𖣯 ✹ 🌷(makligr) ꏍ ！┈─❟
╰───►chapter nineteen; hiccup
❝ snotlout's paper jaw! ❞

   TODAY WAS going to be a productive day.

Hiccup was excited, considering productive seemed to be a concept foreign here on Dragon's Edge. Something always happened. Whether a fight breaks out, some trouble rises on the coastline, some migration needs to be handled, the others turn whatever it is into a competition, or the Twins do ... well, just do what they do.

He was smug. Very smug to see his team work together in gathering the stone foundations for the watchtower on the North side of the Edge. No fights, no competitions, no grumbles about who they were paired with whatsoever and no Twins' Funny Business ... but then again, perhaps that was because Ruff and Tuff were unaccounted for.

Even in the warmer weather, the snow had grown a little bit heavier at the mountain tops of Outpost Island. But even with the mountains covered in blankets of snow like a winter wonderland, the sun glared down with the ferocity of summer. The rays seared off the white, making Hiccup squint as he carefully dived to a hover over his markings for the watchtower, carrying a boulder in between him and Fishlegs with a large, threaded net.

He watched the others join them: Yrsa, Astrid and Snotlout carrying two in a net between the three of them. "All right, guys," he called up to them. "Let's drop the foundation right about here."

He glanced down, checking whether he was hovering in the exact right spot before━nodding at Fishlegs━he had Toothless let go of the net. The boulder toppled out and down, landing with a thunk! onto the snow. He and Fishlegs edged out of the way of the next three who followed suit, dropping their boulders a little to the left━the length of a good-sized watchtower.

"That should work," sighed Hiccup, smug and satisfied from his saddle. "Perfect location."

Fishlegs grinned, nodding in agreement. "I━for one━couldn't be happier that we're finally━"

"Setting up the new watchtower, we know!" cut in Snotlout, annoyed. "We've been hearing about it for the past━oh, I don't know━week, month ... what comes next?"

Hiccup sent his cousin a scowl as he leant forward against Hookfang's horns, peering upwards at Fishlegs with that gaze upon his face that only meant trouble. "Guys, look, this is important. We've been seeing ships off the northern coast that have absolutely no reason to be there. Now with this━" he gestured to the layout below, "━we can send an early warning signal if they come into our waters."

They all drifted back to the snowy ground, settling down onto the earth.

"If you're talking about Dagur and Ryker," went on Snotlout, "and that's who I assume we're talking about━"

"Actually, I wasn't referring to━"

"━How about this? Whoever's out there that shouldn't be out there," Snotlout didn't give Hiccup the time of day, gesturing out his arms wildly with an obnoxious brow arched, "let's just get on these very effective fire-breathing war machines━" he pointed to Hookfang who's attention was focused on the way the snow melted whenever he huffed smoke at his feet, "━and go and blast them into oblivion!"

Hiccup made a face, annoyed, "Because that's not who we are!" he answered in the same tone. His cousin rolled his eyes. "Since when do we go blasting people into oblivion?"

Snotlout gaped. He settled himself against Hookfang's long, twisted horns. He rubbed his dragon on the forehead tenderly, as if it hurt him that the Monstrous Nightmare could've heard what Hiccup said. Hookfang couldn't care less, he was now huffing out rings of smoke to melt rings into the snow. "Don't worry, Hookster. He doesn't speak for us."

The sudden cheers echoing out from behind them caught them all off guard. Hiccup frowned, glancing over his shoulder━he sighed, exasperated as he recognised the voices, and it wasn't long before he located them; a patch of lime green with yellow spotted scales rocketed through the high snowy mountain slopes. Ruffnut and Tuffnut raced down the steep hill from Barf and Belch's saddles, crying out cheers and laughter.

"Or them," stated Snotlout. "Yeah, definitely not for them."

Hiccup winced at the blast that was minuscule from this distance, but shuddered the snow above. Another followed, and he set his jaw, boiling with anger at the sight.

Yrsa agreed, "Those two muttonheads better not bring all that snow up there down on us."

"It's not the snow I'm worried about," said Hiccup. There was another shudder━it was worse this time. A horrible sound echoed through the mountain, like the sound of a million bones fracturing. His breath hitched in horror as━right before his eyes━he saw the snow from the very top of the mountain start to collapse underneath. His dreaded fear had become very true.

He finished his sentence with an exclaim of terror, "It's the ice!"

They all took to the air immediately. Hiccup didn't do much to tell the others what the plan was. He gestured to Astrid and Yrsa━who had the next two fastest dragons in the group to head up with him. The others stayed at a close hover in case things got worse. All Hiccup could hear was the horrible crashing of snow and ice━amongst it, he heard Toothless shriek ring out in defiance as he folded his wings to speed their flight up. He could see barely metres difference between the Twins and the ice that caught up with them in a matter of seconds. He knew that if they got covered in that snow and ice, they wouldn't surface━miraculously climb back up and laugh, they'd be worse than dead.

For a horrible moment, the Twins were separated from their dragon. They struck a set in the slope and the dragon and Vikings were catapulted from each other. Yrsa and Astrid knew what to do without even a command; they dived down just in time, snatching the Twins back up into the air before they'd fall right into the avalanche.

But Barf and Belch weren't so lucky.

They continued down the slope. Even a dragon, with wings and two heads, couldn't get themselves out of such momentum. They tumbled, they skidded, they skipped over bumps and ditches, knocking trees right from their roots and high speed. Hiccup heard their screeches, his heart high up in his throat━he was starting to feel sick. Ruff and Tuff screamed for their dragon, never so horrified and desperate in the entire time Hiccup has ever known them. The ice was dangerously close; it rolled over itself moments before crashing into their dragon━moments before that would be it.

Hiccup refused to let that be it.

He gritted his teeth and pushed himself flat against the saddle. "COME ON, BUD!" he yelled and forced them down into a striking nose-dive. He and Toothless raced against time towards the Twins' dragon.

Barf and Belch spiralled, out of control. They neared the edge and then━in a moment so terrifying, they were thrown over.

"NO!" screamed the Twins.

Hiccup weaved Toothless in and out of the falling ice, dangerously fast. He spun them through the avalanche, diving off the edge after Barf and Belch. They managed to pass underneath and with a grunt of effort, Hiccup veered them to the right and twisted amongst the rocks━he felt as if they were flying right behind a frozen waterfall.

Barf and Belch were right in front of them. In a split-second━and not a split-second too late━Toothless extended his claws and Hiccup gasped at the extra weight. He didn't let it stop them, continuing through the falling ice, avoiding large rocks and chunks before they, and Barf and Belch emerged back up into the daylight━alive.

The Dragon Riders all threw up their arms in relief as Hiccup and Toothless landed back where they had gathered back by the watchtower foundations. Astrid and Yrsa dropped the Twins into the snow like bags of flour, and they slammed onto the ground with painful thuds!

Hiccup had Toothless set Barf and Belch gently down beside the Twins who groaned, massaging their backsides as they tried to gather their surroundings. Hiccup watched, his breath a little hitched as their Zippleback huffed. Barf and Belch both shook their heads before shakily getting back onto their feet.

He sighed, relieved that they were okay.

With a deep breath, he wandered back over to where Yrsa had landed. He clenched his saddle tight, setting a glower onto the Twins who were still rubbing their eyes and fixing their helmets. Hiccup went to say something when Barf and Belch butted their heads in. He hunched up, not expecting the two Zippleback heads coming in to purr, nuzzling against his cheeks and licking his face in their gratitude.

"Argh!" Hiccup tried to push them away, not liking the slimy feeling of their saliva on his cheeks. They smelt like rotten fish. "Okay, okay. I get it. You're welcome."

They moved away, sitting down beside him and Toothless like expectant hatchlings; their tongues out and their split-tail wagging. Hiccup eyed them, incredulous for a moment before deciding to attend to the two idiots that almost got them all killed.

