Chapter Text
Nighttime fell at Castle DunBroch. The crickets and cicadas had begun their nighttime songs, and the Milky Way flowed its shimmering glow across the sky. Inside, the castle's inhabitants were gathering to eat the last meal of the day, illuminated by plenty of candles that hung around the castle. Maudie and the other maids carried the food to the table while struggling to keep them away from the prying hands of the DunBroch triplets, who were always up to no good when it comes to food.
Soon, all the DunBroch royal family grabbed their portions of traditional Scottish fare of haggis, a pottage of vegetables and herbs grown around the castle, bread, and roasted game, and started wolfing their portions up whilst chatting about the occurences of the day.
"Mum," Merida began while spooning her stew into her mouth. "We've finished the 'Mend the bond torn by pride' business a few years ago, but I'm wondering about the spirit of a man after we killed the dreadful bear Mor'du." She brought to mind a floating transluscent blue figure of a huge muscular man of around his twenties which floated up after a large stone smashed the black bear into a final rest a few years prior. The last time she remembered, he looked handsomely serene as he nodded to her and her mum (still in her smaller brown bear form) before vanishing into thin air. "Does he really rest in peace, or does he still had unfinished business yet?"
Elinor chided at her daughter's sudden thought. "Leave the poor lad alone, Merida. He had made his dreadful choices, now he has earned his rest. Go finish your food now before it gets cold."
"Aye, the great bear is gone," Fergus added as he wolfed down his roasted fowl leg. "Straight into the realm of the gods. I haven't obtained the trophy, but least my poor leg has got its revenge."
Merida wanted to question more, but she was met with stern and indifferent glances from her parents. Now she was compelled to finish her stew and a slice of haggis.
Soon after, the maids arrived to clean up the table. Meanwhile, Merida was tasked to shepherd her youngest triplet brothers into bed and to read them a story to help them send off into the dream realm.
"And the dreadful bear is killed," she narrated to her brothers in one of her storytelling sessions.
"By a big stone?" Hubert inquired.
"Aye, the large stone. But what happens next?"
"The wisp rises?" Harris piped in.
"Aye, and it revealed a handsome man," she continued, her face in a huge grin while unexpectedly turning into a faint pink blush.
"Oooh, a bonnie prince!" Hamish exclaimed. "What does he do, sis?"
Although Merida's face continued to blush into a pinkish-red hue, she managed to continue her story. "He simply stood there and nodded in thanks to the lass and poof! He was simply gone. The end."
The triplets groaned, unsatisfied at the ending. "We want more prince stories, sis!"
"I would love to, but I guess 'tis time for bed." Merida beckoned the triplets to their own little beds, and she tucked them, giving each of them a brief peck on their foreheads. "Good night, my wee brothers."
The triplets yawned as they returned the greeting. "Good night, big sis."
She snatched a candle on the table and slowly went out of the triplets' room, intending to sneak outside for a relaxing night of stargazing.