I've been so excited to post this.
Monster Inside
It takes Jack a few moments to adjust to the dim lighting. From beside him comes faint groaning. He looks down to see Rapunzel and Merida crumpled beside him. Merida's bow lies broken on the ground next to her. What happened? Where are we? Where's Hiccup? And that's when the manic laughter comes up to the bar of the cage. Jack's eyes narrow, and the grip on his staff tightens as he looks down below.
"Pitch!" he shouts angrily.
"What do you want with me, Frost?" a voice comes from the cage next to Jack. Jack's breath hitches as he looks over and finds the King of Nightmares locked up in one of his own cages. Slowly, he looks back down at the floor again and finds Hiccup grinning smugly at him. Instead of their normal green color, his eyes gleam a hideous yellow.
"H-Hiccup?" Jack whispers. "But…how? What? Pitch, what did you do?"
"I may or may not have unleashed the fearlings upon him and his stupid dragon while they were practicing flight. One thing led to another and suddenly he was a fearling and he captured me and the rest of you all," Pitch replies.
"I hate the way he tells it. I like my way better," Hiccup calls up. Jack leans against the bars of the cage, peering out and meeting eyes with Hiccup. No, Jack, that's not Hiccup, that's a fearling that took over Hiccup.
"You see, I was out flying with Toothless, and suddenly, my eyes were opened up. What was I doing with your pathetic little group? I had no idea. So, while you were all still sound asleep, I used fluffy little clouds of nightmare sand to transport you all here. Pitch was impressed, and then went on to tell me his ridiculous, extremely flawed schemes. I realized that I would be of much better use as the person in charge, but Pitch protested, so he got trapped, too. On top of that, Toothless now sees things the way I do, too," Hiccup explains with a smirk. Jack glares.
"You know, you pick the worst times to be an overachiever," he comments.
"Jack?" a meek voice comes from next to Jack. Jack turns away from Hiccup and kneels down to find Rapunzel finally waking up. Her eyes widen when she realizes where they are, and the absence of one of their team members.
"What did Pitch—"
"Listen to me, Punz. Oh, good, Merida, you're awake now, too," Jack whispers. Merida blinks slowly.
"Jack?"
"Listen, guys. Pitch unleashed fearlings while Hic and Toothless were on their early-morning flight. Now Hiccup's got a fearling in him, we're trapped, he trapped Pitch, and Toothless is a fearling. I'm trying to figure out a way out of this but so far, I've got nothing. Just be careful and try to be quiet so we don't make him mad. Fearlings do a lot of damage when they decide to take someone over," Jack explains quickly.
"Hiccup…is a fearling?" Merida's voice is too loud, because Hiccup looks up at the cage curiously.
"Not so much of a fearling…more like the new King of Nightmares," he replies.
"Pitch, did he just steal your title?" Jack asks. Pitch nods.
"Afraid so. Just because he thinks his little plans are better than mine."
"I'm just hoping this is all a bad dream, and I'm gonna open my eyes and reality and we'll be back at base," Rapunzel mutters.
"…All a bad dream? At a time like this in a place like this? Punzie, are you serious?" Merida pipes up. Rapunzel blushes. Hiccup crosses his arms.
"Ladies, if you please," he says, drawing the attention back to him.
"So now that you have us, what do you plan to do with us?" Jack asks.
"Good question, Jack. Very simply, I'm going to break you. You've already lost a team member, haven't you, Big Three?"
"He just…he just called us the Big Three," Rapunzel says quietly. "He just cut himself out of the Big Four…"
"Hey, hey, hey, listen to me. Stay strong. Don't let him get to you. That's what the fearling inside of him wants. Deep down, the real Hiccup is fighting to get out. Just don't let it bother you. Brush it off," Jack whispers, placing a hand on Rapunzel's shoulder. He takes a glance down at Hiccup.
"Cutting yourself from the Big Four, Hic? Really? That's your whole plan? Right there?"
"I wasn't finished, Frost," Hiccup calls back up.
"F-Frost? Did you just…but that's what…Hiccup, really?!" Jack exclaims. He just addressed me as 'Frost.' Only Pitch does that.
