Written for a Tumblr ask. It's almost 2am. Constructive Criticism is appreciated.
Cradle
Toothless had seen it all happening before him. Stuck in one of the cages of the Dragon Hunters after getting captured, he had watched Hiccup fight more than he could handle in his desperation to free his Night Fury and escape the trouble they found themselves in.
The Inferno had been knocked out of his hand, several bruises were to appear for sure within the next few hours, his nose was bleeding, his lip split, his ribs were bruised, a mace had broken his right forearm, an arrow had impaled itself in his left knee, his right shoulder was dislocated... And still his Rider was fighting.
Hiccup found that he had no other choice. The other Dragon Riders weren't there to help them and it wasn't certain how long it would take for them to arrive. He needed to hold out for as long as he could, hoping beyond hope to somehow free Toothless and get away from there on their own.
But the truth of the matter was, Hiccup couldn't run, he couldn't even walk with the state his leg was in. Every step taken made him want to collapse and cry out in agony. He could no longer use his right arm as it hung limp by his side and he wasn't getting anywhere by hiding behind a shield he could barely carry by now. Moving at all forced a new stab of pain to course through him. The sweat was clear on his brow.
This was a fight he was doomed to lose and Toothless hated watching him try so hard.
It was very much in character for Hiccup to not give up no matter how much pain he was in. Especially now that they were alone. Still Toothless wished he'd give up already and save himself from further injury. The Riders were bound to come soon, they just needed to hold out until then.
Toothless had tried to convey this message to him. While shrieking and roaring, he tried to tell his Rider to give in. Just for now. He couldn't bear to see him receive another wound only to try and get back up again out of the sheer love he held for his dragon.
"I'm coming, Toothless!" Hiccup panted, but shouted, as he used the shield to smash a Hunter upside the head with what little strength that remained. The Viking slumped down to the ship's deck, no longer a part of the conscious world.
Toothless' pleads for him to stop had only steeled Hiccup's determination even more, mistaking his cry as one of help.
Another Dragon Hunter lunged at the Berkian heir and Hiccup braced himself, it was the same enemy who had broken his arm with that mace of his and he'd hate to feel that weapon break something else. His forearm and shoulder were both burning.
But luck wasn't on Hiccup's side as the shield was dragged down by the first hit and the mace came down again for a second one.
Right on his face.
Toothless produced his loudest screech as Hiccup crumpled to the floor in front of his very eyes. Falling down hard on the deck and remaining where he lied, right arm in an awkward angle. There had been no more sound, no more movement from him. His human simply went limp after the direct hit, the shield slipping from his grasp, his eyes closing on the way and there he went. Hiccup had been defeated.
"About time. Runt put up more of a fight than I thought." One of the, admittedly few, Hunters remaining stated and the Night Fury growled.
Runt. He had always hated that Viking word, ever since finding out what it meant.
Hiccup's worth should never be based on his body. It was sick and an insult to the wonderful person that he knew his Rider was.
"What do we do with him now?" Another one asked the apparent second-in-command, the Captain Hiccup had pushed overboard when the fight had only just begun.
The Second-in-command's gaze went to Toothless and his decision had quickly been made.
"Throw him in with the Night Fury. It's not going anywhere without that Runt and perhaps he can serve as a warning of what happens when you rebel." He said, not wavering under the Night Fury's hateful glare.
A third remaining Hunter grabbed Hiccup by his leather chest piece, one of his pauldrons missing, dragged the limp body over to the cage.
They opened it wide, both teasing him and mocking him, because they knew Toothless wouldn't dare to try and escape now. Not too gently did they simply throw the young man inside and he, thankfully, didn't land on his most painful side. Though the arrow did break off.
The door of the cage was closed and locked behind him. The Hunters chuckled at the capture of their preys before turning their attention to their fallen companions.
No matter. As far as Toothless was concerned, they no longer existed and it was just him and Hiccup on this ship. The world beyond the small confines of their cell were forgotten.
Toothless crooned softly and inched his own battered person closer to sniff his Rider. Hiccup was unconscious. It was a miracle he was even still alive.
Where the mace had hit him, his eye, his temple, his cheek, just almost that entire side of his face turned into a dark red bruise mixed in with some blue. It was already appearing and it was so bloody too. It looked terrible. The Night Fury hoped nothing was broken.
Toothless wrapped his paws around Hiccup protectively and moved to lick Hiccup's wounds clean, but at the slightest touch did he groan and the dragon made sure to pull away quickly. Fortunately, his eyes remained closed.
It was a fight that had taken only minutes and yet in that short amount of time Hiccup had been so hurt. His leather armour, too, had suffered a lot of damage. It was in tatters.
Unable to lick him and treat his injuries the only way he could, Toothless decided there was only one other thing he could do for now.
Maneuvering Hiccup as carefully as he possibly could, the Night Fury pulled him closer and somehow got the boy to lie at his side and rest his head on the smoother scales of his belly. Curled up within the space Toothless created, Hiccup was cradled close to him.
Not caring about the Hunters, Toothless used his wings to shield his Viking. He would keep an eye on the foe, but until the other Dragon Riders got here, Hiccup would be kept safe within the boundaries of his wings. Cocooned, protected, warm, safe.
Right here where he belonged, Hiccup's ear to his chest. Just like back when the young man was a boy who had almost met a terrible death in the inferno of fire that was once the Red Death and this was all Toothless could do to save him.
Hiccup shifted ever so slightly, but stayed unconscious. Even now, as an eighteen year old young man, considerably taller than the fifteen year old boy he had met, he still fit so perfectly in his hold.