The Cause {A Mericcup Novel}

Chapter 25

"A woman is like a sleeping dragon,
Caution is required when you approach,
For if it wakes, it will fly, free

Streaming fire across the field,
Burning all with wrathful flames,
I pick up my sword
And hold it high"

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As the sun descended into the horizon, the first Dunbroch flag was sighted by Knox, the husband of Filly, who always led the herd at the front. The low bellow, which sounded from his hollowed ram's horn, reported to the family of their approaching destination. Frantic squeals and bustling movement were heard from within the wagon as the women situated themselves accordingly.

Phyllis sighed in relief, slouching into the back of her wooden bench, and gave the weary horses an encouraging snap of the reigns. To her right, Merida and her mare perked up their step to bare pace with the Chief and his dragon, who had stayed near the outer front of the herd since their landing.

On approaching them, Hiccup nodded in acknowledgement, directing Toothless beside her to allow for conversation.

"I pray thee are faring well, Princess?" he asked with mock formality. His tone reminded her of the necessity to return to such mannerisms upon their arrival. And a prick of melancholy slivered itself into her soul at the understanding.

"Spare your prayers, kind Chief, for I have practiced wellness over nerves since my youth," she replied with equal formality, which awed the man by her diligently rehearsed words, and she sent him a quick wink to assure him of her raw character underneath. He smirked in return, until he noticed the white of her knuckles which gripped the mane of her mare.

'She's worried,' he thought, 'What is awaiting her back at the castle?'

Likewise, the Princess prepared herself for the coming conversation she would have with the Queen...

'Hello, mother. I'm back. Guess what! We followed the Whisps again. Also, tattie-bogles be real too. And dragons. And there's another witch to hunt...she's Norse, like Hiccup. But Hiccup's good! Not like the witch who killed the boy within the scarecrow,' she half whispered her last thoughts, "Hiccup's very, very...good."

It was Toothless who heard her final whispers with his heightened hearing, and he gurgled bashfully over the admiration she had for his human. After his successful flying scheme to lift her mood, he was beginning to welcome her approval with a giddy spirit. Hiccup had trained him on the techniques of introducing dragonese culture to unacquainted people, and as he was the first dragon to be known by these Highlanders, he strived to make peace with them and his pack.

"Your flight was a beauty I wish to witness again some day," Merida spoke, keeping her eyes forward in hopes to conceal her longing. And Toothless beamed at her words.

"Y-yes, indeed, ma'am!" Hiccup sputtered, then cleared his throat, "I'd offer you a ride this very moment, but Toothless will need a prosthetic tail fin before flying again."

"And what do you need for said fin?" she asked, meeting his eyes.

"Access to a smith shop and materials is what I use to build one back on Berk," he answered, gifting Toothless a scratch on the neck. The dragon hummed in appreciation.

Merida straightened her posture and pointed toward the heavens, stating, "Then you shall have whatever you require for your project." And the three of them shared childish smiles.

For the second time, the ears of the Macbeth family heard Knox's lowly horn, and all eyes were guided forward. The gray and teal hues of clan Dunbroch's flags waved lightly in the wind atop of two stone towers. While covered in a layer of dying moss, the pillars stood with age at two stories high and three men hollow. Only accompanied by a duo of watchmen, along with their horses, who stood closely near a small bonfire, the tower's provided post and boundary.