Mission Success. Mission Failed.
Hicca was seated next to her father atop his personal viewing tower as they waited for the dragon race to begin. Hicca had been explained how the races worked and her father invited her to watch it with him. She reluctantly accepted, trying her best to hide her excitement. How could she not be excited about a sport that involved dragons? She figured she might as well have a good seat for the race. All around, the villagers were seated in the stands to watch their favorite sporting event. Despite the ever present threat of Siver, the villagers enjoyed the distraction. Stoick always made sure to assign a watch during the races just in case, so they felt at ease that they were safe.
Stoick smiled to himself and glanced at his daughter out of the corner of his eye. He was very happy she had accepted his invitation to sit with him. It was a sign of progress. He knew she wouldn't be able to pass up the chance to have the best seat in the house to watch a dragon race. He watched as Hicca sat back in her seat with her arms crossed over her chest and looking apathetic. Deciding not to keep her waiting he gave the go ahead to signal the riders.
Seeing the chief's signal, the Viking attending to the race horn took a deep breath before putting his lips to the horn and blowing. The horn blared loudly and the whole crowd shouted in anticipation. Then from the direction of the academy, the racers descended. One by one they landed on the great pillar that was lined with dragon perches. Hicca looked at all the riders, noticing what colors marked their team.
There was Fishlegs and Meatlug, covered in orange and green paint resembling a bull's eye. Then there was Snotlout and Hookfang, painted in red and yellow. Then the twins who each had their own colors for their own dragon head. Blue and yellow for Ruffnut and Barf and black and yellow for Tuffnut and Belch. Lastly there was Ash and Stormfly, covered in blue and orange.
"RACERS! ON YOUR MARK!" Stoick shouted. The riders and dragons all tensed up and they prepared to take off. "GET SET! GO!" Stoick shouted, and at his words all the racers leapt from their perches.
Taking the early lead, Ash's was determined to win this race. He wasn't too worried about it though because he always won the races. As he circled around n Stormfly to fly though the dragon stables his heart was pounding in excitement. Flying in races always gave him such a rush. He loved competition.
Flying through the stables and coming out the other side, Ash quickly scanned the streets for a sheep. Immediately he saw one trying to scurry between houses without being noticed. With it out in the open he pointed it out to Stormfly, "Stormfly, there's one girl!" Stormfly took noticed of the sheep and dived down toward it. She deftly swiped it up into her talons and sped off toward the net basket. Passing over Stormfly dropped it in, earning Ash the first point of the race.
Hicca watched as Ash scored his first points. She noticed that the sheep had been painted in his colors, meaning that he had just earned two points. From what she had been told, when a racer put a sheep with their team colors in the basket, they earned two point. If they put a sheep marked with a different team's colors, it was worth one point. Additionally they were allowed to steal sheep from other racers and the use of dragon fire was allowed.
Hicca had to admit that Ash was a very good flyer. He was supposedly the undefeated champion of the races. She could see why as Ash stole a sheep Fishlegs had just been about to grab. It was marked with Snotlout's colors, earning him another point as he dropped it into his net. Hicca was starting to get really into the race as she leaned forward in excitement. Toothless was as excited as his rider as he watched the race from atop a house. He loved pushing his speed to the limits and in a competitive setting, he and Hicca would have a blast.
Stoick smiled as he noticed Hicca's face light up at the race went on. He had hoped she would like the races, and he had been right. He chuckled lightly as Hicca sat on the edge of her seat. Her hands were clenched in anticipation and she bit her lip lightly as her eyes were focused on Ash.
Five laps into the race and Ash was the only racer to have any points. No one had ever seen Ash so set on winning a race. They knew that the young man was competitive, but this was crazy. As Ash stole a sheep from Snotlout he looked over to the chief's personal tower and saw Hicca. Her eyes were trained on him and he smiled to himself. His plan was working as he'd hoped. Hicca was impressed by his skills in the race. At the pace he was going he might be win with a perfect score. Urging Stormfly on, they raced through the stables and into their sixth lap.
