A/N: I was going to post this yesterday but couldn't so…But here it is now!

Miles and miles the army travels down through Macintosh lands, which is where they come across some stragglers of the Macintosh army and absorbed them into theirs. It took them several days to go from the Dingwall lands to the edge of the DunBroch territory, but it was much shorter than they expected. When they do at last get there, they find that the battle is already underway. And it is impossible to tell who has the upper hand.

Merida and Queen Elinor ride into the midst of battle, and are followed by most of the cavalry. At some point, Merida is separated from the group and is firing her arrows at the enemy. It is life or death now. Suddenly, she is surprised when she is suddenly pulled from Angus.

"Oi!" she cries, thinking she is to be killed by an enemy soldier. She draws an arrow, as they were her only weapons, and is ready to stab the man.

The man turns out to be Duncan.

"Duncan? Have ye gone mad?" Merida asked indignantly. She had just about to stab him and now her fighting had been halted by being pulled off of Angus.

"No, but ye were a prime target on Angus," Duncan pointed out, "But come, we have collapsed one of the walls." Duncan then took off running towards the castle, plowing down foes as he raced to a section of the south wall. Merida pursued him, not going to be left behind, and was firing arrow after arrow into the masses as she passed through the throngs of soldiers. By the time she finally caught up with Duncan, her dress was torn in several places, but adrenaline pumped through her veins, so any wounds she had were ignored. Duncan was very bloody, though whether it was his own or not was not clear. But if he were in any pain, he doesn't seem to be. Before the pair lay ruins of the south wall, and dead bodies were piled at the narrow entrance.

"We must go in, and there ye shall take back the throne," Duncan told Merida as he began to remove the bodies from the entranceway. Merida nodded before he started his task and then turned around. Merida covered him by firing arrows at whoever tried to charge at them. Most of the soldiers were too busy fighting their enemy to pay any heed to the pair.

Duncan removed the last body and then went in first. He had to tread carefully because of all the fallen stones. Merida turned her head to check on her companion and saw Duncan going through. She was a little mad, but walked up to the entrance without speaking a word. Merida then followed Duncan through the walkway.

"They may 'ave guards here Merida," Duncan said as he glanced around, "So be discreet." He stepped through, looking up at the walls around him. He wasn't shot down, so Merida followed him in. She had her bow at the ready, but the village was abandoned, not a soul in sight. There were certainly silent bodies everywhere, but no living ones.

But there was yelling was coming from inside the castle.

Merida turned to Duncan and he nodded his head. The pair charged toward the castle, yelling as they went.

Duncan slammed into thick, oak double doors. The door was already partially open, and the combination of Duncan's bulk and his momentum forced the door to swing open…

The process of opening was very slow, and this was because the door was very heavy. Duncan shoved the door further open and drew out his heavy broadsword from his back.

"Hopefully we shall see each other again," Duncan grinned at Merida before running down one of the halls. Merida opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by another voice.

"Princess Merida! 'Bout time ya showed up!" Kenda shouted, wielding a bloody dagger. "Took this from one of the guards, I ran out of arrows and had to ditch the bow. Come on, your father is this way." Kenda ran off and Merida followed after her. Merida ran past bloody walls and floors, bodies that wore either the colors of the clans or the colors of the invaders were strewn about the hall.

The pair rounded a corner, Kenda halting as Merida ran past her.

"ARGH!" Fergus shouted, swinging an axe about at two men about as big as him. One had a massive wound to the face and was surely about to collapse.

"FATHER!" Merida shouted. She ran towards him and fired two arrows at the unwounded man. One struck his arm and the other his throat. He made a gurgling yell before he collapsed facedown.

"MERIDA!" Fergus called, chopping the final foe down at last. He scooped her into his arms. "Yer alright…" Merida smiled in his hug.

"Of course Da, ye are me father, after all," Merida grinned. Fergus released Merida with a chuckle.

"We must go to the throne room, King Gruffudd is there, and we must finish him," the king said seriously, ceasing his chuckling. Fergus and Merida went towards the throne room. Kenda had disappeared during their reunion.

Once the pair reached the throne room, they saw many of their allies interlocked in battle.

Vailean was fighting a captain (the captain's rank was revealed because of what he was wearing), and Vailean was standing over his wounded father. Eoghan was viciously attacking three guards alone; his paint was smeared and this made him look all the more ferocious. Alistair MacGuffin and Lord Dingwall were fighting some of King Gruffudd's personal guards. Berwyn had just slain a man when Kenda burst in and King Gruffudd knocked his opponent down.

"You!" he shouted, both with fury and glee. His eyes flashed maliciously and he reached behind him. King Gruffudd removed the weapon from his back. He hefted a spear in his hand and tossed it at Kenda, who was focused on a guard who had cut her off.

