AN: Hello, all! Decided to post a little earlier than usual because I've got some free time on my hands and I may, or may not, get a second chapter out this week. Depends on how much motivation I have. Review to give me some! I hope you enjoy the next chapter!
NOTES: Third time's the Charm...
REVIEWERS!:
The Fourteenth Noah: Thank you so much! I'm really happy to hear that! I hope you continue to enjoy the story! :)
BrawlerGamer: Good to "see" you again! And, yes, I do see what you did there *waggles eyebrows*. When I was just starting to come up with a general timeline for this series, I actually did consider having Merida's story take place much later so that she would be of actual Marrying Age, but I scrapped the idea pretty early because it just didn't fit to have their main stories happening at the end of their time at Hogwarts, so Rapunzel and Merida were both shifted in ages, and Jack's story is just kind of all over the place... Boggarts and Patronuses will definitely play a pretty huge part within the coming years, I'm super excited for what I have for them! A Howler would be hilarious, but who will I give it to? *looks around deviously*. The Triwizard tournament is an interesting topic because, as I mentioned before, I kinda have two different plot lines for one story, and in one plot line there's the Triwizard tournament, in the other plot line we see the Triwizard Tournament before it was the Triwizard tournament, so it's like the tradition that the tournament came from/where it got it's roots from (in this universe at least)... I can't decide what I would rather do, but the tournament would definitely a more prominent role in the story if I did the actual tournament... I really hope that made some amount of sense...
Story Critic Kat: I'm really touched that you think so highly of my story! In all actuality, it's not that I don't have ideas on what to write, I have too many! I've managed to narrow it down to just two plot lines, but I can't decide which one I like better. (not to mention Race to the Edge still has one more season left, and I don't know whether or not I'm going to include it in this series). I guess you could say this story writes itself a little too easily. And as far as Hiccup goes, I have been pushing him aside on purpose because reasons. Each year I try to reveal a little bit about him, just so no one forgets about him, but I won't be revealing too much until their fourth year... Also, I have gotten a few comments on how some people don't like the way I've been portraying him... But I don't care. I have my reasons for portraying him the way I do. All will be explained in due time :)
HanyouExorcistAlchemist48: Don't worry, this chapter explains the situation a bit better! I hope you like the story! :)
Chapter 2: Return to The Purple Drape
Merida flew out of the fireplace, nearly tripping over the step down from the mantle. She managed to catch herself and straighten out, dusting off her robes while shaking her wild hair out of her face. A smile lit up her face partly out of relief from escaping her mother for the day, and partly because all of her friends were already there, waiting for her.
"Merida!" Rapunzel cried, throwing herself at Merida. The other girl hugged Merida so tight that her bones creaked, but Merida was too happy to complain.
"It's good to see you, too, Punzie." Merida laughed, hugging the other girl back.
"Group hug!" Jack shouted, wrapping himself around both of them and dragging a poor, unsuspecting Hiccup along with him.
"Jack! You're crushing my rib-cage!" Hiccup wheezed, trying to escape Jack's arm, but his feet had been lifted from the floor. Merida laughed and pulled away to release Hiccup from the death hug. The boy fell forward, placing his hands on his knees as he sucked air back into his lungs, Jack patting the smaller boy's back with a sheepish grin on his face.
"Oh, Merida, you aren't really getting betrothed, are you?" Rapunzel fussed, looking distraught over the whole situation.
"Not in a million years! I don't care what mom says! I won't go through with it." Merida declared, clenching her fists angrily.
"And here I thought your mom was okay when we met her. Your parents must be crazy to be forcing you into marriage when you're only thirteen!" Jack said, looking a little worried and unsure of what to do. Merida didn't blame him. He and Hiccup didn't come from royalty like her and Punzie. The whole idea of betrothal and arranged marriage must be so strange to them. Heck, Merida had grown up knowing it and it was still strange to her!
