White the Cursed

17 - The four clans festival

Just like she had promised to, Ruffnut dragged Jack everywhere with her. The first day of the festival started with sport tournaments. Log throwing – in which Snotlout was aiming to beat all records – weight throwing, tug-of-war game – in which Eret, Astrid and Dagur spent all their day – but also calmer sports like cricket.

Ruffnut, followed by Tuffnut whow as trying to keep up, brought Jack to see as much sports as possible. Once they were spotting members of the hairy Hooligans' troupe, they would cheer them up and shouting at the top of their lungs. Slowly but surely, Jack managed to let go of negative thoughts, revive the friendship he had with the twins. It took the whole morning and a good portion of the afternoon, but he managed to smile again, and even get fun. It made the twins even more joyful and energetic.

By nighttime, they insisted to share their room with him. Fitting the three of them ion the same bed proved a difficult task, especially adding a small dragon who hated being crushed, but they managed to by piling them on one another. Jack got woken up in the middle of the night because of another nightmare. A bad dream turning his fears into images, the fears he was still struggling to banish from his mind and heart. But waking up with Ruffnut's arms secured aroudn his waist, along with Tuffnut's leg over his tight and Sharpshot's body pressing against his neck and shoulder, it helped him a lot.

He repeated himself that the twins were not self-serving, that they simply had reasons to care about him, but not bad ones. Repeating Hiccup's words nearly became a mantra for him in the following days and, slittle by little, it managed to chase away the devastating outcomes of his conversation with Merida.

Said princess had not apologized to him. Visibly she had not been told of the consequences of her words, still sometimes she looked like she had because she was not talking to Jack anymore, barely witnessing him. When he could meet her eyes, she was giving him a friendly smile, but that was it. Jack noticed she was more busy spending her time hogging Hiccup's attention.

If the twins were bringing Jack everywhere, refusing to leave him, Merida was doing the same with Hiccup. Just like Jack, the tamer didn't seem to complain about it, he was accompanying her all day long with a smile. Jack could spot them from time to time, their path crossing on a few occasions. Each time he was spotting them, the princess was clinging to tamer's arm. Though they were long-timed friends, sometimes the were looking more like a couple. Jack had noticed they were close, but he really looked like the princess was seduced.

Somehow, he thought he was supposed to be happy for them, just like he was happy to see Astrid and Eret happy together, like he was happy and amused by how Dagur and Mala were completely lovestruck and smitten with the other, like he was smilling seeing Snotlout and Heather turning around the other or even Ruffnut and Fishlegs going all soft for the other. However, when it was coming to Hiccup and the princess, there was some kind of block. He couldn't rejoy for them. When he was seeing them, he couldn't help but stare. No smile, no amused thought, but an unpleasant twist in the stomach. Like some kind of knot making him loose his appetite. Jack didn't need to think to know what it was meaning. Actually, he was perfectly aware of it.

He had been since their meeting, but with everything that had happened afterward, Jack had had a lot in his mind instead.

On the third day of the festival, Tuffnut left the trio so he could participate to the steer fights. The goal was not to hurt them but manage to push them back behind a line. Snotlout had already win three times ina row. Eret, Astrid, Dagur, Mala, Heather and Gobber had given it a try too, and that what had awaken the competitive spirit – or the ego ? – of the dreadlocked blond. At first, Jack wanted to stay and cheer him, but Ruffnut got bored and took profit of her twin's absence to drag the boy with her.