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The sun had been out for a few hours and was prominently blazing in the cloudless sky before Hiccup had been roused from his slumber. Normally Hiccup woke up earlier but the exhaustion had made maintaining his sleep schedule difficult.
Toothless had been up for some time now and had already successfully tracked down a deer and killed it early this morning. He ate his meal away from the clearing so his rider would not awake to a grotesque and torn-up deer carcass.
The light stung Hiccup's eyes; having yet to adjust to the beating sun overhead. He was coated in a light film of sweat, like the previous day, it was unusually warm out.
He wiped the sleep away from his eyes and started to process the world around him again. That's when all his problems began to run through his mind as they had been before succumbing to sleep.
He pushed himself to his feet and sighed.
'Might as well start the day.' Hiccup thought in hopes of motivating himself to do just that.
First, he went and retrieved a black tunic from his leather sack. The tunic he grabbed had thinner pieces of fabric sewn together and would allow him to remain slightly cooler in this temperature.
Once he replaced his tunic and put the thicker one back in the leather sack then he went to sit beside Toothless and think of a feasible way to approach the village situation.
'They certainly wouldn't know of my departure just yet but it would only be a matter of weeks; Toothless and I would likely be many leagues away from this place before that happens'
'Besides,' Hiccup continued 'I only need to be in town long enough to grab a map and compass, there's a possibility I won't even confront anyone I know.'
The idea of perhaps making a disguise out of the fabric from some of the clothes he packed passed through his mind, but that plan was quickly dismissed.
'No need to waste precious supplies on something that might not even work, I would be unable to resist if they requested to see my face uncovered.' he concluded.
Ultimately the best plan he could come up with was to enter the town undisguised and attempt to make his purchases as quickly as possible with no more human interaction than was strictly necessary.
Luckily if interaction was required, he had a plan.
Before Stoick had departed on his most recent trip to the dragons' nest, he had vented to Hiccup about a trade discrepancy between Berk and the Bog's Burglars. The grains they had been receiving recently were not being well-handled in transport and in response, Berk had started sending them their most scrawny sheep.
Being that both sides consisted of Vikings, neither would admit their faults. The trade had been suspended until Stoick and Bertha could work out a solution this upcoming spring.
That's where Hiccup would come in.
As Stoick's son and heir to the chieftain position on Berk, he would have likely had to make negotiation trips on his fathers' behalf as a part of training. Should he be spotted by someone in the village who recognized him, he would claim that his purpose was to resolve the trading issue.
It was not a perfect plan but it was the best he could come up with at the moment. He rose to his feet and voiced his idea aloud to Toothless once he was sure that pursuing this plan was the best solution.
Toothless appeared to understand his intent as his features displayed a small amount of worry and he made a small cooing noise.
"Don't worry bud, they won't harm me. As far as they're concerned I'm still supposed to become the next chief of berk, they'll likely treat me well in hopes of keeping good relations," Hiccup said attempting to placate his dragon.
Toothless seemed to relax but still looked slightly more tense than usual.
Hiccup was heartened by his friends' concern for his well-being. In truth, he was less confident in his plan than he was portraying. But the supplies they currently lacked were critical to navigation and justified the risk in his mind.
Hiccup walked back over to his make-shift cot and retrieved his sheathed sword which he had removed before sleeping the previous night. He attached the belt to his waist so the blade rested on his left hip.
He pulled the sword from its sheath and looked the blade over. Like most of Berk's weapons, it had very little aesthetic focus and was built more in terms to serve a purpose.
'Killing dragons.' Hiccup thought while casting a forlorn look in the direction of Toothless.
He diverted his gaze back to the blade resting in his right hand. As a child, he had thought the sword was entirely too big for him -despite it being a short sword- but he now found its length and weight to be desirable.
The blade itself was straight and had a double-sided edge, the metal gleamed and shimmered in the sunlight, a testament to his father's attentiveness in caring for the weapon. The handle was of a hand and a half design; though with his small hands he could likely wield the sword two-handed with little to no issues.
The material of the handle was oak and had been smoothed enough so that it was comfortable to hold but was still slightly rough to help keep a grip on the sword when your hands got slippery from sweat, mud, blood, or any other fluid-like substance that might unintentionally find its way on to the hands of the wielder.
