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idontmeantosoundrudebut · 4 years ago

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This is Home (stupid Eretlout oneshot)

Oh hello it is currently 4 am and I've just finished this impulse one-shot about Modern Eretlout haha lol bruh! It's set in Britain by the way, because I'm British and I love my British culture lol! This hasn't been edited by the way so... yeah, it's really bad in my opinion but I need to post some writing because yeah! I'm actually currently working on a long Eretlout fic but I have no idea when/if it'll be finished so haha lol bruh awkward! Oh yeah, warning of abuse and past child abuse and only slightly steamy content, really its just making out and all that!!! haha lol bruh enjoy

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Blood fills his mouth. It drips from his chin, pours from his head, spills from his nostrils.

He opens his red-speckled fist and a tooth lies in the scarlet pool gathered in his palm, it almost looks like gold beneath the glow of the streetlamp that slants into his car. His upper jaw throbs from where he'd yanked out the already loose tooth and he can make out the rivulets of gum-flesh still clinging onto the roots. He stares at it with an unbothered and tired expression.

"Couldn't even punch my tooth outright," He mumbles to himself, opening the glove box and chucking the tooth inside, "Had to yank it out myself,"

It makes a high-pitched clanging sound as it bounces off a half-finished bottle of Captain Morgan and then, silently, it disappears behind the several cigarette cartons that lay piled unceremoniously within (Marlboro Reds, Marlboro Golds, Caramel Blues, Regal Kingsizes, even the odd Mayfair for when he gets desperately low). He reaches a hand inside and rummages through the collection, most of them are empty at this point, he needs to restock and clean out his car, it's been a solid few months since he did that. He shakes a Caramel carton, empty. Another Caramel? Empty. Marlboro Red? Empty. Regal? Ah, lucky day, only half-empty.

A great sigh forces its way through his clogged nostrils and, with the abruptness of a cut artery, blood spatters all over his shirt and along his forearms. His hand freezes mid-air, fingers tight around the bending carton as he blinks slowly, anger simmering beneath his skin because really? Really?! He looks down at his shirt, it was ruined anyway. He'll never get the red out that white, looks like someone's just slit his throat from all the blood that's been pouring down his neck. That table-corner got him good in the head and cut a deep gash just above his eyebrow, the entire right side of his face is crimson with blood and it shimmers in the flickering lamplight.

He bites into the end of the cigarette and lights it with a silver zippo, the flame casting writhing shadows across his blood-spattered hand. The first drag is the best, the first hit to the back of his throat, the first exhale of smoke. Each heartbeat hurts a little less with a little more smoke, a little more tar, a little more death in his lungs.

Snotlout starts the car and drives away. He watches his childhood home disappear around the corner and it feels like goodbye. He can't kind it in himself to be sad about it.

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He parks outside of Eret's house on the edge of the path, walking up to the red door with a tidy black seven nailed on it.

"Oh Snotlout, love, you alright?" Comes a familiar voice and he looks over to see Chantel from next door, wrapped in her dressing gown with a black bin bag clutched in her hands.

Eret's house is tucked in the centre of a row of brick houses, it's the kind of street where everyone knows everyone and everyone knows everything, whether you like it or not. In the last year, Snotlout has gotten to know a lot of people (and a lot of rumours) who live along this here street.

"I'm alright, Chan," He says honestly (because he is alright, it's just a bit of blood and few bruises) and stamps the butt-end of his fifth cigarette in thirty minutes into the cracked path.

"You 'aven't been fighten' again, 'ave you? With those Trapper boys?" Chantel asks severely, a mother of four, she's very intuned to her maternal instincts and even the slightest sign of distress has them flaring up, "It better not be with those Grimborn brothers! I'm telllen' you Snotlout, those two are shady bastards and its best to stay clear of 'em-"

Snotlout lights another smoke, this one from a full carton of Marlboro Red, and spits blood and phlegm onto the grass, tongue prodding the empty socket in his jaw.

"I haven't been fighting, Chan, promise," He reassures her, and that's also true because he didn't fight back at all, it was more of a beat down, "Just a disagreement with my old man, you know how it is,"

Chantel's back straightens like she's been in the army her whole life and she crosses her arms over her chest, red hair wet and shining like blood in the moonlight. Only four of the streetlamps work and they're further down the road, so the road and paths are alight only from the horseshoe moon that hovers amongst the star-filled sky, the black-asphalt gleaming silver. They've been complaints to the council to get them all fixed, but they won't do anything, they never do, they just leave the poor to rot.

She looks like she's about to say something about it, but he shakes his head at her. Instead of telling him to call the police, she says;

"You're bleedin' like a stuck pig all over the place, Lout, people'll gonna be thinkin' that Jack the Ripper is back from the fuckin' dead," He laughs at that and he offers a straight to her, as a thanks for not making a big fuss over finding him bloodied like a murdered boy in the middle of the night, but she shakes her head.

"You're grand, love, I got a pouch this mornin', save 'em for desperate times," Chantel looks him up and down, black eyes near white in the moonlight, "You look like you're in one now,"

Snotlout agrees with her. He waves a hand to bid her goodnight and goes inside. He closes and he turns on the hallway light. The marrow-deep tension in his bones slips away, causing a breath that comes from the very bottom of his tar-clogged lungs to fall from his lips, and his hurting heart finally stops beating against his ribs like a jackhammer as he leans against the front door.

He's safe, he's home. Because this small, shoddy house with its water-stained ceilings and peeling wallpaper and creaking floorboards is home. It's simple and a little broken, but it's home.

"Snotlout?" Eret calls from upstairs, he can see the bedroom light glow up the hallway at the top of the stairs, "That you?"

"Yeah," He takes a generous drag, then exhales slowly, "It's me, sorry I'm late... Went to see my dad, after work,"

Footsteps ring across the house and Eret appears at the top of the stairs, dressed in nothing but a ratty pair of grey jogging bottoms, his terribly handsome torso bare for Snotlout and Snotlout alone to see. He grins proudly around his cigarette at the sight of those hard abbs, those firm pecs, those faint scars, those old gang tattoos. Oh, what a handsome devil he is and Snotlout caught him all on his own.

"Fuckin' Hell, Snotlout!" Eret comes charging down the stairs like a mad horse and Snotlout barely blinks when he comes over to him, large hands gracing over his oozing temple and along his bruising jaw. The touch is very much welcomed.

"What happened? Were you jumped?"

"No, I wasn't fucking jumped-"

"You've lost a tooth!"

"It's in the car, in the glove box, I'll get Gobber to stick it back on,"

"I don't think that's how it works, darlin',"

Eret drags him into the living and posts him on the black vinyl couch. Hookfang, his German Shepherd, immediately bounds over to him and rests his snout on top of Snotlout's knees, wet nose twitching and throat moving with unfurling whines and whimpers. He pets him affectionally between his ears, humming lowly to Hookfang to help ease the old war-vet. Eret goes to snatch the half-smoked cigarette from his fingers, but Snotlout's reflexes are too fast.

"Hey! I'm not done, asshole,"

"Not smokin' in the house is your rule, not mine, I'm just helpin' you out,"

"Fuck that rule, just for tonight, fuck it,"

With a rich laugh, Eret saunters into the kitchen to get the med-kit. But Snotlout saw the concern and anxiety in those dark, earthy eyes and he heard it too in that laugh, it was a little shaky at the end. Hookfang barks at him.

"Easy Hookfang, I'm okay," He barks again, louder, black eyes glistening with fear, "I know pal, there's a lot of blood, but it's okay, I'm okay, soldier," He ruffles the War-dog's neck lovingly, trying to ease Hookfang's unnerved mood and distract him from the blood. It probably brings back bad memories for him.

Eret comes back with the med-kit tucked beneath his armpit and a large bowl of water cradled in his hands. He set it on the coffee table and politely nudges Hookfang out of the way, the Shepherd in turn leaps onto the couch and curls dutifully at Snotlout's side. Such a loyal friend, Snotlout doesn't deserve something as honourable as Hookfang's fidelity.

"Look like a stuck pig," Eret whisper, running a wet dishtowel along the drying river of blood that pours down his face and throat.

"Ha, Chantel said the exact same thing," He chuckles lowly, watching rivulets of watery blood travel down Eret's powerful forearms as he sponges at the blood along his cheek.

"Chantel?" He queries, eyes briefly flickering to meet his.

"Yeah, caught outside just as I was coming in," Snotlout closes his eyes as he lifts his chin so Eret can easily swipe the already stained towel down his throat. It leaves a funny tightness in his gut and a nice shiver ghosts up his spine at the vulnerable display.

"Well, expect the whole street to know by lunchtime tomorrow," Eret replies, then adds, "I mean, I love Chantel to pieces, but by God, she gossips like there is no tomorrow,"

Snotlout nods in agreement, smoking his cigarette and tapping the ash into an ashtray that's always kept on the coffee table, despite his own rule of no smoking in the house. But he's never been good at keeping to the rules, even his own ones. Eret wipes away the twin-tracks of maroon streaking from his nose and begins to wrap the gash above his eyebrow up.

"We'll go to the doctor tomorrow mornin', yeah? Think you might need stitches,"

"Cool," Is his reply, tired and uninterested.

All the blood is finally cleared from his skin. The towel is scarlet. The bowl on the table is no longer a bowl of water, but a bowl of blood. A swathe of bandages is wrapped around his head like a bandana, but there hasn't been any bleed through for a few minutes so Eret looks satisfied (and rather proud) at his nursing work.

After a moment, Snotlout flicks his finished fag into the ashtray and stares into Eret's dark eyes; he's very tired.

"Thanks for patching me up, babe," Snotlout says quietly, not because he doesn't mean it but because he is full of such a sudden exhaustion that it feels well overdue. His head, his brain, needs a good rest or else he's going to start screaming.

"No problem," Eret soothes his large hands up and down Snotlout's thighs, "Now, are you going to tell me what happened?"

Snotlout sighs, big and heavy, hand settling on the nape of Hookfang's neck and running through the dense fur. His heart shudders, his lung quiver, his blood boils, his body doesn't like any of this. Just get it over with, as he did with his dad.

"I told my dad about us. About me... you know, liking guys and all-"

"And he did this to you?" Eret's voice goes low, like a growl of an animal with its teeth bared. Snotlout would be lying if he said it didn't turn him on a bit. Thick fingers curl protectively around his thighs.

"Eret, don't get yourself all riled up about it, okay? It's done. I knew he'd react like this, it's not the first time he's punched me around and called me a faggot, just this time, he actually had a reason to call me one,"

"Yeah, well, it may not have been his first time but it sure as fuck is his last, do you understand?" Eret snarls vehemently, hands moving from his thighs to his hips and sides, Snotlout doesn't even flinch when he accidentally brushes against a forming bruise, "You are never going near him again, Lout, I won't let you be hurt by scum like that,"

Eret's eyes burn. Dark soil and spitting embers in furrowed sockets. The firm frown on his face and the clenching muscles in his jaw, grinding teeth that thirst for a hating man's blood. It's making Snotlout's throat go dry.

"You're hot when you're angry, have I told you that before?" He says lowly and Eret looks at him, vengefulness fading as he takes note of the wanton look in those pale eyes.

"You may have mentioned it once or twice,"

They breathe on each other's lips, tempting, waiting for the first one to move. Hookfang books it upstairs, sensing the heady change in the air.

Eret pushes Snotlout back onto the couch and crawls carefully over him, their lips immediately locking in a wet and obscene kiss that stretches on and on forever. Snotlout moans as Eret forces his tongue down his throat, golden hands skimming beneath his shirt and touching the tender flesh beneath in a skilled and teasing way that drives him mad. They make out for a while, dominating each other's mouths with vigour and gusto till their breathless and sweating.

The bloodied shirt is pulled over his head and Eret stills above him when he sees the black and blue bruises that bloom along his ribs and chest and stomach, even Snotlout gazes at them with morbid curiously. Fuck, his dad got him more than he realised. Not that it matters.

"I'll kill him, Snotlout, I'll kill him," Eret promises in a snarling growl and Snotlout wraps his arms around his shoulders, drawing him down so he can mumble against his lips;

"I know, but fuck me first,"

Of course, Eret complies.

Later, tangled in a mass of sweaty limbs and exhausted desires, Snotlout knows that he'll be okay. With his head on Eret's chest, he closes his eyes and sleeps because he's home, home has always been in those dark eyes, in those large hands, in those warm arms. Home has always been here.

Eret, a wanderer for most of his life, a lost man at sea who was bound for dirty work, has finally found a place to set loose his anchor. Snotlout is home, is the harbour he'll always be homebound to. He'll protect his Snotlout because who is he but a wanderer without his home.

#snotlout whump #Snotlout #eret son of eret #eretlout #fanfic #httyd fanfiction #this is crack

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random-fan-of-many-fandoms · 1 year ago

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That makes so much more sense, I was trying to figure out why I didn’t like his equitation other than he literally rides on Hookfang’s neck (which would make steering very difficult considering you want to steer a horse or dragon from the shoulders and hind quarters in order to effectively make balanced, tight turns), and now it makes so much sense. Thank you for bringing this up!

~OP

Equestrians of the HTTYD fandom… do y’all ever really critique the dragon riders’ equitation and the style of horsemanship (dragonship????) that they use or just me?

#Snotlout would absolutely drive a motorcycle in a modern AU #httyd #equestrian #Snotlout #snotlout jorgenson

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wilderwestking · 6 years ago

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Stand Unshaken

Chapter One: How to Rob a Train (Part I)

Summary: The Wilderwest is shrinking.

The year is 1899 and outlaws like Hiccup “Night Fury” Haddock are being hunted. Tired of running, Hiccup must choose between being loyal to the only life he’s ever known and leaving it all behind.

Rating: M (for later scenes)

So I realized I’ve never posted my fic to tumblr, and I figured, why not ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The Wilderwest was shrinking before Hiccup’s eyes.

As a young boy, Hiccup’s father had told him stories of a Wilderwest untouched by man. Stories of forests with trees as tall as giants with roots that dug to the very core of the Earth. Mountains that cut through the land and broke the sky with their jagged peaks. Deserts that stood as a last, arid, defense against mans’ conquest. Stories so enthralling that Hiccup couldn’t resist the call of adventure, and at the age of fourteen slipped from his bedroom window in the night. But now, the map was growing and his world shrinking.

Each night more and more campfires would dot the land like wildflowers in a field. The untamed wilderness that Hiccup had grown to love was being replaced with towns and farms and trading posts, leaving only tree stumps and train tracks in their wake.

The boy was on his knees, peering over a cliff’s edge at one such set of tracks. Below him, the tracks cut through a mountain canyon heading from the East to towns farther and farther West. Lighting a cigarette, Hiccup was careful to avoid spilling ash onto the map that was spread out in front of him. Methodically, he dragged his pencil against the parchment, marking positions in relation to the land around him. Leaning back on his heels, he exhaled a cloud of smoke.

“I know it’s been a rough few months since Berk, bud,” he said, inclining his head toward his black Arabian that grazed feet away, “but I thought…Well, that we were lying low.” Hiccup took another drag from his cigarette, “But Viggo is Viggo. Always planning and scheming.”

A sigh, then in an impression of the gang’s leader. “Just one more, Hiccup my boy. One more and then we’ll have the money we need to head back West.” Another sigh, his voice his own again, “To head home.”

Toothless whinnied, his ears flicking in the direction of Hiccup’s voice. Sensing the distress of his rider, the horse stepped closer, pushing his head against him. Casually, Hiccup rested a hand on his muzzle.

“Just gotta have faith. Right, bud?” He stroked the velvet of Toothless’s nose and turned his attention back to the train tracks below him. “The train will come through here at approximately 2 a.m. Heather and the twins will already be on board, posing as passengers. The rest of the gang will catch the train as it passes through this canyon. In and out before any of Grimmel’s men notice they’ve been hit. Of course, this all counts on you being able to catch a moving train.”

The horse pounded his hooves against the ground in excitement, kicking up dust as he did so. Hiccup laughed, his voice the only sound in the late afternoon. He waved the dust away, “Good. Once I’m on the train you’ll have to keep pace until I can get to the brakes.”

