In Order To Survive
Rated; M for Mature
Pairing; Hiccup X Vera[OC]
Disclaimer; I do not own How To Train Your Dragon, movies or books. Everything belongs to Dreamworks or Cressida Cowell
Modern Lessons Pt. 2
=Normal POV=
[Saturday, 11/11/2017-3 pm]
[Dragor, Denmark-Haddock Home]
The Vikings couldn't do anything while Hiccup was in his bedroom with his wife. Finally, the door opened Olivia came out; her hair was a little messed up, and her clothes were not what she was wearing when she entered the bedroom with Hiccup. Olivia was wearing a long t-shirt, probably Hiccup's, and a lot of her legs showed, but she was wearing what looking like a pair of short shorts under the shirt. Olivia giggled with a smile.
"You sure you're relaxed, babe?" Olivia asked him from the doorframe.
"I'm good now," Hiccup's voice was heard.
"Alright. These guys are good out here, just finish getting dressed while I run out to grab stuff for dinner tonight. You remember we have your family coming over, right? And a few of the others?" Olivia asked.
"I haven't forgotten," Hiccup said. "Love you,"
"Love you too!" Olivia prepared to leave.
"Wait a second. LIV! Get back in here and put real pants on!" Hiccup yelled as he rushed to the edge of the bedroom where the door was while being in the midst of pulling up his pants, buttoning, and dragging up the zipper.
"Oops…" Olivia walked back in before leaving the house. Hiccup shook his head at her as she blushed a little. Seconds later, she returned wearing jeans and the same shirt on. "Okay, now I'm going," she kissed him on her way by. The door shut as Hiccup walked into the living room, Toothless instantly greeted him with a warbled.
"Hi, bud," Hiccup smiled as he pressed his forehead to Toothless's. "Yes, I promise we'll go flying in a little bit," Toothless licked his face. "I love you too," he scratched under Toothless's chin, earning a warble. "Damn it; she took my shirt…" Hiccup moved back into his room and came out pulling on green long-sleeve.
"Your style doesn't change much, does it, lad?" Gobber asked. Hiccup looked at himself.
"Nope, not really. Let's get back to work," Hiccup stated. "We did everything in the living room; I guess kitchen is next. Follow me," he led them over into the large kitchen and had them find places to sit or stand to get a good view. "Everything in here is used for storing food, prepping, and cooking it," he began. "You've got your microwave, oven, and stove, sink with running water, dishwasher, refrigerator, and freezer, counter space, pots, pans, spoons forks; just everything,"
"A lot of that stuff sounds like what we use," Vera mentioned.
"It is, actually. A lot of it is just made differently," Hiccup replied. From there, Hiccup began to explain all the appliances used in the kitchen. What each one was, what it did, and the easiest explanation he could think of on how it worked. When the kitchen part was over, Hiccup showed them other spaces in the house like his art room, the workout space, some of the spare rooms that were just storage right now, the bathroom was an interesting show they'd finally gotten to. Hiccup gave them a brief rundown the night before, but none of them had actually used it despite it being all day.
"So this is the…Bathroom, right?" Snotlout asked.
"Yep, and it's just a place to shower, bathe, and relieve yourself. Pretty simple," Hiccup moved inside. "There's the toilet, sink, and shower/tub. The toilet is used to relieve yourself, not all the different from back home as far as, you know; standing, aiming, or sitting. Uh, toilet paper to wipe with, and then you just push this little lever down, and the toilet does the rest by flushing it away. Sink for washing hands, shaving, brushing your teeth. And shower/tub for bathing," he explained.
"Where do we boil the water?" Fishlegs asked.
"Hah, I asked the same question. You don't need to boil it; the water heats itself," Hiccup stated as he opened the curtain and showed them everything inside. "Alright, water comes out up here, and down here. These are the controls for it. Left side is hot water, and right is cold. You'll have to fiddle with both to get an even temperature. If you're bathing; just put this plug in down here on the drain. If you want a shower, which is a million times faster; pull this piece on the spout down here and pull it upward. The water will come out from up here and fall as rain does," he informed.
"Really?" a few blinked.
"Yeah. I'll show you," Hiccup turned the handles to get the water running, then let them come over to feel as it went from cold to hot, then moving the handles to certain spots would change it to a comfortable bathing temperature. "And then pull this," he did so as the water came out from above. "And that's it. Then you use the soap and shampoo to wash with. One is for hair, and the other, your body," he lifted both things to show them the difference. "Of course, you're welcome to use the bar of soap," he showed them where that was. "I keep the towels in here," he added motioning to the small shelving unit by the shower.
"This is awesome," Tuffnut stated. Hiccup led them out and walked into his room.
"And this is mine and Olivia's room," Hiccup said. "Bed, nightstands, dresser, closet. Pretty basic,"
"Why does the bed look like you got into a fight with it?" Snotlout decided to ask.
