Chapter Forty-Three

Ignicolist

Sparks and ashes seeped through the woods, a ghostly vision of red and black, like walking through a nightmare. Whenever Jack looked up to the sky, he could see the dense smoke spiralling up into the blackness. Toothless escorted Jack all the way to the clearing. The dragon had snuck his head under Jack's arm, and this way he supported the boy's weakened body as they slowly crossed their tortuous path.

"He'll hate you for it, you know." Jack murmured to the dragon's ears, but Toothless only growled back in return. "What, you don't care?"

Toothless growled again. He gave out a few sniffs in the air, as if nothing mattered to the dragon other than bringing Jack back up — which Jack supposed it did. "I love you too, you fool."

When they finally reached the edge of the clearing, he could finally assess the toll that night would take on the Black Army: Some tents had been completely burnt, their stakes and rags completely chirmed by the fire. Everyone he walked past could barely give the boy a caring look, either too tired, too shocked or too empty to express any reaction or emotion. Near the trees on the other end of the glade, several emaciated bodies lay still — some still gladly breathing, some being attended by wizards and elves.

As he neared the fallen bodies, he distinguished a girl running up his way — his heart gave a stronger, warmer thud as Merida ran towards him, latching him with her arms outstretched, a mane of red hair taking up most of his vision. She spoke so many words so quickly, her accent even more affected by her distress that Jack barely caught her words.

"I'm fine," He muttered, rubbing soothing circles on her back.

"We were about to send a search party after yer!" She let him go, afflicted "Where's Heccup?"

Jack pretended not to hear. "Where's Azel?"

"Takin' care of the injured." She pointed to the other girl, the pixie cut of brunette hair distinguishable amongst the lined up bodies on the ground. It was a horrific sight that caused churns in Jack's stomach.

"...how many-?"

"Nobody's dead," Merida cut his words. "They've got injured pretty badly, tho', too many of 'dem got stuck in the fire, but thank the gods they're 'oll still breathin'."

"Where's Dean and Seamus?" Jack asked, and then he saw Merida's hopeful glint fail into concern. "oh, no..."

"Seamus got a nasty blow," she puffed, putting her hands on her waist. "Dean is takin' care of him. Granger is furious, Ah' don't think she'll want ter talk ter anyone."

"Where's Dean?" Merida pointed to one of the few tents still standing against a sea of scorched stalls. "You stay here, Toothless." Jack whispered to the dragon, patting the top of the scaly head as Toothless cooed back at him lovingly.

Burnt sticks cracked under his feet as he walked towards the tent Merida had pointed to. He wasn't sure if Dean would want to see him, but he felt it'd be worse to disappear now. What if Dean assumed he had taken part with the Order of the Seven? He needed to prove he had no ties with the other Obscurials — at least none other than their blood tied curse.

When he reached the tent, Seamus lay unconscious in a bed, unclothed if not by the light sheets thrown over his torso. A nasty burn spread from the side of his neck all the way to his left arm, and a smell of herbs and burnt meat took his nostrils — a familiar, however distant memory flashed in his mind, and he stood there, planted like a tree until he heard Dean's voice speaking calmly from the side of the bed:

"You can save your sorries, they'll do him no good."

Jack snapped back to where he was. There sat Dean, looking tired and defeated on an improvised chair he had assembled next to Seamus's bed. From Dean's statement alone, Jack began to reconsider if coming here had been a good idea.

"How is he doing?"

"He's alive."

"How did this…"

"Look, this ain't really the best time for you to show up all butt hurt here when it was your people who did this." Dean stared at Jack with such intensity, but there was some vulnerability there that Jack had not quite seen before. "I've had your back because of him, and look where it brought him."

Jack stared at the ground, breathing deeply as he figured out what to say next.

"I need to know what they wanted with all this." He decided to cut to the chase. "I know little about the Order, but they don't attack without a purpose. They wanted something, and I need to know what it is."

Dean eyed him, too tired to fight, too tired to comply. "The Goblins' treasure has been raided."

