Hello, everybody I'm back~!
Sorry this chapter kinda sucks, but it's more of just a set-up chapter for what's going to happen in the next two or three so... yeah, it's mostly explanations and stuff until it gets close to the end. Sorry about that... I promise the next chapter will be better...
And here Dagur thought that the whole thing with him and Hiccup would be kept secret for a little while before anyone else discovered it. He should have known that there wasn't such luck in the world. Sure, he got what he wanted: a real kiss with the small Hooligan. But it came at the cost of it happening to take place on the deck… where a number of other Berserkers were… and they overheard their entire conversation beforehand too. It was needless to say that every man on the ship, and probably the ones trailing behind them, knew about what their chief had done with Stoick the Vast's daughter. It was just a kiss, but one little action can start rumors in a flash and, well, that's exactly what happened. The next few days on the ship were full of stares and whispers in the background; Berserkers trying to figure out exactly what was going on between Dagur and their supposed guest. For a little while, the two tried to ignore it and carry on with life. But there was no such luck for that either. Neither one could ignore anything this time; they'd put that behind them in favor of what they've decided to try out.
It wasn't like Hiccup and Dagur could hide their relationship, or whatever it was they were doing, from the crew so the little Hooligan girl started spending more time with the Berserker chief. During the day, she'd follow him when he was doing less important things like checking in on the food situation and making sure that the ship was being properly maintained. She was only shooed away by him when it came to matters that were more pressing, like the meeting Dagur had with Vorg and his other officials about Berserk's future. It revolved around the possibility of re-locating to another island if their home was no longer habitable by the time the dragons were taken care of. They would never run away from a few angry reptiles, but if the damage was done there wasn't much that they could do. They were Vikings; they could take re-locating if it had to come to that.
The stupid things would probably be dead by now if the troops could actually catch them. They came close a few times before aligning with Alvin, but the men would always come back with scorched nets claiming that they were gaining on a dragon when they were struck with a blinding light and sparks berating their skin. Part of Dagur had hoped that it was a Skrill but the burns didn't match the typical pattern of a Skrill's attack, nor did the Berserker symbol appear to create much of a light. Lighting may be bright, but the illumination from it fades as quickly as the bolts appear in the sky. That was hardly enough to blind a man for a long period of time, unless the dragon was close enough to strike them with electricity. But then the soldiers would come back with more severe injuries than a few burns and spotty vision. It just didn't add up and Dagur wanted answers.
He knew that Hiccup would able to supply just those and that was just another reason that he enjoyed her company as much as he did. She was not only the person giving him affection; she was the answer to all of his problems. She was how life on Berserk would finally return to normal; maybe even improve. Dagur knew that she belonged to Berk, that she was the daughter of the chief and was destined to replace him when the time came, but maybe there was a way to make her companionship more… permanent. But that was something to worry about later. Hiccup would be on Berserk until the summer time, or the time that Berk's spring season started. The waters up north were slowly freezing and they would be staying that way until the winter weather came to an end. It could be long-thawed by then, but Berserker ships never sailed too far up north until they were certain that their ships would not be damaged by sheets of melting ice. He had about eight months with her, at the most. Unless summer came early, that's how long she would be staying as an honored guest. Maybe she wouldn't even want to leave by the time the waters thawed.
The navigator had told the chief that Berserk should be visible to them sometime after the sun was at its peak in the sky, so it wouldn't be long before they'd be docked and everything would start to go his way again. All that was left to do was tell Hiccup about the length of her stay, since she'd never been this far down south before. Yep, that sounded like fun. He knocked on her door that morning and waited for her to answer, seeing that her fur vest wasn't on and her sleeves were rolled up when she did. Her bangs were damp and her face was turning red "Odin's beard, it's hot." She complained "Are you sure we didn't go too far south?"
"No." The red-head plainly answered "This is normal around here. Berserk's a lot warmer than Berk; that's for sure."
"Yeah, I've noticed." The brunette deadpanned. Her face was so flushed that he could barely see her freckles anymore.
