Assorted Mericcup/Jackunzel

Truth or Dare

This is a request from @rhiannasayshi, one of my supporters and a truly crazy, awesome writer. Read her stuff! After this, of course. It's in Hiccup's Pov. Enjoy!

My dad and I were visiting the royal family in Dunbroch, where my best friend since (pretty much) birth lived. Princess Merida. And she had, for some reason, asked me to meet her at dusk by the Standing Stones.

"Come on, bud! We're going to be late!" I nagged at Toothless, for like, the sixteenth time. He just rolled his eyes at me. Yeah, thanks for the support. Now we were not only going to be late, but Merida's going to make it seem like I had been trying to avoid her! The truth is, I hadn't been talking to Mer for a while. We were older now and things had just gotten weirder and more awkward between us, you know, because of, well, stuff! Argh, why are girls so confusing?

Suddenly, Toothless dived down. No warning at all, just down. And landed right by Angus, which I discovered when I finally pried my eyes open. What?!
"Well, finally!" I looked up into a pair of cerulean eyes brighter than blue fire. A lump the size of a rock formed into my throat. Merida pulled me up and into the center of the Standing Stones, where a small fire had been built. "I thought tha you'd nev'r get here. You know, ever since you started abandonin' me to the idiots." She sat down by the fire and started fiddling with her hair. I sat across from her and waited. It felt like millennia till she spoke again.

"Truth or dare?"
"What?"
"Truth or dare?" She repeated, staring at me intensely. Sure, I had heard of Truth or Dare, but I had never played it. I decided to go for safe and not extremely embarrassing.
"Truth." Suddenly, her eyes lit up like firecrackers. She had something up her sleeve. I wouldn't mind being up her sleeve, the evil voice in me said. Shut up, Voice! I thought to it. You're making me sound like a pervert.
"What is the most stupid thing you've ever done?"
"You want a list?" I asked, cocking my head. She laughed at me, her loud, genuine, extremely contagious laugh. After she managed to quiet down a bit, Merida scooted closer to me and held her chin in her hands, waiting for my response.

"Ok, the absolute stupidest thing I have ever done..... was probably when I pranked the entire village." Her bright blue eyes grew wide with astonishment and anticipation. So, naturally, I continued.

"Ok, so you know the whole 'Liar, liar, pants on fire' thing? Well, at the tender age of ten, I decided that everyone had lied to me about my real parents. See, I was kind of delusional back then and thought that I was adopted by my dad out of pity. Anyway, I decided that they were all going to pay for lying to me. So, in the dead of night, I got up the courage to take a candle and burn every piece of laundry I could find."

At this, Mer giggled, which made me feel like a king. Wait, what?! Suddenly, my cheeks were burning up for no apparent reason. Oh, the gods hate me. Most guys lose face in front of their parents or friends, but no, I manage to turn red in front of my crush! Wait, what?!

"Of course, everyone assumed it was me, because back then, everything was my fault. So I was put under house arrest by Dad, who had Gobber make this special lock for the outside of both doors so I couldn't get out. But they forgot about my window. I was gone within the hour, looking for trolls." I finished, laughing at the memory.

She laughed with me for a while before gasping out, "Ok, Fishbone, now it's yer turn."
"Ok, truth or dare?"
"Dare." Was the immediate answer. She was going to regret that. I rolled my shoulders and smirked at the fiery royal.
"I dare you to fire your bow without using your hands or arms." Her eyes narrowed and her mouth drew into a scowl.
"You are evil." She hissed. I shrugged, a smug grin plastered on my face.
"I try."

She got up and stomped over to Angus, uttering words you only hear in taverns and jail cells. After drawing out her bow and a single arrow, she marched back over to the fire. Finding a nice, flat slab of rock to sit on, she positioned the bow so it was around her knees and notched the arrow. Then, aiming carefully, she grabbed the very end of the arrow with her teeth, pulled back, and fired. It ricocheted off one of the stones and landed near my prosthetic foot. Dangerously near.

"There. I did it. Happy?" Mer huffed, walking back to the fire. Happy? I was scared half out of my mind. Far off from happy.
"My turn again." I managed to say about five minutes later, still staring at the arrow. "I choose Dare." She grinned, sparks of mischief dancing in her eyes. She pulled a drawstring bag out of nowhere and tossed it at my head.
"Put it on." I raised an eyebrow and opened the bag. When I saw what was in there, I quickly closed it and threw it back to her.

"No, uh-uh, not happening. I didn't come here to be embarrassed! Especially not by you!" I yelled, throwing my hands in the air. Merida crossed her arms and was trying her best not to laugh at the ridiculous expression on my face.
"You have ta! We can't do anythin' until ya do! It's a rule." She threw the bag back at me. Darn you, Mer! I thought, grabbing the bag and retreating into the trees. You are going to pay for this.

When I emerged a few minutes later, a lot of things were going through my mind.
How dare she!
This is so humiliating.
How in the name of Odin can you wear one of these things and be comfortable?!
When she saw me, her eyes grew wider than before and her jaw dropped.
"Ya actually did it." She whispered, just loud enough that I could hear her. "I never thought you'd actually do it." I turned around so that she could get the full view.
"Brilliant." I grumbled, turning back to her and placing my hands on my hips. "Can I take the man skirt off now?" She nodded, still somewhat dazed. I mean, who wouldn't be? A Viking wearing a kilt isn't something you see (or want to see) everyday.

Once I had changed and settled back down by the fire, a huge gust of wind blew it out.
"Hiccup!" Mer whisper-yelled. "Where are you?"
"Over here." I felt someone grasp my shoulders and I slipped my arm around her waist in a reassuring way. "It's your turn, princess. Truth or dare?"
"Truth." Her voice came out quiet and slightly scared. I don't know why I said what I said next, it just came out.
"Do you like someone?" I blurted. I could feel her piercing eyes settle on my face, while I glanced up at the stars to try and avoid her gaze.

"Yes." She whispered. A small bubble of hope formed in me.
"What's he like?" I asked, hoping I wasn't pushing too far.
"Only one question, Fishbone."
"Humor me." I could feel her relax into my arms and let her head rest on my shoulder. It all felt so natural, that I closed my eyes and just listened to her soft voice.
"Well, he's a huge dork, fer starters. He's also sarcastic, never shuts up, and is constantly embarrassing himself. But he's thoughtful, sweet and selfless, so even when he is making a fool of himself, he laughs with everyone else. And to top it all off, he's probably the smartest and most handsome man alive." She stopped for a while and my heart missed a beat. I was so worried at this point.
What if she isn't talking about me? Then I'll just make a complete fool of myself by telling her. Gods, this stupid teenaged brain of mine.

"The fact that he has a dragon is a bonus." She finally said, finding my hand and squeezing it. My eyes snapped open and I turned towards her.
"Are you talking about who I think you're talking about?"
"Rocks, Hiccup! I've known you since we were wee babes! It was goin' ta happen sooner or later!" She ranted, probably rolling her eyes. I shut her up just as she took a breath.
Oh, gods. It was like everything was colliding in slow motion. Slow, steady, warm, soft. This was heaven, no question.
Suddenly, the fire was lit again (courtesy of Toothless) and he was sitting there with a smug grin on his face.

"Take a hike, Tuna Breath." I told him, resuming the kiss. Mer smiled against my lips at that. There were three things I learned that night.
1) Kilts are not as comfortable as they look,
2) Dragons are not great wingmen (pardon the pun), and
3) Truth or Dare isn't that bad. Especially not when you're with a certain someone.