First Friends

Chapter 23

I pounced on Hiccup as he came through the door, reeking of fire and looking about as rough. I sniffed him then groomed him, cleaning him up enough that he was presentable. He shoved me off playfully then grabbed a stick, which I latched onto as well. We played tug-of-war for a bit before he trotted out the door with me close on his heels. We went to the forge where he sat down at his bench, clearly bothered by something. I set my good paw on his right leg, sighing as I rested my chin next to it. He absently scratched my head for a bit then flicked a pencil up his desk, then it rolled down, sounding mildly seductive. I matched my purring to the sound and he smiled. I pricked my ears towards the door when I heard a small, deep noise. After a moment Hiccup looked up too. Stoick was standing in the doorway. Hiccup jumped up in surprise and alarm.

"Dad! You're back! Uh-uh Gobber's not here so-" he started to say.

"I know," his father rumbled. The fur on my tail bristled unconsciously. "I came looking for you." Hiccup flipped his notebook closed and scraped a hand across the papers on his desk which were covered in drawings of Toothless. I tried to keep from facepawing while Hiccup's fear began to carry over to me. "You've been keeping secrets."

"I-I have?" Hiccup asked, fear growing with each passing moment.

"Just how long did you think you could hide it?" Stoick growled, but there was something sort of...off about his demeanour. Hiccup was almost shaking in his boots, but Stoick wasn't giving off a threatening aura at all. If anything it was a slightly playful manner. Before I could peg down what I was getting he interrupted Hiccup. "Nothing happens on this island without me hearing about it."

"Oh?" Hiccup said in a tiny voice.

Stoick straightened threateningly. "Now let's talk about that dragon," he said. I swallowed nervously.

"Oh gods," Hiccup breathed, panicking. "Dad, I'm so sorry, I wanted to tell you but I just..."

Stoick dropped his angered veil and uttered a belly laugh, rocking back on his heels. Hiccup joined in, laughing anxiously. "You-you're not...upset?"

"What?! I was hoping for this!" Cried Stoick.

I sensed a sinking feeling from Hiccup. "Ah, you were?" He asked.

I wasted no time getting out of there. I looked up at the sky and realized that I was going to be late. I tore off for he trees, keeping to the shadows as necessary. I reached the alcove and called down.

"Toothless!" I hissed. His shadowy bulk heaved into the moonlight, eyes almost glowing in the bright moonlight.

He looked up at me, his tail hidden in the shadows. "Were you followed?" He asked. I shook my head and darted down into the valley. He sighed with relief and met me. He brought his tail around as he laid down, that's when I noticed his tail was damaged, replaced by a burlap piece.

"What happened?" I asked, sniffing it.

"Hiccup shot me down. It ripped my tail fin off. He spared me, and I him, then he built me this," he answered. "What about you? Did he make that for you too?"

"No. I saved him from a bear when he was ten summers old," I replied. "I was five. From that day on I made sure to keep an extra close eye on him, but I fear that if he's out of my sight and not with someone I know he'll get hurt, and there won't be a blasted thing I can do about it. Please, I'm begging you: keep him safe, no matter what it costs you!"

He looked at me for a brief spell, then hesitantly reached out and licked my face gently. I tried to keep from insulting him, but I couldn't keep from hissing.

"Don't worry. That just means I'll keep you safe too. He was angrier than a female protecting her hatchlings when you fell from my back," Toothless chuckled. He sighed. "Sorry about that, by the way. I just figured, hey, now we're even. You treewhacked me, I treewhacked you." Our ears tilted towards the village, where I could hear Stoick calling for me.

"I need to go," I said. "Remember what I said: keep Hiccup safe." I slunk back up and out of the grotto as he melted back into the shadows. I grabbed a pair of rabbits on the way back to the village, making it look like I'd been on a late-night hunting trip. I purred a greeting to Stoick as I trotted up to him, and he ruffled my ears as we headed back to the village.

"Off on a hunting trip, eh, Tiger?" he asked me with a chuckle. I bobbed my head in a rough approximation of a nod, then we both headed back to the village. I dropped my rabbits off, then, after a bath and supper, we all went to bed. Hiccup didn't sleep well that night, and it wasn't until the next day that I'd find out why.