A New Friend
Hiccup and Toothless walked though the mess that was Berk, not unlike zombies, yawning and blinking away exhaustion. They had been out all night, testing the limits of their newfound connection.
They'd found that Hiccup could understand Toothless when the dragon was talking to him, and that they had a decent range on that communication too. However, it didn't quite work both ways. Toothless couldn't hear Hiccup's thoughts, no matter how hard he tried to send a message his way. However, Toothless had a stronger sense about Hiccup. He could sense his shifts in mood and had a general idea of where he was, even when he was far away.
Part of their "experiment" had indeed turned into a game of hide-and-seek, and Toothless was able to sense Hiccup's general whereabouts, then sniff him out from there. He was able to tell if Hiccup was in good humor, or in a slight panic when Toothless came close to finding him. All in all, it had been a fun, productive, and... educational night.
The two friends had agreed it was best not to reveal their enhanced connection to anyone else right now. They already had enough to deal with, without adding this mystery to the pile.
As the human and dragon pair stumbled sleepily on their path back home or to the Great Hall— they had yet to decide where they were actually going— they noticed as one, out of place, former trapper came strolling out of one of the dragon stables.
"Eret?" Hiccup called out to the new resident of Berk. Although, Hiccup realized, that his status had yet to be decided.
"Oh, good morning, Hiccup!" Eret seemed a little chagrined to be caught leaving the dragon stables, but tried to cover it up with a cheery greeting.
"Did you spend the night in the dragon stables?" Hiccup asked with concern as Eret approached them.
"I uh, yeah. Yes, I did." Eret looked down for a second before continuing. "The men kept giving me distrustful looks when I was in the Great Hall last night, and I suppose I can't blame them. I'm a stranger and a former dragon trapper. I worked for Drago just a couple days ago." He scratched at the back of his neck in discomfort at his position on Berk. "I didn't want to make everyone uncomfortable so, I left. Gobber offered me a place in his home, but he had other families staying there too and, well, they didn't seem comfortable with my presence either."
"Gods, Eret I'm so sorry!" Hiccup reproached himself. "I was so wrapped up in my own problems, I didn't even think about you. I've been so selfish."
"No! No, no. Don't blame yourself, mate. You've been so good to me." Eret reassured. "I can hardly complain. I mean, you're letting me stay on Berk, amongst your people. If I were kicked off this island... I honestly have no idea where I would go."
"Hey, you're one of us now." Hiccup gave Eret a smile. "You're a dragon rider, there's no going back now."
Eret chuckled. "I have to admit, the tables were turned when I decided to stay in the dragon stables— I was the uncomfortable one. I'm still getting used to the idea that dragons are more than mindless, ferocious killers. They welcomed me into their stables without a complaint though."
"Yeah, dragons are pretty great." Hiccup gave Toothless a chin scratch, the dragon responding with a purr. "Once you gain their loyalty and trust, there is nothing they won't do for you."
"I'm beginning to see that. You have quite the bond with that Night Fury."
"Toothless is my best friend. More than that, he's family. We saved each other." Hiccup looked to Toothless fondly.
'We're the same. We're one.' Toothless said, heard only by Hiccup. Although he swished his tail closer to Hiccup's prosthetic to make his point.
"That's a story I'd like to hear someday." Eret had to admit, he was insanely curious to know how Hiccup and Toothless became friends when they were meant to be enemies. How they each lost a piece of themselves but gained so much more in one another.
"Ha ha, yeah. It's kind of a long one." Hiccup chuckled with some embarrassment. "But what about you? Is there a dragon species that catches your eye? I'll help you bond with one. I can teach you to be a dragon rider."
"Really? I'd like that." Eret said with some eagerness. He had gotten a taste of dragon flying and wanted more. "I think Stormfly has me favoring those Deadly Nadders. And that is something I never thought I would say."
Hiccup gave a little laugh. "We all understand the feeling. But that's great! Nadders are such amazing dragon companions. They're loyal and tough. Fierce, and one of the faster flyers. A bit proud. I will warn you though, they will try to groom you."
"Really? And that's normal?" Eret found that fact rather amusing. He could be a bit proud himself and he also cared about how he looked. Perhaps Deadly Nadders really were a good match for him.
