Broken
Chapter 7: Dragons do not weep
The failing light of dusk was stealing over the waters and making its way toward Berk. It touched the stony island's shores with its habitual slow grace. The shadows drew themselves out and reached toward the approaching night. The villagers went about settling themselves in for another cool spring night. Fires were laid, meals were cooked and children were called inside. To the eye of the casual observer, it was a calm, peaceful evening.
Hiccup noticed none of this.
He'd been feeling agitated and restless for at least an hour and it was only getting worse. As he'd strapped the flying rig onto his companion he'd found it almost impossible to concentrate. He'd nearly forgotten to fasten the main support strap across the dragon's chest before he climbed on.
Now that they were airborne it was becoming almost intolerable. Hiccup had planned on going back to the cove where he and Toothless had formed their friendship, hoping that such familiar surroundings would ease his mind. From the moment they'd left the ground, however, his distress had grown. Before they could get any further than the shoreline of Berk, Hiccup urgently directed Toothless to land. He chose one of the tall rock columns that dotted the nearby water. He didn't care which one they landed on so long as they were alone and out of sight of the village. Something told Hiccup he could tolerate no distractions right now. To his dismay, he couldn't answer his own silent question of why.
Toothless made a soft landing on the grassy surface of the tiny raised islet. A few stunted trees grew in the thin soil and Hiccup could see several gull nests lying directly on the ground. Some distant part of his mind realized that as close as this minuscule patch of ground was to his village, he was probably the first Viking to set foot directly on its flat, windblown top. There was no reason for anyone to have ever visited such an inconvenient spot of land. There were no animals to hunt on its surface and the few bird eggs that might be available weren't worth the climb.
With a precision that came of long practice, Hiccup disengaged the safety catch that locked his false left leg into the control pedal. He swung his right leg over the saddle, kicked out his left as he slid down to prevent scraping the iron construct against Toothless' flank and landed squarely on his right foot, flexing the knee to absorb the shock. He quickly turned away from his dragon and took a few steps to separate them. He was both relieved and unnerved that the Night Fury didn't follow him.
A few steps away from where he now stood, Hiccup saw a small outcropping of rocks, their tops heavily coated with gull droppings. He carefully lowered himself to sit on one of them, not caring if he soiled his trousers. He kept his gaze on the ground, unable to look directly at Toothless just yet.
His mind was whirling, trying to understand something he couldn't quite name only to turn away from it in discomfort and some faint, cold fear. He almost felt like some sickened wild beast, raging with the foaming madness that sometimes took them. His chest felt so constricted he had trouble catching his breath.
What could possibly be wrong with him? He'd been walking with Toothless, intending to go home. He'd been thinking about his dragon and some of the things he'd seen him do lately.
Freygerd's words came back to him unexpectedly. "Go, and use your strength." Meaning his mind.
Something was wrong. Specifically, something he'd thought about Toothless was wrong. The evidence was all there, right in front of him. But it danced away from the light and hid in blue-black shadows. It opened yellow-green eyes at him, showing angry slits that warned of retribution for thoughtless injustices.
With a grunt he rejected that image and tried to focus his mind. It was nearly impossible to do with his body so affected. Hiccup saw his hands were shaking and wanted to grip something with them, just to keep them steady. He balled them up into fists until his fingers hurt. Why was this happening? Why couldn't he breathe? Why did his chest hurt and his eyes blur?
Toothless. The Night Fury. It was all to do with him. The black scaled dragon was the cause, the solution, the center of every thought beating against the inside of his skull and if he didn't let them out soon he would certainly go mad. He didn't want to go mad.
Hiccup looked up. The unyielding gaze that met his was like a dagger of ice through his heart. He gasped raggedly at the sudden, unexpected pain of it.
Toothless just sat there, staring at him. Just like his father had, so many times before; radiating disappointment tempered by an exasperated affection. For several moments, Hiccup was struck motionless, unable to respond or act.
