Two negatives make a positive. Squirrels.
I learned the importance of taking good class notes today. And not doodling pictures all over them. How old am I again? Do not draw and write fanfiction in your notes. I'm serious.
This chapter is dedicated to the creative team that gave us Stitch and Toothless. High five, you two.
Chapter: Babysitting with Rapunzel
Jack followed Hiccup out of the classroom. "Why do I get the feeling you were less then thrilled about my drawing?"
Hiccup stared ahead, walking to his next class. "It isn't like that."
Jack grabbed him by the hand, making Hiccup turn and face him.
"Then what is it like?"
"It's just...a squirrel, Jack?Really? "
"What's wrong with squirrels? Squirrels are cute."
Hiccup's eyes widened. ' Squirrels are cute. He drew me as a squirrel. No, Hiccup. Asgard to Hiccup, come in Hiccup.'
Hiccup began to have a internal meltdown, worrying Jack.
"Hic?" 'Don't tell me I messed this up...'
"I don't...not like it." Hiccup finally said, rubbing his arm.
"You used a double negative." Jack said,looking deflated. "You hate it."
"No I don't! I swear! I just..." 'Strongly disliked it.' "Feel a little embarrassed. "
"Oh." Jack scratched his head. "Sorry."
Hiccup bit his lip, trying not to smile. Jack was cute when he was apologetic.
"It's not a big deal."
"Okay. " Jack said, unconvinced. "I'll see you after school?"
"Yeah, see you then."
"Can yeh do me a favor, Hiccup?"
"Yeah?" It was just another afternoon when Merida called Hiccup after school. She sounded slightly distressed.
"Ah was going to meet Jack at the park to play lacrosse." She began. "But when Ah got home Ah found that my mum had gone out an left tge triplets, so..."
"You need someone to watch the triplets? "
"Yeah." She sighed. "Ah don't suppose yer not busy..."
"Well..." Hiccup glanced at his desk. A half finished Nightfury stared back with one eye. "Not really, no."
"Great! We're going to drop by with them."
Hiccup had seen the boys in action before. "Wait, I have a idea..."
"Can you do me a favor, Rapunzel? "
Rapunzel gripped the cordless phone a little tighter. A call from anyone was unexpected, but a call from Hiccup was unprecedented.
"Do you need help with something Hiccup?"
"Yeah. Merida and Jack are going to go play lacrosse in the park and they need someone to watch the triplets. I said I would do it but, I don't think I can handle them by myself. "
"Oh." Rapunzel had seen the triplets terrorize a woman in the grocery store once. "Well, I think I can manage that. Mother is out today. Oh, where are we watching them?"
"The park. It's sunny today, and I figured they could use the exercise. "
"Okay. That sounds good. What time?"
"Jack can pick you up in twenty minutes."
"Okay, I'll make snacks!"
"Alright Red. Feet spread apart, keep a tight grip on the stick."
Merida stood her ground in a pair of sweats and a green vest. Protective pads covered her knees and elbows. "Isn't there a fancier name fer this than a stick?"
Jack folded his arms. "Alright keep a grip on the d-pole then."
"Ahm not calling it that."
"Then we're back to stick. Either way, learn to make it part of yourself. A quick pass or a sudden shove can make or break a game."
"We can shove? You mean it's like Shinty*?"
"Uh...Yeah. But don't worry about that. All you have to think about is getting that ball into the other team's goal."
"So this is like football with sticks. "
"Soccer? "
"Er, right. Soccer."
"Yeah. You could say they're similar..."
Not too far from Merida and Jack, Rapunzel and Hiccup were trying to keep the triplets busy.
"Hamish! Please don't climb on that man." Rapunzel said, sighing.
"Ahm Hubert!" The boy said, jumping off the mailman.
"Harris!" Hiccup said as he pulled a pinecone out of Hamish's mouth. "Do not lick that stick!"
"Ahm hungry!" Harris whined.
"Me too!" Hubert chimed in.
Hamish tugged on Rapunzel's lavender coat. "Do you have any more sandwiches? "
"Nope." Rapunzel shook her head. "Sorry. "
Jack ran, stick in hand. "Alright Red, try to keep up with me!"
Merida ran after him. "Slow down! Yer running like the devil's after yeh!"
"Negative Red! Come on, you have to do better than that! "
Merida swallowed hard. The air was chilly, and the wind was picking up. She sprinted ahead, crashing into Jack.
"Careful Red! Hit me too hard and it's a foul!"
"Let's see if Jack and Merida are ready for a break." Hiccup said, looking across the thawed grass.
"We can all go have hot chocolate or something. " Rapunzel said.
"Hot chocolate! " Hamish cheered.
"Let's get Merida! " Harris yelled.
The three boys ran across the grass.