Clearing his throat, he shifted in his saddle, taking out his prosthetic to swing his leg over.

"Wait━" Yrsa's voice didn't register to him━or perhaps it was too late as he went to step off into the snow, "━wait, Hiccup, I wouldn't━"

Yeah, too late.

As soon as he stepped down on his metal leg, his knee buckled. Hiccup collapsed, falling onto his back with a grunt as pain flared all the way up his bad leg like it was on fire all over again.

He stayed there for a second in the cool snow, staring back up at Yrsa who watched him, wincing a little. She sent him a sheepish smile, "... do that if I were you."

He huffed at her, nodding to tell her, yeah, thanks, sarcastically. "Wow," he managed through the pain, clenching his eyes shut for a second, "thank you, for the help ..."

She crossed her arms, not amused.

When he thought he could manage getting back up, Hiccup tried to sit up, but Barf and Belch got there before he could. Leaning down, they snagged either arm and hauled him up off his foot. His brows shot up, not expecting it. Toothless watched him be lifted, dangling there above the ground with a curious, and startled purr.

"Oh," let out Hiccup, taken aback. He glanced at Barf and Belch either side of him. "Uh ... can you put me down, guys?"

They did as he said and he stumbled forward, grasping the edge of Toothless's wing to ground him. He took another deep breath, trying his best not to show the others how much his leg hurt. That fall really jolted all the way up to his hip. His hands wandered towards his saddle bag, managing to open it up and search through as he leant against his dragon. The Night Fury warbled, watching him fish through his mis-matched belongings.

"And it's for moments like these," he muttered to himself as he did, finding what he needed and pulling it out, "that I always carry a spare."

Twisting the metal leg around, Hiccup hunched over to take off the bent one and reattached this one. He tied the wood to his pants as tight as he could manage. He heard Snotlout snickering to himself still over his fall and he rolled his eyes. Once he was finished, he set his new leg down and tested the weight. It was similar, but he winced a little━it was new and it hadn't been worn in, and so it pinched and scraped against his skin. He was going to be aching all day, he just knew it.

But he pushed through it and set his eyes back onto the Twins. He marched up to them, ignoring the slight limp he held. He could see the others all scowl at the siblings who shared a wide-eyed glance. Then, slowly, they began to back away.

"So ..." chuckled Tuffnut anxiously. He and Ruffnut continued to shuffle backwards. Hiccup crossed his arms, "... if that's all you need from us, then we'll just be going back to━"

Hiccup glanced at his dragon. "Toothless?"

At the command, Toothless fired a warning shot that ricocheted off the snow at the Twins' feet. They both shrieked, jumping a few inches into the air before Tuff spun to Hiccup with a furious: "Hey! Your dragon just shot at us!"

Hiccup felt Toothless rub up against him and he took the chance to lean onto his wing again, watching the Twins, very unimpressed. "Yes, I know," he said. "I told him to."

Tuffnut's Globe darkened. So did Ruffnut's. The two Vikings shared an identical withering look to Hiccup. "Not cool, T," grumbled Tuff to Toothless. The Night Fury huffed indignantly. "Not cool at all."

Hiccup rolled his eyes and pushed off his dragon's side. He marched up to the Twins, putting on his best stern glower upon his face. "Anyway, since you two seem so eager to spend sometime away from the group, you━" he gestured at them, "━get to pull the first two shifts of patrol duty."

Ruff and Tuff matched his glare. Hiccup glared back at them. There was a tense silence before Ruffnut carefully leaned in close to her brother, whispering to him as if Hiccup couldn't hear loud and clear: "He's really become a tyrant..."

Tuffnut nodded, agreeing. He gave Hiccup a stink-eye. "Power'll do that to you."

Hiccup crossed his arms. "Just go."

Reluctantly, the Twins stormed off to their dragon. Hiccup watched them go before turning to his own, hoping that today will end up much better than it has started.

◞ ★ ꒱꒱◜

WHEN YRSA made no comment on Snotlout almost falling out of the sky when Hookfang decided to ignore his rider's command of heading down towards the arena and instead jerked his head opposite, Hiccup knew something was up. It was unlike her to miss the perfect opportunity to make fun of somebody━especially one with Snotlout. But instead of letting out a witty quip or even laughing, she just frowned out towards the distance, as if she was looking for something but knew she'd never find it.

So, as the others went down or off to continue their jobs for the rest of the day, Hiccup turned Toothless around and ventured upwards to where Yrsa hovered alone, looking rather forlorn. She didn't even notice he was at her side until he spoke, "Everything all right?"

Yrsa jumped in her saddle. She glanced over, and he didn't see the gaze of a young woman who was always planning, always deciphering and always on edge━he saw the look of a girl who was torn. He just didn't know what about. Usually, Hiccup prided himself in knowing exactly what Yrsa thought and felt underneath her layers of chainmail and armour. Always able to make her smile, and make her laugh━gentle and considerate and sweet.

But recently, he felt as if there was something keeping them apart. There was something Yrsa wasn't telling him, and it worried him, because the last thing Hiccup wanted for was them to start keeping things from each other.

"Yeah," she said softly, "of course, everything's all right."

Hiccup didn't believe her. She avoided his gaze, unable to meet it. He tried to hide how much that hurt. He felt Toothless beat his wings against his legs, wanting to touch down, but he kept them there. "You sure?"

Yrsa forced a chuckle out at that. She rubbed Helrose's scales, "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

He shrugged, trying to be very nonchalant about it. She frowned, a little incredulous at the look on his face. This time, he managed to get a genuine smile upon her lips, shaking her head at him. Hiccup smiled as well, happy to see it.

"You want to talk about it?" he then asked her.

She pursed her lips, meeting his gaze finally. For such a harsh and guarded person, Yrsa watched him with something so gentle and soft. "I can't," she decided to tell him.

Hiccup frowned, "What do you mean?"

Yrsa gripped her saddle tighter, "I just can't, Hiccup. I━I want to, but ..."

"But what?"

She didn't answer. She just looked away, frowning down at her hands. Hiccup sighed to himself softly, but he knew she heard. They had fixed their problems, at least, he hoped he had. They lashed out what they needed to lash out, and yet━despite it all━he knew that there was no way they could go back to the way they were. They had reached something far away from that, and even if Hiccup tried, too much has happened between them for them to ever be that comfortable. But they were kids back then. Now, they were starting to become adults.

Yrsa didn't want to tell him what was upsetting her, and he had to just accept that. There was a barrier between them; something neither wanted to cross over, scared that it may ruin everything again. They were friends━strictly friends. Not together like they were when they were fifteen and sixteen, nor a strange in between they've been the past three years. Friends.

Hiccup respected her to respect that. He respected her more than nearly anybody else he knew. And he respected her want to keep whatever this was to herself.

So, he sat up straighter in the saddle and said, "I'm gonna go file down this leg and then you want to go check out these caves on the West side of the island with me?"

"Caves," she let out dryly, "dark, damp, dull ... so exciting."

He hid the want to laugh, turning Hiccup around towards his hut, "So I'll see you later?"

He left her there groaning to herself, knowing that she might mope and complain, but the idea of exploring some caves would be something she was definitely looking forward to. Toothless was glad to dive down to the wooden landing outside Hiccup's hut by his small forge he had made himself.

Even dismounting his dragon annoyed Hiccup━the new leg pinched at his skin and gave him pain. He was desperate to file it down, otherwise he'd be aching all night and tomorrow. Toothless huffed down at his limping leg, as if he could tell just how much it was hurting him.

Hiccup set his dragon a reassuring smile. He scratched him under the chin, "It's okay, bud," he promised him. "All it needs is some filing down and I'll be all good."

But his attention was no longer on Hiccup's leg. He sniffed, eyes lighting up as something great met his nose━he sniffed upwards, and Hiccup frowned at his best friend, quite dubious at the way he rose on his hind legs. "Okay ..." he said slowly, but left him be.

