Chapter Two
Artair's room was a mess. Sheets of paper littered everywhere, on each of them rough, bold sketches of designs he probably threw away, books dusty and tattered lined awkwardly on the cracked boards of the shelve. The floor under Merida's feet creaked and groaned as she motioned to the lone chair that stood out of place and clean around a pile of random bits and pieces of loose bolts and metal.
The room was part bedroom, part study. The study was on the right which Merida first saw and it looked like a civil war had erupted; the bed on the left was placed under an open window whilst the dusty wooden cupboard was by the foot of the bed, next to the window. Artair swung open the cupboard door, bearing no mind to the moan it made. Inside was an unruly pile of gowns and clothing. Some in greens, reds and blues, most in brown.
"Your clothes," he pointed out blandly, "Annette had taken some of your gowns beforehand. So you don't need to worry about it fitting or anything."
There was a loud cry from downstairs. The two jolted and Artair quietly sighed, rubbing his temples in agony. He gave Merida an apologetic glance before he rushed to the door. Pausing suddenly, he tilted his head at Merida, "Oh, by the way, this will be your room from now on," he sent her a tired grin as he yelled at them to calm down and whammed the door shut in his haste.
"Well, that was welcoming," Merida grumbled, feeling discomfort as the wooden chair pricked at her bottom whenever she moved.
In boredom, Merida stood up and trudged to the bed - which was about as exciting to look at as the wooden wall beside it. Night had fallen, the stars glinted as Merida peeped her head out from the window and extended half her torso out, kneeling on the bed. She caught sight of the luminescent full moon as it seemingly smiled at her. A faint buzz crescendos near her ear.
Besides the sky, the only other thing visible was the two storey house next door. A shut window and a failed attempt of a wooden balcony was in front of Merida. The buzzing from before was determined to pester her. Crying out in frustration, Merida clawed at the sound. Her hand whacked against something small and feathery. It whimpered and crashed onto the intersection of the window.
The creature was covered in splashes of blue and green. Its wings like an insect's, but its nose like a hummingbird. Bright purple eyes gazed up at Merida, begging for mercy.
"What are you…?"
Carefully, Merida reached for the creature, but it flinched and pushed closer to the wall, curling itself into a tight ball. Suppressing her impulses to merely grab it, Merida gently picked it up with her fingers and placed it softly onto her palm. She gasped. The wing was bent with a tear in the middle.
"I need to get you to the physician!"
The creature squeaked and shook its head in alarm. During that process, it tumbled backward and landed in a heap on the window again. As Merida was about to pick it up again, a loud call caught the creature's attention and it perked its head up in relief at the call.
"Baby Tooth! Baby Tooth!"
The voice was male and Merida assumed 'Baby Tooth' was the creature in front of her. Leaning out further to get the man's attention, Merida pushed Baby Tooth out of the way and yelled.
"Excuse me! Is this what you're looking for?!"
It was difficult to see through the gap between the two buildings. The closeness of the buildings also made it even harder for the man to pinpoint where the voice came from. Merida continued calling, and the man called back as they struggled to find each other. Finally, between the narrow gap, a white haired man appeared. He was wearing a loose brown cloak that looked like a cape and skin tight deer skin pants. He wandered about, spinning around as he called back. Merida vigorously waved both her arms while she yelled, he turned to her direction and paused.
"OVER HERE!"
The man cautiously walked over towards where Merida was, "WHERE?"
"I'm waving my arms!" Merida exclaimed in exhaustion, but he had started to wander away from her. Merida yelled, "YOU IDIOT!"
He flinched, and turned back to Merida's direction, "It's too dark! I can't see you!"
Merida grumbled to herself, stopped flailing her arms about and watched the man skim the area in of him. For a moment his bright blue eyes met Merida's. She inhaled sharply.
Giving up, he threw his arms in the air and swung it back down, "WHAT'S YOUR NAME?" he shouted into the dark gap between the two houses. Blinking, he thought he saw a dull matte of red in the blur of darkness. Tightly, he gripped onto the hut wall and tried to peer in. A silhouette of a woman and a huge mane of hair caught his sight.
"I'M MERIDA!" her voice resonated.
The man stared up at her. Merida frowned as he seemed to squint as he gazed at her, "I'M JACK!"
A huge smile graced his pale face, "I can trust you with Baby Tooth, right?!"
Merida glanced at the frail creature as it curled up in a ball. It shivered, and Merida quickly scooted to the closet and struggled to rummage through the mountains of clothing piled inside it. Among the clothing was a lone wax candle. Grabbing the candle and a random piece of cloth, Merida dashed back onto the bed and extended her torso outside the window. She placed the cloth over Baby Tooth and smiled when it snuggled it.
