"Modern myth".
How to train your dragon, Toothcup.
By: Sinattea.
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Disclaimer: Cressida Cowell owns the book series, Dreamworks owns the movies. I own nothing but this AU.
Note: IT LIVES! ! ! !
Yes, I'm alive; yes, I'm finally in a university I like (might actually stay there =D); yes, I went through a Massive Writer's Block from Hell (MASSIVE); yes, I spent some time studying abroad because I got a scholarship. Basically the reasons why I didn't get down to writing this (particularly the Massive Writer's Block from Hell it's all to blame). But I'm already working on chapter 32. Isn't that won-der-ful? ?
I'm not making you wait anymore.
Just a warning, I'm going a little Snaketongue in this chapter, you know what that means. Watch out.
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Read, read, READ! ! ! !
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Chapter 30: Fear.
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- Nothing is true, everything is permiiitteeeeed! ! – yelled Fishlegs before dropping Ezio Auditore off a castle roof, despite Hiccup's warnings that he wouldn't make it.
- You died. My turn – quickly Hiccup stole the control from his friend's hands, and pushed him off the couch in front of the tv.
- I was so sure I was gonna make it. Well, I guess I'll have to settle with eating and watching you play – Fishlegs mumbled absolutely resigned, taking a seat next to the french fries and the pepperoni pizza.
- I knew it! You never let Ezio die like this unless there is pizza on the way.
Giggling while trying to look innocent, Fishlegs waited for a whole minute before attacking the food.
- Why Toothless didn't come? – he asked after the first three bites - He loves Assassin's Creed. Lots.
- He's dressing as an Assassin for the next Halloween – replied Hiccup in confirmation, looking oddly pleased with the idea, as if it had been his own -. But today he decided to do that team project so he gets free time on the weekend.
- Right… – Fishlegs remembered, a note of depression taking over - the history project… I should see if Stonefeet is free tomorrow, I want my weekend too. You already did it, didn't you?
- Yeah, it wasn't that complicated though. Damn! More guards! Where is that bloody wanted poster? – the freckled boy struggled with his virtual enemies, cursing and swearing as you only do when you're gaming - And what about Aura, is she coming?
- In about an hour. Just in time for Halo – nodded Fishlegs, happily.
- We should call Snotlout, then. We're one player short for the real fun and he does love the whole "team up and kill everyone else" kind of game.
- Cool. I'll call him. You go get the Borgias – Fishlegs decided, and more food disappeared inside his mouth.
- Hey! – Hiccup lost his focus on the game - Leave me some pizza, I paid half of it!
His complaints almost cost him Ezio's life, lucky Hiccup he regained composure on time to make it out of the virtual struggle alive.
Later, Aura and Snotlout arrived at Fishlegs' house and joined the fun; although in the end it was basically just the three of them playing because Hiccup had gotten too busy texting Toothless nonstop for the rest of the evening.
They've been doing that a lot ever since the three-words had been spoken.
And maybe they've been doing that a little too much, because at some point some of their friends (the girls, being quite specific) felt like they were forgetting that there were other people on the world besides each other, and none of them liked being ignored. So, in order to keep their friendship healthy (and let's be honest, spending some time apart would also be very healthy for their romantic relationship if they were going for the long term), Astrid started planning a lot of fun activities for everyone to join in.
- Guys, I had the greatest idea. What are your plans on saturday?
- Not much – said the twins.
- Going to the gym – said Snotlout.
- What's your idea? – prompted Hiccup.
He and Toothless had already noticed that the others were beginning to feel a little bit uncomfortable for the amount of time they were not spending with the gang. Well, maybe if the others knew that Hiccup and Toothless only spent half their time being boyfriends and the other half being best friends flying together in the woods, they wouldn't be as unconsciously resented about it, but they didn't know, and it wasn't like Hiccup or Toothless would ever confess about it.
So they put both feet back on earth and tried to get more involved in the gang's agenda.
- I was thinking it'd be awesome if we all go to the forest viewpoint and have a picnic – said Astrid with an enthusiastic smile.
- A picnic? With this weather? – Snotlout was skeptical.
- Oh, come on, it's Berk! It's always raining. But we won't let a bit of water stop us, right Snotlout? – she raised an eyebrow in a mocking gesture.
- Or are you afraid of storms and would rather stay home? – teased Ruffnut in support of her best friend.
- Fine! Let's do your frigging picnic – he groaned, crossing his arms with dignity.
- Hey, watch that mouth – complained Aura, mockingly.