It was now the fifteenth lap of the race. Ash frowned at having lost some points to Snotlout, ruining his chance at a perfect race. He was now at 12 points while Snotlout was at six. He cursed to himself as he saw Fishlegs give the twins his sheep. Snotlout and Fishlegs had been having a light competition for Ruffnut's affection over the years, being the last single girl on Berk and all. It annoyed him to no end when they would sometimes give away points to them to gain her favor. Pulling around for the 16th lap, Ash heard the horn blare, signaling the final lap of the race, and the coveted black sheep, which was worth ten points.
"Come on Stormfly," he said to urge his partner. She responded by pumping her wings harder and gaining speed. As he came out of the stables he scanned the skies, waiting for the black sheep to be catapulted into the air. Seeing it, he called out to Stormfly, "There girl! Come one Stormfly, up, up, up," he said in encouragement. As Stormfly gained altitude to intercept the sheep, suddenly Snotlout and Hookfang crashed into them from their left. With Hokang's greater bulk, they were jerked violently to the side and lost speed. With a glare, Ash met the eyes of Snotlout as he glanced over his shoulder back at them.
"Sorry Ash old buddy, but this race is mine," Snotlout said with a smirk. With that, he urged Hookfang on to grab the sheep.
Ash cursed silently. With the black sheep worth so much Snotlout actually stood a good chance of winning. He tried to urge Stormfly to catch up, but he suddenly noticed that she was exhausted. He palmed his forehead as he realized he had been pushing her too hard in an attempt at a perfect race.
"COME ON ASH!" came a familiar voice. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he turned to the chief's tower. To his astonishment he saw Hicca standing on her seat and looking straight at him. Cupping her hands over her mouth she shouted to him again, "GET THAT SHEEP! SMOKE SNOTFACE!" she shouted.
Ash smiled to himself. It made his heart soar to hear and see Hicca cheering for him. Facing forward, he urged Stormlfy to gain a little more speed. With a growl, she obliged and pulled up behind Hookfang. Standing up on her back he dashed along her body and leapt off her head and landed on Hookfang's back. Running up his back and toward his head he reached the spot where Snotlout saddle was. With a leap he got his right leg on top of Snotlout's helmet and used him as a stepping stone. Pushing off he jumped up and snatched the black sheep out of the air as Snotlout was about to catch it. Tucking it under his arm, he fell past Hookfang's snout and spread his legs to land perfectly back in Stormfly's saddle. With the sheep secure, he directed Stormfly into a dive as they came up on the goal. As Stormfly passed over their net she leaned left and allowed Ash to throw the sheep into the net. With that, Ash had won the game.
"AND THE WINNER IS ASH!" Stoick shouted with a hardy laugh.
Ash pumped his fist and gave a shout of joy. Passing over the villagers he leaned over to the side and clapped their hands as he passed. They all shouted to him in praise and admiration at his continued winning streak. Looking back to Hicca, he saw her jumping up and down in excitement, her enthusiasm of his victory matching the rest of the village.
Hicca had never been so excited in her life. The speed, the competition, the applause of the crowd. At that moment Hicca knew one thing. She had to get into the next dragon race.
After the race the riders were eating at the great hall. The village congratulated Ash as they passed. The twins and Snotlout were not as happy for Ash as the rest of the village. They never won whenever Ash was in a race with them and they were getting tired of always competing for second place. Suddenly Hicca burst into the great hall. Looking around the room and spotting the riders, she immediately came up to their table.
"OH MY GODS YOU GUYS! THAT WAS AMAZING!" she shouted in excitement. She began to rant on about how excited she was and recalled several steals and near collisions they had. The other took in her enthusiasm with amusement. Dragon racing was a regular thing to them.
"So how do I get in on the next race?" she asked, looking around to all of them.
"Well, there will be another race in three days. Just let me know if you want in and find a team color for yourself so we can get the sheep painted beforehand," Fishlegs said.
"Oh I definitely want in. I should go find some colors. I'm gonna ask Gobber what he thinks," she quickly said before turning to run off. Before she left, she stopped and turned to look at Ash. Her cheeks turned tinged with pink as she brushed some auburn hair behind her ears. "Congratulations on your win Ash. You were amazing out there," she said giving him a smile. With that, she turned and rushed out of the hall.
Ash watched her go with a smile on his face. He was cheering on the inside at his success. He had managed to impress her just as he had planned. If he won the next race maybe she would be even more impressed and want to spend time with him.
