Hey, everyone!
With any luck, this chapter will be on time (I'm actually writing this A/N beforehand this time), but I make no promises. The first of these past two, or maybe three weeks was really busy, and I can't guarantee that I won't be a little burnt out by the end of it. Once again, however, excuses are excuses, and I'll do everything in my power to get it out as soon as I can. You have my word. I hope you all enjoy, and be sure to follow this story for updates, and leave a review - I'm really hoping for some critiques here, people. Please! Even the things - particularly the things - that you're not a huge fan of in this story, or you think I could have done differently. I know there must be some thing(s)! Thank you!
All the best,
~RS
I don't own How to Train Your Dragon.
Syl decided that Hiccup would drive her crazy before anything else - be it dragon, human, or otherwise - on that island did.
Lots of questions still ran through her head. What was Bjarke doing on the island? Had Mildew met him before? If so, how long had they known each other? How long had her mother had a mole on Berk? How had Bjarke been able to read the book if it was as fragmented as it was? Was there something in it Hiccup hadn't seen? Why did she even care what was in the book at all? Why had she gone into the house to get it in the first place? Did she need to be back in her element that badly?
So many unanswered thoughts would make the average Viking faint or collapse in shock. They might've confused her, too, at one point. After all, she had lived the last few years of her life more or less carefree, up until the war with the dragons ended. Sure, her life hadn't been perfect, but it wasn't the worst, either, and most problems seemed to find their way around her. And if they didn't, she would find her way around them. The times when the two possibilities had collided… She didn't like to think about.
But she had changed. Or at least, her perception had - in a world with shape-shifting Vikings and dragons, where she could be disowned by her mother and tribe and form an alliance with the enemy in the same day, where brutes from her Village showed up in the most unlikely places to buy magic books… Needless to say, she had learned that many of her questions might go unanswered forever.
But Hiccup… Hiccup, the one person she had almost come to tolerate on that island, who, in all fairness, had always shown kindness to her even when he had no reason to at all…
Hiccup, the incredible Dragon-Conqueror, who had brought down the greatest treasure known to Viking-kind and tamed it…
Hiccup could not stop tapping his foot.
She was going to go insane. She couldn't remember ever seeing him do it before, even in the times when he had devolved into complete, nervous wreck, and couldn't even use what she had learned was his characteristic sarcasm to diffuse the situation.
Why?! Did he have a tune or a great Viking ballad stuck in his head? Something he was too afraid to whistle aloud, or couldn't? It didn't seem like it, as he didn't appear to be forming any kind of melody she knew. It simply remained as nothing more than a solid, rhythmic, Tap… Tap… Tap… Tap…
Sure, she could understand his impatience. They had been waiting in the dark behind Gothi's hut for what felt like hours, the only light and heat seeping through the cracks in the door. His Elder, for whatever reason, refused to let them in, no matter how much Syl yelled at the closed door.
But by then even Toothless seemed to be getting annoyed, if a dragon could even be annoyed. She had never thought a dragon could express or feel anything aside from hate and loathing until then, though what she had seen in her time on that island seemed to suggest otherwise...
"Hiccup," she hissed when she simply couldn't take it anymore. "Stop. Just… Just stop."
"W-what?" He asked, still tapping. "Stop what?"
"Your foot, you- you're tapping it. Could you…?"
Toothless purred in agreement. She shot a stare at the dragon, only for him to look straight back at her. Mashing her teeth together, she ripped her glare away from him. Dragons.
Hiccup looked down at his foot after a moment, still tapping, as though unable to comprehend what she had said. Then, with a shortly muttered, "sorry," he stopped, and the night was silent again. To any others, the lack of sound might have been unnerving, but Syl was only relieved. Hiccup, on the other hand...
"So," he asked her after not even a minute had passed, "About the, uh… The book. What… What do you think is in it? Or… Was in it?"
She sighed. So this was how it was going to be. Small talk had never been her specialty, and she had preferred the silence.
"I don't know," She shrugged. "You said it was a magic book, right? Magic stuff, then, I guess. I'm more interested in what she's doing with it."
"We can trust Gothi," he said. "She asked for this book, and she's wiser than anyone else on this island. She knows what she's doing, whatever it is."
"Oh, I don't care," she shrugged. "I was just curious, really. I can imagine you're worried, though - she's your girlfriend, after all."
"Gothi?"
"No!" She groaned - boys were so stupid, sometimes. "Astrid. Astrid is your girlfriend. Gods, you act like you don't even know her."
She waited for a response. When she didn't get one, she shivered, and turned away, until he spoke up.
"Why did you do this, Syl?"
She looked around after a moment, half-wondering if he was talking to someone else.
