It was awfully early in the morning and still pitch-dark.
The beerful conjuncture had lasted until an hour ago.
Most of the party Tuffnut had slept on Fishlegs lap.
Fishlegs began to freeze and he didn´t know where to put the passed out guy.
And the closeness kept him warm, after all. So he kept him sleeping and warming him on his legs.
"Doesn´t it bother you to cradle this moron like a baby? Lay him down on the floor and put a fur over him, he won´t notice." Snotlout said.
"It´s okay. He´s quite warm and so I don´t have to get a fur myself." Fishlegs responded.
"Legs, you´re such a big man, how can you be so cold?"
"I´m a bit tired. I always freeze when I become tired."
"Well, want another beer?" Fishlegs nodded and took he tankard Snotlout handed him.
Snotlout and Hiccup took another beer, too.
For a while no one said a word.
"The only thing that bothers me is his smell." Fishlegs interrupted the silence.
"Do you sniff at him?" Hiccup asked. He slowly began to slur and considered himself being extremely funny. For that reason Hiccup started giggling and couldn´t stop again.
"Um, no! You cannot unsmell him! It´s a mixture of beer, sheep, fur, leather and mostly sweat! If we ever went on a secret mission we would have to let him stay here or bathe him, otherwise our enemy would smell him long time before we are discovered. And his hair feels scratchy!"
Snotlout had wished so badly to reply to Fishlegs to stop complaining.
After all he was the one who was allowed to hold Snotlout´s secret crush.
Wait, had he really thought of Tuff as his crush?
Snotlout felt ashamed. It wasn´t a big problem for him to admit also liking men, the problem rather was, that he seemed to like Tuffnut. Tuffnut was Tuffnut. No one would ever fall in love with Tuffnut.
He didn´t think twice, often he didn´t think once, at all. He didn´t take anyone or anything serious. He couldn´t focus, he didn´t listen, he couldn´t sit still, he couldn´t stop talking.
But he was a caring brother, determined and strong, although scrawny and kind of crooked. He was funny and shrewd, eager and always trying to do his was trustful and he believed in the good in everyone. He didn´t judge, he didn´t lie, he didn´t have to shave his babyface of which Snotlout had said was ugly. He reminded punching him and making his nose bleed.
Boy, he had been such an asshole.
"You shouldn´t talk about him like that!" Hiccup said.
"But it´s the truth!" Fishlegs cried.
"He´s our friend! Our weird, smelly, scratchy, scrawny friend. And someone has to bring him home later. Too bad our dragons are already asleep." Hiccup sighed.
"I´ll take him home – he´s pretty wasted and shouldn´t stay alone. Ruffnut hangs out with Heather and Astrid, you know. Tuff could wake up and be just himself. I don´t want to be responsible for that." Snotlout said.
"Good idea. I didn´t know you were caring for someone who is not you!" Fishlegs tried to joke.
"Legs, you should already know that good old Snotlout has a very soft core and is a very good guy beneath all the muscles and arrogance!" Hiccup hiccuped.
"Am I that mean?" Snotlout asked.
"No, but annoying. It seems like everyone of us, even the girls, try to be as hard as possible. No one wants to admit that he or she has fears and worries."
"Except of him!" Snotlout pointed at the sleeping one. "He is afraid of everything, except telling everyone that he is afraid. Pretty brave."
"Yeah, I guess we all are afraid of something." Fishlegs stated.
"I´m afraid my tankard is empty!" Tuffnut mumbled and tried to sit up.
"Hey, it´s alive!" Snotlout cheered.
"I challenge you guys to a pissing contest! Except Ruffnut is still here, she always wins! The winner will have breakfast in bed tomorrow. Served by the loser."
"That´s stupid!" Fishlegs fought back. But then he gave in. "Deal!"
As the young men returned from their mission, which no one had won, because it was much too dark to see anything, Tuff chuckled: "You guys know that I just didn´t want to go alone? Only the Gods know what kind of creature is lurking in the undergrowth. Just waiting for a midnight snack..."
"Don´t worry Tuff, your smell will keep away all kind of natural enemies!"
