Blacklight

Chapter 1

Mother Gothel added the last drop to her newest concoction. She hoped, for Rapunzel's sake, that it would work. Ever since the little brat had escaped her, Gothel had been keeping a keen eye out for any more "Flynn Rider"s that might show up at her door. How broken the young girl had been as she watched him die- ah, well. So is life. It definitely made her job easier. She moved around in the tiny underground home she had found for them. It looked like it belonged to a mining family, but that was years ago, when ore was still available in the tiny nearby mountain. A soft moaning in the other room meant that the golden-haired child was up. She took the hazelnut soup off of the stove and poured it into two bowls.

"…mother?" Rapunzel called out softly.

"Coming, dear," Gothel cooed. She opened up the heavy wooden door that separated Rapunzel's room from the rest of the house. She went to great lengths to make sure that the child wouldn't be strong enough to push through.

"Ah, you've been using your hair again, haven't you?" Gothel asked.

"Yes, mother," Rapunzel said. It was the only way she was able to stay looking normal. She never saw sunlight, and without the healing powers of her hair scurvy would be the death of her. She was not aware, as Gothel was, that she could not die. Gothel planned to keep it that way.

"Well, whatever it takes to keep my little flower beautiful," she said. She set the tray with both bowls on the small table and pulled out her dagger. "Now hold still…"

Rapunzel winced as Gothel pricked her finger. She held her hand out and her blood dripped into the small vial her mother was holding. "Perfect," she said. "Now, eat your soup."

Rapunzel did so, and as she took the first few sips her hand began to glow. She stared in awe as the cut on her finger healed. "What…?"

"YES!" Gothel cried, and she watched in wonder as her daughter's hair began to glow on its own. To test her theory for good, she cut off a small lock. The hair continued to glow, and did not turn brown. After the glow wore off, Rapunzel's hair stayed blonde, as did the lock in Gothel's hand.

Rapunzel's eyes widened as she realized what her mother had done. The old woman sang to the lock of hair, and became young again. Rapunzel could not speak.

Pushing through the door and out above the ground where their tiny house was buried, she chanted an ancient spell. When she was done, she left a small flower at the hidden entrance and retreated back into the house to wait for nightfall.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, a dark figure with diabolical purpose inched closer to the giant globe in the center of his hideout. A small red dot appeared, and he smiled, revealing his jagged teeth. "Finally," he rasped, "the tables will soon be turned."

The dark horse beside him whinnied, and another put its head under his hand. He patted it, lost in thought. He wondered what the gift was that the woman was offering. She had promised that it would bring the destruction of the guardians, but refused to tell him what it was. Perhaps a weapon, like a dark sword. Or maybe even a potion, to make him stronger or poison his enemies. Either way, he was desperate to find out.

-break-

Elsa walked into the small sanctuary for the first time in a long time. She looked up at the stained glass painting of her family, and tears sprung to her eyes. Before she could speak, a voice sounded behind her.

"I miss them too."

She turned around and ran into her father's arms. "We all do," he continued in his thick Russian accent. "And that's okay."

"But surely there was something we could have done," the young princess cried.

"Don't torture yourself with these thoughts. There's nothing anyone could have done. Pitch was too strong."

"I was right there," she said, remembering that fateful day. "I saw him take Jack, and then mom. If only I had been stronger…"

"Jack was stronger than you, and he couldn't save himself," North continued. "If you continue to dwell on the past, it will consume you."

Elsa stepped back and looked up into her father's eyes. "You're right," she said calmly, "I let my emotions get in the way…"

"This happens to everyone. Best to embrace it when you can, and tuck it away for later when you can't."

The young princess allowed a small smile to settle on her face. He may be difficult to understand half the time, but he was her father, and no one spoke the truth like him. She gave one last look at the stained glass portrait and walked out of the building. Even when she was happy, she couldn't get the images out of her head. They haunted her at night, and they were always the same- she awoke to clatter, ran out of her room, and saw her father fiercely battling a nightmare. She ran into Jack's room, and he wasn't there. Then to her parent's room. Her older brother and mother were there, huddled in a corner. She ran to them, but it was too late. Jack pointed his staff at her and she was completely surrounded by thick, impenetrable ice. She saw him fight off the monsters until they took mother. Then he continued until they took him. She saw his face as he grabbed at the anything he could; saw his eyes as he looked up to her. They weren't the playful light blue she remembered. They were black, fearful black. Then Pitch's laugh, and then she awoke. Every time.

