AN: So I know this is horrifically late, but I'm sorry, I had school and I forgot ff net existed. haha-

"So, are you sure there isn't, like, a little…" Hiccup hesitated, "Night Fury pamphlet, or something?"

"Well, if there was one, it'd be in the Book of Dragons." Gobber said boredly.

"Eh…" Hiccup made this weird shrugging motion, as if to say 'sort of, but not really', and then spoke, "Are you sure? What does it do? Has anyone seen it napping?"

"No one's ever gotten close enough to it and lived to tell the tale." Gobber yawned, before yelling, "Now get in there!"

The Nadder screeched, and Hiccup ducked away from a spine shot just in the nick of time.

"Today is all about attack!" Gobber called out, "A Nadder is quick and light on its feet. Yer job is ta be quicker and lighter."

Of course. Snotlout thought bitterly, taking a short rest stop behind a maze wall, Because we'll obviously be able to outrun a giant flying lizard that can breathe fire. Obviously.

Before he realized it, he bumped into Astrid.

"A-Astrid." he whispered, after she glared at him.

The blonde looked over the corner to the Nadder who seemed to be facing the other direction at the moment, and then turned back to Snotlout. "What are you doing here?"

Snotlout was a bit taken aback by the venom in her voice. Then, he regained his bearings. "I'm here because you're here, sweet cheeks."

Astrid's face twisted in disgust. Then, a short thump could be heard behind them.

Lo and behold! Snotlout thought wryly, when he saw Hiccup's dumbstruck expression, It's the fishbone!

Astrid's expression shifted for a split second, but before Snotlout could do a double-take, her face had returned to its normal disdain.

"Psst!"

Hiccup tilted his head.

Astrid made a beckoning motion with her hands, before rolling across the ground with her shield to prop her up.

Snotlout followed her, mimicking the action perfectly. Then, he turned to watch Hiccup.

Hiccup hesitated for a moment, before launching himself forward. For a few moments, it almost seemed like he would make a perfect roll–He had a good start-up, Snotlout observed–but then the shield dragged him down.

Goddamn these fishbone arms! Hiccup mentally bemoaned.

The Nadder turned to him, and the spikes on its tail flared up. Hiccup stared at them blankly. Then, from the other side of the Nadder, another clatter sounded out.

Astrid.

She was getting ready to throw her axe.

Then, Snotlout bumped into her, said something, threw his mace–his only weapon–and missed. Hiccup didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Then proceeded a wild goose chase that brought the Nadder to the other side of the ring, destroying any and every part of the maze it came into contact with.

Seeing his opportunity, Hiccup turned back to Gobber. "Are you sure no one has ever seen a Night Fury napping? Ever sneaked up on one?"

"Hiccup! Focus!" Gobber yelled, at the same time as Astrid screamed out–

"Hiccup!"

He turned around too late.

Astrid fell on top of Hiccup, and her axe lodged itself in his shield. The Nadder was slowly creeping up behind them.

Hiccup hissed, "Why don't–How about you–Would you just–" while trying to help Astrid remove her axe from his shield.

Astrid ignored him and adjusted her footing, pressing one foot into the shield for leverage (dangerously close to his face, too) and the other right on his–

Hiccup yelped in pain, "Augh!"

He dimly recognized the twins commenting about 'love on the battlefield' from the sidelines as his face and genitals were being stepped on.

Eventually, Astrid reached the end of her patience, and yanked the axe and shield with it, smacking the Nadder in the face with one powerful blow.

The Nadder screeched momentarily, before staggering backwards, effectively disoriented, and walked off.

Hiccup sighed in relief, nearly sure he was free, and then Astrid held her axe (with part of his former shield attached) to his throat.

"Is this–" she gestured around, to the dragon-training arena, to the other teens, and then to the few Vikings left behind from the Nest Search, "–some kind of a joke to you?"

Huh?

"Our parents' war is about to become ours." Astrid retracted her axe, before pointing it towards him accusingly, "Figure out which side you're on."

Hiccup watched her walk away, a somber feeling making his heart feel heavier than it actually was.

Ain't that the thing, eh?

