Authors Note: *looks down at the ground guilty*. I'm sorry guys. I seriously didn't want the update to take so long but I finally sat down and planned it out and it took a little longer than I planned.

I want all of you to be aware that from this point forward: There is going to be spoilers for RTTE S4. (sorry, but it just works better plot wise. ;))

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Sorry for any spelling/ grammar errors.


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. . : Yeah, I love watching character's react to stuffs too. :) I'm purposefully making it a little bit darker so its easier to track character development/change...if that makes sense. :) Thanks for your review!

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TheFuriousNightFury:...I dunno. I'm sort of just letting the characters guide my writing and apparently neither Toothless or Hiccup want to be on Berk. I guess we will see. ;) Thanks for your review!

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Chapter 3: A Father's Love

Hiccup,

My fingers freeze on the door knob as memories runs through my head like a haunting melodies.

"My d-dad, he'll be here and wipe you all off the face of the planet, with their dragons." "Ha! You think we fear dragons, boy? You've been here for weeks, they're not coming."

"Just train the dragons, runt."

"Stop it! Please stop! You'll kill him!" "Gag him. He can't save his precious dragon anyway."

"Your island is rejoicing that you're gone. You're a runt, child. They'll find a replacement."

"They never were looking for you."

"He's not coming."

Is...Jink right? Have they been looking for me? Or did I just show up at the right time, I mean, Astrid I would trust was and the other riders but my dad...I don't know anymore. What if he is happy that I went missing? And he'll be disappointed that I came back. Swallowing the sudden lump in my throat I move forward and shove the door with me sudden exhausted pulsing through my limbs. Adrenaline has been pumping through my veins for the last few days and it's finally starting to wear off.

Sighing through my teeth I let weight of the door push the rest of it open and stagger into the room. It looks exactly the way I remember it beyond being slightly more dirty. The fire is roaring in the middle, a table is set towards the side and a large man is sitting in a chair next to the flames.

"There's a front door for a re-" My dad twists around in his seat looking back at me (and Toothless) his jaw falling slightly. His face looks a little more tired than I remember and his eyes have heavy bags, his beard is a mess-even for Viking standards. I watch his expressions carefully. His face changes from irritated and angered to shocked and well...stoic like he'd been backhanded across the face.

"...Hiccup?" His voice is incredibly small.

I bite my lip and look down at the ground resting a hand on Toothless's head. Wood scrapes across the ground and I look up in surprise as my dad races across the room and wraps his arms around me in a death grip.

My breath escapes me in surprise. "Oh, Hiccup." His voice whispers softly holding me tighter as if he's afraid the moment he leaves I'll disappear into thin air. My muscles tense upwards as his strong arms brush against the injuries received from the Tijikes and a shaky breath leaves my lips.

My dad pulls back, finally, and rests his hands on my shoulders lifting his head up slightly as the door closes behind us. I look back at it. The other riders...will they wait or-no. Astrid said she'd drag me here, not drag me here and stay. She's fully aware that my dad can make me stay put anyway.

Toothless brushes against my hand and I rub my fingers over the top of his rough scales a silence hanging between all three of us. Not exactly awkward, but not comforting either. "You look terrible." Dad states finally and I look up at him, meeting his worried calculating gaze.

"M'sorry." I mutter quietly wrapping my arms over my chest and looking down at the ground again. Ah, such wonderful woodwork. I know this floor well, I've studied it a lot over my lifetime. There's an elegant pattern to the way the bark is weaved together, flowing, always consistent-my dad grabs my chin and gently lifts it so I'm looking at him again.

"No, I'm sorry, son. Sit, I'm going to grab the medical kit." He says and pulls away. I double take.

"No you don't have to-" I start to protest and he turns raising a thick red graying eyebrow. My voice dies in my throat and he gestures towards the table with his left hand as he turns and walks off. Sighing through my teeth, I move forward and sit stiffly on the bench, Toothless plopping down next to my feet. He doesn't close his eyes though.

