Disclaimer: I do not own "How to Train Your Dragon" or any of the characters in the movie. My purpose is to provide the perspective of Stoick the Vast as father, friend and chief.

Note: Sentences in italics indicate Stoick's inner thoughts.

With appreciation to my wife Ochie for her energy, relentless support and encouragement.

December 25th is my Dad's birthday, and I am dedicating this chapter to him. Happy Birthday Dad!

Finally, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!


Chapter 12: Frið við Dreka – Dagur 1

"All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better." Ralph Waldo Emerson


We were still a half day's journey back to Berk but it was good to return to the sea, listening to the waves slice along the bow of our ship. Travel to our home was made in silence as there really was nothing left to discuss.

It was apparent that the two Nadders were both bonding with the Hoffersons, Astrid to Bluetooth and Spaki to the injured Nadder, and it was also evident that the Nadders were bonding with each other. Apparently the injured Nadder was female. The Nightmare with the broken wing was enjoying the ride back as well, hanging his injured wing on the gunwales and playing with the air currents as we sailed back at a decent rate. Toothless, for the most part, stayed close to Hiccup's side, although sometimes he would get up and approach me. I would gently stroke his head, as I wondered out loud how all this would work out.

Eventually we arrived at the docks in Berk. The other karvis had docked and were unloading the Vikings to welcoming family. There were warm embraces between men and women; sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives. I was just beginning to understand again what it meant to have a close relationship. Fortunately our karvi didn't have a lot to unload in terms of items; just people, dragons and a tooth.

The Vikings which left with us yesterday on dragon back arrived yesterday as well. Fifty additional dragons to go with the twenty seven from two days prior. Seventy seven dragons were present now in our town, not including the four on our karvi.

The Nightmare took some time to unload because of his injured wing. We had to be careful how we bent the wing as the winch lifted him off the ship and onto our widest dock, this allowed him to at least get his feet underneath of him while we made arrangements to get another four wheel cradle built. In the meantime, he was enjoying himself as he was fed some fresh fish by hand by some of the veterans from the battle. The Nadders were able to jump off the boat onto the dock, walking into town with both Spaki and Astrid, returning home to what I would think would be a very relieved (and possibly upset) wife and mother. Toothless waited next to Hiccup's litter looking at me as if to say 'what now?'

There were some dragons present in the village square but they were sticking close to Vikings that I recognized from our battle. Apparently the new riders were still trying to convince the populace of the new relationship.

I see I have my work cut out for me…

Gobber approached me from the other karvi that finished unloading. "I see you're almost done here. Need a hand?"

"Actually I do, can you help me with Hiccup's litter?"

We proceeded from the docks up to my home on top of the hill with Toothless staying immediately to our right. We received some stares along the way but nothing compared to when I opened the door and allowed Toothless to enter my house.

Looking around I saw that nothing else was amiss as I set Hiccup's litter down on top of the dining table. "Nothing like home" I mentioned.

"Yep", Gobber replied.

"Gobber, I want to thank you for everything you did back at the island. I know I put you on the spot with caring for the dragon but at the time I knew you were the most qualified for the job."

"I know. I just thought I'd never have my own phrase used on me." Gobber chuckled. "Oh, that reminds me. Hiccup put together plans for a new leg for me about a year ago. I'll go through his notes and see if I can find them".

"That'll be good. In the meantime can you get Spite?" I asked. "I need to move Hiccup's bed downstairs and set it up here next to the fire pit. It'll be easier for the healer to get to him and to move him if needed, also I don't need to have the dragon upstairs. It's just one less thing to worry about."

"I'll make sure that he gets here." Gobber replied.

Toothless, meanwhile, began to sniff around the first floor of our house, focusing as I expected on the kitchen area and the hearth. Padding around the pieces of furniture as he kept his attention focused on Hiccup, I found that his nose came to the same level as the dining table. He proceeded to sit on his haunches at the end of the table, looking at me as if to see what I would do next, which was a good question.

"Thank you, my friend." I said. Gobber patted me on the shoulder as he turned out and left for his own house, closing the door behind him. Darkness enveloped the house. A dust filled ray of light from the smoke hole in the roof above was the only source of illumination as my eyes adjusted to the dim interior. I could see the 'ears' on the head of the dragon at attention, his eyes narrowing followed by a snuffing sound. I think I knew what his concern was as I motioned with my open hand to the Night Fury to approach me. Toothless cautiously closed the distance between us, waiting to see what I would do next as I stood next to the door.

