Author's Note: Hi, everyone and welcome back to "Sticks and Stones!" =D I hope you all are having a nice day, and I can't believe it's already almost FRIDAY. =D I'm very much looking forward to the weekend and just chilling out and stuff. =)
Anyway, here's "Hush, Hush." I had a lot of fun writing this one-shot; I just love the Haddock family. Zephyr and Nuffink are amazing. =) I hope you guys enjoy this one-shot! =D
Summary: Little Nuffink is having trouble falling asleep, which leaves Hiccup and Zephyr to try and get him to close his eyes. (Post HTTYD: THW.)
Hush, Hush
Nuffink Haddock couldn't sleep.
Or, Hiccup thought. He simply just doesn't want to sleep.
Hiccup's green eyes looked down at the blonde-haired baby boy lying down in his cradle, babbling and giggling with the boisterous energy equal to that of a baby Scuttleclaw. Hiccup looked out the window and he sighed. It was late at night and yet Nuffink still—still!—hadn't fallen asleep. The Chief of Berk sighed with exasperation, and Nuffink grinned happily, not caring that his father was currently tired with the situation that they were in.
Nuffink was a rambunctious child. Just the day after he was born, he was babbling, crying, shouting, and grabbing anything in sight. Astrid's axe, Hiccup's book, Zephyr's bag, anything that he could get his little hands on. The Haddocks loved the newest edition to their family, and they didn't mind that the majority of their things disappeared because of him. Nuffink never seemed to run out of energy, and he always put a smile on the Haddocks' faces. Nuffink was an adorable, sweet baby, but his energy was somewhat tiring at times.
Whether it was morning or night, Nuffink was always active. He never slowed down. He never fell asleep unless he was completely drained, and that was pretty rare. Nuffink never seemed to get tired unlike Hiccup, Astrid, or Zephyr. And that caused quite a predicament when bedtime came around.
Hiccup didn't know how Astrid managed to get Nuffink to fall asleep; she seemed to be the only one to get the blonde-haired baby boy to close his eyes. Whatever methods she used, she didn't tell Hiccup, and he wished that he had asked her sooner before she left for a meeting with other chieftesses.
So there Hiccup was, standing over his son with tired eyes as Nuffink continued to babble on. He sat up in his cradle and smiled up at his father, and Hiccup couldn't help but flash a small smile back.
"Nuffink…seriously. You need to sleep," said Hiccup. Nuffink only blinked up at him. "Don't you ever get tired?"
It didn't seem so. Nuffink turned to play around with his blankets, and Hiccup ran a hand through his hair. Really, how did Astrid do it?
The moon was high in the sky, indicating that it was almost midnight. Hiccup had a lot of things to do tomorrow, meaning that he needed all of the rest he could get. But Nuffink was keeping him up. If he didn't manage to get Nuffink to fall asleep soon, he probably wouldn't get the amount of sleep that he wanted or be able to complete the list of chief related things that he needed to do the next day.
Hiccup sighed and sat down in a nearby chair. Nuffink had gone from playing with his blanket to fiddling with his toes. Nuffink needed to go to sleep, but Hiccup didn't know how to get him to do so.
A floorboard creaked and Hiccup lifted his head to see Zephyr standing in the doorway. She looked like she had just got out of bed, as she was rubbing one of her eyes and she was still clutching the stuffed Night Fury that Valka had made for her fourth birthday in her arm.
"Zeph? What are you doing awake?" asked Hiccup. "You're supposed to be sleeping."
"I know," replied Zephyr. She walked up to Hiccup. "But I woke up, so I came to see what you were up to."
"I'm just trying to get your brother to go to sleep," said Hiccup as he gestured to the cradle Nuffink was lying in. Zephyr looked into it and smiled at the sight of her little brother. The auburn-haired girl had been ecstatic when she first found out that she was going to become a big sister. She had told everyone too. The twins, Snotlout, Fishlegs, Gobber. Zephyr had taken her new older sister role very seriously. She helped out with Nuffink whenever she could, watched over him when Hiccup and Astrid were busy, and she even entertained him when he got fussy. Hiccup and Astrid were proud of their daughter and how well she was getting along with Nuffink. Zephyr had been a great help, and Hiccup was hoping that she might be able to help him to get Nuffink to close his eyes.
And it seemed that Zephyr was up to the task. Upon spotting that Nuffink was still awake, she asked, "Would you like some help? It kind of seems like you're having a little bit of trouble."
Hiccup chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I could use some help. I have no idea how to get this one to go to sleep. He doesn't seem tired at all."
"Bah!" cried Nuffink from his cradle, further proving Hiccup's point. Zephyr giggled and she rubbed her brother's back.
"Well…I usually see Mommy doing this when she's putting Nuff to bed," said Zephyr. She continued to make circular motions with her hand on Nuffink's back, which seemed to soothe the baby. Nuffink's eyes began to flutter, and he let out a short yawn.
"Wow, Zeph. I think your idea's working," said Hiccup with a smile.
Zephyr grinned and she continued to rub Nuffink's back until it seemed like he was ready to fall asleep. She stepped away from the cradle and watched as Nuffink laid down. His eyes soon fluttered closed, and his breathing evened out. He had fallen asleep.
"Maybe you should be the one to put your brother to bed," Hiccup smirked.
"I'm four. I can't do all of the grown-up jobs," Zephyr stated. Hiccup laughed at his daughter's blatant statement.
"Okay then," said Hiccup. He stood up from where he was sitting and led Zephyr to the doorway. "Let's get you to—"
Suddenly, a giggle erupted from behind them. Zephyr and Hiccup whirled around to see Nuffink sitting back up in the cradle, laughing and burbling away. Zephyr and Hiccup both blinked in surprise.
