Man, this chapter still took pretty long, but it's here! Hang in there, guys, because here comes the introduction to Toothless!
Oh, and I don't think I did a disclaimer yet, but you all know I own nothing.
Part One: We are Challenging Fate
Chapter Three: Understood and Encountered
Astrid couldn't stop staring at her Medal of Bravery. Earning one on her first day on Berk wasn't too shabby, if she was one to talk. It shined on her cape as she sat in her room, and every time she touched it the clank of the metal resonated throughout her room. It empowered her in a way, and gave her the willpower to open the door and face the next day with that Prince.
She scowled at him, finding it just plain wrong to be asleep when the sun was so high. He had passed out after Arte got him breakfast, even though he fought a battle hard and long to stay awake, claiming he had somewhere to be.
Astrid knew, without a doubt, that he wanted to go out and catch that dragon he shot down the previous night. She wasn't kidding when she had said babysitting him was going to be a handful. He was wily one if she had ever seen one, and that wasn't making her job any easier. So perhaps being a bodyguard to the prince was a good test of her worth? Anyone who could stand him for three months ought to earn a whole cape full of medals.
She walked over to Arte, who was tidying up Hiccup's room a bit, and cleared her throat. Astrid was perfectly inclined to speaking to a woman as she would any other girl, but she had to remind herself that, to everyone, she was Alastair Hofferson, a warrior, and certainly not a girl who partook in chatty talk.
"Does he always sleep this late?" Astrid felt it was right to ask. She had to know the habits of whom she was guarding, after all.
"Yes," Arte rolled her eyes and spoke quietly while she folded some clothes. "Being a nuisance takes a lot out of him."
Astrid didn't respond. She wasn't one to speak badly about the Prince out loud—no matter what was going on in her head—but this woman was a maid! And she always seemed so cheery about her work nonetheless.
"You'll have your hands tied with this one, Alastair." Arte continued, not even waiting for her to respond. "He's always running around thinking he can fight and 'prove himself'. If only he knew his place." She looked over at the sleeping prince. "Sleeping right there in his bed and not thinking he'll rule us all."
"But, the Prince is supposed to take the throne after King Stoick." Astrid gulped, keeping her voice low. Arte was probably correct, but there was something painfully disrespectful in speaking about the Prince that way in his own room. Even if it was in muttered tones.
"Can you imagine what would become of the Viking Kingdom if we all had to seek orders from 'King Hiccup'?" She laughed quietly. "I'd pack up and move further south the quickest of anyone."
"That's nice." Astrid nodded flatly and turned to leave. She was definitely finished with that conversation. Useless or not, it was not her place to speak of the Prince in such manners, and especially not the place of that maid either.
Luckily Arte went to go get some linings for the bed shortly after, but unluckily, and just like that, Hiccup began to stir. Astrid felt her heart drop and she gulped. Had he heard what they were talking about?
"Arte?" Hiccup mumbled.
"No, My Prince, it's me, Alastair." She answered, getting slightly more used to even calling herself by her boy's name. She went over to his bedside and stood perfectly still, watching him as he woke.
"Do you watch me sleep too?" He smirked a bit, his voice groggy. But her serious face was enough to make him wipe the smirk off of his face. His lips dropped and he immediately looked confused. "What? Did I do something wrong in my sleep?"
"No, just thinking." Astrid told him. She was trying to figure him out for the most part. In the many years on Merkskof she had heard rumors of the Useless Prince Hiccup who would never inherit his father's title. And then when she finally made it here, instead of being the clumsy mess she expected he was a prideful outcast. Her conversation with Arte shed light on just what everyone on Berk thought of him, and Astrid had no doubts that Hiccup knew what they thought of him as well. And yet, he still wanted to stay on Berk, still wanted to catch and kill a dragon, and was so damn smug about it.
She frowned and simply stared without thinking of how weird it seemed to Hiccup.
"Umm," He darted his eyes around, sitting up. "Okay. Well, let's get ready." He pulled the covers off of him and revealed his sleeping pants—or really short pants, for that matter.
Astrid's train of thought was snapped and her whole body seemed to rise with a scream that she didn't let escape. It wasn't particularly uncommon to see a man in such an attire—or lack thereof—in Merkskof, but Hiccup was a prince after all, and it was wrong on all four planes for her to see him that way.