Dagur wondered what he could say in response to her until he remembered that he might be able to help her "… Do you want something… thinner to wear?"
Hiccup seemed to be surprised by his offer, bright green eyes widening before she sputtered and scratched the back of her head "Well, I would but I doubt you have anything that'll fit me."
The Berserker's smile grew almost to the point that he was smirking "Come on." He took her by the hand and brought her into his quarters, closing the door behind them. He released Hiccup's hand before kneeling down by his bed and starting to sift for a chest underneath the bed frame.
"What are you looking through your stuff for?" "You're kind of a lot bigger than me."
"I'm not looking through my stuff." He grunted, pulling out a good-sized trunk and opening it "I was looking for my sister's. She always keeps spare clothes on the ship in case I bring her along somewhere. Go through it if you want; she was your size once." He looked back up at Hiccup and noticed she was just staring at him, like she was expecting something else from him "What?"
The brunette was quiet for a moment, arms swaying aimlessly at her sides before she spoke up "I will when you get out."
Dagur huffed "Fine…" He got up and showed himself out of the room, closing the door so that Hiccup could have some privacy and opting to lean against the wooden barrier while he waited.
… And he quickly got bored. Hiccup wasn't alone in the room for more than five minutes when the Berserker chief started looking for something to occupy himself with until she decided to come back out or allow him inside. This led to him tapping his foot, drumming his hands against the walls, and even sneaking into Hiccup's room to check on SkyEyes. The dragon didn't mind his presence much anymore, but it was rare that he would let the much larger human touch him. Though, after giving him a fish that he… borrowed from the kitchen, the Terrible Terror was much more interested in him.
Dagur kept the door open while he tried entertaining himself with SkyEyes, just in case Hiccup came out looking for him. But he guessed that he wasn't with the dragon for very long because she'd yet to show herself. What if she just couldn't find anything that fit her in the trunk? That could be it. Erika didn't have the same body type as Hiccup, but he thought that something would make the Hooligan a little more comfortable in Berserk's climate.
He was debating walking into the room to see what she was doing when Hiccup finally did open the door. She poked her head out until her eyes landed on him "I didn't think you'd still be out here."
"I didn't have anything better to do." Dagur tried angling his head different ways to see what she was wearing "So, did you find anything?"
Hiccup opened the door more and stepped out "Yeah, after a bit of digging." Her green tunic was replaced with a green sleeveless top and a tan and green skirt similar to his hung around her waist. Underneath the skirt was her green pants and boot and arm guards covered her forearms "I, uh, I take it your sister's not a hiccup like me, huh?"
It took Dagur a minute to find his voice again. Even if it was over her pants, Hiccup looked really cute in a skirt "No…" Dagur stammered "She's not." He chuckled and felt heat creep up his neck "Not even close."
"I figured; barely anything fit." She looked down at herself and cracked a smile "I feel like this was yours at one point." She gestured to the skirt and they both snorted at the idea.
Then it got quiet between them again. Hiccup moved her hands up to rub her bare arms and bit her lip "I'm just gonna… go feed SkyEyes really quick. Uh, thanks for the clothes too."
She started to walk when Dagur interrupted her "You don't have to; I already did."
Hiccup turned back to him with a surprised expression "You did?" Dagur nodded "Oh… thanks for that too, then."
They awkwardly looked around each other in silence for a moment before Dagur held out his hand "Wanna go up on deck?"
"Sure." The Hooligan stepped towards him and took his hand. She then opened the door to her room and called the dragon "SkyEyes, come." The Terror leapt off of the hammock that he'd claimed as his own and flew over to her until he was perched on her shoulders. Once he was settled she looked up at Dagur "Let's go."
