Brave

Chapter 5: Ancient Kingdom

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Merid was sitting on his bed swinging at his bed post with a sword. (Y/n) sat next to him silently. Merid paused his swinging and looked over at (Y/n).

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"I should be asking you that. You're the one who's going to have girls fighting to marry you." She responded.

Merid sighed. "It's not fair. Why can't I choose who I get to marry?"

"Because this is what your mother wants." She shrugged.

"Well, it's not what I want." Merid huffed.

"What do you want?" (Y/n) asked him.

Merid thought for a moment before looking directly into the girl's eyes. He knew what he wanted. Or rather, who he wanted, and she was sitting right in front of him. He had to tell her. If he was going to be getting married to some woman from another clan, he had to tell her now, before it s too late.

"I...I want...y-."

Before Merid could finish his sentence, Elinor entered the room.

"Mother. Suitors? Marriage?" Merid complained.

"Once there was an ancient kingdom." Elinor began.

"Ugh, mum!" Merid rolled his eyes and flopped onto his bed. "Ancient kingdom." Merid slid off his bed onto the floor.

"It's name long forgotten, ruled by a wise and fair king who was much beloved." Elinor grabbed a chess board and used the king to emphasize her story.

"And when he grew old he divided the kingdom among his four sons, that they should be the pillars on which the peace of the land rested."

Elinor placed three white pieces and one black piece in a square and placed the board on top of them.

"But, the oldest prince wanted to rule the land for himself. He followed his own path and the kingdom fell to war and chaos and ruin." Elinor removed the black piece from underneath the board knocking it onto the floor.

"That's a nice story." Merid said sarcastically, leaning his head back to rest on (Y/n)'s knee.

"It's not just a story, Merid. Legends are lessons. They ring with truths." Elinor told him.

"Och, mum!" Merid scoffed.

"I would advise you to make your peace with this. The clans are coming to present their suitors." Elinor said firmly.

"It's not fair." Merid said.

"Och, Merid, it's marriage. It's not the end of the world." Elinor said before exiting the room.

Merid sighed in disbelief at his mother's unwillingness to listen to him and slammed his door shut behind her.

...

Elinor was sitting in her room sewing a tapestry. The tapestry had Fergus on the right with the triplets in front of him, and (Y/n) to his left. Merid was holding (Y/n)'s hand in his left and his mothers hand in his right.