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themoonandhersun · 3 years

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thinking about

a no hundred year old war au where zuko goes the southern water tribe with his family, and he’s grumpy about the cold.

but he’s not grumpy about spending time with katara again. (he’s ten, she’s eight and they met two years ago.)

when they see each other, they get excited and bow traditionally, then give each other a big hug.

and of course, sokka and azula tease them about it.

they tell their siblings to shut up and walk off together.

zuko tells katara about the plays he sees on ember island. “i can take you to go see a play sometime, princess katara—but only if you want to, of course,” he looks at her, cheeks pink, fiddling with his fingers. “you don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

“i would love to go see a play with you, prince zuko,” katara tells him, her cheeks pink too.

they make eye contact, and look away from each other quickly, their pink cheeks turning a bright red.

zuko and his family spend a few days at the southern water tribe, and zuko spends a lot of time with katara there, of course. he loves penguin sledding and watching katara waterbend.

(spoiler: he thinks she’s so cool.)

when zuko has to leave, she quickly kisses his cheek and tells him she can’t wait to see a play with him. zuko blushes hard and says he’ll take her soon.

he leaves.

they write letters to each other for months (and they send each other gifts on their birthdays like they always do), then zuko comes with his family again to take katara to see a play. kya and gran gran go along with katara, and they talk with ursa on the ship (hakoda is on a hunting trip with sokka during this time, but he knows it was gonna happen and is okay with it). zuko and katara spend time together on the ship, and he tells her he can’t wait to see the play with her.

a few days later, they’re on ember island.

zuko tells her that he should hold hands with her so he can show her around better (yes, uncle iroh gave him this tip) and katara agrees (she wanted to hold hands with him anyways). he takes her to their house on ember island and shows her around. he shows her where she’ll be staying, and she tells him how excited she is to be spending time with him on ember island.

(she’s only been to the palace before, not ember island.)

she asks about azula, and zuko says that azula is spending time with her friends and doesn’t really like watching plays anyways. but he assures her the play is really good and that if she doesn’t like it, that’s okay. (she jokes that it would be a bummer if she came all this way just to not like the play, and zuko laughs and agrees with her.)

they play together and talk together until they have to go to the theater. they don’t hold hands this time, but katara loops her arm with his. ursa, kya and gran gran sit by them, but not too close—they don’t want to disturb katara and zuko’s little date (even though they both insist it’s not a date).

zuko glances at katara throughout the play just to make sure she likes it, and he thinks she does. he asks at the end of the play (just to make sure) how she felt about it and katara beams. “i loved it! thank you for taking me, prince zuko,” she hugs him.

he pulls away and slowly shows her a bracelet he had in his pocket. “this is for you, princess katara,” zuko smiles timidly. “i thought of you, and i got it...um, for you. well, actually, uh—i made it. i know, i could have done better, but i just really wanted to make you something—“

“thank you, prince zuko. i love it, it’s so pretty,” katara giggles and nudges him gently. she points to her wrist, “so, can i—“

“um—here, let me,” zuko ties it around her wrist securely, cheeks red. it’s a black, cotton string with a charm on it: a silver crescent moon connected to a gold sun.

“do you really love it, princess katara?” he asks quietly, fidgeting in his seat.

“i do,” she nods and kisses his cheek. zuko smiles at her. “and...i may have made you something as well.”

his jaw drops. “wait, what? really?”

“yeah,” katara grins and hands him a bone dagger with blue handle and a fire carved into its side. she looks at him nervously as he holds the dagger.

she rambles: “you mentioned in your letters that your cousin got a really cool earth kingdom dagger and that you wanted one, so i—i made one for you. well, my dad helped me, but—“

zuko hugs her. “this is so cool, princess katara! thank you so much!” she hugs him back, both of them feeling butterflies in their stomachs.

they get up and join their family members, and they all go back to the ember island house. then zuko admits that he has another gift for katara. “wait here,” he tells her when they’re in the living room. he runs up to his room and runs back downstairs.

“here,” zuko whispers as he blushes and holds out a fire lily, “for you, princess katara.”

“oh—thank you, prince zuko,” katara whispers, grabbing the flower as her cheeks get hot.

(yes, she knows what a fire lily means.)

they hug again.

when zuko travels with her and her family on their journey back to the south (with ursa, of course), they bicker about cloud shapes (katara swears it’s a flower and zuko swears it’s a baby turtle duck) and when it gets to be night time, they argue about what a constellation is named.

“it’s the little penguin named tuka,” katara insists.

“no, it’s a baby dragon named eyala,” zuko shakes his head.

“no, it’s not!”

“yes, it is!”

“last person to the other side of the ship has to admit that they’re wrong!” katara calls out and they race to the other end of the ship, laughing as they do so.

they tied, then played a game of elements (the atla version of rock, paper, scissors. idk if that’s the name of it though?) to break the tie.

katara won. (and zuko didn’t mind saying he was wrong all that much.)

when they make it the south pole, and they hug, it’s zuko who kisses her cheek this time. “i’ll write to you soon, princess katara,” he whispers and pulls away.

“you better,” she whispers back, and watches as zuko gets on the ship. she waves goodbye until she can’t see him anymore.

they keep writing to each other.

but then, gradually over the course of a few years (she is eleven now and zuko is almost thirteen), zuko’s letters get shorter and more vague, and they don’t come in as often as they used to.

then he completely stops sending letters by the end of the year, and she remembers how, the last time they talked in person, he admitted to her: “listen, so—um, i don’t know what’s going on with my dad—but if i ever stop sending you letters, katara, please know i had nothing to do with it. you’re my best friend—and i’ll always want to talk to you.”

(then he placed his hand over hers, his thumb stroking her skin. “you’re my best friend, and...i love you, katara,” he whispered it like it was a secret. she whispered it back, and they hugged.)

(and they had a joke only written in their letters to each other—that she was his, and he was hers. she’s gonna be honest: she doesn’t remember how the joke started, but she knows she keeps it going even when he’s not around. mostly because she thinks about it all the time. he’s her zuko, her zuko, her zuko. she’s his katara, his katara, his katara.)

she’s very worried, angry and sad all at the same time. and she never liked ozai in the first place if she was gonna be honest with herself.

as three years pass, she doesn’t hear from zuko. once, she wrote to azula asking about zuko, and azula wrote back with a vague letter that gave no information on zuko. she tried two more times and got vague responses each time. (she gave up writing to azula after the third try.)

all she found out was that ursa left, and she had to find out through her dad.

but why doesn’t anyone know what happened to zuko?

she doesn’t want to think negatively, but she’s fourteen now, and if her dad knew anything about zuko, he would’ve told her by now. she often stares at the bracelet zuko gave her when she was nine. she was six when they met and they wrote to each other until she was eleven.

she misses him.

(a messager arrives and gives a letter to hakoda. he reads it in his office. he doesn’t know how to tell katara, but he knows he has to.)

hakoda goes to katara, and tells her gently that zuko was burned and banished by ozai three years ago, and she feels sick to her stomach.

her zuko?—burned by his own father?

and he could be anywhere in the world right now?

and he could be—

no.

she can’t think like that.

she tells hakoda that she needs some alone time. he hugs her and walks out the room.

she starts writing to her friend, aang—who has an air bison—and hopes that he’ll agree to help her find zuko. and aang is also friends with zuko.

(they can find zuko, can’t they?)

unfortunately, though, hakoda intercepts the letter (the messager dropped it, and it popped open, and he recognized katara’s handwriting.)

he tells her that she can’t just leave and they argue. kya was trying to be the mediator. it did not help.

katara attempts to leave at night on a boat, and sokka catches her. he tells her, “katara, you can’t leave—“

“—oh, not you too—“

“—without me,” sokka finishes.

katara looks at him, confused. “what? you wanna come along?” she notices he has a bag slung over his shoulder.

sokka nods. “yeah, why not?”

“okay, then, come on, sokka,” katara motions for him to hurry up and get on the boat. sokka gets on the boat and informs her that he left a note for hakoda and kya.

she grumbles something like, “whatever,” in response. (she’s still grumpy about the argument with hakoda.)

she uses her waterbending to make their trip to aang’s temple faster. sokka sleeps while she waterbends, and sokka rows the boat while she sleeps. and the cycle repeats until they’re at the air temple.

aang agrees to help them (he’s also very concerned about zuko after katara tells him what happened) and they all get on appa. aang says that zuko once told him that if he ever ran away, he would go to the earth kingdom. so they head to the earth kingdom.

“i think he mentioned gaoling,” aang tells them. “so let’s head there.”

they search for a few days.

and...

they don’t find zuko.

instead, they find toph, an amazing earthebender who didn’t want to be miserable with her parents anymore.

(basically, they went to an earth rumble, and watched toph fight, and aang was like, “she’s so cool, can she be part of our group?” and sokka was like, “if you can convince her to join us, sure, why not?”)

(by the way, sokka didn’t mean it.)

(he also didn’t think aang would do it—or that toph would agree.)

either way, they ended up with a confident, blind earthbender who ‘carries her own weight’ in their group. (at least she brought a bag full of money with her. they were already running low on funds.)

(sokka has a bad spending habit.)

(plus, him, aang and toph have big appetites for their sizes.)

(seriously.)

“i heard there was a good fighter in ba sing se with a big scar on his face,” toph tells them as she picks at her feet. “they say he’s a firebender. it could be this zuko guy you guys are looking for.”

“we can try ba sing se,” sokka nods. “especially since we don’t have any other leads.”

“i hope we find him,” katara mumbles, staring at her bracelet. she’s scared—because he can’t be dead, he can’t be dead, he can’t be dead. she can’t accept that possibility. “i mean, he’s been by himself for three years, and we just found out about him. he—i hope he’s okay.”

“well, you know how zuko never gives up without a fight, katara,” aang says to assure her and to lighten the mood, “after all, you knew him best out of all of us.”

“yeah,” katara smiles a bit. “he’s so stubborn—in fact, he’s more stubborn than me.”

“okay, let’s not go that far, katara,” sokka snorts. “because you are—nothing,” sokka whistles when katara raises a small water whip and raises an eyebrow at her brother. “i mean, i wasn’t—i was just—i think you’re great, katara,” he says quickly.

“i know i am. thank you, sokka,” katara laughs.

they travel for about two months (appa needs rest, he’s not used to traveling for so long.) they make a stop to omashu mostly because aang insisted it would be a good idea (and appa needed a break too), and aang’s friend, bumi, joins them in appa. (toph is more than delighted to meet another earthbender on her level.)

all of five of them head to ba sing se, bumi talking excitedly about ba sing se and the great deserts they have. and this, of course, leads to a discussion about food, and then—of course—everyone gets hungry.

so they have to stop and make camp, and katara goes to get some water for the rice, when she sees someone sleeping on the other side of the river next to a small fire, wearing a—a blue spirit mask.

her heart races.

a blue spirit mask.

it’s—that’s—that’s zuko’s favorite ‘love amongst the dragons’ character.

it couldn’t be.

could it?

katara puts the pot down. she doesn’t hesitate to swim over, with a water whip in case she’s wrong, and quietly gets out fo the river. katara gently shakes the guy awake, cautiously trashing her water whip in case she’s wrong.

the guy sits up immediately and draws his swords at katara. “what are you doing?” he demands. (her heart beats faster—that’s his voice. it’s his voice.) “do you—wait...katara?” he sheathes his swords slowly. “is—is that really you?”

“zuko?” katara whispers, tearing up. “it’s you. oh, spirits, it’s you.”

she bends the water out of her clothes, and moves to hug him, but zuko scoots away before she can touch him.

she frowns, hurt. “zuko, why did you—“

“i don’t want you to see—it.” zuko awkwardly adjusts his mask. “i don’t—you—i want—just...katara. trust me—you’re not gonna like...it. you’re not gonna like me.” his voice breaks with vulnerability, with sadness, and katara does her best not to cry.

how could he think that?

because—

she loves him.

“are you kidding, zuko? i’m your best friend. i’m always gonna love you,” she sniffles, and zuko doesn’t hesitate to hug her tightly. she hugs back, her head in the crook of his neck.

“i love you, too,” zuko tells her softly, holding her. “i missed you.”

“i missed you, too.”

a beat.

“katara, i’ll show you...my scar,” zuko swallows.

“are you sure?”

“yes, but—but i’m just scared. i don’t want you to think i—that i’m...ugly,” zuko confesses, “i’ll show you, and then i’m, um, gonna put the mask back on.”

“okay, zuko,” katara nods and gently pulls away from his arms. she misses his warmth already. it’s been too long.

she sits across from him, watching him patiently.

zuko’s hands shake as he takes off his mask, and puts it beside him. his eyes are closed tightly.

katara gasps softly as she looks at it. her zuko—he—it must have hurt so much.

she leans forward, and carefully cups his cheek. zuko tenses up, then relaxes. he leans into her hand.

“my zuko,” she whispers, fingers brushing against his scar.

