#httydfanfiction

[itsasumbrella]

I’ve been so busy with the moving and finishing the new chapter of Wicked Game that I didn’t have time to post this illustration of Hiccup from the AU that @poppysfanworld and I are making.

We know many stories of Hiccup running away before the Kill Ring scene, but what would have happened if Hiccup runs aways with Toothless during the confrontation against the Nightmare and all Berk finds out his secret? Hiccup has been gone for ten years away from Berk, rebuilding his life from the ground up and he humbly works as a blacksmith in far island with a different name and a new identity. Everything seems to be fine until someone from his past reappears from nowhere.

Will Hiccup be able to fight the ghosts of the past?

Please, ignore the fact that his head is huge. I’m trying to make my drawings more dynamic and with more movement. We go little by little. Btw, if you want to see more illustrations of this AU you can find more marvelous art in Poppy’s account. And if you want to read Wicked Game you can find link to the new chapter in my profile.

[sacreddsouls]

i may or may not have plans for a pirate au

and heres a few things about the picture:

-in this au i’d like to think that his constant time at sea would make his hair more frizzy, messy, and kinda curled at the ends when wet

-yes, that is a scar across the bridge of his nose. no, i wont tell you how he got it, yet ;)

-if you peek closer theres more on his chest, whoops

-hes gonna have a “unusual” upbringing

-and somehow gonna become a captain of a unfathomable vessel

[sacreddsouls]

literally my assassin au,

in which hiccup goes around killing people who harm dragons, because he can, and why the hell not

villains who could have been protagonists in different circumstances? I live for that shit

[guestbusters-blog1]

Sometimes you don't realize

Just how much you love someone

Until they're gone

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

"I'll be back in a week," he had told her just a few days ago, preparing to take off on Toothless near the clubhouse. "I can't ignore Dad's birthday… but I can't ignore the Edge's safety, either, so I'm leaving you in charge while I'm gone."

Astrid had felt worried at his leave, and to be honest, sad. She understood why Hiccup had to leave. He loved his father, and wanted to be there for him on his birthday. But Astrid felt uneasy. What if something happened while he was gone? What if he crash landed with Toothless on a deserted island and no one knew? What if he was captured by Viggo and Ryker? Too many horrible possibilities ran through her mind, and she hated all of them.

"I know," Astrid had sighed. "I just wish I could come with you."

Hiccup smiled, patting Toothless on the head. "I know. I wish that too. But if the Edge comes to be under attack while I'm gone, you're the only one who will know how to set up the defenses." At her concerned expression, he added, "I promise I'll hurry back."

Astrid nodded. "Okay. Just… be safe."

"When am I not safe?" Hiccup grinned. He paused when Astrid sent him a glare. "Fair enough… well, I see you in a week. Bye!" He took off the landing strip with Toothless, and the two soared through the air, perfectly in sync with one another. They glided up to the clouds, and a minute later were out of sight.

Astrid still stood there for an hour after, though, feeling too worried to do anything but watch her friend go.

And the next few days weren't any better. Astrid was miserable without Hiccup around, and she discovered just how much she depended on him. The other Riders, of course, complained at her often sharp tone, but she barely acknowledged them as she stormed away.

Okay, first thing's first… check the perimeter for weaknesses, and fortify the parts that need work… She whistled for Stormfly, and stood at the doors of the clubhouse, watching the sky. Astrid knew that Hiccup wouldn't come back today, but there was still that faint hope… oh, gods, she missed him.

Stormfly landed beside her, the dragon squawking with excitement at the thought of a flight. Astrid frowned when she went over her plans to check the base. Everything seemed… bland, almost. Unimportant. Without Hiccup around, how did she know exactly what needed to be done and what didn't?

Confused, Stormfly shuffled on her feet, waiting for Astrid to climb on. The girl was snapped back to her senses, and shook her head. Stop being a baby, she told herself as she slid onto Stormfly. Hiccup will be back in a few days. You can last that long. You did it before when Hiccup, Snotlout, and Fishlegs went to help Johann from the wild dragons last year… She paused before nudging Stormfly to take off. So what changed?