"Okay Toothless, I want to show you this. We use this to keep out pests and yes, I considered your type in that category before all of this. It's called a door and we use this handle that's on the door to open it. Here let me show you." I pulled on the handle with my right hand as the wooden door slowly creaked open. Toothless was looking at what I was doing with what I considered an intense gaze. I slowly closed the door with my fingertips and then turned to him, holding my left hand open, palm up, and gestured him to try. He looked at me and then the door, surprising me by taking the handle in his mouth and pulling on the door himself to open it.

Damn, so it turns out he's able to figure out what I wanted!

"Okay good. I just wanted to show you so you wouldn't feel trapped. Now…you are my honored guest here in my house and are welcome to stay as long as you wish."

Ohhhh, I never thought I'd hear myself saying that to a dragon!

I mentioned all this to the Night Fury as if he could understand, which I didn't know if he could or not.

"Now as we live here, we don't relieve ourselves in the house. It'll wind up making the house smell so we do that outside." Our trip back with the dragons proved interesting in that regard. Bluetooth was able to take care of business away from our ship while the Nadder, Nightmare and Toothless tried to scratch any dung away. We wound up washing off the deck afterward.

Toothless just looked at me and cocked his head to one side.

Okay…how do I get what I want across here?

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. I got up and opened the door to see Spite and Fang outside with the village healer. I welcomed them all into the house, leaving the door open for the time.

"I understand from Gobber that you wanted to move Hiccup's bed downstairs so I figured I'd bring the healer by as well so he can take a look." Spitelout mentioned as the healer sat his bag down and began to approach Hiccup to start examining him. Toothless looked at all of us and I could tell that he was getting a little tense, the pupils on his eyes narrowing slightly, followed by a low guttural growl. Spite and the healer stopped in their tracks.

"Toothless, it's okay. You know Spite and Fang. This man here is our healer and his name is Pustulent. He is here to take care of Hiccup and I would think he'll take care of you as well."

The healer was a slight man, brawnier than Hiccup though, with gray hair and probing blue eyes. He wore a blue wool shawl over a leather vest and brown tunic and he looked directly at Toothless to determine what the dragon would do next. There was no hint of fear though, more of an 'Okay there's a dragon here in the Chief's house and he's telling the dragon rather than me to not worry.' He was desperately clinging to the belief that he wouldn't be maimed or burned based on my word.

I went and explained to Pus, "I think that Toothless and the dragons here are intelligent enough to understand what we do and if we take the time to show them through motions first then I find they're more willing to trust us."

"Chief, I have heard from Spitelout about the new arrangements and frankly I'm still trying to get used to the idea of having dragons in the village. I'm concerned about the safety of our villagers with these creatures here." Pus replied with what I believed would be one of the many arguments against my plans.

"Has anyone been injured or killed with the new arrangements?" I asked.

"Well…no." Pus reluctantly replied.

"Then what is the problem?" I countered.

Pustulent could only pause, pursing his lips. "Chief, at this time there is no problem in that regard."

"I understand your concerns Pus, and frankly I know I'm putting my beliefs here on the line. The dragons we've encountered are smart and from what I saw on their island, they didn't go and walk up to just anyone and get friendly with them or try to eat them. They all were very cautious about who they encountered and how it was done. Toothless here has been cautious as well by mainly staying either close to me or Hiccup. In fact I can tell you that he's probably very protective of my son based on what I'm seeing right now and what I saw before at the island!"

"Chief, then how am I supposed to care for Hiccup?" Pus exclaimed. He was at loss as to how to even come near the boy on the table.

"Tell Toothless what you want to do and show him how you'll approach Hiccup. Oh…first hold out your hand slowly with your palm facing his snout. He'll then approach and 'greet' you by pressing against your palm."

Toothless was watching the entire conversation along with Spite in one corner of the dining room, next to Hiccup. Both of them were just listening to the banter. Fang, sitting on Spite's shoulder, was apparently more fascinated with the internal décor of the house.

