Carried Off, a DreamWorks' How to Train Your Dragon fanfic by Raberba girl (rough draft)
Hiccup hadn't thought ahead far enough.
"I heard that you've taken over at the arena completely."
Hiccup looked up at his wife, not realizing that the spoonful of gloppy food he was holding had paused on its way to Finn's mouth. The baby made an irritated noise and leaned forward a little to reach. "Huh?"
"The dragons," Astrid said in mild exasperation. "Apparently you've been doing all the feeding and stuff lately. I'm actually pretty impressed - I know you've got a full plate already with the forge and the kids and everything else, I don't even know how you find time for a second job."
"Yeah...I like the work," Hiccup muttered, now trying to maneuver a spoonful of food into Valka's mouth while avoiding her flailing hands.
"That's nice. I hope you don't like it too much, though, since you'll be getting a long break soon."
"What?"
The exasperated look was back. "Winter, Hiccup. Winter's coming."
He accidentally dropped the spoon. He was instantly on his hands and knees to clean up the splattered morsel of food, so that Astrid wouldn't see the horrified look on his face.
Hiccup couldn't believe he'd forgotten. The Hooligans barely had enough food for themselves to survive, there was no way they could keep feeding five dragons throughout the barren winters. One of the dragon caretaker's duties was to slaughter each batch of captives at the approach of the darkest time of year.
Hiccup immediately knew that he couldn't do it. Hound and the others were his friends now, killing them would be murder. He would not stain his hands, or anyone else's, with their blood.
His face was perfectly composed by the time he emerged from under the table.
"Are you all right?" Astrid asked.
"Yeah."
"I can send someone to help you-"
"Nope, it's fine, I can handle it. Thanks for the offer, though."
"Are you sure?" she said dubiously.
"It's not like I have to take them on in a fair fight. I can poison them or something."
"No. I don't want to waste food on that."
"Darts, Astrid. I don't have to poison their food, I just have to get it into their bloodstream."
"Fine. I'll put together a sign-up list for everyone who wants some last-minute practice and try to get it to you in a couple of days."
"Okay. Thanks."
o.o.o.o.o
The deadline was not immediate, since there was still more than a week's worth of food rations for the dragons. Unfortunately, the warriors tended to squeeze in extra training during the last bit of availability, which made it a little more nerve-wracking for Hiccup to plan.
He also wanted, before he did anything drastic, to see if he could change the villagers' minds about dragons. He started with Gobber. "Hey...so, you know my friend I was telling you about?"
"Friend?" Gobber said, looking baffled.
"Yeah... You know, Toothless," Hiccup clarified, trying to sound casual. "My Night Fury friend."
Gobber lowered his hammer and gave Hiccup a hard look.
"I'm not crazy, Gobber," Hiccup said softly. "I know it's hard to understand, especially for you all who've been fighting dragons for so much longer than my generation has, but-"
"I loved your mother," Gobber said gruffly, "she was one of my best friends, and I'm glad you reminded your dad of her. But, Hiccup, she started crossing a line that no one ought to cross, and...not all the ways you take after her are for the best."
Hiccup took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. "Gobber...what if Mom was right?"
The glint in the older man's eyes was all ice and pain. "They've taken everything from me, Hiccup. They kept taking everything one by one, and then they took your dad. That broke me, but it still wasn't enough for them. They took you, too, and sometimes I think they'll probably come back for you. They won't stop until they've completely destroyed me. They're very close now, lad. It's too late."
"...I've flown among the clouds, Gobber," Hiccup said hopelessly. "If you ever get the chance to do that, you'll know. Dragons are-"
Gobber turned away and resumed work without a word.
Hiccup tried Fishlegs next, the only one in the village who seemed to be fascinated by dragons as a little more than just savage enemies to be destroyed. "I wonder if these wing/fin things are functional, they're so huge...!" Fishlegs exclaimed as he studied the picture Hiccup had drawn of the Bewilderbeast.
Fishlegs seemed to believe everything Hiccup said- At least, he was eager to listen. It wasn't until Hiccup started talking about trying to befriend the dragons and break them of the mind control that Fishlegs's face started to fall.
