Gone. There is no other word to say, and an emptiness has surrounded me. Wallace was not supposed to be a martyr; I always thought that maybe, one day, he would be my king. I would have served him to the end, just like I did when he was my commander. They say his body was torn apart immediately afterward, and sent to various cities. It was supposed to scare the rest of our army, but it did no good to me. The ride back was one of the most solemn journeys I ever faced. I rode alongside Hamish and Stephen, and both said nothing the entire time. They just always looked toward the sunset, their eyes never evading it.

I could not tell the men. When we rode back without our leader, it was as if everyone had already known. No one asked us right away, just stared. I saw men shake their heads, and others cry or throw out there anger on various objects. When I came upon Jeremy, Owen, and Douglas; I saw for the first time a look of anguish in their eyes. Come to think of it, most of the men had this look. It was as if, without their leader, they thought we didn't stand a chance. The moment Jeremy and I were alone, I threw my arms around him and cried. He slowly put his arms around me tightly, and swayed me back and forth, rubbing his hands along my back. "Shhh," he whispered, but I didn't obey.

A week went by, and by now the atmosphere had lifted a little. People still weren't smiling, but agony did not appear on their faces. Or so it seemed on the outside. As I awoke I found a few men packing, and some were already walking away.

I called out to them, "Wait! What are you doing?"

One of the men, a young one by the name of Martin, turned back to face me. "Leaving, lass. As should you. It's a lost cause now." I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and I gave him a glare. He continued to walk.

I ran to fetch Hamish, and told him of what was going on. He, along with Hudson and Stephen, scrammed to catch people before they left.

Hamish through up his arms. "Friends! I say, what ARE you doing?" Everyone had gathered around the thirty or so deserters, and surrounded them in a circle.

"I'm going home. What hope do we have now without Wallace? He was the only thing England was scared of!" The others murmured their agreement, and I could see the hatred the rest of the army was building up for these few.

I came next to Hamish, and spoke to the whole army for the first time ever, but my voice never wavered. "How can you say that? The king is dead! His son is the biggest sissy in England's history, and you dare to say that he was only afraid of Wallace? We ARE Wallace. Don't you see? This was Longshank's last plot against us. He knew that with Wallace dead, we would tuck our tails between our legs and flee. He was expecting it. His son expects it too. They think we hide behind our leader, but that is not so. WE are the backbone behind the England's fear of Wallace. How DARE you proclaim we have no hope. Have you learned anything from Sir William?" I looked on, and discovered all eyes were on me, staring intently. "He taught us to believe in ourselves, and that together we can break apart from the tyranny England bestowed upon us. He is no different from you or me. We all want the same thing, and that is our key to winning this revolution." I paused, then stared sickeningly at the deserters. "If you leave now, then what possible hope can we have? If we band together, we stand a chance. But in your leaving, you proclaim Longshank's thoughts on us to be true. Run now, and you'll destroy everything we've worked so hard to build. All those deaths at Falkirk will be on YOUR heads. Can you live with that?" I got no answer. "CAN YOU?"

I had never spoken so fiercely or as passionately before, and it was as if Wallace himself had put those words in my mouth. That made me smile just a tiny bit. He really is in me. The boy I had talked to before, Martin, nodded at me. He picked up his bag, and walked back over to camp. I smiled at him, and then looked on to the others. One by one, each joined our band again, until finally there was no one who stood with their decision to leave. No one spoke, yet all eyes were still strangely on me.

I gulped, and Stephen patted my back with pride. It was at that moment that it struck as to what makes a good leader. I always thought Wallace just had some magic ability to make the people follow his every word, as if he was a god. But no. Here I was, a shy girl to many, convincing an army not to leave. If you just make a path for people to follow, they will. Wallace had that gift. And now I realized, I too, could have that gift.

Though no verbal induction took place, the leaders now invited me to every meeting they had. They knew from my speech, and from my fighting, how qualified I was to attend. They also knew of Wallace's love for me, and I think that also made the deciding factor to let me in on all our plans. Every other night; Hudson, Hamish, Stephen, an elder named Gabriel, Jeremy, and I would gather to discuss the happenings in England, and our next move.