When Merida was about to call for Jack again, he had disappeared.
A rooster screamed. The morning sun bathed the landscape with its streams of golden light. Merida had fallen asleep beside Baby Tooth, her head tucked in between her crossed arms on the window. Her hair splayed everywhere and loose strands hung idly out the window. A light breeze whistled past and the village began to wake.
Baby Tooth rubbed its eyes, the cloth slipped down as it sat up. Plucking its lips, it stared at the head of red in front of it with dazed eyes. Quickly, Baby Tooth snapped back to reality and it squeaked. It frantically buzzed its wings only find a sting explode across its back. Out of desperation, Baby Tooth crawled over to Merida and tugged at the strand of curly hair.
With a loud yelp, Merida jerked awake and glared down at Baby Tooth. But Baby Tooth had already lost consciousness. Merida gasped, carefully picked it up, stumbled out of bed and rushed out the room, slamming the door closed. Down the stairs, Merida entered the smithy, only to find tools scattered across the floor, all over the tables and some hung in a line of clutter on the wooden walls.
There was a muffled curse. Merida swiftly hopped over the tools and roamed away from the sharp objects. As she wandered further into the workshop, the voice was accompanied with Artair's frustrated one. There was a room with the banging sound of metal against metal and the exclamations of hate that were no longer muffled as Merida drew closer and closer. Not wanting to disturb them in a moment of argument, Merida stuck close to the wall and peered through the crack of the door.
Inside was a private workshop. Miniature scraps of designs hung about, a small burning forge and a bench that was attached to the wall away from the fire. There was a short boy with brown hair dyed with soot. He was whamming against a metal sword with a hammer. Artair was rubbing his temples and glared at the boy. Grey eyes clashed with grass green. Artair scowled at the boy, but uttered nothing. He just stormed off towards the door.
Artair slammed the door open and came face to face with a confused Merida. Smiling awkwardly, Merida hastily hid Baby Tooth behind her back. Without a sound, Artair marched off out of the smithy and she could hear the BANG of the front door close. Then a loud thud as the fragile wooden door tumbled down onto the ground.
The boy's slouched back faced Merida. He dropped the hammer and sighed like he had just aged a million years. Merida strolled inside, bit her lip and tapped the boy on the shoulder. He turned around and he blinked. His eyebrows knotted, and out of sudden realisation of something Merida wasn't sure of, he blushed like a furnace.
"I need help," Merida announced brashly.
He blinked again, "F-For what?"
Heaving loudly, Merida straightened herself up and eyed the boy with serious eyes, "I need a physician right now," she stated solemnly, and the boy just stared at her.
"What?" he scanned her up and down, "You look fine…" his eyes widened, "Um, not saying that you have to have problems in the first place that is."
The blush flushed all across his face as if he said something naughty. Merida frowned in confusion and rolled her eyes at the boy's hesitance, "Where is the physician?"
He blinked for the a thousandth time this morning, and Merida wanted to pin his eyelids open. Muttering something under his breath, he tidied up the bench which was originally covered in dragon sketches. Merida decided to make no comment about those. He smoked out the fire in the forge and tidied up everything else before turning to Merida with a timid grin on his face.
"I'll take you there."
They had left the smithy and the boy had quietly introduced himself as 'Hamish Haddock' but he was nicknamed 'Hiccup' instead. Presumably for his small and timid demeanor. He had muttered something about Viking culture that Merida couldn't understand.
It was still quiet, with only a few early birds who strolled to and fro in a sleepy daze as they went about their morning routine. Hiccup managed to tread on a stray piece of faeces with his metal leg which, much to his dismay, sent Merida into a laughing fit. By the time they reached the physician's house, the village was once again bustling with life. Which meant Merida had to drag Hiccup there as fast as she could so she didn't have to cue.
"Whoa, person with an immobilised leg here!" Hiccup cried out as he limped along with Merida's quick strides.
Merida rolled her eyes, "For goodness sake Hiccup. Just do what I tell you to."
The mass of people who tried to stampede their way to the physician's were all intercepted by Merida. With a dramatic cry, she wedged open the door.
"What is this ruckus in the morning?!"
An elderly woman waddled towards the patients, her hands on her hips. She gave everyone the look of scrutiny which sent most of them cowering away with their tail between their legs. Merida stepped forward and tugged Hiccup along with her.
