Broken

Chapter 2: Guardian

It was a gorgeous night for flying. The full moon bathed the water below in spectral light and pierced the high thin clouds above. The only sound was the wind and the occasional seabird. Underneath her she felt the slight shifting of Folkvardr's wing muscles as he used the brisk sea breeze to keep them aloft. If she concentrated, she could also feel the faint rhythm of his heartbeat.

Clenching her mitten covered fists tighter around the hand grips of the saddle, she carefully leaned left to look at the black expanse of water below. It was difficult to tell how high they were flying. The reflection of moonlight on the water gave no good way to judge the distance between the back of her Nadder and the icy surface of the ocean. Looking to her right, she could see the faint glow of the fires burning in Berk.

They were slowly making their way home, braving the early spring weather. A furred cowl covered her head while a heavy wool jacket kept her body warm. She'd even taken to wearing a thick scarf over her nose and mouth while flying in the cold night air. Walking through the village in such weather was nothing to be concerned about, but the air higher up where a dragon could fly was surprisingly colder and could even be painful on exposed skin.

Folkvardr dipped a wing to angle them toward their home and began flapping a little harder. Seeing those welcoming fires made him eager to land. Astrid had no doubt he was hungry too and ready for his share of their afternoon's work.

She'd never imagined her life would be so fulfilling so early on. Half a year ago she'd spent every day preparing to join the never ending battle each villager fought against the dragons that raided them for food. She'd practiced and fought and impatiently waited for the day when she would become a guardian of her village. The days had promised a life that was never dull and always full of challenge.

Then her friend Hiccup turned the whole world upside down.

He learned things and did things that ultimately made life in Berk better than she had thought possible. He turned their greatest enemies into their strongest allies. His friendship with a Night Fury he called Toothless eventually resulted in the destruction of a single, terrifyingly powerful dragon they posthumously called 'The Red Death.' That, in turn, had released all the other dragons to behave as they wanted. And many dragons had since found a life in Berk, as pets to the villagers.

That's when Astrid found that flying on the back of a dragon was far and away more exhilarating than fighting it. To command something so powerful and dangerous while soaring in the air like a bird was a feeling she found she craved. Sometimes it was almost overwhelming. It spoke to her, sang in her blood like nothing else she'd ever experienced. Thanks to Hiccup, she'd left her hatred of dragons behind and had come to love them. No one could ask for a better pet.

But they were more than just pets. Even Astrid had to admit that. The creatures that had once threatened the very existence of Berk were now crucial to its survival.

The devastating battle they'd fought against The Red Death had left Berk barely able to feed itself. Most of their ships had been destroyed so it was very difficult to get hunters to the other nearby islands around Berk to seek game. Fishing had become harder, as well. And so her desire to be a guardian of her village became a reality. Just not the way she had expected.

All the skills she'd learned for the purpose of fighting dragons had been easily turned to hunting skills. She'd decided to learn to use a bow and began listening to Einarr, the master huntsman. The fierce determination she'd shown in learning to wield an axe she applied to her new weapon of choice. She'd learned quickly and become deadly accurate with it. Einarr taught her how to stalk and take down game animals. What she knew of fighting dragons gave her an edge in going after deer, boar and wild sheep.

So here she now was, riding her dragon Folkvardr and coming home from a successful hunt. The buck her Nadder clutched in his talons would help fill Berk's larders and help keep her kin from starving. Astrid could imagine no greater feeling, no higher role she could serve. Behind her thick gray scarf she smiled with ultimate satisfaction.

As they came in she saw Sigrid against the flames of the watchtower fire. His high perch over the harbor gave him a clear view of both ships and dragons coming in to Berk during the day. At night, however, he could only keep the fire burning brightly to help guide those coming home in darkness.

Astrid leaned forward, careful of the sharp spikes that ringed her Nadder's large head and rubbed his throat. "Let's let Sigrid know we're coming," she said. Folkvardr gave a chuckling rumble in answer before he bellowed in full voice. She saw Sigrid's head turn toward them and he waved in greeting.

Once they were in range of the firelight, she pulled back slightly on the saddle to get Folkvardr to hover near the sentry. "Is everyone else in?" she yelled.

"Aye, Astrid," Sigrid answered. "You're the last. I see you did well!"

"My biggest one yet!"

