Chapter 18

Castle Macintosh

A guard made his way into the study of Lord Macintosh. Lord Macintosh looked up from his reading and looked at the guard with a slight scowl on his face. The guard tried to stand just a little bit taller under the critical eye of his master.

"Your Lordship," the guard said in a deep voice, "his Lordship, Lord Dingwall has arrived to speak with you. The scowl slowly turned up into a nearly snarling smile.

"Aye, send the old coot in then," Macintosh replied with a wave of his hand, "it's about time I had some good news." The guard stepped aside and Lord Dingwall stepped into the room.

"Dingwall, ye old man," Macintosh said, "what news do ye bring from Dunbroch?"

"The King and Queen heard our proposal," Dingwall replied, "but I don't think King Fergus is too keen on it, he insists the princess can rule on her own. I can't see him forcing the issue of marriage upon her should she reject it again."

Macintosh sat back in his chair running his fingers over his beard as he thought over this new information. Of the three Lords, he was the one that had been angered the most by both Merida's initial rejection and continual rebuffing of his son over the past five years. Clan Macintosh were a proud people, not easily assuaged when their pride was bruised. He had waited patiently for a resolution, but the princess continued to drag her heels in the matter and the King and Queen did little to persuade her. In Macintosh's mind, the issue should have been settled by now, but the King and Queen instead bended to their daughter's stubborn will. They had decided against the Lords, and had given their daughter her freedom to choose as her heart desired. She was free to choose any man that could win her heart, regardless of blood or title. It was, in fact, a disparaging insult against the Lords. It was a larceny against their sons who had spent most of their young lives preparing for the throne. Because of this Lord Macintosh began to hatch a plan. It was a conniving and near treasonous plan to force the King's hand in the matter. He had somehow convinced the other Lords to join him in his plan. He had spent the last five years stoking the flames of their wounded pride, reminding them of their slighted sons, and persuading the clans to join forces with him against the King and the royal family. If a choice is what the spoiled princess wanted then a choice she would have. She would have her choice of the three suitors offered and if she refused, the choice would be to submit to an arranged marriage or lead her clan to dishonor. If she still resisted and Dunbroch saw fit to coronate her without a husband, against the Lord's will, then her reign would be short. For a Queen whom none would follow and whose enemies are great was doomed to fall.

The plan was simple enough, they were to persuade the King that the future of Dunbroch was to be settled. They were to and to force the princess to choose between the three suitors only and then if she still refused them and still would not submit to an arranged marriage, then the three clans would join forces to overthrow King Fergus, cast the princess aside and appoint one of their sons to the throne. But Macintosh had even taken it a step further and somehow had convinced the other Lords that his own son Ryan Macintosh should be appointed to the throne. He was convinced that of the three suitors, his son was the best choice for the throne. He believed without a doubt that if given the chance, his son could easily win the princess' heart. So, the three Lords agreed that Wee Dingwall and McGuffin were to purposely fall short during their courting of the princess to set up Ryan as the best choice. Lord Macintosh was sure his son would win her over and it was only a matter of time before clan Macintosh would sit on the throne of Dunbroch.

"But they've gree tae our terms thus far," Macintosh questioned. Lord Dingwall nodded.

"Aye they have," Dingwall replied, "they gree tae th' suitors comin' tae woo th' princess, but as I said, tis doubtful that they will force her tae choose, if she aye remains pernicketie."

"All we need is our foot in th' door Dingwall," Macintosh replied, "so long as ye 'n' McGuffin keep yer sons in line, it will be easy for Ryan tae entice th' princess. She'll nae stand a chance against his charm."

"Ye truly believe Ryan can sway th' princess," Dingwall questioned, "she be a right ornery lass, are ye sure he knows what he's getting' in tae?" Macintosh laughed out loud.

"If there be one thing my son is good at," Macintosh replied, "it be beguiling young lassie's; believe me, the princess will fall at his feet when he's through!"