"Yes, I did. Now, I believe I mentioned I wasn't finished. You see, Pitch wanted to break all of you. He was just going about it the wrong way with empty threats. Yes, his nightmares and fearlings were very strong compared to you three—"
"It was us four, Hiccup!" Merida shouts. Hiccup shakes his head as he meets gazes with the redhead.
"Fine, archer, us four. His fearlings and nightmares were very strong when compared to us, but we were never broken. He never did…well, this."
…
Where am Ah? Wait…no…this isn't…is it? Ah haven't been here in years. Hundreds of years, actually. Wha—wait. Merida stands and looks around, blinking in confusion. She's jolted when a body runs through her. She gasps out loud, patting herself gently. Ah'm invisible. Like when A died… Merida looks up again at the person running and almost screams at the sight – it's her. Following behind comes Angus. No…no…this is that night!
Merida follows Angus and herself from long ago, stumbling to a halt when she sees where they've ended up. Mum… Merida's mother, in bear form, lies on the ground, tied up by her father and the men from the kingdoms. Her daughter comes bursting into the scene, and all Merida can do is watch the night's events go down.
Mor'du interrupts the fight between Merida and her father, and soon enough, her mother is forgotten about as father and daughter begin battling the demon bear. It's too soon for Merida when her father is struck down and thrown back, off his feet. Merida is pushed aside, as well. Men from the other kingdoms are shoved out of the demon bear's way as he comes upon Merida's mother.
No…please, please don't.
Mor'du begins his attack on Elinor. Through his attack, the ropes around Elinor are cut, and the queen runs free. It's only a few seconds of freedom, however, before Mor'du attacks again. Fergus still sits on the ground, dazed and bewildered, while Merida takes it upon herself to take down the demon bear.
"Ah'll not let you kill my mother!" Merida of the past yells, letting out a loud cry as she lunges for the bear with a spear and her bow. Merida from now can only watch in horror as the bear turns and throws her back. Mor'du lets out a large roar as he beats down on Elinor again. By this time, Fergus has gotten to his feet and has come at the bear again when Elinor lets out an agonized roar.
"Mum!" Merida from the past and Merida from now both cry out.
Merida of the past stumbles back when she realizes that her mother has just passed on. Merida of now crumbles to her knees. Please, please, someone get me out of here. This…this is Hiccup's fault. Ah need to get out of here and warn Jack and Rapunzel of what's ahead. Please, someone get me out.
Tears finally spill over as she watches her past self begin, teary-eyed, to lunge at the bear once more. With his first victim finished off, Mor'du turns toward Merida of the past. Merida's past self realizes a few seconds too late of Mor'du's intentions, and is thrown back again. This time, the bear pins her to the ground. Get me out of here! Hiccup, get me out! Merida covers her eyes as her own gut-wrenching screams fill her ears. After a minute or two of more screaming, one final shriek is let out, and then her voice goes dead.
This is what Merida didn't see. By the time she woke up as a spirit, it seemed like a few days had passed, and she didn't dare bring herself to the kingdom to find out the aftermath, no matter how badly she wanted to. She distanced herself, never once turning back. But now she watches her father, the Bear King, turn toward Mor'du with a ferocity in his eyes she only saw once before, when she was young. Fergus rushes at Mor'du, but it's only a matter of time before he is disarmed once more.
"Dad!" Merida cries out. She can do nothing to help her father, however. Instead, she watches the leaders of the other clans attempt – and fail – to aid Merida's father.
"No! No, stop, please! Hiccup, let me out! Stop, stop, stop! Ah've seen enough!" Merida screeches.
Nobody comes to her rescue.
...
The sunlight is nowhere to be found when Rapunzel opens her eyes. She blinks a few times, trying to get adjusted to the dim light, when she realizes something's amiss. I…I was with Merida…and Jack…and Hiccup…and Pitch. We were all in Pitch's lair. Where is everyone? Where am I?
Wait…I know this place. This is…this is my tower.
Rapunzel stands, turning slowly, when she hears moaning noises coming from a dark corner of the room.