They each waved once more as Astrid coaxed her Nadder toward the central hall. Sigrid would now let the fire burn down and head for his own home. She had other things to attend to.

Although it was full dark, there was still some activity in Berk. The lights of the hall were burning. Doubtless some folks were still eating or having a game of dice or knucklebones. As Folkvardr landed with a gentle thump he called out in his croaking voice. Moments later Freya came out to find Astrid pulling the saddle off his back while the Nadder's head bobbed over the carcass of the deer.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "Now that will fill many a stew pot!" She smiled at her niece and headed inside to get her carving blade. Minutes later she had one of the buck's hind legs neatly severed. She started work on the other one as Astrid picked up the haunch and offered it to her dragon. The Nadder carefully took it after snuffling her forehead a moment. He flew off with the leg dangling from his mouth, obviously happy with his lot.

As Freya worked to separate the second hind leg Astrid pulled off her mittens and other riding gear. She folded her cowl and mittens up into the jacket and tied the whole bundle with her scarf. "How did the rest do?" she asked her aunt.

"Oh, not bad. Not quite as good as yours, but helpful all the same. Little Spitlout found some duck eggs and I think his father's going to try to hatch them out. He has an idea he might be able to raise them for meat." The older woman made the last few cuts and the hindquarter fell from the deer's body. "Here you go, dear. And don't forget to hang it up to drain first."

The haunch was quite heavy, but she was able to carry it the short distance to her house without dragging it. Once there, she hung the meat on an empty hook hanging from the eaves. On one of the other hooks dangled several large fish. They hadn't been there when she'd left that morning. Astrid assumed her mother had traded one of the beautifully dyed wool blankets she was so skilled at making for the haddock. She looked closer at the fish and found them all whole and unmarked. That meant they had been netted rather than caught by one of the dragons who'd been taught to fish.

Inside the house her parents were just sitting down to a meal. They were happy to hear of the extra meat hanging outside and listened to her story of tracking the buck on one of the closer islands near Berk. Afterward she declared she would take a walk around the village.

"If you're going toward Hiccup's house, would you take that new tunic I made for him?" her mother asked. "He said he'd make us a new hinge for the door." With a hesitant smile, she agreed.

If there was anything less than perfect in her life now, it was Hiccup. There was still a soft ache in her heart for what could have been between them. She told herself often that it simply hadn't been meant to happen, that they were very different people. Most times that was enough. But sometimes she would think back to what they'd been through together, the changes she'd seen in him as he'd been forced to grow up faster than he'd wanted. She'd seen a true spark of Viking courage in him then. She'd watched him fight as hard as anyone ever had to protect everything he cared about.

And afterward she'd watched him become once again quiet and withdrawn. He'd started trying to drown himself in his craft of smithing, or hide himself behind the curious puzzles he discovered about dragons. His attention was always on the things around him, never on the people. Never on her.

Astrid wasn't the only one he failed to notice. Ruffnut had also found his new strength attractive and tried to gain his favor, only to find her interest ignored. Within a week, however, her own interest faded away and she sought other potentials.

As she approached Hiccup's house she glanced at the open-ended addition that he called his smithy. Unlike Gobber's smithy there were never any coals in the forge, no smoke coming from the chimney. She didn't understand how he worked any metal when he didn't have anything with which to heat it. But such strangeness was commonplace with Hiccup.

Astrid also glanced up at the roof of the house, a likely place to find Toothless snoozing. That was more common behavior for the daytime, though. As it was well after dark, she was not surprised to see no sign of him there. With a soft sigh, she approached the door and knocked.

Hiccup himself opened the door. He seemed surprised to see her there, but stepped aside and invited her in. The inside of his house was dark except for one corner where he had several candles burning. The hearth fire had been allowed to go down to smoldering coals and gave off no useful light. In that dim space she could see the large form of Toothless, though only after he lifted his head to stare at her. His eyes caught the candle light and reflected it as a faint yellow glow. His growling purr of delight at seeing her filled the room and brought a smile to her face.

She stepped closer to the lounging dragon and placed a hand under his wide chin to scratch there in comfortable familiarity. "Hey Toothless. Nice to see you." The black dragon nuzzled her arm and shoulder before giving her a single lick on her neck.

"How was your hunt?" Hiccup asked. He'd sat at the small work table where the candles burned. A large collection of scattered papers and a few open books covered its surface.

