Saving you
Is not what I regret
She was still holding the saviours body by the waist. Vylma still didn't know who it was but something told her that who ever it was; Vylma knew the person. She didn't open her eyes, because she couldn't. They felt heavy, like she was really tired and was just waiting for sleep to take her. But someone was screaming, so she couldn't sleep. If only she could hear what they were screaming so she would know what to do about it. All she knew that the screaming didn't came from her. Her mouth was closed and it felt like something was blocking it from being opened.
Vylma was cold. So cold that she tried to press the saviours body closer to her, but when she did that, the grip she had on that person's waist slipped and Vylma tried to hold something else. A arm. She felt a arm and took a grip.
The screaming became louder and she felt herself slipping away into darkness. What were they screaming? Lair? Hair?
Air! She needed air! Now!
Vylma kicked her feet. She needed to go up! Up from the water. But the person she held with her hand, was weighing her down. She kicked with her legs with everything she had and then a loud splash was heard and claws were on her shoulders.
Vylma felt herself and that person being lifted out from the water.
Vylma coughed and filled her lungs with air. She didn't open her eyes until she felt sand under her. Sand that stuck to her clothes and hair as she laid on her stomach and coughed and took deep breaths.
She didn't realize she had let that persons arm go when she landed on the beach. Busy with keeping herself alive.
Brie made a rumble and nuzzle in Vylmas wet and sandy hair, trying to comfort her while she tried to breath.
"Thanks." Magnhild said in a hoarse voice. She coughed again and turned so she laid on her back. The sun was almost down, making the sky orange.
She felt a headache coming and she was shaking from the cold ocean water. Her right arm felt tired. Like she had lifted-
Vylma sat up fast and her heart stopped when she saw the person before her; her saviour. The one who had taking an arrow for her. To keep her alive.
"No." she whispered. Her heart beat faster and she felt tears coming.
"No." she whispered again and started crawling towards the body.
"No!" she said again and looked at the person face. A pale, wet face she new all to well.
"NO!" she screamed and started crying.
Vylma shaked her grandmother's shoulders. Wanted to believe she was alive. That she would open her eyes and tell her how stupid she was to face Drago on her own.
"Wake up!" she screamed at Valka's face.
Valka didn't wake up. She was pale. She didn't breath. She didn't move. She was death.
"Grandma, open your eyes!" Vylma cried and held her grandmother's face in her hands. Vylma's eyes went to the arrow sticking out of her grandmothers chest. Right where her heart was.
Valka took the arrow to her heart. Maybe she didn't know and thought it would hit in her stomach or somewhere she wouldn't likely die of right away!
That's when she heard Cloudjumper roar and than fire burning and men screaming. Cloudjumper had killed Drago and the two men. They were burning alive on that cliff where Vylma had been standing on a few minutes ago. Drago was dead. The man that had now killed two Haddocks and destroyed Berk with ice. Drago Bludvist was dead.
Valka's clothes were bloody where the arrow was and blood came smearing out under her clothes. Vylma wanted to take the arrow out of her, but with years of training archey, she knew it would only make it worse.
Cloudjumper flew to to the beach and walked were Valka laid and sniffed her body. Her death body.
"I'm so sorry." Vylma sobbed and Cloudjumper purred sadly and roared into the air.
Vylma cried harder and hugged Valka by the shoulders. Holding her for dear life."I'm sorry. I-I should be dead. Why-why did you…" she buried her face in Valka's shoulder and starting shaking with sobs.
They had won.
The battle was a short but bloody one. Dragos ships laid in the water in hundreds of bits and his men were either dead or taking as prisoners.
The Berkians tended the wounded and checked the few houses that was destroyed.
Hiccup and Toothless flew over the sea towards Berk to celebrate the victory after they had checked the sea if any men was still alive and swimming. and then a roar was heard.
Toothless stopped and looked at the duration the roar was heard, knowing who had roared and he flew off, having a concerned Hiccup on his back as Toothless speeded up. Something terrible has happened.
Hiccup tried to keep up with Toothless and was about to ask him what was happening when Toothless flew down to the beach and Hiccup stopped breathing. Taking in the scene before him.
"No." he whispered and jumped off Toothless without switching his leg from flying mode to walking mode. He just ran over to his crying daughter who held his death mother in her arms.
