Ok people like I said on DA this chapter is ready WAY ahead of schedule thanks to some avid conversation with Loti-Miko. Now I'll warn you up front that there is some trippin timeline hopping contained in this chapter. Please hold you questions and confused looks until the end. Your reviews are keeping me going so do your job and I'll do mine. Enjoy! Spidermaster out.
Chapter 13
Stoic
The day dawned in glorious radiance. And Stoic the vast was there to watch it. He was up long before the sun. It was only a few minutes he spent on the cliff tops, waiting for the sunrise. And the day now began. The day when his shame would be washed away completely. Hiccup, was a warrior. By looking just beneath the surface, Gobber had uncovered a dragon battling prodigy! He would finally be able to share full conversations with his boy! He could tell him about the weak spot he knew about in a Gronkle's thick skull! So much happiness lay ahead.
"So. Today's the day mmh?" A glance over his shoulder revealed Gobber tottering towards him in that ungainly way of his. Really it was amazing that the old cripple did so well.
"Indeed. Indeed it is." And with a smile playing about his lips, Stoic the Vast turned, and made his way past Gobber, back towards the village.
XXX
Hiccup
It was dark. That was good. Why? Darkness is always good. But is this particular darkness good? What if it wasn't? That was why he hadn't moved. Something might realize he was there. Where was Toothless? Pain. Ahh yes.
Hiccup's eyes opened. No other part of him moved. He was wrapped in the comforting, warm, scaly embrace that only Toothless could produce. From behind him the loud, windy sound of the dragon's breath rushing in and out of his massive lungs. Slowly. Ever so slowly did Toothless breath. The enormous heart was also in evidence, thudding lethargically against his back. That's when the pain hit. The normal pain was still there. The pain he felt pulsing in his veins every day. But it was more intense now in one particular place. His entire abdomen felt as if Gobber had been dancing on it. He felt bruised. Bruised very thoroughly. He also realized that there was nothing separating any part of his skin from Toothless. He felt as though he were wearing clothing made of scale. What had happened last night? Where were his pants? He racked his brain for memories. And then, the memories found him. Far sooner than he was comfortable with.
The entire previous night rushed back to him. Strength. Choice. Flight. Fall. Pain. Pleasure. Ecstasy. Fear. Then the memory shattered. Wrong. It was all wrong. This went against nature. No. It had felt so right. But it wasn't. Was it? He was a human. Humans loved other humans. Dragons loved dragons. And that was that. He had thought that the strange, overly affectionate thoughts buzzing inside his head these past few days, were just some weird phase thing that came from finally having a real friend. But now they had waxed. Grown and become something completely unnatural. But then, was he even really human? Toothless had said so himself, he obviously was something more. He communed mentally with a dragon. He survived a crippling ax blow, almost untouched. He had tripled in strength, in a matter of days, if his roof and rafter exploits were anything to judge by. Maybe, he wasn't human. But if he wasn't human, what was he? He wasn't a dragon. Dragons had wings, and breathed fire. The only thing draconic about him was his scales. And those shared body space with skin. If he wasn't a human, then was it wrong to love Toothless? Was it right to love him even though he wasn't a dragon?
Toothless stirred in his sleep. The wing cocoon twitched. Hiccup gave a slight outward nudge. The wings relaxed slightly and he was spilled out into the bed of ashes. He froze. The steady breathing behind him continued. He slowly exhaled his nosefull of soot. The sun was not up yet. It would probably be another three hours before sunrise. Ahh. There were his pants. Or what used to be his pants. They were completely shredded. He silently got to his feet, and made for the water. Why had Toothless done this? He remembered trying to talk to him. Trying to figure out what was going on. But his friends mind had been like something made of iron. He had not gotten so much as a glimmer of acknowledgment as he tried to batter his way in. Toothless had acted. And now he felt even more different than he already had of late.
The cool morning breeze sent goose flesh rippling over his bare body. All except for two places. One was the line of scales that decorated the space between his right shoulder and his torso. The other was a space in front of his left shoulder. And as he looked down, he stopped dead.
