Ch7: Meet the Parents (and Triplets)

Hiccup's head hurt. It was the first thing that he was fully aware of – a deep, thrumming ache that began just above his ear and then seemed to reverberate around his head, creating an endless, nauseating cycle of pain, which caused him to groan in agony. The next thing that Hiccup was aware of was that he was lying on something soft – something that felt suspiciously like a bed. Which was strange, because the last thing Hiccup clearly remembered was him riding a large, tall and furry animal through the forest.

Cautiously, Hiccup opened his eyes – squinting briefly against the stab of pain running through his tender head, then opening them wider, to see that he was lying on a four poster bed, and his eyes blinked for a few times to adjust to the bright light shining through the room's only window. Although the Viking wasn't sure if it had been the early morning of a new day, Hiccup believed he would know for certain by the time that he went outside, and in a slow effort, Hiccup tried to move – he started by curling his fingers, and then lifting his hands up.

Every bone in his body seemed to be working just fine, but Hiccup was confused, and the slightest movement made his head throb anew. He reached up – carefully – and put a hand to the worst of the ache: bandaging. Yes, he definitely had hurt himself. His clothes made unusual crackling noises; they were stiff and heavy, and Hiccup realized that he still had on his flight suit, as he usually did when flying with Toothless, and that's when he began to wonder where his best friend could be if he wasn't in the room.

Hiccup tried to raise his head – he couldn't; it hurt too much, felt too heavy. He contented herself with turning it instead, but slowly, stubbornly determined. Toothless wasn't on either side of the bed, which caused Hiccup to quickly go from feeling worry to panic. If Toothless knew that the boy was injured, then the dragon wouldn't have ever kept his distance from him, Toothless would stay right by Hiccup's side until he was feeling better, so it felt uncomfortably strange for the dragon to not be here and joyfully greet Hiccup.

Maybe if Hiccup called out for Toothless, he would have his best friend coming to this room in no time, but Hiccup remembered that he wasn't in Berk anymore, so he didn't want to risk having Toothless be found by people who still considered dragons to be dangerous. All of a sudden, Hiccup recalled many things in his mind; it was a horse that he had been riding in the woods, and the horse belonged to a redhead who told him that she was a princess, and she lived in a castle with her parents and brothers, but he couldn't quite remember all their names.

Hiccup would make sure to thank them for having someone take care of his wound. He would be very grateful if they were okay with letting him stay here until his head got better. Hiccup figured the only thing he could do now was wait for someone to come in and check on him. It seemed like someone had apparently read his mind when Hiccup heard a door being opened, then he saw a redhead let herself inside and close the door behind her, and Hiccup kept his eyes on the girl as she grabbed a chair and brought it to the right side of the bed.

"Good, ye're awake, so I know this probably is a dumb question to ask right now, but how are ye feelin'?" Merida asked.

"Despite the fact I have a big headache and Toothless is not here with me, I'm just great!" Hiccup replied sarcastically.

"I couldn't bring yer dragon in the castle, Hiccup, because I was afraid that if I did, he might be killed." Merida explained.

Although he felt relieved to know his friend was alive, Hiccup still wanted to know where Toothless was at the moment.

"Okay, so where is Toothless now, and just so you can help my memory a little, what's your name again?" Hiccup inquired.

A slight frown was made on Merida's face, that hit to the head must've hurt badly if Hiccup couldn't remember her name.

"My name is Merida, and yer dragon's in the forest, and I told him to stay there until you come back." Merida answered.

"Toothless isn't exactly a fan of waiting, so that's why I should go out now and he'll know that I'm fine." Hiccup suggested.

"Ye can't, Hiccup, at least not yet, because yer head still needs more rest, so could ye stay here a little longer?" Merida requested.

Hiccup was about to argue with Merida when he took a moment to think about what the princess and her family had to offer. He made it clear in the letter he left for his father that he would be away from Berk for just one week, but Hiccup never did expect to spend any of that time with a Scottish royal family, and so he didn't want to take advantage of them or give them any sort of trouble if he stayed here. Merida's family did save his life, and she was insisting, so the least that he could do to show his gratitude was accept their hospitality.

"Alright, Merida, I'll stay, and thanks a lot for bringing me here, but is it okay if I meet your parents so I can thank them too?" Hiccup asked.

Although Merida was relieved to know Hiccup would stay, she also felt a little nervous that he wanted to meet both of her parents so soon. She assumed that Hiccup was going to remain in bed for a few more hours, but now, it didn't seem necessary since he was already awake.

"Sure, Hiccup, but ye should let me at least help ye out of the bed." Merida responded, as she held out a hand for Hiccup to take, which he did.

With Merida's help, Hiccup got off of the bed carefully, and he let Merida lead the way as they walked out of the room and through the hallway.

"So, Merida, what are your parents' names?" Hiccup asked. "It would be very awkward if I met both of them without knowing their names first."

"My Mum's name is Elinor, and my Dad's name is Fergus, but since they're the King and Queen, you can only use 'Your Majesty'." Merida clarified.

"Don't you also have brothers too, and if so, how many do you have exactly, like five or seven?" Hiccup inquired, taking a few wild guesses.

"Whoa, Hiccup, not that many! I just have three, and they're triplets, and their names are Hamish, Hubert, and Harris." Merida explained.

"You didn't tell them about Toothless when you brought me here, right?" Hiccup asked, and he sighed in relief when Merida shook her head.

"Thanks, and I'm probably annoying you by asking you so many questions, so I'm sorry, and if you want, I can stop right now." Hiccup said.

"No, Hiccup, please keep talking, and I'd rather give answers for yer questions instead of have awkward silence between us." Merida replied.

"Okay," Hiccup murmured, then he thought to come up with a new question. "So, what's your family like, and do you think they'll like me?"

"My dad can be tough and serious, but he's also kind and funny, while my mum is a very caring, thoughtful, and compassionate woman, so I'll sure that ye'll get along just fine with them, and as for my brothers, they may look sweet and adorable, but they're also clever and mischievous trouble-makers." Merida explained.

"Let me guess, they have so much fun playing tricks and pulling pranks, so what exactly have your brothers done in the past?" Hiccup asked.