He was sure that Astrid had just said what she said to drive her point home. Hiccup was sure.

For Vikings, the only side open to them was their own side. They wouldn't ally themselves with dragons, even if they were weaklings (like Hiccup).

And that's where the change was. (He had options.)

Hiccup couldn't be a Viking.

Not like them.

(Not after Toothless.)

O~O

Snotlout tracked Hiccup's movements, his slouch and dragging feet as he left the arena, and he couldn't help but think back to a time where Hiccup actually smiled without an ounce of sarcasm behind him.

"Oi, Hiccup!" Gobber hollered, and Hiccup stopped, turning around with a questioning look in his eyes, "Meet us back by nightfall! I'll share a story with ye babies about how I lost me limbs!"

Snotlout had never seen Hiccup's face transition into a deadpan so fast.

"Of course, Gobber." He muttered, "How could I ever forget the Boneknapper…"

Then–

"Do I have to be there?"

Gobber scoffed indignantly, "Firstly, laddie, the Boneknapper is real and it's been hunting me my whole life! Secondly, yer still a student under my care, so don't even think for a second you'd get out o' this."

Hiccup stared blankly at the one-armed, one-legged Viking, before sighing, "I'll take that as a yes…"

Gobber's face brightened and he hobbled over to Hiccup, giving him a firm slap on the back, "See you there, Hiccup!"

Hiccup rolled his eyes and the edges of his lips twitched upward in amusement, "Yeah, yeah…"

Then, with a wave of his hand, Hiccup exited the arena. Snotlout sighed, knowing what would come next.

"Hey, Snotlout."

"Snotty…"

"Snotty the Lout!"

"Ooh, that was a good one!"

Snotlout suppressed another sigh, turned around, grabbed both the twins by the back of their heads, and then smashed their Viking Helmets together. "Never," he growled, "Ever, ever, call me Snotty the Lout again, you understand? Or I will take both of your guys' right feet off."

"Ooh, we got him mad!" Ruffnut hooted, and Tuffnut giggled maniacally in response.

Snotlout snarled wordlessly and stomped off.

He had things to do.

"Hey wait! Snotty the Lout!" Tuffnut yelled, "Wait for us!"

Snotlout made a noise of frustration and (grudgingly) slowed down.

"Hey, Snotty." Ruffnut slung her arm across his shoulders in a show of mock-camaraderie, and Snotlout tensed.

"What do you want, you muttonheads?" he grumbled.

"Ha. Yeah. So remember that day Gobber handed us the Book of Dragons?" Tuffnut started casually, attempting to sling his arm across Snotlout's shoulders.

Snotlout furrowed his brow and nodded, dodging Tuffnut's stray arm with an ease of expertise than could only come from years of practice. "What does that have to do with you calling me Snotty the Lout, even after I told you not to?"

The twins raised their hands in a show of surrender. "Sheesh!" Tuffnut said defensively, "One would almost think that you don't know how to have fun!"

"But, obviously, brother, that isn't true at all." Ruffnut countered sagely, a mean grin tugging at the corners of her lips.

"Oh Thor, would you just get to the point already?!"

Tuffnut chuckled deeply for a moment, before turning serious, "Okay, yeah. So you obviously remember the Book of Dragons Gobber dumped on us a few days ago–I mean, obviously, of course. How could you forget? Your memory is actually–"

"A-hem."

"Right, right, so anyways. Gobber's testing us on it tomorrow."

Snotlout and Ruffnut turned towards Tuffnut, each with a look of deep-seated confusion in their eyes.

"He's… testing us?" Ruffnut enunciated slowly, sampling the sound of the words on her tongue. Then, she frowned, "You didn't tell me this–"

Tuffnut slapped a hand over his sister's mouth and glared at her sharply, "He is testing us." he proclaimed, very loudly, "We need to study!"

Snotlout raised a skeptical brow, "When have you ever willingly studied?"

Tuffnut paused, looked at his sister, who looked like she was one step away from biting his hand (but didn't–she was way too curious to see where this went) and smiled, "Since just now. Come on!"

