Hiccup slowly lowered his sword, letting the sharp tip sink into the soft earth.

Jackson Overland, the male tribute for district four. He preferred to be called Jack, and more often than not he was referred to as Jack Frost because of his snow-white hair and sapphire blue eyes. He was the heart throb of the Panam, and Hiccup remembered the shock that ran through the crowd when Jack, all dressed up, had told Creaser that he didn't have a girlfriend back home, and he never planned to have one.

Now he looked a little worse for wear, nothing at all like the teen the nation first saw. His hair was tangled and messy, mud splashed his pants and jacket, cuts and scratches littered his pale arms and neck, and a deep gash ran across his cheek, still dripping blood. He had a sword and quiver full of arrows strapped to his hip and a black backpack and bow slung across his shoulder. Other than that Hiccup could see no other weapons, but he wouldn't put it past him to have an armada of knives under his coat.

Jack glanced at the metal rods Hiccup had half in, half out of the pond. "Well, haven't you just been a busy bee."

"What do you want?" Hiccup growled, tightening his grip on his sword once again. Jack's attention turned back to Hiccup, and he was slightly surprised by how blue Jack's eyes were, even in the dark of night.

"An ally." Jack's hands had gone back to his sides, and Hiccup raised his sword again.

"Well, you're looking in the wrong place." Hiccup snapped.

Jack, however, just smiled. "No, I'm pretty sure I'm not."

This got Hiccup's attention (not that he didn't have it before). "Why would you even want me? Why not the girl from your district?" He asked, taking a small step towards the white haired teen. He couldn't understand how Jack could be so…so calm.

"I don't want to put myself with people like them." Jack's voice hardened ever so slightly. "And I think me and you are the ones who truly want to go home." He smiled faintly. "No money. No fame. Just home."

Hiccup faintly remembered from Jack's interview that he had a little sister. Emma, if he remembered right. She was the only family had left after his parents died, and he promised, right then and there with the whole country watching, to do anything to get back home. To get back to Emma.

"Okay, fine. But what makes you think you can trust me?" In all honesty, Hiccup wanted to hear him out, wanted to have an ally. Ever since he first saw him during the parade, he was just…drawn to him. Sure, he did have Toothless, but he wanted someone to talk to, to watch his back, to keep him sane. But he had learned in the first 5 seconds of being in the arena that you never place your trust in anyone. Even if it was the one thing you wanted.

"Honestly, nothing." Jack's smile grew bigger as he replied, and Hiccup couldn't help but blink.

Well, this was defiantly a first.

Hiccup's mind had torn in two. With only the small flickering fire to distract him, his mind has started its own battle. Did he want an ally? Yes, of course. Did Jack seem like a logical choice? Yes. Jack was a lot like him, or, at least, he hoped. Did he necessarily trust Jack? No. How could he? They only just talked for the first time. Could he trust Jack? Maybe. Maybe not.

Hiccup knew he was fine on his own, that he could support himself. He had Toothless now. He could defend himself, and Toothless could hunt for himself, and rescue Hiccup if anything did go wrong. He was sure Jack was capable of finding food himself, but Hiccup was a loner, and he didn't necessarily like the fact that he had to drag somebody along with him, despite the fact that he really, truly wanted Jack as an ally.

Hiccup was torn from his thoughts by a loud sneeze coming from the cave.

Toothless had groggily opened his eyes, the acid green glowing faintly in the dark. He was now slowly blinking, looking at Hiccup like he wasn't really there. Then he noticed Jack.

The dragon's eyes suddenly widened, then narrowed to slits, and he launched himself at the district 4 tribute with a low growl in his throat.

"Whoa Toothless!" Hiccup ran in front of the dragon, holding up his hands. "Jack's a friend!" He couldn't help but cringe ever so slightly as he spoke those three words. Jack wasn't a friend, but at the same time he didn't want to see the white haired boy die.

This seemed to calm Toothless down somewhat, and he slowly sat on his haunches, still giving Jack a suspicious glare. But really, who could blame him? He had become fiercely protective of Hiccup in the short time he had known him, so naturally the Night Fury would freak.

"So, is this what's got the Capital all hyped up about you?" Jack was staring at the dragon in awe. He took a carful step forward, and held out his hand. Toothless stared at it, crinkled his nose and lifted up his lip to sow his teeth as he let out a low growl. Jack took a step back.

"No, I'm pretty sure it's the sarcasm and the fighting skills." No one had know Hiccup's little 'secret' except Astrid until he found Toothless. And even then, no tributes knew, and he was relying heavily upon that if he was ever attacked.

Jack smiled, and then it fell as he noticed Toothless' tail. "What happened?"

"I think it got torn off when he was shot down." Hiccup mumbled, now scratching the black dragon's neck in an effort to calm him down completely.

Jack's eyes widened in shock. "Shot down?"

Hiccup opened his mouth to answer, and then quickly snapped it shut. He's told Jack too much already. "You should go sleep." He said, quickly changing the subject. He didn't necessarily want Jack here, but even then he looked dead on his feet, and Hiccup, despite being in a fight to the death, still had some heart. "Toothless won't mind if you sleep in the cave." He gave Toothless the look, and then turned towards the pond to retrieve the now cooled rods, but not before shooting one last thing over his shoulder. "And this doesn't mean were allies!"