"Let's go, girl," she said.

Stormfly cooed, and leapt off the platform with a powerful push of her claws. Astrid was about to direct the dragon towards the coast, when a pang of loneliness hit her. Hiccup and her used to make these rounds together, and it felt odd not being able to do it with him.

She found herself flying Stormfly towards Hiccup's hut, and bit her lip. Maybe Hiccup had laid out a list of things he wanted to get done, and then Astrid could do them. At least then she'd have something to do that Hiccup needed.

When the girl landed Stormfly next to Hiccup's hut, she hopped off and slowly walked inside after pushing open the door. The interior of the room was bland, but there were many of Hiccup's wild inventions laid around. The loft where Hiccup slept in loomed above her, and she knew that was the place she needed to be.

Astrid climbed up to the platform that Hiccup slept in, and looked around. Of course, everything was in a mess, as it usually was when Hiccup was working recently. "Now, where would Hiccup keep a list of chores?" she whispered, walking over to his untidy desk. It was littered with crumpled papers and sketches of new inventions, but Astrid sensed she could find something useful if she looked.

Maybe in his notebook? she guessed, frowning. After a minute of searching, she finally found it buried under the rest of Hiccup's papers. "Ah! Here it is," she muttered, and flipped it open.

She was surprised to see what was first in the journal.

There was a detailed drawing of Astrid on the first page, every mark carefully drawn. Astrid could even count every hair on her head that Hiccup had stroked down with his charcoal, and felt her heart thud faster as she examined the sketch more.

The picture of herself was so lifelike… her eyes were full of eagerness and determination, and she had her usual faint smile decorating her face. But the way Hiccup had so elegantly drawn the girl… it took Astrid's breath away.

All of the sudden she felt curious, and wondered if there were any more drawings inside. So, if a bit sheepishly, Astrid turned the page.

The girl sucked in a breath when she realized what was there.

Journal entries.

"I shouldn't be reading these," she said, against snooping into Hiccup's private works. "They're his own thoughts, and…." Astrid trailed off when she noticed her name in one of the paragraphs. Well, she reasoned, if my name is in there, I should have the right to see what it is.

With a nervous swallow, she began to read.

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

Dear myself,

Astrid looked really pretty today.

I wanted to compliment her about it, but the last time any boy said that she looked nice got a bad twisted wrist, so I held off. I want to tell her someday, though. I'm just not sure how she'll take it.

Astrid's getting prettier by the day, I think. I'm not sure she notices it yet, but it's still easy to tell that she's still the same Astrid she was all those years ago, if not on the outside anymore, then on the inside.

I thought about asking Johann for a pearl necklace to give her, but I quickly decided against it. Astrid isn't the one for necklaces. Maybe I'll get her an ax instead.

Until the next entry,

-HHH III

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

Astrid froze, and a breath caught in her throat.

What?

Hiccup thought all of these nice things about her, but had refrained from saying them in case of offending her. Which he could never do, because he was Hiccup. It just wasn't in his blood to insult someone.

Astrid took in a deep breath. She wasn't sure if she wanted to read any more, but was soon lured in by the entry.

----------

Dear myself,

I almost lost Astrid yesterday to Odin's Scourge, and every time I look at her now, I want to hold onto her forever. Of course, I can't do that or she'd strangle me. Or attack me with her ax. Either way, it'd be painful.

I wonder how she feels about almost dying. I want to confront her about it, but she already seems to have forgotten the incident, so I don't mention it.

My fears are worse at night. I dream about what would have happened if we hadn't gotten to the Buffalord in time… what if I had failed? Toothless comforts me when I wake up from a nightmare, but he can't erase the memories- or those terrible feelings...

I hope Astrid doesn't feel this way. And if she does, I wish she'd talk to me about it. I hate seeing her suffer when I can help.

Until the next entry,

-HHH III

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

Dear myself,

It turns out, Viggo put a bounty on me. Yep. Great news, I know.