"Pitch? Merida…Jack? Hiccup?" Rapunzel calls. When she receives no reply, she walks to the corner and screams at what she sees: herself, chained to her shelves. Memories of the night so many years ago flash through her mind as she looks at herself. She reaches out to rip the gag from her mouth, allowing her to shout for help and warn whoever should show up of her mother's wrath. Her hand, however, goes right through her.
I'm invisible. I'm dead. I-I'm dead, so why am I watching me before I was dead? Rapunzel's fear rises quickly, panic beginning to set in. She reaches out to touch her past self, but once again, her hand goes right through her. Rapunzel backs up, shaking her head. No. I can't deal with this. This…no.
And then she hears it. The call, "Rapunzel!" up the side of the tower. Rapunzel of now peers down over the balcony to see Flynn Rider standing there. After no reply comes, Flynn calls up again. No reply. Again he calls up, and Rapunzel of the past still doesn't answer. The final cry is frantic as Flynn struggles his way up the side of the tower. And that's when Rapunzel of now remembers the enemy hiding behind the curtains.
"Flynn, you can't do this. Please, run away, now. Mother Gothel is going to hurt you!" Rapunzel shouts down to him, but she knows it's futile. Flynn manages to pull himself into the tower, going right through Rapunzel. He finds the Rapunzel from the past chained up as soon as he hears her struggling. He kneels down beside Rapunzel and slips the gag from her mouth.
"R-Rapunzel, who did this?" he asks. Rapunzel from now shakes as Gothel comes up behind him, knife catching the light filtering in through the window. Rapunzel of the past points behind Flynn frantically.
"Gothel! Knife! Flynn, move!" Flynn, however, doubles over before he can turn around. Gothel rips a bloody knife from Flynn's stomach. Rapunzel of the past screams, yanking harder on her chains. Rapunzel of now lunges forward, kneeling down beside Flynn.
"Flynn, I'm so sorry," Rapunzel whispers. Her hands still go right through him as she leans down to hold him close. She turns, eyes locked on her past self struggling in the chains as Gothel comes nearer with the knife. Rapunzel can only watch her past self struggle and finally, finally, for once in her life, rebel.
"Please," Rapunzel begs. "Let me at least heal him. I'll do whatever you want, go wherever you want, if you let me. But if you don't…I'll fight. Never forgive you. Every day for the rest of my life." Gothel sighs and unchains Rapunzel.
"You have a very short time left, Rapunzel," Gothel warns dangerously. "And don't try anything." Gothel holds up the knife as a threat. Rapunzel hesitates before running over to Flynn, kneeling down right beside the Rapunzel of now. She feels Flynn's neck and wrist for a pulse, but finds none. What happened at this point? Rapunzel of now watches carefully.
"Please," Rapunzel whispers to herself. "Please, bring him back. I'll even trade my life for his." Rapunzel of the past looks up toward the ceiling when she says this, a tear sliding down her cheek. Her eyes open slightly wider. Rapunzel of now watches as Rapunzel of the past takes part of her hair and wraps it around Flynn. She starts whispering the healing incantation. Her hair begins glowing, at the same time, draining her of her energy. Gothel watches in sheer horror at the sight.
"Rapunzel?" she gasps. "Rapunzel, stop healing him at once! You're killing yourself!" Rapunzel of now turns toward Mother Gothel and finds her quickly aging. I remember this…
"Rapunzel, stop," Flynn finally coughs out. "You're dying. Please…Rapunzel, stop!"
"I won't," Rapunzel of the past whispers hoarsely. Flynn shakes his head. "My time is up, Rapunzel. You haven't lived yet. I've had all the time in the world." Flynn reaches up weakly. Rapunzel of the past spots a shard of glass in his hand, but it's too late by the time she reaches out to stop him. He slices her hair off, leaving it short and choppy. He then falls back to the floor again. The glowing stops altogether.
"No!" Gothel shrieks. "No, no, no!"
Both Rapunzels turn to see Mother Gothel aging even more rapidly. She stumbles about, finally falling out the window. Rapunzel of now rushes over and just manages to see Gothel turn to dust, and her cloak fall harmlessly to the ground. So that's how she died. Not by hitting the ground. She turned to dust… Rapunzel's stomach churns. The woman who cared for me ended up turning to dust. Wow.
