The Edge
Pairing; Toothless X Hiccup
Setting; Modern AU
Rating; M for Mature
Disclaimer; I do not own the HTTYD or any of the music that is used. Everything belongs to its original creator/artist!
23: Better Than Ever
[June 22nd, 2017-Archian General Hospital]
Trayden, Sullivan, Victoria, Seth, Jamie, Samuel, Rebecca, and the group of friends all sat anxiously at the hospital waiting for Harvey to wake up. Trayden didn't suffer anything significant, just some smoke inhalation. Tray was on oxygen for half an hour, then he was cleared to be alright. Harvey, on the other hand, suffered much worse. Harvey was injured with slight burns and scratches on his arms from when he came through the picture window of the club to escape the fire after the explosion happened. It wasn't anything terrible, and Harvey didn't need stitches or surgery, but he had fallen unconscious from a coughing fit, so the doctors wanted to keep him until he woke up. Thank the Gods that the hospital room was large enough to fit all of them in there while waiting for Harvey to wake up; he was laying on the bed with an oxygen mask over his face, and his injuries bandages.
Trayden was both worried and angry; this was all his father's fault. Trayden had arrived at the hospital fifteen minutes after they left the sight of the fire. The time had been close to 7 am by the time Trayden got into Harvey's room, and now it had been about an hour. Andrew had texted Trayden to let him know that the fires were out on both levels of the building and the firemen were going through it to make sure nothing else would spark another one, and trying to determine the cause. That happened while Trayden was getting oxygen, and now he was sitting by Harvey's bedside waiting for the response. Trayden knew it had to be his dad, but he wanted to know what started the fire, and how it got so out of control in so little time. As soon as Trayden had that information, he was calling the police to arrest his father because Trayden also had video proof from his phone that his old man started the fire in The Edge.
"I don't understand how this could have happened," Victoria said as she was sitting on the other side of Harvey's hospital bed.
"The report we got from the fire chief was that the manager of the motel across the street saw someone start the blaze on the first floor of the building, but when he looked up, he saw fire on the second level too," Samuel informed.
"But who would have done this," Rebecca inquired.
"Is it that hard of a question to answer? Who do we know that hates Harvey and me?" Trayden scoffed.
"Well, that would be your father, Trayden. A-Are you saying you know it was him?" Rebecca's eyes widened.
"I have him on camera starting the fire in The Edge," Trayden informed without taking his eyes off of his unconscious husband. "The mother fucker purposely lit the tips of cloths inside bottles and threw them at the window to start that blaze,"
"And how did Harvey get you out again?" Ashley asked.
"By the kitchen wall, there was an attic entrance. Harvey used the broom to open it up, and then he lifted me up with Snooze and told me to escape through the window, then climb down the ladder. Harvey couldn't reach, and everything he could have used to stand on was burning," Trayden explained.
"Why haven't you called the police? It was arson!" Ashley said quickly.
"It was attempted murder," Harvey said which made them all be quiet and look at them. "Your father trapped us upstairs by blocking the sliding glass door with a piece of wood on the track, and set fire to the stairs to keep us from using that as an escape,"
"I'm so glad you're awake," Trayden almost cried as he hugged Harvey tightly. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. This happened because of me; cuz he hates me,"
"Don't cry. It's alright; I'm alright, and everything will be okay," Harvey said as he cupped his husband's cheek.
"Harvey, it's not…okay! My father set fire to our home to kill us!" Trayden protested quickly. "You could have died tonight. And The Edge…it's…ruined. This is all my fault," he lowered his head. Harvey sat up as he removed the mask down to around his neck, then he lifted Trayden's chin up and kissed him deeply. Harvey pulled away and used his thumb to wipe Trayden's eyes, then he smiled.
"But we aren't dead; we got out, and I bet he didn't anticipate that happening. You have it saved on camera that he started the fire, Tray, so we'll send the police after him, and he'll rot in prison for what he did. I'm not worried about anything else except that we survived," Harvey told him.
"B-But The Edge," Trayden tried to argue.
"Can be rebuilt, Love," Harvey interrupted him. "I'm not worried about the business because as long as we're here, The Edge will be too,"
"Harvey, what about the money? All the files, everything regarding The Edge will have been destroyed," Trayden asked sniffling a bit.
"No, it won't because I'm smarter than your father gives me credit for. Everything about The Edge is backed up on this," Harvey pulled out a flash drive from his pocket.
"Is that what you're always wearing?" Trayden asked.
"Yes. It has everything about the club on it, and if this fails, I have it all backed up to a secure website that I can access anywhere from a computer or cell phone. The money and blueprints are locked away in the fire and waterproof safe in my office. As I said, as long as WE are here, then The Edge will be too. What is important is that no lives were lost," Harvey told him.