A curved line of red started on the side of his left pectoral, and arced gently upwards, through the center of his chest, and there he lost sight of it. He lifted a hand to trace it. The mark felt exactly the same as the ax wound had when it was still a matter of hours old. Hard. Hard and very warm. It was as if the blood had congealed and thickened into a substance as hard as stone. The mark traveled over his neck, then slightly behind his head before running down his shoulder. The mark was segmented into darker, and lighter halves. Just like teeth. It was a bite mark.
The mark didn't hurt. It didn't even ache. In fact, it felt warm, and slightly tingly. It was almost as if he had been tickled. He finally continued on to the water and slowly stepped in. He had swum here before. He had remembered the water being so much colder. Now it only felt slightly cool. He thought that probably meant he was running a fever, but he was too confused to care about that right now. The water was soothing and he found himself relaxing despite the chaos of his thoughts. He swam farther out towards the center of the lake, and began to float on his back and closed his eyes. He tried not to think about anything. Not the cove. Not himself. Not his new scar. Not the beautiful, perfect, muscular dragon, sleeping on the shore behind him. With that thought his eyes popped open. Did he really have a right to worry about what Toothless had done to him last night, when he was thinking exactly the same kind of thoughts about him? He glanced back towards the dragon. Too far. He was too far. He shouldn't be this far away. Toothless should not be over there without him. He shouldn't be over here without Toothless.
His mind refused to think beyond that. His body began swimming as quickly as it could manage back towards the dragon, before he had even decided to act. He felt better when he stepped up the slope out of the water. It was as if he had let all of his cares, simply float away. What did it matter that Toothless was a dragon? He was HIS. He chuckled quietly. Toothless had been thinking possessively about him for a while now. The big scaly lump had probably seen this coming, and saw fit not to warn him. Oh well. He was HIS Toothless. And he was Toothless' Hiccup. And that was that. He shook the as much of the water from his skin as he could.
Toothless was still on his side. His wings were twitching and compressing against his body. As if trying to touch something that wasn't there. He was also making small whimpering sounds. Hiccup knelt, and reached out a finger to tickle the edge of one wing. Almost at once it swelled outward and opened to reveal Toothless' head, with a troubled look on his adorable sleeping face. Hiccup dropped to one knee, and then rolled sideways. Toothless caught him without even waking and encased him once again in his scaly embrace. The dragon's nose rested in between Hiccup's left shoulder and neck. Right where his new scare was. Feelings of warmth and softness spread out over his entire body from that one point. He felt his body relax utterly, and he pressed his face into the side Toothless'. Then a thought crossed his mind, and he whispered it to the sleeping dragon that surrounded him.
"To the hells with humanity. This is better."
XXX
Stoic
Everything was in place. The sun was shining and the entire village was gathered around the outside of the arena. He had said those few trifling words, and of course declared how proud he was. How could he not be?
Then came a creak. At the far end of the arena, the large wooden doors swung inward and admitted a tiny, well, relatively tiny, figure. Hiccup looked like a blade of grass in a forest surrounded by the enormous confines of the arena. As he walked toward the center of the ring, the crowd erupted in cheers. Stoic felt a smile split his lips. Hiccup seemed to be one of the most popular Vikings in the village! When he reached the center, he stopped and waved a little to the audience. Cheeky little devil he was, Stoic thought with a silent chuckle.
Hiccup lowered his arm and stepped up to the weapons rack, but instead of taking a weapon or even a shield, he removed his belt knife and placed it with the other weapons. Murmurs and whispering erupted in throughout the audience. He then removed the helmet from his head as well, and put it with the other bits of armor. This was going to be interesting.
XXX
Toothless
The waking was slow. Just as it should be. He could feel the difference. He was no longer independent. He could have struck out and lived on his own before if he had really wanted to. Now that was all changed. He felt Hiccup mind, not close to his, but within. The distinctions between their minds, were now harder to find. Rather than two floating independent entities, there was one entity controlling two bodies. Hiccup was sleeping peacefully and dreaming of their mating flight. It had been an excellent fall. The stars themselves had acknowledged their union and shown an otherworldy light down on them as they fell. Then Hiccup's eyes had shifted. He had seen his own eyes in a reflection once before, and Hiccup's eyes had become a perfect copy in a different color.
