The Vikings had been at Hogwarts for a week now, meaning the first task was in two. Harry wasn't happy about either. Ever since he and Hermione had discovered the Vikings were killing the dragons, they were avoiding them. Luckily, it wasn't that hard since the Vikings never seemed to be at the tables when it came to meal times. Gobber always sat at the teacher's table, but apart from him, there weren't any Vikings around.
Harry didn't know if he was sad or not about finding out the Vikings slayed dragons. He'd lost most of his respect for the one legged, scrawny Viking. The only thing that he could still say was: 'how could he have managed to kill those beasts?' Unless they were miniature, Harry knew there was no way Hiccup could have managed without help.
Hermione had been dragging Harry towards the common room for the past few moments, she didn't like how Harry and Ron were treating each other. She was torn between spending time with her smart best friend, or the one that constantly needed her help for homework.
"Come on, Hermione. This is never going to work," Harry muttered as they entered the common room. Unsurprisingly, there were a bunch of Gryffindor occupying the space. Ron happened to be sitting with his brothers at the tables to the left, snickering every so often.
Hermione dragged Harry over to the red headed boy, making the twins scatter. They gave Harry a quick glance, not understanding Ron's issue with Harry, before leaving the common room all together. Harry sensed a plan forming in their minds, but didn't say anything.
Ron looked up and sneered at Harry. "What, Hermione not good enough as a friend now, Liar?" he leered. Ron had taken the name 'Liar' for Harry and it managed to aggravate him to no extent. It was extremely annoying and Ron knew this, which was why he called him that in the first place.
Harry sighed. "Ron, you know I didn't put my name in that goblet," he said softly, his voice slightly pleading. As much as he loved Hermione as a friend, he missed being able to talk to Ron about almost anything, even late at night when they were about to go to bed.
Ron glanced up at Harry sceptically. "Really? Because it seems to me as though you're lapping all of this fame up," he spat.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Really? Ron, you know me better than anyone. Would I really want the fame?"
Ron looked up slowly. He shook his head slightly and sighed. "No, I guess not. I don't know, Harry...," he admitted.
Harry laughed slightly, despite how serious the situation was. "Of course, take your time. Just know, Ron, I'm still your friend," he turned to leave, all this sentimental crap giving him a headache, when he was stopped by a voice. It was one of the best things he'd heard in a long time.
"Leaving without your best friend?" Ron asked lightly, hopping up and standing next to Harry. Harry laughed, feeling lightheaded. Hermione's tactics had finally worn down Ron, which was really good for all three of them. Now they were the trio they should be.
Being as it was the weekend, they had no classes and they were free to do what they pleased on campus. That meant that they could stroll around and not worry about homework. Of course, Hermione being Hermione, was always stressed, but even she toned it down for the pair.
They sat down outside the school grounds on the grass, talking about random things like how they were glad to be back as a group, how boring classes were, or how annoying Malfoy was being. They avoided the impending Tournament, which Harry was completely fine with since he did not want to think about his inevitable doom.
After a while, they lapsed into a comfortable silence and Harry felt himself smile. He had his best friend back and he couldn't have been happier. It had been pretty uncomfortable for them all when they had been separated. But as much as he tried, he couldn't completely take his mind off Hiccup.
The one legged Viking didn't seem like the type to kill anything, let alone a dragon. Harry couldn't put his finger on why, but he knew there was no way such a small boy could ever kill one. He just didn't think it was possible, but he kept his thoughts to himself, unwilling to ruin the happy moment they were having.
Harry wondered for a moment; Ron and Harry were best friends, and it had been a nightmare while they were fighting. What if Hiccup had a best friend that he couldn't bring to Hogwarts with him? Was he missing his best friend? Harry felt his heart ache for the small boy at the thought of him being sad. It just wasn't right, nothing about the Viking made sense.
Hermione looked over to Harry and laughed. "What are you thinking about, Harry?" she asked lightly.
Harry shrugged and looked away, feeling his cheeks flush slightly. "Not much, Hermione," he replied.
Ron sat up straight and looked at him, smirking slightly. "Oh, there is definitely something that I missed, isn't there, Harry?" he teased.
Harry put his head in his hands and shook his head. He started to laugh and his body shook from the force of it. "Guys, lay off it. It's none of your business...," he said, but there was no force behind it that told them to back off. Instead, they pressed further.
