Unintentional Hero

Author: Nightstar Fury of Nightstar Productions

Rated: M for a variety of things that will happen

Pairing: Hiccup/Astrid

Disclaimer: I do not own HTTYD

56; Never From An Enemy

All of them just stayed present in Hayden's office while he was unconscious from not only being stabbed to protect his family and friends, but also shot in the stomach protecting his father who tried to protect the others while Hayden had been down due to being stabbed originally. What shocked and worried everyone was the fact that Hayden forced himself up from the floor and got between the bullet and his father, by this time Anderson and the rest of Strike One returned to the tent because the attack had been pushed back. Also Boggs, Greenhalgh, and Evans arrived after having been told that Hayden had been stabbed and shot in the course of one night. They knew he'd survive but they were worried about how his mood would be when he woke up because he had warned that if anything happened like what it did last time where his family was in danger, he would flip out for allowing this to happen when he said they could stay for the holidays. It was also still shocking that Valora, Hayden's and Camille's mother was alive after being a POW and assumed dead for ten years.

Hayden thus far had been knocked out for an hour since the medic had taken out the bullet and given him stitches for the wounds. She had said he'd wake up within the hour but he was still out and they were worried. "He should be up by now..." Avery said moving some of the hair from his face. By this point the higher officers with the exception of Anderson had already left since nothing could be done but wait for Hayden to wake up, they told Anderson to stay and keep them informed.

"Let's not forget that before the attack happened, Hayden has been awake for quite sometime. Since 2am yesterday morning when the guard shift started, and only slept two hours after returning from being a POW, now this. His body aside from taking damage is probably exhausted, as is he from everything. We should just let him rest up." Theo mentioned to her now.

"Very true, Holgerson. Alright why doesn't everyone get some sleep? Hayden will be fine, he won't die while you're sleeping, he's too stubborn for that. And these injuries aren't life threatening, so come along..." Anderson insisted. Avery took the cot closest to Hayden, so did Anderson while the rest got comfortable on theirs and soon everyone was asleep but of course still worried for him but right now there was nothing anyone could do but wait for him to wake up, and hopefully that would be soon.

(The Next Morning; 9am)

The night stayed quiet with no further attacks, when morning came the others awoke to find Hayden still unconscious or maybe he was asleep since he looked so peaceful and had even breathing with no pain which the medic had warned might happen since he was shot in the stomach. They had all eaten in the tent, watching Hayden, hoping and praying he'd awaken. He'd been knocked out since 1:30am, now it was 9am and they hadn't seen him move at all but finally just as they were getting ready to call the medic back to order air-lift to the nearest hospital, Hayden began to stir a bit. "Hayden?" Avery said quickly as she moved closer.

Hayden began to groan lowly as he put a hand to his head and opened his eyes slowly, blinking them to attempt to focus on his surroundings which were mainly to him blurred faces and outlines of family and friends. After a few minutes of a slow wake up, he was able to see clearly and the pain in his side and stomach reminded him on his own what happened. "Thank Thor you're awake son-had us worried," Valora said softly to him.

"I actually woke up around 0500 but saw everyone asleep so I just went back to bed..." Hayden replied calmly as he forced himself to sit up slightly, cringing at the pain from the wounds.

"Don't move a lot, you'll bust your stitches stupid..." Anderson remarked to him, "What is wrong with you, sending your only form of cover to help me!?" he scolded.

"I was fine..." Hayden rolled his eyes slightly, "Where's...Toothless? I left him...on the front lines last night to come here..." he said worried now looking around.

"Haven't seen him, we've all been in here with you since you knocked out..." Theo stated.

"Toothless didn't come back here on his own?" Hayden said quickly, they shook their heads. Hayden put his fingers to the corners of his mouth and gave a loud whistle-five seconds later there was loud running as Toothless burst into the tent happily and going right to Hayden's side licking his cheek, "There ya are bud...I was worried about you." he said relieved as Toothless crooned and pressed his forehead to Hayden's lightly.

"Why is it you got shot and stabbed last night but you're worried about him?" Gerald stated now.

"Maybe because he's my one of my best friends and I don't know what I'd do without him," Hayden said in response.

"He's just a dragon, Hayden...you'd be fine." Gerald sighed.

"Because I was fine when my other friends died, right, Dad? The friends you carelessly bring up all the time and keep reminding me have died to teach me a lesson in not have sex again, or the lesson that you don't want to be the next parent to have his kid come home in a flag draped box. And I was so fine that I started drinking, and couldn't sleep?" Hayden asked colder now.

"Dad, he just woke up after getting hurt, and saving our lives doing it! Don't start with him...please?" Camille pleaded softly now.

"Camille dear, what are you talking about? Your father is just worried because Hayden was hurt..." Valora said gently.

"Your daughter is referring to the fact your husband, Mrs. Haddock, doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut around Hayden and tends to set him off. I agree with, Camille, Mr. Haddock...stop while you're ahead. I warned you the last time..." Anderson said now, Avery nodded in agreement.

