AN: Hello, everyone! It's the beginning of a new year filled with new adventures! So, I'm trying to plot out the last four books of this series *Gasps!*, and... well... I struggling. Not because I don't know what to write, but because I have too many ideas! I have two different plot lines in mind and I'm not sure which one I'm going to chose! So, if you have any thoughts/comments that you think might help me decide, leave a review and let me know! :)

DISCLAIMER!: I do not own anything within this story except for the plot.

Music: "Touch The Sky" by Julie Fowlis.

And now, without further ado, Welcome to Third Year:

School Of Bravery


Chapter 1: Touch The Sky

The sun shone brightly in the sky with a strong, stone castle silhouetted against the rolling green hills of Scotland and the inland sea that created the cove for the castle's ports. The green grass of the hills were shining a bright emerald and dew stuck to everything in the late morning. Green flags waved lazily in the wind at the top of the castle's towers, showcasing the Royal insignia of Scotland: The Dunbroch Clan emblem of a sword laid upon four circles. A symbol of unity between the Four Clans.

The rising sun shone through one of the small windows in the castle, and the light spread across a large room as if reaching for the bed where a figure lay sleeping. The sunlight reach up to fiery, wild hair like a child trying to tap their parent's shoulder, and light blue eyes blinked open.

Sitting up, Princess Merida of Clan Dunbroch looked at the window where the light streamed into her room, a grin slowly lighting up her face as she remembered that her princess lessons had been canceled for the whole day.

Leaping out of bed, Merida ran to get dressed and, on her way out, grabbed her bow and quiver from the table. She ran out of her room, thrilled to finally have a day completely to herself. She made it to the main room within three minutes and found that the stairs were crowded with busy people, trying to get a head start on the day by getting to work early.

Merida couldn't be stopped though, or slowed, for that matter. She found her path ahead was blocked by two men carry a heavy bucket between them, so she used their shoulders to help herself jump over the bucket and onto the first steps. She jumped up and slid along the wooden railing, grabbing an apple from a man's barrel-full along the way, and then jumped down to twirl out of the way of the other oncoming people. She stepped off the stairs and onto a candle stand that tipped over as she leaned her weight forward. The stand fell to the floor, but Merida hit the ground running.

She ran out the door and out to the stables where her mighty horse pranced excitedly at the sight of her. She ran towards him, skipping up the chopped wood that was piled against the side of his stall, and jumped onto his bare-back.

"Yah!" She called out, lighting kicking his sides. The horse could feel the princess's excitement and neighed as he shot off down the path, heading towards the castle gates. Down the worn path to the stone bridge, and then off into the forest they road, Merida readying her bow in her hand and shaking out her wild hair as it flew in the wind behind her.

Drawing her first arrow, Merida pulled and then loosed, letting the arrow fly and hit a hanging target perfectly in the center. She grinned at the feeling of freedom as her horse took the well-known path all on his own. She shook out her hair like a giant lions-mane and then reached for another arrow. She bit one, holding it between her teeth, as she rapidly drew another one.

Two posted targets that were tied firmly to trees were split with arrows at their centers as Merida road past, fast as a broomstick. Grabbing the arrow from her teeth, she loosed another perfect shot at a second hanging target that swung back and forth after the arrow hit it's mark.

She immediately reached for another as her horse took four large bounds past the hanging target and then leaped over a fallen log. The world slowed in Merida's mind, for just a moment, as she lined up the perfect shot at a broken tree branch. Her arrow joined a whole quiver full, stuck in the tree branch, and her horse landed perfectly, continuing on down the path, but Merida just grabbed another arrow and twisted on her horse's back to shoot the hanging target from before a second time.

"Whoohoo!" She screamed to the window and then laughed joyously as they raced through the trees.

She road until she reached the other side of the forest, coming out onto a great cliff-side with golden grass in every direction. Fog hung low over the mountain tops as the sun burned a fiery red in the afternoon. Merida dismounted, letting her horse have a rest after coming so far in such a short amount of time. He whickered happily and flopped down to roll in the grass.