Hiccup approached the entrance to his hut and with a heave, pulled open the door━he only got a glimpse of the horror that awaited him above before he was completely covered in it. His scream was far from manly as entire buckets of fish cascaded down. Soon, he was trapped in a mountain of it.

He hunched up, feeling bile rise up in his throat at the smell of so much carp━and the slime of the scales brushing against his tunic. "Oh, for the love of Thor━Who did this?!"

Hiccup tried to look over his shoulder, but he was trapped━trapped in a cage of smelling fish. Great, he'll be smelling like Ruffnut's hair for the next week━(Speaking of Ruffnut━), "Wait a minute. Why am I even asking? RUFF! TUFF?!" He managed to free his arm, spinning around to slam his hand down on the mountain of fish. Some of it fell down and over the side of the walkway. "Ohhh━I got another shift with your names on it!"

He stayed there, huffing and puffing, trying to think of the worst possible job he could give the Twins to get back at them. Maybe he'll have them muck out the stables, or clean Snotlout's hut━or even better, tell Astrid that they stole one of her axes and watch her hunt them all the way around Dragon's Edge.

Hiccup's anger faltered as he noticed Toothless dig his head into the piles of fish. "Hey, hey━" he clicked his fingers at his dragon and he pulled back, looking up at him with a carp hanging out of his maw, "━what are you doing? Don't eat the evidence!"

Toothless just slurped the entire fish down his gullet.

"Now this makes my day!"

Hearing Snotlout just made Hiccup groan to himself. He glowered up at the chuckling Riders who had all witnessed the fish fall down onto him. His cousin was beside himself, holding his stomach as he cackled.

"Stop," Hiccup told them. His friends' laughter only grew. Yrsa was flushed at the cheeks in her amusement. "It's not funny!" He tried to crawl out of the fish only to fall back into it, "It's not━Toothless━!" his dragon did nothing as Hiccup struck━face first━into the mountain of fish.

And he already knew, it would be something he'll never be able to live down.

As soon as he had washed, dressed in some fresh clothes and got all the fish out of his hut, Hiccup was back in the air. Exploring those caves with Yrsa was going to have to wait━he needed to find those idiotic Twins and remind them just who was in control of their duties. He shot back towards the north side of the island, expecting to find them on patrol━and yet, he wasn't surprised when he didn't find them where they were supposed to be.

He sighed, but spun Toothless down for a closer look around the forest at the base of the slope. "All right, where are they? Well, I guess you just look for a fire or any other catastrophe, they'll be close by..."

Hiccup snickered at his own joke under his breath━but it was cut off when he heard a screech behind him. He stopped Toothless midair, and glanced over his shoulder, frowning as he heard it again, yet saw nothing━the dragon shriek was familiar. Hiccup narrowed his eyes, searching the clouds and mountain slopes.

When he didn't see anything, he slowly set his gaze forward. His eyes widened, "What the━?!"

There was a flash of green and Hiccup was jolted off Toothless's saddle. He cried out, alarmed as he heard his dragon shriek in terror, unable to keep himself in the air without Hiccup there to help. He struggled, pulling at his arm latched in the jaw of a Hideous Zippleback head. Hiccup kicked his legs, furious as Barf and Belch hovered, watching happily as Toothless flailed his legs and wings━before he fell.

"TOOTHLESS!" Hiccup shouted. He struggled more. "Don't! B━Belch!" His heart began to race as Toothless's shrieks grew further and further away. "No, no, no, no, no━" he tapped Belch's jaw, growing desperate, "━you drop me! You drop me right now━!"

He screamed as he was dropped. Hiccup tried to twist his body around to dive after his friend, seeing him in the distance. He called his name, reaching out an arm for his saddle that━thankfully━was getting closer by the second. Only problem, the woods were getting closer, too.

Hiccup managed to wrap his fingers around Toothless's saddle and pull himself onto his back. He clicked his new leg in and tugged them upwards━but it was too late. The two of them screeched and screamed as they pummelled through the leaves and branches.

Toothless wrapped him up in his wings as they broke through the forest surface and landed painfully in the brush below. Hiccup groaned, feeling dazed and disorientated. He ached all over, blinking amongst the darkness of Toothless's wings.

When his dragon finally unwrapped them, Hiccup pushed himself onto his feet. He pressed his palm against his forehead, taking a deep breath and double checking he still had one leg left. "You all there, bud?" he mumbled as he did. "I think I am ..." he stepped forward and cried out. Toothless quickly ducked his head under his chest, slowly lifting him back up. Hiccup frowned, wondering what happened, until he saw it━he groaned, frustrated and annoyed. "And I spoke too soon."

He held up his new metal leg, glowering to see it bent and out of shape all over again. Grumbling, he tugged it off with a wince and threw it into his saddle bag. He searched for his second spare. "And this is why I always carry a spare for my spare."

He leaned against Toothless as he tied the new leg on. As he did, Barf and Belch joined them with a large thud onto the earth. Hiccup arched an annoyed brow at them, only for his shoulders to slump in realisation as they dropped two small piles of fish before them.

"Wait, wait, wait a minute━" Hiccup settled himself on his new leg, testing the weight; it was even worse than the first one. It was an old one, and now he stood uneven━this leg wasn't used to his sudden growth spurt, "━it was you guys? You left me all that fish?" Barf scooped up some and held out his maw, expecting Hiccup to take one from his tongue. Hiccup turned up his nose. "O━oh, okay..." another thought struck him, "... wait ... if you guys are here, and the Twins are Thor knows where, then ... who is patrolling the island?"

◞ ★ ꒱꒱◜

BARF AND BELCH followed Hiccup all the way back to the Outpost centre. He didn't know what they were doing here and where in Hel the Twins were, but he got his answer soon enough. As he returned with the Zippleback hovering right over him, he noticed the pair of siblings storming past the arena in a heated argument that he heard all the way up here.

"This is all your fault!" Ruffnut was shouting.

They came to a stop as Tuffnut spun to her, horrified, "My fault?! My fault?!"

"It's your attitude, bro!" she stamped her foot, leaning in furiously. "It's always been your attitude! And it finally drove our beloved dragon away!"

"My attitude?" echoed Tuffnut, livid. "My attitude is fun━" he listed them off on his fingers, "━carefree, adventurous, and loves to take long walks. And it doesn't matter if it's on a beach or not!"

"You're ridiculous," snapped his sister, huffing. She turned away, her arms crossed and her nose turned up in the air.

"Oh, yeah?" rebutted her brother. "Well you smell like a barrel of twenty-year-old cod livers! That's what drove them away!"

"Hey! This smell━" Ruffnut gestured to her hair and her body, as if proud she smelt like that, "━is not achieved easily!"

Hiccup landed, and their argument ceased as soon as they saw their beloved dragon land eagerly beside him. Immediately, the Twins' faces lit up with bright smiles. They raced forward.

"Hiccup!" exclaimed Tuffnut. "You found 'em!"

If he wasn't so mad, Hiccup might have found it sweet to see Ruff and Tuff sprint to their dragon with cheerful cries. They threw their arms around their respective head, nuzzling into their dragon's snout.

"Where did you two go?" wailed Ruffnut. "You had us worried sick!"

But their smiles were wiped off their faces when Barf and Belch reared their heads back and shook off their arms━not wanting anything to do with either of them. The two-headed dragon fixed their attention onto Hiccup, nuzzling into his cheeks instead. He hunched up, hating this very much. He pushed the Zippleback heads away from him.

"Where did they go?" he exploded, throwing his hands up in anger. "Where did they go?! Well, let's start with: they filled my hut with fish, uh━crashed me and Toothless out of the sky! And for the finale, they broke my second spare ... leg!"

Barf and Belch bounced their heads, happy at all this information. Their split Zippleback tail swiped around. Barf sniffed at Toothless and he snapped his jaws at him to stay away.

