Swords and fire

Remarkable lives

There once was a legend, as old as time, of two souls meant to find each other life after life. How this legend came to be, is a mystery, but no one once could doubt these two souls' destiny. It was remarkable how little they changed. One of them, fiery and untamed, the other, who yearned for adventure and knowledge and discovery.

One of the two would remember the other from their last time on earth, and search for them. They'd have to convince them that of what they were. It was quite the mission, and it did not always end well. Some thought of it as a curse, having to always return to the same place. The two would not, they said it was a favor of the universe and the gods above, of being given the opportunity to find each other over and over.

Sometimes they lived remarkable lives worth remembering, and this is one of them.

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the third was the identity of the first soul. Being born first, he was the one gifted with the memories of his past life. He was born in changing times, when the Vikings were no more than an outdated synonym for trouble. He'd grown in a small kingdom with faithful people and beautiful landscapes. Hiccup was around three years of age when the second soul came to earth, in the body of Princess Merida.

Being the second born, she did not get to remember anything about her past. She was born and raised a leader, prepared for the day she'd become the overlord of the kingdom of Berk. Although she was headstrong and easily angered, she grew to be rather patient and cunning.

It took them years to finally find each other.

Hiccup, with the advantage of remembering past lives full of daring adventures, had become a squire to the crown, and that's how he came to meet the princess. Despite being a girl, she enjoyed of the same training squires received and was quite good at it. It didn't take long for Hiccup to realize that his lifelong companion had come in the shape of the brave little princess.
He often tried to get near the princess, to no avail. She was treated with far more respect than any other. Often set apart to practice with trainers, there weren't many chances to come near her. But Hiccup knew it was in her hands that his destiny lied.

Merida, on her side, had been meticulously analyzing each of the squires. She was thankful of having the opportunity to train amongst them, and she couldn't stand the thought of any of them being better than her. That and her mother, the queen, had assigned her the task of choosing one of them to be her personal knight, once they finished their training. She found that part rather unnecessary, but it was aa small price to pay for formal knightly training. Hiccup stood out to her, for one reason or the other. The boy wasn't special, as far as she could tell. He was a little scrawny and short, but he seemed to know exactly what he was doing. He was good with the sword, and didn't surpass Merida in archery, something she highly appreciated. Before Hiccup could try another stunt to get close to the princess, she expressed her interest in him.

"Haddock" she said, referring to one of the squires for the very first time during all their training. "Spar with me."

And with that, an unspoken bond was struck between them, Merida, with the intentions of befriending him, and Hiccup knowing far more.

Once their training season had ended, Merida knighted Hiccup officially, an outcome that pleased both the princess and the queen.

As the years passed, the princess and the knight grew fond of each other. Hiccup still hadn't addressed his memories, but he was quite enamored by her. She had grown into quite a beautiful woman right before his eyes.

Merida herself couldn't pinpoint the moment that Hiccup captured her heart. One day she simply looked at him and saw the rest of her life beside him. It was as if she'd been in love since before she was born.

It took all the bravery inside her heart to discuss that with the queen. Elinor and Merida had quite a tough time communicating, and their relationship was less than ideal, but Merida knew it was the right thing to do. After all, she was a princess, and her duty was for her people first and for her heart second.

"Mother," the princess said one day, "I have fallen in love."

The queen was quite startled by this statement. The two hadn't had any fights since the princess chose her knight, and she had hoped it would stay that way. Elinor thought about her words carefully before she pronounced them.

"With whom, my fair child?"

"My knight, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock, the third" Merida explained.

Elinor wished to believe she saw it coming. She tried to prepare herself, knowing, after all, that her daughter was not half as sensible as herself. But when she heard his name, her soul nearly escaped her body. The queen liked the knight, he was respectful and seemed to keep Merida in line, but he was, after all, a commoner. Not a single drop of royal blood ran through his veins. She sighed and placed her arm gently around her daughter.

"Oh, my child, you know that cannot end well" was all Elinor said.

Merida sighed, having seen this outcome coming. She knew, after all, that she'd been engaged from the day of her birth to a prince from a neighboring kingdom.
The princess was about to give up all hope when her mother did something completely out of the ordinary. Just as if the stars had arranged for the queen to speak, she hugged her daughter tight and smiled in a way she hadn't smiled in years.

"Merida, my dear, there is, after all, a way!" the queen said.

A rose tint stained Merida's freckled cheeks. Out of all the things she had imagined, her mother's support wasn't one of them.

"There is?"

"Why yes, we'll send him on a noble quest. A quest hard enough for him to be granted nobility," Elinor explained, "If he loves you, he will succeed and earn your hand in marriage."

The redheaded princess quirked an eyebrow. It all seemed far too good to be true, as if someone was handing her a happily ever after on a silver tray. It felt unreal.

"It can't be that easy" said the princess, half discouraged.

"Of course not," Elinor said, furrowing her brows, "Prince Aodhan has right to your hand from the very day of your birth, and so, he shall be sent on the very same quest."

Merida's eyes widened in terror and disgust.

"You'll treat me as a prize!" said the princess, utterly disturbed.

But, after all, that was the only way to make it fair.

And so, it was done. The knight and the prince were sent on a quest to slay a dragon that had been roaming the nearby mountains, and the hand of the princess was offered as a reward. At first, prince Aodhan was rather insulted with the suggestion, but upon further reflection, he concluded that slaying a beast was quite the noble deed that would earn him a good image.

The story of how Hiccup befriended the fearful dragon became legend. A deed outstanding enough to earn not only nobility, but the hand of his beloved princess in marriage.

They married soon after the princess' twentieth birthday, and together they ruled mercifully and gracefully, quickly becoming extremely valued monarchs. Enough that stained glasses of them still shine in the palace's walls.

Nobody knows where these two souls are, but surely enough, they shall find each other once again, as they've done before, countless times.

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