The only lavish parts of the blade were the crossguard and pommel, both were made of silver. The pommel was in the shape of a sphere that ended in a sharp point; depending on how crafty you were with swordplay it could be used to strike your opponent and inflict considerable damage. The cross-guard was of a plain design except that it had the word 'warrior' engraved (in nordic runes) on both sides of the guard.
Overall the blade was of fine design and could be relied upon when he should have use for it. Now it was just a matter of whether he could use it properly.
He had received basic training in the practice of swordplay when he was young but it had been a few years since he had put that training to use. For the most part, he was far more accustomed to crafting blades than he was using them.
Regardless of that, Hiccup bent his knees and settled into a slight crouch. He tested the weight of the sword in his right hand by making a few slashing and stabbing motions at the air, imagining potential foes where he struck.
Immediately he found his movement to be sluggish and uncoordinated, a direct result of neglecting most physical training. He had gained a small amount of lean muscle from his hours spent labouring in Gobber's forge, but for the most part, he was dishearteningly small.
'That's gonna have to change and soon.' Hiccup mentally sighed, starting to question his survival capabilities. If ever he should be separated from Toothless then he would want to be able to hold his own.
By now it had been over an hour since he had woken up and the sun was directly overhead, signifying the day was about halfway through.
"Better get this over with," Hiccup mumbled while simultaneously putting his sword back in its sheath
He decided that it would be best to strap on Toothless's flying gear and have him stay hidden near the village. It was unlikely that he would be met with hostility by the village inhabitants but he did not wish to throw caution to the wind.
Casting a glance over to his dragon, he called out to him.
"How are you feeling bud?"
Toothless responded with a happy sort of yelp and eagerly started running on the spot.
This made Hiccup smile and couldn't help but let a small laugh slip.
'How could we be so wrong about your kind?' Hiccup questioned mentally.
Here in front of him was supposedly the most brutal and mystery-shrouded dragon Berk had encountered in its history acting no more dangerous than an excited farm dog.
"That's good, I'm gonna strap on your flying gear and then we'll make our way to the village," Hiccup declared.
Toothless stopped his static running and laid down unto his armoured belly to make Hiccups job easier. The tail fin was still strapped on from last night so Hiccup started with the saddle and worked his way through the various components that allowed them to be air-borne. This only took a few minutes, he was becoming far more comfortable with the process.
He went and retrieved the sacks of both gold and silver that he had taken from his father and tucked them into his tunic. He opted to leave the basket and sack in the clearing; he and Toothless would retrieve the items when they departed.
He decided it would be smarter to walk to the village just in case they happened to be spotted. Though the trek would likely take them nigh on half an hour.
Standing beside Toothless, Hiccup reached over and patted the scales on the dragon's shoulder.
"The sooner we do this, the sooner we can leave," He said to placate Toothless once he noticed that his dragons' muscles were tense.
Toothless cooed in agreement.
Upon the conclusion of that little exchange, the dragon and rider started their walk toward the village.
The pair had been walking for almost thirty minutes before Toothless's head popped up and his ears stood on end.
"Is it the village?" Hiccup asked.
Toothless dipped his head indicating that it was.
"Alright, you stay here and I'll go on alone," Hiccup said.
Toothless once again tensed up and let a small growl slip. He seemed to dislike the idea of being far away from Hiccup.
"I promise I'll be safe bud, if you can hear the village from here then you'll be able to hear my call for help if I should need it," Hiccup said to appease Toothless.
Toothless's ears dropped and he rubbed his head under Hiccup's chin and cooed sadly. Hiccup wrapped his arms around the dragon's neck in amusement for the display of concern.
They held the embrace for a minute or so before Hiccup broke away.
"If I'm not back by the time the moon has reached its peak in the sky, then can you please come looking for me," Hiccup asked his dragon, knowing full well that Toothless would abide by his request.
Toothless merely locked eyes with his rider and gave him a look that told Hiccup he understood.
With that, Hiccup departed from his draconic friend and continued onwards in the general direction of the village.
About ten minutes of brisk walking had passed before the village had come into earshot.
'Toothless has some otherworldly hearing for him to have noticed the village from so far' Hiccup thought to himself, slightly astonished by his friend's auditory capabilities.
