for as long as I want. I won't tell you where, because Uther will most certainly ask you, and I don't want to put you in a position where you have to choose between us.

Don't blame yourself; I know what you're like.

Love, Morgana.

P.S. Give Merlin a promotion, God knows he deserves one.

Arthur sighed heavily, before draining the last of his whisky and heading inside, pulling the sliding door shut behind him. It was getting cold, anyway.

He settled himself down on the settee in the lounge and flicked between channels on the television before finally deciding to get out one of the old VHS tapes of Star Wars that he kept tucked away behind the DVDs and blu-ray disks stacked precariously under the TV stand.

Personally, he preferred the space battle scenes where he could watch the fighter planes shoot lasers at each other whilst shooting around at ridiculous speeds, but Morgana had always loved the Ewoks, so he plumped for Return of the Jedi. It was her birthday, after all.

He had just reached the scene where Paploo steals one of the Empire's speeder bikes when there was a knock at the door. Frowning, he glanced at his watch. The luminous display read 11:21. Who on Earth would be knocking on his door this time of the night?

His question was soon answered, however, as he pulled open the door.

"Hello Arthur," said a familiar voice.

"Morgana?" Arthur gaped in awe as he took in the woman standing on his doorstep. She was thinner than he remembered her, her dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, and dressed casually in a pair of blue jeans, brown leather boots and a long-sleeved grey top with a pattern Arthur couldn't quite make out in the dim light. But what his eyes were drawn to first was the bundle of blue blankets in her arms.

"What's that?" He demanded irritably, though he already had a pretty good idea.

"That," Morgana retorted scathingly, affronted by his disparaging words, "is my son."

Arthur's throat suddenly constricted with anger, and his hands curled subconsciously into fists at his sides. A baby? But that meant that someone had... How dare they? How dare anyone touch Morgana?!

'Anyone but you,' a little voice in his head prodded maliciously.

Morgana looked down at the bundle nestled carefully in her arms, and her voice suddenly softened as she corrected herself, "My son, and yours."

She looked at him, then, her jade eyes meeting his sapphire ones, just for a second, before he looked away.

If Arthur was surprised before, he was dumbfounded now. He had a son? It was true; he and Morgana had spent a night together, at least a year ago now, but he'd never thought that she would...

Suddenly all the pieces clicked into place.

"That's why you left!" He accused angrily, and Morgana could see fire blazing in his eyes. God she had missed him.

"I didn't want to." She replied. "But I knew if I had stayed Uther would have tried to make me have an abortion, and I couldn't bear that."

Arthur sighed, all his anger leaving him in a second. She was right; his father would have detested the idea of Morgana having a child so young.

"Do you want to come in?" He asked, realising that this conversation was a little inappropriate for the doorstep of his apartment, but not sure if she would accept his invitation.

She nodded, however, and followed him inside.

Once Morgana was installed comfortably on the settee, Arthur went off to make tea. He didn't know why, perhaps it was something to do with being brought up by a very traditional English father, but making tea seemed like the right thing to do, even though it was almost midnight. If nothing else, going through the familiar motions would allow him to bring some form of casual normality to what had been an extraordinary evening.

Morgana allowed her eyes to wander lazily around the room. It was spacious and modern, which was a change from Morgause's small semi-detached house in the countryside. It had been so long since she was there last that she had almost forgotten what Arthur's apartment looked like.

She was sure the decoration had changed, though. He had repainted the walls, and the photographs that used to sit in frames on the fireplace were gone, as were the hundreds of magnets that used to cling to the freezer door.

Anything that could connect to her, she realised sadly. The photos had mainly been of the two of them, sometimes Uther as well, on holidays in France or Italy, or messing around with Gwen and Merlin when the four of them were at school together.

The magnets had been reminders, too, of those holidays; she had bought him one in every place they went to: Paris, New York, Venice, and all the little old towns and villages that were always Morgana's favourite.

Arthur came back in, and placed two cups of steaming tea on the coffee table, before sitting down on the other sofa at a right angle to the one Morgana was on. He followed her gaze down to their son's face. "May I hold him?" Arthur asked hesitantly.

Morgana smiled, relieved. She had been worried that Arthur would have refused to accept the child as his own, but it looked like he was willing to give fatherhood a try, if nothing else. She carefully placed the baby in Arthur's arms, and watched affectionately as her son reached up to grab his father's outstretched finger, curling his tiny hand around it tightly.

Arthur smiled at his son. He already had thick blonde curls that reminded him of pictures of himself as a child, but his eyes were Morgana's, a mix of green and blue and gold.

"Hello, baby," Arthur cooed, and Morgana felt her heart swell suddenly at the warmth in his voice.

"What did you call him?" He asked, tearing his gaze from the baby to look at Morgana.

"Edward," Morgana replied.

"You remembered?" Arthur was surprised Morgana hadn't forgotten the games they used to play when they were children.

"Of course."

"Edward Pendragon." Arthur tested the name.

"Edward Arthur Pendragon." Morgana corrected.

Arthur suddenly felt very proud. Morgana had named their child after him.

As stunned as he was by Edward, Arthur soon found his gaze slipping back to Morgana. His mind was awash with questions, but amidst his confusion, he held a tiny spark of hope. Maybe things could go back to the way they used to be. There was no doubt that he still loved Morgana. He had realised that after she left. After it was too late. And it had broken his heart.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my new story. Although I haven't finished it yet, I have the next few chapters written, and plus I am on summer holidays :D so update times shouldn't be too bad (theoretically). Please review, I really value opinions!