Author's Note: Once again, I feel like I should apologize for the long break. I'm so close to finishing this book, but these past few months have been crazy as I helped take care of my great-grandmother, who has since passed away. But I'm back and my summer adventures are over, plus I'm taking some time off school so I have more time to write! Hopefully, I should get the last few chapters up tonight! If not, then maybe tomorrow night!
About an hour into her walk, she saw another stone cottage. Through the windows, she could see Mavis flying around and reading anxiously. MK entered without knocking.
"Mary K!" Mavis said, without looking up. "I'm glad you're here. Do you know what's going on?"
"Gothel," MK said simply. "She did something to Rapunzel and it's affecting Anna, too. And Hiccup is frozen."
"Wait, it's affecting Anna? I didn't know that. You gotta help me look for a spell that will undo whatever mom…I mean, Gothel, did to Rapunzel."
"I'm on it," MK said, pulling books from the shelves.
MK managed to get a few hours of sleep, then continued their search in the morning. Elsa joined them shortly after dawn, and they updated her on the situation. The three were talking about weird spells when MK saw something that caught her attention.
"I found it!" she cried.
"You did?" Mavis and Elsa asked at once.
"Yes! Listen: this spell takes away magical powers that were inherited at birth. Works best on magical objects with healing properties. Side affects can include fainting, nausea, uncontrollable crying, hallucinations, memory loss, an unquenchable desire to wreck someone's life, wandering aimlessly, depression, fierce despair, and thoughts of giving up or suicide. If none of these side affects occur see a witch or sorcerer immediately and bring your subject with you. Sheesh, they're not good at grammar."
"Poor mom!" Elsa cried. "What about the antidote?"
MK glanced at the list of ingredients and shuddered. "This is going to smell disgusting. Mavis, do you know where Gothel keeps the cauldrons? We're going to need a fairly big one, and a good sized fire, too."
"I'm on it!" Mavis said, walking through a secret passage."
"Ok, now for the ingredients. This is pretty weird, but it's an anagram, easy remembering I guess. EXTRACTION. Eggs, turtle, 6. Xanther, 2 tablespoons. Hey Mavis, got any xanther? Or do you even know what that is?"
Mavis came back in, hauling a large cauldron. "Xanther? It's a rare substance, but Gothel loved it. I'll go get some."
"Ok, next is half a pint of toe jam, ew. One ram horn, 12 squares of ambrosia. Chicken feathers, about 25. Twig, perfectly black and from a cedar, 16 one inch cubes of ice, Elsa you can do that, and...oil from a pig? Um, gross!"
"Pig skin oil? Oh you've got to be kidding me!" Elsa said, reading the list over Mary's shoulder as she prepared the ice cubes. "That stuff stinks like anything when burned!"
"I'm not even going to ask how you knew that," MK said, trying not to gag. "The last thing is nectar, two cups."
"Got it!" Mavis said, dumping the last of it on the table. "Phew! Why are antidotes so gross! Luckily, I think between the nectar, ambrosia, xanther and turtle eggs Rapunzel should be able to drink this thing without tasting...you know, the oil and toe jam. And feathers."
"I vote we don't tell her what's in it," Elsa said, stacking wood beneath the cauldron. "At least until after the crisis is over. Oh, uh anything in the side affects if the antidote?"
"Hmmm. It says 'the speed at which magical properties return may vary.' Well that's just loads of help! It could take days!"
"It doesn't matter," Mavis said, lighting the fire. "We have to try. Let me see that book. Boil ingredients in water for five minutes, then add ice cubes. Let it simmer for 10 minutes. Allow time to cool before intake."
"Simple enough," Elsa said, filling the pot with loosely formed snow. "Once this melts and begins to boil, we throw in the other ingredients."
The snow melted quickly, and they began to throw in the ingredients in the listed order, saving the ice cubes for last. Mary Katherine and Elsa abandoned the cottage when the oil was tossed in, the smell so revolting and repelling that MK threw up right in the front yard.
"Sorry," she moaned.
"You should be!" Mavis yelled from inside. "Leaving me here to tend the fire and uh..." She stopped shouting and doubled over, trying to not to vomit herself.
"Let's take a walk," Elsa said feebly, helping MK to her feet. "I need some air."
MK did not object. The surrounding forest was pleasantly warm and sweet, reminding her of the Leafmen forrest. Soon the deep pine scent had covered the sickening odor of the antidote. The girls reached a mossy rock near a stream, and decided to sit down and enjoy the morning.
"So, tell me about your adventures, MK," Elsa said curiously.
