"Ach! Mum, this is soooo borin'. Can A please go take Angus out for a ride?" The girl looked over at her mother, who was busy working on another tapestry. This time though, it was an image of her daughter, standing next to her horse. Her fiery hair disheveled, as it usually was, and her bow in her hands. Elinor turned to her daughter. Looking down she took in each one of the curls, each one perfectly imperfect, falling in waves down her back. Her shoulders were slumped, and her blue eyes sparkled with anticipation of leaving. Her whole body shook slightly as her foot bounced against the ground restless.
"A suppose we have been working for quite a while. But there is one stipulation,"
"Uugghh! A promise A won' get mah' dress dirty."
"Tha' wasn't my stipulation, but it would be nice," the teenage princess looked at her mother, her head tilted to the side. "My stipulation is tha' aye ride with you today."
"Dae ye think ye can handle it?"
"Is tha' a challenge, Merida?"
"A don' know. Yew tell me, Bear Woman."
Eight cloven hoofs pounded their way through the thick trees. Dense fog lie close to the ground, and the smell of rain stung the duo's nostrils. Merida grabbed her bow from behind her. Drawing an arrow from the quiver, she prepared her bow. Merida drew back the arrow while taking a deep breath. As she approached her target, she released her breath, and the arrow. Rushing past the target, she arrow hit dead center, passing through all the ones she had shot in the past. Pivoting around on the back of Angus, she released another arrow with the same result as the one before. A blur of light grey 'wooshed' past her and she glared at her mothers retreating form. Leaning forward on Angus, Merida closed her eyes, and sped off after her mother. Merida was jolted to relization when she was almost thrown from the back of her large horse.
"Woah!" Merida yelled, stroking Angus lovingly. "Wa' is it mum?" Merida asked, after Angus had settled down. Angus slowly inched forward to Elinor. That's when she saw what her mother was looking at. Dancing in the fog, hovering a couple of inches from the ground was a small blue orb of light. As it danced, small whispers were hovering in the air around them.
'They're saying mah' name.'Merida thought, biting her lip.
"Merida….." Queen Elinor said warily, slowly turning her head to face her daughter. "Don' yah dare." But it was to late. Merida had shot off past her mother and into the thick trees that made up the forest, fallowing the Will-o-the Wisps to her new fate. Elinor took off after her daughter. 'Am ur(I am) not going to loose my daughter again.' All the memories of what happened the last time Merida fallowed the Wisps played in her mind. 'Nothing is going to happen to my daughter!' She spurred the horse in the sides, making it go faster. Now she could hear the beats of Angus' hoof beats when he slowed.
Merida didn't know what happened, or why she took off to fallow the Will-o-the Wisps, but she did. She flew over logs, swerved around trees. It felt like she was flying. The wind whipped her hair behind her, and her eyes scanned for the blue whispering orbs. One of the Will-o-the Wisps disappeared under Angus' feet, and he reared back. Merida fell off her the large stallion. The princess crashed to the Earth with an 'Oomph'. She mumbled profanities, very unlady like, under her breath. Slowly, Merida lifted her head, and gasped. Standing in front of her was the place that haunted her dreams, and caused so many nightmares. Large stone pillars stood in an uncompleted circle. One of the large, two story pillars had been pushed over. Merida saw what happened that day flash in front of her and shook her head.
'No. A will not think about' tha'.'She could see the pillar from where she lay on the ground. Slowly she gathered herself and rose to her feet. A Will-o-the Wisp flashed in front of her. She took a deep breath, and fallowed the Wisp toward the stone circle. When she entered the boundary the stones made, it was like she was filled with electricity. It crackled around her and she grew nervous. Merida heard the soft whispering of the Wisp, leading her toward one of the stones. Soft, bright green, moss covered the large stone, and vines tangled together in a mass of gnarled twists. The Wisp climbed up the stone in front of her. It danced from the stone, to the next one to her right. Chewing her lip, Merida reluctantly fallowed the Wisp around the circle. 'Wha' does this all mean? Does it mean tha' Mor'du is still alive? He can' be. A saw mah mum kill him! But.. Wha' if he's lookin' for me?'