Taking one last look at his surroundings, Hiccup folded his map and tucked it away in the inside pocket of his vest. Standing, he put his black leather hat over his auburn mop of hair to shield his eyes from the late afternoon sun and dropped his cigarette in the dirt. Pulling himself into Toothless’ saddle he looked to the East in the direction of camp. “Let’s get back to Raven Point, bud. We need to make sure everything is ready.”

xXx

Raven Point camp was nestled in a cove hidden deep in the mountain. Surrounded on all sides by towering evergreens, the camp was secluded from even the most adventurous of passersby. At each of the entrances Viggo had posted guards, but Hiccup paid them little mind as and he and Toothless tore up the path toward the camp. Spewing dirt in all directions, Toothless skidded to a halt, Hiccup flinging himself from the saddle. At the center of the camp Viggo, Johann, and Snotlout sat around a table. Engrossed in a map and discussing the details for the heist, they paid him little mind.

Johann caught his gaze as Hiccup approached. Johann was a tall man, tanned, and always willing to tell tales of his time as a Navy Captain. However, as Hiccup got closer to the table, the familiar jovial looks were gone, replaced by a bitter scowl that covered the portion of his face his large beard didn’t hide. The man turned his attention from Hiccup back to Viggo, “Why are we doing this, Viggo? I thought our plan was to lie low until we could head out West.”

Anger flashed across Viggo’s features, but Hiccup pretended he didn’t see it. The man had been less than pleasant since the death of his brother. “We need funds, Johann. It costs money to caravan twenty people out West! Surely you of all people can understand that. “

“Of course, I can, Viggo. What I don’t understand is robbing a bloody train when Flyers are breathing down our neck!”

“Everything we had, we lost in Berk! We have to earn it back if we ever want to get out of here. We rob this train and we’re set.” Viggo pounded his fist on the table, causing Snotlout to jump.

Hiccup cleared his throat, taking a seat beside Snotlout. “Maybe Johann is right, Viggo. The plan was to lie low. Robbing a train isn’t exactly ‘lying low’. It’ll bring every Flyer this side of the Archipelago our way.”

Viggo straightened up, putting his arms behind his back and looking down his nose at the boy. It was the look Viggo gave Hiccup when he had overstepped his place. Hiccup had received that look a number of times in the years since Viggo had brought him in, but it never failed to make him feel like that starving fishbone of a boy Viggo had found in the woods so many years ago.

“Ah, Hiccup. I was wondering when you would return. Is everything in place for tonight?

Sighing, Hiccup met Viggo’s gaze, “Everything should go as planned. We can wait for the train to pass through the canyon on a nearby cliff’s edge. Toothless and I scouted it just now. But Vig—”

“We ride tonight, Hiccup. Best be ready.”

xXx

Thundering across the heartlands of the Archipelago, the Grimborn Gang was a formidable sight. Viggo, dressed in a red leather vest and a dark overcoat led the formation atop a large grey Turkoman he had named Skrill. A mean beast of a horse, he shared the same cold efficiency as his rider. To the right, Hiccup and Toothless kept pace. Dressed in all black, the pair were nearly invisible as they raced through the night. To the left, Johann rode dutifully, occasionally casting Hiccup glances when their horses’ gallops allowed for the exchange of looks. A division was growing in the gang. Perhaps it had always existed beneath the surface, but after the Berk Massacre the group had been left beaten down and open wounds allowed for resentment to grow like an infection.

Hiccup glanced behind him where Snotlout was covering his left side. Atop his red Mustang, Hookfang, Snotlout caught Hiccup’s eyes and offered a reassuring smile. Regardless of the inner politics of the Gang, Hiccup trusted in Snotlout. Though the shorter man was rash and often narcissistic, he had saved Hiccup’s life more times than he cared to admit.

Behind Snotlout the three rider-less horses of Barf, Belch, and Windshear thundered along. If everything went according to plan, they would be reunited with their riders before the dawn. Bringing up the formation, Silent Sven, Hamish, and Savage rode their horses carrying the bulk of the gang’s ammunition.

“Hiccup” Viggo shouted above the thunder of hoofbeats, “You’ll ride down first. Deal with the engineer and the conductor in the head end. After you’ve stopped the train, make your way to the back train car. The twins will meet up with you. Look for anything of value. Grimmel wouldn’t be sending this train through without reason.” Hiccup nodded, keeping his eyes focused ahead, Toothless’s reins gripped tight in his hands. “Snotlout, you and Heather will be on crowd control. Keep them quiet, and if you see anything of value, collect it. Savage, Sven, Hamish will take care of the guards. Johann and I will run point. Does everyone understand their job?”

A chorus of affirmations and Hiccup could see Viggo’s smirk reach his eyes. It filled the boy with dread and sickening excitement.

Determinedly, cruelly, Viggo smirked, leaning low over his horse and urging it faster. “Well then,” he said. “Let’s rob a train!”

Cheers and cries of “Snotlout! Snotlout!” rose above the hoofbeats, and the Grimborn Gang set their eyes on fortune.

xXx

For the second time that day, Hiccup peered over the edge of a cliff, his forest green eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of the train. Beneath him, Toothless shuffled his hooves. Hiccup could feel the tension coiling in Toothless’s muscles. The horse always grew jittery before a race.

Silence stretched the night. Then a train’s whistle pierced the night. In the distance a tower of smoke billowed up into the night sky, hiding the stars from view.

“Masks up,” Viggo ordered, lifting a silk handkerchief to cover the bottom half of his face. “Hiccup. Go.”

Covering his face with a black cloth, Hiccup steeled his doubts and cracked the reins, shouting “Ride, bud!”. Identity hidden and horse charging, Hiccup was no longer himself. In his place rode Night Fury, the infamous outlaw feared across the Wilderwest. Toothless’s hooves pounded against the hard earth as he propelled himself forward like black lightning. The outlaw was only vaguely aware of the gang members that followed in his shadow as he rushed down the slope and along the tracks. Leaning low over Toothless’s neck, Hiccup could see the light of the head end and then it was rushing past him and the roar of the train filled his ears as he balanced atop Toothless and leaped onto the flat train bed. Rolling with the momentum of the jump, Hiccup sprung to his feet. Beside him, Toothless had pivoted and was running parallel to the train.

Hiccup hopped the gap separating a flatbed form the front end but blocking his access to the engine room was a large container filled with the train’s coal. Pulling himself up and over the lip of the container, he tumbled into the bin sending a black cloud of dust billowing up. Lungs burning, Hiccup pushed forward, careful not to jam his prosthetic between the rocks.

Attention on the steps in front of him, Hiccup had to throw himself to the ground to avoid the engineer’s coal shovel connecting with his head. Coal dug sharply into his back, and although he avoided the first swing, he barely had time to raise his arms to protect his body from the second strike. The impact of metal on bone sent vibrations through his body. Disoriented, he kicked out like a drowning man, sending coal flying up in all directions. The engineer staggered back, leaning away from the coal Hiccup was kicking up.

Gunshots rang out in the air reminding Hiccup of his goals, and with newfound strength, he lunged forward. Grappling for the shovel, Hiccup kicked the engineer and as he was pushed back, Hiccup charged. The force of the charge pushed them both over the lip of the storage bin and onto the hard ground. Winded, Hiccup rolled on top of the engineer, pinning him to the ground. Hiccup’s green eyes met the panic-filled engineer’s.

“Stay here, will you?” Hiccup said as he removed his old, rope lasso from his belt and made quick work of tying up the engineer. More gunshots competed with the roar of the train, and Hiccup quickly closed the gap between himself and the front end’s door.

The engine room felt more like a furnace than a train car, but Hiccup didn’t have long to consider the heat as he found himself staring down the barrel of a shotgun.

“Up! Put yer hands up! Or I’ll fill you full of bullets!” The conductor said, each word emphasized by a nudge of his shotgun.

Gods Dammit.

Hiccup raised his arms, palms out, and slowly stepped back from the man. “Sir, put the gun down. Please. Nobody needs to get hurt.”

Two shots were fired.

The first from the conductor.

The second from Hiccup’s revolver.

The body of the conductor fell to the ground, dead. Hiccup stepped over the body, careful to avoid getting blood on his boot from the puddle that had pooled around what remained of the corpse’s head. Sparing no time for regrets, he grasped the handle of the air brake and pulled with all his might. The handle turned slowly, but he could feel the release of pressure and hear the screech of the tracks. The train came to a shuddering halt, and Hiccup allowed himself a moment to catch his breath. Then, he did as any outlaw would do: straightened his hat and whistled for his horse.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, bud” Hiccup said as he jumped into the saddle. A thin sheen of sweat covered Toothless’s coarse hair, but otherwise, the horse was unbothered by the exertion. “Let’s get to the back car and make sure the twins haven’t set anything on fire.”

Pulling the reigns, Toothless turned and loped toward the final train car. Through the train windows, Hiccup could make out the shapes of Heather and Snotlout moving through the cars and collecting belongings from the passengers. At the top of the hill, Hiccup could spy Viggo watching over the heist, a sniper rifle in his hands. Periodically, he would hear a shot and he knew Viggo was silencing a runaway.

The last train car was windowless, but Hiccup could see light pouring from a hole the twins had dynamited into the armored wall. Ruffnut was leaning out of the jagged entrance, excitedly stuffing her loot into Barf’s saddlebags. On noticing Hiccup she straightened up and saluted.

“Took you long enough!”

Tuffnut poked his head out, unlit cigar dangling from his lips and arms full of bonds and coin purses. “H! My man, you have got to get in here! Grimmel is loaded!” Tuff said as he dumped goods into Belch’s bags and turned his head toward Toothless. “Good job with the running, T. Saw it all from the window. Very impressive.”

Hiccup rolled his eyes and hopped down from his horse who was now basking in Tuffnut’s praise. Ducking his head, Hiccup stepped into the train car. “Yeah, yeah. Just get everything loaded. The sooner we’re out of he— Wh-What is that!?” Hiccup gestured to the pile of bodies stacked in front of a large, mahogany desk.

“It was them or us!” Ruffnut said

“Yeah, H. They jumped us!” Tuff added.

Hiccup groaned but stepped around the bodies to search through the desk. While the twins were excellent at nabbing shiny things, they often overlooked discreet items of value. “You guys understand the higher the body count the higher the bounty, right? The more men who will be looking for us?”

“They have to catch us first,” Ruffnut said.

“Like they caught Ryker back in Berk? Or Dagur?”

“That’s cold, H.” Tuffnut said.

Hiccup pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “Look, all I’m saying is that we need to be careful. The less attention we bring to ourselves the better. Just finish the jo—” the words left his throat, but never reached the air as he laid eyes on an envelope with the orange wax seal of a Singetail dragon:

Flyers Detective Agency, Department of Security & Espionage, United Archipelago.

“Whataya find?” Ruff asked leaning over his shoulder with interest.

“A treasure map?” Tuff oohed leaning over his other shoulder.

“I don’t know,” Hiccup mumbled, “whatever it is just might make this job worth the risks, though.”

Hiccup’s fingers hovered over the seal, hesitating to break the wax. Whatever was inside the envelope could potentially be incredibly lucrative to the Grimborn Gang. The information could make the asinine heist worth it. Lifting the lip of the envelope, Hiccup pulled the thick linen paper out and scanned his eyes across the page—

Bullets pounded the far side of the train car, the noise reverberating through the tiny room and making Hiccup’s ears ring.

Ruff and Tuff both drew their weapons and jumped through the hole to find the source of the attack. Hiccup, sensing the situation escalating, shoved the letter into his satchel and made to follow his friends.

Ruffnut poked her head back through the hole, her eyes wide, “Hiccup, we have Flyers! They found us!”

#httyd fanfic #hiccstrid #hiccup #astrid hofferson #viggo #western #cowboys #my writing

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bluejulius · 1 month ago

Text

What if HTTYD but cowboys?? Finally finished the lines and colours for the gang 👇

Dragons and their horse breed counterparts;

Toothless - Black Mustang

Stormfly - Andulasian

Hookfang - a very tall Arabian 🤣

Meatlug - Icelandic Horse

Barf & Belch - Splashed Quarter Horses

So glad the refs are out of the way bc now I get to draw them more 🔥🔥 lmk your headcanons and I might draw em if I have time 😳

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ko-chan-the-blueberry-donut · 6 years ago

Text

Mericcup Month 2018: Leadership

@witch19

Prompt 3! Hope you guys like it

Disclaimer: I don’t own brave or httyd

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

Leadership

Hiccup swung his ignited sword with vigor, sweat dripping down his brow. Toothless was beside him, fighting off several enemy Vikings. The many dragons of the Hooligan Tribe gave a war cry along with their riders as they battled Alvin the Treacherous’s forces.

The battle was violent with no end in sight. Valka led the dragons that followed under Toothless and Astrid, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Fishlegs, and Snotlout were raining fire from the skies.

Hiccup didn’t know how long they could last against Alvin’s forces. The onslaught of enemies seemed endless. Heather’s tribe was already defeated, with those remaining in her tribe fighting alongside the Hairy Hooligans.

“We need more help!” Hiccup exclaimed, blocking an axe. Eret grunted, hindering his own enemy.

“We have no more allies!” he shouted back. Hiccup didn’t want to believe that. He didn’t want to believe in placing his last hope at reaching out to lost ties from Stoick’s days was in vain. He knew that it might have been fruitless. King Fergus and Stoick the Vast were only friends in boyhood—there was a high possibility King Fergus wouldn’t even remember Stoick or feel the need to help his son who was a stranger to Fergus, but it was all he had left, and Hiccup had to take every chance he had in placing his faith in the bond Stoick and Fergus shared as old friends.

However, it seemed those bonds were broken…

An enemy Viking charged at Hiccup, and the young chief readied his blade, refusing to let himself go down like this.

An arrow pierced the man’s jugular before he could reach the Viking chief. Hiccup’s mouth parted in surprise. They didn’t have any archers on their forces…

A rallying cry bellowed in the air and the Hairy Hooligans were shocked to see Scottish ships approaching the shore with Scottish warriors already on land charging to their aid. Hiccup almost laughed in relief, his heart feeling like it was going to burst from joy.

They came. They really came…

“Are ye daft, laddie?! Pay attention or ye gonna get cut down!” a female’s voice with a foreign accent ordered in Norse.

Hiccup turned to see a woman in trousers with a kilt and Scottish men’s attire. Her hair was like wild dragon fire and her eyes burned bright like a blue inferno. It was if Freyja herself appeared to aid them in battle. She pulled to a stop on her horse beside him, shooting another man dead who was going to hurt Hiccup. Her victorious smirk made his heart skip a beat and her onslaught of arrows made him breathless.

“King Fergus is here?!” he finally managed out, fighting off an enemy. Eret brought the hilt of his sword down on an enemy’s head. The woman smirked, and Hiccup felt part of his heart slip away.

“King Fergus is retried, but his daughter, the Queen Merida, is more than happy to help his allies.” She answered. She held a hand out to Hiccup, who took it and she yanked him on her horse. Hiccup couldn’t stop the giddy grin on his face. The Scottish were really helping them. He didn’t fail his tribe after all!

More and more Scottish warriors ran onto land and the woman let out a rallying cry to her fellow warriors who cheered for her.

“Let’s show these Vikings how the Scots fight!” she shouted, urging her horse forward. Hiccup sliced down anyone who tried to charge them with weapons. Toothless followed behind, lighting fire in their wake to anyone who would attack them from behind. Meanwhile, the woman shot down enemies from the air while Hiccup took care of the ones in front of them.

They were an unstoppable force. His Freyja was as fierce and precise with her shots, charging her horse through enemy Vikings and dragons with ease. He was her guard, offering her his strength with everything he had. He didn’t dare look at her too long, for his Freyja would mesmerize him to the point of a stupor if he was careless.

Dagur the Deranged bellowed a war cry, racing towards them in violent madness, eyes alit with the possibility of murdering Hiccup the Dragon Conqueror. Toothless ran behind them, shooting a stream of fire towards the Berserker. However, the warrior dodged, charging towards them with a manic grin. His Freyja grinned, the thrill of a challenge exciting her. She slid from her horse quickly, brandishing a sword and locking blades with the Berserker.

“Ye take Angus and find Alvin!” His Freyja commanded, parrying with Dagur on equal footing.

“I can’t leave you with him!” Hiccup protested, moving to get off her horse.

She kicked the ground out from Dagur’s feet, and turned to give him a smirk, her eyes sparking with fire that threatened to consume him. Hiccup’s breath hitched as he stared at her in awe.

It was from her look that Hiccup felt the rest of his heart being stolen away.