Hermione chuckled and looked away. "Come on, Harry. We all know that look."
"What look?" Harry's head shot up, giving her a questioning glance.
Ron laughed as he caught on to what Hermione was implying. "The look, Harry. You're thinking about someone."
Harry sighed and shook his head slowly, smiling slightly. "Guys, if I liked someone in that way, I would have told you by now. So you know as well as I do that I don't," he said.
They laughed and shook him off, falling back into the grass. Harry found himself blushing further, not knowing how exactly to hide it. They couldn't have thought that he actually liked someone, though, right? Sure, he liked plenty of girls, but not in that way. Then there was Hiccup...but there weren't words for the way Harry felt about him.
Harry watched the Forbidden Forest for a moment, staring at it but thinking of Hiccup. Now that he'd thought of it, he couldn't help but wonder if Hiccup had friends back on Berk. Were they killing dragons and beating the high scores? Harry had so many questions, but he couldn't bring himself to actually talk to Hiccup; it would be far too awkward for his liking.
A movement caught Harry's eye and he looked up at it. His eyes fell on a person walking out of the forest slowly, a limp evident even from this distance. Harry looked closer as the figure emerged and saw that it was Hiccup.
Harry watched as the scrawny boy limped across the lawn and towards the castle. Harry couldn't stand it anymore and stood up, earning him a strange look from both his friends. They followed his eyes and saw Hiccup. While Hermione glared at him, Ron grinned and hopped up. Harry jogged over to Hiccup, startling him out of whatever thoughts he'd been in.
"Oh, Harry, I didn't see you there," Hiccup said, though his normally happy voice was strained. Harry noticed his harsh limp, on his one good leg. His face was covered in dirt, and what seemed to be burn marks. His arms had scrapes and cuts along them, some older than others. Harry felt a pang of sorrow for the Viking, knowing there was little he could do for him.
"Are you alright, Hiccup?" Harry asked worriedly.
Hiccup shrugged and continued to take weak steps. His prosthetic leg didn't provide much balance, but his wounded leg seemed worse off than his metal one. Harry felt incredibly bad for him, despite the dragons that he could have killed.
"I'm alright, it's nothing I haven't dealt with before," Hiccup said.
Harry knew what that meant: the Viking had been injured in battle and he was used to the pain. Somehow, Harry felt guilty...he knew it wasn't a good thing. Hermione would have his head for saying that about the killer of dragons. "Do you need any help?" he asked worriedly.
Hiccup shook his head and determinedly took another step. Unfortunately for him, his metal leg buckled and he almost fell to the ground, had Harry not seen it happening and caught him just before he hit the ground. Hiccup fell straight into Harry's arms and Harry almost grinned, but decided against it.
"Oh. Maybe help would be nice," Hiccup muttered, more to himself than to Harry.
Harry grinned and helped Hiccup back to his feet. "Where are we headed?" he asked happily. He was enjoying this far too much, but he couldn't help himself. Ron gave him a funny look, then looked back at Hiccup.
Hiccup shrugged. "I was going to go back to the tower, see my friends and all, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to climb all the steps," he muttered.
Harry looked over at Ron, giving him a nod. Ron returned it and stepped closer to Hiccup. "We can help you," Harry said, lifting his arm around the Vikings shoulder and helping to take the weight off his leg. Ron did the same with the other side and Hiccup was effortlessly picked up off the ground. Harry was surprised by how light the Viking was, despite everything.
Ron looked as though he was itching to ask Hiccup something. Hiccup sighed and gave Ron the 'go ahead' look. Ron grinned. "How's everything going?" he implied something, but Harry couldn't tell what it was.
"Horrible," Hiccup stated sadly.
Ron looked to Harry with a sad smile. Harry knew that whatever it was that they were talking about, it wasn't something that Harry was allowed to know. "What happened this time?"
Hiccup sighed angrily. "Well, I'd love to say that my idiot friend was there, but he wasn't fast enough. Actually, he was paying more attention to the keepers for once...so yeah. He got me a good one," he gestured down to his good leg with a pained expression.
Harry felt another throb at the thought that the young Viking was in pain. He didn't know what he could do and he just seemed so young, so innocent. Harry thought over Hiccup's words after a moment. He had been doing something dangerous, something his friends couldn't stop. This was something Hermione would be able to help with, it wasn't Harry's cup of tea.
