Records: the Evolution of Christmas

Looking at King Rickard, it was impossible to see the 12 year old boy that chronology would proclaim. With the "help" of the F2 Angels, he'd lived a literal hundred lives – including his own in the alternate timeline – and to look at his eyes, he remembered every second of five thousand years' collective experience.

His physique had accelerated to that of a 19 year old gladiator and he had the scars to show for the battles. In a way, he looked ageless, timeless, and impossible to define. In another light, he looked ancient.

As Christmas approached, though, he seemed just a little younger. The spirit was flowing through him, the energy of life itself bringing a smile to his face.

## **After the Return to Bordeaux**

The king had returned in August, having secured (and given away) Navarre. He'd secured a peace treaty with the Kingdom of Germany, having convinced them to abandon "Holy" and "Roman." He was both the conquering hero and the bringer of mercy.

Since his return, he'd made short trips to Atlantis, Paris and Toledo – but most of the last five months, he'd spent recharging in Bordeaux. It was an exotic court, with travelers from as far away as India and Arabia. Some travelers were mysterious, granted private audiences, and like the Court of England, half the time was spent with the counselors of government, managing the increasingly complex affairs of state.

The Royal Academy and the Order or Merlin accounted for *some* of those mysterious courtiers, but others? Some would swear they saw actual, glowing halos.

The Court of Aquitaine was open 18 hours a day, whether Rick was there or not. There was always a royal lieutenant nearby, prepared to receive visitors and take notes. Like the Queen's Court of England, there was the social court with music and art, poetry and food, a staging area for the courtiers where they could experience the culture of Aquitaine. It was here that certain courtiers were permanently staged, not the least of whom was young Anne, Queen of Bohemia.

### **Killer Queen**

Her "dowry" was no less than Bohemia itself, which Rick could claim "in right of his wife" if he accepted the proposal. There was the key, and perhaps the hitch: he'd fallen in love with her once before, in the alternate timeline. Their marriage was childless, and from his now-educated perspective, knew it was a fertility issue. She was demure and graceful and beautiful, and he remembered all the feelings from the first pass. He also remembered the devastation when she died of plague.

He'd largely kept her at arm's length because of those experiences.

She was not, however, the same persom she'd been before. Different world, different experiences, not the least of which was knowledge her father had fled from Rick's battlefield – as had thousands of other survivors – and he died not long after. There was the knowledge that her brother had fallen on that battlefield, and it was said that he fell by Rick's hand. Her grandfather, John of Bohemia, had fallen to the English at the Battle of Crécy in 1346.

There was knowledge that there would be a ceremony, then an assumption, and she'd be out of the picture. Part of her, echoing to the etitquette and protocol of all her courtly training, was ready for the role. In England, in a time that would now never pass, she was the advocate of mercy in the face of justice, growing into England's beloved seeker of pardons. If she could compare experiences, now it would seem that much more daunting.

He was literally magical, rumored to be a miracle-weilding Jesuit, and many saw him as handsome or any number of positives, but by capacity and karma alone, *he was terrifying*. No matter what "mercy" Rick had, *hundreds* had died directly by his hand. Most on the battlefield, many more in personal combat. He was the conquering hero... *and her family came from the conquered*.

If he agreed to the marriage, Bohemia was guaranteed peace but an absentee sovereign, just as her grandfather John had been. Not that it mattered, by the state of the bloodied nobility alone, they wanted peace. Hence she was chosen as queen over an ambitious uncle, then sent off to Aquitaine to carry the crown of Bohemia with her.

### **Empowerment From an Odd Angle**

During the formation of the Kingdom of Germany, there had been regular communication between her, Rupert, and a dozen other German nobles. She was technically a voting member of the Empire on two counts, one as Crown of Bohemia and one as Margrave of Brandenburg. For a brief time, to retrieve the German crown, it had even pulled her away from the Bordeaux court for a danger run back towards Bohemia (and Jobst).

It was somewhat surprising, though, that they held her positions as valid. Was that because of the shadow Rick cast? Probably, but there was something to it: regardless of the motivation, it was the first time anybody had asked for her opinion on *anything*.

Further, even though Bohemia would be separate from this new German kingdom, it would be a neighbor – and the Germans were lining up to speak to *her* for treaties and trading rights.

Finally, *she was still acting Margrave of Brandenburg*. No matter that a new kingdom was forming, they'd recognized that she was carrying the claim rather than calling it extinct. Perhaps a way to keep the peace in a war-torn country, it was more power and recognition than most women got when stuck in the vice of carrying succession through a largely Salic culture.

After the German run – and she stayed there for Rupert's coronation – she traveled with the new King for part of the trip and returned to Bordeaux just as Rupert and the rest of the nobles were arriving in Bayonne in hopes for their treaty. While she'd considered going to Bayonne (Rupert had requested it), she was looking for something related, but a little different. She didn't want to muddy those waters.

When Rick finally returned to Bordeaux, she had only just settled back in herself as Honored Guest of the Court of Aquitaine. Queen of Bohemia, Margrave of Brandenburg (and all that)... and he politely acknowledged her royal presence in his court. It was an honor, but he gave her very little time outside of the court.

