His eyes went wide. He whispered, “They attackedhere?”
“Aye, but as they crept up on the castle, one of the Vikings stepped on the paw of a sleeping wolf, and the wolf woke, and the wolf howled a mighty howl until all the wolves woke, and they all howled. The mighty men of Alba woke up and began tae fight, and they won, Archibald, they beat the Vikings and brought peace tae our lands. Those men are our ancestors and that is why the wolf is a symbol of Stirling.”
“I like that story — I think you should call yourself the Wolf King.”
“Tis a good idea, except maybe Fraoch would tell me I am an arse for thinkin’ too highly of m’self.”
He said, “That sounds like Uncle Fraoch.”
I watched him ride for a moment on the long wide field. “Ye hae become a verra good rider.”
“Thanks Da, want to race?”
I said, “I daena ken...” Then I commanded Dràgon, “Ruith!” and set him chargin’ across the field.
Behind me Archie yelled, “Hie!” and set Mario tae chase.
We galloped across the plain. I let Archie pass me and he began tae howl like a wolf as he rode, a fine sight, full of bravado and confidence. My pride in him swelled in my chest, I howled, too, as I passed him. I pulled Dràgon tae a stop at the edge of the far field after winnin’ the race.
He pulled up a few moments behind. “Aren’t you supposed to let me win?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Let ye win? Why would I let ye win?”
“Because I’m a boy.”
“Ye are a prince, why would a king let ye win?”
He shrugged.
I laughed. “I was just tellin’ ye that whole story about how ye canna let yer subjects get high ideas in their heads, or ye might be overthrown — tis the same for princes.”
Archie said, “Oh, yeah, right.”
“Someday ye will beat me.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I am a time-traveler, I met ye in yer future. Ye will grow tae be a big man, a worthy king, and most importantly a good horseman.”
“Most importantly?”
“Aye, tis the way tae my heart, ye ken.”
He said, “Aye....” Then he asked, “So what happens when someday I beat you?”
I shivered. “Och, I daena like the sound of it, Archibald, I would prefer not tae dwell on it, but I will say this, ye will be a man and I will be proud of ye, and I will say, ‘Well done, son,’ and then I will go about my duties as king — just because ye can ride fast daena mean ye get tae replace me.”
“I don’t want to replace you.”
“Then we daena need tae worry about it, tis verra far in the long away future. But ye are well, ye arna worried on it?”
“No, I am well, but Ma said something that I’ve been thinking about, ‘Do what makes the best story.’”
“Aye, her Grandma Barb used tae say that. It makes ye feel better?”
“Yeah, I have a cool story coming, and there’s not much I can do about it. You’re a king, I get no say in it.”
“Aye, ye will be a king, tis a bloodline, tis harsh but tis true, ye canna do much but accept that this is yer story.”