"They love to steal muffins and biscuits from Maudie, one of the castle's servants, and I remember sneakin' a large plate of them under the dinner table so the boys could eat as much as they wanted to, and the boys also took a chance with tyin' our dad's peg leg to one of the table's post." Merida answered.

Hearing this caused Hiccup to laugh for a moment, and Merida didn't mind joining in with him, since she always found her brothers' pranks to be funny. Suddenly, Hiccup stopped laughing and his eyes widened at the same time, then he turned to Merida with an expression of concern on his freckled face.

"Hey, Merida, do you think that since I'm a guest here, and your brothers haven't met me yet, they'll try to make me their new target?" Hiccup asked.

"Probably, but ye have a head injury, so I don't think that they'll go too hard on ye, but I can tell them not to pull any pranks on ye." Merida offered.

"Could you do that, Merida, because I'm not sure I can handle any tricks, pranks, or games that will cause my head to hurt worse." Hiccup responded.

"Don't worry, Hiccup, I'll just tell the boys to keep makin' our dad, as well as most of the servants as their victims while ye're here." Merida assured.

"Thanks, Merida, I really appreciate it." Hiccup said genuinely, just they walked into the Great Hall, or it was otherwise known as the Throne room.

Before he walked any further, Hiccup faced Merida again, since he wanted to ask her one more question, even though it didn't seem that important.

"Merida?" Hiccup spoke softly, and he hoped that Merida heard him, despite how quiet he was, and he knew Merida did when she turned to face him.

"I know it's probably not even necessary for me to ask you this, but which room did I wake up in, like was it your parents' room?" Hiccup guessed.

"No, ye had been sleepin' in my bedchamber, and I insisted, because I didn't ye to be in a guest room that I couldn't find so easily." Merida replied.

"If I'm going to stay here for a while, then shouldn't I have a room of my own, and it wouldn't be fair for you to share your room with me." Hiccup said.

"My parents think yer head needs to heal more, so they told me that once ye were awake, I had to bring ye to them so that they could have a servant show ye to yer room." Merida explained.

Fortunately for them, they didn't have to go on a wide-open search through the castle when Merida spotted her parents sitting at the dinner table.

"Mum! Dad!" Merida called out, and upon hearing their daughter's voice, both the king and queen rose from their seat and embraced the girl warmly.

When the family was done with their hug, Hiccup took a short moment to see what Merida's parents looked like, and he started with her mother first. The queen was slender and beautiful with fair skin, long unbraided brown hair with a gray streak, and epicanthic brown eyes, while she wore a navy-blue dress with silver sequences and dark-blue shoes. As for the king, he was very tall and muscular with curly red hair, along with thick eyebrows, a mustache and beard of the same color and blue eyes, which that and the red hair were traits he shared with his daughter.

"Ah, yer awake, boy, so how's yer head feelin' now?" King Fergus asked, while trying not to be too loud and being curious to know Hiccup's condition.

"It hurts to raise it, but my head's good, Your Majesty," Hiccup said, remembering what Merida told him. "Thank you for having my head taken care of."

"There's no way that we would let the fate of a young man's heath hang in the balance, so we were more than happy to do that." Queen Elinor replied.

Hiccup was now amazed to know that even though Merida's parents didn't know much about him, they were willing to waste no time and save his life. He wanted to repay them somehow, but Hiccup remembered the only way for him to do that was to stay in their castle, at least for only a few more days.

"Thanks again, Your Majesty, and not for just my head, but for letting me stay here so my head can get more rest, it means a lot to me." Hiccup thanked.

"I'm glad to hear that, Mr. Haddock, and I believe that this is yours?" Queen Elinor asked, as a servant came into the room while carrying Hiccup's basket.

Hiccup's eyes widened as soon as he saw his basket, and the boy ran over and he opened it up to see that everything he put inside of it was still there. The expression on Hiccup's face changed when he recalled that his basket had been attached to Toothless' saddle, so how was Merida able to get it off? It didn't really matter since Hiccup had his basket now, and because he was staying in Merida's home for a while, it was rather necessary for him to have it. Speaking of his things, Hiccup decided that he should change in a new set of clothes, but get out of his flight suit first, since he did have clothes underneath.

"Thank you again for bringing my stuff here." Hiccup said, while facing Merida and her parents. "Would it be alright if I had a bath before I go to my room?"

"Of course it's alright." Queen Elinor answered, then turned to face the servant. "Please take Mr. Haddock to the bathroom so he can get himself clean."

Hiccup slung the basket over his left shoulder before he came after the servant through the castle's hallways, but not without taking a look behind him. Neither Merida nor one of her parents were following them, but Hiccup believed they all felt it was important for him to be given privacy during his bath. When the servant stopped at a door in particular, Hiccup knew right off the bat it was the bathroom, and she opened it to let Hiccup go inside of it first.

"Mr. Haddock," The servant said, which caused Hiccup to turn around and face her. "Would you like for me to run the bath before you get in?" She asked.

"Yes, that would be great, thank you." Hiccup answered, then he stood aside for the servant to come in. "Could it be a mix of hot and cold water, please?"

"Of course." The servant replied, as she went over to the tub and used a hand to turn each of the knobs connected, and water began to fill the tub.

It wasn't until the tub was at least half full when the servant turned the knobs again to prevent the water from rising to the top and overflowing.

"Is this enough water for your bath, Mr. Haddock, or would you like the bathtub to have a little more water?" The servant asked, while facing Hiccup.

Hiccup took a glance to see how much water was in the tub, and he thought for a moment before deciding that having more water wouldn't hurt.

"I'd like a little more hot water, please." Hiccup responded, then he stood by and watched as the servant turned one of the knobs to add more water.

Half a minute passed before the servant turned the knob again to stop the water and walked to the bathroom's door. "Enjoy your bath, Mr. Haddock." After saying that, the servant closed the door which announced her departure from the room, and that's when Hiccup began to take off his flight suit. The room had begun to fill with steam from the heat of the water, and once he was completely undressed, Hiccup placed his clothes onto a nearby chair.