"We can do it, Legs," Hiccup insisted. "And if we deprive the Helheim king of enough of his minions, then-"
"Hiccup," Fishlegs said very quietly, and Hiccup already knew he had lost. "I...I don't think you're...really aware of the scale of a project like this. Or how much we'd be risking and how much there is to lose... We're barely holding on as it is, I-"
"I get it, Fishlegs. Thanks for listening."
He had no hope left, but he tried Astrid anyway. Instead of leaving as soon as they were finished that night, he stayed to cuddle with her in bed afterward, and she seemed a little surprised but in too good a mood to question why his arms stayed around her. "Astrid," he whispered.
"Mm," she murmured in contentment.
"I have to ask you something..."
She sighed, tensing slightly as she realized that of course there was an ulterior motive. Between the two of them, nothing was ever given for free. "What is it?" she mumbled into his shoulder.
He was silent for a while, stroking a thumb back and forth across her cheek. Finally he said, "I wish you could believe me about the dragons."
"They're monsters, Hiccup," she said wearily. "You know this, at least you did before. They don't know how to do anything except steal and kill and destroy."
"Maybe their leader does, okay. But they wouldn't be able to resist him, Astrid. He could force them to do things they wouldn't do otherwise, they-"
She sat up and glared a warning at him.
He hurriedly sat up as well. "We can...if we release them far enough north, maybe they'll be out of range of that thing's influence, maybe they can make their way to-"
"Release who?" Astrid said, her voice dangerous.
Hiccup swallowed. "I can...I can show you. They're so gentle now."
"Who, Hiccup."
That was not a voice to be disobeyed or put off. "The...dragons. In the arena."
After a long silence, she said in the same tone, "I don't know what you're up to, but it needs to stop right now. ...I should probably appoint someone else as caretaker."
He tried to control his panic, and managed to shrug fairly nonchalantly. "It'll be a hassle trying to fill the post so close to the end of the season. By the time I teach the new guy what to do with the beasts and make sure he's got all those last-minute training sign-ups sorted out, it'll be the end, anyway."
Astrid considered a moment, then pointed straight at his chest. "Don't try anything. Don't be you for just one week, Hiccup."
"I'll try, chief."
"Please leave."
"Good night." He got dressed and carefully picked up his sleeping daughter. Finn lay awake but quiet, sucking his thumb as he gazed at the fire. Hiccup carried the children away, ignoring Astrid's suspicious expression.
o.o.o.o.o
Hiccup didn't manage to find an opportunity to save the arena dragons before there was another raid. He could not bring himself to repair and supply weapons that would be used to kill enslaved creatures, so instead of helping Gobber in the forge, he unflinchingly allowed himself to be branded a coward, taking the twins and hiding with the village children in the cave shelter. He took up a shield and dagger and claimed a spot guarding the entrance, but even the ten- and eleven-year-olds doing the same glared at him distastefully and moved away. He stared straight ahead without acknowledging their snubs.
Very rarely had a dragon ever been known to find the shelter. The loss of even one child from such incidents was even rarer, to such an extent that there were no confirmed instances of it ever actually happening.
In any case, the young guards were really just a precaution, thus no one was prepared to see the head of a Monstrous Nightmare suddenly dip down into the cave entrance and growl.
The children immediately burst into terrified screams, prompting the Nightmare to light itself on fire. Hiccup, getting over an initial moment of shock, flung away his weapon and his shield and walked toward the dragon with his arms outstretched, as if to shield both parties from each other. "Nothing to worry about, kids," he called amiably over his shoulder.
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
"We're gonna die we're gonna die we're gonna diiiiieeee!"
"MOM! I WANT MY MOM!"
"Someone help us!"
Hiccup halted before coming too close to the Nightmare and looked up at it with averted eyes. "Noisy bunch, aren't they," he remarked.
The dragon rumbled warily.
Hiccup raised his hand for the dragon to sniff, still not making eye contact. "My name's Hiccup. Can you smell my friends on me? Old flockmates of yours, huh?"
The dragon sniffed, then dropped to the ground and approached to investigate him more closely. Some of the children, especially near the back of the cave, were still screaming or crying, but most of them were staring, mesmerized.
"There's no food here," Hiccup said softly, venturing to scratch the same spot on the dragon's head that he knew Volcano liked. The Nightmare made a pleased croaking sound. "Just little ones. Only human hatchlings, that's all. Go away, please?" He stepped back and made a slow and exaggerated shooing motion with his arms.
