The lion, the sorceress and the wardrobe (ROTBTD chronicles)

Raw dragonness hidden

No one noticed when Hiccup arrived. He just appeared one day and was a generic child in the background. He was small, curious and quiet. He liked to go out to the garden and pretend he was hunting out for trolls. He never bothered anyone, except perhaps Professor Disney, who had to answer all of his questions.

He went about his day like any other little orphan would. Pretending he wasn't thinking about his parents when he was, in fact, thinking about them. Sometimes he wanted to cry just because he couldn't remember his father's eye colour. But he went on with whatever he was doing, like hunting trolls, for example.

That's how Snotlout and his gang found him. He was creeping under the flowers, staring at whatever he might see there, when the bigger boys caught hold of him.

"Look at this. He's so small I'm about to break him" Scoffed a blond kid named Tuffnut.

"What's your name, fishbone?" Asked Snotlout.

"Hic...Hiccup" Said poor Hiccup, signing his own death sentence.

And many know the heroic tale that comes with this chain of events. Many know about Merida's bravery and selflessness, but, what about Hiccup's?

He just stuck behind Merida hoping to be any more useful than the usual "Hiccup the useless". At first he didn't succeed, until he learned that he was fairly good at building stuff.

He built himself and Merida a nice cottage in the woods with fallen branches. He built her a sword with more branches. And yes, he built even more things for himself out of branches, too.

For a few weeks, that's just how they hanged, in the trees, playing in silence. They were both so silent that the birdies liked to be around them, unlike other children.

"Mer?" He asked one day, from the top of a tree.

The girl was inside the cottage pretending to cook a destiny changing potion, that was most likely mud and leaves mixed together in a pot they had found among the grass.

"What?" She muttered.

"There's... There's someone outside" He said, poking his head inside the branch fortress.

The redhead looked up and walked outside beside her friend. Standing in the woods, holding a huge wooden staff, they saw a brunet kid waving at them.

"Hullo! Can you see me?" Asked the stranger.

The two friends both nodded, and the kid walked closer.

"I'm Jack. Are you from Disney's house too?" Asked him, walking around their beloved fortress.

"Y-yes!" Answered Hiccup, trying too hard not to stutter.

"What are your names?" Asked Jack.

"Merida" Hiccup said, pointing at the curly red haired girl beside him.

"And yours?" Asked Jack, looking at the girl.

She sighed annoyed and spoke, loud and clear "I'm Merida, he is Hiccup!"

Jack's eyes widened.

"Holy Easter bunny, you can talk!" He said, full of glee. "That's great, I don't think I could have been friends with someone that couldn't speak"

"Well... Are you... Are you our friend now?" Asked Hiccup.

"I'm not?"

They both looked at Merida, as if she was the one to decide. She nodded, and Jack beamed with joy.

"Sweet!" He said, dancing around.

Disastrously, he tripped over a rock and fell over the branch fortress, destroying it.

"Oh... What have... Have you done?" Cried Hiccup, kneeling down over his invention.

"I'm sorry!" Jack said, looking at the mess he had caused.

Merida punched him in the shoulder, earning a wimp of pain from Jack.

"Well, now you can build another one that isn't so... So flawed!"

"Hiccup, be a dragon" Muttered Merida, as Hiccup stood up trying to look bigger than he really was.

They had accorded that Merida would remind Hiccup whenever he needed to be strong. It was a simple code word. Dragon. They had never needed it, and neither were sure it would even work, but then and there, Hiccup was so angry and determined, he felt as though he might as well be a dragon.

"You... You shouldn't have done that" He said, "There will be consequences."

Jack laughed. "Oh, aren't you two the funniest kids ever?" He giggled so much he couldn't notice the hurt in Hiccup's eyes.

"I am like... Like a dragon!" He said, louder.

Merida put a hand on Hiccup's shoulder and shook her head, calming him down. "Forget aet, 'tis useless."

"I'll help you build another one... Atop of that tree!" Said Jack, cheerfully running towards a tall tree.

"No!" Yelled Hiccup. "I build, you stay there"

Both Merida and Jack looked at him surprised. Merida was proud, had he really stood up for something he cherished?

"Okay, sure. Sorry mate" Muttered Jack, as he shyed out.

They spent the afternoon looking at Hiccup methodically piling up branches and twigs against a hollow tree, until a new, bigger and stronger fortress was done.

"You've truly outdone yourself, Hiccup" said Merida, warmly. "I'm proud of you"

Hiccup's heart melted, as he had never heard those words before. He puffed his chest and followed his two friends inside the hideout. For the first time in a long time, he felt strong and worthy.

As if his sheer dragonness was starting to show.