Through The Ups & Downs

Couple; HarrisonXAddilyn

Rating; Mature

Disclaimer: I do not own HTTYD or any songs I might use! Also, from this point in the story and in future chapters, I do not own the character; Ella(Eira) Solveig. She belongs to my good friend, ShadowSpirit020.

15) New Friends

{Harrison's POV}

[Camp Arifjan-Zone One-Medical Building-8:50 pm]

My head was throbbing, and there was an ungodly pain in my right side. My ears felt blocked, and I heard muffled voices around me but couldn't make them out. Everything was dark, and truthfully, it was beginning to scare me as to what was going on. I didn't remember anything past taking Toothless into the sky to stop those dragons from attacking Camp Fury. I mean, it was there but all blurred at the moment.

"Hey, look! He's waking up finally," Okay, that time I made out Trevor's voice for sure. "Harrison?" he asked, and I groaned at the noise, then tried to force my eyes to open.

"Haddock?" that one was Aaron's voice. Where in the name of hell was I? At last, I managed to get my eyes to start blinking and focusing in on the faces around me. I saw Aaron and Glenn on my left, then Trevor on my right.

"Thank Odin that you're awake," Glenn smiled at me.

"Uh, what do you mean? Wasn't I just with Toothless taking on the mass of dragons?" I inquired.

"You don't remember getting injured?" Trevor wondered curiously. My eyes widened a bit as I looked to my right side and saw myself wearing no shirt but my midsection was padded and wrapped tightly. Had I gotten hurt? Trevor said so. Why couldn't I remember what happened to me?

"Don't push him to remember, Private Vollan. The lad has only just woken up after being out for three hours," Glenn stated. Three hours?! I've been unconscious for three hours?! Now I had to know what happened. I closed my eyes tightly, trying to think back to when I was with Toothless.

"Harrison, it's okay. Calm down, you'll remember with time," Aaron instructed, but I had to know. I saw the blurred memories, and as I focused more, they became apparent enough for me to piece the situation together like a puzzle. I was flying Toothless, we stopped the dragons but a Titanwing Deadly Nadder attacked, and I got hit by one and felt pain. Toothless started glowing blue, and the dragons bowed to him, I had no idea what that was all about, but I intended to find out after all this. I remember landing and then Olivia asking if I was alright, she noticed I was hurt, and the last thing I recall is being taken by ambulance with Trevor in the back too.

I opened my eyes and looked at my side now. So I was shot with Nadder spine? I suppose I would live. It grazed me, but still deep enough to need this dressing on it. "Are ya alright, Harrison?" Glenn inquired.

"Yeah, I'm okay, Lieutenant. And yes, Trev, I remember what happened. Word of advice; don't get hit with a Nadder spine," I informed with a light chuckle.

"Crazy ass. You should have come back down immediately," Trevor scolded.

"Hey, after I got hit, Toothless took over on his agenda. You can't penalize me for that one," I retorted.

"Lad has a point there, Vollan," Aaron sighed. "Any pain, Haddock?"

"Yeah, but manageable," I nodded to him. I saw the nurse come over and start checking vitals and smiling softly.

"Think you can manage to take it easy the next week or so for that to heal, Mr. Haddock?" the nurse questioned after tucking the clipboard under her left arm.

"Yes, ma'am," I nodded to her firmly.

"Good then. I'll get you some pain killers, no more than two per day and make sure to visit the TMC(Troop Medical Center) to get the dressing reapplied after showers, Understand?" the nurse ordered.

"Perfectly," I replied. "Wait, which pain killers?" he asked.

"Vicodin," she said turning to face him.

"I can't take them. It should be in my file that I'm allergic to them, my throat will close up within two minutes of taking a Vicodin," I informed calmly.

"Huh," the nurse stated as she flipped through the file and shook her head. "No, it's not in here. I don't suppose you can have a parent confirm that, can you? It's just a precautionary measure that some soldiers have used to get a stronger pain medication due to underlying addictions to them," the nurse wondered.

"What time is it right now?" I asked.

Trevor glanced at his watch. "9:15 pm,"

"It's 7 pm back in Berkville. Can I borrow your phone, Trev? Mine is still in the barrack from before the attack," I questioned.

"Mine is in the stables actually. I didn't take it while flying and when we came back, it was the attack," Trevor replied. Glenn pulled his out and handed it to me.

