Family Reunions

The black-sailed ship moored in the deep cove behind Raven Point as a small boat pulled swiftly away and bit into the sand. A single shape leapt from the boat and dragged it further up the sand, then pulled the hood up over his head and scrambled up the very steep and rugged cliff path to the forest. Hiccup ducked his head and peered back at the ship, moored under the moonlight, before darting into the shadow of the trees. He knew the forest like the back of his hands, for he had been raised close by here, the Haddock mansion situated less than a mile from the forest's edge. Of course, he was taking his life in his hands in this suicidal mission but he hadn't had the opportunity-or need- to come back. Until now.

His long legs hurdled the fallen trees and branches as he steadily jogged through the familiar, gloomy forest. He had spent his happiest hours here, time spent on his own or with Astrid... He pulled himself back to the present and focussed. If he was caught here, the best he could expect was sentencing to slavery in the galleys of Meathead and Berserk but hanging was more likely. He shook his head as he dived through the shadows and saw the trees thin ahead. Then he slowed and paused, his eyes picking out the familiar edges of the house he had spent his childhood in.

Sticking to the darkness, he approached cautiously. He knew he was silent and his grey cloak concealed him efficiently. His scarf covered his lower face, concealing his pale skin and the shadows from the hood shielded his piercing green eyes. He peered at the side of the building as he silently approached, inspected the window and, seeing light on in the room, he grabbed the wood of the shutters and began to swarm up the side of the house, pausing at the window, then silently sliding into the room.

The man in the room was concentrating hard on his task, polishing his sword carefully and diligently, so he didn't see the intruder until he felt a tap on his shoulder. he looked up-to see the tip of a sword inches from his face.

"Put the sword down!" Hiccup said in a growl. The other man spun, his sword slamming up and adopting a fighting stance.

"No," he sneered, his blue eyes focussing on the tall cloaked shape in front of him. "I will not be threatened by a thieving vagabond!" Hiccup tapped his sword against the other man's, staring down at him. The man was half a head shorter than Hiccup but unlike the tall, lean pirate, he was stocky and powerfully built. His hair was jet black and his blue eyes were clear and narrowed as he focussed on the intruder. He had clearly had a lot of training in arms.

"I don't want to fight you," Hiccup told him gruffly. The shorter man advanced, his motions lighter than expected. He gave an ugly scowl.

"Then you shouldn't have broken into my room, bandit!" he sneered, lunging at the pirate. Hiccup parried elegantly, his riposte measured as the other man began hacking and thrusting at him, the attack ferocious and very powerful. Dodging and blocking, Hiccup sighed. This was probably par for the course but he really didn't want to injure this man. He paused, then rapidly twisted his sword around the short man's and disarmed him, smacking his hand sharply with the flat of his blade and digging the point of his sword into the man's throat.

"As I said, I don't want to fight you," he repeated. The man scowled more furiously.

"I won't beg, you coward!" he snapped. "I am the Heir to Governor Stoick and I will not disgrace my family."

"How's that going for you, Snot?" Hiccup asked pointedly, his blade still digging into the other man's throat. The man narrowed his eyes and his scowl dropped a little.

"What...?" he asked. Hiccup sighed and reached up, dragging his hood back to reveal his tousled auburn hair. The other man still looked puzzled so, with a sigh, he dragged the scarf off his face and gave a weak grin, lowering his sword.

"Hi, cuz," he sighed.

The other man gaped, his blue eyes widening and then he lunged forward, his arms locking around the pirate in a bone-crushing hug. "HICCUP!" he exclaimed, his face creasing into a smile as he squeezed tighter. Hiccup groaned in pain.

"SNOTLOUT!" he gasped. "AIR!" Snotlout finally released him with an embarrassed grin and gave him a friendly punch on the shoulder which had Hiccup wincing and rubbing the point of impact.

"Where've you been?" Snotlout demanded, his voice concerned. Hiccup sheathed his sword and frowned.

"Um...didn't Dad tell you...?" he asked awkwardly, leaning back against the wall. Snotlout dragged up a chair and gestured and self-consciously, Hiccup perched on the chair. Snotlout nodded.

"He told me some stupid story, cuz, but I want to know what happen to my little cuz? Why...?" he began. Hiccup felt his stomach clench.

"He found out about Astrid," he revealed quietly. Snotlout stared: he had known about the friendship for years, though he had never dreamed of telling his Uncle.

"Oh...I'm sorry," he said genuinely. "H-how?" Hiccup swallowed.

"I have a suspicion," he said in a low voice but his eyes stared at the floor. Snotlout stared at him: the cousin he recalled had been small, very skinny, clumsy and dorky. This tall, lean, agile pirate wasn't what he had expected his little cousin to become-though the adult face was still his cousin, the stunning and vulnerable emerald eyes the ones he had stared at throughout childhood.

"Who?" The green eyes flicked up.

"Burplout...sorry, Magne," Hiccup stated flatly. Snotlout stared at him and groaned.

