The Truth
Hiccup shivered and huddled further into his furs as a chilling breeze blew across the grounds. It was an early spring morning and the grass had turned a pale shade of blue as the dew on their blades froze, crunching under his boots as he walked back towards the castle.
'Wish I'd kept Toothless with me,' he said to himself, remembering the feeling of Toothless' warm, dry scales as they flew through the frigid air.
He stopped as he saw another figure moving around at the side of the castle, closer to the Forbidden Forest's tree-line. He recognised the blue hoodie and shepherd's crook staff immediately, although even without these features he would have known it was Jack as only Jack could be walking around in this weather in bear feet. But what was Jack doing out so early?
Hiccup hid behind one of the courtyard walls and peeked around the side to get a good view of Jack without being spotted. He had no idea why he was hiding, he knew he could just ask Jack later today but his curiosity made him stay.
Jack was crouching at the base of his staff, looking at something Hiccup couldn't see from his angle. It had to be important as Jack spent a good five minutes, watching it intently before nodding to himself and standing up. He grabbed his staff and twirled it around a bit unconsciously as he prepared himself. When the staff reached the top of a twirl Jack quickly brought it back down and struck the earth with its base as if to stab down into the ground. Immediately an icy wind blew from the staff, the ground freezing around its tip in the usual fern patterns, while around Jack small glowing white circles began to appear and grow until they merged to form a ring around Jack who stood right in its centre.
Hiccup craned further forward so as to get a better view of what was about to happen but just then Jack gave a gasp and collapsed to one knee, the shimmering ring surrounding him fading along with the wind. Concerned, Hiccup stepped out from his hiding spot and ran over quickly to check if Jack was alright.
'Are you okay?' He asked nervously as he crouched down to look Jack in the face. The boy was panting from what looked like over-exertion but otherwise unharmed as he smiled reassuringly at Hiccup.
'Yeah…it's fine. It'll just take a little practice is all,'
'What will take practice?' Hiccup asked in confusion, stepping back as Jack got up from his kneeling position.
As he did his furred boot knocked into something that, when he looked down, turned out to be a book. It was grey with dog-eared edges and looked as if its spine had been enlarged multiple times to add space for additional pages, which in fact it had. It glittered enticingly like freshly fallen snow being hit by sunlight.
'Whoa, careful Hiccup!' Jack warned as Hiccup bent to pick up the book but too late as Hiccup's fingers closed around the edge.
They stood frozen for a second, both afraid something would happen, before Hiccup stood up slowly, holding the book at arm's length in fear of what it might do if he made any sudden moves. Jack took it from him gently and began to laugh at the serious look on Hiccup's face.
'Sorry about that. I put a winter-sealing charm on it a year ago and I've never been sure if it would hurt you guys or not,' Jack apologised to the bewildered Hiccup. 'I was just afraid you'd have to go to Madame Pomfrey and Rapunzel to cure frostbite.'
'Oh…right,' Hiccup responded, 'Wait…what?'
'Maybe we should go in where it's warm,' Jack suggested as he saw Hiccup shiver from another gust of wind, as ever he didn't feel the cold but he knew when it was and right now he knew Hiccup wouldn't be feeling too comfortable even in his furs.
'Don't worry, I'm not that cold,' Hiccup reassured him as they hurried back to the castle. 'I'm Berkian after all; we think anything above freezing is warm.'
Jack smirked at that until he noticed Hiccup was still holding his father's book, gently but firmly he took it from Hiccup's fingers and put it back in his bag for safe keeping. When they got in Hiccup tried to rub his hands warm, having forgotten his gloves as usual in the dormitories. Seeing this Jack tried to warm them himself, cupping Hiccup's hands in his own until Hiccup shivered more and pulled his hands away involuntarily.
'Oh sorry I forgot, I can only make you colder,' Jack apologised. 'There's a spot where you can light a fire over there,' he added helpfully, pointing at a small alcove hidden slightly in the wall.
It was definitely a small place, a sort of circular bump in the wall with a row of stone seats set around a currently empty brazier. They both sat down on the seats and Jack began to hunt for the material to start a fire.
'No need,' Hiccup told him before pointing his wand at the brazier and intoning, 'incendir.'
Immediately flames appeared in the grating and soon the small alcove was much warmer, Jack was sure he could see the walls steaming gently as the fire warmed them.
'So what's with the book?' Hiccup asked as he settled back on the seat.
