Happy New Years everyone! With 2013 gone I hope you all have a wonderful 2014. Hope everyone made sound (and reasonable resolutions).
This chapter skips around a bit since I'm assuming anybody reading this has at least seen the movie – I figured most wouldn't want a rehashing of something they already saw. Also, in order to establish something of a timeline, I assumed the HTTYD gang were 14-15 years old during the events of the movie.
NOTE: Still don't own anything HTTYD. It's probably a good thing, since I would've probably messed up an excellent movie and story.
Chapter 2: Things Forgotten
Ever since his encounter with Toothless (yes he did name the Night Fury), Hiccup had discovered many things about dragons that no one ever dared. Who in their right mind would ever attempt to make friends with a dragon, let alone try to fly it? Who knew that dragons were more like pets and were quite docile when not threatened? These and other things Hiccup had discovered in the weeks following his meeting.
Everything was going great for him. He was doing well in school, people were noticing him and even his classmates where acknowledging his skill set. As Gobber had put it, Hiccup was being swarmed by his 'new-found fans.' There were things he would do with and to the dragons that was bewildering to the mind. Gronckles, Hideous Zipplebacks and even the Deadly Nadders were no match for the skill of the chief's son.
Yep; Hiccup's dreams were all coming true, except for one thing…Astrid.
He definitely did not understand the mind of any female, let alone the blond-haired Viking for whom he had fallen. He thought she would come to appreciate this new skill he had found and come to finally accept him as it seemed everyone else had done. He was so off the mark – she initially found it annoying and then that annoyance turned into jealousy which eventually became anger. How was it that this wimp, this un-Viking, became one of the most successful students (and Viking) in all of Berk?
Hiccup came to realize this and tried to make sure he distanced himself from her. He still liked her, but he also knew she had a temper and didn't want to cross her. However, if he didn't want to cross her, then why was he so careless that day when heading to the cove? Why had he been so careless when taking down that Gronckle? Hiccup should have let Astrid take it down; then maybe she would be the one given the opportunity to kill their first dragon instead of him.
If he hadn't been so careless, he wouldn't be in his current predicament; he was preoccupied with leaving the island ever since the decision and he wasn't really paying attention to his surroundings. Had he, he would have noticed that Astrid followed him to the cove. Now he was sitting on Toothless, with the poor girl hanging from a very small branch at the top of a very tall tree.
'I'm not listening to anything you have to say!' Astrid was yelling at him and there was no way he would be able to keep his secret about Toothless if she went back to the village in her current state.
Several minutes later…
Life had an interesting way of turning things around. One minute Astrid was yelling at him for kidnapping her and the other minute she was apologizing for her actions and enjoying the ride with the chief's son and black beast. Now she and Hiccup both found themselves in a huge dark cavern that reeked of sulfur and death. The heat was heavy and suffocating, making an already worse situation all the more unbearable. Somehow they had made it out and were back at the cove where everything started. Oh…and Astrid was yelling at him again.
"I can't believe you want to hide this from the village, just for the sake of your pet?!" He understood where the blond was coming from, but he had to do it his way. If they just walked into the village and proclaimed the discovery they had made, what would the adults have done? They would have acted like Vikings and gone after the nest, hoping to end the conflict once and for all.
Hiccup knew that there was no way they would accomplish their goal especially with the great beast that commanded the other dragons. He still shuddered as he remembered the giant head that came and swallowed the Gronckle whole. His initial fascination was quickly overrun by fear; a fear that if that beast ever came out, nothing would be able to stand in its way. With this he formulated a plan…
Nothing ever goes as planned…first Hiccup tried to show the villagers that the dragons were harmless, but that turned awry when his father tried to stop the match. Next thing he knows, everything is chaos and anger as his father realized the truth behind Hiccup's success. He had already taken Toothless and now he and most of the capable Vikings were headed to the dragons' island, not realizing the doom they were to bring upon themselves.
His fellow Vikings were more accepting of Hiccup's methods and with some help from Astrid they were all headed to the island. Toothless needed to be saved but more importantly, they needed to stop their parents and friends from making the costliest mistake of their lives.
It had been a little more than 3 years since the liberation of the dragons from the Red Death. Things were going great on Berk and everyone had learned to live peacefully with the dragons. Stoick and the rest of the village had come to the understanding that even though he may not have been their type of Viking, all they needed was a little more of Hiccup to fully appreciate the boy.
Every day was a new adventure for Hiccup and the gang. Stoick had given them permission to use the arena for their new dragon training academy. It was here they would spend countless hours classifying and cataloguing their dragons and any new ones they discovered on their adventures. They would learn various flying maneuvers, fighting techniques and anything else needed to gain full knowledge of the beasts with which they made their homes.