“I ain’t some maiden, laddie! It will take more than this wee lad to kill me!” she grinned, blocking another blow from the angry Dagur. It was her confidence and display of her skills that made Hiccup have faith in her.

He gave her a smirk, urging Angus forward with Toothless following without her, to search for Alvin and end this war.

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

The arrival of the Scottish seemed to have weakened Alvin’s forces, and the enemy Vikings and their dragons were driven back to the delight of the Hooligans and their allies. The Celts and the Vikings cheered, knowing that had put a dent in Alvin’s forces.

Nonetheless, Hiccup knew the war wasn’t over. Alvin was still out there. He had managed to engage him in battle, but the older Viking managed to escape. Hiccup sighed, running a hand through his hair. Toothless nuzzled him, and he gave the dragon a pat on the head to soothe the dragon.

“It’s okay, bud. We did good today.” Hiccup praised his dragon. Toothless gave a purr as Hiccup scratched under his chin.

“Hiccup!” Astrid cried, appearing before him off of Stormfly. Fishlegs, Snotlout, Tuffnut, and Ruffnut followed, running to him. The remaining Hooligan tribesman also gathered around their chief. Valka surveyed her son for damage and sighed in relief when she found no wounds.

“What was that? Why are the Scottish here?” Fishlegs asked the question on everyone’s mind. Hiccup grinned.

“To strengthen bonds.” He answered, wondering if his dad was watching her old friend’s daughter came to the aid of his son like Fergus would have come for Stoick before them. Of course, his tribesmen were confused and didn’t get it.

“Is that some kind of riddle? You know I don’t do riddles man.” Tuff groaned. Ruff whacked his head.

“It’s obviously a code! Maybe the Celts are here for some rewards.” Ruff argued, sure that the Celts would want something for themselves.

“They better not want our dragons.” Snotlout growled. He wouldn’t be giving up Hookfang for anything. There was a murmuring among the tribe, suspicious of their Scottish aid. Hiccup rushed to fix the situation.

“No, no! They’re just here to help! Or at least I hope so…” he muttered the last part. He didn’t really get a written reply—too frantic with sending a messenger to DunBroch with the pleas for help while they were being attacked.

“Why did you write to the Scottish?” Eret asked, crossing his arms, raising a brow. He didn’t think the Vikings and Highlanders were on good terms, but perhaps he was wrong.

“Hiccup, these wouldn’t happen to be Fergus’s forces, would they?” Valka realized, remembering the crest of arms on the sails of the ships. All Hiccup did was respond with a grin. Valka couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “Praise the Gods! Even in death, your father aids us.” She laughed in relief. The rest of the tribe appeared confused. Valka turned to their tribe. “These Scots are allies. Their King and Stoick were boyhood friends.” Valka explained. The tribe registered that and cheered for their late chief. Hiccup looked sheepish.

“Well it’s actually his daughter who sent us aid. Apparently, King Fergus is retired…”

“We should speak to the Queen then.” Astrid said. “King Fergus I understand helping, but it doesn’t make sense for his daughter to help a tribe she doesn’t know.”

Hiccup remembered his Freyja, her hair like dragon fire and eyes like the raging sea. He felt giddy at the prospect of seeing her again and wondered if she was the Queen’s general. He tried to not show his eagerness at the prospect of seeing the object of his adoration, and coughed, clearing his throat.

“I’ve fought with the Queen’s General. She’ll welcome us.” Hiccup explained. It was decided Hiccup, Astrid, and Valka would go to meet the Scots. It didn’t take long for them to be found. The Celts were making camp, nursing their soldiers who were injured in the battle. Some gave greetings in Gaelic, and Hiccup translated for Astrid.

Soon they arrived at the war tent where the General would be. Guards were stationed at the tent, but moved aside when they saw them approach, recognizing his chief’s cloak. Hiccup nodded in thanks, entering with Valka and Astrid.

“Don’t be daft, Macintosh! We need to nurse our soldiers before leading a full assault.” His Freyja was talking in Gaelic to a handsome Celt with flowing black hair. The man snorted.

“We’ve managed to drive back Alvin’s forces. We should crush them while they’re weak.” Macintosh argued. His Freyja wasn’t amused.

“Aye, and leave without the Hooligan tribe? They need our medical attention as well. We need all of our forces if we’re going to attack. I’ve fought his right-hand man, Dagur, and he managed to evade being sliced by my blade. Alvin the Treacherous is a higher caliber.” The redhaired general countered.

“I agree. My clan has had many casualties. I would like them to be nursed before heading into another battle.” A large man spoke, his Scottish accent heavy.

“…What were we discussing again?” a shorter man with a spacy expression asked.

“Argh pay attention Dingwall! It’s a miracle yer still alive…” Macintosh muttered, flipping some of his hair out of his face revealing blue Celtic paint. The larger Scot shook his head at the shorter man, Dingwall. His Freyja gave them all an amused expression.

“Well MacGuffin agrees with me and Dingwall is his usual self, so it looks like we’re staying here for the moment.” She said. Macintosh grumbled, but you could see a fond glint in his eyes when he looked at his Freyja.

Hiccup coughed, and the four turned to him in surprise as they just realized he was there. The female general grinned approaching them with her fellow generals behind her, surveying the Vikings suspiciously around their leader.

“Ah, Hiccup the Dragon Conqueror! It’s such a pleasure to speak to ye outside of battle.” She said in Norse, grasping his offered arm as he gripped hers in solidarity. He wished he wasn’t wearing long sleeves, so he could feel her fingers against his skin. Hiccup tried to contain the blush that erupted at the thought of them touching skin to skin, halting that train of thought before it could turn indecent.

“Pssh I bet I could conquer dragons too…” Macintosh muttered in Gaelic, and MacGuffin whacked him. “Ow!”

“Don’t mind them. My generals are idiots but they’re also very competent when they are needed.” She spoke, humor dancing in her eyes as she let go of Hiccup’s arm. Hiccup nodded with a grin, being reminded of Snotlout, Ruff, and Tuff.

“Don’t worry, General. I have my own knuckleheads to deal with.” Hiccup assured her with a grin. His Freyja laughed, and Hiccup’s heart skipped a beat.

“Yer speaking to her majesty the Queen Merida, laddie!” Macintosh scolded him. Hiccup’s eyes widened in shock. His Freyja was Queen Merida?!

“Pardon me, Your Majesty, but aren’t queens in the south not supposed to fight in battle?” Valka asked, curious. She had heard the Highlanders had different customs for their women from Stoick back when they were first married, and he was retelling his summers with Fergus in his boyhood. The Queen’s generals looked offended, like Valka had said their queen was strange, but Merida barked out a laugh, waving it off.

“Oh don’t give them looks, lads! Ye know I am a strange one!” Merida’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “Aye, usually queens don’t do battle, but I am my father’s daughter and I believe if I’m gonna rule I should fight for my home and allies despite my mother’s wishes I didn’t.” Merida explained. She gestured to her outfit. “Hence why I dress like a man—it’s a little hard to do battle in a fancy dress, I’m afraid. Trust me.”

“I’m sorry, but why exactly are you here, Your Majesty?” Astrid asked, observing her.

“Not that we aren’t grateful for your help!” Hiccup rushed to add, not wanting to offend their possible allies, giving Astrid a look. She glared at him, jutting out her chin in defiance.

“My father and yer father would good friends when they were young, Hiccup Haddock. My Da would tell me and my brothers stories of their youth all the time when we were young. As I grew older, I heard tales of Stoick the Vast and his conquests. Even when they lost touch, my Da always tried to keep up news on how he was. I couldn’t in good conscious leave his good friend’s son to die when ye sent me a messenger.” Merida explained.

Valka felt herself feel warm. She had no idea that Fergus had missed Stoick that much that he had kept up with news about him and would tell his children his victories. She felt intense gratitude for Fergus for inspiring his daughter to aid them in times of need.

“Now if ye don’t mind, I need to talk to yer chief.” Queen Merida told them. She turned to her generals. “That will be all, laddies! We’ll resume in an hour. Please check on how yer clans are doing.”

“But Yer Majesty—” MacGuffin started to protest, wary of the Vikings, but Merida waved him off.

“He is Stoick the Vast’s son. My Da always told me of Stoick’s honor and no doubt his son will be the same.” Merida told them. Her generals bowed and departed. Hiccup nodded to Valka and Astrid that he was fine, and they left reluctantly.

Hiccup was alone with Merida now. She zeroed her intense gaze on him and Hiccup’s heart beat quickened.

“Sorry about my men. They’re overprotective at times. We’ve known each other since we were fifteen.” Merida explained.

“It’s all right. I’m sorry about Astrid and my mother. Times are…” Hiccup searched for the right words to say. Merida nodded.

“I understand. It’s very hard for yer tribe right now.” Merida walked over to sip some water. She offered Hiccup some. “I’m sorry it’s not wine. I don’t like to indulge in the field.” Merida added. Hiccup shook his head.

“I don’t really feel in the mood for wine anyway.” Hiccup sipped some water. The queen then looked bashful.

“To tell ye the truth, my Da’s stories are not the only reason I came to help ye.” She admitted.

“Oh?” Hiccup was curious. Her shyness was very endearing—different from her fierce passion, but all it did was present her as more complex than one-dimensional. He wanted to know more about this queen. He wanted to know what made her tick and what made her vulnerable. He wanted to know what she liked and what she was passionate about. His curiosity burned to know more of this incarnation of the goddess of war.

“As I grew up, I always heard tales of Stoick the Vast. It always made me eager for more. However, I was fifteen after escaping an arranged marriage when I heard the tale of his son, Hiccup, defeating the Red Death.”

“Wait—wha?” Hiccup spluttered, coughing on his water a bit. There were stories about him even back then? Merida nodded.

“Aye. It wasn’t long before I began hearing more and more tales of ye. Of yer courage and compassion—it inspired me.” Merida blushed prettily, her eyes sparkling in excitement at recalling all of the adventures she’s heard of. “I was in awe. Ye were my age but ye’ve already made yerself into a great leader. I began taking a more progressive route in becoming queen and fought for my reign from freedom of marriage.” The queen confessed. “My Ma didn’t think it best. It was always tradition for a King and Queen to rule together. I do intend to marry eventually, but they will be my partner. They will not rule for me—they will rule with me. I began studying military tactics and politics to rule on my own because if ye can rise up from being a village screw up to one of the best leaders of this century, I could certainly strive to rule independently and become a great leader for my nation on my own too.” Merida finished.

Hiccup’s eyes were wide. He had no idea he had caused such a change within someone. It made him feel humbled. He wondered if Merida felt the same admiration for him as he felt for her and her ability to lead her own men into battle. She was fearless and passionate. He wanted to drown in her passion. He swallowed.

“Are you disappointed?” he couldn’t help but ask, afraid that he had somehow failed her expectations. Merida gave him a smile, eyes carrying a glint of adoration Hiccup knew that were in his own eyes for her.

Merida stepped closer, taking his hand. He noticed how perfect their hands were together. Hiccup resisted the urge to intertwine their fingers.

“Ye definitely made an impression on me.” She smirked slyly. Hiccup blushed.

“Good or bad?” he rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. Merida’s eyes shined tenderly.

“Let’s just say after this war is over, I would consider ruling beside a King now if he was like ye.” She laughed. Hiccup’s heart swelled and his face split into a goofy grin while he intertwined their fingers together.

“I’ll definitely keep that in mind, Your Majesty.”

#mericcup #mericcupmonth18 #mericcupmonth2018 #merida dunbroch #hiccup haddock #hiccup x merida #merida x hiccup #httyd #how to train your dragon #brave #mericcup month #mericcup month 2018 #mericcup month 18

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dailydoseofdragon · 1 year ago

Text

Dragon Calendar and Request Log

Feel Free to Request anything or send in an ask! I’m always happy to talk =}

All non dragons are tagged treasure trove.

January - 31/31

Old Year 🐉

Birth Month 🐉

Zodiac 🐉

Rat 🐉

Ox 🐉

Tiger 🐉

Rabbit 🐉

Snake 🐉

Horse 🐉

Goat 🐉

Monkey 🐉

Rooster 🐉

Dog 🐉

Pig 🐉

Ballon Dragon 🐉

Abstract 🐉

Maleficent 🐉

Continuous Line 🐉

Wanted Poster🐉

Tuxedo 🐉

Hug🐉

Warmth 🐉

Story Book 🐉

Message 🐉

Library 🐉

Taxi 🐉

Lego🐉

Daisy 🐉

Rattlesnake 🐉

Long 🐉

Monarch Butterfly 🐉

February - 29/29

Birth Month 🐉

Zodiac 🐉

Skywing🐉

Nightwing 🐉

Sandwing 🐉

Mudwing🐉

Icewing 🐉

Rainwing🐉

Seawing🐉

Hivewing 🐉

Silkwing 🐉

Leafwing 🐉

Hybridwing 🐉

Valentines 🐉

Discount Chocolate 🐉

Snatch 🐉

Rose 🐉

Animation 🐉

Tug a War 🐉

Seal 🐉

Avatar the Last Airbender 🐉

Wood Puppet 🐉

Peach Blossom 🐉

Alone 🐉

Pencil 🐉

Crayon 🐉

Charizard 🐉

Animation Blue🐉

Leap Year!🐉

March (How to Train Your Dragon Month) - 31/31

Birth Month 🐉

Zodiac🐉

Toothless 🐉

Stormfly🐉

Hookfang 🐉

Barf and Belch 🐉

Meatlug 🐉

Timberjack 🐉

Whispering Death 🐉

Buffalord 🐉

Deathsong 🐉

Changewing 🐉

Hobgobbler 🐉

Skrill 🐉

Hotburple 🐉

Lycanwing 🐉

Saint Patrick’s / Clover (Request)🐉

Flightmare 🐉

Fireworm 🐉

Nightterror 🐉

Green/Red Death🐉

Razor Whip🐉

Scauldron🐉

Sea Shocker 🐉

Sentinel 🐉

Slither Wing 🐉

Speed Stinger 🐉

Terrible Terror 🐉

Triple Strike 🐉

Book Toothless🐉

Easter🐉

April

April Fools Day🐉

Birth Month🐉

Zodiac 🐉

404 Day 🐉

Dandelion 🐉

Rainbow 🐉

Spyro 🐉

Peeps 🐉

Unicorn 🐉

Siblings 🐉

Dragon on a String🐉

Atmosphere🐉

Spike My Little Pony 🐉

Pumpkin Roll (Animated) 🐉

Hiram McDaniels 🐉

Old Drawing + New One 🐉

Stuffie 🐉

Pinata 🐉

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice 🐉

Look Alike Day🐉

Teacup (Request)🐉

Earth Day🐉

Slay a Dragon Day🐉

Scream (Animated) 🐉

Toothbrush (Request)🐉

Space🐉

10 Minutes 🐉

May

Birth Month

Zodiac

Hydra

Star Wars

Resident Evil

to 13 -

14. Lofi (Maybe Animated)

15. Cookie

16. -

17. Ender Dragon

18.

19.

20. Bee Dragon

21. To 27. -

28. Magic

29. To 31.

June (Pride)

Birth Month

Zodiac

Gay

Lesbian

Pansexual

Nonbinary

Bisexual

Asexual

Transexual

Aromantic

Genderfluid

Gender Queer

Demi Boy

Demi Girl

Polyamory

Pride Flag

Agender (Request)

Intersex (Request)

to 30. (Please send any more you would like!)

July (Disability Month)

Birth Month

Zodiac

Service Dog

Hard of Hearing (Request)

Terezi Homestuck (Request)

Oracle DC

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock ||| HTTYD (Request)

to 27. (Please send any you would like!)

28. Yang Xiao Long RWBY

29. To 31. -

August

Birth Month

Zodiac

Red (Animated)

Freddy Fazbear

Foxy

Chica

Bonnie

Golden Freddy

William Afton

Vanny

Dragon Fruit (Request)

Strawberry (Request)

Pineapple (Request)

Banana (Request)

Orange (Request)

Kiwi (Request)

Watermelon (Request)

Gold of Light RWBY

God of Dark RWBY

Wyvern RWBY

Sea Feilong RWBY

to 31. -

September

Birth Month

Jurassic Park

Zodiac

to 30. -

October (SPOOKY MONTH)

Birth Month

Zodiac

Pumpkin

Zombie

Skeleton

Vampire

Swampy

Sighting

Witch

Mothman

Cavern Merlin

Infected

Ghost

Doll

Scarecrow

Fire

Clown

Reaper

Mummy

Frankenstein’s Monster

Angel

Demon

Bat

Horns

Monochrome

Bone

Moon

Fog

Glow

Plant

Rat King

November

Birth Month

Day of the Dead

Zodiac

to 27. -

28. Thanksgiving

29. -

30. -

December

Birth Month

Zodiac

to 24. -

25. Christmas

26. Hanukkah

27. -

28. The Knight

29. Found

30. Battle 31. The New Year

#treasure trove #Calendar

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edge-of-bizarre · 7 years ago

Note

where is your modern au taking place? Scotland? Would they have highland games?