Pus looked at me, Spite and Fang, and then Toothless before moving slowly forward towards Toothless and presenting his right palm to the dragon. Toothless looked at Pus, then me, before finishing the contact. There was a genuine look of relief on the face of Pus. "He's warm! Okay…Toothless, I'm going to Hiccup now and look at his leg."

"Make sure you show him how you'll be doing it." I reminded the healer.

Pus was a little flustered before he paused and showed everyone how he would proceed. He took a tallow candle from his bag and pointed to Hiccup's left leg, bending slightly to appear to peer at something while continuing to point at the leg.

The healer slowly moved towards Hiccup, "Okay I'm going to see the boy's leg now." Toothless got up and approached Pus, sniffing him and letting out a slight grunt as the healer stood frozen completely in one spot.

"It's okay. He's not going to eat you. If he wanted to he would have done so already." I mentioned as I tried to 'encourage' Pus.

Pus replied, "Ah, I see the old Stoick wit is back."

"I'm glad you noticed Pus." I smiled.

"I'm going to light the candle now, Toothless." Pus placed the candle on the table and glanced over to the fireplace to see if there was anything lit. There were some burnt embers but nothing warm.

"Do you want to get a lantern for some light while Spite and I get Hiccup's bed downstairs?" I asked.

"That'll be fine Stoick…I'll be right back." The healer opened the door and headed out.

"So, let's get his bed down here in the meantime." I commented to Spite.

"Lead on brother." Spite replied as he got up to follow me upstairs to Hiccup's bedroom.

After some time, Spite and I managed to dismantle Hiccup's bed and bring it downstairs in pieces. We reassembled it next to the fire pit while Toothless just looked on at both of us with both of his ears raised, his eyes fixed on us in what I considered utter fascination. Fang, on the other hand, always stayed with Spite, never letting him out of his sight but also managing to stay out from underneath our feet.

Pus returned with a lit lantern, setting it down on the table next to Hiccup. Toothless came up to see what the lantern was, sniffing away and almost extinguishing the flame.

"Are you satisfied dragon?" Pus asked Toothless as the dragon sat on his haunches and crooned. Pus proceeded to light the candle with the flame from the lantern. When the candle was sufficiently hot he took wax dripping from the candle and fastened it directly to the top of the table. The healer began removing the bandages from the stump of Hiccup's left leg and after he cleared all of the bandages, he took the candle and carefully examined the scarred tissue. Toothless took an interest in what he was doing as well; sniffing lightly at the remains of Hiccup's left leg.

"You smell it too don't you dragon." Pus commented.

"What is it?" I replied, curious as to what he came across.

"There may be infection…It happens."

I was crestfallen at hearing what the healer said. If there was infection, it could kill Hiccup. "How bad is it?"

"It's hard to tell at this point. I'll keep an eye on it though. If it starts to turn color, we'll have to take care of it. For right now, I won't cover it up again unless it starts bleeding or oozing." Pus replied.

That was not good. 'Taking care of it' usually meant more cutting and that would put Hiccup at greater risk.

"What have you been feeding the boy?" Pus asked.

"We've been giving him water for the last two days when he appears to open his eyes."

"No food?" Pus asked.

"No…he wasn't given any food. He wasn't giving us any clue if he was there or not."

"Okay…Stoick, you'll have to give him mutton broth loaded with fat. You need to be able to keep him strong enough to help him heal his foot and most important, to wake up. Make sure that someone is with him around the clock and give him some broth whenever he appears alert. Keep him clean and comfortable. Hopefully he should be able to stir in a week or two from what I could see of that bump on the back of his head. Let me check his eyes real quick."

The healer took the candle and approached Hiccup and his face. Toothless took an interest at what Pus was doing and approached as well.

"Well dragon, what I'm doing is checking his eyes. I want to see how asleep he is." Pus opened Hiccup's left eye and drew the candle in front of it from the left side of his face to the right. He did the same with Hiccup's right eye. Toothless warbled as Pus looked towards the dragon. "From what I can see, his eyes are slow. He's in there but it'll take some time for him to heal."

"Thank you, Pus." I answered tinged with emotion. "Is it okay if we set him in the bed then?"

"Yes, but be careful with his head. That is still my main area of concern. Also, you'll want to remove his clothing then place some sheepskins underneath if you're going to feed him. It'll make it easier to clean up." Pus responded.

