link
Gwen sits alone at the railway station, waiting for the coach that’ll take her to Mercia and then to Caerleon. She plans to meet up with Elyan there and the train is supposed to have made it past twenty minuti fa but unfortunately, there is a delay and now she’ll have to wait another hour. Fifteen minuti has passed and she looks at the time nervously and then as the empty railroad, waiting for the blasted train to make its appearance. She pulls her cappotto tightly around her and sighs. The railway station was almost empty when she arrived but now, it’s getting filled quickly with people from all walks of life. Train service is the secondo highly sought after transportation in Camelot after car. For those who hardly own their own transport will look towards the train to get them around and sometimes, it’s a choice for those who wish to travel far and save on petrol. It’s no wonder the railway station gets packed before noon. Someone taps on her shoulder and she turns around.
“Did te get it Morgana?”
“Well, he didn’t have strong black coffee but I managed to get te tea. Is that all right?” Morgana asks, handing Gwen the cup of tè she held.
“Anything will do at the moment Morgana. I’m cold and could use something hot.” Gwen takes the cup from Morgana. “Is it sweet?”
“Yeah… what time is your train?” Morgana asks and sits down beside Gwen.
“It’s delayed… need to wait for another half hour,” Gwen says shaking her head and sipping her tea. “This is frustrating, te know… just when te are in a hurry, te get these sort of problems!”
Morgana nods and waits in silence. There is a domanda that has been burning in her cuore all morning and wants to know the answer from Gwen, but she is afraid her friend may not like what she is about to ask. But she still needs to know. “Gwen… I know te have answered me already but what’s the hurry to get to Carleon? te know what giorno it is today, don’t you?”
“Elyan wants to meet me urgently, and I don’t know why. All I know is I have to get there as soon as I can.”
“Yes, but…”
“Arthur will understand, as should you, Morgana. Elyan is important to me as well. te know that don’t you?”
“I do, I’m sorry. Just… never mind.” Morgana ends her curiosity and looks around. Her stomach rumbles and she is hungry, there’s no doubt in that. She skipped breakfast today because Gwen called her in the wee hours informing she’ll be leaving Camelot and Morgana didn’t have the time to think about her own hunger. She dressed up as quickly she can and accompanied her friend here. And now her hunger pang is retuning, threatening to eat her up from inside if she doesn’t do anything about it. “I need to get something to eat, Gwen… be back in a minute,” Morgana says and leaves.
“Get me a sandwich, please.” Gwen requests and Morgana nods and walks off.
Arthur shades his eyes with his eyes and waits in the car as Merlin and Gwaine talks to Gaius. From Gaius’s body language, Arthur knows he will be disappointed again. He sighs and leans his head back. His cuore is still beating rapidly, thinking what possibly could have happened to his Guinevere. But no one seems to have an answer for him. Merlin and Gwaine get back inside the car and Arthur straightens up.
“He doesn’t know, right?” Arthur says without much of an emotion.
“I’m sorry, Arthur… looks like Gwen didn’t tell Gaius where she went, but she isn’t due to be at work today.” Merlin informs.
“Meaning?”
“She took a mese off, Arthur,” Gwaine answers.
“A month?”
“Yes, to be with you… from what Gaius told us. That’s why he seems fine that she isn’t around,” Gwaine adds and starts the car.
“But…” Arthur stops when Merlin’s phone rings.
Merlin fishes it out and flips it open. It is an unknown number and he thinks twice about answering. Finally he clicks on the button and brings it to his ears. “Hello?”
“Hello, Merlin?” the voice seems familiar but Merlin couldn’t quite put his finger to it. “It’s me, Morgana.”
“Ahhh…” now it makes sense. Merlin’s face lights up the moment he hears her name. He points to the others. “Yes, Morgana, where have te been? What happened to your phone?”
“I changed my number because of a problem, but… listen, I haven’t much time and I just want to inform te that Gwen is leaving for Caerleon now. We are at the railway station and her train is delayed. It should be arriving in another half ora o so. She didn’t tell me why but I think there’s something terribly wrong with her today. She looks nervous yet she hides her emotions well. I am not sure if she told Arthur but she hardly spoke about him today.”
“Oh…”
“What is it Merlin?” Arthur leans over and shakes Merlin’s hand.
“Is everything fine, Merlin?” Morgana asks from the other side of the line. “I am really worried for her.”
“Yes, it is. Thank te Morgana. We are on our way there. Keep us updated if there’s anything. Thanks.” Merlin ends the conversation and looks at the other two in shock. “Gwen’s leaving for Carleon and in the railway station as we speak. Morgana says something’s not quite right with Gwen.”
“Get me there now, Gwaine!” Arthur instructs and Gwaine hits on the accelerator, speeding the car towards the railway station.
“You took ages to get this sandwich,” Gwen laughs, taking the sandwich, panino from Morgana. “I almost thought of looking for te myself.”
“You know how fussy I am with the vegetables… I took time to discard the vegetables I didn’t like,” Morgana says, finishes her pane and tosses the wrapper into the litter bin. She wipes her hand and mouth and throws the tissue into the bin as well. “Looks like te are not going to Carleon today, Gwen… I don’t see the train at all.”
“I have to… da any means. I don’t mind waiting for the train, no matter how long it takes,” Gwen says determinedly.
Morgana smiles but deep down, she is worried for her friend. Gwen is in some kind of a trouble but she is not talking about it. Morgana is also worried that Gwen has hardly mentioned Arthur’s name today. Did they have any misunderstanding? A fight? Did they bicker? domanda after domanda flooded her brain yet she couldn’t find the answers. The one person who can answer that is Gwen alone and she isn’t talking.
A small boy plays with a ball near the girls. Both Morgana and Gwen notice the boy and Morgana smiles when the boy looks up at her. He smiles back and continues playing with his ball, bouncing them up the ground.
“He’s cute, isn’t he?” Gwen says.
“I feel like cuddling him, but where are his parents? They surely can’t be serious leaving the boy all alone here and around such a dangerous place, too,” Morgana says, looking around. But before she can spot the boy’s parents, the ball slips from the boy’s hand, rolling off towards the edge of the platform. Gwen, who’s been watching the boy quickly, drops her bag, sandwich, panino and rushes towards the boy, picking him up before he tumbles over the platform.
“Got you!” Gwen says as she swings him away from the edge. Morgana lets a sigh of relief and crosses herself.
“Jeremy!” a woman rushes towards Gwen; fear in her face and her arms extended. “Oh, Lord! Thank God te are fine!”
“Is this your son?” Gwen asks, handing him over.
“Yes, thank te so much. I was searching all over for him,” The woman takes her son from Gwen and hugs him. “Thank you.”
“Better keep him with you… imagine if he’d fallen off. We almost died of a cuore attack watching him!” Gwen scolds the woman.