Before he knew it, Snotlout's arms were grabbed and he was dragged along to the Great Hall for whatever reason Tuffnut desired. Ruffnut followed behind them quietly. Contemplatively.

(This was weird. Even by the twins' standards. Very weird.)

(They most definitely had an ulterior motive)

The Great Hall was nearly empty despite it being midday. Although, that might've been because everyone who would've been in the Great Hall at this time, was out searching for the Dragons' Nest.

Tuffnut dragged him over to the long table they usually sat at, and, coincidentally, the Book of Dragons was already there. Waiting.

Snotlout could feel his eyebrows entering his hairline. They're actually going to study? He shot a look at the twins, who now seemed to be arguing over who'd flip the pages, I didn't think they had it in them.

"I got it! How about Snotty the–SNOTLOUT! I MEANT TO SAY SNOTLOUT!" Tuffnut staggered backwards, nursing his nose. Ruffnut laughed at him.

Snotlout flexed his fingers, pride and self-satisfaction coursing through his veins. "Of course you meant to say that. Now what is it?"

Ruffnut scoffed and smacked her brother upside the head, "What my idiot brother means to say is that we decided you would be flipping the pages of the book!". She took a moment to glare at the Book of Dragons in both contemplation and mild disgust.

Her body language screamed, 'I can't believe we're actually doing this'

Snotlout shrugged, "Fine by me."

Then, the three settled down. Snotlout opened to a random page.

"Monstrous Nightmare." Snotlout started.

"Whoa. That's an awesome picture." Ruffnut grazed her fingertips against the old ink. Tuffnut voiced his affirmation.

Snotlout stared at it blankly, before finally blurting out, "Monstrous Nightmares don't look like that."

Tuffnut gasped in mock-outrage and shoved his finger in Snotlout's face, "Yes, they do! How dare you deny them their right to terrify?!"

"Indeed, my dear Snotlout." Ruffnut whined in mock-pain, and Snotlout would've almost felt sorry if it weren't for the wicked grins the two had on their faces.

Snotlout finally reached the end of his patience. (This was getting way too weird-)

"Okay, seriously!" Snotlout got up and slammed his hands on the table, "What are you two doing?!"

The few Vikings in the Hall turned to the teens in some strange mix of bewilderment, confusion, and curiosity.

Tuffnut laughed, "We're studying, of course!"

Ruffnut's face contorted strangely, and she glanced at her brother, "You know, Tuff." she started slowly, "I've gotta admit… I'm totally up for messing with Snotlout and all, but studying? Seriously studying? This is… new. We don't do studying. Even if we're being tested. Why the sudden change?"

Tuffnut paused, uncharacteristic seriousness flashing across his face, "Snotlout. We are going to be tested." he said tightly, "I overheard Gobber say it."

"But that's not the only reason you're doing this." Ruffnut hissed, "So what else?"

Snotlout hummed.

Tuffnut sighed, and his face brightened, "I thought we all needed some bonding time! Haha!"

Snotlout turned to the book, and then back to Tuffnut, "And this?" he pointed out skeptically, "This is your idea of bonding time?"

Ruffnut got up and laid the back of her hand on her brother's forehead, "You're sick." she stated in a matter-of-fact tone, "We need to get you to Gothi."

Tuffnut's jaw dropped, "Wh–You–No! I'm not sick! Do not get me to Gothi! That old lady freaks me out! I'm scared of heights! Her hut is on the edge of a cliff!"

Ruffnut winced from Tuffnut's wailing, and turned to Snotlout, "You want to come with?"

Snotlout took one look at Tuffnut's dramatic tear covered face and shook his head. "When you get him to Gothi's," he advised, "Ask her to fix his brain, too."

Ruffnut scoffed, "Already did. She scribbled no cure, but a curse. Lots of 'em."

Snotlout snorted, "Of course she did." You guys have no tact.

Then, the Great Hall was enveloped in silence once more. The Vikings inside continued milling about their business now that their entertainment was gone, and Snotlout?

Snotlout stared blankly at the Book of Dragons.

He really did not want to open it.

But there would be a test.

