Disguise: Chapter 5

Because I don’t wanna wait. Here’s another update!

I don’t own Brave and HTTYD

Xxxxxxxxx

Ever since that day, Merida had been careful not to let a single lock of her hair out of her cap. She was afraid that someone smart enough would get the idea that she cut her hair so she wouldn’t be easy to spot. She remained inside as much as possible, and would only go out when necessary. There wasn’t a day that she wasn’t paranoid. So much for freedom, she thought exasperatedly. Better this than getting married to some spoiled brat though, she noted.

Hiccup was collecting their pay while she was working on rearranging their furniture. Their house was already extended for the smithy. The only thing missing was the furnace and the anvil. She had been working all day, arranging the look of the interior. The wall where the furnace was going to be against was made of stone bricks, while the other side was made of wooden planks.

It wasn’t until sunset when Hiccup came back. Merida was out, putting up the sign.  A rope was tied around her hand for her to pull. Other than about electric wires, switches and lights, Hiccup had taught her how to assemble spare gears and improvise. One of the assembling she learned was of making a small pulley, which she used to put up the sign. It wasn’t that because there were no chairs or crates to stand on; She wanted to see if she learned it correctly. She realized it was, and felt a swelling confidence and pride when Hiccup praised her for it.

For the few weeks (almost a month) that they have been together, the two have been closer, like brothers. Spending time together everyday made her discover what his likes and dislikes, and habits were. With her observation skills, she knew green was his favorite color, he loved reading educational books, he preferred to eat food with soup than roasted ones, and his habits like sleeping with one knee bent up (which she discovered whenever she got out of bed to drink water), spinning his pen or pencil before writing, and rolling his eyes to the left whenever he was nervous.

“Everyone’s acting like vultures.” Hiccup said as they entered the smithy.

“I take it it’s because of that lost heiress.” Merida swallowed.

He nodded, “I heard a rumor that the family was willing to throw in $500 more if she wasn’t found next week still. That’s just crazy!”

“Everybody’s crazy.” She rolled her eyes as she walked over to the tools table covered with scratch papers and a few pencils. “It’s like they’re throwing away their jobs because they’ll be instantly rich whin they faind ‘er.”

“I don’t blame them though..” he mumbled. “$10,000?? We could live off of that for God knows how long!” Hiccup went to the opposite side of the table. The two of them cleaned it up. They didn’t have to talk to agree on eating dinner there. It was spacious and much better to eat on than the cramped space in the kitchen.

“Unless ye’r that family living across us.” She said, piling the papers in one hand while the other got the scattered ones on the table. “They have tons of babies, the husband is a drunkard an’ the wife can’t do anything! Not to mention that the man spends most of his income on liquor!” Before Hiccup could ask how she knew, she cut him off. “Don’t ask how I knew.” She snorted. He just dismissed the topic and shrugged.

The two placed the papers on a counter. “Let’s eat.” Hiccup beamed at her.

Xxxxxx

Meanwhile, in the Dunbroch manor, Elinor and Fergus barely slept well—especially Elinor. She was devastated to discover that her only daughter had ran away from home, and left almost no clues at all. Her redheaded daughter had only taken the shirt and trousers from the laundry basket, and paperboy cap. That was it. Heaven knew what could have happened after she fled. Elinor was imagining the worst, but there was this ray of hope in her heart that believed that her precious daughter was still alive.

She had been sitting on the rocking chair by the fireplace, doing nothing but sewing on handkerchiefs anxiously. Whenever her husband told her to go sleep, she wouldn’t budge. She would only stand to eat or go to the bathroom. There was always this nagging fear that if she left her place, Merida would sneak back in and get away when she returned. Not to mention that she was afraid that if she left the rocking chair at night, nobody would be able to answer the door quick enough if someone had found Merida.

That night, Fergus sat on the couch next to her. He was reading a bedtime story to their triplet sons, who were yawning and rubbing their eyes from sleepiness. When the boys were asleep, Fergus took them to their room. Elinor thought he was heading to bed also, but he didn’t. He returned to her side and stared at the crackling fire before them. It was only after several minutes when her husband broke the sullen silence between them.