She looked around at the icy kingdom that she and her father ruled. It had been very quiet and peaceful lately. Her gaze drifted across snow banks and frozen lakes. She looked up towards the sky and saw billowing smoke in the distance. Their sister kingdom, Dun'Broch, was as opposite to Arandelle as possible. The castle in the center of the island was carved by the kings of old into a volcano. Merida, the fire princess, was as full of spirit as her father. The two had met only once, but that was all Elsa had needed. The red-head was definitely a fireball.

-break-

"But Ah don't care about history!" Merida cried out.

Her mother shushed her and gave her a look. "The kingdom of Corona is very important. If we can learn from its downfalls, we can avoid our own."

"But the only reason et fell was because they went an' lost the heir," she remarked. "Without a ruler, it fell into shambles," she finished, her voice dull as the book she was reading from.

"We can still learn from them," her mother said. "But it will have to wait for tomorrow…"

Her voice drifted off, and Merida followed her gaze out the window. "Looks like the guests have arrived," she said.

"Yes," her mother replied. "Your father already has the fire show started."

Merida was out the door before her mother could say another word. She loved to watch the fire show, and had been working on her own. Whenever the Prince or Princess came of age, they had to perform a show of fire to prove their strength and worth in ruling the kingdom. She would surely impress her family with hers. She had worked on it for almost a year now. It was the only thing that would be exciting about that day, she thought to herself. She imagined all the princes coming in from far-away lands to compete against each other and woo her. She didn't particularly like any that she had seen so far, but her mother warned her that she had to choose a suitor soon, or one would be chosen for her.

She remembered the look on her father's face when her mother had said it. He didn't want to think about his little princess with some guy, especially one she didn't like. But he remembered when he had come of age, and wooed the hand of his wife.

Merida shook those thoughts from her mind as she walked out into the yard. Her eyes were dazzled as she watched the dancers. They moved so swiftly, with a deadly grace about them. They shot fire from their outstretched palms and toward the sky from their mouths. What a sight! She could only imagine how long they trained to be able to do that, and how experienced their magic level was. She grew more and more excited for the party to start. As she looked toward the sky, she saw that the dragon riders from Berk were arriving. The island of Berk was small, and they kept mainly to themselves. She wondered why they didn't like to mingle with the rest of the guardian world.

"Probably think they're too good fer us," she mumbled to herself. Well, at least most of them did. She happened to know a young dragon rider who was much more her style.

-break-

Hiccup saw the fire just outside the smoldering Volcano. The sun was setting, and the lights lit up the darkening sky.

"This way!" his father shouted. The direction-giving was unnecessary, but whatever made his dad feel better. He turned to his right and shot his older sister a look. She smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Perks of being chief," she shouted to him.

He nodded, and they began their descent.

"Whoa," he said, pulling back on the reigns. Toothless landed gracefully with a padded thud. Hiccup patted the dragon on the head and dismounted, careful not to catch his prosthetic leg on the stirrups.

"Got it?" his sister asked.

"Ya, I'm fine," he said. "Thanks."

"C'mon, we'll be late!" she said, hurrying him on. He looked back. Snotlout, Fishlegs, and the rest of the gang were still in the sky.

"They'll get here soon enough," she said, pulling him forward. "There's someone I want you to meet!"

Hiccup sighed. "Fine, fine." Astrid rarely included him with her other friends, and he didn't want to miss out on the chance to bond with his sister. After all, it was family disagreement that had gotten his father into cheifhood anyways. Berk was at one time a monarchy, but the four brothers that had ruled did not get along. Or, rather, just the one. He wanted all of the power for himself, and so naturally an all-out war started. The once great island of Berk was whittled away until it was just a small outcropping, and his father had risen from the ashes as a war hero. The small group of people remaining voted him in as chief, and so the democratic monarchy began. His eldest child would do battle with the other contenders when they came of age, and the winner would be ruler- if the greater population agreed. This means that the contenders had to be not only physically strong, but also popular among the people. He knew his sister was a shoo-in for chief when she went into battle next year. She was both strong and well-liked.

As she hurried him along, dodging caterers and fire-breathers, he spotted the throne approaching. What on earth was she doing? They came up to the throne and bowed.

"Your highnesses," Astrid began. "Might I inquire the whereabouts of the princess?"

The king laughed and replied, "No need to be so official, Astrid. She's out admirin' the fire show. Should be in any minute now."

Astrid smiled and thanked him, pulling Hiccup along with her back outside. His mind was reeling. She knew the princess here? Was this the new friend he was to be introduced to? He was definitely afraid- people from Dun'Broch weren't known for their patient or kind nature.

Then again, he thought to himself, neither were people from Berk.