Vylma screamed when her father pulled her to his chest and tried to turn her head away from the death body with his hand behind her head.
She kicked and told him to let her go, but Hiccup grabbed her tighter and pressed his face into her shoulder, tears streaming down from his eyes.
Vylma stopped kicking and felt pitchless in her father's arms. Pressing her face into his chest by the force of his hand.
Two nadders squake was heard when a tired Magnhild landed on the beach meters from her father, sister and grandmother.
Magnhild barely had time see when her mother came behind her and turned her around so Magnhild couldn't watch the scene that played before them.
Astrid held her weeping daughter in her arms and cried silently with her family.
Stoick couldn't stand it. The silent atmosphere, people crying and the people who just sat silently and looked at nothing.
The Haddock house was just silent with sobs and sniffing.
Vylma sat with two layers of fur blankets and was shaking with cold and grief. Her eyes and nose red from the crying and the cold that had hit her. Luckily she hadn't got a fever, but it likely would come sooner or later. She was silent, staring at nothing while Astrid held her and ran a hand up and down her back, comforting her while also keeping an eye on her three other children.
Finn had been silent and the tears didn't come until he had accepted it. After their parents and sister had come back from the beach and told Berk the news of Valka's death. When the reality had hit him and he had buried his face in his hands and cried in the Haddock hall, by the fire.
Magnhild had run to her room and thrown herself on her bed, curled up in the furs and cried. No one had seen her since and when Astrid had checked on her, Magnhild had falling asleep. Red faced and the pillow wet from the tears.
And his father, Hiccup. Gods, he had tried to help the village with the cleaning from the battle and counted the dead Berkians, which wasn't many but still it was his people. He had come walking in the Haddock house after Gobber told him to go home to his grieving family and let himself grief. Hiccup could tell Gobber was trying to keep himself from falling apart. Gobber who had now lost another friend. A friend he thought was dead for 20 years and now she was really dead. Hiccup had ordered Gobber to go home himself, which made Gobber argue that the village needed someone to take in charge of the mess that the battle had made. The whole old gang had come up in that moment and declared as volunteers as acting leaders. Hiccup had agreed and Gobber had to obey and go home, which the chief did as well.
As soon Hiccup had walked into his house, he locked his eyes with his wife's, who was walking down from the stairs after checking on their youngest. He had walked towards her and Astrid stepped down the last steps of the stairs and welcomed the hug her husband gave her. Hiccup wept into her shoulder and Astrid held him tighter.
That's when Stoick couldn't handle it anymore. He stood up from the chair and walked out from the house. It was dark outside, but he had been on Berk all his life and the forest he was now walking towards, he had been in so many times so he knew where he was going.
Stoick didn't bother waking Egil. The dragon needed his sleep after a day like this, even Stoick needed sleep, but he didn't feel that tired and he wanted to be alone.
He didn't know where he was going, but when he didn't see or hear the village anymore, he found the biggest boulder and sat down behind it. With his back and head against the hard stone, he took a deep breath and let the tears came free.
He knew his grandmother wouldn't live forever, no one would, but that she would be gone so soon was something he hadn't count on. He didn't see a world where his grandmother wasn't there and to change his whole world, his future because she wasn't going to be there anymore, was hard and would be hard to think about.
He wished he had spent more time with her. Talked with her more and went to the nest with her more often, like he did when he was a kid. She often told him that he was the image she had in her head when she thought of Hiccup growing up.
And yes, Stoick did look like his father. The face shape,nose, height, mouth, ears, basically everything expect the blue eye color he had inherited from his mother and Stoick was more muscle build than his father, not like Snotlout (he was still Hiccups kid). Stoick's hair was completely brown, the red had disappeared over the years while Finns' hair had gotten redder. Stoick's hair was in the same hairstyle as his father, but shorter, it didn't reach his shoulders. And his father was growing a beard, Stoick shaved his face clean. He was thinking of shaving the sides of his head and braid the rest of the hair in smaller braids from his hairline to his neck.
Stoick smiled at one memory he had with his grandmother years ago. Back when his hair was so long she put it in a low ponytail. "Just like your grandfather." she had said and laughed at Stoick's angry face. He didn't want his hair in a ponytail and definitely not that long! He had quickly taking it out and told her to cut it. Which she had after asking his parents.
