On My Own
Author: Nightstar Fury of Nightstar Productions.
Rating: M for Mature.
Disclaimer: I own nothing from Dreamworks HTTYD or Dreamworks Dragons. I also don't own any of the songs I use :p Now that we've established that...We can enjoy the story!
10; Overworked.
{Hiccup's POV}
Oh it was so worth it, I didn't care if they knew about the tunnels. Not like they could get in or out with me and Inferno. I loved seeing their shocked faces when I opened the passage, then again when the fireworm dragons lit the place up after Toothless's blast signaled them to get into place. I pulled Inferno again and placed it on the wall to the left of me, same thing as before the passage above our heads closed leaving us down there. "Hiccup this is...Wow..." Gobber said stunned at what he was seeing. Rows of caves, various tunnels. It was like a maze down here and only Sylvi, Viggo, Ryker, Eret, and myself knew our way around it.
"What is this place...?" Astrid asked looking around.
"I told you. The underground bunkers. A place for humans or dragons to hide out during a storm or threat. My greatest invention." I reply.
"You did all this?" Stoick asked.
"Well. Whispering Deaths made the tunnels but yes, I did the caves and secret passage in. Inferno is the key both in and out. Also this place is a maze without me. Its built to safely hold a great deal of people and dragons." I begin walking to show them around. "The tunnels to your right and left and there are three hatches to give us access to the food store house, healers hut, and supply shack. Our way of getting what we need if we can't ride out a storm in the hall. This is also where I sent elderly and children who cannot fight. Keeps them safe." I explain.
"Its...so warm down here." Fishlegs said.
"Its the fireworm dragons. We can't use fires to keep warm because the smoke has no exit but the dragons lighting the place give off some serious heat. The caves are wide and deep enough to hold two dragons and a family of 4. Without dragons, it can hold 8 people at once comfortably. In the event of a storm, once everyone is down safely the guards will start passing out blankets, bedrolls, and pillows. And we ration food accordingly as I keep an eye on the storm. These are emergency bunkers, so in the event that the hall for whatever reason collapses or a war breaks out...This is the hide out. It is inaccessible without Inferno which never leaves my side. The village might get destroyed, but I rather rebuild a village than lose innocent lives." I sigh.
"I'd do the same." Gobber added patting my shoulder now.
"This is also were the dragons hide out when we have visitors to the island. Toothless knows the way out since he leads them in. These tunnels lead all around the island, some to the beaches. Some to the forest, and under certain buildings. But even the exits out are concealed..." I chuckle.
"What do you mean?" Ruffnut tilted her head.
"I'll show you what I mean. Follow me." I said, the all followed curiously now as I turned them around and brought them to what appeared to be a dead end of nothing but rock.
"Uh...Hiccup, this is sealed off..." Astrid mentioned.
"As I said...The exits are sealed and concealed. Just watch..." I said as I touched touched the center of the 'rock' and it began to move, the others backed up in fear as the rock turned to white dragon belly and in poked a changewing head. "Hey Mirage." I smile rubbing the dragon's face as it purred, after she moved it was clear to see outside now.
"So the changewings...blend in with the rocks so it looks like there is no way in or out..." Fishlegs questions.
"Pretty clever right? Even if one found the way in...Someone unfamiliar with a changewing would end up with acid to the face...These changewings only respond to Toothless and myself, I trained them personally. They will stay hidden and switch off every couple of hours to get a drink and feed. They won't attack anyone passing by unless that person is a threat and trying to get inside." I smiled.
"Hiccup that's brilliant!" Fishlegs exclaimed, I only chuckled with a shrug.
"Just doing what I do best...Being me." I say. "Well come along, I'll give you a tour of the island." I add as Mirage resumed her post by blending in with the wall again. I led them back to the wall and positioned Inferno in the spot as the hall floor opened, I grabbed a ladder from the wall and let them climb up. I went last after Toothless jumped out. I let the ladder drop flat before locking the entrance again. I put Inferno back on my thigh as we exited the hall back out to the main area, as soon as I was out I saw two Vikings fighting and the rest circled around watching. Really guys? Are we testing the limits of my patience right now?
"Aren't you gonna break that up?" Astrid asked. I never answered her as I stepped in the ring of watching Vikings to see the two punching one another, I waited until they split apart before walking between them as their fists were aiming for one another. My eyes narrowed as I put both my hands up and caught their fists. They froze.