Rapunzel turns back toward her past self, leaning over Flynn's dead body, sobbing. Her hair has turned brown by this point, and it seems its healing powers have been lost. I couldn't bring him back…it was all my fault. The voices that haunted Rapunzel that night come back to her slowly. You killed him. It's your fault Flynn died. You couldn't heal him.
"My life for his…please, if anyone hears this…please, I want to exchange my life for his. He…he doesn't deserve this. I should be the one who's dead! If he hadn't come up here in the first place…if I hadn't fallen in love with him he would've not come back. Please, whoever's listening. Bring him back. Take me instead."
Rapunzel starts to cry at the sound of her own voice from the past, so broken and hopeless. She watches through watery eyes as her past self rises and takes Gothel's knife and stabs herself.
No…no! Hiccup, get me out of here! I can't take this! Jack, Merida! Anyone, help me!
…
How am I back here? One minute ago I was in Pitch's lair…and now I'm…wait a minute. Wait just an icy minute. Jack takes in his surroundings carefully. He taps the ice a bit roughly with his staff and find that it cracks slightly. No…is this…this is what Hiccup meant, isn't it? His mental question is answered when he sees himself from before he died coming onto the ice with his little sister, Emma. No…you guys need to turn back. Now. Go. Don't even step on this ice. It's thin, see! Jack taps the ice in the same manner as before, only to find that it doesn't crack.
What? …This is a nightmare. It's also a memory Hiccup is making me relive…they're here. That's why. I can't manipulate anything here. Gee, thanks, Hic.
Jack perches himself on a tree branch and watches Jack of the past and Emma on the ice. He watches them for a long time, the dread growing. Soon enough, Jack finds himself watching the scene begin to play out.
"It's okay, it's okay. Don't look down, just look at me."
"Jack, I'm scared." Jack watches Jackson and Emma. He comes down from the tree slowly. I remember this. I remember everything about this. I don't need to relive it. It haunts me every day. Hiccup, get me out of here, or there will be consequences once we're face to face again.
"I know, I know." Jackson takes steps forward, and Jack finds himself holding his breath. His eyes shift toward Emma; the ice cracks below her feet. No…come on. I don't want to watch this. But Jack doesn't look away.
"But…you're gonna be alright. You're not gonna fall in…uh…"
Just get a little closer, use your staff, and grab her. If you hadn't wasted so much time and didn't throw your entire body weight forward, you could have lived with your sister. You could have lived your life and not been ignored for three hundred years! Jack grips his staff tighter in his hand. Why didn't I?
"We're gonna have a little fun, instead."
It always goes back to fun with you, doesn't it? Fun is the reason you're dead. Gosh, why didn't you bother checking the ice before you even set foot on the pond?
"No, we're not!" Emma replies fearfully. You're right, Em. We weren't going to have fun. You were going to witness your brother die. I'm so sorry you had to see that. If I had thought about so many things instead of just fun, you wouldn't have had to see me drown.
"Would I trick you?"
"Yes, you always play tricks!"
You always did trick her. Jack feels his chest tighten as he watches Jackson with his sister.
"Oh, well…not…not this time. I promise, I promise. You're gonna be…you're gonna be fine. You have to believe in me."
Jack lets out a small, choked gasp. She was my first believer…why didn't I go back home? She would've seen me. I know she would've. The tale of Jack Frost was always her favorite when we were growing up. Nobody else but her believed that Jack Frost existed.
"You wanna play a game?" Jackson asks, watching his sister's confused, frightened expression. "We're gonna play hopscotch, like we play every day."
Alright, Hiccup. You can get me out of here now. Please, please just take me out of here. It's bad enough to remember it. Seriously. Hiccup, I've had enough!
"It's…it's as easy as one…"
Jackson steps to the side, ice cracking underneath his foot. Just reach your staff and grab her. By throwing your whole weight into it, you're going to die. Please, please don't throw your whole weight into it. Not all of it. You have enough strength to get both of you home safely. You told Mom you'd be careful!
Jack falls to his knees as he watches his past self lean goofily, still trying to cheer up his sister in the desperate situation. Hiccup! I'm done here!
"Two…three!"