You know what's even greater? I got kidnapped last night, and was only rescued today. I have to admit…. I was scared during the whole thing. I honestly thought I was going to be killed.

But then Astrid, my father, and the other Riders appeared. They saved me, and I'm really grateful. I had lost my prosthetic once the Riders arrived, but didn't expect to get any help. So when Astrid came over and helped me up, it felt nice to know she cared, because she always seems to put on a warrior face, not letting anything bother her. Yet when I was slightly injured, she lowered her walls and revealed concern for my well being. It was a new thing to experience, and I'm curious to see if she'll do it again.

Tomorrow, I'm looking forward to seeing her. You know, to thank her. I hadn't realized how much I missed seeing her until we were separated. But, she'd probably kill me if I told her that. Maybe in the future I'll ask her if she feels the same way.

Until the next entry,

-HHH III

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

Each word felt like an arrow to the chest.

Hiccup… did he actually feel this way? Did he truly miss her when they were gone, like she felt right now? Astrid's eyes darted down to the next entry, and she read it. Then she read another one. And another.

In each one, Hiccup mentioned Astrid and a piece of how he felt about her. His writing touched the girl deeply, and tears formed in her eyes. She'd be so selfish… never giving a second thought of her relationship with Hiccup. Sure, she had always loved him as a good friend, but never stopped to ponder if there was something more going on between them.

And right here was proof that there was. Well, at least in Hiccup's mind.

Suddenly, it felt like he was a million miles away from Astrid, making her almost wilt with sorrow. She'd have to wait days until he returned… and right now, that felt like forever. When he got back, she promised herself, she'd confront him about this.

Yes. She finally would.

Blinking back hot tears, Astrid closed the journal and placed it back on the table. "Come back soon, Hiccup," she whispered. "Please."

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

Rain slammed against the top of Astrid's hut, making her grimace from her seat in the room.

It was late at night, and Hiccup was supposed to have been back by now. In fact, he should have arrived hours earlier, which caused Astrid to begin a small panic. What if something happened to him in the storm? What if he was hurt or in trouble?

Astrid got up from the chair, and started to pace. She couldn't imagine living in a world without Hiccup. No, nothing had happened to him… she was just overreacting. He must have gotten caught up, that was it.

Stopping her footsteps, Astrid stood in the middle of her hut, and hugged herself.

After a sigh, she took a breath in as she stared at the floor. He'd be back soon. He had to be. After everything she had learned about his feelings, she wasn't going to give up. It wasn't too late.

Oh, if only I told him sooner…

"Astrid."

That faint, playful, yet stern voice echoed across the room, traveling over to the girl. She shivered, daring to hope that her pleads would be answered. Wanting the speaker of the voice to be him.

It had to be.

She looked up, tears evident in her crystal blue eyes. A hand flew to her mouth when she saw him in the doorway.

With rain-soaked hair that dripped freely onto the floor, he looked a bit awkward. Every strand of his auburn hair was pressed flat against his head, and his eyes were like two green jewels in a sea of white sand, both welcoming yet set back.

Hiccup.

Before she knew it, Astrid ran at the boy and threw her arms around him, placing her chin on his shoulder. It felt nice there, despite the recent wetness of the rain. "Don't scare me like that again!" she whisper-scolded. "I didn't know where you were, or if you were in trouble… gods, Hiccup... "

Hiccup winced. "Sorry. Toothless had a bit of trouble flying in the rain, so we had to stop on a couple of sea stacks on the way here... so, what happened while I was gone?" He chuckled. "Well, anything besides the twins and Snotlout blowing up things?"

Astrid closed her eyes, clutching him tighter. "Hiccup, I… I found your journal."

She felt Hiccup stiffen in her grip, but he didn't pull away. "A-Astrid… I can explain. If it offended you in any way-"

But Astrid had had enough of Hiccup's protesting, of his selflessness. So, she planted a kiss on his cheek, smiling when she saw his dazed expression. "That's for everything you wrote in the journal," she told him.

