A/N: I was doing some editing (I'm constantly fixing punctuation errors, it's infuriating), and I can't help but cringe whenever I see a sentence that ends in a preposition. The grammar rules state that you aren't supposed to end a sentence with a preposition—I'm aware of this; however, I've decided to let it slide for two reasons. One: sometimes it's really difficult to arrange certain sentences to fit the rules. Two: I feel like it's very common in colloquial conversation. That being said, I'm a perfectionist and it will always bother me.
~Thanks for coming to my TED Talk. I'll see you next chapter.
Stardust333 —He needs to learn how to use a bow ;D Cami is most definitely skilled in the art of battle. Maybe she'll help someday. We shall see.
Disclaimer: Gosh darn it, I said no.
HICCUP'S POV
"Where do you live? Did you bring any other dragons with you? What are you doing on Amity Island? Can you control dragons—"
I groaned at the endless flow of questions, effectively cutting off Camicazi before she could get too carried away. She wasn't lying when she said there was a lot she wanted to ask me. Her last question was especially ridiculous.
"Of course I can't control dragons! I'm still a human, even if I grew up in a nest," I pointed out, shaking my head in amusement.
Cami pursed her lips, studying my face to make sure I wasn't lying. Due to her lack of concentration on our surroundings, she ended up tripping over a tree root. She stumbled forward with a startled yelp, and I quickly grabbed her arm with my free hand before she could faceplant. Her momentum almost sent me down with her, but I felt a tug on my shirt that held both of us up. When my balance returned, I twisted my head around to see Toothless walking directly behind me.
*Thanks, bud.* I said gratefully, adjusting my grip on the Tiny-wing. I'd decided to call her Lucky, since it was the perfect description. If I hadn't come along, she most likely would've died, either by natural causes or perhaps even Thuggory. I couldn't say for sure yet whether I saved her wing or not, but at least I'd saved her life. I'd always considered Perch to be my first dragon rescue, but I saved Lucky without the help of my mom or Toothless. I'd always look back on this day with pride.
Toothless blew out a warm puff of air that sent my hair flying in all the wrong directions, a nonverbal scolding for not being more careful. I'm not the one who tripped! I thought indignantly, turning back around to check on Camicazi. We'd kept walking, but she was staring over my shoulder at Toothless with wide eyes, obviously uncomfortable with his proximity. She'd been so ready to pet him before, and now walking near him was too much? It was hard to imagine Toothless as an intimidating creature. I mean, sure...he's got sharp teeth and claws, and he's eerily silent when he moves, but he's so gentle with me.
"I meant what I said before—he won't hurt you," I reassured her. Cami reluctantly broke her gaze away from my dragon, which was probably the smart thing to do. I could feel him growing antsy with all her staring. He kept his eyes forward, ignoring her altogether. I wondered how he was taking all of this. The last time he saw humans, it had been bloody. Maybe he could sense that I wasn't in danger now, so he had no reason to be aggressive towards my new friend. That didn't mean he liked her, though. I knew him better than that. He didn't do well with strangers—human or dragon.
"So if you can't control dragons, how do you get him to listen to you?" Camicazi wondered, jerking her chin towards Toothless in what she probably considered to be a subtle manner. I wasn't sure if it would be beneficial for her to know that he understood every word she said, so I chose not to mention it.
"Toothless is my friend—my brother, really," I admitted. "We respect each other." I shrugged, unsure what else to say about it.
"You make it sound like he's a human," she commented.
"Dragons have thoughts and feelings, just like the rest of us," I defended, trying to keep any anger out of my voice. I had to constantly remind myself that she and every other human simply were unaware of a dragon's intelligence. They were too busy killing them to take a moment to truly study them.
Cami instantly appeared apologetic. "I didn't mean...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. Or Toothless," she mumbled, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
"You didn't," I promised quickly, nudging her lightly. "I'm relieved you're listening to me at all," I added. "Most vikings are the 'kill first, ask questions later' type." Thank the gods Thuggory felt the need to brag about his find before killing Lucky. An adult would've chopped off her head right there.
Cami's eyebrows drew together in deep thought, and she seemed to distance herself from me, if only slightly. "You don't like us, do you?" She guessed, sending me a sad smile.
I swallowed, feeling overwhelmed by the sorrow in her gaze. I wanted to explain everything to her—about how I grew up in a dragon nest because the vikings on Berk were too stubborn and bloodthirsty to stop and listen to reason; about how my mom fought against the cruelty of vikings on each of her missions, had seen how much damage they could truly inflict; about the men on that ship and the fear I'd felt that day. There was so much I wanted to say, but I couldn't. My mom and I were off the map, ghosts in the wind. Our anonymity ensured the safety of the dragons—of our family. So the less Camicazi knew, the better.
