Looks like I'm not going to put this on hold after all… :)
Thanks to all who read/reviewed!
*Remember Gunthar from the beginning of the story? If not, he's the Geirr's 5 year old son who caused the Terrible Terror to go beserk—he's also known for causing disasters, just not as drastic as Hiccup…
"This is bad…this is very, very bad," Fishlegs said, wide-eyed.
Gobber rolled his eyes, "He needs medical treatment...fast," he said, eyeing his apprentice, "I hope that Stoick—"
The doors to the Great Hall swung open, revealing…
"Stoick! Chief!" everyone cried, relieved that he had safely returned.
Drenched from head to toe, the chief bolted towards his son and tossed an armful of supplies onto the table, "I wasn't sure which ones we needed…so I just grabbed them all," he said, scratching his damp head.
Gothi rolled her eyes and waved him off. She stared at the supplies in front of her, picked a few out, and started writing in the wet sand, "She says…" Gobber translated, "That we still need one more thing," he said.
Stoick sighed heavily, "What? ...What else?" he heaved.
"An clean—unused—piece of cloth," said Gobber, "…Or something soft that we can tie around his leg," he read.
Stoick groaned, "And where are we going to find something clean?!" he said, "We're Vikings! Why would we have anything clean on us?!" he huffed, exasperated.
A tiny voice broke the tension, "I might have something…" it said, "…But I'm not sure it will work…"
"Who said that?!" Stoick's voice boomed, "Whoever said that get over here, right now!" he yelled.
A little boy emerged, "Here, sir," Gunthar said quietly.
"Gunthar!" his parents cried, "Get back here!" they yelled.
"NO!" Stoick yelled, crouching down to get eye level with the child, "…What do you have, son?" he asked softly.
Gunthar took a deep breath, "I-I do-don't know if it will w-work…" he said quietly, "B-But I have this," he said, holding up a piece of cloth.
Stoick grabbed it out of his hands, "Where did this come from?!" he breathed.
Gunthar took a step back, "I always carry it with me…" he said, "...I don't really know why," he said shyly, "But it's clean! I promise!" he said more confidently.
Gobber came forward and pat him on the back, "Good lad," he grinned, "Your parents are lucky to have someone like you for a son," he said.
Gunthar's eyes lit up, "Really?!" he exclaimed.
"Yes, son," Stoick said, standing up, "You're a real lifesaver," he said, running towards his own son.
"Literally," Tuffnut added, earning glares from his peers.
Gunthar blushed and ran back towards his parents, glad that—for once—he had actually been able to help.
~The next morning~
Hiccup yawned and blinked his eyes open, then slowly pushed himself up into a seated position and looked around the Great Hall. He raised his eyebrows and looked down-
"Astrid?!" Hiccup asked, staring at said girl lying at his feet.
Astrid jerked awake, "What's going on?" she asked, "…Hiccup! You're awake! Are you alright?!" she babbled.
Hiccup scratched his head, "Yes…I think so," he said, looking around, "…Um, Astrid?" he asked.
She stood up and brushed herself off, "Yeah?"
"Why is everyone on the floor?" he asked.
Astrid looked down…and sure enough, there they all were, exhausted from the night before. Stoick was leaning against the table—that Hiccup had been placed on, Gobber was hunched over the table, Snotlout was lying on his back—slightly snoring, Fishlegs was curled up in a ball, and the twins were leaning against each other—Tuffnut's head resting on Ruffnut's shoulder.
Hiccup chuckled at the sight, "Did I miss something?" he asked.
Astrid ran her hand over her face, "Well…" she said, averting her gaze to the ground.
"…Well," Hiccup said, gesturing for her to go on.
Astrid shrugged her shoulders, "It's a long story," she yawned.
Hiccup crossed his arms, "I think we have time," he said, gesturing to everyone on the floor.
Astrid laughed at his persistence, "Alright," she said, sitting next to him, "It started with Gobber telling us that you had a yak with a big head…"
I do realize that this chapter may have seemed a bit short...but I do have a plan :)
(Not really...this was merely a filler)
Next Chapter:
-Would you want me to include Astrid telling Hiccup what happened last night? Or should I start from when everyone starts to wake up?