He nodded and grinned before they made their way up to the deck, hand in hand. Behind them, Dagur could hear some giggles and whispering as they passed by crew members. It was just silly gossip, no doubt. But it still got on his nerves. If only he didn't need them all to get back at Alvin later, then he'd show them not to exaggerate stories about their chief… unless it was a battle story; he wouldn't mind that. But his love life was more… delicate than telling everyone he cut off fifteen Peaceables' heads during a raid. And that was mostly because he'd never experienced what was happening with him and Hiccup before. It was all unknown territory, no matter how many times he tried to tell himself that he'd been with other women before. Those times were different; Hiccup was different. That was all he really knew but it was enough to tell himself to tread carefully. Dagur understood that this could end really well… but it could also end really, really badly in so many ways. And that the latter was more likely than the former. So, if it had to end, he was going to just be happy with it while it lasted.
Hiccup led him to the very front of the boat, where her hand left his and she leaned on the edge of the deck, her elbows supporting her as she stared out at the ocean. Dagur just stood there for a moment before she looked back at him from over her shoulder . The freckled girl looked confused and she tilted her head as if she was silently telling him to come closer. So he did, blocking her in the spot she was standing and wrapping his arms around her middle. Despite the rocking of the boat, he managed to let his guard down just a little bit, resting his chin on top of Hiccup's head and pulling her closer. It was great just being able to hold her like that; to know exactly where she was and that she was content and safe... it just made Dagur feel good for some reason.
"Sir!" The chief was called by Vorg, who stood at attention before him and Hiccup "The navigator says that we should be getting close to home now; it should be on the horizon in a matter of minutes."
"Excellent." Dagur praised before looking down at Hiccup "So, I'm thinking when we land the rest of the day will be planning our strategy-" He cut himself off when he saw Hiccup's eyes widen. She clearly hadn't been listening either, but the expression on her face concerned him more than the fact that his words fell on inattentive ears "Hiccup? What is it?"
Dagur set his gaze back to the horizon and his stomach sank. All he could see in the distance was smoke rising high into the sky, black as night and widespread as if it were trying to overtake the daylight shining above its source. He knew it was coming from Berserk… from home. He had Hiccup with him now, but he began to worry if he'd brought her to the island too late. What if there was nothing left to defend from whatever was attacking his village and his people when he had left a few months back? What if the lush, tropical piece of land filled with trees that grew as high as mountains had been leveled to nothing but stumps and ashes on the beach? Just looking at the smoke made him believe that the possibility of having a much smaller tribe was getting higher the longer they took to reach shore.
"Captain!" He shouted. Vorg flinched and looked to his chief "Speed up this ship in any way that you can!"
It took the Captain a moment to recover, but he responded "Yes, sir" and busied himself with the main sail, trying to find a better angle for it to catch the wind with.
Dagur turned his attention back to Hiccup, wrapping his arms around her middle and nuzzling into her hair "You think you can handle whatever made all that smoke?"
"You kidding?" The brunette scoffed "You're talking to the girl who killed the Red Death; I think I can handle it." She put her hands over his, keeping her focus on the horizon as she leaned closer to Dagur, her back meeting his midsection and chest and her head resting near his shoulder. The Berserker couldn't help but smile just a little at the fact that she was starting to become more comfortable with him. The first day or two since they started being more intimate, Hiccup was still cautious and didn't let their physical contact last for very long. But, as each day went by, she opened up a little more until they were where they were; enjoying each other's company and touch as Berserk gradually came into focus before them.
Hiccup could tell that Dagur was getting more agitated as the ship got closer to the flaming island which was, indeed, Berserk. She may not have been in the best position to see his facial expressions, but the way his hands felt on her were telling her enough. They didn't wander, they didn't apply too much pressure. They just rested themselves against her, barely grazing her at certain points. Compared to how he'd embraced her before the black fog became visible, it was much lighter but, somehow, it was more uncomfortable for her. Hiccup knew that Dagur's mind was focused on what was happening on his homeland, she understood that. What made her feel uneasy was the fact that Dagur was suddenly being so gentle. It was as if seeing that fire spewing from home made him think that everything around him was going to shatter, including her. So he was being safe for once and only using as much force as he needed to.
The Hooligan wanted to speak up about it a few times, but she didn't think that Dagur would hear her. As more and more Berserkers became aware of the smoke coming from the island, they all began to panic, frantically telling their crewmates about how they hoped that their house was still standing or that their families were alright, or at least alive.
