AN: Hahaha! This is late, but what else is new? Here's the second half of y'alls Christmas present! I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!
REVIEWERS:
Elphaba818: I know, it's been a while. Been busy and chaotic, but I haven't given up on it! It's not going to happen for a long, long time, I'm sorry. It is necessary for the plot (not just Hiccup's but everyone's) and I'm not just torturing y'all and the characters for funsies, I promise.
octolingkiera: Aww, you're sweet! Okay, I was just curious because it is a theme from the books, so I always get excited when people notice them! Yeah, I'm gonna be taking their relationship a bit slower, but I do want it to be there, so Rapunzel and Flynn will be getting a moment or two in the stories to come. Haha! Yeah, it's just fun to see other perspectives on the story because I'm so far into it already that I don't see certain things, and then occasionally I'll get a review that just completely throws me for a loop! It's really interesting. Thank you, I've gotten so many reviews asking me to reunite them, and I just can't right now! It would throw off the whole story! Well, it's here probably sooner than you thought! :)
Raxacoricofallapatoreous: It's not gonna be discontinued, I promise! Right now I just have really intense schedules during the year, so it's hard to find time to sit down and write, but I promise I am trying to get quality work to you guys as fast as possible. Hopefully it won't be nearly as long before the next update. Thank you for remaining excited about this story and for having such kind things to say to me. :)
Eris: Nope! Not discontinued. Hopefully I can work out a schedule, but every time I say that I fail miserably, so I'm just gonna wing it and hope I get more writing done this year than I did last year!
Music: "The Dragonborn Comes" - Skyrim Bard Song (Female Cover by Malukah)
NOTES: "Dragonborn, Dragonborn, by his honor is sworn, To keep evil forever at bay! And the fiercest foes rout when they hear triumph's shout, Dragonborn, for your blessing we pray!"
Chapter 21: The Battle of the Department of Mysteries Part 2
"WATCH OUT!" Merida shouted, ducking behind another shelf as that blasted ape fired another curse at them, sending glass, liquid, and who knows what scattering across the floor from their precarious perches on the shelves.
"Stupefy!" Astrid barked, twisting to throw the spell back at the Monkey King. He dodged it, but slipped on some of the liquids he'd spilled by exploding the bottles that had previously held them. He fell to the ground hard and struggled to get up as the two Gryffindor girls rounded a corner and raced down the aisle to put as much distance between them as possible while they had the opportunity.
Merida's head swung back to the front, but then everything was suddenly in slow motion. Ahead of her was a Wisp, floating down the dark aisle to guide her, and coming from nowhere, but everywhere all at once was a quiet voice singing;
"Dovahkiin, Dovahkiin, naal ok zin los vahriin
Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal!
Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan
Dovahkiin, fah hin kogaan mu draal!..."
"There!" Merida called out, pointing ahead of them towards a single door that the Wisp had disappeared into. It was a simple door, standing in the middle of the room as if it led to nowhere, but the two girls knew better and with a single glance picked up their pace to run even faster.
They shoved the door open, ducking into the room just as the Monkey King came around the corner and shot another curse at them. They slammed the door closed and pressed their backs against it, jarring as the curse exploded against the door, making it jump, but not break.
Merida grabbed the latch and quickly threw the bolt, locking the Monkey King out of the room despite his poundings on the door and yelled threats. She and Astrid backed away from the door as it shook with the force of every hit, trying to catch their breaths. Merida knew the door wouldn't hold for long and turned to look at the room to see if there was anything that might help them.
The small room was made entirely of wood; the floor, the walls, the ceiling, and it creaked as if it were the Hull of a ship swaying on the waves. It was dimly lit with sparsely placed candles that flickered silently. Both sides of the room were lined with shelves pushed up against the wall, filled to the brim with interesting objects from all over the world and some mysterious things Merida had never seen before. Against the back wall was a table scattered with papers of scribbled drawings and messy handwriting and above it hung a flag; black as night and detailings of a white skull with an eye-patch and crossbones on it. In the center of the room was a strangely-shaped pedestal that was topped with a carved dragon's foot, the fingers and claws wrapped around a small orb that swirled with white clouds inside.