Apart of him was also looking forward to a new challenge. Hicca had been the first Viking to ever fly a dragon. He figured that over the years she had improved her own flying skill as well. He knew for sure that the next race was sure to be his toughest one yet.
The next day Hicca and Ruffnut were at the academy. Inside the ring Hicca was teaching Ruffnut how to throw her new shuriken as she had promised. Ruffnut was frustrated by how difficult it was to throw the foreign projectiles. Looking at the barrel with a bull's eye painted on it, with said bull's eye filled with several of Hicca's shuriken, she scowled. She couldn't get how Hicca made it look so effortless.
"It just takes practice," said Hicca to reassure her. Standing at Ruffnut's side, she reached out and adjusted her hold on the shuriken before nodding at her to try again.
Mimicking the way Hicca had shown her, she let the shuriken fly. Her form improved enough that she actually manage to hit the barrel, albeit far from the bull's eye. Ruffnut sighed but smiled at her small progress. Hicca gave a nod of approval and went to collect the shuriken embedded in the barrel.
Ruffnut watched Hicca as she plucked the shuriken out. She and Hicca had never been close despite them being the only two girls around the same age. Ruffnut, like her brother and Snotlout, had bullied her constantly as a child for being weak and different. After Hicca had defeated the Red Death and disappeared however, Ruffnut had actually found herself missing the girl. As she got older there was no one to talk to about 'girl stuff'. Her brother wouldn't listen. Snotlout and Ash didn't care in the least and Fishlegs would just turn beet red and nearly hyperventilate if she tried to speak to him. It made her wish she had been nicer to Hicca when they were children.
"Hey Hicca?" Ruffnut asked to get her attention.
"Hmm?" Hicca said not turning around from her task.
"Are you really gonna leave when this is all over?" she asked curiously.
"Maybe. Maybe not," Hicca answered simply. "Why do you ask?"
"Well…I know you and I were never the closest of friends and all," she began.
"Gee. Wonder whose fault that was," Hicca responded with dry sarcasm.
"I know, I know, we were all jerks. But you know…the whole village felt bad for the way we treated you all those years," Ruffnut said honestly.
"Am I supposed to be touched or something Ruff?" Hicca said turning around and raising an eyebrow. "You guys should. I may have been different but I was one of your own. Despite that, you all constantly treated me as an outcast. I bet if it weren't for the fact that I tamed a dragon and killed the Red Death nothing would have ever changed."
"Maybe you're right," Ruffnut said conceding her point. "Still. All I'm saying is, can't you at least give us a chance? We've changed. For the better and it was all because of you."
Hicca searched Ruffnut's face. The girl was being sincere. Maybe she should lighten up on the village a little bit. Then again, it would be nice to hear an actual apology from someone. "I'll think about it," Hicca said vaguely before walking back to Ruff's side and handing the girl her shuriken.
Ruffnut nodded in acceptance of her answer and took back her shuriken. Taking one in her hand she aimed for the target. "By the way Hicca. Ash really missed you over the years," she said looking at the girl and giving her a playful smile.
Hicca flushed slightly and scowled at the girl. "Just aim and throw Ruff," she said in a huff.
Ruff chuckled lightly. She wanted to become friends with Hicca. It was nice having another girl around. She decided she would keep working on Hicca and try to convince her to stay on Berk.
Maybe with her around Fishlegs would stop bothering her. That is if Ash didn't kill him.
A few hours later Hicca was sitting in the cove meditating with Toothless. Suddenly she heard the loud footsteps of a visitor. Opening her eyes and glancing over her shoulder, she saw her cousin enter the cove.
"Alright Hicca. Let's do some training," he said with a smile.
Hicca stood up and dusted herself off before addressing her cousin. "Alright Snotlout lets begin," she said. "What I'm going to be teaching you is how to properly meditate and clear your mind," she explained.
"WHAT?" Snotlout said in disbelief. "Your just gonna teach me to sit there. I can do that at home. Teach me some cool fighting moves," he demanded.
Hicca took breath through the nose to control her patience. "Snotlout there's honestly not much I can teach you. You've pretty much always been the best fighter of our generation," she said, playing to his vanity.
Snotlout preened at the compliment. It was true. Snotlout was the best fight in their age group. The only person capable of taking him was Ash. Even then their fights were pretty evenly matched, with Snotlout having only a few victories over Ash. "Yeah you're right," he said with a proud smirk. "But what is meditation gonna do?"
