The sun streamed through her window, the dragons croaked outside, and the smell of fresh fried meat wafted in the air. Merida took a deep breath, a sleepy smile slid across her face, and stretched, wiggling her fingers and toes. She rolled out of bed, not bothering to flatten her hair, there was no trying, it was useless.

Merida walked out of her bedroom and was greeted by a table full of food. Merida bounced to the table, and sat down at an empty plate. She picked out her breakfast, and soon, Hiccup joined her, his pajamas still on.

"Good mornin'!" Merida chirped. Hiccup flushed and smiled.

"Good morning." Hiccup sat across from her and filled his plate. They ate in a somewhat awkward silence, both stealing glances at each other. Merida was the first to break the silence.

"Hiccup," she cleared her throat, "Hiccup, A have a question."

"Y-yeah?" Hiccup choked out around his swallow of eggs.

"What exactly, are we? A mean, A know we're friends, but, yesterday, A just, A don't know. A'm not keen on this whole, datin' thing, an' A don't know what et means, but A don't wanna-" Merida was cut off by Hiccup's laughter. Merida crossed her arms and huffed.

"What's so funny?"

"It's not funny, it's just, I was thinking the same thing."

"Oh…"

"Merida, I can't lie. I like you, quite a bit. I haven't known you long, but I do have feelings for you that I can't really explain." A flush spread across Merida's face and spread to her shoulders. Hiccup watched fascinated as the red took over the complexion of her creamy skin.

"A, A like yah tew Hiccup."

"So, why don't we give it a go? Merida, will you do me the honor of being my girlfriend?" Merida smiled and gave him a quick nod, the knots in her stomach she didn't even know she had unraveled, and she dug into the food on her plate. Hiccup smiled and began eating, still stealing glances at the woman in front of him.


Merida followed Hiccup through the woods. Apparently there were sightings of a dragon that they though had disappeared a while ago. Right now they were looking down a hole that couldn't possibly have been made by any regular animal. Hiccup dropped to his knees and put his ear by the hole.

"What are yah doin?" Merida asked, arms folded across her chest.

"I'm listening." Hiccup said matter-of-factly.

"Why?"

"Well, the dragon we're looking for is called the Whispering Death. They're blind, but they sorta whisper to communicate. If you listen close enough you can hear them. Merida nodded her head, trying to take in what he was saying. She turned on her heels, and saw something poking out of the bushes. She slowly approached the bushes, crouching low and keeping her steps as soft as she could. Peeling back the leaves her heart sank to her feet.

"Hiccup, what dae the Whispering Death's look like?"

"Well, they look like a snake- no legs- spikes all over, and a very bulbous head. They have milky eyes, and a full mouth of teeth that circle inside the mouth too. Why?"

"Because A found a dead one."

"What?" Hiccup stood up and made his way to Merida.

"A found a dead one, see?" Hiccup peered over the leaves and, low and behold, on the ground lay a dead Whispering Death. Its face had been torn to pieces, its wings shredded. It was missing teeth, so it had put up a fight. Something big had taken down this dragon. Hiccup looked up at Merida, who was looking at the dragon, trying to figure out what could have torn it apart.

A whistling came from the hole and Merida and Hiccup both snapped to attention.

"What was that?" Merida asked, eyes searching for an answer. Hiccup shook his head.

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out." Hiccup jumped down into the hole and Merida ran to the edge.

"Hiccup! Are yah crazy? Get out of that hole!"

"I have to know what's going on Merida. Why don't you come with me?" Merida chewed her bottom lip and looked back to where the village was.

"It'll be an adventure." Hiccup sing-songed from the hole. Merida scrunched up her face and growled. She couldn't turn down an adventure. She jumped into the hole and Hiccup flashed her a smile.

"Oh shove off." Merida said, pushing past him. Hiccup chuckled and caught up to the fiery woman. They wandered the hole, Merida looking all around, amazed that something could actually do this to the rocks.

"Hiccup, how many of these things are there?"

"Well, last time we counted, there were six."

"Well, et looks like there's more now."

"What?" Hiccup turned around and the sight he saw brought fear to his heart. There were hundreds of small tunnels in the rock above them. They kept walking, and came across shells of eggs that were long hatched. Merida felt something in her stomach knot.

"Hiccup, somethin' doesn't feel right."

"I feel it too."

"We should go back." Merida started to go back the way she came when the ground beneath her gave way.

"Merida!" Hiccup called as he saw her disappear. He ran to the new tunnel.

"Hiccup! You need to see this!" Hiccup breathed a sigh of relief before making his way down the tunnel. When he got down there he was shocked to see what was there. A large pile of bones lay in the middle of the cavern.

"Those babies didn't last long…" Merida whispered. Hiccup nodded, but it wasn't just baby skeletons that were in the pile. Full grown skeletons of Whispering Deaths were in the bones along with a lot of fish. A huge tunnel was behind the pile and an eerie whispering swirled around them. A breeze picked up, pushing the two toward the tunnel they were staring into. Merida's hair whipped at her face and even lashed out at Hiccup. The man peered into the depths of the tunnel, his heart pounding a rhythm in his ears. Two red eyes peered at them and suddenly the beat stopped in Hiccups ears. He grabbed Merida's hand and gave it a squeeze.

