And I'm back with yet another chapter! I must say that writing this story is going much better than I expected, also because a friend of mine is egging me on, begging me to write more. You know who you are... and I don't mind! You can do that with every story. It motivates me to continue writing. Anyway, new chapter. Hiccup, what have you done...

Enjoy!

The Adventurous Adventures of Hiccup and Wrenlou

Consequences, Part II

One word.

Just that one word.

One word, and he had been transported back to Berk, back to the days where he had been called useless, worthless, stupid. He would have been able to take Dale's scolding, he knew what he had done had been dangerous, and he knew that the man was worried about them, but that one word...

Useless.

That was what hit the hardest. That was what made him run. He didn't even realize that Toothless was running after him, his paws making soft sounds on the wet sand. He didn't care that he was getting soaked. None of mattered. They didn't think he was worthy to stay here. They thought he was useless, just like his father had done. Like every one had done.

It was only when he tripped and fell face down in the sand that he noticed his dragon, ever faithful, had followed him outside, and was now standing over him. He looked up at Toothless' green eyes filled with worry, and wrapped his arms around his neck. He stayed like that for what seemed to be hours, and in all that time no one came to look for him, which only strengthened his believe that he wasn't wanted by them anymore.

When he finally looked up again it was dark. The sun had set, leaving the the island in a slumber. The lights in the distance were the lights of the small cabins, where the candles had been placed behind the windows, as they did every night. If he strained his eyes he could vaguely see the lights of Dragoncity, but they were obscured by the ever falling rain. The ocean was still sweeping over the beach, the waves high and restless, nothing like the calm tranquil azure waters he had become used to, but much more like the cold unforgiving waters that surrounded Berk on all sides. It seemed like the storm had changed Night Fury Island, and had transformed it into Berk.

He pulled himself onto Toothless' back, slipping on the wet leather of the saddle, and almost forced the dragon into the air. Toothless whined, but spread his wings and flew into the raging rain, the cold drops pelting down on them. Hiccup shivered, but he didn't plan to turn back. Why would he go back to a place where he wasn't wanted? But he couldn't get Toothless to steer away from the island. The dragon followed the coastline, away from the Bay, sure, but he stayed above the island, refusing to abandon their new home. Hiccup found he couldn't really care. He was shivering, soaked to the bone and still crying, and now he was also coughing periodically.

He leaned forward, laying his head on Toothless' head and stared at the trees far below. In the dark it was almost as if he was looking at the evergreens that lined almost every inch of the island of Berk, and not the waving palm trees and rainforest of Night Fury Island. Toothless flew slowly, the steady rhythm of his wings calmed his rider, and although his tears were lost in the rain, Hiccup kept crying. He felt hut, betrayed by the people he thought would mean a new start, a new life. He had started to see Dale as a sort of father figure, and now he had done exactly what his own father had always done.

He had called him useless.

He coughed, the sounds now harsh and raspy, and Toothless crooned, concerned for his rider's health. Hiccup petted the dragon's head, as if he was trying to say that he was fine. Toothless didn't seem to buy and went to land, setting down on the beach. Hiccup slid down to the ground, collapsing the moment his feet touched the sand. His legs had become cold to the bone, and he was shivering uncontrollably now. He faintly realized that his arm was throbbing, the arm that had been injured in the dragon's attack, but he didn't really care.

He sat on the beach for a while, Toothless' wing above him to shield him from the rain. When he finally did get up, his legs were still cold and hurting, but he managed to walk. He stumbled away from the water, every step his legs would remind him that they were to cold to be used, and every step he forced himself to take another. He was tired, cold and hungry. He was alone, with no one there but his dragon, and new tears rolled down his cheeks, mixing with the rain. He was now so soaked he believed he was wet to the bone.

Using the many palm trees for support, he stumbled through the night. He hardly registered that he would fall every so often, cutting his hands and knees on the sharp rocks that riddled this part of the island. He felt like he was in a haze, not registering where he was going, but he kept going, forcing his legs to go on.

