Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/2316938.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      How_to_Train_Your_Dragon_-_Fandom
  Relationship:
      Hiccup/Dagur
  Character:
      Hiccup, Dagur_-_Character, Stoick, Toothless, Astrid, snotlout
  Additional Tags:
      dubcon, Illness, Underage_Drinking, Thorsday_Thursday, festivial, grumpy
      sick_teen
  Stats:
      Published: 2014-09-17 Chapters: 8/8 Words: 22709
****** Option Three ******
by Jettara1
Summary
     It's Thorsday Thursday Hiccup favorite day of the year however when a
     cold hit him he finds himself struggling to participate in the
     festival activities. To make matters worse Dagur the Deranged and the
     Berserkers are attending as well as all the other tribes of the
     Archipelago. Can he keep it together for the games or will will he be
     confined to bed and what will happen when Dagur learns of his
     illness?
***** Chapter 1 *****
Option Three
Note: I both loved DOB eps A Tale of Two Dragons and Eel Effect and had this
fic bouncing in my head for about a month before either episode premiered and
thought to try incorporating some of those ideas into this.
It wasn’t anything overly noticeable that sent a shiver down Snotlout’s back,
it wasn’t cold or windy but the moment he stepped foot in the academy that
morning – oddly early compared to when he usually showed up – he knew something
was…off. Hiccup was already there, as to be expected, with his dragon,
practicing his aim with his crossbow. This wasn’t unusual so why Snotlout felt
out of sorts by it was beyond him so he opened his mouth to tease his younger
cousin just as the auburn haired youth was about to fire. He stopped when he
noticed the slight quiver in Hiccup’s left arm and the bead of sweat on his
brow. When he released the arrow Hiccup’s often perfect aim was off its mark by
nearly two inches.
Hiccup heaved a sigh and lowered the weapon looking tired and sleep deprived.
He wiped his brow with the back of his sleeve and glared angrily at the target.
His bottom lip stuck out in a little pout before being sucked into his mouth
and chewed on thoughtfully. Then he took aim again, pulled an arrow from the
quiver on his hip and reloaded the crossbow. Again his aim was not true.
“How long have you been at this,” Snotlout asked when Hiccup tossed the bow
aside and turned toward Toothless. He couldn’t help but laugh when the younger
teen and heir to their tribe jumped in surprise.
“Snotlout!” Hiccup gasped, turning to the older boy. He glanced around as if
expecting the other teens to be there as well. When he didn’t find them he
glanced back at his cousin. “What are doing here? It’s not even seven yet.”
Snotlout shrugged dismissively. “You’re not the only one who wants to practice
their aim before the games start. Although judging by your aim I think I’ll be
representing Berk again. What’s wrong, the bow too heavy?”
“Hardy har har,” Hiccup quipped with a roll of his eyes.
“Maybe you should try something lighter. How about your traditional bow?”
Hiccup just glared at him. And there it was again, that little quiver barely
noticeable but now running the length of his body. He wiped at his brow again.
“Yeah well…don’t worry about it.”
“Don’t worry about what?” asked Astrid as she strolled into the former arena
with her Deadly Nadder.
“Nothing,” Hiccup muttered as he picked up his crossbow and changed it back to
its shield form. Then he brought his sleeve to his mouth and muffled a tiny
cough that made the other two teens look at him questioningly.
“Are you alright?” the girl asked as she moved to check on him.
“Yeah, fine,” he said quickly, dodging her attempt to touch him.
That only made Astrid more determined to check his temperature. “Hiccup, stop
being a baby,” she snapped, grabbing his arm and pressing her hand to his head.
“Hiccup, you’re burning up!”
“No, I’m not,” he objected only to have the girl practically drag him to
Snotlout for a second opinion. “Seriously, guys, I’m fine.”
“Uh huh, I remember you saying that last year and ending up with a wicked flu
that I ended up catching,” Snotlout recalled as he firmly placed his hand over
Hiccup’s forehead. He frowned at the heat emanating from him. “And you, Hiccup,
are sick.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
“OW!” they both cried when Astrid suddenly smacked them across the back of the
head at the same time.
“Astrid!” Hiccup whined, the hit not helping the headache that was already
building between his eyes from trying to correctly aim at the blurry target.
“What’s with you?” Snotlout snapped, glaring at the girl.
Astrid returned the glare with a challenging one before looking to Hiccup.
“Thorsday Thursday is tomorrow. If you want to participate then rather than
busting your ass practicing go home and get some sleep.”
“Why do you think I’m here? I can’t sleep. I’m supposed to lead us through the
opening ceremonies with the dragons. We’re finally revealing to all the tribes
we ride dragons and…”
“Don’t care. You’re going to bed and rest. You’re no good to anyone sick,” she
said firmly before glaring at Snotlout. “You, get him home and in bed while I
get Gothi. With luck this isn’t eel pox but if it is Gothi has the ingredients
to nip it in the butt before he gets delusional.”
Hiccup rubbed his forehead in annoyance. “Astrid, it’s just a cold. I get them
every year. It’s no biggy.”
She glared at him. He glared back. “Snotlout, take him home and make sure he
goes to bed. If he doesn’t listen Toothless can lay on him.” Then before Hiccup
could argue again she mounted Stormfly and took off to Gothi’s hut high above
the village.
Snotlout wrapped an arm around his cousin who had begun shaking slightly and
steered him toward the exit. “You heard her, off to bed with you,” he said
almost teasingly.
“Since when do you listen to Astrid?” Hiccup asked, not liking that his friends
were fussing over him so much. “Look, Toothless can take me home. I’ll just
catch a nap and…”
“And sneak off to the cove where you’ll continue to pretend you’re fine and
someone will have to drag your sorry ass back – most likely me or Astrid…maybe
Fishlegs – then we’ll get sick and we all miss out on Thorsday. So suck it up,
buttercup, you’re going home to bed and if you’re better tomorrow then we’ll
focus on the ceremony, alright?”
Sighing, Hiccup nodded. The two boys mounted Toothless who gave a concerned
whine at Hiccup’s condition – the Nightfury had been watching of his rider all
morning and not liking what he was seeing but short of carrying the boy around
like a hatchling and forcing him to stay in bed there was little he could do to
make Hiccup listen when he wasn’t feeling well. Hiccup was a very stubborn
young man. Nonetheless he spread his wings and flew the two back to his rider’s
home, happy that someone had finally convinced the boy to go back to bed.
Stoick looked up in surprise when the front door opened and his son and nephew
padded in, one looking flushed and ill while the other smugly patted him on the
back.
“You know I could always do the opening ceremony if you can’t,” Snotlout said
off-handedly as if he was offering to do his cousin a great service.
“Snotlout,” growled Hiccup in annoyance.
“Just saying.”
“Snotlout…”
Neither boy seemed to notice Stoick sitting at the table until the chief spoke
and while Snotlout smiled brightly, Hiccup went from flushed to deathly pale.
“What about the opening ceremonies?” Stoick asked as he pushed his chair back
and stood up. “Hiccup, are you unwell?”
“I…” Hiccup began. He swiped a hand through his sweating mused hair and opened
his mouth to speak but it was his cousin who answered.
“He’s sick,” Snotlout reported almost happily. “You should have seen it. His
aim is off and he’s shaking like a leaf.”
“Am not.”
“Are too.”
“Am not!”
“Boys!” Stoick snapped, drawing both boys’ attention to him. He ran a hand over
his face and sighed. “Thank you, Snotlout. I have it from here. Tell the other
riders to continue practicing for the parade as well as any contests they plan
to attend. Hiccup will join you tomorrow if he is feeling better.”
“I’m fine!” Hiccup objected only for his cousin to snicker and father to point
up the stairs to his room.
“Bed, now,” Stoick said sternly.
Snotlout practically skipped to the door looking more smug than ever. “Astrid
went to get Gothi. If it’s eel pox maybe Hiccup should be confined until after
the cure takes full effect and he’s not contagious.”
“It’s not eel pox!” Hiccup yelled at him from halfway up the stairs. Toothless
gave a warning growl at the older boy before pushing his head against the small
of Hiccup’s back and encouraging the youth to continue to his room. “I’m going,
I’m going!” the boy complained all the way up and all the way to his bed where
he thumped down heavily with an exasperated growl of his own.
Giving his son a moment to calm down, Stoick took a deep breath. Just what he
didn’t need right now. It was one thing for Hiccup to get sick – it happened at
least once a year – but another outbreak of eel pox just as Thorsday Thursday
was upon them and the other tribes were due to arrive at harbor. So far the Bog
Burglars and Uglihugs had arrived the day before but there were at least seven
to ten more neighboring tribes to arrive. It was only once every ten years that
Berk hosted the event and Stoick took great pride in being as hospitable to his
fellow tribes as possible even though there was tension between several of
them.
Placing his helmet on the table he glanced up the stairs. Hiccup was still
grumbling unhappily. Oh well. Some things simply couldn’t be helped. Hopefully
this was just a simple cold. Stoick thumped up the steps. Hiccup was indeed in
bed, his back toward the door and blanket pulled up to his shoulders. Toothless
had a mournful and his large head rested on the youth’s hip as if to comfort.
“I’m not sick,” Hiccup grumbled before Stoick could say anything. “I just had
trouble sleep and thought I’d practice my archery at the academy.”
Toothless gave a huff and rolled his bright green eyes as if to say “yeah
right”. Stoick smiled at the dragon and scratched his frills as he sat on the
edge of his son’s bed.
“Is that all?” he asked, entertaining his son’s reasoning.
Hiccup frowned but nodded. “I was just a little tired when ‘Lout and Astrid
arrived. I’ll be fine after a nap.”
Stoick nodded. “I’m sure you will.”
“I’m going to win an award this year. You’ll see. I’ve been practicing…” The
boy gave a yawn and closed his eyes as his father stroked his hair
comfortingly. “I’ll even beat Snotlout this year if he doesn’t stop teasing me.
He’s better with an axe than a bow anyway.”
“That he is,” Stoick agreed.
By the time Gothi with her special medicine Hiccup was sound asleep and Stoick
was watching over him as he continued to comb his fingers through his child’s
hair. It was something he learned when Hiccup was very young, after his mother
was lost. It calmed him especially when he wasn’t feeling well and the only
other person able to do this was Gobber who had helped him care for Hiccup.
Astrid smiled adoringly at then tender moment between Stoick and Hiccup
although her gaze was all for the boy. Still she stayed out of the way as the
shaman set to work. Gothi felt Hiccup’s head and cheeks before shaking her
head. No, it wasn’t eel pox, thank Thor. It was a simple although badly timed
flu.
“Hiccup loves Thorsday,” Astrid said with a sigh. She folded her slim arms over
her chest. “Even if we weren’t introducing the dragons he loves watching the
fire jugglers and all the exhibits. He was really looking forward to it.”
Gothi nodded as she smeared a vile smelling, mudding looking crushed herbs and
root concoction first on Hiccup’s forehead, then his throat and then, pulling
the blanket down and lifting Hiccup’s tunic, on his narrow chest. Astrid looked
away but not before sneaking a peak at her friend who although thin built was
starting to develop into a fine young man. A knowing smile lit Gothi’s withered
and chapped lips but Stoick didn’t seem to notice, his focus entirely on his
child.
“How bad?” he asked when Gothi wiped her hands clean on a rag from her satchel.
She held up three fingers.
“Only three days?” Astrid asked in relief. “So it’s just a cold.”
The elderly woman shook her head.
“A class three Hiccup flu,” Stoick explained, having been through this enough
times to know what Gothi meant when it came to his son. “It means he’s been
hiding he’s sick for at least a day or two and will most likely be sick for
another three to five days…depending whether or not he actually rests.”
Astrid looked perplexed. “Wait…so Snotlout is right? This happens every year? I
thought it was just a silly cold. Everyone gets them.”
“Oh he gets those but they only last a day or two,” Stoick assured as he fixed
the blanket over Hiccup’s shoulder and then fetched a heavy fur from the trunk
at the end of the bed and placed it over his son. “Luckily he’s never had eel
pox and with luck never will. But the flu…that hits him hard every year. Had
Snotlout not found him last year…he may not have pulled through. Every year he
tries hiding it and going about his usual duties. Two years ago he tried
sweating it out by working twenty-four hours straight at the forge. Gobber
found him passed out near the hearth with some strange half built invention.
You don’t want to know about the year before that.”
“Stubborn,” Astrid said with a shake of her head.
“Aye, a true Haddock,” Stoick agreed, making sure his boy was tucked in before
nodding to Toothless and escorting the ladies downstairs. “A shame he’ll miss
the festivities this year but I’ll be sure to find him something extra special
for his collection this year.”
“Shouldn’t someone stay and take care of him?” Astrid asked worriedly.
The chief patted her shoulder. “Gobber, Spitelout and I will check in on him.”
He would asked Bucket, Mulch and Sven to as well but each had booths to run
where they will be selling their wares to the visiting tribesmen and women.
“Perhaps you and Fishlegs won’t mind checking on him from time to time?”
“Definitely,” Astrid assured, not liking the idea of Hiccup not having a parent
to watch over him while he was sick but understanding that with all the
visiting tribes Stoick couldn’t stay by his son’s side the entire time. So
Astrid vowed to check on the boy as often as possible. After all, Hiccup would
do the same for her.
Stoick bed both farewell and thanked them for rushing over so quickly to help
his son. Then he hurried to the forge to inform Gobber what was going on. No
doubt Snotlout had already told Spitelout but despite Spitelout’s often
standoffish attitude toward Hiccup, Stoick knew his brother cared for his
nephew and would do anything to ensure his health. And there was always
Toothless who loved Hiccup as more than a rider or master. The two were best
friends and near inseparable. If anyone was to ensure Hiccup’s well-being it
would be the Nightfury.
. . .
Not too far from Hooligan Harbor a small fleet of Berserkers made their way to
the island. Dagur stood at the bow of his flag ship and stared at the island
before him. Even from this distance he could see the expanse of flags and tents
set up just outside of town where the festival would be taking place. His
smiled to himself as his gaze shifted to the dragon arena and then to the chief
house. No doubt Hiccup was already awake and flying around on his Nightfury,
even if Dagur had yet to see the black beast among the other dragons flying
around the village.