The hair on Merida's body stood on end, and she felt like she was turned to stone, but when Hiccup squeezed her hand it melted away some of the fear in her heart. She flicked her eyes to Hiccup who gently nodded behind them, motioning for her to follow him when he took off. Merida gave a shaky nod in response and before she knew it they were running for their lives. Hiccup pulled out his sword, lighting it to guide them through the tunnels so they weren't completely blind in the dark. They could hear the dragon behind them, the beating of its wings, the screeching echoing through the tunnels.

"Hiccup! What es that thing?"

"It's called a Screaming Death. We think it's what controls the Whispering Deaths."

"Es et like, a queen or somethin'?"

"Why would you think it's a queen?" Hiccup jerked her to the left, going down a new tunnel.

"Well, most female animals are bigger than their counterparts. What if the Whisperin' Deaths are just boys." A realization donned on Hiccup, just as his sword lost its spark.

"Making the females rare! And in charge! Merida you're a genius!"

"We can agree later, we need ta get out of here!" They stopped at a divide in the tunnels, the screaming getting closer and closer.

"No. No, no! Et can't end like this! We're goin' ta get out of here. We just need… A Wisp!"

"Merida, we aren't in DunBroch!"

"No, Hiccup, there's a Wisp behind yew!" Merida grabbed Hiccup's shoulders and turned him around. There in front of them in the left tunnel was a little blue Wisp, floating a few inches above the ground. Merida grabbed Hiccup's hand and pulled him through the tunnels, the Wisp leading the way out. They could hear the dragon behind them, suddenly the Dragon appeared from a side tunnel and the two took off faster, adrenalin filling their veins. They could see a light at the end of the tunnel they were in, the Wisp went father, and father, and Hiccup and Merida ran faster and faster. Soon the Wisp stopped at the end of the tunnel, and Merida and Hiccup ran through it into the open air. Merida swore she heard her father whisper in her ear 'Good luck mah wee bear', but before she could understand she felt gravity pulling her down.

They hit the water with a smack, the air being knocked out of them. Merida surfaced first, gasping for breath. She looked around, but didn't see the mop of brown hair that was Hiccup surface. Panic filled her heart, and she thrashed around.

"Hiccup? Hiccup? Hiccup!" Merida yelled, looking for the awkward man. She took a deep breath and plunged into the frigid waters. The salt felt like fire in her eyes, but she ignored that, looking for Hiccup. A gleam of metal caught her eyes and she reached for it. She gripped it and pulled Hiccup to the surface. As quickly as she could she made her way to the shore. She drug Hiccup onto the sand and pulled off the armor on his chest.

"Hiccup! Hiccup." Merida shuddered and started chest compressions. She tilted back his head, plugged his nose and breathed air into his lungs. She pumped his heart, and repeated the cycle. What felt like an eternity passed before Hiccup coughed, water spilling from his mouth.

Through the haze he saw a mass of red, and soon everything came into focus. First it was her hair, that mess of red tangles. Then it was her shoulders, her clothes were dripping wet. The last thing that came into focus was the happy, terrified, relieved smile, and watery eyes. He could faintly hear her talking to him.

"Thank God, oh thank God. Thank whoever was lookin' out fer yew. A thought A lost yah. A, A thought." Hiccup sat up and instinctively wrapped his arms around the woman who was on her knees shaking from fright, or cold. He pulled her close, and she melted into his chest, wrapping her arms around his neck. Sobs racked her body and Hiccup ran his hands through the wet mess that was her hair.

"Shh. It's okay. I'm fine see? All ten fingers, all five toes."

"Five! Only five?" She looked down at his feet in a panic, completely forgetting about his prosthetic. Hiccup laughed and shook his head. He slowly rose to his feet, stumbling a little as he did, sending Merida to his side with a steady hand. Hiccup gave Merida one of his famous lop-sided smiles that would normally send butterflies through her stomach, but now it only set a fire in her heart.

"Hiccup, how are yah okay? Yah almost died!"

"I'm a Viking, it's an occupational hazard." That matter-of-fact statement earned Hiccup a punch in the shoulder, actually, a few.

"Why yah no good, death defin', hooligan!" Merida yelled, punctuating every gritted word with a shove. Hiccup stumbled backwards, hands raised in surrender.

"Hey, It's not like I do it on purpose."

"Ugh!" Merida stomped off.

"Do you even know where you are?"

"NO! But if A keep walkin', A'll find Berk."

"Merida, there's a shorter way."

"And?"

"And, you're wet, and cold, and you'll get sick if you don't come with me."

"Well, I'm a DunBroch. Et's an occupational hazard." Hiccup shrugged.

"Okay. I'll meet you at the docks." Merida responded with holding both hands up, birds flying on each.


