The ship had run the black flag, a signal of parley. It was clearly a pirate ship, the flag was the first sign of that plus, it wasn't built like a Viking ship; low to the water with an ornate prow. It was built to go out on the open sea. No one was worried; pirates where no enemies to Vikings. Often, pirates were hired for raids. At times a Viking would join pirate crews for a year or two. Stoick stood on the dock, his brother and a few other villagers standing nearby, all watching the boat sail in. Gobber would have been there, but they had no idea who was sailing into their docks so Stoick had left Hiccup in his care and they remained at the forge. Stoick didn't trust pirates, they weren't a threat, but they were not trustworthy either.
The captain was a tall man. Not big and bulky like a Viking, but he was muscular and strong. A man from the south. Still, he seemed small next to Stoick. The pirate smiled, flashing white teeth and requested shore leave for his men and an audience with the chief, after he had stretched his legs and had a meal. He had politely declined the offer of a meal from Stoick saying he would dine with his men.
Stoick had wanted a quiet meal to go over winter preparation plans anyway and had leftover stew in his home. He was finishing the after dinner clean up and Hiccup was quietly, for him, playing on the floor next to the fire. The boy was making a mess drawing in the ashes as he talked to himself. There was a knock at the door and Hiccup jumped up,
"Is it the stranger, Dad? He's a pirate right? That's why he has a gold earring? Gobber said he doesn't look half bad, what's that mean?"
Stoick didn't answer. He wiped the ashes off Hiccup's hands and face before opening the door. The boy had been overflowing with energy but when he saw the stranger he calmed down and stood close behind his father. Holding on to Stoick's tunic with one hand and his thumb with the other Hiccup peeked at the pirate; he wasn't used to strangers.
"Good evening," The captain bowed, "Thank you for agreeing to speak with me so late." He glanced at Hiccup and Stoick narrowed his eyes in warning. Pirates might not be enemies overall but this man was still a stranger and his motives unknown. It was safe enough for him to be here, Stoick could take him no problem.
"My name is Orange Eye Rob'n," He said, holding out his hand to shake. Stoick took his hand from Hiccup and shook the pirate's hand,
"Stoick." He dropped his hand to his side and Hiccup held his thumb again, staring at the stranger.
"Did you fall in the fire?" Hiccup asked from behind his father.
"Excuse me?" Orange Eye said with an eyebrow raised.
"You look burnt, like you fell in the fire."
"Hiccup!" Stoick hissed. "Please excuse him. He's only six." The last thing Stoick needed was Hiccup insulting the pirate captain. An insulted pirate was a problem he did not want to deal with on top of preparing for winter.
"Of course. I would have assumed he was younger." Orange Eye said eyeing the child.
Stoick narrowed his eyes but didn't respond to that, instead offered him a seat. Hiccup ran away up the stairs and Stoick let him go. Maybe he should have asked Gobber or Spitelout to take the boy for the night.
"What was it you wanted to discuss?" He asked, sitting down.
"Wintering. Not here, we know you have dragon problems and wouldn't want more mouths to feed. Nearby though. We can make it worth your while."
Wintering, Stoick didn't even want the man in his house for a short discussion, let alone near his village for the winter. Pirates usually made good bargains though, and Berk didn't pillage much due to the dragon problem. Small thumps came from the loft. Hiccup was coming toward the stairs again and Stoick stood from his seat to wait next to them. Orange Eye raised an eyebrow.
"How so?" Stoick asked him. Hiccup bounded down the steep steps and slipped. Stoick caught him easily from where he stood, scooped him off the stairs, and set him on the floor before taking his seat again. It was clearly something that happened often.
The pirate swallowed a chuckle, "It depends on what you require."
Hiccup was hopping toward the pirate and Stoick grabbed the back of his collar before he got to Orange Eye. Just because Stoick wasn't afraid of the guy was no reason to not be cautious.
"See?" Hiccup interrupted, "My yak fell in the fire; the dragons did it. He's burnt too." He held up a wooden yak toy which was black and charred in places. "Daddy said it didn't hurted him but I had to rescue him and it hurted me. My hand was only a little burnt and red, but you must've been a lot burnt. Did it hurted a lot?"
Orange Eye looked at the child dumbfounded and Stoick sat in his chair with his head in his hand, still holding on to Hiccup's collar. Orange Eye burst out laughing.
"No, little one, I did not fall in any fires."
Hiccup's eyes widened, "Did a dragon breathe on you?"
"No." Orange Eye leaned forward and whispered, "I was born this colour."
"Really?" Hiccup looked up at his dad to see if he was being lied to. Gobber did it often. "How?"
"I don't know." The Pirate sat back in his chair, "Everyone is this colour where I am from." He seemed good with Hiccup but he was a pirate, he was supposed to be charming.
"Is it far? Can we go to there?" Hiccup asked his father.
"Go there." Stoick corrected, "No, Hiccup, we need to stay in Berk." Stoick pulled Hiccup back by the collar. "Now go play in your room so we can talk."
"Okay," Hiccup said. With another look at Orange Eye he scampered back to his room.