Hiccup smiled weakly in return.

Then, Astrid leaned in and kissed him again- this time on the lips.

"And that's for everything else."

[agentsketchy]

New Dragon character and a new species to go along with her. She’s an Ammon dragon, meaning “the hidden one.” I got inspired by How to Train Your Dragon to make a new dragon and species. Say hi to Phantom!💚

[mrilish]

This is an illustration of a really amazing fanfic by @p_artsypants. It's called Boy Toy and I absolutely love it. This started out as a doodle, but obviously became a whole art piece that forced me to push my skills and I learned so much creating this and I'm honestly really proud of it. I know I could push this even further and improve some more, but I'm kinda scared of messing it up. So yeah, this one is for you, @p_artsypants ! I love your writing so much and you inspire me a lot. Thank you so much for writing such amazing stories! You rock! . . ~*~*~*~ . . #httyd #httydfanart #httydfanfiction #digitalpainting #digitalart #illustration #fanart #howtotrainyourdragon #hiccstrid #art https://www.instagram.com/p/BoB7TfljlZT/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=19f676kmjkzye

[finkhiscool]

Hiccstrid Modern AU: The gym isn't so bad.

Hiccup stumbled into the sweat and lemon ferbreze scented gym. The commodious room was filled with jocks and athletes. He was totally out of his element. He would usually abstain from gyms and jock-types. But his life wasn’t very consistent at the moment and he needed something to “ground him”. Or at least thats what his dad had said. Lost in thought, he stumbled into a girl. Her gym duffel bag and Hiccup’s notebook and pencils fell to the ground.

            “Oh sorry—“ He stammered reaching to grab everything that had fallen. “I didn’t… uh, I’m sorry.”

            “It’s fine.” The girl condoned his clumsiness and picked up her bag.  Hiccup straitened, holding his notebook close to his chest.

“I’m ah,” he stuck out his left hand, “Hiccup.”

“Astrid,” she replied, taking his handshake and raising an eyebrow. Probably at his weird nickname. “And you’re a lefty.”

“Oh yeah, sorry, hands are weird.” He retracted his hand from her tight grip. Astrid stifled a laugh, not being impertinent, but genuine. It wasn’t something Hiccup was used to.  “Well,” he started, “sorry for knocking you over—ah Astrid.”

She smiled “It’s fine.” Enjoying the awkward conversation. “Oh! I have to get goon--but,” she took out a pen from her duffel and grabbed his notebook from him. She scribbled some numbers down “Call me.” She gave him back the notebook and smiled

As she waked away, Hiccup was dumbfounded. 

“Yes!” He did a little victory punch into the air. Then he immediately sat down on the closest bench and, in the middle of the sweatly and smelly gym, started sketching the athletic beauty he had just lucked out with.

[fairydustdreamsandhopes]

Posted a new chapter of my HTTYD fanfiction. Please favorite/follow/review if you like the story.

Eyla has always been told dragons are dangerous, but Hiccup, Toothless and a blue dragon show her different. When there is a big threat, people and dragons have to work together.

[sacreddsouls]

heres the image by itself :p

heres captain horrendous in his full glory ;D

thisll probably be the last of me for a few days as exams are coming up quickly this friday, but once those are over i plan to write some more!

thanks for the support on the initial image <3

(ALSO MY WRITING IS VERY MESSY BECAUSE I RUSHED, SORRY!)

[kchaos85-dragon-lady]

kchaos85 is a fanfiction author that has written 5 stories for How to Train Your Dragon.

I'm not really sure how tumblr works yet (feeling super old) So, just starting by linking to my fanfiction stories. :)

[guestbusters-blog1]

Chapter One: Life As It Is

I'll be honest. My life pretty much sucked.

Maybe it was because I had asthma, or the fact that I was just born small, but no matter the reason, I still remained an easy target for bullies to torment. Not that I ever complained back to them, of course. If I did, I'd be in much more trouble than I already was.