'Oh right,' Jack said, pulling out the book absentmindedly. 'It's sort of my dad's book, well my family's really,' he continued as he began to flip through the pages.
'You know I told you my family specialise in ice magic, well this is the book all my ancestors wrote in when they were coming up with new spells, most of them are only known by our family. When a wizard or witch in the family comes of age they're given the book and get taught the spells by a member of the family who's already mastered them.'
'Wow, how come you've never shown it to us before?' Hiccup asked curiously as he looked at the pages of the book, some white and fresh and others brown and ancient.
'I don't know,' Jack sighed as he continued to turn the familiar pages of the book. 'It's the last connection I've got to my dad; he left it to me after he died. He was supposed to teach me the spells himself but he died when I was eight, so all he could do was leave me the book.'
'Hey, if you don't want to talk about it that's fine,' Hiccup said, worried that he'd crossed a line.
'No it's alright,' Jack reassured him, 'I've just…never really talked about it before. The thing is I didn't really pay much attention to it in the first year, I just learned the spells that looked fun. It was only after Black that I started to learn it properly; I go out in the mornings and go spell by spell now. After all, my sister's going to need me to teach her when she turns eleven.'
Hiccup began to think quickly when he saw the look on Jack's face, the same look of loss he had known after his mother died. Realising what would cheer up the conversation he took of his horned helmet and showed it to Jack whose expression changed from sorrow to confusion.
'This is all I've got left of my mum,' he told Jack with what he hoped was realistic solemnity.
'That's cool,' Jack said, 'Do Berkians usually inherit helm…?'
'It's half of her breastplate,' Hiccup interrupted quickly making Jack snort uncontrollably.
'Oh God, sorry I didn't mean…' Jack said hurriedly when he'd stopped, looking guilty for laughing at Hiccup's own heirloom until he realised Hiccup was laughing too.
'Don't worry, she'd make jokes about it too,' Hiccup told him as he put the helmet back on. 'What's worse is dad has the other half,' he continued, making them both laugh again.
'So what was that about me getting frostbite?' Hiccup asked when he remembered what had happened when he'd tried to pick up the book.
'Oh that,' Jack said, still laughing slightly, 'it's a charm I learned from the book that stops people I don't want grabbing it. Lucky I used it too because Mulcaster tried to steal it a month later, he had to go to the hospital wing for freeze burns.'
'Serves him right,' Hiccup laughed along.
'Looks like our time's up,' Jack stated as he looked out the window to see the sun now rising higher above the Forbidden Forest. They could hear the first people beginning to come down to the Great Hall for breakfast and knew that the day had properly begun.
'I've got to go…'
'I've got to…'
They both stopped to let the other finish, leaving a slightly awkward silence as they both fought to think up what to say next.
'I'll see you at breakfast,' Hiccup eventually managed as they began to wander out from the alcove and down to their common rooms.
'Yeah, and then we're off to Hogsmeade,' Jack replied, putting the book back into his bag and grabbing his staff.
'So I'll see you and the others in a minute then,' Hiccup said awkwardly as he turned into the Hufflepuff corridor.
Jack waved a goodbye and then turned to walk down into the dungeons. 'What the hell was that!' He exclaimed to himself when he was sure no one would hear him.
It was still cold when the four set off to Hogsmeade two hours later. Although the sun was shining without a cloud in the sky the icy winds were still blowing and kept the temperature down to just above freezing.
'Are you sure you need all those clothes Rapunzel,' Hiccup asked as the town came into view.
Rapunzel's reply was too muffled to hear as much of her head was wrapped tightly in her Ravenclaw scarf. She was also wearing at least two winter robes because she was much bulkier than the others remembered. Pascal was currently wrapped in a bundle of Rapunzel's scarf on her shoulder, still shivering nonetheless.
'What was that? Did you hear that Merida?' Jack asked jokingly at the sounds coming from Rapunzel's scarf.
Merida was staring off into the distance, her eyes looking at Hogsmeade but not really seeing it. She'd been like that for a couple of days, hardly paying attention to her teachers or friends as if all of her mind was focused on something else.
'So where should we go first,' Jack asked, knowing there was no real point in waking Merida from her thoughts. She'd just go back to staring blankly into space after a few stunted sentences.
'How about Weasley's Wizard Wheezes,' Hiccup suggested as they arrived on the streets of Hogsmeade and the shop appeared before them.
'Good idea, I need to stock up on Filibuster Fireworks,' Jack said, rubbing his hands together in excitement as they entered the shop.