- What? Next to Snaketongue in chemistry class, I'm frigging Nun Teresa – the quarterback defended.
- Nun? – sniggered Ruffnut. Tuffnut literally fell off and rolled on the floor laughing before the comment.
- Oh, shut up, you know what I mean – the guy sulked in.
Astrid rolled her eyes in amusement and then proceeded to confirm if Hiccup or Toothless, or both, were interested in the picnic, which they obviously were since they both loved the forest.
- Great, then we're driving to the parking space in km 57, and we'll walk from there.
- Walk? – mumbled Fishlegs, kinda worried.
- Don't worry, if you get tired Snotlout will carry you. That should be like his gym session.
Everyone laughed but Snotlout, who couldn't do anything but sigh in resignation every time people had fun at his expense. Now that was no longer a Viking bully there wasn't much he could do about it. Why couldn't his friends just appreciate the sheer beauty of his perfect biceps? Maybe he should start wearing short sleeves more often. Sure Astrid had to find that impressive, or Ruffnut.
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Fortunately, the weather promised to be merciful that weekend, and by the time they were all trying to get the best spot on Astrid's pickup ("I don't care what you say, Snotlout, is my car and I'm driving!") the rain was so calm it merely felt like a humid breeze.
They drove through the forest road, the girls inside and the boys on the back of the pickup, dealing with the cold air (not that Toothless felt any, or Hiccup next to him). They parked on the edge of the woods, and started walking uphill towards the viewpoint's clearing, Astrid keeping an eye on those who carried the lunch baskets to prevent them from eating everything on their own. Still, the twins with their fast hands managed to steal a cookie unnoticed, unlike Snotlout, who received a harsh slap on the back of his hand, like a little kid. "Man, get a hold of your stomach!" exclaimed Astrid as she hit him. Ruffnut, if only not to hear his whining, handed half her cookie to the quarterback out of mercy.
Despite the windy, cloudy weather (typical of Berk, really), the picnic proved to be a great idea, and everyone had a lot of fun. They played basket-grape in pairs and the winners were the twins since it was obvious they hadn't done anything but throwing stuff at each other's faces for a lifetime. Second place were, surprisingly, Fishlegs and Aura, defeating Hiccup and Toothless for barely three grapes. Snotlout and Astrid, despite their efforts, couldn't make their team work. Then they played with the deck of cards, and Aura and Hiccup (more she than him) humiliated everyone. There was joking and storytelling sessions, usual complains about school and a bit of teasing for the romantic couples (no one had ever seen Fishlegs' face go that red, not even in PE class).
Finally, Snotlout, anxious to get some work out, invited everyone for a race through the woods. The twins immediately accepted.
- Great, who else is coming?
- Not me, thanks – Aura said quickly -. Me and the mud ain't good friends.
- Today I'm more in the mood for a walk – Astrid turned the proposal down.
- I guess it's just us – exclaimed the twins -. Bet I'll reach those trees before you! – added Ruffnut as she started racing. Tuffnut caught up immediately, pushed her down, and outran her as he laughed wickedly -. You're so dead belchin' worm! !
- I'll make sure they don't kill each other… After I got them biting my dust! – and Snotlout sprinted after them, and soon enough passed them, laughing.
- Looks like they're gonna have fun. Let's have fun of our own, guys – Astrid stood up and helped Fishlegs do the same -. Just a walk, some sightseeing, nothing crazy. Sure you don't want to come Aura?
- Absolutely. You go, enjoy yourselves, I'll stay here guarding what's left of our picnic, make sure the wind doesn't steal the umbrella – replied the girl with a smile.
In the end, they all agreed to do that, heading in the opposite direction the twins and Snotlout had headed, just to make sure things would remain peaceful.
As they wandered off down the woods, following forgotten paths, Fishlegs and Hiccup showed off their vast knowledge about flora and fauna, finishing each other's sentences as if they were reading the same book aloud, which they probably had during their childhood. All along Toothless couldn't help but smile to himself goofily, secretly proud of how smart his boyfriend was.
As minutes ticked by, however, the black-haired guy's smile gradually wore off, and his mood strangely began to mimic that of the weather around him. Astrid tried to figure out what was wrong, but Toothless just shook his head and looked somewhere else every time she asked him.
She and Hiccup exchanged baffled looks, shrugging since any of them could come up with a response.
- Let's reach the stream and that's it – murmured the girl.
- You go, guys, I need a break – Toothless excused, its lame nature earning him a glare from his friends. Come on, he'd be the last of them to ever complain about tiredness; everybody knew that.
