Hey guys! Here's another chapter for this story. To those who are wondering about my Dragon Ball Academia story, I will be updating the next chapter for it soon enough. In the meantime, Enjoy!

------------------------

The next morning, Jack, Rapunzel, Hiccup, Merida, Toothless and Pascal were asleep. Jack normally didn't need sleep since he was after all a winter spirit. But he felt exhausted from the events on that day he had passed out. He wondered as he drifted off that maybe the potion the woman gave him was more than just something that can make him be seen by people. He was still in dreamland when he felt something cold fall on his face. He frowned and tried to ignore it, but another cold thing fell on his face. It also felt wet. Finally, waking up, he opened his eyes and looked up.

There standing over him with the most raged look on his face was Max the stallion. He was very pissed as he snarled down at the winter youth. He had managed to escape the water and he was still dripping wet. Jack merely stared before he closed his eyes again and muttered,

"Well, I hope you're here to apologize."

Everyone was quickly awakened by Jack crying out. They looked over and saw the white stallion trying to drag Jack away by his hoodie.

"Put me down! If you will let me explain!" The winter youth shouted as he tried to get his hoodie free from the angry horse.

When everyone else figured out what's happening, they rushed in to help. "Hey! Let him go!" Rapunzel said as she and Merida rushed over. Rapunzel quickly wrapped her arms around Jack's waist, while Merida grabbed his legs and both tried to help him get his hoodie free.

But the horse had a good grip on his boot, and will not give up so easily. It became a big game of tug of war, with Jack as the rope.

"Give, us, him!" Merida ordered as she pulls with all her might. But the horse kept trying to pull the thief away.

Hiccup stood where his was for a moment, trying to asset the situation. He then got an idea, instead of going to where the girls are, he went over to boot Maximus is holding. Using some quick finger work, he mange to make the hoodie looser. That freed Jack and Maximus. The girls fell backward, pulling Jack to their side, while Maximus landed on his rear, with the boot still in his mouth.

Realizing he lost the boy, again, Maximus was really determined to get him, no matter what. Anger filled the horse's eyes as he began to charge at group. Hiccup tired to block the horse, using any techniques he learned from Toothless. But unfortunately, horses were not dragons. Maximus ran right pass him, and hit Hiccup with the side of his body, making the boy fall to the ground.

Toothless ran over to the boy before growling at the horse.

Merida raced to the charging horse saying, "Don't worry, I have a horse at home. I know how to handle them."

She stopped in front of the horse and angrily shouted at him. "You need to stop it right now!" She commanded. "Don't make me use my arrows!"

But Maximus didn't hear her, instead, he charged passed her, and pushed her away with the side of his body. Merida fell on her butt, very upset.

Jack in the meantime was rubbing his head while Rapunzel still was underneath him. He gasped when he saw the stallion coming for him.

Rapunzel realized it was her turn to sooth the horse, but how? She's never been around one before. So she immediately got out from under the young spirit and went in front of him.

"Whoa! Whoa!" She cried out while holding out her hands. Surprised, Max skid to a halt but he tried to get around her, "Easy boy!" Rapunzel cooed and Max finally stopped and glanced down. He stared as Pascal was now perched on Rapunzel's head and he too was telling the horse to calm down. He simply stared while Rapunzel smiled, "That's it."

Maximus became surprised at this girl, and that she can calm him down with a few gestures and kind words. But he wasn't as surprised as everyone else was. Hiccup, smiled that the horse finally stopped running a rampage, but Merida was shocked on how Rapunzel could tame a wild horse like that. Jack, and Toothless were borh amazed and impressed by Rapunzel.

Rapunzel felt like she's getting on the good foot with the horse, maybe he'll listen to her. "That's it," she said with a sweet voice. "Now sit."

Maximus looked at her in surprise. 'Did she ask me to sit?' He thought.

Jack sat up and watched the whole thing. He could not believe what he was seeing. Rapunzel was trying to calm the horse down and talking to him like he was a dog, "What the..." he whispered while he rubbed his silver locks of hair.

"Sit,' Rapunzel repeated. Not wanting to upset her, he sat on his rear.

"What?" Merida said confused at what she's seeing. Her horse never behaved like that.

Rapunzel smiles with the horse listing to her, but she noticed that the boot is still in its mouth. "Now drop the hoodie," she commanded.

Maximus's ears perk at what she just asked.

"Drop it," she repeated with force.

He really didn't want to let it go, it's been the closest thing he got to catch the criminal. But she was so sweet and nice, how could he refuse. So he opened his mouth, and let the hoodie drop the ground.

"Oh, you're such a good boy," Rapunzel said rubbing his muzzle and petting his head. It made Maximus so happy and relax a bit; he began to wag his tail like a dog.

"You've got to be kidding me," Merida said standing up.

"Just when you think you've seen everything," Hiccup nodded in agreement.

They continued to watch as Rapunzel gently pets the horse. "You all tired from chasing the bad boy all over the place," she said with a pouty face and voice.

Maximus nodded his head in pity.

"Hey!" Jack shouted from Rapunzel's term on him.

Rapunzel simply ignored him and continued to hug and pet the horse, "Nobody appreciates you, do they? Do they?"

Max shook his head with sadness. He's been helping guards chase the worst of crime, and they don't even offer an apple as thanks.

"Excuse me, but that horse is freaking nuts!" Jack exclaimed while he held out his hands.

Rapunzel laughed at this, "Oh, he's nothing but a big sweetheart!" She hugged Max, who neighed in delight, "Isn't that right?" She glanced down at the saddle and saw the horse's name imprinted on the badge, "Maximus?"