Inside the shop was mayhem, students from all years of Hogwarts were lining up to buy all sorts of items and more were jostling amongst the shelves, grabbing at whatever they could. Jack dived merrily into the fray, heading for the firework section and knocking people out the way with his staff, while Hiccup and Rapunzel browsed on the outskirts of the crowd and Merida stood disinterestedly by the door.
'Hey Merida,' a voice said behind her, breaking her from her thoughts.
'Oh, hi Fred,' she responded, looking around to see the beaming redhead.
'You looked a million miles away,' he told her reproachfully, 'I'm surprised you're not fighting through the crowds with your friends.'
'I've…had a lot to think about,' was all Merida could say in return.
Fred looked at her quizzically and then smiled before pulling her along around the outside of the crowd.
'Where are ye takin' me this time?' she yelled angrily over the din of the crowd. Without answering Fred took her through a door labelled Staff Only and closed it behind her, cutting off the sound of the crowd.
Merida looked around her, for what seemed like miles, boxes and crates of every joke item the shop sold were stacked. Employees of the shop walked through the rows, picking out items that needed restocking or ordering the crates into better positions.
'It's easier to take what you want from here,' Fred told her conversationally. 'You'll have to pay for it though, dad doesn't even give me a discount and I'm his son.'
'Your dad owns this shop?' Merida asked in wonder, finally making the connection between Fred's last name and the shop, her thoughts on the book currently hidden in her bag forgotten.
'He and his brother founded it,' Fred told her as they began to descend to the glory below them.
They spent the next fifteen minutes browsing and rummaging through the stacks of different joke objects. Eventually Merida came away with only a broom maintenance kit while Fred was weighed down by an entire assortment of joke sweets, fireworks and games. They paid for them and said their goodbyes, Fred going off with his girlfriend Ashleigh Marsh and Merida with the others.
Soon she descended back into her thoughts on the book and what to do about it. She'd thought of almost nothing for the last few weeks and still had no idea what to do about it. The Easter holidays were coming up soon and that meant she would have to return home to the highlands, and she didn't want to return there until she had all the answers.
'Can we go ta the Three Broomsticks next,' she said suddenly, 'I need a butterbeer.'
The three looked at her in surprise; this was the most she had said to them all day. They shrugged their shoulders at one another and followed the red-haired girl into the pub. They ordered their butterbeers and took them into a secluded corner of the pub where they sat at a table. Without any warning Merida opened her bag and dumped Mordu's book onto the table making the three jump.
'I need to tell ye somethin',' she said, leaning forward so no one else would hear.
Her story took a surprisingly long time to tell and by the end of it the others were left with their mouths half-hanging open.
'The bear that tried to kill us?' Jack asked incredulously as Rapunzel reached over and began to pour through the book, Pascal leaning over on her shoulder to get a good look.
'Was a man,' Merida answered simply.
'This is incredible,' Rapunzel said as she read the cramped pages of the book. 'I've never read anything this complex before; he was trying all kinds of ingredients and methods to make this potion.'
'Ye can read that thing?' Merida asked, impressed as she couldn't make heads or tails of the equations.
'A little, it uses similar symbols to Arithmancy but in the context of potions instead. I can't read much of it though; some of this stuff is so complicated I think only the greatest potion masters could understand it fully.'
'What's this stuff about being the True King?' Hiccup asked in confusion, drinking the remains of his butterbeer.
'I don't know, it has somethin' ta do with my dad though,' Merida replied, 'Mordu talked about my parents as if he knew them and I'm sure they know more about him than they're tellin' me.'
'Why was this book in the potions room to begin with?' Rapunzel asked, still staring at the last page of the book as if it might tell her.
'Well it was pretty well hidden,' Merida remembered, 'No one else would've noticed it; I'm not even sure why I did.'
'Not that. Why was it hidden in the school? Surely something like this should be in the care of the Ministry for Magic not a potions storeroom.'
'Good question,' Jack said, leaning back in his chair as he thought about it.
'Do you think Whittler knows anything about it?' Hiccup asked conspiratorially.
'Uh, all this book's done is ask more questions than it answered!' Merida yelled who was quickly shushed by the others as other students turned to see what was going on.
'Something's wrong,' Rapunzel spoke up suddenly. She was holding all the pages of the book and was moving them back and forth so she could look at the inside of the cover on both sides.
'What is it?' Merida asked, hope of another clue rising in her heart.