“Enjoy your last day with your Nightfury, Hiccup, because tomorrow it and you
will be mine,” he purred in a sing song manner as his smile grew. “This time
you will be kissing my boots.”
***** Chapter 2 *****
Option Three 2
By the morning of Thorsday Thursday all attending tribes had arrived on Berk
including the Berserkers. Of course Dagur was as demanding as ever but seeing
as there was presently nine tribes to his one – well two if you included the
Outcasts who had joined him – he had piped down and lead his people to build
camp just outside the village as many of the visiting tribes had. Still Stoick
didn’t trust the young chieftain, especially with Hiccup being ill and the only
one able to stay with him full time being Toothless. Yes, the dragon was
capable and fearless but he was still just a dragon. Perhaps he would have to
post guards inside the hut to protect his son, outside would simply alert Dagur
to where Hiccup was. For Hiccup’s sake he had no choice but to have guards
protect him, at least until he was well enough to watch out for himself again.
Sighing, Stoick went to check on his son. Hiccup had slept for the better part
of twenty-four hours. Ever since Snotlout dropped him off the morning before
Hiccup had lay in a deep slumber, barely moving other than to mumble some
silliness. He placed a hand on his son’s head, frowning at the fever that
refused to reduce to something near normal. Oh, Hiccup was not going to be
happy being forced to miss the festivities but it couldn’t be helped. Hiccup’s
health meant more than the competitions and wondrous sights the child had been
waiting all year to see. Hiccup would not be winning an award in archery this
year. A shame really because it would have been his first award ever.
“Rest, son,” Stoick whispered as he squeezed the boy’s shoulder. “I’ll be back
as quickly as I can. Toothless, keep an eye on him.” He ran a hand over the
ebony dragon’s head before heading back downstairs and then out to the festival
grounds.
. . .
“About time,” Hiccup murmured when he heard the door slam downstairs. He still
felt woozy and feverish but he was hell bent to attend Thorsday Thursday. He
swung his legs over the edge of the bed and reached for his prosthetic leaning
against the wall. He had to stop as nausea momentarily clouded his vision and
swallowed back bile. He was not going to throw up. He was not going to lay in
bed and let his tribe down. He was a Viking…the Hope and Heir of the Hooligans.
He was not some little kid who would cry for his mommy and hide in bed. He had
duties and obligations and… “Don’t look at me like that, Tooth. I know I’m sick
but when my Dad had the eel pox did he lay down and let it take control of him?
No, he stayed strong for the tribe and so will I.”
The Nightfury gave him a worried look before snorting and lumbering over to
help in any way he could. Once Hiccup had his prosthetic secured he went
downstairs, taking it slow and being careful not to trip. He grabbed a small
bag from the kitchen and moved to the ice box with a hammer to smash up some
ice and filling the bag and popping some ice in his mouth. He was going to beat
this cold one way or another. If he could at least get his fever down he could
keep his overprotect father from confining him to the house until the flu
passed. He scrubbed the gunk off his forehead as he headed for the door. All he
had to do was head to the academy, gather the gang and…
“Fishlegs!” he gasped as he opened the door to find the large blonde youth
reaching for the door handle.
“Hiccup!” Fishlegs quipped, just as surprised to see him. He nervously ran his
hands over each over as he looked at the much smaller boy. “Hi! Ah…your Dad
asked me to check on you. He said you were sleeping and still really sick.”
“Nope, just got up and feeling fit as a fiddle,” Hiccup said with a bright
smile that didn’t quite reach his fevered eyes. Nonetheless, he hefted his bag
full of ice on one shoulder and opened the door wide enough for Toothless to
slip outside.
“You don’t look fit. You look like you should be back in bed. Yeah, that’s a
good idea. Let’s get you back to bed before your father has kittens and…”
Fishlegs said, trying to catch Hiccup but the smaller boy ducked around him and
began down the stone steps and to the path to the academy. “No…no, Hiccup.
You’re sick and if your Dad finds out I’m the one who let you leave he’ll skin
me alive.”
“My Dad’s overprotective. I’m fine, Legs. Let’s just get everyone together and
get ready for the parade.”
And before Fishlegs had any hope of catching up with the young heir Hiccup
mounted Toothless and was flying off to the academy. “Stoick is so going to
kill me for this,” the heavy set youth moaned as he watched his friend fly off.
Sighing, he climbed onto Meatlug’s back and followed them.
The other kids were already at the academy and as usual Snotlout and Astrid
were arguing over how was in charge with Hiccup down with the flu and who was
leading the dragon parade and giving the speech about how dragon could be
allies to Vikings rather than enemies. Hiccup had landed just outside the arena
and was listening intently with frown. Astrid was his second in command but
Snotlout was his cousin and heir should something happen to him. Both were in
their right to lead although Hiccup personally preferred Astrid who was usually
more stable and understanding of the cause.
“Hiccup, you need to go back to bed,” Fishlegs said quietly the moment he
caught up. He grabbed his friend’s hand and tried to steer him back to the
village. He gasped when he felt just how hot Hiccup’s flesh was. “You’re
burning up! Hiccup, this is serious. You need to be in bed and resting.”
Hiccup just glared at him and shook his arm free. “I’m fine,” he snapped before
sighing. “I’ll be fine, I promise, Fishlegs.”
Sighing as well, Fishlegs gave up. “Alright, fine. But if you start feeling
light headed or woozy you tell me, alright?”
Hiccup rolled his eyes but agreed. Besides, it might be good to have someone
like Fishlegs looking out for him right now. He grabbed a little more ice out
of his bag to sooth his throat before waltzing into the academy as if nothing
was wrong. “Do I even want to know what this is about?” he asked innocently
with a smile.
Of course the moment Snotlout and Astrid heard his voice their argument stopped
and they both stared at him aghast. The silence hung in the air between all of
them before all hell broke loose.
“Hiccup, you should be in bed!” Astrid demanded, her hands on her hips as she
glared at him, her eyes full of worry and anxiety.
“I should’ve known you would pull this last minute!” Snotlout whined, throwing
his hands in the air.
“Snotlout, shut up,” Astrid snapped.
“You shut up.”
Hiccup rolled his eyes. “I’m fine, guys. Thanks for the concern but we have a
job to do today.”
“Yeah, we get to blow the other tribes out of the water this morning,” Tuffnut
crowed and Ruffnut nodded enthusiastically.
“Technically we’re just introducing the dragons this morning and opening
ceremonies. The ‘blowing out of the water’s is the competitions that start this
afternoon,” Fishlegs pointed out as he wandered up next to Hiccup. “Anyway,
we’re just doing the parade and then Hiccup’s going back to bed.”
“Deal,” Astrid said in agreement.
“I wanted to lead,” Snotlout whined.
“Why is Hiccup going back to bed?” Ruffnut asked in confusion.
Tuffnut shrugged. “Didn’t get enough sleep?”
“I. AM. FINE.” Hiccup said sternly, his voice cracking when he yelled. He
frowned and folded his arms over his chest. “Look. It was a cold and now it’s
gone. We’re going to do the parade and opening ceremonies and then you guys can
do whatever competitions you’ve signed up for and what not. I am not going back
to bed.”
“You know Dagur’s here, right?” Tuffnut asked, his brow rising at the sight of
their leader so flustered.
Hiccup seemed to deflate at the news. “What?”
“The Berserker moored just off the harbor yesterday afternoon. We’ve been
keeping the dragons here and Stoick posted guards all around to protect them,”
Ruffnut explained.
“I think it’s more to keep you two mutton heads from blowing up their ships
without just cause,” Snotlout countered, still looking glum. “I suppose we
better get ready then. Hookfang would have looked so good in the lead.” He
continued grumbling as he went to his Monstrous Nightmare.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” asked Astrid as she sashayed up to Hiccup. She
looked him over. “You’re flush and have bags under your eyes. You don’t look
well at all.”
“I’ll be fine, Astrid,” Hiccup assured once more. He went to Toothless and
quickly climbed on his back. “Alright, gang, everyone remember the formation?
Okay, let’s go.”
They circled the academy, waited for the trumpets to sound to announce the
opening ceremonies, and then headed toward the festival grounds in a show are
aerobatics and flame. There were oohs and awes from the crowd below and cries
of “Is that a Nightfury?” from those who had never seen one which was just
about every Viking who hadn’t had contact with the Dragon Riders or Berk since
Hiccup began taming dragons. Of course the biggest voice happened to yell out
“What in Thor is he doing up there?” Hiccup knew he was in trouble when his
gaze caught Stoick’s. His father was obviously not happy he was leading the
parade rather than at home sleeping off his flu. Hiccup only smiled pleasantly
at him as he flew by and then as the leader of the academy looped over the
others and led them to the plaza at the center of the festival grounds. His
head and belly protested to such stunts and he was happy when he and Toothless
touched down – although the cheering crowd made his head bound and he
momentarily considered doing as Fishlegs suggested.
“Hiccup,” Stoick growled as he stomped toward the group of teens. He gave his
son a hard look that would make the other teens shrink back in fear but it was
a look Hiccup had grown accustomed to over the years. “What are you doing out
here?” He lifted his son off Toothless and held them at eye level as if Hiccup
was a small boy rather than a teenager but Hiccup was small and sometimes this
was the only way to make him listen. “You’re fever is still high and…” His
voice faltered slightly when he noticed the other chiefs nearing the dragons in
interest and lowered Hiccup until he was standing on his own two feet. He
placed his hand on the back of the boy’s neck, feeling his temperature before
moving it to his shoulder and presenting him to the other tribes. “My son,
Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, the Dragon Tamer!” he called out as he
placed his other hand on Toothless head. “And his Nightfury, Toothless! And
these strapping young warriors are our Dragon Riders!” He announced each by
name and their dragon, displaying his pride in each before whispering to
Hiccup; “You’re fever is down but I don’t like you running around when you’re
not well. Not all the tribes here are our friends and any one of them will
pounce on any seen weakness so if you feel unwell at any time you are to go
home, understood? Don’t look for me or Gobber, just go home and have someone go
with you, yes?”
Hiccup gave a curt nod. “Okay,” he agreed but it would not be a promise easily
kept, not during Thorsday Thursday.
***** Chapter 3 *****
Option Three 3
The opening ceremonies went off without a hitch…well for the most part anyway.
Stoick had given the opening speech before handing it over to Hiccup to explain
about the dragons and how all mankind could learn to live in harmony with them
– which brought about more questions than Hiccup could answer as his throat
began to sting and he felt the need to swallow every few seconds – something he
promised to touch on more at the Chieftain and Heir conference being held the
next evening. He wrapped it up much faster than originally planned and gained
questioning looks from not only his father but also his friends. He only smiled
and handed the podium back to his father who quickly took charge and again
welcomed the tribes to their island and announced the festival open to all.
Hiccup didn’t hesitate to grab Toothless and hurry into the crowd before either
his father or friends could try to make him go home to bed again. He kept a
hand on Toothless’s harness as people brushed against them, many staring openly
at the Nightfury with awe or fear. While used to attention from the people of
Berk Toothless wasn’t used to just so many people being near him all at once
and would growl menacingly at anyone who looked remotely threatening. Hiccup
gently shushed him and assured that no one was there to hurt them.
“Hiccup!”
Or maybe he spoke too soon.
His shoulders slumped at the familiar voice, already expecting the usual taunts
and jeers that would be coming his way. Sensing his distress, Toothless growled
at the new comer.
“There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you two,” the voice continued.
Hiccup sighed as he turned around to face the older boy. “Hey, Thuggory, he
greeted only to be surprised by the large Viking lifting him up and giving him
a whirl.
Thuggory was the Heir the of Meathead tribe and must have had a massive growth
spurt in the last year because he was easily the same height of his father if
not quite the same mass. Hiccup blinked in astonishment. Yes, the older boy was
three years older than him – the same age as Snotlout – but he looked far
older.
“Whoa…” he breathed when he was set down. “What the hell do they feed you
Meatheads?”
Thuggory only laughed and ruffled his hair. “You’re so weird. So this is your
Nightfury? Wow! So the stories are true! That’s so cool!”
Hiccup frowned and tried fixing his hair. He was never so grateful to see
Snotlout come and distract the Meathead heir with taunts about the upcoming
bashy ball tournament and jokingly teasing about how Hiccup wouldn’t be
attending since it wasn’t his “sport”. His cousin gave him a wink as he showed
off Hookfang and Hiccup gave a sigh of relief. He had nothing against Thuggory
but he wanted to see the booths and exhibits before someone dragged him away
either on dragon business or over worrying about him. Of course it wasn’t long
before Astrid and Fishlegs found him – thanks to Snotlout – at the fire dancer
exhibit, one of his favorite displays.
“Alright, Hiccup,” Astrid said as she and Fishlegs cornered him. “You’re Dad
has been searching everywhere for you. Do you have any idea how worried he is?
Dagur’s here, you meathead!”
There was a bunch of grumbling from the members of the Meathead tribe in the
crowd that made the girl blush and start apologizing to them before grabbing
Hiccup’s arm and dragging him to the side.
“Look, you should be home and in bed not running around today. If Dagur pulls
something you’re not going to be able to handle him and Toothless will go
insane if something happens to you. The last thing we need is Dagur having a
legitimate excuse to kill him.”
“You worry too much,” Hiccup drawled, not wanting to get into this
conversation. “Dagur won’t do anything in the middle of all these people.”
She sighed. “I hope you’re right.”
“You still don’t look well,” Fishlegs pointed out. “You look flush.”
“It’s just the crowds,” Hiccup said off handedly. “We’re not used to them.”
Astrid gave him a look.
“I’m fine,” he insisted.
Astrid raised a brow before sticking out her hand. “Let me see the list.”
