Sorry this took so long! As predicted, life got in the way as soon as I went back to work. XP It's another short one, but please bear with me. We're getting somewhere, I promise.
Oh, well. On with the show!
Chapter 4
Jack had never tried to hold off a blizzard – he was pretty sure he would fail, and the wind would just laugh at his efforts. But he was thinking about trying it. He might have to. The cloud overhead were gathering ominously, while the temperature edged closer and closer to freezing. The wind had started to pick up, too.
Rapunzel still hadn't complained, but he knew she was struggling. Her steps faltered more and more, and her cute huff of frustration had faded with exhaustion. If he had the energy, he would have offered to carry her. Though he doubted she would accept.
The first few flakes of snow started to drift down from the clouds, tumbling lazily to the ground. Jack looked up at the sky. For now, the blizzard was still just a promise. But it was a promise that would be kept.
He took a deep breath through his nose, cold air stinging its way into his lungs. Was there time?
As if in answer, when he looked straight ahead, he saw the break in the trees where timber had been stripped away to make room for the road. It was an offshoot of the king's road, but still one of the most frequently used. Especially by him.
"Do you want some good news?" he asked, glancing back.
Rapunzel looked up, her green eyes tired as she nodded.
"We're almost there," he said. "Less than half an hour." That was actually an exaggeration – but he preferred to overestimate, for her sake.
He was rewarded by the light that returned to her eyes as some of her exhaustion faded away.
"Really?" she asked.
He nodded. "Want even better news?"
"Yes."
He stopped at the edge of the trees, and waited for her to catch up with him. Looked over just as she did, he saw her face light up further as she looked at the packed gravel road in front of them.
"We don't have to walk through any more snow," he said.
It was such a simple thing, really. But her expression said she might have started dancing for joy if she weren't so tired. As it was, he thought she might start crying in relief.
He touched her shoulder gently. "Come on. We still have to beat the storm."
"Okay."
They stepped out of the snow, and onto the solid road. Jack couldn't deny he was grateful to be off the snow. Normally he moved quickly enough that he didn't notice, but the slower pace felt like more of a work out than his usual trek. On his shoulders, his backpack was not getting any lighter, despite the fact they had gone through most of the water already.
Rapunzel now walked beside him.
The pace was still slower than when he was alone. But it was a little faster now that walking was easier.
The inn came into view around the trees less than fifteen minutes later. It was a two story building, made up of wood and stone. It might have qualified as large, if Jack hadn't grown up in the palace. It was nowhere near as grand, but it was clean and well maintained. As they got closer, Jack could see a faint glow from some of the windows. Behind the main building he could see the edge of the stables.
Several lanterns hung in front of the inn, guiding travelers to the front door.
"Is that it?" Rapunzel asked.
"That's it."
She stared at it in wide eyed wonder, as though she had never seen anything like it. He could see her curiosity and excitement mounting as they got closer.
They turned off the road, up the shoveled path that lead to the door.
As soon as he opened the door, warm air washed over them, carrying the smells of smoke, wood polish and some kind of food that would probably taste really good. Especially since he had given Rapunzel most of the food, and was now starving.
He could already feel eyes on them from the tables on one side of the room – the inhabitants looking to see who was coming in. Rapunzel stepped closer to him nervously, pulling his cloak tighter around her small frame.
"It's okay," he assured, ushering her inside a step ahead of him so he could close the door. Preferably before someone yelled at him to do so.
It didn't look as though she believed him.
A fire crackled in the massive hearth to their right, filling the room with warmth, and contributing the smoky smell. Tables took up almost half the room, though only a handful were occupied at that moment. He didn't blame Rapunzel for being nervous about the people who occupied those tables, though. They were all burly mountain men, travelers, and soldiers, who had either gotten caught in the storm, or had just come in for a hot meal. They all excelled at looking intimidating.
Jack cringed as he saw two Winter soldiers in one corner, watching him more intently than anyone else. He could just imagine the report they were going to send back to his father…
This was one of Jack's frequent stops, because it was conveniently located, and it was a good place to gather information. At that moment, he could wish that the regulars weren't so familiar with him, though.
"The young prince has finally found a girl!" someone called. He didn't see who.
"Shut up!" Jack called back, killing the cheer that had started from somewhere in the back. He was furious to feel heat rising in his cheeks.
Rapunzel's face was bright red as she wrapped the cloak even tighter around her shoulders.
"Welcome back," another man called, without teasing in his voice.
"Yeah, thanks," Jack muttered. He was very aware of the soldiers watching him.
He touched Rapunzel's shoulder through his cloak, doing his best to keep the touch innocent. No point adding fuel to a fire. Because there were going to be plenty of rumors, he just knew it. The way Rapunzel stood so close to him couldn't be helping.
"Come on."
She didn't move. "You're the prince?"
His gut shifted uncomfortably. Now was not a good time of place for that conversation.
"A prince," he said. "I'm the younger brother, so the title is just kind of a door prize for showing up."
Thankfully that was enough of an answer that she moved when he pressed her shoulder lightly with his palm, guiding her over to the desk on the other side of the common room.
"Why don't you sit down and rest?" he suggested, nodding toward an arm chair in the nearest corner. Close enough he could keep an eye on her, but far enough that he would have space to breathe. It wasn't that he minded having her next to him – he just needed to get things sorted out. And he was pretty sure someone was going to confront him at any moment.
Rapunzel looked at the chair, and for a moment he thought she was going to say no. But after a moment she nodded. "Okay."
He went over with her, dropping his backpack onto the floor by her feet as she sat down. He exhaled, his shoulders throbbing in relief at the loss of his burden. His whole body started to relax. Though that met he started to feel every ache in every single, tired muscle of his body.
