Back again! I hope you guys like this one!
Astrid had turned away Fishlegs and Eret when they approached her at the Academy. The only thing that Eret and Fishlegs could tell Hiccup when they returned was that she was at the Academy. She wasn't planning on flying. Her heart wasn't into it. And Stormfly was already exhausted from being on patrol so much here lately.
She laid down in Stormfly's pin and relaxed against her sleeping dragon. It was the most peaceful place she could think of to be at, outside of going to the Cove. She assumed someone would follow her there. And if Hiccup saw her passing by the house, he might have tried to follow her into the woods.
Why was she so mad at Eret? She really wasn't. She had used Eret as her punching bag. She really wanted to punch Hiccup. He should have known better then to reconstruct his saddle. She assumed he had puppy-dog-eyed Eret into helping him. Of course, Hiccup was getting stir crazy. Everyone was taking over his duties. He'd been through a lot. He was getting fed up being tip-toed around and babied.
She hadn't been herself lately. She knew that. Suddenly, this kinder, gentler soul had come out of her. Through all of her worry, she had changed. Hiccup being gone and returning like he was had changed her.
And their relationship.
They hadn't been looking out of each other lately. It was more of everyone trying to look out after Hiccup. They knew they had been treating him fragile. He had been, and in her eyes he still was with a still-injured shoulder.
"Maybe he's more capable than we are giving him credit for," she said to herself.
"I'm more capable than you are giving me credit for," Hiccup said to his mother.
She sat across from him at the kitchen table. Gobber sat a bowl of yak noodle soup down in front of them both.
"Ye' need to eat," Gobber said to him, shoving a spoon into his hand.
"I just haven't been hungry," he said.
"You can't afford to lose more weight," Valka said.
"I know that," Hiccup said quietly to her. He was cooling off a spoonful of soup by blowing onto it. "Have you guys seen Astrid?"
"Eret and Fishlegs told you she was with Stormfly," Valka said.
"That's been hours ago."
"She's an adult. She will be just fine."
"I'm an adult—I am chief—and you guys treat me as though I am still a child." Hiccup took a bite of his soup. It was still warmer than he wanted it, but it tasted good.
"How do you expect us to treat you when you don't eat?" Valka asked.
Hiccup sighed, and put his spoon down. He felt like crawling into the Cove and not coming out again for weeks. He ran his good hand through his hair and sighed.
"Mom, do you know how depressing it has been being cooped up? I'm not incapable. I've got my leg, now that the saddle is decent and operable Toothless and I can get around a little easier on Berke…Be more useful in getting things done around here. Everyone's—taken over. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it—But I really need to get back into the swing of things…Before I lose all my dignity."
Valka went to speak, but Gobber spoke over her.
"Ye're right, Chief. Ye're more'n capable. How's 'bout tomorrow we get going again? I need 'elp in the Forge. Ye could take some orders for me."
Hiccup seemed to brighten up a little bit at the mentioning of this. "I'd love to."
"Then get to eat'n."
Hiccup started clearing his bowl very quickly.
Valka smiled up at Gobber, who gave her a wink.
Sunset was approaching and Astrid had not returned back to the house quite yet. Hiccup was growing a little worried about her, but had to trust that his mother was right: She will return back home in her own time.
When he heard the door to the bedroom open, he looked up from his doodles. His mother was bringing in some tea for him. He was looking forward to something warm going down his throat.
"This isn't mixed with all those herbs, is it?" he asked her when he saw something green floating in his tea.
"It's mint," she said softly. She took a seat beside him at his work desk. The sipped their tea in silence for a few moments, then she said, "You know, we just worry about you getting ill again, son. We don't like to babysit you anymore than you like us to."
Hiccup could tell this had been on her mind for a little while. She just didn't know how to approach it. "I know, Mom," he said. "I know you guys are just trying to watch out for me. It is appreciated."
"Do you feel any better than you did earlier today?" she asked him.
"I honestly do," Hiccup said.
Valka smiled gently, then reached over and touched his hand. Surprisingly, he held her's rather tightly. It was the first time he'd voluntarily welcomed her touch in weeks.
"Mom, I'm sorry," he said. "I'm sorry I overdid it last night. I'm sorry for not eating. And I am sorry I am worrying you and Astrid so much. I know I am not doing you guys any favors, or myself."
"I'm sorry, too," she said, rubbing her thumb over the top of his hand. His skin felt soft. "I think I've been too hard on you here lately."
"Not too hard," Hiccup corrected her. "Overprotective—maybe. But, I know I deserve that."
"Astrid and I have, yes."
After a few minutes of silence, Hiccup turned to his mother.
"Something that has been bothering me. Gobber—" He debated on whether or not to keep going after he started to ask. After a second, he decided the worst she could tell him was 'no.' He decided to keep going. "Gobber told me that you and Cecil had it out."