"Yeah, completely normal for a Nadder. They preen, not just themselves but also their riders. Stormfly is always messing with Astrid's hair."
"That's sweet. I think I'll like having a Nadder as a companion."
"I think that you chose very well." Hiccup stated. "Maybe we'll try to find you a good match later today."
"I would like that." Eret smiled widely. Hiccup was really nice and thoughtful. Eret had been leaving the stables, but he hadn't known where he would go from there. He didn't feel all that welcome in the Great Hall and he felt awkward and a bit embarrassed being by himself, surrounded by people who all knew each other and were at home in their environment. It was a relief to run into Hiccup and find him so helpful and welcoming.
"But first, let's find you a place you can stay." Hiccup addressed the former issue they had been discussing earlier. "I would offer you a place at my house, but..."
"No, that's okay. I don't want to intrude." Eret rushed to assure Hiccup, misreading why Hiccup wasn't inviting him into his home.
"No! I mean, I totally would. But there's, uh, some family drama." Hiccup didn't quite know how to explain his situation. "My mom is back, we thought she was dead. I think maybe you caught onto that, earlier?"
"When Chief Stoick reunited with her after the battle? Yes, I remember that." Eret was also interested in that story, but didn't want to pry into private, family business.
"Right. Well, even I don't want to deal with all... that." Hiccup gestured vaguely. "So, I can't imagine you wanting to get caught up in the middle of it."
"You've got a lot on your plate right now."
"Yep. That's one way to put it." Hiccup ran a hand through his hair as the stress of everything hit him in an overwhelming wave.
"Well, if there is anything I can do to help you out, I'm your man." Eret said proudly, pointing to himself with his thumb. "Whatever you need."
"Thanks, Eret. That's really nice of you." Hiccup smiled. Eret was easy to talk to. Hiccup felt like he could be laid back around him, he could be himself and not worry about being judged. And he hadn't even had to work super hard for that.
"Not at all. You're the one whose been more than kind." Eret said as Hiccup started to lead him through the village.
They walked for a couple minutes, just chatting, until Hiccup came to a stop. Eret took a second to realize that Hiccup was no longer walking with him and turned around in surprise.
"So, this is the forge." Hiccup said before Eret could ask what they were doing. "Follow me."
Eret raised an eyebrow in question, but followed Hiccup inside. His curiosity was piqued as they walked through the forge, weapons and tools everywhere; the forge had made it through the battle unscathed, the mess that was there completely normal. Hiccup opened a door, further back in the forge, and led the way into a back room.
"This is kind of like, my little work room." Hiccup explained as he gestured around at the space. "Gobber lets me do what I want with it and no one else really comes back here for anything."
"You work in the forge?" Eret asked, bewildered. "Aren't you part of the royal family? Next in line to be chief and all that."
"Royal?" Hiccup had to laugh at that. He didn't feel like royalty and the thought was rather odd to him. "We're not so formal on Berk. I've worked in the forge since I was— I think I was nine, almost ten."
"Hmm, I like that." Eret was used to his leaders taking advantage of their positions and holding it over the people. They put themselves above others, looked down on everyone else.
"I work, just like everyone else does. Everyone on Berk has a place and a job. Everyone contributes and everyone is taken care of. We're just a big family, I suppose."
"That's nice. You and your father know what leadership is meant to be." Eret complimented. Hiccup blinked in surprise, not really knowing what other way there was to lead. Stoick had been his example his whole life, and whereas Stoick hadn't always been the best dad, he had always been a great leader in Hiccup's eyes.
"Well, anyway." Hiccup moved on. "There's kind of a makeshift bed type thing." He gestured to a corner of the room. "I used to spend a lot of my time here and sometimes I still pull all nighters working on a project, but you can stay here, if you want. You'll have some privacy and you'll be away from everyone else until they get to know you better. We can always get a fire going, so you'll be warm."
"You'll really let me stay here, in your private work space?" Eret raised an eyebrow again as he looked back at Hiccup.
"Well, yeah. You need a place to stay. I'm not going to let you keep sleeping in the stables. I'm not using the space right now, though the forge will likely be busy during the day. Since, you know, we have to rebuild half the village." Hiccup started to get off topic with his ramblings. "Sorry I can't offer you something better right now. I'm sure we can get a house built for you, eventually."
