Today's sun, which rocked in the background of grey-blue sky, fried as if being the god who punished the world for the sins, the vices, and the depravities, not leaving any mercy for the mortal - just fucking nightmare. Either way, she should've been used to it, not once had she stood behind this same stall, served the clients for hours and hours, having Jesus himself over her head, and wasn't even touched by the sweat, neither exhaustion.
Yet today, her silver hair had become white underneath the bright heat, the sight of Eret - the chief, smiling like the mindless idiot - deprived her of the will to live, and the line of buyers was longer and longer with each expiring minute - fucking nightmare. Ultimately, around noon, she'd managed to unload the crowd, sat down finally, wiping her wrinkled forehead, her black eyes narrowed at the hay-swathed roofs of the village's houses, her beige clothing irritably plastered to her skin, and relaxed.
Well, relaxed but for about seconds period, because the woman, whom she'd taken for the girl at very first, approached the booth, checked out the lined content, especially the edibles, and gazed at the proprietress, patiently. Hence, having the dark, green eyes at herself, the elder must've stood up, then stared at the clothes, as well as the hair, the color of mud, the stooped, emaciated posture, and, at once, knew everything - the beggar.
"What you want?" she asked, harshly enough the woman must've stumbled, dazed. "Cat got your tongue?"
"Sorry," the woman apologized, handing her a couple of silver coins, her scarred hands sending a shiver down her spine. "Will I receive anythin' for that?"
"For that?" she inquired, held the lone coins between her fingers, the sound of the woman's accent leaving an unpleasant taste on her tongue, before snorting, soundly. "At best, I might spit on you. That's worth such a price."
"It must be worth anythin'!" the woman exclaimed, the paleness of her scrawny face blinding her eyes. "Is there somethin' I can do?"
Usually, she'd disagree at once - such offers would always rather disgust her, insult her - now, however, she couldn't bring herself to decline, something in this girl fascinating her, and she'd just stared at her, charmed. Foremostly, her eyes paused at the woman's shapes, innocent and narrow, veiled by the torn attire, not of her type, although the interest caught her, and she'd found herself picturing the scene, the sacrilegious, yet pleasuring, desirable scene.
"Well, something always can be done," she answered, her voice, normally low, gaining an alluring tone that unnerved the girl, until finally, the owner tsked, changing her mind. "Meh, maybe another time, but here's a deal," she suggested, leaning over the table, whispering suddenly, and pointing to the right, at the building. "Behind this barn, you may find Boris, the decent man, who enjoys having fun, especially if dominant. He'll like you and pay duly, certainly."
"What?" the woman asked, then blanched, the realization transforming her face. "I-I'm not-,"
"There's nothing to be embarrassed of. Everyone has to earn, anyhow," she pointed out, relying her heavy forearms on the bucket, just over the red-rich apples, and lifted her eyebrows at the girl. "So, how it's going to be? You'll be back-,"
"I'm not a hooker!" the woman yelled, breathed as if alarmed, and rubbed her fingers against her lids. "Please, return my money and I'm leavin'."
Afterward, she'd narrowed her eyes at the lassie, the slim smirk appearing on her face when she'd spit forth, just at her boots, whereas the woman glared at her, yet they'd both known she'd do nothing about it, and she hadn't. Soon, the woman walked away whilst she'd watched, her eyes fixed on the tangled, auburn hair, her nose scenting the hangs around of the forest and burn, her hand gripping the two, silver coins, firmly.
If asked, how would Hiccup describe the past week, the past days, she'd do it shortly: the fulfillment of her biggest dreams and nightmares.
She'd been lost - the memory, of when she'd fled the nest, was her last, thus she'd not known where she'd flown to, she'd not known where the fright had taken her, all she'd known was the emptiness of her mentality. It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good, and she'd gotten what she'd always wanted, the journey beyond the border of Berk's isle, however, she'd have never imagined it that way, never wished it that way.
She'd been hungry - when being on her own, she'd found out how hard it is to survive, how hard it is to endure, how hard it is to obtain anything outside her village, how hard it is to deserve a slice of bread. At that point, she'd regretted so many: avoiding fishing with her father, reluctance to kill animals, not wanting to learn the basics of survival, always thinking of fantasies, never thinking of the consequences.
