The Cause {A Mericcup Novel}

Chapter 7

'Look who I ran into! What are the odds?' said Coincidence. 'Please,' replied Destiny, 'it was fate.'

}}}===

"Yes, that's my name, miss," the young viking, Hiccup, chuckled. The Queen cleared her throat and the viking and princess looked up.

Elinor nodded her head at her daughter and Merida removed her hood, revieling her round pale face. Meridas hair was tangled more than usual because of riding Angus and she suddenly became very sheepish about her appearance. She folded her arms infront of her chest and glanced up at the viking, at Hiccup. She forgot to smile.

She caught him staring at her face and locked eyes with him. His mouth was agape and his breathing stilled. Her breath got in her throat at the sight of his forest green eyes staring back into her own blue ones. And for just a moment she forgot that he was an enemy, a transgressor, a murderer. For a moment she forgot that she was a princess, a royal, an idol. There were no fireworks of romance or lust between them, but mere astonishment. Neither of them were what the other expected them to be. Merida thought Hiccup was supposed to be a mighty chief of an evil viking tribe. Hiccup thought Merida was a common village girl, not a beautiful young woman.

"Chief Haddock," the Queen chimed in, "this is ma daughter, Princess Merida of Dunbroch. The Cause." There was a silence among the five people. Merida never took her eyes off of Hiccups, but when he heard that she was the princess, his eyes lowered and his head bowed. For reasons she didn't understand, she felt a pang of rejection inside her. And the silence ate her alive.

"Aye! I be as hungry as Mord'u when he ate ma leg! Let us be gett'in to the castle already, " the King interrupted and began to retreat toward the castle, followed by the Queen and the mustached viking. However, the princess and the chief remained still.

This was what Merida ran in fear from when she discovered the viking ship; this was what Merida scratched up her arms and legs for to warn the entire kingdom of it's coming; this was what her parents feared almost as much as the lord of nightmares: a small, young man.

"You must be someth'in very special to have such a great impact on us all," Merida whispered her thoughts out loud, surprising both herself and Hiccup. He looked up at her with wide eyes again, trying to register what she had just said.

Merida rummed her arm shyly and stammered, "Sorry."

"Don't be," Hiccup reassured, "I was thinking the same thing about you." She was surprised by his reply, wondering what he knew about her to make him think that.

"Shall we go then?" Hiccup suggested, gesturing with his hand toward the beach. She nodded and the two began to stride back to the castle.

When they walked passed people on the beach and in the village, everyone who saw them would stop what they were doing and stare at the two of them. Normally, Merida wouldn't be disturbed by the attention, but being along side a viking enemy this time, it caused her to feel guilty and vunerable, a feeling she always tried to avoid. Little did she know that Hiccup felt the same way, but not for the same reasons as she did.

As they were half way to the castle, Hiccup cleared his throat to get Meridas attention.

When she looked over at him, he said, "When we get to the castle, would you, uh, would you let me mend your arms? I have a healing agent that will help with those nasty cuts."

She paused before answering, "You don't have to."

"It's okay, I want to," he blurted, fumbling with his hands.

"I suppose that would be fine," she commented. He nodded in confirmation.

Finally, when they reached the castle, Merida led Hiccup through the back kitchen door, taking off her cloak after entering the cooking room. Normally, she would jump onto the table to sit, but in the chief's presence, she decided against it. So she pulled out a chair and sat infront of him. He did the same and sat facing her, lifting a flap of leathor on his armor. He removed a small glass bottle about two inches in length and half an inch in width from the pocket. (For those of you who use the metric system, just imagine a miniture sized glass bottle.) It was filled with a clear, thick liquid.

Stretching out her arms toward him, Merida asked, "What is tha'?"

Hiccup opened the bottle and poured the liquid into the cup of his hand, answering, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you. Now please roll up your sleeves for me." Merida hesitated for a moment, pondering whether to trust him or not. However, because of the sting coming from the cuts, she obeyed and he rubbed the thick ailment over her arms. An immediate feeling of relief washed over her and she sighed with satisfaction. Hiccup froze at her sighing.

"What's wrong?" Merida asked.

"N-nothing," he stuttered and continued massaging her arms. When he was finished he placed the bottle back into his leathor pocket and offered the princess a hand. She accepted it and he pulled her to her feet. When she stood the two realized just how close they had been sitting. Their faces were inches apart and they could almost feel the others chests rising and falling.

They quickly stepped apart while muttering apoligies. A tension between them arose. Thus, to avoid any more awkwardness, they speedily spoke to one another for a chance to gain formality again.

"Thank you, sir."
"You're welcome, mi'lady."
"Lunch?"
"Yes please."