"Princess? Chief?" a timid voice called.
Merida and Hiccup turned to see the young lords and ladies surrounding them. Iseabail was at the head, her hands folded together as she took a step closer. Hiccup and Merida let each other go and turned toward them.
"Will ye be bringing the rest back now?" she asked, her eyes avoiding the Princess's.
"Aye," Merida smiled at her. "We'll be setting off right now."
"I apologize for how sudden this may be, but I will take my leave," Aileas declared. "It was a pleasure meeting ye all."
She quickly turned and walked away. Merida and Hiccup watched her go, confused by her actions. Young MacGuffin looked at everyone apologetically before walking after his sister.
"Did something happen?" Hiccup asked. "Wait, did Tuffnut not apologize like I told him to?"
"Well, sort of? We don't exactly know what happened, but Sir Tuffnut was to marry Lady Aileas tonight," Catriona explained.
"Marry?!" Merida and Hiccup repeated.
"Why all of a sudden?" Hiccup asked.
"We don't know. Sir Tuffnut wouldn't even tell Lady Ruffnut the reason," Wee DingWall added.
"Ruff and Tuff always share everything. Something serious must've happened," Hiccup commented.
"And Lord MacGuffin was alright with that?" Merida asked.
"From the way Aileas spoke of the event, Lord MacGuffin was the one behind their quick betrothal and marriage," Iseabail explained.
"She was the first one to ask about their return after my first announcement. I thought she wanted them back," Merida pondered aloud.
"After you left to look for Chief Hiccup she admitted that she didn't want to make him suffer by forcing him to marry her," Katriona told them. "I think she did want them back, but felt it was best if he didn't return or else Lord MacGuffin wouldn't let him be."
"I'm sure we could talk to Lord MacGuffin about it. Don't worry everyone, we'll bring them back and sort this out," Merida assured them.
The young lords and ladies smiled and bowed to them as they left to find the others.
"Since we brought the dragons by boat they probably won't have a good sense of how to get back home, unless Meatlug leads, but it's too dark anyway, so we'll look for them by the closest islands," Hiccup explained as they made their way out.
"I'll go with you," Astrid said as she walked alongside them.
"Are you sure?" Merida asked.
Astrid ignored her.
"You don't have to if you think it'll be... you know... awkward," Hiccup added when he saw Merida's guilty eyes.
Astrid replied to him by saying, "Well, I'd like to save myself the embarrassment of having all our friends find out that you're bound to someone else after only 3 days from someone besides me."
"Technically speaking, and I'm only assuming, their marriage isn't official until morning," Ryan commented out of nowhere.
Hiccup turned to look at him in surprise, then he turned to Merida to see if she knew what he was talking about. Merida's face grew hot as she avoided Hiccup's gaze.
"What do you mean?" Hiccup asked. "Because there was no priest?"
"No. It's strange that ye don't know about it, but we have this rule," Ryan explained.
YOU ARE READING
Back Then (Mericcup)
RomanceMerida is almost old enough to take the crown, but there's a slight problem- she has to be married in order to become Queen or else another clan will take over. When she encounters old memories she had placed in the back of her mind, will she be abl...
