In Another Lifetime

Chapter 23 - Busted

They returned from the small woodland, hearts newly healed and their lips tender.

"Am I forgiven then?" Hiccup smiled.

"If you weren't," Merida ran her fingers across his shoulder, up his neck and tilted his chin to meet hers, "I wouldn't be doing this."

She kissed him on the cheek softly. Hiccup sighed with relief and reached for Merida's hand.

"I guess that's a yes," he whispered, locking their fingers together. "Come on. We have to get changed for dinner."

"Is that code for 'get the midnight feast ready'?" Merida grinned.

"You know me too well."

"Well I have had two lives to learn you inside and out."

"I hope that's not a euphemism..."

"I meant it metaphorically!!"

"Good," Hiccup smiled.

Merida shook her head and rolled her eyes sarcastically, but she was still grinning.

They reached the dormitories and the moment they arrived Rapunzel and Jack both walked out of their separate rooms. They both looked pretty panicked, they must have been waiting for them a while.

"Well?" Rapunzel asked, eyes wide and questioning. Merida and Hiccup looked at their fingers clasped together, at each other, then back at Rapunzel and Jack and grinned. Jack smirked and whispered to Rapunzel,

"I think it was fair to say there was a lot of making up going on in those trees." Merida glared at him, raised her free hand and scrunched it into a fist.

"Don't make me warn you again Frosty."

"Sorry Furball," Jack grinned, "couldn't help myself."

Merida raised her eyebrows, but lowered her fist. Hiccup grinned at her and Rapunzel had to stifle a giggle.

"We're not having dinner here I trust?" Rapunzel asked. Hiccup shook his head.

"God no! We're having another midnight feast of course!" Jack laughed at the thought. "Have you seen what they're cooking?"

"They saidit was lasagne," Merida wrinkled her nose, "but I couldn't see much lasagne related ingredients in it..."

"Midnight feast," Rapunzel said firmly. "Same time as last night?"

Jack nodded and Hiccup grinned at the thought.

"Just make sure you're careful."

"Rich coming from the boy who lost an entire dragon in his past life!" Rapunzel snorted.

"Well I found him again, didn't I?"

"We'll talk about that later. See you at eleven?" Merida asked, looking at the two boys, who nodded. "We'll be wearing our best pyjamas," she joked as she and Rapunzel walked into their dormitory. Hiccup and Jack ran inside their own room and panicked.

"What do they mean by 'best pyjamas?!'" Jack hissed.

"Don't look at me!" Hiccup retorted quickly, "I know nothing about stuff like that!"

"Well, what the heck are we supposed to wear then?"

"Our pyjamas genius!"

"But I only brought one pair!"

"And?"

"And they're wearing their best pyjamas!"

"Jack," Hiccup said slowly, "I think Merida might have been joking."