I took Hiccup in my arms from the top of the table and placed him in his bed. "Do you want to look after Toothless now?"

Pus stopped storing the extinguished candle back in his bag and looked at me. "How do I look after a dragon Stoick?" saying this in all manner of seriousness.

"Well…they're a lot like us and animals in that they live and breathe and such. You've been known to help out with the sheep on occasion. So could you look after the dragon…please?" I never thought I'd find myself asking that question…and literally begging for help.

Spite just looked on with Fang on his shoulder, not saying a word.

Pus looked towards Toothless then back at me. "Oh alright…What does he have anyway, besides being tied up like a Yule goose?"

"He sprained his right wing while saving Hiccup and from what I recall from Gobber, a limp and bruise on his right foreleg." I replied.

"Really…he saved your son AND risked himself? Huh! Okay…Let me try this then…Toothless, I'm coming over to you now and remove the sling. Okay?"

Pus slowly proceeded over to Toothless who was shying away from the healer.

"You've got to show him Pus." I reminded him.

"Then can you help me out here, Chief?" Pus asked.

"Okay, I think I know what you want." as I went and stood next to the healer. I held my arms against me while Pus went to show what he wanted to do.

"Okay, Toothless. I'm going to loosen the tie on the sling so I can examine you." He pointed to me then to the dragon before proceeding to manipulate his fingers around my right arm. When he finished fiddling with my arm I proceeded to move my right arm up and down. I then pointed to Toothless. He pointed to the dragon and framed his eyes using his hands. He followed that action by pointing between Toothless himself as the healer used his hands in a clench/release motion.

Toothless huffed, stood up and approached us, presenting his right wing and the rope sling.

"Another example that to me proves they're smart." I responded.

"I'm impressed!" Pus declared as he began undoing the knots on the improvised sling that held the right wing of Toothless in place. The dragon fixed his gaze on what the healer was doing as he placed his hands on the wing and started pressing and prodding near and along the wing root, first on the right and then the left. Toothless seemed somewhat tentative but allowed the healer to continue.

"Who set the wing?" Pus asked.

"I did." Spite replied.

"You did a good job and from what I could tell, there's very little swelling. I think there are some knots in the muscles along the chest and the back when I compare one side to the other. Stoick, you're going to have to massage along the wing root and the back if you want him to fly again." Pus answered.

"What do you mean I have to massage along the wing root and the back?" I asked, somewhat confused by what he said.

"As in you need to get the blood flowing and keep the joints from locking up. It takes some muscle to give a massage...which you seem to have in abundance." Pus replied with a smile. This was probably his way of getting back at me.

"So when do I start giving 'massages' to Toothless?" I asked, shaking my head as I still had difficulty wrapping my brain around that image.

"You can start probably tomorrow. Several others have dislocated shoulders, elbows, knees…"

"Oh, I know…Spaki Hofferson!" I interrupted.

"Yes, Spaki Hofferson and others will be given massages starting tomorrow out in the clearing above the Great Hall."

"That's just wonderful…just absolutely wonderful." I responded, beginning to rub my eyes with my right hand. I really didn't think it was wonderful as I actually found it more embarrassing than anything else.

Suddenly, Toothless licked the arm of Pus then shook his entire body before sitting down next to the fireplace.

The silent and shocked look on the face of Pus however was priceless.

"It's their way of thanking us." I answered.

"I see. Well it makes sense since they can't say 'Thank you.'" Pus replied.

"At least he didn't give you the full wash like he did to me!"

Pus chuckled slightly before packing up his bags. "Well I'm off, I know I have a lot more patients to take care of but I will check in with you at least once each day. Oh, by the way, I have been told that if you talk to those who are asleep that it helps them to recover. So whoever you have staying with you son, you may want to mention that."

"Thank you, Pus. I'll see to it." I replied before he headed out the door.

"Well I'm off too, if you don't need me for anything else." Spite commented as he started to move towards the door.

"Well, if you can get some food here for Toothless, Hiccup and me that would be good for now. I'll get a fire going here and see if I can get things in order. Probably I'll wash up, get Hiccup cleaned and then figure out how to take care of a dragon." I replied with a smirk. This was all new and uncharted territory now.

