This chapter is going to be another split perspective chapter. One thing that will happen soon is a time skip and I'm not talking about the minor one from the last chapter.
Some things happen later in this story that I don't feel… uh… "comfortable" doing to, at the oldest, a sixteen-year-old boy. The same thing applies to Astrid mostly because of the nature of these characters/ plot points. There is a reason this story is rated M for violence, let's just put it at that. Oh and I let my intrusive thoughts win, there will be a lemon or two at some point.
One of my biggest concerns about writing this story was the interactions with dragons. My previous HTTYD story had very little to do with the dragons so writing scenes with Toothless has been… interesting to say the least.
With that being said, on with chapter four…
Toothless lay on the cold ground and lazily watched Hiccup as the boy worked. Though he stumbled his way around asking to use the forge, the man who ran the stand seemed quite nice and willing to help Hiccup out. Toothless didn't care to learn the burly man's name but as long as they weren't going to be staying for long, it wouldn't matter.
"Hiccup!" the man's booming voice bounced off the walls of the forge.
"Yes, Brandt?" Hiccup responded.
Toothless snorted, what kind of name was Brandt?
"What are ye doing boy?" the man asked, stepping into the small room.
Brandt was in his early forties, his body scarred by the effects of battle. The man proudly wore a thick blonde beard that ran down to his chest as if to make up for the lack of hair on his head. He was easily thrice Hiccup's size but he was a gentle giant.
"Uh… finishing the… um…" Hiccup stuttered, trying to hide the fact he wasn't doing his work.
Brandt chuckled at the boy's reaction and cautiously stepped over the lounging Nightfury.
"It's okay lad, no need to hide anything. I understand wanting a better foot, I've seen many men come through asking for one. I swear Sigurd just wants to make people suffer," he lamented.
Hiccup nodded and resumed working on his new prosthetic leg. The iron within the embers glowed a bright orange and Hiccup removed it from the flames. Quickly hobbling over to the anvil, Hiccup grabbed a hammer and slowly worked the iron down.
"For such a young man, your skills are unmatched," Brandt complimented.
"Thanks," Hiccup responded, focused on the task at hand. "I've been a blacksmith's apprentice since I was little, well littler," he added.
Brandt shook his head, "Why must you put yourself down like that Hiccup?"
Hiccup stopped hammering and looked back at Brandt. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"I tell you you're great at your job and your instinctive response is to make fun of yourself. This isn't the first I've noticed this Hiccup, you must take pride in your abilities," Brandt told Hiccup.
"I'm sorry, I'm not used to praise," Hiccup responded as he resumed his work.
"Not used to- Hiccup your swords are some of the best I've ever wielded. You make nails as if they're going out of style and let's not avoid the dragon in the room," Brandt exclaimed, gesturing to Toothless.
Toothless grunted before laying his head down on the ground and closing his eyes.
"Look all I am saying is to be proud of yourself, don't let others put you down because if you do, you'll prove them right," Brandt added before standing just behind Hiccup.
Hiccup simply nodded and lifted the molten iron shape from the anvil. He then lowered into a barrel of water nearby, letting the manipulated metal cool down and take shape. Once the steam cleared and the water stopped bubbling, Hiccup lifted the metal foot and laid it down on the table.
"See what I mean Hiccup, I'm mean just look at that," Brandt said pointing to the unfished prosthetic. "You've gone ahead and forged a prosthetic in the shape of a real foot!"
"It's nothing really, I-"
"Again Hiccup, be proud of yourself," Brandt told Hiccup sternly. "With that mind of yours and your skills, you'd be a great smith," he added.
"Thanks," Hiccup responded, his eyes not leaving his newly forged prosthetic.
Brandt slapped Hiccup on the back and gave a hearty laugh.
"That's the spirit, my boy!" he boomed.
Hiccup smiled half-heartedly before hobbling over to his dragon companion.
"Are you wrapping up?" Brandt asked.
"Just about, I got to see if I can get some wood from Sigurd before finishing the leg. Then I've gotta get leather and-"
"I meant for the day Hiccup," Brandt interjected, stopping Hiccup from his ramble.
"I- uh… Yeah."
Brandt nodded, "Alright lock up shop, I'm going up to the hall to drink enough ale to knock out Thor himself."
"Will do," Hiccup said as he patted Toothless on his head.
Brandt turned to leave before quickly stopping. He reached down to a pouch that rested on his belt. The blacksmith lifted the bag tossing it in the air slightly to test its weight before turning back towards Hiccup.