"What is this place?" Merida breathed, feeling on edge in the small, weird room. Every sound they made sounded eerily loud in the small space, even with the Monkey King making a racket at the door.
"That flag..." Astrid whispered, "That's the flag of Grimbeard the Ghastly, the most fearsome pirate who ever lived and a former Chief of the Hairy Hooligan Tribe..."
Merida snapped her eyes to Astrid, questioning. "But if he was Chief, then wouldn't that make him...?"
Astrid nodded, a slightly mournful expression coming over her features and making her look tired. "He's Hiccup's Great-Great-Grandfather." She murmured.
"Why would a pirate and a Chief of Berk have a room hidden in the Ministry's Department of Mysteries? And why would there be a Prophecy Ball here?" Merida asked, looking at the miniature crystal ball on the pedestal and glancing back at Astrid.
"Most people say Grimbeard the Ghastly was insane. A few say he was a Seer... Some say he was both." Astrid shrugged, also looking at the Prophecy Ball. "If he was a Seer and managed to record a prophecy for someone to See in the future... Well, I guess the real question would be why would the Ministry want to cover it up?"
"Maybe they're not." Merida replied thoughtfully. "Maybe they just don't know what the prophecy is. Prophecy Balls are used to record Visions or Dreams of prophecy so that other Witches and Wizards, regardless of whether they have the Sight or not, can See the prophecy for themselves. It's like putting a letter in an envelope, but it can also work as a protective device, like putting a letter inside a box and locking it away."
"Why would someone do that?" Astrid wanted to know.
"It was a technique Seers developed to protect the truth of their Prophecies. Originally, Prophecy Balls were meant to preserve prophecies that long-outlasted their Seers. Later, as people started realizing they could manipulate prophecies, Seers started locking their Visions away to protect them. Some Seers in history even locked away their Prophecies and then killed themselves because they were either forced to by Warlords trying to force them to predict wars, or they believed the world simply wasn't ready for the truth. Maybe Grimbeard was one of them. You said a lot of people still think he was crazy." Merida explained as she walked closer to the pedestal. A particularly loud slam against the door made both girls jump and wince.
"Okay," Astrid said, slowly turning away from the door and back to Merida. "Well, how do we unlock the box?"
"That depends on What, or maybe even Who, Grimbeard the Ghastly was waiting for." Merida told her, now looking down at the small orb with shifting white clouds inside. Suddenly, the Wisp reappeared between Merida's face and the Prophecy, and Merida jumped back with a startled yelp. "Blasted Wee Thing! You could've given me a heart attack!"
"That's a Will'O the Wisps!" Astrid said, staring at the tiny spirit in wonder.
"Aye, it is..." Merida muttered, trailing off a bit as she heard the whispery voice of the Wisp singing the same song she'd heard earlier. The Wisp, though, had a different voice. It was lighter and child-like. The voice from before had been rich and full; a woman's voice. "I think Lady Fate is at work with us." Merida said, a shiver running down her spine as she looked over at Astrid who gave a shrug.
"You're the Seer. What should we do?" The viking asked, and Merida sucked in a deep breath, the door cracking a few times under the strain of the Monkey King's attacks.
"We're lucky this room seems to be spelled against any sort of magic, otherwise he'd have gotten in a long time ago, but it does seem to me like our luck is going to run out soon." Merida mentioned casually and turned back to the pedestal. "I hope I'm right about this." She told the Wisp. She grabbed hold of the crystal ball and pulled. After a moments resistance, the sphere came loose of it's holder and the Wisp disappeared, leaving Merida and Astrid in the small room alone. "Well, I suppose that turned out alright."