Ron rolled his eyes. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Besides, I doubt he'll be letting you out of your sight now," he smirked knowingly.
Hiccup grimaced. "Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of," he muttered. He looked up at the tower for a moment before looking back at Ron. They seemed to share a knowing look and Harry felt himself get angry. He wanted to know what it was that they were talking about. He didn't like being left in the dark.
They entered the building and Harry sighed to himself. He didn't listen to Hiccup and Ron's conversation, since he wasn't going to understand a word of it. Instead he let his mind wander. He didn't think of how Hiccup killed dragons, instead he imagined Hiccup being a wizard, being one of Harry's own friends. He imagined being able to just talk to Hiccup freely without worrying of saying the wrong thing. Just talking, as he did with Ron and Hermione. It would have been nice to be friends with Hiccup, Harry thought, or even more. But he doubted Hiccup felt the same way.
Once they reached the top of the stairs, Hiccup gave the two wizards a farewell smile before darting inside. Harry sighed to himself as they headed down the stairs to their own common room. They heard thumping upstairs but didn't think anything of it. It was completely normal: they'd heard it for the past few weeks.
Hermione was sitting by the fire in the common room, her eyes focused on the fire, but her thoughts clearly elsewhere. Harry jumped onto the couch next to her and beamed at her. She startled and hit Harry lightly for scaring her. He chuckled to himself as she recovered and gave him a weak smile.
"Where did you guys go?" she asked, but she knew exactly where they had gone. She still didn't like Hiccup, or any of his group, and Harry knew that she had good reason. He still didn't trust Hiccup completely, or like that he killed dragons, but he couldn't help the way he felt.
Ron sat on the other side of Hermione and beamed. "We were talking to Hiccup. You won't believe what he's going through at the moment," he snickered, obviously pleased with Hiccup's current weak state.
Hermione glared at Ron. She still hadn't told him what they'd found out, of course, being that she hadn't talked to him in the whole week. "Ron, you know they kill dragons?" she asked softly, but her voice still the same confident one they'd come to know.
Ron paused for a moment, blinking slowly, before laughing slightly. "Well, yeah, I do. But, they don't anymore," he informed the pair.
Harry looked at Hermione sceptically. Had they heard right? And how did Ron know? He seemed like the least likely of people to know such facts ahead of time. He must have found out before Hermione - which would make her angry - and then asked Hiccup himself. That seemed like the only logical explanation for such statements.
"Really? How do you know, Ron?" Hermione asked. Harry could already feel his heart lifting before reminding himself not to get too optimistic.
Ron rolled his eyes. "I can't tell you that, what with Harry here and everything, but trust me, he doesn't kill them," he joked.
Hermione nodded, giving Harry a look. Harry held up his hands and laughed, hopping up off the couch. She rolled her eyes and watched as he darted out of the room. Much as he wanted to hear about how Ron knew that Hiccup didn't kill the dragons, he was too happy to learn that they didn't. He didn't have to worry about him being a killer anymore. His heart felt strangely light, as though nothing bad could happen for a while. But he knew, what with everything going on, something bad was bound to go wrong. He still needed to talk to that new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, he'd asked to see Harry earlier, but he was too busy with his friends.
Harry shook his head and sat on his bead lazily, closing his eyes as positive thoughts swirled around his head. He felt like he was up in the clouds, but he couldn't explain why. He imagined it had something to do with the cute little Viking upstairs somewhere, the one that didn't kill dragons.
Hiccup leaned against Toothless painfully. His leg was throbbing mercilessly, with no way to ease it. Gobber had suggested they chop it off, but Toothless and Hiccup had been quick to object. Upon closer inspection, it was just a deep cut, nothing too deadly. Toothless was feeling incredibly bad; his Viking was injured because of him. But Hiccup had been quick to point out that there wasn't anything that he could have done, and he was glad that Toothless had been watching the keepers as well. They were starting to get on his nerves. Nobody dared get close to Razor Neck - nobody except Hiccup - so when the keepers were on his case, saying that he wasn't doing a good enough job with the dragon, well, he got pretty mad. He'd like to see them go near him when he's angry.