"Hey Hiccup," Brandt called out.
"Yeah?" Hiccup answered turning to face the blacksmith.
Brandt tossed the pouch to Hiccup which hit him square in the chest. The blacksmith snorted and turned away.
"You've done enough work for me. Consider your debt-paid Hiccup. That should be enough coin to buy you the wood and some decent leather or cloth," he told the boy.
"Th-Thank you, Brandt."
Brandt nodded and walked out of the building leaving Hiccup and Toothless alone in the forge.
Hiccup sat on a small hill overlooking the tiny village. Toothless was quietly napping next to him, the setting sun reflecting off of the dragon's scales. Hiccup watched as most villagers went about the routines and he imagined the people of Berk doing the same. It was the first time he truly thought of Berk since leaving. He thought about his Father and how he was taking his death. About Gobber, the man who had practically raised him since his father was too busy being chief. Hiccup also thought of Astrid, if she even bothered to look for his journal or maybe she just went ahead and told the village his secret. He hoped that last thought wasn't the case but a small pessimistic part of his brain wouldn't let him leave that thought behind him.
Hiccup sighed and lowered his head onto his knees. From beside him, Toothless grumbled a clear sign that Hiccup had woken Toothless from his nap. Hiccup looked up at his friend before smiling sadly.
"Sorry bud, I'm just feeling a little homesick I guess," Hiccup told his friend.
The dragon grumbled in response before lowering his head back down to the ground. Hiccup turned back towards the village and once again thoughts of Berk began to resurface. 'I hope the dragons dispersed themselves to other nests,' Hiccup thought solemnly.
From behind him, the branches of a nearby shrub began to ruffle. Toothless picked his head up and began to growl at the bush. Hiccup quickly turned around and slowly stood up to face whatever his friend was growling at.
"What is it bud?" Hiccup asked.
The dragon in question hissed sharply and raised a wing protectively in front of Hiccup. The rustling continued for a few seconds before it suddenly stopped. Toothless remained resolute in protecting Hiccup but the Viking boy slowly approached the bush.
All of a sudden, a blue Terrible Terror jumped out from the leaves causing Hiccup to jump back towards his friend. Toothless roared at the tiny dragon and the two began to square off. The Terror arched its back, hissing as it did so.
"Hey, easy!" Hiccup shouted at Toothless.
Toothless turned to look at Hiccup in confusion. Hiccup gave his friend a reassuring look and put himself in between the two dragons. The boy turned his attention to the tiny blue dragon which was still ready to get into a fight with the much bigger Night Fury.
"It's okay little guy," Hiccup told the terror in a calming manner.
The dragon growled at Hiccup which in turn caused Toothless to growl back at it. Hiccup quickly raised a hand to Toothless to get him to stop. The Night Fury growled again but in a much quieter manner. Hiccup slowly backpedaled to Toothless's saddle bag and pulled out some dried fish. He then approached the Terror again, raising the fish in front of him.
"I bet you're a hungry little guy aren't you?" Hiccup asked.
The dragon chirped and calmed down, lowering into a sitting position. Hiccup laughed and tossed the fish in its direction. The Terror caught it and scarfed the fish down as if it were the first food he had in weeks.
"See no need to get hostile," Hiccup told the dragon.
Hiccup began to approach the dragon, slowly at first but was nearly knocked off his feat when the dragon lept up into his arms. The boy laughed again and petted the Terror that now rested in his arms. As Hiccup petted the dragon, his hand came to rest over a rough patch of scales. Looking, he saw a few scratches that matched the scrape of a sword.
"Wait a minute," Hiccup muttered.
Hiccup raised the dragon above his head and took a closer look at the dragon.
"I recognize you!" Hiccup almost shouted, startling the dragon. "You stole some fish from Mulch last month and he nicked you with his sword. You're from Berk!"
As if recognizing the village, the dragon chirped in response. Hiccup lowered the dragon back down and let it rest in his arms. Thousands of thoughts raced through Hiccup's mind at once. The most important thing was getting in contact with Astrid.
As Hiccup's plotting commenced, the dragon had fallen asleep. Hiccup carefully set the dragon down and quickly got to work. He grabbed his journal and his pencil from the saddlebag, quickly flipped it to an empty page, and began to scribble into his book. Toothless watched as his rider worked, tilting his head as an image began to take shape.
"Rawroo?"
"Oh this, it's gonna be a parchment holder," Hiccup explained. "It should be strong enough to hold letters in all sorts of weather and keep them dry."
