Ya know, when December had come a-rolling around, I had thought that I would be able to update more often. Nope. When I planned, God laughed. (Sigh) In my defense my preceeding fanfiction One and Only Bluebird took a month to update every. single. time. I'm doing pretty well with this story by comparison. Nevertheless in the battle of quantity vs. quality, quality will always win. Sorry.
So. New chapter.
Have fun and Happy New Year!
Hiccup
In the morning, I hadn't been awoken by the stinging sunlight that filtered its way into the cave or the trilling birds that flitted from tree to tree. Heck, it wasn't even Toothless's relentless nudging that had woken me up. Nope, it was the sound of a familiar voice shouting in the forest that had successfully jolted me out of dreamland. Mom.
"HICCUP!" she was calling, "TOOTHLESS! Where are you!?"
I sat up straight and traded a frantic look with Toothless. After scrambling onto my feet, I shakily poked my head out of the cave. The first thing I noticed was that there was no sign of the Stormcutter nearby. Was that a good thing? A bad thing? I didn't really know. But just beyond the safety of the cave, I could hear the ringing of mom's loud calls, pleading for her children to answer.
"BOYS!"
I looked over to Toothless recognizing that look in his eyes. He was fighting back the urge to answer her; to go to her for the safety and sense of normalcy she'd provide. I understood that better than anybody at the moment. Thanks to this whole situation, I was feeling the same thing.
"Should we tell her?" I finally asked. Toothless eye's darted over to me as let him debate with himself. Each silent minute he spent was another moment Mom's voice got farther from our hiding place.
What could she even do to help? Sure she'd never kept it a secret that she was a dragon sympathizer. I knew that she wouldn't go for the old viking fall back at the sight of Toothless. But that didn't mean that she'd take this well let alone know what to do about it. Would she even believe me if I tried to explain?
Finally, Toothless came to a decision. He took a step back, and he crouched down low. Looking over to me, he shook his head. I didn't know whether to sigh in relief or give him sympathy—silent sympathy at least.
He nudged me toward the exit, but I hesitated.
"Are you sure?" I asked him quietly. He bobbed his head once. "…Okay." Filled with regret, I climbed out of the cave and into the the bright morning before looking back one more time. "I'll come back," I told my brother. "I promise."
As I left him alone in that cave, I had to force myself not to look back. I tried to focus on throwing off my own trail instead of the self loathing that tortured me on the inside. By leaving him behind, I felt like I'd just betrayed Toothless.
Xxx
Upon returning to the house, Mom had declared that I needed a bath. As I absently scraped mud from under my fingernails, Mom was cleaning off as much dirt off my clothes as she could while muttering irately to herself.
Because I am the worst liar to ever walk the earth, Mom didn't believe me when I said that I hadn't been able to find Toothless. As great an interrogator as Mom can be, she had been unable to get the truth out of me. What seemed to bother her more than my lack of cooperation was the mystery of why I wouldn't tell her.
It killed me to hold back on her, but I was determined to honor Toothless's wishes about the matter. It was the least I could do. However, my determination to be somewhat honorable about my brother's situation didn't stop me from shrinking a little further into the tub with every flick of the eye that Mom shot my way.
Finally, Mom sighed. "Hiccup," she said with an eerie amount of serenity.
"Yeah, Mom?" I asked while silently bracing myself to have to lie again.
I refused to look her in the eye as she made her way in front of me. Unwilling to be deterred, Mom lightly lifted my chin until I was forced to face her. I tried to aim my line of sight somewhere above her head while her eyes bored into me, daring me to lie to her face.
"I'm going to ask you again," she said calmly. "Where is your brother?"
I couldn't take it. I jerked my chin away from her hands, and aggressively combed my fingers through my hair. "I'm sorry, Mom; I really don't know."
She sighed as her disappointment washed over me like icy water.
"I suppose I'll be figuring this out myself then," she said defeatedly.
"I'm sorry, Mom," I muttered.
I was still rubbing my temples with my hands when the comb bit into my hair. Mom smiled softly while she carefully combed out the dirt from my hair.
"Look at you. A chicken could make a nest with all this gunk," she teased.
I felt a smile twitch at my lips. "I'm not a coop, but give me some grain and I'll be move-in ready."
Mom laughed.
Toothless
Almost immediately after Hiccup had left, the Stormcutter had shown up (much to my annoyance). It wasn't even like it went straight up to me either. It would poke its head at the entrance every once in awhile but didn't linger for long. Instinctual growls from me to the dragon got the message across well enough: I was not in the visiting mood.
"I don't care what Hiccup thinks," I growled, even though I knew that it couldn't understand me, "I do not trust you."
