Hiccup pumped his arms as he jogged along, focusing on trying to make sense of things rather than on the pain in his stump leg, still tender from the run in with the yellow jelly. The path Link was taking had been steadily climbing for the better part of an hour, and by the way he was gasping, Hiccup guessed they were far above sea level.

He had tried to stoke conversation at the beginning on their journey— "I noticed you're left-handed. Me too! ... I like your breastplate. I mean, it looks amazing, and it's a really handy place to keep your map. I keep mine in a saddle bag, but sometimes it flies out. ... The trees sure are nice around here."—but Link hadn't responded to any of it, so Hiccup eventually gave up.

Hiccup ran his tongue over his teeth and pressed his hands together, trying to retain the escaping moisture. The further they traveled from that little stone building, the drier the air became. Piles of desiccated leaves hedged the sides of the narrow trail, and beyond that, Hiccup occasionally caught a glimpse of the startled wildlife—fuzzy, four-legged creatures with long ears and stumpy horns or tiny blue birds with bright yellow collars—but there were many other things in the forest that he could only identify by sound: a rustle of branches, a hoot, a distant bellow.

Hiccup rubbed his hands again. Well, this is way more detailed than my dreams normally are. I wonder what the twins would say. Scratch that. I don't want to know what they'd say.

He noticed Link glancing at him over his shoulder. Taking that as a signal, he asked amidst heavy breathing, "Hey, umm, *gasp* why exactly *gasp* are we running?"

Link slowed just enough to keep pace. "The forest is more dangerous than ever with bulblins hunting me. I know a place where we'll be safe for the night, but we need to hurry if we're going to reach it by nightfall."

Hiccup nodded. "Right. Bully pins. How could I not have guessed?" he wheezed. "What are *gasp* those?"

Link cocked his head. "You really aren't from around here, are you?"

"That's what I said."

"Then how did you get here?"

"I have no idea!" Hiccup shouted, throwing his hands in the air.

"Shhhh!" Link jerked a finger to his lips and slowed to a walk. "Best to keep our voices down."

Hiccup glanced around at the endless trees. Maybe Link was paranoid, but at least Hiccup could finally catch his breath.

Link continued. "If anyone knows what's going on, it's the Sage." He pointed to a nearby mountain with a lone tree at the peak. "He knows everything."

"Everything?" Hiccup asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He's always given me sound advice," Link shrugged. "Anyways, bulblins—" He emphasized the strange word. "—are nasty, evil creatures. If you see one, take it out because there are probably more nearby."

"That's... brutal. Have you ever tried talking to one?"

"As it's trying to cut off my head? No."

Hiccup kicked the ground as they walked. "Back home, we used to kill dragons because they destroyed our village, on a nightly basis. But we learned that we could live together with them in peace."

"That's sweet," Link said, rolling his shoulders back, "but here the lines are drawn. Either you're with Ganon or not."

"What's Ganon?"

Link's gait faltered, his fists clenching for a moment before he recomposed himself. "Ganon is the reason bulblins are after me... and why everything else is a mess." Hiccup looked at him expectantly. Link dropped his eyes and took a deep breath. "Four years ago, he came from his home country, the desert nation of Gerudo. He claimed rule of Hyrule and waged war against us."

"Hyrule?" Hiccup clarified.

"Yes, that's this country. The one created and blessed by the goddesses."

"Ohhh," Hiccup said. His head bobbed like a cork on a pond, and his expression was just as clueless.

"It was a year later that I—" Link took another deep breath, "—was awakened to my calling. The goddesses said I had the spirit of the Hero of Legend, and that like all the heroes who had preceded me, it was my destiny to defeat Ganon. I traveled across the country, training with the greatest warriors until I was strong enough to wield the Master Sword."

Link drew the sword from the scabbard on his back. The amethyst cross guard was shaped like a bird in flight and from it grew a pristine silver blade.

"It's beautiful," Hiccup whispered. "I've worked with swords my whole life, but this is something else."

"You're a warrior?"

"Oh, no," Hiccup waved both hands. "I mean, I've worked on them. But—" He dropped his eyes. " —I leave the warrior thing to others."

Link gave a quizzical look, then sheathing the sword said, "Well, as long as you're here, I'll protect you."

Turning off the path, Link led them past a break in the trees to the edge of a small bluff. Hiccup's jaw dropped. The sun, low in the sky, cast the richest pinks, purples, and yellows over the landscape. From their mountainous perspective, he saw golden plains as vast as the ocean. A waterfall taller than the mountain on Berk disappeared into a shadowed valley. A wide lake, curiously dark, reflected the setting sun as if it were on fire. In the distance, a mountain, dwarfing the range of mountains around it, exhaled a tired trail of smoke.