Stoick wiped his cheeks from the tears and sighed. Gods, why did you take her? Why now?
The sound of a twig cracked in two made him stop and turn towards the sound. It was dark, with only the moon and the stars shining to give light. He didn't see anyone and when he was about call out and ask who was there, the voice of a girl was heard.
"I'm sorry, I just thought you'd be cold." Ingrid came from behind the rock, with a candle holder in her right hand, the candle light her face up and in her left arm she held a fur blanket.
Stoick stared at her for a moment before he turned his eyes to the ground and wiped the last few tears away from his cheeks.
"Oh, eh- thanks." he said and looked up to her again. She gave him a small, sad smile and walked to him, handing the blanket to him. Stoick took the blanket and gave a tired smile back.
Ingrid looked at him with hesitation and reached out to give him the candle. "Here, I thought you needed light."
Stoick looked at the candle and then at her and then at the candle again before taking the candle from her hand. "Thanks." he mumbled and placed the candle to his right.
He looked up again and saw Ingrid walking away. "Wait!" he shouted and she turned around, confused by the sudden shout. "You're not going to stay? I-I mean if you want to, I'm not forcing you! I just thought- you know, you went all the way out here to give me a blanket and a candle and now you're just gonna leave…"
Ingrid giggle and was thankful for the dark night that he couldn't see her blush. "I thought you wanted to be alone." The thought of being out here, alone in the woods in the night with Stoick, was just unreal and made her heart beat faster.
Stoick shrugged and felt his cheeks getting hot. "Well, now when you're here, I kinda want some company."
Ingrid sat down beside him and Stoick sniffed from the snot that came with the crying. She open her mouth to say something, but she was unsure how to start and even if she should bring it up. He had red eyes, nose and cheeks from crying and she wouldn't blame him if he started crying hysterically or if he acted angry. But Stoick had different plans.
"How's Leif? And Frida?" he asked.
Ingrid blinked and answers; "Leif is fine, his arm will heal. Leaving a scar, but he'll live. And Frida will also be fine. I actually was on my way back from checking her when I saw you walking into the forest and I followed you - the blanket was for Frida if she needed it for her fever and the candle because I needed to see in the dark." Stoick raised an eyebrow in confusion. Ingrid saw that and continued; "She didn't need it. She already was laying under a mountain of blankets so I brought it back with me."
He nodded and looked away from her. He tried to stop the tears from coming. He cleared his throat and faced her again, wanted to speak about anything else but the death of his grandma.
"And you?" he wondered, "How are you? I know you and Kyria fought most in the air, but I saw you on the ground by the end of the battle."
She shrugged. "I'm okay, tired and have a bruise on my arm, but yeah I didn't fight on the ground that much, Kyria did most of the work. She's tired," she smiled a little. "She fell asleep as soon we were home."
Ingrid's little smile fell when she looked at Stoick. He was fighting with himself. He tried to hold his sadness inside himself. She knew he had cried - she could see that - but he was holding himself back, which broke Ingrid's heart. He was in pain and Ingrid wanted him to grief.
"How are you?" she asked carefully.
Stoick moved uncomfortable and avoided her eyes. "I'm fine."
"No you're not!" Ingrid snapped and turned him so he couldn't avoid her. "You're hurt, Stoick. You are allowed to cry and not hide your sorrow! Your grandmother just died and I won't let you bury yourself-"
"You don't have to remind me!" he said harshly and frowned. "I know she's dead and- and this is why I went out here alone! I don't need anyone right now!" he looked angry at her.
"Then why in the gods name did you tell me to stay?" she argued.
Stoick threw his hands up in frustration. "I don't know!"
Ingrid glared at him and stood up, turned away and didn't even take one step forward until. Stoick regretted what he had said and grabbed her hand, making Ingrid stop and looked down at him.
"I'm sorry, please stay."
Ingrid didn't have time to react when he dragged her down to his lap and he hugged her and cried into her shoulder.
Ingrid sat still, frozen from the sudden move from Stoick. She slowly wrapped her arms around his waist, unsure what to do but felt such warm feeling from him that it felt right to be there in his arms.