Maximus began liking this girl more and more. She seemed to be the only one who really gets him, and has been nice to him.

Jack simply stared at this scene dumbfounded, "You've gotta be kidding me." He whispered as he rubbed his forehead.

Maximus glared at him, before Rapunzel moved his head to her direction.

"Look," she said as sweet as she can. "Today is kind of the biggest day of my life, and...the thing is...I need you not to get him arrested."

Maximus grunted angry at the thought of letting Jack go that easy.

"Just for 24 hours, and then you can chase each other's content, okay?" Rapunzel asks with a sweet smile.

Jack by now was standing. He was not in the mood to be chased forever by this horse and he didn't even do anything! But seeing the pleading look in Rapunzel's green eyes, he decided to do this for her, "Okay, look, horse, we might as well go through with this. And hopefully at least discuss this when we both have calmed down?" He finally said, although he wasn't too happy while he held out his hand.

But Maximus was not please at all. He turned away in disgust at the thought of working with the winter spirit.

Rapunzel leaned in to the horse, and gently whispered to him, "and it's also my birthday. Just to let you know."

Maximus thought about that, he's only met her for a few minutes, and she's been the nicest person he's ever met. Surely he couldn't ruin her birthday. He reluctantly puts his hoof in Jack's hand, agreeing to the truce. The girl can have her day, as long as Maximus keeps an eye on Jack.

The others just continued to watch how Rapunzel turned the whole situation around just by being kind. Some of them weren't sure about an alliance with a horse that almost drowned them, but it was too late to object.

Everyone turned to the sound of bells in the distance. As everyone began together their stuff and walk in that direction, Maximus took the opportunity and hoofed Jack in the gut.

"Oof!" He said in pain while clutching his gut and fell to the ground.

Maximus just smiles at the pain. It was to get back at the spirit for all the mess he had to go through.

--------------------------

When everyone was ready, and when Flynn can walk again, they began to make their way towards the kingdom. When they got to the bridge, they took a moment and marvel at it. It was so beautiful in the daylight and more magnificent then anything they've ever seen. Merida was so used to a stone castle and green forestry around her, she's never known anything like a beautiful castle could exist. Hiccup grew up with a small village on an island, and never seen anything this fancy before.

Wow..." Merida breathed, "Tis different from Dunbroch."

"Definitely not Berk." Hiccup commented. He patted Toothless and told him to hide in the trees and wait for them, "I promise I'll bring lots of food back, buddy." He told him.

Toothless ran off and found a tree to nestle in.

But the most excited was Rapunzel. This more than she could ever dream. Not only is she going to be in a place full of fun and excitement, she's going to live her dream about seeing the lights. "We're here" Rapunzel whispered, staring at the magnificent city with her eyes sparkly and wide.

She turned to her friends and said a "wow!" that made them laugh as they tried to follow her pace.

Jack followed with his hoodie back on and he held his staff. He was rather nervous since he was going to be around a lot of people himself. He knew the potion was still in work anyway. He then noticed Max was still glaring at him.

Frowning, Jack simply turned and rushed after Rapunzel. The horse followed but he was still going to keep an eye on that boy.

The blonde walked up to the city doors, and a smile of amazement spread through her face. The city was covered in purple pennants with a golden sun on the centre of each, shops and people gathered everywhere... it was plain to see that there was a festivity going on.

Wow, they really decked this place out." Hiccup looked around and Merida nodded, more excited now than before.

"What should we do first?" She asked Rapunzel, who looked a bit overwhelmed.

"There's so much to do, um... ooh, look at that!" Rapunzel was about to dashed forward, but felt a harsh tug on her hair. She gasped and began to trip all over the place.

But it wasn't long until Rapunzel started running into everyone, people started tripping over her hair and pushing her around. Jack, Merida and Hiccup quickly gathered her amount of hair in their hands. "You can't walk around with this hair!" Merida frowned, and started looking around for something helpful. But then she noticed a bunch of little girls braiding their hair. She gave a loud whistle to get their attention. It worked; their faces lite up and their eyes became wide at seeing Rapunzel's hair. They all ran to the group with excitement.

"Excuse me," Merida said leaning down to see their faces. "Would you be so kind as to help my friend with her hair?"

They jump in excitement and screamed with glee.

"I'm guessing that's a yes," Hiccup said with a smile.

Rapunzel knelt down, as Merida laid her hair down on the road as straight as she could. The girls first made a wave in the front to get the hair out of Rapunzel's face, and then they began to make a braid, jump rope style.

Jack, Hiccup, Pascal, and Max watched to the side. Jack ducked down when he saw the guards. He normally wouldn't care but he was just starting to get used to the fact he can be seen. He saw a couple of kids come walking up to him. They smiled and he smiled back. He wanted to start a snowball fight but since he was here with his friends, he waved as the kids ran off.

Off to the side, he noticed a lot of cut flowers at a florist shop nearby. So he summoned a bust of wind to blow some flowers in the girl's direction.

"What are you doing?" Hiccup asked him.

"Just thought maybe those would look nice in her hair," Jack said with a smile, before he gathered a lot of the flowers and presented them to the girls. "Don't you think these would look nice in her hair?" He asked with a smile.

The girls smile and agreed, and start putting flowers in certain areas of the braid.

Soon after thatm the girls were finally done braiding Rapunzel's hair. To make it look nice, they had put the flowers between the strands of blond hair. She stood up and twirled about to look at the creation. Her hair no longer dragged on the ground and it nearly to her ankles. But it was enough and she smiled, "Thank you!" she said gratefully to the little girls.

Jack had to admit that Rapunzel did look really pretty. Of course, he always thought she was beautiful. He then noticed Hiccup, Max and Pascal all giving him smirks. Rolling his eyes, he pushed them away.