"The best warriors have a well-trained mind and body. You've already got the body part down. But if we train your mind, you'll become an even better warrior," she explained. "I guarantee it," she added.
Snotlout cocked an eyebrow skeptically at this. He didn't really believe in any of it. Still, he couldn't deny Hicca's skill. If mediation could turn his once wimpy cousin into the warrior she was now, it could do something for him as well.
"Alright fine," he said with a sigh.
"Good. Toothless, light the fire," she said to her companion. At her command the dragon opened his eyes and walked to the campfire. Firing a blast at the wood, he got a fire going. Snotlout watched as Hicca went over to her bags laying around the cove and dug through them. He watched as she produced a tea pot and a packet of herbs. Walking to the water, she filled the pot and walked back to place it by the fire.
"Tea is good for relaxing the body," Hicca explained.
Snotlout rolled his eyes and shrugged. As they waited for the water to boil, Snotlout looked around the cove. His eyes fell on a small patch of plants that he hadn't noticed before. He was sure they had never been there and the plants didn't look native to Berk.
"Did you plant those Hicca?" he asked pointing to the plants.
"Yes. They're plants that I use to make my poisons and then there's Dragon Whiff," she said.
"What's 'Dragon Whiff'?" he asked curiously.
"It's a variant of Dragon Nip I found in Japan. I discovered that it has a very powerful scent that only dragons can detect. I used it to make a special scent that I can splash on myself that Toothless can track if we were to get separated," she explained.
"How well does it work?"
"Pretty well. Toothless can smell and track the stuff from miles away. I once used it in a mission to find the headquarters of an illegal slave smuggling operation," she said casually.
"Really?" Snotlout asked amazed.
"Yep," with the tea ready, Hicca prepared him a cup and handed it to him. As he drank his tea, which was surprisingly good, he asked Hicca about some of the other missions she had done while in Japan. He listened intently as Hicca told him about all the amazing things she had done while with her ninja clan. From assassinations, to saboteur, spying, and even stealing. He couldn't believe all the dangerous stuff his little cousin had done.
He decided to give the meditation thing a serious try. Maybe it would actually make him a better warrior.
"Alright Tuffnut, I'm gonna teach you one move," Hicca told Ruffnut as they stood in the kill ring.
"Oh what is it?" Tuffnut asked excitedly.
"It's a deadly move that not even I have been able to master," Hicca told him cryptically.
Tuffnut grew excited at what Hicca had said. Something not even she could do? What kind of move was this?
"It's called the Dim Mak. The Death Punch," she said slowly.
"The Death Punch? What does it do?" Tuffnut asked.
"What does it do? For the love of—," Hicca stopped to palm her head at his stupidity. "It kills your opponent in one attack. I can't use it simply because I don't have the musculature to pull it off. But you just might," Hicca explained.
"Awesome," Tuffnut muttered under his breath.
"Now watch closely," Hicca said before turning around to face a straw dummy.
Tuffnut watched with anticipation as Hicca showed him the move. He couldn't wait to master this technique. He definitely wanted to try it on his sister.
"And no trying it on Ruffnut," Hicca added, sensing his thoughts.
Dang it.
Stoick sat in his seat as he waited to start the race. Hicca would be competing in this race, and he was nervous for her. He knew that she was a good flyer, but dragon racing could get very rough. As a father he couldn't help but feel a little worried.
"I think we're ready Stoick," Spitelout said at his side.
Stoick nodded before giving the Spitelout the go ahead to signal the riders. Spitelout nodded in confirmation and signaled to the horn blower. The Viking sounded the horn and all the riders flew from the direction of the academy to land on the starting perches. Stoick's eyes immediately focused on Hicca. She was in her ninja attire. On her face was red paint with two horizontal lines on each of her cheeks. There was also a single vertical red line on her forehead. Her dragon was also covered in red pain with his front legs being with red stripes. He noticed that the dragon's prosthetic tailfin had been changed to red instead of black and the remaining tailfin had been painted entirely red. Its wings also had a large red stripe and his forehead was marked with a red V shape.
The villagers were more excited than they'd had ever been. How could they not be? Hicca was in this race. She was the first of them to ever fly a dragon and they were eager to see what she could do.