So she just looked out at the fire instead, trying to see if she could find any clues in it as to what kind of dragon had created it. Though she was too far away to see any pattern or distinguishing color to the blaze, she did notice that there were no dragons in the sky above the island. On top of that, it appeared that many fires had started on the island and had been successfully put out by the people living there. But the fire was now feeding off of the dead plants left behind and had grown into a more damaging force. Hiccup could see barren spots in the thick trees covering the landscape and watched as the fire overtook one or two of those places as they approached the docks.
One thing for sure was that the dragon that set this particular blaze couldn't have been too big. At least, not as big as the Red Death was. If it was, then more of the island would have surely been engulfed in flames that weren't reliant on dead foliage to spread. She just couldn't tell any more than that until she saw the source of the fire or a place where the dragons in question had started it.
Upon docking, she and Dagur were the first ones off of the ship and were immediately surrounded by bruised, burned Berserkers all shouting over one another at their chief. Hiccup caught bits about "what to do" and "being gone so long" but for the most part all she heard was babble.
"Alright, alright!" Dagur shouted above everyone else "Quiet!" Slowly, the crowd became silent, awaiting what he was going to say next "I know I've been gone longer than expected. There were some... complications in our agreement with the Outcasts, which is now severed permanently. But, I bring with me the solution to our problem." He smiled at Hiccup and threw up her hand "I have brought with me the one and only Dragon Conqueror in the Archipelago, daughter of Berk's chief Stoick the Vast: Hiccup." The people seemed confused by the statement as they looked her over. Of course, here we go again... "I know she doesn't look promising, but I'm confident that she's exactly what we need to be rid of this dragon infestation once and for all. Once she's prepared and forms a small group to accompany her, she'll be on her way to neutralize the problem."
Dagur's speech seemed to appease the Berserkers for the time being, as they gradually calmed down and made a path for their chief and Hiccup to pass on and make their way to the village. At first, Hiccup thought that they were just walking into the forest and that Dagur's home was somewhere inside the maze of trees and brush. When she saw what looked like a wooden cage attached to a chain sitting on the ground, though, she was proven wrong. Dagur brought her inside of the structure, closed them in, and pulled a cord that ran up the closest tree. In the distance, she could hear a whistle blow and they were being lifted off the ground seconds later. Hiccup lost her balance when the cage swayed with a gust of wind and clung onto Dagur for support, feeling the rotting stick she was using as a prosthetic crack when she put all of her weight on it to keep from falling on her face.
The Berserker looked down at her and noticed the damage on her makeshift leg "I'll take you to the blacksmith before you set out and have him make you a new leg." The Hooligan just nodded. She realized that maybe just a quick break was in order before she went after whatever was attacking Berserk.
It was hard for her to believe how high the trees were here; they seemed to go on forever. As the cage was hoisted higher into the air, Hiccup saw the flames raging on some other part of the island. They just looked like the results of spreading fire, however. But, then again, it's a lot more difficult to judge what dragon caused a fire without seeing the burn mark itself. Above them, she could make out voices and hear footsteps and, upon looking up to see where they were coming from, saw a plethora of walkways assembled in a similar way to the docks, only they were suspended in the air or built off of branches sprouting from the trees.
The cage was stopped when it was level with the walkways and a Berserker walked up to them and opened the door for them "Welcome home, Chief." He greeted Dagur, who smiled at the man and nodded, wrapping his arm around Hiccup again as he brought her into his world "Orvar, Sigurd, lower it back down!" He hollered. Hiccup turned her head and followed the chain, seeing two muscular Berserker men starting to turn the crank that the chain was attached to. The cage was slowly lowered and she watched it go down.
"Definitely different from Berk, huh?" Dagur reclaimed her attention and she turned to find him smiling down at her.
"Uh huh…" She breathed. Gods, it was so warm here. And they lived in the trees instead of on the ground too?! Hiccup knew Berserk would look different from home but not this different!
"You'll get used to it." Dagur assured her "Now come on; I'll show you around."