One of the girls scooted forward and tapped Merida's shoulder. The red-head turned around and looked at her.

"Aye?"

"Um, miss; will you let us braid your hair?" Merida's eyes widened, as did Rapunzel's. Hiccup and Jack leaned over, the latter snickering.

"Oh my gosh, you should do it, Merida!" Rapunzel enthused eagerly.

"Uh... I don't know... taming this mane of hair would be quite a feat..." Merida tried to be polite.

"Come on, do it, Merida." Hiccup grinned genuinely as opposed to the boy beside him. She looked to him hesitantly. Merida bit her lip, before giving in.

"Alright, fine. But not all of it." Merida scooted closer as the girls smiled at each other. They came around and began playing around with her red curls. She winced a little as they came upon tangles, but the girls managed to handle her hair pretty well.

The girls who took two locks of her hair and braided both, tying it in the middle. The rest of her hair was left hanging, a loose red curl hanging in her face.

Merida stood up. "Doesn't look too bad does it?" She touched at her hair, a little self-conscious. Hiccup smiled encouragingly.

"No, it looks great." He complimented and Merida smiled a little, feeling her heart tighten for some reason. Jack nodded in approval and Rapunzel grinned.

"Yeah, it's pretty." Rapunzel agreed. Merida sighed in relief and then turned to the girls.

"Thank you." She said respectfully and then bobbed their heads as if to say 'no problem'. Merida went to join her friends.

One little girl looked at Hiccup, with smile on her face. He became a little nervous about what she was thinking off.

----------------------

Merida couldn't help but giggle at Hiccup's hair. The little girl made him sit down with her, and let her brain two locks of his hair in the back.

"What," he said poking at them, "this is the newest fashion craze."

Everyone couldn't help but laugh at this point, much to Hiccup's annoyance.

After that, everyone started walking through this colourful festival. Rapunzel couldn't help but to stop and look through every shop's windows. She looked through book stores that hold more books then her shelf, dress stores that had beautiful outfits that she wanted to try on, and gift stores that had a lot of interesting things in there.

As they continued to look around, the street vendor acknowledged his presence. Jack grinned and bent down, handing over payment. The man tipped his hat and Jack nodded, "Thanks, little man." He responded before standing to his full height and handing over a purple flag to Rapunzel.

"What's this?" She asked with a smile.

"Think of it as a souvenir," he said, "or a birthday present."

She smiles at him and looks at the flag. 'This is the symbol of the royal family,' she thought, 'it's a beautiful sun.' But the a she looked at it closer, feeling its somehow familiar to her, but doesn't know why.

"Come on." Rapunzel turned to see Merida hooking her arm with her own. "Let's go."

Hiccup noticed a space on the streets where children sat about, sketching out images with chalk. "Rapunzel, you want to try that out?" Rapunzel bobbed her head eagerly and the two set off, placing down their bags. She and Hiccup borrowed colors from the others and set about, drawing.

"Well, this is perfect for you guys." Jack grinned and Merida nodded slightly.

"It's probably gonna take a while." She added and already sat down near the others. Jack followed her example, squatting.

As she said, the two were drawing for at least an hour before they stood to their feet, both wiping sweat from their brow. "Nice job." Hiccup pointed at the large symbol of the sun surrounded by several townspeople they'd come across so far.

"You, too." Rapunzel smiled, gesturing toward a detailed image of Toothless. Some of the kids nearby came over, mouths open in awe. Jack and Merida looked on at their friends' works of art in admiration, then to the artist. Rapunzel and Hiccup walked over after receiving several compliments.

"Hey, you guys want something quick to eat? It's after three." Hiccup spoke up. They agreed and headed off to another stand.

"That was a nice drawing, Hiccup." Merida spoke up and he thanked her. "It's a shame Toothless couldn't come into the village." She added.

"Yeah... but it's better off that way." He answered. "Things would be a mess if he had." Merida agreed. Meanwhile, Jack spoke up about Rapunzel's art before they all came to a stop at another food cart.

"Thanks, Jack." She smiled, and then her eyes brightened. "Cupcakes!"

He chuckled, "Are you guys up for some?" Jack turned to the others. Nodding their heads, Rapunzel pulled out her wallet and bought four cupcakes for the group. Striding along the cobble-stoned roads, they chewed on the sweet pastries.

"Oh man, this is heaven." Hiccup commented in between bites and Merida consented, her mouth full,

"M-hm!"

Jack scarfed down his own cupcake before it froze in his hands and turned to Rapunzel when she tugged on his sleeve. "Jack, I want to check out that library." Libraries weren't of much interest to him, but he shrugged, allowing her to guide him over. Hiccup and Merida followed. Considering the exciting festivities outside, the library was empty save for the librarian. He looked rather bored and not long after the four entered, headed out muttering something about a lunch break.

Merida browsed over books on display and Hiccup pulled out a book beside her. Rapunzel looked around, pulling off several stories and setting them down on the ground. She curled up beside Jack, who flipped open the first and Jack told Rapunzel about the places he had been.

Merida also entered a competition. She was in a fighting tournament with a lot of men, who said they would go easy because she's a girl. Bad call, because she defeated everyone and won the championship. Some of the men asked her if she was single, and ended up getting their arms twisted.

Once everyone was done, they continued to look around and enjoy the day. As they walked through the town's square, Rapunzel stopped to look at a mosaic mural. It was a woman in beautiful gown, with a tall man in magnificent clothes, holding a baby with golden hair and blue eyes. There were a lot of flowers underneath the mural, almost like a funeral. She stared carefully at the picture, feeling something weird about it. Like a dream she longed forgotten.