Surprisingly, Valka didn't stop him. She nodded gently.
"You knew about the scar on his eye," Hiccup said. "He didn't get that as a child, did he?"
Valka shook her head gently. "No, he did not. He received that scar just like the way you received the one on your chin. When a dragon decided to protect you, they will put their life in danger to do so. When mine was, Cloudjumper caused that damage to Cecil."
"How long ago was that, Mom?" Hiccup asked.
"The day he came looking for me. A year or two after I left Berke. Frankly, I am surprised he didn't return here to tell Stoick he had seen me, knowing I was alive. I half expected the Armada to show up. They never came."
Hiccup nodded.
"Do you think he's changed?" Valka asked Hiccup.
Hiccup sighed. "He went through great lengths with Dagur to help me. I am sure he could have been put down by a few men for charging Dagur. But, they left him alone, and Dagur left me alone. After Gobber told me that Cecil had tried to kill you, I have been hesitating a little bit on my feeling with him."
Valka nodded. "He came after me years ago, when he had joined up with Drago. He got away. He wasn't in the mess we had two years ago. I kept looking for him while we cleaned up the place, half expecting him to be hiding somewhere but he wasn't here. Maybe he has changed. I don't know. I do know, that I am grateful he saved you."
Hiccup sighed. "Something I have been wanting to ask…What kind of rumors are going around the village about me?"
Valka seemed taken aback. "None."
Hiccup gave her a look. "I know better. Spill it."
Valka sighed. "They seem worried. You walking around and making some presence has eased things down a bit. Don't worry. You will have plenty of time to bring everyone at ease tomorrow."
Hiccup sighed. "Dad always made this job look easier than it is. Here lately—with this bum shoulder—I've felt like I was fourteen all over again."
"Fourteen?"
Hiccup sighed. "Back when I was Hiccup the Useless. I couldn't do anything right—I couldn't lift a hammer, I couldn't lift an axe—I couldn't lift a cross bow—" He sighed. "On Toothless—with Toothless—I can do so much more than sit back and let life pass me by." He paused. "I'm the chief. And Dad wouldn't be sitting here like I am now struggling to get out there and do something to help prevent—prevent—my WORST NIGHTMARE from coming onto the island and hurting us all!"
Valka placed her hand on Hiccup's good shoulder to calm him. "You aren't fourteen anymore, Hiccup. And you are not Stoick. And he wasn't his father, nor his father before him. You are Hiccup. You do your chiefing in your own way. Your father was a strong man, very deeply voiced. He was clever, but not near as clever as you are."
"He just—seemed so—"
"Stoic," his mother chuckled. "You get that way yourself, you know? Earlier up until you nearly fell off of Toothless, Eret didn't realize you weren't up to par."
"I might be able to hide that, but this shoulder—" he shook his head. "I thought the burn was bad. The longer I have to deal with this arm the worst it seems to get."
"Speaking of your arm—" Valka moved over to his backside and began undoing the sling. "We need to do some therapy on it—"
"Please, Mom, not right now—"
Toothless sensed Hiccup's uneasiness from his slumber on his stone slab. He came over and sat down in front of his rider and proceeded to try to calm him gently.
"Let's at least massage the muscles around your socket, and then we will go from there."
Hiccup bit his lip. "What choice do I really have?"
"One—Let me work on your shoulder."
Hiccup closed his eyes and tried to imagine himself riding on the back of his best friend while hiccup nuzzled him gently.
"Hiccup—C'mon, my friend. Wake up."
The strong voice sounded so feint. Hiccup didn't know who it was calling his name, begging him to wake up. He let a moan escape in his breath. He was suddenly aware of how horrible his head was pounding, and the pain radiating through his shoulder and chest.
"Sleep—" he breathed.
"C'mon, lad," the voice said again. This was when Hiccup felt gentle smacks hit his cheeks. Hiccup opened his eyes, and saw Cecil looking at him. "Sorry, lad, but we got to move."
"What's—wrong?" Hiccup asked.
Cecil's cool hand made contact with Hiccup's raging forehead. The coolness gave Hiccup a few seconds of ease to his throbbing head.
"You need to drink this," Cecil said to him. He helped Hiccup hold his head up for a drink of mead from a small cup. The taste nearly made him gag. He couldn't get used to it, but he was hoping it would take the pain in his forehead down.
"We need to move quickly, my friend," said Cecil. "Time to get you out of here."
Suddenly, Hiccup comprehended Toothless in the background making a lot of noise from where he hung upside down in his small prison. Hearing Toothless's uneasiness caused Hiccup some extra panic.
"Toothless—"
"Our five days are up," Cecil said to him. "Dagur has been coming closer and closer to the door of the last few hours. He's getting impatient. If we do not get you out of here before sun up, he's going to come in and probably kill both of us."