"Quite right," came an unfamiliar voice to Harvey.
"Harvey, this is Doctor Taylor Wrightson; she's the one who has been overseeing your care since we arrived," Trayden informed his husband.
"It's good to see you awake finally, Mr. Haddock. How are you feeling?" Dr. Wrightson inquired.
"Much better than before," Harvey replied.
"Well, other than severe smoke inhalation, you're going to be just fine. Few scrapes and burns," the doctor informed.
"I figured that," Harvey shrugged. "Am I clear to go?" he wondered.
"Not quite yet. We want to keep you a bit longer just to make sure you can breathe alright seeing as you passed out after escaping the blaze," Dr. Wrightson explained.
"I can deal with that. Thank you," Harvey said as she then exited the room.
"Harvey, how did you escape?" Ashley questioned.
"Well, after I got Trayden out; I knew I needed a way too. I grabbed the fire extinguisher and used it on the stairs to escape the apartment, but once down in the club; I couldn't find an exit from there. I threw the extinguisher down to make it explode and clear a path, but at the same time, an explosion occurred in the kitchen. I ducked down, and then when it was over; I jumped through the window, and you saw that happen," Harvey told them.
Trayden's cell phone rang as he reaching into his pocket for it. "It's Andy,"
"Let me talk to him," Harvey said as Trayden handed it over. Harvey answered the call and put it on speakerphone. "Andrew, hey, it's Harvey,"
"Thank God you're awake. How are you, boss?" Andrew replied.
"I'm alive; a little burned and scraped up. Got a status report for me?" Harvey asked.
"Yeah. The investigators just left; it took a bit longer because they had to shut the gas off first," Andrew informed.
"Alright, let's hear it," Harvey invited.
"It was arson without a doubt because the gas line in your apartment had been pulled off from under the oven. Also, there were traces of gasoline, and that's why the fire burned so quickly. The investigator confirmed that someone must have broken in and doused the apartment with the gas, then lit it before leaving, and trapping you and Trayden inside by blocked both the stairs and the sliding door. Downstairs, the fire was caused by someone, probably the same who locked you in your place, throwing lit bottles of alcohol through the picture window." Andrew responded.
"And the damage?" Harvey inquired.
"It's…pretty bad, Harvey. It's gonna cost a fortune to fix this place; anyone who has been inside thus far has said it might not be worth it to remodel. The kitchen is destroyed, everything is burnt, there are structural issues, so on and so forth," Andrew sighed.
"I'll be the judge of what's worth fixing and what isn't, Andy. I should be out of the hospital later, and then I'll see what we're dealing with. The first course of action is finding the son of a bitch who did it; Tray and I already know that it was his father, Drake. We have it on camera; I will handle all of that. For now, I expect you to keep that information to yourself. We need Drake to think we don't know it's him, that way it will be easier to arrest him," Harvey said.
"Understood. I assume that you will…keep us posted, and we should all head home?" Andrew asked.
"Yes. Have the police tape it off, and keep someone posted there in case Drake gets the brilliant idea to go back," Harvey ordered.
"You got it. We'll talk to you soon," Andy answered. After that, Harvey hung up and handed the phone back to Trayden.
"I'm gonna get some more sleep, and you should too, Tray. We had a long night. The police will be by eventually when the investigator report gets to them," Harvey yawned, then coughed a bit as he got the mask back over his mouth and nose. "The rest of you can head home; I'll keep you updated as things change,"
"Alright, son. If you need anything, let us know?" Sullivan reminded, and Harvey nodded as he moved in the bed a little, then Trayden came over and laid beside his husband. Harvey kissed Trayden's forehead as Trayden leaned into it with a sigh.
"Everything will be fine, Love. Rest now," Harvey instructed.
"Okay," Trayden nodded as he relaxed his head on Harvey's chest, then closed his eyes; glad that his husband was alright, but still upset about the damage his father caused to their business. Trayden guessed that there was nothing he could do right now. Harvey seemed to know what he was doing and not stressing out over what happened, so Trayden shouldn't either. "I love you, Harvey,"
"I love you too," Harvey replied as Trayden snuggled up close, then drifted off. Harvey closed his eyes, and then sleep took him five minutes later.
[A Few Hours Later]
Harvey woke up and looked over to see Trayden still asleep on his left side. Harvey smiled a bit as he kissed his lover's forehead, then saw the door open a bit.
"Oh, good, you're awake," Dr. Wrightson smiled.
"Yeah, just woke up. My husband seems to still be out," Harvey chuckled a bit.
"I was just coming to see how you were doing," Dr. Wrightson inquired.
"A lot better, thank you," Harvey replied.