Jackson jumps across to thicker ice, landing right next to the staff. Jack looks at the staff in his own hands. This is the staff that saved my sister.
"Alright. Now it's your turn," Jackson says, turning toward Emma with his staff out. No…please, please don't do this. Hiccup, I don't need to see any more of this. I remember it all. Let me leave already!
"One…"
Emma gasps, sliding shakily on her skates as the ice cracks some more.
"That's it, that's it…two…"
Emma looks up with another gasp, horror on her face. Jackson swings his staff out.
"Three!"
Jackson's staff snags Emma and tosses her across the pond, onto thicker ice. In turn, Jackson stumbles onto the cracked ice. You idiot, get out of there while you still have a few more seconds!
Jack runs out to help his past self. He throws out his staff in the same way he did to save his sister. However, his staff goes right through Jackson. Jackson and Emma are oblivious to Jack's presence as they smile at each other. You're not okay, stop smiling!
Jackson stands up, smiling at his sister, taking a leisurely step forward before screaming. Jack reaches his staff again to try and save his falling self, but it's no use.
"Jack!" Emma cries out, lunging forward. Jack runs toward Emma.
"He's gone, he's gone. Don't even try to go after him. Please!"
Emma stands in shock for a few minutes before the tears spill over and she runs out toward the hole in the ice.
"Em…EMMA! No!" Jack shouts, but it's too late, because Emma's already gone through the hole.
Hiccup! Let me out! I didn't need to see that! Jack runs at the ice in the lake. No…I could've sworn…I looked to make sure she didn't fall in right before my body shut down. Why didn't I see this? No! Emma! Jack reaches down, but the hole in the lake ices over at his touch.
"Emma!"
…
By the time Jack wakes up, he's breathing heavily. He turns to see Rapunzel sobbing into her hands, and Merida shuddering.
"Ah witnessed them die," Merida whispers. "Mah mum, me, mah dad…"
"I killed myself. I tried to-to…to save Flynn, a-a-and he cut my hair and then Gothel died and…I killed myself!"
"Guys, guys, guys. Please, please don't let him get to you like that. Please. He's feeding off of your fear. Come on…guys, I'm begging you," Jack pleads with the two girls next to him, denying his own fears. Just a memory. Just a memory.
"So, you've all come back from your memories, huh?" Hiccup taunts from down below. Jack glares down at Hiccup, poising his staff at him.
"Staff won't work in the cage. You know that," Hiccup sneers. "If it worked, you would've busted out a long time ago. Way before I could bring you into those memories. How did you like them? How about you two, Rapunzel and Merida?"
"Leave them alone," Jack snaps.
"So how has he managed to do in fifteen minutes what I've been trying to do for weeks?" Pitch finally speaks up.
"You had poor planning and poor execution. Honestly," Hiccup calls up to Pitch, shaking his head.
"Ah…he's not wrong," Jack mutters.
"Back to our other topic," Hiccup interrupts.
"Hiccup," Merida calls down. Instead of her normally rough voice, her voice is soft.
"Please, please stop this. Ah know you're in there somewhere. Fight the fearlin'. I'm beggin' you."
Much to Merida's dismay, only a cold laughter follows. Merida sinks back down in her spot. Jack looks at her with wide eyes. No fight…no spark in her eyes. …It's one thing to insult her when she's going to fight back, but to insult her when she's lost the will to fight…
Jack turns to Pitch, anger brewing.
"Fix him!" he shouts, pointing to Hiccup. "Because of your stupid plan to make one of us into a fearling, we're down one team member, our fighter who doesn't take anything at all is taking everything and has lost the will to fight, and our healer won't stop crying because of that stupid, ridiculous memory! If you don't fix Hiccup right this instant, when we get out of here, so help me, the boogeyman will cease to exist."
Pitch looks taken aback at Jack's harsh tone and threatening voice.
"He has to let me out of here, first. Powers are useless in the cage," Pitch says.
Jack whirls around to face the bars of his own cage. His eyes settle on the lock.
"Don't even think about it," Hiccup says from down below. "I've got Toothless here ready to blast you back into that cage."
