Guys this HiJack ship I don't even TT^TT
A little note: you can find useful and utterly useless background info at the bottom A/N. I usually write stuff there, starting from important background info to teasing foreshadowing and ending with batshit insane author rambles. In that order of importance. There are a few things that are slightly crucial to know if you want a good idea of the universe and stuff.
Anyway I don't own these characters, I just 'borrowed' them for selfish purposes such as angstwriting and squeeing instead.
ALSO: I am not a native speaker of the wonderful English language, thus all of your grammar complaints are magically invalid. Yay lame internet excuses 8D
This could safely be classified as an emergency. Sure, Hiccup was –had been- used to bloodthirsty creatures wreaking havoc in Berk, but this was a slightly different situation. This time, their attackers weren't dragons.
I think I prefer dragons, though. At least the grown-ups could see those.
"Would you mind explaining what exactly these things are?" he shouted, trying to avoid the hellish creatures that air-galloped after him and Toothless.
"It's Pitch!" Jack answered just as loudly, freezing several monsters at once. "Those things are Nightmares! His servants!" He tightened his grip on Hiccup's shoulder, using his free arm to blast away any enemies that came up from behind them. Best heroic battle position ever.
"Pitch? Pitch Black? The Boogeyman that was supposed to never-ever-ever-ever come back again because you, and I quote, 'kicked his ass so hard, he'd probably have to-'"
"Yes, Hiccup, that Pitch."
"So, about that whole never-ever-ever-ever-thing-"
"DUCK!" Astrid yelled, effectively shutting Hiccup's sassy trap while warning them for the particularly big death-and-crying-children-Nightmare that lunged at them.
Hiccup quickly steered Toothless into a free fall, and couldn't suppress a small cry of victory as their attacker flew right into the mountain behind them. Toothless joined him with a victorious roar, and Hiccup waited for Jack to compliment this state-of-the-art pilot-trick.
The author chooses not to repeat what Jack had to say about Hiccup's daring maneuver, but finds it sufficient to say instead that it wasn't a compliment.
"Could you at least warn me before you do that?" Jack still looked a tad bit disoriented after he had stopped clinging to Hiccups arm. "I thought I was going to fall to my untimely death for a second! And I can FLY! I'm IMMORTAL, for crying out loud!"
"Before you have your near-death existential crisis, could you tell me why Pitch is in Berk, of all places?"
"How should I know why he's here?"
"Oh, I don't know, maybe because you, and I quote, 'kicked his-'"
"THIS REALLY ISN'T THE TIME, HICCUP" Astrid interrupted him once again. She was right. The nightmares grew bigger and much more vicious. Luckily, their goal didn't seem to be mass murder or mass destruction. Less luckily, their goal did seem to be… Team HiJackLess, as Hiccup had quickly dubbed their dynamic trio. Yes, he was still working on the name.
"We need to lure them away from the village!" Hiccup shouted, turning his gaze to the sea and the islands in the distance. They'd have to figure out a counter-attack, but they needed to reach neutral grounds first. "Astrid! I'll lead them away! You stay here and take care of what remains!"
"Will you be ok?"
"You dare questioning my rugged Viking manliness? Don't worry, I'll be fine."
Astrid gave him an uncertain grin and flew back. Jack meanwhile howled with laughter as he blasted another Nightmare to frosty pieces. "Rugged Viking manliness? Really?"
"Jack, I was being-"
"CAN YOU TWO JUST HURRY UP?" They simultaneously cringed at Astrid's angry shout, only relaxing once they were flying over the sea and Astrid was but a tiny dot in the distance.
"She's scary, man."
"Don't let her hear that if you treasure your immortal life."
From the shadows, the Boogeyman chuckled as he watched the dragon and company head for one of the uninhabited islands. "It's been too long since I chased you, Jack Frost." He summoned his favourite Nightmare. "But don't worry, I intend to make up for it- and more."
"Just how many are there!" Hiccup grew frustrated when three new nightmares appeared, replacing the one Toothless had just blown to tiny little pieces.
"I have no idea, Hiccup, maybe you can count them for me?" Jack retorted, vanquishing a dozen of them with epic freeze lasers.