"I say we barge in on our dear new king, slit his throat, and that will be the end of it," Stephen clammered. This was the third time that night he had suggested it. We shook our heads.

"Although our friend may be seriously disturbed, he does prove a point," Hudson examined. We all turned and listened intently.

He went on. "The time to strike is now, while he thinks we are at our weakest point. Though the new king may be a bit…stupid, he still has a whole council full of military tacticians, and I bet you all are saying that without us having a leader right now, they should come and knock us off once and for all." We all nodded our agreement.

Hamish, itching his beard, spoke. "Do you think the men are ready?"

I answered that question. "Believe me, sir, they are more than ready. We've been ready for months now, and I'm sure they want revenge just as bad as us." It was the first time that I had spoken formally at these meetings. I usually sat back and analyzed each view.

"Good point, lass, but remember, revenge is not always an ally," Gabriel brought up. "If we are to go back, we need a solid plan with no failure possible. We can't just barge in there as Stephen suggested and kill the king. We need to put an end to this as a whole, but without having England hate us. We need to make the king out to appear horrible to his people. If his people are against him, then we will know that no more suffrage will come to our country. That is the only revenge worthwhile."

"If our troops get within 50 feet of him, they WILL kill him." Jeremy proclaimed. "No matter what your orders may be, they will not let William's death go peacefully."

I cut in. "If we make a plan so that we promise his head to them, they will obey. I don't think sneaking around England will do us any good. I know you all won't like this, but I think one more battle, a formal battle, will end all this. If we win, they cannot say we fought like savages. And…in doing so….a king will arise for our country." They all looked at me funny. I grinned but did not share anymore with them. With all that to reflect on, Hamish adjourned the meeting, and I fell right to sleep.

The next couple of days were long and tiresome. Our meetings were held for countless hours on end, but no one spoke of my suggestion again. No one wanted what happened at Falkirk to happen again, and that is why I think they rejected my plan. It was at one of those endless councils in the early hours of the mornings that we had a visitor.

"Hamish, someone's approaching," Owen explained from outside the tent. I was wondering what those shouts outside were going on about. Hamish quickly drew his sword and raced out the tent, as did the rest of us. A man was riding towards us, at a slow pace. I squinted my eyes to the misty black field, and could only spot a shadow. I held the edge of the handle of my sword with my left hand, gripping it tight to make sure if this was a trick at least I could defend myself.

Suddenly a familiar grave face came into view, and I released my grip. "It's Robert the Bruce!" Stephen exclaimed. It was indeed, and he bore a white flag, probably just in case anyone did not recognize him, it would show that he surrendered willingly. At the sound of his name, swords were drawn. Our men had blamed Wallace's death on the Bruce, and they did not trust him.

"Put yer swords away lads!" Jeremy shouted, and the men timidly obeyed, though I could see hatred forming on the edges of their eyes.

His face solemn, the noble hopped off his black mare and greeted Hamish and Stephen with a sober handshake. They both knew he was not to blame for any of this, and they hugged him back like a brother who was also a victim in this god forsaken war. The men relaxed a little at this greeting but were still watchful. Hamish gestured to go inside the tent with us. I didn't know whether to follow them in or not. With the Bruce there, maybe they didn't want me. But good ol' Jeremy put his arm around me and pushed me inside.

Robert shook everyone's hand, including mine, though he was a little surprised to see me at a counsel meeting, and he made no remark. Hudson got right down to it again. "We are very glad you have come to join us Robert. We need a man of your stature and tactics to help us."

He spoke in a very regal way, "Thank you for not killing me on sight. I know things haven't been the best between us lately. I haven't had the courage to face you all since…it happened. Ever since the other nobles betrayed me, I've thought nothing but what I could do to help you. So…where do we stand?"

Everyone nodded to each other, as if signaling that he could stay. "We need to strike. But the matter is…how? And when?"

Robert the Bruce, with a defiance in his eye, spoke clearly, "We will wait."