As soon as the words were out of Merida's mouth, all of the candles in the room blew out, leaving the room in darkness except for the creepy glow of the pedestal as it cracked, the wood splitting and moving. Merida and Astrid backed away until their backs hit the door as the pedestal grew and grew, three more feet coming out of the base of the pedestal followed by a tail and then wings and, finally, the head of a dragon. The wood dragon raised it's head, glaring down at them for a moment, and then appeared to take a deep breath in.
"GET DOWN!" Astrid screamed, tackling Merida to the floor to the side of the door just as the over-grown, enchanted piece of wood blew fire right where they had been standing. The door burst open and they heard a scream as the Monkey King was caught in the fiery blast. When the heat finally faded, Merida and Astrid whirled to see the Wood Dragon pull back again and shake itself out, it's slit-eyes slowly turning toward them.
"Run!" Astrid yelled, giving Merida a push as they both just barely managed to scramble to their feet as the Wood Dragon's giant pike-teeth snapped at the ground where they'd fallen. They sprinted into the main room of the Department of Mysteries and raced down the aisle, ignoring the groaning and smoking form of the Monkey King on the ground as the Wooden Dragon burst through the small door, breaking the wall and sending wood splinters everywhere.
The dragon roared as it took flight, following straight after them.
"Stupefy!" Jim fired off a charm, blasting one of the five Nightmares right in the side and scattering black sand across the floor.
Jack, Tadashi, and Jim were standing in a circle with their backs pressed against each others as the Nightmares circled them, running in and out of the shadows and ducking between the shelves. They charged and snapped at the boys, leaping at any sort of opening in their defenses, and the lads, for the most part, were just trying to guard their friends backs.
A Nightmare suddenly charged at a gap between Tadashi and Jack, but the older boy was faster, turning just enough to throw his wand out toward the Nightmare. "Stupefy!" The Nightmare swerved, but the spell caught it's hip and the Nightmare fell to the ground hard, the sand splaying out where it had fallen.
In response, the last three Nightmares circled around to Jack's side of the circle, and Jack took two running steps forward as he wound up his arm and then threw the same Ice Spell he'd used to protect Hiccup from Pitch's Sand Wave during fourth year. The ice cracked and exploded, blasting into the three Nightmares and sending sand everywhere as the floor and shelves within a twenty foot radius iced over with frost and icicles.
Jack stood panting as Jim and Tadashi came up next to him, all of them glancing at each other to silently ask if they were all okay. With the threat gone, Jack dropped his fighting stance and focused on catching his breath, knowing he'd have to be careful because he would only be able to use that spell once or twice more. While his training with the Guardians the year before had been very fruitful in learning more offensive ice magic, Jack knew that the spell he'd inherited from his father took a lot of energy and even with his considerable stamina, he could only use it three times on his best days.
"Jack!" Jack and the two Ravenclaws whirled around at the voice and found Rapunzel and Flynn running towards them, slowing to a stop with their hands up as Jack raised his staff at them.
"Stay where you are." Jack said. "Rapunzel, what did I bring back with me after winter break during our first year?"
Rapunzel relaxed a little as she realized what Jack was doing and smiled. "Your dad's journal. It had information about the Guardians and Pitch that we used when we were trying to figure out who they were and what was going on."
"Good," Jack conceded, lowering his staff as he smiled at Rapunzel. "Sorry, you just never know with Pitch and his army."
"I understand. But what was the first prank you and Hiccup ever pulled?" Rapunzel questioned in return, and Jack snorted.
"We filled Professor Bunnymund's classroom with Winter Pixies, and then, when we got caught, Hiccup told Bunny that we were building a snowman." Jack answered fondly.
"Now that we all know we are who we appear to be; why are you two all wet?" Tadashi asked, and Flynn and Rapunzel looked at each other before Flynn just huffed and responded.
"Long story." The older Slytherin supplied. "You three seem to be alright. Any idea where the other girls are?"
