Hey everyone! I'm back with another chapter. You folks might get some "Brother Bear" vibes from this chapter, hehe. Either way, I hope you enjoy, take care!
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Brothers
Chapter 14: Brothers
I ended up on a cliff on the side of a snowy mountain just a few miles from Berk. Though not much snow covered the town below, the higher elevations were being pummeled by an almighty storm. Where I now rest, I look over the edge where I can see lights from the Viking settlement; however, the storm begins to worsen…obscuring the view. The temperature, consequently, begins dropping into the negatives.
It's so cold that it's numbing: like a thousand knives digging into your skin all at once, it feels like you can't even use your hands, or in this matter…paws. This miserable feeling, however, wasn't nearly as bad as the depressive state I now found myself in.
I had told Toothless the truth…and he rightfully casted me aside. This is all a mess, why am I here, why was I brought here…to suffer? It doesn't matter…I'll just…stay here, wait for the freeze…I won't have to think about it anymore…
I wobble before finally throwing myself into the snow-covered ground, tears never ceasing to stop flowing down my muzzle. I lay belly down against the cold floor in quiet defeat. I pointed my chin up toward the sky, which is quickly becoming less visible from the approaching storm.
With huge sad eyes I close them shut, placing my small nose against the ground, covering my eyes with both paws.
Amidst the howling winds…crying can be heard all over the mountain: the cries of a young hatchling dragon.
…
(I don't usually do this, but here's a song insert if you want to get more invested with this scene: Ace Combat 5 – White Noise OST)
Some time had passed, Toothless had ascended the small chain of mountains on the island: using his strength and senses to guide him through the blizzard.
Flint…I must find him before it's too late, the Night Fury thought solemnly.
He followed the scent up, snow blasting the young dragon's face. The gale-force winds battered his sides as Toothless kept his wings as close to his body as possible. Even with the cold and the pain, he kept moving forward, never stopping to take a break.
The scent started getting stronger and his ears rose all the way up, snapping his head up toward the source, "Flint…" Toothless warbled deeply. He's close, he thought, "Flint!" The beast shouted to try and somehow get the hatchling's attention. His booming teenage voice echoed against the loud winds, but no response returned to him.
And so, Toothless kept ascending, soon finding it harder to walk normally as the ground became steeper with every step, "Flint!? Where are you!?" The Fury shouted again, even louder this time. Sure enough, he used his razor-sharp talons to climb the sides of the mountain, desperation beginning to set in.
The winds were striking him full force and he wobbled intensely, the cold bit into him fiercely. Still, Toothless remained adamant and shouted still, "Flint, I'm sorry…please…where are you!?"
One wrong paw almost sent Toothless off the side of the mountain! He gasped in shock, but thankfully his other paw had anchored him against the rocky façade. Quickly recovering, he shook it off and proceeded to ascend once again.
"Callahan! Please, hear me out! I was wrong!"
Flint's scent is so strong: the dragon can sense he's very close by! I'm NOT leaving this mountain without you, damn it, Toothless thought to himself.
Suddenly, in the midst of hearing the screeching wind, his reptilian ears pick up the sound of a young child crying in the distance! The Night Fury looks to his right and proceeds to carefully make his way there, "F-Flint…" he gasped, using whatever strength he had left to make it across.
Sure enough, the crying rang louder and louder in his long ears and despite the near-blinding white snow blowing in his face, Toothless caught a glimpse of the smaller Fury on a cliff not too far away!
The dragon, with a new burst of energy, made it to the mysterious hatchling, "F-Flint…thank goodness you're alright!" Toothless extends a paw to the younger creature, "Flint, grab my paw, please…" the Night Fury is still holding on to the wall next to the cliff, trying desperately to hold on; however, his body is exhausted from the climb that he has almost no energy left in him to descend normally. He didn't think the storm could knock the wind out of him, but it did…like a shield taking too many blows.
The smaller reptile did not respond, and the teenager is forced to move closer, the strong winds still battering his large form, "I was wrong…I shouldn't have said all those things to you" Toothless apologized wholeheartedly, still clinging for dear life on the mountain face. "Please…" his voice finally broke. The freezing winds were beginning to make him wobble again, but before he can slip and fall off the mountain, he felt two paws grab his one paw. Surprisingly, against all odds, the Night Fury is helped onto the cliff by the hatchling!
Once Toothless is on the cliff with Flint, they exchanged looks. The teen caught a glimpse of Flint: he's crying his eyes out, face full of misery…it's clear that he's broken. Nevertheless, Toothless's own set of eyes shone deep regret and comfort into Flint's. A connection was formed between the two: both were feeling the same set of emotions…shame…regret…sadness. Both finally understood each other at that point in time.
Flint, without a moment's hesitation, suddenly moved in and wrapped his body around Toothless. The latter didn't know how to react at first since hugging is something humans did and is alien to him. That didn't mean he didn't feel the pain Flint was feeling, an urgent desire for comfort was needed on his part. The large dragon, in return, placed a paw on the whimpering human-turned-dragon's shoulder. He heard the high-pitched whines coming from Flint and it threw him into a deeper hole.
