You Changed my Fate

New Tail

Merida was trudging through the woods, the rain was gone, but mud stubbornly stuck to her flats. She gripped her bow tightly, eyes scanning the frowning trees and dying grass.

She munched on an apple, and over her shoulder was a satchel full of fish. The smell made her gag as none of it was cooked. Once reaching the river near the Fire Falls, she spotted the black dragon napping.

Merida slammed her satchel down, the fish falling out. Toothless shot up, mad that Merida had woke him, but happy to see piles of fish. He dove in, slurping up all the food.

Merida groaned, annoyed at the sound. Her own stomach rumbled, she started to miss the big feast she would eat at dinner. She rose, aiming her bow into the river. She pulled the string back as released, the arrow poked out of the water and she plucked it out. On the end was a fish, obviously dead.
_______

The fire Merida made cackled through the night, sunrise was close as she saw oranges and yellows covering the skies near the ocean. Toothless grumbled in his sleep, rolling over, seeming distressed.

Hiccup popped out of the woods, his boot (and prosthetic) muddy. In his hand was something wrapped and tied in leather. He smiled when he saw Merida.

"Hey, you just needed to feed Toothless, not babysit him."

Merida rolled her eyes. She stood up and wiped the dirt off her dress. She slung her bow over her shoulder and hooked her satchel onto her shoulder.

"I was just about to leave."

"Wait. I- um, I made a new tail, f- for Toothless. Want to help me test it out?"

Merida pondered, she was supposed to be running away right now, but she didn't want to let down the Viking.

"Alright, but make it quick."

Hiccup did his signature lopsided grin (that made Merida blush a light pink) and gestured his hands to Toothless.

"Shall we, m'lady." Hiccup said, sarcastically.

Merida felt a twist in her stomach, but shook it off.

"Um, shouldn't you attach the tail first." Merida questioned, eyeing Hiccup's invention.

The boy turned red and chuckled nervously, "Heh, right. For - forgot about that."

Hiccup bent down and untied the leather cover. A prosthetic tail rolled out, it was colored a chocolate brown and look very simple. After some time of latching on various mechanisms and other objects, the viking stood, seeming happy.

He climbed on Toothless and hooked his leg onto a foot holder attached to the dragon. He held out his hand and Merida rejected it, lifting herself up onto the Night Fury.

"You might want to hold on to something." Hiccup said, adjusting his foot.

Merida ignored the warning and sat uncomfortably on the saddle. Hiccup sighed and glanced at Toothless,
"To the skies, Toothless."

The dragon readied itself and shot up into the sky. Merida screamed and threw her arms around Hiccup's waist, burying her face in his shirt.

Hiccup tried to ignore the action and focused on Toothless. The dragon flew near the clouds, purring at the beauty. Merida felt the rumble beneath her and looked above her. She giggled and raised her hand to graze the fluffy clouds.

"It's beautiful." She breathed, soon glancing down to where her village lay. The castle shined in the sunlight, yellows and oranges reflecting flawlessly against the ancient stone. The forest trees swayed softly, their leaves glowing in the warmth.