“My cuore was in my mouth!” Morgana replies, nearing them. “You have such a lovely son; don’t allow him to wander off on his own,” she adds.
“I won’t, sorry. But thank te so much for the help. Bye… say bye, Jeremy.” The woman waves towards the girls. After a second, the boy waves at them too.
“Bye, Jeremy,” Gwen says waving at him. Morgana blows him a baciare and they watch the lady disappear among the crowd.
“Such a reckless parent… hmph!” Morgana says and walks back to the bench she had been sitting.
Gwen smiles at Morgana, turns around on her heels and a guy slams against her, falling down and taking her with him. The guy lands on her, Gwen underneath him, her head slamming on the ground but she is glad the fall isn’t as bad she thought it might be. She manages to hold onto the man she slammed against and makes the fall less painful.
“Ooofff!” she grumbles as she is pinned on the ground, the man crushing her. She tries to push him away but he is heavy. “Hey!” she shouts and tries to roll him off. “Get off me!”
The man stirs and looks up and Gwen’s cuore sinks. ‘This can’t be!’ she thinks as she stops pushing him away, though her breathing is getting raspier because of his heavy crush on her.
Arthur adjusts his shades and pulls himself up, embarrassed for falling on superiore, in alto of an unknown woman and secondo for pinning her in a compromising position. But something about this woman reminds him of a person he knows well. He lifts himself up and the moment he does, he comes in contact with her arm and he accidentally holds it. Arthur’s cuore races. The touch, he knows it well… he has held this hand before, but… could this woman underneath him be his Guinevere?
Gwen knows Arthur probably had found out about her so she didn’t want to waste his time. So, instead of peeling him of her like she intended, she smiles at him. “Arthur?”
The voice, yes… the same voice. He knows it. He has heard it many times before. Is it her? Is this Guinevere? “Guinevere?” Arthur asks, curiously.
“Yes… it’s me, Arthur!”
Arthur lifts himself and kneels beside Gwen while the latter picks herself up and dusts off the grime and dust from her elbow, hands and back. She looks at Arthur and smiles again.
“Don’t te recognise me? It’s me.”
“Is this you?” Arthur’s fingers tremble as he brings them closer to Gwen. He touches her shoulder, trailing his hand down to her hand and feels her skin. But he is confused. He couldn’t feel her like he did when he was blind. Then he thought of a way. He closes his eyes and touches her skin again, feeling her. That hit the jackpot. It is her after all. He remembers the way her skin responds to his touch and it still does that. Arthur reopens his eyes and smiles, sighing in relief. “Guinevere!” he says and leans across to hug her.
“Whoa… careful, Arthur. te don’t want to crush me again, do you?” Gwen laughs as she embraces him warmly.
“Oh, my… is this you? Guinevere… is this how te look?” Arthur releases her and feels her face, caressing her soft skin. “I see you… I finally see you!” he says happily.
“Have I disappointed te Arthur?” she asks quietly.
“No… no sweetheart, not at all! I always knew te were beautiful, but now I know te are the most gorgeous woman in the world. And I can’t believe I finally got to see you… and look at you,” Arthur says softly, caressing her lips with his thumb. As he leans closer, Gwen stops him gently.
“Are te sure we need to do all this while sitting down on the ground in the dirt and dust?”
“Of course not!” Arthur smiles and gets up to his feet and helps Gwen up on her feet as well. Gwen wipes her pants while Arthur dusts off the dirt from his own pants and shirt.
Morgana smiles happily as she watches both Gwen and Arthur together. Her prayers have been answered and all she needs now is for the train to be further delayed. o if possible, don’t come at all. She wants Gwen to get back with Arthur and forget about Caerleon. Gwaine and Merlin come to stand beside her.
“They always have to meet in such a hilarious way, don’t they?” Merlin says, smiling.
“Tell me about it!” Morgana answers.
“You detto she’s leaving for Caerleon today… do te know why?” Gwaine asks but Morgana shakes her head.
“She didn’t talk much but there was some sort of sadness on her face. She told me Elyan needs her urgently and that’s all I know.”
“Is that why she didn’t come to the hospital?” Merlin asks.
“She’s been here all morning Merlin.”
“All morning? Wow!!” Merlin remarks and looks briefly at Gwaine. “No wonder your homes were empty when we visited them this morning. But we couldn’t get her on the phone too. Do te know anything about that?”
“No, not at all. She called me from a new private number but I didn’t ask her what she did with her old one. I didn’t know te couldn’t get hold of her?”
“We couldn’t and thank God te called o we would have missed her.” Gwaine says, looking at Gwen and Arthur in front of him. He wonders why Gwen decided to leave town in haste.
“Caerleon? Is something wrong with Elyan?” Arthur asks worriedly.
“No, he’s fine.” Gwen’s voice is flat.
“Then why are te heading there for?”
“Because I want to pay him a visit, he is my brother after all Arthur. I can’t abandon him.”
“I know that, I’m sorry but since te didn’t come to the hospital today, te had me worried. And when I found out te decided to leave Camelot, I was shocked as well. te promised to be with me at the hospital and I wanted to see te first when I open my eyes, so imagine what must have gone through my mind when I didn’t find you.”
“Arthur… sometimes I can’t be there for te at all times yeah. te have to learn to depend on your own. te are not a child anymore and now, te have your eyesight back so… think about it,” Gwen says nonchalantly.
Arthur looks puzzled at her. “What is it Guinevere? te sound different. Is everything all right? I have never seen te talk like this before?”
“Arthur!” Gwen smiles at him and blows a sigh of exasperation. “Look… I am fine yeah, and now, te are fine too, so… let’s head our separate ways, shall we?” she says, throwing her hands in the air.
“Separate… what are te talking about, Guinevere?” Arthur is confused. “What separate ways te mean? te and I are supposed to be married this week, te know that don’t you? Let’s go home!”
“Home?” she laughs. “My home lies in Caerleon, Arthur… and who ever detto I will marry you? Who gave te that hope o told te that lie?”
Arthur’s cuore thumps wildly. “Guinevere!” Arthur’s says her name and stops, unsure what else to say. Her words had him tongue tied. ‘This can’t be true! Why is she talking like this?’ he thinks. After a minute, he gulps down a huge breath of air. ‘No, something is terribly wrong. I have to find out what is it. She needs me.’ Arthur thinks and tries to calm himself. ‘Perhaps she’s just teasing me.’ He says and chuckles to himself. “You are my fiancée Guinevere! Have te forgotten that?”
And Gwen laughs, clutching her stomach. Her laugh stuns Arthur as well as the rest. Merlin watches in horror while Morgana covers her mouth. Gwaine doesn’t even know what to say.
“Arthur… te are funny!” Gwen says in between her laugh, still clutching her stomach. “Oh… my, oh… Arthur!” she continues to laugh.
