Banished, chapter 6, A new way of life
[Autumn, year one]
Cuyler calmly sat by the fire, the embers crackling softly as they warmed the hut. He was looking across the fire, where a scrawny boy lay against a large dragon. Both slowly breathing in their sleeping state. It was a strange picture, and not one Cuyler had ever expected to see. The dragon had one paw wrapped around the boy, and the boy held on to the paw like it was a stuffed toy.
Through the few days that Hiccup had been at the camp Cuyler had slowly started to learn more about the boy and his dragon. Apparently he had come from a village where they fought the beast regularly, since they were raided for food. Hiccup had explained that the dragons were forced to do this, but he didn't go into the details. He had claimed that dragons wouldn't hurt you if you treat them right. And Cuyler wasn't sure if it was his minds playing tricks on him or the way the Night Fury had been rolling in the grass when he said it, but he thought he believed the boy.
He had heard stories about the Night Fury. It was a dragon that was so deadly and so dangerous that they advised every Viking that could hear the sound of its whistle to run and hide as quickly as they could. For the ferocious beast would spare no one.
He had learned of a whole different truth in the past few days.
Toothless, as Hiccup called the black dragon, was a gentle and kind creature. It allowed Heather to pet it after the first day. And would gently nuzzle your hand for a piece of fish extra. The dragon would play outside, running around in the sun and rolling through the grass. Most nomads would stay away when the dragon did these tricks, but as the days passed they accepted it as normal life. They couldn't afford to watch the black blur jump around every time. They had work to do.
Cuyler sighed as he looked at the boy, so calm and peaceful. Sometimes he'd move in his sleep and the dragon would tighten his grip in the boy, or he'd hit his leg on something and wince while he dreamed.
He had also learned that Hiccup was a closed person, and wasn't a huge fan of talking about himself. He was a great listener though. He loved the stories Cuyler could tell about the days he'd hunt, stalking through the forest. Or the stories about the terrible winters they had, and how their group always had a great struggle to get enough firewood and food for everyone.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, and calmly leaned his head against it. A finger nuzzled his cheek, and he calmly watched the boy sleep. He looked besides him, Helga standing next to him, also looking at the sleeping boy on the other side of the room.
"I never should have given in." Helga said softly as she watched the large dragon sleep. Cuyler sighed sadly as he heard his wife speak. She still didn't like Hiccup and Toothless staying at their home. She tolerated them, and she was nice to them too. But she didn't like the idea of them staying with them, eating their food, warming themselves by their fire. As if they didn't have enough to worry about.
"Calm down honey." Cuyler said softly as he adjusted the embers with an iron rod. "We still have food, we still have firewood."
Hegla huffed. Cuyler was always so simple. Food and firewood. That was all that would keep them alive. But what if they grew cold? Hiccup was using the spare blanket. What if food supplies ran low? The dragon ate a day worth of food in one meal. They couldn't survive like this. "You're an idiot." Helga said softly as she sat down next to him. Wrapping an arm around her husband. "Too good for this world."
"Perhaps I am." Cuyler said as he looked at his wife. He took her hand, holding it with both of his. "But I got a good feeling about this kid, I know he'll help us."
"How can you be so sure?" Helga asked. "He's a fifteen year old kid who left his old home for his pet dragon. Who says he isn't going to leave us too?"
"He won't." Cuyler said calmly. "I saw it in his eyes." He added as he looked back at the sleeping boy. "He is scared Helga, he is scared every time one of us asks him about his leg. He is scared every time we ask if he can already walk, if he can already fly again."
"He likes being cared for." Helga said annoyed. "Food and care, he'll stay forever."
"No, that's not it." Cuyler said with a small chuckle, wrapping an arm around his wife. "He tries to help." He argued. "Can't you see?" He turned to his wife. "He offers to cook, he offers to clean, and he even tries his best to keep the fire going at night, while we all sleep."
"What is your point?" Helga asked Cuyler, wrapping her arm around him too.
"He's scared." Cuyler repeated. "Scared that we'll send him away, scared of being cast out again."
"He chose to leave his old village." Helga interrupted. "He chose for that himself."
"To protect his dragon." Cuyler said as he pointed at Toothless. "That boy didn't have many options."
Helga was silent as she looked at Hiccup. "But honey, I need to wonder." She began, Cuyler turning his head towards her to show that he was listening. "What happened to drive this boy to leave with his dragon? To choose for the enemy over his own village?"
"I don't know honey." Cuyler said. "But he didn't leave without reasons." He said, and he was certain of it. "Nobody leaves without a reason." Cuyler added while looking at the boy and his Dragon.
"He isn't telling us everything." Helga said as she leaned her head on her husband's shoulder. "There are gaps in his tale."
"Give it time, love." Cuyler said as he gently rubbed his hand along her back. "Give him time to open up, and give him time to explain."
"How much time should I give him?" Helga asked, looking at her husband. "How much should we spend on this 'good feeling' of yours."
Cuyler chuckled softly at his wife's scepticism. "All the time it will need love." He said, earning an annoyed look from his spouse.
He gave her a soft kiss on her cheek. His beard tickling her skin. "Trust me on this one."
"Fine." Helga huffed softly, defeated. "But it'll also be your mess to clean up if it goes wrong." She said as she pointed at the fish basket. "They'll be on your hands."
Cuyler looked at the fish basked, food was dwindling, and the fishers had a hard time supplying the camp, let alone a dragon. It was true that if food did run out, they didn't have any rights for extras, since he would have wasted it on the strange boy.
"Now, sleep." Helga said with a calm and love-filled tone. "You'll need to work tomorrow."
"Can I trust you with him?" Cuyler asked jokingly. "Won't you smother him in his sleep?"
