How You Doing Insane Gang!
Takes place during RTTE.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
The weather was changing from the warm summer months to the bitter winter months. With this comes the expected joint pains and headaches, for Hiccup it meant pain in his left foot. He knew it was coming but he can never tell what kind of a pain in brings him.
Most Vikings experience this, known as phantom pain its when the pain is still there as if the limb was still attached. If anything it was a cruel reminder for what's missing. At the age of fifteen, Gobber showed him the basics of easing the pain, it won't completely get rid of it but any little bit helps.
What was doubly frustrating was that he had to fly Toothless less, the pressure the tailfin puts on his foot is too much in these early winter months.
Now at the Edge, he has no breaks especially with Viggo and Krogan on the loose, he had to be constantly pushing himself to do more against them, that included flying longer distances to burn down hunter ships.
Dear Thor, his leg was killing him right now. They just came back from a three-day trip on a tip from Johann of a hunter base north of their home. It was a hard fought battle but they were able to succeed. With the riders tired and sore from the journey seeing their huts was quite a relief.
"Oh gods, that was a trip! I can't wait to finally take a nap!" Snotlout exclaimed.
"Tell me about it! I haven't seen Chicken for three days! I hope she was able to feed her chicks." Tuffnut fretted.
Ruffnut groaned, "I just hope they didn't get out again, last time those babies pooped all over my bed."
"Hey! They needed a place to go and your bed might as well be an outhouse by the way it smells." Tuffnut defended his beloved pet.
"Try me! Your bed smells just as bad!" The twins bickered back and forth.
Fishlegs grasped Meatlugs cheek and squealed. "Oh girl, you did so well! When we get back the first thing will be to get some nice box stone for you and a nice plate of mutton for me."
Hiccup was flying at a lower altitude than the others but he annoyingly can still hear them loud and clear. Astrid noticed his somber expression, usually, he would be rolling his eyes at them or giving them a fond smile. His face was a mannequin, blank and hard to read.
"What's wrong Hiccup? We won a hard-fought victory, Krogan and Viggo both weren't expecting it."
Hiccup shook his head. "It's nothing about Krogan and Viggo, I just tweaked my foot is all."
She raised a disbelieving eyebrow.
"I just need to rest it, the winter months are about here so its extra sensitive recently."
Astrid can feel it in her gut that Hiccup isn't telling the whole truth but she'll let it slide for now.
Moving Stormfly slightly away, she resolved to keep an eye on him.
Once they landed Hiccup did his best to hide his limping gait. Right now he really needs to take this stupid leg off.
Coming close to the night when they were all together eating dinner, Fishlegs issued a warning of an incoming snow storm. Tonight was the first night temperatures were supposed to drop into single digits.
Hiccup had already started a roaring fire in his hearth and piled extra furs for bed. If worse comes to worst he can always sleep with Toothless who shares amazing body heat.
Snotlout wouldn't stop gloating for twenty minutes straight on how toasty warm his hut is going to be with Hookfang, the dragon with the most firepower and can literally set himself on fire.
Ruffnut elbowed her brother. "Maybe if we're lucky Hookfang sets his hut on fire."
Tuffnut laughs in return. "I would love to see that."
"Nice try muttonheads, don't come crying to me when you two freeze overnight." Snotlout declared, crossing his arms.
Tuffnut waved away his comment. "Easy the plan is to set Ruff on fire and use her as me and Chickens source of heat."
That remark earned him a good punch in the ribs.
"Nuh uh not unless I set you on fire first!"
Hiccup held up his hands to end the useless argument. "Guys we are not burning each other alive to keep warm."
Fishlegs nodded in agreement. "There are a plethora of ways to keep warm one of the easiest is to have extra furs, our dragons too would be able to keep us warm all night due to their high body temperatures, or one could just use another warm-blooded person."
Snotlout kicked back up in his chair. "I'll choose option number three, who wants to cuddle up with the Snotman huh? Astrid my bet is on you joining me tonight."
Astrid pretended to puke. "I'd rather freeze to death thank you very much."