Merida followed his example and flopped down, sitting with her legs crossed and her bow in her lap. A hawk soared high above in wide circle, obviously hunting for it's lunch, and Merida grinned, pulling a small knife from a side pocket in her quiver.

She began to carve lines into the side of her bow, biting her lips as she lost herself in the work. She might not be as artistic as Rapunzel or Hiccup, but she could widdle pretty well, and every great warrior had something meaningful carved into their weapon. Something to personalize it. Something that symbolized what they stood for.

A hawk, she decided, was perfect. A fierce bird of pray. A symbol of strength, freedom, and grace. She'd been looking for it all Summer, and after some thought she had finally come to the decision. Luckily the hawk above had reminded her to carve the animal into her bow while she had the chance. Who knew when her mother would let her be free for an entire day again? No, best to do it now while her time was her own. Besides, she could show it to dad when she returned to the castle that evening. He'd been the one encouraging her to do it anyways.

With the last stroke of the knife, Merida ran her thumb over the carving to clear away any access, and then smiled at her work. The hawk's call drew Merida's attention upwards. It was like it was looking straight at her. It dipped to the side suddenly, turning away and soaring off towards the distance.

Merida grinned. It was as if the hawk were leading her to the falls himself. Maybe Fate already knew she was meant for more than those useless gowns and princess lessons.

Merida road across the open valley, following the sun as it began to sink towards the tops of the mountains. Not even an hour later she came to the foot of the great water falls she had been traveling for.

She dismounted and approached the foot of the cliff. Grabbing on to whatever holds she could, she started climbing. The rock was tall, and the climb was treacherous, but she managed to grind her teeth and continue pulling herself upwards. More than half way to the top, when falling would mean certain death, Merida misplaced her hand and slipped. Her horse neighed worriedly at the bottom of the cliff, but Merida held tightly and recollected herself.

Climbing the rest of the way, Merida crawled to her feet on top of the mountain and looked out at the setting sun that outlined the breath-takingly beautiful land before her. The wind brushed lightly against her hair and cheeks, making her skirt sway around her feet. She turned to the water fall that poured endlessly into the river below.

Reaching out, and cupping her hands, Merida collected some of the water into her palms and drank it. The water was icy cold and fresh as new life in Spring. She stood, beaming happily, and then threw her arms up and twirled, cheering at what she had done as she laughed so happily.

Wait until she told her friends about this!

She returned to castle at the same pace she had left: racing. She didn't slow until she was inside the inner wall, and then hopped off as soon as her horse found his stall.

"I'm starving!" She told him, giving him a few could pats as thanks for the long day's ride. "You hungry too, Angus?" She asked, and the horse turned his head to look at her while at the same time whacking her face with his tail.

Spitting out the hair that got stuck in her mouth, Merida wiped her chin with her fist. "Oats it is, then!"

Bursting into the kitchen from the outside, Merida went straight to the table for some food. She grabbed a bright green apple, and then ate a small cookie while no one was watching. Noticing something out of the corner of her eye, Merida froze, bit the apple so she could hold it in her mouth, and backed up to the table behind her, grabbing a large plate of cakes behind her and keeping it hidden from all of the maids as she slipped out towards the dining room.

Merida threw her finished apple core over her shoulder as she walked into the main dining room. Her father was going on about his old war stories again. His favorite one, in fact, where he lost his leg to the demon bear; Mor'du.

The triplets, Hamish, Hubert, and Harris, were falling asleep in their chairs. Slowly dying of boredom as dad had told them the story a hundred time already. Merida smirked and decided to wake the boys up a little.

"...I drew my sword, and -!" Fergus, The King of Scotland, raised his chicken leg as if it were the very weapon he mentioned.

"Whoosh!" Merida cut in, appearing at the boys' sides and startling them awake. Instantly they were wide awake and their eyes were glued on her as if she told a story they'd never heard before. "One swipe and his sword shattered! And Chomp! Dad's leg was clean off! Down the monster's throat it went!" She hissed, backing away mysteriously.

"Aww! That's my favorite part!" Fergus cried, letting his hands fall to the table.

