Hiiiiii. Sorry it took that long to upload this one. Things happen. You know, in life.
I don't know if a lot happens in this one. This is more... uh, relaxed, I suppose. Ah, well! I'll let you judge.
I put my best efforts in this one. I hope it turned out okay!
Jack, Rapunzel and Sandy had heard, seen and felt the huge explosion, of course. When everything was over, they ran towards the coast, trying to make out something from the mix of smoke, mist and ashes. After a few seconds, they could see the shape of the Viking crowd, all gathered around something. Alarmed, Rapunzel ran towards the group of Vikings, followed closely by Jack and Sandman. The harsh stone hurt her bare feet, but she didn't care. She had to endure a much greater pain. The fear of losing her friends put a sharp pain in her chest. After all they had been through... no, no one could die. No one.
"Oh, no" she breathed, feeling her hopes of everything being okay dropping down and crashing. Jack stopped on his tracks and gasped when he saw him. Merida covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes tearful.
Toothless had opened his wings to reveal Hiccup's body; the dragon had protected him from the fire with his resistant black wings, but the boy wasn't moving. His body was dirty and covered in scratches, and... there was a copious amount of blood flooding from his left leg. Stoick dragged his knees towards him and held his son in his arms, putting his ear over his chest to try to find his the sound of his heartbeat. "He's alive" he whispered. "But his heartbeat is so weak... I can barely..." his voice broke in mid sentence. He couldn't bear to watch his son die before his eyes. The precious reminder his wife had left for him, to remind him he still had a reason to live on...
Merida felt herself starting to crumble down, like a badly built wall. She couldn't let him be gone. He was too important.
"Rapunzel!" Merida called her, tears starting to fall down her face. Precious, shiny little drops, that none of her friends believed they would ever see in her face. "Punzie, save him!"
The blonde didn't need for her to say that. She was already hurrying towards her friend and holding her hair against his wounded body. She felt weak from all the power she'd used before, but started singing regardless; the tears in Merida's face only encouraged her to do anything she possibly could. The rest of them silently begged for it to work as her weakened, yet sweet voice sang her healing incantation and her hair glowed, again, like the sun. When she finished, she sighed, and everyone else looked at her in anxiety. "I've done everything I can" she said, her expression tired and worried. "I've used too much power before... But... I've cured his worst internal damage, or so I think. He still needs help, though..." the sight of that much blood, combined with her weakened body, was making her dizzy.
"We need to take him back to Berk" Gobber said. "And quick. I can take care of the rest."
The journey back to the island was complete chaos. Toothless was too exhausted and his wings were too damaged to take Hiccup back on his back, so Astrid offered herself to take him on her dragon. Jack reassured Merida (who was a nervous, worried wreck) and Rapunzel by flying near Astrid's dragon in case Hiccup needed any help. As for the Vikings, Gobber was carried over Snotlout's dragon, as the other three Viking teens flew behind them. The rest of the tribe had to get on the last boats that remained in suitable condition for sailing, the ones that hadn't been burned or destroyed. Luckily, there was enough room for everyone... including Toothless.
Merida was too stressed and worried to pay attention to anyone else. She wanted to climb over Astrid's dragon with her and Hiccup, but the creature couldn't carry that much weight. Then, she wanted to climb over Jack's back, but Rapunzel persuaded her not to do so. The blonde tried to reassure her, but it was no use; besides, comforting words seemed meaningless in that situation. Hiccup could die. It was a real possibility, and no matter how much it killed them inside to admit it, they would have to accept that it could happen. And that was really what drove Merida crazy. As for Rapunzel, she was extremely tired, and while Merida took care of her during the sailing, both of them were worried sick. They couldn't drive their minds away from Hiccup. Rapunzel could only repeat her wish over and over again in her mind while she rested from the enormous effort that such big use of her power had taken: "Please let him be alright."
Little Jamie freaked out when he finally noticed Sandman's presence, and, when he obtained confirmation that he was indeed the Sandman, started cheering and talking non-stop. He was so going to tell his friends about him. And, since he existed, that meant the other Guardians would exist as well; Rapunzel made sure to point that out to him, and said she was sure they would all meet soon. It was nice to find a little bit of childish happiness in between all the gloom that Hiccup's suicidal adventure had brought upon the entire tribe and upon his friends. As for Sandman, he made some shapes out of sand to explain that he would go see the other Guardians. He had to tell them he was alive, and he had to tell them that Pitch was not. So, he flew away in his cloud of golden sand.
