Part of HTTYD: The Terrible Duo.
Berk, No one's POV
It was a calm and peaceful night at berk. Not surprisingly, all the villagers were surprised that there were no sight of dragons. Some were relieved that they didn't have to be out there fighting for their lives. Some were a bit disappointed that they couldn't go kill some dragons(You all know a few of those, people).
Of course no one complained... All was calm.
Except for a certain young boy.
Inside the house, was a bed. And on the bed, was the troubled child. Tossing and turning with tears streaming down his face.
Tonight I'm so alone, This sorrow takes a hold
Don't leave me... It's so cold
"Mommy!" Screamed the boy, jolting up from his bed.
The boy looked around the room, as if searching for something.
Sadly, There was none.
He sighed and slumped back to his bed. He didn't know how long it had been. Days? Weeks? Months maybe? He lost track...
Your touch used to be so kind
Your touch used to give me life
He missed them dearly. When he saw the ships come back, he was excited. When he went down to search for his parents, he couldn't find them. He asked Chief Stoick where they were...
But the answer he was given wasn't what he wanted...
Stoick said they 'Went somewhere'... He didn't believe him... Why would they leave without telling him? His parents always did say he was smart, for someone of his age. He put two and two together and in an instant...
His whole world shattered like glass...
I've waited all this time...
I've wasted so much time
He didn't believe himself... They weren't dead... Right? His parents were strong Vikings... They can't just die.
As a result, He would go down the dock and stare at the vast sea... Waiting... Hoping for the sight of his parents.
He just wanted them back... To see that proud smile on their faces, To feel his father patting him on the back, To hear his Mother's lullabies when he's about to sleep... None of those were granted.
Don't leave me alone... 'Cause I barely see at all
Don't leave me alone... I'm falling in the black
Stoick told him that it was the dragon's fault... That he will avenge them and all the lives that were lost... He didn't believe that as well... He had long since stopped believing what comes out of the chief's mouth. How could it be the dragons fault? Swift was a dragon... And he didn't kill anyone.
Falling in the depths... Can I ever go back?
Dreaming of the way it used to be...
Speaking of Swift, He was the only reason he hadn't possibly turned insane... He was the one that comforted him at night and he would always be there to help him when he would break down from depression.
Don't leave me here like this...
Can't hear me scream from the abyss
Poor Marcus... Losing his parents at the young age of six. Then again, Hiccup didn't even knew his mother... She was assumed dead. Well, assumed was the key word. She could still be alive, right?
But Marcus's? No...
Falling in the black... Slipping through the cracks
Falling to the depths... Can I ever go back?
As one can guess, It had severely affected his life. He rarely goes out, doesn't look anyone in the eye nor could he even eat a full meal... Sure he still eats but... in a small amount.
Speaking of outside...
Morning
Hiccup woke up with a yawn. Of course this was natural. He got out of bed then he did his daily routine. The day seemed normal.
He then ran through the door and went to the forge. Gobber was about to teach him about... something. He forgot.
Once he reached the place, He saw Gobber with an expectant look on his face.
"Well, lad. Glad to see you up. Now let's begin in sword sharpening." Gobber said.
Hiccup scanned the room in search of a certain someone...
None... Again.
He sighed. He was really worried about Marcus. He was his only friend. They used to go to the forge together...
Nearly three months had passed since then... He couldn't blame Marcus. After all, He did lost both of his parents. Sure, hiccup didn't knew his mother and Stoick usually pays little-to-none attention to him... But, compared to Marcus's loss, Hiccup seemed lucky(At least that's what he thinks).
Gobber noticed the sadness in his apprentice #1's(The other being Marcus) look and sighed as well. He knew how close the two really were. They'd always come up with the most craziest of ideas. The latest being a remote controlled explosion, consisting of gun powder(don't ask where they got that) and a burnt underpants...Again don't ask.
"Look, lad. I know you're upset that Marcus isn't here but you know he needs some time to himself." Gobber said to hiccup.
"But how long? He rarely comes outside! The only time he ever did was when he needed to get food! And he looked like a recently buried draugr!" Hiccup yelled. He never raised his voice against people(It usually got him in trouble), but when it's about about his best friend... That's where he puts his foot down.
Gobber was taken aback by hiccup's sudden outburst. But he understood... And he was quite right. He hasn't seen Marcus for a while and he really did looked like a draugr, what with his pale body, baggy eyes and sluggish movement. Honestly, who wouldn't worry...?
'Scratch that. There are other people out there who has no concern over others.' Gobber thought.
Hiccup grunted and left the forge. He needed to know what happened to Marcus. What if he... No. He wouldn't do that... Maybe. He'll check.
Marcus's House
He stared at his duplicate in the mirror. There are many words to describe the reflection...
Broken, shattered, An empty shell... A cold one at that.
A chirp came from behind him.
"Hello, Swift." Marcus greeted, glancing at the small dragon.