"RUN!" They all turned at Merida's voice to find Merida and Astrid sprinting towards them, having come from around a corner. Jack opened his mouth to ask them a question, whether to prove themselves as them or to ask what they were running from he wasn't sure, but the words died in his throat as a giant, wooden dragon came crashing around the corner after them, breathing fire and ramming into a shelf b accident.
Merida and Astrid ran passed them, not stopping for a second, and the other quickly followed, racing after them as the shelves started falling into one another, knocking over shelf after shelf, sending mysteries and glass shattering everywhere as the wooden dragon chased after them, flying overhead as it snapped and blew fire at them.
"What is that thing?!" Flynn shouted, freaking out as they all ran for their lives.
"We don't know! It's enchanted to be like an actual dragon!" Merida responded, as her feet pounded against the smooth floor, the Prophecy Ball clutched tight in one hand.
"Aren't you one of the greatest dragon killers of your generation? How do we kill that thing?!" Flynn directed this at Astrid who shot him a look as if he were crazy.
"DO YOU SEE THE SIZE OF THAT THING?" Astrid shouted back at him. "It's like nothing I've ever seen! Maybe YOU want to go back there and fight it?!"
"I'M JUST SAYING IF -!" Flynn started, but Rapunzel cut him off.
"You guys, look!" Ahead of them was another single door, this time against a solid stone wall.
"Everyone, hurry!" Jack called, and everyone pressed forward, running as fast as they possibly could as the Wood Dragon took another deep breath in.
"WATCH OUT!" Jim warned just as they hit the door and a burst of fire exploded from the dragon's mouth.
Suddenly, all of them were falling, the door opening not into another room, but empty space, and as fire streamed through the door and the roars of the wood dragon faded, they all screamed as they fell faster and faster. But, just inches above the stone floor, they all suddenly jerked to a stop, floating in the air for three heartbeats, and then they dropped onto the ground, maybe collecting a bruise or two, but ultimately fine.
They all slowly struggled to their, a few groans sounding loud in the quiet of the new space. Jack was the first to get to his feet and look around their new surroundings. The room was circular in shape and rested at the bottom of a seemingly endless pit that extended beyond their view above them. The ground and walls were unfinished stone, like a cave, and the floor had a slight rise to it, making the center of the room the highest point while the edges were all slightly lower. Besides them, there was nothing in the room and no obvious means of escape as they were surrounded by solid walls.
"What is this place?" Tadashi murmured as they all turned around themselves, looking at the room that was only dimly lit by a white light with an unknown source.
"Does anyone else hear that?" Merida asked slowly, warily looking around to try and find the source of whatever she was hearing.
Jack paused to listen for a moment, wondering what she was talking about, and then he heard it too. Hissing, like harsh whispers in the shadows, was coming somewhere unknown, but it was definitely getting louder. Turning around, Jack raised his staff to where he thought it was coming from.
"Get behind me!" He ordered as the others fell into place either by his side or at his back, their wands at the ready as the hissing became deafeningly loud in the quiet, echoing space.
Suddenly, big clouds of darkness burst from the shadows, wispy and solid at the same time. The clouds came straight at them, consuming them and leaving them unable to see as fists, scratches, and other physical attacks swiped at them. It was utter darkness and chaos as they were surrounded, and Jack couldn't even see Rapunzel or Merida who had been standing on either side of him.
Jack twisted and swung his staff through the darkness, trying to land at least one blow, but nothing he did seemed to work. One cloud swept by the others, heading straight for him, and a fist swung out, catching Jack in the gut. All of the air rushed out of his lungs, and he gagged as he doubled over the fist that had jammed into his stomach. His staff clattered to the floor, but he grabbed onto the arm that had punched him and used it as leverage to right himself just enough to look at the cloud to see if he could make out a face. This was met with a second fist flying out of the cloud and connecting with Jack's cheek. His head snapped to the side and in the next instant he hit the ground hard, scraping his forearms through his sleeves as he tried to partially catch himself.