"Slow on the stairs, Hiccup." Stoick said, "We require a peaceful winter." He told Orange Eye, "So if you cannot promise that you cannot have leave to stay."
"Come now, we're pirates," Orange Eye crossed his ankle over his knee, "We get bored when we're stuck in one place too long."
"And we are Vikings who fight dragons on a regular basis. Do you really want to take us on?"
Orange Eye held his hands up, "No, no, we wouldn't stand a chance. I'm curious though; do your children fight dragons too? I've heard rumours."
"Is that a threat?" Stoick growled eyebrows low over his eyes.
"No. No, no, would never dream of threatening you. Like I said, I've heard rumours, wondered if they were true. Did the dragons really burn his toy?"
Stoick rolled his eyes, "It was a game. He dropped it in the fire himself as a 'dragon.' He isn't allowed out during a raid or anywhere near the training ring." Not since Stoick had learned that the boy could easily slip through the chains into the arena.
Orange Eye laughed, "Of course. I will ensure my men do not anger you and tell them to treat Viking children as they would bear cubs. We will help on any hunts you have before winter sets in, as long as we get a portion of the kills. And we can pay you ten percent of this summer's haul. As well as extra for any supplies we may require."
"And you'll set up outside of Berk?" Stoick asked. He paid no attention to the scraping sound coming from the loft so Orange Eye followed his lead.
"I'll even let you choose the location."
"You can have a trial period in the harbour. I'll discuss your request with the council."
"Of course. Thank-" There was a loud bang followed by a thud from the floor above.
Stoick sighed, "Hiccup?" No answer came. Stoick stood up and moved closer to the stairs, "Hiccup?" Forgetting about the pirate sitting at his table Stoick ran up the stairs.
The chair to Hiccup's desk was tipped over near a shelf. Hiccup was curled up next to it.
"What happened?" Stoick asked, kneeling down to pull Hiccup into his lap.
Hiccup wrapped his arms around Stoick's neck, "I, I wanted m-my toy and I fell." He sniffed into Stoick's shoulder. Stoick couldn't find any cuts or bumps that were worrying, no blood- just bruises. Hiccup was breathing heavily though.
"You fell off the chair?"
Hiccup let go of his neck and nodded.
"Onto the floor?"
The boy shook his head and pointed at the yak toy lying where he had landed. Ah. That would hurt. "Where did it hit you?"
"M-my tummy. An' an' I, I couldn't breaf." His eyes were wide and scared.
"You're alright." Stoick said brushing Hiccup's hair back, "You just got the wind knocked out of you. You're fine." He stood up with Hiccup in his arms, "Can you help me say goodbye to our guest?" Hiccup wiped his eyes and nodded. This was a little more domestic than Stoick wanted to appear, but he had a six-year-old and was an only parent so domestic was part of his job until Hiccup got a bit older. Stoick adjusted Hiccup and went downstairs. Orange Eye was inspecting one of the shields that hung on the walls while he waited. He turned as Stoick came downstairs with Hiccup.
"Your cub okay?"
Stoick raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Is there anything else you need before I talk to the council?" He noticed Hiccup slipping so he bumped him up. Definitely too domestic, holding a child ruins any tough Viking image. He tightened his grip on Hiccup.
"I think we covered everything." Orange Eye smiled, "I'll leave you to discuss it. I hope your yak gets better." He said to Hiccup.
"I don't." Hiccup pouted, "The dragons can have him. He hurted me."
"Hurt, Hiccup, not 'hurted.' I've told you not to climb on the furniture." Stoick said. "I will talk to them tomorrow and let you know." He stopped moving when he noticed he had been swaying slightly. It was habit to do that when he held Hiccup, had been since the boy was a baby. Stoick decided not to have strangers in his house again till Hiccup was older.
"Thank you." Orange Eye bowed. The pirate pretended he didn't notice but his eyes didn't miss anything. Stoick really didn't trust him. "You might try tying it outside as a sacrifice next dragon raid. All the other yaks will think twice before hurting you." He winked at the boy.
Hiccup tipped his head, "Srcyfice? Like a goat for Odin?"
The Chief sighed and opened the door, "I will talk to you tomorrow." The Captain nodded and left. Shutting the door Stoick looked at his son, "You are not to go out during a dragon raid. And stay away from the fire. Do you understand?"
Hiccup nodded absently, clearly thinking about something else.
"Hiccup. Do you understand?"
"Yup." Hiccup pushed at his dad's arm, indicating that he wanted down.
"Get ready for bed." Stoick told him as he put the boy down. "Not upstairs, Hiccup. Get ready for bed." He steered his son away from the steps and toward the bedroom. He'd have to make sure Hiccup didn't follow up on the stupid sacrifice idea.
A/N: This was a story idea that just didn't fit in with Of Fathers and Nightmares. Plus, eight seemed a little too old for Hiccup to be blurting out that he thought the stranger in his house had been burnt. He would at least know to shut up about it when warned by Stoick, but six is young enough that he simply wouldn't catch on.
There will be more stories with One Eye Rob'n because he's a fun character, mostly when I need a break from working on OFN and the other story in progress.
Special thanks again to CB not only for editing but also naming Orange Eye Rob'n :)