"Can you believe them?!" Heather barked, avoiding the tree's branch, which hit Toothless straight into the jaw, who followed her. "They behave like little kids!"
"It's hard not to agree," he replied, massaging the injury and, at the same time, glaring at the woman, sulking.
By that time, they had both walked into the green woods of the unfamiliar, new island, from which most of their recent problems originated. The atmosphere around might have appeared rather tranquil – the silent, untouched by humans natural surroundings, perfect for ease – but it actually wasn't.
For something like an hour already, Heather had constantly complained about Snotlout's, twin's, and even Fishlegs' earlier comments, while Toothless, her company behind, listened to everything, somewhat calmly. It might come off as odd, but the man, forced into being a witness to Heather's anger outbursts, which involved him being punched from time to time, remained even contented.
Her amusing, vociferous tone of voice, the fact that she must have pulled on every met by tree's leaf to act out, the same reason Toothless's face was already half covered in bruises, and that strange, hard gait, everything of that was the cause why smile wasn't fading from his face. Of course, such behavior of hers has also provoked some thinking in him, for example, if he also had sometimes really acted like that, but in the end, he just enjoyed such a hilarious performance.
Eventually, jaded by renewed slams, he caught up with Heather, so as to walk by her side to side, and when she glimpsed her doings, which were the red marks on Toothless's skin, she tucked her hands in pockets of her pants, ashamed. Subsequently, she inhaled, calmly and rather loudly, after which she started again, but this time, more quietly, and idyllic.
"I think we should be more mature about everything around us, and I mean everything."
"Sure," Toothless responded, nodding and keeping his head up.
"Hence, I think some comments are just not adequate anymore," she continued, clenching her jaw. "For instance, that they're weary. I mean, we all are but is that the reason for such a moaning?"
"Right."
"We all had a hard day, but at the end of the day, there are obligations, that we cannot just ignore," she pointed out and frowned, before shouting. "For fucking sake, I would like to lay down too, gladly, but I just know I can't!"
"Fact."
"There was an order, to check the island, split up, and after everything, go back to the Edge! Is it so complicated?!" she fumed, throwing her arms in the air. "The truth is, if it wasn't for their groaning, we would have been done already and be back! Can't anything be done by them fast?!"
"No, it can't."
"The Edge is attacked, it slowly collapses, and instead of doing anything, we just sit around and admire a new, fucking ecosystem! Without even saying that on the spot stayed injured Hiccup and Astrid, all alone against dozens of furious Nadders! Don't they have any concerns about either of them?!"
"Since when are you in love with Astrid?"
"Well, but actually, what I expected from-!" she went on and paused, once the realization of Toothless's words got to her, and she stopped herself, while the man casually proceeded with the stroll. "Wha- what did you just say?"
As she asked he halted himself, and just then, looking her straight in the eye, repeated, "Since when are you in love with Astrid?" smirking, as well as crossing his arms.
"I'm surely not in love with her!" Heather denied and rushed past, hiding the expression on her face behind her palm. "From where even that idea came from?!"
Lifting his eyebrow at her, Toothless observed her distancing figure, before hurrying after her, sighing in the meantime. "Well, if you must know, it might have something to do with your complaining," he explained, once he appeared next to her.
"My complaining?"
"That's right because at the moment I agree with each sentence you have said," he stated and snorted, glimpsing her roll her eyes as if she wanted to say rather! "It's like I could just relate to what you feel."
"And?" she questioned, shrugging.
"And there is a reason why I feel like that. I left alone Hiccup, my Hiccup, who had her arm penetrated just a few hours ago, and as you mentioned, with Nadders still around, so in danger," he clarified, while the worry and guilt crossed his face, before once again focusing on his companion. "That's said, what's your reason for feeling like that, Heather?"
"T-That doesn't mean anything," she quacked, looking to the side, and after that smirking. "By your logic, I could be also in love with Hiccup."
"Maybe you're right, maybe you're not, but let me tell you something," he retorted and straightened, once Heather gazed at him, curious. "When I first was learning about love I was both amazed and terrified - amazed about how the two beings just could pair themselves like that and terrified about the power it had. The idea that simple words could destroy everything between me and her," he paused to exhale.
"-is awful, right?" Heather finished for him as her smile slippered.