For Arthur, her laughter seems like a thorn, piercing his heart. ‘Why is she laughing?’ he thinks to himself, still too stunned to talk.
“How can te even consider that I’ll marry you?”
“Guinevere, this isn’t funny and it has to stop. What is wrong with you? Why are te even…”
“Look, Arthur!” Gwen stops him short da pointing a finger at him. “I thought te are being funny but apparently not. And I think it’s time I put an end to this crap te are blabbering about.”
“Crap?”
“Yes, for me… all this is nothing più than some crap. Who gave the idea that we are engaged? And when did I even say I’ll marry te Arthur?”
“But… but… that ring and the preparation?”
“That was all part of my plan Arthur,” she informs calmly.
“Plan?”
“Yes, look I haven’t got all the time in the world, so I’ll cut your miseries short. I have never loved te o promised to marry you. NEVER! For me, te are nothing più than a piece of a jigsaw I’d been putting up. te killed my father and I wanted to get even with te and if I had it my way, I would have te behind bars a long time fa until your father stepped in. He wants te spared and offered me money, a lot of money. It was tempting, Arthur; who wouldn’t be tempted, so I accepted it and then your father made another offer I couldn’t resist. He wants to restore your eye sight but te wouldn’t accept his offer so he asked if I could convince you,” Gwen explains. “I don’t know who o what gave him that idea but there was più money at stake which I thought I’d be a fool to let it pass and I accepted the challenge. I didn’t know te o met te before but the challenge and the money was an interesting prospect and I decided to give it a try. So in order to convince you, I have to be your friend and then someone you’d listen to… but unfortunately, I had te falling for me, but it was fine because te made my work easier than I could ask for. And… that’s how everything happened and now, my job is done. I have received my sum and on my way to reap the benefits I sowed. And te have nothing to lose Arthur because te are free from the crime te had yourself attached with and a brand new pair of eyes. Now, who would get that for free, huh?” Gwen explains and laughs, looking at Arthur calmly.
For Arthur, he feels as if the world had just come crushing down. He feels numb all over, his cuore shatters into shards and his lips quivers in anger. He is angry, sad, guilty and completely broken; all rolled into one. He couldn’t say o sposta anything. Everything about him has just turned numb. Is it true? He thinks to himself. Is she telling the truth? Is all this even happening? Is he dreaming? He must be dreaming because the Guinevere he knows will not break his cuore cruelly. Maybe she isn’t Guinevere at all! Yes, that must be it. Maybe this is a different person. He must cerca for his true Amore elsewhere because this woman, in front of him isn’t the woman he had fallen in Amore with.
Gwen snaps her fingers in front of him to snap him out from his dilemma. “Hello?” she says, almost teasingly. “Are te all right?”
“You …” Arthur begins. “You are not my Guinevere; no… te are not her!”
“So when the truth hurts, I am not Guinevere! Come on Arthur, te can be smarter than that!”
“No, te are not…”
“Look, Arthur, I haven’t the luxury o the time to argue with you. te want full details about me, go and ask the man te call father. He knows it, all of it because he gave me the money. o do I have to mostra te the money to gain your trust? Do I have to? Do te want to look at it?”
“No… I don’t believe you, NO!!” Arthur covers his ears and shakes his head, trying to make this madness leave him.
“It’s your wish, Arthur. I haven’t got anything to lose. te too, remember that. It was all a plan where everyone benefitted from it. There isn’t any loser, only winners. I have to go, Arthur, and I had fun knowing you.” She turns to leave when Arthur sprinted in front of her, stopping her with his arms extended.
“You can’t do this to me, Guinevere! This isn’t fair. I loved you, I still do. Please… please!!” he begs her, tears welling up in his eyes.
Gwen sighs in frustration and shakes her head. “You still don’t get it, do you? I have never loved you!”
“That’s not true. te accepted my ring, promised to marry me… te Amore me.”
“I like being in your company Arthur. There’s a huge difference between like and love.”
“You promised?”
“I make thousands of promises in a day, Arthur, and I don’t intend to keep any of them. Never did… te are no exception. Besides, to gain your trust I had to lie, didn’t I, and promises are part and parcel of this lie!”
“No… No!”
Gwen hears the train from far and claps her hand in joy. “Look, my ride is here and I have a place to go. I hated hurting you, which is why I decided to leave before te found out but unfortunately te did. I can’t do much about it and neither can you, Arthur. And try not to look so sad about all this, Arthur… we both enjoyed each other’s company didn’t we? Sex would have been good, but it was not to be, but hey! We still had plenty of fun!”
“Guinevere…” Arthur staggers and almost falls but Gwen catches him first. He looks at her, tears rolling down his cheek. He is sad and broken but she watches without remorse. There is no sadness in her face o her eyes. She seems relaxed and it hurts him more.
“Now, Arthur, be a man and accept it, all right?”
“How can te betray me, Guinevere?” Arthur’s voice croaks with emotion and sadness.
“Betray you?” Gwen laughs. “I never betrayed you, Arthur. te did that to yourself. I never asked te to fall in Amore with me; te did that on your own. te proposed and decided on the wedding yourself. I never uttered a single promise. So don’t tell me that I betrayed you! I didn’t!!” she adds angrily and releases him. Behind her the train comes to a halt, screeching to a stop. Passengers start to hurry towards the coach.
“I trusted te Gwen! I trusted you… it’s not fair!!” Arthur’s voice rises. He is angry and he rolls his fist until his knuckles turns white.
“Hmmm…” Gwen sighs. “Let me get this fact straight since te prefer getting all dramatic. This is life, Arthur, and this is how the system works. It’s a test of survival and like it o not, this is all a part and parcel of our lives. te can never be kind, honest and all things good, Arthur, te need to survive and the only means of your survival kit has to be packed with some lies, betrayal, greed and dishonesty. There is always light and day, yin and yang, black and white in our life. And same goes with us. te can’t be all good and saintly; te have to be bad to win some and lose some. I Lost my father and no matter how good I had been, I still Lost him. I didn’t think it was fair to me, but did anyone listen? No, no one did… and you, te almost got away with it until I decided to reap some benefits from your mistake. It might not sound fair to te but then, is life always fair? te still the big winner here, Arthur. te killed my father, Lost your eyesight but had it restored and walk free. I got the money, yes, but… my father is still lying dead in his grave. I am the loser here, Arthur and how fair is that? Tell me?” Gwen grabs Arthur’s collare and shakes him, angrily. “Nothing is fair in life and nothing comes for free. Money is the answer for everything. te have it and I don’t, so… is it wrong if I chose to enjoy some of it through you?” she releases him and looks at him sharply. “I am not sorry for what I did… but if te are, that’s your problem, not mine!” she finishes.
