Well, you guys took last chapter a lot better than I thought you would. I half expected you guys to throw every insult at me and threaten me with torches, pick axes, and pitchforks. Thank you for not doing that.
University is starting on Wednesday. Super nervous but also excited!
Now, I'll tell some of the reasons on why I killed them all. It's always been a dream of mine to write a story where pretty much all the characters die, so this story is a dream come true for me. I've never read another Mericcup fanfiction where their love ends in absolute tragedy, so I decided to change that. Also, I've never seen their love forbidden to level as in this story (difference in status, two cultures that despise each other to the core, and another man in the picture).
Sad news, there are only three chapters left of Until the End.
Reminder: Poll's still open. Vote while you can
WARNINGS: probably just sadness
Chapter #38: Madness
Merida's POV
It's a dream. It had to be a dream. They aren't dead. They can't be dead. Any moment now Rapunzel will walk through the door and tell me to get up, just like she always does.
Keeping my eyes closed, I shuffled under the heavy sheets, moving the warmer blankets off of me. Laying down on a more comfortable spot, I tried to remember the dream.
I say dream; it was more of a nightmare. Jack, Rapunzel, and Hiccup were to be executed for high treason. A shiver ran up my spine as the brutal images racked my mind. Rapunzel's short hair, Jack's bleeding stump, Hiccup's broken jaw, their headless bodies. I don't remember anything after Hiccup was executed. The instant it happened, I found myself lying in my bed.
My thoughts were disrupted by the sound of the door. I let out a relieved sigh; there she was, my best friend. The window was opened, letting in the bright light of the morning. Moments later, a hand came on my shoulder and shook me,
"Wake up, my Lady." A sweet voice whispered.
"Rapunzel." I whined as I sat up, "You know how I h-" My voice got caught in my throat. It wasn't Rapunzel. It was Máiri! "What are you doing here? Where's Rapunzel?" I demanded. The girl looked at me with an expression mixed with confusion and sadness.
"My Lady," She started slowly, the quiver in her voice sending chills of fear through me. It was a dream, right? "Rapunzel is dead. She was executed yesterday evening."
"No." I whispered, shaking my head viciously at her. She was lying She had to be! "You're lying!" I hollered. Máiri took flinched away from me and nervously shook her head,
"I swear, Your Majesty, I'm not lying." Even with all the fear she was emanating, I refused to believe her. It was just a dream, it couldn't be anything else. Somehow everyone knew of this dream and were playing a sick trick on me
My nightmare couldn't have been true! It couldn't!
Merida's POV
Everyone looked at me as though I had gone crazy. I'm not crazy, I just wasn't in the mood to do anything.
It didn't take long to find out that my nightmare was true. The scaffold was still covered in blood, it was only Aster in the stables, the fire in the smithy was out and the cut on William's cheek was stitched shut and healing.
I told everyone to leave me alone and I shut myself in my room. I just sat there staring at the dying fire, a tear rolling down my cheek every now and then. I thought about everything happened. It was all my fault. I did this to them. They could tell me thousand times that it wasn't my fault but I wouldn't believe them because it was my fault.
Eventually, I stood up to stretch my legs. The moment I stood, I felt like I was being watched, that I wasn't alone in the room. I turned to the left and the right but no one was there. That is, until I turned around.
There she stood in front of me. She was wearing a simple black dress with gold decoration at the hem and white puffs at her elbows and shoulder, a tartan sash clipped around her waist. Her curly, wild red hair was done up in a high bun, hidden behind a crown, with two stray curls shaping her round face. She had a long silver necklace with a ruby around her neck and long earrings, sparkling with diamonds. Her cold cerulean eyes stared at me, a smug smile on her face.
"Well, well, well." She said in a low voice, "Look how far you've fallen." She smiled evilly at me as she started fiddling with her necklace, admiring and polishing the bright red ruby.
"What do you mean?" I asked quietly. She let the ruby fall as she walked to a chair and sat down, crossing her legs.
"Well, you went from an independent princess to a woman who can't even save the people she claims to love!" She picked at her fingers, seemingly removing dirt from underneath them, "Pathetic" she mumbled.
"Excuse me!?" I screeched at her, taking a step closer and pointing an accusing finger, "I'm not pathetic and you know it! If I was pathetic, I would have stood by and done nothing! I tried! I tried to save them!"
"Ah," She retorted, standing up again, "But you didn't save them! After everything you did, you still couldn't save them because you don't have the guts to stand up to the one that is to blame for all of this! And because of that you're pathetic!" Every word stung as they left her mouth. I tried to shut them out but couldn't. They boiled in me, making me angry and upset at once. Soon, the anger boiled over and I screamed,
"SHUT IT!" And my fist lashed out at her. The sound of breaking glass echoed through the room as the mirror shattered and landed in thousands of pieces to the floor. Pain racked through my knuckles as the thousands of cuts started bleeding profoundly, the blood dripping on the floor.
"My Lady!" Máiri exclaimed as she ran into the room. She grabbed my hand and gasped loudly when she spotted the many injuries on my hand, "What happened?" She inquired, ripping part of her apron to cover the injury.
I lied that I was practicing a dance and that I accidently hit the mirror. She simply nodded. I couldn't tell her that some woman had been in my room and had taunted me, which led to me breaking the mirror.
She would think I was mad.
Third Person POV
"I'm worried." Kozmotis admitted.