"B-but I thought he just fell asleep!" exclaimed Zephyr.
Nuffink smiled impishly at the two and Hiccup shook his head.
"I guess he was playing us," Hiccup said. He and Zephyr walked back up to Nuffink's cadle and both looked down at the blonde-haired child, who seemed to be challenging Hiccup and Zephyr to get him to go to sleep.
"Any other ideas, Zeph?" asked Hiccup.
Zephyr tucked her Night Fury stuffed animal under her chin as she thought. "Maybe try rocking him? I think that might do the trick."
It was worth a try. Hiccup scooped up Nuffink from his cradle and he sat down in the rocking chair in the corner. Nuffink looked up at him with curious, bright green eyes. The same eyes that belonged to Hiccup. Zephyr stood next to them, occasionally poking Nuffink's foot playfully as Hiccup rocked back and forth.
Astrid had done this before, and Hiccup had watched her too. Or he stood by her side as she rocked Nuffink, whispering soothing words to him that always lulled him to sleep. Hiccup never had seen Astrid gentler with anyone else than her son, daughter, and him. It was clear that she cared for her family very much, and Hiccup cared just as much about his children.
Hiccup still wished that he had a better idea on how to get Nuffink to fall asleep, however. Astrid was able to do it so easily. Hiccup had never put Nuffink to be by himself; Astrid was always there. Maybe Nuffink just missed his mother. Hiccup nodded to himself. That possibly was it.
A yawn drew Hiccup from his thoughts and Zephyr whispered, "He's getting tired."
Nuffink snuggled closer to Hiccup's chest for warmth, and the chief couldn't help but smile. He ran a hand through Nuffink's hair—similar to how Astrid did so—and Zephyr helped out by whispering words of comfort and amiability to him. Her soft voice had a calming effect on Nuffink, and the blonde-haired child soon let his green eyes flutter closed once again.
Zephyr smiled. "I think he'll stay asleep this time," she said quietly.
"I hope so," said Hiccup. He stood up slowly, being careful not to jostle the sleep baby in his arms and walked over to the cradle, slipping Nuffink into it. Zephyr helpfully covered up her brother in a blanket and stepped back along with Hiccup, watching Nuffink as he slept.
"Okay, I think we're good," Hiccup said. He turned to Zephyr. "Now let's get you to—"
Once again, Nuffink interrupted with a sudden, unannounced squeal. Hiccup faltered and Zephyr sighed exasperation. Nuffink had woken up. Again!
"H-how…" stuttered Hiccup.
"This is impossible!" said Zephyr. "How are we supposed to get him to go to sleep?"
"I don't even know anymore," Hiccup answered her. He really didn't know. Nuffink seemed like he would stay up all night long. If this went on for any longer, both Zephyr and Hiccup would most likely spend the rest of the night trying to get Nuffink to fall asleep.
Zephyr walked up to Nuffink's cradle side and ran her hand through his hair. "Come on, Nuffink. Just go to sleep. It isn't that hard. All you have to do is close your eyes. See?" Zephyr demonstrated by closing her own eyes, and she opened them soon afterward to see if Nuffink had understood. Unfortunately, he didn't, for he was still wide-awake. He giggled and pointed at Zephyr, who looked just about ready to give up.
"I don't know how Mommy does it," said Zephyr. She rubbed her brother's arm. "Could we wait until she gets back?"
"She isn't coming back until morning," Hiccup told her. Zephyr sighed.
"Well, I guess Nuffink is going to be awake all night long," she said. Nuffink giggled.
Hiccup wasn't going to let that be the case. Nuffink needed rest. He needed to go to sleep. Why, Hiccup himself needed to go to sleep! Nuffink couldn't stay up all night. Besides, he would probably keep him and Zephyr awake with his constant babbling.
Hiccup looked at Nuffink, who seemed to like having Zephyr's attention. He reached out a small hand toward her, and Zephyr took it, smiling.
"Hey…I think I have an idea," said Zephyr. "Why don't we just sleep with Nuffink?"
"Sleep with Nuffink?" repeated Hiccup. "I don't think we can all fit in the small cradle."
Zephyr laughed. "Daddy, no! We're not going to get into Nuffink's cradle. We could all sleep in your bed. Maybe that will help him fall asleep."
Hiccup didn't know how sleeping together would get Nuffink to fall asleep, but the young chief was willing to do anything that could possibly get the blonde boy to go to bed. "Okay, then. Let's try it."
Zephyr grinned enthusiastically and she quickly climbed into Hiccup and Astrid's shared bed. Hiccup wicked up Nuffink and walked over to the bed and sat down next to Zephyr. Nuffink tried to climb out of Hiccup's arms to reach his sister, but Hiccup held him close.
Zephyr scooched up toward her father's side. Hiccup smiled and wrapped an arm around her. Nuffink yawned and his eyes began to flutter closed.
"Yes, it's working!" whispered Zephyr happily.
And indeed it was. In just a few, short seconds, Nuffink finally—finally—fell asleep. Hiccup and Zephyr were still for a few moments, wondering if Nuffink would suddenly open his eyes and laugh, but he didn't. He stayed asleep
Hiccup smiled. "It looks like your idea worked, Zeph."
Zephyr yawned. "Yeah." She scooched closer to Hiccup. "Now we can finally get some sleep."
Hiccup chuckled. "That we can."
And so, Hiccup, Zephyr, and Nuffink slept peacefully until morning, wrapped up in a warm, familial embrace.
Author's Note: *Sighs* Wonderful family. =D
I hope you guys enjoyed this one-shot, and I'll see you all in whatever comes next. =)
Until the next chapter!
-BeyondTheMoon1203