Hiccup frowned and then sighed as he pulled out a piece of parchment. The list
was given to him by his father before he got sick and was pretty much a “to do”
list of things expected of him. He got one every year because even though he
was young and wanted to simply have fun and goof off on this particular
festival he still had duties. This was the first time Astrid or anyone had
taken any interest in his duties as heir. He was completely appalled when the
blonde hair girl ripped the sheet in half and handed the top to Fishlegs.
“Alright, you cover the lectures and ‘Finding your dragon’ conference while I
take care of the dragon training and combat ones. We’ll meet up for cleanup and
setting of the Great Hall for the chief and heir banquets. I’ll also cover any
one on one heir competitions – Hiccup, hush, you’re allowed to have one warrior
cover for you in these things if you’ve been injured or ill. Okay, so all that
leaves is…”
“Dragon racing and judging!” Snotlout announced bouncing up to them with glee.
“What did you do?” Hiccup asked even though he really didn’t want to know.
“Challenged Thuggory to the biggest bashy ball tournament in history,” Snotlout
announced with a smug grin. “We technically need two heirs, one per team but
since you’re sick and let’s face it, royally suck at the game I thought as your
one and only cousin that I’ll play in your stead which would mean any
competition meant for you I would substitute.”
“I’m covering for Hiccup,” Astrid pointed out.
“Astrid, Astrid, Astrid…you might be his girlfriend but I’m his blood and
blood’s thicker than water when it comes to Viking business,” Snotlout pointed
out with a leer.
Astrid and Hiccup both stuttered on that one. “He…She’s…not my
girlfriend…boyfriend.” They looked to each other, blushed and looked away.
“Uh huh.” Snotlout rolled his eyes and glanced to Fishlegs who was trying to
hide his snicker. “Whatever. So there’s nothing you have to do, Hiccup, other
than sit back and relax.”
Hiccup shook his head. “My Dad’s not going to like this.”
“Don’t worry about Stoick, we’ll convince him this is the right course of
action given the circumstances,” Fishlegs said with a loopy smile.
That would have been all fine and dandy if Dagur didn’t saunter up at exactly
that moment with a demented gleam in his eyes and an almost possessive glare at
Toothless. The Nightfury got low and growled at the young Berserker chief, a
plasma blast already glowing deep in his throat and threatening to explode at
any moment. Hiccup instantly threw his arms around his friend and tried pushing
him back.
“No…no, bud. Not here. Here can’t hurt you here,” he said in a harsh whisper
but Toothless was much stronger than him and knew a threat when he smelled it
and Dagur the Deranged was a huge threat not only to Toothless but Hiccup as
well.
“Aw…is he trying to protect you or you protect him?” drawled Dagur as his face
broke into a grin. He cocked a hip and folded his arms over his chest as he
studied the duo.
“What do you want, Dagur?” Hiccup asked in annoyance as he fought to keep
Toothless under control. The last thing they needed was the dragon attacking
someone – didn’t matter if it was Dagur or not – and destroying all his hard
work or bringing peace between the dragons and men.
Dagur’s gaze shifted from Toothless to Hiccup and the gleam seemed to change as
well, almost softening before hardening once more. “You and I have some
unfinished business, Hiccup, a little thing about a one on one battle. You
cheated.”
Hiccup had to think for a moment but it wouldn’t come to him. Maybe the cold
was muffling his memory a little but he had no clue what the Berserker was
going on about. “Beg pardon?”
“You, your dragon and me and my Skrill. You cheated. You tricked me into
stepping into water when my Skrill fired on you,” Dagur reminded him.
Hiccup would have laughed and said it was his own stupidity but Astrid and
Fishlegs quickly intervened. “Hiccup’s not accepting any challenges,” Astrid
pointed out, taking a step between the two boys. “If you want to fight someone
you can fight me.”
“Or me,” Snotlout added, standing next to her although he didn’t seem as sure
as she did. He glanced over his shoulder at his younger cousin. “What did you
do now?” he mouthed.
Hiccup sighed and pushed past them. “Look, Dagur, the Skrill was dangerous
but…you’re right. I tricked you but all’s fair on the battlefield, right?”
Dagur raised a brow and then grinned. “I suppose you’re right. How’s this…we
settle our problems right here, right now?”
“Didn’t you hear me?” Astrid demanded, ready to step in again but Hiccup held
up his hand.
“Fine, the first competition at the arena,” Hiccup said, ignoring his friends.
“Good and just to prove I’m a nice guy you can choice to weapons,” Dagur
offered in glee.
“Hunting knives and shields.”
Dagur only laughed. “First blood?”
“Fine.”
“No dragons.”
“Whatever.” Hiccup returned to Toothless and mounted him, heedless of his
friends’ anxious calls and objections to accepting Dagur’s challenge. He was in
a foul mood now and didn’t want to hear anything they might have to say.
Instead he went to the academy – which would once again serve as an arena for
the competitions – and decided to get a head start on practicing. It had been a
while since he had to fight hand to hand and he wasn’t very good at it but he
was determined to shut Dagur up once and for all.
“You idiot!” yelled Astrid, sneering in Dagur’s face with no fear of the
deranged Berserker. “Hiccup is sick! He should be in bed not fighting you. If
anything happens to him I’ll hunt you down and show what ‘deranged’ really
means.” She turned on her heel before he could answer and stormed away with
Fishlegs in tow.
Snotlout watched them go before turning back to Dagur with a grin. “It’s always
cool when you visit.” Then he took off to find the twins and tell them what was
going on as well as prepared to take Hiccup’s place in case the younger boy was
too ill to actually fight. Fighting Dagur wasn’t really on his to do list but
he had duties as Hiccup’s heir.
. . .
Competitions were judged by the chiefs and any competitions they participated
in were usually only between them especially when it came to combat or hand to
hand so each of them were rather surprised when they heard that Dagur had
challenged an heir rather than a chief as he should have due to his status. For
a chief to challenge an heir – who was usually far too young and inexperienced
to dual a chieftain – was rather unusual and had them all talking. Of course
Dagur was younger than most chiefs and around the age of most of the heirs so
they were willing to allow him a little leeway, at least most of the chiefs
were. Stoick had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He had known Dagur
most of the boy’s life and with the recent unrest between their two tribes
there was only one heir that he could think of the boy challenge and he
sincerely hoped he was wrong. Nonetheless he took his place on his thrown as
the visiting chief mingled around on either side, buying for the best seats as
the rest on the onlookers found their seats. He did a quick head count as the
Berk teens filed into stands and took seats right at the edge of the arena and
clasped the chain webbing that was the roof of the arena. A low sigh escaped
him when he didn’t find Hiccup among them. With luck his son was home and
sleeping but as he saw Toothless lumber up next to Astrid with a keening whine
that bad feeling grew.
He wouldn’t…
Hiccup wasn’t that foolish.
“Our first competitors…” announced Mulch from the top of the grandstands with
Bucket beside him. “Are Chief Dagur the Deranged of the Berserker Tribe and the
Hope and Heir of the Hooligan Tribe…Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, son of
Chief Stoick the Vast.”
“Sweet Odin, no,” Stoick breathed in fear as he watched his own child who in
his opinion was far too sick to be out of bed let alone battling anyone, walk
into the arena with only a dagger and shield…not even a helmet to protect his
head. He stood to call an end to the battle before it could start. “Mulch…” he
called up only to have Gobber place a hand on his arm.
“Give the boy a chance,” Gobber said wisely. “I know he hasn’t been well but if
you don’t even give him a chance to prove himself you’ll only embarrass him and
yourself in front of the other tribes and no one will ever follow him when he
becomes chief.”
Reluctantly Stoick had to agree. He ran a hand over his face and sighed before
nodding to Mulch and Bucket to proceed. A well rang and the competition began
and Stoick could only hope and pray to the gods that he son would walk out in
one piece.
. . .
Hiccup was not an offensive fighter. He was never very good at attacking. Hell,
he wasn’t even very good at defensive fighting. He was still learning but he
had to admit he relied a little too much on Toothless to watch his back. So
while he knew Dagur was going to attack it was still a bit of a shock when the
larger boy threw himself at Hiccup, knife drawn and out for blood. Hiccup
managed to catch most of the attack with his shield but it still sent him to
the ground. The Berserker howled in laughter before bouncing off and circling
the young Hooligan and taunting him.
“Come on, Hic-cup, you did much better on Dragon Island. Is your girlfriend
telling the truth? Do you have a little ickle cold?” Dagur teased as he flipped
a knife in his hand before throwing one at Hiccup.
Hiccup ducked behind his shield as it embedded itself in the wood only to be
followed by four more knives. Okay, Hiccup only carried one and to have that
many suddenly thrown at him was a little overwhelming – although he did pride
himself in his ability to dodge Dagur’s knives since he had been doing so for a
few years now. So he did what he was good at with it came to the older boy, he
kept ducking and dodging attacks in the hopes of tiring his opponent out and
maybe using his size against him but soon that fell apart as the older teen
managed to tear the shield from his hands and threw it away but not before
Hiccup had retrieved at least one of the long daggers.
“You know as the ‘Dragon Conqueror’ I thought I’d have more of a challenge,”
Dagur said conversationally. “What? You need your pet Nightfury to protect you?
Did he do all the fighting against Red Death?”
“We’re a team,” Hiccup objected as he held both knives defensively in his
hands. “He’s my friend.”
“Aw…how sweet. Well after I’m done with him he’ll be my helmet,” Dagur crowed
before attacking.
Hiccup deflected the blows, paring and blocking every swipe as if he were
possessed. No one threatened those he loved and while he may not be a good
fighter he could at least keep himself from getting seriously hurt or so he
hoped.
Dagur kicked him in the stomach and knocked him to the ground. Hiccup felt as
if he might throw up right then and there but he managed to hold it and to
everyone’s surprise managed to bring his bad leg up and kick Dagur full on in
the chest as he launched himself at him. His metal foot made contact with flesh
and knocked the breath out of the older boy. Surprised Dagur fell back, his
hand clenching his chest in pain. It gave Hiccup an unexpected opening and
without a second thought Hiccup leapt onto Dagur and brought his left knife to
his throat and the other to his chest just above his heart.
Dagur froze, his green eyes huge with surprise as they both panted from
exertion. His gaze met Hiccup’s and he didn’t recognize the boy. It was as if
something had taken hold of him and turned him into a Berserker. A smile pulled
at his lips and if it weren’t for the knives at his throat and chest he would
have slapped the other boy’s shoulder and called him brother for only a
Berserker could take down another Berserker with such ease – at least in his
opinion.
“Yield,” Hiccup panted.
“First blood,” Dagur reminded him, absently looking Hiccup over and surprised
to see that he hadn’t landed even one cut or lash. He winced when Hiccup
suddenly swiped the knife that had been over his chest against Dagur’s bare
bicep and drew blood. It wasn’t a deep cut but it stung now that the heat of
battle was waning.
“And Hiccup wins!” Mulch announced, his voice full of surprise as Bucket rang
to the bell.
“Hiccup won?” Stoick asked in surprise as he stood and stared down at the two
boys in shock. “Hiccup won! That’s my boy!”
“HICCUP! HICCUP! HICCUP!” the crowd chanted as the applauded and cheered, the
Berk teens bouncing around in excitement. “HICCUP! HICCUP! HICCUP!”
Hiccup looked up in surprise, the daggers falling from his grip as Dagur shoved
him off him. He looked utterly perplexed by everyone cheering for him and for
several moments he just sat there and stared up at them. Dagur watched the play
of emotions on the younger boy’s face. He was a little confused. Hiccup should
be feeling joy at winning a one on one competition. He had struck first blood.
Had it been Dagur he would have been crowing to the world that he had beat a
worthy opponent and Hiccup had surely become that.
It got even more confusing when Stoick trudged into the arena. He proudly
congratulated both boys – although if looks could kill Dagur probably would
have died right then and there – and awarded Hiccup a shining gold metal that
hung around his neck. Hiccup still seemed a little out of sorts and flushed at
the attention. Then when the crowd calmed down Stoick and Gobber escorted
Hiccup to the entrance where he seemed to lectured.
Dagur watched in ever growing confusion as Stoick cornered Hiccup, the youth
leaning against the wall and looking deathly pale as his father spoke, waving
his arms about as he spoke. Hiccup seemed to grow smaller and smaller with
every word Stoick said before the man seemed to deflate and pat his son’s
shoulder. Then Hiccup was gently pushed toward Gobber who wrapped an arm around
his small shoulders and led him away.
Was Hiccup in trouble for battling Dagur? It made no sense. Hiccup had done
well. He had proven himself a capable warrior and made his ancestors proud. Why
would he be in trouble for that?
. . .
“Toothless,” Hiccup called as Gobber led him back toward the village. The ebony
dragon started toward him when Stoick stepped in between them.
“No, no Toothless,” he said firmly as he looked Hiccup over. “You’re going home
to bed, Hiccup. You may think you’re fine but as a father I know better. You’re
fever is spiking. You need sleep and plenty of liquids.”
Hiccup tried his best not to whine. “But Toothless…”
“Toothless will stay with me where I know he won’t be helping you take off. You
need to sleep, son, not play with your dragon. Now go on. Toothless will be
plenty safe with me,” Stoick said firmly.
The Nightfury gave a whine that almost perfectly matched his boy’s. Stoick gave
him a look that quickly quieted both him and Hiccup.
“Alright,” Hiccup conceded as he gave his friend a hug. “I’ll see you in a few
hours, bud. Dad, don’t leave him alone even for a minute. Dagur’s still after
him. Please, don’t let him out of your sight.”
“I won’t, son. You go home to bed now and I’ll check on you as soon as I can.”
Stoick paused before smiling adoringly at his child. “Congratulations, Hiccup.
You did very well out there.”
Hiccup nodded and gave a shy smile as his mentor lead him away. Gobber was like
a second father to him and even though Hiccup worried about Toothless he
couldn’t help but smile widely at the way Gobber gushed over the metal around
his neck. It was the first one Hiccup ever won even if it wasn’t in the sport
he had planned on and he couldn’t help but feel some pride over it. Perhaps he
was a better Viking than he thought.
