I -have- to stop doing this. Seriously. I have a ton of homework to do! Ahh! Why am I writing! Dx Ah, whatever. Anyway, like I said, I'm in WAY too deep in the fandom. And since I'm only really good at writing...lately...not so much...I keep writing fics! Oh, man...
Honestly, this is a DRABBLE. Or rather, started out as one. Then it became 2000+ words long. They I decided not to post it immediately and edited it a bit. So yeah...well...enjoy!(?)
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own How to Train Your Dragon, Rise of the Guardians, Brave and/or Tangled franchise. They belong to their respective owners at Dreamworks, Disney, and Pixar. College student who need to maintain grades here, nothing to see!
Merida knew that one of her greatest flaws was her anger. Among the four of them, she had the least amount of control over her emotions. That, on its own, wouldn't have been a problem. She could have just thrown a tantrum, leave to cool some steam, then apologize later on, just like anybody else.
But she wasn't just anybody. She was the spirit of summer. She held the power over the heat rays of the sun, a blazing intensity that was her source of energy. Her energy from the sun was the source of her power, the power to make everything around her – forests, wildlife, colors, even life itself – much more active, more intense. It was a job that she did happily.
On the other hand, when consumed by anger, she would dissolve into flames, scorching everything in her path, and her golden bow would shoot uncontrollable fire arrows. Her spirit was intense, her innerfire even more so. Those unfortunate enough to have caught her in a bad mood (AKA Jack, Rapunzel and Hiccup) would see everything around her begin to burn, the temperature becoming that much hotter that fire would not even be needed. Sometimes, they really did burst into flames.
It was her anger that had caused destructive forest fires that lasted for days without end. She wasn't proud of it, but sometimes she surprised herself at the amount of heat she could produce.
North and the senior guardians had often warned her about her anger, that she shouldn't let it out of hand.
"When you lose control, you lose yourself in your own element. It, and your emotions, control you." Toothiana explained kindly, trying not to upset her.
"When that happens, you'd be even more destructive than Old Man Frost here." Bunnymund would add, pointing to the not-so-old winter spirit.
"Hey! Since when has snow ever been destructive?" Jack asked, incredulous.
Sandy formed a complex image out of sand; a great hurricane of snow and ice covering a landscape, uprooting trees, wrecking homes, and trapping people inside winter graves. After Merida, it was no secret that Jack came in second on the needing-anger-management list.
"He's right, Jack." North soothed, noticing the smirk drop from his face. "Ice can be as deadly as fire. It is cold and unforgiving, and can cause just as much destruction. That just means that both of you – no, all of you – must be careful with your powers. Even Rapunzel."
The blonde looked up, confused. "Me? But I've never gotten angry."
"But you have gotten upset, once." Bunny said. "Wildlife started growing frantically around you as a response to your emotions, and even started wrapping around us. You control life itself. You have the potential to make anything living, especially flora, since that's what your fond of, into creatures of destruction."
"I can?" she asked, staring at her hands, not realizing the extent of her powers. "But all I do is the healing and growing."
"That's because you do not realize your own strength." North said. "To be able to control your own power, you must know the limit. That way, you will know when and where you are doing more harm than good, especially when you are experiencing negative emotions."
"What about Hiccup?" Jack asked, looking at the brunette leaning on a black dragon.
"What about me?" He asked, with a slight tilt of his head.
"What happens when you get angry?" He asked. "We all know what me and Merida do when we're angry, and we've at least seen Rapunzel upset enough to have a general idea. But I don't think I've ever even see you cross."
The senior guardians glanced at each other worriedly, seemingly knowing the answer to the question but refusing to say anything.
"He's right." Merida said, tapping a finger to her chin in thought. "You rarely show any negative emotion, except when Jack or I are tormenting you. But all you do is smack our faces with a bunch of leaves."
Hiccup stared at her, and, just like every other time, his eyes were blank and unreadable. He glanced at the senior guardians, who stared at him nervously, before he faced his fellow season spirits.
"Who knows?" He said after a long silence. "We may never find out…hopefully."
Something convinced Merida that he did know, but she didn't take note of it, figuring that he probably had plenty of self-control. And the fact, of course, was that he was the autumn spirit. Not as destructive as her summer or Jack's winter. Perhaps he was some kind of healer, like Rapunzel. He was probably weaker too, since he even lost against Rapunzel in their friendly sparring matches.
Whatever it was, she didn't give it a second thought.
It was not long after that she did find out. They were in a battle against Pitch in a great forest that was, thankfully, uninhabited by humans. Merida, Rapunzel and Hiccup had unlocked their memories from their respective Tooth boxes, and uncovered their centers; Brave, Creativity and Change, respectively, the day previous, and their revelation had made them stronger, more driven, in battle.