"It's not exactly marriage." Merida sighed, knowing she should explain things a bit better. Her letter had been a little... Hasty. "The suitors will compete for my hand during the Games and whoever wins will be my betrothed. Dad says he'll negotiate terms that will allow me to finish school at Hogwarts and after I graduate we'll have the wedding, but I don't want to be betrothed! I don't want my whole life to be planned out for me! I want to go on adventures and see the world with you three once I graduate! Like we planned! If I'm betrothed it will mean the end of my freedom. No more archery, no more riding off whenever I get the chance. Mom'll double my princess lessons and start telling me things about being a proper wife and Queen, but -but I'm not ready!" Merida ranted, knowing her friends would listen to her.
"Is there really no other way to keep the peace?" Rapunzel inquired, obviously wishing she could do something to help.
"It's tradition, mom says," Merida said scornfully. "It's just marriage, not the end of the world!" Merida repeated, feeling the infuriating stinging at the back of her eyes again.
She was not afraid. She was not going to cry.
"Let's talk about something else." Merida muttered, taking a deep breath and huffing it out. Looking up, she smiled as best she could at her worried-looking friends. "Well, you've gotten taller, Punzie." Merida noted now that she could see the other girl standing next to Jack. Rapunzel was half a head taller than Jack, making her the tallest out of the four of them.
"Y-Yeah, remember that dress Mother bought me for my birthday at the beginning of the Summer? The blue one with the ruffled waist-band? It doesn't fit anymore." Rapunzel blushed a rosy pink and ducked her head shyly.
"Well, at least you got to wear it for the Festival of Lights!" Merida chuckled, patting her friend's shoulder. She actually had to reach up a little bit to do it.
It wasn't that Merida hadn't grown over the Summer, she'd actually grown a whole three inches and stood at the same height as Jack now, but Rapunzel had grown at least six! Not to mention the other girl was so naturally pretty with her fair skin, light-green eyes, and golden hair. Overall, Rapunzel was a very pretty girl. There wasn't a doubt in Merida's mind that Rapunzel would grow up to be an absolutely beautiful Lady. She was already the picture perfect princess: Smart, kind, polite, pretty... She was everything Merida's mother could possibly want and more. Merida couldn't help the little pang of envy that hit her chest.
"But I'm not the only one who's growing!" Rapunzel's blush slowly disappeared as excitement lit up her eyes. "Jack's going to the Temple of the Seasons this Winter!"
"Really? What for?" Merida turned to Jack, feeling her own excitement growing.
"What do you think I'm going for?" Jack returned her question with a question, waggling his eyebrows as if they already knew and were in on something big and exciting.
"Uh..." Merida looked pleadingly at Rapunzel, but she only shrugged, biting her lip uncertainly.
"Oh, come on!" Jack cried, pouting at them. "You can't say you don't notice anything different about me!" He tried again, leaning forward and nodding his head to the side.
"Eh, you got water in your ear or something?..." Merida asked, unsure of what he was trying to do.
Hearing that, Jack lost balance and fell forward onto the floor. He grumbled as he rubbed his head, but Hiccup was laughing hysterically behind him. The girl's looked at each other, utterly confused, and Jack pushed back to sit cross-legged on the floor, crossing his arms and frowning.
"I can't believe you two! Hiccup noticed as soon as he saw me!" Jack told them, trying to look mature and disappointed, but the way he pushed his bottom lip up just made him look like an angry four-year-old.
A snort slipped from Merida, but she quickly covered her mouth to hide it as Rapunzel folded her lips under her teeth to keep from laughing. It didn't help that Hiccup was still laughing so hard that he had fallen to the floor and had tears in the corners of his eyes.
"And what are you laughing at?!" Jack shouted, turning on the other boy. Hiccup tried really hard to stop laughing, but the chuckles escaped anyways. Jack grinned. "I'll give you something to laugh at!" Jack launched himself at Hiccup and the two boys started to roll across the floor of Jack's living room, wrestling and laughing.
"Jack! Mom said that if you said it was okay for me to come then I could go with you guys and -..." Jack's little sister, Emma, came bouncing excitedly into the open space of their living room only to pause and look at her brother and his friend piled on top of each other, Jack ruffling Hiccup's hair in his attempt to tickle the smaller boys neck while Hiccup hooked his finger in Jack's cheek and pulled his face to one side.