The sounds of the village started faint and fairly muffled but slowly grew louder as he traversed farther. Soon enough he heard the shrieks and screams of children, the laughter and cheers of full-grown adults, and the numerous sounds produced by the livestock kept in and around the village.
The village seemed unusually lively.
'I wonder if something has happ-'
That was all Hiccup could think to himself before he heard the sound of a sword being ripped from its sheath to his right.
A feminine voice quickly followed.
"Who are you and what are your intentions?"
Hiccup was frozen from the unexpected intrusion on his solidarity and was slow to respond.
The owner of the female voice seemed to take his silence as either a threat or an act of defiance because she proceeded to rush him.
Hiccup looked over and saw a small Viking girl charging at him with a sword in hand, seemingly intent on using the blade to harm him.
He barely had time to draw his blade and desperately bring it up to protect himself from the incoming blow.
Metal met metal with a loud 'clang' and the impact sent vibrations running up both Hiccups arms as he had held the handle with both hands. The force of the collision left him stunned but his adversary allowed him no recovery time.
She pulled her sword away from his and spun around him before he had time to react, then she kicked the back of his left knee joint causing him to drop one leg. Before being able to stand again he felt the sensation of cold sharp metal against the side of his neck.
"I'll only ask one more time, who are you and what do you want," came the harsh voice from behind him.
The thought of calling for Toothless passed through his mind instantly but he knew that she could dispose of him before his dragon would arrive.
"I'm Hiccup, son of Stoick the Vast and heir to the chieftain position on Berk!" Hiccup blurted out quickly before adding to his claim.
"I'm here to sort out a trading discrepancy!"
Hiccup could feel his heart's rapid pulse in his throat as he waited for the female Viking to speak.
"Hiccup?" The female Viking mumbled to herself before speaking up.
"Is that really you?"
His relief was palpable when he felt the sword being pulled away from his neck. He stood and turned to face his assailant, quite shocked to see who it was.
"Cami?!" Hiccup nearly shouted.
It has been some time since these two had last met; he certainly didn't expect their reunion to be so…. aggressive.
"Yes it's me," She responded with no small amount of shock still evident in her voice.
The two merely observed one another for the next few moments, partly to calm down from their recent spar and partly to take in each other's features as it had been close to five years since their last interaction.
Cami hadn't grown all that much since he had last seen her besides being a little more bulky, likely due to the warrior training she had received. She was currently wearing a light grey linen dress that was designed to allow her to move whatever way a shieldmaiden should require. She still had that bright blond hair from when they were kids and it was braided and hung about halfway down her back.
She actually hadn't changed as much as Hiccup would've expected besides obviously having some more mature facial and body features.
Hiccup was the one who broke the silence.
"So uhh…. long time no see huh?" He internally cringed at how corny that sounded.
It seemed to ease the tension though because Cami doubles over laughing for a solid few minutes.
"Isn't that the truth," she managed to get out between her fits of laughter.
She straightened up and sheathed her sword, Hiccup did so as well.
"So your dad is letting you work out our sheep and grain trade?" Cami asked, seeming to be knowledgeable on the subject.
'It makes sense that she would be enlightened on the matter, she is the daughter of the chieftess.' Hiccup thought to himself.
"Yeah he did," Hiccup answered before elaborating, "He said it would be good practice in the art of diplomacy,"
Cami nodded to herself before inquiring, "I suppose that makes sense, but wasn't this supposed to wait until after the winter months?"
This made Hiccup a little nervous, he had hoped that people would take his lie at face value and not question too many of the details.
"That was the original plan, but you know my dad; once something is in his head he won't let it go," Hiccup responded, hoping that his father's brash behaviour would serve as a point of justification.
Cami still seemed interested in further questioning him but before she could ask anything else Hiccup attempted to sway the conversation away from himself.
"What's with all the noise coming from the village, has something happened?"
Upon hearing his question Cami broke into a smile.
"We hit the jackpot!" She exclaimed excitedly, "On our last raid of the year in the northern end of a massive isle that some call Britannia; we chanced upon a monastery which was loaded with gold,"
She laughed at some memory that was brought forth to her mind.
"They didn't even carry weapons to defend themselves!" She practically yelled in what seemed to be disbelief.