Swift chirped again. Swift looked at Marcus with worry. What was a dragon to do? He never had any experiences with hatchlings(He's older than Marcus, of course). Much less a depressed hatchling. He tried everything he knew of what parents do to their offspring. Giving them lullabies, Giving them comforting croons and many more... Yet he was unable to get Marcus even a step closer to recovery.
"Yes... Perhaps you're hungry. I'll go buy some food for us." Marcus said in a monotone way.
Swift growled in disagreement. He hated the fact that Marcus couldn't understand him. If only there was some way to...
*Knock* *Knock*
"Marcus...? You there?" A voice cut through the dragon's thought. Marcus glanced at Swift. Swift nodded in understanding and hid in Marcus's room.
"Coming..." Marcus spoke.
He walked to the door calmly and opened the door, revealing hiccup. He was confused. What was hiccup doing here? Shouldn't he be at the forge?
"Hey, Marcus... Just wanna check on you... You know, If you're alright." Hiccup said nervously, feeling a bit awkward by the emotionless gaze his friend is giving him.
Marcus continued to stare at him before answering, "Yes... I am fine.".
"So... You wanna come out of your house and hang out...?" Hiccup asked.
Marcus raised an eyebrow. He then shrugged. He was going out anyway. He nodded. Hiccup grinned and said, "Great! Come on!".
He beckoned for him to follow. Marcus walked out of his home...
At the plaza
Hiccup couldn't believe it. He somehow managed to get Marcus out of his house! Now they could finally hang out, just like old times! Maybe they could...!
Bump
"Hey! Watch it, runt!"
Oh no...
"S-Snotlout... What a pleasant surprise." Hiccup gulped. Of all the times...
"Yeah. Next time watch where you're going! Or else you're getting a beating from my fist!" Snotlout said.
Hiccup gulped and left the area. He didn't wanna end up in the mud like last time.
Once away from the jerk, He looked around and noticed that he can't see Marcus... He sighed. Guess he just pushed his luck.
However, Marcus was headed to one of the stalls of the market. He needed some fish and bread... He picked out his necessary needs and paid for the stuff. He then left without saying a word.
He, however, wasn't looking where he was going and accidentally bumped into someone he shouldn't.
"Hey! Watch where you're going!" A voice yelled. Already he found it... annoying.
He looked up and saw... A couple of thugs. Ah... Them.
"What?! You deaf, boy?!" The leader, going by the name of Cutthroat, yelled.
He stared at them and just walked away. But was stopped when the large man grabbed him. He grunted.
"Oh no! You ain't waking out of this one! You're gonna learn some respect, boy!" Cutthroat yelled. Marcus grunted again and tried getting rid of the offending hand...
The leader threw him to the ground and then the others surrounded him. They then started punching and kicking him.
Marcus grunted with every hit and remained his stony gaze. Sure it hurts... But it was numbed by the pain he already felt...
"Ha! Look, the fool's not even defending himself! How pathetic!" One of them jeered, making the others laugh.
Marcus gritted his teeth... He wasn't pathetic. Never was... And never will be!
'Kill...'
Marcus ignored that. He took the punches and kicks... And when they were done, they then left him. Marcus groaned and got up. But quickly fell down by his injuries. He just hoped someone was near...
With Hiccup
After walking around the Market, He managed to find Marcus. Needless to say, He nearly had a heart attack. Marcus was covered in bruises and he was coughing up blood. He ran to his side.
"Marcus! What happened?!" Hiccup said.
"... Cutthroat and his... gang." Marcus answered.
Hiccup gritted his teeth. Of course it had to be them. He should have his dad exile them immediately! In fact, Once he got Marcus healed, He's going to march up to his dad and ask, No, Demand that they are to be exiled, never to be seen again and if they were to be seen, they are to be killed!
He carried Marcus, with his shoulder as his support, to Gothi's house.
He didn't knew Marcus had passed out.
Sometime later, At Gothi's Hut
Marcus awoke... Was that just a dream? No... He grunted as the pain spiked a bit. He was at a hut. Not just any hut, It was Gothi's. So... He did got beaten up... By Cutthroat and his gang of misfits.
'You really gonna let them get away?'
Yet again, He ignored that. He did not have time for imaginary voices. He could see Gothi working on... something. As long as the day ends, It didn't matter...
With Hiccup
Like he was thinking about earlier, He was now marching towards his father, who was busy with his duties. He called out to him to get his attention. It worked.
"What is it now, son? Did one of your inventions destroyed something again?" Stoick said, narrowing his eyes at hiccup.
"Okay, Two things! One, No My inventions haven't exploded yet! And two, I demand you exile a certain gang this instant!" Hiccup yelled.
Stoick was... surprised. Hiccup never raised his voice against him.
"Let me guess... Cutthroat and his gang?" At the mention of that, Hiccup and most of the people in the vicinity scowled.
It was no surprise that they hated the gang. The only reason they weren't exiled yet was due to the chief not finding any valid reason. Of course that's now to be corrected.
"Of course them! I just found Marcus beaten to death by them! Who else?!" Hiccup shouted.
