Picking up the pieces-chapter 10
Dragon raids are a constant in Berk. But that doesn't mean they don't take their toll.
"The last dragon raid was costly, Gobber. We can't do this for much longer…we have to find the nest." Stoick hit his massive fist against the table. He had been sitting with his friend at the Mead Hall discussing their next move. The lack of Hiccup was also getting to Stoick, and he couldn't stop talking about going after the dragons' nest with a fury few could match. And the young berkians-to-be weren't exactly helping either. Without Hiccup as their punching bag to order around, being forced to clean up their messes didn't sit right with them, especially the twins, constantly wreaking havoc around the village. Snotlout became even bossier, so convinced he would be the chief, seeing his nuisance of a cousin had run away. What earned him a black eye, a broken arm and a bunch of other bruises was trying to spread the rumor that Hiccup had somehow kidnapped Astrid to do Thor knows what. When Stoick found…let's say that in that moment Snotlout had wished that the Night Fury that had landed in front of Mead Hall had carried him off or killed him right there and then.
"And what will you do after that? The ice is about to set in, the boats won't be able to return, or, if they do, are you planning to let the dragons take down another whole fleet?" Gobber wanted to smack him with his mug prosthetic to make him stop being an idiot. Seriously…what had Valka seen it this boar-headed stubborn Viking? W ell, probably it was just that, he concluded. "And let those beasts kill us all by winter? Or should we make a deal with them? 'We give you half of our food and you defend our village'?" The Vikings close to them all laughed at that ridiculous idea. All but Gobber. "Stoick, my friend, come with me to the forge." "Why do you want me to go to the forge?" "I want to show you something. Something Hiccup forgot to take with him." That got Stoick up on his feet and ready to rip the doors of the Mead Hall open. "Why didn't you say so right away?"
The walk to the forge was made in silence, both remembering Hiccup as their steps took them closer to the only place both had seen him smile and just be himself without fear of repercussions. "Now, Stoick, what I'm about to show you is something that is an extremely delicate matter. Don't do anything stupid and think carefully of what you say, understood?" Stoick could only nod. Hiccup had always been different, but what had he done that could have been that serious to Gobber? He watched as his friend opened the door to the back room, Hiccup's room in the forge and invited him inside. Instantly, he knew why it was so serious. The walls were covered in drawings. Beautiful, brightly colored drawings of… "Dragons? Hiccup drew these?" That's true; the walls were covered with dragons of every kind they knew. Nadders, Nightmares, Timberjacks, Whispering Deaths…each dragon documented in the Book of Dragons was there in in bright colors and skillfully drawn. All but one. There was one dragon he didn't recognize.
"Yes, Stoick. Your son might not have been a good dragon-fighter, but the boy could draw beautiful things, and he had a good skill in the forge!" He plucked one drawing from the wall. A jet-black dragon, with big, round green eyes and a double finned tail. Stoick squinted to read the tiny lettering that made the drawing's name. "Night Fury…that's a Night Fury?! How…how does he know what they look like?" Gobber's hand hit the back of his head. "Because he actually shot down one! Your son shot down a Night Fury, do you understand?"
Stoick's heart swelled with pride. His son, Hiccup the Uselles, actually managed to hit a Night Fury. "But how? They're too fast to even see them!" Gobber chuckled. "Remember that machine he made? That…'Mangler'? He used it to hit the creature!" Stoick's jaw fell. One of his son's inventions actually worked! And it brought down a Night Fury! "So that story about taking a search party up to Raven Point…it was true! He brought down the unholy offspring of Lightning and Death itself! And none of us believed in him…" He looked down and sat on the nearby chair. As his massive weight came down on the heavy chair, something fell under it with an audible 'thump'. He picked it up and saw Berk's crest on it. "This is…" he opened up the leather bound book. "This is Hiccup's diary! Gobber, look!"
Gobber took the book in his hand and, using a specially made prosthetic, began leafing through it quickly. "This is Hiccup's writing…do you think we should read this?" Stoick nodded and smiled eagerly. "Gobber, this might explain quite a few things about Hiccup. I'm not letting this chance pass." "I see. You might want to know something first. Give me your axe." Stoick gave him the axe he was carrying. "Is something wrong with it? You made it, so it must be good." "Now that, there, is where you're mistaken." He took off the handle's cloth grip. Under it you could read 'For my father, Stoick the Vast .May he rule wisely and for many years, for I won't be half the man he is.' Stoick tried to hold back his tears. "Hiccup made this axe for you." Gobber wrapped the cloth back on the axe. "This was supposed to show us both he could do more than just sharpen swords and axes. Who do you think made all of the "fine swords" the village has? I can't do that properly with just one hand!" Gobber waved his hook and hand in the air, driving the point home. Stoick chuckled. "If the village knew…they would throw out their swords onto the sea for fear they were cursed!" They shared a good laugh until Gobber gave Stoick the book. "Read this." He did so, reading out loud. "Dragons…they aren't what we think they are. They're not the murderous hellspawn everyone thinks they are. Toothless showed me they're caring and gentle, with varying degrees of smartness. Especially Night Furies. Apparently, they like to shower humans with relatively harmless spit in a tongue bath. I wish my dad could see, but he would just put his axe through his brain, that's what he always does. I'm starting to consider hoping onto Toothless' back and leave this place. I've fixed his injured tail, after all…Gobber, if I do run, or rather, fly off, I know you'll find this diary and show it to my dad. And he surely will declare me an outcast for befriending a Night Fury, but please don't hold that against me. I never was a good Viking after all. I'm better as a Dragon Rider." The diary fell from Stoick's hands with a quite loud noise in the deathly quiet room. "My son…he tamed a Night Fury?" "Well, I did notice the boy seemed happier. And his way with the dragons...now I know how he did it. He learned from his friend." Gobber shrugged. He'd seen stranger things from the boy.
Stoick's face went deathly pale. His son rides a Night Fury and ran away from home. First, a dragon took his wife. Now, his son ran away on the wings of a dragon. At least his son was safe, if Hiccup's words were anything to go by.
Well…the kid had never once lied. He could have a stinging sense of sarcasm, but his words were always true.
"I have to go find him…"
A.N: Sorry about the long wait…I had a few problems at school and haven't found much time to write on this story. Well, I hope you like it!
Luis, the author, incurable sarcastic and the last survivor of Math classes…signing off.
(Alien joke…)