Book 1: The First Year (ROTBTD Hogwarts AU) (PREQUEL)

14. Hiccup's POV: Late October

October was a month of rain. Every day the school woke to skies covered in a heavy blanket of dense, grey clouds pouring enough water to supply a reasonably sized village. The rumbling thunder became another part of the backdrop of the day-to-day activities. Parts of the grounds soon flooded over from the near constant downpour and became almost like marshland.

But the chill and damp did not cross into the castle. Not when runes guarded the windows and doors.

It took some time before Hiccup noticed them. Once he did, it was easy to find more. Some were obvious, like the one or two carved over doorways that some students would try to jump up and touch. Others were so incredibly tiny that they looked ready to duck and hide in the crevices they peeked out of.

They were not Viking runes, that much he knew. Many of them appeared to be letters in an alphabet—or, well, at least the simpler ones. They were often arranged in line formation, so perhaps that had something to do with how to read them. He couldn't say the same for the complicated ones. Those were just one big rune, made up of smaller bits of symbols that wrapped around each other to form detailed, almost artistic patterns.

When he viewed them through the lens of his magic, they glowed orange, and felt warm to the touch. The one time he'd tried to nudge his magic at one of them, a nearby suit of armour had abruptly turned its head and Hiccup went scuttling off.

He made sure to tell Gobber about it. Now that he had permission to visit Gobber as often as he wished, he'd since gone every week to narrate his findings. Those and more he scribbled down in a lined, magical notes-book that had come with his school supplies and which he'd taken to carrying around with him.

The afternoon was an especially cold, dark one when Hiccup unfurled a ratty old umbrella he'd borrowed from the stash in his common room and trudged through the rain. As he neared Gobber's hut, the sight of someone vaguely familiar sitting under the porch roof grew clearer. She waved to him as he squelched up the steps, every part of him save his school bag (stored safely under his cloak) dripping water.

While he muttered a quick 'hello professor' to Professor Ginna, Gobber poked his head out the door.

"About time you got here. Help me with tea." Gobber snapped his fingers. A puff of steam billowed out from Hiccup's clothes, making his hair stick up like dandelion fuzz.

"Why does it always have to be that one? I can do it myself." Hiccup grumbled, patting away the steam.

"Oh, aye? And I'm supposed to stand here and wait? No point in you getting sick if you don't have to, I think. Now come on, hop to it."

Between the two of them, they somehow got the tea out to the small, dingy table set up before a huddle of stools. Yik-yik came out just long enough to greet Hiccup before he took refuge inside, while Gobber and Ginna picked up whatever conversation they'd left off.

One of the professors Hiccup had gotten to know better from his regular visits was Professor Ginna. He learnt that she taught Care of Magical Creatures and that her duties of taking care of the magical animals extended to helping maintain the school grounds with Gobber. He also learnt that she took her tea with three sugars, that her witch's hat was apparently waterproof and bad luck proof, and that she had a deep, throaty laugh for someone spindly enough that a stiff wind could knock her sideways.

While the adults chatted, Hiccup quietly nibbled a crumpet—the initial liking for them had not gone away and it was all Gobber's fault—and staunchly resisted the urge to press his cheek into the hot, marmite-coated surface. Nessi had abandoned him to skitter about the edge of the porch and catch raindrops on her skin, the water more than likely feeling pleasantly warm to her. She only came back to check in on him as Gobber gathered up the tea things and went inside. ("No, you stay put. That's the third time you've tripped over the trunk and nearly stabbed yer eyes out.")