After about a minute, my dad returns holding rolls of various medical supplies and I look up at him. Bandages. It's been a long, looong time since I've seen any of those. There's an awkward silence in between us for a moment and I look up at him, did I do something wrong? Does he not want to use them on me anymore? I'm not even slightly surprised.

"Hiccup, I don't know what I should tend to. I need you to take off your shirt." I stiffen both with surprise and slight horror. Thor, I do not want him to see my injuries, maybe I can weasel my way out of this-just tell him I'll deal with it myself. My dad kneels next to me, "Please let me help you Hiccup, please."

His tone is so pleading it startles me slightly and my fingers move almost by strings to my chest armor slowly peeling the brown leather away from my chest. The red shirt underneath is dirty and an unpleasant sight. Not like I've exactly had a spare change of clothes for the last couple of weeks.

Biting down on my lip I slowly pull up the red fabric, over my head and hold it in my hands before slowly folding it as neatly as physically possible-so I don't have to look at my dad's face. I do, however, still hear his sharp intake of breath and watch Toothless's head raise.

I study my foot, suddenly very interested in the way it looks. "I'm going to kill every single one of-who did this?" My dad's voice is venomous and I look up at him my eyes wide. His face is dark his expression murderous; the bandages in his hand are clutched to a strangling level and I bite my lip heavily.

Mum.

The word and I have been intermingled so much recently it's pathetic.

My dad releases a steadying breath, "What happened, Hiccup?"

Mum. Mum, mum, mum!

I purse my lips tightly together. He sighs again. So disappointed.

"You must be such a disappointment to him. Look at you, you're a runt not nearly the strong Viking lad I'm sure he wanted!"

"Can you turn, please, I need to get a closer look at the...damage."

Burns? Cuts? Bruises?

Mum.

I grit my teeth and slowly turn on the bench so my back is facing him. The wall in front of me is how I remember it being. There's a few shields on the walls along with prized weapons-when I was younger there used to be dragon horns and such but after the Red Death they vanished well I was in my coma.

Toothless growls under his breath behind me and I clench my fists, curling them around the wood on the table. "I'm going to do what I can but we should have Gothi look over this." My dad annouces and I hear the sound of a jar being opened.

Great, Gothi. She's an excellent healer but I just don't get the point of looking down someone's throat or poking around their eyes. She often made my leg feel worse when she was checking on how it was healing a few years back.

A cold cream presses onto my back and I gasp flinching and going rigid a pained wheeze leaving my lips. Toothless offers a warning growl and the fingers pull back as if they've been burned by touching my skin. "Sorry." my dad says quickly.

"It's fine." I grit through clenched teeth doing my best to make my voice sound normal but failing drastically.

My dad's fingers rub against the cream again and I flinch but manage to withhold a pained wheeze. I do, however, take a sharp breath. His fingers move rhythmically across the injuries and after some gentle prodding and a few more minutes of trying not to yell out in pain my dad finishes tying off the last of the bandages and stands.

"Wait here a moment." He commands and turns heading up the stairs to my old room and disappearing. I flip around on the bench and look at Toothless. He hasn't shifted his positions much beyond moving closer. I bring my feet up onto the chair cross legged and watch him. His breathing is slow and steady his ears twitching slightly as he listens to sounds I can't pick up. His eyes aren't closed but he's still resting.

Wood creaks and Toothless's ears lift my head following. My dad tosses something at me and I manage to catch it almost subconsciously. It's a shirt a little older than the current ones I wear that are on Dragon's Edge but it's better than nothing. Nodding in thanks, I swing the fabric over my head and happily slide the sleeves over my arms. It's freezing in here! Does anyone know what warmth is anymore?

My dad walks towards us and sits down on the bench next to me. "I thought you were dead." He admits quietly.

I look up at him offering a tight smile. Or an attempt at one, the expression feels weird on my face, foreign. "I'm not."

