So sorry about not updating ROTDR yet... I am lacking inspiration on how to deal with Spitelout... I will continue, don't worry, it may take some time.

Another chapter about Hiccup discovering the wonders of Dragoncity! And oranges. Longest chapter so far!

Enjoy!

The Adventurous Adventures of Hiccup and Wrenlou

Becoming Friends, Part II

Hiccup wriggled his toes in the sand. The soft, tiny grains of the white beach were warm under his feet. It was their second day of exploration, and Wrenlou had taken him to a beach not far from the city. Everything on the island was warm. The air, the sand, the ocean... it was completely opposite of Berk where it had been always freezing.

His light-blue tunic was laying next to him. He had pulled it off when the heat had become too much. He didn't quite understand how all the riders could withstand it in their leather suits. They had to be melting. And the dragons! He had learned that the black colour of Toothless' scales would heat up a lot faster than anything else in the sun, and then he had to come from such a ridiculous hot place.

That didn't temper his fascination with the island and it's inhabitants. After leaving the docks yesterday, Wrenlou had taken him to little shop, where all kinds of different fruits had been displayed. He had showed him oranges, coconuts, dates and pineapples. All these things had tasted weird to him, and he hadn't really liked the taste of the pineapples, but he had found he rather liked the sweet/sour taste of the oranges.

So now here he was, staring at the water, moving his feet in the sand, nibbling on another orange. Peeling it was a bit of a challenge, but Wrenlou had said it would get easier with time. He sighed and laid down, the sand tickling his back. He probably had to go to the healer afterwards to have the bandages changed again, but at the moment he didn't really care. He stared up to the sky. It was blue, completely void of clouds, leaving no place for the sun to hide. He closed his eyes, taking a bite from the piece of orange. How he longed to fly in that sky... to feel the wind pull on his hair, his clothes... feel the beating of the dragon's wings. How he longed to feel the freedom of flight again.

He sat up when he heard splashing and smiled when he saw Toothless dancing around in the ocean, either chasing shadows or fish. He was suddenly jumped by Snowflake, the smaller dragon clinging onto his back. He heard a chuckle and looked at Wrenlou next to him.

The boy was leaning on his arms, laying on his stomach. He too had pulled his shirt off, and Hiccup couldn't help but feel a little jealous. There was no signs of scarring what so ever on Wrenlou's back or chest, and his life in the sun had left him with a nice, even tan. Hiccup looked down on his own freckled arms and wondered if he would ever get the tan Wrenlou possessed. At the moment, he just seemed to be gaining freckles every day he was in the sun.

He took a deep breath and slowly ate the last piece of his orange. He looked at the bag Wrenlou brought, knowing there were more. Wrenlou caught him looking and sat up, crossing his legs.

'You know, you are going to eat all the oranges in Dragoncity singlehandedly if you keep it up.'

Hiccup ducked his head, avoiding Wrenlou's gaze, his hair falling over his eyes. It had grown in his time away, being far longer than he ever had it. He wiped it from his eyes and looked up again when he heard Wrenlou laugh.

'Don't worry about it. It's good you have your appetite back. May help you to build some muscles. Here.'

Hiccup took the orange from Wrenlou, staring at his arms. Even compared to Wrenlou's slim frame he was scrawny. Although he had build up some muscle in his time alone with Toothless, being bedridden for nearly a month had eaten away more than just his energy. He glanced at Wrenlou from behind his hair. The boy wasn't extremely muscular, but he was definitely more muscular than he was. He was also taller than Hiccup was, but not towering over him like the other riders he had seen.

Wrenlou ran a hand through his hair, and Hiccup sat up. There was a scar on the underside of Wrenlou's right upper arm, something that looked like it was made with a knife or claws.

'How'd you get that?'

Wrenlou frowned while he twisted his arm to see the scar, not quite succeeding.

'Eh... Snowflake did it. When she was a lot younger. Why?'

Hiccup shrugged, unable to speak with his mouth full of orange. 'Juft curiouf.'

Wrenlou chuckled, pulling out another orange. After peeling it quickly, he picked it apart, separating the pieces, before eating three at once.

'Wrenlou? Can you tell me about your family?'

'My family...? You mean my parents?'

Hiccup nodded, noticing regretfully he had already finished his third orange of the day. Wrenlou's hand appeared in his field of vision, offering him more of the delicious fruit.