Ruff and Tuff shared a glance. The one thing they seemed to take away from Hiccup's furious rant was:

"So," began Ruffnut thoughtfully, "if my calculations are correct, and they usually are ..."

"That means━" went on her twin, understanding her completely, "━that our dear Hiccup is on his━"

Together, they finished with a cackle, "━Last leg!"

They broke off into hysterics at this. Hiccup watched them, not amused. He let them get it all out, bending over and wheezing.

"Get it?" guffawed Tuffnut when Hiccup did not even smile. "See what we did? It's because of your leg! You don't have any more!"

At the tic in his jaw, Ruffnut snickered to her brother, "I think he gets it."

Hiccup waved a dismissive hand at their laughter, "Yeah, yeah, listen..." he swung off his saddle, landing on his new leg off-handedly.

The Twins walked up to him. "Well, if you wanna flip the script," said Ruffnut, nodding down at his last prosthetic, "the new leg is slimming."

"Not that you need to be slimmed," added Tuffnut. "I mean━" he shrugged, eyeing Hiccup, "━I think, for your height, you're probably an ideal weight; healthy."

He was not in the mood. Hiccup grabbed both Barf and Belch's heads and tugged them back towards the Twins. "All right, the four of you belong together. Now, please, can you get back on patrol and━and try to keep these two━well━oh, j━just go!"

He grumbled as he stormed back to Toothless, "Last leg..."

Toothless laughed in the back of his throat. Hiccup's eyes widened at him as he mounted the saddle, shocked. "Whoa, whoa, whoa━don't laugh, Toothless!" he pointed to his own prosthetic tail. His dragon snorted at him, not at all caring. "You're above that."

As he took off, he didn't realise the shouts that ensued below. Ruffnut and Tuffnut yelled in alarm as they were thrown off their saddles, unable to control their dragon as the Zippleback too off━leaving their riders sore on their backside. They aced after Hiccup and Toothless, not even giving Ruff and Tuff a second thought.

Ruffnut scrambled to her feet, "ATTITUDE!" she shouted at her twin.

"COD LIVERS!" he yelled back.

Barf and Belch wouldn't leave Hiccup and Toothless alone! At all. Wherever they went, the Zippleback followed. They carried fish in their mouths, picked Hiccup up whenever he might want to travel up a set of stairs, even forced themselves into his hut to leave fish there (again!) for when he got back. For the rest of the day, they did their best to try and lose them. They raced through the woods of the Edge, spun into the darkest caves and the smallest crevices━yet each time Hiccup swore they had finally escaped, there they were! Waiting on the other end, delighted and thinking it was some sort of game. And it was making the Twins absolutely miserable━which made Hiccup guilty. He didn't know why Barf and Belch suddenly preferred him over Ruff and Tuff, but he hated it━absolutely loathed it!

(They didn't even leave when he tried to scare them off with eels! And while that was tremendously annoying, Hiccup couldn't help but be thrilled to write that in the Book of Dragons under Zippleback: note: when being clingy and annoying, not even eels will deter them from frustrating you! ... Or perhaps he should put it under warnings...).

Hiccup loved dragons. He loved everything about them. He found them fascinating━desired to learn everything about them he could. What he didn't love, however, was having Barf and Belch sniff under his arms and try and knock him off the walkways for fun. It was like having the Twins at his side every second, every living, breathing moment (and he was pretty sure he had a nightmare about that once).

He had to survive dinner with the two of them trying to steal his chicken off his plate. Shoving away their heads and ignoring Snotlout's estranged laughter, silently hoping he'd choke and shut up. His jokes and his jeers were not helping the Twins who sat there, glum and watching Hiccup get the attention they were used to, unable to manage even a bite of their food.

Hiccup didn't stop Barf from stealing his chicken this time, gazing at the way Ruffnut looked away━not wanting him to see how miserable she was as she went back to playing with her food. He might find Barf and Belch infuriating, but they had a bond with that dragon that while it might be different from Hiccup's own with Toothless, was just as special━and now they were without it, watching their dragon choose somebody else.

He tried to imagine how he'd felt if Toothless did that to him.

And that night, he had become miserable, too.

Barf and Belch even decided they were going to sleep with him in his hut as well! Hiccup sulked as he climbed up the ladder to the landing above his workspace below. He thought he'd get some peace and quiet from them at least as he tried to sleep, but as he sat down and looked back over, there they were, staring right back at him.

He didn't even have the energy anymore to tell them to go away. Instead he slumped down and tugged his blanket over his tunic harshly, "I'm gonna be seeing Zipplebacks in my sleep," he muttered to himself.

Hiccup closed his eyes and tried to ignore the curious guttural purrs Barf and Belch made. He heard Toothless take his place at his charred rock bed a few paces away, lighting it to warm the stone up before setting himself down to sleep, as well.

And then, it was quiet. Finally, it was quiet.

Hiccup sighed and relaxed under his fleece blanket. He'll figure out something to do tomorrow━but for now, all he needed was a good rest━

He jumped up, startled as the entire hut began to tremble. Hiccup threw his blanket off and let out a strangled cry as he fell off his bed, hitting the deck as the loud stomping continued. Hiccup struggled to reach for his leg, hearing Toothless shriek, rushing to the edge of the landing to peer down. Hiccup followed him as soon as he could, gripping onto his wing so he wouldn't fall over the edge.

"Oh, come on!" he called down at Barf and Belch as they ran in circles. His stomach dropped when he noticed the green smoke start to cloud up. He heard Belch spark, "No, no, no, NO, WAIT, DON'T━!"

KA━BOOOOOOOOOOM!

◞ ★ ꒱꒱◜

    "SO, YOU ruined all your legs, eh? Every single one?"

    Hiccup scowled at Gobber. He was tired, he was in pain, he was wearing a wooden peg for a leg and sat outside a smoking, charred hut━the last thing he was in the mood for was to be questioned over the chaos that has happened over the past two days. The blacksmith paid his glower no mind, hammering the leg back into place against Hiccup's anvil.

    His crossed his arms, moodily holding up to peer at the peg-leg. "Well, all but this piece of garbage. Which, let's be honest, can we really call it a leg? I mean..." his words trailed off at the look his old mentor sent him. Slowly, his gaze wandered down to the peg leg he wore himself. Hiccup's eyes widened. He sat there, frozen in embarrassment. Quickly, he back-tracked. He forced a nervous laugh out of his lips━loud and sudden. "I━I mean, of course we can!" he gestured to the blacksmith's leg. "It's━uh━it looks very slimming on you, Gobber!"

    Wanting to get out of this conversation, Hiccup quickly turned his attention to Barf and Belch who were still holding his other bent legs in their mouths. He got back to his feet to try and grab them, but like many times before this morning, they pulled their heads out of his reach, laughing down at him with muffled chortles. "Give━me━those━!"

    They just leant in and squeezed him in for a hug between their necks. Hiccup grumbled, frustrated and annoyed. He met a pair of dark eyes across his deck where Yrsa stood, arms crossed beside Fishlegs. Not far from them, the Twins slumped, envious.

    "What is this?" asked Tuffnut, annoyed.

    "A neck hug?" gasped Ruff.

    Both of them crossed their arms, wearing an identical expression of pure jealously and disappointment. "I never got a neck hug," muttered Tuffnut grumpily.

    Hiccup tried to push them away. Instead, they startled to lick him. He grumbled, disgusted at the feeling of Zippleback slobber. At least he wasn't the only one in such misery━at least Toothless was going through it with him.

    "Really?" said Tuffnut. "Right in front of our faces?"

    "We're here, you know!" added Ruff. "Right here!"

    Fishlegs frowned at this. He shared a look with Yrsa who didn't meet it, too busy turning her nose up at their pampering. "That's weird," he muttered. "Zipplebacks are normally fiercely loyal. Why are they doting on Hiccup and ignoring you two?"