Stoick scowled. So hiccup managed to get Marcus out of his house? And Cut throat had beat him?! Bad enough that Marcus was an emotional wreck, now he's beaten up?! Well... Those idiots are really gonna get what's coming for them.
"Alright, hiccup. I'll see what I can do." Stoick said.
Unknown to them, Said gang leader was listening intently...
And he would like a word with the chief's loudmouth.
The next morning
Marcus woke up and saw the ceiling of his own home... Guess they carried him home.
He got up and went downstairs. He checked for injuries... There was... a few.
A bandage at his cheek, another one at his arm and a big one at his abdomen. He shrugged at this...
'If you're not pathetic, then go do something about it! What if they went after hiccup?!'
He would've ignored that... If not for that last one. What if they did go after hiccup? What would he do about that...?
'You should know that...'
He shook his head. He shouldn't... More like, couldn't. They're taller and stronger than him. Plus it is wrong.
He went outside, without even glancing at Swift. Of course, for safety, he grabbed a dagger he got from the forge...
He wondered across the market. He bumped into Snotlout.
"Hey!"
He looked at Snotlout. Then he turned away.
"Aren't you gonna apologize?" Snotlout said in a sort of teasing way.
No... Why should he? There is no reason to do so... He walked away from the angry Snotlout...
Before he heard a scream that's quite familiar...
'That's hiccup's voice...' Marcus thought. He then ran towards the source of the scream.
With Hiccup
Great... He's now surrounded by Cut throat and his gang. He knew he should've stayed at home.
"Leave me alone!" He shouted.
They laughed. "Sorry, boy. But you wanna know what happened to loudmouths?" Cutthroat said in a sickening tone.
'Oh great...' Hiccup thought.
By telling on them, He's probably gonna die... He covered his eyes when they closed in...
"Leave him alone!"
Hiccup opened one of his eyes to see the attention of the gang was directed to the source of the voice...
It was Marcus.
"Hey! It's the pathetic wimp!"
"Oh no! I'm so scared! Hahahaha!"
They were all laughing at Marcus.
"Leave him alone... Or else." Marcus warned them. They kept on laughing.
Cutthroat laughed and stepped closer to Marcus. "Or else what? You gonna call your parents? Oh wait... They're dead!" He said.
That had been the last straw...
Marcus's hand trembled and his pupils shrunk. He... He dares?!
'KILL HIM! HE DOESN'T DESERVE TO LIVE! MAKE HIM SUFFER! KILLHIMKILLHIMKILLHIMKILLHIM!'
Marcus didn't move for a couple of seconds... Until he chuckled. It confused the others.
Chuckles then turned to full blown laughter.
"You're right. My parents are dead... It makes me sad and lonely... But it also gives me joy... Why? Because I can do this!"
In the blink of an eye, He lunged at Cutthroat with a dagger at hand. And stabbed the dagger at his eye.
Said victim screamed in pain before being forced to the ground by Marcus, who was seething with anger. Marcus then punched him in the face repeatedly. With each punch, his fists were being covered with blood.
This is wrong. He shouldn't be doing this...
But it feels soooo good! Who knew being violent was so satisfying?!
Punch after punch, he felt the struggles of Cutthroat die down... Until he couldn't feel it.
He got off him. He stared at his now bloodied hands and at the dead body of Cutthroat(At least, he hoped he was dead). He saw the dagger still embedded in his eye.
He took it and shook off any blood. He looked at the others who were trembling with fear...
He laughed at them.
"Who's next, huh?! Who wants to die?!" Marcus taunted while laughing. He felt so satisfied. Is this what Vikings feel? How... refreshing.
The others ran in fright before they were stopped by a certain chieftain...
Stoick had arrived.
Next Morning
Everything seemed fine...
The gang were exiled(Although most of them were a bit eager) and the body of Cutthroat was disposed of(Not like anyone missed the guy). Hiccup was a bit traumatized by the ordeal, but otherwise fine... He was a bit scared that it was Marcus, his very best friend, was the one who killed the leader. But otherwise, grateful.
Speaking of Hiccup, He's now headed to Marcus's house to thank him(And hope he didn't turn into a mad man). He knocked on the door...
It opened.
Hiccup was expecting a few things. One of them was Marcus with a sadistic look on his face or His room was filled with killing weapons or something like those...
He didn't expect for Marcus to look very healthy. As if what happened a couple of months back didn't happen.
"Hey, Hiccup! Morning!" Marcus greeted as he gave hiccup a hug.
'Well... This is a bit weird.' Hiccup thought.
Once he let hiccup go, He then asked, "So wanna hang out?".
Hiccup didn't know what happened with Marcus's sudden personality switch but decided not to ruin the moment. After all, His friend was okay now!
"Sure! Come on!" He answered.
As hiccup left, Marcus dropped his smile. He's back now. Although, there was another side of him that came with...
Somewhere deep in his mind, He laughed
Don't worry, Hiccup... I'll protect you. We'll be like brothers!