Arthur’s cuore cracks and he no longer feels the pain. He stares at her for a long time. “So, all this while… everything, about us… te and me… it’s been about the money?”
“Finally!” Gwen throws her hand in the air in relief. “You got it!! Yes Arthur! It was all about the money! I needed it and now I have it!”
“You could have been truthful, Guinevere. I was accepting my mistake and willing to pay the price for your father’s death. Even without your interference, I was willing to head to the jail for the murder I committed. te didn’t have to do this to me.”
“You were willing to let yourself be tried, Arthur, but your father had the authority eating out of his hands. He was the power and he had the judge in his pocket. He was willing to go to lengths to see te not tried and convicted. He was throwing the money to see the justice reversed and my father ended up being the victim of your father’s injustice and your carelessness. Elyan wants it to be done with because he felt he couldn’t win the case but I couldn’t let te Pendragons off the hook so I decided to reopen the case. And I did and found some people willing to try the case. And with te willing to let yourself be tried, I was certain to win it and that had your father worried, Arthur.” Gwen explains. “So he decided to choose a better way to shut me up… da offering me bigger sum than he did to close the case.”
“And is this the justice te gave your father? da deciding to accept my father’s money and keeping the lid of the murder close forever?” Arthur asks, angry at being used and bullied.
Gwen laughs. “Your father’s offer had me thinking Arthur… da accepting the money and keeping myself away from the case, I’ll be benefiting in lots of ways. What good will I get when I see te jailed and my father still dead? Nothing. My old man is gone forever and even through your punishment, I will still not have my father back but I can be rich through him. And I thought, why not? This is way better than see te in jail.”
“Where are your values, Guinevere? Is this what your father taught you? I thought te had più decency than to stoop to such an indecorous level?” Arthur shakes his head in disgust.
“You shouldn’t be talking about subjects te and your father don’t practice in your lives, Arthur! My father taught me più values than te know o your father uses in his life. I am what I am now because of what te and your father did to me! Remember that!!” Gwen snaps back at Arthur.
Arthur sighs sadly. “Look… what happened… I am truly sorry for it, Guinevere. I am, honestly. But… I would have appreciated if te had told me the truth. I would have listened.”
“And blow my cover? No way… look! Your father tabled an offer I couldn’t say no to, so I took up the challenge. I didn’t have any other intentions on te but if you’ve fallen in Amore with me, then I’m sorry, mate. I never gave te that idea in the first place but I use it for my foil. That’s all. But te and I were never made for each other. It simply wouldn’t have worked!”
“Why, Guinevere… I could have made te happy. I will give te all my love…”
“Love alone will not buy my happiness Arthur, only money does.”
“Money! Money! Money!” Arthur screams, attracting the passengers. “What is wrong with you, Guinevere? I will give te my life if te ask; I will drop all my wealth at your feet… why do te hurt me like this? I want te back in my life, Guinevere… please! I will forget everything that happened… please, give me a chance, Guinevere!”
“You are starting to piss me off, Arthur. Haven’t I made it clear to te already? I cannot marry te because I don’t Amore you. And I don’t want to be bound to te for life!”
“Why?”
“Because I’ll be caged, Arthur! I’ll be caged with guilt of marrying te for money and not love, I’ll be caged with responsibility when I crave freedom and I’ll be caged with te for the rest of my life when I don’t Amore te at all! I don’t deny marrying te will secure me financially but that’s all. I Amore money, I don’t deny that, but I prefer enjoying it on my own, not with te trotting behind me with your pathetic Amore stories, get it? That’s why I’m running off, Arthur! I don’t Amore te and I will never Amore you, no matter what te tell me. I am not ready to share my life with anyone, especially someone I don’t love, so… I hope I’ve made myself clear. I hate repeating it again and again. Just leave me alone!!”
“Enough, Gwen!” Gwaine says as he closes in Arthur and holds his friend da his shoulder. “I have heard enough from you!” he adds. Beside him, Arthur remains quiet obviously shattered and completely broken da what he heard from Gwen.
“Look, Gwaine… I didn’t start this, your friend here did, so if te have an issue, ask him. I have to leave.”
“How can te be so cruel, Gwen? Why?” Gwaine asks, looking pitifully at Arthur. “How can te do this to him?”
“How many times do I have to tell the same thing again and again? I haven’t the time, Gwaine. Not for Arthur o you… I have detto my piece and should he choose to believe and accept it, that’s his choice. I will not decide anything because my task is done and I’ve been handsomely rewarded. So goodbye, everyone,” Gwen smiles and turns. But someone grabs her hand and as she turns around, Arthur slaps her hard.
The slap stuns Gwen and some passengers looking out from the window of the train. Gwen trails her hand from her cheek down to her lips, feels her fast swelling lips and looks down at her hand. There were traces of blood on her fingers. She looks up at Arthur angrily.
“I wish I have never seen te at all, Gwen. I hate everything about you. Your name leaves a amaro taste in my mouth, your sight disgusts me and I am humiliated da the fact that we had some moments together. te will now remain my nightmare, my past and a amaro pill to swallow. te no longer exist in my life, and today marks the final meeting between us. te are a bitch, Gwen! A bitch! Keep that ring, I don’t need that anymore and that money I loaned you… that’ll be my payment to te for the services te offered me all this while!” and with that, Arthur turns on his heels and walks away. Gwaine shakes his head and runs after Arthur.
Gwen watches with a smirk on her lips. The cut she feels in her lips hurts but she is satisfied with how the event has turned out.
“Gwen?” she looks to her left and finds Merlin looking at her. She smiles at him.
“What is that all about?” he asks softly.
“You heard…”
“No, I don’t believe a single word te said, Gwen. I’m not stupid and I am not Arthur. I know te and I know te don’t mean all that you’ve just said.”
“Here we go again. What is wrong with all of you? What do I have to do to get the information drilled into your head?” Gwen shouts at Merlin.
“You can shout all te want to convince anyone, Gwen, but not me. I don’t believe a single word te said.”
“Then that’s your problem, not mine. Look, I have to go and I cannot find anything bad to say about te o Gwaine. You’ve been good Friends to me, though I doubt after today any positive image of me will still stay in your minds. So, until then… goodbye Merlin!” Gwen says and rushes to the bench to pick her bag. She slings it across her shoulder and looks up at the still petrified Morgana. “Goodbye Morgana. Our journey ends here, I suppose.” She says and smiles at her friend and hurries to the coach. She climbs up the steps and enters, without looking back at her friends. The train moves slowly. Morgana hurries towards Merlin and they cerca frantically for Gwen but they don’t find her anywhere. The train speeds up and after five minutes, the railway becomes empty again with the train now a distance picture. Merlin sighs and leaves but Morgana still waits at the platform, looking at the disappearing train.