"That's good. I'll start your discharge then. Oh, and two officers came by forty minutes ago; I said you were still sleeping, but they gave me this to give you when you woke up. It's to talk about the case regarding your business and home," the doctor said while handing him a card with a name and number on it for an officer of the Arc Isle Police Department.
"I'll give them a call after leaving here," Harvey said as the doctor turned off the oxygen, then removed the mask and shut off the monitors. After that, she left as Harvey gently awoke his husband. "Tray. Baby, time to wake up," he said.
Trayden grumbled a bit and shifted, then he opened his eyes and looked at Harvey who was smiling down at him. "Morning again," Trayden yawned.
"How did you sleep?" Harvey asked him.
"Alright, I guess. How about you?" Trayden inquired as he got up and off the bed to stretch, Harvey did the same thing afterward.
"The doctor is working on my discharge now, I figure we should get to The Edge and check the damage," Harvey suggested.
"Yeah. Are we calling the authorities to send them to my father?" Trayden wondered.
"I will have them meet us there," Harvey informed as Trayden nodded and went to use the restroom after he came out, Harvey did the same. By that point, Dr. Wrightson returned as Harvey signed his discharge paperwork, and the two left. "Where's Snooze?" he questioned once outside and waiting for a taxi.
"Oh, Seth has him at his apartment, since we couldn't bring him here to the hospital. Your mom checked Snooze, and said he didn't sustain any injuries from the fire," Trayden said.
"Oh, good," Harvey nodded as the taxi cab arrived ten minutes later, and then they got inside and instructed the driver to go to The Edge. Pulling up fifteen minutes later, Harvey saw that an officer was posted outside of it as he'd requested, and then another squad car was parking across the street. Harvey paid the taxi driver, then stepped out, and Trayden was right behind him. The cab left, and Harvey looked at just the outside of the building; trying to take it all in.
"Harvey Haddock?" came a voice. Harvey turned to face a set of officers; two males.
"Officers," Harvey replied.
"I'm Jason Lennox; the one you spoke with on the phone, and this is my partner, Steven Matthews. We've been assigned to work on finding the culprit behind the fire," Jason introduced while they both shook Harvey's hand.
"I'm Harvey, and this is my husband, Trayden," Harvey responded calmly as the officers then shook hands with Tray.
"Can you think of anyone who would want to harm you or your husband?" asked Officer Matthews.
"Anyone against the LGBT community. However, I'm about to save you a bunch of work because my husband and I know who did this," Harvey informed as the officers blinked. "Trayden's father, Drake Nyght is responsible. We have him on camera setting fire to the building,"
"Yes. I have him on camera arriving, then walking around back to where our apartment patio entrance is, and then about twenty minutes later, Drake comes around front here to set the downstairs ablaze," Trayden explained.
"Am I to assume then that there is a story behind why he would try to kill you both?" Jason inquired. Harvey nodded, and then he began to explain about Trayden being kicked out, then Drake locating him years later, and beating Trayden up on camera, then all the little fights and what not.
"That's all of it, and I have those incidents archived too," Harvey finished.
"I see; we'll be needing those for evidence in court if you plan on pressing charges?" Steven asked.
"Draky Nyght destroyed my business and my home which sits above The Edge, and he tried to kill my husband and I. I am absolutely pressing charges," Harvey informed.
"Understood," Jason nodded.
"We'll start a search for him right away, and keep you up to date on developments," Steven enlightened.
"Thank you," Harvey said as the two officers left. Harvey told the other officer he could go while he made Harvey made his way inside The Edge with Trayden, both of them being careful at where they stepped. Harvey didn't say anything, he just looked around to take in the damage assessment, and then walked up the stairs while holding Trayden's hand. Once inside the apartment, Trayden wanted to cry. "Ssh, it's okay,"
"No, it's not. Look at this place, all your hard work…" Trayden sobbed lightly.
"And it can be rebuilt, Tray. I'm not worried about it. For now, we should pack our bags, and we'll go stay with my parents while this gets fixed up," Harvey assured. Trayden nodded to him as they found one duffle bag each in the closet which hadn't been affected by the fire, thankfully. Harvey and Trayden packed some clothes, grabbed their personal care items, and then a few other things they didn't want to leave behind. After all that, Harvey and Trayden exited The Edge. Harvey and Trayden caught the next bus to Berk, then relaxed there for the hour and ten-minute ride.
[Berk; 1:30 pm-Haddock Household]
While on the bus ride, Harvey called a cleanup team to go into The Edge to clean out everything that was broken and burn that couldn't be saved or restored. After that, Harvey dialed the contractors who did the remodel the first time; saying he would need them for a rebuild after the cleanup group finished, also that he would want an estimate on how long and how much it would take to get the place running again. The lead builder said he would have to go there to check things out and see the fixes that needed to be made, and then he could calculate an estimation for Harvey, which he accepted the response, then ended the call. Getting to Sullivan and Victoria's place, Harvey knocked on the door, and his father answered it as Harvey gave a weak smile.