"Excuse me."

Rapunzel turned around to see a mother with her child holding flowers. Rapunzel got out of their way as they walk to the mural.

"Thank you," the mother said to Rapunzel as she and her daughter kneel down. The little girl put down the flowers near the mural, and then turned to her mother.

"Do you think she'll ever come back?" She asks.

"I hope so," her mother answers as she and her daughter stand.

It was clear to Rapunzel this picture means a lot to these people, but why? "Excuse me," she asks the mother. "I'm kinda new here, so what's the painting about?"

"That's the royal family my dear," the mother said with a sweet smile. "And the baby is the lost princess."

"The lost princess?" Rapunzel repeats.

"She disappeared almost eighteen years ago today," the mother continued. "So this evening we'll send up the lanterns in hope that she'll come back."

The mother got dragged away by the child who wanted to play with the other kids.

"Have a good day," the mother called out to Rapunzel.

"You too," Rapunzel waved back. She then looked at the mural again, still wondering what the feeling is in her heart. She looked again at the queen, and it was almost like looking in the mirror.

"Here-e! Here-e!"

She quickly turned around hearing the town caller in the square.

"Let the festival dance begin!"

The crowd cheered as a nearby band started to play. Hearing music, Rapunzel quickly turned to see the band entering the plaza, playing a beautiful yet cheerful music. As the rhythm became faster, she started dancing along. Merida laughed when she saw her, but Rapunzel came and pulled her in her dance, and the redhead found herself dancing with her. Her feet seemed to be moving on their own, and she pulled Hiccup's arm, dragging him to dance with her. He gasped, but he had no option but to follow. His steps proved how clumsy he was at it, but he tried. Merida laughed as she took his hands and helped him along.

Rapunzel started pulling random people into the dance as the music became faster and more cheery. The people were dazzled at first, but they soon gave in and started dancing along with the blonde, pulling a choreography out of nowhere. Rapunzel twirled among them, gracefully jumping and landing when the music required her to.

She turned and saw Jack standing nearby before she gestured with her hand to get him to join in. Jack laughed, "No thanks. I don't dance." He waved his hand. However, Max grabbed Jack's staff and then pushed him toward the crowd.

Jack gave a cry of surprise and glared back at the stallion. Max merely laughed with Pascal as Jack was dragged into the dance by a woman.

The music became more intense with every moment, and every single person dancing felt it inside of them. They all clapped their hands at once, they all turned and twirled in beautiful unison. Rapunzel had pulled them all together, and Rapunzel danced among all of them, her long braid trailing behind her with every turn. At a certain moment, Jack offered her his hand. She smiled and tried to take it, but was pulled into dancing with other person, and Jack was as well. Rapunzel smiled apologetically at him. But Jack's smile when looking at her was mischievous.

As the music reached the most intense point, Rapunzel grew more and more immersed in her dance. She closed her eyes and twirled. Her feet lifted from the ground and came back to it with an almost magical grace, following the rhythm that seemed to beat inside of her. Her long braid trailed behind her, her dress flew along with her as she twirled, and twirled... until she was stopped by Jack grabbing her hands, just as the music was finished. Their breathing was harsh, but they were smiling widely at each other. They stood mesmerized into each other's eyes for a moment, until they heard a voice.

"Awww, look at that. Isn't that romantic?"

Jack and Rapunzel quickly got separated, awkwardly clearing their throats and looking away from each other, and saw Merida and Hiccup looking at them with all-knowing smiles and raised eyebrows.

"Oh, shut up!" Rapunzel protested, feeling how her cheeks started flushing red, as Merida laughed loudly.

"Real smooth, there, Jack" Hiccup whispered as Jack took his staff back and they stood nearby. Jack glared at him, and the Viking started laughing. "I think she likes you" he winked.

"You do?" Jack's eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Yeah" Hiccup smiled naughtily. "I don't think she'd be able to endure your constant flirting otherwise."

"Hey, I don't flirt constantly!" Jack protested.

"Ssssuuuuure you don't..."

"To the boats!" a man's voice echoed through the streets, and everyone got really excited all of a sudden, many people running over to some point in the harbor.

"It's time, isn't it?" Hiccup asked, and Jack nodded.

"Punz!" the winter spirit called her. "Come on!"

She ran to their side and they began walking. "Where are we going?" she asked, her heart beating fast. She knew it was near.

"You'll see" Jack smiled at her. She was weirded out by that answer, but followed him nonetheless. When they got near the waters where the boats were docked, Hiccup waved his hand goodbye. "I have to go and check on Toothless. I'll watch it with him."

"Can I go with you?" Merida asked. Hiccup was surprised at first, but the redhead eloquently moved her eyes towards Rapunzel and Jack, and he understood what she wanted.

"Sure, why not?" he accepted with a knowing smile.

"Are you sure?" Rapunzel asked, as she hopped on the boat.

"Yeah, yeah... We can still have beautiful scenery here, anyway," Merida told Rapunzel.

Jack gave them a grin, "You two just wanna be alone, don't you?"

Merida pushed Jack onto the boat, "You're dead when you get back here, Jack! See ye later!" With that, she and Hiccup disappeared through an alley before Rapunzel could even object.

"Well, Punz?" when she noticed, Jack stood in the boat and was motioning for her to come in. "What are you waiting for?" he smiled as he helped her in.

Max could not come along, he stood at the deck. Feeling a little sorry for the stallion, the winter youth threw a bag of apples to him, "Here, Max, my treat," Max saw the apples but he gave Jack a look, "Hey come on, I paid for them, really." Jack shrugged as he continued to push the boat out.