He fell again, his arms unable to catch him, and he fell flat on his face. Unable to get up this time, he just lay there, until he felt how something picked him up and gently sat him on his feet again. Toothless stayed at his side this time as he stumbled forward, not realized he had stumbled into Wrenlou's little cove. Toothless coaxed him to the beach, and when he fell again, the dragon curled around him, allowing the boy to nestle against his warm scales while he wrapped him in his wings, shielding him from the rain. To the dragon, Hiccup's shivering and coughing had become alarming. Hiccup himself didn't notice how bad his coughing had become. His mind was still spinning around the betrayal he felt, the fact that he was so cold he believed he was freezing, and the realization that he would never be able to go back to the Bay, or Dragoncity. He wasn't welcome after all.

He fell asleep under Toothless' wing, while the dragon curled up as tightly as he could in an effort to keep the boy warm. Hiccup was restless, plagued by feverish nightmares and memories that haunted him during the night.

It was snowing. In his young life he had never seen this much snow before. But then again, he was only 7 years old and had spent most of his winters inside, usually sick in bed, or just too scared to go out. There were two things about snow that scared him. The first was that it was so cold. It could hurt you if you were out in it, it could kill. It could take limbs. The second was the fact that is was quiet. It had the ability to arrive overnight. Where the village was free from snow one day, it could be covered in a thick, white blanket by the next morning. The snow was fun to play in, sure, and he loved to throw snowballs at unsuspecting victims, but no matter how much fun he had, the snow stayed something that frightened him.

He looked around, but saw nothing besides the raging white around him. The snow had started unexpected, coming like the sneak thief he had always known it to be. It now covered the snow in an almost knee deep layer, covering the trees and obscuring them from view. He tried to call out, but he was so cold that his voice was just a tiny sound, unable to be heard above the howling of the wind.

His teeth were clattering so hard he thought he'd chip them to small pieces, he had no idea what way the village, and he was so cold he'd thought he'd turn to ice if he didn't keep moving. He was crying, but the tears were freezing on his cheeks, and he could see that his fingertips were turning white.

Something approached him, a figure hidden by the massive amount of snow. Frightened, he watched as the figure got closer, fearing it may be a dragon that had heard his cries. It was no dragon. It was his father. The man picked him up, wrapped him in the blanket he had been carrying and pressed him against his chest.

"Why did you run off like that!" the man berated him while he carried his shivering son home, "if I take you hunting, you don't run off to look for trolls! Do you understand me? You don't run off to hunt for trolls! Trolls don't exist!"

"B...but G...Gobber said..." the child stuttered.

"I don't care what Gobber said! He's not your father, I am! You do what I say, not what he says! You listen to me, not him! Do you understand that Hiccup? Do you?"

Hiccup nodded, still too scared to say anything. His father was right. It had been his own fault he had gotten lost, and trapped in the snowstorm. He shouldn't have run off.

He woke up crying, pressed against Toothless' side. The dragon was watching him, his wing raised slightly so that he could see his human. Hiccup was shivering, his clothes still damp. His cough had gotten worse over night, and now he felt a stabbing pain any time he drew a breath. Despite his best efforts not to cough, he couldn't help it, and every time he did, he could feel the pain stab his chest over and over.

Toothless crooned concerned about his young rider, but Hiccup didn't answer his dragon's unspoken question. He just lay against Toothless' side, shivering while the rain continued to pour down on them. Even though Toothless was shielding him from the water and the wind, he couldn't get rid of the cold that had settled in his bones.

Deep in his heart he knew he had to go back to the Bay, face the consequences of running away, then crawl into his bed and sleep for days, but he refused to go back. He didn't want to go back. Not ever again. So he stayed where he was, laying under Toothless' wing, resting against the dragons side. His coughing didn't go away, instead it continued to get worse. And when he felt how he was getting a fever, despite the ever present feeling of cold, he knew he was sick.

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Alrighty then! And here we are with yet another riddle! Are you still enjoying it? I know I am. A lot! It's amazing to be able to send my little creations all over the world.

So, the answer to the last riddle was Stars, and the winner this time is Essenceofchange. So, PM me your address, and a surprise will come your way!

Okay, on to the new riddle. Here it is!

They say you can fear me, and they are not wrong.
I am the ultimate stalker
And though you can't always see me
You'll never be able to flee from me.
What am I?

Good luck!