But she wasn't a women to him, she remembered. She was supposed to be a guy after all.
"Umm," it was Astrid's turn to mumble. "W-where are we going?"
He grabbed her cape and pulled her down to him. "The dragon I shot down yesterday." He said quietly. "You know…"
"Oh, no!" Astrid stood back up. "You're not feeling well and I'm not saving your butt again just because you wanna run off and do something stupid."
"So sorry, but you're my body guard. Your job isn't to tell me what I can or can't too. It's to guard me no matter what I'm doing." Hiccup got up from the bed and walked over to his clothes. But looked over his shoulder with a satisfied twinkle in his eyes. "Unless…you want me to tell my dad to find someone else…?"
"You wouldn't dare." Astrid narrowed her eyes at him, but the young Prince nearly grinned at her, batting his eyes playfully. "Fine." She agreed to. "But what are we going to tell your father?"
"He's busy today, we won't have to tell him anything as long as we're quiet." Hiccup slipped on his undershirt. "But there's always…"
On cue, Arte entered with fresh linings, not even phased by the Prince's current state of dress and he didn't seem too red about it either.
"Oh, good to see you awake, Prince Hiccup." Arte smiled. There was that cheery exterior Astrid remembered. But it all seemed so deceitful at that point. "I brought some fresh linings for your bed."
"That's good, Arte, put them on for me. Alastair and I are going for a walk."
"It's a little muggy outside, you might want to stay in, My Prince." Arte told him.
"People don't die from mugginess, Arte." Hiccup rolled his eyes and tied his waist sash around his outer tunic. "And last time I checked I didn't need your permission to go somewhere."
"I'm so sorry, Prince Hiccup." Arte bowed her head. "Have a pleasant time on your walk."
"Oh, don't worry, I will." Hiccup settled his clothes in place and Astrid didn't miss him putting his dagger in his waist sash for a moment. He gave Arte a thorough glare, and Astrid saw her winced at the look. "Come on, Alastair." He called to her and as much as Astrid hated it, she quickly followed after his beckoning.
Yep, definitely a handful.
0o0
"Is there always that much..um…?" Astrid began as she and Hiccup walked down the halls to the main entrance.
"Tension?" Hiccup finished for her. "Yeah, always."
"It must be hard, having a maid like that." Astrid let her voice slip a little, but she quickly corrected herself. Hiccup glanced up at her for a moment before letting his eyes fall and it was the first genuine emotion she actually saw on his face other than his normal smug smirk since she had met him.
"You noticed it?" He asked her quietly, stopping his stride altogether.
"How fake she is?" Astrid shrugged. "Hasn't everyone?"
"People don't really notice it since they're the same way themselves." He told her flatly, but there was a crack of emotion and he still didn't move even though Astrid was paces in front of him. She finally stopped as well, standing a good distance away but still able to hear him perfectly. The dull lighting of the candle rows flickered more noticeably now that she was standing still, and that along with the company of a seemingly emotional prince was enough to make her more than uncomfortable.
Comforting wasn't exactly Astrid's forte, but luckily she didn't have to.
A light sniffle, a shake of fabric, and a few footsteps was all she heard before Hiccup was walking passed her, turning to see his medal-less cape flying freely through the burnt air.
"Come on, we have a dragon to catch."
Astrid could only smile a bit as she followed him.
A handful, and perhaps a bit of a mystery too.
0o0
Raven Point Forest was located right behind the palace, so it was quite a hike for someone who didn't know the region. Hiccup could see Alastair following behind him with a focused look in his eyes, he had only been on Berk two days, of course, but, sadly, Hiccup wasn't too accustomed with the woods either. Traveling through the woods wasn't the kind of activity a Prince did, especially a prince who had been on lock down up until that point.
So je took a small sketch book with him and drew the surroundings as they walked, making small notches in the trees with his dagger along the way.
"Do you even know where we're going?" Alastair asked, swatting some bugs away while Hiccup ripped out his dagger and scratched another tree, not even looking while he did so.