The number of nightmares that were attacking them started to lessen, but something told Merida that it was different. There were fewer foes not because they conquered much, but because less and less were attacking. Pitch was retreating, calling back his fearlings and nightmares away, much to her surprise and confusion.
"Leaving so soon?" Jack called, trying to taunt the dark man, seemingly oblivious to their growing suspicion.
"Oh, don't be so disappointed." He said, smiling like a devil. "I'm leaving all the fun for you guys."
Suddenly turning to the autumn spirit, who had his back to them and was charging at four nightmares and reducing them to dust, Pitch gave a cruel laugh.
"It really is such a pity, Hiccup." He said, catching the rider's attention. Hiccup turned around, a bored expression on his face.
"That you're a pathetic excuse of an immortal?" He asked, one eyebrow raised.
"To think." Pitch continued, ignoring the insult. "That you left your little village at the hands of Alvin, eh? Your father fought bravely trying to defend the lifeless body of his pathetic excuse of a son."
Hiccup's eyes turned to slits.
"That's none of your concern." He spoke, but a something cut through his normally flat voice. Anger.
"Seemed he wanted to give you a proper burial of sorts. Too bad it led to his own grave. Alvin made a show of his defeat to the village. What do you think that did for them?"
"Be quiet." He hissed, signalling to Toothless to launch a plasma blast at the man.
"Obviously, they surrendered. Lost all hope." His voice echoed around them, and he emerged from the army of fearlings right behind the autumn spirit. "All because one rider was willing to sacrifice them for a bunch of chained dragons."
"Shut up!" Hiccup yelled, surprising the guardians and season spirits. He had never raised his voice before.
"And that blonde girl, what was her name?" Pitch continued, obviously delighted. "Well, whoever she was, she died pathetically. Wouldn't surrender to the Outcasts, along with the rest of your little friends. They were the first to burn."
"Don't you dare speak of them!" Hiccup did not shriek, but he might as well have, the rage in his voice surprising the rest of the guardians. He jumped from Toothless, hovering in the air momentarily with a small dagger raised against Fear itself.
"Her last words were your name, you know." Pitch said, almost nonchalantly. "Screaming for you to save her. Of course, you didn't. Now she and the rest of that village are dead."
"You're lying." Hiccup seethed. "I would never let that happen!"
"But you're dead, autumn." Pitch said. "You already did."
Hiccup could take it no more. He commanded the west wind to push him through the air, flying towards the man, his dagger raised to attack.
In the distance, Merida saw what was happening. As Hiccup flew, Pitch had called upon all his nightmares to attack him. Hiccup battled his way through, still trying to reach his target. Above him, a lone nightmare was flying down towards him, a malicious smile on its face.
Toothless was too far away, keeping a few fearlings at bay in battle. Not much, but enough that he could not protect Hiccup.
'Exactly what Pitch wants' Merida realized with horror.
"Hiccup!" she screamed, hoping that he could hear her. "Don't go any further! It's a trick! He's trying to lure you in."
Hiccup had stopped for a fraction of a second to look at her. In that moment, she (and probably the rest of the guardians) saw what she never thought they would. Tears. He was crying.
He told them earlier, when he had regained his memories, that he died during the Outcasts' raid on Berk, his home. He did not tell them the details of it, but, unlike Merida and Rapunzel (Or Jack, who shared his own memories), he had not shown any sadness or regret. Only a calm peace at finding his center.
And he seemed far from calm peace when he looked at them. Everything Pitch had said affected him greatly. Breaking him.
But, much to their horror, in that fraction of a second, the nightmare had hit him in the head, dark tentdrils curling around his hair and vanishing, almost as if it seeped into his skull.
Hiccup fell to the ground, on his knees, his hands clutching his head. Pitch laughed, watching the boy, calling his army back to him.
"Sweet dreams." He said before vanishing with his army.
They stared at the spot he had disappeared to, wondering what his motives were, until an ear-piercing scream filled the air. Turning to the source, Hiccup was on his knees, his hands on his head, pulling at his hair painfully, his mouth open wide in a terrible cry of anguish. The sound vibrated around them, causing an eerie echo, and yet piercing through the very soul of anyone who had the fortune of being within hearing distance.
He screamed for what felt like an eternity, raw emotion in his screech, sending chills up Merida's spine. She glanced at the rest of the guardians, and saw that they didn't look any better than she felt. Even Toothless, who was a distance away, folded his ears in, but stared at his boy worriedly.
Then Hiccup stopped. His fingers fell away from his head to the ground. He was bent down on hands and knees, his eyes shut tightly, and he panting heavily. Jack, Merida and Rapunzel rushed forward to see how their friend was doing.