“my katara,” zuko whispers back, opening his eyes, and placing his hands over hers.

“it’s not ugly,” katara informs him as his fingers curl around hers. “and you’re definitely not ugly. my zuko—how could you ever be ugly?”

zuko stares at her, almost as if trying to see if she’s lying, almost like he doesn’t...believe her. “katara, you can’t be serious,” he gently pulls her hand away, but keeps holding it as he grabs his mask with his free hand.

“i am,” katara says, eyes soft. “i’ve never lied to you before. can...can i heal it?”

zuko frowns. “it’s a scar. you can’t heal it, katara.” a beat. “but it itches, sometimes.”

“can i...?”

“you can.”

katara summons water around her right hand like a glove. she cups his cheek with her left hand, tilting his head to the side. zuko closes his eyes and katara presses her water gloved hand on his scar. she watches as the water glows, and feels the scar change, somehow. (yes, she wishes she paid more attention to her healing classes. she knew enough, but she didn’t know everything.)

when she’s done, she puts the water back in the river. “it feels...better,” zuko admits. “thank you, katara.”

“of course,” katara grabs his hands and squeezes. “anything for you, zuko.”

they smile at each other.

then katara remembers—“i still have to get the water for the rice!” she gets up and zuko looks at her, confused.

“i’ll tell you everything later, just—please,” katara reaches a hand out to him. “come with me, zuko.”

zuko nods slowly, and grabs her hand. he gets up, and puts his mask on. “okay, katara, i’ll come with you. after all, we still have a lot to catch up on, don’t we?”

“we do,” katara smiles brightly, holding his hand, and intertwining their fingers. they go into the river, and katara puts water into the pot.

then they head to camp, both of them smiling like idiots.

_____

this......got way longer than i originally thought it would. (it was supposed to be short and cute)

i promise i can do better than this though. i promise!!!!!

(i might write a fic about this now....but it would be different from this obviously)

also, you can thank @ pokidokies for making me think about baby zutara.

like, i was already thinking about them, and then i saw this on instagram—and oh my god,,,,!!!

i had to! express! my thoughts! i just had to!

baby zutara is just...something that can be so personal, you know?

follow her on tumblr and on insta! :D (her blog name on here is the same as her insta name!)

#zuko #katara #zutara #atla #woo #i love: them #!!!!! <3 #baby zutara #they: are soulmates #they are in love your honor #they are different from canon but i want them to similar to canon too #idk if i did that #oh well #it’s fine #causeeee #it’s an au baby!#zutara au #<3

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justkending · 5 years

Text

Used to Be Overlooked. Chapter 22.

Summary: Steve Rogers was walking down the streets of Brooklyn after finishing a mission. The goal was just to take some time to clear his mind along the city streets, but when he runs into a gorgeous young lady that looks extremely familiar… How can he go about moving on? Who is she? What does he know her from? Was that memory even from this decade?

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader (Rosalyn Ember/ Y/N ?)

Word Count: 2500+

A/N: Sorry for the long wait! I had started on it a while ago, and never got around to finishing it. Here it is though, and I hope you enjoy!!!

Series Masterlist

Chapter 22:

“Uh, sir,” Edgar spoke up a little over 5 minutes into the transfusion. You were still knocked out cold basically, only awake enough to heard a few words here and there.

“What?” Garrison said harshly as he was laid back in the chair relaxed with his eyes closed.

“Security called. It looks like we’ve been breached,” Edgar said timidly.

Garrison opened one eye peeking over to his assistant. Frustration and annoyance clear in his face.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. I have to do everything around here,” he huffed closing his eyes for a second before sitting up in his seat.

“I’m sorry sir-”

“How much longer on the transfusion?”

“About 8 minutes,” Edgar said quickly calculating it all.

“How long until we are swarmed?”

“I’m not sure. Security is doing the best they can, but it could be any minute considering-”

“Best they can? Best they can my ass. They might as well be sacks of potatoes guarding my door with the Avengers storming in,” Garrison huffed clicking things on the computer to see if he can quicken the process of the blood transfusion. He quickly changed the screen to the security footage seeing man after man being taken out from the sky, and others through the hallways. Captain America being one of the individuals doing the most harm. They were closing in and there wasn’t time to move. “Fuck. Of course every precaution we took was a bust. Why wouldn’t it be?” he groaned to himself.

He turned over to you seeing you slumped on the table that was still at a diagonal and let out a long sigh. He turned back to Edgar with an eye that showed he had an idea and was switching to full boss mode.

“I have an plan.”

___

“Tony, what’s the update?” Steve yelled into his earpiece just as another person came around a corner, guns blazing, and quickly started throwing punches after.

“Still not clear out here. Every time we think we have it clear, they pop up like ants,” Tony answered.

“It seems that they have reinforcements with other tactics, Captain. Different forms of guns that I haven't seen before are being used,” Vision cut in.

“I agree with Wonder boy,” Tony spoke up. “These are not any kinds of guns I’ve seen before, and I used to make them for a living.”

“What kind are we talking?” Steve grunted throwing another man away from him.

“Some weird form of energy is coming out. Almost like lasers. I feel like I’m in a Star Wars movie,” Tony laughed.

“I don’t-” Steve started.

“Don’t worry about it now. I’ll have Friday run a report. I got skimmed by one, and she can analyze the damage it did,” Tony briefed.

“Thanks Stark,” Steve said.

“Rogers on your left!” Nat called in his ear from the security room.

Quickly Steve pivoted in his spot catching Wanda take out a guy that was coming up behind him, and quickly making him fall hard and knock out instantly. The fight was still going. There was more men than they figured, and they weren’t letting up easy.

“Barton? Romanoff? Any update on the room Y/N’s in?” Steve said catching his breath.

“Still working on it. Looks like there are more cameras than shown. I need to hack into a few more frames before we find- Got it!” Clint shouted. “Room 241. Down the north hall. Take two rights, a left, and then it’s the fourth door on your right.”

“Thanks Barton,” Steve said turning and nodding to Wanda and Bucky to follow.

“Looks like the shots they are firing with those guns are some form of stun guns. Small voltages, so it would take more to take someone like you out Cap, but us? It’ll feel like a really bad taser,” Tony cut in sharing his new information. “Now, I’m not saying you should volunteer to get hit, but if it happens let me know how it goes.”

Steve rolled his eyes at Tony’s bantered, but thanked him for the new information anyway. Just as they were taking the turn to the hallway where your room was, a new rush of guards appeared from almost every angle.

“Shit,” Bucky muttered turning to assess the new threat.

“Come on. Let’s go!” Steve said getting in stance for another fight.

“No! We got it from here. You go get your girl!” Bucky said turning to his best friend.

“Not without-”

“Steve, go. We got this. We can handle a few dozen men,” Wanda said with a grin before turning and taking out a few.

“I’m not going to let you-”

“So help me God, Punk. Get your ass to that room before I kick it myself,” Bucky said through gritted teeth. “You’re girl needs you more than us right now.”

Looking down that hall and back to the guards Wanda had started fighting on, Steve was hesitant. He saw that Bucky was right.

“Don’t get killed,” Steve said running backwards and pointing at the two.

“Right back at you,” Bucky shouted before turning and knocking a guy out. “Get Y/N to safety! We got your back!”

Steve quickly turned and started sprinting to the door. Only a few new guards stepping in his way, but quickly taken down with his mindset on finding you.

As he approached the door and went to open it, he found it was bolted shout. He looked through a small window pane looking in seeing tons of equipment. It was a lab like you worked in. High tech and in use too.

As he scanned over it all, he saw just out of the corner of the view you strapped to a metal table with your head hanging and your hair covering your face. You were still in the clothes he last saw you in, but without the jacket or the tank top.

Anger bubbled in him and he took a few giant steps back before lifting his shield and running straight toward the door. A loud crash erupted as he efficiently busted down the metal double doors. He rolled out from where he fell and quickly got to his feet.

Where he would normally check the area before going further, his mind was only set on you. He rushed over to you and quickly lifted your head from it’s slumped position.

“Y/N? Hey, Y/N/N. Come on now. Don’t do this,” he said brushing hair out of your face, and placing both hands on each of your cheeks to help steady your limp head. “Y/N, come on doll,” he coaxed hoping you would snap out of it.

With the little energy you had, you slowly opened your eyes hearing the soft begging of a man. Through the blur, you noticed familiar piercing blue eyes staring you down. Your eyelids were heavy, but they opened and closed to try and deminish the blurriness.

“St-Steve?” you mumbled not even sure if it got out.

“That’s it. It’s all right sweetheart. We’re going to get you out of here,” he said with a small smile before it fell looking around and down at your spot. “What the hell did they do to you?” he said scanning the wires, and cords attached to you.

“Steve, you-you have to-” you gulped feeling the dryness in your throat. This was taking so much energy, but you had to warn him. “Get out. Go.”

“Not without my girl,” he said with a sad smile brushing a thumb over your cheek. “We just need to get-”

“Steve!” you said looking behind him right where you were trying to warn him. The shout came out more in a normal voice compared to your mumble.

Before he could fully turn around, a shot was taken. An outline of blue hit Steve, and he crumpled to the floor in pain. Grabbing at his abdomen that got hit while he turned, he grimaced through gritted his teeth.

“Aw, Captain America,” Garrison’s voice came out from the dark in an evil tone. “So, you’re the guy that stole my girl?”

He came out of the shadows, and Steve turned seeing the tall man. Steve was on the floor still not really fully able to get up after the shot of electricity that hit him hard.

Garrison was holding a larger gun that was vibrating with energy. He turned it in his hand and examined it proudly.

“Handy little thing, isn’t it? Made it myself,” he bragged. “Supposed to be used on bigger guys like you, but I’ll be honest. I thought you would be a lot bigger so this may take longer for you to come back from,” he said crouching to Steve’s level who was sending him daggers, but still not able to move.

“So, Y/N? This is the guy that stole your heart?” He stood up walking to you who had finally got enough energy to hold up your own head. “Not impressed. You really downgraded,” he hummed pushing hair out of your face. You heard Steve grunt from the floor at the motion, and he slowly started to stand. “Oh, maybe you are a big guy. You recovered fast,” Garrison said in a cheeky manner. “At ease soldier. I didn’t call on you yet,” he smirked before shooting Steve once again making him fall hard and yell in pain.

“Stop,” you groaned.

“Stop what? Hurting him? Like you hurt me all those years?” Garrison said somehow turning this back to your relationship.

“That’s not what happened Garrison-”

“Oh, the hell it’s not! You know what it felt like when you ran away? Huh?” he questioned, getting angrier with each word. “Like this,” he turned back to Steve who had made it to a kneeling position, and for a third time shot him in the stomach.

Steve letting out another yell that made you ache for him. You wanted to take his place right then and there.

“Garrison, don’t do this. You know this isn’t right. Look at everything,” you whispered a single tear making its way down your face. “This isn’t right.”

“You’re right. It was only going to be right with you by my side, but look what happened,” he said bitterly, and quickly walking back to you. “This is on you Y/N. All of it,” he said harshly grabbing your chin and making you meet his eye line.

“Let her go!” Steve yelled once again trying to stand up.

Garrison didn’t move and ignored him only holding you harder.

“Now,” He turned to the computer and started administering the blue serum in you. It started flowing through your bloodstream in only milliseconds. “I found you. You’re mine again.” You could see the pain and possession overtake his eyes, and fear started creeping into you.

“Y/N-” Steve yelled now going to fully stand.

“SIT DOWN!” Garrison yelled finally turning back to his competitor, but only to be stopped by the red wisp that were Wanda’s holding him steady.

“Steve get her. I’ve got him,” Wanda instructed.

“I’ve got him too.” Bucky said straight faced and walking toward Garrison, who was now stuck, with a look that could kill.

You watched as they kept Garrison in place and closed your eyes in relief.

“Y/N. Hey, stay with me,” Steve instructed limping over to you, and plucking the IV out of your arm as gently as possible cutting off the blue serum. “Y/N-”

“I’m ok. I’m ok,” you mumbled out feeling the amount of serum start to take over. Even if it was only in you for the little time right then, it was enough to knock you out again. “Steve-” and like that you were out cold.

The last thing you remember was Steve unlatching the leather straps, and catching you carrying you bridal style as you went limp in his arms.

_____

“Banner!” Steve yelled caring your body into the plane. Wanda and Bucky close behind with Garrison secured. Everyone else still in the field wrapping up loose ends, and capturing the last of the people on Garrisons team. “Banner!”

“Right here!” Banner shouted coming around a corner. “What happened?” he asked coming closer.

“He injected something in her. I don’t know what,” Steve answered looking down at you scared that if he looked away you would disappear again.

“Here, let’s get her on a bed,” Bruce instructed moving the group into the infirmary.

“We’re going to put him in lock up. I’ll be right back,” Bucky called out walking with Wanda close, and Garrison in cuffs with a glare glued on his face.