"Here, use mine, laddie," Glenn said.

"Thank you, sir," I smiled and then dialed my parent's landline number. I heard the first ring and then put it on speakerphone knowing that the nurse wanted to see that the number I dialed was the number listed in my file. After five rings, it went to the answering machine, and I knew why too; my parents didn't answer calls from numbers they didn't know. I sighed heavily. "Hey! One of you pick up the phone; it's your son calling from overseas from his Lieutenant's phone. Well, Nate, if you're listening; it's your older brother,"

Not more than a second later, it picked up, and I shook my head with a smile. "Harry!" Nate exclaimed excitedly.

"Hey, lil bro. What are you up to?" I asked.

"Hiding the phone from Mom and Dad so I can talk to you," Nate giggled.

"Nathaniel Haddock, you unlock this door, or I swear it's coming off the hinges!" I heard my father warn.

"But I wanna talk to Harrison! You two got him when he called three hours ago!" Nate complained.

"Nate, I actually need Mom or Dad right now, please? I promise that when I get back to the barrack, I'll call again and talk to you, okay?" I asked him softly.

"Alright," Nate muttered before unlocking his door. "When he calls back, I get to talk to him because he promised me," he huffed and handed off the phone. I heard a sigh from my father.

"Hi, son. Wasn't expecting you to call from a different number," Spencer informed.

"Yeah, I know. It's Lieutenant Belmore's phone; mine is in the barrack still from our last conversation. So, short version of what happened. I got hit with a Nadder spike, nothing bad and will be good in a week. However, the nurse needs to hear from you or Mom that I'm allergic to Vicodin to make sure I'm not a pain killer addict," I explained as I saw Trevor, Aaron, and Glenn arch a brow and I mouthed 'don't ask.'

"Oh! Yes, Harrison is deathly allergic to Vicodin," Spencer stated softly.

"Thank you," the nurse smiled and went to get the Percocet's for me to use while I recovered.

"Do I get the extended version of the story?" Spencer asked.

"After I get back to the barrack and call again, but Nate gets to talk first. I promised him," I reminded.

"Harrison Haddock, you have only been there just over twenty-four hours, and you're already wounded. Not entirely sure that I like this arrangement anymore," came my mother's worried and firm voice. And here we go.

"Mom, I'm okay. It was a freak accident with one of the dragons, don't worry so much. We'll talk more after, alright? I gotta give my Lieutenant his phone back," I replied.

"I demand to know everything when you call back," Viviana ordered.

"After I talk to Nate. Just gimme fifteen minutes with my little brother, then I'll talk to both of you," I said.

"Very well. Speak to you soon, son. I love you," Viviana stated.

"Love you too, Mom. You as well, Dad and Nate," I answered before hanging up and returning the phone to Glenn. "Sorry," I mumbled.

"Eh, don't worry about it, laddie. All parents worry about their youngins out 'ere," Aaron chuckled. "Should have seen my Mom when I joined at nineteen after High School," he added.

"I can imagine," I replied to him. The nurse returned with a bottle containing ten pills, then another with five big white pills and handed both to me.

"Little ones are Percocets; the others are 800 mg Ibuprofen. I suggest the Percs at breakfast and bedtime, use the other one for midday," the nurse informed.

"Got it," I nodded to her as she unhooked the IV from my right hand and I sat up slowly, getting help from Trevor in standing afterward.

"Easy now, Haddock," Glenn reminded. Once supported with Trevor as a brace to keep me balanced, we started moving to exit the medical building. Aaron had a four-seater jeep waiting outside, thank the Gods too because I didn't want to walk all the way back to Zone Two. After I had talked to my parents and brother, I planned on getting more sleep. Tonight would be an early one for me.

[Second Level of Barrack-10:30 pm]

The first place we stopped was the restrooms, and then we reached the barrack at 9:35 pm. As I expected, I was met by the platoon and getting asked if I was okay. Aaron kept them back, and Glenn explained that I would be alright as long as I took it easy for a few days. I let Toothless know I was okay, then we started for the stairs and moved up them slowly until reaching the room Trevor and me shared. I called my house and talked to them until 10:15 pm when I admitted to needing some sleep; I said goodnight to them and then put the phone on the charger before laying down and knocking out right away.