"About what?" William sneered as he put down a letter from an ally on his desk. He reached for a bottle of wine and a goblet as Kozmotis continued speaking,
"About the Princess Merida, My Lord. I spoke to her maid earlier and she claims she heard the Princess speaking to her own reflection as if it were a separate person." The general reported while William poured himself a full glass of wine. He took a large swig of it before replying,
"I wouldn't worry about it, Kozmotis." He replied, "It probably just nerves. After all, she's getting married in two days time." He smirked at the General. "If that's all, you can leave." He ordered and took another large drink from his wine.
"There's actually something else." The General stammered. After a moment's silence, William signaled to the man to continue. Kozmotis took a deep breath, "I received a letter from my sister-in-law in England and she informed me that my daughter has fallen ill. With my Lord's permission, I wish to go to England and tend to my daughter." Kozmotis swallowed the lump in his throat as he waited for William to answer. A feeling in his gut told him that William would not let him go to England or, if he did, it would only be for a week. Kozmotis prayed it would be the week; it would be better than nothing. It had been such a long time since he had last seen his little girl. She had been nine at the time and now, she was thirteen. Any time would be better than no time.
William quickly chugged down the rest of his wine before giving his answer. He stared the general in the eye,
"Be back in three weeks." He ordered. William could see the general trying to hide a smile as the older man bowed.
"Thank you a thousand times, my Lord" The man beamed. William nodded and waved his hand. Kozmotis bowed and left the room, closing the door behind him. William chugged down the rest of his wine before turning his attention to another important matter.
On his desk stood a small wooden box encased with gold and a few precious gems. It could easily pass off as a jewelry box but no jewels were in it. William lifted the lid.
From the box, he pulled forth a small vial with a small amount of white powder. At first glance, one might think it was sugar but, William knew by it was far more dangerous than sugar. The powder was water hemlock, one of the most poisonous substances available in DunBroch. It was fast moving and could kill a grown man in minutes, ideal for murdering someone. He had bought the powder with only one target in mind.
The King's wine.
The plan was that, after William married Merida, a bribed servant would serve the King wine poisoned with the hemlock. With the King dead and Merida being a woman, the crown would pass on to William and he would finally achieve what he had planned for years. He would finally prove everyone that had doubted him that he was right all along, that he would be the greatest MacInroy ever.
"You'll see, Father. You'll see." He mumbled to himself but when he looked to the poison again, William began to doubt himself.
Could he really do it? Could he poison a man who was ordained by God? Could poison someone who had done him no wrong? Could he damn an innocent man?
William could almost hear his father's voice inside his head as he pondered. He was calling him weak and a coward. William gritted his teeth, telling the voice to shut up and leave him be. He gripped the vial tighter as he made his decision.
He threw the vial back into the box. After locking it securely, he picked it up and threw it out the window. It landed in the river with a loud splash.
He could wait a few more years. He waited this long for a claim to the throne, he could wait a little longer to ascend to it.
Third Person POV
Maireada pulled her ragged cloak closer around her as the bitter cold wind blew around her. She was returning to the Red Apple, expecting another lonely, empty night. The death of the Viking had not gone well for the woman. She had grieved profoundly at his death which in turn led the owner of the Red Apple to label her as insane and unable to work; at least the elder woman was fond enough of Maireada to not sent her onto the streets. The other girls had turned away from her, sneering at her for feeling pity for a Viking.
She didn't have a friend or even an acquaintance who would give her a friendly smile. She was completely alone.
Pulling her cloak even closer as the wind bit her, Maireada walked through the town square, past the ominous scaffold where they had died only yesterday. A tear fell from her eye and she wanted to keep walking when she spotted something on the other end of the square. Her curiosity peaking, she speed to it and gasped loudly when she saw it was a person!
They lay on the grass with their face down, wearing nothing but a sleeping gown! Concern taking over, Maireada took off her own cloak and threw it over the person. She picked the person up and carried her bridal style back to the Red Apple.
Maireada ignored the hundreds of stares she was getting from the other girls and some men as she carried the unconscious figure to her room. All the previous decorations it had were gone and the dressing table was vacant of any item but she paid no heed to the desolation as she placed the person on the bed and under the blanket. In the light of the candles, Maireada instantly recognized her as being the Princess!
She immediately got to work to make sure the princess was fine, checking for injuries and for fever. As she worked, Maireada's mind wandered, asking herself: why was the Princess out in the middle of the night in just her night gown with no guards or escorts? Had she gone insane?
I hope you guys caught the gist that Merida is going insane.
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Replies
AmaraWinterFrost: I know it isn't fair
trueloveofredheads: I am absolutely nuts!
waveringshadow: thank you for your lovely review.
Nonuser: No, Merida's not pregnant. And can I ask you to be patient with me? I have a job and I'm starting university on Wednesday. I'm not sure how much time I'll have for writing so please, please, please be patient with me. I'm not abandoning this fiction without good reason and frankly, I don't have a good reason.
Soccerkat5: Ok, but I don't think I could ever be close to George R. R. Martin in my writing
feathersnow: That get's explained in a future chapter
Antermaris: I am going to do an alternate ending and you might just have given me a little idea. Thank you.
Lilianne Lei: Thank you so much for your review
Angelic Beast12: Yeah, I am a maniac but trust me you're going to love me after chapter 39 and 40
Tynan: I never thought of that… Damn! And Merida is not pregnant, if that was what you were asking
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