"Let's hope that yer right," Dingwall replied, "and the transition goes smoothly and without unnecessary force."

"Either way," Macintosh replied, "my son will sit on the throne of Dunbroch."

Berk

Astrid stood at a table in the great hall going over some matters of business with some of the elders when Ruffnut suddenly burst through the door. Astrid looked up at her friend in curiosity. Ruffnut approached with a smile on her face and a scroll in her hand.

"The carrier dragon just brought this," Ruffnut smiled, "it might be word from the guys!" She held the scroll out to Astrid. Astrid turned to the elders.

"Please excuse me a moment," Astrid said, "I must take this message." Astrid turned back to Ruffnut and took the scroll from her hand. She quickly unrolled the paper and began to read.

...

Dear Astrid,

Fish and I have arrived in Dunbroch without a hitch and we managed to find Hiccup in a matter of hours. He's fine and so far not in any kind of trouble at all. Just as Valka said, he is trying to find out about his great, great grandfather's time here. Hiccup was not thrilled that I came in your stead, but believe it or not the two of us have reached an understanding. It seems Hiccup has turned a new leaf since he's been here. Apparently, he's become acquainted with a girl here, the princess no less. I don't know for certain, but I think it may have something to do with this princess of his. He fancies her, I think, though he refuses to admit it.

Anyway, the two of them have discovered that Hiccup's great, great grandfather was in fact in love with the princess' great, great, grandmother, the former queen of this land. It turns out the two had some torrid affair and it may have resulted in the banishment of Berk from Dunbroch; a banishment that stands till this day. Hiccup is determined to find evidence of Berk's innocence and try to convince the King and Queen to lift said banishment. Fish and I have agreed to help him find the truth.

I don't know how it will take, but if I have the opportunity to help Hiccup and prove that I'm not his enemy, then I want to help in anyway I can. Not to mention that if Hiccup finds himself falling for this girl, then it would make things a lot easier on you and I. Regardless, I wait for your word on the matter. If you want us to return, we will do so, but I'm telling you without a doubt that Hiccup will most certainly refuse. There is not a doubt in my mind that Hiccup won't leave until he finds what he's looking for.

I will try to keep you updated as the situation progresses.

All my love,

Eret

—-—

Astrid looked up from the letter and briefly glanced over at Ruffnut, who was anxiously awaiting her word. She sighed heavily as she dropped her eyes back to the floor and silently thought over all that Eret had told her. So, it seemed that Valka might have been right all along, perhaps Hiccup would find the love he'd been searching for all this time in Dunbroch. But Astrid could feel the uncertainty about it building up in her heart. Though the prospect of Hiccup finding a new love and finally moving on would certainly make things easier on her and Eret, she remained skeptical that this particular girl, this princess of Dunbroch could be the one for him. She was, after all, the princess of a land that saw Berk as their enemy. She couldn't help but think that this all would undoubtedly lead Berk into a world of trouble if it all went wrong. The last thing she wanted was for Berk to be thrust into any sort of war over it. She became aware suddenly of Ruffnut's anxious gaze. She looked up at her friend once again.

"They're safe," Astrid replied in reassurance, "and they found Hiccup."

"Great," Ruff sighed in relief, "when will they be back?"

"That I don't know," Astrid replied as she absentmindedly fiddled with the pendant that hung around her neck, "it seems they've agreed to help Hiccup find out more about his grandfather's time there." Ruffnut's smile faltered a bit with Astrid's words. Astrid smiled reassuringly though she still remained somewhat skeptical of the whole thing.

"They'll be fine Ruff," she replied, "they all know what they're doing." Ruff nodded.

"I know," she replied.

"I have to go show this to Valka," Astrid replied. She turned her attention back to the elders.

"I'm sorry," she replied, "we'll have to finish this later, I've just received an update on Chief Hiccup and I need to inform his mother." The elders nodded in understanding as Astrid turned and headed out the door.

