Alright peoples, here's another chapter for you. I am sorry for possible typos, I did proofread but it is late and I am tired, I might have missed some.
Enjoy!
The Adventurous Adventures of Hiccup and Wrenlou
Crystal Light, Part VI
"Get up! Out! Hall, five minutes!"
Hiccup groaned as Dale left again, leaving the door open so that the early morning light shone into the small cabin. He sat up, rubbing his eyes as he tried to wake up from the deep sleep he had been in all night.
Toothless protested weakly when he slipped from the bed and pulled his boots closer. Since he was parted from the dragon during the day, Toothless wanted every last bit of his attention during the night, but often he fell asleep while he was scratching the dragon't chin, so Toothless demanded that he continued when they woke up.
"M'sorry bud," he mumbled and he leaned towards the dragon, resting his head against Toothless' side, "I wish I could stay... just five more minutes..."
"Come on!"
Hiccup grunted as he realized he had fallen asleep against Toothless's side and Wrenlou was now shaking him to wake up. He stood up and stretched, trying to wake up and he yawned widely. When he was about to leave he realized he was wearing only one boot, so he quickly ran back to put the other one on.
He ran after Wrenlou, Toothless following him closely. He couldn't blame the dragon. The only time they got to spend together this week was early mornings and late at night. Entering the Hall, he found Dale next to the table, his dragon at his side and his arms crossed.
"Alright. Here's the list," the man said matter-of-factly, "you know the drill. Be done by tonight, or don't expect dinner, got it?"
Wrenlou nodded while he took the scroll and Dale marched out of the Hall, his dragon ushering Toothless and Snowflake out. Hiccup sighed and rubbed his eyes again.
"I'm tired," he mumbled while he took the cup from the table, "I wanna sleep."
"Me too," Wrenlou said while he put the list down and took his own cup, holding it with shaking hands, "me too..."
They ate very little. Even with the hard work the last few days, and the fact that they hadn't eaten much in between tasks, they weren't very hungry. The exhaustion had taken their appetite, so they just drank the brew in the cup and then Wrenlou unfolded the list. There were a few things on there they had done before, like sweeping the Hall and washing the windows.
"Just start at the top? Hiccup asked and Wrenlou nodded.
"Just start at the top," he confirmed, "I'll get the brooms. We can start right here, in the Hall."
Hiccup nodded and sighed as Wrenlou left. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, exhaling slowly. He felt his body relax and drew a slow breath, almost allowing himself to be carried away by the arms of sleep.
A hand on his shoulder pulled him away from the waiting sleep and he groaned. He allowed Wrenlou to pull him to his feet and put a broom in his hands. Wrenlou smiled weakly.
"I'll start outside," he said suppressing a yawn, "why don't you start in here, and we can work towards each other."
"Okay," Hiccup mumbled, grabbing the broom with both his hands.
He was shaking on his legs, but using the walls and tables for support he was able to sweep the sand out. By that time Wrenlou was done as well and they met up in the Hall, to go to the next item on the list.
0-0-0-0-0-0
"I'm so tired," Hiccup complained while he dropped the logs, "my arms hurt."
"I know," Wrenlou said, and he yawned, "I'm tired too. But only two more days, then we'll be done."
Hiccup nodded and rubbed his eyes. The last five days Dale had woken them early, every day forcing them to get up before sunrise, and every day he had given them so much work that they had been busy till nightfall, hardly getting the chance to rest or eat. And after five days, it was beginning to take its toll. He was incredibly tired, exhausted almost, and his arms hurt whenever he tried to lift something. His legs felt like they were rusted and would hardly move, and he could swear that someone had replaced his brain with sawdust.
Just one look at Wrenlou told him he wasn't the only one that was dead tired. Wrenlou looked just as bad as he felt, with dark circles under his eyes, and he was struggling to stay awake. He was trying to encourage Hiccup, telling him that they would be able to do it, but he was so tired himself he hardly believed that anymore.
The logs were almost to heavy to lift and he stumbled into the Hall, dropping them as soon as he had the chance. He just stood there, swaying lightly on his feet, when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Come on," Wrenlou said, "we can do it."
But Hiccup shook his head. His legs were unwilling to go on, his head was feeling even stuffier, and just the thought of his bed made his eyes drop...
Someone shook him, calling his name and he opened his eyes, blinking at the light. He was staring into Wrenlou's eyes, the boy holding him at his shoulders.
"Come on," Wrenlou said again, "we can do this."
He nodded, his head falling to his chest again, but he shook the sleep that pulled him from all sides and turned around. The moment he took a step, his legs disappeared from under him and he fell, hitting the ground face first. He was barely aware that Wrenlou was shaking him again, trying to get him to wake up. He hardly felt how Wrenlou pulled him to his feet, half carrying and half dragging him to his cabin. The only thing he did realize was that he was suddenly in his bed and he closed his eyes with a happy sigh. Sleep was all he needed.
Wrenlou closed the door behind him. The moment he had seen Hiccup go down, he knew that the boy couldn't go on any longer. The problem was, neither could he. He could feel how exhaustion was getting to him, how his legs were shaking with every step. It was getting harder and harder to keep his eyes open.