“Don’t take your eyes off the bastard. He’s going to pay for this,” Steve said his voice going cold as he stared at the enemy. “I’ll make sure of it.”

They had a stare off until Steve turned to get you to help. He would handle the varmint later. All that mattered now was figuring out what was going on with you.

After placing you on the bed, Banner started drawing samples of blood, and running a few test. The nurses checked everything thing else, but Steve noticed the bruises on your cheeks and jaw from where he had grabbed you, and then the puncture wounds from the multiple needles he had injected you with. You should be healing shouldn’t you? Why weren’t you healing?

He called Tony and Sam telling them to go through the lab and grab the serum, and anything else that looked special. Banner and Stark could run test of those things later.

Banner came back in about 30 minutes later with papers in hand and his lab coat on.

“What is it? What’s in her?” Steve said standing from the chair he hadn’t moved from to turn to Bruce. He placed a hand on yours not wanting to be far from you, and to also have a feeling of you to make sure you didn’t get away again.

“Well, whatever was injected into her when you showed up wasn’t the first time,” Bruce said flipping through papers. “It looks like there is more in her blood than we suspected.”

“What do you mean?” Steve asked wanting the details.

“Well, from the looks of it, the serum that’s running through her is slowing her healing process. Immensely,” he paused coming closer and checking your vitals as he continued to talk. “Her white blood cells are still working faster than most, but not fast enough to clear a wound like normal.”

“How long will it last?”

“Not sure. Could be a few hours. A few days. All depends on how her body responds to it. We just started going over the serum Stark brought in, and I’m not sure how long it will take us to dissect it.”

Steve looked down to your still sleeping figure and squeezed your hand slightly.

“How long ‘till she wakes up?”

“Probably an hour or so. Maybe a little longer.”

“Good. I’m going to interrogate the meat head that did this to her,” Steve grumbled picking up your hand kissing it, and gently putting it by your side again.

“Steve-”

“No. He has answers I need. He doesn’t get to do what he did to her, and walk away from it. Him sitting in that holding room is too nice for him,” Steve glared at Bruce as he walked to the door.

“I understand, but just,” Bruce paused looking over at you and then back at Steve. “Don’t do anything too rash. I’m sure Y/N wants some answers too.”

Steve looked at you still seeing tension in you. He took a deep breath realizing he wasn’t the only one hurt from this. You deserved to talk to this ‘Garrison’ man too. So that means no beating him to a pulp before you can.

He let out a long deep breath before turning to Banner.

“I got it.”

Chapter 23

Used to be Overlooked Tag:

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If I tagged you and you aren’t normally on my tag list, I thought you would enjoy the story. Fair warning, it is a slow burn so we will get to the bottom of the issue later, but the burn is what makes it soooooo sweet. I’m really excited for this series, and would love your feedback:) Thank you!

If you want removed let me know.

#captain america fanfiction #captain america x reader #captain america #captain america series #Captain America x reader Series #steve #steve rogers x reader #Steve Rogers #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers x reader series #justkending #marvel #marvel fanfiction #marvel series #MCU #MCU fanfiction #mcu series

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assassins-and-hidden-blades · 5 years

Text

Hold On

Request: ... maybe smth more angsty like the twins fail a mission bc of a fuck up Jacob did and his sister dies bc of it. I'm a sucker for breaking families like this :") or maybe istead of evie it could be a s/o if you prefer to simply do reader inserts

Warnings: Real Bad Angst, Real Bad Violence, Read The Request, It’s just Real BadTM

I’d rather do Reader Inserts plainly for the fact that it’s more immersive; that, and I do not want to make them both seem OOC, which is a tendency when dealing with two protagonists. I’m slightly thinking about a part two, but I’m not too sure. But anyway... Enjoy, friends!

Requested by Anonymous

"Hold on," you whispered with bated breath to Jacob, who was helping you to toss a giant crate of rigged dynamite off of a smuggler's boat in the middle of the Thames.

"I am..." he grunted, his muscles straining and aching under the weight of the objects. You both got to the front of the ship and threw the contraband overboard.

"Oi!" a voice scolded. You and Jacob shared a glance under your hoods.

"Time to leave!" said he, diving over the edge.

"At least we agree on one thing..." you mumbled to yourself, joining him in the nick of time.

The water was murky, and you didn't dare open your eyes until you got to the surface. The water's surface broke moments after you and Jacob inhaled the air as an anteater inhales ants. His cowl had slipped onto his shoulders (as did yours), and his hair stuck to his forehead. "Back to the train?" You suggested. You earned a dubious squint in response.

“What, no ‘race to the train’?”

You laughed at him and paddled back with a bit more speed than necessary to shore.

Blighters trailed threateningly close to your carriage. Gunshots sailed past your head and you gripped tightly to the reigns of the horse. "Hold on!" Jacob cried from the roof, shooting his own bullets and darts and bombs and whatever else you could think of.

"I'm trying!" You responded, knuckles going white.

A Blighter pulled up alongside you, and instinctively you reached for your throwing knives, aiming for the horse's flank. Your aim was in the perfect place. Frantically, the horse galloped off down random alleyways and back streets.

"Get up here!" Jacob instructed. Hurriedly, you scampered up to the roof. He pulled you into him, muscles taut with stress, and shot a zip line to the nearest building. The sudden rush through the air made you cling on for dear life (as you had no control over where he was going) and you ended up safely on a balcony, watching the Blighters follow the carriage across a bridge.

"They didn't see us?" You queried.

"Let's not question it." Jacob pulled you over the rooftops find a way back to the hideout.

BOOM!

The factory exploded, sending fire, ash and embers storming up the wooden frames. You and Jacob were running across the rafters, aiming for a metal platform that had an open window behind it; your way out.

Jacob was quite a bit behind you, but you weren't leaving without the both of you accounted for. "Come on, Jacob!" You pressed, watching the flames belch into a monstrous cloud of smoke.

"Hold on a minute!" He retorted breathlessly, his wooden beam dangerously brittle. As he came closer, there was a crack beneath his feet. He paused, shocked.

"Run!"

He did as you suggested, sprinting over young flames. In a split second, there was an abrupt CRACK and the timber gave way beneath Jacob's feet. "No!" You sprinted forward as he hastily jumped, grasping for a stub protruding out of the platform. His fingers managed to grasp it, but the support was too weak and that too snapped like a twig. Jacob fell with it, a yell falling from his mouth.

"Jacob!" You peered over the edge and sighed thankfully as you saw him hanging from a flagpole sticking out of the wall.

"Little help... please?" He strained, adjusting his grip and swinging viciously over the acrobatic flames.

"Hold on!" He was too far down to reach by leaning over the railing. You observed a railing beside you, before an idea popped into your head.

As quick as a flash, you ripped your red scarf of cloth from around your waist and tied one end securely around the railing, whilst the other was wrapped around your palm.

Testing it for stability, you leaned over the edge and reached out your arm, slowly lowering yourself further and further. Jacob used the remainder of his sapped strength to pull himself up as much as he could to meet your hand. He grunted in effort and his viper like arm struck out to meet yours; it didn't register until you were tugged harshly by the added weight. You could tell his teeth were clenched and his jaw was set.

"Whoa!" You breathed, regaining balance. Pulling yourself back slowly, Jacob reached out with a free hand to grab hold of the platform. You wriggled your fingers out of the cloth once you were safe and went back to help Jacob– this time with two hands.

Once you were on the platform, the two of you had no time to waste before it was to explode, and you fiddled with the knot of the cloth before just slicing it with your blade and sprinting out of there, both of you fully fatigued. Once you made it to a safe distance away on a flat roof, you fell to the ground beneath you.

"Well," you panted. "That was... something else." Jacob joined you on the floor.

"Thanks." He drew deep breathes in and out of his lungs.

"You're not going last next time," you stated.

"I wasn't... I won't..." he was struggling to find words, heaving his chest in and out. You laughed breathlessly.

The final showdown-- the three Musketeers (Assassins) against one bulked up Templar. And boy, he had it all: gear, skills, you name it, he had it.

The night was calm and still, unknowing of the blood that was supposed to be spilt tonight.

A frightening aspect of this mission was the fact that there were barely any Templars around him as you approached.

Feet as light as a feather and as quiet as a mouse, the three of you moved towards him from different routes. You came from the ground whilst Jacob and Evie came from two different directions on the buildings above.

The buildings gave you cover, and more than once came the decision to take cover against the wall. Checking to see if the clearing was empty of Templars, you made a move to cross; to get to the office. The rooftops in Jacob’s area should be clear of snipers by now. As if to prove your hypothosis, you saw a figure clad in black and green give you a thumbs up.

Perfect.

Just as your foot stepped out into a brighter area, a loud gunshot rang out in the air.

You whipped yourself back around the wall and hit the floor, pain blossoming in your gut.

Jacob signalled that he killed them all!

“Well, well, well.” A big brute of a man -- it was your target-- caught your neck, scraping your back against the coarse bricks until your toes couldn’t reach the floor. He squeezed, and it did not take long for you to start gasping. Your hands flew to his arm, weakly trying to pry him off.

“Assassins aren’t as observant as we thought they were, it seems.”

Blood dripped out of your mouth. The effects of blood loss really beginning to sink in.

“Why were you trying to kill me, Assassin?” A sharp pressure pressed against your already bleeding wound, and you let out a strangled whimper.

“I need an answer.”

It was impossible to reply.

“Guess you’re of no use to us, then.” You felt an electric type of shock on the hole in your gut, before a searing pain clutched your torso.

The brute had stabbed you with his knife, before twisting and removing it violently.

“NO!” A sudden reintroduction of gravity sent you back to the ground. Air flooded your lungs, and you coughed up the blood that had gathered in your throat. The brute and another figure were flown sideways and rolled away in opposite directions. A kukri slid slightly further away. As quick as a flash, the figure was up and straddling the brute and sheathing his serrated blade into his chest three times, each one more vicious than the last. He died almost instantly.

A single moment was all it took for the figure to be by your side. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered with urgency, cowl resting on his shoulders. “I’m so so sorry.”

“Y-You gave me the s-signal, a-and...” you cried out weakly in pain, effectively cutting yourself off as you tried to move.

“I know; I’m so sorry.” He ripped off his sash and pressed it firmly against your wound. He shushed you when you yelped, tears flowing down your cheeks. He nestled your head against his shoulder, your upper body cradled in one arm.

“Evie!” His voice cracked as he yelled for backup. “EVIE!” There was urgency and emotion; a tone of life and death and hurry up, Evie.

“Jacob, what’s...” footsteps trailed off as Evie stared in shock, from her brother and best friend to the blood leaking brute. “Oh my God.”

“Get help!”

“Who should I--”

“A doctor, a nurse, Henry, anyone!”

Flustered, Evie couldn’t help but freeze.

“NOW, Evie!”

You whimpered at the sudden head throb the loud noise caused. You were quickly met with whispered apologies as the older twin set off sprinting.

“You n-need to leave before...” you took a few deeper breaths. “... b-before th’ Police...”

You got your point across. You didn’t have to say anymore.

“Don’t worry about that; just keep breathing for me.”

“B-Bullet...”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

Jacob pressed harder. “It h-hurts...”

“I know it hurts, I know.” His voice was soothing; reassuring to the point where you almost fully believed that you were going to get out of this alive. “If I can survive a burning factory, you can heal from a small scratch.” You gazed at his sad smile, his face framed with tears as he chuckled solemnly.

“I’m scared, Jacob...”

He gripped you tighter. “There’s nothing to be scared about, love. I’ve got you, okay? Just, hold on for me.”

You tried to move your hand to grip his jacket, but your limbs felt numb.

“I can’t f-feel my legs...”

Worriedly, Jacob took in your complexion. Pale skin and sunken eyes. The only time he’s seen this expression is in the dying moments of his targets.

“Evie’s coming, Y/N/N. You’ll be fine, alright? Just stay with me, okay?” He took one of your hands and pressed it against your wound with him. “Keep applying pressure.” He reached his arm over you to reach the ties on your robes; the tight clothing needed to go.

His neck came within inches of your nose, and you caught the scent of his leather coat; pine and pub-- a reminder of happier times.

The quick loss of pressure to your torso made you hitch a breath. The pain seemed blossom further up your stomach. You felt your head lull back.

“Hey.” Jacob snapped his fingers a few times to get your attention again. “Stay awake, love.”

“I d-don’t...” It quickly became harder for you to take in stable amounts of air. As a response, Jacob released some of the pressure to make it easier for you to breathe.

“Hold on, Y/N/N. Please.” “Just take deep breaths with me, alright?”

The bleeding was slowing down, so he deemed it safe to take his hand off the wound in order to place one of yours on his chest. It was silent for a few moments as you regain the little composure you had left.

You didn’t want to die.

“S-Shroud, Jake...” you gently closed your fingers against the fabric of his green lapel.

“What about it?” His hand returned to your wound once you calmed down.