    "Well," shrugged Gobber as Hiccup shoved Barf far away. "Didn't Hiccup pull them out of the way of a deadly avalanche?"

    "Yeah ..."

    "Well, there you go! Same thing as my cousin, Bard. He saved a Zippleback from a Changewing. The two-headed beast wouldn't leave him alone ... for years!"

    Tuffnut's arms dropped, "Wait ... so, this could go on for━?"

    "Ever," Gobber confirmed his doubts. "It's a life-debt. Barf and Belch will now serve Hiccup for the rest of their lives or until the debt is repaid. Whichever comes first."

    This was horrible news. Hiccup blanched, "Does this mean we could be stuck with Barf and Belch forever?"

    The Twins looked just as horrified. "Does this mean we could lose Barf and Belch forever?"

    Hiccup didn't know what to tell them. He just stared, utterly helpless and ashamed at the way their faces fell. He weakly pushed away Barf's attempt at hugging him again, and when the Twins turned away at that, unable to look for any longer, he slumped forward, his head falling into his hands. The others must've got the idea he wanted to be alone, for before he knew it, they were all gone save for one. 

      He knew it was her as soon as she aggressively shoved Barf and Belch away. They growled at her and she only just growled back━they were so surprised, that they let her sit down beside Hiccup, and Yrsa sighed with him, her shoulder slumping against his. 

     "Can't say that Dragon's Edge is boring, now, can I?" she mused, shooting him a weak smile that he caught as he peered sideways out of his hands. Yrsa bounced her brows, "Something strange always happens. Snotlout becomes momentarily selfless to defend us against Speedstingers, Fishlegs and Ruffnut marry, Tuffnut believes he's turning into a Lycanwing ... though, now that I think about it, that's pretty normal ..." 

     He chuckled at the memory━only just recently did Tuffnut deem he would go full Lycanwing and Ruffnut had dragged Snotlout all around the Edge getting him bitten by all manner of creatures. Yrsa sat up straighter, proud she had made him laugh. Hiccup appreciated it. She might not be nice━she was quite mean, a lot of the time, and she was far from easy, but to Hiccup's hopeful, bright and emotional nature, she seemed to just be a perfect balance. She was always a rational voice when he was upset, always made him smile at her jokes that were great just for him━he relied on her, no matter what they were. That was something that would always stay the same. Hiccup hadn't just found Toothless in those woods that changed his life, he had also found Yrsa. 

      Yrsa pushed gently against his shoulder, "What I'm saying, is..." she went on, meeting his gaze, "no matter what crazy thing happens here, we always come out the end of it somewhat normal. Just like this."

     Hiccup scoffed lightly. She was right, but sometimes, it was hard to believe━right now━that this would ever go back to normal. He let his head fall back into his hands again, and he mumbled, "I don't know what to do, Yrs ... the Twins━they look miserable and it's my fault."

     "It is not your fault," she said sternly. "If anything, this is their fault for putting their companion who placed their full trust in them into danger. I say, this is a good lesson for them."

     "Yrsa."

     "They should be thanking you," Yrsa continued without any consideration to the Twins' feelings, focusing purely on him. "You saved Barf and Belch━if you didn't, they would be more miserable knowing they killed their dragon." At the side-look he sent her, she only just matched it, like always. "You know if you want advice from me, Hiccup, it's going to be logical."

     He sighed, "And I'm grateful, really," her scowl softened, "but I also━" glancing at the Zippleback who was trying to give Toothless a neck hug (which was ending very badly) and lowered his voice, "━don't want to be stuck with Barf and Belch forever."

     Yrsa snorted at this. It surprised him. "You're not gonna be stuck━" she mocked his voice, "━with them forever."

     Hiccup frowned at her. He wondered why she held no doubt in her words, "Why are you so sure of that?"

      She rolled her eyes and playfully nudged his shoulder yet again, "Because!" said Yrsa. "You taught me━you taught everybody━that when a dragon chooses you, and you choose them ... you look into their eyes," she locked his gaze, and Hiccup felt his breath hitch, "and you see yourself. Barf and Belch belong with the Twins. They compliment each other. Just like Toothless compliments you, and Helrose me━" she smiled softly, and Hiccup knew he should be listening, but all he could do━all he found himself doing━was focusing purely on her. "They'll find their way back to each other, some how."

      Hiccup slowly cracked a grin, "How is that logical? Sounds ... the opposite. That sounds like something I would say━"

     Yrsa made a face, "Uh━yes, it is logical. It is very logical━"

     "Is it though━?"

    "━That was based purely on logical observation━"

    "━Okay━" 

    "━from years of having to deal with your insufferable━"

    "━Oh, insufferable━?"

    "━choices of throwing yourself━" she leaned in closer to him, trying to prove her point," ━into danger and trusting Toothless to save you." 

    Hiccup just nodded, smiling at her. Yrsa scoffed and shoved him harder this time. He laughed, watching her stand up with a heart much lighter than it had been before. "You're being insufferable right now," she said, starting down the walkway to her hut. 

     He just grinned after her, "Thanks, Yrsa!"

    "Go Frigg yourself!"

◞ ★ ꒱꒱◜

    TAKING YRSA'S advice to heart, Hiccup came up with a brilliant idea. Well ... he was yet to decide on brilliant and has started to lean more towards stupid. While Yrsa suggested Barf and Belch would find their own way back to the Twins, Hiccup couldn't wait that long. If he knew the Twins, and he knew their dragon, he realised he was going to have to give the 'finding each other' quite a kick forwards into the race. So, he did something he never thought he'd ever do:

     He worked with the Twins to come up with the best plans to kill him. 

     Of course, the plan wasn't really to kill him (at least, he hoped!). The rest of the day, Hiccup━with the Twins' help━constantly threw himself into controlled danger in hopes that Barf and Belch would save him and hence, their life-debt would be repaid. Though, as he should know by now, things on Dragon's Edge never really go according to plan. 

     Hiccup tried multiple things. He tied a rope to his foot and pretended to trip off the edge of the wooden walks. Though, Barf and Belch only just stared at him hanging there, upside down. 

     "Oh, no!" he had said, dangling upside down over the crevice into the caves below the arena. "No! I'm so scared and in need of help!" He watched both head hover either side of him, curious. "Barf! Belch! Please, help me━!" Hiccup cut off, confused when suddenly, Belch knocked him back towards Barf━he shoved him over. Back and forth, back and forth━ "Wait, no, guys━that━that's not the sa━"

     Tuffnut peered over the edge of the walkway, frowning, "What happened?!" he demanded. "They were supposed to save you!"

     Hiccup managed to shoot him a glower, "That was the plan━ow━!" Barf shoved him rather harshly. "Yeah! Yeah, great. You're not━that's not helping me."     

     Tuff suddenly grinned, "Hey━wait! They're playing Bat the Nutt!" he turned back over his shoulder. "Ruff! Hurry! Bat the Nutt!"

     Her head popped up, ecstatic. "I got next!"

     It didn't get better from there. Tuffnut and Ruffnut realised they should be placing Hiccup in some actual danger━which really wasn't the idea, but by now, Hiccup supposed there really was nothing else to lose. The Twins were somehow still alive, which he was pretty sure was all thanks to Barf and Belch━so, in theory, they should be as efficient in saving Hiccup as they were in saving their troublesome riders! 

     The plan was this: Hiccup was to innocently walk past the bottom of a slope in the woods where at the top, Ruff and Tuff were menacingly letting loose an entire pile of freshly cut logs. Barf and Belch who continued to follow Hiccup wherever he went, were sure to see him in distress and race in to save him. If they failed, Toothless was nearby just in case━that originally hadn't been apart of the idea, but Hiccup felt better knowing that his dragon was there for him if all else failed. 

     (He was sure, if Yrsa knew that this was where her inspirational talk had led him, she'd be greatly disappointed ... though surprised? Probably not).