"What´s wrong with my smell?" Tuffnut asked offended. "It´s your smell!" Snotlout replied. "True!" Tuff admitted and got himself another beer.
"Who burps the loudest!" he yelled and started, "but no throwing up, that´s cheating!"
Snotlout, Hiccup and Fishlegs had some more beer, too and a lot of boy talk, serious and hilarious.
More beer. More burps. More visits at the undergrowth.
Even Hiccup behaved like a normal young man.
At last, before they all decided to go home (except of Tuffnut, who had fallen asleep again, but this time on a trunk), they could hardly talk.
Fishlegs, still the most sober, yanked Tuff over his shoulder and carried him to Snotlout´s hut.
Snotlout was jealous as fuck – but he couldn´t think clearly anymore. He was too tired, too drunk, too uncertain.
Fishlegs laid Tuff onto Snot´s bed and said goodbye.
He felt slightly sick and placed a bucket next to his bed, in case he or Tuff would have to throw up.
He helped Tuff getting his boots off and laid them with his helmet on a table. Then he stripped down to his underwear.
Tuff curled up on Snotlouts´s bed and trembled.
Snotlout sat down beside him and softly touched his arm. He was very cold, so Snot covered him up with a woolen blanket.
"Thanks a lot, my dear!" Tuff muttered and put his arm around Snot´s waist before falling deeply asleep.
Snotlout didn´t dare to move or to breathe. His heart pounded against his ribcage.
Finally he slid lower and his face was only inches away from Tuffnut´s face.
He couldn´t help but watching the weirdo next to him. And now he had the opportunity to smell Tuffnut. Yes, it was sweatty and beery and furry – but it also was musky and sweet, dry and very male.
"Gods, don´t let me wake up next to him with the boner of my life!" Snotlout thought, before he fell asleep, too.
He didn´t, but Tuffnut did.
And pure and innocent as he was, he sat up, stretched himself and tried to climb over Snotlout out of the bed. Unfortunately his left foot got tangled up in the blankets and Tuff had to stay on Snotlout, straddling him.
Snotlout woke up and his eyes opened widely, as he saw Tuff sitting on his lap, bent over and trying to free his foot from the blanket.
"Sorry Snot, didn´t mean to wake you up, just got caught in your greedy blanket. I bet it tries to eat me!"
As Tuff finally operated his foot free he sat up and smiled down to Snot, acting as if this small, yet not so small thingy between his legs wouldn´t rub over Snot´s chest. Snotlout couldn´t do anything but stare.
Tuff climbed off him and headed to the loo.
Snot heard him saying: "Gods, remind me to never drink again. At least for the next two years. Or months. This silly draining is such a waste of time. Why do I not wear my tunic?"
As Tuff came back he went to a bucket with water and scooped some out with his hands to pour it into his face. He also took a big gulp, rinsed his mouth and spat over the railing. "I hope there was no one picking flowers or stuff!" he smirked and jumped back into Snotlout´s bed.
He punched him on the upper arm and asked again: "Seen my tunic? I´m pretty sure I fell asleep in it."
Snotlout was glad about changing the subject, or rather talking at last (and stopping to stare at the blonde).
"I undressed you, because you vomited on yourself!"
"Oh, did I? That explains the taste in my mouth!"
"I held your hair!" Snotloud said and shook his head. What did he just say? I held your hair? He should have said something like "Be glad I was prepared and held a bucket under your face as I heard you gagging, bud. Otherwise I would have let you sleep in one of the trees around!"
But he didn´t. He said, he held Tuffnut´s dreadlocks while he puked his soul out of his body. And undressed him afterwards.
"Um, thank you. And sorry!" Tuff was decent enough to be ashamed.
Tuff grabbed Snot´s right Hand and crossed his fingers with those of Snot.
"You know that I have to kill you now, don´t you? You saw me at my deepest point so far."
Snot pulled his hand away and shoved Tuff away from him.
This soft skin, warm and littered with freckles. Now Tuff smelled completely different, sweet and dusty, milky like a newborn, like sun, and yes, sweatty. Snotlout pulled up his blanket and shot a lookk like flying daggers at Tuff.
His middle part woke up and seemed to be curious about what was going on out there!
