Moon Fire

Chapter 5

Hiccup did wake up sometime in the night, and his first thought was to eat the food Astrid had brought, but his stomach was still in knots from seeing the tail fin, and he didn't feel up to eating anything at all.

Then again, it wouldn't last long while it wasn't stored properly. Tonight was probably the only time he'd have a chance to eat it.

He sat up slowly, testing his limits, making sure to keep his back to the tail fin. He took the package out from under the pallet and unwrapped it. To his surprise, his stomach roared with hunger even though it was pitch black in the basement and he could barely see a thing. He took a tentative bite, swallowed, and waited. Nothing happened. He took another bite. Still nothing. If anything, his stomach was calmed by the presence of food. Encouraged, Hiccup bolted the rest of it down until there wasn't anything left but the cloth, then lay back down on his pallet and closed his eyes, falling asleep within seconds.

***

Magnus' heavy tread on the stairs woke him up. He snapped his eyes open, instantly on edge. Normally, the jailer called Hiccup to him, not bothering to go downstairs himself. But the fact that he was doing it now only further solidified Hiccup's belief that, for some reason, Magnus wasn't done yet. Despite the beating last night and offering proof of the carnage he'd caused with the family of Night Furies, he wasn't done.

Hiccup lifted himself to a sitting position, wincing at the pain in his ribs. The manacles on his wrists clinked and rattled. The sound cleared his mind the rest of the way. Of course Magnus came downstairs, because Hiccup was unable to even reach the stairs with the chains on. He was probably coming to unlock the manacles so he could get Hiccup upstairs and boss him around even further. Joy.

Sure enough, Magnus' hands were empty of anything but the key to the chains. "Up," he barked. Hiccup stood, wondering when Magnus unlocked the chains holding him to the wall but not the manacles on his wrists. Like most strange things Magnus did, however, his reasoning revealed itself soon enough. This was part of his punishment.

"You're staying home today," Magnus informed him. Home? No, this wasn't home. Berk was home. Gobber's smithy was home. This was a prison. "After you make my breakfast, I want the floors and windows cleaned and polished, the house dusted, chamber pots emptied, dishes clean, wood chopped and in the hearth, laundry done, and my weapons sharpened." He leaned in close to Hiccup's face suddenly, grabbing the chains to keep him from jumping away. "If my finger doesn't bleed when I touch the blades, I'll whip you into next week."

Hiccup nodded quickly, trying to avoid figuring out who those weapons might be used on in the near future, and followed Magnus up the stairs into the kitchen. He set about making the usual, ignoring the way his stomach was eating itself inside out. The jailer glared at him and he pressed his stomach into the edge of the counter to muffle the sound. He made sure the eggs were cooked completely this time, even though it took longer than usual, a fact that Magnus clearly didn't appreciate. When Hiccup put the plate down at his place, Magnus made him stand on the other side of the table and watch him eat. Hiccup obeyed quietly, keeping the majority of his focus on the grain in the table, and not on the way Magnus was savoring each bite, purposefully moving slower than a handicapped snail, rubbing it in his face. When he was finally done, Hiccup took the empty dishes and put them in the sink to clean later.

Magnus grabbed his helmet in one hand, then rushed over to Hiccup and grabbed his neck suddenly with the other, pinning him against the wall. "Remember, boy. Anything not done when I get back, anything at all—" his huge paw squeezed Hiccup's throat hard. Hiccup choked and gasped, clawing at Magnus' hand to relieve the pressure on his airway. All he got for his trouble, though, was a fist to the ribs when Magnus put down his helmet for a moment. "Understand?" the jailer growled, continuing to tighten his grip as a warning.