The Night Fury was his friend. This had been proven many times. He'd even saved Hiccup's life. He had nothing to fear from the dragon. So why did he now feel like he should expect Toothless to lash out at him at any moment?
Think, Hiccup! Think!
What had done this? What had set his brain on fire and made him question everything he thought he knew? Where had it started?
Hiccup closed his eyes and tried to relax. He forced himself to take deep breaths, ignoring the shuddering groan that came unwillingly from his own throat. Concentrate, he told himself. Think about what just happened.
The smithy. George. Gobber and George and the struggle to get the Boneknapper to heat metal within a forge. Toothless left, then returned.
And everything had changed. Again.
Like the sun breaking through storm clouds, it came back to him. The walk. The saddle and the memory it invoked. An idea that had slowly filled him with cold uncertainty and... fear? He remembered now.
"Toothless," he heard himself say. The dragon acknowledged his name with a slight lift of his head. That tiny movement nearly paralyzed him again. He forced himself to speak. "I need to ta-'
And there it was, the source of all the conflicting emotions that had sent him off in useless circles. He needed, desperately needed...
"I need to... talk to you."
Toothless tilted his head down slightly, still staring at him. He moved a few paces closer and sat down, his full attention on Hiccup.
The young man felt a bit giddy as the realization began to sink in. He'd had this feeling once before, but not so strong. If his suspicions were right, if his draconic friend proved his idea correct then he'd have succeeded in doing what Freygerd bade him do.
He looked directly into the Fury's eyes, those large expressive eyes and asked the most important question he could imagine. "Can you understand what I say to you?"
For a moment there was no reaction. Then Toothless slowly nodded.
A shiver ran up and down Hiccup's spine. He was right! "You can actually understand my language, the Viking's language?"
Another nod.
Incredible! His memory provided him with tidbits of past moments when Toothless had nodded to him in answer to questions or in simple agreement. He'd never realized the significance of those simple responses. He could talk to his dragon! If only...
"Wait." More of the old stories from his youth flooded his mind, magical animals and otherworldly spirits. "Can you speak my language?"
Only if facial expressions counted, it turned out. The look of disdain Toothless gave him was clear enough.
"Oh." So his dragon could understand him and could express himself in a limited fashion. How did this help? It was an amazing thing to know, but it wasn't the answer to the burning in his brain. He went over the day's events in his mind again. The forge, George and Gobber, the saddle.
"George!" he exclaimed. "Can you talk to George? Can dragons talk to each other?"
Toothless hesitated, noticeably. Then he nodded once, slowly.
What did that mean? That Toothless' answer to his question could only just be qualified as a 'yes?' What did that signify?
Feeling a bit calmer, Hiccup tried to focus on the problem of getting a clearer answer from his friend. It was one of his strengths, displayed often enough in his designs. If something he'd made didn't work, he began working on why it didn't work. From there he could get a better idea of what might work. And again, Freygerd's words came to him: 'You must ask more questions and find those answers. You must discover what knowledge you are lacking.'
Hiccup then realized what his next question needed to be. "Can all dragons talk to each other?"
This time Toothless vigorously shook his head 'no.'
Suddenly Hiccup realized how complex the situation might really be. There were many different groups beyond just 'Vikings' and 'dragons.' To fully understand the reptilian half of the equations, he needed to gain more specific knowledge.
But there was one question that he wanted answered before any others.
"Toothless, did you tell George how to do what Gobber wanted him to do with his forge?"
He was answered with a definitive nod.
Hiccup felt a thrill at having solved at least one mystery that had bothered him. He now understood what had happened at the forge earlier that day. Toothless had been in the smithy, listening to the two men talk. Gobber had mentioned his problem with the Boneknapper not being able to do what Toothless could do. The Night Fury had heard, understood and later set out to solve Gobber's problem by telling George what to do.
It made perfect sense!
No! In a flash, Hiccup realized it did not make perfect sense. There was something wrong with the assumption that Toothless could have talked to George. Toothless himself had just made it clear that not all dragons could talk to each other. So... which ones couldn't? And why not?
