It's early in the morning, the sun is just coming up from the horizon. People are bustling around on the docks, carrying bins and cargo into a ship.
A young woman watches from behind a box. Her black cloak conceals her from being spotted by the busy villagers. She waits anxiously for her moment to run, but more and more people keep coming back to the boat. She looks around for something to draw people away but comes up with nothing. She curses and slowly starts making her way closer to the boat.
She can't miss this chance. She has to leave now, before she is found.
She can't go back.
She sacrificed too much to go back.
Thankfully, one of the villagers calls for assistance at the other side of the dock and relief flows inside her; seeing the boat clear out.
Checking both directions for anyone who could spot her, she hurries to the boat, quickly making her way onto the empty. She spots a small trapdoor and she crouches down next to it. She waits for a moment, but when she doesn't hear any voices or footsteps, she deems it safe and quickly climbs down to the base floor.
She sees bins upon bins, stacked up in the large room. Whichever island is receiving this large amount of supplies is stocking up for.... something. Hiccup can't place what they would be stocking up for. She hasn't been anywhere else except for her 'hometown', so she isn't really familiar with other islands' customs.
She moves towards the back portion of the ship, finding a wall of bins that create a little nook that she could easily fit into. She quickly moves the bins and squeezes inside the hole. Luckily she can sit comfortably inside, but it isn't tall enough for her to stand or wide enough to lay down, but it'll have to do.
The woman sits back and takes a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart.
She's almost there.
---
She isn't sure how long she hides down in the hole; she fell into a light sleep once the ship started moving, ready to jump awake at the slightest sound. It's probably around mid-day and they are still sailing.
The woman finds boredom quickly creeping up on her. She pulls out her journal and starts flipping through the pages; a sunset, her hut, a sunrise, people, more people... She pauses on the next page, seeing a familiar face. Her heart aches and she turns the page. She digs a piece of charcoal from her satchel and starts sketching to pass the time.
She barely notices the temperature drop the duration she has spent on the ship, but eventually it gets too cold to ignore. She assumes it must be closer to night, which would explain the temperature drop.
She becomes aware of the heavy footsteps walking up above. People start yelling and running around, orders are thrown, things are tossed.
She made it.
She waits until there are no longer any footsteps, and she quickly hurries onto the top of the ship. Just as she thought, the sun is setting. She makes sure to remember that it was a day trip in between the islands.
The woman throws down her hood but keeps her head down as she walks into town. Thankfully, no one really seems to be paying her much attention. She catches a few stray looks but those people quickly move on.
When she reaches the Town Square, she finally takes in the town. Buildings upon buildings surround the area, there is a large staircase that leads to a huge building, and there are woods off in the distance.
Seeing that as her best option, she starts making her way to the woods, but she makes she to start mapping the town. When she reaches the start of the woods, she pulls out her journal and draws a rough sketch of the town.
Taking a deep breath, she walks through the wall of trees.
---
She starts following the trees, making her way deeper into the woods. It about 10 minutes when she starts to hear yelling. She startles and runs behind a tree, hoping to not get spotted. But when the voice doesn't come any closer, she grows curious. She pays closer attention and hears a repetitive THUNK before every shout.
She follows the sound, remaining cautious. If there is someone out this far, then there could potentially be more people. She eventually spots the person screaming in the middle of the woods. It's a tall man, he has blonde shoulder-length hair, and he is slim but muscular. She watches as he walks up to the mutilated tree and yanks out a double sided ax. He walks a good distance from the tree, yells, and throws the ax with perfect precision and aim.
Hiccup watched for a moment in awe, but when he accidentally comes too close, her heart leaps; she backs up, trying to create distance in case he saw her and decided to follow her.
She freezes when he doesn't move; she fears for a moment that she had been spotted, that he will come marching through the trees and-
No.
She release as breath when she hears him give another harsh yell and a solid THUNK resounding afterwards.
She crawls to her feet and quietly begins to make her way through the woods again. When she comes across a large rock formation, she grows curious and walks closer. She crawls through the rocks and comes across a cove. It looks beautiful evening light. The lake water sparkles, the large tree towering over her, but it resonates peace rather than fear.
She hurries down into the large and open space, taking a deep breath, finally feeling free.
She lays down on the soft grass, her cloak resting under her head. She looks for constellations, not worrying about what tomorrow will bring.
Eventually, sleep creeps on her and pulls her under.
YOU ARE READING
Outcast
FanfictionA stranger has appeared on Berk. No one knows who she is. No one knows where she came from. All they know is that she has a past. And it haunts her at every moment. All she wants to start over. But no one knows if it'll last. The HTTYD franchise bel...