"Toothless?" Jack asks. Oh, yeah…Toothless is a fearling. That's fantastic. Jack meets Toothless's eyes and catches a glint of something. His eyes are still green…wouldn't they be fearling yellow? How did Hic not notice that?
"Bring it, then," Jack challenges, shaking his head. "I've had enough of this! You hurt Merida, you hurt Rapunzel, and that means you've hurt me. You've abandoned your team, and I don't know what happened to the real Hiccup, but he better be fighting tooth and nail to come back."
"Jack," Rapunzel whispers, grabbing the frost spirit's arm. "Please, please…don't."
"Trust me. You have to trust me," Jack whispers back. He slides his arm from Rapunzel's grasp and turns back toward the lock.
"Last warning," Hiccup says from below. Jack looks down at Toothless again; Toothless bars his teeth, but the look in his eyes isn't that of fury.
"Try me," Jack replies, reaching out for the lock. He twists it so that it's in front of the gap between bars. Jack stabs it with his staff – nothing happens. Come on…come on…
"Jack," Hiccup hisses.
Jack stabs at the lock again. Once, twice, three times. The clasp finally gives way, and it crumbles to the floor far down below. Jack swings open the cage door and leans down hesitantly, looking at Hiccup. For a few seconds, everything remains silent. Merida, Rapunzel, and Pitch stare. Hiccup and Jack lock gazes.
"Get him!" Hiccup finally yells to Toothless, pointing up at Jack. Toothless bolts at Jack. Hiccup watches, hoping that Toothless will get Jack to be punished, but Toothless flies up to the door. Jack grins at him.
"Get Merida and Rapunzel out of here as quick as you can. I've got this situation covered," Jack says quickly and quietly.
"How do ya know he's not a fearlin'?" Merida asks.
"His eyes are still green. Hiccup overlooked that," Jack replies, patting Toothless.
Merida looks Toothless in the eyes. Toothless grins at her.
"Proof enough," she says, climbing onto Toothless's back. Rapunzel joins her, and the three of them are off and out of the lair as quickly as possible. That leaves Jack, Pitch, and Hiccup.
"H-How…Toothless—"
"His eyes weren't yellow. For the genius of the group, you really missed out on something obvious. Now, seeing as they got away, if the real you would fight a little bit harder, we could finish this and get out of here," Jack interrupts.
"I thought I had to fix him, Frost," Pitch calls from his cage. Jack looks at Pitch wearily. Don't do it. Don't trust him.
"Ah…yeah, see, about that—"
Jack doesn't have any time to finish his sentence before the wind is knocked from his lungs. He stumbles backwards and falls to the ground, staring up at Hiccup in disbelief. Hiccup's hand remains raised in a fist. Jack lifts his staff horizontally in front of him to block another incoming blow.
"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, you better be fighting that fearling!" Jack shouts. He kicks Hiccup, sending Hiccup stumbling back. It gives him just enough time to get back to his feet and block another fist. Hiccup grabs Jack's staff and begins pulling it away. Jack tugs back, wrenching it from Hiccup's grasp.
It's the banging of the cage door above them that make Jack and Hiccup freeze. Jack looks up to find that Pitch has broken the lock; he comes down from his cage, grinning manically at Jack. Jack backs up – right into Hiccup. Hiccup restrains Jack, managing to snatch his staff and throw it into the darkness.
"W-What?" Jack asks, eyes widening.
"You really believed that cover story that I captured Pitch, too? It was a ploy, you idiot," Hiccup snaps. "Now, if we're done speaking, Pitch?"
Jack shifts his gaze back toward Pitch.
"Nightmares and fearlings alike, come," Pitch says darkly. Jack looks around rigidly.
"Hiccup," he mutters through grit teeth, "if you're fighting in there, fight harder."
Jack struggles briefly against Hiccup before realizing that he won't be able to go anywhere. The nightmares begin closing in around them, stopping with only a four foot gap left. Jack looks all around them with wide eyes. His fingers twitch, struggling to pull free of Hiccup. I need to get out of here with Hiccup. I need to do it now.
Jack watches a nightmare hand Pitch his staff. Pitch points the staff at Jack, but Jack shakes his head defiantly.
"You've snapped it once already. I've proven I can fix it."