The boy stirred slightly. He felt damp. Perhaps he had gone for a swim. He could feel the aches and pains shooting through his Hiccup's unconscious mind. And he felt sadness. He had done this. He could have damaged Hiccup! He hadn't been in control. He would never let that happen again. In the future, if they coupled, he would ensure that they were slow and careful. Hiccup would not feel like this again.
Then Hiccup's dreams turned to other things. Namely, his impending battle with the Monstrous Nightmare. Hiccup knew that he could incapacitate the dragon with ease, but he was expected to kill it. And this he refused to do. How could both he, and the dragon escape alive? Then the boy thought of something. If his father was home, he would want the battle to occur today! Probably at mid day! Hiccup jolted into wakefulness.
"Toothless!"
"Shhhh. I know. I know. He have to get back to the village as quickly as possible. You just calm your little self and we will be there in no time. I can feel you aches. Your too sore to fly. So hold still." He unwrapped himself and lunged for Hiccup. He had the middle portion of the boy in his mouth before Hiccup could even utter a cry. His teeth were retracted of course. Then he took an enormous leap over the edge of the cove, and they were running for the village as the sun came into view through the trees.
XXX
Astrid
He was a cocky little beansprout. She gave him that. He stood ready to face a Monstrous Nightmare with no weapons beyond his hands, and no protection beyond his own skin.
"I'm ready!" He said it in a voice that wasn't yelling, but was still heard by all. She couldn't detect a trace of nervousness or fear in it, nor did it shake in the least. He was braver, and dumber than anyone could have imagined. As the locking bar was lifted from the mighty door, Hiccup raised his arms so that his hands were in clear view and wide open. Then the door burst outwards and the Nightmare came running around the ceiling. It was on fire and looked to be in a horrible temper. The pipsqueak was dead for sure.
The Nightmare dropped from the ceiling and landed in front of Hiccup extinguishing the flames of it's skin as it did. Hiccup had not moved an inch since the Nightmare left it's kennel. Now he still stood arms outstretched before the beast. She waited for it to move in for the kill. But it didn't. The Nightmare stood starring at Hiccup and sniffing enthusiastically. What was going on? Why did it just stand there? It had a Viking standing in front of it, yet it remained still.
"Common Hiccup! Give i' to 'm!" The yell, from somewhere in the croud, seemed to make the dragon angry. It lunged for Hiccup. But Hiccup was no longer there. He had rolled backwards on the ground and landed on his feet, and now he was running. The beast leapt after him, but Hiccup changed directions, leaving the dragon to careen into the wall. There was a mighty thud as the stone halted the dragon's progress. A few chuckles rose out of the audience. Hiccup slowed and stopped in the center of the arena, with his back to the Nightmare. The dragon looked somewhat dazed, but still plenty angry, and it began aligning itself for what would probably be a jump at the boy, who's back was still turned. Just before it could leap however, there was a cataclysmic noise.
First there was an explosion on the far side of the ring. Then there was a second explosion that occurred in the space between Hiccup, and the Nightmare. The second explosion tossed a very thick cloud of dust and dirt into the air. The ring was completely obscured. Then the creaking and groaning of the door mechanics could be heard and many small grunts and cries from within the cloud. Finally the dust settled enough so that she could see.
Against the wall to her right, she saw all of the doors to the dragon enclosures standing open, yet there was not a dragon in sight. On the far side of the arena where the first explosion had occurred, she could see a huge gaping hole in the chain walls of the stadium. And down on the ground, in the center of the arena, was Hiccup. Lying on his back, with his face covered in blood.
Ha. She'd known the shrimp didn't have what it took. It should have been her down there. She actually knew what she was doing. Those were her thoughts, until she saw Hiccup jump to his feet, wiping the blood away as if it were no more than an annoyance.
"Well. It looks as though I'm not gonna get to kill a dragon today. Real shame. Well if that's all then I'm gonna go get washed up." And with that, he turned and strolled to the door. Astrid felt her mouth hanging open. He didn't care. He didn't even care that his opponent had somehow escaped! In fact she thought she'd caught a glimpse of a smile! That was the last straw. After he left would be the perfect time to corner him. It was time for some straight answers.