"Mor'du has never been seen since." Merida continued, circling around her father's chair. "And is roaming the wilds, waiting his chance of revenge -RAWR!" She shouted, growling and snapping at her father jokingly.

"Let him return! I'll finish what I cuddled in the first place!" Fergus told her and the twins. Merida chuckled at his antics and dropped her bow onto the table.

"Merida. A princess does not place her weapons on the table." Queen Elinor chided.

"Mom!" Merida groaned, wishing she could have just one day without being told what she can and cannot do! "It's just my bow!"

"A princess should not have weapons, in my opinion." Elinor said, giving her daughter a pointed look.

"Leave her be! Princess or not, learning to fight is essential." Fergus told the Queen, but even so Merida had already lifted her bow back into her hands.

"Mom," Merida said softly. "You'll never guess what I did today."

"Hm?" The Queen replied distractedly, shifting through papers.

"I climbed the Crone's Tooth and drank from the Fire Falls." Merida announced, feeling accomplishment in her gut and pride in her chest, but her eyes just hoped her mother would be proud of her, too. Be as excited as she was.

The twins stopped eating to gaze at her in utter amazement. Even the King was impressed.

"Fire Falls? They say only the Ancient Kings were brave enough to drink the fire." Merida laughed at the look her father gave her, and he laughed with her. She could see pride there. No surprise because her father knew she would do anything she set her mind to, so he stopped being surprised after a while, but he was always so proud of her. Merida never questioned that. Not once.

"What did you do, dear?" The Queen asked, still reading one of her papers.

Merida's smile faded, and she looked down at her plate. "Nothing, mum."

"Hungry, aren't we?" Elinor said when she finally took the time to look at her and motioned towards the large plate of cakes in front of Merida.

"Mom." Merida cringed inwardly as she drew out the word complainingly.

"You'll get dreadful collywobbles!" Queen Elinor told her. "Oh, Fergus! Would you look at your daughters plate?"

Fergus paused in his eating just long enough to glance down at the plate of cakes, and then looked back up at Elinor as barking began to echo from down the halls. "So what?" He shrugged. Before Elinor could answer the King's hounds launched onto the large man, licking him and trying to grab the meat that was in his hands.

"Oh, don't just let them -" Elinor sighed at her husband and then glanced at the triplets. "Boys! Do not -Don't just play with your haggis."

Hubert stuck his piece of haggis onto his fork and then looked mischievously at Harris. Hubert shoved the unappealing piece of meat into his brother's face, and Harris gagged, covering his mouth as if he were going to puke.

"Now, how do you know you don't like it if you don't try it?" Elinor urged them to eat their food, but the boys didn't listen, and the Queen was soon distracted by Maudie, their head maid, bringing forth some more papers for her.

While her parents were busy, Merida got her brothers' attentions. They looked at her curiously, and she pointed to the plate of cakes. She quietly slipped it into her laps and then down onto the floor underneath the table. The boys followed after it almost immediately. Merida didn't really mind their mischief, so long as it wasn't done to her, and there would be plenty of mischief after so many sugary treats.

"Fergus." The Queen called out, bringing silence to the dining hall as the King looked towards her and the hounds dropped to the floor. Merida looked at her mother curiously, unsure of what was happening. "They've all accepted."

Silence. Merida looked at her father, confused, and then back at her mother. "Who's accepted what, mother?" She asked.

The Queen hesitated, and then turned away from Merida for a moment. "Boys," She said, drawing their attention, but their shirts were stuffed with treats, no doubt, and so they jiggled comically when they turned to her. "You are excused." She told them.

The boys hurriedly jumped out of their chairs and rushed out of the dining room with all of the treats that they could, dropping a few treats along the way that brought the hounds chasing after them.

"What... did I do now?" Merida asked, completely confused about what was happening. Had she done something wrong? She couldn't remember doing anything particularly bad recently. The worst was the fight with Gothel last year, her parents had grounded her for two months, but that had long since passed.

"Your father has something to discuss with you." Elinor snapped at Fergus, obviously displeased with him for some reason. Was he supposed to speak with her before now? What did they need to discuss?

Fergus spit out his drink, spraying it in a fine mist, and then turned to his wife in terrified bewilderment.