She'd been missing home - she'd missed the everlasting racket outside of the window, the taste of the fried cod, the sizzle of the forge's oven, the aroma of the resin and wildflowers, and the cove, foremostly. Often, she'd wondered if anyone noticed her absence, if anyone'd been surprised by it, if anyone searched for her, if Toothless had, who vanished without a word, whom she'd left at the nest, whom she'd hated the most, for putting through all, yet missed most.
The first days, before the hunger could've gotten her bad, she'd spent searching for the way back - the calmest days, when she could've even enjoyed the occurrence, saw the remarkable sights, and fell in love with them. The next days, when the hunger had gotten her bad, she'd plunged into despair, when she'd lost all the strength, couldn't have flown, couldn't have even transformed, could have begged only, waited for the miracle.
Unfortunately, when neither miracle happened nor did begging help, providing her with two coins only, she must've taken action, and therefore, she'd goggled at the pouch, abandoned at the barrels, unguarded and luscious. The plan was simple - approach it indifferently, without batting an eye at it, grab it as if only swinging the arm, and leave the crime scene - like mentioned, simple and effective, undetectable, at least she'd thought so.
Alas, it could've not been so easy, because, already while approaching, her heart raced, her head spun, and when snatching the pouch, surely she'd not done it gracefully, instantly knew that she'd got to escape, fastly. Suddenly, there wasn't any doubt that she'd failed, because she'd felt the grasp at her forearm, the very tight grasp, and later on, she'd glimpsed the man, holding her, smiling at her, making her lose feeling in her limbs.
"Well, well, who do we have here? A little thief," he declared, tilting his head overflowing with brown hair, then yapped at her, his voice gruff, "Want to say something?"
Thereafter, the silence hovered over them, throughout which he'd managed to wrest back the stolen property, and she'd only stared, stunned by the glare of the brown eyes as well as shaken by the crushing clasp. It appeared that they'd both known of his advantage, of his towering height, his superior strength, and his exceptional self-esteem, thus, he'd been the one to take in sight of her, reduce the distance between them, and say, calmly.
"Normally, I'd beat the shit out of you," he acknowledged, before grinning widely, brushing his thumb against her cheek, which itself made her nauseous, "but we can handle it, differently."
An alarm roared inside Hiccup's head, the loudest it'd ever have, which is why she'd not waited with the act - she'd punched him, the hardest ever, and when the man released her, stumbled back, she ran, the fastest ever. Of course, it couldn't be that effortless, quickly he'd snapped out of the surprise and caught the fabric of her tunic as well as her hair, however, she'd still been able to flee, losing the chunk of material, aggressively torn out, and the hair tie, with a few strands of them, but still.
Thereafter, she'd done everything in her power to lose the chasing man, the predator, knocking over the boxes, the barrows, and in the end, the most effective was the run itself, that's why she'd only done that, run like hell. Whether she'd not seen his shadow anymore, she'd heard his hefty steps behind herself, she'd felt his breath at her neck, she'd lost track of reality, and maybe that's why, she'd not noticed it, when she'd been hijacked into an alley.
Though the darkness there itself persuaded to frighten, the most frightening yet was the hand, blocking her mouth, and arm, maintaining her body by the owner's, thrusting her deeper into the alley, deeper into the darkness. When so, she'd fought, biting onto the tanned skin, trying to wrangle out her strongest, but in reality, she'd just wanted to cry, already imagining the brown-haired man over herself, the pain she'd never dreamed to feel.
Ultimately, they'd stopped behind the building, the farthest from the village's roads, she'd understood that nobody would hear them now, and so, when her mouth was released, she'd not even murmured, pressed her lips together, hard. She'd expected the worst, that's why, when rather than being a victim of the pain, she'd been turned around, mashed into the man's chest, she'd trembled, sobbed even, until hearing the most consoling of the sounds.
"I've told you, you cannot get yourself caught," the voice, most beautiful voice, sounded in her ears, whispered softly, and her eyes overflowed at the spot. "If it wasn't me, you'd be dead."
"Toothless," she muttered his name like a prayer, clinging to his body, and returned his embrace, jabbing her fingers into his back whilst he'd chuckled, beautifully. "Ye're here."
"I'm here," he responded, pressed his nose into her hair, as if aware she'd needed it, they'd needed it. "I'm here, and I'll never ever again leave you alone, never again, never."