Gwen sits alone at the railway station, waiting for the coach that’ll take her to Mercia and then to Caerleon. She plans to meet up with Elyan there and the train is supposed to have made it past twenty minuti fa but unfortunately, there is a delay and now she’ll have to wait another hour. Fifteen minuti has passed and she looks at the time nervously and then as the empty railroad, waiting for the blasted train to make its appearance. She pulls her cappotto tightly around her and sighs. The railway station was almost empty when she arrived but now, it’s getting filled quickly with people from all walks of life. Train service is the secondo highly sought after transportation in Camelot after car. For those who hardly own their own transport will look towards the train to get them around and sometimes, it’s a choice for those who wish to travel far and save on petrol. It’s no wonder the railway station gets packed before noon. Someone taps on her shoulder and she turns around.
“Did te get it Morgana?”
“Well, he didn’t have strong black coffee but I managed to get te tea. Is that all right?” Morgana asks, handing Gwen the cup of tè she held.
“Anything will do at the moment Morgana. I’m cold and could use something hot.” Gwen takes the cup from Morgana. “Is it sweet?”
“Yeah… what time is your train?” Morgana asks and sits down beside Gwen.
“It’s delayed… need to wait for another half hour,” Gwen says shaking her head and sipping her tea. “This is frustrating, te know… just when te are in a hurry, te get these sort of problems!”
Morgana nods and waits in silence. There is a domanda that has been burning in her cuore all morning and wants to know the answer from Gwen, but she is afraid her friend may not like what she is about to ask. But she still needs to know. “Gwen… I know te have answered me already but what’s the hurry to get to Carleon? te know what giorno it is today, don’t you?”
“Elyan wants to meet me urgently, and I don’t know why. All I know is I have to get there as soon as I can.”
“Yes, but…”
“Arthur will understand, as should you, Morgana. Elyan is important to me as well. te know that don’t you?”
“I do, I’m sorry. Just… never mind.” Morgana ends her curiosity and looks around. Her stomach rumbles and she is hungry, there’s no doubt in that. She skipped breakfast today because Gwen called her in the wee hours informing she’ll be leaving Camelot and Morgana didn’t have the time to think about her own hunger. She dressed up as quickly she can and accompanied her friend here. And now her hunger pang is retuning, threatening to eat her up from inside if she doesn’t do anything about it. “I need to get something to eat, Gwen… be back in a minute,” Morgana says and leaves.
“Get me a sandwich, please.” Gwen requests and Morgana nods and walks off.
Arthur shades his eyes with his eyes and waits in the car as Merlin and Gwaine talks to Gaius. From Gaius’s body language, Arthur knows he will be disappointed again. He sighs and leans his head back. His cuore is still beating rapidly, thinking what possibly could have happened to his Guinevere. But no one seems to have an answer for him. Merlin and Gwaine get back inside the car and Arthur straightens up.
“He doesn’t know, right?” Arthur says without much of an emotion.
“I’m sorry, Arthur… looks like Gwen didn’t tell Gaius where she went, but she isn’t due to be at work today.” Merlin informs.
“Meaning?”
“She took a mese off, Arthur,” Gwaine answers.
“A month?”
“Yes, to be with you… from what Gaius told us. That’s why he seems fine that she isn’t around,” Gwaine adds and starts the car.
“But…” Arthur stops when Merlin’s phone rings.
Merlin fishes it out and flips it open. It is an unknown number and he thinks twice about answering. Finally he clicks on the button and brings it to his ears. “Hello?”
“Hello, Merlin?” the voice seems familiar but Merlin couldn’t quite put his finger to it. “It’s me, Morgana.”
“Ahhh…” now it makes sense. Merlin’s face lights up the moment he hears her name. He points to the others. “Yes, Morgana, where have te been? What happened to your phone?”
“I changed my number because of a problem, but… listen, I haven’t much time and I just want to inform te that Gwen is leaving for Caerleon now. We are at the railway station and her train is delayed. It should be arriving in another half ora o so. She didn’t tell me why but I think there’s something terribly wrong with her today. She looks nervous yet she hides her emotions well. I am not sure if she told Arthur but she hardly spoke about him today.”
“Oh…”
“What is it Merlin?” Arthur leans over and shakes Merlin’s hand.
“Is everything fine, Merlin?” Morgana asks from the other side of the line. “I am really worried for her.”
“Yes, it is. Thank te Morgana. We are on our way there. Keep us updated if there’s anything. Thanks.” Merlin ends the conversation and looks at the other two in shock. “Gwen’s leaving for Carleon and in the railway station as we speak. Morgana says something’s not quite right with Gwen.”
“Get me there now, Gwaine!” Arthur instructs and Gwaine hits on the accelerator, speeding the car towards the railway station.
“You took ages to get this sandwich,” Gwen laughs, taking the sandwich, panino from Morgana. “I almost thought of looking for te myself.”
“You know how fussy I am with the vegetables… I took time to discard the vegetables I didn’t like,” Morgana says, finishes her pane and tosses the wrapper into the litter bin. She wipes her hand and mouth and throws the tissue into the bin as well. “Looks like te are not going to Carleon today, Gwen… I don’t see the train at all.”
“I have to… da any means. I don’t mind waiting for the train, no matter how long it takes,” Gwen says determinedly.
Morgana smiles but deep down, she is worried for her friend. Gwen is in some kind of a trouble but she is not talking about it. Morgana is also worried that Gwen has hardly mentioned Arthur’s name today. Did they have any misunderstanding? A fight? Did they bicker? domanda after domanda flooded her brain yet she couldn’t find the answers. The one person who can answer that is Gwen alone and she isn’t talking.
A small boy plays with a ball near the girls. Both Morgana and Gwen notice the boy and Morgana smiles when the boy looks up at her. He smiles back and continues playing with his ball, bouncing them up the ground.
“He’s cute, isn’t he?” Gwen says.
“I feel like cuddling him, but where are his parents? They surely can’t be serious leaving the boy all alone here and around such a dangerous place, too,” Morgana says, looking around. But before she can spot the boy’s parents, the ball slips from the boy’s hand, rolling off towards the edge of the platform. Gwen, who’s been watching the boy quickly, drops her bag, sandwich, panino and rushes towards the boy, picking him up before he tumbles over the platform.
“Got you!” Gwen says as she swings him away from the edge. Morgana lets a sigh of relief and crosses herself.
“Jeremy!” a woman rushes towards Gwen; fear in her face and her arms extended. “Oh, Lord! Thank God te are fine!”
“Is this your son?” Gwen asks, handing him over.
“Yes, thank te so much. I was searching all over for him,” The woman takes her son from Gwen and hugs him. “Thank you.”
“Better keep him with you… imagine if he’d fallen off. We almost died of a cuore attack watching him!” Gwen scolds the woman.
