When you have spent some time doing things in a certain way, you can`t expect your routine to change at once, just because the circumstances did.
So the dragon riders got up early.
Yesterday they fed the dragons, cleaned the makeshift stables, had breakfast, trained. Today they were kinda unemployed.
Hiccup was one of the first to climb out of the hut, stretching and feeling sore.
He walked to the stables and his heart clenched.
That was the end of an era. He was the one to start it and to end it again.
Although only 6 years it felt like a lifetime.
It helped to know that he did the right.
Astrid and Ruff appeared and looked as devastated as he felt.
The young women had deep rims around their eyes.
"Hey," Hiccup said quietly, "how are you two doing?"
"I´m not aware of it, yet, I suppose" Ruff answered.
"Me neither," Astrid added.
Hiccup saw Snotlout and Fishlegs get ready, washing their faces at the Fountain.
Then they strolled over to the others.
"What a night! My head aches!" Snotlout moaned and rubbed his red rimmed eyes.
"Did you cry, too?" Fishlegs asked compassionate.
"Hello? Who are you talking to? Do I look like an itsy bitsy whining baby?" Lout replied harshly.
"So you did!"
"Ah, fuck off, Fatlegs!"
"Yeah, good morning, you two! There´s nothing more refreshing than hearing you bicker. Ruff, how is Tuff doing?" Hiccup distracted from the topic.
"Still asleep, looks pretty dead. But, you know, he´s tough though. He´ll get over it. Maybe there will be a lot of crying, but that washes the soul."
"See, Fishlegs? If you want to talk to a cry baby, talk to Tuffnut! He can easily open the dam and flood all of us.
And now it´s up to you to decide, whether by tears or pee! I´ll go for a walk!" Snotlout snapped and turned around to leave.
Ruff looked after him in confusion.
"Thanks to Spitelout – now we have to deal with such an emo cripple. I suppose he never learned to let his real feelings out!
But what does he mean with the tears or pee phrase?"
Fishlegs shrugged his shoulders. "Yesterday night. Tuff, the breakdown and the special urge, right before you left."
Ruff stared, Legs stared back.
"That´s what Snotlout meant, I guess. Nothing what I said."
"Is this mongrel claiming my brother wet himself?!" she growled.
"Yes. And, did he?" Fishlegs smirked.
"Ugh! Don´t you have any other problems?" Ruff shouted and went away.
"Yes, I have. I´m just trying to distract myself." Fishlegs mumbled ashamed.
Ruff didn´t hear it but she turned around anyway. "And just in case if he did, I wouldn´t tell! Ever heard of dignity?"
"Pff, dignity... I didn´t know the twins were aware of that word." Fishlegs snorted.
"Enough! We all had a hard night. We all are not alright, yet. Let´s see what we can do now!" Hiccup proposed.
"Vacancy would be nice. A time out. Building up the village, getting to know the island, and then no working for a couple of weeks! We worked so hard the last years. There happened so much we have to catch up on." Astrid sighed.
"You´re right! I´ll go see my mom. Maybe she can help organize this what we now call our life!" Hiccup said and headed to his mother´s tent.
Ruff entered the hut. Tuff was awake, lying on his back and staring to the helmet at the peg at the end of his bed.
"Beware of the idiots outside! They oughta put up signs: morons crossing!" Ruff grumbled.
Tuff replied without looking at his sister: "Thank you for not telling them!"
"Screw you! You peed over my hands! But yeah, you´re welcome. What are we gonna do?"
"We´ll have to build a hut, or two. And maybe dig a boar pit."
"What do you mean, two huts? Do you want to get rid of me? You owe me something! That was a lot of pee, you human racehorse!"
"Silly jockstrap! You can blame Hiccup for that, he invented and designed it!"
"Just want to get this out of my head! So what to do first?"
"I don´t know! We never had to plan such things. It has always been up to Hiccup to come along with plans and ideas and stuff! And we always had help of our... you know who. It´s just not the same, never will be anymore.
I´m hangry!"
"You mean hungry?" Ruff corrected, but Tuff insisted: "No, hangry! Angry because of hungry! But I´m way too exhausted to get up!" Tuff turned on his belly and shut the eyes.
"Maybe I should bring you some water, you lost a lotta fluids tonight." Ruff mocked.
"I´m sorry Ruffnut, that will probably never happen again. Let´s get something to eat!" Tuff struggled to his feet and grabbed his helmet.
"Here I am again!" he yelled and raced out, where he rose his arms and repeated: "Here I am again!" and mumbling "nothing will get me down. Not for too long."
Some of the villagers screamed or tried to hide their eyes away "Eew, Tuffnut! Get your pants on, good Odin!"
Tuff gazed down to where the linen nightshirt ended. "Oh. This explains the fresh breeze!" he dropped his arms slowly.
Ruff stood behind him. "Which idiot forgets to put on his pants?" she growled and rolled her eyes.
"Which idiot forgets to remind me putting on my pants?" Tuff turned around and made little steps back into the hut.
"Stop staring! I feel very vulnerable!"
"And you talked about two separate huts! Who shall take care of you?"
"That´s why I used to never change clothes, then! It´s time to go back to that, I think."