"You're not aware that it can be used against you, Frost, are you?" Pitch retorts. Jack pales.
"It…it can?"
"Oh, yes. I have no need for it. Hiccup, however, will be needing it." Pitch yanks Jack aside, throwing him to the floor, while Hiccup gets Jack's staff. Jack raises his head, a pained look of terror on his face, as Hiccup points his own staff in his face.
"Don't you dare, Haddock," Jack mutters angrily, nostrils flaring. "You've got more fight than that. I know you do. I'm disappointed in you."
Hiccup hesitates, hands shaking the staff slightly. Pitch looks on.
"Hiccup, do it," he urges.
The look of anger returns to Hiccup's face as he glares down at Jack. The shades of autumn – brown, green, red, orange, gold, purple – begin swirling around the staff. Jack looks Hiccup in the eye.
"Do it, then, Hiccup. But remember this – Toothless, Merida, Rapunzel…Astrid."
It's at the mention of Astrid that Hiccup stops. The colors die down, and the staff leaves Hiccup's hands. For a few seconds, nobody moves. And then Pitch shoves Hiccup out of the way and grab's Jack's staff, beckoning for other nightmares and fearlings to hold Jack down. Jack scrambles to his feet, turning around rapidly. Hiccup looks on from the floor, watching Jack wrestle to get away from the nightmares.
Toothless. Merida. Rapunzel. Astrid.
Toothless. Merida. Rapunzel. Astrid.
Hiccup's head spins. He's right. I need to escape. But there's no escaping the fear, is there? What's the point? Jack is relying on you. He's in danger. You need to help him. Jack is as good as dead. Go save him, now! Fight, Hiccup, for crying out loud! Don't fight it. Your eyes have been opened – why shut them now?
"Hiccup!" Jack yells, fighting to pull his arms away from nightmares. "Come on, Hiccup!"
Jack is in danger. Jack will simply be joining our side. He's resisting and being awfully rebellious. Help Jack. Fight off the fearling!
"It's too late now, Jack," Pitch mocks him. Jack glares, staring right into Pitch's gold eyes.
"I'll keep fighting. You don't have a fearling strong enough to overtake me. I'd die before you'd be able to turn me," he grunts, pulling against the nightmares again.
"Oh, you will, will you?"
"Jack, don't!" Hiccup cries out. "Jack, just—"
But Hiccup gets cut off after a rather large blast of Pitch's nightmare sand shoots out of the staff and hits Jack square in the chest. Jack slips through the restraints of the nightmares and falls on the floor. Hiccup runs up, shielding Jack from any more blows. Pitch arches an eyebrow.
"Come along, Hiccup. We're going to get rid of the others now," Pitch says, handing Hiccup the staff. "And next time, do as you're told."
"No."
Pitch whirls around.
"What…did you just…say?"
"I said no!" Hiccup whistles loudly, desperately crying out, "Toothless!" as loud as he can.
Within a few seconds, the dragon comes right back into the lair.
"Get them!" Pitch commands his nightmares. Hiccup slings Jack onto Toothless and gets on, himself.
"Go, Toothless!" Hiccup says, holding onto the handle on Toothless and Jack's staff with a white-knuckled grip. Don't lose yourself. You can't hang on. GO AWAY! Just get to Rapunzel…she can heal him…I hope. There's no use in healing him. He's dead and by the time you get back, the gap in which Rapunzel can heal him will be gone. No! I'm not going to let him die! He's my best friend!
"Faster, Toothless!" Hiccup urges, taking a look at Jack. He's still alive. He's not dead. He's still alive. He's not dead. He's dead and you're fully aware of it. Shut up!
At last, Hiccup spots Rapunzel's old tower. Toothless comes in through the opening in the ceiling. Hiccup dismounts and takes Jack's body. Rapunzel and Merida look up in alarm.
"He's here to finish us off!" Rapunzel shouts.
"No, no, please! I'm trying…Jack is dying, err, dead…I DON'T KNOW! Rapunzel, you have to heal him, quickly!" Hiccup shouts desperately, setting Jack down on his bed. Rapunzel hurries over.