As time went on, she doubted her mission more and more.

### **The Flood of Tears**

As December approached, King Rick finally gave her the personal audience she'd been seeking. It was a relief and a heart attack, all rolled into one.

She'd been Queen nearly a year, of a country she had to be smuggled out of. She and a small entourage had been guests of honor at the Royal Court of Aquitaine for almost that whole year. She'd been in Bordeaux longer than he'd been there! He'd killed her brother and virtually killed her father, and her grandfather had died in battle with the English in France. Now her nobles shipped her off to lure the warrior they knew they couldn't beat in hopes he'd manage the war in Bohemia.

The universe was absurd.

Was she absurd to think he could at least love Bohemia?

It felt as if it took a lifetime to answer. For Rick, it took several lifetimes. When he answered, it was in fluent Bohemian. He remembered every soul he'd met in battle – and he remembered her brother. He died a valiant man in a tragic battle in a war started by fools.

As for Bohemia...?

It was a beautiful country of beautiful women and brave men. It was a country that should be proud of their Queen, but not because she was beautiful, but because she was brave. She was composed when others were discombobulated, she had decorum when others were panicked and she knew when to cut to the chase.

It wouldn't be absurd to love Bohemia, but it wouldn't be fair to love the country without loving the queen.

King Rick only guaranteed that they should know one another before matrimonial decisions were made. Regardless of a union, Rick vowed they would return to Bohemia. Even if he didn't wear the Crown himself, he would ensure she sat upon a stable throne suo jure.

For Anne, the dam finally burst.

## **The December to Remember**

By the High Middle Ages, the holiday had become so prominent that chroniclers routinely noted where various magnates celebrated Christmas. King Richard II of England, in alternate-timeline 1377, had hosted a Christmas feast at which twenty-eight oxen and three hundred sheep were eaten. The Yule boar was a common feature of medieval Christmas feasts and there was often a special Christmas ale.

The 1379 Christmas, not only did the Royal Court feast, but Richard made certain the poor of Bordeauxfeasted as well. The Queen of Bohemia helped the King of Aquitaine give away food.

The annual indulgence in eating, dancing, singing, sporting, and card playing escalated in English-Aquitaine culture, and Richard made certain the city had just a drop too much of that jolly, actually-enchanted Christmas ale.

In the spirit of the festival, public offices of all sorts were decorated in ivy, holly and other *magical* evergreens.

Gift-giving during Christmas was usually between people with legal relationships, such as tenant and landlord. Richard brought Anne out onto the streets with him as he gave away toys to children. For every gift he gave, he gave her a gift to give away as well. Rumor had it the spirit of St. Nicholas gave gifts to over a thousand children on Christmas morning, with countless orphans among them.

As the Crown went, so did the nobles, causing a surge in philanthropy.

On Christmas evening, when she was exhausted and a little blissful, as they said their goodnights, he gave her a simple gray ceramic wand, her name magically engraved in the side. It wasn't the wand of a queen, he told her, it was the wand of a warrior – *and he promised to teach her magic*. That alone was something beyond imagination.

First, though, he had to know more about her heart. Could she handle the power?

At that moment, it was wildly aflutter. One moment exhausted, the next euphoric, she wasn't able to sleep for several nights after that.

### **Over the 12 days of Christmas…**

The next week and a half was an extended festival of eating, dancing, singing and sporting. It was a time to burn away the troubles of the past year. There was something of peace offering, a syncretism with the effects of the winter solstice, including the Yule log from Yule and gift giving from Saturnalia.

Caroling was already popular; originally a group of dancers who sang. The groups were usually composed of a lead singer and a ring of dancers that provided the chorus. Various writers of the time condemned caroling as lewd, indicating that the unruly traditions of Saturnalia and Yule may have continued in this form.

Over the next 12 days, the king led half the songs sung in the city, and with Anne, made sure the Queen of Bohemia danced until her legs were wobbly and her face was sore from laughing.

New Years, in particular, was the day of "Misrule"—drunkenness, promiscuity, gambling—was also an important aspect of the festival. More gifts were exchanged on New Year's Day, often to romantic interests, and there was special Christmas ale.

Rick gave Anne a New Year's gift as well: a simple cup, pretty in a way but ancient in appearance, with gold foil that seemed to be flaking off. It was nothing fancy, intended for use at the bedside. He handed it to her... *and it filled up by itself*. On cold days, it would fill with warm water. On hot days, it was cold water. It would neutralize poisons – and the side of the cup would let her know if poison had been dropped into it. With that cup, she would never go thirsty.

Misrule also caused a surge of September births…

### **The Epiphany**

The 12th Day of Christmas, the Epiphany, just happened to be on Richard’s birthday. Some had already attached religious significance to this, ranging from Richard as a Magi to Richard as the second coming of the messiah. Rick was quick to dismiss this, but the healing and the magic were strong arguments.

On this day, after humble reflection in Bordeaux, he gave gifts in honor of the Adoration of the Magi and the star that guided them. This eventually became a Plantagenet tradition: 3 gifts each to immediate family, 1 gift to extended family and close friends.

As everyone else was giving Richard a birthday gift, Richard gave Anne 3 gifts.