“Dear, you might prick your finger if you keep sewing in the dark.” He said softly.

No response.

He sighed. “Lass, ye haven’t slept a wink fer days. You need to rest.” Even though he knew she was going to snap at him for saying that, he said it anyway. He was concerned that his wife was at the brink of hysteria. It wasn’t because he wasn’t worried; he had to be strong for the both of them also. He himself had a difficult time sleeping for the past few weeks. He knew why their daughter had done it, but he couldn’t blame Elinor either. They really were losing money. Why? Because of all the spending on luxuries, parties, and the downhill of their business sales.

He and Elinor were afraid for their children. They didn’t want to see themselves end up in the streets, begging for change or food. To save their family’s future, Merida had to marry to their wealthy friend’s son.

The man massaged his forehead with his index and middle finger. If they weren’t able to find Merida soon, they were going to have to dismiss several more of their servants, and eventually have to sell their possessions. It would break their pride, and news would spread about their stand on their wealth. Their public image would crumble.

“Have I been too harsh on ‘er?” Elinor’s soft, sleep-deprived voice rang in his ears. He glanced at her direction. She has stopped embroidering. He didn’t have to speak for her to know that he was confused. “Have I gone too far?” she asked again. “Did I push ‘er too hard?”

He knew she was talking about the marriage. “Elinor, dear, there was nothing else we could do.” He tried to soothe her.

“We don’t have any choice. If there was a different one, I would have chosen it instead of agreeing to marrying her off to someone she has never met before.” Her voice was cracking. Fergus could see her eyes become glossier from tears welling up on the brims of her eyes. “But we have no other choice. I don’t want to see her end up on the streets, or worse, in a brothel!” she burst into tears.

This urged her husband to stand and embrace her. He hushed her as he stroked her long silky hair, “None of that is going to happen. She won’t end up in a brothel ever.” He reassured her.

“Maybe I should have told her that we are doing this because of our financial problem.” She sobbed against his chest. She didn’t tell Merida that time because a lot of people were still awake. Their fighting ensued only after dinner the night she disappeared. She was going to tell Merida, but the redhead fled.

“Perhaps so… When we get her back, we have to tell her. No more hiding.” He caressed her back.

The two of them embraced each other for the rest of the night. When Elinor fell asleep, Fergus carried her to their room.

Xxxxxxxx

Early morning, Hiccup and Merida had been working on the furnace and chimney. Merida was on the roof, assembling the bricks of the chimney. Hiccup had prepared their lunch, and he walked out to the back and looked up to see her. Her form had blocked out the sun from his eyes.

“Hey, lunch is ready.” He said with his hands on his hips.

She looked, nodded, then set the plastering trowel inclined against the dry side of the chimney, and positioned herself to climb down the ladder. But she miscalculated her foot on the first step, making the wooden thing slide. Everything happened quickly, but Hiccup was just as swift to react. He held out his arms to catch her. And in the nick of time, he was able to, but they both fell forward.

Merida groaned in pain, reaching her bum as she turned to her side, facing him. Hiccup also groaned, trying to lift himself, “A-are you okay?” he asked, hissing from the aching feeling on his forearms.

“Y-yeah..” she bit her lower lip as she tried to prop herself up.

Hiccup dismissed the pain he felt and looked at her, scanning her for injuries. Merida’s gaze trailed from her hand to his face. Right now, she was staring at his eyes. When he leaned over to reach her leg, she hitched a breath. She was never this close to a man before. This was nothing. When his head turned to look at her, and his arm lifted from her leg to hold her arm, her breath held. Their gazes connected once more. She could feel her cheeks heat up.

They were so close.

“Does it hurt?” He asked in concern as he squeezed her arm gently.