Toothless looked over Hiccup's shoulder sadly. Hiccup looked up into his emerald eyes and smiled, glad to just have Toothless around. If Astrid was here, he would never hear the end of it. She would complain that he was a weakling, which might have been true, but Hiccup wasn't about to admit that to anyone else. Toothless didn't need Hiccup to say anything which was one of the many reasons they were so good together.
Hiccup sighed deeply as he relaxed into Toothless's side. The dragon curved his body to make it easier for him to do so, but also so it was comfortable for him. Hiccup looked up at the roof of their room sadly. The rest of the dragons were all doing so well, it was just Razor Neck that posed a problem. Hiccup had to go out at night to see them, simply because Razor Neck was just too dangerous during the day. He'd made the mistake of going earlier when he thought it would be fine, and came back with the injuries. Not that he wouldn't receive them anyway, but they were worse during the day.
"We're never going to be able to train him, Toothless," Hiccup said sadly.
Toothless gave Hiccup his cute eye. Hiccup smiled and scratched his chin weakly. The dragon purred happily as he put his head on the floor and let Hiccup stop scratching him. Hiccup rolled his eyes at the dragon. So much for comfort, he thought.
Hiccup's thoughts went over the past week. While the Vikings had had more work down with the keepers and their dragons, Hiccup helped with the others as well. He didn't go near Razor Neck until after sun down. As for the leash, well, they hadn't gotten around to building it. The keepers had suggested a material they could use which would be strong enough but the only downside was that they had to ask Dumbledore for it. So that wasn't happening any time soon.
The Vikings had been so busy that they had to be given their meals in their rooms, or sometimes at Hagrid's. Hagrid loved Toothless the most out of the Vikings dragons, but that wasn't a surprise. Toothless was pretty deadly and an extremely cool dragon. Hiccup was biased too, but most of the other villagers thought so too, and they were envious of the Night Fury.
With so many things going on, Hiccup hadn't been able to talk to his new friends. Well, he thought they were. About a week ago, there was a day it seemed like they were avoiding him. Of course, Ron still spoke to him, but Ron wasn't talking to Harry, and they were the main issue. Hiccup figured it had to do with something he'd said…but then Harry came to help when his leg had been at its worst.
Hiccup's thoughts went over to Ron. As the brother of one of the keepers, Ron spent a heap of time with him. Despite the Forbidden Forest being...well, forbidden, he still managed to spend time there. He'd met Toothless on numerous occasions and thought he was pretty neat. Toothless, however, wasn't fond of the red head and Hiccup understood it, however strange it was.
The day was nearing its end, which sadly meant that Hiccup would have to work with Razor Neck. He would eat in the hall before going down since his friends had all agreed that they would try to eat with everyone else. They knew that it would be strange if they never ate with the rest of the school so they would be eating with the others today, Hiccup still had time before they would be back, though.
Hiccup closed his eyes as he allowed himself to shut himself off for a while. He felt Toothless shift beneath him, getting himself into a comfortable position to sleep in. Hiccup smiled as he let his mind wander aimlessly, nothing really sticking into one thought. He was so tired, everything was just jumbled.
The dragons were too much work for Hiccup to handle, Razor Neck especially, and none of his friends were willing to go near him. It was just Hiccup, and it wasn't working very well. Though Razor Neck didn't want to attack Toothless, he was still bold enough to attack Hiccup. That made Toothless even angrier and Razor Neck knew to never do it when Toothless was paying attention. There were the few occasions where he was too stupid to remember the Night Fury, and things were sorted out quickly.
Hiccup had received several injuries on numerous accounts but the leg hurt more than anything he'd received before. The others were scratches, nothing he wouldn't get when flying on Toothless, and nothing he wasn't used to.
Hearing a knock, Hiccup sat up instantly. He watched as the door opened slowly, leading two figures inside. Hiccup scowled as he noticed Dumbledore and the new teacher, Professor Alastor Moody. He was the defence against the dark arts and many students had called him Mad Eye. Hiccup didn't like him any more than he liked the keepers, or any of the wizards, but he kept his thoughts to himself. He had to admit, he was slightly frightened by the man.
Toothless leapt to his feet and stood wearily behind Hiccup. The one legged boy slowly rose to his feet, losing his balance slightly and being caught by Toothless. He thanked the dragon and earned a low grumble in return.