'I suppose I could. What do you want to know?'

'Just... I don't know...'

'Hmm... Well, I have one older brother, Broghan. You will meet him, he's a dragon rider too. Two younger sisters.'

'Are they dragon riders?'

'No silly, they're too young for that. Anyway, my dad was a trader until he lost three fingers on his left hand in a freak rigging accident on one of his boats. I was about seven months old when that happened, so I really don't remember him with a full hand. After that, he delegated the whole thing to his brother and stayed at home. He's a Council member now, among the non-dragon rider department.'

'The Council? That's like a high position, right?'

'It is. And it's not easy to get in. Alright, let me see if I can explain this right... The twelve dragon riders in the Council are the twelve oldest riders in the city. That part is pretty straight forward. If one dies, the oldest rider takes his place. That is mainly because there aren't many riders. But the non-rider members are chosen differently. When a place becomes available, the remaining members choose someone, someone at random, from the city and send him a request. You can still refuse if you don't want to do it, but that has never happened before.'

'So your father was asked for the job?'

Wrenlou nodded. 'Yup. That was ten years ago now. My mother works in the Council building as well. She's what you'd call a secretary. She makes notes of all the meetings. The Council itself is seated in the center of Lightcity.'

'So when you said that you were going to tell the Council I would stay... you went to Lightcity?'

'No. Just one of the Council members in Dragoncity.'

Hiccup tucked a lock of hair behind his ear. He was getting increasingly annoyed with the fact it would fall over his face all the time, slipping from behind his ear. On Berk he wouldn't have minded if it hid his face, but here he didn't want to hide anymore.

'So your dad is like a very important person?'

Wrenlou nodded. 'A trader is an important person as well, just different. But with him being a trader, then a Council member and my mom working in the Council as well... Let's just say we've never lacked anything while growing up.'

'What does that mean?'

'Hiccup... ehm... I come from a very wealthy family... One of the five wealthiest in Lightcity to be exact.'

Hiccup's jaw dropped. He never expected Wrenlou's family to be rich. He had encountered some rich brats, and they were just that, brats. Spoiled, arrogant, thinking of only themselves. Wrenlou was certainly not like that at all.

'But... Really?' Wrenlou nodded shyly, turning his head away from Hiccup. 'I did not expect that. I mean, I met some rich kids, and they were... well, they were...'

'Self-absorbed? Arrogant? Spoiled?'

'Yes, yes and yes. But you're not like that at all!'

'No. My parents worked hard to be in the position they're in. They worked for everything they have today. So that's how we were raised. We were taught that nothing in life is free, not even if you have a lot of money. We also never got away with anything, because my parents believed that money should not be overshadowing justice. It did have it's advantages though. I grew up in a large house with lots of rooms. We could play hide and seek for hours and always found a spot we hadn't hidden before.'

'I guess that's good then, that your parents raised you like that. If they hadn't, I would have died.'

'Quite possibly, yes.'

'So did you do anything status related? You know... go to school or something?'

Wrenlou sighed. 'Every child goes to school, no matter how much money their family has. Parents with more money pay for the education of children who's parents can't afford it. I've had a musical upbringing though, and that's reserved for only a few.'

'Musical upbringing? What does that mean?'

'I can play several different instruments. Can we please drop this subject?'

Hiccup opened his eyes to ask more questions, but Wrenlou seemed uneasy with his many questions about his family. Apparently his family's monetary status wasn't something he liked to discuss. So he dropped the issue, thinking of something else to ask. He felt his hair fall in front of his face again and grunted while he angrily pulled the auburn locks.

'Something wrong?'

'It's... it's this!' He held his hair up for Wrenlou to see. 'It's driving me crazy! It's in the way, it's in my eyes, it's everywhere! It's just way too long!'

Wrenlou started laughing and Hiccup gave him his best angry stare. 'It's not funny!'

'I'm sorry... just... your face...'

Hiccup dropped the strands of hair he had been holding and crossed his arms, making his best scowl while he stared at the ground. He looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

'Come on. I know what to do about that. Put on your shirt Hiccup, we are going to take a bath.'

Hiccup frowned, but then he nodded. He quickly pulled on his tunic and whistled to Toothless. The dragon looked up, his entire body dripping with water. He bounded over to his rider and pounced around the boy before licking his face. Hiccup pushed the dragon away and followed Wrenlou, his bare feet sinking into the sand.