"Not entirely, but I saw the general area where the dragon fell. It was somewhere around here." Hiccup told him, but the boy didn't look too convinced. He merely glowered at him and swatted away more bugs. "Not a nature lover?" Hiccup asked. He knew Alastair wasn't from Berk, but he didn't know his own body guard would be so dainty out in the wild.
"I'm just not used to all these bugs." He swatted away more and more. Hiccup could only laugh and grabbed his wrist, stopping it mid-swat. "Back in Merkskof we didn't really have forests, it more of a rocky beach."
"Well, all I can say is stop swatting them and they'll leave you alone, for the most part." Hiccup told him. "You're only agitating them by doing that."
"Um, thanks." Alastair mumbled and Hiccup smirked.
"Going after a downed dragon, saving my bodyguard from bugs, and even being thanked by him. This is an exciting day." He said to himself, but loudly enough so Alastair could hear. And the look on the warrior's face was more than enough of a reward.
"What do you have against new comers, Prince Hiccup?" Alastair suddenly asked, as he made it to the top of the boulder they were climbing up. Hiccup sat down on the apex of it, not too opposed to having a small chat with this guy before they made their way deeper into the forest. On Hiccup's merits, after all, the boy had earned a good explanation on one or two matters.
And for once someone was actually asking him a genuine question.
Alastair sat down beside him, giving him a focused look. He was actually listening to him too.
"It's not newcomers," Hiccup sighed. "It's everyone."
"Well that's a bit…general." Alastair let out a small chuckle, but Hiccup looked up at him. He wasn't used to being able to talk to someone at all, but whatever look he gave Alastair stopped him from laughing almost immediately. And the boy's focused look was back. "But, you're serious?" Alastair asked.
Hiccup nodded. "I know exactly how people like you are."
"People like me? You barely know me."
"All you warriors are the same." Hiccup shook his head. Here he went again. "You're prodigies, admired, extolled by everyone because you're all just so brave."
"So what's wrong with that?" Alastair snapped. Typical, Hiccup thought. "You can't be mad because we're talented."
"It's not your talent." Hiccup ripped out his dagger again and slashed the tree next to them in routine. "It's your attitude." He continued, looking down at his hands. They crunched the fabric of his pants lightly, pinching the skin that seemed to be quickly covering with sweat. He could feel his emotions coming out in violent waves. Every time he had given the subject any thought, it had always stayed between his own two ears. But now, he was speaking out to someone.
And they were listening.
"All of sudden everyone who can swing and axe is on a higher level of respect than me. And I'm the prince!" Hiccup continued. "You all just think you're better than me."
There. He said it. Hiccup closed his eyes.
He was expecting Alastair to laugh. To leave, or perhaps even to assume the basic role and just comfort him and tell him lies about how people did respect him. But instead…
"Well, with that sorry attitude, no wonder you're not getting any respect."
Hiccup blinked, but wasted no time giving him a snarled look. Did he really just say that?
It seemed that his words caught up with him, for Alastair immediately looked shocked at his own self.
"Er, I mean." He stuttered. "I'm sorry, My Prince."
That was more like what he was used to. Hiccup sucked his teeth and stood, sliding down the other side of the boulder, Alastair closely behind him.
"I said I was sorry," Alastair called out after him.
"Yeah, I heard you."
Suddenly, Alastair was in front of him, arms spread out wide. Hiccup could've just walked to the right or the left, but, a strange sense of amusement towards Alastair's answer intrigued him. He stood in his palace, playing into the illusion of being trapped.
"Look, I shouldn't have said that. It was disrespectful." Alastair told him instead and it was odd enough for Hiccup that he actually felt a fresh twinge of disappointment well up within him. One that apparently Alastair could see. "What?"
"It was disrespectful, huh?" Hiccup baited. "Do you have any respect for me, Alastair?"
Alastair opened and closed his mouth many times, a gesture Hiccup would've found amusing if he actually wasn't eagerly waiting for a response. It was odd. He didn't even have the tolerance of expecting something in his father anymore.
"You're my prince," Alastair gave him a dry answer. "Of course I respect you."
"Why?"
"I just said why."
"No," Hiccup laughed bitterly. "You said what you thought you had to say. But if you had to tell me the truth right now, not as a prince but as a person, what would you say?"
