Author's Note: Augghhh it's Monday...*Bangs head into wall* Why, why, whyyyyy...
Hey, everyone and welcome back to "Sticks and Stones!" =D Man, the weekend went by way too fast. I wish it was longer. =/
Anyway, I'm back with another chapter for this one-shot collection: "Sick Day!" =D I love sick Hiccup fanfictions, but this one is more humorous than it is...whumprous? X)
Also, I just wanted to say...guys...wow. This one-shot collection has over 6,000 views. That's...crazy. Well, crazy for me at least. X) I really wasn't expecting to get this much attention to this collection of one-shots, and the fact that over 6,000 people have viewed it...dang. It's unbelievable.
Thank you guys, so, so much. It always makes me smile when people enjoy what I write. Your kind reviews and feedback have all been read, and all of that helps me become a better writer. And I think I've improved a lot since September. You all are super-duper amazing, so...thank you. =) Virtual cake for everyone! =D
With that, here's "Sick Day!" I hope you guys enjoy it! =)
Summary: Hiccup wakes up with a fever one morning, so Astrid comes to help Valka take care of him. Unfortunately, Hiccup isn't the easiest of patients. (Post HTTYD 2.)
Sick Day
"Hiccup…just drink the medicine."
Hiccup shook his head. "No way."
Astrid sighed. "Come on, Hiccup. It's not going to kill you!"
Hiccup sniffed. "I think the smell probably will."
Astrid groaned. She couldn't believe how difficult and stubborn Hiccup could be, which was a surprising thought to think since she had known Hiccup pretty much all of her life. Hiccup was boar-headed and stubborn. The Hofferson girl should've known better that the young Haddock's stubbornness would have been more puissant as usual since he was sick.
Yes, Hiccup had fallen ill. It was a shock to the young chief, especially since he had duties to attend to as chief. In fact, Hiccup tried to hide his illness from his mother, who could clearly see that something was wrong despite Hiccup's attempt to hide his sickness, and she had told him to head straight back to bed. Hiccup complied, but he still attempted to sneak out a few times. Luckily, Astrid had arrived to help. She knew how sneaky Hiccup could be when it came to escaping his bed. Astrid had all of his tricks and attempts committed to memory, so she caught him every time he tried to sneak out the front door, the back door, the window, on Toothless, or hide in the closet to make it look like he had already left.
Despite Astrid's victory in catching Hiccup every single time he tried to leave, it didn't stop him from trying to do so, which made things even harder for Valka and Astrid to take care of him. Valka had decided to stay to tend to Hiccup, and Astrid could tell that she was making an effort to spend time with her son and take care of him after all of those years leaving him alone. The Hofferson was glad for Hiccup's mothers' help; she was able to get Hiccup to take his medicine without an argument. How she did it, Astrid did not know, but she tried her best to try and give Hiccup the treatment he needed regardless of his stubbornness.
Astrid hadn't expected for Hiccup to act so petulant over a bottle of medicine, though. Her patience was beginning to wear thin, and she was silently considering getting her axe and holding it up to Hiccup until he drank the contents of the glass bottle.
"Hiccup, seriously. Drink the medicine," ordered Astrid as she held it up to him.
Hiccup crossed his arms. "I'm not drinking that."
"Hiccup, please!" Astrid said. Well, begged at this point. "What's wrong with it? You've had Gothi's medicine before. What's so different now?"
"The smell, look, and smell," Hiccup said as he pointed to the bottle of medicine. "I don't even think that's medicine. Are you sure it's not poison in disguise?"
"Oh my Thor…" mumbled Astrid with a roll of her eyes. This was taking forever. Why, she'd probably be there for days trying to get Hiccup to take his treatment! She needed to get him to drink the medicine. But how?
"Hiccup, I promise, it's not poison," said Astrid as convincingly as she could. "Just drink it. Please."
"Do I have to?" asked Hiccup.
"Yes," said Astrid emphatically.
"Fine…" Hiccup took the small bottle and chugged the contents down before his taste buds could get the chance to register the flavor. Still, that didn't stop the young chief from letting out a noise of disgust once he finished.
Astrid smiled, satisfied. "See? That wasn't so hard."
"It was…" said Hiccup, trying to ignore the horrible flavor in his mouth.
Astrid shrugged and stood up from Hiccup's bed and set the bottle aside. "Look, I know you're upset about missing out on some of your work, but Gobber's got things under control."
"Uh huh," said Hiccup skeptically. The last time Gobber had been appointed as chief, babies were named incorrectly, boats were destroyed, and Berk probably would have been thrown into chaos if he hadn't been stopped.
The Blacksmith promised, though, that he wouldn't mess things up this time, and that was enough for Astrid. Besides, Eret was helping him out too. So if Gobber really did do something wrong, someone would be there to assist him.