His words, the very most beautiful, warmed her heart and soul, embittered by the experiences, frozened by the cruelty - the resulting from that water shedding outside of her by liters as she'd cried, cried, and cried. Eventually, her legs gave up on her, and each limb actually, outside of her arms that held the man dearly, and while he'd sustained them, finally, he'd lessened them to the ground, where they'd settled, curled around each other.
"I failed to survive, Toothless. I-I got lost, starved, and begged on the streets. I fell so low, the lowest," she confessed, and he hugged her, tighter and tighter. "I believed that I'd die here."
"I looked for you every day, every hour, every minute, every second, sunshine. From the very moment when I lost sight of you inside the nest, I looked for you, everywhere possible, not ever leaving my mind off you," he admitted, grimacing from an invisible ache, knotting his fingers around her half-opened hair. "I was close to breaking down, but I'd never give up on you, never."
"I'm so happy that ye're here. All the time, I yearned, dreamed ya'd appear, and ye've really," she stated, softened when he'd untangled her aching, pulled-on hair, brushed them, gently. "I'm just embarrassed by how dependent I am, how weak and laughable."
"It'd been your first week in a such life, a very tough life. The second would be better, I know from experience," he assured, cupping her cheek, locking his eyes on hers, compassionately. "However, you'll not live through the second, because you'll allow me to take care of yourself, which has nothing to do with being weak, okay?"
"Toothless-," she started, yet the man scowled at her, his expression hardened, ensuring her he'd not change his mind, even if she'd throw the entire tantrum, and so, she sighed, defeated. "Okay."
"Good, because I feel how much you're shaking, and I can't stand it, any longer," he noted, taking the short, dark purple cloak off himself, forcing it at her back, and wearing the hoodie on her head. "Better?"
"Way better, thanks," she responded, smiled weakly at him whereas he'd rubbed his hands against her upper arms, heating her up, and asked, abruptly. "Ya'll take me home, please?"
"Of course," he agreed, however, his joy rather slipped from him without a reason, and he trapped her inside the firm embrace, at once. "Never disappear on me like that again, are we clear?"
"That's rather hypocritical of ya, to be honest," she spotted, smirking diabolically, although sinking into him. "Ya'd disappeared, once."
"Oh, and you'd got to make it even for the asshole, hadn't you?" he grumbled, and she burst into giggle - how could he not smile, then? "Let's get you home."
Consequently, he'd stood up and handed her his hand, which she'd accepted at once, however, when she'd gotten on her feet, neither let go of the grasp, stared at their hands, as if afraid that the other would vanish when released. At last, it'd been Hiccup who departed them, although not very wilfully - suddenly, she'd bend in half, gnashing her teeth with unbearable pain, her stomach twisted and loud, and if Toothless wouldn't catch her into his arms, she'd meet the soil, surely.
"Does it pain you that much?" he questioned, helping her straighten whilst she'd nodded, upholding her, continually. "We'd better get you some food before the travel."
She'd not have to answer that - she'd trusted him, allowed him to take control over her, hence, when he'd again snatched her hand, she'd only tightened the hold, followed him outside the alley, and walked throughout the streets almost glued to the man, protected. Whereas the dust rolled between their feet, Hiccup had, once by once, glanced at Toothless, whose expression screamed the danger, the threat, having his brows furrowed, his jaw clenched, yet when glimpsing her gaze, he'd always raise the corner of his mouth, let his mask slip, just for her.
Eventually, his eyes had appeared to travel wherever hers did, and so, they'd watched the hay architecture of the village, the extraordinary, patterned clothing of residents, through most of their attention took the statue at the center. Being formed of stone mainly, having moss ornaments, the sculpture portrayed the man, standing rather proudly, wearing the traditional, triangle tunic, and when they'd stopped by it, they could've read - In memory of Eret the first, the sea dragon conqueror.
"I've been here a few days only, but I thought there weren't any dragons," Hiccup noted, withstanding Toothless's pull to go, gazing at him, curious. "Is that even possible, for an isle, to be dragonless?"
"Truth be told, dragons, if not forced by anything, tend to avoid humans, actually," he clarified, peeking at her with the side of his eye, his attention still at what's ahead. "We don't eat your meat, not if we can help it, so that's rather reasonable, why some villages are unburdened from the encounters."