My modern au will be on the isle of Berk, a tiny island north of scotland. It is largely going to have scottish as well as some irish influences (NOT THE SAME, but i am irish so i know more about communites/villages in ireland)

Berk will be a mixture of isle of Arran, which is off the west coast of scotland, between scotland and northern ireland, and the Arran Islands, off the west coast of Ireland because i went there and the geography is beautiful, plus Berk is known to have sheep and the Arran islands are famous for their sweaters, so Berk exporting wool/specialty sweaters would be interesting! Beautiful cliffs too

As for the highland games, i’m sure Berk has their own games and they go to the main land to KILL all the other competitors. Stoick is very famous in the games and was known for only willingly leaving the island to attend the games, he had quite the presence!

The Hairy Hooligans show up from their island and everyone knows what’s about to go down. I’m sure people make it a holiday. It would be a combination of heavy weight tournaments, some sporting events like rugby, hurling, etc/more modern games? as well as shows! so sheep, cows, horses, as well as dogs.

Snotlout definitely competes in the strongman tournaments, the moment he was old enough he was out there, stone put and caber toss, he’d probably be trying to do every single competition and inevitably burns out. He then stuffs himself with food and tries to pick up women, he tries to show off his dog Hookfang, but Hookfang doesn’t listen. He’s a beautiful dog, but his training…. Snotlout would also be into rugby and the little shorts haha

Fishlegs isn’t totally into the games itself, perhaps once he gets older he competes in the strongman type competitions after a lot of taunting from snotlout (and to try to impress ruffnut) but he’s mostly there to look at the livestock and pet a few cows, meatlug loves the cows. Apparently in the show fishlegs plays wind instruments? LET HIM PLAY THE BAGPIPES. Fishlegs would most likely go home as a winner of the strongman competitions if he wasn’t so distracted by the food and the music, plus he isn’t competitive

Astrid would be ready to kill someone in hurling, plus show off her very well trained Stormfly at the dog show, because she is the best girl. Stormfly always is the best trained and sits with Hiccup as Astrid competes. Astrid would probably do some strong man stuff, but prefers to do something thats more intense and be against an actual person such as a team sport rather than just recording how far you can throw a weight.

Hiccup doesn’t really compete, he would play some of the games at home, but when he’s at the games, he’s there to take it in and cheer for his friends, as well as do some dancing with astrid and look at all the animals. He also doesn’t want to have to live up to his dad

The twins are the fastest sheep shearers on the island, mostly because they would shear crude things into farmers sheep as a prank. They go home with prizes every year for being the shearing duo and a special sheep gets to have a nice summer cut in under a minute. The sheep trots away, and the twins rub it in everyone’s face. They also play dirty and get kicked out of some competitions

Swimming is also a component, and i’m sure the gang sees who can swim to the mainland, and Berk holds an event during the summer every year. Some people take it seriously, some just go and doggy paddle across from the island, some people have their floaties.

Astrid is a strong swimmer, as is Fishlegs. Hiccup always does it and every year he’s dragging himself onto the beach saying “never…. again….” but he still does it. Stoick waits on the other side or follows on a boat and usually is cheering for his daughter in law (and Hiccup, but Hiccup’s far behind so he radios gobber to make sure his son is still good “ah yeah stoick- he’s still goin…. not fast or very smoothly) and Stoick is so pleased anyway cause his son is an ATHLETE even if he did have to go in after him a few times

Astrid usually ends up winning, and Stoick is waiting with towels. Snotlout arrives soon after Astrid. Fishlegs is a very very good swimmer (he’s a fisherman after all!) but takes his time, he just kinda… floats in, he’s not pressed.

Snotlout and him almost drown each other the year they’re trying to woo Ruffnut, who is cheating by having fins or even getting a boat to drop her and her brother halfway. Fishlegs wins that year, after fighting with Snotlout the whole way over, and Snotlout arrives half drowned but ready to fight because HOW.

Stoick always wraps Hiccup up in a warm towel and squeezes all the water out of his son because he is proud and Hiccup is a little embarrassed but he loves his dad aw

#httyd #modern au #north of nowhere #hiccup #astrid #hiccstrid #fishlegs #ruffnut #snotlout #tuffnut

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shipmistress9 · 7 years ago

Text

FTLOAP: Chapter 10: Now Here We Stand, Unafraid Of The Future

Prologue; Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4; Chapter 5; Chapter 6; Chapter 7; Chapter 8; Chapter 9

Alpha/Co-author: @athingofvikings

. o O o .

THE TRAILER! WOOOOO! I CAN'T! xD I'm so excited! Just good this chapter was finished yesterday already, not sure I could have done anything after watching the trailer. I'm still not over it, so cool! And the beard! I love the beard! xD

Okay, back to normal... I'll try...*deep breathe*

This chapter became ridiculously long... again! It was only meant as a short opening scene for the last chapter of part 1, but... oh well... It became this long on its own, without the other part. As I said, ridiculous. I simply can't help myself... Not sorry! :)

. o O o .

Hiccup recognised the voices easily. He’d spend enough time with Eret to know his laughter, and Prince Daniel’s was easy to identify as well. But if those two were here, did that mean…?

Frozen like a deer hearing a twig break, his heart racing, he stood in the middle of the corridor between the two rows of stalls and stared at the closed entrance door.

All Gods in Valhalla, please…

The smaller door within the gate opened, and, as he’d hoped, it was Astrid who entered first. The moment he saw her, he felt as if some invisible weight got lifted off his shoulders. She was here. She was here, and simply seeing her was enough to soothe him and make his heart leap in joy at the same time.

When her eyes fell on him though, she visibly tensed. He thought he saw something of the joy he felt in her eyes too, but it quickly got overshadowed by something darker, worries and a cool determination.

She’d paused in the doorway when she’d spotted him. But when the voices behind her became louder, she hastily stepped inside to make space for Eret and her brother. Her face gave nothing away as she gave him a polite nod, and Hiccup fought hard to equally school his expression, even though it felt neigh on impossible to do so. What had happened to make her act reserved like this again? Surely, she could at least have given him a small smile?

But she hadn’t. She just quickly walked past him. He could hear how she cooed and murmured at the horses, and then opened the door to one of the stalls, probably Markor’s. He didn’t dare to turn and make sure.

Both Daniel and Eret gazed after her, wide grins on their faces, before they turned their attention to Hiccup. “Good morning, Hiccup,” the Prince greeted him, amusement turning into a concerned smile. “I hope your… accommodations are… well… tolerable?”

Glad over this distraction, Hiccup focused all his attention on the Prince – away from his sister and her odd behaviour. “Yes, Milord, they are,” he said truthfully. “It’s dry and sheltered from the wind, and warm enough too, with all the horses here. Straw is remarkably comfortable and I’m alone here. That’s definitely is a bonus, too.” He paused and averted his eyes, but then added without really intending to do so, “I’ve had much worse.” Glancing up, he looked into two concerned faces and scolded himself for letting those words slip. He hadn’t meant to sound so pathetic.

“That’s… good to hear,” the Prince finally broke the awkward silence.

Eret, however, simply snorted. “I told you, he’s fine here. It’s not like he hasn’t slept in some stables before. And it’s so much warmer down here, it’s ridiculous what you call winter.” He walked past Daniel and clapped Hiccup on the shoulder in greeting. Then he lifted a basket he was holding in his other hand. “I know you said you’re fine with living on apples, but I still brought you something more substantial. Father would never forgive me if I let you turn into that skinny fishbone of a man again.”

“Thank you, Sir,” he replied as Eret walked over to the side to place the basket onto one of the straw bales.

“Oh, stop that,” he sighed, rolling his eyes at Hiccup. “You’re not some lowly servant, okay? You don’t have to bow and scrape all the time, especially if there’s nobody around to act for. Not when it’s just us.”

“If you say so,” Hiccup mumbled. He stared at the ground, not meeting anyone’s eyes. He wanted to be a part of this group, more than anything else. But the simple truth was that he wasn’t. Not yet… There was a moment of awkward silence, a tension in the air that hadn’t been there the night before. Last night, the proverbial ice had been broken, but today, they seemed to have started anew.

“Right,” Daniel said after a few uncomfortable moments, changing the topic as he turned to Eret. “Which ones are the horses you said might be suitable? Not the mare or Astrid’s gelding, obviously, but I see you have five stallions here.”

He let his eyes wander along the row of stalls, and Hiccup made way to let the two men walk past him. These horses were Eret’s pride and joy, and it therefore was his privilege to show them to the Prince. There was no need for him to step in and take this work from his master. And then, there also was another advantage to them being occupied otherwise...

The moment Eret and Daniel turned away from him, he couldn’t keep his eyes from flickering to where Astrid stood in Markor’s stall. She was humming quietly under her breath, petting and scratching the big horse affectionately. Just like yesterday, the sight was mesmerising. He gazed in wonder, hoping to catch her attention. But she wasn’t looking, seemed completely lost in some blissful bubble of her own, and didn’t pay any attention to anyone but her horse. Certainly not to him. Swallowing, Hiccup forced himself not to stare at her, and focused back on the two men and the horses again as Eret began to introduce them.

“This one is Hunter,” Eret nodded toward the black beast in the first stall. “He belongs to Father. And that one next to him is my Crusher. You saw them both yesterday, remember?” The Prince nodded, and went past those two and the empty stall next to them. “And this is Chomp. He would be suitable, but I actually would recommend either Squish or Trample. Not that Chomp isn’t a great horse, but he’s a little thick-headed sometimes.”

“Chomp, Squish, and Trample?” Daniel inquired, snorting quietly. “Who came up with these names?” With calm steps he walked along the stalls, inspecting the horses within.

“Well, they kind of named themselves with their antics,” Eret replied dryly, rubbing his left arm where Chomp had bitten him once when he’d been little more than a colt, as Hiccup had been told. Eret was lucky to not have lost the arm, and the scar was pretty fierce. “But, of course, those aren’t their real names. Chomp, this sorrel here, is actually formally named Firewind Hookfang in the breeding register. But as I said, I wouldn’t recommend him. Not when you have a choice.” He walked next to Daniel past the stalls.

“Then we have this buckskin, Squish. Or Blazing Thunderstrike, as it says on the paper. And then there’s this black rascal, Trample. Or Twilight Shadowwalker. Fitting for his hide, don’t you think?” He gave his friend a sidelong grin. “Anyway, these two are the ones I would recommend to you. They, too, have a bit of a temperament, but you wouldn’t want a war stallion without that anyway.”

Daniel had listened with a raised eyebrow, but now shook his head, laughing quietly. “These names are hardly better... Let me guess, your sisters choose them again? Honestly, don’t they have other things to do than come up with those ridiculous names?” Eret smirked at that, but didn’t say anything as Daniel took a minute to give both stallions measuring looks. But it wasn’t much of a choice. Even over the small distance, Hiccup could see how there seemed to be an immediate connection between Daniel and Trample. With the usual noises to calm the beast, the Prince made a cautious step toward the black horse, and Trample let him pet his head without any trouble.

“Well, I guess that’s settled then,” Eret stated in an amused voice. “Let’s get him ready, and you can make a first test ride on the riding ring outside.” He made attempts to walk toward the tack room that lay behind a door at the side of the main stable room, but Hiccup beat him to it. Eret reacted with a heavy sigh, and, rolling his eyes, he said, “Hiccup, you don’t have to do this. You–”

“Yes, I do,” Hiccup interjected quietly. “I am your squire. And readying a horse for you is certainly part of my duties.”

Eret gave him a flat look, snorted, and shook his head. ”All right. If that’s how you see it. But don’t expect me to treat you any different.”

Hiccup gave his cousin a small smile before ducking into the tack room to look for where they’d placed Trample’s bridle and saddle the day before.

. o O o .

Astrid enjoyed the peaceful moments she was able to spend in Markor’s stall, she really did. Caring for him yesterday had been wonderful, partially because she’d been allowed to do so for once. But simply enjoying the horse’s company right now was great, too. She was leaning against the broad neck, her bare fingers scratching his hide as she’d pulled off her gloves the instant she’d entered the stall. Quietly humming to herself, she enjoyed being able to let her mind wander without anyone interrupting her… Yes, all in all, it was very enjoyable.

Or it would have been.

Usually, she was quite able to pay no mind to everything around her when she was around horses. But, of course, today nothing was ‘as usual’. All the time, she had to fight the urge to let her eyes flicker over to Hiccup where he stood a few steps away from Eret and her brother, attentive as he was supposed to be.

In a way, it was even worse than it had been last night. Last night, everything had been so confusing. And even after their shared minutes and their kisses, after their souls had melted together and everything had started to make sense, she hadn’t fully grasped it all. But now, she understood that her life was connected to his. And no matter how much she wanted to throw herself into his embrace, she couldn’t do anything to risk his life.

Sure, Ruff had probably been right. Daniel wouldn’t want to punish him. Not after how well they’d gotten along last night and the bits he and Eret had talked about earlier. But still, she had no doubts that, if her brother would ever learn about what had happened, he wouldn’t hesitate to have Hiccup killed. Daniel wasn’t brutal or sadistic... but she had noticed that the years on the battlefield were already starting to harden him. He’d developed a taste for expedient justice, and his law against touching her was only one example. Admittedly, he only executed said justice when guilt was obvious... but if he caught them together like they’d been yesterday... that would be pretty obvious.

She chewed at her lip at the thought. She wanted nothing more than to be with Hiccup, to feel his warmth, his touch, and get to know him. But she would need to be exceedingly careful. Daniel might be oblivious to romantic matters of any sort, but Eret surely was not. His teasing earlier might have been just a joke, but he’d been awfully close. And when it came down to choosing between her and Daniel, his loyalty surely lay with his future King.

Trying to keep her thoughts from wandering to dangerous territory, she listened as the men talked about the war stallions House Jag’r had brought. Unsurprisingly, Daniel decided on the black stallion as he had a preference for those, and equally unsurprisingly, Eret suggested to directly go for a test ride on the riding ring outside. She had expected as much, had counted on that, in fact. If only the rest of the day also went as she hoped. She would still need to keep up her act and come up with a believable excuse, but–

“Hey, You all right in there?” Eret’s cheerful voice came suddenly through the stall door.

She looked up to see him poking his head through the opening at the front of the stall. “Yes, I’m fine,” she replied, smiling, and ran her hand down Markor’s neck. “He really is amazing, and I can’t thank you enough.” And not only for the horse you brought, she added mentally.

“I’m really glad you like him,” he said, winking good-humouredly. “But I��m sorry that I had no chance to get his saddle so far. I promise to somehow get it here as soon as possible.”

“Oh, that’s fine. I don’t mind,” she stated happily as his words sparked an idea. “But what about you? Aren’t you and Daniel supposed to get his stallion ready?”

Eret snorted. “Yeah, well, the perks of having an overly eager squire… Makes me feel useless.” He paused, and a mischievous grin spread across his face. “But what about I show you the ‘pretty’ saddle we brought while we wait? Apparently, I have nothing else to do anyway, and it really is worth a look. You’ll love it.”

Astrid doubted that, but agreed nonetheless. She left Markor’s stall and followed Eret toward the attached tack room, but paused again when Daniel beckoned him over.

“Heh, Eret? A moment to take a look at this?” He didn’t call out loudly – mindful of the horses – but sounded serious nonetheless, concerned even.

Eret looked up with a frown, nodded, and turned back to Astrid. “I’ll see what he wants.You just go ahead and I’ll be there in a minute,” he said lightly, and left her standing.

She followed him with her eyes as he went toward the stall where Daniel stood near his new stallion. For a moment, she watched them as they inspected something on the horse’s leg, but then she shrugged to herself and entered the small and dusty room...

To run directly into Hiccup.