MK was more than happy to talk. "Well, shortly after you left, I decided that everyone else was breaking North's rules, so why couldn't I? You needed help and I needed something to do. The Duke of Wessleton was plaguing me every step I took, demanding to know where everyone had gone. I found a portal, but unfortunately I wasn't sure where-when you had gone. I didn't know how to control the portals and I eventually ended up in the future in the middle of the woods. Luckily I met this really nice guy named Professor Bomba. He took me back to his house and gave me some new clothes. Anyway, the portal stopped working. Nobody could fix it, not even North. Then I got shrunk down by this tiny queen named Tara. She...well...there were these Boggans, see, and..." MK paused, uncertain how to go on. "It a long story. Basically I lived with a advanced society of tiny people in the woods, saved their world and met a really nice guy."
"Oh?" Elsa said, trying to sound nonchalant. "What was he like?"
"He was a jokester," MK said with a laugh. "But inside he really did care, and he was super sweet. His father died too, when he was young. I think that's part of why he was so happy and carefree, too happy and carefree according to Ronin. It got him into trouble a lot, but he was just trying to get the most of life, you know? He didn't know when his would end."
"I'm guessing you no longer have a crush on Hiccup, then?" Elsa teased.
MK blushed. "I didn't think anyone knew about that. But…yeah, once I met Nod…"
"You love him, don't you?" Elsa asked, though it was more of a statement.
MK didn't even hesitate. She had thought about this on her walk the night before. "Yes," she said in anguish. Her heart tightened as she again thought about how she might never see him again. "What have I done, Elsa?"
"Hey, we'll figure something out, don't worry."
MK tried to smile hopefully, but she didn't pull it off. "I hope you're right."
Angus showed up a few minutes later, and they rode him to the cottage. Mavis had finished with the potion and survived (although she looked a little green). Nobody spoke on the ride. Mary Katherine leapt off Angus before he had stopped moving and burst into the house. The sight that greeted her broke her heart into a million pieces.
Hiccup was frozen solid, and Merida was unable to control her grief, sobbing so hard she did not notice Jack's comforting hands on her shoulders. Astrid lay beside his frozen body, screaming in pain as Rapunzel tried desperately to stop her bleeding and crying as she grasped Hiccup's hand. Rapunzel sang fiercely, tears streaming down her face too, but nothing was happening. Anna was cradled in her grandmother's arms, too weak to move or do anything, but both she and Rue were silently crying.
All of this MK took in in a millisecond. She didn't even pause at the door. She just lunged to Rapunzel, barely noticing the melting ice.
"DRINK IT!" she screamed.
Rapunzel downed the contents of the drink without hesitation. Immediately, she gagged and coughed at the vile substance.
"Rapunzel!" Jack cried. "What on earth did you give to her?"
"What we had to," Mavis explained out of breath. "Mother Gothel poisoned her, and that's the antidote."
Rapunzel paled. "I hate antidotes. Don't tell me what's in it."
"Me too," Mavis said. "Elsa and MK left me to watch it as it was boiling."
"Can you feel anything different?" Elsa asked anxiously. "The book said the recovery time varies…"
Just then Rapunzel's hair flashed brilliant gold. Anna gasped and sat up straight, eyes wide.
"It worked," she said. "I can see magic again!"
"Wonderful!" Rue said, hugging Anna close.
"Now heal Hiccup!" Merida screamed. Astrid coughed up blood. "Oh, and Astrid!"
Rapunzel felt her hair. "I can't! It's too short!"
"What!?"
"Don't worry," Jack said, trying to hold her back. "It's growing fast."
"Not soon enough," Astrid wheezed. Rapunzel started to sing again, willing her hair to grow as fast as it could. Even though it would not heal her wounds, Astrid grabbed a handful, grateful for whatever strength she could get.
"What happened to you?" Elsa cried.
"Gothel," Anna said simply. "Astrid nearly won, but Gothel stabbed her."
Mavis looked around angrily. "Toothless killed her, Mavis," Merida said. "And ate her, according to Hiccup. He's outside now."
"I didn't see him," MK said.
"Um, guys?" Jack said. "If we're high on a hill, and the snow is gone so there's nothing to melt…why is there a growing puddle of water on the floor?"
"Not me!" Olaf said cheerfully.
Rue ran over to the door and tried to open it. "It's locked from the outside!" she exclaimed. She noticed a tiny hole in the wood and peered out. "Oh."
"What is it?" Anna asked, joining her. Rue stepped aside and let her granddaughter look. "Oh. The army. I knew we were forgetting something."
"The army?" Mavis cried, alarmed. "How did you forget about Gothel's army!"
"Hey!" Merida snapped. "People are dying over here, you know!"
"M-Merida?" MK stuttered, also looking through. "What do you know about huge, green, water spraying dragons?"
Paling, Merida leapt up and ran to the tiny peek hole, now surrounded by people. "Scauldrons!" she cried. "They're spraying the house! But how? Those only live on Berk!"
"Sea dragons, idiot!" Astrid managed to say through gritted teeth.
"Where's Toothless?" Jack asked.