Jack stared at him. "What has been taken?"

"We don't know yet." Dean's baggy red eyes gave out how tired he was. "Granger's listing all items in there. They've burned it all."

"I bet the Goblins will start rioting any minute now." Jack muttered, which had Dean slowly nod in accordance.

"They've been complaining non-stop. One does not mess with Goblins' treasure."

"I thought Granger would be smarter than that…"

"Oh, she is. She's handling the listing herself for a reason — the Wizengamot's been pressuring her into taking hold of that loot since we stepped foot here, but the Goblins don't trust anyone but her to get anywhere near their treasure. She's the best option."

"It won't prevent them from rioting," Jack commented, to which Dean nodded tiredly.

"No, but it'll buy her some time at least… and maybe convince the Wizengamot to leave them alone for a change…"

Sensing it was less anger, and more exhaustion that drove Dean's hostility, Jack tested his waters stepping further into the tent. "How did he end up this way?"

"Being an idiot, that's how he did it." Dean all but spat the words venomously. "Bloody things are shooting fire from the sky, and he thinks it's a good idea to stand in front of a Centaur." Dean wiped his face furiously, either it was a tear or sand, Jack couldn't tell as he found himself an empty chair next to the other Wizard. "He saved the Centaur alright, got a shield charm to protect the damn beast. The blast hit him instead."

Jack's mind rummaged for the right thing to say. "Sounds very brave."

"Or very stupid." Dean retorted. "Always putting himself at risk, he is. It was the same back at Hogwarts, with the Carrows, or with explosives... Always blowing things up. Never gave me one minute of peace, I always thought he was gonna end up exploding himself 'on accident', as he always says," He mimicked Seamus's accent as he said the final bit, which had Jack chuckling.

"He reminds me of Hiccup." Jack said before he could stop himself. "I can never rest at ease knowing he's out there, training dragons, looking for beasts, throwing himself in harm's way… He thinks that's brave… he has no idea what he does to me, how it feels like to think I could lose him any moment…"

He realised then that Dean was focused on him in a way he had never done before. Then he realised they had finally found some common ground.

"The last time we were together, he wanted to go to war… nobody had asked him to do anything, he could have just gone home and hide like the others… Instead, he thinks it's his job to protect everyone else… And I was stupid enough to try holding him back, that was my mistake…" Jack rolled his eyes, his fingers instinctively reaching for the moon charm on his neck. "You can't hold fire with your own hands. You can't dream of putting out their fire… And he's got more than fire, he's got this… inferno… It's maddening… And it's maddening cause it could get them killed one day… but this fire is what defines them, so you can't put it out because that's also what you love most about them, isn't it? They're fighters, they have no idea what it means to lose… They don't know what it's like to lose them…"

A knot had formed in his throat, and he found himself unable to say another word… he had said it all just then to Dean, and he began to feel like a loser for crying out his feelings like that to a man who barely tolerated him…

"You do love him, don't you?" Dean asked, and for once, Jack felt like he held no distrust in his voice towards him. Jack's fingers were still fidgeting with the moon necklace when he agreed, not trusting his voice yet, nodding instead. "Then don't be stupid for a second time."

Readjusting into his chair, Dean leaned towards Seamus's bed as comfortably as he could.

"I trust you're more awake than me." He all but grunted.

Jack understood it immediately. "I'll keep guard, you can get yourself some sleep." It wasn't long until Dean began snoring lightly, but Jack found the sound rather soothing. His fingers never left his moon charm… He took in the image of Dean bending over Seamus's bed, even unconsciously seeking for that warmth only his lover could bring him, and he wondered if he could ever mimic such a moment next to Hiccup… Outside, the sound of crackling fire chirped away through the night.

Azel thoroughly examined a nasty wound from one of the elves, enchanting all the healing incantations she knew. As the elf whimpered silently under her care, she stroked the elf's bony back. She was such a small creature, with huge bat ears and even bigger eyes which reminded her of muggle tennis balls.

