The Outcast and The Night Fury

Chapter Four

When I got to the cove Toothless was by the pond drinking water. He noticed me at once and hurried towards me as fast as he could, warbling a noise that sounded like, "Icka, Icka."

"Hey, bud!" I set down the bag I was carrying and ran to greet him too. He pushed his head against me and then licked my face and hair, leaving them damp and messy.

"That's okay, Toothless, I've already had a shower," I laughed and scratched his head behind the ear fins. "I missed you too, buddy. What have you been up to? Were you good for Sven and Phlegma? She said you were doing well. Let's see how that shoulder looks?"

The shoulder wound looked the same as it had earlier, to me at least, but it was still stitched up so that was good.

I decided that we might as well get the medicine-taking over with so I went to empty the bag of fish on the ground. I had already put the antibiotic pills down inside one of them. Hopefully Toothless wouldn't even notice that one fish contained his medicine.

"Want some lunch? Does this look good?"

Apparently it did because Toothless slurped the fish down with no hesitation, including the one with the pills. I was a little relieved. I had worried that the fish with the medicine might taste differently and that he would refuse it. And then what would I have done? Was I brave enough to try to force the pills down his throat?

Probably not. But, as I thought about it, I realized that I wasn't afraid to do so. Somehow I knew that Toothless would never shoot fire at me or try to hurt me, but I didn't want him to think that I would ever try to hurt him or force him to do something. And he might think that. He might not understand that he needed to take the medicine for his own good.

So I suppose I would have had to go back to Sven and Phlegma and let them worry about how to get the Night Fury to take medicine, if Toothless hadn't been cooperative with me. But I was glad that wasn't necessary. I liked it better with no one else coming to hang around the cove, for it to just be Toothless and me.

Since Toothless had eaten his lunch, I rummaged around in the bag for my own and pulled out a sandwich and a thermos of tea. Toothless was watching me with that same considering look he had had before so I quickly unwrapped my ham and cheese sandwich and took a bite. I was thrilled that we had bonded, but I really didn't want to eat any more regurgitated fish.

"Thanks, bud, but I'm good. You can keep the fish all to yourself."

Toothless made a huffing noise and curled up around me. I started to lean back against him, then hesitated. I didn't want to hurt him, but this was his good shoulder, not the wounded one, and he actually turned his head and gave me a little nudge, as if he wanted me to lean against him. So I did, cautiously at first and then when he seemed fine with it, I relaxed and let my full weight rest against him.

Toothless gave me an approving look.

"Yea, this is nice," I told him. "I just didn't want to hurt you."

I swear, Toothless huffed again and the expression on his face plainly said 'As if a little thing like you could.'

"Hey, now, I'm not that small!" I protested. But then I sighed. "Okay, maybe I am. You're probably like a million times stronger than me, right?"

But something had hurt him anyway. I remembered what Phlegma had said about the dragon poachers.

"I wish you could tell me what happened to you. I found this thing like a shot in the woods. Did poachers shoot you with a tranquilizer? Did you crash and hurt your shoulder?"

Toothless growled softly, a growl that sounded both pained and angry and I patted his neck. "Okay, we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

He settled back down and I ate my sandwich. For a while afterwards we stayed like that, with me leaning back on Toothless while he lay curled around me. The sun shone down; between that and feeling safe and warm with Toothless, I dozed for a while. It reminded me of the previous night when we had sat together.

But eventually I stirred and Toothless raised his head to look at me. "Maybe it's crazy, Toothless—I've only known you a couple of days and you're a dragon—but you're the best friend I've ever had. The only friend, really."

He rumbled back at me and I scratched the side of his face. "I wish I could just stay here forever. I hate it at home. You wouldn't think so since it's this big, beautiful mansion and we're so rich. You'd think I would be the happiest kid in the world, wouldn't you? Nothing to worry about. Maybe I should be. But it's always so quiet and lonely—except when Dad's yelling at me about something."