"Never made it after I woke up this morning. Olivia moves around a lot," Hiccup shrugged, not revealing that the reason it looked that way was that he and Olivia just had sex in it; her way of distracting him before he flipped out on Stoick. Hiccup moved inside and fixed the comforter and pillows. Hiccup pushed them out afterward and closed the door. "And…that's about it," he looked at them.
"It's confusing, new…But interesting," Viggo enlightened.
"Once you start using these things daily; it's less confusing," Hiccup assured.
"It seems easy enough to manage, with more practice," Vera said.
"Oh! Forgot the backyard!" Hiccup motioned for them to follow him. Getting past all their bunks; he opened the garage door and showed them everything outside. "Outdoor kitchen, tables, chairs, lawn, pool, hot tub," he pointed to each thing.
"Pool and hot tub?" Astrid stared.
"Used for swimming and hot tub for relaxing. Heat does wonders on relaxing sore muscles," Hiccup explained.
"Why is it covered?" Gobber inquired.
"Because it's winter now, and too cold to swim. I open it up around…May-ish," Hiccup said.
"And that is your…5th month of the 12-month year, right?" Astrid asked.
"Right," Hiccup nodded. Hiccup remembered now that he taught them months, how many days in each, and seasons earlier that morning. Years was still a work in progress, but Hiccup had told them that the next year to come in January would be 2018, then so on and so forth.
"You said on Berk that our kind was believed to be wiped out 951 years ago, didn't you?" Fishlegs inquired. Hiccup nodded. "Why is it said that we died out?"
"The Viking Age in history was said to be from the year 763 to 1066. We're in the 21st century now, and Vikings were from the late 8th to the mid 11th. So yeah, not a lot of people believed actual Vikings still existed. Most of them, like our ancestors or whatever and like me, integrated into the world around them. I came in wicked late, but hey; it's part of life as I said. Moving forward with it or you get forgotten, but at the same time; it's good to know about the past. My knowledge of dragons and Vikings helped the modern world learn more about them as they knew nothing," Hiccup stated while bringing them back inside and closing the door.
"So, anything else we should know today?" Ruffnut wondered.
"That's all for today; I don't want to overload you. Tomorrow or maybe the day after; I'll start having you try to use these modern things on your own with supervision," Hiccup sat on the couch now and flipped the TV on, browsing the channels.
"What's happening tonight?" Vera asked.
"Hm? Oh, just a couple friends and family coming over to celebrate being home. You'll get to meet everyone formally tonight," Hiccup said. "Just have a seat and relax for now. You don't have to be so tense, trust me…There's far less work involved here than you had back on the islands,"
"Is everything okay back home?" Astrid asked softly.
"Everything is fine, Astrid. I know its hard to trust outsiders who wield weapons you've never seen, but you can trust my word when I say that the men and women of the army, navy, and air force will not let any harm come to the Tribes. Relax a little; you'll adjust just as I did, and soon you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner. Life will be easier for you, a way to truly live in peace with others and dragons," Hiccup sat back with his arm behind his head and legs out on the leg rest. Feeling that they couldn't argue much; they found spots and sat down.
. . .
[5 pm]
Hiccup managed to fall asleep in the chair, and the others left him alone. However, there was knocking on the door as Hiccup sat up quickly, looking around and trying to catch his breath. Toothless nuzzled him a little.
"I'm good…I'm alright. Thanks, Toothless," Hiccup took a few deep breaths to calm down. "Come in!" he called. The door opened as Hiccup stood up and saw Mari and Henrik come in with broad smiles.
"HICCUP!" Britta squealed loudly as she charged in and hugged Hiccup tightly. Hiccup caught her, then Lilly, Lukas, and Hagen were right behind to join in on the hug.
"You're home! You're home!" Lilly jumped up and down.
"Mom and Dad said we were coming here to help Liv with something. We didn't know it was because you were home!" Hagen cheered.
"I've missed you guys so much," Hiccup hugged them. "I'm glad you could home,"
"Miss a welcoming home party for our eldest son, no way," Mari wrapped her arms around him tightly. "I'm so glad you're home safely,"
"Hey, come on. I'm always alright," Hiccup chuckled.
"Nevermind! You've been shot twice and stabbed a few times too!" Mari scolded as she gripped his arm and Hiccup winced a little. "Are you hurt?"
"N-No…" Hiccup said quickly. Mari stared him down as Henrik chuckled.
"She knows you better than that, son," Henrik reminded. Hiccup sighed as he rolled up the sleeve and showed Mari his wrapped arm.
"What happened this time!" Mari asked quickly.
"You can add one more to the number of times I've been shot…" Hiccup mumbled.
"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third-Anderson!" Mari scolded. The Vikings blinked a bit at the woman called Hiccup by his full name, and the added on Anderson part.