"No, Hiccup. This is great." Eret stopped Hiccup from apologizing further. "Thank you. For everything."
"Thanks for having my back the past few days." Hiccup had been meaning to thank Eret as well. Eret nodded in acknowledgement and they stood there for an awkward couple seconds of silence. Their friendship was still new and a bit tentative. "So, Eret, son of Eret."
Eret smiled at that.
"Tell me about Eret, father of Eret." Hiccup leaned against his desk as he initiated the knew topic of conversation.
Eret's smile fell from his face in surprise. In all the time that he had been introducing himself as Eret, son of Eret, no one had ever asked that question.
"I mean, you don't have to." Hiccup rushed to assure him, putting his hands out in a placating gesture. "I don't mean to pry."
Eret just smiled again as he thought about his dad, and moved to sit on the makeshift bed. "I don't mind, I'm just surprised. No one has ever asked about my dad before."
"Really? When you go to all the effort to introduce him every time you introduce yourself. No one has ever asked?" Hiccup found that surprising, but Eret nodded in confirmation. "Huh. It had me curious from the start. I mean, he must have been a great man to merit such introductions. I just introduce myself as Hiccup. I don't even use my last name half the time. Hiccup kind of makes a statement all on its own, you know? Hiccup, son of Chief Stoick the Vast makes me sound even more lame. And you don't even want to know what my full name is."
"I kind of think I do." Eret laughed.
"Okay, it's more like, I don't want people to know what my full name is." Hiccup laughed too.
"Can't be worse than Snotlout." Eret joked, then added. "No offense to your friend."
"None taken. He deserves it, really."
"I'll tell you about my dad, if you tell me your full name." Eret smirked.
"Oh, oh that's how it's gonna be?" Hiccup said with amusement and plenty of sarcasm. "I give you this crowded, little room and a questionable looking bed, and you can't answer a question for me?"
"I think it's more like, I grant you with my amazing presence and then you can't even properly introduce yourself to me?" Eret bantered. "You do realize who I am?"
"Yes, I believe it was, Eret son of Eret? Best dragon trapper alive?" Hiccup said dismissively but then laughed after a moment.
"I just changed it actually. It's Eret, son of Eret. Best future dragon rider alive."
"Hmm, good luck with that. Toothless and I are hard to beat." Hiccup looked to the Night Fury who had squeezed into the room and made himself at home on the floor. He cooed a sleepy response. They hadn't gotten a lot of sleep. "But I guess you propose a fair bargain. My full name is uh, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third. Go ahead and laugh."
"That is a mouthful." Eret chuckled lightly. "There were others before you, then."
"That part is very unclear to me. There have been no former Chief Hiccups in Berk history. But I guess somewhere down the line, I have past relatives who were also Hiccup Horrendous. Hiccups like me were often... looked down on or covered up. They were portrayed as being more than what they were in portraits and old history books. So I guess it makes sense that none of them were really mentioned in family history. All we really know is that there were two before me."
"Hiccups like you?" Eret asked in confusion. What was that supposed to mean? Hiccup said it like it was a bad thing.
"I was apparently born early and have always been on the smaller side. And I've always been different than everyone else, I've never been a big, burly Viking." Hiccup explained, looking a little uncomfortable. "A hiccup is like, a runt, basically. I discovered a while back, that one of the former chiefs of Berk, Hamish the Second, although portrayed in portraits and in history as a big, strong Viking, he was actually a hiccup like me. He was smaller, and he was more into books and learning than he was into violence and weapons."
"Ah, history is often told the way people want others to perceive it, not how it actually happened." Eret said, not entirely sure what to say about everything else. He was curious to know if Hiccup had ever been looked down on. He seemed so respected and admired by his people.
"I discovered that to be true." Hiccup said with the slightest edge to his words. "Hamish the Second was a great chief, so they changed how he looked in portraits, and what his interests were to make him seem up to Viking standard. I guess the other Hiccups never did anything to merit much mention in history. I wasn't exactly named for them, it was because of how small I was, but since I happened to have ancestors who also possessed that name, it makes me the third. But the name didn't exactly help the way people used to see me."
"Your people seem to really admire and respect you." Eret said, remembering when Drago had announced that he'd killed their heir. "They all stood up for you to Drago. Hel, they were even chanting your name."
"They were?" Hiccup asked incredulously.