"KENDA!" Berwyn shouted, running towards her. Merida fired an arrow at King Gruffudd, and felt despair that she would not be able to save her newfound friend. Kenda stabbed the man who had intercepted her and he fell dead, and that's when she saw the spear. She froze, because she had no time to get out of the way.

Kenda was then pushed aside, with the Welsh prince taking her place. He gasped and the force of the spear knocked him to the ground. Berwyn fell towards Kenda and she grabbed him, trying to stop his fall. But instead of stopping his fall, his deadweight dragged her down with him. The spear was sticking out of Berwyn's stomach, the point of most people's attention. King Gruffudd makes a gurgling roar and falls, now at last dead.

And soon his son would soon follow him.

"Get the boy help! Now men! Hurry!" Fergus shouted, rushing to Berwyn and pulling the now stock-still Kenda away from the dying prince.

Merida takes in the scene as Duncan comes in.

"What has happened?" he asks, coming up to Merida as he takes in the scene before him.

"Berwyn is going to die…And there's nothing we can do." Berwyn's face had paled further and his shirt was quickly becoming bloodier and bloodier.

"What about tha witch, Merida?" Duncan asked quietly and a light bulb went off in Merida's head.

"Of course! Thank ye Duncan!" she loudly whispered, hugging the boy before running off. Duncan blinked in shock, his face reddening. Nobody noticed…

Nobody but Vailean that is, who frowned at Duncan, but then turned back to his father.

-Linebreak-

Merida pushed her way past soldiers, most of whom were taking prisoners and many of the invaders were now surrendering as the news of their king's death reached them. She rushed out and quickly found Angus ambling around. She whistled for him and he obediently came trotting up. Merida climbed up onto his back, and the adrenaline was once more pumping through her. She hastily urged Angus forward and directed him toward the witch's hut, heading for the woods.

Angus begins to be frightened almost as soon as they enter the woods.

"Angus! Angus, no!" Merida scolded him before being tossed from his back and crashing to the ground. Angus turned and fled the scene…and then cackling reaches the princess's ears.

"You! I need help!" Merida said, pulling herself up, not feeling any pain after she was slammed onto the ground. She saw the witch almost right next to her.

"Yes? Everyone seems to need help…What more could ye need?" the witch asked, chuckling to herself and collecting wood, which she placed into a basket.

"A friend of mine is dying, and I thought ye could-"Merida was cut off by the witch.

"Oh no child," the witch mournfully said, stopping her task and facing Merida. "For 'im to live, he would have to forfeit his humanity. Ye saw what happened to yer mother. Me magic is strongest with bears, and your friend would have to be a bear fer me to save 'is life."
"I would do anything to save him!" Merida exclaimed.

The witch sighed at her impudence and the old woman snapped her fingers. Merida blinked at that moment and suddenly the two were in the witch's hut. The witch began humming to herself as she gathered ingredients and began to make the potion. The cauldron was boiling over purple flames and the hut had grown dark, just like last time. Within moments, however, the witch paused in her work.

"What is it?" Merida demanded, knowing that precious moments lost meant that Berwyn's chances of surviving were diminishing.

"The boy is…dead." Merida was suddenly gripped by cold, awful, awful cold of despair. While she had hated Berwyn at first, he had really pulled through for her people and now the bards would forever sing of his sacrifice…

I shouldn't 'ave even tried this hopeless mission…, Merida thought, depressed by these thoughts. She began to leave, and that's when she heard a snap behind her.

The next thing Merida knew, she was at the edge of the forest once more. And she was utterly alone.

-Linebreak-

Merida was heading back towards the castle, but then caught sight of a solitary figure at the docks. She frowned and began heading that way. Her adrenaline was gone, but she was so numb from grief she still felt nothing.

Reaching the docks, she discovered who was there. It was Kenda, untying a rope.

"Kenda? Kenda!" Merida ran towards her, nearly falling as her knees just about gave way. Kenda halted her work and looked up. The older girl gave a grim smile.

"Hello princess, what brings you here?" Kenda asked, standing up.

"I could ask you the same…," Merida replied slowly, looking from Kenda and the small boat.

"I'm leaving, if you must know. I have nothing left. My older brothers all perished in a war years ago and…and I want to know if my family is still alive. I may have forsaken my people, but I don't want to forsake my family too. You understand, don't you?" Kenda practically begged for Merida to understand.

And Merida did, if she lost everything and yet still knew her family could be out there, she would want to find them too.

"Yes, yes of course," Merida answered. Kenda gave a weak smile.

"By the way, you look exhausted and those wounds should be treated too," Kenda remarked, climbing into the boat and pulling the rope off. As Merida inspected herself, Kenda rowed away.