"He's dead. I have a very short window of time left to save him—"
"THEN DO IT!" Hiccup shouts. "No, wait, don't do it…YES, DO IT! No, don't!"
"What's happenin'?" Merida asks, looking at Hiccup.
"Fighting myself," Hiccup mutters, breathing heavily. His fists clench and unclench several times as he approaches Rapunzel.
"Hold him back, Mer! I have to heal Jack!" Don't let Jack turn into Flynn.
Merida grabs Hiccup by the arms and pulls him back, bending one of his arms back to his shoulder blade. Hiccup grunts in pain as he watches Rapunzel wrap her hair quickly around Jack. Please, please heal.
"Punzie, when yer done, Ah think Hiccup needs some healin' up as well!" Merida calls over.
"Hush!" Rapunzel shouts, before fixing her gaze on Jack. "Flower, gleam and glow…let your power shine…make the clock reverse…bring back what once was mine…"
"Don't heal him!" Hiccup shouts angrily.
"Fight the fearlin', Hiccup!" Merida shouts back, moving his arm more toward his shoulder blade. A cry of pain comes in reply.
"Heal what has been hurt…change the fate's design…save what has been lost…bring back what once was mine…what once was mine…"
"Is it workin', Punzie?" Merida asks anxiously.
In reply, nightmare sand rises from Jack, writhing in pain and glowing yellow before disappearing altogether.
"Jack?" Rapunzel asks hesitantly. Jack coughs violently, eyes opening slightly.
"Pitch…Hiccup…w-where am I? Punzie? What happened?" Jack sputters.
"Ask Hiccup," Rapunzel says, looking toward the brunette.
"Is he still a fearling? What's he even doing here? I thought…did he fight? Mer, check his eyes," Jack says, coughing again.
"Green," Merida says, peering into Hiccup's eyes, "small flecks o' gold, though. Real small."
"Good e-enough," Jack says. "Hic, what happened back there?"
"I was fighting to get out the entire time, I assure you. Anyway, you said you would die before he could turn you, so he took your staff and hit you with the nightmare sand, and you…ah, died. For a second time. Kind of like Sandy did that one time. Except your body was still there. Anyway, Pitch gave me your staff and told me we were going to get the others. I told him no, got you, and then whistled for Toothless. He must've been nearby, because he came right in. We narrowly got by nightmares and then came back here. Rapunzel had to heal you. Merida's had to hold me back, and—ahh…no…no…no!"
"He's bein' taken over again!" Merida shouts, watching his eyes go from green to gold and then back to green. "Punzie! Heal him as best ye can!"
Rapunzel wraps her hair around Hiccup, who struggles against Merida. Jack grabs his staff – which had been lying beside him – and holds it out, another cough wracking his body. Rapunzel sings her healing incantation again and watches a fearling rise up out of Hiccup. Jack shoots blasts of ice at the glowing form before it disappears, just as the nightmare sand had. For a few seconds, the room goes quiet. The only sound is that of Hiccup breathing heavily, slumping against Merida.
"Hic?" Merida asks gingerly.
"I am so sorry," Hiccup mutters.
"How did ye know to bring up our memories like that?" Merida asks.
"That was part of a bigger plan," Jack and Hiccup both answer. Hiccup turns around to see Jack, looking at Merida with a steely gaze.
"Apparently the whole 'Pitch is trapped' thing was just a ploy for us to let our guards down a little."
"Yeah," Hiccup says quietly. "The fearling…when it took over…Pitch said that he was going to be in one of the cages. He wanted to make it appear that I overpowered him so that you'd all be so busy focusing on me that when it was time to do the real damage, Pitch would 'escape' and do it, with my help. I didn't bring up those memories on my own idea. Pitch wanted it to look like I did, to make it even more scarring."
"Well, it's over now," Rapunzel says.
"Yeah," everyone murmurs in agreement.
Oh, it's far from over, a little voice in the back of Hiccup's head whispers.
Okay, so, yes, there will be a sequel to this. The way things are looking, it'll probably be a multi-chapter. And oops my HiJack broTP is showing again. Why is it that every time I go to write some HiJack broTP one of them almost kills the other? Whatever. Hope you enjoyed! Keep your eyes peeled for the sequel!