[One Week Later; Monday, April 20, 2015]

FINALLY! I was cleared to be fully recovered from the spineshot I took to my right side; it healed nicely too, hardly a scar. In one more week, hopefully, the Wind Rider Infantry men and women would be getting to start doing guards or missions. I couldn't wait to go flying on Toothless again; it was going to be the first thing I did after eating breakfast this morning. The number one order I had upon waking up and grabbing a shower was to visit the TMC and get the wound checked out. It was closed and only left a small scar, but I had the paperwork to give to Aaron that said I could resume regular duty again.

[8:15 am]

Arriving at breakfast for 7:30 am, I gave Aaron the paper, and he nodded approvingly. After that, I got my food and talked it up with my friends just like any other morning had been thus far at Arifjan. When breakfast Just as I was about to rush out towards the stables, I got stopped by a tall figure standing in my path to the door. Looking up a little, I saw it be Colonel Dunbar. I came to a quick halt and saluted him respectfully.

"Good morning, Private Haddock," the colonel greeted with a smile.

"Morning to you as well, Colonel Dunbar," I responded.

"So, a week ago, I had a request submitted to my desk about the soldiers here who were interested that is, to learn about dragons. Apparently, you were the one to tell them they needed permission from their CO first. Thank you for that, I much appreciate that you'd ask before doing. I thought I'd let you know that it's fine with me for you to inform them about dragons. My only condition is that it doesn't interfere with standard work orders," Thomas said.

"Of course, sir. I teach them on personal time, not work," I replied to him.

"Very good then. I leave it in your capable hands," Thomas patted my shoulder before walking away. Great, so now it was Fort Benning all over again with Basic Dragon Knowledge. I assumed that the Colonel didn't want me teaching them about training, just basics. I could do that, and I'm sure my platoon would help too. I could worry about it later. First, my flight with Toothless! I raced outside and put my fingers on the corners of my mouth only to be stopped again by the soldiers from last time who were curious.

"Whatcha doing?" asked a girl with green eyes and medium brown hair.

"Getting ready for a flight," I said.

"Where's your dragon?" inquired a male who had an almost entirely shaved head and somewhat green eyes.

"I was just about to call him," I stated with a sigh.

"So, we got permission to learn about dragons, can this be lesson one?" asked the female with violet eyes, she had the happiest smile on her face. I didn't know what it was, but every time I saw her, my stomach fluttered with a little joy. An odd, but pleasant feeling nevertheless.

"Well, it doesn't exactly...start that way. Um, how about this? Let me get my flight in, and if no one has any work to do, you can meet me back here, and I'll start teaching you," I offered.

"Works for me!" the female giggled. I nodded and raised my fingers once more and then blew hard giving off a loud whistle. Within five minutes, Toothless landed beside me and handed over his saddle from his mouth.

"Ew. Toothless, you know this doesn't wash out," I muttered as Toothless gave a throaty chuckle. I shrugged and wiped the dragon saliva off the best I could, positioned the saddle on my friend, then hopped on, and we took to the sky at top speed. Gods, it felt amazing to be back in the saddle and soaring through the air once more. Nothing could beat this feeling.

[An Hour & Fifteen Minutes Later-9:30 am-Zone One]

When I returned to the place I had left, the three soldiers were still there and waiting for me. I got off Toothless and sent him back to the stables to rest up, then shot Trevor a text to get Toothless a few fish for me since I was stuck training Americans about dragons in basic knowledge, again! He said, 'no problem,' so I tucked my phone away and led the two girls and one male inside the building, and we found a quiet place for the teachings. I realized something like this could happen while I was here, yet, I wasn't prepared to be spending my off time doing it all.

"Well, I think before we start we should introduce ourselves," I began. "I'm Private First Class Harrison Haddock, nineteen-years-old and member of the Wind Rider Platoon for the Arc Isle Army,"

"Private First Class Andy Kingston, twenty-years-old and member of the US Army," the man, Andy introduced.

"Private Skye Ostberg, nineteen, and a Combat Medic for the US Army," the girl with green eyes and medium brown eyes smiled.

"Private First Class Briana Grayson, nineteen and Infantry for United States Army. I hope that we can be friends for our time together, Harrison," Briana Grayson-the girl with platinum blond hair and violet eyes-said with a gentle smile to me.

"I think we're going to make great friends," I said with a nod. Well, I might be stuck teaching them about dragons, but at least it was a small group, and I had made some new friends.