Hiccup spoke softly, afraid a sudden move would break the beautiful vision. "This is some dream." He glanced at Link, and the smile faded on his lips. Link's mouth was a thin line, his eyebrows bunched. "Hey, you okay?" Hiccup asked.

Link shook his head. "Sometimes it feels like a dream, and other times—" The tip of Link's pointed ear twitched. Without warning, he grabbed Hiccup by the shoulders and threw him to the ground.

Hiccup bumped on the hard packed earth then frantically scooched away from the crumbling edge of the cliff. "Hey!" he protested, then stopped himself. Link stood in front of Hiccup in a wide stance with the Master Sword drawn. Less than a stone's throw away, a pack of dark creatures armed with bows and bludgeons paced along the path. One of them sat on a giant black boar, keeping a tight rein on the bit in the animal's mouth. Two black feathered arrows lay scattered in broken pieces at Link's feet. A third protruded from his shoulder.

"Link!" Hiccup shouted.

Link grabbed his shield just in time to block another volley of arrows. Hiccup ducked as an arrow whizzed over his head. He looked for cover. There was none. Cliff behind them, and enemies in front of them. Link dropped to one knee.

"You're hurt," Hiccup said, wide-eyed.

Link winced and adjusted the shield. "It comes with the calling." Hiccup blinked twice—wasn't that something the Vikings were always joking about? He ducked as another arrow whizzed towards them. They huddled behind the shield. Link clutched his wounded shoulder, the arrow sticking out like a pin in a cushion. "Still want to talk to them?" he asked.

"These are bullgans?"

Link rolled his eyes. "Bulblins. And some of the nicer looking ones, too."

"Bulblins, bublins—No, bul-blins" Hiccup repeated to himself as he peeked over the shield at the hoard before them. There were seven of them, the size of children, but the tattered, dark rags they wore disguised their age. Horns, curved like the horns on his own Viking helmet, sprouted from the sides of heads. Their green skin and red eyes looked like ghouls from stories, except for the saliva dripping from their mouths which added a realistic and grotesque touch. One shot an arrow from its rough-hewn bow. Hiccup ducked again.

"Nope, I'm good."

For a moment, there was a pause. Hiccup's mind raced. It was two against seven. The bulblins had arrows, clubs, and a mount. Hiccup and Link had one shield and sword between them. Not great odds.

With a stifled cry, Link yanked the arrow out of his shoulder and slid it through his belt.

"Stay low," he said quietly, passing the shield to Hiccup.

"What?"

Vuu-wuuuuuu! The bulblin leader sounded his horn, and the boar reared up on its hind legs. The rest of the bulblins ran screaming towards them. Hiccup clutched the shield, his heart pounding, palms sweating. Keep your eyes open.

As he readied for the charge, Link, with a mighty yell, leapt over Hiccup and with a spin cut down two of the charging bulblins. Without missing a step, he rolled to his feet and sprinted towards the leader. Hiccup stared, mouth agape, as the teenager dodged another attack before killing that assailant as well. It's not that he hadn't seen fighting before. He had grown up in a culture that gave axes to their newborns and spears as betrothal gifts, and prior to Hiccup and Toothless's historic friendship, you weren't respected until you had killed a dragon. But these bulblins were different from the dragons of the Archipelago. There was something dark and unsettling about them, an elusive element that made Hiccup's skin crawl. And yet Link charged toward them, fearless.

An arrow cut through the fringe of Hiccup's hair, snapping him out of his reverie. Two bulblins were running at him. One shot arrows as it ran, and the one behind brandished a club. Hiccup took a few steps backwards. Dodging and using the shield against the last few arrows, he started to feel pretty good. Maybe these creatures, as scary as they were, weren't so difficult to handle after all. The bulblin archer reached for another arrow but came up empty handed. It looked into its empty quiver, muttering something incomprehensible, then glared at Hiccup.

The dragon rider smiled and shrugged sympathetically. "I know the feeling. I— WHOAH!"

Without hesitation, the bulblin threw down its bow and charged towards Hiccup, eyes wild, teeth bared, hands rabidly thrashing the air. Hiccup retreated but not fast enough. The bulblin was on him. The creature was too short to reach Hiccup's head, but it clawed and scrambled at the shield held stalwartly in front. They wrestled with the shield until Hiccup, with a shove, threw the bulblin off. It tumbled across the grass and then with a scream went over the side of the cliff.

Hiccup realized with a wobble that he himself was straddling the edge. He whirled his arms trying to balance. The second bulblin swung its club at him. Hiccup leaned to his left to dodge the attack. In a heart stopping moment, the metal leg crumbled through the soft dirt, and Hiccup fell over the edge.

\

Link dodged, blocked, and finally killed the bulblin he'd been battling. Now there was just the leader, still seated on its mount. The bulblin leader screamed at him. The boar growled and reared back. Just as the hooves were about to crush him, Link rolled out of the way. From behind the boar, he nimbly leapt on its back and in one swift motion killed both it and its rider. Link dismounted with a backflip as the two bodies collapsed under him.