Often, I thought about standing up for myself. To face the bullies, or to confront my father who completely avoided me, and tell them all what I really thought. I sure had a lot of things to say. But the moment I reached my school, or saw my father's sour expression when he saw me, my courage immediately vanished. I couldn't change the way things were. That was just life as it was.

And, soon, I learned to live with it.

Sure, some days were more painful than others, and sure I often grew irritated with my surroundings, but I kept going. My mother was the reason why, actually. She'd whisper encouraging words into my ear as she checked up on me at night, when it seemed that no one else cared, she'd always be there just to listen, and she would always stick up for me when my father's language was too harsh.

Oh, my father… Stoick Vast Haddock, Mayor of the quaint little town of Berk. He had only been given the job a few years back, but that was all it took for him to forget that I existed. I missed my father a lot these days, with the bullying going on at school and whatnot. He used to set aside some of his time to talk to me, or spend a day fishing at the pond when I was down. He used to. Now, I barely ever seem to see him, and when I do, we usually just share a quick "hello" and "goodbye", but he'd never even look me in the eye.

Mom always said we'd spend more time together in the future; she promised that, if I wait only a little longer, his schedule would die down.

But it never did.

In addition to family problems, I had school problems as well. No surprise there. It wasn't that I was failing my classes. No, not at all. It just had to do with the other students. And the bullies.

First, there was the giant boy, Simon, who absolutely despised me- but everyone called him Snotlout because of a rather disgusting incident from the year before. He was the worst out of all of the other bullies, never ceasing to make fun of something I did, or cause me to trip on my way to the next class. And to top it all off, he was also my cousin, with a father that had serious anger issues teaching gym class at my school. How I was related to such people, I still had no idea.

Then there were the prankster twins, Remy (Ruff) and Tom (Tuff). Whenever anyone saw a loose guinea pig in the hallway, or a science test tube exploded confetti, the twins were always behind it. Unfortunately, they had taken a liking of using me as their "experimenter", and I often came home with my hair smoldering with smoke, or wearing a sign that said KICK ME! on the back.

There were other bullies as well: Alvin, Dagur, Savage, and a few others. They never seemed to tire of humiliating me throughout the years.

Next was Fishlegs. Now, he wasn't exactly a bully, but he did hang out with the group. He never personally said something offensive to me, yet it hurt to know that he would always just stand there and watch me getting beat up without helping.

Finally, there was Amanda Hofferson- but she preferred everyone to call her Astrid, due to her love of asteroids. She was a breathtakingly beautiful girl, with a stunning blonde braid and shimmering blue eyes that would captivate anyone. But I wouldn't want to get on her bad side any day. She was the toughest girl in the whole school, and I knew she wouldn't hesitate to punch or kick somebody if she felt the need. I had had a crush on Astrid ever since I first laid eyes on her, and I still dreamed of her noticing me and giving me one of her rare smiles. But how could that ever happen? I didn't even think she knew my name.

Still. Underneath all my… well… myself, I had some interesting qualities. First off, I could draw. I could sketch, paint, doodle away for hours without a care in the world. And my art wasn't bad at all. My mother keeps on saying my art is one of the most prettiest things she's ever seen- but then again, she's my mother. What else could I expect her to say? I was also pretty smart for my age, and excelled in math, science, and languages. I don't believe I've ever gotten below an A for a grade.

Now that all these introductions are done, you're probably wondering who I am, why I'm here, and wondering just what kind of story I have to share.

Well, I'll answer for you.

My name is Hiccup Haddock, and despite what everyone else believes, I'm more than I seem to be.

I let out a tired sigh as I entered the school building. Almost automatically, I hunched over, trying to keep as invisible as I could. I wasn't in the mood for bullying today. I had had to stay up late the night before studying for a math test, and I would be too tired to try to fight back against the bullies.

Well, not that I would win, anyway.

I made it to my homeroom on time, which just happened to be math class itself. I exhaled in relief when no one tripped me in the hall. Maybe today wouldn't be that bad.