Tuff glared at him, his grey puppylike eyes full of doubt and nervousness.
Snot hated him for doing this to him.
"Meh, it´s all fine, bro! Better than you suffocating alone at your hut and Ruffnut finds you in the afternoon."
Tuff leaned his head against Snot´s shoulder.
"Why can´t this moron just stop touching me?" Snot thought and sighed quite annoyed.
"She´s the only one who would miss me." Tuff thought loudly.
"You stupid son of a Yak, do you think I´d take care of you and sleep with you in my bed and hold your hair while you puke and ignore your boner on my belly, because you don´t mean anything to me?" Snotlout panted and stared at Tuff with fiery eyes.
Tuff was surprised by Snot´s passionate speech and he replied subdued: "Do I?" Snotlout shoved him again. "Stop shoving me!" Tuff giggled.
That made Snotlout kind of angry and aroused and he shoved Tuff again, this time more emphatically.
"Hey, stop!" Tuff growled, but Snot wouldn´t listen to him, but bringing him down on his back. "I said stop it, what´s wrong with you?" Tuff shouted and tried to headlock Snot.
They wrestled through the bed, throwing pillows and blankets away, falling onto the hard floor, where Tuff felt the air pressed out of his lungs, as Snot landed on him.
The noise he made let Snot pause. "Did I hurt you?"
"Yeah, I´m hurt, I´m very much hurt!" Tuff answered, but then he skipped Snot onto his back and straddled him again.
His dreadlocks brushed over Snot´s chest.
Both men looked into each others eyes, both felt the erections of the other, both forgot just to breathe.
Snot took some of Tuff´s braids and pulled him down to himself, until their lips nearly touched.
"Now I have to kill you, instead!" he muttered.
"Why? Because some random guys, who randomly slept in one bed are now about to kiss each other?" Tuff demanded and pressed his lips onto Snotlout´s.
Between their kisses Snot gasped: "That will never ever happen again!"
"Absolutely!" Tuff replied, pushing his wood against Snot´s hip, who growled deeply at Tuff´s neck: "I don´t even like you!"
"I like you neither!" Tuff claimed, while he dug his fingernails into Snotlout´s chest.
"Shhhh, there´s someone coming!" Snotlout said.
Tuff chuckled at Snot´s mouth: "Oh, then that has to be you. I´m not that far..." "Shh, simpleton! Footsteps!" Tuff stared at Snotlout and looked pretty confused, but he managed to jump into the bed and pretended to be asleep and Snotlout fleeded to the loo, just in time before Ruffnut came through the open door.
She saw her brother lying in the bed on his stomach and made a disgusted noise. "Ugh, time to get up bro!" she said and shoved him with her boot.
Tuff raised his head and glanced at his sister.
"Oh hey, what is it, Ruff?"
"Time to go home. Stoick and Gobber have left and we´re on our own again. Time to fly our dragon."
"Later, sis! I´ve got a headache!" "No, now!" she replied and pulled Tuff out of the bed with gentle force that did not tolerate any contradiction.
As Tuff stood in front of her, she could see a pretty big bulge emerging in his pants.
"Ugh, gross! Get dressed and swing your bony ass out of here! It´s nearly evening and I had to work with Barf and Belch without your help! Now you can shovel poop, I´m done for today."
"Go ahead, I´ll have to collect my clothes." Tuff sighed.
Ruff nodded. "Okay." Then she punched Tuff´s arm and left.
Tuff put on his vest and boots, yanked the tunic over his shoulder and sought for Snotlout, who just dared to sneak in again.
Both stood in front of each other, their heartbeat rose, their cheeks blushed, they both didn´t quite know where to look.
Tuff put on his helmet and scratched his neck. "Well, um, thank you! I really appreciate..." "Ah, shut up and piss off!" Snotlout said, then smiled kinda shy.
"I don´t like you anyway!"
Tuff´s facial expression went from shock to amusement. "Don´t like you either!" As he turned to go he tossed his hair back and right into Snotlout´s face. "Oh for Thor´s sake, fuck off!"
Tuffnut flipped Snot the bird and went to go home with his sister, smiling goofily.
What a night. What a day. What the fuck.