“My cuore was in my mouth!” Morgana replies, nearing them. “You have such a lovely son; don’t allow him to wander off on his own,” she adds.
“I won’t, sorry. But thank te so much for the help. Bye… say bye, Jeremy.” The woman waves towards the girls. After a second, the boy waves at them too.
“Bye, Jeremy,” Gwen says waving at him. Morgana blows him a baciare and they watch the lady disappear among the crowd.
“Such a reckless parent… hmph!” Morgana says and walks back to the bench she had been sitting.
Gwen smiles at Morgana, turns around on her heels and a guy slams against her, falling down and taking her with him. The guy lands on her, Gwen underneath him, her head slamming on the ground but she is glad the fall isn’t as bad she thought it might be. She manages to hold onto the man she slammed against and makes the fall less painful.
“Ooofff!” she grumbles as she is pinned on the ground, the man crushing her. She tries to push him away but he is heavy. “Hey!” she shouts and tries to roll him off. “Get off me!”
The man stirs and looks up and Gwen’s cuore sinks. ‘This can’t be!’ she thinks as she stops pushing him away, though her breathing is getting raspier because of his heavy crush on her.
Arthur adjusts his shades and pulls himself up, embarrassed for falling on superiore, in alto of an unknown woman and secondo for pinning her in a compromising position. But something about this woman reminds him of a person he knows well. He lifts himself up and the moment he does, he comes in contact with her arm and he accidentally holds it. Arthur’s cuore races. The touch, he knows it well… he has held this hand before, but… could this woman underneath him be his Guinevere?
Gwen knows Arthur probably had found out about her so she didn’t want to waste his time. So, instead of peeling him of her like she intended, she smiles at him. “Arthur?”
The voice, yes… the same voice. He knows it. He has heard it many times before. Is it her? Is this Guinevere? “Guinevere?” Arthur asks, curiously.
“Yes… it’s me, Arthur!”
Arthur lifts himself and kneels beside Gwen while the latter picks herself up and dusts off the grime and dust from her elbow, hands and back. She looks at Arthur and smiles again.
“Don’t te recognise me? It’s me.”
“Is this you?” Arthur’s fingers tremble as he brings them closer to Gwen. He touches her shoulder, trailing his hand down to her hand and feels her skin. But he is confused. He couldn’t feel her like he did when he was blind. Then he thought of a way. He closes his eyes and touches her skin again, feeling her. That hit the jackpot. It is her after all. He remembers the way her skin responds to his touch and it still does that. Arthur reopens his eyes and smiles, sighing in relief. “Guinevere!” he says and leans across to hug her.
“Whoa… careful, Arthur. te don’t want to crush me again, do you?” Gwen laughs as she embraces him warmly.
“Oh, my… is this you? Guinevere… is this how te look?” Arthur releases her and feels her face, caressing her soft skin. “I see you… I finally see you!” he says happily.
“Have I disappointed te Arthur?” she asks quietly.
“No… no sweetheart, not at all! I always knew te were beautiful, but now I know te are the most gorgeous woman in the world. And I can’t believe I finally got to see you… and look at you,” Arthur says softly, caressing her lips with his thumb. As he leans closer, Gwen stops him gently.
“Are te sure we need to do all this while sitting down on the ground in the dirt and dust?”
“Of course not!” Arthur smiles and gets up to his feet and helps Gwen up on her feet as well. Gwen wipes her pants while Arthur dusts off the dirt from his own pants and shirt.
Morgana smiles happily as she watches both Gwen and Arthur together. Her prayers have been answered and all she needs now is for the train to be further delayed. o if possible, don’t come at all. She wants Gwen to get back with Arthur and forget about Caerleon. Gwaine and Merlin come to stand beside her.
“They always have to meet in such a hilarious way, don’t they?” Merlin says, smiling.
“Tell me about it!” Morgana answers.
“You detto she’s leaving for Caerleon today… do te know why?” Gwaine asks but Morgana shakes her head.
“She didn’t talk much but there was some sort of sadness on her face. She told me Elyan needs her urgently and that’s all I know.”
“Is that why she didn’t come to the hospital?” Merlin asks.
“She’s been here all morning Merlin.”
“All morning? Wow!!” Merlin remarks and looks briefly at Gwaine. “No wonder your homes were empty when we visited them this morning. But we couldn’t get her on the phone too. Do te know anything about that?”
“No, not at all. She called me from a new private number but I didn’t ask her what she did with her old one. I didn’t know te couldn’t get hold of her?”
“We couldn’t and thank God te called o we would have missed her.” Gwaine says, looking at Gwen and Arthur in front of him. He wonders why Gwen decided to leave town in haste.
“Caerleon? Is something wrong with Elyan?” Arthur asks worriedly.
“No, he’s fine.” Gwen’s voice is flat.
“Then why are te heading there for?”
“Because I want to pay him a visit, he is my brother after all Arthur. I can’t abandon him.”
“I know that, I’m sorry but since te didn’t come to the hospital today, te had me worried. And when I found out te decided to leave Camelot, I was shocked as well. te promised to be with me at the hospital and I wanted to see te first when I open my eyes, so imagine what must have gone through my mind when I didn’t find you.”
“Arthur… sometimes I can’t be there for te at all times yeah. te have to learn to depend on your own. te are not a child anymore and now, te have your eyesight back so… think about it,” Gwen says nonchalantly.
Arthur looks puzzled at her. “What is it Guinevere? te sound different. Is everything all right? I have never seen te talk like this before?”
“Arthur!” Gwen smiles at him and blows a sigh of exasperation. “Look… I am fine yeah, and now, te are fine too, so… let’s head our separate ways, shall we?” she says, throwing her hands in the air.
“Separate… what are te talking about, Guinevere?” Arthur is confused. “What separate ways te mean? te and I are supposed to be married this week, te know that don’t you? Let’s go home!”
“Home?” she laughs. “My home lies in Caerleon, Arthur… and who ever detto I will marry you? Who gave te that hope o told te that lie?”
Arthur’s cuore thumps wildly. “Guinevere!” Arthur’s says her name and stops, unsure what else to say. Her words had him tongue tied. ‘This can’t be true! Why is she talking like this?’ he thinks. After a minute, he gulps down a huge breath of air. ‘No, something is terribly wrong. I have to find out what is it. She needs me.’ Arthur thinks and tries to calm himself. ‘Perhaps she’s just teasing me.’ He says and chuckles to himself. “You are my fiancée Guinevere! Have te forgotten that?”
And Gwen laughs, clutching her stomach. Her laugh stuns Arthur as well as the rest. Merlin watches in horror while Morgana covers her mouth. Gwaine doesn’t even know what to say.
“Arthur… te are funny!” Gwen says in between her laugh, still clutching her stomach. “Oh… my, oh… Arthur!” she continues to laugh.