"Hey!" Hiccup yelled. "Wait!"
Merida smacked Jack's stick, trying to get him to fumble.
"Nice try." Jack said, shifting his weight to the left at the last moment. Merida tripped over his foot.
"Hey!"
"Look out for dirty tactics!" Jack said. "You-"
His coaching was drowned out by the shouts of the DunBroch brothers. They threw Jack to the ground, piling up on top him.
"Look Merida!" "We won!" "Can we eat now?"
Merida crossed her arms. "Boys! What did Mum say sbout dogpiling!? Get off him."
They reluctantly got off of Jack, who was wearing an expression as if he had just gotten hit by a car.
Hiccup offered him his hand. "Are you alright?"
Jack stared at Hiccup for a moment before taking Hiccup's hand, and dragging him to the ground.
"Hey!"
Jack laughed. "One day you'll stop falling for that."
Hiccup sighed. "And maybe one day it'll be funny."
He stood again.
"Hey." Jack crossed his arms. "Aren't you going to help me up?"
"Nope. You had your chance." He looked at Merida. "Ready for a break?"
Merida nodded. "Aye. Let's eat."
Jack stood. 'What're we having?"
Rapunzel shrugged. "I don't have any cash."
Jack crossed his arms. "We could try Tiana's place then."
It was only moments later that the triplets were gobbling down beignets**.The decor of Tiana's had real southern charm. Large green lamps made of blown glass sat on every table. The floor decorated with a swirling emerald pattern. Large stone collums held the ceiling up while jazz music played.
Rapunzel took a large gulp from her bowl. "This is great! I've never had gumbo before. "
They sat at a large round table covered with a wine colored tablecloth. True, the group looked slightly out of place, but anyone and everyone was welcome at Tiana's place.
"This is nice." Merida said, smiling.
"If you think this is great, you should see Tiana's palace down in New Orleans." Jack said. "I've seen pictures, and I hear it's a party every night there."
A waitress walked up to their table. "Do you guys need anything else? Oh, hi Hiccup."
Hiccup looked up from his plate. "Oh, hey Nani. How's it going?"
Nani put her hands on her hips. "Pretty good. I managed to get hired here. It's been hard ever since that incident."
Hiccup laughed nervously. "Ha. Yeah...Oh, guys this is my neighbor, Nani."
Jack looked up at her.
Nani was in her late teens, with brown skin and black wavy shoulder length hair. She had moved to Burgess from Hawaii a year prior due to a scholarship at Munster University.
"Nice to meet you." Jack said. "I feel like we've met before..."
Nani shrugged. "I've had a lot of part-time jobs around town."
"Did you work at North's ?"
Nani suddenly looked nervous. "Well.."
"I remember you now! You're the girl with that dog!"
Nani sighed. Jack was referring to a incident that had occurred earlier in the year, during which her sister's pet went on a rampage through the perfume department. She had been fired on the spot.
"That's me." Nani said, sighing."The one with the crazy dog."
Hiccup shook his head. Her dog and Toothless were two of a kind.
"How is Lilo?"
"She's still adjusting. " Nani said, shaking her head.
"Oh." Hiccup shrugged. "Well, another two years to go right?"
Nani groaned. "I hope not. I'm trying to finish this degree as soon as possible. Do you guys need anything? "
There was a collection of shrugs and happy mumbling.
"Alright. See you around, Hiccup."
Hiccup stared at the paper. He had been sketching and erasing his latest idea, the nightfury, for about an hour. There were things he was certain of: it was black, it spit fire. But, there were other things he wasn't so sure of. Hiccup sighed and got up. He stretched, and turned to Toothless, who was kneading into Hiccup's duvet. "What do you think bud? Skinny arms? Big scales?"
The bell rang.
Hiccup headed downstairs. "Coming!"
He opened the door to find Nani looking frantic.
"Uh, Hiccup I know this is really short notice, but I was wondering if you could look after Lilo for a few hours and-"
A football went soating through Nani's closed window and tumbled cross her lawn. "Maybe keep her from burning the house down?"
Hiccup rubbed his arm, "Just a few hours?"
Nani nodded. "Yeah! I just have to take this test and it takes a hour to get to school..."
Hiccup took a deep breath. "I...guess."
"Great! I'll be back before you know it!"
Hiccup entered the Pelekai house with a open mind. Lilo wasn't a bad child. She was just different from other children. He found her in the living room, laying on the floor with her arms crossed. She tilted her head in his direction. "You're not the babysitter. "
"Well..." Hiccup shrugged. "Nani sent me over to watch you for a little while. "
Lilo uncrossed her arms."Okay."
Hiccup looked around. The Pelekai home was much smaller than his own. There were pictures here and there but not much furniture or knick-nacks. He figured Nani and Lilo weren't too attached to the house.