"Winky is in pain…" Weeped the elf in such a thin, screechy voice, as Azel cleaned the nasty cut in the elf's arm, which still bled profusely.

"Shh, I know…" She had the most comforting, the softest velvet voice to calm even the most agonising demon. "I know, but it'll heal soon."

However, Winky only sniffed further. "No, Miss, you does not understand… Winky has no master… no purpose… Winky prefers this pain."

Azel's cleaning stopped for a while as her heart sank for the pitiful creature. She resumed her care on the elf's arm silently. It was then that Winky's ears shot up, as if surprised, and the elf crooked her head towards the horizon. "Is it a ghost Winky sees? Winky knows the boy… he is a good wizard… he treats Winky kindly…"

Azel stopped her cleaning again, and saw Hiccup marching from the line of trees. It was still black night, but the light from the torches was enough to distinguish his face. As Hiccup neared Azel, he took in the line of injured bodies surrounding them. His tired face acquired a resolute expression.

"How can I help?" He breathed out. Hiccup and Azel found themselves exchanging a look, and there was an unspoken understanding between them… She looked around for someone to assign him, and he strangely thought that, even though she had traded her long golden locks for that spiky brown hair, and even covered in dirt and soot and ashes, she had never looked more beautiful than now, tired and sweaty, working to her bones into helping others.

"Him," She gestured with her head to a grumpy looking goblin just a few steps away. "You can start with him."

Hiccup nodded, and kneeled next to the goblin. The creature had a disagreeable face, serious and mistrusting. Very dark eyes matching very dark hair that began to thin. A line of blood trailed down from the goblin's temper. Hiccup reached for a small pocket in his robes, from which he retrieved a tiny dittany vial.

"What happened to you?" He asked the Goblin, hoping — and most certainly failing — to sound as kind as Azel did. However, the Goblin merely shot him a look of disgust before replying with a grunt.

"Y'all wizards… come crawling from whatever hole y'all been hiding… take our stuff… try to force us into submission…"

Hiccup had started applying the essence of dittany, which began to work its painful, although effective magic in the goblin's wound. The boy took his words carefully. He'd had enough anger to deal with for an evening, if not for a lifetime.

"What makes you say that?" He let his voice rasp as he eyed the wound.

"Your Minister is now inspecting items which have belonged to us goblins from the very beginning… And now they're selling you, as our… headboy, right? To stand for us against despotism… You may be the Dragon Rider we speak of… but you're not fighting this war for me, are you, boy?"

Hiccup took a good look at the goblin, an empty feeling of dread washed over him. "Is there anywhere else you're hurt?"

The goblin never replied, choosing instead to hold his deadly stare into Hiccup's soul. Feeling beyond uncomfortable and exposed, Hiccup gestured for him to leave. As the goblin wobbled his way out back to the tents, the boy watched, puzzled.

"That was intense." Azel spoke from her spot, where she finished patching the elf's arm. Hiccup's eyes, however, remained on the tiny, fragile elf for a bit longer.

"Hey, I know you." He stated, and the elf raised her ears auspiciously. "Winky, isn't it?"

The elf's eyes glowed in overwhelming emotion. "You is too kind, Mister Haddock… Winky remembers your generosity for poor Winky…" She sang in her thin voice.

"How've you been doing?" He took her small hands in his and held them gently.

"Winky is just fine, Sir… Mister Haddock must not be bothered by mean Glitork, no sir… he is a mean goblin, he is ungrateful… very very ungrateful, indeed…" The elf had her hands fidgeting endlessly on the thin rags she wore, twisting and snapping the fabric. "But Winky hears the same from every goblin, they are all very ungrateful… they want mutiny… Winky hears very mean things from everyone…"

"I'll leave this one to you," Azel apparently had had enough from the elf, and even though Hiccup could barely judge the girl, he found himself paying attention to every word Winky said.

"What have you heard, Winky?"