"I like you," I protested softly. Hopefully that was enough for now.
Cami let out a breathy laugh. "Yeah, well, that's a given," she teased, closing the distance between us once again. She reached up to caress Lucky's flank, the amazement in her eyes as strong as the first time she touched the Tiny-wing. Lucky was fast asleep, oblivious to the world around her, but she still purred as Cami's fingers ran over her scales.
"So," Cami began in a much more relaxed, casual tone. "If you don't like vikings—other than me—why did you come to Amity Island? I don't know if you noticed, but there are a lot of people here," she reminded me, breaking eye contact for a moment while we made our way through some dense vegetation. She held a thin tree branch out of the way to allow me an easy passage through. Toothless simply jumped up into the trees and met us on the other side, falling back into stride behind me.
"My mom thought it would be a good experience," I explained, briefly glancing around to see if I recognized our surroundings. I assumed we were somewhat close to our destination. It would've been much quicker to fly back, but there was absolutely no chance that Toothless would ever let another human on his back. Plus, I wanted to draw out my time with Camicazi as much as possible.
"And what are your thoughts so far, may I ask?" She inquired in an overly polite manner, stifling a grin.
I grabbed my chin and faked an expression of heavy consideration, playing along. "The food is to die for and the music sounds amazing, but the company could be a little better," I answered sarcastically. Cami's jaw dropped with an affronted laugh, and she punched my shoulder lightly before I could dodge out of the way.
"Watch it, dragon boy!" She warned, failing to hide her smirk.
*If this human hits you one more time, I'm going to toss her into the ocean.* Toothless spoke up suddenly, his voice gruff with irritation. My eyes widened in surprise, and I twisted around to look at him, halting our progress.
"Toothless!" I chided, feeling my cheeks heat with embarrassment.
"What is it?" Cami questioned, bewildered by my outburst. I cast her a furtive glance before focusing my attention on my dragon. He was looking her over as if he were assessing a threat, and she took a small step back upon noticing his predatory stare. "Uh, Hiccup?" She whispered nervously.
"Toothless, she's just playing, okay? Calm down," I ordered gently, lifting his head from its lowered, naturally aggressive position. His pupils had been narrowed, but they widened as soon as his eyes met mine. He was even less familiar with human behavior than me, so it made sense that he interpreted her actions as her trying to cause real harm. He ducked his ears bashfully at his mistake, licking my hand in apology. "I'm not mad, bud," I assured him. "Come on, let's keep going. I'm sure Mom is worried." He cringed at the mention of her, and I had a feeling he snuck away to find me without her permission. If that was the case, I'd be surprised if I actually found her where I left her.
As I continued forward, Cami hurried along beside me, clearly unsettled. "What was that about?" She asked, unable to stop from looking back at Toothless every few seconds.
"He's just getting used to you," I answered vaguely, unwilling to get into the whole thought-speak thing right now. That was definitely too much for her to handle.
She considered my response for a moment. "So...hypothetically, let's say I came across Toothless and you were super far away. Like...on another island or something. Would he kill me if you weren't around to stop him?" She wondered, sounding genuinely curious.
I flinched, taken aback by the blunt question. "What? No. No...He isn't...He only gets aggressive when he thinks I'm in danger. If I wasn't around, he'd probably just fly away from you," I explained. I had yet to come across a dragon who was violent just to be violent. Even Jade, whom my mother had told me about, was only ever defending her other hatchling, Shadow, when she attacked the other dragons. Toothless himself had a very playful nature when there were no threats nearby.
Cami raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Really? The dragons on Berk..." She trailed off, immediately regretting bringing up the topic of that specific island. "You know what? Never mind." She waved her hand dismissively. I was grateful she didn't delve deeper into anything Berk-related. I didn't need her finding out the truth of my lineage.
"My mom will be very happy to meet you," I told her, changing the subject. We were almost there. I could feel Toothless move closer to me, which meant he could see my mom somewhere ahead. There would be a lecture waiting for him, for sure.
"Why, because I'm your first friend?" Cami chuckled. Little did she know, she was spot on in her assessment.
I rubbed the back of my neck with my free hand. "Yeah, actually," I mumbled. "First human friend, anyway," I corrected.
"It's always the loners that have the best personalities," she replied, smiling to herself. I nodded absentmindedly in agreement, my attention catching on my mother's figure in the distance. She was facing us with crossed arms and a frown, tapping her foot impatiently. Cloudjumper was behind her, his posture much more relaxed—amused, even. He must've warned her about our approach. Toothless whined softly at my mom's expression, probably wanting nothing more than to take off and not look back. Hiding behind me was the second best option.
Cami finally noticed my mom, but her gaze quickly moved on to Cloud, and she inhaled sharply. "Oh my gods. What kind of dragon is that?" She questioned warily. I half expected her to reach for her sword, but she kept walking without a flinch.