'The back inside cover's wrong,' Rapunzel said to the general groans of the others.
'Seriously, can we focus on the mystery and not the design,' Jack said in exasperation to general agreement from the others.
'No, I mean it. The back cover has been stuck together wrong,' Rapunzel told them, showing the inside of the back which did indeed look messier than the inside of the front. 'And feel it,' she continued at the look of their uncertainty, 'there's something inside the back I'm sure of it.'
The others took hold of it as well and ran their fingers over the cover, there did seem to be a slight impression of two very small bumps hidden in the lining. They all looked at each other, knowing this might be something important or nothing at all and they all hesitated, unsure whether it would be worth it or not.
Eventually Merida couldn't stand it anymore and used the tip of her wand to rip open the lining and reveal what was hidden within. What looked like a torn piece of paper fell out from the cover and drifted onto the table. Immediately Merida realised she had been mistaken, it wasn't paper but a photograph torn in two. The images were frozen now, their spell destroyed from the prolonged damage of the tear.
Merida gasped when she saw that on the larger half were her parents, still young like in the quidditch photo. They were older than that though, Fergus' stubble was thicker and his moustache had grown larger while Elinor seemed to stand with even greater maturity than when she had waited for her future husband after his quidditch match. They were in a happy embrace and waving at the cameraman.
She looked at the other half and saw man as large as Fergus but with black hair and with a far larger beard, not stubble any longer but becoming fully-grown. She realised she recognised him, he was the man that had stood with her mother in the quidditch picture but what was he doing here?
She turned the picture of her mother and father over and saw there was writing on the back.
The engagement party of Fergus Dunbroch and Elinor McRae with the brother of the bride
The names had been written to mirror exactly where the pictures were so the last name was cut off as it was behind the picture of the man. Quickly Merida turned over his half of the photo to reveal his name.
Mordu McRae
Merida's stomach clenched violently and she was sure she would have been sick if she hadn't got a hold over herself and forced herself to breathe deeply for a few seconds. Mordu the demon-bear...her uncle.
Without thinking she grabbed the book and sprinted out of the Three Broomsticks before the others had a chance to read the back of the photos. She sprinted faster than she had ever moved before, back up to the school. She was going to end this fucking mystery once and for all.
'Merida wait!' The others called back to her as they tried to catch up but it was no use, they'd had to pay for their butterbeers hurriedly before leaving and that meant Merida had a good head start on them. Jack flung himself into the air, shepherding the winds with his crook to send him after her and soon he was closing in, gaining enough ground to stop her and get her to calm down.
Without breaking her pace Merida turned in mid-stride and pointed her wand at him, shouting 'Petrificus totalus,' before he had a chance to react. Immediately his limbs snapped together and he tumbled to the earth with a small thud. Without another look back Merida turned into the castle and vanished from sight.
Seconds later, Hiccup and Rapunzel appeared panting over the hill. Rapunzel called out a counter curse and Jack sprang back up immediately, running with the others this time as he was unwilling to take on Merida in her current state alone.
In the dungeons Merida's running footsteps banged and echoed across the stone walls and soon enough she burst into the office of Professor Whittler, the door banging as it was thrown against the wall.
'Miss Dunbroch, what is the meaning off…!' Whittler began angrily as she stood up from her desk where she had been working on a new carving when Merida slammed Mordu's book in front of her.
'Where did ye get that?' She asked in far calmer tones, the presence of the book immediately wiping away her anger.
'From where ye hid it of course,' Merida snarled back, 'Now I want ye ta tell me why ye hid it.'
'Ye've got no right to steal…'
'No one had the right ta keep the truth from me either,' Merida retorted before she could finish, looking defiantly at the potions professor, 'I know Mordu's my uncle.'
That seemed to surprise Whittler as the old woman seemed to deflate slightly with a heavy sigh. At that moment a banging behind them alerted Merida that the others had finally caught up with her. They looked in cautiously and saw Merida standing tall against Whittler who suddenly was looking very old.
'Alright,' Whittler sighed, 'I'll tell you.'
'You three,' she snapped suddenly at the others, 'wait outside, this is private between me and the lass.'
'No, they stay,' Merida said stubbornly, 'they're the only people I trust right now.'
Whittler gave another sigh and nodded her head in approval, allowing the others to come in. They sat down at the edges of the class, near enough to give Merida support if she needed it but far enough not to interrupt. Whittler and Merida sat down last, across each other from the desk.
