Chase the Wind

Chapter Ten; Sticks & Stones

~ Merida ~

'...no...no this wasn't supposed to happen...' she whimpered, covering her mouth in shock. She pulled the blanket tightly around herself. Hiccup was staring at her, his eyes full of hurt and his hand still half outstretched from where she had pulled away from him. Merida could feel her heart thudding in her chest, and she felt lightheaded - she couldn't breathe. Fafnir squeaked at her, and she held him close.

'Merida... I'm sorry... I didn't think-' Hiccup attempted, trying to find his voice.

'I just told you that I was getting married...' she cried, fisting her hair in frustration. 'And then you go and kiss me...'

Hiccup scrambled to his feet, but didn't come any closer. 'Merida... we're in the same boat. My dad set me up for an arranged marriage with a girl I don't even know... but I met you, and I think you're beautiful and funny and determined and clever... and I really like you.'

Merida wiped at tears as his words made her cry. He kept talking, not realising that he really wasn't making this any easier for her. 'We can get on Toothless and leave... we have the whole of Scotland, and then even further... no one's going to go looking for two teenagers... please, Merida... I love you... I've never wanted anything more that I want you...' he pleaded.

The princess shook her head, turning her face away from him. She jumped as she felt his hand on her arm, and met his stunning green eyes.

'Fly away with me... please...' he murmured, pressing his face into her hair. Merida's heart melted, and she allowed herself to lean into his body. He hugged her from behind, and she realised that this was what she wanted; what she'd been looking for with Colin and Ian and William. But she thought of her mother, and her father... her brothers. She couldn't leave them... the boys wouldn't be old enough to take the crown for years... she didn't want her parents to lose the throne. And if she walked out on Ian and William... she couldn't ever come back and face them. She let out another sob, and pulled out of his embrace, as comfortable as she felt there.

'No. I can't do it... I'm sorry... I have duties and responsibilities... and my family...' she told him, her voice shaking. His expression fell again, and she swallowed the urge to burst into tears again. 'I wasn't supposed to fall in love with you Hiccup. But I have... and I think I'm going to go home tomorrow morning... so that I don't hurt you anymore, okay?'

xXx

~ Hiccup ~

Hiccup stood holding Angus while Merida readjusted all her saddlebags. It was too early for most of the Vikings to even be awake, but Hiccup hadn't been able to sleep and he'd decided to see Merida off, despite how badly he'd stuffed up their relationship. She lifted herself onto the horse with incredible ease, and Angus pranced a bit as Fafnir squeaked.

'Here. You probably don't want me taking him away from people who can care for him properly...' she said, holding the protesting dragon out for him to take. Hiccup shook his head.

'No, he's yours. He won't shut up unless you're around anyway...'

Merida nodded, and tucked the Terror into a saddlebag stuffed with a thick blanket, just over the one packed with her special copy of the dragon manual Fishlegs had made her. Fafnir poked his head out of the bag, but was otherwise content. He squeaked at Toothless, who didn't reply. The Nightfury could feel the sadness between the two friends, and it had affected his mood as well.

'I just wanted to thank you, Hiccup. You've shared so much with me, things about your culture and your stories, and I have a dragon of my own, when only a few weeks ago I didn't even know they existed. And I really hope things turn out okay for you...'

'Yeah,' Hiccup replied, scratching the back of his neck. 'You too.'

Merida gave him a small smile, said goodbye and turned Angus away from the village. They left at a slow walk, and Hiccup would love to believe that she didn't want to leave him, but he knew she was just trying to get Fafnir used to the horses gait, and Angus used to the dragons presence. Once she was gone, Hiccup turned and climbed onto Toothless. The dragon turned and took a running leap off the cliff face that the village of Berk perched on, and they sailed out over the ocean, away from everything and everyone.

xXx

~ Merida ~

Merida had never been so happy to see the castle of Dun Broch. She pushed Angus hard in her eagerness to get home, and she could hear Fafnir screeching in displeasure as he was jostled about. He also hadn't been fed, which meant he'd be extra cranky when he met her family. She pulled the horse up as the dirt road turned to stone, and Angus made a beeline right for the water trough.