She found Valka in the dragon nursery tending to the newest hatchlings. She stepped into the room and cleared her throat to get Valk's attention.

"The hatchlings are getting big," Astrid said. Valka looked up and over at Astrid briefly. She smiled slightly for a moment and then turned her attention back to the young dragons.

"They grow quickly," Valka replied, "soon they will have to learn to hunt on their own." Valka looked over at Astrid once more. She took notice of the far off look in her eye and the gentle smile on her face as she watched the babies play. A hatchling approached her and pawed at her leg. Astrid giggled slightly as she picked up the tiny dragon and coddled it. Valka gazed at Astrid knowingly, as only another mother would, though she chose to keep her inklings to herself.

"What brings you here Astrid," Valka asked. Astrid quickly shook off her brief softhearted moment. She released the young dragon and watched as it scampered off with its siblings once again. She turned her attention back to Valka.

"Eret and Fish sent word from Dunbroch," Astrid replied as she handed Valka the scroll, "they've found Hiccup. So far he's managed to keep himself out of trouble." That's great, Valka replied as she took the scroll from her hand. She carefully unrolled the paper and began to read it. When she had finished, she looked up at Astrid with a slight smile on her face. Valka had a feeling that Hiccup would find all that he had always been searching for in Dunbroch. It seemed her hope was well placed. Perhaps this princess that Eret spoke of was the true reason that Hiccup felt drawn to the island of Dunbroch to begin with.

"So," Astrid sighed, "what do you think?"

"About what exactly," Valka asked in slight confusion.

"What should we do," Astrid questioned, "Eret agreed to help Hiccup, but Berk is an old enemy of Dunbroch. What if they get caught while they are there? What if something goes wrong? What if this girl Hiccup met turns them all in?"

"Calm down Astrid," Valka replied, "Eret said they were all fine. And from what he said about this girl, I really don't think there is anything to be worried about."

"But she's the princess," Astrid replied, "Berk is technically still an enemy of her people. I'm not sure that trusting her is a good idea."

"Astrid, you know that Hiccup is very good at negotiating peacefully with other clans," Valka replied, "and it sounds to me like he might have already won over the princess. Their friendship could only aid him in negotiations with Dunbroch's leaders. I'm sure he will be able to form a new alliance with them."

"You have a point," Astrid replied, "but you know how Hiccup is. He gives everyone the benefit of the doubt. He thinks he can talk anyone into seeing his point of view, he thinks he can show them a better way. It's exactly that train of thought that got him into trouble with Drago Bludvist. Stoick tried to tell Hiccup that Drago was an enemy, that he was dangerous and that there was no negotiating with a man like that. But Hiccup insisted that he could get Drago to see things his way. He was convinced he could sway Drago to our side. But he was wrong and we all lost Stoic because of it. Stoic's death was hard on the whole tribe but Hiccup barely came back from it. What if he is wrong about these people too? Eret said that Berk was banished from Dunbroch, that means they, like Drago, are also our enemies. I mean, we don't even know anything about these people. What if they are not the negotiable type? What if Hiccup gets in over his head again?" Astrid paused and turned to Valka with worry in her eyes, "If something bad happens this time, Hiccup might not ever come back from it. Not to mention that Eret and Fish would be in danger too if anything went wrong!"

Valka nodded as she listened to Astrid. She understood the girl's fears and concerns. Losing Stoic was the worst thing that their tribe had been through but it was the hardest on Hiccup. Hiccup blamed himself for Stoic's death and it took him a very long time to recover from that. But Valka knew her son. She knew that he was persistent and motivated when it came to negotiating. Of course, the possibility existed that he could come across a clan that wanted nothing to do with alliances, but more often than not Hiccup had won over many a difficult clan since he had become chief. He may have been wrong about Drago Bludvist, but he'd still managed to win over many of Drago's former followers, including Astrid's husband.