"Right, I'll have someone bring some stuff from the Mead Hall. A basket of fish for Toothless I would guess?"

"Yeah that seems about right. He had a healthy appetite on the trip back of about a basket for each meal so since it's close to dinner now that would be good. You heard Pus so please make sure that there's mutton broth on hand every day for Hiccup. I'll take whatever they have with a small keg of mead. Oh and I'll need some fresh water as well."

"I'll have it all delivered to you shortly." Spite replied.

"Thank you, brother." I answered as Spite turned and proceeded to the Mead Hall. I then went over to the fire pit and began preparing for the evening fire, placing the ashes in a bucket placed against the pit itself. I then placed some logs that I had piled inside the house in the pit, stacking three logs then two followed by one. I went into the kitchen to look for the flint and some dry brush in the counter when I heard a WHOOOOOOOOOMF.

"WHAT THE…TOOTHLESS!" I shouted as I found the Night Fury got up and lit the logs in the fireplace, using a steady stream of blue fire. I stopped, surprised more than anything else.

Toothless, after my shout, cut off the fire stream he created; his eyes reflecting a surprised gaze. He turned to me with a look that just shouted, 'What did I do?'

I had to think…yes, he probably did this with Hiccup and knew what I was doing in preparing the logs. I dropped my head as I slowly went over to the dragon, shaking my head with my arms open wide and palms open as I approached him now with more calm than what I just had. "Toothless, you have to tell me when you're going to do something like that." I inhaled deeply to control my shaking hands. I pointed to the fire and then to him.

The dragon looked at me with some confusion in his eyes.

I again pointed to the fire and then him and back again, pursing my lips and making a blowing sound. I nodded then said "Okay." as I then pointed between the dragon and me, saying "Tell me when you do that!", "Warn me! Please."

Toothless just cocked his head to one side, making a sound like an ascending warble.

Okay, I see that this will be a loooong process. Well…I wasn't burned and he seemed to know what was going on. I just need to trust my beliefs and myself more.

I gently placed my hand on his head then gave a quick but gentle rub. He bobbed his head and returned with a slight descending warble. I then began looking around to see what else I needed now that I had adequate light to see everything. I went and then closed the door as the sun began to set on the horizon.

Everything seemed to be in place; except for the bed my son was in and a black dragon with golden eyes sitting in my living area. Everything was fine! I shook my head, trying to get a handle and some understanding on everything that occurred. All the events over the last five days were a blur. I looked at Hiccup as I sat down next to him on the bed. He had such a peaceful look on his face. Toothless came slowly to the other side of the bed and looked at my son and me.

"Everything will turn out okay. Not okay, great!" I vowed to myself as the Gods have blessed me so far, and I needed to be aware and thankful for everything that occurred. As Gothi told me, 'Odin has a plan for all of us, including your son.' I had to believe and have faith, in that.

There was a knock at the door and when I opened it, what I asked for was provided by the various villagers: a basket of fish, some broth in a bucket, bread, several goose legs, and root vegetables. Several buckets of water were also provided in addition to the keg of mead.

"Please, if you will, place everything on the counter in the kitchen area. I will take care of it from there. Thank you all so much." I graciously said as the various villagers came in with the victuals while glancing at Hiccup and more noticeably, Toothless. Some wished me well and said they were praying for Hiccup. I was really touched by their concern for my son.

After they left I closed the door.

"Okay Toothless. It looks like you and me for now…so I'll get everything ready." I then took the buckets of water and placed one in the kitchen, the other I immediately placed in a cauldron I hung above the fire. The remaining bucket I placed in front of Toothless as I then looked at the other food. The broth I placed in a small pot I placed high over the fire as I wanted to keep it warm but not boil. I then set the table for myself and…how do I set table for a dragon? I took the basket of fish over to Toothless. "Do you want to eat here or with me?" The dragon just looked at me, then the basket. "Okay, from what I saw on our way back I'll just open it up here and tilt it for you." I then proceeded to do just that so Toothless didn't have to get up from his position next to Hiccup. He looked at me and appeared to smile as he started to pull some of the cod and flounder from the basket. He would then take each fish and either flip it into the air before catching it in his mouth or literally suck it into his maw.