"Not with the dragon around." Helga joked back, giving her husband a quick kiss before sitting down next to the fire, putting another log onto the smouldering embers. She heard the wooden bed creak softly behind her as Cuyler laid down in it. And she could hear the blankets rustle as he pulled them over himself.
She looked at the boy, calmly sleeping in the embrace of the dragon. Would he help them? Would he bring more food and firewood so they could pull through the winter better? She didn't know. But she did know that if this continued, the blood of the group would be on their hands. Everyone knew where a big cut of the daily catch went, which left only a small portion to go to storage.
The stocks weren't rising quickly enough. Winter was approaching though, and it didn't look good.
"Help us." She whispered softly over the fire, hoping it would somehow reach the sleeping boy. "Prove me wrong." She said, which she really wanted. She wanted to believe the boy would help them. That he'd bring loads of fish, and supply them with amounts of wood they would never be able to imagine. But she simply couldn't. It sounded too good to be true. "I beg you." She said softly, before turning her attention towards the small log she had placed on the embers, which was starting to catch fire.
The sun creeped up on the horizon like a wolf upon unsuspecting prey. And then slowly peeked above it, lighting the world with the first rays of sunlight for the day. However, daylight didn't mean the start of the day. Not for the group of nomads. They rose even before the sunlight, when they could place torches in the water to attract fish. They'd come towards the shore in search of food and small prey, only to become it themselves.
The hunters had already set out, and Cuyler had left early again. Perhaps they could find a sleeping group of boars or deer. They'd be able to take full advantage of the sleepy animals.
Foresters had also begun their work, and the sound of their labour could be heard faintly in the camp. The axes and hatchets that cut into the wood, the saws that sawed the logs onto smaller parts, and finally the splitting axe that chopped it all into firewood.
Hiccup woke up from the sound of men and women dragging a log past their hut, heavy grunting and huffing evident as they used ropes to drag the long piece of tree towards the woodcutters.
His muscles were stiff, probably because of the way he had slept. Leaning against Toothless was comfortable, especially with a blanket and his paw around him. But after a full night sleep it was clear that it wasn't the best way to lie at night.
He stretched his arms, hearing a small croon from behind him. He turned looked at the origin of the sound, earning a playful nuzzle by the large dragon. Toothless had probably been awake for a while, but hadn't moved so Hiccup wouldn't wake up.
He petted his dragon calmly before stretching his arms, rolling his shoulder to get feeling back in everything after the night rest. He then stretched his legs, still feeling pressure in his ankle, but not so much pain.
He stood up, careful not to put pressure on his bad leg. Even if it felt good, he didn't want to overdo it. He stood straight, leaning on Toothless with one hand, his bad leg lifted from the ground. He slowly set it down, putting more and more pressure onto it until it was what it would normally be. He felt pain, but it didn't hurt. It was more a notification that it still wasn't fully healed then an indication that it was wrong.
He took a few steps, looking around the room. He could see Helga sitting on a bench, which they'd use to sleep on at night. She was cutting some kind of root, probably for lunch or dinner. She had her back turned to Hiccup, and was using the bench as cutting board.
"Helga, look." Hiccup said excited, he was happy that he could at least stand and walk again. "It's better."
Helga turned around, a smile growing on her lips when she saw Hiccup standing beside his dragon. She was glad for multiple reasons. It was always good to see someone heal from an injury, even a small one like a sprain or a bad bruise. But it also meant that he could help them, if he chose to do so.
"Great." She said genuinely. "But don't over-do it, it might come back if you stress it too much."
Hiccup looked at his leg, then back at Helga. "Is there something I can do? Now that my leg is better."
Helga let out a sigh of relieve, at least he'd help a bit. Perhaps Cuyler had been right all along, but she didn't want to get her hopes up. The boy had a lot of catching up to do if he wanted to get there stocks to where they would be if he never came, let alone if he really wanted to get them high enough for them to get through the winter calmly.
She thought deeply. "Do you think you'll be able to fly a bit?" She asked. "Your dragon is probably up for it, and it would be good training for your leg."
She could see a smile grow on Hiccup's face, and it warmed her to see the boy so happy. The dragon also recognised the word about flight, and his ears perked up accordingly. "That's a good tip Helga." Hiccup said as he turned to Toothless, grabbing the large dragon by the side of his head, looking him in the eyes. "You want to do some flying bud?" He asked, the dragon warbling excited.
"Be careful." Helga said as she saw Hiccup carefully walking towards the door. "And don't strain your leg too much."
"I won't." Hiccup said as he guided Toothless through the door, following quickly. The sun was soft, it had climbed a bit and now hung low on the horizon. Luckily it wasn't as intense as it would be in the summer. He hadn't been outside in a few days, instead staying in the hut, trying to help where he could. But mainly just resting.
Toothless didn't mind the long break. They had flown almost every day during the weeks before meeting the nomads. And even though he was a strong and healthy dragon that could easily fly incredible distances he still enjoyed the rest. He was slowly getting actious though, since not flying for a full week was a something he had only done once, and that was when he had just been shot down. To say the dragon longed for the sky would be an overstatement, but the reptile would agree that it would be nice to stretch his wings again, allowing them to glide on the winds.
They were greeted with a couple of stares. Most just curious this time, some surprised to see the boy and the dragon outside. That was because the boy had been inside the hut since the day they had arrived. He only left if the dragon went outside, to keep an eye on him and keep him in tow. Hiccup carefully climbed on Toothless, taking care not to strain his leg.
The dragon warbled happily as his riders connected the safety chords to the saddle. The Night Fury was getting excited, the outside air was much nicer than the inside of the hut to the dragon. Inside it smelled like sweat, filth and fire. Outside it smelled like grass, air and sea, it was way better.