She was greeted by one of the head servants, who helped her down and took Angus' reigns immediately.

'Your Highness... you aren't due back for a few weeks...is everything okay?' he asked, and she gave a curt nod.

'Yes, everything is fine. Please, unload Angus, feed him something good, the poor mite deserves it. He'll sleep for a month. Also, have my things brought up to my room, let my mother know I'm here and may I please have something from the kitchen?' Merida asked, putting her hand to her head.

The servant, whose name was Graham, nodded and reached for the first saddlebag. Merida jumped, and unclipped that particular bag. Fafnir squeaked inside, and Graham gave her a curious look.

'...thank you, Graham...that will be all.'

Merida made her way through the castle with Fafnir cradled to her chest. Once she reached her room, she let the dragon out of the bag and let him curiously explore the bed. He seemed to find the blankets very amusement.

She looked up at a knock on the door, and opened it just a little, to see who was there.

'Merida? Are you alright?' Elinor asked, and Merida stepped back to let her in. She sat down on the bed, and Fafnir sniffed curiously at her sleeve, making the Queen jump away in fright.

'Don't scare him...!' Merida cried, darting forward and picking up the protesting dragonet. Fafnir dug his claws into her shoulder, opening his wings and hissing furiously.

'What is that?' Elinor asked.

'This is Fafnir. Mum, I need you not to panic, but there are Vikings living on the coast-'

'We know... they came and asked permission, but they were also riding dangerous dragons, so we couldn't really decline. So you've spent time with the Vikings, then?' she asked, and she sat herself down again, tentatively though, as Fafnir was still flapping about.

'Yes. I spent a fair bit of time with them, actually. Fafnir hatched while I was there, and he took a liking to me. So he's mine now. Don't fret, he won't be any bigger than a cat. Not like the riding dragons.'

'Yes. The chief had a particularly nasty looking one...'

'Thornado?' Merida asked, smiling fondly, but sadly. 'He's nothing but a big sweetheart. Stoick adores him...'

There was another knock at the door, and Elinor opened it to find Graham with her bags and a plate of food. Merida realised just how hungry she was. The servants left her things, and the plate, and soon she was alone with her mother again. She tore into a fresh piece of bread with smooth butter, and she hand-fed Fafnir the slices of roast beef. She would need to alert the staff to the fact that he needed fresh meat every day.

'Okay, Merida... I think you have some explaining to do,' Elinor gestured for her to sit down beside her. Merida finished her meal, and sat down beside her mother while Fafnir sniffed and licked the plate clean.

Merida began the story with meeting Hiccup, and she told her mother everything. By the end of it, she had her head in her mothers lap and was sobbing. Fafnir was snuggling in against her stomach, aware that his friend was upset. Elinor gently tried to soothe her daughter, stroking her hair and whispering quietly.

'And... I saw Colin...um, Young MacGuffin...and he's in love with this girl, and it's so wonderful. And then Hiccup... he told me he loved me...and I had to leave him, mum. I wanted so much to stay with him and I couldn't, and I still don't know who I'm going to choose... I'm going to break a heart either way and I still won't be happy because I think I love him too...'

xXx

~ Hiccup ~

It was nearly dark when Toothless came to land in the village. Stoick was waiting for him, and Hiccup realised with a sinking feeling that he would have to explain himself, and therefore the events of earlier that day. He'd done a good job ignoring his problems all day, running Toothless through aerial maneuvours that he made up on the spot. Then they'd fallen and taken a dip in the cool waters of the ocean, and then back to practicing up in the air over the water.

'Where the devil have you been, boy?' Stoick growled. Hiccup petted Toothless on the head as the dragon fell to the ground, exhausted.

'I went flying.'

Stoick glared at him, silently asking him to explain himself.