He made it to the Hall, where he sat down for a moment, his head resting on his hands. He could feel his consciousness waning and he shook his head, trying to stay away and drive the sleep away. He figured that the best way to stay awake was to stay active, so he grabbed the list from the table and stumbled out of the door. On the plaza, he suddenly stopped walking, his legs feeling too heavy to lift. His head was spinning and when he tried to take another step, his legs couldn't carry him anymore and he fell, just as Hiccup had.
His arms were shaking when he tried to get up, and he lacked the strength to push himself from the ground. He grunted and started crawling towards the well, so he could use that to pull himself up. But only a few feet from where he fell, his energy reserve had been completely depleted, and he couldn't find the strength to go on. He rested his head on the ground, not even caring if he was laying in the middle of the plaza, he didn't have the strength to change that anyway, and closed his eyes.
0-0-0-0-0-0
The dragon riders were walking back from the beach, mainly because they were tired from the long day of flight exercise and wanted to give the dragons some rest. Both Toothless and Snowflake were trailing some distance behind them, and if dragons could pout, that was the expression that would have been on their faces. They refused to fly without their riders, and Toothless couldn't even fly without Hiccup, so they just lay curled around each other all day, doing their best to ignore everything Dale said, and if possible, do the exact opposite.
Dale sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. If he was honest, he missed Wrenlou and Hiccup during training. The two had become inseparable in just a few short weeks, and they would always find a way to make training more fun. He looked back at the other students, chatting with each other over that day's training. He knew Broghan thought he was being to harsh on them, that he shouldn't let them clean around the village all day, but considering the alternatives, he had been mild.
He turned back to the plaza and promptly froze. He stood still so suddenly that Broghan bumped into him.
"Dale, what..." Broghan started, but then he too froze.
Before any of the other riders could say something, Dale rushed forward, falling to his knees next to Wrenlou and pulling him in his arms. Broghan knelt on his other side.
"Is he okay? Did something happen? Dale?"
"I don't know..." Dale mumbled, while he placed two fingers against Wrenlou's neck. His heart was still beating strong, but his face was pale. He gently tapped the boy's cheek, but got no response. He shook him, tapping his cheek a little harder, calling his name. Wrenlou groaned, and opened his eyes, staring up at Dale.
"Wrenlou, what happened?" the man asked worriedly, "are you hurt? Where's Hiccup?"
"M'so tired..." Wrenlou mumbled and his eyes slid closed, "lemme sleep..."
But Dale shook him awake again. "Where's Hiccup?" he urged, "Wrenlou, where's Hiccup?"
"Sleeping..."Wrenlou mumbled, then his body went limp and his head fell back.
"Is he okay?" Broghan asked worriedly.
"He's just exhausted I think," Dale said adjusting Wrenlou's head on his shoulder so that he could lift him, "go see if Hiccup is in his bed, and let Toothless into the room."
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to put him in bed," Dale nodded to Wrenlou, "come to the Hall, okay?"
Broghan nodded, even if he was worried abut his brother he recognized Dale's authority and judgement. He gestured Toothless to follow him, while Snowflake walked so close behind Dale and Wrenlou it seemed she wanted to disappear into them.
He opened the door with his foot, balancing on one leg with a sleeping boy in his arms. Snowflake dashed into the room and wailed softly while he put her rider in bed, pulling the blanket around hi after he had taken of his boots. Wrenlou mumbled and turned away from him, curling into a ball.
"Alright," he mumbled while he tucked the blanket around Wrenlou, "why don't you just sleep for a while. You've earned it." He stood up, straightening his back. "Both of you have. Watch over him Snowflake."
The dragon huffed, as if she was trying to say "of course!" Dale smiled a little when he closed the door and quickly walked towards the Hall.
"Hiccup's in his bed, sleeping soundly," Broghan said as soon as he entered, "this is your fault you know. You made them work without time for breaks, and without time for proper rest."
Dale just shot him a glare, "I will not defend my choices to you Broghan. They broke the rules, I couldn't let it go. And besides," he turned around and jabbed a finger at the young man, "I could have told the Council. In my opinion I've been mild to them. Now you can stand here and question my decisions, or you can get something to eat, and then go to your brother. That's your choice."
With that, he turned around, leaning on the table. He took a deep breath as he pulled the list he had made for Hiccup and Wrenlou from his pocket. It had never been his intent to let them work to the point of exhaustion, and he had been worried when he had seen Wrenlou just lying on the ground.
After he had eaten, he stepped outside, watching the moon in the sky. It was clear to him that he couldn't wake the boys tomorrow morning and put them back to work. If he did that, worse things then collapsing from exhaustion may happen. No, he had to let them sleep, and think of something else to fill the last two days with. He decided to sleep on it. He was pretty tired himself after the long day, and he knew that this was a complicated matter he couldn't decide on now. He called his dragon and went to his cabin. When he closed the door behind him, he felt a small stab of guilt. Broghan had been right. It was his fault that Hiccup and Wrenlou pushed themselves over their limits. But then again, had they not broken the law?
He closed his eyes, the warmth of Starstruck seeping through the blanket, but he was unable to shake the image of Wrenlou laying on the ground. He did not sleep easy that night.