And if he failed…

Snotlout huffed out a sharp sigh through his nose and flipped open to the first page of the book. Might as well get this over with…

"Dragon Classifications." he muttered, Strike class, Fear class, Mystery class, Boulder class, Stoker class, Tidal class, Sharp class.

"Gronckle–this dragon has a habit of eating rocks. Thick skin, and very durable. Their eggs hatch with an explosion. 6 shots, spewing lava. Incredible jaw strength. High endurance. Burns its victims beyond recognition. Extremely dangerous, kill on sight."

Snotlout idly flipped a few pages, and landed on a long tendril-like dragon with a giant head and terrifyingly sharp teeth.

"Whispering Death–very big. Very fast. Generally burrows underground. Sharp sense of smell. Blind. Stay away from the teeth. Sub-species is called Screaming Death, see next page…" Snotlout flipped the page and nearly fell backwards out of his seat.

A heavy head, nearly blocky, with twice as many teeth, each at least twice as long as the original Whispering Death. The wings were bigger, the tail was longer… and it seemed to be glaring at Snotlout from the pages.

"Uh…" Snotlout flipped to a random page–nearly ripping the book apart in the process–in panic.

"M-Monstrous Nightmare. Shot limit 10…" Snotlout furrowed his brows and continued reading in his mind, Tendency to set itself on fire–stay away from it. Do not use water–effects vary depending on the dragon. Small amounts of venom in its teeth for pre-digestion, but not enough to be a real threat. Large size. Very aggressive. High endurance. Medium durability. High speed. Burns its victims, occasionally buries them. Extremely dangerous… Kill on sight.

Snotlout stared at the last five words in contemplation. I think I'm starting to see a theme here…

He flipped through the pages. "Thunderdrum. Extremely dangerous, kill on sight. Timberjack. Extremely dangerous, kill on sight. Extremely dangerous, kill on sight. Kill on sight. Kill on sight–"

He paused.

"Night fury." he could feel the temperature in the air drop (Or maybe it was just his imagination). "Speed unknown. Size unknown. The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Do not engage this dragon. Your only hope is to hide and pray it doesn't find you."

Snotlout frowned, and picked a loose paper out of the book with the ends of his fingers. "Then what the hell is this?"

O~O

Hiccup relaxed against his Night Fury–yes, he freaked out at first as well–and closed his eyes. I should probably plan for the day tomorrow… Ah, wait. I have to go to Gobber tonight. Some Boneknapper legend he'll be talking about.

Then, he jolted, "Ah!" before hurriedly soothing his startled Night Fury, "Sorry… sorry… I just… I just remembered I need to… Oh no." Hiccup paled, "I left my diagrams of you in the Book of Dragons. Oh no. Oh gods no. I-uh, Toothless! I need to go!"

The dragon warbled stubbornly and laid his wing on top of Hiccup's small body, the heavy appendage doing extremely well to stop Hiccup from moving.

"Come on, Toothless." Hiccup groaned, "Why won't you just let me–"

Toothless raised his head and growled at Hiccup threateningly.

The small Viking teen immediately sat back down with a huff. "Fine." he muttered, knowing full well that Toothless could hear him, and full well that Toothless didn't particularly care, "But if you're found out and I'm exiled off the island for breaking viking law, I'm blaming you."

Toothless chuffed happily and went back to his nap.

Hiccup groaned, and fought to keep his eyelids up. The heat emanating from Toothless's body wasn't exactly helping… Were all dragons freakishly warm like this? Before Hiccup could realize it, under the darkness of Toothless's wings, he fell asleep, his breathing slowed, and his dreams oddly peaceful.

When he woke up, it was cold and dark. But not dark, like the Night Fury scales he got accustomed to, but dark as in–

Oh god, he could see the stars.

Oh gods, he could see the stars.

Gobber.

Hiccup ran out of the cove, shouting a hasty farewell to Toothless, and headed at breakneck speeds (by his standards) to the forge.

Just in time, too.

(He ended up bumping into Gobber, no doubt when the older Viking lost his patience and came looking for him.)

"Aye, where were ya, Hiccup?" Gobber asked, dragging Hiccup along with his… hand, "I been lookin' for ya for the past hour-and-a-half!"