"What?" She asked.
"Y'know… This," he lifted his hands up gesturing all around them. "Getting the book. Putting your life at risk to steal it. You say you have no other choice but to stay here - you have nowhere else to go. But… You didn't have to steal the book. Toothless, Astrid and I… We could've taken care of it."
"Yeah, right. Like you, your oversized lizard and mutated girlfriend with anger issues could ever hope to do what I did. You have a metal leg for the gods' sakes."
He smiled. "You still haven't answered my question, and trying to insult me isn't going to help you, here. Remember," - he puffed out his chest - "You're dealing with the king of sarcasm when trying to get out of something."
"Whatever," She rolled her eyes.
He frowned, his chest deflating some. He moved to rub Toothless's ears, before continuing, "I know you don't hate dragons. I think you know it, too. You don't have to be afraid of admitting it."
"I'm not afraid of anything," she snapped, shooting a glance toward Stormfly, who seemed to be napping - did the damned beast ever do anything else? - before looking back at him.
"But you're right."
"Syl, they-" he blinked. "Wait… I am?"
"You are. I don't hate dragons," She started walking to Stormfly, making as though she were about to do the same thing Hiccup was, before swiveling back halfway and marching back to shove an accusing finger in his face.
"I don't hate dragons… Because I'm not allowed to. Not here. Everyone on this gods-forsaken island is so crazy about these stupid dragons. Except me, because I'm not one of you. But, lo and behold, I have to do this stupid, crazy bit where I dress up as the Dragon-Conqueror's girlfriend and say, 'Oh-ho, look at me, I love dragons. Why, I have my own Deadly Nadder! Her name is Stormfly!' You think I want to do that every single day? It's hard for me to tolerate them, at best. You know that, and yet you still act like I have a choice. It's unbelievable."
The light shining through the outline of the door created the only light to see by on the precipice. The fires of Berk glittered far below her, small and fragile enough to be mistaken for the stars in the sky by the distant sailor. Some were lit as she stared down into the village, while many were put out for the night, quenched - it was getting late, after all. Others only flickered, bright, then dark, then bright again.
It was calm, too. There was almost no wind, even as high on the mountain as they were. Probably the most tranquil Berk would be before winter set in - the coming days would be as windy as they were cold. Not only did she know from experience, but from those who whispered in the Village about stockpiling and numbers of farm animals. Those who had already begun to board up their homes and barns, before the first blizzard even came. It would be hard, but she would make it. She was a Viking, and she would survive, no matter where - or who - she was. That was, if Hiccup didn't find a solution in the next few weeks...
A few seconds later, he whispered, defeat in his eyes. "So… That's still your answer, then? That you don't have a… a choice, in all this?"
She sneered. "One way or another, you're not getting a simple 'yes or no' out of me, Hiccup. Give me a question I can answer, first. Besides, even if we weren't here, now, doing this… I doubt you could bring yourself to believe the answer. Don't let the lies you tell yourself about me become real to you. Dreaming hard enough about something doesn't make it happen. Someday you'll learn that the hard way."
He shrugged, glancing back down into the Village. She followed his eyes. Oddly enough, to Syl, the fires seemed brighter than they had been just a moment before.
"I know a few people who would disagree," he remarked.
Her eyes flashed, and she opened her mouth, about to respond, before the door to the hut flew open. Gothi's small, hunched over form was outlined in the doorway. Her staff was in her right hand, she could see - the book in her left. She beckoned them in.
The inside of the house, at the very least, was much warmer than it had been outside. She realized why the outline of the door had provided the only illumination, then - for some reason, Gothi had extinguished every flame, candle, and lamp in the house, except one; the fire pit in the middle. She couldn't imagine why. Maybe it was just for dramatic effect - this old woman did seem to be quite the sensationalist, after all. If she had another mystical tale to tell, she would have to do everything in her power to keep Syl interested.
"Have… Have you found anything in the book? Anything we could use?" Hiccup asked, sounding a bit too eager, in Syl's opinion.
She didn't respond. Instead, the Elder waved her staff in front of them as they approached the fire, forcing them to stop.
"W-what?" Syl said. "But I'm cold!"
She raised her hand up to move the stick, but before she reached it, the gnarled staff went flying into her stomach, making her double over in pain, and fall to her knees.
"Ow!" She cried out. Hiccup looked down at her with a wince of empathy, unsure of what to do.
"What the hell was that for?! I said I was cold!" She rose to her feet, only for Gothi to raise her staff again, threatening another strike.
"Fine, fine," Syl shivered. "Have it your way, crazy woman."
She went to stand next to Hiccup, just outside the reach of her staff. He seemed concerned, too.