"There are too many even for Toothless, where ever he is," Merida said. She cursed. "Six! How on earth did they tame them?"
"That doesn't matter right now," Anna said, beginning to panic.
"We've got to find another way out!" Rue said. "Everyone, start looking around. Try the roof, the cellar, chimney, everything!"
MK joined Rue and Anna in the pantry, tapping the walls and looking for a loose stone, but it was hopeless. All of their attempts failed. The water level was over their heads by the time Elsa had managed to melt Hiccup and Rapunzel had healed Astrid. MK climbed up on the bed with Hiccup, Merida, Rapunzel, Anna, and Astrid. Even on the bed they were neck deep.
"I don't want to die!" Mary Katherine cried as she floated upwards with the water. "I haven't seen my mom in a month! I didn't even say goodbye."
"No!" Jack said suddenly. "No, we do make it out! I've met you before, in this time! Both you and Merida! You were 17 and Merida was 18. Something will happen, and soon! We will be rescued!"
"You mean, you met us before we traveled forward in time in the first place?" Hiccup asked.
"Yes!" Jack said.
"No," Rapunzel said. "I didn't."
"That was before you were born," Jack explained.
"I'm confused," Rue said.
"Whatever is going to happen, it needs to happen fast," Merida said, struggling to stay afloat.
But there are no guarantees about me! MK thought desperately.
The water was only inches away from the ceiling now, and only tiny bat Mavis was able to stay dry. Everyone else swam or floated, but finally there was nowhere left to go.
"Just don't panic," Jack said calmly. "See you all in a few minutes."
"I can't hold my breath for that long," Mavis said, changing back to human form so she could hold more air.
"Seconds," Jack corrected.
Everyone held their breath as the water covered them all. MK relived memories of playing with her father as a young girl, walking with her mother in the garden, flying with Jack and Hiccup, hiking with Professor Bomba, riding a deer and fighting alongside Nod. Rapunzel reached through the water and grabbed her hand. She started to cry, and her chest grew even tighter. It was deadly calm and quiet; the water blocked all sound. Mary Katherine felt like her lungs were going to explode and she was going to die.
Suddenly, the door flew open, and the water rushed out, spilling them all on the warm, dry grass. MK gasped for breath, chest heaving.
"Mary!"
MK looked up and saw Primrose, still holding the door open. On shaky legs, she got up and ran to her mother, embracing her tighter than she even thought possible.
That night a party was thrown at the Dunbroch castle. Elsa and Merida had become Guardians, and MK had gotten to witness it all. She was alive, her mother was there, and she was the proper size. But she still wasn't happy. Her heart ached and she felt more homesick than she had when she first landed in the future. She slipped away from the party early. Nobody noticed. Mavis was sitting in one of the halls, looking at a potion. Their eyes met, and they nodded. Both understood the need for time alone.
The feeling did not leave MK when she got back to Corona. She wandered the streets in her old disguise, but the world seemed so empty. Her daily routine at the castle did not improve her boredom either. Once again she was placed under protection, treated like a fragile doll who could only look pretty. She spent many hours in the garden with Pascal, scouring the leaves for Leafmen.
Prim did not notice at first. After her stay in Arendelle, there were several kingdom duties to attend to. It wasn't until the third day that mother and daughter got to sit down to a private dinner together. There was a tense silence between them; neither had spoken about MK's direct disobedience yet.
"Is the food un-tasteful to you?" Prim asked as MK picked at her food.
"No, ma'am. I'm just not hungry."
"Mary Katherine, are you feeling alright?" she asked sharply. "I know we haven't seen each other since Dunbroch, but from what I have seen you haven't been yourself."
MK glanced sideways at the guard. Primrose dismissed them and turned her entire attention back to Mary Katherine. She took a deep breath and the entire story came out: from watching the Companions scamper off on another adventure to being roughly jerked away without proper goodbyes, to rescuing Merida and then back to a normal life where she wasn't allowed to do anything. Prim listened and asked questions and thought for a long time after the tale was told.
"I felt like I had a purpose. A reason to live my life."
"And preparing to be queen isn't?"
"No. I mean, I'm not saying it isn't. It's just...I didn't even get to say goodbye. I don't know what happened to them!"
"To Penny and her father?"
"Yeah. I don't know if they've destroyed Wrathwood or not. Moonhaven could still be in danger, but those Leafmen are stubborn. They don't trust Stompers!"
"I understand. Maybe you can go have a talk with North. Perhaps he'd let you make a return visit."
"You'd let me do that?"
"Not on a regular basis, mind you. Just a goodbye trip. And you need North's permission. Don't let me hear about you stealing a globe and getting trapped there again!"
MK felt her heart leap in excitement. I can go home, she thought without realizing it. She bit her lip to quell the thought. It was not home. But...this didn't feel like home either. And anyway, it wasn't like she was going to stay forever. But I can go back!