- How about you two reach the stream and we wait for you right here? – suggested Hiccup, explaining without words that in the meantime he'd fix this sudden gloomy mood of Toothless'.
Astrid and Fishlegs turned around and went on. As soon as they were out of sight, to Hiccup's surprise, Toothless jumped on a branch and climbed up the tree, inhaling deeply.
- What's all this? What's wrong? – he asked, a sense of urgency settling in his voice out of the blue. Toothless ignored him for a while, still busy with his senses. He didn't speak to Hiccup until he got down of the tree, his pupils as dilated as they were in his dragon form.
- There's not one single dragon around. They're all gone – Toothless declared, his voice dreadfully monotone.
Hiccup looked around, trying to catch with his human eyes a glimpse of what was troubling the other boy so much.
- Well, that's because we're here, right? Our presence scares them off…
- No, that's not it – Toothless shook his head vehemently, taking a hand to his forehead and pressing his fingers against it -. In that case they'd be hiding, nowhere to be seen; but they're nowhere at all. Something indeed scared them off… It wasn't us, though.
Ok, now Hiccup understood perfectly what the somber attitude of the last minutes was all about. He started feeling anxious as well, but he couldn't let paranoia take over. That was Evelyn's job; his was to stay by Toothless' side and stay calm.
- Are you sure it wasn't you? I mean, a Night Fury is not common at all and- - -
- No, it's not me – Toothless raised his voice a little bit, to emphasize his words -. Maybe we hadn't walked this way before, but we've flown over it hundreds of times. All the dragons in this area are already used to my presence. I'm telling you something bad is going on, I can sense it.
The way he moved his hands, so tense and fiercely, the way his eyes seemed to look at everything and anything at the same time. He was worried for real. Hiccup gulped.
- Hunters? ? – he had some trouble to have himself pronouncing the words. Instinctively, he approached Toothless and awkwardly held to his arm, as if only that way he could make sure his dragon-boy wasn't going to be taken anywhere.
- I'm not sure… – Toothless panted, finding the same difficulty to speak in his own mouth - We should go back.
- Let me get the others. I'll tell them you're feeling sick and we should hurry.
Soon enough they were all heading back to the viewpoint's clearing, having found the twins and Snotlout first, who were also in a hurry since the tough competition running downhill had gone out of hand and Ruffnut got her knee hurt, requiring Snotlout to carry her, much to her utter discomfort.
Of course, she didn't have time to complain after noticing Toothless' incredibly dark, stressed behavior. They all continued in absolute silence, as if they were walking amongst tombs instead of trees.
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Suspicion got completely justified when Aura ran towards them as soon as they were close enough to the viewpoint and their abandoned picnic. She was sweating, and obviously scared, with mud on her knees and hands as the evidence of the many times she'd stumbled on her way there, and she kept screaming "Let's get out of here!".
- What happened? ? – somehow Fishlegs managed to find some strength left in his exhausted body and hurried to the aid of the girl, who could barely stand on her own.
- We gotta get… out of here! – she repeated, still struggling with her breath - I was… I was watching the picnic… reading a book… everything normal… But then… but then he showed up… He's twice as big as I remember! And thrice as mean! Let's get out of here!
- What the hell are you talking about? – interfered Astrid, voicing the confused thoughts of everybody there - Who? ?
Aura inhaled deeply, only to fixedly look at Toothless, pale and nervous, before speaking. As she did, it was obvious that she was exclusively talking to him and only him.
- Green Death – she muttered, fearful.
- Whaaat? ? ! ! – they all moaned in response, except for Toothless, whose face had turned into a mask of threat: anger, surprise and survival fear all mixed together.
- Go to the car – he gritted automatically, clenching his fists -. I'll catch up later.
- You're not thinking of going and face him alone, are you? – wondered Snotlout, putting Ruffnut on her feet and helping her stand, since she'd been insisting.
- It's me he wants.
- No way, genius – groaned the twins in unison.
- Go to the car – he commanded, his voice cold as stone.
Hiccup simply stood there as a spectator, the shock disabling him of formulating a single thought.
- No, we're going with you. Together we can handle him – insisted Astrid.
- Dude, I'm the quarterback, I bet now I can totally own him.
- No, you can't. Go to the car.
- Listen to Toothless, let's go. You too – Aura said to the black-haired boy -. He looked so… angry, and terrifying.
- All the more of a reason to face him – maintained Astrid, clearly she was taking this chance very personal. Green Death had bullied her as much, in different ways, though -. It's time to prove him we're not afraid. We can't let him scare us anymore!