"Gods, what is wrong with her?" She whispered.
"Well, nothing," he replied. "She was just, uh… Well, I'm sure she had her reasons."
"Tell me about it…" Syl groaned.
Still clutching her chest, she watched Gothi disappear into another room, then reappear a few seconds later, a couple vials of some sort of new, unknown liquid in her hands. Syl couldn't help but flinch - the last time she had dealt with one of Gothi's concoctions, she had ended up with an entirely new voice. The gods knew what she intended to do with two of them.
Hobbling over to her workstation, she set down one of the vials and picked up the book, which she had laid down on the table before she got the beakers. Then she went back to the fire.
"So, uh," Syl risked. "Is this... Are you going to, um…?"
Gothi held up a hand to silence her. Then, with the speed of a crossbow bolt, she flung the vial down into the pit. There was a rush of smoke, and for a moment, Syl almost thought she saw the fire flare up blue, before fading back to its normal orange-red.
Syl stepped back, wary, but Hiccup kept staring at it, as if in a trance. "Magic…" He whispered, with the awestruck tone of a child who had just seen a Viking Feast for the first time.
Gothi smiled at him, before going back to the table. She picked up the other beaker, then walked back over to them, and opened the book. They walked over to her, close enough to peer down into at it. She handed the book and the potion to Hiccup, then took her staff in both hands.
THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN IN A WAY
SUCH THAT NONE OF THOSE
UNREADY FOR THE SECRETS OF THE ARCANE
WOULD EVER BE ABLE TO READ IT
"'Secrets of the Arcane'?" Syl snorted. "I mean, magic, sure, whoop-de-doo, but… Seriously? What are you, some kind of bard?"
Both Hiccup and Gothi seemed to hear her. "So… Who wrote it? Was it you?"
She shook her head.
NO HICCUP
IT WAS NOT ME
AS TO THE AUTHOR
THAT IS A STORY FOR
ANOTHER DAY
PERHAPS WHEN THIS
IS ALL OVER AND DONE WITH
"If it ever is," Syl muttered. This time, Hiccup turned back to face her, as did Gothi.
"What?" She asked. "It's a valid point, isn't it? You've all been acting like it's a matter of when. Haven't you ever stopped to consider whether it's a matter of if instead? I mean, come on, even if we do have this 'magical book' in our hands, it doesn't have the answer to all of our problems, does it? That is, if you even know how to make it legible again. Have you ever even stopped to consider that this might never work? That you'll never find the answer to this? You're working almost completely in the dark."
Hiccup seemed shocked. Good, she thought. Maybe she had finally talked some sense into him. It was a hard truth, she knew, but he had to learn to accept it.
Gothi frowned. It was she that eventually stepped forward.
LISTEN TO ME, GIRL
YOU MAY WEAR ASTRID'S CLOTHES
YOU MAY LIVE AMONG OUR PEOPLE
FIGHT ALONGSIDE OUR WARRIORS
AND EAT IN OUR HALLS
BUT YOU WILL NEVER BE ONE OF US
BECAUSE ON BERK
WE ARE NOT HEARTLESS
WE ARE NOT COWARDS
WE DO NOT LET OUR DOUBT CONSUME US
LIKE YOUR PEOPLE DO.
"Heartless?" She seethed. "I'll tell you what's heartless, hag. False hope, that's what. You keep telling him that there will be a solution and you will crush him one day. Maybe, just maybe, you will find an answer. Maybe you will turn Astrid human again. But you can't win every battle. Everyone has to die eventually. Pretending you won't will only make it worse when the day comes.
"As to my family, my 'People'… You act like I have some sort of sympathy for them. Let me remind your senile brain that my own mother left me here. They disowned me on this beloved island of yours. Oh, and by the way, don't forget that I got this book for you in the first place. Remember that the next time you call me a coward."
Narrowing her eyes, she raised up her staff again. Head held high, Syl braced herself for the impact, and saw the staff about to fly down, before Hiccup stepped in front of her.
"Wait!" He said. Gothi looked as though she were prepared to hit him for a moment, but hesitated. "Please, Let… Let me talk to her, or at least try to handle this. Just this once."
She puckered her lips, but let him speak. Syl crossed her arms as he turned around to face her.
"Syl…" He sighed. "I… Can I tell you a story?"
She ran her teeth along her lips. "I've heard enough stories lately. But fine, your godliness. Try not to bore me. What is it?"
"It's about a boy," he said, gesturing out the door to where Toothless was trying to get Stormfly's attention by pawing her nose, "And his dragon."
"Oh, no," she rolled her eyes. "I'm not hearing this again. Listened to drunks and old warriors whisper it a thousand times, Hiccup. Same for each one, except for the stuff they make up to impress each other. I'm sick of it."