***** Chapter 4 *****
Option Three 4
Dagur had been unable to see where Hiccup went off to because he was distracted
by his own men who had rushed from the grandstands to see if he was alright.
Usually Dagur was a bit of a sore loser and would demand a rematch but he had
been so surprised, so thrown by Hiccup’s new found ability that the injuries he
sustained, mild as they were, meant very little to him. All that interested him
was how and why Hiccup had managed to defeat him. Never before had Hiccup show
such raw anger or fighting ability, at least not without his blasted Nightfury.
No, it was as if Hiccup had suddenly changed, as if he had gone Berserk. Dagur
smiled at that. Who would have ever thought little dainty Hiccup could lose his
temper and become a Berserker. He bit his lower lip in glee. Oh, Hiccup was
indeed his brother, whether he realized it or not.
Shoving off his uncle, Dagur went in search of Hiccup but with the vast number
of Vikings mingling about he quickly lost sight of the smaller boy. Fine, he
decided, then I’ll simply find his friends. It would take a little time but he
knew a few things about Hiccup and what normally caught his interest and when
he didn’t find Hiccup wandering the booths or watching the performers he
tracked down Snotlout and conned him into giving him the information he needed.
. . .
Hiccup hated to admit it but he felt worse after the fight with Dagur. His
whole body hurt, and he felt oddly warm, more so than before and he felt
unbelievably tired. Still he refused to show weakness in front of Gobber and
instead grumbled about being confined to his house and missing out on the
festivities. His father made it a point that he would be missing out on
everything else until his fever broke or he’d be sent to Mildew’s hut with
enough guards to make a pampered princess blush. If Mildew were still on the
island he would have surely complained about the extra company. So Hiccup had
no choice but to listen, at least for now. Not that he was really considering
arguing the point. The more he thought about it the more welcoming his bed was
becoming.
Gobber ushered him into the house, following him to make sure Hiccup didn’t try
running out the back door as was the norm whenever Stoick tried grounding the
boy wherever or not it was for his own good. “Don’t look so down, lad,” Gobber
said as he set about boiling some water to make Gothi’s special brew in hopes
of curing Hiccup of his illness as quickly as possible. “At least it’s just the
flu and not something like eel pox. Did your Dad tell you how lulu I went or
about Snotlout’s dragon revolution? For a moment there I thought maybe you did
get it and turned into a Berserker with the way you took down Dagur. I think
your father must be thinking the same thing.”
“I don’t have eel pox,” Hiccup grumbled as he all but threw himself in his
father’s oversize chair and shivered. Okay, now he was cold to top things off.
“And it’s just a cold not a flu.”
“Uh huh,” Gobber said in disbelief. He lit the hearth, making sure the fire was
well stoked before gathering a heavy fur from the foot of Stoick’s bed and
wrapping it around the youth’s trembling shoulders. “You know, I’ve known your
father a very long time, Hiccup and I always thought he was the most stubborn,
thick skulled man I ever met until you befriended Toothless. You don’t only
take after Stoick for your stubbornness but surpass it.”
“Is that a compliment or insult?” Hiccup asked as he nuzzled into the furs,
already feeling drowsy without the herbal tea.
Gobber raised a surprised brow. “Alright, now there you go. You just proved my
point. You’re far too sick if you’re not understanding a compliment when you
hear one. Here you are beating Dagur in one on one combat and winning your
first medal ever and you’re not even in the right mind to appreciate the sheer
magnitude of it.”
“Sorry,” the youth murmured.
Giving the youth a fatherly smile, Gobber mixed the herbs together in a filter
before setting it over a wooden mug and slowly pouring the boiling water over
it to brew the tea. Then he waited a few moments for the mixture to cool.
“Hiccup, try this. It’ll sooth your throat and help you sleep.”
“I’m already trying to sleep,” Hiccup grumbled as he opened his eyes.
Nonetheless he took the concoction and sipped it slowly, wincing at the bitter
taste. It took a few minutes but he got it all down and then snuggled in the
furs once more. “Ow…stupid leg.”
“Is it acting up again?” Gobber asked as he pulled a chair next to Hiccup’s and
carefully pulled back the fur over the boy’s left leg. He tutted absently as he
carefully removed the prosthetic and set it on the table. Then he gently
massaged the scarred appendage as his wife did for him when he lost his leg and
hand many years before. Massaging with one hand wasn’t exactly easy but he had
learned a few tricks of the trade over the years. Soon Hiccup’s shivers
subsided and he fell asleep under the warmth of the furs. Gobber tucked
Hiccup’s leg under the fur, frowning as he always did at the amputation and the
mangled mass of scar tissue that would never fully heal. Ah, but Hiccup was a
strong boy regardless of his diminutive size and was coping far better than
most grown men. A little flu was far from keeping the boy down for long. Within
a few days he’d be up and soaring the skies with his dragon it was just a shame
he would miss the festival but at least he managed to show up that Dagur boy
before the flu fell him.
“Sleep well, Hiccup,” Gobber whispered as he squeezed his godson’s shoulder.
“I’ll make sure to bring you some of Mogadon’s special sweet potato and glazed
boar for dinner tonight…if your stomach can handle it.” Then he left the
chieftain’s house, certain that with a little sleep and some of Gothi’s special
brew Hiccup would be fine within days.
. . .
Hiccup should have listened to his father he realized as he twisted and turned
in his sleep. He felt worse by the minute and was seriously beginning to wonder
if perhaps he did have eel pox but then why wasn’t Gothi’s medicine working? He
snuggled deeper into the furs, trying to stay asleep but the distant sound of
his door opening and closing woke him. For a moment he thought Gobber was just
leaving and was tempted to call him back and help him put the prosthetic back
on his leg or at least put it within reaching distance. It looked so far away
on the other end of the table although he reality all he had to do was lean
forward. But he quickly realized Gobber must have been gone an hour or so
judging by the hearth fire. It wasn’t very low but it was burning quite as
brightly as before. If it was Gobber then he would only be checking in on him
but Hiccup was now more hopeful for his father who had promised to look in on
him.
“Dad?” he croaked, surprising himself with how rough his voice was and how
tender his throat had become for no apparent reason. Nonetheless he yawned and
shifted a little under the furs. Sleeping sitting up was not exactly a good
idea. His lower back was starting to hurt and bad leg felt numb. “Dad, I don’t
feel so good,” he mumbled, his eyes closing once more as a large hand was laid
on his forehead. “I think I you’re right. I should go back to bed.”
“Bed?” a silky voice asked in surprise. “Well that wasn’t exactly what I had in
mind but I can work with that.”
For a moment Hiccup didn’t quite understand. The voice sounded all wrong yet he
knew he knew it. His brows furrowed as he fought to open his eyes. “Dagur?” he
whispered as he opened his eyes. They instantly widened in surprise. “Dagur!”
“Geez, Hiccup, you are sick, aren’t you?” the red haired Berserker said with an
amused grin. His emerald gaze shifted to the prosthetic on the table. “And
helpless as a kitten. Perfect.”
***** Chapter 5 *****
Option Three 5
Dagur leered down at the smaller boy, waiting for some sassy comeback, some
smartass remark or even a defiant glare. He wasn’t expecting a large sneeze
followed by a small coughing fit and droopy tired eyes that were slight glazed
over and puffy. Nor was he expecting Hiccup to pull the covers tighter around
him and lay his head back against the side of the oversized chair.
“It you’re here to kill me you might as well get it over with,” the Hooligan
grumbled tiredly. “’Cause nothing you can do can possibly make me feel any
worse than I already do.” He coughed again before closing his eyes. “And
Toothless isn’t here.”
“Toothless?” Dagur asked, a little thrown by Hiccup’s behavior. “Who’s
Toothless?”
Hiccup actually laughed from somewhere under the furs and it made Dagur bristle
with indignation. “You know, big black Nightfury that I usually ride. Don’t
want him getting sick again.”
“Where is it?”
“Not telling.” There was a large yawn. “Go ‘way.”
“Tell me where it is.”
“Go ‘way.”
“Tell me.”
“Nuh huh.”
Dagur’s hands fisted and unfisted, tempted to beat the younger boy into a pulp.
After all it was the least Hiccup deserved for humiliating him so often but it
wasn’t really Hiccup he wanted to see bloody and bruised but that pet of his
that had separated them, that had stolen his brother from him. Once again he
placed a hand on Hiccup’s head and frowned at the heat. Of course Hiccup tried
pulling away, unused to the older boy trying to tend to him and not liking it
one bit. He swatted at Dagur’s hands and tried shifting back in the oversize
chair until he pushed himself over the arm and went sprawling on the floor in a
tangle of limbs and fur. He let out a cry as his back side hit the ground and
then fought to untangle himself as Dagur rounded the chair, knife in hand which
only made the younger boy fight harder to free his arms and legs. It was only
when Hiccup was free of the furs did Dagur truly take in the state of the boy.
Oh it would be so easy to capture the brunette or finally do away with him.
In the short time since the competition Hiccup had gone from looking slightly
flushed and tired to a pitiful mess. He was sweating uncontrollably, face
flushed a bright red and dark bags under his eyes but that wasn’t what gave
Dagur pause…it was the fact that Hiccup wasn’t wearing his prosthetic,
revealing that he indeed only had one foot and regardless of already knowing
this fact seeing just the one leg was a little more than Dagur expected. But
Hiccup obviously had some experience with that now and rather than sit on the
floor like a blathering idiot crying for help, he grabbed the edge of the table
and pulled himself up until he was standing and glaring at Dagur with red
rimmed, fevered green eyes.
“What do you want? A rematch?” Hiccup snapped, all signs of the usually passive
youth gone in his anger. His small dainty hands were curled into tight fists as
he glared at Dagur and it was actually a bit frightening until that flush in
his cheeks went almost deathly white and Hiccup’s stance faltered as his good
leg almost gave out in his fatigue.
Dagur caught him just as he fell and not for the first time was at awe by just
how light the other boy was. “I take it boot kissing is out?” he muttered to
himself as he lifted Hiccup up in his arms with all intent of whisking the
Hooligan away to Berserker Island where he knew Hiccup could be treated
properly and their little rivalry could be finished in an honorable manner. But
of course Hiccup just had to be stubborn as ever.
“Put me down!” he yelled, squirming and kicking with his one leg and making it
next to impossible for Dagur to keep a good hold on him. Dagur might have hit
him in the back of the head to knock him out but it would just so happen fate
was against him.
The door flew open as if by the force of a hurricane and a moment later Stoick
the Vast, followed by Gobber, the Nightfury and Dagur’s Uncle Harold, stormed
in. Dagur all but dropped Hiccup in his surprise. Stoick and the Nightfury he
might have expected but his uncle? Now that was a surprise. He held Hiccup a
little tighter, refusing to let any of them to take his prize from him. He had
stalked Hiccup, he had forced the boy’s friends to tell him where he was and
then when they refused tracked him to his hut – mind you that was rather an
easy guess when Snotlout offhandedly mentioned he thought Hiccup had eel pox
and not just the flu.
“Just what is going on here?” Stoick boomed so loud that Hiccup actually
slapped his hands over his ears as the sound bounced off the walls. Even Dagur
winced a little.
“Dad!” Hiccup whined, a rather unpleasant sound but yet another that varied the
youth was unwell. “Can you tone it down just a little, I think the Screaming
Death might have heard you on the other side of the sea.”
Stoick was obviously not amused. He stormed toward Dagur with a threat of
immediate death and scooped his son out of the young chief’s arms and handed
him over to Gobber before glowering down at Dagur, a hand on the hilt of his
sword. “Just what did you think you were doing with my boy?” he demanded.
Now a smart man would have begged forgiveness and apologized for imposing on a
person, especially one as sick as Hiccup seemed to be but Dagur was never one
for stopping what he was thinking from making it to his mouth. “Taking what’s
mine,” he blurted out even as he saw his uncle shaking his head behind the
Hooligan chief and motioning for Dagur to – for once – keep his mouth shut.
“Yours?” Stoick questioned, fire in his eyes. Even Toothless growled as if such
a response was ludicrous. “And how exactly is my Hiccup yours?”
Obviously Dagur was not expecting such a question.
“Down, Gobber, put me down,” Hiccup insisted as he wiggled around in his
mentor’s arms.
Dagur glanced toward Hiccup then the blasted Nightfury hovering over him like a
worried mother hen and squared his shoulders. “Because he’s my brother and I’m
the one supposed to be keeping him out of trouble not that…that…Nightfury,” he
spat the word as if it were a curse. “Dragons aren’t supposed to be mothering
people and people shouldn’t be riding them.”
Stoick stared at him for a long time, his pale green eyes never leaving
Dagur’s. And then much to everyone’s surprise he stood back, his expression
calculating. It was an expression that made Dagur oddly nervous and he began to
fidget a little and Dagur hated to fidget.
“You’re right,” Stoick suddenly announced much to the surprise of everyone in
the room.
“What?” Dagur asked softly.
“What?” Hiccup shrieked in horror.
“Ah…Stoick, are you feeling alright because I’m sure I just heard you agree
with Dagur?” Gobber asked in confusion.
Stoick gave a curt nod. “That I did, Gobber,” the Hooligan chief said as he
glanced toward his friend. “Dagur is absolutely right. Well half right. Hiccup
has the flu and while Toothless means well he can’t properly look after him
so…Dagur will.”
“What?” Dagur yelled.
“No way!” Hiccup yelled equally loud which was rather impressive since Hiccup
rarely yelled let alone hit such volumes.
Even Harold seemed lost to Stoick’s reasoning. He moved to stand next to his
nephew and placed a hand on the young man’s shoulder and stopping him from
pulling a weapon on the older chief. “Stoick, in case you haven’t noticed
you’re pretty much putting the boys in a room full of weapons and condemning
your boy to a very painful and agonizing death.”
There was a tiny smirk on Stoick’s lips as he called out to Sven and Spitelout.
“Remove all the weapons and anything sharp and take them to Gobber’s for the
night,” he instructed. “Including every weapon on Dagur’s person.”