"Pretty good. I got a nice sized buck." She glanced briefly at him before giving Toothless a parting pat on his snout. "It was a tricky shot. He didn't want to come out from behind a tree." She took a few steps toward him, holding out the tunic. "This is for you, from my mother."

"Hmm?" He took it from her, looking confused for a moment. "Oh, the hinge, yeah. I'm almost done with it." He looked at the tunic, much like the one he was wearing. His fingers rubbed the softened wool, traced the leather strips that closed the neck and sleeves. "It's at Gobber's place. I didn't have the stock." He stopped speaking when he noticed the detail around the hem of the neck. Yellow circles in pairs followed the hem from the front to the back. Each pair of circles had dark centers, some wide and some narrow. "Are these..."

"His eyes," she confirmed. "My mother thought you might like it."

With a faint, shy smile he said, "Yes. Yes, very much." He looked up at her. And the instant he did, that tiny wince crossed his expression. She'd come to realize it meant being near her caused him some kind of quiet pain. "Would...would you thank her for me?" He looked down at the ring of Night Fury eyes that circled the neck of his new tunic.

Astrid stepped back. "Sure." And wanted to say more, wanted to ask him a dozen questions she didn't know how to ask. She looked around for a moment, as lost as he was. Then she realized something was amiss. "Stoick's out?"

"Yeah. Anvindr asked him if he wanted to go hunting on the east shore. Dad was more than happy to go." Hiccup's expression became distant, another sign she'd learned during the last few months. Apparently he and Stoick were still having trouble understanding one another. Astrid didn't understand Hiccup's problem on that count. There were no more secrets between them, no more disagreements about what Hiccup spent his time doing. He had found his place in the village and earned respect for his unusual talents with dragons. He was even doing some things with his smithing that had impressed Gobber.

So why, she wondered, did he often act as though nothing had changed?

Pushing her frustration aside, she pointed to the drawings and notes underneath his elbow. "So what are you working on now?"

He glanced down. "This? It's a new dragon manual."

Astrid leaned closer, trying to make out some of the words and pictures. "You're writing a new dragon manual?"

Hiccup nodded. "The old one was all wrong anyway. We need a new one. One that teaches about riding dragons. And taking care of them." He stared at his notes, then turned to her. "I could use your help."

"My help?" She was quite surprised by his request. "What could I possibly do? I don't write."

"You've been riding a Nadder longer than anyone else. You know more about them. Would you tell me what you know so I can put it in the manual?"

Astrid blinked in surprise. She'd never thought about it that way. She'd simply ridden her dragon and learned hunting. Knowing more about her species of dragon than anyone else had never occurred to her. "Well, yeah, I guess. Sure."

He turned back to his notes. "I'm working on the Gronckles right now. It'll be a while."

The more she thought about it the more the idea appealed to her. "Huh, I never would have thought of writing a new dragon manual. It's a good idea."

"Mmm," he said softly. "Assuming anyone ever reads it."

Astrid's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean? Everyone will need to read it. You said it yourself; the old one was all wrong."

Hiccup looked up at her with a pained expression.

"What?"

"Haven't you noticed?" His voice was strained.

"Noticed what? What are you talking about?"

His gaze drifted back to his work table again. His eyes closed and his expression became grim, as though he contemplated something personally hurtful.

"I think most people in the village still don't like dragons. Or don't trust them. Both, probably."

She scoffed. "Come on, Hiccup. That's silly." Thinking about her hunt that afternoon, she added, "Berk would be in real trouble without dragons now. I mean, we use them for hunting and fishing, they wander all over the village, little kids play with them. We ride them, for Odin's sake!"

"No," he replied. "Most of us don't." He looked up at her again. "I've noticed. It's almost always the younger ones that ride. Most of the older folks don't go near them unless they have to."

Astrid shook her head. "That's not true, lots of people fly dragons. They... well they..." She stopped, surprised. She tried to think of names of people who she knew rode the dragons that now seemed to call Berk their home. The more she tried, the more she realized Hiccup had a point. After the battle, everyone in the village had tried their hand at riding a dragon. Now, very few actually continued the practice. She'd been so caught up in riding Folkvardr that she hadn't really paid attention.

With a shrug, she said, "Well, so what? Most people probably still have too much other work to do to spend any time riding dragons. We still need to cut wood and make bread and mend nets and stuff."

