The Big Four - One Life

Chapter 7 - Seeing is Believing

"I - I don't understand," Merida stuttered, "how can I see you, when, when you weren't even there a second ago -"

"D'you think I know any more than you do, Red?" Jack smirked, twirling his staff in one hand while Merida glared at him. "Point is, we need your help. Rapunzel here's supposed to meet with the royal family. A wedding of the princess after some games or something. You know anything?" Hiccup stole a sideways glance at Merida before coughing into his hand.

"She is the princess -"

"Merida," the red head snapped. "First born descendant of Clan Dunbroch. Don't call me Princess."

"As you wish," Jack grinned before adding "Your Highness," under his breath. Hiccup held Merida's arm to stop her from lashing out and she batted him away irritably.

"Jack," Rapunzel muttered, "we need them to trust us. Remember? We've got no one else left!" Jack seemed to understand this and nodded solemnly. "Can you take us to the castle?"

"What do we do about, you know," Hiccup gestured hopelessly at Jack who rolled his eyes.

"I'll come too. I'm used to it; no one here believes in me. No one will see me." At these words he sighed and hung his head. "They just think I'm a fairy story."

"You are," Merida argued and Jack whipped round, irritated, "but legends ring with truth. You're one of the true ones. There aren't many."

"You know another legend that's true?" Rapunzel asked, genuinely interested. Merida sat down beside her and Hiccup leaned on Toothless as the red head began to tell the story.

"Once, there was an ancient kingdom. A king ruled the kingdom who was wise and much beloved, and when he grew old he decided to divide it among his four sons. But the eldest prince wanted to rule the land for himself. He acquired a spell from a witch that enabled him to fight with the strength of ten men; he followed his own path and the kingdom fell to war and chaos and ruin. However the spell he used wasn't a trustworthy one. At the second sunrise, he turned into the biggest bear you've ever seen, still with the strength of ten men. Mord'u lives to this very day."

"You've got to be joking," Jack rolled his eyes. "Demon bears? Ancient kingdoms? That's a load of dragon -"

"I've seen him," Merida snapped. Hiccup turned to her, intrigued.

"Sorry?"

"I've seen him," she repeated. "When it was my fifth birthday we went on a hunting trip. My father gave me my very first bow that day, and I shot an arrow into the forest. When I went to collect it I came back to my parents and my mother picked me up. Over her shoulder I saw a shadow covering the clearing and he was there, looming right over us, staring at us blankly with one dead eye. I screamed for help and my father helped me and my mother get to safety. We rode away on my mother's horse while my father fought. He lost his leg that day, but Mord'u escaped."

"Wow," Rapunzel breathed. "He must be a fearsome warrior; I can't wait to meet him." At these words Merida remembered, don't just stand there telling stories! She's been through enough! Her parents were bloody kidnapped; get her to the castle!

"You can meet him now," Merida said, grabbing her arm and standing up with her. Hiccup also jumped to his feet. "We need to get you to the castle. You need to tell my parents what happened. We'll say we found you in the woods or something so we don't have to tell them about you," she nodded at Jack who rolled his eyes again. Hiccup nodded.

"No, that makes sense. We've got to have a plausible explanation and this is the best one we've got. We can't exactly say oh yes your Majesties, the princess was rescued from a burning carriage by a winter sprite who can fly and is also known as Jack Frost, that folk tale that only the three of us believe in. And he's also standing in this room but you can't see him because you don't believe in him because that's how his policies work apparently."

"Watch it Dragon Boy," Jack pointed his staff at him threateningly and Toothless growled at it, only to be held back by Hiccup. "Can we just get Rapunzel to the castle please? She needs rest."

"It's not far," Merida began to walk, leading the way through the trees and into the pens where the dragons were kept. Hiccup said his goodbyes to Toothless for the moment and they headed inside. As everyone in the bustling courtyard passed them by, they didn't pass Jack. They walked straight through him, like he wasn't even there. He seemed used to it though yet he did look a little depressed. No one could blame him - how'd you feel if people passed you off as a fairy tale, someone who didn't even exist?

They entered the castle and into the great hall; the king and queen were busy signing papers but at the sight of their eldest their heads shot up.

"Merida! What is the meaning of -" Elinor was cut short by Rapunzel sinking into a low curtesy.

"Your majesties, I am Princess Rapunzel of Corona. I apologise for my attire but our party was attacked by dragons as we made our way here. My parents have been captured and w- I, was the only one to escape."

"How did you get out?" Fergus' voice was barely above a whisper and full of concern. The blonde princess' eyes widened, shining startlingly green in the flickering light of the fire.

"I - escaped on my horse. He was pulling my carriage which was the last to be attacked. I got away with all that I was wearing but because he was so startled he ran away as we approached the northern border. Princess Merida and her companion," she gestured to Hiccup who was standing by Merida's side, "found me this morning and brought me straight here. If it wasn't for them I could easily have been found and kidnapped by the same people who took my parents from me."

Elinor stepped off the dais and clasped her hands together. "We promise, Princess Rapunzel, that we will do everything in our power to find your parents and bring them to justice. How did they attack you, with what means? If you don't mind me asking," she added quickly. The blonde lifted her head slightly and spoke to the room at large.

"They attacked us with dragons bound in chains."

A/N I'm really sorry I haven't updated in ages - school's been getting stressful this year and it's taken a while to get the writer's block out the way. I know the general direction I want the story to flow in, but it's getting difficult. Also, I'd appreciate feedback/suggestions/comments because they really do help authors along. It's only 20 seconds of your time, please let me know if I'm doing okay.