A.N. Alright, now things are beginning to heat up! I promise, we'll get to some of the really juicy stuff soon, but there's a little further to go for that yet; I have a plan, I swear. For now, enjoy, and please, REVIEW!

Disclaimer: I don' own Brave, an' 'm fair sure ya knew tha'.

OooOooOooOooO (Castle Dun Broch, Afternoon)

The four teens had returned to the castle after having almost been discovered, putting the idea of training together to rest for the time being. As Ainsley had pointed out, that encounter had been too close. None of them was eager to get caught, and they really didn't want to have to play at wooing again; it was entirely too strange. Lunch was an awkward affair, as the three lords spent the whole meal jostling each other and giving everyone knowing looks. Their whispers were not particularly discreet, and their continued arguing over who was doing the best job of wooing was even less so. As such, the four teens were too embarrassed to even look at each other, let alone talk. They spent most of the meal staring silently at their plates with red faces. Queen Elinor looked confused and suspicious at this, but she was too tired of conflict to ask; weapons had not been confiscated for this meal, and she was trying to avoid any more damage to the dining area. Fergus, as expected, noticed nothing but the plate in front of him.

Merida ate little, and her desserts were still forfeit to her brothers, so she quietly left the table as soon as possible. The lordlings, not wanting to foster any more rumors with their fathers, remained at the table, still unable to even converse with one another.

Meanwhile, Merida hurried to her room, searching for a pencil and some paper. She had been too embarrassed to even attempt to speak to them in public, but she had an idea to give them more alone time to get to know one another. Finding the materials she needed, she quickly scribbled down four words onto each sheet and snuck back out again.

A few minutes later, out of breath but proud of herself, she collapsed onto her bed and allowed herself to relax. Running all over the castle without getting caught was no easy feat, especially for someone as recognizable as the princess, but she thought she had done an admirable job. Her message was sent, and now all she had to do was wait.

OooOooOooOooO (Ranulf's room, Castle Dun Broch, A few minutes later)

Ranulf happily closed his door, abruptly cutting off his father's advice about how to woo the princess. He was about to flop on his bed and bury his face in his pillow when he spotted a piece of paper lying neatly on the center of bed. He didn't remember leaving any paper in his room that morning, let alone on his bed, so he quickly scooped it up.

There were four words in the center of the page, but the message was easily understood. "Sitting room. One hour." Considering the other two boys had left the table at the same time as him, the letter had to be from Merida; he wondered if the others had received the same message. Then he wondered if he remembered the way to the sitting room. He decided that either way, this was going to be interesting.

OooOooOooOooO (Sitting room, An hour later)

Merida smiled at the three boys as they settled themselves into chairs. Their expressions ranged from confused to intrigued, but they were all watching her and clearly expecting some kind of explanation. However, Merida was second-guessing herself, and she stayed silent, trying to think of the best way to approach the subject. Finally, Valan, never known for his patience, got tired of waiting.

"So, wha' di' ya call us here fer?"

"I, erm, I had an idea. We all wan' ta spend time together, an' ge' ta know each other, righ'?" The boys nodded. "Well, I though' o' a way fer us ta do tha', bu' ya migh' no' like it."

"Oh, jus' ge' it over with," Ainsley commented with a groan as he slumped in his chair.

"Fine," Merida replied with a glare in his direction. "All o' you go ta yer da's an' tell them that yer tryin' ta woo me by takin' me ou' ta see the stars or whatever ya like. I'll tell my da I'm goin' shootin' ta ge' ou' o' the castle fer a bit. No one has ta know we're all together, bu' no one will interrupt us. It migh' be a bit embarrassin', bu' it'll work."

Ranulf blushed. "Bu' our da's are already makin' jokes; if we do this, they'll never le' us live it down."

"We already started this charade; migh' as well make use o' it," Merida replied firmly. Ranulf reddened further, but he nodded. Valan nodded slowly as well, obviously deep in thought.

"'S a good plan. Bit embarrassin', aye, bu' ye're right; it'll work."