"I roughly estimate that we are hopelessly outnumbered!",
"I was being rhetorical!"
"I was being-" Apart from whatever Hiccup was being at that moment, he was also being attacked from multiple sides at once. It would not have been that bad, since he was taking the ones on the left and Jack was taking the ones on the right, but when a third beam of extremely dangerous black sand hit Toothless from behind, nearly dislocating Hiccup's carefully crafted steering wing in the process, you could say there was in fact a big problem. They spiraled downwards, and Hiccup would undoubtedly have fallen to his untimely death- had Jack not been there in time to cut him loose from the saddle.
"TOOTHLESS!" The sudden swoop-in from Jack made Hiccup lose sight of his crashing Night Fury, and he panicked.
Jack struggled with the panicked boy in his arms, whose frantic flapping that made it unnecessarily hard for him to keep his balance in mid-air. It was as if he was trying to hold on to a dog-sized living salmon that was having a seizure. A salmon with long, skimpy limbs that actually hurt when they accidentally hit you in the face.
"Relax" he reassured, trying his best to dodge the flailing arms, "I sent a wind after him that's strong enough to carry a dozen dragons." The flailing decreased, and Jack internally sighed in relief as Hiccup settled in his hold- not ever letting go of his hoodie, though. Still, it was an improvement from the rather suffocating arms around his neck a couple of moments ago.
"Where is he now, then?" Hiccup struggled for a bit so he could look around. His panic had been replaced with calmer, albeit intense worry.
"He's fine, Hic, he landed pretty softly, the trees broke his fall as well. You, on the other hand, probably would have lost your other leg, if I hadn't caught you in time."
Hiccup rolled his eyes at the smug tone in Jack's voice.
"Yes, oh brave knight in frosty armor, you saved my life, and now I'm swoooooning in your arms. Can you put me down now?"
Jack ignored him; it was way too much fun to have Hiccup nervously clinging to him. Because it looked funny on his face, NOT because of the clinging- honestly, what were you expecting? It wasn't like Jack was so thrilled because he finally had a reason to hold Hiccup close to him, oh no. He purely liked this situation because of the priceless expression on Hiccup's face. His body warmth and rather firm grasp on his clothes did not have anything to do with the satisfaction he took in this situation. Neither did the way Hiccup pressed himself even further into his chest for safety make any difference. He was the Guardian of Fun, not the Guardian of Homoerotic Subtext. Man in Moon told him so.
What was I thinking about, again?
"Jack, I'm serious. Put. Me. Down." That's right, adorab- I mean, comical Hiccup. Jack smirked.
"You know, Hiccup, you really should eat more. I've carried five-year-olds with more mass than-"
"Jack, you should probably-" Hiccup interrupted warningly.
"-honestly, it's like I'm holding a fluffy pillow in my arms with an obnoxious mouth attached-"
"JACK-"
"Yes, Hiccup, I'll put you down in a sec– AGH!" Jack cried as a whip of nightmare fuel (where did those things come from all of sudden?) hit him in the back. Fortunately, they were close to the ground, and Jack merely flew into a tree after he had accidentally dropped Hiccup.
"-look behind you" Hiccup finished, a few octaves lower. He staggered back on his feet. "You know, I sometimes have the feeling your communication skills are a bit rusty. You okay?"
"I'll live." Jack still leaned in on Hiccup for a bit as he was helped up.
"Well, I'm glad to hear, Jack Frost."
"Pitch!" Jack stumbled backwards, pulling Hiccup with him as a familiar figure emerged from the shadows.
"It sure has been a while, hasn't it, Jack?" He cocked his head a little and turned his cold gaze towards Hiccup. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend over there?"
Jack quickly stepped forwards and protectively held his staff between Hiccup and the Boogeyman.
"What do you want?" he spit, small shards of ice starting to form around the tip of the staff.