"He's a Stormcutter," I replied. "His name is Cloudjumper. He's pretty much the friendliest dragon you'll ever meet," I claimed, sending the dragon in question a wave as we got closer. He warbled happily, fluttering his nose flaps.
As soon as my mom caught sight of Camicazi, her firm stance faltered. She dropped her hands, stepping forward to meet us halfway. "Hiccup...where have you been?" She demanded, sending Toothless a quick glare that had him hunching over submissively. "And...who's your friend?" She added in confusion, glancing around like she expected an ambush at any moment.
"This is the friend I told you about—Camicazi," I introduced, gesturing to the small blonde beside me. Cami didn't hesitate as she marched forward with an outstretched hand. Dealing with human strangers was obviously nothing new to her.
"Nice to meet you, ma'am," she announced brightly. My mom slowly reached out and shook her hand. I tilted my head at the odd interaction. Dragons bob their heads as a greeting or simply sniff each other. Humans were just very strange creatures.
"Yeah...you, too. I wasn't expecting to see you with Hiccup...and Toothless," she remarked, raising an eyebrow at me. I guiltily avoided her gaze, moving back to Toothless' side and leaning against him for support. Looks like we were both in trouble.
Camicazi realized the situation quickly and attempted to make amends for our sake. "Oh, you don't have to worry, ma'am! I won't tell anybody about your dragon friends!" She assured her, crossing her heart for emphasis. My mom stood in silent surprise while Cloudjumper maneuvered around to sniff at my new friend. Cami bit her lip and leaned away slightly, but recovered almost instantly, extending her hand towards his nose. Cloud crooned softly and pressed against her palm, blinking owlishly at her. She grinned in excitement at the successful meeting, turning a bit so she could give me a thumbs up. I laughed quietly, though I was proud of her act of bravery.
Once Cloudjumper had received his fair share of attention, Camicazi reluctantly pulled away with a sad sigh, then walked back over to me. I straightened my shoulders, remembering that it was finally time to say goodbye. The longer we stayed, the more risk there was that we were found. Especially since Thuggory would've returned to the village by now. I wasn't sure if he would stay silent about today's events. For all I knew, there could be a search party out hunting for us right now. Better safe than sorry.
"I'm not one for sappy conversation, so I'll make this quick," she began, causing me to shake my head in amusement at the predictable words. "Yesterday was great. Today was great. Not just with the dragons, but with you," she confessed. "You're one of the few people I can be myself around, you know? I'd hang out with you every day if I could." She stepped closer, poking my chest as she stared up at me. "You're my friend now whether you like it or not, dragon boy." The corner of her mouth lifted at her new favorite nickname. "So do us both a favor and come find me sometime, yeah?" She finished, raising both eyebrows expectantly. I nodded vigorously, even if I knew in the back of my mind that I couldn't make that promise. I wasn't able to form a verbal response for some reason, but Cami didn't seem bothered by my silence. She patted my chest, then stepped away, giving my mom a quick wave.
"You have an awesome son, ma'am," she declared, sending me a wink. I rolled my eyes good-naturedly. She started backing away towards the village. "Make sure he doesn't go stealing any more axes without me, though. I'd hate to miss out on the fun!" She called, laughing as she turned around and gave us one last wave. I pressed my lips together, watching her go with a mixture of disappointment and happiness. I decided then that I would see her again—I'd make it so. Until then...
I risked a glance over at my mom. To my surprise and great relief, she didn't look upset anymore. She'd finally taken notice of the Tiny-wing in my arms and was striding over to me with a concerned expression. I gladly let her take Lucky from me. The little dragon woke with a start as she was transferred from one person's hold to the next. My mom shushed her gently, whispering reassurances until the Tiny-wing calmed back down.
I followed my mom as she made her way over to Cloudjumper. "Will she be okay?" I fretted, hovering like a frightened mother hen.
My mom reached up to brush my cheek. "She'll be fine, darling." Her expression morphed into the one I'd been dreading. "You and Toothless on the other hand..." She shook her head in exasperation, lifting Lucky up and placing her on Cloud's back before turning to face me. "You want to tell me what happened today?" She asked.
I sighed. "It's a long story. How about I tell you on the way?" I suggested, already going over to Toothless. He snuck in a quick lick to my cheek as I climbed into the saddle, happy to have me in my rightful place on his back.
My mom snorted, but maneuvered up onto Cloud, settling herself behind Lucky. "I swear...only you can have such crazy adventures in just a twenty four hour span of time," she muttered.
Well...she had a point, I suppose…but a little crazy made life a lot more fun.
P.S. —There will be a time skip next chapter. I don't like time skips, but I'm hardly talented enough to write about every little detail of Hiccup's life.