'Mordu is yer uncle,' Whittler conceded, 'he was yer mother's younger brother.'
'He was the most gifted lad I ever taught. He could work potions like, well, magic. When he told me that he was planin' on inventin' potions after Hogwarts I encouraged him, I knew he was skilled enough for it. After he left I heard very little of him until three years later when he returned one night with this book in his arms. He told me quite calmly that he'd finished his masterpiece, "The greatest potion on earth" he called it. He told me he wanted me ta keep the book, as a memento of him, and I accepted. By the time I'd read through the book and realised what he was planin' I was too late; he'd turned himself into a monster. I warned your father and mother what he'd done so they'd be wary of him and thank God I had or Mordu might have got you and yer mother all those years ago. I kept the book though, out of fear of what would happen if someone tried ta copy the potion. I doubted any student would be interested enough in it and so kept it amongst the other potions books, hidden in plain sight.'
'Why didn't ye just destroy it?' Merida asked in confusion.
'Mordu had put a charm on it so it couldn't be destroyed until he was defeated in single combat and so far it hasn't happened.'
'But that doesn't explain why Mordu wants ta kill me,' Merida said. 'He's gone after me twice now, what's he got against me?'
Before answering Whittler hesitated as if thinking of how much she could say, noticing this Merida demanded, 'I want the whole truth; I'm tired of being kept in the dark.'
'Very well, in the time of the founders of Hogwarts over a thousand years ago the five clans of the highland wizards, the Dingwalls, Macintoshes, McGuffin, Dunbrochs and McRaes, were born. A lone king had once ruled over the highlands but on his death he shared the lands equally between his five sons who were the founders of each clan. For a hundred years the five clans fought to rule all the lands and finally it was yer ancestors the Dunbrochs that succeeded. Their leader became the first king of the highland clans and it has remained that way, even now although yer no longer called kings. Mordu wants ta kill ya so he can inherit the title from yer family, that's all.'
'What did he mean about a blood-link to the land?' Merida asked, unwilling to let even the smallest thing go without an answer.
'It's just an old legend,' Whittler answered, waving her hand nonchalantly to show it didn't matter. 'The Dunbroch's are supposed ta have a connection ta the land they rule over and Mordu's hunger for all kinds of power makes him hunt it, even if is just a legend.'
'I am truly sorry young Dunbroch,' she said softly, 'I wish I could have done more ta stop him.'
'That's fine Professor, I'm sure ye did yer best,' Merida replied as she stood up and left the room without a second glance. The other three left hurriedly after her, giving a quick thanks to the Professor.
Professor Whittler sat quietly at her desk for a while, looking down at the book that Merida had left on her desk.
'That was close,' the raven said from his perch. It said a lot about how draining it had been to talk to Merida for Whittler when she couldn't be bothered to swipe the bird away.
'I was on the edge there,' she agreed, 'but she mustn't know the truth until she's fifteen. None of them can know the truth until then.'
Merida shook the others off when they tried to comfort her, telling them she wanted to be alone before heading up to the common room. She sat in front of the fireplace, her thoughts flying about her, the secret was finally out and she felt no better for it.
She sat in the squashy sofa for what felt like an age, the room eerily quiet as there were only a few second and first years around. She heard the entrance way open and a second later Fred sat beside her, carrying a heavy bag filled with sweets and magical joke items.
He rifled through it for a moment and triumphantly pulled out the broom maintenance kit Merida had bought with him hours ago and placed it to the side so Merida could pick it up when she wanted.
'Your friends told me you were having some family issues,' he said kindly after they had sat quietly for a few minutes.
'That's an understatement,' Merida murmured, slightly annoyed the others had brought Fred into this.
'Let's go out and practice quidditch then,' he said as a reply, causing Merida to look at him as if he were mad.
'What? It's a great way to work out aggression, especially if you can aim the bludger at whoever's pissed you off and get away with it.'
Merida snorted in laughter but stopped quickly, the new revelations still too strong to allow her to keep happy for long. Even so she agreed with Fred and went to grab her quidditch stuff before heading out to the pitch with Fred. She wasn't going to forget what she'd discovered forever, and she'd have to deal with it eventually, but for now she could forget it all for the next few hours.
It has been one hell of a week. I'm sorry this chapter's so late; I didn't have the chance to go on my computer from Thursday to Monday.
On the plus side I think someone owes Sword slasher a chocolate frog.
Hopefully I can return to the usual routine now so I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and thanks for reading :)