"You must have faith Astrid," Valka replied, "you know better than anyone that when Hiccup is motivated enough, and he puts his mind to something that he will stop at nothing to accomplish it."

"That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Astrid replied, "suppose he puts his heart and soul into this and it all falls apart, or worse this princess double crosses him, then what?" Valka took a deep breath as she muddled over all that Astrid had said. It was true that things did not always go as Hiccup anticipated at times. Recently it seemed that more often than not things had definitely not gone as planned for him, but for some reason which she could not explain, Valka knew in her heart that this time was different. This time, she knew that Hiccup was right where he needed to be. Valka turned back to Astrid with an expression of reassurance on her face.

"I know there is always a risk," Valka replied, "but if Hiccup wasn't as he is, then chances are he never would have convinced Eret to join the Hooligans and to make Berk his home, and you might not have the life with him that you now hold so dear. Hiccup needs to take this chance, even if there are a hundred obstacles to overcome, even if it doesn't go as planned. It's the only way that he will ever move on."

Astrid nodded as she gazed up at Valka. Everything that Valka had said was true; if it wasn't for Hiccup she would never have even given Eret a chance at all. Despite the fact that he was their enemy and despite her initial objections, Hiccup had easily accepted Eret, and allowed him to become a part of their clan. Because of this, Eret was able to prove himself to her and the other riders. If it wasn't for Hiccup, she might not have ever seen Eret as anything more than Drago's henchman. Now he was her husband and the father of her unborn child. The truth was she owed Hiccup for the life she now had and the family she was about to. She sighed slightly as she turned her eyes back to Valka.

"Okay," Astrid replied, "I'd like to help the guys as much as I can. Is there anything else you know about this Dunbroch place, anything at all that you think could help?"

"I don't know any more than you I'm afraid," Valka replied, "but all that Hiccup discovered was in his great, great grandfather's effects. Most was in a journal which I'm sure Hiccup took with him, but If you'd like we could sift through what's left and see if he missed anything of importance."

"That would be great," Astrid smiled.

"Well then," Valka sighed, "let's get to it then, shall we." With that, Astrid and Valka left the nursery and headed in the direction of Hiccup's house.

Merida walked along the shelves of books in the library, hoping that something would catch her eye. She had spent the whole day searching and she'd found many of the childhood stories that her mother had told her over the years; none of which mentioned any village or person or clan with the name of Adag. Though her search seemed to be coming up empty, she couldn't quite shake the feeling that she'd heard this name before. If only she could put her finger on where or how. She sighed heavily in defeat as she flopped down into one of the cushiony arm chairs. If there was one thing she was simply not cut out for, it was spending hours reading and researching. She decided to call it a day and head out to trot Angus along the green. The poor horse was nearly going stir crazy since she'd been grounded and forbidden to ride. She tried to at least trot him every day just to keep him levelheaded. She stood from her place and headed over to the door. Just as she reached for the handle, the door burst open causing her to jump back. Her three brothers nearly tumbled into the room giggling. Harris quickly closed the door behind him and bid his brothers to be quiet. He turned his ear back to the door and listened for Maudie's flustered footsteps. Merida crossed her arms over her chest and smirked at her trouble making brothers.

"What did ye do now," she questioned. The three boys jumped in fright of her unexpected voice. They turned in an instant, with eyes as wide as saucers and each as pale as a ghost. Merida chuckled in spite of herself. They sighed in relief at the sight of their sister.

"It's only ye," Harris sighed in relief, "we thought we'd been caught for sure!"

"Ye have," Merida smirked, "what have ye done to get poor Maudie in a tizzy this time?"

"Nothing," Harris denied. Merida raised an eyebrow at him. She eyed each of them carefully with a disbelieving expression on her face. Merida knew her brothers like the back of her hand. Harris was the ringleader so to speak. He was the instigator and orchestrator of nearly all their troublemaking schemes. Hubert was like his second in command, but Hamish, seemed to be the only one of the three to show any kind of remorse for their many pranks. And so, it was Hamish she focused her attention on now. She gazed at Hamish for a long moment causing him to fidget nervously. Harris and Hubert stared daggers at him, and the poor boy buckled under the pressure of his siblings.

