Dinner had finished long before Merida retired to her bedroom. By now all of her brothers had fallen to a deep sleep in their long bed, while she stayed up and wandered the halls, poking around corners for the strange gray gentleman. His glowing eyes haunted her and reflected in every quivering candle or torch that lined the wall. At times like this the shadows grew and toyed with her most deeply. But it was not until she reached the door to her parent's bedroom, the door that had been foolishly left ajar, that her fingertips pricked cold. Inside the two adults were having an urgent conversation. Both spoke in hissing voices, Fergus' louder but Eleanor's more controlled. They were arguing. Merida smiled as she slid her back down the wall until she sat against the floor. Occasionally she peeked in at the room's proceeds, finding with furrowed brows that her father had turned away from her mother, who was seated against the windowsill. The woman smoothed the wrinkles in her green dress and sighed as she spoke.
"I do not want her going," she whispered. "I am frightened to have her away."
"A desire to see the world was bred in her!" replied Fergus. "Besides, he said that it would be safer there than-"
"And why do we trust him so?" Eleanor hissed, breaking away from the windowsill and advancing on Fergus in anger. "We spoke but once with him!"
"He is honest," Fergus responded, his nostrils flaring as his eyes burned with conviction. "He has his own mind."
"I think he is taking advantage of you!" returned Eleanor. Then she threw her hands up, indicating that she wanted no more discussion. Of course it was in this moment that Merida's dress caught in the door hinge and caused the great oaken portal to creak, which incited a hearty jump from her parents. Both shut their mouths, but Fergus lumbered forward and thrust his face into the hall. When his eyes drew to Merida's head of fire, their lids crinkled with a crooked smile as he set his hand atop her head and mussed her hair. Merida shoved her father's arm in return, a little sheepish at being caught. Her mother stayed near the window.
"Why were you spying on us?" asked Fergus in an amused way, which hid his slight discomfort. Merida shrugged. "I just wanted to make sure you were saying good things about me!" To this Fergus chortled and patted Merida against the head once more, sending her off with a light push against her shoulder blades. When he was sure she was gone he turned back to Eleanor and shut the door behind. At the sound of wood on metal Merida scuttled back, fell to her knees, and pressed her ear to the wood again, closing her eyes as she concentrated. Words began forming themselves as she understood them, until they became sentences and separated according to who spoke them.
"I do not think she heard us," murmured Fergus. Merida stifled a laugh.
"She heard us," returned Eleanor flatly. Then, after a long pause she added, "better her than him."
There was a slight silence following this, before footsteps echoed towards the door and hands undid its great latch. But by that time Merida had long gone, scurrying down the hall and around its corner as her mother's long shadow lingered against the stonewalls. Dodging Maudie the maid, Merida maneuvered inside her bedroom without getting caught again, and charged forward to drop on her bed as Juri looked from her history book with scolding eyes. But soon she was gone again, deep within the world of her legends' pages.
The four kings story she read hungrily. But once this had satisfied her she closed the book and pondered the fire that smoldered in a pit at the front of the room. The curls in her hair relaxed into spiraling waves, while the part at her forehead's center fell less severe and her pomander clung to the side of her chair like a silver bell, ever clinking.
"Your mother is quite the matriarch," murmured Juri suddenly, causing Merida to glance away as her cousin caught her eye.
"My mother does nothing," Juri muttered. Then there was silence as both girls stared into the flames. Her fencing materials peeked out from the open wardrobe at the back of the room and she let her eyes wander over them. They had a worried look to them. "Odd things have been occurring," the girl whispered. "The wind sounds strange."
"This is a different kind of wind," replied Merida.
"Very different, muttered Juri. Then she heaved herself from her seat and climbed into bed, settling inside its covers and closing her eyes. Before long Merida joined her. But instead of snuggling into the sheets she sat up against her pillow and poked her cousin's cheek. Juri opened one indignant eye in wait. So Merida smiled as she whispered, "Have you heard anything else?" But Juri closed her eyes and turned away, leaving Merida to stare out the window of their room in silence, as the fire in the pit burned to nothing.