"Ouch…Full name," Britta cringed. "And that's how we know when mom is mad and one of us is in serious trouble," she snickered with her siblings.
"Not helping, sis…" Hiccup glared at her and looked at Mari. "It was a surprise attack, Mom…I'm okay. It was only a graze; I didn't even need stitches…" he assured.
"I don't want to be the parent who gets a chaplain and notification officer at my door telling my son was killed overseas…I don't want to lose you…" Mari looked down sadly.
"Mom…Mom, come on…Don't cry. I'm alright…" Hiccup tried. "Dad, help…"
"You know how she is, son. Unfortunately, you've been shot three times…And the one before this…You almost didn't survive. Your mother was a wreck…Colden told us that had it not been for Brynjar keeping you awake and holding pressure on the wound; you might have died. It was too close for comfort, and that's coming from someone who had been in the army himself since he was eighteen as well. I've seen my fair share of buddies lost, but nothing comes close to hearing your son almost dying," Henrik stated gently.
This was news to Stoick and the others. Had hiccup already nearly died from being shot? "Mom…I promise that I'm alright. It's just part of the risk…And I knew that when I joined. And hey…I'm home now. Safe and sound," Hiccup attempted to calm her down.
"Hiccup…I swear to God…I know I can't stop you, but please…Be careful. I don't know if I could bear losing you," Mari hugged him again. Hiccup returned it, and then they split.
"Even if I die, Mom…I did it protecting the people who mean the most to me," Hiccup told her and Mari hugged him tighter.
"Alright…Come on, Mar…Let the boy breathe, or you'll kill him by suffocation," Henrik advised. Mari finally let go and wiped her eyes. Henrik hugged Hiccup next. "It's good to have you home, son,"
"Sibling tackle!" the 4 Anderson kids announced.
"Ut-oh…" Hiccup saw them grinning; they charged as Hiccup took his stance and then felt the full force of Britta, Lilly, Lukas, and Hagen tackle him to the floor laughing. "Getting too old for that…" he winced a little.
"Man down! Hang on, Hic; I got back up!" yelled a new voice. Hiccup looked over to the door to see Brynjar, and he laughed a little. "Strike Unit! Save your leader!" he ordered.
"Yes, sir!" 5 males charged in and playfully removed the children from Hiccup; then Brynjar helped him up.
"Mission successful! Well done, boys," Brynjar said.
"I friggin love you guys," Hiccup said afterward. "Good to know you got my back," he added.
"We got all of ya, boss," one of the males chuckled.
"No, I got all of him," Olivia's voice stated.
"She's got you guys there; nobody does to me what she does," Hiccup reminded.
"You mean to throw you on the bed and rape you?" Brynjar smirked.
"Oh, fuck you…I'll have you know that I do a good portion of the fucking in the bedroom," Hiccup glared. "And you can't rape the willing,"
"Yeah, he does. Amazing every time and always fully satisfying," Olivia said from the kitchen. Hiccup grinned now with his arms over his chest. The Vikings blinked a few times.
"Okay, I've heard way too much about my brother's sex life!" Britta covered her ears.
"Alright, that's enough; there are still young children around," Mari remarked.
"Sorry, Mom; we're just playing…" Hiccup replied.
"Sorry, Mrs. Anderson," the 6 males bowed their heads respectfully.
"Bryn, where's your sister?" Hiccup asked.
"She's not feeling well tonight, so she said she'll catch up with you another time. But…I did bring someone who has been itching to see you," Brynjar smiled. Hiccup looked at the door and saw a little girl peering around the corner. "Come on, Princess," Brynjar told her.
"Unka Hiccup!" the girl cried out happily as she rushed in and right into Hiccup's arms.
"Oh, there's my girl!" Hiccup embraced her tightly. "I've missed you so much,"
"I missed you too, Unka. Are you going away again?" the girl inquired.
"Hopefully not; I'd like to be here for when you turn 5," Hiccup smiled as the girl grabbed his cheeks and kissed his nose, then she and Hiccup nuzzled their noses together.
"Who dey?" the girl asked looking at the Vikings.
"People I'm protecting as I do for you, and my family," Hiccup said softly.
"Is she your daughter?" Stoick asked. Hiccup blinked a few times.
"Okay…I really didn't think I'd need to explain this…But if she's calling me Uncle…Am I her father?" Hiccup asked. Henrik covered his mouth to keep from laughing out.
"Good one, son," Henrik stated.
"I guess I should get introductions out of the way first…" Hiccup sighed as he put the child on his left hip. "First off…This is Dagny Jakobsen; she is one of my best friend's daughters, but we're so close that she considers me an uncle," he enlightened. "As for everyone else…" he took a breath. "My family; Henrik and Mari Anderson with their 4 children, Britta, Lukas, Lilly, and Hagen. You all know Olivia, my wife, already. Down the line here are damn good friends I'm in the army with. Brynjar Holt is not only my friend but one of my commanding officers. This means he can tell me what to do when we're working,"
"Not that you listen," Brynjar remarked.