She gasped in surprise, a noise he mirrored. He dropped what he was holding, and she barely registered the clattering thud of metal and leather hitting the ground as she abruptly found herself in his arms.

Astrid froze as she felt his hands on her waist, her own hands bracing against his chest to steady herself. Dumbfounded, she gazed up into his beautiful face, his eyes wide and lips parted in surprise. Oh, how she’d yearned for his embrace! Their sudden closeness made her heart race, her breathing quickening. She could feel his breath brushing over her skin, his warmth soaking into her where she could feel him through their clothes.

For a few precious heartbeats, they held each other. She felt her heart with the piece of his soul glowing with joy, their connection thrumming at the unexpected closeness. It was wonderful, amazing, everything she’d wished for – and extremely dangerous!

His eyes glazed over, becoming more intense as he slightly bent his head, and for the fraction of a second she thought – hoped, and feared – he might kiss her.

The clicking of heavy boots on stone was the only warning.

Astrid pushed Hiccup away from her in an instant. She made a hasty step backwards and saw how he stumbled, a confused look on his face. But there was no time to explain anything. When Eret opened the door a second later, she stood frozen in place, unimaginably grateful for the lack of proper illumination that hopefully hid her blush and her frightened expression. Hiccup had hastily dropped to his knees, maybe to hide his face.

“And here I am again. Sorry you had to wait,” Eret said cheerfully, then frowned at Hiccup crouching on the ground.

“Is everything all right with Daniel’s stallion?” Astrid asked, after rummaging through her memories to come up with something reasonable to say.

“Yeah, nothing to worry. Daniel just noticed a scratch on Trample’s upper leg, but it’s nothing serious. You already took care of that, as I saw?”

The last words were obviously meant for Hiccup, who had just straightened up again. He was a little breathless, but otherwise seemed unperturbed, the dropped bridle back in his hand. “Yes, I applied the healing salve directly when I noticed it earlier,” came Hiccup’s sober affirmation.

“Good man. Not that I regret your decision, but you would have made a great stable master. Ah well, that’s how it is. Anyway, you can get started with rubbing Trample down right away, I’ll bring the saddle once we’re done here.”

“As you wish, Sir,” Hiccup replied, the teasing tone in his voice not hidden to Astrid.

Eret, however, sounded more exasperated. “Hiccup, I swear. If you don’t…” He trailed off, groaning, as Hiccup chuckled and then quickly walked toward the exit.

As he passed her, he politely bowed his head in her direction and murmured a short “Milady,” in greeting. This formal form of address sounded so wrong coming from him. But, of course, it was the only sensible one. Astrid secretly saluted Hiccup for how quickly he’d caught himself, for how easily he’d acted as if nothing had happened. Because all she was able to do in response to him was nod mutely. Hiccup left the small room, and Astrid let out the breath she hadn’t even noticed she’d been holding. Freya, she needed to do better than this. Sighing, she turned back to Eret – who gave her a scrutinizing look.

“Is everything all right?” he asked seriously. Frigga, why had he to be so good at reading her?

“Sure, why not?” she nonetheless tried to ward off his concern. But he wasn’t buying it.

“You seem… tense somehow. Especially around Hiccup. And… well, I understand, you know? Last night, Daniel told me all that happened. Why he thought this... this law to be necessary and all, and I see his point. But Hiccup isn’t like that. I promise. He’s a decent guy, and would never… You don’t need to be afraid of him. And… well, I’m sorry to pull you two in on this, but he really could use some friends right now. He’s been through a lot.”

Astrid stared at him, not sure whether to laugh or to cry. He was asking her to befriend Hiccup? Because he was a decent guy, and surely would never touch her? Gods, the irony was incredible. What could she possibly say to this?

“Okay.”

“Okay? That’s all?” Eret, who seemed to have expected a stronger reaction, blinked in confusion.

“Well, what else should I say?” she replied lightly. “I’m not afraid of Hiccup, if that’s what concerns you. It’s just… weird, I think. Maybe because I don’t know him at all, not like I know you or the others. But I’ll try to put in some effort to change that, all right?” It was nothing but the truth.

Eret hesitated, but then nodded and gave her a broad smile. “Thanks, Swanja. That means a lot to me,” he said sincerely. Then he beckoned her to follow him. “Anyway, that’s not why we came here. Come, what I wanted to show you is over there.” He went ahead to the far corner of the room where a narrow beam of sunlight fell through a small window and provided better illumination. With mischievously gleaming eyes, he gestured toward what could be called a saddle, except…

“What in Loki’s name!?” she sputtered, disbelievingly. What hung on the saddle rack in front of her was… hilarious!

Covered in dark blue satin, the saddle was indeed a gorgeous piece of horse-riding tack. Or it would have been if that had been all. The scenery of swans swimming on a lake – embroidered with silver and gold threads – surely was beautiful and detailed, but seemed a bit... excessive on a saddle skirt, to say the least. And the additional embellishments of brocade and stitched-on glass beads around the dual pommels was assuredly, absolutely too much. The tassels hanging from the cantle were tasteful, at least, and were done in a way that managed to suggest a swan’s tail-feathers. And the leather of the fender, stirrup and straps had been neatly tooled with more waterfowl. It was a gorgeous piece of art...

That would be ruined the instant Markor went anywhere there was a hint of dirt or mud. And while the stitching holding the seat to the saddle skirt was – yep, she checked – silver bullion wire, a ridiculous extravagance, it was at least flush with the leather. Even the seat had been embossed with a swan in flight, which just made her shake her head. And they’d clearly gone a little too enthusiastic on the decoration for the pommels; while the parts that would be touching her thighs directly were smooth leather, the rest of the pommels were embellished to the point of absurdity.

How long Astrid stared at the ludicrous, ridiculous piece of riding equipment, she didn’t know. It looked so entirely out of place in the dusty, practical tack-room, as if it had been misplaced by some absent-minded dvergr. Her expression must have been gloriously bewildered, as Eret clearly reached a point where he couldn’t control himself anymore and burst out laughing. “Yes, that’s the face I expected,” he guffawed. “Seriously Swanja, I wish you could see your expression right now.”

“How in all Gods’ names did this happen?” she asked incredulously. “I mean… Your father said your sisters did this, but… but don’t they know what a saddle is for? How is this… this thing supposed to survive even one ride?”

Eret shook his head, still grinning. “It’s not.”

“Just look at this!” she went on in disbelief, not reacting to his comment in any way. “Even ignoring the fact that whatever dress I wear is going to completely cover this saddle; as soon as I go anything above a trot, the skirt will wrap around the pommels and get ripped to shreds by the beading and embroidery!”

“So don’t go above a trot, then,” Eret said with a smirk.

This time, she gave him a sour look. “I’ll simply wear my practical and thick riding leathers beneath some discarded linen dress, thank you. That way, at least my legs will survive this saddle and none of my usual outfits gets destroyed.”

“Oh, please do! Just imagine the scandal,” Eret said with teasing glee and held up a hand as he leaned over, as if visualizing something off in the distance. “The refined Princess Astrid, riding her gift horse and fine gift-saddle from House Jag’r... while wearing a pair of worn and dirty leather riding trousers beneath rags.”

She groaned.

“Sorry to burst your bubble,” he didn’t sound very sorry, “but you’re probably going to have to use it at least once for some formal ride somewhere. Wearing a skirt. At a trot that’s so slow that you’re going to want to scream, knowing that you could be flying instead.”

Astrid groaned at the image he painted with his words. She’d been a part of such formal processions before, and they were deadly boring. But she would at least take Eret down with her...“If that’s actually going to happen one day, then I’ll make sure you’re a part of it, too. Riding somewhere behind me, just as slowly.”

“No, don’t do that! Have me locked in with my grandfather for a weekend instead!” Eret protested in mock desperation.

“What, and let you off easy?” she fired back. “Nope. Sentence is spoken. It’s that or possibly being pecked to death by swans. I can take you over to the pond and throw you in right now. Your choice.”

“Well, I suppose that might be the more pleasant choice. But then you’d have to explain things to my father, Hiccup, and Dagur,” Eret said with a grin.

Astrid snorted, making Eret chuckle. “All right, you get to live, this time,” she said, deadly serious… before she burst out laughing as well.

Laughing like this was liberating, even with the sting of her secret between them. It felt natural, normal. She knew that, once she left this small room, she would need to keep her every action in check again to not reveal how Hiccup’s mere presence affected her, to not endanger him. But when she pressed her hand to her chest, presumably to catch her breath, she knew that it was worth it. He was worth it.

Once they’d calmed down again, she continued to examine the details of the saddle’s stitchings. It truly was completely mental. There had to be a small fortune of silver thread stitched into the thing...

“You’re a sadist, and I know that you encouraged this, didn’t you?” she said after a while, shaking her head at the sheer lunacy of this thing.

“Who, me?” Eret said innocently, and then chuckled. “Don’t worry too much, we all knew you probably won’t ever actually use it. It’s more of an alibi, for you and for my sisters alike. Believe me, these days they are eagerly grasping for every excuse to claim being busy to avert any unwanted attention.”

Astrid raised an eyebrow at his words, looking up from inspecting the equally ridiculously embellished bridle. “Unwanted attention?”

“Yeah, well…” Eret scratched his neck sheepishly. “There’s been a surge in young noblemen who all came up with the same idea: marry a daughter from one of the higher Houses for the alliance and maybe a bit more power. I mean, they’re probably right. And I easily admit that this is a far more pleasant way to seek power than simply killing your rivals, especially as most seem to put honest effort into courting the girls to win their hearts and hands. But it’s become a lot more intense lately, and my sisters are grasping for every opportunity to flee their suitors.”

Astrid contemplated his words with a slight frown. “But… last time I checked your sisters were younger than I am. Isn’t it a bit… early for them to think about marriage?” She was aware of the irony for her to say these words after she’d been thinking a lot about marriage since yesterday, but still.

But Eret simply shrugged. “It’s not like Father would marry them off right away. But contracts can already be made and sealed, even if the wedding only takes place in a couple of years. Besides… waiting to get married until the bride is twenty is not a law. It’s just a custom, one you’re far more fond of down here in the south then we’re anyway. And if it serves to settle some dispute between Father’s vessels, then I’m sure he wouldn’t hesitate to concur – as long as whichever of my sisters isn’t totally against it.”

Astrid nodded in understanding. It wasn’t that much of an uncommon practice after all.

“Anyway,“ went Eret on. “It’s not like it’s that likely to actually happen anytime soon. I think Father mentioned something about how he wanted to talk with your father about other ways to calm those disputes or something. And it’s not that bad so far, for us, at least. There are just a dozen or so young men around the stud farm practically every day, hoping to talk to one of the girls. Or to impress them or Father or sometimes even me with their skills in caring for the horses, trying to convince us of their suitability. Frankly, it’s quite entertaining, from my point of view, at least. The stables are cleaner than they’ve been in years.”

“You’re horrible,” Astrid chuckled as they turned to leave the room.

“Of course, I am,” he agreed cheerfully, took a black saddle from one of the racks, and added with a wink, “And here I thought you of all people knew that already.”

. o O o .

With a strained grunt, Hiccup lifted the heavy saddle up and onto Trample’s broad back. It was difficult, but he had to get used to this. House Jag’r’s horses were so much bigger compared to those he was used to. Or… had been used to… His jaw tightened at the dull ache that accompanied this thought.

Once again, his eyes flickered to Astrid for a scant second to chase away the hurtful memories. When she’d left the tack room a few minutes before, she’d been in an exceedingly good mood, laughing about some comment Eret must have made. Then she’d returned to Markor’s stall, and was now humming quietly to herself. All he could see of her were occasional glimpses of her golden hair.

And she hadn’t even looked at him again.

But that was probably just because she was cautious. Yes, that had to be it. Despite the animated discussion he and Daniel had had last night and the friendly smile from this morning, Hiccup vividly remembered the warning he’d been given. Surely, it was just because she was trying to be careful. No need to panic...

“Okay, he’s ready,” Hiccup announced once the saddle was tightly attached to Trample. Eret and Daniel, who’d stood to the side, talking quietly, looked up and came over. “I’ve left the halter on as I guess you want to lunge first. But I can quickly bridle him, as soon as–”

“That’s alright, we can do that ourselves,” Eret said decidedly, and took the bridle out of Hiccup’s hand to lay it aside for later use. “But yes, we’ll do some lungeing first. Are you coming, Daniel? Lots to do today.”

Daniel hesitated and threw a questioning look over at his sister. “Aren't you coming, Astrid?” he asked, head cocked to the side as she made no move to leave Markor’s stall and follow them. Hiccup perked up his head to look at her, just like Eret did.

“No, I’ll stay here,” she replied absentmindedly, head leaned against the horse's neck and apparently entirely caught up in her thoughts.

His heartbeat quickened at the prospect of them staying behind – alone – but he also caught the worried expression on the Prince’s face. He seemed as if he wanted to object when Eret placed a hand on his friend’s arm.

“Hey, it’s all right,” he said quietly, his voice easily carrying toward where Hiccup stood. “I get that you’re worried for her after what you told me last night. But look at her. Does she look scared or anything? She’s fine. There’s no need to soothe any fears when there are none.”

“Maybe,” the Prince replied, murmuring. “It’s just…” Hiccup practically felt how piercing blue eyes rested on him for a moment, and he tried hard to act as if he was just lounging around and not listening in.

“Listen,” Eret interjected, even quieter than before. “There’s no need to worry about him. He’s not like that creep Thuggory or that other man. I promise – no, I vouch for him. She’s safe with him. Besides,” he added more cheerfully. “You do remember the scared swan, right? She can take care of herself.”

The Prince sighed, and from the corner of his eye, Hiccup saw how he nodded. “You’re right, I guess. Okay. Let’s get started.”

They left the stables and Hiccup gazed after them, thoughtfully. Eret’s words had hit him on many levels, and he wasn’t sure about which to think first. Why should Astrid be scared of him? He hadn’t given her any reason for that… had he? No, surely not. But what had he meant by creep? It didn’t make much sense to him. And what had that been about a scared swan? It had sounded… meaningful somehow, like there was a story behind that phrase. It at least seemed to have been important enough to convince the Prince in the end. He wondered what that had meant.

But aside from those confusing comments, there had been something else that bothered him even more. Eret had vouched for him… He’d promised that Astrid would be safe with Hiccup. Gulping, he fought to calm down the troubled emotions that started to boil up inside him.

Of course, Astrid was safe with him! The mere thought something could ever happen to her made his heart cramp painfully, and in that moment, he knew that he would do anything to ensure her safety. But that probably hadn’t been what Eret had meant.

Creep.

No, the Prince wasn’t worried about something dangerous that could happen to her, some outer threat she needed protection from. And why would he be? There was not much that could actually happen to her here at the capitol. There were no Malarian raiders who could penetrate this far into the kingdom, and the only other real threat, the dragons, barely ever came this far south. No, what the Prince was worried about were some creeps, men who simply lusted after her body. And now, they’d left her alone with him, despite that fear. Because Eret had vouched for him.

Hiccup took a deep shuddering breath and closed his eyes. He’s right!, he thought to himself. He wasn’t like that, wasn’t forbiddenly lusting after some random girls like some men did. This was something different. Eret was right to leave her with him. The Prince probably would disagree if he knew about Hiccup’s feelings for her, but it was true nonetheless. She was safe with him. He would never…

As the stable door finally closed, he looked up at where she still stood inside the stall. She seemed lost in thoughts, so he felt free to gaze at her. Eret was right. When it came down to the points Daniel probably was concerned about, then she was safe with him. He would never do anything she wouldn’t want him to do. He wouldn’t venture where he was explicitly forbidden. He would never take what wasn’t rightfully his. But all Gods above, if the Prince knew about how they’d kissed last night, and how he wanted to kiss and hold her again right now, he would probably kill him on the spot.

And yet, he couldn’t bring himself to stay away from her. Not when they were finally alone.

He took a deep breath, grimacing as his leg tingled from standing still. Suddenly, he was nervous. He wasn’t sure how to approach her. Should he simply go to her, enter the stall and take her into his arms as he longed to? Simply being near her again? Somehow it felt weird to do so when she was so completely engrossed in enjoying her time with Markor.

