Chase the Wind
Chapter Sixteen; Dragon Racing

Everyone had turned out for such a momentous occasion. There were many amongst the crowd who never thought they would see this moment. Hiccup's face was calm and collected, but even he found himself curious. The doors opened, and the gathered people gave a collective gasp.

'This is ridiculous,' Briana sniffed, stepping out of the hut. The Vikings gave a mighty cheer, and Tuffnut handed his brand new axe to Snotlout, clearly the loser of a bet. The Scottish lass was wearing actual pants.

'Let the dragon racing begin!' Hiccup cried, throwing a hand in the air. The Vikings of Berk went wild.

xXx

Hiccup leaned forwards in his chair, and watched with a grin as the Scots handled their dragons like true Vikings. Briana had quickly gotten used to the feeling of pants, and she found herself able to move about on her dragon's back with the ease of a pro. Adding to the four scots, Snotlout and Hookfang were competing, as well as Fishlegs and Meatlug. Astrid sat by him with an equally impressed expression on her face.

'You did well with this lot, Hic,' she said, pride in her voice.

'Thanks,' he replied, genuine warmth in his tone. It had taken them nearly a month of training to earn the right to participate in their first games. So far it was Sionn that was cleaning up, his Nadder fast and agile. Hiccup waved a hand, and Gobber sounded the horn.

'The Black Sheep!' Briana cried, and she bent low on her dragon's back, encouraging him to go faster. The sheep was launched into the air, causing a flurry of wingbeats. Sharpwing stole the sheep with ease, being the largest of all the dragons in the race. William dropped the sheep neatly in the basket, winning the game instantly. All of Berk was on their feet, cheering and screaming.

Hiccup, Astrid and Stoick were on their feet, applauding the new trainees. As such, they had completed their official dragon training, and were fully-fledged members of the Viking community.

xXx

Hiccup was helping Briana scrub race paint off of Garnet's hide when the messenger found him.

'Are you the chief, sir?'

'I am,' Hiccup replied with a friendly smile. The messenger handed him an important looking envelope.

'From the Royal Family, my lord,' he said with a bow. Hiccup directed him to the Hall, where he could rest and get himself food and drink. Then he opened the envelope. Inside were five letters.

'Briana, this is for you…' Hiccup said, handing it to her, and she nearly snatched it with glee. Briana loved her life as a trainer, but she was always eager to receive news from home. Her face fell a little.

'It's the royal wedding invitation…' she told him, and Hiccup felt a knot forming in the pit of his stomach.

'Well, we'd better deliver the rest then, hm?'

xXx

Hiccup read his letter aloud to the four Scottish trainers.

'To the Chief of Clan Berk, as you are aware the royal wedding is upon us, and you are cordially invited to send a representative of your Clan to this momentous occasion…' Hiccup read in a bored tone. William frowned.

'A representative?' he repeated, and Hiccup nodded, reading it over.

'How rude…' Briana said, also frowning. 'A royal wedding is a nationwide affair. Everyone from the highest of lords to the lowest of peasants is invited. For them to ask that you only send a representative… Hiccup that's really awful…'

'It's Macintosh. He's worried that you being there will sway Merida's decision. He doesn't know you're acting chief – he thinks it's Stoick,' William told them.

'I will discuss this matter with my father, he'll know how to respond appropriately. Otherwise you three must best start making preparations. We are all expected in DunBroch in three days time…' Hiccup told them.

'They've sent them out late in the hopes that we won't get there in time,' Briana said quietly. 'It takes nearly five to get there on horseback…'

'If it's alright with you three, I'd like to suggest that you go by dragonback. It will be faster, and will show the Scots that you're committed to our cause…'

All the trainers shot him a dumbfounded look.

'Well of course we're going on dragonback. I'm not leaving Windskimmer here…' Sionn told them, and Hiccup felt his chest swell with pride.

xXx

'So they only want one Viking to attend this event, despite the fact that the entire nation is invited, hm?' Stoick said, reading the letter. They were in the Great Hall, in an alcove built especially for these sorts of small meetings. In the room was Stoick, Hiccup, Gobber and Hubert.

'Stoick, Hiccup… I- I can't fathom why my sister would do this, but I would like to formally apologise…'

'You've no need, Hubert. We're not as offended as you seem to think we should be,' Hiccup assured him. Hubert lowered his head, embarrassed.

'So who goes?' Gobber asked, and Hiccup exchanged a look with his father.

'It is asking for a representative. As I am no longer chief, I think I will go, if that's alright with Hiccup?' Stoick asked, and Hiccup nodded in relief.

'Good,' Stoick continued. 'We will leave in two days time.'

'Oh! I nearly forgot… it is customary for the Clans to present the bride and groom with a gift… sorry to spring it on you…' Hubert added.