For Hiccup’s part, his eyebrow flinched for a split second. Her arm sort of felt soft over her firm muscles. I never thought a guy could have soft arms like they were a female’s, he thought with a small blush at the thought of a female version of ‘Mark’. What the? No. No. Hell no. (Bloody Christ, Hiccup. She is female!)

Merida gently tugged her arm back, “N-no. It’s fine. It’s not broken.” She tried to speak normally, like a guy, but she was slightly failing.

A moment of silence felt like half an hour. Merida was the first to move and back away before what she feared entered his mind. Hiccup was smart. There was a huge chance he would be able to figure out that she was the lost heiress. She stomped her way inside the house and headed directly to the bathroom to wash up, and have a short time to react, without having to pretend that she was a man.

Hiccup, on the other hand, was mentally punching himself; He couldn’t believe what he just thought when he held Mark’s arm! What the hell is wrong with you, Hiccup? Are you gay? You can’t be gay. Why did you think that!?... But it’s true—no! You can’t think like that! Comparing a man’s arm to a woman’s?! What the hell! Stop imagining that he’s female! He argued with himself. He couldn’t help it. It’s like that time when you accidentally brushed your hand on that blond girl’s hand. Now that was soft. Hiccup finally smacked a hand on his face as he walked back. Then he stopped again, with his gaze glued to his feet, But then again, there was something off with him just now. His voice sounded odd.. like It was forced. He snorted, Nah.. he was just shaken. He fell, for God’s sake, Hiccup. You would be three times terrified than he was! The young man sighed and entered the house.

Merida was already sitting on her chair. What Hiccup particularly noticed was that her sleeves were rolled up, showing her forearm. It was pale and looking smooth without all the dirt, grease, and cement stains on it. The redhead looked up from her plate to Hiccup. The man flinched once more and went to the sink to clean his hands and arms. His face was red.

You really should stop thinking about those things, Hic! He’ll hate you if you keep looking at him like that!

The two of them ate silently. Hiccup seemed troubled. It showed on his face and Merida noticed it. She just didn’t ask about it, fearing that he might have a Eureka moment if she spoke. It wasn’t just Hiccup who was smacking himself mentally. Merida was too.

You idiot. Now he’s goin’tae faind oot about yer identity! He’s gonna hand ya over! Not only that, he won’t trust ya anymore! She yelled inwardly. Yoo need to be much more careful from now on! Ye’r gonna be back in that cage o’ yers an’ marry James! Ugh!

They ate together, but kept themselves in their own minds, afraid of what the other might think or say. After the meal, Merida was the one to clean the plates while Hiccup headed to the furnace to proceed on finishing it. After washing the dishes and cutlery, Merida made her way to the back of the house. She propped the ladder up again and went up. For the rest of the day, they somehow stayed away from each other—Merida purposely did so.

Hiccup was already over what happened and had forgotten about it, while she was still paranoid. She was done with the chimney hours ago. She stayed on the roof, watching the kids play with slingshots. She smirked at how they could barely hit the bottle cap propped up with a barbecue stick held by clay. Dented cans were scattered around them. Unknown to her, Hiccup was also watching, but from the door in the under-construction shop, just below her.

The smallest of the boys couldn’t hit it. His friends made fun of him, to witch Hiccup slightly frowned. He knew how that felt. He was going to tell them to stop but, before he could take a step forward, Merida had jumped off the roof. It frightened him. Man, this guy could do that?! He thought in surprise.

The redhead fixed her cap and then walked over to the kids. The young boys looked at her with a nervous look. Was she going to hit them? She certainly did not look pleased. The four boys squeezed together, almost  huddled like frightened ducklings—including the one they made fun of.

“Don’t laugh at him.”  She said calmly but firmly. “Nobody’s good on their first try.” She held out her hand and the little one gave her the slingshot. Merida took a small stone from the ground, pulled it back with the rubber sling and let it fly swiftly to the target, effectively removing the cap and denting it. She looked back at them “I didn’t see any of you successfully take it out, so don’t make fun of someone who can’t either. It takes practice.” She handed the slingshot back to the little boy.