"Ch-Chief..." They whispered. I threw down both their fists and crossed my arms over my chest.
"Front and center. Now." I warned. Both men shamefully put their heads down and stood before me, taking a knee as they did. "Who wants to tell me what is going on here?" I asked. The area was silent. After a minute, I cracked my neck to the side. "Okay. No one wants to answer when I ask...Now its an order. Tell me what is going on out here." I said firmly.
"We...disagreed about something..." Said the one on the right.
"What could you of possibly disagreed about that resulted in a fist fight?!" I snapped, they both winced. No one liked when I got mad.
"Who Olga wants to be with..." The one on the left mentioned softly.
"Fighting over a woman, really guys? Fist fighting one another is not something tribe members do. A tribe stands together, supports one another, and protects one another. They do not fight one another over anything, especially a woman." I state firmly.
"Sorry chief..." They put their heads down more.
"Sorry doesn't cut it this time. I have enough going on with my wife giving birth in two months, a low food supply with 14 extra mouths to feed, and another bad storm breathing down my neck. And now two of my best riders, who also happen to be my guards for this island are acting like children. I am your chief, not your father. I shouldn't have to break up a fight. As men you two should have been able to reach a compromise on your own without the use of your fists. This is not the first time since I became chief you two have had to be separated for fighting. You were warned countless times to stop and I have had enough." I look up and see a Zippleback flying over, I place my hands over my mouth and give a Zippleback call.
The two headed dragon stopped and landed beside me. It was a girl dragon with a an off white belly and the rest of it was a mix of yellows, pinks, and purples. The two heads placed their snouts to my open palms then it purred as I faced the two guards. "If you two can't get along on your own then I'm not going to give you a choice. For the next month, you two are sharing a dragon. You will be sky patrols together, and search the sky and sea on one dragon. And to ensure you don't forget the lesson of working together and acting like partnered tribe members as it should be all the time...You two are returning to the academy." I state.
"What! But we're full...riders." The two complained. I removed the two pins from their tunics and returned my arms crossed over my chest.
"I only grant full rider status to adults who passed their training. I don't grant it to children which you two have clearly displayed that you're acting as such. For the next month, you two will share this Zippleback and return to training during the day with the class. I will be getting daily reports, if I hear of anymore fighting...You two do not get these back, or your dragons." I say to them.
"B-But those are...our bonded dragons, chief! You can't take them away..." Said one of the men.
"Yes I can. If you cannot act like adults then you will not be treated as such. I grant full rider status to those who prove to me they have what it takes to be a rider. I made the rule of no one under 14 can ride a dragon and right now, after this...You've only shown me you're acting like 5 years old. Which means you are no longer qualified to be full riders. You're on probation for 30 days, effective immediately." I say preparing to walk away.
"Your dad never would of let you do this!" One shouted, I froze mid step as gasps were heard.
"Yes he would have. Or have you forgotten so soon who taught you how to be a dragon rider? How to earn a dragon's trust? Without me...You wouldn't even have your dragons since I train them personally before anyone steps in the ring for training. My father left me in charge of this island. I'm head dragon rider, and trainer. And I'm the chief. What I say goes. I don't care if you don't like it. I've had enough of these petty fights between you two. Your fight pulled everyone from their duties which keep this village running smoothly, not to mention someone could have been hurt with your carelessness. My wife and children are in the crowd and if they got hurt because you chose to ignore orders not to fight that you've been given countless times...I would banish you. This island has peace with not only dragons but one another. If you can't keep the peace, you can go. Because I will not tolerate it." I glared. They both looked down. "Now. You can take your punishment and maybe earn back the right to be called full riders, or ignore it and be bound to the ground patrol and never allowed to fly a dragon again. What will your choice be boys?" I ask.
They looked at one another quickly and sighed. "We'll take the punishment chief..."
"See, already you two are working together. Good decision. Probation starts now. Your dragons will be taken care of in your absence." I remark.
"Yes chief..." The two say.
"If you're done causing a scene in my village, get back to work." The two walked off. "Fights over, everyone back to work." I order, the crowd quickly dispersed. Sylvi came over to me sofly.
"Hiccup...Are you okay?" She asked.