He was looking down at his hands, still not entirely comfortable with meeting his friend's eyes until he'd sorted it all out. But he knew he needed help, and the help he needed was right before him. Perhaps he could get Toothless to give him some idea of how to ask the right questions. It was worth a try. He looked up at his dragon.
"You say not all dragons can talk to each other. Can you tell me which ones can and can't?"
That only got an annoyed look for an answer.
"Uh, alright, I guess that's too vague. Ummm... oh! Of course!" He smiled at his mistake. "Are there specific breeds of dragon that can't talk to other dragons?"
That got a nod from Toothless, and the dragon seemed somewhat heartened by Hiccup's more direct question.
"Ok, uh, is there only one specific breed of dragon that can't talk to other dragons?"
Another encouraging nod.
But how to figure out which breed? Hiccup went through the species he knew. It took only a moment to decide which one to mention first. "Terrible Terrors?"
Toothless brightened considerably as he nodded. Hiccup smiled. It seemed obvious now. Of all the breeds they knew, only the Terrors were smaller than sheep and generally acted the way a pet might. He congratulated himself on getting the answer right the first time.
"So, most dragons can talk to each other. Terrors are the ones that can't. And most dragons can understand Vikings-"
That quickly triggered a soft, barking roar and a violent shake of the head. Hiccup's mood soured slightly.
"But you said you can understand my language and that most dragons can talk to each ot"- Realization dawned yet again and he nearly despaired figuring out how to get other Vikings to understand dragons when he had so much trouble himself. He asked the next obvious question.
"Can most dragons understand the Viking language?"
Toothless shook his head. That surprised him.
"Can, uh, some dragons understand the Viking language?"
Another shake.
Frustrated, Hiccup muttered, "Can you just tell me how many we're talking about here?"
Once again, Toothless gave him that annoyed look.
The young man grunted, aggravated by the situation and his lack of understanding. He eyed his companion unhappily. "I could almost wish you were a giant parrot." His jibe got no reaction. He wasn't surprised, seeing as he'd heard parrots were some exotic species of talking bird from far to the south. Doubtless the Fury had never heard of them.
"Well, is it only a few dragons that can understand Vikings when they talk?"
Toothless nodded. And that only added a new mystery instead of clearing one up. Why could only a few dragons understand Viking speech?
Hiccup decided to set that new problem aside and review what he'd learned so far. "So you can understand me, but most dragons can't. Dragons can talk to each other, except for Terrors."
A calm nod.
"And you can't speak like a Viking."
Toothless just stared, uninterested in statements of the obvious.
Hiccup looked out at the darkening sky, wondering what to ask next. A gurgling croon drew his gaze back to his friend. Toothless' vocalization went on for a few seconds. A new thought came to him, and his next question. "Is that what your speech sounds like?"
Toothless nodded enthusiastically, then 'spoke' a bit more. He looked directly at his rider and made small motions with his head and body, like a person would who was speaking to another.
"Is it..." It took a moment for him to frame his question, having never had to ask such a thing before. "Is your language like ours? For us, umm, well, certain sounds make certain words, and certain words make certain ideas." He thought about it a moment. "I guess that's how it works for us."
Another 'yes.'
So he could assume that certain sounds the dragon made were the names of objects around them; rock, tree, grass and such. Hiccup's eyes lit up with yet another surprising thought. "Do... do dragons have... names?"
A happier nod.
His own smile bloomed and faded in a few heartbeats. "You have your own name, don't you?" He frowned. "A better one than 'Toothless', I'm sure."
This time the dragon answered with a slow nod, followed by a slight shrug of his rounded shoulders.
Hiccup left that subject, uncomfortable with the other ideas that seemed to want to follow it. He went back to language.
"Has the dragon language ever been taught to anyone besides dragons?"
Now Toothless looked thoughtful, as though considering the idea or trying to remember. After a few moments, he shook his head while shrugging again. Hiccup took that to mean, 'Not that I know of.'