He looks over at me smiling his eyes lighting up. "I'm glad you're safe, son. I hate to nag but...where were ya'?" He asks softly the smile fading. I share a look with Toothless wrapping my hands around my foot before sighing through my teeth.

Mum.

He's my dad! What's the worst that could happen? They want you to tell him, that's what they want you can't let Tijike win, Hiccup! But-they were thrilled, don't you remember? The very thought of you telling Stoick thrilled Jink. Mum.

I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment before blurting out the word before I can convince myself otherwise. "Tijike."

"Tijike?" My dad repeats, confusion lacing around his words.

"It's near Melody Island. Not very big." I keep my sentence as short as possible, the idea of speaking for longer causing my insides to squirm. Jink didn't like it when I spoke for a long time, he succeeded in accomplishing something no one-not even Viggo managed to do: break my snarky, sassy, sarcastic smart mouth.

Mum.

Mum, mum, mum!

"I've heard of that island before." My dad mutters stroking his beard, "Do you know what the chief's name 's?"

"Jink." I mutter darkly and Toothless's ears lower in distaste. The man is cold and brutal. I think that if we hadn't left when we did, he would've killed us both. He said he was getting tired of our lack of submission. He was tired of Toothless's unbreakable spirit and my sudden mum-ness.

"Jink, as in Jink the Fiendish?"

I offer a sharp nod. Yes. Him.

Instead of bursting into a fit of rage like I half expect him to do, my dad looks over at me sadly, with a slight tinge of pity and moves closer wrapping his arms around me in a hug again. I flinch and he holds me tighter afraid of letting go. "I'm sorry Hiccup, I'm so sorry. I should've looked harder, I should've-"

"What's done is done." I murmur quietly. It's true. What happened isn't something I can change. So breathe. It's fine, you're safe now. In out.

"I'm sorry, Hiccup." my dad mourns again and doesn't let go. I'm not sure how long he holds me like that before he finally pulls away. "You're probably going to sleep with Toothless, right?" He asks and I nod looking towards the dragon curled in a tight ball.

"I'll be in my room, holler if you need anything. Even if it's nothing-okay?" My dad demands and I nod. Be satisfied. He smiles in agreement before standing and walking out of the room. He looks back at me again and I offer a small tight attempted smile and a wave. He disappears into the other room and I slide from off the chair crawling towards Toothless.

He lifts up his head to greet me with a croon and I collapse next to him with a soft groan. Toothless growls slightly and ruffles my hair with his breath before moving next to me and laying his wings over me like a blanket. This is always where I've felt safest, next to Toothless like this and I'm pretty sure it's vice versa for the dragon.

I let out a sigh and release a heavy breath shifting my position to be slightly more comfortable, this floor is ten times better than the one in my cell. Thor, this is pathetic. I'm enjoying floors. Even though Astrid found us in the early morning, when we left the cove, the sun was setting in the distance. I must've slept through the entire day. Jink is probably more than aware that were gone now.

The thought sends a shiver down my spine and I squeeze my eyes shut tightly as Toothless settles next to me, resting his head next to mine. I let out a slow breath before letting my tense muscles relax and sleep claim my tired body.

000o000

"Boy!" The voice cuts me from my thoughts and I lift up my head from where it's resting against my knees looking up at the advancing figure in confusion. Wait? What? I don't understand-how did I-?

I was in my house, with Toothless! Was it just a dream?

A hand grabs me by the throat and drags me from off the floor shoving me against the wall. The back of my head smacks against the stone causing spots to dance in front of my blurring vision. "Your stubbornness wore off on that dragon fine, didn't it?"

"I didn't have to do anything." I quip through my throat bringing my fingers up to struggle against his tightening grip. With a snort of disgust, Jink drops me and kicks my chest.

"Your smart mouth will be the death of you, child. Just give up and tell me how to get that dragon to break." Jink says his tone becoming softer. He leans down next to me and I scowl at him darkly.