Merida had a gash on her forehead, and her arms and legs were cut up. She had no idea where they came from. Merida then began heading back to the castle.

Upon returning to the castle, she went to the throne room and saw the Berwyn's body had been laid onto the table. A man was standing over him and the room was empty aside from the three of them.

"Ah! Princess Merida, I have a favor to ask you," the man said. Merida raised an eyebrow at the man.

"And who are you?" she asked, highly suspicious of the man.

"Forgive me, forgive me. I am from Wales and was brought her because of my talents…You see, I can heal far better than any doctor. Many call me a warlock, but I prefer 'True Healer' if you will," the man said, grinning at Merida.

"What might you, O True Healer, need from a measly, old princess?" Merida asked sarcastically, now annoyed. The man just continued to grin at her.

"The boy is not dead, but I cannot keep him living forever. Do you know what would make his spirit return? You see, his soul has already wandered away, but if he were given a purpose to live…" The man left the sentence hanging, but Merida finally took the bait.

"Yes! Yes, I do!" Merida exclaimed, excited she might be able to save the wrongfully hated prince. She rushed over to his still side and began to speak:

"Berwyn, if ye can hear me please listen. Kenda believes she's alone, and she could be without you. If you will not live for your former people, yer new allies, do it for her. I know she means so much to you and you mean the world to her," Merida hastily said, blinking away tears. For a few, agonizing moments, Berwyn did not stir.

I've failed…, Merida thought somberly. "She would do it for you…"

Still, there was not a response.

But when Merida was about to get away from the hopeless Berwyn, his eyelids began to flutter. He groaned as his eyes opened, revealing his pink irises. His clothes were still bloody, but the wound was gone. Of course, Merida didn't see this, but she saw Berwyn sit up, healthy and alive. Merida opened her mouth in glee, about to speak. Berwyn beat her to the punch.

"Where's Kenda? Merida, where is she?" Berwyn asked, looking around the room. The mysterious man was gone, but Berwyn didn't even know he had been there.

"She's at the docks, but she was rowing away when I left," Merida informed him. Berwyn pushed himself off the table and fell to his knees. "Berwyn!"

"I'm alright Merida, but I need to get there…" He pushed himself up and ran from the castle. Merida followed after him, and soon someone was following her.

Berwyn, obviously, reached the docks first. He saw Kenda was still struggling to row away, not yet to the mouth of the river.

"Kenda! Kenda, I'm alive! Kenda!" Berwyn called and the figure looked up. The figure begins rowing back.

"I'm coming with you! But we'll have a better ship! Kenda!" Berwyn continued. Kenda finally stood and jumped into the waters, swimming back towards the docks. Berwyn reaches down and pulls Kenda onto the docks. Merida was about to turn to leave when she saw it.

As Berwyn pulled Kenda onto the docks, he kissed her full on the lips.

"At least there's a happy ending," a deep voice says from behind Merida. Merida jumps and turns to face Duncan MacGuffin. He smiles sheepishly at her.

"Sorry Merida…"

"It's alright," Merida blinked.

"We should go; they will most likely go with the survivors." Many young soldiers and some older ones were heading towards the docks now. Fergus is at the lead, laughing loudly with one of the generals.

"Ah! Merida, good to see ye came to see them off! These fine people are going home and we shall start a treaty with the ones who shall stay, like this sir here, Oscar…Somethin' or other." The man bowed to Merida.

"My people are not all bad, we were either forced to be this way or raised to be…Though some enjoyed it. I believe those shall be executed, but the prisoners of your father's will be." The man bowed again and three ships were chosen to take the seventy remaining people and supplies home. Several soldiers from the clans were going as well, to be sure they made it safely…and that they weren't planning something devious.

Berwyn caught Merida's eye and winked before disappearing amongst the crowd with Kenda.

Merida smiled; glad to know it would all be okay.

"Let us head back, we are not needed here," Duncan said, placing his hand on Merida's soldier. She nodded and turned to head home at last.

When they reached the castle gates, Queen Elinor and her brothers greeted them.

"Yer alright, oh mother and me brothers!" Merida called out upon seeing them; excited to see they were all alright.

"And they were quite the terror," Queen Elinor said, "They terrorized the men here and trapped quite a few…And managed to recruit a few boy to their cause." The two women laughed and the triplets looked indignant. Duncan stood to the side, letting the family have their reunion.

Things looked bright once more for the clans of Scotland.

A/N: And…the end! Wow, took me one day to write this. Impressive, but it wasn't as long as the last chapter…Oh well, it turned out decently. Hope y'all have enjoyed this story, and stayed tuned for future stories! *waves goodbye*