He made a few hesitant steps in her direction, wondering why she wasn’t even looking at him. Hadn’t she noticed how Eret and her brother had left? That they were alone? Surely, she must have…

As he took another hesitant step in her direction, the stable door opened again, and Eret came in, his demeanour satisfied, and walked over to the hay bale with the basket. He snagged a pastry, took a bite, and then seemed to notice that Hiccup was sheepishly standing in the middle of the corridor.

“Why are you just standing there?” he asked, throwing Hiccup a confused look. “If you have nothing else to do, you can take a break and eat something.” He motioned to the basket. “This is for all of us, after all.”

“Erm… okay,” Hiccup said. He walked over to where Eret was standing and leaned against the straw bale as if to settle there, the basket in arm’s reach.

“How’s it going?”

Surprised at the suddenness of hearing Astrid, Hiccup turned to look; she’d poked her head out of the stall’s small opening, looking cheerful, her gaze entirely fixed on Eret, but Hiccup thought he could also see a certain tenseness in her.

“Perfectly, as expected,” Eret replied. “Daniel is leading him around so they get used to each other. But he won’t have any problems with this one.”

“That’s good to hear. I just hope he can keep him for a while this time.”

“Me too,” Eret sighed. “But the Malarians aren’t stupid. They know that, without the horses, our men are far less effective. It would be stupid of them not to target their attacks at them.”

“I know,” came Astrid’s despondent reply. “I just… I just wish all this pointless killing would stop at some point.”

“You’re not alone there,” snorted Eret, then waved and left the stables after grabbing a few more pastries on his way out.

Hiccup waited until the door was closed again, then stood up to walk over to her. Obviously, she wasn’t that lost in her thoughts, judging by her short conversation with Eret just now. Sure, she’d gone back to humming and scratching by now, but still...

He had almost reached the stall when she suddenly looked up after all. It was nothing but a quick glance, her stern blue eyes finding his without a moment’s doubt. She just looked, her expression unreadable, and then turned away again, her entire attention back on Markor.

Hiccup frowned but paused in his steps, confused. Why was she still acting like this when they were alone? Or did she genuinely want to spend time with her horse? That was something he couldn’t really begrudge her, considering how much she loved horses, according to Eret.

Indecisively, he paused in his steps, then turned and returned to the food basket. If that was what she wanted then he wouldn’t impose on her. Surely, they would get another chance… eventually…

Unsure what to do now, he reached into the basket and pulled out one of the pastries. He hadn’t paid attention to what he pulled out of the basket, instead just picking out something absently and taking a bite. But when the sweet taste of honey and nuts filled his mouth, his eyes closed on their own accord, savouring the divine taste. His thoughts drifted back to the night before, when he’d picked one of these by coincidence – the same one Astrid had reached for. It had felt like yet another string added to their connection, a tiny piece of knowledge about her, in that they had similar tastes in food.

Right… They were connected now. That was irrevocable. But that didn’t mean they would have to give up everything else. If she didn’t want to talk right now, if she wanted to enjoy her gift instead, well, that was okay. They still each had their own lives. Even though it felt to Hiccup as if his entire life was about her now.

Not wanting to sit around and feeling superfluous, Hiccup stood up and got the broom that was leaning against a wall. There were things he could do, something other than just oogle her all day if she was busy otherwise.

“Heh. I thought you wanted to eat,” came Eret’s teasing remark as he came inside again a few minutes later.

“Yes, and that’s what I did,” Hiccup replied, quickly searching his mind for more to say. “But sitting still isn’t all that comfortable on the long run. So I… I thought I could sweep the floor. You know, after grooming Trample...”

Eret gave him a strange look, but then simply shrugged. “Never try to make sense of a Tribesman,” he mumbled. Apparently, this was a common saying, but one Hiccup had never heard before two years ago. Eret walked past him to get the bridle from where it hung next to Tramples stall.

“Are you already done with lunging?”

Both Eret and Hiccup looked up at Astrid’s surprised remark. Again, she’d poked her head through the small opening and nodded at the bridle in Eret’s hand. Apparently, she was paying more attention to her surroundings then Hiccup had thought. She just didn’t seem to be interested in him.

“Yes, it works really well. A few rounds around the ring and that should be it,” Eret replied, and left the stables again.

Hiccup looked at the door through which his cousin had just left and then to where Astrid had retreated back into the stall, further avoiding even the tiniest contact. Not even a quick glance...

Had something happened to change her mind? He didn’t really believe that, didn’t want to believe that, but… seeing how she kept ignoring him didn’t exactly help to make him feel confident. Had she learned something or heard something and now didn’t want anything to do with him anymore? She probably couldn’t end this connection between them, but she surely could ignore it. Was that what she was doing? Ignoring him and move on?

A part of him wasn’t even surprised. Ever since he remembered, people had looked at him with disdain and contempt. For not being strong, for not being a fighter. For not being who they thought he would be. Was it really that surprising that Astrid, the beautiful Princess who could probably choose from a dozen or more handsome and rich Dukes didn’t want to be associated with a failure like himself?

He remembered how they’d collided in the tack room earlier. How she’d looked at him, not really happy, and how she’d pushed him away, hard enough for him to stumble to the ground. He’d thought she’d done it just because of the approaching footsteps, but now he wondered.

He looked down at his hand around the broom and snorted harshly. Of course, she didn’t want him. In the end, he was nothing. Nothing but a lowly servant, good for nothing but shovelling horse shit.

But that seemed to be the theme of his life. He hadn’t minded taking care of his father’s animals in his youth; he’d been far better at it than at fighting anyway. And he hadn’t minded doing so for his uncle during the past months, as it was his only means by which to pay him back for his kindness. He wouldn’t have minded doing it for the rest of his life if he’d chosen to become a stablemaster. He didn’t mind doing it while they were at the castle as it provided a perfect excuse for him not to be around noblemen who potentially might recognise him after all. And he didn’t mind doing it in the future as Eret’s squire either.

This was his life now, the life he had chosen. Granted, he’d chosen it to be with her. But even if she didn’t want him now anymore, then this was still his life. He would get used to it. Would have to...

His thoughts kept running in circles as he mechanically swept the floor. In Markor’s stall, she was humming a low tune to herself, sounding happy and content, and entirely ignorant of his misery. It was mind-jarring. Every now and then over the next hour or so, Eret or sometimes Daniel came inside, getting food or something to drink, or getting rid of their jackets as the sun rose higher. They gave friendly comments and Astrid happily chatted with them, but Hiccup wasn’t paying much attention.

Was that really it? One night of happiness, of dreaming about a life with her? A few hours of finally looking forward to the future? He gulped, and turned once more to look at her. In his mind’s eye, she seemed to radiate, to glow. She was joy and warmth and everything he wanted. And he wouldn’t simply give up like that!

He decided to approach her after all, taking the risk of her rejecting him against the uncertainty. He just had to try. Whatever it was that had changed her mind... maybe someone had told her something. Something that wasn’t true and he could set right. Or at least something he could explain. Reaching up to that burning spot on his chest to gather his courage, he went to Markor’s stall and was about to open the gate – when the front door opened again.

With brightly gleaming eyes, the Prince stepped inside. He directly went to the basket with the food and served himself, before he came over.

“These Jag’r-horses really are quite something,” he stated cheerily and threw a bit of cheese into his mouth. “The difference to the normal horses I had to ride during the last few weeks is almost ridiculous.” He shook his head in wonder.

Astrid looked up at him without a pause and threw him an amused smirk. “You’re aware of the fact that you say that every time? Shouldn’t you be used to that by now?”

Hiccup stood to the side, watching the exchange with trepidation and a rapidly beating heart. Had this been another sign? That he was to stay away? He felt numb. Maybe the rush of their weird connection had clouded her mind last night, and the light of day had made her see clear again. Maybe she simply didn’t want anything to do with him after all. If she decided to ignore their bond… Hiccup wasn’t sure how he was going to be able to cope then.

Astrid’s quiet but true laughter caught his attention again, and he put in some effort to concentrate on the here and now again. “You want to go on a ride? Through the countryside? Why am I not surprised?” she asked, amused.

Eret returned, too, leading Trample back inside. “It was inevitable, wasn’t it?” he dryly replied to her question, and tied the stallion to a ring mounted in his stall’s front. “But then, that’s why we’re all wearing riding gear, right? I’ll prepare Crusher, and Hiccup can help you with Markor once Cassie is ready. These two are far calmer, after all, that should go quickly. And–”

“I’m not going with you,” Astrid snorted, interrupting him. Three heads turned in her direction, all with equally surprised expressions on their faces. She didn’t want to go for a ride after she’d spent all morning cuddling her new horse? That didn’t really make sense. Surely, there was an explanation, but Hiccup wasn’t able to think right now. As if through a haze, he watched the back and forth around him, his numb mind trying to process.

“You’re not?” Daniel asked, bewildered. “Why? I thought you’d love to go for a ride with your new favourite man.” He chuckled, and Astrid threw him a dark glare.

“I would,” she admitted, a little miffed. “But as I recall, the proper saddle is still in the servants’ quarters. I surely won’t go for a ride on that hilarious torture device of a saddle.” She gestured toward the tack room, grimacing.

‘Ah, that makes sense,’ Hiccup thought numbly.

Eret and Daniel shared a concerned look. “I… didn’t think of that,” Eret admitted sheepishly.

Daniel grimaced, but then shrugged. “Ah, well... We can go on a ride on another day then. It’s not like we have much else to do during the next weeks until the Midwinter festivities.”

“No, don’t delay that ride,” Astrid said cheerily, turning back to pet Markor’s neck. “I can see how much you two are looking forward to it, and I don’t mind staying behind.”

“Seriously?” Eret gave her a sceptical look. “We’ll be gone for a couple of hours, I think. That could become quite boring.”

At that, she giggled. “I doubt that. You know me, I never notice much when I’m around horses. Surely not the passing of time.”

Despite himself, the increasingly pained thought in the back of Hiccup’s head commented, ‘Yeah, I noticed… not time... and not me.’

“True enough,” Eret shrugged.

“But you’d be all on your own,” Daniel threw in, worried. “I don’t think…”

“Oh, for Odin’s sake, I’ll be fine, Daniel,” she exclaimed. “Nobody ever comes here anyway.”

Daniel didn’t seem convinced.

“Hiccup could keep her company, if that makes you feel better,” Eret suggested, clearly eager to go for this fun ride they’d planned.

Daniel looked up at Hiccup, scrutinising him. But then his features cleared and he nodded. “Would that be all right for you, Astrid?” he asked.

She shrugged. “Sure, why not? If that makes you feel better.”

“You don’t mind babysitting my sister, right?” he asked, turning toward Hiccup with an amused twinkle in his eyes now. “She can be stubborn, but usually is good company.”

Hiccup swallowed, his gaze shifting from Daniel, who looked at him expectantly, to Astrid, who had all her attention on Markor again, and back again. “Of course, Milord. I don’t mind,” he said, as he thought ‘It can’t get any worse anyway.’

“Okay, then that’s settled,” Eret said, relieved.

Daniel stayed with Trample as Hiccup helped Eret preparing Crusher. They worked quickly; the past months had made them quite efficient, and shortly, Eret and the Prince led their horses back outside.

“Until later then. Don’t eat all the food, okay?” Eret called in parting.

“Have fun,” Astrid called back, and waved absentmindedly after them.

Hiccup followed them outside to hold the two black stallions in place until their riders sat in their saddles. Then he gazed after them as they rode past the paddock and finally disappeared behind a hill. He didn’t really want to go back inside, and dreaded the idea of spending hours with Astrid ignoring him like she’d done all day. But he had not much choice in that matter. He had agreed to keep her company, after all…

Those would be some long hours indeed.

But when he entered the stables and closed the door behind him, he suddenly found himself with an unexpected armful of Princess. Out of reflex, his arms closed around her, holding her, before his mind even had the slightest chance to understand what had happened.

“I thought they’d never leave,” she mumbled against his chest, her hands on his back clutching him tightly.

“W-What?” he stammered, disoriented by the sudden change in her behaviour. His arms around her were trembling.

“I knew they would want to go for a ride,” she explained, chuckling weakly. “They always do. I just had to convince them that they could leave me – leave us here without worrying.”

And then he understood. She’d acted so indifferent on purpose, so neither Daniel or Eret would think anything about leaving them alone? Because she’d known that would give them the chance to actually be alone? Gods…

Relief washed through him like a tangible warm wave, brushing away his tension and anxiety in a heartbeat. His arms around her tightened and he clutched her to his chest, chuckling shakily at his own stupidity. With her in his arms now and the already so familiar mayweed scent in his nose, he saw how pointless his worries had been. Of course she wouldn’t ignore their bond. Of course not…

“Eret was right,” he said, voice trembling slightly as he recalled something his cousin had said regularly. “Your mood swings really are dangerous.”

In his arms, she laughed lightly, the sweet sound making his heart swell. “Only if you don’t see them coming,” she replied, grinning up at him.

Despite her obviously good mood, her words dampened his own noticeably. “Guess I don’t know you well enough, then,” he replied throatily, grimacing as that fact hit him once again.

At his despondent tone, Astrid retreated to look up at him. She raised one hand and let her fingers glide over his face, as if to smooth out the lines that had formed there. Exhaling slowly, he leaned into her touch, warm and soft like sunshine.

“Well, we have a couple of hours to change that,” she said lightly, eyes soft as he looked at her. “What would you want to know?”

. o O o .

Okay... you knew the angst would come, right? I mean... it's me! Just a tiny droplet though... more to come in later chapters ;)

So, one chapter to go until the hiatus. Two warnings though: 1. Sticky-sweet, teeth-rotting fluff to come... xD 2. I sincerely hope the next chapter will be on time... But it's my birthday this Sunday, and usually, things always get a bit hectic. I'll do my best, though :)

Comments are always welcome :)

Next Chapter

#for the love of a princess #httyd #httyd fanfiction #Hiccup and Astrid #hiccstrid #hiccstrid fanfiction #Hiccstrid Medieval AU #Medieval AU #royalty au #hiccstrid royal au #httyd fandom #Hiccstrid Soulmates #shipmistress9

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wolfie-dragon-rider · 7 years ago

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Blind Spots Chapter 13: Invisible Friends

A/N: *Hesitantly raises head out of hole I digged for myself* Hey guys. Can we, uh, pretend that when I said the next chapter would come in two weeks, I meant three months? I am really sorry. I had a really bad bout of writer's block, and I kept changing the order of the chapters. Mostly because I didn't want to write this one, it was a hard one to write. Now that it's done I'm glad, though. I hope you like it too! And I hope to keep to a more regular update schedule from now on, though I won't promise anything concrete. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

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Kirsten tried to suppress her laugh. She really did. The situation was way too serious for laughter.

But the sight before her was just too rare and too adorable to waste. Her normally so disciplined and strict daughter, giggling like mad in between coughs. Astrid was holding her Terrible Terror, Sneaky, with an iron grip while cooing nonsense at it.

Eel pox. It changes people's personality in crazy ways.

"Astrid, you're suffocating Sneaky! Let him breathe!" Kirsten said, pushing lightly at her daughter's hands. Astrid violently shook her head.

"No! My dragon! He's cute, and I want to hug him and kiss him and snuggle him!" she stated, before doing just that. The Terror looked terrified, not used to this much affection. Stormfly chirped worriedly, nudging Astrid with her beak.

"Oh, but I'm not forgetting about you, Stormy! Who's a good dragon? You're a good dragon! You're the best-est, prettiest, awesome-est dragon in the entire world!" Astrid said loudly, raising one arm to put around Stormfly's neck and pulling her down to the bed. The Nadder cooed at the compliments, but still looked worried.

Kirsten knew that eel pox was dangerous, and that Astrid should get a dose of medicine soon. But Astrid being this affectionate was rare, and she was going to savor every moment of it.

Her daughter sneezed loudly, snot flying through the room since both her arms were busy holding dragons. Kirsten jumped back a little, before touching Astrid's forehead. Disturbingly hot.

"Still sick?" Tolfdir said, walking into the room. His nose was bright red, and he kept sniffing. Kirsten had tried to tell him that he was falling victim to the pox as well, but he didn't listen. Damn stubborn Hoffersons. At least his personality hadn't changed yet, as far as she could tell.

"Dad! I'm not gonna train with you tomorrow! I'm gonna hug every dragon on Berk instead!" Astrid shouted when her unfocused eyes found her father.

"Okay, she definitely needs a big dose of medicine. I'm gonna tell Gothi," Tolfdir said, looking shocked at the thought of his child skipping combat training.