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Hiccup reaching down again to rub his prosthetic, or at least right above it.
He grimaced slightly at his touch. No one else has noticed him which is good, he hated bringing attention to himself if he was in pain. By tomorrow it should feel better anyway, it only really hurt during the first initial freeze.
Fishlegs yawned and woke a sleeping Meatlug by his side. "Good night guys, hopefully, no one turns into yaksicles tonight."
"I could go for a yaksicle right now." Tuffnut stretched.
"Me too bro."
Tuff waves his hand for Chicken to fly onto his shoulder and squawking some form of goodnight to the Vikings.
Snotlout was dozing in his chair and it took Hookfang to wack him with his tail to get him to go to bed.
Now it was just the two of them; Hiccup and Astrid.
It's how they preferred it nowadays, just the two of them. They hardly got any alone time with the increase of hunter base raids and of course preparing the Edge for winter.
Hiccup dosed the fire. "Are you sleeping with me tonight Milady?"
"Of course, Fishlegs did say one of the best sources of heat is body heat."
He pretended to think, "Didn't you say you'd rather freeze to death?"
"That's when Snotlout is involved jerk." Astrid gave him a small shove.
The jostle made him land heavier on his prosthetic than he wanted, he gave a small grunt and hid it behind a cough.
Astrid's eyes narrowed but she kept silent.
Once at the hut Hiccup let out a sigh of relief as he was finally able to take off his fake leg. The cold started to set in regardless of how warm his hut got the stinging pain in his foot worsened.
He let out a groan as Toothless let out a coo in concern.
"I'm fine Bud, go to sleep with Stormfly." He whispered not to alert Astrid of his discomfort.
Sweat began to appear on his brow once when the stinging pain turned into a heavy burning sensation. He rid of his shirt to try to get some air on to him.
Astrid came up to the loft to see Hiccup in such a state. She was without her shoulder armor and skirt.
"Hiccup...I knew I should have forced it out of you earlier, I thought it stopped hurting..."
He opened his eyes to glance up at her.
"I'm okay, it always happens on the first freeze."
She brushed up against him on the bed, soothing his bangs back from his forehead.
"Tell me what to do. How can I help?"
Hiccup shook his head loosely, "There's nothing to do, I usually just ride it out."
Sighing Astrid took matters into her own hands.
Skipping down the stairs multiple at a time, she returned shortly with a bucket of water and a small piece of cloth.
"Toothless can I get this heated please?"
The dragon warbled in agreement before waddling over to give the bucket a through heating. Astrid rewarded him with a good scratch on the chin.
She sat on the foot of the bed and not waiting for it to cool, she dipped the cloth in before gently ringing it out.
Hiccup curiously stared, he made no move to stop her from lifting up his cinched pant leg to reveal the scarred stump. Instead of pale skin, the end was red almost like it was rubbed raw.
He hissed when she started to dab at the scarred tissue. Hiccup let his head fall back onto his pillow after seeing what Astrid was doing to his leg.
"I don't know why you didn't tell me how serious this was when we were flying." She began.
Hiccup had an arm over his eyes. "I hate it when people feel sorry for me, especially over my leg."
"You know that a quarter of this village has lost a limb, you shouldn't feel self-conscious about it Babe."
"That's the point!" Hiccup sighed, frustrated, "I can't be in here whining and asking for breaks when everyone else carries on, there was only one-time Gobber asked for a break and that was before the great snowstorm when we just started the dragon academy."
"You told me whatever we go through in life we will always be Hiccup and Astrid." "That includes this, my mother used to to do this for her brother before he died in a dragon raid." "She told me this trick because she figured that I will need it for you."
She rewets it a couple of times before wrapping the damp cloth around his stump.
For the first time that day, Hiccup was able to let out a blissful sigh.
He uncovers his eyes and lifts up his head. "You are amazing, you know that?"
Astrid cracked a smile, "It's one of my many talents."
Hiccup chuckled, "Come here you."
He grabbed her by surprise and hauled her on the bed next to him.
I don't know why it took me so long to write something like this out but better late than never.
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Stay Crazy.