The boys froze and looked up at Emma, who simply stared back at them with a blank look on her face. Then she sighed heavily and turned towards the stairs. "MAMA! Jack and Cat are wrestling inside again -Hmph!"
Emma was suddenly cut off as Jack threw his hand over her mouth, looking nervously at the stairs. After a moment he sighed and released his sister.
"Okay, okay! If you promise not to tell mom, I'll let you come with us!" Jack told her, lowering his voice a bit.
"And?" Emma asked, smirking and crossing her arms.
Jack glared at her, pursing his lips. "...And we'll get you Ice Cream!"
"And?" Emma said again, drawing it out this time as her sly look got bigger. Jack huffed angrily.
"Fine." He caved. "And you can have my desserts for a month. Happy?"
"Yep!" Emma chirped cheerily as she skipped off down the hall, probably to get her cloak so they could leave.
"She's as devious as my little brothers!" Merida gaped at where the younger girl disappeared around the corner, and then looked at Rapunzel with both shock and amusement.
"Like brother, like sister." Hiccup remarked, still sitting on the floor.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Jack rolled his eyes, helping Hiccup to stand up, but then pulling him straight into a headlock for a noogie. "But at least I can get away with this!"
"Jack!" Hiccup laughed, pulling at the other boy's arm.
"Alright, you two, that's enough! If you get in trouble we won't be able to go get our books for school!" Rapunzel reminded them, and Jack released Hiccup, but they were both still grinning and nudging each other playfully.
"Anyways, you never finished telling us why you're going to the Temple of the Seasons." Merida pointed out, and Jack beamed.
"Isn't it obvious? My powers have finished maturing, and it's time for me to start my training as a Winter Sprite. My Coming of Age ceremony is this Winter." Jack told them, shaking his head full of completely snow-white hair at them. Rapunzel gasped happily, and Merida grinned.
"Congratulations, Jack!" Rapunzel squealed, giving him another tight hug.
Merida went for something a little simpler and punched him in the shoulder. "Good for you, Frosty! The hair looks natural on you. You can't really blame us for not noticing."
"That's what I keep telling him, but he doesn't listen." Hiccup crossed his arms and shook his head.
Merida chuckled, but then she got a good glimpse of Hiccup and her eyes shot wide open.
"What happened to your face?!" She exclaimed, gaping at the black eye and split lip that decorated Hiccup's face.
"Oh! Uh, well, it -it wasn't really anything major. Just a mild calibration issue." Hiccup told her, awkwardly rubbing his upper arm and then motioning with his hands as he spoke. "It's getting better though! Once I figure out how to stabilize the spring-coil it'll be perfect!"
"What on earth are you talking about?" Merida squinted at him like he had grown a second head. What in the world did this kid do during his spare time?
"Gah, It's one of his inventions." Jack groaned, frowning as Hiccup shifted awkwardly in his spot.
"Inventions? What are you making?" Rapunzel asked curiously, smiling as Hiccup avoided eye contact and fidgeted with his hands.
"Just... Stuff. You know, things to help my village with everyday life." Hiccup shrugged.
Merida noticed that he was he only one who hadn't grown very much. Maybe an inch? If that. And he was still the skinniest person she'd ever met. He'd always been scrawny and awkward, never really comfortable in his own skin from what she could tell, and Merida hoped that he was just a late bloomer.
"What do these inventions do? I mean if Jack doesn't like them...?" Rapunzel questioned cautiously, uncertain of how the boys would react.
"The inventions are fine! It's the fact that when he tests them he ends up with more bruises and cuts than when Daren Fouls was picking on him!" Jack exclaimed, and Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Don't you roll your eyes at me, mister! You're still grounded!"
"Seriously?" Hiccup gave Jack the driest look Merida had ever seen, and she couldn't help the snicker that escaped, her eye twitched weirdly. Jack had always been a little... Overprotective.
"Yes!" Jack said as firmly as he possibly could. "I swear, one of these days you're gonna lose a limb! Or go jumping off cliffs thinking you can make yourself a pair of wings, or something!"