"Oh, I wouldn't know, Jack" Pitch stated, casually cleaning his nails. "I was just thinking about how you ruined everything for me, while I had given you the chance to get everything you wanted… How you turned my very own creations against me… How I was forced to live miserably, unseen and even less feared than before, whereas you were made a Guardian, and was believed in, even made new friends…"
"Does he have a problem with answering questions directly?" Hiccup whispered, not taking his eyes off the man in front of them. Jack only nodded, the slightest grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. Apparently, even the Boogeyman couldn't stop Hiccup from sass-mouthing.
He wasn't surprised.
"… and I thought, why? Why should I be miserable, and you all happy" Pitch' face twisted at the last word, "why shouldn't you be miserable too, Jack? Why should you get everything you wanted?"
"Maybe because I didn't try to turn this world into a dark hellhole filled with fear?"
Pitch chuckled again. "And a big mouth too… You haven't changed a bit, Frost. All the more reason why I should teach you to know your place!" Jack only laughed at the threat.
"Big words, coming from someone who got his ass handed over to him! Do you really think you can still beat me? Beat the Guardians? Boy, does your long-term memory suck." Jack's smug grin finally showed up, and Hiccup relaxed a bit, taking the grin as a sign that things weren't as bad as they seemed.
"I suppose you're right" Pitch replied, pretending to be in deep thought. "Taking on four Guardians at once was a mistake I will not make again. Instead" a devilish gleam seemed to engulf him as he smiled, "I will focus on the weakest link."
"Jack, my evil-plotting-senses are tingling" Hiccup said, backing away for a bit. He didn't like this whole new aura that practically screamed 'EVIL' in grotesque capitals in neon letters the size of a Deadly Nadder that surrounded the shadowy creeper.
"No worries Hic, I can easily take him" Jack reassured him. "I've grown only stronger since I became a Guardian, and he" he gestured condescendingly towards Pitch "has only grown weaker since. He can't hurt us."
"Right once again!" Pitch answered, clapping his hands mockingly. "I'm just a mere remnant of darker times, I couldn't possibly hurt THE Jack Frost." He faked a humble bow. When he lifted his face again, Hiccup felt himself shrink a little under the terrifying grin and bared teeth that were flashed at him.
"However, I might just be able to hurt something else…" He snapped his finger.
Suddenly, a ferocious cry echoed through the woods, one that immediately set off all the remaining alarm bells in Hiccups head.
"TOOTHLESS!" Without thinking, Hiccup immediately went after the sound. Not Toothless. By all the Norse gods and the residents of the Walhalla, not Toothless. If any of the stories Jack had told him were true, Thor-knows-what could be happening to his best friend; that just now had been a cry of despair, no doubt.
"HICCUP! WAIT!" Jack directly saw through Pitch' plan to separate them. And just like he feared, a dark mass directly rose up right before him as he tried to go after Hiccup, blocking the way and spawning rather oversized hell horses in the process.
"And where do you think you're going, Jack? Leaving in the middle of a conversation is considered very rude, you know" Pitch' voice purred, but the Boogeyman himself was nowhere to be seen. "The dragon can't find its master, and the master can't find his dragon, both are worried sick… Please, let me feast on that delicious fear a little longer."
"You leave them alone, Pitch!" Jack snapped, firing freeze lasers at random, hoping to hit his opponent, hoping to get rid of the shadows that made it impossible to navigate through the forest.
"Oh, but it'd be such a waste… They're so worried, Jack, I'm getting stronger and stronger each second… Not to mention" the voice in the shadows laughed, "you're even more worried about the two of them; it's like I'm being at a spa here, really. So much power I'm gaining at once!"
"I said leave them ALONE!" Jack fired a particularly big chunk of ice into the black walls, using the temporary opening to escape the sandy prison. He flew up, above the trees, scanning for any signs of Hiccup or Toothless. Even up in the sky he could hear Pitch' mocking laugh.
"Let's play a little hide and seek, shall we?" Right after that, Jack could hear another cry from Toothless. It sounded like it came from the west; but as soon as Jack headed in that direction, another cry startled him even more.
Hiccup. From the east. In pain.
This just couldn't be happening.
Everything had been so wonderful lately. Finally, Jack had found someone who was around his (mental) age, who could still see him, who wasn't afraid of him, who turned out to be one of the best mortal friends Jack had ever had (not that he had had many, but still) and now, this was happening. Probably because he was one of the best mortal friends Jack had ever had.
