I'm back from vacation! Sorry, I did think about posting one last chapter before I left, but last minute preparations took precedence.

Only six more reviews until we find out the 100th reviewer of Flame! Who's it going to be?

Review Replies:

fuzzybunnies1001: I've never watched that show, so I'll take your word for it. Haha.

Litwick723: Yeah, I was in a rush because of vacation coming up and such.

ladipretender: Your character study of Hiccup is on point. That's exactly what he was worried about. As for Hiccup, I think we'll slowly start to see more of his old personality return as he begins to feel at home. Don't get me wrong. There's still dragon raids on Heather's island They're just less frequent. Anyway, I'll finish the review replies and then it's story time!

Gordon519: That will be interesting! I wonder too!

Ken106348: I agree. Gotta start small and work up to it. That's why the Heathercup will not be immediate. That's also unrealistic.

Cottonmouth25: Thanks! I had a great vacation! Now it's time for the new chapter.

Noctus Fury (anonymous): I edited the chapter. No need content. Just fixing those little typos.

Pegueng: Thanks! The interview…I didn't hear back. Either way, so I'm still keeping my hopes up. As for vacation, it was so much fun! I am glad to be back, though.

maga (anonymous): Thanks! I'm glad that you like it.

Chapter 14: Adjusting

Adjusting to daily live in Sharkbane Village turned out to be easy and Hiccup was grateful that the Peaceable Tribe were like a much more tolerable version of the Berkian Hooligan tribe. Heather's parents continued to prove to be accommodating, ensuring that Hiccup was properly nourished with plentiful food and suitable sleeping arrangements. Hiccup was truly grateful for Heather's family and all that they had done for him, but he couldn't help feeling a little guilty at times. They had never asked for him to come into their lives, but still they treated him as if he was their own son. No matter how many times he assured them that he would adjust to daily life and then he would go out and make a place for himself to live and take care of himself, they always assured him that it was perfectly fine for him to live under their roof.

It was probably just the lingering feelings of resentment to Berk, but the memories of his fifteen years as a Hooligan were still fresh and raw. He didn't want to be a burden to Heather's parents who had been so caring to him. They continually reminded him that he was not a burden and that they truly cared about him. Hiccup wanted so much to just believe this, but his thoughts would always remind him of Berk and he would agree just so he could change the subject before the pain and anger returned. That would lead to Hiccup keeping the ideas and plans to himself. Soon, when he was ready, he would set them into motion and stop being such a burden (because, no matter how much Brokkr and Sage tried to convince him otherwise, old thoughts die hard). That didn't mean that he would totally cut himself away from Heather and her parents. Instead, he would just work towards becoming more independent. Still, one step at a time…and if that meant living under their roof and continuing his apprenticeship with Brokkr, all while growing more and more used to the villagers and daily tasks around him, so be it.

Hiccup had managed to impress Brokkr with his previously-learned skills and the village's master blacksmith continued to teach Hiccup more and more tricks of the trade in hopes that someday the boy could potentially take over the position in the future. Most of Hiccup's days were spent in the hot forge, helping Brokkr. Sure, the master blacksmith offered Hiccup days off, but the boy usually declined. What else did he have to do? He didn't know many of the other villagers and he actually enjoyed his apprenticeship. Brokkr, unlike Gobber, did not mock and laugh at him when his size hindered his ability. Instead, the master blacksmith was eager to help just as his apprentice was equally eager to assist when needed. The only reason Hiccup took days off was to hang out with Heather, but she often hung around the forge already.

Today, at the forge, Hiccup was helping Brokkr to forge some weapons. Though the tribe was peaceful and hoped to avoid war, Brokkr explained, they always needed to have a stash of weapons, just in case. "Whether it is to defend ourselves in dragon raids or just in the slight chance that we are invaded by another tribe, we do not want to be caught defenseless."

Hiccup nodded. That made sense. No tribe, regardless of how peaceful they may seem, wanted to be left with no defenses should they find themselves in a situation where they would need them. Forging weapons with Brokkr should be easy enough. Back on Berk, Hiccup'd had the opportunity to forge some of the weapons. Not often, though, because of the bad luck that always seemed to befall him. Because of it, Hiccup most often was stuck sharpening dull weapons, a rather boring task. At least Brokkr was confident enough to allow him to help forge weapons.