Merida would've laughed, but her head throbbed suddenly and her vision flashed with transparent images: Red material of some sort, huge and powerful bat wings from what Merida could make out. Her hearing was muffled, but she heard some kind of whistling sound, like something was shrieking but the sound was too far away... Merida shook her head and the images cleared as she blinked several times. Probably just the stress getting to her.
"Oh, Jack, come on! That's just ridiculous -!" Hiccup was starting to argue.
"I'm ready!" Emma called skipping out with her cloak on her shoulders and a small bag at her hip. She grinned widely, and Rapunzel jumped in.
"It's about time we got started, too, don't you think? Come on! It's our first time going shopping for school supplies alone! I can't wait!" Rapunzel squeaked with excitement and lead the way down the stairs.
They entered the bottom half of Jack's house, which had been turned into a boutique called The Purple Drape for Mrs. Frost's business. It hadn't changed much since the last time Merida had been there, and it was nice to see that there were people waiting for fittings and browsing the racks of clothing.
They found Jack's mother behind the main counter, just finishing up with a costumer, and after letting her know that they were going and Emma was with them, the five set off into Diagon Alley in search of their school books for that year.
The busy streets and crowded markets were a fantastic distraction from everything that Merida had to deal with back home. Being with her friends actually made her wonder if that year wouldn't be so bad. The Games were going to be held at Hogwarts, and Merida wasn't sure how she felt about that yet, but at least her friends would be there to support her no matter what happened, right?
The way Merida saw it was that this year was either going to end really well, or really, really horribly.
The image of five children laughing and having fun as they explored the wonders of Diagon Alley together glowed in the bubbling potion that filled the cauldron. A spying potion that allowed the maker to see anyone of their choosing. The bright scene displayed in the cauldron spread light into the dark cavern, making the shadows shy away and the Nightmares whinny in pain and outrage as they fell away from the light.
Only two of the cavern's occupants stood about the cauldron, watching the moving images. One scowled angrily, glaring at the five children with utter hate. The other was calm, smiling, even.
"Let me finish them." The scowling woman said, looking at her hands and then clenching them into fists as she grinned maliciously. "They'll be an easy target. Just the four of them with only that little brat to accompany them? And no Guardians within miles of them! It's perfect. Just a few moments and we could be rid of them all! Your Nightmares will be free to run rampant while the Guardians are scrambling to find out what happened."
"No." Pitch Black replied firmly, his hands folded behind his back as he slowly, calmly circled the cauldron. "The Guardians will know. As much as they are fools they are aware that these four have caused us quite a lot of trouble. They'll be watching, making sure these children are safe." Pitch waved his hand over the cauldron and the image sped past the four, zooming in on a smaller figure across the street.
One of Toothiana's Fairies watched them, staying hidden behind clothing racks and store signs so as not to draw attention to itself. Again Pitch swiped his hand across the top, and it revealed a golden butterfly farther down the street that left a tiny dusting of sparkling Dreamsand wherever it landed.
Gothel's frown deepened, and then she growled. "All Summer they were alone! Perfectly vulnerable! We could have picked them off one by one and been done with this, but you continuously refuse to take action!"
"Because rash actions could bring about our destruction!" Pitch snapped. Gothel's mouth snapped shut, and Pitch regained his composure. "You forget that my army is not fully prepared. I am still gathering my followers. The Guardians will not seek us out yet, so long as we tread carefully. These four are of little concern in their current state, but it is obvious that North has taken an interest in them."
"You don't think the Prophecy...? Them?!" Gothel's asked incredulously, but her eyes were wide and the blood drained from her face.
"It is hard to say." Pitch shrugged, seemingly amused by the idea. "They are so young."
"How can you be so calm about this?! If they are the ones of the Prophecy then we must act now!" Gothel insisted.
"Patience, Gothel." Pitch told her firmly, silencing her once again. "The girl won't take the betrothal so easily. She will deny her hand to the suitors and the lords will be enraged. If we watch carefully, we may be able to rid ourselves of these four without ever having to get our hands dirty."
"You have a plan then?" Gothel demanded.
"But of course!" Pitch said reassuringly. The he smiled wickedly. "The little pests are walking right into my trap."