"Please," he replied. "Just… Just hear me out."
She narrowed her eyes, but remained silent.
"So… A boy. A boy the world had hated his whole life. He did his best to prove himself to his village, but… Everything he did just made it worse. Everything he touched seemed to crumble under his hands! He tried everything he could, tried to talk to his father, but each time he did he… He couldn't get him to listen. The older he grew, the harder it was. He came close to giving up, but… He didn't.
"And then one day, it all finally started to work out. He shot down a Night Fury - the greatest prize a Viking could ever hope to attain. But by that time, nobody believed him anymore. They scoffed at his story when he told them. His own father turned his back on him. They were so... Forceful in their doubt that the boy began to believe them, as well. But still, I- I mean he, went into the forest. And he found it. He found the dragon, still tangled up, exhausted from struggling against its bonds in the early hours of the morning. It would've starved there. It would've died. Any Viking with a shred of common sense would have… Would've considered it a mercy to…"
Out of the corner of her eye, Syl noticed that Toothless had stuck his head in through the door, though Hiccup didn't seem to have noticed. She wondered how much of their conversation he understood. Though he was a dragon, she had to admit that he was obviously of the more intelligent breed. As far as she was concerned, that wasn't a good thing.
Hiccup shook his head. "But he didn't. He didn't do it. Instead, he cut the ropes, set it free. I… He didn't know why. He didn't know what he was doing. But he couldn't just leave it there. He couldn't.
"As soon as it was free, It tackled him, and in that instant, he realized his mistake. It was going to kill him - he could see it in his eyes. And yet… He knew he deserved it. He deserved it because he shot it down. He had failed, and this dragon would not make the same mistake he had. His whole life was just mistake after mistake, and that would be the last one he ever made. But then…"
Syl rolled her eyes. "You stood up to it, I know. Like I've already said a thousand times, I've heard the stories."
He shook his head. "No, I- He was a fishbone. The scrawniest boy on the island. How could he? He was trapped… Nowhere to turn, end of the line… But the dragon let him go."
She frowned. "No… No. You're lying. I know you're lying. He wouldn't. He didn't. That's not what happened at all."
"I wouldn't… I wouldn't lie to you, Syl," He stuttered. "It's the truth. I… I don't know where you got these stories from, but… They're not true. Gods, a few years ago I would've given anything to have all these stories told about me, but now, I… I wish nobody talked about me. I'm not… I'm still not important. It's the dragons that-"
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," she said, flaring her nostrils.
He sighed. "What I'm trying to say is… You're right. It really is a matter of if. But I never said if I shot down a Night Fury when I was building. I said when. I kept trying. And when he tackled me, I didn't think about if he was going to kill me, even though I'd set him free. I thought about when he did. But-"
"But you were wrong," she corrected. "It was if. He didn't kill you, he let you-" Her eyes widened. She had fallen into his trap.
Gods, how had he done that? For someone with as much experience with traps as her… She clenched her fists, and in that instant, she realized why Astrid said she punched him so often. She felt the urge to right then… But she was better than that. She wasn't Astrid. Two could play at this game, and she wasn't about to resort to socking him, as satisfying as it would be. To do so would be to admit that he was right.
But if Hiccup took any pride in his small victory, he didn't seem to show it. "I… I guess it's hard to explain. Maybe if you ever bond with a dragon one day… Really bond, you'll understand. I know you don't like them, or don't think you do, but…" He trailed off.
There was another moment of silence, as Syl tried to think of something to say. Before she could open her mouth, Gothi tapped her staff on the ground, drawing the focus of attention back to her.
WE MUST CONTINUE
WITH THE BOOK
IF I AM CORRECT, HICCUP
YOU DO NOT HAVE MUCH TIME
"Yeah, we…" He sighed, as she led him back over to the fire, away from Syl. "Dad is going to be back tomorrow with Gobber, and he'll probably go look to see if the book is still there, and… Well, it kinda needs to be there. I don't know when he'll be back, either. Evening, at best. At worst… Uh, well it needs to be back. Which means, y'know, no rush."
Gothi nodded and took the book from him. Hiccup shifted as it left his hands.
"T-that, uh… That reminds me, Gothi… Y'know, you never really told me what you expect to find in this book. How it could help us, or anything like that… It would be kind of nice to… I mean, I was just wondering if you would…"
Gothi didn't even look up.
"Right, right," he said. "Mystical magic stuff. Probably not the kind of thing I should be dealing with, anyway. Though, uh, I, or we, don't exactly have that much of a choice…"
Gothi looked back up at him.