This caught Hiccup's attention.
"How could they possibly expect to protect their riches without some sort of means of protection?" He asked in a confused tone.
"That's the best part!" Cami exclaimed, "They believed their god would protect them and that we would be damned for stealing their so-called religious artifacts,"
Cami unsheathed her sword and ran her finger along the edge of the blade before speaking again.
"Bah!" she voiced in distaste, "What a load of nonsense to only have one god, truly our gods were having a laugh at the sight,"
"Besides," Cami continued while still fingering the edge of her blade, "Their god showed them no mercy when we cut them down,"
She had finished her statement with a smile containing enough malice to send chills up Hiccups spine.
'Vikings,' Hiccup thought to himself, 'They show no mercy.'
Looking to get off the subject of bloodshed Hiccup asked.
"When did you guys get back?"
Cami stopped playing with her sword and looked at Hiccup.
"Yesterday," She said, "That's why I attacked you so quickly, I thought maybe you had been someone from the monastery that followed us."
"I see," Hiccup said, slightly uneasy.
There was silence for a few seconds before Cami spoke again.
"Care to retry our little spar?" She asked moving her sword into a ready position.
Hiccup panicked a little, he would be no match for her and he was still sore from all the travelling in the last couple of days.
So nonchalantly as possible, he declined her offer stating that it would be better for him to address the problem he came here to resolve.
"Well that's no fun," Cami said with a slight frown while placing her sword back in its scabbard.
"Perhaps tomorrow," Hiccup suggested, knowing full well that he intended on leaving before then.
Cami perked up a little at the offer.
"I'll take you up on that," she said.
"Firstly, however, could you maybe direct me to your mother?" Hiccup asked.
"Yeah I can do that she is probably in the great hall right now, we're having a raid celebration today!" she exclaimed excitedly.
With that, they set off towards the village, making small talk along the way and reminiscing about childhood memories.
Hiccup found himself standing before the imposing figure of Big-Boobied Bertha, leader of the Bog's-Burglars. She was currently sitting at the head of a long banquet table.
She was a hefty woman of great renown who demanded respect from both her underlings and her chieftain counterparts. Hiccup could remember a few stories he had heard from his father about the women and none of them were pleasant.
Currently, she was dressed in a black and red armoured dress -similar to Astrids- and had a battle axe attached to her right hip. Atop her head was a helmet with large horns sprouting out on each side, it reminded him of his father's helmet.
The hall -which was strikingly similar to the one back on Berk- had grown considerably quieter once Hiccup had been presented to Bertha, it seemed people were eager to hear what business a berkian had here.
Hiccup swallowed once and proceeded to present his case once it was clear that Bertha wouldn't speak first.
"I have come in my father's place to sort out our recent trading discrepancy," Hiccup proclaimed loudly, trying his best to keep an even and non-shaky voice.
"I see," said Bertha in a deep monotone voice.
"Was this not supposed to wait until after the harsh winter had passed?" Bertha inquired.
"It was," Hiccup said, "But my father figured that it would be good diplomatic practice to sort out this situation as well as to repair our trade ties before winter so both parties could focus on more important aspects of their respective societies,"
"You have a smooth tongue," Bertha commented before voicing a question.
"So you are to be the next chief of Berk then?" She asked with a hint of surprise in her voice.
"I am," Hiccup declared, despite knowing it was a lie.
"Very well, I shall hear out your negotiations," Bertha took a swig of ale from her mug and belched loudly before continuing, "But that will have to wait until tomorrow,"
Bertha raised her voice so everyone in the hall could hear her.
"Tonight we will drink and we will feast in honour of the tremendous sum of riches we have obtained!"
A deafening roar followed her declaration and the hall erupted into a boisterous atmosphere.
Bertha looked over her inhabitants with a small grin marring her expression.
She returned her gaze to Hiccup and gestured for him to sit in the empty chair to her left.
Hiccup reluctantly accepted and settled into the crude wooden chair. Truthfully, he would've preferred to sit farther away from the woman; she scared him.
Once seated he was promptly presented a large mug of ale by a bar maiden, which he accepted.
He looked over the hall and found that it was disproportionally female. That made sense since the tribe prided themselves on being shield maidens; the only males here were used for the sole purpose of tending to agriculture and reproduction. Bog-Burglar inhabitants also rarely married unless the union served the purpose of strengthening political ties with other tribes in the archipelago.