He scanned the bluff for danger. Fallen bulblin bodies were scattered everywhere, but there, on the edge of the cliff, he saw one still standing, whacking at the edge with its club. His stomach twisted with realization and dread.

"Hiccup!"

\

Hiccup clutched a flimsy root growing out of the side of the cliff. Above him the bulblin screamed, spraying his face with dirt and spittle. He looked down and, for a moment, his vision warped. Ten feet down, another scraggly bush clung to the side of the cliff, but beyond that was nothing but air for a few hundred feet. Certain death below, and safety so near and yet out of reach. The root slipped an inch through the soft dirt. Hiccup scrambled to readjust his grip. There was no choice; he had to climb.

Keeping his head down to avoid the gross projectiles, he reached for the top. Whack! His hand flew back as the wooden club struck his fingers, sending him swinging backwards. His grip on the root slipped another inch. Oh Thor, please no!

The bulblin's shriek was abruptly cut off, and the hail of dirt and spittle stopped. Hiccup squinted up just in time to see the body, impaled with an arrow, tumbling towards him. He grabbed onto the root with both hands. The lifeless, foul body bounced off his back down the cliff. The extra force was too much for the fragile root to handle.

It broke.

Hiccup flailed as he fell, trying to catch something, anything. The bush! There it was, flying at him faster and faster. If he could just reach it! He twisted himself and stretched as far as he could. His fingers tore through the twigs and clasped onto the dry branches, ripping the whole dead plant right out of the side of the cliff. Down, down, down he fell. Hiccup threw his arms wide to try to slow his descent toward certain doom. "TOOTHLESS!" he cried.

Suddenly, his heart stopped, and his pupils dilated. He didn't know where Toothless was. He didn't even know where he was. He was going to die here at the foot of this cliff, and none of his friends or family would ever know what happened to him!

Then, in what felt like slow motion, he saw in his periphery a metal claw flying towards him. It cinched around his arm, and he had just the wherewithal to grab the attached chain before it yanked his arm out of its socket. The chain went tot, and he bounced off the side of the cliff with a heavy thud. He looked up and saw Link leaning over the edge. One hand clutched the edge of the cliff; the other was wearing some kind of gauntlet attached to the chain. The blond bangs fell in front of but couldn't hide the determination in Link's blue eyes as he shouted. "I got you! Hold on."

Hiccup grabbed the chain tight with both hands and braced his feet against the cliff. Though the chain retracted into the gauntlet with a steady mechanized rhythm, Hiccup could still see the strain on Link's face. It was a good forty feet of them pulling and climbing together, until finally, they were both panting safely on the bluff.

Hiccup lay face down, clutching the grass. He hadn't realized how hard his heart was pounding or how difficult it was to catch his breath. He was no stranger to heights, but that was close. What if Link hadn't caught him? He shivered. Wait, this was all just a dream, right? There was no way any of this could be real. And yet he kept reacting as if it were. Now that he was out of immediate danger, he was a little embarrassed of his reaction.

Link rolled him over. "Are you alright?" he asked earnestly.

"I—I... I'm fine," Hiccup managed, his voice as shaky as his muscles. A spot of red seeping through Link's shoulder caught Hiccup's attention, and he choked as memory struck. "You were shot! I dropped—" Hiccup stopped short, eyes wide. He crawled back to the edge and looked over. They were so high he couldn't even see the bulblin corpse. "—your shield." He retreated from the edge and sat back. "I'm so sorry." The shield that had saved their lives was gone because of him. He looked away, an uncomfortable pit forming in his stomach.

Link sighed. With the chain fully retracted, he stowed the gauntlet and slung one of the bulblin bows over his shoulder. "You find items; you lose items." It was delivered so matter-of-factly, like he was picking out what he would be eating for breakfast. "People," he continued with a sad smile, "now people are impossible to replace." He stood up and extended his hand to Hiccup.

The Viking looked up. Who was this guy? He was young but already so brave, confident. Strong. He could be chief. Hiccup smiled. As long as he was stuck in this dream, maybe he could pick up some tips. Or simply play along until he woke up.

Hiccup took the hand and shakily got to his feet. The last rays of the sun glinted off the amethyst guard as Link cleaned the Master Sword and swept it into the scabbard in one smooth stroke.

"Come on," Link said. He walked towards the path and pulled up his hood. "It's not much farther."

"Where?"

The reply was soft. "Home."

/

Author's Notes:

While I stick very closely to the HTTYD movie/TV show lore, I take liberties with the LoZ elements. Please read with an open mind, as if this were a new game.

New chapters on Wednesdays. The whole thing, 30 chapters plus Prologue, is written and will be posted!

Thanks to Ari Lewis ( /), ValiantQueenLu, and Luke for beta reading!