"Easy bud." Hiccup said as the dragon looked around him excitingly. "Head that way." Hiccup said as he pointed towards the shore, where a couple of fish filled baskets stood next to some of the fishermen of the group. Toothless calmly strode over calmly, tail dragging over the ground behind him.
The fishermen looked curiously as the dragon approached with the boy on top. They quickly halted their conversation to turn their attention to the large beast and its rider. They stood in front of the filled baskets, since they had all heard about the apatite that the dragon had.
"Hi." Hiccup said awkwardly, earning a surprised look from some of the fishers. Nobody knew the boy well except Cuyler and Helga, but they didn't talk much about him. "You fish, right?"
"Yea." One of the fishermen said, a lean and tall man. "Name's Fiske." He added. He had dirty blonde hair that reached his shoulders. A simple braid kept most of it out of his face.
"Mine's Hiccup." Hiccup said calmly. "I was wondering if I could help with catching fish."
Now the fishermen really looked surprised. "Help?" Fiske asked curiously. "With fishing?"
"Yea." Hiccup said as he scratched his back. "Toothless is quite the fisher himself." He said as he patted the dragon. "If you have a net or something I could try to get him to swoop up a few."
The fishers looked at each other with sceptic looks. A dragon fishing for them, that sounded impossible, yet interesting. Fiske looked around before turning to Hiccup. "We might have an old net somewhere." He began. He wasn't going to risk the new and expensive nets on this. "Think that'll work?"
"It should." Hiccup said as he saw Fiske turn around and walk towards a small hut. He could hear materials and other stuff being replaced inside as he searched, and he eventually came out again with a net.
Well, net was doing it too much justice really. It was more a bundle of rope, filled with holes and covered in dried algae and other junk. Fiske dropped it on the ground, the other fishers nodding with approval. They didn't like the idea of wasting a new net either, and this one was almost ready to be scrapped and used for something else.
"Here you go lad." Fiske said as he kicked the net out. "Knock yourself out."
"Thanks." Hiccup said slowly as he looked at the net. There were a few holes large enough for fish to escape through, but he should have expected an older net. He just hadn't expected it to be this used. He grabbed a part of it and tied it to Toothless' saddle, getting him to drag it to a clear part of the beach.
The net looked heavy, but Toothless pulled it with little trouble. It was still tangled and tied in knots, but that was a problem Hiccup himself could easily work with. He observed the ball of netting in front of him, the many intertwining ropes making it difficult to immediately spot the way the nots were tied. But he soon noticed one of the weights on the corner, and decided that it was as good a start as any.
After some puzzling he had a second corner loose. It was sadly enough not clear if it was one of the adjacent ones or the opposite corner, but that would come soon enough. He first had other things to worry about. He untangled more and more pieces of the net, slowly laying it out on the rocky beach. Toothless looked with interest as the large ball of rope turned into a smaller, flatter version. The dragon had seen netting before. Sometimes pieces of it washed up on the shore, or it would see the nets be used in the heat of battle, being thrown over unsuspecting dragons to capture them.
Hiccup flattened the last part of the net, laying it out flat on the rocky beach. He stepped back to admire his work, and finally get a good look at the net. It indeed had quite a few holes in it, but he'd still be able to get a lot of fish with it. At least, that was what he hoped.
Fiske had stepped out of the water and had walked over towards him. "What's your plan?" He asked, a bit curious. He had fished for most of his life. But using a dragon to catch fish, that sounded way too difficult to be effective.
"I'm going to let Toothless stun the fish." Hiccup explained as he tied some of the loose strains of rope to fill the larger holes in the net. "Then we go back, grab the net and scoop them up with it."
Fiske looked at him dumbfounded. "You stun the fish?" He asked confused. "How do you do that?"
"Toothless shoots the surface where a school is." Hiccup explained as he gave the large dragon a scratch. "Apparently that's how Night Furies hunt, stunned fish float, just like dead ones."
Fiske made a mental note of this. If they managed to ever stun an entire school of fish they'd be able to quickly fill one or two baskets in no time. Perhaps the rumours he had heard were true after all.
Hiccup climbed onto Toothless, who stretched his wings impatiently. The dragon was itching to fly again, and Hiccup didn't mind it either. He calmly checked the saddle, earning interesting looks from the surrounding nomads. The nomads had never seen the boy and dragon fly. The of peace between Viking and dragon was strange, the idea of friendship was unlikely. But the idea of a Viking flying on dragon-back through the sky? That was unheard of.
But apparently the impossible would be made possible today. Toothless leaped into the air, careful to not do any strange or crazy manoeuvres. He didn't want to risk Hiccup straining his leg. They flew out to sea, both scanning the surface of the water for schools of fish. Through the past weeks, Hiccup had gotten better at it. Learning to spot the different colours that could indicate fish.
They flew for a while, carefully searching for a school of fish. Hiccup felt a bit nervous. He had to find that fish. These people had proven to be kind-hearted, to him and to Toothless. Sure, they were still a bit anxious about the dragon, but if he could prove himself and Toothless he was sure that would change.
The fishermen looked at the group with interest, leaving their work rest. They watched as the dragon and his rider pitched up, gaining altitude as they climbed in the sky. A simple roll send the duo diving back down towards the sea, and the fishermen could hear the faint whistle of the Night Fury's attack. Many of them had never heard the sound before, and this time it was far away. But it still send shivers down their spines.
They saw a soft flash of light, and then an explosion of water and mist on the surface. The dragon and its rider came flying out of that, heading back towards the shore. The fishermen walked towards the place where they thought he'd land, but Hiccup and Toothless had other ideas. They flew over, Toothless snatching the laid-out net as they swooped over.
The fishermen were left looking in awe as the dragon flew off with the net, heading back out to sea. And that all in the time it would have taken them to get a ship ready to begin with. Fiske walked over to a bunch of netting that they had dropped on the beach, sitting down on it. He was curious what the dragon would bring back.