It scrutinized me as though it was curious about the noises I was making. My annoyance skyrocketed when it settled itself down right in front of the entrance of the cave.
Gods, I hated this. When Hiccup came back, it wouldn't be soon enough. Maybe it would pay more attention to him instead. Hiccup was the one who…befriended it in the first place. I on the other hand did not want it within arms reach. What's more—
Wait, what's it doing now?
Suddenly, I noticed that it was acting strange. It's throat was convulsing, and it was making gagging sounds in the back of its throat. That didn't seem normal to me. While transitioning between feeling concerned and feeling curious, I slowly crept closer to it. I squinted because of the burning sunlight as I started stepping out of my little cave.
And then it retched out some fish right in front of me.
I scrambled back when the slime-coated contents spilled out of the dragon's mouth. Thanks to my upgraded sense of smell, I was blasted by the stench of the dead fish. Considering the fact that it had previously been digesting in a dragon's stomach, the pile didn't smell as horrid as it could have. Nevertheless I wrinkled my nose at the smell, and I made a disgusted sound.
Unfazed by my reaction, the Stormcutter looked from the fish pile to me. I cocked my head in confusion. In reply, it leaned down its head to push some of the fish towards me.
What was it—
Oh.
Oh.
Oh no.
I shook my head. No. There was no way that I was going to do that. No. Way. No.
The Stormcutter, undeterred, bent down and slurped up a fish. It made sure I was watching as it slowly swallowed its fishy meal. It made a satisfied crooning sound before before smiling at me as though it wanted to let me know that the "meal" was safe to eat. Then it pushed some of the fish my way again.
I cursed the fact that the dragon was able to push the pile deep enough into my refuge to reach me.
Now I had a real situation on my hands (or should I say claws? Paws? What the hell do you call these things that have taken the place of my arms and hands?) I was not going to eat a fish that had been vomited up by a dragon—by the Stormcutter least of all. However my stomach chose that moment to loudly state otherwise, much to my embarrassment. The Stormcutter took that as the okay to further encourage me to eat its idea of food.
WHERE'S HICCUP WHEN YOU NEED HIM!?
The staring contest that ensued seemed to strip years off of my life before I finally sighed. After giving the dragon my most annoyed expression, I walked over to the pile of heaved fish which, mercifully, no bugs of any kind had decided to land on. It didn't look like a pile of vomit as long as I refused to acknowledge the fact that it had a layer of slime on top of it.
I can't believe I'm going to do this.
It's either this or wait for Hiccup to come help.
I didn't really think I had the patience to wait that long. As I swallowed my pride by approaching the pile, I couldn't help but breath in the smell. Yep. While cringing, I decided that smelling should be avoided at all costs. The Stormcutter observed my movements carefully, probably believing that I'd back out if it looked away too early. Slowly, I scooped some in my mouth, trying to ignore the nasty sensation filling my mouth.
I tried to chew, but I was caught by surprise to realize that I couldn't. Opening and closing seemed to be the only two motions my jaws could make. Well that was just perfect. Now what? I had nasty stuff in my mouth and I couldn't even swallow it because dang it all I didn't know how!
After dropping more puked-up fish than desired, I finally decided to stop and try to recall how the Stormcutter had done it. It'd kinda…tilted its head back a little… I tried to copy from memory, so I wasn't prepared for the food to slip back and splatter on my back. I swear, the deep guttural sounds that the Stormcutter was making were laughs.
Well that had gone horribly.
Frustrated, I growled and stalked away from the fine mess I'd made. I laid in the back of the cave where I could do nothing but brood. Technically, yes, I was being juvenile, but if convicted I wouldn't have been able to care less at the moment.
I guess the plan for now is waiting for Hiccup.
A few minutes later, the Stormcutter suddenly made a chuff-like sound. Huffing, I turned to glare at it. However from where I was lying I could see that it was carrying a squirming fish in its mouth. Where had that come from? The Stormcutter jerked its head in the come over here motion. Too curious for my own good, I complied. It waited until I was close before suddenly throwing its head back. I watched as its neck bobbed, and it scarfed down the fish, slowly using its long tongue to usher the fish further down its throat. Once finished, it purred in satisfaction.
Before I could protest, it puked out a single fish in front of me. It nodded to me and then towards the fish. Your turn, it seemed to say. I sighed, still not really optimistic about these…eating lessons.
Convincing myself that I should at least humor the dragon, I scooped the fish into my mouth. After a handful of tries, I finally felt the fish slipping into the back of my throat. My esophagus seemed to expand in order to better allow the fish through. Thankfully the fish, in proportional ratio to my throat, was rather small, so my gag reflex didn't kick in. Admittedly it was a little satisfying when I was finally able to successfully swallow.
