Chapter: VIII

-What went Wrong-

`Some people think me strange, some think me a sad excuse for a Viking. I think of me as just me. Nothing more. Should it come as a surprise with my relations with the other teens of my class? Not really, but it still hurts to see how twisted my image is...

Hiccup hadn't been quite fast enough on his run back, he had managed to trip over a few roots on more than one occasion and he had nearly run straight into a towering boulder once. Rain was starting to tap at his hair by the time he spotted the rear wall of his home. He actually liked living in the house that was closest to the forest. It gave him the ability to sneak out a lot more often than if the house was located in a more central area. He charged through the back door by the time the sky was completely covered over. Rain was hitting hard by now as he made his way to his room. It was on the upper level, situated on the rafters of the house. A lofty space, warm from the fire that would be burning below. Except now, with his dad out, he was the only one to tend to the precious building.

"Where is it? Where is it?" Hiccup repeated to himself as he searched for his night cloak. "Ah, here you are!" He exclaimed as he pulled down a bundled cloth from the upper rafters. It was his favorite garment. As he unfolded it, he took in it's It was a deep, earthy brown cloak, with a thick hood hemmed to the top. It had a single brooch of silver leaf work on the right shoulder, made by himself. It was trimmed with a decorative band of green cloth on the inner edge. As he put it on, he took in how smoothly it fell to the floor, how it draped across his shoulders and covered his chest. He was really quite fond of it, yet he never took it out. It was one of the things that the village didn't know about him. They will now.

Rain was falling steadily now, the sky was dark as the sun fell into the sea. Gobber wanted them at the Great Hall, middle of Nighttide he said. The others were probably there already, not wanting to walk out during the storm, Hiccup concluded. Lucky him. He had a starring contest with a dragon whilst the other teens of his group were sitting warmly by a fire, chowing down on food. 'Ah, whats a little rain anyways?'

Hiccup made his way out of the house, pulling up his hood. The hall was only visible through the haze of rain via the twin braziers that stood outside its massive door. As the boy moved his way up the steps, the Great Hall slowly came into clearer view. It was carved into a small spire of solid rock. Two great statues guarded the door leading into the main chamber. Hiccup heaved as he pushed aside the massive door.

The inside was only lit by torches that lined the walls, and by a large fire pit that centered the room. There were not many people inside, only a few others besides the main group that sat at the back. It was his classmates, and Gobber. Hiccup made his way over to the table next to the group. None had taken notice of him, not even Gobber. He picked his pallete of bread and fish before setting himself back down. He didn't care for the others at this point. They were so far from him to see any possible connection, he just let them go. He had longed to be a part of them when he was younger, but that felt like so many ages ago. He was too different to blend into their little group.

He took to his bread and fish with delight. He hadn't eaten at all that day, what from the walking, and the starring, and the talking.

Ruffnut was the first to take notice of the stranger sitting at the neighboring table. She took notice of the mysterious cloak, and the face that was hidden behind the hood. Hiccup didn't need to see her, to feel her gaze on his back side. It made him uncomfortable, like he was some stranger in her own house. The sad truth being it was somewhat real. He over heard her whisper into her brothers ear.

"Who is that?" He could pick up her slight tone of worry. Strangers on Berk were not commonly accepted. He couldn't stand it any longer. He couldn't stand being treated as a stranger. He pushed back his hood as he twirled around to coldly face her shocked gaze.

"I would rather like it if you didn't refer to me as a stranger." His words were low with a tone he didn't think he was capable of achieving. His voice fell across a silent room as the rest of the children looked over at the sudden intrusion, at the sudden appearance of a stern Hiccup in their midst. He looked over the table again, before turning to Gobber who was just as shocked to see him suddenly appear, "I'm, sorry for being here late." Hiccup felt he had some twinge of guilt for setting the night late for class. He was the one who had to make them wait over the storm for his arrival. Hiccup placed himself back in his seat, this time facing outwards from the table.

"Well, were all here. Lets begin." Gobber started off the night with his booming voice. All the heads turned to him as he began. "So, who would like to go first?" Heads turned to others as Fishlegs spoke out, "Um, first for what?"

"Fishlegs your up." Gobber beamed, like he had caught a whole net's worth of cod.

Fishlegs tensed up, unsure of what he was to do. "Up for what exactly?"

"Talk about what you did in the ring today." Gobber clarified.

"Oh, um. Well I knew the amount of shots that a Gronckle has?" Fishlegs hinted at questioning, if he had the right answer or not.

"Is that it?" Gobber asked.

"Ooh, Ooh. I-" Snotlout stood up, while he prepared to give his speech. "I fended off a vicious Gronckle attack!"

"Snotlout, you were talking to Astrid while you were blasted off your feet. You weren't 'fending off' anything." Tuffnut cleared up.

"Thats what you think." Snotlout gave Tuff a look of threat, not to make an embarrassment out of him.

"Well Astrid, where did you go wrong?" Gobber placed the talk somewhere else.

"I miss timed my somersault dive; threw off my reverse tumble." No one ever talked as technical as she did when it came to fighting. Most Vikings just regarded fighting as charging, dodging, attacking, and more charging. Astrid always added a note of technicality to it. To have purpose behind every movement.

"No no, you were great!" Snotlout tried his usual tactic of flirting with her. "That was so...Astrid." She simply brushed off the comments. Gobber had to change the point again.

"All right, where did Hiccup go wrong." Hiccup tensed up at the mention of his name. Before he could let out a reply, the teens started with their own.

"He showed up."

"He didn't get eaten."

"He's never where he should be."

Hiccup winced at the last remark. He always tried to put up an air of rigidity when faced with others belittling him, but it didn't work when he felt the awful truth in those last words. It was true, he didn't belong here. He didn't belong here in this group of Viking teens who would be all the merrier at the chance to kill a dragon, without bothering to ask any questions as to why? The worse truth in the words was that he didn't know where he should be. In all honesty, he should be dead. Thrice! Yet he had presented himself before the class, draped in his cloak.

"My mistake was that I didn't stand up for myself."

Hiccup quietly put forward his position. "I didn't stand up for himself when that Gronckle was after me." A silence stretched from his tone. "I didn't stand up for himself well enough when my father placed me in training. I didn't stand up for himself when I was bullied by Snotlout and the twins. I didn't stand up for himself when I let an entire village reject me as one of their own."

A silence fell across the group. No one would ever expect such a release from Hiccup. He always kept to himself. He never talked to anyone. To hear him so suddenly release a torrent of rejection and disappointment, all at once was too much to take in the moment.

Hiccup rose to his feet, he didn't belong here. He would accept it for now, but he knew he didn't belong here.

"I'll see you all in training tomorrow." With that he made his way to the door, his cloak drifting behind him.