"You don't understand the bond between dragon and rider, Dad, because you don't have a bonded dragon. Everyone in this room understands it-but you, because you refuse to even try and have since Mom was announced as a POW, ten friggen years ago. Toothless has saved my life plenty of times since he and I bonded, and I won't let you sit here and call him just a dragon. Because he's been here for me a whole hell of a lot more than you have." Hayden stated firmly.

"Oh please, you don't drink that often because you're here. I know how it works." Gerald huffed now.

"Then you should also know that Strike One was named highest ranking stealth group from the first tour in Afghanistan, right," Hayden began as Gerald stayed quiet, "That my group and I have snuck off the Titanwing base a total of seven times to go to the bar and never been caught?" Silence again. "Face it, you don't know anything about me and you don't care to know either. If you took a fraction of the care you have for your job, and put it towards knowing your son a little more than you might actually learn a lesson of your own."

"I know plenty about you: like the fact you always put yourself in danger and claim that it's to protect people when honestly I just think you're trying to get yourself killed so you won't have to kill yourself since you're so miserable all the time. I was there the day you said you had the feeling to plaster your brains on the wall after your friend killed himself," Gerald said quickly, "You keep saying you're here to do the right thing, I just don't believe you anymore. Every time you've called, it's been to say you got hurt or something along those lines. I lost track of how many times you've actually been shot or hurt, you're not here to do better, you're just here to escape life."

The whole room gasped and went quiet at what Gerald said, they knew about Hayden's break down where he did admit to wanting to kill himself after Tarelto's death-everyone knew except his mother of course, there had been things that he didn't tell her while they were locked up before escaping.

"GERALD HADDOCK!" Valora yelled to her husband.

"Well it's true. He's always getting hurt, saving his team and shit. It's like he wants to die." Gerald remarked.

"In case you've forgotten...I'm the leader of the entire Nightstrike Company-that's one hundred soldiers including myself. It's my job to lead the missions, and make sure everyone is safe. I know I can't always ensure that but I'm sure as fuck gonna try. They are under my command, it's my responsibility to make sure they are okay even at the cost of my own life. We all take the risk during missions or battles, you saw that yourself and I'm surprised you still haven't accepted it." Hayden retorted.

"I won't accept that you joined the military, Hayden. This isn't fighting for what's right, it's just suicide. Two sides fighting one another, killing one another. They kill soldiers and call it murder but if you're stupid enough to run out there into a battle knowing you could die then it's suicide. If ya want to kill yourself that bad, then do it. At least I'll know an enemy didn't kill you." Gerald said, then put a hand over his mouth realizing what he said as Hayden's eyes widened slightly at the comment, "Hayden...I didn't-," Hayden put a hand up to stop him. Nope, he'd had enough.

"DAD!" Camille yelled at her father with tears in his eyes.

Everyone backed up, expecting Hayden to fly off the handle like always-instead he only forced himself to stand up with closed eyes and faced his father with void eyes, "You know-I knew this would happen. But sure, let's go there since you want to bring it up. Truth of that whole situation where Tarelto took his own life: was that I wanted to kill myself, the fact of that situation was that I didn't: I closed myself off and waited to talk to someone I trust about it all because I didn't want to die and I still don't. I don't want to take my own life because I have good friends who stand with me and are here to help me," Hayden said slowly.

"Know what else is a truth, Dad?" Gerald looked at him softer now, surprised Hayden wasn't yelling at him. "I stand by what I said the day Avery took that pregnancy test, I hate you. I hate you so much that I took a bullet for you so you wouldn't die. So the fact that the wife you just got back after ten years-wouldn't have to lose you for the rest of her life. I didn't take that bullet because I'm trying to die, I took it because I took a vow to protect my family, my friends, and my home and I'll honor that vow until the day I get discharged or die upholding the vow. We've had this discussion many times over and I'm sick of having it so this will be the last one. Maybe you keep that in mind from now on, that as much as I hate you, and could have let you get shot and die, that I still saved you because it was the right thing to do-because you're my father, and as much as you piss me off sometimes...I love you-I can never truly hate you." he said calmly.

Gerald's eyes widened a bit but he stayed quiet otherwise. Hayden moved past him to his desk and opened the middle drawer-pulling something out and then walked back in front of his father, and handed him the folded letter that he took slowly. "What's...this?" Gerald asked, slowly unfolding it to read it over.

"It's the letter you sent me the first time I was stationed here in Iraq." Hayden said calmly, "I got that letter a month before Steven Ritka died, then following him was Eli Matthews, Daryl Lennox, and finally, Jason Tarelto-who did take his own life because he couldn't handle the fact he lost his friends, and was afraid to lose more on the next tour to Afghanistan. No one knows what's in that letter, no one has ever seen it but me. So why don't you go ahead and read to everyone what you said to me,"

"Dear son, I know I haven't written or called since you left five months ago and I'm sorry. But tonight sitting alone in the office I found something that you gave me a long time ago and it made me realize something that I've known and felt all along. I know I might not of said it so I'll say it now: son you make me proud. I was just scared to lose you. You're my only son and I don't know what I'd do if I lost you. I'm sorry for the things I said since you joined. You're doing the right thing and I am very proud of you for doing it, I have always been proud and I always will be. I love you, son and I hope you get to come home safe and sound soon. Love always, Dad." Gerald repeated off the letter slowly. A few others gasped, Hayden never showed anyone in Alpha Fire that letter, they just knew he cried that day. Even Camille was surprised.