Merida trudged up the shore of Berk to the docks. It had been three hours. She didn't think Berk was that big. But then again, she was walking in sand, in wet clothes that probably weighed a good twenty pounds. She blew her hair out of her face, wishing for a hair tie. Her hair, while mostly wet, was beginning to frizz to unhuman levels. She saw Hiccup sitting on the dock before he saw her. She growled as she noticed that he was not only there before her, but he had time to change clothes. She glared at the every growing speck that was her boyfriend, and kept walking, at least keeping somewhat warm.

When she got closer, Hiccup stood from the dock, blanket in hand, sideways smile on his face, and her heart instantly melted. She couldn't stay angry at him. She couldn't even be angry at him. She made the choice to walk the shores instead of listening to Hiccup.

"Did you have a nice trip?" Hiccup asked, wrapping the blanket around Merida's shoulders.

"Oh yes. A defiantly did. Et was riveting." Merida said, snuggling into the fur. Hiccup smiled and shook his head.

"Are you ready to go home?" Merida nodded and began walking to the docks before she stopped dead in her tracks. She felt it rise through her body, a signal of the end. Her eyes widened, shivers went down her spine, and she felt it tug at the back of her eyes.

She sneezed. A full body, hip bending, eye rolling, arm flinging, sneeze.

Hiccup turned on his heel, not even letting her recover.

"What was that?"

"Et was coincidence. Yah gave me a fur blanket. Sometimes et happens." But what she wasn't prepared for was the next sneeze, and the next. Hiccup crossed his arms, and ran his tongue along the inside of his bottom lip, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Really? Sounds to me like you're sick."

"A'm no'" But the ache in her voice gave it away. Hiccup grinned a triumphant smile and scooped Merida into his arms.

"A can walk. A'm sick, no dyin'" Merida crossed her arms and huffed.

"Yeah, maybe I was gonna do this anyway. I gotta sweep you off your feet somehow."

"Yeah, and dragon can't do that. Et would not be faster than yew either, would et?" Hiccup placed a kiss on her forehead, which caused her to smile and, ultimately, give in and kiss him on the cheek.

The next few days Merida was bed bound. When she arrived, in the arms of Hiccup, she was greeted by her mother, who gave her a knowing smile. Merida flushed and shimmied out of his arms and promptly flung herself into her mother's arms.

"Mum, A feel nasty."

"Don't worry mah wee lamb, A'll make yah some stew." Merida sniffed and nodded, making her way into the house.

"Suck up." Hamish said under his breath.

"If yah play yer cards right, yah can all be sick tomorrow." Merida winked at her grinning brothers. The boys smiled at each other and spent as much time around Merida as they could before Elinor and Val shooed them away. Needless to say, the boys were bed bound the next day.


It was now Wednesday, and Merida felt better than she had in a while. She stretched in bed, the congestion in her head gone, it was like the sun coming out on a foggy day. She breathed in fresh air through her nose and bolted for her dresser. She pulled out a brown pelt button down tank top and pulled on some leather arm braces. She tied them up carefully and then pulled on a pair of leather pants. She wrapped a plaid sash around her waist and decided to let her hair fall naturally. Clipping a fur cape around her shoulders over her quiver and grabbing her bow, Merida decided that she was going to do something productive with her day.

Merida bounced through the door of the house and strolled to the training arena. She sat on one of the benches and watched as Hiccup explained how to use his sword, he had been making those with evert second of his free time, and often stayed up late at nights to finish them. Merida had felt left out that she didn't get one, but she wasn't in school, she wasn't a dragon rider. And that thought bubbled inside her all two hours she watched them learn. She felt envious that everyone but her really had a dragon. Even the boys were given Terrible Terrors as pets, courtesy of the Twins of course. Val was taking Elinor to Dragon's Paradise, an iceberg with a tropical twist inside full of dragons, not too far off of Berk. Merida wanted so desperately to have her own dragon, and that's what sparked her into action.

She bolted for the door and waited for Hiccup to finish training. When he walked through the doors she bombarded him.

"Hiccup, A want a dragon."

"What?" Hiccup stopped walking.

"A want mah own dragon. A want yah ta help me train a dragon."

"Okay."

"A knew yah were gonna say that. But A've been her for over a month, and mah mum, wait, okay?"

"Yeah, I think you're right. It's about time you got a dragon." Merida's face light up and she took him by the hand and pulled him to Toothless.

After they had packed a lunch and strapped up Toothless, the two of them were ready to go. Merida bounced in the saddle behind Hiccup, excited to get going. Hiccup smiled and shook his head at the woman behind him and patted Toothless lovingly on the head.

"Alright bud, let's go." And they were off.


A/N: Alright. I really hope you guys like this chapter, because I absolutely love it. The plot is developing, and there's a lot more to come. I'm sorry for the lack of character relationship development with Merida and everyone else, but it's going to come. Anyway, I hope you guys are enjoying the story. Leave me a review! Like and follow too! Alrighty! I'm off, you guys have a great day/night!