The elf seemed more afflicted, suddenly unsure if she should proceed. "Winky fears for her safety, sir… Elves like Winky… we do not know much kindness from your kind, sir… My dear Master Barty, oh sir, he was the most kindest… he was in the Wizengamot, you must know his good name… but Winky distrusts this new Wizengamot. My poor Master is to find shame in this race… Bad wizards… want nothing more than control, sir… Wizards want the gold and the silver, and goblins own the gold and the silver… We elves do not possess any gold nor silver, we elves clean the goods… but it's all stolen now… it is why Glitork is so very bitter… Winky remembers Miss Granger, very kind, she is indeed… but she is alone… what is a good leader when the sheep are rotten, still? Oh, sir, Winky is scared, sir… Winky does not know who to trust…"

"It's okay, Winky," Hiccup patted the creature's back. He was sleep deprived, with a throbbing headache waiting to burst at any minute, still he listened to every word of that high pitched elf's voice.

It was way beyond Winky in Hiccup's line of vision, although in the nightly shadows, laying next to one of the few remaining tents in the clearing, that Hiccup found the watchful form of Toothless, his wings retracted to his sides as the dragon remained, alert and awake, as if guarding whoever was inside the makeshift home. He knew immediately where Jack was, and, when Toothless green eyes met his, the dragon turned his head away — and Hiccup also figured that it was better not to try his luck with the dragon just yet.

"Should I be concerned that Toothless is chaperoning Jack instead of you?" Azel's sweet but inquisitive voice did not improve Hiccup's nerves.

"Quite possibly." Hiccup mumbled.

"You seem like you're losing custody of your kids in divorce… Oh, please, Kreature, it's barely a scratch, it's not even bleeding anymore." She noted as she inspected another smaller wound in another whimpering elf. "You may go now." The elf's pathetic crying ceased immediately, and he sent the girl a scornful look.

As the elf grunted in his departure, dragging his disproportionately big feet, Azel leaned towards Hiccup's side. "He's always complaining about something, thinks he'll get more treats if we think he's suffering more than the other elves."

To that, Winky's bat-like ears raised higher. "Kreature always been a bad elf…" She gave an ugly look to her colleague. "He complains but he does not work… He's half the elf my friend Dobby was…"

Hiccup finished patching up the elf, letting her go as gracelessly as his sleep-deprived and pitiful body allowed him to. Azel eyed her friend with a regained sympathy, watching as Hiccup's shoulders slumped as he took yet another creature to care for. "You've spoken to Jack, haven't you?"

The boy shrugged. "I thought you'd want that."

"I want you to stop being an ass to him... Doesn't mean I want to see you in pain-"

"I'm not in pain." He retorted, but her knowing smirk never faded.

"You don't fool me, Hiccup Haddock." She rolled up several stripes of bandages, magically enchanting them along a mix of herbs. He watched her magic, desperately searching for the words to fill the endless void in his chest…

"I thought it'd be easier… confronting him… but it'd be easier if he hadn't hurt me so much… I think what I hate the most is the fact that seeing him still hurts so much. I thought I had put it behind me… I hate him… yet when I had the chance to hurt him, I couldn't… I hate him even more for this."

"No, you don't."

"Don't word it out for me— don't tell me how I feel—"

"—I don't have to. You can't hurt so much for something you hate… and even if you do, true hatred is born from love."

"I don't love him." He snapped.

"Then say it." The sharp tone had returned to her, all sweetness forgotten and converged into pure assertiveness. Azel held such a power Hiccup had never noticed before… "Tell me you hate him, like you believe it. Mean it, go on."

"Heaven's sake… I mean it, I hate him."

"I don't buy it." The girl had a knowing smirk that Hiccup wanted to brush off her face; it was impossible to stand up to Azel. Around them, even the Goblins perched up to listen to their conversation. "Then why didn't you kill him? What held you back?"

"I don't know… I…" Hiccup realised he'd been cleaning the wrong wound on the goblin he was attending, which was currently writhing away from his grasp, muttering annoyed to himself.