The Monstrous Nightmare shook its head, then turned and flew away.
Some of the children who hadn't been crying now burst into tears; some of those who had previously been crying were now anxiously asking those with better views what had happened. Others were simply staring at Hiccup in confusion and distrust.
Hiccup met their gazes steadily. "Dragons don't want to hurt us. Someone bad is making them do it. If we help them and set them free, they can be our friends."
"Dragon-lover." One of the older children spat the words like a curse. "Filthy dragon-lover." The phrase circulated among the group in murmurs, then suddenly it became a hostile chant. "Dragon-lover! Dragon-lover! Dragon-lover!"
Hiccup picked up his children and walked away.
o.o.o.o.o
Hiccup finally managed to find an opportunity before the food ran out, early on a clear, cold evening. He let all the dragons out of their pens and fed them the last of the food and caressed them sadly. Hound, Gecko, and Reign stuck particularly close to him as if they could sense his disquiet.
"This is goodbye, guys, Hiccup said softly. "I probably won't ever see you again, but as long as you survive, that's all right. Live, and fly. Fly far away from your monster and my monsters, and be safe." He walked over to the open gate and gestured, a little surprised that none of them had noticed it.
None of them took off right away. They simply stared at the gate for a while, wide-eyed, then Reign very cautiously tiptoed to the threshold to examine it.
Volcano suddenly rushed past her and took flight. He crowed his joy to the sky, and Hiccup's heart soared to watch him.
A minute later, the Zippleback lumbered past, one head pausing to exhale fondly over Hiccup as the other head vocalized. Then that dragon was gone as well.
The others wouldn't leave. "Guys...guys, come on, you need to get out of here. I think they saw Volcano take off, they'll be here soon." Hiccup tried walking outside the gate, but Gecko just stayed perched on his shoulders. The two bigger dragons simply followed him and stopped walking when he did. "I'm serious, you need to go!"
All three animals suddenly stiffened in alarm, heads turned toward the village. "They're coming," Hiccup said urgently. "You need to go, and I can't be caught with you."
Vikings appeared at the other end of the path, breaking into shouts when they saw the dragons loose. Hiccup saw them and dashed away a few steps, which dislodged the Terror. Gecko tumbled into the air with a squawk, then turned his back in a miffed sort of way and flew off. Hiccup flapped his hands at Hound and Reign. "You too, girls! You too! Go! Hound, you have children who are waiting for you, how dare you abandon them!"
The Gronckle, looking torn, let out a devastated cry and launched into the air. Reign simply huddled closer to Hiccup, her wings twitching with fear and the spines on her tail standing erect.
"GO!" Hiccup slapped his hands hard against the reluctant Nadder.
All the dragons escaped in the end. Hiccup did not. He didn't resist as he was dragged back to the village and shoved to his knees before the chief and accused of treachery.
"Hiccup!"
He refused to look at her.
"Hiccup, how could you-?! I thought the kids were just making up stories about what you did during that raid, but this, Hiccup...!"
'What will happen to my children?' he wondered in distress. 'How will she punish me?' He didn't think he could bear being locked up for too long, endless hours or days or perhaps weeks away from his children, but he would not protest. The dragons' lives had been worth it.
Astrid's hand seized his face and jerked his head up, forcing him to meet her furious eyes. "You betrayed us. You've sided with them."
"All I did was save my friends from being murdered. They won't bother us again, they-"
"You just set free five monsters who were in our grasp! Every scrap they take from now on, every burn and every drop of shed blood, will be your fault, Hiccup."
"They won't-!"
"Aaagghh!" She turned away and screamed in fury, pacing in a little circle with her hands buried in her hair, then came to a stop and glared at him with an expression of pure poison. He gazed back calmly until someone put a mace into her hand.
Astrid stared at the weapon in her grasp for a minute. Hiccup's whole body flooded with heat, physically horrified as he realized he was about to die, but inside he felt completely numb, unable to summon a single thought or emotion.
After a very long moment, Astrid flung the weapon aside and strode forward to strike Hiccup hard across the face. "You are the enemy," she hissed. "You are not one of us. ...You have never been one of us."
"A...Astrid...please, I-"
"Put him in a boat," she snapped. "Phlegma, you're coming with us."