"What luck," she commented, grinned as he'd rolled his eyes, and then, smashed his hand, the sudden pang striking her stomach, while the man fixed his eyes at her, concerned. "Let's better move it, shall we?" she proposed as the ache lessened, and he nodded, more than eager to do that.
Accordingly, they'd turned to leave but hadn't even taken half a step, when somebody, as if being a pillar of salt, blocked their way, and Toothless inquired, "May I help you?" his voice low, annoyed, and ironical.
It came off as if the man wasn't very interested in Toothless himself because he'd outright ignored him, having his brown eyes constantly at Hiccup, his brown eyebrows cocked in amusement, his smirk bright and smug. At that point, the woman desired to bury herself alive, gaping at the face of the man, the victim of her robbery, and so, she'd attached to Toothless, clenched his forearm hard, trying to maintain an enraged gaze at the man, even successfully.
"You've really thought, you'd escaped me, bitch?" he queried, narrowing his eyes at her, however not for much, because afterward, Toothless hid Hiccup behind his back, his hand never releasing hers, glowered at the man, whose grimace betrayed his disgust. "What are you, her great protector? Get the hell out of here, kid."
Despite his very threat, Toothless hadn't moved an inch, upheld the stare battle with the older man, who responded with the same, scowled at the young adult, his chin lifted in a rather proud, his hands fisted. At that time, the fight hung in the air, and while it'd seemed they'd got the chances evenly, being of the same height, the barely varied builds, there was something, that Toothless had the better advantage over the man - the myriad fury.
The situation escalated rather rapidly - the man threw the punch at Toothless, who managed to dodge it, then replayed with two, succulent strikes into the man's jaw, the blow into his stomach, and finishing with his eye. Already then he'd laid on the ground, after just being knocked down, yet it wasn't enough for Toothless, who decided to kick him into the crotch - ultimately, the man fainted, maybe from the fractured rib, from the pain itself, nobody very cared.
When it was all over, Toothless straightened over the collapse, shortly massaged his neck, before turning back to Hiccup, standing just off, exactly where he'd left her, her eyes round and wide, provoking his smile.
"Are you okay?" he asked and the woman just nodded as he handed her his hand. "The men fought for you, what an honor."
"Just the dream come true," she ironized, catching his hand whilst he chuckled, deep and joyful.
Unfortunately, the short moment was destroyed, because the crowd, rather disturbed by the quarrel itself, enclosed them, thus, the man took matters into his own hands, yelled, "There's nothing to watch! Fella's got drunk, that's it!" and as he'd seized the unconscious's foot, led them three outside of the attention.
Sooner than later, dragging behind themselves the sufferer through the mud, they'd stopped by the building, where Toothless laid the man, seated him against the wood comfortably, although not for obvious reasons. Having her hand on his shoulder, just from over it, Hiccup had watched the spectacle - the outstanding thief, who fooled everybody into believing his good nature, simultaneously robbing the man of his every possession.
Each cloth's dusting meant another drained pocket, each cheek's patting meant the loss of jewelry, and each position's correction meant the larger loot, an attire, footwear, satchel of ringing coins - Toothless stood up, wearing the copper ring, the cotton, beige wrap, and the pouch, hung to his belt. Ultimately, nobody spotted the larceny, performed underneath the bright sun, apart from Hiccup, who squinted her eyes at the man, standing just in front of her, and turned the corner of her mouth up, brushing her fingers against the soft material of his loot.
"Now, that's a real knack," she whispered, and he smirked narrowly, yet proudly. "I must remember to watch myself in yer presence, now."
"Oh, really?" he inquired, raising an eyebrow at her, suspiciously. "Like now?"
Consequently, she'd departed her lips at him, confused, until realizing it, noticing they'd been walking, guided by his rough hand, however, she'd incorrectly assumed that as his intent, not even taking note of the ring on her finger, that she'll discover later, when necessary, when required.
The queue dragged on for an eternity, although what else they'd expected in the afternoon when the inhabitants had been preparing for the after-work meals themselves - the throng was foreseeable, yet surprising, still. The sun roasted, maybe even stronger than in the morning, that's why Toothless's head was overridden by the wrap whereas Hiccup's continuously by the purplish hoodie, leaned at the man's shoulder, currently.