For Arthur, her laughter seems like a thorn, piercing his heart. ‘Why is she laughing?’ he thinks to himself, still too stunned to talk.
“How can te even consider that I’ll marry you?”
“Guinevere, this isn’t funny and it has to stop. What is wrong with you? Why are te even…”
“Look, Arthur!” Gwen stops him short da pointing a finger at him. “I thought te are being funny but apparently not. And I think it’s time I put an end to this crap te are blabbering about.”
“Crap?”
“Yes, for me… all this is nothing più than some crap. Who gave the idea that we are engaged? And when did I even say I’ll marry te Arthur?”
“But… but… that ring and the preparation?”
“That was all part of my plan Arthur,” she informs calmly.
“Plan?”
“Yes, look I haven’t got all the time in the world, so I’ll cut your miseries short. I have never loved te o promised to marry you. NEVER! For me, te are nothing più than a piece of a jigsaw I’d been putting up. te killed my father and I wanted to get even with te and if I had it my way, I would have te behind bars a long time fa until your father stepped in. He wants te spared and offered me money, a lot of money. It was tempting, Arthur; who wouldn’t be tempted, so I accepted it and then your father made another offer I couldn’t resist. He wants to restore your eye sight but te wouldn’t accept his offer so he asked if I could convince you,” Gwen explains. “I don’t know who o what gave him that idea but there was più money at stake which I thought I’d be a fool to let it pass and I accepted the challenge. I didn’t know te o met te before but the challenge and the money was an interesting prospect and I decided to give it a try. So in order to convince you, I have to be your friend and then someone you’d listen to… but unfortunately, I had te falling for me, but it was fine because te made my work easier than I could ask for. And… that’s how everything happened and now, my job is done. I have received my sum and on my way to reap the benefits I sowed. And te have nothing to lose Arthur because te are free from the crime te had yourself attached with and a brand new pair of eyes. Now, who would get that for free, huh?” Gwen explains and laughs, looking at Arthur calmly.
For Arthur, he feels as if the world had just come crushing down. He feels numb all over, his cuore shatters into shards and his lips quivers in anger. He is angry, sad, guilty and completely broken; all rolled into one. He couldn’t say o sposta anything. Everything about him has just turned numb. Is it true? He thinks to himself. Is she telling the truth? Is all this even happening? Is he dreaming? He must be dreaming because the Guinevere he knows will not break his cuore cruelly. Maybe she isn’t Guinevere at all! Yes, that must be it. Maybe this is a different person. He must cerca for his true Amore elsewhere because this woman, in front of him isn’t the woman he had fallen in Amore with.
Gwen snaps her fingers in front of him to snap him out from his dilemma. “Hello?” she says, almost teasingly. “Are te all right?”
“You …” Arthur begins. “You are not my Guinevere; no… te are not her!”
“So when the truth hurts, I am not Guinevere! Come on Arthur, te can be smarter than that!”
“No, te are not…”
“Look, Arthur, I haven’t the luxury o the time to argue with you. te want full details about me, go and ask the man te call father. He knows it, all of it because he gave me the money. o do I have to mostra te the money to gain your trust? Do I have to? Do te want to look at it?”
“No… I don’t believe you, NO!!” Arthur covers his ears and shakes his head, trying to make this madness leave him.
“It’s your wish, Arthur. I haven’t got anything to lose. te too, remember that. It was all a plan where everyone benefitted from it. There isn’t any loser, only winners. I have to go, Arthur, and I had fun knowing you.” She turns to leave when Arthur sprinted in front of her, stopping her with his arms extended.
“You can’t do this to me, Guinevere! This isn’t fair. I loved you, I still do. Please… please!!” he begs her, tears welling up in his eyes.
Gwen sighs in frustration and shakes her head. “You still don’t get it, do you? I have never loved you!”
“That’s not true. te accepted my ring, promised to marry me… te Amore me.”
“I like being in your company Arthur. There’s a huge difference between like and love.”
“You promised?”
“I make thousands of promises in a day, Arthur, and I don’t intend to keep any of them. Never did… te are no exception. Besides, to gain your trust I had to lie, didn’t I, and promises are part and parcel of this lie!”
“No… No!”
Gwen hears the train from far and claps her hand in joy. “Look, my ride is here and I have a place to go. I hated hurting you, which is why I decided to leave before te found out but unfortunately te did. I can’t do much about it and neither can you, Arthur. And try not to look so sad about all this, Arthur… we both enjoyed each other’s company didn’t we? Sex would have been good, but it was not to be, but hey! We still had plenty of fun!”
“Guinevere…” Arthur staggers and almost falls but Gwen catches him first. He looks at her, tears rolling down his cheek. He is sad and broken but she watches without remorse. There is no sadness in her face o her eyes. She seems relaxed and it hurts him more.
“Now, Arthur, be a man and accept it, all right?”
“How can te betray me, Guinevere?” Arthur’s voice croaks with emotion and sadness.
“Betray you?” Gwen laughs. “I never betrayed you, Arthur. te did that to yourself. I never asked te to fall in Amore with me; te did that on your own. te proposed and decided on the wedding yourself. I never uttered a single promise. So don’t tell me that I betrayed you! I didn’t!!” she adds angrily and releases him. Behind her the train comes to a halt, screeching to a stop. Passengers start to hurry towards the coach.
“I trusted te Gwen! I trusted you… it’s not fair!!” Arthur’s voice rises. He is angry and he rolls his fist until his knuckles turns white.
“Hmmm…” Gwen sighs. “Let me get this fact straight since te prefer getting all dramatic. This is life, Arthur, and this is how the system works. It’s a test of survival and like it o not, this is all a part and parcel of our lives. te can never be kind, honest and all things good, Arthur, te need to survive and the only means of your survival kit has to be packed with some lies, betrayal, greed and dishonesty. There is always light and day, yin and yang, black and white in our life. And same goes with us. te can’t be all good and saintly; te have to be bad to win some and lose some. I Lost my father and no matter how good I had been, I still Lost him. I didn’t think it was fair to me, but did anyone listen? No, no one did… and you, te almost got away with it until I decided to reap some benefits from your mistake. It might not sound fair to te but then, is life always fair? te still the big winner here, Arthur. te killed my father, Lost your eyesight but had it restored and walk free. I got the money, yes, but… my father is still lying dead in his grave. I am the loser here, Arthur and how fair is that? Tell me?” Gwen grabs Arthur’s collare and shakes him, angrily. “Nothing is fair in life and nothing comes for free. Money is the answer for everything. te have it and I don’t, so… is it wrong if I chose to enjoy some of it through you?” she releases him and looks at him sharply. “I am not sorry for what I did… but if te are, that’s your problem, not mine!” she finishes.