Dagur stepped back. “Don’t even think it,” he snarled as the two men made to
disarm him.
“Dagur, silence,” Harold said in a stern but fatherly voice.
“You’re siding with him?” Dagur cried in shock as his uncle removed the axe
from the small of his back and sword.
“No, I’m agreeing with what you said. Hiccup needs a human to look after him
after than a dragon and since you brought it up than it’s only right that
you’re the one to do it.” The older Berserker knew exactly where every hidden
knife and blade was on Dagur and had no problem removing them without much of a
fight. Were it anyone else Dagur would have put up more of a fight but he was
so in shock to have pretty much been stripped of his chiefdom and turned into a
glorified babysitter.
“This isn’t fair!” he and Hiccup objected at just about the same time before
glaring at each other.
Spitelout only shook his head in bemusement as he carried out an armload of
swords. “Should I give Snotlout a heads up that he’s the new heir?” he asked
Stoick with a cheeky grin.
“Shut up, Spitelout,” his elder brother growled.
“Just saying.”
“So am I, now shut up.” Stoick glared at his brother as the younger man
chuckled darkly as if not expecting Hiccup to last an entire night in the
company of Dagur the Deranged regardless of the lack of weapons. But the
comment had given Stoick pause and a moment to consider what he was planning.
He glanced to his only child who gave him wide frightful eyes. Then he turned
his gaze back to Dagur. “Hurt him in any way and come morning I’ll gut you and
feed your liver to the Terrible Terrors,” he warned, getting in Dagur’s face.
“So much as one mark – one mark – and the peace treaty between the Hooligans
and the Berserkers becomes null and void. Or do you really want to see Snotlout
as the chief of the Hooligans?”
Dagur glared at him defiantly but at the mention of Snotlout taking Hiccup’s
place as heir he backed away. “Fine,” he spat. “I won’t harm you frail little
Hiccup. I can’t say the same for his pet.” He pointed toward Toothless in
resentment.
Stoick’s face hardened once more. “Toothless will be with me. Think of this as
Option Three since I refuse to allow either of you to have a weapon of any
sort.”
“Are you serious?” Hiccup demanded, finally able to escape Gobber and leaning
against the table, hopped to his father. He grabbed Stoick’s arm. “Look, I’m
fine. I don’t need anyone looking after me, least of all Dagur. Seriously! I’ll
drink whatever horrid concoction Gothi makes up without fuss. I swear. Hell,
I’ll even deal with Snotlout watching over me if I have to or Fishlegs’s
disgusting soup that he swears cures anything. I’ll drink Astrid’s yaknog…the
whole jug. I’ll take the twins! The twins!”
“Stop fussing like a five year old,” Stoick reprimanded as he sat Hiccup back
into his chair. “You’re in no shape for option one or two so three it is.”
“You hate me, don’t you?”
“Hiccup…”
The boy crossed his arms dejectedly as a fur was wrapped around him once more.
“The gods hate me, too. Can I please keep Toothless? At least even the field a
little?”
“Toothless will be safe with me and nothing will happen. Dagur is going to take
good care of you, aren’t you, Dagur?”
The Berserker chief grunted in disgust. Harold elbowed him in the side. “Fine,
but I don’t like it.”
Stoick nodded in satisfaction. “You two will work together and with luck find a
way to beat this flu before Dagur catches it as well.”
Dagur’s eyes widened slightly, as if just realizing that Stoick’s ploy may
simply be to get him sick as well to avoid any possible battle between their
tribes. He glared at Hiccup. “Get me sick and I’ll kick your scrawny ass,” he
threatened.
Hiccup only made a face.
Stoick nodded to himself as if satisfied. “We’ll see you both in the morning.
Dagur, there should be some yak in the ice box.” And with that he and the men
turned to leave.
Toothless paused to nuzzle Hiccup and give him an affectionate lick but the
moment Stoick called he lumbered out of the house and left the two boys to fend
for themselves, praying that when he returned his rider would still be in one
piece.
***** Chapter 6 *****
Option Three 6
The two boys glared at each other for several long minutes before Hiccup sighed
and snuggled under the furs once more and pulled his knees to his chest and
rested his head against them, ready to fall asleep once more. He was exhausted
but with Dagur only feet away staring at him as if he were food he simply
couldn’t fall asleep. It was eerie and admittedly a little frightening even if
Dagur was unarmed. That didn’t mean he was harmless now, far from it. Dagur was
a walking weapon, dangerous in every way. Of everyone Hiccup knew that. Dagur
had abused him numerous times when he was little…well littler than he was now.
He hugged his knees and tried to calm his racing heart. It was then that he
remembered something was missing. His eyes widened as he looked across the
table to where Gobber had left his prosthetic. His mouth opened and then
snapped shut. Nope, he was not going to ask Dagur to pass it over, he’d just
sit there and suffer in silence. So closing his eyes he tried to think of
something, anything better than the situation he was in now.
“Bored…” grumbled Dagur as he poked at the knots in the table.
“It’s only been ten minutes,” Hiccup countered but quickly ignored the other
boy when Dagur glared at him.
Hiccup wasn’t sure how much time passed before either of them spoke again.
Dagur just glared at the table, picking at a whole while Hiccup tried to get
some rest. He dosed in and out and was nearly in a sound sleep when Dagur
thumbed his fist against the table and stood. Hiccup gazed up from the mound of
furs and watched as the older boy began pacing.
“We could be on my ship right now sailing to Berserker Island,” Dagur began to
rant as if it was Hiccup’s fault they were stuck there. “But no, you just had
to have the flu and your stupid friends just had to go tell your Daddy I was
looking for you. The least you could do is kiss my boots and be somewhat
apologetic.”
“What?” Hiccup asked, completely floored by the older boy’s outburst. “It’s not
my fault you’re a lunatic or that I’m sick. It happens. Every year in case you
forgot about the time we both got sick…just before my mom…” He looked away as a
stray memory of his mother being home from a quest and caring for the two boys
while their fathers focused on the annual peace treaty. He licked his lower lip
and hugged his knees a little tighter.
Silence reigned for a long time and for a moment Hiccup thought that maybe
Dagur had wandered off. His head rested against his knees and his eyes drooped
closed once more. He heard the faints sounds of Dagur moving about looking
through cupboards and trunks, searching either for a weapon or something to do.
Hiccup didn’t care which as long as he was left alone. For a while he was
actually able to sleep.
There was nothing that could be even remotely be used as a weapon. Stoick’s men
had taken everything. Short of snapping off a table leg to use as a club or
stake there was nothing left. He thumped up the steps to Hiccup’s room in the
loft and began rummaging through Hiccup’s personal belongings. A few tunics and
trousers, some strange outfits he assumed were for riding the Nightfury. An old
left boot that had been abandoned after Hiccup had lost his lower leg. He threw
it aside in hopes of finding something more interesting. When he found nothing
in the trunk at the foot of the bed he dropped the lid and moved on to Hiccup’s
desk. Other than a pile of charcoal, pencils, inks and paints there wasn’t
much. He flipped through the books, the first and second being filled with
sketches and drawings that were progressively better than the first, many of
which held images of the Nightfury or family and friends. There were a few of
Dagur which took him by surprise and they were actually quite good. Some were a
few years old, from when they were younger, before Dagur became chief and their
friendship began to suffer. But there were a few newer ones, hastily sketched
as if to simply get out of Hiccup’s head for whatever reason. Interesting. It
would seem Hiccup thought of Dagur as much as Dagur thought of him.
A grin lit his lips as he grabbed some blank parchment and some paints and
headed back down. Maybe he could kill the boredom with a little art. It used to
work when he was Hiccup’s age. He went back downstairs and sat at the head of
the table where he belonged and began doing a little drawing of his own. One of
the nice things about Hiccup being asleep was he was easier to draw and Dagur
prided himself on his skill and the amount of detail he could do but alas after
a half hour or so of that he got bored and started searching the house for
something else to do.
A coughing fit stopped him and he looked to Hiccup who had doubled over
seemingly coughing up a lung. Without a second thought he rushed to the smaller
boy and began rubbing his back. “Easy, Hic, easy. You are sick, aren’t you?”
Gently, he settled the smaller boy on the oversize chair so that his head
rested on one arm and legs over the other. He frowned at the mangled lower left
leg, an eternal reminder that Hiccup, with the help of his Nightfury, had
defeated the Red Death…the scourge of Vikings everywhere. Hiccup had done that.
Little frail, dainty Hiccup had done what no other Viking had done before him
and defeated the Red Death. It was something Hiccup should wear with pride as
most warriors did but he seemed rather shy about the whole experience. One day
Dagur would get the story out of him.
For a while Dagur puttered about, drew and painted – he even painted the wood
of Hiccup’s prosthetic when he ran out of paper and made it look as if a dragon
was eating Hiccup’s stump, he thought that rather suitable given what had
happened. When he grew bored again he searched for food and found the yak
steaks Stoick had told him about but decided against them since there were no
knives to cut the meat. He found some precut stewing chicken and since Hiccup
was sick decided to try an old remedy his aunt would make for him and his
sister. Thankfully most of the ingredients were readily available.
“Hmm…” Hiccup murmured when the soup was nearly done. The delicious smell of
food made his empty belly rumble and remind him he hadn’t eaten all day. “Dad?”
he whispered as he blinked his eyes open. He blinked a few times, unable to
believe what he was seeing. Dagur was standing next to the heart looking into a
cooking pot and casually stirring it. “Dagur?”
The older boy froze for a moment before beaming proudly at Hiccup. “Hey, you’re
awake.”
“Yeah,” Hiccup murmured as he pushed himself into a sitting position. He rubbed
his eyes as he looked about. “Where’s my Dad?” he asked, not yet completely
awake but knowing he was home and reasonably safe. “Toothless,” he called.
Dagur smirked. “Both are probably still at the festival. Your Dad was avid that
your Nightfury was not staying with you.”
“Oh yeah,” Hiccup said with a yawn. He stretched and then straightened, as if
just remembering that Dagur was there with him. “Wait, are you making dinner?”
“Not as if anyone would be. We’re grounded.” Dagur placed a piping bowl of
chicken soup before Hiccup before sitting down at the head of the table and
digging into his own.
Well considering Dagur was eating without hesitation then the food must not be
poisoned, Hiccup reasoned as he took up a spoon and prodded the soup. He
hesitated only a moment as his stomach rumbled and then gave up any sense of
worry and dug in as well. It was surprisingly good and Hiccup discovered he was
hungrier than he had been in days. Usually that was a good sign. Two bowls
later that empty feeling was gone and Hiccup was chewing his lower lip shyly.
“Thank you,” he said softly.
Dagur glanced up in surprise but gave a nod, a pleased little smile adorning
his lips. He didn’t cook for others often and usually only his little sister
gave him any gratitude when he did. It was rather refreshing. “How long have
you been sick?” he asked absently as he checked the pot. Still enough for
another bowl or two. It would have to be eaten before morning but he wasn’t
hungry enough to eat anymore right now and it might be good to keep in case
Hiccup needed it. He almost couldn’t believe how much he was worrying over the
younger boy but hearing those lung rattling coughs and endless sneezes had made
him wonder if Hiccup had more than the flu and how long it would take before
his favorite rival was back to his normal, sassy and sarcastic self because
this sick Hiccup was a little disconcerting and if there was one thing Dagur
hated was not being in charge of the world around him. With Hiccup better they
could play their little cat and mouse game and then Dagur could win and Hiccup
would be kissing his boots and…
“A few days,” Hiccup murmured as he leaned over the table for his prosthetic
leg. “It got really bad yesterday…what did you do to my prosthetic?”
Dagur shrugged as he set two tankards of mead down on the table. “Got bored.”
“Figures.” Hiccup didn’t look quite as pleased as Dagur thought he should be.
He struggled to sit back down and put the device on. It shouldn’t have been
such a hard thing to do considering Hiccup had been living with the artificial
leg for well over a year but beads of sweat began rolling down his forehead as
he tried fitting it in place and then he began coughing once more. With a
defeated groan he threw the device back on the table. “Either my leg is swollen
or I’ve had another growth spurt,” he grumbled dejectedly as he slumped back in
his chair. “Gobber’s going to have my head if he has to build another leg in
under a month.”
“Doesn’t it just slide into place?” Dagur asked, eyeing the prosthetic leg.
“Then you strap it?”
“Yeah and it’ll work if I could see straight.” Hiccup rubbed his forehead. “Why
are you here, Dagur? What were you hoping to gain?”
The Berserker didn’t answer. He didn’t like Hiccup like this. If he wanted to
see Hiccup defeated it would be in the heat of battle and in irons before his
feet, not like this. There had to be a way to make Hiccup better faster. He
combed his mind for any possible cure but none came to him but the soup except…
“Does Berk have any hot springs?” he asked suddenly. When he wasn’t feeling
well he could go into the mountain on his home island and spend the better part
of a day at one of the hot springs until he sweated out the virus making him
ill.
“No, and even if it did we wouldn’t make it past the guards patrolling the
grounds. Dad’s in a mood.” The Hooligan heir shifted in his seat and stared
glumly at his fake leg.
For a moment they both remained silent.
“Well there is one other way to sweat the flu out,” Dagur said thoughtfully as
a twisted thought came to him, something he had been planning for when he
defeated Hiccup and claimed him as his own. And while it wasn’t a conventional
method of sweating out a cold he had heard that it could work splendidly.
Besides, Stoick didn’t say how to help Hiccup just not to hurt him.
Hiccup’s interest perked. “How?”
A slow, predatory smile lifted the corners of Dagur’s mouth. “We make you as
hot as we can.”
Hiccup’s brows rose questioningly.
“You do want to participate in the festivities, don’t you?”
The heir bit his lip once more. Off in the distance, beyond the house and even
the village he could hear the faint sounds of celebration and even if he could
join in the competitions he still wanted to be part of it. He hesitated only a
moment before nodding his consent. “Okay, what do we do?”
Dagur’s smile only grew as he nodded toward the tankard of mead. “Drink up.”