“Starrick has it.” His eyes widened beneath the long strands of his hair. You tried to shift into the warmth of his chest more, but ended up taking pained breaths, almost falling into another hyperventilating state. Instead, he pulled you closer, closing his eyes and resting his forehead on yours, tenderly soothing your cries with gentle shushing. His fingers clasped your hand tightly.

“You be good now, Jacob Frye.” You felt liquid drop onto your cheeks. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Y/N/N. So much.”

The atmosphere fell into thick silence once more.

A minute more passed when Jacob’s ears heard a commotion in the street. His head shot up and his chest deflated in relief. “D’you hear that? Evie’s brought the whole cavalry with...”

He cast his eyes down to meet yours.

You stared at the sky, watching everything but nothing at the same time. He pushed a few strands away from your eyes, using his bloodied fingers to slowly close them. He placed one last kiss to your forehead, cradling your head in his hand. Not knowing what to say, he brought your knuckles to his lips and pressed a soft but firm kiss.

Then he began to shake.

Sobs racked his body, wild yet quiet.

Evie was too late, and he didn’t do it right.

“Jacob, Y/N!” Evie and a nurse rounded the corner, but halted at the sight before them.

“Oh, dear...” the nurse sighed sympathetically. Jacob sat up slightly straighter, but didn’t look up.

“It was all my fault.”

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bellatrixobsessed1 · 6 years

Text

I’ll Meet You At The Bottom (Part 45)

Sokka watched the last boat depart from the harbor. He clenched his fist and watched it grow ever distant. His father would be surprised to see him come home. He made a mission of taking the scenic routes, prolonging the trek home as much as he could. A few stars began glittering the sky with an icy cold brightness before his home came into view. In the sky above he could see the first dull illuminations of the arouras. He took a deep breath and continued to waddle over hills of snow, the stuff was coming down in large bursts now. The sky puffed small clouds of flakes into his face. Each one landed on him with a new glittering chill. He supposed he made it back just in time, there was going to be a big storm. It was only just the beginning and the winds were already growing violent. He could tell that they were in for a harsh season this year. With the wind to cover his cry he howled out in anger, he very well may have just missed the last boat of the season. He threw the door open with more force than intended.

“Sokka, what are you still doing here?”

“I couldn’t do it.” Sokka whispered. “I wanted to, but I was afraid.”

Hakoda stroked his forehead. “Of course you were afraid, you have to use that to push yourself forward. You were afraid during our hunt weren’t you? But what did you do?”

“I ran forward and went for it.” It had been the most exhilarating feeling, all of that fear had turned into pure adrenaline that exploded into a wash of pride.

“And you were thrilled.”

“I should have gotten onto that boat.” Sokka groaned.

“It’s too late to think about that now.” Hakoda replied. “We might be cut off from the other nations for a month or so. That’s a month you can use to think about what you’re going to say to everyone when you get back.”

Or I could be on my way to saying it right now, he cringed. “Is there any chance we can get another ship out?”

“Not even one.” Bato cut in. “You’re a good man, Sokka. Your words here are valued, but I’m not about to risk sending another sailor out in this.” He motioned to the roaring wind.

Sokka rasped his knuckles against his forehead. “I can’t believe I just watched them depart. I just let the opportunity go.” And now the ocean was the only thing that kept him from resolving his dilemmas. He wished he could say that he was surprised.

.oOo.

The sun beat down on Azula’s face. She had spent so much time huddled in her room away from its light, it would seem that she was making up for it now. Helping Zuko prepare for the dragon festival was a task for certain. This kind of work ought to be left for the servants, and yet it wasn’t so. She and Zuko, Iroh and Ursa, they were servants during the dragon festival. Everyone served the dragons, it was a high honor to do so, and would be a great shame to be excluded from the preparation services. So the princess found herself hoisting up banners that outweighed her greatly, banners that strained her back as she tried to position them well. By this time her cheeks were a sore, sun-scorched pink and her neck nearly as red as the gown covering her shoulders. Zuko, wasn’t in a much better state, with a sheen of sweat plastering his hair to his forehead as he pushed banquet tables into their positions. The greater amount of labor put into crafting the festival, the more praise one received form the dragon spirits. As much as Azula enjoyed that notion, she felt decently undignified having already put in thrice as much work as any of the actual servants. She huffed and resumed her task. This banner pole was particularly heavy and so awkwardly shaped that Azula wondered if she would ever get it erect.

“Need some help?”

Azula set the banner down once more. From Sokka or Chan she might have said yes. But it felt beneath her to accept it from a stranger. “I’m doing fine on my own.” She lifted the pole again.

The boy watched her struggle for some time before commenting. “I can tell.”

Azula gave an annoyed and haughty sniff before approaching the pole with renewed vigor. At last it stood tall. “Naturally, you can.” She found herself the nearest pillar and leaned upon it, panting some. Her face was plenty red.

“Here.” He offered her a water skin. She used it only to splash some of the cool liquid onto her face. The boy pushed a pair of golden glasses up his nose. Azula narrowed her eyes at him, assessing the boy. He was lean, perhaps a little too slender and had an array of freckles splayed over his face. Over his shoulder crawled a tiny white elephant-mouse. He looked up at the banner, reminding her that she needed to unfurl it. Tugging the rope binding it took only a little less force than it had to stand the banner up in the first place. But eventually it came loose, boasting brilliant red silk and an embroidered black and gold dragon. “I can’t believe you got that thing up all by yourself.” He paused, “I don’t know why I can’t believe it. You always perform better when challenged.”

“What do you know about that?” Azula asked.

“A lotta stuff, I guess.” The boy shrugged. “Like you how you made a point of sticking around the more Chan told you to leave…”

“Wire?”

He smiled, that crooked, lopsided smile.

“Sorry, I didn’t recognize you without your layer of dirt and bugs.”

“I miss my bugs. My ma doesn’t though, she doesn’t even know about Petro.” The elephant-mouse came to rest in his palm, he stroked it tentatively with the other hand. “She doesn’t like animals…” He frowned and then looked up at her, studying her more closely. “I almost didn’t recognize you without the Ruby Tears.” He concluded.

“Is that right?”

“You don’t look like you’re going to die anymore.”

A fair assessment, Azula supposed. “If I have to put up one more banner, I might just.”

“You made it home.” He remarked. “So you can’t tell me what’s going on with my friends.”

“They’re here in the Capital, actually. At least Khoza and Yoona are. The last I heard, the rest of them were heading to Ember Island with Chan.” She paused. “Perhaps I can get them to come back, at least to see you.”

“Why wouldn’t they want to come back.”

“I might have hurt Chan’s feelings.” Azula mumbled. “It’s a long story.”

“Great! I could use one of those, the stories my folks tell me aren’t very exciting when they do talk to me.”

Azula wasn’t one for recounting her struggles but Wire was so innocently curious. Behind that bright eagerness, the boy seemed sad, maybe lonely. So she caved and decided to detail her endeavors from the withdrawals to the mind games. She found that she rather enjoyed sharing it, hearing from her own lips that she was finally better off than before.

.oOo.

It was driving him crazy, being cooped up like this. Under different circumstances, he might have enjoyed it. Being wrapped up in furs by the light of a fire, all nice and cozy next to Katara with a steaming bowl of sea prune stew and their father’s wild tales of the Water Tribe in his youth. This was not such a night. There was a fire going, sure, and he had a warm meal and lots of furs. But Katara was horribly missing and there were no fun tales, just the merciless wind whistling over the shelter and his father and Bato discussing how ill-prepared they were for an early winter. He stirred his seaweed noodles absent-mindedly. The more irrational side of him screamed at him to acquire himself his own boat and try to make it to the Fire Nation. The rational side considered Hakoda’s advice.

What would he say to Azula when he saw her again? Would he just let her speak first? He could already hear her berating him and threatening to stick him in a prison cell—next to Ozai just to add an extra kick. He could apologize but how unfulfilling and hollow would that be?

No matter how hard he thought it through, he couldn’t come up with any form of apology that seemed adequate. Worse over, he couldn’t even promise himself that he could refrain from lashing out at the woman again.

He was both afraid of her and afraid of what he could do to her. More than anything he was afraid that he would find a way to cope with the roots of his problem. Maybe if he made amends with her, Azula would be so kind as to take him to the Forgetful Valley. Snow whipped against the side of his house reminding him that no matter which option he chose, he would have to wait.

.oOo.

Wire seemed to have enjoyed her story. Relaying it had distracted her from the pulsing in her sore muscles and the irritating sunburn that tingled on her neck.

“At least your ma is trying.” Wire said when she had caught up to her current conundrums. “Mine, she doesn’t like me much, she never did. So she never tries.”

“She doesn’t hurt you?”

“Not anymore.” Wire replied, “she mostly just ignores me now.” He tapped his foot awkwardly on the ground. “Since I went to the Ash Pit she’s been treating me like I’m dirty, I think she keeps me around just to keep people from gossiping.”

“The elephant-mouse probably doesn’t help.” Azula couldn’t help the remark. “Since my opinion matters more than hers, I don’t think you’re dirty.”

“She’s actually kinda cute.” He held Petro out to her. Azula flinched away. “Just hold her, I gave her a bath and everything.” Before Azula could protest, she had an elephant-mouse scampering over her arm. Wire retracted his hand. “So are you going to look for him?”

“Who? Sokka?” She asked, swiftly catching the rodent before it could reach her neck. It squeaked and squirmed—in joy or discomfort, Azula couldn’t decipher.

“Yeah.” Wire answered.

“He doesn’t want to be found. He’ll come home when he does.” Azula stated flatly.

“You said that he searched for you.” Wire pointed out.

“Yes.” She agreed.

“Shouldn’t you do that for him?”

“I’m sure he’d be thrilled to seem me standing at his door…or the door of whoever he’s staying with.” Azula replied sarcastically. “He left because of me, I know you heard that part of my story.”

Wire shrugged. “Chan said that you have a habit of inviting yourself to places and staying when you’re told to leave. Why break it now?”

Azula blinked. “I’m starting to like Petro more than I like you.” The elephant-mouse twitched its ears.

“Good, ‘cause she likes you.” After a moment’s thought he added, “So does the fish man.”

Azula crinkled her nose. “Fish man. I’ll have to let him know that you said that. Whenever he gets back.”

“You mean whenever you find him.”

“Wire, I have other matters to foresee. This festival for one. My mother, my uncle…” She pointed to her crown.

“I think that Fire Lord Zuko can handle the crown alone for a few more days.”

“And my mother? We haven’t finished our conversation.”

“Take her with you.” Wire replied simply.

“She doesn’t want to go on some blind chase. Besides, Aang, Katara, and Toph are already looking for him. Well, Toph isn’t exactly looking per say, but you get the point.”

“Great, you can cover all of the places they haven’t looked yet.” With a silly grin, he took Petro back.

“Jun-Hisoka! Jun, there you are!” The woman had such a voice that Azula loathed. It oozed with drama and gave off an air of false pomp. “Jun-Hisoka what did I tell you about wandering to far from mommy? I can’t have you running away and playing in the trash again.” She took his hand and Azula could see his face bunch up in discomfort. And then to Azula she dipped her head. “My apologies, Fire Lord Azula. I hope he hasn’t bothered you, he’s a bit of a pest, running about, making a mess of things.”

Azula had a collection of responses at the ready. Both ‘he’s bothering me alright, just not how you think’ and a very contradictory, ‘he’s not the one bothering me’ among them. But instead she settled on, “he’s not a bother at all.” She supposed a well-intended fib couldn’t hurt, “he was just helping me put up a few banners.”

Something in the woman’s jaw worked, she was skeptical, but it wasn’t her place to pose any questions. Instead and with the slightest twitch of her lips she turned Jun…to Wire and grumbled, “put that filthy creature down and off with you.”

Head hung low, he set Petro down and let his mother tug him away. The critter stared at Azula with its teeny nose twitching. Azula sighed, she supposed it couldn’t hurt to hang onto the elephant-mouse until she ran into Wire again. If nothing else, Toph would get a kick out of the creature. There was only one more banner to arrange and then she could go back inside and see what the others had come up with.

Anticipating no leads at all, she didn’t know what to do when Katara declared that they’d found something. Something they wouldn’t have found if Katara wasn’t such a sore loser and pointed out that Toph couldn’t have possibly won because she couldn’t read.

They had found his signature in one of the logs.

#Sokkla #Azula #Sokka #Avatar #Aang #Katara #Toph #Zuko #Fanfiction

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dire-kumori · 7 years

Text

The Long Road: Chapter 10

Scaly Cupids and Play Dates

Rating: T

Pairing(s): hijack

Chapter summary: Hiccup attempts to maintain his friendship with Jack and Toothless helps in his own way. Or tries to, anyway. Until an accident out at sea results in a fight that threatens that friendship.

"Toothless, battle ready."

As Hiccup clenched his hand into a fist and pulled in towards his chest, his nightfury companion immediately jumped from his sitting position. Toothless flared his wings, pupils narrowing into slits and a ferocious snarl slipping past his bared teeth.