I shivered at the weird sensation of swallowing and tried not to groan. The experience had been as weird as it was satisfying. Glancing back up at the dragon, I was surprised to see it smiling. It purred, obviously pleased that I could finally eat like a regular dragon. I narrowed my eyes at it.
"Yeah, celebrate all you want," I muttered. "I'm not a real dragon just because I can eat like one."
I turned around and tried to lie down in a comfortable position. It was hardly a half hour before I felt something batting at my tail. While growling, I turned around, and the Stormcutter was all too pleased to have finally gotten my attention. It motioned with its head for me to come out. I stepped back a bit.
"Uh uh. No way."
It seemed to think I was being foolish because it barked at me. I shook my head. It barked again. I stepped backwards. A growl followed my action, causing me to jump back a step in surprise. While not an incredibly intimidating growl, the very fact that the Stormcutter was being relatively aggressive shocked me—more than it should have. I'd been getting too comfortable with it, I realized.
It, however, didn't seem to regret its actions as it sternly gestured for me to come out. I debated with myself. Go out there and risk being attacked or stay inside and further annoy the dragon? What would Hiccup do?
He'd probably never have annoyed it in the first place for one thing.
Shut up, logic.
I sighed. "Okay fine. But if Hiccup finds me dead, he will not be happy," I warned despite the fact that it still couldn't understand me.
I crept out of the cave while giving the Stormcutter the evil eye. In return, it gave me my space but not enough to let me scurry back into the safety of the cave without it being able to reach me first. Great. I winced at the burning sunlight as I finally exited the cave. To my surprise, the Stormcutter didn't do anything hostile but instead began walking, expecting me to follow.
I was too curious with its behavior to consider refusing. We trekked deep into the forest until we came across a brook. While not a terribly powerful waterway, the waters hosted small schools of fish who were employing the currents to get to their destination. The Stormcutter chirped. I looked up to see it standing in the middle of the brook. After confirming that I was paying attention, it stared intently into the waters, I watched curiously before it suddenly dunked its head in. When the Stormcutter's head came back up, it had a slippery, writhing fish in its mouth.
I frowned in confusion. "That's great, but I've already—"
It tossed the wriggling fish back into the waters. Then it tilted its head into the brook and looked at me. As soon as comprehension dawned on me, I jerked my head towards the brook then back to the Stormcutter. The Stormcutter nodded, understanding what I figured out.
I paused for a minute as I processed this information. This was getting crazy. A dragon, a supposedly mindless, blood-lusting dragon…is now my teacher. The same dragon that scarred my childhood.
I couldn't help but laugh at the irony as I shook my head. "Okay, okay," I said. "Let's give this a go."
If I'd still been human, I'd have rolled up my sleeves and braced myself for the oncoming plunge into freezing waters. Thanks to the insulating quality of my dragon form, I barely felt the cold pricks as I waded my way in. It took several tries and a few episodes of accidentally breathing in water before I finally clamped down on a fish's tail. It only took at least two hours. (Believe me; I checked. The sun doesn't lie.) The Stormcutter roared with joy at my accomplishment, and I had to admit that I was feeling a little proud myself. It was pretty awesome.
"Okay," I said through clinched teeth before tossing the fish away, "So you taught me a few new things. What else ya got?"
Confused by the sounds I was making, the Stormcutter stopped in the middle of its revelry and cocked its head. If I could have I would have face-palmed.
"Forgot. Language barrier. Right."
It cocked its head to the other side. I blinked as a thought came to me. I cocked my head. It cocked its head to the other side. I copied the movement again. It cocked its head again. I copied again. After a few minutes of this ongoing pattern, the frustrated Stormcutter briefly shoved me headfirst into the water. I spluttered as I tried to stand up and muster a good glare. It only laughed, and I couldn't help but huff.
"Yes. Ha ha. Very funny," I drawled sarcastically, eyeing it carefully. Time to test my theory. "Hey!"
The Stormcutter stopped laughing and cocked its head. I stood in the middle of the waters and made the dipping motion as though I was fishing again. Then I walked over to the land and sat on my haunches. I nodded in the direction of the waters. Then I cocked my head. I couldn't hold back a grin as comprehension seemed to light up its eyes. With some luck, we were on the same wavelength here.
Sooooo...Kinda filler-ish but it's still necessary.
—Tenchiko
P.S. To my dear Empire supporter: #LONGLIVELUKESKYWALKER #GRAYJEDIFORLIFE!
(also, patience my dear padawan [Cara normal]. Episode 8 is merely a December away)
