Chapter 17

Jack Frost

"Merida, what is it?" I groaned. I was in my bedroom, lying on my bed, and sulking. I stared at the ice-blue walls. My cell was in my hand and Merida was calling me.

"Ah've thought a the perfect way tae cheer up Punzie!" she practically shouted.

I shifted my weight on my pillows. "What?"

"Just meet me outside a yer house in ten minutes," she barked. "And here's a hint-where comfortable clothes." Then she hung up.

I stared at my phone. What was she talking about? Oh, well. I guess I'd find out in a few minutes. I threw on a tan V-neck undershirt, blue hoodie, and brown pants. I walked, barefoot, out of my room, and into the bathroom, where I yanked a brush through my hair and checked my teeth. All clear. I stepped back into the hallway and was tackled by Tooth.

"Hey, Jack!" She grinned at me. "Open wide!" She pried my mouth open and looked inside. "Oh, your teeth are so beautiful!" she sighed. "If only all of my patients had teeth as wide as yours, then my job would be so much easier! Oh, well. Toodles!" She waved and sprinted down the hall and into her room, where she promptly shut the door.

I ran down the stairs, pulled on my sneakers, and walked out into the chilly autumn air. I leaned against the side of my house and stuck my hands in my hoodie pocket.

Soon Aster the asshole came up to me.

"Hey, mate." He was smacking on gum and twirling a boomerang in his hand. "Who you waitin' for?"

"None of your business," I replied, staring up at the bright blue sky.

He leaned his face close to mine, and I could see the whiskers on his face. His gray-blue hair fell into his eyes and he pushed it away. "Listen. I may be from the Outback, but even I know how to get a girl. You know Tooth? We're engaged."

I'm fairly certain my eyes popped right out of their sockets. "You two are WHAT?"

"We're en-gag-ed," he said the words slowly. "What's the matter? My Aussie accent too much for you?"

"No, it's just-" I shook my head. The honking of a car horn interrupted me. I looked up and saw Merida waving at me from the driver's seat of Hiccup's Toyota.

Hiccup was riding shotgun. He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, "Come on, Jack! Let's move it!"

I walked away from Aster, turning my back on him. I didn't turn around, even when I heard him say in a low voice, "Love is a beautiful thing. Don't give up on it, don't try to hide from it."

I yanked open the door to the backseat and got in, slamming it behind me. Buckling my seat belt, I said, "So, I assume that we're going to Rapunzel's next?"

"Wrong," Merida replied, her eyes glued to the road in front of her. "She's gonna meet us there."

"Where is there, exactly?" I questioned.

"Nowhere." Hiccup cracked up at his own lame joke.

"Can it, Hiccup." She stared forward.

"Aw, come on, Merida! That was a good one!" Hiccup protested.

"No, it wasn't, and ya know it."

When we arrived at "there", which turned out to be European Horses, the stable that Merida went to, I saw Rapunzel waiting underneath the large sign in front of the barn.

"Hi, Mer! Hi, Hiccup!" She saw me and her cheeks turned pink. "Hi, Jack."

"Hey, Punz." I tried to sound carefree, but my voice sounded weird.

"So, now that we're all here . . ." There was a mischievous glint in Merida's eye. "Ah've got some plans fer ye all."

"What kind of plans?" Rapunzel asked suspiciously.

"Tell us, Mer," Hiccup encouraged.

Merida just shook her head. "Nope. Ah'm gonna show you!" She led us inside the stables. "Today is the day we all ride horses!"

Rapunzel squealed. "Really? Really really?" Merida nodded and Punzie ran around, fawning over all of the horses.

"Ooh! Look, Jack, look!" she shouted, waving her hand excitedly. I went over, and she stroked the nose of an off-white horse. "Isn't he the sweetest thing?" she cooed. "His name's Maximus. You're a big, strong boy, aren't you? Aren't you?" she asked it in a baby voice. The horse whinnied in reply.

I laughed. Rapunzel was such an animal-lover. She was really sweet with them. I wandered over to the next stall, where a tall white horse with a blue saddle was housed. I glanced at the name plaque: Snowflake. I entered the stall and looked up at him.

"Uh, hey, buddy. Snowflake, right?" The horse glared at me. "Okay, so here's the deal: I get to ride you for one day, and I know you're not gonna like it, and I'm not gonna like it, and I'll give you some carrots. Got it?" Snowflake whinnied, and I took it for a yes. I fastened my helmet.

"Are ya all ready?" I heard Merida shout.

"Yeah!" we all yelled back. I grabbed Snowflake's reins and led him outside.

I squinted in the bright sunlight. There was Merida, atop her huge black horse Angus. I hefted myself up and tightened my grip on the reins. Rapunzel came out next, still cooing to Maximus. Hiccup followed after, riding a sleek black horse with piercing green eyes named Toothless. He seemed kind of tense in the saddle, and he gripped the reins with white knuckles.

"Move yer lazy arses!" Merida yelled. She began to move Angus at a quick pace. "We don't have all day!" Rapunzel rode Maximus after him and I quickly rode behind her. Snowflake snorted and shook his head. Merida and Angus began leaping over fence hurdles and Rapunzel and Maximus did the same. Me and Snowflake barely cleared the jump, one of his back hooves grazing the top of the pole gently. He snorted again as if to say I was a lousy rider. Well, I was, in truth. Snowflake was probably doing most of the work. But I wasn't the only one bad at it.

I heard Hiccup scream, and I whipped around in my seat, jerking Snowflake to turn around, too. He whinnied loudly, sounding like he was complaining. There was my best friend, lying face-flat in a puddle of mud, Toothless right on top of the hurdle, the top pole completely knocked off. I rode quickly towards them.

"Damn, Hiccup," I said when I hopped off of Snowflake. "When you screw up, you really screw up."

"Shut up," his muffled reply was. I rolled my eyes and grabbed one of his arms. As I pulled him out of the mud, Toothless whinnied back and head-butted Toothless's rear end. The other horse went flying into a bale of hay.

"That's my boy!" I laughed, rubbing Snowflake's muzzle. His response was head-butting me in the stomach. I shouted before getting a mouthful of hay. I sat up and spat the gunk out of my mouth.

I could hear Hiccup laughing, hard, as he said, "Yes, he's definitely your boy!"

I grumbled. I was never going to horse-back ride again. I heard loud voices and felt one of my arms be practically ripped out of its socket. "Hey! Ow! Not dead! Still alive! Ouch!"

I looked up to see Rapunzel sheepishly release my arm. "Sorry," she said. "I thought you might be hurt."

"Nope. Still in one piece." I grinned at her. "Thanks for . . . well, for caring about me." On impulse, I pulled her into a hug. I could practically feel her smile.

Suddenly, Merida's shriek sliced the air like a knife. "Hiccup! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" she screamed at him. She had grabbed his shoulders and was now shaking him like a rag doll.

"Sheesh, Mer, calm down. I'm all right." Hiccup was trying to wipe off the mud on his clothes.

"Haddock, go home an' take a shower." Her face was scrunched up. "You need a nice cleanin', lad." He rolled his eyes but smiled. Rapunzel and I shared a look. Those two bickered more than me and Aster did, but we could tell how much they cared for each other. I sighed a little. Now, if only Rapunzel and I could be like that . . .