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.
18) Nice To Be Back
{Normal POV}
[Haddock Household-5:45 pm-Sunday, 4/16/2015]
The weekly picnic put on by the Haddock family was in full swing, and everyone was ready to eat when Spencer called that the food was up and for them to eat. The Thorston's, Hofferson's, Ingerman's and Jorgenson's would get together with the Haddocks, and it would be a fun time for everyone to hang out. The parents of the friends started doing it in the sixth grade, meeting up every Sunday at the Haddock residence for a picnic so the buddies could have a day to relax and play before school or if it was in the summer, a day before everyone went back to work.
The reason it got held at Spencer and Viviana's was that they had the biggest yard, equipped with an outdoor kitchen, patio, and pool. In the winter, the outdoor kitchen was still inside of a good ventilated room that big enough to the families together, and the kids would play downstairs in the playroom. It always worked out, and everyone had a blast. Each family would bring something to the picnic, whether it be an appetizer, the main course, or a dessert. Harrison would always help his parents clean up or watch Nate while they cleaned. Tonight, they expected it to be like any other Sunday with Harrison and Syrus not joining them due to the deployment. However, the thought changed when Toothless landed in the backyard with Harrison on his back, grinning like an idiot.
"HARRISON!?" everyone exclaimed in shock to see him there.
"Surprise," Harrison stated. At that moment, nobody cared about finding out why he was there. Everyone rushed over to greet him, the friends staying back to allow the family to go first. Harrison got off Toothless's back and removed his saddle so he could go lay down and relax after the long trip home, then Vivian had been the first in line to hug Harrison tightly, doing her best not to cry. Sure, the duration of the deployment, Harrison would Skype with them, and they could see his face that way, but nothing compared to being there in the flesh where they could hug him.
"My boy!" Vivian whimpered as she stepped back and kissed both sides of his cheeks, then one more on the forehead.
"Hi, Mom," Harrison smiled.
"Viv, move. The rest of us would like to greet him too!" Spencer demanded jokingly as Viviana transferred to the side, wiping her eyes while Spencer hugged Harrison next, kissing the top of his head. "It's good to see you, son,"
"You too, Dad. Feels like it's been forever," Harrison remarked.
"Dad! I want to hug him!" Nate tried to shove his father out of the way. Spencer laughed a little and stepped next to Viviana to hold her as she calmed down from the emotionalness of Harrison being there. Nate smiled wide as he launched himself at his elder brother and hugged him tightly. Harrison hugged Nate back, then put him down as Nate looked up at him. "Why didn't you tell us you were coming in?!"
"I thought it might be a pleasant surprise just to show up," Harrison admitted as Nate moved aside and Harrison greeted Frankie, TJ, Addilyn, and Regina next, then all the parents.
"Is the tour over, are the others home too?" asked Hailey, hopeful that her brother was home too.
"Sorry, Hailey. The tour isn't over; this is only time off for me," Harrison replied. Hailey looked down a little as Harrison hugged her. "He asked me to give you this," he smiled. Hailey hugged him back.
"Give that to him when you get back?" Hailey wondered.
"Of course," Harrison nodded to her.
"How are things in Kuwait? Is Syrus safe, we haven't heard from him all day," asked April Jorgenson, Syrus's mother.
"I believe he's on a mission right now with Trev, Dex, Liv, Chels, Steph, and El. You'll probably hear from him tomorrow. As far as I know, after the assignment ends they have baseline patrol with the rest of the platoon," Harrison informed.
"Oh, I do hope they'll be safe," Sara Ingerman said softly.
"How long are you home for?" TJ questioned.
"I gotta be back before midnight next Sunday," Harrison responded.
"How was the flight into Arc Isle?" Viviana asked curiously.
"Viv, don't hound the boy, he just got in. Harrison, drop your bags inside them come join us for dinner," Spencer smiled. Harrison nodded as he hurried inside to his room and put his backpack on the bed, then he quickly changed into civilian clothes and returned outside. Harrison jumped in the food line and grabbed himself a cheeseburger, hotdog, chips, and some of Michelle Hofferson's famous baked macaroni and cheese with broccoli in it before taking a seat on the outdoor patio set. However, he didn't eat right away as he got Toothless half a barrel of fish for his supper.
"Alright, now while we eat can you tell us how the trip was?" Nate inquired. "Was it another overnight flight?" he wondered.
Harrison smiled a little. "Nope. Just ten hours of flying with two one-hour breaks in Turkey and Romania," he informed.