***** Chapter 7 *****
Option Three 7
“I’m not so sure about this,” Hiccup muttered as he stared at the tankard of
mead before him. He gave Dagur a dubious look, not trusting the older boy in
the least. It wouldn’t be the first time Dagur had tried leading him astray
with some hair brain scheme…sort of like Snotlout and his pranks. “Wouldn’t
apple cider or herbal tea be much more effective considering they’re actually
hot and would make me sweat faster?”
Dagur gave him that look, the one that clearly said Hiccup was being a baby and
it was time to man up. It was a look that often got them both into a lot of
trouble. But Hiccup wasn’t a little kid anymore and rather than easily giving
in he met Dagur glare with one of his own. After a minute, Dagur threw up his
hands in disgust.
“Fine, I’m just trying to help,” Dagur said, throwing himself back in Stoick’s
seat. “You just go back to being a sick little Hiccup while I plot how to steal
your Nightfury and take over Berk. And you know I was thinking there’s a lot of
fun ways I can do that. First, I was thinking I’d surprise your father when he
comes to check on us, you know, maybe attack him from behind and run him
through and then before your precious Nightfury can let loose a fire ball maybe
take his head. Then you’ll be the new Hooligan chief and I’ll have my Nightfury
skull helmet, huh?” He gave his most innocent smile, as if they were having a
perfectly normal conversation.
Hiccup’s hands balled into fists and he tried to keep his face calm and
peaceful like Dagur’s but the other boy’s words hurt and he could feel the
tears pricking the corners of his eyes.
Dagur sighed when Hiccup didn’t rise to the bait. “Or we could always con the
guards into taking us to one of the sweat lodges and sweat your flu out there.”
He nearly laughed at the disgusted look that filled Hiccup’s face. “Yeah,
nothing like stripping to our skivvies and sweating it out with a bunch of
naked, wrinkling old men while they tell boring old war stories of their glory
days. That mumbling of the Outcasts just won’t shut up some days.”
Hiccup shivered and this time it wasn’t because he was cold. He had accompanied
his dad to the sweat lodges before and it was far worse than listening to one
of Johann’s tall tales. And if Dagur was talking about who he thought he was
than Hiccup completely understood…Mildew could go on for hours about his glory
days when given the chance and no dragons to annoy him – or the other way
around.
“Okay…okay…sweat lodge is out and there will be no kill my dad or Toothless.”
He eyed Dagur as he reached for his mead. “So all we’re doing is drinking mead
and overheating the house.”
Dagur shrugged. “Whatever makes you sweat the most. Should I go on about how I
plan to kill you Nightfury?”
“No.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s a bead of sweat on your brow.”
“That’s the fever.”
The Berserker only smirked and downed his tankard of mead in three swallows,
his gaze never leaving Hiccup’s as if challenging him. No Hiccup had drank mead
before, quite a few times actually but usually only with his father or Gobber
and usually it was water down until it was half and half so drinking 100% mead
was a bit of a shock for him and he nearly choked as it tickled his throat.
Regardless he met Dagur’s challenge and downed it as quickly as he could before
slamming own the wooden cup and having another coughing spear that nearly made
him throw up. He looked up in shock when the cup was refilled and Dagur gave
him a brotherly slap on the back.
“Didn’t think you had it in you,” he jested as he took up his tankard and began
drinking with the same amount of enthusiasm.
After only one and a half Hiccup was already feeling light headed and nauseous
and sure enough a pleasant warmth was growing in his belly just as his eyes
seemed to blur and sweat began to bead not only on his brow but the back of his
neck and under his arms but that could have been from the heat of the hearth.
Dagur kept stoking it and the pot of water he placed over it was boiling
uncontrollably, sending a thick cloud of steam throughout the house.
“Finish it up,” Dagur urged but when Hiccup refused drank the last half himself
before pushing Hiccup’s seat out and looking the young Hooligan over. “Well I
think we’ve got a good start, don’t you?”
Hiccup didn’t answer. He felt sleepy again and his stomach was upset and he was
worried about his Dad and Toothless and all the horrible things Dagur had said.
“You trust me, don’t you?” Dagur suddenly asked in an almost childish way as he
knelt before Hiccup almost as if kneeling before a royal.
Hiccup’s eyes opened – he hadn’t realized he had closed them – and stared
questioningly at Dagur. “Seriously?” he whispered unsure that he had heard
Dagur correctly.
There was that look again. “Tonight we’ll set aside our little feud and join as
one. I won’t hurt your precious Nightfury. I’ll forget all about it for tonight
and focus entirely on you, on your needs…all your needs and maybe some of mine.
I want to make you sweat and cry and scream…I want to make you mine.”
That sounded utterly weird and maybe a little frightening. Hiccup’s brows
furrowed as he tried to make sense of the older boy’s words. Dagur was deranged
but this sounded more like something Alvin would threaten him with. “Like a
slave?” he asked, his mind a little too muddled for his own good.
A delighted smile filled every inch of Dagur’s face and he laughed
hysterically. “Oh what I would give to see you dressed as a slave and kneeling
before my feet. You would make the most beautiful slave and I’d have you kiss
my boots – and you will kiss my boots – every morning, noon and night.”
“They better be clean,” Hiccup grumbled as he snuggled into the furs once more.
Another deranged laugh and then Dagur did perhaps the strangest thing Hiccup
had ever seen him do let alone to him. Dagur kissed him, full on the mouth with
tongue lapping at his lips before sharp teeth nipped and pulled at his bottom
lip. Then Dagur pulled back with a lopsided grin and pulled aside the lower
half of the fur to reveal Hiccup’s foot and amputated leg. Hiccup instantly
shifted back as far as he could in his seat which wasn’t very much at all.
Dagur slowly slid his hand over the amputation, his gaze turning from Hiccup’s
bewildered face to the leg. “I bet your leg is super sensitive…not where the
nerve endings were burned but around it…right up to your knee…” He lifted the
pant leg to inspect the scarred flesh before bringing his lips to it and
running his tongue over it.
Hiccup’s breathe shuddered at the strange behavior and he wasn’t sure what to
do in this case. He was tempted to kick Dagur but that strange warmth in his
belly only grew and shot a strange heat directly at his groin. “Ah…Dagur?” he
breathed as the other’s mouth moved upward until his trousers would go no
higher. Okay, he was really sweating now and maybe his mind had gone off the
deep end somewhere because he kind of liked what Dagur was doing. He gasped
when Dagur suddenly stood up and picked him and the furs up as if he weighed
nothing at all. “Dagur!”
“I’m pretty sure I can do better if you lay down,” the older boy explained as
he laid Hiccup on Stoick’s bed not far from the hearth or the steam.
“Do what?” Hiccup asked, his mind still not quite catching up but nearly
certain they were about to do something they shouldn’t and that his father
would definitely not be happy with.
“You’re too innocent even if you’re a dragon hero,” Dagur purred as he undid
the ties to Hiccup’s trousers and slipped his hand inside.
Now despite being a little drunk and certainly not feeling well Hiccup was not
as naïve as he might seem. He knew immediately that what Dagur was doing was
wrong and grappled to pull his hand away and cover himself. “No!” he yelled
only to have a hand slapped over his mouth as Dagur fought to grab his flailing
hands with his free one and then pin them over his head.
“Now stop…stop it, Hiccup. You’re acting babyish again. You want this, don’t
deny it, and it’s exactly what you need. You’ll be sweating buckets in no time
and we’ll both feel real good.” Dagur slowly moved his hand away from Hiccup’s
mouth. “Now we don’t want your Daddy or dragon walking in on us so I suggest
you stay as quiet as possible.”
“Don’t do this,” Hiccup begged softly.
A soft, almost adoring smile flashed across Dagur’s face before he lowered his
head and kissed him once more. “Don’t worry, Hic,” he whispered against the
brunette’s lips as he slipped one hand down Hiccup’s pants once more. He slowly
began massaging his balls and running his thumb over the head of Hiccup’s
slowly awakening dick. “This is exactly what the doctor ordered.”
Hiccup closed his eyes and tried not to feel but his body seemed super
sensitive and not under his control. He bucked under Dagur and tried to
suppress a moan when a wave of pleasure rolled over him. He subconsciously
pushed into Dagur’s warm callused hand and rubbed against it, making Dagur
chuckle in delight.
“Only a few little touches and you’re already getting hard? I haven’t even
started with the fun part,” he laughed before hushing and focusing on his task.
When Hiccup seemed like a mewing little kitten he released his arms, waited to
see if the boy would fight him, then began pulling his pants down once more.
Who said alcohol couldn’t cure a cold? He threw the trousers and underpants on
the floor without much flourish the pulled Hiccup’s tunic over his head and
threw it on the pile. Then he paused to admire the beautiful pale and freckled
boy spread out on the furs almost wonton like. It made things low in him
tighten with need and grow very, very warm just like when he first saw Hiccup
fight that Nightfury. Lies!
He frowned as he remembered that Hiccup hadn’t actually fought that Nightfury
but was play acting. Everything was a lie and that was why they were where they
were now rather than brothers…well in all honesty had they killed the Nightfury
together they probably would have celebrated with a good hard romp on Dragon
Island but since that didn’t go as planned and Hiccup had to be a little prick
than that was exactly what he would get right now up that tight, perky, hot
little ass.
Licking his lips he began removing his clothing, just his armor and tunic – no
need to completely undress in case Stoick suddenly walked in, he might need to
make a hasty retreat. But rather than climb between Hiccup’s legs and simply
taking him as the younger boy obviously feared he nuzzled the amputated leg,
kissing and licking it and gently nipping at the edge of the scar tissue when
the skin was still soft and very, very sensitive. Hiccup jumped and tried to
pull away only to have Dagur’s lips move further up again but this time they
didn’t stop – there was nothing in the way now – they continued on until Dagur
was rubbing his face into Hiccup’s balls and cock.
“Stop…please stop,” Hiccup whispered only to have his words turn into a squeak
when Dagur first licked his ball sack and then took his cock into his mouth.
Hiccup’s eyes grew impossibly wide when that tender part of him was suddenly
sucked, gently at first and then more powerfully. It was the oddest and perhaps
best sensation he ever felt – although if asked he would never ever admit to
it. “Ngh…uh…” he moaned as he lifted his hips. Then it was done all too soon
and Hiccup felt oddly disappointed.
Covering his face Hiccup tried to think while Dagur wasn’t touching him. It was
as if his body and mind were no longer connected. His mind screamed he didn’t
want this but his body obviously had other plans because if he glanced down the
length of his body he’d see his cock standing straight up at attention and
weeping for more.
“You like that, huh?” Dagur breathed in Hiccup’s ear when the Hooligan heir
turned his head away from him. Dagur ran his tongue over the shell of the ear
lobe before dipping inside. “You like your cock sucked? I do, too but we’ll
save that for later…after you kiss my boots.”
“You have a strange fetish of me kissing your boots,” Hiccup tried to joke but
it came out a little garbled when Dagur bit the big vein on his neck. He gave a
little whine but he wasn’t sure if it was in pain or a deranged sort of
pleasure.
“Oh I have other places you’ll be kissing, too,” Dagur assured as he returned
to stroking Hiccup’s length.
Hiccup gave a little moan. This was better than when he touched himself but he
couldn’t understand why. How could Dagur – the deranged kid who wanted to kill
his Toothless and had tormented him half his life – make him feel so good? He
should be fighting him not letting the guy do what he wanted to his body as if
he were some sort of toy. “Dagur…stop. This isn’t right…we shouldn’t…uh…” He
tried pulling Dagur’s hand away only to wrap his fingers around the older boy’s
wrist, unable to think when a wave of pleasure nearly sent him over the edge.
His back arched and he was sure to lose his load but Dagur have his cock a
squeeze, halting any chance of cumming.
“You like that, hey baby? You want to cum, don’t you? In my mouth maybe?” Dagur
purred, licking Hiccup’s lips once morning before nipping the bottom one, this
time a little harder, and then sucking on it as if to kiss it better. “I’ll let
you, you know. I’ll let you cum as many times as you want. I’ll make you cum so
hard it’ll feel like your entire world exploded but on two conditions.”
Staring up at Dagur with hooded eyes Hiccup couldn’t help but give a tiny nod.
Even though he was sure this was wrong there was something in him demanding
more.
A sly, predatory grin filled ever corner of Dagur face as he removed his helmet
and set it on the side table. “Alright…remember you agreed to this and there’s
no changing your mind even if you’re not happy with the conditions.”
He should say no, Hiccup knew this, he knew that he wouldn’t like what Dagur
would demand, but his mind was becoming increasingly muddled by not only the
alcohol but also Dagur expert touches. His mind momentarily wandered as he
wondered how Dagur could be so experienced.
The Berserker leaned on one arm as he circled a finger around one of Hiccup’s
perk nipples, slowly making it hard and pebble like. “First, no matter what I
do you have to stay completely and utterly quiet. Make a noise and I get to
punish you.” He paused for Hiccup’s reaction and smiled when there was only a
widening of his feverish beautiful emerald green eyes. “Second, you’re not to
tell anyone about this, no one. This will be our secret, understand? If you can
follow these two conditions I’ll reward you handsomely. Now, do you want it wet
or dry?”
“What?” Hiccup asked only to have Dagur shake with laughter before kissing him.
“So innocent. Alright, here, get these good and wet and I’ll show you. Next
time we’ll try it dry…maybe.” He slipped three fingers into Hiccup’s mouth and
gave a little groan when the Hooligan didn’t bite him but began lathering them
with saliva. The feel of that warm, slick appendage sliding over his callused
fingers shot pleasure straight to his groin and after only a minute he had to
pull his fingers free for fear of cumming in his pants rather that the warmth
of his bedmate’s ass. He slid those well coated fingers between Hiccup’s legs
and circled his puckered hole. “Now remember no noise or I’ll have to punish
you severely…maybe gut your dragon right before your eyes.” He wasn’t sure why
he said that but it had the desired effect. Hiccup’s eyes widened in fear but
he buttoned his lip and fought hard not to make a sound as Dagur pushed a
finger into his tight cavern. Neither broke eye contact as that first finger
pushed and pulled, thrust in and out oh so slowly until Dagur found that
special little spot that made Hiccup’s eyes roll into the back of his head and
he bit his fist to keep in a muffled cry. “Good boy,” Dagur cooed as he brushed
his lips over Hiccup’s forehead. “Let’s try two.”
