A/N: I don't even know how to explain this. Originally it was just a headcanon I shared with a friend. Then I couldn't sleep last night, so I figured… why not. (On a side note, though: Eret's mother is a midwife. Hence why she has an office at home. I couldn't figure out how to bring that up in the story.)
Merida is 15, Eret is 17. Freshman and junior year respectively.
The first truly gorgeous day, as spring turned to summer, fell on a Sunday. The heavy, grey clouds, which had been all but constant for the past three or four months, retreated. Leaving only a few wisps of white across a bright blue sky.
The whole world was waking up after its winter sleep.
In a perfect world, Eret would have been outside. But he was in high school. And nothing about being in high school was a perfect world. Now that he finally had a car, a whole new world of hiking trails was open to him and Merida. And they had been pouring over maps, making a list of which ones they wanted to try when the weather was warm enough.
Well, the weather was warm enough. But instead he was sitting at his desk, one hand tangled in his own hair as he tried to make sense of algebra.
Even as, through the window, he could hear birds singing, and the breeze seemed to call to him. Asking why he was inside.
Behind him, Merida lay on her stomach on his bed, dealing with her own homework. Trying to write a book report on To Kill A Mocking Bird. Though he could hear more restless fidgeting than the actual sound of her pencil on the page of her notebook. And it seemed like she was crossing out more than she was actually writing.
They had watched the movie the night before, which seemed to help her understand the story a bit better. Just as it had helped Eret two years earlier. But that didn't seem to make writing the report any easier.
He had, so far, resisted her pleas to at least look at his report from when he had done the same assignment. But, if hers was too similar, he suspected the teacher would catch it, and accuse her of copying.
"You seriously think she'd remember your report after two years?" Merida had asked.
"This is Ms. Meyers we're talking about."
Her upper lip had curled in distaste. "Good point."
This was the same teacher who had just about thrown a fit when she found out that, because they had the same classroom at different periods, they had been sitting at the same desk, and sticking notes to the bottom of it. They were no longer allowed to do so.
So, for now, she was on her own.
But at least they were suffering their confinement together. Hoping they would be done in time to maybe enjoy the sunlight… but knowing they probably wouldn't. If not, they could at least try to make it to a movie later as a consolation prize.
Eret heard the blankets on the bed rustle, and glanced back over his shoulder. Merida was crawling over to his iPod, which was hooked up to the stereo next to the bed. Picking up the device, she started flipping through the different pages. Only now did he realize that the music they had put on earlier had ended, though he didn't remember when.
Her hair was finally starting to recover from her attempts to cut it short back in the fall. The wild curls were once more past her shoulders, and no longer puffed out around her face. It had been weeks since he had seen her with a baseball cap, or since she had come over an hour before school so his mother could straighten it. (He had never gotten used to the sight of her with straight hair, and – though he valued his life too much to ever say it out loud – it hadn't exactly been a flattering look. He was glad that season of their life was over.)
He turned his attention back to the numbers and letters on the page of his text book. Wishing yet again that he was outside.
Then, the quiet was broken by music coming through the speakers… and Eret froze as the familiar opening notes of Jump Then Fall filled his room.
"Taylor Swift?" Merida asked. "Seriously?"
Eret was up, out of his chair, and lunging for the device, before Taylor Swift's voice could start singing about the best sound she's ever heart. It should have been easy, since the bed was only a couple feet behind him.
But Merida reacted in a split second. Unplugging the iPod – ending the music – and jumping off the bed. Cackling the whole time.
"It's the deluxe edition, too."
"Just give it back," Eret said, trying to reach her across the bed.
"Taylor Swift, Eret," Merida repeated. "'It's a love story, baby just say yes,'" she sang, mockingly. Which just sounded off, her thick Scottish accent trying to imitate the country twang.
"Shut up." He tried to reach for the iPod again, but she stepped back.
"I'm hurt, actually," she said, though her smirk was in pure defiance of the words. "How can I trust my best friend—"
"Just give me—"
Giving up on attempts to reach for her, he came around the bed. Towards where she had backed herself against the closet door. Still cackling.
When she saw him coming she side stepped, turned, and fled through the open door of his room.
Stupid rule. The one thing all four parents had ever agreed on, since he and Merida had first become friends, was that the doors of their rooms always had to be open when they were together. A rule they hadn't understand until a few years ago, still balked that their parents actually thought they were going to do anything more than talk behind a closed door.
If it had been closed now, he could have caught her in the time it would have taken her to open.
Instead, she was already at the top of the stairs by the time he made it into the hallway.
"Merida!"
She just laughed as she ran. Red curls bouncing against her back, her bare feet a blur as she descended the stairs.
Eret sighed in exasperation as he ran after her. By the time he was halfway down the stairs, she was out of sight. By the time he hit the ground floor, there was no sign of her. No red curls just vanishing from sight, and no echo of her laughter.