"...these bloody wizards…"

"Stop fighting yourself, Hiccup Haddock, that's being beyond stupid. You keep taking straight out simple feelings and painting them like they're something else when they're not." He turned his back on the girl, avoiding her unendurable gaze. "They're not as complex as you put them, nor as unnatural as you'd like them to be. You're afraid of the simple truth, and the truth is that you love him."

Hiccup swallowed the lump in his throat. He finally stopped searching for words, unarmed and left to listen to Azel for once. She resumed much more softly.

"You love him. And that's beautiful, there's nothing wrong with that… You may not want to, because you're hurt, because he left you… And okay, those things are true. You might hate what he's done… but you don't hate him." Her words floated in the air, frozen in the night sky. "You can still love someone who's hurt you… Tell me I'm wrong."

Hiccup shrugged his shoulders, shaking his feelings back down to the back of his brain. There were always more urgent matters at hand. "There's something more to Jack's curse… something I think will make things much harder for us all…"

Azel was ready to slap his face for avoiding such an emotional response, yet she never had time to out her mind. Looking up, what she first had thought to be a bright star suddenly brightened up, like a comet. It grew in size and shape, a silvery wisp that fell from the sky and into the clearing. Gracious and glowing, the silver mouse caused everyone in the glade to stop walking, moving and breathing. Hermione Granger and Dean Thomas emerged from different tents, the Minister followed by most of the Wizengamot, and the latter followed by Jack, who seemed much more awake. Then, a whispery and panicking voice echoed from the patronus:

"They have stormed into Gringotts; Malfoy has betrayed us… The woman Obscurial is free… they're on the move."

The majority of the refugees gathered under a beige, dome-shaped tent, conjured to float in the centre of the clearing, lit from underneath by torches and a massive bonfire. They were all sitting on wooden benches. Wizards, witches, elves, goblins — the most sour looking of the lot — and centaurs, the latter who stood impassive in the edges of the clearing. In front of the bonfire, Granger stood in her long, black cloak, reciting the worn and known procedures of the Wizengamot.

"Just tell us what happened to our bank," The Goblins had started to complain.

"And our loot," Another one, with a scratching and ear piercing voice, eyed her furiously. "We trust the few treasures we have left with your lot, our legacy… and this is how our trust is rewarded."

"Please, if you just listen…" Granger pleaded again, visibly distressed, her control over the situation long gone, if she ever had any. "I know there is a way to get your treasure back, but right now there are more important matters-"

"There are always more important matters, aren't there, Minister?" The same goblin said again. "You are no minister of mine."

The other goblins began to chant in chorus. It was absolute chaos, and Granger's voice was all but inaudible. Behind her, the Wizengamot shook their heads in disappointment.

Hiccup sat next to Merida, several benches away from where Jack — distinguishable now only by his raven black hair — and Azel were, next to the dark skinned wizard — Dean, if he well remembered. Jack's and Hiccup's eyes met briefly, it felt like dodging bullets. Azel leaned to Jack's ear and whispered:

"We've got to find a way to the underworld now, before the Dark Order does so."

"We can't get there without Hiccup." Jack looked down.

"Nor without Granger." Azel eyed the woman, who still tried to regain control of the Goblins, who began throwing rocks to the Wizengamot. It was almost amusing, laughable even, if it weren't so chaotic. "She's the only one who knows what to search for."

"She'll want to get to Gringotts first," Jack noted. "She'll want to rescue the hostages they've made there."

But Azel shook her head. "I think she'll split once she understands what's at stake here. It's the Wizengamot we've got to look out for;" And then she made Jack notice how much control the surviving Ministry still held on their politics. "They'll want to go back to Gringotts before anything else. But they'll want Hiccup."

"Hiccup will go after Astrid." Jack stated, shaking his head. "He doesn't give a damn about what's going on in Gringotts."

"Jack, you know the Order, you know how they operate… do you really believe they'll hurt the ones we got there?"

Jack shook his head again, vehemently. "I don't know… Gothel wouldn't waste life like that, but I can't speak for the others… They want to find the underworld just as much as we do, and if the relic they stole from the Goblins gives them any clue at all, then they'll go for it. It's a matter of hours, and we're already behind."