Hiccup had felt nothing in reaction to the threat of death, but now panic and horror seized him as he realized he was being exiled. "Astrid, please!" He couldn't stop them from dragging him to the pier, no matter how hard he struggled. "NO! Astrid, don't do this, at least let me take them, please, at least let me take them with me, please, Astrid, please...!"
Astrid, light-headed with shock and fury and turmoil, had only intended to bring her advisor along, to help ground her emotionally and also to help physically subdue the prisoner if necessary. She did not expect Gobber to come toward her with her children in his arms. "Go back to work, Gobber. My mother will look after the twins."
"He has the right to say goodbye to them," the man ground out.
"He has no rights at all anymore."
Gobber looked her square in the eye. "Finn and Val and I are coming with you. You will not deny us our farewells, Astrid, or else you'll be finding yourself short two smiths instead of just one."
Astrid ground her teeth, but there was nothing she could counter that with. She turned on her heel and marched away.
As soon as Hiccup saw Gobber approaching with the babies, he called out frantically and strained toward them, held back by Phlegma's grip. As soon as Gobber stepped into the boat, Hiccup snatched for his children, wrapping his arms around them and nuzzling their faces. Valka screeched and clutched hard at his hair; Finn flailed at him and cried. He held them close during the whole journey, bent over them and rocking slightly, crooning, trying to memorize their faces and their scent and their softness and every one of their sweet sounds and movements.
When the boat reached Exile Rock, Hiccup refused to move, and Phlegma had to hold him down as Astrid pried the children out of his arms. He screamed and begged, abandoning every scrap of pride as the women dragged him ashore. "Please, Astrid, please, I'll do anything, I'll do anything, please don't take my children, please, Astrid, please-"
"They are no longer your children, Outcast," Astrid snarled at him. "Traitor. You're as good as a murderer. If you are ever seen in Hooligan territory again, you will be killed on sight."
"Please...Astrid...please..." He clung to her, but she violently shoved him away and rushed to the boat, barely able to contain the tears in her own eyes. She was startled when Gobber handed the children to her.
The old blacksmith trudged over to Hiccup and stiffly knelt beside him. "Hiccup," he said helplessly, "I don't know... I almost- I almost would...rather not go home."
Hiccup gazed up at him, his grief a raw wound, tears sliding down his face.
"This dragon thing...just come back to yourself, Hiccup, cast off this madness. Just say the word, and I'll- You won't have to face this alone."
"...Dragons," Hiccup gasped out, "have been kinder to me than any...any human...I ever knew."
Gobber looked crushed, and near tears himself. He embraced Hiccup, then climbed heavily to his feet and made his slow way to the boat, shoulders slumped as if all hope had deserted him. Phlegma pushed off and they began to row away, leaving Hiccup broken and alone.
He was in almost too much pain to cry. He gasped for breath, unseeing, clutching at his chest as if his heart had stopped. He trembled and could not have stood up even if he'd tried. 'They're gone...they're gone...I've lost them forever...' He was supposed to wait for the Outcasts to come upon him and decide whether or not to accept him into their illegitimate tribe, or else attempt to survive on his own, but he had no interest in either option. He wanted to walk into the sea and keep walking until he disappeared forever in its depths. He would have done so if he'd had the strength to stand.
After a while, a heavy body thumped to the ground beside him. A voice squawked in concern, then a set of sharp fangs started to gently preen him. After a while, Hiccup struggled to his hands and knees, creeping closer and burying his face against the four-winged dragon's warm scales. "Take me home, Cloudjumper," he whispered.
To be continued...
Author's Notes: I believe it was my friend Anna who suggested to me that the captive dragons would probably be killed every year as food grew the most scarce, then a new batch of dragons would be captured after winter so the warriors could keep training. That idea made a lot of sense to me.
I feel like from Stoick's perspective, the "betrayal" must have seemed to him like his son had fallen in with Nazis. Weeks ago, while trying to kill a roach that was crawling around near the ceiling near my freaking bed, feeling my body get all hot and tense and shuddery with revulsion and anger and frustration and phobia-fear, it occurred to me to compare HTTYD dragons to cockroaches. What would it be like if someone I love had befriended a freaking cockroach? What would it be like to find out that cockroaches have feelings, and like to cuddle, and can be fiercely protective of their humans and all that? It just...I felt very strongly in that moment that Stoick is an amazing, amazing person...