"Well, of course not. It'd be too easy. Also, Brynjar is Dagny's real uncle. Katja and her boyfriend are home because Kat is pregnant and not feeling well," Hiccup chuckled as Brynjar shrugged, agreeing. "And finally, the team that I lead; Jolgeir Tennfjord, Davyn Lund, Sigvard Rasmussen, Eirik Matheson, and Oivind Flinvor," he continued.
"And these are the Vikings?" Oivind asked.
"Chief Viggo Grimborn and his niece Vera Grimborn of the Dragon Hunter Tribe. Heather and Dagur Bazirk, siblings of the Berserkers. And finally, the 9 from Berk are Astrid Hofferson, Fishlegs Ingerman, Snotlout Jorgenson, also my cousin. The twins, Ruffnut and Tuffnut Thorston. Gobber Forger, the blacksmith, and my former mentor. Lastly…Stoick, Valda, and Halvor Haddock…" Hiccup finished the final three quietly.
"W-Wait…Haddock?" Sigvard blinked.
"Yep…" Hiccup replied.
"Dude, that's," Eirik began.
"Please don't make it a big deal…" Hiccup asked.
"Oh, my Gods…" Davyn continued.
"Stop…Please," Hiccup tried again.
"Hic…Are those three…Your family? Like…Actual family?" Oivind said.
Hiccup groaned. "Yes, fine…They are. Stoick is my father…And the twins with him are my…Half brother and sister, born January 11th, 2013 and meant to replace me as Heirs since I left 8 years ago and was assumed dead,"
"Heir?" Brynjar asked. "Wait, you mean like Heir of the Tribe because your dad is Chief? And you're alive, so that makes you…"
"For the love of Odin…Please don't say it," Hiccup begged.
"It immediately returns him to-," Eirik started.
"It does nothing!" Hiccup yelled. "It does absolutely nothing, guys. And do you know why? Because that law only goes into effect if I choose to return to the Tribe. I left and said I'd never go back, and god damn it…I meant it,"
"But…Hiccup," Astrid began, attempting to speak Danish. No, Hiccup was not dealing with this.
"But nothing, Astrid. Why should I go back? Just because you realize 8 years later that I did in fact survive? That I'm not a weak, worthless, runt? Why in the name of Odin would I want to return to a bunch of people who said I wasn't a Viking in the first place? Rule over people who never believed I could even do it? What? Has everyone finally seen that I'm not Hiccup the Useless? And yet…The Tribes are supposed to stand together, help and protect one another. Who the hell was helping me when I needed it? Who protected me when I got teased and beat up every day? I'll tell you who…NONE OF YOU! The only person I had on my side was Toothless, my best friend. And the worst part is that he's a dragon!" Hiccup raged as he put Dagny down and she ran over to Brynjar quickly. "Do you have any idea how that feels? To spend every day getting beaten and told you're a disappointing weakling? That you don't belong? No, you don't because none of you had to live the way I did," Hiccup informed.
"This is the last time I will tell you. Get it through your thick heads…I refuse to be Chief of the Hairy Hooligan Tribe. I refuse to live on Berk again. I'm not a Viking. I never was, and I never want to be. My self-exile stands. I will never go back to a bunch of people who made me feel so low that I wanted to die to get away from it all. Thankfully, instead of ending my own life; I met Toothless and he saved my life. He became my only friend, and we were able to leave together. This is my home now, and this is my family. As I told you earlier when you were well warned not to start this argument with me because you would lose…Blood makes you related. Loyalty makes you family." Hiccup walked away.
Hiccup whistled as he opened the back door, jumped on Toothless's back, and the two took off into the sky. "Someone with a dragon go after him…Please?" Olivia asked. "I-I never knew he felt like that all those years ago, and he's been suffering flashbacks from the war about losing friends…"
"I didn't know about this either; I'll go after him," Henrik said as he whistled for his Nightmare who appeared around back. Henrik jumped on the dragon's back and headed after Hiccup.
"Should we wait?" Jolgeir asked Brynjar.
"Yes. I think Hiccup needs us right now," Brynjar nodded. The Vikings didn't know what to say or do; Hiccup had never gone off like that before, and they could see that he really had no desire to come back to the Archipelago at all. And worse, they knew now how low he felt before meeting Toothless. Sadly, they knew there was nothing they could do now. Hiccup didn't want to see or speak with them, so it was best to let the others who knew Hiccup better try to calm him down. This was just another modern lesson for them; they hurt Hiccup bad and doubted now that there was anything they could do to fix things.