Burplout-named in line with the Jorgensen's ludicrous naming traditions (horrible bodily function/fluid+'lout') was his younger brother, just over a year younger than Snotlout but a year older than Hiccup. Burplout had hated his name and changed it to 'Magne' but he had been jealous of his impressive older brother who his parents clearly adored. Magne was in fact only a slightly smaller version of Snotlout though not quite as strong or quick but he had been loved by his parents as well. However, filled with jealousy over his older brother's precedence over him, he had dedicated himself to a campaign of bullying against his younger and smaller cousin, Hiccup. Starting from when he was only three, Hiccup had been pushed, pinched, struck and generally harmed, harassed and hurt every way Magne could imagine. The younger boy had known he couldn't fight against his bigger cousin and, fearing the disappointment of his hard and unsympathetic father, Hiccup had suffered in silence.

But Snotlout had noticed the bullying over the years-though Magne had been cunning and good at running away just in time and leaving Hiccup to be roughly chastised for his 'clumsiness'-and he had started to become concerned as the cruelty escalated. And though Snotlout himself had taken part in some low level taunting-because Hiccup was small and weak and nerdy-he had drawn the line when Hiccup had painfully dragged himself back from the woods, his face battered and bruised, his clothes torn, both knees scraped and an arm broken. There were unmistakeable marks of fists and boots on his grubby clothing. Magne had been laughing cruelly at the wretched young boy and Hiccup had been barely able to speak for tears of pain, so Snotlout had stepped in when his younger brother had prepared to start beating up the boy again. Hiccup had nearly fainted in shock at being protected by Snotlout and had witnessed an ugly fight-which Snotlout had won-and the uglier confrontation between the two brothers, where Magne had sworn revenge against his older brother-and his bullied younger cousin.

Wearily, Snotlout had nodded. "It seems...possible..." he admitted heavily. "He never got over you being Stoick's heir despite being..." He gestured at Hiccup.

"All this raw Vikingness?" Hiccup asked morosely. "Yeah, that really worked out for me!"

"He's got worse," he admitted. "Dad loves him now and is grooming him to take over the Jorgensen Shipping Business because I..." And then he stopped, aghast, remembering who he was speaking to.

"It's okay, Snot," Hiccup told him softly. "I know what happened. I was there."

"But you and Astrid were so careful...and I know what you felt for her. You had from when you were about ten...I still can't figure out how he found out..." Snotlout's brows folded into a frown and Hiccup leaned forward, resting a hand lightly on his shoulder.

"Easy, cuz-you'll strain something," he teased very lightly and Snotlout looked up, his mouth lifting in a grin.

"That's my cuz!" he grinned and punched Hiccup in the shoulder again.

"OWW!" Hiccup whined and clutched at the point of impact. "You're stronger than you look, Snot-and you look bloody strong!"

"Oops," Snotlout grinned, unrepentant. Punching Hiccup 'gently' had been something the cousins had got comfortable with over the years since Snotlout had defended Hiccup and the two had grown close. Hiccup was much smarter and had helped Snotlout with his lessons-it was doubtful he would ever have passed Old Norse to his father's satisfaction without Hiccup's intensive help-and Snotlout had secretly trained his little cousin in arms, hand-to-hand combat and swordplay. Though Hiccup had swiftly proved that he was a far superior swordsman than his cousin, Snotlout had never been jealous of his success, merely proud his cousin could excel at some physical skill. Hiccup would trust Snot with anything-even his greatest secret-but the same wasn't true for his brother. Magne had still managed to hurt Hiccup-though infrequently because he was on his guard and so was Snotlout-but he had also begun undermine the young boy with his father and uncle, highlighting his general 'uselessness' and lack of physical prowess. Week by week, month by month, Hiccup had felt them look at him with more and more disappointment and nothing he could do could seem to improve their opinion of them. Ultimately, all he could do was follow his heart...all the way to his doom.

"I-I...er...I'm not sure how to tell you this but Astrid..."

"Is married," Hiccup said tonelessly. "Yeah, I know. To some ass called Eret Eretson. General. And he is a prize ass."

"How?"

"Got wind they were going a very stupid way home-through Outcast waters-so I intercepted them, fought off the two Outcast ships that were pounding them to Hel and rescued the remaining crew, Astrid and her new husband from the sinking ship," he said emotionlessly.

"You what?" Then Hiccup gave a very twisted smile.

"I need her alive, Snot, because I need answers one day and I can't get them if she is dead, can I?"

"And did you? Get them, I mean?" Snotlout's blue eyes were inspecting his cousin closely now, seeing Hiccup stare evasively at the floor.

"Um, no," he admitted. "She knows she was rescued by Captain Fury and his crew. They were pushed on a boat and should have landed on the northern coast safely-we watched them hit the beach, anyways. And I told her that Hiccup had told Fury about her betrayal and that he was dead." Snotlout winced.

"Harsh!" he commented.

"A lot less harsh that what happened to me," Hiccup shot back angrily. Then he calmed himself. "Sorry, Snot. I saved her life-though I started to regret it almost instantly. She's a damned harpy and rude as Hel. My crew couldn't wait to get her off the ship!" Snotlout rubbed his chin and shrugged.