I smiled as I got up and then prepared my dinner, sitting down and eating quietly and watching the dragon wolf down his meal. I could see Hiccup hadn't moved. His green eyes…

Wait…his eyes are open.

I went and retrieved a bowl, spoon and ladle from the kitchen and went to the fire pit to place some of the broth in the bowl. I went to the bed and managed to get Hiccup in an upright position by shifting him so that his body was against the head board and supported with a pillow. His eyes were unfocused but open as I brought some broth to his lips and then inserted the spoon into his mouth. Fortunately, he was able to swallow as I continued feeding him until no more broth remained in the bowl.

It was then that I noticed Toothless staring intently at what I was doing.

"I'm feeding Hiccup some broth so he can heal Toothless. He needs his strength, so this soup has things that will help him. Do you want a taste?"

I got off the bed with the empty bowl and spoon and walked to the fire pit. I ladled some broth into the small bowl and went over to the dragon. He sniffed at it then shook his head.

"Okay, well that's fine. This will be Hiccup's share then." I replied as I sat on the bed and gave Hiccup some more spoonfuls of the warm broth. I could tell he was getting full when he wasn't swallowing any more of the liquid. His eyes appeared to be sleepy as well and soon enough his eyes closed again. I checked to see if he was still breathing, placing my hand underneath his nose. Warm air continued to flow from his nostrils. I then went back to finish my meal which was cold but I didn't mind as my son was alive and he would get well.

Toothless went back to his basket of fish and finished off the remaining pieces, even licking the inside of the basket followed by the floor. He pulled out his head and ran his tongue around his entire mouth, followed by a smacking sound and a sigh.

I smiled, "I guess you liked your fish then?"

Toothless just continued to look at me as I got up and took the plates, bowls and such and placed them in the kitchen. I washed up the items and returned them to the counter while the dragon continued to watch what I was doing. I picked up the basket, returning to the kitchen and quickly rinsed the inside of the basket to minimize the smell of the fish. I'd return it to the docks in the morning. The only thing left was to try to relax, clean up, and then sleep. I had just the thing for trying to relax. I took a mug and the keg of mead from the kitchen and returned to the table. Setting the keg on the table on its side, I opened the tap already present and poured myself a long, long drink. I took a pull of the sweet liquid and quietly sat with my back against the table, looking at Hiccup.

Toothless looked at me and kept sniffing.

"Do you want a taste dragon?" I asked as I got up and went around the bed to be next to the Night Fury. I knelt down and poured some of the mead into my hand. "Here, try it. It's called mead and it's my favorite."

The dragon sniffed my cupped hand holding the mead before sampling it, licking the contents just once. Apparently he didn't like it, snuffling his nose and then shaking his head before looking at me with a look that said, 'That's bad.'

"Okay, well then that's just more for me then." I got up and took the remainder of the mead in my cupped hand and tossed it into the fire pit, looking at the cauldron where the water began to steam. I returned, got my mug and took another long drink. Gazing up to the ceiling I noticed that it was night outside from the darkness present in the smoke hole. It had been a long day… five days. Five days that changed my world.

From the dinner table I went to my favorite chair. It was a reclining wooden chair covered in fur-lined sheepskin; a comfortable chair that I could sit in, collecting my thoughts from the day. It was next to Toothless, facing the fire, so I turned it around so I could face Hiccup in his bed and have Toothless to my right. I sat down to relax a little before sleep beckoned and I was able to gently stroke the head of the Night Fury as it leaned into the attention I was giving.

"This is so different, so unreal…here I am comforting a dragon, in my home." I mentioned to myself. I had to think of what was right, what was decent, what was respectful…but not now. Now was the time for rest as I turned to the Night Fury.

"Toothless, I'm going to ask that you stay up and watch Hiccup while I sleep." I then pointed to him and then to Hiccup and then back to the dragon, making my eyes wide. "If he wakes up, let me know, okay?" I then went and pointed to Hiccup and then made my eyes wide again, pointing to Toothless I then proceeded to take my left arm and prod it with my right arm, then pointed to me.

From what I saw on the ship, the dragons would sometimes sleep during the day. Toothless was one that did so if he could stay awake and watch Hiccup that would be good.