"It was just a joke," Hamish relented. The other two boys sighed in aggravation.

"Out with it," Merida said firmly.

"We put a dead rat in Maudie's sewing basket," Hamish replied regretfully.

"Boys," Merida exclaimed.

"It was his idea," Hamish cried out as he pointed to Harris.

"Hamish ye no good snitch," Harris growled.

"Enough," Merida interrupted. The three boys gazed up at her with innocent eyes.

"Oh, please Merida," Harris pleaded, "don't tell mum." Merida put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes.

"Alright," Merida sighed as she pushed past them and headed to the door, "yer secret is safe with me, but ye know it's only a matter of time before Maudie tells mum herself."

"What are ye doing in the library anyway," Harris asked as he eyed her suspiciously. Merida turned to her brother and sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest once more.

"I uh, I was looking for something," Merida replied cryptically, "but I haven't had any luck so far."

"Well," Hamish gazed up at her as he stepped forward, "what exactly is it that yer looking for?"

"Aye," Hubert chimed in, "maybe we can help." Merida gazed at her brothers for a long moment, debating on her actions. She smiled warmly at the three boys. Despite being the trouble makers they were, her siblings always had her back, as she always had theirs.

"Well, I...I guess it couldn't hurt," Merida replied nonchalantly. She stepped away from the door and took a few steps toward the boys.

"I sort of remembered something," Merida paused as she tried to find the right words to explain without going into too much detail, "it's a name I think, I'm sure it's from a story mum told me once, but I can't for the life o' me remember which one."

"A name," Harris questioned, "a name of what?"

"Well, I'm not sure exactly," Merida replied, "I mean, I think it might be the name of a place, maybe a village." The boys looked at her curiously.

"The name is Adag," Merida said, "and, try as I might, I simply can't recall why it sounds so familiar or where I remember it from." The three boys continued to gaze at her in slight confusion.

"Adag," Hubert questioned.

"Aye," Merida replied, "does it sound familiar to any of ye at all?"

"Aye," Hubert replied matter-of-factly, "I don't know about it being a part of any story, but it's a Gaelic word. We just learned it a few days ago in our Gaelic lessons. Adag is "fish" in Gaelic."

"Fish," Merida questioned in confusion.

"No, no, no," Harris said haughtily, "Adag does not mean fish."

"Aye it does," Hubert replied in slight aggravation.

"No, it doesn't," Harris argued, "iasg means "fish". Don't' ye pay attention at all in Gaelic lessons?"

"Oh yeah," Hubert replied, "Mum taught us the names of different fish too, I got confused." Merida rolled her eyes and groaned in aggravation.

"Aye," she groaned, "do any o' ye know what adag means or not?"

"Iasg means "fish"," Hamish confirmed, "adag is just a type of fish."

"What type fish," Merida questioned.

"Salmon I think," Hubert chimed in.

"Bradan is salmon," Hamish corrected as he rolled his eyes at Hubert, "adag means haddock."

"Oh yeah," Hubert replied. Merida's eye went wide and she could feel her heart freeze mid beat at the words that left her brother's mouth.

"Haddock," Merida repeated in surprise. She gazed at the three boys nearly dumbfounded.

"Yer telling me that adag, means haddock in Gaelic," Merida replied. All three boys nodded at once.

"Aye," Harris snickered, "don't ye remember anything mum taught ye in Gaelic?" Harris' comment was meant to annoy his sister but she didn't even take notice of the remark. She shook her head in disbelief as the information her brothers had given her sunk into her brain. If what her brothers said was true, if adag was the Gaelic word for haddock then what exactly was the meaning of Mairead's message? Merida was certain that it had to be about Hiccup, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock. She tried to remember Hiccup's words from his letter but used Haddock in place of Adag.