I swallowed hard. "You want to know something, Toothless? He doesn't like me at all. I'm not even sure why. I'm not that bad a kid, you know. I could be a lot worse, couldn't I? I try to do what he says and not cause trouble, but it's just never enough."

"I know I'm not what he wanted. But I can't help being short and skinny. It's not my choice. If I could, I'd make myself be more like Sly. He's my cousin. He's tall and he's got muscles. He plays hockey like Dad did, and he's got lots of friends. Well, maybe not lots just because there aren't a whole lot of kids our age on Berk, but he is friends with all the kids who are here."

I sighed. "And I've got to have dinner with them tonight. Aunt Hilley and Uncle Spite and Sly. Well, Aunt Hilley and Uncle Spite are all right. But after we eat, the grown-ups will go off and leave me with Sly. At least he quit hitting me a few years ago, but if he can find a way to put me down, he will. I wish I could get sick and miss it."

I told Toothless about having to work at the Center starting tomorrow morning, how I dreaded being around the other kids, and about all the dragons that were recovering there. Toothless listened intently, with such a concerned expression that I was sure he understood everything I was saying.

But finally I shook my head. "Well, I guess that's enough complaining, huh? You've got better things to do than listen to all my life's problems."

Toothless looked at his wounded shoulder and then back to me with an expression that seemed to say 'Like what?'

"Do you get bored here? Well, your shoulder will be well soon and then—"I stopped abruptly, not wanting to think about when Toothless was healed. I wanted him to get well, of course, but when he could run and fly again, would he leave forever? What would I do then? Like I'd told Toothless, I may have only known him for two days, but life without him would be lonelier than ever.

I jumped to my feet. "Hey, could I take some pictures of you? Maybe next time I'll bring my notebook and pencils and do some sketches."

Toothless let me take some pictures of him with my phone. In fact, he climbed to his feet and I'd swear he was posing for them, arching his neck and tilting his head. Once he started to spread his wings but that must have hurt him because he gave a sharp cry and looked back at his left shoulder.

I checked to be sure he hadn't pulled the stitches and rubbed his head. "You okay, bud? Don't worry. It'll heal. You just have to give it time."

Toothless sighed and rested his head against my shoulder. I kept petting him. "I promise. It'll be fine. Just be careful and let it heal."

We walked around the cove and on the far side of the pond I noticed that the ground was soft and loamy. A thin sharp stick lying near a rock caught my eye. Maybe I could sketch Toothless after all.

"What do you say, Toothless? Want to have your portrait drawn by the great artiste, Master Hiccup Vastley?" I put on a false accent as I picked up the stick and twirled it around.

He just looked at me with amused tolerance at first as I knelt and began drawing his picture in the dirt, but then he became more interested, leaning over my shoulder and watching intently. Suddenly he stood up on his hind legs and walked over to a grove of saplings. I was so startled I stopped drawing and just stared at him. I had no idea that he could walk upright like that.

Toothless snapped one of the saplings in half by taking it between his jaws and giving a quick shake with his neck. I was impressed—he really was about a million times stronger than I was. Then he began drawing, circling and spinning all around me, dragging the tree in the dirt as he went. I had to duck once to keep from being hit in the head with a side branch.

When he had finished, Toothless surveyed his work with a proud nod and then looked to see if I appreciated his talent. Honestly, it just looked like a bunch of swirly lines to me, but he definitely seemed proud of himself. I don't know if dragons in the wild drew on their own or if Toothless wanted to interact with me by copying what I did, but either way, it was pretty amazing. Obviously, dragons were highly intelligent creatures, even more than I had realized. Maybe I could talk with Mom about that the next time we spoke.

"Great job, bud. I didn't know that dragons could draw. I really like that squiggly loop over there." I moved towards the squiggly loop and was startled when Toothless growled at me.

"What's wrong?" I started to step towards him and he stopped growling and looked at me, all happy again.

But when I took another step, he growled again.