Never in his wildest dreams did Hiccup ever think any of this would have been possible. His classmates who had once shunned and made fun of him were now his closest friends – even Snotlout admired the skill of the chief's son, although he would never admit it outright. This was all great for him, but the best thing to come of all this was Astrid.
It had taken some time, but the events of her first dragon ride, his near-death encounter with the Red Death and the way he had come out of his shell since then, made Astrid realize her feelings for the boy she once thought less than. Hiccup had become more outgoing and social with the gang and as his second-in command at the academy, Astrid was always at his side.
They were an official couple in the eyes of the village even though they may have never come out and announced it. No one could deny that they were a perfect match for each other and complimented each other in more ways than one. While he was leader of their group, if there ever was a need for a bit of muscle and assertiveness, Astrid was there. On the reverse, when Astrid couldn't handle a situation due to a lack of tactfulness, Hiccup was there to offer compassion and patience.
When not in the academy, they spent their time together flying around the island and over the ocean. Sometimes they would journey to other islands and on occasion they would even visit the former home of the dragons where Hiccup defeated the Red Death. It was unnerving at first; each visit drew them closer as they both realized what they had almost lost that day. When they weren't flying or exploring, sometimes the two would just sit on a cliff overlooking the torrential waters below just talking with each other.
Hiccup cherished this almost more than the flying. Sure flying was great, with the wind in their faces and the ocean spraying water at them as they broke high speeds over the crystal depths below them. But spending these silent moments with his girlfriend, getting to know one another – their likes and dislikes; that's what made his life happy. During these special talks, Hiccup came to realize that Astrid wasn't as hard and scary as he once thought. Among other things, he found that her favorite color was blue, she loved the sunset and ever since she was a little girl, always wanted to know what was beyond the island of Berk.
Beneath the rough exterior was an intelligent and kind-hearted woman. By no means was she girly, but she would reveal her innermost thoughts and feelings to Hiccup during their talks, especially those of her early childhood and how rough some of it had been. Some of the memories she told saddened Hiccup and she would shed the occasional tear, but they would always be followed up with a quick punch to his shoulder with the warning that he would be dead if he ever told anyone. Of course, he would never tell anyone anything she relayed – such a thing would break her trust and he would never do anything to hurt her.
Hiccup had already walked Astrid to her house on their way back from one of their talks and just arrived at his house. It was late and Stoick was already snoring like a Yak on his armchair. Hiccup let him be and decided to head upstairs for bed. Toothless was already on his perch and was still awake awaiting the return of his master and friend. 'Hey buddy' Hiccup said as he entered the room. The dragon came down and nudged him, glad that he was home. Toothless seemed a bit playful but Hiccup was tired and wanted to get some rest. He began to climb into bed when Toothless barked at him. Hiccup told him to quiet so as not to wake Stoick. He walked over to the dragon, scratched his head and told him to go to sleep. The boy began to return to his bed, but Toothless barked again at him. Again, Hiccup told him to quiet, but there was something the Night Fury wanted his master to see. Hiccup obliged and walked over to the dragon who was pointing to a note on the wall. He realized it was the reminder he wrote for himself regarding Astrid's birthday and to not forgot a gift for her. 'Thanks for the reminder buddy' he said to his dragon. Sauntering to his bed, he climbed in and blew out the candle ready for a good night's sleep.
A couple of minutes later however, he awoke with a startle, 'Oh gods! Her birthday is tomorrow!'
To some people seeing the chief's son running around like a Gronckle with its tail missing was nothing new. There were several mornings when he would be up before anyone else because he found something new about dragons or had a new invention he was working on. Unfortunately, for the poor boy, this was not one of those mornings. Since the realization of not having a present for Astrid weighed heavily on him, he had not slept the remainder of the night. He was currently in Gobber's workshop trying to think of something he could put together for his girlfriend.
He had been busy throughout the week with various tasks. There was the all day town meeting to discuss Berk's relations with the Outcasts and Alvin's futile attempts at the dragons. The next several days he had then spent between the academy, workshop and town doing minor repairs on some of the houses after the recent lightning storm. He knew her birthday was coming and because of the little time he would have to himself, the note was made as a reminder. How could he have forgotten and left himself in such a precarious position?
Whatever it was, he couldn't be bothered by something he didn't do; he had to focus on a gift for Astrid. And that would be the difficult part – there was no time for him to come up with something elaborate as he had done in years past. He wanted this to be a special birthday for her and really make something nice. The first gift was a small shield made up of the scales from Toothless when he first found him.
He knew dragon scales were very resilient to damage which is why they could take beating after beating. However he was bored one night and after some tinkering found that under the constant heat of dragon fire, the scales would break down and become malleable, able to be molded into any shape imaginable. Of course, he didn't have enough of his dragon's scales to work with and he wasn't going to ask Toothless or any of the other dragons for their hide. So the shield he made for her, though too small to be used in combat, was still wonderfully crafted with the Hofferson family emblem blazoned in the middle.