When they finally landed on the island, Merida helped the weakened Rapunzel get off the boat, but as soon as the blonde was seated somewhere, she started frantically searching for someone who would tell her where or how Hiccup was. Luckily, Jack found her first. "That Viking man is with him, Meri" he said. When she tried to go past him, he grabbed her shoulders. "Hey, he said it's best not to bother him. Meri, stop worrying, alright? He's going to be okay, I promise."
"Ye cannae be sure" Jack was surprised when he saw how her eyes were tearing up, again.
"And here I thought I'd never see brave, bold Merida cry" he smiled at her and gave her a brief, but tight hug. "Hiccup is stronger than you think. He's going to be just fine!"
Merida, surprised and touched by his affection, bursted in tears. "But ye don't understand!" she cried, grabbing the sleeves of his hoodie. "Ah... when he was up there, Ah..."
"Merida?" Rapunzel called, in utter surprise. "Meri, are you crying?" she got up from her seat and quickly walked towards her.
"You shouldn't be walking, you're too weak now!" Jack scolded her, but she brushed him off with a gesture.
"Merida, what's wrong?" Rapunzel held her friend's face in her hands and wiped her tears away. "Is it because of Hiccup? I've healed him, and he's being taken care of, he's going to be alright for sure!"
"I-it's not that" the redhead whimpered. "Ah... Ah've never felt so weak before. Ah thought Ah was th' strong one. Ah thought Ah could always fight an' protect ye, but... Ah was useless back there. Completely useless" and she buried her face into Rapunzel's shoulder and cried all the feelings she'd been bottling up. The blonde and Jack were so stunned, they didn't even know what to say. They never expected Merida to cry, so they never expected they would have to comfort her. They thought that, if anything, Merida would have to be the one to comfort them.
"Have Hiccup and Merida switched bodies again?" Jack muttered to himself, unable to process the fact that Merida was crying so much in front of them. Rapunzel shook her head, caressing Merida's hair in an attempt to calm her down. The blonde always knew she was sweet underneath all her temper and roughness, but the Highlander princess was always reserved when it came to show her inner feelings. She would always put the "weaker" feelings aside and pretend nothing could ever hurt her, because that was her way of being strong. It worked, most of the time; her strength would be her shield, and her wish to fight and protect the others, her way of avoiding dwelling in pain or sadness. But now, there she was. Showing a weakness. Rapunzel never thought she would see the day Merida would cry in front of Jack and her without denying or trying to hide it.
That must be how soft her soft spot for Hiccup was.
"A-Ah had to watch him fight that monster... Ah couldnae do anythin' to help him..." Merida sobbed. "An' ye were fightin' Pitch an' Ah couldnae do anythin' to help ye either! Ah only stood an' watched!" she buried her face in her own hands. "Ah am a shame fur everyone..."
"Merida!" Rapunzel exclaimed. The anger in her voice made Merida look back at her. "What do you think you're doing? Dwelling in self-pity? We've had enough of that!" she looked straight in the redhead's blue eyes. "I spent hours crying in the darkness because Pitch made me think all of you hated me. I doubted you and the friendship and the love you've all shown me. If anyone was weak, it was me."
"No" Merida replied, averting her eyes from hers. "Ye werenae weak. Ye defeated Pitch an' brought back Sandman with yer power. Ye werenae afraid anymore. Ye were th' strongest."
"That doesn't matter! I was weak because I gave up on you and the boys, on our friendship. The smallest doubt made me break down crying and rendered me useless. But" she grabbed Merida's shoulders firmly. "you weren't weak. You just couldn't do anything to help, and you were worried. Worried about Hic and worried about me. And you stood through all of that, you saw all of that, and you didn't shed a tear until you saw Hiccup lying there. That's not being weak, Meri" Rapunzel smiled at her tenderly. "That's called caring."
Merida stood silent for a few seconds, and then hugged the blonde with all her might. "Thank ye" she whispered. Rapunzel hugged back, and Jack smiled at the scene.
"See?" he said, patting Merida on the back. "Everything will turn out alright."