"They were. Not the long version of it, though." Eret confirmed with a smile at his little joke. "Drago told them that he had killed you and that they would die too, if they didn't join him. Not one person agreed to join his side. They remained loyal to you."
"Wow." Hiccup found it hard to take in. His people thought that highly of him? He hadn't done that great of a job protecting them this time around. Or, really even last time either.
"Drago led with fear. He wanted to control everyone and treated his people badly. No one was really loyal to him, they obeyed him out of fear. You, you lead with kindness. Your people support you, they love you." Eret pointed out their differences and Hiccup was struck by the comparison.
Hiccup had to admit, he couldn't get Drago's words out of his head, about them being the same. At first, the idea had been ridiculous, but after looking back on all his mistakes and seeing all the damage he had caused, he couldn't help but think back on it and start comparing. It meant a lot to him, that Eret thought he was good, that he had good leadership qualities. That he thought that he and Drago were very different.
"They didn't used to love me, or even like me." Hiccup admitted quietly, not even sure why he was confiding so much in Eret, but he was apparently a good listener and he was very supportive. Hiccup hadn't encountered many people willing to listen to him, it was usually about what he could do for others.
"I can't understand why." Eret was taken aback by that revelation. How could someone not like Hiccup? He was kind, charitable, considerate, and caring. He was good and fought for what was right. He treated people well and gave second chances. He was forgiving.
Hiccup smiled slightly at Eret's answer. Eret had flipped sides rather easily. He had supported Hiccup, had offered to stay behind with him, had shown him loyalty. And all Hiccup had done was be himself. He hadn't had to jump through hoops to gain his friendship. "I'm a hiccup. I didn't live up to Viking standard. I was too different. No matter how hard I tried, all I did was fail."
"...but you're the chief's son." Eret stated, like that was an obvious answer for why he should have been treated better.
Hiccup shrugged. "That only made it worse. I couldn't live up to my dad. I don't think anyone ever wanted to see me as chief, back then."
"That isn't right. I'm sorry, mate." Eret tried to sympathize. "But what changed? They all love you now."
The thought that he was loved by his people now, was still hard for Hiccup to believe, but he couldn't argue against what had happened. They had remained completely loyal to him, had stood up for him. That alone made Hiccup feel warm inside, it touched his heart. "I befriended Toothless, saved Berk, and ended the war against dragons."
"I'm guessing that's the short version of that long story you mentioned?" Eret raised an eyebrow.
"Extremely short version." Hiccup confirmed with a slight smile that faded as he continued talking. "I had to work very hard to have what I have today. For my friends, for the support of my people." For simple kindness, he added to the list, but didn't say it aloud. Yet Eret seemed to have accepted him and his offer of friendship so easily, so quickly.
"I hear that." Eret empathized. "I worked hard to get into many people's good graces, until I finally managed to captain a crew of my own. But even then, I didn't have real friends. My crew didn't remain loyal to me, no one I ever associated with ever cared about me. It was all about getting on top, being on Drago's good side, not that he really had one."
"That sounds rough." Hiccup replied with sincerity, it seemed the two could relate on a number of things. "How did you end up working for Drago anyway?"
Eret leaned his elbows on his lap, his hands clasped in front of him. He made himself more comfortable as the conversation stretched on. He liked talking to Hiccup, he listened and seemed genuinely interested in what he had to say. "I suppose that goes back to the question about my dad."
"Oh?" Hiccup inquired.
"My father was a good man." Eret reminisced. "It was just me and him for as far back as I can remember. My mother was killed when our village was raided by another tribe, one that was struggling with dragons and desperate for resources. So, we left and became fishermen. I was a child, and he taught me everything I know."
"Fishermen?" Hiccup asked, wondering how that led into dragon trapping.
"Yep, we caught fish and sold it to markets and villages. It was a modest operation, just me and my dad. We were very close." Eret smiled in fondness at the memory of his father, but it was a sad smile.
"You don't have to tell me, if you don't want to." Hiccup assured him. He didn't want Eret to have to relive sad memories on his behalf.
"No, it's okay. I like talking about my dad." Eret looked at Hiccup. "That's why I introduce myself as Eret, son or Eret. In honor of him. He raised me to be a hard worker. It was just us on that ship for years." Eret suddenly looked a little haunted, but pressed forward. Hiccup didn't interrupt, seeing that perhaps since no one had ever asked Eret about his father before, this was something he needed to talk about.