Needless to say, the woman had been exhausted, yearned for the heated bed, the complete rest, however, the man couldn't have allowed that, pressing that she must've eaten anything first, hence the rather uptight atmosphere between them. Therefore, he'd kept his hand at her hoodie, his cheek at her forehead, for, even if mere, comfort, what had any success, and, notwithstanding the peeks of the strangers, Hiccup softened in his hold, breathed evenly.
"Everything fine, sunshine?" he asked eventually when the silence deepened between them, and stroked her head, gently. "You're very quiet, like not you."
"Fine," she answered, wiping her face against his sleeve, beaming slightly. "I'm just dozin' off, a little."
"Maybe you'd better wake up. It's our turn, soon," he pointed out, released her as she nodded, and asked, "What would you like?"
"A piece of bread would be more than enough," she responded, and then, whilst they'd both stood straight, tensed her grip on his hand, visibly. "Thanks for being here, Toothless. I ain't know, what I'd do without ya."
"I'm always here for you, always," he replied, grazed his thumb against hers, and pushed them forward, toward the stall's beginning when the latter buyers walked away. "Come on, it's our turn."
And that's exactly how Hiccup'd found herself in the same, exact situation, standing before the bitter, senior proprietress, repeatedly looking just as she's indicting her of being - the begger, the hooker - yet holding Toothless's hand, now. In the meantime, at the woman's very sight, the elder had grinned, bored her eyes into their knotted hands, however, before she could mutter a word, the man overtook her, his expression closed up, his eyes dark as the night itself.
"A loaf of bread, add to it some beans and fromage," he ordered, tossing the pouch at the owner, who caught it, spoiled. "No change, no talking."
Immediately after, she'd been packaging the order, aware of the man's constant stare at her, regardless, she'd been ignorant of it, her eyes never leaving Hiccup, her smirk never fleeing her face, that's why, unable to refrain herself, ultimately she commented, "So, you've found yourself a sponsor, finally?" and regretted it, soon.
"For that remark, you'll pay me the change, and it's seemed to be sizable," Toothless declared, satisfied as the elder's grin slipped, and narrowed his eyes, lowering his voice. "I'll count, so you'd better not irritate me, anymore."
Subsequently, for the rest of the time, while making an order, the proprietress didn't speak up, visibly vexed, counting the waste already, whereas the man scanned every her move, grinning like the victor, which he was, surely. Only once had he really taken his eyes off her, when detecting Hiccup's gaze at himself, her expression being the blend of impression and amusement, he'd then stuck his chest and she'd groaned, but smiled.
"Here's the food, and the change," the owner murmured, handed him the package as well as the pouch, and watched him confused as he walked away. "You won't count?"
"Nah," he replied, never stopping the pace, circling his arm around Hiccup's laugh-shaking shoulders. "Don't care to."
It could've been seen as the end of this story, after all, the proprietress received what she'd deserved, yet Toothless hadn't considered this justice, hence, when passing by the stall's leg, he'd gracefully booted it, snapped it, utterly. Consequently, chaos occurred, the contents of the entire stall, the food, the wealth and riches, crumbled, and the owner could only below, witness being robbed by exhilarated passersby, and guess the suspect, to no purpose.
Obviously, unaware of his scheme, Hiccup had wished to learn the explanation for why the racket behind their backs, however, when being upheld by Toothless to not, the realization transformed her face, and she stared at him. Initially, he'd avoided her sight, worrying about the rage on her face, although once he'd dared himself to gaze, he'd only seen her lifted brow, before she shook her head and smiled at him, leaning her head at his shoulder, what he'd shortly returned, relieved.
Ultimately, embraced within the step, they'd leave the village, the two, silver coins rolling behind them, only to ideally crash into each other and beautifully collapse onto one another.
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Today's episode was brought to you by motivation.
Motivation! Fuck you, art block.
Ye, ye, if I try I may write a chapter faster, but what can I say, I'm a little sloat.
Little question, because I started to wonder. Recently, I stopped describing much (noticeable if compared to the first chapter) and I wonder, do you like it? I just thought some details were not worth staying on for that long, so…?
Oh, and I just want to say I love making things symbolic… no other comment.