"I'm fine...Just frustrated." I mumbled as she rubbed my shoulder a bit, I turned my head and coughed hard into my arm again. It was raspy, and raw. Great. Just what I needed right now. I blinked a few times, everything was fuzzy and getting darker. My heart was racing, pounding in my chest. Something was wrong with me, I feel weak.
"Hiccup?..." Sylvi said worried. I felt a pain shoot through my chest, I grabbed it cringing hard before dropping to a knee coughing hard, then everything went black around me.
{Regular POV}
After Hiccup punished the two guys fighting, Sylvi had gone to make sure he was alright. It was rare that Hiccup actually got mad but when he did, people knew to stay clear. The Hooligans watched in shock, Hiccup had never been so firm or forceful before. Gobber actually watched proudly of the lad taking control the way he did, he even elbowed Stoick a few times hinting at the fact that Hiccup had what it took after all but they never gave him a chance. After everyone dispersed, Hiccup fell into a coughing fit. He looked terrible honestly but it became scary when he cringed holding his chest and dropping to a knee, the coughing worse. He breathed heavily a few times before his eyes closed and he blacked out falling backwards.
"Hiccup!" Sylvi cried worried but thankfully, Toothless was already beside him to break his fall so he didn't hit his head on the ground. Toothless crooned with worry for his rider and friend, the Hooligans rushed over as well.
"What happened!" Stoick asked.
"I-I don't know! He's never blacked out before! Oh Gods..." Sylvi cried as she rubbed his cheek softly. She gasped, "He's burning up." Sylvi looked around and saw Eret. "ERET! Get Iris, now! Something is wrong with Hiccup!" She yelled to him, he jumped on his dragon and raced off. "Wake up...Please wake up babe..." Sylvi kissed his forehead. Eret returned with Iris, she quickly looked over at him.
The first thing she did was put a cool rag on his forehead and feel his throat and chest. "Swollen throat, high fever, harsh coughing, rapid heartbeat. Was he complaining of any chest pains?" Iris asked Sylvi.
"He cringed holding his chest right before he blacked out..." Ruffnut chimed in.
"Explains a lot." Iris sighed softly.
"What, what is it? What's wrong with him...?" Stoick asked. Iris looked at them now, mainly Sylvi as Eret picked Hiccup up carefully.
"A cold, and overworking. Combined just doesn't mix well. He's stressed out with everything going on, and he was sick the yesterday too. I doubt he got a lot of rest. He'll be alright, Sylvi...He just needs a good nights sleep, and something for that cold." Iris said holding Sylvi's hands now.
"Iris...Even when he's overworked himself...This never happens. He never blacks out...I've seen him go days without sleep and under worse stress than this...Something else is wrong." Sylvi panicked.
"Hey, Hiccup is a strong man. He's alright, let him rest up. If things get worse, we'll figure it out. But for now, lets just get him to bed. I'll make him something for the cold, and he should probably stay in bed tomorrow too. Have Gunnar be the stand in chief for now. Hiccup is pushing himself too much, he needs to take it easy and let his body recover." Iris explained.
"I'll tie him to the bed if I have too..." Sylvi grumbled looked at Hiccup's unconscious from in Eret's arms. "You stupid, stubborn idiot you..." Sylvi kissed his cheek. With that, Eret carried Hiccup's form back to the house with Sylvi and Toothless following. Iris left back to her hut.
(Hiccup's House)
Hiccup was placed in bed and covered up with a cold rag on his head again, told by Iris to change and reapply every half hour or so. Toothless stayed up with him while Sylvi sat downstairs with the Hooligans. Everyone was quiet too, not sure what to say. It had been a little worry some to just see Hiccup black out so suddenly. If the healer was saying it was due to a cold and being stressed, as well overworked then the Hooligans could now see how very hard Hiccup worked as chief. It took a lot to do the job, it wasn't for everyone. Stoick knew that all to well himself, he said for years Hiccup could never be chief because he didn't have what it too to do it but after today...Seeing all Hiccup accomplished on Fury Isle in 6 years.