"But—"
"No buts, Hiccup." Cecil was walking around their small area, gathering blankets and other small items into a satchel. His hurriness was making Toothless even more uneasy. "Stop it, dragon! You are only going to bring more attention down here if you keep that up."
"Cecil—I'm not strong enough—not yet—"
"I cannot buy you more time with Dagur—"
"I won't make it—"
"Hiccup, you remaining here for another hour is going to put your life in jeopardy. You are getting into a boat, and going back to Berke. I am taking you there myself."
"Toothless—I can't leave him—"
"Never you-mind about your dragon," Cecil said.
"No—No! I'm not—" Hiccup suddenly felt a hand go over his mouth.
"SHHHHH! Calm down, lad! Do you want to bring all the muttin-heads down here before I manage to get you out?"
"Cecil, let me die, please—" Hiccup was in panic mode. He couldn't believe he had allowed Cecil to take care of him, help him get well, and then take him away from his best friend. He wanted to die with Toothless.
"These last five days—I cannot keep living feeling like this—"
"Look at me, boy!" Cecil was in Hiccup's face at this point, looking him dead in the eyes. "I told you I will not let you die under my watch, Hiccup. Trust me."
"I've trusted you since you loosened my rope. I could have died days ago and not been in this much pain—"
"I don't have time to argue with you over this. Keep quiet and I will be back."
Hiccup didn't know where Cecil disappeared to. He remembered footsteps fading away. At some point, Hiccup must have lost consciousness, because the next thing he knew, he felt a warm lick against his face. The smell of dragon breath.
"Tooth—less?"
"Yes, boy!" Cecil said. "Now, you are going to have to help me walk—"
Hiccup shook his head. "I—I—"
"Hiccup! Listen to me! I've kept you alive in these taverns for over a week! At this point, do not give up on us now. You have a will to live, my friend. You just need to help me walk a little ways, and then you can rest. Toothless will protect you, all right?"
Hiccup nodded. "O—Okay."
Cecil pulled the satchel over his shoulder. He glanced around the room, and then went and back to collect Hiccup. The chief's legs gave out as soon as Cecil tried to get him up. Hiccup was too weak. He howled in pain as his shoulder jarred. He felt himself being cradled, then some cloth shoved into his mouth to keep him quiet. Immediately his mouth felt dry.
"This is only temporary, lad," Cecil said. "That shoulder is bothering you, I'm only going to make it worse. We cannot risk you bringing attention to our location—"
A few moments later, the door to the room opened, and Cecil was carrying Hiccup out of the tavern. He could hear Toothless keeping pace close to them. His shoulder was aching horribly. Had the cloth not been in his mouth, he was sure he would have screamed.
Hiccup felt as though Cecil was carrying him through a maze. A few times he had stopped to adjust his grip on Hiccup. Each time he squeezed Hiccup a little more, it hurt. Occasionally, Hiccup opened his eyes to make sure Toothless was still with him.
"Shhhh, easy boy," he heard suddenly. He had dozed off again. It sounded like a female talking to Toothless. "It's okay, Toothless."
He opened his eyes to see where they were. Still in the tunnels below the surface of the island. He felt a gentle hand touch his cheek. He blinked, trying to get his vision to clear better. In front of him, he could make out the female in front of him. Heather was standing there, looking down at him.
"I didn't realize his condition was this bad, Cecil," Heather stated. "He isn't going to survive that boat ride. I need to get Windsheer and get him home—you can get—"
"No!" Cecil said. "He and the dragon must go together. I won't separate them."
"Sending them in a boat to Berke is mad, Cecil!" she cried in a whisper. "It's a three day trip. He won't survive."
"I'm going with him. We already discussed this—"
"You know you guys won't make it out of sight before Dagur notices all three of you missing—you need to stay here and—"
"He'd have my head!"
"You were the one that didn't follow orders, Cecil," said Heather. "The plan was to get him out of here before the final day!"
"Looking at him, do you understand why I kept pushing it off?"
"Yes, Cecil, but I don't feel comfortable enough to send him in a boat. Three days is too long. A day is too long—"
"We have no choice now, Heather," said Cecil. "We will be okay—"
"We will argue about this later," Heather said. "Now, I am going to go distract the guards, and we are getting him out of the caves before Dagur sends a whole flock of dragons after us."
Hiccup shot up out of bed, breathing heavily. He forced himself to hold back a scream. His heart raced, his body felt cold. He moaned involuntarily.
"What's wrong?" Astrid said quickly, touching his bare back. Hiccup was sweating horribly. "Hiccup—"
"Dagur—" he breathed. He heard footsteps approaching their room from downstairs. It wasn't just his mother's. Gobber was with her.
"What is it?" asked Valka.