Her lips formed a small smiled at him, then her eyes turned to look at the bigger ones. “Never ever make fun of someone who can’t do the same things as you. You’re all the same.”

“But we hit it. We just didn’t take it off the stick.” The biggest kid said with pride and with a matter-of-factly tone.

“But I have, so does that give me the right to laugh at you an’ make ya feel bad?” Her eyebrows furrowed.

The kids frowned and grumbled, annoyed with her. “Come on, guys.. This old man’s no fun…” the others agreed and walked away, except for the smallest boy. He stayed and watched the others walk away, discussing among themselves how mean Merida was, and how they were going to tell on their parents that someone scolded them.

In the distance, Hiccup watched with awe. He has never seen someone stand up for anyone they didn’t know, or for children. He didn’t approach her. He just observed from his post to see what else she would do. Merida crouched down and talked to the little boy. He couldn’t hear it well because she was so quiet. She handed him another stone then pointed at a pile of cans. Surely enough, the boy could hit it. He only couldn’t hit smaller targets. So, she assisted him, helping him with what to do. She set the bottle cap up again and went back to him. The little boy was almost able to hit the thing, and just missed by a few centimeters.

“That’s it!” She said with a big grin. “Juist keep practicing, an’ ye won’t miss!” She ruffled the boy’s hair, and stood out from her crouching. Merida flashed a smile at him then went back to the house. He spotted Hiccup smiling at her. This made her stop on her tracks and furrow her eyebrows, “Whot?” her lips formed a small thin line.

Hiccup shook his head. Her expression didn’t faze him. He kept smiling without faltering. “Nothing.”

“Yer face says otherwise.” Her eyes squinted suspiciously.

“Well, it’s just that..” he absent-mindedly began to scratch the back of his head, “I’ve never really seen anyone stand up for someone else, or defend them, for that matter.” He didn’t let her speak even with a short pause. His hand had found its place inside his trousers’ pocket, and another sincere smile curved his lips. “It’s nice.”

If Merida’s mother were there, Merida was sure the woman would tell her otherwise, and that what she did was humiliating and scandalous. Indeed, it was, but it didn’t mean it was wrong.

Frankly, Merida didn’t know what to say. Her shoulders merely moved for a shrug, then she entered the building. Hiccup’s smile softened, but didn’t fade. He watched her walk towards the furnace he has just finished fixing. His green orbs stared at the furnace, then at his friend. Merida wasn’t just his assistant anymore. She was what he considered his closest friend. He knew a lot about her, just like how much she knew about him.

He knew that her favorite snack was an apple. He knew that she liked carving on pieces of wood; loved stargazing through the window next to their bunk bed; disliked heavily ornamented women; and preferred milk over tea. He also noticed that she would unknowingly trace the brim of her paperboy cap’s bill at random times, prop her right foot on its heel and wave it after five minutes of sitting down, and flex her jaw whenever she was thinking deeply.

They really had gotten to know each other quite well in that span of a few weeks. It made his heart swell to have a friend he was close with, and could rely on. He didn’t have friends; just acquaintances. He didn’t get to share secrets and dreams with someone before. Merida was the first. He fully trusted this person like family, and he hoped she felt the same.

Suddenly, his motivation to get to the higher side of the hierarchy was stronger than before. He wanted to help her too, like his family. He was going to push his limits for her as well. Even if she wouldn’t agree to it or give him anything in return, he would do it still. The redhead had been inspiring to him. If anything were to happen to her, he would be just as devastated as someone who lost a family member.

Xxxx

Since the smithy wasn’t ready for business yet, Hiccup and Merida had been taking side jobs like being stable boys, or chimneysweepers. From time to time, they would go to different parts of the town to do business. Days had gone and Merida seemed to be adapting faster reflexes of hiding herself and shielding her face from familiar folks. That is, until Hiccup told her he was asked to fix the lighting in her family’s home.

Merida’s eyes were staring unblinkingly at him. Her mouth was slightly open, and surely enough, her breath was held also.

Hiccup’s brows furrowed at her petrified look, “Is something wrong?”