"No!" North yelled after them, but they ignored him.
Nearing the boy, Jack yelled "Hiccup, are you alright?!"
At the sound of the voice, his eyes opened, but his three friends suddenly stopped running towards him. His eyes were a pupil-less, dark abyss that shined with a grim sort of light. His hands on the ground formed into fists, and the shivers stopped.
"Hiccup?" Rapunzel called out, worried.
The grass beneath Hiccup started to wither, first to an earthly brown but turned grey and then into dust that started swirling around him. The dry ground beneath him looked chalky and was cracked, almost as if all life was sucked out.
"I'll kill him." Were the only words he uttered before suddenly yelled out another blood piercing shriek.
The greying grass started spreading around him in a circle. Tiny plants shrivelled up, leaves withered quickly before losing their substance entirely. Trees became darker, forming thin branches that reached out into the sky like outstretched hands hopelessly clinging to nothing. The ground turned from brown to a sickly dark, dark, green until it looked almost black. The sun seemed to have disappeared, and yet there were no clouds. Only a bleak sky.
He kept yelling. His screech was not like the one earlier, the one that sounded desperate, like a child crying out for a deceased parent. This one was full of rage and fury, a motivation so cold and unforgiving it was bone-chilling. Like a monster thirsty for blood. And as he screamed, the destruction around him continued.
Stunned at what was happening around them, the three other season spirits were frozen solid in place as the area Hiccup was affecting grew nearer. As soon as the first greying grass touched the tips of their feet, Merida felt a life-draining sensation, as if all the power and energy was being sucked out from her.
Beside her, Jack tried to take to the sky, but instead dropped down to the ground in a crouch, looking confused and completely drained. He was pale, and the frost that covered his staff started disappearing.
"What's happening?" He whispered, as if he didn't have the energy to talk properly.
Merida followed soon, also feeling tired and drained, and she didn't have the energy to catch herself into a position, instead stumbling to the grey floor. She tried to answer the winter spirit, but found that her throat was dry.
On the other side of Jack, Rapunzel stood, shivering, her arms around her, trying to stay standing but dropped down too. She started getting weaker too, as her hair was starting to lose luster.
Completely confused, shocked, and helpless, Merida's eyes were about to close when a dark shadow passed over them, and then was under them. The shadow was carrying them back to the area that still had its colors, and her strength returned to her.
"Toothless?" Merida started down at the dragon, who gave her no attention. He flew them away from the growing circle of destruction and deposited them back to the senior guardians.
Merida watched the Night Fury fly back to the dying landscape, seemingly unaffected. As much as she wanted to go back to her friend, she knew that she could not. The only thing she could do was watch worriedly. Beside her, Jack and Rapunzel did the same. The senior guardians, on the other hand, held solemn expressions, as if watching to see what would happen.
Toothless had reached the still screaming boy, and nudged him from below. The boy, seemingly following the motion, sat back, but his face was still one of anger, his voice not losing its hoarseness.
Toothless let out his own screech in front of the boy, but one that did not hold anger or a threat, except what seemed like a command. Hiccup's voice died down, as did the destructive force that was wreaking havoc. The black in his eyes disappeared, returning to his normal eyes. He stared at the sky, utterly emotionless, before they rolled back in his head and he collapsed onto Toothless' waiting wing behind him.
Glad and relieved that it was over, the guardians approached the autumn spirit slowly. Merida and Rapunzel shivered, and Jack clutched his staff as if letting go would cause another destructive force from his fellow spirit.
"What..." Jack gulped. "What was that?"
North looked grim, exchanging looks with Bunnymund and Sandy.
"That" Bunnymund said "was Hiccup's destructive power."
Merida looked around, seeing the extent of 'Hiccup's destructive power'. The gray, lifeless landscape brought a chill up her spine, and she clutched her golden bow to her, drawing strength from it, much like Jack's staff or Rapunzel's hair.
It was a wasteland. Everything was turned to ash, and the only thing that remained were the lifeless trees that seemed they would fall over at the slightest touch. The pale sky was cloudless, as if confirming the lack of life in the area. And, aside from their breathing, all was silent. Lifeless.
"An...an uncontrollable power." Toothiana said grimly. "Who's effects are much more severe and...fatal...than you three put together...no offense."
Merida looked to Jack and Rapunzel, the cold, hard, truth about what their seemingly weaker and pacifist friend truly had control over. Merida thought back to his words 'Maybe we may never find out…hopefully.' He probably did know, but choose not to let them know.
Now they did.
"Death."
Yup. That's it. haha. Well, I might write a sequel, but I'm gonna have to do that in Christmas break. Now, I need sleep. Thank you for reading, hope you liked it, review/fav/alert if you want, but I'm not forcing anyone. Thank you.