"Merida! Get out of there!" Elinor yelled, jumping off of her tall horse. Merida ran to the edge of the stones, but was stopped by a Wisp floating in front of her.
"A don' think aye can mum."
"Why is tha'?"
"Mum. A needto be here. Please mum, come help me figure out my fate." Merida looked at her mother, pleading with her blue eyes. Elinor sighed and walked into the stone circle, biting her lip. The uneasy feeling seeping into her bones as well. She eyed the slightly crumbling stone with distain. Elinor walked slowly to the middle of the circle with Merida.
"Why do you think tha' they would do this?" Merida asked, holding her arms out. All around them, Will-o-the Wisps had set themselves in the middle of each stone.
"A don' know…" her mother whispered, as she walked up to one of the stones that stood behind them, staring at the Wisp that float in the middle. Merida walked up to her, and they simultaneously tilted their heads to the left, contemplating what they could possibly be doing. That's when Merida gasped. She ran up to the stone, and pulled away the moss and vines. She went around the circle, pulling away what nature had placed over her fate. Ending at the stone to the left of the fallen stone, that the villagers had named the Mor'du stone, Merida stared at the stones in disbelief.
"Mum.. Yah've go' to see this." Merida said stunned. Carved on the stone, there was an image of Merida. Her hair was flowing in ringlets, like it was being blown by a wind, with a feather sticking out from behind her ear. She wore a dress that was cut off at the knees in the front, but flowed down to her ankles in the back. A belt lay at a slant on her hips, and a smirk graced the princess' lips. The odd thing was, she didn't have shoes on.
"A don' own tha' dress…" Merida walked to the next stone. It was her, in the same outfit, riding Angus, the sun was tied to a string. It looked like her and Angus were pulling the sun across the sky. Walking to each stone, Merida saw another image of herself, doing other things. Holding the sun in her outstretched hands, blowing on a flower bud, making it bloom, holding out her hands, making breezes, and other things of that sort. When Merida made her way to the Mor'du stone, a Wisp appeared within her reach. Merida stretched her arm out, and her fingers became cold as her fingers lay in the small orb. About as soon as she reached into the Wisp, it vanished, leaving a ring on Merida's right hand middle finger. It was a golden band, set with a smoky quartz in the middle, and blue topaz gems, lining down the sides half way down the band. Elinor, who had vanished as Merida walked around the circle, walked out from behind a bush, and wiped her eyes, as if she'd been crying. She slowly made her way to Merida. Her eyes were red, and the tears stained the elegant queens face.
"Mum, wha-" Merida was cut off by her mother enveloping her into a bone crushing hug. Elinor stroked her daughters hair, trying to take in everything she could about the girl in her arms. Elinor pulled back, the tears dripping down her chin.
"Merida, A wan' yew to know that aye love you. You're my first born, and my only daughter. A've been proud of you since the day you were born. A get more and more proud of yew every day. Yer my chining star. Don' you ever forge' tha'."
"Mum, wha' are ye-" Merida was cut off again, but this time, it was by a red light, shining down on her from the sky. Elinor quickly untied the golden ribbon from her hair and wrapped it around Merida's neck.
"Mum…" Merida whispered, grabbing the ribbon. Merida was lifted from the ground, and into the sky. Elinor dropped to the ground, as if she were an old forgotten rag doll. Her hair fell in a veil around her form, and Merida could see her body shake with the sobs she was keeping to herself. Merida tried to force her body back to the earth, thrashing, kicking and screaming all the way, as the tears fell down in her face.
"MUM! MUM! NO! A WAN' TO STAY! MUM! MUM, A LOVE YEW! DON' LET ME GO! A LOVE YEW MUM! A LOVE YEW! MUM!" Elinor looked up to her daughter, and Merida could barely make out what she was screaming.
"A love yew Merida! This is your fate." As the last tear dropped from her face, Merida closed her eyes. Her mothers face was frozen in time behind her closed lids. Soon, her mothers face dissolved, as her mind went blank. A tingling sensation overtook the princess' body, and she gave way to the feeling of being dragged by a current through black nothingness.