'Merida left this morning. And she's not coming back...' was all he said. Stoick's face softened as his son brushed past him, followed by his dragon. The chief struggled internally for a moment, then followed Hiccup back to his house.

Hiccup was happy to find a small fire in the hearth, someone had put it together for him for when he got home. Toothless immediately curled up beside it, and Hiccup fell into a seat. He looked up as his dad came through the door.

'Hiccup... are you... alright?' Stoick asked, sitting opposite him. Hiccup could see that his dad was trying to do the deep and meaningful thing, but he'd never really excelled at that. Neither of them had. Their communication breakthrough started when Stoick had stopped thinking of him as useless - and it had taken a near death experience to get that far.

'I'm fine. Why?'

'Listen... I know that an arranged marriage isn't what you wanted...'

'Damn straight...' Hiccup mumbled, trying to ignore his father by starting a sketch.

'...but sometimes they work out better than you think. My marriage to your mother was an arrangement, and I wouldn't have done anything differently with her. She was a truly beautiful, clever woman, and I did love her...'

Hiccup had never really heard his dad mention his mother before. It was just one of those things they never talked about. She had died when he was barely walking - he always assumed in a dragon attack, but he wasn't entirely sure.

'So, if that princess chooses you to be her husband, Scotland will gain a clever, fair and wise King one day. If she chooses one of the other Lords, well, then you're off the hook and you can come back here and continue your training for when you become chief. Maybe you can continue what you wanted with Merida?'

'I can't,' Hiccup said, genuinely moved by Stoick's attempt to cheer him up. 'She's getting married to someone else this week.'

'Well, us Vikings never really took marriage laws seriously if you wanted to keep her on the side...'

Hiccup looked up, outraged, but the amused light in his fathers eyes told him he was only teasing. Stoick examined the half sketch - he'd drawn Merida, despite the fact that it only drove the knife in deeper. Her curls were wild and framed her face cutely. Hiccup knew it didn't do her justice.

'Well, son. Get some sleep. You and that dragon must be spent. Tomorrow, we'll be putting together the group to travel to the castle, and I want your input.'

Hiccup saw his father out, and stomped up the stairs, heavy-footed from exhaustion. Toothless followed, just as tired, but determined not to let his friend fall back down. Hiccup crawled into bed, and the dragon settled on his stone. Toothless fell asleep instantly, but Hiccup stayed awake, thinking. After a while, he picked up his blanket and decided to slip in next to Toothless. The dragon cracked open a single eye sleepily, and lifted his wing in welcome. Hiccup was much warmer, all of a sudden, and he slept much more peacefully.

xXx

~ Merida ~

Merida smiled gently as her mother kissed her lightly on the temple. The moon was high, and she had emptied her heart in the last few hours.

'Now...are you sure that wee beastie will be alright sleeping here with you?' Elinor asked, and Merida nodded. Fafnir had become quite accustomed to the Queen. Now she was just another person who would pet him if he cried. Right now, he was curled up beside Merida, snoring happily.

'Thank you, mother...' Merida mumbled, her eyes drifting shut. Within moments, she was asleep, and Elinor gently shut the door behind her as she left.

xXx

A/N

Yet another chapter.
Now, I have a little something I would like to share with all of you. Most of my reviewers are amazing, and really, I love all of you. However, I am NOT okay with one person asking me over and over again to update. This is NOT cool. I'm a second year uni student, I have friends and family and a boyfriend, and I don't spend every waking moment writing this fic. I have promised you that I will finish it, and I will do so in my own time, thankyou. If this continues, I will ban anonymous reviewing.
Now that I got that off my chest...

FUN FACT: I was asked what I thought about the recent HTTYD2 teaser trailer, and this is me telling you that I FLIPPED OUT. It looks AMAZEFACE. I'm so happy, Hiccup looked awesome, and Toothless does as well and just the quality of the animation is just beautiful. How about you guys? Are you happy with what you saw?

Thanks to Su for beta-ing!
Stay Shiny lovelies
x love Maury