"I like it," Ainsley said simply.

"Alrigh' then," Merida resolved. "Le's go talk ta our parents. Meet in the stables in an hour, aye?" The boys nodded once more, and then they were off, eager to implement this new plan, embarrassment or no. No one noticed three heads with red curls ducking back behind a bench in the corner.

OooOooOooOooO (The stables, Castle Dun Broch, Another hour later)

One by one, the four teens filtered in. Ainsley was the last to arrive, looking more confused then usual. Ranulf, who was saddling his Clydesdale with care, glanced over and took in the blonde's expression.

"Wha's wrong, Ainsley?" The other two teens turned to look as well, and the blonde seemed to struggle for a moment before replying.

"'M just a wee bit confused. When I tol' my da I was takin' Merida ridin', he said something strange, and 'm no' sure wha' he meant."

"Well, wha' did he say?" Valan pushed.

"He tol' me no ta do anythin' tha' had 'lastin' consequences.' I mean, s'not like 'm gonna hurt her 'r anythin'; why would he tell me tha'?"

Merida blushed from the part in her hair to her toes, while the other two boys promptly doubled over laughing.

"Wha'?" Ainsley asked, looking more confused then ever. "No really, wha'?" Ranulf, having recovered, placed a large hand on the smaller boy's shoulder.

"Don' worry abou' it; I'll tell ya later." This prompted Valan, who had finally calmed down, to dissolve back into gales of laughter. Merida, still crimson, retreated to Angus and hid behind his large body, shielding her face from view. She quickly heaved herself on his back and let her hair swing forward over her face.

Eventually, the boys all calmed down enough to mount their horses, and soon all four of the teens were thundering out of the stables and heading down the well worn path out of the castle walls.

Behind them, again unnoticed, Merida's brothers quickly commandeered a horse, threw themselves into the saddle, which was large enough to accommodate all of them, and set off after the teens. After all, this promised to be much more entertaining then another boring night in the castle.

OooOooOooOooO (Castle Dun Broch, Dinner)

Dinner was, as expected, a boisterous affair. The food was delicious, the wine was flowing, and everyone was in fine spirits. Soon, talk amongst the three lords turned to the wooing of the princess, as it so often did these days. At first, they just discussed the scene in the practice arena, but none of them could keep a secret for long, especially when it afforded bragging rights.

"My boy is ridin' off inta the sunset with the princess," Lord Dingwall announced to the others. "He's takin' her ridin' tonigh'. I expect they'll be married within the year."

"Well, my boy is takin' her out ta see the stars. I bet they'll be married in a few months," Lord MacGuffin retorted with a smirk.

"My boy is with her righ' now," Lord Macintosh proclaimed proudly. "They'll probably be married within the month."

"No, she cannae be with yer boy righ' now; she's ou' ridin' with mine," Lord Dingwall protested.

"No, she's with mine, goin' ta see the stars," Lord MadGuffin put in. This soon developed into bickering, which quickly escalated. Queen Elinor was distracted by husband and failed to break it up before it turned into a full on fight. Soon enough, all three men had their hands on the hilts of their various weapons, and things were about to get bloody.

However, at that very moment, as they rushed at each other, the sun finally sunk below the horizon, and mid-charge, all three men collapsed. It didn't take them long to get back up again, though, and moments later, they were all taking swings at one another with their… paws. The entire room, the entire castle, in fact, was suddenly full of bears, and the only humans left were riding into the woods, totally unaware of the situation. This was going to be a very long night.

OooOooOooOooO

A.N. Well, there you have it. The curse has finally taken effect. Things will really get started in the next chapter, now that we've gotten to that point. I've got several surprises in the works, so I hope you'll all like those. Another big thanks to my college friends for prompting me to write; yet again, you've got them to thank for this chapter.

On a related note, go look at the works of silentmidnightdeath. She's got some awesome stuff, and also, she's one of my real-life friends, as well as one of the TWO people who reviewed the last chapter. Seriously guys, I know you're reading because of the stats; please REVIEW! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Until next time, my pretties!