Eret stopped, taking a moment to catch his breath as he looked around. There were too many places to hide downstairs, which was exactly why she had chosen this route. She knew all of them. They had played countless games of hide-and-seek when they were younger, and now she knew his house as well as she knew her own. Just he knew hers.
But he had a knack for finding her. Strange as it sounded, he had developed a kind of instinct for sensing where she was. Rapunzel was convinced they had developed an empathic link over the years, so maybe that was it.
To his right, under the stairs, was the door to a storage closet. Somewhere she had hidden plenty of times when they were kids. But he passed that, going through to the living room. Heading for his mother's office.
He did check behind the arm chair in the living room. But there was nothing besides a couple dust bunnies.
In his pocket, his phone chimed. He pulled it out, expecting some kind of taunt, or a ransom note. "If you want your iPod back, I demand…" whatever Merida decided his dignity was worth this time.
Oh, no. Merida had decided this was too good, and had passed right through bargaining. Instead of demanding 20 bags of Sour Patch Kids, or some other thing she wanted that her parents wouldn't buy her, she had gone straight for the heart.
The message was a facebook alert.
Merida DunBroch tagged you in a photo!
The exclamation point was so cheery, as was the message itself, it tasted like bile in his throat. Even though he knew what he would find, he opened the link just to see the damage.
It was a photo of his iPod screen, with the album cover of Fearless front and center.
Look what I found on Eret's iPod! Deluxe edition!
He typed out a furious Give it back!
But no sooner did the comment load than he saw that the damage was already done.
Jack Frost: I KNEW IT!
Eret groaned. If Jack knew, there was no way of deleting the post, and trying to act like it never happened.
Shoving his phone back into his pocket, he resumed searching for his traitor of a best friend.
His phone chimed again. With a scowl, he opened the Astrid Hofferson commented on Merida DunBroch's photo post message.
It was a gorgeous spring day! Why was everyone on facebook, and not outside living? People were right: teenagers were too addicted to social media.
Astrid Hofferson: Who knew Eret had such a soft side! (Besides, oh, EVERYONE!)
The post already had seven likes. And Merida had already liked both Jack and Astrid's comments.
Make that eight likes. His mother was the latest.
Eret dragged a hand down his face.
His phone pinged again, another comment coming in. But, beneath it, not quite in perfect synch, he heard another chime. Turning down the volume on his own phone, he listened. Standing still. Waiting.
Ding!
He lunged for the door of his mother's office. Yanking it open.
Before Merida could do more than step away from the wall she had been leaning against, he swooped in. Getting one arm around her waist, he hauled her out of the room. While, with his other hand, he grabbed her phone from her hands.
Merida let out a yelp of surprise, and an "oof" as he threw her over his shoulder, but it turned into a peel of laughter. One that only grew stronger, so she couldn't say anything in protest.
Carrying her back to the living room, Eret dumped her unceremoniously on the couch. She just curled up as she continued to laugh.
Looking at her phone and the it's not like he's ever… reply she had been typing to Astrid, it seemed his timing had been perfect.
He held a hand out.
"IPod."
Still laughing, she pulled the device from her pocket, and smacked it down in his palm.
"All the secrets I've kept for you, and this is how you repay me?"
At least a solid minute passed before Merida finally managed to control her laughter enough to catch her breath. She lay back on the couch.
"You listen to Taylor Swift," she said, and immediately burst out laughing. "You act so tough, but you listen to…" she descended into laughter again, and couldn't finish the sentence.
"You listen to Celtic Woman," he reminded. Though that felt like a pretty weak accusation – especially compared to Taylor Swift. And she made no secret that she listened to them. Not to him, at least. While he had never mentioned this to her.
"'Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you/Been here all along so why can't you seeeeeeee/You belong with meeeeeeee!'" She sang. Once more mocking. It was almost impressive that she managed to sing that much around her laughter. Especially since she still managed to convey a sense of excessive mellow drama.
"You know the words!"
"Everyone know it!"
That was true.
He was losing this fight.
Her phone chimed yet again, and he sighed as he sat down next to her on the couch.
Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III: O.o I did not see that coming.
He tossed the phone onto the arm chair. Merida took several gasping breaths, trying to get herself under control… Only to descend into laughter yet again. Head braced on one hand, he watched her. What else was he supposed to do?
Finally – finally – she started to calm down. Laughter giving way to giggles, to small snickers. He didn't dare ask if she was done, knowing that would just send her back into fits of laughter. She took a deep breath. Then another.
"Can we get back to our homework now?"
For a moment she looked up at the ceiling, as if thinking about the question.
"I'm hungry," she said suddenly, rolling off the couch, and onto her feet.
It was so typically Merida. All Eret could do was shake his head as he stood up, and follow her into the kitchen.