XXX
Hiccup
"Well. That went well."
"Yes yes, it went great. Now hurry up and get back here!" He shouldered his way through the front door of his house. Toothless was bouncing slightly and shifting his weight constantly.
"I know Toothless I know! I feel it too! Just give me a chance to wash this blood off.."
"I could do that."
"Well I still need to look as if I'm active during the day." Toothless gave a snort and started pacing. Hiccup decided to leave the blood for him to take care of. He didn't want to take the time to draw water out of the well. He made straight for the back door as soon as he was in the house. Only to find his way blocked, by a blue clad female Viking, sharpening a knife on a pocket whet stone.
XXX
Toothless
SHE was there! In the room with him! He was running before he even knew what was happening. She was not allowed to be that close to HIS Hiccup! Trees blurred past on either side, one or two branches were snapped off by his passing head. He barely even noticed. Hiccup was taking steps backwards now, trying to retreat towards the steps. Astrid stepped forward and matched his pace. Hiccup turned and bolted, leaping up the steps four at a time with Astrid at his heels. Toothless burst through the treeline and skidded to a stop between Hiccup's house and the one next to it. With one mighty leap and a bit of a squeeze, he was through the window.
He overstepped Hiccup's bed, not wanting to break it. Hiccup came bolting through the door. The boy skidded to a stop against him. He imiediatly pushed his wings forward and pulled Hiccup close to him. It was a good thing the ceiling was so high up in Hiccup's house. Then Astrid came thundering through the door. She slid to a halt. Her eyes bugged, presumably at the sight of Toothless.
Toothless ignored her and began to clean off Hiccup's face. It was a shallow wound but he wished he could have convinced Hiccup otherwise. Surely they would have believed the show without him mutilating himself! Hiccup pulled in a large breath, and then let it out all at once.
"Astrid, what do you want?" The girls mouth opened, and closed again.
"H- Hiccup. Th- That th- thing is li- licking your face."
"Gee really Astrid? I hadn't noticed."
"Wh- Why is it licking your face?" Hiccup sighed again.
"He is cleaning the blood off. He's concerned about my injury."
"H- He?"
"Oh dear it seems I forgot to formally introduce everyone. Astrid, this is Toothless. Toothless, you know who this is. Yup the one who tried to kill me, that's the one. And for some reason, she seems compelled to stalk me as well."
The look on the girl's face was enough to send chuckles shuddering through his body. She seemed thunderstruck, scared, worried, angry, and confused, all on the same face!
"Astrid, me and Toothless have better things to do than to sit here chatting with you. Could you please leave? No, on second thought, don't we were just going anyway. Common bud." Hiccup strode to the window. "You first, your bigger."
Toothless gestured at Astrid with his nose and snarled. "Don't worry bud she can't touch me." "And if she tries to while your outside, then I'll rip her arms off and strangle her with them."
That brought a thrum of pleasure to his throat. He squeezed through the window and dropped to the ground below, quickly moving to place the house between him and the rest of the village. Hiccup turned and looked at Astrid who was still frozen near the door.
"Please don't follow us. How would you like it if I showed up in your bedroom in the middle of the night?" And with that, he too leapt from the window. His landing was as soft and as silent as ever, and in moments he was beside him. Toothless felt a purr escape his throat, and he shoved his head against Hiccup's chest. Hiccup laughed and wrapped his arms around. Then they were running, side by side into the forest.
From her place outside of the back door, Astrid starred after them.
Through the connection, Toothless felt Hiccup's face tingle. It felt as if the skin was writhing around. But when he turned to Hiccup, running beside him, all he saw was the blood in his wound thickening and hardening into a line of crimson.
"That's gonna be difficult to hide."
"Let's cross that bridge when we come to it."
"I wonder why your eyes are normal again."
"Hmm?"
Memories flew between them.
"My eyes did that?"
"They did."
"Well I say we forget all of these stupid worries and enjoy ourselves. We just passed an enormous milestone in our lives after all." He felt an enormous chuckle spasm it's way out of his chest.
"We have indeed Hiccup! We have indeed."
And with that, their two shapes disappeared into the shadows of the forest.