Another new spark lit his mind, a pleasant one. "Hey, could you teach me?"
The Night Fury's reaction proved that he liked that idea very much. He nodded and crooned happily. Hiccup grinned and thought of what such knowledge could do for him. He would be able to truly talk to his dragon. No! Any dragon! He'd be the first Viking to use the language of the dragons!
Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, who'd once dreamed of becoming a dragon slayer, who'd instead become the first dragon rider, would become the first dragon speaker!
"We could really talk!" he enthused. "We could talk and tell each other stories and..." Ever curious, the idea suddenly needed verifying. "Do dragons tell stories?"
Toothless gave another enthusiastic nod.
Enthralled with the idea, Hiccup wanted to know more. "Do you tell stories about great deeds done by dragons in the past? Like... like a history of dragons?" A softly rumbling growl and another nod were accompanied by wide irises and wriggling hindquarters. "Do you tell stories about your families?" That thought broke loose another question before his dragon could answer the last. "Do dragons have families?" Toothless fairly bounced with his nodding.
The observation became obvious. He spoke it aloud without any deeper thought attached to the words. "Oh, wow, Toothless, dragons are just like Vikings! Dragons are... dragons are people!"
And with those words the sun withdrew its last warming rays beneath the horizon, leaving both Berk and Hiccup's heart in darkness.
Dragons are people.
The words echoed inside his skull. A tingling pain seemed to build behind his eyes.
Dragons are... people.
The memories that had brought him such a wonderful new idea turned in old, dark directions. They showed him his own past in a new light and a new perspective. The very essence of Viking life on Berk suddenly towered over him, hurling terrible images at him. He could see the battles, the blood, the injury and death that followed every confrontation between dragon and Viking. He could hear the roars, the screams, the angry shouts. He could smell things burning as the flickering light painted the whole scene with loss and suffering.
What had they done?
He was standing. He didn't remember getting up. He didn't really remember where he was or how he got there. Other memories filled his mind; the image of his father, proudly anticipating Hiccup's own rise to the plateau of dragon slayer. The words he'd spoken roared through his head, 'Spill a Nadder's guts...mount your first Gronckle head on a spear.' His heart clenched, a tightening knot of pain in his chest that wouldn't ease. He remembered the planning, the longing, the almost overwhelming desire to see a dead dragon at his feet, brought down by his cunning and ruthlessness.
Then the worst of it. He remembered standing over the bound body of a Night Fury, certain his life was finally going the way he wanted. He remembered the knife in his hand and the words he'd spoken, the implacable will of his father and the whole village behind him as he declared, 'I'm gonna kill you, dragon. I'm gonna cut out your heart and take it to my father."
What had he done?
The pain and shame of it went howling through his head until he thought he would scream. He shook his head weakly, a tiny flickering of denial, a feeble attempt to defend himself against crimes he'd not even known he was committing. A whispered 'No' slipped past his lips.
He stepped back, away from Toothless, completely unaware for the first time since his loss that one of his legs was not truly his own. He stumbled, his left foot catching on one of the rocks near the outcropping on which he'd sat. He fell. The joint where metal met flesh slammed hard against a sharp point of stone.
Pain took his vision as his head thumped backward against the ground. His mouth opened to scream as agony burst anew from the old wound. He made no sound, only a slight hissing as he fought for breath that would not come. For an instant he wondered if the sensation were similar to dying in battle.
He'd been wrong. He'd always been wrong. They all had, but him most of all. And he hated himself for it, for the self deception and willful ignorance. He'd never been a true friend to the Night Fury. The dragon hadn't been more than 'buddy', 'big guy', 'overstuffed salamander.'
Now he knew the truth in full. He almost wished he could curse Freygerd for her painfully accurate advice.