After a second or two, her eyes blinked and her mouth closed. “N-nothing. Just… surprised that a… highly respected family knew about ye an’ asked yoo t’work in their home.” Saying those words has never been so awkward to say.

The lad’s small pout turned into a big happy grin. “I know, right? I didn’t expect it either! But I’m excited to work there!” He proceeded to talk about getting ideas on how his future home would look like from the Dunbroch manor’s architecture.

Merida was still in a state of shock. She couldn’t hear his words anymore. They were muffled by the sound of her heartbeat slowly beating into her eardrums. What am I going to do? Ah can’t juist tell ‘im t’ go alone! He’ll need assistance! She freaked out in her head. But how am I supposed to hide my face!? It was either that or feeling guilty of making him go alone.

She had a soft spot for Hiccup. She couldn’t just leave him alone with their work. If only she could have a better disguise than that. A short haircut perhaps? Her hand reached for her head covered by her cap. Straighten her hair? Maybe.

Eureka! A hair straightener!

Merida’s eyes squinted as she thought of the hot comb her mother had. She was sure it was in her room before she left. She just needs to get in there. Or maybe, she could just buy one… if her savings allowed it.

This is ridiculous! I’m going to buy a hotcomb for this? She thought she was getting absurd. I’ll just cut my hair really short then! It’s a lot easier!

And before they left, Merida snipped away more of her locks and her hair was now shorter than Hiccup’s. A pixie cut wasn’t really bad. At least she left her fringe longer, but that was it.

Hiccup wondered why she took so long in the bathroom. He wanted to ask, but even though they were close friends, he did not want to invade her privacy, and just kept quiet. They took a carriage to the Dunbroch home, which took an hour and a few minutes of journey.

There it was, the grand gates of the Dunbrochs towering over them. It stood stiff, intimidating those who dared to go near it. Hiccup was intimidated and excited at the same time. Merida, however, was as pale as a corpse. Her companion was oblivious to this and shouted, calling for any servants to acknowledge them. When the familiar servants came, Merida looked away slightly, pulling the bill of her cap down to shade her eyes.

This is going to be more difficult than I thought. She gulped quietly.

The maid accompanied them inside and told them to wait in the lobby while she left to call the head of the household. While waiting, Hiccup examined his surroundings. There were definitely a lot of expensive furniture and decoration, but what caught his eyes was a large landscape portrait of a lady with long curly red hair. She was sitting with her skirt sprawled on the grass. Her hands were on her lap. Her face was sweet and serene. Her smile was soft and subtle; it brought out a unique elegance in her.

Hiccup’s eyes wandered away to look at the other paintings. She was in the family portraits. Just by seeing some, he immediately knew who she was. “So this is the lost heiress,...” he said quietly.

Merida was standing beside him the whole time. When he spoke about her, her head tilted up to see the large portrait of her. She kept silent, anticipating for what he had to say next.

“I always imagined her to be pretty, but seeing a portrait of her…” he trailed away and let out a soft exhale, “She’s even more beautiful than I imagined her to be.”

This made Merida’s cheeks flush, and she had to lower her head to cover her face. Where was her long bundle of curls to hide her face when she needed it? He thought she was beautiful, and it was making her nervous and conscious of herself. If only he knew how sloppy she really was outside of family portraits. Would he still think she was beautiful if he did? She was knocked out of her head when Hiccup said a certain statement.

“I wonder why she left though…”

This made her look at him. If he had known about her motive why she left, would he still agree with her idea? That everyone has a say in his or her own life?

The head of the servants arrived with the maid. Of course Merida knew who he was. She kept her head low once more as they were led to the entertainment area. There was a grand piano at one side and sofas, a love seat and a coffee table in the middle of the sofa set. Memories came rushing like flashflood in her mind. She remembered playing chess on that coffee table, being taught how to play the piano, and playing wooden horses and toy soldiers and a princess doll while her mother embroidered her name on her handkerchiefs.

