Eleanor Pendragon is the youngest daughter of King Uther. She is expected to be a proper lady and marry to become a queen to a kingdom. Her father's plans, however, slowly fall apart once Gwaine is brought into the picture. With the two of them toge...
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II. CAREFUL THERE, GWAINE
—
It was a miracle Eleanor had the capacity to complete her lessons after experiencing such humiliation. Her mind was so engrossed on the prior events that she was desperate to find a way to ease the embarrassment. In an attempt to divert her attention away from what had happened that morning, she accepted Gwen's invite in promenading the markets— though rather escape the discountenance she experienced, she ended up reliving it.
"So a man was lying in Merlin's bed, shirtless," Gwen interrogated, making sure she got the details correct.
Eleanor nodded. "It was obvious that Merlin was treating him, but I wasn't aware of his presence until I came in suddenly. Then Merlin laughed at the sight of me being flustered."
"You rarely get flustered, so I can only imagine that it's an amusing sight to see," Gwen responded.
"Gwen, you're not helping at all," Eleanor whined, covering her face. It was one thing for her to experience such discomposure, but to have both Merlin and Gwen amused at her reaction was adding salt to a fresh wound.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I just think that this gaffe is quite hilarious."
"Yeah, until you encounter these events first hand!"
As they continued their stroll, Eleanor looked up, locking eyes with the stranger she encountered that morning. As a reflex, Eleanor covered the upper half of her face with her hand, refocusing her gaze elsewhere to avoid confrontation. She caught herself cringing at her reaction, but she couldn't help it. Gwen, noticing Eleanor acting out of character, stared at the girl, confused. "Eleanor, what on earth are you doing?"
"That's him," she whispered.
"Who?"
As Gwen looked around, Gwaine approached the pair, grinning sheepishly at the uneasy princess. There was something about her that drew him in, yearning to get to know her. As Eleanor's eyes avoided his gaze, Gwaine snatched a flower off the basket of a woman who was passing by, hoping the gesture was enough to keep her from running. He eventually caught up with the two, grabbing their attention.
"I believe this belongs to you, m'lady."
Eleanor stopped in her tracks, instantly stiffened at the sound of his voice. She had no idea why she was acting so uncomfortable around the odd man. Many men have approached and complimented her, and not once was Eleanor ever phased at such a gesture. She exhaled as she regained her confidence and dropped the hand, guarding her face.