Hiccup always had it in him, but Stoick held him back in his own fear that he didn't think Hiccup could do it because he was a hiccup. Hiccup was born early, it meant being the runt of the litter even though Hiccup was an only child. He was skinny, bony even. He didn't have muscle on Berk, he was considered the weak one. Stoick even told Hiccup he wouldn't survive on his own but yet, here Hiccup was. Chief of his own village. Gobber apparently always knew Hiccup could do it, and Hiccup did too since he made mention of being able to do so much more when he wasn't held back.
"So...He'll be alright?" Fishlegs asked.
"Iris thinks so after he gets some rest...A lot has happened the last few weeks." Sylvi sighed.
"Such as?" Gobber questioned.
"Well the baby was moving and kicking so much that I was in pain and we thought I was in labor early again. Then there was the issue with the wild Scauldron he had to take on. Um...Almost everyone in the village came down with eel pox that Hiccup took Toothless by himself to get the ingredients for. Couple dragon brawls, disputes to settle, food and supply storing, patrols when Ryker hurt his ankle...Then him getting that cold and you arriving. He didn't sleep a wink last night. I felt him up and shifting around a lot...He's been exhausted and today just put him over the top." Sylvi explained.
"And he hasn't blacked out from all that yet?" Snotlout blinked.
"Like Iris said, Hiccup is a strong man. He takes on a lot but he doesn't always stop when he reaches his limit. Not sure if he even knows it." Sylvi chuckled.
"So how did you fall in love with him?" Tuffnut asked. "I mean at 14, Hiccup was a twig...How did he go from that to...well all this..."
"I didn't fall for his looks. I fell for his heart. When we first met Hiccup, it was him crashing from the sky and Toothless not letting us near him until Thurmond stepped in saying we didn't want to hurt him. Thurmond took Hiccup into his house and tended his injuries and he was knocked out a good few hours or so. Thurmond brought him out to see Toothless and we saw right away that Hiccup's bond with him...was nothing like what we had with the dragons here. We shared island and good but we didn't know how to get their trust, to train, or fly them." Sylvi smiled softly.
"Until the lad taught ya?" Gobber questioned.
"Well after he woke up, we all...followed him and Thurmond to the hall so Hiccup could eat. I asked right away if he was going to stay with us. He said he didn't know, Thurmond said he didn't mind at all that we could learn a lot from him. Hiccup told us his story about what happened on Berk, then when Thurmond asked him officially if he'd like to stay...Hiccup said yes. And you know the story from there. I'll admit for a twig, he was still pretty handsome with his auburn hair and forest green eyes. And he may have been skinny at 14 but Gods you've never seen the muscle under that tunic. I take it that all came from forge work with you Gobber?" Sylvi asked.
"That it would." Gobber chuckled.
"So when did you two become a thing?" Ruffnut asked.
"Little after we turned 15 and Hiccup started chief training. I was the first person Hiccup taught how to fly and ride a dragon. He took me on a flight with Toothless, it was amazing. To be in the clouds, touching them and seeing the Northern lights in the night sky. Oh it was breathtaking...I fell in love with him that night, and asked him if he'd teach me how to ride a dragon. So after that we found Rosethorn, my nadder. He taught me everything he knows, then others wanted to learn too. So Thurmond made him head trainer and rider, and only Hiccup names someone a full rider. When they pass the classes, and final test." Sylvi smiled. "After I became a full rider, he asked me out on our first flight together and went for a date." Sylvi blushed a little.
"Did he kiss you?" Ruffnut smiled.
"Mmhm, never imagined he'd be such a good kisser too. He told me he'd never had a girlfriend before." Sylvi said.
"Awe, that's so sweet. Then you two dated a year, he became chief, and got married right?" Fishlegs asked.
"That's right." Sylvi said.
"Well I for one am glad the lad found his true calling, and is happy. Its all I ever wanted for him." Gobber smiled wide. It was silent a few minutes, everyone looking around at one another.
"Chieftess Sylvi..." Fishlegs began.
"Just Sylvi is fine, Fishlegs." Sylvi replied.
"I was wondering...Do you think...Hiccup would teach me how to become a dragon rider?" Sylvi's eyes widened.
"Me too." Gobber put his hand up smiling wide.
"Us too?" The twins and Snotlout said together.
"I-I don't..." Sylvi began.
"Not a chance in Valhalla. Absolutely not." Came Hiccup's voice from behind. They all turned to see Hiccup standing there with his arms folded over his chest, a stern look on his face and Toothless standing beside him.