'I'll think of something…' Hiccup declared, and the meeting was adjourned.

xXx

~ Merida ~

The woman in the mirror was not someone Merida recognised any more. She wore her cap daily. Her bow was collecting dust. Her bed had the same amount of sword chips in the beams as it had a month ago. If this was growing up, she hated it.

A sharp rap on her door snapped her from her self-pity. Her maidservant, Lorna, entered with a swift curtsey and immediately placed a jug of hot water on the vanity.

'Good morning, highness. The Queen requests that you meet her in her office this morning after you've eaten,' she said quietly, and Merida gave a short nod in affirmation.

'Also, the seamstress would care to know if you were available for a dress fitting this afternoon?' Lorna continued, and Merida dunked her face cloth in the hot water.

'I should be okay with that, as long as the Queen does not have anything for me to do,' she replied, before pressing the hot towel to her skin. Oh, to feel something again…

'Yes of course. Would there be anything else, milady?'

'No thankyou Lorna, you're excused.'

The maidservant left with a bow, and Merida proceeded to wake herself up. Then she used the rest of the warm water to scrub Fafnir's scales until they gleamed. The little dragon had gotten fat, but was very much enjoying living at the royal palace. He had free reign of the place, but was mostly content to trot around after Merida, sometimes setting things on fire or sitting on her shoulder.

Ian had told her to leave the dragon in her room on more than one occasion, but Merida just bit back her retorts and defied him anyway. She couldn't afford to throw her country into war – the dragons would no doubt double the casualties. Her mother was waiting for her in her office – a spacious room with large windows and a warm fire.

'Good morning, Merida,' Elinor greeted her warmly as she sat down. 'How are you feeling this morning?'

'I have a dress fitting this afternoon,' the princess replied in a monotone. Elinor's face fell a little as guilt swept over her.

'Well, in that case, I demand that you take Angus out for the entire morning. Poor thing wasn't meant to be cooped up like he is…'

'I'm sure Ian would have an issue with that. He doesn't want me "gallivanting about the kingdom"…' she replied, putting his words in air quotes. Elinor raised her eyebrow.

'Merida, the thing about men is that they're full of hot air. If we listened to everything they said, nothing would ever get done. So, as your mother and as your Queen, I am demanding that you take that bow of yours and go shoot things with your horse. Also Fafnir looks like he's getting fat and lazy. Make him use those wings of his…'

Merida's eyes glistened, and she was out of the door in an instant. She restrung her bow and slipped on her woollen hunting gown. As she was racing down the stairs she ran smack into her fiancé.

'Careful, Merida… where are you going?' he asked, his hands on her shoulders. She shrugged them off.

'Riding. Queen's orders. Sorry!' she said with a quick, cheeky grin, and she slipped around him and took off.

Angus was already saddled when she arrived, and they took off without a moment of hesitation. Fafnir struggled to keep up, but soon found his wings. He knew to stay out of the way of the arrows, and often disappeared and reappeared with a dead bird or a rabbit in his jaws. Her old targets were faded and falling apart, but she knew her course instinctively. Only when she had run of arrows and Angus' sides were heaving with breathlessness did they stop. Fafnir deposited a rabbit proudly on her lap. She grinned – the dragon had caught three of them, and a fat bird she couldn't identify. The kitchen staff would be happy with their haul. The sun was high in the sky as the trio made their way back to the castle, and the prospect of a dress fitting managed to dampen Merida's spirits. Her mother was wise – she needed to stop letting Ian and her father control her life. It was time to stand up for herself.

xXx

If it weren't for her circumstances, Merida probably would have loved this dress. It was a beautiful white silk, with detailed embroidery on the bodice and sleeves. She admired the way it looked on her, and tugged her hair into a less frantic position. Her mother smiled warmly at her.

'You look beautiful, lass…' she complimented, and Merida noticed that the seamstress was beaming at the indirect praise.

'It is beautiful…' she replied, staring at her reflection in the mirror. She wondered briefly what Hiccup would have thought, but pushed the thought aside. She wasn't marrying Hiccup. She was marrying Ian. She lifted her chin in defiance to herself, and took a deep breath through her nose.

Her chest expanded with her breath, popping one pin and stabbing her with another. She deflated immediately with a half giggle, half whimper of pain. She froze as the seamstress fixed it, while Elinor chuckled behind her hand.

'I'm proud of you, Merida…' her mother said, and the princess gave her a small smile. Just three days left, and she would be married.

The idea of it turned her slightly pale.

A/N:
Yeah, I know you all hate me.
There's another one coming to make up for this one being so crappy.

Fun Fact; Apparently later years of university is both hard and time consuming. I'm on my break though so I'm trying.

I will not abandon this fic. I've put blood, sweat and tears into it.
And I will finish it.
Love Knut xx