We repeated this scenario a couple times and I was about to get upset that Toothless was growling at me, when I suddenly realized that he growled when I stepped on his drawing and was happy when I stepped over the lines.

"Oh," I grinned at him. "I got it now."

So I twisted and turned as I carefully made my way through the labyrinth of his drawing. It was rather like playing a game, or dancing, and I laughed when I made it to Toothless' side without stepping on any more lines.

He butted me with his head, gently, and I patted his neck. "Well, that was fun, but I'm afraid I've got to go now."

He growled again, unhappily.

"I know, but I told you we're having that family dinner tonight and I've got to get cleaned up for it. If I'm late again, Dad will be furious. I'll be back tomorrow afternoon, I promise!"

Reluctantly I left the cove and started for home. It was the first time since I'd found Toothless that I wasn't racing through the woods at breakneck speed, which is probably why I happened to glance up and notice that some of the trees were broken in two, and that the broken trees followed a line from the spot where I'd found the tranquilizer dart (for surely that must be what it was) towards the cove.

Well, I might never know for sure, but I'd bet a hundred kroner that poachers had shot Toothless with the dart as he was flying, causing him to crash through the trees into the cove, injuring his shoulder as he fell.

But where exactly had Toothless been when he had been shot? How far could he have flown before the sedative affected him enough to cause a fall? Had the poachers been on our land or could Toothless have managed to fly some distance before crashing in the cove?

I wondered if I should talk with Dad about some of this. Not about being friends with Toothless, of course, but he would want to know if poachers had been here. But I already knew he wouldn't approve of my friendship with a dragon so I certainly couldn't have him traipsing around near the cove, or hiring security guards to patrol the area.

I debated whether or not to tell Dad while I showered and dressed for dinner. We have these family dinners with the Jorgensons once or twice a month, though Dad, Aunt Hildegard, and Uncle Spite see each other more often. We always dress up for them, for some reason, so I put on a white button-down shirt, a blue and red print silk tie, my navy sport coat, khaki trousers, tan socks, and brown leather loafers. Then I dragged a brush through my hair and checked the time.

I still had a few minutes before I needed to go downstairs so I sat down with my laptop and looked for information about tranquilizer darts. I was relieved to read that they usually took a little while to take effect, sometimes up to half an hour. If that were the case, then those poachers would have been a long way off from our property when they shot Toothless. So there was no reason to bother Dad with any of it.

I heard Mr. Holt open the front doors and Dad welcoming my aunt, uncle, and cousin, so I hurried downstairs before he could get mad at me for being late. Everyone was gathered in the entrance hall and Aunt Hildegard hugged me as soon as I came down.

"Hiccup! I don't think I've seen you since the company picnic in May. How are you, love?"

Aunt Hildegard is Dad's younger sister and definitely my favorite Jorgenson. Unfortunately, she's also the one I see the least of because she travels for work a lot. Like Dad, she is tall with red hair (hers is long though) and she has green eyes. She was a fantastic football player when she was young. She even played as a pro for a few years before Sly was born.

Now she's President of Sales for the Vastley-Jorgenson fishing fleet and she travels all around the Archipelago and to other countries as well.

"Hi, Aunt Hilley. I'm fine. It's good to see you again." I hugged her back and then shook hands with Uncle Spite.

He's been friends with Dad since they were kids. Dad, Spite, and Gobber all grew up together and the Jorgensons and Vastleys have been business partners for almost a hundred and fifty years, ever since our great-great-great grandfathers bought all the fishing boats in the Archipelago. Dad owns shares in the company, but he's never really been involved with it. He invested his money in lots of different things and decided to concentrate on politics. So Aunt Hilley and Uncle Spite are the ones who actually run the business.

Uncle Spite is not as tall as Dad, though he's not short. He and Aunt Hilley are about the same height, but he is stocky-"Built like a bulldozer" as Dad always says—with brown hair and blue eyes.

Sly looks just like him, except for being twenty-five years younger and maybe six inches shorter. Sly is still taller than me though and about twice as wide. We did not shake hands.