After finding my seat, I tossed my backpack on the floor and dug out my math book. The room was almost full by now, but my teacher, Mr. Ryker, still waited with obvious impatience. I frowned. I had never liked him, as he was always trying to prove me wrong or get me in some sort of trouble. And it just so happened that his younger brother, Mr. Viggo Grimborn was the principal of the whole school. That meant if I got in trouble in math class, I'd get in trouble with the principal too.

Mr. Ryker gave the clock an annoyed glare, like he wanted it to speed up. There was still one more minute before the bell rang, and he wasn't happy that he still had to wait. Finally, the steady stream of students died down, which meant everyone had taken a seat. The room was full- except, there was still one place empty.

I felt myself blushing when I realized just whose desk it was. It was hers.

"Sorry I'm late, Mr. Grimborn," I heard her say as she entered the classroom. "My dog, Stormfly, got sick last night, and my mom had to take her to the vet before dropping me off here."

My head turned in her direction, and I could feel my bright green eyes widen with awe. Astrid Hofferson was standing right there. I tried to seem relaxed, but that was impossible. Astrid is right there. Ten feet away from me. Living. Breathing. Being her beautiful self…

Mr. Ryker snapped me out of my trance with a sharp comeback to Astrid. "See that it does not happen again, Amanda."

"Astrid," Astrid corrected, shifting her backpack on her shoulder.

My math teacher rolled his eyes. "In my class, we go by our birth names. We don't go by nicknames of such."

"But what about Hiccup?" Astrid pointed out. "He has a nickname."

I froze. Astrid had said my name. She knew I existed… that I was in the same room as her…that I was someone worthy enough to know the name of... heat rushed to my cheeks. "Um, actually, it's not a nickname," I said, surprising Astrid by speaking. I doubted she'd ever even heard me talk before. "I was given the name Hiccup at birth."

Astrid blinked, studying me. I was acutely aware of her dazzling blue eyes piercing into my soul. "Really?"

All I could do was nod. She was talking to me.

"Please take a seat, Ms. Hofferson," Mr. Ryker quipped, shutting the door. "We're already late enough as it is."

Astrid nodded. "Of course, sir." She made her way through the sea of desks until she reached her own, which was on the other side of the room. I tried to make eye contact in case she wanted to acknowledge me, but she was too busy getting out her books to notice. Besides, Snotlout was in the way- and that was when he noticed I was sitting right next to him.

Snotlout glared over at me, his fists tightening on his math book. Just the way his sneer was twisted made me shiver. "You don't stand a chance with Astrid, Hiccup," he hissed, keeping his eyes on Mr. Ryker in case he would be called out. "Face it, Useless. No one likes you. And certainly not Astrid."

Oh? And she'd prefer you more? I wanted to say back, but I held my tongue. Arguing with Snotlout would only get me a sure black eye later on, and I didn't wish for that. Still, the words hurt, so I forced myself to drop my gaze and stare down at my desk, silent. I heard Snotlout snicker in triumph from beside me; my heart sunk. Yet another battle lost...

Sighing, I looked up at Mr. Ryker, not at all eager to learn the things I already knew.

As I said before, life sucked.

But it wouldn't be until later on I would realize just how much.

------

Total of 5 chapters so far... please fave, follow, and review if you can! :D I’m aiming for 80 follows by chapter 6. Have a great day! :)

[sacreddsouls]

sacreds list of au’s/fanworks

WHY do i make so many au’s knowing i don’t have the time when i’m invested in them to act upon them

god this summer i have so many au’s to work on :’)

heir of dragons (assassin au)

savage seas (pirate au)

dragonborn (made-up-concept au)

lightning and death (superheroISH au) LINK TO PROLOGUE 

night hawk (hiccup-kills-the-hunter-in-guardiansofvanahiem au)

secrets and lies (werewolf au)

rogue (revengeful-mercenary-goes-rogue au) LINK TO ONESHOT

unnamed (demon hunter au)

[sacreddsouls]

heres the heir of dragons cover; and the the quote is from the cover of the book, “and i darken” by keirsten white, which i thought was as fitting for this book😛

if u want to know anything about the upcoming fanfic, drop a comment or a message:) republishes are loved cuz it would be cool to get this story going around before the initial release

[guestbusters-blog1]

Two lovers. Two worlds. One passion. What could go wrong?