"I don't think that's it. I'm afraid most people aren't ever going to really like dragons. They've hated them too long to know how to feel any other way."

She didn't really have an answer for that. She shook her head and said, "Look, none of that really matters anyway. What's important is that Vikings and dragons aren't fighting each other any more. Dragons are our friends now, and that's the way it should be."

Hiccup didn't seem convinced.

With a sigh, she added, "Look, if it worries you that much, maybe you should go talk to Freygerd about it. Maybe she can explain it."

He gave a slight nod. "I suppose you're right."

"Of course I'm right." She grinned at him. "You should be used to that by now."

A faint smile pulled at his lips. Astrid figured that was the best she would get from him. It was better than nothing.

"I'm heading home. I'll see you later." She moved toward the door, stopping by Toothless' shadowy form to stroke his shoulder in parting. He gave a content rumble in response.

With her hand on the Night Fury's warm, scaly hide, she had another thought. She looked back at her friend.

"You know, there's something else you should consider."

Hiccup looked her way. "What?"

"Maybe most Vikings are afraid of flying."

"Vikings?" he said incredulously. "Afraid?"

Astrid patted Toothless' shoulder. "I seem to remember my first time on a dragon's back started off with a lot of screaming on my part."

Now Hiccup looked confused. "I don't think..."

"Doesn't it ever bother you? When you're up really high?" She gave Toothless another pat and suddenly felt a need to say something she would never tell anyone else. "It does me. Sometimes." She felt an unexpected heat in her cheeks and turned toward the dragon, hoping Hiccup wouldn't notice. "Don't get me wrong, I love flying. It's the greatest thing in the world. But sometimes...I mean...what if you fell off?" The instant the words were out of her mouth, she wished she hadn't spoken them. She didn't like weakness of any kind. Admitting to her fear made her feel weak and she hated it. Several moments passed in silence, and she felt even worse that he didn't say anything. Finally, he did speak, his voice hushed.

"I did once."

She turned back toward him, her blush forgotten. "You...what?"

He looked from her to Toothless. "One of the first times I rode him. I was trying out the new controls for his tail fin. We went straight up, way up." His voice became a whisper. "I made a mistake. I fell off. I nearly killed both of us." He was just staring at his dragon, thinking back on that terrifying moment. "I still have nightmares about it sometimes."

She stared at him, utterly surprised. "I didn't know."

He gave a slight shrug. "I never told anyone."

"But...you didn't die. You kept flying."

"I had to," he replied. He was staring at Toothless as if the dragon were the only thing that existed. "He can't fly without me."

Astrid looked at the Night Fury. Toothless was staring calmly back at Hiccup. She looked from one to the other, wondering what she was seeing. For several moments, nothing else happened. Hiccup and his dragon simply gazed at one another. Then he said something so quietly she couldn't quite make it out. It sounded like, "Not yet."

"What?"

Hiccup shook his head and pushed away from his work desk. He rubbed his leg where wood and metal met damaged flesh. "Nothing. I'm just tired."

"Yeah," she said softly, feeling confused. "Well, good night." She turned to go, her eyes catching the reflection of Toothless' in the dim light. Now the dragon was staring directly at her, the faintest purring growl coming from the back of his throat. Her gaze was caught for a timeless moment, and she found herself thinking strange thoughts about her strange friend and his strange dragon. "Good night," she said again, this time to Hiccup's companion.

As she walked back toward the mead hall to get her riding clothes and go home, she couldn't help wondering if Hiccup's strangeness had affected his dragon. Or if perhaps Toothless was just as strange among dragons as his rider was among Vikings.

She stopped walking as a disturbing thought came to her. What if such strangeness were catching? Maybe that would explain the thoughts that were trying to form in her own mind. Thoughts about how similar Hiccup and Toothless really were. As if somehow they were the same person, in two different forms.

But that made no sense. Dragons weren't people.


(c)Wirewolf 2011

"How to train your dragon" and all attendant characters are copyright

Dreamworks Animation and used without permission

Author's note:

I had to make a few changes to the story listing. I didn't realize the rating and character attributes were story-wide and not chapter-by-chapter. "Broken" is now rated T for future chapters and lists Hiccup and Toothless as principles rather than Hiccup and Stoick.