Betrothal (a merricup story)

Thirteen- I'm not denying it, am I?

Hiccup stirred. He opened his eyes, blinking as he took in his surroundings. "Where-" wasn't he just at the arena? What happened after that.... He sat up. "Ow!" He winced at the throbbing pain in his head. "Huh?" His head was bandaged neatly.

Oh, right. Macintosh. Sword.

The door creaked open. "Oh, you're awake." Jack said, walking in. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better." Hiccup said. "So...I lost the duel. Great." He sighed. "Well, it seems like I'll be going back to Berk without winning a single challenge after all."

"There's still the last challenge left, Hic." Jack said.

"I wouldn't keep my hopes up." He said. "I wonder who Merida's going to have to end up marrying..." He sighed sadly.

"Whoever it is, I doubt she's going to do it willingly." Jack said.

"If I had to guess, I'd suppose it might be Macintosh that wins." Hic mused. "He did win most of the challenges."

Jack snorted. "If it's Macintosh, I can already see Merida throwing a fit. She was this close to throwing a punch to his face after your dad brought you here, you know. If it wasn't for the queen, I think he'd be in a lot worse shape."

Hiccup chuckled. "Sounds like her." He murmured.

Jack studied him closely. "You like her." He said.

"Is that supposed to be a question, or...?" Hiccup trailed off.

"Nope." Jack paused. "You're not denying it."

Hiccup looked around helplessly. "Can we not talk about this now?" He asked.

"Nope." Jack said. "So, just to make sure....do you like her?"

Hiccup was quiet. "I'm not denying it, am I?" He said finally.

Jack grinned.