His train of thought was broken when Bertha spoke to him.
"How has your father been Hiccup?"
The tone of her voice was much more at ease than it was previously, obviously she wished to keep a stern demeanour in front of her people when addressing political issues.
"He's good," Hiccup answered vaguely.
Bertha gave him a look which made Hiccup feel more inclined to share further details.
"He is tired," Hiccup admitted, "There was another attempt to find the dragons nest this year and like all the other voyages, this one did not end successfully,"
Bertha's gaze gained a sympathetic edge.
"I'm sorry to hear that, you're home is unfortunate to be subjected to so many raids by those unholy demons,"
"Aye, that we are," Hiccup said, disguising the fondness he had for these 'unholy demons'.
Clearly wishing to switch topics, Bertha inquired as to how Hiccup had gotten here.
"I sailed the sea on a sloop, it's currently docked on a remote beach far east of here," Hiccup lied.
Hiccup was not a fan of lying but he was now starting to understand the practicality of being able to lie on the spot.
"You sailed solo?" Bertha asked.
"I did, the seas were rough and did not make the task easy," Hiccup responded.
"I'm sure it wasn't," Bertha said, a small amount of respect creeping into her voice.
"I almost lost my way too," Hiccup stated before elaborating further, "During a particularly rough night I lost both my map of the archipelago and my compass,"
Bertha's eye widened. She was a woman who spent much of her life on the sea and understood just how important it was to have a means of navigation.
"You're lucky to have made it here," she agreed while gesturing for one of her warriors to approach.
"Vetta, will you please locate a map of our archipelago as well as a compass and bring it back for our guest here," Bertha asked the female warrior who was apparently named Vetta.
Vetta merely nodded and set about to complete the task she had been given.
"That is very kind of you," Hiccup stated, genuinely surprised by the act of generosity.
"Please accept my recompensation for those items," Hiccup said while reaching for the bag containing an abundant amount of silver coins.
Bertha waved away his attempt to pay for the items.
"Payment is not necessary," She said smiling, "you have travelled far to be here, it's the least I can do,"
While waiting for Vetta to return with the compass and map, Hiccup and Bertha made conversation on topics ranging from dragon raids to crop yields. During their conversation, however, Bertha noticed that Hiccup's gaze kept drifting to a certain person in the hall, Cami.
Not being someone who beats around the bush, Bertha said something that caught Hiccup completely off guard.
"What would you think of betrothing my daughter?"
Hiccup choked on his mead and coughed a little.
"Excuse me?"
Bertha smiled and explained herself.
"I had originally planned on discussing the matter with your father but you are here now," She took a long drink from her cup of ale before continuing, "I was thinking of maybe some sort of long term agreement between Berk and my own tribe, and what better way to solidify such an agreement than with a marriage"
Hiccup was about to respond but Bertha cut him off.
"Don't answer now, think on the matter," she said, "But I believe it would benefit both our tribes greatly,"
Hiccup was stunned by the offer, but he did understand the practicality of it. He also knew he couldn't possibly consider it, by now he would likely be considered a traitor on Berk.
He was here under false pretenses.
Bertha laughed at the blush on the boy's face and pointed to Vetta who had just re-entered the hall.
"I believe your supplies are here," she stated with poorly concealed mirth.
Hiccup thanked Vetta as he accepted the rolled-up map and a small silver compass.
"Thank you again, Bertha, your generosity is very kind," Hiccup said in a tone that portrayed his genuine gratitude.
Bertha waved off his thanks.
"Truly think nothing of it," she said with a tone of finality as she clapped her hands together, "Now, please enjoy the festivities and tomorrow we will talk business,"
Hiccup left his map and compass near the front of the table where Bertha was seated and took up her offer to indulge in the celebration.
Despite feeling awkward around Cami due to the unexpected offer that her mother had extended towards him, he spent much time with her.
They talked happily with each other of old memories, they laughed at the drunken antics of the other Vikings present, they danced together merrily while the local bards plucked at their own respective instruments.
Hiccup had a really good time celebrating with her.
Though his joy was infringed with the knowledge that this was temporary and there was a very good chance they would never see each other again after tonight.