Hiccup winced. "I was… Uh… Practicing…" he wracked his brain for a lie. What did normal vikings do for a living?

Kill dragons.

Okay, bad idea. Hiccup's grimace deepened further when the silence extended past its intended limit and Gobber stared at him worriedly. "I was… uh… practicing… my axe… b-breaking…?"

Gobber's eyebrows (eyebrow…?) slowly hiked its way up into what would've been his hairline (if he had hair), and his stare shifted from confusion to incredulity, "Hiccup, ye can't lift an axe, let alone break it."

Hiccup cringed, "I can lift axes!" he defended weakly, "I just… need… practice. That's why I was practicing. Yeah!"

Gobber rolled his eyes, "Sure, sure, wha'ever Hiccup. Now let's get a move on. Everyone else is already waitin'."

Hiccup sighed in relief.

"By the way, that was a terrible lie." Gobber commented offhandedly.

Aaaand the tension returned.

"Yeah. I know." Hiccup said tightly.

Gobber laughed and smacked Hiccup on the back with his torch… hand-stump-prosthetic-thing. Hiccup could feel the ends of his hairs singe and smoke. "Don't worry, laddie! I know ye got lost in yer head! You tend to do that when drawin' ya know."

Hiccup nodded tightly, "Yeah."

They made it to the lift.

"Of course."

One by one, the teens filtered into the lift, and Gobber pulled the lever to start their movement. It was an odd mechanical marvel. Definitely not one Hiccup would've thought Vikings, of all people, would've come up with.

Gobber seemed to notice his look. "It was yer mother." he elaborated when he noticed the lost expression on Hiccup's face, "Yer mother. Valka designed this contraption. We?" he huffed in somber amusement, "We're all idiots. Yer mother wasn't." then, when all the teens were settled, and looking the other way, Gobber leaned in, "Ye inherited 'er mind, Hiccup. Put it to good use."

Hiccup nodded blankly, unsure of what else he could do, and Gobber smiled, before sitting down at his seat. "Now, this is a very important lesson to ye all…"

Hiccup tuned it all out, instead opting to think of what Gobber said earlier.

His mother…

Valka.

His mother, whose name was Valka, designed this contraption. She was like him. Was… Hiccup could feel the material world around him slowly fall away as he fell back into the comfort of his mind again, Was she like me? A fishbone? Or…

All of a sudden, the hairs on the back of his neck pricked up. A feeling he recognized as 'being watched'. Hiccup slowly tracked the feeling to diagonal of the lift, and met Snotlout's gaze.

Oh. It's this again.

Hiccup stared.

Their stares had become somewhat of a… contest. Whoever dropped it first would lose, and whoever kept it would win.

Hiccup always won.

But… Hiccup squinted, This stare is a little different. Inquisitive? Curious? Tense? It's hard to tell.

Then, Snotlout suddenly dropped the gaze, and the connection was lost. Hiccup felt woozy. He distantly noted Fishlegs saying something about killing a dragon from the inside, before tuning him out again.

It was only when Gobber spoke up that Hiccup snapped back to reality. "It's not the legs you want ta take. It's the wings and tail. Stops 'em from flyin'." he sent a meaningful look to all the teens present, "A downed dragon is a dead dragon."

Toothless suddenly came into Hiccup's mind. A downed dragon… He remembered the tailfin, Is a dead dragon.

He did this.

Toothless's melancholic eyes whenever he stared at the birds passing through the sky flitted through Hiccup's mind's eye.

He would fix it.

The lift stopped, back where it started.

"Study up, everyone." Gobber hollered, "In three days, there'll be a test on the dragon classifications and Bork's papers. If ye pass." he grinned, "Ye'll move one step closer to being able to kill the Monstrous Nightmare."

Hiccup nodded and got off the lift. As he was going down the stairs, he felt a heavy hand plant itself on his shoulder. A hand he'd felt more than one time before.

"Snotlout?"

The dark-haired teen's eyes darted around insecurely, before landing firmly on Hiccup's own. "Listen, fishbone." he sneered, and Hiccup sighed. So they were playing this song and dance again.