"You better get a dose for yourself as well!" Kirsten called after him, hearing the front door close a moment later.

"Hey, mom! I love you! You're amazing! And you tell the best stories. Except for that one with Loki and the horse. That one was gross. And your lessons for a happy marriage, those freak me out. But other than those I love your stories, and I love you!" Astrid managed to say, releasing Sneaky to grab her mother's hand instead. The Terror jumped away with a loud screech, flying out the window as fast as he could.

"Oh, uh, thank you! I'm glad you like them. And I love you too," she said, unsure of what to say. Astrid was never this open with her, let alone confessing her love. Of course Kirsten knew that Astrid loved her, but to hear it out loud made her smile uncontrollably.

"I love you as much as I love Hiccup. I want to hug Hiccup. And kiss him. And I kind of want to take his clothes off. But I know I'm not allowed to until we're married. Do you think he wants to take my clothes off?" Astrid asked, pressing a big kiss to Stormfly's beak. Kirsten wasn't sure whether she felt disgusted or amused.

"I'm sure he does," Kirsten said, rubbing her daughter's hand, hoping to soothe her.

"Really?" Astrid's eyes opened wide, and Kirsten couldn't stop her laugh at the happy expression.

"Yes, he loves you very much. That's why he's flying out today, getting the ingredients for the cure," she said, and Astrid's face lit up with pure love.

"He's the best! But sometimes he's stupid!" she exclaimed. Kirsten wished she could record this somehow, and show her later. And maybe Hiccup as well. It would embarrass them to no end.

But maybe the memory would do. Yes, eel pox may be bad, but there could be an opportunity here as well...

"So, what do you like about Hiccup?" she asked, smiling when Astrid told her everything she needed to embarrass her daughter for years to come.

For once, Hiccup was the first to arrive at the Academy. He couldn't remember that ever happening.

The main reason he'd often be late was that is was quite difficult to get out of bed on time when you've worked on projects for half the night. Stoick would often complain about the noise keeping him awake, and Hiccup was sorry for that. But time flies when he is working on a new invention, and without seeing the sun disappear below the waves and the shadows lengthen in his room it was quite hard to notice that it was bedtime.

Maybe he could build some kind of hourglass that he could see or measure himself. Hmm, it could contain little levers or weights that would tip over if enough sand had trickled down. Tricky to calibrate, but Astrid could help with that. Hiccup's hand moved towards his copper notebook before he even realized it. A snort from Toothless reminded him to focus on what was really important. The eel pox epidemic.

Hiccup would need some help dealing with it, though. Normally he didn't mind arriving late, hoping the twins and Snotlout had already expended most of their energy at each other, making them more likely to work with him.

Figuring he might as well be productive, Hiccup moved to the large cages and storage areas in the back, feeling around for some supplies for the long day ahead. As he grabbed a big saddlebag he heard a soft hissing sound.

Toothless growled, but before Hiccup could investigate laughter echoed from the arena.

"That was a good one! Now faster!" Tuffnut shouted, moments before a loud bang rang out. Hiccup ran out with the saddlebag, stumbling when something small hit him.

"What are you doing?" he asked, grateful for Toothless catching him and pushing him back to his feet.

"Since no one else is here yet, we figured we'd train our Terrors a bit more. Butt and Head are getting better and better at flying into each other!" Tuffnut said.

"Yeah, and into other people," Ruffnut sniggered, and Hiccup realized what had just hit him.

Things like this were why he preferred to show up late.

"Whatever, my Terror is still cooler. It took me an hour to pry him off my leg this morning!" Snotlout shouted, flying in on Hookfang, and Hiccup mentally sighed. He was not in the mood for this, especially without Astrid to help him keep order. Rather than comment on the argument, he opted to keep their focus on each other, and instead put the oddly heavy saddlebag on Toothless.

Just as the twins and Snotlout started arguing, buzzing wings entered the arena. Moments later there was a heavy thud, followed by loud footsteps.

"Hey guys. I've got the list of ingredients we need to collect for Gothi," Fishlegs said, and Hiccup sensed him holding out something. The blind boy reached out, grabbing a piece of paper. There was an awkward silence while Hiccup examined the paper.

"Uh, Fishlegs, you know I can't read this, right?" Hiccup asked, feeling like the temperature dropped several degrees when he drew attention to his blindness. It wasn't an easy thing to discuss, even after so long.

"Oh, right. I'll just… read it aloud, then," Fishlegs said, awkwardly reaching out to grab the paper again.

"Let's see…. Buckthorn root, a dozen rock blossoms, a handful of goat weed, one daga plant, some redblood grass, Night Fury saliva, Fireworm gel, various types of seaweed, fifty bogbeans, two dozen juniper berries, and oyster plant. Oh, and a bloodbane eel, but Gothi had one already," Fishlegs listed, and Hiccup tried to figure out where those ingredients could be found.

"Okay, that's a lot of stuff. It's probably best if we split up for that. On that note, does anyone know where Astrid is?" Hiccup asked as Fishlegs grabbed something from Meatlug's saddlebag. Probably a book on herbs.

"Her mom came to see us this morning. Said we had to tell you that Astrid is sick with eel pox, and can't come. Oh, and that she loves you very very very very much. Astrid that is, not her mom. Apparently that was a direct quote from Astrid. Though maybe her mom loves you as well. I'm not sure," Tuffnut said, before getting punched by his sister.

"Idiot. Of course she doesn't. She was laughing way too hard for that. Though she did say we should hurry, so let's get going," Ruffnut said, sounding surprisingly worried. Hiccup nodded.

"I checked the book of plants, and it looks like the herbs we need are roughly in two directions. The buckthorn root, redblood grass, daga plant, and juniper berries can all be found in the western isles. The rest are mostly water plants, those grow to the south around Breakneck Bog," Fishlegs said.

"Okay then, let's split up in two groups. Fishlegs, you and Ruff and Tuff go to Breakneck Bog and collect those water plants. Barf and Belch should lead you through the fog there. Snotlout and me will go to the western isles to collect the rest," Hiccup said, grabbing his notebook and knife to write down what ingredients he had to collect.

"Wait, what? Why do I have to go with you?! I'd rather go with the twins," Snotlout said. Hiccup took a deep breath, wishing Astrid was here.

"Because the western isles are furthest away, and Toothless and Hookfang are the fastest dragons. Now, can you get some supplies? It's gonna be a long trip, so we should bring lunch. We need a map to navigate the isles as well," he said calmly, hoping Snotlout wouldn't complain this time. Thankfully he just walked towards the back, muttering, while Hiccup scratched the herbs' names into an empty sheet of copper.

"Alright, let's not waste any more time. Get the ingredients as quickly as you can, and then meet back at Gothi's," Hiccup said as he finished writing '24 juniper', before putting his notebook in the saddlebag. For a moment he thought he felt the bag move as he swung his metal foot over to mount Toothless, but he dismissed that thought. It was probably another phantom sensation.

"I'll be back first!" Ruffnut said as Hiccup hooked his foot into the pedal. He heard Snotlout's footsteps returning, before mounting Hookfang.

"No, I'll be back first! I'm way faster than my stupid sister!" Tuffnut shouted. A moment later a slapping sound echoed around the arena.

"We're riding the same dragon, idiot. We'll be back at the same time," Ruffnut said, and Hiccup felt very thankful he didn't have to spend the entire day with the twins.

"Well that's no fun. Still, we'll be back before Fishlegs," Tuffnut said, mounting Belch and flying off.

"Wait, you're not gonna leave me behind, are you? Oh, why do I always have to go to Breakneck Bog…" Fishlegs muttered unhappily, before following the twins.

With the other riders gone, an awkward silence settled over the arena.

"Well, let's go," Hiccup said after a few seconds, setting the pedal to the up position and signalling to Toothless to fly.

They flew in silence for a while, Hookfang's large wings clearly audible next to Toothless.

"So… How's your dad?" Hiccup eventually asked, mostly to break the heavy silence.

"He has eel pox. Otherwise same as always," Snotlout said, sounding annoyed.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Hiccup said. Snotlout didn't answer, and the only sound was the flapping wings again.

Hiccup considered asking more questions, but if Snotlout didn't want to be friendly, then he didn't really feel like being friendly either. So he stayed silent, instead thinking about how to build an hourglass he could feel.

They flew for an hour or so, and eventually Hiccup was nudged out of his mental calculations by Snotlout saying he saw land.

"Those must be the western isles. Let's figure out which is which, we don't want to land on the wrong one. These plants should grow on every island, so we might as well pick the safest," Hiccup said.

"Pff, what's the worst thing we could find? The Snotman will defend you," Snotlout said in a patronizing voice, and Hiccup resisted the urge to sigh.

"Well, how about an army of Outcasts? Outcast Island is down there. As are some other dangerous ones. Fireworm Island, Changewing Island, Eel Island…" Hiccup replied.

"Wait, Outcast Island is here?!" Snotlout shouted. Hiccup groaned softly.

"Yes. Yes it is. Northern end of the western isles. If you look at the map you can see it. But we're not gonna land there. I'm thinking we should land on Healer's Island, there are no dangerous dragons there. Can you look up what its shape is?" Hiccup asked. A long silence followed.

"Snotlout… you did bring the map, right?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"You never said I had to bring it! I thought you had one!" Snotlout said, and Hiccup groaned loudly, not caring if Snotlout heard it.

"Snotlout. I can not read a paper map. Why would you think I'd bring one?" he slowly asked.

"I don't know! Normally you and Astrid deal with that kind of stuff!" Snotlout shouted, and Hiccup sighed deeply, resisting the urge to start shouting himself.

He wished Astrid was here. But she wasn't, she was sick and it was their job to find the cure. So he took a deep breath before leaning back to reach into the saddlebag.

"Okay, I'll check my notebook to see if it contains a map. If it doesn't, we'll just have to pick an island random-" Hiccup shrieked when something warm brushed past his hand. There was a small hiss, like the one he heard at the Academy. This time Hiccup recognized the sound.

"Sneaky?" he asked as the little dragon climbed up his arm before flying off. Suddenly Hookfang ROARED. A moment later Toothless growled in pain. Instinctively, Hiccup set the pedal to 'down', thinking they should land as soon as possible.

"Hookfang, calm down! It's just a stupid Terror! Listen, you stupid beast!" Hiccup vaguely heard Snotlout shout behind him, but his senses were overwhelmed by Toothless roaring 'Urp'.

He wasn't sure what was going on beyond the fact that Sneaky had apparently hidden in his saddlebag, but he didn't doubt Toothless' judgement. He tried to set the pedal back to 'up', but it was stuck.

"Toothless! It's… I can't… Something's wrong!" he yelled. They were losing altitude fast, and with the pedal stuck there was no way they could get lift.

They were going down.

"You stupid Nightmare! Can't you obey me for once in your damn- AAAAH" Snotlout yelled, but Hiccup didn't pay attention. Toothless roared at him, and Hiccup knew what the dragon wanted him to do.

"Okay Toothless. One, two, three!" he said, undoing the safety ropes, before jumping out of the saddle.

As he jumped, Toothless flipped, grabbing Hiccup in his paws before folding his wings around him. They fell for another terrifying second before landing in cold water with a loud bang.

Toothless shielded Hiccup from the worst of the impact, but he still felt a pain everywhere when they hit the water. Toothless released him before grabbing him in his jaw, lifting him above the water, and swimming away.

Hiccup groaned when Toothless gently put him down on some kind of beach. He heard sputtering somewhere near him, but he felt too dizzy to focus on it. He wondered if he broke a rib.

"Hiccup! You okay?" Snotlout shouted, spitting out water between words. Hiccup groaned, but thankfully the pain seemed to be lessening. So nothing broken, just bruised.

"I'll live," he managed to say, reaching out his hands to scratch Toothless. "You okay, bud?"

The dragon responded by licking him happily, and Hiccup smiled despite the pain when Toothless touched his chest.

"What the hell happened? What was Sneaky doing here?!" Snotlout shouted.

"I don't know, he hid in the saddlebag," Hiccup groaned, sitting up and feeling his prosthetic. Thankfully that didn't seem to be broken either.

"Why the hell didn't you notice him!" Snotlout said, as Hiccup adjusted his blindfold a little so it covered his scars fully. He kind of wanted to wring the water out, but not in front of Snotlout.

"Oh, maybe because Astrid specifically trained him to be sneaky? It's kind of in the name, you know," he said. "What happened up there? After Sneaky got out?"

"Hookfang freaked out, shot some fire that hit Toothless. Then when I shouted at him, he set himself on fire, so I jumped off into the water. I… I don't see him around here..." Snotlout sounded worried, but Hiccup had very little sympathy as he felt Toothless' tail to survey the damage. It seemed to have caught fire, the cloth half-burned off.

"I guess he flew back to Berk. Maybe he didn't want to deal with your shouting," Hiccup said, snarkier than he intended.

"Hey, it's not my fault! You shouldn't have released Sneaky! Hookfang felt like he had to fight!" Snotlout shouted, and Hiccup snapped.

"And hit me and Toothless?! At least Sneaky did what he was trained to do! Your dragon just made us crash-land, and then left us on this island! I don't even know where we are!" he shouted, before focusing on the tail fin. He realized with a shock that Hookfang's fire seemed to have partially melted the iron spines, and two of them were now stuck together. That explained the jammed pedal.

"If you had just checked the bag to see if anything was in there before we left this wouldn't have happened," Snotlout muttered. Hiccup took a few deep breaths.

"But it did happen. Now just… let me think for a moment. I have to see if I can fix this," he said, and thankfully Snotlout kept silent. Hiccup heard him sit down on the sand, taking off his boots to pour the water out. Hiccup grabbed the notebook from the saddlebag, glad it was still there. Though if he didn't dry it soon, it would rust. What a mess.

"Okay, so this is bad. I don't have a map, so I have no idea what island we're on. And Toothless' fin is broken, so we can't fly back to Berk," Hiccup said, closing the notebook after not finding anything useful in there.

"Can't you just repair it?" Snotlout asked, and Hiccup sighed.

"Not without a forge or something. Two bars on the fin have melted together, and I need something hotter than a campfire to separate them," he explained, feeling the fin again. "If I could separate them I could use part of my vest for a new sail."

"Well, then Toothless is freaking useless! What's the point of a dragon who can't fly after crashing!" Snotlout said, and Hiccup wished he had anyone other than Snotlout with him here. He'd even take the twins. Toothless growled softly when his name was mentioned.

"Well, at least Toothless is here. Your dragon flew off and left you behind, remember?" he said, before standing up. The pain had decreased to a dull throbbing, so he figured he could walk. He grabbed his cane from Toothless' saddle and walked in the direction he figured was inland, Toothless following close behind.

"Where are you going?" Snotlout asked.

"To get those ingredients. If we're stuck here we might as well collect them before the rescue party shows up," he said, glad when he heard Snotlout standing up.

"And when is that going to happen?" Snotlout asked, coming closer.

"Well, I hope that when Hookfang or Sneaky come back to Berk alone, they'll realize we're stuck and send the other riders out to find us. But that could take a while, since the twins and Fishlegs have to come back first," he said.

Snotlout stayed silent, thankfully.

"Now let's find those plants and hope that we don't run into any Outcasts or dangerous dragons. Redblood grass is obviously red, juniper berries are purple and kind of scaly. Buckthorn root is black and gnarly, looks like a claw. And daga plants are bright pink, with big flowers. I'll need your help to identify them, because of… you know," Hiccup explained.

He swore he could have heard Snotlout mutter, "Of course you need help," but chose not to comment on it.

Soon enough they entered a thick forest, and Hiccup hoped this meant it wasn't Outcast Island. He had never been there, but legends said it was a desolate place.

"Is this buckthorn root?" Snotlout kept asking him, shoving random pieces of treebark in his hands. Hiccup couldn't help but think Snotlout was just pestering him now, but he couldn't afford to antagonize his only human companion. If only Toothless could recognize plants…

"No, this isn't it. I told you, buckthorn is black and gnarly, this is smooth," he said, tossing the bark away.

"Well, sorry I don't know anything about plants. I don't know what it looks like," Snotlout muttered, and only Toothless gently nudging him stopped Hiccup from snapping.

"Just look for black trees with claw-like roots," he said while feeling a nearby bush for juniper berries.

"I don't see any! Are we even on the right island?" Snotlout asked. Hiccup flinched when his hand touched a thorny vine. Definitely not juniper.