He saw the dragon drop the net in the water, stopping its smooth and coordinated flight to hover over the net just above the water. The wings caused small clouds of vapor to form, and blinded them to see what the dragon was really doing.
Until it climbed again, carrying the net in his paws. The occasional fish was spilling from it because of the holes, so Toothless made sure to hurry back as quickly as he could. It wasn't easy for the dragon, the fish-filled net was heavy, and Night Furies were made for agility and speed more than brute force.
Fiske looked on with his mouth ajar as the two came back. The net was fuller then any single haul they would get from the shore. Sure, a ship could probably get more than such a haul in a single trip, but that trip would take a few days. Fiske and the other fishermen grabbed their baskets, waiting for the dragon to land.
Toothless waited until he felt the weight of the net lessen before dropping it, since it indicated that it had hit the ground. Once it had done that he let go of it. The net sagging in on itself. Fiske and another fisherman ran over, looking at the pile of fish.
The pile sagged, fish spilling all over the pebbles of the rocky beach. Twitching and flopping as they tried to find a way back to water, back into their natural habitat. Toothless landed next to the pile, looking at the pile with large eyes. He was fed the last couple of days, Hiccup would see to it, but not nearly as much as the dragon would have liked.
Hiccup noticed how the dragon started to lick his lips. "You can snack from the next haul buddy." He said as he the side of the dragon's neck. "We owe them this one." Toothless cooed sadly as he turned his head, looking at his rider with one of his eyes.
"Next one, I promise." Hiccup said as he looked at his dragon, the large green eyes shimmered with hope for fresh fish. The Night Fury stretched its wings. But before he could take off his rider slid of the back.
Fiske walked to Hiccup, shooting bewildered glances at the stack of fish. Behind him other Fishermen were busy putting the fish into baskets, they'd have to get it cured and cleaned soon, so it would stay fresh longer. Fiske walked over to Hiccup, grabbing the hand of the young boy with two hands and shaking it gratefully.
"You're a gift from the gods boy." The man said with joy as he shook Hiccup's hand and laughed. "If you could catch this amount of fish each day then we'd never run out of food."
Hiccup chuckled nervously. He was glad he could help, but hadn't expected such a response from the fisher. "Yea, well, a dragon is quite the stomach to fill." He said. "So it's only natural that they are quite the fishers, I guess."
"You can say that again." Fiske said with excitement as he patted Hiccup on the back. The other fishermen were almost done filling their baskets, counting four in total already. "Say, how about we leave that old broken net here to dry and we try one of the larger ones?" Fiske said as he guided Hiccup towards the place where most nets were laid out to dry. "We got one that is at least two times as big."
Hiccup looked at the netting, and indeed spotted a net in way better condition than the net he just used, but it was also much larger. "I'm not sure if Toothless can handle that." He said with a hint of worry. "Besides the size, it may become too heavy filled with fish and all."
Fiske looked at him, then looked back at the net. "Perhaps." He said softly. "And it would probably be too much fish to cure anyway, which will cause many to go to waste." He added, using one hand to scratch at the side of his head. "Still." He muttered softly, deep in though.
Toothless walked up to Hiccup, giving him a gentle nudge in his side, propping his head underneath the boy's arm. Fiske looked at the Night Fury with a warm smile. The strange feeling about the beast being so close was replaced quickly by a feeling of gratefulness, and the dragon didn't look threatening at all right now. Its head tucked underneath the arm of the boy, eyes that begged for attention and love, and a slightly ajar mouth, showing a smile vacant of teeth.
"Boy, ah, Hiccup," Fiske began. "how long do you plan on staying exactly?" Fiske asked out of the blue, catching Hiccup off guard.
"Ah, well." Hiccup started, not even sure of the answer himself. "Toothless and I ate some of your food and shared some of your fires, so it's only natural to, eh, you know, make up for it."
Fiske smiled. "Boy, one more of those loads and you'll have yourself paid off for the food." He said as he rested an arm on Hiccup's shoulder. "Even that dragon of yours." The larger man kneeled down to get on his level.
"Look boy, food might not be in short supply now, especially if you make one of these catches every day." Fiske explained, behind him the other fishermen were bringing the baskets to the fires where they cured the fish. "But come winter, we're going to need a lot more."
Hiccup looked at the fisherman with questioning eyes. He felt like he was building up to something. Fiske was silent as he looked at the kid. It took a while before he finally spoke again. "Never mind." He said with a smile. "Let's see if we can get that net clean for a second haul."
The morning continued calmly, as the fishermen returned from the curers with empty baskets another pile of fish was ready to be taken there. They loaded their baskets excitedly, and one even talked about getting a small cart for the next time they returned.
Hiccup felt strange. Back on Berk he had tried to help plenty of times, some attempts more successful than others. But here it was different. His attempts were greeted with enthusiasm, one of the fish hauls he took in failed, the net snapping on the way back. It caused all the fish to fall back into the sea, quickly finding their freedom. A few seams between two existing holes in the netting had teared, causing one large hole to form. Hiccup landed with dread, but the fishermen weren't that fazed.
Fiske walked up to the nervous boy with a smile. "That's why we gave you the old net!" He said with a smile as he inspected the large hole in the net. He looked at Hiccup. "We'll get this fixed." He walked over to the boy on the back of the dragon, laying his hand on his leg. "Boy, we have more fish then we can cure for now, and it'd be a shame to let it start rotting over the course of the day and night."
"You don't need any more help?" Hiccup asked nervously, still tense about the broken net.
"Boy, you helped more than anything." Fiske said. "We've been fishing since the end of the winter, now we actually have to help curing the catch we made." He said with a laugh, the fisher was truly overjoyed. "Why don't we go and look by the woodcutters." He proposed. "We're going to need some materials for extra drying racks anyway."