"There was a storm, a bad one, and we got caught up in it. We tried to ride it out and get to safety, but honestly, I don't remember much about it." Eret closed his eyes as he thought, trying to remember as much as he could. "I remember being tossed around by the waves. I remember my father trying to help me to stay aboard, and I'm pretty sure I hit my head." Eret opened his eyes again. "Next thing I know, I'm waking up surrounded by strangers. A man and his crew had come across our boat, just floating in the ocean, and very damaged. My father wasn't there and they told me they hadn't found anyone else. He was likely lost to the storm..."
"I'm sorry, Eret." Hiccup spoke softly. By this point in the story, Toothless had been awake and listening intently. The Night Fury, sensing some distress, decided to comfort their new friend. He walked over to Eret and set his head in his lap with a soft purr.
"Thanks." Eret chuckled as he hesitantly started patting the dragon's head. "The leader of the crew offered me a deal. Work for him, and he would provide me with the repairs I needed to get me back on my feet. Since I had just lost my dad and had never been on my own before, the offer sounded pretty good."
"Was he a good boss?" Hiccup had doubts that this guy was a kind soul looking to help someone out.
"No. He was sinister and cruel. He was a dragon hunter and he was obsessed." Eret looked down at the Night Fury and decided to leave out one specific detail about the man. "I learned his ways for dragon hunting— which is what inevitably set me out on the dragon trapping path. I can say, at least, that his ways were too cruel for my liking. He hunted to kill, and I decided to trap more humanely. Not sure if that gets me any credit."
"It does." Hiccup smiled. "You have a good heart, Eret. Otherwise you wouldn't have betrayed Drago and joined our cause. You were just trying to survive."
Eret was appreciative of the kind words. It did make him feel better, to know that despite his rocky past he had never turned completely to the cruel ways of their enemies. "I got away from him as soon as I could. Once he agreed my debt was repaid, I set sail on my own. I didn't really know what I was doing, thought I'd maybe try the fishing thing again. Then I heard that there were people out there who would pay a hefty price for captured dragons, and that was a skill I had just acquired. Sorry, Toothless." Eret patted the dragon's head again and he cooed. "I assembled a small crew of volunteers, offering part of the payout, and we went about capturing dragons. Turns out the man who offered so much for captured dragons was Drago, and he didn't want any freelance dragon trappers, he wanted loyalty. We ended up a part of his army and he assigned his men to my ship."
"That's unfortunate."
"Yeah, I regretted trying to sell to him. But he didn't pay me too much mind because I was just capturing everyday dragon species. Drago had all his focus on finding a Bewilderbeast. He had someone who was working for him, his whole purpose was to locate one." Eret looked thoughtful. "What was his name...? Kr-something."
Hiccup's eyes widened, he knew, the name had come to him. "Krogan."
"Yes, that was it!" Eret was satisfied to have the answer, but then became confused. "How do you know about Krogan?"
"Because me and my friends were at war with him and some dragon hunters for about a year. Krogan was a bounty hunter, he took me captive. Then he teamed up with the dragon hunters and started looking for a Bewilderbeast egg. I suppose, maybe he wasn't actually a bounty hunter, he was always out in search of special dragons. He tried to buy Toothless at an auction." Hiccup answered, his mind whirring as it tried to fit all the pieces together.
"Wow. You'll have to tell me about all these adventures sometime." Eret was surprised that Hiccup had had so many encounters with Krogan, he hadn't been a good man— he was almost as cold as Drago.
"I had no idea Krogan had been working for Drago." Hiccup was still filling in the blanks of the events that had occurred. "What happened to him? I didn't see him in Drago's army."
"When Krogan was unsuccessful in bringing Drago a Bewilderbeast, Drago killed him." Eret said, not knowing how Hiccup would take it. Hiccup's eyes widened again. Krogan had been a terrible man but it was shocking to think that someone he had associated with not too long ago was now dead. "That's when Drago started paying more attention to me and the dragons I brought in."
"Huh, it's so interesting how everything fits together. All this time, I only had half the story, but Drago was always there. And you weren't even that far away. And my mom..." Hiccup tilted his head as he had a thought. "I wonder if she is the one who ended up with the Bewilderbeast egg."