No answer.
"Alastair."
"I…" Alastair started. Hiccup could see him fighting his hardened morals greatly. Respect the Prince when in his presence was what everyone was told to do. But if they were going to be forced together for three months, Hiccup wouldn't allow for another fake person stepping all over him.
"I barely know you," Alastair finally answered. His voice was strained. "So…no, I guess."
The boy's face scrunched. A lifetime of restraint seemed to snap within him, but for Hiccup it was the exact opposite. An honest opinion was greatly appreciated, and when he smiled at Alastair, the warrior's face was priceless.
"Well then. I guess I have something to gain from this, now don't I?" Hiccup told him, smiling as he walked past the boy, but Alastair grabbed his arm, stopping him.
"So that's it?" Alastair asked in a quickened confusion, as if the whole thing left him out of breath.
"Yeah," Hiccup shrugged, but his voice perked a bit. He actually felt a little relieved.
"You just want me to be rude and disrespectful and you'll be fine?" Alastair laughed slightly to himself.
"I want you to treat me like I'm a person, not a God. You don't have to kiss the ground I walk on. And if I have your respect I want to know that I've earned it, not that I get it from some title."
He could see the candle igniting above Alastair's head. It wasn't completely lit, but he could tell that he was starting to get it.
And that would have to be good enough for the moment.
0o0
Arte's prediction of a muggy afternoon were starting to come to the forefront. The deeper Hiccup and Alastair made it into the forest, the more rows of fog entered their vision. It caked the moss and the grass, making everything damp and clumpy. Hiccup could feel the humidity forming a wet sheen over his brow, and he looked over to see Alastair was not too different.
The notches he made in the barks of the trees were becoming multiple, and his map looked like nothing but smudged charcoal scribbles. They were lost, no doubt.
Sill, Hiccup looked at his sketch book and marked off another x on the empty clearing they had just made it to.
"It's got to be close to sunset by now." Alastair leaned against the damp bark of the tree, catching his breath.
"Stop worrying, sunset's still an hour away." Hiccup shushed him. Alastair seemed to already be developing the habit of wanting to cut out early, something he didn't exactly expect from a warrior. But as he looked at the way Alastair carried himself he could immediately tell that while there was talent and fighting spirit within the boy, he had never been in a correct situation to let it out.
Catching the dragon would be a test of skill for both of them, then.
And with that thought Hiccup smiled. He couldn't shake the thudding of his heartbeat every time they got close to a clearing, only to see that there was no dragon there. It must've landed in a clearing, anything else and Hiccup would've heard its impact the previous night, even with all the commotion of a dragon raid.
But there was a silence between him and Alastair as they walked through the damp forest. Boots squishing into grass still, but the humidity began to fade as the hour became later, and sunset was approaching.
They had been searching the forest all afternoon, and still no dragon.
Hiccup collapsed underneath the shade of a tree, gasping.
"Troubles, Prince Hiccup?" Alastair knelt down beside him, giving him a grin. Even with the thin layer of foggy perspiration on his skin, Alastair looked fresher than Hiccup, and he figured that perhaps Alastair's need to 'cut our early' wasn't a need at all. He just wanted to cut out of finding some dragon that probably broke free from the Mutilator's bola and flew off.
"Save your breath, I don't need the sarcasm." Hiccup swatted the air and closed his eyes.
"Look who's talking." Alastair let out a laugh. "And, for the record, it looks like you're the one who needs the breath, not me."
"Haha," Hiccup pretended to laugh, and scrunched his nose. There were too many particles of dirt and broken leaves falling onto his face, and it was beginning to seep into his closed eyes. "Quit it, Alastair."
"That's not me." Hiccup opened his eyes when Alastair responded nervously and followed the boy's vision up to the top of the tree. Something was dangling above them, something big and black and tangled up in a bola. And in the array of green tree tops mixing with the last peaks of sun glaring through them, the figure seemed like an oddly placed spot in the scheme of things. Especially when a wing poked out from it.
"I think we found your dragon." Alastair said breathlessly.
Hiccup looked up just as breathlessly, the dragon was definitely stuck, but it was moving in stalled jerks, like it was halfway between consciousness and unconsciousness. But it wasn't roaring, growling, and its eyes seemed closed.