"Hey, Dad. Mind if Tray and I stay here until the renovations are done?" Harvey asked.
"Oh, son, of course, you can. You and Trayden can stay in the basement; your mother and I got it ready after leaving the hospital in case you two decided to come here to crash," Sullivan replied, then hugged him and Trayden before allowing them inside. "Vick, the boys are here," he informed his wife.
"I'm so glad you're both alright," Victoria hugged them both; she kissed Trayden's cheek, and then planted a kiss on Harvey's forehead. "And you two can stay here as long as you need too," she added to them.
"Thanks, we appreciate it," Harvey smiled. "We're gonna go settle in," Sullivan and Victoria nodded, and then Harvey led Trayden downstairs passed the storage and laundry rooms. Harvey opened the door to the place they would be staying; revealing a full-size bed, eight-drawer long dresser, then two night stand with table lamps on them. Also, the room held a love seat and small coffee table. Harvey and Trayden began to unpack since it was expected that they would be here a while.
[A Week Later; Friday the 30th of June]
It had been a busy week, but finally, Harvey had everyone gathered at The Edge for an update meeting. The family and friends had come out at 5 pm when everyone was out of work and had some free time. Harvey spent the last few days with the cleanup crew and lead contractor discussing estimates and timeframes. Now, Harvey knew what he was looking at overall, and wasn't worried in the slightest. Among all that, the police found Drake, who was arrested and awaiting arraignment. It was thanks to Trayden's mother that they found Drake at all, and because of that, Trayden fully forgave his mom for the past.
"Alright, boss; this is the last of us," Andrew informed walking through the door with Garth, Vinny, and Robert.
"This place looks different," Storm sighed sadly.
"But it looks cleaner," Kevin mentioned.
"I had a cleanup team come in to basically gut it out, and the kitchen too," Harvey stated.
"So, what's happening from here?" Calista wondered. It was the question on all of their minds; those who worked for The Edge at least, they wanted to know if they still had jobs.
"I had the contractors come through to give me an estimate on how long and how much it would take to get this place back to what it was, and were looking at a complete overhaul totaling in $147,000.00, and that doesn't include the apartment upstairs.
"Gods. Harv, that's almost more than double what you paid when renovating The Edge from what Dragon's Cove was," Andrew reminded.
"Well, more goes into replacing everything that was destroyed in the fire structurally, then factoring in the rebuilding itself, plus tables, chairs, equipment, etc.," Trayden muttered, though, he didn't like how high the number was either.
"And doing the upstairs too is another $41,000.00," Harvey stated.
"That's…$188,000.00, to fix everything?" Ford questioned.
"Yep and renovations start tomorrow," Harvey smiled.
"Wait, you're actually going to fix everything?! Harvey, that's an outrageous amount of money to get this place going. You put out once, don't do it again. It's not worth it," Andrew ordered him.
"It's not your decision, Andy. This building isn't just a place to me, alright? You hired me as a server in 2010; my first full-time job was Dragon's Cove. You not only gave me employment but an apartment too. I met Trayden here, and now, he's my husband. You're right; I did fix this up once, and I'm not letting it fall. I made everyone from the original Dragon's Cove staff that promise in 2013. And now I make it again to all of you. I won't let the memory die because this is home; it's family and friends," Harvey stated firmly. "It will ALWAYS be worth it to save that,"
"I couldn't have said it better myself, son," Sullivan smiled putting a hand on his shoulder. "Your mother and I are here to help in any way we can,"
"Me as well," Rebecca stepped forward.
"Thank you, Mom," Trayden offered a smile to her.
"You know we got your back," Seth informed motioning to himself as well Ashley, Zack, Roslyn, Travis, Ford, and Heather.
"We all do," Eli informed as Calista, Winter, Brett, Brady, Kevin, Hank, Sebastian, CJ, Garth, Robert, Vinny, Storm, and Morgan nodded too.
"You're one hell of a guy, Harvey. If this is what you want to do, then I'll help all I can," Andrew told him. "So, where are you going to get that kind of money?" he wondered; they all leaned forward in curiosity.
"The insurance I have on both The Edge and the apartment which protects against everything, including arson," Harvey grinned.
"When did you get that put on!? I thought it was only natural disasters!?" Trayden asked quickly.
"After that night when you stood up to him because I didn't trust that he wouldn't seek revenge. Your father couldn't stand that even though he kicked you out, and you were homeless for so long, that you ended up more successful and happy than he could ever hope to be," Harvey kissed Trayden's knuckles, then captured his lips. "We're gonna rebuild, and come back," everybody began cheering because The Edge would return better than ever.