I went to the fire pit and noticed that the water in the cauldron was beginning to boil. It was time for me to wash up as I took a bucket containing some soap and a cloth and filled it partially with the boiling water. I then took cool water from the other bucket and placed some in my wash bucket, enough to allow me to place my hands into the warm to hot water. I went upstairs and collected some sheepskins and the sleep tunics for Hiccup and me.

Taking the bucket and placing it next to the bed, I placed a sheepskin under Hiccup's legs before I removed his tunic. His back was covered in a bruise pattern I had never seen. I looked at the claws of the Night Fury and compared it to the spread of the outline on my son's back. It was a match and showed how tightly the Night Fury held my son as they fell to earth. To me it was another indication of the dragon's feelings for my son.

I removed Hiccup's right boot, leggings, and the short pants. "Ohhhhh crap…" I muttered as they were both soiled and all but unusable after three days of wear. The soiled mess was mostly dry and lacked any significant odors. It occurred to me that I hadn't done anything like this since my son was a baby as I checked for diaper rashes. I know he would be embarrassed if he knew what was occurring right at this moment as I finished by wrapping up the entire mess into a bundle and placed it outside away from the front porch.

I cleaned up Hiccup using the wash cloth, followed with a rinse, drying him with sheepskins and finishing up by placing his sleep tunic on him. Carefully, I placed my son on the bed, laying him down so his head was situated on the repositioned pillow. I placed a sheepskin on top of Hiccup, followed by a light wool blanket as it was past the autumnal equinox and there was a slight chill in the air.

Toothless looked on at what I was doing with interest, taking it all in stride. I glanced over to see that the pupils of his eyes were wide open and I was beginning to find it fascinating how much I could discern by reading just his eyes.

"All right, Toothless. He's set for the night. I'm going to get ready now myself." I cleaned myself up and readied for a night down in my chair, throwing my sleep tunic on and taking a swig of water to rinse out my mouth.

There was only one thing left, a bedtime story.

"There once was a boy in a small Viking village. His father was the chief of the village. His mother…well; she passed away but loved her son enough to give life to him. Even though he never knew his mother, his father would do everything that he could to tell his son about how wonderful his mother was. Now this boy was special as he was curious about lots of things…lots of things. Sometimes the boy would get into trouble because he wouldn't follow what his father said. It…it angered his father that he wouldn't obey him because the father thought it was disrespectful, but his father loved him so much that he did everything that he could to keep him safe."

I looked down at the bed to see my son peacefully asleep while next to me, Toothless was listening intently to what I said, laying on the floor. I gently placed my hand on the back of his neck, feeling the warmth of the scales and his skin.

"So one day, early in the morning, the boy takes out a contraption from the blacksmith shop where he was an apprentice. It was something that he built from scratch all by himself because he was very smart. This contraption was built to take out not only dragons, but a very special dragon called a Night Fury. So while his father was fighting against the dragons that were stealing their food, his son knocked out of the sky a dragon. But the boy brought more trouble on himself by getting the attention of a Monstrous Nightmare who chased him all through the village square. The father saw this and went after the Nightmare and scared it away."

"After the battle more trouble found the boy and his father was angry because the boy could have died. His father thought that he wouldn't listen. So the father had his best friend, the blacksmith take him back home while his father took care of the village. Little did the father know but the boy did knock a Night Fury out of the sky."

I broke out into a smile before going over to the fire pit and banked the fire, dimming the light in the house. "And that…is the beginning of the story of the boy who would be a hero." I commented as I took a wool shawl and placed it over myself for the night. "How this story will turn out, only Odin knows." I sat back in my chair and closed my eyes, knowing full well three things:

— I was falling asleep.

— My son was safe next to me, healing.

— There was a dragon in my house.

"Good night Toothless…good night Hiccup." I said.

"Wake up soon son."


Author's Note: Each of the subsequent chapters, except for the last will be titled "Frið við Dreka – Dag _", or "Peace with the Dragons - Day _".

Hiccup is in a moderate coma based on the Glasgow Coma Scale (from Wikipedia), Hiccup has a GCS=11, with Eye response (E) of 4, Verbal response (V) of 3, Motor response (M) of 4 at this point. This means that he would be able to open his eyes spontaneously, that he would be able to vocalize words but not carry on a conversation and would be able to withdraw from painful stimuli.

Thanks for reading.

Reviews are appreciated