…

The house of Haddock is lost.

Exiled and forgotten, it is said a Haddock will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond.

…

She furrowed her brow as she thought about it. "The house of Haddock," must refer to the Haddock family; Hiccup's family. "Exiled and forgotten;" there was no question in Merida's mind that this referred to the banishment of Berk, and Hiccup's people from Dunbroch. The last part was a little trickier to decipher and she wasn't quite sure how to interpret it. "A Haddock will lead them home, but only a link forged by both clans will renew their bond." Could it be that their great, great grandparents were leading them to restore the bond of both their clans? Was she and Hiccup being called to bring their people together in an alliance once again? Perhaps her initial idea was right all along, perhaps they were being led to find the truth about what went so wrong between their clans and to somehow set it right once more. Merida turned her eyes back to her brothers and beamed at them.

"Ye wee devils," she exclaimed in excitement, "the three of ye have helped me more than ye know! I could just kiss the lot o' ye!" With that, she threw her arms around the three boys before they even had time to resist. They groaned in annoyance as she kissed the tops of their heads.

"Thanks boys," she smiled as she let them go. They squirmed as they stuck their tongues out and frantically rubbed the places in which she had kissed them. Merida chuckled at their reaction.

"So, do we have yer word then," Harris questioned, "ye won't tell mum about the prank then?"

"Aye," Merida smirked, "she'll nae hear a word about it from me."

"Ye swear it," Hubert questioned.

"Cross my heart," Merida laughed as she drew the shape of a cross over her heart.

"Alright then," Hubert smiled. Merida quickly ran out the door and headed to her room. This was the biggest break they'd had in the mystery so far, and she simply could not wait to tell Hiccup what she had inadvertently discovered. The only problem was that she was still grounded for another whole day. She groaned at the thought. She sighed heavily, there was simply no way she would be able to talk her mother into letting her off early, not after their terrible argument the day before. She entered her room and closed the door behind her. She then flopped back upon her bed and let out another long and frustrated sigh. Tomorrow was sure to be the longest day yet.

Later that evening

Hiccup sat quietly on a log beside the fire sharpening his dagger with a piece of slate. He sighed as his mind once again drifted to the strange dream and the strange message that Mairead had given to him. He thought about Eret's hypothesis that the message in the dream somehow referred to Dunbroch's banishment of Berk. It was certainly plausible that he and Merida were somehow meant to renew the bond between their clans. It was possible that the message from Mairead was meant to lead them on the path to bringing their people together in an alliance once again. But even though Eret's suggestion did sort of make sense, there were still parts of it that didn't quite add up. Hiccup thought back to the last part of what Mairead had said once more.

...

"It's so much bigger than us, we were only the start of it.

The house of Adag will rise and the bond between the clans will be unbreakable. For the link that binds them was forged in love.

….

Hiccup silently repeated the word in his head. "The house of Adag," he muttered to himself. He was still not entirely convinced that Adag was in reference to Berk. Of course, there was still the startling coincidence that Adag did sound very similar to his surname. That in itself could very well mean that Adag did in fact refer to Berk. After all, in Berk as far back as their history began, or at least since it was recorded, a Haddock had always been chief. In fact, it was said that his nomadic ancestors had actually founded Berk nearly a thousand years ago. As many questions as this idea raised, Hiccup still wasn't completely convinced that this was what Adag referred to. Judging by what he saw in his dream, it seemed far more likely that Adag was the name of some ancient village of Dunbroch that perhaps had been lost to time. But if that were the case, what exactly would that have to do with he and Merida or their grandparents?