Fiske immediately turned around, and started walking. He only looked behind him after a few steps, motioning Hiccup to follow. "Come on, maybe you and that dragon, ah, Toothless, can help there."
That idea interested Hiccup, and he motioned Toothless to follow, calmly riding on the back of the dragon. They passed through the village, people again looking at the boy and dragon with faces of bewilderment, it was still a curious sight after all. But some of the people had heart the news of the successful fishing, and instead looked at the duo with smiles.
"Seems like the word already passed around to some." Fiske said happily. "If you keep up this work you'll be famous around here."
Hiccup didn't respond. He was awestruck by the people around him, smiling, waving, laughing friendly when they saw him. It was amazing. He was helping these people when they most needed it, and it felt amazing.
The camp cleared around them, and they arrived at the area where he had first entered the camp with Cuyler. A cleared-out part of the forest, trees cut down and the stumps used at cutting blocks for firewood. A good twenty Vikings were working hard, dragging, sawing and cutting wood for it to become firewood. Skinning trees of the bark and twigs, throwing it on the pile for tinder.
Hiccup was amazed at the simple yet efficient system. A little less than two dozen of Vikings were working here, and others were bringing in trees and gathering random debris that was left by the work. Back on Berk it wasn't strange for the twigs and bark to be scattered around a working place, after all, the firewood had priority. But here every single bit of wood was used, not a single piece was left behind. It was all needed.
A man walked over to the duo, looking and spoke to Fiske. "Eh, Fiske." He greeted the fisherman. "What are you doing over here, need wood for poles?"
"No, I am actually looking for wood for drying racks." The fisherman says with a smile as he placed his hand on Hiccup's leg. "This boy here has made sure we're already done for the day." Fiske said, causing a smile to grow on Hiccup's face.
"He didn't break the nets now, did he?" The woodcutter asked with a stern expression, causing Hiccup's smile to drop. Some people could be just like the ones on Berk he guessed, no good expectations.
"Ha, you wish." Fiske replied gleefully though. "The boy here caught three days' worth of fish in a single morning." He said. "We don't know if we can cure it all before it rots."
"Really?" The woodcutter said surprised as he looked at the boy. "I guess Cuyler really brought back a wondrous kid then."
"Best thing yet." Fiske continued. "He's looking to help more." The fisherman explained as he grabbed some suitable pieces of wood from a nearby pile. "You don't suppose you can find a job for him here."
"I'll see what I can do." The woodcutter said as he picked up a piece of wood and handed it to Fiske. "Good luck with that fish."
"Thanks." Fiske said happily. "We'll be needing it." The fisherman turned around and walked off.
The woodcutter turned himself to Hiccup, who was still perched on the back of Toothless. He looked at the kid, he was scrawny, and looked weaker than most kids. But on the other had he had a dragon, one who listen to him at that. So he had to be special somehow he guessed.
"I'm Arthur." The woodcutter said, and Hiccup took a good look at the men. He reminded him of his father. He was quite a bit smaller, but as broad as him. And his beard was almost the same size. "I try to oversee this little logging camp here." He said as he turned around and motioned for Hiccup to follow.
Toothless calmly walked after Arthur. Hiccup calmly looked around, still listening to Arthur's explanation. "We cut most, if not all, of the group's firewood." Hiccup looked at a man sitting on a trunk, who was getting his arm wrapped in a sling, Arthur noticed. "I'm not going to lie, it's dangerous and hard work." He explained. "Tall trees, and very poor tools."
He looked at one of the other woodcutters, who was busy chopping the wood to make it into usable firewood. The axe he held looked worn, the axe head looked blunt and deformed, and the handle looked like it could shatter at any swing.
"My pa was a woodcutter too you know." Arthur explained as he continued to walk. "Used to tell me stories about dragons that could split trees with their head." He explained. "Or level forests with their wings." He chuckled. "I don't suppose you're one can do such a feat eh?"
"Eh, no." Hiccup said softly. "Toothless here is pretty good at dragging branches though."
Arthur looked at the dragon. "How do you think you can help us lad?" He asked Hiccup.
"I used to be a smith's apprentice." He explained. "I could try to repair your tools, perhaps make new ones."
"Boy, our own smith is over there." Arthur said as he pointed at a middle-aged man, dragging a log towards the sawing Vikings with three others. "We don't have the proper forge, let alone materials to fix our tools."
"What about those dragons?" Hiccup said. "The ones who can cut and chop?"
The man turned to face Hiccup, one eyebrow raised. "The ones my pa told me about?" He asked, earning a nod from Hiccup. "What about them?"
"I think I know which ones he meant." He said. "Maybe we can find one, and train it." He said, his eyes shining.
"He, if you can find me one of those dragons who is willing to help us, then go ahead." Arthur said, he understood that the boy couldn't help here. The woodcutting was too dangerous for a kid anyway. And the dragon, although impressive, was better suited for fishing. "Otherwise it might be smarter to just go fishing with him again." Arthur said as he pointed to Toothless.
Hiccup looked at the large bulky man as he turned around and walked away. It felt just like his father, the disappointment he always carried when Hiccup couldn't perform to his expectations.
He'd prove him wrong.
Cuyler came back late in the evening with Heather, the young girl carried a dead rabbit, and Cuyler carried another three. The wanted to give them to the butcher to get it cured, only to find him working on fish.
"What is this then?" Cuyler asked surprised. "A change of occupation?"
The butcher turned around, looking at Cuyler's catch. "Ah, Cuyler. It's that boy you found, he's a true gods' gift." The man explained. "He caught enough fish to have me, the fishermen and their wives curing the catch since this morning. And we're only halfway."
"He caught so much fish?" Cuyler asked surprised.