'Wrenlou? Where are we going?'

'To the bathhouse. To get a bath. You know, to get clean. You look like you need it.'

Hiccup glanced down on his body, what he could see of it. Surely he didn't look that dirty? Hadn't the healer washed him when he first came to Dragoncity, injured as he was?

'I meant your hair.'

Hiccup ran a hand through his hair. Back on Berk he hadn't washed it regularly, but he would wash it at least once a month. Now it had been... two? Three? And his brief imprisonment hadn't made it any better. He could feel the dirt that clung to his hair and felt a little embarrassed.

They entered the city again, the stones warm under his feet. He hadn't even bothered to take the boots, they just made his feet sweat. A lot. Wrenlou stopped in front of a large building and turned to him.

'Alright. Here we are. They are probably going to remove that bandage, but don't worry about that, okay?'

Hiccup nodded, looking at the building in awe. It had something written above the entrance, but he couldn't read the word. He guessed it read bathhouse, or something like that. He followed Wrenlou inside. The hall looked like the hospital hall, but smelled completely different. The smell was one of soap and perfume, mingled with a flowery scent. Wrenlou led him to a dressing room,, and upon entering, Hiccup froze.

It's not that he had never seen naked men before, but he wasn't prepared for it. He quickly looked away, covering his eyes with his hair. He felt a hand grip his wrist and Wrenlou pulled him along to a smaller room. After he closed the door, Hiccup dared to look up again.

'Sorry about that. Here, put this on.'

He handed him some sort of shorts. Hiccup turned his back on Wrenlou, sneaking a look over his shoulder to see the other boy do the same. As quickly as he could he slipped into the shorts, not feeling entirely comfortable about the way they left most of his body exposed. Standing next to Wrenlou, he could see how scrawny he really was, how thin his limbs were. Wrenlou seemed to sense his discomfort and put an arm around his shoulders.

'It will be fine Hiccup, you'll see. Now come on, lets get you properly cleaned up.'

To Hiccup's relief they didn't walk through the dressing room again, avoiding all naked men. He led him into a large open space, a pool in the middle. The roof was held up by a row of pillars standing around the pool. Wrenlou guided him to a smaller pool, and gestured him to step in.

Hiccup ducked his toe in the water, but it wasn't hot or cold as he suspected. In fact, the temperature of the water was just right, and he slipped in quickly. The pool wasn't deep and he could sit down on the bottom, the water reaching up to his chest. The bandages quickly became soaked, but before he could ask Wrenlou what he should do, two women stepped into the pool with them.

On of them, a girl with long red hair tied up behind her back, removed the bandages with nimble fingers, never hurting him. Hiccup kept his gaze fixed on the water, not daring to look up. She was dressed, but her bikini left no room for imagination as her breasts dangled in front of his face. He felt how she started combing his hair forward with her fingers, racking through his long locks, and gasped when he suddenly felt warm water being dumped over his head.

He spluttered a little when it got in his mouth, but didn't dare move when he felt her fingers again. When he tried to lift his head, she gently pushed it back down. She rubbed something in his hair and when he peeked through his half closed eyelids, he could see his hair was covered in foam. She washed the foam out of his hair, slowly this time, then lifted his head.

He didn't see anything. His now soaking wet hair was plastered to his face and he was about to protest when she brushed it aside with her soft fingers. She combed it back, the hair sticking to his head. She stepped aside for a moment and he could see Wrenlou's hair being treated the same way as his, the normally reluctant black locks now stuck to his head like a helmet. The girl came back into view, holding something that looked like an extremely sharp knife.

'Eh... Wrenlou?'

Wrenlou pushed the woman aside and looked at the other one. She said something, her voice warm and melodious and Wrenlou answered. Then he looked at Hiccup.

'She says she won't hurt you and asks you to trust her. It will be fine Hiccup. You said you didn't like your long hair, now's the chance to get rid of it.'

Hiccup nodded and stiffened a bit when the woman moved behind him. He felt a tuck on his hair and heard the knife slice through. The blade cut his hair with ease, not finding the slightest resistance. The woman moved away and he ran a hand through his hair. It was shorter, a lot shorter. Even shorter than he had it on Berk. She gently moved his hand from his head and rubbed something in his hair.