THERE IS ALWAYS A CHOICE, HICCUP
ALWAYS
IT IS THE PERSON WHO MAKES THE DECISION
THAT DEFINES THE OUTCOME
NOT THE SITUATION
"Yeah, yeah. Of course," Hiccup nodded, and the Elder plucked the vial out of his hand. Then, with the book poised between the fire and herself, just enough light spilling onto it to see the words, she poured the entire vial over the two pages. Hiccup sucked in his breath and made to start blowing on the pages, before he stopped. Something was happening.
Somehow, the letters in the book were beginning to reform, the remainders of the letters the same dull purple that the liquid in the vial had been. "It's… It's made to go into a specific place?" Hiccup asked. "How?"
NOT ENTIRELY
IT DOESN'T MAKE THE LETTERS
SO MUCH AS IT REVEALS THEM
THE INK AND LETTERS WERE ALWAYS THERE
IT JUST NEEDED THE RIGHT INGREDIENTS
TO SURFACE
IT WILL SPREAD THROUGHOUT
THE ENTIRE BOOK ON ITS OWN,
HOWEVER
"Invisible ink," Hiccup whispered. "Wow, that's… That's incredible…"
Syl might have said the same, if she hadn't still been completely speechless from Hiccup's story. Not that it had any real impact on her, of course, but... How? How had he done that? How had he won?
No… No, she couldn't just let him win. She wouldn't let him get away that easily. She had to do something… Something to strike back against him. But what? He never got angry… Nothing ever got him angry, he just…
Grinding her teeth together, she spotted an extinguished candle on the table. She grabbed it, as well as a metal file sitting next to it. It only took her a few more seconds to find a whetstone, and she struck the file against it next to the candle. Sparks flew, one of which just reached the wick, and the candle burst to life, providing the only other lumination in the room.
Storming back over to the fire, she pushed past Hiccup without thinking, and sneered, "Lemme' see it."
Gothi's eyes widened, and she tried to push her back with her staff, but by the time she did, it was too late. The letters on the book faded as the light was cast over them, and were fragmented again.
Gothi, with strength Syl wouldn't ever have guessed she had, shoved her down onto the floor. Syl bit back a yelp. She wouldn't let this old woman scare her.
FOOL OF A GIRL
YOU ONLY CAUSE TROUBLE
IF YOU WEREN'T HELPING HICCUP
"W-Wait," he said, as though still trying to process what had just happened. "It's… Is it gone? Forever?"
It was then that Syl realized what she had just done. Fear seized her for a moment, until she frowned in confusion. Why was she afraid? She didn't care what happened to Astrid, or that devil-spawn Night Fury. On the other hand, she had put a lot on the line trying to get that book…
NO
THANK THE GODS
WE WILL SEE THE PAGES AGAIN,
THOUGH IT WILL TAKE TIME
"T-time? How much time?" He asked. Syl heard Toothless purr at the doorway.
A FEW HOURS, AT LEAST
ENOUGH TIME FOR THE PAGES TO DRY
IN THE WRONG LIGHT, THE INK WILL NOT WORK
IF WE WERE TO TRY IT AGAIN NOW
THE PAGES WOULD BE SOAKED
AND THE BOOK WOULD TRULY BE RUINED
"So… We just have to wait?" Hiccup said.
YES
WAIT
AND PRAY THAT YOUR FATHER
IS LATE IN HIS ARRIVAL
YOU CAN THANK THIS GIRL FOR THAT
Syl opened her mouth, and Hiccup heard the faintest noise come up from her throat, until it turned into a grumble, and she whipped around, flying back out the door. Toothless only just had time to step aside.
"Syl, w-wait," Hiccup called after her. "It's not… I'm sorry that you… I, uh…" But without turning back, she had already mounted Stormfly and was soaring down into the dark village below.
"Uh… Alright," he yelled out the empty doorway a moment later. "I guess I'll just, y'know, catch up with you tomorrow! Maybe we can complain more about our parents and stuff, then! Remember that? That was fun, right, Sy-"
He was interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. He turned back to the Elder with a heavy sigh.
"Gothi, I… I don't know what to do. She's helping us, but… She won't tell me why. She says that she has no choice, but you and I know that's not true. She can leave whenever she wants. I thought maybe she wanted to give us a chance, but-"
With a shake of her head, she cut him off again and started to guide him back out the door.
SOMEDAY, HICCUP
YOU WILL HAVE TO MAKE A CHOICE
WHEN THAT DAY COMES
MAY YOUR DECISION
BE WITH THE WISDOM OF A CHIEF
AND THE GUIDANCE OF THE GODS
"W-wait… What? A decision? You mean between her and-"
COME BACK TO SEE ME IN THE MORNING
With nothing else to say, she pushed him outside, closing the door softly behind him.