Hiccup lifted a brow as he stared, but then had a notion. The ability he had…or thought he had.
It was highly illogical, of course, and Hiccup had made a silent decision to just bury the thought of having any contact with the creatures beyond killing after the incident with the gronckle. But it kept coming back into his mind anyways. When the nightmare attacked him the previous day, and even then, he heard faint whispers of thoughts that weren't his.
Not fighting it, Hiccup closed his eyes for a split moment, concentrating on the dragon hanging above him; little leaf particles still hitting his eye lids.
:: Stay awake…don't drift…:: Hiccup finally heard the faint whispers amplify into thoughts that certainly weren't his own. And it made no sense for them to be Alastair's. But if what he heard was the case, then the dragon was half dead. And would be easier to kill.
He opened his eyes and walked closer under the shade of the rustling tree. The crinkles of the leaves beneath his boots were stumped by something smooth underneath them suddenly. Smooth and…wet.
He looked down and was completely mortified by what he saw.
"Gah!" Hiccup jerked back.
"What's wrong Prince Hiccup?" Alastair immediately stepped forward.
"What…" Hiccup began, gulping. "What is this?" He pointed down to what he had stepped on and Alastair shared his distaste.
"It's…a tail fin."
And there it was, a midnight black tail fin coated in blood and dirt on the ground, and when Hiccup looked directly up, he saw the dragon's tail dangling lifelessly, half of its tailfin missing and blood dripping down near his feet.
It made him want to throw up.
"That dragon can't be alive with an amputation like that. And if it is, it would be alive for long." Alastair said and squinted as he looked upwards. "Downed dragons never stay alive for long." He added.
Hiccup only gulped again. The ends of his bola rope were near the tailfin, caked in blood.
Had…had he done this?
"So…what do you wanna do My Prince?" Alastair asked quietly as he stepped closer.
"That dragon's good as dead, right?" Hiccup asked as well.
"Most likely."
"Then…then I should just do it."
"If you wish." Alastair looked up. "It's pretty far up the tree though." He kicked off his boots and took off his cape, cracking his knuckles.
"What are you doing?" Hiccup raised a brow.
"Getting the dragon for you." Alastair shrugged.
"Yeah, but this is my thing…I can't having you kill it."
"I'm not going to kill it, I'm just going to get it down for you."
"And what makes you think I can't get it down myself?"
"When was the last time you climbed a tree?" Alastair gave a smirk, himself.
Hiccup bit his lip. He was barely let out of the house, let alone in the woods. So climbing a tree was a bit foreign to him, despite him being surrounded by them his entire life. Still, having Alastair along didn't mean that he had to everything for him. And, if he recalled their conversation earlier that afternoon, Alastair didn't grow up around trees either.
He opened his mouth to reply, but it was too late. Alastair wasn't wasting too much time waiting for him to finish thinking, for the boy was already halfway up the tall tree. Hiccup watched in amazement at the speed in which he climbed even though he had never been properly around trees, and even how fearlessly he approached the half-dead dragon.
Although Hiccup expected Alastair to take the axe strapped to his back and cut the dragon free, the warrior pulled a small dagger of his own from his boot, flipping it up and beginning to slice through the first of the ropes rather quickly, and still so quietly. Hiccup pulled out his own dagger, staring at it helplessly.
Alastair must've had a whole collection of odd weapons hidden within his clothes, and all Hiccup could even possibly hope to wield was his mother's dagger. Though finely crafted, it seemed like a terrifying relic at the moment.
But, in no time at all, Hiccup was snapped out of his thoughts by the dragon when it fell in a loud thud and leaves rustling not too far from him, still looking dead even after the impact.
Hiccup swallowed. There he was, face to face with a night fury and…
All he had was a dagger.
The sudden thought echoed creepily through his mind and made his palms sweat and his hands shake. The combination of both caused the dagger to slip out of his grasp and fall with a gentle clank right near the dragon. Hiccup let out an odd mix of a swallow and a breath before he bent down to pick it up. And when the dagger was safely back in his palm and he stood, he was met with a pair of emerald eyes piercing through him.
The dragon was awake….
