-16-

Arthur and Guinevere spent a lot of time getting to know each other after that first night. There were meals and activities shared with Merlin and Morgana as well as Elyan and Ella (whose blossoming romance charmed everyone around them), and Guinevere's dad.

It took a little longer for Arthur to introduce Guinevere to Uther. Guinevere initially thought it was because Arthur was ashamed of her-what with having no social pedigree or a hefty bank account-but after one particularly tense evening that resulted in Guinevere asking whether or not he thought she was good enough for him, Arthur cracked and said he was scared of his father's disapproval.

"I can't have him say that he doesn't like you, Guinevere," he was sitting on the sofa in her apartment with his head bowed, looking utterly defeated.

"Why not?" Guinevere's eyes were glassy with unshed tears. "What is it about me that is so wrong, Arthur?"

"Nothing," Arthur was on his feet in a flash and had enveloped Guinevere in a hug so tight that it literally took her breath away.

"Then what's wrong?"

"Because he's not always warm and accepting," Arthur said. "And he's not beyond being cruel when things or people aren't up to his standards."

"And you think I won't be able to live up to his standards?" Guinevere was on the verge of a breakdown.

"It can't end like this," she thought. "I won't let it."

"Please understand, love," Arthur tried to calm down the woman he had silently devoted his heart to. "He's my father and, cruel or not, his opinions matter to me."

"But," Guinevere started to protest.

"But I will fight for you," Arthur's voice was fierce as he gently cupped Guinevere's face in his hands. "We will have lunch with him, I'll introduce you, and no matter what he says, Guinevere, we will walk out of that meeting together."

So the meeting with Uther Pendragon was set, and Arthur introduced Guinevere to the man who had both scared and inspired him his entire life.

Their fears were for naught as Uther immediately warmed to Guinevere. He was charming and candid, and for the first time in Arthur's life, he saw his father laughing like he had no care in the world.

When Guinevere excused herself for a while after they had finished their meal, Uther faced his son and told Arthur something that he would carry with him forever.

"She reminds me of your mother," Uther's eyes were bright with laughter. "You have the beginnings of something beautiful with her, son. Don't break her heart."

"I'd die first," Arthur told his father and he knew that it was the truth.

Then Uther reached into his pocket and drew out something small and square and velvet.

"I've kept this with me since you were born," Uther's voice was soft but serious. Arthur knew what his father meant just as he knew what was in the box. His mother died days after his birth and Uther had kept very few mementos of his late wife.

He handed the box to Arthur. "Open it," he said.

Arthur did and saw a beautiful diamond ring nestled within.

"I wasn't a wealthy man when I met your mother," Uther began. "I was young-younger than you, in fact-and I worked for her father. But when I saw Ygraine," Uther's voice grew even softer at the memory. "That one moment changed my whole world.

Arthur nodded. He knew exactly what his father meant; all it took was one magical moment with Guinevere as well.

"I loved your mother very much, son," Arthur heard his father say. "And I had to work very hard to show her father that I was worthy of his daughter. It took a while, but he gave us his blessing."

Uther motioned to the ring.

"That was the ring I gave your mother the night I asked her to marry me," his voice was still soft. "I thought that it would prove to her that I was a made man. That I could afford to keep her in the lifestyle she grew up in.

"She told me that she was disappointed in me, said that I was a fool to think that expensive gifts meant sincerity," Uther laughed at the memory. "She was smart, your mother, and she could cut me down to size faster than anyone I had ever met then or since."

Arthur's eyes stared into his father's.

"Son," Uther began again. "Are you here to ask me if I approve of Guinevere?"

"Yes," Arthur bowed his head as he said this.

"Then I am disappointed in you, Arthur."

"What do you mean?" Arthur said, raising his head as worry started to cloud his voice.

"Your sister cannot keep a secret to save her life, did you know that?"

"What did she do now?" Arthur's tone was wary.

"She regularly reported to me about you and Guinevere," Uther said, the smile back in his voice.

"And?" Arthur drew out the word.

"And you don't need my approval, Arthur. I need to ask Guinevere for hers."

"Ask me what?" Guinevere said as she walked back into the dining room of Uther's palatial estate.

Arthur quickly pocketed the ring and the velvet box.

"Whether or not you're brave enough to take Arthur on," Uther said in a dry tone.

Guinevere grinned. She wasn't sure about Uther Pendragon in the beginning, but now she knew she had an ally in the man his daughter called King Dragon.

"I'm up for the challenge, sir."

"Oh, that's how it's going to be," Arthur said. His eyes flashed with laughter. "Why don't you salute him, too?"

"You're not the boss of me, Arthur Pendragon," Guinevere said in a stern voice which was offset by the wide smile she wore.

"Correct, my dear," Uther stood up and offered his arm to the woman who had so beguiled his son. "I rather think you're his."

Arthur watched in awe as his father, the man so feared by businessmen the world over, basked in the attention bestowed to him by the woman who had stolen his heart.

His hand reached into his pocket and felt the cool metal of his mother's engagement ring. The way it warmed under his touch felt like a blessing.

"Thank you, mother," he whispered. "I'm glad you approve, too."