"Or you start using your damn brain, silly dumbass!" Ruff slapped Tuff´s back of the head.
"Ouch! But that means taking responsibility. I hate being responsible for anything!"
"Maybe this will our first task, bro. Growing up."
"No, don´t you dare saying such cruel things!"
"Shut up and get your pants on! You were just about to run out without again! No, you have to get out of the boots first..."
Some time later the friends gathered at the stables to dismantle them.
Snotlout had returned and looked quite refreshed.
"I heard I missed all the fun again!" he stated.
"Which fun? I can´t remember seeing someone having fun the last hours!" Astrid looked at Snotlout questioningly.
He pointed at Tuffnut. "He rang the freedom bells, Gobber told me."
"He did what?" Hiccup asked.
"Nothing!" Tuff shouted.
"Yes, you went out to ventilate your tuff-nuts!"
"No, not again!" Fishlegs shook his head in disgust and Hiccup said resigned: "How can an adult man forget his pants?"
"You consider him being adult?" Snotlout yelled laughing out loud.
"That says just the right guy!" Fishlegs remarked.
"Not every single viking around can be as mature and grown up as you are, Fishlegs The Old I." Snotlout buzzed.
"Well, nothing what we haven´t seen before.
Another subject: My mom, Gobber and I tried to make plans. We´re going to divide you into groups.
One group to go felling trees, to edit the wood, to build huts and houses, furniture, a hall for gathering. We need troops to explore the entire surroundings, find out, where we can work the soil, get fruits from, if the island is inhabited on the other side, which animals live here, finding fishing grounds.
We need squads to build ships – without the dragons we can´t leave the island and have no possibility for trading. No one knows, we´re here.
Someone has to cartograph and create maps. Take care of the children, the cattle. There must be planning where to put what..." Hiccup explained.
Soon there were divisions for any tasks and the friends were divided up.
Except of Ruff and Tuff.
"What about us?" Ruff wanted to know, slowly getting upset.
"You were, ummm, how shall I say? Not always that reliable. We´ll find a special task for you. How about, ummm..." - "putting on pants first? No, just kidding. They could probably..." - "NOT playing jokes on the ones who actually work." - "Learn how to swim?" - "I can swim, it´s him who can´t!" - "Pick flowers!" - "Brush their hair!" - "Stay out of the way..."
"STOP!" Tuffnut yelled. "I understood, we are too dumb, too clumsy, too irresponsible, childish, foolish, whatever to get a real job! Fine! You know what? In case you noticed, I can´t even brush my hair! Come on, Ruff, we´ll go find a work with sense!"
"Well, actually Fishlegs asked me to help him with the maps. You know, we´re good at recognizing maps. He says I notice every little detail, no matter how unimportant it appears."
"What? Oh. Ok. So I go to the shore. Counting mussels or seagulls or stuff."
"Hey, can he actually count?" Snotlout nettled.
Tuff made an obscene gesture towards Snotlout and left.
What was wrong with his friends?
Haven´t they just experienced the greatest adventure of their life together?
Hasn´t he, Tuff, proven worthy? He had fought like a lion, had always tried so hard to meet the demands.
He knew, he wasn´t the brightest and often, oh so often he failed. But as often as he failed, more often in fact, he tried. Tried very hard, much harder than anyone else. Ruff was the smarter twin, she never had to make such an effort.
And she had boobs. Snotlout and Fishlegs fought over his sister for the last year.
"There are times I don´t appreciate you being there!" Tuff hissed to his crotch.
He picked up a stick and and hit the trees with it. Kicked stones. Descended to the beach.
HE sat down on a rock and took off his boots, rolled up his pants and dangled his feet in the water. No one cae after him. He was disappointed and hurt, very much hurt. Inside.
Oh, why must I feel so lonely?
The only thing I ever was good at was taken from me. Riding Belch was all I ever wanted since we started riding the dragons instead of killing them. I couldn´t imagine doing something else than flying across this world with my sister and our dragon.
My sister stabbed me in the back, all dragons are gone.
Again Tuff felt hot tears in his eyes.
No one ist here, so why should I give a heck?
He climbed onto his rock, spread his arms and screamed as loud as he could right into the wind.
There was so much pain inside him.
He wanted to have someone special on his side.
Not his sister.
Like Hiccup and Astrid had each other.
Why were there so few people at his age on New Berk?
He had met girls before. All of them just little interesting.
Was he rather into that boy thing?
Hairy arms embracing his nearly hairless skin? Rough hands caressing his thighs... he shook his head hectically to scare away those thoughts.
That was quite... unsatisfying. Not bad, not good enough.
So he conjured up another fantasy.
A girls´ hand touching his chest, letting the hand slide downwards...
Yes, that was more his taste. But neither skinny Astrid nor Heather gave him the kicks. He wanted an understanding person, soft but sturdy.
Someone he never met before.
Was that the right moment for a sad jerk off?
Probably not, because he figuered out a ship at the horizon.
Hiccup thought about everything.
But he forgot to set guards to protect the new home.
Without their dragons they were practically unguarded – and hardly armed.
Tuff rushed back up to the camp, looking for the chief.
It had shown, he at least was useful!