Toothless huffed, unimpressed at his rider's plan, turning his attention back towards the sleeping terror. With Hiccup occupied, Toothless decided to join the blue dragon, he lay down and closed his eyes.
Hours passed and the sun had fully set when Toothless awoke from his nap. He looked to where Hiccup had been before he slept and saw that he wasn't there. Looking around he found Hiccup sitting on a rock, writing something in his book again. The dragon rose from his napping spot and made his way over to where Hiccup sat.
"I hope you get this…" Hiccup muttered.
Hiccup turned around and saw Toothless approaching. "Hey there sleepy head, sorry we missed our flight. I'll try and finish your tail as soon as possible, I promise"
Toothless huffed and prodded Hiccup's book.
"It's a letter for- for Astrid," Hiccup stammered. "Our new friend will hopefully deliver it to her and if we're lucky she'll respond," Hiccup added, ripping the page out of the book.
Hiccup rolled up the paper and placed it into a wooden tube. He then got up and walked toward the Terror which was still asleep. Picking the dragon up, Hiccup lined up the tube on one of its hind legs and wrapped it around its leg with a vine. Hiccup tightened it the best he could, giving a firm yank just to make sure it wouldn't jostle around during the flight. Satisfied with his work, Hiccup placed the terror back down before grabbing his journal once again.
"Okay little guy, I need you to do me a favor," he told the small dragon. Hiccup flipped to a page in the journal that held a map of Berk that he drew a few months back. "I need you to go here, can you do that for me?" Hiccup asked the dragon.
The dragon chirped in response before raising its wings ready for flight.
"Woah, woah wait!" Hiccup shouted. He then flipped to another page, coming to rest at a drawing of Astrid. "You need to go to her, okay? No one else, you got that?"
The Terror chirped again, relieving Hiccup's nerves somewhat.
"Good," Hiccup said with a sigh. He then grabbed a piece of dried fish out from the saddlebag and tossed it to the Terror. "Thank you, have a safe flight little guy."
The dragon gladly ate the fish in seconds before taking flight and disappearing into the night sky. Hiccup gazed up at the stars as it left and prayed to the gods that the little terror would find its way to Berk. Sighing, he packed his things back into the saddlebag and began to walk towards the village.
Astrid sighed and looked down from the night sky that blanketed Berk. The Nadder that she had befriended was still eating her evening meal, a routine the two had fallen into. Every night Astrid brought the dragon fish from the docks and the two would spend hours together. Astrid also began using some of the tricks Hiccup had written down, using what he called dragon nip to calm the dragon down, scratching the pressure points on her jaw to fall into pure bliss, and making sure there weren't eels in the baskets of fish. She would then play fetch with the dragon with a broken spear that had been left in the arena. It allowed her friend to get some much-needed time outside her cage. Watching her new friend made Astrid feel a happiness she hadn't felt in a long while.
As she spent more and more time with the Nadder, Astrid wished Hiccup was here to tell her what to do next. His books only helped so much but there wasn't much Astrid could do with her friend stuck in the arena. There were some nights where Astrid wanted nothing more to break the Nadder out but the village would notice a missing dragon.
Speaking of dragons, there hadn't been a raid in weeks. The village was on high alert as they were due for another raid nearly a week ago but none had come. A part of Astrid knew why, the bright light from a few weeks ago had come in the direction of where the nest was. Maybe Hiccup had bested the beast that ruled the nest. If he did, then why hadn't he come home?
It was too much for Astrid to think about. For right now she just needed to continue building trust between her and the Nadder. A squawk from the Nadder broke Astrid out of her thoughts. She had finished her meal and was looking for more food.
"No girl I'm sorry. I wish I could get you more but I can't," Astrid told her.
The Nadder squawked again but sorrowfully as prodded the empty basket that once held her meal. Astrid approached the dragon and began to scratch her scales, making her purr almost instantly.
"I wish I had more time to spend with you girl but I've gotta help Gobber in the morning," Astrid whispered to the dragon. "I promise I'll get you out of here soon. I just need to figure out how."
The Nadder squealed in response and butted her head against Astrid's shoulder. This made Astrid smile as she wrapped her arms around the blue dragon's head, pulling her into a hug. All of a sudden, the Nadder broke the hug to raise her head and began to sniff the air.
"What's wrong girl?" Astrid asked.
