Chapter Text
Technically, Jack knew that he shouldn't be getting so close to the human village – What had Mother Winter and Mother Summer called it before sending them to the past? Berk? – but he was so bored!
Seriously, they'd been in the past for hours already, and still the others couldn't decide what to do next in tracking down Pitch.
Though, to be fair, it wasn't like the Sidhe had been very forthcoming with helpful information.
Whether that was because the fae honestly didn't know how they'd find Pitch or they were being secretive or literally couldn't tell them because of time travel shenanigans – or all three – it didn't really matter. The Guardians weren't given much choice in the end.
Still, even when North and Bunny weren't arguing, the other Guardians were borderline suffocating.
They would repeatedly ask how Jack was feeling and make him show the pendant that Nightlight had left to keep him from flickering, as if they'd be able to do something should it suddenly stop working.
Honestly. It was like they expected him to purposely take off something that, apparently, was keeping him from fading from existence.
Jack knew he could be reckless, but a little bit of trust was warranted after all the years they'd known each other, right?
"I'd say they need to learn to have a little fun," Jack commented, glancing at Nightless – the albino dragon who Mother Winter had insisted was particularly important to past events. "But I think even my powers have their limits."
Nightless huffed in apparent agreement, making him snicker.
While it'd taken Nightless some time to warm up to Jack after saving her from those dragon hunters, it was beyond clear she was not going to be fond of the other Guardians anytime soon.
"They're really worrying too much," Jack continued, not really paying attention to where he was going as he walked through the forest. It felt teeming with magic, so whoever was the magical emissary of this area was doing a great job. "I doubt they've even noticed the dragons flying above..."
Jack certainly hadn't missed that detail. While Nightless' existence had proven his fears wrong about the extinction of said race, Jack would be all too happy to meet every dragon this era had to offer.
"Not to mention," Jack continued, glancing back at Nightless with a wide grin, "maybe they have to worry about someone seeing them in this time period, but I'm completely invisible–"
"Jackson!?"
Jack stiffened. He spun around, coming face-to-face with a rather large dragon – maybe around sixty feet long – with reddish-orange scales and gray-black horns that curved outwards on the edge. His eyes were yellowish-orange and more than a bit intimidating, but the way he stared at Jack didn't seem threatening.
(In fact, he'd say the dragon looked surprised.)
For a split-second, Jack thought that it'd been the dragon who'd spoken – which wouldn't have surprised him all that much, really – but it was then he saw there was a person on the dragon's back.
The rider was a short, but well-muscled Viking dressed in a leather tunic and brown cotton pants. For some reason, Jack felt himself drawn to the sight of the black bear cloak... as if he should know it, somehow.
(For that matter, the dark-haired rider himself looked... familiar? But that couldn't be right... right?)
The rider gaped at Jack. A quick look behind him told Jack that the rider really was staring at Jack and not at Nightless or something else in the distance.
"Jackson?" the rider repeated, confirming that Jack really hadn't been hearing things. "Odin's beard, am I hallucinating? Or is it really..."
There were a lot of things Jack could've done at that moment:
Confirm that the rider could actually see him.
Ask the rider how he knew his name – or at least Jack's former name.
Or, smartest yet, question if the rider was a spirit like Jack. If he'd been somehow sent to help the Guardians find Pitch and that Jack was just overreacting to what was a very simple explanation...
But the look on the rider's face... it was like he'd seen a ghost.
Like he'd seen Jack before.
All of that, along with the sudden pounding of Jack's head and tugging, aching feeling in his chest–
It was too much.
Before the rider could say anything else, Jack fled.
o0o0o0o
It hadn't been a good day for Hiccup.
Or a good week.
(It hadn't been a good year, for that matter. Not since before... his death.)
But the job of the Chief of Berk never ended, so Hiccup knew he had to just bear through it as he had all his life's tribulations and focus on the most immediate problems at hand.
Especially since the intel he'd asked Heather to collect looked quite... grim.
Literally, grim. A new enemy, with the backing of various warlords, named "Grimmel" was after them.
While someone wanting to kill Hiccup was nothing new, the fact that this Grimmel was reportedly the one who'd hunted Night Furies into extinction definitely made it to the top of Hiccup's list of threats.