Half-dazed and a throbbing pain rolling up and down his arms, Jack managed to push himself up onto his hands, surprised to find both the clouds and his friends had disappeared from his sides. Evenly spaced along the edge of the circular room were six figures in dark cloaks, each of them holding one of his friends with one hand and point their wands at them with the other. Jack's eyes lingered on Merida, who tried to keep the crystal ball hidden in her hand by her side and struggled against the Monkey King's grip on her hair despite his slightly charred looking form, and then on Rapunzel, whose arm was twisted behind her back by Gothel.
Jim stood within the clutches of a strange creature that appeared to be half-crab and half-spider. Tadashi was being held in a one-arm choke-hold by a man in a dark suit and a top hat with a skull and crossbones symbol and a cane with a purple ball on top instead of a wand. Astrid scowled at a dark-haired woman with grey-green skin and a purple dress, her amber eyes flashing viciously as she pointed a wand like black coral at Astrid's throat. Flynn was the most unfortunate as a giant creature with black skin, yellow-orange eyes, and a set of horns which curled around his face held him in one hand; encasing one of Flynn's arms and his entire torso as his second arm pushed uselessly against the brute's claws.
"Looking for something, are we?" The smooth voice made Jack snarl as he shoved himself to standing and swung around to face Pitch Black. Jack ran at him, swinging his staff with an ice spell of sharp, jagged icicles like glass shards. Pitch dodged to one side and swooped behind Jack as he ran passed, missing Pitch's head by a hair and stumbling to a stop as Pitch settled calmly into his new place on the higher ground, laughing. "Don't be afraid, Jack."
"Afraid? I'm not a afraid of you." Jack replied coolly, slipping into a fighting stance with his staff gripped in both hands, pointed at Pitch.
"Maybe not, but you are afraid of something."
"You think so, huh?"
"I know so! It's the one thing I always know; peoples' greatest fears." Pitch spoke softly, smiling as he stood there with his hands folded calmly behind his back. "Yours is that you will keep losing the people you love. That you will never be able to protect them when it most counts."
The air left his lungs in a rush and his heart squeezed painfully in his chest as Jack's mind supplied multiple memories of Hiccup and his father. Pitch smirked, and Jack felt all of the rage and all of the pain from everything that had happened boiling up inside his chest.
"I know you were there that night!" Jack shouted the accusation, glaring at the Nightmare King, who remained unperturbed by the events unfolding before him. "Where is he? What did you do to him?!"
"What did I do? Well, I didn't do anything." Pitch said in an overly-exaggerated tone of innocence. "In fact, I'd say your Guardians did a better job of getting rid of sweet little Hiccup -!"
"Don't you dare say his name!" Jack yelled, cutting him off with another ice blast, which Pitch was forced to use his arm to bat away, leaving his forearm frosted.
"Such insolence!" Pitch growled through clenched teeth as he glowered down at Jack. "Have you considered asking North what really happened that night? Or, better yet, why the Guardians of Childhood simply gave up on you Best Friend?!"
"What are you talking about?" Jack wanted to know, his grip on his staff tightening until his knuckles cracked.
"Oh, well, that explains it, then! The Guardians haven't told you anything! They don't trust you, but really; who could blame them? How can they expect you to help them protect the whole world when you couldn't even protect Hiccup?" Pitch demanded, grinning viciously.
"Shut up!" Jack snapped, stepping back a little as Pitch slowly moved forward, looming over him.
"You're not one of them." Pitch told him.
"You don't know what I am." Jack challenged.
"Of course I do! You're Jack Frost!" Pitch smiled widely, his eyes flashing with sick enjoyment for his tormenting. "You make a mess wherever you go. Why, you're doing it right now." Pitch's grin turned triumphant, his arm sweeping to the side to indicate Jack's friends currently held captive by his dark forces.
"What do you want?" Jack grudgingly asked after glancing at the faces of his friends, lowering his staff slightly in defeat.