Max smiled and began to eat the apples gratefully, "Where are we going?" Rapunzel questioned as she glanced back at her companion.

"I figure we could use a good seat to see the lanterns." Jack answered as he put his hand up to his shoulder where Pascal was currently perched. The chameleon got on his hand and he allowed him to sit on a small knob of the boat.

By the time Jack had pushed the boat out a ways from the kingdom, night had fallen. The moon shined down on the couple and there was nothing to do but wait. Jack stared up at the moon and he had to smile. This is one of the best days of his life. He managed to play around among people like he always dreamed. He knew that tomorrow was his last day and he was going to miss it. But he also knew that this day was special for Rapunzel. Speaking of, he heard a deep sigh coming from his right. He turned and saw she had a sad look on her face. Concerned, he questioned,

"Hey. You okay?"

Rapunzel bit her bottom lip and whispered, "I'm terrified."

Jack stared in surprise, "Terrified? Why?"

There was a pause before the golden haired girl finally answered, "I've been looking out a window for eighteen years, dreaming about what it might feel like when those lights rise in the sky," she then turned her soft green eyes to the winter spirit, "What if it's not everything I dreamed it would be?"

Jack glanced down before he turned to look back at her and gave her a gentle smile, "It will be. I promise." He assured her.

She slowly smiled back and then questioned, "And what if it is? What do I do then?"

Jack shifted his blue eyes back to the sky, "Well, that's the fun part I guess. You get to go find a new dream." He chuckled and Rapunzel laughed as well.

The two shared a look before she spoke up again, "Thanks for being here, Jack. I really appreciate it."

Jack was taken aback from her statement before he smiled gently, "No problem."

----------------------------

Merida and Hiccup sat by the land, close to where the forest was. Merida had her arms across her legs and Hiccup rested his arm on his knee. They didn't really know what to say to each other. Suddenly, Toothless bumped Hiccup and Merida from behind and sat behind them.

"Hey there, buddy!" Hiccup laughed.

"Glad you made it," Merida smiled. They waited for the lanterns to come out, which took some time that it felt like forever.

"Do you want to go back?" Hiccup asked. "Maybe we'd get a better view from there."

"Nah" Merida shook her head. "I like it here."

"Okay" he replied, and watched the stars along with her. "Do you know how to recognize the constellations?"

"Constellations? What are they?" Merida rose one of her eyebrows in curiosity.

"You don't know?" Hiccup was surprised.

"Never heard of them" she answered, and waited for his explanation.

"Oh, well..." Hiccup rubbed his neck with one hand. "They're, like... patterns, formed by the stars" Merida seemed surprised when she heard that. "Yeah. Look, see those stars over there? They're shaped like... a cart, sort of" he pointed at them with his index finger, and the redhead nodded. "That's the Ursa Major, the big bear. And see those on that other side? They're on the same shape, but smaller. That's the Ursa Minor, or the little bear."

Merida watched in fascination as she began to notice the incredible many shapes the stars were in, while Hiccup pointed them out for her and told her their names and stories. She never knew such wonders existed up there. Their necks hurt from looking up too much, so they ended up lying over the grass, next to each other, in a more comfortable position for star-gazing. Toothless then aid beside Hiccup, imitating their position in his funny way.

"That is amazin', Hic" Merida whispered, her eyes sparkly. "How do you know so much?"

"Oh, I just... I used to read a lot on my spare time, back at home" he shrugged. "I guess it just stayed in my memory."

"It's not that common for a Viking to read that much, is it?" she smiled, turning her head to look at him. He looked back at her with a resigned smile.

"I'm used to uncommon things, I guess."

Merida lightly laughed as he looked up at the sky "What do you think it's going to be like?"

"I don't know," Hiccup answered while patting Toothless' head. "I just hope Rapunzel likes it."

"These past few days have been really interesting, haven't they?" Merida asked.

"Yeah, they have," Hiccup said with a smile. "I got to know everyone a bit better, and I got to know a bit more of myself too." After he said that, he quickly punched Merida in the arm.

"Ow," she said rubbing it. She was about to yell at him, but then stopped to think. He's begining to demonstrate what she's been teaching him.

She saw his face; he was clearly thinking he made a bad move. But she smiled at him. "You did good Hiccup," she said, "looks my teachings are working."

Hiccup changed from being scared to being happy. "You really are a good teacher," he said, rubbing his head.

Merida smiled at the comment before looking at Hiccup's two braids. "Ok," she said, "I can't take you seriously with those things in your hair."

Hiccup smiled as show them off a bit. "Trust me, in the next five years, everyone will be wearing them."

"Maybe at your home, not mine." She said, shaking her head.

-----------------------------

Meanwhile, inside the palace, the king and queen were preparing for the lantern ceremony. The queen was straightening out her husband's robes when she glanced up and took notice of how depressed he was. Tears were in his eyes and he felt like he could not go through with this. Being without his daughter for eighteen years was just too much. His wife frowned deeply and placed her hand gently on the side of his face. He glanced up through his tearful eyes and saw the queen trying to smile at him. She understood as well of how lonely and sad that they could not find their daughter. However, there was always that glimmer of hope that one day she will return.

The king slowly smiled before they proceed to go out onto the balcony. The single lantern was there waiting to be lit and to fly up into the air. Slowly, they made their way to the lantern and lit it. The royal couple glanced at each other before they slowly lifted up the lantern. Once they had set it off, all the people in the kingdom started to light up their lanterns as well.

-----------------------------------

Near the shore, Hiccup pulled out the last braid out of his hair, and got it back to normal. He then looked up at the sky in thought. It must've been about three days since he's seen Berk. And what of his father? Gobber? Or the rest of the tribe? Did they miss him? Or were they holding a celebration because he was gone? As much as Hiccup didn't want to think like that, chances are they were having a good time.

