Alongside Wallace
Never had I felt so strongly for something as I did freedom. My father, dead from a soldiers beating; my mother, raped by an English noble, both lost forever to me. Hate enwrapped its wings around me and caused my eyes to burn when the word 'Long Shanks' was mentioned. In a way I was lost to anger, in no hope of recovering. My only thoughts were of treason to my so called 'king', and revenge. I had witnessed the horror of my village burning throughout the moonlit night, of my people suffering at the hands of a coward who never showed his face.
What gave me hope was the stories of William Wallace, and his triumph against the English, in one single battle. He at the time was gathering recruits from every village, enlisting the men, yet not willing to take on anyone less than fourteen. When he came to my ruined village just days after the English raid, I got to see the man that was supposedly seven feet tall. He rode high on his brown mare, his Scottish men following behind. I, dressed in a dirty skirt and a shear shirt, with mud on my face, stood to the side of the his 'army', which was nothing more than 30 men. I straightened my back and peered at him with utmost respect, my blue eyes shining with pride for having seen him up close. He slowed his horse down when he was but seven feet from me, and looked at each and every worn face in the village. He turned to his left and peered down at me, and suddenly I felt shy and small. He smiled, and gave me a quick wink before continuing down the main dirt street. My heart raced, William Wallace had just winked at me! A sense of peace immediately seeped through my body, and I smiled. His face had told nothing but courage and loss, and his eyes glistened with a sense of hope for our people. Now he had ridden to the top of the village, and turned his horse around.
In a loud, booming voice that riveted in my chest, he shouted, "What I see before me, I see all over Scotland. Your loss is not forgotten, and I grieve for you all". He took a breath, gazing through the crowd of men and women that had gathered. "I ask you, brothers, to join with me, to defeat this foe that dares try to take away our freedom. Now is the time to strike, to show them that we our Scottish, and we will protect our home! Will you help me, slay this evil that takes over our lives? Rapes our women? Kills our sons? I beg you to take no more, to stand up for your god given right to live!"
His speech, his tone, his hatred that burned, all played key factors in making me realize what I needed to do. I wanted to help; to slay the evil Long Shanks, and take back my home. Immediately I knew it was my purpose in life. I didn't care what the cost, all I knew was that William Wallace and I shared the same dream, and if he could do it, so could I. I was not stupid, though, and knew that he would never let a girl join in his ranks. It was unheard of, and even a warrior like Wallace would be opposed to such a thought. But no one could rule my life, and I vowed then and there that I would do whatever it took to help Wallace defeat the English. Whatever it took.
As Wallace and his men helped us rebuild our village, all the women raced to make food for the welcomed warriors. I, also went with them. But instead of picking berries with the other girls, I decided that Wallace's men will need meat, and our village men were too busy helping rebuild. I took that opportunity to go into the forest, with my bow and arrows, and shoot a boar that had luckily come close to the edge of the forest. I expertly cooked it, and had it ready in less than an hour.
While the other women presented the men with fruits and vegetables, I made sure to wait with my meat to make sure William himself got it. A chubby man with a red beard approached me and kindly asked for some water. I knew him as William's right hand, and obediently did as I was asked. He luckily went to sit next to Wallace, and I brought both the water and boar to his mini circle, made up of only 6 men, 2 of which belonged to our village. I approached slowly, for I was still in awe of seeing William Wallace up close. I ducked my head, and handed the bearded man the water.
"Begging your pardon, sir, but I thought you might like this boar meat here…its ripe fresh, I made sure of that," I hesitantly said to the famed warrior. Still keeping my head down, I watched as he smiled but failed to take the meat.
"Thank you, but give it to your own people. They're starving, and need it more than us." I saw the look of disheartenment with the men, and almost laughed out loud. Luckily, I contained myself, but still protested.
"But sir, I shot it special for your men. What your doing with our village is so kind, I thought maybe this could be a way to pay you back." I waited for a reply, and was surprised to that same twinkle in his eye.
"You mean to say that you shot this?" He sounded impressed. He turned to his men, and joked, "See what the English have done? They've now forced our women to become warriors as well."
A chuckle went throughout the crowd, and I smiled slightly, not sure to interpret the joke as a compliment or offense. He turned back towards me as he started to eat the meat. The men eagerly all took a piece, and he said to me, "Wow. Cooked just right. What's your secret?"
"Spices of my own recipe. Sir Wallace, I-"he immediately interrupted me.