He shivered and walked over to Toothless, who was obviously still distraught over Stormfly's sudden departure. He cooed as Hiccup rubbed his ears and chin.
"I've said it before, and I'll say it again," Hiccup grumbled. "I'll never understand girls."
Toothless cooed again, leading the boy to smile."Come on, bud. Let's get home. It's been a long day, though it's not like that's anything new…"
He climbed on his back, set his metallic foot into the tailfin switch, clicked it back, and they lifted off, bound for the twinkling lights of Berk hundreds of feet below.
The house was cold that night. It was winter, after all - it was always cold in winter. But even then, the house felt colder than usual. Syl had already looked around everywhere for mommy, but she couldn't find her anywhere. She must have known something bad was going to happen that night. But if she did, why didn't she take she and big brother with her? And where did she go?
Her brother was downstairs sitting at the table. Perched at the top of the steps going up to her loft, she could just see him. He was reading a book, and she thought he looked really tired, but she wasn't sure why. He had started dragon training a few weeks ago, she remembered - maybe that was it.
The dying embers of the fire illuminated his sword in its sheath, leaning against the table next to him. He had made it himself, and let her help him make the pommel and hilt. She knew why that was there, and it had nothing to do with dragon training. Not yet, anyway.
All of a sudden, the front door burst open, letting snow rush in through the door, around the hunched over figure of a fat, drunken man. Syl shivered as the cold wind reached the top of the stairs, and she moved up a step, further into the darkness of the loft.
"Get meh… Somethin' to drink, boy…" He slurred. Still, her brother stared down at his book, though Syl thought she saw his fist tighten.
Her father narrowed his eyes.
"I said," he shouted. "Get me somethin' to drink!"
His axe came flying down into the table, cleaving her brother's book in two with what Syl knew by then was expert precision. Still, he had only missed his son's face by a few inches. Syl winced as the wood chipped, and went flying all over the floor, some going up into her brother's face. She thought she saw drops of blood on his cheek.
Nonetheless, he got up, stiff as a bowstring, and disappeared into the kitchen. A few seconds later, he returned, a mug of ale clenched in his fist. Her father sat down in the chair he had been in his chair, and glanced around, snatching the ale out of his hand without looking.
"Where's yer sister?" He asked.
Her brother didn't respond.
"Did ye' not hear me, boy?" He said. "Did yer ears go deaf while I was away? Where is your sister?"
Her brother mumbled something.
"What did you just say to me?" Her father asked, baring his teeth.
"I said," her brother responded. "You will not touch her."
Her father stood up, pushing the chair over behind him. Her brother stepped out of the way without so much as a flinch.
"She's my daughter," He said, shoving a dirty finger in his face. "And you're my son. This is my house. I get to see her whenever I damn well please."
"Oh, see her? That's all you want? Don't think I didn't see those bruises on her neck, yesterday. You should be ashamed to even call yourself her father."
"I'm ashamed to call you my son," he sneered. "And I want to see my daughter. I will see my daughter. Now… Where is she?"
"I don't know," he hissed, through clenched teeth. She swallowed back a sob. He couldn't hear her. That's what her brother had told her. She couldn't just let him stay down there… But what else could she do?
"Don't lie to me, boy," He said, forcing him back into a corner.
"I told you," Syl noticed his eyes flit from her father, over to his sword, still leaning against the table, then back up to him. "I don't know."
With a growl, her father grabbed a long strip of leather that was lying on a table, before reeling back on him.
"You're going to regret this, boy."
He raised the leather above his head, and brought it down. Syl backed up, into the shadows, and only just held back a scream. There was a crack like thunder shaking the earth…
And for the third night in a row, Syl woke up in a cold sweat.
She winced as her heart began to slow down. She was already starting to get used to the nightmares, but that didn't make them any easier. In, fact, they seemed to be getting worse each night, each one darker and more fear-inducing than the last. She could only wonder how bad they would get and hope that this would be the last, though she knew it wouldn't.
Tearing off the covers, she began to peel away her sleeping garments - they were pasted against her body, drenched in sweat. The cold air on her bare skin as they came off was refreshing, but cold, and so she pulled on the lighter clothes she had left on Astrid's dresser as quickly as she could. She had hoped she wouldn't need them again that night, but… Well, at least she was prepared.
Once she was dressed, she started heading toward the door, having to feel for it along the wall, as the moonlight didn't reach that far. Once her fingers brushed along the edge of the door, she started to pull it back… Until she made the mistake of glancing at the desk next to her dresser.