"So..Wanna do something? "
Lilo sat up. "I dunno. What do you wanna do?"
Hiccup thought about it for a moment. What did seven year olds like to do?
"We could...color."
Hiccup dragged his old coloring set over to Lilo's house. They sat on the floor, surrounded by crayons and construction paper. Lilo's dog, stitch was sitting on the couch. Hiccup tried not to think about Stitch too much. There were many things about Stitch that were a bit off. Like the fact that he was blue. And walked on two legs often. And sounded like he was talking in a foreign language whenever he barked.
"So what're you drawing Lilo?"
"My house." Lilo said, not looking up. "My real house, back in Kauai."
"Is there really a spaceship sticking out of it?"
"Yeah. After Uncle Jumba fixed the house we used it for a uh, expansion. "
"...I see."
"What're you drawing?"
"A Dragon."
"A dragon?" Lilo repeated, moving closer.
"Well, I'm trying. Y'see, there are all types of dragons. I'm trying to draw one of the most elusive ones. I know what he can do, I just don't know what he's like."
"What kind of dragon."
"It's called a Nightfury. Cloaked in darkness, it hunts its prey at night. No living soul has seen one, and that's why I don't know what it looks like. "
"Have you seen other dragons?"
"Yes, and no. I mean we have legends about them in Berk, that's the island I come from. My family and friends are the descendants of vikings who apparently followed dragons to the new world and settled after defeating them."
"Wooow." Lilo gasped. "That's cool. But why did they hunt them in the first place?"
"I dunno. If it were me, I would want to make friends with them."
"You mean you would train a dragon, like a dog?"
"I guess. Yeah."
"You probably could train a dragon. I trained Stitch to act like a dog when company comes over."
Hiccup looked at Stitch, who said, "Oonagaquitsa boobaba." And went to the kitchen.
"So Lilo, if Stitch isn't a dog, what is he?"
"Nani said not to tell. Its a secret. "
A chill ran down Hiccup's spine. "Oh. Okay then."
"So can the nightfury fly?"
"Yeah. And it shoots glowing fire from it's mouth."
"Is it green or purple?" Lilo asked.
"I think the fire is purple or blue. And its a really fast when it flies."
"So it should be kinda like a bird, then."
"I suppose you're right. A streamlined body type."
"Yeah." Lilo nodded. "To cut down on wind resistance. "
"Maybe something like...this?"
"He needs bigger ears, to hear stuff better."
"You're right. Like a cat."
"Like Toothless. " Hiccup said, furrowing his brow. "Hm..."
"You wanna eat something, Lilo?"
"Okay. Nani left money for pizza."
Stitch enhaled two slices. A Elvis record was playing.
Hiccup stared at the ceiling. "Well, this is nice."
"You're different from the other people Nani leaves me with." Lilo said, dipping her pizza slice in juice."You didn't ask why Stitch is blue. "
"Well, I figure that's not my business."
"He's always been blue. Jumba made him that way."
"So...what's Hawaii like?"
"It's nice. And warm..."Lilo said, staring at the television. "Everyday was fun. We went surfing almost everyday. We found homes for Stitch's cousins...And David would take us places all the time. We went to Graceland. It was amazing. "
"Really? You like Elvis a lot, hun."
"The King? Of course!" Lilo exclaimed.
Hiccup laughed.
"You ready to draw the nightfury again?" Lilo asked.
"Alright. Let's give it another shot."
"I think there should be more weight in his legs." Hiccup said.
"Yeah, but make sure the claws are pointy."Lilo added.
Hiccup sat up and observed the room. He and Lilo had made quite a mess.
"What do you say we clean this up and do something fun?"
"Fun?"
Lilo and Stitch laughed hysterically as they bounced up and down on the trampoline in Hiccup's backyard. Hiccup never had a use for the thing, and he wasn't exactly sure why they owned a trampoline in the first place. He let them have their fun for another twenty minutes before bringibg them inside.
Hiccup's doorbell rang.
"Oh, hey Nani."
"Where's Lilo?"
"She and Stitch are in the livingroom. I brought them over to play on the trampoline, I hope that's okay."
"Yeah, that's great."
Hiccup stepped back. "Please, come in."
Nani found Lilo and Stitch in the livingroom with Toothless.
Nani looked around. There was no damage. Lilo was sitting still, and Stitch was acting like a dog.
She looked at Hiccip. He had no bite marks. His clothes were still intact.
"Have they been like this all day?"
"Yeah." Hiccup nodded. "Why?"
Toothless had a float in the parade. It was cool. Yup.
DunBroch is in Scotland. So yes, the land of scotch.
Shiny-Scottish game somewhat similar to lacrosse.
** dough, fried, covered with sugar