The current training exercise being performed by the Riders of Berk had been inspired by an impromptu rescue of the twins performed by Fishlegs and Meatlug. Hiccup had been impressed when Fishlegs had revealed his hand-signals. So impressed, in fact, that he had immediately directed the others back to the academy where he insisted they each begin working on them.

Hiccup smiled, then pointed his finger down at the ground. "Toothless, plasma blast." The moment the command had been said, Hiccup threw his wooden shield - the one currently hanging off of his arm for the sole purpose of this training exercise - into the air and Toothless obeyed, launching a ball of white-hot flame. The shield burst apart in a shower of embers and scorched wood which rained down on the ground of the Dragon Training Academy.

"Good job, bud." Hiccup grinned, then traced his lips with his forefinger. "Smile."

Toothless tilted his head to the side curiously, then his lips twitched and parted in a toothless smile.

"Nice job guys." Jack grinned as he approached the pair, Baby Tooth on one shoulder and Wodensfang on the other. He placed a hand atop Toothless's broad head and gave him a pat. "Especially you, Toothless."

Hiccup nodded, heart rate accelerating and palms going sweaty. Even though it had been a few weeks since he had promised himself that he would not act on his new feelings for Jack, he still had a hard time acting normal around the sprite. He swallowed thickly, forcing himself to look at Toothless and not Jack as he replied, "Thanks."

Nearby, Astrid had become momentarily distracted from her own training. She watched Hiccup and Jack curiously. After the incident with the whispering death Hiccup had seemed to go back to normal, yet Astrid often got the impression that he was putting up walls again, just as he had before defeating the Red Death; he often retreated alone, save for Toothless, to his hut or the woods, he seemed to check his speech a lot, cutting himself off mid-sentence as though fearful of his own voice, and he had jerked away from Jack's friendly touches enough times that the white-haired teen rarely even tried anymore.

The fact that most of his sudden insecurities seemed to revolve around Jack was not lost on Astrid, yet she had heard nothing of a fight between them and Jack seemed just as confused as she was. The whole thing irritated her to no end. Whatever Hiccup was going through, it was clearly hurting him and he was hurting Jack in turn. Both of them were her friends; she wanted to help, but diplomacy and tact were not her forte and all of her attempts to pry the answer from Hiccup directly had yielded no answers.

Stormfly squawked, drawing her attention. "Whoops. Sorry girl." Turning her focus back to the task at hand, Astrid held both of her hands palms-out and thrust them away from her chest. "Stormfly, spine shot."

Reacting to the verbal and visual cue, Stormfly flicked her tail forward, sending a spray of quills into the floor of the training ring. One stray quill sliced through the side of Astrid's boot, pinning her to the spot by the leather. The viking girl smiled as she bent and pulled the quill free.

"Well, that's - grunt - better than last time."

Snotlout's laughter rang obnoxiously in the air. Shooting him a glare, Astrid saw him gesture with both fists towards a wooden training target. "Hookfang, annihilate!"

Maybe she imagined it, but Astrid could have sworn Hookfang smirked.

Rather than blasting the target, Hookfang fired a jet of flame at the ground beneath his partner's feet. Reacting on instinct, Snotlout leaped out of the way and plowed right into the target.

"Bull's-eye," Tuffnut teased while his sister crossed his arms and smirked.

"Meatlug, hug!" Fishlegs cried, wrapping his arms around himself. Instantly the gronkle's wings disappeared into a blur and her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she flew at her rider, slamming into him and sending them both sprawling to the ground. Fishlegs laughed as she started covering his face with big, sloppy kisses.

"Remind me never to ask Meatlug for a hug," Jack joked as he watched the pair. Hiccup shrugged.

"Actually, that could be useful." Turning to the twins and their zippleback, he shouted, "Ruff, Tuff, your turn."

In unison, the twins turned to Barf-and-Belch. Already Hiccup knew this was going to end badly, if not because of the fact that Ruff and Tuff were, well, Ruff and Tuff, then because the pair had instantly pointed in two different directions.

"Barf/Belch," the two of them spoke in unison. "Come/go!"

Each head attempted to obey their corresponding rider, pulling in two different directions. Barf-and-Belch's necks stretched while he struggled to figure out how to direct his feet, only to slump to the ground when his heads snapped back and collided with one another.

The twins growled at one another while Barf-and-Belch recovered.

"Belch/Barf," they cried, evidently not learning their lesson from the first time. Tuffnut pointed at his feet while Ruffnut pointed into the air. "Ground/sky!"

Only one head stretched skyward and only one wing flapped. Barf-and-Belch leaped a few feet off of the ground, but half of his body did not respond. Instantly he went into a spiral before collapsing in a heap on the stone.

Tuffnut grinned. "Ha ha, I win!"

His sister rounded on him furiously. "What do you think you're doing to my dragon!?"

"Your dragon?" Tuffnut snapped. "Puh-lease. You've been breathing in Barf's gas again."

"Yeah, so?" Ruffnut growled, getting in her brother's face.

"Guys, guys!" Hiccup cried, drawing their attention. "Barf-and-Belch is one dragon. You have to use one signal at a time."

"Good idea," Ruffnut said with a smirk as her brother began to stalk off. Spreading her fingers outwards, she gestured towards his back. "Barf, attack Tuffnut."

Instantly the head she rode arched towards Tuffnut. Barf headbutted his other head's rider fiercely, sending Tuffnut flying into Snotlout who had yet to recover from his own training accident.

"How was that?" Ruffnut laughed.

Stepping forward, Fishlegs started, "Um, I don't think it's what Hiccup-"

"Belch, eat Ruffnut," Tuffnut interrupted, pinching his fingers together in imitation of a mouth closing.

Instantly the head he rode leaned down and snapped up Ruffnut's head between his jaws, holding her aloft by her shoulders

"Uh, ow!"

Jack and Baby Tooth winced at the sight.

"Tuff, come on," Hiccup scolded, earning an eye roll from the male twin.

"Whatever," Tuffnut groaned. He opened his fingers. "Belch, drop Ruffnut."

Barf-and-Belch obeyed, dropping his female rider to the ground. Ruffnut landed on her feet and immediately shuddered, wiping the zippleback's drool from the front of her tunic and face.

"Ugh. I can't work like this," she hissed.

Pulling himself to his feet, Tuffnut growled, "Ugh. It's completely unprofessional."

Glaring daggers into her brother's skull, Ruffnut snapped, "I'm taking my dragon and going home."

Tuffnut rounded on her, shooting her a glare of his own. "You touch that dragon, and I'll-"

"You'll what?"

"I..." he hesitated, looking lost. "I don't know. Don't rush me. Just... uh... uh... Tell you tomorrow!"

Ruffnut rolled her eyes and then turned her back on her brother. Running to Barf-and-Belch, she took hold of Barf's jaw and began pulling. Following her example, Tuffnut grabbed ahold of Belch and started pulling him in a different direction by his lower lip.

((Sad-sad-confused-what?-Love-you-both-you-why-why-why?))

"Guys come on, leave the dragon out of this," Hiccup started. He took a step towards the twins, unheeding of the mischievous look Jack had on his face. "It's over."

"Oh, it's over," Ruffnut agreed.

"Yeah, it's so over, it's und-"

Tuffnut was cut off mid-sentence as a blue snowball exploded across his face. Belch blinked curiously as Tuffnut let go of the dragon in favor of wiping snow from his eyes and blinking away the blue sparks that were dancing across his vision. His sister burst out laughing, clutching her stomach as she pointed at her brother. A second snowball plowed into her face and took her off of her feet.

The other teens stared in shock while Astrid shot Jack a look and said, "Was that really necessary?"

Jack smirked, offering her a wink. "Wait for it."

Ruffnut sat upright, shaking her head to clear her vision. For a moment she thought she could see blue lights. When she looked up she saw her brother staring at her with a stupefied expression, clumps of snow and droplets of water still clinging to her hair and brows. It was exactly how she imagined she looked at that moment. Suddenly her lips quirked upward in a slight smile. She tried to fight it, tried to remember that she was supposed to be angry at Tuffnut, but as she clapped her hand over her mouth to stop the giggles threatening to burst forth she realized she was not so angry anymore.

"You look like such an idiot!" she howled as she burst out laughing, Tuffnut following her example.

"You're one to talk!" he cried through peals of laughter.

"Whaaaat the heck is going on?" Fishlegs asked, eyes flicking back and forth between Jack and the twins.

"Magic snowballs," Jack replied. "Kinda hard to stay mad when you're too busy having fun."

"It's weird," Snotlout commented, earning a sharp glare from Baby Tooth.

((So's your name,)) she tweeted.

"Well, now that that crisis has been averted," Hiccup said, clapping his hands together and turning to the rest of the teens, "We should probably get back to training."

"Does that mean it's my turn?" Jack grinned, exchanging a glance with Wodensfang. He snatched his hand forward, as though he were plucking a feather from the air. "Fetch."

Immediately Wodensfang launched himself from Jack's shoulder. Snotlout cried out and the twins' howling laughter escalated as the blue terror's claws closed around the horns of his helmet and in one clean stroke he swiped the headpiece, chittering happily as he took to the air overhead.

"Hey, give that back!" Snotlout snarled as he chased after Wodensfang. He leaped into the air, making a grab for the tiny dragon and coming up short.

With a mischievous grin, Jack traced a figure eight in the air. "Wodensfang, dodge."

Wodensfang swooped down low, just within Snotlout's reach. Again the burly teen made a grab for him, but Wodensfang nimbly spun and weaved around his grabbing hands. The twins were in tears as Snotlout spun in circles, trying and failing to snatch his helmet back from the playful dragon.

"You suck so much!"

"All right, all right, that's enough," Astrid scolded, elbowing Jack. She did not try to hide the amused smile on her face. "Give it back."

"Fine." Jack held up one hand in a fist, and then uncurled his fingers. "Wodensfang, drop it."

Wodensfang halted in the air directly over Snotlout. His little claws unlatched and the helmet fell from his grip and struck Snotlout square in the head.

"Ow!"

Training more or less devolved into play time after that, to both Hiccup's exasperation and relief. The twins, once they had mastered the art of taking turns, took malevolent delight in using hand signals to instruct Barf-and-Belch to mess with Snotlout without alerting him. Feeling left out, Hookfang had joined the twin-headed dragon in tormenting his rider. Hiccup tried to get the dragons and their riders back under control, but to no avail; when Toothless had flashed him his signature puppy-dog eyes and wagged his tail Hiccup knew he had lost the battle.

"This is your fault," he deadpanned as he exited the arena on Toothless's back, not looking at Jack as he bounced on balls of his feet beside the pair.

"I know. Race you round the island!"

Hiccup was given no opportunity to refuse - not that he had planned to - before Jack launched himself into the sky and, with a whooping laugh, allowed the Wind to carry him away. Hiccup and Toothless wasted no time in taking off after him.

Flying was good. Flying was safe and fun. It was also about the only thing that was still normal between them; Hiccup never had to come near Jack or touch him, yet they were still undeniably connected in this. Up above the clouds, feeling Toothless's muscles shift beneath him as they spun in a series of acrobatic maneuvers together with the Winter spirit, Hiccup could pretend that nothing at all had changed between them.

By the time dusk had fallen it seemed as though everything had gone back to normal. The twins continued to elbow and jostle one another playfully, reminding Jack a bit of Caleb and Claude. The Riders agreed to meet in the Great Hall later on for dinner and to discuss training. While the others made their way to the top of the winding trail - their dragons and Wodensfang scattering to lounge on the perches or to fish for themselves - Hiccup, with Jack and Toothless ever at his side, returned to his hut to stow away the Book of Dragons before meeting up with the others.

"You can just wait out here a minute," Hiccup said with a shrug. He hoped it was not obvious that he was trying to avoid being alone in his room with the sprite. "I won't be long."

Jack nodded. "You better not; it's freezing out here!"

It was a joke. Hiccup shook his head and chuckled as he slipped indoors, leaving Toothless outside with Jack. Baby Tooth shifted in his purse, poking her head out but not emerging completely.

((Happy-love-good-Small-Tooth-see-you-now-good-good,)) Toothless purred as he sniffed at the purse.

((Shh! Toothless, stop! Someone's gonna see!)) Baby Tooth scolded as she swatted at his nose with her tiny hands, though in actuality she did not mind so much. Her swatting turned into a light pat without any need for intervention.

"There's hardly anyone out here anyway," Jack said as he sat down on the steps outside of Hiccup's hut. "It's probably safe enough."

Somewhat reluctantly, Baby Tooth climbed from the purse, settling on Jack's thigh. She still did not dare take flight, lest the sound of her wings draw unwanted attention.

((Good-yes-you-out-out-free-safe,)) Toothless crooned once she was settled. He pressed his nose to her body, nearly knocking her over.