There was some leather, charcoal and a few other things she knew were there but couldn't see on it, as well as a book propped up underneath, with enough dust to make Syl wonder when the last time Astrid had opened it was. It was the only thing there she hadn't gotten herself. Lucky for her, as she wasn't sure where she could manage to steal a book from, anyway. Getting one for Hiccup was hard enough…
She sighed. She had been meaning to work on that arts and crafts project for the past day or two, and since she had plenty of time then, anyway…
"Ah, damn it," she cursed, sitting down at the table. "Well, it's not like I'm getting any more sleep tonight, anyway."
Hiccup's eyes shot open as he heard a coo from behind him. Had he been found out? Toothless had been sleeping for the past few hours - he had watched him fall asleep. Surely he didn't know that he was…
There was another coo, more frantic this time. Hiccup climbed out of bed, doing his best to pretend that he had just been woken up. In truth, he was quite tired.
"Ugh… What is it, bud?" He groaned."I'm trying to sleep. Gods, why did I have to bond with the dragon that's almost completely nocturnal? Just leave it to, me, your everyday Hiccup."
He threw on his coat, finding the room to be oddly cold, even by Berk standards. As soon as he looked up, he saw why - the large hatch that let Toothless fly in and out of the loft was wide open, letting the cool night air flow freely into the room. That was odd - he could've sworn that he closed it before they went to bed.
On top of that, the dragon in question seemed to be glancing back and forth between him and it, leading him to wonder if Toothless had opened it, but couldn't close it, for some reason. He had been working on a design for a pressure pad the dragon could use to get in and out as he pleased, but had never gotten around to building it. At the moment, it was controlled simply by two levers on either side. Toothless had probably just broken one of them.
He sighed, walking over to the massive door. He didn't feel like staying up all night trying to fix it. Then again, the night was especially cold, and he didn't feel like tossing and turning under the covers until morning came and they found him frozen to death in his bed. He could always huddle up against Toothless, but he got cramps whenever he did that and felt sore for the rest of the day, warm as he was.
He could just force it closed for the night if that was the case. It wasn't his preferred choice, but since it appeared to be the only one he had. Yet, as he looked down at the lever, he was only more confused. The door appeared to be fine. The only other way it could have been opened was if-
"Hey."
Hiccup let out a less-than-Viking-like yelp. It was then that he realized what Toothless was so worried about, and why the door was open.
"Thor's Hammer, Syl," he said to the girl lying back against the sloped roofing of his house. "You scared the hell out of me!"
She rolled her eyes. "Well, I might've come in if your stupid dragon hadn't kept… Staring at me. You two are so weird."
"This coming from the girl who tried to sneak into my room in the middle of the night…" He mumbled.
Syl didn't seem to hear him, only crossing her hands behind her head.
"So, uh," Hiccup decided to address the obvious, though this girl somehow made it uncomfortable to do so. "What are you doing here?"
Still, Syl stared out over the darkened houses of Berk, unresponsive.
"Alright then, great," Hiccup said. "Silent treatment for no apparent reason. Not that it's my first time on the receiving end, though it would be nice-"
"I didn't answer your question," she interrupted, turning her head to look at him.
"I… You, uh," he stuttered. "What?"
"You asked me a question," she shrugged. "I didn't give you an answer. Felt kinda bad about it. Actually, On second thought, no. I didn't feel bad. Without closure is more like it. Anyway, the point is, I'm usually pretty straightforward about this stuff, and…"
Her voice trailed off, as she turned her gaze back up to the stars.
"So, you," he swallowed. "You have an answer, then?"
"Maybe I do... Maybe I don't," she sighed. "Never that easy, is it? Anyway, I was out doing a little something, and I felt like stopping by. Hey, I've got a question for you, actually."
He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? What's that?"
She clicked her tongue, then gave another deep sigh.
"Do you love Astrid?"
Though he tried to hold back his shock, his mouth still fell open. Then he remembered how blunt this girl seemed to be about everything, and realized - if he wanted a straight answer out of her, he would have to start giving her some, as well. Maybe this was some sort of test…
"Yes," he nodded his head slowly. "Yes, I love her. If this is what love feels like… Which I'm pretty sure it is. I… I'd do anything for her. Anything."
She narrowed her eyes. "So if you love her so much, why do you get so anxious when I call her your girlfriend? Wouldn't you want that? If you don't already have that. I still haven't quite figured out this whole… Situation, between you two."
He shook his head.
"No, I don't want… That. To be called her… Her boyfriend. It feels weird. A lot weirder than telling people my best friend is a fire-breathing reptile, to be honest. She doesn't… She doesn't deserve someone like me. She's so strong, and beautiful, and smart. She's everything a Viking should be, and I'm…" He gestured to himself. "This. Hiccup. That's all. Just some walking, talking, sack-of-bones screw-up that works in the blacksmith struggling to lift a sword every day."