The dragon made a sharp trill, raising her tail and getting into a defensive stance. Astrid immediately realized what was going on, someone was coming. She quickly thought of a way to get the Nadder back into her cage. Astrid's eyes rested on the broken spear and grabbed it as fast as she could.
"I'm sorry girl but you gotta hide," Astrid told her.
With all her might Astrid flung the wooden hilt toward her cage, the spear thudding against the back wall. Without wasting a second, the Nadder charged after her toy following it into the the cage. Astrid followed her and quickly shut the cage door, trapping her friend once again. The shieldmaiden quickly turned around and spotted the empty fish basket.
"Oh gods," Astrid paniked.
She ran over to the empty basket and picked it up, tossing it behind a rack of weapons that just so happened to be nearby. Astrid exhaled with relief as the basket came to a stop. She grabbed an axe off of the rack and began to twirl it around in her hands, waiting for whoever was approaching the arena at such a late hour.
"Astrid?" a voice called out.
Astrid turned around and was greeted with the sight of Fishlegs walking down the ramp.
"Fishlegs? What are you doing here?" Astrid asked.
"I could say the same to you," the large boy retorted.
Astrid glared at him which caused the boy to shriek. Fishlegs backed up a bit before regaining his composure.
"I'm- I'm just saying you're not usually up until the sun is well up into the sky. Plus I heard a noise, sounded like a Nadder."
"Well you heard wrong," Astrid told him.
"I don't think so, we Ingermans have great hearing. Besides, Nadders have a specific series of sounds they make before launching their spikes at you. Did you know that they have-"
"Yes, Fishlegs I know they're poisonous," Astrid groaned.
"Oh, well still I thought I heard one," the boy reiterated.
Astrid sighed, "Remember the last time you thought you heard a dragon? You had the whole village up in arms chasing what you thought was a Terror but ended up being Mr. Hamish's ox."
"That ox made a lot of Terrible Terror noises," Fishlegs quickly defended.
"Right," Astrid replied sarcastically as she turned away from the teen, and placed the axe back on the rack.
"You never did say, what are you doing down here?" Fishlegs asked.
"Training," Astrid simply responded, neither a truth nor a lie.
"Without your favorite axe, I don't think so," Fishlegs retorted.
"You think I'm lying to you!" Astrid glared at the chubby teen.
Fishlegs squeaked in fear and retreated from Astrid a bit. From behind her, Astrid heard what sounded like a bang coming from her Nadder's pen. The girl looked back at the cage and then back at Fishlegs before sighing.
"Sorry..." Astrid mumbled, glancing at the ground for a moment while shuffling awkwardly in place, then looking at her surprise guest again. "Look, Fishlegs it's getting late, I should get going."
"Okay," Fishlegs replied weakly with a cautious nod before scurrying out of the arena.
Astrid watched the boy leave before sighing once again. She once again stole a glance at the Nadder's pen before she too left the stone ring. As she disappeared into the streets of Berk, Fishlegs watched the shieldmaiden before he began his walk back to his hut.
Astrid approached the door to her hut as quietly as possible. Hoping both of her parents were asleep, Astrid slowly opened the door. The door creaked as it opened, Astrid cringing every time the door made a sound. Once the door had opened wide enough, Astrid slipped inside and quickly shut the door behind her.
With the door shut Astrid made her way up to her room, taking as light of steps as she could passing by her parent's room. Astrid closed her room's door before making her way to the desk that lined her wall. Hiccup's journal rested neatly on top of it along with several of Hiccup's drawings that she managed to take from the backroom. She sat down at the desk and picked up the drawing of her and her Nadder. Of Hiccup's drawings, this was her favorite by far. Once again Astrid's mind drifted to the wayward Hiccup and his whereabouts.
"Oh Hiccup, where in Odin's name are you?" she thought aloud.
*Crash*
Instinctively Astrid reached for a weapon, the nearest one being a knife. The girl turned to face the direction of the noise and was shocked to see a blue Terrible Terror resting on her window sill. The Dragon too was shocked by the girl and her sudden move to grab a weapon. The dragon shrieked, backing up into a defensive stance. Astrid glanced down at the knife and quickly tossed it away, her eyes once again meeting the Terrors.
"Hey it's okay," Astrid said, attempting to calm the frightened dragon down. "I didn't mean to scare you, you just startled me is all."
Astrid raised her left arm and extended her empty hand out just like she did the Nadder. The Terror slowly approached her before stopping in its tracks.