"Aye, and then he went to help the woodcutters I think." The butcher explained. "Boy's willing to help everywhere." The man turned to Cuyler, who was sporting a large smile. The feeling he had with the boy appeared to be right. "Leave the rabbits here." The butcher said as he pointed to a bench. "I'll do them after this one, and here." He continued, tossing Cuyler two fishes and Heather one. "Some extra, and one for the beast of that boy of yours'."
Cuyler looks at the fish, it wasn't often a catch was so good to merit extra rations. He quickly thanked the butcher, and headed back home. When they came back, Helga was already keeping a moderate fire going inside the hut, making it ready for cooking.
"Hello dear," Cuyler said as he came in. "We've got some extra's for tonight's dinner." Helga looked at him in surprise, but quickly spotted the three fish her husband and daughter were carrying. "Apparently Hiccup pulled in a boat load today."
Helga raised an eyebrow, surprised, perhaps even relieved. "Did he now?" She says as she walks over to her husband, taking the fish and placing them on a bench. "I'll prepare them in a bit."
She looks at her daughter, who was carrying the other fish with two hands. It was a rather large one. "This one's for Toothless." Heather said proudly. "They wanted to thank him as well."
Helga forced a smile on her face. She didn't like how fond everyone had grown of the boy in such a short time, it didn't sit right with her. "Really, well, why don't you put it down at his regular resting spot." Helga said. "I'm sure he'll love it when he comes back."
Cuyler looked at Helga confused. "He's not back yet?" He asked.
"No." Helga said calmly. "He went out this morning, to see if he could help." She explained. "I told him to be careful with his leg."
Helga turned to the fish, starting the work on preparing them for a proper meal. She threw the scrap into a pot with boiling water that rested on the fire, they'd be able to make stew out of that. The days were steadily becoming longer and colder. And simple yet warm meals like stew would soon become more regular meals.
It wasn't long before the gutted fish was roasting above the fire. The skin of the animals slowly drying and turning into a crispy golden-brown cover of the meat. She watched the fish slowly roast, turning it occasionally to allow the heat to properly scorch the entire fish. From the corner of her eye she noticed Cuyler looking at the fish with a worried expression.
"What's the matter honey?" Helga asked. "You're looking at the fish like they are poisonous."
Cuyler sighed, looking up from the food and turning his gaze to his wife. "Where is Hiccup?" He asked, not expecting an answer. "Why isn't he back yet."
"Maybe he's still helping at the woodcutters." Helga said as she looked at her husband, that was his hope., his vision of the boy. The helpful little kid with the dragon, who would give them firewood and food for the winter. Her guess of the boy's location was different though. She turned her gaze back to the food. "Or perhaps he's flown off." She said. "Figured he'd repay us with some food and continue on."
Cuyler looked at his wife, deep in though. But then turned his gaze to the fire as well.
Near an island further north, Hiccup and Toothless were calmly soaring through the sky. The duo gently flying around the thick woodlands that occupied the island, seeing if they could spot any dragons. The evening was calm, and the sun was almost setting. Hiccup was thinking about returning, but instead chose to keep looking.
He'd prove him wrong.
"Come on bud." He said to Toothless, who was looking around the island as well as Hiccup. "We're looking for a Timberjack, or a Hackatoo." He remembered them from the book of dragons. The Timberjack wouldn't be difficult if they were here, the dragons were huge, and could often be traced back to partially destroyed forests, with large patches of trees cleanly cut at a fixed height.
Hackatoos were mainly a mystery to him though. The book of dragons didn't have much information about them. Only that they have sharp, strong, axe-like snouts that they can use to cut trees. Hiccup sighed as he sat in the saddle, it would be difficult to find the dragon. They had passed three other islands already. And he had guessed he wouldn't find the dragon on the island the nomads lived on.
He motioned Toothless to descend. The Night Fury calmly glided downwards, searching for an open spot between the trees to safely land. Hiccup yawned from the dragon's back. Perhaps they should sleep here tonight. He looked around, and noticed that there was a patch in the foliage where they could land, some sort of clearing.
Toothless steered towards the opening and descended further, slowing down as they neared the ground. Hiccup could now see that it was not a natural clearing. The only reason that this part of the forest wasn't covered in trees was because they were covering the ground, they were rudely cut at the bases, some right above the ground, some a bit higher.
"Bingo." Hiccup muttered silently as he steered Toothless in further, landing in the open spot. He can now clearly see the trees which almost looked they were cut down by axes, only larger and sharper than regular axes.
A deep, muffled roar breaks his concentration. Toothless looks at him, Hiccup swallows. "Let's see what that was." He says from the back of his dragon, and Toothless calmly starts walking towards the trees, towards the origin of the sound.
The sun slowly disappeared behind the treelines as they walked. Toothless' ears twitched and scanned around, trying to pick up the roar again. It was quiet though. The forest only emitting the sound of trees brushing against each other and the wind. He didn't hear dragons, he didn't hear animals. Nothing.
But then they could hear the roar again. Louder, but still muffled. Toothless perched his ears upright, homing in on the origin of the sound. It was a dragon, that much was certain. The dragon continued to walk calmly and carefully. Hiccup dodged a branch as he sat on the dragon's back. He had learned his lesson about swatting branches away, he preferred ducking away now.
Toothless' ears twitched, and Hiccup sat silently on his back. He leaned forward, whispering to his dragon. "Do you hear him bud?" He asked the Night Fury. The dragon let out a soft moan, a confirmation to his rider. The dragon knew where the sound was coming from.
They continued walking, and soon Hiccup could see the trees starting to clear again. It was a similar clearing as the one they landed in, and he was surprised they hadn't seen this one yet. Before they broke though the treeline they heard the roar again. Clearer this time.