"Having trouble with your directions, Frost?" With an angry growl, Jack waved his staff towards wherever the voice had seemed to come from. Pitch only laughed in return. "Do you really have the time to get mad at me, I wonder?"
"Where are they, Pitch? You tell me right now, or-"
"Jack, that would be cheating, and I want to have a fair game of hide-and-seek. So just shut it, and seek!" The laughter died away, and so did the remaining dark sand that had followed Jack. It was suddenly quiet.
Too quiet. The entire forest was still, as if time itself had stopped. There wasn't a single sound; not the chirping of birds, not the scurrying of small animals, there weren't even any rustling leaves. Jack looked around anxiously, internally begging for this eerie silence to be broken, his senses sharpened to their maximum,.
'Stay calm' he told himself, 'panic will only make him stronger. Stay calm.'
He decided to go east, to where Hiccup's cry had come from. Toothless was a Night Fury, the fastest and most dangerous dragon alive- he could handle himself for a while. Probably.
Hiccup, on the other hand, was about as dangerous as a fluffy chicken. Sure, the boy was intelligent and adaptable, and unexpectedly brave if he needed to be, but his physical power and abilities in close combat were… limited. At best. And don't get me started on his clumsiness. He's probably knocking himself unconscious with that iron hoof of his as we speak.
"HICCUP!" Jack knew how much it must have delighted Pitch to hear him scream like this, and it sickened him, but there had to be priorities. "HICCUP! WHERE ARE YOU!"
"JACK!" It sounded faintly, but it seemed to come from the south this time. The winter spirit didn't waste any time and shot off, still calling out for Hiccup.
"JACK!" It suddenly came from the opposite direction, and even fainter than before. Jack quickly turned another 180 degrees, but had barely taken off again when Hiccup's voice cried out again- from the west.
This wasn't going to work. Pitch was playing a trick on his mind or something. He needed to rely on something else than his ears.
Jack closed his eyes. He had a trick of his own up his sleeve, although he had never really practiced it much- it never seemed relevant to him before.
He concentrated on the cold, the cold that was everywhere. He could feel it, all the slight changes in temperature on the island, the freezing winds that howled above the trees, the warmer, sheltered spots at their trunks. And at last, after a couple of excruciating moments of intense concentration, two sources of heat standing out in the cold. A dragon, and a human- both at the same place.
Thank goodness, Toothless is with him. Jack focused on the two sources and dove towards them, urging the winds to take him there faster.
"Jack!" The voice, less faint than before, broke halfway, and was rigged with anxiety. "I'm here, Hiccup! I'm coming!" Jack shouted back, worried about Hiccups weird voice. The answer that came was loud and clear- Jack almost wished he hadn't heard it.
"DON'T!" Hiccup sounded even more frantic than before. "JACK, LISTEN TO ME! DON'T COME! STAY THERE! STAY AWAY, JACK!"
Jack sped up even more. Screw those words, there was obviously something wrong. If anything, they were an incentive to get to Hiccup even sooner.
He landed in a seemingly tranquil forest clearing, a gust of icy wind sweeping back the trees around him.
Shit.
Jack nearly dropped his staff when the scenery in front of him unfolded. Yes, Toothless was with Hiccup, and both seemed to be unharmed. But that didn't really make up for the situation they were in.
"I told you not to- oh, I knew it was hopeless." Hiccup struggled against the tendrils of black sand that tied him to a tree. He tried to shrug as he met Jack's horrified gaze. "I'm sorry! They just came out of nowhere!"
Toothless roared angrily, trying to shake off the countless black shackles that kept him down. Well, roared was a pretty big word, considering the fact that his mouth was also kept shut by the black sand.
"Don't worry, Hic" Jack smiled reassuringly. "I'll-"
"And finally, our hero dashes in to save the day. You took your time, Jack" Pitch hummed, suddenly appearing next to the tree Hiccup was tied to. "It was adorable, really, how he tried to warn you. I had to mess with the message a little, but look at how much fun we had with it! Don't you just love fun, Frost?"
