Woven Fates

The Clans

Over the next few weeks, Merrick had dreaded the day the lords would get to the castle, and spent all his free time with (Y/N), even if all she was doing was working.

A little ways away, a lone man stood on the bow of his ship while his men rowed. He had long curly black hair and a red kilt, standing proudly and sniffing.

He pauses and turns when he heard another drum beating, turning and seeing a familiar blond giant with a green kilt

"MacGuffin!" He bellows, and the men repeat this and row faster.

"Dingwall!" Another man yells, with white hair and wearing a yellow kilt. He poses proudly as his ship goes faster, his men repeating his name.

"Macintosh!" The man wearing the red kilt yells, making his men do the same and row faster.

...

Merrick grunts as his mother tosses a light blue dress shirt at him, and it smacks him in the face.

She plops him down and attempts style his hair back, running the brush aggressively through his wild hair as he flinches.

"Where's (Y/N), mum?" He manages out, hissing in pain as she brushes his hair again, wanting her to do it instead.

"Preparing with the other servants, of course," Elinor replies with a raised brow, shaking her head. "Now, sit still."

He flinches when she brushes the brush through his hair once more, gritting his teeth.

...

His mom managed to sleek his hair back, pushing away a piece that flopped down and she clips pendant on his light blue shirt. It shines a bright silver and bears the markings of three bears on it. She dusts off his shirt as he clearly struggles to breathe.

His outfit was a white pair of pants with a silk baby blue dress shirt with a white undershirt and his black boots, now shiny and spotless.

"You look absolutely handsome!" His mom gushes as he stiffly stands and gasps for air as his face turns red from lack of air.

"I can't... Breathe!" Merrick wheezes out, shaking his head.

"Oh, shush! Give us a turn," Elinor brushes him off, making him sigh.

He stiffly turns, "I can't move." Merrick finishes turning and grunts, "it's too tight."

"It's perfect!" Elinor grins, placing her hands on her mouth.

Merrick groans and slightly strains to stand tall, and he notices his mom staring at him with an unreadable expression.

"Merrick?" she speaks quietly, her voice gentle and her eyes kind but also full of concern.

"Mum?" He slowly responds, confused and relaxing a bit.

"Just..." Elinor pauses and sighs, shaking her head as she straightens up. "Remember to smile."

A light knock brings them out of their conversation, "My Queen? Prince Merrick?"

Merrick scrunches his nose, hating when (Y/N) calls him that.

She shouldn't have to.

(Y/N) enters, revealing her usual (F/C) casual dress. Merrick stares at her, his eyes trailing along her face as he felt his heart beat a bit quicker.

(Y/N) pauses and smiles when she sees him, her face lighting up. "Wow, my Prince! You look handsome."

Merrick's straining stops and he looks at his friend, and for some reason he felt like he could breathe again as his face flushes red.