Unclenching her hand, Merida revealed Baby Tooth. It was wheezing and struggled to breath, sweat made its feathers cling to its skin. Merida felt guilt rush through as she realised she had held onto Baby Tooth too tightly. The woman raised her eyebrow and sighed.
"We do not treat beasts here. If you want a healer, go to that house over there," she croaked.
It was a house that was splattered with colours of a rainbow. It was taller than the other buildings, resembling a tower. Surrounded by a patch of forest, it looked isolated and surprisingly unwelcoming. Hiccup tugged on Merida's sleeve and shook his head.
"But Gothel lives there, " he squeaked, "Merida, this, this is a bad idea."
Merida simply stared at him, "And why's that?"
The woman puffed her chest out in annoyance. She pushed the two out of the doorway and slammed it in their face. The other patients all cowered away from them and basically shoved into the room like a fat ball. People simply clambering over and under each other. The woman was scolding them and screaming. A few passersby merely snickered at the display.
"Don't mind her, " Hiccup rubbed his face and groaned, soot from his hand stained on his cheeks, "That's Gretel, she's a bit aggressive."
Merida shook her head and smiled before walking off to the tower's direction. That made Hiccup pale and he quickly dashed up to Merida and pulled her away. With irritated eyes, Merida glared at Hiccup and opened her hand. Baby Tooth was now bright red which clashed with its beautiful green and blue feathers. Hiccup gaped and gulped.
"Fine, we're going to Gothel, but we're never going there ever again after this," Hiccup distressed, "Understand?"
With a grateful grin, Merida nodded. A voice chimed in her mind as she and Hiccup wandered away from the physician's place. A crowd of people were already out and about, loud and chattering. Mules were pulling carts of hay and goods from the gates of the village and cattle groaned as their owners dragged them out for morning work. They passed the well which was built at the heart of the village. A group of entertainers were preparing their instruments. Two of the entertainers were bickering like mad, drawing in a large crowd. A head of white caught Merida's attention and a stunning woman covered in green and blue glistening feathers.
I can trust you with Baby Tooth, right?!
"Oh look, it's Jack."
Merida whipped her head around and blinked, "Jack?"
Hiccup nodded absentmindedly, "Yeah, he's really popular around here. You know, his father owned a brothel. Heard his father died earlier this year, so he's the owner now," he shrugged casually, "Customers love him."
I'M JACK.
"Brothel owner?!" Merida halted, she spun around and stared with wide eyes at Jack who was charming the panties off the women and laughing with the children who were poking fun at his abnormally white hair.
He looked up.
Jack raised his eyebrow at Merida and a cheeky smirk graced his features. Heat rushed from Merida's gut and up to her face. There were a million butterflies fluttering in her stomach desperate to get out. But, there was no recognition evident in his clear eyes. He eventually turned his attention away from Merida and back to the eager girl who was holding an unusually shaped stick.
"Merida?"
Hiccup gazed up at her with an expression of concern. Merida smiled awkwardly, "W-What? It's nothing," she laughed uncomfortably before strolling off to the healer's.
They reached the borders of the village and came face to face with the shadows of the woods. It was strangely dark compared to the rest of the village and it didn't seem affected by the sunlight. Like a cat, Merida quietly wandered into the woods. Hiccup wasn't quite as quiet and caught his metal foot onto a protruding root and slammed face first onto the leafy woodland floor.
Merida sighed, "How do you survive being a blacksmith without killin' yourself?!"
From the ground, Hiccup groaned and pushed himself up. Brushing off the dirt, he ran his hand over his hair grimaced at the soot that came off. Merida rolled her eyes and dragged Hiccup through the woods by the sleeve, ignoring the cries and yelps that came from the boy. It was violent trip of ripping ferns and twigs that were in the way, bustling over and under the rocks and roots in the almost pitch black surrounding. Hiccup clung onto Merida the whole time.
After all that, they reached the house. It was literally covered in yellow and pink, the roof was a cone shape and a large window was beside an arched stone door. A black cloaked man stood by the door, puffing a miniature tuft of dry grass wrapped in a roll of presumably light brown paper and the ends were burnt. As the smoke whirled about, the black mare beside him was snorting as if complaining about the toxic fumes. What made Merida gape was the light grey skin that stood out from the yellow stone walls.
Abruptly, a woman stormed out. Her wild, black curled hair sticking up everywhere. Her large eyes were raging as she yelled at the black cloaked man who merely rolled his eyes at her. Merida and Hiccup stood from a distance as the couple quarreled. The woman swatted the man's hand and the thing he was smoking fell to the ground. She stomped on it and snarled at him like a fierce lioness. The man glared at her. He returned her snarl and revealed a row of sharp jagged teeth.