"It's okay," Astrid repeated, this time closing her eyes and turning away from the tiny beast. A second passed and after what felt like an eternity to Astrid, the dragon pressed its snout into her outstretched palm. Astrid slowly opened her eyes and looked over to the dragon before giving the blue creature a slight smile. The dragon opened its eyes and leaped into Astrid's arm, startling Astrid once again.
"You gotta stop doing that," she reprimanded it.
The dragon made an almost laughing sound at her before nuzzling into her chest. Astrid couldn't help but smile and began to pet the dragon in her arms.
"You shouldn't be here you know, what if someone else caught you," she told the dragon.
The dragon didn't seem to acknowledge her instead he once again jumped, this time landing on Astrid's shoulder.
"Hey, get down from there!"
Astrid immediately regretted yelling the moment she heard footsteps from outside her door. She glanced at where the dragon was, at least she would have if it was still on her shoulder. The door opened suddenly revealing Ivar Hofferson, brandishing his axe.
"Astrid are you okay, I thought I heard a dragon," he told her.
"Uh no, no dragon here," Astrid replied, cursing herself after she answered.
"Are you sure?" Ivar asked.
"Positive," Astrid answered more confidently.
"Then what was with the shouting?" he asked.
"Oh, that, one of the gulls landed on my window and I was trying to get it to leave."
Ivar stared at his daughter for a moment, Astrid responding with a sheepish smile. Eventually, Ivar nodded and lowered his axe.
"Alright, well get some sleep. It's late."
"Right sorry for waking you Dad," Astrid apologized.
Ivar simply grunted in response before turning and closing the door behind him. Astrid exhaled sharply and turned her attention back to finding the Terrible Terror. As she began to search one of the floorboards under her bed creaked. The girl crouched down on the floor and looked under her bed. Sure enough, the dragon was there, cleaning itself as if nothing was wrong.
"Get here you," Astrid whispered sharply, reaching a hand under the bed to try and grab the dragon. Once she got a hold of it, she pulled it out from underneath her bed and back into her arms.
"You nearly got us into a lot of trouble," she reprimanded the reptile. "But you hid yourself well little guy, pretty sneaky if I do say so myself."
Astrid lifted the dragon and got a better view of the blue beast. As she inspected the dragon, Astrid noticed something tied around its leg. She grabbed it and pulled the wooden tube off of its leg. Astrid set the dragon down on her table as she took a seat and began trying to figure out what the tube was. At the top was a sort of lid, prying it open revealed a piece of paper. Astrid flipped the tube upside down and let the parchment fall onto the desk. She then picked it up and rolled it out, her eyes immediately recognizing the handwriting.
Dear Astrid,
Gods I hope this gets to you. I don't know if it will but I'm hoping this little guy knows where he is going. Anyways… I'm okay, obviously or else you wouldn't be receiving this letter. I don't know where exactly I am but I'm well beyond the archipelago.
I hope everything on Berk is okay. There haven't been any dragon raids, right? At the very least no sightings I hope. Toothless and I… well… we defeated the queen!
"I knew it," Astrid muttered excitedly.
How we did it… it's mostly a blur. One moment we're flying out of a massive explosion, the next I'm waking up on some faraway island. The folks here are friendly, friendly enough I suppose. They haven't tried to kill Toothless which is a plus. For now, we're stranded here. His tail fin got destroyed in the fight and I haven't gotten the chance to repair it yet. I hope to get back in the air soon.
Speaking of dragons and flying. I hope you found my journal where I left it. I know Gobber doesn't poke around back there much so it should be in the place I told you. How is everyone speaking of which? Was a party thrown now that I'm gone?
Let me know if you get it, just put a letter in the tube. He'll know where to go and find me.
Kind regards,
H.H.H. III
(P.S. Feed him if you can.)
Astrid scanned the letter several times over, rereading the words Hiccup had written. Of course, he would train a dragon to deliver mail. Astrid couldn't help but appreciate Hiccup's idea, they finally had a way to talk.
"I'll feed you in a bit sneaky," Astrid told the dragon that had now fallen asleep. With that, Astrid grabbed a blank piece of paper and began to respond to her friend.
Sorry for the long wait. Work got busy and a very big opportunity opened up that I just had to take. Things have since calmed and work has resumed on the story. Progress will be slow for a while so sit tight folks.
While waiting for this story, why not read some of (in my opinion) the best stories this site has to offer? Fall From Grace by EllanorFredericks is a great one to start with.
Once again sorry it took me almost four months to get this chapter out. We'll see each other soon!
-Dilloncoll