"I'll make it simple for you." Pitch offered in false graciousness. "Give me the prophecy from Grimbeard's Trove, or watch your friends die."
Jack looked behind Pitch where Rapunzel and Merida were being held. Rapunzel, though her eyes were watery, stuck her chin out stubbornly and kept her mouth in a firm line, hardening her eyes behind the misty sheen. Merida met him stare for stare, her expression urgent, and gave the tiniest shakes of her head. He knew they wanted him to refuse Pitch, to not give in to the Dark Sorcerer's schemes just to save their lives, but he also knew that Pitch was right. He was terrified of losing anyone else and, even if it meant letting Pitch win the battle, he'd do everything in his power to make sure they got home safe.
"We give you the prophecy, and you let us go. No one gets hurt." Jack reaffirmed, fixing Pitch with a hard look, and the Shadow Man looked pleased.
"Of course. I give you my word." Pitch's teeth glinted in the dim light of the cave-like pit, and Jack gave one last glance to Merida and Rapunzel before locking eyes with Pitch.
"Too bad I don't trust your word. NOW!" Jack threw another ice spell in Pitch's direction, but instead of hitting the Dark Sorcerer it went to the side, hitting the Monkey King square in the face as Merida ducked and then rounded on Gothel with, "Stupefy!"
Within moments they were all freed from the grasps of their captors and were fighting against any of Pitch's comrades that got too close. They managed to gather together at one end of the room, forming a half circle against the wall as the older and more experienced Dark Wizards and Witches pressed in on them from all sides. Surprisingly, the hardest foe they had to face was not really Pitch himself, or any of the magic users even, but the large creature that had been holding Flynn. The beast didn't use magic to attack them, but wielded two giant swords that were taller and wider than Jack himself.
"Enough of this Nonsense!" The beast bellowed after blocking a spell with his forearm. He swung his massive arm and swatted Jim across the room like he was an annoying fly, letting out a monstrous roar as he pounded his fists against the ground and then charged at the small group of believers.
"Everyone, Move!" Jack shouted.
"Look out!" Merida cried at the same time as they all dove out of the way.
In the heat of the battle, Rapunzel, who was battling against the Monkey King, turned to get out of the way, firing one last charm to knock away the Monkey King, but tripped over a jagged rock, cutting the side of her foot and ankle as she fell to the ground. The monster, seeing this, changed his course, charging straight at Rapunzel.
"Rapunzel!" Flynn screamed, blocking a curse from the man with the top hat and returning it with a hex before launching himself toward the golden-haired princess.
In the next instant, time seemed to stop for all of the Hogwarts students. Flynn was doubled over one of the monster's large claws that had impaled his stomach, blood slowly seeping out of the wound and staining his white shirt. Rapunzel lay just a foot behind Flynn in shock, staring wide-eyed at the scene in front of her as her vision blurred with tears. Jack let out a furious scream of frustration and anger as he and the others were backed into a corner by the other Dark Magics.
And then time started again.
"EUGENE!" Rapunzel shrieked, lunging forward to catch his head as the Slytherin boy fell to the floor. The monster loomed over them with a horrific grin of satisfied blood-lust as Rapunzel cradled Flynn's head to her shoulder, glaring up at the beast.
"Humans are so Fragile. So easy to Kill." The monster growled happily and licked his teeth. "It has been quite some time since I have tasted human flesh!" He raised his bloodied claws, prepared to kill them both, but before he could strike Pitch Black appeared out of his shadow and stood between them, causing the monster to snarl and drop his fist. "What is the meaning of this?"
"Perhaps it was the way of your father to destroy everything in his path, but I prefer a more strategic approach to battle." Pitch sneered at the creature that towered over even him. "Now, if you want your father set free, you'll follow orders. The Flower Child can be useful to us." Pitch's wicked grin returned as he looked back at Rapunzel, who gasped.
"No! Rapunzel!" Merida yelled, but couldn't break through the line of Pitch's generals.