Hiccup tried to move away from the Boogeyman, but to no avail. His eyes had grown wide, and they desperately tried not to look in the direction that Pitch' voice was coming from.
"Pitch…" Jack growled, not taking his eyes of the shadowy figure. He slowly, threateningly raised his staff, pointing it at the King of Nightmares. "You let them go right now, or…"
"Or what? You're gonna make me some ice cream?" Pitch smiled, a menacing glimmer flickering in his eyes.
"I don't think you are fully understanding the situation here. The one who should be making threats is not you, Frost." He made a wide arm gesture, and in a blink a huge scythe formed out of black sand appeared in his hand. Before Jack could move, the blade was already held at Hiccup's throat. A small, involuntary whimper escaped the small Viking. Had the blade not been that incredibly close, he would have gulped.
Jack in turn could not suppress a small alarmed sound either.
As for Toothless, he pretty much went batshit crazy.
Pitch laughed.
"Bit of a déjà vu, isn't it, Frost?" he snickered. Jack immediately remembered- the tiny, fragile Baby Tooth in Pitch' pale hand, the helplessness he had felt, the unbearable smirk of the Boogeyman… No. No, that couldn't happen here. Not again. Not with Hiccup.
"I see you remember now. Good." That smirk. It was there again. "Because it's the same game. The staff, or dragonboy here gets it."
This couldn't be happening.
"Jack, don't be stupid here" Hiccup said warningly, watching him intensely. "It's a trick. Remember what he did after you gave him the staff."
"Oh, so he told you, didn't he?" Pitch reached out with his other hand, grasping Hiccup's chin, forcing the boy to look him in the eyes. "Did he tell you about poor little Baby Tooth?" He moved a bit closer towards him. Jack clenched his staff even tighter, but the scythe was still barely an inch away from Hiccup's throat and he didn't dare to risk it.
"Did he tell you how I kept crushing that little fairy in my hand bit by bit?" Pitch dug a nail in Hiccup's cheek. Hiccup closed his eyes, looking as if he was about to throw up.
"Did he tell you-"
Pitch' question was rudely interrupted by a violent spit from Hiccup in his face. Cursing, he stumbled back for a bit. Jack wanted to rush forward, but had barely moved his feet or-
"YOU STAY THERE, FROST!" The scythe was back in its original position. Pitch quickly recomposed himself, turning his brief enraged expression into a smirk again. He laughed, but there still was a hint of irritation in his eyes.
"Ooh, he's got guts after all. I can see why you were interested in the kid, Frost. Though I must say I liked him more when he was on the verge of wetting his pants." Pitch ruffled through Hiccups hair, and then turned towards Jack again.
"So, where were we?" The smirk grew more malicious, "Oh, that's right: the staff!"
"How do I know you won't pull the same trick on me?"
"You don't" the Boogeyman shrugged matter-of-factly. Suddenly, he folded is hands innocently, and his expression changed into that of a mocking imitation of some saint's smile. There even appeared a little halo of black sand above his head.
"But I'm in such a merciful mood, I'm prepared to offer you a nice deal. I'll let one of the two go first, without you having to do anything, as a token of my mercy. Then, you give me the staff, and I'll let the other one go as well. Deal?"
"He's trying to trick you, Jack, don't- mmph!" Hiccups warning was cut off as black sand covered his mouth at an annoyed snap of Pitch' fingers.
"My kindness is not an immortal thing, Jack. Do we have a deal, or not?" Pitch stroked the blade of the scythe menacingly. Oh, it had been a long time since he had felt an atmosphere this deliciously thick with fear and worry.
"Fine!" was the angry answer, and Pitch couldn't help but make a little internal jump of delight.
This was his lucky day. It had, of course, been a huge risk, using all of his leftover power on an all-out attack on puny little Berk, but it had been worth it. Everything had gone according to plan; the anxiety of his victims had turned out to be even been greater than he had anticipated. Now the amount of power he had regained from their fear had surpassed his biggest expectations- oh, the mighty feeling of having the upper hand, nothing could compare to it!