0o0
Whether or not Hiccup believed he was hearing dragon's thoughts or not, there was nothing more terrifying than hearing the phrase ::human…did this to me:: over and over and angrily in his mind.
The dragon had him pinned in two seconds flat, and Hiccup almost lost his grip on his mother's dagger again.
::This human. Did this to me!:: The dragon's thoughts were simply entering his mind without Hiccup even having to concentrate. He could feel its anger pouring out onto him in hot and almost electric currents.
He gasped.
"Get away from him!" Hiccup heard Alastair calling out moments later. Leaping down from the tree and onto the dragon's back, his axe finally in hand and ready to cut. But the Night fury was agile and took its grip off Hiccup to slash at Alastair.
Hiccup never thought—even in the short time of knowing Alastair—that he'd hear the boy scream in pain. But he was surprised to hear so when he saw the dragon's claws dig into Alastair's shoulder and the boy fell over in a whoosh of the fabrics and chain mail. There was no denying the blood that came from the three clawed cuts in Alastair's shoulder, or that the warrior was out cold. Or that Hiccup was left alone against the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself.
"Alastair!" Hiccup called out, running up to him, but the dragon turned its attention back to him. For something that seemed half dead a few minutes ago, it sure was lively and even more empowered now that it had taken out one of them.
Hiccup placed the dagger firmly in his grip, keeping it at his side as he rounded circles with the dragon until Hiccup took a stance in front of Alastair, feeling odd to have his body guard down for the count and himself wielding a dagger in protection.
And then another notion passed over him. He had been able to stop the Nightmare from killing him by trying to talk to it. Maybe the night fury would listen too? Even though it had a deathly look in its eyes, simply playing with him and keeping the standoff would only last him so long.
"Well!?" Hiccup called out to the dragon. All this waiting was making him manic. "What's it gonna be!?"
The dragon growled, getting up on its toes and looking ready to pounce. Hiccup shot his gaze around frantically, looking for any way he and Alastair could survive. And he noticed the ropes that were cut from the bola. Dangling from the tree and looking suspiciously useful. He grinned and when the dragon finally made its leap Hiccup got it with his dagger—right in the leg. A thump of pressure hit his dagger, a sensation that rocked his skeleton and left him feeling…weaker as opposed to empowered.
He knew that wouldn't stop it though, especially when he didn't even hear the dragon's gasps of pain. It only growled further at him, all though that jab left Hiccup feeling odd, it enabled him to be right where he needed to be. Back under the tree.
He waved his dagger again. "C-come and get it." He attempted a tease, not even knowing where the spurt of braveness was coming from. Maybe it was his intense need to prove himself finally seeming closer than ever and overriding every doubting through he could even conjure? Or perhaps the 'invincible Alastair' lying useless and needing his protection?
But it was pure luck that his plan actually worked. That when the dragon came lunging towards him again it tumbled right into his rope trap. Being hooked in the tangle of ropes yet again, but this time, it was choking the dragon.
Hiccup's lips tugged in a smile, but were stopped halfway when he had realized the extent of what he'd done.
He…had hung a dragon.
It dangled, hind legs wiggling frighteningly and it arms clawed at the rope around its neck, letting out odd combinations of gasps, roars, and whines.
:: Don't drift..don't…drift…:: Hiccup finally heard in the rant of his heavy breathing. The dragon's frantic movements were beginning to slow and it's gasps were turning into shortened gulps, becoming more and more far between.
::Don't drift…:: He heard again, and his finger tingled around his dagger, looking down at the blade he saw a small smear of blood on it, from when he had jabbed the night fury. And it was probably the first speck of blood that had met that dagger since his mother used it.
Was this really okay? He thought as he turned to walk towards Alastair. It was something he had always wanted, the moment he expected to feel triumphant and worthy, but instead his stomach flipped, his mind reeled, and his feet wobbled under an invisible pressure
What it was, it stopped him mid-turn. Whether it was the sudden gasp he heard from the dragon, the hallow whistle of the wind over his sweaty brow that echoed the death in the air, or both. He took a good look at his capture.
Missing a tail fin, stabbed in the leg, and hanging from a tree, that dragon was every bit as good as dead. So why pity it? It was fate after all, and Hiccup was always taught to take every opportunity with brute force.