"Feeling a bit homesick?" Merida asked him, seeing his expression.

"In a matter of speaking," Hiccup sighed. He then looked over Merida. "What about you? Do you have any friends you worry about?"

"Not really," she answered. "Being royal never really gives you time to make friends."

"You mean with all those lessons and traditions?" Hiccup asked her.

"Aye." Merida nodded. "And when I do go into the kingdom, they treat me like a princess, like they should bow at my feet and do whatever I say. Not really the way to make friends I guess."

"That makes sense," Hiccup said.

"What do you mean?"

"Well," he said, trying to make this sound right. "You've never really been around real people, so you had high expectations with them. Just like what your mom does to you. That's why you never gave people a real chance in the beginning. You didn't know another way to communicate with them, and be friends with them. But when you met us, I guess it didn't matter."

Merida thought long and hard at what he just said. Some parts of it do run true, but surely she wasn't that bad, was she? Maybe because her mom forced her to act like a princess, she never had any true friends. But still, for acting the way she did, it was partly her fault too.

"Maybe you're right," she said looking in the water and spying her reflection. "Maybe that's one of the reasons I wanted to run away. Not just so I can get away from tradition and my mother, but to change my fate, and to do things I've never done before, like making friends. Maybe, even have a new life."

"You and me both," Hiccup muttered.

Merida heard him and wants to know more about that. "What do mean?" She asked while turning to face him.

Hiccup sigh as he looked at her. "Well," he said, "before I met you guys, Toothless and I were also running away from home."

"Wait," Merida said as if she didn't hear him correctly. "You were running away from home too?"

"Yeah," he said. "I wanted to run away from home, because it didn't really feel like home to me. Everyone expecting you to be something you're not, and hating you because you're different. I was running away from all that. Plus the rules, tradition and..."

"Expectations," Merida finished. She looked at him, thinking that he's been going through the same thing she is, having to be someone she's not. Both of them looked in silence for a bit. They seemed so different, yet they have more similarities then they thought. They wondered how that was possible, to be so alike, yet so different. But, Hiccup didn't mind the moment; after all he's friends with a dragon. Merida wasn't too sure how to take this though; she never knew anyone could be like her, especially a Viking like Hiccup. But it's happened, and she liked it.

Hiccup turned and saw a glow coming from the kingdom. "Merida, look!" He called out; pointing at the glow. "I think it's time!"

Merida looked out over at the kingdom, and saw the glow getting brighter and brighter. Soon, a lantern made its way to the sky, followed by a thousand more. The sky began to be covered with lanterns.

Hiccup and Merida were awestruck by the view, too much to let any words out at the beauty the kingdom gave to the sky.

"I can see why Rapunzel wanted to come here," Merida said still looking at the sky happy.

"Me too," Hiccup agreed.

------------------------------

Down below, Rapunzel was placing flowers into the water. Jack merely observed with a smile. The young girl was placing another flower on the water when she saw something in the reflection. She glanced up and saw it was a lantern.

Rapunzel: All those days watching from the windows

All those years outside looking in

All that time never even knowing

Just how blind I've been

Rapunzel gasped and jumped up to grasp the end of the boat she and Jack were on. Her sudden movements nearly made the boat topple over, but luckily it didn't, and she smiled up as she watched the first lantern go into the sky and then hundreds more join it.

Now I'm here, blinking in the starlight

Now I'm here, suddenly I see

Standing here, it's all so clear

I'm where I'm meant to be

Rapunzel was in awe by all the lanterns covering the night sky. It was a beautiful sight and she had been waiting for this.

And at last I see the light

And it's like the fog has lifted

And at last I see the light

And it's like the sky is new

She then leaned against the pole of the boat and continued to watch all the floating lanterns hover all around the lake.

And it's warm and real and bright

And the world has somehow shifted

All at once everything looks different

Now that I see you

Rapunzel then realized she had nearly forgotten about Jack. She turned and took notice that the winter youth in question was holding two lit lanterns in his hands. She smiled as she sat back down in front of him.

"Jack, I..." she began, but her own laughter forbid her from going on. She put her fingers over her lips, which couldn't stop smiling. "I'm just... so happy!"

Jack laughed, too, because her happiness made him happy as well. And the spectacle of lanterns was nothing to snuff at; the sight just made your heart feel so light it could float among the lanterns.

"I have something for you, too," She said while Jack gave her a confused look. She took out the satchel and added, "I should have given it to you before, but I was just scared. And the thing is, I'm not scared anymore. You know what I mean?"

Jack placed his hand on Rapunzel's hands that held the satchel and pushed them down to indicate he didn't really care about the bag. He gave her a rare gentle smile, "I think I'm starting to."

Rapunzel smiled before she took her own lantern and together, the two lifted their lanterns above.

Jack gazed into Rapunzel's eyes, which seemed to reflect every single light around them, and they smiled at each other. The winter spirit mustered the courage to reach for her hands, and she grabbed a hold of his.

"Hey" he suddenly said. "Have you ever done ice skating before?"

She blinked in confusion. "Ice skate? No, never. Why?"

He smiled, a wide, lopsided, naughty, yet warm smile. He grabbed his staff with one hand as he held Rapunzel's hand with the other. He glided the staff over the water, which instantly froze to the touch, and stepped out of the boat, over the ice he had created. He motioned for Rapunzel to come along, but she hesitated.

"Uh, Jack, I... I'm not sure. I've never done it before" she said, one of her hands over her chest, the other still holding Jack's. "What if I fall?"

"I'll catch you" he reassuringly smiled. "I won't let anything happen to you, Punz. Really."