"Yes, yes, I'll stay away from Astrid." Hiccup rolled his eyes.

"W–No, not that." Snotlout grumbled, and Hiccup had to blink a few times in confusion.

"Then what, Snotlout?" he drawled, "You never talk to me unless you have something rude or threatening to say."

Snotlout twitched, and Hiccup could almost swear he was fighting back a wince. "I–Just take these!" and Hiccup felt two loose papers being shoved in his face.

"Huh?" he grabbed them and turned them over. His blood ran cold. "How did you–"

"I read the book." Snotlout interrupted, "Now listen, Hiccup. I don't know what you got yourself into, or if that," he jutted his chin towards the various Night Fury diagrams Hiccup drew on the papers, "is some random thing you made up because of your obsession with killing a Night Fury, but don't leave your stuff hanging around. Or I may just keep it next time."

Before Hiccup could say anything, Snotlout was gone.

So he does care.

Hiccup couldn't help but smile a little at the thought.

So the Snotlout he knew was still in there, somewhere.

Then, he realized.

"Oh gods." Hiccup blurted out, and he ran as inconspicuously as he could towards the forge, "Snotlout found me. He found my stuff. Oh no. Oh gods no. What if someone else saw it–" Hiccup stopped. He reached the forge.

I shouldn't be panicking. Hiccup breathed sharply, Vikings don't read… They don't do that stuff. Vikings aren't… Wait. Hiccup jolted, Why was Snotlout, of all people, looking through the Book of Dragons?

A distinct part of him remembered Snotlout proclaiming how they didn't need to learn about what they killed, only how they killed them. That same person? Reading?

Hiccup frowned.

It was very uncharacteristic of him.

Then, Hiccup remembered that Gobber announced a test. He filed the questions floating in his mind away for a later time, and instead opted to search around for the Book of Dragons copy Gobber dumped on him when he was younger.

What a convenient excuse…

O~O

"Whoa, Tuffnut, how'd you predict that?!" Ruffnut asked.

"Ha ha! I am simply that good!" Tuffnut replied brazenly, his fists on his hips, "What about you, Snotty–Snotlout!?"

Snotlout scoffed, an easy grin, brimming with confidence bordering on cockiness splayed across his face, "I'll ace it. Just like I always do."

Tuffnut hooted and gave him a friendly punch in the arm, "Oh yeah! That's what I like to hear!"

"How positive, brother!" Ruffnut tittered, rolling her eyes affectionately.

Snotlout chuckled at their antics, before a sudden, inexplicable tiredness washed over him, settling like a blanket, and seeping into his bones. "Hey, guys." he called out, and the twins made their own various noises of acknowledgement, "I'm gonna go. Turn in for the night. See you tomorrow."

He left without listening to their farewell.

(It was always hard to listen to farewell)

(It reminded him of mom)

His hut was empty. His dad was out on the hunt for the Dragons' Nest. Snotlout didn't know how he felt about that.

There was a small, circular table in the center of the hut, with a small, wooden mug sitting on top of it. Snotlout remembered that mug. It was a gag gift from Stoick to Spitelout.

Spitelout wasn't very happy about it.

Snotlout could still remember him proclaiming how the handle of the mug wouldn't even fit his pinky finger. The Chief just laughed. Then, he turned to Snotlout, and to this day, he got chills when he thought about that gaze.

Thoughtful.

Insightful.

Strong.

Respectful.

Stoick the Vast then said, "Instead of you takin' it, why don't ye give it to yer wee son? I suppose he'll have a better use for it than ye."

Spitelout had nodded to that.

He still wasn't very happy.

(If Snotlout looked closely at the mug, he'd be able to notice some parts were darker than others. Almost like it wasn't washed properly. Almost like it stained too deeply to get rid of.

But he didn't.

Because he didn't want to think about it.)

The tiredness weighed on him heavier. Like a blanket. Ever-present, ever-there. Except, unlike other blankets, he couldn't take this one off.

Snotlout sighed and started a fire in the hearth. He was hungry. It was a really long day.

The viking teen grabbed a few jars and a clay pot from a cabinet and got to work. He hung it above the hearth, just enough so it would be heated, but not melted. It was then he realized he forgot to get water.