     As soon as Hiccup spotted the flash of green and yellow within the woods, he called up to the Twins at the top of the slope. With a deep breath and a racing heart, he bounced on his toes and his newly re-shaped metal leg, praying to the gods this didn't go horribly wrong. 

     "Come on," he muttered as the logs began their deadly, earth-trembling descent down the slope━heading straight for him. The Zippleback was yet to notice. Hiccup watched him wander through the woods. "Come on, Barf and Belch. Let's get moving! Logs rolling ... Skinny lives to save ...!"

     Finally, they noticed. With a startled shriek, they started off at a run through the forest. Hiccup egged them on, trying very hard not to focus on how close the logs were getting. "Come on," he continued as they charged through the woodland, "come on, come on, come━oh, come on!"

     Hiccup slumped, exasperated when Barf and Belch tried to run around a large oak tree━though they did not consider their two necks. The trunk struck them right in between and they hit the ground, dazed and groaning.

     The logs were getting dangerously close. Hiccup's stomach dropped. He turned away and cried out, "TOOTHLESS━!"

      He heard the explosion shatter the logs behind him in a firestorm of purple. Hiccup hunched up, missing splinters by inches. But he came out of it, alive and in one piece (and most importantly, not crushed by falling logs). Glancing over, he smiled at the sight of his dragon rushing towards him. He welcomed the hug Toothless threw over his shoulders, standing on his hind legs to bring him into his chest. Hiccup laughed, happy. 

     "Thanks bud," he said, safe and sound. "At least I can always count on you, huh?"

     His smile dropped when a Zippleback tongue swiped right up his cheek. Hiccup gagged, the moment turning sour as Barf and Belch came to join. 

    At this rate, he was never going to get rid of them! Ever! 

   That night was a sleepless one. Hiccup spent it awake, trying to figure out how he could persuade Barf and Belch to choose the Twins over him. But nothing came to mind━everything seemed hopeless, far too dangerous, or crazy (even for them). It seemed Hiccup will always be cursed with seeing Zipplebacks in his sleep, being covered in fish and forced into games of Bat the Nutt. He truly was going to be stuck with Barf and Belch forever. 

    The morning sun rose over Dragon's Edge, dawning the day in colours of orange and dusty pink. Hiccup didn't go for a flight early that morning like he usually did, he waited until he was sure Barf and Belch had left to get fish for the morning before getting out of bed. As he got ready, he continued to think of the best way to end this once and for all━but even the fresh smell of the morning couldn't refresh his mind. It was as blank as it was the day before. 

     In the end, he couldn't ignore the day━he had many things he had to do; things he was falling behind due to everything that has happened. Hiccup had to find a way to get them done with an annoying Zippleback shadow ... how impossible it seemed to sound. 

     Yawning, he pushed open his hut door and stepped out into the morning, rubbing the sleep from his eye.

     He almost missed Snotlout standing there waiting for him. He would have walked right past him if he hadn't announced his presence with a loud and obnoxious, "Hey!"

     Hiccup skidded to a stop. Slowly, he peered one eye sideways at his grinning cousin━he didn't like the way he was standing there ... something was up. Suspicious, Hiccup muttered, "H━hey...?"

     And just like that, Snotlout punched him square in the face.

     He cried out as he fell back onto the deck. Dazed, it took him a moment to realise what just happened. When he did, he glanced up at Snotlout and shouted: "What is wrong with you?!"

    Snotlout laughed. He stood over him, slamming his fist against his palm. "Hiccup Haddock!" he stated. "I'm calling you out━defend yourself!"

    (What in the name of Thor had he woken up to?!).

    "D━d━Defend myself?━Whoa━!"

    He shielded himself as Snotlout brought down his axe with a ferocious scream. Soon, he frowned, glancing over his hands to turn his nose up at Snotlout's terrible aim━he struggled to pull the blade from the deck where it had lodged itself beside Hiccup's metal leg. 

     Hiccup pulled his hands away, bewildered, "Uh ...?"

     Snotlout tugged the axe lazily, "Fight me!" he told him out of the corner of his mouth.

    "What?" let out Hiccup, sitting up straight. He was completely clueless. "What are you doing?!"

     "I said: fight me━WHAT WAS THAT, HICCUP?" shouted Snotlout very loudly over his shoulder. Hiccup shook his head at him, weirded out━it was too early in the morning for this. "YOU WANT TO FIGHT TO THE DEATH?!"

     "What?!" he threw his hands up in annoyance. "Who said that?! Nobody said that!"

    Snotlout yanked the axe out of the wood. He shot him a quick and urgent: "You did━!" before swinging wildly, missing Hiccup's face by a gaping inch. He easily dodged his blade, growing more and more annoyed by the second. 

     His cousin screamed, heaving the axe yet again. He slammed it down into Hiccup's work bench. He stood up, watching his cousin struggle. Hiccup rolled his eyes and began to walk off━he was going to leave. He didn't have time to deal with ... whatever this was. 

    But Snotlout wouldn't let him. Before he could get too far, he rushed forward and flicked Hiccup at the ear.

    Hiccup jumped, "OW!" he cried, holding his ear. He spun to Snotlout, furious. "I'm not going to fight you, Snotlout!"

     He turned away, about to storm off, but Snotlout's next words made him freeze. "You see that?!" his cousin shouted to the entire outpost. "The future chief is a coward!"

     Hiccup flared up in anger. He clenched his hands into tight fists. He told himself: don't listen to it━not to let it get to him, but Snotlout knew exactly what he was doing; he knew exactly how well those words would effect Hiccup to the point that reason didn't matter. His pride had been dragged into this ridiculous fight, and once that happened, there was no turning back. 

     Snotlout snickered at his reaction. It only infuriated Hiccup more. He propped his hands on his hips, smug. "You heard me! Come on..." he taunted. "Hit me. You know you want to..."

     He had chosen the worst day to get on his nerves. The absolute worst. Hiccup whipped back around, gaze dark with a withering glare. Not thinking straight, he marched up to his cousin, "Fine!" he snapped, over it all. "You want to fight? Let's fight. But remember━" he jabbed his finger against Snotlout's chest, "━you wanted this."

     Snotlout just held out his arms, more than ready. 

     Hiccup gritted his teeth. He threw back his right hand━his non-dominant hand━

     SMACK! 

     "OOOOWWWWWWWWW!" cried Snotlout, stumbling back and clutching his nose. His eyes grew watery. "WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR?!" Already, there was a bruise forming on his cheek━admittedly, Hiccup was satisfied to see it. His cousin swayed dangerously. "Ohhh..." he held up a dazed finger, going cross-eyed. "Hold on ... I gotta take a━"

     He groaned as he hit the deck, barely conscious. 

     Hiccup felt no regret, whatsoever. 

     Though, as the sound of fish tumbling onto the wooden walkway behind him, Hiccup realised what this had all been about. Glancing over, that anger festered yet again━a white hot anger in his chest as he saw Barf and Belch land; and for once, Hiccup was thankful they missed the chance of 'saving' his life. His glare wandered up to the dragon sentries towers, where━standing in the closest one━were two identical blonde menaces, having seen every moment of what happened below. 

    Hiccup turned back to his cousin, whining and sobbing on the ground. The smug satisfaction he held in finally getting the chance to punch all of his frustration Snotlout has given him the past few years fell away, and what replaced it was that horrible guilt. The Twins had dragged his cousin into this, possibly getting him killed, all because Hiccup hadn't been able to solve this problem the way he should have from the beginning: logically and maturely. And now, it had gotten way out of hand. 

     He sighed and knelt down. Carefully, he helped his cousin sit up. He groaned, lurching forward with a swollen jaw. Hiccup winced ... he had warn him ... so, that made it Snotlout's fault ... right? Gingerly, Hiccup asked: "Snotlout ... you ... you all right?"