Rapunzel cried out as Gothel grabbed both of her arms, dragging her to her feet and pulling her away from Flynn. The monster snorted and lumbered back towards the shadows, glaring at Pitch as he went. Pitch ignored him and gave Gothel a nod of approval as she pulled Rapunzel back to where Pitch was standing.
"We are going where no one will ever find you again!" Gothel said through gritted teeth, as Pitch created chains of black sand and gave them to Gothel to restrain Rapunzel. "Rapunzel, really! Enough already! Stop Fighting Me!" Gothel ordered, managing to lock the cuffs around Rapunzel's wrists, but the princess pushed away and fell to the ground, using her feet and legs to push herself away from Gothel.
"No! I won't stop! For every minute of the rest of my life I will Fight! I will never stop trying to get away from you!" Rapunzel exclaimed, breathing hard as the cavern fell into total silence, everyone holding their breaths for what would happen next. "But, if you let me save him, I will go with you." Rapunzel offered, immediately causing Jack and the others to cry out in protest, begging her not to do it as Gothel looked at her with interest.
"No... No, Rapunzel...!" Flynn rasped, trying to crawl towards her. Trying to convince her to stop.
"I'll never run. I'll never try to escape. Just let me heal him, and you and I will be together. Forever. Just like you want. Everything will be the way it was... I Promise." Rapunzel swore, and Merida cried for her not to. "Just like you want. Just Let Me Heal Him."
"Well, isn't this interesting." Pitch grinned, coming up beside Gothel who still looked skeptical. "Such a promise from a Noble and Pure-Hearted girl. I think this bargain will work in our favor."
"Fine." Gothel frowned, but relented, easing her grip on the chains.
Within moments Pitch's generals had taken Jack's staff and the others' wands, tossing them into a far corner and keeping them backed against a wall so they were powerless to stop them. Gothel was chaining Flynn to a stone as Pitch held onto Rapunzel's arm just off to the side, and as soon as Gothel had stepped back, Rapunzel dove to Flynn's side.
"Eugene!" She said, leaning close as Flynn coughed and struggled. She moved his vest slightly to see the wound and his blood stained shirt and winced. "I'm so sorry. Everything is going to be okay, though."
"No, Rapunzel!" Flynn tried to push her hands away as she gathered some of her hair, but Rapunzel gently brushed them aside.
"You have to trust me." She told him. "Come on, just breathe."
"No... I can't let you do this!" Flynn protested, looking up at her through the pain.
"And I can't let you die." She returned quietly.
"But if you do... Then you will die." Flynn struggled to get the words out, and Rapunzel shushed him, lightly placing a hand on his cheek.
"Hey," She stopped him, looking at him a soft, yet broken expression. "It's gonna be alright." She whispered to him, though it sounded loud in the quiet of the pit. Without another argument, she closed her eyes and took a breath...
"Rapunzel," Flynn interrupted her again, his hand coming up to brush the hair out of her face. Their eyes locked as he could only mouth the word 'wait', and his fingers brushed along her cheekbone. They leaned closer to each other, Flynn's hand reaching to the back of her head as their eyes slid shut.
And then Flynn lunged forward, one hand holding Rapunzel's hair as the other sliced through it with the sharp rock she had cut her foot on.
His hand dropped to the ground, the stone falling out of his hand with a thunderous clatter. Rapunzel gasped, her hands reaching up to her hair as her new pixie cut and the endless lengths of golden hair on the floor turned brown before their very eyes.
"NO!" Gothel shouted in horror as her perfectly smooth skin turned dry and wrinkled, her beauty fading into the image of an old hag. "What have you done?!" She screamed, but before she, or anyone else, could do anything to the kids, lights started to fill the cave.