"I'm not an English noble bastard, so don't go calling me sir,' he chimed. Here goes nothing…
"Sorry, sir. I…wanted to ask you a question. I, I heard you speak earlier of recruiting people to help fight the English, and I want you to know that I'm with you all the way," at this guffaws and laughs erupted throughout the men, and wouldn't stop for minutes. Only Wallace remained silent, his lips not curving into a smile or anything. He thought about it for a minute, then spoke in a serious tone.
"I'm sorry, my lady, but I'm not recruiting young girls to go to war and risk their lives. It's barbaric, and it isn't right to me. If you want to help, you can by helping rebuild your village and taking care of its people." he started to smile again, "Keep on shooting game and providing food for your people."
I knew a dismissal on sight, but failed to do so. I had to try harder. "Please, Mister Wallace, I know I may not seem like a fighter, but I got more hatred than…than…you…maybe. Well, maybe not you, but the English killed my father and raped my mother. I HAV to fight for their honor. I feel its fate that you came to my village and fate that I should fight with your men. I'm a good cook, and I know a lot about healing. I…I just want a chance. You talked about our right to live, to stand up to Long Shanks, and I'm willing to do so. So far you have but 3 recruits from my village- you could use one more. Please Wallace, its all I want to do in my life."
I don't know what it was about me, maybe it was the way I had spoken with him, as no woman should do, or maybe he heard the passion in my voice, but whatever reason, I had him stumped. His men were silent, waiting to hear what he had to say about me. I waited with them. I knew I had been pert, but dammit, I needed to say all that. I didn't care anymore what he thought, I knew I had to take that risk.
Finally he spoke, "I've never heard someone so determined. But, the fact remains that you're a girl. I don't know what to tell you, but its against my belief to send maidens into war. War is not something you want to experience. You think you know all about it, but it hits you like a rock. And suddenly you can't back out now. Your scared, and the courage you thought you had runs away from you."
He was trying to scare me, I knew. But I wasn't to be fooled. "I may not have experienced war, but I know enough not to stupidly interpret it as some glorious journey filled with fun. All I want is a chance to be equal to men: to help fight the people I hate so much. That's all I ask."
He sighed, but I noticed didn't change his expression. He was saying no. he didn't need to say anything, and I decided not to waste my time any longer. I bowed my head and walked away, returning to the woods that are my home. I understood his reasoning behind not letting me go, but no way in hell was that going to stop me. I would fight with or without the Scottish army. I started to pack, for I had a long journey ahead of me.
Never had I felt so strongly for something as I did freedom. My father, dead from a soldiers beating; my mother, raped by an English noble, both lost forever to me. Hate enwrapped its wings around me and caused my eyes to burn when the word 'Long Shanks' was mentioned. In a way I was lost to anger, in no hope of recovering. My only thoughts were of treason to my so called 'king', and revenge. I had witnessed the horror of my village burning throughout the moonlit night, of my people suffering at the hands of a coward who never showed his face.
What gave me hope was the stories of William Wallace, and his triumph against the English, in one single battle. He at the time was gathering recruits from every village, enlisting the men, yet not willing to take on anyone less than fourteen. When he came to my ruined village just days after the English raid, I got to see the man that was supposedly seven feet tall. He rode high on his brown mare, his Scottish men following behind. I, dressed in a dirty skirt and a shear shirt, with mud on my face, stood to the side of the his 'army', which was nothing more than 30 men. I straightened my back and peered at him with utmost respect, my blue eyes shining with pride for having seen him up close. He slowed his horse down when he was but seven feet from me, and looked at each and every worn face in the village. He turned to his left and peered down at me, and suddenly I felt shy and small. He smiled, and gave me a quick wink before continuing down the main dirt street. My heart raced, William Wallace had just winked at me! A sense of peace immediately seeped through my body, and I smiled. His face had told nothing but courage and loss, and his eyes glistened with a sense of hope for our people. Now he had ridden to the top of the village, and turned his horse around.
In a loud, booming voice that riveted in my chest, he shouted, "What I see before me, I see all over Scotland. Your loss is not forgotten, and I grieve for you all". He took a breath, gazing through the crowd of men and women that had gathered. "I ask you, brothers, to join with me, to defeat this foe that dares try to take away our freedom. Now is the time to strike, to show them that we our Scottish, and we will protect our home! Will you help me, slay this evil that takes over our lives? Rapes our women? Kills our sons? I beg you to take no more, to stand up for your god given right to live!"
His speech, his tone, his hatred that burned, all played key factors in making me realize what I needed to do. I wanted to help; to slay the evil Long Shanks, and take back my home. Immediately I knew it was my purpose in life. I didn't care what the cost, all I knew was that William Wallace and I shared the same dream, and if he could do it, so could I. I was not stupid, though, and knew that he would never let a girl join in his ranks. It was unheard of, and even a warrior like Wallace would be opposed to such a thought. But no one could rule my life, and I vowed then and there that I would do whatever it took to help Wallace defeat the English. Whatever it took.