(keep an eye out for my upcoming Ghost AU fanfic, “The Lost Heir”- this’ll be the cover, I think- Featuring Ghost Hiccup! It’ll be awesome... *cackles*)-Purple

[guestbusters-blog1]

New chapter of HTTYH is up! Only 3 more chapters to go... GAH!

[sacreddsouls]

Lightning and Death

PROLOGUE // Maces and Talons

“Son, see here;” Stephen Haddock lifted the game piece off the board to show his child, “is the Chief of the Marauders, and this,” he continued, picking up another figure with his left hand, “is his opposite - the Viking Chief.”

Hunter Haddock, four years of age with a mind moving at the speed of light-years, listened to his father intently as he absorbed all of this new information as if his brain were a small, pink sponge.

“Got that?” Stephen asked, seeing the cogs turning in Hunter’s head.

“Mmhm!” the auburn haired boy mustered enthusiastically, making out the words; “Mwadar and Vwiking” as he pointed to the accompanying game pieces.

“Nice work,” His father praised, a genuine smile peeking through his massive beard, “So these two,” he twiddled the chiefs between his fingers, “Want to get rid of each other.”

Hunter nodded, eyes moving back and forth between his father’s hands wherein the game pieces were, and to his mouth, where he could read the information that was said. His father was a mountain of a man, large in all aspects of his build and towering at a frightening seven feet. Ironically, his son was one of the smallest things in the world compared to him, premature at birth and weighing in at a little over one pound. But for such a small child, he had the brain of a giant, learning far faster than his preschool peers and the easiest baby anybody could ever ask for, quiet, very obedient and an intent listener at its finest. Stephen and his wife Vianne knew they were very blessed.

“So..” His father continued, “When one of the chiefs is beat..”

Stephen looked at his son to continue, seeing if he could infer the result, “Uh, dey woud win?”

Smiling again, Hunter’s father dropped the Viking Chief to high-five his son, “Yeah!” Hunter mirrored his father’s enthusiasm, smiling ear to ear with glimmering green eyes.

“Now, this guy here,” Stephen picked up a different figure, “Is the Imposter, or the Traitor; he is a hard piece to play, as he will always die in the end.”

“Twaiter.”

“Exactly, so his role-”

Stephen was cut off as his wife - Vianne - tuned into their conversation from the kitchen, “Why are you telling him this, honey? He’s not gonna understand any of that game nonsense.”

“Oh sure he will!” Stephen said assuringly from the mahogany carpet he was sitting on with his son, “He’s the smartest kid I’ve ever seen, Vi.”

“But Maces and Talons, really? Isn’t that a game of war and battle?” The lean, angled, mother of Hunter said as she sat down on the leather couch, looking down on her son and husband sitting on the carpet - the ornate and antique game board made of carved stone and wood placed between them on the floor.

“It’s great strategy!” Stephen reasoned, “My father taught me and I thought it would be nice to-”

The conversation was cut off abruptly as all heads turned towards the hallway of Vianne’s office, a distinct crash emerging from the room. Stephen moved to get up, but his wife stopped him, nodding to him and assuring him that she would check it out, “Keep playing,” she said, “I’ll be right back.”

“Wut was dat?” Hunter asked curiously, mind a little rattled at the sudden noise.

“Mommy might’ve left the window open, wind just probably knocked something over,” Stephen said as he looked into the eyes of his son, “Nothing to worry about.”

Hunter nodded, believing his father’s lie.

/

Vianne stalked slowly into her office, picking up a broom once she was out of sight from her son and husband. Once she determined there was nobody left inside, she scrambled through the door, examining every nook and cranny of her trashed study for the now-stolen articles of hers.