The second finger slid in easily although Hiccup thrashed a little and his back
arched, subconsciously pushing those fingers deeper inside him. He still fought
to muffle his cries as the once slow and gentle thrusts became more deliberate,
pushing on the young Hooligan Heir’s prostrate with each thrust. Hiccup’s eyes
fluttered and he feared he couldn’t take it anymore. He was going to explode if
Dagur didn’t let him cum.
Dagur scissored his fingers, stretching Hiccup’s tight muscles and working them
until they were pliable and more than capable of handling his raging hard-on.
Then, when it looked as if Hiccup could take it no more he pulled out his
fingers and undid his trousers, releasing his cock. It stood high and proud,
drafting Hiccup’s – but then Hiccup was not yet fully grown – and for a brief
moment he wondered if it would fit. But of course Dagur knew from experience
that looks could be deceiving so putting aside his momentary fear he lined up
the head of his weeping dick and with more gentleness than he ever showed
anyone else, he pushed into his partner.
Hiccup made a strangled sound, his eyes widened and then screwing shut as his
muscles tightened around the intruding organ. “Stop…stop…it’s too big,” he
cried, his voice just above a whisper as if afraid to break Dagur’s rules. His
small hands shot up to push against Dagur’s chest, as if he could possible
shove the much larger boy off him.
“Shh…what did I say about sound,” Dagur chastised as he continued forward,
loving the way Hiccup’s muscles squeezed his length as if hugging him and
sucking him in. He hummed appreciatively. Oh he could get used to this. “Do…do
I need to punish you?” He pushed all the way in, purposely avoiding Hiccup’s
prostrate in hopes of making this last as long as possible. He should have
taken one of his ties and wrapped it around his cock but alas his need
outweighed any desire to be truly kinky. There was always next time.
He waited long enough for Hiccup to adjust to having something so deep inside
him before he began moving, slowly at first and then with more gusto as the
tight muscles loosened and moistened. It was next to impossible for Hiccup to
stay silent once Dagur got started. He gasped and whimpered with each thrust,
his body arching whenever his prostrate was brushed even the slightest. His
fingers moved from Dagur’s chest to his shoulders, his fingernails digging into
the muscled flesh as his legs wrapped around the larger boy’s hips as if by
their own accord, clinging to him for all he was worth.
Dagur chuckled and thrust harder, encouraged by Hiccup’s actions. He knew
Hiccup wanted him as much as he wanted Hiccup. There was always that sexual
tension between them and now they both had proof of it.
“Mine,” he growled as his pace increased. He rolled his hips, aiming for that
special spot in his lover, needing to hear Hiccup’s voice, not just that
whimper or muffled cry but a full on scream of desire, need and pleasure. He
wanted to make Hiccup beg and demand more, to scream his name for all to hear.
Then he’d give Hiccup a fitting punishment before doing it all again. “All
mine.”
He was pounding into the smaller boy now. He paused only long enough to
reposition Hiccup, pushing him onto his right side and lifting his amputated
leg as high as it would go before plunging in again. Hiccup was unable to
muffle his cry in time and it was like music to Dagur and spurred him on until
somehow, almost as if the gods had given Hiccup extra strength, the boy pulled
his leg free and reached up to drag Dagur down to him and into a heated kiss.
Dagur was taken aback but only for a moment before he yanked Hiccup up and onto
his lap where he bounced the Hooligan on his cock and reached even deeper than
he imagined possible.
When the kiss broke he moaned into Hiccup ear. “You have no idea how long I’ve
waited for this, Hiccup. We would have sealed our brotherhood on Dragon Island
like this. I would have fucked you senseless…I am going to fuck you senseless
now. You’ve got good sweat going now but you’re making an awful lot of noise.
It looks like I am going to have to punish you.” On a downward thrust he
slapped Hiccup’s ass, not hard enough to leave a bruise – Thor forbid if Stoick
ever found out he deflowered his precious little boy – but enough to leave a
sting.
Hiccup gasped but it didn’t so much hurt as had a new wave of pleasure that was
already befuddling his mind. Another slap and he yelped and clung to Dagur,
confused by why such a thing was making him even harder. A third slap and his
nails raked down Dagur’s back, leaving a bloody trail as he moaned and pushed
down. A forth, mixed with a hard upward thrust that nailed his prostrate head
on sent him over the edge. His inner muscles tightened to a near strangle hold
on Dagur’s cock as he came hard and mouth fell open in a scream that Dagur
quickly silenced with a fierce kiss. His seed spurted all over Dagur’s tone
stomach and sculpted chest in pearly white streams of cum. Then with a murmured
sigh he collapsed against Dagur, his small hands now weak still clinging to the
older boy’s shoulders even as exhaustion took him.
Disappointment filled Dagur as he felt Hiccup go limp in his arms but it didn’t
last long as he laid the Hooligan Heir back on the furs, not once breaking
contact, not that he could. Even passed out Hiccup’s muscles were clamped down
almost painfully hard on his dick. Most men might have found this incredibly
painful but it only spurred Dagur on. He leaned over Hiccup, balancing on his
forearms as he continued thrusting, aiming at his love’s prostrate once more in
hopes of triggering a second orgasm in him as well as his own release. Watching
that lovely, peaceful face scrunch up in pleasure, so expressive and filled
with enthusiasm even in such an exhausted state was perhaps that most beautiful
thing he had ever seen in his entire life, better than battle or bloodshed or
conquering a dragon. This…this was what he wanted most in life, what he would
give his own life to possess and keep in his arms forever.
He reared up as his orgasm overcame him. It was as if his cock exploded, his
seed shooting in hot gushes up Hiccup’s channel to fill him. It last only a few
moments before he slumped forward and thrust a few more times, pumping the last
of his seed deep into Hiccup’s warm belly. Once he was empty he leaned over his
love and gave a low throaty chuckle. “Spanking…who would have guessed?” He
laughed softly to himself as he flopped on the large bed next to Hiccup. “I’ll
need to remember that for next time.” He took a moment to recuperate and then
dragged himself out of bed to fix himself and then clean Hiccup up and redress
him. He was pleasantly surprised to see that Hiccup was indeed drenched in
sweat. Not giving the younger boy a chance to cool down he quickly dressed
Hiccup and covered him in two heavy furs from the trunk at the end of Stoick’s
bed. Then, feeling the edges of exhaustion tugging at his mind he stoked the
fire once more then climbed back into bed – careful to make sure he slept above
the covers as to keep the heat with Hiccup and not let it escape – and snuggled
into the youth. Hiccup was officially his now and he was never going to let him
go.
***** Chapter 8 *****
Option Three 8
The hut hadn’t burned down and according to the guards there hadn’t been any
frightful screams although one of the men laughed and reported that the two
boys were rather noisy for a little while before wandering off with a little
smile. Stoick gave him a perplexed look, not liking the implications. Toothless
gave him a worried look and nosed him to hurry up and get inside before
something bad happened to their boy. Juggling his parcels into Gobber’s arms,
Stoick quickly opened the door to his home, fearing the worse. He walked into
what at first appeared to be an empty house with a cooling hearth that only had
a few remaining embers.
Stoick moved to the stairs, ready to go up to Hiccup’s room when he caught
movement from his room near the back of the hut. He tilted his head in
curiosity and headed toward it. “Hiccup?” he called out.
“Shh…” Dagur’s voice answered. “He’s still asleep.”
Stoick’s eyes narrowed as he watched the young chieftain sauntered out of his
room and stretched as he entered the main living space. The young man looked
far too smug but Stoick wasn’t going to assume anything until he looked in on
his son. “How did things go?” he asked as Gobber set what he had purchased on
the table.
“Not bad. I made him sweat it out. Took a lot of work though. He can be
stubborn as a yak when he wants to,” Dagur said off handedly as he took an
apple off the table. He bit into it and chewed thoughtfully before saying; “But
it could have been worse. At least he doesn’t whine like my sister when she’s
sick. Gods I hate taking care of her when she’s sick. But a lot of heat and
steam and poof…all better. Definitely worth it.”
Gobber chuckled. “Ah, you’ve seen the good side of sick Hiccup. Just wait, in a
day or two when it starts taking its toll on him mentally and physically he’ll
be whining and hiding under the covers as he coughs up a lung. Last year the
poor boy tried hiding he was sick until it was almost too late and Snotlout had
to call his father to help care for him until Stoick got home. He’s definitely
stubborn but it’ll only last another day before ‘little Hiccup’ shows his face,
especially considering he’s missing all the festivities. I kind of miss little
Hiccup. He’s cute when he’s sick and needy.”
Dagur looked a little thoughtful at that. “Perhaps I ought to stick around…you
know, in case you need a babysitter.” He gave his most innocent smile and once
more Stoick was frowning.
“That’s very generous of you, Dagur, but I’m sure Hiccup will be fine under
Toothless’s care,” Stoick said as he strolled toward his room to check on his
son.
“Toothless?” Dagur asked wondering who this old man who was going to take care
of his Hiccup was.
Gobber laughed as he scratched the ebony dragon’s head as it glared cautiously
at the Berserker. It leaned into the large hand after a moment and gave a purr
like a giant cat. “Yes, Toothless,” Gobber said as if it should have been
obvious. “He and Hiccup are practically attached at the hip. Sort of like
brothers.”
Dagur gave a low growl at that and the Nightfury returned it with one of his
own. His fingers curled, itching for a weapon but with a great amount of effort
kept his calm. For whatever reason Hiccup care for this creature.
A small sigh of relief escaped Stoick when he saw Dagur and Toothless staying
reasonably calm. He slipped into his room, certain Gobber could handle the two
– thankfully Dagur had no weapons and the old warrior was one walking weapon.
He moved to his bed and the small figure curled up under a mound of furs.
Careful not to wake his boy, Stoick lifted the bottom edge with bated breathe.
A skinny pair of legs – the left missing the lower half of his calf, ankle and
foot – clad in faded grass green trousers met his eyes. He let out the breath
he was holding and then just to be certain, lifted the furs a little higher
until he saw the hem of Hiccup’s tunic. Relief filled him and he fixed the furs
around the boy’s slim form and then checked his temperature. A smile lit his
face when he discovered Hiccup’s fever almost gone. He was still warmer than
usual but not nearly as hot as the day before. That was a welcome change. He
decided to let his boy sleep and returned to the other two males.
He expected that now that he was relieved of duty Dagur would have taken off
after threatening vengeance or demanding Toothless on a silver platter or some
such nonsense that had become rather typical of the young man but surprisingly
the boy sat at the table happily chowing down on breakfast without a care in
the world – although it was obvious that he was pointedly ignoring Toothless,
as if by not acknowledging the Nightfury that it was still fair play to hunt
and Toothless for the most part acted the same and lumbered off outside and
away from the troublesome chieftain. Stoick only shook his head. Dagur was not
one he could ever fully understand. Even when he was a child he was…well a
little off but since the boy was a guest in his home Stoick had to play host
whether he wanted to or not, part of being a chief. So he set about unpacking
some of his purchases as Gobber bean mixing ingredients together for something
special for Hiccup.
. . .
The first thing to weave its way into Hiccup’s foggy mind was that drinking was
a very bad thing followed by the smell of fresh fruit and something baking. He
breathed in deeply, enjoying the scents that rarely filled his home. While his
father tried hard he was often far too busy to bake anything other than bread
the odd time. Usually the town bakers would bring them bake goods. Now and then
Gobber would make him something and that was a rare but pleasant treat. He
highly doubted Dagur had the patience or focus to bake anything.
As the delicious scents slowly registered in Hiccup’s mind he also came to
realize that many of the smells were not native to Berk. He groggily lifted his
head and took a deep breathe through his nose then inhaled sharply. It came!
He practically jumped out of bed and nearly fell to the floor in a tangle of
furs and the harsh realization that he was missing his prosthetic but he caught
himself and managed to stay on the edge of the bed. He took another deep
breathe filled with those wonder scents and determination filled him. Ignoring
the strange pain in his tailbone he pulled the furs off and looked about for
the spare crutch that was usually in the room in case he happened to fall
asleep on his father’s bed. It wasn’t far away but it did take a little work
and a lot of effort to reach it without falling over. Once he had it though he
made short work of getting to the kitchen where as his hopes came true.
There on the table was a huge bowl of ripe fruit from the mainland and some
from far south, further than Trader Johann usually travelled. “He came!” Hiccup
called out in way of greeting as he hobbled to the table and all but threw
himself in an empty seat to reach for a ripe mango. He hadn’t had one in months
since it was so rare for the traders to be able to transport them so far north
without them spoiling. He looked happily at the pineapples and papayas and
grapes and so much more.
Stoick laughed and ruffled his hair. “Someone’s feeling much better, I see,” he
said happily as he placed a plate of strawberry flapjacks with true maple syrup
in front of him which was so much better than the usual porridge and usually
something he got when he spent the night at Gobber’s when he was little. He
smiled at his mentor, happy to have him there.
“I take it you’re feeling better,” Dagur asked in a low almost sensual purr
that made Hiccup jump in surprise. He had completely forgotten about the older
boy. He thought he had dreamed Dagur was there and that they…eh…had sex? That
little tingle of pain raced up his tailbone and deep inside him as well as
sudden heat which caused him to flush in embarrassment. That only made Dagur
laugh.
“Yes,” Hiccup whispered unable to hide the blush that colored his ears.
Thankfully his father and Gobber were oblivious as they chattered about Trader
Henry who came to especially to Berk for the festivities and to bring Hiccup
some of his favorite tropical fruit that he had fallen in love with after a
trip far south a few years back. Hiccup tried to pay attention but it was
rather hard when Dagur’s hand slid under the table to massage his thigh and
stroke his nether regions.
