Disclaimer: I don't own Hiccup or Merida, obviously. I'm not making any money off this. Both characters and the movies they come from belong to Dreamworks and Disney, respectively. If you really want to see something to blow you away, go watch the movies. Then think about these two interacting. Then you'll see what I mean.
Come Away with Me
"You've got to get her off the cliff," Sima gasped as soon as Hiccup made his way from the Viking longship just arrived at DunBroch to the cliffside by the loch. Under Sima's directions, they had waved aside the approaching Viking longship and hailed Hiccup to come to the beach. "She said she needed some air; I didn't realize she meant to climb all the way up. Oh, milord, please."
"I'm not a lord, Sima," Hiccup said, wincing. The Viking towered over Sima and most of the soldiers with them. But what the boy exceeded in height, the soldiers more than made up for in girth and arms. Hiccup was dressed in the queer leather armor he often favored whereas the soldiers around them were clad head to toe in chainmail hauberks, iron helmets, spears, swords and shields. That made the picture far more comical. These grown men with their big weapons and armor were either dancing on tenterhooks or trying (and failing) to climb up the Crone's Tooth, a small cliff that jutted over the loch.
"Please get her off the edge!" Sima said, tears filling her eyes. She just knew she would be blamed for this. Merida wasn't allowed to ride Angus for the week so Sima thought that a quick walk around the loch would be a safe alternative. After all, how much trouble could the princess get to walking with a dozen of her father's men looking after her? Merida disappeared soon after and the soldiers only realized she was on the Crone's Tooth after an hour of searching. Soldiers climbed the small cliff, trying to coax the young princess down. First, Merida shouted at them to leave her alone, then had threatened to dive into the water if they came any closer. After that, she seemed set on the idea of jumping and only Sima's tears forced her to stop.
Hiccup tilted his head. His grass-green eyes squinted in the light as he spotted the red curls that belonged to his friend high up on the cliff. There were soldiers shouting at her but she paid them no mind. Unexpectedly, Hiccup laughed.
"It's not funny," Sima said, fury and anguish in her voice in equal measures.
"I'm sorry, Sima," Hiccup said, chuckling. "But… can't you see how ridiculous that looks?" From high above, soldiers shouted as Merida slipped then regained her balance. Sima groaned. "Okay, okay," Hiccup said, "I promise I'll get her off the edge." The Viking boy in his strange leather armor then started climbing swiftly up. Sima followed as best she could though she hated heights. The boy was surprisingly nimble for one with a metal leg. It squeaked and groaned as Hiccup climbed up and soon the boy outpaced Sima and the soldiers who'd climbed ahead of him.
By the time Sima drew herself near the edge, Hiccup was already just a few feet away from the princess.
"Good morning," Merida said as politely as if she'd just greeted Hiccup at the breakfast table.
"Fancy meeting you here," Hiccup said wryly, stopping. This far up, the wind over the loch blew fiercely around them. Merida's dark blue gown, tartan belt and red curls lifted in the wind as she glanced back. Her cheeks were ruddy from the exercise and her eyes glittered in amusement.
"Feeling up for a morning swim?" Merida asked, nodding to the blue loch glittering below.
"It's a bit high, don't you think?" Hiccup said, stepping beside her and looking down.
The princess only turned to him and smiled. She edged closer to Hiccup, that wicked smile on her lips, and whispered, "We've jumped further." Sima would never have been able to hear but for the wind carrying the words through the air. Sima felt a bit light-headed, thinking, Had she gone mad? Jumped further?
Unwillingly, Hiccup smiled. "There were … extenuating circumstances," he allowed. Their faces were so close now, eyes trained only on each other. Sima was gesturing furiously for him to grab hold of the princess, but Hiccup's arms remained loosely at his side.
"Come away with me," the princess said, plea and command and enticement all rolled into one tone. Hiccup swallowed, eyes darkening. Abruptly, Sima felt like she was intruding on something very private.
"I'll jump with you," Hiccup said and Sima watched Merida smile in triumph. "If you jump from the ledge below this one." Merida frowned suspiciously as Hiccup backed away. Sima swallowed her own panic and glanced down. The ledge was perhaps ten feet lower than the actual cliff. It was still a high jump but perhaps…
"Liar," Merida accused, brow furrowed. "You're just trying to get me down like all the rest."
Hiccup smiled at her, "Am I?" He began unbuckling his strange armor and tossing it to a nearby soldier. With every step Hiccup took toward the ledge below, Hiccup stripped off his armor.
Sima watched the princess's eyes widen at Hiccup's actions. "What are you doing?" Merida hissed. A fierce blush rose in the princess's cheeks, but she didn't look away.
"I don't know about you," Hiccup said. "But drying leather armor is a pain. If I'm gonna swim in the loch with you, I'd prefer to do it in something that'll dry faster."
Sima would have shouted at him to stop. She could already hear the queen's reprimanding stare and censure. But the princess did none of those things. Merida only chuckled reluctantly and began to follow him. Sima wished feverishly they would stop looking so intently in each other's eyes. Sima couldn't understand why but that made the whole scene ten times more embarrassing. But perhaps that was the key, Sima thought. Hiccup seldom looked away from Merida's eyes and Hiccup was the only one who could sway the princess's wild moods.
Finally, Hiccup was dressed only in his dark green tunic and brown trousers. The sun shone hotly behind him and outlined his body against the thin fabric of the tunic. Sima realized that he was as fit as any sailor or rider Sima had ever seen. It reminded Sima that he wasn't a boy, not really. Hiccup was a man grown for all his gentle demeanor.
"It was a joke," Merida said suddenly, pausing. Her voice had less of the fierce wildness in it and more of the human, the girl, no, the woman. It gave Sima hope that Hiccup had talked her down out of her mad idea. "I really did just want some air. But everyone kept shouting at me not to jump." The princess shook her head and her curls bounced around her. The light glittering from the lake and the cloudy sky turned the princess's hair into a living flame. "Everyone's always telling me to do this or that or not do this or don't do that." The princess straightened, chin lifting and her eyes seemed like chips of a hard blue sky. "I won't be trapped or caged—not for anyone!"
"I'd pity the fool who tried," Hiccup said sincerely. His eyes flicked behind her, "Merida!"
Merida darted forward. The soldier stealthily making his way to the princess reached out and just barely brushed Merida's skirt as she slipped away, swift as the wind. Then the two were off. Together, the princess and Viking climbed down to the second ledge amidst the shouts and orders of nearby soldiers. Sima didn't even bother trying. Once the princess was in her moods, she was difficult to stop. Once both of them were in their moods, they were unstoppable. The two paused at the edge, looking down. Sima wasn't sure who reached first. But when Hiccup and Merida jumped, their hands were joined. Hiccup gave a loud yell as he jumped but Merida's laughter rang true and clear. They hit the surface with a splash. Sima watched with baited breath. A few minutes later, both broke the surface. Merida waved up at Sima before turning to splash Hiccup who spluttered.
Author's Note: Sima is a minor character of my own creation. In my fic, she's the equivalent of a handmaiden/lady-in-waiting.
Let me know what you think! I welcome reviews and constructive criticism.
If you're interested in more, I have a tumblr account that I'll probably be posting more drabbles/head canons first. My username is nessalk.