He slowly slipped his human foot into the water, letting his skin adjust to the heat, and he'd made sure to detach his prosthetic before fully ducking his whole body into the tub. Hiccup closed his eyes before he let out a sigh of pure comfort and pleasure as he now felt very relaxed and he rested his arms on each side of the tub. It wasn't long before Hiccup started to think about not just the many times he gave Toothless a bath, but also how the dragons on Berk loved getting dirty.

During the spring, they rolled around in great puddles of mud. In the summer, they loved diving into the disgusting waters of Berk, emerging with fish and scarfing them down whole, usually getting a smaller one stuck in their teeth that they forget about. Toothless had always given Hiccup a hard time when it came to having a bath, so that's why Hiccup preferred to wash him at the cove instead of a wooden tub. The dragon couldn't ever stay still through the whole thing, and he usually enjoyed licking Hiccup constantly and soaking the boy with water and soap suds.

Bathtime for Toothless frequently became more like games of tag, as the Night Fury would run away as fast as possible, and Hiccup ended up being breathless chasing after him. Nevertheless, thinking about all of this eventually caused Hiccup's mind to focus on how Toothless must be feeling right now, with having to stay in the forest, away from Hiccup against his own will so that he couldn't be hurt or possibly killed by Merida's family. Although it was rather kind of Merida to think about Toothless' heath and safety, Hiccup knew the dragon didn't like staying away from him for such a long time.

If Hiccup was really supposed to wait until tomorrow to be reunited with his best friend, then he would rather die than have to be separated from Toothless. That would be his plan, Hiccup would find Toothless, bring him back, and convince Merida's parents to let the dragon stay with him until his injury was all healed. Hiccup was about to get himself out of the tub when he decided it was important for him to be clean first before he actually went through with his risky plan.

He scrubbed at all the places of his body that needed to be scrubbed, while making sure that each place in particular was free of any dirt he got from outside. Hiccup put one hand on each side of the tub, but this time, it was just so he could be able to stand up straight, and then get himself out of the tub. After he was finally out, Hiccup found a towel nearby and used it to dry himself off for a moment before going into his basket to get a clean set of clothes to wear.

Now that Hiccup was fully dressed, he put his flight suit into the basket, since he thought it would be a while until he got a chance to fly with Toothless again. He was just about to leave the room when he remembered the tub still had water, so Hiccup rolled up a sleeve and put his bare arm inside to search for the plug. As soon as Hiccup touched the plug's chain with his hand, he pulled on it hard, and that caused the water to slowly drain from the tub until there was no more.

With his prosthetic now attached to his leg again, Hiccup slung the basket over his shoulder before walking out of the bathroom, and closing the door behind him. Hiccup recalled that the servant brought him here from the left side of the hallway, so that's where Hiccup went, while hoping that he wouldn't get lost in the castle. During his walk, Hiccup took the time to think of how he could get Merida's family to trust Toothless, and luckily, it didn't take him so long to come up with an idea.

He'll persuade both the King and Queen to place their hand at a spot on Toothless' nose and between his eyes, just like he got Merida to do with him yesterday. Hiccup recalled the King having a peg leg just like him, so Hiccup was hoping that would be a topic him and the King could form a bond over during his stay here. The Viking preferred not to think about the possibility of King Fergus drawing his sword as soon as he saw Toothless, and Hiccup decided to just remain positive.

Now that the Great Hall was coming into view, Hiccup started to feel a little nervous, but it wasn't like this had been the first time that he did something crazy. Hiccup could already notice that Merida and her parents were having a conversation, but it was over when they heard his prosthetic as he entered the room.

"Ah, Mr. Haddock, you've returned," Queen Elinor made sure to be facing Hiccup first before greeting him."So was your bath to your satisfaction?" She asked.

"Yes it was, Your Majesty," Hiccup answered, as he dropped his basket onto the floor."If you don't mind, there's something I would like to show all of you."

"Really, Mr. Haddock, because if it's something in your basket, we already know there's clothes, food, a water skin, and a notebook inside." Queen Elinor reminded.

"To be honest, Your Majesty, it's not exactly something I have with me right now," Hiccup replied, "It's more of a living animal that's outside the castle." He added.

Merida's eyes suddenly widened and her mouth dropped of where Hiccup was going with this, and she shook her head in believing this wouldn't go well at all.

"If it's a horse you're talking about, Mr. Haddock, then we can gladly bring him to the stables, that's where all the other horses are kept." Queen Elinor advised.

"It's not a horse, Your Majesty, or even a bear either," Hiccup said, as he took a deep breath before saying the next few words. "It's a dragon." He revealed.

For a moment, King Fergus and Queen Elinor stared at Hiccup before they burst into a fit of giggles, which caused Merida and Hiccup to face palm simultaneously. It became clear to Hiccup that neither of Merida's parents believed him, so obviously, he had to prove it by bringing Toothless here, but he needed Merida's help.

"I can prove it, Your Majesty, to both of you, but your daughter needs to come with me, because she actually knows where the dragon is right now." Hiccup said.

The King and Queen both turned their head to face Merida, who they expected to chortle from what Hiccup said, but were surprised to see the girl nod her head. Hiccup may have known that Toothless was in the forest, but it was Merida who knew the dragon's exact location, since Hiccup had been unconscious when she brought him to the castle.

"Mum, Dad, everything that Hiccup has told ye, it's the truth, I know where his dragon is, and ye have to promise not to have any weapons out when we bring his dragon in here." Merida requested.

Queen Elinor and King Fergus could easily tell from the tone of their daughter's voice that she was quite serious, and they didn't feel like stopping Merida from leaving the castle with Hiccup to find his dragon.

"Alright, lass, if ye say the boy's tellin' the truth, then we believe him too, and we promise to have no weapons around when ye return with his dragon." King Fergus promised, but not before nodding his head.

"We're not going anywhere, Merida, we'll stay right here and wait for you to come back." Queen Elinor said, then she and her husband looked on as their daughter and Hiccup walked out of the Great Hall.

Once they were out of her parents' sight, Merida was about to strike Hiccup on the head, but remembered his injury, so she punched him in the arm instead.

"Hey, what was that for?" Hiccup asked, as he quickly cradled his arm. "The last thing that I need right now is to have another part of my body badly hurt."