"I'd rather die."

Jink fingers a dagger I didn't know he had in hand, "I really don't want to kill you, Hiccup. This will just be easier for all of us if you just slip up, don't mum on me."

I narrow my eyes and curl my fingers tightly into fists, "No, even if I did tell you, you would kill me then wipe out Berk and move onwards to who knows what." I snap. Jink's eyes flash with annoyance and his dark hair falls in front of his deep grey eyes.

"I see."

"Are you sure? You never seem to get this no matter how many times I tell you."

"Silence, child! Your island thinks you're dead anyway, how much would it really hurt to tell me?"

"M-my dad's coming for me. He'll wipe your entire island out with his dragons." I respond with an angry edge. Jink laughs.

"Good, good, you know what, child. You find yourself a terror and send him a note. Go on, I won't stop you." Jink says and steps out of my way gesturing towards the door. My vision is blurry and I look up at him in frustration. I can't walk. I don't have my prosthetic.

Jink lets out a laugh. "You got a phobia of fire?"

I do a double take and look up at him my eyebrows meeting, "I ride a fire-breathing dragon. What do you think?"

"Hmm, we can change that, don't you agree?" Jink says and I shake my head. Fire isn't...is he serious?

Jink whistles and from the outside of the cell someone tosses a blade to him through the bars. My eyes widen as I spot it, glinting orange-red from heat. I know from experience in the forge that touching those is not a pleasant sensation.

Jink moves towards me and shoves the red-hot pain through my abdomen. A scream slips through my throat as pain explodes through my middle, ache, pain, burn, pain, pain, pain, hurt, screaming…

I leap into a sitting position a cold sweat following as I stare around myself in panic for several moments. The room is dark, like my cell. Was the escape all just a dream and I passed out from the stab-Toothless shoves his head against my back and I close my eyes letting out a relieved breath.

It wasn't real.

I'm okay.

Jink isn't here.

Toothless is safe. We're fine.

It's Berk.

Nothing can happen to us here.

I let out a relieved breath and turn looking back at my dragon rubbing the top of his head. Toothless happily curls himself around me tighter watching me with unblinking eyes, letting me know he's here for me. He's not gonna let anything happen to me. And I won't let anything happen to him.

I take in a few more deep breaths trying to draw the line between reality and dreamland in my head. I wasn't stabbed by Jink ever so that was my subconscious playing an evil prank but the blade wasn't new. The rest was a familiar scene. But I don't want to relieve it. I just want a dreamless sleep. Apparently, that's not happening.

I rub the top of Toothless's head again before getting to my feet and watching around the house for a moment. The Night Fury looks up at me in confusion before getting to his feet as well. Stumbling through the dark for a moment limbing, I manage to find the staircase leading up to the loft. I need something familiar right now.

I make it up the steps purposefully skipping over the fifth one (it squeaks worse than my peg leg in rain) and shove open the door to the room. It's pretty much untouched from when I last left it nearly a year ago. Before the Viggo incident started before Tijike. Toothless seeing or sensing I have no other plans to move walks towards the forgotten rock slab and chars it slightly. I cringe at the sight of the flame and pull my gaze away from the NIght Fury moving towards the desk.

I move towards it and pull open a drawer picking spare paper from it and grabbing a pencil from a broken mug and quickly draw a sketch of the symbol that's been bothering me over the last few days. Tijike's. It's a long dragon eye with a sword for the irises.

I let out a frustrated sigh and set the pencil and paper down on the desk turning to where Toothless is.

"One of you won't make it out of this alive."

I bite my lip and move towards Toothless. Even if I can't sleep, I can at least feel better with Toothless. I sit down next to him and bow my head slightly resting a hand against his forehead gently stroking it.

Toothless coos slightly and I shiver slightly the cold once again attacking me. I let out a shaky breath and as I have done so many times before rely on Toothless for comfort against this unwakeable nightmare.