He leaned back when she started massaging his scalp, soon making her way down to his neck and shoulders. She worked the painful muscles of his right shoulder with skillful fingers, finding exactly the spots where they were painfully tight. He did his best to keep his cries of pain silenced ones. The feeling of his shoulder being treated the way it was, both felt good and bad. It hurt, but it hurt in a good way. It told him he still had the muscles, that he could retrain them.

She stopped, too soon for his liking and he opened his eyes again. The women had left the pool, leaving him and Wrenlou in the warm water.

'Your hair really looks better now.'

Hiccup ran a hand through his hair again. Even though it was still wet, it felt cleaner. The women came back, each holding a large towel. Wrenlou gestured Hiccup out of the pool and he complied. As soon as he was out of the water, the red-haired woman draped the towel around his shoulders. The fabric felt soft and warm on his skin. With the towel around his shoulders, she led him to a secluded area, where high beds stood in a neat row. He frowned when she gestured to the first bed, and turned to Wrenlou.

'Just lay down on your stomach. Trust me, you'll love this.'

Too curious to refuse, Hiccup climbed on the bed, laying down, his head on his arms. The woman draped the towel around his legs, pulling it up to his waist. Then she gently pulled his arms from under his head, putting them at his side. She picked up a small bottle and poured something into her hand. After putting the bottle down she rubbed her hands together, then moved next to him.

What she had started with his neck and shoulders, she now continued on his back. She traced the muscles, her soft hands stronger than they looked. He winced when she ran her hands over the still healing wound, the pain sharp and short in his back. She mumbled a soft word, but left the wound alone. Instead, she started massaging the muscles of his lower back, careful with his left hip, where the wound ran over the bone. After a while, she put the towel over his torso and started on his legs.

The feeling of complete relaxation was one he had never felt before. The soft, warm, gentle hands massaging every muscle, loosening every fiber, tender on his body almost send him in a state of trance. It was broken when she gently tapped his shoulder, telling him with a silent twist of her hand to turn over. After he had done so, she draped the towel over his legs again.

His breath caught in his throat as she moved behind his head, running her hands over his chest. Her breasts nearly touched his nose and he found his eyes were fixed on the beautiful, soft... He quickly squeezed his eyes shut. It didn't fully work. The image of her near perfect body lingered in his mind.

After she had worked his chest over, again leaving the muscles feeling more relaxed than ever, she took his arms. After she had finished them, she went to his legs once more, kneading the other side of the muscles. Only then he felt it was safe to open his eyes.

When they were done, both women left, but Hiccup just stayed down. The towel was now covering his entire body and he had completely dried. Only his hair was a little damp now. After a while, Wrenlou sat up.

'Are you coming?'

Hiccup groaned. He didn't want the relaxed feeling to go away. He wanted to stay right there, under that soft, warm towel. But Wrenlou poked his shoulder. Hiccup sighed and sat up as well. He followed Wrenlou slowly, the towel trailing behind him as he held it around his shoulders.

Dressing again was easy. After rubbing the towel over his hair, he turned to Wrenlou.

'How do I look?'

Wrenlou looked up and smiled. 'See for yourself.'

He pointed to something behind Hiccup. When he turned around, he found himself face to face with a boy he hardly recognized. Auburn hair spiked in every direction. Green eyes stared at him from an unfamiliar face. He gasped. Had he changed that much in so little time? His cheeks had been fuller, his chin rounder. Wrenlou appeared next to him, smiling.

'Is... is that really me?'

He pointed at the boy in the mirror, who pointed back at him. Wrenlou nodded.

'I... I hardly recognize myself... I'm.. thinner.'

'Being unconscious for three weeks tends to have that effect. Why don't we go the Hall, get something to eat. It's nearly dinnertime anyway.'

Hiccup nodded, still staring at his reflection. He looked at his hair, spiked in every direction much like Wrenlou's would and ran his hands over the messy auburn locks. Once smoothed out, he looked more like his old self, but still... He had changed. He smiled. He had to get used to this new Hiccup, but he was sure he could. He was no longer the boy that no one liked, he had a friend now, someone who looked after him. He was about to start a new life here. So much had changed already, he could handle a little more.