"Were you on a new aircraft or something? I don't think I've heard of any that could go that long," Amy Thorston, mother of Regina and TJ pondered.
"New airline called Night Fury Air," Harrison hinted with a smile as they all stopped eating and looked up at him with surprise. "Was it something I said?" he stated casually.
"Night Fury Air? Wait you mean you flew Toothless home?" Addilyn exclaimed.
"That I did," Harrison nodded to her. "Pretty cool, right?" Harrison grinned.
"How in the name of Odin did you pull that off?" Spencer blinked.
"Major Hagebak said it was okay as long as I checked in on each break and stayed out of thin air so I wouldn't get light-headed. I left Kuwait this morning at 7:30 am, and have been flying since," Harrison told them.
"Okay, I have to know how you made it back here so fast. Toothless...can't travel all that distance in twelve hours. Can he?" Frankie asked with a look of curiousness in his green eyes.
"Toothless's top speed is that of a P-51 Mustang aircraft. That number would be four hundred and thirty miles per hours. However, normal fly speed is two-fifty. I went from Kuwait to Turkey at a rate of three hundred and fifty; it only took three hours. We took a quick break to eat then we flew two-fifty for two hours from Turkey to Romania. That is where we took our first-hour long break to recover," Harrison began.
"Afterward, we traveled nine hundred and seventy-six miles from Romania to Denmark at Toothless's top speed, took two hours total. Took another hour break and then flew at three-forty speed for two hours from Denmark to Arc Isle Airport. Had to get checked in there, took a bit, then flew here and got delayed with some of the weather coming into Arc Isle. Now, here I am," Harrison finished.
"That's incredible!" Nate said with a look of adoration in his eyes.
"And how didn't you end up lost?" Spencer asked.
"Compass and map, plus Toothless knows where he's going," Harrison chuckled. "It's going to be a fun flight back to Kuwait, we're probably taking the same route," he added.
"Just be safe, Harrison and best check in with us," Vivian demanded.
"Yes, Mom. Speaking of, I should probably call Hagebak or Belmore to let them know I made it here," Harrison suddenly remembered that he didn't let them know. Harrison got up from the table and stepped off to the side while getting his cell phone out and trying to make the calls but it seemed he couldn't get through. "Damn reception," he muttered. At that, they watched Harrison turn his phone to the side and after scrolling a few times on the screen and clicking something. The device gave a long beep, then a button on the side turned from orange to green.
~Haddock to Grayson. Am I coming through clear?~
~Hi, Harry. Yeah, you're fine. What's up? Did you make it to Berkville safely?~came a female voice they didn't recognize.
~Of course. Can you do me a favor?~
~Sure, whatever you need,~
~Will you let Major Aaron Hagebak or Second Lieutenant Glenn Belmore of Wind Rider know that I made it home safely? I tried to call them, but they aren't answering,~
~I think it's because they are in a meeting. Well, your Major might be,~There was a pause now. ~And I think Lieutenant Belmore is on the mission with your unit since you're not here,~ the female finished gently. Harrison's face turned to a frown. That recon mission started at 2 pm Kuwait time; they shouldn't still be on it.
Harrison couldn't let the others hear about the mission, especially because Hailey and the Jorgenson's might get worried. Civilians weren't allowed to hear mission details without permission from the CO first. ~Move to secure code, please? I'm with unauthorized company,~ Harrison knew she would understand what he meant, and he ignored the looks from the others.
~Of course, Private Haddock,~ the female stated gently. ~Prenons-nous nous parler en français?(Will they catch on to us speaking in French?)~ Harrison glanced at the other watching, and they looked beyond confused which is is exactly what he had been going for.
~Ouais. Ils ne savent pas que je connais d'autres langues.(Yeah. They don't know I know other languages.)Harrison responded. Now his family and friends were really confused.
~Pourquoi l'unité est-elle revenue de la mission encore, Bri?(Why hasn't the unit returned from the mission yet, Bri?)~
~Il y avait une embuscade. Votre peloton, Skye, Andy et moi-même sommes en veille pour aller. Belmore a dit qu'il nous informerait s'ils avaient besoin d'une extraction au bout de deux heures. Cela fait partie depuis. (There was an ambush. Your platoon, Skye, Andy, and myself are on standby to go. Belmore said he would let us know if they needed extraction by the end of two hours. It has been one since.) Briana explained to Harrison as he sighed with his eyes closed.