"The bond between the clans will be unbreakable, for the link that binds them was forged in love." This part was somewhat confusing. If the clans that Mairead spoke of truly were Dunbroch and Berk then it sounded as if a new alliance between them would be of great importance and that their bond would benefit both clans. This led him to the last portion of the message, "the link between them was forged in love.' Did that mean the love and respect between their people? Was it the love between their grandparents that it referred to? Technically Mairead and Hiccup the first had inadvertently formed a bond between their clans when they fell in love. But that bond was not accepted and only drove their people farther apart. Was he and Merida supposed to somehow remind their people of this bond? Or could it be more personal than that?

He wondered how it was possible to form an alliance between two enemy clans with love. It seemed to him that alliances were formed with things more substantial than love. Alliances were formed with things like the trade of weapons and goods, and maybe even services in times of need. Of course, for an alliance to work you also needed to establish great trust and friendship between the clans. You certainly could not form an alliance if there was any form of hatred or distrust between them. Perhaps this is what Mairead meant.

She had also said, "heavy is the heart torn by pride and only can be mended by forgiveness' healing hand." Perhaps pride had broken the bond between Berk and Dunbroch and the only way to fix that was to show their people that although the two had been enemies for a long time, it didn't have to stay that way. If they could only put their pride aside, he was sure that the people of Dunbroch would see that Berk was not much different than they were. He truly believed that if given the opportunity, that his and Merida's people would get along very well, just as he and Merida did. Perhaps he and Merida were somehow meant to lead both their peoples by example. If their leaders could form a friendship despite their people's unfortunate past, then surely, they would see that an alliance between their clans was feasible. And what's more, if his and Merida's friendship continued to progress as he hoped that it would, perhaps it would give their people even more incentive to end this nearly three hundred year old feud. The words from Mairead ran through his mind once more.

"The bond between the clans will be unbreakable, for the link between them was forged in love." He could feel his heart beat increase as the words swirled through his brain. He was keenly aware that his feelings for her had been growing since the moment they met. Though he had yet to say the words even to himself, he was beginning to realize that his feelings ran much deeper than just a mere crush. He wanted nothing more than to be with Merida. There was no doubt that he was falling in love with her and he could not help but to wonder if this could be what Mairead meant.

His mind flashed back suddenly to the moment he and Merida had shared on her balcony; that moment he had finally mustered up the courage to try to tell her how he felt. The moment was brief and unfortunately it was interrupted before he could confess his true feelings, but he recalled the feelings that seemed to flood his heart as he gazed back at her before he left. He was certain as he gazed into her pale blue eyes, that he had finally found where he truly belonged. He was certain that he could see his future somehow reflected back at him from those same beautiful eyes that she shared with Mairead. Since that moment he was sure that he was falling for Merida. If it were true, if Mairead's strange prophecy pertained to he and Merida specifically, if he and Merida were truly meant to find each other, then perhaps it was the love between he and Merida that would make the bond between their clans unbreakable.

Hiccup's heart began to race at the mere thought of it. He could feel the sudden longing once again to just be in her presence and he wanted nothing more than to go to her balcony once more just to see her beautiful face. But she had made it clear that it was far too risky for him to do so. Especially after what happened with her mother, he thought it best to not take that chance, at least not yet. He sighed heavily as he replaced his dagger in its holster and tucked the flint stone back in his bag. There was only one more day to wait before he could see her again, surely, he could wait a measly twenty-four hours.

He pulled the furry blanket from his bag, stood from his place and headed over to Toothless, who was sleeping peacefully nearby. He sat down beside the dragon and leaned his back up against his side. He opened the neatly folded blanket and draped it over himself as he settled down for the night. He took a long deep breath as he pulled the blanket up to his chin. He swore that the lovely lavender scent of whatever cleansing oils Merida used in her long red hair still clung to the fabric. He smiled slightly as he recalled laying with her wrapped in his arms as she slept peacefully beside him that night in the cave. He had never felt so content as he did in that moment. He knew then that there was nowhere else he'd rather be and no one else that he wanted to be with. He could only pray that she felt the same.