The Difference Between Real and Pretend

Three

Merida tsks, and shakes her head, as if pitying me. "Awh, wee lamb."

I wince as I walk, various rocks and pebbles jamming into my feet. I really miss flying. I never realized how much walking sucks.

Merida sniggers at my grimace. "See? That's why yuh should wear shoes."

"I never need shoes. I prefer flying." I reply haughtily.

"Fly away then. Oh, wait. Yuh can't, right? Poor boy," Merida teases me.

"I'll fly again soon," I promise. "And when I do, I'm gonna pick up that ugly old warthog of a witch, and throw her off a cliff."

"She's not that bad," Merida protests.

"She threw me backwards in time."

"First off, we ain't 'backwards'. This is mah current time. Thah present," Merida argues. "And didn't yuh dare her to do it?"

"I didn't think she actually could!"

"And I know thah witch. There's always ah loophole tah her spells and potions. I would know," Merida says.

I just grumble quietly, because as annoyed as I am, Merida has a valid point. Not that I would ever admit out loud, of course. That would mean I was wrong. I'm never wrong.

Arrogant, much?

Shut up, I argue to my inner monologue.

"Are we almost there?" I groan. My feet are really starting to hurt. I think they might be bleeding too.

"Yuh whine too much," Merida sighs. "But almost. Just ah couple more minutes."

"Ugh," I mumble.

True to her word, we arrive a a bare, rocky landscape with a breathtaking mountain and a waterfall. The whole landscape is tinted with red, making the name "FireFalls" much more suiting.

Sitting down on the ground and massaging my sore feet, I stare at the waterfalls once more. Merida plops down beside me, resting her head on the ground and stretching her arms and legs. A small collection of pebbles gather in her wild, red hair, but she doesn't seem to care.

If someone asked me a few days ago what I thought a princess should be, my answer would have never described Merida. Maybe a dainty girl, who's polite and had nice mannered. A girl who was a perfectionist.

Merida is the complete opposite. While a dainty princess would strive for beauty and perfection, Merida isn't afraid to get her hands dirty. Uh, what I mean is, it's nice that Merida isn't that dainty, dolled up princess I had perceived in my mind as.

I wonder what it'll be like if I ever do get back to my time. Will I just give Merida a quick goodbye? Even though it's only been two days, I already consider her one of my friends.

Merida's eyes flutter close, and she looks dangerously close to falling asleep. I don't want her to fall asleep, so I ask her, "Why are you tired? It must only be noon."

Keeping her eyes closed, she replies, "Arguing with mah mum tired meh out."

"Why were you arguing with her?"

"Long story," she says, cutting off the conversation. I shift on the ground awkwardly beside her.

"So," I say indifferently, changing the topic. "Are you excited for your birthday tomorrow?"

"Sure," she mumbles sleepily.

"You sound really excited," I tease her.

"Shut up," she demands, putting her hands on her face.

"I think you're mostly excited about your ball!" I say innocently. Merida opens her eyes and squints at me.

"Suuuuuure," she frowns at me. "That's gonna be thah icing on top o' thah cake." Her heavy sarcasm makes me grin.

"I've never actually been to a ball," I speculate.

"Yer not missing much," Merida grumbles. "jus' ah bunch o' nonsense. It's very boring."

"It won't be boring if I'm there," I smirk, and she opens her eyes, and squints at me.

"No funny business!" she says, strictly. "Other royals will be there. Mah mum's best friend's daughters are coming."

"Why just her daughters?"

"She died ah few years ago," Merida replies, closing her eyes again. "Their like our family. 'Cept more posh and prim. So don't try tah mess nothing up!"

"I'd never do that!" I protest, but her silence makes me doubtful. I change topics when the silence between us hangs like an unwelcome stranger. "So, do you come to the waterfalls often?"

"Yes, and no," she answers dully. "I haven't gotten as much time tah mahself lately. When I get tah eighteen, Mah mum will have tah make thah decision whether or not tah make meh the queen."

I try to picture Merida standing in as a queen for the rest of her life, but I can't see it. Briefly, I wish Tooth had told me more about Merida before I was brought here by that dumb, old witch. Merida doesn't really share much about herself. Honestly, I know next to nothing about her. Sometimes, she'll be talking non-stop, and other times she just shuts down, building walls around herself.

"Being a queen sounds fun!" I say, with a fake grin. "You can control armies, build your kingdom, command everyone -"

"Yer an idiot," Merida interrupts me. "Being queen isn't ah game. There's duties, responsibilities!"

"Oh,"

We stay quiet for awhile, the silence returning. Maybe if I knew more about Merida, she wouldn't be so sullen all the time. It could get annoying. Sometimes, I would see a glimpse of a carefree Merida, which seemed to be the real Merida. Not the boring, strict Merida.

If I ever managed to get home, I realize that I would actually miss Merida, whichever Merida she decided to be.