The next year he had crafted a brand new battleaxe for her and made the hilt from some more of the remaining scales he had. It took several days to make each of these gifts – something that was not available to him this time around. And besides, there were only 3 scales left – what would he have been able to do with them anyway? What was he going to get Astrid?
Speaking of which, the person in question had somehow been able to sneak upon him, 'Hey Hiccup!' There was a clash and bang of swords and other weapons falling to the ground as her simple greeting startled her unprepared boyfriend. 'Oh gods! Are you ok Hiccup?'
He moaned as he picked himself up, rubbing his head where the side of a shield had greeted it on its way to the ground. 'Hey Astrid – oh gods, Astrid! Wha..wha..what are you doing here?'
She eyed him suspiciously and he got nervous. 'Well its morning and I wanted to say hi to my boyfriend. You weren't at your house so I checked the next place I thought you'd be. Is it crime to see you this early in the morning and why were you so startled to see me? Wait! Did you forget what day it was today?'
Great! Hiccup was hoping against all hope that she wouldn't remember. What was he going to do now? He fumbled for some words – he really didn't want to tell her he had forgotten about her birthday, but he also didn't want to lie to her. 'Astrid, I…um…we…forgot…'
'I knew it! Hiccup, how are people going to depend on you if you can't even remember a simple event we had planned for today? Don't you remember that we were going to fly to the dragon's island to find herbs, flowers and anything else that could be used as medicine for the dragons? I thought you'd remember especially since Snotlout has been grumbling about this trip all week. Something about his manly pride and this being something left for women…Don't you remember, I punched him in the gut for that last comment?'
He did remember that conversation but did he really just dodge a bullet with that last statement? 'Oh! That's right – thanks for the reminder Astrid. Give me a few more minutes and I'll meet you and the rest of the gang at the academy.' This seemed to appease her as she gave him a quick kiss and headed in the direction of the academy.
When she was out of sight he let out a breath that he didn't realize he was holding. He bought himself a bit more time to think, but this trip was still going to eat at the remainder of the day that he could use to procure a gift. Gods! He loved her so much and didn't want to disappoint her. Who knows, maybe he would find some inspiration during the trip; either way, time was running out and he needed an idea, fast.
It was midday and the gang had already spent several hours on the southern half of the dragon island. It was a barren wasteland and as such, there was barely anything they could find that would be of any help. They had found some small shrubs, weeds and a few berries, but flowers were almost non-existent. They were going to head home but at the suggestion of Fishlegs, they decided to fly around to the northern half of the island, to the cave where the Red Death had once made its home. Fishlegs knew that dragon bones could be ground up and was hoping they would find some.
Their arrival at the site reminded them of the terrible fight and near-destruction of the Vikings by the fearsome beast. The mouth of the cave was all but sealed with almost half the mountain collapsed over the entrance. There was little hope of finding anything useful, but they landed nonetheless and began their search.
'Let's head home guys' Hiccup announced to everyone. 'We've been out here for a couple of hours and haven't found much of anything. Let's bring back what we have and see what we can do with it.' Everyone agreed and mounting their dragons, began the ride back home. Hiccup was already on Toothless and about to catch up with the others when he spotted something almost dangling off the face of the mountain. He guided his dragon towards it and once he got closer, realized it was a flower. It was deep blue with violet rims on the edge of its six long petals. Never would he have thought that something so beautiful would grow in such a forsaken place. 'How did you, such a delicate thing, survive in such a harsh environment?' As he thought about this, a single thought occurred to him. 'Buddy, I think I just realized what I could get for Astrid and there still might be time to pull this off. Come on, let's catch up with the others – we have a lot of work to do.' And with that, dragon and rider flew towards the place they called home.
Upon reaching Berk, the gang gathered at the academy to review their findings. Hiccup was about to excuse himself when Astrid stopped him, 'Hiccup where are you going? What's the rush?'
'I…uh…just realized there's something I have to do for Gobber. You guys can take care of things here' he said hurriedly.
'Well is it something that I can help you with?' Astrid asked.
'No!' he said a little more forcefully then he meant. He immediately flinched and turned back to the group. Everyone had cocked their eyebrows at him and Astrid was eyeing him suspiciously. She was about to say something when Hiccup jumped on Toothless' back and flew off. 'I'll see you later' they heard him shout back.
'Hmph' Astrid mumbled as she crossed her arms and walked back to the group. Hiccup was up to something and she was going to find out one way or the other. 'Come on guys. Let's take care of this quickly. When we're done here, Fishlegs there's something I need you to do for me.'
So there's chapter 2 you guys. Hopefully I'm not too obvious, but does anyone know or have a faint idea as to what Hiccup might get for Astrid?
Please leave comments and review. Authors love to hear back from their readers and so do I.
-RRP