His breath came back to him first as the fierce grip of pain slowly let go of his damaged leg. Ragged gasps filled his ears as he worked to supply his starving lungs with air. He concentrated on the simple act of drawing and expelling breath. He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping to restore his vision. A few blurry blinks did indeed clear his eyes. Toothless' broad face hovered over him, his eyes full of distress.
The thoughts of what he'd done to Toothless clawed their way back to the front of his mind. He knew he couldn't contain them anymore. The words tumbled hoarsely from his mouth without him shaping them at all.
"Do you remember the night you were hit over Berk? The night you fell?"
Toothless slowly nodded.
"Do... do you know who did that to you?"
The dragon tilted his head, not seeming to understand.
"It was m-me. I w-was trying to... to kill you."
To Hiccup's dismay, the friend he'd so terribly wronged didn't seem to react. He deserved anger, rage even. He deserved to be punished. His eyes were drawn to the elaborate flying rig that the Night Fury needed to use to compensate for the damage he'd done.
"I broke you."
Once again he remembered the image of a bound dragon lying on the ground, waiting for Hiccup's knife or starvation.
"I killed you."
Another memory came to him; the dim form of a dragon tumbling helplessly in the moonlight, falling toward the ground and possibly his death.
"I tore you out of the sky," he whispered.
Early in his attempts to create a way for Toothless to regain his ability to fly, Hiccup had realized the dragon would never again fly on his own. The guilt from that was bad enough. Now that he knew his friend was in fact a person, he felt horrible. He was no longer simply discharging an obligation to a friendly beast that he'd harmed by taking responsibility for its welfare. He was actually atoning for a crime that had robbed someone of their independence. The ability to fend for oneself was highly valued in Viking culture. To thoughtlessly injure another person in a way that permanently took away that independence was nearly unforgivable. It beat at Hiccup's conscience.
"Oh gods, I'm sorry, I took everything from you." His voice was still hoarse and scratchy. "I was so stupid, I'm so sorry."
Toothless pushed his head into Hiccup's chest, warbling piteously. Hiccup wrapped his arms around the great head and just held on as the pain threatened to overwhelm him. He pressed his cheek against the warm, pebbly skin of the dragon's muzzle. He felt sick, nauseous even. He felt like the ultimate betrayer. He kept saying "I'm sorry" over and over. The Night Fury simply held still, letting him grieve the only way he could.
To Hiccup, firing that bola cannon was the worst thing he'd ever done in his life. He remembered that a Monstrous Nightmare had crushed it just moments after he'd used it and he wished desperately that it had come just a minute sooner. Even if the Nightmare had killed him then and there, it would have been better. Then Toothless would still be free, living the life he'd been meant to live.
Attacking Berk. Consorting with the other dragons that raided them. Helping feed the Red Death.
No. Even in the state he was in, Hiccup realized that if he hadn't done exactly what he'd done then all the good that had come afterward would be destroyed. The centuries old war would continue. There'd be no discoveries, no changes and no improvements. No friendship with the most amazing creature, the most amazing being he'd ever known.
Finally the pain lessened. His heart eased and his breath came easier. He could see it now. For Berk, for the dragons, even for Toothless and himself, the Night Fury's freedom had to be sacrificed. It was the only way, regardless of no one involved knowing it at the time.
But it still hurt. And it still required something more from Hiccup.
He leaned back, still holding on to Toothless' wide head. The deepening darkness made his friend appear as little more than an outline in the rising moon's pale light. He looked down at the beautiful yellowish green eyes that reflected the moon's faint glow. He noticed something sparkling dimly near one of the dragon's eyes.
Hiccup hadn't realized he'd been crying. It was something he rarely did. But he could see a single tear of his that had fallen near Toothless' eye, making it look as though the dragon had been crying, too. He rubbed his own eyes with his sleeve. He then carefully and gently wiped away the tear from the Night Fury's eye, vaguely aware of how trusting the dragon was to let him do so.
Yes, Toothless trusted him. But...
"Toothless." The huge eyes blinked slowly. "Can you... can you ever forgive me?"
