Bonds Passed Differences - What is done...is done

    Eugene carried his bleeding wife away as the Royals, Riders, and Dragons ran through the village of Berk and into the forest.

    "Jack!" Hiccup tried to speak to him, but got no response, "Why'd you come to the village?  With Dagur there?  Were'nt you scared of him?"

    Jack didn't respond to any of his questions but just kept running with the branch still in his hands, covered in frost.

    All of a sudden, everyone heard a 'caw' from above them and saw a crow as it spoke, "Everyone, this way!"

    With that, everyone, Riders, Dragons, Royals, and Spirit ran after the crow as it led them through passages of trees, rivers, and streams.  Each time they came across a flowing body of water, Jack made a bridge of ice so that everyone could cross.

    It took at least 30 minutes before they stumbled upon a cave.  At the sign of cover, they rushed inside to find the Royal's parents and the witch there.

    "Hiccup!" Stoick cried.

    "Dad!" Hiccup said surprised, before he saw Gobber laying on the cave floor, breathing and conscious.

    Jack stopped at the mouth of the cave, frozen with fear of the humans he didn't know.   

    "Bring her here," the witch commanded Eugene as he carried Rapunzel to the cave floor before a fire burning bright.

    Poor Queen Rachel was frantic that her daughter was injured as she covered her face and buried it in her husband's arms as King Arnold was at the verge of crying, seeing his daughter in such a state.

    The Witch commanded Merida to come to her with the first-aid supplies they had up to spare and, though Merida was against helping the witch for what had happened between her and her mother, she obeyed for Rapunzel's sake.

    "I'll watch for Dagur and his men," Jack said before Astrid grabbed his shoulder.

    "No, Jack," Astrid said, "I'll do it."

    As Astrid did what she said she would do, Jack took a seat away from the fire and away from the people as they worked to heal Rapunzel.

    As Jack waited for a word in Rapunzel's emergency surgery, Eugene, Hiccup, and Rapunzel's parents were asked to wait outside.

    It felt like hours before they got word of what's happened to her.

    "I've done all I can," the witch said, "But she's suffered great bloodloss and much tissue damage and it'll take time before we know for sure if she'll make it.  She'll get a fever every now and again, so, Jack, I need you to keep her temperature stable.  Princess, I need you to change her bandages every now and again to prevent infection.  Hiccup and Eugene, just watch over her.  I'll tend to the other wounds now."

    "And the baby?" Eugene asked, catching Queen Rachel's and King Arnold's attention.

    "The baby is miraculously fine, Prince Eugene," the Witch said, "I can tell it suffered minimal damage...but an infection could change that at any moment."

    Eugene face was sullen when he heard those words.  He was happy that the baby was fine, but greatly depressed that he could lose his wife and his child if an infection occurs.

    Hiccup tried to comfort Eugene, but he was shrugged off violently.  He, himself, was at the verge of tears at losing a friend...and being partially responsible for it.

    "Hiccup!" Stoick called for his son, "A word?  Now?!"

    Hiccup knew he was in trouble for what he did.  He had led 5/6th of the Royals group into a battle they couldn't hope to have been prepared for and abandoned one of his own to face a madman.

    Once they were a good distance, Hiccup tried to apologize, "Dad...I'm sorry.  T-This is all MY fault!  I should never have done this..."

    "What in HELLHEIM were you thinking?" Stoick shouted at his son, "You not only abandoned Jack in the woods for Dagur to recapture, but led the Riders and YOUR own group into DANGER!!!   You know how dangerous Dagur is.  WHY WOULD YOU EVER SEEK REVENGE ON HIM WHEN YOU WERE PUTTING OTHER LIVES AT RISK?!!!  HOW COULD YOU BE SO...STUPID?!!!  NOT ONLY DID YOU PUT YOURSELF AND TOOTHLESS IN DANGER, BUT EVERYONE ELSE YOU CARED FOR!!!  How...HOW COULD YOU BE SO RECKLESS!!!"

    "Dad, I-" Hiccup tried to get a word in, but his father just kept on ranting.

    "Do you know what could've happened?" Stoick said, "You could've been killed.  You could've gotten THEM ALL killed.  If we hadn't sent Jack after you..."

    "YOU sent Jack after us?" Hiccup asked.

    "Do you think he would've known the way to the village had I not instructed him?  Do you think he'd have the courage to go?" Stoick raged on, "We had to BEG him to go.  Of course, he didn't want to go because Dagur was there, but he just wanted to see if you would've made it okay.  YOU are just lucky he came in time to save you before Dagur could kill you all."