On the outside he remained composed, only allowing a short chuckle of victory to escape his lips. "A wise decision, Frost. Now then, which should I let go first? The dragon, or its rider?"
Hiccup mmmmmmph'd anxiously and gestured with his head towards Toothless. Jack kept looking from the dragon to the boy and back again, the helplessness and doubt dripping from his features. It looked extraordinarily good on his face, Pitch noted.
Which one? Which one? Jack had accepted by now that he couldn't avoid this deal with Pitch. He wanted to hit something violently with his staff, to freeze something and then smash it to pieces, to fire a huge chunk of the most hardened ice at something- but all he could was feverishly look from Hiccup to Toothless and back again.
Seldomly had he seen such an intense bond between a human and a non-human; such a bond was rare even between two humans. Toothless meant everything to Hiccup. Jack knew that Hiccup would never forgive him if anything would happen to the dragon.
However, Jack in turn would never forgive himself if anything happened to Hiccup. He had come to like the Toothless a lot, sure, but it had been Hiccup who had seen him. A teenage boy, a bit younger than Jack had been when he was turned into a Spirit. The first teenager who could see him and didn't run away or went insane. The first person Jack could talk to as if they were just two friends, just two normal guys in their teens, hanging out and discussing normal things like annoying parental figures and weird friends and dragon riding and evil Boogeymen taking over the world and all those other things you just didn't discuss casually with a little child or the Tooth Fairy.
In three hundred years, Jack had never had a friend like that. And he had never met someone like Hiccup who, on top of being able to see him, turned out to be this awesome dude that combined a warm, kind personality with brains, with this genius sense of sarcastic humour, with adorable curiosity and impressive imagination
He couldn't lose that. Hiccup was too important. He was going to hate Jack if he chose him instead of Toothless, but Jack didn't care (that much) as long as Freckles would be safe.
"Well, Frost? We may be immortal, but the clock keeps ticking for distressed damsels here."
Jack stared at his feet.
"Let Hiccup go." His words were met with the most desperate MMMPH yet, and Jack didn't dare to look in his friend's direction, not wanting so see the undoubtedly pained look in Hiccup's eyes. Pitch laughed.
"Predictable as always. Fine. Have the boy."
He snapped his fingers, and immediately the black tendrils that had kept his human prisoner tied to the tree disappeared. Jack could hear Hiccup take a deep breath as the gag disappeared as well, followed by a few coughs. Still staring intensely at his feet, he waited until Hiccup had come over to his side.
He kept staring like that for three extremely long seconds, before he realized that he didn't hear any footsteps. Worried, he finally looked up.
Hiccup was still standing at the exact same spot as before. Angrily, Jack turned his gaze to Pitch, about to ask why he didn't let him go, when Pitch raised his hands.
"Don't look at me, Frost." He waved his empty hands for a bit, then looked at the boy who still stood next to him. "I'm not doing anything. He's standing there on accord of his own free will."
Jack lowered his staff.
"Hiccup?" he asked, confusion written all over his face. "What are you waiting for? Get over here!"
Hiccup kept staring at his feet, as intensely as Jack had been staring at his own a few moments ago.
"I'm really sorry, Jack, but I can't leave Toothless."
You have got to be kidding me.
"Hiccup, don't be STUPID!" Jack shouted angrily, producing a majestic eye roll as well. Why did he have to complicate everything with such uncharacteristic stupidity? "You're only making it worse! This way you'll both-"
"I know! I'm sorry, it's just…" Hiccup kept avoiding Jack's gaze, focusing on Toothless instead. "It's with Toothless or not at all, Jack. I'm sorry. I can't leave him in his hands." He took a deep breath and reluctantly turned to Pitch.
"Let Toothless go, I'll stay here instead."
Jack let out a short snarl of frustration. If we ever get out of this unscathed, I will freeze one of your toes off for this, stupid son of Stoick.
"Well, isn't this an interesting turn of events?" Pitch laughed once more. Of course, he had studied the young Viking and his dragon long enough to expect this from the kid, but there was no need to let Jack know that.
"Well, since it's dear Hiccup's wish… I couldn't possibly be so heartless as to ignore it."
