Uther stared at the letter he held in his hand. When Sir Leon had given it to him that morning, he had no more idea of what it contained than the knight did. He had recognized Arthur's hand at once. His son had only be dead two days, and the grief with which Uther felt his loss was still fresh. When he saw the letter, he had snatched it up, disbelief mixed with agony and hope had sprung up in his heart.
Arthur had left him a letter. Had he known he was going to die? What was it his son could have to say that he didn't want to say to him in person. It was with trembling hands that Uther had opened the letter and read its contents.
What he read filled him with anguish, regret, and sorrow, but never the anger that the writer had several times thought the reader would feel at his confessions. A few times Uther even laughed. The memories of the events mentioned in the letter came to him with crystal clarity.
The letter had done something that the writer had not intended nor ever expected, but had he know it he would have been pleased. It made Uther realize that his son was no longer the boy he thought he knew, but instead the man Uther myself had often wished to be. Uther knew now that Arthur was would have made a great king.
In the past, Uther had often wondered how Arthur would cope when he died. Would he know how to feed the people when they fell on hard times? Would he be firm, but kind? Uther saw that his fears were ill founded. Arthur would have made a great king, a king Uther and his ancestors had only ever dreamed of. Arthur would have become a legend.
Uther had often marveled at Arthur's relationship with Merlin. He had at one time been jealous of their friendship. Arthur had seemed to care more about this servant than he had his own father! Now Uther understood why. Merlin had always been there when Arthur needed someone to lean on. He was more than Arthur's servant, he was Arthur's friend. He had done what Uther as Arthur's father should have, but had neglected to do for most of Arthur's life, but now it was too late.
Uther was ashamed when he thought of how Merlin had been putted in the stocks three days in a row, especially now that he knew the truth. Merlin had not been forgetful as Uther had believed, but instead he had been covering for Arthur. Arthur had not appreciated Merlin at the time and neither had Uther, but that was the past. Merlin would no longer be a servant but part of Uther's household.
The Druid boy. That was another incident that Uther didn't look back on with satisfaction. Arthur was right. A child should not be punished for the crime of his people. Arthur had done the right thing by letting the boy go. Although Arthur had not said it in his letter, Uther guessed that had had Merlin's help. Another thing he was grateful to Merlin for.
His mind wandered to another day. A day that Arthur did not mention in his letter, but one that haunted Uther ever since. The day that Arthur had found out the truth about his birth. Arthur had accused him of being a liar and a hypocrite. Arthur now believed that was not true and that Morgause had lied, but Uther knew.
The truth was he was a liar and a hypocrite. It was his fault Ygraine was dead, not magic's. For years he had hated magic with a blinding passion. It was greatly unfortunate that it took his beloved son's death to make him realize it.
The truth about "Sir William of Dayra" was a shock, but not an unpleasant one. He understood how Arthur must have felt and why he acted as he did. He was proud of his son for wanting to earn his people's respect. Uther would have done the same thing if he had been it that situation.
He imagined Arthur and Merlin attempting to teach a lowly farmer the ways of the nobles and the thought brought a small smile to his face. How he wished he could have been there to see that! It would have been highly entertaining.
Uther was not surprised about the revelation of the affair with Lady Vivien. Indeed, he had often suspected that it was the chase. He had seen how quickly Arthur had gotten over her and not believing it to be because his son was inconstant in anyway, he figured that magic was the real answer.
The thing that shocked him the most was the fact that Arthur was in love. Uther had never expected that for a moment. Arthur had certainly kept that well concealed from him, but it was the object of Arthur's love that made Uther realize he did not know his son as well as he had thought.
Gwen. This was the same girl that Uther had almost had put to death and then had her father killed. Yet, she loved Arthur. This was a surprise. He also began to realize that he had never once questioned why she still served the Pendragons after everything that he happened to her. He questioned that now. He would not have blamed her in the least if she tried to get revenge. Why hadn't she?
Words from Arthur's letter provided him with the answer he needed. She has the purest heart. He saw that and for his son's sake, he would treasure that heart.
"Sir Leon." The knight quickly entered the room, he had been waiting for such a summons ever since he had brought the letter. "Sire?"
"Bring Merlin and the maid Gwen here. At once." Sir Leon bowed and went to do his tasking wondering at this coincidence. He had not told Uther that Arthur had also left letters behind for both of those young people.
Uther waited. He knew what actions he must take.