"What were ye thinkin', Hiccup," Merida asked, not bothering to stay quiet. "Ye really think my father won't have your dragon's head as a mounted trophy?"

"Your dad's not going to kill Toothless, not unless my dragon attacks him first, which he won't, because Toothless doesn't do that anymore." Hiccup replied.

"The reason my parents were laughin' is because they always believed that dragons didn't exist, since none of them go around this land." Merida explained.

"Well, they do exist, Merida, my home is an island that's full of dragons, so maybe you and your parents should come visit Berk sometime." Hiccup suggested.

"Maybe my parents should meet Toothless first and have actual proof that he's not dangerous before we decide to go visit your home." Merida responded.

"That's a good idea, and speaking of Toothless, since you know where he is, I think that you should lead the way so we can find him." Hiccup recommended.

Merida nodded her head as she walked to come in front of Hiccup, then led him all the way out of the castle, and through the forest to Toothless' whereabouts. All of a sudden, Hiccup dashed past Merida when he recognized a black mass in the distance, while the princess kept walking at a leisurely pace to reach them.

"Toothless!" Hiccup exclaimed happily, as he instantly hugged the dragon's muzzle and petted his snout, then the Night Fury gave his human a lick on his face.

Merida had to admit that the affection she saw Hiccup and Toothless give each other was cute, but it's not like she would ever say that out loud or in public.

"Yeah, I'm happy to see you too, bud," Hiccup whispered softly that Merida couldn't hear his words. "I'm all right now, so you don't have to worry anymore."

Toothless didn't feel like not worrying about the boy because when the dragon moved away, he moaned at the sight of the bandaging around Hiccup's head.

"Really, bud, I'm fine," Hiccup reassured. "Merida's family took care of it, and they've even allowed for me to stay with them in their castle for a few days."

Hiccup felt delighted to see a gummy smile appear on Toothless' face from knowing they wouldn't have to keep living in the woods for the rest of the week.

"There's only one problem, Merida's parents don't think dragons exist, so we have to prove they do, and show them you're not dangerous." Hiccup suggested.

To the boy's relief, Toothless didn't disapprove of the idea by shaking his head, but he walked a few steps ahead of Hiccup in the direction of Merida's home. Seeing the dragon so confident to meet the King and Queen made Hiccup feel quite happy. It was like Toothless had no fear that something would go wrong. Hiccup didn't want to keep Merida's parents waiting any longer, so he caught up with the Night Fury and together with Merida, they walked back to the castle.

As they entered through the front gates, Merida tried her best to imagine that Toothless' meeting with her parents would turn out to go very well. No weapons being drawn, no blood being spilled, and everybody still having all their limbs intact long after the meeting was over and done with. She couldn't believe it, but it seemed like Merida's efforts to feel optimistic was actually working, and the princess didn't feel so anxious at the moment.

Since this was Hiccup's idea from the beginning and he had a lot more experience with dragons, Merida figured she would let him do most of the talking. Merida still wanted to help Hiccup, even though she wasn't sure how she could, but if Hiccup needed her assistance, then Merida wouldn't hesitate to give it. The entrance to the Great Hall was fast approaching and since he was positive this meeting would be successful, Hiccup didn't stop to take a deep breath.

If he proved to Merida's family that dragons weren't vicious beasts but kind and amazing creatures, they'd be more interested to visit Berk in the future. At last, Toothless came into the room with Hiccup on the dragon's left side, and Merida on his right, while her parents quickly noticed Toothless' presence. Both of them stayed quiet as King Fergus didn't run out of the Great Hall to get a weapon and Queen Elinor didn't call for a guard or take a few steps back.

They did have a wide-eyed expression on their face, most likely due to the fact they've truly never seen a dragon before, especially not in their own home. Hiccup realized that if he didn't break the silence, then things would begin to get very awkward between them all, so he cleared his throat before speaking.

"Your Majesty, this is my best friend, Toothless, and he's a Night Fury, which is the fastest, smartest, and rarest of all species of dragons." Hiccup explained.

He was hoping that the King and Queen would say something by now, but they remained silent, so Hiccup decided that he should say a few more things.

"The reason why I named him 'Toothless' is because he has retractable teeth," Hiccup said, before turning to his friend. "C'mon, bud, show them your smile."

Toothless quickly made his famous gummy smile, and eventually, it seemed to have a positive effect on the Scottish royals, as a smile appeared on their face. A small grin had come to Hiccup's face upon seeing this, and then he motioned for Toothless to come closer to Merida's parents, and Hiccup stayed by the dragon's side for the whole time. Merida still wasn't sure if Hiccup needed any help from her, but Merida kept herself quiet, because it looked like things were going pretty good for Hiccup so far.

The princess had a feeling that she knew exactly what would happen next, so Merida did her best to have faith that the meeting would go in that direction. Hiccup had knowledge of the saying "ladies first", so he decided that Queen Elinor should go first to gain Toothless' trust, so both of them turned to face her.

"Your Majesty, would you please bring out one of your hands for me?" Hiccup requested, and the Queen didn't waste any time in doing what Hiccup asked.

"Nothing bad is going to happen, Your Majesty," Hiccup assured as he took the Queen's hand. "You'll just have your hand on a spot above Toothless' nose."

"Just be patient, keep your hand out toward Toothless, and wait for him to come to you," Hiccup said, before turning his head to face Toothless, and with one of his hands, he motioned for Toothless to come closer, and so the dragon slowly walked in the Queen's direction.

Hiccup, Merida, and King Fergus all stayed silent and watched as Toothless stopped moving when his head came just below Queen Elinor's waiting palm. The Night Fury closed his eyes before raising his head and then pressing his nose into her palm, and the Queen quietly gasped with the soft feeling of it, as well as the warmth running into her palm, and coming right down her arm too.

"So, Your Majesty, do you feel that now?" Hiccup asked quietly, and Queen Elinor quickly brought her face up from staring at her hand to look at Hiccup with a expression of awe.

