Disclaimer ~ Merlin belongs to BBC and Gift of the Magi is a story by O. Henry. I have no claim to either.
Timeline manipulated for my own selfish needs.
Gift of the Magi
It was a known fact that Uther, king of Camelot, hated magic and anything that looked like magic. Most people knew that he welcomed magic and magic users up until his wife died giving birth to his son, Arthur. Many suspected why but not many people had the nerve to challenge Uther's hypocrisy. Those that opposed Uther, like Morgana his ward (read that as: secret daughter that only Gaius knows about) were executed or, in Morgana case-exiled.
Banning anything and everything to do with magic including just believing in the old religion for non-magical people did not mean he embraced the new religion. To Uther; Christianity used magic as well. His reasoning is: a peasant woman talking to an 'angel'(read; magical being), a baby born to a virgin mother after she spoke to an angel, a carpenter as a 'father' (come on; only the richest and noblest of houses would draw the attention of an all-powerful magical being-God-to raise a magical child), child grows into a man and walks on water, turns bread into wine, heals the sick, is executed on the cross and comes back from dead three days later.
Uther's ego was working over-time and his ego was telling him many things; this can only be the work of magic and it was not allowed in Camelot, Uther defeated magic once and he will do it again, and because he defeated magic, he was the true 'Savior' of the people; not some peasant boy with questionable parentage. No, the new religion was just as bad with the use of magic as the old one was. Christianity would never be allowed in Camelot.
~0o0~
Uther went to Arthur's chambers to talk to him. Lately the young prince has been in poor spirits and missing meals with his father. Uther could only assume that Morgana's betrayal had affected Arthur as much as Uther. They were raised together like brother and sister. Though Arthur didn't know that they were indeed siblings; his pain ran deep.
Morgana's betrayal due to magic's corruption is the only possible reason that Uther could think of as to why Arthur refused to marry Princess Elena from a neighboring kingdom. Politics over love will make a stronger kingdom. If Arthur were in his right mind he would realize this. Of course the rumors about Morgana's former maid could also be the reason. Uther refused to believe Arthur would put his own wants above the kingdom's needs. Uther had a plan.
Uther walked into Arthur's chambers just in time to miss a flying carafe of water. It smashed against the wall near the door, just missing Uther's head. A timid little servant quickly ran out of the room in terror.
"Arthur! Have you lost your mind?" Uther yelled.
"Sorry, Father." Arthur apologized. "Good help is hard to find."
"Where is your manservant? Merlin is it? Gaius' boy?" Uther asked.
"I caught him using m…" Arthur began. Uther's hand quickly went to the hilt of his sword. In a flash Arthur's mind was filled with many images of Merlin and how he had used magic to save Arthur's life. Arthur might feel betrayed because of Merlin's lack of trust in him; but he was not going to turn him in to his father. "m..my ceremonial sash to polish my boots." Arthur stuttered.
"Imbecil!" muttered Uther. "I'm sorry for all your hardship, Arthur. One moment of gratitude seems to have put such a strain on your life with that idiot."
"Well, he did save my live. It's over now, Father. Is there a reason you wanted to see me" Arthur tried directing Uther's thoughts to something else. Uther needs to forget about Merlin forever.
"You haven't been taking your meals with me or showing up at many of the council meetings." Uther held up a hand when Arthur was going to speak. "Be sure to be in the throne room this afternoon. The blacksmiths daughter will stand before the court when the decision is made."
Gwen? Now Arthur was scared. Did Uther find out about them? When he tried to ask his father why, Uther just walk out of his chambers.
~0o0~
"Father, I really don't see why you need to pass a court's judgment on the blacksmith's daughter." Arthur tried reasoning with Uther several times before he had to meet him in the throne room.
"Because, Arthur, she may not have magic but you have to admit it follows her around." Uther stated.
"Father!"
"Arthur, she was there when her father was deathly ill by the magical plague. He was the only one to miraculously get better when many nobles died. She was the personal maid to Morgana when somehow magic corrupted Morgana. And the rumors…" Uther defended his decisions.
"What!?" Arthur shouted.
Uther regally shushed Arthur and the guards started to bring Gwen in by the arms.
She was scared. Really scared. She had no idea why she was being brought up before Uther. She and Arthur were always discreet when they went out together and Merlin made sure it looked like picnics were for the two of them.
"Guinevere, daughter of Tom the Blacksmith," Uther began. "Magic follows you like a bad smell and the rumors of you and my son cannot be ignored. It is my judgment that you shall be banished from this kingdom and if you return you shall be put to death."
"Father!" Arthur tried to interrupt.
"I am your king, Arthur!" Uther shouted. "You will not stand against me."
"I rescind my claim to the throne!" Arthur quickly went up to Gwen and threw an arm around her shoulders. "I will go with Guinevere into banishment."