When they stepped outside onto the plaza, he could see the sun had begun it's slow descend towards the ocean. That was another difference. On Berk the sun would set quickly, the dawns and dusks short. Here, the sun seemed to take hours, creeping towards the ocean, meanwhile painting the sky with the most beautiful shades of orange, red and yellow.

They had just settled down with a plate and a cup, the Hall slowly filling up with riders, when Wrenlou nudged Hiccup.

'Do you like music?'

Hiccup frowned. He didn't really like the music made on Berk. Usually because the only time it would be made would be when the vikings were drunk and terribly out of tune, but here it had to be different.

'I... I don't know... why?'

Wrenlou pointed to a group of four riders carrying instruments. 'They will most likely start playing after they have finished eating.'

Taking a bite from his bread, Hiccup observed the group. He saw some instruments he knew, like a flute, but there were others he couldn't place.

'Wrenlou? What's that?' He pointed to a man who had just placed something on the table that looked like a curved oval shape with a long neck. There were strings attached to it, but he had no idea what it was.

'It's a violin.'

'Violin? Do you play that?'

Wrenlou sighed, stabbing his meat. 'I thought we dropped the subject.' When he saw Hiccup's almost expecting face, he grunted. 'Yes I do. But I haven't in ages. Not since I became a dragon rider. I don't even know if I can still do it.'

'Awesome! Can you show me someday?'

'Hiccup...'

Wrenlou was interrupted when a soft whistle played through the Hall, and looking back to the musicians, they found that the man with the flute had started playing. Instantly, the murmur died, and everyone present grew quiet. Hiccup rested his head on his hands, staring at the man. The music was calming, melodious, totally different from the music on Berk. A soft tinging mixed with the flute, and then he saw the man with the violin put the instrument on his shoulder. He picked up something that looked like a long stick, and when he touched the strings of the violin, Hiccup was hooked.

The instrument made a sound he had never heard before. It was entrancing, beautiful. It sang in his ears, painting pictures of Dragoncity. He was staring in the flame of the candle on the table, totally engulfed in the music. He let it wash over him while he listened with his whole heart. It warmed him, but not like the sun had done. It warmed his very soul. His entire being was touched by the sound of the violin.

He sat up a little when there suddenly was another tone, higher, sharper, but just as beautiful. A second man had shouldered a violin, playing the higher tones that vibrated in his chest. The flute had died away, and the two violins sang together, their sound resonating in the Hall. He was sure that this was the music of Valhalla, brought to earth. He was sure this was how his ancestors feasted every night, listening to the enchanting sounds of the violins.

The song came to an end, and it left an emptiness in his heart. He regretted the end. He didn't want it to stop, he wanted to hear more! He looked at Wrenlou, tearing his eyes away from the musicians.

'Will they play more?'

'Why don't you ask them?' Wrenlou said softly. 'I can tell you how.'

Hiccup sighed and looked at the four men. The Hall was darker now and he realized the sun must have finally sat. which meant they had been here for at least two hours. Had the song lasted that long? He bit his lip, looking at the men again. He really wanted to hear more... He turned to Wrenlou.

'Tell me.'

Wrenlou smiled before speaking four words, slowly so he could follow them. Hiccup frowned and tried to imitate the sound, but he failed. After a few tries, he got it down reasonably and he stood up, shaking on his legs. Wrenlou smiled at him and gave him an encouraging nod. He made his way over to the man with the violin, the one who had played first and tapped him on his shoulder. When the man turned around, he met to ice blue eyes in a kind face. Suddenly nervous, he stammered his question and the man burst out into laughter. He said something, picking up the violin again and Hiccup hurried back, hoping it hadn't been a question.

'What did he say?' He asked when he was back at Wrenlou's side again.

'He said that for you, he would play all night long if you want. Admiration doesn't go unnoticed Hiccup, he saw how you looked at him when he was playing.'

Hiccup smiled his biggest smile yet when the violin started playing again and the man sat down on the bench across of them. He was pulled into the music, into the dancing tones. He rested his head on his hands again, forgetting about the rest of the world, the only sound being the violin, singing in his soul.

If you're interested in the song, I used Mumbai Theme Tune from A. R. Rahman for the first. I just found it today, and fell in love with it, and I could just see Hiccup sitting on that table, enchanted by that violin. I am aware that violins most likely didn't exist in this time period, but let's be honest. It's not entirely historical correct anyway.