Dumbledore stood looking at Hiccup expectantly. Hiccup sighed and stood straight, addressing both the teachers with a nod. They returned it, slightly stiffly. Hiccup almost rolled his eyes, but resisted. These people wouldn't have come here if they hadn't meant business.
"Hiccup, I'm sure you've met Professor Moody?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes shining happily. Apparently having the other Professor here gave the headmaster a sense of happiness. Hiccup wondered who this teacher really was. He'd heard rumours that he was an auror, but he hadn't a clue what that meant.
The Viking nodded slowly. "On an occasion," he replied.
Professor Moody grinned, his glass eye watching the dragon wearily. Hiccup found the eye gross, it was like one of the Viking's on Berk, but instead it moved to where the teacher wanted to look. It was creepy beyond belief yet Hiccup thought it would be pretty handy. If he had to lose an eye, he'd want a replacement like this one.
Dumbledore nodded and stepped forward, crossing his pale arms across his robes to meet in the middle. "Right. Well, as you're aware, young Harry is entering the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore started. Hiccup nodded, despite everything. He did understand this but he also knew where it was going. Dumbledore would want something from the Viking like he always did. They never had a conversation that didn't involve their deal, or something along those lines.
Professor Moody stepped forward, leaning heavily on his wooden stick. For such a short man, he did a good job of intimidating Hiccup. Not that that was a hard thing to do, of course, just that he did a good job. "We can't risk anything happening to the young lad," he spoke harshly and in a tongue that made little sense to Hiccup, yet he understood what he was saying.
"You want me to make the dragons too easy for Harry so that he doesn't have any drama?" Hiccup asked, rolling his eyes. He hoped they didn't mean that, because, let's face it, there was no way Hiccup could get Razor Neck to do anything he wanted. There was just no way.
Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, that would be preferable but, as I am to understand, you have had some difficulties with one of the dragons?" he asked sceptically.
Hiccup sighed and nodded. "Yeah, he doesn't let anyone near him," he admitted. As much as he hated to admit it, he couldn't train this dragon. It was like the Whispering Death that wanted so badly to kill Toothless. He couldn't train that one. Now he seemed to be having the same troubles, but on a different scale. At least the Whispering Death hadn't hurt him, just scared him a bit.
Professor Moody looked thoughtful as he leant on the cane. "There are several things we could do to help you, if you so desire," he started.
Hiccup hurried to shake his head. "That won't be necessary; I just need time. Toothless and I can do this as long as no one does anything stupid around him, I know that we can do it," he said determinedly.
Dumbledore smiled. "That's good to hear, Hiccup. As I'm sure you're aware, if this doesn't work out, the dragons won't live for very long." Without waiting for Hiccup to say anything, he turned to leave. Professor Moody hung back for a moment, giving Toothless the once over. He shook his head angrily as he, too, left the tower.
Hiccup turned to Toothless angrily. Toothless looked pretty unhappy too, with the lives of the dragons being threatened and all that. It was pretty bad for a dragon to have to hear that sort of thing. Hiccup understood it too because when they'd first met, Toothless wasn't exactly Hiccup's favourite dragon.
Looking around, Hiccup sighed. "We have to make sure that this works, bud," Hiccup said sadly.
Toothless purred and pushed against Hiccup lightly. He grinned and hugged his neck happily. Even when the dragon was sad, he always found a way to cheer up his Viking. He sat back on his hind legs as Hiccup stood back and looked around the room.
"Well, I'm starving," he stated, his mood lifting completely. Toothless grumbled in agreement. Hiccup knew that Toothless would be getting food eventually, but from some unknown source. As for Hiccup, the dinner was almost ready. He would have to head down soon so that he would be there on time and wouldn't have to limp in with everyone watching him.
Toothless ran over to the fire happily. Hiccup rolled his eyes and called out a farewell, before heading out the stairs. The dragon watched Hiccup limp out the door, slightly ashamed, yet he knew there wasn't anything he could do. Toothless breathed heavily and closed his eyes, moving closer to the fire.
Hiccup chuckled to himself as he left the tower and headed down the numerous stairs. He wasn't in his right mind as he landed on the last step, almost toppling over. He grabbed hold of the rail for support and sighed angry to himself. It was just his luck that he had a bung leg and a metal one. Some would even say it was quite the predicament.