She smiled, but still remained reluctant for a moment. "Do you trust me?" he asked, looking into her eyes. And she nodded and walked out of the boat, stepping over the cold ice with her bare feet. "Eep!" she yelped. "It's really cold!"

"It'll be fine, you'll get used to it in a moment, I promise" Jack held her hand tightly. "Tell me when your feet are feeling too cold, okay?" she nodded to that, and he smiled. "Now, don't let go of my hand, and just... slide."

He started gliding his feet over the ice, and she imitated him. Jack froze the lake with his staff as they advanced. Rapunzel was unsure at first, but soon, she started letting herself go, as they skated over the frozen lake.

Jack: All those years, sitting in the shadows

All those years doubting who I was

All that time never truly seeing

Things the way they were

As they skated Jack watched the lanterns himself and he had to admit it was a beautiful sight to see. He had always been on the move and now that he was taking the time to take things slow, he can see just how great it was. He then glanced back at Rapunzel and had to smile at her.

Now she's here, shining in the starlight

Now she's here, suddenly I know

Rapunzel gasped and pointed at a lantern (which was the first one that the king and queen had set off) that was floating near the water. Smiling, she reached over and helped lift it back into the air. Jack slowly smiled and reached over to to gently take her hand.

If she's here, it's crystal clear

I'm where I meant to go

Rapunzel was slightly surprised by Jack taking her hand. She glanced over and had to smile back at him. The two didn't really understand this feeling, but one thing was clear, they wanted to know it more. And the two break into a song, as they began to slowly dance in a circle, the lanterns seeming to dance along

And at last, I see the light

Jack: And it's like the fog has lifted

Both: And at last, I see the light

Rapunzel: And it's like the sky is new

Both: And it's warm and real and bright

And the world has somehow shifted

All at once, everything is different

Now that I see you

Jack and Rapunzel were now staring into each other's eyes. Self-consciously, Jack reached over and tucked a loose strand of Rapunzel's blonde hair behind her ear. Pascal had a feeling something was going to happen. He turned red while looking away.

Jack spun Rapunzel around before his hands slipped to her waist, which caused Rapunzel to hands to grip his shoulders.

Now that I see you

Jack and Rapunzel at this point could not keep their eyes off each other. Once they had stopped singing, Jack could only stare deeply into Rapunzel's spring green eyes. As he did, he felt something within him trigger a memory. At first it was faint, but when Rapunzel smiled, he was seeing the tiny baby princess smiling back at him. This made the spirit frown and lower his hands. The girl across from him stared at him in confusion.

"Jack? Are you okay?" She asked for she was both concerned and confused on Jack's sudden mood change. Did she do something wrong?

"I..." He began and realized that everything seemed to make sense now. He shook his head and glanced back at Rapunzel, "We need to talk."

---------------------------

Meanwhile, back on land, Merida looked up in awe as she, Hiccup and Toothless watched in awe as hundreds of floating lanterns floated over the lake and through the sky, and then over the forest.

"Now, this, this is amazing'. I've never seen anything like this!" Merida breathed out at the beautiful sight.

"Yeah... It's truly something." Hiccup responded, smiling as Toothless harrumphed happily.Hiccup glanced over at her and he thought he could see every single light reflected on her eyes. He wasn't supposed to be watching her instead of the floating lanterns, was he? Toothless bumped his shoulder with his nose and showed a very eloquent expression on his dragon face. Hiccup blushed and lightly pushed the dragon aside. He didn't want to admit, but he was growing fond of Merida. He shouldn't be. A girl like that would never even think of falling for a talking fishbone like him.

Hours passed and the lanterns eventually passed and the lanterns eventually passed over the forest and continued to head to head towards distance villages, carried by the light wind. "Hic?" Merida asked after a while.

"Yeah?" He glanced over at her.

"Shouldn't we be getting back to the others by now?" Merida asked, watching some boats below return to the docks of Corona.

"Yeah, we probably should." Hiccup said as he stood up and stretched. "Come on, let's head back to the forest, bud." Toothless let out a grumble, but got up and followed Hiccup and Merida towards the mainland's shore.

"Hey, Hic" Merida spoke, making him looking over at her. "Um... do you think Jack and Punzie...like each other?"

"Wha?" Hiccup jumped, blushing once again. "I... I don't know. I guess? Why do you ask?"

"Well..." she rubbed her hands together, looking back at the lanterns. "I just have a feeling that there's something special between them. I guess...in my own time, I would like to have something like that. Someday."

"Ah..." Hiccup was surprised by her words, and awkwardly cleared his throat. "Well, I... I'm sure there are plenty of Highlander lads that would offer themselves for that."

"Don't be so sure" she replied, huffing. "I was having my betrothal when you found me, remember? Men would only want me 'cause I'm princess, not 'cause they like me for who I am. Well... to be honest, I don't think anyone wood like me for who I am." those words sounded surprisingly bitter.

"What?" Hiccup frowned. "Don't say such nonsense, Merida. We like you for who you are!" he blushed and looked away before finishing: "I do."

Before Merida could say anything else, A faith chuckle caught their attention as Hiccup looked around for the sound. Toothless let out a low growl and bared his retractable teeth, pupils becoming small slits in his softball sized eyes.

"What is it?" Merida asked. She pulled her bow over her head and nocked an arrow.

Hearing the chuckle coming from behind them, the trio turned around and saw a woman with black curly hair, wearing a red dress and long black cloak. She had a smile on her beautiful face, but it was not out of kindness. They then could feel there something wrong with this woman. Her gray eyes held anger and hatred in them.