Hicca's heart was beating madly in her chest. She was so excited to be in this race. She looked at the other riders and saw their faces set into determined expressions. Beneath her, Toothless was trembling as he was eager to take off. Hicca faced forward and waited for the signal to begin.
"RACERS!" Stoick shouted to get their attention. This was it. "ON YOUR MARK!" Hicca took a breath through the nose to steady her nerves. "GET SET!" Toothless's body tensed as he prepared to leap from his perch. "GO!"
With that, all the dragon jumped from their perches and took to the air. In a black blur Hicca and Toothless sailed past them, pulling around to fly through the stables, Hicca and Toothless flew through them at blinding speed. When they came out the other side Hicca slowed Toothless down slightly so they could look for a sheep. Together they scanned the empty streets of Berk. Finally Hicca noticed a sheep marked with the twin's colors.
"There's a sheep hun'," she shouted to Toothless while pointing the sheep out. Toothless spotted it and was about to dive down to get it when Snotlout slammed into them from the right. They lurched violently to the side before Hicca stabilized them. "Snotlout!" Hicca shouted with a glare
"Sorry little cousin. But that sheep is all mine," Snotlout called back with proud smirk. With that he directed Hookfang into a dive before grabbing the sheep. Then they flew to their goal before dropping the sheep in and scoring a point.
Hicca scowled at missing her chance to score her first point. With an adjustment of the prosthetic she and Toothless put on a burst of speed to make the second lap. Coming out of the stables she was immediately overtaken by Ash, the twins, and Fishlegs who put on burst of speed themselves. With a curse she urged Toothless to catch up and scanned the streets for a sheep.
While she searched for one, she saw Ash suddenly go into a dive. Looking to where he was heading she saw that he was closing in on a sheep. Stormfly easily snatched it up. From behind him, Snotlout tried to sneak up on him and ram into him. But Ash noticed him and directed Stormfly to do a barrel roll. Rolling safely out of the way, Hookfang and Snotlout flew by and nearly collided with a house before pulling up. With a smile, Ash urged Stormfly to speed up and head for the goal. Passing over it, Stormfly dropped the sheep in, scoring them two points.
Hicca curse again before slapping her hand against the saddle. Toothless growled in frustration at not having scored any points. Hicca grit her teeth, this was a lot harder than she thought it would be. She started to wonder if she had any chance of winning.
"COME ON HICCA!" came a shout from below. Following the origin of the shout, Hicca saw her father who was standing up on his tower. "GET THOSE SHEEP!" he shouted in encouragement.
Hicca didn't know why, but hearing him shouting for her sparked a fire in her. She wanted to win this race more than anything. Steeling herself, she adjusted the prosthetic. Toothless put on a burst of speed and shot forward. Even overtaking Ash and Stormfly who were in the lead, reminding everyone that he was the fastest dragon of them all. Passing through the stables in a black blur, they came out the other side and immediately they picked out a sheep. Marked in their own colors at that. Going into a dive, Toothless snatched up the unsuspecting sheep before rocketing to the goal. Doing a loop over the goal, he dropped it in and scored them their first points.
"YES!" Hicca shouted throwing her arms in the air. "Way to go hun," she called to Toothless while patting him on the head. He roared in glee and flew towards the stable. Now that they were in the race, they were both determined to win it.
It was the 19th lap of the race. Hicca and Ash were tied at 10 points each. The whole village was pumped. This was the most exciting race they had ever seen. They couldn't believe how amazing Hicca was, and it was only her first race. While Ash was usually the village favorite to win, many of them were actually rooting for Hicca.
Ash cursed as Snotlout managed to earn himself another point. He wasn't too worried about him though. Hicca was the real competition. Though Ash was more experienced in the races, Hicca was an expert flyer. Her skills rivalled, and admittedly may have even surpassed his own. He had never been so pumped up for a race. And Toothless, he was amazingly fast. He easily overtook Stormfly many times, snatching a sheep out from under him and annoying him to no end. Normally, this would drive Ash crazy. But when it was Hicca, and he saw her smiling proudly and her eyes sparkled in excitement, he couldn't get mad at her.