"You've got a Night Fury," She pointed out.
He smiled, glancing back in the room, at Toothless. "Yeah, I guess I do. Though I think he has me more than I have him. You should see him when he sets his mind to something. Besides… Having a dragon doesn't make me a better person, or even a different one, for that matter. I'm still just… Hiccup."
"Well," she replied, "For the record, a Hiccup isn't the worst thing you can be. Trust me… I know."
A gust of wind blew into his room. Syl's loose, blonde hair flew in front of her eyes, though she didn't seem to mind. A chill went through his bones, and he bit his lip.
"So…" He said. "You couldn't sleep, either?"
She shrugged. "More like didn't want to. Just feeling a bit… Restless. Came out here to get my mind off of things, along with a little something else. Did I wake you up? I might've gotten in if your dragon hadn't heard me and made a big fuss over it."
"I'm glad you didn't," he mumbled. "Might've thought I'd seen Astrid's ghost or something."
Syl snorted. "So she's already dead to you, huh?"
"W-What? No," his eyes widened. "No, I just meant-"
He stopped. Syl was laughing.
"Ha-ha, very funny," He slumped down onto the floor with a groan. "And if you're that curious, Toothless was the one who… who…"
He glanced back at the Night Fury, who appeared to be fast asleep already.
"Alright, to be honest… I was already awake," he gave out a long sigh and sat back up. The truth had to come out sometime, and if it was going to help get an answer out of her... "I haven't really gotten much sleep lately, either. I've been, uh, keeping an eye on Toothless. His attacks seem to be coming more often than usual, though I could be wrong about that. I hope so."
Syl frowned. "So these 'attacks' - does he have them when he's asleep? Is that why you've been staying up?"
"No," he shook his head. "Not yet, anyway. But if he did, and I didn't know… He shouldn't have to go through that alone. Nobody should. Really, he shouldn't have to go through… Whatever that is at all."
"Wow…" Syl began, "That… That really sucks for-" she stopped, and Hiccup's eyes widened as he realized what she was about to say. Unfortunately, she noticed, and punched him in the arm.
"Ow!" He cried. "What was that for?"
She narrowed her eyes. "You know what that was for. Stop trying to… To trick me with this stuff."
"Trick you?" He asked. "I'm not tricking you into anything! What did I do wrong?"
She didn't respond.
Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Aren't… Aren't you cold? You do realize it's cold out, right? Gods, you're not even wearing a coat."
She sneered, "I don't get cold.
"Oh, I get it," Hiccup smirked. "You must have dragon's blood in you, like the old legends say-"
She punched him again.
"Don't joke about stuff like that. It's not funny," She frowned.
"Syl," he said. She looked at him. She was already aware of what was coming, he knew - though she hadn't punched him again, nor ran away. He took that as a good sign.
Taking a deep breath, he said, "You… You don't have to give me an answer tonight, you know. But I was just, uh, wondering, since you were the one that came here and all…"
He winced, cursing his namesake internally. Gods, why did he have to screw this up, of all things? It was a simple, yes or no question! Of course, he had to go and-
"I…" Her voice was so faint he had nearly missed it. Had her voice just cracked?
She took a deep breath of her own, then blew it out. "I… Could get used to dragons, maybe. I could. At least for right now. Hell, I'm already riding one. I've, uh, 'trained' it, like you said. Bonded with it, or whatever. To be honest, I don't feel like I've bonded with anything. Maybe if I… If I changed, then I would know what that was like. To have a friend that's a whole different creature."
Hiccup nodded, letting a sad smile creep back onto his face. "It's true, it's so… Strange, but cool, too. Toothless and I? We can work together, as one. That's how close we are. You don't have to change, Syl. You don't have to become a different person. You just have to find the right… Syl?"
She hadn't seemed to have heard him. Hiccup thought he saw tears running down her cheeks, though with nothing but the light of the moon to illuminate them, it was hard to tell.
"I want to, Hiccup. I want to know what it's like. To have a friend, to have someone I can… put my trust in, again. I've forgotten what it feels like to… It's been a really, really long time."
Then, the shred of empathy in her eyes vanished, and her voice hardened again. Hiccup's heart fell.
"But these… These dragons… These beasts, demons... They took something away from me that I'll never get back. I can never forgive them for that. Never."
She stood up. "That's your answer, Hiccup. I hope you're happy."
"Syl," Hiccup called after her, as she slid down to the ground. "Syl, wait!"
But it was too late. She was already gone, and the night grew silent once again.