It was strange, the roar was deep and powerful, but also sounded obstructed. Hiccup motioned toothless to slow down and be careful as they stepped into the clearing. Darkness completely covering the forest as they did. Luckily their eyes had the time to accommodate to the low light levels as they walked through the forest. And a clear moon allowed for good eyesight at night.
In the clearing, with it back turned towards them, was a medium sized dragon. It was almost the size of a Monstrous Nightmare, but its skin was dark brown. It had dark red patched scattered across it, like an autumn forest. Toothless made a curious noise, alerting the dragon to their presence. The body moved sideways, revealing a large amber-coloured eye with a small black slit. It gazed at the duo, flicking between Hiccup and Toothless.
The dragon was strange, but Hiccup recognized it quickly from the book of dragons. Six legs, and small wings compared to the body. A strong, but slender body, with spikes on the back. At the start of the tail the dragon had sharp spikes as well, jutting sideways on the top half of the tail, but the bottom was long and sleek, devoid of fins and spikes.
The head was curious, the eye looking at the duo nervously. The snout of the dragon was a silver, metallic colour. But most of it was obstructed by a tree that the head was lodged in. "A Hackatoo," Hiccup muttered. He was in awe by the creature. It looked so powerful and strong. He wasn't sure if the metallic part of his head was actual iron or some sort of bone, but he knew he wanted to find out.
The creature roared again. And Hiccup could see the smoke seeping from the beast's mouth. But the sounds were still muffled. The head of the dragon was lodged in a large and old tree. Causing a split from hallway up the tree all the way down, but it was still strong enough to trap the large dragon's snout in it.
Hiccup slid off Toothless, the Night Fury making a worried sound as his rider did. Hiccup carefully walked around the Hackatoo, making sure to stay in clear sight of its eye and away from any parts that might be able to hit him. He could see how the dragon's eye looked around piratically, almost panicked. Toothless looked at the dragon with narrowed eyes, but his rider kept his calm.
At least it looked that way. Inside Hiccup heart raced like a maniac. He blinked often, and felt his breathing becoming shallow. He was now almost around the Hackatoo, nearing the tree in which the beast was stuck. The Hackatoo's eye, which had been focussed on the alerted Night Fury suddenly switched back to Hiccup. Smoke seeping from the beast's mouth again.
But the stance of the dragon changes when it saw the recoil in the boy. He noticed how the young Viking stopped walking, and kept his arms wide, allowing the dragon to look at his full body. The kid was small, tiny even perhaps. Compared to regular Vikings at least.
But the Hackatoo was far from at ease. With its head stuck tightly in the tree he was nearly defenceless for trappers or predators. It dug its feet into the ground and gave a hard pull backwards, hoping to dislodge its head, but to no avail.
Hiccup watched as the dragon tried, but it almost seemed like the tree didn't budge at all. Perhaps the dragon had bitten of more than he could chew on this one. He looked at the tree. The gap was about an arm width broad, and two deep. Perhaps he could find some sort of way to widen it just a bit, or at least relieve pressure on the cutting head of the Hackatoo.
He stepped closer to the dragon, keeping his hands raised and clear in sight. He was certain that the Hackatoo was anxious, perhaps even scared, but this was perhaps his best chance to get some sort of connection with the dragon.
The dragon growled again, but Hiccup noticed that its eye switched away from him again. He looked behind him, noticing that Toothless, taking a gentle, and peaceful approach to the dragon, was walking up behind him. The Night Fury had its teeth retracted, and was making soft, sad noised from the back of its throat. The Hackatoo quickly switched his gaze to Hiccup, who was not a few steps away from the dragon's head.
"Hey there buddy," Hiccup began softly, hoping talking would calm the wild dragon down. "Are you stuck." As if on que, the Hackatoo shook and pulled, trying to get his head free from the trapped position. Hiccup looked at it, but because of the Hackatoo's long neck, he was well clear of the body of the dragon.
Hiccup calmly extended his hand towards the dragon, making sure the large beast had ample time to inspect the hand. A puff of smoke seeped from the mouth of the dragon, but far less than before. The amber eye scanned the hand carefully, flicking between looking at the young boy and his hand. Hiccup slowly stepped forward. He would have to close the distance himself, since the dragon was stuck.
He placed the hand on the cheek of the dragon, right behind where the mouth began. The skin was warm, hot even. He gently moved his thumb, patting the dragon. "It's alright." He said calmly. The eyes of the Hackatoo slowly shut. "We'll get you out of there." Hiccup said as he looked at the split in the tree from up close. He could probably use a large and strong piece of wood as a lever, and use that to get the dragon loose.
The night passed calmly, Toothless and Hiccup searched for proper piece of wood to use, but the first three branches they tried simple shattered as they applied force. Eventually they expanded their search area, already covering a part of the coast of the island.
They had been searching the entire night, and Hiccup was slowly starting to get tired. He yawned from the back of Toothless as they passed over the coast. But then the duo spotted a stranded, and almost destroyed longboat. Hiccup slowly shifted his foot, the moment wasn't as crisp and fast as it usually was. The sleep was creeping up on him.
They landed next to the longboat, or what was left from it. Hiccup looked around. There was a net, covered in algae, but otherwise in good shape. He slid off Toothless' back, walking over to the remnants of the boat. The net was small, similar to the one he and Toothless had used when they were fishing. He grabbed it, along with some rigging that was left around the boat, and used it to tie the bundle of net to the saddle.
He looked at the ship. The shield on the side were weathered and had large cracks between the planks. The sails had weathered away, but the mast still stood. Hiccup looked at it, the lack of sleep even making simple thinking more difficult. Mast were made to be strong, made to be able to take the force of the strong Nordic storms pulling on the sails. It would be the perfect lever.
"Toothless." Hiccup said as he walked towards his dragon. "Do you think you can blast the mast off?" The young rider asked his dragon. The Night Fury looked at the mast, let out a soft huff, and fired a small plasma ball at the old mast. Hiccup shielded himself from the explosion, felling splinters being flung against his back.