~Est-ce que je tiens-moi informé?(Keep me posted, please?)~
~Je vais, Harry, ne vous inquiétez pas. Je suis sûr que l'unité et le Lieutenant Belmore sont très bien. Vous appréciez votre congé en famille et entre amis. Je promets que nous pouvons gérer les choses ici jusqu'à ce que vous reveniez dimanche prochain.(I will, Harry, don't worry. I'm sure the unit and Lieutenant Belmore are just fine. You enjoy your leave with family and friends. I promise we can handle things here until you get back next Sunday.)~
~Je vous crois, Amour. Et désolé d'utiliser toutes les formalités, Bri. Je ne crois pas que ma famille soit prête à apprendre à me faire une petite amie en tournée,(I believe you, Love. And sorry about using all the formalities, Bri. I don't believe my family is ready to learn about me getting a girlfriend while on tour,)~
~Ne t'inquiète pas, Harrison. Continuez, passez du temps avec votre famille et vos amis. Je promets que tout ira bien ici,(Don't worry about it, Harrison. Go on, spend time with your family and friends. I promise everything will be okay here,)~
~D'accord, Briana. Vous gagnez, bébé. Faites-moi savoir si quelque chose change. Je vais abandonner mon congé pour revenir là-bas et aider avec Toothless,(All right, Briana. You win, babe. Let me know if anything changes. I'll give up my leave to come back there and assist with Toothless,)~
~Ne vous dérangez pas, Harrison. Restez où vous êtes et passez du temps libre. Nous sommes des soldats, nous pouvons gérer les choses pendant une semaine. D'ailleurs, Toothless, je suis sûr que ça pourrait faire une pause après tout ce vol. Je vous tiendrai informé des choses et nous pouvons parler plus ce soir, d'accord?(Never you mind, Harrison. Stay where you are and take some time off. We're soldiers, we can handle things for a week. Besides, Toothless, I'm sure could use a break after all that flying. I will keep you informed about things and we can talk more tonight, okay?)~
~Très bien, je vais essayer de me détendre. Je m'inquiète pour mes amis, Briana. Tu le sais. Alors, nous parlerons plus tard alors?(Very well, I'll try and relax. I worry about my friends, Briana. You know that. So, we'll talk later then?)~
~Bien sûr. J'attends votre appel quand il est sûr que personne ne le découvre. Comme je l'ai dit, ne vous inquiétez pas de ne pas leur dire parce que je n'ai pas non plus dit le mien, mais vous savez que nous ne pouvons pas le cacher pour toujours,(Of course. I'll be waiting for your call when it's safe that no one finds out. As I said, don't worry about not telling them because I haven't told mine either, but you know we can't hide it forever,)~
~Nous ne le ferons pas. Il vaut mieux attendre que la tournée se termine. Je vais appeler après que ce pique-nique soit terminé. Vers 11 heures votre temps, beau. Je devrais aller pour l'instant. Je vais vous parler dans quelques heures, petite fille,(We won't. Just better to wait until the tour ends. I'll call after this picnic is over. Around 11 pm your time, beautiful. I should go for now. I'll talk to you in a few hours, baby girl,)~
~Je ne peux pas attendre. Je t'aime, Harrison,(I can't wait. I love you, Harrison,)~
Harrison had been a little surprised to hear Briana say she loved him. After all, the two had only been dating for a week, and he wasn't sure they had reached that level yet. Not that he minded, he liked Briana a lot and hearing her say she loved him, well, Harrison felt his feelings were strong enough to say it back and return what she felt for him.
~Je t'aime aussi, Briana,(I love you too, Briana,)~ Harrison released the button on the phone as the light disappeared and he slipped it away into his jeans.
"What was that all about?" Addilyn inquired. "Who were you talking to?"
"None of your business, Addy," Harrison retorted. "Bri is a friend I work with in Kuwait; we're in the same company. Well, a temporary one. Wind Rider soldiers joined up with them for dragon support. Briana and I have the same feature on our phones; it doubles as a walkie-talkie, so I knew she'd answer if I called," Harrison stated.
"Yeah, but why were you talking a different language?" Regina wondered.
"Civilians aren't allowed to know what's going on aside from what the news gives them. Sorry, classified information," Harrison lied. "Now for security reasons, we can't keep talking about it," Harrison informed wanting to drop the subject as fast as possible before someone went and tried to figure out that he said to Briana in French. Deciding to let it go, Harrison and the others just continued to eat their food and talk about how life had been since the last time they spoke. Harrison couldn't wait to talk to Briana again, hopefully not in another language either. All Harrison could think was about how nice it was to be back.