After a few minutes of greeting each other, we went to the dining room with its blue-gray walls, white marble fireplace and mantel, and the long polished oak table covered with a white lace tablecloth.

The Holts brought in a clear soup to begin, followed by yellowfin tuna, roast beef, potatoes au gratin, and creamed spinach. We said grace and then the adults chatted desultorily about local news, the fishing business, and current events. Sly and I were quiet for the most part. We didn't have anything to say to one another, but that was fine with me. It could have been worse.

Then Uncle Spite said proudly, "Tell your uncle the news, Sly."

"I made the varsity hockey team," Sly announced. "Coach Lybeck called me today."

"First freshman to make varsity since you did it, Stoick," Uncle Spite pointed out.

Dad beamed at him. "Congratulations, Sly! That's wonderful news; I couldn't be any prouder of you. Still playing right wing?"

Sly nodded. "Yes, sir. Just like Dad did."

"I always played center." Maybe I imagined it, but it seemed to me that Dad shot me a glance filled with disappointment as he spoke. But almost at once he had turned back to Uncle Spite. "Remember that last game against Balder Bay? Those were the days, hmm, Spite?"

Uncle Spite laughed. "That they were."

They talked about hockey for a while longer until there was a lull and Aunt Hilley turned to me.

"So what have you been up to lately, Hiccup?"

For a minute I wondered what they would say if I told them I'd been making friends with a Night Fury. "Oh, nothing much."

But she persisted. "You're almost through with school, aren't you?"

I nodded. "Yes, I just need one more class in Literature and I'll have enough credits to graduate."

"And you're only fourteen. That's amazing. You're finishing up high school and Sly's just starting." Aunt Hilley smiled at me.

"Yea, Hiccup's a genius. Can't risk banging your head up playing hockey, can you?" The words could have been innocent enough, but I could hear an ugly undertone in Sly's voice. I wondered if anyone else noticed it.

"He ought to get some exercise," Dad grumbled. He frowned at me. "Sitting at that computer all the time isn't good for you."

I thought that was really unfair of him, considering that I had been outside almost the whole day. But before I could say anything, Sly spoke up again.

"Maybe you could practice with Tuff and me sometimes. It'd be fun." He grinned mockingly at me.

Oh yes, a good time would be had by all, wouldn't it? They'd probably use me as the puck.

I was terrified that Dad would decide I ought to spend the afternoons 'practicing' hockey with Sly but thankfully, maybe even he realized that I would be risking life and limb. Instead he asked Sly about the summer practice schedule.

Fortunately for me, everyone else got so carried away about Sly being Berk's future hockey star that they spent the rest of the evening talking about it, so I didn't have to spend any time alone with him after all.

Instead I sat quietly and counted the hours until I could sneak back to the cove to hang out with Toothless.

Author's Notes: I researched a little to find out where the Barbaric Archipelago is, and it seems to be near northern Norway, so I decided to use Norwegian currency for money, which is why Hiccup spoke about betting one hundred kroner.

I have not read the HTTYD books but I do know that Hiccup and Snotlout are cousins in them. This is not contradicted in the movies either, as far as I know. Many fanfics I have read have them be related through Valka—with Valka being born to the Jorgenson family. But that wouldn't work in "The Outcast and The Night Fury" as Valka is not from Berk in my story.

So to explain Hiccup and Sly (Snotlout) being cousins and having different surnames, I decided to introduce an original character—Stoick's sister Hildegard, who is also known by the nickname Hilley. She is perhaps the most sympathetic to Hiccup, but I made a point of having her travel often so that she would not be around enough to be a mother figure. It's sad for Hiccup, but I think it's important thematically for him to feel alone at this point. If he's not desperately lonely, he might not be so determined to befriend Toothless.

I mentioned that Hilley played football. As Berk is part of Europe, football refers to soccer here.

Finally, thanks so much for reading and especially to those who review! If you enjoy reading the story, please do take a minute to review! I really appreciate it!