He turns around, seeing that the mast still stands. But a scorched hole is near the base. With a long crack, the mast starts to fall, heading towards Toothless and Hiccup. It snaps from its base and landing in front of Toothless with a thud.
Toothless calmly trots over, grabbing the remainder of the mast in his mouth, like a dog holding a large stick. Hiccup walks back to his dragon, climbing onto his back. "Let's head back to the Hackatoo." He said as he switched the tailfin. "Let's see if this one holds."
The flight back was slow. Toothless has trouble gaining altitude with the mast in his mouth and the net on his back. But they made it back. They landed in the clearing where the Hackatoo was stuck. It was still dark, so Hiccup and Toothless made sure to land carefully. The Hackatoo was almost asleep when they returned, but opened his amber eyes to look at them as they landed.
Hiccup quickly untied the netting from Toothless' back, they'd grab it again when they finally headed back. First they had to get the Hackatoo free. Hiccup slid off Toothless' back, taking care to land on his good foot. His leg felt fine that morning, but now it was slowly starting to act up again.
"Let's do this bud." Hiccup said as he motioned for Toothless to place the mast in the crack of the tree. They had done this three times already, so Toothless knew exactly what Hiccup expected. The Hackatoo laid down on the ground, his neck in an awkward position. Toothless used one paw on the Hackatoo's back to get just high enough, and Hiccup guided the mast in the split. Once confident that the mast was in position he turned to the Hackatoo, petting him on the chin.
"Get ready buddy." He said calmly as he walked over to the other side, where Toothless stood ready with the mast in his mouth. He walked over to the part where he could just reach the mast. He wasn't sure if he'd help at all, but it was worth a shot.
"Now Toothless!" Hiccup said. "Pull!" He added, ad he himself pushed in the same direction. Toothless pulled with his might, his claws sunken into the ground. They could hear cracking and splintering of wood, and Hiccup hoped that for once it was the tree.
The lodged dragon pulled as well, trying to get its head free. It pulled with all it's might, just like the Night Fury. Hiccup felt his boots sink into the muddy ground as he pushed, and his arm start to tire after the long day. The mast was almost too high for him to effectively push against, but he managed. With a loud crack he felt the mast give way, and stumbled forward. Toothless was also surprised by the sudden lack of resistance, and the dragon fell backwards, the other half of the mast still in his mouth.
Hiccup pushed himself from the ground, looking at his dragon. The Night Fury spat the remaining mast out, his teeth marks visible in the hard wood. Hiccup sighed, feeling defeated.
Until he heard a load, deep, unmuffled roar from behind him. He turned around, looking at the Hackatoo. The dragon was free, standing on its two hind legs, roaring into the sky. It shot a fireball up into the sky, which exploded fiercely. Illuminating the forest for a few seconds.
Hiccup let out a sigh of relief, and Toothless roared along with the Hackatoo. The dragon was as glad as Hiccup that they managed to free the other dragon.
With a heavy thud the Hackatoo landed back on all six feet, and turned its head to Hiccup. The dragon calmly stepped over, resting his neck on the boy's shoulder. The neck was warm, not as hot as the cheek, but still warm. The large dragon let out a soft sigh, and Hiccup wrapped an arm around the neck as far as he could.
The Hackatoo stepped back, allowing the young boy to stand up, looking at him expectantly. Hiccup stepped towards the dragon, looking into its eyes. He placed his hand on the hot cheek again, finding it cooler than before. "See buddy." He said calmly. "I told you I'd get you out of there." He patted the dragon gentle.
Hiccup stepped back, walking over to Toothless again, and guided the Night Fury to the netting. But before he reached it the Hackatoo had arrived with heavy stomping, the dragon picked up the bundle of net with its front two feet, standing on the other four. It flapped it's wings anxiously.
Hiccup looked at the dragon as the sky began to turn a lighter colour. The sun was rising again. He sighed, perhaps it wouldn't be so difficult to get a new dragon to the camp of the nomads. "Do you want to follow?" He asked the dragon, earning a confused but lopsided head from the Hackatoo.
Now that it stood on its back paws Hiccup could see that the dragon could actually be rather large and intimidating. It looked down at them from above, its head perched high above the torso and long neck of the dragon.
Toothless looked up as well, a soft, curious growl exiting his mouth. Hiccup patted his dragon and climbed onto the saddle. "Calm down bud," Hiccup said to the Night Fury. "If he follows us home we might be able to keep him."
AN: Going to cut it off there. The middle part of this chapter has been difficult to write. As in, everything from Hiccup waking up and walking to him talking to the woodcutters. And I'm not really proud of the part either. But I really like the Hackatoo part, always wanted to get one of those dragons involved in the story. So here it is. Next chapter we'll see if the dragon truly follows them home, and how the tribe reacts.
If I had the time, inspiration or willpower to do more at the middle part of this chapter I would. But you guys deserve an update. And I finally have inspiration to write. So I don't want to waste it all on this chapter. I really want to continue the story. And we're slowly going to the parts for which I'm really excited. So I hope I can share that with you in the coming month.
The writing style might seem strange throughout this chapter, I'm really working to get back into it and feel like I caught something right at the end of the chapter.
I want to give a guess for how often I'll update. But I'm afraid I can't promise anything. So, hopefully I'll manage every two weeks or something like that.
This chapter is almost 10.000 words. Around 4.000 I was having seconds thoughts and struggeling. But it picked up again.
I updated my profile again, last time was febuary last year, so it was about time. There are a few story prompts and a few other things, could be interesting to check out if you feel like it.
Anyway, if you have questions or just want to chat, send me a PM. Feedback or something to say, leave a review.
Take care!
R4y