As he walked down the corridor, Hiccup met the stares of plenty of wizards. He knew what they were thinking, he didn't need to be a wizard to know that. They were all wondering why he was injured again and why they hadn't shown up for many meals over the past week.
Hiccup smirked inwardly as he thought of how Toothless would handle this situation. He would have scared all the silly wizards out of their wits, which would have been hilarious to watch. Maybe Hiccup should do that...bring Toothless into the Great Hall and have him pretend to attack Hiccup. The young boy laughed at himself at the thought. Of course, Dumbledore wouldn't be too happy to see such a thing, but it would be priceless. It would have to wait until after the First Task though.
The other Vikings were already seated in the hall, talking amongst themselves. They looked up as Hiccup sat next to Hiccup, already aware of his limp. Snotlout had laughed at him and the twins thought it incredibly cool and wanted their dragon to blow them up. Yeah, they were strange. Astrid had offered small amounts of sympathy, but Hiccup could tell that she didn't really care. Then there was Fishlegs, who really didn't seem to bother. He was thinking, off in Valhalla, probably about the dragons.
"Are you going to be going down to the dragons tonight?" Astrid asked Hiccup. It was quiet, yet there weren't very many people in listening distance from them. No one they were concerned with, anyway.
Hiccup sighed resentfully and nodded. "Yeah, I have to," he replied.
She nodded and leaned in closer to Hiccup. "We were told to show up too. Something about our leader being there...," she explained.
Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Gobber didn't show?" he asked lightly.
She hit him lightly on the shoulder. "Of course. They meant you, Hiccup," she teased.
He laughed to himself. "Sure, well, I'll be there. I have to work with Razor Neck."
Astrid nodded sadly. "Yeah, I know. I really want to help you but...," she trailed off unhappily.
"Yeah, I know. It's too dangerous," Hiccup finished. He knew it was dangerous, even for him, so he wasn't going to allow any of his friends near the dragon. None of them had dragons which had an influence over the Hungarian Horntail, Hiccup didn't think it would be wise to involve them. At least with Toothless the whole situation was much safer, if you could go that far.
More students started to enter the hall and their conversation steered away from the dragons. They started to talk in their natural tongue, about the things that could be happening on Berk and such. Hiccup talked to both Astrid and Fishlegs, mainly about the upcoming dragon race. It was something new to the island, but extremely fun. With the teens away, the festivities would be passed to the older generations and their dragons, which would have been funny to watch. None of the older Vikings really had fast dragons and they generally stuck with the sturdy Gronkles or the Nadders. Neither were particular fast, maybe the Nadder.
Dumbledore stood at the front pedestal once everyone was in the room. He announced that the meal had begun, making plates appear on the tables. Hiccup watched as the wizards dug into their food as though there was no tomorrow.
After a short while, the Vikings were all eating too busily to talk much. Ruff and Tuff were being stupid however, throwing food at each other. Hiccup laughed as Tuffnut's blond hair caught a piece of beef. Ruffnut snickered as she watched her brother struggle to get it out.
Hiccup turned around in his chair, looking at the rest of the hall. There wasn't really that much happening, but it was loud. Like, really loud. Almost to the point where Hiccup wondered what was going on. It seemed that all the wizards were talking about the same thing. Hiccup exchanged glances with Astrid and Fishlegs, but they seemed just as clueless as he was.
For the first time that meal, Hiccup turned to his left and saw Harry and his gang sitting next to him. He felt ashamed that he hadn't noticed them, but recovered quickly. He greeted them quickly, which they all repeated themselves. Hiccup could tell they were all happy, Hermione especially, but Harry not as much. What was going on?
"You feeling better, Hiccup?" Ron asked from across the table, his mouth full of food. Hiccup rolled his eyes, it wasn't anything that he wasn't used to. Berk was notorious for bad food eating habits.
Hiccup shrugged. "Eventually. I still have to go back out there tonight though," he shivered at his impending doom. So long as Toothless was there, he knew it couldn't end too badly.
Harry looked at Ron, then back at Hiccup. "Where do you have to go?" he asked curiously, yet slightly confused. Hiccup instantly felt bad for leaving him in the dark. It wasn't his fault that he was part of the Tournament, now, was it?