Coming around for the 20th lap, the horn sounded for the final lap and the black sheep. He and Stormfly were currently in the lead thanks to Hicca and Fishlegs bumping into each other. But Hicca was closing in fast. Coming out of the stable, he searched the skies for the black sheep.
"There!" he called out while pointing to Stormfly. Stormfly let out an excited squawk before gaining altitude to grab the sheep. As much as Ash liked Hicca, he wasn't going to hold back on her. He was going to do everything in his power to win. Coming up under the sheep, Ash reached both arms out to grab it. Just as his fingers were brushed against the sheep's fluffy hair, a black chain shout out and wrapped around its middle. His eyes widened in surprise as suddenly the sheep was yanked violently out of his sight.
Glancing over his shoulder he saw Hicca pulling in the sheep. The chain was from her weapon called a Kusarigama. Hicca must have remembered that weapons were allowed in the races. Though it was strange and foreign, it was still technically a weapon. With a flick of the tailfin Toothless shot forward, allowing the sheep to fly right into Hicca's arms. They shot over him and Stormfly and headed for the goal. Ash growled in frustration and urged Stormfly after them. But it was no use. Toothless was simply too fast. Ash watched as they headed for the goal. As they were within a teen feet of the goal, Hicca looked over her should and locked eyes with Ash. Giving him a playful smile, she winked at him before facing forward and throwing the sheep into her goal. Winning them the race.
"AND HICCA WINS!" Stoick shout in genuine happiness. He was glad Hicca had won the race. He had been cheering for her the entire time. His heart warmed as he saw her beaming with delight at her win.
On Toothless, Hicca was cheering ecstatically at her victory. She through her arms in the air and waved to the crowds. The village was just as enthusiastic about her win as she was. They reached their hands up to her, allowing her to pass by and clap their hands with hers. Then she flew up toward the sky and did some midair spins. Toothless roared in excitement and shot some plasma blasts into the sky. The crowd cheered and watched the sky light up in purple flashes.
Hicca smiled to herself. That had been the most fun she had ever had. And the village did this regularly. She could get used to this. The speed, the competition, the village shouting her name in praise and admiration. Suddenly Berk was looking a lot more like a place to call home.
A few hours after the race, Ash was walking up the great hall for lunch. While he was slightly disappointed his winning streak had just been broken, he wasn't too upset about it. For some reason, losing to Hicca hadn't felt so bad. Seeing her smile and throw her hands up in victory, he just thought she was so cute. Besides, she had run a fair and clean race. She hadn't cheated and won by using her skill and ingenuity. She'd simply been better than him that day.
He had heard from the villagers that Hicca was in the great hall right now. So he decided to be a good loser and congratulate her personally on her win. Then maybe she would see he could be a nice guy and want to spend time with him. Entering the great hall, his face immediately fell into a frown as he saw Hicca seated at a table. What made him upset was that she was surrounded by men. She was sitting down and eating her food while other men from the village, a few years him and his friends seniors, chatted her up. What made it worse was that she seemed to be enjoying the attention as she giggled and answered their question with a smile.
Looking at their faces, Ash's fists clenched as he saw them looking at her. He suddenly wanted to punch something as he saw they were looking at her. They were looking at her like she was a piece of meat. Ash knew what they were really after. As Hicca technically wasn't a member of the tribe, they could share a bed with her for a night without dishonoring a family and having to marry her. She was a pretty young lady after all. They were openly flirting with her, throwing her sly grins and winks. Ash's hands twitched for his non present battle axe.
Finally they got up and left, leaving Hicca smiling to herself and waving goodbye. Ash knew he shouldn't be jealous, they weren't together after all. But the thoughts of Hicca finding someone else, being held by someone else, and especially kissing someone else drove him crazy. Walking up he had a scowl on his face, one that Hicca noticed as he reached her table.
Hicca stared into Ash's face, which held a very unpleasant expression. "Something on your mind Ash?" she asked raising an eyebrow.
"Why do you even talk to them?" Ash asked sharply as he gestured to the retreating group of men. "You know that all they want to do id share a bed with you right?"
Hicca's eyebrows narrowed as she frowned at Ash. "You make it sound like I'm easy to get into bed Ash," Hicca replied with a glare.
"Well you didn't seem to be turning them away," he replied, while crossing his arms.