As Wallace and his men helped us rebuild our village, all the women raced to make food for the welcomed warriors. I, also went with them. But instead of picking berries with the other girls, I decided that Wallace's men will need meat, and our village men were too busy helping rebuild. I took that opportunity to go into the forest, with my bow and arrows, and shoot a boar that had luckily come close to the edge of the forest. I expertly cooked it, and had it ready in less than an hour.
While the other women presented the men with fruits and vegetables, I made sure to wait with my meat to make sure William himself got it. A chubby man with a red beard approached me and kindly asked for some water. I knew him as William's right hand, and obediently did as I was asked. He luckily went to sit next to Wallace, and I brought both the water and boar to his mini circle, made up of only 6 men, 2 of which belonged to our village. I approached slowly, for I was still in awe of seeing William Wallace up close. I ducked my head, and handed the bearded man the water.
"Begging your pardon, sir, but I thought you might like this boar meat here…its ripe fresh, I made sure of that," I hesitantly said to the famed warrior. Still keeping my head down, I watched as he smiled but failed to take the meat.
"Thank you, but give it to your own people. They're starving, and need it more than us." I saw the look of disheartenment with the men, and almost laughed out loud. Luckily, I contained myself, but still protested.
"But sir, I shot it special for your men. What your doing with our village is so kind, I thought maybe this could be a way to pay you back." I waited for a reply, and was surprised to that same twinkle in his eye.
"You mean to say that you shot this?" He sounded impressed. He turned to his men, and joked, "See what the English have done? They've now forced our women to become warriors as well."
A chuckle went throughout the crowd, and I smiled slightly, not sure to interpret the joke as a compliment or offense. He turned back towards me as he started to eat the meat. The men eagerly all took a piece, and he said to me, "Wow. Cooked just right. What's your secret?"
"Spices of my own recipe. Sir Wallace, I-"he immediately interrupted me.
"I'm not an English noble bastard, so don't go calling me sir,' he chimed. Here goes nothing…
"Sorry, sir. I…wanted to ask you a question. I, I heard you speak earlier of recruiting people to help fight the English, and I want you to know that I'm with you all the way," at this guffaws and laughs erupted throughout the men, and wouldn't stop for minutes. Only Wallace remained silent, his lips not curving into a smile or anything. He thought about it for a minute, then spoke in a serious tone.
"I'm sorry, my lady, but I'm not recruiting young girls to go to war and risk their lives. It's barbaric, and it isn't right to me. If you want to help, you can by helping rebuild your village and taking care of its people." he started to smile again, "Keep on shooting game and providing food for your people."
I knew a dismissal on sight, but failed to do so. I had to try harder. "Please, Mister Wallace, I know I may not seem like a fighter, but I got more hatred than…than…you…maybe. Well, maybe not you, but the English killed my father and raped my mother. I HAV to fight for their honor. I feel its fate that you came to my village and fate that I should fight with your men. I'm a good cook, and I know a lot about healing. I…I just want a chance. You talked about our right to live, to stand up to Long Shanks, and I'm willing to do so. So far you have but 3 recruits from my village- you could use one more. Please Wallace, its all I want to do in my life."
I don't know what it was about me, maybe it was the way I had spoken with him, as no woman should do, or maybe he heard the passion in my voice, but whatever reason, I had him stumped. His men were silent, waiting to hear what he had to say about me. I waited with them. I knew I had been pert, but dammit, I needed to say all that. I didn't care anymore what he thought, I knew I had to take that risk.
Finally he spoke, "I've never heard someone so determined. But, the fact remains that you're a girl. I don't know what to tell you, but its against my belief to send maidens into war. War is not something you want to experience. You think you know all about it, but it hits you like a rock. And suddenly you can't back out now. Your scared, and the courage you thought you had runs away from you."
He was trying to scare me, I knew. But I wasn't to be fooled. "I may not have experienced war, but I know enough not to stupidly interpret it as some glorious journey filled with fun. All I want is a chance to be equal to men: to help fight the people I hate so much. That's all I ask."
He sighed, but I noticed didn't change his expression. He was saying no. he didn't need to say anything, and I decided not to waste my time any longer. I bowed my head and walked away, returning to the woods that are my home. I understood his reasoning behind not letting me go, but no way in hell was that going to stop me. I would fight with or without the Scottish army. I started to pack, for I had a long journey ahead of me.