There was no wind that had caused this rupture of damage in her room, but rather the break-in that took place a few moments prior.

The windows were in fact, torn open, and the curtains ruptured the still room like wild ghosts. Her desk was eerily untouched, but her bookshelf was a colossal wreck, strewn out everywhere and littering the floor. Flicking on a light, she took in the full extent of the damage, but took no heed to clean it up, rather, she unlocked her computer, transferring everything from it onto a storage chip, wiping her hologram projector in the process. What they had stolen was use to them, and nothing else here mattered, but there was no harm in protecting all she had left: all she had done. In the meantime, she traversed back and forth throughout her room, frantic until she forced herself to calm as she studied her book shelf; a steel case lined with textbooks, journals, novels and more; but there was distinctly one journal missing; and she knew that had been what they were here for.

“Dammit.” She sighed, curling her nimble fingers into fists before tilting her head back and taking a deep breath - forcing herself to recover and get everything straight. She had a small hope that they would not have found it, but they had one thing in mind, and they knew exactly what they were looking for.

Returning to her computer, the transfers had finished, and all her files were stored on a chip the size of her fingernail. Scuffing around her large, white, minimalistic Ikea desk for a place to store it, she resorted to her old highschool calculator, sticking it between the batteries. She slipped the battery slip back on and clicked the cover back into place, shoving the device into her pocket.

Taking reassurance in the fact that she could still hear her husband and son quietly conversing about the game, she continued on with her frantic work, erasing her wall-length whiteboard and shredding any loose papers on her desks with her hands. She factory reset her computer, and lifted it onto the ground, flipping her desk on its back and opening a hidden drawer in one of its legs’ undersides. Retrieving everything stored in the relatively small space, she hauled the desk back into its normal standing position, and lifted her computer back onto its surface. She finished by shoving everything she registered as important into a backpack, and after slinging it over her shoulder, pulled all the curtains together - though a hopeless effort to keep privacy with the exterior glass already shattered.

Heart racing at a thundering pace, Vianne strutted out of the room, turning the corner back into the living room, Stephen’s expression changing from question to horror as he noticed the look on her face.

“Son, just hold these for a second-” he quickly improvised a reason as he handed his innocent, little son the game figurines, “Momma needs my help organizing some papers, the wind from earlier blew them off her desk and messed up their order, okay?”

Hunter just nodded, alarmed at his parents panicked state. Even as a four-year-old, he could sense that they weren’t calm. It took all of his will to not follow his parents, to ask why, but he knew to listen - knew to trust his parents.

/

Forcing himself to stare at the intricate carvings on the game pieces, Hunter distracted himself from the hushed yells of his parents as they discussed something that he knew was not paper sorting. There was bits of a phone call that he heard, and talk of disappearance, but little Hunter wasn’t a dictionary just yet, and didn’t know exactly what the word meant.

“We gotta go, Kiddo,” Hunter physically jumped as his father placed a hand on his shoulder, alarmed because he had not noticed him reentering the room, “Mommy just got an emergency call from work and I need to go with her.”

“So where am I going?” The young boy asked with haunting wonder, not wanting to be left alone after the shock of the evening.

“You’re going to go stay with good ‘ol Gobber for a while,” Stephen explained, “Okay?”

Hunter nodded slowly.

“Is that alright?” Vianne asked, “You like Gavin don’t you, sweetie?”

“Mhmm.” He said, forcing his little face to produce a smile.

“Now, dad is gonna go upstairs with you, and you can bring a few things with you, ok?”  His mother said, eyes glossy as her son turned away from her to run upstairs with her husband. She felt like she was saying goodbye already.

“Stephen?” She called out.

“Vi?” He replied at the top of the stairs, waving Hunter off to begin grabbing his things from his room.

“I’ll um,” she cleared her throat, “be in the car.”

He nodded.

“Hurry.”

CHECK THE FULL, TO-BE-CONTINUED STORY ON WATTPAD (user is “sacredsouls”)