((Well not for long if you keep that up!)) she snapped, though Jack felt no irritation from her.

"Oh come on, you know you love 'im," Jack teased as he placed a hand atop the nightfury's broad had and offered him a light scratch. Halfheartedly, Baby Tooth gave her larger-half a smack.

The mood was a good one. Flying with Hiccup and Toothless had put the two immortals in high spirits. Though Jack still had no clue what had come over Hiccup of late, whatever it was seemed to simply evaporate once the four of them were in the sky. Suddenly a thought occurred to him.

"Hey, Toothless, do you know what's going on with Hic?" he asked, drawing a terse look from the dragon. "I mean, he's been getting better lately, but, I dunno, it seems like something's been bothering him."

Toothless's head-fins lay flat as he stared at the spirit. He knew, to a degree, what had was bothering his other half. His own language used scents and posture as much as it used sound and he could smell Hiccup's sexual arousal, as well as his shame-guilt-self-loathing. It was strange to him, as it rarely, if ever, happened among dragons that one was attracted to their own gender. Even stranger, though, was Hiccup's reaction. As far as Toothless was concerned, strange or not, Hiccup should have been trying to court Icicle, but it seemed to him that his partner was caught in some weird dance between keeping Icicle close and pushing him away.

((Hiccup-beloved-sad-sad-scared-confused-sorry-don't-know-sorry-sorry,)) Toothless whined, tilting his head to the side. Even though he did not agree with Hiccup's course of action, he would not undermine it.

Smiling weakly, Jack gave Toothless a light scratch underneath his jaw. "It's okay."

The clatter of wood as Hiccup's front door swung open had Baby Tooth retreating back into Jack's purse, though it was only Hiccup himself stepping outside, Book of Dragons no longer tucked under his arm. The brunette groaned as he descended down the steps.

"So, guess what we get to do tomorrow?"

Jack clucked his tongue as he stood. "I'm guessing something along the lines of 'training' and 'dragons.'" Hiccup shook his head.

"Close." The two started towards the Great Hall, Hiccup carefully but not so discretely ensuring that Toothless remained between them the entire time. "We're going to be hiding all of the dragons."

Jack and Toothless both stared at Hiccup for an awkward moment, exchanged glances, and then turned back to Hiccup. "Toothless gets the distinct impression you're embarrassed of him."

Toothless gave a mock whine as though to affirm Jack's statement.

"Hey, I don't want to either," Hiccup replied, throwing up his hands defensively. "It's my dad's idea. Tomorrow's the annual signing of the peace treaty with the Berserker Tribe and my dad thinks that Chief Osvald will see the dragons as a threat."

Jack perked a slender brow. "Osvald?"

"The Agreeable," Hiccup deadpanned, not noticing as Toothless's pace slowed the tiniest bit.

"...The chief of the Berserker Tribe is called Osvald the Agreeable?"

"Yep."

"...Is that name supposed to be ironic or...?"

"Yeah, Gobber says they should change their name. You know they haven't been to war in fifty years?"

"I actually didn't know that, but thanks for telling me." They were climbing the steps of the Great Hall now, Toothless padding quietly behind them. "We're not going to keep the dragons hidden the whole time, right? I mean, Stoick'll break the news gently and then..."

"I'm hoping that's what he's planning. Dad told me he'd already written to some of our other allied tribes and told them, but I guess the Berserkers didn't get the memo."

"In all fairness, how exactly do you tell someone something like that? 'Dear Berserker Tribe: We have pet flying, fire-breathing reptiles.' No offense, Toothless. 'Please don't kill us, signed Hooligan Tribe.'"

"Well, it's a start," Hiccup replied with a shrug. "You forgot: 'P.S. We've also trained the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. His name is Toothless because he's toothless. Don't worry, he's house-trained.'"

Jack burst out laughing and Hiccup felt his heart swell. Gods, he had missed this. Up close, illuminated by the bright light of the nearly full moon, Jack looked so happy and beautiful...

Wait...

Hiccup did a double take, realizing only now that he and Jack were standing right next to one another. Throwing a nervous glance over his shoulder, he found Toothless standing a few feet behind them, a cheeky expression on his face.

'Thank you, you useless reptile...' Hiccup bit his cheek and tried to force his ripening blush down.

"Hey, how do you think your dad's planning to explain the dragon perches?" Jack asked as he pushed open the doors to the Great Hall. The three of them slipped inside, Hiccup thankful for the dim lighting. Hopefully the color of his cheeks would be less noticeable.

"Uh... giant clothes lines?"

The rest of the teens were already seated at a table at the far end of the hall, far away from the adults who were absorbed in their own conversations. Hjordis, Fridenot, and Wulfric were present as well, all clustered around Astrid who was speaking animatedly, moving her arms in motions that Hiccup recognized from their swordsmanship training.

"And once you've got the tip of your blade close to their hilt you want to push down-"

"Hey Jack!" Fridenot interrupted, much to Astrid's irritation, though he seemed to not notice. "Hi Hiccup."

"Hey, kiddos," Jack replied first. "Astrid, are you raising an evil army of midget warriors?"

"Hjordis let it slip that I was giving her sword-fighting lessons," Astrid replied with a shrug as Jack took a seat across from her. Underneath the table Baby Tooth crawled out of his purse, and into the waiting palm of his hand. Discretely he raised her to the table, allowing the fairy to sit with them without being noticed by any of the adults in the building. "And, well, long story short, I'm now teaching a class of my own."

Hiccup was thankful to find that the only empty space was at the opposite end of the bench from Jack. He started for it, only to have Toothless cut him off.

"Toothless, wha-?"

Rather than answering, Toothless turned towards the table. On one side Astrid sat, along with the three children and Fishlegs. On the other sat Jack, Snotlout, and the twins (who were once again arguing over something or other). Before anyone could say anything, Toothless caught the back of Snotlout's bearskin vest between his teeth and yanked the burly teen from his seat.

"Whoa, hey!" Snotlout cried as he landed in a crumpled heap on the ground. "Can you keep your stupid dragon under control!?"

"S-sorry, I don't know what's gotten in to him," Hiccup said. "Toothless, what are you-?"

Toothless ignored him in favor of grabbing Snotlout by his pant leg. He dragged the protesting viking towards the end of the bench, and the unoccupied seat Hiccup had originally planned to take. Leaving Snotlout grumbling angrily on the floor, Toothless bounded over to Hiccup, purring happily.

Everyone stared at the nightfury, bewildered.

"I, uh, g-guess I'm sitting here then," Hiccup mumbled, taking the seat somewhat reluctantly. Snotlout grumbled, but took the position he had been forced into. His face lit up as he realized he was now free to the meat on the plate the others had grabbed for Hiccup.

"Anyway, speaking of classes," Astrid said, drawing the conversation back on track, "Hiccup, any plans for dragon training tomorrow?" Hiccup prodded Snotlout's leftover boiled turnips with his knife.

"Actually, no. The Berserker tribe is coming tomorrow, and Dad's making us hide all of the dragons."

Everyone at the table stiffened, save for Snotlout and the two smallest children, who did not remember the last treaty signing very clearly.

"Is Dagur coming?" Snotlout asked, perking up instantly. "He's so cool."

"Cool?" Hiccup parroted, shooting his cousin an incredulous look. "Last time he was here he used me as a knife throwing target." Jack blinked, looking between the two of them.

"Who's Dagur?"

"He's Osvald the Agreeable's son," Hjordis answered. "He's a total brat, and a monster."

"That guy should be locked up in a cage," Astrid huffed in agreement.

"That's what he did to me!" Fishlegs cried. "He wouldn't let me eat for three days!"

Snotlout burst out laughing. "Then he force-fed you rotten cod heads!" Fishlegs paled.

"Thanks." He pushed his plate away. "I almost erased that from my memory."

"I like cod heads," Tuffnut chimed in, voice more nasally than usual. The twins had sort of paused their argument, though Ruffnut still had a firm hold of her brother's nose and hair, while Tuffnut had his sister by her ear and one of her braids.

"Huh. Reminds me of a spirit I met once," Jack commented with a slight shudder. He glanced at the slab of meat on the untouched plate in front of him, and then at the rejected vegetables Hiccup was currently pushing around his own plate. "You wanna trade?"

"Huh?" Hiccup looked between his plate and Jack's, then shrugged. "Sure." They swapped dishes around on the table.

"You don't talk about other spirits a lot," Astrid commented. "He wasn't a friend of yours, was he?"

"No, he was evil. The first time we met he said something about my face pi- uh, making him angry and tried to kill me." Baby Tooth squeaked in horror; this was the first she had ever heard of this.

"Ha! I think I like this guy!" Snotlout laughed, earning identical glares from Astrid and Baby Tooth.

Behind his back, Hiccup pantomimed snatching a feather from the air. While Snotlout was busy laughing Toothless crept up behind him and then snapped up his helmet between his jaws. Snotlout shouted and made a grab for the helmet, but Hiccup traced a figure eight with his forefinger and Toothless took off running. Hiccup's hand was back in his lap before Snotlout noticed.

"Give that back!" the dark-haired viking roared as he proceeded to chase Toothless across the Great Hall. Their antics drew a few stares, but most of the village knew Snotlout's reputation and proceeded to soundly ignore him, so long as he did not bump into him or their tables. "Stupid dragon! That's not a toy!"

"Sorry Snotlout!" Hiccup called while the rest of the group stifled their snickers. "I don't know what's wrong with him today!"

"Would you knock it off!?"

Hiccup's attention was turned to the siblings sitting next to him at the cry. Ruffnut and Tuffnut were at it again, both fighting to shove the other off of the bench.

"Ah great, I thought they were done with this," Hiccup sighed. Fishlegs raised an eyebrow.

"Um, do you guys always have to fight?"

"Well, tell her that it's my turn to use the plate!" Tuffnut growled. Ruffnut kicked him under the table.

"No, tell her that it's my turn!" she snapped.

"Hey!"

The rest of the table blinked, staring at the single plate shared between the two. Wulfric spoke up first. "Why don't you guys just get another plate?"

The twins froze, mid-movement. Each of them had the other's collar balled in their fists and their free hands cocked, poised to throw a punch. Ruff and Tuff stared blankly at Wulfric for a few seconds, and then at each other. Then they scrambled up from the table, running off to the serving line.

"Diiiid that really need to be said?" Hjordis asked, not taking her eyes off of the retreating pair. Astrid pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Apparently."

Baby Tooth shook her head. ((Imbeciles.))

Hiccup awoke the next morning to the sound of something pounding on his roof, which was a rather ordinary occurrence to him. Blearily he peeled open his sleep-fogged eyes, finding Toothless's slate unoccupied. For a moment he contemplated pulling the blanket over his head and going back to sleep. Then he remembered what day it was.

"All right, all right. I'm up, I'm up," he groaned as he sat upright, feeling a few soft 'pops' in his back as he yawned and stretched his arms overhead.

He went through the motions automatically as he donned his prosthetic, grabbed Toothless's flying gear out from under his bed, and made his way downstairs. His father, as per usual, was nowhere to be seen. What was not usual was the cobalt thunderdrum still sitting outside when Hiccup emerged from the hut, no saddle and no reigns.

"Oh, Thornado, what're you still doing here?" Hiccup asked, not expecting a response.

"Your dad left him for us," Jack's voice rang out. Head whipping around, Hiccup caught no sign of the Winter sprite. "Up here."

Stepping down from his porch, Hiccup cast his gaze skyward and blanched at the sight of Jack sitting casually on his roof next to Toothless. Wodensfang was wrapped around his shoulders like a scarf and Baby Tooth was floating freely in the air next to him.

"Jack, what are you doing up there!?"

"Sitting. Duh."

"Ha ha, you know that's not what I meant." Glancing around, Hiccup saw no one in the immediate area. He could hear the clang of steel from the smithy and see several adults already at work down on the pier, but nobody close enough to Hiccup's hut to really pay them much mind. "What if somebody sees you?"

"I can climb, Hic. On my own, without agic-may."

Hiccup had no idea what 'agic-may' was, but before he could think to ask, Jack decided to prove his point by standing abruptly and then hopping down from the roof. Hiccup flinched back, nearly dropping Toothless's riding gear, as the spirit landed in front of him, leaning down a few inches so their faces were close.

"So, your dad says we don't have to hide the dragons for a few more hours," Jack said, oblivious to the lanky viking's embarrassment. "Wanna go flying for a bit?"

'Keep it together Hic, don't say anything stupid or weird, and for the love of Thor, stop blushing!'

"Sure." Hiccup nodded. Out of his peripheral he caught sight of Toothless slinking down from the roof. "I was getting ready to go do that anyway."

"Perfect!" the spirit chimed, earning an affirmative chirp from Wodensfang, and suddenly Hiccup was hit by a wave of dread. He and Jack had not flown together on Toothless in a few weeks; what if Jack noticed... something? As it turned out, Hiccup need not have worried. Immediately Jack turned to Thornado, kneeling before the cobalt dragon and placing a friendly hand on his muzzle. "Whaddya say, Thornado? You're always working. Up for having a bit of fun with us?"