It wasn't long before the Queen slowly nodded her head, and Hiccup could immediately tell from the look on her face that she wasn't afraid of Toothless at all. Nonetheless, Hiccup reminded himself that it wasn't over yet, as he still needed to carry out the same technique with the King and everything would be okay. Hiccup let go of Queen Elinor's hand while Toothless brought his head down from the Queen's palm before the two of them moved to face King Fergus.

The Viking basically repeated the same things to the King that he'd said to his wife not long ago, from asking for one of his hands to asking the man if he felt the warmth coming from the dragon's nose. Merida began to assume that things were taking a turn for the worse, especially because her father hadn't changed the look on his face ever since Toothless had come into the room, but she refused to believe it. Perhaps it was possible that King Fergus still couldn't believe that dragons weren't dangerous, even though there was one in front of him being quite friendly.

If that was the case, then Merida felt like stepping forward to say something, but she decided not to do that when a grin appeared on the Scottish man's face. The King quickly brought his hand down from in between Toothless' nose to underneath his chin and started to scratch, which caused the dragon to purr loudly.

"Well, look at that, Haddock, yer dragon's just like my deerhounds," King Fergus admitted, and a bright smile appeared on Hiccup's face from what he heard.

It was at that moment Hiccup knew the meeting was a success, and Merida's parents weren't going to have a problem with Toothless being in their castle. The next few days wouldn't have the King and Queen, as well as their entire staff be frightened out of their wits whenever they were in the dragon's presence. When Hiccup brought his mind back to Toothless, he realized the direction of King Fergus' hand, but before he could even raise his hand in warning, the King's fingernails reached that special spot under the dragon's neck, causing Toothless to fall onto the stone floor. King Fergus quickly brought his hand back, while wondering if he hurt the Night Fury by accident, so Hiccup obviously felt the need to explain what happened.

"It's okay, Your Majesty, you didn't do anything wrong, dragons have a spot just under their jaw that they love to have scratched, and if pressed just right, it sends them straight to sleep." Hiccup said, making things more clear, and the King sighed in relief from hearing this.

"For a moment, I actually thought I killed yer dragon!" The King replied before chuckling a bit, then he and his family watched as Hiccup woke up Toothless.

"Killing dragons used to be the norm on Berk, but all that changed when I met Toothless, so Your Majesty, would you like to hear the story?" Hiccup asked.

Merida's eyes widened when she realized that she hadn't heard from Hiccup yet, and so she was quite excited that her parents would get to hear it as well.

"I'm sure that we'd all love to hear yer story when we have dinner, because that's usually when I tell the story of my battle with Mor'du." King Fergus replied.

Since he didn't feel a rush to tell them his story, Hiccup was willing to wait a few more hours, but he wondered of how he was going to pass the time. Obviously, Hiccup wanted to go flying with Toothless, but he didn't think Merida's parents would allow that with his head being injured not so long ago. If he was going to stay in their home for the next few days, then it would be right for Hiccup to be given a tour of the castle as soon as possible.

"Your Majesty, would it be okay if I had a tour of the castle right now," Hiccup requested. "I'm don't plan to stay in my room the whole time I'm here."

Hiccup waited until the King and the Queen stood beside each other before saying all of that, and he didn't have to wait long for someone to answer.

"Of course, Mr. Haddock, and we wouldn't mind giving you a tour ourselves," Queen Elinor replied before turning to face her husband. "Right, Fergus?"

King Fergus instantly looked at his wife in confusion, since he'd expected they'd have a servant give the tour, but he didn't have anything else to do now.

"Yes, dear." The King responded in agreement, as he linked arms with the Queen. "So, Mr. Haddock, how would ye like to hear my story about Mor'du'?"

"Actually, your daughter's already told me that story, Your Majesty," Hiccup revealed. "Didn't you say that you only tell that story during dinner time?"

"That's right, I do, but the story's much better when I tell it." King Fergus answered, then he turned his head in Merida's direction. "No offense, lass."

"None taken, Dad." Merida replied, then gave her father a broad smile as she couldn't really argue with the fact that the King was a better storyteller.

Merida always loved hearing her father's stories, no matter how many times she'd heard them before, and he's told her stories ever since she was a child.

"I think my story's a little long, Your Majesty, so I'll let you tell your story first, because I wouldn't mind hearing it from someone else." Hiccup said.

Hearing his guest allow him to tell his story at the dinner table first made King Fergus much happier, and now he had no problem with giving a tour.

"Thanks, Mr. Haddock, now let's begin the tour!" The King replied, as Queen Elinor was pleased to see her husband having a more positive attitude.

Just as King Fergus was about to speak again, Hiccup quickly searched for his basket, and once he found it, Hiccup slung the basket over his shoulder.

"The room we're in right now is the Great Hall, and it's also known as the Throne room, since there's a throne for us and our children, it's where we have our meals, where speeches are given, and there's a large stone fireplace that warms the entire room." The King explained, while he pointed to the fireplace.

King Fergus watched as Hiccup went closer to the fireplace so that he could get a better look at it, and he soon returned to where the King stood.

"I actually have a fireplace in my house back on Berk," Hiccup revealed. "It's nothing like yours, Your Majesty, it's much bigger than mine." He added.

The King felt glad to know him and Hiccup had another thing in common besides having a pet, though Toothless was more of a best friend than a pet. Since he didn't want to leave Toothless behind, and he was sure the dragon wouldn't want him out of his sight, Hiccup woke up Toothless from his nap. Now that his dragon was awake, Hiccup and Toothless followed the Scottish royals as they all left the Great Hall and into one of the castle's hallways.

The Queen took the role of tour guide from her husband and showed the various classrooms where she taught Merida on how to become a real queen. Merida didn't enjoy her mother's lessons at first, but eventually, she realized how important they were, and never complained when it was time for one. As he looked in the classrooms, Hiccup noticed that each of them had a shelf full of books, which Queen Elinor must have used for her daughter's lessons.

Another room that the Viking and his Night Fury got to see was the Tapestry room, which held a certain tapestry in particular that the Queen sew herself. It was a large tapestry of Clan DunBroch, and although he finally saw what Merida's brothers looked like, there were four symbols Hiccup was curious about.

"This tapestry is amazing, Your Majesty, but if you don't mind, could you please tell me what these symbols are?" Hiccup asked, while pointing to each one.