As they worked, Brokkr explained the methods that he used to create each weapon. Hiccup was impressed. Brokkr used some different techniques than Gobber and the apprentice found himself wondering if Brokkr's weapons were stronger and more useful than the ones Gobber made. Before apprenticing under Brokkr, Hiccup had thought Gobber to be the best blacksmith out there, but now he was not so sure.

"We've been working to predict the general times when the dragons come to raid our livestock," Brokkr explained to Hiccup as they worked. "It is again approaching that time, so we need to be sure to have plenty of weapons at the ready. We don't like to use them and we never kill the dragons without reason. Instead, we merely try to drive them off the island with as few casualties, villagers and livestock, as possible. However, there are times where we do need to defend ourselves. That's why we have these weapons."

"I understand," Hiccup answered. Truthfully, he was grateful. He did not think he could live in another village that praised themselves with needlessly killing dragons.

The pair worked most of the day, as usual. When the sun had begun to approach the horizon, Brokkr set down his tools. "How about we call it a day? We have enough weapons for now and, besides, Sage and Heather have probably prepared us another amazing dinner."

Hiccup, following the master blacksmith's actions, also set his tools down with a nod of agreement. He didn't admit it out loud, but Hiccup had grown to really enjoy the meals prepared by Sage and Heather.

Through his apprenticeship, Hiccup had really gotten to know Heather's father. The man was caring and patient, everything that Hiccup's own father had never been. On the walk home, Hiccup felt comfortable enough to engage in brief conversation with the master blacksmith. It made the walk home seem so much shorter.

Walking into the door, the first thing Hiccup noticed was the smell of freshly-prepared dinner. As expected, it smelled amazing and Hiccup was quick to take his seat at the table. Sage and Heather took turns bringing out the prepared dinner and setting it on the table top. As always, Brokkr and Hiccup waited for the women to sit before taking portions of the food and setting them upon their plates. Hiccup had observed early on that it was a gesture out of respect. They would always eat as a family, so they would always wait until everyone was seated at the table.

"So, Flame, you're adjusting well to life here in our village, right?" Heather asked, sparking conversation.

Heather's question reminded Hiccup of two things. First, that he needed to come up with a new name. He'd been living here in the village for almost two weeks now and he was still using that stupid pseudonym that he had come up with back when he did not want to trust Heather. He would get on that. Second, that he should really take a day off from his apprenticeship soon. He felt like he only saw and talked with Heather at dinner and for a few hours at night afterwards. Even when she visited him at the Forge, he was always hard at work and could barely spare a couple seconds to greet her with a smile.

"I think so," Hiccup answered, "Everyone is so…friendly. It's quite a change from my old village."

Heather must've sensed how Hiccup was feeling because she replied, "It's probably best to move on and not think about your old village. You'll see. Everything will turn out okay."

Hiccup smiled and that was all the reply he needed. So far, Heather had always been right when she said those words to him. She continued to promise him that everything would be okay and he was satisfied so far.

A commotion outside the house snapped Hiccup back to reality. Around him, Heather and her parents had tensed as if ready to jump out and race out the door. "What's going on?" Hiccup yelled, feeling left out of something important…and somewhat scary.

"That's the alarm," Heather answered simply, not giving Hiccup enough details to fully understand.

"It means," Brokkr elaborated, "that dragons have been spotted. They've come to raid. Come, Flame, we need to get to the Forge and grab those weapons we made."

The blacksmith was out the door before Hiccup could fully process his words. Hiccup was impressed with the blacksmith's agility, but now was not the time to think about that. Without question, Hiccup jumped from his own seat and ran out the door toward the forge. He did not know what to expect from the impending dragon raid, but Hiccup did know one thing. He was not looking forward to it. Not again.

Wrote this chapter all in one night…even though I probably should be sleeping for work tomorrow morning. I know it's probably not my best, but that tends to happen when you leave for a week and are just going on plans that were written out months ago. Next chapter should be better. Hope you enjoyed it anyway.

Thank you all for reading and supporting Flame!

Posted: August 5, 2015