No one wanted to do this, and everyone made that clear with defiant shouts of protest. Hudson held up his hand. "Let him finish."

The Bruce nodded a thanks and continued. "I know you don't like it. There's nothing I want more than to go straight back into England and kill the king in his bedchamber. But we must be smart about this. We still do not have the means to defeat England's tyrannical grip. We must go about this as tactfully as possible. I propose a battle." Everyone turned to me, for here The Bruce was uttering the same nonsense I had a few days before. I smiled in spite of myself. Maybe this Bruce was worth listening too.

~~~~~A week later~~~~~

June. Mornings are usually wet and misty, due to the rainy season. A bleak gray sky appeared over the horizon, in which a soft, light orange followed its path. As was ritual in my heart; I closed my eyes, reached to the ground and picked up some dirt, and let the wind trickle it through my fingers away into the world beyond. It was my tribute to Wallace, one in which I will hold to the end of my days. A tickly breeze brushed against my cheek, and I smiled. "Good morning to you too William," I said to the sky.

A crackling of a branch behind me. I turned, my sword drawn. Jeremy tripped and fell backward in surprise. "Whoah!"

I felt my cheeks blush, and I eagerly helped him up to his feet. "You scared me."

He brushed off the dirt that smeared across his tunic. "I scared you? I think it's the other way around lass."

"Well you shouldn't be sneaking up on a girl like that," I lectured. He half laughed.

"True. What are you doing in the middle of a field anyway?"

I stopped facing him and turned to look back at the faint sunrise. "Admiring life." He gave me a bewildered look, but then faced the sunrise too.

"Well, stop admiring it, and start living it."

I turned back to face him. "Wha-" I was stopped short as he picked me up and flew me in a circle. I laughed hysterically, for there was no other reaction I felt.

"Stop!" I said in between laughs. "Jeremy, I'm getting dizzy." He grinned and kept swinging me. After three more circles he tripped and we both fell into the tall grass, his body on top of mine. By now I had learned not to be embarrassed of such things, and I continued to giggle. He, however, stopped chuckling, and stared into my green eyes, searching for something. He leaned in, and finally, we shared our first kiss. His lips were warm and moist, and they gently touched mine. I closed my eyes and kissed back, with our bodies still entwined around each other. I took my shaking arms and placed them in a more comfortable position: on his back. His lips left mine, and a sudden coldness filled me, and I wanted him back. He rushed off me, and sat down with his knees up. I, too, became uncomfortable, and sat up.

He was sweating and blushing, if not for the weird circumstance I would have laughed at him right there. Finally he spoke, averting my gaze. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that." This boy was more confusing by the minute.

I was fed up with his mood swings. "Are you really? Tell me Jeremy, are you just….just toying with me? You say you want me, you tried to kiss me before, and then when we were interrupted you don't make a move again for months. What is it you want?" I know that sounded cold, but I needed to know.

He gulped, and ducked his head in shame. In a tiny voice, he whispered, "I want you, Maura."

I rolled my eyes. "I find that hard to believe when you whisper it like that."

His eyes rose defiantly. "Then maybe this will better explain it." He leaned in again, but this time kissed passionately which such force I've never felt. He wrapped his arms around me. He felt so strong, and I so protected. Finally he stopped, and broke away. "Now do you believe me?" My eyes were still closed, the shock not yet over. Dang, he was good at this. I opened them slowly, and the first thing I saw was a grin. I nodded vigorously.

"But why did you wait so long?"

"Maura, believe me, I didn't want to wait that long. I think about you day and night, and whenever I'm with you all I want to do is kiss you….its just, I'm scared of what you think."

"Jeremy, when you said I was the best thing that ever happened to you, do you remember how I also said that YOU were the best thing to happen to ME?"

He blushed again, and shrugged his shoulders. "I thought you were just saying that…I didn't know if you meant it or not."

I laughed genuinely, and he joined in. "I tell ye, boy, we make a pair, don't we?"

He nodded. "So…what happens now?"

I answered that question with a smile. He understood immediately, and we leaned in for another kiss, one I will remember for a VERY long time.