The dragon stared at him for several heartbeats. He slowly pulled his head back, sitting up on his haunches. Hiccup's hands slid over the warm scales until he had to put them on the ground to support his reclining body. Neither looked away.
Slowly, so as not to be misunderstood, Toothless the Night Fury raised his right forepaw and placed it lightly on Hiccup's shoulder. He dipped his head, placed his nose against his rider's chest, closed his eyes and crooned softly.
Hiccup was finally able to draw a deep, satisfying breath and release it as a sigh. His apology had been accepted. There was still an echo of pain in his heart though, for he was not entirely convinced he deserved it.
Toothless leaned back and settled on his haunches again, gazing at his human friend. He began rumbling and chuffing in his speech, then stopped. He looked down, as though annoyed with himself for expecting Hiccup to understand him. A thoughtful moment passed.
When his head came back up, he had a hopeful look in his eyes. He curled his tail around himself and placed the end on the ground beside Hiccup. The red dye used to paint the leather and iron construct looked brown in the moonlight. The white skull painted on its surface stood out brilliantly.
Toothless put his left paw down directly on the artificial tail fin and grunted softly. Then, leaning on his left foreleg, he lifted his right paw and gently pressed it against Hiccup's maimed leg. He grunted again.
Hiccup stared unhappily. He swallowed to clear the lump in his throat and muttered softly, "Yes, you're right. Fair payment."
The Night Fury snarled quietly and shook his head. He pressed again on his tail, then on Hiccup's leg. Then he leaned back and brought his two paws together. He looked expectantly at his rider.
"What? You mean... join?"
The dragon answered with a soft 'growf' and a nod. He looked down at his paws pressed together. He shook them as one and nodded again, as though satisfied. Then he separated them, holding them apart. He looked at Hiccup, then at each of his paws in turn. He shook his head violently and barked a subdued roar. He came down to all fours again and stared at Hiccup expectantly.
There was no mistaking the message. 'Together, yes. Separate, no.'
"You... you're saying..." Hiccup swallowed again, the pesky lump rising once more. "You'd rather we were together, like this?" He put one hand on the tail fin and the other on his own damaged limb. Dare he hope? "You believe what happened between us was... was worth this?"
A slow, solemn nod was his answer.
Something deep within Hiccup changed at that moment. An unknown, unrecognized shackle that had bound the young man's heart finally came apart. Ever since the first instant that a wild dragon had pressed its nose into his palm, it had been eroding, losing strength. The miserable constriction it had caused for so long was now gone.
For Hiccup, all he could really tell was that it felt as though some inner wound had been sitting raw for months and now was finally beginning to heal. If Toothless felt their friendship was important enough to forgive him for his ignorance, and more importantly the injury he'd caused and the resulting disability, then Hiccup could hardly go on feeling guilty over what had happened. He could finally set that part of his life in the past and consider it over and done with. His life with Toothless was the important thing now, and he could enjoy it fully.
Still sitting where he'd fallen, Hiccup gazed at his best friend. "Thank you," he said softly. "For everything."
The Night Fury warbled contentedly to him. He looked over his shoulder at the newly lit fires of Berk and motioned toward their home.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea."
When Hiccup tried to stand, however, he had a problem. As soon as he shifted to move his false leg, pain shot up and down from his hips to his non-existent ankle. The blow he'd taken when he'd fallen had hurt him more than he'd realized. He loosened the clasps that held his mechanical leg in place and hissed as more pain bloomed. Setting the wood and iron limb aside, he pushed up the shortened left leg of his trousers. The stone he'd hit had left a gash just above where his leg now ended and it had bled a good bit. He could see the slightly darker stain in the fabric where it had soaked up the blood.
Toothless' nose hovered over the injury. He heard the deep sniffing as the dragon assessed the damage. "It'll be alright," he assured his companion. "Just a scratch." Toothless grumble-growled his opinion on such a statement and reached with his right forepaw to grasp his leg just above the knee.
