When You Fall

Where's Hiccup?

Third Person POV

Stoick walked through the ash and the mist, searching desperately for his son.

"Hiccup? Hiccup?" His voice became more desperate continuously. "Son!" And then he spotted it. The black beast that Hiccup had come to love. He knew that with that dragon he would find Hiccup. But as he ran towards Toothless, he failed to spot the scrawny little brown haired boy. The saddle and contraption on the dragon were burnt, and on that saddle was nothing. No... a million scenarios ran through his head, each one so completely horrifying. Hiccup, being crushed and ripped in the jaws of the massive beast he had just defeated. His body burnt to a crisp in the fire as the queen dragon exploded. Being separated from Toothless in the air, screaming in terror as the ground got closer and closer.

There wasn't even a body. In despair, the great man dropped to his knees.
"I did this..." And he had. Hiccup had warned him that he was out of his depth, begged him to listen just once. And in turn, Stoick pushed him down and disowned him. Oh gods... he had done that. He'd apologized briefly in the battle, but as Stoick suddenly recalled how often he pushed away his son over the years, it hadn't even been close to enough.

He had treated his own blood as a mere stranger, a boy he only tolerated, but did not want. He loved his son, he did... but Hiccup was so painfully like Valka, and because of the memories, Stoick pushed away his only tie to her. But that tie had been a person, one he was supposed to always put first. Oh gods...

Behind him, Gobbler couldn't stop his eyes from gathering moister. He'd practically raised Hiccup. The boy was like a son to him. After all the crap everyone gave him, Hiccup had come back for them, knowing that most, if not all, wouldn't have done the same for him. Goober chocked back a sob. His apprentice deserved so much better!

Astrid wasn't much better off. She, and all the other teens, couldn't hope to fight off the guilt that gnawed at their hearts. They had beat him, pushed him down, degraded him, insulted him in every way verbally possible, and he saved them all, not caring about himself, but putting them first.

The thought suddenly struck Astrid as she realised why. He had always put them first. Not just because he was selfless, though he was, but because he thought he didn't deserve to be put first. They had titled him Hiccup the Useless! And for all they had done, he'd saved them! He could have flown away on Toothless, but for them, he didn't!

The twins had nothing to say for once. Nor did Fishlegs. At their young age, a death if someone they knew was hard to comprehend. Snotlout couldn't help but feel it was his fault. Hiccup was his cousin, his family. Snotlout should be the one protecting him! But instead, he was the main oppressor.

None of them could even apologize...

Stoick looked at the dragon. "I'm so... I'm so sorry." His voice was broken, as was his heart.

The dragon opened his wings, revealing...

"Hiccup!" Stoick grabbed his son. The crowd behind held their breath, hoping beyond hope that by some miracle, their hero was alive. Stoick searched for signs of life. Finding none, he threw off his helmet, listening for a heartbeat.

But his heart shattered all over again when he heard silence. His anguished cry informed the crowd of the truth. Toothless felt hollow. His human was gone.

Hiccup was gone...

Because he fell.

And tragedies happen when you fall.