"Anyway," continued Astrid as she picked up the wet cloth sitting on Hiccup's forehead and wrung it out in a nearby bucket. "Valka said that you should be good as new by tomorrow at least, but she said that you might want to stay in bed for a little longer than that just in case."
"I'm not dying, Astrid," said Hiccup. "I'm fine, really. I don't need to stay in bed, and I'm not that sick—"
Hiccup suddenly sneezed into his arm, causing Toothless, who had been napping on the other side of the room, to wake up with a jolt.
Hiccup sniffed. "Sorry, Bud," he apologized. Hiccup's voice was more nasally than usual.
Toothless shrugged and he sat back down on his stone slab, watching as Astrid placed a rewetted cloth back on Hiccup's forehead.
"You are sick," said Astrid. She pushed Hiccup down on his pillow. "And sitting up isn't helping. You need to rest Hiccup. You have a fever."
"Fever shmether," Hiccup drawled with a wave of his hand. "I've dealt with worse."
Astrid crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.
"Hey, you know I have," Hiccup said with a small frown.
Astrid sighed. "I know, but you still need to rest. You could end up getting yourself sicker."
Hiccup huffed. He really didn't like being bedridden. He liked getting out there. He liked adventure. Ever since he had been stuck in a bed for an entire week since the Red Death, Hiccup had a strong disliking toward being stuck in them. Sleeping in them wasn't a problem but being stuck in bed due to an injury or illness was something he didn't like being confined to a bed for. It felt like the Red Death all over again. Silence, no moving, no nothing.
"If you want to get better faster, you're going to want to start cooperating with us," said Valka as she walked up the stairs. She had left to grab a couple of herbs to bring down Hiccup's fever, and she had heard the small conversation downstairs. She placed the basket of various plants on Hiccup's side table and gave Astrid a smile in greeting. The Hofferson smiled back and told Valka what had happened while she was gone. Hiccup's fever had risen slightly, but he had taken his medication, so all was well for the time being.
Hiccup looked at them back and forth as they talked and tended to him. He felt invisible. Here Valka and Astrid were just talking about him like he wasn't even in the room. Hiccup sighed. He hated being sick.
Once Hiccup had downed the herbs and Astrid made sure that he wouldn't escape again, the Hofferson left to go and see how Gobber was doing. Hiccup said goodbye, and watched Astrid leave, leaving only him, his mother, and Toothless.
"So, Astrid tells me you're a difficult patient," she said as she started to clean things up.
Hiccup laughed nervously. "Am I? I don't think I'm that bad."
"You are," said Valka blatantly.
"Mom!"
Valka laughed. "I'm sorry. It's just that…your father acted the same way when he got sick you know."
Hiccup blinked in surprise. His father, Stoick the Vast, had fallen ill before?
"Wait…Dad had gotten sick before?" asked Hiccup.
Valka nodded. "We're all human, Hiccup. We all get sick."
"He never seemed to get sick often," said Hiccup.
"True," Valka agreed. She sat down on Hiccup's bedside and rubbed his shoulder. "But he did. And he was just as stubborn as you. I remember spending hours trying to get him to stay in bed. And medicine—oh, Thor, the medicine—that always caused an intense argument."
Hiccup chuckled as he imagined a younger version of his mother trying to get his father to drink his medicine.
Valka smiled softly and her hand went to Hiccup's hair, caressing it tenderly. "You're a lot like your father, you know. You may not see it, but it's there."
Hiccup smiled and leaned into his mother's touch. "Yeah…" he said softly. "But at least I'm not as stubborn as him," he added playfully.
"Oh, no," said Valka. She stood up and smoothed her skirt. She smirked impishly and said, "You're worse."
Toothless snickered in the corner and Hiccup rolled his eyes with a small smile. Valka picked up the empty basket and said, "I'll be back in a little bit. There are just a few things I need to take care of with Cloudjumper, then we'll see how you're doing then. I can leave you here for a little bit, right?"
Hiccup nodded. "I'll be fine."
Valka grinned and then headed down the stairs. Hiccup listened until he heard the front door shut, and he was just about to slip out of bed when a large, scaly head of a Night Fury flopped onto his stomach, briefly cutting off his oxygen.
"Oof! Toothless!" exclaimed Hiccup. The Night Fury only smirked and closed his eyes.
Hiccup sighed. He was stuck with his dragon bodyguard, but that was okay. He promised his mother and Astrid he would stay, and that was what he was going to do.
Besides, if his father could bear being sick for a while, so could he. Hiccup smiled, and he closed his eyes.
Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed this one-shot, and I'll see ya'll in whatever comes next for "Sticks and Stones." =D
Until the next chapter!
-BeyondTheMoon1203