Hiccup knew what was coming. He'd gone through it before, but it still unnerved him. Toothless began licking his wound, spreading a thin sheen of saliva over the injured flesh. Despite his serious misgivings and his failure to convince the Fury to let such small hurts heal on their own, he had to admit that the dragon's slobbery treatment did tend to stop the bleeding sooner. And to the best of his recollection, no cut so treated had ever infected.
Once Toothless was satisfied with the condition of his companion's injury, he released the leg and settled himself on the ground. When Hiccup tried to pick up his false leg to strap it back on, the dragon placed his forepaw on the device to prevent it.
"No playing now, Toothless. We can't fly down from here unless I put it back on."
The Night Fury shook his head and gently patted his abbreviated leg.
"Well, I'd like to let it rest, too. But home is over there, remember?" He pointed over the dragon's shoulder at the fires of the village. "It's only for a few minutes. I can manage."
Toothless persisted. He wriggled his body happily as if he were perfectly comfortable where he lay. He looked up at the brilliantly clear sky where no snow or rain threatened. Then he gazed at Hiccup and crooned softly, making his desire plain.
The only other objection the young man could raise was, "It's gonna be awfully chilly out here, just off the shore- hey!" The forepaw that had grasped his leg before took hold of his other leg and pulled him across the wispy grass. A quick, confusing rearrangement of limbs and wings ended with Hiccup comfortably nestled between Toothless' forelegs, the dragon lying on his side with his wings wrapped around his partner.
All at once, Hiccup felt both powerless yet protected, cocooned within the living flesh of another being in a way he'd never imagined. It was oddly intimate yet...not. When Toothless tilted his head down and rubbed his chin over the top of his head he shifted himself to avoid it. "Come on now, I'm not your pet any more than you were ever mine."
The dragon held him only loosely, allowing him to move as he wished. For a moment, Hiccup intended to bring an end to such silly behavior and get up to put his leg back on. He reconsidered as the warmth of the dragon's body soothed his. Hesitating only a moment, he slid an arm partly around the Fury's large chest and placed his cheek against the smooth scales. The powerful rhythm of the magnificent heart beneath his ear was like a lullaby, meant for him and no one else. He squeezed his eyes shut and pressed himself tighter against his friend's comforting bulk.
It was new to him, and suddenly he never wanted to give up what he now had. Toothless was a friend who knew him, knew his strengths and weaknesses, had seen him in his most unguarded moments and still decided he was worthy of friendship, of protection. He'd never had anything like that in his life before and now it was undoubtedly the most important thing imaginable to his happiness.
As he lay there adjusting to the novelty of the situation and the deeper, emotional meaning behind it, he couldn't help feeling a little sad for Freygerd. He wondered if she'd had any inkling of what he had discovered. Had she ever dreamed of befriending a dragon? Had she ever imagined placing her safety in the care of a creature like Toothless?
Had she ever believed an enemy of Berk could be the only thing to bring happiness to a young man like Hiccup?
Hiccup felt himself getting drowsy, his mind wandering. Before sleep could claim him he remembered something important. He tilted his head back, trying to find the Fury's eyes. "Do you remember when we found Jaspin in my shop? He was looking at the pictures I had drawn of you."
Toothless relaxed his forelegs and wings enough to tilt his head down and catch his rider's eyes. He nodded serenely but silently.
"You understood what I told him. About how I feel about you."
His friend nodded again.
"I meant it then," he said, looking up at the calm, trusting eyes of the Night Fury. "And I mean it now."
Toothless blinked slowly, then lowered his nose to touch Hiccup's forehead. A soft crooning purr filled the tiny space between them.
(c)Wirewolf 2011
"How to train your dragon" and all attendant characters are copyright
Dreamworks Animation and used without permission
Author's note
I feel like I should apologize for the 'emo' content of this chapter. I simply felt that this was an issue that needed to be worked out between Hiccup and Toothless and that Hiccup would not be happy with the discovery he made. At least not at first.