Once again, she was knocked out of her mind when Hiccup said they should start. One of the male servants arrived with a folding ladder. Her head tilted up to see the old gold chandelier. The servants had left and it was just he and she now. She held the ladder while he climbed up to see what was wrong with the lights.

“This place is nice, huh?” he said with a smile. “I want a house like this.”

Of course, Merida couldn’t answer honestly. She has lived there all her life. So, she just remained silent, hoping he wouldn’t ask for her to clarify if she found it nice. Luckily, he didn’t. But a pang of pain pierced through her chest from what he said next.

“The heiress must be spoiled. Why would she run away from a warm, sturdy home?” Hiccup huffed as he unscrewed the nearest light bulb. “Probably to run away with her suitor and have a lot of babies.” It was a joke but she didn’t take it as so.

At the foot of the ladder, Merida stood with her head bowed and her eyes filled with tears. Was that how everyone thought of her? How he thought of her? Hearing this judgment from someone who has grown close to her was almost unbearable. Her clutch on wooden ladder had grown weak. She mustered her strength to fight to tears from rolling down her cheeks, and to prevent herself from sniffing and gasping in confusion and sadness.

When he asked for his tools, she would give them without looking at him. She tried to act normal, trying to calm herself down and telling herself that he didn’t mean it. That he just didn’t know the heiress was she. But still, it was painful.

It only took Hiccup about an hour to fix the lighting and replace the bulbs. He went to tell the head servant while Merida waited for him. Alone, she felt very uncomfortable. But after a while of examining the entertainment room, she felt at home still. Her thoughts brought her back to the past as she walked around, sort of acting like she lived there.

She arrived next to the grand piano and looked at the clean keys. Her dirty, bandaged (as gloves) fingers touched the white keys and pressed one after brushing her index on a few. She played a short melody with one hand. If it weren’t for her mother’s persistence on her learning the piano, she wouldn’t be able to play that small piece. It was one of the few pieces she learned how to play.

Her lips were slowly forming a subtle smile, when suddenly Elinor’s voice rang in the room. “What are you doing?”

Chills ran down Merida’s spine. Oh no. She thought in dread. Her hand quickly lifted from touching the keys. She didn’t talk. Her mother might find out.

“Who told you to touch that?” The woman’s intimidating voice got louder as she got nearer.

Merida immediately backed away and kept her head low, using her cap to shade her face. Just then, Hiccup and the head servant arrived at the scene. Elinor turned her head to the head servant and lifted her chin. “This young man touched the piano.” There was no need to say anything more. Hiccup immediately apologized and went to Merida’s side, while the servant began apologizing and wiping the keys clean from her fingerprints.

“And who is this?” Elinor asked after briefly scrutinizing Hiccup’s form.

“They’re the electricians we hired.” The servant answered, slightly intimidated by the mistress.

Another brief look at the man and his apprentice then proceeded to go to the patio at the back, “Where is Maudie? Have we received the letters yet?” her voice faded, but not too far to be inaudible. One of the servants answered her, following her, “She is in the market, ma’am. There’s no letter yet.”

“Any sign of her?”

“No, ma’am.”

Hiccup watched the Dunbroch woman got out the door and turn right. Merida’s head was still low. She let out a soft, shaky exhale. “That was terrifying.” He grimaced at the woman’s direction then looked down at her, his expression softening. “Why did you touch the piano?”

Good question. Why did she?

There was a prolonged silence due to Merida not being able to tell him an excuse and the truth. Hiccup thought she was terrified of the woman, so he let it go. “Well, I got our payment. So we should go.” He smiled comfortingly at her. She merely nodded and followed him out. She didn’t lift her head until they were out of the vicinity. She swore she was never going back in there ever again.

As they waited for a carriage, Hiccup talked about their pay, their side jobs, and the Dunbroch family.

“I heard they asked for their friends’ help to locate their daughter. His father also participated with the police in their search.”

Now hiding was going to be even more difficult. She was surely not going to be able to show her face outside. I might need a mask if this keeps up, she rolled her eyes in thought. She would need a better disguise if she wanted to get away.