If that wasn't enough, Eret had confirmed the rumors that Grimmel was a Witchfinder.
More specifically, that Grimmel had loved to hunt down Druids.
After all those years of searching for other Druids in the Barbaric Archipelago, Hiccup finally had his answer why there'd never been any sign of other magic users like Jackson.
And while Hiccup would give anything to have Jackson back with him, a part of him was relieved that Jackson would never learn the fate of his Druid clansmen.
So, yeah, Grimmel had made this very personal despite the fact that Hiccup hadn't yet had the misfortune of meeting the man yet.
But when he did... Hiccup would be sure to get the vengeance that Toothless' kind and Jackson's people deserved.
Of course, before that could happen, Hiccup had to figure out what the man's plans were. So far, Grimmel and whatever forces he was working with appeared to be attacking random Berk and Berk-allied ships from a distance.
That wasn't entirely too strange, but the state that the sailors came back in... gaunt and terrified and rambling about being put through their worst nightmares... Hiccup didn't like it.
He was almost certain there was something supernatural going on, but the Wyldfae hadn't been forthcoming with information and Gothi was also at a lost, so he really wasn't sure what to do next–
"HICCUP!"
Hiccup jolted, startling from where he'd been staring – or, as Astrid would put it, brooding – at Heather's latest report to where Snotlout's voice yelled from the front entrance of the Great Hall.
Hiccup groaned, rubbing at his head. "Please let it be good news."
Astrid snorted. She was sitting on Hiccup's right side as she charted the areas that Grimmel's forces had been seen in on a map. "It's Snotlout. How's that ever good news?"
Fishlegs, who was on Hiccup's other side, glanced up from where he'd been searching through various tomes to try and find a magical creature that fit the "shadows" the haunted sailors had described upon returning.
"I think I'm on Astrid's side here, Hiccup," Fishlegs said with a worried expression. "That didn't sound like a 'good news' scream."
The twins, who'd been alternating between stabbing each other with a fork and supposedly helping Fishlegs, snorted in unison.
"Like you would know," Tuffnut taunted. "All your screams are high-pitched and whiny."
"Yeah," Ruffnut said with a considering look. "They're pretty fun."
Fishleg's gaze turned lovestruck. "I'll scream however–"
Fortunately, instead of hearing whatever – undoubtedly horrifying – response Fishlegs had to that, it was then Snotlout finally made his way to their table.
Hiccup knew that it had to be dire because he didn't even glance at his betrothed, Heather, who'd been just on her way out to go talk to Commander Huffnut. This made Heather turn and follow him as Snotlout stopped before them with wild eyes.
"What's going on, Snotlout?" Hiccup asked, glancing up and down to see if his cousin was injured in some way.
While the other Viking appeared physically fine, his features were pale and he was out of breath. His expression was somewhat similar to the returned sailors in that he looked spooked, but not to the level they sailors had been.
"It..." Snotlout swallowed, glancing at a floating burn-orange colored orb beside him – the Dewdrop Faerie and Snotlout's regular Wyldfae companion, Fawn. She nodded and Snotlout turned back to Hiccup, expression solemn. "We saw Jackson."
The Great Hall went silent.
Then...
"What!?" Astrid shrieked, glancing back and forth from Hiccup and Snotlout with a mixture of bewilderment and anger on her face. She suddenly went pale. "Did... did someone disturb his body–"
"No, he was alive," Snotlout said, cutting off Astrid. He hesitated. "Or, maybe not?"
"What is that supposed to mean!?" Astrid asked, visibly losing her temper.
"If this is a prank, it's not cool." The fact that it was Ruffnut saying this spoke volumes, as did the serious expression on her face.
"Yeah." Tuffnut scowled as well. "Bad luck to mess with the dead – especially our dead."
"I'm serious," Snotlout said firmly, looking back and forth between all of them. "I... I think it may have been his ghost."
"Ghost?" Heather echoed, eyes narrowing in thought.
"He had white hair and could fly," Snotlout said with a nod. "Pretty sure that's a ghost."
"Oh, that's not good," Fishlegs whispered, hands raised to bite his nails. "But we gave him a proper burial!"