((Fun-yes-Icicle-happy-happy-good,)) the large dragon purred as he allowed Jack to mount him. It was a bit strange to see Jack on the thunderdrum's back; the dragon was so large and he so small, on top of which Jack had nothing to help him hold on with. He simply sat comfortably between Thornado's wings with his staff across his lap.

"Let's have a race! Last person around the island is a rotten cod head, threetwoonego!" Jack taunted as he and Thornado took off abruptly, Wodensfang chirping along with him.

"Hey, no fair!" Hiccup cried as he and Toothless took off after them. Maybe today would not be so terrible after all.

Any other person would have been torn from the thunderdrum's back at the speeds they were going, but the Wind did no such thing to Jack. Though Thornado was not capable of the same acrobatic stunts and complex maneuvers as Toothless, he was still a very powerful and very fast dragon. Jack laughed in elation as he stood atop the thunderdrum's flattened body and they skimmed the ocean surface, kicking up walls of foamy white spray in their wake. The spirit took much delight in freezing the water as it rose, creating a cloud of snow and mist behind them.

Overhead Toothless and Hiccup flanked them, swooping and diving and occasionally cutting the ocean surface or the snow-cloud with the tips of the nightfury's wings before weaving around and taking to the air once more. At one point when they came low enough Toothless spun and began flying upside down, directly over Jack's head. Hiccup had a more difficult time controlling his tail-fin with half of his weight hanging by his prosthetic, but even so he was not worried. Toothless crooned in pleasure when Jack reached up and stroked his scales and then he righted himself once more and shot ahead.

Poor Wodensfang squawked in terror as he held on to Jack's tunic for dear life, needle-like claws digging into the soft skin underneath. Baby Tooth fared much better from her seat in Jack's purse. Happily, she poked her head out into the open air, alternating between staring ahead at them at the seemingly endless expanse of ocean and watching the trail of snow behind them.

"All right, Thornado," Jack said, kneeling atop the tidal class. "Why don't we-"

He was cut off by a long, ominous cry from somewhere beneath them. ((You-you-what-you-strange-cousins-wingless-together-flying-you?))

"Jack, look out!"

Casting his gaze to the sea below them, Jack saw a massive shadow rise from its depths. Thornado moved on his own, spreading his wings and leaping into the air as a massive, manta-ray like dragon broke the surface. The dragon was as long as one of the viking's longboats, head to tail, and twice as long at the wingspan. It had two heads that appeared to be a cross between eels and barracudas and spoke in a single voice, just like Barf-and-Belch did. Underneath the water its scales had a silvery-grey sheen, but as it came to a stop just beneath the surface its two rows of spiny dorsal fins broke the water and with each swell of waves sunlight poured over its intense blue scales.

((Curiosity-strange-strange-flying-cousins-caution-worry-wingless-bad?-not-bad?))

"Whoa," Jack breathed as the new dragon called to them. "Hey, Thornado, slow down, I wanna say hi to him."

In the air above them Hiccup and Toothless had also come to a stop, the nightfury's wings beating the air furiously as they hovered overhead. "Wait what? Jack, what are you doing?"

Thornado continued to hover in place as Jack slipped from his perch. Wodensfang remained on the thunderdrum's back and Baby Tooth dug her tiny fingers into the thick material of Jack's purse, eying the new dragon cautiously and feeling worry-curiosity-distrust-Love-protectiveness. Jack lowered himself to the sea surface, where the ray-like dragon tread the water. Both sets of eyes were trained on him and the mouths were parted in what looked like feral grins.

((I think we should go, Jackie,)) Baby Tooth tweeted. ((He could be dangerous.))

"He's just curious," Jack assured her. Held aloft by the Wind, he hovered several feet above the surface of the water. He angled himself so that he was stomach down and held out one hand towards the new arrival.

"Jack!" Hiccup called, heart beating furiously. As much as he liked dragons, he knew how dangerous they could be, especially the wild ones that were not used to people, and he could not put a name to this one. Maybe it would turn out to be friendly, or maybe it would see Jack as a potential meal and try to bite his arm off. "Jack, get up here right now!"

"It's fine," Jack called back, and then to the dragon, "Hi there. I'm Jack."

One of the dragon's eel-like heads rose from beneath the water, blinking curiously as it sniffed his outstretched hand. ((You-Icicle-wingless?-no-no-wingless-you-flying-speaking-you-Icicle-dragon-yes?-yes?))

"Well, no, not really. I'm a spirit," Jack replied. "I used to be human, but not anymore."

The dragon hissed. His head shrank back. ((Bad-bad-wingless-threat-angry-bad-wingless-hunt-stalk-kill-cousins.))

Hiccup and Toothless began to descend, neither of them liking the new dragon's unfriendly tone.

"Maybe in other places, but on Berk humans and dragons get along," Jack replied, withdrawing his hand. He tossed a look over his shoulder and continued, "See? Just look at Hiccup and Toothless; they're best friends!"

The dragon seemed to consider his words for several moments. When he said nothing, Jack extended his hand once more.

((Jackie...)) Baby Tooth urged once more. He ignored her.

((Unsure-caution-Icicle-strange-maybe-good-maybe...)) Again the dragon raised one of its heads, this time bringing its muzzle closer and closer to Jack's outstretched fingers.

((STOOOOP!)) Thornado roared, too late.

The moment Jack's skin made contact with the new dragon's he was stuck. He felt his muscles clench and tighten painfully as his nerves seemed to erupt in flames.

"Jack!" Hiccup screamed. Thornado and Toothless snarled in unison, launching a sonic boom and a plasma blast simultaneously at the manta-ray dragon. With a feral hissed it jerked back and dove back into the depths, narrowly avoiding their attacks.

With his connection to the dragon broken, Jack felt his body go slack. Dark spots appeared at the edges of his vision and he plunged into the ocean beneath him.

Toothless swooped downwards, snatching up Jack by his forearms. The Wind screamed around them as they rocketed towards the nearest land, Thornado following closely behind with Jack's staff in his claws.

Jack awoke to an eerily familiar scene; the world was dark and he was being held protectively by thin arms close against another person's body. It was an alien sensation to him, and a blissful one. His arms and legs felt heavy and his lungs hurt and he just wanted to curl up against the other person and go back to sleep.

They would have none of that, however.

"Jack, please wake up. Please, oh gods, don't be dead, you can't be dead..."

Dead? Who was dead? He was immortal. He just wanted to go back to sleep...

((Jackie, please, Love, wake up, wake up...))

Baby Tooth? Why was she crying? Jack tried to peel open his eyes, but they were glued shut. He let out a weak groan.

"Jack!" Hiccup's relieved laugh came out almost as a sob. "Jack, you're okay. Stay with me, bud."

((Sad-scared-Icicle-hurt-scared-sa-a-a-a-ad,)) Toothless's voice whined.

"Mhm... H-Hic? Wha...?"

Finally Jack's eyelids parted. Above him he saw a blurry silhouette of a person leaning in close, their form wavering and dancing like a reflection on choppy water. With each passing second his vision swam a little less and the figure became more and more discernible; the sea of freckles, the mop of messy brown hair, the small, barely noticeable scar on the chin, and clear, intelligent green eyes...

Suddenly Jack was wide awake.

He bolted upright, head nearly colliding with Hiccup's as he broke out into an abrupt coughing fit.

Hiccup and Toothless had brought them to a set of sea stacks, dropping Jack atop the flat surface of one before touching down themselves. Now Toothless and Thornado sat a few feet away, watching the two boys with Baby Tooth and Wodensfang perched atop each of their backs respectively. For once, Hiccup had abandoned his aversion to touching in Jack in favor of clinging to the spirit as though he might vanish any second.

"Jack, relax, breathe," Hiccup urged as he rubbed slow, soothing circles on the spirit's back. Jack shuddered as he struggled to bring his breathing back under control. Baby Tooth and the three dragons crooned happily as he came to.

"I am breathing," he groused. Taking two more gasping breaths, he asked, "What happened?"

"What happened?" Disbelief saturated his tone. Suddenly his expression hardened. "What happened is I told you to get away from that dragon and you didn't listen! The dragon did something and it paralyzed you!"

"Oh." Jack stared at Hiccup dumbly for a moment before he began to pull himself up. His legs still felt like jelly and his clothes were weighed down by seawater, forcing him to rely on Hiccup to stand. "Actually, I think he electrocuted me."

"Is that really important right now?" Hiccup snapped, his grip on Jack's arms tightening. "Why didn't you listen to me!? You could have been killed!"

Jack frowned and pulled away from Hiccup. Baby Tooth settled on his shoulder. "I'm immortal, remember? I can't die."

"Do you actually know that? Like, do you actually know without a doubt that absolutely nothing can kill you? What if that dragon had dragged you underwater? What if it had eaten you?" The viking's voice was getting frantic.

"But he didn't," Jack retorted, turning his back on Hiccup. "Where's my staff?"

"That's it?" Hiccup scoffed as Jack bent and collected his staff from where Thornado had dropped it on the ground. "That's all you're going to say?"

Scowling, Jack turned on Hiccup. "What else is there to say?"

"Well, you could try apologizing, for one!"

The two teens were oblivious to their audience. Baby Tooth, Wodensfang, Toothless and Thornado said nothing, but watched awkwardly, gazes shifting between the two as their voices steadily rose.

"Apologize for what?" Jack snapped. "I didn't do anything wrong!" For once.

"You didn't listen!" Hiccup's arms were moving seemingly on his own. "I told you to get away from it!"

"Well, gee, sorry Dad, for not following your every order!"

"What!? Order!? I c- I-I-I can't believe you even think that's what this is about!"

"You might be the leader of your academy, but you are not the boss of me!" Jack snarled as he turned his back on Hiccup. "You know what? Forget it. Come on Baby Tooth."

Baby Tooth tweeted and then immediately zipped to his side. She hid in his purse, trembling as she felt his hurt-confusion-anger-frustration while he in turn felt her sadness-worry-confusion-fear. Sucking in a deep breath and doing what he had been for centuries, Jack bit back his emotions and took off, the Wind carrying him far away from Hiccup and the sea stacks.

"Jack wait!" Hiccup called, but the Winter sprite was already a speck in the distance. With a frustrated groan, Hiccup ran a hand through his hair. Curling his fingers into a fist he tugged at his scalp in a vain attempt to relieve some tension. "Come on Toothless," he said, rushing to the nightfury's side and throwing himself into the saddle. "We should go after him."

Toothless crooned pitifully as Hiccup mounted him. The moment he heard Hiccup's prosthetic click into place and felt his tail fin balance out he unfurled his wings and leaped into the air, Thornado following closely behind with Wodensfang still perched on his back.

Jack managed to lose Hiccup long before either of them arrived in Berk. As he flew over the village Hiccup was able to see that the village itself had been cleared of dragons. The other riders must have been hard at work while he and Jack were busy playing, Hiccup realized with a pang of guilt. Looking at the fall of shadows, he knew that he had little over an hour before the Berserkers were due to arrive, and with the fair wind it was likely they would arrive sooner than that. With a reluctant sigh he and Toothless descended before the smithy. Toothless crooned in sympathy as Hiccup unlatched his leg from the prosthetic and climbed out of the saddle.

"You go on to the cove, bud," he said, placing his hands on the underside of the nightfury's jaw and giving a gentle shake. "I'll come get you when it's safe, all right?"

Toothless chirped and nuzzled Hiccup's cheek lovingly before pulling away. He bounded off quickly, disappearing between rows of wooden huts as he raced towards his favorite place on the island. Hiccup waved after him, and then sighed.

"Rough day, Hiccup?"

Whirling around, Hiccup found himself face to face with, "Gobber!" He ran his fingers through his hair. "I didn't notice you there."

"Ah was lookin' fer mah panpipes," Gobber explained through the stall window. He bent, ducking out of sight as he began rummaging through miscellaneous items stowed haphazardly on the shelves. "Thought ah'd give the good chief a bit o' a show when 'e pulled in."

Laughing nervously, Hiccup deigned not to tell the blacksmith that Stoick had actually thrown his panpipes into the ocean several nights ago. "Uh, have you seen Jack anywhere?"

"Eh, yeah, actually." Placing his remaining hand on top of the shelf, Gobber hoisted himself to his feet, giving a pained grunt as something in his back cricked loudly. "Stopped by 'ere a while ago an' asked where the rest o' yer friends were. I sent 'im to the forest where all yer dragons are hidin' out."

"Ah." Well that was a relief. At least Jack had come back to the island. Heaving a sigh, Hiccup leaned against one of the wooden columns holding the smithy roof up. Gobber raised an eyebrow.

"Iiiiis there somethin' ya need to get off yer chest, lad?"