"The lad looks horrid," Gobber said.
Everything was swimming around Hiccup. Toothless was at the foot of the bed cooing. Astrid was rubbing his sweaty back. Her hand felt cold against him. Gobber was standing behind Valka, who was shaking Hiccup's hand. He barely comprehended the fact that she was asking him what was wrong.
Hiccup's mind was racing. He closed his eyes, trying to block out what he could hear of his family and friend around him.
He remembered.
The cloth being pulled from his mouth once he was in the boat. He had coughed, and Cecil had given him a drink from a canteen in the satchel.
Suddenly, shouts were heard.
"Dagur knows!" Heather said to Cecil. "Get the boat out to sea. Later I will make sure to find it and get it to Berke."
"How?" Cecil asked.
"We will get it figured out. Push it, and lets go!"
In the distance, Hiccup could hear screams, dragons roaring. He heard toothless bouncing noise waves around. He could make out the distant cries of Windsheer. Eventually, the noises faded and sleep came to him.
"Hiccup—"
"Heather—" he breathed.
Astrid's eyes widened. "Heather?"
Hiccup took in a deep breath and let it out. He was attempting to calm himself and focus his mind. His heart was pumping too fast. He was shaking uncontrollably. Eventually, a blanket went around his shoulders to warm him up. Why did he feel so cold?
Toothless pushed Gobber aside, and crawled his way over to Hiccup. The dragon laid down over Hiccup. Instantly, Hiccup's shivering seemed to stop. His mind began to focus.
He felt Astrid's hand over his, giving it a gentle squeeze every few seconds. It just dawned on him that Astrid hadn't been home before he had gone off to bed. When had she shown back up at the house?
"Cecil," he said finally. "Cecil carried me out of the caves." His words came very slowly. "Heather was there. She had distracted the guards. He let Toothless free. He put me in a boat. Suddenly, before I was released, Dagur figured out I had disappeared. Windsheer screamed—" Suddenly, Hiccup became alarmed again. "Why hasn't Heather come back here? She was there—"
"You are sure she was there?" Astrid asked.
"Yes," said Hiccup. "She was arguing with Cecil about the timing. He wanted to come with me, but Heather—she acted as though if he did the plan would have been given away."
"What plan?" Gobber asked.
Hiccup shook his head. "I don't know what plan—Heather! We have to go get her—"
Valka pushed Hiccup back against his pillows. "Hiccup, Heather is fine—"
"No she isn't—"
"We are not fighting over this, Hiccup!" Valka yelled at him. "Calm down. I saw her three days ago!"
It wasn't just Hiccup who looked at her. It was Astrid and Gobber as well.
"When?" Astrid asked.
"It was very early in the morning," Valka said. "We had tea. I told her what had happened to Hiccup. She said she was just passing through and wouldn't bother anyone."
"She never—I don't know—Mentioned the fact that she already knew?" asked Hiccup.
"She did not," Valka said. "Hiccup, you are sure this is all true—"
Hiccup froze. "What do you mean?"
"Are you sure that Dagur took you hostage? Are you sure it wasn't Alvin?"
"You don't believe me?" asked Hiccup.
Valka sighed and looked at Gobber. "Hiccup—we don't know if you are having visions, or nightmares—or what—"
"What are you suggesting?" Hiccup asked her.
"Are you sure it wasn't Alvin—"
"It was Dagur!" Hiccup yelled at her. He bit the inside of his lip. He looked over at Astrid, who seemed a little lost in thought. "What do you think?" he asked her after a moment.
Astrid looked at him, and sighed in defeat. "Hiccup, I don't know, in all honesty—"
"You think I'm dreaming up things, too?" he asked her.
"No—it—you didn't know Heather was there the whole time, then—THERE she is! You don't remember her up until now at all?"
"No, Astrid. But, I believe Cecil saved me from Dagur, and I believe Heather helped me get away."
Suddenly, Hiccup felt more alone than he had been. Astrid seemed to have turned her back on him. His mother was starting to not believe him. Then—
"How would I have known about Cecil considering I had never met him before?" he asked his mother.
"Hiccup—I think you did come across Cecil. But, not in the way you are believing you did."
Hiccup's world began crashing. He felt like he was in a reversed world. Never had he felt this alone. Well, he had felt alone at one point in time. When he was fourteen. Before he met Toothless.
"I need some air," he said gently. He pulled on his peg-leg, and headed for the door. Toothless was right beside him. His wife didn't stop him. His mother didn't stop him. His father's best friend didn't stop him. He proceeded down the stairs, and out of the house with just Toothless beside him. It was still dark.
The world had officially turned it's back on him. He headed right to the Cove in the darkness, letting it swallow him up inside and out.
I had SOOOOO much fun writing this! I didn't want it to be this long, so I do apologize. Let me know what you think!
