Royalty•Disney Oneshots

Shoot my Shot (Male Reader X Merida)

You watch her red hair blow in the wind, her curls like a flame around it's fuel. How she sat atop the mighty horse, Angus, and so proudly watched from above. Wild green eyes, darting over her subjects.

"Attention! The hunt will begin shortly, ready your weapons and brandish your swords." King Fergus hollered above the various hunters and scouts. It was the annual hunt, where the people of the kingdom would join together to gather for Hogmanay. Welcoming the new year with a bang, was a mandatory celebration that had been celebrated for generations. The sky was a cloudy grey, nothing bright and would provide good cover for the hunt. A strong smell of wet wood and smoke was quite prominent. Wet hounds hollered below, waiting to be set free and begin the first trail on their prey.
"Father-" Princess Merida kicks Angus forward, stopping beside her Fathers stallion and whispering to him. He begins to grunt a response when the Queen arrives.
"Elinor?" King Fergus raises a brow to peer down at his wife. She simply hands him a small dagger, sheathed in embroidered leather. He grins, delighted at the new toy.
She presents Merida a bracelet. A small blue gem is nestled between the coils of silver, gleaming in the reflections off of the daggers around them. She smiles, clipping it around her wrist. They exchange a few more words before Fergus continues speaking in hushed murmurs to Merida.

"Well boy, your first hunt!?" A strong man claps you on the shoulder, his hand big and coarse. It encompasses you, gripping firmly.
"No actually, my third." The man bellows a mighty laugh, his head falling back and skyward.
"You look like you've never seen a boar! I'll be excited to see what group your thrown into." The crowd was always split into smaller devisions. All lead by either a General, Knight or if you were good enough, The King or Princess.
"All right you beggars! Line up!" Without hesitation the crowd shifts around, everyone lining up to form a path through the castle courtyard. The King always walked down the line first, picking out his team and heading out the gates ahead of everyone else. Following him, the Princess would choose her entourage, leading them to the West of the forest.
The King begins, his white stallion blowing steam from his nose. Fergus points a large finger at different men, each big and burly with multiple weapons strapped to their bodies. These men looked like they were going to war, not hunts. But then again, the forests surrounding the castle were enormous. You would never cover them all, even with the hundred or so people gathered here today.
Fergus stopped his Stallion in front of you. Staring at the horses prancing hooves, you slowly raise your eyes to find the King staring right at you. He looks you up and down, before shaking his head and moving on. Your heart sank, watching him pick out his last couple of men and exit the gates.
Merida comes next. Men are bustling to try and join her company, the ones she chooses are vibrating with joy. You watch her approach, one hand gripping the bow strapped to your back. Would she pick you?
You looked down at the horse between your legs. A white mare, her shoulders strong and legs stronger. She was a sight to behold, truly. But as the black stallion, Angus, approaches you feel the nerves begin to rise.
Your eyes lock gaze with Merida, encapsulated within those swirling green orbs.
"You, with me." She jabs a thumb over shoulder to her entourage. Mostly only archers would ride on horses, you were one of a few.
"Thank you, your highness." You say, bowing your head and kicking the mare to follow her.

The Princesses company exit the gates, you are directly behind Merida as the pair of you were the only ones on horses.
"Right, you all should know the drill by now." She stops and turns her steed around to face us. "Silent feet all of you. I want it to be spread amongst the green and surrounding the beasts. Understood?"
"Yes your highness!"
"Good. Now come on, I want to beat the King in his bounty." Without another word we are running into the opening of the West Forest. We hurry through the trees, until we reach a darkened area covered by leaves. "Everyone on foot, I want you to return to the opening every time you have a kill. Go in pairs. Clear?" The men and women nod, all grabbing pairs and dispersing amongst the trees. Merida turns to you.
"Come on lad, we are going after the herds."
She kicks Angus into a gallop, forcing you to follow after her. She's manoeuvring the animal through the trunks of oaks and spruce, so nimble is that stallion for its hulking mass.
We emerge into a grassland, and low and behold there's a massive herd of deer.
"My father will be here in no time. How many can you shoot?" She looks at my quiver, silently counting my arrows.
"As many as you need me to, your highness." She smirks, a chuckle escaping her lips.
"I like you boy. Right. You go right, and I'll head left. Round them and take the ones on the edge." She begins to love off before she stops. "Aim for the young bucks. Don't bother with the does." Trotting away, you head in the opposite direction.