"No... Well, yes... maybe." Hiccup sighed. Again. Pushing himself off of the wall, he turned to face Gobber. "So, I woke up this morning to Toothless bouncing up and down on the roof like he normally does. I go outside, and there's Jack waiting for me with Thornado. He says we don't need to hide the dragons for a little while longer and do I want to go flying and I think, 'sure, why not?' We go out, sun is shining, seas are calm, all is right with the world, and then out of nowhere this dragon, this... incredibly huge dragon that I've never seen before comes up out of the water." By this point Hiccup had begun pacing in circles, waving his arms wildly with the telling of his story.

"Mm-hmm, right." Gobber had gone back to shuffling under the counter searching for his panpipes. "Go on."

"I want to get out of there. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love new dragons, but this thing is freaking enormous and on top of that it's hissing and giving us the stink eye. I tell Jack to get away from it, and you know what that idiot does?"

"'E listens to ye an' ye both fly off into the sunset?"

Hiccup threw up his arms in exasperation. "He reaches out and pets it!"

"You did what!?"

Jack shrugged a bit sheepishly in response to Astrid's question. With the dragons all sequestered in Berk's pine forest and its snowy peak, the teens had taken it upon themselves to watch over them and make sure that they did not try to reenter the village until Stoick was ready to break the news to Chief Osvald. It was fairly easy, as Jack's Gift of Tongues made explaining the circumstances doable. The rest of the teens were off patrolling the borders of what they dubbed the 'dragon protection zone' while Jack and Astrid lounged in the same place where the Riders of Berk had been hiding out from their parents on the day that he had fallen through the portal and met them.

"Well, he didn't seem dangerous," Jack replied with a shrug. He was currently sitting behind Astrid, atop a fallen log while she sat on the grass in front of him. As they spoke he was weaving a thin, delicate braid into her golden hair, his staff leaning within arm's reach against the log. "I'm pretty sure he was just curious about us. Worst case scenario I would have just frozen him and flown away."

"And is that what it came to?" Astrid gave Baby Tooth's silver feather a gentle stroke. The frost fairy was sitting in the palm of the viking girl's hand while Jack was busy working on her hair.

"Well, no. He, uh... He kind of electrocuted me."

"He did what!?"

"I don't think it was on purpose!" Jack added quickly. "He might not have realized that touching me would do that. He really did seem like he was just curious."

"Well, what happened after that?"

"I'm not really sure. My body went stiff and everything felt like it was on fire. Next thing I know I'm waking up in Hiccup's arms."

Astrid blinked. She and Baby Tooth shared a look, and the frost fairy shrugged.

"He seemed scared at first, but when I got up and started walking around he got angry out of nowhere and started saying I should be apologizing!" He tied off the end of the small braid and began working on a second, larger one.

"So, what did you say?" Astrid asked, though she could already venture a guess.

"What do you think I said? I told him-"

"-that he didn't do anything wrong! Like giving me a heart attack wasn't 'doing something wrong!'"

"An' ah'm guessin' it all went downhill from there," Gobber sighed. Having finally given up on his panpipes, he leaned his elbow on the counter-top, resting his chin in his hand as he listened to Hiccup's account.

"I mean, what was he thinking!? That I would laugh it off? That I wouldn't care? He nearly died!"

"But 'e didn'," Gobber pointed out, no differently than Jack had. "Mebbe ye're lookin' at this the wrong way."

"What other way is there to look at it?" Hiccup growled. "He was reckless, even when I warned him, and he didn't even care that he scared me half to death."

"Ah, but did 'e know that? From wot ah've seen, the lad's pretty independent."

Hiccup slowed to a stop. Jack had been alone for a long time...

'I'm over three-hundred years old. Believe me, I can take care of myself.'

"But... But he doesn't have to be anymore," Hiccup argued. "He has us now."

"Hiccup, people don' jes stop doin' things the way they've been doin' 'em for years. Unless it's fightin' dragons. Ah like to think we got all tha' outta our systems." When Hiccup scoffed and rolled his eyes, Gobber placed his real hand on the teen's shoulder and continued, "Listen, ah know ye were jes worried about 'im."

"He... He was worried about me?"

"Well, yeah, duh." Astrid admired her reflection in the small hand-mirror crafted of ice that Jack had given her. He had finished her braids now, winding one small braid through an even larger one on the side of her head. She smiled; it looked good. "I mean, I would have been if I was there. Think about it; wouldn't you have been worried if Hiccup was the one who got hurt?"

Jack flinched. "Well, yeah... B-but that's different! He doesn't have to worry about me; I can take care of myself just fine!"

"You sure about that?" Astrid shook her head as she handed the mirror back to Jack. "Friends don't worry about each other because they have to, idiot; they do it because they care. Hiccup couldn't stop worrying if he wanted to. Believe me."

Pinching his brows, Jack tossed the ice mirror aside. It shattered the moment it hit the ground.

'Wow, Hiccup's really protective of you, isn't he?'

'Stop! ...You'll get yourself killed.'

'Jack, please wake up. Please, oh gods, don't be dead, you can't be dead...'

A small part of Jack felt guilty. Another part was indignant. Okay, so he was far from a huge, muscle-bound axe-swinging viking, but he also was by no means weak! He could take care of himself just fine!

But...

He looked to Baby Tooth. He could feel her worry-Love-anger-relief as though it were his own, and he did not even need to think about apologizing to her because she could also feel his guilt-regret-Love, but he and Hiccup did not have an empathetic bond like that. If Hiccup's fear or worry were anywhere close to Baby Tooth's, how would he have felt it?

Swallowing thickly, Jack said, "I... I guess I do owe him an apology, huh?"

Astrid shrugged noncommittally.

"All right, all right already, I'm going!" Astrid shook her head and chuckled as Jack grabbed up his staff. A trilling sound filled the air as Baby Tooth zipped to his side. "Hey, Astrid... thanks."

"Of course!" The blonde pulled herself to her feet, interlocking her fingers and stretching her arms overhead. "You do realize, though, if I ever hear about you petting strange dragons again I will beat you senseless?"

"Aaaaaaand that would be my cue to run like Hel."

"Stoick's going to want Hiccup to come with him to greet the Berserker chief!" Astrid called as the two immortals leaped into the air. Jack hung back just long enough for her to finish speaking. "In case you were wondering where he was."

Jack nodded before spinning in the air and taking off for the village, Baby Tooth trailing not far behind.

It seemed as though the entire village had come out to greet the Berserker fleet, though Hiccup knew this was not the case; the Riders, for example, were hidden safely away in the woods with the dragons, and Jack's troupe of children was nowhere to be seen.

Neither was the frost spirit, for that matter.

It was hardly surprising, Hiccup supposed, that Jack had made himself absent. Even if they had not had an argument, Jack would probably prefer to retreat to the woods to play with the dragons or the kids or both rather than stick around for the Viking politics. With the rest of the teens on dragon-sitting duty, that meant Hiccup would likely be stuck with Dagur while the two chiefs worked out the details of the treaty.

Hiccup suppressed a shudder.

The Berserker fleet was still a cloud of tiny specks on the horizon, but the wind was good and they would be pulling in very soon. Standing behind his father on the pier, Hiccup resigned himself to a lonely day of being tormented, assaulted, and possibly maimed by Osvald the Agreeable's son. Again.

"Hey."

Nearly jumping out of his freckled skin, Hiccup whirled to find himself face to face with none other than Jack. The spirit was staring at him with an apologetic expression on his face... Was it apologetic? Maybe that was just Hiccup's wishful thinking. He was still angry at Jack for not listening to him and being reckless, but Gobber's statement was weighing heavily on his mind. It stung to realize that Jack probably thought of his concern as little more than an annoyance.

Hiccup did not want to apologize - not for getting angry and definitely not for being worried - but he realized at this point he might have to. Jack obviously did not think he was in the wrong; it was not childish stubbornness, but a genuine lack of understanding.

"Jack, I-"

"Look, Hic-"

Both boys stopped, mid-sentence, and exchanged a slightly awkward look.

"Y-you should go first," Jack said, gripping his staff so tightly that his already pale knuckles turned snow-white.

"No, n-no. Uh, you go first."

"Okay..." Jack's gaze was everywhere but Hiccup's face; on the pier, on the chief's back, on the fleet of Berserker ships now close enough that the skrill insignia on their flags was readily visible. "Look, I'm sorry I worried you," he started, fighting the urge to twist his staff nervously in his hands. "But you really didn't have anything to be worried about. I'm... Well, I can't die. Even if I could, I can take care of myself just fine."

"I know, I just..." Hiccup curled a fist in his hair and then sighed. Could Jack really? If he were less durable would he still have touched that strange dragon? "Look, Jack, I-I'm sorry I yelled, I shouldn't have... I was just scared. You know?"

"Yeah. I do now." Finally Jack met Hiccup's eyes and... gods no! Hiccup felt his heart rate accelerate as he took in the warm, reluctantly touched expression on his friend's face. "Thanks, Hic."

"Ah... for what?"

"For caring enough to be worried."

"Oh... You don't have to thank me for that. We're friends, of course I'd worry."

Jack did not reply right away. Pressing his lips into a fine line, he turned his gaze back out to the ocean. A low hum rose from the crowd of vikings as the first longboat approached the pier. Hiccup had said that so easily, it made him feel guilty all over again. He liked Hiccup; he enjoyed the brunette's cleverness, and his dry wit, and his dare-devilish streak. Aside from Baby Tooth, Jack was fairly certain Hiccup counted as his closest friend.

Except that Jack had been unintentionally keeping Hiccup at arm's length.

Three hundred years of solitude had conditioned Jack to behave a certain way. He looked out for himself, healed his own hurts, and never, never, asked anyone for help with anything, large or trivial. At first it was because there was no one around to ask, and then it was because he had just gotten used to being self-sufficient. For three hundred years this way of thinking had served him well. It had made him strong, given him the tools he needed to take care of himself and others. It had also made him reluctant at best to accept any form of concern or goodwill.

Hiccup, meanwhile, shifted in place, his prosthetic giving a slight squeak as he ground it into the wooden planks.

"Erm... Jack-"

The clattering of wood against wood as the brow of a Berserker longboat was lowered cut Hiccup off.

"Presenting, the High Chief of the Berserker tribe!"

Hiccup's and Jack's eyes snapped up in unison, towards the large, burly man in studded leather armor standing before the brow of the only moored longboat. The whole of the Hooligan tribe was standing at attention, eyes raised to the man with the booming voice as he held aloft a wicked, two pronged spear.

"Cracker of skulls!"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow.

"Slayer of beasts!"

Jack hoped he was not referring to dragons.

"The great and fearsome-!"

"Osvald the Agreeable?" Gobber interjected, eyebrow perked as he gave voice to what everyone present was currently thinking.

"Dagur the Deranged!"

Hiccup's heart dropped to the pit of his stomach as the Berserker stood aside, revealing the son of Osvald the Agreeable. Dagur scowled at him. Well, at them, expression oozing distaste for the more or less peaceful residents of Berk. Though Dagur was not as burly as many of the other Berserkers, and stood half a head shorter than Stoick, he was still powerful, muscular, and Hiccup had seen first-hand how agile and flexible he was. Like his men, Dagur was dressed in studded leathers. His belt buckle - the same gold, ceremonial one Osvald wore every year prior to the signing of the treaty - bore the Berserkers' trademark skrill insignia. His braided, copper-colored hair was tucked beneath an iron helmet with two long, lopsided horns curling up into the air and his left eye was decorated with three blue, painted slashes.

Terror mingled with dread dulled into resigned acceptance as the Berserker chieftain hocked a loogie into the ocean swell and flashed Hiccup his signature manic grin.

Stoick stared in disbelief. "Dagur?"

Gobber's eyes widened in horror. "Deranged?"

Hiccup groaned. "Oh no."

Dagur's hand became a blur as he snatched a knife from his belt and, without pausing to aim, hurled it at the two teenagers standing on the pier. Hiccup and Jack each hopped to the side moments before the dagger buried itself to the hilt in the wooden bit behind where they had been standing.

"Oh, perfect," Hiccup sighed.

Jack said nothing. Were his skin not already abnormally pale, someone might have noticed the blood rushing from his face. His eyes were wide and his pupils were dilated with shock and horror as he stared at the man these people called Dagur, hands clenching so tightly around his staff that he nearly broke skin. His muscles bunched, ready either to spring and take off in any direction that would take him away from this place and these people or to swing his staff and send a rain of icicles hurtling towards the Berserker chief.

While he would not argue that the name 'Dagur the Deranged' was well suited, it was not the name Jack knew this man by. Jack also recalled his skin having a grayish, sickly pallor and his eyes glowing malevolent amber, the air around him cackling with static as he swung his axe around like a toy.

Finally Jack spoke, his voice coming out as a barely audible whisper, soft enough that even he hardly heard it. "Perun."

Perun, the Slavic god of warriors, of fire and lightning, and of violent acts of nature.

#fanfiction #my writing #The Long Road #hijack #frostcup #jaccup

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