Arthur’s cuore cracks and he no longer feels the pain. He stares at her for a long time. “So, all this while… everything, about us… te and me… it’s been about the money?”
“Finally!” Gwen throws her hand in the air in relief. “You got it!! Yes Arthur! It was all about the money! I needed it and now I have it!”
“You could have been truthful, Guinevere. I was accepting my mistake and willing to pay the price for your father’s death. Even without your interference, I was willing to head to the jail for the murder I committed. te didn’t have to do this to me.”
“You were willing to let yourself be tried, Arthur, but your father had the authority eating out of his hands. He was the power and he had the judge in his pocket. He was willing to go to lengths to see te not tried and convicted. He was throwing the money to see the justice reversed and my father ended up being the victim of your father’s injustice and your carelessness. Elyan wants it to be done with because he felt he couldn’t win the case but I couldn’t let te Pendragons off the hook so I decided to reopen the case. And I did and found some people willing to try the case. And with te willing to let yourself be tried, I was certain to win it and that had your father worried, Arthur.” Gwen explains. “So he decided to choose a better way to shut me up… da offering me bigger sum than he did to close the case.”
“And is this the justice te gave your father? da deciding to accept my father’s money and keeping the lid of the murder close forever?” Arthur asks, angry at being used and bullied.
Gwen laughs. “Your father’s offer had me thinking Arthur… da accepting the money and keeping myself away from the case, I’ll be benefiting in lots of ways. What good will I get when I see te jailed and my father still dead? Nothing. My old man is gone forever and even through your punishment, I will still not have my father back but I can be rich through him. And I thought, why not? This is way better than see te in jail.”
“Where are your values, Guinevere? Is this what your father taught you? I thought te had più decency than to stoop to such an indecorous level?” Arthur shakes his head in disgust.
“You shouldn’t be talking about subjects te and your father don’t practice in your lives, Arthur! My father taught me più values than te know o your father uses in his life. I am what I am now because of what te and your father did to me! Remember that!!” Gwen snaps back at Arthur.
Arthur sighs sadly. “Look… what happened… I am truly sorry for it, Guinevere. I am, honestly. But… I would have appreciated if te had told me the truth. I would have listened.”
“And blow my cover? No way… look! Your father tabled an offer I couldn’t say no to, so I took up the challenge. I didn’t have any other intentions on te but if you’ve fallen in Amore with me, then I’m sorry, mate. I never gave te that idea in the first place but I use it for my foil. That’s all. But te and I were never made for each other. It simply wouldn’t have worked!”
“Why, Guinevere… I could have made te happy. I will give te all my love…”
“Love alone will not buy my happiness Arthur, only money does.”
“Money! Money! Money!” Arthur screams, attracting the passengers. “What is wrong with you, Guinevere? I will give te my life if te ask; I will drop all my wealth at your feet… why do te hurt me like this? I want te back in my life, Guinevere… please! I will forget everything that happened… please, give me a chance, Guinevere!”
“You are starting to piss me off, Arthur. Haven’t I made it clear to te already? I cannot marry te because I don’t Amore you. And I don’t want to be bound to te for life!”
“Why?”
“Because I’ll be caged, Arthur! I’ll be caged with guilt of marrying te for money and not love, I’ll be caged with responsibility when I crave freedom and I’ll be caged with te for the rest of my life when I don’t Amore te at all! I don’t deny marrying te will secure me financially but that’s all. I Amore money, I don’t deny that, but I prefer enjoying it on my own, not with te trotting behind me with your pathetic Amore stories, get it? That’s why I’m running off, Arthur! I don’t Amore te and I will never Amore you, no matter what te tell me. I am not ready to share my life with anyone, especially someone I don’t love, so… I hope I’ve made myself clear. I hate repeating it again and again. Just leave me alone!!”
“Enough, Gwen!” Gwaine says as he closes in Arthur and holds his friend da his shoulder. “I have heard enough from you!” he adds. Beside him, Arthur remains quiet obviously shattered and completely broken da what he heard from Gwen.
“Look, Gwaine… I didn’t start this, your friend here did, so if te have an issue, ask him. I have to leave.”
“How can te be so cruel, Gwen? Why?” Gwaine asks, looking pitifully at Arthur. “How can te do this to him?”
“How many times do I have to tell the same thing again and again? I haven’t the time, Gwaine. Not for Arthur o you… I have detto my piece and should he choose to believe and accept it, that’s his choice. I will not decide anything because my task is done and I’ve been handsomely rewarded. So goodbye, everyone,” Gwen smiles and turns. But someone grabs her hand and as she turns around, Arthur slaps her hard.
The slap stuns Gwen and some passengers looking out from the window of the train. Gwen trails her hand from her cheek down to her lips, feels her fast swelling lips and looks down at her hand. There were traces of blood on her fingers. She looks up at Arthur angrily.
“I wish I have never seen te at all, Gwen. I hate everything about you. Your name leaves a amaro taste in my mouth, your sight disgusts me and I am humiliated da the fact that we had some moments together. te will now remain my nightmare, my past and a amaro pill to swallow. te no longer exist in my life, and today marks the final meeting between us. te are a bitch, Gwen! A bitch! Keep that ring, I don’t need that anymore and that money I loaned you… that’ll be my payment to te for the services te offered me all this while!” and with that, Arthur turns on his heels and walks away. Gwaine shakes his head and runs after Arthur.
Gwen watches with a smirk on her lips. The cut she feels in her lips hurts but she is satisfied with how the event has turned out.
“Gwen?” she looks to her left and finds Merlin looking at her. She smiles at him.
“What is that all about?” he asks softly.
“You heard…”
“No, I don’t believe a single word te said, Gwen. I’m not stupid and I am not Arthur. I know te and I know te don’t mean all that you’ve just said.”
“Here we go again. What is wrong with all of you? What do I have to do to get the information drilled into your head?” Gwen shouts at Merlin.
“You can shout all te want to convince anyone, Gwen, but not me. I don’t believe a single word te said.”
“Then that’s your problem, not mine. Look, I have to go and I cannot find anything bad to say about te o Gwaine. You’ve been good Friends to me, though I doubt after today any positive image of me will still stay in your minds. So, until then… goodbye Merlin!” Gwen says and rushes to the bench to pick her bag. She slings it across her shoulder and looks up at the still petrified Morgana. “Goodbye Morgana. Our journey ends here, I suppose.” She says and smiles at her friend and hurries to the coach. She climbs up the steps and enters, without looking back at her friends. The train moves slowly. Morgana hurries towards Merlin and they cerca frantically for Gwen but they don’t find her anywhere. The train speeds up and after five minutes, the railway becomes empty again with the train now a distance picture. Merlin sighs and leaves but Morgana still waits at the platform, looking at the disappearing train.