""Well, look what we have here." The woman greeted as she walked toward them, "It's the boy and his dragon, as well as the fiesty little brat who are in leige with the winter spirit that kidnapped my daughter from the tower."

"Your daughter?" Hiccup repeated and then his eyes widen. "You're Rapunzel's mother?"

"Indeed I am." Gothel said with a hand on her hip. "And I must say, your group has become a bad influence on her."

"Us!?" Merida yelled angrily. "You kept her locked up for 18 years in a tower and never let her leave! What kind of mother does that!?"

"She's right." Hiccup spoke up his brows narrowed. "Rapunzel deserves to be free. You don't have the right to take that from here. No mother does."

Toothless growled in agreement, as he watched the woman warily.

Gothel scoffed at them. "I wouldn't expect a runaway Princess and a Viking to understand anything."

Hearing that, Hiccup and Merida's eyes widen in shock. How did she know about them?

"Surprise?" Gothel smirked at them. "I simply overheard your little conversation the other night, and imagine my shock when I found out that there was a princess among you all that ran away just because her mother know best. Oh, it brings tears to my eyes."

Merida glared harshly at the woman. "You don't know a thing about me!" She growled, pointing her nocked arrow at her.

Hiccup glared at the woman for the comment, but kept his cool. "Tell me something." He said calmly. "Why did you keep Rapunzel locked up for most of her life? Rapunzel told us that it was out of protection for her and her hair. But I get the feeling that there's more to it than that."

Gothel laughed a very insidious laugh that sent shivers up all their spines. "My, aren't you a smart boy. Well, the answer to that is very simple. It's the only reason I've been able to stay alive for so long."

Hiccup's eyes widened at this information, as he connected the dots. "You kept her away from the world...just so you could her hair's power for yourself!?"

"You catch on quick, Viking." Gothel said, keeping on her smirk.

Merida's icy blues eyes spoke volumes of the rage she was feeling. If looks could kill, Gothel would be dead now.

"You don't care about her!" Merida spat, vemon in her voice. "You just care about her hair, because it keeps you young. I was right about you. You're not a loving mother, you are a witch!"

Gothel snorted at that. "Oh please, it was that spirit that took my flower from the tower in the first place. I'm simply taking back what's mine."

"She's not a flower, she's a human being." Hiccup angrily said.

"We're not going to let you use her the way you want!" Merida yelled.

"Shame you don't have a choice." Gothel smiled before she snapped her fingers. "Boys!"

Suddenly, a several large nets were thrown over Toothless, who under the nets, looking upset and scared.

"Toothless!" Hiccup exclaimed, before he was held by one of the Washington brothers, who held a sword to his throat,

"Hiccup!" Merida yelled and rushed forward. She was caught by the other and he managed to punch her in the face and knock her to the ground, as well as sending her bowand arrows sliding across the ground.

"I've been meaning to pay you back for that scar you gave me." He sneered down at her.

Spitting out some blood, Merida looked up at glared at the brothers.
"You're those two criminals we fought back at the canyon!" Merida in shock after recognizing the two.

"Ah, so you remember us." The other brother said wickedly. "How thoughtful."

"Ruffian bastards!" Merida roared, "You let Hiccup and Toothless go now you skivvy punks or I swear-!"

"Shut up!" The younger brother yelled, "Or lover boy here gets it!"

Hiccup felt a trickle of blood on his neck and stayed calm. He looked over at Toothless, who was still struggling under the nets.

"Toothless!" he called, "It's okay, buddy! I'm here! Don't worry!" he said to it.

"How touching. A boy and his pet." Gothel laughed, "Now that's taken care of, we have one more loose end to take care of." Gothel said as she headed down to the shore.

"What do you want here?!" Hiccup exclaimed to the brothers.

"Oh, It's not you two that we want. It's the girl with the magic hair and we got a score to settle with that winter." One of the brothers said grinning evilly.

Hiccup and Merida taped in shock at that. "Oh but don't worry." The other brother spoke up before letting out a very wicked grin. "We'll take good care of the girl."

Hiccup looked at Merida, "Mer, you have to find Jack and Rapunzel! Don't let them-oomph!"

"Shut up!" The older brother growled as he dug his fist into the boy's stomach, causing him to double over in pain as the breath was knocked out of him, before passing out.

"Hiccup!" Merida shouted before she got and leapt onto rhe older brother's back. As the bigger man stumbled, Merida reached out and dug her nails into his face and biting his right ear. The man cried out in pain as blood began to leak down his face while he tried desperately to get Merida off of him. Reaching up, he grabbed onto the girl and flipped her over his shoulder and slammed her onto the into ground. She coughed in pain while the older Stabbington brother stumbled backwards, clutching his injured face. He gingerly touched his injured ear, finding a portion of the top was gone, replaced with oozing blood. He glared down at Merida who had pushed herself to her hands and knees.

"And here I thought you couldn't get any uglier," Merida mocked as she spat out Drake's blood and skin, some blood tinkling down the sides of her mouth.

"You little-!" The man roared before stomping over and grabbing Merida by her hair and lifted her to her knees as she tried to fight him off. Swinging his hand around, He slapped her hard across the face, leaving an angry red mark, the impact was so hard, it knocked her unconscious.

As he raised his hand again, the other brother walked up and grabbed him's arm, stopping him. In his other hand, He had Hiccup dangling under his arm.

"It's not worth it," Fletch said, looking at Drake. Drake glared right back before yanking his arm back and throwing Merida over his shoulder.

With that, the brothers carried the two unconscious teens and followed after Gothel, leaving a roaring and struggling Toothless behind.

-----------------------------

Finally done! What did you guys think? PM me your thoughts or leave a review.

See ya!!!