"I don't see why what I do is any of your business Ash," Hicca replied harshly as she stood up from her seat. "You and I aren't married, engaged, or even together. I'm an adult and I can do whatever I want with whoever I want," she added defiantly.
Ash continued to glare at her while she put her hands on her hips and glared back. He palmed his forehead mentally. This wasn't what he had come here for. She was right after all. They weren't a thing, as much as he wanted to be. He released a breath in defeat and opened his mouth to apologize when Hicca cut him off.
"Besides, the only person I would even think about getting with," she began while she held up her fingers. "Who would have the slightest, itty bitty chance, would be Fishlegs," she finished.
"WHAT!?" came a shout from the riders seated at the table next to them.
"WHAT!?" came the shout of Fishlegs as his head shot up from his meal. He had been listening the entire time, but was pretending not to notice them.
"WHAT!?" shouted Ash, absolutely bewildered. "FISHLEGS!? FISHLEGS!?" he shouted while gesturing to the boy. "You would only consider Fishlegs over m—anybody else," he asked hotly.
"Sitting right here you know," Fishlegs grumbled to himself quietly.
"Yes," Hicca answered. "You know why? Because he sweet." Hicca paused to let her words sink in. Then she decided to make a point, she raised a hand to count of her reason with her fingers, "He's never bullied or said a mean thing to me in his life. He was the only person who bothered to talk to me besides asking me to sharpen a weapon for him. He also never threw me to the ground, kicked me down when I tried to get up, and then dropped an axe onto my chest," she said while glaring at Ash.
Ash knew that the last part was referring to when he had found her and Toothless in the cove after she was selected to face the Nightmare. He had been quite rough with her at that time. He remained silent as Hicca continued to speak.
"Look Ash. I admit that when I was a little girl, I had a crush on you. You wanna know part of the reason that was?" she asked him. As he met her gaze, she continued, "It because I wanted to be like you. I admired you. You were strong and everyone loved you. But now, I've gotten strong on my own and in my own way," she said firmly while pointing a thumb to herself. "And I'm not a little girl anymore. I've grown up, and now that I have. I see that you're just a jerk. I want someone who will treat me kindly and with affection. We both know that isn't you," she finished while jabbing a finger at him.
That stung Ash right in the heart. He doubted being stabbed would hurt this much. "You still like me," he said as a last resort. "You kissed me the night you came back to the village," he pointed out.
Hicca rolled her eyes. "Oh please Ash. It was a kiss, not a confession. It didn't mean anything. I did that to mess with you," she replied casually. Then she spun on her heel and walked over to where the other riders were seated.
They watched her approached with wide eyes as they wondered what she was up to. When she reached the table she came up to the side of Fishlegs. He turned and looked at her nervously. Then without warning she reached out and grabbed both side of his face with her hands before planting a kiss firmly on his lips. Fishlegs froze in shock and everyone in the room's jaw dropped open.
Ash stood there with his expression frozen in pain. He quickly his it as Hicca ended the kiss before turning around and marching back to him. She looked up at him and locked eyes with him. Then she 'hmphed' before stepping around him and muttering a strange word. 'Baka'? He didn't know what it meant but it sounded like an insult. He turned and watched her saunter out of the room before opening the door and exiting the great hall.
Ash watched her go. Beating himself up at opening his stupid mouth. This had gone so bad so fast. He should have just congratulated her. Now he felt he was even further from his goal than ever before.
"You okay man?" Snotlout said coming up from behind him. Glancing over his shoulders, he noticed all the riders were behind him with concerned expression on their face. Except for Fishlegs who stood in the back with fear of Ash written all over his face.
"Fishlegs," Ash muttered to get his attention.
"Yes Ash?" Fishlegs asked, getting ready to run if Ash suddenly charged him.
"Does 'Baka', mean anything to you?" He asked.
Fishlegs' eyes fell to the ground as he thought about the word. Hicca had been teaching him some Japanese whenever they spent time together. "It means 'idiot'," he informed him.
Ash released a breath and face forward. That sounds about right, thought to himself sadly. With that, he dropped his gaze to the ground and walked toward the doors of the great hall. He opened them and walked out. He needed an outlet for the inner emotional storm brewing inside of him. Going to his home, he grabbed his battle axe before heading off into the woods.
Oh Ash. You baka. Hope you like. Feel free to review and comment.