Hiccup looked around for a moment. "Nowhere too important. But I promise…you'll know soon," he explained. He didn't want Harry going into the Tournament completely blind, he had to give him some idea of what he was going up against. He just couldn't do it with Dumbledore breathing down his neck...or any of the other wizards, for that matter. It was a lot of pressure for one little Viking to handle.
Ron looked at Hiccup, his expression surprised. "How? You're not meant to tell the champions anything," he exclaimed.
Hiccup shrugged. "With the way they're treating us, I think we deserve to do what we like," he said hotly.
Ron nodded slowly, his eyes calculating. "Well, as long as he doesn't tell anyone else."
"Guys, right here?" Harry interjected suddenly.
Hiccup laughed and leant back in the chair. "Of course, Harry, my bad...how could I have forgotten?" he asked himself lightly. Harry rolled his eyes at the Viking, which didn't go unnoticed.
The meal progressed slowly and Hiccup felt himself growing weary, the training session ahead of him making him feel slightly sick. He didn't want to be anywhere near Razor Neck. He didn't feel like dying so soon.
Hiccup looked around as he lapsed into his own thoughts. No one talked to him, the Vikings having their own conversations and the wizards turning back to their own. His mind wandered to the dragon upstairs, the one which he liked and he knew liked him back. He knew Toothless wouldn't intentionally hurt him, not anymore. Their days of hating each other were over, and Hiccup couldn't have been more pleased.
Dumbledore and the rest of the teachers left the hall, dismissing the wizards leave as well. Hiccup stood up and dragged his legs towards the exit. He could sense the other Vikings behind him, laughing, but he paid them no mind. He was starting to feel slightly better and his limp wasn't as pronounced as before, but it was still there.
Hiccup went straight up to his dragon before anyone could stop him. Toothless jumped onto him and started to check for more injuries. Hiccup rolled his eyes and grabbed the dragon's saddle. Toothless jumped around excitedly, barely holding still long enough for the Viking to clip the gear up properly. Hiccup rolled his eyes as he ran over to the balcony. The rest of the Vikings were getting their dragons ready, but they gave Hiccup the go ahead look. He grinned and hopped into the saddle, clicking his metal foot into place.
Toothless shot into the air, his wings making a whistling sound. He shot towards the Forest at a speed that unmatched by any other dragon. Hiccup leaned forward and grinned as the dragon picked up speed before dropping to the ground in front of the keepers. He'd been coming up with creative new ways to startle the keepers, and this one seemed to be a keeper in itself.
Charlie Weasley scowled slightly as he approached Hiccup, but only when Hiccup was off the dragon. Hiccup stood up straight and let the keeper approach him. The other two keepers followed quietly behind, their expressions grim. "Are your friends coming?" he asked.
Hiccup nodded, giving a pointed look to the sky. At that moment, the group of dragons were spotted in the sky, trying to find a nice place to land. They hadn't been that far behind Hiccup and Toothless, it seemed. Once they had landed, Charlie nodded to all of them, which they returned.
"We're here to talk about the Tournament, yes?" Hiccup asked.
Charlie nodded. "Yes. Come with me," he said, gesturing to walk with him. Where he wanted them to go, Hiccup didn't have a clue.
The Vikings followed behind the three keepers silently. Hiccup's limp was getting progressively better, which was good, because the keepers didn't seem to notice it. Toothless followed silently behind Hiccup, constantly watching him to make sure he wasn't in danger.
They arrived at what seemed to be an arena, after ten minutes into the walk. The arena wasn't in the forest any more, instead it was filled with chairs and rocks inside. The walls were high and filled with flags. Hiccup felt that this would make a good training arena for the dragons of Berk, but he wasn't going to say anything.
"This is the arena in which the first task will be held," Charlie explained. The Vikings waited for the rest of the explanation patiently. "Your task will be to get the dragons used to being inside it, and to make sure that they protect the egg, but do not attack without reason." He gave Hiccup a pointed look at this.
Hiccup frowned. "You want us to make sure that the dragons are able to protect an egg, but only attack when the champion is going towards it?" he repeated, not quite understanding.
Kingsley nodded. "Yeah, that would be exactly what we're asking you to do," he replied.
Astrid looked around the arena for a moment, scanning the sky and what could go wrong in a setting like this. "How are the dragons going to know that they are to stay in the arena, and not just fly out the top?" she asked.
Jeremy stepped forwards and pointed to a bolt in the ground. "Each dragon will be attached to the ground with a ten metre long metal chain. There is no way they will be able to break it."