"What?" Eret didn't follow the train of thought.
"The Bewilderbeast egg I mentioned? Krogan didn't get it, and the adult Bewilderbeast disappeared. So I was left with a very valuable egg that I knew people were willing to wage war over. So I entrusted it to some friends of mine and they told me they knew someone who knew someone who could keep it safe." Hiccup explained.
"There's no way a Bewilderbeast hatches and grows into a behemoth sized dragon in one year." Eret tried to think through the timeline, a year seemed about right. "The Bewilderbeast that Valka was close to couldn't have been from that egg."
"No, you're right." Hiccup looked thoughtful again. "Maybe she hid it somewhere... assuming she was the one who ended up with it. I'll have to ask her about it sometime."
"Now you've got me curious." Eret was also intrigued by how everything came together. "Perhaps everything was destined to work out this way. We've all been dancing around each other this whole time."
"No kidding." Hiccup agreed. "I think you've blown my mind."
The sound of clanging interrupted their conversation and jolted Toothless from his place next to Eret. The dragon's eyes were wide in a startled expression and his ears were perked up as he looked in the direction of the door to the room.
"Gobber?" Hiccup pushed himself off the desk and Eret stood from his place on the bed, having to pull himself up after having leaned back comfortably during their conversation.
"Hiccup!" Gobber exclaimed as he leaned in the door. "What are you two doing back here? Astrid was looking for you."
"Oh." Hiccup remembered that he had left Astrid at his home with both his parents, by herself, when he had run off the night before with Toothless. He felt kind of bad about that. He had planned to be back home before anyone woke up, but he had gotten distracted, which meant that Astrid had to deal with his parents on her own when he had asked her to help him with that.
"Hiccup offered me his workspace so I have a place to stay." Eret answered Gobber when Hiccup's eyes widened and he seemed to be lost in thought. Toothless cooed and nudged Hiccup's hand with his nose.
"I need to go." Hiccup startled from his thoughts and brushed past Gobber. "See you later, we'll meet at the dragon stables!"
Gobber and Eret watched Hiccup leave the forge in a hurry, Toothless bounding alongside him. When they were out of sight Gobber moved around the forge with practiced ease, getting things ready for a day of hard work. He spared Eret a glance— he was standing in the doorway to the backroom, unsure of what he should do next.
"Have you ever worked in a forge before?" Gobber asked causally as he went about his work.
"Oh, not really. I've never worked with hot metals before." Eret responded.
"There's more to working in the forge than that." Gobber finally turned back to Eret. "I'll show you what you can do to help."
Eret nodded in agreement, a smile on his face. He figured that if he was going to be staying in the forge for now, he might as well busy himself working there as well. Besides, he wanted to contribute to the community that had allowed him to stay. He wanted to make Berk his home.
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A/N: Thanks for reading! Had to do some backstory stuff and connect the second movie to "Race to the Edge. There's a lot of inconsistency!
I appreciated all the faves, follows, and reviews!
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Review Responses:
Silver Sentinel: Hiccup did really need those talks with Astrid and Stoick. The question of Hiccup becoming the chief will be answered in chapters to come.
NightFuryFanfic: I'm glad you're liking it so far and I hope you continue to enjoy the story, it's going to be a long one, haha. Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Animation Adventures: Haha, yeah, it was about time Hiccup and Stoick sat down and talked things through. They have a communication problem, don't they? But they are working to fix it. I thought the same thing, there was never really a good conversation between Astrid and Valka in the movies, and that is something I would've liked to have seen. I was excited to write a scene between them, myself. I'll get to the third movie eventually, but first I have several original plot lines to get through.
R37uy: Yeah, I like the idea of Hiccup and Toothless being able to communicate in their own, unique way. I want to build up their bond and friendship rather than separate them like the third movie did. I'm glad you like the conversation between Hiccup and Stoick. Yes, there is a lot of potential for diversion from canon, and I have so many plans! The gap between movies 2 and 3 will likely stretch longer than a year. Thanks for the compliments and for the review! I'm so excited for the plans that I have for this story, so I hope you like what is to come!
Min's awesomeness: Sorry for the wait! I've been updating my other story, "What Lies Beneath." I'm glad you like my story and I hope you liked this chapter!