    Hiccup was on the verge of tears as his father shouted at him, "I'm sorry.  I KNOW!  I was stupid!  I was reckless!  I might as well have gotten Rapunzel and the baby killed.  I shouldn't have...I...I..."

    Hiccup's eyes went wide as Stoick grabbed his son and held him close.

    "You are FORBIDDEN from ever doing that again," Stoick said softly with tears in his eyes, "Do you understand me?  NEVER are you to do that again."

    Hiccup's eyes watered to the point of leaking as he felt the warmth of his father's embrace.  Hiccup slowly wrapped his arms around his father's head and said, "It won't happen again, I promise."

    Jack was the only one watching as the rest of the parents scolded and embraced the children, Rachel and Arnold scolding Eugene, when the witch came up to him after bandaging Toothless's muzzle.

    "You've done a great deed, Jack Frost," the witch told him, "You've saved the lives of your friends and brought them here safely away from Dagur."

    "I just wish I was faster," Jack said to her, "I knew how dangerous Dagur was.  I knew what'd he do to me if I revealed myself to him.  But when I saw him...STABBING Rapunzel and the baby.  I just...acted."

    "And bravely, you did," the witch said, "If it weren't for you, they would not have made it this far.  I thank you for that, Jack, and I'm sure they do too."

    Jack looked at the witch in surprise, then looked at Hiccup as he was coming into the cave with Stoick.

    "You watch over my boy," Stoick told Jack, "And make sure he and the others stay safe."

    "I watch them like a bird in the sky," Jack told Stoick.

    As Stoick went into the cave, Hiccup said to Jack, "Jack, I'm sorry for what I said.  You were right!  I shouldn't have gone back."

    Before Hiccup said another word, Jack put up his hand to stop him from speaking.  "I would've done the same thing had it been my teacher in trouble," Jack said, "And besides, I'm just glad that you and the others are okay."

    "When did you decide to act?" Hiccup asked him.

    "When Rapunzel was getting stabbed," Jack told him, "And when you were being held by your neck."

    "That was a good thing you did back there," Hiccup said, "Come back and save us, I mean."

    "You saved me when I didn't want you to," Jack said, "Figured I had to make us even."

    Hiccup chuckled and Jack joined until it erupted into laughs at the mouth of the cave.

    The adults went back to Berk to face Dagur with the Riders after the witch patched up Jack's black eye and examined the wounds on the Riders and their dragons.  The Royals stayed in the cave with Gobber as a supervisor (Not that he was much for travel anyways).

    When Hiccup asked him how he was doing, Gobber said, looking at Rapunzel, "Better than her.  Just a few broken ribs and ruptured organs, but nothing my sweetums couldn't fix."

    "Sweetums?" Jack asked, "You mean the witch?"

    "Oh, please don't tell me you've fallen for her," Merida said utterly disgusted.

    "Hey, that's my sweetums you're talking about, Missy," Gobber teased, "She's been a great help to us.  Keeping Dagur at bay, keeping track of the Black dust..."

    "Why would she need to do that?" Jack asked.

    "Because it's infecting everyone with nightmares," said Gobber, "Turning them into monsters."

    "So, THAT'S why one of my soldiers attacked me," Merida said, "It's because of the Black Dust."

    "More of a threat than I fear..." Jack whispered to himself.

    "What was that, Jack?" Hiccup asked.

    Before Jack could answer, Eugene shushed everyone as Rapunzel was having a nightmare.  She was dreaming of Dagur stabbing her in the stomach, killing the baby in the process.

    Merida was the first on the scene as Rapunzel started twisting and turning and crying in her sleep.

    "Let me try something," Merida said to Eugene.

    Eugene stood back as Merida gently took Rapunzel's head into her lap and started to sing a lullaby.

    A naoidhean bhig,

    Cluinn mo ghuth

    Mise ri d' thaobh

    Hiccup listened intently as Merida sang the lovely song, taking in every word he could before singing along with her.

    As they sung in harmony, the cave filled with the song's music, Rapunzel's nightmare seemed to fade away into nothingness and she was calm again.  That didn't stop them from singing the song to the end and even repeating it until they were sure Rapunzel could hear them.

    Jack joined the chorus, leaving Eugene to join in last, though both messed up the words pretty bad compared to Hiccup and Merida.

    Before anyone knew it, they had fallen asleep in that cave by the end of the third song.