Queen Elinor unlinked her arm with her husband's before walking over to stand beside Hiccup, and she pointed to her own kingdom's symbol before talking.

"This is Clan DunBroch's symbol, the mighty sword which represents bravery and protection of the kingdom." The Queen explained before moving her hand.

"This is Clan MacGuffin's symbol, a cauldron, because the entire clan was given the strength to slay ten thousand Macintosh soldiers in battle, which was all thanks to eating one moldy potato from a magical cauldron." Queen Elinor continued, as Hiccup's eyes widened in awe of the information he just heard.

"This is Clan Macintosh's symbol, an instrument called a lyre, since it helped the clan slay one thousand Dingwall soldiers by playing a magical tune." The Queen revealed.

"Finally, this is Clan Dingwall's symbol, a rock which is really an ancient relic held by the clan." Queen Elinor added before making her way out of the room.

She waited until Hiccup was out too before closing the door, and the Queen could easily tell just from the look on Hiccup's face that he liked the tapestry. It didn't seem necessary to ask if that wasn't true, so Queen Elinor thought it was best to go on with the tour instead of waste time doing nothing.

"I suppose you got a good look inside Merida's bedchamber, so I don't think you need to see the others, they all look the same." Queen Elinor said.

Hiccup didn't really pay that much attention to what was inside Merida's room after he woke up, he'd only been concerned with where Toothless was. If the Queen said there wasn't a need for him to see all the bedchambers, then Hiccup wouldn't argue with her and he'd just enjoy the rest of the tour.

As for the rooms Hiccup did get to see, there was the kitchen, and he obviously knew it was used to prepare and cook meals for Merida and her family. There was also the Trophy Room, which was where King Fergus kept his collection of trophies that were always stuffed and mounted on the wall.

Eventually, the group of five went outside, but only because there were a few more places of interest that couldn't be found inside of the castle. They started with the cellar which held both the drinks and the King's private reserves, and seeing all of it caused Hiccup to think about the drinks on Berk.

Mostly every weekend and after every hunt, the Vikings would gather around the communal tables in the Great Hall and down a few pints. Of course, the drinking would double and triple when other neighboring tribes would come over. Stoick, usually the sober and hard-working chieftain, was known for having won many drinking contests.

Hiccup and his friends had been allowed to drink when they first began dragon training. The three other guys and Ruffnut always liked to gather and talk needlessly over a mug of ale or a cup of fresh mead. The Hall's particular brew was that of honey and water fermented with blackcurrants named black mead, but as the Vikings were people of few words, they just called it mead.

Out of all his fellow dragon riders, Astrid was the least alcoholic and she more than likely wouldn't ever be caught drunk. Suddenly, Hiccup wondered if his absence had affected Astrid so much that she had turned to alcohol to drown her sorrows. Not only did Astrid tell Hiccup she loved him, but she also said that she missed him the whole time that she was away on her fishing trip.

Astrid must have felt devastated to know that he didn't feel the same way as she did and just left on a trip without even saying goodbye. Even though Hiccup did write a sincere letter before leaving Berk, he had written and addressed it to his father and nobody else.

Hiccup also realized ever since he left, he hadn't spent much time even thinking about his relationship with Astrid and if he wanted to take things further. Perhaps once this tour of Merida's home was over, Hiccup could go to his room and actually give the idea of a future with Astrid some consideration.

"Mr. Haddock!" All of a sudden, hearing that had caused Hiccup to lose his train of thought and look around quickly for the person who just spoke.

"There's a few more places nearby we'd like to show you," Queen Elinor declared. "However, we can't do that until you're following us." She added.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Your Majesty!" Hiccup replied, as he made his way out of the dimly lit room. "I was just lost in thought over something." He mentioned.

"Would you like to tell us about it, Mr. Haddock, or is it rather something private?" The Queen asked, and it didn't take long for Hiccup to give his answer.

"It's private, Your Majesty!" Hiccup responded while walking to catch up with the Scottish royals. "So. . .what's the next place you want to show me?"

Not too much time had passed before Hiccup was shown the stables, and thanks to Queen Elinor telling him earlier today, he already knew its purpose. Merida took this as an opportunity to spend a bit of time with Angus by placing a fresh coat of straw in his stall and using a brush to comb his hair for a bit. Even though Hiccup had seen Merida with her horse before, it wasn't until now he realized they had a very strong and loving bond, and Hiccup also believed that Merida allowed no one but herself to see to Angus' care.

"Your Majesty," Hiccup said, then both of Merida's parents turned to face him, since Hiccup used a title that addressed a King and Queen. "How long has Merida had that horse?"

"Quite a long time, actually, Mr. Haddock," The Queen answered, and soon Hiccup a lot more interested to know about Merida's history with Angus.

"When Merida was just a wee lass, we gave her a rockin' horse for her birthday, and it was a horse that looked just like Angus." King Fergus revealed.

"To this day, she still has that rocking horse in her room, and I'm sure you probably saw it since you were in there earlier." Queen Elinor disclosed.

Unfortunately, Hiccup had been too focused on his head injury and where Toothless was to even notice that Merida had a rocking horse in her room.

"Anyway, Merida would not only use a harp as a makeshift bow but she'd constantly ride that rockin' horse and pretend to be shootin' arrows with a stick." The King said, before chuckling at the memory.

"One day, and it wasn't too long after her sixth birthday, Merida asked us if she could have a horse of her own, and even though she was so young at the time, we just couldn't say no." The Queen added.

"It wouldn't have been right to give a fully grown horse to Merida, so we waited until one of our horses was goin' to give birth." King Fergus replied.

"Once a foal was finally born, Merida insisted on taking care of the horse, but we'd told her she could look after it when she got older." Queen Elinor said.

"Angus got his name from a kind of cattle found here in Scotland that has been bred to make meat and milk for centuries." The King told Hiccup.

Hiccup had to admit it was great to know not just how Merida got to have Angus, but also that they've been best friends since she was a kid. The Queen was about to continue the story when they noticed Merida walking toward them, so her parents decided to continue with the tour. Now that Merida was with them, the next place they showed Hiccup was the garden, where the castle workers gathered plants for food and medicine.

