The Gray Area (1/2) - A Viggo Love Story (HTTYD/RTTE)

15. Foes as Friends

"Woah, there's another dragon with it," Ruff observed as Barf and Belch ascended into the sky.

"I see it," Tuff shouted excitedly, "and it is huge!"

The twins watched for a moment to see what the dragons were doing. Ruffnut furrowed her eyebrows, "hey, bro, there're people on that big one."

Tuffnut steered Belch down to fly toward the platform where the other dragons were now landing. "Well, let's go meet them," he shrugged and Barf followed Belch's lead. The two-headed dragon landed a bit away from the other two. Ruff and Tuff hopped down and approached them with a small amount of caution. They spotted a masked man, holding an unmasked girl close in his arms. He walked toward them.

But as he got closer, Ruffnut's eyes widened. Because even with as much effort as he put in, Viggo could not hide the scar on his eye. Realizing that it was useless to try and hide any longer, he shook his head gently. The hood fell against his back, and the mask slipped to hang around his neck.

Tuffnut gasped dramatically, "what?!"

He was about to run for the weapons rack just yards away, but Viggo stopped him. "Please, I've not come to bring any of you harm," he pleaded honestly, "my friend is in need of assistance..something's wrong."

The twins hesitantly made their way over to Viggo. They peered into the face of the woman he held. Her eyes were only half open, and her skin was dry and cold. She would've looked dead if it weren't for her deep, slow breathing.

Sessa could only stare up at the two faces above her. She couldn't find the energy to speak. For some reason, finding out the truth, as well as remembering her past, had taken quite a toll on her already fragile being.

With a panicked look on her face, Ruff shoved her brother violently and ordered, "go get Fishlegs, he knows about medicine and stuff."

"Right," Tuff agreed, then rushed off. His sister quickly led Viggo up to the clubhouse. There, she spread out a thick yak-fur mat on their table. Viggo laid Sessa down and stood at her side, holding one of her hands in both of his. Ruff couldn't help but see this and feel like Viggo was a completely different person.

Before long, Tuffnut returned with a very frantic looking Fishlegs. The large viking rushed over to Sessa, ignoring the fact that the twins had let Viggo into their base. He figured he'd let Hiccup get them for that. "What happened to her?" He questioned.

"I think she may have been poisoned by a titan wing devilish dervish," Viggo responded, still not completely sure why Sessa was suddenly so ill.

Fishlegs gave Viggo a blank look. "A..a what?" He'd never heard of a devilish dervish before, but he assumed it was the dragon that this woman rode. He looked back down at the woman and began to check her health. Without turning away, he called to the twins, "one of you, go get Hiccup."

Ruffnut saluted then rushed out of the building. Fishlegs bumped into Viggo by accident and looked awkwardly to the x-villan, "could you, back up a bit?"

Although he was reluctant to leave Sessa's side, Viggo stepped back. He crossed his arms over his chest, watching nervously. "So, uh," Tuffnut's voice came from beside him, "how are you..still alive? Again?"

Viggo didn't tear his gaze from Sessa, "she saved my life."

"Oh, cool," Tuff responded lightly, as if this weren't a dire situation, "she saved Snotlout, too." But as he recalled his friend's mysterious rescue, he frowned and mumbled, "but, I guess you knew that, already.."

Then, Hiccup entered with Ruff. The room immediately became more tense. His eyes fell on Viggo, and Viggo finally looked away from Sessa. They stared across the room for a few suspenseful seconds. Hiccup gave him a warning look, but that was all. He then made his way over to Fishlegs and the sick woman, "is she alright?"

"Uh, I'm not really sure," Fishlegs answered, "she seems healthy, just really tired. Maybe dehydrated. I can't figure out why she looks so.."

"Dead?" Tuffnut concluded.

Hiccup sighed in irritation, "thank you, Tuff." The twin smiled proudly as he walked over to stand with his sister.

"I'm uncertain of exactly what happened," Viggo explained, "she was unconscious for days."

"Days?! And you're just now looking for help?" Fishlegs asked in bewilderment.

Viggo frowned and responded formally, "I'm not exactly a favorable man, if you recall. Trust me, the last thing I wanted was to have to reveal myself." He looked down at Sessa, "but I can't let her die..and you're the only ones who I believed might possibly help."

Hiccup couldn't believe what he was seeing. The look in Viggo's eyes when he watched Sessa, it was a look of caring and passion. "Of course we'll help," Hiccup responded, his voice sounding awkward and reluctant. He knew that Viggo was a changed man, but it still felt odd to be in his presence as a friend, rather than a foe.