"Did we...?" They all looked at Heather who was now fiddling with the bottom of her braid in thought. "We saw his ship sank before it could completely burn, and the Druids undoubtedly had different rites we didn't know about."
"But enough to make it so his spirit couldn't rest in peace?" Astrid questioned, brow furrowed.
"Maybe we didn't give him enough treasure?" Tuffnut ventured before frowning. "I'd be mad if I didn't have all my stuff with me in the afterlife, but Jackson... I don't know."
"Maybe he snuck out of Valhalla!" Ruffnut lit up. "That'd definitely be a great prank!"
"M-Maybe he has something to tell us?" Fishlegs ventured before his eyes darted back to Hiccup, worried. "I-I mean, not that I believe that it's his ghost..."
"You calling me a liar, Fishlegs?" Snotlout seethed, eyes narrowed in warning.
Fishlegs raised his hands in defense. "I-I didn't say..."
"Hiccup?" Astrid asked softly, bringing Hiccup out of the stunned stupor he'd been in since hearing Jackson's name again. "What do you want to do?"
The team all looked to Hiccup, all silently waiting for his response. At the corner of his eye, Hiccup could see that others in the Great Hall, villagers who had also known Jackson, were listening in too.
A part of him wished Snotlout could've brought this up in private, but... Hiccup would've definitely been more upset to have been told this a second later than physically possible.
Hiccup stared down at the reports, the words blurring before his eyes. His fingers burned to bring out the compass affixed to his arm bracer, the one that was enchanted to take him wherever or to whoever he wanted to go, but...
"You're sure it was Jackson?" Hiccup asked quietly, meeting his cousin's eyes.
(Because, regardless of the reason or circumstances, if there was even a chance he could see Jakcson again...)
Snotlout nodded firmly, meeting his Chief's gaze as serious as could be. "Hiccup, you know I wouldn't mess with you on this. Not about Jackson."
Closing his eyes, Hiccup reached up and pulled his compass from his bracer. He brought it in front of him, hands clutching the metal, the familiar nicks and grooves from years of use.
He exhaled once, then forced himself to look down and open his eyes.
For the first time in a year since he'd thought of Jackson while holding the compass, the needle was no longer wildly spinning.
Instead, it was pointed towards the forest.
Hope lit in Hiccup's heart, stronger than anything he'd ever felt before.
Hiccup clenched the compass, looking up at the eager faces of his fellow riders.
"Move out."
o0o0o0o
"Someone what!?"
Jack winced at Bunny's shriek. He knew he kind of deserved it, but did the overgrown rabbit really have to get that upset?
"I'm pretty sure he was a spirit though," Jack argued. "He was riding a dragon!" He glanced at where Sandy was making an image of a dragon with a rider. "And the dragon was a lot bigger than that."
"Which makes it even worse if he's an enemy!" Bunny groaned, rubbing at his face. "You couldn't even go one day without causing trouble."
"I'm sure Jack didn't mean to," Tooth defended before turning to the youngest Guardian. "What did the rider say?"
"He..." Jack hesitated. "He knew my name?"
All four Guardians looked at him in surprise.
"How's that possible?" Tooth asked with wide eyes. "You said you've only been around for three hundred years, right? This is long before that!"
Jack didn't know how they'd react if he told them that the dragon rider had said his birth name, so he kept quiet.
"Maybe you misheard?" North ventured, tapping his forehead with one of his swords. "Travel through portal can be quite disorienting!"
"Yet you keep tossing me through them," Jack murmured beneath his breath before speaking up. "And he said it twice, so I'm pretty sure he knew who I was – or at least knew me by description."
"You do know how to stand out, you bloody bogan," Bunny agreed, clearly still displeased as he glanced at Jack up and down.
"Really?" Jack asked in a deadpan. "Of everyone here, you're going to accuse me of looking weird? When we have a man made of sand, a talking kangaroo, a hummingbird queen, and North?"
"What's wrong with how I look?" North asked, genuinely confused as he looked himself up and down.
Sandy looked like he was about to take that one when Bunny cut in.
"We're wasting time," Bunny interrupted, glancing around the forest as if they were about to be attacked at any moment. Which, to be fair, was possible. "The only other person who could know Jack's name in this time period is Pitch, so we need to be on guard."
