The following weeks were exhausting but also rewarding. Eret just loved how well he and Hiccup could work together in this – be it by actually working together to build the new-but-old-looking kitchen, or by working separately on smaller tasks in order to get everything done. Painting the walls in varying shades of brown and green, building new shelves that fit neatly against the uneven walls for the old books they'd found stowed away in boxes in the cottages storage room, taking breaks every now and then to just enjoy the simplicity and freedom of their new life, to enjoy each other. Yes, Eret was quite happy with how things had turned out, if he could say so himself.

Three years ago, he never would have considered moving to a remote cottage on Scotland's west coast with his boyfriend. Too much had he enjoyed the fast life in the big city, the clubs, the music, the thrill of meeting new people, men and women alike. Working all day for a big company had only been his means to get by, nothing he enjoyed, just something he did. He hadn't minded. It had been an… easy life, living from night to night, and without ever thinking about the future.

But then he'd met Hiccup, this free spirit who wouldn't ever stand for doing something he didn't love, who was an artist in everything he did. Accepting him as a regular lover had been a first for Eret, as had been spending his free days, well… free. With Hiccup, he always felt free, yet also somehow anchored and grounded at the same time. He made him feel good.

Committing to raise their being together to the next level, to enter a true relationship, had been a much easier step than he'd ever imagined, just as, eventually, had been the decision to move together. Quitting his job he didn't really care for and instead doing what he'd always wanted to do – write the book he'd been thinking about forever – hadn't been quite as easy, but he'd also never regretted it.

And now, they'd ended up here, in the middle of nowhere, in a cottage Hiccup's cousin's boyfriend had recommended them when they'd been looking for a calmer place to pursue both their arts. It was surreal, but in a fantastic way, and Eret would never want to change a thing.

"Ah, there you are" he noted as he spotted Hiccup standing behind the house, on the side that faced the ocean. It wasn't far; they only had to walk fifty meters, maybe a bit more, and then their shoes would be wet.

"Uh... what?" Hiccup turned when he heard Eret's words, a slightly dazed shimmer in his eyes. The late afternoon sun gave his hair a beautiful reddish glow, and Eret simply couldn't resist wrapping his arms around his boyfriend and kissing him.

Chuckling lightly against his lips, Hiccup easily kissed him back, his lips tasting of the salty brine. When they parted, the dazed shimmer was still lingering in his eyes, though.

"Is everything all right?" Eret asked, concerned. "You look tired."

Hiccup cocked his head, frowning slightly. "Tired? Yeah, I'm a little tired, I guess." He stretched and shook his head as if to clear it. "I was just taking a small break. The TV should work now, and the PlayStation is installed too."

"That sounds good. So we're actually done, right? Your desk and shelves are all build up too. I think we can actually stay here tonight."

"And break in our new home by falling asleep on the couch while watching a film?" Hiccup teased.

Eret grinned. That had been one of the things they'd missed dearly during the past weeks they'd lived at Mrs Ingerman's pension. Although… "Well, that's not exactly how I'd planned to break in our new home," he said, smirking, and the spark in Hiccup's eyes told him that he, too, had other plans too.

Eret gave Hiccup's rear a suggestive squeeze, then retreated. "Okay, I'll just tidy up the tools, then we can head over to Mrs Ingerman for dinner and to get our last things."

"Sounds perfect," Hiccup grinned. "I'll wait here if that's okay. The sun and the view are just too lovely right now."

Shaking his head at his adorable artistic geek of a boyfriend, Eret headed back inside. Orderly packing away his tools took him a few minutes, not because there was much to pack away, but because he had a unique system for what belonged where – and nobody, not even Hiccup, quite got it right. Ever.

"Okay, I'm ready," he called, picking up his and Hiccup's coats from their hooks near the door. "You coming?" He half-expected an insinuating comment like 'Not yet!', as that was quite often their kind of humour. So he was a little surprised when instead he got… nothing.

"Hiccup?" he called again, walking around the small house. "You okay, or have you fallen into the ocean?" It was meant to be a joke, so Eret flinched when Hiccup wasn't where he'd left him anymore but instead stood several meters closer to the shore. Gazing out over the water and apparently not having heard his calls.

Frowning, Eret jogged over and placed a hand on Hiccup's shoulder to draw his attention.

"W-what?" Hiccup asked, turning dazed eyes on Eret, then blinked a few times to clear them.

Eret gave him a concerned look. "I'm ready to go. Are you sure you're okay? If it's too much we can still stay at the pension tonight and move our stuff tomorrow." They had worked a lot during the past weeks, after all. Even Eret was exhausted, and between the two of them, he was definitely the better-trained one. And he refused to think about what his subconsciousness wanted to think about. It was nothing but a myth, and the last weeks had passed without any notable incidents. He wouldn't start believing in ghosts now just because Hiccup had gotten lost in his thoughts.

Meanwhile, Hiccup seemed to honestly consider his suggestion. He took a moment or three to think about it before he answered, "No, I want to sleep here tonight. It's been long enough." With a loving smile, he carded his fingers through Eret's. "Let's do it."

Grinning, Eret squeezed Hiccup's hand. "Let's do it."

Hand in hand, they walked over to their well-used Pick-up, ready to actually get started with their new life. Excitement filled him at the thought that, finally, their long-awaited wish of living in a house of their own, remote and close to the sea, was coming true. Hiccup was little better, practically bouncing with anticipation – and unashamedly returned the ass-squeezing.

But as they were on their way, Eret noticed how Hiccup became calmer again, almost eerily so. Maybe it really was just because he was tired, but when Eret threw a quick glance at where Hiccup sat on the passenger seat, he was staring out at the ocean again, with the same dazed expression as before.

. o O o .

Time had no meaning for her. Sun and moon exchanged their places on the firmament, but she didn't care. She did what she always did, gliding through the currents, watching, guarding.

But sun and moon had exchanged their places often by now. She hadn't counted, hadn't cared, but it still felt like a long time had passed since she'd left her bay. It wasn't her bay. Just a part of the endless ocean she'd always felt drawn to. She hadn't spent all of her existence there, had been to other places. Staying away now shouldn't be so hard.

Except it was.

She kept finding herself swimming in a certain direction for longer than intended, kept pondering swimming back. What were humans to her anyway? They were nothing but short-lived, ephemeral inconveniences. Nothing that should bother her. Nothing that should be able to keep her from where she wanted to be.

And she wouldn't let herself be driven away by them.

Determined to ignore their strange lure, she swam back, following where her cold heart and the currents led her.