     His cousin blinked━he was completely out of it. "Mum, Dad━?" he called out, swaying even with Hiccup supporting him, "━Hiccup punched me! I'm really thirsty━" he dropped back down. 

     Hiccup pinched the bridge of his nose. He set his glare back up at the Twins, "Clubhouse━" he ordered loudly, "━now. And ..." he glanced at Snotlout. He winced yet again, "... get him some ice."

     He didn't say anything to any of them as they climbed the ramp up to the Clubhouse. Snotlout groaned, barely able to keep himself on his own two feet as he held a bruise on his cheek that was growing more and more swollen by the second. The Twins weren't phased by Hiccup's angry march━all they held was a sadness; that not even this could bring them back their precious Hideous Zippleback. 

     Wordlessly, they sat down on the stools and around the cold fire. Hiccup paced. He was mad. He was furious at them━but more so, he was furious at himself for letting this happen. And the worst thing, he had no idea how to fix it. He had no idea how to get Barf and Belch back to Ruff and Tuff━no idea where to even start. 

    Finally, Hiccup said, "Well, a little warning would've been nice!"

    Snotlout just pointed at the twins━he couldn't form any coherent words out of his swollen jaw. Hiccup set his scowl onto the two Thorstons.

    Tuffnut sighed. He glanced at his sister. "Well, to be honest, Hiccup, we figure out what was ruining our plans."

    Ruff nodded. She gestured to Hiccup. "It was you."

    He frowned. "Me?"

    "You━my friend━" said Tuff, "━are a terrible actor."

    "So, you made Snotlout attack me?"

    "Eh━" Ruffnut made a few noises in the back of her throat, "━'Surprise'━" she decided, "━is the word we prefer to use."

    "Yeah!" said Tuffnut. "We needed a real reaction from you!"

    His sister chuckled. She crossed her arms, looking very much. "And, boy, did we get one. Eh, Snotlout?"

    Meanwhile, Snotlout was sobbing━like a child. He reached his fingers into his mouth, tugging at something that was giving him grief. They all soon realised in horror━including him━that it was his tooth. 

    "Unfortunately," Tuffnut eyed the tooth in Snotlout's fingers that he let out a whine at, positively mortified, "we weren't expecting Thor's mighty hammer to meet Snotlout's paper jaw!"

    Snotlout growled at him. Tuff snickered. 

    Hiccup clenched his hands. The sky outside was still rising from morning to afternoon, where the clouds of Dragon's Edge always became a dusted yellow. "So━okay━you do realise if Barf and Belch had actually tried to save me," he walked up to his cousin, setting a hand on his shoulder in his defence, "Snotlout would've been roasted alive?"

    His cousin shot up like a cork, eyes wide. 

    The Twins shrugged. "Yeah," said Ruffnut, "we took that into account in our risk assessment."

    He turned away, sighing into the palm of his hand. "Oh, this situation has gotten way out of hand..."

    "Please, Hiccup," then said Tuffnut, shoulders falling as the facade he and his sister held crumbled apart, "you gotta help us. We're completely lost without our dragon! We have nothing to live for! Don't you understand?"

    "We will get you your dragon back," Hiccup promised him with a scowl over his shoulder. "But, you two have to stop. Stop your plans, stop your schemes, okay? I'm gonna figure this out." He spun on his heel and marched to the open door. "I just need time alone."

     Toothless warbled, standing up and stretching his limbs, but Hiccup just brushed past him, "You too, bud."

◞ ★ ꒱꒱◜

    WHEN HICCUP WAS little, his father used to take him to the cliffs of Berk to watch the sunrise. He'd hold him up, small and limber━no bigger than some of the toddlers running around in the streets even at the age of six, and show him the beauty of the growing sun rise over his home. He'd watch it stretch over thatch-roofed houses, spread over the ocean waters and turn his home into splendours of pink and gold. 

     He'd tell him one day, it would be his responsibility to protect the people of Berk just like he did every day. And Hiccup remembered━even then━feeling even smaller to think that he would be placed such expectation; that they'd trust someone as small and as weak as him with such a grand role. From that day on, he always ran from it. He always searched the forest, ventured the seas and ran as far away━as far away he could from the inevitable future. From the expectant gazes, the questions he was supposed to somehow answer, the responsibility he had no choice in one day shouldering. 

     If he couldn't handle leading his friends, Hiccup had no idea how he could ever lead an entire village. 

     He had come far from being called the Useless, but even now, Hiccup still wondered whether he truly had changed from that little runt of a boy who made a mess of everything. Who watched, glum, as his father took Toothless away, leading so many to possible death, forgotten and disowned, unable to do anything. He always ended up back there, no matter how many times he ran, no matter how many times he tried to prove himself otherwise━he was still a Hiccup. He will always be a Hiccup. 

     He had walked all the way from the outpost to the depths of the woodland. Hiccup didn't know where he was going; he just followed where his feet took him all afternoon, brooding and kicking aside twigs and fallen leaves. 

    He wondered what his father would do in this situation. But he didn't know━mainly because he was sure his father would never let something like this happen in the first place. Stoick the Vast could handle anything and everything ... how could Hiccup ever live up to that?

    He had been wandering aimlessly for so long, the afternoon had started to pass onto evening. He glanced upwards, watching the sun set behind purple clouds. 

    Hiccup sighed, hands slipping up into his hair to grip it as he continued to walk, and walk, and walk━utterly useless. 

    The snap of a twig behind him made him stop. Hiccup spun around, wondering who had followed him━deep down, he hoped to see Yrsa. But when there was nothing, his brows furrowed. "Uh ... Hello?" he called, a little curt. 

     No other reached his ears. He rolled his eyes to himself. Great, he thought bitterly, not only am I going to be a horrible chief, I'm also going mad━!

     Hiccup yelped when something was shoved down over his head. The forest around him suddenly turned to black and he was tugged backwards. He stumbled, crying out as he was pulled away. "Ugh━really guys?!" he's had it with them━completely and utterly had it with them! Hiccup struggled, unable to see anything through the sack over his head. It was tied tight behind his neck by large hands. "What did I say?!" The Twins didn't let him go. Hiccup tried to hit them, furious, but they were strong━far stronger than he presumed Ruff and Tuff to be. "Come on, I'm serious━hey!"

     He was hoisted up. Hiccup yelled in alarm, writhing as he was thrown over one of their shoulders. He slammed his fist against Tuffnut's back━though he didn't hear his chuckle (when did Tuff get strong enough to pick Hiccup over his shoulder?). "Would you let me go?!" he shouted as they broke off into a run. Hiccup started to panic━why weren't they listening to him? His heart pounded. His struggles became more frantic, but the arm securing him did not move. "N━No, seriously!" his voice cracked, "Just put me down! What are you guys doing━where are you taking me?!"

     It didn't take long for Hiccup to grab the feeling that the Twins weren't behind this. He grew on edge, pulling and tugging against the strong hold this stranger had on him. He couldn't see where he was in comparison to the outpost, or where they were taking him to━he tried to listen to the footsteps; he counted two pairs. There were two strangers, and by the heavy sound, he could tell they were large in size. 

    They were travelling downwards. Hiccup shouted, praying that somehow, Toothless heard him━or one of the other riders noticed something in a bypassing flight. But no one came to his rescue, and before he knew it, he could smell the salt of the ocean. He felt the rocking surface of a boat, and like that, he was thrown off the stranger's shoulder.

    Hiccup grunted as he hit the deck of the boat, coughing as he struck his side rather painfully. He went to struggle, but soon enough, he felt rope tied around him━tight against his chest and arms, pinning them to his sides. He tried to throw himself forward as he felt them tie his wrists, but it was fruitless. He was pushed up against what he presumed to be the ships mast. 