"Pitch, don't-"
"Shut it, Frost, you've had your choice already. Now Hiccup, if you were so cooperative as to stay right there?" Pitch snapped his fingers once more, and Hiccup could barely suppress a whimper as he was bound to the tree again. Simultaneously, the black shackles around Toothless disappeared. The dragon cried out angrily and spread his wings, turning towards the man that had bound him.
"You better control that lizard, Frost!" Jack knew without looking that Pitch was holding a blade against Hiccup's throat again. He flailed with his arms, trying to distract the dragon, shouting, begging him to calm down before something would happen to their friend. "STOP! Calm DOWN, Toothless!" He wanted to run over to the dragon, but he was afraid Pitch would not allow it.
Thankfully, Toothless was intelligent enough to realize after a moment what was going on, and calmed down.
"Toothless, come here" Jack beckoned. If he couldn't guarantee Hiccup's safety, he could at least do that for the dragon.
"Go on, buddy, go to Jack. Listen to Jack. Come on, Toothless" Hiccup urged as well, even more anxious for him to reach the safe side of the clearing.
Reluctantly, Toothless wandered over to Jack, not once diverting his eyes from Hiccup.
"There's a good pet" Pitch said, as if he were talking to a dog. "Now then, order that thing to get lost. I don't like a free dragon messing around with my plans, not when everything is going so well."
"Toothless, go home, pal." Jack sighed at the stubborn headshake he got as a response. "Don't worry, I'll make sure nothing happens to Hiccup." The dragon still shook his head.
"Toothless, please, go away." Hiccup felt a pang in his chest when the dragon looked at him, his expression full of hurt. But he wanted Toothless to go away, even more than Pitch wanted him to. The further his friend was away from the Boogeyman, the better.
"Go, you brainless bag of scales! Just GO!" Jack screamed, making wide, shooing gestures towards the unwilling dragon. "Don't you understand what will happen to him? GO!"
Hiccup tuned in, shouting even harder, telling his companion to go away. Toothless cringed, confused by their shouting, hurt by their rejections, and conflicted about what to do. He understood that his best friend was in danger and that he shouldn't attack, but he didn't understand why he had to go. Wasn't he supposed to protect him? Despite his reassurances, the flying human hadn't really proven himself capable of protecting Hiccup well. Toothless didn't want to leave him in his unreliable hands.
But they kept shouting at him, and they became more commanding and mean, and even Hiccup started to sound unnaturally bossy, and they all looked so desperate, and Toothless didn't know what to do and the shouting continued and it had to stop and they were so mean now and-
With an anguished cry, the mighty Night Fury spread his wings, and looked sadly into the eyes of his helpless friend once more. Then he took off- on his legs, since there wasn't a dragon rider to manage the steering wing.
'Well, there goes our only hope of escaping' Jack thought, as the sounds of Toothless' rather inelegant rampage through the forest grew fainter.
Hiccup was torn between feeling relieved that Toothless was out of harm's way, and feeling very, very concerned about Jack's safety.
He looked at Pitch, and felt how fear quickly overshadowed his relief as the Boogeyman laughed darkly.
"Well, wasn't that a touchy scene just now" he chuckled, as he turned to face Jack again. His smirk had grown alarmingly malicious.
"And now, Jack, the staff."
Da-da-da, we're dead.
DA-DA-DA, CLIFFHANGER. I'm a terrible human being.
The following words are ramblings of the so-called author and mostly consist of lame excuses and brainless ponderings and foreshadowing and superfluous background stuff. Read at own risk.
FIRST THINGS FIRST. There are a few background-thingies that are slightly crucial to know about this story. Technical yaddayadda. It's not like it's essential information, but it'll help to get a good, full picture of what this fic is about/what it is going to be about, as well as the setting.
1.Universe: Takes place in a world where the Big Four all live at the same time. Their homelands lie far away from each other and are in different stadia of civilization and cultural development. Jack doesn't come from the future, but he does wear his hoodie because Burgess, despite not having a modern civilization, has that kind of fashion. Also because I am a huge sucker for that hoodie and I'd be damned if I couldn't twist reality into Jack wearing that hoodie NO MATTER WHAT. MWAHAHA.