"I heard old man Hofferson had some problems getting her married," he revealed. "She's insulted every prospective bachelor across the Archipelago. He had to marry her to a soldier from the mainland before she had a chance to scare him off-and was told she would be disowned if she refused."

"Interesting," Hiccup commented.

"Look, Hiccup-I am so sorry I wasn't here when it happened," Snotlout said earnestly. The young pirate looked up and gave a weak smile. "You know you can trust me, right? You should have come to me..."

"And what? Get you banished as well? It was my mess, my mistake," Hiccup sighed.

"Mistake?"

"I loved her...but she denied me. Denied she felt anything for me. Scorned me that I could imagine she would love such a fishbone. That she would throw away her family honour for...a Hiccup. She claimed I pestered her against her wishes, that I kept stalking her. That I was an unwanted nuisance. She turned away from me when I had tried so hard, struggled so hard not to admit we were seeing each other. So it was my mistake. One I will never repeat..."

"If you need anything, you know you can come, right?" Snotlout asked him gently, hearing the pain in Hiccup's voice. The young pirate sighed.

"Thanks, Snot," he sighed. "And you? Any action on the marriage front?" Snotlout gave a small smile.

"Still fighting them off with an axe, cuz," he admitted, "though Aslaug Harvardson has been offered by her father. She seems...nice..." Hiccup frowned and then patted his cousin on the shoulder again.

"Good luck..." he said dryly. "Make sure you think you can be friends with her. That you can trust her. My top tips from my woeful track record in marriage guidance..." Snotlout made to punch him again but Hiccup dodged with a yelp and then both young men froze.

"SNOTLOUT! COME DOWN!"

The older cousin looked up at Hiccup and saw the lean shape suddenly pressed hard against the wall, his face pale and green eyes wide with fear. He was breathing hard, chest heaving in almost panic: it was his father's voice. Stoick was calling his nephew and Heir down-and his son looked terrified.

"SNOTLOUT!"

Images sleeted across Hiccup's memory, moments that haunted him on nightmare-wracked nights, that had him waking in a cold sweat, screaming for mercy.

"You shame me! My only son-and you break the one taboo I laid on you! I could not be more ashamed!"

"I-I...love her, Dad...I'm sorry..."

"You defied me...you broke my rules and shamed my house...and though you are my only child, I disown you! You are thrown from our family, from our house, from Berk. You will be taken to the docks to be what succour you can. But no man from Berk is permitted to give you any help!"

"D-dad...please..."

"You are not my son...and of this hour, you are dead to me!"

Snotlout rose and walked to the door, pausing by Hiccup to lay a hand on his shoulder with a reassuring nod, snapping the panicking pirate out of his daze. "Coming, Uncle Stoick!" he called and dashed down the stairs. Hiccup stared after him, calming his breathing, then he tilted his head, listening. He could hardly hear anything over the pounding of his heart but his father never spoke quietly. His back was pressed against the wall, as if he wanted to shrink into the plaster. He clenched his fists and glanced at the window: he should escape...but he wanted to hear what Stoick was saying.

"Ah, there you are, boy!"

"Sorry, Uncle!"

"I have urgent news! A rider just got here from the north coast...this is General Eret Eretson, the new husband of General Hofferson's daughter..."

"Pleased to meet you, General."

"Likewise, Lord Snotlout..."

"The General has reported that he and his new wife were attacked by pirates-by the infamous Captain Fury!"

"Really? That must have been a harrowing experience for you, sir. Is your wife unharmed?"

"She bore up well, like a true Lady."

"Hmph..." Hiccup could just imagine his father's expression at that snort. He would never allow a word of praise for anything to do with the name Hofferson in his home. "Anyway, they were brought back to Berk...presumably to be ransomed by that foul murderer but they managed to escape and reach the northern shore..."

Oh really? Hiccup thought ironically. And I didn't have you thrown off my ship? To the waiting rowing boat my crew had lowered for you?

"That was very heroic of you, sir. I am sure my Uncle will reward your valour."

"I only did what any real man would have done in the circumstances..."

"Hear, hear! So I intend to double the reward on the Night Fury and her captain. They must still be in our waters-I have already sent a rider to get the Boneknapper and the Scauldron to launch after intercept her. I'll have Fury in chains before me by the end of the week!"

"And I will go to the Port to help, Uncle..." a new voice offered. Hiccup stiffened. Magne. "I am sure I can outwit a murderous thug..."

As you are one, you would know all about that, Hiccup thought anxiously but turned away, scrambling through the window and dropping to the ground below, sprinting away from the hall.

"What was that?" Magne growled. Snotlout grinned.

"The curtains flapping in my window!" he explained. "I was hot after doing my stretches so I left my window open to cool down. I know how much my Uncle adores fresh air..." Magne scowled as the older brother excused himself and darted up the stairs-but his room was empty when he returned and the curtains were flapping lightly in the breeze. He stared into the darkness at the forest and sighed. "Take care, cuz," he whispered. "If Magne and that General are on your tail, please Odin, take care!"