Uther protested loudly and decided that Arthur was bewitched and he called for the guards to hold the prince and to take the former maid to the dungeons. Suddenly there was a bright flash of light and a loud clap of noise; time stood still. Arthur and Gwen were propelled out the doors of the castle and into the forest.
Arthur and Gwen had no idea what had just happened. One moment they were in the throne room in the castle of Camelot, the next thing they knew they were in the forest towards the edge of the kingdom. Arthur quickly pulled out his sword when he noticed a dragon several feet away staring at them.
"Just relax, Arthur." Came a familiar voice, chuckling. Arthur looked on the dragon's back and seen his former manservant, Merlin. "Come join me; Kilgarrah doesn't bite…much."
"Young Pendragon," said the Great Dragon. "We need to hurry. Your father's men will find us shortly and then your young bride will still be executed."
"Bride?" both Arthur and Gwen questioned. But the threat of Uther capturing them made them trust Merlin and his dragon more. They hopped on Kilgarrah and flew up into the air where no one could detect them.
~0o0~
Arthur and Gwen ended up following Merlin to Ealdor. They were greeted warmly and with open arms; after all they did help Ealdor fight against Kanen and his men when they kept attacking the village for its food. Arthur trained the men (and women on Gwen's insistence) how to fight.
Several months have gone by and Arthur and Gwen have adjusted to village life. Shortly after coming to Ealdor they were married and all the villagers helped pitch in to get them a small house to live in. People help each other out with everything because currency is very rare in Ealdor. The barter system and trade is what keeps the village going and it works well.
Since the defeat of Kanen, Ealdor gets visited about twice a month from different venders and tinkers selling their wares. Gold is rare so a new cooking pan can be traded for a chicken or a woodcarving. Those would be traded to another small town for something else. This was not a new concept for Gwen but Arthur had a harder time adjusting to trading. They left Camelot with nothing but the clothes on their back and a royally forged sword that Arthur had on him. The scabbard was still in his chambers. With nothing solid to trade they made their way by trading services with the other villagers.
Gwen sewed and helped clean for money. Her skills as a seamstress came in handy with repairs and creating new things when needed. If a tinker came along with a new bolt of cloth, then the village would pitch in to help buy it. Gwen would work it off by making new outfits and repairing old work cloths.
Meanwhile, Arthur hunted for food and helped with the law and order. His skills as a knight and fighting helped keep the peace when arguments broke out. Occasionally he had to visit Merlin, who has been acting as the village physician with the knowledge he learned from Gaius.
Merlin was a big help with getting Arthur and Gwen learning the new traditions that came with the New Religion. Many people started to congregate on the Sabbath. Many, like Arthur, were slow to embrace those traditions but quick to embrace others. One of the new traditions that they embraced since coming to Ealdor was Christmas. Merlin had explained to them that these were special gifts given to each other on that day.
It was close to Christmas when the traveling tinker came to Ealdor. He was stopped at the edge of the village by patrolling villagers, including Arthur. They would check strangers out to make sure that they didn't mean any harm. Arthur noticed a beautiful dress and two large shell combs. His thoughts immediately went to Guinevere and how it would be nice to get her something new that she didn't have to make herself. The dress and combs were not as richly made as those one seen at court but for a small village like Ealdor they were extravagant.
Arthur had very little gold and it certainly wasn't enough for the dress or combs. He didn't even have anything worth bartering for.
"Tell me about your wife, young man." The tinker said.
"She's very beautiful with dark skin and long curly hair as soft as a cloud. The dress would really bring out the color of her eyes and compliment her skin." Arthur said dreamily in a voice full of love. His voice was full of regret when he continued, "But I have little gold and nothing of value to trade."
"Now that's not entirely true is it, Young Man?" the tinker gestured to the sword Arthur carried. "Now that is a fine specimen. Fit for a prince."
Arthur was startled at those words. No one but the ones that he had helped knew who he was and why he was here. The tinker ignored his silence and continued.
"I will trade you this dress and both combs for your sword." He smiled. "I will be traveling back here a month or so from now if you decide that you want your sword back. You should have enough to trade or pay for it then."
"And what kind of game would you accept as trade?" Arthur asked.
"A couple of large bucks, already prepared." Answered the tinker.
"I will think about it and let you know." Replied Arthur.
"I will be in town for a couple more days." With that the tinker started pulling his cart into the heart of the village.
~0o0~
"Now Gwen, you need to be careful." Merlin admonished his friend. The sun was setting and Gwen, still not used to the rough unclear paths, fell over some debris left by last night's storm. Merlin was cleaning and wrapping up the wounds Gwen received when she fell. Her elbows and hand bore the brunt of the damage. "This is not Camelot were the anonymous minions come out and take care of the little things that no one pays attention to."