2. Ages: Jack is 300 years old. Hiccup is around 16-17, otherwise it'd become a bit of an awkward shipping story. Rapunzel is 18, Merida is around 17 or so.
3. Moment in timelines: Some years after the big dragon battle in Berk, twelve years after the Guardians VS Pitch shizzle. As for the exact moments in Tangled and Brave: part of the plot, can't spoil it now.
4. Relationships: Jack and Hiccup are BFF's for a while now with a bit of dormant crushing underneath- this is a Hijack fic-to-be, after all. Apart from that, the Big Four have no idea of the others' existence.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed this. I also hope you haven't grown tired of the whole hostage situation because it's likely to take another chapter. Pitch is a nasty, playful bastard after all. Not in a sexual way. I think. I'm not really sure whether to incorporate BlackIce or not. Pitch can be pervy enough without having actual sexual intentions.
Now that we're on the topic of sexual intentions: please excuse me for my terrible, terrible portrayal of awkward subconscious HiJack. This is my first shipping fic ever that wasn't made up during a sugar rush. I have troubles writing romance. Of course, there will be more than just awkward NO HOMO/ALL OF THE HOMO-moments, but it'll take a while.
Oh, and by the way: there will be no Jackunzel or Merricup. I have absolutely nothing against those ships, I love pretty much every Big Four ship in its own way. I just like to keep this story focused on HiJack, and I don't want to come between Rapunzel and Eugene because honestly I love them.
(What is the name of Rapunzel x Eugene? Rapugene? Riderpunzel? Fitzpunzel? Fryingpanshipping?)
And as for Merricup: I think it's an adorable combination and bound to give many hilarious hijinks. However, I just like HiJack more because of reasons.
AND FINAL LAME EXCUSE: I AM SO FUCKING SORRY FOR HICCUP'S CHARACTERIZATION BUT I JUST SUCK SO MUCH AT SASSING I CAN'T HELP IT I'M SORRY. Really. I tried, but witty comebacks just aren't my forte.
When I had gathered enough courage to actually write this down, I set five big rules for myself:
1. THOU SHALT NOT BRING SHAME UPON HICCUP'S HOLY SASS.
2. THOU SHALT NOT BRING SHAME UPON THE EPIC HIJACK BROMANCE BY RUSHING THE ROMANCE TOO MUCH.
4. THOU SHALT NOT BRING SHAME UPON TOOTHLESS BY GIVING HIM A MINOR ROLE BECAUSE TOOTHLESS IS A BIG DEAL TO HICCUP AND NOT JUST THE FUCKING PET DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE FORGET ABOUT TOOTHLESS YOU FANFICTION-WRITING PIECE OF-
4. THOU SHALT NOT BRING SHAME UPON BOTH HICCUP'S AND JACK'S CHARACTERIZATION AND PORTRAY THEM RESPECTIVELY AS A DITZY, DEFENSELESS AND EMOTIONALLY UNSTABLE UKE AND A PERVERTED, POSSESSIVE AND EMOTIONALLY UNSTABLE SEME.
5. THOU SHALT NOT MAKE THEM INTO CRYBABIES BECAUSE NEITHER OF THEM EVEN REALLY CRIED IN THE MOVIES AND LET'S BE HONEST HERE THEY WENT THROUGH SOME PRETTY HARSH SHIT THERE SO NO FUCKING CRYING AT EVERY POSSIBLE SETBACK. JESUS.
(6. IF THY EXPERIENCETH A FIT OF LAUGHTER WHILST WRITING A SCENE THAT IS MEANT SERIOUSLY, FOR THE LOVE OF FROSTCUP, DELETE IT. YES, THAT MEANS THAT THY ATTEMPTS AT WRITING SMUT ARE OFF THE TABLE. YOUR SCARCE TALENTS OBVIOUSLY LIE ELSEWHERE)
I'm so screwed. And talkative. God. Why is it so hard sometimes to write fics, while these ramblings just kind of flow out of my fingers into the laptop?
I need a crash course in metaphores, STAT.