"We're definitely on a Western Isle, and these plants should grow on all of them. So it's here somewhere. Maybe look for Daga instead, the pink flowers. Or red grass," he said. Snotlout puffed.

"Red grass? We've been walking on red grass for the past five minutes!"

Hiccup froze, clenching and unclenching his fist for a few seconds until he was sure he had his anger under control.

"And… you didn't think this was something you should mention? I did say we were looking for red grass earlier," he slowly said as he knelt down, feeling the grass. It felt moist, like redblood grass was supposed to.

"I… I couldn't remember! You said a lot of things!" Snotlout shouted as Hiccup plucked a few handfuls of the grass, sighing deeply.

"Four things. I listed just four things. Things I need your help for. You understand that, right? I can't find those plants on my own," he said overly slowly, like he was talking to a five-year old.

"Of course I know that! Everybody knows you need help!" Snotlout said, and Hiccup couldn't stop himself.

"What's that supposed to mean? What is your problem, Snotlout?" he asked, icily.

"My problem? My problem is that I'm stuck here with someone who is completely useless at finding plants, which is what we're here for, right?!" the other boy shouted loudly.

"Well, you're obviously pretty bad at it as well! Look, neither of us are happy to be here, but we are, and we're gonna have to work together here. I'm not here to be friends with you, Snotlout. I'm here to find those ingredients and cure Astrid and the others," Hiccup said, surprised by the venom in his voice. Toothless growled, backing him up.

A short silence followed. "Fine. Let's just find it and get the hell out of here," Snotlout snarled.

For the next half hour they searched in relative silence, eventually finding a bush of juniper berries and a field of daga plants. Hiccup didn't say it out loud, but Toothless had been a lot more useful than Snotlout in locating the daga plants, somehow understanding that they were looking for pink flowers. Now all they needed was the buckthorn root.

"Maybe we need to be further inland to find buckthorn. Let's go in that direction," Hiccup suggested. Snotlout snorted.

"How would you even know that that direction is inland?" the boy laughed.

"Because the sound of waves is coming from the opposite direction. Now let's go," Hiccup said. However, he hadn't bothered to feel with the cane before he turned around, and his face hit a tree branch.

"Dammit," he swore, burning scratches on his face adding to the throbbing pain in his chest.

"Hehe, watch out where you're going," Snotlout sniggered, walking past him.

"Very funny. Never heard that one before. Really original. Helpful too," Hiccup said as Toothless licked his face, crooning sadly.

"What, are you expecting me to hold your hand? Give you a piggyback ride?" Snotlout said with a childish voice, and Hiccup clenched his hand to a fist.

"I'm not a child. I can walk by myself," he said, moving his cane to sense the ground and follow Snotlout.

"Doesn't seem like it," the boy chuckled when Hiccup reached him, and he sighed. Toothless moved between them, shielding them from each other.

"Do you think it's funny or something?" he asked. Somehow he sensed Snotlout tensing.

"No, I think it's weird. You're so freaking helpless. You can't do anything by yourself. You can't defend yourself, can't find your way home. Your dragon can't even fly by himself. And yet you get everything you want. The girl, the chiefdom, the academy. I don't get it," Snotlout said slowly, and Hiccup wasn't sure what to say.

"I can do a lot of things you can't. And you would be helpless too if you were stuck here alone," he eventually said, not wanting to reveal too much about his combat training. Only Astrid and his father knew about that.

"I wouldn't even be stuck here if you had been able to look inside that bag!" Snotlout shouted. Hiccup was about to shout a retort when a roar echoed through the forest. The argument was instantly forgotten.

"What was that?" Snotlout whispered, barely audible over Toothless' growling.

"It sounds like a scared dragon," Hiccup said. Suddenly another sound reached them.

"Was that a wolf howling? Are there wolves on this island?!" Snotlout shouted before being hushed by Hiccup.

"Be quiet. We should check it out," he said, walking in the direction of the growls and howls as quietly as he could.

"What?! Are you insane? Why aren't we running?!" Snotlout whispered loudly, before changing his tone. "Not that the, uh, the Snotman would ever run from anything!"

"Because I'd like to know what we're running from first. We don't even know if it's wolves. And maybe that dragon can help us," he said, holding onto Toothless with one hand, ready to mount. They might not be able to fly, but if they had to fight he'd rather be on his friend's back.

"You're gonna get us killed! This is why I hate working with you!" Snotlout said, not listening to Hiccup's attempts to shush him.

"In case you forgot, you literally tried to kill me the last time we were alone together, so forgive me if I'm not exactly comfortable with you either," Hiccup shouted as his anger finally overflowed. Snotlout took a step back.

"That… That was… I… That was different! That was before…" he stuttered, and Hiccup couldn't help feeling smug hearing the other boy lost for words.

"Before I got everything I want?" he asked snidely, sighing when Snotlout started stuttering again.

"Listen, Snot, I'm not interested in your excuses. I just want to get to that dragon. If we can train it, and it's strong enough to carry Toothless, we can get back to Berk and go our separate ways," he said, another pained roar reinforcing his point.

"Fine. But I'm only following you to make sure you don't get eaten. Astrid would kill me if that happened," Snotlout said.

For the next minute they sneaked through the forest, making sure they remained downwind from the sounds of dragon roars and wolf cries.

"Do you see any fire?" Hiccup asked. For once, Snotlout didn't complain that Hiccup couldn't see it.

"No, nothing. It's getting dark, so if it breathed fire I should be able to see it."

"Weird. Maybe it ran out. Still, we must be very close," Hiccup whispered, sensing Snotlout nodding beside him. Toothless felt tense under his hand.

"There are wolves there. In a clearing. But I don't see dragons," Snotlout whispered as Toothless shifted to a fighting stance. Another roar echoed. "What? Where did that come from?! There's nothing there. Those wolves are circling around nothing!"

"Quiet. I think it's a Changewing," Hiccup whispered.

"A Changewing? How are we supposed to train a Changewing? They're feral! Plus they're freaking invisible! I'm not riding an invisible dragon!" Snotlout whispered loudly, and Hiccup took a deep breath. He was not in the mood for an argument.

"I don't care one bit if it's visible or not. If we help it drive off these wolves, maybe it'll help us. You and Toothless fight them off. I doubt I'll be able to help with that. I'll approach the Changewing," Hiccup said, not waiting for a response from Snotlout before nudging Toothless forward. Thankfully the dragon was not afraid of a few wolves.

"You're insane! I'm staying here!" Snotlout whispered, barely audible when Toothless roared loudly, drawing the attention of the wolves. He wasn't sure, but Hiccup thought he counted about 4 different growls. Toothless charged forward, luring them away from the panting Changewing. Hiccup crouched forward, wishing he had a fish and hoping desperately that the wolves would not consider him a threat.

"Hey there. We're here to help. You're hurt, aren't you?" he whispered, following the subtle rustling of grass as the dragon moved back. The iron-like smell of blood was thick in the air, and Hiccup's hands touched bloody grass.

Behind him he heard Toothless launch a plasma blast, making one of the wolves cry out in pain.

"That's my dragon friend. You can be my friend as well. I'll take care of your wound," Hiccup said, trying not to let the fear show. A cornered dragon might accept help it normally wouldn't, but it could also lash out. Slowly, without sudden movements, he stood up and extended his hand to the Changewing. It was probably still invisible, but Hiccup could sense the tiny sounds as it stepped on grass, the subtle scent of blood and fish, the movement of air as it breathed out. For a brief moment he was lost when Toothless fired another shot, the bang and resulting cry far louder than the Changewing.

"Are your friends and family gone? We're trapped here as well. How about we help each other?" he said, lowering his head and raising his hand higher. Just when he sensed the dragon sniffing his hand he heard animal footsteps closing in on him from behind. His breathing quickened as he turned around, pressing the button that would reveal the sharp tip on his cane and turn it into a small spear.

He raised his weapon, hoping to hit the wolf as it jumped him. Behind him he sensed the Changewing moving back further. Hiccup felt a bit of hope amid his terror when he realized the dragon had the chance to run away, but didn't for some reason.

"Get away from my cousin!" Snotlout's voice pierced the air without warning, and it was followed by a loud slap. The footsteps stopped as the wolf moaned. "You messed with the wrong guy!" Snotlout shouted as the wolf turned its attention to the one who hit him. Hiccup didn't hesitate, charging forward and stabbing where he smelt wet dog. A loud cry of pain echoed through the clearing as the spear pierced the wolf's side. Hiccup felt it hit a rib.

"You bastard!" Snotlout screamed, hitting the wounded animal with what sounded like a rock. Everything became a blur as Hiccup pulled the spear out and push it in again, slightly to the left. Blood spurted out as it slid between the ribs, piercing organs with a sickening sound. Somewhere Toothless blasted again, and he heard animals running away.

Finally the wolf stilled, and Hiccup quickly pulled the spear out and moved into a battle ready stance, adrenaline still pumping through his veins.

"I.. I think they're gone. Holy shit. We did it," Snotlout said between quick breaths, clearly as tense as Hiccup. Toothless growled, before licking Hiccup's face. The wet sensation broke him out of the red haze, and he breathed deeply, dropping his weapon.

He nearly screamed when he sensed something behind him, quickly realizing it was the Changewing. Trembling, he turned and raised the hand not covered in wolf blood.

"What are you doing?" he heard Snotlout say, but he ignored it, focusing instead on the invisible dragon.

"I told you we'd protect you," he whispered, and a moment later he felt warm scales touch his hand.

"I didn't know you had that hidden weapon in your cane."

It was the first thing Snotlout had said in a long time, and Hiccup stopped bandaging the Changewing's paw for a moment. After the fight they had decided to build a campfire, both to keep other wolves away and to cook some fish. Snotlout had just returned from gathering wood, and Toothless spat out a pile of fish, the stench of which made Hiccup gag. Still not as bad as the dead wolf, though. Hiccup felt sick when he thought about it too much.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," he simply said, focusing on tying the large leafs around the wound. He wished he had better medical tools, but leafs and grass would have to do. The Changewing he decided to call Blendin seemed okay with it, nuzzling him affectionately.

"I suppose. I didn't think you could fight like that. Or find that Changewing. I… I couldn't have done that. It was invisible," Snotlout slowly said as he dumped an armful of wood next to Hiccup.

"I have a lot of experience finding things I can't see. Just because I can't see… color, or distant things, doesn't mean I can't 'see' anything," he replied, reaching his spare hand behind him to pet Toothless before grabbing a fish to give to Blendin. He sensed Snotlout moving around the burning campfire, grabbing some fish and something from the wood pile. Probably sticks to fry fish on.

"I suppose. I, uh, I shouldn't have said you were useless. I don't think I could have stood against that wolf if you hadn't stabbed it," Snotlout said as he sat down. Fat dripped down on the fire, making it sizzle.

"And it'd probably have killed me if you hadn't distracted it. We did it together." Hiccup slowly said. Toothless curled up next to him, looking over his shoulder at the Changewing."Thanks for that. You probably saved my life."

"I didn't do it for you. Astrid would have killed me if I didn't bring you back alive," Snotlout said in a more tough voice, though Hiccup doubted he was telling the truth.

"Sure, sure. On that note, we still need to get back. Blendin here can't carry Toothless, and I'm not leaving without him. I guess we'll have to wait for the others," he said, finishing the makeshift bandage. Blendin the Changewing leaned over to nudge his chest. Hiccup smiled, before yelping when he felt his neck burn. Blendin quickly drew back, and Hiccup realized a drop of acid had fallen from the dragon's mouth.

"Wait a minute… Toothless, give me your tail. Snotlout, I need your help for this," He said, grabbing Toothless' broken fin, quickly finding the jammed bars with his fingers.

"What are you doing?" Snotlout asked warily.

"We don't need a forge to separate the bars! We can use Blendin's acid! We just need to get a few drops on the joint right here," he explained, pointing at the correct spot and hoping Snotlout could see it. Toothless warbled softly, tensing slightly at the mention of acid, but not moving his tail away.

"Okay… can you get Blendin to… drool?" Snotlout eventually said. Hiccup was surprised he didn't complain, but he would take it.

"I think so," he answered.

It took a while, during which the forgotten fish were hopelessly burned, but they managed to get a few drops on the iron, with only one resulting burn on Snotlout's hand. The boy yelped loudly, clutching his hand.

"It's only fun if you get a scar out of it, right?" Hiccup said, scratching at his facial scars in an exaggerated manner, and Snotlout chuckled.

"I guess I deserved that. For all I did to you. I felt really bad, you know. After the battle. When you were so hurt and I was okay. I felt like it should have been the other way around," Snotlout said as he sat down and started roasting more fish.

"Then why didn't you say that? Astrid said you apologized while I was asleep, but why couldn't you do it when I woke up?" Hiccup asked as he took his flight vest off, before measuring how big Toothless' fin was.

"I don't know. It was scary. And then… then you got everything, you know? And it was all so confusing, and it was hard to feel bad for you when everyone coddled over you," Snotlout slowly said. Hiccup sighed, grabbing his knife to cut a tail fin from his leather vest.

"I hate that, you know? The coddling. People asking me if I need help for every little thing. Changing rules to make it easier for me in games. Everyone seems to always imply that I'm… less than them. Less capable, less smart, less mobile, less everything. Something to be pitied. How am I supposed to prove I'm as good a Viking as everyone else when they keep lowering the bar for me?" Hiccup said, surprised by how good it felt to say these things out loud.

Snotlout was quiet for a very long time, the only sounds coming from the crackling campfire and the breathing of the dragons. Hiccup carefully cut a new fin from his flying gear, trying to figure out how to tell his dad he'd need more leather.

"So we should be tougher on you at the Academy?" Snotlout suddenly asked, handing him a roasted fish. Hiccup laughed.

"Just don't exclude me when you do things. Don't go 'We want to do this, but Hiccup can't do it, so we won't'. Ask me first. I'm the expert on what I can or can't do," he said. A gust of wind blew through the camp, and Hiccup shivered without his vest. He reached out to the wood pile to throw another log on the fire, but froze when his hands touched it.

"Snotlout? Is this wood… black?" he asked, trying not to sound too incredulous.

"Yeah, why?"

"Because it's gnarly. This is buckthorn root, Snotlout! The thing we've been looking for for the past two hours. And you're burning it!" Hiccup couldn't stop his laugh at the end. Thankfully, Snotlout laughed with him.

"Hehe, I guess that's why you came along. We needed someone who read nerdy books about stupid plants. That's everything we need, right?" Snotlout said, chewing on his fish.

"Yup, that's everything. And I think I fixed the fin," Hiccup said as he pulled on Toothless' pedal, feeling the fin move back and forth. "I guess we can fly home on Toothless together. We just have to say goodbye to Blendin."

The Changewing didn't seem to want to part, though. It whined loudly, nuzzling against Hiccup's hand.

"Hey, what's wrong? You can go back to your family now. They must be worried!" Hiccup asked, scratching the smooth scales. Blendin shook his head, pushing harder against him.

"Maybe he doesn't have a family," Snotlout said. Hiccup frowned.

"That would make sense. Changewings normally travel in packs, but this one was alone. I also think he's smaller than what the book of dragons said. Maybe he's a runt who got kicked out," he said sadly, petting Blendin with both hands.

"We can take him with us," Snotlout suddenly said. "You trained him, so he should be able to stay on Berk, right? And, uh, just because he's a runt, doesn't mean he's useless." Hiccup wondered if this was Snotlout's way of apologizing for his abuse.

"I guess we can. Fishlegs would love to study him! Let's get on Toothless, and see if he follows us. Let's not ride him yet," he said, turning to Blendin. "What do you say? Wanna come with us?"

Not much was said after that. They quickly ate the last of the fish before mounting Toothless. Blendin stayed close to Hiccup, and when they took off he could hear his wings right behind them.

"You know cousin, I think working with you isn't as bad as working with the twins," Snotlout said as they flew away, Toothless seemingly knowing which direction Berk was.

"You're not so bad either." Hiccup suppressed his laugh. He figured that was the closest thing to a compliment he was gonna get from Snotlout. But maybe that was okay.

They didn't say much more as they flew back, but Hiccup could loudly hear Blendin flap his wings, excited for a chance to start over, with newfound friends.

And maybe he wasn't the only one.

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#blind spots #httyd #fanfiction #hiccup #toothless #astrid #snotlout #fanfic #blind hiccup

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