"Fergus." Elinor prompted again, nodding towards Merida.

Fergus cleared his throat awkwardly, looked at his daughter, and then seemed to take a moment to think about what he was going to say. "Uh... Merida."

That was as far as he managed to get. Elinor sighed and decided tell Merida herself.

"The Lords are presenting their sons as suitors for your betrothal!" The Queen announced excitedly, seemingly thrilled with the idea.

"What?" Merida looked at her, terrified and shocked.

"The Clans have accepted!" The Queen looked positively delighted.

"Dad!" Merida cried, hoping this was all a bad dream and that her father would be on her side like always.

"What? I -I -I... She... Elinor?" He pleaded for help.

"Honestly, Merida, I don't know why you're reacting this way." Elinor shook her head in disapproval, and Merida groaned in frustration, dropping her head onto the table as the Queen went on. "This year each Clan will present a suitor to compete in the Games for your hand!"

"I suppose a princess just does as she's told!" Merida scoffed, throwing her hands up and then slamming her fists on the table, giving her mother a firm glare.

"A princess does not raise her voice." Elinor straightened in a commanding way. "Merida, this is what you've been preparing for your whole life."

"No." Merida retorted, standing so fast her chair screeched against the stone floors. "It's what you've been preparing me for my whole life! I won't go through with it! You can't make me!" Merida shouted, grabbing her bow as she stormed out of the room.

"Merida!" The Queen called after her, but the girl didn't listen.

When Elinor came to find her again, Merida had her sword and was using it to take out all of her frustrations on her bed post. She was angry, hurt, and though she would never admit it, Merida was scared. She wasn't ready for this! Marriage? She was only thirteen! What about Hogwarts? What about her friends?

Seeing her mother at the door, Merida stopped and sagged down, slouching on her bed. "Mother. Suitors? Marriage?!"

"Once there was an ancient kingdom," Elinor began, crossing the room to an old chest.

"Uhg, mom!" Merida groaned, flopping onto her back on the bed. "Ancient kingdom..." She rolled her eyes as she slid off onto the floor.

"It's name long forgotten, ruled by a wise and fair king who was much beloved." Elinor set down a chess set and showed Merida the white king piece. "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." She arranged three white pieces and one black piece to hold the chess board above the table top. "But the eldest son wanted to rule the land for himself. Forging his own path, and the kingdom fell into war and chaos and ruin." She yanked away the black piece and the board and piece scattered onto the floor in front of Merida.

"That's a nice story." The red-head remarked a bit sarcastically.

"It's not just a story, Merida. Legends are Lessons, they ring with truth." Elinor told her.

"Gah, Mom." Merida cringed at yet another lesson. She didn't need a lesson, she needed her mother to listen!

"I would advise you to make your peace with this." Elinor said firmly as Merida gripped her hair in her fists. "The Clans are coming to present their suitors."

"It's not fair!" Merida snapped back.

"Merida, it's just marriage. It's not the end of the world." Elinor rolled her eyes as she walked out of the room.

Merida shot to her feet and glared at her mother's retreating form. She grabbed the door with both hands and slammed it shut.

She turned away from the door angrily, her cheeks burning and her eyes itching, but she refused to cry. She paced back and forth angry at her mother, angry at the Lords, angry at the betrothal, just everything!

She finally grew sick of pacing and threw herself onto the bed, face buried in her pillows. After a moment of stillness, she peeked over the edge at her beside table. There was the picture of her, Rapunzel, Hiccup, and Jack from first year. Their arms raised and bright grins on their faces.

What would they say if they knew what was happening? What would they do? Surely, they'd be on her side, right? She wasn't ready for marriage! She wanted freedom, not a husband!

This was her third year. She should be thinking about what electives she was going to take with her friends, and what they'll do on the Hogsmeade field trip that they finally get to go on. Will she even get to finish her education at Hogwarts if she gets married?

No. She would not let that happen. No matter what the future held for her, Merida would never let anyone, not even her mother, take away the school she loved and the friends she couldn't live without.

Merida reached for a quill and paper and started writing as fast as she possibly could.

No one was going to take away her freedom.