Something inside of Jack told him that the dragon rider wasn't an enemy, but he didn't bring it up. After all, trying to explain himself had never gone well in the past.
"Isn't that a good thing?" Jack asked. "If we have Pitch come to us, then that saves a whole lot of time."
"But we know nothing of his plans," Tooth said, also looking around nervously. "And I didn't pay attention to it before, but I'm pretty sure I saw some fae..."
"Wyldfae," Jack automatically corrected, unsurprised when none of his fellow Guardians seemed to know the difference. Honestly, it was a miracle that the Winter Queen and Summer Queen had let them go with how disrespectful the Big Four had been to them. "They're unaffiliated."
"Can't trust any fae, mate," Bunny said, now climbing to the top of the tree to scout their surroundings better. "You'll learn in time."
"But I already–"
"Wait," Bunny interrupted, though Jack doubted he'd have listened to what the winter spirit had to say regardless. The Guardian's nose twitched and he kneeled down, concealing himself in the leafy branches tree. "Quick and hide, you drongos! Something's coming!"
Within seconds, the remaining Guardians in view darted to hide in their surroundings – and not a moment too soon as Jack spotted what looked to be a group of dragons coming towards them.
Like before, Jack's heart felt like it was trying to beat out of his chest as the unknown individuals got closer – but even stronger this time. He checked his pendant and then his hand, wondering if he'd started flickering, but he appeared as solid as ever.
"This is where I saw him!" the burly Viking from before called out, jumping off his crimson-colored dragon and to the forest below.
He searched the trees frantically before looking back at the one riding the dragon who looked like a dark version of Nightless. "I swear, Hiccup, Jackson was here!"
Jack tensed again at the repeat of his birth name, feeling more than seeing the confused glances of the other Guardians upon him. After all, the only name they knew was the one that Manny had given him.
Not that Jack had meant to hide it from them, it's just... they had never asked.
It was then that the one who appeared to be the leader – Hiccup? – got down from his dragon.
For some reason, Jack found himself studying this person's every feature, hungry for it in a way that he'd never been since he'd lived three hundred years.
He was the leanest and tallest–
(These Vikings are freakishly tall, aren't they?)
His hair was a typical shade of brown, with two braids on the side–
(Braids that Jack had the sudden, bewildering urge to tidy)
–and his eyes were a dull green–
(Eyes that Jack wanted to see closer, as if there was something in them he needed to see)
One of his legs was missing, replaced with a prosthetic left appendage–
("Toothless had to make it even–")
Jack clutched at his head, whimpering as it felt like he was about to explode.
The pendant Nightlight gave him started to glow, seeming to ward off the abrupt sickness, but not enough to drive away the unexplainable tidal wave of emotions that threatened to tear him apart. If he was being honest, it felt a lot like when Pitch had snapped his staff.
"Jack...?" Tooth whispered worriedly from the tree next to him. The other Guardians were also looking over with various expressions. "What's wrong?"
Jack had no time to reply as the young leader – Hiccup – walked straight up to the tree where Jack was hiding.
"Are you there?" Hiccup called out, glancing down at what appeared to be a compass before looking up with an even more hesitant expression. He was staring right at the spot where Jack was concealed. "It's me... Hiccup."
Jack swore he felt his heart stop, looking back at the head rider.
The expression on the leader's face was... forlorn. Lost, yet hopeful? While this Hiccup was in no way a child, Jack had the urge to soothe him – to reassure him?
Why do I feel like this? Jack wondered, trying to keep his breathing under control.
"If you're here," Hiccup continued, voice echoing throughout the clearing. It was as if the forest itself was staying silent for his words to carry. "Please... come out."
"Don't even think about it," Bunny hissed, though his expression betrayed his concern. His gaze flickered back and forth from the dragon rider to the youngest Guardian with uncertainty.
Jack's throat felt dry, unable to meet the eyes of the others. "I..."
"Please," Hiccup whispered, voice pleading. "Jackson."
In the end, there really was nothing Jack could've done.
Before the Guardians could attempt to stop him, Jack jumped down into the clearing.
The leader stared at Jack for a few moments, making Jack wonder if Hiccup could actually see him, before an expression of awe filled his face.
"It's really you."