Hiccup still enjoyed himself…. mostly.
It was very late into the night and the party had long since come to halt. Hiccup was still in the hall, curled up in a corner, Cami was sleeping roughly ten feet away from him.
They were not the only ones who chose to stay in the hall for the night, many people decided to simply pass out here instead of going through the trouble of finding their homes.
Hiccup waited a full half an hour after any of the Vikings in the hall had made any noise indicating they were still awake before he made his move.
He quietly rose from his sleeping spot and tip-toed over to the head of the table where his map and compass were still located. He had to carefully step around a few of the shield maidens to reach his supplies. He repeated the same delicate process to reach the main door of the hall.
Once he quietly exited the hall and was being showered in the light being projected off the moon, he retraced his way through the relatively small village back to the edge of the forest where he and Cami had emerged from earlier that day.
He wasted no time sprinting back to where he knew Toothless would be waiting for him, though he couldn't go as fast as he wanted to unfortunately due to the darkness carpeting the forest floor.
After about twenty minutes of running Hiccup heard a loud crack cast forth from somewhere in the darkness, he narrowed his eyes to try and spot the source but is eyes could not pierce the veil of night.
"Toothless?" Hiccup whispered aloud.
No response.
"Toothless is that you?" Hiccup tried again.
Still no response.
Hiccup started to get a little worried, thinking that maybe some type of predator was watching him.
Then he saw it.
The darkness in front of him shifted, it was as though the shadows themselves were sentient living beings. An oddly feline pair of eyes accompanied the moving shadow.
Hiccup released a breath which he hadn't noticed himself holding, he knew those eyes.
"Don't do that to me bud, scared the hell out of me," Hiccup said lightly amused.
Toothless emerged from the darkness and gave his equivalent of a giggle which was a weird gurgly growling sound. He licked Hiccup's face and purred softly.
Hiccup wrapped his arms around Toothless's neck and embraced the dragon.
"Thanks for waiting," Hiccup said, genuinely grateful for Toothless's loyalty.
Hiccup released his grip on the dragon's neck.
"Ready to get out of here?" He asked.
Toothless nodded in the affirmative and lowered his neck so that his rider could climb aboard.
Just as Hiccup was about to climb onto Toothless, the dragon's neck snapped straight up and he growled into the darkness.
"What is it bud?" Hiccup asked, lightly concerned.
Toothless didn't respond but rather just kept his gaze locked on a certain patch of darkness. Hiccup was about to ask him what's wrong again, but the dragon pounced before he could voice his question.
Hiccup heard a scream when Toothless landed and he quickly went to investigate.
What Hiccup saw shocked and worried him.
Toothless currently had Cami pinned to the ground and was growling in her face.
'Oh shit!' Hiccup panicked, 'She must have heard me got up and followed me out here.'
From beneath Toothless, Hiccup heard Cami yelling.
"Get off of me you fucking demon!"
She continued screaming more insults and obscenities at the dragon until Hiccup came into view.
"What in Thor's name is happening here!?" she yelled at Hiccup.
"Promise you won't freak out?" Hiccup asked.
"No!" she responded in an incredulous tone.
"He won't get off of you until you promise that you'll stay calm and let me explain what's going on," Hiccup said.
Toothless growled to back up his claim.
Cami was stuck under Toothless for several minutes before she finally agreed to remain calm and let him explain the situation.
"Alright Toothless, will you please let her up," Hiccup asked.
Toothless growled lightly but pulled himself off the Viking girl.
Cami looked extremely distraught and Hiccup thought for a second that she might even try and make a break for it.
She didn't however and took a seat on a fallen tree that was right near the trio.
"Alright," she said, "I want a good fucking explanation,"
Hiccup gave her what she wanted.
He started with the night that he shot down Toothless with one of his inventions and how no one believed that he had actually done it. Then he explained how even when Toothless had the opportunity to kill him after being released from the bonds of his invention, he didn't. He explained how he slowly gained the dragons' trust in that rocky gorge outside his village and of Toothless's deformity. Finally, he explained how his superior knowledge of dragons allowed him to excel in dragon training and the ultimatum he was left with after being declared the top student.
He left out the part of him discovering the nest and the true reason why the dragons kept invading their food stocks, he himself was still unsure what to make of that.