Jack just snickered.

oOo

Hiccup didn't know how late he stayed up working on the tail fin. But he could finally feel the last 2 day's taking his toll. He had slept very little the first night, only 2, maybe 3 hours. And today he had been up and about and working nonstop on the tail fin.

"Hey," Hiccup jumped as a hand landed on his shoulder, and he reached for his sword as his snapped his head back, green eyes meeting blue.

"Jack?"

"You look exhausted." Jack had a small smile on his lips, and his features were drawn out by the small flickering fire, making dark shadows while illuminating his face at the same time making him look, in a way, exotic. "Come on, why don't you go to sleep?"

"I-I'm fine." Hiccup swatted his hand away, bringing his hand back to his side and trying to fight back the blush that, for unknown reasons to Hiccup, was rising in his cheeks. "I just need to put this together." Hiccup gestured to the different parts of the tail fin lying on the ground next to him, dragging his eyes away from Jacks.

"You can put it together tomorrow." Jack's hand retreated back to his side, and his eyes locked with Hiccup's again. He seemed determined to not look away. "Now go sleep, I can keep watch."

The idea of curling up next to a warm dragon was tempting to Hiccup, but he wanted so badly to finish his project. That way he wouldn't have to worry about it the next day, and he could probably properly ride Toothless, and finally be able to scout out the arena. That and he didn't really trust Jack, but the temptation of sleep seemed too good to resist. But still-

"I'm not going to kill you." Hiccup was pulled out of his thoughts by Jack's voice. He could hear the truth behind it, and the concern he had for him laced in.

"Yeah, but-"

"Hiccup, please." Jack cut him off. "You look dead on your feet, and I want you to be well rested for tomorrow, because we both know things aren't going to be easy tomorrow."

Hiccup decided right then and there he would place his trust in the older teen, even if it was only for the night. "…Okay."

Jack's gaze softened and he breathed a sigh of relief. "And here I thought I was stubborn."

"It runs in the family." Hiccup let a small smile cross his lips, then shook his head and took off at a fast walk to the cave where Toothless was waiting, tail wagging and grin in place.

Maybe it wouldn't hurt to keep Jack around for awhile.

oOo

Hiccup smiled as he held up the finished tail fin. It wasn't his best work, but with was done pretty damn well considering the little materials he had.

"See, now aren't you glad I made you sleep?" Jack smiled too as he came up behind Hiccup, crouching down next to the rock he was seated on.

True to his words, Jack hadn't murdered Hiccup in his sleep. Instead he let the auburn haired teen sleep in. Well, as much as you can when you're in a fight to the death on national television, and when he woke, shoved a chunk of cooked fish and his water bottle at him.

Hiccup scoffed, and then called to Toothless, who was rolling around in a freshly discovered patch of dragon nip on the edge of the cove.

When Toothless finally ambled over (after much calling and threatening and laughing from Jack), Hiccup couldn't keep the dragon still long enough to attach the tail fin. Finally, with a heated sight, he just pounced on the dragon's tail, once again ignoring Jack's laughter.

When he finally did get the stupid thing on, Toothless (who was rather excited) decided to take off, and Hiccup had to cling to his tail with one arm as he held the tail fin open with the other in an effort not to plunge to their death. Eventually the two crashed, and Jack ran to the pond to held Hiccup out, all the while trying, and failing, to contain his laughter (Hiccup was starting to regret his decisions from last night).

Jack then suggested that they tie some of the left over wire to the fin so that Hiccup could keep it open as he rode properly, and hopefully steer. Hiccup agreed, having no ideas of his own, and that soon ended up in crashing as well.

Hiccup (who had just about given up) was trying to sketch new ideas out in the sand with the tip of his dagger when the loud, frightful bang of the cannon went off. He, Jack and Toothless all jumped, and then Hiccup quickly did the math in his head.

They were down to 11 now.

Hiccup's eyes then went wide as an idea popped into his muddled brain. "That's it!"

"What's it?" Jack turned to look at Hiccup, abandoning Toothless as he went over to the teen. Toothless, not wanting to be left out followed.

Hiccup started eagerly sketching a design in the sand while explaining to Jack how he would forge another rod that would be a connecting rod which he would rig up to the tail fin and a pedal/switch like device. The 'switch' would be used to change to position of the tail fin while keeping it open, and all he had to do was make a little twitch in his foot to change it. Of course, he would need a saddle, or else the device wouldn't stay attached.

"Do you really think you can make something that complex?" Jack looked up at Hiccup when he finished, a mixed look of worry and admiration on his face. This 15 year old was a lot smarter than he had first thought. "This isn't like the tail fin Hic."

"I can damn well try Jack."

A/N:

More and more and more editing!

I added the glowing eyes because in the books, Toothless eyes glowed in the dark, and I thought that would be kinda cool.

Hiccup is really out of it when he's working on the tail fin, so he can't really control his actions at this point, and I think Jack would have been watching Hiccup ever since he first saw him at the reaping (not in a creepy way, but as a that guy is really cute kind of way)