- He already did… – mumbled Toothless in such a voice only Hiccup could listen. Those were the words that finally woke the Haddock boy out of his shock.
- Are you sure? – he mouthed back to Toothless, in a conversation he others didn't realize was taking place. Toothless nodded with his eyes.
- Let's just go all together and tell him we're calling the police if he tries anything – Astrid proceeded.
- I concur with that – said Fishlegs.
- Yeah, me too – added Tuffnut -. Whatever concur means.
- You're not making them change their minds – whispered Hiccup to Toothless, somewhat hopeless -. Let's do that, then you'll figure out what to do.
- I'd rather go alone, but I guess you're all giving me no choice – Toothless finally gave in, only because Hiccup had told him to. Besides, if Green Death was at large again, Toothless wanted to keep Hiccup as close as possible.
- Of course not, we're friends! ! – they all exclaimed in unison, Hiccup included.
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He stood like a giant on the far end of the viewpoint, where the forest leaped down to a cliff of considerable height; he didn't seem afraid of the height, or of them.
He was smoking, but turned the cigarette off by pressing it against his own arm in the moment he saw the gang coming. The only one to notice how that didn't seem to hurt him was Toothless.
When Aura said he was twice as big, she wasn't exaggerating at all. There was something massive about him; his muscles were so big he didn't even look real. He had the looks of something pulled straight out of a nightmare (one of Toothless', to be precise). The fact that his raging eyes were hidden behind a set of black sunglasses made it worse.
Toothless' throat turned into a knot.
- Surprise, losers – he grinned, stretching his arms wide to the sides, making himself look bigger, as animals do when they're about to fight.
The gang retreated a step (pulling Toothless back with them), finding it very hard to use their voices. They weren't just facing the bully of their lives; he was the leader they followed out of fear, the guy who haunted their infancy nightmares. He was, in many ways, the physical representation of those inner fears they'd carried along since childhood.
- We're calling the polic- - -
- Shut up bitches, this is men's business – Green Death snapped, murderously.
- Don't call my sister- - -! !
- You, fucking traitors, stay out of this – he gritted, clenching his massive fists with such strength his veins popped on his arms -. You're way out of this league. And you, quarterback… – he dedicated a meaningful look to Snotlout that froze the boy to his bones. It was a look that carried the knowledge of all those years he'd spent playing his puppet. Green Death knew Snotlout couldn't fight him; he'd seen what the boy was capable of, and he was telling him with one sardonic look that it wouldn't be enough.
Then he looked at each and every Viking the same way, reminding them of the terrible truth. Seconds later he moved on to the nerds, his venomous smile bringing all those painful memories back in a heartbeat. The only one who held his glare with dignity, even courage, was the scrawny brown-haired kid. That infuriated Green Death.
- It's him I want! – he pointed Toothless with his finger, snarling like a raging bull -You're no challenge; I could throw each and every one of you down this cliff…
- You threaten my friends, you mess with me! ! – shouted Toothless, stepping forward, his voice sinking in the ocean of rage Green Death had brought with him.
Secretly, Toothless hoped his friends were afraid enough to go away as he'd told them to. They had to realize this was something they couldn't handle, even together. There was just something alarming about Green Death, about the way he exhaled the remains of cigarette smoke through his nostrils. Toothless got a terrible suspicion, and decided that it was necessary to get everyone out of there. This was personal, bloody personal; even more so when Green Death chuckled wickedly and said:
- Right. I hear now you got… really close friends.
It took all of Toothless' strength of will not to look at Hiccup in the second his fears surged up, before he could bury them; he was not giving that dangerous information away. He had to keep Hiccup out of this, for his own good.
- I already sent you to the hospital once – he gritted menacingly -. I can do it again.
- Sure, 'cause I wasn't the first one you've ever sent to the hospital. Right, Night Fury? – Green Death mocked.
Toothless' expression went dead pale. Cold shivers shook his soul and dragged it to his feet.
He knew. Toothless had no idea how, but he knew.
Green Death knew.
Hiccup understood it right away as well, even his freckles losing color on his face. Now he agreed this was something Toothless had to fix on his own, at least for now. Later, no doubt Evelyn and himself would get involved as well. This was serious.
- So? – Green Death prompted, taking another cigarette from his pocket and lighting it up, his smirk the purest expression of cruelty.
- Go to the car – Toothless ordered to his friends, without a look to any of them.