After his long-winded explanation, he anxiously waited for Cami to say something.
"I understand," she said after a few moments of silence.
Hiccup was shocked, of all the things that he thought she would say; this was the most unlikely.
"You do?" Hiccup asked, confusion evident in both his tone and facial features.
"Yes," she said, "I might not necessarily agree with your decisions, but I can understand why you made your choices,"
This had gone…. better than Hiccup expected.
"Will you keep my secret?" Hiccup asked, hopeful that she would.
After a moment of contemplation on Cami's part, she said she would with one condition.
"You have to come back to see me again, this cannot be the last time we see each other," she declared.
This condition confused Hiccup but he decided it sounded doable enough. But he did have one concern.
"What happens when your mother finds out why I was really here?" Hiccup asked, "Word of my disappearance is sure to reach this far sooner or later,"
"You're right," Cami said, "But you still have to promise to come back here, you might have to hide your identity when you come but in exchange for my silence I want you to promise me,"
With little to no choice on the matter, Hiccup agreed that he would come back and see her one day.
"Good," said Cami with a satisfied expression.
"Now onto another important matter," she said eyeing him up, "You suck at fighting,"
Hiccup almost protested at the claim but he knew it was true.
"And?" Hiccup asked, slightly irritated with her for pointing that out.
"And if you want to survive you better change that," she said.
"I have a dragon on my side, I'll be just fine," Hiccup said while petting Toothless's neck.
"Yes you do," Cami acknowledged, "Yet I still almost killed you earlier,"
Hiccup cringed at the memory.
"Fair point," Hiccup said in defeat.
"Go to Flashburn's school of sword fighting, it's on the westernmost side of the archipelago; it should be marked on the map my mom gave you," Cami said.
"Great, while I'm at it I'll stop by Berk since I'm staying in the archipelago," said Hiccup sarcastically.
"Shut it you ass," Cami said irritably, "Just go there for the winter and train, your father would never expect you to go there,"
Hiccup thought about it and realized that she presented a fair point. His father would likely expect him to put as much distance between himself and Berk as possible; not camp out in the same archipelago.
'This sword training school will likely teach me some valuable lessons on how to actually survive a fight.' He reasoned to himself.
"Very well, I'll go to this school for the winter," Hiccup conceded.
Cami nodded and seemed almost…. relieved?
"Why are you helping me?" Hiccup asked abruptly.
Cami seemed caught off guard by the question and collected herself before answering.
"Because I think you're a person that could become very important to me given enough time," She said in an almost timid voice.
Hiccup blushed and acted without thinking, he stepped forward and pulled Cami into a hug; she returned the embrace.
Hiccup was the one to pull away and look Cami in the eyes, her face was lit up from a ray of moonlight penetrating the canopy above.
It happened so quickly that Hiccup didn't have time to resist; she leaned in and kissed him on the lips. It was a short kiss but in that short period, many emotions were displayed on both sides.
She stepped away from him, slightly embarrassed by what she just did; Hiccup himself was slightly shocked.
"I wish you the best of luck Hiccup Haddock," Cami said, trying to keep her voice steady.
She turned and walked away but before she was completely consumed by the darkness she spun around and yelled one last thing to Hiccup.
"Don't forget your promise!"
With that, she turned back around and her form was fully concealed by the dark forest.
Hiccup merely stood there dumbfounded until Toothless nudged his arm with his scaley nose and snickered at the boy.
"Oh stop yourself," Hiccup exclaimed before clambering up into the saddle on Toothless's neck.
The pair flew back to the clearing where the wooden basket and leather sack still resided.
"We should grab a few hours of sleep and leave once the sun rises above the horizon," Hiccup suggested once the two touched down.
Toothless didn't have any protests and dropped onto his belly and settled into a comfortable position, seeming to not care about the flying gadgets still attached to him.
'Good, I didn't want to take them off anyway' Hiccup thought to himself.
He slipped out of the saddle and settled onto the soft grass beside Toothless, not bothering to set up a make-shift bed for tonight.
He had a hard time embracing sleep anyway because one thought kept racing through his head.
Cami.
Once again I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
FYI: I haven't read the HTTYD books so almost everything is either gonna be my imagination or from the movies.