"You'll notice on the paper, there are few wet spots which smudged some of the writing-those are because the day I got that letter, I cried. I'd never been happier to finally be told what you said in that letter to me. That I made you proud, always had and always would. Do you know I carried that letter with me in my suit for every guard shift, every mission, every fight I entered? I finally had your acceptance, finally made you proud and you understood why I was doing what I'm doing here," Hayden said before his eyes narrowed, "I held onto it all this time, protecting it, and striving to keep myself alive so I could hug you, and tell you thank you in person because your words are what kept me driving on. I held onto that letter because I thought it meant something-but I guess I was wrong and you really still believe that what I do here is wrong. Thanks for the brief illusion that you made me believe," Hayden said stepping back and preparing to walk out of the tent, he stopped and glanced back only a moment.

Hayden stood half out of the tent, his left side out of it facing the base and battle grounds, and his right side facing the inside of the tent where his father was, "So. Tell me where I should go, Dad? To the left, where nothing is right. Or to the right, where nothing is left. I'm glad this happened, I'm glad I got to feel this pain because sometimes you have to hurt in order to know, fall in order to grow, and lose in order to gain. Life's greatest lessons are learned through pain. You know what hurts more than any wound I've ever received from an enemy? Knowing you just don't give a damn about me, but that's okay. I don't need you to care anymore. I have friends who care about me, my dragon, my girlfriend, sister, and mother. I guess it's true what they say, the saddest thing about betrayal is that is it never comes from an enemy," he said quietly as Gerald stood there, shaking almost. "Anderson."

"Yes, Hayden?" Harry said softly knowing Hayden was really upset right now but hiding it behind the coldness.

"Get them all on a plane and out of here. Now. And please for the love of Thor, don't ever do something like this again, Anderson. I know you wanted to cheer me up, but if your wouldn't risk your family then don't risk mine. I'd rather live alone miserable than be happy with them here where they can die. I won't risk anyone else, this was a bad idea and I hate myself for even allowing it." With that he was gone, and Toothless following him after growling at Gerald.

"Strike One, follow him. He's still wounded..." Evans said slowly reaching the tent now.

"Yes, Lieutenant General Evans." Jasmine nodded as Theo, Ethan, Heather, Dylan, and herself left the tent following after Hayden and Toothless. "I'm not sure what just happened in here but I know for Hayden to be up and walking around after being shot and stabbed, ignoring that pain-then it had to be bad. I won't ask because I feel its a personal issue but I know he made a firm, reasonable request for his family and friends to be sent home and I won't deny him such. I've already arranged a plane and it will be here in a few hours. It's refueling in Germany..."

"He's just...mad at his Dad...we're supposed to be here until the 27th..." Avery said softly.

"It doesn't matter. Major Haddock's request was for all to be on a plane and out of Iraq. Please prepare your things to return to Berk. Mrs. Haddock, you will be going as well. There is a lot to get in order with you being back and alive." Boggs said firmly.

"I understand. Will my son be allowed home for leave soon?" Valora asked.

"He hasn't requested any off except Christmas and now that's over. We can't make him take leave, and we won't force him on one unless we feel he's unstable to handle battle." Lieutenant General Evans sighed.

"But he...just got shot and stabbed...he needs recovery time, doesn't he?" Camille tried.

"Listen, I know it isn't what you want to hear. But you did hear me offer him to be fully discharged to return home and he refused that. He can recover here, it's his choice. I was going to send him on forced leave until I heard how calm he was during whatever happened in here. If he'd flown off the handle, then I would of sent him home for a while but he didn't so I'm going to assume he is fine," Evans said softly. "I will be back when the plan arrives." Then he left with Boggs, Greenhalgh, and even Anderson-who they were sure was going to find Hayden. The others still remaining in the tent turned a glare on Gerald now, they didn't say a word to him, they just began packing their things to leave since they no longer had a choice.

(A Few Hours Later)

Hayden did spend time with everyone-except Gerald before they left. They didn't dare ask if he was alright in fear of setting him off and he really didn't say all that much when with them. He mainly held Astrid close to him, and just gave a nod or shake of his head when answering. When the plane arrived, Evans radioed Hayden to let him know. Hayden led them to it and made sure they were secured before hugging everyone except his father again, then backing out slow and hitting the side to signal to the pilots that it was clear for take off. The plane headed off and was out of sight after fifteen minutes, Hayden just walked back to his office silently with Toothless. He laid down on his spare cot in there and just went to sleep again since he was ordered to mandatory four days rest. He finally managed to see his family for Christmas after four years and the whole thing was a shit show, ending with another argument between him and his father. He was just glad they were safe, that's all that mattered to him. They were out of Iraq and headed back to Berk, now things could hopefully just fall back to normal.