Chapter 14:

Now back to the humans.

It was only a few days after Drago had been defeated, and Hic refused to go outside the house ever since his scary encounter with the madman.

He spent his time with Heather, who had to go out every now and then to assist Hiccup and Astrid with certain duties. The young woman had grown out of her shyness, and was now ready to help whenever someone needed it.

But Hic was nowhere near as brave. The little two-year-old had been frightened too much. But it wasn't enough to keep him away from grown-ups that he knew. He had already met Valka, and he knew that he could trust her to keep him safe when his parents weren't there. But Eret still creeped him out, since he had served Dragon before. Every time the man was within his view, or when he stopped by, Hic would run and hide in his room. And it didn't help that he no longer had Buttons to comfort with. How much he wanted his toy, but there was no doubt that Drago had gotten rid of it.

Heather was out helping Hic's parents with repairing the village, and Draco and Camicazi were in their room. Draco was reading the newly-updated Book of Dragons, and Camicazi was sharpening her axe. Toothless and the other dragons had to help with the repairs, leaving Hic alone in his room.

But it didn't last long.

Hic heard the front door opening, and he knew that his parents were home. Hiccup was one to always put his family before his duties, and he and Astrid had agreed to check on the kids every few hours.

Astrid wasn't surprised to find Hic alone in his room, since he had been there ever since his encounter with Drago. But she knew that he couldn't stay there forever. Catching his mother's gaze, Hic turned away to face the wall. But Astrid knew better. She walked over and sat on the floor next to her son. "Do you need anything, Hic?" she asked gently. Hic shook his head. Astrid sighed. "You can't stay in here forever you know." "Yes I can," Hic muttered. "Don't say that," Astrid said, "You know you can't stay here." "But they're going to get me," Hic said, his eyes filling with tears. "Who's going to get you?" Astrid asked. "The big meanies!" Hic cried, bursting into tears. Astrid was confused for a minute before she realized what Hic was talking about. She nodded. "I see." Hic sniffled. "They're coming to get me!"

Astrid sighed once again. "No one's coming to get you, Hic," she said, "Daddy and Mortem drove them all away. They can't hurt you now." "But they took Buttons!" Hic cried. Astrid was silent for a few minutes. She wasn't sure what to tell him. "I want him back," Hic whimpered. Astrid sighed. "I'm not sure if we can get him back, Hic." "But I want him back!" Hic sobbed, tears streaming down his cheeks. Not sure of what else she could do, Astrid hugged her son close. Hic pressed up against her, trying to get as close as possible. Astrid started to stroke his hair, hugging him tighter. "It's okay, I've got you. It's okay." Hic stopped sobbing long enough to ask his mother a question.

"Where's Daddy?"

"He's with Draco and Cami," Astrid replied, "He'll be right here." "Are you sure?" Hic asked. Astrid sighed before standing up, still holding Hic. "Do you want to see him?" she askd. Hic nodded. The next thing he knew, he was being handed to another person. Fearing that it could be a stranger, he started to struggle.

"Are you okay, Hic?"

Hic knew that voice. He opened his eyes and looked up to see that he was in the arms of his father. "Daddy," he breathed, before hugging his father as tight as he could. Hiccup didn't hesitate to hug his son close. "It's okay. It's okay, I've got you. It's alright." Hic started to whimper. "I'm scared, Daddy." "I know," Hiccup said, "It's okay, I'm right here. I'm right here wth you." Hic's whimpering soon died down at the sound of his father's words. "Better?" Hiccup asked. Hic nodded.

"I love you, Daddy."

Hiccup froze for a few seconds before smiling. That wasn't the first time Hic had said that to him, but it had been a while since he had said it. "I love you, too," he said, hugging his son close.

"I hate to interrupt," said a voice, "But may I come in?"

Hiccup and Astrid turned to see Eret standing in the open doorway. Hiccup had accidentally left the door open in his rush to check on his kids. Without waiting for a response, Eret began to approach Hiccup. Hic's eyes widened, and he tried to hide from the man that was coming toward him. Eret had a hand behind his back, and when he was just an arm's length away, he held his hand out. "I believe I have something that belongs to you," he said to Hic, holding out a stuffed dragon toy. Hic recognized it immediately.

"Buttons!"

Hic reached out and grabbed the toy without hesitation, hugging it close. Hiccup nodded at Eret. "Thank you." Eret gave a slight nod before turning to leave.

Hic paid no attention to the grown-ups, all he could think about was how good it felt to have Buttons back.

Hic woke up, screaming. He clutched Buttons tight as he sat up in his bed. He had been having nightmares ever since the battle with Drago, and each one seemed more terrifying than the last. He had dreamt that Toothless couldn't get to Hiccup in time, and the entire cliff was frozen over. Tyranno then crushed all of the ice and stabbed Mortem and Feral with his tusks, with Drago laughing evilly all the while.

Hic's breathing quickened as his memory of the dream played over and over in his mind. Tears began to fill his eyes as he clutched Buttons tightly, trying to get over the scary images in his head. He needed comfort. And he knew where he could find it. He crawled out of bed and started to walk to his parents' room. Normally Hiccup was out late working, but this time he was asleep with Astrid.

Hesitating slightly, Hic jumped up into his parents' bed, and tried to shake Hiccup awake. Hiccup stirred in his sleep, and his eyes opened. "Hic?" The boy turned away, ashamed. Hiccup wrapped his arm around his son. "What's wrong?" Hic hesitated before muttering under his breath, "I had a bad dream." Hiccup sighed before hugging him close. "I'm sorry you had a bad dream. Are you okay?" Hic shrugged. "How long has this been going on?" Hiccup asked. Hic didn't answer at first. "Since the scary man got here."

That's what Hiccup had assumed, but he always preferred to have the kids tell him themselves. "He's not going to hurt you, Hic. He can't hurt you anymore." "Really?" Hic asked. Hiccup nodded. "No one's going to hurt you." Hic sniffled. "Promise?" Hiccup pulled away and placed a kiss in his son's hair. "I promise."

Neither of them noticed that Astrid was awake until she rolled over and embraced them. Hiccup smiled at her. He knew that the experience had affected them all, but they would all pull through.

Hic noticed his parents and tried to pretend he was asleep. If they were going to do what he thought, he didn't want to see it.

Hiccup had somehow forgotten that Hic was with them, but Astrid didn't seem to care. Now they could finally make up for lost time. They both leaned in until their foreheads were touching. "I love you," Hiccup whispered to her. Astrid smiled. "I love you, too." Without hesitating, she closed the gap between them, kissing her husband softly on the lips.

Moaning quietly in disgust, Hic buried his face into his father's chest, all the while holding on to Buttons. He still hadn't gotten over his bad experience, but he knew that his parents could help him.

Someday, he'd be brave enough to be a hero, just like his father.

I can't believe I typed a whole chapter in ONE DAY! Not too shabby for a comeback right? Anyone agree? I hope that I get some good reviews, 'cause I'm like, "what happened to all my readers?" No offense, really, it's just...well, this story doesn't seem to be attracting too much attention.

Hopefully some more writing will make me feel better. *wink

Leave me a friendly review!