Hiccup scowled to himself, not liking the idea. However, he felt slightly comforted that Razor Neck wouldn't be able to run straight at Hiccup when they were training. That brought them to their next problem, though, didn't it? How was Hiccup going to be able to make sure that Razor Neck simply guarded the egg, and not attack the first person who got close to him? It wasn't going to be easy, that was for sure.
They headed back to the dragons slowly. Astrid talked to Fishlegs about tactics, working together and such. Hiccup thought it would be a good idea, if he wasn't so protective over his friends. Toothless stayed back with Hiccup and watched him. He was paying attention to his Viking, but also to the keepers, who kept sending glances towards Hiccup while talking amongst themselves.
Once they were back at the camp site, the Vikings split up. They went to their respective dragons and gave them some food. Hiccup slowly walked over to Razor Neck, dreading the confrontation already. Toothless bared his teeth in warning as they approached the crazed dragon, warning him not to harm Hiccup again.
Razor Neck leapt forward in the cage, pushing it over and almost moving it from its place on the ground. Hiccup stood his ground and looked directly into the eyes of the dragon, something you should never do with a dragon unless you're trying to intimidate them. Razor Neck held firm and refused to look away, forcing Hiccup to step closer and raise his head.
Toothless watched the stare off angrily, growling lowly at Razor Neck to look away, to submit. Razor Neck made no such move and Hiccup took another step forward. The dragon backed away slowly, knowing full well he couldn't win this. He lowered his head slightly and clicked his tongue, submitting to Hiccup's stare. Hiccup nodded harshly, not wanting to show that he was thankful the dragon hadn't hurt him.
Hiccup walked to the cage and grabbed the fish which had been placed near it. Razor Neck stepped forwards and croaked happily, wanting the food. He lowered his head to Hiccup's level and tried to press closer for the food. Hiccup took it away from him and scowled at him. Razor Neck roared at Hiccup, wanting the food.
"No," Hiccup said sternly.
Razor Neck stood up straight and prepared the fire in the back of his throat. Toothless instantly hissed and jumped over Hiccup, covering him with his large near black but blue wings. Hiccup frowned as he bent closer to the ground, knowing that Toothless would be trying to get the fish himself. He rolled his eyes as he felt the familiar tug at the one in his hand.
Once Razor Neck had calmed down, Toothless unwrapped himself from around the Viking. He looked at him with big eyes, expecting some form of reward. Hiccup rolled his eyes and held the fish up above his head, teasing the dragon. Toothless, being a Night Fury, was quick enough to catch the fish before Hiccup could move it.
Hiccup laughed and scratched the dragons head as he ate. Toothless mumbled appreciatively with the food in his mouth. He looked back up to Razor Neck, expecting to see a furious dragon but was met with what looked like a jealous one. Hiccup furrowed his brows as he thought as to why the dragon would feel this way.
Toothless sat back lazily as he watched the dragon. Razor Neck regarded Toothless briefly before looking at Hiccup. His face dissolved slightly into one of liking, before his hard glance returned. Hiccup sighed, this dragon just going to give in.
Taking a step closer, Hiccup held out the fish tenderly to the dragon. Razor Neck cautiously stepped closer to him and stuck out a hard red tongue through the cage bars. Hiccup rolled his eyes and stepped right up to the cage. He held the fish out and into the bars, allowing the dragon to take it whole.
Razor Neck quickly threw the fish into the air with his teeth and swallowed the thing whole. He looked at Hiccup with a different expression to those he'd given him before. It was one of trust, something he never thought to see in such a dragon. Hiccup smiled kindly at him, handing him another piece of fish.
Again, Razor Neck swallowed the fish whole. He clicked his tongue happily as he waited patiently for Hiccup to move. His entire hostile demeanour disappeared, and he seemed like a different dragon. Hiccup had to admit, he liked this side to the dragon. It was the first time that he'd seen it, and he hoped it wasn't the last.
Eventually, the fish was finished and the dragon sat down happily, closing its wings over its legs. Hiccup watched it with a smile on his face. Razor Neck seemed to have a cold exterior, but he could sense that something had happened in his life to make him this way, a sincere lack of distrust like this could only be the result of some sort of previous incident. He needed to talk to the keepers.