But to kill. To walk away and leave a living thing to die from his own force of will. Hiccup still looked at the dragon.
:: Drifting. Can't hold on..::
And to hear it dying before him.
Hiccup made the only choice he could've.
He had wanted to slay a dragon, earn respect, his title, everything—all in that one day. But instead he let it all go just because he couldn't kill it. He couldn't bring himself to take the life of that night fury.
He cut the rope, and the dragon dropped in another loud thud against the dead leaves. It took a while for it to look up at him, eyes weak and stature wobbling. But, it was still alive.
Hiccup offered it a weak smile, not feeling the slightest alarm even though the dragon was free again.
::Did this to me..and saved me?:: The dragon questioned.
::Get out of here before I change my mind.:: Hiccup eyed the dragon, thinking only to himself, but somehow the dragon had heard him when it responded.
::I go. But of will, my own.:: Hiccup could feel the smirk within the creature as it spread it's wing slowly and carefully. Its wingspan seemed to make the forest around him smaller and for every means did Hiccup know the dragon meant to fly. But it wouldn't get off the ground.
Not with a missing tail find, an injured leg, and a tightened windpipe.
Hiccup simply went over to Alastair, contemplating the best way to pick him up, and unknowingly wiped the blood off his mother's dagger on the side of his pant leg and placed it back into his waist sash.
He felt the dragon's eyes tightened, glaring at him as he walked away with Alastair, but the one thing he felt more than anything was its astonishment.
::This human…using a weapon of confusing me.::
0o0
Astrid woke up to see an orange sky and the prince in her upper vision.
It was sunset, and they were still in the forest. But all that crossed her mind in an immediate pain was where the night fury was.
"Prince Hiccup!?" She shot up quickly, only to regret it seconds later when she realized the pain she felt was in her shoulder. It spiked her senses. "Ah!"
"You might not want to move it too much." Hiccup told her, sitting on a rock beside her, not even bothering to meet her gaze. Instead, he was fixated on the forest in front of them, looking too lost in thought for it to be normal.
Astrid stood, not wanting a scratched shoulder to put her out of line. She had left her Prince unprotected against a night fury, after all, but judging on the setting she was currently in, there was no dragon in sight, and the Prince seemed uninjured despite the bloodstain she saw on his pant leg.
"What happened, Prince Hiccup?" She asked him slowly, looking around. "Did you…did you kill the dragon?"
"I couldn't do it." Hiccup said simply, still not meeting her eyes.
"What do you mean you couldn't do it!?"
"I mean what I said, Alastair!" He yelled, turning half way to her, but stopping suddenly. His voiced rose and fell all in one breath before he calmed himself down. He…wasn't acting like himself, not because he was uneasy, but it was because all Astrid heard this boy talk about since she met him was killing a dragon, getting respect, earning his place. And all of a sudden he 'couldn't do it'.
"Why on earth would you screw that up?" She tried him. She was still getting used to being openly rash with him, but, admittedly, it was easier to do then always having to mind her tongue.
"Because that's who I am, Alastair, a screw up." Hiccup sighed, oddly enough not sounded pathetic, but more…irritated.
"I don't believe that." Astrid shook her head and walked in front of him. If he wasn't going to look at her, then she was going to make him look at her. "
"Oh really?" He teased in a snarky tone.
"Yes." She took a step closer. "What happened?"
"I had it hung…in the tree." He began. "It was as good as dead, but I couldn't bring myself to end something's life. I've been preparing to kill my whole life, but when it came right down to it, I was nothing but a coward and it got away." He closed his eyes. "I mean…I let it go."
"But we didn't get killed." Astrid tried to force a smile. "So you did something right." She was expecting an effort from him to maybe take that as a compliment, but instead she got nothing. He only let out a huff of breath, his chest rising and falling in wide motions.
"I could hear it dying, Alastair." He said after many moments of silence. His voice was small. "I couldn't do it after I heard it dying."
"Wh-what…you heard it dying?"Astrid had never heard of such foolishness! That ability wasn't possibly, that much she knew. "Hicc…Prince Hiccup, do you realize how outlandish that sounds?"