Merida smiled back at him and hugged him, too. "Ye get on mah nerves, ye know?" she said, but hugged him tighter. "But ye both are th' best."
Hours started passing. Jack got some food and drink for Merida, and they sat watching the Vikings becoming used to the dragons being around. It was fun to watch, but none of them could forget about Hiccup. They didn't want to mention it, but they were all wondering how he was, and time was slow. Wasn't Gobber taking a little too long?
"I'm gonnae check on him" Merida suddenly said, and she swiftly got up before either of the other two could stop her.
"Merida!" Rapunzel immediately got up and went after her, intending to try and stop her. Jack rolled his eyes.
"I knew it wouldn't last" he said, quickly following them. But at that moment, they ran into Gobber, who was precisely coming to fetch them.
"How is he!?" Merida asked, looking at him with pleading eyes. Gobber nodded a few times.
"He will be alright" said the Viking, causing an undescribable wave of relief to wash through their bodies. It was as if an enormous weight had been lifted from their chest. "He just needs to rest. But there's something he lost."
Merida looked at her friends, dazzled by those words, but Rapunzel had understood them. "His leg" she whispered, her eyes saddened. The redhead covered her mouth with her hand.
"He lost his leg!?"
"I'm afraid so" Gobber nodded. "But that is no rare thing among Vikings" he pointed at his own missing leg and arm, smiling. "It will be proof of his worth."
"I sure hope he doesn't have to prove his worth many more times, just in case he ends up missing a head" Jack muttered. And at that moment, Gobber looked at him. Straight at him.
"It's no joking matter, Jokul Frosti" he nonchalantly said, making Jack jump in astonishment.
"W-what!?" the winter spirit had his eyes wide open. His brain refused to process the fact that someone else could see him, and an adult, no less. "H-how can you...?"
Rapunzel and Merida were equally puzzled, but Gobber smiled. "Believe it or not, I always thought there must be a Jokul Frosti out there. There's no other explanation as to why this island is always so damn freezing."
"There he is!" a childish voice exclaimed before Jack could react. It was, of course, Jamie. "I told you! He exists!"
A group of Viking children ran up to him, pushing each other to get the best view of Jack they possibly could. Jack was overwhelmed by all the sudden attention and the fact that so many children could see him. He didn't know what to say, but a huge smile was spreading through his face.
"These children have been hearing the fairy tales about you" Gobber grinned, patting Jack's back. "Nice, eh, children?"
All the little ones laughed and cheered, and asked Jack to show off his powers, which he gladly did. When he started flying around and making it snow over them, the little ones completely freaked out. Rapunzel laughed at their expressions filled with wonder.
"He's amazing!" a child said, and Jamie nodded.
"And guess what? All the others exist, too! I saw the Man of Dreams! The Sandman!" his friends gasped when he said that.
"Really!? Wow! Tell us, Jamie! Come on!"
"Well, Ah don't mean to ruin th' moment, but..." Merida tapped Gobber's shoulder. "Can we go see Hic?"
"Ah, of course. He's sleeping right now, and his father is with him. Try to not disturb him" he advised, and lightly patted her shoulder. "He'll be glad to see ye if he wakes up."
"Huh?" her puzzled expression made him chuckle.
"Well, by the way you worried about him, I'm guessing you must be his new girlfriend?"
Merida's face turned completely red. She turned her back on him and walked away as fast as she could. When he heard Gobber laughing, the Highlander growled under her breath, angry with her own embarrassment. What was her heart beating so loud for anyway!? She didn't have anything to be embarrassed about! Right!?
"Ah, Merida, wait!" Rapunzel called, running after her friend. Seeing this from above, Jack flew down and went after them as well.
"Can we see him?" he asked, and Merida nodded at him. That's when he noticed. "What are you blushing so much for, Merida?" Jack's side smirk made her want to punch his face.
"Nothin'!" she replied, but she walked even faster. The white-haired boy chuckled, but said nothing else. Rapunzel and him shared an all-knowing look while diligently following the princess to the cottage Hiccup was supposed to be in.
Merida opened the door, surprising Toothless and Stoick, who were already inside. It was a nice surprise to see the chief right by the side of Hiccup's dear dragon, the same he had struggled so much for his father to accept. "Oh, it's you" Stoick said, sighing. Then, he noticed Rapunzel and Jack. "Who are you?"
