Merlin doesn't belong to me.

fiance by chance

Gwen looked at her friend in shock; "You did what?"

"I advertised for a husband for you," Morgana told her, "Alright, I asked – sort of hired a guy to pretend to be your fiancé."

"Please, don't tell me you used the papers," Gwen said, "You know how obsessed my family is with newspapers."

"Nope," Morgana replied. "Trust me; no one will ever know where you found this guy."

"So tell me about him," Gwen urged her friend.

"And spoil the surprise," Morgana said, "no way. You'll meet him at 5:00pm. The parents are arriving at 7; 00 pm, right? You'll have two hours to get to know him better. Trust me you'll like this guy."

Gwen nodded although she was a bit apprehensive about the plan.

000

Arthur walked from the plane to the car that was waiting on the tarmac for him.

"Welcome back, Mr. Pendragon," the chauffeur said.

"Thank you, Timmons."

The drive to the house was made in silence. At the house Arthur found eleven messages from his father, all saying the same thing. He was expected back in Camelot this weekend for his engagement party and thereafter the wedding.

Almost twenty years ago, when Arthur was born; his father, Uther the King of Camelot and the King of Drina, a neighboring kingdom had made an alliance. The King of Drina had had a baby girl and she was betrothed to Arthur.

The wedding was to take place this weekend.

When Arthur was old enough, he'd begged his father to call it off. Uther had refused determined that the two kingdoms of Drina and Camelot be joined by a bond stronger than friendship. Arthur and the Princess of Drina would be wed.

A year ago, Arthur and his best friend Merlin had left Camelot. Uther had allowed his son to leave provided he returned in time for the wedding. Knowing that threats of disinheritance wouldn't work on his son, Uther had threatened to have Merlin imprisoned if they didn't. Arthur's plan had been to find himself another girl, in England to wed but he'd been too busy to find one – everyone he'd met was just not right.

Two weeks ago, Merlin had come up with a plan. He would convince a girl to pretend to be Arthur's fiancée for a while and somehow convince Uther to break the prior engagement.

000

Arthur walked around the house looking for his friend but Merlin was nowhere to be found. Instead he found a note stuck to his door.

Meet me at 3 Cherry Lane at 5:00pm, have found the perfect girl. Don't be late.

000

Gwen looked at the clock for the tenth time, it was way past 6:00pm, where was the guy Morgana had sent. Gwen had tried her friend's phone a number of times but had failed to get her. Her parents were on the way over, she was out of time. I should never have come up with this ridiculous plan, she told herself.

The doorbell rang.

Finally, Gwen told herself. She hoped that his lateness wasn't a reflection on his character.

She opened the door and there stood one of the best looking men she'd ever seen in his life. At least, Morgana had chosen well in the looks department, she thought to herself.

She smiled at him. Arthur smiled back, thinking that for once Merlin had chosen well. This girl was beautiful.

"I'm Guinevere," she told him, opening to door to let him in.

"Arthur."

"Did Morgana explain everything to you?" she asked him.

"Morgana?" he asked her, obviously confused.

Seeing his confusion, Gwen smiled, Morgana had probably wanted her to explain the situation. "Basically what I need is a -."

"Hang on;" he interrupted her, "what you need? I thought Merlin explained everything to you. What I need is - ."

"Merlin?" Gwen asked him. "I don't know who that is, but we don't have time. As you may have realized you're late. My parents will be here in less than an hour."

"Parents?"

Gwen looked at him, it was a good thing he was so good-looking otherwise his slowness although endearing was a bit annoying. She didn't need this today.

"I think I'm probably in the wrong p -." Arthur began. Gwen took the hand he was waving around in hers and looked him straight in the eye.

"Arthur, let me explain," she said. "My parents are on their way and I told them that they'll be meeting my fiancé today. They want me to marry some guy back home, some guy I've never even met so I made up a fiancé, I told them that I fell in love and they want to meet the guy, tonight." She smiled at him, "will you help me?"

"Funny," Arthur said, "I'm kind of in the same situation myself."

"Okay," Gwen replied, not really listening to what he was saying, "now we need stories, when and where we met, and the like."

"Do you like reading? Arthur asked, at her nod, he said, "how about a bookstore, we were there browsing through the shelves …"

000

Gwen opened the door to her parents, smiling widely.

"This place is so small," her father, Thomas said, "how can you live here?"

"It's enough," Gwen replied. "How was the journey?"

"Long," her mother, Gina, replied, "we hope you're going to come to your senses and return home with us and get married."

"Where is the young man we've heard absolutely nothing about?" Thomas asked, after looking around the room.

"In the kitchen," Gwen replied.

"A man who cooks," Gina said, "I think I like him already."

They made to their way to the kitchen.

"Mother, Father, I want you to meet Arthur, my fiancé," Gwen said to them. "Arthur, my parents."

Thomas and Gina looked at themselves and smiled widely.

"Arthur, Gwen, you don't know how happy this makes us," Thomas said, shaking Arthur's hand warmly. Gina hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.

"We thought that we would never see this," Gina said, "Ygraine said you had absolutely refused to even consider it."

'What are you talking about?" Gwen asked her parents.

"To think you were pulling a fast one on us all along," Gina continued, "saying that you would never marry the Prince of Camelot not even on pain of death, and now you're engaged."

"I can't wait to tell Uther the good news," Thomas said. "I assume you haven't told him yet, have you?"

Gwen looked at Arthur in shock; this was the Prince Arthur she was betrothed to. Arthur was having similar thoughts; he couldn't believe that this was Guinevere the Princess of Drina.

"Tom, our baby's getting married," Gina said, "our baby's getting married." Gwen's parents smiled at each other.

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