“So you both have learned to get along?” Stoick asked as he took his seat at
the head of the table. He frowned slightly at the redness in Hiccup’s cheeks.
Perhaps he was wrong and Hiccup wasn’t quite better yet. “You seem a little
friendlier this morning.”
Dagur gave a bright smile. “We’re great.”
Hiccup hesitated but then nodded, afraid his voice might give him away.
Stoick beamed. “Excellent! You see, Hiccup, just like that situation with
Snotlout and Astrid, Option Three can go down like a treat.”
Dagur nodded in complete agreement. “A very delicious treat.”
Hiccup choked when Dagur gave his groin a squeeze. He had to hit his chest and
then Dagur had to smack his back before he was able to take a deep breath and
compose himself. “Ahh…”
“Are you alright, Hiccup?” his father asked as he reached forward to check his
forehead once more.
“Ahh…”
“Perhaps you should go back to bed.”
“I can stay and keep you company,” Dagur offered, his thumb circling the
erection growing in Hiccup’s pants.
Hiccup paled. He didn’t know what to do or say that would not make the
situation worse. He hummed softly, searching his brain for a way out of this
situation but he couldn’t really move without his dad and Gobber discovering
his boner and getting him and Dagur in more trouble than necessary but if he
just sat there and let Dagur keep touching him then he would cum in his pants
and there was no logical way to explain that without again getting into
trouble. Right now all he wanted to do was bash his head off the table.
Thankfully Toothless came to his rescue and never before was he so happy to see
his best friend.
Toothless bounded inside when he heard his rider, practically knocking the door
off its hinges in his need to be with his best friend. He bounced around the
room, his tail swishing and a playful look on his big black face. He bunted his
head against Hiccup’s and then started to lick his face and groom his hair as
if to tell him he smelt funny and needed a thorough bath, something he only did
if Hiccup got really dirty.
“Toothless!” Hiccup cried out, throwing his arms around the wide neck and
hugging as tightly as he could. He laughed at the treatment and nuzzled into
his friend. “I missed you, too, bud. Did that big mean Viking treat you well
while I was stuck here or did he make you go chiefing with him?” He gave his
dad a cheeky grin before rubbing his face into Toothless’s cool scales and
scratched the dragon’s chin affectionately.
No one noticed the hurt on Dagur’s face as he watched the two. No one saw the
small sheen of tears that clung to his eye lashes before they were linked away
and his face hardened and filled with hate. How dare that Nightfury steal his
Hiccup? How dare it steal Hiccup’s attention? Hiccup was his! His! His hands
balled into fists and had he a weapon he would have attacked the blasted dragon
and take its head. He would free Hiccup of whatever spell the beast had placed
over Hiccup and then…then he’d wear its skull as a helmet while he fucked
Hiccup so hard he’d forget all about this…this Toothless.
Not bothering with goodbye Dagur stood from the table and left through the open
door. He paused just outside and lanced back, hoping Hiccup would take notice
of his departure but the heir was too busy fawning over the stupid Nightfury.
Hate and determination filled him and his hands balled into fists. He’ll make
this right. He’ll make Hiccup see that they belonged together and that beast
was better mounted on a wall.
Nodding to himself he stomped off to find his tribesmen. One way or another
Hiccup and his Nightfury would be his.
. . .
Hiccup giggled as Toothless knocked him over. “Okay, okay…that’s enough…he
he…Toothless.” He laughed and rolled out from under the dragon. “Hey, Dagur,
it’s time you and Toothless were officially intro…duced?” He blinked and looked
around. Dagur was gone. Standing up he looked about once more. “Dagur?”
Glancing at his father and mentor raised a questioning brow. “Where is he?”
Gobber glanced at the open door. “He must have left.”
Confusion filled the youth as he glanced at the doorway. His brows came
together. “Why?”
Stoick placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. “You know how he is, my boy. The
lad has always been…a bit off. Perhaps he’s just a little jealous of Toothless.
I’m sure it’s nothing serious.”
Hiccup worried his lower lip. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach
but he wasn’t given much time to think about it as Snotlout came running
through the door before Stoick could close it.
“You’re awake!” his cousin cheered unusually happy to see Hiccup on his feet or
rather foot.
Hiccup leaned against the table and shrugged. “Ah…yeah?”
“Good! Grab your metal le and lets go…wait, are you feeling better? Doesn’t
matter, all you have to do is stand we’ll do the rest,” Snotlout said quickly
as he grabbed Hiccup’s arm and began pulling him toward the door without giving
him a chance to put the prosthetic on. He just grabbed it along the way and
supported the younger boy as if afraid Hiccup would say no otherwise.
“Wait…what’s wrong? Snotlout, let go and tell me what’s going on,” Hiccup
insisted as he hopped along.
“Tuffnut sprained his ankle so we’re down a player for Bashy Ball and we made
it to the championship so I need you to be goalie,” Snotlout explained in a
rush even as Stoick stopped him in order to help Hiccup get his prosthetic on
before going any further. The dark haired teen was bouncing on his toes. “I
know you suck but it’s not as if the ball is going to get anywhere near you and
I know you’re sick – you look a hell of a lot better by the way, what did Dagur
do to you? – but there’s no one else; Gustov is way too small to defend the net
although admittedly he’s better than you – got that from me you know – but he’s
not in the right weight or age class so…”
Hiccup rubbed the bridge of his nose. “What? Snotlout, no. I hate bashy ball. I
completely suck at it.”
“Astrid said you’d never agree to it but I am not forfeiting to Thuggory. The
Hooligans tribe has their honor to keep and…well…you’re our future chief and we
need you. There, happy now?”
“No.”
Snotlout’s lips became an angry line and he was nearly ready to simply throw
Hiccup over his should and tie him to the net but a better idea popped in his
head and he gave Stoick pleading eyes. “Doesn’t he understand how losing to the
Meatheads will disgrace the Hooligans long standing winning streak? We haven’t
lost the championship in well over forty years. You and Dad were the first to
win us that cup and I would really hate to lose it just because your heir
refused to defend it.”
It worked. Stoick glanced at Hiccup. “Sometimes a chief needs to put his
tribe’s need before their own. Who’s your defense men?”
“Astrid and Fishlegs,” Snotlout said quickly.
Stoick nodded as if satisfied.
Hiccup groaned. “Can I just go back to bed? I’m pretty sure I’m still too sick
and weak for this,” he whined and actually tried to make himself look sick and
pitiable but it didn’t work and he found himself being dragged toward the
arena. “I’ll even say yes to Dagur babysitting me again!” he called to his
father who only smiled and waved goodbye. “You hate me, don’t you?”
Stoick only chuckled. “Good luck, son. Snotlout, if he gets hurt it’s your head
I’m after.”
“There better be real padding this time,” Hiccup grumbled dejectedly as
Snotlout wrapped an arm around his slim shoulders. “Last time I broke an arm
and got a skull fracture.”
His cousin shrugged and gave him a squeeze. “Don’t worry, after that incident
your old man made it a rule the goalies have padding, especially in the
championships so you’ll be completely covered. And who knows, maybe Dagur will
be watching the game.” At Hiccup’s blush he raised a suspicious brow. “You
going to tell me how your night was with Dagur?”
“Nope.”
“Then why are you blushing?”
“None of your business, Snotlout.”
“Did you?”
“Nope.”
“Did he?”
“Nope.”
“Your ears are bright red. Brighter than that time you broke Gobber’s favorite
hammer and tried to blame it on me,” Snotlout pointed out with a growing grin.
“It was you!”
“Bah, you’re such a horrible liar. Come on, spill.”
“Nothing to spill.”
Snotlout folded his arms across his chest. “You know I have other ways of
getting the truth out of you.”
Hiccup gave him a sideways glance. “Uh huh? Don’t have enough time to do
anything before the game,” he joked, knowing his cousin well enough that if he
really wanted to know something there was no way to stop him other than to
distract him with something else. “Tooth!” he called as he began running toward
the arena. He leapt onto the Nightfury’s back and connected his foot before his
cousin had a chance to stop him. In this case bashy ball sounded like the
greatest thing in the world compared to telling Snotlout what really happened
with Dagur.
That thought fled from his mind once he and Toothless were in the air. He
glanced toward the harbor and spotted Dagur with his uncle as the two boarded
their vessel. Hiccup’s brows bunched in confusion. Why was Dagur leaving?
Thorsday Thursday wasn’t over for a few more days. Was it something he did?
Okay, so he wasn’t all that keen on getting filled up in front of his dad and
mentor but that didn’t mean he had to leave. Hiccup was thoroughly confused. He
thought that maybe after what had happened last night that they had finally
gotten over their differences. But the memory of the threats Dagur said wormed
their way into Hiccup’s mind. No, last night wasn’t a mutual thing. Dagur had
tricked him, gotten him drunk and used his sickness against him. He didn’t
remember much of the night before but he knew that he wasn’t a completely
willing participant.
Closing his eyes he sighed. “Come on, bud, let’s go to and get this over with.
If Dagur didn’t bruise me a bashy ball to the face or chest ought to. Maybe
it’ll knock some sense back into me.”
Yet in the back of his mind he still wondered why Dagur had done what he had
and if Dagur really did care for him or if he ever did. Oddly enough that
thought made his chest tighten in ways it never had before and only served to
confuse him more.
Surprisingly the game went rather well regardless of him replacing Tuffnut and
Snotlout had kept his word – which was even odder – and had a face covering
helmet and padding waiting for him. No one ever wore padding despite how many
times Hiccup suggested it when he used to be forced to play as a kid. Snotlout
tried to take credit but in reality it was Fishlegs who had come about the
makeshift protective gear – a flattened pillow to cover Hiccup’s chest, stomach
and groin and some swiped armor from the armory that were made for novice
warriors. Most was a little too big for Hiccup but beggars weren’t going to be
choosers.
For the most part Hiccup really didn’t have to do anything. The Hooligans and
Meatheads were evenly matched and it was hard for either side to score on the
other’s net. And the hour long game became rather boring until Astrid passed
the ball to Ruffnut who managed to fake out some of the other players and
passed it to Snotlout who finally landed a goal. And of course the raven haired
boy had to crow about his minute victory with only seconds on the clock. Of
course Thuggory, who knew Snotlout weakness was his gloating, used that to his
advantage and shot past him with the ball, passing it back and forth with his
teammates to avoid the Hooligans and lined up to score a goal against Hiccup.
The young heir of the Hooligan’s breath hitched. He hated this game, he really
did and Thuggory had perhaps one of the most powerful kicks next to Snotlout
which meant padding or not Hiccup was in for a lot of pain.
Snotlout and the others were running toward them, hoping to get ahead of
Thuggory and knowing there was no chance of stealing the ball, each yelling
orders to Hiccup but they were washed away in the roar of the crowd. Thuggory
kicked…
Now if you’ve ever played bashy ball you might compare it to soccer after all
there was a rather large net for Hiccup to cover but the ball was much harder
and the chances of being seriously hurt were great, still something came over
Hiccup and rather than avoid the ball as he normally would he launched himself
at it. It slammed into his chest and knocked him back but he rolled with the
momentum to avoid injury. It hurt despite the padding and he hit the ground
hard.
Silence filled the arena as everyone waited with baited breath to see the
outcome and then cheers erupted when Hiccup lifted his head and opened his arms
to reveal that he had caught the ball and kept it from entering the net. It
surprised the crowd as much as it did Hiccup. The bell rang signaling the end
of the game and Mulch announced the Hooligan as the reigning champions.
“We won?” Hiccup asked when Fishlegs hauled him to his feet.
His friend smiled brightly. “We won!” And before anyone else could say a word
the large boy hoisted him into the air and onto his shoulder to parade him out
to the masses.
“Hey, I shot the winning goal,” Snotlout objected as he chased after them.
For a moment Hiccup was in a daze and couldn’t believe what had happened. He
glanced up to see his father smiling proudly at him from his throne and Hiccup
took off his helmet to smile back before searching the stands to see if maybe
Dagur had returned to watch the game but no such luck. Dagur had truly left and
perhaps that was for the best. He did spot Toothless next to his father and
waved happily at his dragon and best friend. So far the last day and a half
were the weirdest of his young life but as long as Fishlegs didn’t bounce him
around too much – his tailbone was still very tender – he was going to be just
fine.
. . .
Dagur glanced up when he heard the cheers and applause coming from the arena.
He had seen Hiccup flying there earlier and could only guess the cheering had
something to do with him and his Nightfury. His lips curled in disgust. He
should have kidnapped Hiccup while he had the chance. The frown only deepened
when the Outcast’s old mumbler hobbled up to stand next to him. Why the old man
had insisted on coming yet refused to leave the ship was beyond him. Either way
he was as annoying as his father’s father.
“What do want, old man?” he snapped, not interested in another of his war
stories.
“Just curious if your thoughts are with Hiccup or his dragon,” the man asked as
he leaned against his staff.
“That’s none of your business.”
The old man nodded but continued nonetheless. “Separating a boy from his dragon
is tricky business, especially when that boy and dragon are Hiccup and
Toothless. Trust me, I’ve tried. They’re like two sides of the same coin. You
can’t destroy one without destroying the other. Hiccup would die for Toothless
and vice versa. I’m just curious as to what means more to you; the boy you’re
obviously infatuated with or the trophy the Nightfury will make.”
Dagur thought about that for a moment before opening his mouth to respond but
before he could utter a word the old man had hobbled off. “The dragon stole my
brother. Hiccup was always meant to be mine.”
The old man nodded. “Then make the decision that is best for you both.”
Dagur already had and that was to destroy the Nightfury. With it gone then
Hiccup would be all his.
Mildew closed his eyes. He could see Dagur making the same mistakes he did when
it came to Hiccup and Toothless but for completely different reasons and he
hoped beyond hope that if Dagur truly cared for Hiccup that he would make the
right choice and let them be. Too much heart ache came with trying to change
fate but only time would tell.
The End?
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