"T-Toothless…" he warbled, "I'm sorry…I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner…I'm sorry I brought this upon you…"
Toothless looked down, closing his eyes in full regret, "I'm sorry too…I really am…you put a lot of trust into me to admit who you really are…and I appreciate that, I really do. I'm stupid for how I reacted…it was selfish…" they pulled away as the two dragons focused their green orbs on each other. Callahan just stood there, letting those words sink in but soon he rested his face on the larger dragon's side, "you're the first person I met in this world, you helped me survive…all this time…I never thought you might be…" Flint muttered softly in his child voice, never finishing his statement, as tears continued falling, now against Tooth's black hide. The Night Fury knew exactly what Callahan meant, however, and gave a sincere smile of appreciation.
"I…I can't imagine how things would have turned out had we not met, Flint. I'm glad we did" the latter warbled in his deeper voice. Toothless placed a paw on Flint's shoulder, "my…aren't we both such screw ups…" he couldn't help but laugh miserably. Flint, surprisingly, agreed though.
With the storm as bad as it was, both creatures would have to wait until the winds slowed and the snow stopped for them to even attempt a descent. It's night, so they might as well sleep for a while. Toothless used his fire to heat up the ground. Both dragons had to keep each other warm until then, so they curled up against each other: keeping the other as warm as possible.
…
About an hour or so later, when the weather had calmed considerably, the two dragons had begun to descend the mountain face. The way down had been quiet for both, they silently reflected on recent events.
Sure enough, once they reached the base of the snowy mountain, they entered the forest.
Toothless, though silent before, looked toward the "hatchling" behind him, noticing how down and beaten they were. The Night Fury couldn't help but feel like he needed to say something to help Callahan. Just before they reached the edge of the forest toward the Haddock residence, Tooth stopped and turned to face Flint. He placed a soft paw on the smaller creature's shoulder, "Flint, I want you to know…"
In this quiet, and dormant, boreal forest…the next words that were expressed left an impact on the human-turned-dragon. The phrase is simple yet over-flooded with sincerity. Toothless didn't lie or sugar-coat it, his bright green eyes help convey his emotions toward the other dragon. Flint looked deep into his friend's soul, somehow knowing what he is about to say, but nevertheless it would send him into a state of endless admiration for the Fury.
Toothless simply said, "you're my brother."
They didn't take their eyes off one another. Flint had to process what they just said to him. Toothless continued regardless, feeling his soul lift as if it were leaving his body. His heart soared, genially laying his emotions on the creature across from him, "I realized it now…Flint…you are my brother…"
Flint never had a sibling and neither did the dragon next to him, but the circumstances and their time in the cove…and everything leading up to now had shown just how close they've become. Flint never had this type of sibling affection in his life, and to have somebody like Toothless RISK HIS LIFE…for him…it spoke volumes. Maybe he's right. He is right…all this time…we both just had to see it, Flint thought deeply.
Callahan reminisces the time they've spent: the fact that Toothless went out of his way to guide the transformed dragon, a stranger, through the cove…teaching him how to walk…how to run…how to fly…how to LIVE as a dragon. He leans on the fact that Tooth went out his way to try and save Flint from the Queen the night the human was captured, even if it meant the teenage Night Fury, himself, would get hurt or killed. And, after ending the Viking-Dragon war, both made the best of their new situation by sticking together…even when things seemed like it was all heading toward disaster.
"I never had a brother or sister as a…" Flint stopped himself before the larger reptile walked closer to him.
The Night Fury smiled at the former human, nudging him encouragingly, "I bet you never had a DRAGON as a brother, either" he jokingly said. Flint couldn't help but laugh too at the thought, "okay, you got me there, you overgrown Axolotl."
"W-what did you just call me?" Toothless drew back in playful confusion.
Callahan grunted in response, "Just how much do you guys DON'T know about the world yet?"
"Apparently, not a lot." Toothless patted the smaller dragon on the back, "should we head back?" The baby Night Fury asked.
"I suppose so…" Toothless sighed, "Flint…c-can we put everything that happened today behind us?"
"You didn't have to ask…of course we can, but it'll make one hell of a story to tell someday…maybe…" Flint chuckled.
Both Night Furies soon entered the house the same way they came in: both leaving the past behind them…looking onward to the future.
In their minds, both saw the other as family now. From now on they would treat each other as such, find consolation in that fact. Human or not, Tooth welcomed it wholeheartedly now. As they returned to Hiccup's room and as they drifted to sleep, Callahan stared at the curled Toothless: the dragon who showed him the way to live in this strange world…showed him how to be a dragon, but most importantly…how to be a brother.
From that day on, they are brothers.
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Phew! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Regrettably it's a shorter chapter, but I hope it was worth it.
The next chapter will focus on Flint explaining his origins to Toothless and the subsequent 'rescue' of the "Ex-Queen."
Please, let me know how I'm doing so far with the story, I would love your inputs on my progress. Anyway, have a great day everyone…until next time!