"It is, but honestly, now that I think of it, if then I would find out how it would have turned out, what that means to receive Hiccup Haddock's love, I-I would have given up everything for it," he confessed, grinning brightly. "I would have given up our friendship, my whole body, everything I own, just to have it," he ended, and glimpsing Heather's wide mouth chuckled. "Do whatever you would like with that knowledge."
Afterward, Heather slowed down her pace, and since Toothless remained with the same gait, within just a moment he got ahead of her as he just walked straight forward, loosened, and simply happy. In the meantime, the woman gaped at his distancing silhouette, shocked by the behavior she would have never expected from him, and momentarily, in her eyes, just at that point, he became a different man.
"When I asked what would ya like to do, yes, I expected somethin' that Toothless wouldn't like, but not so much," Astrid admitted, gazing up at Hiccup, currently on the top of her own hut, with the hammer in her barely healed hand. "Ya are crazy, ya know that, right?"
In between trees' crowns, sitting at the frame of the mentioned building, Hiccup was hammering boards of the roof, humming under her nose, sometimes glancing at angered Astird, just to make herself sure she was still there, unfortunately. At the same time over her head, merely over the trees, in the sky, flying was Stormfly, keeping the guard in case of Nadders' attack, on whom the dragonness seemed miffed, time by time trying to drop Hiccup's planks to the ground to refrain her from working.
"I know, but that's just how it is," Hiccup replied, shrugged indifferently, and continued her job, hitting her craft tool into the wood. "I'll come down in a minute."
"In a minute, ya'll come, but straight into a coffin," Astrid threatened, crossing her arms and stroking her eyelids when Hiccup didn't even react to her words. "If he finds out what were ya doin' here, he'll kill ya. Ya know that, right?"
"Correction, he'll kill both of us."
"Ya think that ya'll outsmart me, and while he'll vent on me, ya'll make pet eyes to him? Wron'!" Astrid exclaimed, grinning widely, and Hiccup must have turned half of her body towards her, just so as to glare at her, half-confused. "Unfortunately for ya, I got myself a witness who, in case ya got stupid ideas like that one, will be on my side."
After she said that Hiccup turned her head to the side, questioningly, and in answer, Astird pointed up to the sky, and glimpsing Stormfly squealing rather loudly, staring straight down at her, Hiccup narrowed her eyes, offended. Subsequently, sighing, she put the hammer to the side, much to Astrid's satisfaction, and catching sight of her grinning after victory self, she rolled her eyes, annoyed.
"Fine, I'll come down, but only if ya promise not to tell him about what occurred here," she demanded, looking heavenward and muttering. "If he does find out about this, I might as well finish what I started."
Shaking her head, Astrid inhaled, before whistling, after which Hiccup gasped, once two, mightily claws grasped her shoulders, and blue-scaled dragonness flew her to the ground, cautiously. As that happened, Hiccup dusted off her clothes, stoked Stormfly's side while panting after a rather sudden incident, and sulked, when Astird pouted, mockingly.
Eventually, while Hiccup hugged herself embarrassed, she felt Astrid's hand on her shoulder, which dragged her toward its owner. "There is no need to be moody, Hiccup. Come on, I'll teach ya how to correctly throw the axe, finally," Astrid suggested, and without much more thinking, the woman followed her plan.
On their way to Astrid's hut, they had the chance to walk by the cliff, with the sight of the shore as well as some part of the built part of Edge, and out of habit, Hiccup gazed beyond it. Immediately, the salty wind hit her face, and squirming her eyes she was able to spot the first buildings, in rather a poor state after everything that happened today, but at least good enough for fast reparation.
Afterward, she gazed toward the horizon, and while doing that, she reminded herself of the conversation she led with Toothless about it once, just the same as every time she even briefly glanced at it. Hence, a smile appeared on her face, but for a short amount of time, because of the black dots, which concerned her and which she glimpsed by the line dividing the sun and water.
Stopping suddenly, Hiccup searched through her pockets, while Astrid, surprised by the fact that the woman didn't follow her anymore, observed her, curiously and at the same time confused, seeing how fear crossed her face. Eventually, Hiccup found the object of her search, and taking out the wooden, short spyglass she gazed through it, also even took a few steps forward, to glimpse more of the far sea.