After that were the pens, an area where the Dunbroch family kept highland cattle, boreray sheep, chickens and other Scottish livestock. Next was the 'bear dane', a castle tower where King Fergus could take long naps, which came to an end if his triplet sons were nearby. Finally, there was the gatehouse, an entrance that people used to go in and out of the the castle walls, and it's also where the triplet brothers liked to stand on top of and dump water on visitors.

"Speaking of the triplets, Your Majesty, perhaps it would be nice if Toothless got to meet them, since they are part of the family." Hiccup suggested.

"As a matter of fact, Mr. Haddock, it wouldn't be fair for the boys not to see your dragon, and the two of you won't be here forever." Queen Elinor responded.

Hiccup's eyes widened a little as he assumed that the Queen would've been reluctant to let her triplet sons anywhere near an actual live dragon.

"Are you sure, Your Majesty, because the last thing I'd want is for your sons to have nightmares, even though Toothless isn't dangerous." Hiccup said.

"Mr. Haddock, if my boys can never get tired of hearing how their father lost his leg, I'm sure they'll enjoy meeting your dragon." The Queen replied.

"I'm glad to hear that," Hiccup said, expressing his gratitude before turning to face the King. "Your Majesty, I'd still like to hear that story of yours."

"How about this, Mr. Haddock, after I've told my story at dinner tonight, ye can tell yers," King Fergus suggested. "Does that sound good for ye?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Hiccup responded, as he held out a hand toward the King. "Let's shake on it, so that we'll know we've made an agreement."

Merida and her mother both simply looked on with delight as Hiccup and King Fergus shook hands with a smile on their faces before they let go.

"Now then, what are we waitin' for?" The King asked, while turning to face his family. "Let's go back inside and find those wee devils!" He added.

Everybody else gave a nod in agreement before they made their way into the castle and it wasn't long before a question came to Hiccup's mind.

"Excuse me, Your Majesty," Hiccup said, and in no time at all, King Fergus and his wife turned to face him. "How are we going to find your sons?"

"That's easy," Queen Elinor replied. "We just have to find Maudie, and if the boys aren't with her, then she'll help us search for them." She explained.

"So I guess Maudie wasn't the same servant who led me to the bathroom and ran a bath for me earlier today?" Hiccup asked curiously.

"Maudie is the triplets' nursemaid, meaning it's her job to look after them, and she always does it begrudgingly." The Queen responded.

"You mean no matter how many pranks they do, and how much trouble they cause, Maudie never complains, not even once?" Hiccup inquired.

"I'm sure that she does complain at times, but never when me and Fergus are around, because that would be bad for her." Queen Elinor replied.

"If you don't mind, Your Majesty, I'd rather not know about the consequences of bad-mouthing the two of you." Hiccup said truthfully.

"Well, in that case, Mr. Haddock, we'll make sure that ye never find out, just as long as ye never ask us either." The King suggested.

"That sounds good to me, Your Majesty." Hiccup answered before giving a broad smile, and King Fergus didn't hesitate to smile back.

The moment unexpectedly came to an end as they all heard the sound of footsteps which were becoming much louder by the second. Hiccup and Toothless wondered who was approaching, but Merida and her family already felt positive of who they'd be seeing soon. It wasn't long before Maudie, the nursemaid they'd been searching for, came into their sight and took a few deep breaths to calm herself down.

"Oh, Maudie! You were just the person that we've wanted to see." The Queen declared, as Maudie stood back up to face the family.

Maudie was about to say something when her eyes caught sight of Toothless, but before she could have a chance to scream, Merida held up both of her hands to stop her.

"It's alright, Maudie! We know it's a dragon, but he's not goin' to hurt any of us." Merida assured before turning around to face Hiccup.

"Hey, dragon boy, maybe now's a good time to introduce Toothless the same way ye did for me and my parents." Merida suggested.

At first, Hiccup raised an eyebrow and gave a smirk from Merida's nickname for him, but he genuinely agreed with the princess' idea. Merida and her parents all stepped aside so that Hiccup could have Toothless come a little bit closer to Maudie, but not too much. Basically, Hiccup did exactly what Merida suggested and to everyone's relief, the nursemaid didn't look so afraid of Toothless anymore.

A grin had made its way to Maudie's face as she repeated what the King had done earlier and scratched under the dragon's chin. Hiccup's eyes slowly began to widen as he saw the direction of Maudie's hand, before quickly holding up his hands and shouting "Stop!" Everyone instantly turned to look at Hiccup with confusion, as they wondered what Maudie could have done that was so wrong to him.

"Don't worry, ma'am, you did nothing wrong. It's just there's a spot under Toothless' jaw where if you press it, he'll fall asleep." Hiccup explained.

Maudie breathed a sigh of relief from knowing that she hadn't done anything wrong, while Merida and her family didn't look so confused anymore.

"I'm sorry for making you think otherwise. . ." Hiccup said, and he was going to keep on talking when he saw Maudie shaking her head to him.

"There's no need to apologize, Mr. Haddock, and I'm glad to know that your dragon isn't a dangerous creature." Maudie replied with a smile.

Hiccup smiled back and just as he opened his mouth to say something, Hiccup turned to see Queen Elinor coming closer, so he stepped aside.

"Thank you, Mr. Haddock," The Queen said, acknowledging what Hiccup just did. "Maudie, would you care to tell us why you had been running?"

"Yes, Your majesty, I told the boys that they couldn't have any sweets until after dinner, but obviously, they didn't listen and stole a plate of sweets from the kitchen and now I can't seem to find them anywhere." Maudie explained.

"This must have happened when we were all outside the castle, but don't worry, I know exactly how we can find those boys." Hiccup declared.

Everyone in the hallway, including Toothless, quickly looked at Hiccup with curiosity, since they were eager to know what idea the boy had in mind.

"I've lived with dragons long enough to know they've a strong sense of smell, so Toothless should be able to sniff the boys out." Hiccup proposed.

"Now that's a great idea!" King Fergus responded. "We should start off at the kitchen since that's where the sweets were taken." He suggested.