"Will you keep an eye on that?"
She was focused on gathering up her hair, which was wet, and heavy with snow. "Sure."
As he returned to the desk, he glanced over at the soldiers to be sure they weren't converging on him of Rapunzel. He wasn't ready to deal with their questions.
They hadn't risen from their table. Yet.
Finally the door to the kitchen opened, and Marian Bennett came out, brushing flour off her apron. She was a surprisingly slight woman, considering she ran an inn frequented by men almost twice her size. Her brown hair was pulled back in a bun, her round face friendly and open. Most of her clientele behaved if only out of respect for her. The few that didn't were handled by those who were more than willing to help. Her husband had passed away a few years earlier, but she managed to maintain the inn and raise her two children with good humor and skill.
When she saw Jack she smiled, but didn't cutesy. It had taken Jack almost a year to make her stop with the formalities. "Jack. I had a feeling you would turn up any day."
He tried to grin, but found he couldn't quite muster the expression. His head was too cluttered with a flurry of thoughts he could no longer hold at bay.
She must have seen something of that in his face. "Is something wrong?"
Without thinking, Jack looked over at where Rapunzel sat in the corner. Marian glanced over as well.
"I may have bitten off more than I can chew," Jack admitted, looking back at Marian.
Her expression was concerned as she looked back and forth between him and the blonde. "Can I help?"
Jack rubbed his forehead. Was there any way to arrange this that wouldn't cause problems, and more rumors? If there was, he couldn't see it. "I need two adjoined rooms, two meals, paper, and a pen. Tomorrow I'll need a horse, and a messenger bird I can send to Autumn."
"To Chief Haddock?"
He nodded.
Marian arched her brow. "Is that all?"
"Let's start with that." He smiled ruefully. He was sure there would be more once his brain was thinking straight.
"Jamie will be glad you're here," Marian said, clearly trying to cheer her uyp.
And she succeeded.
Jack grinned. "Where is he, anyway?"
Marian's son, Jamie, was usually in the dining room at dinner time, pretending the serve, but really listening to the stories the men told. Especially soldiers. The boy was determined to join the Winter guard as soon as he was old enough.
"He and Sophie are working on chores," she smiled. "I'm sure he'll sense you're here and show up soon enough, though.,"
He paid her a few of the silver coins he had grabbed from his backpack, and she gave him three keys. One for each of the two rooms, the third for the door that adjoined them.
"Do you want the food brought to the rooms?" Marian asked.
"That would be great. Can I have some paper?" he needed to write at least two letters, sooner rather than later.
Pen and parchment in hand, he returned to Rapunzel. "Our rooms are upstairs. Once we're there, we're done for the day."
"Your Highness."
Jack cringed. He had forgotten to check that the soldiers were still at their table. And he hadn't noticed their approaching footsteps. Rapunzel looked nervously over his shoulder, and back to him.
Taking a deep breath, and letting to out, Jack turned to the soldiers, in their dark blue uniforms, with black and silver accents. "Yes?"
"May we be of assistance?" one asked. Though the way he looked at Rapunzel suggested that the question he wanted to ask was: "What are you doing?"
You can leave to alone, was what Jack wanted to say. But he forced himself not to. All those hours in the woods, why hadn't he thought up a good explanation for just this situation? He didn't want to lie, but he didn't want to tell them his suspicions, either. So he dodged the question all together.
"Are you returning to the palace tomorrow?"
"Yes, sir," the spokesman said. "Unless you have anything you need us to do."
"I need a letter delivered to my brother," he said. "At needs to reach him as soon as possible." Before you report to my father. Nightlight would probably lecture him if he could, but he would also know the best way to phrase things to their father to avoid any serious problems.
"Of course," the soldier nodded.
"Thanks." Reaching down, he grabbed one of his backpacks straps, and lead Rapunzel toward the staircase at the back of the room.
#
Jack kicked off his boots, and sighed in relief as he collapsed back onto the bed in his room.
Outside the wind howled as the blizzard arrived with a vengeance. Snowflakes were tossed to and fro outside his window, but he didn't see it behind his closed eyes. It probably wouldn't snow as much as it had the night before. More likely it would just be a lot of wind. If his senses were right, it would blow itself out hours before dawn.
After that, hopefully there wouldn't be another blizzard until he and Rapunzel had crossed the Autumn border. Autumn's cold season occasionally saw snow, but it was usually mild.
Rapunzel was currently in her own room, the adjoining door still locked. He had given her the key, so she could control any access he had to her room. It had seemed like the only noble way to handle the situation. Her expression had become strange as he handed her the key, though he couldn't begin to guess what had been going through her head. She had stared at it in wonder. She obviously knew what it was, but she seemed surprised to be holding on.
That was something else he would have to figure out later.
He could hear water running through the pipes in the wall, and he could vaguely hear it splashing into the tub on the other side. She was probably taking a bath – not that he blamed her. He was still wating for his body to warm up, even though the air was comfortably warm inside the inn.
All Jack wanted to do was sleep. Cold caves were hardly the best place for a good night's sleep, and he'd been forced to wake up early the day before to attend the border negotiations. The long walk hadn't helped. But he should probably get work down before he allowed himself to rest.
That meant three letters had to be written. One of which had to offer some kind of decent explanation to appease Nightlight. Just what he would say, he wasn't sure yet. But he would have to think of something.
He would need to write Emma, letting her know that he would be gone for a couple weeks. She always insisted that she let her know, saying it was her right as his sister, or something like that.
Compared to bother of those, the letter to Hiccup would be easier. Not easy. He still had to give a good explanation as to why his friend should drop all his chiefing duties to meet him at the border. But it would be easier.