The Joys of Berk

A/N: This fic is a mix between book and movie. Meaning: It involves a skill that book Hiccup has, but still retains everything the movie Hiccup has. Toothless is the movie Toothless, not the book, since the book Toothless is just weird. NOT a Hiccup/Camicazi fic! Camicazi isn’t even mentioned. Is a kind of Hiccstrid fic. OC Astrid at the end.

This, is Berk. It snows nine months of the year and hails the other three. Any warm days we have here, are spent, training. For what, you ask? Anything. With what? Swords. Bows. Arrows. Hammers, and basically any weapon you know. It’s tiring and annoying. But we’re Vikings. It’s an occupational hazard. The only upsides, are the aerial assaults. While other places use eagles and other birds, we use… Dragons.

“THUMP!” The sound resonated from the roof of the double-story hut, dust raining down from the roof onto the unfortunate boy sleeping below. The specks dusted his thick, shaggy dark auburn hair, and forest green eyes, dulled from grogginess but still undoubtedly intellectual, pierced the darkness.

The boy’s groan echoed in the cramped room as another thump occurred.  “Alright, alright! I’m coming, you overgrown reptile!” He called fondly, if slightly exasperated. He lowered his legs –leg- over the side of the pallet, slipping on a fur-lined boot. Shrugging a furless vest over his usual woollen green tunic, he was just about to descend the stairs to the front door when a black shadow shot through the sizable ‘window’ in his roof and picked him up by the scruff of his neck.

“Aw, come on! Toothless!” Hiccup exclaimed as he was flipped into the air, landing on Toothless’s already saddled back. He fastened his prosthetic into the stirrup, hearing the click it made. As Toothless took to the air, his prosthetic moved flawlessly, guiding Toothless’s tailfin.

They landed smoothly in the cove, and Hiccup dismounted with practiced ease. All of a sudden, his body tensed as he whipped around, his hand flashing out to grab the branch that had been flying towards his face. Spending time with dragons had ensured that his reflexes were beyond excellent.

A rhythmic applause made him turn. “Impressive reflexes, Hiccup.” Astrid was leaning against a boulder. Instead of her usual axe, a razor-sharp, finely made sword was being twirled effortlessly in her hand.

Hiccup grinned and bowed mockingly. “Thank you, milady.” He stated sarcastically.

Astrid turned to Toothless and smiled. “Thanks for bringing him here, Toothless.” She tossed him a fish, which Toothless gulped down.

“Ok… So you planned this. What are you thinking?” Hiccup asked uncertainly. He had learned to fear Astrid’s plans.

“I’m training you to fight with a sword, instead of just relying on your dragon to do the work.”

“Oh, just great.” Hiccup sighed, turning to Toothless. “Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile.”

Toothless just shot him a trademark gummy grin, knowing that Hiccup didn’t mean what he said. Hiccup groaned, and turned to Astrid. She reached for the other sword strapped to her back, about to toss it to Hiccup, when he turned and opened the saddlebag attached to the riding equipment on Toothless, a new addition.

With a flourish, he drew out a beautifully made sword, its hilt seemingly designed to fit Hiccup’s hand perfectly. The contours of the hilt and Hiccup’s hand blended seamlessly. The blade itself was of the finest work. Curling dragon forms were engraved into it, in shimmering metal. The blade’s edges were sharpened so perfectly that they were practically invisible to the naked eye.

“Meet Endeavour.” Hiccup smiled. That sword was one of his masterpieces, if he did say so himself.

Astrid gazed in shock at the beautiful yet deadly sword while Hiccup’s trained eye raked over the sword held in Astrid’s hand. He nodded appreciatively. Solid iron, cooled as soon as it was cast and engraved in runes, spelling out the sword’s name.