"Wow, this is a lot of people to see me in one single day" Jack breathed, smiling and waving at the Viking chief, who raised one of his eyebrows. "Uh, we're friends of his, too, sir."
The chief was sitting on a stool beside the bed where Hiccup was laying. The boy looked weary and weak, but he seemed to be perfectly fine. He was sleeping soundly, and nothing seemed to be disturbing him. He didn't look like he felt any pain or discomfort, and that was a relief.
"I remember you" Stoick replied, looking at Rapunzel. "You... you used magic on him. Gobber told me you cured his internal injuries. If it wasn't for you... he would have died."
"Oh, no" Rapunzel looked at her feet, lightly blushing. "I... I didn't do that much, really. It's thanks to my hair. And Gobber did all the rest. What I did would have been useless if he hadn't taken care of him afterwards."
"You're being far too modest" Jack whispered, softly elbowing her.
"Even so, I could never begin to thank you enough" Stoick's voice was surprisingly warm. "For saving my son. I... I'm in debt with you."
"No, not at all" the blonde shook her head and looked back at the Viking chief, smiling. She realized that, despite of his rough exterior, he obviously cared a lot about Hiccup. And he did seem like a truly nice person, even when he didn't know how to show it most of the time. "Hiccup is my friend. He's very important to us, as well."
"You've been with him all this time?" he asked, and the three nodded.
"My name is Rapunzel" she introduced herself. "I suppose you already know Merida, and... this is Jack Frost."
"Jack... wait, Jokul Frosti?" Stoick blinked in surprise. He had a feeling of something weird about that boy, but still, his brain refused to believe the existence of one of the most famous Viking myths. "But that can't be..."
"It can, since, well, you're able to see me" Jack shrugged and smiled. "At this rate, I'll start getting used to be seen by people."
"Well... this has been an extraordinary series of events, indeed" the Viking chief sighed, stroking his beard. "I am happy, however, of how it ended. My son is safe, and we will not have to fight the dragons anymore" he looked at Toothless, who purred in agreement. "This will be beneficial for all of us, I'm sure. But, I would like you to tell me about... well, your journey. What did you and my son do while he was away? I just... would like to know" he invited them to sit on the chairs nearby with a gesture of his hand, and the three teenagers accepted.
They spent the rest of the day talking to him about their past journey, what they did and how they bonded. Jack told most of the story, while Rapunzel and Merida pointed things out and added some details. They had come to know each other like brothers and sisters, and some of them (Merida eloquently looked at Jack and Rapunzel) had even found something else, and the process behind those bonds was woven together by the three young voices. Stoick listened carefully, smiling down at them and his sleeping son from time to time, and while he listened, the sun went down and night came. When their story was over, he looked down at Hiccup and stroke his head. "I guess he needed that journey with you" he said. "He needed to feel accepted, and I didn't recognize him for what he is worth..." his eyes were sad when he thought of that. The fact that his son had to run away to feel accepted and loved hurt him, because he knew he had commited a huge mistake. "We didn't exactly make him feel at home here. But... I'm glad he still considers this place as such, even after all that's happened."
"He came to fight for you" Rapunzel nodded. "He's an amazing person. You should be very proud of him."
"Yeah" Jack agreed, and added: "We are."
Merida was now silent. She was looking down at Hiccup, too. When Stoick's stomach growled, they offered themselves to stay and take care of him while he went to have something to eat. When they were left alone, Merida said "I'm sure ye have a lot to catch up with" her eyes were eloquently looking back at them, but her smile was sincere. "Go somewhere an' take a walk or whatever. I'll stay."
"No, that wouldn't be fair" Rapunzel replied, but her friend shook her head.
"It's fine, Punzie. I know ye must wannae be alone. Go. I don't mind stayin'."
Rapunzel wouldn't have left just like that, but she could read in Merida's eyes that she did want to stay with Hiccup. She smiled, because Merida was just like an open book, and her feelings had become so obvious... She took Jack's hand and they both walked outside, leaving her alone with the sleeping Hiccup.