Baby Tooth whimpered in Merida's hand. Without a second thought, Merida marched up to the bickering couple. Hiccup squeaked and he tagged along after her reluctantly. As Merida and Hiccup decided to approach them, she realised that the man's eyes glinted golden. The people here have such strange appearances… Merida pondered to herself.
The woman which Merida assumed was Gothel, snapped her attention to the Merida and Hiccup. Like a flash of light, she quickly morphed her agitated expression to one of pleasure. She straightened her posture and smiled seductively. Hiccup winced and shrunk behind Merida.
"Hello, how may I help you?" she grinned. The man grunted and rolled his gold eyes. She shot him a death glare before immediately returning her attention back to Merida.
Merida unclenched her hand, revealing Baby Tooth who was curled up in giant mush of red, green and blue. The man widened his eyes.
"Where did you get that?" he questioned, a wealthy accent evident in his voice.
Uncertain whether to trust the man, Merida didn't answer and just stared at Gothel with desperate eyes. Gothel carefully picked up Baby Tooth and examined it. She frowned and hummed before she placed Baby Tooth in her hand and went to her house. As Gothel wrenched the door open, Merida followed and Hiccup awkwardly strolled in after them, carefully avoiding contact with the looming tall man behind him. Gothel placed Baby Tooth on a soft pile of white cloth on a table.
The room was just as colourful as the outside. Walls were painted all sorts of colours and patterns. The ceiling was an abundance of colour, with a patterns of a sun scattered across it. A purple queen sized bed was shoved at the side and a stove that was next to it. A gigantic painting of a city and lanterns floating in the air stood out as the red curtains were draw apart.
"Darling, get me my potion," Gothel drawled, waving her hand casually. When the man made no move to budge, she raised her voice, "Pitch…"
Pitch growled, "Ah honey, I thought you didn't need me anymore."
Nevertheless, he grumbled and went and did her bidding. Merida merely watched as Pitch rummaged through a giant shelf filled with vials and jars of stuff nobody would want to mention. Gothel clicked her fingers as if something came to mind.
"Pitch dear, forget the potion, I've got a better idea," she smirked as she sauntered off to a lone door. Merida and Hiccup glanced at each other and shrugged.
With an agitated tone, Pitch exclaimed, "Will you stop with the endearments?!"
Gothel simply cackled, swung the door open and disappearing into the room. They could hear mumbling from behind the door and before long, Gothel was dragging a huge strip of blonde hair from the room. The hair was so long that it reached from the inside the room and all the way to the other side towards the table where Baby Tooth was.
"Well, that's totally not suspicious," Hiccup grumbled.
Merida watched intensely as Gothel wrapped up Baby Tooth with the hair. The door of the room closed suddenly and a loud muffled sound of a song emanated from the room. A gush of golden light streamed through the hair like a rushing river. As the song died down, Gothel unwrapped Baby Tooth and handed it over to Merida who stared in awe at the now repaired wing on the creature's back. Hiccup inhaled sharply whilst Pitch rolled his eyes for the hundredth time today.
"Now that the darling is fixed…" Gothel said in a hurry, "You can go now."
She basically shoved the two of them out and before they knew it, Merida and Hiccup were standing dumbfounded outside as the door was slammed shut in their face. There was a quiet muffle of an argument that was stirred up by Pitch and Gothel again. However, to their surprise they could hear a third voice. A voice of a young girl who was speaking in distress.
Both Merida and Hiccup gaped at each other and nodded to each in silent agreement. They were not going back to this house ever again. With Baby Tooth all healed in Merida's grasp, they set off back to the village. Flustered and pleased, Merida was eager to return Baby Tooth to Jack tonight.
Hey, so... Jack and Merida sort of meet. Sort of :P. I thought it'd be way to soon for them to suddenly hit off. And, so... Pitch x Gothel, who would've known XD (currently in love with this couple as well - I should really stop and stick to one haha). Thank you guys for reviewing and reading the story - that makes me happy :D.
Replies:
animaniaaaa: Thank you for reviewing X3
Rania: Hey man! Of course I'd write this for you! *coughs* not because you always go on about Jarida *coughs* :P. But damn you, got me so into this ship now!
LightMyBulb: Yeah, thanks for telling me man. I didn't notice that I spelt his name wrong. So I fixed it (deleted the chapter and corrected the name). I appreciate it :)