     "Okay," he managed, breathless in his struggle the entire way here from where he had been taken to the woods. He had no idea who he was talking to, but he did his best to sound braver than he felt. Part of him still hoped it was the Twins, and so he said: "this is the single worst plan you have ever come up with━"

     Fingers grasped the sack over his head and pulled it away. Hiccup blinked, trying to see in the dark of the evening━his eyes adjusted, and his stomach dropped. 

     "Oh, I don't know, brother. You're our prisoner." The deranged chuckle belonged to one person, and one person only. Dagur the Deranged grinned back at him. "Seems like a brilliant plan to me."

     Hiccup's bravery fell away. He shuffled up against the mast of the ship, horrified to see not only Dagur had found him, but Ryker, too━the both of them stood together, flanked by Berserker warriors with their sail adrift, heading far away from Dragon's Edge. Hiccup had no weapon, he had no dragon━he was stranded. 

     But he refused to show how startled and scared he felt. Hiccup set his jaw and glowered. Dagur was not at all phased by his attempt. He only chuckled at it, as if Hiccup's scowl was the most hilarious sight he could see. 

    "So," he bit back his deranged chuckles, "looks like your little island stronghold isn't so strong after all." He strode forward, crouching down to meet Hiccup in the eye. He did not waver in his scowl. "It's completely unguarded from the North! You know, doesn't take much to put in a watchtower."

     He bit his tongue, not saying a word as the Berserker Chief chuckled at his stupidity, wiping a stray tear from his eye. "No watchtower. Ha! What do you do without a watchtower? I━it's preposterous!" Hiccup's lack of a response did not settle well. Dagur's chuckles stopped, and he stood up, clenching his fists in an abrupt lividness━like there was a lever in his mind with only the slightest switch to insanity. "You think you are so clever, do you, brother? Look where you are! We've captured you, and we are gonna extract every little piece of dragon knowledge from that tiny coconut-shaped noggin. We're gonna use you to take us to every island that Dragon Eye has led you to!"

     Hiccup dared not check how far they were from the Edge. But from the sea stacks they passed, he knew they were still in the harbour━which meant, he had time for his friends to notice he was gone. 

     He tilted his head up, peering at Dagur with a deadly gaze, "And if I don't?"

     Ryker unsheathed his sword in a matter of moments. Hiccup did not flinch when it dug right underneath his chin. He set his gaze evenly onto the Dragon Hunter as he chuckled lowly, "I hope you don't."

     Hiccup smelt something sour. He kept his face blank as he recognised it immediately, catching the breath of green gas curl around the ship's back end. Dagur noticed it, too. He sniffed, confused━his eyes widened, but he realised a little too late. 

      The ship shuddered as the explosion rocked into the silent night, lighting up the dark clouds with a mushroom of noxious flame. Hiccup grinned at the way the Berserkers and hunters all stumbled on their feet, taken by surprise. Barf and Belch darted past the ship's side, continuing a long trail of Zippleback gas that wrapped around the entire barge. None of them had any time to react when it was lit with merely the slightest of sparks. Hiccup ducked his head, breaking through a laugh as they were swallowed in a wall of flames. He took the chance.

    Hiccup pushed himself up onto his feet and broke out into a run at the confusion. He headed straight for the centre of the deck where Barf and Belch landed to meet them. He chuckled, light in his chest. "Boy! First time in a while that I've been happy to see you guys."

    The yells of dragon hunters caught his attention. Hiccup spun back around, and he clenched his fists in their bonds. At either side, Barf and Belch let loose low growls that vibrated deep in their throats━a growl no smart man would ever race towards. Ripping his teeth through the rope, Belch freed Hiccup with just a snap of his jaws and he ran to meet one of the hunters halfway. 

     He flung up his hands and gripped the hilt of the falling axe. Hiccup gritted his teeth, surprising the hunter when he stopped it right in its tracks. Using it to his advantage, he brought his metal leg down on the hunters foot and he cried out in pain. It let Hiccup seize his axe from his grip and spin it backwards━he struck the blunt side across the man's face, and he stumbled all the way off the edge of the boat. 

    Barf and Belch had his back as two more hunters tried to attack. They seized them by their cauldrons and their arms, chucking them overboard before they even got the chance to make an attack. 

    Hiccup took a deep breath, holding the axe up as more hunters charged. Behind him, Barf and Belch swooped their heads up and an explosion rocketed the sky━the distress signal. All they had to do now, was fight their way until the others arrived. 

     He spun the axe in his hand and ran straight into battle, Barf and Belch right behind him. Fighting with an axe wasn't the same as a sword, but Hiccup handled it well. He met the strikes, dodged and parried, doing his best to disarm them with tricky manoeuvres no one but him was known for━like tripping men over, taking away their helmets and pulling apart their belts so they spun like dancers. 

     No one expected someone like him to have learnt how to fight━and fight pretty well. 

     Truly, it was all thanks to Yrsa and Astrid━but that's not what matters. 

    While he battled blade to blade, feinting and locking hilts, Barf and Belch knocked men off their feet left and right. But the Nutt was welcome to anyone who dared come close enough. 

     Hiccup thought they'd make it without the help of the others until Ryker pushed forward. He didn't see him until the backhand shocked Hiccup right off his feet. He hit the deck harshly, black dots dancing in his vision. Muddled, he turned onto his back and gasped to see Ryker's blade swing down━ 

     A Zippleback tail swiped him right off his feet. He let out a strangled scream as he was dropped down by the ropes of the mast, crashing into a pile of barrels. Hiccup grinned, pushing himself back onto his feet. "Phew! Nice job, guys━" he offered Barf a scratch under the chin, "━now, get us out of here."     

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     HICCUP WAS grateful, that the next morning, he woke up to find no Zipplebacks staring back at him. It was a bright morning on Dragon's Edge━no Dragon Hunter ships, no strangled screams, no obnoxious arguments. He was pretty sure Snotlout was still sleeping off his experience with 'Thor's mighty hammer'. Fishlegs was taking a moment to relax in his rock garden. Astrid was sharpening her axe amongst the bright green grass overlooking the ocean view. But most importantly, Barf and Belch were back where they belonged, at the side of the two people who loved and cherished them the most. 

     And Hiccup was happy to finally have a good morning flight without any trouble.

     He landed back down onto the grass by Yrsa's hut, finding her sorting threw a new assortment of seashells she must've collected from the lagoon after a swim. Her hair was out as it dried━it was a rare sight to see her hair flow over her shoulders so freely in tight curls. 

     As soon as Hiccup dismounted, Toothless was off to annoy Helrose who had been drying to rest in the sun. He knocked her over and she woke up with a start, growling at him as he decided to take her spot baked in the sunlight instead. Hiccup chuckled at them. 

     Seeing him make his way over, Yrsa set down her shells and quirked a brow, "So, looks like the old life-debt has been repaid."

     He bounced his brows as he took a seat beside her, leaning back on his arms as he let out a long breath towards the sun. "Yep," said Hiccup. "Barf and Belch saved me from the Dragon Hunters and Ruff and Tuff saved their dragon from drowning. Thank Thor, everything's back to normal."

     She grinned, turning her attention back to sifting through her sea shells. Together, they sat in comfortable silence under the shadow of her hut━a place perhaps even more peaceful than Fishlegs's garden. 

     But maybe he spoke too soon.

     Hiccup shouted as somebody barrelled right into him. They rolled across the grass and Yrsa burst into laughter. It took Hiccup a moment to recognise Snotlout's victorious shouts. He struggled under his headlock, trying to elbow the oaf off of him. "Hey! Get off of me!"

     He just pressed his elbow against his back harder. "Snotlout!"

     Yrsa watched them, chuckling with no intention of helping him at all. She shrugged, a mischievous smirk playing on her lips. "Well..." she mused, "... normal for us anyway."

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    a/n: I try not to make a chapter long and it ends up being over 12000 words. great.

https://youtu.be/9C4sPUEJscY

    imma just leave this iconic video here. 

    (not edited).