Merida sighed. Relief had taken over her body and she was nothing but thankful for having such wonderful friends. The loss of a leg wasn't a huge price to pay; Hiccup's madness could have cost him so much more than that. She sat close to him and caressed the hair away from his face. "Yoo're a crazy idiot, ye know 'at?" she whispered. "Yoo're so stupid, Ah don't even know why Ah love ye."
Ah, but she was lying. She knew. She knew exactly why.
"How are you feeling, Punz?" asked Jack, while they walked through a silent path.
"I'm fine" she answered, smiling at him. "I was just tired from using so much power, but I'm okay now. What about you, Jack?"
He ran a hand through his white hair, sighing. "I've had better days, that's for sure. But now, everything's okay, and I'm just glad that's so. I can't tell you how worried I was about you" he said, stopping on his tracks to look into her eyes. "I was so afraid I would lose you."
She averted her green orbs from him with a saddened expression. "I know. I'm sorry for making you worry. And I'm sorry for... for falling under Pitch's illusion. I shouldn't have believed him, but... I was scared... I didn't know he could do that to me. I..."
"Hey" Jack pulled her into a tight hug. "It's not your fault. Pitch deceived you and you were scared. It's only normal for you to feel unable to fight him back" resting his staff on his shoulder, he held her face between his hands. "You are strong as hell, Rapunzel. And we're here for you."
She smiled, her hands over his chest. "We're here for you, too, Jack" she replied. "So you don't have to ever feel alone again."
"I know" he smirked, teasingly touching her nose with his. "You know what would really make me feel like you're here for me?"
Rapunzel laughed before he leaned in closer and touched her lips with his.
His lips felt cold, but she didn't mind. She'd missed that kind of cold. The kiss was sweet, and tender, and the rest of the world ceased to exist for a few seconds.
"Jack! Rapunzel!" a familiar voice called, making both of them jump and quickly separate as if they'd been caught doing something bad. But two wide smiles filled with glee spread through her faces when they saw who it was.
"North!" Jack exclaimed. "Bunny! Tooth!"
The sleigh landed near them and the Guardians got off to pull both teenagers into a group hug. They laughed and hugged back, hearts filled with happiness and relief. Sandman watched the scene with a satisfied smile on his face, that is, before he was pulled into the hug too.
"I'm so glad you're all okay!" Jack blurted out, laughing. "But, I don't want to sound mean, but you're crushing me!"
The Guardians laughed and let go of them, glee shining all over their faces. Tooth's feathers looked shiny and healthy, her wings were just as fast as always, and she was accompanied by a few of her little fairies; Bunnymund was back to being a strong, almost-two-meters-tall bunny; and North didn't look like an old, tired, pained man anymore. He was again the chubby, yet strong and healthy Santa they'd known.
"This is all thanks to you!" Tooth exclaimed, her eyes glimmering. "Oh, I can't explain how happy I am!"
"How is the Viking boy?" North asked. "Sandy told us something happened to him."
"He lost his leg" Rapunzel informed, making them gasp. "But not to worry, he's going to be just fine! He's resting, now" she smiled, making them all sigh in relief.
"And the red-headed girl?" Bunnymund asked. "The angry one?"
Rapunzel laughed. "She's not angry, she's wonderful" she replied. "She's taking care of Hiccup, now. But I'm sure they'll both be really happy to see you, once he wakes up!"
"Everything is just fine now" Jack summed up with a smile. "And what about you? You're all looking real good!"
"It's thanks to you!" North smiled. "You defeated Pitch and saved the last believer, and it seems that he made other children believe in us, as well."
"So we recovered our strength and were able to fulfill our duties as Guardians" Bunnymund finished.
"I was able to collect the teeth again" Tooth excitedly said. "And we left them gifts!"
"I left them Christmas presents" North smiled, crossing his arms with pride.
"I left them some pretty Easter eggs" Bunny added, and smiled, too. "And Sandy left them nice dreams" the golden man happily nodded in confirmation.
"That's awesome" Jack grinned. He was genuinely happy that the Guardians were all okay, after having seen them all so weary and defeated.
"I'm really happy for you all" Rapunzel added, and then kneeled before Sandy for their eyes to be at the same height. "I can never thank you enough for what you did, Sandy" she said, and pulled the little man into a hug. "You've given me a wonderful power."
Sandman lightly patted her back, smiling. When Rapunzel let go of him, he pointed at both her and Jack, made a moon out of sand, and then pointed at the rest of the Guardians.