"I know, Merlin, but I heard that the tinker was in Ealdor and I was trying to get home to see what I might have to trade." She said sheepishly. "This is the first Christmas that Arthur and I are celebrating and I wanted to see if I could find anything nice. Otherwise I won't have anything to give him." She finished with a hint of sorrow in her voice.
"Gwen, Arthur loves you. You are the best Christmas present he could have." Merlin tried to cheer her. "Mom said that he didn't have much this trip but maybe next month." He helped he stand and started walking with her along the path to her home. "Just remember that you are both free and alive and Uther won't be around to accuse you of celebrating magic." Merlin waved his fingers in wiggling pattern in a way that made Gwen laugh.
"Your right as usual. I will see you tomorrow, Merlin" Just as she was about to go into her house she seen the traveling merchant. "Ooh, here he is." Gwen waved to the man and went to check over his wares.
"How may I help you, Young Miss?" The merchant asked pleasantly.
"I want to find something for my husband." Gwen answered. Then she found something. A scabbard that would fit Arthur's sword perfectly. But when she asked for the price, Gwen felt sad that she could not afford it.
The tinker took a look at her hair and offered her a trade. "Queen's would pay a small fortune for your hair. The newest fashion in many kingdoms are wigs from lovely women like you."
"I don't know." Gwen said shyly. "I will think about it." She didn't want to upset Arthur by cutting her hair. She was torn about getting him that perfect gift or upsetting him by cutting her hair.
"I will be here for a couple of days. Think about it, okay?" he said kindly.
The next day Gwen made her decision. After hearing the excitement in many of the villagers about Christmas and the gifts they were giving, Gwen decided that her hair will grow back and Arthur was worth the sacrifice.
Hours later, wearing a scarf around her head, Gwen was tucking the newly acquired scabbard behind her bed. She couldn't wait for tomorrow to give it to Arthur. She had few regrets but Arthur leaving everything he had behind to be with her made Gwen sad. She would hid her hair until Christmas.
~0o0~
Arthur made his decision. Just before the tinker left Ealdor Arthur caught up with him and traded his sword for the dress and two combs. Arthur was only going to miss his sword only because it was well crafted and it helped defend the village. He could care less if it was from Camelot and held no nostalgia for it. He just felt bad that Gwen had to leave everything she owned behind. Even though Uther was going to banish her, she would have had time to gather many of her belongings. Arthur wanted to make it all up to her.
When Gwen was over helping Hunith and a few other village women prepare for the Christmas feast that everyone gathered for, Arthur slipped into his house and hid Gwen's presents behind a cupboard. He couldn't wait for tomorrow to see her in her new outfit.
~0o0~
Christmas day brought Merlin and Hunith over to Gwen and Arthur's bright and early. Merlin held out loaf of bread that Hunith made in honor of the Christmas holiday. Arthur grumbled at his former manservant's cheery demeanor when they entered his home.
"You're here to early, Merlin."
"Stop being a prat; I brought food." Merlin said with a small laugh.
"Arthur, stop being rude and let them in." Gwen admonished him.
Arthur let them in and after everyone settled Gwen and Arthur brought out the gifts they had for each other.
Arthur, oblivious as ever, still didn't notice Gwen's covered head. He handed her the combs wrapped up in the dress. Gwen was shocked.
"Arthur!" She whispered. "You shouldn't have. Where ever did you get the money?" she asked handing Arthur his present. It was wrapped in extra cloth from repairs she was making.
Arthur unwrapped the scabbard and let out a shocked noise. "Gwen, this is beautiful, but…"
Everyone realized at the same time what happened. Gwen removed the cover from her head and Arthur stood to show her that he no longer had his sword. Merlin and Hunith gave them each a hug in support of what they did.
"This, my dears, is the true meaning of Christmas." Hunith said.
"My hair grows really fast, Arthur. Thank you for the combs; they are lovely." Gwen said full of awe and embarrassment.
"The tinker said that he will be back in about a month. If I catch enough game or have enough gold, I could buy my sword back. It really is a lovely scabbard, Guinevere." Arthur replied.
"Or you could just use Excalibur." Merlin broke in. "The scabbard would fit perfectly and Excalibur could finally be where it belongs; at your side."
Arthur was intrigued, "I thought it was hidden so no one could use it?"
"It's yours to claim, Arthur. It was not meant to be wielded by another."
Everyone was happy with the day. Arthur and Gwen couldn't believe how blessed they were to be sharing their first Christmas together. It is the thought that counts and when you are in love like they are nothing matters.
In the years that followed; even after Arthur reclaimed his throne, they made a point to humbly celebrate Christmas and always help others whenever they could.
Merry Christmas!
a/n: sorry for any mistakes; I had to wrestle with the kids for my computer to get this posted in time.