The Scottish royals led the way to the kitchen, as Maudie followed close behind them, with Hiccup and Toothless being at the very back. When they finally made it to their destination, Toothless brought his head closer to the floor and began sniffing while the others looked on. A few servants happened to be in the kitchen so they were obviously surprised to see Toothless, but before they could even panic, both the King and Queen insisted for their servants to continue working and keep their attention away from the dragon's presence.

It wasn't long until Toothless had sniffed his way out of the kitchen and was back in the hallway, and everyone else stayed close behind him. What they didn't know was that wherever the triplets were hiding with those sweets, the boys had left a trail of crumbs on their way there. This certainly gave the Night Fury a better advantage of finding the boys, and because it's been a since he had anything to eat, Toothless ate as many crumbs as possible, and it didn't even matter to him of whether they were big or small.

Since Hiccup had been walking right next to his best friend, it wasn't too hard for him to notice, so once Toothless had found the triplets, Hiccup would make sure to ask Merida's parents if they could give the dragon a big supply of fish for dinnertime. Eventually, the trail of crumbs led Toothless, Hiccup, along with Merida, her family and nursemaid up the stairs to the castle's roof, but unfortunately, they weren't able to get themselves out through the door because it was locked, which was very strange. Neither the King nor the Queen had a reason to lock the door at the moment, but the triplets obviously did, so Merida brought herself closer to the door, since she was sure that her brothers would open the door for her if she was the one to ask them.

"Boys, it's yer sister. Mum and Dad are pretty worried about ye. Could ye please show yerselves so I can tell them ye're alright?" Merida requested.

Not even a minute had passed until everyone could hear footsteps from outside, and these footsteps got much louder as they came closer to the door. This confirmed the fact that the triplets had been using the roof as their hiding place, and they were about to open the door and reveal themselves when-

"You boys better get back in here, or so help me. . ." Maudie said, then quickly covered her mouth as everyone looked at her with displeasure.

To their disappointment, they heard the sound of footsteps again, but this time, it meant that the triplets were now walking away from the door.

"Now that's just great, Maudie, now they'll never open the door for us!" Merida rebuked before turning to her father. "Dad, do ye have your sword?"

"Sorry, lass, but when Mr. Haddock said I shouldn't have any weapons when his dragon's around, I thought he meant at all times." The King answered.

Merida couldn't really be upset about that, Toothless wouldn't have been able to trust her father if he had been carrying a sword or any other weapon.

"We're gonna need somethin' that can bust this door," Merida informed, and that's when Hiccup had an idea, which got him to look over at Toothless.

Despite the fact it would likely cause a lot of damage, Hiccup was sure they didn't have an alternative in mind, so he cleared his throat before speaking.

"Excuse me," Hiccup said, and this led to everyone now giving the boy their attention. "I may have the perfect solution for this problem." He proclaimed.

The King and Queen, along with their daughter and nursemaid all waited for Hiccup to say his answer in words, but all he did was glance at his dragon. Hiccup had been expecting for at least one of them to instantly shake their head and turn down his idea, but to his surprise and joy, Maudie and the Scottish royals each gave a small smile to Hiccup while nodding in agreement.

"There's a good chance that we'll get a lot of bits and pieces of wood," Hiccup predicted out loud, before turning to face everyone else. "All of you might want to go down a lot of steps, you know, just to be safe." He suggested.

It didn't take long for Merida and the others to do just that, as they went down two flights of stairs and Hiccup brought his attention back to Toothless.

"Alright, bud, it's time to get those triplets!" Hiccup declared confidently, and his best friend gave a nod before firing a single shot at the roof's door.

Like every other shot Toothless had done in the past, this one was clearly effective, as it caused both sides of the door to shatter into tiny pieces. Neither Merida nor her parents nor Maudie got hurt in the process of the shot and Hiccup was quickly protected by Toothless with one of his wings. Once all the debris from the door was gone, Hiccup and Toothless waited a few seconds before going out to the roof and they started to go around it. When the Viking and his Night Fury found the triplets at last, they could easily see that the boys had crumbs all over their faces and there were no more sweets on the plate the three of them were holding.

"Well, it looks like you boys are in lot of trouble," Hiccup said with his hands on his hips. "Stealing a plate of sweets and having them before dinner?"

The triplets gave a sheepish smile, but said nothing at all to Hiccup, and they turned around to try and make an escape, only to freeze when they came face to face with Toothless.

"You see, boys, the dragon you're looking at right now is a Night Fury, also known as 'the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself'." Hiccup mentioned.

Each prince's eyes grew wider from not only what they heard Hiccup say, but from Toothless baring his teeth and growling with his eyes narrowed to slits.

"He's not exactly a fan of kids or anybody else who take food from the kitchen and he won't rest until there's a punishment for those people." Hiccup told.

All of the boys quickly turned to face Hiccup before they got down on their faces and had their hands clasped together to make their best begging position. Hiccup couldn't help but chuckle, as it seemed that the triplets actually believed he'd get Toothless to hurt them, but Hiccup knew they were still children. Not to mention that he'd be in serious trouble with their parents, and that's the last thing Hiccup wanted, since he already got them to trust Toothless. In spite of that, Merida's brothers still did something wrong, and they needed to be punished, so Hiccup had to think of something that wasn't violent. Suddenly, Hiccup came up with an idea, and it wasn't just an idea that involved Toothless, but it was an idea the triplets probably wouldn't mind doing as well.

"Hey, Mom, Dad, Maudie," Merida said, as she faced her parents and the nursemaid all at once. "I think it's safe for us to go to the roof now," She added.

At first, the three adults weren't too sure, because they didn't hear Hiccup tell them it was safe, but they still went ahead and followed Merida up the stairs. When all of them saw there was no longer a door, the King and Queen couldn't be upset, because they knew there hadn't been another option to open it. Now that they were finally on the roof, not one of them had expected to see the triplets hanging onto Hiccup for dear life as he flew with Toothless above and around the castle.

"What does Mr. Haddock even think he's doin?" King Fergus asked, as he and the others stared in complete disbelief of the flight they were all witnessing.

"Punishin' the boys." Merida replied, before a smile soon came to her face, and she waved to Hiccup, hoping he would notice, and he did by waving back.