"I'm aware, and if I wasn't trusting you to not completely laugh in my face I'd keep it to myself."
Astrid could only sigh. She had no idea what to say to that, at all. On one hand she couldn't—or perhaps just didn't know how to—handle a prince that needed comfort. Especially after she failed to even protect him and he was spewing pity stories and crazy ideals of hearing death. Yet, on the other hand, she felt slightly privileged that the prince had somehow trusted her for something.
"Maybe…" She decided to make it a little easier for both of them. "We should talk about this later, when we're both not so….well, like this."
Finally he looked at her. It was a dead glace, but a glance nonetheless. He looked drained and in too much thought but then looked over at her shoulder.
"I'm sorry about your shoulder." He said quietly.
"All in a day's work for being your bodyguard." She tried to lighten the mood, moving her shoulder back slightly only to feel the pain moments later. She winced.
Hiccup stood then, giving her what seemed like a small smile, and Astrid found it slightly amusing that her being injured was what made him finally snap out it.
"I told you not to move it." He told her.
Man, this chapter was a butt to edit. And I think you can pretty much expect every chapter to be between 5,000-7,000 words. So that's good!
Not too much to say about this chapter since it's all pretty self-explanatory. Hiccup's becoming a mass of conflicting impulses, he showed a dragon mercy. Toothless is just confused, and so is Astrid as to what Hiccup's really all about.
Review Responses:
ShootMe002: I'm glad you like it! And, yeah, the grammer stuff. Editing is pretty odd for me. Sometimes I get tons of time to edit and then other times I don't.
LiveToTell: Thank you! I've always admired the idea of Astrid having to becoming a bodyguard to Hiccup. And sorry the update took so long, but I've been pretty busy since I graduation has been looming over me.
Fjord Mustang: Yeah, I've been seriously busy lately, and although I try to just make shorter chapters, I'm just a long chapter kind of girl. But, I intend to see this story to the end…but that's a long ways away. And yes! You've completely gotten Hiccup's character already. The way he thinks is so conflicted it hard for him to keep his goals in the same direction especially since he's so shunned all the time. He wants one thing, but feels another way on everything he does, and it's beginning to catch up with him. But now he has a warrior constantly by his side, and a potential dragon that he showed mercy—which makes it slightly different from the movie since the mercy line was more of a two way street in the film—he's going to grow and stop seeing the world through just how it effects him. It was odd to start off with the main character as spoiled and open minded yet so closed off, but it makes for a great developmental road that I can take. Especially with how this story is going to turn out—Hiccup's going to go through quite a lot. And Hiccup's ability to hear dragon's thoughts is a bit choppy right now, but it'll become more fluent as the story progresses as well. But, you can already see how Toothless's thoughts are slightly more…put together than the gronckle and the nightmare he faced before. Since the story is only told through Hiccup and Astrid's POVs, Toothless's personality will be revealed through Hiccup, but revealed nonetheless. Whew, long response XD
Crash and burn: Um, I don't know how to respond to that…?
Starkiller173: Well, Astrid's true gender will obviously have to be addressed, but I don't want to spoil it. All I can say is be patient.
Adrine R.227: Yes! A large portion of this fic was based off of that book series. I loved the writing style of how when it was Alek's POV, Deryn was portrayed fully as Dylan. So, I figured it would work on in this story as well. And I've actually been thinking about doing beta…
Crazy nightfury lady: I feel like Hiccup was slightly bitter in the movie as well, it was hidden a little better, but there were certain little moment where I see he was pretty resentful. And I'm glad you like the story! I've got a lot planned for Hiccup, Astrid, and Toothless. They're go through quite a lot, so character development will certainly happen!
Adam: They'll be forced to go through a lot together, so bonds in their friendship and overall relationship will happen.
Hicc: I'm not gonna lie, the first part of the story will favor the movie, but I have about 6 parts planned for this story, so it braches out quite a bit, even by the end of this part it'll become its own story entirely. But I get what you mean. And grammar, oh grammar, it's my worst quality, but luckily I got a little more time to edit this chapter.
Thanks for the reviews, everyone! They make me motivated to sit down and crank out another 6,000 word chapter!
More on what's up with Toothless and life in the palace in the next chapter!