"What's goin' on? What are ya seein'?" Astrid asked unpatiently, and her breathing fastened, noticing how Hiccup's hands shook. "Hiccup?"
"See yerseld," Hiccup replied, wearing a perplexed expression she passed the item in her hold to her and muttered. "This is a disaster."
"Is that Dagur?!" Astrid shouted, glancing once into spyglass and once at Hiccup, who nodded, slowly. "Who is that-?"
"Who is that man next to him? I don't know, Astrid!" Hiccup screeched, pinching the bridge of her nose while walking in circles. "It doesn't even matter! Whoever is that man, I'm certain that he, side by side with Dagur, is here not without a reason."
"It's an invasion," Astrid revealed and traded with Hiccup some kind of panicked glances. "What are we goin' to do? We'll send a message to Berk?"
"Too far, but we have someone closer to mail to," Hiccup remarked, rushing toward the clubhouse, hoping for some Terrible Terror hidden inside it. "I don't mean to scare ya, Astrid, but other than this, I don't know what we're goin' to do."
"What do you mean ya don't know," Astrid commented, while the both of them barged into the clubhouse, and as Hiccup began writing the message on the piece of paper, she added. "We'll be defendin' ourselves."
"That's unfeasible," Hiccup stated, not even for a second taking her eyes off the parchment. "We'd better-,"
"Escape? Run away? Surrender?!" Astrid yelled and slammed her palms into the oval table in the center of the building. "We are Vikings, Hiccup! We don't do these things!"
"I meant to say that we'll wait for help."
As Hiccup informed, at the same time, she hurried to the nearby, greenish Terror, and after attaching to his leg the folded letter, as well as petting him for a short point, let him outside, after which the little dragon flew off, quickly. Thereafter, feeling Astrid's stare on her back, Hiccup sighed, went back to the table, next to which another woman waited, crossing her arms, and leaned her forearms, gazing her straight into the eye.
"I'll be honest with ya. One dragonness, one fighter, and one injured one, against at least four ships armed to the teeth," she mumbled, while her hands streamed toward the back of her neck, which she grasped. "We have no chances."
"Okay, now, I'll be honest with ya," Astrid began, bending her body over the table in Hiccup's direction. "The Edge is our home, it became it after the long days of buildin' it, carryin' for it, and it'll stay our home after defendin' it. Of course, we might flee away, but with that done, we'll just abandon the place we've worked on for so lon'," she went on, but before saying her last words, she moved toward Hiccup, just so as to stand next to her and continue when she gazed up at her. "There is a huge chance that we'll lose, but also, there is that tiny chance that we won't. So, now, the question for ya, Hiccup Haddock, is, are ya willing to take this risk for it?"
Gaping as confidence transformed Astrid's face Hiccup herself couldn't understand from where that certainty in their strength came from, and with that, how could she really believe that the tiny chance is enough for gambling their lives. The facts were that if counted properly they didn't have one enemy, but three of them - the Nadderd, Dagur, and separately the man about whose existence they never heard.
It was suddenly that Hiccup stood up and even straightened at her idea of returning, in this case of danger, to the only place possible, Berk - her father surely wouldn't let them come back, and the memory from the past six months just made her sick. The truth was the Edge was her home, it was the first place where she genuinely felt happy just after the cove, where she didn't have to feel ashamed of herself, where she finally felt free - she didn't want to give up on it.
Ultimately, Hiccup inhaled, nodded significantly, and answered, "Alright, let's do this," after which she smirked at Astrid, and added, "Ye're captain here, now, so what's the plan?"
A few words from the sponsor (again, me)
Why was I being absent? Well, there were a lot of things happening.
1. I moved out and now currently living in another city with a roomie (it's super cool)
2. I am now a student and am studying in college to become an engineer. (Hiccup would be proud)
3. I had exams but about that, you know already.
4. And also, genuinely, I didn't have time because of vacation trips, stress before EVERYTHING happens, etc etc.
5. And lastly, because I started writing OC story on wattpad 33
I hope I explained myself, that you'll forgive me for not being very active, but I'm now back with double power, and hopefully, better language /.
Anyway, I screamed to little so... THE LAKE, THE FUCKING THE LAKE AND BEGINING OF THE HASSLE, SMUTY CHAPTERS HERE I COME!!1!