Maybe I could dye my hair… She pursed her lips in thought. She was definitely considering the idea.

“Mark, you keep spacing out lately. Are you sure you’re okay?” Hiccup peered to the side to see her face clearer. “Did you want a piano? Is that why you touched it?”

Merida was caught off guard with this and stammered “N-no. Not really. I was… I just thought the piano was… pretty.” What?? She was unimpressed with her answer, but Hiccup bought it.

“It is. It looked expensive too.” He beamed at her. Thank heavens for his obliviousness.

“What… did you think of the house?” She changed the subject away from her interest. Architecture might be his fancy, other than engineering.

“Well, it’s definitely grand.. But there seemed to be something off.” He tapped his index finger on his chin.

Merida deadpanned, “Too spacious?”

“Yeah! That. I want a big house too, but not so spacious that it looks empty despite the amount of decorations.” He laughed heartily.

“An average-sized house would be fine for me, to be honest.” She made a lopsided smile. “A room for me, a living room, kitchen and a balcony. Simple.”

“Looks like you also have a dream house. My dream house has two floors too!” He said enthusiastically, getting hyped up by their topic. He hailed a coach and got in with her. He spoke more about his dream house, and she eagerly listened, imagining his dream house with him. Their topic jumped from dream houses, to traveling the world, going on to adventures. And when they got back to their street, they talked about their future selves. How many kids they wanted, and what they would name them.

Merida has never heard any man talk about family. It was always about sports, business or women—Never about having a family. Although, Hiccup was still unsure of what he wanted in his family.

“I’m not much of a child-person, but I think settling down and having a family of my own would be nice.” He said with a small smile. “How many do you want?”

“As long as they aren’t triplets.” Was her immediate answer. It made him laugh.

“Why? What’s wrong with triplets?” he asked, trying to calm himself from laughing.

“Juist that they’re a pain in the neck.” There was definitely an experience behind her words.

“How do you know?” there was a silly grin plastered on his face.

She froze for a bit. “Well, my.. former neighbor had triplets. They were a’ways causing trouble.”

He laughed again, “I guess. How many boys do you want?”

“One boy an’ one girl would be enough. Y’know, a pair. Whot about you?” Talking about future families was new, but it was a pleasant discussion with him. It always was with any topic with him. He just had this welcoming vibe with him that she always felt that talking to him was talking to an old friend, and she felt terrible hiding things from him, but she didn’t want to go back.

Hiding her identity from him was going to be risky. There was no turning back now. She has already dragged him into this mess, and once authorities would find about she was with him, they would question him, and poor Hiccup would be confused and afraid, just because she dragged him in this without his knowledge or consent.

“Let’s be neighbors one day. I mean…” Hiccup’s voice rang in her ears. She saw him rubbing scratching his temple. “If that’s okay with you.” She just stared at him. He wants me to be his neighbor? “I-if you’re wondering why, it’s because y-you’re like my brother, y’know? You’re family to me, and I don’t want to part away from my family.”

It was easily the most touching thing she has ever heard. Her heart melted. She felt appreciated with little to no effort at all. After getting told that she was only worth when she knew how to run a household, and that she wouldn’t worth to a wife if she didn’t know how to be a lady (to which she tried, but she really just didn’t fit in the category), to this person, to Hiccup, she was family without trying hard to prove herself a worthy ‘brother’.

His words made her smile softly, “Of course.” She gave him a pat on the shoulder. “We’re brothers. And you’re—“ she gently punched his arm, her smile transitioning from subtle to playful, “—my brother from another mother.”

The two laughed, and Hiccup wrapped an arm over her shoulder and used his free hand to mess with her cap. They were getting even closer, and their bond becoming stronger, and it seemed like the whole universe agreed with them. Nothing could set them apart.

End of Chapter

Boy, that was long! ALMOST A HUNDRED WORDS AWAY FROM 6000 WORD COUNT.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and that it made up for the lack of time to update.