This time, nobody dared to disobey. But Hiccup did walk away slower than everybody else, aware that Toothless would notice and could ask something else from him.
- Give her a warning, nothing more – the black-haired boy asked in the lowest of voices -. I can handle him.
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Nobody pronounced a syllable even after they reached the car; they were all feeling sick.
Hiccup, nonetheless, as much as he wanted to help his friends, had to do something first. He kept walking past the vehicle until his cell phone got good signal and called Evelyn immediately; looking back every three seconds just to make sure nothing too bad seemed to be happening up at the viewpoint.
"He's a Hunter. Green Death has become a Hunter" he kept thinking, panicking, and that's the way he let Evelyn know.
- Get everybody out before Dean's secret is compromised. I'm on my way – the woman commanded, and for a second, Hiccup felt tempted to obey.
His friends were really shocked, Aura kept asking for them to take her home, Astrid was getting sick for real, Ruffnut couldn't walk; they had to go. But when he suggested to do so, all he got as response were puzzled stares.
- What about Toothless? – Fishlegs mumbled.
Hiccup rubbed his face in desperation. He'd rather drop dead before leaving Toothless alone with a Hunter after the things he'd witnessed, of course, but Evelyn had talked him into sense: without the flying device, there wasn't much Hiccup could help with. "The best you can do right now is making sure no one finds out Dean's identity – she'd urged -. I'm going to help him, I'll keep him safe. You keep his secret safe".
What should Hiccup do? Evelyn was absolutely right; hers was the best plan. Green Death might know about Toothless' true nature, but knowing wouldn't help him much if they did get into a fight: he wasn't carrying any weapons, and it wasn't like he could hurt Toothless burning cigarettes against his skin…
No.
How had he been so blind? ? He should have realized it much sooner! The way Green Death lit up his cigarette in front of them…
- He didn't have a lighter – Hiccup gasped, completely shocked.
- What? – asked Fishlegs.
- He didn't have a lighter! !
Half a second later Hiccup was already running uphill, getting lost amidst the woods as he did his best to reach Toothless immediately. He had to warn him.
Green Death wasn't an ordinary Hunter.
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Another note: Obvious "Assassin's Creed" reference is obvious because... UNITY! ! !
Next chapter is coming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Next week! ! ! (-Happy super early christmas, everyone! Is that time of the year already? OMFG-)
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I finally, finally got over that Massive Writer's Block from Hell. The blasted thing lasted for like... nine, ten months? ? Suddenly I logged in to FFnet and I'd forgotten my password (twice) and all of my saved documents had already expired. What the...?
Well, at least while I got stuck on the writing for this fic I did go back to my dearest original story, and I started trying out watercolors, and I cosplayed Toothless and Chel (The Road to El Dorado). :-)
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Bless you all, people, and bless your patience, your faith will be rewarded! ! !
Guest, animelovernewbie, Wolfsthrope Von Schlieffen, Guest,
Emerald Snape, Splendidguy44, , AliceCullen3,
Mayanderson99, Kigen Dawn, violet flame, Darkflower123,
animelover56348, LunaMoonlight100, FerventEmie, Ern Estine 13624,
eater, AlexJohnD, The Guardian Night-Hunter, The dragon1010,
LorreVarguhl, Fawx999, JohnnyMorgensternOfficial,
WitchOfCrimsonFire, Guest, storyholder, N, violets fire, Guest,
Bubbles, SilverNightshade, ivanganev1992, Valenntine2000.
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And I'm taking the time to reply to the reviews that asked for it because you guys totally deserve it and I'm trying to feel less like a despicable human being.
Wolfsthrope Von Schlieffen: Actually, when it comes to fanfiction I'd rather write than read, mainly because I'm very picky and I don't really like reading on the computer (hurts my eyes D:). Plus, I hate it when authors abandon the fics I love or get bored of them and rush things up to just get done with it. (-and then I keep you guys waiting like this Odin I'm such a bad person, where's the lightning that was meant to strike me for that? ? I so totally deserve it-)
Kigen Dawn: You din't ask anything but I have to ask you: HOW DID YOU DO IT? ? Are you an Oracle? ?
Fervent Emie: You too... Where do you guys get your foreseeing skills?
WitchOfCrimsonFire: You can find me on DeviantArt also as Sinattea. The link is on my FFnet profile. :-)
N: You can actually have your OC here, if you want to. Just log in and PM me about it. I already gave a cameo to someone who commisioned me on DeviantArt.
Bubbles: I'm sooooooorryyyyy! ! ! Massive Writer's Block from Hell is massive!
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