"What is that?" Jack asked, without getting what he meant.
North took a step forward. "I think he's asking you to become Guardians."
"Oh" Rapunzel breathed, and looked down at her feet. Jack switched his staff from one hand to the other, uncomfortably.
"No need to decide right now" North smiled, putting one hand onto each teen's shoulder. "But we would like you to consider it."
"We also want to compensate you for helping us so much" Toothiana added, stepping forward.
"No, that's not necessary" Jack replied, shaking his head.
"There's no need for that" Rapunzel agreed. "It's perfectly fine."
"But we still want to do it" the fairy smiled, and two of her little fairies brought her two familiar golden boxes. "That's why we want to give these to you two."
Jack gasped, but Rapunzel observed both boxes in admiration. "What are they?" she asked.
"These are your teeth" Tooth explained, and the blonde grimaced.
"Wh- our teeth!?"
"Why do you think we fairies collect children's teeth, Rapunzel?" she smiled. "They contain memories."
"Huh?" the blonde girl was now much more curious. Jack, however, was silent.
"When children grow up, their childhood memories start to fade away" Tooth clarified. "However, those memories get stored and carried in their teeth. We collect those teeth as they fall, and we watch over those memories. Whenever someone needs to remember what's important... we bring those memories back to them. To put it shortly, these boxes contain... your memories."
Rapunzel gasped, now seeing the little boxes in a whole new light. She looked at Jack to see his reaction, but he was just averting his eyes and biting his lower lip. "Jack?" she said, reaching her hand out to touch his shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"I... I've seen these before" he admitted, and everyone else looked at him in confusion. "Pitch... he tried to bribe me with them. He wanted me to let him have Rapunzel's power, and, in exchange, he... would give them to us. And I..." he turned his face away from them, his fists clenched tightly. "I almost accepted."
Rapunzel took a sharp, deep breath in, and stared at him without knowing how to react. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I just... I couldn't find the time, and besides..." he bit his lip even harder before continuing. "I still despise myself for it, okay!? For hesitating, and almost selling your power to him. I... I was tempted."
"Jack" North breathed, frowning at him.
"I understand" Rapunzel suddenly said, and Jack turned his face to her, his surprise showing through his expression.
"What?"
"I... I can't blame you" she explained, playing with a lock of her blond hair. "I myself want to know who I really am so badly... I would have been tempted to accept as well" she sighed and looked back at him with an understanding, crooked smile. "Besides, I was deceived, too."
Jack let out the breath he'd been holding, feeling so much gratitude for her understanding and forgiveness, he couldn't even find the words to express it. How could a person like her even exist without being corrupted by the rest of the world? What flaws did she even have?
None, he guessed. He just stepped forward and caught her into his arms, whispering a "thank you" in her ear. It didn't matter whether he despised himself or not; Rapunzel didn't, and she was there to pull him back together and make him feel like he was good. That was more than enough.
She pulled away from his hug and held his hands. "Listen, Jack" she said, her green eyes looking directly into the blue ones. "Our memories... I know we both want so much to know who we are, or if we ever were before... this. But I feel like what's important is not what we had, but what we have now. So, if you don't want to take them... then I don't, either."
He smiled, understanding exactly what she meant. He lightly caressed her cheek with his fingers, and said "Come on. I know you want to take them, and so do I. We need to see... to see if there is a reason for us to still exist. We have to know" he then cupped her chin with his slender fingers. "Still, as you said, what's important is what we have now. And seeing what we had before, if we had anything, will not change that."
She nodded her agreement and smiled. They turned to face Toothiana, who offered them the little golden boxes. They took them in their hands and examined them closely for a few seconds. Rapunzel admired the pretty patterns adorning the gold cilinder, and looked at the painting in the base; the painting of a young girl with green eyes and brown, short hair. "Is this me?" she muttered, more to herself than to anyone else. Jack was wondering the same thing; the boy with brown hair and eyes did look like him, but it was so strange. So strange to think he'd been such a completely different person... before. Finally, he looked at Rapunzel and asked "Ready?". She nodded and replied with the same word. "Ready."
Wooooo. As always, thanks to everyone sticking through this and all. Don't hesitate to leave your opinions, and... stuff! Love you all.