Snotlout groaned, and ran outside, grabbing the mug left on the small round table on his way. A few minutes later, he returned, and in one fluid motion, poured the water in and watched it start to boil.

As the bubbles started forming, he opened the first jar and dumped a good portion of it in. Elderberries. Snotlout thought fondly. His mother's favorite dish. Always very sharp. Then, he opened the next jar and dropped one, two, three scoops of honey into the concoction.

The fluid mixture in the clay pot swirled like some witch's potion and Snotlout's stomach growled at the sight.

"It's been too long." he sighed, smiling slightly, before grimacing. His father wasn't too fond of elderberry soup. If he found out Snotlout made it, and then ate it…

"I need to refill the jar." Snotlout muttered, "Later. After I'm done."

Of all things to indulge in while his father was gone… At least he could indulge in this?

Forget what his father would do after he returned. The taste of the soup was too good–too nostalgic to pass up.

O~O

In Berk, inside the forge, the telltale sound of hissing and clanging could be heard. Oftentimes, these sounds were associated with Dragon Raids, weaponry, and Hiccup being weird. This time, it was the far latter, rather than the two former.

If anyone saw what I was doing, Hiccup mused, They'd call me insane. Sick and insane. They'd probably destroy whatever I'm working on, or question my sanity. Snotlout already has, so–

The hissing died down, and Hiccup slowly pulled out the metal rod he'd been working on. He gave it a considering look and shrugged, "Eh. Checks out. At least it's not totally bent out of shape." Like the last three.

Hiccup fought a wince.

While he had experience making… elaborate designs and contraptions, he got a bit impatient, which caused his current work(s) to become rather… sloppy.

(There was a barrel in the back of the workshop specifically dedicated to Hiccup and his failed projects… It now hosted three new metal rods that looked more like an amalgamation of Gobber's hook than actual metal rods.)

In his defense, he was tired.

(Not really. After dragon training, he spent most of the day napping with Toothless)

Hiccup sighed, and started cutting up leather into a vague tailfin-like shape. "Well." he muttered, looking at the contraption that now lay before him, "This isn't so bad."

He should test it out on Toothless tomorrow…

After he goes to bed.

Otherwise, Gobber would probably enter the forge, physically knock him out, and drag him to bed anyways.

(It was a very uncomfortable feeling, being dragged on the floor.)

Before he put away his half-done creation, he checked his drawings one last time. They were crude. Naught but simple doodles.

But they were useful.

They gave him what was necessary.

O~O

Tuffnut watched as Snotlout left, his shoulders seemingly weighed down by something he just couldn't place. Tuffnut didn't know what to think about that.

Snotlout in general, was a mean person–one that he shouldn't spend time with, but did so anyways. However, even as Snotlout was teasing him, insulting him, and everything, Tuffnut couldn't help but sense an… undercurrent… to his words. He wasn't sure what it was, but it made his skin crawl and his teeth itch.

It ended up coming to a point where Tuffnut just couldn't take it anymore and he ended up following Snotlout around (secretly, of course) just to make that annoying feeling go away.

It didn't help.

It was also incredibly boring following Snotlout around, and that was strange. Snotlout acted like an interesting person. He acted like he was famous.

He acted like he was worth something.

And yet, when he strolled around the village, he was treated normally. He was average.

Tuffnut remembered how he was going to drop the stalking at that point. He remembered inwardly cursing his impulsiveness.

He also remembered freezing in place when he heard Spitelout's words, so cutting, so harsh (so much worse than whatever he'd been called) directed at his son Snotlout.

He remembered watching how Snotlout took it all silently, so unlike himself, and then nod, as if agreeing with everything said–what– before taking his leave despondently.

That was the day before everyone left for the Nest Hunt.

That was also the day Tuffnut resolved to adopt Snotlout.

Now, he should probably start paying attention to what his sister was saying–she looked one step away from rearranging his face permanently.

AN#2: Elderberry soup is a genuine recipe. This chapter is set up for everything else to come. Tell me if it sounds kind of blocky or weird! Thank you for reading and (hopefully) reviewing!