"Have Ah' heard of plottin' and scheemin'?" Merida's thick and familiar accent made itself heard only for the two pairs of ears. "Count us in, please."

Jack turned back to see Merida crouched behind him and Azel, her striking red curls as always ready for rebelion, and Hiccup sat right next to her; although they didn't exchange a word, the other boy nodded at him to proceed.

Jack began rubbing his palms in anticipation, a strong sense of urgency and excitement roaring in his chest.

"Right," Jack started, looking back to Azel, to Merida, and Hiccup. "Right. Let's draw a plan then. We need to get out of here. But I'm jinxed, we need Granger, the Wizengamot is on our asses and you need to get Toothless back." He pointed at Hiccup as he finished.

"Alright, that's four things." Merida stated. "We can use this distraction," she discreetly gestured to the infuriated Goblins, which at every word from the others in the Wizengamot — who had now stood to help Granger, unsuccessfully — had more stones chucked their way. It was the most bizarre scene. "Wizengamot problem solved."

Jack blinked twice. "...okay, three more to go… How can we get her out?" Jack pointed to the Minster, still trying to argue as bigger rocks were thrown her way. "I don't suppose we can all just apparate to London, can we?

"I have something," Azel said as she leaned down to retrieve something from a worn, leather sack she kept hidden in her robes. She drew a small silver tea spoon from it.

"...you want to have a tea party?"

"It's a portkey." Azel rolled her eyes.

Merida widened her blue eyes as she recognized, "Merlin's bread, Ah' can't believe yer still kept that!"

"We used that when the Raptum happened, it felt wrong to just ditch it…" the girl explained to Jack, who still looked puzzled. She shoved it in his hands, now pulling out her wand: "Here, look: geminio!"

And just like that, another tea spoon seemed to pop from Jack's hands, and he grabbed it awkwardly when it materialised. "That's brilliant."

"Remember, only activate it when you reach the gates to… well, Hell." Azel seemed disgusted at the idea. "We'll keep our copy, waiting. As soon as you get there, we'll be ready."

But Jack found another flaw to that plan. "...Azel, I don't know how to-"

"I do," Hiccup interjected, snatching the spoon from Jack's hands. "I'll activate it once we've reached the old Ministry headquarters."

The black haired boy only nodded frantically, rolling his eyes and trying to go on with the plan. "Right. Perfect. Now, how to get this bloody tracker out of me?"

"We can torture Dean and Seamus into cooperatin'," Merida suggested so naturally that Jack was unsure if she was joking or not. Around them, the chaos was escalating, the Goblins now chanting and hurling against the Wizards, the elves running off to cover behind the centaurs, those who merely walked away in annoyance, leaving the creatures again unprotected.

"We're not torturing anyone." Hiccup said firmly.

"Especially not Dean," Jack concluded, then stopping briefly to acknowledge what Hiccup had just said. He soon shook his head though, he had more important things to focus on. "Anyways, I'll handle that. Azel, if you can help me, though, he knows you a bit more…"

"We can try." She nodded with a face that promised too little.

"Then that's enough," Jack said. "And someone could talk to the Goblins too… add some more fire to this circus… This riot is a nice distraction… perhaps they won't notice we're leaving when everyone's too busy fighting them off… it wouldn't hurt if they had our backs."

"I'm on it," Hiccup said, eyeing the revolted crowd of small goblins. "They'll want the Dragon Rider, though, not just me… I need to get Toothless back first."

Merida gave him a weird look. "What happened…"

"Don't ask." He muttered depressingly.

Jack gave them one last look before smiling deviously, the excitement of mischief bubbling in him. "Let's do this."

I live!
I've never felt more alive... life in Europe is beyond mesmerising... far from a FairyTale, truly... But dang, I've never imagine I could be so completely and utterly free here... I am beyond happy here.
This may all change, of course, but for now, I am perfectly and incandescently happy (i love this line).