Similar to the dark clouds that the Dark Magics had used to fly into the room, now bright white clouds illuminated the dim space, casting away the shadows and blinding Pitch and his generals. Bunnymund was the first to land and immediately threw his boomerangs at Gothel and Pitch to get them away from Rapunzel and Flynn. Toothiana and Sandman appeared between the generals and everyone who had been trapped against the wall, Toothiana's fairies swooping over to bring the kids their wands and Jack his staff. Finally, North appeared near Bunnymund with another large creature beside him, but this one wore shiny silver armor with blue light coming off of it and wielding a giant sword that glowed with an intense light.
"Bular!" The blue-stone skinned creature shouted, pointing his sword at the monster, who roared back at him.
"Kanjigar!" Bular charged at the creature in armor, and they engaged in battle as the Guardians fought with Pitch and his generals.
Jack, Merida, and the others grabbed the wands and joined in, fighting wherever they could help, and together they managed to push back the Dark Magics and regain the high ground, several of them forming a protective ring around Rapunzel and Flynn.
"Fall Back!" Pitch spat the order at his comrades in his rage, glowering at the Guardians as all of his generals began to flee. "You may have won the battle, Guardians, but the War is far from over!" Pitch warned them, gathering up his sand in a cloud and swirled around the room.
"Worthless cowards." Bular hissed, looking up at the cloud and then turning back to Kanjigar with a sneer. "We will meet again, Trollhunter!" With that, Bular turned and leaped into the air, Pitch's cloud swooping down and collecting him before completely fleeing the scene of the crime.
"Pitch!" Jack shouted, readying his staff to fly after him, but North stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "We have to go after him!" Jack exclaimed.
"We have our own comrades to worry about." North reminded him, looking up the rise to where Rapunzel was still cradling Flynn.
Jack's breath rushed out of his lungs and he ran forward to join all of his friends as they gathered around the injured pair. Flynn was completely still and Rapunzel's eyes were filling with tears. Jim and Tadashi hung their heads while Astrid dropped her axe to the floor and squeezed her eyes shut. Merida stood quietly, looking over to look at Jack with sadness dampening her eyes and curls. Jack could only stare, wide-eyed, as the older Slytherin boy lay silently in Rapunzel's arms.
"Heal what has been hurt," Rapunzel whispered, leaning closer to Flynn. "Change the fates design... Save what been lost... Bring what once was mine..." She paused, taking in a shaky breath as she rested her forehead against Flynn's. "What once was mine." She said, as her tears finally overwhelmed her and spilled down her cheeks.
A tear fell onto Flynn's cheek and slowly dried into his skin, but then a small light appeared in the shape of a flower and then faded. Suddenly, a bright and warm light started to come from Flynn's wound, filling the dark cavern with warmth as streams of light curled and weaved through the entire space like a flower in bloom. They all stared in wide-eyed amazement as the light slowly began to fade, healing Flynn's wound from the inside out.
Rapunzel's eyes snapped to Flynn's face, watching closely as the Slytherin boy's eyes twitched and then opened into tired slits. "Rapunzel?" He mumbled, and Rapunzel gasped in wonder and happiness as everyone grinned and leaned closer. "Did I ever tell you, I've got a thing for brunettes?"
"Eugene!" Rapunzel laughed through her tears and then threw her arms around his neck as Flynn pushed himself up to sitting. They all cheered and laughed, hurrying forward to join the hug as they celebrated Flynn being alive. And just like that, everything was okay. Even though Pitch had gotten away, they had Rapunzel and Flynn, which was all that really mattered to Jack, and as he made eye contact with Merida and Rapunzel, he knew that they felt the same.
"Alright, I do have one question, though!" Jim said through all of the soggy laughter and then turned to Flynn. "Eugene?"
"Oh! Flynn! -I'm so sorry!" Rapunzel apologized, but Flynn waved her off with a smile.
"Don't worry about it." He smiled softly at her. "I think I'm starting to like Eugene Fitzherbert better anyways."
"Oooooh!" Merida murmured teasingly with a grin as Rapunzel blushed and smiled.
And everyone laughed together.